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14ymedio, Juan Diego Rodríguez, Havana, 19 January 2023 — On the day following its opening, which was announced with great fanfare by the official press on Tuesday, the shop owned by the Thaba company in the Havana district of Cerro was already being subjected to an audit. This opening had brought with it much expectation as it was anticipated that there would be items such as gloves on sale, or masks, backpacks or caps — things that are very difficult to find on the Island — at low prices and in pesos.
“You can’t buy anything at the moment because they’re auditing the shop”, explained the man calling himself the administrator as he stood in the shop doorway on Wednesday and addressed the crowd that had gathered there since the early hours. And then he added, grumpily, in the manner of an official from the Ministry of the Interior, that: “You can come in and have a look but you mustn’t interrupt in any way what they’re doing in there”.
The majority of those who were waiting turned away, but others, curious, accepted the offer. Inside the tiny shop a number of them took out their phones to take photos of the products and their prices but they were sternly warned by an employee: “You can take photos but you mustn’t put them on social media”.
A modern electronic register stood out on the counter. Payments can’t be made in cash, the employees explained, but only by using the EnZona or TransferMovil apps.
The main attraction of the shop is, without a doubt, rubber gloves (at 70 pesos), unavailable in Cuba for a long time. Apart from that, the range is limited to several backpacks, a few caps — all with Cuban flags — and masks.
To the disappointment of those who entered, the facemasks weren’t the surgical type — despite the fact that hundreds of thousands of the nationally produced blue masks (azulitas) are piled up in state producer Gardis’s warehouse — but instead they are cloth ones, and priced at 30 pesos each.
In the shop, a leather apron reaches 1,400 pesos, whilst a belt, of the kind worn by dock workers and heavy goods handlers, costs 400, a bag 800 and a durable small suitcase, 2,000.
Everything comes from the state company Thaba, dedicated to the production, in different factories across the country, of “protective equipment of all kinds”, including gloves, aprons, wristbands, bags, sunshades and tents. The company has also been designated to produce baseball gloves.
“So many potbellies came here yesterday for this nonentity?” a woman commented as she left the shop, disillusioned, alluding to the high functionaries who inaugurated the shop on Tuesday, including the first secretary of Havana, Luis Antonio Torres Iríbar. “Soon they’ll even be inaugurating with big fanfares a state shopping trolly full of Slushie drinks”.
Located in Calle Suzarte, in the district of Palatino, the establishment’s objective is, according to Tribuna de La Habana, “to satisfy the population’s needs, looking for ways to make prices competitive”. The official statement emphasises this last point, reiterating that costs will be “overall lower than the informal market, those of the TCP (self employed workers) and the new types of non-state management”.
The opening of a new pesos shop in the middle of an economic crisis which is gripping the Island is an increasingly rare event. If we add the presence of the highest party leader in the city, the expectation created among potential customers was quite high, but it only took a few hours for any excitement to disappear.
The parade of officials didn’t end with Torres Iríbar: on Wednesday, the Minister for Communications, Mayra Arevich Marín, visited the shop “to test the use of electronic payments in Cuban pesos, facilitated via the platforms Transfermóvil and Enzona”, according to the Thaba company’s Facebook page.
On the same day that Arevich congratulated the employees on their skill with the payment technology, a dozen customers became frustrated outside the shop doorway because an audit was stopping the sale of goods inside. “What starts badly, ends badly”, concluded an elderly man who decided to retrace his steps and come back another day.
Translated by Ricardo Recluso
COLLABORATE WITH OUR WORK: The 14ymedio team is committed to practicing serious journalism that reflects Cuba’s reality in all its depth. Thank you for joining us on this long journey. We invite you to continue supporting us by becoming a member of 14ymedio now. Together we can continue transforming journalism in Cuba.


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Apple Has Received More Online Orders for New MacBook Pro Than Any Previous Generation
In a wide-ranging interview with The Independent, Apple marketing chief Phil Schiller said the company has received more online orders for the new MacBook Pro so far than any previous-generation MacBook Pro.
And we are proud to tell you that so far our online store has had more orders for the new MacBook Pro than any other pro notebook before. So there certainly are a lot of people as excited as we are about it.
Schiller said the early criticism and debate about the new MacBook Pro has been "a bit of a surprise" to him, but said "that's cool" and common for new Apple products. He attributed the response to a "passionate" customer base.
Are you surprised by how vocal the critics have been?
To be fair it has been a bit of a surprise to me. But then, it shouldn’t be. I have never seen a great new Apple product that didn’t have its share of early criticism and debate — and that’s cool. We took a bold risk, and of course with every step forward there is also some change to deal with. Our customers are so passionate, which is amazing.
We care about what they love and what they are worried about. And it's our job to help people through these changes. We know we made good decisions about what to build into the new MacBook Pro and that the result is the best notebook ever made, but it might not be right for everyone on day one. That’s okay, some people felt that way about the first iMac and that turned out pretty good.
Schiller went on to say the new MacBook Pro is "the best notebook ever made," but admitted it "might not be right for everyone on day one."
I hope everyone gets a chance to try it for themselves and see how great the MacBook Pro is. It is a really big step forward and an example of how much we continue to invest in the Mac. We love the Mac and are as committed to it, in both desktops and notebooks, as we ever have been.
Whereas some companies are blurring the lines between notebooks and tablets, Schiller said the basic L shape "makes perfect sense and won't go away."
You have a surface that you type down on with your hands, with a screen facing you vertically. That basic orientation, that L shape makes perfect sense and won’t go away. The team came up with this idea that you can create a multi-touch surface that’s coplanar with the keyboard and the trackpad but brings a whole new experience into it, one that’s more interactive, with multi-touch.
That response is part of Apple's belief that the Mac and iOS devices are "fundamentally two different products."
Here’s one example of how they should remain distinct: the Mac from the very first has had a menu bar fixed at the top. It’s core to the identity and the experience you get. But iOS doesn’t have a menu at the top. It never will. The thought of pointing at a menu at the top of an iPhone feels wrong.
If you made the Mac a touchscreen you’d have to figure out how to make it a good experience with your finger on a touchscreen. Trust me, we’ve looked at that — it’s a bad experience. It’s not as good or as intuitive as with a mouse and trackpad.
Also interesting: Schiller noted the new MacBook Pro still has a 3.5mm headphone jack because it is a "pro machine," but lacks an SD card reader because it's a "cumbersome" slot best left to adapters or wireless transfers.

domain: news


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Wed 16 January 2019
Hashtag Golf Travel is part of the Hashtag Travel Group, based in Dunmow High Street.
the award from TV presenters Steve Rider and Ela Clark, director Neil
Bird said: “This is truly remarkable. For such a new company to win such
a prestigious award is fantastic. To be up against 34 worthy nominees
and to still win, I just cannot believe it.
“For our customers and
industry peers to vote for us shows that we are succeeding to
continually offer great value holidays, luxury products and excellent
service to every customer that we speak to. We would like to thank
everyone who took the time and voted for us.”
Global Event Partner
Official Media Partner


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We've seen some interesting devices coming out of the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona and the small Ubuntu-powered Qbo robot is just one them.
Linux fans already kind of knew what to expected to see in Barcelona. Many Ubuntu fans were looking to check out the first Meizu MX4 Ubuntu Edition phone and their curiosity was satisfied, but now we have something that it's equally interesting, and that is a small robot.
As CIO Journal has noted, Mr. Shuttleworth envisions the rise of an Ubuntu-powered phone that runs desktop grade applications and plugs into peripherals such as large displays and keyboards. In other words, he is working to achieve true mobile-desktop-laptop convergence — the only computer you need, in your pocket, all the time. He tried to raise $32 million to fund development of such a phone, known as the Edge, in a widely publicized crowdfunding campaign on Indiegogo. The campaign ended in 2013, short of its goal.
Ubuntu 15.04 is here – almost. The first beta of Vivid Vervet has been delivered, and with it have come images of the penguin flock that nestles on this OS.
I looked at Xubuntu, Kubuntu, Ubuntu GNOME and Ubuntu MATE but there’s also Lubuntu and the China-centric Ubuntu Kylin, which I didn’t test.
These are beta releases and should be considered for testing purposes only, but the advantage of these early versions is that features have been frozen and you can get an early glimpse of what's coming for each of the popular flavours in the 15.04 foundation. From this point on, the only changes will be bug fixes.
Everyone loves clouds these days. But telecomm companies are understandably cautious about entrusting their technology to the cloud. Wouldn't you be if a failure mean dropping phone or data services to millions of customers? Still, Juniper Networks and Canonical, Ubuntu Linux's parent company are certain they can devise a carrier-grade OpenStack cloud for virtualizing core networks and network functions.
By now, most of you have likely heard about the new Ubuntu phone selling out fairly quickly after its release. In a crowded mobile market, any new entries to the smart phone operating system space must find their niche fairly quickly. We've seen how failing to address this can lead to mediocre results with Windows Phones.
In this article, we'll examine the existing challenges the new mobile player faces and what they can do about it.


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THAILAND: Government incentives to help Toyota transfer pickup production from Japan
The Thai government’s board of investment will give Toyota tax and other incentives to move its global pickup truck manufacturing base from Japan to Thailand, local reports said. The board said this week that Toyota will invest nearly $US1 billion over the next two years to transfer the facility. It also mentioned the creation of 3,000 jobs for Thais.
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Lucky's Market, which bills itself as "organic for the 99%," is coming to Lexington.
According to a building permit issued by the city on Aug. 18, Lucky's plans to remodel the former Winn-Dixie supermarket at 1030 South Broadway at a proposed construction cost of $784,042 and hopes to have the new store open in early 2016.
Lucky's Market, which has headquarters in Niwot, Colo., is a natural foods store founded by two chefs in 2003 that focuses on community, according to its website. It often revives defunct buildings and has a strong emphasis on locally produced food and on charity involvement.
Lucky's did not immediately return a call for comment.
This will be the second Lucky's Market in Kentucky. There is one in Louisville.
Lucky's Market typically offers produce, baked goods, meats, seafood, dairy, private label products including coffee, a deli counter for sandwiches and prepared foods, plus beer, wine and spirits.
The spot in Lexington, which has been vacant for years, is owned by the Teachers' Retirement System. At one time, the STEAM Academy, a partnership between the University of Kentucky and Fayette County Public Schools was slated to go in the building. But the sale of the building fell through.
Lexington's Lucky's Market location is near the UK campus as well as several corridors of student apartments.


