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WICKER PARK — Almost a year after it sold to a Maryland-based real estate firm, renovations are finally coming to the former Continental Furniture building, which will be converted into retail and offices.
The trio of adjacent buildings at 1421-1427 N. Milwaukee Ave., which were built in the 1880s, are almost 23,000 square-foot and comprise one of the largest empty spaces on the street between Damen and Division.
Realterm bought the properties for $3.7 million last August. The sale included a vintage water tower atop the building that could be used for advertising. The acquisition did not include the southern portion of the massive store, which also remains empty at 1417 N. Milwaukee Ave.
“We saw it as an opportunity to take a beautiful building from the late 1880s and restore it back to its original glory,” said John Tsiskasis, vice president of acquisitions for Realterm.
If everything goes as planned, the renovations to the building will start this summer and be completed by spring 2019, Tsiskasis said.
“We’ve been working through designs and landmark commission to get [the renovations] approved,” Tsiskasis said.
A construction permit for an estimated $1.5 million worth of renovations was issued to Realterm in late June, city records show. It calls for putting retail on the first two floors and offices on the third and fourth floors of the existing 4-story brick and wood building. The work includes repairing the brick facade and replacing the storefront windows.
“It’s going to look very different from what it looks like now. When we get new windows in, the storefront will look a lot taller,” Tsiskasis said.
Continental Furniture closed in early 2015 after 63 years in business, and has sat empty since then.
While no tenant or tenants have been tapped yet, Tsiskasis said there’s been “a lot of interest from fashion apparel on the ground floor and office tenants on upper floors.” The building remains for lease on the Baum Realty website.
The upper three floors of the building have been used as storage for many decades.
In the 1950s the storefront was home to Meyer’s Furniture, which later became Continental Furniture, Tsiskasis said.
Decibel Audio, a turnable and audio store next to the former furniture storefront at 1429 N. Milwaukee Ave., will not be part of the planned renovations, as the former owner of the furniture store still owns the portion of the building rented by Decibel and the southern half of the furniture store.
Tucker Harper, a longtime worker at Decibel, said on Wednesday that he’s glad to see renovations are getting underway soon.
“It’s disappointing to have all these vacancies up and down the block. It’s too bad it’s been so long. We’d love to see some businesses back in the area,” Harper said.
Acknowledging the empty storefronts, not just at the former furniture site but in other surrounding buildings, Tsiskasis said “a lot of the vacant storefronts are committed [with new leases]” that have not been announced yet.


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Apple CEO Tim Cook Urges U.S. President to Stay in Paris Climate Pact
Amid rumors suggesting U.S. President Donald Trump plans to withdraw the United States from the Paris climate agreement, multiple tech CEOs have been urging him not to do so, reports Bloomberg.
On Tuesday, Apple CEO Tim Cook called the White House to ask the president not to abandon the agreement, which is a 195-nation pact committed to cutting down on greenhouse gas emissions and reducing global warming. Under the terms of the pact, the United States commits to reducing carbon emissions by 26 to 28 percent over the course of the next decade.
Trump, who said he opposes "draconian climate rules" during his presidential campaign, announced this morning that he would make his decision on the accord "over the next few days." Officials who spoke to the New York Times said a decision has not yet been made, but Trump is expected to withdraw on the grounds that the accord would harm the economy and impact job creation in areas like Appalachia and the West.
I will be announcing my decision on the Paris Accord over the next few days. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 31, 2017
A senior White House official cautioned that the specific language of the president's expected announcement was still in flux Wednesday morning. The official said the withdrawal might be accompanied by legal caveats that will shape the impact of Mr. Trump's decision.
Over the course of the last several years, Apple has become increasingly committed to reducing its environmental impact and running its business on 100 percent renewable energy. Most recently, Apple announced plans to pursue a closed-loop supply chain where its products would be built entirely from recyclable materials.
Along with Cook, Tesla CEO Elon Musk has asked Trump not to withdraw the United States from the Paris Accord. In a tweet, Musk said he's done all he can to influence Trump's decision, and in a followup tweet, Musk said he would leave the White House advisory councils he participates in should Trump choose to leave the accord.
Don't know which way Paris will go, but I've done all I can to advise directly to POTUS, through others in WH & via councils, that we remain — Elon Musk (@elonmusk) May 31, 2017
Note: Due to the political nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Politics, Religion, Social Issues forum. All forum members and site visitors are welcome to read and follow the thread, but posting is limited to forum members with at least 100 posts.
Top Rated Comments
Apple is more than the products they build-- they're a model for how organizations should function. It's not just about the bottom line... it's how they're contributing to humanity and the world at large. But the fact is that having that vision will attract people to your products, and contribute to your bottom line, because they stand behind your philosophy.
We need to think about how we solve problems as a collective, and not just for ourselves.
Apple is pursuing a way to avoid increasing costs of scarcity of natural resources by reclaiming items from eWaste/consumer discards.
Apple's costs could rise, so ultimately Tim is showing his concern for Apple as well.
It will be one of those moments in history that we look back on and ask "What were they thinking??"

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H&V Launches HVision™ Technology Platform
Hollingsworth & Vose Co. (H&V), an East Walpole, Mass.-based provider of nonwovens and
technical papers, has launched its HVision™ technology platform for enhanced research and
development (R&D) and commercialization of cutting-edge products.
According to Val Hollingsworth, president and CEO, three primary principles drive the HVision development process: benchmarking the industry’s best performance on the customer’s most important parameters; developing technologies that go beyond the benchmarks to raise performance levels to new heights; and focusing on developing breakthrough core materials technologies appropriate for multiple products and markets.
“This R&D platform will provide customers with innovative products that offer new standards of excellence for the performance characteristics that matter most,” Hollingsworth said. “ In addition, it will accelerate product development cycles and improve quality.”
New H&V products developed using the new platform include PerForm™ high-efficiency-particulate-air/ultra-low-penetration-air filter media for clean-room applications; and NanoWave™ patented, extended-surface, high-loft synthetic media for bag filters compliant with American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers standards, offering triple the dirt-holding capacity of traditional media.
January 15, 2008


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By Chris Lee
New research has found that most large Internet marketers are more likely to implement free, “organic” tactics such as creating branded pages and content than to use paid ads. Yet paid advertising on social networks is the most successful tactic, according to “The Key to Successful Social Advertising” report, commissioned by global social marketing platform Kenshoo Social and conducted by Forrester Consulting.
The study of 105 large social advertisers who spend more than $100,000 per year on social media ads found that those who paid to promote their branded content were most satisfied with the awareness they created; while those who bought paid social ads were happiest with their ability to drive purchases. Organic posting is the most popular social media tactic, but paid advertising is the most successful.
More than one-third of social marketers were not satisfied with their efforts, the study found. While many marketers still think of social media as a free channel, marketers who used paid social tactics — whether paying for social advertising or paying to promote social content — say they are more successful than those who do not, the report found. The lesson to take away is that social marketing can be free — but if you want it to deliver results, it should not be free, the report’s author argues.
Pay to play
Social advertisers use a wide range of social sites and strategies. The most popular tactic is maintaining branded pages on general social networks, business networks and microblogs. Branded pages alone, however, do not make an effective social marketing strategy, according to Aaron Goldman, chief marketing officer at Kenshoo.
“With more than half of all marketers surveyed now actively buying ads on social networks, it’s clear that this channel has become an important part of the media mix,” Goldman told NMK. “But advertisers are only scratching the surface in terms of the incredible targeting capabilities available through the social graph such as likes, interests, job titles, friends of fans and custom audiences.”
Advanced optimisation tactics
Social advertisers still are not using advanced optimisation tactics, according to the study. More than half of large social advertisers use ad rotation, but only one-third use granular targeting to reach the right audiences. Most of those who do target primarily use basic criteria like demographic targeting.
Goldman explained: “Our study found that only a third of social advertisers are creating campaigns around small, niche audience targets and, similarly, only a third are doing any A/B testing. With billions of people interacting on social networks each day, there’s a lot of potential waste for advertisers who aren’t using sophisticated targeting strategies and using advanced technology platforms to create micro-targeted campaigns at scale.”
Social marketers should pay for promoted content to drive awareness and buy ads to drive sales, Goldman argued. The survey measured the tactics of satisfied social advertisers and found that different paid social strategies drove different kinds of success.
The Forrester study concludes with four initial steps marketers can use to immediately improve results:
– Start with clear marketing objectives.
– Promote your brand and your content.
– Take advantage of robust targeting.
– Develop a holistic approach for greater success.
Social advertisers who paid to promote their branded content were most satisfied with the awareness they created; while those who bought standard social ad units were happiest with their ability to drive purchases. Brand-focused social advertisers and response-focused social advertisers must deploy the tactics proven best for meeting their specific objectives, Kenshoo Social concluded.


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It’s been nearly a month since Nintendo’s squid-shooter was released and already the community is hungry for more. Following on from a cheeky fan who "data-mined" a disc copy of Splatoon to find out what exactly Nintendo had in store for the game's player base, a video has now emerged of a playable octoling thanks to an enthusiastic Splatoon hacker.
With the octoling assets so readily available, it comes as no surprise footage such as this has already appeared. There are also weapon testing rooms and more on show. Take a look at the 9 minute video below and let us know in the comments if you think Nintendo will ever make playable octolings a reality in Splatoon via DLC.


