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After 46 years on West Broadway in Kitsilano, Grand Prix Hobbies is closing up shop September 16th and moving to Hope, BC.
Sam Mansour, five year staffer, identifies a few key reasons, not the least of which is high rent: “It’s definitely something people know about and talk about. We have a lot of other business owners and we talk to people up and down the strip on Broadway… they’re all pretty much saying the same thing — that the rent is getting to a point where it’s just hard to maintain,” he told the Courier.
There’s a massive sale going on now with more details available on their website. So stop by and shop or just say farewell. For loyal customers, it’s not an entirely sad story. Grand Prix Hobbies is launching an on-line store soon.
Grand Prix Hobby, 3038 W. Broadway, 604-733-7114, Grandprixhobby.ca
Last modified: September 10, 2011
would like to know if your model kits and air brush kits would be on sale and if so a price range please thank you


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Wednesday, 14 October 2020
Time to confront the ‘B word’: How Brexit is causing a bigger headache than coronavirus for many businesses
After the huge impact of Covid-19 on businesses of all shapes and sizes, the uncertainty they have lived with throughout 2020 continues with less than three months until the end of the Brexit transition period and no sign of a trade deal being negotiated with the EU. Dan Robinson finds out how this is affecting companies and jobs in the East Midlands.
A survivor of five recessions already, Ian Greenaway is confident he’s well-set to come out the other side of number six.
Having watched MTM Products, the Chesterfield manufacturer he’s run for 24 years, reduced to taking just a third of its pre-Covid business at its lowest point in the spring, it shot back up to 75% as the economic recovery gained momentum in August.
But just as optimism was taking hold, the rebound plateaued in September and now there’s a dark shadow looming on the horizon – the B word.
“It’s on a par with Covid,” he says. “People conveniently forgot about Brexit at the start of coronavirus but now it’s back on the horizon, and there’s very much a lack of confidence from manufacturing that the Government will be ready by the end of the year because we have to physically move goods across borders.”
About 20% of MTM’s goods – which include labels, aluminium nameplates and other industrial graphics products – are exported directly into the EU, and most of its materials are purchased directly or indirectly from the bloc.
Prior to Brexit, and during this year’s transition period, the firm has been able to send goods by either parcel carrier or pallet without tariffs or customs checks.
From 1 January, when the transition period comes to an end, it will have to deal with the extra costs of customs documentation, regardless of whether a trade deal is reached.
A no-deal scenario, however, stands to cause far-reaching problems.
As well as trade tariffs, special VAT arrangements for holding call-off stock in customer factories based in the EU would be assessed when the goods move across borders, rather than at the point of usage when suppliers like MTM transfer ownership to the client. This could require it to set up a subsidiary company in the EU.
There’s also the prospect of border hold-ups, with a “reasonable worst-case scenario” report by the Government’s Border and Protocol Delivery Group forecasting queues of 7,000 lorries in Kent and two-day delays to cross into the EU.
Ian, who is also worried about the longer-term reputational damage for UK plc that may force European firms to trade elsewhere, says: “At the moment, we can do next-day deliveries to Romania but there could be delays.
“We buy a lot of materials like aluminium, polyesters and acrylics directly from countries including Belgium, Holland and Germany, so this would put into question the availability of those materials because a lot of them aren’t stocked in the UK.
“This would likely go on for about three months so we’d have two options – to put up with it and deal with the customer service issues it causes, or build up stocks.
“Building up stocks creates additional cashflow pressures to those we’re still facing from the fallout of coronavirus. MTM is relatively well placed in terms of low borrowing but many companies just haven’t got the cash available to build up stocks.
“If there’s no trade deal, the effects on our business are likely to be in a year or two. For example, the car manufacturers are panicking about the impact on their supply chains, which are integrated across Europe, so if they decide the UK isn’t a good place to do manufacturing, some of the companies we supply to will have less work.”
Covid-19 has already had a huge impact on job losses - and Brexit uncertainty isn't helping
This impacts jobs and livelihoods. MTM has already made five people redundant, taking its workforce to 41, and there will be another review before the end of the Government’s Job Retention Scheme on 31 October.
Ian doesn’t expect business to reach pre-Covid levels until the end of 2021 and plans to invest in capital equipment, rather than people, to bolster productivity.
“It’s hard but we need to remain competitive and protect the jobs of the majority,” he adds.
MTM’s story could likely be repeated across large swathes of the UK and East Midlands economy.
The region’s May to July unemployment rate rose by 0.7% – the UK’s second largest increase – compared to the previous three months, reaching an above-average 4.4%.
Sonia Baigent, owner of Assist Business Consulting and a board member of the Leicester and Leicestershire Local Enterprise Partnership (LLEP), works with SMEs.
“From what I’m seeing, Brexit and coronavirus aren’t necessarily the problem,” she says. “It’s the uncertainty of both.
“Particularly in manufacturing, Brexit is a much bigger problem than Covid-19, which just amplified the issues that were already there in industries like retail and hospitality.”
While Sonia predicts opportunities for sectors like food manufacturing, she admits these won’t be able to take advantage until they know the costs involved.
She adds: “It means a lot of businesses are trying to have two completely separate plans. While they don’t want to incur too many costs by being driven too far down one of those avenues, we’re getting to the point where we don’t have a choice and have to take those contingency plans all the way.
“The businesses that survive will be those that are quickest to react.”
It's not all doom and gloom as Brexit provides opportunities for East Midlands
While lockdown and social distancing have given a kicking to bricks and mortar retail and hospitality, the accelerated shift to e-commerce has at least stimulated the burgeoning logistics sector.
This provides much promise for the East Midlands given its central location and emergence of East Midlands Airport as the UK’s busiest pure freight airport, handling more than 370,000 tonnes of flown cargo every year – second only to Heathrow for annual tonnage of all cargo.
As well as being the UK hub for DHL and UPS, it has spawned a huge amount of warehouse development in the area around the airport, particularly at the neighbouring 700-acre SEGRO Logistics Park East Midlands Gateway.
Amazon also stemmed the bad news tide in August by creating 1,000 roles at a 550,000 sq ft warehouse in Sutton-in-Ashfield, its fourth fulfilment centre in the region.
Jonathan Dawes, planning director at Tritax Symmetry – which is working on two major logistics developments in the region, including a proposal to create a National Rail freight interchange just outside Hinckley – says logistics is a key strength for the East Midlands.
He adds: “There’s a significant amount of office space within these warehouses that have the full range of so-called ‘good-quality’ jobs and the industry has a good track record for ongoing career development from the age of 18 upwards – a key point given that many of the people hit hardest by unemployment are aged 18 to 24.
“It’s sad it’s taken something like Covid to thrust it into the spotlight but people are now starting to understand how critical it is to the economy, particularly with the exponential growth of online retail.”
So while the UK is in a perilous economic position with coronavirus and Brexit, these glimmers of light could provide a tonic for supply chain companies like MTM Products, which need consumers to spend.
Ian Greenaway regains his optimism, adding: “Even before Covid, we were being hit by uncertainty so while chaos might reign in the short term, whatever happens at the end of this year will at least give us some degree of certainty in the long term.”
This article features in the October edition of the Chamber's Business Network magazine, which is available to read here.Back

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A win in court for the FBI doesn’t necessarily mean the government will get what it wants. As the hearing date looms closer, several Apple engineers discussed their options should a decision be made against Apple, and it turns out some would rather quit than hand over access to the government.
The New York Times interviewed several current and former Apple employees, including those working in the mobile and security division, and found their thoughts to resemble Apple’s argument against the Department of Justice’s demands — that it infringes on their freedom of speech. The controversy erupted after a court ordered the Cupertino company to create a backdoor for the FBI to access the San Bernardino shooter’s iPhone.
Although it would be a stunning act of civil disobedience if Apple’s engineers refused to cooperate, it’s not like they would be out of a job for good if they quit working at Apple, as Apple’s former senior product manager told The New York Times.
“If someone attempts to force them to work on something that’s outside their personal values, they can expect to find a position that’s a better fit somewhere else,” Window Snyder said, now the chief security officer at Fastly.
If Apple lost the case and was forced to create “GovtOS,” and its employees quit left and right, it may have a hard time completing that task — which means the FBI would be in a conundrum as well.
“It’s an independent culture and a rebellious one,” said Jean-Louis Gassée, a former engineering manager at Apple, said to The New York Times. “If the government tries to compel testimony or action from these engineers, good luck with that.”
Should the time come for Apple to create a team to build “GovtOS,” Apple’s employees apparently already have a “good idea” on who those defecting employees will be. Of course, if Apple wins, it may never come to that.
The hearing is scheduled for March 22, a day after Apple’s media event that will showcase the company’s highly-anticipated new products.
- 5 things Apple needs to do with the iPhone in 2024
- How I use my Apple Watch and iPhone to manage my diabetes
- Apple used this free iPhone app to shoot Monday’s Scary Fast event
- Apple did something with the iPhone 15 Plus that I didn’t expect
- Apple’s new in-store device aimed at improving iPhone setup process


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'Girl Scout S'mores' cookie added to 2017 line up
The Girl Scouts of the USA announced on Wednesday that in honor of 100 years of the infamous GirlScouts cookies, the organization will introduce two new s'mores flavors.
It's only fitting that the organization chose to announce this on "National S'mores Day," celebrated Aug. 10.
Girl Scouts of Jacinto Council will add one of the two s'mores flavors to it's batch starting in 2017. The new treat will be a s'mores-inspired crispy graham cookie double-dipped in a cream icing with a chocolate coating.
"When you think of s'mores, you think of Girl Scouts," said Mary Vitek, GSSJC CEO. "So, we are pretty excited to introduce this new cookie to our customers in honor of the 100th anniversary of Girl Scouts selling cookies," said Mary Vitek, GSSJC's CEO.
The best part of this cookie? It's vegan.
The last vegan Girl Scouts cookie to hit the market was in 2015.
To learn more about the new cookie varieties and find out when Girl Scouts will be selling cookies near you, visit www.girlscoutcookies.org or use the official Girl Scout Cookie Finder app.


