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NECA has just posted up five new images of its up-and-coming figure version of the Predalien from AvP Requiem:
“When the ravenous Aliens find a Predator host, the result is a monstrous Hybrid! Fans got their first glimpse at stills of the horrific beast last week, and today, as a special Halloween treat, NECA is proud to release the first images of our highly detailed AVP: Requiem Hybrid Action Figure!”
And thanks to Mark over at NECA, I have posted all five images in our forum in high res. The Predalien is part of NECA’s AvPR series 1 which hits the shelves in December.


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Of American-English origin, the phrase pester power denotes the children’s ability to pressurise their parents into buying something, or doing something for them, by continuing to ask for it until their parents agree to do it.
This phrase originally referred to television advertising targeting children—as shown by the earliest occurrences of pester power that I have found:
1-: From Kids Advertising Hearings to Open, by Larry Kramer, published in The Washington Post (Washington, District of Columbia) of Wednesday 28th February 1979:
On Monday, five weeks of hearings on the merits of television advertising aimed at children begin at the Federal Trade Commission. But Action for Children’s Television (ACT), the Boston consumer group which first called for strict regulations of children’s advertising nearly a decade ago, decided not to wait for the hearings to fire its first volley.
So at a press conference here yesterday, ACT released its new 22-minute film examining the state of commercial children’s television, “Kids for Sale.”
Portions of the movie deal with the mission of advertising for children: to get their parents to buy a certain type of toy or cereal.
“They (the children) use all the pester power they can muster” to talk their parents into purchases, a narrator warned.
2-: From Maybe TV understands kids too well, by Jeanne Garland, published in The Sun (Baltimore, Maryland) of Sunday 7th December 1980:
The cereal aisle of grocery stores and any toy store are places wisely avoided by parents when in the company of youngsters, especially this time of year. These areas can easily become noisy battle grounds testing the willpower of the parents against the pester power of the kid. And the more television the child watches, the more the odds are stacked against the parent.
3-: From TV important as school in child’s socialization, by Sharon Ward, published in the Hattiesburg American (Hattiesburg, Mississippi) of Friday 25th September 1981:
“Television has become a device which is as important as the school in the socialization of children,” said Dr. Hans A. Baer, cultural anthropologist at USM, during his presentation at the Conference on the Influence of Children’s Television on the Child, Family and Society being held at USM today.
The sponsors of television programs expect the program to promote its products, whether through sex or violence or not, Dr. Baer said. The primary concern of a sponsor is to promote sales rather than to inform the viewers through the program being sponsored, he added. The same is relevant with programs aimed at children. The commercials that grasp the attention of children between cartoons have that goal of instilling in the child’s mind that product which, through “pester-power,” has a way of converting itself into cash for the advertiser.
The phrase has come to be used in British, Irish and Australian English, too—for example:
– The following is from The Guardian (London and Manchester, England) of Saturday 19th June 1993:
GLOSSARY FOR THE NINETIES . . .
PESTER POWER n. The latest ad-agency buzzword: it refers to that sweet habit children seem to have of persuading parents to spend big bucks on specific brand names. Little cherubs.
– The following is from the Irish Independent (Dublin, County Dublin, Ireland) of Thursday 13th May 1993:
Parents suffer in pester-power play
Advertisers are increasingly targeting children to make the ‘hard-sell’, Eamonn Holmes explores the controversial strategy
Pester-power is the marketing and advertising industries’ latest weapon—using children to goad their parents into buying products. And the campaigns are not aimed solely at selling toys, breakfast cereals, sweets and soft drinks.
Orchestrated by the marketing men, it goes far beyond children’s classic nagging for sweets or a chocolate bar at the supermarket checkout.
Marketing firms believe young people are increasingly influential across the whole range of the family’s shopping.
So they are being targeted with goods that have no obvious connection with childhood, such as pet food, TVs, cars, stereo equipment, furniture and household cleaners.
Pester-power is a delight to the marketing moguls—it’s thought to be worth millions of pounds a year in potential sales.
– The following is from Give us a break, by Jane Freeman, published in The Sydney Morning Herald (Sydney, New South Wales) of Thursday 29th June 1995:
A national survey on Australian children’s influence on spending patterns, issued last month by AMR Quantum Harris, found kids influenced the choice of holiday destinations in 33 per cent of cases (compared with their 81 per cent influence over fast food choices and 65 per cent over breakfast cereal).
The report found that children’s influence over holiday destinations had increased in the past three years. In niche marketing circles, the influence of children has been dubbed “pester power”.

domain: news


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Manage your email, time and calendar.
Google's email app for Android is expanding its horizons to handle other mail services, according to an apparent leaked video on Android Police and Videme.
Remember that Netflix price increase? A lot of potential subscribers did, resulting in fewer-than-expected sign-ups. That, and an austere outlook for earnings, has investors spooked.
The gaming company cuts outlook after its says revamps of hit games, including Words With Friends, will take longer. But, it says, new efforts should prove fruitful.
Microsoft releases a minor update to Office for Mac 2011, but there's no word on when the next version will be available.
The company says only 20 percent of an average user's e-mail messages are personal -- that means a lot of clutter. Enhancements rolling out over the next few weeks should help.
Microsoft spiffs up Outlook.com with more advanced rules, new undo options, and in-line reply functionality.
Microsoft's video chat service is now integrated with Outlook.com for those outside the handful of countries that were part of the initial release.
Protect your primary Outlook.com address by using "+" addressing, which gives you instant aliases to use.
You can change the From: name in your Web e-mail accounts. We'll show you how to change it in Gmail, Yahoo Mail, and Outlook.com.
Chief financial officer says that Sony, owner of one of the world's three major labels, needs to evaluate what kind of value it's getting in allowing catalog music to be streamed for free.


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Multiple unannounced games have been canceled by Paradox Interactive
The cancellation of several unannounced video games has been announced by Swedish video game publisher, Paradox Interactive.
The Swedish video game publisher Paradox Interactive has released a number of video games, including Empire of Sin, Stellaris, Pillars of Eternity, and others. The company intends to release the Shadowrun Trilogy on Nintendo Switch by next year, and it still has plans for the rest of its game projects.
Despite some success, however, Paradox Interactive is in the process of changing its video game development strategy. On September 30, the company announced the cancellation of several unannounced video game projects. It states that this is part of the company’s strategy to direct its resources toward more established video game projects that will meet its financial requirements for “returns and risk.”
The company did not reveal the names of the unannounced video games or the number of canceled games. According to the press release, the company has written down the value of the canceled game projects, which will have an impact on the company’s profit before tax in the third quarter of 2021. Along with the recent cancellations, the post adds that Paradox Interactive has canceled a number of video games since the third quarter of 2020.
According to the post, Paradox Interactive has been concentrating its game development and business activities on the company’s “core areas.” According to Fredrik Wester, the current CEO of Paradox Interactive, the company was Paradox Interactive’s current CEO, Fredrik Wester, said the company was “born and raised in strategy and management games.” He talked about how the company is passionate about making video games with longevity for players to enjoy for long periods of time. As a result, the company has been making sure game projects with the highest potential receive the resources they need in order to achieve “the best development possible.”
Wester stated that the company now has a “promising game pipeline” and he is excited to share the new games with players in the coming years. The post also reveals that Paradox Interactive is currently working on fifteen new video games, some of which are sequels to existing franchises and others that are entirely new. Victoria 3, the next-gen console port of Crusader Kings 3, Shadowrun Trilogy, and Vampire: the Masquerade – Bloodlines 2 are among the games that have already been announced.
There are also a number of DLCs in the works, including the Royal Court expansion for Crusader Kings 3. The cancellations come on the heels of Ebba Ljungerud, the previous CEO of Paradox Interactive, stepping down earlier this month. According to her official statement, Ljungerud stepped down due to differing opinions on the company’s future game development strategy.


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Hardware cryptocurrency wallet provider Trezor has issued a warning to its users about a new phishing attack targeting investors’ crypto investments. On February 28, Trezor took to Twitter to alert users of an active scam that tries to steal private keys by asking them to enter their wallet’s recovery phrase on a fake website. The company urged users to remain vigilant and not to share their recovery phrases with anyone.
The phishing scam
Trezor Suite has recently been targeted in a phishing campaign by attackers pretending to be Trezor, who are contacting victims via phone calls, texts, or emails claiming that their Trezor account has experienced a security breach or suspicious activity.
These messages urge users to follow a link that purports to “secure” their device; however, Trezor has emphatically stated that these messages are not from them and should be ignored. Furthermore, no evidence of a database breach has been found. As such, any communications from Trezor will only come via official channels and never over unsolicited phone calls or SMS messages.
On February 27, this phishing attack targeting Trezor customers was reported online. The scam directed users to a malicious website that posed as the official Trezor page, prompting them to enter their recovery seed and click the “Start” button to secure their wallet. The fraudulent domain contained an expertly crafted replica of the legitimate Trezor website.
Clicking the “Start” button will prompt users to enter their cryptocurrency wallet’s recovery phrase, also known as private keys. Private keys are essential for self-custody, which is a way of “being your own bank” by storing crypto on a non-custodial software or hardware wallet. The security of private keys is paramount, as any theft of the phrase will strip the original owner of their crypto holdings.
Phishing attacks in the crypto industry
On February 26, metaverse firm The Sandbox suffered a data breach that resulted in a phishing email sent out to users. This latest attack against Trezor customers is not an isolated incident as the wallet provider was already targeted with similar attacks in April 2022. At this time, scammers posed as Trezor representatives and asked users to download a fake Trezor app. Unfortunately, this kind of attack is not exclusive to Trezor either. In 2020, competitor Ledger experienced a major data breach that resulted in the public exposure of personal information belonging to over 270,000 of its customers.