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Video report by ITV News Consumer Editor Chris Choi
ITV News investigation by Chris Choi and Hannah Kings
An investigation by ITV News shows how some traders are encouraging buyers of electric scooters to break the law.
It’s illegal to use e-scooters on UK roads or pavements, but undercover filming found some retailers advising consumers to do it anyway.
Responding to ITV News’ findings, safety group Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (ROSPA) says government urgently needs new rules for the vehicles.
E-scooters are seen by a growing number of users as an answer to urban congestion and fumes - but people found ignoring the law can face fines and penalty points on their licence.
Yet sales are booming, with buyers frequently using electric scooters to commute. To find out what firms selling e-scooters are telling customers we used hidden cameras in various e-scooter retailers.
At the first outlet ITV News visited, the salesman seems more than happy to recommend them for use on the roads.
He said: "Its basically a bicycle and if you’re gonna ride at 15 miles an hour then ride it on the road like a bicycle.
"Personally, I kind of make sure I'm well away [from traffic]. I almost use the pedestrian phase of traffic lights to make sure I'm well clear of traffic."
Next, seller had ideas on how to fool the police: "I would say get this and go on the pavement, and you would easily look like it's just a push one - nobody would tell that its electric but you can still use it as electric."
A third retailer had tips on how to commute: "You just need to know that it's illegal - still a grey area.
"We use it for commuting and if you use a model like that you should use on a cycle lane or bus lane or on the side of the road."
Nick Lloyd, Road Safety Manager at accident prevention organisation ROSPA, told ITV News there is too much confusion on the status of e-scooters. His group wants the government to urgently frame new policies governing where and how they should be used.
He added road safety design standards are needed, along with detailed policy on wearing helmets, and whether e-scooters can be used in cycle lanes.
The Department for Transport told ITV News: "The government is considering the use of e-scooters... As part of a regulatory review, as announced in March.
"We are actively examining how they can be regulated for safe use on the road, in order to encourage innovative new forms of transport."
Many other nations like Germany and France already have e-scooters rules. The UK is now playing catch-up with technology that is currently being widely used on our roads.
They may only travel at around 15 mph, but it looks like e-scooters have left the UK government far behind.
What does the law say?
While e-scooters can be used on private property (with the landowner’s permission), it is illegal to ride them on the road.
This includes in cycle lanes or tracks or on the pavement.
This is because e-scooters fall within the definition of a motor vehicle under UK law. It means they are subject to laws requiring them to be built and used safely, including requirements for users to have insurance, driving licences, number plates, and helmets.
Offences relating to motor vehicles also apply, for example speeding and dangerous driving offences.
E-scooters are subject to all the requirements a motor vehicle is subject to – MOT, tax, licensing, plus construction and use.
The design of an e-scooter makes these almost impossible to comply with, hence by default they are illegal on both public roads and pavements.
But some users remain adamant they will continue to ride their e-scooters.
Ellen Edgar was stopped by police for using her scooter on her commute across London - now she just uses it for shorter trips.
But she maintains travelling by an environmentally conscious method is more important to her than staying within the law.
She told ITV News: "They're not like a car or scooter, they're not omitting any pollution.
"They're just off a battery, so I just feel like getting around London and it's not omitting all this bad air. That's one of the reasons I'm using it at the moment, because the environment is such an important thing to me."


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Apple CEO Steve Jobs discusses his company's new iPod lineup in an exclusive interview with CNBC's Jim Goldman:
The gaming developer reported results that beat estimates and announced plans to lay off 364 workers.
As execs at Salesforce consider whether or not to sell, one firm in particular is the most likely buyer, said a person familiar with their thinking.
A federal appeals court in New York City ruled in favor of Pandora, helping the service save in royalty fees.
Is the tech industry bubbling with froth or at the early stages of a new computing revolution? CNBC put its visitors on the hot seat.
Get the best of CNBC in your inbox
An acquisition of Salesforce could turn out to be a terrible decision given the size of Salesforce, Roger McNamee said.
Periscope is not just about live streaming, but creating intimate experiences through interactivity, co-founder Kayvon Beykpour tells CNBC.
Ron Johnson said this needs to happen for the Apple Watch to be truly successful.


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Natsume made the announcement on their official Tumblr. The company goes into further detail stating that the new content will begin in January and continue each month until April.
There has been no announcement on specific dates or prices for these DLC.
Consistent DLC will certainly make an impact to players of Harvest Moon: The Lost Valley. I’m still pretty curious about the pass and whether or not a Season pass-like-option will be available.


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FedEx has announced the launch of fdx – a first-of-its-kind data platform. The new initiative will allow customers to be part of the end-to-end journey.
President and CEO Raj Subramaniam says FedEx is transforming into a digitally-led business on the backdrop of insights provided by the company’s 15 million packages per day. “Through fdx, we will enhance our longstanding relationships with merchants of all sizes to help them optimize and grow their businesses through digital intelligence,” he says.
Data-driven platform and better logistics
This new platform will assist merchants in making informed logistics decisions, including delivery and returns. Here are some fdx features:
- Demand – Connectivity with high-value customers through ShopRunner.
- Conversion – Share delivery information regarding the shopping experience. The platform encourages delivery transparency.
- Visibility and control of shipments – View shipments in real-time.
- Insight to carbon emissions – Access emissions data to make sustainable supply chain decisions.
- Streamline returns – Manage returns, ‘data exchange’, and returns in one platform.
FedEx innovative about logistics
This month, the logistics giant introduced electric three-wheelers in Taiwan. This initiative is in partnership with Gaius Automotive for last-mile delivery and pickups.
In December, the company announced openinga new logistics facility in Germany. Situated in Leipzig, the facility measures 17,000 sqm.
Some highlights of the facility include:
- Six loading bays for lorries, and 63 for vans.
- Six loading bays for 7.5-ton trucks.
- Twelve charging stations for electric vehicles.
Innovative logistic solutions in the UK and Europe
The company is also expanding its facility in Karlsruhe, Germany. This location will be modernized and have greater handling capacity. The sorting process at the warehouse is automated cutting sorting time by a third – sorting capacity is also doubled.
Earlier in 2023, FedEx launched a new state-of-the-art import system at its Stansted Airport facility. The new system will allow the company to handle higher volumes in a shorter time window.
The new parcel sorting system will speed up the processing of imports, sorting double the number of parcels per hour than the previous system.
Another development in the UK for FedEx was its introduction of 23 electric vehicles in its fleet. This move comes in line with making parcel delivery more eco-friendly.
The race is on for tech
The year 2024 looks like the year of technology. Logistics companies around the world are implementing tech innovations to assist their businesses.
On the warehouse front, these facilities are experiencing some crucial benefits to automation – and staying ahead of the game and remaining competitive in the industry. Automation is assisting with aspects such as:
- Stock merging – allowing warehouse users to keep products. Often, warehouse users keep stock separately, but this practice is changing to keep stock together.
- Visibility – More order transparency is the name of the game for 2024. Providing vital information about an order, including from online platforms, will be a “must-have” this year.
- Sustainability – Warehouses are looking to operate sustainably, reducing their environmental impact. This is being done using sustainable materials and environmentally friendly energy sources.
- Restoring and customizing – There is a need for warehouses to be modern. Warehouses will also focus closely on industry-specific needs.
- Data optimization – Moving the warehouse towards operating digitally is crucial to providing speed. This year, warehouses will adapt to modern practices to carry out operations.
About the author
Sharl is a qualified journalist. He has over 10 years’ experience in the media industry, including positions as an editor of a magazine and Business Editor of a daily newspaper. Sharl also has experience in logistics specifically operations, where he worked with global food aid organisations distributing food into Africa. Sharl enjoys writing business stories and human interest pieces.


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September 14, 2022
Egypt state grains buyer approves replacement for detained Ukrainian wheat shipment
Egypt's General Authority for Supply Commodities (GASC) has agreed to decided to replace a detained Ukrainian wheat shipment with a new 60,000-tonne cargo from the same supplier, Olam, cost and freight price of US$361.25 per tonne, Reuters.
This follows weeks of talks to either free or replace the shipment.
According to two people with knowledge of the matter, that price was also set for the original 60,000-ton cargo. The new shipment is expected to be delivered between September 15 and October 15.
The original cargo was acquired by GASC in a December tender for shipment in February, but since Russia's invasion of Ukraine on February 24, it has been stuck on board a ship called Emmakris III at the port of Chornomorsk. In order to look into the ship's alleged Russian ownership, the prosecutor general of Ukraine requested its detention in July.
Ukraine's Middle East representative stated in August that the ship was being released by Ukrainian authorities.
Since the GASC tender book lacks a clause for force majeure, suppliers are required to fulfil contractual quantities from an alternative origin in the event that a cargo cannot be delivered.
GASC did, however, release suppliers of four Ukrainian wheat cargoes that were purchased prior to the war but were never loaded onto a vessel in July.
According to both individuals with knowledge of the situation, GASC terminated its agreement with GTCS, the shipper of the older cargo. One of them added that the new contract with Olam would absolve GASC of any further expenses as well as any liability for the earlier shipment.
Egypt's Supply Minister Ali Moselhy said the country's strategic wheat reserves currently stand at 6.6 months.


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The infamous red and black leather jacket Michael Jackson wore in his ‘Thriller’ video is being auctioned, reports CTV.
The auction administrator, Darren Julien, says the jacket is “the most recognized and significant piece of pop culture” to come up for sale and expects the jacket will get at least $200,000.
The jacket is even autographed, as Jackson signed the jacket as a gift to his longtime costume designers, Dennis Tompkins and Michael Bush.
The jacket will be fought over at the ‘Music Icons’ auction on June 25 and 26 at Julien’s Auctions in Beverly Hills.
Other Jackson items up for sale include the wig he wore when he announced his ‘This Is It’ tour in London, a fedora and sparkled glove he wore on stage, his shirt from the ‘Scream’ video and a beaten mailbox from the Carolwood Drive estate where Jackson died in 2009.
The auction will also include one of Eric Clapton’s guitars, Frank Sinatra’s 1986 Jaguar, handwritten lyrics and a leather jacket from Johnny Cash, and a signed harmonica from Bob Dylan, among others.
A portion of the proceeds will benefit the Shambala Preserve.
These are definitely pieces of history, so if you’ve got some cash to spare, head on over and bid. I think a sequinned glove is a great investment.
One of the items that stood out was a crystal-studded glove he wore on his 1984 Victory Tour which sold for $190,000, reports PopEater.
The bidding that began Friday on more than 200 items was “unlike anything we’ve ever experienced,” said Darren Julien of Julien’s Auctions, which ran the auction at Planet Hollywood in Las Vegas.
Many of the items sold for 10 times their estimated value, including the glove.
“It just shows you Michael Jackson is the most sought after and most collectible celebrity of all time. It was just phenomenal,” Julien told the Las Vegas Review-Journal.


