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NEW DELHI :
Microsoft is finally pulling the plug on its original Internet browser—the Internet Explorer. After a life cycle of over 25 years, the desktop application for Internet Explorer will be “retired” on 15 June 2022 and it will no longer receive support services from the company either. The company is encouraging users to shift to Microsoft Edge instead, which has legacy support for Internet Explorer-based websites built in.
While the effective end of life for Internet Explorer had happened last year, it still allowed users to use Explorer with limited functions. Microsoft announced last year that the web app for Microsoft Teams will stop working on Internet Explorer 11 (IE11) from 30 November. Additionally, services included in Microsoft 365, such as Outlook and OneDrive, will stop connecting to IE11 from 17 August 2021.
The tech giant had said last year that withdrawing support for these services would mean users will get a “degraded experience” on IE11, the latest version of Internet Explorer. “Over the last year, you may have noticed our movement away from Internet Explorer (“IE”) support, such as an announcement of the end of IE support by Microsoft 365 online services. Today, we are at the next stage of that journey: We are announcing that the future of Internet Explorer on Windows 10 is in Microsoft Edge,” the company said in a post today.
Microsoft also noted that this affects all consumer versions of Internet Explorer, and the browser will still get support on its Long-Term Servicing Channels (LTSC). The company has put a full list of what the retirement covers here.
While Internet Explorer has lost its relevance over the years, the browser is an important part of the history of the Internet. Its story spans the first big antitrust battle between Big Tech and regulators, when Microsoft went in front of the US Department of Justice in the late 1990s. The outcome of that case is one of the reasons why almost all web browsers today are free and led to regulations that changed the way Windows worked.
The web browser used to account for over 90% of the market share around 2004 but dropped steadily since the launch of Google Chrome in 2008. It has less than 1% market share today.
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Bite readers have known Hospobaby since she was one. Zoya is now three and she’s learning to cook – from the top with her dad, much-awarded chef Sid Sahrawat. This week they make delicious duck ragu with homemade pappardelle.
Woohoo asparagus is finally in stores so here’s what we’re cooking. For more recipes see our asparagus collection.
Here’s the winner of our latest Milly’s reader recipe competition and a few others who have been published in Bite magazine.
Recipes and articles from this week's issue of Bite.

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Pound falls as weak uk gdp data damp rate rise talk this is a tech bubble, when's the crash wework bond finds home in yield-starved market. Irish economic recovery continues to strengthen but risks remain real and varied read more. Average all-in tax rates, by country and year july 2, 2015 1 comment irish economy, property market may 12, 2014 construction, not rent control, the solution to the housing crisis. Davy stockbrokers have today predicted that ireland’s gdp will grow by 37% in 2017 this is a minor downward revision from 40% previously but still likely to be the strongest growth across. As a small open economy ireland’s financial fortunes are largely dependent on international trade and influenced by global markets that means it’s important to build overseas partnerships. Ireland is booming it grew almost 7% last year that's far better than the us and on par with china. The surprisingly strong rebound of the irish economy over the past two years has been much commented on at home and abroad we have official national accounts data from the cso for the first.
The economy of ireland is a knowledge economy, focused on services into high-tech, life sciences and financial services industriesireland is an open economy (6th on the index of economic. Department of finance | uk eu exit – an exposure analysis of sectors of the irish economy uk eu exit – an exposure analysis of sectors of the irish economy. The economist offers authoritative insight and opinion on international news, politics, business, finance, science, technology and the connections between them. Data and research on economy including economic outlooks, analysis and forecasts, country surveys, monetary and financial issues, public finance and fiscal policy and productivity, ireland. The irish economy oct 14th 2004 from the economist print edition an economic miracle with many causes the figures recording ireland's transition from europe's worst- to its. Fdi and the irish economy fdi has been identified as one of the key drivers of ireland’s return to economic prosperity the irish government has continued to demonstrate its commitment to.
Estimates of irish pension liabilities 2015 planning permission q4 2017 irish babies names 2017 baby names of ireland brexit indicators: ireland and the uk in numbers. Irish economy smiling as gdp growth beats eurozone rivals the country has come a long way since the 'celtic tiger' bubble burst and it was forced into stringent austerity measures. Ireland economic outlook march 27, 2018 the irish economy grew at a strong rate in 2017, although quarterly national accounts data remains volatile and contradictory. Ireland - economy: ireland has a mixed economy the constitution provides that the state shall favour private initiative in industry and commerce, but the state may provide essential.
The post-2008 irish economic downturn in the republic of ireland, coincided with a series of banking scandals, followed the 1990s and 2000s celtic tiger period of rapid real economic growth. More information about ireland is available on the ireland page and from other department of state publications and other sources listed at the end of this fact sheet us-ireland.
Ireland's economy has surged 77% in a year, according to official figures that appear to show the former tiger economy has rediscovered its vigour.
Ireland has retained its status as the european union’s fastest-growing economy, according to european commission forecasts published this morning the commission’s triannual analysis of the. If the global economy is going through a rough time at the moment, nobody told ireland the central statistics office (cso) has just announced the counrty's gdp expanded 78% in 2015 even. Irish consumer confidence recovers after february dip expectations for household incomes and spending improve could this be hinting at the. The economy grew by an enormous 26% last year, according to the latest figures from the central statistics office. The economy in irelandireland is a small, modern, trade-dependent economy ireland was among the initial group of 12 eu nations that began circulating. Read the latest irish economy headlines, on newsnow: the one-stop shop for irish economy news. The european commission has put irish economic growth at 73% for 2017 as the economy expanded at a solid pace, supported mainly by domestic activity.
Migrants and the irish economy october 2012 a paper prepared for the integration centre by jim power, mecon sc & péter szlovak, llm iii. Irish economy and public finances macroeconomic outlook ireland’s strong economic growth continues even after accounting for distortions to ireland’s gdp data (see below for discussion on. The aim of this website is to provide commentary, information, and intelligent discourse about the irish economy the opinions expressed on the site are personal to the individual. South bend, ind -- on a perfect october night, notre dame players and coaches gather in the northwest corner of notre dame to sing the alma mater after their biggest win over rival usc in.


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The Bloomberg headline reads “Home Prices Seen Dropping 10% in U.S. on Foreclosures: Mortgages.” But that’s not correct.
The story explains that Moody’s thinks the prices of foreclosed homes will drop by up to 10 percent when they come back onto the market.
What effect that will have on the rest of the market isn’t known.
So, getting past that misleading hed….
Moody’s expects foreclosure/repo sales to rise by 25 percent in 2012, and that glut will force prices down, Economics 101 style, by up to 10 percent. Meaning they could drop 10%, 9%, or 1%.
That’s because so many foreclosures and REOs have been sitting idle, accruing dust and damage while shedding value.
As the story explains, “Homes stockpiled less than a year sell for about 35 percent below the value set by lenders, according to a March 15 report by the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland. At two years, the loss is close to 60 percent.”
So, what effect will cheap foreclosures have on the overall market? Hard to say, although everyone will have an opinion.
Will they drive prices down across the ‘regular’ market? Only if the same kind of people who would buy a home in good condition would also look at a fixer-upper.
In this buyer’s market, will most people prefer to get a house that’s move-in-ready? Or will they only be able to get enough financing for a beat-up REO?
How about investors — will they turn to them? Could be, if they think they’ll save enough on the price to pay for the repairs before selling or renting them.
It’s one of those multi-variable problems that keeps pundits, analysts, and other “experts” busy.
Click here for the Bloomberg story. Just remember to ignore the headline.


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Evo 2016 Opens Its Doors
The biggest fighting game competition is open for registration! Will you be part of the long and passionate history of fighters?
This year, Evo is going to be bigger than anything we have seen before. The fighting game community (FGC) is growing especially with big titles releasing in the genre. Titles like Super Smash Bros, Street Fighter, Killer Instinct and more have grown and created such a competitive atmosphere that leaves new players thirsty to be a part of it.
We already know the line-up prepared for Evo 2016. In case you don’t know, there is Street Fighter V, Super Smash Bros. Melee, Mortal Kombat X, Guilty Gear Xrd -REVELATOR, Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3, Super Smash Bros. for Wii U and even Pokken Tournament! A new chapter in fighting game history is about to unfold.
In case you did not know, Evo 2016 will be taking place on July 15-17 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Players can pay 20$ to sign up and an additional 10$ for every game they wish to compete in. Registration will be open until the 25th of February so make sure you save your spot while you still can!
This year will also be a big upgrade to past Evo tournaments since the finals for the event will be in a separate venue. The finals will be taking place at Mandalay Bay’s Event Center and will have separate tickets available for those who simply wish to assist the final event. This is going to be very hype and it’s great to see the fighting game community growing as fast as it is.
Do you believe the fighting scene will continue to develop into something a lot more commercial? Is there a game missing from the line-up that you would like to see in future Evo tournaments? Let us know in the comments below and while you’re at it, check out our Facebook page for more gaming coolness.


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Kia Motors is wrapping the year up with the promises of unveiling cool new models in the next one. In early 2017 they will reveal the new Kia GT sports car and this, an all-new Kia Picanto city car, a tiny little thing that’s been a best-seller for the Korean car maker across the globe.
To be revealed nest year as a 2018 model, the new Kia Picanto will retain its excellent size for a city car but spices everything else up with a mixture of new design features, including a more assertive face, greater potential for customer personalization, bolder body lines and an exciting color palette which, judging by the preview photos, will include two-tone stuff. Inside the cabin the new Picanto will benefit from improved comfort, convenience and safety features, all wrapped in a smartly packages interior design which results in a much more efficient use of the available space.
The post Preview: 2018 Kia Picanto appeared first on Motorward.


