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Microsoft announces 7 versions of Windows 10
Over the past few months, Microsoft has revealed quite a lot about the roadmap towards Windows 10 and this launch is definitely different compared to previous software releases from Microsoft. We already know that Windows 10 will be launching during the Summer and Windows 7 and 8.1 users will be able to upgrade to Windows 10 for free but the question is, what exactly are they updating to?
Today, via a blog post, Microsoft is answering just that. Behold, there will be 7 different version of Windows 10 which all bear a striking similarity in terms of features but are targeted towards various type of users. Just to remember, there were 7 unique version of Windows 7 desktop editions.
Ironically, there is not 10 version of Windows 10
Upgradeable version of Windows 10, earlier this year Microsoft promised that Windows 7, Windows 8.1 and Windows Phone 8.1 users will be able to upgrade to Windows 10 when it comes out. These three version of Windows 10 will be the versions users will be upgraded to.
Windows 10 Home (upgradeable)This will be the consumer oriented version of Windows 10 which will power PC, tablets and everything in between. Core Windows 10 features like Cortana, Microsoft Edge browser, Windows Hello face recognition, XBOX game capture and all the Universal applications will be made available in this version.
Windows 10 Pro (upgradeable)Similar to Windows 8.1 Pro, Windows 10 Pro is built upon the vanilla version of Windows 10 Home and introduces features which enables small businesses to mange, protect and support their applications. Organizations will be able to take advantage of the Choose Your Own Device program for secure device management. Customers will also be able to take advantage of the new Windows Update for business.
Windows 10 Mobile (upgradeable)As the name clearly suggests, this is the successor to Windows Phone and the name reminds us about Microsoft's history with Mobile devices. Basically, this version of Windows 10 is geared up towards smartphones and small tablets and the UI is geared towards touch gestures. Likewise, select devices will be able to take advantage of Continuum for phones which instantly makes your smartphone into a working Desktop.
Windows 10 EnterpriseBuilding upon Windows 10 Pro, the Enterprise version of Windows 10 adds advanced features which enable medium and large organizations to protect against security threats. Windows 10 Enterprise also supports the broadest range of options for operating system deployment and comprehensive device and app management. It will be available to our Volume Licensing customers, so they can take advantage of the latest innovation and security updates on an ongoing basis.
Windows 10 EducationThis version is similar to that of Windows 10 Enterprise but is geared towards use in educational institutions to server staff, administrators, teachers and students. Microsoft will be making this available through the academic volume licensing and also enable students to upgrade to Windows 10 Education through Windows 10 Home and Windows 10 Pro.
Windows 10 Mobile EnterpriseThis version is designed to deliver the best customer experience to business customers on smartphones and small tablets. It will be available to our Volume Licensing customers. It offers the great productivity, security and mobile device management capabilities that Windows 10 Mobile provides, and adds flexible ways for businesses to manage updates. In addition, Windows 10 Mobile Enterprise will incorporate the latest security and innovation features as soon as they are available.
Windows 10 IoT CoreThis version of Windows 10 is targeted towards small footprint and low cost devices like gateways. Devices like the Raspberry Pi and Arduino will be able to take advantage of this Windows 10 platform.
That's about it for the 7 version of Windows 10 Microsoft will be making available later this year. It might sound a little complicated but each version is specifically targeted towards a specific device-type.
SOURCE: WINDOWS BLOG


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According to a rumor which surfaced recently, the Xiaomi X1 will replace the rumored Redmi Pro 2, and the device has just surfaced in a number of renders. If you take a look at the gallery down below, you will get to see the alleged Xiaomi X1, which is expected to sport extremely thin bezels. Now, these images are not exactly the largest or sharpest out there, but it is easily noticeable that this phone has almost no bezel on the sides, or above the display (though the earpiece breaks the display line a bit), but it seems to sport a small chin below its display.
Now, if we flip the phone around, we’ll notice that it comes with a rear-facing fingerprint scanner, and a dual camera setup, which is placed in the upper left corner of its back. This dual camera setup actually resembles the one on the iPhone 7 Plus, OPPO R11 and OnePlus 5. Xiaomi’s branding is placed in the middle of the device’s back side, and this phone seems to be made out of metal. All of this phone’s physical keys will be placed on the right side it seems, and its TPU case also surfaced, and you can check it out in the gallery down below. Now, according to some previous info, the Xiaomi X1 will launch in two variants, one variant will sport a regular display, while the other model will sport a ‘full-screen’ panel. The regular model of the device will ship with 4GB of RAM and in two storage variants, 64GB and 128GB storage models. The former will cost somewhere in between 1,999 and 2,299 Yuan ($294 or $339), while the latter one will set you back 2,499 or 2,799 Yuan ($368 or $412). Now, the full-screen model will ship with 6GB of RAM in 64GB and 128GB storage variants. These two models of the Xiaomi X1 will end up costing 2,299 Yuan ($339) and 2,799 Yuan ($412), respectively.
Now, we still do not know what spec sheet to expect here, considering no info has been shared by the source, but the device is expected to launch later this month, at least according to the provided info. This will be a mid-range or a high-end smartphone, it is actually possible that the model with a regular display will belong more in the mid-range category, while the model with a full-screen display will lean more towards the high-end category.

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An industry-led £25million scheme to tackle supply chain issues head-on has opened up applications from businesses and universities across the UK.
Led by Digital Catapult, the UK’s authority on advanced digital technology, the Made Smarter Innovation | Digital Supply Chain Hub will create a community of leading companies, tech startups and academics to advance the development and adoption of cutting-edge digital technologies. The four-year project will address critical supply chain challenges facing UK business and industry, from supply and demand imbalances, to risk and resilience and the move to net zero.
Part of the Made smarter An innovation initiative to boost UK manufacturing industries and backed by industry leaders, the Digital Supply Chain Hub will deliver much-needed improvements in data sharing and analytics for manufacturers, enabling them to quickly and with pinpoint supply chain bottlenecks and identify unnecessary waste.
Applications are now open until July 3 with up to £40,000 in funding for research challenges and up to £80,000 for technology-focused opportunities. Companies selected to join the Hub will have access to industrial and technical support, and work in conjunction with industry challenge sponsors including BAE Systems and Schneider Electric.
MSI|DSCH Program Director Tim Lawrence said: “Digital Catapult has a wealth of experience building powerful partner ecosystems across industries, as well as a strong track record of delivering capabilities and facilities that deliver a true hands-on technology experience for businesses.
“This program will ensure that UK supply chains are equipped for a new digital age. We look forward to welcoming organizations and universities that want to be part of this vital movement to streamline supply chains..”
Industry Minister Lee Rowley said: “This government-backed program will help increase productivity by digitizing supply chains and ensure our manufacturers remain competitive, creating jobs and growth across the country.
“The Digital Supply Chain Hub will help businesses across the UK to develop smarter digital supply chains – reducing manufacturing waste, emissions and helping to get new products onto our shelves more efficiently..”
The Hub’s first round of calls will see applications from innovative UK tech startups, scale-ups and pioneering research organizations to relieve ongoing supply chain pressures. The challenge themes will bring together parties that otherwise might not have collaborated.
The first five summaries of the challenges are:
- Proof-of-value technology solutions for: Supply chain sustainability, supply chain mapping and supply and demand imbalances.
- Research frameworks and models to address: Supply chain resilience and collaboration.
Chris Courtney, Manufacturing Made Smarter Challenge Director at UKRI, said:
“Resilient and sustainable supply chains are vital to us all and accelerating digital innovation is a critical enabler for the future of supply chains. The Hub brings together innovators and investors to accelerate the pace of innovation, providing opportunities for both those who exploit the technology and those who develop it. This is a national cross-sector approach led by Digital Catapult and we are delighted to officially launch it and encourage UK businesses to commit to it..”
The Digital Supply Chain Hub is funded by the UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) Made Smarter Innovation (MSI) challenge, and is a collaboration with the High Value Manufacturing (HVM) Catapult, National Physical Laboratory (NPL) and TWI.
The launch of the program follows Digital Catapult Research which highlights that strengthening supply chains is a priority for nearly two-thirds (64%) of UK industry leaders this year.
To learn more about the program and explore all the opportunities offered by the hub, visit digitalsupplychainhub.uk/
Read more of our leadership and strategy articles here


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The government should move away from direct subsidies for farmers and instead incentivise investment, according to leaders of the tenant farmer movement.
A radical proposal put forward by the Tenant Farmers Association (TFA) is for the Basic Payments that are currently delivered to farmers through the European Union’s Common Agricultural Policy, should not to be replaced like-for-like in a future British agricultural policy.
The central hub of the association’s proposed new policy is a new ‘three pillar’ policy featuring a “properly constituted and focused” agri-environment scheme which would provide a menu of choices which farmers could choose to adopt to deliver environmental benefits.
The TFA also proposes a farm business development element to the new policy which would address a lost generation of investment on farms caused by low profitability.
Speaking at a press conference at the Great Yorkshire Show, George Dunn, the association’s chief executive, said this element would see farmers devise five-year plans for the development of their businesses, which would then be put forward to allow farmers to access government grants and bring British farms up to world-leading standards.
Mr Dunn said the third pillar was all about harnessing the power of ‘Team Britain’, which would see government invest in market research and development, and promotion, which he said the government had shied away from, both domestically and internationally, in recent years.
Mr Dunn said: “I suppose the most radical thing about our plan is that there is no Basic Payment scheme - no direct payment.
“We had a great debate within our membership about that and whilst some of our tenants still on the old-style tenancies were very wedded to the direct payments, those who were on FBTs - Farm Business Tenancies - were saying actually that the Basic Payment Scheme is a cost to our businesses because we have to claim it and pass it onto the landlord either directly or through rent so there is no benefit to us.
“So we have been looking ahead to a future where we are going to see more FBTs and we thought that Basic Payments don’t have a role within a new policy.”
He added that he wanted to see a greater degree of “import substitution” whereby retailers and public bodies would turn to sourcing more British products to address the nation’s food self sufficiency - which currently stands at less than 70 per cent.
He also wants to see the government driving export markets and the British brand “flying high”.
Stephen Wyrill, the TFA’s national chairman who farms near Catterick, claimed the association was the only farming industry body that had drafted a detailed post-Brexit plan for agriculture in the absence of any ‘plan B’ from government.