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Today at AWS re:Invent, Andy Jassy talked a lot about how companies are making a big push to the cloud, but today’s container-focused announcements gave a big nod to the data center as the company announced ECS Anywhere and EKS Anywhere, both designed to let you run these services on premises, as well as in the cloud.
These two services, ECS for generalized container orchestration and EKS for what’s focused on Kubernetes, will let customers use these popular AWS services on premises. Jassy said that some customers still want the same tools they use in the cloud on prem and this is designed to give it to them.
Speaking of ECS he said, “I still have a lot of my containers that I need to run on premises as I’m making this transition to the cloud, and [these] people really want it to have the same management and deployment mechanisms that they have in AWS also on premises and customers have asked us to work on this. And so I’m excited to announce two new things to you. The first is the launch, or the announcement of Amazon ECS Anywhere, which lets you run ECS and your own data center,” he told the re:Invent audience.
He said it gives you the same AWS APIs and cluster configuration management pieces. This will work the same for EKS, allowing this single management methodology regardless of where you are using the service.
While it was at it, the company also announced it was open sourcing EKS, its own managed Kubernetes service. The idea behind these moves is to give customers as much flexibility as possible, and recognizing what Microsoft, IBM and Google have been saying, that we live in a multi-cloud and hybrid world and people aren’t moving everything to the cloud right away.
In fact, in his opening Jassy stated that right now in 2020, just 4% of worldwide IT spend is on the cloud. That means there’s money to be made selling services on premises, and that’s what these services will do.


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COVID-19 has created a huge impact on a global scale that led to an unprecedented worldwide economic disruption.
There has been a great impact on the telecommunications industry as quality services are demanded from them due to the abrupt shift to remote working during the crisis. The work-from-home model requires employees to telecommute through different channels such as video meetings, phone calls extensively. Some operators were able to react quickly by offering their customers an upgraded plan while others had their weak spots exposed. Whichever the cases may be, it is important to make sure that they are providing quality service to their customers.
At this point, telcos are in the position to assist small and medium businesses to ensure business recovery and increase customer experience with unrelenting connectivity. Telcos must improve and prioritize omnichannel efforts with a fully digital storefront and supply chain to continually serve customers through online channels.


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PLANO, Texas, June 1, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- The Doritos brand and The Lonely Island today announced a donation of $250,000 to the Berkeley Unified School District (BUSD) as a part of their collaboration on the annual Doritos Crash the Super Bowl contest. One of the hottest entertainment teams in the industry today, the award-winning trio of Andy Samberg, Akiva Schaffer and Jorma Taccone that make up The Lonely Island, designated BUSD as the donation recipient because of the group's hometown ties to the region — all three members attended school there and Samberg's mother is a longtime educator in the district.
BUSD and The Lonely Island have designated the funds for improvements to the Berkeley Community Theater, which is located on the Berkeley High School campus and used by district students for music and theater performances. The theater has been an important part of the Berkeley community for more than 60 years.
The donation is a result of The Lonely Island's participation in Doritos' Crash the Super Bowl contest: a competition in which consumers are invited to create homemade ads for Doritos, one of the flagship brands from PepsiCo's Frito-Lay division. This year, two consumers had their Doritos ads air during the Super Bowl XLVI broadcast, with both winning an opportunity to consult with The Lonely Island on a future Doritos brand project.
"Working with The Lonely Island has been a real pleasure, and they have truly embraced everything about this program," said Ram Krishnan, vice president of marketing, Frito-Lay North America. "Their involvement in Crash the Super Bowl has served as an inspiration to Doritos fans with dreams of pursuing an entertainment career, and we felt it was only fitting to show our gratitude by helping them give back to where their success got its start."
"The Berkeley Unified School District has been a huge part of our lives — it's where we met and became friends," said The Lonely Island members Samberg, Schaffer and Taccone. "Now having the ability to give back to it feels great. Hopefully it will help today's students pursue their creative dreams and make their school a generally nicer place to be."
The Doritos brand received a record-setting 6,100 entries in this year's Crash the Super Bowl contest. Two of these consumer-created Doritos ads were aired during the Big Game — one taking the No. 1 spot in the USA TODAY Super Bowl Ad Meter, and the other ranking No. 1 in the USA TODAY Facebook Super Bowl Ad Meter. The creators of the two ads, Jonathan Friedman and Kevin T. Willson, were each awarded $1 million bonus prizes for their No. 1 rankings.
Doritos tortilla chips is one of the billion-dollar brands that make up Frito-Lay North America, the $13 billion convenient foods business unit of PepsiCo (NYSE: PEP), which is headquartered in Purchase, NY. To learn more about the Doritos brand, visit its website at www.doritos.com or on Twitter at www.twitter.com/DoritosUSA or on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/DoritosUSA.
PepsiCo is a global food and beverage leader with net revenues of more than $65 billion and a product portfolio that includes 22 brands that generate more than $1 billion each in annual retail sales. Our main businesses – Quaker, Tropicana, Gatorade, Frito-Lay and Pepsi-Cola – make hundreds of enjoyable foods and beverages that are loved throughout the world. PepsiCo's people are united by our unique commitment to sustainable growth by investing in a healthier future for people and our planet, which we believe also means a more successful future for PepsiCo. We call this commitment Performance with Purpose: PepsiCo's promise to provide a wide range of foods and beverages for local tastes; to find innovative ways to minimize our impact on the environment by conserving energy and water and reducing packaging volume; to provide a great workplace for our associates; and to respect, support and invest in the local communities where we operate. For more information, please visit www.pepsico.com.


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| ||Thread Tools|
|8th May 2012, 06:16||#1|
Join Date: May 2010
Micron Announces Its First Fully Functional DDR4 DRAM Module
Micron Technology, Inc., one of the world's leading providers of advanced semiconductor solutions, today announced development of its first fully functional DDR4 DRAM module. The company has begun sampling and has received feedback from major customers to support quick implementation for applications in 2013.
It is expected that the enterprise and micro-server markets will take full advantage of the new features and specifications designed into DDR4, accelerating early adoption of the technology. In addition, the fast-growing ultrathin client and tablet markets will also benefit from new opportunities enabled by the power savings and performance features of Micron's DDR4.
|Thread||Thread Starter||Forum||Replies||Last Post|
|Micron Announces 2.5" PCIe SSD for Enterprise||Stefan Mileschin||WebNews||0||8th March 2012 10:33|
|Micron Announces First 2.5-inch PCIe Enterprise SSD||Stefan Mileschin||WebNews||0||7th March 2012 06:31|
|VIA Announces Latest Computer-on-Module (COM) Express Module, the VIA COMe-8X90||Stefan Mileschin||WebNews||0||27th February 2012 08:13|
|Micron Introduces New 64 GB DDR3 LRDIMM Module||Stefan Mileschin||WebNews||0||9th November 2011 11:39|
|Samsung announces the development of the first DDR4 Module||jmke||WebNews||0||5th January 2011 15:03|
|Zotac H55-ITX WiFi: Fully-Functional LGA1156 Mainboard in Mini-ITX Form-Factor||jmke||WebNews||0||28th May 2010 15:49|
|Micron, chips off on DRAM price frets||Sidney||WebNews||0||3rd March 2005 22:37|
|Micron Rev5B "C" Memory Module||Sidney||WebNews||0||10th December 2004 17:24|
|Micron Warns About Soaring DRAM Prices||jmke||WebNews||1||14th July 2004 17:07|


