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NEW DELHI: Swedish homeware company Ikea has announced its plans to invest Euro 1.5 billion in India for setting up 25 retail stores as wholly-owned subsidiaries following months of clarificatory discussion with the government on the compulsory clause of domestic sourcing of inputs from local small companies.
A formal proposal was submitted to the foreign investment promotion board or FIPB on Friday requesting it to grant approval to Ikea India to hold 100% FDI in 25 stores across the country. The proposed investment in the stores would be to the tune of Euro 600 million in the first stage and Euro 900 million in the second stage.
Operations will include import, export, marketing, distribution, warehousing, manufacture, production and retail trade of single brand products.
Ikea chief Mikael Ohlsson met commerce and industry minister Anand Sharma on Friday to discuss his investment plans in India and also said that the company was planning to increase sourcing of Indian products for its global operations significantly''.
The minister also met German retail major Metro's CEO Olaf Koch who said the company will increase the number of stores in India from 16 to 20. "Despite the problems in global economy and recent lowering of the rating outlook, investors' confidence in India remains robust,"" Sharma said after his meeting with Ohlsson.
The government had increased the FDI cap for investing in single-brand retail from 51% to 100% earlier this year subject to the clause that 30% of the sourcing done by such companies has to be from domestic small and medium enterprises with up to $1 million investments in plant and machinery.
Sharma said Ikea had some reservations on the mandatory 30% domestic sourcing clause, but DIPP officials had explained in details what would constitute domestic sourcing following which the company decided to invest in India.
However, with the department of industrial policy & promotion or DIPP clarifying that sourcing domestic inputs from SMEs for manufacturing items that get exported, too, will get counted towards meeting the 30% domestic sourcing obligation, the new rules have become more acceptable to investors.
Since Ikea already carries out substantial sourcing from India for its global operations, its decision to increase it to $1 billion will serve towards meeting the mandatory domestic sourcing requirement.
The first application for 100% FDI in single brand retail in India was from UK-based shoe company Pavers England, German retail company Metro, which is already into cash-and-carry operations in India wants to expand its presence in the country.
"Metro CEO Koch expressed happiness over the performance of their investment in India and apprised minister Sharma about plans to increase the number of their stores from 10 to 16 in the country," an official release of the commerce department said.


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If you haven’t heard about what’s going on, here’s the situation:
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) warned consumers to stop using the Peloton Tread+ in April based on safety concerns.
Peloton initially refuted these CPSC claims, calling them misleading and inaccurate.
But earlier this week, Peloton admitted it was wrong to fight the CPSC and issued a recall impacting 125,000 treadmills:
“I want to be clear, Peloton made a mistake in our initial response to the CPSC’s request,” said Peloton CEO John Foley. “We should have engaged more productively with them from the outset. For that, I apologize.”
And here lies the important question: Did these events and decisions move the needle when it comes to Consumer Sentiment?
Take a look:
May 5 was the largest spike in Negative Sentiment that LikeFolio has recorded for Peloton. Sentiment plunged 30 points in a day to 47.5% positive.
However, Sentiment had recovered prior to this recall. Even post-CPSC warning, Consumer Sentiment Mentions were averaging higher than 80% positive.
We’ll be watching Sentiment closely to understand any long-term impacts, but anticipate this to be a “flash in the pan” type of negative event.
On the flip side, we know consumer demand for Peloton products remains extremely high.
While the rate of growth tempered in the last quarter, 21Q3 was the largest consumer demand bar we’ve ever recorded.
So now, as investors, we have to ask: Does this sell-off present a long-term investment opportunity?
Answer: Probably so.
Peloton App Usage shows retention.
We’ll be keeping a very close eye on LikeFolio’s real-time consumer demand and happiness levels for Peloton products over the next few critical weeks.
After all, it’s possible that the current turbulence for traders of PTON stock may turn out to be a golden opportunity for generational investors. As always, LikeFolio members will be the first to know! Enjoy!

domain: news


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Salesforce Has Integrators Buzzing With DIY Cloud
Salesforce says the free edition of Force.com will make it easy for companies to build their first cloud application.
"Force.com Free Edition will enable every company to experience success with cloud computing. This will empower anyone to build and run their first cloud computing app for free on Force.com," said Marc Benioff, Salesforce chairman and CEO, in a statement.
Developers are key to other companies but may not be as important in a SaaS environment.
Salesforce integrators are enthusiastic. "With Salesforce's new offer, our customers will be able to experience the benefits of cloud computing -- quantifiable ROI, rapid time-to-value, and innovation that drives the business -- with significantly less investment and we're all for that," wrote Balakrishna Narasimhan, Appirio senior director of strategy and marketing in an e-mail to InternetNews.com.
Read more at InternetNews.com


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Perdue Foods LLC Recalls Chicken Products due to Misbranding and Undeclared Allergens
WASHINGTON, January 23, 2018 – Perdue Foods LLC, a Monterey, Tenn. establishment, is recalling approximately 530 pounds of chicken products due to misbranding and undeclared allergens, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) announced today. The product contains eggs, a known allergen which is not declared on the product label.
The ready-to-cook chicken breast tenderloin fritters were inadvertently labeled with the Homestyle Chicken Tender Fritter label. The chicken breast tenderloin fritters contain egg whites and the Homestyle Chicken Tender Fritters do not. The ready-to-cook chicken tenderloin fritter items were produced on December 6, 2017. The following products are subject to recall: [View Label]
- 10-lb. boxes containing two 5 lb. plastic bags with the box labeled “CHEF REDI HOMESTYLE CHICKEN TENDER FRITTER, RTC – LARGE” with the case code of 7374.
The products subject to recall bear establishment number “P-11507” inside the USDA mark of inspection. These items were shipped to food service locations in Florida, Maryland and Washington D.C.
The problem was discovered by the firm while performing routine label verification activities.
There have been no confirmed reports of adverse reactions due to consumption of these products. Anyone concerned about an injury or illness should contact a healthcare provider.
Consumers who have purchased these products are urged not to consume them. These products should be thrown away or returned to the place of purchase.
FSIS routinely conducts recall effectiveness checks to verify recalling firms notify their customers of the recall and that steps are taken to make certain that the product is no longer available to consumers. When available, the retail distribution list(s) will be posted on the FSIS website at www.fsis.usda.gov/recalls.
Perdue Consumer Relations
Joe Forsthoffer, Director Corporate Communications