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Healthcare Supply Chain: A Conversation with Tonia Kraus, VP, Head of Strategic Supplier Engagement, triValence
September 05, 2023
firstname.lastname@example.org (The Medical Alley Association)
The supply chain landscape in healthcare is a complicated one, especially for ambulatory surgery centers (ASCs). On this week's Medical Alley Podcast, we're joined by Tonia Kraus of triValence to examine the state of supply chains for ASCs. Tonia has over 30 years of supply chain experience and was recently named one of 35 health system supply chain leaders to know in 2023 by Becker's Hospital Review.
Follow Medical Alley on social media on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.


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A Guide To Credit Card Surcharge Reforms
Over the past few weeks creditcard.com.au has received a large number of queries in regards to the new credit card surcharge reforms. Based on these queries we’ve put together five key things a business should know. The cap on credit surcharges already imposed by Visa, and any impending cap by other card providers (MasterCard, AMEX or Diners Club) will have many business owners questioning the value of processing credit card payments to their business. The changes, where Visa has capped the merchant fee surcharge for retailers who accept Visa at 1 percent, will affect revenue, transactions and other fees and surcharges. They will also be important to owners as consumers who use their credit cards for personal and business expenses.
If you’re a reader of Business Review Australia, chances are you’re going to want to know the impact of the recent reforms in both capacities, so here are some key points to keep in mind as you conduct your business and use your credit card for everyday purchases >>>
Following a campaign started by consumer rights group Choice, the RBA issued credit card surcharge guidelines which stated that the fees merchants pass on for processing credit card transactions must be capped to the ‘reasonable costs’ incurred when processing a transaction. For anyone starting out in business or reassessing their surcharges, these are the RBA’s best estimates of the costs that the four major credit card companies charge retailers purely for processing transactions worth $100:
- Visa & MasterCard: $0.85
- American Express: $1.81
- Diners Club: $2.08
Costs for processing a debit card transaction worth $100 are known to be around 10c. Except when it comes to Visa, for the next little while it’s up to you to determine reasonable costs. For those who thought that customers didn’t have this information, now you know that they do.
The head of Tyro payments, Jost Stollman, notes that as a business you won’t have an easy time responding to the changes MasterCard or the other processors might make in response to the RBA guidelines. Even Choice itself has issued a statement that customers can expect changes to trickle down over coming months. Bottom line, take your time before making changes and assess what you pass on to customers, aside from the now obligatory 1 percent for Visa payments. You’d expect businesses whose services you use to do the same, so it’s only fair.
Use The Tools Available To You
As a retailer, always remember that even when you are on a ‘blended’ fee structure with your bank, you can request a specific breakdown of the fees from them. You can determine a reasonable cost to pass on from this.
The banks also now have calculators for determining the cost of a ‘reasonable’ surcharge for you to apply. Try some out and compare results.
Study Your Options
Apart from everything mentioned above, if you’ve held off on offering credit card transactions, now could be a time to reconsider your options. Independent payment processors such as Tyro Payments provide a real alternative to the major operators and more than 7,300 businesses in Australia already use a Tyro payments system. The 1 percent cap on Visa payments applies across the board, so see what impact this has on the competition.
Don’t overdo it and add more on top than you know is fair, or rename processing surcharges as something else, or be prepared to suffer the consequences. The Change.org petition asking Jetstar to drop its $8.50 to a reasonable level has already seen 35,647 supporters signup at the time of writing this article (just 18 days into the campaign on Friday, April 5 2013). Be prepared with responses for customers who ask about the surcharges you add on, whether you display a sign, post something on your website or prepare staff with a policy response.
As A Consumer
When you are using your own credit card with a different business, be aware of what is and isn’t a fair and reasonable amount to pay for the privilege of using your card. If you do multiple transactions, take note of where you pay extra and how much you pay when you do. Watch for other categories of fees and charges to start popping up and demand an explanation if you perceive that a surcharge is unfair. Head over the Choice website to report an unfair surcharge you see.
It’s also the ideal time to reassess your card’s annual fee and bonus offers, especially if you use a business credit card. American Express, Westpac and others have competitive options.
About the Author
Kalianna is the Managing Editor of creditcard.com.au. She is a trained journalist and when she isn’t finding interesting ways to present the latest credit card related news she is a devoted foodie, is passionate about animal rights and travel and working on freelance writing projects in these areas. Follow Kalianna on Google+
Timeline: India takes unicorn leap with six in five days
We chart an historic week in India’s tech industry, where in just five days, between 5-9 April 2021, the country achieved six new unicorns, bringing India’s total to 10 in 2021 to date, an immense unicorn leap from just seven in 2020 and six in 2019.
April 5: Meesho
India’s first social commerce unicorn, Meesho raised US$300m from SoftBank, Facebook and Shunwei Capital, giving the Bangalore-based startup a US$2.1bn valuation, a threefold jump from its previous funding round in 2019. Founded in 2015 by two IIT-Delhi graduates, Meesho connects producers and resellers, helping small businesses sell through social media. It has 45m customers and has enabled 13m entrepreneurs to start their online businesses with no investment.
April 6: CRED
Founded just over two years ago, Bangalore-based credit card repayment app CRED raised US$215m from Falcon Edge Capital and Coatue, nearly trebling its valuation to US$2.2bn from its January US$80m round. Allowing customers to pay off their credit card debt while earning CRED coins which they cash in for rewards, CRED has grown rapidly during COVID-19, doubling its customer base to nearly 6 million in a year.
April 7: API Holdings / Groww
The first epharmacy startup to gain unicorn status, PharmEasy (API Holdings), which has digitised 60,000 brick and mortar pharmacies and 400 doctors across India, raised US$350m in a round led by Prosus Ventures. Founded by four former Flipkart employees as a way of making investing simple, investment platform Groww became India’s second-youngest fintech unicorn, raising US$83m in Series D funding led by Tiger Global, quadrupling its previous round in September.
April 8: ShareChat
New Delhi-grown social media startup ShareChat, founded in 2016 by Mohalla Tech raised US$502m from Lightspeed Ventures, Tiger Global, Twitter and Snap taking its raised total over six rounds to US$766m and pushing its valuation to US$2.1bn. The funding will be used to grow its user base and short video platform Moj, which launched in 2020 following TikTok’s ban in India. The regional language startup claims 280m users.
April 9: Gupshup
AI-led conversational message startup joined the unicorn club after raising US$100m from Tiger Global giving it a ten-fold valuation of US$1.4bn. The smart messaging platform, which has seen accelerated growth during the pandemic, was founded in Bangalore in 2005 by serial entrepreneur Beerud Sheth, whose online freelancing platform Elance is now listed. Gupshup’s API enables 100,000+ businesses to build messaging and conversation experiences across 30+ communication channels.


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Until now, the 2013 Mercedes-Benz SL hardtop convertible was a closely guarded visual secret, and was only spotted testing with plenty of camouflage. We say “was” because the SL’s promotional brochure has apparently been leaked online well ahead of its official debut.
The shots were picked up by Autoblog.nl, who reportedly pulled them from a German car forum. While Mercedes-Benz is predictably tight-lipped about if the shots are real or not, we don’t hear anyone crying about them being a Photoshop job.
Visually, the first thing one will notice off the bat is that it looks…quite like an SL. The new car preserves much of the old car’s visual DNA, including the protruding grille and long, lightly creased rear deck, as well as the long retractable hardtop, but also sprinkles in a bit of the CLS four-door coupe in the long taillamps and the SLS AMG in the front vents.
Underneath, it’s also business as usual, as the SL will use a full line of Mercedes’ most popular engines. The Europe-only SL350 will likely continue to use Benz’s 3.5-liter V-6, while the SL500 will utilize the company’s new 435-hp, 4.6-liter twin-turbocharged V-8. AMG options will likely include a SL63 variant — which should pack a 565-hp, twin-turbocharged 5.5-liter V-8 — and a SL65, which will likely use a 630-hp, twin-turbo 6.0-liter V-12.
Autoblog.nl also reports that the new car will be about 309 pounds lighter than the car it replaces. That’s no doubt thanks to the fact that this SL will be an aluminum-intensive vehicle. By weight, the new SL is about 89 percent aluminum.
Expect to see the SL debut in all its glory early next year.


