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08/06/2015 McLaren offers ‘more resources’ to help Honda Jun.8 (GMM) McLaren has offered to help works engine partner Honda to end the current crisis before it becomes "embarrassing". Team figures have put a brave and united face on the […]
04/06/2018 Honda tipped to make 40hp step in Canada Jun.4 (GMM) Honda will take "a considerable step" this weekend in Canada.
Like most of the engine manufacturers, the Japanese carmaker will bring an updated 'power unit' specification to […]
22/02/2015 McLaren-Honda will not win first race – Button Feb.22 (GMM) For now, McLaren's problems will not go away. At the start of the Barcelona test, a faulty seal on the Honda's MGU-K unit forced Japanese engineers to return the drawing […]
29/04/2015 McLaren to keep same car concept in 2016 Apr.29 (GMM) Next year's McLaren car will be an "evolution" of the current MP4-30. Last year, the famous British team finished the season just fifth best, despite having clearly the best […]
13/06/2017 ‘No information’ about Honda upgrade – Alonso Jun.13 (GMM) Rumours are growing by the day that the works McLaren-Honda partnership is now definitely doomed.
It seems the final straw for the British team was Montreal, where Honda […]
19/06/2017 Honda to deliver engine upgrade in Baku – report Jun.19 (GMM) Honda looks set to deliver a much-needed engine upgrade this weekend in Baku.
In Canada just over a week ago, McLaren chiefs admitted their frustration was at boiling point […]
02/03/2015 Honda freezes engine unsure of 2015 ‘tokens’ Mar.2 (GMM) After a troubled winter, 2015 newcomer Honda has now locked in McLaren's 'power unit' for this year's campaign. It has completed only a fraction of the running of […]


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Tablet gamers waiting patiently for the release of the new Infinity Blade: Dungeons game to be released, are going to be disappointed to hear that Epic Games has this week announced that its launch will now be delayed until 2013.
The original Infinity Blade was the fastest-grossing app in the history of iOS, making $1.6 million in just four days, and was developed by Chair Entertainment and Epic Games back in 2010.
Infinity Blade brought a new style of RPG hack-n-slash game style to tablets, showing what could be accomplished using the new hardware installed in the new Apple tablets when they first appeared.
Epic explained in an interview with the All Things D website: “Ever since the talented team at Impossible Studios got their hands on Infinity Blade: Dungeons, they’ve been busy adding their great ideas to the game,” Phillips says. “There was also the matter of getting the Impossible Studios team up and running with desks, chairs, staplers and computers. The logistics of a new studio and implementing all these great ideas required a little extra time, so Infinity Blade: Dungeons will hit iOS in 2013.”
There was speculation that the new Infinity Blade: Dungeons game might appear with the launch new Apple mini iPad.
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New Delhi : Jagran Solutions, India’s leading new age marketing agency that provides solutions Brand Activation via Consumer Connect Strategies, announced today that it has been recognized for its exemplary campaigns at the 2nd National WOW Awards for Events & Experiential Marketing Industry held in Mumbai yesterday. The company won four Awards across various categories.
WOW Awards seeks to celebrate excellence in events & experiential marketing space, across various industries. The jury at WOW Awards comprises of seasoned marketing professionals from diverse industry segments. They recognize and acknowledge events and on-ground interaction activities between the brand and the consumer.
The jury does not have any representation from agencies to ensure neutrality and comprises of Heads of Organizations and Heads of Marketing from across industries. The award categories reflected the evolving nature and stature of Events and Experiential Marketing. WOW Awards were awarded to Jagran Solutions ahead of 911 entries, from 95 entrants participating in the awards function.
Commenting on this achievement Ms. Ambika Sharma, National Head, and Jagran Solutions said “We are proud that our work has received accolades at the WOW awards 2010. There could not be a better way to end an excellent year, taking up our award tally to 45 as we step into 2010-11. The sheer scope of the entries is a credit to the fact that marketers are viewing the role of experience driven Brand Activation as critical in the media mix today. I would like to thank all the judges at the event who made the 2010 WOW awards so special for the activation industry.”


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Start-up Ecosystem is Thriving in Dallas, Texas
Texas, as a whole, is thriving and pioneering start-ups are putting the state on the world map for innovation. Although Austin may traditionally be thought to be the mecca of innovation in Texas, just 200 miles northeast, the city of Dallas is booming too. Dallas, while famous for being home to the cowboys, is also dwelling 18 Fortune 500 company headquarters and has a bustling business scene. A wide range of entrepreneurs, investors, young start-ups and innovators, are all assisting in creating a start-up ecosystem that is flourishing.
However, Dallas-Fort Worth has the fourth largest population center in the U.S., and as a result, start-up communities can often get lost in the steep volume of business activity. Nonetheless, that doesn’t mean a start-up community doesn’t exist; rather, it perhaps gets less exposure in relation to the tighter-knit environment of Austin.
Yet the facts alone reiterate the friendly business environment Dallas has. For example, Dallas boasts the 6th largest concentration of high tech workers in U.S., is in the top 20 region for number of patents issued and is the 5th largest metro in self-employment in U.S. Moreover, according to PitchBook data, Angel investors invested $213.5 million into 35 start-ups in the first nine months of this year. That’s virtually three times last year’s total angel investments of $73.4 million in 42 deals.
Hence, as revealed above, Texas as a whole, inclusive of Dallas, is particularly small business friendly. Certainly, from Dallas to Austin, Texas as a state is thriving. In addition, the R&D tax credit can help put cash back into start-ups and several states, including Texas, offer businesses their own version of the R&D tax credit. Want more information? Contact TexasTaxCredit to talk to a specialised R&D expert who will be able to help you understand more about the R&D Tax Credit scheme.


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Facebook has published a page for Facebook Platform developers that answers frequenty asked questions (FAQs) about the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). The GDPR went into effect on May 25 and requires companies in the EU and around the world to comply with stronger data protection rules.
Yodlee Interactive, financial data and transaction platform provider, has launched major enhancements to its API offering. Over 600 companies around the world already rely on Yodlee to fuel financial apps and services for millions of consumers. Yodlee Interactive’s API previously supported SOAP/XML and powered some of the most innovative financial apps around. However, an expanded support for REST, JSON, and HTML will enable simplified integration and cross-platform functionality.
An independent, open source platform aimed at making it easier for governments and businesses to publish open data has released a new version of their API. The CKAN API allows access to catalog listings of open datasets, full-text searches, and sharing of statistics on open data usage.


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2014 Design Expo registration deadline: Thursday, February 6, 2014.
Design Expo 2014 (formerly Undergraduate Expo)
Thursday, April 17, 2014; 8 AM – 4 PM; J. Robert Van Pelt and John and Ruanne Opie Library, 3rd floor
For the past 14 years, Michigan Tech undergraduate students have showcased their work at the Undergraduate Expo each April. This year, event organizers have changed the name from Undergraduate Expo to Design Expo: A showcase of Enterprise and Senior Design teams.
The reasons? First of all, to avoid confusion. A brand new event, the Undergraduate Research Expo, has been launched by the Michigan Tech Honors Institute for 2014. Second of all, the new name Design Expo better describes our event, in which student teams display their design projects. We took the opportunity to update the event logo and website with help from Michigan Tech University Marketing.


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Singaporean social escort who stole credit cards jailed 3 years
SINGAPORE, Dec 20 — A social escort who nicked his customers’ credit cards after providing massage services and swiped about S$51,000 (RM157,745) worth of purchases over nearly a year was sentenced to three years’ jail for cheating yesterday.
Nur Alya Sefira Mohd Hadim managed to evade arrest partly because his cross-dressing made it difficult for the authorities to identify him, the court was told.
The 31-year-old man pleaded guilty yesterday to 17 cheating offences that were committed between September 2014 and June last year. His victims included the doctor who gave him hormone injections as well as men of various nationalities, such as Irish, Danish, French, Indian, Finnish, Australian, among others.
Another 170 similar cheating and theft charges were taken into consideration for sentencing.
At the time of his offences, Nur Alya was not only working as a freelance make-up artiste but also a social escort who solicited for clients at bars in the Orchard Towers area, said Deputy Public Prosecutor Vadivalagan Shanmuga.
Investigations revealed that he stole credit cards from customers at these bars and also from those who had engaged his massage services in the hotel rooms. At times, he stole more than one card from his victims in case the cards had lower credit limits.
Nur Alya also stole a UOB credit card from his doctor sometime in February last year while visiting the clinic for his usual hormone injection. The latter had left a few credit cards unattended on the clinic table.
Nur Alya used these stolen cards to go on a spending spree. Various sales assistants were deceived into believing that he was the rightful cardholder and he bought items such as gold pendants, rings, chains, bracelets as well as various mobile phones.
Nur Alya would then sell or pawn these items to fund his personal expenses. He also admitted to using these cards until they were declined before cutting them up and throwing them away.
In all, he spent S$51,250.97 over 11 months. Apart from the doctor, the amount of losses suffered by each victim ranged from S$1,995 to S$6,728. Only S$12,559 worth of goods were recovered from the pawnshops.
Nur Alya was arrested on June 26 last year after the Central Narcotics Bureau conducted a surprise raid.
This came after a “tedious investigation process”, said DPP Vadivalagan. The accused had planned his offences such that he was undetectable and evaded arrest for a considerable time. His cross-dressing habit also did not help when CCTV footages were scrutinised by the police, he added.
Urging the court to impose a jail term of at least three years, DPP Vadivalagan cited various aggravating factors in this case, such as the multiple cards and victims that were involved in the fraud. The offences were premeditated and were committed over a period of nearly 11 months.
He also abused his position of trust when he stole from his own doctor and victims who wanted escort services, added the DPP.
Furthermore, the DPP noted that Nur Alya had also used a similar modus operandi for his previous convictions. In 2012, he was jailed 18 months for similar cheating and drug offences. Then, he stole mostly ATM cards and monies instead of credit cards, said DPP Vadivalagan.
In mitigation, his lawyer Dhillon Surinder Singh said his client regrets his actions and had fully cooperated with the police upon his arrest.
He also added that his client had acted on his own and was not part of a syndicate.
For each cheating charge, Nur Alya could have been jailed up to 10 years and fined. — TODAY