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A graphic designer has created coloured prints of the iconic Mayo lighthouses on his journey to capture every lighthouse guarding the Irish coast.
Bert DuFour has spent the last three years and travelled over 2,000km trying to capture all 80 operational lighthouses dotted around our coastline, including Mayo's Blacksod, Broadhaven, Clare Island and Inishgort.
Fifty-five lighthouses across the country have so far been framed as artworks – and now his huge project will go on public show at Gifted, Contemporary Craft and Design Fair at Dublin’s RDS from Nov 30th to Dec 4.
“There is a beauty to these towers, and how they stand over the ocean,” said Belgian native Bert, who moved to Ireland, in 2011.
“I am gobsmacked by how these structures were created 150 to 200 years ago. I find how they were built and where they were built utterly fascinating.”
Bert, who started design business, The Designer of Things, after moving here, said his work has been inspired by Hergé, the Brussels-born graphic artist and creator of The Adventures of Tintin.
His illustrations have even been compared to the famous comic books about the boy adventurer and his dog Snowy.
Bert has also created a 1,000-piece jigsaw of 16 of his lighthouse prints, which will be featured along with his print collection at Gifted.
Gifted – the traditional opening to the festive season, featuring over 400 designers, makers and artisan food producers, will also feature Ireland’s largest collection of sustainable Christmas gifts for both adults and children.
Full details and booking at www.giftedfair.ie.


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JMS posted an update on the status of the new Babylon 5 series being developed for The CW.
The news from Hollywood trades and social media that excited Babylon 5 fans: Warner Bros has approved more Babylon 5 for us, from the Creator himself.
Babylon 5 returns, this time to a streaming platform near you!
Since making “How’s It Going” memes are all the fun on Twitter for 2020, we’re just seeing how long we can keep the funny going at this point!
Comet TV has begun it’s final airing of Babylon 5 this time around.
Comet TV has added a few shows to its lineup, changing the air time for Babylon 5.
Starting April 6, 2020, the new lineup runs Monday through Friday
Good News, Babylon 5 fans!
Comet TV is now airing Babylon 5. “Midnight on the Firing Line” is airing on October 2.
Check your cable tv listings for broadcast times, or on your Roku device!
Since June 1, Babylon 5 has been available to stream for Amazon Prime subscribers.
The show hasn’t been seen on streaming services since it was briefly on Hulu in its early days, and this past year on go90.com (which is shutting down completely next month).
Amazon Instant Video now has the original version of “The Gathering” available for purchase and download for $1.99
For a brief moment in time (8 years actually since the project started) we were given new B5 material to enjoy, argue about and commiserate with. The books became invaluable aides as our discussions went on over the years ( in Tim’s case, on and on…). The Script Books, Other Voices, the Chronologies and even the […]


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Wickes owner Travis Perkins to sell plumbing and heating division and make cost cuts amid continued DIY decline
- Travis Perkins is targeting cost savings of between £20million and £30million
- Cuts are expected to affect the firm's 'above branch' and distribution cost base
- Plumbing and heating division on sale to focus on trade customers
Travis Perkins is to put its plumbing and heating division up for sale and cut costs further as it looks to shifts its focus to trade customers instead of DIY.
The group, which owns DIY chain Wickes, said it is targeting cost savings of between £20million and £30million, which are expected to affect the firm's 'above branch' and distribution cost base.
This comes with Travis Perkins already having slashed its Wickes head office workforce by a third in May, when it launched the hefty cost-cutting programme.
Cost cutting drive: The group is targeting cost savings of between £20million and £30million
The firm said its decision to sell its plumbing and heating division will allow it to focus more on trade customers as demand for DIY products keeps declining, amid weakness in the housing market and consumer confidence on the back of Brexit uncertainty.
It also said it will 'look to review the options for maximising the value' of Wickes in the medium term, implying a possible sale of the DIY chain.
Travis Perkins shares fell 1 per cent to 1,088p in morning trading.
'In the shorter term, market conditions remain uncertain, impacting secondary housing market transactions and consumer confidence,' the group said in a statement.
And added: 'Following a comprehensive review, the Board has concluded that the Group will focus on serving trade customers through advantaged businesses in attractive markets, and will simplify the group to reduce complexity and cost to drive returns.'
It comes as last month the group said sales at its retail division tumbled 4.2 per cent in the third quarter, driven by disappointing sales of kitchens and bathrooms.
At the time, Boss John Carter said: 'The UK DIY market continues to be very challenging for Wickes, where significant price pressure and weak consumer confidence is providing a tough trading backdrop.
'Across the group, we are making good progress with the cost reduction activities that were highlighted in July, and these actions are generating positive results and underpin our confidence that our full-year performance is on track and in line with market expectations.'
Wickes' main rivals, B&Q and Homebase, have also struggled with falling sales of late as fragile shopper sentiment and a subdued property market takes its hold on the DIY industry.
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Hit by layoffs and resignations across the region, Honestbee has announced a temporary suspension of its food and grocery deliveries in the Philippines. According to Tech in Asia, the company retrenched 50-70 people out of its staff of 1,000 last week. Several executives including co-founder Isaac Tay have also left the company.
Last Saturday, Honestbee posted on Facebook saying, “We’ll be right back!”
Our systems are currently unavailable. We’ll be buzzing again soon.
Honestbee also sent an email to customers on April 19, citing the need to pause local operations as they work to bring the business “to a healthy and sustainable level.”
“At Honestbee Philippines, we value the relationship we have built with you. As we work with our headquarters towards bringing the total business to a healthy and sustainable level, we unfortunately need to temporarily pause our local operations until further notice. Thank you for understanding, and we apologize for the inconvenience this may have caused. We appreciate your support for Honestbee and choosing to work with us,” the email stated.
A source told Tech in Asia that the Philippines is the Honestbee’s top performing market, followed by Singapore, Taiwan and Japan in any order. Other Honestbee markets are Malaysia, Hong Kong, Thailand and Indonesia.
On Honestbee Philippines’ Facebook page, several customers expressed their disappointment and asked for updates regarding their orders. An Honestbee representative duly replied credit and debit card payments will be refunded.
Honestbee, which set up shop in the Philippines in April 2017, also said that there are no layoffs in the country, and that the 200-strong local staff will continue to report for work. This could mean that the suspension of operations is only temporary and that the company will be back soon. There are no further details on when Honestbee will resume operations.


