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In this guest post, Tiffany Foxwell (main photo), head of client services at Flashtalking JAPAC, says the growing popularity of connected TV (CTV) has created further opportunities for fraudsters to target vulnerabilities in the technology. Foxwell argues that cross-industry collaboration is vital for a sustainable CTV advertising landscape that promotes openness, accountability and transparency…
The monumental rise of Connected Television (CTV) during the pandemic has reshaped marketers’ approach to their omnichannel strategies. It was inevitable that such a fast-growing channel, with the potential for high margins, would become a target for fraudsters. Over the last few months, the global ad industry has seen reports of a number of fraud schemes, largely centered on the tactic of “domain spoofing”.
While ad fraud in the CTV space cannot be taken lightly, the industry already has experience of tackling this issue across other formats, and so there are best practices to follow, and practical ways to keep it from eroding the trust between buyers and sellers working with this critical new medium.
Industry collaboration is vital in the fight against fraud
When learning about new instances of fraud or concerns within the industry, advertisers’ understandable response is to freeze their budgets in that given channel or platform. The industry witnessed this only last year, when global news publishers experienced a significant dip in ad revenues, driven in large part by blocklisting Covid-related content. Although the focus here was on brand safety, the sentiment is the same. Advertisers want their ads placed alongside relevant, quality content that amplifies their messaging and fuels positive connections with their target audiences. Domain spoofing impacts this goal, as it can lead to ads being placed alongside content that’s less reputable than buyers intend, presenting a risk to brand reputation and campaign performance.
Advertisers are in a strong position and can use their spending power to lobby for improvements within the industry. Now is the time to come together to build the infrastructure and processes needed to sustain balance, trust, and transparency in CTV for the future.
There are already tools that support a smart, responsible, and secure buying methodology, which also help marketers to reach their target audience. Such tools are always nuanced and specific, so marketers can proactively open conversations with their advertising partners on how to harness them. Technology will play a critical role in restoring trust, but trust will also play an equally critical role in fostering the right use of the technology.
Creating a dialogue around fraud in CTV right now is vital for publishers, tech companies and advertisers alike. After all, CTV’s share of media consumption is only going to grow.
Setting trust as CTV’s foundation
In the last 18 months, we saw CTV hit an inflection point as TV transitioned from a lean-back medium to an on-demand one. Advertisers want to be a part of this pivot in audience behaviour, but their key challenge might prove to be one of inventory. At present, the user experience and monetisation model of CTV is still developing, meaning this inventory comes at a premium.
As the CTV landscape evolves, so too will the mechanisms that allow for cross-platform purchasing. But without a doubt, advertisers will expect—and demand—that CTV’s premium inventory remains accessible and protected as a valuable element within their media mixes.
Until strong industry standards are in place and widely adopted, responsibility will fall to third-party solutions to authenticate the impression at the source and then again at delivery, providing the confidence from an independent source both pre-bid and post-bid. It’s these solutions that will provide protection today, and that will build the bridge toward a future where such protections are more closely integrated into the media infrastructure. But right now, it’s on buyers and their technology partners to keep vigilant.
Ultimately, collaboration between independent actors and stakeholders on the buy side, as well as the sell side, will lay the long-term foundation for a sustainable CTV advertising landscape. Above all, its foundation must be built on openness, accountability, and transparency. Now is the time for a real collective effort, and the formation of standards that foster trust on all sides.
In a massive shift in the broadcasting landscape, Amazon Prime has secured the Australian rights to the next cricket World Cup alongside a range of other tournaments run by the International Cricket Council (ICC) until 2027. The deal means that Australian Cricket fans can only access the tournaments if they have a paid subscription to […]
With just over 24 hours to go until the world premiere of Addy Lala and the Mood Tea Thieves, limited tickets are still available for the pantomime, which will run for one night only at the Everest Theatre in Sydney’s Seymour Centre on December 5th. All in the industry are encouraged to come along to […]
2045, a Melbourne-based creative agency founded by Tim Evans and Nick Auditore has just launched. The agency takes its name from the year futurist Ray Kurzweil predicted organic and artificial intelligence would converge. Lead Image: 2045 Team Evans was formerly a Partner and Executive Strategy Director at DT (now AKQA), before co-founding B.B.E in 2015. […]
The National Breast Cancer Foundation has been announced as the Charity Partner for Sydney New Year’s Eve. The Australian not-for-profit organisation is represented by the pink ribbon and raises money to fund world-class research towards its vision of zero deaths from breast cancer. Research that saves lives through a better understanding of how to prevent […]
This holiday season, Emporium Melbourne has announced its festive creative campaign that celebrates and encourages the Melbourne community to embrace their personal ‘untraditional traditions’ – the unique traditions that make Christmas truly special for them, and their family. The campaign’s tagline, “Every tradition starts somewhere”, reflects Emporium’s commitment to embracing, inspiring and applauding diverse traditions […]
Reddit has announced updates to its new ads placement with Carousel Ads and Product Ads. These new units, placed in the heart of Reddit discussions, provide an even more dynamic and compelling way for advertisers to scale to relevant audiences, deliver deeper value to users, and drive stronger, full-funnel performance among the hundreds of thousands […]
Automotive Network Drive has announced its 2024 upfronts, its biggest in more than a decade, with a suite of more than 12 new products that underpin its vision to be the number one automotive network in Australia. Now in its 27th year and with a monthly audience of 2.45 million, Drive is leveraging its reputation […]
B&T unaware of the vitriol & acrimony between the online mattress companies. We were aware of it between News & the ABC.
oOh!media continues to rapidly expand its large format digital network, launching seven new sites at premium locations across major arterials in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane. The latest large format digitals include another premium site in the exclusive Sydney suburb of Mosman. Positioned at the gateway of the lower north shore on Military Road, the high-impact […]
The Seven Network revealed the results of the second round of its flagship innovation initiative – Ignite – which saw seven employee-led generative AI concepts selected for prototype development. An inspiring three-week event, Ignite brings together internal cross-functional teams of engineers, data scientists, product managers and staff from across the business to collaborate and develop […]
Australian tech consultancy Engaging.io has scored a major business win with the appointment by a leading Texas-based US National Basketball Association (NBA) team to revolutionise its marketing and communication strategies. The powerhouse NBA franchise turned to Sydney-headquartered Engaging to spearhead a major HubSpot implementation, driving greater efficiencies, personalisation and a more seamless experience for fans. […]
Dentsu Queensland has formed a strategic partnership with DeadlyScience, an organisation that provides science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) resources to Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander students across Australia. The partnership is in collaboration with UnLtd, which helps connect the media and marketing industries with charities helping children and young people at risk. This is […]
Victoria-based Venetian Media Group (VMG) has acquired web and digital strategy shop Digital Native. Lead image L-R: VMG CEO, Michael Fishwick; Digital Native big chief, Matt Gardan. Digital Native specialises in digital strategy, branding, UX and web design it has deep experience in renewables, emerging technology and not-for-profit. Its web design process and collaborative approach […]
One of Australia’s biggest off-street car and motorbike festivals, Rare Spares Rockynats, is returning to Rockhampton for Easter 2024 and has kicked off its promotional calendar with a high-octane media campaign. The two-phase campaign, via award-winning marketing agency Murmur-Group, will launch across large format out-of-home and retail placements and will be supported by local radio, […]