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The loss of retail sales in Asia Pacific is predicted to reach US$767 billion in 2020, a decline of 10% from 2019, according to a new report from Forrester.
China is the worst affected country in the region, with US$192 billion of retail sales (excluding restaurants, automobiles, and gasoline) lost from January to February 2020 as compared to the same period in 2019. The firm expects a drop of US$658 billion for the full year of 2020 when compared to 2019, equalling a 14.7% decline in retail sales.
Meanwhile, the impact on India and Japan will be severe due to the strict lockdown in India, the declaration of a state of emergency in Japan, and the postponement of the 2020 Summer Olympics.
In Australia, retail sales saw a surge of 0.5% in February 2020 due to the combination of panic buying when the COVID-19 outbreak started in March and a flattening of the curve in April.
Global retail hit hard by COVID-19
The new report forecasts that global retail sales in 2020 will decline by an average of 9.6% globally, a loss of US$2.1 trillion, while global offline sales of nonessential items will contract by 20%.
Retailers will continue to face growth constraints, with a lot of brick–and–mortar retailers predicting losses in 2020. Many will also assume that their growth in online sales will not be enough to offset the lost sales from store closures.
Additional findings include:
- It will take four years for retailers to overtake pre-pandemic levels.
- The likelihood is that the epidemic will last seven months, and from 2021 retail categories that have declined by more than 10% will only bounce back to 90% of pre-pandemic spend.
- Online sales will remain flat in 2020 compared to 2019, and an average of US$360 billion in online retail sales will be lost globally in 2020 compared to Forrester's pre-COVID-19 forecasts.
Michael O’Grady, principal forecast analyst at Forrester described COVID-19’s impact on the global retail landscape as “significant”, particularly with non-essential items sold offline, which will be a big challenge for brick–and–mortar retailers.
“Retail categories like grocery and essential consumables are performing well, while other categories like fashion, beauty, and cosmetics are seeing a marked decline in consumer spend,” he said. “Online sales, however, will be more resilient. To navigate the crisis, retailers need to manage their costs and drive their eCommerce sales and services as much as possible.”
Sourced from Forrester


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Livestreaming: A New Playground for Creativity and Community
As China’s digital space evolves, the boundaries between customer experience and online community are being refined.
Singles’ Day continued its tradition of breaking records this year, living up to its reputation as the world’s most important shopping festival with close to half a trillion RMB in sales (US$74.1 billion) generated. Since the lifting of China’s lockdown, industry analysts have pointed to a displacement of consumption and the rise of so-called ‘revenge spending’. Whatever the precise causes, an undeniable driver of China’s retail rebound has been the advent of livestreaming, a trend that in the post-Covid new normal looks here to stay.
Covid-19 has accelerated technological advances across consumer spaces at a speed faster than any other historical period. Continued lockdowns and travel restrictions have forced brands to consistently deliver compelling content and novel experiences to their customers through digital means. As China’s super platforms like Tmall, Pinduoduo and RED consolidate their popularity, a common thread across the entirety of China’s digital ecosystem is the power and prevalence of livestreamed video.
2020 will go down in history as the year that - among other things - catalysed the development of livestreaming. Well over half a billion Chinese consumers tuned into a livestream at some point this year. The technology has officially outgrown its fad status to become one of the easiest, most effective and increasingly mainstream ways to reach and engage audiences at scale. From a user perspective, it has provided a connection with brands and experiences in ways hitherto not possible. Audiences connect with hosts and peers, with interactive features such as in-chat functions, polls, Q&As and more that drive conversations and connectivity. Ultimately, livestreaming offers that rarest of lockdown things - a front row seat for a world of intimate digital and retail experiences.
At TONG, we’ve been monitoring this trend in detail, applying this technology to a host of our brand productions and activations. Here, we profile some of the more exciting applications of livestreaming beyond fashion and luxury, looking to the Culture and Arts, Music and Gaming industries.
Culture and Arts
With performances, exhibitions and attractions from museums to zoos closed to the public, creators have moved their experiences online as a means of survival. Many organisations have leveraged livestreaming to make public spaces and public attractions accessible digitally. In China itself, the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding have made conservation heroes out of their staff, shining a light on those monitoring and caring for giant pandas and their cubs around the clock via Bilibili, while giving audiences at home a glimpse into the daily lives of these iconic creatures.
Earlier this year, Hong Kong Ballet launched HKBALLET@HOME, a digital platform livestreaming online ballet classes, Q&As, workouts with sportswear giant Puma and stage make-up tutorials from MAC Cosmetics. Throughout the summer, Beijing’s Jingju Theatre Company held weekly live broadcasts of their opera performances, as well as virtual singing lessons for those looking to learn more on operatic techniques. Livestreaming is fostering a new cohort of content creators, individuals, small businesses and brands, to consistently test and trial new enticing digital solutions for their audiences.
Last month, TONG and Temple Spa, a British brand with a Mediterranean Soul, launched the company’s first ever livestream on Little Red Book 小红书 in the run up to Singles' Day. Hosted at Harrods by TONG, Temple Spa founder Liz Warom took beauty KOL Frances 土扑鼠 and her 350k followers through the history of the brand, its iconic products, design and philosophy. From seasonal routines, self-care rituals to expertly curated tips, this new channel forged personable connections and relatable recommendations to drive a positive trajectory in this new territory.
China has been leading the way recently in livestreaming music, supporting the industry and its creatives domestically and internationally. With the pandemic closing venues, the music scene in China has moved swiftly online. Fans now have the opportunity to experience their favourite artists via new and exciting mediums, a new solution to bridging the gap between both creator and consumer during a period where belonging, inspiration and hope is much desired. One of the highlights of 2020 has been ‘cloud-clubbing’, where artists transform their backdrop (physical or virtual) into a stage. In a similar vein, streaming giant Bilibili earlier this year collaborated with Chinese indie music label Modern Sky to take their annual Strawberry Music Festival online. Performances by over 70 artists were made accessible for audiences to enjoy live, as well as artist discussions and interviews hosted in-app.
In another partnership, Tencent joined forces with Spotify to launch TME Live. Dedicated to producing live music performances for Chinese audiences, TME Live has featured big name acts including Taiwanese artist Richie Jen, Chinese Singer-Songwriter Hu Xia 胡夏, K-Pop stars BTS and last month, a China exclusive performance from American breakout star Billie Eilish. The concert was streamed in 3D via the platform and on Tencent Music's QQ Music, Kugou Music, Kuwo Music and WeSing free of charge, with a select group of fans given virtual backstage access to interact with the singer directly prior to the show. This platform is expanding rapidly, ratcheting up over 100 million views in its first six months. With a recent deal with LA based streaming company Wave secured, TME Live is set to bring more Western artists to China via exclusive digital concerts on the platform.
A significant proportion of the audience making up China’s livestreaming consumption comes from the gaming industry. China holds the world’s largest gaming community, with 640 million players across the country. 75% of the industry’s profits stem from streaming platforms, with millions tuning in to channels like Douyu daily to see their favourite athletes compete, as well as to catch tips from others’ game play. Live gameplay is continuing to swell as a sport and pastime because it is pure, unfiltered, authentic content. Its spontaneous, unscripted nature mimics the reality of being next to the players themselves, up close to their techniques and reactions first hand, whether that be one of the greats competing at the League of Legends World Championships in Shanghai or smaller scale micro influencers such as Mr. Liyou 离忧先生 playing Souls of Blades 剑魄. The uncut content enhances the experience of the game and the in-chat functionality on the platforms offers spectators the chance to connect with fellow fans, discuss details of the game and share their own insights into the game play.
Livestreaming has been highly valuable this year and stepped up to serve many purposes across creativity, community, entertainment and education. Amidst a year of uncertainty and restriction, it has enabled communities to continue to thrive and transcend borders created by the pandemic. From shopping to music, dining to gaming, it is evident from Singles’ Day’s record breaking numbers that livestreaming is not just a reaction, rather an evolution of digital. It is an essential tool for continued connectivity between companies, consumers and communities, a lifeline for many sectors and a vehicle for the recovery process. Livestreaming has redefined the experience for how many activities are consumed, testing our adaptability as humans whilst pushing the boundaries of technology and innovation. As 2021 draws near, we expect to see more unveils across streaming platforms accommodating for people and spaces in China to be interconnected more than ever before.


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Cdiscount Marketplace is busy expanding outside of France. The online marketplace now also delivers some items to Belgium, Germany, Italy and Spain. This means, the 10,000 connected sellers suddenly get access to a new 200 million customer base.
Viniexport, an online marketplace from Italy that enables companies to buy and sell wine worldwide, has secured a 2 million euros funding round. With the money, the marketplace wants to pursue its European expansion.
Ecommerce in France grew 14 percent last year. The online business-to-consumer turnover was worth just under 82 billion euros and is expected to rise even further in the coming year. The French ecommerce turnover is forecast to be worth 93 billion euros at the end of this year.
The Senate in France wants to introduce a tax on ecommerce. More specific, on deliveries from ecommerce companies to online consumers. The upper house of the French parliament wants to do this to protect city centers and smaller businesses across the country.
At the end of last year, French ecommerce federation Fevad counted about 173,000 active retail websites in France. This is an increase of 10 percent compared to one year earlier, when there were 157,273 active merchant websites in France.
Google entered a deal with Carrefour to sell groceries online in France. Next year, shoppers in this European country will be able to buy Carrefour’s products through Google’s platforms such as Google Home, Google Assistant and Google Shopping.
French supermarket chain Franprix has started tests with delivering groceries to the customer’s home, while the customer isn’t at home during the delivery. Franprix is the first company to test this kind of service in France.


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* Fix Price pondering London IPO, secondary Moscow listing
* Revenue in 2020 at $2.6 billion
* CEO says company poised for expansion at home and abroad
* Sources say IPO may raise $1 billion (Adds dividend, shareholder detail)
MOSCOW, Feb 15 (Reuters) - Russian cut-price retailer Fix Price said on Monday it was considering an initial public offering in London and Moscow of its global depositary receipts (GDRs) to capitalise on strong growth boosted by demand for inexpensive goods.
Fix Price, which sells low-priced goods in walk-in shops and online, has grown in popularity as the COVID-19 pandemic reduced many Russians’ spending power.
It generated revenue of more than 190 billion roubles ($2.6 billion) in 2020, up 33% year-on-year, along with double-digit margins on earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA), Chief Executive Dmitry Kirsanov said.
It has now posted 16 consecutive quarters of double-digit like-for-like sales growth and plans to expand beyond the 78 Russian regions and some neighbouring countries where it already operates, he added.
Fix Price said BofA Securities, Citigroup, J.P. Morgan, Morgan Stanley and VTB Capital had been engaged to act as joint global coordinators and bookrunners, should the deal go ahead.
Financial market sources last month told Reuters the company might raise nearly $1 billion, mirroring Ozon, one of Russia’s top online retailers, which listed its shares last November.
“The market conditions are pretty conducive to high-quality growth stories with solid returns, given the scarcity of such names in Russia,” said Artur Galimov, consumer and retail analyst at Sova Capital.
Fix Price, controlled by Artem Khachatyran and Sergey Lomakin, each of whom hold around 42%, and with Goldman Sachs among its minority investors, said the offer would include GDRs from existing shareholders and members of senior management.
The GDRs would be admitted to trading both in London and Moscow, the company added, subject to market conditions.
Citing an independent industry consultant’s report, Fix Price said Russia’s variety value retail market was expected to triple in size by 2027.
The company reported adjusted EBITDA of 36.8 billion roubles for last year, up just over 35%.
In a presentation Fix Price said it would pay dividends semi-annually, with a target pay-out ratio of at least 50% of profit for the period calculated under international financial reporting standards.
$1 = 73.3153 roubles Reporting by Olga Popova and Alexander Marrow; Editing by Katya Golubkova, Jason Neely and Jan Harvey
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.