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A fishing family who have had the sea running through their veins for five generations will be opening their very own fresh fish shack this weekend.
Owners Claire, 46 and Brian Tapper, 44, who have been working tirelessly over the last month to get the derelict boathouse up to scratch in a bid to bring fresh fish back to the Barbican, will be putting on an array of activities as a start to their brand new venture.
A ribbon at the entrance will be cut at 2.30pm on Saturday followed by an afternoon on fun-filled seaside fun.
Visitor's can enjoy a children's crabbing contest on the quay, face painting as well as the team announcing the winners of their crab picture colouring contest.
The contest has been running in a bid to find fun and creative art work to be canvassed and placed in prime position in their shop.
And the lucky winner picked by chosen judge Herald What's On reporter Richard Amofa, will receive two tickets to the National Marine Aquarium.
The top ten will receive a sought-after crab line set to fish for crabs from the quayside.
A live lobster tank will also be in situ on the day with steamed lobster, crab and crab claws on sale for anyone who's after a savoury weekend treat.
And .... who makes traditional willow crab pots will be there to show the crowds how to create the lost-art.
Co-owner Claire, who will be working in the shop part of the shack, told The Herald: "We're just adding the last few touches and hoping for a great turn out and some good weather - it should be a fun day.
"It will be amazing to finally reveal what we've spent all this time working on.
"We're looking forward to getting cracking and finally having it up and running."
With the help of their two children, the childhood sweethearts have refurbished the derelict boathouses in a bid to set up a thriving processing lab and shop - selling their fresh catches to the locals.
Crab is usually landed bulk to factories for processing, but after years of friends asking for local product they decided to try and add some value to their catch and process to sell themselves in the area.
They will sell fresh lobster, crab and a variety of fish in their shop and despite being seasonal, the locals can expect an exciting array of plaice, mackerel, cod and hake across the year.
Husband Brian is the fifth generation of Plymouth fisherman in his family and along with his son BJ and brother Lee, they operate a couple of small inshore crabbers from Plymouth.
Claire was raised on the Barbican and remembers her mother going off to work there many years ago when crab was processed by hand.
"There has been fishing in our family for five generations," Claire said.
"My son now has part ownership in our boat and goes out fishing and my husband's still fishing so it's a family tradition."
When asked why they chose the Barbican as their base, Claire said: "I'm from the Barbican and my husband's a fisherman - we've got fishing boats and normally the catch comes in and it gets sold to elsewhere.
"But there's not much profit to be seen now so we've decided to pick our own crab.
"I've done a little bit myself before at home and a lot of people have said you should take it [crabbing] on."
She added: "It will all be picked by hand and hopefully kept local.
"Literally it will come into Sutton Harbour, be collected, come across and be processed by me and my daughter and then sold in here and maybe to the local restaurants - whoever is interested."
Unit 14 will house the cracking room holding a state of the art enclosed steaming system.
With limited space, the team have decided to only steam and process crab claws from their catch - the very best of the meat that a crab has to offer.
Claire and her daughter will operate the cracking room and hand pick to ensure the quality is delivered in the finished product as opposed to industrial blowing methods.
As well as being more efficient than traditional boiling methods, it uses less than five litres to steam approximately 30kg of crab claws and produces little waste.
Steaming provides a quick cook method which locks in the taste of the crab and unlike boiling does not add lots of water to meat so it produces a superior quality product.
There is still time to enter the competition by printing out the black and white crab above.
Create the most colourful and interesting crab you can and send this via the Cracking Crab Company Facebook or take it along to the opening for judging on the day.


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Or as senior plant electrical engineer Mr Leo put it, "We are lightly staffed on our maintenance, and we don't want to be working on our lights all the time." He recalled that high-bay metal-halide (MH) lamps would frequently dim out so that "probably about once a year we had to have somebody go up and change bulbs on them." With ceiling heights around 60 ft in some locations, replacement was never easy.
That was in GK Corn light not-too-distant past, which included the MH high bays as well as fluorescents, sodium-vapor lamps, and other light sources for street lamps, area lighting, and other functions. The mill had around 10,000 of the older-technology lamps as recently as 2012. It had been considering installing LED lighting for several years prior to that, tempted in large measure by the promise of longer lifetimes and, eventually, 5-year warranties from China industrial LED lighting vendor Shen Zhen GuanKe Technology Co:Ltd.
"Once every year-and-a-half to two years with conventional lighting, they were needing to change out lamps - relamp the facility or swap out whole entire fixtures," said Shen Zhen Guan Ke Director of Sales Mr Cooper "Any time you do that in a heavy industrial location, whether it's a steel mill or not, it's pretty costly to do so. You have a lot of safety concerns, you have to shut down equipment, lock out, tag out, make a lot of safety precautions just to change a lamp or a ballast."
GK corn light had evaluated LED lighting as early as 2008, but the solid-state lighting (SSL) simply wasn't ready. For one reason, it didn't emit enough lumens to provide adequate illumination, which was of particular concern for high-bay installations at the works.
"LEDs just weren't that good back then," said Leo. "They were very expensive and they weren't as bright as the fluorescents."
But by 2010, SSL technology from GK corn light was beginning to improve to the point where GK Corn light believed it could start to meet the needs of its heavy-duty environment.


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[Kicking off Gamasutra's Casual Connect coverage in association with casual game website Gamezebo, Nintendo's Tom Prata talks about the 300 million active gamers worldwide, and "for every two players... another one waiting to join."]
Rising development costs and increased competition, combined with pressure to lower price points and decreased profit margins, have created the perception in many quarters that right now is the hardest time to be a game developer in the history of the medium.
However, it's a position that Nintendo of America's Senior Director of Project Development, Tom Prata, doesn't agree with. Speaking at Casual Connect, a three-day conference in Seattle geared towards the casual games industry, Prata said that there's still a lot of room to grow - provided developers are willing to follow two basic tenets: focusing on quality, and going after what is different.
In recent years Nintendo has taken a particularly radical approach to "going after what is different" by distancing itself from the technical arms race and expanding the video game market itself to bring an assortment of non-traditional gamers into the fold.
Based on Nintendo's internal research, 30 million people have become active gamers over the past 2.5 years. That same research shows that there are currently 300 million people playing handhelds and consoles around the world, yet Nintendo says there are still another 150 million people with the potential to be gamers if they were just given the right games.
"Think about that," Prata emphasized. "For every two players around the world, there's another one waiting to join."
Prata, a 10-year Nintendo veteran, said that Nintendo's new vision began to take shape for him during a road trip he took in 2000 with current Nintendo President Satoru Iwata, who at that time had just been named the new head of corporate planning at Nintendo Japan.
"This was the most important trip of my life, and though I didn't realize it at the time, the things we talked about then turned out to be a crystal ball for where Nintendo was headed," Prata said.
Prata and Iwata discussed the maturing video game industry, market saturation, how the cost of game development was increasing at an exponential rate, and how everywhere you looked the industry was obsessed with graphic performance.
It became obvious during the trip that Nintendo's future was not going to be reliant on better hardware performance. This led to a paradigm shift in how the company planned to expand the game population. The solution was to design games that everyone could enjoy.
"We needed to go beyond the boundaries of how we defined games, and expand the market to include everyone," Prata said. "Mr. Iwata saw that although the games were looking better, they were also becoming more complicated to play, leading some consumers to find them intimidating and think 'these aren't for me.'"
The road trip cemented the idea for Prata that Nintendo's future would be defined not by technical performance, but by the nature of the interactive experience. It was this philosophy, years later, that led to the touch-screen Nintendo DS and motion-sensitive Wii remote.
Nintendo's Wii Fit
is certainly one game that has stood out from the crowd, becoming the best-selling game in the world since it launched in Japan at the end of 2007, even though it carried a higher-than-normal price tag of nearly $90.
"From our experience, many developers tend to narrow target to specific audience. We don't operate on those terms; rather we choose to focus on broader market; things that appeal to everyone," Prata said. "If you can make games that appeal to everyone, regardless of experience level, then one step closer to expanding the industry."
Prata also emphasized the importance of not cutting corners on quality. "We all have budgets and constraints, but ... deciding to chip away at that core quality is never a good strategy," he said. "Not only will players pay for quality, but it's also what they promote to their family and friends, paving the way to establishing new intellectual properties and franchises. Quality is not only valuable today, but stands the test of time."
To prove his point, Prata illustrated the ongoing value of arcade classics like Donkey Kong, Pac-Man
, 30-year-old games that are still popular digital downloads on the Wii and other platforms today.
"These are games that consumers are still willing to pay to play, and clearly advancing technology has nothing to do with it," Prata said.
[Gamasutra is presenting its Casual Connect 2009 coverage in association with Gamezebo (http://www.gamezebo.com), the leading editorial and community site for casual games across all platforms. The site features reviews, previews, news, and strategy guides for the latest and greatest in casual games.]