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Google has announced a number of updates to Google Maps, including compatibility with Live Activities.
Google Maps has added support for toll road pricing, giving people more information about how much it will cost before they get to a road that requires a toll to drive on.
Google is celebrating 15 years of Street View by announcing a time travel feature of sorts, allowing people to scroll back and see how things looked at various points between now and 2007.
Google has announced a slew of new updates and improvements that are set to make its Maps app a much better experience on iPhone and Apple Watch.
In addition to announcing location sharing within iMessage, Google has also announced that it is bringing Dark Mode to Google Maps on iOS.
Google Maps has today updated its iPhone and iPad app to include support for a feature that was big when Apple released iOS 14 almost a year ago — Home screen widgets.
Google continues to release iOS app updates with Google Maps getting its first update in more than four months.
Google Maps is bringing the option to Pay for Parking to iOS soon to help keep parking clean and easy.
As promised back in August, Google has once again rolled out support for Google Maps on the Apple Watch with its latest software update.
Want to see how Google Maps, Waze, or another routing application navigates to a location instead of Apple Maps? There's an app for that.
Google Maps just got a great update that brings back an old feature and adds a whole new one.
Google Maps is celebrating its 15th birthday with a new icon and a bunch of new features.
iPhone owners can finally share information about crashes, speed traps, and traffic on Google Maps, while both iOS and Android users will be able to report more types of road incidents.
Apple continues the expansion of its improved Apple Maps, with New York City getting in on the action.
iMore offers spot-on advice and guidance from our team of experts, with decades of Apple device experience to lean on. Learn more with iMore!
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NEW DELHI: LG said that it is looking to extend its collaboration with Qualcomm
with the launch of new smartwatches
and other wearable devices
based on Snapdragon Wear 2100 system-on-chip (SoC) for consumers later this year.
“LG and Qualcomm Technologies have led the wearable technology space with close collaboration over the last two years and have launched multiple smartwatches and kid watches,” David Yoon, vice president, wearables, LG Electronics, said in a statement.
Chipmaker Qualcomm just introduced Qualcomm Snapdragon Wear, a new platform for next generation wearable devices, along with the Snapdragon Wear 2100 system-on-chip (SoC), the first in a new product family designed to bring new and enhanced wearable experiences to consumers.
“With the introduction of the Snapdragon Wear platform and Snapdragon Wear 2100 SoC, Qualcomm Technologies is well-positioned to extend its progress in wearables technology by enabling sleek designs, long battery life, smart sensing, and always- connected experiences in the next generation of wearable devices. These benefits are expected to have widespread appeal across the mobile, fashion and sports ecosystems in the wearables space,” Raj Talluri
, senior vice president, product management, Qualcomm Technologies, Inc.
Utilizing Qualcomm Technologies’ expertise in connectivity and compute, the Snapdragon Wear platform consists of a full suite of silicon, software, support tools, and reference designs to allow mobile, fashion, and sports customers to bring a diverse range of full-featured wearables to customers quickly.
Snapdragon Wear 2100 is available in both tethered (Bluetooth
) and connected (4G/LTE and 3G) versions.
Snapdragon Wear 2100 supports both Android Wear, and Android and is targeted for next generation connected and tethered smartwatches, kid and elderly watches, smart bands, and smart eyewear and smart headset segments.
30 percent smaller than the popular Snapdragon 400, Snapdragon Wear 2100 can help enable new, thinner, sleeker designs. It consumes 25 percent lower power than the Snapdragon 400 across both tethered and connected use cases, allowing for longer day of use battery life.
With an integrated, ultra-low power sensor hub, Snapdragon Wear 2100 enables richer algorithms with greater accuracy than the Snapdragon 400. It also comes with next-generation LTE modem with integrated GNSS, along with low power Wi-Fi and Bluetooth.
Qualcomm said that customers can develop both tethered and connected SKUs using the same PCB design, thus reducing development costs.
Qualcomm Technologies’ Snapdragon processors already power the majority of Android Wear smartwatches. Earlier this year, Qualcomm Technologies announced that its technologies are used in 65 wearable devices across 30 countries with 50 more expected to launch later this year.


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PhonePe Raises $ 350 Million in Funding Round
Digital payments major PhonePe has raised $350 million in funding from global private equity firm General Atlantic at a pre-money valuation of $12 billion, making it the most valuable privately held Indian fintech firm.
According to the company, the investment marks the first tranche of an up to $1 billion fundraise that started this month, with other global and Indian investors also participating in the round.
PhonePe, owned by Walmart, was last valued at $5.5 billion after raising $700 million from the US retail major in December 2020. Its valuation has now surpassed that of digital payments provider Razorpay, which was last valued at $7.5 billion.
General Atlantic has also invested in other Indian startups like Byju’s and Unacademy. While the primary fundraise was estimated to be $1 billion in size, it will include a secondary share sale, taking the total financing to $1.5-2 billion.
In a secondary share sale, existing investors sell their shares to new investors and the money doesn’t go to company coffers.
Existing and new investors, including Chinese tech major Tencent, Qatar Investment Authority, Microsoft and Flipkart’s cofounder Binny Bansal, were also expected to invest in this round, as per reports.
These are investors in Flipkart who were given the option to invest in PhonePe’s new funding round since the payments firm was part of the Flipkart group. Investors like SoftBank, GIC and others are unlikely to participate in the funding and won’t have any stake in its India unit.
PhonePe was seeing to close a funding round of $1.5-2 billion with both Walmart and General Atlantic expected to pump in capital at a pre-money valuation of $12 billion
According to reports, PhonePe was seeing to close a funding round of $1.5-2 billion with both Walmart and General Atlantic expected to pump in capital at a pre-money valuation of $12 billion.


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The former chief executive officer and owner of a pharmaceutical company was arrested this morning for embezzling millions of dollars from the company,.
John Klein, 75, of Palisades Park, New Jersey, is charged by complaint with one count of wire fraud. Klein is scheduled to appear by videoconference today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Michael A. Hammer.
According to U.S. Attorney Rachael A. Honig, Klein was the majority shareholder and CEO of a pharmaceutical company.
In July 2016, Klein hired as chief financial officer an individual who created a profit and loss statement showing the pharmaceutical company’s sales and corresponding receivables.
According to that individual, Klein provided information that included an account receivable of approximately $3.9 million from a customer that had not been collected.
In December 2016 and January 2017, the pharmaceutical company, with Klein’s knowledge and approval, put a reserve against the uncollected receivable in the financial statements.
In a June 2016 email, Klein acknowledged that the invoices related to the approximately $3.9 million had been paid in full.
A review of the company bank account also showed that following the wire transfers of approximately $3.9 million, Klein made numerous personal expenditures out of the account, including credit card payments for his himself and his wife, payment of property taxes, and tuition payments for his child’s private school.
The charge of wire fraud is punishable by a maximum potential penalty of 20 years in prison and a fine of $250,000 or twice the gross profits or twice the gross loss suffered by the victims of his offense, whichever is greatest.
Klein served as the chairman and CEO at Cambridge Therapeutics, chairman and director of NovaDel Pharma, Inc., and as the chairman and CEO of Dava Pharmaceutical Company.


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More from Author Rachel Maga here: https://globelivemedia.com/author/rachel-maga/
Lucasfilm Games commissions an innovative and original Star Wars adventure from Ubisoft and its studio Massive Entertainment.
Disney continues the good news for the return of its involvement in the gaming world. After resurrecting Lucasfilm Games and making a deal with Bethesda / MachineGames to produce an official Indiana Jones game, the big-eared firm has also decided to partner with Ubisoft / Massive Entertainment to produce an ambitious open-world AAA with the latest version of the engine. Snowdrop Engine graphics, while taking advantage of the know-how of the most talented, experienced and creative developers in the industry.
– Ubisoft FR (@UbisoftFR) January 13, 2021
If David Polfeldt (The Division, Avatar, Far Cry 3, World In Conflict, Assassins Creed Revelations, Just Dance, Ubisoft Connect) will oversee this new Star Wars game, Julian Gerighty (The Division, The Crew, Splinter Cell, Ghost Recon, Brothers in Arms) of Massive Entertainment will be the Creative Director: “It is a universe that we adore and we want to do it justice with a production and a story that will take enthusiasts of yesterday and today on an immersive and extraordinary journey, which they will remember for a long time.”
An unprecedented collaboration between Lucasfilm Games and Ubisoft for Star Wars
“Ubisoft has unique know-how when it comes to creating immersive worlds. We are very excited to work together on this project“, Says Douglas Reilly, vice-president of the Lucasfilm Games label. “The passion and talent of the team at Massive inspires us, and we share a common vision of the kind of original story we want to tell players in this huge galaxy. They have the creativity, experience and closeness to the community to infuse incredible authenticity, depth and innovative character into this new Star Wars game.”
“In the Star Wars galaxy and beyond, we work with the best in the industry to create experiences that continually push the possibilities of video games.“, Adds Sean Shoptaw, senior vice president of Disney Games and Interactive Experiences. “Together, Lucasfilm Games and Massive Entertainment can offer something truly unique to all of our fans around the world.”
“The richness of the Star Wars universe is a fabulous source of inspiration for our teams“Said Yves Guillemot, co-founder and CEO of Ubisoft. “This is the start of a long term collaboration with Disney and Lucasfilm Games, and we are happy to work hand in hand to enrich Lucasfilm’s incredible legacy with a game that will thrill fans. ”
“As we look forward to the next 50 years of Lucasfilm, we look forward to continuing the wonderful legacy of the games, which has brought so many memorable characters and stories to the table.“, Kathleen Kennedy, President of Lucasfilm. “These new collaborations will allow the Lucasfilm Games team to pursue new and exciting directions in Star Wars and Indiana Jones storytelling, in ways that are imaginative and different from those explored by our films.”
Electronic Arts will continue to develop Star Wars games
If the exclusive Electronic Arts contract will end well within two years, the American publisher is not ready to stop working on the legendary license of Lucasfilm Games, however: “EA has been and will continue to be a very strategic and important partner for us now and in the future, but we felt there was room for others.”
✅ We love Star Wars.
✅ We look forward to continuing our partnership with Lucasfilm Games.
✅ We’re making more Star Wars games.
✅ BD-1 is still the cutest.
— Electronic Arts (@EA) January 13, 2021
“We are very proud of the games we have made with EA“Said Douglas Reilly, vice president of Lucasfilm Games. “We will continue to work with them and our relationship has never been stronger. While we don’t have a lot of details to share at the moment, we have a number of projects going on with the talented teams at EA.”
“We are proud of our long-standing collaboration with Lucasfilm Games, which will continue in the years to come.“, Specifies a spokesperson for Electronic Arts. “Our talented teams have created some of the most successful games in Star Wars franchise history, including Jedi Fallen Order, Battlefront, Galaxy of Heroes, and Squadrons. We love Star Wars, and we can’t wait to create more exciting experiences for players.“
Rachel Maga is a technology journalist currently working at Globe Live Media agency. She has been in the Technology Journalism field for over 5 years now. Her life’s biggest milestone is the inside tour of Tesla Industries, which was gifted to her by the legend Elon Musk himself.