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"...the DMA may root out some dark patterns, but only for “gatekeeper” companies, and only in contexts where those dark patterns relate directly to the law’s other provisions [...] Ithe DSA might have had a decisive impact on the prevalence of dark patterns online. However, those hoping for a broad, aggressive approach to dark patterns may be underwhelmed..."
The CFPB says it’s hiring 25 technologists over the next year to help its staff of mainly economists and lawyers actually probe these new leads. The move is as sure a sign as any that the bureau’s ongoing efforts to investigate and hold tech companies accountable for financial wrongdoing are only accelerating.
The FTC wants Amazon to fork over any disappearing messages that executives used to discuss Prime.The federal agency has been probing Amazon over potentially misleading tactics used to get people to subscribe. Insider reported in March that Amazon execs were worried customers felt tricked into signing up but did nothing.
Dark patterns and the façade of decisional privacy; Attempts to regulate dark patterns globally; Legal implications of dark patterns in India.
"We show that digital manipulation erodes users’ ability to act rationally, which empowers platforms to extract wealth and build market power without doing so on the merits. [...] our research asserts that antitrust enforcement should go further in promoting decisional privacy."
The Federal Trade Commission has reportedly deepened its investigation into Amazon’s employment of dark patterns in the Amazon Prime subscription cancellation process. As EPIC explained in a complaint to the D.C. Attorney General last year, Amazon employs dark patterns to deter customers from canceling their Prime subscriptions.
All over the world, governments are using nudges as regulatory tools. Is this ethical? Much of the answer depends on whether nudges promote or instead undermine welfare, autonomy, and dignity.
As Companies Wrongly Invoke the Guide to Justify Deception, Agency Seeks Public Input on Possible Revisions Around Dark Patterns and Other Deceptive Tactics
EU data protection authorities find that the consent popups that plagued Europeans for years are illegal. All data collected through them must be deleted. This decision impacts Google’s, Amazon’s and Microsoft’s online advertising businesses.
State and federal regulators have definitely put a new emphasis on combatting so-called “dark patterns” – but other than a catchy name, is there really anything new about the types of conduct that state and federal officials are calling illegal? This two-part blogpost will take a closer look at that question.
In this post (Part Two), we examine the FTC’s approach to this issue, now and in the past. Here, we conclude that, despite the new terminology, the practices that comprise today’s dark patterns have been core elements of FTC law and policy for years.
The CMA has secured improvements for Xbox online players, following concerns about Microsoft’s use of auto-renewing subscriptions for online gaming services.
The complaints allege the company has deployed ‘dark patterns,’ design tricks that can subtly influence users’ decisions in ways that are advantageous for a business
Article 13a in the DSA "explicitly forbids the use of specific techniques to extort consent to collect personal data, for instance, via repeatedly showing pop-ups. It also prevents platforms from requesting such consent if users already choose via ‘automated means’, which might be a setting in the web browser or operating system."
The French data protection authority hit Facebook and Google with multimillion-dollar fines yesterday for their use of deceptive design in their cookie consent banners.
FTC has made clear that to comply with the law, businesses must ensure sign-ups are clear, consensual, and easy to cancel.
Today, the CNIL said it’s fined Google €150M (~$170M) and Facebook €60M (~$68M) for breaching French law, following investigations of how they present tracking choices to users of google.fr, youtube.com and facebook.com.
Following investigations, the CNIL noted that the websites facebook.com, google.fr and youtube.com do not make refusing cookies as easy as to accept them. It thus fines FACEBOOK 60 million euros and GOOGLE 150 million euros and orders them to comply within three months.
On 14 December 2021, the Internal Market and Consumer Protection (IMCO) Committee of the European Parliament adopted its report on the Digital Services Act.
Hidden away in #Google adtech antitrust complaint, in ref to internal docs: “We have been successful in slowing down and delaying the [ePrivacy Regulation] process and have been working behind the scenes hand in hand with the other companies.”
Academic analysis of how Fortnite is using its platform to manipulate users.
Font size can be the difference between compliance and a class action lawsuit
This report argues that TikTok does not comply with the GDPR in a number of ways.
A new California law (the California Privacy Rights Act) prohibits efforts to trick consumers into handing over data or money. A bill in Washington state (SB 5062 - 2021-22) used similar language.
The Federation of German Consumer Organisations (vzbv) filed a complaint against “advocado”, an online service that helps people find a lawyer. With its lawsuit, the consumer protection group challenged the use of dark patterns in cookie banners used.
The Norwegian Consumer Council’s study analysed the cancellation process for Amazon Prime. The analysis shows that consumers who want to leave the service are faced with a large number of hurdles, including complicated navigation menus, skewed wording, confusing choices, and repeated nudging. Throughout the process, Amazon manipulates users through wording and graphic design, making the process needlessly difficult and frustrating to understand.
The CPRA defines a “dark pattern” as “a user interface designed or manipulated with the substantial effect of subverting or impairing user autonomy, decision-making, or choice” and clarifies that it should be “further defined by regulation.
"First, the CPRA adds a new definition of "consent" to the CCPA. The new definition explicitly states that "[A]greement obtained through the use of dark patterns does not constitute consent." Then, paralleling the definitions from Deceived by Design and the DETOUR Act, the CPRA defines a "dark pattern" as "a user interface designed or manipulated with the substantial effect of subverting or impairing user autonomy, decision-making, or choice, as further defined by regulation." Finally, the law directs that regulations regarding the sale or sharing of personal information ensure that a business obtaining consumer consent to such sale or sharing "does not make use of any dark patterns.""
On 21 January 2019, the CNIL’s restricted committee imposed a financial penalty of 50 Million euros against the company GOOGLE LLC, in accordance with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), for lack of transparency, inadequate information and lack of valid consent regarding the ads personalization.
"At a time when many parents are looking for more opportunities for educational enrichment online, it is disappointing that services like ABCmouse have scammed millions of dollars from families through dark patterns, as alleged in the Commission’s complaint. By making it extremely difficult to cancel recurring subscription fees, ABCmouse engaged in conduct that was not only unethical, but also illegal."
A class action lawsuit was filed in June 2020, alleging that the New York Times has been violating California law by automatically renewing consumers’ subscriptions without proper authorization and making it “exceedingly difficult” to cancel existing subscriptions.
This Article argues that digital manipulation should, in many instances, be considered to be a type of anticompetitive behaviour. Digital manipulation erodes users’ ability to act rationally, which empowers platforms to extract wealth and build market power without doing so on the merits.
"Senators Mark Warner (D-Virginia) and Deb Fischer (R-Nebraska) have introduced legislation to ban so-called “dark patterns” tactics designed to trick users..."
DETOUR was a bi-partisan bill that aimed to curb manipulative dark pattern behavior by prohibiting the largest online platforms (those with over 100 million monthly active users) from relying on user interfaces that intentionally impair user autonomy, decision-making, or choice.
"my prediction for 2019 - let’s do this like a TV show is this is the year where dark patterns really becomes the kind of thing that we’re really talking a lot about." - Paul Ohm
"Office Depot and [...] Support.com, were [accused of] falsely informing consumers that their computers were infected with malware and then selling them various fixes for non-existent problems." (Summary from Luguri & Strahilevitz, 2019)
The operators of a worldwide negative option scam have agreed to settle FTC charges that they deceptively advertised “risk-free” trial offers for only the cost of shipping and handling, but then charged consumers full price for the trial product and enrolled them in expensive, ongoing continuity plans without their knowledge or consent.
A recent (2018) case involving Dark Patterns. The dispute involved the F.T.C.’s enforcement action against a payday lender that was providing information to lure customers. (Also see Luguri & Strahilevitz, 2019)
"To tame the, sometimes, harmful power of enormous platforms, we need to reconsider the mathematics of regulation. The law tends to treat the growth of a company linearly, while the power and harm of online activity increases at a much faster rate. We need to scale up the mathematics of regulation to deal with many of the problems of massive digital platforms."
"LeadClick was an internet advertising company, and its key customer was LeanSpa, an internet retailer that sold weight-loss and colon-cleanse products. [...] Many of the advertisements it placed purported to be online news articles but they were in fact ads for LeanSpa’s products. [...] The Second Circuit thought it was self-evident that these techniques were unlawfully deceptive" (Summary from Luguri & Strahilevitz, 2019)
The FTC's enforcement policy statement regarding advertising and promotional messages that are presented as non-commercial content.
"A case in which the F.T.C. secured a settlement of upwards of $73 million after alleging both deceptive and unfair practices. [...] the F.T.C. asserted that the defendants’ skin-care companies were using a host of dark patterns" (Summary from Luguri & Strahilevitz, 2019)
"The Authority has also considered unfair, cumbersome and misleading, the mechanism imposed to consumers in order to select the no-purchase option of the travel insurance policy: in the Ryanair booking process it is necessary to go through the window of Country of Residence and select the option “refuse insurance”, positioned – in the Italian website - between Netherlands and Norway."
The full case text of Perkins v. Linkedin Corp. This is the class action lawsuit in which Linkedin was required to pay roughly $13 million due to their use of various dark patterns, including "Friend Spam".
The CAN-SPAM Act of 2003 established the United States' first national standards for the sending of commercial e-mail. It is enforced by the FTC. It contains rules against dark patterns, e.g. a visible and operable unsubscribe mechanism must be present in all marketing emails.


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OSN+ to integrate Vertex AI to enhance content discovery and recommendations for viewers of the streaming platform.
OSN+ has announced the integration of Google Cloud‘s Vertex AI Search for Media Recommendations, a next-generation large language model that builds on Google’s research in machine learning and AI. This announcement, revealed at the annual Google Media Summit last week, signifies the inaugural introduction of Google Cloud’s Vertex AI Search for Media Recommendations to an entertainment streaming platform in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region.
Speaking about the collaboration, Joe Kawkabani, CEO of OSN Group, said: “In an ever-evolving entertainment landscape, OSN+ is dedicated to providing our viewers with cutting-edge experiences. Our collaboration with Google Cloud’s Vertex AI is a significant step forward in this direction. By integrating this GenAI solution, we aim to redefine the way users interact with our platform, making it more engaging and dynamic.”
Tarek Khalil, Director, Middle East and North Africa, Google Cloud, added: “We are pleased to continue our partnership with OSN+ to bring the latest GenAI solution to the streaming platform. Vertex AI Search for Media Recommendations will solve the constraints of consumers who want assistance in discovering relevant content in a highly personalised and conversational way. AI is a powerful enabler and can be a major platform shift. That’s why we’re focused on making it easy and scalable for organisations to innovate with AI and that means expanding access to Google’s latest foundation models that have been rigorously tested in our own products.”
The integration of Google Cloud’s Vertex AI Search for Media Recommendations on OSN+ will empower subscribers to interact with their own virtual assistant, ensuring more accurate and personalised content recommendations. This strategic collaboration aims to elevate the streaming experience for OSN+ subscribers, offering them an enhanced and tailored content discovery journey.


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Online sales rose again in June, according to industry figures published today.
The British Retail Consortium (BRC) found that the value of internet, mail order and telephone sales rose by 17.3% in June compared to the same time last year. The rise is the second-highest of the year, though weaker than the 21.9% rise seen in May. However the BRC said that the May figures came against a weak May last year, while June last year was a strong month for retail sales.
Stephen Robertson, BRC director general, said: “This is another good month’s growth – the second highest of the year. Sunny weather and early clearance sales boosted clothing and outdoor goods. The World Cup buoyed demand for televisions.
“Starting from a low base, non-store retailing continues to grow by double digits as it gains more familiarity and confidence with customers.”
He said that the effects of the Budget on spending would not be seen until its effects became a reality for consumers.
The growth online came against a background of a small rise in overall UK sales. Total sales in all categories rose by 3.4% in June, but when measured on a like-for-like basis, the growth was of 1.2%.
Helen Dickinson, head of retail at KPMG, said: "Trundling along is an apt description for this month’s sales. While the World Cup did impact performance on individual days and provide a welcome uplift for some, it did not shift overall spending patterns much one way or the other.
“While the emergency Budget has delayed any impact of the VAT rise until later this year/early next, the effect of the wider fiscal tightening measures on consumer spending remains to be seen. The risk is all on the downside."