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A News Analysis
If Alaska commercial fishing interests think they now have problems with tariffs stemming from the simmering trade war with China, they best not look too far into the future because the possibilities there are far scarier.
“Six reasons you need to try this delicious fish:
- “They’re grown right here in Wisconsin!
- “They are grown without any antibiotics or pesticides ever. No contaminants or pollutants like you’ll find in the ocean.
- “They’re high in Omega-3 fatty acids.
- “Superior Fresh received the Highest Sustainability Ranking of “Best Choice” by the Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch.
- “The fish are fed an organic diet.
- “Amazing flavor!”
The “delicious fish” in question was the first from Superior Fresh, a Midwest aquaponics business that farms salmon and lettuce. While Alaskans were fretting over missing Kenai River sockeye, Superior was preparing to deliver its first batch of farmed Atlantics from a a 3.75-acre facility that celebrated it’s grand opening only a year earlier.
“Aquaponics is the symbiotic relationship between fish, beneficial bacteria, and plants,” the company says on its website. “In an aquaponics system, water from an aquaculture system is fed to a hydroponic system where the by-products are broken down by nitrifying bacteria into nitrites then nitrates. After the nitrates are utilized by the plants, the clean water is recirculated back to the aquaculture system with virtually zero waste. By creating optimum environments for all three of these living organisms, we are creating an efficient ecosystem that we benefit from.”
Think of futuristic, self-contained farms for space travel, and you’ll get the idea of what is going on here. Only this isn’t the future. This is the here and now, and Superior Fresh isn’t the only company diving into land-based, salmon aquaculture to end the complaints salmon net pens can cause pollution problems in marine waters.
Atlantic Sapphire, a Norwegian company, is building a land-based salmon farm in Florida of all places that it plans to be big enough to supply 10 percent of the current U.S. market. The Japanese are hard at work developing “bluehouses,” the fish equivalent of greenhouses, for use throughout Asia. And Norway just keeps growing and roboticizing its farmed fish industry.
Alaska for years tried to hold back the tide of farmed salmon with the pitch that “wild caught” salmon are better. It was once joined in that camp by the Monterey Aquarium, but it has now gone over to the enemy.
Six of its eight “Best Choice” salmon picks are farmed fish, and there are no Alaska salmon in that category. The Aquarium’s Seafood Watch program begin re-examining its position in 2015 amid discussions of Alaskas large volume of hatchery ranched salmon marketed as “wild caught.”
The Alaska Department of Fish and Game has bragged about how “the hatchery harvests alone in both 2013 and 2015 were greater than the entire statewide commercial salmon harvest in every year prior to statehood except for 7 years (1918, 1926, 1934, 1936, 1937, 1938 and 1941).”
Despite all those hatchery fish in the mix, Alaska back in 2003 started pushing the idea that “wild-caught fish from Alaska, reared in clean, pollution-free waters is a healthy, natural food, rich in heart-friendly omega-3 fatty acids,” as the Alaska Journal of Commerce reported.
” ASMI’s (the Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute) new initiatives may not turn the tide against the flood of farmed salmon coming into the U.S. and overseas markets Alaska once dominated, but they may help Alaskans carve out higher-end niches among consumers interested in organic foods and the sustainability of natural systems.”
ASMI has since modified the fish-farm-bashing approach, given that most of the salmon processors that help fund the agency have diversified into farmed fish. ASMI now pitches “Alaska’s icy, pure waters and the abundance of natural food (that) give Alaska salmon unparalleled flavor.”
Processors, meanwhile, have moved a lot of their operations to Asia to try get processing costs down to compete with farmed fish at a more basic level – price point. That is the reason they now find themselves in the middle of the trade war started by President Donald Trump.
Exactly how much salmon is headed and gutted in Alaska and then shipped to China for fileting and time-consuming removal of bin bones is unclear. So, too, the volume of Alaska salmon processed in China coming back to the U.S.
What is known is that Alaska exports about $1.3 billion in seafood to China every year. And that much of it is processed and shipped back to American consumers who spend $2.7 billion on the imports, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).
While Alaskans are fighting over who gets to catch what Alaska fish, the Chinese are turning a $1.4 billion profit on processing whatever does get caught.
Nothing here looks very good for Alaska fisheries in the long run. Gunnar Knapp, the retired director of the Institute of Social and Economic Research (ISER) at the University of Alaska Anchorage, has suggested the state needs to find ways to encourage innovation in the fishing industry, but it is a business largely locked in the past.
Commercial fishermen regularly fret about hanging onto the commercial fishing “lifestyle” when they should be worrying about how to keep their fishing operations economically viable. Meanwhile, they aggressively protest any transition of salmon stocks into tourist-attracting sport fisheries where the fish might in a few cases be worth significantly more to the state economy.
Alaska now attracts about 2 million tourists a year although many Alaskans don’t particularly like the idea because tourists get in the way. The Seward Highway heading south from Anchorage to the Kenai Peninsula now regularly features bumper-to-bumper traffic.
Still, the tourism industry accounts for $2.7 billion in direct spending and $4 billion in total economic activity, according to the Alaska Travel Industry Association, making it the state’s second biggest industry behind oil and gas development.
Salmon are but a small part of that business, but one the state needs to consider along with changes to the commercial fishing industry to try to get more value out of a product facing ever more competition.
Alaska halibut prices soared after federal regulators reduced the number of fishermen and gave them more flexibility in when to catch and sell their catch. Daily troll-caught Alaska salmon are year-in and year-out the most valuable Alaska salmon, but commercial trolling is banned in most of the state.
The Canadians have put fishermen on individual quotas, a scheme similar to what federal regulators did with halibut in Alaska, based on total allowable catch numbers. Such plans eliminate the derby-like nature of fishery openings, and allow for longer fishery openings which make possible the sale of more “fresh-caught salmon,” generally the most valuable of the fish.
But at the end of the day, you still have to wonder how Alaska competes with “no contaminants or pollutants like you’ll find in the ocean.”
It’s nice to think powerful industries will exist forever in a current form because they’ve existed for a long time – like, say, newspapers – but the world doesn’t work that way. Technological innovation has a way of changing everything.
And the salmon farmers are now in a huge, second-wave of technological innovation which has big consequences for all Alaskans. Salmon were the oil of the territorial government.
As oil taxes support the state of Alaska today, fish taxes supported the territory of Alaska then. Those days are long gone. Corporate income, tobacco, motor fuel, mining and alcoholic beverage taxes – in that order – now bring in more revenue than fish taxes, although oil and gas taxes continue to comprise more than 60 percent of revenue, according to the state of Alaska.
Oil and gas plus the aforementioned taxes comprise more than 88 percent of state revenue. Fish taxes account for about 4 percent.
As the value of the fisheries goes down, the tax revenue also goes down, making the issue of fishery value a problem not just for fishermen but for all Alaskans.


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The earnings of enterprises in Vietnam’s fibre industry have shown signs of improvement in the first half of this year and are expected to grow more positively in the coming months as demand recovers.
For example, in the second quarter, Century Synthetic Fiber’s revenue increased by 41.5% compared with the first quarter of 2023 and net profit increased 22 times. The company said export revenue increased by 53% in the first six months of this year, compared with a 52% increase in 2022.
For the full story, see the October 2023 edition of Textiles South East Asia.
Image: Century Synthetic Fiber


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Case Study: Automotive Landscape in Germany
In September 2015 the Volkswagen Group got embroiled in the dieselgate scandal which snowballed out into the entire industry – even more so in the times of a wider discussion on climate change.
Using our innovative approach to brand tracking, we aim to understand how the German car industry have been coping since and how dieselgate has impact the German car industry in its home market. Since January 2019 (before the scandal broke), we have conducted 9 waves of tracking.
In this latest iteration, we see early signs for rapprochement, consumers slowly starting to rediscover their fondness for the brands they loved so dearly in the past. This is however playing out against a backdrop where battery-electric vehicles are coming under increased scrutiny and concern from consumers about the environmental impact in lithium-ion battery production. If this development continues, it could upset the overall strategy of the industry’s move to battery electric vehiclesDownload The Study


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Dish last month went public with an offer for Sprint, challenging the Overland Park, Kan.-based wireless company's existing deal to be acquired by Softbank Corp. Sprint and Softbank in October announced a $20.1 billion agreement to buy 70% of Sprint. Softbank, of Tokyo, has argued that its offer for Sprint carries less risk because it would close sooner, and has pledged significant synergies and funding for Sprint's network investments post-deal. The company has also reportedly been lobbying banks not to help Dish raise cash for its proposed bid, and has warned that a combined Dish-Sprint would be highly levered and poorly positioned to compete against wireless titans AT&T Inc. and Verizon Wireless. Sprint last month received a waiver from Softbank that would allow it to seek more information from Dish. The waiver allows Sprint to receive confidential information from its suitor, but it is not permitted to share its nonpublic information with Dish or enter into negotiations with the company.Dish in a regulatory filing detailing the notes offering said it "has had multiple meetings and communications" with Sprint advisers and a special committee of the company's board, as well as senior members of Sprint management.
"Dish Network has provided information and documentation in response to all of their questions and is unaware of any items that remain outstanding," the company said. Written by Lou Whiteman in New York


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3D Printer Creates Building
A drone research building in Dubai is being built entirely by 3D printers in Singapore, and 3D printers are also being used to lay brick. According to Bob Wilson, Executive Director of AGC in Mississippi, with a 3D printer, you can build a wall in about a third of the time, and it is more accurate than a wall built by the best mason.
Drones in Construction
Drones can now perform dangerous operations that people used to have to do, such as hanging off the side of a building to do an inspection. The use of drones can eliminate a lot of safety concerns. They can also be used to check for leaks and cracks in walls, sewers and tunnels. Using drones instead of humans also cuts insurance costs. In addition, high-powered cameras can look behind walls to locate sewers, electrical lines and cabling without having to drill into buildings.
Pop Up Building
Ten Fold Engineering, a housing startup based in the UK, has created self-deploying buildings that can pop up in just eight minutes at the push of a button. The rooms fold out like an accordion, using a counterbalance system. Once the home folds out, the parts just need to be secured with an electric drill. The company says each building measures approximately 689-square-feet, and could have a variety of uses, from medical clinics to offices to camping shelters.
Boomers Still Rule
Baby Boomers are still making up an oversized share of consumer spending, despite all the marketing focus on understanding millennials. In the first quarter, Americans 55 and older accounted for 41.6% of consumer spending, up from 41.2% in the fourth quarter of last year and 33.5% in early 2007, according to the Commerce Department and Moody’s data. Add in spending by 53-and 54-year-olds and you have about half of all consumption. Boomers also have a higher level of discretionary spending. NPD Group says that big brands assume advertising targeted at millennials will also attract boomers trying to turn back the hands of time, but that fails to take into account the fact that older adults have different needs and distinctive spending patterns. Boomers buy fewer cars, less clothing and fewer electronics, but spend much more on services, including health care, travel and entertainment. The 90.7 million Americans 55 and older make up 28% of the population today. In 2000, the 59.3 million people in that age group comprised just 21% of U.S. residents. In addition, 38.7% of all 55-and-older Americans are employed, a share that has risen steadily from 30% in 1997. The median income of households headed by 65-to 74-year-olds rose from $31,670 in 2005 to $47,432 in 2015. Median net worth excluding home equity rose from $51,026 in 2005 to $66,047 in 2013.
Economic Recovery Uneven
Arizona, Connecticut, Mississippi, Nevada and Wyoming still have not regained their levels of GDP from before the financial crisis, more than five years after the country as a whole hit that milestone. Eight states remain below prerecession levels of employment. And in 15 states home prices have not fully recovered. In Nevada, 12.4% of homes with mortgages are still underwater. Other states with significant percentages of homes with negative equity include Florida, Illinois, New Jersey and Connecticut, according to CoreLogic. Analysts say the recession was longer and deeper in these states, and it will take longer for them to recover.
Worldwide Ecommerce Sales Grow by double digits
Ecommerce sales will increase 23.2% in 2017 and, for the first time, account for one-tenth of total retail sales, according to the most recent estimates from eMarketer, despite the fact that estimates for worldwide retail sales for 2016 through 2021 were slightly reduced due to foreign currencies’ weak exchange rates relative to the US dollar. The retail ecommerce market, which includes products and services ordered via the internet over any device, will total $2.290 trillion in 2017.
Total retail sales will reach $22.737 trillion by the end of this year, up 5.8% from 2016, according to eMarketer, which includes sales across all retail channels in its estimates for overall retail. This includes sales from ecommerce retailers and transactions that occur over C2C platforms such as eBay and other auction sites, and sales by motor vehicle and parts dealers and by gas stations. Travel, event ticket and restaurant sales are excluded from eMarketer’s forecast of retail and retail ecommerce.
Over 1.66 billion internet users ages 14 and older will purchase at least one item via any digital channel this year, up 9.4% from 2016. It's the first time growth will slip below 10%, but represents 60.2% of internet users and 26.8% of the global population.
Roughly one-quarter of digital buyers worldwide reside in North America and Western Europe. More than half of the world’s digital buyers reside in the Asia-Pacific region this year. Approximately 61.7% of Asia-Pacific’s internet users and 28.5% of its population will make a purchase digitally this year. With room for growth, Asia-Pacific’s digital buyer audience will increase 13.2% in 2017 and continue to expand by double-digit percentages annually through 2019, accounting for the fastest rate of growth by region worldwide.
Millennial Spending Habits
A recent study of millennials by GenForward found that more than one in four of those ages 18 to 34 say that they spend more than they earn. Black and Asian respondents were slightly more likely to spend more than they made, at 29% and 26% of respondents, respectively. Comparatively, 24% of Hispanics and whites each reported falling into this category. However, 45% of whites and 42% of Asians spend less than they make, as do about a third of both black and Hispanic millennials. In a Q1 2017 survey by IRI, 89% of millennials said they buy private-label brands in order to save; nearly as many respondents also tried lower-priced brands and nearly half downloaded coupons from digital deal sites.
Insights about Artificial Intelligence
An artificial intelligence (AI) researcher at Michigan State University, Dr. Arend Hintze, recently published a paper about the future of AI, and what researchers respect and also fear about this rapidly developing technology. Dr. Hintze says that as AI designs get more and more complex and computer processors get even faster, the skills of AI devices will improve, which will lead humans to give them even more responsibility. Right now we are still in the beginning states of evolving machines that can do simple navigation tasks, make simple decisions or recall a finite amount of data. But soon there will be machines that can execute more complex tasks and have much better general intelligence. The ultimate goal is to create human-level intelligence. Which says begs the question—how do we insure that we don’t create a super-intelligent generation of AI devices that no longer need humans at all? He suggests that one way is to use evolution to influence the ethics of the AI systems we create, setting up virtual environments that give evolutionary advantages to machines that demonstrate kindness, honesty and empathy, ensuring that we don’t create a generation of ruthless, single-minded machines intent on wiping us out.
Retailers to Increase Use of AI
Retailers will rely more on technologies such as live chat, Facebook Messenger and Amazon’s Alexa for customer service, according to a new research study from Linc and Brand Garage. According to the study, 87% of the 100 senior level marketing and ecommerce executives surveyed plan to increase their use of AI to serve customers going forward, even though only 7.7% have already incorporated AI as a regular part of customer service. According to the Internet Trends 2017 Report, 82% of customers stopped doing business with a company after a bad experience. At the same time, 55% of retailers report that customer service costs are rising. Rapidly rising customer expectations are causing retailers to examine how best to answer a wide range of questions quickly and correctly. To that end, 68% of retailers plan to use AI to route customer service requests, 68% will use it to help track packages, 43.5% will use AI for product suggestions and 42% want AI to handle returns and exchanges. AI will also be used to answer pre-purchase questions (39%) and for marketing (38%).
© Robert Bosch Tool Corporation. All rights reserved, no copying or reproducing is permitted without prior written approval.