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Motorola, Todd Bradley
As Motorola's wireless unit reels from losses and restructuring, it is evidently close to finding a new head for the department, with HP executive Todd Bradley proving to be the favorite, say insiders. The Wall Street Journal writes that Bradley is one of two candidates still under consideration by Motorola, with the other, a wireless industry executive, remaining anonymous. While nothing official has yet spawned, Motorola says the negotiations are at a sensitive stage, with Bradley himself saying he's "not planning on making any changes."
Apple deals on MBP, Nano
Apple's online store is currently offering Refurbished MacBook Pro laptops starting at $1449, along with a variety of iPods for as little as $99. Currently the 15.4-inch MacBook Pro's have a 2.4GHz Intel Core 2 Duo with 2GB of memory a 120GB hard drive and a NVIDIA GeForce graphics card and start at $1419. While the 17-inch 2.6GHz models include 2GB memory, 200GB hard drive at 7200 rpm, NVIDIA GeForce graphics card and a high resolution screen for $2749. Current generation reconditioned 4GB iPod nano's ($99) include earphones and a USB cable and can hold up to 1,000 songs with up to 24 hours of music playback and up to 5 hours of video playback; 8GB iPod nano's are also available in silver, blue, green, black or pink for $149. Current and previous generation 1GB iPod shuffles are available in silver, pink, blue, green and orange for $39. Apple's stock also includes current generation 80GB iPod and 160GB iPod classics in silver and black.
Icahn claims sabotage
Investor Carl Icahn on Wednesday issued a letter addressed to Yahoo chairman Roy Bostock, claiming that the actions of CEO Jerry Yang and other members of the board went out of their way to sabotage a potential deal with Microsoft. Silicon Alley Insider reports that the letter sets up a villainous scenario related to the show-stopping severance plan a state judge revealed on Monday. The plan would have a potential cost of $2.1 billion to Microsoft, had the unlikely scenario occurred where all employees quit upon a takeover.
Sipgate VoIP for iPhone
Sipgate on Wednesday unveiled a new free application which allows iPhone users to interact natively with any VoIP service that uses industry standard SIP. Users can place or receive VoIP calls over WiFi, with the service offering rates as low as 1¢ per minute. The service also allows users to maintain both domestic and international numbers in one place, so they do not have to keep track of separate services. Sipgate is offering the iPhone VoIP application directly on its website.
Comcast starts local tests
Comcast's latest attempt to curb bandwidth bandits will see the Internet and cable TV provider perform local tests to help it decide which method of traffic management it should undertake. The company announced on Tuesday it will be conducting one month-long tests in local neighborhoods, starting tomorrow in Chambersburg, Pennsylvania, and Warrenton, Virginia, with another test planned in Colorado Springs, Colorado, later on this summer.
AT&T's Net Reach bundle
AT&T on Wednesday announced the launch of its Net Reach bundle for laptop users on the go. The bundle's software finds and locks onto the strongest AT&T data network or Wi-Fi connection for a user's device wherever they are, be it EDGE, 3G, or Wi-Fi hotspots at home or elsewhere. The program works with a user's AT&T high-speed Internet and LaptopConnect services and includes access to over 17,000 hotspots in the US that use AT&T's Wi-FiSM service.
ASUS PX24 Full HD PC
ASUS on Monday revealed its Mini PC Nova Lite PX24, a computer it claims is the world's smallest to offer 1080p, or full HD, playback capability thanks to a dedicated graphics card. Combined with its compact 9.5 by 7.2 by 2 inch size, low 26dB sound levels and touch-button interface, ASUS hopes the PX24 will find its way into living rooms as a high-performance home entertainment center in a small package.
Apple snubbing 3 Italia?
Apple may be refusing to negotiate with all players in the Italian cellphone market, one telecom executive suggests. Vincenzo Novari, the CEO of phone carrier 3 Italia, says that while his company is "super-interested about the iPhone," he has not heard any response in regard to inquiries at Apple, whether positive or negative. Novari in fact claims to have sent two e-mail messages directly to Apple CEO Steve Jobs, without receiving any sort of acknowledgement.
Verizon May Buy Alltel
The American cellular industry may consolidate once again with a potential Verizon buyout of Alltel, CNBC claims. Referring to anonymous sources said to be aware of the deal, the TV news network asserts that Verizon would pay as much as eight times Alltel's pre-interest, pre-tax earnings, or $27 billion, for the acquisition. The deal would be a friendly takeover as Goldman Sachs and TPG, the financial institutions that took Alltel into private holding just last year, are eager to turn a premium no matter how small.
iWeb Animations pack
iPresentee has released a download pack titled iWeb Animations, what it claims is the first collection of animations for Apple's iWeb 2 site designer. The package comes with 40 such animations, depicting items such as smilies, generic buttons, currency signs and home and e-mail links. The backgrounds are by default transparent, so they can in theory be used with backgrounds of any color.
Biz Phone Study May 2008
Regardless of Apple's plans to add business features to the iPhone, Research in Motion is and will continue to extend its lead in business phones, according to a new ChangeWave study. An examination of more than 2,000 corporate IT spenders has about 76 percent of all businesses opting for BlackBerries in May, up three percent from the last time the study took place in February; Palm was second place at 17 percent with other competitors filing in the remaining seven percent.
Mac OS X 10.6 at WWDC?
The next boxed version of Mac OS X may be available for preview as soon as June 9th's WWDC conference, according to rumors. Anonymous sources claim that Apple is looking to provide developers with an early version of Mac OS X 10.6 at the event, giving them more time to adjust to its nuances. These should actually be comparatively minimal, as Apple is said to be interested less in new features and more on improving the overall speed, stability and security of Macs.
Joy Division Zune Official
Microsoft today confirmed the Joy Division Zune, one of the few special-run editions of the second-generation music player. The finished device almost exactly matches past claims and customizes the Zune 80 in tribute to a new documentary of the rock group. Both the software and the player's back show the artwork of Joy Division's Unknown Pleasures album, while a copy of the Peter Saville-made documentary (also titled Joy Division) is preloaded on the device.
Radeon HD 4850 Late June
AMD is delaying the launch of the Radeon HD 4850 by one week, according to check with card makers on the show floor. While the card is already believed to be shipping to PC makers and will still be shown to the press on June 18th, an actual launch is now set for June 23rd, or just under a week later than a launch that would have released the cards on the same day as the media receives the device. The change has reportedly left board makers "upset" as they now have to sit on unsold 4850 cards for 20 days.
T-Mobile Unlimited Family
T-Mobile USA on Wednesday hoped to increase competition with the launch of a new unlimited family plan it hopes will lure subscribers to rival carriers. The service requires T-Mobile's existing unlimited individual plan but halves the price of unlimited access for each family member that signs on; each extra line costs $50 to add the same unlimited national calling and messaging services (including instant messaging) as the parent account.
LG KC550 cameraphone
LG has announced the KC550, a new slider phone with an emphasis on photos and video. At its heart is a five-megapixel camera, equipped with an autofocus lens protected by a sliding cover. The phone also boasts digital blur reduction, ISO 800 sensitivity and a built-in flash, though this uses LED lighting, rather than the more powerful xenon technology. The display is limited to QVGA resolution, but owners can play videos formatted for sizes up to 720x480, at a framerate of up to 30fps. No DivX support is present, unlike LG's Viewty.
AMD XGP graphics tech
Using Taiwan's Computex expo as a podium, AMD has announced a new graphics technology dubbed the External Graphics Platform, or XGP. Using a PCI Express 2.0 connection, notebook owners will be able to hook up to external graphics cards, with a full 4Gbps throughput. This is meant to overcome the limitations of internal notebook graphics, which often have reduced performance unsuitable for tasks like gaming; this also offers the advantage of improved cooling, and the ability to run cards in SLI modes such as AMD's CrossFireX.
Klipsch Image X5
Klipsch is expanding its young earbud group with an update to the IMAGE line. The silver-hued X5 is meant to drop the price of the in-canal earphones by allowing a slightly thicker design: the housing is about 2mm (0.08in) wider but allows for considerably less expensive components without sacrificing audio quality. The American audio equipment maker also notes a shift in the balance of the sound: where the original (now called the X10) still has Klipsch's longstanding emphasis on bass, the X5 is more balanced with purportedly stronger treble and more noticeable vocals.
Curl ships final Mac RTE
Curl has released the final Mac version of its Runtime Environment, previously available only for Windows and Linux systems. The RTE is needed to run programs on Curl's Rich Internet Application Platform, which can service a number of client machines. Apps can include 2D and 3D graphics, animations and audio, and the scripting of event-based interactions.
Mio Leap K1 G50 and 380
Mio today chose Computex as the venue to launch three new GPS devices, two of which push the company further into the smartphone market. The pictured Leap G50 is Mio's first Windows Mobile 6.1 device and uses an iPhone-like design with a chrome bezel focused around its touchscreen: only a scroll strip and call buttons interrupt the front face. The phone keeps to Mio's emphasis on navigation with the company's MioMap 2008 mapping software onboard. A 2-megapixel camera is onboard and can be used to geotag photos thanks to the GPS hardware.
iTunes Live UK concerts
Apple has confirmed the roster of artists to play during its 2008 iTunes Live event in the UK. Lasting the month of July, it will feature a variety of concerts at London's KOKO venue, beginning with American rap group N*E*R*D on July 1st. Some other notable concerts include Jamie Lidell and Yelle on July 10th, and James Blunt on July 12th; Death Cab For Cutie and I Was a Cub Scout will play on July 14th, while Chaka Khan will headline July 26th. The final concert will pair Pendulum and INME on July 28th.
O2 to 'prepare' for June 9
O2 is being told to "prepare" for a major announcement on June 9th, a British site claims. Pocket-lint cites "industry sources," who say that Apple has warned the phone carrier about the date, which coincides with the beginning of its 2008 WWDC conference in San Francisco. O2 is the exclusive carrier of the iPhone in Ireland and the United Kingdom.
Samsung 15.6-inch LCDs
Samsung will be the latest company to start making new, 16:9 aspect ratio LCDs for notebooks, reports from alleged display industry insiders claim. The company has previously kept to producing the 15.4-inch, 16:10 screens found in most notebooks today but is now said to be starting production on wider 15.6-inch screens that are often cited as better for movie viewing and side-by-side documents. Production would reportedly start in November, which would likely push the release of notebooks based on the LCDs to early 2009.
Sydney Apple Store done
Work on Apple's flagship retail store for Australia has been completed, says a local publication. The shop, located at the corner of George and King in Sydney, is said to merely be awaiting a handover to Apple at the end of the week, which could signal that it will be open in the very near future. Apple has a number of tasks remaining, primarily cleaning and outfitting the store, as well as filling stock; it is rumored though that this may be complete in time for an opening on June 19th, which could also allow it to launch with the 3G iPhone.
ATT 3G Faster for Notebook
AT&T today said it has upped speeds with its LaptopConnect users in mind through a set of upgrades to the company's HSPA-based 3G wireless network. The service sees a major boost to upload speeds that increases the peak from 800Kbps to 1.2Mbps, a 50 percent gain which is nearly in line with download speeds. Those download speeds have also increased in overall performance, increasing from a minimum average of 600Kbps to 700Kbps and from a maximum real-world peak of about 1.4Mbps to 1.7Mbps.
Telefonica iPhone in Spain
Telefonica has issued a terse confirmation that it will be distributing the iPhone in Spain, a local site reports. While the company has made earlier statements suggesting it would bring the phone, and its subsidiary Movistar is preparing to carry the device, Telefonica itself now says it has reached a deal. "Telefonica has signed an agreement with Apple to market the iPhone in Spain," the company's statement reads. "The iPhone will begin to sell this year."
BBerry 8120 at Rogers
Rogers Wireless today kicked off the launch of both its version of the BlackBerry Pearl 8120 and a service to match. The candybar smartphone adds Wi-Fi to the original formula and on Rogers is used for the company's newly formalized Home Calling Zone VoIP service. Based on Unlicensed Mobile Access (UMA) like T-Mobile's HotSpot@Home in the US, the feature lets users make calls from a Wi-Fi access point with the added ability to bridge calls: a phone conversation starting from either the cellular network or a Wi-Fi spot will hop to the other network without disrupting the call.
Movies at iTunes Canada UK
(Updated on firmware issue, Canadian prices) Apple on Wednesday revealed the addition of movies to iTunes for both Canada and the UK, expanding availability past the US for the first time. The launch includes both purchases and rentals and includes support for direct-to-device HD and standard rentals from the Apple TV. More than 700 titles are available on launch with more than 100 of these available in HD, Apple says. Rental rights have also been extended with the launch: while the 30-day window to start viewing is the same, viewers now have up to 48 hours to finish watching a given title and can watch it an unlimited number of times in that timeframe.
SoftBank Gets 3G iPhone
SoftBank today said it has an agreement carry the iPhone, making it the first provider in Japan to offer the device. The company follows in step with past carrier announcements and doesn't reveal launch information, saying only that the Apple phone will be available "later this year." SoftBank's announcement confirms the imminent announcement of a 3G-capable iPhone, as all Japanese networks use 3G technology (WCDMA and faster) exclusively for calling as well as data.
Pure Digital Flip Mino
Pure Digital on Wednesday is launching its anticipated Flip Mino, its newest entry into its unusually popular simple camcorders. The Mino shrinks the design of the original Flip camera by 40 percent to where it's smaller than a typical cellphone while adding features that aren't present on the originals: the updated software bundled with the Mino lets it upload directly to MySpace as well as providing existing hooks for AOL and YouTube. Pure keeps the concept simple by preserving the 2X digital zoom lens that limits the camera but concentrates on the shot itself.
iTunes UK gets movies
Confirming earlier reports, Apple on Wednesday began offering film downloads and rentals to UK customers and doubled the period to watch rented movies from 24 hours to 48 hours. Movies from major film studios including 20th Century Fox, The Walt Disney Studios, Paramount Pictures, Warner Bros. Entertainment, MGM, Sony Pictures and Lionsgate UK are now available on the iTunes Store in the UK. Unlike the same day as DVD deal announced in early May in the US, the UK deal also includes titles from MGM. Apple said the iTunes Store in the UK features over 700 films available for rent or purchase, with titles available for purchase on the same day as their DVD release, including Hitman, I Am Legend, National Treasure 2: Book of Secrets and Into the Wild. iTunes UK also features over 100 titles available for rent.
Japan iPhone deal inked
Apple has landed yet another international distribution deal for the iPhone, reaching a deal that enables it to ship the device in Japan. In a statement released today, SoftBank said that it will sell Apple's iPhone later this year, but did not provide any other details in the terse statement: "Softbank Mobile Corp. today announced it has signed an agreement with Apple to bring the iPhone to Japan later this year." The deal does not mention exclusivity and Apple has already abandoned that strategy in a few markets, such as Australia and has signed deals with limited exclusivity in Spain. Continuing reports from last December, reports surfaced in May that Apple was in talks with both Japan's NTT DoCoMo and South Korea's KTF, though both companies rely on W-CDMA broadband, as opposed to the HSPA the 3G iPhone.
HTC Touch Pro debuts
HTC Corp on Wednesday unveiled the HTC Touch Pro, a business version of the highly anticipated Touch Diamond. The new touch-driven phone -- with a sliding-keyboard design -- utilizes similar styling and functionality, while adding a variety of business-focused enhancements, including a full QWERTY keyboard. The company's 3D touch interface called TouchFLO 3D, provides an intuitive way to navigate through common tasks like messaging, calendar appointments or making calls with just one touch as well as navigating through photos/contacts and surfing the web. In addition, the Touch Pro includes a new innovative touch-sensitive control for device interaction, a 2.8-inch VGA touch-screen LCD, support for Windows Mobile 6.1, a 3.2MP camera, a microSD expansion slot, Bluetooth 2.0 with EDR, GPS support, and 512MB internal memory.
Westinghouse HDTV models
Westinghouse Digital on Tuesday unveiled four new 1080p-capable LCD TVs, as well as several other multi-purpose LCD TVs, including its portable and all-in-one units. New to the 1080p TX lineup are the 42-inch TX-42F430S, the 47-inch TX-47F430S, and the 52-inch TX-52F480S, which feature an integrated ATSC/NTSC/ClearQAM Tuner, and 1080p resolution through all high-definition connectors, including component and VGA.
AMD Turion X2 Ultra
With AMD-based notebooks already surfacing at Computex, AMD on Wednesday officially announced its next-generation notebook platform, offering significant improvements in HD visual performance and increased energy efficiency for notebooks as well as a the foundation for new AMD Business Class, AMD GAME! and AMD LIVE! notebook solutions. Hoping to take a share from rivals Intel and Via, AMD says the new notebook platform, code-named "Puma", brings three times the 3D graphics performance, five times the HD image quality,, 40 percent faster wireless transfer of HD content, and up to 90 minutes more battery performance. The platform includes a new notebook processor and chipset: the AMD Turion X2 Ultra Dual-Core Mobile processor includes AMD Independent Dynamic Core Technology, a new mobile-optimized memory controller, and power-optimized HyperTransport 3.0 (with up to 3x the bandwidth of the original HyperTransport).
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Looking for TV show recommendations? Philo has launched a new phone line you can call to get recommendations for movies and TV shows to watch on the streaming services you already subscribe to, Philo customers or not. The limited time “Philo Phone Line” is in celebration of the streamer’s three-year anniversary Nov. 14 and World Television Day on Nov. 21.
TV fans can call Philo on the toll-free line, 855-924-3225 every day from 6-9 PM ET to get bingeworthy recommendations for TV, reality seasons, Christmas movies to watch through the holiday season, and more from a team of TV experts waiting to give you some suggestions about what to watch on various streaming services.
You’ll also want to check out this catchy jingle made in-house by the Philo folks:
The phone line will feature recorded messages from celebrities including
- Lt. Joe Kenda, Investigation Discovery’s Homicide Hunter
- DJ Pauly D, MTV’s Jersey Shore: Family Vacation
- Whitney Way Thore, TLC’s My Big Fat Fabulous Life
- Brian Ross, Law & Crime’s Brian Ross Investigates
- Eboni K. Williams, REVOLT Black News
- Cameron Mathison and Debbie Matenopoulos, Hallmark Channel’s Home & Family
- Frankie Celenza, Tastemade’s Struggle Meals
Philo has reached more than 800,000 subscribers and was the fastest-growing traditional and live TV streaming service in the first half of 2020, with 300% year-over-year growth.
“I think we have broadly approached the market differently than a lot of our peers,” said CEO Andrew McCollum. “We focus on providing value to our customers and put a lot of attention on delivering a valuable product at a sustainable and low price. The Phone Line is an extension of providing TV for everyone through a fun experience that mirrors our brand.”