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We are experiencing major changes in the equity markets right now, and many investors are wondering, “What’s next?” Meanwhile, experts in the financial industry are predicting major market shifts that will create a commodities “supercycle” in 2021.
What do you need to know to successfully invest in commodities, and what are the best opportunities available today? Here’s why you should consider commodity investing:
Commodities are raw materials or primary agricultural products that are consumed directly or used to create other products. Examples include grain, coffee, gold, copper, oil, beef, and natural gas.
These are just some of the advantages of commodity investing:
The weak U.S. dollar, paired with many economists’ predictions about an overheated economy due to multiple rounds of stimulus, could lead to inflation that will raise the price of commodities. However, as of right now, commodities remain overlooked by the majority of investors, so prices remain low.
In addition, many expect that we’ll experience some corrections in the equity market, which was seen as propped up by the government during the pandemic. Since commodities and equities are generally inversely correlated, we can expect the commodity market to outperform in 2021 if equities do underperform. These conditions create the perfect backdrop for the commodity investments to enter a “supercycle.”
During the past year, many commodities have already been breaking out. For example, copper has recently reached a two-year high, and lumber prices have more than doubled. Meanwhile, Goldman Sachs has proclaimed the dawn of a new commodity supercycle.
The top two most-traded commodities are oil and coffee. Oil prices have experienced dramatic fluctuations during the pandemic, and its future is uncertain due to increasingly stringent emissions control regulations and macro shifts to cleaner energy. On the other hand, coffee is popular among investors since it’s well-positioned to benefit from the rise in agricultural commodity prices.
Moreover, the demand for coffee across the global market is rising. Coffee continues to grow in popularity thanks to the international success of chains such as Starbucks and Costa Coffee as well as fast-growing local roasters. In fact, over 2.25 billion cups of coffee are consumed every day.
China’s accelerating coffee consumption, which was already expanding before the pandemic, will likely continue thanks to the country’s quick recovery. Consumers in many emerging markets are also increasing their coffee consumption, which will increase the demand for coffee even more for decades to come.
While the demand side of the equation is going up, the supply side is facing challenges.
Coffee requires very specific weather conditions to grow. The plant is mainly produced in countries affected by extreme weather (e.g., El Niño) that can ruin the crops. Climate change is already threatening coffee production in several key regions such as Brazil and Ethiopia.
For example, a prolonged drought has fueled speculation about the weakening of Brazil’s coffee trees in the 2021 production cycle, which would threaten Brazil’s position as the largest global producer and exporter of coffee. The potential loss could affect as much as 50% of the crop in certain areas and have a substantial impact on the global coffee supply. Furthermore, these extreme weather conditions can lead to the collapse of key infrastructure, impacting the flow of goods from their sources to the market in a timely manner to meet demand.
The rise in demand coupled with the potential drop in supply means that coffee prices are likely to rise in 2021 and beyond. All things point to coffee being a commodity that investors should consider if they’re looking to diversify their portfolio, generate high returns, and shield themselves from potential upcoming market corrections.
While commodity investing presents a lot of benefits, there are also risks that you should be aware of. For example, you should choose an investment with minimal exposure to volatility caused by political, economic, and currency instability. You should also evaluate world events, import controls, worldwide competition, government regulations, and economic conditions—all of which could impact commodity prices.
If you’re considering investing in coffee, you should look for an established operator in a region not affected by recent extreme weather events. Also, review its future expansion plan and market potential. For example, growers that are certified by the Rainforest Alliance can tap into a broader market of potential buyers and sell coffee at a premium price.
The Green Coffee Company in Colombia is one such opportunity for investors interested in the coffee industry. The project has already raised $8.3M in capital to date, is operational, managed by an experienced team, producing award-winning coffee, and selling internationally.
Total production increased 4x in 2020, more coffee was produced in January 2021 than the entire first half of 2020, and critical investments in automation, real-time data analysis, centralized controls, 3-D scanners, and other operational initiatives will make the company arguably the most technologically advanced coffee producer in Colombia.
With an forecasted target IRR of 23%, it’s an opportunity that you don’t want to miss. Learn more about our Colombian Coffee Series B Round and see how you can take advantage of this potential commodity supercycle.


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SALT LAKE CITY -- Burton Group, an IT research firm focused on in-depth analysis of enterprise infrastructure technologies, released a report that analyzes the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council (FFIEC) guidance on authentication for Internet banking and recommends three technologies that can mitigate risks of online fraud.
According to Mark Diodati, analyst with Burton Group's Identity and Privacy Strategies service, the consumer authentication market is growing fast, but not all authentication techniques are created equal. He recommends that financial institutions implement risk analytic engines, out-of-band (OOB) identity proofing and anti-phishing services.
Risk analytic engines help identify potentially fraudulent transactions and allow financial institutions to:
- Stop the transaction
- Let the transaction occur, but increase account activity scrutiny
- Initiate identity proofing processes to verify the user's identity
Out-of-band identity proofing provides higher identity assurance. OOB utilizes channels other than the web session to identity-proof the user at key stages of user interaction with the financial institution's website. Diodati points out that other techniques like device identification and digital watermarking, while valuable, depend upon adequate identity proofing.
Anti-phishing services utilize a real-time network to shares current phishing information with all financial institutions that can reject access from known phishing sites. In addition, many services will work with the major Internet service providers (ISPs) to shut down the site and direct users away from phishing sites.
"If implemented properly, these techniques, along with consumer anti-fraud guarantees, will mitigate the risk of fraudulent transactions on a financial institutions website," says Diodati.


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Another proxy advising firm recommended Smith & Wesson shareholders support a proposed gun violence risk report, according to regulatory filings published this week.
In a policy voting recommendation sent to parent company American Outdoor Brands Sept. 7, Institutional Shareholder Services expressed support for the report — a proposal backed by faith-based investors — despite repeated public criticism from the gun maker’s top executives.
Smith & Wesson doubled down on those sentiments Monday, discrediting the gun violence statistics cited in the proposal and describing any suggestion shareholders don’t “fully understand the financial and reputational risks involved” in investing in a firearms manufacturer as “naive and disingenuous at best.”
Chief Executive Officer James Debney said the Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary, the activist group behind the report, knowingly abused the company’s proxy system just to advance a political agenda — and warned fellow investors not to fall for it.
“Unlike a bonafide investor, this proponent purchased just 200 shares, the bare minimum needed under SEC rules to place an item on the proxy with the sole objective to push an anti-firearms agenda, designed to harm our company, disrupt the local sale of our products and destroy stockholder value,” he said during an Aug. 31 conference call. “This proponent will gladly sacrifice its investments and yours to achieve its political objectives.”
Last month, the nun group filed a resolution asking American Outdoor Brands Corporation to report on the risks involved in selling firearms and take “the first steps towards acceptance of this responsibility.” Shareholders will vote on the resolution at the company’s annual meeting Sept. 25.
“Contrary to what the company suggests, AOBC has both the responsibility and capacity to play a more active role in how its products are used,” the resolution concludes, noting since 1984, Smith & Wesson manufactured firearms used in five mass shootings that left 43 people dead and more than 80 wounded.
ISS agreed, advising shareholders “a vote for this proposal is warranted as additional information on the company’s policies and practices to mitigate harm from its products would help shareholders assess management’s oversight of related risks and opportunities.”
Smith & Wesson argues such a report wastes resources because tracking illegal firearms use won’t give the company any ability to prevent such crimes from happening in the first place. Instead, Smith & Wesson says it only distributes to licensed retailers and wholesalers and works closely with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives to trace guns recovered at crime scenes.
“The ISS Report either misses the obvious or, worse, chooses to ignore it,” Smith & Wesson concludes in the Sept. 10 filing. “Proponent has no interest in safety, governance, or risk mitigation, but rather the disruption of the lawful sale of our products which will inevitably destroy value not create it. Political issues should be debated and decided in the federal and state legislatures not at the annual meeting of stockholders.”
Shareholders backed a nearly-identical proposal at Sturm, Ruger and Company’s annual meeting in May.


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The digital era has rattled multiple industries and signs indicate that this is just the beginning.
Disruption is the order of the day as startups offer increased convenience to customers at lower costs, facilitated by the integration of ubiquitous high-speed mobile connectivity, the Internet of Everything and advanced analytics. The barriers of entry have come crashing down with motivated and driven entrepreneurs competing with traditional businesses.
The new innovations are no longer just coming from the traditional epicenters of the various industries.
San Francisco, Beijing, Tel Aviv and Bangalore are some of the cities globally where the clusters of digital startups include entrepreneurs charting the future of industries ranging from finance to space travel.
The examples of industries disrupted by digitalization are all around us.
One of the earliest examples was the media industry impacted by the rise of online publications using real-time online journalism and crowd sourced content.
This has been taken one step further with artificial intelligence (AI) being used to write earnings stories.
Startups like Uber, Grab and Ola have transformed the taxi industry, which in the near future might get disrupted further with the coming of driverless cars.
Customer expectations have also evolved with the advent of new, personalized experiences enabled by digital startups, and there are a growing number of them in Asia.
India has more than 19,000 technology-enabled startups, China has doubled its startup population between 2010 and 2014.
Startup growth is also ramping up in developed countries.
For instance, the number of high-technology or knowledge-intensive startups in Singapore grew by more than 90 percent, since 2004.
In the Philippines, the number of startups is expected to jump to 500 with total valuation of $2 billion by 2020, creating 8,500 high-skilled jobs, enabling 1,250 founders, and acquiring 15.17 million users and 719,737 paying customers.
Enterprises in the region are realizing that they need to innovate fast or get disrupted.