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At the launch of Realme 2 in India, the company teased a new smartphone that will be launched in September this year. Now, we got to know from our sources that the company will launch Realme 2 Pro will be launched on September 28, 2018.
Madhav Sheth, Chief Executive Officer, Realme India said to The Mobile Indian, ” We are going to launch Realme 2 Pro within a month.”Although he did not shed light on the specifications or the exact date of launch, he said, “ It will be priced a bit higher than Realme 1 but less than Rs 20,000.” He adds that the smartphone will come with “best of the processor and best of design.” We have learned from our sources that Realme will launch its next smartphone with Qualcomm chipset.
He also made it clear that the Realme 2, which was launched at a starting price of Rs 8,990, is not an upgrade to Realme 1, rather it is a different smartphone meant for users who require power-packed features like dual rear cameras, notched display, fingerprint sensor among others.
Madhav also mentioned that the company will retain the Realme 1 smartphone in near future and it will be available in 4GB RAM and 6GB RAM variants. He justifies opting for Qualcomm Snapdragon 450 processor in Realme 2 by saying that it is currently the best chipset with this price range. “The same processor is used in smartphones that are priced up to Rs 22,000,” he added. On Android P update, he said that all Realme smartphones will be upgraded to Android 9.0 Pie, which will be based on ColorOS 5.2. He says that the Realme 2 will be updated to Android P in early next year.
Note: Lead image is for representationalpurpose only!


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Tanker Rates Skyrocket To Fill Colonial Pipeline Shortages
By Elizabeth Low (Bloomberg) Oil tanker charter rates skyrocketed in the U.S. with refiners scrambling for ships to store fuel that has nowhere to go due to a cyberattack on...
By Justin Fox
(Bloomberg View) — The labor struggle brewing at the West Coast’s ports feels like an episode from another time. The International Longshore and Warehouse Union, which represents 13,600 workers at 29 ports in California, Oregon and Washington, is the product of a famous 1934 strike that shut down San Francisco and resulted in one of the landmark labor triumphs of the New Deal era. Its members have some of the country’s last great blue-collar jobs — well-paid, secure, with solid pensions. Plus, they’re longshoremen(and women). How retro is that?
If the ILWU is a dinosaur, though, it’s a little like that smart, genetically modified one coming soon to movie screens in “Jurassic World” (Hey, Chris Pratt — look out!). In the early 1960s, longtime ILWU leader Harry Bridges decided to embrace the productivity revolution that container shipping offered, Marc Levinson writes in “The Box: How the Shipping Container Made the World Smaller and the World Economy Bigger” (if that sounds fascinating to you, buy the book, it’s great; if it doesn’t, then I really don’t know what to do with you). Perhaps alone among U.S. labor leaders, Bridges pushed for more mechanization and automation, not less. “The days of sweating on these jobs should be gone,” he told management negotiators in 1963.
The tradeoff was generous early retirement benefits and wage supplements for displaced workers. Longshoremen might lose their jobs because of the switch from bulk loads to containers, but they wouldn’t lose their incomes.
This bargain held up because the very force that eventually decimated unionized manufacturing in the U.S. — imports from Asia — was spectacular news for the ports of the West Coast. Shipping traffic exploded, especially at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, which sit right next to each other on the shores of San Pedro Bay.
Together, the LA and Long Beach ports became the country’s most important commercial gateway -– as well as a potent symbol of the unbalanced U.S. economy of the 1990s and 2000s, as ships arrived laden with electronics, toys, apparel and machinery from China and other Asian countries, and departed with mostly empty shipping containers.
Then came the global financial crisis, and sharp declines in trade. Container shipping to the West Coast ports has since mostly recovered from that fall, but the long rise in traffic seems to have given way to a plateau.
Part of the issue is that ports on the Atlantic and Gulf coasts have gained market share as shippers looked for ways around Southern California rail and highway bottlenecks and sought out ports that had things to export so their boats didn’t have to go back empty (Savannah, Georgia, with its proximity to chicken farms, paper mills and the new Southeastern manufacturing heartland, has been the biggest winner). The West Coast ports’ share of U.S. container traffic fell below 50 percent in the early 2000s; by 2013 it was down to 43.5 percent, according to the Pacific Maritime Association, which represents shippers and stevedoring companies and is the ILWU’s adversary at the negotiating table. East Coast port workers are represented by a different union, the International Longshoreman’s Association, that hasn’t been quite as successful as the ILWU at negotiating great deals for its members through the years.
So while there are no signs that the grand bargain between the PMA and ILWU is at any risk of breaking down — the new five-year contract on offer includes 3 percent annual raises (the current average income of ILWU full-timers is $147,000) and increases in pension benefits — there are ominous undertones. If the years of spectacular growth are over, the battles over how to divide the pie may get rougher.
Again, that may not be happening yet this year. The previous contract expired July 1, and it’s hard for an outsider to figure out exactly what’s been happening since. The PMA says the union is engaged in work slowdowns that have brought port operations “to the brink of gridlock”; the union says much of the slowdown is the shippers’ fault. The PMA says the main sticking point is an ILWU demand that it be able to unilaterally fire the arbitrators who rule on contract disputes; the ILWU has so far been quiet about that.
Couple the labor tensions with the arrival of giant new container ships that take longer to load and unload and a shortage of the chassis needed to pull containers off the dock, Port of Long Beach Chief Executive Officer Jon Slangerup said on Bloomberg TV today, and you get a backlog of big boats floating off the West Coast waiting to unload their cargoes. (There’s a fuller explanation of the chassis issue at Fortune.com.) My favorite floating-boat story comes from Seattle’s KIRO radio, which sent a reporter aboard a South Korean ship in Puget Sound. She found that the polyglot crew members had been biding their time playing table tennis, lifting weights and pining for an excursion to the mall in Tukwila.
So far the economic impact hasn’t been huge. Shippers and their customers have known since at least July that a slowdown was likely, and many companies brought shipments in early or routed them through East Coast ports. Still, workarounds are getting harder, and for some customers — such as the California almond growers who export most of their crop through the Port of Oakland — there really aren’t any alternatives. The last time the West Coast ports shut down because of a labor dispute, in 2002, a consulting firm hired by the PMA estimated the economic damage at $1.9 billion a day. Other economists have since concluded that this estimate was exaggerated, but the cost of a shutdown definitely wouldn’t be zero.
There wasn’t a strike in 2002; after months of slowdowns, the PMA locked out workers in an attempt to force President George W. Bush to invoke the Taft-Hartley Act and ask a judge to order the ports back open, which is what happened. Union leaders didn’t like this, because it reduced their bargaining power, and President Barack Obama is not going to be eager to do the same. So…stay tuned for further developments in this throwback to the way labor relations used to work in the U.S.
Copyright 2015 Bloomberg.
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Anthony Davis eyebrows licensed: 5 strange pro sports trademarks
Anthony Davis eyebrows are about to make their NBA debut. Davis, the presumed first overall pick in the 2012 NBA Draft, won’t take to the court as a New Orleans Hornet for several more months. But when it comes to his eyebrows, he’s already handling his business affairs like a professional. He's trademarked catchphrases to go along with his unmistakable unibrow. Davis is just the latest in what has been a landmark year in licensing pro sports catchphrases and memes, from “Linsanity” to “Tebowing.” Read on for a few of our favorites, plus an enduring trademarked phrase now commonplace in the sports lexicon. Want to use the term “three peat? You’ll have to pay a certain NBA coaching legend.
1. 'Fear the brow' - Anthony Davis
Anthony Davis' eyebrows have gone pro. During the NCAA tournament last March, the most famous unibrow since Bert’s on "Sesame Street" struck fear in the hearts of every team who faced Davis and the formidable Kentucky Wildcats. Davis won the NCAA Tournament Outstanding Player Award, and the Wildcats cruised to a national title. He then immediately declared himself eligible for the 2012 NBA Draft, becoming a virtual lock as the first overall pick for the New Orleans Hornets.
And now his trademark north-of–the-nose facial hair is, literally, trademarked. Earlier this month, Davis filed paperwork with the United States Patent and Trademark Office for exclusive rights to the phrases, “Fear the brow,” and “Raise the brow.”
Davis unibrow merchandise isn’t anything new: During the NCAA tournament, “Fear the brow” T-shirts became a common sight in Wildcat crowds, though merchandise featuring Davis’s name or number was forbidden because of his student status. But now, Davis can enjoy the financial rewards from keeping his brow thick and full. The only losers here: tweezers manufacturers looking for a celebrity spokesman.
If the trademark is approved, Davis retains the rights to royalties from any company that uses his unibrow on retail merchandise. While licensing a catchphrase can seem like sheer vanity on the surface, it's a smart earnings move for athletes, who have a limited window of fame and playing time in which to make money.
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Share co-founder Iris Braun wants to reach the masses. Your Berlin company has made it its mission to improve the world through consumption. Every water bottle, every shampoo and every pen produced by Share is intended to support a social product and thus people in need.
The demand for groceries, stationery and care products is constantly increasing. Share turned over a double-digit million amount last year. The products are available in stores such as dm, Rewe and Kaufland. However, the sales market for sustainable products is still small. To change that, Braun is also demanding state support.
“Without politics, there will be no tipping point,” said the founder at the Better Future Conference of WELT AM SONNTAG and Commerzbank. This means that from a certain point in time the demand for sustainable products will increase so much that environmentally friendly consumption and thus sustainable production will become the norm.
Sustainable conversion is one of the greatest tasks of the German economy. Solar roofs, meat substitutes, alternative drive technologies such as e-cars for new cars or synthetic fuels for existing vehicles should gain in importance in the future. But how can the green transformation actually succeed?
Should politicians rely on free competition and voluntary commitments? The companies disagree. Traditional companies in particular would like more time to implement the higher standards.
As a result of the Ukraine conflict and rising inflation, the issue of sustainability has receded into the background in public awareness in recent months.
The Federal Statistical Office reported an inflation rate of 7.9 for May. Percent. Food prices even rose by 11.1 percent. At the same time, a recession is looming. Consumers are correspondingly unsettled and are curbing their consumption of higher-priced foods.
“Organic brands are currently less in demand,” explained Jan Bredack, founder of the vegan organic brand Veganz. But that is not just a question of price, but also a question of education, income and habits. In other European countries, the willingness to pay for high-quality organic products remains high, even in times of inflation.
In Germany, on the other hand, discounters such as Aldi and Lidl have helped people get used to cheap groceries as a result of price competition. It is important “not to lose sight of sustainability now,” says Share co-founder Braun. “The state has to rethink. It must be possible to offer cheaper alternatives to animal products.”
Maximilian Fricke, an expert on energy and climate policy at the Federation of German Industries (BDI), counters that “money for sustainability must first be raised”: “There also needs to be a market for sustainable products.” Sustainability comes from the companies’ own initiative carried into society and not required by law, says Fricke.
Nicolaus Heinen, who is responsible for the ESG strategy at Deutsche Börse, takes a similar view: “The state should take care of the regulatory framework so that companies can finance particularly sustainable innovations and compete with them.”
According to a Commerzbank study, for more than 80 percent of the medium-sized companies surveyed, sustainability is crucial for their own future viability. Nevertheless, only 30 percent pursue their own sustainability strategy.
“We still see room for improvement here. Our goal is therefore to provide our customers with comprehensive advice and support with a view to a sustainable business model,” says Christian Hassel, Divisional Board Member for Private and Small Business Customers at Commerzbank.
The financial sector can play a key role here, because financing conditions are increasingly based on sustainability criteria. In Hassel’s opinion, however, more uniform regulations and standards are needed.
“The fact that there are still no uniform standards for sustainability in the market gives companies a wide scope for interpretation – and also makes greenwashing possible in the first place,” warns Deutsche Börse expert Heinen. In this way, every company can take up the cause of the standards according to which it meets ESG criteria. ESG stands for Environmental, Social and Governance.
However, funds that contain oil or armaments companies that are the most sustainable in an industry comparison are also considered green – the so-called best-in-class principle. If Commerzbank manager Hassel has his way, this could be questioned and “a more extensive approach can be used to ensure comprehensible transparency with regard to the real sustainability of the allocated companies”.
In addition, the manager already expects that, in addition to the will to transform Commerzbank’s corporate customers, he also expects credible progress in reducing CO2. “We stand by our customers and accompany them in their own sustainable transformation. If the will to transform is not recognizable, then we will also consider severing the customer relationship.”
“Everything on shares” is the daily stock exchange shot from the WELT business editorial team. Every morning from 7 a.m. with the financial journalists from WELT. For stock market experts and beginners. Subscribe to the podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcast, Amazon Music and Deezer. Or directly via RSS feed.