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Mapped: America’s Entrepreneurial Spirit During COVID-19
Despite the risks of opening a business during a global pandemic, new data from the U.S. Census Bureau reveals that the entrepreneurial spirit is alive and well in the United States.
In total, there were 492,133 new business applications in January 2021—an increase of over 73% year-over-year (YoY).
The region with the highest growth rate was the South at 84% with more than 220,000 new business applications in the region in January of this year. Mississippi had the highest percent increase at 164%, with over 6,000 new applications in January 2021.
Here’s a closer look at the number of total applications by state and region:
Notably, new business applications have soared in the last month or so, bouncing back from a dip between July and December 2020.
The growth rate from December 2020 to January 2021 stood at 42.6%, with the biggest change happening in the Midwest, where applications have gone up 48.6%. Here’s a look at the biggest changes in applications by region since December 2020:
|Region||Number of Applications in January 2021||Percentage Change from December 2020|
Note: Business applications are measured by collecting data on new applications for Employer Identification Numbers with the U.S. government.
Opportunity Out of Crisis
Prior to the pandemic, new business startups were actually on the decline, but in times of crisis there is often opportunity.
People have become wildly innovative during COVID-19, partly because they were forced to do so due to job or income loss. Economists call this ‘creative destruction,’ wherein new innovation springs up because of the failure of particular industries or businesses.
Here’s a look at new business applications by industry.
|Industry||Number of New Business Applications (Jan. 2021)|
|Transportation and Warehousing||41,320|
|Accommodation and Food Services||27,409|
|Health Care and Social Assistance||27,266|
|Finance and Insurance||22,607|
|Arts and Entertainment||14,407|
|Management of Companies||4,273|
Creative destruction has been keenly exemplified in the rise of remote and digital services over traditional brick and mortar stores. In fact, the industry with the highest number of new business applications in January 2021 was retail services, mostly online, with over 101,000 applications.
Feeling the Entrepreneurial Spirit?
As business applications are on the rise, more jobs could potentially be created in the U.S., and competition will likely increase as well. While starting a business during COVID-19 is risky, it could have immense payoffs for the individuals involved and the overall economy.
In fact, a piece from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce actually recommends specific business ideas that are ‘pandemic-friendly.’ Among many virtually-based ideas, the list includes:
- Digital marketing
- App development
- Fitness and wellness services
- Box subscription services
Perhaps, for digitally minded entrepreneurs, there has never been a better time to start a business.
30 Years of Gun Manufacturing in America
The U.S. has produced nearly 170 million firearms over the past three decades. Here are the numbers behind America’s gun manufacturing sector.
30 Years of Gun Manufacturing in America
While gun sales have been brisk in recent years, the uncertainty surrounding COVID-19 was a boon for the gun industry.
From 2010-2019, an average of 13 million guns were sold legally in the U.S. each year. In 2020 and 2021, annual gun sales sharply increased to 20 million.
While the U.S. does import millions of weapons each year, a large amount of firearms sold in the country were produced domestically. Let’s dig into the data behind the multi-billion dollar gun manufacturing industry in America.
Gun Manufacturing in the United States
According to a recent report from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), the U.S. has produced nearly 170 million firearms over the past three decades, with production increasing sharply in recent years.
America’s gunmakers produce a wide variety of firearms, but they’re generally grouped into five categories; pistols, rifles, shotguns, revolvers, and everything else.
Below is a breakdown of firearms manufactured in the country over the past 30 years, by type:
|Year||Pistols||Rifles||Revolvers||Shotguns||Misc. Firearms||Total Firearms|
Pistols (36%) and rifles (35%) are the dominant categories, and over time, the former has become the most commonly produced firearm type.
In 2001, pistols accounted for 21% of firearms produced. Today, nearly half of all firearms produced are pistols.
Who is Producing America’s Firearms?
There are a wide variety of firearm manufacturing companies in the U.S., but production is dominated by a few key players.
Here are the top 10 gunmakers in America, which collectively make up 70% of production:
|Rank||Firearm Manufacturer||Guns Produced (2016-2020)||Share of total|
|1||Smith & Wesson Corp||8,218,199||17.2%|
|2||Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc||8,166,448||17.1%|
|3||Sig Sauer Inc||3,660,629||7.7%|
|5||0 F Mossberg & Sons Inc||2,223,241||4.7%|
|6||Taurus International Manufacturing||1,996,121||4.2%|
|7||WM C Anderson Inc||1,816,625||3.8%|
|9||Henry RAC Holding Corp||1,378,544||2.9%|
|10||JIE Capital Holdings / Enterprises||1,258,969||2.6%|
One-third of production comes from two publicly-traded parent companies: Smith & Wesson (NASDAQ: SWBI), and Sturm, Ruger & Co. (NYSE: RGR)
Some of these players are especially dominant within certain types of firearms. For example:
- 58% of pistols were made by Smith & Wesson, Ruger, and SIG SAUER (2008–2018)
- 45% of rifles were made by Remington*, Ruger, and Smith & Wesson (2008–2018)
*In 2020, Remington filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, and its assets were divided and sold to various buyers. The Remington brand name is now owned by Vista Outdoor (NYSE: VSTO)
The Geography of Gun Manufacturing
Companies that manufacture guns hold a Type 07 license from the ATF. As of 2020, there are more than 16,000 Type 07 licensees across the United States.
Below is a state-level look at where the country’s licensees are located:
|State||Licenses (2000)||Licenses (2020)||Population||Licenses per 100,000 pop. (2020)|
These manufacturers are located all around the country, so these numbers are somewhat reflective of population. Unsurprisingly, large states like Texas and Florida have the most licensees.
Sorting by the number of licensees per 100,000 people offers a different point of view. By this measure, Wyoming, Montana, and Idaho come out on top.
If recent sales and production trends are any indication, these numbers may only continue to grow.
The World’s Largest Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs)
Real estate investment trusts (REITS) are a simple alternative for investors looking to gain exposure to real estate.
The World’s Largest Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs)
Real estate is widely regarded as an attractive asset class for investors.
This is because it offers several benefits like diversification (due to less correlation with stocks), monthly income, and protection from inflation. The latter is known as “inflation hedging”, and stems from real estate’s tendency to appreciate during periods of rising prices.
Affordability, of course, is a major barrier to investing in most real estate. Property markets around the world have reached bubble territory, making it incredibly difficult for people to get their foot in the door.
Thankfully, there are easier ways of gaining exposure. One of these is purchasing shares in a real estate investment trust (REIT), a type of company that owns and operates income-producing real estate, and is most often publicly-traded.
What Qualifies as REIT?
To qualify as a REIT in the U.S., a company must meet several criteria:
- Invest at least 75% of assets in real estate, cash , or U.S. Treasuries
- Derive at least 75% of gross income from rents, interest on mortgages, or real estate sales
- Pay at least 90% of taxable income in the form of shareholder dividends
- Be a taxable corporation
- Be managed by a board of directors or trustees
- Have at least 100 shareholders after one year of operations
- Have no more than half its shares held by five or fewer people
Investing in a REIT is similar to purchasing shares of any other publicly-traded company. There are also exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and mutual funds which may hold a basket of REITs. Lastly, note that some REITs are private, meaning they aren’t traded on stock exchanges.
The Top 10 by Market Cap
Here are the world’s 10 largest publicly-traded REITs, as of March 25, 2022.
|REIT||Market Cap||Dividend Yield||Property Type|
|Prologis (NYSE: PLD)||$116.4B||2.03%||Industrial|
|American Tower (NYSE: AMT)||$109.8B||2.38%||Communications|
|Crown Castle (NYSE: CCI||$76.8B||3.35%||Communications|
|Public Storage (NYSE: PSA)||$65.9B||2.14%||Self-storage|
|Equinix (NYSE: EQIX)||$64.4B||1.74%||Data centers|
|Simon Property Group (NYSE: SPG)||$48.9B||5.07%||Malls|
|Welltower (NYSE: WELL)||$43.0B||2.58%||Healthcare|
|Digital Realty (NYSE: DLR)||$40.1B||3.55%||Data centers|
|Realty Income (NYSE: O)||$40.1B||4.44%||Commercial|
|AvalonBay Communities (NYSE: AVB)||$34.6B||2.62%||Residential|
As shown above, REITs focus on different sectors of the market. Understanding their differences is an important step to consider before making an investment.
For example, Prologis manages the world’s largest portfolio of logistics real estate. This includes warehouses, distribution centers, and other supply chain facilities around the globe. It’s reasonable to assume that this REIT would benefit from further growth in ecommerce—more on this near the end.
Realty Income, on the other hand, owns a portfolio of over 11,100 commercial real estate properties in the U.S. and Europe. It rents these properties out to major brands like Walgreens and 7-Eleven, which together account for 8.1% of the REIT’s annual income.
More Than Just Buildings
Cell towers and data centers may not seem like “real estate”, but they are both critical pieces of modern infrastructure that take up land.
REITs that focus on these sectors include American Tower and Crown Castle, which own wireless communications assets in the U.S. and abroad. They are likely to benefit from the increased adoption of 5G networks and the Internet of Things (IoT).
On the other hand, Equinix and Digital Realty are focused on data centers, a fast growing industry that is benefitting from digitalization. Both of these REITs work with major tech firms such as Amazon and Google.
Trends to Watch
The demand for real estate can be heavily influenced by overarching trends found around the world. One of these is population growth and urbanization, which has drastically pushed up the cost of housing in many cities around the world.
There’s also the rising prevalence of ecommerce, which has triggered a boom in demand for warehouse space. This is best captured by Amazon’s massive growth during the COVID-19 pandemic, during which the company doubled the number of its warehouse facilities.
Globally, ecommerce accounts for just 19.6% of total retail sales. Should that figure continue to rise, industrial real estate prices could be in store for robust, long-term growth.
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Hyundai Motor Co. and General Motors Co. say they are moving forward with the development of flying vehicles.
Hyundai is ahead of its previously announced plan for introducing air-mobility cars, according to Jose Munoz, the company's world chief operating officer, in an interview broadcast at the Reuters Events Car of the Future conference.
Munoz, who is also the chief executive of Hyundai North America, said urban air taxis will be operational at big U.S. airports by 2028, if not sooner. He told Reuters it may happen before 2025.
"We see this market as a significant growth opportunity," Munoz said, adding he was "very confident" of the technology's development.
Hyundai is developing air taxis powered by electric batteries that can transport five to six people from congested urban centers to airports.
"I think that there's a long pathway here," Pamela Fletcher, vice president of General Motors Corp.'s innovation team, said at the event. "2030 is probably a real commercial inflection point."
General Motors unveiled a futuristic flying Cadillac, a self-driving vehicle that transports passengers above the streets and through the air, during the CES 2021 event in January.
The single-passenger Cadillac - officially a vertical takeoff and landing drone - will be able to travel at speeds of up to 55 miles per hour.
According to Munoz, Hyundai envisions its flying vehicles not only servicing residential consumers but also hauling commercial cargo. Hyundai does not want to sell flying cars as a simple transaction, but rather believes it can build services around the vehicles, he added
A number of startups, as well as aviation and vehicle manufacturers, are working on zero-emissions aircraft that can take off and land like helicopters and transport both people and freight. They will, however, have a long path to profitability.
Toyota, Daimler AG, and Geely Automobile Holdings are among the other manufacturers working on flying cars, either alone or in collaboration with startups.