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Since the previous Mirror report, both the home and export markets for recycled steel have continued their downward price trends, reflecting the bearish sentiment among most participants. The slow demand for Turkish finished products has been a fundamental factor in the price offers being put forward for furnace-ready material by Turkey’s steel producers, who are still the world’s largest net importers of secondary raw material. This has had a negative impact on UK bulk deep-sea markets and, at the time of writing, the dockside price for HMS 80/20 material has, apart from a brief upward spurt at the end of May, slipped to a year low that is 22% below the 2023 peak recorded at the end of February. One bulk deep-sea market participant stated that these were the worst trading conditions seen since the pandemic.
On the back of the situation in Turkey, available container destinations have continued to align their prices to more favourable buying terms, with prices down 17% compared to the containerised year high reached in February. However, Pakistan and Bangladesh (Letter of Credit issues) and Indonesia (sourcing material from Japan as a preferential supplier) are currently dormant destinations as far as the UK containerised market is concerned.
Amid these price drops, the shortage of material and limited available destinations, trading has been more difficult than in recent months. The market outlook continues to look bearish in the short to medium term, although the shortage of material may induce a correction at some point if demand strengthens.
Economic conditions in the UK, Continental Europe and elsewhere in the world are also compounding this bearish sentiment. In the UK, there have been four hikes in the interest base rate to 5%, with predictions of more increases to follow as the government battles inflation currently pitched at 8.7%. The impact of these measures is also hitting industry and manufacturing, with the latest UK GDP reading showing that the economy shrank in May by 0.1%.
With little or no growth since 2019, economists have virtually no optimism for better days ahead in the foreseeable future. Global energy prices and inflation are still impacting suppliers and consumers alike. Trying to accommodate higher production overheads with a diminishing infeed is still a major concern for many UK metal merchants.
Although the export market remains the major outlet for recycled raw materials for the UK, which is the largest exporter within the European zone, steel mills in this country are continuing to secure all their needs, albeit at lower levels.
UK merchants are still enduring a lack of available staff, high energy costs and high inflation; although energy and inflation rates are lower than in previous months, they remain historically higher than they have been for many years. With the addition of a 15-year-high cost of borrowing, business sentiment and confidence are at best pessimistic.
The continuing uncertainty surrounding the situation in Ukraine and world financial market/economy fears are all having an impact on sentiment at present.


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The turnover (CA) of Lydec, in charge in particular of the distribution of water and electricity in Grand Casablanca, fell by 5.9% to 3.38 billion dirhams (billion dirhams) at the end of June 2020.
By business line, electricity revenue fell 8.5% (volumes sold down 8.6%), while drinking water revenue grew 3.9% (volumes sold up 3.8%), Lydec said in a press release.
For the first six months of 2020, Delegated Management’s investments fell by 2.7% to MAD 374 million (MDH) and the level of net debt amounted to MAD 1.8 billion, in increase of 66% compared to the end of June 2019, impacted by the significant drop in sales and customer receipts due to the measures taken at national level during the confinement period.
During the 2nd quarter of 2020, Lydec’s sales amounted to MAD 1.7 billion, down 8.4% compared to Q2-2019, impacted by the drop in fluid sales of 10.1 billion. % linked to the negative impacts of the new coronavirus (covid-19) pandemic on activity.


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Cookies on fushi.co.uk
Thinking of giving eco-friendly gifts this year? Why not try to make something yourself?
This is the suggestion from Hilary Bruffell, co-founder of makeitandmendit.com, who noted that there is a trend towards creating homemade goods born from concerns about finances and also from a desire to be more environmentally friendly.
"Making and mending doesn't just make sustainable sense, but environmental sense and also psychological sense," she explained. "Making is good for us and can increase not only our sense of wellbeing, but our sense of control over difficult times."
"We have noticed a large rise in traffic of people wanting to find out how to do things for themselves and how they can make their money go further. Making and mending isn't just about 'making do' and getting by, but also about getting more for your money and valuing what you have."
One thing people can try is to make their own Christmas decorations or update their old ones by giving them a revamp.
"This doesn't mean that they have to look naff and horrible, [but] with a little bit of inspiration and glue you can make your house look a winter wonderland without paying a fortune," Ms Bruffell added.
But those who feel their talents do not lie with making their own presents for loved ones have plenty of other options when it comes to eco-friendly products.
The Guardian has put together a guide to green presents, from purses made of organic cotton to a recycled cork phone cover, so there are lots of things to choose from.
And if you decide to 'give green' this Christmas, you certainly won't be alone - research from the Co-operative Group last week found that sales of ethical goods and services rose by nine per cent this year, despite the ongoing tough financial climate putting a downer on people's spending patterns.
Posted by Sam Wallace


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New store to replace out-of-shape health club
By Kelly Pate
Denver Post Business Writer
- The old eyesore in Cherry Creek North, formerly a Holiday Health Club, will be demolished and a new two-story structure will take its place.
Owner Larry Atler said he expects to spend about $1.1 million to demolish the existing building, on the west side of Detroit Street near East 3rd Avenue, and construct a new one, which will have 8,800 square feet of retail and 2,600 feet of office space. A California-based home furnishings store is expected to sign a lease this month for the ground floor spot, Atler said. He wouldn't name the tenant but said the company operates stores along both east and west coasts.
The building should be completed by fall, so the shop can open for the holidays, said Atler, who is a lawyer with Senn Lewis & Visciano and separately invests in residential and commercial real estate projects.
SEM Architects will design the new Cherry Creek building in a Mediterranean style, including a stucco exterior with cast stone at its base, said Scott Meyer, a project manager with SEM. Doors will be wood and entries will be accented with polished marble or granite.
The storefront, facing east, will be lined with tinted green glass windows and canvas awnings.
Twenty years ago, Atler bought the Holiday Health Club building from a defunct bank for about $200,000. The club leased the building at the time and moved out several years ago, after failing to meet conditions under an option to buy in the lease.
Copyright 2000 The Denver Post. All rights reserved.
This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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Lamborghini unveils insane new Vision GT
Lamborghini pulled the wraps off a new concept car – the V12 Vision GT.
The motor was unveiled ahead of the 2019 Gran Tourismo Championships in Monte Carlo. It’s thought that the car will be featured in Sony’s highly-celebrated PS4 game of the same name later this year.
According to Stefano Domenicali, the Chairman of Lamborghini – the new car is all about presenting their vision of why a hypercar of the future will look like.
“Lamborghini is a very young brand, and this is why we are here today to present our newest virtual vision in the form of a real model, with a highly futuristic and cool design,” said Domenicali.
He hopes the new car will “be enjoyed by the young generation of racing game and super sports car enthusiasts.”
The Vision GT has only one single-seat, using a Sian FKP37 drivetrain.
Inspiration was taken from the Lamborghini Marzal from 1968 – which had similar hexagon-inspired side windows.
The Lamborghini Mazal served as inspiration for the concept motor
While this game has just been unveiled in a digital environment, for now, it’s hoped that a concept model – will come along in 2020. Because when a car looks this good, it would be a shame to leave in in virtual reality.


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Sep 8, 2021
On this Constellations Podcast, we’ll talk about the exponential growth of Non-Geostationary-Orbit (NGSO) satellite constellations, their commercial and go-to-market plans, and the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead in realizing a bandwidth filled future. Well over 50,000 NGSO communications smallsats are planned for launch over the next decade. SpaceX, Amazon Project Kuiper, SES, Telesat, OneWeb and many other constellation providers are promising to transform the space industry with thousands of NGSOs beaming tens of Terabits per second to the ground to satisfy a seemingly endless demand for bandwidth. During this episode, Nathan de Ruiter, the Managing Director of Euroconsult Canada will share insights into the go-to-market plans and commercial strategy for these NGSO constellations and the implications from a business model, cost, funding and ground segment perspective.


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With European sales starting this summer, Tesla is making the transition to becoming a truly global automaker. One of the key differentiators Tesla has relative to other automakers, or even other EV makers, is its network of high-speed Supercharger stations. Currently clustered primarily in California and New England, the company has ambitious plans over the next few years to build a nationwide network. A few days ago, Tesla kicked off its European Supercharger network with the opening of six stations in EV-friendly Norway.
At first glance, Norway may seem like an odd country to start expansion
into the European market, as it’s not a member of the European Union, and is relatively sparsely populated, with only about 5 million people in a country almost as large as the state of California. But the country has very favorable policies for electric vehicles, and on a per-capita basis, has the largest proportion of EVs of any country in the world.
The Superchargers are strategically located on some of the country’s most-traveled routes. Tesla claims the location of its Superchargers puts them within less than 200 miles of 90 percent of the country’s population. To kick off the opening of the new stations, three Model S’ departed from different parts of the country, converging in the capital of Oslo. The event was documented on the Tesla Facebook page, and new European Twitter account @Tesla_Europe with the hashtag #EuroSupercharger.


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Latest Paper Stories
DALLAS, April 23, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- The report "Paper Coating Materials Market by Type (GCC, PCC, Kaolin Clay, Talc, Starch, SB latex, Titanium Dioxide, Wax, and others),
Boss Software Inc has released "GO PAPERLESS", a game-changing feature to its flagship product, Shop Boss Pro and revolutionizes an industry. Poway,
STEVENS POINT, Wis., April 17, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- NewPage Corporation (NewPage), a leading supplier of specialty papers, today launched a second edition of its PAPER@WORK Brief series
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New eco-innovation company is on a roll with products made from bamboo and sugarcane. If every person in the U.S.
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Launches in U.S.
An extraordinary paper maintains its relevance in the digital age APPLETON, Wis., March 24, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- What began as a search for a better receipt paper resulted
The ECTACO jetBook is a line of e-book readers developed by ECTACO released globally in October 2008. Other models released were the jetBook lite in January 2010, the jetBook mini in August, 2010, and the jetBook color. The display on the jetBook is a 5-inch reflective LCD screen with no backlight. It has an automatic page-turn and bookmark function. English is built into the device with an explanatory dictionary and supports most European and Asian languages, with adjustable font sizes,...
- Growing in low tufty patches.


