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CALIFORNIA (AFP): Twitter on Wednesday unveiled — and then almost immediately scrapped — a new gray “official” label for some high-profile accounts as Elon Musk struggles to revamp the influential platform following his $44 billion buyout.
“I just killed it,” Musk tweeted just hours after the new tag was added to government accounts as well as those of big companies and major media outlets.
“Please note that Twitter will do lots of dumb things in coming months. We will keep what works & change what doesn’t,” the world’s richest man added to explain the U-turn.
The sudden change of heart will invite further scrutiny of Musk’s plans for Twitter a week after he laid off thousands of workers and drew a massive drop in spending by advertisers, who are wary of the site’s direction.
The botched rollout came ahead of the hotly anticipated introduction of a revamped subscription model in which the site’s famed blue checkmark would be made available for a fee of $7.99, though Musk has also said the price would be adjusted by country.
The blue tick has been a mark of an account’s authenticity and doubts emerged that public figures or media outlets would pay for it. The official gray tag was seen by observers as a workaround to solve that problem.
The launch of the new official label began on Wednesday and was on the accounts of companies such as Apple or BMW and public ones such as the White House and major media outlets.
But only a few hours later, it was gone for many of them.
Accounts belonging to Agence France-Presse, BBC News, Pope Francis or the controversial rapper Kanye West that had received the “official” badge, saw the mention disappear.
– ‘A lot of work’ –
Esther Crawford, an executive who announced the gray tick idea on Tuesday, insisted that the official label was still going to be part of the relaunch, but that “we are just focusing on government and commercial entities to begin with.”
During a panel for advertisers broadcast on Twitter, Musk exercised some damage control, admitting that a lot of work lay ahead to get the site to the place he wished to reach.
“We’ve got a lot to do on the software side. I can’t emphasize that enough,” he said.
Musk took control of Twitter after a drawn-out back-and-forth legal battle in which the mercurial tycoon tried to renege on a deal that many believe he overpaid for.
It emerged on Tuesday that Musk sold $4 billion worth of shares in Tesla to help pay for a transaction in which he took on billions of dollars in debt.
The $7.99 subscription idea is seen as one way to overcome the loss in advertisers since Musk took over the company.
Twitter last week fired half of its 7,500 employees, which Musk said was necessary as the company was losing $4 million a day.


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VIZIO 11.6" Tablet PC Price Mentioned, Now Avalible
The Vizio 11.6-inch Tablet PC, yes that’s the name, has gone on sale in the US touting an AMD processor and Windows 8. The last time we saw the Vizio slate was at the CES 2013 and the company has officially announced the device’s availability details on its Twitter account.
We’ve been seeing Intel dominate the slate segment with its latest Atom SOCs. Well, for a change, the Vizio 11.6-inch Tablet PC is amongst the few to pack in an AMD processor. This module is the Z-60 APU which features a 1GHz dual core setup and Radeon HD 6250 graphics. Entertainment is one of the main highlights of the device. It features a full HD 1080p LED capacitive touchscreen with 10-finger multi-touch input.
To read the rest of this article, please click here.

domain: news


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OfficeMate to pursue franchise route for 1,000 units in five years
Leading office stationery and equipment supplier COL Public Co Ltd aims to set up 1,000 OfficeMate franchise units in the next five years.
The firm also will increase the hotels, restaurants and cafes catalogue business this year and expects 10 percent revenue growth year on year.
Worawoot Ounjai, the chief executive officer of COL, said the firm intends to set up OfficeMate omni-channel franchises in the fourth quarter this year. The franchise will have areas of 50100 square metres and be able to sale all products from the OfficeMate catalogue.
The franchise fee starts at Bt2 million for areas around 50-squaremetre outlets and Bt5 million for outlets with an area of around 100 square metres. As a first step, the firm will set up three franchises in the Rangsit and RCA areas by the end of this year.
“We expect OfficeMate to have more than 1,000 branches nationwide in the next 5-10 years. It currently has around 70 of its own branches nationwide, with each branch area ranging from 500-2,000 square metres.
“I think that the franchise will enable COL to have a market share of 20-30 per cent for office products supplies, and increase the share to 60-70 per cent within the next 10 years. The total office products supplies market is valued at Bt30 billion per year,” said Worawoot.
He said the firm believed the ommi-channel model would enable the franchisee to distribute all products and all catalogues of OfficeMate. The firm will offer stock management and shelves for the outlets. It will also take care of and provide training, franchise clinics and coaching.
He said that early next year it plans to increase product catalogues in the areas of medical, clinic and spas via the online channel. In the second quarter, it also provided products designed to support factories. The firm as a first step offered products supplies of around 6,000 SKUs for factories. It expects that by the end of this year it will create revenue of around Bt300 million from factories products supplies. The firm plans to provide 10 new catalogues in the next stage.
The firm now supplies its products and servฌices to some 40,000 factories, 20,000 hotels, restaurants, and coffee shops, as well as 10,000 health and medical customers.
COL plans to develop the OfficeMate webฌsite as an e-marketplace website. The firm will allow shops nationwide that focus on business-to-business (B2B) transactions to provide its products and services via its website. The firm will gain revenues from transaction fees.
“We will provide supply chain management to shops and display their products and servฌices via its website to cater to the ecommerce market,” said Worawoot.
He added that the firm is expanding its business in Vietnam. The firm this year plans to set up an OfficeMate shop at Big C in Ho Chi Minh City and expects to set up OfficeMate shops at all Big C branches in Vietnam within the next three years.
He said COL last year gained revenue of Bt12.2 billion and achieved net profit of around Bt502 million. The firm expects 10 per cent year-on-year revenue growth this year.


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Transport associations will have five months to register as a business
A group of associations involved in the transport business under the Ethiopian Transport Employers’ Federation have listed sets of prerequisites to be fulfilled before registering as business entities.
Unhappy with the procedure the government underwent, which excluded consultation with the Federation before approval of the proclamation, the Federation raised concern about further exclusion from the processes.
Drafted by the Ministry of Transport and Logistics, the proclamation was tabled to the Parliament in February, 2022, and was legislated in July of the same year. It requires the associations to transform into commercial companies before April 2023.
In a general assembly of the Federation held last Thursday at Genet Hotel, leaders of the association presented to the members and representatives what they believe should have been considered while drafting the proclamation and should be included in the regulations and directives to follow.
Berhane Zereu, president of the association, says his office welcomes the proclamation positively but warns of a careful execution.
“We are the ones with the largest stake, but they didn’t receive any input from us. Following the proclamation, they should have prepared a regulation and a directive. It is impossible to continue implementation of the new proclamation with the old directive and regulation,” Berhane said.
The proclamation gives seven options for transport associations to reestablish themselves as business entities. This includes general partnerships, limited partnerships, limited liability partnerships, joint ventures, share companies, private limited companies, and single-person owned limited companies.
The Federation, however, wants only general partnerships, share companies, and private limited companies to be applied when the new rule comes into force.
Berhane said in his address speech that over 90 percent of the expenses for the trucks on their travel to and from Djibouti have no receipts.
Dagnachew Abebe, a member of an association and owner of a fuel truck with over two decades in the business, sees the transition from an association to a business organization as a disaster, given the sector’s problems.
“We have to pay a high amount of money for parking at all stops from here to Djibouti, make another expense of 2,400 birr to enter Djibouti, and 400 birr per day for our stay in the country, and also pay a high amount of money for the Djiboutian to help in case of accidents. We don’t receive receipts for all these,” Dagnachew said.
Spare parts importers don’t issue receipts because they source foreign exchange from unofficial sources, according to him. “And if they buy damaged vehicles from insurance companies and sell parts of these vehicles, they don’t give any receipts for that,” he said.
With a direct impact on over 70 percent of total transportation services in Ethiopia, the majority of which are cross-country cargo transport service providers, the Federation has about 68 associations under its wing, with 1,200 staff, excluding drivers and their assistants, and 15,000 trucks.


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SentBe partners with Currencycloud to make borderless finance a reality for all
Currencycloud, the experts simplifying business in a multi-currency world, has partnered with leading South Korea-based global remittance and payment provider SentBe to improve the regional reach of its payments service and offer its Korean consumers and businesses a more streamlined, customized experience when sending money internationally.
The partnership allows SentBe to offer low cost FX to its clients, enabling it to scale faster as it looks to expand into the global foreign exchange market. By integrating Currencycloud’s APIs into its existing FX management technology, SentBe can now offer a fully automated payments process to its Singapore and South Korea-based customers, providing them with faster, streamlined transactions to the UK, EU, Canada and the US.
Alex Seongouk Choi, CEO SentBe said, “By partnering with Currencycloud, SentBe can offer a wider range of solutions and choices to our customers, including competitive FX rates. We can give them the services they need to expand internationally. Additionally, Currencycloud’s easy-to-use platform has made our client service speed quicker and simplified the entire transaction process, shortening the time it takes for our clients to receive their money. This has attracted more clients and made SentBe more competitive.”
Nick Cheetham, Chief Revenue Officer at Currencycloud commented, “Like Currencycloud, SentBe is focused on making frictionless borderless finance a reality for its customers, opening up low-cost, seamless payments and transactions for everyone. We are looking forward to the continuation of the partnership as SentBe continues its goal of expansion into the US, Canada, Australia and Europe.”
The SentBe payment app is available to download from the App Store & Google Play now.