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A café in Helsinki is adding some salty-sweet flavor to the meeting between Trump and Putin with a fusion “Trumputin” meal, featuring pancakes with salmon, onions, vanilla and berries on one plate.
Finnish authorities are gearing up to host the one-on-one meeting between Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump, having announced border closures and enhanced security measures.
Meanwhile, local businesses are trying to capitalize on the high-profile occasion, by coming up with new, politically themed, offerings for their customers.
One such business, Kaffekievari café, is promoting its brand new fusion meal called ‘Trumputin’ – a set of Russian blini and American pancakes served on one plate.
The salted blini is topped with smoked salmon, smetana (Russian sour cream), and chopped onion; while the American counterpart is quite the opposite, incorporating a pair of smaller-size pancakes powdered with sugar and berries, served alongside two scoops of vanilla ice cream.
The cafe itself says that the salty-sweet quality of the meal didn’t intend to be political.
The ‘Trumputin’ is about “benevolent humor,” Tiina Launonen of Kaffekievar told Helsingin Uutiset newspaper. “People say that salt and sweet cannot be on the same plate,” she said, adding that mixing sweet and salty was about the balancing flavors in a single meal.
Launonen believes the meal – which sells for around €14 ($16) – is well balanced. “The smaller size of the American pancakes was determined by the need to fit them on the same plate with the blini,” she explained.
While unconventional, the ‘Trumputin’ is not the only gastronomic specialty to emerge ahead of the Helsinki summit. The Rock Paper Scissors Indie Brewery, based in the eastern city of Kuopio, made a limited-edition beer dubbed ‘Let’s Settle This Like Adults.’
The beverage’s label shows Trump and Putin facing each other, fists raised, as both men ready themselves for a round of the very game after which the brewery was named – rock-paper-scissors.


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XL Capital Ltd Announces Approval For Integrated Reinsurance Platform in Europe
HAMILTON, BERMUDA - October 18, 2006
Hamilton, Bermuda - October 18, 2006 - XL Capital Ltd (NYSE: XL) ("XL") today announced that it has received approval for a new fully licensed European reinsurance company, XL Re Europe Limited, based in Dublin, which will be XL's European reinsurance platform. XL previously announced its plans to develop this platform on August 1, 2006.XL Re Europe Limited has been established with $1.5bn of capital and surplus, and Standard & Poor's has today confirmed that it will be rated A+, in line with XL's other Reinsurance entities.XL Re Europe Limited has formed two new branches in the UK and France to facilitate the assumption of business previously underwritten by the UK branch of XL Re Ltd and XL Re Europe SA.The non-life business of the UK branch of XL Re Ltd will be transferred into XL Re Europe Limited on January 1, 2007 under Part VII of the Financial Services & Markets Act 2000. This scheme has been approved by the High Court of Justice (UK). The business of XL Re Europe SA has been transferred to the new company under the "Transmission Universelle Du Patrimoine" (TUP) process.David Watson, previously XL Re Ltd's General Manager in London, has relocated to Dublin to become President and CEO of the new company. Mark Berry, previously head of XL Re Ltd's Special Risks underwriting department, is now General Manager in London, reporting to Mr. Watson. Other senior management, including the Chief Financial Officer and Chief Underwriting Officer, will be based in Dublin, along with underwriting and administrative teams.Jamie Veghte, Chief Executive of XL's Reinsurance General Operations, commented: "We welcome the announcement by Standard & Poor's today that XL Re Europe Limited will be rated A+, the same as our other XL Re companies. Our priority is to ensure that our clients will continue to benefit from our financial strength and high ratings. We are also very pleased to have our entire European operations under one unified management team led by David Watson. This will ensure consistency in our approach and a seamless delivery of products and services to the market."Further information can be seen at www.standardandpoors.com."XL Re" is the global brand used by XL Capital Ltd's reinsurance operations. The XL Re companies have more than 500 employees in 14 countries. More information about the XL Re companies is available at www.xlre.com. XL Capital Ltd, through its operating subsidiaries, is a leading provider of insurance and reinsurance coverages and financial products and services to industrial, commercial and professional service firms, insurance companies, and other enterprises on a worldwide basis. As of June 30, 2006, XL Capital Ltd had consolidated assets of approximately $58.5 billion and consolidated shareholders' equity of $8.5 billion. More information about XL Capital Ltd is available at www.xlgroup.com.
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Facebook has announced that it will be accepting applications for the prestigious Preferred Marketing Developer program. Facebook Studio is a place where agency work dealing with social media, specifically Facebook is showcased. The company has announced the openings and also introduced two updates to the process of becoming a PMD.
From now on, Facebook Studio will be transitioning towards a referral based system. This system requires established Facebook development companies and brands who have successfully worked with Facebook’s internal team will be given priority in the process. Priority will also be given to ads-qualified PMDS. This step is being taken because Facebook feels that only those companies that came recommended by a trusty and credible source, did well on the platform.
Another requirement is that only those companies which have worked and have deep knowledge across all areas on the Facebook platform will be chosen. They are thus looking for PMDs which has a holistic knowledge of the platform instead of concentrating on one area. The four key areas where PMDs require expertise and focus are Pages, Ads, Apps and Insights.
Those companies/agencies which do Facebook marketing with a holistic approach can try their hand at becoming a PMD which will ultimately get you greater recognition and thus business. You can check the whole thing out in the source link below.
Source | Facebook Studio Blog


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Eau Claire (WQOW) - Some of the biggest businesses in our area could be paying more in taxes under a new Wisconsin proposal.
The Republican proposal would close tax loopholes, and increase how much big-box stores would have to pay in property taxes.
The argument is whether the stores that are open, and thriving, should be taxed the same, or more, than a vacant building since a property tax is aimed at the brick and mortar, and not the success of the business.
Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle said it is an issue they don't want to have a negative impact on small businesses in our area.
"There is a balance here too," said Representative Dana Wachs. "We want to make darn sure that we are not driving retailers out of our communities. We just recently lost Marshall Fields (a company associated with Macy's). There has to be a fair and equitable way to address these issues."
Republican Representative Rob Summerfield told News 18 he hopes legislators on both sides are able to come up with a sensible solution.


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I’m not buying it. The latest round of rumors of a C7 mid-engined Corvette come from the same English car site that pushed the same story a year ago. This time, they took a quote from GM’s North American President Mark Reuss who said the next generation Corvette would be “completely different”. Reuss made the statement at the Corvette Assembly Plant last week where he announced the company would be investing $131 million to upgrade the plant.
As one of the commenter’s on their own site said, there’s no meat in this sandwich. Following the same logic, I could say ithe C7 is going to be made out of metal. After all, that’s “completely different” than the C6. Or how about a hybrid? See, I can speculate like that too!
Join me on twitter tonight at 9pm EST under the #motorama hash tag to discuss.
Photo Credit: conceptsalad.com


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Google has issued a written denial
of claims that its new-to-iOS "Google Now" feature, which relies heavily on Location Services, is causing unusual battery drains for iPhone users. The company recently added
the feature -- which attempts to predict what the user will ask based on location, direction and other factors and presents some useful information without user input -- to its Google search app
already available for iOS devices. In the statement, Google says both that reports of battery drain are "incorrect" but then asks for users to contact them if they are having a battery problem.