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Don’t shop in downtown business districts this holiday season because of who the businesses hire. Even though they hire local people who may be your friends and neighbors.
Don’t shop in downtown business districts because the money spent at small businesses is spent by owners and employees close to where they live and work. Even though the money spent by owners and employers supports other businesses, keeping local districts vibrant.
And don’t shop in downtown business districts because of the owners’ contribution to the community. Even though it is the owners and employees of local businesses that are the No. 1 supporters of neighborhood teams, charities and organizations.
Instead, shop in downtown business districts because you will find unique items for sale, offered by people knowledgeable about the products they sell, in a “Main Street” atmosphere that major retailers like Macy’s are now trying to replicate.
The store owners also have a strong motivation to do right by you – their reputation in the community.
In other words, shop downtown business districts because of the experience they offer.
This is not to say that you shouldn’t brave the traffic to shop at a mall or shop online. They often offer good products at good prices and, if purchased online, the convenience of never having to leave your home.
But too often downtown districts, which form the heart of communities across the North Shore, are underappreciated by shoppers and overlooked by government.
New York City and New York State came up with $3 billion in tax incentives to lure Amazon to Long Island City with an office headquarters – only to have Amazon turn the offer down.
How much has the state or county or towns or villages come up for the owners of “Main Street” businesses who compete with Amazon? Little or nothing, even though small businesses provide half the jobs in the country.
In fact, local governments often rely on the revenue from shoppers of downtown businesses generated from parking meters and tickets. Giving a shopper a ticket is not exactly helpful in creating a desirable shopping experience.
This is a problem people who shop online, in malls, or in strip centers do not face.
To their credit, several local governments have made parking free from Thanksgiving to Christmas.
Which raises a question. If free parking is a good idea in downtown shopping districts during the holiday season when shoppers are the most motivated, why isn’t free parking a good idea the rest of the year?
Nassau County Executive Laura Curran and the Nassau County Industrial Development Agency recently joined the Nassau Council of Chambers of Commerce to launch a countywide Shop Small Scavenger Hunt to encourage residents to shop and dine at local small businesses throughout the holiday shopping season.
The Town of North Hempstead also announced plans to partner with local chambers of commerce to distribute shop local signs.
We applaud both efforts to promote business in our downtowns. They are steps in the direction. But that still leaves government with a long way to go in the help they can provide.
And apparently some in government are beginning to get that message.
Richard Kessel, chairman of the Nassau IDA, recently said the agency will lobby state leaders to expand the tax-break-granting powers of IDAs to include downtown retailers, among others.
Currently, state law prohibits IDAs from awarding tax breaks to retailers in most instances and to many types of housing. The agencies generally help large manufacturers, technology companies and service firms with sales-tax exemptions on the purchase of construction materials and new equipment, reductions in the mortgage recording tax and savings on property-tax bills over 10, 15, 20 and, in a few cases, 40 years.
But Kessel said in a story that appeared in Newsday it was time to take another look at their mission.
“The economic world has changed” since IDAs were established 50 years ago, he said. “It’s very frustrating to me that we cannot help retailers in a downtown that’s struggling. The IDA statute has to be looked at in terms of what can be done to help give the IDAs broader powers.”
Nassau County legislators could also do more. They are actually given funds to assist downtown business districts. But Presiding Officer Richard Nicolello said that legislators have in recent years often use the funds for other purposes.
It’s time that the legislators be held accountable and the money be spent on its intended purpose such as improving parking in downtown districts and funding attractive amenities.
In the meantime, we hope residents will take advantage of the businesses in downtown districts, if for no reason other than they offer a better shopping experience.


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PPG profit, sales up in 2Q on strength in glass, industrial coatings
PPG Industries Inc.'s profit and sales rose in its second quarter on the strength of new business.
The Pittsburgh-based manufacturer reported a profit of $386 million, or $2.78 a share, in the quarter ended June 30 on revenue of $4.1 billion. That compared to a profit of $341 million, or $2.38 a share, on revenue of $3.9 billion.
PPG (NYSE: PPG) earnings in Europe rose 28 percent and were up 12 percent in the U.S. and Canada, strengthening in June. The strongest segments were industrial coatings and glass, both up 7 percent.
"In the quarter, we continued to deliver growth across most of our businesses in comparison with strengthening prior-year results," said PPG Chairman and CEO Charles E. Bunch in a prepared statement. "We realized the highest growth in automotive OEM and various general industrial and specialty coatings end-use markets, as we continue to benefit from solid end-use market demand supplemented by customer adoption of new PPG technologies."
Paul J. Gough is digital producer at the Pittsburgh Business Times. Contact him at firstname.lastname@example.org or 412-208-3827. You can also follow him on Twitter.
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The Audi all-electric concept is said to use Audi and Porsche’s new PPE EV platform.
The Chevrolet Corvette, Porsche 911 and Toyota Supra will battle for the title of North American Car of the year.
Many major car manufacturers have been asking the agency to commence testing these systems for years, and it finally gave the green light.
Audi’s electric SUVs made just seven stops to top up their batteries which, thanks to their fast-charging capability, saved lots of time.
Audi’s first all-electric SUV is poised to take the fight to the Tesla Model X and Mercedes-Benz EQC.
Audi’s SUV is the first all-electric to ace all tests, beating models like the Tesla Model S and Chevrolet Bolt.
It’s spacious, quiet, comfortable and refined, but also agile, especially for something that big that weighs 2.5 tons!.
The new entry-level version of Audi’s electric SUV will hit the production line later this year.
The production-spec Audi e-tron GT will be unveiled towards the end of 2020.
The E-Tron isn’t as agile as an I-Pace or fast as a Model X, but it does strike a great balance between power and comfort.
Audi says a faulty seal could allow moisture into the battery compartment and this could cause a short circuit or fire.
The sports version of Audi’s E-Tron is expected to have a tri-motor electric powertrain with up to 496hp.