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As you might have heard, Tesla is going to remove radar sensors from its North American market Model 3 and Model Y EVs. And it’s already causing problems for the carmaker.
Yesterday, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) removed certain safety designations for vehicles produced after April 27. The safety body does not give its “check mark” for forward collision warning, lane departure warning, crash imminent braking and dynamic brake support, Reuters reports.
In other words, the NHTSA no longer recognizes these Tesla vehicles as being up to its safety standards, now that radar has been removed.
It’s worth noting that the NHTSA only gives its approved check mark to vehicles that it’s tested. Removing radar is such a massive change that the NHTSA will have to retest these vehicles before it decides if they’re worthy of getting the check mark again.
So it’s not like the NHTSA is condemning these Tesla models as unsafe death traps, far from it. But it highlights just how important radar systems are in active safety features.
As we pointed out just yesterday, removing radar to rely solely on a camera-based active safety system is opening Tesla up to a host of potentially dangerous infractions.
Cameras are severely impaired when its foggy, rainy, or dark, and in those situations radar can provide a supporting system to ensure active safety features like automatic braking can remain active.
We don’t have a definitive answer on why Tesla is removing radar, but cynics will be quick to jump to conclusions to say it’s all about cost savings.
Clearly Tesla thinks it can make its systems work well enough on cameras alone, but the NHTSA is going to need to see proof.
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Apple AirPods PRICE HIKE! More expensive than ever, see what you have to pay now
Apple AirPods see big PRICE HIKE! New models in India have seen an increase in price, here’s what you have to pay.
Apple has hiked prices of its AirPods earbuds in India. On the sidelines of WWDC22, Apple has quietly bumped the prices of all the newer models of the AirPods TWS earbuds as well as the headphones. No reasons have been given yet behind the price hike but the new prices are now reflected across the Apple Online Store as well as some other retailers. Note that the base 2nd Gen AirPods are exempt from the price hike.
The price hike is substantial across the range. The new AirPods 3rd Gen that were launched late last year at a starting price of Rs. 18,550, are now selling at a price of Rs. 20,500. The updated AirPods Pro with the new MagSafe wireless charging was selling at a price of Rs. 24,990 and after the revision, will now cost Rs. 26,300. The AirPods Max headphones has seen the highest increment in price though, by an amount of Rs. 6,200. It now costs Rs. 66,100.
Apple AirPods are now more expensive
It seems that price hike of the newer AirPods could be due to the chip shortage facility, or that Apple is adjusting for inflation with the global situation.
The AirPods 3rd Gen was announced recently and is supposed to be the replacement of the older gen model. While Apple did not give it ANC like some of its competitors, it gave it a new design, improved battery life, support for Spatial Audio.
It remains to be seen whether we Apple increases prices of other products across different categories. Apple had recently launched the new iPhone SE 3rd Gen in India along with the new iPad Air 5th Gen as well as the Mac Studio. The iPhone SE is based on the new A15 chip from the iPhone 13 and brings in some minor upgrades over its predecessors.
Along with these products, Apple also announced the iPhone 13 and iPhone 13 Pro models in new shades of green. The prices of the new colours shades are no different than the other colour variants of the iPhone 13. Apple did not change any internal specifications or features on these iPhones. Hence, you still get the same great set of cameras, a nice OLED display, the powerful A15 Bionic chip, and great battery life.


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Square Enix is collaborating with Japanese mobile giant DeNA to create the first social game based on the Final Fantasy IP.
The game will be released on DeNA's Mobage platform, and while there is no official release date, Japanese gamers can already pre-register online. Owners of the PSP title Final Fantasy Type-0 will receive an exclusive in-game reward.
Square Enix has released two Facebook games to date, Knights of the Crystals and Chocobo's Crystal Tower, but the new game, which will focus on "fighting for teammates," will be the first to use its flagship franchise.
Square Enix joins a growing list of high profile Japanese game companies creating games for DeNA's Mobage platform. In July, the company announced that Keiji Inafune, Grasshopper Manufacture, Prope, Meister and Marvellous Entertainment all had projects in development.


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By Victoria Gospodinov
Credit cards can be a useful introduction into the world of personal finances and managing expenses in college, but a financial planning expert warns student cardholders to avoid excessive debt.
Alyssa Bedard, a financial planning associate at Ronald Blue Trust, said the number one tip she gives college students to control credit card debt is to set up an automatic monthly payment so that debt doesn’t build overtime.
“In order to avoid debt, it’s best to pay off the full statement balance each month if that’s within your means and this also maximizes your credit,” said Bedard.
Obtaining a credit card in college can be the first step in creating healthy credit card habits to stay out of debt and help increase credit scores and knowledge in the future.
Lauren Killeen, a University of Georgia student, said her parents found it important to get her a credit card in college for emergencies.
“I have a personal credit card that my parents gave me for emergencies only and so that I can make bigger purchases. For instance, my car broke a couple weeks ago, and I was able to use the card to call a tow truck and for other expenses, something I couldn’t have done with the money solely on my debit card,” said Killeen.
Despite being for emergencies only, Killeen’s credit card is helping build her credit score and credit line. Because she only uses her card for “out of the ordinary circumstances,” it can be easy to track payments, whereas bigger credit card spenders might have to track their spending more closely so as not to fall into debt.
Bedard said another important part of controlling debt is knowing what debt to prioritize. She said it’s important to look at the lengths of time each credit card has and to know their interest rates.
“When you apply for a credit card, look for the interest rate in the company’s terms or just call them to find that out,” Bedard said. “Whichever card has the higher interest would be the one you want to pay off first so that interest isn’t building over time.”
One of the most positive effects of controlling credit card debt early on leads to an improved credit score later in life, according to Bedard. She said the ability to make payments on time is one of the biggest factors in creating and maintaining a healthy credit score, which she recommends being around 750.
Students who don’t want to get into debt should assess their monthly usage relative to the amount of credit they have available, which also helps improve their credit score down the line, according to Bedard.
“An easy way to think about the rate is you don’t want to be in debt of more than 30% of what your credit line is,” she said. “So, if you have $1,000 to spend, then you wouldn’t want to borrow more than $300 on your credit card in order for it not to affect your score.”
Bedard added that controlling debt and keeping track of payment history is the most useful way to build a good credit score.
“Most students don’t realize how much actually goes into your credit score. If you want to go look for an apartment, if you’re buying a car or home, everyone looks at your creditworthiness and that starts with educating yourself on credit cards early on and not letting debt get out of hand,” said Bedard.
Victoria Gospodinov is a journalism student at the University of Georgia


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The California Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH) field a lawsuit against car maker and clean energy company Tesla on Wednesday over allegations of racial discrimination against black workers at its Fremont plant.
Since the late 2010’s, the number of racial discrimination complaints at the factory have shot up. Some of the cases in recent years have resulted in large payouts for the workers when brought to court, including the company being forced to pay $137 million last year to a former black employee who said that he had faced racial discrimination and racial abuse there in the mid 2010’s. While the award will likely go down later this year, it has been seen as foreshadowing the DFEH lawsuit.
The DFEH, before filing the suit in Alameda County Superior Court on Wednesday, said that they had received hundreds of such complaints, including workers being called racial slurs without corrective measures, pay discrimination, prevention of black workers promoted, and other forms of racial discrimination. One black worker told in a complaint that they were called racial slurs 50 to 100 times a day, with others saying that managers and supervisors even joined in or witnessed it happening to workers and didn’t do anything about it. Racist graffiti was also allegedly seen by workers on a daily basis. Due to the company’s policy of workers being contractually obligated to going to closed-door arbitration instead of court, few cases have come up against Tesla since the factory opened in 2010.
“After receiving hundreds of complaints from workers, DFEH found evidence that Tesla’s Fremont factory is a racially segregated workplace where black workers are subjected to racial slurs and discriminated against in job assignments, discipline, pay, and promotion creating a hostile work environment,” said DFEH Director Kevin Kish in a statement on Wednesday. “For many Black and/or African American workers, the stress from the severe and pervasive racial harassment, the risk of a physical altercation and escalation with harassers, the blatant discrimination, the disproportionately severe discipline, and the futility of complaining, made the working conditions so intolerable that they resigned.”
Tesla defends self in statement
In a blog to the press on Wednesday, Tesla highlighted their diverse hiring practices and the fact that Tesla, who also has the only car factory in California, had been investigated by the state dozens of times over the allegations before, with cases dismissed each time. The company also asked the DFEH to pause the case to provide time for all facts and evidence to be heard.
“The California Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH) intends to file a lawsuit against Tesla alleging systematic racial discrimination and harassment. This follows a three-year investigation during which the DFEH—whose mission is supposedly to protect workers—has never once raised any concern about current workplace practices at Tesla,” said Tesla on Wednesday. “Rather, the lawsuit appears focused on alleged misconduct by production associates at the Fremont factory that took place between 2015 and 2019.”
“Over the past five years, the DFEH has been asked on almost 50 occasions by individuals who believe they were discriminated against or harassed to investigate Tesla. On every single occasion, when the DFEH closed an investigation, it did not find misconduct against Tesla. It therefore strains credibility for the agency to now allege, after a three-year investigation, that systematic racial discrimination and harassment somehow existed at Tesla. A narrative spun by the DFEH and a handful of plaintiff firms to generate publicity is not factual proof.”
“Once the DFEH files its lawsuit, Tesla will be asking the court to pause the case and take other steps to ensure that facts and evidence will be heard. To date, despite repeated requests, the DFEH has declined to provide Tesla with the specific allegations or the factual bases for its lawsuit. Attacking a company like Tesla that has done so much good for California should not be the overriding aim of a state agency with prosecutorial authority. The interests of workers and fundamental fairness must come first.”
Workplace discrimination experts noted on Thursday that while the lawsuit is likely not to be significantly delayed, workers that had been previously tied to company arbitration can now have their claim be taken up by the state.
“The DFEH lawsuit against Tesla can finally pull up previous claims that were forced into arbitration,” said Ana Kinney, a workplace discrimination and harassment lawyer, to the Globe on Thursday. “That’s why so many complaints have been attached to the suit. They now can bring them to court through the state.”
“This is also not the state getting revenge on Tesla for leaving the state for their new HQ last year. It’s just the DFEH following up on complaints and being objective as possible.”
The case is expected to be heard in Alameda County Superior Court later this year.
- Writer’s Guild, Studios Near Agreement to End 143 Day-Long Strike - September 22, 2023
- California Gas Price Averages $5.79 per Gallon; Beyond $6.00 per Gallon in LA - September 21, 2023
- San Francisco Loses Another CVS Store As Retail Closures Continue - September 21, 2023