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Mumbai, Jul 18th, 2021: Reliance Retail Ventures Ltd (RRVL) will acquire a 40.95 percent stake in Just Dial for around $500 million to bolstering its digital services in India.
Reliance investment in Just Dial is part of the conglomerate’s digital bet. Over the past many quarters, Reliance has announced a number of investments in companies like Netmeds, Urban Ladder, and others.
RRVL the retail arm of Reliance Industries Ltd will also make a public announcement for an open offer for acquiring up to 2.17 crore equity shares of Just Dial (representing 26 percent share in the company), in accordance with Sebi Takeover Regulations, a regulatory filing said.
Just Dial founder VSS Mani will continue as Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer to lead the company through the next phase of growth, it added.
The transaction is subject to shareholder and other customary closing conditions and approvals.
RRVL Director Isha Ambani said the investment in Just Dial underlines the company’s commitment to “new commerce” by further boosting the digital ecosystem for millions of its partner merchants, micro, small and medium enterprises.
“We look forward to working with the highly experienced management team of Just Dial as we further expand the business going forward,” she added.
Notably, Just Dial has recently launched its B2B marketplace platform JD Mart that is working on enabling manufacturers, distributors, wholesalers, and retailers in the country to become internet-ready and sell their products online.
Mani said nearly 25 years ago, he had the vision to build a connected single platform dedicated to providing fast, free, reliable, and comprehensive information to our users and connect buyers to sellers.
“Our vision has evolved to not only provide search and discovery but drive commerce across merchants through our B2B platform and enable the further consumer to merchant commerce given our platform engagement. Our strategic partnership with Reliance enables us to realize this vision and transform the business going forward,” Mani added.
The agreement between RRVL, Just Dial Ltd, and VSS Mani and others, entails preferential allotment of 2.12 crore equity shares (equivalent to 25.33 percent post preferential share capital) at 1,022.25 INR per share, and acquisition of 1.31 crore equity shares by RRVL from VSS Mani (15.62 percent post preferential share capital) at 1,020 INR per share.
It also entails shareholders agreement, governing certain internal rights and obligations between the parties, it added.
The capital infused by RRVL will help drive the growth and expansion of Just Dial into a comprehensive local listing and commerce platform. Just Dial has an existing database of about 30.4 million listings and its existing consumer traffic of about 129.1 million quarterly unique users (as of March 31, 2021), the filing said.
Just Dial will expand discovery on its platform and enhance transactions for millions of products and services, it added.
Last year, Reliance Retail had executed India’s largest fundraising in the retail sector, raising close to $6 billion from global investors. It reported a consolidated turnover of USD 21.6 billion and a net profit of USD 750 million for the year ended March 31, 2021.
Flush with funds, RRVL has been aggressively bolstering its digital play. It recently acquired online pharmacy Netmeds for $83 million, online furniture retailer Urban Ladder for $24 million, and online lingerie retailer Zivame, etc. stepping up its play into the fast-growing e-commerce segment.
In August 2020, RRVL had also announced plans to acquire the retail and wholesale business, and the logistics and warehousing unit of Future Group for $3.4 billion. The transaction is, however, pending after US e-commerce major Amazon contested the deal.
RRVL, which has been ramping up its e-commerce venture JioMart, had recently shared plans of onboarding over one crore merchant partners over the next three years. JioMart competes with platforms like Amazon, Walmart-owned Flipkart and others in the burgeoning e-commerce segment in India.
Just Dial’s local search engine platform provides search-related services to users across India through multiple platforms such as websites, apps, via telephone, and text.
Its B2B marketplace platform JD Mart offers digital product catalogs to businesses and aims at digitalizing India’s businesses, especially MSMEs, across categories.


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From sports cars to sedans to family-sized SUVs, manufacturers have introduced their 2018 vehicle lineup in time for the holiday season. Consumers aren’t afraid to spend their money on a shiny new car when the holidays roll around, and this is the time of year many people are comparing new rides. Unfortunately, not all 2018 models are at the top of their game. Some are better than others, and some 2018 vehicles are better left on the lot. If you’re in the market for a new car, these are the 20 2018 models you don’t want to buy.
Photo by: instagram


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Mountain Lion, the next version of Apple’s Mac operating system, won’t just adopt more of the iPad and iPhone’s popular touchy-feely features. It will embrace their behind-the-scenes security approach, too.
Apple on Thursday introduced a preview of Mountain Lion, which is due out this summer, only a year after Lion’s introduction. The new release is mainly intended to take us further down the path trod by Lion: Making the Mac work more like the iPad and iPhone, while facilitating the flow of key content across all of a person’s Apple devices. There is also something less obvious that Mountain Lion aims to carry over from Apple’s iDevices: no malware or other mischievous programs.
Of course, such nasties are already rare on Macs. To date there have been just a few Trojan Horses, or programs that pretend to be something they’re not, most famously a fake antivirus program known as MacDefender. But thanks to strict controls on how third-party software is downloaded onto iPhone and iPad — namely, via Apple’s own highly regulated App Store and no other way — there has been no malware on those gadgets at all (well, except for some jailbroken devices).
Now, Apple wants to offer users this stricter type of control on the Mac through a new security feature called Gatekeeper.
Mountain Lion’s Gatekeeper lets users select in their security preferences panel to install only applications that come from the Mac App Store. They can also choose a more relaxed setting to allow apps from the App Store and from “identified developers,” which are software makers that have Apple Developer IDs and that Apple can punish should they behave badly. And finally, they can stick with today’s more permissive system and allow the installation of apps from anywhere. The medium setting will be set as the default.
A spokesperson said Thursday that Apple hopes that Gatekeeper, by making it even harder for bad guys to get their programs onto Macs, will further reduce the chances for a criminal “payoff” and discourage them from even trying to attack Macs.
Many experts say that, technically speaking, Macs aren’t more secure than PCs that use new versions of Windows. Rather, attackers primarily aim at PCs because they have much more know-how and a large base of already developed malicious code to build upon. If correct, a crucial defensive strategy is to keep hackers from getting the idea that writing malcode for the Mac is worth their time.
Apple has already taken a host of measures to make OS X an unappealing target, including many introduced in Lion. Especially important was Apple’s move to “sandbox” its own applications and to push third-party apps to the sandbox as well. Sandboxing is a technology that restricts what an application can and can’t do and forces it to play only in its own little area. Apple’s implementation of this concept keeps apps from reading or writing data, like your personal information, in any app but their own.
The Apple spokesman said all major apps are now sandboxed, but not every single app. The company is working to enhance sandboxing so there aren’t any stragglers, he said.
Mountain Lion will include another such geeky security improvement called Kernel Address Space Layout Randomization. The kernel is a major operating-system component that bridges applications and the computer hardware. And ASLR refers to a random rearranging of memory so would-be attackers don’t know where things are located, a tactic that makes it significantly harder for hackers to exploit software vulnerabilities and launch automated attacks. In Lion, Apple greatly enhanced its use of ASLR. With Mountain Lion, it takes the approach down to the bedrock.
The perception that Macs are safer than other computers is a part of their appeal. These changes show that Apple is determined to make sure nothing changes on that front.


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Sony is currently planning a new version of the PS4 with increased graphical power and games running at 4K resolution, developer sources tell Kotaku.
We don’t know whether current PS4 owners will be able to upgrade or if they’ll have to buy an entirely new device to benefit from this power boost, but from what we hear, Sony has started briefing developers.
Based on conversations with developers who have spoken with Sony, this ‘PS4.5’ will include an upgraded GPU both to support high-end 4K resolution for games and add more processing power that can enhance the games supported by PlayStation VR, the headset Sony will launch this fall. It’s unclear if ‘PS4.5’ is an official name or just a nickname that developers have been using. One developer jokingly called it the ‘PS4K’ while telling me about the device.
A more powerful PS4 would also allow the machine to be more competitive with PCs in the world of virtual reality. With a higher-end GPU, the PS4 could more easily match up against the more expensive Oculus Rift and HTC Vive virtual reality headsets, which are designed to work with powerful PCs.
When contacted yesterday about this report, Sony declined to comment. “We can’t comment on rumors or speculation,” a spokesperson said in an e-mail.
The circle of people who knew about this upgraded PS4 was small until recently. I first heard about the device from one trusted source, then two.Kotaku’s Jason Schreier and Stephen Totilo were also able to independently verify the existence of these hardware plans with their own developer sources, although some of the details have been vague; one source told us that the device felt “exploratory” and that it may not even be released this year.
We’ve also heard that at this week’s Game Developers Conference in San Francisco, Sony held meetings with developers about the hardware and how it would work. As we were chasing down this story, coincidentally,Kotaku UK EIC Keza MacDonald overheard some developers casually talking about the machine while on line at GDC. They mentioned the name ‘PS4.5’ and discussed its increased horsepower, mentioning both 4K resolution and PlayStation VR.
Our sources aren’t sure when this upgraded machine will ship to consumers, nor how much it will cost. The PS4’s price dropped from $400 to $350 last fall, and one source indicated that this new ‘PS4.5’ could let Sony keep selling PS4 hardware at a higher profit margin for $400.
There are still lots of big questions surrounding the device. Will Sony allow people to trade in their existing PS4s to buy the new machine? How will developers cope with releasing games on multiple types of hardware? Could some games only support PS4.5, as is the case with the New Nintendo 3DS? When this PS4 goes on sale, will Sony continue to sell old PS4 hardware at a lower price? How can Sony manage all this without fragmenting the market?
Right now, we don’t have the answer to those questions.
The PS4.5 may not be alone, either.
I’ve heard whispers about an upgraded Xbox One for a while now, and Microsoft has been public about the possibility. At a press briefing earlier this month, Xbox head Phil Spencer hinted to journalists that his company has been exploring the possibility of evolving hardware. “We look at these other ecosystems out there like mobile, tablet and PC,” Spencer told the assembled press, as reported by Polygon, “and we see that they have a very continuous evolution cycle in hardware, whereas between console generations most of the evolution is making it cheaper and potentially making it smaller.”
Spencer later walked back those comments while speaking on the Major Nelson podcast, pouring some water on the idea of a customizable, PC-like Xbox. “Am I going to break open my console and start upgrading individual pieces of my console? That’s not our plan,” he said. “There is something special about what happens with a console. You buy an appliance-like device; you plug it into your TV; it works when you plug it in. It’s not like I’m going to ship a screwdriver set with every console that comes out.”
Plans are always changing, and some of the details we’ve heard are fuzzy, but one thing has become clear: Sony is exploring the possibility of releasing a more powerful console way before the PlayStation 5. With both Sony and Microsoft possibly entering new territory, and Nintendo’s NX on the way, this should be an exciting year for gaming hardware no matter what comes next.