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Here’s the press release from the Asheville City Schools Foundation:
Third Time’s the Charm: Announcing Launch for Go Local Card Sales 2014
For three years now, The Asheville Grown Business Alliance (AGBA) and the Asheville City Schools Foundation (ACSF) have joined forces. More than a just a discount card, the Go Local Card highlights the importance of a thriving local economy and strong local public schools. The Go Local Card supports the mission of success for all Asheville City Schools students by funding teacher-led professional development grants, artists in residence, after-school enrichment, and scholarships to graduating seniors. Last year, card sales alone raised over $20,000 that was directly invested in the education of children.
During the month of November, the 2014 Go Local Card will be available for purchase exclusively through Asheville City Schools or PTOs and online at www.acsf.org and www.ashevillegrown.com. The cost is $15 with ten dollars from every card sale going to Asheville City Schools Foundation and a designated Asheville City School. The remaining $5 supports the efforts of Asheville Grown in our community. Parents and community members are encouraged to get their Go Local Cards early in November to yield the most benefit for their respective schools. Beginning December 1, the cards can be purchased online and through new official business partners paired with each Asheville City School.
Franzi Charen of Asheville Grown notes, “This card unites the children in our community with our local businesses in a way that benefits everyone. The messages of multi-national corporations are gaining a stronger foothold in our schools and as a leader in the local movement; we want Asheville to be a beacon highlighting a better way.”
Local businesses like the Fine Arts Theatre are offering a special deal for cardholders, and are also selling cards at their location with 100% of the proceeds benefiting school partner-Asheville High School (AHS). Manager Neal Reed’s passion for advocacy for public education was palpable in a recent meeting, stating “I’m in. Whatever we can do to help support our schools needs to be a priority.” Reed is also working with AHS PTO to host screenings of education based documentaries for the community.
Visit any of these locations to purchase a Go Local Card throughout the year with proceeds benefitting each partnering school:
• Asheville High School- Hip Replacements & Fine Arts Theatre
• Asheville Middle School-Malaprop’s Bookstore
• Claxton Elementary- Homegrown & Rosebud Video
• Hall Fletcher Elementary Short Street Cakes & BattleCat Coffee bar
• Ira B. Jones Elementary- The Hop
• Isaac Dickson Elementary-Second Gear
• Vance Elementary- West End Bakery & The Hop West
The success of this movement is evident as more partners jump on board. Mountain Express, the official Go Local media partner has agreed to produce 45,000 copies of a directory of participating businesses for distribution in early December. Time is running out to get listed for free in this directory. Local businesses have the opportunity to sign on to the program until November 1st. For more information and to sign on, go to ACSF’s website at www.acsf.org or ashevillegrown.com.


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Tim Schafer is having a good week.
First there was the tweet from Notch, offering to fund development of Psychonauts 2. I haven’t been paying attention, but apparently Notch has Oprah Money now, and is willing to throw it at a game he wants made like it were a gaggle of overexcited housewomen. That project might happen, might not – talks are ongoing, hopes are high. But Schafer has long wanted to make a sequel to his poor-selling but much-loved action/platformer, and now he might get to without having to deal with all that publisher handwringing.
And now, this.
As of 11:08 pm (EST) on Thursday February 9, 2012, Double Fine exceeded their Kickstarter goal by more than $600,000, with 32 of 33 days on it remaining.
The number is still climbing (now $1,138,690, five minutes later).
It is the fastest funded Kickstarter project in (a fairly short) history, which is probably the least interesting thing about it.
Tim Schafer, Ron Gilbert and the folks at Double Fine asked the people of the internet if they would be interested in a new oldschool point-and-click adventure game. You know, the kind of game that Activision and EA would probably scoff at for being niche and anachronistic and not worth the 1/25th development money of a Call of Duty or Battlefield it needs – the kind of game that self-serving market research would suggest no one wants to play.
And yet, within 24 hours of asking, Double Fine has enough money to make the game twice. And it’s still climbing ($1,142,271).
It’ll be interesting to see how much they get in the next 32 days. The bubble will probably burst – surely they’ll top out over the weekend around $2 million as everyone interested signs on and the story cools off. Surely. But it doesn’t matter, in the end, because a different kind of history has been made – Double Fine, indie developer, offered fans a way to buy an idea (and more!), and will use that money to make the idea into a game.
The lowest tier of pledge rewards ($15) includes the finished game on Steam, access to the beta, the making-of documentary, and a private forum for discussion about it. That’s a lot more than I get for the $60 (plus tax!) I pay for most new releases. And they never even say thank you.
Of course, this situation is unique – this is Double Fine, a well-loved company headed by the most likeable developer in all of gaming. They have been churning out digital releases for a while now, focusing on many small, creative projects instead of the years-spanning, entire-team-needing, creatively draining and financially risky Disc-Based Mega Game. Their last DBMG didn’t do too well, which in part prompted the move to the download space and set the stage for this coup.
I don’t know if there is anyone else in the industry right now that (30,444) gamers would get behind to the tune of ($1,147,051). I know if thatgamecompany did the same thing I would buy in for as much as I could afford. Regardless, this is super exciting for Double Fine and its fans, and, at the very least, something other developers and publishers – independent and monolithic alike – should be paying close attention to.
The old way isn’t the only way. Instead of having to bow and scrape and compromise to make a game that is maybe half what it was envisioned to be, trusted developers can ask their devoted fans directly to fund development and in return, they get a game that wouldn’t be made otherwise. That’s a great deal for everyone involved.
In the time since I began writing, finished editing, and published this blog (about an hour), another $24,299 was pledged to the project.
Tim Schafer is having a very good week.


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BMW is making a splash with its new i3 and i8 electric cars. But one French agency runs an electric car sharing service isn't that impressed. They've filed a criminal complaint that BMW used spies to gather info on their electric cars.
Bollore, the company that owns Autolib, the car share program, filed an industrial espionage complaint against BMW after they saw employees of a company that BMW employs tampering with charging points and cars in Paris.
BMW weaves a different tale. They declare that the employees of the firm were simply doing compatibility checks with chargers in European cities to see if the i3 and i8 would be able to charge up there. That doesn't sound shady at all. It sounds like thorough research.
Autolib employees saw the BMW engineering company's people at charge points three different times and even had them arrested. They were released the next day. BMW says they requested the engineers look at the charging points on the first two instances, but not on the day that they were arrested.
Autolib and BMW will begin tangentially competing in the next year as the i3 rolls out, though the BMW is for purchase and Autolib is a car share. That doesn't sound like too much of a conflict, but Autolib seems to think BMW is planning on using their tech in the i3. And they don't like it at all.
Photo Credit: AP Images


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Stock futures drop as Apple revenue miss halts stocks rally
By Edward Krudy | January 24, 2013 11:35 PM EST
Stock index futures fell Thursday as a revenue miss by Apple triggered a slide of nearly 10 percent in its shares in after-hours trading, and analysts said equities may be due for a pullback after a six-day rally for the S&P 500.
Apple Inc missed Wall Street's revenue forecast for a third straight quarter after iPhone sales came in below expectations, fanning fears its dominance of consumer electronics is slipping. The shares dropped 9.5 percent to $465.40 in premarket trading, wiping out about $50 billion of its market value.
However, some positive economic news looked set to put a floor under stock prices. Growth in Chinese manufacturing accelerated to a two-year high this month and a buoyant Germany took the euro zone economy a step closer to recovery, business surveys showed on Thursday.
"The march to 1,500 on the S&P is looking quite strong, the question is will Apple be the spoiler?" said Peter Cardillo, chief market economist at Rockwell Global Capital in New York.
"My guess is that while Nasdaq might suffer losses today, both the Dow and the S&P may do otherwise based on economic news out of China and Europe."
The S&P 500 rose for a sixth day on Wednesday after stronger-than-expected profits from IBM <IBM.N> and Google
S&P 500 futures fell 3.7 point and were below fair value, a formula that evaluates pricing by taking into account interest rates, dividends and time to expiration on the contract. Dow Jones industrial average futures rose 6 points and Nasdaq 100 futures fell 34.75 points.
Corporate earnings have helped drive the recent stock market rally. Thomson Reuters data through Wednesday showed that of the 99 S&P 500 companies that have reported earnings, 67.7 percent have exceeded expectations, above the 65 percent average over the past four quarters.
Investors in U.S.-based mutual funds pumped $9.32 billion into stock funds in the week ended January 16, the second consecutive week of inflows for such funds, data from the Investment Company Institute showed Wednesday.
European shares were little changed in midday trading as mixed company earnings coupled with conflicting economic data from the region made investors wary, with indexes at multi-year highs. <.EU>
On the macro front, investors awaited weekly jobless claims, at 8:30 a.m. ET (1330 GMT), Markit Manufacturing PMI for January, due at 8:58 a.m. (1358 GMT), and December leading economic indicators, due at 10:00 (1500 GMT).
Among the companies set to report results Thursday were Bristol-Myers Squibb
(Editing by Bernadette Baum)
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A person who behaves obsequiously to those in power: he is a lickspittle for the Establishment
Más ejemplos en oraciones
- A government that began with a Commons majority of 179 behaved in a lickspittle fashion towards its natural enemies.
- But last year the public outcry about these dirty deeds finally reached critical mass, shaming the drug companies' Washington lickspittles into looking at their shoes when their longtime patrons came calling for favors.
- Blogs, talk-radio and cable have exposed them lickspittles by forcing them into open conflict on ideas and facts.
Definición de lickspittle en:
- el diccionario Inglés de EE.UU.