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NIGERIA – Guinness Nigeria Plc on Thursday reported a 30% increase in revenue for the first quarter ended 30th September 2017.
The Nigerian unit of British drinks maker Diageo Plc said that sales hit N29.9bn ($82.3m) in the first three months of its financial year, up from N23bn ($63.3m) it recorded in the same period in 2016.
Gross profit for the period grew 24% to N10.4bn ($28.7m) reflecting continued growth within the spirits business as well as benefit of an expanding portfolio, but against the backdrop of lapping the inventory reduction last year, the company said.
Commenting on the results, Peter Ndegwa, Managing Director/CEO, Guinness Nigeria Plc said:
“Although trading conditions continue to be difficult, we delivered a credible performance with a net sales growth of 30% for the quarter.
This was against the backdrop of changes in commercial footprint in the prior year as well as benefit of an expanding portfolio.
“We also continue to see value from our focus on Productivity in areas like sales as we empower our teams for success on the frontline as well as driving efficiency in logistics. This has released resources that we are able to re-invest behind our brands,” he said.
The MD added: “A critical part of our strategy is to expand our portfolio and as we continue to innovate with the introduction of new brands and formats, our spending on A&P is critical to driving growth not just for our innovation brands but also for our core brands like Guinness and Malta Guinness.”
Mr. Ndegwa noted that the recently concluded “rights issue” was a huge success and oversubscribed by 116%.
The funds raised, he said will be used to pay down debts, particularly the foreign currency loans and help the brewer strengthen its balance sheet.
Net profit for the period rose to N41.4m ($114,049.59), up from -N2.2bn loss recorded in the previous year.
Beverage Industry News NG


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Were we shocked by the Kremlin's aggression on Ukraine? Not that much - in the sense that nations formerly behind the Iron Curtain have first-hand experience of what might come from Moscow. And it ain't pretty. Poland and the Baltic States' historical-emotional baggage goes even further back when their nations were under St. Petersburg's thumb. The term 'understanding putin' correlated nothing but bad news. As sadly evidenced by the recent events.
In all likelihood, the barbaric attack against Ukraine launched by the Kremlin on 24 February 2022, with Minsk's willing complicity, will be remembered in schoolbooks as a defining moment for the entire world. The point of no return, if you will.
The DHL white paper Delivering on Circularity takes an in-depth look at a transition from a linear to a circular economic model in the fashion and consumer electronics sectors in the context of reducing waste and greenhouse gas emissions (GHG-E).
We have welcomed the news that five competition authorities have created a working group that will meet regularly to develop and share intelligence to detect and investigate suspected anti-competitive behaviour and collusion in the global container shipping industry, using existing international cooperation tools.


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BRUSSELS – U.S. chip maker Intel Corp. (INTC), computer makers and distributors were raided by European Commission and local authorities on Tuesday as part of an investigation into possible antitrust violations, a spokesman for the European Union executive said.
The European Commission's (search) escalation came as Intel's smaller rival, Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), was trying to ratchet up pressure on the chip maker, which has 90 percent of world sales of microprocessors for personal computers that run Microsoft Windows and Linux.
"(EU) competition officials, accompanied by officials from national competition authorities, are conducting inspections of several premises of Intel Corp. in Europe as well as a number of IT firms manufacturing or selling computers," Commission spokesman Jonathan Todd said.
"The investigations are being carried out within the framework of an ongoing competition case," he added.
Intel confirmed the raids at its offices in Spain, Italy, Germany and England, and said that it was cooperating fully with the Commission.
"As is our normal practice, we are fully cooperating with authorities from the EU. Beyond that, we can't comment on the specifics of the searches but we believe our business practices are both fair and lawful," said spokesman Chuck Mulloy at the company's Santa Clara, California, headquarters.
Japan has also acted against Intel, but U.S. authorities have expressed little interest in becoming involved. Antitrust authorities in the United States have said that abuse of dominance or monopolisation cases are their lowest priority, after cartels and mergers.
The Commission had let a probe it began four years ago go dormant until AMD offered new information more than a year ago.
A spokesman for AMD's European operations reacted positively to news of Tuesday's raids -- which Intel said occurred at offices in Madrid, Milan, Munich and Swindon, England, in the country's south.
"We welcome today's dawn raid concerning Intel's continuing infringement of European competition rules. AMD has worked with the EU Commission for years and submitted growing evidence of Intel's illegal activities, including materials from third parties," the spokesman said.
The raids in Europe are only one of the fronts on which Intel is facing pressure.
AMD has argued to competition authorities around the world, and recently filed lawsuits, alleging that Intel maintains a 90 percent market share by income and 78 percent market share by volume by violating antitrust laws.
AMD filed a triple-damages antitrust lawsuit in the United States earlier this month, alleging that Intel had used threats and kickbacks in illegally building the world's top computer chip business.
AMD argues that Intel coerced 38 companies, including Dell Inc. (DELL) and Sony Corp (SNE).
A spokeswoman for Dell in the United Kingdom confirmed that the group's headquarters in Bracknell in southern England had been visited by EU officials.
"We have been visited by officials .... and we are cooperating fully with them," she said, adding that no further details could be provided at the moment.
Last month, AMD filed two suits against Intel in Japan, seeking $55 million in damages from the world's largest chip maker for alleged violations of the country's antitrust laws.
In March, Japan's Fair Trade Commission (FTC) found that Intel had violated antitrust laws by offering rebates to five PC makers that agreed either not to buy or to limit their purchases of chips made by AMD or other rivals.
The five computer makers were Hitachi Ltd., Sony, NEC Corp., Fujitsu Ltd. and Toshiba Corp.
Intel's shares rose 5 cents to close at $27.75 on Nasdaq.


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From the tractor
by Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler
July is a busy time of year in agriculture. Even with some early season delays in production due to a cool spring, farmers markets are full of activity and fresh North Carolina produce, meats and cheeses.
This month we will celebrate that abundance, plus the rich variety of North Carolina commodities with Got to Be NC Agriculture Month. I hope to attend several special events at state-operated markets to bring even more attention to the great job farmers do raising the food we all enjoy.
Special events highlighting peaches, blackberries, blueberries and watermelons are on tap for July, but shoppers will find so many more crops in season at the markets. You can expect to find plenty of peppers, okra, cabbage, zucchini, corn, snap beans, squash, cantaloupes, sweet potatoes, tomatoes and ornamental plants.
I hope many of you already shop at your local farmers markets, but if you do not, please consider shopping with your local farmers. You are helping support the local economy but better yet, you are getting the freshest commodities available. And that freshness just tastes so good.
In conjunction with Got to Be NC Agriculture Month, you will likely also be seeing the debut of our newest marketing slogan: “Grown. Raised. Caught. Made.” to our advertising and promotional efforts.
I am excited to launch this new campaign. I think consumers will connect with this message because it really encompasses the whole of agriculture in North Carolina.
Finally, I wanted to thank everyone who came out for this year’s Got to Be NC Festival in Raleigh. This event continues to grow and improve every year, and this year was no exception. Thanks in part to nearly perfect weather, we had the biggest attendance we have had to date.
Everywhere I went on the grounds, I saw people having a good time, which is the mark of a successful of event. Go ahead and mark your calendars now for May 15-17, 2015.


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SEGA has issued a press release today regarding the launch of their official Sonic store SonicMerchandise.com, which went live last month. To celebrate the launch, all customers can get 15% off all items until the end of the month by using the JANSALE15 promotional code. Our readers over the pond will be happy to hear that SEGA has announced plans to release a similar store in the USA and other American markets at a later date. We’ll bring you details on the US store as and when they are made available. For now, check out the press release after the jump.
GET YOUR OFFICIAL SONIC THE HEDGEHOG™ MERCHANDISE HERE!
LONDON (January 18th, 2012) – SEGA® Europe Ltd. and RHM Solutions are pleased to launch the full official online store for Sonic the Hedgehog merchandise in Europe. To celebrate there will be a fantastic offer of 15% discount across all stock available on www.sonicmerchandise.com (excluding items already discounted). Customers will simply need to use the JANSALE15 promotional code when prompted, and the offer runs until the end of January 2012 with no limit on the amount of times it can be used! Although currently only live in Europe, plans are in place to launch a similar store for the USA and other American markets at a later date.
www.sonicmerchandise.com soft launched for the European markets in December 2011 and carries a range of Sonic the Hedgehog figurines, stationery items, apparel, consumer electronics, collectables, posters and DVDs. The store is managed and run by RHM Solutions on behalf of SEGA, and RHM Solutions also take care of order fulfilment and shipping.
The range of goods available in the store is set to widen throughout 2012 with www.sonicmerchandise.com offering a loyalty system for registered members. Reward points can be earned every time items are purchased through the store and can be redeemed on future orders. The store will also run various seasonal sales and promotions throughout the year, information on these will be posted via SEGA community channels.
“Sonic the Hedgehog’s fan base has grown continually over the past twenty years and the demand for branded merchandise has increased along with his popularity” commented Sissel Henno, Head of Brand Licensing SEGA Europe. “By teaming up with RHM Solutions we are able to provide something for all Sonic fans with an online store that includes fashionable apparel, collectible figurines, stylish stationery and much more. We
are looking forward to seeing how the store evolves and how consumers can engage with the brand in a new way.”
To check out what’s on offer visit: http://www.sonicmerchandise.com
About SEGA® Europe Ltd.:
SEGA® Europe Ltd. is the European Distribution arm of Tokyo, Japan-based SEGA® Corporation, and a worldwide leader in interactive entertainment both inside and outside the home. The company develops and distributes interactive entertainment software products for a variety of hardware platforms including PC, wireless devices, and those manufactured by Nintendo, Microsoft and Sony Computer Entertainment Europe. SEGA Europe’s web site is located at www.sega.com
Sonic Merchandising Terms & Conditions are available at the following address: http://www.sonicmerchandise.com/gb/customer-service
Source: SEGA Press