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To help prevent theft of enterprise data and user identities
RSA, the security division of EMC, has introduced a new CyberCrime Intelligence Service designed to help organisations identify computers, information assets and identities compromised by trojans and other online attacks.
The new managed service, powered by the RSA Anti-Fraud Command Centre, is designed to identify a subscribing organisation’s compromised computers and user credentials including those that are leveraged via remote access.
RSA said that the CyberCrime Intelligence Service is engineered to provide information security professionals with actionable knowledge and information necessary to adjust policies and controls to prevent the loss of data to malware and careless employee activities.
The new service is based on the RSA FraudAction service and leverages monitoring and detection, alerts and reporting provided by RSA’s team of fraud analysts. It allows security managers to use the information and analysis provided by the service to react to and remediate potential data exposures, employee identity theft, as well as infected corporate resources, the company said.
Uri Rivner, head of new cybercrime technology at RSA, said: We are seeing a celestial alignment within the world of online fraud which means that a much broader segment of corporate internet users are being targeted by criminals who are looking to steal more than just credit card numbers and consumer identities.
“Advanced, stealthy Trojans like Zeus that are detected less than 46% of the time and are readily available to online criminals who are interested in stealing information for illegal gain. Moreover, we estimate that the wildfire infection of these Trojans has expanded ten times between 2008 and 2009.
The RSA CyberCrime Intelligence Service is expected to be available worldwide by May 1, 2010.


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There were official 46 safety recalls of motorcycles in Australia in 2021, the highest number monitored since 2009 and significantly more than the previous high of 37 in 2018.
There were only 28 motorcycle recalls in Australia last year, one more than the previous year which was the lowest number in seven years.
Kawasaki has the ignominious honour of issuing the most vehicle safety recalls last year with eight, ahead of Honda with seven, five for Ducati, Husqvarna and KTM, four for Triumph, three for Suzuki and BMW, two for Harley-Davidson and one each for Royal Enfield and Yamaha.
It’s a substantial change for Yamaha which last year “top scored” with eight recalls in 2020.
KTM Australia was the most affected importer with 12 recalls for the KTM, GasGas and Husqvarna motorcycles it imports into the country.
The Husqvarna 701 models were the most recalled this year with three recalls for various issues.
Other new models which hit the market and immediately had recalls were Harley’s new Pan America and the Ducati Multistrada V4.
Recalls this year ranged from the seemingly innocuous non-compliance issues (which may still cost owners with expensive defect notices) to dangerous matters of bake failures and engine stalling.
Even though manufacturers and importers usually contact owners when a recall is issued, the bike may have been sold privately to a rider unknown to the company.
Therefore, Motorbike Writer publishes all motorcycle and scooter recalls as a service to all riders.
If you believe there is an endemic problem with your bike that should be recalled, contact the ACCC on 1300 302 502.
To check whether your motorcycle has been recalled, click on these sites:


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Johnson & Johnson has been hit with a $55 million jury verdict in a case brought by a woman who was diagnosed with ovarian cancer after using the company’s talcum baby powder products. The $55 million verdict was the second consecutive legal defeat for Johnson & Johnson in lawsuits involving talcum powder. The company still faces hundreds of additional lawsuits regarding the link between ovarian cancer and talcum powder.
Jurors in Missouri state court awarded compensatory damages of $5 million and $50 million in punitive damages to Gloria Ristesund following a three week trial. Attorneys representing Ristesund said that the jury’s verdict was consistent with decades of scientific evidence that has shown a link between talcum powder and ovarian cancer.
Ristesund alleged that he was diagnosed with ovarian cancer after decades of using Johnson & Johnson’s talcum powder products for feminine hygiene, including Johnson’s Baby Powder and Shower to Shower Powder. Ristesund’s illness is now in remission after she underwent several surgeries, including a hysterectomy that revealed talc in her ovaries.
The $55 million verdict is the second straight defeat for Johnson & Johnson in talcum powder litigation. In February 2016, the family of an Alabama woman who died from ovarian cancer following years of using Johnson & Johnson talcum baby powder was awarded $72 million in damages.
Plaintiffs’ attorneys involved in both lawsuits said that unlike the Alabama woman in the first trial—who case was chosen by the plaintiffs to be the first in the Missouri talcum powder litigation—Ristesund was a “defense pick” selected for trial by Johnson & Johnson’s lawyers. Ristesund’s attorneys said that the fact that Johnson & Johnson was unable to win a case chosen by their own legal team may force the company “to come to the table and start settling cases”.
Johnson & Johnson is still facing about 1,200 lawsuits in state and federal court filed on behalf of women who were diagnosed with ovarian cancer linked to their use of talcum powder products. These lawsuits have alleged that Johnson & Johnson failed to warn consumers about the link between talcum powder and ovarian cancer despite the fact that it has known about the dangers of talcum products for years.
Recent studies have confirmed the link between the use of talcum baby powder for feminine hygiene and an increased risk of ovarian cancer. According to a recent study published in the scientific journal Epidemiology, women who routinely applied talcum powder to their genital area, sanitary napkins, tampons, or underwear for feminine hygiene were 33% more likely to develop ovarian cancer.
Speaking about the recent verdicts against Johnson & Johnson, product liability expert Carl Tobias said that the recent string of defeats for the company in the talcum powder litigation may cause significant damage to its public image and bottom line. Tobias stated that Johnson & Johnson may wish to establish a settlement fund to dispose of the hundreds of remaining lawsuits against the company in order to avoid further damage to the reputation of one of the company’s iconic products.
If you or a loved one were diagnosed with ovarian cancer after using Johnson’s Baby Powder, Shower to Shower body powder, or other talcum powder products, you may qualify to take legal action against Johnson & Johnson or other companies who manufactured these products. The first step in filing a lawsuit is to speak with a law firm whose attorneys have the knowledge and years of experience with product liability litigation in order to successfully handle your case from start to finish.
The lawyers at Heygood, Orr & Pearson have filed numerous product liability lawsuits on behalf of our clients, including cases involving defective medical products, dangerous drugs, faulty medical devices, and other commercial products. We currently represent dozens of women who have contracted ovarian cancer following long-term exposure to talcum baby powder.
In our decade of legal experience, the attorneys at Heygood, Orr & Pearson have taken on some of the largest corporations in the world in an effort to ensure that our clients achieve the best possible results in their case. Our firm is dedicated to the belief that all consumers should have the right to highly qualified, experienced legal counsel so that their interests are represented and that their legal rights are fully protected.
For more information about the link between talcum baby powder products and ovarian cancer and to find out more about whether you may qualify to file a lawsuit, contact the lawyers at Heygood, Orr & Pearson for a free legal consultation. To speak with an attorney about your legal rights, please call us toll-free at 1-877-446-9001, or simply follow the link to our free case evaluation form and answer a few simple questions about your case to get started.