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Blooms The Chemist has become the first pharmacy brand in Australia to achieve B Corp certification for its support office, recognising its long-term commitment to implementing better business practices and delivering on social and environmental performance, accountability and transparency.
“Over the past few years Blooms The Chemist has been on a journey to redefine what it means to be a responsible business in today’s environment, guided by our purpose to build a future where everyone, everywhere has access to good health and wellbeing,” Blooms The Chemist CEO, Emmanuel Vavoulas said.
“B Corp Certification is a tremendous milestone, and we are incredibly proud of the achievement, and to be pioneers in purpose-driven business practices among the pharmacy sector in Australia and globally.”
B Corp, or Benefit Corp certification is managed by B Lab, a non-profit entity that focuses on corporate, social, and environmental responsibility. Certified B Corporations are businesses that meet the highest standards of verified social and environmental performance, public transparency, and legal accountability to balance profit and purpose.
The certification process involved a rigorous 18-month assessment that required the Blooms The Chemist support office to meet measurable standards across business operations including employee benefits, charitable giving, supply chain practices and input materials.
Blooms The Chemist chief operating officer, Pamela Bishop said the B Impact assessment will be a framework for continuous improvement across the pharmacy’s operations.
“Becoming a B Corp validates the actions Blooms The Chemist support office has implemented and is a big motivator to strive even further. It demonstrates to our people and the industry that we are accountable for delivering a positive impact on people and planet, and that we can run a better, more optimised business focussed on continual improvement.
“The certification differentiates our brand and will be a positive force in attracting and retaining talent, and shows our customers we are committed to the highest standards of social and environmental performance.
“Although our journey toward B Corp Certification started in 2020, Blooms The Chemist has a long history of spearheading considerate and impact-focused strategies that accelerate our corporate social responsibility plans.”
Blooms The Chemist initiatives that were integral to successful B Corp certification include:
- Defining the brand’s purpose, ensuring people and their wellbeing are at the forefront of business objectives.
- Implementing new initiatives such as an Employee Assistance Program, paid wellbeing days, volunteer days, and more balanced parental leave.
- Establishing and completing the brand’s first modern slavery audit, addressing risks of modern slavery in the supply chain.
- Implementing a sustainability action plan, including a move to 100% fully renewable energy for the support office.
- Continuous support of community and charitable organisations, including charity partners, and a commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion.


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Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Tuesday welcomed Prime Minister Narendra Modi's announcement of an economic package of Rs 20 lakh crore, saying it will help labourers, farmers and industries to come out of the crisis created by a coronavirus.
"We are all grateful to the PM that during this crisis, he has announced a very large economic package of 20 lakh crore to support the poor, farmers, labourers, MSMEs, migrant workers, street vendors and daily wage earners," he said.
"I am confident that through this large economic package, not only the MSME sector of Uttar Pradesh but also the One District One Product will get a new height. Due to the corona crisis, the sector was facing a lot of hardships. This package will give a new financial boost to it," Yogi Adityanath said.
The chief minister also said 10 lakh migrant workers have arrived in UP and over 20 lakh will come to the state in the coming days.
"I am confident that under the guidance of the prime minister we will overcome the crisis created due to coronavirus," he said.