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IBM to Present on Blockchain for Food Safety at Ag Tech Summit
January 31, 2019 — Salinas, CA
(Photo above: Susanne Livingston, IBM Food TrustTM Offering Director, will talk about block chain technology for food safety at this year’s Salinas Valley Ag Tech Summit. Contributed.)
Suzanne Livingston to highlight opportunity for ‘transparency in the food chain’
An IBM presentation on the application of blockchain technology for food safety will be one of many opportunities for learning and innovation at the 2019 Salinas Valley Ag Technology Summit on March 26-27.
IBM, which is developing blockchain data-tracking solutions for the U.S. food supply, will be represented by Suzanne Livingston, its offering director for Food Trust™. Blockchain uses encoded digital data to create a permanent, interlocking record of each transaction.
Livingston describes her work with IBM Blockchain Solutions as an effort to bring “transparency in the food chain, accountability and traceability to retailers, suppliers, farmers and more using the power of blockchain and with an incredible global team of scientists, engineers, designers, inventors, growth hackers and more.”
She will present during morning sessions on March 27 and will be available for questions and conversation.
Summit chair Nick Pasculli said the inclusion of blockchain technology reflects the event’s emphasis on how attendees can adapt and incorporate emerging technologies in all aspects of fresh produce growing, processing, sales, marketing and distribution.
Educational tracks in ag production and ag business feature such topics as the latest in precision crop management, “big data” to accelerate decision-making, traceability to tackle the food- safety challenge, and initiatives to meet California’s workforce needs in 2020 and beyond.
“Each one of our sessions will offer distinct insights,” said Pasculli, founder, president and creative director of TMD, a creative services agency with many clients in the produce industry. “And taken together, the entire experience will make our attendees excited about all they can achieve with new tools and new thinking.”
Keynote speakers also will zero in on hot-button themes. The morning keynote on the summit’s main day, March 27, will be delivered by Dr. Bob Whitaker, chief scientific officer for the Produce Marketing Association, and the luncheon address will be made by Glenda Humiston, vice president for agriculture and natural resources at the University of California.
As always, the sixth annual event will provide unique opportunities for learning and networking while supporting agribusiness students and programs at Hartnell College. It also will spotlight the Salinas Valley’s emergence as an incubator and hub for innovation and development in ag tech.
The summit will open on March 26 with a President’s Opening Reception from 6-8 p.m., featuring local wines and hors d’oeuvres and participation by esteemed industry leaders. The main Ag Tech Summit program on March 27 will begin with a continental breakfast at 6:30 a.m. The morning schedule will feature three educational tracks: ag business, ag production and pest control. Ongoing throughout the day will be a vendor trade show, hands-on demonstrations and more.
Event admission ranges from $30 to $60 depending on early registration, as well as a new combined main event Summit and President’s Opening Reception ticket option. Community members, ag industry members, growers, PCAs, CCAs, QALs, pilots, students and participants in ag tech and software industries are encouraged to attend. The event is organized by the Hartnell College Agriculture Business and Technology Institute in collaboration with the Monterey Bay Chapter of the California Association of Pest Control Advisers (CAPCA).
As a Feb. 15 deadline for exhibitor and sponsorship registration approaches, opportunities remain for prime visibility and location within the summit’s physical space and developing conference agenda.
This year’s event will be bigger and better than ever, Pasculli said, with more than 1,000 participants expected, as well as more than 100 exhibitors and a talented group of dynamic and thought-provoking speakers.
Exhibitor options include single and double booths, either indoor or outdoor, including one or more tickets to the March 26 reception. Non-profit and start-up packages are available.
A wide range of sponsorship levels also are available, beginning at the $1,000 Gold Level and ranging up to the $10,000 Presenting Level, which includes a program logo, double booth space, website acknowledgment, two-minute stage commercial, six tickets to the March 26 reception and 25 tickets to Main Day events. Additionally, opportunities also exist for special sponsorship of keynote addresses and more.
Exhibitor, sponsor and other program information can be found at: http://svagtechsummit.com/.


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An increase of 80 to 90 percent in the total cost of producing dates in Iran
The secretary of the National Date Association of Iran announced an 80-90% increase in the total cost of date production this year compared to last year and said: unlike last year, our concern is not in production but in the market sector, because the price of dates has increased at a record low. According to the economic conditions of the people, the market will not have the traction to attract production dates.
He added: Despite the continued drought and low rainfall this year, we evaluate the total production in the country’s date producing provinces as favorable.
Stating that even our forecast is an increase in the production of dates in the country compared to last year, Teklozadeh added: On average, the production of dates in the country is 1 million 250 thousand to 1 million 300 thousand tons, but last year because of the heat tension in July and August production decreased.
He mentioned: The heat stress last year caused the branches to dry and the fruit to fall from the palm trees.
Teklozadeh announced the production of dates last year as one million and 800 thousand tons and said: Our forecast is a 5% increase in production this year compared to last year.
Emphasizing that, unlike last year, our concern is not in production but in the market sector, he added: This year, due to the multiple growth of the prices of the components involved in the total cost of production, including labor, inputs such as fertilizers and poisons, as well as transportation and The price of dates for consumers will increase a lot.
The secretary of the National Date Association of Iran mentioned the increase in the total cost of date production compared to last year in different figures from 70 to 90 percent.
According to Teklozadeh, the price of dates will increase in the same proportion, and due to the economic conditions of the people, the market will not attract production dates.
He clarified: 70% of the dates produced are consumed inside the country, and problems in the domestic market can seriously harm farmers and date production in the country.
Teklozadeh added: 700 thousand farmers in the country are producing dates, who generally live in less prosperous provinces, and the lack of a market for dates means the deterioration of their economic and livelihood conditions.
He believes that the increase in the price of dates as a result of the dramatic increase in the cost of production, in addition to the damage it brings to producers, will also be harmful to people’s health.
In further explanation, TekloZadeh said: As dates become more expensive, people will replace dates with cheaper and less valuable food items such as chocolate, which is harmful to the health of people in the society.
The secretary of Iran’s National Date Association also predicted that with the peak of the date harvest season, producers will face a shortage and higher cost of labor and the total cost of production will increase.
Subscribe to our newsletter for news on FMCG and Iran’s nuts and dried fruits industry.


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HERNDON, Va., April 9, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The ACH Network opened 2020 with a strong first quarter, as the number of payments rose 7.1% from a year earlier. The results were driven primarily through robust growth occurring prior to the slowdown of economic activity due to COVID-19.
"While ACH results for the entire first quarter are positive, the current coronavirus national emergency is already impacting payment system volumes, including the ACH," said Jane Larimer, Nacha President and CEO.
For the second half of March, there was a slowdown in payments volume. That includes ACH, where the slowdown in economic activity has affected the volume of payroll payments, bill payments, and supply chain payments. This situation is likely to continue through the second quarter.
"Nevertheless, the ACH Network continues to operate normally, and is here to serve America's consumers, businesses, nonprofits, and government agencies," said Larimer. "There are numerous ways in which the ACH Network can help with remote payments. For example, Direct Deposit for employees working remotely and ACH payments for vendors and suppliers both eliminate the need for paper checks. Recurring, monthly donations by ACH can help nonprofits make up for the loss of in-person fundraising."
There were 6.4 billion payments on the ACH Network in the first quarter of this year, an increase of 423 million from the same time in 2019. Volume consisted of 3.7 billion debits and 2.7 billion credits. The total value of those payments was $14.6 trillion, up 10.3% from a year earlier.
Direct Deposits totaled 1.9 billion payments, an increase of nearly 4%. Business-to-Business, or B2B, payments increased 11.7% with 1 billion transactions. Other major transaction types include Healthcare claim payments, up 13.5% to 88.7 million, and Person-to-Person (P2P), with 44.5 million transactions, a rise of 23.6%.
Same Day ACH recorded 75 million payments in the first quarter, up 42% from a year earlier.
Nacha is a nonprofit organization that convenes hundreds of diverse organizations to enhance and enable ACH payments and financial data exchange within the U.S. and across geographies. Through the development of rules, standards, governance, education, advocacy, and in support of innovation, Nacha's efforts benefit all stakeholders. Nacha is the steward of the ACH Network, a payment system that universally connects all U.S. bank accounts and facilitates the movement of money and information. In 2019, 24.7 billion payments and nearly $56 trillion in value moved across the ACH Network. Nacha also leads groups focused on API standardization and B2B payment enablement. Visit nacha.org for more information, and connect with us on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook and YouTube.