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Tiffany Jones brings much more to the Las Vegas community than just sweets, although her contribution in that area is pretty grand.
As a mother who supports other mom-owned businesses, she’s become a small-business proselytizer. And through her bakery, Peridot Sweets, she creates some out-of-this-world desserts.
A former baker for multiple Four Seasons Hotels and the former assistant pastry chef of The Mirage, Jones is no stranger to high-end sweets operations. It was through opening her own business in 2011 and a resulting storefront eight months ago, though, that she discovered a whole new world.
“I’m so much more aware of small business and I try so much harder in my personal life to support small business now, way more than I did before,” Jones said.
She’s become a member of a Facebook group for small-business owners who are also moms, and requests work from other mothers: one designed her website and another helped decorate her business.
“Being a mom is such a big part of my life and personality. A lot of other moms will come buy their cakes from me and support me,” Jones said. “There’s this little community on Facebook of mom entrepreneurs where we all try to support each other.”
Inside the sweets shop, peridot-colored chairs, set off the white wood display cases and a small crystal chandelier hangs above the register.
In her 1,208-square-foot space at 6475 S. Rainbow Blvd., Jones makes complicated cakes such as a Rubik’s Cube design or small sweets such as the French macaroons she serves in flavors like Baileys milk chocolate or salty caramel cream. Her cupcakes, which she didn’t want to make at first, come in flavors like tiramisu or banana caramel.
There are other hidden gems in the bakery, such as the fair-trade, organic coffee and homemade vanilla extract.
Opening her storefront eight months ago cost close to $100,000, which included repairs needed after the space had sat vacant for two years.
“As much as I thought it was going to cost, it was still twice as much,” Jones said.
Before opening, Jones was operating a custom, delivery-only bakery from another commercial kitchen. Her clientele now is a mix of walk-ins and about 35 percent corporate clients, such as hotels and wedding planners.
Cost for her goods can range from $1.25 for a quick treat to $2,500 for a custom, seven-tier wedding cake.
Jones said one of her favorite parts of owning a business is the relationships she makes with her three-person staff. She also has an intern and is possibly looking for another and a part-time cashier.
“I’ve been a manager, but this was my first time really having to interview people,” Jones said. “I was probably way more nervous than they were in the interview.”
Contact reporter Laura Carroll at email@example.com or 702-380-4588. Follow @lscvegas on Twitter.


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GM LS Marine engine conversions have grown at a speed no one could have gauged until now. Hardin Marine has been at the forefront of the LS marine engine movement for the past number of years bringing to market cooling systems and exhaust options.
But the one hurdle of the engine swap to popular Bravo/Alpha applications leaving boaters to fend for themselves is the lack of a proper engine mount solution, often requiring makeshift homegrown engine mount remedies. So the folks at Hardin took to building a direct replacement engine block mount that allows a popular GM LS1, LS2, LS3 to be dropped right back onto the OEM Stud factory mount or the High Performance Hardin Marine stud mount #620-52380
These new LS Mercruiser Retro-fit CNC machined engine mounts will be sold in pairs as part #625-8545 and a retail price of $299.95. For these and a host of other GM LS Marine products visit www.hardin-marine.com


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It’s easy to make the case that family-owned businesses are a pretty large engine for the U.S. economy: They make up 64 percent of the U.S. gross domestic product. About 62 percent of us work for one, and they create 78 percent of new job creation, according to a recent university study.
And Oklahoma City is chock-full of robust family businesses: Like Victoria Kemp and her mom Florence, who have operated Florence’s Restaurant for 70 years this month and who just earned the state’s first James Beard award.
Or the Lopez family, operators of Lopez Foods, which is the nation’s largest Hispanic-owned protein processing company, and who have produced food for McDonald’s for decades in Oklahoma City.
Or take the founders of Plenty Mercantile, who started a decade ago and will open their fourth and then their fifth location this year.
Or how about Home Creations – started by immigrants from Iran – who are now transitioning the homebuilding company’s leadership to the next generation. We could go on and on.
They aren’t just integral to our economic engine either, they’ve also got a lot of institutional knowledge on how a business, family-business or not, should run. Take a look at three more companies – with a combined 265 years of business in Oklahoma – who tell their story and give advice on how they’ve navigated successes and setbacks, transitions and industry changes for generations, all while weathering the ups and downs of growing a business while keeping it all in the family.


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Paekākāriki Auto Services has closed its doors after 100 years of repairing the cars of locals and those needing urgent help while travelling on State Highway 1 north of Wellington.
It’s the end of an era for the ‘oldest garage on the coast’. Owner Chris Clarke is retiring and the building has been sold to a Waikanae-based collective responsible for restaurants, a bakery and craft beer.
Originally built in 1920, the garage was built by Mr Frank Holtom to serve the motoring public who needed tyre changes and petrol. He spotted a business opportunity with the growing number of automobiles making the trip over the Paekākāriki Hill Road to visit the beaches on the Kāpiti Coast.
Paekākāriki locals were sad to see their garage close down but the community organised a party for Chris to say farewell. However, the Covid restrictions put the kaibosh on their original plans but a few safe-distanced locals took to the streets with song to serenade Chris off on his new chapter.
Chris bought the business back in 2002. He already owned the Action Auto workshop in Wellington and turned that over to a manager while he built up the Paekākāriki business.
“The plan was to sell the Wellington business, but the economic crisis hit and I ended up keeping it until 2013.”
Chris, who lives in Levin made the move to cut down on his long daily commute.
“I’d only just moved in when there was the big flood and water came about half a metre up into the workshop.” After everything was cleaned up he used some stored paint he had inherited with the workshop to repaint. The bright blue, orange and yellow scheme, which are unlikely to survive the new owners’ refit, soon became synonymous.
After the easement of lockdown restrictions, locals finally got to see Chris off in befitting style at the Paekākāriki Bowling Club and now eagerly await the next steps in the journey of the Holtoms Building. With structural repairs underway, and all other businesses retaining their lease, the new owners say they are already enjoying the vibrancy of Paekākāriki and are looking forward to adding to its charm.


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What’s the latest news on smart sprinkler systems?
In a series of posts on this topic, Polygon will be examining the future of water and wastewater management with the help of expert experts.
Today, we’ve rounded up some of the best smart sprinklers available today, which are designed to reduce the risks of waterborne diseases, including the H1N1 pandemic.
We’ll be exploring how these systems work and how they’re being used.
If you’d like to learn more about smart sprinkling, check out our Smart Swimming section here .
These systems are designed and manufactured by a variety of companies, including Philips, EKO, Epson, Kemet, and Zebra.
Philips has announced that it’s working with EKON to develop a smart sprinklor system.
The EKon Smart Swimmer is a smart water system that is being developed for smart sprinklements that uses a combination of sensors and wireless communication.
The system is expected to have a range of up to 50 meters.
The Smart Swimmers are expected to be released in 2018.
In its announcement, Philips explained that it plans to integrate the Smart Swims into their Smart Water System.
The Philips Smart Swim is a combination water- and wastewater-control device that is designed to integrate with their Smart Swimmable products.
It is the first smart water management system for smart pumps, which Philips is aiming to integrate into their new Smart Swillable products in the near future.
The Smart SwIM uses a 3-axis sensor that is placed in the bottom of a water tank and allows the pump to control the flow of water from the water tank.
When the water is flowing through the Smart Water Pump, the pump can be turned on or off and can switch between a normal and an automatic mode.
The Philips Smart Water Swimmer features a large battery that can provide up to 10 hours of usage in water tanks.
The system is compatible with Philips Smartwater and Smart WaterSmart products, and is expected on the market later this year.
The next generation of smart water sprinklers that Philips is developing are based on a water-swimming system called Smart Swellable.
The new technology uses the same technology as the Philips Smartswimmers, but with an additional sensor to detect changes in temperature.
The sensors on Smart Swells can detect a change in temperature, and switch off the sprinkler if it detects that it has exceeded a specified temperature.
These new smart sprinkles will be released by Philips in 2018 and are expected on their Smart water systems by the end of 2019.
If Philips’ Smart Swllables are as promising as Philips claims, you’ll be able to install them in your home and not have to worry about any of the other water-related problems that are plaguing homeowners.
The smart water pumps that Philips has been developing are expected for 2019.
Philips says that the pumps will be available in the next three to five years.
Philips also says that smart water systems will become the norm.
In an interview with the Wall Street Journal in 2016, Philips CEO Tim Wijnenhuis said that the company was working with partners to develop smart sprinklet systems.
“The future is coming, and we’re not going to stop there,” Wijenhuis told the WSJ.


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Jumbo Interactive secures first SaaS deal in the UK24th December 2020 8:42 am GMT
Sydney-listed online lottery provider Jumbo Interactive has signed its first B2B partnership in the United Kingdom through a deal with the St Helena Hospice.
The six-year software-as-a-service (SaaS) agreement will see Jumbo provide its online lottery platform to the UK charity, which currently generates around £5m in sales each year.
“We’re excited to have St Helena as our first SaaS partner in the UK,” said Jumbo CEO Mike Veverka. “The UK charity market is an important part of our planned future growth strategy. As a foundation partner, St Helena will receive the benefits from the advanced capabilities available to our Australian clients.”
The B2B deal follows last month's supplier licence approval from the British Gambling Commission.
Shares in Jumbo Interactive Limited (ASX:JIN) closed 0.87 per cent higher at AUD$13.87 per share in Sydney Thursday.