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HAMBURG taz | Gerardo de León can't help but smile optimistically when looking at the coffee prices on the stock exchanges every day. The 59-year-old coffee expert works for Fedecocagua, Guatemala's largest cooperative association with around 24,000 producers. De León had to wait a long time for coffee prices to rise. “The average price over the past thirty years has been $ 1.20 per pound of coffee. The production prices in Guatemala are currently 1.80 US dollars per pound of coffee. ”For too long, the aromatic beans have been sold for too long. An oversupply on the world market, but also speculation with the most important world market product after oil, is responsible for this, so de León.
That is over for now, because low harvest forecasts for the most important exporters, Brazil and Vietnam, ensure that coffee has become significantly scarcer worldwide and therefore also significantly more expensive.
This shows the price development on the trading centers in New York and London. Since July 20, 2021, the day when the low harvest forecasts rocked the coffee world, they have only known one direction: upwards. “On October 12, prices rose to 200 US cents per pound of coffee for the first time since 2014. For us that was positive news a few weeks before the start of the harvest. In this way, a number of contracts could be renegotiated. Our farmers will finally make a profit from the current harvest, ”says de León. On Wednesday the pound was about $ 2.30.
"Reduce debts" is the motto for many coffee farmers in Guatemala for the time being. In recent years, according to Fedecocagua, they have mostly been on the verge of bankruptcy because the world market price has been below their production costs. It was the same on July 20th. At $ 1.66 per pound sterling of 453.6 grams, it was below the profitability margin. Just because many farmers have long been Fair Trade or organic certified, they get better prices and, on top of that, they sell their best coffees to gourmet roasters. They put something on top for top quality. It is only because of this three-part sales strategy that the farmers can make ends meet.
"Local peculiarities such as the nutrient-rich volcanic soil of Acatenango ensure great demand, while climate change in other regions such as the Costa de Sur has caused coffee cultivation to decline," says de León, describing the difficult conditions. They have ensured that the production volume in Guatemala, the largest coffee producer in the region after Brazil and Colombia, has fallen from 4.2 million sacks of 69 kilograms to 3.8 million. This has consequences that are making themselves felt this year on the border with the United States. The number of migrants from Central America is exceptionally high and also a consequence of the coffee crisis in recent years, says de León.
Quite a few farmers have switched from coffee to growing avocados and sugar cane or raising cattle, because coffee cultivation is labor-intensive and has been rewarded for too long, as Andreas Felsen from the Hamburg roasting collective Quijote Kaffee says. In addition to the negative climatic effects in Brazil and Vietnam, these factors contribute to the collapse of the harvest. In addition, the low level of production could well continue because climate change is causing problems in all producing countries. In addition, there are bottlenecks in the availability of containers, which makes it difficult to transport the coffee sacks from the production countries to the most important consumer countries, the USA and EU countries.
That can change again in 2022 with good harvests in Brazil and Vietnam, but it doesn't have to. In any case, coffee plants need about three years to bear fruit, so that the coffee crisis could continue, so Felsen. “Basically, farmers need calculable prices, which is why smallholder organizations like Símbolo de pequeños productores are asking for a price of US $ 2.30 per pound of coffee.” That would be a price that would enable farmers to make a decent livelihood, says Felsen.
The purchase prices of Quijote coffee at 3.10 US dollars per pound of coffee are already well above the market price. In return, the directly importing roasting collective demands high quality from the partner cooperatives and finances the harvest in advance. This is rare in the coffee trade and also ensures delivery reliability - an important factor in times of scarce supply.


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Marketers Wait in Vain for Feds to Act on Regulation
Marketers are prone to complain about too much regulation, but sometimes too little is just as painful.
Regulatory silence on the definition of "natural" and precise rules for pharmaceutical brands to operate in social media have left marketers facing an onslaught of civil litigation in the former case, and the risk of regulatory penalties for violating rules that don't clearly exist in the latter.
Despite years of pleas for guidance, the Food and Drug Administration and Federal Trade Commission are likely to keep letting marketers figure things out for themselves.
Plaintiffs and trial lawyers have been happy to step into the regulatory void regarding "natural" claims. They've filed at least 14 lawsuits alleging deceptive use of the word in recent years against packaged-goods marketers ranging from Unilever's Ben & Jerry to PepsiCo's SoBe, Sun Chips and Tostitos and, most recently, Johnson & Johnson's Aveeno.
"The lack of clarity from regulators has contributed to a free-for-all, where marketers treat "natural' differently, with some being pretty aggressive and others being much more conservative," said Terri Seligman, attorney with Frankfurt Kurnit in New York.
Not even the courts are providing much guidance, in part because some cases have been settled out of court. Unilever last year agreed to pay $7.5 million into restitution funds for customers of Ben & Jerry and Breyers and to stop using the phrase "all natural" on products that contain alkalized cocoa. Other cases have been dismissed on grounds that didn't touch on the definition of "natural," and most are still pending.
But all the litigation does appear to be having one effect. Last year, only 16.1% of new food, beverage, household and personal-care products carried some form of "natural" claim, according to Datamonitor, down from 24.3% a year earlier and 28.5% in 2009.
The FDA solicited comments about a proposed rule defining "natural" in 1991 but decided against it, citing resource limitations and other priorities. The FDA also rejected petitions from the Sugar Association and Sara Lee to define the word in 2007. When a federal court in New Jersey in 2010 again asked the FDA for guidance, the agency said it would take two to three years for proper public participation in the process and said it had more-pressing concerns.
The FTC hasn't been much help either. Many marketers asked for a definition of "natural" before that agency issued its updated Green Guides last year. But the FDA declined.
Pharmaceutical marketers have had a little more luck getting guidance from the FDA regarding use of digital and social media in marketing. The FDA last year issued formal guidance on how marketers should respond to public and private electronic inquiries about unapproved off-label uses of drugs.
Left unanswered are questions about how to talk about prescription drugs or medical devices broadly in social media or even digital display, said Stuart Friedel, an attorney with Davis & Gilbert in New York.
The FDA's general guidance has been for social media and other digital advertising to be treated the same as other advertising -- with full disclosure. Try tucking a drug-disclosure statement into a tweet.


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French carmaker PSA Group has signed a contract with Vietnam’s Truong Hai Auto Corp (Thaco) for the local assembly and marketing of two new Peugeot SUV models from imported complete knockdown (CKD) kits starting in October this year.
In total 27,000 cars will be produced in Thaco’s plant in Chulai in Quang Nam Province between 2017 and 2020.
Tran Ba Duong, Thaco’s president described the deal as the second phase of the relationship between the companies after a similar agreement between 2014 and 2016.
“A dynamic network development plan will accompany the growth of the brand in Vietnam by 2020,” he added.
Thaco also has local agreements with Kia and Mazda.
PSA said the two new SUV models would “complement” the current available range, which includes the Peugeot 208, 3008 and 508.
Denis Martin, PSA’s vice-president for China and the Asean region said: “The development of our local production capacities with Thaco will allow us to aim for 5% market share in Vietnam in 2020, a market that should rapidly exceed 300,000 vehicles per year.”


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The Anthem E3 demo was pretty epic. Even I was blown away by what Bioware had shown off at the event but it turns out that much of the trailer was actually fake and that the team did not even make parts of the game that were shown off at that point. Bioware employees have confirmed that that the Anthem E3 demo was indeed faked and that the game was actually made in 6-9 months.
The employees also pointed out that the Frostbite engine was a constant limitation in the development of Anthem. Kotaku’s Jason Schreier went behind the scenes and contacted some of the people that worked on the game. This included people that are currently working at Bioware and some people that have left. The following was reported regarding the Anthem E3 demo being faked:
After E3, that’s when it really felt like, ‘Okay, this is the game we’re making.’ It was also kind of tricky because there were still a lot of question marks. The demo was not actually built properly—a lot of it was fake. There was a lot of stuff that was like, ‘Oh are we actually doing this? Do we have the tech for that, do we have the tools for that? To what end can you fly? How big should the world be?
This is not surprising keeping in mind how broken the game is even after so many weeks. The players have already boycotted the game once and we are not sure how long they are going to stick around. We also talked about how Bioware lied to fans and how the actual game is different from the Anthem E3 demo. The VIP demo was an utter mess as well.
Keeping all this in mind, I am not shocked that most of the E3 trailer was shocked and we all knew that there was something fishy happening behind the scenes. Bioware has already released a statement in this regard and the following is what the developer had to say regarding the matter:
As a studio and a team, we accept all criticisms that will come our way for the games we make, especially from our players. The creative process is often difficult. The struggles and challenges of making video games are very real. But the reward of putting something we created into the hands of our players is amazing. People in this industry put so much passion and energy into making something fun. We don’t see the value in tearing down one another, or one another’s work. We don’t believe articles that do that are making our industry and craft better.
Let us know what you think about the Anthem E3 demo being faked and what your experience has been like so far playing the game.


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Traveling to the United Kingdom (UK) will soon be cheaper and easier for Emiratis, Gulf country nationals, and Jordanians. The new Electronic Travel Authorization (ETA) scheme will only cost £10 (AED 45.50) per traveler.
Currently, visitors from UAE, Qatar, Oman, Kuwait, Bahrain, and Saudi Arabia pay £30 (AED 137) per visit under the Electronic Visa Waiver (EVW) scheme. Jordanians pay £100 (AED 456) for a visit visa.
ETA is digital permission for short stays or transit in the UK. It allows multiple visits within two years and eliminates the need for a visa.
ETA scheme aligns visa requirements for GCC states and Jordan with other countries like the US and Australia. The UK plans to digitize its border by 2025 for improved security and customer experience.
Qatar nationals can apply for the ETA in October 2023. The rest of the GCC states and Jordan will follow in February 2024, with a global expansion later.
Applying for the ETA is simple and fast. It is done online or through the app. Applicants provide biographic and biometric details, including a digital photo, and answer some questions.
The UK’s Immigration Minister, Robert Jenrick, recognized the Gulf states and Jordan’s significant contribution to UK tourism.
Last year, over 790,000 Gulf visitors spent around £2 billion (AED 9.12 billion) during their stays in the UK, boosting the country’s economy.