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Weekend full of farm markets
If you’re in the market for fresh produce, weekends are ripe with opportunities in Livingston County. Several community farm markets featuring food and other goods take place around the county throughout the summer. Here’s a look at the lineup:
The Fowlerville Farmers’ Market is open from 3-7 p.m. in the Downtown Development Authority parking lot, in the 200 block of West Grand River Avenue.
The Hartland Farmers’ Market is open from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Hartland Educational Support Service Center, west of Old U.S. 23 at 9525 E. M-59.
The Brighton Farmers’ Market is open from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the municipal parking lot between Brighton City Hall and District Court at 200 N. First St.
The Pinckney Farmers’ Market is open from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. in Putnam Township Square in downtown Pinckney.
The Green Oak Township Farmers’ Market is open from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. in a lot adjacent to Green Oak Township Fire Station 82, 11411 E. Grand River Ave.
The Howell Sunday Farmers’ Market is open from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. near the intersection of State and Clinton streets adjacent to the historic Livingston County Courthouse in downtown.


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- The latest update to Google Play Services is changing how contacts sync on Android.
- Turning off Contacts sync will remove previously synced contacts from your Android phone.
We take contact sync on our Android phones for granted. As long as you have a Google account on your Android phone, transferring contacts from an Android device to another Android device is something you don’t even have to think about. But Google is making a fundamental change to this behavior, and if you change phones often, you may need to be a little careful.
The latest entry to the changelog of May 2023’s Google Play System Update includes a big departure from how contact sync worked on Android so far:


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Several years of halted development and tightened consumer spending is slowly coming to an end as new signs of life surface in Las Vegas. Projects forge ahead on Las Vegas Boulevard and downtown, with major plans for a complete revitalisation at the northern end of the Strip.
Gaming revenue was up by just over one percent in Las Vegas last year, as wears of the recession started to ease, putting consumer spending back on track. Revenues were attributed to non-gaming offerings more than ever before and tourism numbers remain healthy. Even house prices are booming, with Southern Nevada showing a 30 percent rise in 2012.
“It’s a psychological boost, and it affirms real change is happening,” expressed Robert Lang, co-director of Brookings Mountain West research institute, “What it demonstrates is that people in the rest of the world with deep pockets may be looking at the Strip and saying, ‘Now’s the time to get in.’”
At the northern, and somewhat dormant end of the Strip, the 87-acre Echelon site that was once home to the legendary Stardust has stood as an untouched concrete eyesore for five years. Malaysian-based Genting purchased the site for $350m in March and is set to bring its Resorts World brand to Las Vegas. Having failed to develop a similar concept in Miami, a multibillion-dollar resort designed by renowned casino architect Paul Steelman will rise from the abandoned husk of a site over the next three years.
Genting’s Asian origins and proven casino resort model will soon start to unfold, including plans to house the city’s largest casino, at 175,000 square feet. Strip-front land will be occupied by low-rise pagodas comprising theatres, restaurants and retail. A Chinese-theme throughout, with a replica of the Great Wall and display for live pandas, will aim to attract patronage from Asia, both mass market and high rollers. “East meets West…Old Asia meets new Asia,” describes Steelman of the project.
“The fact that a major foreign company wants to take a risk on the Strip is a pretty fair argument that things are turning around,” commented Jeremy Aguero, Principal Analyst at Las Vegas-based Applied Analysis, “The coming years will witness some of the most creative resort projects ever to enter the market.”
Further north of Genting’s project, past the 70-percent complete Fontainebleau, work has begun to transform the former Sahara into SLS Las Vegas, representing “style, luxury and service”. Upwards of $750m is projected to be spent on the upscale resort designed by French architect Philippe Starck and is scheduled to complete late 2014.
At the heart of the Strip, the 550-foot observation wheel that will be the crown jewel of Caesars’ illustrious Linq entertainment district is shaping up. Next door, Bill’s Gambling Hall is undergoing a $185m renovation that will see boutique hotel casino, Gransevoort Las Vegas open early 2014. Another boutique hotel, THEhotel by MGM Resorts and Morgans Hotels will open later this year at the Mandalay Bay.
Moving south along Las Vegas Boulevard, between New York-New York and the Monte Carlo, lies a piece of land where MGM is planning to build a 20,000-seat sports and entertainment arena. Las Vegas Global Business District, a $2.5bn project to re-create the Las Vegas convention centre just off the Strip corridor, has also been given the green light.
Meanwhile, Downtown Las Vegas continues to draw attention as at least $754m in public and private projects came to fruition last year and a further $355m of developments are scheduled to complete in 2013. Spearheaded by Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh, an initiative dubbed “Downtown Project” recently launched to invest in retail estate, small business, tech start-up companies and education on Freemont East.
“It’s happening all around us,” added Aguero, who has been studying the Vegas economy for years, “People are still a little nervous and shell-shocked, but we don’t have to look very far to see other communities that would give their eye teeth to be where we are. Is it now time to take a sigh of relief? Yes. We can exhale.”


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Yippee! Good News for Newspapers’ Websites
The Internet has proved to be a moneymaker for traditional newspapers, as they ring up big-time online ad revenue. David Utter reported today in Web Pro News.
“Quiet the carillons and stop the procession. Newspapers aren’t quite dead yet. Readership of the printed page may be down, but the online versions have pulled in over $500 million in ad revenue for the second quarter of 2005, according to MediaPost.
The Newspaper Association of America was cited as noting a jump in ad revenue of 29 percent from the same period last year. Overall, ad revenue for the papers only grew 2.8 percent from last year.
2005 online ad revenues for papers could see a figure of $1.4 billion if forecasts by eMarketer prove correct. Newspapers have been seeing this growth come at the expense of print advertising, a much more costly medium.”


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Swipe right for a heifer with app Tudder
Is your prize bull looking for that special someone? Bovine romance could be just around the corner after a farming start-up in Hampshire launched a “Tinder for livestock” app to help cattle breeders find the perfect match.
Known as Tudder, the app includes picture profiles of cattle from 43,000 British farms and carries details such as their progeny, calving ability and expected market value. Breeders will be able to swipe right if they like what they see, and can then contact the owner and bid through a separate website.
The project has been developed by Hectare, founded seven years ago by Dan Luff, a beef farmer, and Jamie McInnes, a web developer. The company has raised £2.8m, which it has used to launch online marketplaces


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Britain’s second-largest grocer will no longer stock Wii U consoles, accessories, or games in its 555 stores.
More bad news for Nintendo’s struggling Wii U console: a major UK retailer has stopped selling the system in its 555 stores. Asda, described by CVG as Britain’s second-largest grocer, will no longer carry Wii U consoles, games, or accessories in its stores, though they will be available online “on a title by title merit basis.” Despite the recent launch of long-awaited title Pikmin 3, the retailer didn’t stock the game.
While the Wii U’s dismal sales might help explain why Asda would suspend the console’s sales, it’s also no longer stocking 3DS systems online. Unlike the Wii U, Nintendo’s latest portable has been on fire recently, with the launch of Animal Crossing: New Leaf sending stock soaring to a two-year high. Asda is still selling PS3, Xbox 360, and Vita systems in stores, as well as games for all three, and plans on stocking the Xbox One and PS4 later this year.
Speaking to CVG, an Asda representative stated, “Asda continues to offer customers a selection of Wii U games and accessories through Asda Direct, but these ranges are currently not on offer in Asda shops.” Nintendo, on the other hand, is optimistic:
“Nintendo UK does not comment on specific business practices with individual retailers. However, as we have seen with Nintendo 3DS, software sells hardware, and with titles such as Wonderful 101, Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker HD, and Super Mario 3D World already announced for this year as well as the recently released Pikmin 3 and New Super Luigi U having reached number 2 and number 6 in this week’s chart respectively, we are looking forward to the year ahead on Wii U.”
Nintendo is right about one thing: software is needed to move hardware, and the Wii U has been sorely lacking worthwhile games. This holiday season has potential, and next year’s releases of Mario Kart 8 and Super Smash Bros. could help Wii U sales pick up. Of course, that’s probably not reassuring for Wii U owners, who have waited a long time for launch window and first-party games that have been repeatedly delayed.