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Pinch A Penny Pool Patio Spa Propels Texas Growth With The Opening Of Its 14th Houston Area Store
Oil Industry Veteran Now Offering Pool Retail, Service and Repair in Conroe
April 20, 2021 // Franchising.com // CLEARWATER, Fla. - Pinch A Penny Pool Patio Spa announced today the opening of its newest franchised location in Conroe, Texas. Located at 4489 W. Davis St., Suite 220, the new store marks the brand's 14th location in the greater Houston area and 19th overall in the state. On the heels of the Conroe opening, the swimming pool franchise leader will further expand its Texas footprint with two additional stores planned for the Houston and Dallas areas, both slated to open this summer.
The Conroe Pinch A Penny is owned and operated by first-time franchisee Kevin Glass. Prior to joining Pinch A Penny, Glass held a longstanding career in Houston's oil and gas industry, spending over 35 years as an engineer and compilation manager. With the energy landscape becoming increasingly turbulent and retirement on Glass' horizon, he began looking into business ownership as a way to take control of his and his family's future. After discovering what Pinch A Penny had to offer, he was immediately blown away by the brand's top-notch leadership, customer-centric values and unparalleled support. Additionally, with Houston ranking #3 for most pool-dense markets in the country, he and his wife, Debbie, were interested in entering a booming business niche in their own backyard.
"The oil and gas industry has always been volatile, so the idea of finding something more stable that would allow me to take control of my own destiny really stood out to me. When I found the Pinch A Penny franchise opportunity, I knew I had found the best option for me," said Kevin Glass, owner of Pinch A Penny, Conroe. "Pinch A Penny is a well-established legacy brand with a proven track record of sustainable success fueled by multiple revenue streams, exceptional training and a resilient business model that has withstood numerous economic disruptions, including the pandemic. That, coupled with Houston's pool market being on the rise, we've already seen immense success just from offering the service portion of our business before even opening our retail store."
Since entering Texas in 2016, Pinch A Penny has continually targeted key markets throughout the state for new store development, including the greater Houston and Dallas-Fort Worth areas. As pool sales and construction surged amid the pandemic, the future demand for pool supplies and services in Texas is unprecedented, leading Pinch A Penny to pre-build new stores in the North Richland Hills and Flower Mound neighborhoods of Dallas. Looking ahead, the company will continue its statewide development with two new locations opening in The Woodlands and Lake Arlington later this year.
"We have consistently seen a huge demand for quality retail pool supply and service operators in Texas, and Kevin Glass' early success is proof of that with him already deploying a second service truck before even opening the retail portion of his business," said Michael Arrowsmith, Chief Development Officer of Pinch A Penny. "At Pinch A Penny, we're honored to join with hard-working franchisees like Kevin who are looking to take the next step in their careers and build a legacy alongside us. As we continue our development across Texas, we plan to build upon the momentum we've achieved so far thanks to our dedicated franchisees and look forward to servicing the tremendous pool growth to come."
Pinch A Penny Pool Patio Spa of Conroe will serve customers Monday-Saturday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
SOURCE Pinch A Penny Pool Patio Spa
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Bubblegum battle royale Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout continues to be a massive success, with over 2 million fans enjoying it on Steam alone — but, it seems, not everyone is playing the game fairly.
Players are uploading clips where it appears that some people are using speed hacks that allow them to completely outrun the competition. In the clip below, uploaded by Julien D, we can see a cheater burst through the map in the Slime Climb mini-game, whereas the rest of the players are barely stumbling through the starting area.
It’s not an isolated occurrence. There are more clips of similar hacks floating around on social media, presumably from the PC version of the game, where hacks are easier to implement.
There is also a type of hack that allows players to just fly over obstacles, like so:
Developer Mediatonic told Polygon that it is working on a fix that will hopefully hit the game “soon.” A representative for the developer added, “Cheating takes away from everyone’s enjoyment of the game.” In the meantime, the battle royale developer encourages people to report hackers.
It’s worth noting, though, that hacks can’t ensure that you’ll win the game, as there’s still elements of randomness that you can’t control. Sometimes, though, hackers get cocky and try to gloat at the finish line — which means that other players can give them some sweet, sweet comeuppance.
Update: This story has been updated to add comment from Mediatonic.
Source: Read Full Article


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Slater and Gordon to sue over £637m buy-up of Quindell's ambulance chasing business
Bringing claims: Slater and Gordon bought Quindell's injury claims business last year
The Australian law firm crippled by its takeover of Quindell's ambulance-chasing business is planning to sue the British company, writes Hugo Duncan.
Slater and Gordon bought Quindell's injury claims business, which deals with car crashes and accidents at work, for £637million last year.
But the deal quickly turned sour as the Serious Fraud Office began an investigation into Quindell's accounts, and Slater and Gordon had to write off more than £500million relating to the takeover.
Slater and Gordon, which specialises in no win, no fee personal injury claims, was also hit by a crackdown on whiplash claims in the UK.
The Australian outfit said it 'intends to bring claims' arising from the takeover against Watchstone Group – Quindell's new name.
The case could see Slater and Gordon recoup £50million of the purchase price that was put into escrow and was due to be paid out in November.
However, Watchstone dismissed the claim as groundless and pledged to defend itself.
It said it had conducted 'a professional and transparent disposal process' of the company, and that Slater and Gordon was given the opportunity to complete 'an extensive and detailed due-diligence process'.
Watchstone shares fell 7.3 per cent or 15.8p to 200.3p.
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Towable builder CrossRoads RV began construction this week on a new customer service facility at its 45-acre campus in Topeka, Ind.
The company reported in a news release that the new facility will be located at the site of the former corporate office on Hawpatch Drive. When completed in July, the new building will provide a significant increase in office, warehouse and service bay space compared to their current location.
“We are pleased to be able to expand our customer service facilities in Topeka,” said Andy Cripe, president of CrossRoads. “The new building will allow CrossRoads to operate more efficiently and provide a higher level of service to our customers by having more parts and inventory on hand for service and warranty work. It’s part of our commitment to supporting our dealers and ensuring the best in customer satisfaction.”
For additional information on CrossRoads RV, a division of Thor Industries Inc., visit www.crossroadsrv.com.


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March 18, 2013 - At the Broadband Breakfast Club, we strive to introduce our readers and club members to the most timely developments in broadband services. Think of your participation in our events as a vital early warning system to what you need to know about new directions in high-speed connectivity.
The March 19, 2013, Broadband Breakfast Club is on "Smart Cars, the Consumer Experience and Broadband: In-Vehicle Telematics. There are still opportunities to register for the event, at http://broadbandbreakfast.eventbrite.com.
"Smart cars" are an important window into the emerging possibilities that are enabled by machine-to-machine communication. Coupled with always-on mobility, machine-to-machine communication adds a new twist to current developments in broadband usage. The emergence of the need for your car to talk to other cars (or for it to strike up a conversation with your home appliances) is one of many reasons why I believe consumer bandwidth demand will expand far more rapidly than naysayers predict.
While machine-to-machine communiation has been in the air for several years, this subject -- "smart cars" -- has gotten concrete in the last six to twelve months.
After coming back from the Consumer Electronics Show two months ago, I highlighted this as one the top 10 developments to watch in 2013.
Smart Cars, Data Sensors, and Machine-to-Machine Communications: What’s Coming Up this Year
The increasingly small sizes of silicon transistors, coupled with greater broadband ubiquity, is making it possible to envision a world of machine-to-machine communications. Typical families now have more than five or even 10 broadband-connected devices — expect that number to rapidly multiply in the coming year. One of the most exciting developments in machine-to-machine communications exists in the world of smart cars. One Verizon Communications device on display at the Consumer Electronics Show was a Delphi Automotive plug-in, for sale as an aftermarket plug-in designed to send location, diagnostic, speed and mileage information about your car to a web-enabled portal. But how will smarter cars begin to affect vehicle safety?
At tomorrow's event, we're grateful to have a fabulous line-up that will be moderated by Russell Holly, the mobile editor for Geek.com. Just last week, Russell had this great piece about the driving system called "Automatic." Watch the two minute video the accompanies the story to begin to understand the possibilities enabled by the interaction between the smart phone and the automobile.
Or as Russell writes:
There’s a lot of individual services that work well connecting your smartphone to your car. Automatic hopes to create a unifying experience, by adding features that improve both the person driving the car and the services attached to the car.
The data port on most vehicles is capable of much more than what most people realize. Using a simple Bluetooth adapter for that data port, you can pair your smartphone to your car and access the information that is provided by the onboard computer. This information is useful in certain, specific situations. If you have an app that can turn that information into an app-driven instrument panel, you can access a ton of information. There aren’t many apps out there that do more with the information, which is important in order to be useful to anyone who isn’t just a data addict. Automatic is taking the information and adding context alongside location and mobile data to offer a new user experience.
Russell has also written about the Verizon Wireless/Delphi connected car service, and -- this will also certainly be a part of Tuesday's discussion -- the potential pitfalls when a human driver wants to pay attention to his smartphone, and his car wants all the attention devoted to the road.
Tuesday's breakfast features an impressive line-up of panelists with Steven Bayless, Senior Director of Telecommunications and Telematics at the Intelligent Transportation Society of America; Catherine McCullough, Vice President of DCI Group, who will speak about connected cars; Anupam Malhotra, Senior Manager Connected Vehicles, Audi of America, one of the leading car-makers in the field; and Jeff Stewart, Director of Public Policy, Wireless for AT&T. Don't miss the opportunity to attend "Smart Cars, the Consumer Experience and Broadband: In-Vehicle Telematics" at the Broadband Breakfast Club!
Follow Broadband Breakfast’s coverage of the broadband economy at http://twitter.com/broadbandcensus. See others upcoming events in our upcoming series of Broadband Breakfast Club events. Or learn more about BroadbandBreakfast.com Publisher Drew Clark, who is on Google+ and Twitter.
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Midleton CBS Boys Primary School is bringing real World math into the classroom, as the students experience what it means to be an entrepreneur. Last month Victor Mc Caffrey Print Profile worked with the business people of the future to launch their classroom business, assisting the students in finding their Eureka moment.
Among the products being developed is a Trivia game that includes coding language used for controlling computers and other technology. While one class is in pursuit of developing a futuristic Trivia game, other students are looking to the past by creating their own Lucky Dip bags full of toys and sweets.
Grounded in the school curriculum, sixty 5th Class pupils are taking part in the Junior Entrepreneur Programme, where they are encouraged to explore the world of business and convert their ideas in commercial opportunities. Before the Christmas break, the students demonstrated their creativity, innovation and business acumen to a panel of Dragons who had the hard task of selecting two products in which to invest.
This is the schools’ fourth year participating in the programme which, teacher Anthony Duggan says, engages children that may not be the highest of academic achievers. “The kid’s different strengths really begin to show. You have kids that may not be very academic excelling in sales, selling the product into different classes.” “It’s a huge success every year, the kids love it and get a lot out of it socially and academically” “They invest in the company and if it’s viable the teachers may invest also. Profits are divided amongst the students at the end of the year, with a portion going to a Charity chosen by the pupils” said Mr Duggan.


