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Background of the Issue At the end of this February, China’s unilateral decision that they would ban Taiwanese pineapple imports from March 1 st . However, March is the time when Taiwanese pineapple production begins to rise, and the peak will be reached in April and May. The government has been actively trying to develop new markets, while it might be hard to consume such a huge amount of the pineapples in domestic market, since Taiwan used to rely heavily on the Chinese market, with more than 90 percent of the pineapple exports going to China.
China claimed that there are quarantine pests found in fresh pineapples Taiwan sent to them in 2020; it said the bugs it specified could harm the China’s plant life and natural ecosystems. Chen Chi-chung(陳吉仲), chief of Council of Agriculture (COA), said that China’s decision was not consistent with international trade rules at the press conference. Without citing the rules Chen was referring to, COA officials instead cited the practices of 16 other countries that imported Taiwanese pineapples and found pests. When Japan found pests in pineapples imported from Taiwan, for example, importers had to decide whether to send back the pineapples or use fumigation to rid them of the bugs so they could be allowed entry, said Chou Hui-chuan (鄒慧娟), a deputy director general of the COA’s Bureau of Animal and Plant Health Inspection and Quarantine. Some argue that it is a political manipulation.
COA has launched a comprehensive response measure to ensure that the price of Taiwan pineapples remains above the average level of the past two years, and draws up a budget of 1 billion NTD to handle various counseling measures, including increasing overseas sales incentives, subsidizing processing fees and shipping costs, etc. It is expected to sell 30,000 tons of Taiwan pineapples to the foreign markets beside China, and process 20,000 tons.
In addition to the countermeasures from the central government, local government is also taking the initiatives. Pingtung, the largest pineapple planted area in Taiwan, with a planting area of approximately 3509 hectares, accounts for 30% of Pineapple production in total. TAIWAN PINGTUNG AGRICULTURE INTERNATIONAL MARKETING CO., LTD, founded by Pingtung County Government with CHUAN LIAN Enterprise Co., Ltd. 2 years ago, is seeking cooperation with traders at home and abroad, and has also connected with Japan, South Korea, Hong Kong, Australia, Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, and even Australia and the Middle East countries, as well as the United States and Canada, to diversify market risks. In fact, there are about 11 CSOs in Taiwan that help the farmers sell the pineapples overseas. Take Blue Sky Agricultural Production Cooperative, the most-known one in Pingtung which adopts new marketing methods that unites farmers in southern Taiwan and applies the traceability system ensuring fresh and green fruits for consumers. They at the same time providing a variety of distributing channels through the communication with domestic markets and processing line, as well as expanding foreign markets. Under the impact of dynamic global situation, both the government and local producers are looking for a way out.
China has been largest importer of Taiwan’s agricultural products for many years. It is likely that this is just the beginning; subsequently there might be other cases. Nowadays, due to the political power being manifested by China, it is imperative that the government and local farmers adjust their planting and marketing strategies to survive the crisis. The research will be exploring how the authorities concerned are reacting to the situation, how the CSOs function between the government and the farmers, and what the farmers do. Hopefully, I can find some other similar cases to propose some possible practicable strategies. During our meeting, I will be introducing what has been done so far and how the result looks like.
A Research Fellow in Rural Development and Revitalization


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Company Inks 501 Congress Lease, Nearly Doubles Square Footage in Downtown Business District
AUSTIN, TX – July 7, 2015 — /BackupReview.info/ — Spanning Cloud Apps LLC, an EMC company and a leading provider of SaaS data protection, today announced it will move into the recently redesigned 501 Congress building located in the heart of downtown Austin in early fall. The new space will increase Spanning’s square footage by more than 80 percent, thereby enabling Spanning to more-than double its headcount in order to help meet the increasing demand for Spanning’s cloud-to-cloud backup and recovery solutions, including SaaS data protection offerings for Google Apps, Microsoft Office 365 and Salesforce.
“This move enables us to grow in a location that is a natural fit with Spanning’s culture. By remaining at the center of Austin’s business and tech scene we are proud and happy to continue to provide employees with easy access to the energy of the neighborhood as well as entertainment, retail and recreational opportunities unique to downtown Austin. The new space fits all of our key criteria, which is important as we continue efforts around attracting and retaining the area’s best talent to meet increasing customer demands for cloud-to-cloud backup and recovery solutions,” said Jeff Erramouspe, vice president and general manager of Spanning by EMC.
501 Congress—a complete re-imagination of an existing structure in the heart of Austin’s downtown—was designed by the Austin-based Michael Hsu Office of Architecture and Sixth River Architects. Notable highlights for the space include abundant natural light; open workspaces; access to a rooftop lounge; and easy access to downtown Austin and the State Capitol. The new space will carry forward Spanning’s collaborative and dog-friendly environment.
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Bethesda releases a terrifying new trailer for The Evil Within
Bethesda has launched a brand new trailer for Shinji Mikami's upcoming horror title The Evil Within.
Tango Gameworks' first game follows Detective Sebastian Castellanos who is drawn into a deranged world of horrific creatures while investigating the scene of a grisly mass-murder.
The Evil Within is in development on PC, PS4, PS3, Xbox One and Xbox 360 on August 26th in North America and August 29th in Europe and the UK.
- Ultra Street Fighter IV coming to PS4 at the end of May
- Ubisoft to publish Homeworld Remastered Collection at retail next month
- Journey, Flower and FlOw heading to the PS4 in a retail package
- Phil Harrison's departure from Microsoft has been confirmed
- Here's the first look at Star Wars: Battlefront
- Project CARS will feature 110 courses across over 30 iconic locations
- Gratuitous Space Battles 2 arrives today
- First Star Wars: Battlefront details arrive including a release date
- The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt's release date is now set in stone


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City of Detroit to Upgrade Its ParkDetroit App
City of Detroit To Upgrade Its ParkDetroit App
Improvements Will Empower Visitors With New Tools to Enhance Their Experience in the City
Today, the city of Detroit will launch its updated ParkDetroit app to make it one of the premier and technologically advanced municipal parking apps anywhere in the country. The revised app will depart from the original in every conceivable aspect, both in terms of functionality and capability.
“It’s important for us to match our world-class city with a world-class parking app,” said Keith Hutchings, director of the city’s municipal parking department. “The improvements to our ParkDetroit app will make it a one-of-a-kind system unlike anything else in the country. We must continue to push the envelope to ensure today’s sophisticated consumers have the means to make their lives easier, and we believe the revised ParkDetroit app does that.”
The new ParkDetroit app will give visitors the capacity to check parking availability in public and private garages, parking lots, and on-street metered parking. A new map interface will complement the parking zone concept found in the app’s original iteration, and it will allow users to zoom in and pinpoint a specific garage, parking lot, or on-street metered parking to check and compare pricing by the block.
Additionally, the new ParkDetroit app will allow visitors to prepay for parking in garages and some off-street parking lots. The app generates a QR code once the payment is made, which visitors would then use to scan to gain access to the garage or parking lot. What’s more, if visitors are planning a trip downtown for a specific event, the app gives them the ability to check for available parking using the name of the event or the venue in which the event is taking place. And if a visitor forgets their parking location after the event, the app can help navigate them back to their vehicle using turn-by-turn navigation.
Beyond parking, visitors to the app can also use it to help guide their entertainment plans, as it will include a list of events happening in the city.
Those who currently have the app on their smartphone will have to delete it and upload the new version. It will not automatically update. Those without a smartphone will have the ability to reserve and prepay for parking using the ParkDetroit.us website.
This is the first of three upgrade phases the city plans for the ParkDetroit app. The subsequent set of upgrades, which will include multi-modal transportation options, a merchant discount program, and other features, is scheduled for the first half of 2022. The city will house short tutorial videos on its ParkDetroit website to help visitors get acclimated to the new system.
City officials anticipate the new app will improve congestion by cutting down on visitors driving around looking for a parking space. They also expect that it will drive business activity among city retailers and businesses, as well as enhance the overall experience of visiting downtown.


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China and Australia in Free Trade Agreement
China and Australia have sealed a major free trade agreement which sees the two companies take a step forward to opening up unhindered trade routes between them.
The deal has finally come about after around a decade’s worth of talks as China looks to secure greater access for investment projects whilst Australia wants to open up more markets for its massive agriculture sector.
In a move that could bring billions of dollars into the Australian economy, a Declaration of Intent was signed with the full expected to be signed in 2015 when the draft has been reviewed and translated. It is expected to be a huge boost to Australian cattle farmers who are seeing a growing market in Asia for their beef products as well as dairy farmers, winemakers and other sectors who will all benefit from tariff free trade in the coming years with Parliamentary Secretary Josh Frydenberg saying the agreement meant that “up to 95% of our exports over time will enter the Chinese market tariff-free” .However, Australia failed to get a reduction in tariffs on key commodities such as rice, wheat, cotton and sugar but likewise the Chinese could not get Australia to change its practise of scrutiny by the foreign investment review board on all investment by state-owned enterprises, which make up most of Chinese investments.
China is Australia’s biggest two way trading partner and over the past twenty years or so, the two have secured ties with growth and strengthened trade links and this deal will further that bond significantly. In 2013, trade between the two countries was worth A$150 billion and the Australian government has said that this free trade agreement could secure a further A$20 billion for the economy.
Australia have signed similar agreements with South Korea and Japan over the past year as it looks to expand out into Asian markets with Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbot saying of this latest agreement:
“With a substantial economy, with a major economy; and it’s the most comprehensive agreement that China has concluded with anyone”.
Service sectors in both countries will benefit with freer access to industries such as healthcare, tourism, construction, banking and insurance as well as exporters seeing tariff free trade with 85% of Australian exports into China not incurring tariffs, a figure that could rise to 95%. Chinese exports to Australia will also be tariff free on such things as clothes, shoes, vehicles and electronics as well as the threshold for Chinese investment in Australia without need for a government review being raised to A$1.078bn from A$248m.