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Tommy Bahama is changing its leadership.
Douglas B. Wood, the brand’s current president, will be elevated to chief executive officer on Jan. 30, at the end of the company’s fiscal year. He will take the reins from Terry R. Pillow, who will retire at that time and step into an advisory role.
Thomas C. Chubb III, chairman and ceo of Oxford Industries, parent company of Tommy Bahama, complimented Pillow for turning the business around during his tenure.
“Terry joined Tommy Bahama in 2008 at a critical juncture for the business. The founders were retiring and we were entering an unprecedented economic downturn. Terry has done a tremendous job propelling the business forward and enhancing the depth and breadth of the successful Tommy Bahama lifestyle brand we recognize today,” he said.
He added that since Wood joined Tommy Bahama in 2001, two years prior to Oxford’s acquisition of the label, he has proven his mettle in operations. “For the past 14 years, Doug has been responsible for all aspects of Tommy Bahama’s financial and operating functions,” Chubb said. “With his leadership, Tommy Bahama has transformed from a $200 million wholesale-focused company to a $600-plus million lifestyle brand driven by its direct-to-consumer business.”
In a telephone interview with WWD, Chubb said Wood has been “part of the growth story for a long time.” He credited the executive with helping to successfully convert a wholesale company into a multichannel business that now operates 160 stores around the world. “During Doug’s tenure, we developed expertise as a retailer, not a wholesaler with retail stores,” Chubb said.
He also said the brand’s e-commerce initiative was “championed by Doug and that’s now an immensely successful part of our business.”
“Doug has never been about standing still and status quo, but evolving with the consumer while staying relevant to the Tommy Bahama island lifestyle,” Chubb added.
Wood joined the Seattle-based Tommy Bahama in 2001 as chief operating officer and was named president in 2008. He began his career at the Boeing Defense and Space Group before joining McCaw Cellular/AT&T in 1994, where he served as vice president of operations.
Wood cited the “incredible support” he has received from Oxford and its commitment to “running a full-price business.”
“In 2008, we transitioned from a founder-based company to a professionally managed company when Terry stepped in,” Wood said. “He understood the fashion aspect and connecting with the consumer in direct-to-consumer and e-commerce while retaining a strong wholesale arm.”
He said his goal as ceo will be to continue that strategy while working to increase the brand’s reach in women’s wear. “We want to focus on keeping our strong men’s presence while becoming a dual-gender brand,” said Wood.
For the past several years, Tommy Bahama has been a growth engine for the Atlanta-based Oxford. In the second quarter, the label posted a 3 percent comparable-store sales gain, which was partially offset by a decrease in wholesale sales. The wholesale business has been impacted by the challenging environment faced by specialty stores, where the brand has its primary exposure.
In the period, men’s wear, which is the anchor for the brand, posted strong results, while women’s sales, which account for less than one-third of the overall business, were softer, Chubb said at the time. Over the past year, the company has named Bradley O’Brien as its new head of design and her touch will be evident in the spring 2016 women’s collection.
Tommy Bahama’s international business, while still operating at a loss, is seen as another growth vehicle. The company has wholly owned divisions in Canada and Australia, where the business is “successful and profitable.” In Asia, the brand is exiting secondary markets and is focusing its efforts on Japan, Chubb said. “And we’re exploring partnering in select markets around the world,” he said, pointing out that that was the way the brand originally entered Canada and Australia before taking control of those regions.
Chubb also noted that the divestiture of the Ben Sherman brand, revealed at the end of March, was completed in the second quarter, allowing the corporation to put its focus on its Tommy Bahama and Lilly Pulitzer businesses. “This supports our long-term plan, which is to acquire another carefully selected lifestyle brand or two,” Chubb said last month.
On Tuesday, he said that Wood’s contribution extends beyond Tommy Bahama to Oxford as a whole “as we look to strategize for the future.” He also noted that there was never any “serious thought” about searching for Pillow’s successor from outside the company. “This has been years in the works,” he said. “And even if we’d gone outside, I’m convinced there’s no one more qualified or prepared than Doug to lead Tommy Bahama forward.”
Before joining Tommy Bahama in 2008, Pillow had been ceo of Ralph Lauren Footwear. He had also served as ceo of The Rockport Co. and president of Coach and A/X Armani Exchange. He was also president and ceo of Polo Ralph Lauren Corp. from 1999 to 2005. He began his career at Neiman Marcus.


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by Carolyn Butler for the Washington Post
posted with permission
If you've been in a supermarket lately you've seen my type: roaming the produce aisles in a daze, silently debating organic or conventionally grown, local or imported, while weighing taste and health benefits against the often exorbitant price differential. And after all that, I usually end up deciding that eating more fruits and vegetables of any sort is the most important thing, no matter how they're grown or where they come from.
Now comes new research that is causing me to rethink my position and wonder whether I should be concentrating on limiting my family's exposure to the pesticides often found in trace amounts on commercially grown produce. What got me going is a study in last month's edition of the journal Pediatrics suggesting that even low levels of these chemicals are associated with an increased risk of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder in children.
Researchers at the University of Montreal and Harvard University looked for organophosphate pesticide metabolites, an indicator of pesticide exposure, in the urine of 1,139 kids ages 8 to 15 and found that close to 95 percent had at least one of these chemical byproducts in their system. Those with the highest levels were 93 percent more likely to have received an ADHD diagnosis than children with none in their system. Those with above-average levels of the most common organophosphate byproduct -- they made up a third of the whole group -- were more than twice as likely as the rest to have ADHD.
"This is not a small effect," says study co-author Maryse Bouchard, a researcher in the University of Montreal's environmental and occupational health department, "and it is certainly cause for concern." She adds that while prior research has proved that high levels of organophosphate exposure can have negative impacts on children's behavior and cognitive function, in this study "we are talking about very low levels of exposure . . . levels that were believed previously to be safe and harmless but which are now associated with a serious health risk." She points out that most pesticide exposure today comes through food, particularly conventional fruits and vegetables.
Bouchard and other experts caution that the new findings, while suggestive, should not be considered definitive. "I wouldn't go before a group of parents today and say, 'Look, if you don't want your child to have ADHD, you should be concerned about pesticides,' " says Lynn Goldman, a pediatrician and professor at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, who considers Bouchard's study well done. "We certainly don't want fear to cut fruit and vegetable consumption. But I do think this is well worth evaluation in other populations, over a longer period of time."
If you're concerned, there is a wealth of information establishing just how many chemicals we consume, starting with the Department of Agriculture's Pesticide Data Program, which tests thousands of food samples a year, tracking specific residue levels. According to its most recent report in 2008, for example, a type of organophosphate called malathion was detected in 28 percent of frozen blueberries, 25 percent of fresh strawberries and 19 percent of celery. "It's easy to have a dozen exposures [to different pesticides] in the course of a day," says Richard Wiles, senior vice president for policy at the Environmental Working Group, a Washington-based environmental advocacy group .
Still, we're doing better than before in reducing pesticide dangers in food, says Charles Benbrook, chief scientist for the Organic Center, a Colorado-based organic advocacy and research group. The center has a "dietary risk index," which takes into account how often pesticides are found in particular foods, at what levels, and just how toxic they are. "The good news is that in a lot of important fruit and vegetable crops, the dietary risk levels for domestically grown food have, in fact, gone down -- in some cases significantly, like with grapes and peaches -- since the passage of the Food Quality Protection Act in 1996," Benbrook says. Among other things, that law restricted the use of many dangerous chemicals in U.S. agriculture.
In fact, while the Environmental Protection Agency responded to the ADHD study by noting in a statement that it takes the research "very seriously," it also said that since the study's data were collected (between 2000 and 2004), the EPA has eliminated "nearly all residential uses of organophosphate pesticides" from such things as lawn-care products and bug sprays "as well as some food uses to reduce risks to children." Critics, however, says there need to be further efforts: "The government made some big strides at reducing exposures, and then sort of got stuck," says Wiles.
Consider those towers of glistening grapes and piles of sweet bell peppers shipped to markets here from abroad, particularly during the winter. According to Benbrook, the USDA's pesticide data program "shows very clearly that there has not been a . . . reduction in the overall dietary risk in imported fruits and veggies, and in some cases the levels have actually gone up since 1996," including among said grapes and peppers. He blames this inconsistency on the fact that the EPA chose to limit how certain pesticides could be used in the U.S. farming rather than just set limits on the total allowable amount of chemical residues, which would have applied to both domestic and international growers. Benbrook adds that there are some indications in the USDA data that even imported produce labeled organic is not as clean as it should be.
As questions are raised on the role pesticides may play in ADHD and in other health problems, you'd be hard-pressed to find an expert who doesn't advise that people, especially pregnant women and small children, reduce their pesticide intake as much as possible.
The top recommendation? Eating an entirely organic diet, which has been shown to significantly lower people's exposure levels, says Hopkins pediatrician Goldman. If that's not financially reasonable, given the generally higher cost of organics, it also helps to carefully wash all your fruits and vegetables -- conventional, frozen, organic and otherwise -- in cold water. Benbrook, for one, recommends bypassing fancy produce washes for the equally effective combo of mild soap and a washcloth or brush. And then rinse thoroughly.
But be aware that you can't scrub away all the risks. "It's best to actually try to eat your way around pesticides...because most pesticides don't wash off, and seep into those blueberries or apple," says EWG's Wiles, who notes that the USDA data on pesticide levels is collected after produce has been washed, peeled and prepared the way you'd normally consume it.
As a result, he suggests eating organic when possible and otherwise relying on what his organization calls the "Clean 15." These are conventional fruits and vegetables with the lowest levels of chemicals: typically thick-skinned, heartier, easier-to-grow produce with peels that you throw away, such as onions, avocados, corn, pineapples and mangoes. Then there's the "Dirty Dozen," those foods with the highest average levels of pesticide residues. These are usually highly perishable fruits and vegetables with soft skins, such as celery, peaches, strawberries, apples, blueberries, nectarines and sweet bell peppers.
Can't face giving those things up? Another option is to buy local at a farmers market, says Bouchard. Surveys nationwide show that small farmers have fewer residues on their produce, she says, adding that buyers can ask vendors about which chemicals they used.
I did feel better this weekend when I noticed that many of the greens at our local farmers market, including a particularly beautiful batch of arugula, were labeled "no sprays." And when my son made a beeline for the huge containers of bright red strawberries, I discovered that the plants -- but not the berries -- had been sprayed with a single, general-use fungicide three weeks before being picked, and it would have dissipated significantly by market time.
I considered the relative risk, gritted my teeth at the price tag, and loaded a containerful into my bag.