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Amazon's Echo is still the biggest selling smart speaker in the world
Smart speakers are going global. More than 26 million AI-powered speakers have been sold as of Q2 2019, an increase of over 50%. But the growth is largely outside the US.
Chinese search company Baidu has actually overtaken Google to become the second largest smart speaker manufacturer in the world, according to a new report from Canalys. But Amazon still reigns supreme, shipping 6.6 million Echo units in the quarter.
Read this: The best smart speakers
While only available in China, Baidu’s speaker’s market share grew 3700% to 4.5 million units after it revamped its Xiaodu line earlier this year. By comparison, Google shipped 4.3 million in the same quarter. Of course, Google doesn’t sell in China and Baidu only sells in China, so the two aren’t direct competitors.
However, Google is eyeing other markets for growth. Just today, it launched the Google Nest Hub in India, where it has been trailing Amazon with a 39 precent share.
Yet its Google Home Mini actually outsold all other models on the continent, according to a report from IDC. Google only launched in India in Q2 2018, so clearly, with more time and more devices, this could be a strong market for Google’s smart speakers.
“Though the smart speaker is a relatively young product in India, the integration of voice assistants such as Alexa and Google Assistant in smart devices is gaining immense popularity in the country,” said Jaipal Singh of IDC India. “The main driver of the early adoption so far is the novelty factor around this technology. However, it is certainly driving the shift in consumer behavior and accelerating the adoption of voice interfaces in India.”
Read this: First Look – Google Nest Hub Max
As appetite for smart speakers grows elsewhere, the US market saw a slight drop, declining 2.4%, with 6.1 million units shipped in Q2.
Canalys points to both Amazon and Google’s pursuit of more global markets for this decline, as well as confusion over Google’s transition to the Nest branding, and the challenge of selling the more complex and expensive smart displays.


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Shares of Matterport (NASDAQ:MTTR) are down more than 5% following a downgrade from acclaimed Wedbush analyst Dan Ives. Ives downgraded MTTR stock from “outperform” to “neutral” and lowered his price target from $10 to $6. The new price target implies upside of about 7% from current prices.
Matterport operates as a spacial data company that focuses on scanning buildings and real estate to provide virtual 3D models. Users can then explore these 3D models as realistic replicas. As of Q4, the company had an annual run-rate of $108 million.
Matterport also has a partnership with online real estate brokerage Redfin (NASDAQ:RDFN). The partnership allows Redfin to use Matterport’s interactive 3D scans on its website.
With that said, let’s jump into the details of the downgrade.
Why Is MTTR Stock Down Today?
Ives stated that the reason for his Matterport downgrade is due to its high exposure to the real estate market. Right now, median sale prices of houses in the U.S. are currently at an all-time high. In addition, 30-year mortgage rates recently hit 5% for the first time since 2011. Because of these two factors, consumers may be hesitant to shop for new housing. As a result, Matterport’s business may be detrimentally affected by the lowered interest in housing.
However, Matterport has a major opportunity to become a dominant player in the metaverse. The company’s 3D scanning technology seems to be a perfect fit for scanning virtual worlds. Despite this opportunity, shares of the company are down more than 70% year-to-date. Matterport has confirmed that it will report Q1 earnings on May 10 after the market close.
With Ives’ downgrade in mind, let’s take a look at how other analysts view the company.
How Do Other Analysts Feel About Matterport?
- Deutsche Bank has a price target of $14. Analyst Bhavin Shah views Matterport as a “leader in digitization of the built world.” Furthermore, Shah believes that digitalization of the world is still in its early innings with massive potential for growth. For revenue, Shah expects a five-year compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of 52%.
- Morgan Stanley has a price target of $9. Analyst Elizabeth Potter is “encouraged by Matterport’s leadership in a large and under-penetrated opportunity.” However, Potter is concerned about constraints in the camera supply chain, as well as a “tight labor market” in the professional capture services industry. The analyst expects these headwinds to ease in the second half of this year. Additionally, Potter hopes to see Matterport expand into other industries, such as construction and retail.
- Finally, Matterport has an average price target of $12.14 among seven firms with coverage of the stock.
On the date of publication, Eddie Pan did not hold (either directly or indirectly) any positions in the securities mentioned in this article. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer, subject to the InvestorPlace.com Publishing Guidelines.


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The lightsaber used as by Mark Hamill in Star Wars: A New Hope and The Empire Strikes Back as a prop has been sold for $450,000 to the Ripley company in Orlando, as Orlando Sentinel reports.
The previous owner was Gary Kurtz. It may end up on display at one of the Believe It or Not locations around the U.S., but Ripley still hasn’t confirmed which one.
If nearly half a million dollars for a lightsaber sounds like a lot, you should know that that wasn’t nearly the most expensive Star Wars prop sold at the auction. In fact, an original R2-D2 unit went for $2.76 million. It’s not clear who bought the droid at the moment.


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EasyJet chief commercial officer Saad Hammad is leaving the budget airline after just over three years to become European managing director at private equity firm Gores Group.
The airline says that it is seeking a replacement.
Hammad, who has previously held senior brand, sales and marketing roles at Procter & Gamble, Thorn EMI and Vision Express, leaves after presiding over tumultuous relations with the airline’s agency contacts.
He caused a storm of criticism across the advertising industry after calling off a review of the airline’s account when it was down to the final two. It had shortlisted Ogilvy Group and Saatchi & Saatchi but he decided against appointing a single European agency in favour of creating a roster of “hot shop agencies”.
Hammad believed the new plan would allow the company – which operates from 68 airports in 18 countries – to react more quickly to changes in local markets.
However, the airline eventually appointed WPP Group-owned Ogilvy as its sole European agency after it repitched against DLKW & Partners.
His departure comes just months after head of brand marketing Paul Simmons left the airline. He joined Dubailand Parks & Resorts as sales and marketing director (MW September 4). His role has since been scrapped and brand communications manager Andrew Berks was appointed to the new role of head of marketing services (MW September 25).
EasyJet announced a 45% drop in full-year profits to the end of September 2008, which it attributed to a fuel price hike. It said it would focus on price-cutting and savings to recover profits in 2009.


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Thank you to all 51 people who joined the first MALG Members ‘Friday Forum’ to discuss how we can work together across the credit, debt and money advice sectors to tackle the Coronavirus crisis.
We have had some brilliant feedback on this ‘virtual’ meeting and are already looking forward to this week’s session on Friday 10-11am. It will be great to see even more of you to ensure that we have a good spread of skills and knowledge from across our wide membership. Find out more, including how to join in, here.
Ahead of this week’s session, we are keen to hear what questions and topics you are most in need of support with as the situation unfolds. Please send anything you want to flag up in advance of this week’s forum to firstname.lastname@example.org.
Although we did not record or take minutes from the first session in line with MALG’s ethos of promoting open and honest discussion on potentially sensitive and confidential issues, we have been shar
ing some key updates on the ‘latest news’ section of our website (see below) and will continue to do so. Please send anything that you would like us to share to email@example.com.
*As it is Good Friday next week, we’ll be discussing whether to change the day or have a break and will announce this as soon as it is decided. Please let us know your thoughts.*
- Debt charities call for ‘rescue package’ to help household finances cope with COVID-19 https://malg.org.uk/debt-charities-call-for-rescue-package-to-help-household-finances-cope-with-covid-19/
- StepChange’s Debt Awareness Week ‘matters more than ever’ during such uncertain economic times https://malg.org.uk/stepchanges-debt-awareness-week-matters-more-than-ever-during-such-uncertain-economic-times/
- Money and Pensions Service provides financial support during COVID-19 outbreak https://malg.org.uk/money-and-pensions-service-provides-financial-support-during-the-covid-19-outbreak/
- MALG launches new virtual Members ‘Friday Forum’ to facilitate working together during Coronavirus outbreak https://malg.org.uk/malg-launches-new-virtualmembers-friday-forum-to-facilitate-working-together-to-improve-the-lives-of-people-in-debt-during-coronavirus-outbreak/
- COVID-19 update: Self employed income support scheme launched https://malg.org.uk/covid-19-update-self-employed-income-support-scheme-launched/
- CIVEA confirms suspension of enforcement action https://malg.org.uk/civea-confirms-suspension-of-enforcement-action/
- Water companies step up action to help customers in need during Coronavirus crisis https://malg.org.uk/water-companies-step-up-action-to-help-customers-in-need-during-coronavirus-crisis/
- UK to change insolvency rules to protect businesses https://malg.org.uk/uk-to-change-insolvency-rules-to-protect-businesses/
- COVID-19 update: Equifax publishes summary of regulators positions on credit https://malg.org.uk/covid-19-update-equifax-publishes-summary-of-regulators-positions-on-credit/
- Christians Against Poverty asks how the pandemic will affect the UK’s poorest https://malg.org.uk/christians-against-poverty-asks-how-the-pandemic-will-affect-the-uks-poorest/
- Nationwide announces financial support package for those impacted by Coronavirus https://malg.org.uk/nationwide-announces-financial-support-package-for-those-impacted-by-coronavirus/
- Coronavirus – good news about protecting your credit score https://malg.org.uk/coronavirus-good-news-about-protecting-your-credit-score/
- Cross CRA guidance for lenders reporting forbearance during Coronavirus outbreak https://malg.org.uk/cross-cra-guidance-for-lenders-reporting-forbearance-during-coronavirus-outbreak/
- Credit Services Association provides online hub for COVID-19 updates for the debt collection and debt purchase sectors https://malg.org.uk/credit-services-association-provides-online-hub-for-covid-19-updates-for-the-debt-collection-and-debt-purchase-sectors/