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T-Mobile announced fourth-quarter 2012 results that reflect its makeover in progress.
While prepaid customer additions grew by 166,000 people, and net customer additions of 61,000 were an improvement from the same quarter a year ago, it still lost 515,000 postpaid customers during the quarter, as its 4G Long Term Evolution (LTE) strategy is still in early stages, its MetroPCS acquisition has yet to be completed, and its promised Apple products have yet to be offered.
Revenue for the quarter was $4.9 billion, which was an improvement from the third quarter but down from the fourth quarter of 2011.
CEO John Legere, the most effective embodiment of T-Mobile’s new “un-carrier” branding that shareholders could possibly hope for, said in a Feb. 27 statement that the year’s “strong” finish provided a foundation for “even bigger game-changing moves in 2013.”
“You will see us put customers at the center of everything we do going forward, and that means giving them fair and simple wireless experiences in a way that other carriers never have before,” Legere said.
Customers are already taking to the carrier’s good deals.
More than 1.3 million customers during the fourth quarter chose a T-Mobile Value plan, resulting in now 30 percent of its entire contract base being a part of the program that the carrier plans to move to entirely. The Value plans do away with device subsidies, instead allowing customers to pay less for a handset up front, with an ongoing monthly payment, but also the ability to trade in the device whenever they’d like.
T-Mobile is also having luck with its bring your own device (BYOD) program; about 100,000 iPhone owners per month are bringing their unlocked smartphones to the network. Though T-Mobile doesn’t yet sell an iPhone—officials reiterated that the company will “this year”—it says it now supports more than 2 million of them.
T-Mobile’s LTE network—currently a footpath compared with the superhighways Verizon Wireless and AT&T have rolled out—is also ahead of schedule. The carrier now plans to cover 100 million people by mid-2013, and more than 200 million by year’s end. As it begins launching LTE-enabled devices this year, its LTE rollouts in Las Vegas and Kansas City, Mo., will be complete.
T-Mobile’s acquisition of prepaid carrier MetroPCS is also set to close in the “first half of 2013,” T-Mobile said in its earnings statement. MetroPCS CEO Roger Linquist, announcing the financial results of MetroPCS’ fourth quarter 2012 Feb. 26, said during an earnings call that he expects the deal to close “in early April.”
While Linquist talked up the “new devices, faster network experience [and] advertising and branding scale” that MetroPCS’ distribution partners can look forward to, Rene Obermann, CEO of T-Mobile parent company Deutsch Telekom, said he is looking forward to “creating the leading wireless value carrier with expanded scale, spectrum and financial resources to compete across the entire U.S. market.”
T-Mobile has proposed interesting ideas, made big promises and has much in the works. Now, we wait and see.
“The new T-Mobile will be the value leader in the U.S., challenging the legacy, utility-like providers,” said Legere, “and bringing new choices to customers, as well as unique growth opportunity for investors.”


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Dec 06, 2012
Set-Top Box Energy Conservation Agreement Expected to Save U.S. Consumers $1.5 Billion Annually
Fifteen industry-leading multichannel video providers and device manufacturers that deliver service to more than 90 million American households, are launching an unprecedented Set-Top Box Energy Conservation Agreement that will result in annual residential electricity savings of $1.5 billion or more as the commitment is fully realized, the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) and National Cable & Telecommunications Association (NCTA) announced today.
Dec 05, 2012
One-Third of U.S. Consumers Plan to Purchase Fitness Technologies in 2013, According to CEA
More than half (55 percent) of U.S. online consumers used a fitness technology in the past year, and more than one-third (37 percent) anticipate purchasing a fitness technology in the next 12 months, according to new research by the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA)®. Getting Connected with Emerging Fitness Technologies shows the number of consumers who used a fitness technology in the past year increased eight percent from 2010. Results from the study were released today at the mHealth Summit.
Dec 04, 2012
CEA Commends D.C. City Council for Allowing Uber to Do Business
The following statement is attributable to Michael Petricone, senior vice president of government and regulatory affairs, Consumer Electronics Association (CEA)®, following today’s D.C. City Council vote on the Public Vehicle-For-Hire Innovation Amendment Act:
Nov 30, 2012
CEA Applauds Passage of the STEM Jobs Act
The following statement is attributable to Gary Shapiro, president and CEO, Consumer Electronics Association (CEA)®, following today’s passage of the STEM Jobs Act in the House of Representatives:
Nov 28, 2012
CEA Named One of the Best Places to Work in Virginia for Third Consecutive Year
The Consumer Electronics Association (CEA)® announced today its recognition as one of the 2013 Best Places to Work in Virginia, by Virginia Business and Best Companies Group, as part of its annual survey and awards program. This is the third consecutive year that CEA has been honored by the program, which recognizes the 80 best places of employment in Virginia, benefiting the state’s economy, its work force and businesses. Full Release
Nov 28, 2012
Internet Radio Fairness Act is Common-Sense, Long Overdue
The following statement is attributable to Michael Petricone, senior vice president of government and regulatory affairs, Consumer Electronics Association (CEA)®, following today’s hearing on the Internet Radio Fairness Act:
Nov 28, 2012
2013 International CES to Expand Public Policy Focus
CEA announced today a broad array of panel discussions to be held at the Innovation Policy Summit during the 2013 International CES®.
Nov 27, 2012
Consumer Confidence in Technology Rises, But Confidence in Overall Economy at Lowest Level of the Year, According to CEA
Consumer confidence in technology inched higher in November, while confidence in the overall economy sunk to the lowest level of 2012, according to the latest CEA Index released today by the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA)®.
Nov 27, 2012
New Electronics Energy Calculator Helps Consumers Live Green, Buy Green this Winter
The Consumer Electronics Association (CEA)® launched a new, interactive Consumer Electronics Energy Calculator today on GreenerGadgets.org, its consumer site for living green, buying green and recycling responsibly. The calculator estimates the amount of energy used by all of the consumer electronics devices in a single household and provides tips on how consumers can save even more energy. Full Release
Nov 24, 2012
Consumers to Spend Nearly $44 Billion on Holiday Gifts This Weekend, According to CEA
Consumers will spend $43.7 billion on holiday gifts this Thanksgiving weekend with nearly 70 million U.S. adults shopping on Black Friday, according to interim results from CEA annual Black Friday Survey.


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At Facebook’s annual shareholder meeting this morning, one investor had an unusual question for CEO Mark Zuckerberg.
"One of the downsides of being successful and rich is you create some resentment from people," he said. "How do you make yourself warm and fuzzy and loved throughout the world?"
That might seem like a random question from an eccentric. But how the world views Zuckerberg—and how Zuckerberg views the world—matters more than ever for Facebook. That's because for possibly decades to come, Facebook's future is Mark Zuckerberg.
At the meeting, Facebook shareholders voted to approve a restructuring of the company’s stock offering that ensures Zuckerberg keeps his majority ownership even if the company issues more stock. That means for the foreseeable future, Zuckerberg is in control.
Responding to the shareholder’s question, Zuckerberg said in order to keep people interested in Facebook, you have to be clear about what you're trying to do. "If you say clearly what you care about and how you’re going to make decisions and what you’re going to invest in, then people who want to be a part of that opt in and choose to be part of that," Zuckerberg said. "And people who don’t like it choose not to."
So far, more than 1.65 billion people are opting in every month, which gives shareholders little reason to want anyone else in charge. More than 1 billion people look at Facebook on mobile devices every day, and the company brought in more than $5 billion in revenue just last quarter. In other words, Zuckerberg is not exactly pushing people away.
Thanks to its ability not just to attract a massive audience but to get them to reveal so much about themselves, Facebook has been able to give its customers—that is, advertisers—options that keep them coming back and spending their money. Facebook can insert highly targeted mobile ads into its News Feed. It has aggressively ramped up video, which opens the platform to lucrative video ads. On Instagram, it offers visual ads that make Google's AdWords look like just so many words. "For the very long run, I believe our monetization will be primarily advertising," said Facebook chief operating officer Sheryl Sandberg, Mark Zuckerberg's chief counterpart at the top of Facebook's corporate hierarchy.
But Zuckerberg appears to know that remaining the undisputed king of mobile means coming up with new things to offer, which is why he's committed so heavily to messaging in the form of both WhatsApp and Messenger. "It’s not that they compete for mindshare against each other,” Zuckerberg said of the potential for competition between the two. "They represent different philosophies and utilities.” WhatsApp is "more utilitarian," a tool focused on speed, Zuckerberg said, while he described Messenger as a tool for expression.
Still, Zuckerberg plans to extend messaging on both to become not just a way you communicate with your friends but also businesses. Facebook already has 50 million business pages today. Next he wants people to use Messenger and WhatsApp to get those businesses talking with their customers. "People don’t want to be on the phone for customer support for half an hour at a time," Zuckerberg said. "If they can just send a message and send a response back, then that’s a good experience."
All in all, Zuckerberg has built a platform that people want to use, and advertisers want to pay to reach them. And he's extending that platform to include virtual reality, artificial intelligence, and "connectivity," or Facebook’s catchall term for the drones, lasers, and free Internet it's trying to deploy around the world to make sure as many people as possible can get online. "Every 10 or 15 years, big new computing platforms come along, whether that was desktop or web or mobile phones," he said. "We want to make sure that the next big computing platform is fundamentally social." Ultimately, Facebook's biggest investment is building a platform on top of you. And today Facebook shareholders made sure Zuckerberg will be around for a long time to come to lead the way.