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A Peek Into Several European Countries
By: Devon Fasbinder
If you think teenagers these days are so focused on social media, technology, and devices, you may be spot on. Sure, people will refute the claims and there are always exceptions, but teens are absolutely tied to the networks. Believe it or not, Iceland actually really takes the prize for how many teens are on Facebook – a whopping 99%, according to a survey by SAFT, an Icelandic organization that aims to “empower children and parents to enjoy the internet and new media in a safe and positive way.”
According to mbl.is, 13% of teens with the accounts have their site open instead of private as many online experts advise. Research from the article says girls are more likely to be careful with their privacy settings.
Iceland leads in internet usage per capita, at least since the last time numbers were collected. According to the Iceland Review, a report from The State of Broadcast in 2012 puts Iceland at the top for usage.
This could possibly be correlated to the fact that people in Iceland have the most freedom online of any country according to the Iceland Review. Iceland is followed by Estonia and Germany. On the other hand, the countries with the least amount of freedom include Iran, China, Cuba, Syria and Ethiopia.


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Don’t you miss going out to your favorite restaurant and actually sitting down? The global pandemic has completely changed the restaurant industry. Social distancing rules have forced these businesses to operate only through take-out and delivery. And owners face the decision to lay off employees in order to stay afloat. Some restaurants are moving into the grocery game just to make ends meet. The restaurant industry is tough under normal circumstances. But now, it’s even more challenging. Bold TV chats with Andy Wiederhorn, president and CEO of FAT Brands, Inc., about these difficult circumstances.
How Restaurants are Adapting
No one wants to see restaurants go down. So lawmakers devised the Paycheck Protection Program to help these businesses stay above water. While this plan may help some employers keep their staff, it may not be enough to pay the bills. Restaurateurs are becoming innovative in how they make money! Some are selling their products –– drinks, meat, etc. –– in bulk. Some are dipping into their wine cellars. Business as usual may be evolving, so restaurants have to keep up. Keeping a business going during a crisis takes new ideas and the courage to step out and try.
How to Help Restaurants Survive
What can you do? The number one way to help restaurants is to keep ordering food from them. The only way they can stay in business is if they maintain customers. And hole-in-the-wall spots rely even more on their regulars. By continuing to order from your favorite restaurants, you are directly contributing to their survival. Another way to help these businesses is to buy gift cards. Whether you save them for later or give them to your friends and family, you’re still offering your support. Check out the full conversation with Wiederhorn, and order some take-out!


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‘Reebok and JJ Watt have released the JJ IV training shoe collection, which includes the franchise’s first woman’s-specific shoe.27 Tennessee Titans custom jerseys Green Bay Packers ‘Jan.The collaboration, Topps x Steve Aoki, features current and all-time MLB stars, showcased on a card design themed around one of Steve’s favorite hobbies ‘throwing cake.’MLB’s Miami Marlins have hired Kim Ng to be their GM, making her the first woman to hold the position in MLB and likely for any of the major professional men’s teams in North American sports.
7 CBS ‘Super Bowl LVI SoFi Stadium Los Angeles Feb.2 MLB Major Awards voted on by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America: ‘Jackie Robinson Rookie of the Year NL ROY:Devin Williams AL ROY Kyle Lewis ‘Manager custom uniforms the Year NL: Don Mattingly AL: Kevin Cash ‘Cy Young NL: Trevor Bauer AL : Shane Bieber ‘MVP NL: Freddie Freeman AL : José Abreu NYSJ Sports-Entertainment Business News Service August 8: With the MLS is Back Tournament concluding on Aug.Diego Chara 14.2 MLB Major Awards voted on by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America: ‘Jackie Robinson Rookie of the Year NL ROY:Devin Williams AL ROY Kyle Lewis ‘Manager of the Year NL: Don Mattingly AL: Kevin Cash ‘Cy Young NL: Trevor Bauer AL : Shane Bieber ‘MVP NL: Freddie Freeman AL : José Abreu By Barry Janoff July 2: In its first national media push since becoming the official QSR partner of USA Basketball, Burger King will be the presenting sponsor for the , which will unveil the 12-man roster that will represent America at the 2012 Summer Olympics.Alejandro Bedoya 13.5 ‘Super Bowl LVIII Mercedes-Benz Superdome New Orleans Feb.
The network will air Capital One’s , presented by Autotrader leading up to the event.6 Denver Broncos at Kansas City Chiefs ‘Dec.The company said it has designed an accessibly priced watch collection for young people that will carry the Foundation name and message.
Ezequiel Barco Source: MLS 2020 NBC SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL SCHEDULE ‘Nov.Full story here.26 Baltimore Ravens at Pittsburgh Steelers ‘Nov.About half of our guests describe themselves as ‘non-golfers.’ We appeal to people who are golfers, we appeal to people who want to learn the game and to people who want to have fun and experience somewhat what golf is about and come here with their friends.Ralph Lauren is also an officlal partnerwith the U.S.
We’re happy to help Louisville Slugger celebrate this historic milestone for one of the truly iconic brands in baseball, Howard Smith, svp-licensing for MLB, said in a statement.The host will be Cari Champion, joined by guests including Eli Manning and Michelle Wie.Kevin Durant $63 million $28 million $35 million NBA 8.26 Baltimore Ravens at Pittsburgh Steelers ‘Nov.
Roger Federer $106 million $6 million salary winnings $100 million endorsements Tennis 2.Full story here.Among Ochocinco’s early jabs at Owens: I saw you wearing your Halloween costume on TV.’Turner Sports named the commentators for Capital One’s with Phil Mickelson, Charles Barkley, Stephen Curry and Peyton Manning , scheduled for Nov.
Alejandro Bedoya 13.Cristiano Ronaldo $105 million $60 million $45 million Soccer 3.Stephen Curry $74 million $30 million $44 million NBA 7.The 2020 World Series 90-minute DVD and digital versions will be available Dec.
13 Pittsburgh Steelers at Buffalo Bills ‘Dec.Under Armour already has had a collection of items from iconic boxers in collaboration with Roots of Fight called Bloodlines, which included Ali and Ali’s No.Ochocinco, who plays for the Cincinnati Bengals, and Owens, a member of the Buffalo Bills, will take turns roasting each other at the Klondike Facebook Fan Page.Back to Home Page.
According to game developer and world championship developer Riot Games, more than 11 million viewers watched the championship in 19 languages via 40 broadcast partners.That might be bad news for his fans, either those from his NBA Hall of Fame days or his current job as commentator and analyst for Turner Sports’.Javier Hernandez 3.


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KUALA LUMPUR (Sept 26): Genting Malaysia Bhd said up to three additional rides at its Genting SkyWorlds theme park are expected to be commissioned within the fourth quarter of 2022 (4Q22), as the casino and hotel operator plans investments in targeted events and promotions to drive leisure traffic to its hilltop resort in Pahang.
"[We plan to] leverage existing assets to attract foreign and domestic visitations," the company said in its latest corporate presentation for September 2022.
Genting Malaysia, which undertakes its local operations under Resorts World Genting (RWG), said RWG plans to optimise yield contributions by focusing on key business segments and database marketing efforts.
According to Genting Malaysia, which also has operations in the US, Bahamas and the UK besides Egypt, RWG has continued to ramp up its operations while capitalising on demand for integrated resort offerings.
"Genting Malaysia is well diversified geographically. Malaysia is the group’s largest revenue contributor.
"Recovery momentum of the group’s operations worldwide [is] on firm footing," said Genting Malaysia, whose global businesses have contended with the impact of movement restrictions due to the Covid-19 pandemic from early 2020.
The situation now is, however, different as vaccination-driven optimism has led to anticipation that the Covid-19 outbreak can be curbed, resulting in the easing of global movement restrictions and the reopening of international borders.
"Improvement in [Genting Malaysia's] financial performance is mainly driven by the lifting of Covid-19 restrictions in Malaysia, and the reopening of Malaysia’s national borders since April 1," said the company, which organised the soft opening of Genting SkyWorlds on Feb 8.
According to reports, Genting SkyWorlds, which was built across an estimated 10.4ha of land within Genting Malaysia' hill-top resort in Pahang, already has more than 20 rides and attractions.
Genting Malaysia said in its corporate presentation that RWG's hill-top resort registered a substantially higher number of visitors at 9.9 million people in the first half of 2022 (1H22) compared to 2.1 million people a year earlier, driven by Covid-19 vaccine-driven easing of movement restrictions.
According to Genting Malaysia, RWG's hill-top resort had an estimated capacity of 5,700 hotel rooms as at June 30, 2022.
For 1H22, Genting Malaysia said RWG registered a 93% hotel room occupancy rate compared to 63% a year earlier.
Genting Malaysia had reported better financials for the second quarter ended June 30, 2022 (2QFY22) and 1HFY22 compared to a year earlier as the company's Malaysian and global businesses improved due to Covid-19 vaccine-driven easing of movement restrictions.
According to Genting Malaysia's Bursa Malaysia filing on Aug 25, 2022, the group trimmed its net loss to RM10.85 million in 2QFY22 from RM348.11 million a year earlier as revenue more than doubled to RM2.18 billion from RM817.87 million.
For 1HFY22, Genting Malaysia's net loss narrowed to RM137.38 million from RM831.7 million a year earlier while revenue jumped to RM3.9 billion from RM1.44 billion.
At Bursa's 12.30pm break on Monday, Genting Malaysia's share price settled down three sen or 1.07% at RM2.78, which valued the company at RM15.76 billion.
Genting Malaysia has 5.67 billion outstanding shares, according to the company's latest quarterly financial report.