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Chinese Quartz Tariff Hits 300%
Department of Commerce Announces new Antidumping Tariffs on Quartz from China
“On November 14, 2018, the Department of Commerce announced its affirmative preliminary determination in the antidumping duty investigation of imports of quartz surface products from the People’s Republic of China.” You can read the fact sheet here. This means there will be NEW anti-dumping tariffs on Chinese quartz surfaces imported into the United States. The tariffs will add 242.1% to 314.1% to the cost of bringing Chinese quartz surfaces into the United States. The new tariffs take effect once they are published in the Federal Register, which is likely within a few business days.
In September, the Commerce Department set an effective 34% tariff for most Chinese quartz surfaces on countervailing (subsidized value) practices. Unlike the countervailing tariffs, these new anti-dumping tariffs involve five different levels. Some companies rate as low as 242.1%, but one large firm, Foshan Yixin Stone Co. Ltd., gets an adjusted 314.1%.
The additional tariffs on Chinese quartz surfaces will quadruple the final costs to importers. For example, a slab with a customs value of $500 could have a punitive tariff (at a combined antidumping/countervailing rate of 348%) of $1,740, for a total off-the-dock cost of $2,240.
The Commerce Department filing notes that Chinese quartz surfaces that arrived in the United States up to 90 days prior to Register publication and are “unliquidated” are also subject to the high anti-dumping tariffs. This means that quartz surfaces that arrived in the past 90 days (backdating to mid-August) could be assessed retroactively for the duties. This would apply for surfaces that are still in a port-of-entry warehouse, a local slab yard or installed as fabricated countertops.
The antidumping/countervailing tariffs are separate from the blanket Trump administration (Section 301) tariffs on a wide variety of Chinese goods. An initial 10% tariff went into effect earlier in the fall. The additional 15% is set to take effect in January if there’s no trade deal between China and the United States.


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Printed on: December 06, 2012
Citigroup to cut 11,000 jobs worldwide
NEW YORK (AP) -- Citigroup said Wednesday it will cut 11,000 jobs, a bold, early move by new CEO Michael Corbat.
The cuts amount to about 4 percent of Citi's workforce. The bulk of them, about 6,200 jobs, will come from Citi's consumer banking unit, which handles functions like branches and checking accounts.
Citi said it will sell or scale back consumer operations in Pakistan, Paraguay, Romania, Turkey and Uruguay and focus on 150 cities around the world "that have the highest growth potential in consumer banking." The bank, the third-largest in the country by assets, did not say how many jobs it will cut in the United States.


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The former security chief of Twitter accuses the short message service of a catastrophic security culture that is subordinate to the growth of the company. As a whistleblower, he has now turned to the supervisory authorities. The gaming community, on the other hand, is looking to Cologne, where Gamescom has opened. In addition to numerous new games, a gamepad for Sony’s Playstation 5 was presented, which will be almost completely customizable. Online players in Austria can look forward to new fiber optic connections, because a Franco-German cooperation wants to promote fiber optic expansion in the Alpine country in rural regions as well – the most important news in a nutshell.
Twitters former security chief Peiter Zatko lodges a complaint with the supervisory authorities serious allegations against the company. The hacker, known under the name “Mudge”, criticizes the Security culture at Twitter and accuses the social network of always putting the company’s economic success and growth ahead of the security and data protection of users. He paints the picture of a divided company catastrophic safety culture: Twitter’s former security chief raises serious allegations as a whistleblower.
Of the Gamescom cannot be blamed for the many trade fair cancellations, but it is back in Cologne – quite classically as a face-to-face event. So Geoff Keighley pre-opened the show again Live Audience. The Game Awards host presented during the two-hour “Opening Night Live” new announcements like “Where Winds Meet” or “Moonbreaker” from the “Subnautica” makers. There were also well-known titles like “Return to Monkey Island”. Game scenes and release dates at the Opening Night Live 2022: The most important games of the Gamescom opening.
For Gamescom Sony its new “DualSense Edge Wireless Controller” for Playstation 5 announced. That wireless gamepad relies on almost complete individualization on the part of users, as Microsoft demonstrated years ago with its Xbox Wireless Elite Controller. In addition, individual buttons, the analog stick and their heads can be exchanged and key assignments can be saved in different profiles with Sony’s DualSense Edge: wireless, configurable gamepad for Playstation 5.
The French infrastructure investor is investing one billion euros At noon and the T-Mobile Austria in fiber optic connections (FTTH) in Austria. The two partners will start construction work later this year, with plans to finish by 2030 650,000 new connections be laid. That would be more than the 500,000 FTTH connections that Meridiam has started to build in Germany. T-Mobile Austria is a subsidiary of Deutsche Telekom and operates under the brand name Magenta. Construction will start later this year for French-German fiber optic connections in Austria.
While Austria is expanding, Russia is giving up. The Russian corporation Yandex gives its web portal Yandex.ru to the Kremlin-related company VK (formerly Mail.ru). At the same time, the “news” aggregator also migrate Yandex News and the web recommendation service Zen to VK. In return, VK is handing over its Delivery Club delivery service to Yandex, which already operates a similar delivery service for meals and everyday purchases, Yandex Eda. Of the political pressure on Yandex was too greatwith too much censorship: Yandex gives up its web portal Yandex.ru.
Three percent of global greenhouse gas emissions are caused by the air traffic caused. Accordingly, it would be sensible airplanes at last climate neutral to do, for example through new drive technology. The problem: With the currently available e-turbines including batteries, there is only short range, which, according to a current analysis, is only around 50 safe kilometers for a dozen passengers. The range is one central problem of e-aviation and explains why electric planes just don’t want to take off.
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Apollo Endosurgery said today it closed a $23.7 million round of financing.
In the offering, the Austin, Texas-based company offered approximately 4.3 million shares of common stock at $5.50 per share, including 562,055 shares sold under an underwriter’s option to purchase additional shares.
All shares offered in the round were sold by Apollo, the company said, with Craig-Hallum Capital Group acting as sole managing underwriter for the offering, according to a press release.
In March, the FDA approved Apollo’s move to terminate a post-approval study of its Lap-Band weight loss device, based on availability of long-term safety and effectiveness data on the device.
The trial was part of a bid for expanded indications, for which the FDA required the Austin, Texas-based company to conduct a prospective, multicenter, open-label, post-approval study to evaluate safety and effectiveness of the device in patients with body mass indices between 30 and 39.9.


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YouTube is taking a step toward being a major player in the world of television programming.
The company said it will be offering a new live TV service in the next few months.
It will reportedly offer the four major broadcast networks, ESPN, regional sports networks, and several cable channels.
But at $35 a month, well above streaming services like Netflix, is it worth the price tag?
Tech expert Rich DeMuro has all the details you need to know about YouTube TV.


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MONROE - A U.S. furniture industry campaign to seek new import duties on Chinese-made bedroom furniture may be about to pick up support at La-Z-Boy Inc.
Executives, in formulating their position, can't ignore the impact on employees whose jobs are threatened by a surge in inexpensive imports, Chief Executive Gerald Kiser said at the annual shareholders meeting here yesterday.
“Their voice is the voice that will be heard,” he said afterward in an interview, noting that U.S. laws allow a majority of employees to petition to join the campaign on the company's behalf even if executives refused or failed to take a stance.
The board of directors was to debate the measure yesterday, Mr. Kiser said. One possible scenario, according to observers, is that the parent company will refrain from taking a stance on the issue while subsidiaries that are heavily reliant on sales of bedroom suites and other wood furniture would join the campaign.
Those subsidiaries include Pennsylvania House, American Drew, Lea Industries, and Kincaid Furniture. Overall, wood furniture represents 25 percent of sales at the parent firm.
The discussion took place on a day when La-Z-Boy, the nation's second-largest furniture manufacturer, released a disappointing - although not unexpected - financial report for the fiscal first quarter ended July 26.
Lagging furniture purchases that have hurt other manufacturers as well sent sales down 9.2 percent to $452 million from $497 million in the prior-year period.
The firm reported profit of $5.8 million, or 11 cents a share, in the just-completed quarter, compared with a loss of $40.7 million, or 69 cents a share, last year.
But last year's loss resulted from accounting charges. Operating profit declined year-over-year to $11.3 million from $32.9 million in the prior-year period.
Patrick Norton, La-Z-Boy chairman, said problems in the firm's just-completed quarter were a continuation of those experienced last year.
“Fiscal 2003 was a very tough year,” he told about 125 shareholders who attended the meeting. The firm has responded by closing plants and reducing other expenses. La-Z-Boy officials, like other furniture executives, are perplexed that Americans aren't following the typical pattern of buying furniture during periods of strong housing activity and low interest rates. The firm made $96 million on sales of $2.1 billion in fiscal 2003.
“We have not seen substantial improvement in our business,” conceded the chief executive, who noted that imports from China and other Asian nations have contributed to the problem.
“We believe in and support fair and free trade,” Mr. Kiser said. “We firmly believe it should be legal trade.”
So far, however, La-Z-Boy and St. Louis-based Furniture Brands International Inc., the nation's largest manufacturer, haven't joined a campaign by 27 other manufacturers to seek new tariffs on Chinese imports.
“We would welcome their support and hope they do support the petition,” said Stephen Jones, a Washington lawyer who represents manufacturers who plan to file an anti-dumping petition this fall with the U.S. Commerce Department and the U.S. International Trade Commission.
The group has support from more than 25 percent of the industry. Added backing, however, would speed the process, Mr. Jones said.
In other action, La-Z-Boy's board of directors declared a quarterly cash dividend of 10 cents a share, payable Sept. 10 to shareholders of record Aug. 29.
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The Office of Fair Trading has ordered airlines to clean up their pricing policies by including all charges when they advertise fares. The order will spell the end of advertised fares of as little as one penny.
The OFT warned airlines in February that they must change their pricing and online order systems to quote consumers the actual cost of flying and not the cost minus non-optional fees such as taxes and surcharges.
The Office has now taken action against 13 airlines which have now changed their policies, it said. Those airlines include easyJet, bmibaby and Globespan.
Irish carriers Aer Lingus and Ryanair both said that they could not change their online booking systems immediately, but promised to do so and have changed their website home pages to reflect the full cost of flying.
The success of no-frills low cost airlines such as Ryanair has prompted fierce competition in the airline industry. Combined with the direct booking model made possible by the internet, the competition has driven airlines to advertise lower and lower prices, with fares appearing to fall as low as one penny.
Consumers have found, though, that airport charges, airline surcharges, taxes and fuel levies have pushed fares far higher than the advertised sums. The OFT became involved because these charges are not optional and should therefore be considered part of the price. It can obtain court orders against traders it believes engage in misleading pricing.
"The OFT is committed to ensure that consumers are not mislead by advertised prices that bear little relation to actual prices," said Sean Williams, executive director of the OFT. "Misleading pricing not only undermines consumer confidence but also distorts competition and we will enforce the law enthusiastically where we find that consumers have been misled."
Trade body the Association of British Travel Agents has also taken action against its members. The ABTA Code of Conduct, which is binding on its members, requires that all fixed, non-optional costs be included in a price.
The OFT said that the following airlines have changed their websites to include fixed, non-optional costs in pricing: easyJet, bmibaby, Flybe, Thomsonfly, flythomascook (a trading name of Thomas Cook Tour Operations Limited), Monarch, Jet2, Globespan, Wizz Air, Sky Europe and German Wings.