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WideOrbit and Mediaocean said they have integrated their software to automate the buying and selling of local TV advertising inventory.
WideOrbit said its WO Traffic system is used by broadcast station groups to manage more than 90% of U.S. local ad revenue and its WO Programmatic helps 1,000 stations offer inventory directly to media buyers.
Mediaocean’s Spectra and Prisma platforms are used by agencies and advertisers who buy more than $150 billion in traditional and digital media.
The companies said integrating the Spectra Platform and the WO Programmatic Sale Console should make local TV buying less costly and more efficient for media buyers
"Through this partnership, we are delivering on our commitment to automate the buying and selling of traditional and digital media in a neutral and open way,” said Bill Wise, co-founder and CEO at Mediaocean. “Integrating WideOrbit more tightly into the buying process empowers our agencies and advertisers to more easily build campaigns that engage local television’s massive, valuable audiences."
The companies will initially work together to streamline proposal and response processes for local media buyers and the television stations.
“The WideOrbit-Mediaocean partnership is a huge win for everyone in TV advertising," said Eric Mathewson, founder and CEO of WideOrbit. "Buyers will benefit from workflow automation that streamlines the entire buying process, from proposal to air to invoice while stations should see more interest from national brands in local broadcast TV audiences and inventory."
"By deepening our relationship with Mediaocean, WideOrbit delivers on our promise to continually improve on solutions that allow ad buyers and sellers to do business however they choose. We will continue to focus on products, integrations and innovations that make local broadcasting as compelling to ad buyers as any other media platform,” Mathewson said.
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Jon has been business editor of Broadcasting+Cable since 2010. He focuses on revenue-generating activities, including advertising and distribution, as well as executive intrigue and merger and acquisition activity. Just about any story is fair game, if a dollar sign can make its way into the article. Before B+C, Jon covered the industry for TVWeek, Cable World, Electronic Media, Advertising Age and The New York Post. A native New Yorker, Jon is hiding in plain sight in the suburbs of Chicago.


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Internet usage behaviors in the United States have shifted the way we work and connect during the COVID-19 pandemic. The lockdown has led to a spike in mobile app usage for various needs of consumers.
People are logging into smartphone applications for everything, ranging from video-calls to studies to gaming and shopping. Online shopping especially spiked to 40-50% activity even though businesses crashed in March.
The dramatic rise in app usage has caused marketers to change their strategies and seize new opportunities through personalized messaging.
Apps can help local businesses in creating loyalty programs to bring trust and reliability on their products. Even a report by CodeBroker stated that 75 percent of consumers would engage more with loyalty programs that provide rewards in a mobile-friendly way.
Many businesses are leveraging mobile apps for omnichannel integration across areas like customer engagement, commerce and payment, delivery/fulfillment, and the in-store experience.
Apps can continue to create brand awareness and act as a direct marketing channel to sell products to customers during and post-pandemic.
The virus outbreak has disrupted consumers’ regular routines. There has been a shift in consumer habits and behaviors, and many anticipate that it will continue in the long term.
With the new social distancing norms ordained to all workplaces and public stores, people are afraid to touch any surface or be in close proximity to anyone.
A study showed that the surfaces pose a high risk of spreading the COVID-19 virus as it can stay there up to 72 hours. Retailers have to rethink their operations and include new contactless technologies in place to fight this problem.
Mobile apps have already been providing contactless experience to enrich the customer experience. Brands like Nike, Starbucks, and Amazon have already been using their apps to give personalized shopping experiences to a variety of consumer needs.
Contactless marketing strategies through apps can simplify many processes, including branding, advertising, in-store experience, loyalty programs, check-outs, and more.
A few retailers are doing an excellent job of leveraging mobile apps to create a secure contactless in-store experience.
Retailers are creating QR Codes with logos and placing them on each item allowing customers to create a virtual cart. An automatic touchless picking system then delivers these items for customers.
The Nike App provides store-specific app features, such as scan and try on, and in-store unlockable coupons.
An interesting feature at Nike’s flagship store is smart trial rooms. Customers can shop the Nike mannequins displayed throughout the stores. After scanning a QR code at the base of the mannequin, a head-to-toe look will appear on the app. Customers can see all available in-store sizes and colors and can request items to be sent to a fitting room.
Seizing the opportunity, My Size, Inc., the developer of a smartphone-based measurement solution, has launched a new feature to its MySizeID application for offline retailers.
The My Size app allows customers to experience contactless shopping by assisting them in finding their size by scanning a QR code or a barcode. The customers can also make the purchase using the MySizeID app completely free of contact.
A recent survey showed that a whopping 87% of US shoppers prefer to shop in stores with touchless or robust self-checkout options.
The move towards self-checkout and cashless payments has been underway for years, but the pandemic has accelerated its development.
Checkout-free retail comes in two ways. Scan-and-go mobile technology and AI Computer Vision (AICV)
Scan and go: Customers walk into the stores. They scan products on shelves using the retailer's app. Bag their products and pay electronically by scanning a QR Code through the same app as they exit.
AICV: To enter the store, customers have to first scan the retailer's app. There are fewer or no store managers at the stores. They can take whatever they want off the shelves. Then they can leave the store whenever they want and are charged for the items.
Cameras and weight sensors on the shelves help identify products and people's movement and charge as they exit the store like an Uber or a Lyft.
The number of scan-and-go and AICV stores are quite less, but they are growing in importance. Amazon Go and Sam's Club are some of the retail chains that have set-up such stores in the US.
Check-out free retail is relatively safer for in-store shopping amidst COVID-19 crises.
Curbside pick up has been in trend amongst many shoppers in the US during this pandemic. Curbside is much like e-commerce, but the delivery location is usually a retail store.
Customers can place their orders through a retailer's app. The retail store packs the ordered goods and places them on their store's kerbside. The customer will come on the kerbside and pick up their order.
Curbside pickup through retailer apps relieves customers of additional costs like membership fees, delivery upcharges, driver tips, and other charges.
It also solves another problem in which e-commerce cannot- the SNAP payments. Retailers like Kroger and Walmart recently announced that customers could use the SNAP benefits by placing curbside pickups and in-store pickups.
Curbside pickups make sense when you factor in safety and economics given that most consumers are facing a financial crunch.
The pandemic has affected many industries and has slowed down most of its operations. Sectors like resorts, restaurants, and malls were severely affected as they were completely shut down.
We cannot expect the same crowds to be there at these public places post-lockdown. Such sectors have to rethink their business models and find new ways to serve their customers.
One such solution that has been driving customers from a long time to physical stores are loyalty programs. They are discounts, offers, and coupons used to incentivize customers to visit stores more often and gain benefits.
Businesses can create contactless loyalty programs to attract customers to their physical stores. Stores like Starbucks have already been providing customers with contactless in-store payments and various loyalty programs.
Joining the major restaurant brands, Dave & Buster have a mobile app to handle contactless payments and let customers manage their loyalty rewards.
Using the Dave & Buster's app customers tap the near-field communication(NFC) chips and handle contactless transactions.
The app also lets customers earn and manage reward points they accumulate from purchases.
Many physical retailers are shifting their businesses online, experimenting with e-commerce business applications. But not all retailers can make the shift. Some are preparing themselves to reboot post lockdown.
Consumers are bound to be wary and conscious about how they interact with products in most of the brick-and-mortar stores after lockdown. Augmented reality can be a digital boost for customers to gain more information about the products and use them without actually coming in contact with the product or a salesperson.
Here are some ways AR can be deployed in stores
AR navigation features can help customers to get to preferred stores quickly and safely.
With the help of the in-store apps, retailers can provide consumers with directions to the stores from different mall entrances or with in-door maps to quickly find items in the store.
Consumers can be assured of their safety and quickly get to their destination without risking too much contact with other visitors.
Catalogs sometimes don't stimulate consumer's imagination, especially with product catalogs of furniture and home appliances.
Businesses can place QR Codes on catalogs, and consumers can scan it via the retailer's app to view products in an AR space. Consumers can make better decisions and can project selected products in the areas and corners of their houses and workspaces. They can browse all this right from their homes.
IKEA launched this capability about six years ago with their IKEA Place app, helping consumers in making the right choice.
Such concepts can be adopted by many others like automobile manufacturers and real estate agents to provide quality interaction of their products and drive sales.
AR-powered marketing and advertising are effective in reaching consumers in an interactive and contactless way.
The technology helps create immersive experiences for consumers from just a single scan of a QR Code or by scanning the product logos.
AR can personalize advertising by allowing consumers to control the virtual environment they are in and the kind of experiences they want to immerse in.
With strict rules and regulations around social distancing in many public places, authorities are using apps to monitor crowd congestion. In many of the largest airports in the US, a LIDAR based technology is used for crowd control and for analyzing crowd density to alert TSA of hot spots and social distancing practices.
Beacon powered apps can play a significant role in communicating with consumers at such public places. Using Beacons, one can send push notifications and alerts to consumers around stores, restaurants, resorts, etc.
Real estate agents can place beacons near the properties on sale, and when potential customers drive by these properties, the real estate app notifies of its availability. Consumers don't need to search and inspect properties physically; instead can view everything necessary through the app.
Popular resort destinations can use beacon powered apps to know a guest's history or preference questionnaires and the current location to predict what they might be interested in doing throughout the visit.
In malls and retail stores, beacons can monitor customers' movements and suggest specific stores. They can notify the store's traffic density and suggest a suitable time when they can enter a particular store.
The latest data by App Annie showed that time spent on mobile apps has been rising rapidly during the lockdown.
Consumers spent more than $23.4 billion through app stores – making it the largest quarter ever for App Store expenditure.
As more people began to work from home, they were making use of non-gaming apps significantly on both iOS (65%) and Google Play (55%).
This is a clear indication for businesses to focus more on digital marketing through apps. Consumer-facing companies must create an experience aligning to the new reality of post-pandemic conditions and tailor their messaging to customers' needs.
Many services like travel and hospitality have experienced disastrous effects due to their complete shutdown in the lockdown.
They can revive themselves back by localizing their digital marketing strategies through mobile apps. Campaigns for specific locations aligning with the new routines of customers are necessary.
Preparation is the key to surviving in this unprecedented crisis. By including technologies and apps, businesses can reassure, build better and stronger customer relationships. Mobile app marketing can help businesses to be in high demand and help them survive through tough times post-pandemic.
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Today, IC Realtime announced a strategic plan to provide advanced video surveillance products from South Korea, a TAA-compliant country. The intention is to deliver exclusive products centered around standards that converge upon information security and restrict the use of Chinese products.
With the recent ban on Chinese products, the company says this will bridge the gap with turn-key solutions that are fully compliant, allowing customers the opportunity to bid on medium-large projects that require the equipment to be certified. One hundred percent of IC Realtime products are UL-listed and 30-50 percent will be manufactured in Korea to IC Realtime’s specific requirements. ICR plans to have its entire line made in Korea by mid-2021.
“We are leading the way of creating and securing a certified line of products that will have far fewer constraints on where they may be installed,” said IC Realtime CEO Matt Sailor. “This will give our customers a huge advantage in the marketplace because most companies will not be compliant and, thus, not allowed to be installed in these types of facilities . . . We have been working on this project for over 18 months now and could not be more excited to finally take it to market.”