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*Marketers halt importation
*Price hits above N10, 000 since October
Lagos — Nigeria will experience cooking gas scarcity come yuletide if all indications remain as they were, SweetcrudeReports findings have shown.
This is because importers of Liquefied Petroleum Gas, popularly known as cooking gas, have stopped importing the commodity as prices skyrockets- landing costs have shot up.
Prevailing market situation across the country shows that prices of the commodity have shut up from N3500 per 12.5kg cylinder sold last December/January, to above N10, 000 since October, validating earlier warning by marketers, and plea for the federal government to stem the tide before the situation got out of hand.
Preliminary report as of Tuesday morning, says highest price per 12.5kg cylinder is N10, 200.
The Nigerian Liquefied Natural Gas Limited, NLNG supplies just 40 percent of market share, while marketers fill the gap with 60 percent importation.
As it stands, however, the country could be thrown into disarray as marketers that supply the largest gas to the market, have since stopped importation, further creating scarcity and higher prices.
Bassey Essien, Executive Secretary, Nigerian Association of Liquefied Petroleum Gas Marketers, on Monday said the cause of halt in importation, and price increment was due to the reintroduction of customs duty and Value Added Tax on imported LPG.
According to him, if the halt in LPG imports should drag further, the supply of the commodity domestically could suffer severe hitch.
This came as NALPGAM in an open letter to the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Chief Timipre Sylva, urged the minister to urgently intervene in the skyrocketing price of LPG in Nigeria.
The open letter was signed by the National President, NALPGAM, Olatunbosun Oladapo, and Essien. NALPGAM is the umbrella body of operators of LPG bottling plants licensed by the statutorily empowered government agencies to carry out the business of safe bottling of cooking gas.
Essien stated that due to the fears expressed by importers who had stopped importation of LPG into the country, cooking gas sourced from the Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas company was now selling in the region of N11m per 20 metric tonnes truck.
This, he said, was with a cumulative daily increase of N300,000 to N500,000 per 20MT truck without the imposition of VAT and customs duties.
Providing further explanation on this, Essien said, “The NLNG supplies LPG to the terminals and these terminals sell to the marketers and at times in a day, the price can go up by about three times.
“Take for example, I was granting an interview on Saturday morning on this same issue and that morning some terminals were selling for N11.6m to N11.7m, but as I stepped out of the interview, it had increased to N12m.
“And the annoying part is that since about a week or two now, nobody has been importing gas because of the issues with customs and VAT. And this is because since the position on these issues have not been clearly stated, importers have to pause.”
He added, “The customs is even clamping down on importers and so they cannot import anything, which means that the product in circulation across the country is from the NLNG.
“But when there are issues like this, some unscrupulous people will want to capitalise on the situation, which they are doing, because right now, from what we’ve got, the price at which NLNG product gets to Lagos is about N7m, but you get it at N11m and above.”
On the price increase, the association stated that despite the decade of gas policy and measures by government, the cost of cooking gas had continued to rise.
It said, “Despite the strategies employed by the government with its anticipated benefits, the reverse seems to be the case with the bulk of LPG consumed in the country largely imported.
“The availability of the product for domestic consumption has been skewed majorly to 65 per cent import dependence while only 35 per cent has been attributed to local supply.
“The obvious devaluation of the local currency, inability to access foreign exchange by importers, the increasing international price against which the cost of domestic LPG is indexed as well as the anticipated re-imposition of VAT and customs duties with retrospective application have all contrived to push the price of LPG upward.”
NALPGAM added, “It has been observed that the above factors have seriously increased the price of gas to the extent that a 12.5kg gas which sold for N3,000.00 in January, 2021, now sells for between N10,000 to N10,200, depending on area of the country.
“The daily galloping price of gas if not properly handled may derail the lofty ideals of the gas expansion plans of the government as well as the job opportunities the programmes were intended to create.”
The association stated that the cost of 20MT of LPG as of January 2020 was N3.4m, but by December 2020, it had gone up to N5.4m; N5.6m in January, 2021, N6m in February, 2021 and N11m in October, 2021 without any signs of abatement.
While the federal government had introduced the National Gas Expansion Programme, NGEP in 2020 to increase gas usage, Sylva had in August this year, described LPG as a deregulated product, saying that government could not determine its price.
Dr. Philip Mshelbila, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, NLNG had earlier this month, said the company had reduced its exports of cooking gas in a bid to meet the growing demand at the domestic market.
According to him, local market supplies had reached 450,000MT from 50,000MT in 2007.
The technical adviser to Petroleum Minister, Timipre Sylva on gas, Derefaka Opelamina could not be reached at the time of filing this report.


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Dell yesterday announced six personal technology products, including a tiny new music player aimed at grabbing market share from Apple’s iPod Shuffle.
Weighing a little more than an ounce, the Dell DJ Ditty music player is the latest addition to Dell’s Digital Jukebox lineup. It holds up to 220 songs and supports FM radio and digital books with a price tag of US$99.
The new Dell DJ Ditty music player features an LCD screen for managing playlists, an integrated FM tuner and supports audio books and portable music subscription services.
Mobility products, including notebooks, handhelds and music players, along with software and peripherals, are a growing portion of Dell’s diversified product line. Together, these product categories represented more than 40 percent of its total net revenue in the previous quarter.
Too Little, Too Late
Jupiter Research analyst Michael Gartenberg told TechNewsWorld that Ditty’s introduction, which lacked the fanfare typical of iPod announcements, is a telling sign. Although the Ditty looks to match spec-wise to the iPod Shuffle, Gartenberg doesn’t see a true comparison.
“Apple has done an incredible job of evangelizing the market on features and, of course, on brand and cachet,” Gartenbeg said. “So while people talk about the fact that the Ditty has a screen and the Shuffle doesn’t, Apple has made the lack of a screen a feature and not a liability for consumers.”
To be sure, the market has seen plenty of MP3 players emerge in the past few years. None has achieved the success of the iPod. Analysts said that proves it’s not about features. In fact, more feature-rich MP3 players developed by iPod competitors have not grabbed market share from Apple. So why would Dell attempt to outdo the venerable iPod?
“Dell believes the market is still somewhat nascent. The vast majority of consumers don’t own MP3 players, but the problem is that the iPod has become a different device,” Gartenberg said. “IPod is not a generic term for MP3 players. There’s been no brand dilution of iPod. Consumers are very specific. When they say they want an iPod, they want something from Cupertino with white headphones.”
More on Tap
Much attention has been focused on the MP3 player, but Dell also announced newprinters and handhelds the company said underscore its commitment to meeting the needs of diverse lifestyles.
The new Dell Photo All-in-One Printer 924 and Dell Photo All-In-One Printer 944 offer faster printing speeds, enhanced photo capabilities, wireless capacity and a new design for $89 and $149 respectively.
Three new Axim X51 handhelds feature Windows Mobile 5.0 software with persistent storage memory to help protect data, and Media Player 10 Mobile for entertainment on the go. Prices for Axim X51 models start at $299.
“Dell is committed to helping customers get more out of their personal computers for entertainment and productivity by offering complementary products that are easy and fun to use in and outside the home and office,” said Michael Farello, vice president of electronics and accessories for Dell’s consumer business. “With every new generation of Dell personal technology products, we continue to increase value for customers by adding innovative and relevant features at attractive prices.”


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Ofcom the telecoms watchdog has launched new guidelines to stamp out unfair practices for TV, mobile and broadband packages.
Ofcom has said that they clamping down on unclear practices by mobile phone companies that could see customers paying more than they should for handsets and contracts.
A review into broadband prices has also begun, looking into long term customer contracts and whether or not they are paying more than new customers.
The watchdog said their initial analyses shows around 40% of long term customers have secured new and improved terms with their provider.
The main reason why customers pay more is due to the confusion over options available.
Sharon White, the Ofcom chief executive said, “Our fairness programme is delivering real benefits for customers, putting money in their pockets and helping more people get fairer deals.
“Everyone should expect to be treated fairly from their provider, but that hasn’t always happened in the past. There is now a real chance to change that.
“It’s vital we don’t chase the wrong solution to complex problems, which would see many customers worse off. Government, regulators and consumer bodies must all work together to ensure customers get a fair deal.”


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Insight and investigations from our expert reporters
Two more special reports from Japan today: first up, a look at how globalization has made companies around the world vulnerable to a shock like the earthquake. ”Disasters show flaws in just-in-time production.”
The PDF version, here, has a nice graphic showing the location of Japan’s ports, some of which have been hard hit by the disaster.
The second report takes another look at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant. It makes worrying reading:
TOKYO (Reuters)- When the massive tsunami smacked into Fukushima Daiichi, the nuclear power plant was stacked high with more uranium than it was originally designed to hold and had repeatedly missed mandatory safety checks over the past decade.
By Ben Berkovitz
Diplomacy is a complex thing, and it gets even more complicated when diplomats are trying to act as salesmen.
A series of State Department cables, obtained by WikiLeaks and provided to Reuters by a third party, demonstrates just how intertwined American political and commercial interests really are. (See special report “Weapons, frozen chicken, and the art of diplomacy“)
Reuters trade correspondent in Washington Doug Palmer had an unusual assignment: buy a fake Louis Vuitton handbag on the Internet, and take it to a LVMH store for a comparison test, before handing it over to U.S. authorities.
What was startling was how easy it was to find websites selling a dazzling array of stuff online. This is the new face of
piracy and its costing businesses billions. No need to skulk around back alleys or some pirate’s rental van to browse through footwear, watches, DVDs and whatnot. Just pick out your LV shoulder tote from a virtual catalog on a website based in China. It looks and feels like the real thing at a fraction of the price.
Another day, another Brazil story. No, not Petrobras, though that is worth reading too.
Luciana Lopez has a story about soy and shoes. It might seem like an odd combination but the two are important industries in Brazil which is undergoing an economic transformation as it comes to terms with China’s growing global clout.


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You have searched for "birds"
Showing 1-10 of 344
HELSINKI: The maker of hit mobile phone game “Angry Birds” is planning an initial public offering to raise around 30 million euros (US$36mil) and potentially use its shares to make acquisitions.
SHANGHAI/HONG KONG: Chinese authorities were slaughtering birds at a poultry market in the financial hub Shanghai as the death toll from a new strain of bird flu mounted to six on Friday, spreading concern overseas and sparking a sell-off on Hong Kong's share market.
LONDON: Angry Birds maker Rovio Entertainment Oyj, valued at about US$1bil (RM4.2bil) in last month’s initial public offering (IPO), is now plugging English heavy metal pioneers Iron Maiden in its latest effort to increase the longevity of its main franchise.
LONDON: Rovio Entertainment Oy is planning an initial public offering (IPO) as early as next month that could value the maker of the Angry Birds mobile games and movie at about US$2bil, said people familiar with the matter.
HELSINKI: “Angry Birds” maker Rovio Entertainment’s shares got off to a flying start on the Finnish firm’s stock market debut.
TALLINN: The Finnish maker of Angry Birds games cut its 2019 earnings outlook on Thursday due to lower-than-expected revenue from brand licensing and from older games, wiping off a quarter of the value of Rovio Entertainment's share price.