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Will Central New York Dairy Farms Benefit from New Trade Deal
It's rare to hear positive national news hit so close to home. The much talked about new trade agreement with the U.S., Canada, and Mexico could bring some relief to Central New York Dairy Farmers. But how much will it help?
Several publications are reporting the agreement opens more of the Canadian dairy market to imports from the U.S., especially New York and Wisconsin. An article in the Democrat and Chronicle says the deal will allow dairy farmers to export about $560 million in milk, cheese, and butter into Canada. It also puts a tariff on Canadian exports of skim milk products and infant formula.
While any help is welcomed in the Dairy Industry, some say the trade deal will definitely not be a windfall. It won't do anything to improve declining milk prices and until those improve, dairy will still be on a tight budget. The new agreement has to be passed by Congress before it goes into effect. Read more about the trade agreement and its effect on New York farmers at the Democrat and Chronicle's website.


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Paid search management vendor Covario said today that PPC spending was up 52% in Q1 2008 versus 2007.
52% is a big leap for an already red-hot digital marketing tactic.
But perhaps more interesting was the finding that Google took in 85% of the paid search spend in the first quarter. (No wonder Yahoo! rushed into their arms after Microsoft blew them off). This points to a big inefficiency in PPC in general. If Google has 71% of the search market based on total number of searches, but 85% of the PPC budget, then substantially more people are spending substantially more dollars in Google than necessary.
Google’s Popularity Means You’re Overpaying
It’s not a mystery why paid search is up 52% and Google has 14% more spend share than eyeball share. In a down economy, marketers want to minimize waste, and Google PPC is the closest thing to a sure bet that’s easily available. (see previous post on digital marketing’s prominence in a recession). Marketers figure that if they have to retrench and focus on results and ROI, Google’s the place to go. But, if everyone is thinking that (and it appears they are), then the price for a click on Google PPC will continue to rise quickly to the point that profitability and ROI are impacted.
I suggest monitoring your average cost per click carefully to see if this trend is impacting you or your clients.
Don’t Dismiss Yahoo!
On a related note, this 85% Google share very much undervalues the importance of Yahoo! to many successful PPC programs. In many cases while working on client projects with Mighty Interactive, we saw Yahoo actually outperform Google. This is especially true for certain brands, as Yahoo’s users skew more female and less technical than do Google’s (and MSN’s users are even more female than Yahoo).
So, if the Google gold rush is pricing you out of the market, swim upstream and put some dollars in Yahoo and MSN where the clicks are cheap and your competition has fled.


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MOUNT TREMPER, N.Y. -- A contest is under way to find a new slogan for the Catskill Mountains region that will be used in an advertising and promotional campaigns to attract visitors to the area.
The Catskill Park Resource Foundation said in a press release that the group will "be marshalling resources to mount a $5 million promotional campaign, professionally designed and placed to guarantee the highest possible visibility. But the CPR, recognizing that any slogan must resonate with the general public, decided to reach out to that public to help define the region."
The winner of the slogan contest will receive a $1,500 prize in August, the press release said.
Entries in the contest will be accepted online at www.cprandco.org/contest. On July 16, the foundation will compile a list of all the suggestions and have them reviewed by a panel of regional professionals with tourism and marketing expertise, the release said. The judges then will choose five slogans as finalists and announce them in a press conference on July 27.
Residents and visitors then will be invited to vote for their favorite slogan, and the entry with the most unique votes will win.
The winning slogan will be announced on Aug. 25 at Belleayre Mountain.
"We will reach out through social and electronic media outlets to discover the right image and slogan," said developer Dean Gitter, a founding board member of the foundation. "We will know which one is the right one because it will excite people, resonate with them and make them so enthusiastic that they will go online to vote for it."
Updates on the contest will be available on the foundation's Facebook page and Twitter account.


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Speaking globally, Ben Stoyenko took a concept from the East and broght it to the West. In a national sense, he brought something from the west to the east.
Bubble tea—a sweet drink with tapioca “bubbles” that pop in the mouth—was invented in Taiwan, and then made its way to America, the West. The drink has been a hit in western states for nearly a decade, and now it is appearing in eastern states, and, most recently, East Baltimore.
Stoyenko has just opened American Boba—which sells bubble tea, milk bubble tea, smoothies and “signature smoothies”—at 425 S. Conkling St. in Highlandtown.
“I wanted to try out this idea,” he said. “We spent this summer getting the store together.”
Stoyenko, 20, is a young entrepreneur and also a college student at the University of Maryland. He has two years to go. His previous two years were spent at the University of Southern California.
“Boba tea is huge out there,” Stoyenko said. “I wanted to kind of Americanize it, because I noticed that out there, they catered to mostly Asian cultures, but everybody likes it.”
All teas have a green tea base, with additional fruit flavor options, such as mango, blueberry, pineapple and strawberry. There are also milk teas, which are creamier.
“Everyone that’s tried it really likes it, and it’s unique,” said Stoyenko.
It is different. Stoyenko and employee Marie Zachmann brought samples to the Guide office for the staff. With the clear cups, you can see the bubbles settled at the bottom of the opaque liquid. Rather than a snap-on lid, as in a fountain drink, the lid of the boba tea is a sealed on, clear plastic membrane. Tip the cup upside down and nothing comes out.More importantly, one can shake up the drink so the bubbles distribute through the liquid. Then punch the fat straw through the membrane and suck down the bubbles with the tea.
The sealed lid gives the drinks appearance of being premade and shipped, but everything is in fact made on S. Conkling St.
“A lot of people get confused, because they think you’re supposed to rip off the seal, rather than punch the straw through it,” said Stoyenko.
by Erik Zygmont


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Dogs are traditionally seen as "man's best
friend," but an expert on canine cognition says the origin of the species
may not have been all that warm and fuzzy: Dogs could have started out as
mutant wolves that rooted around in the garbage like rats…
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- April 21, 2014
- Renesas Electronics
Renesas Electronics is a supplier of advanced semiconductor solutions including microcontrollers, SoC solutions and a broad range of analog and power devices.
April 21, 2014, – Renesas Electronics opened Renesas Electronics India, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Renesas Electronics Singapore, located in Bangalore, India. Since 2010, Renesas has been carrying out its business promotion activities and providing technical product support to its customers in India via its branch offices in Bangalore, Delhi and Mumbai. As part of its expansion plan, Renesas is converting its India branch offices to a full subsidiary. Renesas can now expand its operations to other cities in India as well as engage in a wider range of business activities. Customers can expect a higher level of engagement and services delivered closer to their doorsteps. By providing dedicated local support via the new company, and with a focus on industrial and automotive applications, Renesas aims to increase its MCU share in India and expand its solution offerings with rich lineup of kit solutions and reference boards to provide customers a shorter time-to-market. “By opening a full-fledged subsidiary in India, we will be able to provide better and broader support to the growing customer base in India,” said Manabu Kawashima, Senior Vice President of Renesas Electronics Corporation. “India is one of the most important markets for Renesas and strengthening our presence here is part of our growth strategy. We aim to expand our global sales by providing the best solution offerings and technical product support as well as a regional systems solution development expertise to the Indian market” Renesas has launched a series of 8/16-bit general-purpose microcontrollers (MCUs) dedicated to emerging markets including, India. In addition to these MCU products, Renesas Electronics India will be growing the number of kit solutions combining MCUs with Analog & Power Devices and reference boards for automotive, consumer and industrial appliances to give its customers a shorter time-to-market. “Renesas understands the unique needs of emerging markets,” added Hideyuki Shimada, Managing Director of Renesas Electronics Singapore. “In order to expand Renesas footprint in markets like India, Renesas India will engage with the Renesas Headquarters to develop new products and solutions dedicated for emerging countries including India. Our goal is to become the most trusted semiconductor solution provider in India.” Renesas India plans to expand its application engineering team to develop and market ‘India-centric’ solutions. The team will first focus on two-wheeler automotive solutions. Renesas India intends to expand the team’s operations to other cities in India to extend its solution offerings to industrial and consumer appliances in time to come. “The application engineering team aims to survey the market for future solution needs, prepare India designed solutions fitting the price points and specifications points as required in the Indian market” explained Sunil Dhar, Managing Director of Renesas Electronics India. “Along with the customers, the team also intends to collaborate with the design houses to create innovative solutions addressing upcoming needs of the Indian market.” The expanded application engineering support will fuel growth in this sector. Besides India, Renesas has sales offices in Europe, US, Canada, Brazil, China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Korea, Malaysia and Singapore. These solution offerings will also be available for customers in Singapore, China and Taiwan. About Renesas Electronics Corporation Renesas Electronics Corporation (TSE: 6723), the world’s number one supplier of microcontrollers, is a premier supplier of advanced semiconductor solutions including microcontrollers, SoC solutions and a broad range of analog and power devices. Business operations began as Renesas Electronics in April 2010 through the integration of NEC Electronics Corporation (TSE:6723) and Renesas Technology Corp., with operations spanning research, development, design and manufacturing for a wide range of applications. Headquartered in Japan, Renesas Electronics has subsidiaries in 20 countries worldwide.Learn More
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To intercept a file, the researchers wrote software to mimic an Apple server. The encrypted transmission they targeted contained a link to the photo stored in Apple’s iCloud server as well as a 64-digit key to decrypt the photo.
Although the students could not see the key’s digits, they guessed at them by a repetitive process of changing a digit or a letter in the key and sending it back to the target phone. Each time they guessed a digit correctly, the phone accepted it. They probed the phone in this way thousands of times.
[...] To prevent the attack from working, users should update their devices to iOS 9.3. Otherwise, their phones and laptops could still be vulnerable, Green said.
Inside Apple, the trio of experts known among employees as the privacy czars are both admired and feared.
[...] Following a popular philosophy in Silicon Valley known as "privacy by design," product managers start collaborating early with the privacy engineering and legal teams, former Apple employees said. For complicated matters, the privacy taskforce steers the issue to a senior vice president, and particularly sensitive questions may rise to Cook.
Key principles include keeping customer data on their devices - rather than in the cloud, on Apple servers - and isolating various types of data so they cannot be united to form profiles of customers.
A lot has been written about the Apple vs. FBI saga. However, the truth about exactly what it all means from a technical standpoint is scattered among many sources, amidst quite a bit of misinformation. This post is my attempt to provide, in a question and answer format, what I consider to be the current knowledge of the state of affairs, from the perspective of a security researcher.
Not once during the two-hour presentation did Cook & Co. mention what would prove to be the most consequential software development of all. Tucked inside the new OS was a dramatic change to how Apple encrypts data on iPhones. The new system made it impossible for government investigators—and even Apple itself—to pull information from a device without a passcode.
Following the event, Apple gave the Federal Bureau of Investigation early access to iOS 8 so it could study how the new system would change evidence-gathering techniques, according to people familiar with the software's development. The agency quickly realized Apple had closed an important access point used for years by agents to collect information about criminal suspects. Many in the FBI were stunned. Suddenly, photos, text messages, notes and dozens of other sources of information stored on phones were off-limits.
I believe our President understands all of this, that he believes unbreakable cryptography is the lesser of two bad choices…but he must weigh what he says. Can we really expect him to say that the FBI is wrong? Instead, he lets the FBI push hard, absorbs some of the reflected Law and Order sunshine, and allows the San Bernardino case to take the long, arduous road to the Supreme Court. And Backdoor legislation will be introduced, discussed and discussed, with the Tech Industry up in arms – and dollars – against it.
Relying on corporations to protect private data is bad enough in a vacuum – but Snowden pointed out that many tech giants have already proven more than willing to hand over user data to a government they rely on for licensing and a favorable regulatory climate.
Walter: Hey everybody! We’re here with live developments from the telephone event. This could be huge. Revolutionary, even. You probably already know the idea: this new tube-like speaking instrument makes it so people can speak freely over the distance of many miles—hearing one another as if they’re in the same room.
Samuel: Still waiting for Alexander Graham Bell at this point.
More and more, I'm drawn to the 12-inch MacBook, compromises and all. Looking back over the past year, it's the system I've most often grabbed for mission critical on-the-go use, and that makes me think my original qualified recommendation was overly cautious.
Developer Acid Nerve describes its new game as ‘Portal meets Lemmings’. That’s fair, but the premise also appears to propel you into a future world of interior decorating where technology has gone mad.
When a tool like Apple Pay works, it's like magic. You lift your phone, use fingerprint recognition to confirm the purchase, and walk away. The Wallet app in iOS shows you a list of your recent transactions, and adding credit cards is a simple process. But if Apple Pay fails enough times or isn't accepted at enough places, people forget it exists or think it's not worth trying to use. It's a lot like Siri in that way: too many failed attempts and you'll never open it again — at least not on purpose.
Since instant messenger (specifically Gmail’s chat function) moved from a novelty to my constant companion, I’ve become more aware of the gulf between how I talk to people online and how I talk to them in person.
The first day of spring causes most people in North America to think longingly of warmer days ahead in the summer months. But at the southern edge of the world—specifically, the US Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station—a northern spring marks the last time southern researchers will see the sun for six months.
As usual, by the time Tim Cook steps on the stage to start off the introduction of the special edition iPhone, I'll be in dreamland. See you all tomorrow.
Thanks for reading.