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Taking a look back at another week of news from Cupertino, this week's Apple Loop includes the release date of the iPhone 6S and 6S Plus, Apple's changes to stop the iPhone 6S bending, user anger at iOS 8.4.1, iPhone 6S benchmarking numbers beating the Galaxy S6, thoughts on the evolution of Apple TV, Apple Music subscriber predictions, the changes to Apple Store layouts, Apple's Australian bond issue, and the Apple Watch running iOS 4.1.
Apple Loop is here to remind you of a few of the very many discussions that have happened around Apple over the last seven days (and you can read our weekly digest of Android news here on Forbes).
A Strong iPhone Is Going To Cost You
Following on from the leak of the new iPhone 6S chassis, parts from the supply chain have been tested to destruction on video to find out how strong the new design might be. It's good news for those wanting a robust phone, but your wallet might not agree:
“It comes from Unbox Therapy, originators of the iPhone 6 'Bendgate' stories, and founder Lewis Hilsenteger has managed to attain an iPhone 6S chassis from famed Apple leaker Sonny Dickson. What has Hilsenteger learnt? The new iPhones will be very strong and potentially very expensive.
In a two stage test, Hilsenteger has worked with Elemental Controls to identify the material of the new iPhone chassis and with phone skin maker dbrand to scientifically stress test them. I had been speaking extensively with Hilsenteger and Dickson prior to the video's release and here's what we learn…”What material does the iPhone 6S chassis use, how strong is it, and what impact will it have on the cost of your new iPhone?
iPhone 6S Release Date Is Closer Than You Might Have Thought
The release date of the iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S Plus is earlier than previously thought. While early information pointed to September 25th for the handset to go on sale, recent leaks from networks in Germany, the UK, and Japan point to an earlier date. Forbes' Gordon Kelly investigates:
“Following a leaked internal memo from Vodafone last month, prominent Japanese site ITHome and German tech experts Macerkopf have both discovered that the new iPhones 6Ses will launch in their respective countries on September 18th. This ties perfectly with the Vodafone internal memo for the UK, which also carried a September 18th launch date.
Japan, Germany and the UK are all tier one Apple launch countries with iPhones traditionally being made available to them at the same time as the US release.”The nine-day window between launch and retail sale closely matches the timetable used in previous iTunes launches (2014 saw the reveal on Sept 9th, going on sale on Sept 19th). If the same timetable is being used, pre-orders are likely to open on Friday 11th of September, which should help Apple predict local demand.
Anger At Cynical iOS 8.4.1 Update
The latest release of iOS 8.4.1 addressed a number of issues around Apple Music, and while Apple has been quick to try to fix the issues around the streaming subscription service, other long-standing issues remain unresolved to the chagrin of many users.
“Frustratingly Apple has also still not fixed the infamous WiFried bug, which has plagued users since the release of iOS 8 in September 2014. Apple has acknowledged the issue since iOS 8.3, but a full fix (switching the troubled DiscoveryD process back to mDNSResponder used in previous iOS generations) will not take place until iOS 9 and the launch of the iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S Plus.
Similarly Apple has already confirmed the crippled Home Sharing implementation introduced in iOS 8.4 won't be addressed until iOS 9.”Beyond Apple Music, does iOS 8.4.1 have any redeeming features? Not if you are jail breaking your iPhone, no…


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"We are involved in many conversations with customers about how they can use our technology to be more secure in a cloud world." PJ Hough, Chief Product Officer, Citrix Systems
Behind the scenes, a quiet revolution is transforming the way in which businesses and public authorities harness the power of information technology.
Perhaps the most challenging technological phenomenon in the world today is the emergence of artificial intelligence (AI), in particular robots and machines that can spot new patterns in data and learn for themselves.
“The days of enterprise IT telling employees what they can and cannot do with their devices are over,” Christian Reilly, CTO, Citrix.
Launched in 2015, the Woodstock, South Africa-headquartered peer-to-peer lending platform illuminates—quite literally—a market that has been in the Dark Ages.
A PhD in nanotechnology engineering from an Ivy League university may seem impressive on paper, but is it the real deal?
"Nissan Intelligent Mobility is our vision to deliver more autonomy, more electrification, and more connectivity to move our customers to a better world."
"In high-volume and fast-moving consumer goods sectors, the major brands are all adopting robotics. Companies are automating their manufacturing processes as a necessity for their mid- to long-term survival."
Bilboa, Spain-based Sherpa is a Personal Digital Assistant (PDA) that puts intuition and intelligence at the heart of its proposition.
Dubai is a city known for its technology and bold ambition. Now the city is aiming to lead in the blockchain space and plans on being the world’s first blockchain-powered government.


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UNI Apro is pleased to present, “Growing Smart Partnership: The AEON Labor Management Initiative”, that will serve as the latest reference for affiliates in the Asia and Pacific region committed to building Smart Partnership in their important work of growing and sustaining the union and the company.
Some selected findings of the smart partnership advantage in six AEON companies
This report was first commissioned at the beginning of 2019 as a research study to highlight the AEON Global Framework Agreement as a good model to facilitate smart partnership to grow the company and the trade union.
The basis of the research stems from UNI Apro’s belief that the model of constructive labour-management relations through sincere and genuine dialogue strategy, based on the concept of true social partnership to adjust to the global competitive challenge. It will also require all the parties, including trade unions, to be realistic in their response to the globalisation challenges.
The lead author was Professor Melissa R. Serrano, Director of the Centre for Labour Justice and the Centre for Labour and Grassroots Initiatives, School of Labour and Industrial Relations in the University of the Philippines, who went on a six-country visit where AEON has established their operations, to collect information and interviewed key union and management personnel.
After nearly ten months of data collection and writing, Prof. Melissa presented her preliminary findings at the 5th UNI Apro Regional Conference. The results contributed to the motion: “UNI Apro has advanced the “Partnership Labour-Management Relations” as the guide for sustaining the social dialogue process and engaging industry and governments on building up a more inclusive, balanced and sustainable economy at the national, sub-regional and regional levels.”
Prof. Melissa Serrano at the 5th UNI Apro Regional Conference
Written in a style balanced between academic rigor and accessibility, the report takes the reader on a journey to understand how Asia’s number one multinational retail giant, AEON, embraced the Smart Partnership concept as part of its “People First” principle, that helped drive and sustain the company’s leading position in the fast changing and highly competitive retail industry.
The case studies, drawn from AEON stores in Cambodia, China, Indonesia, Malaysia, Japan, and Vietnam, paint an illustrative picture on how Smart Partnership is implemented across different legal and cultural context. It also does not shy away from addressing the challenges that impedes the concept.
UNI Apro Regional Secretary Rajendra Acharya, said, “The report was completed in June 2020, as the final validation by all the stakeholders involved was inevitably delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“I am now very pleased to share with everyone the results of this report. Each of the AEON management and the AEON union leaders and members – should be very proud of themselves. The report cannot happen without their years of commitment and constant belief that Smart Partnership can work.
We dedicate the release of this report to all the commerce workers who proved themselves as Essential Workers during the pandemic. I also strongly believe that the report will have value beyond the Commerce sector, and affiliates in other sectors can also benefit.”
The report is available for download. For hardcopies, please send request to the UNI Apro Regional Secretary at firstname.lastname@example.org


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Punjab Food Authority (PFA) on Tuesday sealed an ice cream and soda water factory being run illegally.
According to a spokesman for the PFA, a team led by Director Operations Rafia Haider raided and sealed Laika Ice Cream factory situated at Johar Town, over not having medical certificates of its workers and license and using harmful elements in ice cream.
In another raid, the team also sealed a soda water factory near Taxali Gate which was being run without any license.
The PFA fined Central Asian Restaurant at Qaddafi Stadium and Coffee Bar. Furthermore, the team sealed two chicken shops at Tollington market and fined to two.