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South Cheshire College has teamed up with popular high street chain Costa Coffee to launch a new café on its campus.
It's Thirsty Work As College Launches Costa Coffee Outlet
The Costa Coffee branded Reading Lounge is now officially open for staff and students and is the perfect place to take a well earned break at any time of the day.
A full range of drinks and snacks are available at the new outlet, on the ground floor of the College Library, which will deliver Costa's 'Proud to Serve' brand.
The glass enclosed facility is away from the hustle and bustle of the main college but library goers can still enjoy peace and quiet outside the café.
Costa Coffee helped to launch the new café on Wednesday 12th September by offering free taster samples for staff and students to try including iced coffees, fruit coolers, cakes and biscuits.
Emma Smith, Regional Account Manager for Costa Coffee, came to the launch event and was very pleased with the response.
Emma said: "It's fantastic to see so many staff and students using this new facility already.
"It's a great opportunity for staff and students to come and enjoy the Costa Coffee brand on campus and see what we've got to offer.
"The launch event was also a chance to promote the new Costa Coffee 'Impulse' snack range which is currently available on the high street and includes lots of tasty treats and gluten free products."
There are four café outlets on the College campus, which serve everything from hot and cold snacks to hot and cold drinks, but this new venue gives staff and students an excellent alternative option.
Mandy Malam, Retail Operations Manager at South Cheshire College, said: "We are delighted to be linking up with a fantastic brand such as Costa Coffee.
"We've always had the Reading Lounge cafe on the ground floor of the Library, but the fact that it is now an enclosed space makes it a much more welcoming environment for people to take a break.
"We are looking forward to working with Costa Coffee in the future and promoting its range of products and services.
"Hopefully, staff and students will come and take advantage of this great new facility."


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Bahia Principe Hotels & Resorts has announced the reopening of six hotels, taking place from Nov. 1 to Dec. 15, 2021.
These all-inclusive properties, five of them located in Dominican Republic and one in Mexico, vary from activity-filled, family-friendly resorts to exclusive, sophisticated adults-only enclaves, and provide top-of-the-line services and amenities.
This brings the total number of open Bahia Principe properties to 16 hotels spread across Dominican Republic, Jamaica, and Mexico.
As part of Bahia Principe’s strategic plan to help in the recovery of the tourism industry, the company has continued with gradual reopenings, which now include:
Reopening on November 1:
- Bahia Principe Luxury Bouganville
- Bahia Principe Grand Bavaro
- Bahia Principe Luxury Samana
- Bahia Principe Luxury Sian Ka’an
And receiving guests starting on November 15:
- Bahia Principe Grand Aquamarine
And just in time for the holidays, on December 15:
- Bahia Principe Grand La Romana
“At Bahia Principe, we are betting for a brighter future and feel proud to be able to reopen six properties in the Caribbean and Mexico before the end of the year,” said Antonio Teijeiro, Chief Operating Officer at Bahia Principe Hotels & Resorts. “We continue taking care of our clients with the correct health and safety protocols. Although there have been challenges in 2021, we are doing our utmost best to continue to serve our guests, contribute to the local communities in which we operate, and provide peace of mind to our stakeholders.”
Countdown to Happiness
From now until Oct. 17, guests can take advantage of Bahia Principe Hotels & Resorts signature Countdown to Happiness sale where travellers can enjoy exclusive savings of up to 60 percent, a complimentary stay for one child at select properties, and up to USD 1,630 in resort credits via the brand’s Trip Enhancer program when booking vacations.
The sale features an ample travel window which runs through Oct. 31, 2022.
From proper social distancing and indoor mask mandates, to digitalizing experiences and key signage throughout the resorts, Bahia Principe’s substantial health and hygiene protocols ensure the wellbeing of all guests and employees.
The brand currently offers on-site COVID-19 testing at attractive price points in collaboration with local labs.


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Even though the hotel industries in the U.S. and Europe have outperformed China in recent weeks, developers in these stronger markets should consider how their projects will be impacted by China’s closed borders remaining walled off.
Editor’s Note: Skift Senior Hospitality Editor Sean O’Neill brings readers exclusive reporting and insights into hotel deals and development, and how those trends are making an impact across the travel industry.
Most of the major hotel companies spent third quarter earnings calls focusing on strong recoveries underway in the U.S. and Europe.
China, the industry’s go-to growth story for much of the pandemic, faced a significant setback over the latter part of summer due to the Delta variant and the country’s zero tolerance approach to new cases. Even Europe, which has lagged in its hotel recovery due to various lockdown measures across individual European Union member countries, outperformed China’s hotel industry for the last two week, according to STR.
Most of the major companies, from IHG to MGM Resorts and Las Vegas Sands, all maintain the long-term development climate in China is strong despite the recent performance flounder.
That’s a significant take, especially for the casino resort companies that saw their valuations tank earlier in the fall upon news China was pursuing heightened regulations on top of license renewals in the special administrative region and gaming destination of Macau.
But not everyone is looking at the China travel climate with rose-colored glasses.
“We need the Chinese to travel again,” Accor CEO Sebastien Bazin said last week at the NYU International Hospitality Industry Investment Conference. “We need them back.”
Many hotel companies in recent months tried to unbundle demand trends with development, noting any drops in demand were short-term issues while real estate was a long-term play. IHG CEO Keith Barr told Skift last week the “long-term viability of China is there.”
There is no denying that China absolutely needs hotel rooms and is fertile soil for the major companies to swoop in and start branding projects within national borders.
But Bazin’s comments allude to the potential long-term impact of China’s closed borders remaining so for an uncertain length of time. If so, that begins to weigh heavy on how projects pencil out in the international destinations that normally bank on Chinese travelers to fill airplane seats and hotel rooms.
“It is not a good piece of news for the rest of the world, the fact that China remains closed,” Jean-Jacques Morin, Accor’s deputy CEO, said in an interview with Skift last week.
The Need for the Outbound Traveler: China was an enormous source of growth for the global travel industry prior to the pandemic and became the world’s largest outbound tourism market in 2013, according to Skift research. A pre-pandemic study of outbound travel trends from China estimated as many as 286 million trips abroad would come from the country by 2029.
But the pandemic drastically altered those trajectories. The country remains largely closed off for international travelers. Even opening a travel lane between the special administrative region of Hong Kong and Mainland China has been a contentious process, with signs pointing to some degree of access starting next month on a limited basis.
A lot of attention in recent months concentrated on what China’s choppy recovery meant for its own domestic tourism business. But there are clearly international implications to the country’s closed off borders.
Asia, Europe, and North America are three of the top destinations for outbound Chinese travelers, according to a Dragon Trail consumer sentiment report. While the immediate impact of a void in such travelers would be felt at hotels in some of the world’s largest cities — typically where international travelers visit — there are development implications.
It’s not uncommon for hotels in markets like New York City to bank on as much as a quarter of their business to come from international travelers. If a significant portion of that goes away, new projects in these cities won’t pencil out unless operators can shift their business strategy to suddenly start catering more to domestic travelers.
“A very large part of the travelers in Southeast Asia are Chinese. People that go out of town on vacation, the people that go to Australia for studies or for business or for vacation are Chinese. I’m guessing [they account for] 25 percent of the flow,” Morin said. “They are affluent travelers basically filling up the rest of the world.”
Continue to Build: While there may have been a brief flash of concern for China’s domestic hotel development outlook earlier this year when property developer Evergrande teetered on the edge of default, hotel executives remain bullish on their respective portfolio growth trajectories there.
“We had multiple conversations of what does this mean for us and is this a contagion,” Barr said. “Today, it doesn’t seem to. In fact, I think it might create a buying opportunity for the strongest companies with the right balance sheets, as some of the over-leveraged companies have to effectively sell assets to basically generate cash.”
China’s hotel development pipeline, with more than 660,000 rooms, is up 2 percent from last year, according to Lodging Econometrics. Hilton, IHG, and Marriott have the largest shares of the pipeline.
But a comment to keep in mind comes from the casino sector. Las Vegas Sands made plans earlier this year to sell its Venetian Resort Las Vegas and the Sands Expo and Convention Center for $6.25 billion.
The plan was to vacate the company’s namesake city in favor of chasing opportunities in Asian markets like Macau and Singapore. But Macau has had its own choppy recovery thanks to travel restrictions from Mainland China as well as more recent obstacles like the threat of increased gaming regulations and license renewals.
Las Vegas Sands executives were extraordinarily optimistic on their most recent earnings call about their outlook on continuing to do business in Macau and with Chinese regulators. But they acquiesced about the possibility of there being a longer-than-expected damper on outbound Chinese travelers.
Company leaders maintained they can still make $1.5 billion at their Marina Bay Sands resort in Singapore from travelers from other Asian markets like Japan, South Korea, and Malaysia.
“Obviously, part of our business is dependent upon access to the Chinese market, but it’s not [entirely] dependent,” Las Vegas Sands CEO Robert Goldstein told analysts on an investor call last month.
Pandemic Alters Future Hotel Management Operations
Hotel asset managers will play even more of an outsized role in navigating the industry recovery, according to a JLL report out today. The hotel industry’s cratered performance during the pandemic tanked performance levels and ate into profit margins. The fact hotel owners largely kept rates intact instead of discounting to shore up demand is a significant life raft that should enable the industry to recovery much faster than in prior downturns.
“[Average daily rate] decreases have not been as high as we thought they were going to be. At a premium and luxury level, we are seeing very little pricing resistance from demand patterns. That’s a phenomenal indicator,” Andrea Grigg, JLL’s global head of asset management for hotels, told Skift in an interview ahead of the report’s release. “Because if [rates] hit bottom, the recovery would have been so much longer.”
Asset managers aren’t resting on their laurels with good news that rate integrity will fuel a faster recovery, though.
The pandemic was a lesson for many portfolio owners to not focus on just one type of geography. Major cities continue to struggle more than resort and leisure destinations when it comes to hotel occupancies, especially during the week.
“Resort and predominantly leisure-dominated markets in the past have been the more volatile and riskier. We’re now seeing investors realize how important is to have a diverse portfolio and how resort and leisure destinations have been very resilient,” Grigg said. “That will be a shift that is here to stay.”
Leaner Operations: Hotel companies and individual property owners shed staff early in the pandemic because of record-low demand levels. But bringing those workers back hasn’t been easy. The overall hospitality sector faces a labor shortage crisis, with U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics estimating the leisure and hospitality sector is still down 1.4 million jobs since before the pandemic.
Keep in mind that the hotel industry was already struggling with a staff shortage issue prior to the health crisis.
Hotel owners had to make do with less staff while demand levels soared over the summer. The industry is now beginning to accept the harsh reality many of the workers lost during the pandemic are likely gone forever, putting even more of a need to innovate with technology and adjust operations to work with even more limited staffing levels than before the pandemic.
“There is an expectation that we’re going to come out of this a leaner and meaner industry,” Grigg said.
Many hotel company CEOs in recent weeks touted efficiencies garnered through the pandemic, most visible by limiting daily housekeeping at hotels to only the most luxurious brands while rolling out a by-request-only service at more affordable brands.
Exactly how much efficiency will come from these job cuts and standard reductions? Nobody is ready to say.
There wasn’t a specific number provided on earnings calls, and none of the hotel executives Skift interviewed over the last week at the NYU International Hospitality Industry Investment Conference were willing to go public with a projection.
“How much leaner and how much meaner? I think you’re going to have a hard time finding someone who will put a number to it,” Grigg said. “There is no doubt it will be a more efficient industry. But there are a couple of uncertainties out there that will make us a little bit more hesitant to put in a number to it.”
Have a confidential tip for Skift? Get in touch