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The Stifel survey found that post-COVID, 65% of consumers said they expect to maintain consumption with 17% suggesting increased consumption.
Cannabis consumption rose during the height of the COVID crisis as anxiety and lockdowns prompted many to increase the amount consumed. According to a new survey by Stifel, it doesn’t look like consumers are going to return to pre-pandemic levels of use. This is good news for cannabis companies.
The survey also determined that cannabis remains a resilient category despite increasing options for discretionary spending as people ease out of COVID restrictions. The research firm surveyed both U.S. and Canadian cannabis consumers and said it reinforced its opinion that the U.S. landscape looks positive while suggesting a mixed outlook for Canada.
The survey confirmed that price is more important to Canadians than to U.S. cannabis shoppers. It also learned that regular cannabis consumers continue to prefer flower, while new cannabis consumers prefer edibles, beverages, and topicals. Another key item in the survey said location is the most important element for store loyalty. “We believe these three categories have the potential to drive mainstream conversion given the accessibility, discretion, ease of use, and familiarity with Headset data suggesting stronger branding power for these segments versus inhalables.”
No Post Pandemic Change
The Stifel survey found that post-COVID, 65% of consumers said they expect to maintain consumption with 17% suggesting increased consumption. “We believe increasing incidence and consumption by existing consumers will be consistent category tailwinds, but the Canadian market’s growth is predicated on the ongoing conversion of the illicit market through expanding retail access and product availability.” The report also noted that the edibles market in Canada has been difficult for producers and believes that the category won’t be fully successful without regulatory changes.
The category is fairly new, but producers face strict regulatory requirements. There are limits on THC levels and packaging limitations make it hard to build brand awareness. Edible also can’t resemble any type of candy that could appeal to children, which has boosted the illicit market.
Canadian consumers are more price sensitive than U.S. consumers. Stifel said that price and quantity were the top two priorities in each survey with Canadians putting a much higher importance on price (31-37% vs 25-28%) versus US consumers significantly outpacing the next highest priority (10-15% vs 3-5%).
The survey found that 30% of Canadian consumers suggested price was the number one determining factor in choosing a retail location. “We believe this underscores the Canadian producers’ difficulty in profitably capitalizing on Canadian cannabis category growth. Novelty and brand were the least important priorities for Canadian consumers. Headset trends outline significant turnover for the top ten brands with seven of the current top 10 brands discount or deep discount offerings.”
Location, Location, Location.
Stifel said that location is the number one determining factor in where Canadians purchase cannabis. The survey revealed that 83% of consumers typically buy from the same location, highlighting strong customer loyalty. “We see the results as supporting well-capitalized and well-established operators able to expand quickly and secure desirable locations, especially in Ontario. Store proximity, price, product selection, and technology were among other factors in order of importance driving purchasing decisions.”
Beyond the survey, the analysts took a look at active store licenses (both on an absolute and per capita basis) and other accessibility metrics by province and region of the Greater Toronto Area (GTA). They found that some areas were past the point of saturation and others had extremely limited access and, thus, have room to accommodate many more stores. That could mean that companies may consolidate poorly performing stores and invest more heavily in better locations.
“While we continue to outline a negative overall approach to the most senior Canadian producers, LPs have the ability to invest behind R&D and commercialize products in the Canadian market. The US MSOs have the ability to leverage growing infrastructure to commercialize emerging product concepts.”


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1. Iconic Tower
Scheduled to be finished in 2022, the Iconic Tower will be the highest structure on the African continent and the centrepiece of the service district in Egypt’s New Administrative Resources, a new capital city being built 45 kilometres east of Cairo. The tower will include 78 floorings (with cellar degrees) of workplaces, houses and a resort, with a monitoring deck on the 74th floor.
2. 9 DeKalb Opportunity
Created by the store architect company, Brooklyn’s 9 DeKalb Method will be the first supertall high-rise in New York beyond Manhattan. Mainly residential, it includes layout hints in bronze and marble inspired by an adjacent site structure, the Dollar Savings Bank of New York, developed in 1906-08. 9 DeKalb Avenue will get to 325 metres high as well as have 74 floors.
3. The Spiral
The Spiral will be the 13th-tallest building in New York and also obtains its name from the stepped landscaped balconies that cover around its exterior to supply outside room to every floor. Further plant will certainly be obtainable in the nearby Phase 3 of New York’s legendary High Line aerial park.
4. Merdeka 118
Merdeka 118 is a mixed-use building unfinished in Kuala Lumpur. When completed, it will be 644 metres high with 118 storeys, making it the category of a “megatall” skyscraper as well as making it the second-tallest structure in the world, after the Shanghai Tower. Developed to celebrate Malaysian Self-reliance Day (Hari Merdeka), it will certainly be owned by Permodalan Nasional Berhad, the biggest fund-management business in Malaysia. The RM 5 billion (u20a4 1.11 bn) cost has been branded wasteful by its critics, yet the Malaysian government has actually insisted the financial investment will certainly bring economic opportunities. Merdeka 118 will certainly feature retail rooms, resort spaces (operated by Park Hyatt), homes, workplaces– as well as auto parking places for approximately 8,500 vehicles.
5. 50 Hudson Yards
Made by Foster + Partners, 50 Hudson Yards will be New York’s fourth-largest industrial workplace tower as well as will certainly have 58 storeys. At 308 metres it’s not practically a supertall high-rise, however it will still be New York’s 14th-tallest structure (its neighbour, The Spiral, will certainly be 13th-tallest). In 2019, Facebook announced it would certainly inhabit 110,000 m2 of the building’s 270,000 m2. Possession monitoring company BlackRock will take 78,700 m2.
6. The Helix
Damaging ground in 2022 with an arranged conclusion date of 2025, The Helix in Arlington, northern Virginia will certainly be house to Amazon.com’s HQ2 and is created by Seattle designers NBBJ (of the well known Amazon Spheres). Its 106-metre-tall spiral shape has actually divided movie critics, a few of whom have contrasted it unfavourably to the “poop” emoji, but it is nonetheless an enthusiastic job. Like the Spheres and also their indoor rainforests, The Helix also welcomes the biophilia fad in a huge means, featuring relaxing, car-free landscaping (all lorry gain access to has been gotten rid of below ground) and also a hikeable vertical forest that winds around its whole outside.