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July 19, 2021 4 minutes to read
Many Australian businesses lack the capacity to deliver a top-tier customer experience and they risk losing customers because of it, writes Jason du Preez.
The pandemic has made customer loyalty paramount, with increased risks of loss of customers and revenues by incumbents to their competitors. Customer engagement is more important than ever for Australian businesses.
The pandemic has dramatically accelerated a number of customer experience trends in Australia, including online shopping, tap and go, self-service and contactless delivery. Being able to meet customers where, when and how they want to shop is crucial, as is empathy and understanding.
Likewise, market challengers must remain flexible and nimble to compete for new business. But many Australian businesses lack the tools to deliver the kind of customer experience that will keep them competitive.
Our recent CRM and Sales Impact Report found that 50% of Australian businesses cannot access aggregate data from marketing, sales and service systems and 82% agree that a Consolidated view of customer information across the enterprise is key to delivering an optimal customer experience (CX), but 52% say their current customer relationship management (CRM) system is inadequate.
Australian companies must deliver on CX
Many Australian companies lack the tools to deliver modern, fast, frictionless in-store and digital CX that is vital to staying competitive. For the most part, Australian businesses have a fragmented, dated and distorted picture of their customers affecting the level of service they can provide and severely affecting their ability to grow, anticipate and respond to emerging customer trends.
To turn CX into a competitive advantage, Australian businesses must replace their current blurry vision with a crisp, breadth and depth picture that can help them delight their customers, anticipate their needs, meet changing preferences. and increase the lifetime value of customers.
A Complete Source of Truth
More than half of Australian businesses reported that in the past 12 months the customer churn rate has increased and 53% of Australian businesses admit they don’t know which customers are likely to unsubscribe because they don’t do not have the necessary information about their customers.
The inability to access customer data in a single view across all functions and aspects of the business is a major obstacle and a source of frustration for many customer service and sales teams. Without access to a comprehensive source of truth, businesses cannot optimize the customer experience or manage the expectations required to minimize churn.
What we need is a connected and comprehensive customer view made possible by technology to provide additional insight. The lack of a high definition customer view is why 95% of Australian businesses said their organization is currently using AI to augment existing processes. Customer clarity and a CRM powered by AI data are key to reducing customer churn, understanding changing customer needs and preferences, and helping to keep Australian businesses competitive and innovative.
Digital transformation, increased competition and customer expectations present Australian businesses with a critical choice: to improve their CRM and boost their CX, or risk losing market share.


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After years of financial troubles, battles with creditors and accusations of deceptive business practices culminated in a March financial disaster submitting, a Southwest dealership institution has closed.
Tate’s Auto Group turned into trying to retain working whilst it sought a customer for its 4 shops in Arizona and New Mexico. But with a federal bankruptcy decide poised to reduce off the cash, it was the use of to stay in commercial enterprise, the retailer laid off employees and shuttered its stores the closing week of April.
The dealership group’s leaders are searching for nearly $30 million and the Federal Trade Commission is accusing it of taking advantage of Native American customers.
Tate’s Auto co-owner Richard Berry, who had denied the FTC accusations, said in an email to Automotive News last week that the court movements got here as a wonder.
“We submitted a plan and were running profitably throughout the reorganization period. We had sought simplest 60-90 days,” Berry wrote inside the email. “In the give up — regardless of the thousands and thousands of dollars we put lower back into the company in 2018 to keep it going it just wasn’t sufficient.”
U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Brenda Moody Whinery on April 26 denied Tate’s Auto persevered use of collateral during the court docket lawsuits, cutting off the cash the store changed into the usage of to pay its personnel. On Monday, April 29, Whinery granted requests from Ford Motor Credit Co. And Nissan Motor Acceptance Corp. Searching for a remedy from the automated live that halts creditors from an movement in a financial ruin intending.
That decision became suitable, Whinery stated within the ruling due to the fact Tate’s Auto lacked equity in the creditors’ collateral and “due to the fact there isn’t always a realistic prospect of an effective reorganization inside an inexpensive time period.”
The decisions give Ford Credit and Nissan Motor Acceptance the ability to accumulate vehicle inventory from the dealerships and liquidate the property on their personal phrases. According to April eleven court filings, each lender alleged that Tate’s Auto violated their contracts and protection agreements and offered cars however didn’t pay off floorplan loans, that’s called being out of belief.
The dealership institution, which operates close to the border of the Navajo Nation reservation, also has been preventing the FTC in a courtroom on account that final July over allegations that it falsified clients’ profits and down price facts and misrepresented monetary terms in automobile classified ads. Those accusations have been in large part leveled in opposition to the institution by means of individuals of the Navajo Nation.
An FTC spokesman declined to comment, citing pending litigation.
Lenders seeking tens of millions
Berry and Linda Tate, his mother and co-owner, filed for Chapter eleven bankruptcy safety March 8 in U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Arizona for the group’s places in Winslow, Show Low, and Holbrook, Ariz., and Gallup, N.M. The stores bought Buick, Chrysler, Dodge, Ford, GMC, Jeep, Lincoln, Nissan, and Ram vehicles.
From January until the Chapter eleven filing, Tate’s Auto had become over approximately 300 automobiles to Ford Credit. Of those, 280 have been offered at public sale, consistent with court filings. On an identical day Tate’s Auto filed for financial ruin, Ford Credit seized a further seventy-eight cars from the organization’s Gallup store. Tate’s Auto was petitioning the court docket to get the inventory returned so it is able to retail the vehicles to assist to pay down its money owed to the lender.
Ford Credit became seeking $18.3 million from the institution for floorplanning and different expenses. Nissan Motor Acceptance, which cited similar debts in a lawsuit against Tate’s Auto filed in federal court in Arizona just days earlier than Tate’s bankruptcy submitting, become seeking $10.7 million. Ford Credit exclusively supplied floorplan loans for 3 of the institution’s places, while Ford Credit and Nissan Motor Acceptance each furnished floorplan loans at the Show Low region, Berry said. Spokeswomen for Ford Credit and Nissan Motor Acceptance declined to remark.
A GM spokesman said the automaker is aware of the closures and is thinking about its alternatives for retaining the vicinity.
A Fiat Chrysler Automobiles spokesman stated, “FCA is currently considering the next steps for these places. We will offer an replace in the future.”
A Ford spokeswoman declined to remark, saying the enterprise does not discuss pending litigation or regional planning.
Nissan failed to right away respond to a request for remark.
Berry, in an interview before the store closures, said the amount Tate’s Auto owes its lenders remains in the query. He was additionally certain how he turned into looking to sell the stores.
“Our reason is to transport thru this unexpected method and to find a purchaser in order that we will make all of our creditors complete, and that’s our No. 1 priority,” Berry stated.
According to an April 22 court document, Tate’s Auto was cleared to employ GlassRatner Advisory & Capital Group in Irvine, Calif., as an funding banker and income adviser. According to Berry’s e-mail remaining week, the group will hold advertising and marketing the now-closed shops.
Revenue from new-vehicle sales plummeted 59 percent at the dealership organization for the reason that 2014 from $eighty.2 million to $32.6 million final 12 months, in line with GlassRatner. In 2018, the organization had working losses of $7.2 million on sales of one, a hundred and fifty-five new and 846 used cars.
Cathy Reece, a lead bankruptcy legal professional for Tate’s Auto, stated the store changed into striving to maintain the companies to hold personnel and keep the franchises operating. The dealership organization has been the most important company in a number of the communities wherein it operated, stated Reece, a director with Fennemore Craig law company.
The range of folks that had been hired on the four shops is uncertain. Berry told Automotive News that Tate’s Auto had retained more than 100 personnel who were being paid during the bankruptcy lawsuits with court docket approval. But court files said approximately 50 human beings were operating on the 4 stores with another 15 workings on the organization’s control crew.
Berry claims the institution’s problems started with a falling out with another lender, Santander Consumer USA, several years in the past. In a financial ruin court docket filing, Berry alleged that Santander terminated its agreement with Tate’s in 2016 and refused to finalize a hundred and seventy new and used car sales, all of which had been delivered to customers.
Santander sued Tate’s Auto in May 2017 for allegedly falsifying customer and automobile records. In a record filed June 20, 2017, Santander accused Tate’s Auto of withholding price on a hundred and five canceled car contracts, mendacity about vehicle capabilities and conditions in financing programs, and falsifying purchaser statistics on credit score applications. The lender indexed $267,671 overall in damages.
Tate’s Auto at once countersued, claiming that the lender refused to finalize formerly accredited patron income, in keeping with court filings. The events remain locked in litigation in federal court docket in Texas.
Deceptive practices alleged
Activities that came about at the same time as Tate’s Auto nonetheless labored with Santander spurred the continuing FTC litigation.
The FTC accused Tate’s Auto remaining August of falsifying earnings and down fee facts on customers’ vehicle financing packages it sent to creditors and misrepresenting financial terms in vehicle classified ads when you consider that at least 2014. As a result, lenders extended credit to customers who defaulted at better-than-normal costs, the FTC alleged.
Berry instructed Automotive News that the FTC approached the institution in January with a proposed $1.3 million settlement offer. Berry declined.
In a 31-web page grievance, the FTC described that during December 2015, an unnamed financing enterprise operating closely with Tate’s Auto conducted fraud critiques at the financing agreements submitted with the aid of the institution.
One instance indexed within the grievance concerned a purchaser who had suggested a hard and fast monthly income of $1,200. The FTC alleged that, without the patron’s knowledge, a Tate’s Auto representative listed her earnings as $5, two hundred on financing documents.
Berry denied the FTC allegations: “We have no longer seen any proof that there is this trouble that existed in their criticism.”
Business experiments, specifically in digital formats like A/B trying out, have exploded i…


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ABC 7 reports on this surprisingly unshocking news from the Golden State:
A proposed bill in the California Senate aims to combat childhood obesity in the state by restricting restaurants to serve children only water or unflavored milk to go along with their meals.
Backers of the bill say it is an attempt to tackle the rising levels of obesity among kids. The bill was introduced by state Sen. Bill Monning.
ABC 7 doesn’t mention the political party of Sen. Bill Monning, but I think we can all guess he’s probably not a Republican. I’ll save you a Google search, yes Monning is a democrat. Absolutely none of you did a spit-take or dropped a monocle at that piece of information.
This is no BS, here’s the actual text of the bill:
This bill would require a restaurant, as defined, that sells a children’s meal that includes a beverage, to make the default beverage water, sparkling water, or flavored water, as specified, or unflavored milk or a nondairy milk alternative, as specified.
Taking this to an even crazier level, the bill would make selling sodas and juice to children a misdemeanor punishable by a $1000 fine and up to 6 months in jail