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On Monday, July 16 the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) launched five separate disputes at the World Trade Organization against Canada, China, the European Union, Mexico and Turkey to challenge the retaliatory tariffs each country imposed on U.S. exports in response to President Trump’s recent actions regarding aluminum and steel.
The United States’ steel and aluminum tariffs were imposed after the Secretary of Commerce reported that imports of these products threaten to harm U.S. national security. According to the United States Trade Representative, these tariffs are justified under several international agreements. However, the tariffs that the aforementioned countries imposed on U.S. exports in retaliation are not in compliance with international rules or WTO member commitments.
Read more about the initiation of the disputes here.


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Last August, Nintendo began to more fully embrace digital distribution as a way to sell more games than ever before – a drastic change from their earlier years of distancing themselves from the online community.
President of Nintendo of America, Reggie Fils-Aime, has said that digital downloads are rapidly becoming a major contributor to the company’s games sales and he expects it to continue to grow in popularity.
“We have 15 Nintendo-published titles available, both physically and digitally [on the 3DS],” he says. “So far in 2013, of those 15 available in this format, 11 percent of sales have come through full digital downloads of those games.”
The sales get even more remarkable with some individual games. Fire Emblem Awakening has already sold more than 240,000 units in the United States, with around a third of these sales in digital form.
Although the Wii U has not yet sold a significant amount, the 3DS has sold 8 million units in the United States in the past two years. That is 1 Million more than the DSI, with a continued rise in sales.
“When the NPD numbers come out later this week, you’re going to see life-to-date 3DS game sales surpass 20 million units in the US, and that’s just physical. It doesn’t include digital sales. … So far in 2013 – through April 15 – 3DS game sales are up 55 percent versus last year, counting both physical and digital.”
67 percent of all Nintendo 3DS owners have connected their 3DS to the Internet so far. And the majority of these people have purchased something of interest in the eShop.
“Through that connected experience, consumers have downloaded more than 41 million items from the eShop – everything from full games to applications like Nintendo video, DLC, demos, free items, and more.”
This is especially impressive given the 3DS’s early criticisms of a slow ramp of games, something that Nintendo had attempted to reverse with new titles such as Luigi’s Mansion and (410,000 units sold) and Fire Emblem Awakening ( 240,000 units sold) and Nintendo’s recent Nintendo Direct announcement. Fils-Aime says that the pace is going to be dramatically ramped up.
This increased pace will also apply to the Wii U, he said- however it seems that the company is keeping that under wraps for now.
“What I would say about Wii U – and what Mr. Iwata has said – is that the pace of launches has been slower than we hoped. But as we prepare for E3, the pace of launches for Wii U is going to dramatically increase.”
While the company is clearly ramping up the game for new gaming titles, you should not expect the same level of interest anywhere on non-gaming entertainment. Although competitors such as Microsoft are branching out to other parts of the home, Nintendo would prefer to stay focused on games- and to be honest, who disagrees?
“We believe consumers buy our systems first as a gaming system, then enjoy the other entertainment options, so that’s why we’re putting such a big emphasis on the gaming software,” he says.
Then again, another contributing influence on company’s emphasis on gaming software is the competition for the upcoming holidays. The Wii U will be battling Microsoft’s new Xbox and Sony’s PlayStation 4 for consumer purchases. Nintendo is hoping that the recent slew of new gaming titles will surpass the appeal of the launch titles of other gaming systems.
Although Nintendo has a lot on its side, it helps to be in as many retail stores as possible- however Nintendo is absent from one on of the most significant places: Amazon. Although the site sells Nintendo products through some of its retail partners, it has not stocked the company’s products itself for a long time.
Despite Fils-Aime’s declination to elaborate exactly why the two companies seem unable to collaborate on hard ware sales, it was noted that in the end it was Amazon’s decision.
“We have programs we make available to all retailers,” he says. “So then in the end, it becomes a decision by the retailer how they want to participate. Right now, Amazon is focused on selling software, but has decided not to sell hardware.”
So what about you, what digital game are you most excited for?


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Los Angeles 2015 motor show
The last major motor show of 2015 should end the year on high note
18 March 2015
Show dates: 17 November 2015 - 29 November 2015
And that's it for another year! The conclusion of the LA show marks the end of
the motor show calendar, and it managed to send 2015 off with a bang.
Some of the highlights of the LA show included the reveal of the Fiat 124
Spider, Fiat's new convertible based on the Mazda MX-5. Mercedes-Benz showed
off its facelifted SL-Class sportscar, and Lamborghini debuted a
rear-wheel-drive version of its ballistic Huracan.
Next on the motor show calendar is the 2016 Detroit Show, kicking off on the
11th January. For all the latest news leading up to and during the Detroit
show, keep an eye on GoAuto.com.au.
The final international motor show of the year begins this week in Tinsel Town,
with the LA show promising some big reveals from a number of different
Mercedes-Benz will preview the facelifted version of its SL-Class grand tourer,
which looks to take styling clues from its AMG GT flagship sports car.
There will also be a heavy focus on SUVs at the LA show, with Mazda,
Mercedes-Benz and Jeep all showing off new or updated four wheel drive models.
For all the latest news and footage from the LA show, keep an eye on
The LA motor show is now just around the corner, and promises to end the year
on a high.
Mercedes-Benz will debut its GLS SUV, the replacement for the GL-Class and the
biggest model in the German car-maker's stable.
Buick will unveil its 2015 model LaCrosse, about which there are rumours of a
replacement for the Holden Commodore, when the current VFII model eventually
goes out of production.
For all the latest news leading into and during the LA show, keep it locked on
THIS year's Los Angeles Auto Show will once again cap off 2015, but expect
Christmas to come a little early as major car brands debut new production and
Last year saw Mazda unveil its new baby-sized CX-3 and facelifted Mazda6 sedan
and wagon and CX-5 mid-size SUV, as well as the North American debut of the
Other production cars revealed include the Jaguar F-Type AWD, Mercedes-Maybach
S600 and BMW's X5 and X6 M twins.
Head to GoAuto for all the latest LA motor show news as it happens.
Giant LS: Mercedes-Benz will debut its range-toppping GLS SUV at LA, to sit above the recently released GLE.
Cars at the show:


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The Grocery Manufacturers Assn. (GMA) and Food Marketing Institute (FMI) announced a new labeling initiative for their member companies: America's leading food and beverage manufacturers and retailers joined forces in the fight against obesity and announced their commitment to develop a new front-of-package nutrition labeling system. The unprecedented consumer initiative will make it easier for busy consumers to make informed choices when they shop ... America's food and beverage manufacturers and retailers have agreed to support the change to their product labels with a $50 million consumer education campaign.
Forget the consumer-friendly rhetoric, reports the Atlantic Monthly. "There is only one explanation for this move: heading off the FDA's front-of-package (FOP) labeling initiatives." That follows the Institute of Medicine's first FDA-sponsored FOP labeling report, which recommended that FOP symbols only mention calories, sodium, trans fat, and saturated fat. GMA and FMI would much rather label their products with all the things that are good about them, like added vitamins, omega-3s, and fiber. If they must do negatives, they prefer "no trans fat" or "no cholesterol." And they do not want the FDA to impose "traffic-light" symbols, continues the article. These U.K. symbols, which discourage consumers from buying anything labeled in red, and were so strongly opposed by the food industry that they caused the undoing of the British Food Standards Agency.The article concludes GMA and FMI demonstrate that the food industry will not willingly label its processed foods in ways that help the public make healthier food choices.I don't see why the industry should not tout its healthy ingredients in FOP labeling; it encourages investment in continuous improvement, and helps individual consumers make more informed choices for their families. And I don't think "traffic-light" symbols necessarily prove food is healthy or not. And while I'm at it, I don't believe the Food Guide Pyramid is based on provable science either.


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Cleveland, Ohio 2021-06-07 14:01:39 –
(Nex Star) – Apple On Monday, the company announced that it would soon add a digital driver’s license to the Apple Wallet.
The new integration allows you to scan your current license and save the digital version to your wallet app.
According to Apple, the Transportation Security Administration is working to support new digital licenses.
iOS 15 features will be introduced later this year.
Apple announced on Monday that FaceTime will soon be supported on Android and Windows 10 PCs using a new shareable link that opens in the browser. FaceTime updates will also be part of iOS 15.
Digital driver's licenses coming to Wallet on iPhone Source link Digital driver's licenses coming to Wallet on iPhone