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Financial Express, Bangladesh
Tariff Commission for FTA with KL
By Nazmul Ahsan
10 May 2011
Bangladesh Tariff Commission (BTC) has given a positive signal to the government in striking a bilateral Free Trade Area (FTA) agreement with Malaysia, saying, the proposed deal will boost the country’s export of goods and manpower substantially in Malaysia and encourage latter’s investment in Bangladesh significantly.
The Commission said Bangladesh has export potentials for its at least 103 major items in Malaysian market.
"Since Malaysia’s local market has demand for a number of potential export products of Bangladesh, an FTA may substantially increase and help diversify the export from Bangladesh to Malaysia," reads the BTC’s report, styled "Report on Possibility of Formation of FTA Between Bangladesh and Malaysia".
"The Commission is of the view that Bangladesh may proceed towards a dialogue with Malaysia on FTA which may open up prospective avenues in trade and investment," the report added.
The report said Malaysia has large demand for a number of products in which Bangladesh has considerable export capacity. Although currently Malaysia is importing these products from other countries, a suitable FTA may divert Malaysia’s import from other countries to Bangladesh, the report explained.
The report, however, said the extent of benefit for Bangladesh out of the proposed trade agreement will significantly depend on special and differential treatment to be provided by Malaysian government on goods and services originating from Bangladesh.
The BTC has prepared the report after the commerce ministry had asked the Commission for its observation and suggestions on the bilateral FTA between Dhaka and Kualalumpur, a source in the ministry said.
Malaysia has long been showing its interest to strike bilateral FTA with Bangladesh. Last year, the Malaysian government offered to provide duty-free market access for 19 products of Bangladesh under an early harvest system as soon as negotiation on bilateral FTA starts, a senior trade official said.
Malaysia exported goods worth $ 703.27 million to Bangladesh in 2009-2010 against its import of 61.98 million from Bangladesh.
The major exporting items from Bangladesh to Malaysia are knitwear, tobacco, home textile, raw jute, woven garments, dry food, furnace oil and frozen fish.
The composition of Bangladesh’s import from Malaysia includes animal or vegetable fats, boilers, machinery, iron and steel, plastic and articles thereof, salt, wood and articles of wood, sulpher and organic chemicals.
The report of the BTC said Bangladesh has 103 potential items which have demand in Malaysian market. The principal items include frozen fish, tobacco, light petroleum distillates, food preparations, pharmaceuticals, urea, sacks and bags of polymers ethylene, leather and leather products, garments items, footwear, ceramic tableware, kitchenware, lead acid accumulators, iron and steel products, bicycle, optical articles and furniture.
"Since Malaysia generally does not apply discriminatory trade measures between domestic and imported goods and services, there is an opportunity for Bangladeshi products to compete with Malaysian local products," the report of the Commission said.
The report said currently Malaysia is the largest ASEAN investor in Bangladesh.
"FTA may further stimulate Malaysian investment in Bangladesh," the report noted.
According to the latest data of Board of Investment, a total of 72 joint venture projects of Malaysia are in operation in Bangladesh. The amount of Malaysian investment in the country is about $ 1.5 billion.
In terms of export potential of human resources, the report said a FTA between the countries will simplify and facilitate movement of natural persons and increase the export of manpower from Bangladesh to Malaysia significantly.
Mentioning a number of problems, the report said Bangladesh may face challenges from strong competitors with whom Malaysia has regional and bilateral trade agreements.
The report said the export of drug in Malaysia is time consuming as it generally takes three years to obtain a marketing approval from relevant authority in Malaysia.
The investment cost in Malaysia is high and employment opportunity is limited to selected sectors like manufacturing, construction, plantation and agriculture.
Asked, BTC Chairman Mojibur Rahman said, it is now the decision of the government, whether it will opt for FTA with Malaysia.


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Whole Foods to ban plastic straws and use smaller produce bags
(WAFB) - Whole Foods will launch several green initiatives to use less plastic, which includes getting rid of plastic straws and offering smaller produce bags.
The Amazon-owned grocer announced Monday it plans to launch these initiatives July 2019. Whole Foods, according to the company, will be the first national grocer in the United States to ban plastic straws.
Plastic straws will also be banned at the company’s stores in the United Kingdom and Canada.
Customers will be offered paper straws with frozen drinks, upon request. These straws are Forest Stewardship Council-certified, recyclable and compostable. The company said it will offer a plastic straw option for customers with disabilities.
“We recognize that single-use plastics are a concern for many of our customers, Team Members and suppliers, and we’re proud of these packaging changes, which will eliminate an estimated 800,000 pounds of plastics annually," A.C. Gallo, President and Chief Merchandising Officer at Whole Foods Market said in a statement.
Whole Foods has already switched to using smaller plastic bags in its produce department and will replace its hard plastic rotisserie chicken containers with new bags. These bags use about 70 percent less plastic, the company stated. The packaging changes will reduce about 800,000 pounds of plastic per year.
In 2008, Whole Foods started using paper bags in lieu of plastic bags.
Other retailers and companies have been cracking down on the plastic consumption because of its damage to the environment.
Eight million metric tons of plastic winds up in oceans each year, which is enough trash to cover every foot of coastline around the world with five full trash bags of plastic, according to a Sciences Advances article.
In July 2018, Starbucks announced it was eliminating its plastic straws, phasing them out of its store by 2020. Earlier this year, the coffee house company said it was testing compostable cups in five locations.
Copyright 2019 WAFB. All rights reserved.


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On Monday, the former CEO of Peanut Corp. of America Stewart Parnell was sentenced to prison for shipping and selling salmonella tainted peanuts which led to the death of 9 people between 2008 and 2009. Parnell will now spend 28 years behind bars, although prosecutors sought a life sentence.
It is the first time a food-related crime gets such a harsh punishment, but U.S. District Judge W. Louis Sands argued that the peanut executive had known the risks and despite that he continued marketing the contaminated products in a “desire to profit.”
“This is commonly and accurately referred to as greed,”
the judge added.
However, Monday was a tough day for both sides. Victims’ relatives tried to persuade the judge to give the most severe punishment, while Parnell’s family tried to excuse the former executive for his reckless, non-professional behavior.
One of the victims who was sickened after eating the company’s peanut-based products, Jacob Hurley, was only 3 years old when he got the good-borne disease and needed to be hospitalized. Hurley told reporters he would want to see the exec behind bars for the rest of his life.
Jeff Almer, the son of a woman who died because of salmonella poisoning accused Parnell, 61, of taking the life of his mother.
On the other hand, Parnell’s mother tried to defend him, and so did his daughter who described him as a caring father who always put others before his needs. The former CEO’s son asked the judge to be merciful towards his father.
But the defendant faces more than 70 charges including intentionally shipping contaminated foods in the U.S., wire fraud, and obstruction of justice. Parnell, however, declined to testify during the lawsuit or before Congress.
Yet, on Monday he broke the silence and apologized to consumers for what happened. He also said that he was thinking about victims’ families daily and that he was “truly sorry” for what he did.
Although the Virginian-based company boasted about its exceptional food safety policies, its own testing had shown on multiple occasions that the products were contaminated with salmonella. And, despite Parnell knowing this, he continued to ship the tainted products across the U.S.
Food safety inspectors also found dirty equipment, roaches, and cross-contamination hazards at Parnell’s main plant. They also found from the former executive’s correspondence that he agreed with shipments despite knowing that they might be tainted.
Despite salmonella outbreaks that led to the deaths of dozens of people, the executives of the companies that marketed contaminated foods were not punished so severely as Parnell was this Monday.
Image Source: Wikimedia


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PLEASANTON, Calif. – Safeway Inc. (SWY), one of North America's largest food retailers, said Tuesday that first-quarter earnings more than tripled from last year's results, which were impacted by a strike in Southern California.
Net income surged to $131.3 million, or 29 cents per share, from $43.1 million, or 10 cents per share, a year ago.
Total sales increased 12 percent to $8.62 billion from $7.68 billion in the first quarter of 2004, when a strike in Southern California hurt results. In addition, Easter holiday sales occurred in first quarter of 2005 compared with the second quarter of 2004.
Analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial were looking for profit of 25 cents per share on sales of $7.96 billion in the latest quarter.
Safeway (search) said gross profit margin declined 99 basis points to 29.2 percent of sales from 30.2 percent last year, due to higher fuel sales, investments in price and increased advertising, which were partly offset by the recovery from the strike in Southern California.
Safeway believes about half of the latest quarter's outperformance was due to Easter sales and operating profits that were recorded in the first quarter, but were reflected in second-quarter analyst consensus estimates. In addition, as a result of the timing of expected investments in marketing and branding, the company expects earnings per share in the second quarter to be similar sequentially.
Safeway predicts that earnings will improve in the third quarter, and confirmed 2005 profit guidance of $1.41 to $1.51 per share. Analysts are forecasting earnings per share of 34 cents and 33 cents in the second and third quarters, respectively, and $1.44 per share for the year.