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All of Donald Trump’s products have been dumped from a major retailer in the Middle East. The decision comes after Trump called for a 100% ban on all Muslim travels to the United States.
The chain, Lifestyle, headquartered in Dubai, says it will remove all Trump-branded products from its store shelves at 195 outlets across the Middle East, North Africa, Pakistan, and Tanzania.
“In light of the recent statements made by the presidential candidate in the U.S. media, we have suspended sale of all products from the Trump Home décor range,” said Lifestyle CEO Sachin Mundhwa. Lifestyle is a subsidiary of Landmark Group.
The Muslim community has been up in arms over Trump’s comments, with many noting that Muslim investors have spent billions of dollars on real estate, business, and other projects in the United States.
Trump has also earned millions of dollars at his own golf resorts and luxury properties in countries where Islam is the main religion.
Luxury developer DAMAC Properties, which is in the process of building the Trump International Golf Club in Dubai, said it would keep business and politics separate.
“Our agreement is with the Trump Organization as one of the premium golf course operators in the world and as such we would not comment further on Mr. Trump’s personal or political agenda, nor comment on the internal American political debate scene,” said Niall McLoughlin, senior vice president at DAMAC Properties, in a statement.


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Diesel-Powered Chevrolet Silverado 1500 Pickup Truck Delayed Until 2020 Model Year: Report
Stricter emissions testing protocols mean all orders for 2019 MY examples will need to be canceled and resubmitted for the next batch.
Chevrolet and GMC truck buyers hoping to get behind the wheel of General Motors' first diesel-powered half-ton pickup in over 20 years are going to have to wait a bit longer as the engine has been delayed until at least the 2020 model year. The company sent a memo to dealers earlier this week alerting them of the delay which was then reported by various media outlets on Wednesday and Thursday.
The holdup can be attributed to stricter emissions testing protocols around the world (thanks, Volkswagen). In a memo to dealers, the company said the process has created a “slight delay”, but that production for 2020 model year diesel trucks will begin soon.
GM initially announced plans to slap the 3.0-liter Duramax inline-six under the hoods of its Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra light-duty trucks earlier this year, but the engine has faced snags in the certification process. The company said that trucks equipped with the diesel powerplant will have class-leading power, achieving 277 horsepower and 460 pound-feet of torque.
Essentially, the delay means that orders for the GM-branded pickups with the diesel engine will be canceled and must be resubmitted for the new model year. Further complicating matters is the fact that the 2020 order books aren’t open yet. We don’t know how many people placed orders for trucks with the new engine, but GM says that they will all be offered a replacement pickup when the new model year rolls out. The dealer memo also notes that the new model year trucks will get updates that include wider availability of the 10-speed transmission and features like adaptive cruise control.
h/t: GM Authority


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Last week, prominent food and recipe website Epicurious.com announced in an article that they have decided to stop promoting or posting recipes that feature beef.
They reveal in the article that their choice to distance themselves from beef-focused recipes is based on a 2013 United Nations report on the negative impact that the livestock industry has on climate change. According to this report, 15 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions come from livestock and 61 percent of those emissions are a direct result of beef production.
The food site declares that they “think of this decision as not anti-beef but rather pro-planet,” writing that “cutting out just a single ingredient—beef—can have an outsize impact on making a person’s cooking more environmentally friendly.”
Although Epicurious won’t be deleting any old recipes, they will no longer post or promote beef-centric recipes on their social media platforms. In fact, the company began to shift away from beef back in 2019, but wanted to make an official announcement because “the conversation about sustainable cooking clearly needs to be louder.”
Campaigns that step away from red meat often receive criticism from the beef and livestock industry. Though some big players in beef production claim that these campaigns don’t reveal the whole truth of the situation, they are supporting organizations that are offering more sustainable methods for beef production.
The Calgary-based Canadian Roundtable for Sustainable Beef reports that the industry has launched a 10-year-goal plan just last week to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 33 percent within the decade and to reduce food waste by 50 percent. Perhaps they will be adopting seaweed diets for cattle as one method for achieving these reductions.


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When Olivia Bernardoff saw the “funny old garage” on Braidwood’s main street about 25 years ago, it was little more than a ruin – but there was something special about it.
Today that garage is better known as Bernardoff’s – the place to go in Braidwood if you love furniture and authentic collectibles.
Selling everything from rare antiques to one-off furniture and modern hats, it is also “the place that sometimes felt like a waiting room for the pie shop next door” according to Olivia, referring to the other must-stop shop for Canberrans in Braidwood.
Olivia and her husband Gilles have sold the business and are moving on. “It’s time I had a life,” Olivia said.
After working weekends in the shop and most other days behind the scenes and both turning 70 this year, Olivia said she had been pressuring her husband for some time to sell the business.
“I loved doing it but we’ve been here for so long, working all the time. Gilles eventually came around to it when he thought it was his idea,” she joked.
They have survived bushfires, COVID-19 lockdowns and people’s changing tastes from authentic furniture and antiques to mass-produced pieces in flat boxes.
The couple met when Gilles worked as a chef in France and Olivia was learning the language.
They came back to Australia and stayed with family at Gundaroo before finding their first home at Braidwood where Gilles, a cabinet-maker, set up a furniture restoration business in a shop near the park in Wallace Street.
When the “funny old garage” came on the market a few years later, they snapped it up because of its prime position next to the bakery in the centre of town.
“It was a lovely old place, it used to be known as the Free Trade Store, but it was a ruin,” Olivia said.
“It took about five years to bring it back to life.”
The shop has been a must-stop for Canberrans over the years, with its eclectic mix of original furniture, antiques and pieces you’re unlikely to see anywhere else.
But according to Olivia, people’s tastes for collectibles have changed dramatically over the years they’ve run the shop.
“When we started, everyone wanted rustic cedar pieces – now we can’t give them away,” she said.
“There is so much made en masse these days; it’s sad to see pieces lose their specialness.”
Olivia said she would be sad to leave, although they will retain their connection with Braidwood as their two sons and their families still live there – and she’ll keep her “dream studio” and apartment behind the shop.
“But it will be good to get some new blood into the business,” she said.
It is understood the new owners, who also have a Braidwood connection, plan to set up an emporium-style operation in the ample space with a variety of traders.
The downside is packing up 25 years of collecting, but the Bernardoffs have “two big strong sons” to help with that.
The family held a clearing sale over Easter and will continue to sell some of their pieces in the shop until they leave town.
Much of it will go into storage so the couple can enjoy a good break before deciding on the new phase of their life.
“It’s sad to leave but sadder when you think about the amount of stuff we’ve accumulated over the years; I think I’m almost verging on hoarding,” Olivia said.
“We sold a lot of stuff over Easter but there’s still a fair bit left. But we’ll take some stuff with us, the more obscure and rarefied pieces because normally what people don’t like, we like.”
First on the post-retirement agenda is a holiday down to Bermagui and then they plan a trip to Europe.
“Gilles has forebears in Bulgaria so it would be wonderful for us to go there to meet them,” Olivia said.
Original Article published by Sally Hopman on Riotact.