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A stunning new report on TikTok has revealed that the app could be banned in the U.S. unless its Chinese owners sell their stake in the company.
According to the Wall Street Journal, the Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S. (Cfius) demanded ByteDance "recently." The report says the move "represents a major shift in policy on the part of the administration," TiTok has been under immense pressure from politicians, notably Republicans, in the U.S. who say the app is a security risk. The report follows breaking news Thursday that says the UK government is expected to announce a ban on TikTok on its work phones with immediate effect.
TikTok says a sale won't fix the problems of its perceived security threat, having pledged $1.5 billion to protect U.S. user data and content from the Chinese government. In a statement, the company said "If protecting national security is the objective, divestment doesn’t solve the problem: a change in ownership would not impose any new restrictions on data flows or access," adding that the best way to address the concerns "is with the transparent, U.S.-based protection of U.S. user data and systems, with robust third-party monitoring, vetting, and verification, which we are already implementing."
WSJ reports that negotiations with Cfius over securing TikTok user data "have been going on for more than two years and have been at a stalemate for months." According to the report, U.S. officials are partly concerned about China's national security law "which requires companies to turn over customer data if requested" as part of the reason for their misgivings about the popular video-sharing app.
The same criticism and commentary have been leveled at Apple regarding the safety and security of user data in China in the past.
To alleviate concerns, TikTok plans to ringfence its U.S. operations, using the aforementioned cash to store all of its U.S. data in the U.S. and giving Oracle access to its algorithm to help with transparency.
The upshot seems to be that without a sale of ByteDance's stake in the company, TikTok might not even be around in the U.S. by the time the iPhone 15 is launched later this year.
Master your iPhone in minutes
iMore offers spot-on advice and guidance from our team of experts, with decades of Apple device experience to lean on. Learn more with iMore!
Stephen Warwick has written about Apple for five years at iMore and previously elsewhere. He covers all of iMore's latest breaking news regarding all of Apple's products and services, both hardware and software. Stephen has interviewed industry experts in a range of fields including finance, litigation, security, and more. He also specializes in curating and reviewing audio hardware and has experience beyond journalism in sound engineering, production, and design.
Before becoming a writer Stephen studied Ancient History at University and also worked at Apple for more than two years. Stephen is also a host on the iMore show, a weekly podcast recorded live that discusses the latest in breaking Apple news, as well as featuring fun trivia about all things Apple. Follow him on Twitter @stephenwarwick9


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Year of Establishment:2012
Deputy Chairperson Representing Türkiye: Ilgaz Manuel Bağlıkaya
Company: Demed Uluslararası Yatırım ve Ticaret A.Ş
Counterpart Organisation: ProEcuador (Instituto de Promoción de Exportaciones e Inversiones)
Counterpart Chairperson: Carlos Perez
Company: ProEcuador, Director
The DEİK/Türkiye-Ecuador Business Council was established in 2012. In 2016, a business delegation led by the President of the Republic of Türkiye, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, paid an official visit to Ecuador. It was the first visit of a Turkish President to this country. On the occasion of the event, and in the presence of the two Presidents, ProEcuador, the country’s exports and investments promoting agency, and DEİK signed a Counterpart Organization Agreement.


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[div class=”notice” class2=”icon”]The following is from an article on LiverKick.com, part of the MiddleEasy Network.[/div]
In the crass world of international Kickboxing, the language barrier is an important one and can sometimes be a deciding factor between amazing news and just good news. I’m giving this preamble as a precautionary measure for people who are excitable or might even be a bit lackluster in English.
Earlier today Golden Glory put out a video hyping the return of the “K-1 Final 2012.” In a lot of cases when it comes to promoters, they will use the K-1 name to promote their own Kickboxing product as K-1 is a recognizable name. Glory has always used the K-1 name to promote their Kickboxing fights on their cards, so with a recent announcement on their part of three huge kickboxing tournaments, realistically you could make the assumption that is what they are talking about. What doesn’t add up is the fact that they say there will be more news later, when they have already announced their tournaments.


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New Delhi: Paving the way for competing openoffers for Mangalore Chemicals and Fertilizers' shareholders,fair trade watchdog CCI has cleared Zuari's proposal to buyadditional 26 per cent stake in the Vijay Mallya group firm.
Deepak Fertilizers, which is also in the fray to snap up stake in Mangalore Chemicals and Fertilizers Ltd (MCFL), last month received the green signal from the Competition Commission of India for its Rs 190-crore open offer.
Zuari entities' Rs 211-crore offer for 26 per cent stake in MCFL is supported by the existing promoters and would be "a competing open offer" to Deepak Fertilizers' offer.
Giving its green signal, the Commission said the "proposed combination is not likely to have appreciable adverse effect on competition in India".Zuari Fertilisers and Chemicals is currently setting up a Single Super Phosphate plant in Maharashtra and does not yet manufacture or trade in any fertiliser products. The entity is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Zuari Agro Chemicals, which is into manufacture and trading of fertilisers.
The public announcement for the open offer was announced on 12 May.
Citing information provided by the acquirers, the Commission said that the "parties have overlaps in the fertilisers, pesticides and chemicals and organic products".
"However, it is observed that the overlap in pesticides, chemicals and organic products is minimal," CCI said in its order dated September 4 and made public today.
Capital market regulator Sebi, which had given its go-ahead to the proposed stake purchase by Deepak Fertilizers and Zuari Group in MCFL, had also ruled that their respective open offers can commence only after CCI nod.
Either of the two open offers can start only within 12 working days from receiving CCI approval for the second deal. According to the Commission, it is observed that apart from a few fertilisers which Zuari entities manufacture, they are largely involved in trading of fertilisers.
"Further, the composite market shares of the parties in primary nutrients, as well as in overlapping straight and complex fertilisers such as urea (straight nitrogenous fertiliser), MOP (straight potassic fertiliser), SSP (straight phosphatic fertiliser) and NPK (complex fertiliser), except for in Calcium Nitrate, are not substantial.
"Also the incremental change in the market share is minimal in most cases. With respect to most of the remaining overlapping fertiliser products, including Calcium Nitrate, the parties' presence is only through trading," it noted.
In May, UB Group joined hands with the Zuari to ward off a hostile takeover bid by Deepak Fertilizers for MCFL.
The watchdog also said most of these overlapping products also fall under the OGL, and therefore, any person with requisite approvals can import them into India.
Noting that there are significant competitors in the market, the Commission mentioned names such as Indian Farmers Fertiliser Cooperative Ltd, National Fertilisers Ltd, Fertilizers & Chemicals Travancore Ltd, Coromandel International Ltd, DCM Shriram Consolidated Ltd, Nagarjuna Fertilizers & Chemicals Ltd, Deepak Fertilizers and Petrochemicals Corporation Ltd.
The notice seeking approval for the proposed deal was submitted to the Commission on 11 June.
In June, Zuari Fertilisers and Chemicals and Zuari Agro Chemicals had entered into a pact with UB group comprising of United Breweries (Holdings) Ltd, Kingfisher Finvest India Ltd and McDowell Holdings Ltd.
The battle for MCFL between Deepak Fertilizers and Zuari Group was triggered in April 2013 when the latter bought about 10 per cent stake in Vijay Mallya firm through open market. Later, Deepak Fertilizers acquired 24.46 per cent stake in MCFL in July 2013.
Then, Zuari group increased its stake to 16.43 per cent in the same month.
Earlier this year, Deepak Fertilizers further hiked its shareholding in MCFL to 25.31 per cent -- thereby triggering the mandatory open offer clause under Sebi norms.
Since Saroj Poddar-led Zuari group along with UB Group is looking to purchase 26 per cent in MCFL, they have to make an open offer under Sebi rules.
Updated Date: Sep 16, 2014 08:50:59 IST


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Despite the unflattering portrait of a stressed-out, Internet-addled American, there's no denying this: We really, truly love the web. But there are some parts, like social media, that we could live without.
A new study from Pew Research Center finds that 87 percent of U.S. adults are now online, the highest level ever recorded by the pollsters. Among those with Internet access, 53 percent say it would be "very hard" to give it up. No other form of communication examined by Pew -- including cell phones, television and landlines -- achieved that level of devotion. Which makes sense: The Internet offers alternatives to each of those technologies.
Part of that enthusiasm is work-related. Sixty-one percent say the Internet is essential for their jobs, with another 30 percent saying they're online purely for pleasure. Seven percent say they're online for both reasons.
However, for most Americans, this isn't a case of addiction, in which they feel they need to use the Internet despite despising it. Despite the many trends pieces about how detrimental the Internet is to our relationships and brains, the vast majority of Americans online see things differently.
Ninety percent say that the Internet has been good for them personally, even when given the chance to hedge and say it's been "equally good and bad." Only slightly fewer people, 76 percent, told pollsters that the Internet is a good thing for society as a whole. Few have let the Internet trolls bother them, with three-fourths claiming people they've encountered online have been "mostly kind." And two-thirds of Americans say that online communications have strengthened their IRL relationships. Apparently, the stories that usually make the news about people being attacked or relationships being destroyed through the Internet are the exception rather than the rule.
Yet there's one facet of online life that Americans can clearly live without: social media. Only 11 percent of adults online say it would be very hard to give up Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and their ilk, the poll found, though most Americans have some social media presence.
Pew doesn't dive deeper into people's feelings about specific social networks. (In fact, it's the first time Pew has asked this question, so there's no up or down trend to report.) But when most Americans talk about social media, they're talking about Facebook. At the end of 2013, Pew found that 72 percent of Americans are on Facebook, with every other social network a distant second. Other researchers have measured Americans' feelings about social networks, and they're getting uglier and uglier. Weighed down by privacy concerns and invasive ads, a Harris Interactive poll from last year ranked Facebook No. 42 among the 60 top U.S. corporations by reputation, below Walmart and AT&T.
If Americans chose to disconnect from the world's largest social network, their experience online would of course be different. But for the most part, we seem to be OK with the idea of an Internet without it.