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Intel's 5th Core processor family, codenamed Broadwell, will launch in three lines for the mobile segment. We are talking about upcoming…More...
Spotify has millions of cash customers
Apple is super cool
Overpriced headphones for an overpriced brand
Beats valued at $1 billion now?
Says Beats Audio is going nowhere
Only in one aspect though
4.3-inch HD screen and dual-core 1.5GHz Scorpion CPU


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Power and speed have taken on a new form and it’s called the BMW M760Li xDrive. Hiding within the car’s wildly elegant exterior is a unique combination of power and refinement, which a select lucky few were able to experience at an exclusive launch event in Munich, Germany last May 2017.
Commenting on the launch and drive experience, Sonja Piontek, Director of Marketing, BMW Asia, shares, “In addition to experiencing what an outstanding car the BMW M760Li xDrive is, I hope that our guests will understand that the BMW brand is not only about luxury high performance cars, but a lifestyle they want to be a part of.”
To get an idea of what the car is fully capable of, as well as the lifestyle that comes along with it, Dr Leroy McCully, a PORTFOLIO Magazine reader and avid automobile enthusiast, went along on the 5-day, 4-night trip and shares that he was extremely impressed by the overall event and range of activities prepared. “Our itinerary took in the city and mountain roads, as well as the Autobahn. The smoothness of the engine and seamless gearshifts made maneuvering through the different locations a breeze,” recalls Dr Leroy.
To get a sense of what Dr Leroy and the rest of the participants witnessed on the once-in-a-lifetime trip, here’s a look at their day-to-day itinerary, which was packed with a history lesson of the BMW brand, a drive across the infamous Autobahn, and snowy sights and scenery, among others.
After settling in at the hotel, Vier Jahreszeiten Kempinski, and enjoying some free time to soak in the sights and sounds of Munich, a visit to the BMW Museum was in order, for a crash course on BMW’s 101-year history. Dr Leroy shares, “We were able to see the past, the present, and it was exciting to glance into the future of BMW. BMW has always focused on the driving experience and they live up to their motto of being the ‘Ultimate Driving Machines’. Later, as we drove the BMW M760Li xDrive, I could see and understand this philosophy — while the rear passenger seats of this 7 Series flagship were the most comfortable, the most exciting seat was to be found behind the steering wheel.”
The official launch of the BMW M760Li xDrive was certainly a cause for celebration and was presented by Carsten Pries, Head of BMW M Product Management. In addition to photo ops and learning more about the car from the inside out at the heart of the BMW M headquarters, guests also enjoyed an exclusive lunch hosted by Dr Ian Robertson, who is a Member of the Board of Management of BMW.
As the popular saying goes, it’s time to get this show on the road. The attendees whisked the car away on a 190-kilometer drive, and sped through the Autobahn and drove along the famous “Romantic Road” to Wies Church and Neuschwanstein Castle. “The sheer power of the engine granted instant and effortless acceleration that allowed us to join the Autobahn and merge with faster traffic safely and in a stress-free manner,” says Dr Leroy. He adds, “All this was accomplished with no fuss or drama and I was often surprised at my speed when I glanced at the speedometer.”
Sonja also chimes in and says, “I think I just had my dream drive on this trip. We had a mix of high speed driving on the Autobahn to really feel the power, and beautiful windy mountain roads where we felt the dynamics and agility of the BMW M760Li xDrive.”
To cap off the drive experience, the participants made their way up to the snow-capped Alps and visited the Zugspitze, which is Germany’s highest peak at 2,962m. Here, guests stayed at a boutique hotel that can only be reached via a private cable car.
On the way up, Dr Leroy had nothing but praises for the BMW M760Li xDrive and says, “On the twisty mountain roads, it felt like I was driving a sports car. The sharp turn-in, the quick responses, the immediate thrust of the engine belied the fact that I was actually in a luxury limousine.”


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The late American industrialist Henry Ford said that “A business that makes nothing but money is a poor business.” The founder of Ford Motor Company (currently ranked No. 12 on America’s Fortune 500) suggested that a company must serve customers and stakeholders well to be a good business and do good for society.
OnBuy.com is now the world’s fastest-growing marketplace. Undoubtedly, Covid and the new normal have helped to boost traffic and sales for the England-based eCommerce company as shoppers worldwide turn to online purchases.
But there’s more to OnBuy’s success than the shift to ecommerce.
Upholding fair, transparent and ethical values
OnBuy.com was recently named eCommerce Company of the Year in the 2020 U.K. Business Tech Awards.
Founder and CEO Cas Paton shared how the U.K. company differentiates itself from other marketplace platforms to capture explosive growth and brand awareness among consumers. According to Paton, it’s about consistently upholding the fair, transparent and ethical values the business was founded upon, which results in a better experience for customers and retailers.
“Our incredible growth since launching in 2016 has been powered by our transparent, fair and ethical way of doing business. We don’t sell in competition to independent sellers who trade with us, meaning that our success is their success.”
In December, he was awarded Founder of the Year 2020 by online media publication Just Entrepreneurs. After achieving an impressive 605% YTD growth in 2020, the business achieved an enormous 800% year-on-year growth in January 2021, highlighting its unmatched upward trajectory and increasing popularity with customers and sellers alike.
Constant innovation and industry-leading initiatives
Organizers of the 2020 U.K. Business Tech Awards searches for the best tech businesses in Britain. And winning the top recognition reflects the meteoric rise of OnBuy, which was launched just over four years ago.
Since 2016, the online marketplace has grown 24,000% and is rolling out a global expansion into 42 territory-specific sites in early 2021. Paton says the company will expand to more than 140 countries in total by year-end 2023.
So what are examples of its innovative business practices? The marketplace company recently generated widespread attention by launching the biggest discount day seen in retail in late 2020. During Black Friday, OnBuy gave over £50 million in discounts to customers across every product category.
“We covered the discounts to allow retailers to have the best possible sales day at no extra cost to them, as well as simultaneously offer customers even better deals.”
OnBuy is the only marketplace to cover the cost of its site-wide sales itself, rather than simply pressuring its retailers to lower their prices.
Within a 24-hour window during Black Friday, OnBuy.com helped sellers reach £2.5m in sales.
Unparalleled growth through its unique approach
During the pandemic, OnBuy has created unmatched growth: Revenue increased from a run rate of £24million to over £200million in just one year.
The company has also invested in IT systems that improve the user experience. For example, OnBuy has partnered with leading ecommerce integrations and solutions providers to make selling as seamless and simple as possible, which results in a better experience for customers.
Cas said, “[The eCommerce Company of the Year Award] proves that the ecommerce industry is ready to recognize a better and fairer way of selling through online marketplaces. I’m delighted that OnBuy is at the forefront of a more ethical way of trading, and I’m determined that our continued growth will always benefit our loyal sellers and customers in equal measures.”
With its seller base increasing by 10% each month, the company is on track to achieve over £1billion in GMV by 2023.
As Ford said nearly a century ago, a profitable business should also do good.
Or maybe it does good, and that’s why it’s profitable.


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Washington — The daily spot price of uranium Monday was $36.50/lb U3O8, down $1.15 from October 20, following a week when sellers accepted incrementally lower offer prices, according to price reporting company TradeTech.
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The U3O8 daily spot price has declined nearly every day since TradeTech reported it at $37.75/lb October 16 and 19. The price was $37.65/lb October 20, $37.35/lb the next day, $37/lb October 22 and $36.50/lb on October 22, according to the company, which reported the spot price unchanged Monday.
In its report Friday for the week ended that day, TradeTech said, "a few sellers did attempt to draw out additional buying interest by lowering offer prices. A few buyers did step into the market to take advantage of lower prices, but most buyers remained largely disinterested."
Overall, it reported an aggregate of 700,000 lb of U3O8 in six transactions were concluded for the week ending Friday, "with prices declining with each successive transaction."
TradeTech on Friday reported the weekly U3O8 spot price at $36.50/lb, down $1.25 from October 16.
Price reporting company Ux Consulting on Monday also reported a $36.50/lb weekly U3O8 spot price, down $1.25 from October 19.
"Utilities and buyers are taking a wait-and-see attitude until they deem the [U3O8 spot] price to be at an attractive level, and then they'll start buying again," a market source said Friday.
Ux on Monday reported a Broker Average Price -- based on information from Evolution Markets and Numerco Ltd. -- of $36.50/lb, down 38 cents from Friday. The bid-offer spread was $36.13/lb-$36.88/lb, with both the bid and offer 37 cents lower than Friday. The Platts NuclearFuel range for the week is $36.75/lb-$37.75/lb.