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Economic news has been largely doom and gloom over the past few years, but there are five reasons the Australian economy is moving toward happier days.
SME profits are on the rise, unemployment figures are steady and consumer confidence is on the up, collectively spelling good times in the future for Australian businesses.
SmartCompany consulted with chief economist and head of investment strategy at AMP Capital Investors, Shane Oliver, and looked into the key signs the economy is doing better.
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1. SME profits increasing
Australian SMEs are performing well with 54% posting profit increases in the six months to December.
The findings released yesterday by the Entrepreneurs’ Organisation reflected overall positivity among Australian SMEs in terms of market sentiment and net profits.
The survey indicated 82% of Australian EO members expected an increase in revenue growth in the next six months and 76% predicted an increase in net profits.
Oliver says the economic health of SMEs is vital to the Australian economy.
“SMEs are always important because that’s where the jobs and the growth and the profit increases come from.
“SMEs are the lifeblood of the economy. We were given a huge boost from the mining boom, but now it’s ending the focus will be back on the SMEs to drive the economy in the future,” he says.
Oliver says the profitability of SMEs and the recent survey have helped boost consumer confidence.
2. Consumer confidence rising
The Westpac consumer confidence survey released yesterday showed the biggest jump in consumer confidence since September 2011.
The February Westpac-Melbourne Institute consumer sentiment index shows confidence is up 7.7 points to a 108.3, its highest level in 26 months.
The biggest boost came from people aged 18-24, whose sentiment increased 32% on the index and sales and clerical staff also increased by the same amount.
Oliver says the rise in consumer confidence is influenced by a range of factors.
“I think it’s a combination of things, the economic impact from the European crisis (particularly in Spain and Italy) is fading and consumers are hearing more positive stories about China and the US and so the negativity is being removed.
“They’ve also noticed the size of the sharemarket increasing and the housing market is also doing well, adding to an increased feeling of household wellbeing.
“Lower interest rates over the past year have also contributed to this confidence. The older demographics living in the suburbs with a mortgage have had a huge boost from the low interest rates, so their finances are looking better,” he says.
This article continues on page 2. Please click below to keep reading.


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Penny-pinching Americans are getting cold feet at the checkout — thinking twice about spending and ditching items before they are rung up.
Shoppers are leaving sweaters in the dress department, dumping cookies near the grocery cashier and waiting until the last minute to weigh wants versus needs. Online, shoppers are abandoning their virtual carts as they search for better deals.
People “want to be in the act of shopping, but they don't want to be in the act of buying,” said Joel Bines, a director at AlixPartners, a turnaround consultant.
It means more lost sales for stores at a time when there are already fewer customers because of the recession. For bricks-and-mortar shops already working with fewer staff, it also means more work because orphaned items have to be restocked.
Hard numbers are difficult to come by, but Burt P. Flickinger III, a retail consultant, estimates that in 25 percent of shoppers' trips to the store, they are ditching at least one item. In the recession of the early 1990s, it was 15 percent to 20 percent. In good times, it's more like 10 percent.
Ashley Nichols Guttuso of Midlothian, Va., dumped a red cardigan last week at the counter at the local Limited store after she found out she couldn't use a $15 store coupon on the $15 sweater.
Guttuso, 27, said she could have afforded it, but she has focused on necessities since losing her job as a copywriter for Circuit City in January, as the chain was preparing to go out of business.
“I went in there thinking I could get something for free,” she said. “I couldn't rationalize it — even spending $15 to $20. I am watching everything now.”
Besides abandoning goods while standing in line, shoppers are paying close attention once checkout begins. They ask cashiers to provide a total while they are still scanning items to see where they stand, or to have necessities like health care basics scanned first, said Dan Fishback, chief executive of DemandTec, a retail technology company. When they hit their limit, they forgo what's left in the basket.
Lower credit limits also are contributing to the abandonment. Shoppers say credit card transactions are being denied if they go over their limit just a bit, said Ben Woosley, director of marketing and consumer research at CreditCards.com. In the past, issuers often would approve purchases up to 10 percent over the limit.
Web stores are taking a variety of steps to get consumers to complete purchases. They include sending e-mails to remind customers about abandoned items, simplifying the online checkout process and offering extra discounts to lasso would-be quitters.
Web retailers have always grappled with high abandonment rates because of confusion and technology glitches. Plus shoppers are less invested in the process because they didn't have to drive anywhere. But even online stores say orphaning has escalated.
Internet research company Forrester Research estimates as much as 59 percent of online purchases are being dumped during checkout. Those rates had ranged from 47 percent to 53 percent in the past six years, according to industry surveys.


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Internet search king Google has launched a free word processing and spreadsheet program that could dissuade computer users from shelling out for Microsoft’s Office desktop productivity package.
Dubbed Google Docs & Spreadsheets, the package blends the Writely online wordprocessing software, which Google bought in March, with spreadsheet software it debuted in June.
The software requires an internet-connected computer to work and runs within a web browser pointed at the docs.google.com address. Users must register with Google.
Google’s grab for an extra slice of computer desktop real-estate comes as Microsoft gears up for the simultaneous launch of its long-delayed Windows Vista operating system and Office 7.0 desktop applications suite. The Microsoft products are set for launch to business users in November and consumers in January.
Source: Australian IT
Related Links: Google Docs and Spreadsheets


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The people behind big game studios, classic franchises and indie hits are speaking out against President Trump's controversial Immigration Ban, sharing their stories and even publicly condemning the move.
The ban isn't just ideologically troubling, it's a practical issue for studios that employ people from all over the world and for indies that want to attend meetings or game events in the US.
Insomniac Games published a video statement on YouTube. Rami Ismail, one of the founders of Vlambeer, wrote a piece for The Guardian detailing both his personal experiences of being a Muslim in the games industry and the detrimental effect the ban could have on the creation of games.
"With many highly talented engineers coming from Middle Eastern countries, this not only limits the available talent pool, but also effectively prohibits travel for many workers in the US games industry," he writes.
Microsoft, home of the Xbox, has also criticised the ban, as have the organisers of the Game Developer Conference in San Francisco.
GDC is a global community - we're horrified by the #MuslimBan. Of course we'll refund affected attendees, and keep fighting for inclusivity.— Official_GDC (@Official_GDC) January 29, 2017
Other games developers have found practical ways to fight the ban, donating proceeds from the sales of their games to the American Civil Liberties Union. Cardboard Computer, maker of indie road trip adventure Kentucky Route Zero, has dropped the price of the game with all sales going to the ACLU. NYC-based mobile gaming studio Dots took the step of showing players a message when they open the game.
San Francisco studio Midboss also found a very direct way to make its feelings known.
If you voted for trump or support his facist regime please don't play our game.. Just go fuck off! 🙂— 2064: PS4/PC OUT NOW (@ROM2064) January 29, 2017
Its okay to not take money from bigots! There's billions of genuine, empathetic, real people who will still buy your stuff!— 2064: PS4/PC OUT NOW (@ROM2064) January 31, 2017


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Getting My Camera Drones To Work in Racine WI 53404
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Foxconn official promises news soon at Pence Wisconsin forum
they will hear "the actual news that the construction in Racine County will begin." Woo also praised Republican Gov. Scott Walker for putting together the deal to bring the Taiwan-based manufacturer to Wisconsin.
Foxconn executive: Construction on Racine County campus will begin soon
He said 10 percent of those Wisconsin-based companies are from Racine County, where the plant is being built. Woo did not reveal any of the companies’ names. Woo made the comments during a panel discussion in downtown Milwaukee promoting the newly ...
Racine woman charged in crash that seriously injured driver
RACINE — A Racine woman is facing charges after reportedly ... A preliminary hearing is scheduled for May 9 at the Law Enforcement Center, 717 Wisconsin Ave.
Foxconn exec at Mike Pence event: Donald Trump, Scott Walker led to us locate in Wisconsin
Foxconn plans to build a $10 billion facility in Racine County to manufacture liquid crystal display ... said 90 percent of the contractors that will build the facility will be from Wisconsin. Woo said Taiwan-based Foxconn, a contract manufacturer of ...
Foxconn exec: Scott Walker, Donald Trump policies led to us locating in Wisconsin
Foxconn plans to build a $10 billion facility in Racine County to build liquid crystal display screens. Woo also said 90 percent of the contractors that will build the facility will be from Wisconsin. Woo's appearance with Walker is notable in part because ...


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According to the latest information, Xiaomi’s upcoming Snapdragon 870 powered smartphone will use a 1080p+ resolution Huaxing Optoelectronics curved screen with a front punch hole. It will support a 120Hz refresh rate, built-in 5000mAh battery with 67W fast charge support.
JOIN XIAOMI ON TELGRAM
The tipster also reveals that the upcoming Xiaomi smartphone will be equipped with a 20MP front lens and a 108MP rear main camera, there seems to be a 3x telephoto lens.
At the moment, Xiaomi already has Redmi K40 and Mi 10S models which are equipped with Qualcomm Snapdragon 870 chip. Last month, it was reported that Xiaomi has separately filed two new mobile phones using the sm8250 SoC.
The Qualcomm Snapdragon 870 SoC is manufactured by TSMC and uses a 7nm process with a 1+3+4 cluster. The ultra-large core frequency can reach 3.2GHz, the large core frequency is 2.42GHz, and the small core frequency is 1.8GHz. The chip has a built-in Adreno 650 GPU, which is the same as the Snapdragon 865 Plus.
It is expected that the upcoming smartphone will be equipped with the above features, maybe the Redmi K50. However, there’s no official information regarding this. Stay tuned with us to know more information.