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LiveRamp will drop $140 million to finance its people-based marketing dreams. On Thursday, the Acxiom-owned onboarding company announced its intention to acquire two companies: Arbor, a marketplace for people-based data, and Circulate, which helps app developers monetize their first-party data in a privacy-friendly way.
LiveRamp declined to say how much it paid for each company.
Arbor and Circulate will both be integrated into LiveRamp's omnichannel identity resolution tool, IdentityLink. A version of the tool aimed at brands launched in October, followed less than a month later by a version for marketing technology providers.
LiveRamp said the integration should be completed in five months and will be baked into the next phase of IdentityLink, aimed at publishers. Media sellers will use it to offer the equivalent of Facebook Custom Audiences and Google Customer Match across their own properties.
Arbor and Circulate both have a mobile-first approach, according to LiveRamp CMO Jeff Smith.
“We’ve seen a great deal of demand amongst the marketers we work with to increase our mobile deterministic reach,” Smith said. “This acquisition allows us to improve the identity resolution we can do for marketers via the networks Arbor and Circulate have built and it allows us to add value to their publisher partners by giving access to the marketers using the IdentityLink platform.”
More than 150 marketers use IdentityLink.
Deterministic reach is critical if LiveRamp wants to compete with Facebook and Google for people-based marketing budgets.
LiveRamp claims the addition of Arbor and Circulate will provide a 20-30% boost in deterministic mobile match rates and a 10-20% boost in deterministic online match rates, which translates into the ability to reach several million more real people across digital channels.
“Outside of Facebook and Google, sources of identity data only really come from two places,” Smith said. “From publishers who are interacting with consumers and as a result they have information on those consumers, and from the brands themselves that have CRM databases they maintain with information on a small slice of the population.”
Arbor and Circulate help expand LiveRamp’s pool of existing publisher partnerships from just over 200 to more than 450.
“That will allow us to extend the scale of our graph and ultimately provide better reach to marketers,” he said. “We’re basically doubling the number of data sources we can use to help marketers implement custom audiences across the rest of the internet.”
The entire Arbor and Circulate teams – each have about 20 employees – will join LiveRamp under Acxiom’s Connectivity unit as full-time employees. LiveRamp’s current headcount stands at around 250 people.
Acxiom expects that Arbor and Circulate will contribute roughly $5 million in revenue during fiscal year 2017.
Founded in 2014, Arbor raised a $6.5 million Series A in September and just over $9 million total, including seed funding. Circulate has raised $17.4 million since it was founded in 2009.
[Shout-out to the commenter on AdExchanger’s coverage of the Arbor funding round. You called it: “Very hot space – the data is rare, unlike behavioral data. Arbor has a shot at unseating LiveRamp in the onboarding space, but they are not as scaled as Circulate or Oracle’s identity graph.”]


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Vehicle manufacturers keen to adopt EV models for market expanse
22 May 2017
22 May 2017
More and more manufacturers are diving into the electric vehicle (EV) market, as technology, battery life and most importantly consumer awareness improves. What was once a bastion of small manufacturers and startups, today even premium manufacturers are looking to take their slice of the sector.
Some companies are developing EV strategies, others are releasing new versions of their already popular models. One such company doing the latter is Nissan, which has announced it will be launching the second generation Leaf in September 2017. The company has released a teaser image which suggests a major facelift to the current model, bringing it in line with the manufacturer’s new Micra.
Speaking at an event in Norway, Pierril Pouret, senior vice president of Nissan in the Nordic Region, commented: ′This will be a brand new model designed from blank sheets that will make sure we’re still in the front.’
The new Leaf is expected to feature an improved range, although no details of this have yet been released. With Tesla offering around 215 miles range from the batteries in its Model 3, manufacturers are keen to show they too can improve the distance their EVs can travel.
Meanwhile, BMW has announced plans to be a leader in electrification and connected technology. At its annual general meeting (AGM) in May 2017, Harald KrÜger, chairman of the board of management at the manufacturer, told shareholders that the company expects to sell 100,000 electric vehicles in 2017, and by 2025, electrified drivetrains are likely to account for 10-25% of the company’s total sales. He also confirmed a new BMW i8 Roadster in 2018, a pure electric Mini in 2019 and a fully electric BMW X3 for 2020.
He said: ′From 2020, we want to be able to build electric, plug-in hybrid and combustion-engine variants of each model series on the same line. This will make us extremely flexible. Sustainable mobility thrives wherever there is an effective combination of three factors: customer, legislation and industrialisation. Anyone who has driven an electric car – and I do this very often – knows that e-mobility is also sheer driving pleasure in its purest form. That is why 95 per cent of electric car owners choose an electric vehicle as their next car.’
Another German manufacturer, Audi, is also looking to expand its electric vehicle fleet. Rupert Stadler, speaking at the AGM held in May 2017, told delegates that the vehicle maker would be releasing three new battery electric models by 2020. One of these, the Audi e-tron Quattro SUV, will be ready for launch as early as 2018, with the company stating it would have around 300 miles of range.
The move could be a sign of how seriously parent company Volkswagen (VW) is taking its new modular electric drive (MEB) architecture. The company is keen to encourage subsidiaries to share technology across brands to save costs within the group. By 2025, Audi plans to have at least one third of its models as fully or partially electric.
Finally, Japanese vehicle maker Subaru is considering jumping on the EV train as it makes record investments into its research and development. The company is considering installing electric drivetrains in existing models rather than launching an all-new car. The manufacturer believes it would allow the opportunity to capitalise on the market without the need to tie in with other manufacturers.


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It’s Super Bowl time again, and along with all the prognostication and hype (can Madden NFL REALLY pick the winner?) there are countless articles regarding another important Super Bowl tradition – EATING.
This year, those articles seemed to all focus on chicken wings. It is estimated Americans will consume 1.3 BILLION chicken wings. You have to hand it to the Poultry Industry for getting these numbers out there. Great campaign. Depending on the article, that number ranged between 1.3-1.8 billion, so maybe their story could have been clearer, but still, that’s a LOT of wings.
Super Bowl weekend ranks second in the nation’s colossal calorie consumption days (right next to Thanksgiving) This Forbes article summed up some of the other things Americans devour as we cheer for our favorite team, underdog, or commercial.
- 3 BILLION chicken wings
- 5 million pizzas
- 200 million pounds of avocados
- 325 million gallons of beer
So out of curiosity, we thought we would poll the Nereus staff to see how our snack preferences lined up with the rest of the nation (the beer is a given!). Here are the Nereus Super Bowl munchies by the numbers:
- Nachos/Chips/Dips 8
- Chili 3
- Pizza 2
- Chicken Wings 2
- Hotdogs/Burgers 2
- Veggies 0
True to our creative, out-of-the-box nature, chicken wings aren’t high on our “must have” list. We like them, but they fall behind other things. And while pizza made the list, it was Nachos/Chips/Dips that topped the Nereus list. As one of us put it, “I only show up for the Queso.”
There was one area where we might line up with the rest of the nation, however; there were NO votes for vegetables of any kind. Clearly there’s no need for a “healthy” pretense during the Super Bowl.
Of course, we also like to supplement our “must haves” with some other fantastic foods like ribs, bacon-wrapped jalapeno poppers, seven layer bean dip, and a KILLER Bloody Mary!
Thanks to the Poultry Industry, we’ve discovered some of our culinary passions and talents. We should probably look for some other excuses beyond the Super Bowl to get together and share some favorites.
I’ll definitely show up for the Queso.
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PADUCAH — West Kentucky will soon have its first LGBT Welcome Center. The welcome center, which will open in Paducah on Tuesday, will offer services such as community classes and outreach programs for everyone. It will also have business support services.
The Paducah LGBT Welcome Center will connect people to LGBTQ+ friendly businesses in west Kentucky, like Anaj clothing store in Mayfield.
This is a place I want everyone to feel like they can come in to shop, Anaj owner Jana Duffy said. "I don't care. I want everybody to come in here and feel welcome," she said.
That feeling is at the heart of the welcome center's message, Director of Operations Dustin Havens said. "So many people can refuse service to us based on any reason, and so by having this services that we can offer, we can tell people where they can go to get that cake, where they can go to get an attorney or a doctor," Havens said.
The center aims to be the new regional hub for businesses like Anaj to connect with the LGBTQ+ community.
"There was so many people whenever I was in high school that were scared to come out, and I don't want that for our next generation," Duffy said.
The team will connect people with advocacy resources, as well as places to shop.
"Centralizing into the welcome center, we have the potential to grow both economically and as a community," Havens said.
It could bring new people from around the state to your community to shop or visit.
The welcome center is located at 413 Broadway St. in downtown Paducah. The grand opening is set for 4 p.m. Tuesday.
Contact Donna Riley at email@example.com if you would like to become a registered business or partner of the regional welcome center.


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OR WAIT null SECS
The financial reports for Agilent Technologies' first quarter of 2009 have identified trends in the demand for product platforms.
The financial reports for Agilent Technologies’ first quarter of 2009 have identified trends in the demand for product platforms.
Breaking the report down by platform showed both gas and liquid chromatography systems have performed weaker than last year, while both microarrays and LC–MS grew by double digits.
Additionally, although the company reports the revenues of the company’s bio-analytical segment are down on last year’s, life science sales to academic and government markets are up dramatically, owing to particular strength in microassays and LC–MS systems shown by this sector. The food safety market also performed well.