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Amazon SageMaker Ground Truth, which is now generally available, uses machine learning to pick up the work humans are doing in real time when they are creating labels. Ultrain proclaimed that its smart contract developer framework is now available open-sourced.
"When I first heard the announcement about AWS DeepRacer in the keynote, I was totally pumped and thought it was a great way to get people interested and started in reinforcement learning".
Amazon Web Services (AWS) launched this week its Amazon Comprehend Medical machine learning service that enables healthcare professionals and developers to mine unstructured medical text and patient data, such as diagnosis, treatments, dosages, symptoms, and other signs of disease.
Dive deep into the new service here.
"We want to help all of our customers embrace machine learning, no matter their size, budget, experience, or skill level", said Swami Sivasubramanian, vice president, Amazon Machine Learning, in a prepared statement. Today, AWS is launching two new blockchain services.
AWS also announced a $399 autonomous toy auto - AWS DeepRacer - for developers to test some of their own self-driving programs. Customers don't need experience in machine learning, either.
AWS Outposts is essentially an extension of a customer's Amazon VPC (Virtual Private Cloud). Also, Ultrain was successfully selected by the Microsoft accelerator as an incubator project, receiving leading resources supported by Microsoft's Azure cloud computing platform & services.
Amazon reached a new milestone on Wednesday when it unveiled DeepRacer, a self-driving race auto that runs on artificial intelligence (AI), and launched a racing league that would pit the owners of the vehicle against each other. "It saves a lot of time and is much more efficient". It will monitor how demand develops before deciding how many more stations to add.
"Over 10,000 customers are now using Amazon SageMaker". As a result, developers no longer need to spend time hand tuning their trained models for each and every hardware platform (saving time and expense).
AWS had already announced some new updates to its cloud machine learning (ML) services, Amazon Polly, Amazon Translate and Amazon Transcribe. Amazon Textract allows developers to quickly automate document workflows, processing millions of document pages in a few hours. A new process called AutoML, which automates complicated ML tasks, "performs and accelerates the hard work required to design, train, and deploy a machine learning model", the company says. You can imagine the ML use cases.
Businesses told AWS officials they want their on-premises systems to be an extension of their AWS or VMware Cloud in AWS, with the same hardware, APIs and interfaces, which drove the development of Outposts, Jassy said.
Amazon Web Services is set to launch a satellite connection service that will make it faster for satellite operators to retrieve and secure their data. Users provide the historical and "causal" (eg, the weather, or any special offers) data, and Forecast creates, trains and optimises a model that can generate forecasts. The new offering will include several VMware technologies and services from VMware.


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This list lets you inside the mind of Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz.
One of, if not the, most prominent VC groups in Silicon Valley has revealed the hottest tech trends changing the world right now. For those wondering, that firm is Andreessen Horowitz and we’re referring to no other than its “16 Things” list. The breakdown, which highlights the most investable spaces at the moment, unsurprisingly includes Internet of Things, digital health, crowdfunding, and security — a couple of areas in which we know a little something about.
“We don’t invest in themes; we invest in special founders with breakthrough ideas,” Andreessen Horowitz writes. “Which means we don’t make investments based on a pre-existing thesis about a category. That said, here are a few of the things we’ve been observing or thinking about.”
While the list — which includes several themes that were evident throughout the CES 2015 show floor — will likely change over time, it does provide a nice glimpse into the firm’s thinking at the start of this year. Just in case you don’t feel like clicking through and navigating a16z in its entirety, here’s a brief overview of those breakthrough areas.
“VR will be the ultimate input-output device. Some people call VR “the last medium” because any subsequent medium can be invented inside of VR, using software alone. Looking back, the movie and TV screens we use today will be seen as an intermediate step between the invention of electricity and the invention of VR. Kids will think it’s funny that their ancestors used to stare at glowing rectangles hoping to suspend disbelief.”
Sensorification of the Enterprise
“For enterprise, the value of the sensors is in being a shortcut for the user interface, potentially even replacing typing so we can concentrate on the easy, fun, creative things.”
Machine Learning and Big Data
“The key here is in more automated apps where big data drives what the application does, and with no user intervention.”
Full Stack Startups
“The old approach startups took was to sell or license their new technology to incumbents. The new, ‘full stack’ approach is to build a complete, end-to-end product or service that bypasses incumbents and other competitors.”
“The next step in containerization is treating the datacenter, with all its containers, like one giant computer or server. Many applications today are really just distributed systems: Applications aren’t necessarily confined to just one container.”
“Tomorrow? To understand your personal diagnostic data, you might soon depend more upon an iPhone app developed in a garage than on your local MD.”
“We’re continuing to see tremendous innovation in marketplaces. The first generation of net companies saw a few big horizontal marketplace winners like eBay and Craigslist. But entrepreneurs are continuing to create the next generation of online marketplaces.”
“There are two things now driving the security industry: (1) The bad guys are already inside. (2) New platforms — cloud and mobile — have arrived… Both are forcing a different set of technologies, and the creation of new kinds of companies.”
Bitcoin (and Blockchain)
“The clock has just begun on Bitcoin’s acceptance more broadly. Crash or no crash, we should expect a significant increase in the level of institutional adoption this year. Specifically, a large number of companies will put together groups focused on what Bitcoin means to them.”
“Endpoints aren’t just phones; they could be wearables and other small devices and screens connected to the internet. Beyond the devices themselves, it all adds up to a massive amount of compute power. The next decade of computing will be about doing something with it.”
“Crowdfunding is going somewhere it never has — into the mainstream. That, in turn, will change all sorts of other things.”
Internet of Things
“Something often overlooked when we talk about all the shiny new connected gadgets emerging out of the Internet of Things is what happens to all the old things. I’m fascinated by the power of adding multiple sensors to old things and then connecting them to the Internet…. With the IoT we’re headed to a world where things aren’t liable to break catastrophically — or at least, we’ll have a hell of a heads up.”
“What we do know is that online video is far from done… so it will be interesting to see what even a little competition will do here.”
“Insurance is all about distributing risk. With dramatic advances in software and data, shouldn’t the way we buy and experience our insurance products change dramatically? Software will rewrite the entire way we buy and experience our insurance products — medical, home, auto, and life.”
“The rise of the hyperscale cloud datacenter has now made this job much harder as developers have had to hack together tools and complex scripts for pushing code to thousands of pancake servers. This complex cloud infrastructure — coupled with the growth of the DevOps movement today — has opened up many opportunities, starting with helping developers and companies to manage the entire process … to much more.”
“The goal is not to fail fast. The goal is to succeed over the long run. They are not the same thing.”
Reblogged this on Brian By Experience.


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High Shipping Costs Are Here to Stay, Says Bloomberg
By Henry Ren (Bloomberg) Stubbornly high shipping expenses for businesses are getting sealed into contracts for the next 12 months, forcing companies to pass the extra costs on to consumers....
The Port of Long Beach closed out its 2018 fiscal year having handled 8,000,929 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) during the previous 12 months.
This figure represents a new annual record and is 10.7 percent increase over fiscal year 2017.
“We are poised to break our calendar year record at the end of December,” said Port of Long Beach Executive Director Mario Cordero. “Despite the tariffs imposed by Washington and Beijing, international trade is showing resilience, and at our Port we are providing a conduit for commerce that’s efficient for our customers and getting their cargo to destinations faster, saving them money.”
“The Port of Long Beach moved 701,204 TEUs last month, the second-busiest September in our 107-year history,” said Long Beach Harbor Commission President Tracy Egoscue. “That’s a good thing for our economy. Trade flowing through the Port of Long Beach supports 1.4 million jobs across the United States, including more than 300,000 jobs in Southern California.”
September’s total volume was flat, with a slight decrease of 0.1 percent compared to September 2017. Imports decreased 2.5 percent to 357,301 TEUs compared to the previous year. Exports were down 3 percent to 121,561 TEUs, while empties increased 5.9 percent, to 222,343 TEUs.
At 8 million TEU, the Port of Long Beach ranks as the second busiest container port in the United States behind the neighboring Port of Los Angeles, which handled 9.3 million TEU in 2017.
The Port of Long Beach’s fiscal year runs from October 1 to September 30.
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Wal-Mart Stores Inc. announced Oct. 9 that it will offer a new service called Mobile Express Returns that combines the retail giant's app with visits to its physical stores.
The service will cover products sold and shipped by Walmart.com upon launch in early November before expanding to in-store purchases in early 2018. The company added that it is developing a similar system for returns of products sold by third-party sellers on its online platform.
Mobile Express Returns is a two-step process that will be available at Wal-Mart's more than 4,700 store locations. First, customers use the Walmart app to select the transaction and related items to be returned. Next, they visit a Mobile Express Lane at a nearby store to return items in person. Refunds are then credited to customers' payment accounts as early as the following day.
The company also plans to add an option in the app that would allow customers to receive instant refunds without requiring an in-store visit. This option could become available as early as December, initially covering select household products including shampoo and color cosmetics.