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TCM practitioner and rheumatism expert Zhou Naiyu always turned to tiger bone for her prescriptions in the 1980s. But the 1993 ban on trading in tiger products has led to this ingredient disappearing from TCM prescriptions.
But many doctors, like Beijing Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital's Zhou, continue to swear by its potency in strengthening bones and tendons and believe it has no substitutes.
Nevertheless, scientists have been trying to sniff out alternatives for tiger bone ever since the ban was imposed. The long list of candidates include dog bone and ginger. But the bone of a type of plateau rat has emerged as the most promising one to date.
Scientists from the Northwest Institute of Plateau Biology have said the bone structure and content of this rat are very much similar to tiger bone and even superior in some aspects.
The rat, called Sailong, is found on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. Sailong is seen as a pest in the plateau as it feeds on the roots of grass and breeds quickly. It has long been blamed for the depletion of the grasslands.
More than 20 years ago, Professor Zhang Baochen from the institute began to research the Sailong. He was amazed to find during his dissection of the rats that no cases of arthritis or other bone diseases had ever been identified in this species although the rats live in areas of low temperatures and high humidity.
Zhang said he realized that this rat's unique ability to fight rheumatism could hold hope for human beings afflicted with this disease.
Visits to nearby families bolstered Zhang's hypothesis. He found that locals used Sailong bones to treat the rheumatism women developed after delivery. Also, he found, since they often ate the rats they caught, they had very strong teeth.
The ban on tiger bone led Zhang to develop rat bone as a substitute for tiger bone.
Currently, Sailong bone wine is sold in drug stores for the same purpose that was once served by tiger bone wine to strengthen the bones.
A new drug combination of proteins extracts from Sailong bone and some rare herbs has shown promising results in treating rheumatism and bone diseases in clinical trials at nine prestigious hospitals in China, with no side effects being reported.
However, despite the efforts at finding substitutes, the glamorous image of tiger bone cherished by the people is hard to erase.
Recently, nature conservationists in China have been expressing worry over a resurgence of the trade in tiger parts.
Businessmen who stand to profit from such trade are putting increasing pressure on the Chinese government to overturn the ban, according to a new report from TRAFFIC, a wildlife trade monitoring network. It says that such a move will allow domestic trade in captive-bred tiger parts for use in traditional medicine, to resume.
Conservationists have said the 1993 ban was essential to prevent the extinction of tigers by curbing demand in what was historically the world's largest consumer in tiger parts.
Undercover surveys conducted by TRAFFIC late last year found little tiger bone available in China. Less than 3 percent of 663 medicine shops and dealers claimed to stock it, and most retailers were aware that tigers were protected and trade in tiger parts was illegal.
However, some illegal trade in tiger parts does exist. The report documented 17 instances of tiger bone wine for sale on Chinese auction websites, with one seller offering a lot of 5,000 bottles.
Last year, China Youth Daily reported that a wine company in south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region was quietly producing tiger bone wine calling it "Bone Strengthening Wine".
Of particular not is the fact that the number of captive-breeding tigers has increased rapidly and now stands at 4,000, according to Xu Hongfa, China Wildlife Trade Program Coordinator.
He said that original purpose of large-scale captive breeding was to put the tigers back into the wild, but it turned out to be an impossible task owing to their lack of hunting skills and appropriate habitats. So now these breeding centers are pushing for legalizing trade in tiger products from these facilities to compensate for the expenditure on the breeding.
Conservationists are strongly opposed to any lifting of the ban. "A legal market for tiger parts from captive-breeding centers could give a stimulus to the poachers to kill tigers in the wild as it is hard to distinguish which ones come from those in the wild and which from the breeding centers," said Xu.
So far there are only about 50 wild tigers in survival in China, distributed mainly in northeast China's Heilongjiang Province, southwest China's Yunnan Province and Tibet Autonomous Region.
Both conservationists and TCM practitioners agree that developing substitutes for parts from endangered species is of critical importance to both wildlife conservation and sustainable development of Chinese medicine.
The substitutes can come from non-endangered sources and also be synthetic alternatives. Synthetic bezoar and musk have already shown themselves to be nearly as effective as their natural counterparts. Trials on substitutes for two other critically endangered species, rhinoceros horns and saiga horns, are also being carried out.
However, TCM practitioners remain somewhat wary of substitutes as they believe the curative effect of an important ingredient has been tested through the centuries.
"Any substitution should be based on conditions of similar or same effects and no toxicity," said Shao Aijuan, a research fellow with the Institute of Materia Medica of the China Academy of Chinese Medical Science.
She quoted the case of a bad substitute. Mutong (Caulis Hocquariac manshuriensis), a rare medicinal herb, was once substituted by another ingredient called guanmutong which was cheaper and more easily available. In 2003, guanmutong contained in Long Dan Xie Gan Wan, a heat clearing Chinese medicine, was reported abroad to cause uremia. The use of guanmutong has since been banned.
According to Shao, her institute is currently establishing evaluation standards for TCM substitutes.
She said substitutes should not be such that they endanger other plants and animals in the wild.
(China Daily April 5, 2007)


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Topic: Apple TV
01/03/2012, 10:01 pm
Marissa Mayer, Google's Vice President of Location and Local Services, offered a glowing endorsement of Apple's AirPort wireless router products on her Google+ social network page, where she also notes that she uses multiple Apple TV in addition to Google's own set top boxes.
01/03/2012, 08:01 pm
A new report claims both Apple and Google are looking into placing bids for the TV rights to the next season of the English Premier League in order to bolster their respective Apple TV and Google TV platforms.
01/01/2012, 09:01 am
Hackers have developed a workaround that enables full-screen versions of iOS apps for the iPad to run on a jailbroken Apple TV device.
12/29/2011, 10:12 pm
Nintendo is quietly working on an application store for its Wii U console that would compete directly with Apple's Apple TV set-top box and iPad tablet when it arrives next year, according to a new report.
12/28/2011, 08:12 am
Rather than utilize off-the-shelf chips from a company such as Intel, Apple is expected to use its own custom-built chips like in the iPhone and iPad for its anticipated television set.
12/28/2011, 08:12 am
Apple's anticipated full-fledged television set could offer Internet-based content subscriptions with customized channel lineups, if the company has its way.
12/27/2011, 05:12 am
Apple's supply chain will begin preparing materials for an Apple-branded television set in the first quarter of next year in advance of a second or third quarter launch, a new report out of the Far East claims.
12/18/2011, 09:12 pm
Apple is said to be pushing forward with its plans to launch a full-fledged television set, holding meetings with media executives and sharing their vision for the future of the living room, including the possibility of storing recorded TV content in iCloud.
12/15/2011, 02:12 pm
Apple on Thursday released a new software update for its Apple TV set-top box, and also issued a tweaked version of iOS 5.0.1 for iPhone 4S users.
12/12/2011, 02:12 pm
While consistently branded as being a "hobby" for Apple, sales of its $99 Apple TV set top box had made it the most popular device in the category, predicted to sell nearly 4 million of the the nearly 12 million TV boxes in the market.
12/08/2011, 11:12 am
Apple TV users in Australia, Canada and the U.K. can now purchase and stream episodes of television shows directly to Apple's set-top box without the need for a computer.
12/08/2011, 12:12 am
Even as rumors of an Apple television set continue to swirl, Google Chairman Eric Schmidt has claimed that company's Google TV platform will be embedded on the "majority" of televisions in stores by next summer.
12/07/2011, 01:12 pm
Apple's first step toward building a full-fledged television set could be an all-in-one iMac with built in TV functionality, one analyst believes.
12/05/2011, 03:12 pm
Apple's full-fledged television set will arrive at the end of 2012 in three screen sizes, maxing out at 55 inches, a new rumor claims.
11/25/2011, 01:11 am
Apple's iPods, iPads, Apple TV and wireless base stations are all on sale this Friday, with savings of up to $45 on the iPad 2, $40 on the iPod touch and $49 on Time Capsules.
11/23/2011, 08:11 am
Commercial production of Apple's anticipated television set is expected to begin in February at a Sharp plant in Japan, while competing HDTV makers are reportedly desperate to find out just what Apple plans to sell.
11/18/2011, 01:11 pm
A new interview with the biographer of Steve Jobs reveals that before he died, the Apple co-founder had three things he wanted to reinvent: the television, textbooks and photography.
11/17/2011, 02:11 pm
Apple on Thursday released a software update identified as version 4.4.3 for its Apple TV set-top box, though what changes it includes are unknown.
11/15/2011, 09:11 pm
Apple has warned developers that its iTunes Connect tool for managing App Store titles will shut down December 22-29 as the company goes on holiday break, while retailers Amazon and Best Buy are preparing for the holidays by lowering the price of the Apple TV to $89.99. Also, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office issued a large batch of 30 patents to Apple on Tuesday.
11/12/2011, 05:11 am
Logitech has confirmed that it has no plans to release a new Google TV-based Revue after implementation mistakes surrounding the device cost the company $100 million in operating profits.


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A billionaire German sausage dynasty has bought British casing maker Devro in a £540m deal.
The Rethmann family controls Devro through its subsidiary Saria, which already owns Van Hessen sausage casings and meat products.
Sarria has committed to investing in the research and development of a wide range of products for Devro. It will maintain all seven of Devro’s manufacturing sites worldwide, along with its headquarters in Moodiesburn, Scotland.Read:BT to upgrade cost-savings target to £3bn as inflationary pressures bite | Business News
Shares in the Scottish company have risen to their highest level since 2015.
The Rethmanns are one of the richest families in Germany due to their conglomerate the Rethmann Group, which had revenues of €21 billion (£18 billion) last year. Its interests include food, agriculture, recycling, waste and logistics.
Sarria is one of the group’s three divisions and will have revenues of €3 billion in 2021. It has offered to pay Devro 316.1 pence per share, 65 per cent higher than the company’s share price of 192.0 pence at the close of business on November 24.
Van Hessen CEO Harald van Boxtel said the deal would bring together the two companies’ complementary products.
He said, “The joint business will be ideally positioned to achieve growth in both mature and emerging markets by maximizing the joint sales and distribution platform, improved R&D function and wider product range.Read:Supermarkets ‘taking advantage of customers’ with fuel prices ‘higher than they should be’ | Business News
“We are excited about the opportunity to invest further in Devro’s facilities and team for the long term and offer a range of benefits to employees, customers and suppliers alike.”
Steve Judd, Chairman of Devro, said: “Under Sarria ownership, the combined business will have an enhanced product offering; It would be a stronger and more diverse group in terms of size; We will look to further accelerate sustainable growth over the long term.”
It comes after European giant Danish Crown this week announced a £100m investment in the UK, revealing plans to build a state-of-the-art bacon and jamon plant in Rochdale.


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A record number of 963 plug-in, hybrid and petroleum-powered supercars attracted nearly 17,000 visitors to the Beaulieu Supercar Weekend car show at Britain’s National Motor Museum.
The show’s new EV Evolution feature showcased “lightning-fast” electric vehicles such as the BMW i8, Audi e-tron, Jaguar I-Pace and the latest from Tesla.
Another special feature showcased the start of the modern electric car movement with the Toyota Prius and Nissan Leaf but also the small Sinclair C5 3-wheeler.
Among the crowd favorites were the demonstration runs by the likes of the Koenigsegg Agera R, Maserati MC Stradale and various Ferraris, especially with the show visitors who took part in the Spring Bears Motor Club’s child bereavement charity raffle and thus won passenger-seat rides in those runs.
Also attracting attention was the Supercar sound-off with cars such as the Ford Mustang and Nissan GT-R competing to draw the loudest cheer for the best-sounding exhaust notes.
A Prestige and Hypercar display on the lawn of Palace House featured the Jaguar XJ220, Ferrari F40, Bugatti Chiron, Toyota 2000GT, Noble M600, McLaren Senna and the like.
Other attractions included a high-performance luxury off-roaders were featured in the SUV Secret Garden, Retro Rallycross showcased historic rallycross racers, and PopBangColor artist Ian Cook using remote control cars to drive paint across a canvas.
And that was just the formal show. Car clubs did their own things in the parking areas where, for example, McLaren Owners UK had 60 vehicles on parked together.
Next up at Beaulieu is the VW T Chill gathering August 9-11 for Volkswagen vans, followed on August 18 by Simply Mercedes.


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Heil Environmental has sold its truck equipment business, consisting of the Heil Truck Equipment Group and Heil South distributorship, to Truck Bodies and Equipment International Inc., a portfolio company of Kirtland Capital Partners. Terms of the sale, announced Wednesday, Aug. 30, were not disclosed.
Heil says the sale enables it to concentrate all of its resources on continuing to build its core refuse business. Based in Chattanooga, Tenn., Heil manufactures a full line of refuse collection and recycling vehicles at its flagship manufacturing facility in Fort Payne, Ala. Parts Central, a Heil company, offers replacement parts for most refuse and recycling vehicle brands. Heil subsidiary Bayne Premium Lift Systems produces hydraulic refuse cart lifters in Greenville, S.C. Heil Europe manufactures refuse collection vehicles and replacement parts for the European market in Hillend, Scotland.
The Heil Truck Equipment Group manufactures and mounts a complete line of dump bodies, snow/ice bodies and hoists at its plant in Tishomingo, Miss. Products include the Yardbird, Sidewinder and HPT dump bodies featuring Heil’s patented DuraClass design. Heil South is a company-owned truck equipment distributorship in Austell, Ga., selling and servicing dump bodies, hoists, rolloffs and knuckleboom loaders.
“Heil has a long, proud history in the truck equipment business and our employees have done a great job of serving our customers,” says Michael Jobe, Heil president and chief executive officer. “After careful study, the Heil management team determined that we could best serve all of our customers by selling our truck equipment division and associated sales branch to a company that is exclusively focused on that market and its customers. This move allows us to likewise concentrate solely on the refuse customers that are the core of our business. Moving forward, all of our efforts will be centered on supplying haulers worldwide with the most innovative refuse collection and recycling vehicles, replacement parts and cart lifters that offer the overall lowest total cost of ownership.”
The sale includes Heil’s 204,000-square-foot manufacturing facility in Tishomingo, the Heil South sales and service facility outside of Atlanta, and the use of certain intellectual property. The Heil Truck Equipment Group and Heil South are now part of TBEI, which was formed by Kirtland in 2005 by combining three major truck equipment companies: Crysteel Manufacturing, Ox Bodies and Rugby Manufacturing, adding Hardee Equipment Co. in 2006. TBEI’s corporate headquarters is in Eden Prairie, Minn.
“Heil dump bodies and equipment are recognized throughout the industry for their quality, design innovations and longevity,” says Dale Pilger, TBEI CEO. “We are very pleased to add this premier manufacturer to our roster so that we can continue to expand the wide range of high-performance products that we offer our customers across North America.”
The changeover will be virtually invisible to customers. TBEI has indicated that it will keep the manufacturing facility in Tishomingo open with its 140-person work force intact. Under the sales agreement, all existing orders will be filled, current vehicles will be supported and warranties now in effect will be honored. The truck equipment distributor network and sales force is expected to remain unchanged.
Heil South will be renamed TBEI Atlanta. TBEI has expressed plans to retain the distributorship’s 16 employees and continue to offer truck equipment products and services. The refuse collection vehicle sales force and other aspects for supporting customers of the refuse business will be moved from the TBEI Atlanta facility, and Heil intends to further increase its focus and efforts to continue growing its customer base in the Georgia refuse markets.
“TBEI is a true leader in the design, manufacture, delivery and service of truck bodies, hoists and other equipment,” Jobe says. “We know that our loyal truck equipment customers are in good hands.”


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Sales in Czech retail trade in January, not counting the automotive sector, fell to 4.6 percent year-on-year compared to 6.7 percent in December 2015. The figures were released by the Czech Statistics Office on Monday. Czech consumers spent significantly more online, an increase of 15.4 percent year-on-year, while retail sales of food and fuel also increased. By contrast, consumers spent less on pharmaceutical items and medical goods. Prices decreased year-on-year in the categories of fuel, food and computers. Higher prices were registered in the categories of culture, sports and recreation, clothing and footwear and pharmaceutical and medical goods.
Czechs and Germans in 1930s Czechoslovakia: a complex picture
Wide range of events in store for Czechs this weekend as 30-year anniversary of Velvet Revolution reaches climax
Škoda unveils 4th-generation Octavia ahead of model’s 60th anniversary
Hundreds of thousands again gather in Prague to voice their opposition to prime minister
15 years later – was ending military service right move for Czech Republic?


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How do you revive an aging brand?
If that’s a challenge you’ve ever struggled with (we’re familiar with it at Fortune), then I’m sure you’ll be fascinated by Beth Kowitt’s story on Steve Easterbrook. Easterbrook became CEO of McDonald’s in March of 2015, at a time when the company’s revenues, profits and same store sales were all in a slump, and numerous product launches – Shamrock shakes, the McRib, the McLean burger, salads, etc. – had done little to change the trajectory.
Easterbrook – whose mottos are “act first, talk later” and “progress over perfection” – has done two big things during his short time as CEO. One is to launch all-day breakfast, which has proven a surprising success. The other is to start a complete remake of the way the company purchases chickens and eggs, which account for roughly half the items on the menu. He has ended the use of certain antibiotics in the company’s chickens, a key goal of health advocates, and he has launched a ten-year plan to liberate chickens from their cages.
Beth visited a cage-free chicken farm, and when you read her account, you may, like me, find it difficult to conclude the chickens are leading happier or more fulfilled lives. But so be it. The company is clearly making a bold – and costly — effort to show it can adapt to a very different set of consumer expectations than when the first golden arches went up in 1953.
McDonald’s cage-free commitment is transforming the food industry. Nearly 200 other companies have now followed suit. For that reason, we’ve given the company a spot on our new Change the World list. Whether the change will revive the company’s fortunes remains to be seen – although all-day breakfast already has managed to raise same-store sales for four quarters in a row.
The story is in our September magazine, but you can read it online now. Other news below, including Viacom CEO Philippe Dauman’s stunning $72 million exit package. Failure has its benefits.
• Dauman’s Golden Sunset
Viacom’s chief operating officer Tom Dooley is set to replace Philippe Dauman as CEO of Viacom, at least on an interim level, as part of a settlement nearing completion between him and National Amusements, Sumner Redstone’s holding company (now under the control of his daughter Shari). The Wall Street Journal indicates that Dauman’s exit package, after nearly 10 years at the helm in which Viacom has clearly under-performed the market, will be worth around $72 million. The best thing that can be said about that is that it’s $13 million less than some reports had suggested. It also said he will get one last chance to convince the new board of the merits of selling a minority stake in Paramount Pictures. Dauman will continue as non-executive chairman until Sept. 13, before being replaced by Eversource Energy’s Thomas May, the WSJ said. Fortune, WSJ, subscription required
• A Rash of Uber News
Uber was all over the news like a rash yesteday. A San Francisco judge dismissed a proposed $100 million class action settlement brought against it by 385,000 current and former drivers as inadequate, overshadowing the more upbeat announcement earlier in the day of a $300 million deal to partner with Volvo in developing autonomous cars (testing begins this month in Pittsburgh). It’s also agreed to buy the autonomous truck development project Otto, headed by Anthony Levandowski and other ex-Googlers, in a deal worth $680 million (according to Bloomberg estimates). Oh, and Taiwan said Uber owes back taxes after changing its laws on digital services providers, in another example of countries around the world not wanting to be taken for a ride, if you’ll pardon the expression, by the Valley bros. Other than that, a quiet day. Fortune
• Clintons to Scale Back Foundation
The Clinton family is undertaking some overdue damage control measures with regard to its controversial charity foundation, after rising criticism over conflicts of interest. The Wall Street Journal reported that former President Bill Clinton and his daughter Chelsea will stop raising money for the Clinton Foundation and turn it over to independent appointees if Hillary is elected President in November. The ex-President had continued to give paid speeches months after his wife announced her presidential bid last year. The Clintons also plan to end one of the foundation’s signature events, the Clinton Global Initiative. Cynics would argue that by the time Hillary is elected, the foundation will have served its ultimate purpose anyway. WSJ, subscription required
• Wal-Mart’s Feelgood Factor
Wal-Mart raised its profit guidance for the full year after announcing a better-than-expected 1.6% rise in like-for-like sales in the second quarter (the market had expected 1%). The world’s biggest retailer notched a seventh straight quarter of increase in footfall, but more importantly broke a trend of slowing growth in online sales, which accelerated to 11.8% from 7% in the previous three months. The only fly in the ointment was the dramatic drop in sales at Asda, its U.K. unit. Comparable sales there plunged 7.5% in the quarter, its worst-ever performance, as it replaced Tesco in the crosshairs of the aggressively expanding German discounters Aldi and Lidl. Fortune, BBC
Around the Water Cooler
• Deutsche Whistleblower Rejects Reward in Disgust at SEC
A whistleblower who tipped off the Securities and Exchanges Commission about fraudulent accounting at Deutsche Bank at the height of the financial crisis has refused to accept his part of the $55 million reward paid out. Eric Ben-Artzi, who was a risk officer at Deutsche, said that the SEC should have fined individual executives at Deutsche, rather than its shareholders, arguing that the ‘revolving door’ between the two stopped it from doing so: Robert Rice, the chief lawyer in charge of the internal investigation at Deutsche in 2011, became the SEC’s chief counsel in 2013 (Ben-Artzi was fired after raising his concerns about the investigation with Rice). Robert Khuzami, Deutsche’s top lawyer in North America, became head of the SEC’s enforcement division after the financial crisis. And their boss, Richard Walker, the bank’s longtime general counsel was once head of enforcement at the SEC. Ben-Artzi argues that SEC chair Mary Jo White bears ultimate responsibility for the Deutsche fine. FT, metered access
• Mobile Carriers’ Phony Peace
The price war between mobile network operators may be coming to an end, but they remain the best of enemies in other respects. Thursday, T-Mobile said it would roll out a new unlimited data plan to replace its current ones with monthly limits, causing Sprint to respond by cutting prices on its own unlimited plans. More entertaining, however, was the flame war on social media between their respective CEOs: Sprint’s Marcelo Claure called T-Mobile’s new plan “crappy” and its CEO John Legere a “con artist” after Legere accused Sprint of ‘copy-pasting’ his strategy. Claure appeared to be having a stressful day, also lashing out at Verizon Wireless’s incoming CEO Ronan Dunne with a “Delete your account” tweet. Fortune
• Bosch Hit With First VW-Related Lawsuit
German engineering group Robert Bosch may finally be on the hook for its role in Volkswagen’s diesel emissions scandal. A court filing in San Francisco alleges that the company, which supplied the engine control software that duped regulators into believing that VW’s diesel engines were within legal pollution limits, was “a knowing and active participant” in the fraud. Bosch has consistently argued that it isn’t responsible for how customers (of whom VW was only one) used its software. Federal prosecutors have been looking into Bosch’s involvement since last November but don’t appear close to filing charges themselves. In related news yesterday, Harley-Davidson agreed to pay a $12 million fine for selling 340,000 “super tuners” that led to its bikes breaching EPA limits. Fortune, Fortune
• Tyra Banks, Stanford Professor
And finally, to take us into the weekend on an uplifting note, meet Stanford Graduate School of Business’s new professor: supermodel Tyra Banks. Four years after graduating from Stanford’s biggest B-school rival Harvard (she took a nine-week program for executives called the Owner/President Management program to help her launch her TYRA Beauty cosmetics business), Banks is moving to the front of the class-room. The website Poets & Quants says she’s scheduled to co-teach a spring elective for MBA students called “Project You: Building & Extending Your Personal Brand”. After 810 episodes of her own show, there’s not much disputing her authority on that point. Pity the poor wonks whose lectures clash with her.Poets & Quants