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Sriracha Factory Ordered To Stop Odor-Causing Operations
Forget the Black Friday shopping. You should be spending your time this week stockpiling Sriracha, because a judge has orderedHuy Fong Foods Sriracha hot sauce plant to cease any operations causing the alleged foul stench in Irwindale, CA.
Says theL.A. Times:
It is unclear what the ruling means for next year's supply of Sriracha hot sauce. The factory harvests and grinds chilis for three months out of the year, and the grinding of this year's chilis has been completed.But the mixing and the bottling of the sauce occurs on an ongoing basis.
The city of Irwindale filed a lawsuit in Los Angeles Superior Court in late October asking a judge to stop production at the Huy Fong Foods factory, because of the "public nuisance" of the "strong, offensive chili odor."
The injunction orders the factory to "cease any kind of operations that could be causing the odors" and that it "make immediate changes that would help mitigate them," it does not force a complete closure of the factory, nor does it specify what exact changes need to be made.
According to the initial complaint, residents began complaining to the city last month about the overwhelming chili smell from the 600,000-square-food facility, and the neighbors claimed it was causing heartburn, inflamed asthma and even nosebleeds.
The ruling will take effect as soon as the judge signs the injunction, which could be filed as early as Wednesday. One of the company's CEOs warned that if the factory closed, prices could go through the roof.
But it's possible this doesn't mean curtains for the cock sauce. The AP says that the former Rosemead plant produces some, but not all, of the beloved hot sauce. The bulk of it does come from the newer, larger Irwindale plant. The company had plans to eventually shift all production to Irwindale to scale up. But now those plans will have to be reconsidered as the case moves forward.
Perhaps making that deep fried Sriracha turkey for Thanksgiving is appropriate after all. It could be your last.
How to get the best eggs in town without leaving your yard.
Beautiful views aren't the only thing drawing Angelenos to the region
Gab Chabrán reflects on growing up in L.A. in a Latino home that doesn't celebrate Thanksgiving and the traditions they formed instead.
Oklahoma-style smash burgers and Georgian dumplings make for some excellent cheap bites in Glendale
Husband and wife Felix Agyei and Hazel Rojas combine food from their heritages, creating a marriage of West African and Filipino cooking
Baby Yoda cocktails. Boozy Dole Whips. Volcanic tiki drinks. If you can dream it, they're probably mixing it somewhere on property.


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The metaverse has been gaining a lot of attention lately, with media outlets speculating on its future. Some have even claimed that the metaverse is dead, but this couldn’t be further from the truth. The metaverse is still very much alive and thriving, with continued investment, innovation, and growth in the industry.
One of the reasons why some people may believe that the metaverse is dead is due to recent layoffs amongst large tech giants such as Meta. However, it’s important to note that these layoffs have been mostly in recruiting sectors, and the number of employees in Meta is still higher than in 2021. This suggests that Meta is still investing heavily in the metaverse and that the layoffs are not just within the metaverse industry but across various sectors, a natural part of any business’s growth and restructuring.
Moreover, the metaverse is not just a gaming or entertainment platform, but has real-world applications and potential for significant impact. For instance, there is significant momentum behind the industrial metaverse, including digital twins, which is driving growth and efficiency for manufacturing giants led by the likes of Nvidia with their Omniverse platform. We are also seeing growth in sub-sectors like healthcare through virtual surgery, amongst others. These developments demonstrate the potential of the metaverse to impact various sectors positively.
Furthermore, the metaverse has had a record investment year on year for the last decade, with the industry worth over a billion in 2022 and continuing to grow. This continued funding round momentum has resulted in record numbers in 2022 of over 500 rounds, indicating that investors are still very interested in the metaverse and believe in its potential. As shown by the graph below, there is a consistent increase in the number of investments made in the metaverse industry, indicating a bright future for the industry.
In short, the claims by some media outlets that the metaverse is dead are largely unfounded. The continued investment, innovation, and growth in the industry suggest that the metaverse has a bright future and is still very much alive and thriving. With the industrial metaverse gaining momentum and other real-world applications gaining traction, the potential impact of the metaverse is only set to grow in the coming years.
The Metaverse Insider intelligence platform offers data-driven insights into the metaverse industry. It provides investors and businesses with the information they need to make informed decisions about the future of the metaverse. If you want to stay up-to-date on the latest trends and developments in the metaverse industry, sign up for the Metaverse Insider intelligence platform when it goes live on May 11th. The platform will provide you with up-to-date information on the investment trends, growth areas and market updates, for the sector.
Overall, the metaverse is not dead, and we should expect to see more growth and development in the metaverse industry over the coming years. It’s not just a matter of gaming and entertainment; the metaverse will likely impact various industries positively. With the industrial metaverse gaining momentum and the continued increase in investment in the industry, it’s clear that the metaverse has a bright future.


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New Delhi: Rice exporter Kohinoor Foods on Wednesday said it has completed the Rs 520 crore deal with US based spice maker McCormick to set up a joint venture for marketing basmati rice and other food products in India.
In the joint venture Kohinoor Speciality India, McCormick has 85% stake and rest is with Kohinoor Foods.
“McCormick today completed the formation of joint venture with Kohinoor Foods to market and sell basmati rice and food product in India. The venture was announced in June 2011 and will now be named as Kohinoor Specialty Foods India Pvt Ltd,” McCormick said in a statement.
“McCormick had invested a total of Rs 520 crore ($113 million) in the deal and thus commands an 85% interest in Kohinoor Specialty Foods India,” it added.
McCormick expects the joint venture sales to be about $85 million in the first year. Satish Rao, who has been associated with McCormick for the past 16 years, will act as the managing director of the JV.
The joint venture will have about 275 employees and a modern production facility at Bahalgarh in Haryana, which has been transferred from Kohinoor Foods into the JV.
With more than $3 billion in annual sales, McCormick manufactures, market and distributes spices, seasoning mixes, condiments and other flavorful products to the entire food industry.
Through this JV, McCormick plans to develop and launch new products, penetrate potential and under-served markets and thereby expand in the food service channel in India.
“The joint venture is a part of McCormick’s strategic business plan to expand sales in emerging markets. Including India, McCormick expects emerging markets to contribute about 12% of total sales by 2015,” the statement said.
This is the McCormick’s third investment in India. It first joined with AV Thomas Group in 1994. In 2010, McCormick acquired a 26% stake in Eastern Condiments Ltd, which has become a leading brand of spices, seasonings and other related food products in India and the Middle East.