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The Blackphone is a smartphone that launched last year which featured a custom version of Android and an emphasis on privacy and security. Now the makers of the Blackphone are getting ready to launch two new devices: a phone with better specs and a tablet.
The Blackphone 2 smartphone should launch this summer, while the Blackphone+ tablet is due out this fall.
While the original Blackphone was a partnership between software and service provider Silent Circle and hardware maker Geekphone, Silent Circle recently bought out Geeksphone’s stake which brings everything under Silent Circle’s control.
The company provides secure, encrypted communications services for making phone calls and sending text messages, among other things. Silent Circle also developed PrivatOS, a fork of Google Android which can run Android apps, but which lacks the Google Play Store.
Along with announcing new hardware, Silent Circle is introducing PrivatOS 1.1 this week, adding features including Spaces: a system that lets you create separate personal and professional workspaces on a phone so that an IT administrator can manage and/or wipe your work profile without affecting your personal data and apps.
The Blackphone 2 smartphone is expected to have a 64-bit processor, a 5.5 inch display, and more memory than the original.
The Blackphone+ tablet will likely have an 8 inch display, but Silent Circle is still working out the rest of the details. The company hasn’t even decided whether to use a 4:3 or a 16:9 aspect ratio display.


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While this is a wonderful time of year for enjoying holiday rituals, it’s inevitable that crowded malls, worsening traffic, and too many events in too little time will wear on us.
“There are the commercials, and it’s so hyped up that it should just be perfect. And that is a very unrealistic expectation,” said Dr. Pamela Everett Thompson.
Kathleen Hall, founder and chief executive officer of the Atlanta-based Stress Institute, said that if people are feeling low, they should consider switching things up.
She suggested volunteering or starting a new holiday tradition by going on a trip or decorating in a new way.
See the Family section of Wednesday’s Arkansas Democrat-Gazette for tips for keeping the stress out of the season.


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Creaton, a decentralized, subscription-based content sharing network, announced that the platform has received a total of $1.1 million in funding on October 7th in Sheridan, Wyoming, from investors including BTSE Labs, Tykhe Block Ventures, and other angel investors.
Creaton is Making it Possible
Artists on Creaton, in contrast to many other similar sites, may accept paid memberships from their followers and be repaid in bitcoin for their work.
Unlike the conventions of ordinary Web 2.0 content sharing platforms, Creaton artists retain entire ownership of their work as well as the remuneration they receive from them.
To protect the content, it is encrypted and stored on Arweave using the Lit Protocol, which is supported by decentralized storage on Arweave. Therefore, the team will be unable to alter or even view the material unless the originator gives permission.
Artists can restrict access to their works to a limited and exclusive audience by integrating smart contracts and various blockchain technologies, so preventing arbitrary prohibitions, censorship, and payment delays, among other things.
Through Superfluid’s streaming payment mechanism, the Creators can make money from the subscriptions of their followers, which are instantaneously converted to bitcoin by the platform.
Explaining the motive behind Creation, the founder Alexander Klus said that their goal is to liberate artists from the Web 2.0 shackles that have been unjustly placed on them in recent years.
According to Prashant Malik – Founder of Tykhe Block Ventures and a former member of Facebook’s first ten workers, Creaton is the driving force for content producers in ways that have been never seen before via the use of decentralized blockchain technology.
“We are really looking forward to seeing the Creaton team focus their efforts on fuelling the next generation of the Creator Economy,” the founder concluded.
Creation is a decentralized content subscription platform (similar to the Web3 Patreon) that empowers artists to directly monetize their community through subscriptions to their work.
In order to create a Web3 creative platform that actually works, Creaton is merging Polygon smart contracts, Arweave storage, Lit Protocol encryption, and SuperFluid payments with other technologies.
About Tykhe Block Ventures
Tykhe Block Ventures is a well-known investment business with its headquarters in Singapore. With a great location in Asia, and loads of local talent, the company is sure to grow from here.


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A supermarket butcher has been enjoying a slice of local fame after appearing in a national newspaper advertising campaign.
Paul Selby, 53, was carrying out his day job behind the butcher’s counter at Morrisons in Uffington Road, Stamford, when he was approached by a company director about being part of an advert.
Paul agreed to have his photo taken and has appeared in numerous national newspapers promoting British meat, Morrisons and the Stamford store.
Paul, of Chestnut Way, Market Deeping, has been recognised by plenty of customers since the campaign began. He said: “It’s good for the store and good for the area.
“A lot of people have come up to me and said they saw me in the paper. It has definitely been good for trade.
“People have recognised me as a butcher, not just someone they take a photo of and stick in the paper.”
Paul has been working as a butcher his whole life. His father and grandfather were butchers and his son is too, so he is pleased to see Morrisons promoting the value of good quality meat.
He added: “We sell dry aged beef now, all sourced from local butchers like Pode Farm in Peterborough.
“Our meat is 100 per cent traceable, right back to the farmer’s gate.
“We break everything down in store, cut it and slice it. We butcher it all ourselves.
“It’s all British meat as well, which is really good.”


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Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Deputy Governor T Rabi Sankar on Monday said customer data should be monetised in a responsible manner with some level of customer consent.
“At a recent conference, many corporates discussed with me how they can access UPI (Unified Payments Interface) data because that will give information which could be used to structure products that can be specifically targeted at specific cohorts of the population. We will have to primarily have laws in place followed by regulations which ensure that customer data is not only safe and privacy is not only protected, but the monetisation of customer data is done in a responsible manner with some level of customer consent,” he said at an event organised by NCAER.
“Something like the data protection bill needs to be in place for large-scale usage of data.”
Last month, the government withdrew the Personal Data Protection Bill from the Lok Sabha and IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw had said the Centre was hopeful of getting a new legislation passed by the next Budget Session of Parliament.
The deputy governor said though there is no gender gap in terms of account ownership, there is about 17 per cent gap in terms of using those accounts for digital payments. “We need to use this data to bridge the gender gap. We depend immensely on the private sector in developing innovative products and in generating businesses that would enable us to achieve our policy objective while the private sector achieves its own objective of profit maximisation,” he added.
National Payments Corporation of India MD and CEO Dilip Asbe said customer experience is very important and the payment experience on a feature phone has to be better. “Unless that is done, making the customer move from assistant mode to self-sufficiency mode is very difficult,” he added.


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Fiat Chrysler will recall vehicles over hacking worries
Washington — Under government pressure, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV agreed Friday to recall 1.4 million vehicles that can be cyber-hacked remotely — as Congress, automakers and regulators are raising increasing concerns about vehicle communications.
The first-of-its-kind callback came just days after a magazine report showed hackers could wirelessly take control of some functions of a Jeep Cherokee.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said it will open an investigation into the recall to ensure all vehicles that could be affected are covered. “Opening this investigation will allow NHTSA to better assess the effectiveness of the remedy proposed by Fiat Chrysler,” NHTSA Administrator Mark Rosekind said in a statement, acknowledging the agency had urged the move.
Owners will get a USB device that they may use to upgrade vehicle software, which provides additional security features independent of the network-level measures that largely addresses the problem.
Sen. Ed Markey, D-Mass., called on NHTSA to ensure that the problem is not limited to Fiat Chrysler.
“There are no assurances that these vehicles are the only ones that are this unprotected from cyberattack. A safe and fully-equipped vehicle should be one that is equipped to protect drivers from hackers and thieves. Both automakers and NHTSA should be immediately taking steps to verify that other similar vulnerabilities do not exist in other models that are on the road,” Markey said.
House leaders, who have been reviewing auto hacking, called for further action.
“Innovation is occurring at lighting speed, and the intersection of automobiles and technology offers tremendous opportunity to keep families safe on the road and improve the American driving experience. But as the underlying technologies seemingly evolve by the day, so too must our manufacturers and regulators keep pace to protect drivers from these growing threats,” said Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Fred Upton, R-St. Joseph and ranking member Frank Pallone, D-N.J. “We are working with leading automakers and NHTSA to ensure all stakeholders are prepared to meet these challenges of the 21st century. We have said that cars today are essentially computers on wheels, and the last thing drivers should have to worry about is some hacker along for the ride.”
Researchers for Wired magazine remotely hacked into a 2014 Jeep Cherokee in a real-world test that included disabling the SUV’s engine functions and controlling interior features such as air conditioning, locks and the radio.
NHTSA encouraged the recall, Rosekind said, because it “meets the critical responsibility of manufacturers to assure the American public that vehicles are secure from such threats, and that when vulnerabilities are discovered, there will be a swift and strong response.”
R said the recall “sets an important precedent for how NHTSA and the industry will respond to cybersecurity vulnerabilities.”
The fix for the recall is a software update for certain radios that could be the subject of hacking. No vehicles outside the United States are impacted.
Of the 1.4 million recalled vehicles, Fiat Chrysler said it eliminated nearly all from hacking concerns earlier this week after its telecommunications provider closed an open port. But it acknowledged that 3 percent of the vehicles could be impacted by short-range wireless communications for owners who subscribe to mobile hotspots. A hacker would need to be within about 100 feet to potentially take control, the automaker said.
Fiat Chrysler told NHTSA that it first learned of a security vulnerability in January from a researcher. The vehicles were open to hacking because a communications port was inadvertently left open and the radio firewalls were open by default. Fiat Chrysler began working on a fix then but did not immediately disclose the issue to NHTSA or the public. Fiat Chrysler said this week its cellular provider remotely closed the communications port that “removes the known risk of long-range remote hacking.”
On July 14, Fiat Chrysler approved an extended warranty program for free software updates for all owners and agreed to send an email and letters describing the issue. The following day, Fiat Chrysler told NHTSA it was issuing a technical service bulletin to address the issue.
But Fiat Chrysler agreed to the recall Thursday at NHTSA’s request.
Most experts downplayed the seriousness of the Fiat Chrysler hack.
Ken Westin, senior security analyst for Tripwire, said, “The actual possibility of this vulnerability being used in a real attack is slim. However, as the researchers in this case worked closely with Chrysler to provide detailed information regarding the vulnerability, they were able to develop a patch to fix the security vulnerability in the vehicle systems. ... With increasingly connected and high tech components being added to these vehicles, they will need to add security to the mix in order to retain their brand integrity. You can develop the most advanced vehicle that has all of the latest safety features and high tech gadgets in it, but if it can be bricked by remote exploits, you are going to have wary consumers who may choose the next brand of vehicle because they put more emphasis on security.”
Edmunds.com editor Ron Montoya said, “There is no real safety threat to FCA owners. This week's hack was an isolated incident that was performed on one specific vehicle and it was not something that could be replicated on a mass scale. Nevertheless, automakers recognize this as a very important issue and they're proactively working to identify flaws in their own connected systems and address whatever issues they may find."
Fiat Chrysler said it is unaware of any injuries related to software exploitation, nor is it aware of any related complaints or accidents outside of the media demonstration.
The recall includes 1.4 million vehicles equipped with 8.4-inch touchscreens including:
■2013-15 Dodge Vipers
■2013-15 Ram 1500, 2500 and 3500 pickups
■2013-15 Ram 3500, 4500, 5500 chassis cabs
■2014-15 Jeep Grand Cherokees and Cherokees
■2014-15 Dodge Durangos
■2015 Chrysler 200, Chrysler 300 and Dodge Charger sedans
■2015 Dodge Challengers
Owners can visit www.driveuconnect.com/software-update/ to input their vehicle identification numbers (VINs) and determine if their vehicles are included in the recall.
They will receive a flash drive to upgrade software to provide additional security beyond the network-level measures already taken.
Fiat Chrysler said it has established a dedicated team focused on identifying best practices for software development. It said the software manipulation demonstrated by the hackers “required unique and extensive technical knowledge, prolonged physical access to a subject vehicle and extended periods of time to write code.”
The recall announcement comes as NHTSA and Fiat Chrysler negotiate a likely settlement into NHTSA’s concerns about the automaker’s handling of nearly two dozen recall campaigns covering about 11 million vehicles. Foxx said a settlement may be announced soon. “We’re working very hard to get these issues closed out,” Foxx said in response to a Detroit News question.
Meanwhile on Friday, Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx said the Obama administration will “push” hard to ensure the nation’s 250 million cars and trucks are not suspectible to cyber hacking. At a roundtable discussion with reporters, Foxx said the problem is an “issue.”
“We will push as hard as we can to ensure the security of vehicles is airtight,” he said at a breakfast meeting with reporters, noting that it may become a bigger issue as connected vehicles become more common on the nation’s roads.
Two senators this week introduced legislation requiring NHTSA to set new rules to guard against hacking. Foxx said it was critical that automakers and the government work closely together to address the issue.