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Deep breath in…
Forget trade tensions.
Push interest rate noise out of your mind.
Aussie investors are gearing up for the next big thing. Although it’s made to seem bigger than it really is.
Earnings season has hit the ASX again.
You can be sure there’ll be the same thrills and spills like last time.
Some stocks will beat, meaning they report sales and profit numbers above expectations. Others will miss.
You’ll see stocks jump and dip on the tiniest changes.
Just remember, it’s all a show.
Most of the activity you’ll see in the weeks ahead will only worsen performance. But that’s not the point.
The fundies buying and selling to optimise their portfolio will go back to clients and say, ‘See! We hold nothing but growing repeatable names.’
And they’ll survive for another year.
It’s us versus them!
Let’s do a quick recap.
What have we seen from some of the market movers?
Well, we had Telstra Corporation Ltd [ASX:TLS] drop almost 3% after profits fell 27%.
Now I can breathe a sigh of relief too. Months earlier I had told a friend of mine to get rid of his Telstra shares.
Telstra boss, Andy Penn tried to put his best spin on the sour results.
‘While today’s financial results show parts of our business continue to face short-term challenges, there are positive signs particularly with the significant increase in retail postpaid mobile services,’ Penn said.
‘Importantly, we remain very positive about Telstra’s prospects for the future. Demand for telco products and services continues to grow and telecommunications infrastructure is only going to increase in importance over the next decade.’
Then there was AMP Ltd [ASX:AMP] with even more upsetting news for shareholders.
Profits were expected to come down all the way to $30 million. That was from profits of $848 million. But the wealth manager couldn’t even manage that.
Costs from the Banking Royal Commission pushed profits down another $2 million from expectations.
Another big financial institution that missed the mark was Suncorp Group Ltd [ASX:SUN]. The big bank had problems all round.
Investments didn’t pan out. Their insurance business paid out more claims than usual. Profits fell more than 44%. The stock fell more than 4% yesterday.
OK, that’s enough of the boring details.
Why am I even bringing this up?
Well, stocks like Telstra, AMP and Suncorp, they’re all prime targets for million- and billion-dollar funds.
What’s alarming is that retail investors (investors like you) also think these stocks are prime targets for investment.
Yesterday I showed you a list. Here it is again:
1. Afterpay Touch Group
2. Coles Group
4. The a2 Milk Company
6. National Australia Bank
8. Telstra Corporation
9. BHP Group
10. Citadel Group
This list is the top 10 stocks retail investors bought and sold last year.
That means Sunday investors, those who have a whole other job and invest as a hobby, compete against experts.
Now, I wouldn’t call all investment funds and the analysts within them experts. Not all retail investors are hobbyists either.
But who do you think knows more about an investment?
Someone who looks at price-to-earnings ratios and earnings growth?
Or the team of analysts that specialise in certain sectors, have been reading the last 10 annual reports and those of competitors? That have been talking to industry experts, looking at asset values and kicking the tyres at management HQ?
It’s why I think there’s a very strong case for retail investors to look in places where funds aren’t. And those places tend to be at the smaller end of the market.
Fishing where the big fish aren’t
Speaking of which, we also saw a few small-caps throw out some figures.
$200 million retailer City Chic Collective Ltd [ASX:CCX] did so well they threw a bone to shareholders. The Australian Financial Review (AFR) reports:
‘Formerly known as Specialty Fashion Group, the plus-size fashion retailer changed its name last November after selling its loss-making Millers, Crossroads, Katies, Autograph and Rivers chains to rival Noni B for $31 million.
‘As a result, the company is cashed up, with net cash of $35.5 million at the end of December compared with $16.1 million at the end of fiscal 2018.
‘Sales rose seven per cent to $75.4 million, with same-store sales up 9.6 per cent even though the chain was cycling strong 10.3 per cent comparable store sales growth in the year-ago period. City Chic opened five new stand-alone stores in Australia but closed eight Myer concessions.’
$500 million radio network HT&E Ltd [ASX:HT1] also had some good news for shareholders yesterday. Again, from the AFR:
‘HT&E chief executive Ciaran Davis has flagged the radio broadcaster is looking to make deals in the radio and audio market, taking advantage of its beefed-up balance sheet following the $570 million sale of Adshel to oOh!media.
‘HT&E reported a full-year profit of $36.7 million on Wednesday, up 23 per cent from the prior year, excluding one-offs and discontinued operations such as Adshel, the sale of which was completed in September.
‘Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation were up 7 per cent to $71.8 million, while revenue lifted 5 per cent to $271.8 million.’
HT&E was a stock I suggested readers look at towards the start of this year.
But it wasn’t the only stock the heads here at Money Morning came up with. There are two more. You can have a closer look at all three stocks, here. (Note: these are not recommendations, just stocks that we think are interesting for you to look at and research in your own time.)
Again, why single these stocks out?
It’s not just because they’re small.
Both companies have qualities you should look for in any investment. They’re both trying to dominate a local economy.
For City Chic, that economy is apparel for the plus-size women of Australia.
For HT&E it’s local businesses wanting to get the word out to radio listeners.
The more these businesses expand within these smaller markets, the harder it is for new competitors to come in and take market share.
If either can eventually dominate their local economy, then all investors have to do is sit back and enjoy the ride.
Better yet, the fundies aren’t going to pick your pockets of such opportunities. The volumes on these small stocks will likely keep all these ‘big fish’ out of the pond.
That could you with a trove of opportunities. All you’ve got to do is cast your line and wait for something interesting to bite.
Editor, Money Morning
PS: Insider’s guide to trading options for profit on the ASX: Discover how to potentially boost your stock returns with options. Download now.


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USANN Azevedo Raises 1M and 20M Series Funds from Techcrunch
USANN Azevedo, a leading tech startup in the industry, has recently announced that it has raised a total of 1M and 20M in series funds from Techcrunch, one of the top venture capital firms. This is a major milestone for USANN Azevedo, and a big statement of confidence in their innovative ideas. With the funds secure, USANN Azevedo is now ready to take their innovative products to the market and compete with the big players in their industry. This article will discuss the details of USANN Azevedo’s successful fund raising efforts and the outlook for the company in the future.
USANN Azevedo’s Recent Fundraising Efforts
USANN Azevedo, a highly innovative tech startup, recently raised 1M and 20M in the Series Funds. This impressive fundraising round was led by TechCrunch, one of the world’s largest venture capital firms. This is a major milestone for USANN Azevedo, as it allows them to secure the necessary funds to bring their innovative products to the market and compete with established market players. USANN Azevedo was able to demonstrate the viability of their products and concepts to TechCrunch, which resulted in them receiving the invested funds.
Details of the Fundraising
USANN Azevedo were able to secure 1M and 20M in series funds and the money will be used to help launch the products that are in the pipeline. USANN Azevedo was able to secure this amount of money due to their impressive track record of developing innovative products and the potential that they showed to be successful.
In addition to this, TechCrunch also felt that USANN Azevedo had a good concept, as well as a talented team, which allowed them to raise the funds.
Future Outlook for USANN Azevedo
The funds raised from TechCrunch will allow USANN Azevedo to move forward with their plans and launch their products and concepts in the market. USANN Azevedo has big plans for the future, and they are looking to bring disruptive ideas and products to the industry.
With the funds they now have, USANN Azevedo is expected to make a big mark in the industry and be successful in their goal of competing with the established market players.
USANN Azevedo recently raised a total of 1M and 20M in Series Funds from Techcrunch, which is a major milestone for the company. This money serves as a statement of confidence in the innovative products that USANN Azevedo has in the works, and will allow them to move forward with their plans in the industry.
In the future, USANN Azevedo is expected to make a big mark in the industry and be successful in their goal of competing with the established market players.


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The reason they support it is because it is more likely to put more smaller independents out of business. It consolidates their market position and gives consumers far fewer choices, entrepreneurs higher barriers to enter the business, and workers fewer opportunities to find a job. Say good-bye to your local diners. Pyrrhic victory at best.
McDonald’s CEO Don Thompson recently suggested his company would support a bill, proposed by President Barack Obama, raising the federal minimum wage to $10.10 an hour from $7.25. Such a wage hike likely wouldn’t satisfy his workers, some of whom recently stormed the company’s Oak Brook, Ill., headquarters demanding $15 an hour. But it would be a noticeable shift in attitude for the world’s biggest restaurant chain, which has so far been neutral as the debate about higher wages has roiled around it.


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Farm Progress America, October 20, 2017Farm Progress America, October 20, 2017
Max Armstrong talks about a new ordinance impacting the meat industry.
October 20, 2017
Max Armstrong shares the news that a city ordinance is now in effect that requires grocers to share information about antibiotic use in meat sold in the stores. Max shares news that the city council member who introduced the measure feels there is over-use of antibiotics. The new law requires some specific labeling requirements that Max outlines.
Farm Progress America is a daily look at key issues in agriculture. It is produced and presented by Max Armstrong, veteran farm broadcaster and host of This Week in Agribusiness.
Photo: Sean Gallup/Getty Images
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HONG KONG, July 3, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- uCloudlink is slated to initiate a revolutionary project for the world's first 4G global Wi-Fi hotspot: GlocalMe G2. Expected to be a very cool and effective product for businessmen and travelers around the world, GlocalMe's G2 project will be available on Kickstarter as of July this year.
Despite being a start-up company, uCloudlink is determined to change and positively transform lives by designing and creating very innovative products. The company's last product – GlocalMe G1 – was a hit in the market and has already received great reviews at major sales channels such as Amazon.com.
Now with GlocalMe G2, a revolutionary smart 4G Wi-Fi hot spot, people are set to enjoy a more secure and continuous internet connection without coverage limitations, compared to free WiFi. Similar to Google's Project Fi, GlobalMe G2 technology is all about having a portable network device that you can travel with around the globe and enjoy internet access to wherever you are. Aside from accessing the internet at an affordable price; users will also not have to buy local SIM cards of the countries they travel to with this product, or have to pay high roaming fees to mobile carriers.
Unlike Google's Project Fi that restricts network connectivity to their Nexus models only, GlocalMe gives users the freedom to use any model with their network. As the Project Fi continues generating heated public debates, uCloudlink company is unveiling GlocalMe G2, which is the world's first portable 4G network device. The device is set to work like a smart hotspot, turning local 3G and 4G networks into WiFi signals in over 100 countries. With GlocalMe G2, people will also find it much easier to surf and make online voice calls on the Internet in all these countries.
The company's top minds believe that this technology will become the future of the telecom industry.
"Cloud SIM technology is going to replace SIM cards in the near future. This will ultimately give people more freedom and effectiveness while travelling from one country to another," said James Ji, Project Director of GlocalMe G2.
GlocalMe G2 service also supports 100+ countries unlike Mifi rental requiring one to carry their SIM cards whenever travelling abroad. With all these amazing features, GlocalMe G2 is without a doubt expected to become the next big thing in the market.
SOURCE Hong Kong uCloudlink Network Technology Ltd.