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Unemployment benefits are harder to get, as previously discussed:
As a result, the rate at which unemployed Americans receive layoff compensation overall has fallen from about 36 percent in 2007 to about 28 percent in 2017, according to data from The Department of Labor. Wayne Vroman, an associate with the Urban Institute, said a big reason for the decline is that states are finding ways to kick unemployed people off benefits after they’ve already been deemed eligible. His research shows a big increase in “nonseparation determinations.” These are instances of states investigating whether someone is continuing to meet eligibility requirements by doing things like writing down the names and addresses of businesses where they’ve applied for work on forms to state work agencies.
In Florida, it’s not an easy process. The state overhauled its unemployment system in 2011, requiring layoff victims to file claims online and even (for a time) take a math and reading test. Since 2007, before the last recession started, the percentage of unemployed Floridians who receive compensation plunged from 32 percent to 9 percent, almost the lowest rate of coverage in the nation.
While the annual deficit to gdp ratio is higher than the last two cycles, it’s been looking to me that the ‘neutral’ deficit to gdp ratio has been going up as well. This is likely because the unspent income (pension fund and other retirement accounts, corporate reserves including insurance reserves, cash in circulation, $US foreign central bank holdings and other non resident ‘savings’, etc.) is growing at ever higher rates, while private sector deficit spending has been subdued. Consequently, even with what may seem to be what historically has been a sufficiently high Federal deficit, GDP can retreat:
Redbook same store retail sales (not inflation adjusted) fell several years ago, and as stores were closed, same store sales growth eventually resumed, but has been softening lately and is still shy of earlier levels:


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More people have died from Covid-19 already this year than in all of 2020, according to official counts, highlighting how the global pandemic is far from over even as vaccines beat back the virus in wealthy nations.
It took less than six months for the globe to record more than 1.88 million Covid-19 deaths this year, according to a Wall Street Journal analysis of data collected by Johns Hopkins University. The university’s count for 2021 edged just ahead of the 2020 death toll on Thursday.
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During a 1991 interview on a Minnesota Public Radio program, a caller brought up earth-friendly claims on packaging and called the labels unclear. “I'm confused half the time,” he said. “I don't know what they're trying to say.”
Minnesota Attorney General Hubert “Skip” Humphrey, the show’s guest, agreed.
“I was just in the store the other evening, and I went down one of those aisles, and sure thing there were some claims just as you were indicating. One of the spray cans had said that it was environmentally safe. Whatever that meant…” he replied.
This was a decade after scientists began raising concerns about the effects of chemicals from aerosol sprays and refrigerators on the ozone layer, and a few years after the Montreal Protocol treaty was signed in an effort to phase them out, but marketers still faced little scrutiny about their ozone-friendly claims.
That changed on July 28, 1992, when the Federal Trade Commission — responding to pressure from a group of attorneys general led by Humphrey, and from manufacturers looking for guidance — released the Guides for the Use of Environmental Marketing Claims.
These guidelines, quickly nicknamed the Green Guides, sought to provide clear guidance on the types of environmental marketing claims companies could make about their products and packaging. They have since helped make the term “greenwashing” a household term and influenced multiple shifts over the years.
Although the Green Guides are not separately enforceable, the agency can use them to bring cases using the Federal Trade Commission Act, which outlaws unfair methods of competition and acts or practices that affect commerce.
After updating the guides again in 1996, 1998 and 2012, the FTC is currently considering what could be one of its most consequential Green Guides updates yet.
With public debate growing over the effectiveness of recycling, and over how much influence the Green Guides can hold as more states take legislative approaches to regulate environmental marketing, this update is set to potentially mark a sea change in the FTC’s approach.
Green Guides déjà vu
The results of a survey by J. Walter Thompson Co., published in Advertising Age in 1990, found that 96% of consumers felt they needed more information to understand environmental marketing claims. So in publishing the Green Guides, the FTC sought to steer companies toward structuring claims in a way that consumers could understand — for example, whether a package is recyclable and how to dispose of it — while also making it easy for marketers to meet the guidelines with language that could be substantiated.
Fast forward more than 30 years and modern consumers have grown up with recycling systems, but they have a new, and perhaps far more difficult concern to address: quickly growing distrust.
Suzanne Shelton, president and CEO of market research firm Shelton Group, said that years of marketing focused on recyclability allowed packaged goods companies to quell consumers’ concerns about consumption. In her view, the message was “buy stuff, and don't feel bad about it, because you're just gonna chuck it into the blue bin, and it's gonna go to a magical place called ‘away,’ and it will become something else.”
But that has changed. Recent research from Shelton’s firm, which surveyed 6,500 people, suggests that nearly a third of Americans are not confident that what they toss in the recycling bin is actually recycled. Four years ago, that was only 14%.
This current moment also has other notable parallels to the early 1990s.
Then, many state governments were considering or enacting regulations meant to govern environmental marketing claims. Today, recent laws passed by California and Oregon are forcing marketers to change how they communicate recyclability, such as by removing the chasing arrows around resin identification codes in favor of clear and accurate recycling directions.
Back then, technologies related to packaging were evolving quickly with a big focus on biodegradability. Now, the conversations are about chemical recycling of plastics and scaling plant-based and compostable materials.
The macro-sustainability issues then were around ozone depletion and landfill space. Today those issues are around carbon emissions and material circularity.
Another key parallel is that in the early ‘90s, consumers were eager to integrate sustainability into purchasing decisions but were confused or distrustful about whether product packaging that they put into the recycling stream was actually recycled.
“There was really a kind of ‘wild west’ environment in which companies were recognizing that there was a competitive advantage in being good for the environment,” said Doug Blanke, who was assistant attorney general and director of the consumer protection division of the Minnesota Attorney General’s office during Humphrey’s tenure.
In response, Blanke said some manufacturers “reformulated their products” but others “just reformulated their advertising.” He pointed to fast food companies as a prime example, some of which were putting food in polystyrene foam containers that bore recycling symbols.
“When we looked into it, it turned out it was technically possible to recycle Styrofoam, but the nearest facility that did that was in Chicago, 400 miles from Minnesota. You weren't going to mail your McDonald's container to Chicago for recycling,” said Blanke.
After the FTC issued the Green Guides, Blanke went to focus on consumer protections related to the tobacco industry, but he believes the Green Guides were effective and worked as they were intended.
Marketers, manufacturers, consumer and environmental groups all got what they wanted: clear guidelines in language that all stakeholders could understand. And the legal cases that the AG task force brought and won before and after the guides were issued — including one against a maker of diapers that it claimed were biodegradable — sent an effective message to other companies that they could be opening themselves up to legal scrutiny.
“You don't want to be the poster child for being environmentally irresponsible,” said Blanke. “I mean, biodegradable diapers. Come on.”
Blanke does not, however, think the FTC would have developed the Green Guides if not for the pressure the AG task force enacted. Nor does he think as many state AGs today could come together as seamlessly because it was a less partisan environment.
Not all stakeholders were bullish on the guides after they came out. Writing in Marketing News (a publication of the American Marketing Association), Bentham Paulos, an environmental researcher, and Andrew Stoeckle, a senior analyst for Abt Associates, said in 1993 it was “uncertain that [the Guides] are having the effect that marketers desired.”
They described two complaints from marketers: that the guidelines were voluntary in theory but not practice, amounting to a Catch-22 wherein the FTC was saying “we will not force you to do something if you volunteer to comply with our suggestions.” Secondly, they said the Green Guides had not and could not address the looming problem of state laws aimed at regulating environmental marketing claims.
The hope, however, was that any states seeking to enact new laws would use the Green Guides to direct those regulations, thereby reducing the likelihood that marketers would need to change course in their environmental marketing strategy.
The guides’ evolution
In the two years following the release of the inaugural guides in 1992, a group of researchers from the University of Illinois and the University of Utah audited their early impact by examining the labels of brands sold in supermarket product categories.
Over the research period, the researchers found that brands had made notable changes in line with the FTC’s guidelines. Environmental claims generally became more specific and meaningful over the audit period. Claims referencing ozone decreased, likely because the Green Guides instructed marketers to substantiate the claims, but general environmental commitment claims nearly tripled.
Package recyclability claims increased, but not in a manner that necessarily helped alleviate consumer confusion because — misaligned with the Green Guides — they lacked specificity and most were vague, such as “please recycle.” Yet, the guides instructed marketers to provide specific instructions on where or how to recycle packaging or products unless recycling facilities were available to “a substantial majority of consumers or communities.”
During the first update, in 1996, language was added to require marketers to substantiate claims such as “environmentally preferable,” and the FTC tried to clarify directions on how to use the chasing arrows symbol. It advised marketers to specify whether the symbol was being used to indicate recycled content or recyclability. Plus, it instructed marketers to indicate where to recycle items and how much recycled content they contained, if any.
With environmental marketing growing briskly, along with consumer interest in sustainable products, the FTC quickly made a second set of revisions in 1998.
These included that recyclability claims could include “the reuse, reconditioning, and remanufacturing of products or parts in another product” and that recycled content claims should be made for “only those products or packages that were reused in the form of ‘raw materials’ in the manufacture or assembly of a ‘new’ package or product.” With multi-channel commerce growing, the agency also made clear that service marketers and marketing done via the internet and email were also expected to follow the guides.
The agency did not issue another update until 2012. It started the process in 2007 with workshops and was expected to issue the updates in 2010, but efforts slowed during the transition between presidential administrations starting in 2008.
In addition to new sections on the use of carbon offsets, green certifications and seals, and renewable energy and renewable materials claims, the 2012 Green Guides included several other revisions related to packaging, such as compostability claims. In addition to making clear whether packaging or products would become usable compost “in a safe and timely manner” in an industrial compost setting or a home garden setting, the updates clarified that ‘‘timely” means ‘‘in approximately the same time as the materials with which it is composted.’’
While earlier iterations advised marketers to qualify recyclable claims when facilities are not available to a ‘‘substantial majority’’ of consumers or communities, the 2012 update clarified that meant at least 60%, and that “the lower the levels of access to appropriate facilities, the more strongly the marketer should emphasize the limited availability of recycling for the product.” This change soon led to voluntary brand-backed systems such as the How2Recycle label, which have become a point of discussion in the latest update process.
In comments submitted to the FTC regarding the next round of updates, industry and advocacy groups have shared their differing views on updating the guides to reduce problems such as contamination in the recycling stream. In some cases recyclers want to see more clear language on certain products, while the companies behind those products want a more nuanced approach to recyclability claims for newer materials.
While the groups disagree on some issues, many agree that the current guidelines are not adequately informing consumers or preventing misleading claims.
Past and future enforcement battles
While the guides have prompted many broader debates, the FTC’s actual level of enforcement has ebbed and flowed.
The agency joined with seven states, suing Mobil for selling Hefty trash bags as “degradable” when exposed to light, air and water. Mobil agreed to stop the advertising campaign and it paid $150,000 in settlement claims in 1991, prior to the enactment of the Green Guides. It was the first suit to result in consent orders against a company charged with making false environmental claims, but not the last.
The agency spent nearly a decade on cases related to a plastic additive that a manufacturer claimed made plastic biodegradable. In 2013 it announced six enforcement actions, including one that imposes a $450,000 civil penalty.
But the FTC is not the only organization that uses the Green Guides to keep marketers in compliance. The National Advertising Division, a system of independent industry self-regulation affiliated with BBB National Programs, also employs them in its efforts.
“It's the advertising industry's effort to self police, to hold itself to standards that are going to protect their brands, not confuse consumers, allow everyone to compete on a level playing field, so that everyone kind of knows the rules and operates in a way that's clear and transparent,” said David Mallen, who spent 15 years as deputy director of NAD before joining private practice. He’s now an advertising and media attorney with Loeb & Loeb.
The NAD recently brought a case against American Beverage, telling the group to modify “certain aspirational claims regarding the use of recycled materials in bottles, as well as claims relating to ABA’s partnerships with non-profit organizations and efforts to achieve sustainability goals together.”
As the FTC develops the next Green Guides update, Shelton said her many clients in the packaging value chain are acutely focused on how and whether chemical recycling will be addressed.
“I think there's a lot of worry that the FTC is going to make some call on this that's going to devastate the industry because that's where things are moving. The hard-to-recycle packaging and the multilayer packaging, all of that is moving towards chemical recycling,” she said.
But, she said that overall, her clients do make sure they follow the FTC’s Green Guides to the letter, especially because the agency continues bringing lawsuits based on egregious violations.
“Our clients tend to treat them as if they're the law,” Shelton said. “In my mind it works like it's supposed to. It's like having a school crossing guard.” A crossing guard is not a police officer, “but the presence of someone who looks authoritative tends to make you toe the line.”
And just as they did back in the early ‘90s, state attorneys general are weighing in about what changes they’d like to see. But given that this latest coalition of AGs is all Democrats that are pushing the FTC to set a high bar on what can be called recyclable, and cautioning against allowances for chemical recycling, partisan politics might start playing an even bigger role.
Mallen says that looking ahead to the next revision of the Green Guides, it’s important to keep in mind that the agency’s goal “isn't really to achieve any particular environmental outcome, it's to make sure that consumers aren't being misled.”
Therefore, transparency is the ultimate goal, even if it means not telling consumers what they want to hear.
“If you tell consumers, ‘you’ve got to take this to the store, or it's not going to be recycled,’ that's maybe not a great result for the folks that are concerned about all the plastics in the landfill,” he said. “But you're at least raising the bar in terms of realistic outcomes and expectations. And maybe that's all advertising can do at the end of the day is just be clear and be transparent.”
Visuals Editor Shaun Lucas contributed to this story.
Correction: This article has been updated to correct the name of a nonprofit affiliated with the National Advertising Division.
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When Mark Arabia, owner of the Pets Plus store, went out to the delivery man’s vehicle to collect the $1,000 fish supply he discovered a coffin.
“At first when I looked at it, I said, ‘Fish never come this way’,” he said.
He said he eventually learned that the body inside was that of a 65-year-old man from San Diego, California, who died of early onset Alzheimer’s Disease.
The body was supposed to go to a laboratory in Allentown, Pennsylvania, but there was an “unfortunate mix-up” at Philadelphia airport, said US Airways.
The airline, which had brought the body from California, said the problem was caused by a “verbal miscommunication between a delivery driver and the cargo representative”, adding that it was “deeply sorry”.
“I think it’s horrible. You can mess up, give us wrong stuff, wrong boxes. I guess this is how they treat bodies at the airport, which is a shame,” said Mr Arabia.
“If it was my family member, I’d really be broken up.”