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Eric Timm appointed CEO of Sivantos, Inc.
- Published on 05 February 2019
Sivantos, Inc. announced on February 1 the appointment of Eric Timm to the role of chief executive officer. Timm, who has served as chief operating officer of the company for the past two years, takes over the role from Steve Mahon, who has stepped down.
Timm joined Sivantos, the parent company of hearing aid brand Signia, in March 2017. As chief operating officer, he worked closely with Mahon to create and execute a new vision and strategy that helped the company achieve strong growth several times the industry standard over the past two years. In his new role, Timm will guide the company’s strategic plans and initiatives to further grow its standing in the marketplace.
“I am honored to assume the role of CEO of Sivantos and eager to advance the company’s mission to invent the future of better hearing and understanding,” Timm said. “As the hearing aid industry continues to transform rapidly,Sivantos has the right combination of exceptional people and sophisticated hearing aid technology to rise to the top. I thank Steve for all that he brought to this company and look forward to continuing the vision we created together to achieve further growth and success.”
Throughout his career, Timm has held leadership positions with several organizations in the medical device industry, driving profitable growth in each role. Prior to joining Sivantos, he served as vice president, marketing and national sales for another hearing aid manufacturer. He also held roles in general management, marketing and business development at Cardinal Health, Premier, Inc., Monsanto, Bristol-Myers Squibband 3M. In addition to his professional experience, Timm received his bachelor’s degree from Gustavus Adolphus College and an MBA from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Source: Sivantos Inc.


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There had been talk of Samsung bringing a 4G LTE-enabled device to Verizon before too long, and today at the Verizon press conference at the Consumer Electronics Show, Samsung took some time to announce not only that rumored device, but also a Galaxy Tab that will be able to access Verizon’s faster network.
The smartphone doesn’t have a name quite yet, it seems. However, Samsung isn’t holding back on the feature set. The device will launch with Android 2.2, and will have a 1GHz processor under the hood. Around the back, you’ll find an 8MP camera, with a 1.3MP variation on the front for video chats. The device will also boast a 4.3-inch Super AMOLED Plus capacitive touchscreen display.
The 4G-enabled Galaxy Tab may look the same as the previous version which has been available on Verizon for a little while now, but there’s been a few tweaks made for the 4G-equipped version. The device will now boast Android 2.2, and have a 5MP camera on the back with a 1.3MP camera on the front for voice chat. Inside, there’s a 1.2GHz Hummingbird processor.
Release date is some time soon, but prices haven’t been finalized yet. Stay tuned for more images and video.


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Bisnis.comJAKARTA – The General Logistics Affairs Agency (Bulog) is ensuring imported buffalo meat from India does not carry the virus Mouth and nail disease (PMK).
Bulog Public Service Supply Chain Director Mokhamad Suyamto said that frozen buffalo meat that arrived in Indonesia was immediately subjected to a PCR test on Bulog frozen buffalo meat samples at the Center for Veterinary Pharmacy, Directorate General of Livestock and Animal Health.
Suyamto said Bulog conducted a PCR test at the Veterinary Farma Center on June 2 to confirm the condition of frozen buffalo meat imported by Bulog from India, in response to the widespread news of foot-and-mouth disease affecting cattle in several areas . 2022.
Bulog routinely performs laboratory tests, including PMK tests, to ensure frozen meat from India meets the health requirements set by the government.
“Thank goodness yesterday’s PCR test results [Sabtu, 4/6/2022] has brought out negative results, so Bulog is even more confident to distribute this frozen buffalo meat commodity to meet the country’s meat needs,” Suyamto said in an official Bulog statement on Sunday (5/6/2022).
Suyamto added that the buffalo meat import mechanism administered by his party passed the review by the Ministry of Agriculture before the FMD outbreak. Upon arrival in Indonesia, the Ministry of Agriculture’s Tanjung Priok Quarantine Center inspected the buffalo meat and issued it with a certificate.
“Before shipping to Indonesia, it was confirmed that the buffalo meat imported by Bulog was only exported by Suppliers which has received Halal certification from the Indonesian Ulema Council. In addition, it has met animal health criteria and is suitable for human consumption [fit for human consumption] as stated in the health certificate [Health Certificate] from the Veterinary Institute in India,” continued Suyamto.
The government has tasked Bulog with importing 100,000 tons of frozen buffalo meat by 2022. By the middle of the year, Bulog had imported 46,000 tons of frozen buffalo meat.
This is an alternative for consumers to cover meat availability and keep meat prices stable at the consumer level.
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Blog: just-food indulges sweet tooth at ISM Cologne
Michelle Russell | 28 January 2013
It is a key event in the food industry calendar: ISM Cologne. An international trade show that attracts the great and the good of the global confectionery industry for four days of meeting and greeting.
Such a large gathering of confectioners is a perfect opportunity to indulge your sweet tooth. If you have one. I do. But there are much more important reasons for me travelling to Cologne. Over the next few days, just-food will catch up with industry executives and find out what is currently hot in the world of confectionery, the hurdles manufacturers are facing and the industry outlook for 2013 and beyond.
2012 wasn't any easy one for the food industry. Economic pressures have put the squeeze on most industries, but the tightening of consumer budgets has meant many sectors have turned to producing value propositions in a bid to win back their share of the market and boost profits.
Even confectionery, long seen as one of the food sectors more resilient to economic pressure, has suffered as consumers have been forced to cut back on non-essential items.
According to Mintel, in Europe sales of sugar and gum confectionery remained stagnant over the years from 2008 to 2011, from EUR8.6bn in 2008 to an estimated EUR8.9bn in 2011.
Of the European markets, sales were under the greatest pressure in mature markets. For instance, while Germany remains the largest market in Europe, it has seen sales drop from EUR3.8bn in 2008 to EUR3.6bn in 2011.
Meanwhile, the UK market has remained stable at around EUR1.8bn during the same period, while France saw only modest growth from EUR1.4bn to EUR1.5bn in 2011.
However, it's not all bad news for the confectionery industry. Mintel's research shows Europe has been active in new product launches for the sector, accounting for over a quarter (27%) of global product launches during January 2011 to June 2011. It is clear then that marketing and innovation for many confectioners has been key.
ISM will be a platform for exhibitors to show off the latest trends and themes in innovation that may shape the future of the global confectionery scene. For many, it will be an opportunity to generate new business or attempt to open up new export markets.Confectioners will no doubt be keen to ride any sugar-coated wave that passes them.
just-food will be bringing you exclusive news and views from ISM, so check the site for updates.
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LiveRamp is distancing itself from location data.
AdExchanger has learned that in Q4 2019, the onboarder offloaded the location data-related portion of the business it got along with its 2016 acquisition of Arbor. Cuebiq, a location-intelligence company, bought the assets.
LiveRamp is keeping the rest of the Arbor business, which includes technology to connect first-party web and app data with unique hashed identifiers.
Both Cuebiq and LiveRamp confirmed the transaction.
The location data business has been getting a little hairy from a privacy perspective.
Geolocation data is covered under the California Consumer Privacy Act and under the General Data Protection Regulation in Europe; smartphone-derived location data is the target of scathing news reports; and new iOS features are coming out that aim to cut down on location tracking.
LiveRamp acquired Arbor, a marketplace for first-party publisher and app data, in November 2016, the same day it announced its intention to acquire Circulate, a startup that helps app developers monetize their user data. It spent $140 million to buy both companies.
Cuebiq bought Arbor’s location assets for a lot less.
Antonio Tomarchio, Cuebiq’s CEO, declined to comment on either the size of the transaction or the size of the location business it acquired from LiveRamp. But a source with knowledge of the deal told AdExchanger that Cuebiq paid somewhere in the neighborhood of $200,000, and that Arbor’s location-data business was worth less than $1 million a year to LiveRamp.
“We sold off our data manufacturing business and focused our strategy on operating a neutral and open marketplace to connect high-quality, ethically-sourced data sources with data buyers,” Howe said.
The sale of Arbor’s location data-related contracts to Cuebiq, which Howe called “a very insignificant legacy data business,” is in line with that strategy.
LiveRamp positions itself as a neutral and agnostic party that facilitates identity resolution but doesn’t actually own any data assets.
By the same token, it doesn’t make sense for LiveRamp to expose itself from a privacy perspective for an asset that brings in such a small amount of revenue and isn’t core to the business.
From Cuebiq’s perspective, the deal helps bolster its offline measurement capabilities.
“The rationale is to expand and strengthen our partnership with LiveRamp on … media agnostic offline measurement,” Tomarchio said.
Demand-side clients of Arbor’s location business became Cuebiq clients as part of the deal, and Cuebiq subsequently terminated any supply-side app partnerships that were in place since it already has direct app relationships through its own software development kit integrations.