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Macao Government Tourism Office (MGTO) is promoting Macao as a travel destination at ITB Berlin, running from 6 to 10 March at the German capital, to attract more international visitors from long-haul markets. MGTO also joins the Department of Culture and Tourism of Guangdong Province and Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB) to run a collaborative booth at ITB, tapping into the potential unlocked by the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area development by showcasing pertinent tourism resources abroad.
MGTO runs a booth at ITB Berlin
Tourism Marketing Organization of Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macao rolls out promotion at joint booth
MGTO Deputy Director Cheng Wai Tong is in the German capital to head the Macao promotion with the team at ITB Berlin, reputed one of the largest travel fairs in the world. Macao is showcased at the mega travel show through a 63-square-meter booth themed as “Experience Macao Your Own Style” displaying the glamour of Macao as a UNESCO Creative City of Gastronomy alongside its diverse tourism facilities and products. The MGTO team also meets with industry delegates to build stronger connections with the international travel trade and encourage visitations to Macao from a wider variety of source markets.
Consisting of MGTO, the Department of Culture and Tourism of Guangdong Province and HKTB, the Tourism Marketing Organization of Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macao also capitalizes on the occasion to run a joint booth for Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macao at ITB Berlin, besides holding a destination promotion for the Greater Bay Area which attracted around 80 industry operators and tourism officials from abroad yesterday (6 March). Seizing the chance at ITB to roll out one of the joint promotional initiatives in 2019, the Tourism Marketing Organization also placed strategic advertisements at the travel fair and various media platforms thereof.
Gathering over 10,000 exhibitors from more than 180 countries and territories every year, as well as admitting over 170,000 visitors last year, ITB Berlin is a major business platform with vast touristic offers in store for industry operators worldwide. Joining ITB every year, MGTO aims to reinforce the profile of Macao as a travel destination at this large-scale international travel fair to tap into overseas markets and foster connections with the international travel trade.


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Audi Adds Robots to Streamline Vehicle Service Visits
Earlier this week, Audi announced that it will be introducing a new technology to not only streamline vehicle service visits, but to improve overall customer satisfaction. The Audi Robotic Telepresence is a one-on-one virtual link connecting dealers across the country with experts at Audi of America to help with the inspection and service as if they were in the same room. So what is ART? This system is an advanced, remotely controlled robot that displays the operator's face and has the ability to move around a vehicle in question. Audi techs will be able to interact with the service technicians and even inspect the engine and other difficult-to-reach parts, thanks to an attached borescope and handheld camera. "ART was designed with both Audi technicians and consumers in mind. The device will give local service technicians valuable one-on-one interaction with their counterparts at Audi of America, which will not only benefit the speed and depth of service at the dealer level, but create an improved ownership experience for the customer in general," said Brian Stockton, general manager of technical support for Audi of America. Check out a video of how it all works here. Source: Audi
Toyota and Honda are looking at more recalls involving Takata airbags.


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Successful completion of a public offering has fetched Everi Holdings about $123 million. Everi Holdings is dedicated to developing advanced cash handling technology as well as developing electronic game content for online and land-based casinos.
As reported by GGRAsia, the company has completed an underwritten public offering of 10 million shares at a public offering price of US$11.25 per share. Everi has managed to raise about $123 million with the offering.
The final proceeds from the sale of the shares were derived from factoring discounts. However, they were calculated before considering the estimated offering expenses payable by the company. The information was released by Everi Holdings in a written announcement.
The company has also promised underwriters an opportunity to purchase up to an additional 1.5 million shares of Everi’s common stock without changing the price which means they will be getting additional shares at the same price as that during the public offering. The company has also allowed for a 30-day window for underwriters to purchase additional shares.
Explaining where the funds procured would be used, the company in its statement said that it would “refinance a portion of its existing indebtedness in one or more transactions, which may include the repayment of certain outstanding borrowings under the company’s existing term loan facility and/or the redemption and/or repurchase of a portion of its outstanding 7.50-percent senior unsecured notes due 2025”.
“Pending the deployment of the net proceeds for such refinancing transactions, the company may invest the net proceeds in short-term, interest-bearing, investment-grade securities,” the firm added.
The company had had a good third-quarter this year. Earlier in November, Everi posted a $9.3 million for the third quarter of 2019. For the same period the previous year, the company had posted a net income of $2.1 million only.


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Qualcomm’s next-generation wearable chipset, dubbed the Snapdragon Wear 5100, was recently spotted with a quad-core CPU featuring ARM Cortex-A73 cores. While the leak promised a significant performance boost over the chipset’s predecessor, a new report suggests that this may not be the case.
The processor will supposedly have four ARM Cortex-A53 cores instead of the more powerful Cortex-A73 cores as previous rumors claimed, according to WinFuture. This information is based on initial samples that were tested by Qualcomm, although it didn’t include details about the clock speed and fabrication technology.
If the report turns out to be correct, Qualcomm’s upcoming smartwatch processor won’t ship with a major chip upgrade as initially expected. The previous-generation Snapdragon Wear 4100 and 4100+, which launched last year, featured 12nm-based Cortex-A53 cores, although the 4100+ variant shipped with a low-power coprocessor to take some of the load from the main processor.
This leaves the Snapdragon Wear 5100 stuck with old CPU cores. That is way too far behind the 5nm-based Samsung Exynos W920 that powers some of the best Android smartwatches including the Galaxy Watch 4 and Watch 4 Classic.
However, Qualcomm may make up for that trade-off in other areas. The report says the company is testing the chipset in various configurations that use 1GB or 2GB of LPDDR4X RAM and 8GB or 16GB of eMMC-based flash storage. In addition, the processor is reportedly being tested with cameras featuring 5MP and 16MP sensors. That said, there are no indications about future smartwatches rocking a camera.
Like its predecessor, the next-gen chipset is also rumored to have an ultra-low-power coprocessor to handle menial tasks like logging health data in power-saving mode. As for the production side, Samsung’s semiconductor division and China’s SMIC will reportedly supply the chipset to Qualcomm.
Given that the Snapdragon Wear 4100+ has only recently begun to appear in a handful of new wearables including the Fossil Gen 6 series, any actual smartwatch powered by the Snapdragon Wear 5100 may take a while to hit the market. This may buy Qualcomm some time to improve its wearable chipsets in order to meet the increasing power demand from new and upcoming Wear OS smartwatches.
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Last updated on July 11th, 2023 at 06:44 pm
Support for DirectX 12 Ultimate, improved tracing and more
Microsoft is due to release a major update to Windows 10 by the end of May. The update will bring new features and improvements throughout the system.
For gamers, the new version of Windows will be a real breakthrough.
Windows 10 May 2020 Update, also known as 2004 and codenamed 20H1, includes support for DirectX 12 Ultimate, improved support for ray tracing DirectX Raytracing 1.1, DirectX Mesh Shader, and a number of other new features.
In addition to DirectX 12 Ultimate, Microsoft is also working on other areas to improve games, including WDDM 2.7 (Windows Display Driver Model) for improved multi-monitor performance.
According to numerous tests, the image refresh rate for multi-monitor installations has finally improved. Fixed a problem with video stutter if monitors in the installation have different refresh rates. Also fixed a problem with multiple windows when running a game like CS: GO. Windows Search will stop the indexing process when game mode is on.
For ordinary PC users, the distribution of the Windows 10 May 2020 Update will begin from May 26 to May 28. It was previously reported that Microsoft had to postpone the release of Windows 10 May 2020 due to a zero-day vulnerability discovered at the last moment.
The Windows 10 May 2020 Update brings new features and a redesigned interface to the Cortana voice assistant, improvements to Windows Search and the Linux subsystem, as well as a ton of small changes to the GUI, including new application icons.


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With the Biden administration pushing for more widespread EV adoption and planning to convert the entire federal fleet to electric power in an effort to slash greenhouse gas emissions, the need for a more robust charging infrastructure has been thrust into the spotlight. A recently proposed EV charging action plan outlines how to get to that point, and both Ford CEO Jim Farley and the Alliance for Automotive Innovation – a lobby group that represents Ford and almost every other major automaker – have thrown their support behind these efforts in recent months. Now, Farley is among a number of executives pushing for EV charging standards and a massive expansion of the existing network, according to Reuters.
Jim Farley – along with General Motors CEO Mary Barra, Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares, Lucid CEO Peter Rawlinson, Nissan chair Jeremie Papin, and Tesla CEO Elon Musk – met with Biden administration officials this week to discuss both EVs and charging infrastructure. “There was broad consensus that charging stations and vehicles need to be interoperable and provide a seamless user experience, no matter what car you drive or where you charge your EV,” the White House said in a statement.
One of the main focuses of the meeting was to figure out how the U.S. can expand its national EV charging network to 500,000 chargers, a goal that will require a significant investment to achieve. The Biden administration is currently gathering information from domestic manufacturers as it ultimately decides which will build the charging network, with all manufacturing and assembly to take place in the U.S.
In the coming weeks, the Department of Transportation (DOT) will also issue guidance for states and cities on deploying EV charging stations to build out this national network, focusing on rural areas and other places where infrastructure is lacking.