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In the News May 27th
Fridays News at a glance:
Yours, Disgusted Of Hatton Garden – Beyond the Quit: what happens when e-cigs go wrong? – Early day motion 115 – Grannies who Vape – E-cigarettes: regulations for consumer products – The Horror of the Unaccountable – Statistics on Smoking, England – 2016 – Conservative MEPs re-ignite e-cigarette debate – Big fuss among vaping professionals – ‘Cannavaping’ could see e-cigarettes used to deliver medicinal cannabis – E-Cigarettes and managing memory loss – Nicotine Science and Policy Daily Digest – Friday, 27 May 2016
From the ASH emails, I thought you’d enjoy this piece of dribbling rust-hearted pecksniffery on a Friday.
Cast your mind back to 2012, and just think of all the things that might have angered the public back then. Flooding in the west country leaving people homeless; the phone tapping scandal and the Leveson inquiry; the UK economy dropping back into recession and national debt rising to over £1 trillion for the first time.
But what was Deborah Arnott of ASH disgusted by…?
What happens when e-cigs go wrong? – Louise Ross – The Counterfactual
Guest post by Louise Ross, Service Manager at Leicester City Stop Smoking Service – the pioneering e-cig friendly service for smokers who want to quit. Louise explains how her service is teaming up with a vape bar and vaper to give practical help to smokers as they master vaping as an alternative to smoking. This is real public health to me
*** Petition Update: 45,969 ***
21:30hrs 27th May
EU regulations and protocols are ‘unnecessary’ – Fraser Cropper – Totally Wicked
E-Cigarettes and the Tobacco Products Directive
That this House affirms the enormous potential benefits to public health of e-cigarettes, or vaping, as an aid to smoking cessation; acknowledges the current best estimate, accepted by Public Health England and the Royal College of Physicians, that e-cigarettes are around 95 per cent less harmful than smoking tobacco…
Grey Haze Blog
Who said your actions should be defined by your age? Yes, vaping grannies really is a thing – and it’s a marvellous, beautiful and brilliantly empowering thing. Grannies and Grandpas who vape is a seemingly humorous image right? But these bad ass advanced folk are storming the internet with their refreshing, age defying attitudes.
Update from theMHRA 27th May
Preliminary guidance on how to get an e-cigarette on the market in the UK, including the notification scheme and reporting problems with e-cigarettes.
Bolton Smokers Club
Last night, I suggested to readers that they should listen to Grandad’s link to a radio broadcast which involved Dr Clancy pronouncing upon how bad ecigs were. His sole reason was that tobacco companies have been buying up ecig companies, and, since tobacco companies are bad, then ecigs must be bad. Everything else that he said was incidental….
— Lisa McNally (@Lisa_McNally1) May 27, 2016
Publication date: May 27, 2016
This statistical report presents a range of information on smoking which is drawn together from a variety of sources. The report aims to present a broad picture of health issues relating to smoking in England and covers topics such as smoking prevalence, habits, behaviours and attitudes among adults and school children, smoking-related ill health and mortality and smoking-related costs.
Julie Girling and Vicky Ford have today written to EU Research, Science and Innovation Commissioner Carlos Moedas asking him to examine the latest evidence on the health effects of vaping and whether it can help long term smokers give up traditional cigarettes…
Julien Sellier – Vaping Post
Since last week, the first day TPD has come into force for the 28 Member States, deficiencies are observed at the level of European instances and of every Member State that betray an obvious lack of preparation. Vaping professionals, in the haze and uncertainty, resign and either wait or cope with this grotesque situation…
Could see e-cigarettes used to deliver medicinal cannabis – Ian Sample – The Guardian
Electronic cigarettes can be a safe and effective way to deliver cannabis for medicinal purposes, according to researchers in Switzerland.
Scientists at the University of Lausanne created cannabis-laden oils for e-cigarettes and found that vaping the infusions could deliver useful levels of the active ingredients found in cannabis…
Marewa Glover: If a person smokes, then switching to vaping nicotine is estimated to be at least 95% safer (Public Health England report). It’s a very useful question to ask about the potential benefits of vaping nicotine for people managing memory loss…
To the FDA’s Deeming Regulations of E-Cigarettes – Nicotine Surveys
You may be aware that the FDA recently released its e-cigarette deeming regulations, in which the FDA announced its intention to regulate all electronic cigarettes and liquids as tobacco products. These regulations will very likely mean that the vast majority of e-cigarettes, e-liquids and other vaping accessories that are on the market today will not be legally available to buy after August 10th 2018
FDA’s e-cigarette regulations will kill critters
According to People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, or PETA, the FDA is encouraging e-cigarette manufacturers to meet with its Center for Tobacco Products to discuss what, if any, animal testing the agency considers “appropriate” or whether non-animal tests may be acceptable.


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In Missouri, Benson Hill, a crop improvement company, announced plans to release Ultra-High Protein soybean varieties in the 2021 crop year. These varieties are the first commercially available soybeans that can effectively replace soy protein concentrate via typical soybean crushing.
This innovation enables food companies to eliminate costly energy and water-intensive processing steps across the consumer food, animal feed and aquaculture markets. The initial launch will include over 20,000 acres in 2021, expanding tenfold in 2022.
Benson Hill’s seed-to-shelf innovation pipeline leverages plant genomics to drive ingredient innovation through its CropOS™ platform. CropOS™ accelerates the path to market by employing proprietary phenotyping, predictive breeding and environmental modeling algorithms, allowing Benson Hill plant breeders to optimize not only the protein content of its soy varieties but also the optimal environments for these varieties to be planted.
Category: Producer News
This articles was originally posted at: https://www.biofuelsdigest.com/bdigest/2020/03/22/benson-hill-announces-first-commercially-available-ultra-high-protein-soy-varieties/ on


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In a lawsuit filed with the U.S. District Court for Northern California, Fitbug accuses San Francisco-based Fitbit (see disclosure) of trademark infringement that is causing “irreparable harm and damage” to the company.
Aside from the name similarity, Fitbug alleges that Fitbit’s logo, imagery and packaging bear a “striking resemblance” to early Fitbug marketing material and have caused “consumer confusion.”
Fitbug was founded in 2005 and Fitbit came along in 2007. Both digital health companies make wearable devices that track users’ activity and sync with web and mobile services to help users increase their fitness. And as evidence of customer confusion, the complaint says that, in the last year, it’s received more than 200 customer service inquiries from Fitbit customers and that several news reports and blog posts have mixed up the two services.
“Fitbit is very proud of our fantastic products and reputation, which we have earned solely through the tremendous efforts of the Fitbit team. We are surprised by the allegations contained in Fitbug’s complaint. We are confident of our legal position in the case and look forward to addressing the allegations in court.”
This is hardly the first time that companies have to come to blows over similar names. A few years ago, Facebook (s FB) sued parody site Lamebook (and ultimately settled). Although the dispute never reached legal proportions, Chicago-based programming bootcamp Code Academy last year changed its name to Starter League partly because of confusion with online coding startup Codecademy.
Fitbug, which says it has two U.S. Trademark Registrations, is asking the court to require Fitbit to cease the use of its logo and refrain from conduct that causes confusion with Fitbug’s brand and services.
Disclosure: Fitbit is backed by True Ventures, a venture capital firm that is an investor in the parent company of this blog, Giga Omni Media. Om Malik, founder of Giga Omni Media, is also a venture partner at True.


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§ Mr. Gould
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment (1) if he has any plans to ban the use of chlorofluorocarbons as propellants in Christmas novelty sprays; and if he will make a statement;
(2) what information he has on the use of chlorofluorocarbons in novelty Christmas sprays; and if he will advise consumers not to purchase such products.
§ Mr. Chris Patten
The Government are actively seeking international agreement to the phase out of all CFCs by the year 2000. I understand that the aerosol industry intends 90 per cent. of all its products to be CFC free by the end of the year. In the case of these Christmas novelties, I also understand that the alternative propellants available this Christmas are flammable. Because of the way these products are often used, safety factors prohibit the use of flammable material. It is proposed that one of the new generation propellants will be used in these products next year. British consumers have already shown that they can decide for themselves whether they wish to buy products which damage the ozone layer.


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Adidas has shunned Suarez, but other brands are embracing the bite
It’s the bite that keeps on biting.
As Adidas backs away from Uruguay’s Luis Suarez after he received a four-month ban for biting a fellow World Cup player, other brands are happily hopping on board.
The best part? No fees attached.
Adidas (ADS) said it would no longer use Suarez for marketing promotions attached to the 2014 FIFA World Cup. Other brands were happy to pick up the slack, and some free advertising along the way.
Netflix (NFLX), McDonald’s (MCD), Budweiser and others turned to Twitter to promote their products and poke some fun at the 27-year-old soccer star.
(Translation: “Hello @luis16suarez, if you’re hungry come have a bite of a Big Mac.”)
Barilla also tweeted a welcome home image to its countryman–and Suarez victim–Giorgio Chiellini.
It’s not the first time marketers have played off popular fascination in real time.
Gatorade similarly turned to social media to get grab attention after after Lebron James cramped up during the first game of the NBA finals after the air conditioning went out in the Houston arena.
The tweet was a jab at an unnamed rival: Powerade, which sponsors Miami Heat’s James.
Marketers are getting better at using real time events to pick up some fee-less advertising and even, like Gatorade, interacting directly with consumers. It’s a far cry from the multimillion dollar sponsorships and television commercials that have driven marketing efforts of years past.


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China is THE Market for Premium Wine
Latest data shows impressive growth for Australian wines in China. Export growth of Australian wines to China is a staggering 63% last year.
China now buys double the amount of wine than the USA by value.
Even better news for all winemakers around the world is that the strongest growth is at premium price levels.
Almost 90% of all exports to China are above $10 per bottle.
Price Point % Growth
The Chinese wine and spirits market is seeing huge growth, at all price levels, especially at the premium level. For more than a decade this growth has continued, and CWSA forecasts that China will be the largest wine and spirits market in the world within 2-3 years.
Make sure you are part of China’s success story and enter CWSA now!