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- January 25, 2018
- Posted by: admin
- Category: Blog
CEO Mark Zuckerberg recently announced an overhaul of Facebook’s news feed that is meant to personalize user experience by slowing down news and marketing content. The changes, though, will potentially affect how social media users interact online as Facebook transforms itself from a social network site into a global entity that scales services.
While the changes directly relate to the repercussions of the ‘fake news’ trend, you can bet that Zuckerberg would not have made this move if he did not see a benefit to it. Facebook credits the need for the need for quality over quantity in making the change in 2018.
Here’s everything you need to know about Facebook’s new news feed:
To be fair to Zuckerberg, he believes that Facebook accessibility has stalled over the amount of public content produced for users. Vast amounts of data has created a shift where users received unsolicited information on their feeds instead of the individualized content like personal posts and photos. In a bid to bring people closer together, Facebook wants to now focus on social responsibility by lessening accessibility to the abundance of branding and media content that, in the past, has overwhelmed users.
News Feed Reliability:
Facebook has committed to users in 2018 that they will receive accurate news from trusted sources. To make this change, users will rank sites by responding to quality surveys. With a well-organized online campaign much like we have seen from some less reputable online communities, it would be an easy problem to overcome if one wants to get a fake news site on Facebook’s feed. It leaves users to question if this change will transcend into legalities over censorship, so it will be interesting to see how social media responds all the same.
With Facebook’s new algorithm, likes and comments by your friends will receive a higher ranking than businesses or multimedia publishers. The change will affect news and video feeds which will lead to marketing changes that promote branding that gets users to add sites to Facebook’s News Feed tab. Do not worry, though, because your friend’s likes will also have a high ranking so that you can follow and communicate about shared interests. As users will have more power with their likes, comments, and share tabs, it will force a change in social media branding because the consumers will have to seek out e-commerce sites to communicate. Branding is everything, but it will not matter if there is no platform access in which to campaign!
Even with a friend and family first policy, Facebook realizes that they can overwhelm even the most patient user. Instead of hitting unlike, you can choose the snooze tab which keeps your intended target in a sleep mode for thirty days! You can also rank your friends to define the parameters of the content you want to receive. The chosen ones may be a bit obvious in your feed, so it is highly unlikely that this will lighten the mood while on social media if the less favorable ones catch on! Beware of the customization capabilities because it seems like they just might counterbalance Facebook’s intent to bring friends and family closer together!
As the changes have not hit Facebook quite yet, rest assured that Frogman Media Group will continue to access them as they roll out. Information is key to staying ahead of changes that affect social media users, so make sure to add us to your news feed!


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India today accepted Nepal’s proposal for joint promotion of tourists destinations, including Buddhist sites, in third countries.
A business delegation of tourism and travel trade from Nepal had a meeting with Tourism Secretary Parvez Dewan and other senior officials of Tourism Ministry here today and the Ministry agreed to a proposal from the visiting delegation for joint publicity of India and Nepal as tourist destinations in other countries, said an official statement here.
While suggesting joint venture with Nepal in showcasing Himalayan and adventure tourism, the Ministry has agreed to joint offering of tour packages in third countries by tour operators of both the countries.
According to the statement, the Nepalese delegation sought India’s cooperation in the development of Hotel infrastructure in Nepal.
They also suggested joint promotion and development of Buddhist sites in both the countries.
Source: Business Standard-02 July, 2013


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Logitech. It’s a company that has NEVER been dodgytech, stodgytech, or bodgytech, even if my creative mind, which oftentimes operates at warp (or is that warped) speed, conjures up these silly rhymes.
The company is billing the new logo as part of ‘its biggest brand transformation in its history,’ building on its ‘heritage as a technology company’ with design at its core.
Seeking to extend beyond its traditional portfolio of mice, keyboards and speakers, Logitech says it is now ‘crafting a portfolio of products that go beyond PC peripherals, to products that have a place in every aspect of your daily life.’
Boasting a ‘colourful new attitude’ alongside its redesigned logo, Logitech has also unveiled a new brand name for these new product categories, which is ‘Logi’.
The company says that, as part of the brand reinvention ‘you will begin to see the name Logi on select products in existing categories, and expect some twists and a few surprises in new categories.’
Logitech even advises us all to ‘Get ready – the first Logi product is around the corner!’.
I guess it sounds logical for Logitech to come up a brand name for its hippest new products that riffs off the one it already has, although seeing as Logitech doesn’t make television programs in Australia, nor has any Australian TV presenters, it appears impossible for Logi products to ever win a Logie.
Logitech’s brand refresh isn’t just something the company cooked up on a flight between Sydney and Canberra on the back of a napkin either, as two of Australia’s politicians once did in the creation of an idea for Australia’s embarrassingly outdated and oft-delayed National Broadband Network project - something Logitech has had nothing to do with.
Indeed, if only Logitech HAD been a part of the NBN - it probably would have been finished by now, operating at twice the speed, available at an affordable price, and splashing across your screen in bold nyan rainbow cat colours - but sadly this is only the case in fictional parallel universe number 7320, and not in the one in which you’re reading this article.
No, it has been working on the change since 2013, with its newest product range for the rest of 2015 said to be ‘an outward expression of these changes,’ with the changes yet to be fully implemented.
Logitech says to ‘expect bold colours and simple designs to make their mark across Logitech.com, social media, on packaging and in-store displays over the coming year.’
The company issued a blog post about the change which you can read about here.
Bracken Darrell, Logitech’s President and CEO said: “We’ve been reinventing Logitech, creating products that strive to blend advanced technology and design to bring you amazing experiences.
“We’ve built a world-class design team, led by chief designer Alastair Curtis. We’re putting Design at the centre of everything we do.
“Our approach to Design goes beyond the classic definition. Design to us is the combination of advanced technology, business strategy and consumer insights. Our products have come a long way, and now it’s time to bring the brand forward too.”
Alastair Curtis, Logitech’s Chief Design Officer said: “Logitech has undergone huge changes, so we’ve created an identity that is an expression of who we are today and who we will be moving forward.
“A company transformation of this magnitude should come with an equally bold transformation of its brand.”
Here’s Logitech’s new brand video showcasing the new logo and company attitude:


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Royal Enfield, a division of Eicher Motors Limited, today said the company aims to be a global leader in the mid-sized motorcycle segment. Besides, the the company is looking to expand business in Karnataka.
"Our company's aim is to become a global leader in the mid-sized motorcycle segment and expand its business in Karnataka," Royal Enfield Head (Sales, Services and Spares) Shaji Koshy told PTI here. The company plans to expand its city-wise growth in global market by opening city-based stores rather than opening dealerships, Koshy said. "Internationally, we want to grow city-wise. We have two stores in London and Paris. We also have the stores in Jkarta, Paris, Columbia and Barcelona.
Our strategy will be to create the brand understanding in cities, first and create customer eco-system and then expand nation-wide," he said. "To begin with we had planned 100 dealerships across Indian cities and in next five years we increased it to 570 dealerships," he added.
Talking about Karnataka market, Koshy said the company had registered 81 per cent growth over corresponding period of April-July in the last two years with sales of over 18,000 units in last four months (April 2016 - July 2016). "We plan to open eight more dealerships by March 2017,"he added. By the end of this fiscal (April to March), the company aims to set up 650 more dealerships across the country.
On Royal Enfield Himalayan bikes, he said that despite being the first motorcycle in its category in the country, it had been well received by customers, especially in Karnataka. "The state currently accounts for more than 25 per cent of Himalayan sales registered across India, a trend we expect to continue.
In fact, Royal Enfield has traditionally performed remarkably well in Karnataka with presence in 47 locations. We have registered 81 per cent growth," he stated. Responding to a query on the company's capacity-building units, Koshy said its third unit is expected to come up at Vallam Vadagal near Chennai and will be operational from this year. Currently, Royal Enfield has manufacturing units in Thiruvottiyur and Oragadam, he added.
Asked about future acquisitions, Koshy said as of now,there were no such plans, however the company had acquired UK-based Harris Performance Products Ltd last year. "Harris Performance is one of the leading experts in designing, manufacturing and marketing motorcycle chassis and components," he said.


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Mastercard and fintech massive OPay lately introduced a strategic partnership, which marks a vital spice up for wider monetary inclusion and financial prosperity by way of opening up virtual trade to tens of millions of folks throughout Middle East and Africa.
The collaboration permits OPay shoppers and traders within the area – together with Algeria, Morocco, Egypt, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Kenya, Pakistan, South Africa and the UAE – to interact with manufacturers and companies anyplace around the globe, thank you to a Mastercard digital fee resolution related to the OPay eWallet.
This partnership is the most recent milestone in Mastercard’s rising marketplace technique the place the generation corporate is participating with rising Fintech’s reminiscent of OPay to extend get admission to to virtual bills, allow more than one way of life products and services, create new pathways to monetary inclusion and beef up the following era of super-apps. Consumers are an increasing number of searching for seamless person reviews on a unmarried platform providing more uncomplicated interactions to whole quite a lot of day-to-day wishes, together with sending and receiving cash, ordering meals and groceries, organizing delivery, lending, making an investment and list pieces they want to promote.
In the preliminary section of this partnership, OPay consumers will have the benefit of the Mastercard digital fee resolution related to their OPay wallets, to store at well known international manufacturers for recreational, shuttle, lodging, leisure, streaming products and services and extra. The provider is to be had irrespective of whether or not or now not the buyer has a checking account. It additionally permits small industry house owners to acquire from providers in another country and pay with the safe digital fee resolution.
Amnah Ajmal, Executive Vice President for Market Development, Mastercard EEMEA, mentioned: “At Mastercard, our innovation technique is rooted in partnerships to beef up inclusion at scale. Our partnership with OPay demonstrates our dedication to supporting bills suppliers internationally to create an interconnected international bills ecosystem that advantages an array of customers with distinctive wishes.”
Yahui Zhou, CEO of OPay,mentioned: “As the main fintech within the Middle East and Africa, we’re extremely joyful to be partnering with Mastercard as we proceed on our adventure to advertise monetary inclusion, serving to to open up the worldwide financial system to extra shoppers and companies throughout Middle East, and Africa.”
Since its operations began in 2018, OPay’s lively customers have grown to 15 million in dozens of markets wherein it operates. The corporate processes tens of millions of transactions according to day on moderate. In Nigeria on my own, the place OPay takes vital marketplace proportion, customers have stored billions of US bucks within the ultimate 4 years via credit-linked financial savings accounts from their cell wallets and small loans from lenders that use its platform.
Plans are in position to release OPay products and services in different markets within the subsequent 3 to 5 years, considerably using the expansion of virtual inclusion and virtual trade, whilst on the identical time widening OPay buyer inclusion into the worldwide financial system.
Mastercard has made a global dedication to monetary inclusion, pledging to convey 1 billion folks and 50 million micro and small companies – with a focal point on 25 million ladies marketers – into the virtual financial system by way of 2025.


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A US senator has filed proposed legislation to prevent Huawei Technologies from seeking patent damages in US courts. The proposed legislation would prevent companies on certain US government watch lists from bringing legal action for patent infringement in the US. Huawei happens to be one company on the relevant lists.
The introduction of the proposed legislation follows a demand from Huawei that US-based Verizon Communications pay US$1 billion in license fees to use Huawei’s patented technology. Read more about Huawei’s developing patent situation.


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The majority of swing voters say they support imposing tariffs on products imported from China, a new poll reveals.
The vast majority of Republican voters, 75 percent, said they support tariffs on China, while a majority of Americans overall support tariffs on China as well.
American men are the most supportive demographic group of tariffs on imported Chinese products, with nearly 60 percent saying they support imposing trade barriers on China.
On Trump’s handling of trade — where the populist president has taken major steps to enact his economic nationalist agenda — nearly 80 percent of Republican voters said they approve of trade actions thus far.
The overwhelming support among GOP voters for Trump’s economic nationalist approach to trade through tariffs and tough negotiations shows the length to which the donor class is out of step with Americans.
Majority of GOP Voters: Free Trade Has Hurt U.S., Cost Americans Their Jobshttps://t.co/JX7Z5yByu9
— John Binder 👽 (@JxhnBinder) April 8, 2018
Since 2001, free trade with China has cost millions of Americans their jobs. For example, in a report by the Economic Policy Institute, between 2001 and 2015, about 3.4 million U.S. jobs, were lost due to the country’s trade deficit with China.
Of the 3.4 million U.S. jobs lost in that time period, about 2.6 million were lost in the crippled manufacturing industry, making up about three-fourths of the loss of jobs from the U.S.-Chinese trade deficit.
The Rust Belt has been one of the hardest regions hit because of U.S. free trade with Mexico. In total, about 700,000 U.S. have been displaced, including:
- 14,500 American workers displaced in Wisconsin
- 43,600 American workers displaced in Michigan
- 2,600 American workers displaced in West Virginia
- 26,300 American workers displaced in Pennsylvania
- 34,900 American workers displaced in Ohio
- 34,300 American workers displaced in New York
- 6,500 American workers displaced in Iowa
- 24,400 American workers displaced in Indiana
- 34,700 American workers displaced in Illinois
Meanwhile, since the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) took effect in the 1990s, at least one million net U.S. jobs have been lost because of the free trade deal. Between 2000 and 2014, there have been about five million manufacturing jobs lost across the country as trade deficits continue soaring.
One former steel town in West Virginia lost 94 percent of its steel jobs because of NAFTA, with nearly 10,000 workers in the town being displaced from the steel industry.
John Binder is a reporter for Breitbart News. Follow him on Twitter at @JxhnBinder.


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HELSINKI — Finnish telecoms network maker Nokia confirmed late on Monday that it may start designing and licensing mobile phone handsets under its brand name in 2016.
Nokia, still a house hold name, is far from the heady heights of being the number one cell phone maker in the world.
“The right path back to mobile phones for Nokia is through a brand-licensing model,” Nokia Technologies spokesman Robert Morlino said in a statement on Nokia’s website.
When Nokia sold their phone division to Microsoft, the agreement stipulated that Microsoft had a limited time to use the Nokia branding on their devices and services.
Due to this, in the last year, Microsoft has transitioned the branding of its phones from Nokia to Lumia and that now leaves the door wide open for Nokia to return in to the mobile devices game should they wish to do so.
Today, in a new post on the Nokia site, they confirm that they have intentions to make mobile devices again.
Nokia has denied reports claiming it will return to the mobile phone market in 2016, stating quotes attributed to the company’s executives are false.
The denial comes after two unnamed sources in the Finnish company’s Nokia Networks division were quoted saying it was planning to sell new handsets under its own name next year. Under rules drawn up during the sale of its phone-making business to Microsoft in 2013, Nokia is currently forbidden from selling phones or licensing its name to others, but these are relaxed in 2016.
Sources claimed Nokia was also looking at other technologies, including “some in the virtual reality arena,” but the company has poured cold water on this speculation. The company said in a statement it “notes news reports claiming the company communicated an intention to manufacture consumer handsets out of a R&D facility in China.”
Nokia added: “These reports are false, and include comments incorrectly attributed to a Nokia Networks executive.”
Having sold its phone-making business to Microsoft for $7.5bn (£4.6bn, €6.9bn), Nokia’s name was gradually phased out from the Lumia smartphone range, which is now under the direct control of Microsoft. Nokia still has a presence in the smartphone industry via its Here mapping apps, but the company recently confirmed it is looking to sell the business, valued at $2.1bn.
Speaking to Bloomberg, one source said Chinese web services company Baidu, Sirius XM Holdings, a US broadcasting company, and Harman International Industries, a US audio and automotive equipment manufacturer, were all interested. A first round of bidding for the Here unit is due to close by 1 May. When contacted by IBTimes UK, a spokesperson for Here Maps said they were unable to comment on “market rumours”.
The report comes just a day after German publication Manager Magazine reported Nokia was looking to sell Here to Uber, BMW, Audi and Daimler. It is no surprise that Nokia is wanting to offload Here, as according to its own financial reports the division has decreased in value from $8.1bn when it was bought in 2008, to around $2.1bn in 2014.