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About 1,500 restaurants in Nuevo Leon resumed activities
NUEVO LEON – Between 1,000 and 1,500 small restaurants that had closed their doors were reactivated because they were allowed to operate on Saturdays and Sundays, although with restricted hours, said Jorge Moeller Villar, president of the Nuevo Leon Chamber of Restaurants and Spicy Food Industry (Canirac).
He said that most of the 1,500 restaurants that closed in the past six weeks are small business restaurants, with four or six tables.
Moeller Villar stressed that the impact of the pandemic for the sector has been considerable; between March and July COVID-19 closed, on average 33 restaurants each day in the entity to total about 5,000 establishments.
"We are micro-businesses that boost Nuevo León's economy and generate formal and informal employment," he said.
This sector, like others, had time restrictions to operate, they could only do it from Monday to Friday in a schedule of 5 in the morning to 10 at night, after that time they could only offer service at home or to go, this measure lasted six consecutive weeks.
During that period, he said, 1,000 food establishments went bankrupt, in addition to the 5,000 that had already "turned off their kitchens" due to the effects of the pandemic.
In addition, economic losses in the sector were US$16 million and 55,000 employees were laid off.
Source: El Financiero


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120Hz ProMotion Display in iPhone 13 Pro/Pro Max Explained
120Hz refresh rate has been a standard for Android flagship for quite some time now. And now, Apple’s upcoming iPhones will be following suit as well. A higher refresh rate screen on iPhones was rumored last year but was dropped late during the development phase due to optimization issues. 120Hz ProMotion on the iPhone 13 series is almost certain and a recent report from The Elec has shed light on how it will be implemented.
120Hz ProMotion on iPhone 13 series
LTPO panels from Samsung
According to the report, only the iPhone 13 Pro and the Pro Max will have the 120Hz ProMotion technology. The two smartphones will feature LTPO AMOLED panels for higher refresh rate support.
The LTPO panel will allow them to dynamically switch between different refresh rates based on the content being displayed. This technology makes better use of power improves the battery life. It has already been adopted by brands like Samsung and OnePlus for their flagships. It will be Samsung Display that will be supplying the LTPO panels for the iPhone 13 Pro and Pro Max.
Rigid Flexible PCB
In addition, Samsung Electro-Mechanics and Bhflex will supply the Rigid Flexible Printed Circuit Board (RFPCB in short) for the two devices. PCBs connect electrical components in an electric circuit. In this case, RFPCB will connect the 120Hz ProMotion display panel to the main circuit of iPhone 13 Pro and Pro Max.
RFPCB is a hybrid between Rigid and Flexible PCB and offers better shock-resistance and can be used in high-density applications. They are also expensive than the traditional PCB and thus will only be used in the two Pro models. Other models in the series will have Flexible PCBs.
The interesting bit here is that Samsung Electro-Mechanics is considering an exit from the business because of insufficient profit. So another PCB maker Yongpoong has joined the supply chain.
LG & BOE to supply additional panels
According to global research firm Omdia, Samsung Display will be supplying around 110 million AMOLED panels for iPhones this year (iPhone 12 & 13 lineup). The second biggest supplier is LG Display which will supply around 50 million panels. BOE is a Chinese manufacturer that supplies panels for cheaper iPhones. It will be supplying around 9 million panels this year. Also, the iPhone 13 series is likely to enter production in July of this year.
- Meanwhile, check out our long-term review of the iPhone 12 Pro Max.


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Apple has reportedly enlisted Hollywood directors like Jon Favreau to create video content for its long-rumored mixed reality headset. According to The New York Times, the filmmaker is developing an experience that brings the dinosaurs from Prehistoric Planet, the Apple TV+ original series he helped produced, to life on the device.
Corroborating recent reporting from Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, The Times states the headset is “expected to ship next year.” It will reportedly feature a design that’s reminiscent of a pair of ski goggles. With the start of WWDC 2022 mere days away, it’s unclear if Apple will have anything to say about the device on Monday.
However, The Times reports the company plans to announce new software tools that would allow developers to add additional camera and voice features to their apps, thereby creating the framework for experiences that you could navigate without a visual interface.
Citing “two people familiar with the project,” The Times reports that “continuing challenges” with battery life made Apple decide to delay the headset to 2023. That broadly aligns with reporting Bloomberg published at the start of the year that said the company was likely to delay the device due to development issues like overheating.Continue Reading


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It is no secret that when Diablo III first launched there were many issues. Since that point, Blizzard has been slowly working to fix the game, making it an experience players would be happy to spend hours in. With the latest set of patches, Blizzard has managed to revitalize the series, giving players new zones, new abilities, new skills and, of course, new quests.
Blizzard is at it again, this time with patch 2.4 and it is now available to everyone on the PC, PS4 and Xbox One. This new patch gives players a new slew of additions for them to sink their teeth into. Patch 2.4 features a new zone named Grewhollow Island that gives the players a new set of creatures to battle, though. It also gives Set Dungeons, Empowerment Rifts, and revamped class sets.
This is not all the patch offers, but it provides an idea of what you should expect when you boot up the game. To read the full list of changes and enhancements head over to the Blizzard official site to see a full list of what Patch 2.4 has in store.