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With recent news that McLaren is intending to build a new fleet of sports cars in Woking and used car sales on the increase the British car industry looks to have finally left the recession in its rear view mirror. To add to this it’s just been announced that Europe’s biggest electric car plant will be built in our very own Sunderland.
The Nissan car factory will get a £420 million cash boost and will specifically be the production base for their forthcoming electric Leaf car. In the plan 4,500 new jobs are expected to be created. Talking about the plant, Business Secretary Lord Mandelson said; ‘This investment is a fantastic vote of confidence in the Sunderland plant and its excellent workforce. Todays news from Nissan, with support from Government, shows that by working together we can achieve our aim of making the UK a world-leader in ultra-low carbon vehicles’.
Now we just have to pray to God that somebody actually buys an electric car.


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Kingston Extends Mass Luminosity Sponsorship
Dallas, Texas - Mass Luminosity, Inc., today announced that Kingston Technology Company Inc., the independent world leader in memory products, has extended its sponsorship of the Mass Luminosity global community. To this end, Kingston® HyperX® will continue to increase its support of Mass Luminosity's promotions through summer 2014 and intensify its engagement with the Mass Luminosity community of gamers. HyperX is the high-performance line of Kingston encompassing memory modules, SSDs and USB Flash drives.
"Kingston HyperX is proud to continue its support of Mass Luminosity with the highest performance memory modules, USB Flash drives and solid- state drives," said Annie Leung, HyperX global marketing manager at Kingston. "We want to congratulate them on recently surpassing one million fans on Facebook and are looking forward to creating a more dynamic and engaging experience for their community."


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Update those Instagram apps!
From the beginning, Intagram, a popular social media photo sharing platform, has never allowed private messaging. Today, however, they announced a new feature called 'Instagram Direct.'
According to the Instagram blog, the Instagram community has grown to over 150 million people all over the globe.
They recognized that there are, often, times in our lives that we want to share a photo with a loved one in private. Starting today, you can send a photo or video in a direct message to your Instagram friends.
Instagram for iOS version 5.0 is available today for download in Apple’s App Store, and Instagram for Android version 5.0 is available today on Google Play. Instagram for Windows Phone is in beta. Stay tuned for future updates.


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PICK A SIDE: Should businesses be able to require customers to wear masks
Since the start of the pandemic, there have been mixed messages regarding face coverings. At first, many Canadian health officials questioned whether they were necessary for preventing the spread of the COVID-19.
However, as more information has been gathered and more research has been conducted, many health officials believe face coverings can be beneficial in preventing the spread of the virus.
As a result, many businesses are requiring customers and staff to wear face coverings while shopping in stores.
Some grocery stores including Longo’s and T&T Supermarket are requiring customers to wear face masks.
Additionally, many transit operations have adopted the same requirements. Brampton Transit has announced customers are now required to wear masks, Oakville Transit and Mississauga Transit have also followed suit, as has the TTC.
Further, Pearson Airport has also adopted a policy that requires travellers and staff to wear masks.
Moreover, some businesses, while not making it a requirement, have requested customers wear masks while in stores.
Starbucks is one such company that is requesting but not mandating that customers wear masks.
Premier Doug Ford has said businesses will have the freedom to decide whether they will require customers to wear masks while shopping in their stores or using their services.
Some have applauded the decision and believe it isn’t enough and the Province should be enforcing a requirement for everyone to wear a mask when they leave their house.
However, others believe it’s an infringement on their rights, and that they should be free to choose whether or not they wear a mask.
So, Mississauga, what do you think? Should businesses be able to require masks?
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- Looks like Mississauga and Brampton will be moving into grey lockdown zone on March 9
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- Change coming to waste collection in Mississauga this month


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Retailers can expect a rush on sales of EuroMillions tickets this week as a Mega Jackpot Draw with a top price of £85m takes place this Friday.
The last EuroMillions Mega Jackpot Draw in March saw a 225% increase in ticket sales compared to other weeks, with an additional five million people taking part in the draw.
All National Lottery retailers will receive special POS material to help promote the draw as part of the £1m investment package that Camelot has put in place to support the Mega Jackpot Draw. The draw is also being supported by advertising on in-store digital media
screens and a TV and radio campaign.
Camelot will also be unveiling another reason to get excited about the draw – former popstar and actress Kelle Bryan will be making her debut as presenter.


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Top GamesPhoto by NEXONKart Rider: Drift is a free to play racing game that will be released on PS Plus for members. The full version of the game is scheduled to be released in 2022 while a closed beta version of the game is set to start on Dec. 8.KartRider: Drift gets a closed beta December 8, including the frenzied Item Mode and fast-paced Speed Mode: https://t.co/IWkw8wG4tP pic.twitter.com/T9qgGZmVuT— PlayStation (@PlayStation) October 27, 2021In the tweet above, PlayStation announced that a closed beta version of Kart Rider: Drift would come out
Top GamesPhoto by Team OFKThe popular Indie Pop game, We are OFK is coming to PS4 and PS5 in 2022 after news about its release at PlayStation's State of Play for October 2021.The Indie Pop game has yet to be revealed as to whether or not it will be on PS Plus.? We Are OFK coming to #PS5 #PS4!? Our band's story & EP drop 2022? AHHH thank u @PlayStation!!!? Join our mailing list for special treats https://t.co/TVuVdehAWz pic.twitter.com/JROmtZIrmp— OFK (@OFKband) October 27, 2021In the tweet above, the OFKBand account
Call of DutyPhoto by ActivisionWith the release of Call of Duty: Vanguard, a new warzone map is coming and so what does that mean for the original map, Verdansk?After Season 6, Verdansk will be no longer available to be played as the classic map is set to be replaced."Season 6 will be our last time in Verdansk," Raven Software confirms. #Warzone pic.twitter.com/TibX9nzlgy— CharlieIntel (@charlieINTEL) October 6, 2021In the tweet above, charlieINTEL revealed that Raven Software has confirmed that Season 6 will be the last time we see Verdansk.Verdansk has been
Top GamesPhoto by Riot GamesRiot Games have revealed the plans for a competitive circuit for popular strategy game, Teamfight Tactics: Rising Legends in the EMEA region.The series is being called Teamfight Tactics Rising Legends: Gizmos and Gadgets and qualification will be open to all players. Spots will be awarded to the players who perform well and land on the upper echelon of the ranked leaderboard. Introducing Teamfight Tactics: Rising Legends! ⚔Top TFT players from all around EMEA will compete for spots at the set 6 TFT World Championship.?Learn more here:
Call of DutyPhoto by ActivisionWith only a matter of days left until Call of Duty: Vanguard is available on Nov. 5, information on download size has come out.Along with download size information, we have also been told the information about preloading the game.Prepare for #Vanguard.Pre-loading begins TOMORROW for those who pre-ordered on consoles.Download sizes and required space ➡ https://t.co/S9UtOLZjS9 pic.twitter.com/yNx5dcsNHs— Call of Duty (@CallofDuty) October 27, 2021In the tweet above, the CallofDuty account announced the download size and preload information.According to Activision, "PlayStation 4 and 5 preloading begins on Oct.
Dr Disrespect will be playing PUBG Mobile on Oct. 29, the final day of the ongoing 13 Days of Halloween event. The event will happen on Oct. 29 from 7pm CT on the PUBG Mobile YouTube channel. In it, the Doc will be playing with three teams, namely Team Violence, Momentum, and Speed. Each team will consist of three content creators. Team Violence: Medalcore, Wynnsanity, and Rollexxx.Team Momentum: HotJukes, Her Gaming, and LU Power.Team Speed: Bushka, Bellafox, and Jacob Gaming. After playing alongside these three teams, the Doc will select
Call of DutyGhost has been malfunctioning in Warzone, but Raven Software is on the case. / Photo courtesy of ActivisionA fix for a debilitating bug affecting the Ghost perk is on the way, says Warzone development studio Raven Software.Ghost is a crucial element of the current Warzone meta game. As frequent usage of UAVs is one of the most common strategies in the game, Ghost offers one of the few effective countermeasures by hiding its users from UAV scans.Ghost ✨doesn’t work✨ this game is broken part 6796 pic.twitter.com/e1Q7KqaWzs— Jessie Cooks?
Call of DutyImage courtesy of ActivisionWarzone hackers are reportedly being paid to stream snipe popular content creators, such as TimTheTatman and FaZe Kalei.Recently, pro Warzone player Fifakill took to Twitter to discuss a conversation he had with a notorious cheater. The hacker in question, who uses the rather on-the-nose moniker "IHACKFORTHEWIN," apparently stream snipes certain streamers whilst hacking. According to Fifakill, there's a Discord server dedicated to the frustrating practice. This Discord server lets users pay to to put a bounty on a certain streamer. This then invites hackers to stream
Top GamesDead by Daylight players aren't happy with developer Behaviour Interactive's new partnership with Boss Protocol to produce game-themed NFTs. / Behaviour InteractiveDead by Daylight players aren't happy with developer Behaviour Interactive's new partnership with Boss Protocol to produce game-themed NFTs. A partnership announcement was made via the game's verified Twitter account on Monday, Oct. 18--and it did not go over well. Players immediately swarmed the tweet both declaring and showcasing a mass uninstall, deletion, and direct refusal to purchase the game in response to the news. Others have filed
FIFALille OSC v Sevilla FC: Group G - UEFA Champions League / John Berry/GettyImagesBenjamin Andre's Road to the Knockouts Objective card has been released during the latest promotion in FIFA 22.Andre plays for LOSC Lille in the Ligue 1 Uber Eats league in France. They are the reigning champions of France as of last season.Objective player for RTTKBenjamin Andre ??How to get him ⬇https://t.co/pNqB1eUIiw#FIFA22 #FUT22 pic.twitter.com/y6AXz6UbMs— ?????? (@FUTWIZ) October 15, 2021In the tweet above, FUTWIZ showed the player ratings and the necessary steps in order to obtain the Benjamin Andre