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We Now Know where Amazon’s HQ will Be!
By 2020, it will be clear Amazon will be one of the biggest tech monopolies America will ever produce, and it might shift capitalism forever.
To give you some context, it was February 20th and Walmart had its worst day in three decades on the stock market. This after news its E-commerce growth under-performed in the last quarter.
Amazon’s stock? It’s never been better. After being neck and neck with Google for a long while, its stock is now at $1,500. This means even in 2018, its market cap has overtaken Microsoft, and could beat Apple to become the first company to reach a $1 trillion valuation.
AMAZON WILL ALSO BECOME A DIGITAL ADVERTISING GIANT
In such a scenario, Amazon is an inside favorite to challenge Google in digital advertising, beat Netflix in original content, and be the new American AI duopology standing against the Chinese golden age of technology of the next twenty years. 2018 is the point in history where historians will look back and say that’s when Chinese AI and tech began to overtake U.S. companies, talent and researchers.
THE PLAY FOR WASHINGTON
In terms of entering monopoly status that truly scales the market, Amazon has a few years left of growth and disruption. Amazon must prevent any threat to its future growth. This means boosting its presence in Washington.
Jeff Bezos knew this might happen of course, he didn’t even do due diligence when he for $250 million acquired the Washington Post deal in 2013. He knew his relationship with Government would become more important. Nay, for Amazon’s master-plan, it was central to have Washington on its side. In 2018, this hasn’t changed.
For the future of American retail, it doesn’t matter if Nordstrom goes private, or Walmart thinks it can innovate, or Macy’s is taking longer to become the next Sears, we basically know that Amazon is cannibalizing the future of apparel, grocery and consumer fulfillment.
In doing so, it’s mathematically impossible Amazon will create more jobs than it disrupts.
This is why Amazon needs to set up shop right next to Washington D.C., to make sure it’s not dismantled.
AMAZON WILL CHOOSE THIS TOWN
Amazon’s #HQ2 won’t be favorites Atlanta, Austin or my underdog favorite Columbus, it will actually be Arlington, Virginia. Amazon can’t afford to put its next headquarters any further from Washington D.C. itself.
Also on February 20th, 2018 an article on a local news site in Arlington, Virginia, blew up overnight with traffic coming from an internal microsite for Amazon employees. According to the viral story, ARLnow.com speculates that this indicates that this location is receiving considerable interest in its bid for HQ2, and I agree.
Washington D.C. and two D.C. adjacent areas (Northern Virginia, VA and Montgomery County, MD) are among three of the top twenty spots left in the running, but Arlington is my darkhorse favorite.
Walmart was supposed to be able to compete in E-commerce with the acquisition of Jet but is having certain logistic challenges. They have partnered with Google for voice-activated shopping, but lack the add-on value of what Amazon Prime continues to become; an ecosystem of consumer fulfillment that will acquire more data on users and push capitalism to the brink. How can this be?
AMAZON GO STORES WILL BE EXPANDING
Amazon’s cashierless store AmazonGo is ready to expand to new locations in the Seattle and L.A. area. Amazon announced in early 2018 it’s also getting into logistics and healthcare more aggressively. With Walmart’s stock dropping more than 10% this week, its worst day since January 1988, it’s just a sign of things to come.
Amazon can take marketshare away from verticals which fear what it will become including grocery, retail, healthcare and it’s successfully taking on tech companies like Microsoft, Google and Apple in the cloud and with artificial intelligence. That it will soon revolutionize healthcare and banking is not far-fetched. Amazon could in theory acquire a ride-sharing operation such as Lyft, to power its logistics and consumer fulfillment with driverless cars.
One thing is certain, in the age of automation which we are on the cusp, Amazon will be a serious player.
THE ONLY THREAT TO AMAZON, IS WASHINGTON
With Arlington it would be the right fit a Amazon HQ, since they have recently ramped up its lobbying efforts in DC (which will be key in the 2020s). Bezos already spends a lot of time at the Washington Post, and as Amazon rises as an advertising giant in the 2020s, it will become such a strong monopoly its dangers to capitalism and market competition will become abundantly clear in the next five to fifteen years.
THE FUTURE OF CAPITALISM IS SHIFTING
Amazon isn’t just a retailer or a tech Cloud-AI company, it’s the kind of company that could end capitalism as we know it while providing an incentivized UBI, that exaggerates wealth inequality and deteriorates the middle class for decades to come. As the voice to break Amazon apart will only continue to grow as it disrupts the markets and new industries with monopolistic growth, Amazon’s HQ2 will be in Arlington to ensure this does not happen.
It’s one thing for Facebook to facilitate the hacking of democracy, but for an automation and exponential tech company like Amazon, it could hack capitalism itself and the evidence is out that this has already basically occurred on Walstreet with a hype machine and shareholder veneration.
In the era of instant gratification, how we experience capitalism changes as tech monopolies continue to scale as they break-down legacy industries with data-driven consumerism that grossly accelerates wealth inequality. Coincidentally the fall of the American middle class will coincide with the rise of a Chinese tech dynasty, that will gradually challenge American innovation itself.
We now know in early 2018 that Amazon will choose Arlington, for its benefit of being next to Washington D.C.


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Apple hints at .Mac updates next TuesdayA posting to Apple\'s .Mac account page this weekend warned members of expected downtime next Tuesday morning, the same time company chief executive Steve Jobs is scheduled to deliver the opening keynote presentation at this year\'s highly anticipated Macworld Expo.
\"Mac will be undergoing scheduled maintenance from 7:00 AM to 12:00 PM PST on 1/10/06,\" Apple said in the posting \"All .Mac services will be affected. We apologize for the inconvenience.\"
Recent reports have suggested that .Mac would see updates next Tuesday in support of a new iLife application, amongst other possibilities.
Apple last updated .Mac in September when it increased user storage, add a Groups feature and updated the Backup to version 3.0.
On Topic: General
- Xiaomi launches Mi Notebook Air, targeting Apple's MacBook lineup
- Apple preps first Mexican Apple Store ahead of push into Latin America
- Apple CEO Tim Cook bullish on augmented reality, says company investing in AR tech
- Microsoft Office 365 gains machine learning writing style assistant, research tool
- New guidelines may push Apple to switch away from SMS for two-factor authentication


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The wait for the 4G LTE-enabled Surface Go is nearly over, with pre-orders now open and 22 November being the date when the connected GO goes live, as Microsoft promotes Surface for Business as big beneficiaries.
New Zealand’s competition regulator The Commerce Commission has sent a letter of issue to defence contractor Thales over its proposed acquisition of fellow data encryption hardware and software provider Gemalto, raising concerns about the impact of the deal on product prices and quality.
Ericsson is expanding its end-to-end 5G platform by adding new hardware and software products to the Ericsson Radio System portfolio, which it says further enhances the agility and speed with which communication service providers can roll out their 5G networks.
This is an unbearably good headline :-)
Great Stuff Sam - I wish this could go out to a larger audience.
5G will save us, and the NBN will have to be redone anyway.
As always, a great article Sam.
I will never forgive him.


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Since this year, due to the limitation of offline consumption, live delivery with goods has become popular overnight. Under the influence of online shopping with goods in the head, goods can be easily sold out in a few seconds in the live room. According to the firefly statistics, the total sales of Weiya Taobao studio reached 437 million yuan on the night of October 31 alone. It is no wonder that A-share listed companies have come to join the live broadcast army with the cooperation of online celebrities.
Since May this year, a number of listed companies from textile and clothing, film and television, software and other fields have joined hands with the live webcast to share a share of the live with goods sales platform.
Take the once hot Saturday (002291. SZ), as the first listed company of womens shoes in Shenzhen A shares, closed 1096 stores from 2015 to 2019 due to poor management, which decreased by nearly 50%. At the end of 2019, with the live with goods mode on Saturday, the stock price turned over. There were 16 limit boards in 25 transactions, and the highest stock price reached 36.56 yuan.
Mengjie shares (002397. SZ), another representative online Red concept stock, has fallen by more than 30% since hitting a six month high in May this year. According to the third quarter report of Mengjie shares, the companys revenue from January to September was 1.356 billion yuan, a year-on-year decrease of 19.64%; and the net profit attributable to the parent company decreased by 85%.
After the net red halo faded, the above companies showed only unsatisfactory fundamentals and performance reports.
This year, because of the epidemic situation and the impact of online and offline sales platforms, the market has given a premium to online Red concept stocks. After the fake door and single door live data flooding events exposed, investors become more cautious, a Shanghai public fund manager told the first finance and economics reporter, speculation in the concept of online red may attract a lot of attention of Listed Companies in a short period of time, but when the heat disappears, the market will re test these online Red economy concept stocks u3002u201d
The reporter noted that the shareholders of the two listed companies frequently reduced their holdings during the concept speculation. On Saturday, the controlling shareholders announced the reduction plan on December 25, 2019. Up to the expiration date, the controlling shareholders reduced their shares accounting for 3.587% of the companys total share capital, and cashed in more than 600 million yuan. In July 2020, the companys controlling shareholders announced that they would reduce their holdings of 4% of the companys total share capital again.
The shareholders and supervisors of Mengjie Co., Ltd. announced the reduction plan from April to August in 2020. Among them, the 7 million shares of Wu Jing were reduced on November 13, with the price range between 5.28 yuan / share and 7.03 yuan / share. As of November 27, Mengjie shares closed 4.9 yuan.


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By Jim Preen, Director of Crisis Management at YUDU
Header Image by Gemma Smith
Publishers who are struggling to get their content printed and distributed during the coronavirus outbreak are turning to digital, says YUDU CEO Richard Stephenson.
Newspapers, journals and trade magazines are seeing a huge spike in readership on the back of the health emergency. It’s near to impossible for smaller publications to get their product printed and distributed.
Commenting, Stephenson said: ‘At YUDU Publisher we were recently approached by CorpComms magazine (https://www.corpcommsmagazine.co.uk/) who were in difficulty and we managed to turn their journal into a digital edition in just thirty minutes.’
Helen Dunne, Editor of CorpComms, said: ‘We wanted to make sure our readers received their dose of CorpComms while working at home. So were delighted when YUDU managed to turn our magazine into a great looking digital version in super quick time’.
The benefit of the digital approach is the ability to publish high quality digital magazines very rapidly. Digital also offers advanced tools needed to control distribution, gather GDPR-compliant data and review engagement statistics.
Stephenson went on: ‘It is not just in the UK, a Californian publisher got in touch to say they couldn’t get their magazines printed, and could we help. The answer was yes we can, and we did.
‘Publications currently struggling to fulfil their subscriptions in print, may well find digital to be the answer, and YUDU’s award winning publishing technology is here to assist without any complications. After all, we have been publishing quality digital magazines for more than 16 years.’
Contact James O’Brien on James.O’firstname.lastname@example.org


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A security researcher has revealed that old Intel processors based on the x86 architecture contain a serious vulnerability which has gone unnoticed for nearly twenty years, and the only fix against it for most users is to upgrade to a newer chip.
According to Christopher Domas, who presented a white paper about the vulnerability at the Black Hat Conference, pre-2010 Intel processors and quite possibly AMD processors have a design flaw which could allow attackers to install rootkits in the chip's protected space known as System Management Mode (SMM).
The rootkit can further be utilized to wreak havoc on the system in various forms such as wiping the BIOS or installing persistent malware that reinstalls itself similar to that demonstrated on the Mac recently. Domas has revealed a proof of concept code for installing such a rootkit in his white paper. Intel is reportedly aware of the situation and has released firmware updates for few chips, but still a large number are likely to remain unprotected as firmware updates are often ignored by regular users.
Although Domas hasn't explicitly carried out any tests with AMD chips, he believes that they could also be affected since they are also built on the x86 architecture. Users who haven't received any firmware upgrades for their ageing PCs should consider upgrading in the near future.