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Elizabeth Taylor’s diamond at center of legal battle
It was once a symbol of love — a birthday gift from one movie icon to another.
Now Elizabeth Taylor’s heart-shaped diamond known as the “Taj Mahal” is at the center of a legal squabble between the trustees of the glamorous actress’ estate and Christie’s auction house.
The precious stone — given by her then-husband Richard Burton on her 40th birthday — was among an array of items in Taylor’s immense collection of jewelry and other belongings that were sold by the New York auction house in 2011 and 2012.
The diamond pendant sold for more than $8 million to an anonymous buyer after Taylor died in 2011.
The dispute focuses on an inscription on the piece that bears the name of a Mughal emperor’s wife. The empire, which covered a swath of southeast Asia, existed from the 16th to the mid-19th centuries.
Months after the diamond’s sale, the buyer — who is known only to the auction house — demanded that the sale be canceled based on the buyer’s contention that the stone was not from the Mughal period, according to the lawsuit filed by trustees of Taylor’s estate.
Christie’s agreed to cancel the sale even though the auction house had never guaranteed the age of the diamond, the lawsuit alleges. The diamond had been described only as being of Indian origin, the trustees contend.
The auction house has demanded that Taylor’s trust return more than $7 million it received from the sale, the lawsuit said. The trustees allege the auction house has violated its agreement to auction off the estate and did so only to appease a “VIP customer.”
A Christie’s spokesperson released a statement saying the auction house “was pleased to create a landmark auction event on behalf of the Elizabeth Taylor Trust that produced over $183.5 million in proceeds for the beneficiaries of the Trust -- the friends and family of Elizabeth Taylor.”
The statement said the suit involves the auction house “seeking the return of a small portion of these proceeds due to the cancellation of a single item from that sale, and Christie’s looks forward to a speedy resolution of this matter.”
An attorney representing the trustees declined to comment.
The lawsuit also alleges that Christie’s has refused to return unsold items as part of an effort to strong arm the trust into returning the sale proceeds of the diamond. The trustees say the auction house also canceled the sales of other items (including a Bela Kadar painting, which sold for £7,000 in London); failed to account for some items sold at auction (including silver-plated ear clips, a pink tulle sequined evening gown and a Valentino bag); and failed to pay the trust for items sold at auction (including an emerald-and-diamond ring known as the “Bulgari Ring” worth nearly $3 million).
The trustees allege that other proceeds that have yet to be turned over had been earmarked for the Elizabeth Taylor AIDS Foundation.
For more civil court news follow @sjceasar
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OKTOBERFEST, while originating in Germany, has made its way to the UK in recent years with pubs and venues offering their own version.
Beers, bratwurst and dancing Lederhosen-clad dancers are normally on offer, as part of Bavarian history.
Here is where you can celebrate Oktoberfest in the UK this yearCredit: AP:Associated Press
It was first celebrated in 1810 in honour of the Crown Prince Ludwig’s marriage to Princess Therese von Sachsen-Hildburghausen.
However, the pandemic has resulted in a number of cancelled events – Portsmouth and Norwich have been forced to postpone theirs until next year.
The official event in Munich, which attracts as many as six million a year, announced it was cancelled for 2020 back in April.
Thankfully a number of destinations, including some theme parks, are doing a version of Oktoberfest this year.
Here are some of the places you can head this year for booze and dancing.
Portsmouth and Norwich have cancelled their own events – here are some of the events still going ahead.
Alton Towers has their own version of Oktoberfest this yearCredit: Alton Towers
Oktoberfest, Alton Towers
From September 11 to October 4, Oktoberfest at Alton Towers will take place every afternoon from 3pm with live acts and events, as well as welcoming guests on the rollercoasters and rides.
A Bavarian-themed venue with Lederhosen-clad hosts and oompah band will greet guests, with the event part of the price of a theme park ticket, although visitors will have to book ahead.
Bratwurst in pretzel buns, luxury chocolates, lebkuchen biscuits and giant toasted marshmallows are just some of the culinary delights on offer, along with English beers and German Helles premium lager.
Fire pits and entertainment will be on offer throughout the evening, which includes two stages for live performances with acts such as the foot-stomping German Jukebox and street performances by Bavarian dancers and an Alpine horn player.
Thorpe Park is also launching a similar event in the resort
Oktoberfest, Thorpe Park
Until October 4, Thorpe Park’s Oktoberfest includes stein of traditional German Spaten lager (or alcohol-free versions) as well as Bratwurst, fresh pretzels, Black Forest sundaes and even a Currywurst pizza.
The rides are also open, and you can also soak up the atmosphere of traditional Bavarian sights and sounds in the Island’s Festival Centre.
Visit on Friday or Saturday and you might spot a roaming Oompah band around the park.
Camden is launching a socially distanced Oktoberfest this year, taking place across the first four Saturdays in October at the Electric Ballroom.
You can expect, authentic food including German Bratwurst, grilled Black Forest sausage, Currywurst, pretzel alternatives Brotzel as well as giant steins of German beer.
Full fancy dress is encouraged while staff will be wearing traditional Dirndl and Lederhosen costumes alongside an eight-piece brass band and dancers throughout the evening.
The £20 day tickets have sold put but you can reserve a table for up to six people in the main hall for just £280 which includes 2 beers for each person.
VIP Booths are also on offer on the private balcony for up to six people and also include two beers per person for £400.
The official event in Munich has been cancelled due to the pandemic, which attracts as many as six millionCredit: Alamy
For the next three weekends The Pitt Street Market in Edinburgh will launch their own version – Pittöberfest.
While scaled back this year, there will be six breweries participating, including New Barns, a new brewery in Scotland, as well as Bellfield, Edinburgh Beer Factory, Barney’s Beer, Campervan Brewery and Pilot.
You must prebook a table at each venue, although it is free to book.
While the official Norwich Oktoberfest has been cancelled, Sir Toby’s Beers at Norwich Market have set up their own event.
Sir Toby’s Biergarten will have ten tables, set up for 4-6 people to prebook, costing between £10 and £20 per group.
Bavarian beers as well as local and national lagers, dunkels and weissbiers are on offer, along with baklava, borek and kebabs on Saturday.
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For just one day, Oktoberfest at Mote Park in Maidstone is back this year.
Taking part in a huge touring bier tents, the Bavarian-style festival will take place across two sessions, one in the day and one in the…
Continue Reading: Source Link


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LAS VEGAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Owner of market-leading brands such as Air Wick®, Lysol®, Clearasil® and Woolite®, Reckitt Benckiser’s partnership with Winplus, a global leader in the automotive accessory industry, has resulted in an exciting and innovative range of automotive air fresheners.
Combining Air Wick excellence as the air freshener specialist with Winplus expertise in car accessories in their specific markets, this agreement has led to the creation of a new Air Wick range of car air fresheners. The complete product offering uses state-of-the-art technology and will set a new benchmark for automotive air fresheners. Winplus will offer five different types of Air Wick branded products, including card, solid, capsule and three styles of vent-membrane fresheners with range available in five different scents. New innovations in the Air Wick auto-aroma category are promised for spring 2008.
Target and Wal-Mart will carry the Air Wick auto-air fresheners at launch, as will specialty automotive retailers throughout the continent.
“We are thrilled to be the sole North American distributor and licensee of such a well-known and respected brand as Air Wick®,” said Dan Sheehan, founder and CEO of Winplus North America. “Our introduction of Air Wick into the automotive market is consistent with Winplus’ mission to provide our customers with innovative products that integrate technology and convenience with sophisticated design.”
“Reckitt Benckiser’s strength has always been its close consumer relationship and unique understanding of customers which has allowed Air Wick® to grow over the years into a much loved brand,” said Kevin McFarthing, Reckitt Benckiser’s Global Director for Strategic Alliances. “We believe that our fragrance technology experience combined with Winplus innovative approach to the automotive marketplace is a winning proposition for our consumers.
Air Wick is sold in more than 60 countries, and is #1 in its category across the top 20 world markets. It launched its auto-aroma product line in Europe in March 2007.
TLC, Reckitt Benckiser’s brand licensing agency in North America and Europe, has overseen the development of this relationship as part of a strategic brand extension program they have been retained to develop for the Reckitt Benckiser brands.
Headquartered in Los Angeles, Winplus is a global team focused on adding innovation and style to automotive accessory products. Winplus is a global marketer, manufacturer and wholesaler of quality products including: hands-free mobile Bluetooth technology, air fresheners, seat covers, floor mats, decorative lighting, holders and storage items. The range is constantly expanding to offer a variety of choice for the most discerning of road travelers. The Yada Collection is Bluetooth, FCC, IC and CE certified. Visit Winplus online at www.winplus.com.
Reckitt Benckiser, the world’s number one in household cleaning products (excluding laundry), also has a major presence in health and personal care. A truly global company, Reckitt Benckiser has sales in 180 countries and employs more than 20,000 people around the world. The company has over 60 operating companies and 40 manufacturing facilities worldwide. For more information about
Reckitt Benckiser, please log onto www.reckittbenckiser.com.
About The Licensing Company
A global licensing agency that specializes in creating long-term strategic brand extension programs for some of the world’s top brands. The Licensing Company was established in the UK in 1996 with the goal of providing sensational results for its clients. Through its four strategically placed offices, New York, London, Tokyo and Paris, TLC currently boasts over 2,000 live licensee contracts, more than $1 billion in retail sales, 32,000 product lines and access to over 80% of the world’s consumer marketplace. Along with Reckitt Benckiser (Lysol, Woolite, Air Wick, Resolve, Veet and Clearasil), TLC represents Beam Global Wine & Spirits (Courvoisier, Jim Beam, Sauza and Maker’s Mark), Jelly Belly Candy Company, UMBRO and Hearst Publishing (Cosmopolitan)… to name a few.


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ZURICH, Oct 31 (Reuters) - Geberit reported better-than-expected profit during its third quarter, the Swiss plumbing supplies company said on Thursday, adding it expected full-year profitability towards the upper end of its target range.
Geberit, whose products include shower toilets and piping, said operating profit before depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) rose 8.4% to 231.3 million Swiss francs ($234.35 million). The figure beat the 222 million francs expected by analysts, according to Refinitiv data.
Third quarter sales rose 1.8% to 754 million francs, beating forecasts for 744 million francs. Net profit rose 17.2% to 170.6 million francs, also ahead of estimates. ($1 = 0.9870 Swiss francs) (Reporting by John Revill)