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Tunisia: Monopolies push vegetable prices to record highs
The Youssef government is reportedly unable to cope with the continuous rise in agricultural prices in Tunisia, which has reached record highs in recent times. Producers confirmed that the products going from farms to wholesale markets are distributed through a parallel market controlled by monopolistic traders. Tunisian consumers are under threat, with inflation expected to reach 6 percent by the end of the year, up from 5.5 percent in September, if the government cannot find immediate solutions to curb prices.
In contrast to market laws that make supply and demand the main determinant of prices, the prices of vegetables and fruits continue to increase, although no Tunisian market in any of the governorates has any shortage of agricultural products, as the local production is almost enough to meet the demand.
"The maximum price paid for tomatoes and peppers in production areas is just 700 millimes (about 0.291 dollars) per kilo, while end consumers pay about 3 dinars (about 1.22 dollars)," states Yassin al-Saghir, a producer in the north-east of the country.
Yassin believes that both producers and consumers are the victims of organised monopolies, in which the owners of cooling storage facilities play an important role. He pointed out that the spread of vegetable and grain cooling stores has created a kind of "mafia" of agricultural materials. The owners of the warehouses acquire large quantities of various agricultural products, with market prices agreed upon in advance, and the government is unable to find solutions to tackle this phenomenon," he said.
In an interview to the new Arab, Husain Issawi, the head of the wholesalers' chamber, complained about the poor distribution of profits among the various participants in the production and marketing chain. He stressed that the main reason for the increase in prices of agricultural materials is the absence of all forms of monitoring of the cooling stores.
He pointed out that more than 60% of the agricultural products going through the wholesale market's formal routes were sold through the parallel market. And according to statistics of the Institute of consumption, fruit and vegetable prices have recorded an 85% increase between 2005 and 2015. Experts and workers in the agricultural sector believe that the main reason for this increase is the products' sale in the parallel market.
Publication date: 10/20/2017
© 2018 FreshPlaza. All rights reserved.


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Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address the grand finale of Smart India Hackathon 2020 on 1 August via video conferencing. He will also be interacting with students on the occasion, the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) said in a statement.
The Smart India Hackathon is a nationwide initiative to provide students with a platform to solve some of the pressing problems people face in daily lives, and thus inculcate a culture of product innovation and a mindset of problem-solving, the statement said.
"It has proved to be extremely successful in promoting out-of-the-box thinking in young minds," the statement added.
The first edition of Smart India Hackathon in 2017 saw participation of 42000 students which increased to one lakh in 2018 and to two lakh in 2019.
The first round of Smart India Hackathon 2020 saw participation of more than 4.5 lakh students, it said.
"The grand finale of the software edition this year is being organized online by connecting all the participants throughout the nation together over a specially-built advanced platform. More than 10,000 students will be competing to solve 243 problem statements from 37 central government departments, 17 state governments and 20 industries," the statement added.
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Facebook is trying to change the way advertisers look at social
The world's largest social network is refining its tools designed to help advertisers understand how well ads work.
Ian SherrContributor and Former Editor at Large / News
Ian Sherr (he/him/his) grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area, so he's always had a connection to the tech world. As an editor at large at CNET, he wrote about Apple, Microsoft, VR, video games and internet troubles. Aside from writing, he tinkers with tech at home, is a longtime fencer -- the kind with swords -- and began woodworking during the pandemic.
The idea is simple: There are customers who are influenced by an ad but wait to purchase a product later on. So Facebook built a tool to measure it by comparing databases of people who purchased products with those who did or didn't see an ad on Facebook.
The tool is just the latest effort by the world's largest social network to change how advertisers look at the effectiveness of its service and, ultimately, justify charging higher fees for online ads. Facebook is attempting to draw a more direct line between its ads and when a consumer buys a product, even if the person doesn't necessarily click on the link.
Brad Smallwood, who runs marketing science and measurement at Facebook, said his goal is to help advertisers track how ads influence behavior over time.
"It's not a Facebook challenge, it's an industry challenge," he said.
Much of the way advertising works on the Internet is that advertisers pay money either if someone sees an ad, clicks on an ad, or if they purchase a product after clicking on an ad.
The way Facebook's tool works is that advertisers send it a database of customers who bought something. That information is randomized and compared to a list of users who did or did not see an ad. The result is data that could show advertising on Facebook helped encourage users to buy a product.
"There is a common refrain in the industry that dollars follow where people are spending their time," said Andrew Lipsman, vice president of marketing and insights at industry researcher ComScore. Ultimately, he added, advertisers want to shift dollars toward ads that are most successful.
Facebook isn't the only company attempting to connect advertising in the digital and real worlds. Others, including market researchers and Internet behemoths alike, have built services hoping to track similar behavior
There are limitations to this type of effort. The biggest hurdle is retailers, whose databases of customers rely on convincing them to offer personal information, like an email address, in the first place. As a result, these databases aren't comprehensive.
Also, there's a danger advertisers could rely too heavily on the data Facebook is offering. Focusing too much on an ad that generates a sale, as opposed to an ad that helps to do something like promote a brand, could be self-defeating.
Consider grocery stores. When the scanner was introduced to store checkout counters 30 years ago, owners learned how well promotions increased sales. So, they focused on them, ComScore's Lipsman said. Today, the industry relies heavily on promotions to draw customers into the store, hurting margins.
For now, Facebook said it's content if advertisers change the way they see its business. The information coming from Facebook's tool, Smallwood said, "will be a better assessment of what's working and what's not." "


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Import station set to make airfreighting of luxury cars quicker, easier
Global TimesWednesday 16th January, 2013
An import station for finished vehicles made overseas is to be set up at Beijing Capital International Airport, a move intended to make the process of importing a car quicker and easier. Airfreighting could mean it shaves up to three months off the time it takes to import a car, said Wang Zhiyong, media officer of the Beijing Municipal Commission of Commerce Tuesday. Currently, transporting a car via ship can take three to six months for the whol...