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Windows 11 causes slow performance on NVMe SSDs • Pureinfotech
- Windows 11 shows slower NVMe SSD performance than Windows 10.
- The problem is not new as users have been reporting it for months.
- Microsoft has not officially confirmed the issue.
Windows 11 There is now an issue causing slow performance for NVMe Solid State Drives (SSDs). According to user reports on Reddit and Microsoft Forums (through the Neowin and XDA), after upgrade from Windows 10 to 11, the performance of the NVME drive can be significantly slower than it was before the upgrade. For example, some users are experiencing lower input/output operations per second (IOPS) and others are seeing slower read/write speeds.
The problem is not new, reports of it have been around for a few months, even when the operating system was still in preview mode, but nothing seems to have changed after Microsoft decided Windows 11 launch on October 5, 2021.
In the Microsoft forum, user “MJ_JasonM” explains his experience and shares screenshots of drive performance on Windows 10 and later after upgrading to Windows 11.
Above Reddit, a Microsoft employee has admitted the company is investigating the issue, but this has been going on for several months without official announcement.
In another thread, user MahtiDruidi on Reddit shared another screenshot showing a noticeably slower write speed on an NVMe drive.
The root cause of the cause is still unknown as the software giant has not acknowledged this as a problem. However, some users mentioned that the performance issue may lie in virtualization based security (VBS). Others have found that the problem only occurs on the drive containing the Windows 11 installation. For example, if you run the benchmark on a secondary drive, the read and write speeds do not change significantly from Windows 10.
For example, a screenshot was posted in Microsoft Forums shows a significant speed difference on two flagship Samsung 980 Pro NVMe SSDs on the same machine.
You can also find similar complaints in the official site Feedback Center. One user confirmed a 1TB Samsung 970 EVO Plus NVMe drive running Windows 10, the popular CrystalDiskMark benchmark tool, reporting random write speeds of around 750-850MB/s. However, on Windows 11, random write speeds are only around 200MB/s on the 970 EVO Plus and 980 PRO. In response to this post, other users reported similar findings when running benchmarks on their devices using NVMe drives.
Microsoft recently released update KB5007262 as a preview for Windows 11 with build number 22000.348, which some user reports showed signs of speed improvement, but it didn’t fix the problem.
https://pureinfotech.com/windows-11-slow-performance-nvme-ssds/ Windows 11 causes slow performance on NVMe SSDs • Pureinfotech


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The Tesla Model 3 is finally here.
Production unit 1 of Model 3 is now built and going through final checkout. Pics soon.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 9, 2017
The first Model 3 was slated to be finished to cap off the first week of the month, but the early July start is still about two weeks ahead of Tesla’s adjusted schedule. That’s great news for the hundreds of thousands of Tesla fans who have placed a reservation since March 2016, when pre-order totals reached over 134,000 in just over 24 hours. Read more…
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It’s common to hear rumors about Apple devices, but few have attracted as much interest as their long-awaited mixed reality headset.
According Bloombergthe mixed reality headset appeared during a meeting attended by Apple CEO Tim Cook, executives and members of the company’s board of directors.
This meeting was not device specific as Apple holds these meetings four times a year. The report also states that the current hardware version is powered by Apple’s M1 SoC.
According to what was filtered, It will offer a mix of virtual and augmented reality. It is believed to be Apple’s next big product.
With the introduction of the mixed reality headset, Apple can expand into a whole new world, which can consolidate its space for years to come.
What makes the headset unique is that it will not only feature new hardware, but also a new software platform. The helmet is said to have its own operating system, called ros.
While it’s unclear at this point, the product could debut sometime this year. Apparently, he would debut at the upcoming WWDC this year, but due to issues with the product, he won’t be making an appearance.


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Making Goodyear's next-gen blimp (pictures)
The new Goodyear blimp
AKRON, Ohio -- Anyone who has ever watched a major sporting event on TV is no doubt familiar with the famous Goodyear blimp. For decades, the tire giant's airships have flown over events of all kinds, providing aerial footage even as they advertise the company's tires.
But now Goodyear is getting ready to retire its three American-made blimps and replace them with three zeppelins designed by Germany's Zeppelin Luftschifftechnik (ZLT).
Why? For three main reasons. First, zeppelins fly differently than Goodyear's traditional blimps and offer television event directors the ability to have cameras essentially hover overhead and get better, more consistent shots. Second, the new airships are quieter. And finally, they fly faster, longer, and more efficiently.
Though Goodyear announced its plans in 2011, few have seen the company's progress as it builds its new zeppelins -- which it will continue to call blimps in order to maintain the "Goodyear blimp" brand. But on Road Trip 2013, CNET reporter Daniel Terdiman stopped in at the company's Wingfoot Lake blimp operations near Akron and got a firsthand look at how the new zeppelin is coming together.
Zeppelin and its skin
Goodyear is building the new zeppelin -- which it will still market as a blimp -- inside its Wingfoot Lake airship hangar near Akron, Ohio. The company hopes to formally unveil the new airship later this year, and will begin making the second of three zeppelins in 2015. It should complete construction of the third by 2018. The three zeppelins will replace the blimps that Goodyear currently bases at Akron, Carson, Calif., and Pompano Beach, Fla.
Goodyear purchased the design, and the components for the new zeppelins from Zeppelin Luftschifftechnik, which is based in Friedrichshafen, Germany. But Goodyear is building the airships in its Akron hangar, and making several modifications to the standard zeppelin NT design.
Currently, construction of the first new blimp is well under way, with the ship's frame already put together and its skin slowly being stretched out over its full length.
The rear frame
A look at the rear end of the frame of the next-generation Goodyear blimp, which is a zeppelin NT designed by Zeppelin Luftschifftechnik (ZLT). The new airship is being built jointly by Goodyear and ZLT personnel inside Goodyear's 800-foot-long Wingfoot Lake hangar.
Unlike a traditional blimp, which is essentially just a giant inflated bag, a zeppelin has a rigid frame.
Goodyear is replacing its familiar blimps with zeppelins like this one, seen in 2008 and flown by California's now-defunct Airship Ventures. The zeppelins are designed by Zeppelin Luftschifftechnik (ZLT), from Friedrichshafen, Germany, and feature three propellers instead of two, and a design that allows the airship to hover like a helicopter. That's one of the primary reasons Goodyear is switching airship platforms, given that being able to hover over a sporting event should allow event TV directors to order specific shots.
Compared with a traditional blimp (see next photo), a zeppelin is longer and has a slightly less oval silhouette.
The Spirit of Goodyear, one of the tire giant's existing three blimps, seen flying near the company's Wingfoot Lake hangar, outside Akron, Ohio. A blimp has a rounder, shorter silhouette than the zeppelins that the company will begin flying later this year.
The gondola on a zeppelin -- as seen on Airship Ventures' Eureka -- is larger and more comfortable than that of Goodyear's traditional blimps. In addition to seating 12 people instead of 6, the zeppelin's gondola is also much quieter because the engines are not directly outside. That means passengers can talk normally and don't need to wear headsets to hear each other.
The gondola found on Goodyear's traditional blimps is smaller and more cramped, and requires passengers to talk to each other using a headset, because the engines are directly outside.
Blimp from right front
A look at Goodyear's new blimp, which is being built inside its Akron, Ohio hangar. The tire giant is switching from traditional blimps to zeppelins, which are longer, faster, quieter, and can hover over events instead of having to circle around them.
Though Goodyear's new zeppelins will be the world's largest airships, they're dwarfed by the size of the tire giant's hangar outside Akron, Ohio.
Up and under
A look at the underside of the frame of the new Goodyear blimp, which is being built at the tire company's Akron, Ohio, airship hangar in conjunction with personnel from Germany's Zeppelin Luftschifftechnik, which designed it.
Sliding skin over the top
Because the zeppelin has a rigid frame, it's built by first constructing the frame and then slowly stretching the skin over the top. By comparison, a blimp is made by starting with the skin on the ground and slowly inflating it.
These weights are being used to hold down the ropes that are holding up the skin as it is slowly and methodically pulled over the zeppelin's rigid frame.
The zeppelin features these triangular trusses, made from lightweight composite materials, that help maintain its structure.
Though it appears that the yellow frame is the zeppelin's bottom, it is actually only its middle. The fabric seen underneath the frame will be pulled all the way to the airship's far (rear) end, and once fully enclosed, the zeppelin will be inflated using helium, which will raise the frame up well off the floor.
The full Goodyear zeppelin construction, as seen from the rear from an elevated platform at the tire giant's Akron, Ohio, airship hangar.
The three fins for the new Goodyear blimp sit on the floor alongside the airship.
The interior of a zeppelin's gondola is spacious, airy, and comfortable. This photograph was taken inside the gondola of the Eureka, which belonged to California-based Airship Ventures, which has gone out of business. The Eureka was dismantled and its components were sent back to Friedrichshafen, Germany, home of Zeppelin Luftschifftechnik, the company that made it, and which designed and is helping Goodyear construct its new zeppelins.
Perhaps the most important part of a zeppelin NT is its bathroom, which features a window from which to enjoy the view.
Unlike a traditional Goodyear blimp, which has only two engines, mounted just outside the gondola, a zeppelin has three engines, two of which are on either side of the airship's center, and a third at its very rear. Because it has three engines, a zeppelin can hover like a helicopter.
Another advantage of a zeppelin is that its engines can rotate, allowing for much more agile movement.
On truck mast
A zeppelin, seen in the Friedrichshafen, Germany, hangar of Zeppelin Luftschifftechnik, mounts to a mast that is attached to a long arm off a special truck.
A blimp's mast, by comparison, is a much larger, more cumbersome construction, as seen here, with the Spirit of Goodyear linked up to its pyramid-shaped mast at Goodyear's Akron, Ohio, airship operations headquarters.
Golden Gate Bridge, as seen from a zeppelin
Another advantage -- at least to the passengers -- of a zeppelin, is that its gondola has a large rear window, which allows those on board to see behind the airship. That's how CNET's Daniel Terdiman photographed the Golden Gate Bridge from the now-deconstructed zeppelin Eureka in 2012.
The silhouette of a zeppelin reveals a much slimmer airship than a traditional Goodyear blimp.