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How The Invasion Of Ukraine May Affect Your Business
Manufacturing companies across the nation are experiencing kickback from the invasion of Ukraine by Russia due to the disruption of global supply chains. Since sanctions have been imposed, the Russian railways’ utilization for freight services is now non-existent, fuel prices are skyrocketing, and air freight rates are increasing due to limited air capacity. Considering both countries are responsible for producing and transporting key material to the United States, your organization may also experience problems within your supply chain.
Last year major manufacturers were finally getting back into the groove of things as trade became easier despite the world recovering from the pandemic. The unemployment rate decreased, shortages were a thing in the past, and cost was average. However, inflation has increased tremendously since the war, with companies suspending shipments to and from Russia, surging demand for goods, and spiked production costs. Here’s how your business may be affected by the invasion of Ukraine if it hasn’t already.
Ukraine and Russia supply essential goods into the U.S., like sunflower oil, used in potato chips and cosmetics, and neon gas, platinum, aluminum, and steel. Large manufacturers worldwide depend on these critical materials to produce the products they sell. Without the supply, companies are experiencing a decrease in production and profit. Automotive companies like BMW and Volkswagen are already feeling the effect. Since there was a shortage of parts, these companies were forced to close facilities, laying off thousands of workers.
Cargo flights have been canceled or forced to reroute to avoid hitting war territory. This has created a significant delay in supplies across the nation. Some flights have been canceled due to safety concerns, while others have been forced to cancel due to Russia cutting off shipping routes. These areas have also been the key spot for attacks and ship arrests, creating extremely dangerous territories throughout trade routes. In addition, with a flying ban currently in place, freight flights are forced to take longer alternate routes, resulting in increased fuel costs.
As the supply chain tightens, prices will continue to rise. Americans have seen a considerable spike in gas prices and grocery items across the country, and based on how long the war lasts, the Summer Wheat Harvest may also be threatened. This means businesses could experience a shortage of bread, pasta, and packaged goods, and once they receive those goods, they could be forced to jack up the price before selling it to the consumer.
How Manufacturing Companies Can Stay Ahead
With no knowledge of when the war will end. Companies should begin enforcing supply chain strategies to prepare for worst-case scenarios. A few ways companies can stay ahead of the curb:
- Build a pipeline of qualified candidates to help with any staffing needs that may occur
- Stress test supply trains to make them more resilient to risks
- Put plans in place now to begin reducing costs amongst the organization
Let’s put a recruitment strategy together. Contact us today to discuss industrial staffing for your company.


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NEO Battery Materials signs MOU with Automobile & PCB Inc.
by CM Staff
The MOU establishes strategic investment and cooperation between NEO and A&P to advance the Korean mass production facility of NEO’s silicon anode materials for electric vehicle (EV) lithium-ion batteries.
VANCOUVER — NEO Battery Materials Ltd. announces that the Company has signed a Strategic Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Automobile & PCB Inc. on June 7th. The MOU establishes strategic investment and cooperation between NEO and A&P to advance the Korean mass production facility of NEO’s silicon anode materials for electric vehicle (EV) lithium-ion batteries.
A&P is a public company listed on the KOSPI, the main board of the Korea Exchange. In 2021, A&P has recorded annual revenues of CAD $70M with its automotive parts business, and its related company, Yongsan, generated automotive parts manufacturing revenues of CAD $600M in 2021. Yongsan possesses 17 production sites across 5 countries including South Korea, China, the U.S., Mexico, and India, and it employs ~3,300 workers across the company’s global network.
Through this strategic MOU, NEO and A&P will pursue cooperation to construct NEO’s Silicon Anode Commercial Plant in South Korea by attracting strategic investments to NBM Korea Co. Ltd., a wholly owned subsidiary of NEO. A&P will actively support NEO in its commercialization efforts, and both parties have established a top priority of pursuing strategic investments into NBM Korea.
Both parties have also agreed to take advantage of the network of A&P’s related companies, YSP and Yongsan, to strengthen NEO’s global business network. Through its reported product quality and management, Yongsan is a vendor to Hyundai, Kia Motors, Suzuki, Geely Auto, and BYD Auto.
Mr. Spencer Huh, President and CEO of NEO, commented, “Through this MOU, NEO Battery Materials is closer to completing the initial strategic financing through NBM Korea. We are very excited to establish a practical business relationship with A&P in South Korea. A&P has been in the automotive industry for more than 45 years through its direct and related companies. We strongly believe that we could secure the first and meaningful financing shortly.”


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The Oppo F19 series device had hit the global market earlier this year. Now the company is preparing to launch the special edition Oppo F19s of this series during the festive season in India.
As we all know that Oppo had introduced the Oppo F19 series in India earlier this year. Now the company is preparing to launch a special edition of this series in the Indian market during the festive season, which will be named Oppo F19s. Apart from this, no information has been received regarding the launch, price and features of the special edition.
The Oppo F19 smartphone is available in the Indian market with a starting price of Rs 18,990. It is expected that the price of Oppo F19s Special Edition can also be kept around Rs 18,000.
Specifications of Oppo F19
We do not know about anything about the specifications. We can expect almost all the features of the Special Edition to be similar to the Oppo F19 model.
Oppo F19 has a 6.43-inch Full HD Plus AMOLED display. It has a refresh rate of 60Hz and a screen-to-body ratio of 90.8 percent. The punch-hole selfie camera has been given in the top left side of this device. Apart from this, the phone could have Snapdragon 662 processor, 6GB RAM and 128GB internal storage, which can be increased with the help of micro SD card.
Equipped with triple rear camera setup
We all know that Oppo F19 smartphone is equipped with triple rear camera setup. It has a primary sensor of 48MP. While as other sensor it can get 2MP depth sensor and macro lens. Apart from this, a 16MP camera has been given for selfie in the phone.
Battery and connectivity
The 5000mAh battery is present in the Oppo F19 smartphone. Its battery supports 33W fast charging. Along with this, the phone has dual SIM, 4G LTE, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 5.1, GPS, 3.5mm headphone jack and USB Type-C port. At the same time, the weight of this phone is 175 grams.


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Mega-investor Warren Buffett says that Apple’s most recent earnings confirm “the reason [my firms owns] $50 billion-plus of Apple.”
Speaking on CNBC, the Berkshire Hathaway investor said that, “I was pleased with what they reported.”
It’s no mystery why. Approaching $1 trillion valuation once more, Apple stock is up more than 32% this year. At the end of 2018, Buffett’s firm owned more than $40 billion of the company. Since then, it seems that it may have racked up even bigger AAPL holdings.
The Warren Buffett effect
Warren Buffett’s Apple fandom is even more significant since he historically steered clear of technology stocks. However, he thankfully made an exception in this case. That hasn’t just benefitted Buffett, but also Apple shareholders in general.
By holding on to AAPL even when it’s had setbacks, the stock has experienced the “Warren Buffett effect.” This has enhanced stability by convincing other shareholders to hang around when they’ve gotten jumpy.
Buffett is the ideal investor for Apple. Publicly, he sings the company’s praises at nearly every turn. Behind the scenes, he’s far less of an activist investor than the likes of Carl Icahn. Icahn made over $3.4 billion investing in the company a few years back. Unlike Icahn, Buffett has never tried to push Apple to make changes.
Buffett also revealed that he has bought some Amazon stock. As the second company to hit $1 trillion last year, that sounds an equally shrewd move.


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Eli Lilly has won a small victory in its defence of Strattera’s patent after a judge in the US District Court in New Jersey placed a temporary ban on the sale of copycat forms of the attention deficit hyperactivity disorder drug.
The company has reportedly won a two-week breather from the launch of generic versions of Strattera (atomoxetine) to allow it to seek further injunctions from the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, given that the District judge denied Lilly’s primary request for a ban until the patent suit is settled.
The Indianapolis-based drugmaker could be facing generic competition far sooner than expected for Strattera, second-quarter sales of which topped $142 million, after a US court ruled earlier this month that a key patent protecting the drug is invalid.
The Court ruled against the company in its litigation with generic drugmaker Actavis over the validity of Lilly's ‘590, or method-of-use, patent on Strattera, which had originally been expected to expire in 2017.
Lilly has said it will be taking “every reasonable step” to protect its intellectual property rights, but given the threat of near-term generic competition has cut its sales forecast to growth in the low-to-mid single digits from its previous mid-single digits estimate.


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Passenger center to be built at Keleti
GTS Productions / Shutterstock.com
In order to serve passengers more comfortably, a passenger center will be built by the end of next summer at the 136-year-old Keleti (Eastern) Railway Station, which is used by nearly 11 million people annually, MÁV has announced on its website, Világgazdaság (Global Economy) says.
Photo: GTS Productions / Shutterstock.com
The barrier-free passenger center will be implemented below the platform level, with the complete reconstruction of the current domestic cash desks and the 1,542 sqm surrounding area.
In the 200-250 sqm customer space, the railway company will create nine new cash registers and two new customer service jobs, one of which will be a workplace for disabled workers.
In addition to domestic and international ticket sales, there will be an information and customer service office, and a service sales office will be available for passengers to handle group travel needs.
Waiting areas, a children’s corner and a security guard desk will also be located in the passenger center.
Subject to the success of the conditional export procurement procedure launched yesterday, construction may begin at the end of 2020, and is expected to be completed in the second half of 2021, the economic daily notes.
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The good news for Stadia hardware owners is that the gamepad won’t become ‘wasteful’ after Google kills the service.
According to The Gamer, Google is making good on its rumored commitment to ‘save’ the Stadia controller, making it compatible with other platforms starting next week, starting right on January 18 when Stadia ceased operations.
The Stadia Controller will be usable on other devices through the release of a Bluetooth-enabled tool. The developers still seem to be working on some issues but haven’t shared much, but this means players won’t have to return the controller for a refund once Stadia is down, allowing them to continue playing the game and the device does not become useless.
The good news was briefly shared by the Stadia account on Twitter: “Next week, we will be releasing a tool to enable Bluetooth connectivity on your Stadia controller.”
Of course, there are many questions surrounding the new move from Google, such as whether this controller is compatible with PlayStation and Xbox. But Stadia’s team says they can’t share details about that yet, so it remains to be seen how far the device’s capabilities will go after Stadia officially ‘goes into the past’.