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Cameroon’s 2018 Economic year launched in Douala
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The 2018 economic year has been launched at the GICAM headquarters in Douala. The Minister of the Economy, Planning and Regional Development, Louis Paul Motaze launched the year during meeting with the private sector. He indicated that in 2018, economic activities in Cameroon will be oriented towards the diversification and local processing of products.
During the two day event, government and economic operators will elaborate strategies and orientations for the revival of economic growth in Cameroon through the benefits of public private sector partnership.
Minister Louis Paul Motaze said the meeting of February 20 and 21st are different from the public private sector discussion which are permanent and ongoing in Cameroon, because various segments of the private sector are taking part.
It is also unique because government interns to work more closely with the private sector by facilitating access bank credits and other facilities to boost economic growth.
The President GICAM, Celestine Tawamba called for frank, sincere and constructive discussions that will pave the way for private investors in the domains of transformation and distribution of the different primary products produced in Cameroon.
The meeting is coming at the time when Cameroon exports principally raw materials in the agricultural, forestry and extractive industry sector and governments seeks to transform locally in a bid to enhance growth and create jobs.


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Italian fashion house Prada has confirmed the appointment of chairman Miuccia Prada Bianchi as co-CEO.
Bianchi has relinquished her role as chairman to take up the co-CEO position alongside husband Patrizio Bertelli, the company said. She will, however, continue to serve as an executive director of Prada.
Her role will involve guiding development of the group’s creative design and brands communication activities.
“The board would like to express its sincere gratitude to Ms. Miuccia Prada Bianchi for her valuable contributions and leadership during her tenure as the chairperson of the board,” the company said in a statement. “The board is of the view that her appointment as chief executive officer is a natural extension of the role she has already played in the group’s development and will be beneficial to the group’s long term growth and progress.”
Carlo Mazzi, executive director and previously deputy chairman of the board, has assumed the role of chairman.
For more fashion and apparel industry news, go to just-style.com


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Uber and Lyft Making Their Way to Dubuque
DUBUQUE – The popular ride-hailing companies Uber and Lyft recently announced they are coming to Dubuque.
While Lyft has already started services, Uber is still working on finding drivers.
While many people are excited for these new additions, taxi service owners are nervous about what it could do to their businesses.
“I think it’ll hurt us,” said Mark Lightcap, owner of Starlight Taxi here in Dubuque.
Starlight Taxi has been around for 25 years, but Uber and Lyft are posing a threat to the long-time success of Lightcap’s company.
Uber and Lyft’s fare for a single ride is slightly cheaper on average than a ride from Starlight Taxi.
However, Lightcap stands firm behind the fact that Starlight has “one rate and one rate only” as opposed to the prices surges during peak travel hours that Uber and Lyft utilize.
But Lightcap isn’t the only one worried. Brett Hahlen, the owner of #1 Green Cab, is also concerned about Uber and Lyft coming to town.
“It will take a percentage of local business away,” he mentioned.
#1 Green Cab holds a big share of the taxi market in Dubuque. But that market is getting even more crowded.
For those that don’t know, Uber and Lyft are alternatives to typical taxi services. Anyone can download the app and request a ride. Drivers use their own cars, come to your location, and take you to where you need to go, often for cheaper than a normal taxi.
Uber and Lyft share several similarities. Both offer the same basic ride options, meaning you have the option of hailing a car or a larger vehicle such as an SUV. Also, both companies take about the same amount of time to come pick you up.
The majority of Lyft and Uber drivers actually work for both companies.
The differences between the two services are small. On average, Lyft prices are only slightly higher than Uber’s. Uber has been around longer and is available in more places, but Lyft makes up for that difference with a greater focus on customer service.
With that in mind, I wanted to see what the hub-bub was all about. So, I called a Lyft, and got to know driver Tim Flynn on my way around the city.
“That Thursday, I went online that night and started the process to become a driver,” said Flynn. “I actually did my first drive on Saturday.”
Flynn holds a regular 9-5, but started driving for Lyft to make extra cash. He’s only given a few rides so far, but he loves it.
Flynn’s optimistic about the impact Lyft and Uber will have on the community.
“I think this good for Dubuque. We’re a small town, but we’re trying to get a big town feel.”
But while the slightly cheaper prices might allure some customers, owners such as Lightcap and Hahlen are ready to stand by their businesses.
For Hahlen, it comes down to supporting small business owners and employees that live in Dubuque.
“I can’t really sway anybody’s opinion,” he said, “but I would urge people to use your local businesses that don’t take revenue and money out of Dubuque.”
Hopeful Uber-riders can plan to grab a ride at the end of March when the service officially launches in Dubuque.