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Fiverr announced on Tuesday that it is acquiring freelancer management platform Stoke Talent for $95 million.
Stoke Talent is an all-in-one solution that provides companies with a platform to onboard and pay freelancers while also tracking budgets for projects and more. Fiverr said it was making the acquisition because it wanted to provide more tools to larger businesses.
Also: Upwork vs. Fiverr: Which freelance job site is best?
Fiverr CEO Micha Kaufman said the move "supports Fiverr's move upmarket" and would allow the company to engage with a new set of customers.
"It allows Fiverr to offer software solutions to businesses that already have freelancers that they work with and now can manage them easily; It allows Fiverr to pair its marketplace talent with large customers that need access to freelancers they still do not yet have a relationship with," Kaufman said.
"It gives Fiverr access to the offline freelancing market that is still orders of magnitude larger than online freelancing; and finally, Stoke is a fast-growing best-in-class product with an incredible team behind it that we are delighted to add to our family."
The companies said Stoke Talent will still operate its current offerings independently but that Stoke Talent's freelance management platform would be integrated with Fiverr Business and other parts of its suite of B2B products.
Shahar Erez and Hilik Paz founded Stoke Talent because they wanted to give businesses a way to build out a roster of online and offline talent.
The tool lets businesses track the progress of projects and offers a slate of features for tax, legal and workforce classification compliance. The company is based in Tel Aviv and has about 30 full-time employees.
Erez said the acquisition was an opportunity to continue doing what Stoke Talent was already doing but on a much larger scale.
"We share Fiverr's vision that freelance talent can help propel companies to new heights, both from a productivity and agility standpoint. Together with Fiverr, we have the ability to build an ecosystem where businesses can implement a multi-channel freelancer strategy and provide tools for them to efficiently manage not only freelancer engagement on Fiverr's marketplace but those off Fiverr's marketplace as well," Erez said.
"There are meaningful synergies between the two companies, and we're excited for what the future holds."


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BEIJING (Reuters) – China’s economy picked up speed in the fourth quarter, with growth that beat expectations as it ended a 2020 in extraordinarily good condition with the coronavirus and remained poised to expand further this year even as the pandemic global has raged relentlessly.
The world’s second largest economy surprised many with the speed of its recovery from the shock of the coronavirus, especially as politicians have also had to address tense US-China relations on trade and other fronts.
Tight restrictions of the Beijing virus have allowed it to largely contain the COVID-19 outbreak much faster than most countries, while government-led political stimuli and local producers stepping up production to supply goods to many countries paralyzed by the pandemic have also helped to build momentum.
Gross domestic product (GDP) grew 6.5% yoy in the fourth quarter, data from the National Bureau of Statistics showed Monday, faster than the 6.1% expected by economists in a Reuters poll, and followed solid third-quarter growth of 4.9%.
GDP grew 2.3% in 2020, the data showed, making China the only major economy in the world to avoid a contraction last year as many nations struggled to contain the COVID-19 pandemic. And China is expected to continue to be in power relative to its peers this year, with economists forecasting GDP expansion at the fastest pace in a decade at 8.4%, according to a Reuters poll.
“The higher than expected GDP number indicates that growth has entered an expansionary zone, although some sectors remain recovering,” Xing Zhaopeng, an ANZ economist in Shanghai.
“The exit from politics will put counter-cyclical pressures on growth in 2021”.
Backed by tight virus containment measures and political stimulus, the economy has experienced a steady recovery from a sharp decline of 6.8% in the first three months of 2020, when a COVID-19 outbreak in the central city of Wuhan turned into a full-blown outbreak.
Asia’s economic power has been fueled by a surprisingly resilient export sector, but China’s consumption, a key driver of growth, has lagged behind expectations amid fears of a resurgence of COVID-19 cases.
Data from last week showed that Chinese exports rose more-than-expected in December as coronavirus outages around the world fueled demand for Chinese goods even as a stronger yuan made exports more expensive for buyers. foreigners.
However, underlining the massive impact of COVID-19 around the world, China’s GDP growth in 2020 marked its weakest pace since 1976, the last year of the decade-long Cultural Revolution that destroyed the economy.
Overall, the brighter economic data series has reduced the need for more monetary easing this year, leading the central bank to scale back some political support, sources told Reuters, but there would be no sudden change in policy. political direction, according to key policy makers.
On a quarter-over-quarter basis, GDP increased 2.6% in October-December, the bureau said, compared to expectations of a 3.2% increase and a revised 3.0 increase in the previous quarter. .
Highlighting the weakness in consumption, retail sales fell by 3.9% last year, marking the first contraction since 1968, a record from NBS showed. Retail sales growth in December missed analysts’ forecasts and fell to 4.6% from 5.0% in November, due to the slowdown in sales of clothing, cosmetics, telecommunications and automobiles.
However, China’s vast manufacturing sector continued to gain momentum, with industrial production rising at a faster-than-expected rate of 7.3% last month. from a year ago, peaking since March 2019.
LINGERING RISKS IN 2021
Ning Jizhe, head of China’s statistical office, said at a briefing that there would be many favorable conditions to support China’s economic recovery in 2021.
This year marks the beginning of China’s 14th Five-Year Plan, which policymakers see as vital to steer the economy beyond the so-called “middle income trap”.
China still faces many challenges, not least the tensions between Beijing and Washington and how they would develop under the new US administration led by President-elect Joe Biden. Furthermore, rising labor costs, an aging population and a recent rise in credit defaults add to the risks for an economy that is still trying to reduce a mountain of debt.
“We should be alert to the following problems in 2021: first the imbalance of the economic recovery. Compared to investment and exports, consumption is weak overall and has yet to return to normal levels, ”said Wang Jun, chief economist of Beijing-based Zhongyuan Bank.
“The second is the problem of excessive and rapid credit crunch”.
The central bank is poised to keep its benchmark lending rate unchanged over the next few months, leading a steady slowdown in credit expansion in 2021, policy sources said.
The Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, a government think tank, sees the leverage ratio increase by around 30 percentage points in 2020, topping 270%.
While this year’s projected growth rate of over 8% would be the strongest in a decade, led by a double-digit expansion projected in the first quarter, it is made less impressive by the low base set in 2020 hit by a pandemic.
Some analysts have also warned that a recent rebound in COVID-19 cases in the country’s northeast could impact activity and consumption ahead of next month’s long Lunar New Year holidays.
“Control of the flow of people has begun, so the risk of a widespread Covid epidemic should be low,” said Iris Pang, ING’s Chinese chief economist.
“But the risk of a technological war between China and some economies remains if the United States does not remove some measures.”
Additional reporting by Stella Qiu; Editing by Shri Navaratnam