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"We are long term committed to India. We are planning to have omni-channel presence here. We will have three formats -- big stores, online and smaller stores here," IKEA India CEO Peter Betzel told .
For marketing alone, Pepperfry will invest Rs 8.5 crore this year to build the category and grow it to form upto 35% of the revenue share within one year from the 20% it currently forms.
The brand will expand to at least 10 more experience centers by March 2018, it said.
Berger Paints makes industrial paints and consumer products like metal and wood paints, interior wall coatings, exterior wall coatings and clear coats for wood.
The new store, launched last week, is a tourist eccentric store, which will give you the reflection of authentic Indian culture- from the handmade ayurvedic beauty products to the home decor items.
Millennial parents now want luxurious pads for their little one's nursery.
Several online portals now act as a single-point contact to attend to all possible requirements of redoing a house, sparing customers the trouble of hiring carpenters or browsing through magazines for ideas, to make the process less tiresome.
Mediterranean blues, peacock green, sunset oranges - the range of colour at the newly-launched store is a visual delight.
Echoing the sentiment, this festive season offline and online players together have jazzed up their repertoire to match up consumers shopping wish list.
Providing an online window for furniture and other home decor, the company has been selling customers a range of products to choose from without burning a hole in their pockets.
Urban Ladder, the online furniture and home decor startup, which forayed into the mattress category in April, 2015, is witnessing unprecedented growth of 30% month-on-month in addition to doubling its sale in the last quarter, the company has said.
Prabhakar and Chadda saw Chumbak, known for its quirky accessories and home decor, and more recently apparel, as a place where they could let their creative minds flow.
Online art and merchandise shop PosterGully expects its gross sales to jump over two-fold to Rs 8 crore this fiscal, driven by home decor and casual wear segments.
E-commerce major Flipkart today said it aims to help over 10,000 sellers generate business worth Rs 10 lakh through its platform this year.
On account of the festival season which includes Diwali, the home decor item sales have gone up by around 2.5 times of its average sales of the year.
With festivities already in full swing, cleaning and de-cluttering the living spaces is on every body’s mind.
Ceramic tableware manufacturer and retailer Clay Craft today launched 400 new product ranges in Fine Bone China here.The group, generating Rs 200 crore revenues per annum in household, institutional, retail and hospitality segments, also announced its growth target to achieve 35 per cent growth year-on-year.
Leading mattress maker Kurlon is aiming to clock 25 per cent sales growth and achieve Rs 1,000 crore turnover this fiscal.


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SAN FRANCISCO, Dec 27 (Reuters) – Tesla buyers who have waited months for their new car have faced an unusual choice for much of the past two years: keep the new electric vehicle, or sell it at a profit to someone with less patience.
But the days of the Tesla flip are numbered ̵[ads1]1; a potential threat to new car prices that are already being slashed.
Prices of used Teslas are falling faster than other automakers, and the status symbols of clean energy are disappearing in the dealership much longer, industry data provided to Reuters showed.
The average price of a used Tesla in November was $55,754, down 17% from the July peak of $67,297. The overall used car market was down 4% during that period, according to Edmunds data. The used Teslas were in the dealer’s warehouse for an average of 50 days in November, compared to 38 days for all used cars.
Rising gasoline prices, an effect of the Ukraine war, increased demand for Teslas, one of the few long-range electric vehicles on the market. Tesla Inc ( TSLA.O ) itself raised prices faster than those of other cars, building up profit margins. And buyers of some new Teslas took advantage of the booming market to sell their relatively new cars at a profit, then order new ones, boosting demand for Tesla’s new cars.
Now, fuel prices are falling, interest rates are rising, Tesla production is increasing and electric car competition is increasing, which is causing the prices of used Teslas to fall faster than the market, creating a ripple effect on the prices of new Teslas.
Tesla last week doubled a US new-car price cut to $7,500 for Model Ys and Model 3s delivered this year, adding to investor jitters about curbing demand.
Nearly a third of used Teslas for sale in August were 2022 models that were up for resale, a sign that original buyers were aiming to flip, analysts said. That compares with about 5% of other brands on the used market, research firm Edmunds said.
Tesla shares fell 7.3% to a more than two-year low of $114.12 in early trading on Tuesday. They are down over 65% this year.
“You can’t sell your current Tesla for more money than you paid for it, which was true for much of the last two years,” said Karl Brauer, an analyst at auto sales website iSeeCars.com. “It will reduce the demand for new Teslas.”
On Thursday, Musk said that the “radical changes in interest rates” have increased the prices of all cars, new and used, and that Tesla could potentially lower prices to maintain volume growth, which would result in lower profits.
Tesla, which has disbanded its media department, did not respond to Reuters’ emailed questions.
Indeed, Tesla is hardly alone: The US used-car market boomed when global auto production hit trouble, but it now faces a “used-car recession,” one analyst said, after used-car seller CarMax last week reported an 86% decline in third-place sales. – quarterly result.
But Tesla is leading the retreat: the factors pushing up the prices of its vehicles were exaggerated compared to other brands because Teslas “basically for a long time were really the only viable product when it came to used electric cars,” said Ivan Drury, director of Insights at Edmunds .com.
Electric cars like the Ford F-150 Lightning and Hyundai Ioniq 5 are hitting the market with a lot of buzz, said Liz Najman, content marketing manager at EV researcher Recurrent.
Software engineer Greg Profitt bought a new Model Y last year for $49,000 and sold it three months later for $12,000 more. He ordered a new one – but has just bought a used Tesla at a discount.
“The economy kind of scares me into buying new,” he said, adding that the new $7,500 rebate would be too little to sustain demand.
Reporting by Hyunjoo Jin in San Francisco and Nivedita Balu in Bengaluru, additional reporting by Akash Sriram; Editing by Peter Henderson, Anna Driver and Matthew Lewis
Our standards: Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.


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Walk This Way is a unique program promoting physical activity and learning by encouraging young people to explore on foot. It began when BGC of Ottawa volunteer Gavin Lumsden was looking for a way to get kids active while teaching them about their communities. He designed the program to take participants on long walks to surrounding points of interest. After the event’s success in Ottawa, Lumsden started raising money to make it a national event.
Along with its restaurants serving as starting points for the walks, Quesada is donating one dollar from every burrito sold on Oct. 18 to support the further expansion of the event across Canada.
“Thanks to the hard work of Gavin and the support of Quesada, we will now be able to ensure even more young people get to know their cities while learning the benefits of a healthy lifestyle,” says Owen Charters, CEO of BGC of Canada.
“We’re thrilled and honoured to support BGC and we feel Quesada customers will be equally as enthusiastic about supporting healthy, happy lifestyles among Canadian youth,” says Quesada’s CEO, Steve Gill.


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SAN DIEGO – May 1, 2017
DockOn Inc., a leading innovator of wireless RF technology, is today announcing that wireless industry veteran, Adam Gould, has been appointed as DockOn’s new CEO. He was formerly VP of Strategy at ARM and CEO at Sensinode, where he led the company to a successful acquisition by ARM. Prior to Sensinode, he was SVP of Marketing at NextWave and CTO at Nokia. During his time at Nokia, he was part of the management team that grew Nokia’s revenue in the CDMA business from zero to more than $1B in annual revenue. With over 30 years of wireless and telecom industry experience, including multiple successful exits as a serial entrepreneur, Adam brings the leadership and expertise necessary for DockOn to fully realize the potential of its Quantal Technologies.
DockOn is a global wireless RF technology company with offices in the US and Europe. The company provides its Quantal Technologies to semiconductor manufacturer customers through wireless standard specific Reference Design Kit (RDK) licenses. DockOn also licenses and sells its legacy CPL antenna designs for OEMs and ODMs manufacturing high volume wireless products. Quantal Technologies deliver substantial improvements in weak signal reception, power consumption and cost when compared with today’s RF architectures.
DockOn Inc. is a wholly owned US subsidiary of DockOn AG – collectively known as DockOn. While DockOn AG serves as the companies headquarters, San Diego, California based DockOn Inc. is the primary operations base for the company and is where all research, engineering, sales and support is located.
For more information go to www.dockon.com


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Restaurant given zero food hygiene rating was storing raw meat next to salad
- Credit: Archant
A restaurant had a kitchen which was in need of a “deep clean” and was storing raw meat next to ready to eat salad, a hygiene inspector has said.
The diner Gabby in George Street, Great Yarmouth, was given a zero-star food hygiene rating - the lowest grade possible - when it was inspected in March this year.
The inspector raised a number of concerns over the standard of cleanliness and food hygiene practices at the restaurant including cross-contamination of raw meat and dirty hobs.
In the report, the inspector said: "Inside the grey food fridge a raw pork loin was being stored next to ready to eat salad and vegetables.
"You must keep raw food separate from ready to eat foods, store raw meat and vegetables at the bottom of the fridge."
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The diner was also criticised for reheating their pork kebab more than once which created a "high risk" of a customer contracting food poisoning and becoming ill from eating the pork.
The inspector said she had worked with the restaurant to help improve food hygiene practices and was "disappointed" the standard of cleanliness had deteriorated.
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The report also highlighted food in the fridge was unable to stay below the legal limit of eight degrees.
"High risk" food including cooked rice was reaching 17.2 degrees and a jar of garlic puree which was past its best before date read 12.3 degrees.
The whole kitchen was found to be in need of a "deep clean" as dirt and grease had built up throughout the premises.
The inspector identified the "filthy" seals inside the food fridge, dirty hobs on top of the oven and the seal around the sink being black with mould as the main areas for concern relating to cleanliness.
A number of food items in the fridge were found to be out of date including feta cheese and two plain yoghurts.
The report said the inspector identified the same problem - relating to out of date food - when the diner was last inspected and the Food Standards Agency would be considering formal action due to the diner's "poor track record".
Repeated attempts to contact the restaurant have been unsuccessful.