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S2io is now Neterion News & Analysis 1/31/2005 Post a comment S2io Inc., which took an early lead in 10-Gbit Ethernet accelerator cards, has gone through a name change to become Neterion Inc. Chief executive Dave Zabrowski said S2io was a trifle too geeky for a company making early plans for an eventual public offering and looking to expand its base in data center 10-Gbit architectures.
Piezoelectrics move to nanoscale News & Analysis 1/31/2005 Post a comment A team at Central Michigan University (Mount Pleasant) is striving toward a model that will let designers build application-specific piezoelectric semiconductors.
Hope floats for new DRAM News & Analysis 1/31/2005 Post a comment A potentially revolutionary 90-nanometer DRAM technology claiming gains in speed, size and power consumption has been developed by a Swiss startup.
Will anyone miss FCC's Powell? News & Analysis 1/31/2005 Post a comment Pariahs and heroes tend to cast bigger shadows than their real impact would warrant. Michael Powell may be remembered by history as an FCC chairman whose long-term influence didn't stack up to his press releases.
Insecure customer service News & Analysis 1/31/2005 Post a comment The complaint most heard during the corporate hollowing-out of the 21st century is that companies throughout the manufacturing and service industries have either automated customer-service functions or outsourced them.
Design outsourcing: Beware of pitfalls News & Analysis 1/31/2005 Post a comment There's no question that outsourcing is gaining momentum. But before shipping your design to a third party halfway 'round the world, keep in mind that outsourcing is not always a panacea.
Effektiv kanalindelare för FPGA News & Analysis 1/31/2005 Post a comment IP-block för FPGA-kretsar gör dem till effektiva decimeringskretsar för kanalindelning i en digital radiomottagare. Genom att inte använda standarkretsar är det möjligt att hantera fler kanaler på en given kiselyta. Tekniken är utvecklad av RF Engines Ltd och beskrivs här av John Lillington, vd och chefstekniker från detta företag som är beläget på Isle of Wight.
Mycket snabb A/D-omvandlare i CMOS News & Analysis 1/31/2005 Post a comment ADC081000 är en 8 bit A/D-omvandlare som kan samplas med 1 GSa/s och som har 1,8 GHz analog bandbred. Den tillverkas av National Semiconductor i en 0,18 µm CMOS-process och uppnår bättre än 7,5 ENOB (antal användbara bitar), skriver här Bengt Andersson ICU Scandinavia AB.
SMSC settles with ADI, agrees to pay $6 million News & Analysis 1/31/2005 Post a comment Standard Microsystems Corp. (SMSC) has agreed to pay $6 million and settled a patent infringement dispute with Analog Devices Inc. (ADI) ADI has granted SMSC a royalty-bearing license to the patents in question, SMSC said.
Intel grew graphics IC market share in Q4, says analyst News & Analysis 1/31/2005 Post a comment Intel Corp. saw a 6.2 percent sequential increase in graphics shipments in the fourth quarter of 2004, was the largest supplier of PC graphics devices worldwide, and claimed an increased share of the total graphics market, according to Jon Peddie Research (JPR).
Freescale, Philips, ST add test and packaging to joint R&D News & Analysis 1/31/2005 Post a comment The three partners in the Crolles2 Alliance STMicroelectronics, Philips Semiconductor and Freescale Semiconductor Inc. have added test and packaging development to their joint R&D program at Crolles, France, and plan to set specifications for test and packaging equipment builders to follow.
Radioscape will Digitalradio ankurbeln Product News 1/31/2005 Post a comment Einen neuen Anlauf zur Belebung des Markts für digitale Rundfunkempfänger starten die britische Radioscape Ltd und Texas Instruments. Die beiden Unternehmen versuchen damit, einen Milliardenmarkt anzuschieben.
December's chip sales fell, expect same in Q1, says SIA News & Analysis 1/31/2005 Post a comment The three-month average of worldwide sales of semiconductors was $18.37 billion in December, down 3.5 percent from the previous month's figure of $19.02 billion, according to the Semiconductor Industry Association. The SIA predicted sales would continue to decline in the first quarter of 2005, by 4 to 6 percent sequentially, and that overall 2005 would be flat with 2004.
SMIC sees Q4 sales rise but sagging ASPs ahead News & Analysis 1/31/2005 Post a comment China's leading foundry, Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp., said it expects average selling rates to drop up to 13 percent this quarter, as the slow season brings manufacturing capacity utilization down to about 85 percent.
Cypress bemustert MRAM-Bausteine News & Analysis 1/31/2005 Post a comment Über ihre Tochter Silicon Magnetic Systems liefert Cypress Semiconductor Alpha-Muster eines nichtflüchtigen Speicherbausteins in MRAM-Technik an ausgewählte Kunden aus.
German ISP goes live with Infinera's photonic transport system News & Analysis 1/31/2005 Post a comment Optical component and subsystem specialist Infinera has revealed the first customer for its innovative networking system: German ISP freenet has gone live with a network based on the Digital Optical Network system that incorporates Infinera's tightly integrated optical integrated circuits.
Indien und China rücken bei Software-Entwicklung zusammen News & Analysis 1/31/2005 Post a comment China und Indien, potentiell Rivalen im weltweiten Outsourcing-Business, wollen ihre Position gegenüber den traditionellen Industrieländern stärken. Als ersten Schritt haben die beiden Länder eine Intensivierung ihrer gegenseitigen Beziehungen in dieser Branche vereinbart.
ST s’engage à devenir une entreprise à émission zéro avant 2010 News & Analysis 1/31/2005 Post a comment Dans son allocution d’adieu lors de la conférence de presse consacrée à l’annonce des résultats financiers de sa société, le PDG de STMicroelectrronics, Pasquale Pistorio, a une nouvelle fois affirmé que ST deviendrait une « entreprise à émission zéro [de gaz à effet de serre] avant 2010 ».
Patented precision signal sources boost clock recovery module's performance Product News 1/31/2005 Post a comment Agilent Technologies is debuting a multi-rate optical/electrical clock-recovery module for its 86100C Infiniium digital communications analyzer. The new plug-in module performs clock extraction for waveform analysis with continuous, unbanded tuning from 50-Mbis/s out to 13.5-Gbits, with ultra-low residual jitter plus golden PLL operation. After chatting with Agilent, eeProductCenter Senior Tech Editor Alex Mendelsohn shares his impressions.
International Rectifier upbeat on quarterly results News & Analysis 1/31/2005 Post a comment International Rectifier chairman, president and CEO Alex Lidow was decidedly thrilled with the performance of his company in the latest quarter. Though down 4 percent from the previous quarter, the company's December quarter revenues were up substantially from last year " driven by production ramps in home appliances and Pentium-based computer equipment. Steve Ohr filed this report.
Market outlook News & Analysis 1/30/2005 Post a comment We're only in the first quarter of 2005, but TSMC Chairman Morris Chang and others have already lowered their growth forecasts for the semiconductor industry.
Global standard lowers obstacles to RFID's adoption News & Analysis 1/30/2005 Post a comment Tracking parts around the world may get a bit easier now that a next-generation radio-frequency identification (RFID) technology has gotten the nod.
With the ratification in December of the UHF Generation 2 RFID tag standard by EPCglobal Inc., an industry organization based in Brussels, Belgium, companies may be more inclined to adopt the technology and integrate RFID into their supply chain infrastructures, industry observers said.
Made In India News & Analysis 1/30/2005 Post a comment India conjures up a factory manager's worst nightmare. Bottlenecked ports. Power outages. Tough labor laws. Endless red tape. Bribe-seeking officials.
Load switch provides a slew of advantages Product News 1/29/2005 Post a comment Advanced Analogic Technologies' AAT4280A family of p-channel MOSFET devices features flexible turn-on and turn-off characteristics—from very fast to slew-rate limited—for high-side load-switching in portable device applications. "As portable system processors and chipsets continue to push operating voltages lower with each new generation, they need load switches capable of supporting lower voltages," said Kin Shum, director of Strategic Marketing. "By integrating slew-rate control, sup
U.S. to review IBM-Lenovo sale News & Analysis 1/29/2005 Post a comment The U.S. House of Representatives has thrown a potential monkey wrench into the $1.25 billion sale of IBM's Personal Computer Division to China's Lenovo Group.
Fujitsu's sales falls 2% due to IC, LCD slump News & Analysis 1/28/2005 Post a comment Following a slump within its chip and LCD businesses, Japan's Fujitsu Ltd. reported consolidated net sales of 1,043.6 billion yen ($10.133 billion) for the third quarter of fiscal 2004, a decline of 2.3 percent compared to the same period in the previous fiscal year.
SEMI names new exec to expand nanotechnology focus News & Analysis 1/28/2005 Post a comment Global semiconductor industry association SEMI announced Friday (Jan. 28) that
Lubab L. Sheet has been named senior director of nanotechnology and will spearhead the association's expanded efforts to clarify and exploit new technology and market opportunities for the organization's global membership.
POLs pack power punch Product News 1/28/2005 Post a comment Artesyn Technologies' ultracompact SIL30E and SMT30E point-of-load (POL) converter modules deliver up to 30 amps at 0.8 to 3.63 volts for densely packed ASICs, network processor and DSP applications. That's 75 percent more current than provided by comparably sized products, according to the company. The two-phase, 2-MHz synchronous buck converters, for use in distributed power architectures with an 8-14 volt intermediate bus, are fully compatible with similar products from members of the Point-O
Canon's IC-equipment unit shows sales gain in Q4 News & Analysis 1/28/2005 Post a comment Despite missing its scanner shipment projections, Canon Inc.'s chip-equipment unit posted an operating profit of 3.4 billion yen ($33.1 million) in the fourth quarter of 2004, compared to a loss of 6.8 billion yen ($65.7 million) in the like period a year ago.
ARM aloft News & Analysis 1/28/2005 Post a comment Processor core licensor ARM Holdings plc (Cambridge, England), led by chief executive Warren East, announced its fourth quarter and full year financial results and provide extra detail, including tipping work on a top-line processor called "Serval-E".
What are the engineering and design challenges in creating successful IoT devices? These devices are usually small, resource-constrained electronics designed to sense, collect, send, and/or interpret data. Some of the devices need to be smart enough to act upon data in real time, 24/7. Specifically the guests will discuss sensors, security, and lessons from IoT deployments.


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Leading e-commerce retailer Amazon.com (Nasdaq: AMZN) is clearly dominating online bookselling. The competition, however, just got a lot tougher.
Today, Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT), which is massively expanding its e-commerce presence, announced that it has formed a strategic alliance with Books-A-Million (Nasdaq: BAMM), the third largest book retail chain in the United States.
Wal-Mart Will Sell Latest Bestsellers Online
This deal greatly expands Wal-Mart’s book title base, which will now include the latest bestsellers, and could set Wal-Mart up as an immediate threat to the book selling market share of Amazon.com, barnesandnoble.com and Borders.
Books-A-Million will be the exclusive provider of books and related products to Wal-Mart’s online customers. The book chain will use its Florence, Alabama distribution center to provide order fulfillment services for Internet orders.
“Wal-Mart’s online customers will have access to hundreds of thousands of book titles at our every day low prices,” said Glenn Habern, senior vice president of new business development at Wal-Mart. “Books-A-Million has been in the book business over 80 years, and by combining their literary expertise with our focus on customer service, we are confident that we can make an immediate impact on the quality of the online book industry.”
Will Offline Power Become Online Success?
Wal-Mart’s online presence could benefit greatly from the companies brick-and-mortar presence. Wal-Mart is the world’s largest retailer with more than 2,400 Wal-Mart stores and 450 Sam’s Clubs, and more than 725 stores internationally. Books-A-Million also brings a solid brick-and-mortar arsenal to the table. The bookseller operates 177 stores in 17 states.
Wal-Mart is looking to capitalize on its offline strength and leverage its brick-and-mortar presence into an e-commerce force. Wal-Mart is reportedly working with IBM to re-launch its Web site. Wal-Mart currently already sells hundreds of products online, including, books, music, appliances and toys.
Earlier this month, Wal-Mart announced a strategic e-commerce alliance with catalog company Fingerhut, which will provide order fulfillment for Wal-Mart’s online customers.
Wal-Mart Wants To Enter Banking Business
In related news, Wal-Mart has expressed interest in buying a savings and loan institution in Oklahoma. Wal-Mart has filed a request to the Office of Thrift Supervision for permission to make the purchase. The company noted in the filing that its three-year business plan includes opening five bank branch offices at Wal-Mart stores.
If Wal-Mart gets approval to make the purchase, this could be another step toward expanding its e-commerce presence. Online banking, after all, is a fast-growing industry that Wal-Mart would almost certainly pursue — if it ultimately decides to enter the banking business.


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Kookhyun Shim, the CEO and Managing Director of Kia Motors India has managed to help the company become the fourth largest car manufacturer in the country, with a market share of over 5 per cent, in just 2 years.
Kookhyun Shim, CEO and MD, Kia Motors India receiving the 2021 CNB Business Leader of the Year award
With over 30 years of experience in the automotive industry, Kookhyun Shim helped Kia build a strong product plan for the Indian market. It was under his leadership that Kia Motors India launched its maiden product, the Seltos, which has sold over 1.60 lakh units in India already. It was followed by Kia’s flagship product for India – the Carnival MPV, which too has managed to set new standards in the premium MPV segment.
Shim’s contributions have also been integral towards the development and launch of the company’s first ‘Made-In-India, for the World’ SUV – the Kia Sonet. In fact, in less than six months, Kia Motors India has sold over 62,000 units of the SUV showing the product’s strength. In fact it has even won the 2021 CNB subcompact SUV of the Year and CNB Car of the Year awards. Furthermore, he also oversaw the timely completion of the company’s 536-acre manufacturing facility in Anantapur, Andhra Pradesh.
In a nutshell, by building a strong product line-up, a wide dealer network, and by democratising connected car technology, Kia Motors India, led by its CEO and Managing Director, Kookhyun Shim, has today built a strong customer base, which is currently over 2 lakh vehicles strong. And thus, making him the perfect recipient for this year’s CNB Business Leader of the Year award.