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WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S., Canadian and Mexican negotiators are pledging to work quickly to update the North American Free Trade Agreement, a 23-year-old pact that President Donald Trump has called th
Bitdefender, controlled by the Talpes family, one of the stars of Romania’s IT industry, especially after the cyber-attacks throughout the world, has attracted the interest of three or four invest
There are about 1,000 companies that make footwear in Romanian, which employ 50,000 people, reveals the World Footwear yearbook. Romania is one of the most important European manufacturers and expor
The ten largest shopping centers in Bucharest posted 878 million lei (EUR195.1 million) revenue together last year, according to ZF’s calculations based on the data published on the Finance Minist
Israeli-held Elbit group has notified the NASDAQ market about the signing of an agreement to sell the Radisson Blu hotel in Bucharest.
Republican Ohio Gov. John Kasich, making the U.S. media rounds Sunday, urges President Donald Trump to stop the staff chaos at the White House and "b


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A federal appeals court has upheld Apple’s $450 million settlement of claims that it harmed consumers by conspiring with five publishers to raise e-book prices, reports Reuters. The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New York rejected a challenge by an e-books purchaser to the fairness, reasonableness and adequacy of the settlement, which won approval from U.S. District Judge Denise Cote in November 2014.
Last October Apple asked the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn an appellate court decision that found the company conspired with five publishers to increase e-book prices. The Cupertino, California-based company wanted the high court to review a June ruling that favored the U.S. Department of Justice, and found the company liable for engaging in a conspiracy that violated federal antitrust laws.
Let's back up and look at history of the whole matter. In April 2012 the United States Department of Justice filed an antitrust lawsuit against Apple, Hachette SA, HarperCollins, Macmillan, Penguin and Simon & Schuster in New York district court, claiming collusion over ebook pricing. The brouhaha centers on Apple’s move to change the way that publishers charged for e-books as it prepared to introduce its first iPad in 2010.
Traditionally, publishers sold books to retailers for roughly half of the recommended cover price. Under that “wholesale model,” booksellers were then free to offer those books to customers for less than the cover price if they wished.
Apple suggested moving to an “agency model,” under which the publishers would set the price of the book and Apple would take a 30% cut. However, Apple also insisted that publishers couldn’t let rival retailers sell the same book at a lower price.


text: Time Warner Cable (TWC) has announced net profit for the twelve months ended 31 December 2009 of USD1.07 billion on the back of growing revenues and customer additions. The company said that its 2009 profits are not comparable with the USD7.34 billion loss posted in 2008 as the previous year’s results had been affected by one-off items, such as a USD14.8 billion impairment on cable franchise rights. Total revenues for 2009 reached USD17.87 billion, up from USD17.2 billion a year earlier. TWC added 157,000 net new revenue generating units (RGUs) in the three months ended 31 December 2009, ending the year with a total of 35.23 million RGUs and 14.57 million individual customer relationships. The total of triple-play subscriptions grew by 64,000 quarter-on-quarter, up to 3.45 million at year-end 2009.


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Referred to as the “King of Cashmere”, Italian luxury fashion brand Brunello Cucinelli has opened its first Canadian location in Vancouver. It joins a number of other premium brands in Vancouver’s ‘Luxury Zone’. Sources say that Cucinelli also continues to seek retail space in Toronto’s Yorkville area, ideally on or close to Bloor Street West.
The 2,700 square foot Vancouver boutique opened last week at the retail base of the 745 Thurlow Street office building at the southwest corner of Thurlow and Alberni Streets. Cucinelli has a municipal address of 765 Thurlow Street, and it will soon be joined by Versace and Swiss menswear brand Strellson in the same complex.


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In the second week of July, the All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (APTMA) will host a convention on textile growth.
The convention will be jointly organised by the textile associations and textile industries of Pakistan. The focus will be on developing various programmes and policies for the growth of the textile industry in the country.
The Textile industry accounts for sixty per cent of Pakistan’s total exports. The APTMA believes the industry can be further improved with the development of a more efficient and competitive business environment. They are competing with regional competitors such as India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Vietnam and aim to enhance the county’s export to achieve economic stability and growth.
The convention will also throw light on the availability of energy at regionally competitive prices as it plays an important role in the production process. Power supply is essential in the spinning, weaving and processing industry and needs to be available at affordable price scales.


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Alliance Urges Senate to Adopt Home Star Program to Benefit Consumers, Workers, Small Businesses
Washington D.C. – Joining a growing chorus of businesses, trades people and environmental and efficiency organizations, the Alliance to Save Energy today urged the Senate to include Home Star in its Small Business Jobs Bill, expected to hit the Senate floor this week.
The Home Star proposal, which has the support of the Obama Administration and passed the U.S. House of Representatives in May, would give cash incentives to homeowners who make their homes more energy efficient as it creates jobs in related industries. The Alliance said Home Star will interest consumers not only because of its on-the-spot rebates, but also because of the immediate and long-term savings on energy costs.
"For the more than 110 million homes across America, Home Star will save energy and money while, in the process, putting nearly 170,000 people to work," said Alliance Director of Government Relations Brad Penney. "Most of the support will go to small businesses, which make up 90 percent of the companies involved in home retrofits, thereby bringing much-needed relief to the job engine of our still-struggling economy. When Home Star is enacted, small businesses can then help make a clean energy economy a reality, not just a catchphrase."
In recent months, Home Star has earned the support of diverse groups, from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and National Association of Manufacturers to the Sierra Club and the labor group Change to Win. Last week, the Home Star Coalition exceeded 2,000 members – mostly small businesses – that operate in every state in the country.
"In my over 30 years in Washington," Penney continued, "I have never seen a single proposal garner such widespread support. Small and large businesses alike, alongside labor, public interest and environmental groups, all understand the benefits of this proposal.
"If someone came to you tomorrow with an investment that would save money for every American household, create over 168,000 jobs, reduce our dependence on foreign oil and pay for itself in the long-run, you’d take it – especially at a time when the construction industry continues to experience Depression-level unemployment," he added.
Home Star incentivizes consumers to make energy efficiency upgrades to their homes, sparking interest in energy-saving products and energy audits. That creates a need for more workers in manufacturing and building and more home energy auditors, the Alliance said.
The Alliance to Save Energy is a coalition of prominent business, government, environmental, and consumer leaders who promote the efficient and clean use of energy worldwide to benefit consumers, the environment, economy, and national security.
For further information:


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A significant increase in the number of app downloads has been predicted for 2013.
New data published by Gartner has predicted the annual number of app downloads in 2013 is set to breach 102 billion – up from 64 billion in 2012.
Overall, the mobile app market is predicted to grow in value from $18 billion (£11.27 billion) last year to $26 billion this year, with free apps continuing to dominate the sector at present, although there is growing uptake among consumers for paid-for content.
The significant rise in the number of individuals owning smartphone and tablet devices has driven this major growth in the market over recent months, with the Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker from the International Data Corporation recently showing a 7.3 per cent growth in mobile phone usage across the globe this year.
Apps have become a mainstay of mobile commerce in recent years, with Gartner revealing in-app purchases (IAP) will make up 48 per cent of all app store revenues in 2013 – up from just 11 per cent in 2012.
Looking to the future, research director at Gartner Sandy Shen commented: “We expect strong growth in downloads through 2014, but growth is forecast to slow down a bit in later years.
“The average downloads per device should be high in early years as users get new devices and discover the apps they like. Over time they accumulate a portfolio of apps they like and stick to, so there will be moderate numbers of downloads in the later years.”
Furthermore, Brian Blau, another research director at the firm, stated many consumers are not being put off from additional IAP even after they have paid for the app in the first place.
He noted it appears that as long as customers are happy with the services provided by the app, they are more than happy to spend more via IAP – something retailers with mobile apps might like to bear in mind when considering their own application strategies.


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The iPhone 4S is already on Japan's Apple Store site.
According to the Google Translate, it will launch at 8:00 a.m. on October 14.
No evidence of an iPhone 5.
UPDATE: Apple took down the iPhone 4S page. But we still have screenshots below!
Our LIVE COVERAGE of the iPhone announcement begins NOW >
Here's the English translation from Google Translate:
Product description page:
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Konami's upcoming open-world action thriller Metal Gear Solid is all but released. And as we follow up to the eventual push out of the game later this year, it seems like the game is already up for pre-order in Japan on the Japanese PlayStation Store.
While the PlayStation 4 version of the game will require 25.1GB of the user's bandwidth, the PlayStation 3 version of MGS5: The Phantom Pain will comparatively require around 11.7GB.
But that's not all. Creator Hideo Kojima has shared a brand new poster of the game that showcases quite a bloody version of Snake and Quiet with the description "Stained in blood, the aftermath of revenge."
As far as the new poster is concerned, according to Kojima-san, it will be displayed in Japanese stores this August, and that it will be the final one before the game's official release. In fact, the poster is also a sort of homage to last year's cover that we saw for Ground Zeroes.
Currently though, Metal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Pain is scheduled to be released on PlayStation 4, PlayStation 3, Xbox One, Xbox 360, and PC on 1 September.


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At a glance.
- Pirates and privateers, and how to fight them.
- Rising sentiment in favor of restrictions on paying ransom demanded by online cybercriminals.
- US Federal Trade Commission claims an active role in data security.
Two views on combatting cyber pirates and privateers.
TribLIVE says what’s old is new again in the realm of international conflict, comparing roving cyber marauders like DarkSide, who navigate dark web “backwaters” and the open seas of consumer services “with a wink and a nod from Vladimir Putin,” to the pirates of yore. Just like their early modern counterparts, cyber pirates compact with ruling parties and craft codes of conduct. The “great cyberfaring nation[s]” on the receiving end of their antics could, like those in the 16th century who’d had enough with brigands, issue “letters of marque and reprisal” authorizing private parties to engage on behalf of the state. In 2021, these parties would more closely resemble tech firms than shipowners.
Bloomberg casts DarkSide members as more privateers than pirates, given Russian cyber gangs’ tight ties to the Kremlin. (A privateer, Britannica reminds us, is a “pirate with papers.”) Bloomberg’s solution to President Putin’s ongoing strategy of weaponizing cyber piracy against rival nations is fourfold (and tack four aside, familiar): engage allies, name and sanction the perpetrators, let the NSA and CyberCom loose on hackers’ assets and capabilities, and impose proportionate consequences on states that provide “safe harbor.”
Sentiment grows in favor of restricting ransomware payment.
The Times reports UK National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) founding executive Ciaran Martin’s comments that handling hackers like terrorists and outlawing ransomware payments would cut the industry off at its knees. “We have allowed this to spiral in an invisible way,” he observed.
FTC blogs that it expects boards to take an active role in data security.
Cooley summarizes five tips from a US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) blog underscoring board members’ responsibility for corporate cybersecurity:
- Prioritize data security.
- Know your firm’s weak spots.
- Understand that compliance doesn’t guarantee security.
- Plan for failure.
- Adapt in response to errors—yours and others’.
The FTC has in the past cracked down on deceptive or inadequate security policies that neglected, for example, network monitoring, penetration testing, documentation, or workforce training.