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|Bid||56.10 x 0|
|Ask||56.21 x 0|
|Day's range||56.01 - 56.43|
|52-week range||54.76 - 65.11|
|Beta (5Y monthly)||N/A|
|PE ratio (TTM)||N/A|
|Earnings date||24 July 2023 - 28 July 2023|
|Forward dividend & yield||N/A (N/A)|
|1y target est||N/A|
On Tuesday, Kraft Heinz introduced the HEINZ Remix, a customizable and IoT-enabled digital sauce dispenser.
ATLANTA, May 12, 2023--The Coca-Cola Company announced today that President and Chief Financial Officer John Murphy will present at the dbAccess Global Consumer Conference in Paris on June 8 at 5 a.m. ET (11 a.m. Central European Time).
It may be a short time in this one media stock for the Oracle of Omaha.
Billionaire investor Warren Buffett hosted the Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) annual shareholders meeting on Saturday, May 6, 2023 in Omaha, Nebraska. During the wide-ranging Q&A sessions, Buffett, the company’s CEO and Chairman, and Vice Chairman Charlie Munger answered questions from shareholders about the overall health of the economy, inflation, the regional bank crisis and artificial intelligence. The annual shareholders meeting took place just days after the Federal Reserve raised interest rates by 0.25% to a new 16-year high above 5% . Yahoo Finance’s Brian Sozzi and Myles Udland provide an overview and key takeaways from Saturday’s event. Key Moments: 00:02:43 breakdown of Buffett’s comments on banking 00:04:00 analyzing what Buffett and Munger said on AI 00:05:54 what Buffett and Munger said about “value investing”
Warren Buffett to investors: In business, it's best not let your emotions get ahead of you.
Warren Buffett will take center stage on Saturday, May 6 as Berkshire Hathaway (BRK-A) hosts its annual shareholders meeting in Omaha, Nebraska. The event has been dubbed the ‘Woodstock of Capitalism’, drawing attention from a wide range of investors, market watchers, and economists, all hoping to get a glimpse of the magic that inspired Buffett’s legendary career. Yahoo Finance is on the ground in Omaha with special coverage of the 2023 Berkshire Hathaway Annual Shareholders Meeting. Here are the top 3 things we’re watching for ahead of Saturday’s big event: Buffett’s comments on the banking crisis The state of the U.S. economy Warren Buffett’s top stock picks
Warren Buffett bought Apple for the first time in 2016, years after "everyone" knew the company had a hit with the iPhone. Since then, Apple stock more than quintupled.
Greycroft co-founder and VC investor Dana Settle explains investment opportunities in AI and how her firm responded when Silicon Valley Bank went under.
Following last year's successful launch of Sprite Limelight, the brand's ground-breaking global music program, Sprite will once again bring together an exceptional collective of fearless, international artists with creative points of view, to create original songs via an innovative format: one hook, many beats.
Warren Buffett, Berkshire Hathaway (BRK-A) CEO, is a legendary investor and business magnate who is widely regarded as one of the most successful investors in history. With a net worth of more than $100 billion, recent stock purchases over the last 15 years have helped Buffett’s wealth massively increase. So what exactly is his investment philosophy? It’s centered around the principle of value investing, which involves finding undervalued companies that focus on long-term earnings rather than short-term growth. In other words, rather than buying stocks, he buys businesses that have a competitive advantage. This approach has made him one of the most successful investors in history, and anyone can invest like him by following his strategies. Yahoo Finance's Josh Schafer zeroes in on the big companies Warren Buffett invests in, including Costco (COST) and Coca-Cola (KO), and breaks down why his investment strategy works, but also, can sometimes cause him to miss out on some big winners.
Thanks to a few mid-April earnings updates, investors now have a good understanding of the latest operating trends at Coca-Cola (NYSE: KO) and Procter & Gamble (NYSE: PG). As expected, the two consumer staples giants are showing strong sales trends even as shoppers pull back on spending in some non-essential areas. Coke and P&G are both enjoying solid earnings results too, despite soaring costs.
Coca-Cola (NYSE: KO), Raytheon (NYSE: RTX), and Caterpillar (NYSE: CAT) are experiencing a burst in revenue. Fool.com contributor and finance professor Parkev Tatevosian compares the three dividend stocks and picks his favorite to buy now.
The board of The Coca-Cola Company ( NYSE:KO ) has announced that it will be paying its dividend of $0.46 on the 3rd of...
Before those Apple earnings on May 4, here's what you need to know from tech earnings this week.
Key Insights Coca-Cola's estimated fair value is US$63.98 based on 2 Stage Free Cash Flow to Equity Coca-Cola's...
Boston Beer's (SAM) Q1 results reflect the impacts of continued softness in the hard seltzer category. Declines in shipments and depletions, along with higher costs, hurt the results.
Coca-Cola (NYSE: KO) is still growing sales at a bubbly clip. There were some other hints of weakness in the report, including slowing sales volumes and a reduced profit margin. Let's take a closer look at whether these results mean Coca-Cola stock is still an attractive buy for 2023.
Investors digesting earnings results are liking what they're seeing in the food sector.
Coke (KO) has been one of the stocks most watched by Zacks.com users lately. So, it is worth exploring what lies ahead for the stock.
Three of Berkshire Hathaway's four largest holdings offer dividend yields that are much higher than the S&P 500 average.
These brand-name stocks have been fixtures in Berkshire Hathaway's portfolio for at least 23 years.
Hillenbrand, Inc. (NYSE: HI), The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE: KO), and Net Impact announced the 2023 winners of the Circular Plastics Case Competition. The Circular Plastics Case Competition was created with the goal of bringing together the next generation of innovators to rethink the challenges the plastics value chain faces from creation to collection.
Rising inflation and general economic woes have weighed on the market for a while -- and now, the Federal Reserve is predicting a "mild" recession on the horizon. While a recession is never great news, it's also no reason to panic. You can start by following in the footsteps of someone who has invested through many recessions -- and has come out as a winner over time.
AI tech is being embraced everywhere right now, and no more so than at the nation's top fast-food restaurants.
It's an easy joke with soft drink companies talk about AI, but it's a technology that may match the runaway hype.


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MasterCard country manager Dalton Fowles started his payment processing career in the days before point of sale machines, when the authorisations required an individual to look up the credit history of the person standing in the store with the credit card.
A Jamaican native, Fowles became involved in data processing and money management in 1991 where his first job out of school was at the now defunct Citizens Bank. He immediately went into the card processing department. In those days, there was no point of sale machine; merchants had to call the bank to get an authorisation number to process a credit card transaction.
Now fast forward to his current job as country manager for the global payment processor, MasterCard.
Fowles has been a part of the development of the payment processing industry in Jamaica. He moved from the Citizens Bank to the now also defunct Island Victoria Bank to set up their credit card division. That job evolved into leading the conglomeration of banks that were rescued in the late 1990s through the organisation known as the Financial Sector Adjustment, otherwise called Finsac.
The five failed banks were merged under the name Union Bank which was sold to the Royal Bank of Trinidad and Tobago, and later bought out by the Sagicor Group. During that transitional period, Fowles joined First Global Bank in 2007 where he was the lead on payment processes for the Visa brand. Then this year, he joined MasterCard as country manager for Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago.
That said, when Fowles talks about the evolution of the payment processing industry in Jamaica, he does so with authority. “Let us always remember that [with] the regulatory framework now, banks cannot carry more than a five to eight per cent of assets in a bad debt portfolio and this debt could not be carried for more than three months,” he said. “And pre-1990s when regulation was not as strong, people took credit and [were] not serving it. Things have changed, especially with the introduction of the credit bureau about five years ago. [It] helps to change behaviour. So over time, I believe our country has matured.”
“With the maturing of the card payment regulatory sector, it allows for the expansion of payment options. The credit bureaus offer the financial sector a way to ensure that credit is repaid. This creates a greater sense of confidence to issue credit. Further, the payment sector has matured to where there are three electronic options for Jamaicans – credit, debit and prepaid cards. This now means that Jamaica is poised to fully benefit from the evolution of the global payment platform.”
Fowles pointed out that MasterCard is not in the business of issuing credit. “The focus for the brand is to allow for improved payment processes. We want to work with our partners to make it easy to issue cards because MasterCard has done the work to build out the payment network.”
And with the opening of the MasterCard office in Jamaica, there will be time for Fowles to demonstrate how his brand can provide innovative ways to grow the business and government payment sector.