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Bridging the knowledge gap through crypto education is critical to ensure that future web3 experts come on board in ensuring that Africa and its citizens do not remain behind.
- The African crypto sector has offered possibilities to many young Africans previously excluded from genuine income-generating opportunities on the internet.
- In a legislative quagmire of worry and uncertainty, many Africans lack the technical know-how to store and use cryptocurrencies properly.
- The Binance Masterclass program, which provides crypto education ranging from trading to career opportunities in blockchain, launched in January 2020, aimed at increasing crypto literacy in Africa.
The crypto lifeline in Africa
The African cryptocurrency sector is a lifeline. The African crypto sector has offered possibilities to many young Africans previously excluded from genuine income-generating opportunities on the internet. Despite legislative obstacles, this group has embraced crypto to trade, invest, perform smooth cross-border transactions, and get compensated for their creative efforts, among other things.
ALSO READ: Future Of Web3 For Africa
However, Africa’s involvement with this technology as a simple consumer is insufficient. Members of the African crypto ecosystem are resolved to participate more as builders and producers impacting the way the cryptocurrency network evolves while taking into account the intricacies of the African continent.
In Africa, crypto adoption and use have grown over time. Many Africans are interested in cryptocurrencies because they believe they are more promising than conventional currencies. In finance, crypto has assisted Africans in catching up with other nations on a continent with emerging economies.
Even though crypto can become a critical component of the future, many companies and people are still reluctant to adopt this new form of currency. This reluctance is attributable to a general lack of knowledge and comprehensive education on crypto and blockchain.
According to a recent Luno research, 55% of Nigerians know nothing about cryptocurrency, compared to 56% in South Africa and 64% in Kenya.
Furthermore, according to Kucoin research, crypto transactions in Africa account for about 2.8% of worldwide volumes, indicating that experts and players still have much work to do to increase acceptance.
African economies are experiencing a transformation. The trend toward everyday trade looks to be continuing. Although cryptocurrencies are typically seen as speculative financial assets in other regions, they have grown more popular in Africa and other developing countries.
Bridging the knowledge gap through crypto education is therefore critical to ensure that future web3 experts come on board in ensuring that the continent and its citizens do not remain behind.
Technological knowledge and age gaps
In a legislative quagmire of worry and uncertainty, many Africans lack the technical know-how to store and use cryptocurrencies properly. A significant percentage of Africans remain ignorant of cryptocurrencies and hence lack the will to invest in them.
Africa’s knowledge gap has resulted in crypto-malware and fraud. Scammers regularly promise consumers significant returns on investments but never follow through. The scams make it difficult for investors to recover their monies, preventing others from participating in the bitcoin market.
Another critical factor of the crypto backlash is also the age difference. Regardless of the fact that young people mainly inhabit Africa, African leaders are the complete opposite.
In Nigeria, for instance, President Muhammadu Buhari, a 79-year-old former army general, controls the fate of young cryptocurrency investors. Buhari has been sceptical about Nigerian youth preferences in the age of the Metaverse and Tiktok.
Focusing on crypto education beyond the hypeThe issue of education is a significant consideration when it comes to the proliferation of cryptocurrency trading in Africa. Mistrust and misconception yet prevail around cryptocurrencies and their perceived use as a means to facilitate illicit activities around the world. Binance South Africa country manager Tanya Knowles says education is essential in growing the use of cryptocurrencies in Africa.
According to Knowles, the simplest way to acquaint people with cryptocurrencies lies in encouraging them to kickstart trading with small amounts, starting with crypto account holders giving non-holders small amounts of crypto as an introduction. As such, newcomers gain practical experience as the best way to get started with crypto.
Michelle Nsanzumuco, Fintech4Good lead for Africa, says that the cryptocurrency sector is growing in pockets around the continent. Africa has niche pockets and interest areas, with some countries where people actively participate in crypto. Countries like South Africa, Kenya, Nigeria and Zimbabwe have active crypto communities that have started to get active crypto engagement.
Many young people have shown a clear interest in crypto and blockchain in general. The interest and small crypto adoption sectors present a positive sign. However, Nsanzumuco insists that crypto education must get an upgrade to help the cause.
The perception of senior organisations and groups is not always positive. There is that association of all the dodgy stuff with crypto. A great deal of cryptocurrency education still needs to come, and the acquired knowledge and information will come with heightened adoption. Without the education and the know-how, it will be challenging to move away from the ever-present crypto hype and propaganda.
Nonetheless, the fact that Africans have accepted and led the creation and widespread usage of mobile payment systems throughout the continent encourages the adoption of new technologies and platforms.
When it comes to mobile payments, Sub-Saharan Africa invented them. It is not a new phenomenon on the continent. Based on this, Africans’ familiarity with mobile payments may make connecting with crypto networks and emergent technologies a little simpler.
Binance and Bloomone are leading the way in crypto education
In addition to boosting adoption and creating an ecosystem, the Bloomone crypto platform aims to educate a number of Africans via educational-powered blockchain programs. The Bloomone Academy aims to equip young people with skills to help them impact and contribute to the development of the web3 economy in Africa and globally
Consequently, Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume, remains at the forefront of cryptocurrency education. By offering information, the platform ensures that crypto enthusiasts have the correct information at their disposal.
The Binance Masterclass program, which provides crypto education ranging from trading to career opportunities in blockchain, launched in January 2020, aimed at increasing crypto literacy in Africa. Over 541,000 Africans have received free crypto education from Binance since then
Binance has also considerably stepped up to ensure education around scams associated with everything crypto. Binance places a lot of emphasis on security, ensuring people use two-factor authentication (2FA) and other safety measures.
ALSO READ: Binance holds talks with Africa’s largest economy to create a virtual cryptocurrency zone


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In other news, UK politician Boris Johnson has unrealistic fiber dreams, Comcast sees new opportunities for X1, Dish goes home, UK consumer org may avoid court for angry subscribers and the FCC bumps up USF tax -- a sure-fire way to raise US consumers' ire.
Going, going, gone: French entrepreneur Patrick Drahi -- founder of Altice who also acquired Suddenlink and Cablevision Systems -- just bought Sotheby's for a cool $3.7 billion. But Altice will remain Drahi's main focus, he said, not the auction house known for selling multi-million-dollar impressionist paintings, solid gold watches and other almost priceless artifacts. Although the Altice USA chairman and head of Altice Europe said he will not sell any shares of the European company to fund his newest acquisition, Drahi plans to "monetize a small position in Altice USA [of] up to $400 million" by year-end. No word on whether Sotheby's will handle the sale.
Boris Johnson, front runner to be Britain's next prime minister, promises tax cuts and ubiquitous full-fiber coverage (plus the real prospect of a no-deal Brexit), by 2025, reported Light Reading's Iain Morris from Connected Britain. Operator executives listening to BoJo's comments greeted them with "restrained laughter," given that only about 7% of UK households could access fiber networks in May 2019, according to regulatory body Ofcom. (See Brexit-bound Britain's broadband blues.)
Fiber, Fiber Everywhere
The entire UK will have end-to-end fiber by 2025, according to Boris Johnson. And everyone will drive a Jag, live in a palace and earn six figures while working once a week.
Dish Network is re-entering the smart home and IoT market with the launch of OnTech Smart Services for both current and non-Dish subscribers. The direct-to-consumer offering offers on-site installations for many retail devices and entertainment systems via same- or next-day service. Dish is advancing its plan to launch a narrowband IoT network, with future expectations to fund and deploy a standalone 5G network, reported Jeff Baumgartner on Light Reading.
Comcast added eye control to X1, empowering people with disabilities such as spinal cord injuries and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), to control the cable operator's TV services without lifting a finger or speaking a word. A web-based remote (for tablets or computers) is partnered with assistive technologies like existing eye-gaze systems and "Sip and Puff" switches, according to Comcast.
Under a plan the British government is considering, the UK's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) may be able to fine service providers for breaking consumer laws and for "poor business behavior" without going to court. CMA expects this will deter operators that use misleading claims, unfair terms and conditions, seemingly endless service subscriptions and contracts that are difficult to break, it said. Nothing in the release addressed operators' ability to argue their cause.
The FCC announced this month the Universal Service Fund "contribution" factor will be 24.4% next quarter. Fixed and mobile long-distance voice providers generally pass that cost along to long-distance voice users (who often complain to and about their operators about this tax). For reference, in September 2018 the tax increased to 20% for the first time. With the number of voice calls via phone lines decreasing each month, how far will the feds push this tax, which originally was used to fund voice lines for those who could not afford them?
Charter has sparked RDOF work in all 24 states where it won bids. The cable op booked about $19 million in RDOF revenues in Q1, and expects to have about $9 million per month come in over the next ten years.
Launch of 2-Gig and 5-Gig FTTP tiers in 70-plus markets puts more pressure on cable ops to enhance their existing DOCSIS 3.1 network or accelerate their upgrade activity centered on the new DOCSIS 4.0 specs.


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Guess what, John Wick 5 will be filmed back to back with..
“Taking borderless smartphone innovation to new heights, we’re thrilled to give you a first look at ‘Waterfall Screen’ technology," Chinese smartphone maker OPPO stated on their Twitter account.
Challenging Samsung’s curved-edge design, the 'Waterfall Screen' features a display with 88-degree curved edges making it an almost bezel-less smartphone. The phone doesn’t have buttons on the side. This new technology took the smartphone battle to a whole new level.
Their tweet received positive and negative feedback on social media. Some are excited with this new piece of tech and some are worried that the smartphone might be prone to damages. There is still no clear specifications and dates about the product.
On the other hand, Vivo is also working on a similar tech which is possible to be featured on their upcoming flagship smartphone.


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UNDATED (WOWO): You might be losing an hour this weekend, but you’ll still have the same opportunity to buy alcohol in Indiana.
The Indiana Alcohol and Tobacco Commission have given the OK again for extended sales on Saturday night/Sunday morning. Sales will be allowed to continue until 4 am, an hour later than normal.
The change only affects sales on Sunday and addresses the time shift that occurs when Hoosiers move their clocks ahead one hour when daylight saving time starts at 2 a.m. Sunday. Without the change, alcohol sales would end an hour earlier than normal.
The one-day rule change allows Indiana establishments to have the same number of hours to serve alcoholic beverages.


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Rafi Azim-Khan, Partner and Head of Data Privacy, Europe at Pillsbury and Chair of the British American Business’ Law Forum, was in Washington, DC yesterday to hear the important announcement of a key new data privacy initiative, blessed by regulators across the North America, Europe and Asia Pacific regions.
The initiative is aimed at assisting international businesses struggling to come to terms with increasingly complex global data privacy laws and increasing enforcement risks.
FTC Chairwoman Edith Ramirez and new EU Article 29 Working Party Chair Isabelle Falque-Pierrotin of CNIL were joined by UK Commissioner Christopher Graham, Ted Dean of the US Department of Commerce and Canadian APEC lead Daniele Chatelois in announcing publicly for the first time a new “Checklist” tool known as the “Referential”, designed to assist companies who have to deal with and transfer consumer and other types of data internationally. It applies to all businesses and all sectors.
Azim-Khan, who discussed with the Commissioners the goals behind the initiative, commented, “Whether a social media company or a car manufacturer marketing via its website, businesses of all shapes and sizes have been crying out for some practical help and guidance regarding their use of data and what is or is not likely to land them in hot water. Many feel recent changes to the laws in the EU and beyond, as well as significantly increased fine levels and scrutiny, are making day to day operations much more difficult and risky.”
“Given the world is becoming more connected, business more global and data use increasing, literally by the day, current laws and enforcement are proving very difficult to navigate without detailed analysis and a very careful approach. It can be time intensive and costly to get things right, and equally so if there is a breach, so anything which can help business deal with complex issues such as international data transfers and data use in multiple countries is to be welcomed. That said, this is very much just a first additional step and we will have to see what happens in terms of consultations and feedback.”
“This new initiative is also not a “silver bullet,” i.e. an “adequacy finding” nor “mutual recognition”, for example of Asia’s laws by the EU. Rather, it is one new tool worth exploring in the bigger scheme of compliance and given all the upheaval in the past year or so companies with significant global reach would still be advised to urgently audit what they are currently doing and seriously consider steps needed to bring their compliance up to date, for example considering the benefits of updated schemes such as Binding Corporate Rules”.
Note: The EU and the US have locked horns in recent months over criticisms the US is not doing enough to enforce Safe Harbor breaches by large US companies and the EU is proposing new “atomic weapon” fines of 2 or 5% of global revenue fines for non-compliance as part of new Regulation proposals.
Asia is presenting a problem for international companies as the laws are hugely varied and some are also now adopting tougher EU-style laws which US companies do not like.
This initiative is the first time the differing parties have tried to put aside differences in such a joined up way.