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Starent Leaps on Debut
Within hours Starent's share price had jumped by 16 percent to $13.93, giving the company a market valuation of $869 million.
The wireless data router vendor last month announced a planned IPO price range of $9 - $11. (See Starent Sets IPO Range.)
But strong demand for the stock meant that Starent joined Nasdaq at $12 per share today, raising $108 million for the vendor through its placement of 9 million shares and a further $18.4 million for existing stockholders. An additional 1,580,226 shares could still be bought by the company's underwriters.
Investors have likely been enticed by the vendor's growth prospects. As a specialist supplier of routers designed to handle wireless data traffic, its sales should increase in the coming years as mobile operators launch more data services on their 3G networks and start building out 4G networks.
The company is already showing encouraging sales growth signs, though from a relatively low starting point. In the first three months of this year, it generated revenues of $27.6 million and net income of $2.3 million, compared with revenues of $14.4 million and a profit of $252,000 in the first quarter of 2006.
— Ray Le Maistre, International News Editor, Light Reading


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(OPINION) America may soon be poised to go cashless. Now, the nation must decide if ditching the dollar bill is a good idea. Two-fifths of Americans used no cash in 2022. Back in 2015, by contrast, fewer than one-quarter of consumers went cashless, according to Pew surveys. In a separate poll, three-fifths of consumers told Gallup they used cash only on occasion last year, twice the share of five years ago.
Paper currency and coins are unsanitary, inconvenient, costly to handle and easy to steal. Criminal enterprises thrive on the portable anonymity of the hundred-dollar bill. Cashless transactions solve those […]
Read the rest of this story here: endtimeheadlines.org
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According to a recent news article, the National Association of REALTORS® recently reported that nearly 5.1 million homes sold last year, which is the highest rate it’s been since 2006.
Meanwhile, values are rising as home sellers grow increasingly tired of selling their home for “cheap.”
Although this is resulting in longer Days on the Market averages, it also means that home prices are rising.
A Look Back at 2013 Activity
Here’s an overview of national real estate activity, according to December data:
- From January to December 2013, there were 4.87 existing home that were sold on a seasonally-adjusted annualized basis.
- That figure is one percent higher from the month before.
- For 2013 overall, there were 5.09 million home sales, which is a nine percent increase from the year before.
- What’s more, that figure is the highest reading it’s been since 2006.
- Meanwhile, home builders reported increased buyer foot traffic. In fact, they said the activity had reached a 7-year high.
- And by December 2013, the home supply was down to 4.6 months. This means that if activity stayed the same, all available homes for sale would be sold in that time frame.
- The latest report also revealed that homes are not selling as quickly as the year before.
- While 28 percent of homes sold in 30 days or less, the Median Days on the Market actually increased substantially, from 16 to 72 days.
- In fact, Days on the Market has been steadily increasing for the last seven months.
- Here’s another thing to note: home prices have increased more than 20 percent in some regional housing markets over the last year, in part because of bidding wars.
- In December, foreclosed homes had a median Days on Market of 67 days.
A Look Ahead to 2014
Experts predict that cold weather in December and January may have created even more pent-up home buyer demand, which could bode well for housing market activity in the coming months as temperatures warm up.
Experts are also saying that while home sales have slowed over the last several months, competition is greater than ever.
This is aided by the fact that home sellers are feeling more confident than ever. They’re no longer worried about whether their home will ever sell, they’re worried about getting the best price possible for their home.
Thus, many have raised their list prices to values that they think are reasonable instead of pricing them undervalue in an effort to attract buyers.
While this might slow the momentum a little (and thus lead to longer Days on the Market), the long-term effect will be that prices will rise as buyers realize this is not a passing trend.
Your #1 Source for National Real Estate News
Please check out our website again soon to receive national real estate market updates and see how recent activity may affect your efforts as a buyer or seller.


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Could Apple be preparing to square up to Google in the world of search? OK, it seems pretty unlikely – a bit like David trying to get one in Goliath’s eye with a marzipan slingshot and a sprained wrist. That’s not meant to be insulting; it’s just a recognition of how massive the search giants really are out there. But Ghent-based web developer Jan Moesen has nonetheless noticed something interesting: Apple seems to be crawling websites with its very own automated bot.
Does this hold promise for the rise of another algorithm-driven means of filtering your content or might it be rather more modest? Everyone involved in digital video production and online content would like to know the answer to that one. But before your hair starts to whiten in stress, SearchEngineLand.com’s Greg Sterling is firmly of the belief that we’re not going to have to contend with another set of algorithm updates just yet.
“Apple has been working on “search” in various forms for some time. Siri, though not a search engine, is a kind of replacement for search for certain types of queries and activities. Apple has been relying on Bing for websearch ‘backfill’.”
Apple has also, of course, developed Apple Maps, its local search engine (which can now be accessed via your wrist courtesy of the Apple Watch). But the central place given to Apple’s new Spotlight Search following the Yosemite update to MacOS may provide the true answer to the enigma of the Apple bot.
Spotlight concentrates on searching your desktop but it draws on Bing to provide search suggestions and it includes structured data sources like Fandango, Wikipedia and Maps in its results. But the likelihood of Apple taking on Google head-to-head as an all-singing, all-dancing search engine is about as likely as a snowball surviving a blast furnace. Instead, it seems to be aimed at enhancing Apple’s Spotlight experience with web search and related content.


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America’s favorite day to eat wings, drink beer and sit on the couch is nearly here. The first Super Bowl game was played in 1967, and over the past 51 years, has grown into quite a spectacle. This year, more than 188.5 million people are expected to tune in for Sunday’s festivities. If sports aren’t your thing, then you’re part of the 24% of Americans who watch it for the attention-grabbing commercials. And these brands are betting—very large sums of money—on consumers checking out their ads. But brands aren’t the only ones spending money during the Super Bowl. Super Bowl weekend brings in serious revenue from consumer spending for liquor stores, restaurants and grocery stores.
It’s not the Super Bowl without big-budget, star-studded commercials. NBC said it will bring in $500 million in revenue for programming on Sunday alone. According to Ad Age Datacenter, ad spending for commercials during the broadcast is estimated to be around $419 million. The average cost for a 30-second commercial during Super Bowl LII is just over $5 million—that’s $168,333 per second! And it looks like the commercials are worth the expensive price tag. Adweek conducted a study that showed 49% are more likely to buy from a brand after seeing a good Super Bowl ad, and 69% are less likely to buy from a brand after seeing a bad commercial.
Consumers carry the spending momentum through from the holiday season into their Super Bowl festivities. Whether hosting a party or going to a bar, consumers are going to spend on the game. American adults are expected to spend an average $81.17 for a total of $15.3 billion, up from $14.1 billion last year. The average American hosting a Super Bowl watch party will spend around $207.16 on food, beverages, decorations and fan gear.
Super Bowl is the second biggest eating holiday in America, which bodes well for food and liquor sales. In 2017, shoppers spent $502 million on chips, $80 million on chicken wings, $100 million on meat snacks, $60 million on deli sandwiches, and $81 million on deli salads (for those health nuts). Additionally, $1.3 billion was spent on beer, $597 on wine, and $503 million on liquor. Not too bad for one weekend of sales!
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Listen: BTS Drops “All Night” Featuring Juice WRLD For BTS WORLD OST
BTS has dropped their final soundtrack for their upcoming mobile game BTS WORLD!
The third release off BTS WORLD’s OST is “All Night” produced by RM. The hip hop track incorporates beats by Powers Pleasant and features RM, Suga, and rapper Juice WRLD.
Hey, Manager! BTS WORLD Soundtrack Part.3 is out now!
All Night (BTS WORLD Soundtrack Part.3) by BTS & Juice WRLD
Check it out now!
▶https://t.co/xzXrLxKqye#방탄소년단 #BTS #Juice_WRLD #All_Night #BTSWORLD #BTS월드 pic.twitter.com/yqpPZt4jpX
— BTS WORLD Official (@BTSW_official) June 21, 2019
The first soundtrack to BTS WORLD “Dream Glow” was released on June 7, and the second soundtrack “A Brand New Day” was released on June 14. BTS WORLD’s full soundtrack album will be released on June 28.
BTS WORLD is an interactive game that has story-based simulations allowing players to view exclusive new photos and video clips as they virtually interact with the members. It will officially be launched on June 26.


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-Mars launched a new “Winning” campaign in the U.K. (video above).
-Adweek talks with Periscope CEO Kayvon Beykpour about “What Brands Can Expect With Livestreaming in 2016.”
-Anomaly founding partner, global CEO Carl Johnson explains “why 2016 offers opportunities for agencies brave enough to tell the truth.”
–Denstu Ventures invested in molecular-level connected health device Cue.
-General Motors is investing $500 million in Lyft.
-Adweek asks “Can Coke Veteran Wendy Clark Add Some Pop to DDB?“
–“This Woman Is In (Practically) Every Ad! Is She In Yours?” asks MediaPost.
–Donald Trump launched the first official ad of his presidential campaign.