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Pick n Pay reveals all Black Friday deals: Savings bigger and better than last year
Issued by Corporate Image - Nov 22nd 2018, 09:25
Pick n Pay has released all its Black Friday deals that will run over a three-day period from 23 – 25 November 2018.
All Black Friday catalogues can be viewed online www.pnp.co.za/pnpstorefront/catalogues
All stores will open at 06.59am on Black Friday and the deals will go live on its online shop (www.pnp.co.za) at 00.01. The Pick n Pay online shop will also have selected online-only deals.
Yesterday (21 November 2018) Black Friday deals launched in Pick n Pay Hypermarkets across the country with incredible deals on items such as televisions, fridges and many more.
John Bradshaw, head of marketing at Pick n Pay, comments on their expectations for Black Friday and how they have prepared for one of SA”s busiest shopping weekend:
The excitement surrounding Black Friday continues to grow each year and we’ve never seen so much enthusiasm about a promotion before. We are ready to host our biggest Black Friday ever and can’t wait to invite customers in-store and online from Friday.
Customers can expect discounts of up to 60% across many categories, including appliances, tech, liquor, food, toiletries, household products and clothing.
While electronics and appliances are a favourite for many Black Friday shoppers seeking a great deal, many customers asked us for deals on basic essentials and we listened. Customers can expect amazing deals on every everyday items, such as milk, bread, rice and maize meal.
We have worked very hard to make sure that our customers not only get the best-priced deals but that they get the products they want this Black Friday. Special arrangements were made with our suppliers so that we could get more stock than ever before and cater to as many customers as possible.
As Black Friday is one of the busiest shopping days, we are anticipating more customers so we have also increased our support team to make this Black Friday the most memorable yet.
In-store, we will have additional staff helping on the floor to move and unpack products and assist customers with their purchases, even pushing a customer’s trolley to their car. We have also increased our staffing complement to process online orders and have added additional delivery and collections slots so that customers can enjoy their purchases as soon as possible. The safety of our customers remains very important to us. We have taken extra precautions in stores where we anticipate the most activity to ensure a safe and happy shopping experience on Black Friday.
Woolworths bedeviled by declining sales
18/01/2019 - 10:35
As Woolworths tries to recover from the impairments of A$712.5 million (R7.02 billion) it suffered last year in its Australian subsidiary David Jones, the retailer continued to experience declining sales in the 26 weeks to end December trading period in South Africa.
TFG bucks retail trend over festive season
18/01/2019 - 08:00
Apparel group TFG, which operates the Foschini, American Swiss and Markham chains, has bucked the retail trend and produced solid growth numbers for the festive season.
Edcon gets some breathing space
17/01/2019 - 10:34
Edcon is at a turning point yet again. The retailer — which operates the Edgars, Jet and CNA chain stores — has just wrapped up a deal with 250 stakeholders, including its shareholders and landlords, in a bid to keep its doors open.
M&S confirms more store closures
17/01/2019 - 08:41
Marks & Spencer confirmed the location of the next batch of stores it plans to close as part of its restructuring plans.
Black Friday boosts November’s retail sales
16/01/2019 - 14:12
Consumers came under pressure in 2018, with the first VAT hike in two decades and steep fuel price increases.


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Pokemon Go Break: currently one of the biggest releases on the Nintendo Wii, has caused a lot of buzz and debate since its release. The game uses a map-based system in which you travel around different areas of the world to locate and capture virtual creatures like Pokemon. Players are encouraged to go out and seek out new Pokemon in every area they enter. It is simple, but many people (including me) are wondering why is Pokemon Go banned in China?
Pokemon Go Break: So why is Pokemon Go being banned in China? The short answer is that many people are trying to download the Pokemon Go application onto their smartphones, which is a violation of Google’s terms of service. There are several reports that state that several individuals have been detained for “harming the reputation of the game.” This is especially true in South Korea, where the game has been a hot Christmas gift for children this year. Many people have also reported receiving death threats and messages regarding how they will die or be branded as a criminal because of Pokemon Go.
What’s going on here? Obviously, many people are playing Pokemon Go without realizing that it contains in-app purchases that allow them to purchase items from within the game. These in-app purchases are allowed by the Game Services Agreement guidelines which was signed by Google and included some pretty vague language. Basically, they stated that you can only purchase things within the app if it’s allowed in your app. It seems as though Google has never done any type of in-app purchases before, so the company is in total ignorance as to how this will affect their rankings. This may explain why Google has been banning apps all over the world from the App store.
This doesn’t mean that Google doesn’t have the right to ban Pokemon Go if they find out that people are purchasing items within the game without their knowledge. This just means that they need to be more careful in what they allow in their applications. Another aspect of this is that they are losing a lot of money, as Pokemon Go has already become one of the most downloaded games on the Google Play Store. Every single day, millions of people log on to play the game and spend time having fun. Imagine if it were to get banned and no one plays it. That would be a financial disaster for Google.


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Pokemon GO tops Pandora, Twitter, Netflix, Hangouts and Spotify in the U.S. for daily active use
Pokemon GO has managed to leap over another set of popular apps. According to SimilarWeb, it’s now surpassed Pandora, Twitter, Netflix, Hangouts and Spotify for daily use in the United States. The report goes on to speculate that Snapchat, WhatsApp, and other popular social apps will be next based on Pokemon GO’s performance.
On July 11, 5.9 percent of all Android owners in the U.S. used Pokemon GO. That’s 46 percent more than the 4.1 percent who used the Twitter app on the same day.
Going back to game-specific talk, Pokemon GO is above Candy Crush Saga (8.7 percent) and Clash of Clans (5.2 percent) on installs at the moment. It also has a larger reach than Viber, LinkedIn, ESPN, iFunny, Lyft, musical.ly, and Tinder.


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Cloud telephony firm Knowlarity Communications Pvt Ltd has raised $15 million (around Rs 90 crore) in its Series B round of funding led by Mayfield Fund, as per a company statement. Existing investor Sequoia Capital also participated in this round.
The funding will be used to invest in R&D and expand internationally.
Knowlarity claims it has 6,500 clients in 66 countries and with this funding it plans to use the same model to increase its presence in other overseas markets.
Ambarish Gupta, CEO & Founder, Knowlarity Communications, said, “Knowlarity is to communications what AWS (Amazon Web Services) is to applications. Knowlarity provides the tools needed by businesses to build today and scale tomorrow.”
Knowlarity is backed by Sequoia Capital which invested Rs 34 crore in the company in January 2012. Previously, it also raised funding from Emergic Venture Capital.
Founded in 2009 by IIT-Kanpur graduates Ambarish Gupta and Pallav Pandey, Knowlarity provides voice and data communication services over the internet to companies and individuals in India and Indonesia. The company’s product range includes SuperFax, SuperReceptionist, SuperConference and SuperCaller. For larger enterprises, it is providing hosted IVR solutions integrated with their existing IT systems.
The firm, which moved its headquarters to Singapore some time ago, has offices in Gurgaon, Mumbai and Bangalore. Currently, the firm operates in more than 66 countries and its flagship products, SuperReceptionist and SmartIVR, can process over a million calls an hour.
Recently the firm acquired Delhi-based cloud telephony startup Unicom Techlabs Pvt Ltd for an undisclosed amount. This acquisition brings Unicom’s 200 plus customers in SMB, e-commerce, real estate, healthcare, education and media segments under Knowlarity.
In an interview with Techcircle.in last July, Ambarish Gupta had said that the company was shifting its base to Singapore, owing to a tough market in India. According to him, the Indian cloud telephony market is extremely tough to survive and many players will either shut shop or merge, as SMEs and other enterprises in India are not ready to pay much and many of them have don’t have much money.
Early last year, its co-founder and COO Pallav Pandey had quit the company to start a new venture.
Mayfield, a technology-focused investor in Silicon Valley, made its final close of its second India-dedicated fund at $108 million early this year. This is a successor to Mayfield India I, which had raised $111 million in late 2008 and the VC firm has been investing in the country through this fund. It had put in more money in an existing portfolio firm Securens early this year.
Sequoia has been pretty active and has invested in close to half a dozen new firms since January 1 and has put in more money in an equal number of existing portfolio firms in the same period.
(Edited by Joby Puthuparampil Johnson)