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TradeX, a predictions market platform, has raised $1 million (around Rs 7 crore) in a seed round from TDV Partners, SoMa Capital and marquee investors, including Maninder Gulati, Anupam Mittal, Rajesh Shawney, Hitesh Chawla, Cem Garih, Justin Mateen, Fethi, among others, the company said in a statement.
The Gurgaon-based company plans to use the fresh capital to build and improve its technology team and expand the platform across Indian users.
“We are building the platform with a vision to build a single source of truth where people can build perspective from what the masses are thinking. With wide social media penetration, misinformation, or lack of information, we end up building one-sided views. With TradeX, people can know what others around them think. Users use TradeX to form their opinion about any event as well as trade to seek financial incentive on their opinion," said Divij Goyal, Co-founder of TradeX.
Founded in 2021 by IIT Roorkee alumni Goyal and Ankit Shrivastava, TradeX aims to solve the problem by creating an event-based predictions market. TradeX users can take direct exposure to any real-life event, double down on their investments or hedge positions. Earlier, the duo launched many gaming products, the statement said.
The company claims to have launched various events across different categories such as entertainment, finance, news, sports, and will be focusing on going deeper into these categories. According to the statement, they are seeing strong traction, where more than 100,000 users have traded more than Rs 10 crore worth of money and earned profits.


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Webcast and Teleconference at 10 a.m. EDT
DALLAS, Jul. 28, 2014 – Dex Media, Inc. (NASDAQ:DXM) will report second quarter 2014 results on Monday, Aug. 11. The release will be posted to the Investor Relations section of the company’s website, www.DexMedia.com. The company welcomes investors, media and other interested parties to join Peter McDonald, president and CEO, and Samuel D. Jones, executive vice president, CFO and treasurer, in a discussion via webcast and teleconference beginning at 10 a.m. EDT.
Individuals within the United States can access the call by dialing 888-603-6873. International participants should dial 973-582-2706. The pass code for the call is 78702537. In order to ensure a prompt start time, please dial into the call by 9:50 a.m. EDT. A replay of the conference call can be accessed from within the United States by dialing 800-585-8367. International callers can access the replay by calling 404-537-3406. The replay pass code is 78702537. The replay will be available through Sept. 5, 2014. In addition, a live webcast will be available on Dex Media’s website in the Investor Relations section at dexyp.wpengine.com.
About Dex Media
Dex Media (NASDAQ: DXM) provides local, social and mobile marketing solutions to businesses in communities across the U.S. under the Dex One and SuperMedia brands. The company’s widely used consumer services include the DexKnows.com® and Superpages.com® online and mobile search portals and applications and local print directories. For more information, visit www.DexMedia.com.


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Bordeaux, France – January 19th, 2021 – Motion Twin and Evil Empire announced that the award-winning Dead Cells will be free to try for seven days on Nintendo Switch for Nintendo Switch Online users (Europe/UK only). Winner and nominee for dozens of Game of the Year 2018 awards, Dead Cells has sold more than 3.5 million copies worldwide and is considered one of the best-in-class roguelites of all time.
Dead Cells is a metroidvania action platformer set within an unpredictable castle packed with dark secrets, game changing items and hordes of deadly beasts. Players face tough risk-reward decisions, building their loadout from an incredibly diverse arsenal of weapons and abilities in the hopes of dodging the castle’s omnipresent threat of permadeath. A steady series of post-launch updates (22 in total) addressing fan feedback has evolved Dead Cells since its initial Steam Early Access launch, keeping its action-centric adventure as surprising as it is rewarding.
Fans can save themselves 24,99€ by heading to the Nintendo eShop and pre-loading the game now for free, which will then be playable for a full week starting January 26. Dead Cells will be further discounted across PC, Switch, Xbox and PlayStation platforms for 50 percent off starting January 26. Dates and durations of sales may vary slightly per platform, so fans should check their preferred platform store for precise details.
A new bundle, Dead Cells: The Fatal Seed Bundle, combines both paid DLCs, Fatal Falls and last year’s The Bad Seed DLC, and is currently priced at a 33 percent discount (Switch only) preorder ahead of its launch on January 26th.
The coming Fatal Falls DLC introduces a significant amount of new content to the game, including two new mid-game biomes, a killer new boss and a slew of new weapons and items.
For the latest on Dead Cells, be sure to follow @motiontwin on Twitter.
About Motion Twin
Motion Twin is an independent game development studio based in France since 2001 and are the creators of the hit roguelike action game Dead Cells, available for PC, Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and Nintendo Switch platforms. Motion Twin is a worker cooperative passionate about creating new game experiences. Learn more at https://motion-twin.com/en/.
About Evil Empire
Evil Empire is the evil spawn of a bunch of ex-Motion Twiners. Formed in 2018 in close proximity and partnership with Motion Twin, Evil Empire is focused on producing new original content, both for Dead Cells and new IP.


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NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- U.S. stock futures were modestly lower on Tuesday after a round of economic data had retail sales climbing 0.3% in January and manufacturing conditions improving in the New York area in February. Down about 10 points ahead of the reports, futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average djh11 were lately off 19 points at 12,205. Those for the Standard & Poor's 500 Index sph11 fell 2.9 points to 1,324.8, while Nasdaq 100 ndh11 futures dipped 5.5 points to 2,376.25.
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Harley-Davidson hosted an analyst/investor event at ESPN’s Summer X-Games last week in an effort to showcase its outreach marketing efforts.
Gerrick Johnson of BMO Capital Markets shared with Powersports Business his insights from the event:
- “Management was very upbeat about its ongoing outreach strategy and very optimistic about the prospects of the new Street 500 and 750 motorcycles, which are the centerpiece in the effort to lure new riders, particularly young adults, minorities and urbanites. In fact, management did not try to hide its exuberance nor did it attempt to manage expectations, calling this new line of motorcycles a ‘home run’ and ‘absolute winner.’”
- “We rate the shares of HOG Outperform with an $80 price target. This target represents a 17x multiple on our 2015 EPS estimate of $4.80. This is a premium to the company’s historical average forward P/E of 15x, but we think appropriate given the 20 percent EPS growth rate we expect over the next two years. Risks to our target include a decline in consumer confidence and spending, or an inability to being new products to market on a timely basis.”
- “We are reducing our 2014 EPS estimate slightly to $3.95 from $4.00, as 2Q retail sales have snapped back from the winter doldrums more slowly in some markets than we had originally anticipated. While we think Street motorcycles will be in high demand, production will be limited in 2014 and, thus, would not represent an opportunity for near-term upside. We are leaving our 2015 EPS estimate of $4.80 unchanged.”
Copyright 2014 Powersports Business


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Rumors have been heating up over the last few weeks that Amazon was on the verge of offering “free,” unlimited video streaming to its Prime members, who pay $79.99 a year for free two-day shipping on many items sold on Amazon. Now a tipster has sent a few screenshots to Engadget allegedly showing an unlimited video streaming section to complement Amazon’s VOD (video-on-demand) offerings.
Oh hell yes.
When Amazon first introduced it’s Prime membership, I couldn’t imagine anyone foolish enough to pay $80 for a years worth of 2 day shipping. After all $80 spent on Amazon Prime is a lot of money not being spent on women and booze.
But eventually I gave up and decided to try it out. And boy am I glad that I did. Amazon Prime is a lot like buying an iPhone. Totally changes your life.
But adding on a free netflix style service with your Prime membership? Oh that’s just money in the bank.


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Must reads from the past week: Inflation, Defence, Tesla valuation, Copper & Lithium
Following the latest inflation and jobs data we consider the next moves for central banks. We focus on European defence spending which reaches new records. Tesla, a member of the ‘Magnificent Seven’ has become the worst performer in S&P 500 in 2024. In commodities, Copper has seen a rally that may just be starting.
- Clear opportunities to trade Dollar Yen price moves this week. - FOMC vs BOJ: Who moves the Yen?
- There looks like more room to run for Saxo's top performing theme basket. - Prospects for European Defence
- Now is time for all investors to consider their portfolio diversification. - Are the Magnificent Seven cracking?
- With key metal prices rising, now could be the time to invest in the mining sector. - Signs of green metals comeback
The week ahead…
The key events for this week are the policy rate decisions from a number of major central Banks; Bank of Japan (Tuesday), US Federal Reserve (Wednesday), Swiss National Bank and the Bank of England (Thursday). There are also key Chinese technology and consumer earnings from Xiaomi, Tencent, PDD, and Meituan. For developed markets the big earnings day is on Thursday with earnings releases from Nike, FedEx, Lululemon, and Accenture. Tech focus will be turning to the Nvidia GTC conference this week where new flagship chips are expected to be launched.