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The latest BVRLA Interview sees Rob King, Business Development Manager at Legate Group talk to BVRLA Director of Fleet Services Amanda Brandon about customer payment difficulties.
Speaking in the 15-minute interview, Rob gives some hints and tips on how members can be proactive with customers who may be heading towards a default situation or have criminal intentions.
Rob also talks about how Legate can help members with ensuring they get their assets back.
He also highlights the signs to look out for to indicate that something is going wrong for a customer with the easing of lockdown restrictions and less customers being offered forbearance or coming to the end of payment deferrals. This includes how to tell if there is criminal intent or is it just an inability to pay and what to do if there is radio silence from the customer.


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United Kingdom Research & Innovation (UKRI) is to provide £24 million to fund projects run by businesses looking to deliver the UK’s 2025 Plastics Pact targets.
The UKRI’s Smart Sustainable Plastic Packaging programme is to offer the funding across two competitions in 2021.
Paul Davidson, Smart Sustainable Plastic Packaging Challenge director, said: “The Smart Sustainable Plastic Packaging programme is dedicated to supporting innovative projects that will have real-world benefits in reducing plastic waste in the environment and we’ve already seen some exciting projects as a result of our programme funding, include four large-scale recycling plants.
“We are now looking to further our support in 2021 with £24 million investment. By investing in projects ranging from reducing plastic packaging to behaviour change, we can help deliver results to reduce plastic pollution.”
The programme is particularly looking for projects that focus on minimising or reducing plastic packaging, refillable packaging, and sustainable solutions for film and flexible packaging, amongst others.
Applicants will need to explain clearly how they would reduce the UK plastic packaging system’s overall environmental impact.
There are four targets the UK needs to meet by 2025 under its Plastics Pact, an initiative run by resources charity WRAP which brings together businesses from across the plastics value chain with UK governments and NGOs to tackle plastic waste.
The Pact hopes to eliminate problematic or unnecessary single-use packaging by 2025 through redesign, innovation or an alternative delivery model.
By 2025, 100% of plastics packaging should be reusable, recyclable or compostable.
The Pact wants to see 70% of plastics packaging effectively recycled or composted.
And, there should be an average of 30% recycled content across all plastic packaging.
SSPP Demonstrator Round 2
Opening on 8 February, the first competition run by UKRI is the SSPP Demonstrator Round 2, which has a pot of £16 million for the winners.
“By investing in projects ranging from reducing plastic packaging to behaviour change, we can help deliver results to reduce plastic pollution”
This competition will fund large-scale commercial demonstration projects, including large-scale commercial trials of novel packaging technology or systems.
It is open to collaborations only. A full-submission competition will follow the Expression of Interest Competition by invitation only and will be open from 3 May to 14 July 2021.
Grants available from the follow-on full submission will be between £1 million and £12 million.
Business-led R&D Projects
The UKRI’s second competition is for Business-led R&D Projects. It will open on 29 March 2021 and will fund research and development projects.
The competition is open to collaborations and projects and the maximum grant available will be £4 million.
The post UKRI offers firms £24m to deliver Plastics Pact targets appeared first on letsrecycle.com.
Source: letsrecycle.com Plastic


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ABC Companies named its top sales performers for 2009.
The Account Executive of the Year was presented to Claude Payne, who is responsible for sales and customer support in the Mid-Atlantic States for ABC's Southeastern Region. Payne has been sales manager in the area for the past seven years and recognized for his sales excellence in four of the past six years.
Jim Morrison, a 13-year veteran was awarded Second Place. Morrison — vice president in ABC's Southeastern region — is a two-time winner of this achievement award. His territory encompasses the state of Florida.
Charlie Walser, a senior account executive and 24-year veteran with ABC, was honored with third place. Walser is responsible for sales and customer support in the southern third of California in ABC's Western Region and has consistently been ranked as one of the top performers for ABC Companies.
Meanwhile, at the recent ABC Parts Sales meeting in Florida, John Peckels was named ABC Parts Sales Person of the year. John joined the company in September 2008 with over 30 years experience in the transit bus industry. He is responsible for parts sales representation in ABC's Midwest region.


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To celebrate its fifth birthday, Elementor, the leading open source website builder platform, is hosting a free live virtual conference on June 16th for digital stakeholders that will feature keynote addresses from acclaimed marketing and business experts, including Gary Vaynerchuk, Seth Godin, and Swan Sit.
Keynote Speakers To Cover Web Creation & The Digital Outlook
As a celebration of its milestones, Elementor will be hosting a virtual conference titled #webcreators2021 on June 16th, 2021. The event, which will kick off at 11:00 AM EST, will be live-streamed and filled with content aimed at digital creators.
The event will feature some of the most prominent names and thought leaders in digital marketing sharing their unique perspectives on a mix of issues, including Gary Vaynerchuk, Seth Godin, Swan Sit, and Elementor's own Ronit Cyjon.
These addresses for web creators will focus on the soft skills that web professionals should embrace, how businesses must prepare to adopt more technology to ensure their sustained existence, and highlight Swan Sit's experiences and lessons from big brands.
Moreover, attendees will gain a firsthand look at Ronit's process for redesigning Elementor's digital presence. She will dive into finding the balance between its business and design needs when the company rolled out its newest website and how it was expertly crafted to serve eight million users.
According to Gary Vaynerchuk, a venerated serial entrepreneur and communicator who will be one of the event's keynote speakers, "When big changes happen in society, big changes in consumer behavior stick. Covid brought many people different ways to consume information and buy products and that doesn't change when we go back to life post-covid -- I am excited to talk more about this during the conference."
Seth Godin, an acclaimed author and entrepreneur who will also be holding a keynote address, adds, "This conference is not about directing professional web creators to build advanced features, it's about enabling them the freedom to dream, to make a difference. Building the future of the internet requires an inclusive culture where individuality and collaboration meet to create possibility."
As Elementor passes the five-year mark since its conception, the prowess of its website builder platform has become indisputable, given its rapidly expanding footprint in the WordPress universe. According to the latest figures, Elementor is now the platform of choice behind nearly 5% of all websites built.
Today, Elementor features a global community of web professionals spread across 157 countries that together have constructed more than 8 million websites thanks to the platforms' highly inclusive solution that is code-free and open-source.
Commenting on the upcoming digital conference, CEO and Co-Founder Yoni Lukensburg concludes, "Elementor unleashes the infinite creative power of web creators by giving them the tools they need to build professional websites, innovate and stretch their creative limits. Our passionate global community of web creators are highly talented, engaged, and supportive of each other and this event is for them."


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To receive further updates on this Target (NYSE:TGT) trade as well as an alert when it’s time to take profits, sign up for a risk-free trial of Strategic Trader today.
We are opening a new trade on Target (NYSE:TGT). When our October put write expired in-the-money, we gladly accepted the stock. We’ve owned shares of TGT for two months now.
In that time, we have successfully sold one covered call against the stock. Now it’s time to do it again.
TGT, along with the rest of the market, has bounced up off its recent lows and is climbing higher. We want to sell a covered call because call premiums are typically much richer when a stock is climbing higher than when it is falling lower.
We also think TGT is a great covered-call candidate at the moment from both a fundamental and a technical perspective.
Retail is Strong
TGT is one of the largest retailers in the United States. We are coming off of a holiday shopping season that, according to Mastercard SpendingPulse, saw spending increase 5.1% between Nov. 1 and Dec. 24 compared with a year earlier. This means that consumers spent more than $850 billion this holiday season, with TGT grabbing its fair share.
From a fundamental perspective, this should provide some bullish stability for TGT heading into earnings season. The company doesn’t report its earnings until early March, but knowing consumers have been confidently spending has given analysts hope for the coming year.
TGT Has Strong Support
Daily Chart of Target (TGT) — Chart Source: TradingView
From a technical perspective, we think $60 is a safe support level for now (given the company’s strong fundamental outlook), but we also believe $67.50 is likely to serve as a difficult resistance level to break through.
This price level served as support in early 2018 as the stock was forming the “cup-with-handle” formation that it completed in late July. It also momentarily served as support in the aftermath of the company’s latest earnings announcement in late November before finally giving way during the December selloff.
Because TGT has such well established support and resistance, we want to take this opportunity to generate income on the stock. When a stock is rising but likely to encounter strong resistance, a covered call can be a great strategy.
To find out which calls we’re selling — and to get access to our full portfolio of income-generating trades — consider signing up for risk-free trial subscription to Strategic Trader today.
InvestorPlace advisers John Jagerson and S. Wade Hansen, both Chartered Market Technician (CMT) designees, are co-founders of LearningMarkets.com, as well as the co-editors of Strategic Trader.
Follow our Facebook page to receive each Trade of the Day direct to your News Feed — and join the conversation.


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Later this month, Buick will be debuting an all-electric concept SUV named the Enspire. The teaser picture released by Buick shows off a rakish back window and a taillight that runs the full length of the rear.
"The Enspire leverages GM’s global resources and is an exploration of design and new technologies. It is the brand’s latest example of innovation and application of future electric smart mobility," Buick said in a press release.
We're not surprised that Buick is showing off an electric concept in China. Last year, Chinese buyers bought 1.18 million Buick models - compared to the 219,231 sold in the U.S. China is also pushing automakers to build electric vehicles to help reduce emissions in the country.
We'll have more information when the Enspire debuts on April 17th during Buick Brand Night.
Press Release is on Page 2
Buick Enspire Concept SUV to Make Global Debut in China
SHANGHAI – Buick today announced that the Enspire, its new all-electric concept SUV, will make its global debut at Buick Brand Night on April 17 in Wuzhen, Zhejiang. It will also be on display to the public at Auto China 2018 in Beijing, which begins later this month.
The Enspire leverages GM’s global resources and is an exploration of design and new technologies. It is the brand’s latest example of innovation and application of future electric smart mobility.