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Does that satisfying bite of nachos come with an infusion of BT-Toxin? Is that tofu stir-fry laced with a dash of cauliflower mosaic virus? Chances are that unless you count yourself among the ranks of the Anti-Frankenfoodies, you have no idea what biotech ingredients have been spliced into your food. That’s because genetically engineered foods – those whose DNA has been modified by the additions of genes, viruses, and/or bacteria from other species – are unlabeled in American supermarkets.
New Yorkers will soon have the opportunity to influence the issue. Two GMO labeling bills have been approved in committee to be presented for a vote this year.
Meanwhile, American consumers are becoming increasingly wary of GMOs, whose long-term effects on the health of humans and the environment are unknown. Sixty people packed into a recent screening of the new documentary OMG, GMO at the community center in West Milford, NJ, dragging chairs from other rooms; in anticipation of a regular attendance, only about 20 chairs had been set up.
There is a growing concern that conditions such as allergies, autism, and gastro-intestinal problems including irritable bowel syndrome and leaky-gut may be linked to viral and bacterial toxins spliced into foodstuffs. However, seed unavailability and lack of GMO-food labeling make it extremely difficult for scientists, let alone the average harried American trying to get dinner on the table, to track whether biotech ingredients may be affecting our health.
Most GMO safety information is based on three-month studies conducted by the companies, such as Monsanto and Dupont, that engineer and market these seeds, and the pesticides they are engineered to resist. These studies have summarily been approved by the FDA with no further testing. Longer-term, independent studies are few, due to companies’ refusal to sell their patented seeds to outside researchers. In this vacuum of information, fear is incubating.
Since the companies that make these seeds are not known for their fireside chats, Dirt knocked on the doors of neighbors who deal every day with the plants and food borne of genetically engineered seeds, to see how they feel about these novel life forms.
“Up until now, for all of human history, seeds have been in the public domain,” said organic farmer Keith Stewart of Keith’s Farm in Westtown, NY. “My main issue with GMO stuff is that it puts control of the food system in the hands of big corporations. GMO seeds are patented, and farmers have been sued for reusing them.”
Because biotechnology companies now own the seeds they’ve engineered, these companies have the power to sue farmers whose fields are found to contain their proprietary plants, even when it is the result of unwanted drift from neighboring fields. “All over the world, GMO crops are knocking out small farmers and indigenous food systems,” said Stewart. “It is this ownership of the seeds and the international food system that really scares me.”
GMO foods entered the human diet in 1994 with the introduction of the Flavr-Savr Tomato, produced by combining an E. coli gene with tomato DNA to insure less damage during shipping. The Flavr-Savr was a flop, mainly due to public skepticism. But two years later, Monsanto marketed the first “Round-Up resistant” corn, which would become the poster child of genetic engineering. Pest-resistant, drought-resistant, and well-suited to large scale, industrial agriculture, would this be the foundation crop of a second Green Revolution that would put an end to world hunger? GMO field corn quickly but quietly cornered the market for animal feed, as well as for human food products like corn oil, corn flour, corn starch, and fructose.
“If a company has a great product, it usually works hard to advertise it,” said Stewart.
“If GMO is so good, then why are they trying to hide it?”
The Grocery Manufacturer’s Association waged multi-million dollar advertising campaigns to defeat GMO-labeling bills in Oregon and Washington. Among the association’s arguments was that mandatory GMO labels would increase the cost of food. A similar study by Cornell University showed that New York’s proposed mandatory GMO labeling bill would cost families an average of $500 per year at the checkout aisle. The study, funded by a consortium of biotech companies, was debunked by the Consumers’ Union for inflating cost estimates by 60 percent.
“There is a myth that you cannot feed the world’s population with organic farming, but I disagree,” Stewart said. “I do strongly defend local farming practices and realize it can be difficult or impractical for many family farms to convert to organic, but in the long run, environmentally, it is more sustainable – reusing seeds, building up the soil with natural forms of fertilizer, preventing erosion by wind and water. In the end, that’s what it’s all about – looking after the land that feeds us. The soil is where life comes from. Plants and animals will not be here without healthy soil.”
A 2013 report by the U.N. Conference on Trade and Development states that “developing and developed countries alike need a paradigm shift in agricultural development.” To solve world hunger now, and for a sustainable future, the report urges a shift away from the high tech model to “a holistic approach in agricultural management, which recognizes that a farmer is not only a producer of agricultural goods, but also a manager of an agro-ecological system that provides quite a number of public goods and services (e.g. water, soil, landscape, energy, biodiversity, and recreation).”
Maybe “organic” versus “GMO” is not an either-or question. “I hate to see it happening, and I don’t support it, pitting one type of farming against another,”said Al Buckbee, 75, a third generation farmer and the patriarch of Bellvale Dairy Farm in Warwick.
The no-GMO signs popping up around town indicate to him that a rift has grown, not only within the agricultural community, but also between farmers and the public. Buckbee encourages farmers to tout the positives of what they grow, whether organic or local, but not disparage the fruit of other farmers’ hands.
“GMO is not an easy for or against, and we all live happily ever after,” he said.
To feed his herd of around 70 head of cattle, Buckbee grows “Round-Up ready” corn and alfalfa (conventional farmers don’t tend to use the term GMO), as well as non-GMO alfalfa.
“We are testing out both in our fields, assessing costs, yields, and effects on our livestock. The alfalfa we grow is very prone to weeds,” he said. “GMO seeds are more expensive, but with conventional seeds we have had to apply more herbicides.
“Round-Up is actually better than the old herbicides because it breaks down in the atmosphere instead of leaving a toxic residue. It’s a question of which poison is worse. The stuff people put on their lawns to kill dandelions is a lot more detrimental to the environment than Round-Up.”
Though they plant different seeds, Buckbee agrees with the other farmers Dirt talked to in that he sees no problem with labeling GMOs. “I’m not opposed to it at all,” he said. Sixty-four countries mandate GMO labeling, including Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Korea, Japan, New Zealand, Australia, South Korea, Ethiopia, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, and 15 nations in the European Union.
Genetic modification is “just an update on what’s been going on forever,” said Buckbee. “Trying to select the best seed, or the best horse, or the process of hybridizing plants to increase their yield — that’s been going on for a long time. It seems like what I read, some people think this is a revelation. This brand new thing is going on, Monsanto is the devil, and I think, well they really don’t understand the world they’re living in, in that respect.”
Genetic engineering tends to be fuzzily understood. “One thing you have to understand is that all genetically modified food is not genetically engineered,” explained Sally Scheuermann of Scheuermann Farms in Pine Island, NY. “Hybrid plants, which we grow, are genetically modified, but they are created by cross-pollination of varieties of the same or related species.”
Because plants cross-pollinate in nature, hybrids have been part of the human and agricultural landscape for millennia. Many favorites, like Supersweet 100 Tomatoes and Butter and Sugar Sweet Corn, are popular hybrids. Nevertheless, “GMO” has become the acronym used to describe plants that are genetically engineered in the lab.
“We, like many small farmers in the Northeast, don’t grow any GMO crops,” said Alan Ochs of Ochs Orchard in Warwick, NY. Even if they wanted to, a bio-tech apple isn’t available — yet. (The USDA may be on the brink of deregulating the non-browning “Arctic apple,” invented in Canada, in which case Arctics will appear on grocery store shelves alongside Granny Smiths and Macintoshes.) “Would I grow a GMO apple if one existed? I don’t know. One problem is that if they find something negative about it, will they hide it? The corporate money is just too powerful.
“Would I eat a GMO food?,” Ochs mused. “Well, if they throw a label on a package of Fritos that says GMO, I am still going to eat it because I like Fritos!”
Listen to your gut, advises Jim Haurey, owner of The Grange restaurant in Warwick, NY, who sources his food from local farms. Literally. Its rumblings could be telling you something. “The restaurant world over the past 15 years has seen an enormous ‘outbreak’ of lactose intolerance and, more recently, gluten intolerance,” he said. “Check out the ingredients on a factory-baked loaf of bread or pizza dough. Is there any form of corn or soy in there? If so, it’s most likely a GMO crop.”
Genetically modified foods now comprise 90 percent of the corn, soy, canola, sugar beets, alfalfa, zucchini, yellow squash, and papaya grown in the United States. An estimated 70 percent of processed foods have GMO ingredients, and odds are higher for anything containing cornstarch, high fructose corn syrup, oil (corn, soy, canola), beet sugar, soy, or aspartame. GMO wheat has not yet been approved by the FDA, so bread could be GMO-free – or not, if it contains additives like lecithin or ascorbic acid. If you’re trying to avoid GMOs, your best bet is buying certified organic or non-GMO-certified food.
“If your favorite Greek yogurt comes from cows that have been fed a diet of GMO corn and soy,” said Maurey, “and over time it’s been giving you stomach cramps, maybe the lactose isn’t the problem.”
“I myself am somewhat of a genetically engineered project,” laughed Dr. Dani Segal, a holistic nutritionist and co-owner of Healthy Thymes market in Vernon, New Jersey. “I offered an organ to my sister. Then she had a son with my kidney in her body. I’m not against science and helping people live good, joyous lives. I just think we need to have a choice. We need to first be educated to know that something’s happening to our food supply. The cat’s out of the bag, we’re never going to go back now” to a non-GMO world. “Monsanto’s dug their heels in deep. They have the farmers, they have the seeds.”
“The bottom line is to educate people so they can make a choice for their own family,” said Segal. “Do you want to pick up this cereal or that? If it’s not labeled, then you can’t make a choice.”
SIDEBAR: FOOD FIGHTNYS Assembly bill (A. 617) and NYS Senate bill (S.485) are slated to come up for a vote this year. If either passes, New York will join Vermont, Connecticut and Maine as the fourth state to demand labeling transparency for food buyers. Similar bills in Oregon and Washington were narrowly defeated last year with massive anti-labeling advertising campaigns driven by the Grocery Manufacturers’ Association. Mike Pompeo (R-KS) has introduced an anti-labeling bill (HR-4432) into the Federal House of Representatives. Dubbed “The Dark Act” by critics, it would make it illegal for states to mandate GMO labeling.


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Today has been marked by a welcome announcement about the General Motors/LG Chem battery joint venture, which will result in a huge lithium-ion cell factory (more than 30 GWh annually with options for expansion) in the Lordstown area of Northeast Ohio.
CNBC took the opportunity to speak with Mary Barra, General Motors CEO and LG Chem CEO Hak-Cheol Shin about both, the upcoming $2.3 billion investment and a Chevy/GMC all-electric pickup truck.
GM intends to introduce an all-electric pickup truck in fall 2021, which is within two years from now, but we don't know any details about the upcoming vehicle.
Mary Barra expressed a conviction that BEVs might represent a significant share of the pickup truck market in the future.
When asked about the Tesla Cybertruck (see from 2:58), Barra evaded a direct answer and promised that "GM will have a strong battery electric truck that meets consumers' needs".
Well, with two years to launch, GM probably already has all the assumptions and goals for the truck, which is now under development. Knowing that others also are working on electric trucks (Tesla, Rivian and Ford, to name a few) forces GM to treat the task seriously as consumers will have the choice and the product needs to be a solid offer to survive.


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By Claire West
The Prime Minister’s enterprise advisor Lord Young of Graffham is urging Government to facilitate a fast expansion of flexible business space, to foster the same levels of entrepreneurship in the UK as in the USA.
Lord Young’s report on small business, to be published later this month, names the UK as Europe’s most entrepreneurial nation, but the rate of new businesses being launched in Britain is still significantly behind the United States.
Speaking at the Business Centre Association’s annual conference Lord Young commented that the number of small firms in Britain currently totals 4.5 million, but achieving US growth rates would see the sector swell to 5.4 million firms.
"Adding a further 900,000 start-ups to UK plc could be transformational for the British economy, causing structural employment to disappear."
He advocated an increase of expertly run flexible space to incubate young entrepreneurs.
“The way we work is changing rapidly, and office accommodation needs to keep in step with this. These days, entrepreneurs need little more than a phone, a desk and a fast broadband connection to get started.
“I anticipate that many tens of thousands of young people will start up their own business this year. If they are to thrive, it is essential that are accommodated in a supportive business environment. I’m convinced that by providing young companies with the right sort of flexible space, the UK could reach the same levels of entrepreneurial activity as in the USA.”


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Gearbox has recently announced that a new Tales from the Borderlands is set to be released this 2022. The new Tales was said to include brand new characters and more adventures to look forward to. The brand new game will also be released by 2K, who was also responsible for the whole Borderlands franchise.
According to Gearbox Software CEO Randy Pitchford, the details of the new Tales will be revealed this summer. Also, in a tweet posted by GearboxOfficial, we can see a teaser image of the new game.
Tales from the Borderlands was initially released by Telltale Games back in 2014. The plot of the game revolved around two characters named Rhys and Fiona, who sought out to open a vault that was full of glimmering treasure.
According to a review posted by IGN, they shared: 'With only a brief introduction to Rhys and Fiona, they have already become a pair of my favorite Telltale characters, and the fantastic final scene of the Zer0 Sum has been anxiously awaiting my return trip to Pandora.' I mean, who wouldn’t like Fiona, she’s an awesome con-artist for crying out loud.
The upcoming Tales game will no longer be handled by Telltale Games since they have previously shut down due to funding issues. Instead, Gearbox Software and 2K will hold responsibility for handling the game.
There isn't much information about the upcoming Tales game since only a teaser was shown. But it's very surprising since the game was only announced recently and is now set to be released this year.
The Borderlands film was released in theaters last year, and it starred a number of well-known actors and actresses, including Black Jack and Cate Blanchett. Tiny Tina's Wonderland, a Borderlands spin-off, was previously released in March.


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PARK SLOPE — They took their sweet time, just like their coffee does.
Blue Bottle Coffee opened its first Park Slope location Wednesday at 203 Seventh Ave. near Third Street, nearly a year after announcing it was coming to the neighborhood.
To celebrate its soft opening, the cafe was handing out free drinks all day Wednesday.
Blue Bottle's signature pour-over coffee starts at $3.50, an espresso is $3, and a latte is $4.50. The cafe will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., seven days a week and will serve breakfast and lunch items.
More Openings & Closings in Park Slope, Gowanus and Windsor Terrace: