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This is how Ripple’s next product might be called.
Ripple, a major cryptocurrency firm developing XRP-based products, continues to actively claim rights on new business trademarks.
Over the past month, the company filed four trademark applications to the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), according to publicly available data on the USPTO website.
The latest trademark application by Ripple was filed on Aug. 19. Dubbed “Ripple Impact,” the new trademark intends to cover categories of charitable foundation services including fundraising activities and capital improvement funding, the company said.
On Aug. 11, Ripple filed another batch of three trademark applications, including trademarks like Ripple Impact, Ripple X, and Ripplex. According to the applications’ descriptions, all three trademarks refer to electronic payment services and monetary gifts in fiat currencies:
“Trademark registration is intended to cover the categories of electronic financial services, namely, monetary services for receiving and disbursing remittances and monetary gifts in fiat currencies and virtual currencies over a computer network and for exchanging fiat currencies and virtual currencies over a computer network […]”
According to public data, all four trademarks are awaiting examination by the USPTO at publishing time.
Earlier this year, Ripple also filed a number of trademark applications for its flagship payment product known as On-Demand Liquidity, or ODL. According to public records, the applications were accepted by the agency and assigned to an examiner.
Ripple’s trademark filings on the USPTO also include an entity called “PayID.” Ripple filed two applications referring to this trademark in June 2020. The patent’s name has recently become a subject of a legal case brought up by a banking consortium in Australia. As Cointelegraph reported on Aug. 25, Ripple is now facing an intellectual property infringement lawsuit as the company allegedly used the branding of Australia’s interbank payments network, also called “Pay ID.”


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One of the most painful spectacles the business realm has been watching is the monumental fall of SFX Entertainment. From failing to buy public shares to have the company go private and finally having to file chapter 11 bankruptcy at the start of this month, SFX appears to be taking everyone down with them as their ship continues to sink. The crew members aboard include ID&T (who have a 75% stake and include Tomorrowland, Sensation, etc.) Life In Color, Miami Marketing Group (Liv, Story), Electric Zoo, and most famously Beatport.
From their inability to pay artist royalties late last year to now, Beatport has sat silently as the conglomerate that owns them burns to the ground. According to Billboard, the reigns have tightened on them as their expenditures raised tremendously. From $11.2 million in 2014 to $18.5 million last year, salaries and general expenses rose by $7.5m. As a result, Beatport has a loss of approximately $5.5 million in the past year.
Even though Beatport continues to be the largest online music store that specializes in electronic music, it is unclear how much debris from SFX’s collapse will land in their offices. As it is, TomorrowWorld (which launched successfully three years ago) had a huge weather related blunder last year, and due to its bad timing with SFX’s issues, may not come back this year. If Beatport does not find a way out of SFX’s sinking ship, this beautiful brand and iconic store will continue to feel the pinch in its wallet.

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More Factory Farms and Less Wildlife
by Ken Swensen
The Trans-Pacific Partnership is a proposed agreement between 12 countries that border the Pacific Ocean, including the developed nations of Australia, Canada, Japan, and the U.S., as well as the developing economies of Mexico, Peru, Chile, Malaysia, and Vietnam. It would be the largest trade agreement in history, covering more than 40% of the world’s economy.
Pig in factory-farm crate–courtesy HSLF
For the U.S., the goals of the TPP are to spur economic growth, open doors for American corporations to increase exports, and counterbalance the influence of China. After five years of secret negotiations, the 6,000-page final document has recently been released.
Trade pacts create tectonic shifts in national economies. They impact the lives and jobs of millions of people and the fortunes of entire industries. As the TPP nears an up or down vote in Congress this spring (no amendments are possible), there will be heated arguments about winners and losers, and which workers, businesses and industries will fall into each camp.
There is, however, one thing that is certain: the animal world will be on the losing side.
The Threat to Animals
Dairy feedlot on a factory farm–C.A.R.E./Factoryfarm.org
Eyes glaze over at the mention of trade pacts. But animal advocates must keep our eyes wide open, because immense animal suffering is built into these agreements. The removal of trade barriers, especially between the U.S. and developing nations, spurs a massive growth in factory farming. If the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) is approved by Congress this spring, factory farms will expand in the U.S. to support an increase in meat exports and their numbers will increase exponentially within developing nations as meat consumption grows. That growth will, of course, cause the suffering of billions of farmed animals. And it will create an array of environmental damages and habitat loss that will further threaten wildlife. It is likely that the pact will make it more difficult to enact higher welfare standards for farmed animals, as any national requirements that have the effect of limiting imports will be subject to legal challenges by corporations claiming that these requirements illegally interfere with their pursuit of profits.
The Theory of Free Trade
Most economists view free trade, in theory, as an economic benefit. As international tariffs are reduced and protections for specific industries are removed, nations shift resources to the products and services they produce relatively efficiently and cheaply. In the absence of tariffs and quotas, foreign demand increases for those products. When viewed as a whole, the economy grows and consumers benefit from lower costs. Meanwhile, workers are displaced from previously protected industries and many eventually shift to industries with greater export potential.
In open markets, purchasers of commodity products, i.e. those that are not easily differentiated such as oil or wheat, buy from the lowest cost suppliers, since costs (including transportation) are usually the sole purchasing consideration. Corn and soybeans, the central ingredients in the feed given to factory farmed animals, are commodities. Most factory farmed meat and dairy products are considered commodities as well. continue reading…


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Roku Hits Record High on Licensing Deal
Roku Inc's shares reached a record high on Monday after signing a licensing deal that would put its technology on Philips-branded televisions in the United States this year.
The news was well received by investors, who sent Roku's shares jumping 28.5 percent to close at $42.71 on Monday. The stock hit a high of $47.49 earlier in the session.
The streaming device maker announced that the licensing partnership with Japan's Funai Electric Co Ltd, which manufactures Philips N.V. televisions for North American, would place its operating system on Philips' smart TVs.
Roku also announced that it would give a $20 discount on its $69.99-priced streaming stick for the Black Friday weekend, and separately said its customer would get a free one-month trial of AT&T Inc's streaming service DirecTV Now.
The stock has gained 127 percent in heavy volumes over the past three days in a rally that was stimulated by the company's strong third-quarter report late on Wednesday.
Roku, one of the first to make a device to stream content such as from Netflix Inc. onto TVs, is now combating deeper-pocketed entrants such as Apple Inc., Alphabet Inc's Google and Amazon.com Inc. among others.
Still, up to Monday's close, Roku's stock has now more than tripled from its IPO price of $14 on Sept. 27. The stock debuted at $15.78 on the Nasdaq on Sept. 28.
Los Gatos, California-based Roku's success in the stock market is in stark contrast to the fortunes of other technology companies to make their market debuts this year.
Founder Becomes Billionaire
Even by the turbo-charged standards of Silicon Valley, the three-day surge in the fortune of Anthony Wood has been meteoric.
Anthony Wood, the 51-year-old founder and CEO, owns 27.3% of the company and the surge in Roku’s stock price has grown Wood's net worth, making him a billionaire.
The chief executive officer and founder of the maker of home streaming devices, added $652 million to his net worth since the company reported third-quarter results on Wednesday, giving the technology industry’s latest billionaire a $1.07 billion fortune.
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Anand Mahindra Just 'Invited' Elon Musk To Make Electric Cars In India
India’s only electric vehicle maker, Mahindra and Mahindra has the entire Indian car market to itself. While the number of vehicles sold may be limited, the market is expected to grow many folds as the government plans to move entirely to battery powered vehicles by 2030.
Time you got out here Elon. You don't want to leave that whole market to Mahindra do you?? The more the merrier--and greener..! https://t.co/IPoA9viDRN— anand mahindra (@anandmahindra) 2 June 2017
India may not be an easy market for Tesla as most car makers have found out the hard way. The market is price sensitive and even global giants like General Motors has found the going tough. Mahindra on the other hand is working on more powerful electric drive trains as it plans to stretch its lead.


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Canadian Wal-Martians reject union
(April 5, 2004) — (Mississauga, Ontario-Dow Jones/AP) -- Wal-Mart Canada employees in Jonquiere, Quebec, have rejected unionization by the United Food and Commercial Workers Union. The United Food and Commercial Workers Canada union shows the vote against union representation at the Jonquiere store was 74 to 65. Wal-Mart says the vote shows that its workers choose to deal directly with the company instead of having third-party representation. The union vowed to continue its organizing efforts and says workers at the Canada store can apply for a new vote in a few months.


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The preliminary July results from the University of Michigan Surveys of Consumers show overall consumer sentiment ticked up in early July but remains near record lows (see first chart). The composite consumer sentiment increased to 51.1 in early July, up from the record low 50.0 in June, a rise of 1.1 points or 2.2 percent. The index is consistent with prior recessions.
The current-economic-conditions index rose to 57.1 from the record-low 53.8 in June (see first chart). That is a 3.3-point or 6.1 percent increase for the month. The index is slightly above the record low but remains consistent with prior recessions.
The second sub-index — that of consumer expectations, one of the AIER leading indicators — lost 0.2 points or 0.4 percent for the month, dropping to 47.3 (see first chart). The index is at its lowest level since May 1980.
According to the report, “Consumer sentiment was relatively unchanged, remaining near all-time lows. Current assessments of personal finances continued to deteriorate, reaching its lowest point since 2011.” The report goes on to add, “Buying conditions for durables adjusted upwards, owing both to consumers who cited easing supply constraints and those who believed that one should buy now to avoid future price increases, which would exacerbate inflation going forward. Even with the adjustment, buying conditions remained 26% lower than a year ago.”
The one-year inflation expectations fell to 5.2 percent in early July. That is the second decline in the last three months since hitting back-to-back readings of 5.4 percent in March and April. The one-year expectations has spiked above 3.5 percent several times since 2005, only to fall back (see second chart).
The five-year inflation expectations fell back to 2.8 percent in early July. That result is the lowest reading since July 2021 and leaves it near the mid-point of the 25-year range of 2.2 percent to 3.5 percent (see second chart).
The report states, “Consumers remained in agreement over the deleterious effect of prices on their personal finances. The share of consumers blaming inflation for eroding their living standards continued its rise to 49%, matching the all-time high reached during the Great Recession. These negative views endured in the face of the recent moderation in gas prices at the pump.”
The report adds, “Inflation uncertainty continued to grow, with 26% of consumers expecting prices to stay the same or fall over the next 5 to 10 years, up from 11% a year ago.”
The plunge in consumer attitudes reflects a confluence of events with inflation leading the pack. Persistently elevated rates of price increases affect consumer and business decision-making and distort economic activity. Overall, economic risks remain elevated due to the impact of inflation, an intensifying Fed tightening cycle, continued fallout from the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and waves of new Covid-19 cases and lockdowns in China. The ramping up of negative political ads as the midterm elections approach July may also weigh on consumer sentiment in the coming months. The overall economic outlook remains highly uncertain. Caution is warranted.


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Phunware, Inc., a fully-integrated enterprise cloud platform for mobile that provides products, solutions, data and services for brands worldwide, announced the appointment of Blythe Masters as Chair of the Board. Blythe succeeds Eric Manlunas who held the post since rejoining the Board in December 2019. Eric will remain with Phunware as a Director and Member of both the Compensation Committee and Audit Committee.
Marketing Technology News: Raydiant Releases Virtual Room With Support From T-Mobile to Help Industries Adjust
Blythe Masters is an experienced financial services and technology executive and currently an Industry Partner at the private equity and venture capital firm Motive Partners. She is the former CEO and a Board Member of Digital Asset – provider of the world’s leading smart contract language DAML – which she led from a startup in 2015 until 2018, serving customers including the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX). Ms. Master is a member of the International Advisory Board of Santander Group, the Boards of Santander’s global digital services platform, Open Digital Services, and the integrated container and logistics company, A.P. Moller – Maersk (CPH: MAERSKB). She is also an Advisory Board Member of the United States Chamber of Digital Commerce, the blockchain-powered consumer financial products company, Figure Technologies, and the residential mortgage exchange, Maxex.
Ms. Masters was previously a Senior Executive at J.P. Morgan for 27 years, where she was a member of the Corporate and Investment Bank Operating Committee and the firm’s Executive Committee and held a number of executive positions, including head of various global markets businesses and risk functions, and CFO of the Global Investment Bank. She is also a past Chair of the Governing Board of the Linux Foundation’s open source Hyperledger Project, the Global Financial Markets Association (GFMA), the Securities Industry & Financial Markets Association (SIFMA) and the public consumer finance company Santander Consumer Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: SC).
Marketing Technology News: SoloSegment Announces Acquisition of Thematically’s Industry-Leading AI-Powered Discover Platform
“We are living in unprecedented times as the world faces the COVID-19 pandemic, so we are honored and fortunate to have Blythe serve as Chair for Phunware’s Board of Directors,” said Alan S. Knitowski, President, CEO and Co-Founder of Phunware. “Blythe’s proven leadership and experience will be invaluable to helping Phunware navigate the current macro and health environments as we continue to diligently manage cash and drive towards self-sufficiency through operational excellence.”
The Phunware Board of Directors unanimously approved the appointment of Ms. Masters as Board Chair and she will continue to serve as both Chair of the Audit Committee and Member of the Compensation Committee.
“I am pleased to assist Phunware during these challenging times, that not only creates risks, but also creates new opportunities to help our customers, which include many healthcare systems, better serve those who depend on them in these trying times,” said Blythe Masters. “Phunware’s enterprise cloud platform can deliver the digital transformation initiatives that Fortune 1000 companies must have in order to stay competitive in a mobile-first world.”
Marketing Technology News: Comscore Sees Notable Rise in Streaming Usage


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The Wanted's Max George Stars In New Buffalo Jeans Advertising Campaign
24 July 2013, 11:37 | Updated: 24 August 2013, 18:38
The 'We Own The Night' singer struts his stuff in the fashion brand's autumn campaign.
Max George's first modelling shots with fashion brand Buffalo Jeans have been published this week.
The 'Walks Like Rihanna' singer is seen posing alongside female model Hanna Davis in the newly unveiled shots.
Max announced last month (19th June) that he had signed a deal to promote the denim line as the new face of Buffalo David Bitton.
The Wanted star will now serve as the face of the band's upcoming Autumn campaign with the Sports Illustrated model.
"Check out my ad @BuffaloJeans," Max simply tweeted this week, alongside a link to the shots that show him posing in a dark blazer, patterned jumper and jeans.
Check out a picture from Max George's new photoshoot below (Credit: Buffalo Jeans):
Max's signing with Buffalo comes fresh from fellow The Wanted star Siva Kaneswaran being signed up to Next Model Management in the UK.


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Export Exchange 2018 in Minneapolis this week highlighted the importance of distillers dried grains with solubles (DDGS) for ethanol producers and the U.S. grains export market.
Speakers including Tyson Foods poultry nutritionist Philip Smith, ProExporter senior analyst Bill Holbrook, Renewable Fuels Association Regulatory Affairs Vice President Kelly Davis and Distillers Grains Technology Council’s executive director Kurt Rosentrater covered topics such as DDGS and poultry nutrition, export challenges and opportunities, food safety regulations and new products including pelleting, high protein versions and advancing technologies.
Davis discussed the Food Safety Modernization Act and the manufacturing of DDGS. “The U.S. is continuing its lead in food safety,” said Davis. “What people normally think of as human food safety has now been extended to animal feed – now called animal food.”
DDGS and other ethanol co-products provide a value-added market for the U.S. ethanol industry, being exported to 50 countries on five continents last year and the market is once again on the rise in various parts of the world.
Davis talks about the importance and safety of U.S. DDGS in this interview. Export Exchange 18 interview with Kelly Davis, RFA
Listen to her presentation here:
Export Exchange 18 presentation Kelly Davis, RFA


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It’s confirmed. The Samsung Galaxy Note 8 will be officially unveiled on August 23 at an Unpacked event at Park Avenue Armory in New York City.
The company has teased the launch date on Twitter in a not-so-cryptic-way. As is clearly visible from the gif below, a stylus aka the S Pen can be seen drawing the outlines of the Galaxy Note 8 indicating that it will also feature slim-bezels as the current Galaxy S line.
And the slogan, “Do bigger things” pretty much confirms that the smartphone in question is indeed the Galaxy Note 8 for obvious reasons.
The news comes only a few days after the company’s CEO confirmed that the Galaxy Note 8 will be launched in August.
As far as the specs are concerned, the smartphone is expected to feature a similar design akin to the Galaxy S8+ but with a slightly bigger display at 6.3-inches and even better screen-to-body ratio.
A dual camera module 12MP sensors will reportedly sit on the back of the handset adjacent to which the fingerprint scanner is expected to be placed. Word has it that the handset will also get a dual speaker for stereo sound.


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Langkawi has been identified as one of the cities in Asia to see the opening of a resort for the ultra-rich, along with Singapore, Bali, Phuket and Hainan island in China, according to reports.
Such ultra high-end clubs, catering to celebrities and the super rich are opening up across Asia as the number of millionaires swells in Asia and developers seize the opportunity to tap into their increasingly jet-set lifestyle.
Increasingly, more and more wealthy Europeans and Americans turn to Asia as their playground, one of them being the co-founder of Facebook, Eduardo Saverin, who has reportedly made a luxury penthouse suite in Singapore‘s tallest residential building his home since 2010 and who reportedly regularly hangs out with rich friends and a bevy of models at some of Singapore’s top clubs.
More Asians are expected to join their ranks however, said an observer who declined to be named. "Developers are eyeing rich young spenders from China and Indonesia. The locations targeted are mostly beaches as they can hold glamourous parties there in a romantic setting.”
Singapore is top in the radar of these international developers who are inspired by the success of Pangaea, a luxury nightclub in Singapore’s Marina Bay Sands casino resort known to be one of the world’s most expensive nightclubs with enormous profits to match.
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German business confidence at record high: Ifo
German business confidence has reached another all-time high, the Ifo institute said Friday, providing some good news for the 17-nation eurozone as it grapples with a dogged debt crisis.
Ifo's widely watched reading of business sentiment climbed to 110.3 points in January from 109.8 points in December, an Ifo spokeswoman said, its eighth consecutive increase.
It was also the second straight record high since the country's reunification in late 1990, even though the December level was revised slightly lower from an initial reading of 109.9 points.
Ifo surveys around 7,000 German manufacturing, construction, wholesale and retail companies each month to establish the index of business sentiment.
"The firms are just as satisfied with their current business as they were in December, and they have given more favourable assessments of their business prospects for the coming half year," Ifo president Hans-Werner Sinn said in a statement.
"The German economy has started the year with great vigour," he added.
Analysts polled by Dow Jones Newswires had forecast a more modest increase to 110 points.
The German government has forecast economic growth of 2.3 percent this year, following a post-reunification record of 3.6 percent in 2010, which should boost demand for goods from debt-laden eurozone neighbours.
Ifo also polls companies about their expectations for the coming six months, with this index climbing to a record 107.8 points from 106.8 in December, easingly beating analyst forecasts for 106.5 points.
© 2011 AFP


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Airbag Industry In India To Grow To Rs 7,000 Crore By FY27: ICRA
The industry size of airbags, a key safety feature in vehicles, is expected to grow to up to Rs 7,000 crore by FY2027 in India, from Rs 2,500 crore currently, according to ratings agency ICRA. The growth in the airbag industry, one of the fastest growing auto component segments, is expected to be fuelled by the increase in content per vehicle arising from higher regulatory requirements and voluntary increase in the number of airbags per vehicle for enhancing safety, ICRA said in a statement.
The mandatory content per vehicle for airbag manufacturers is expected to rise from Rs 3,000-4,000 currently to Rs 8,000-10,000 by Oct. 1, 2023. The average number of airbags per car sold is about three currently, and this is expected to increase significantly post the mandatory implementation of six airbags per car from Oct. 1, 2023," ICRA Vice President and Sector Head Vinutaa S said.
Accordingly, ICRA said it expects the industry to grow to Rs 6,000-7,000 crore by FY27, from the current levels of Rs 2,400-2,500 crore, at a four-year CAGR (compound annual growth rate) of 25-30%.
The ratings agency pointed out that earlier, only one airbag per car, the airbag for driver seat, was mandatory from July 2019. This increased to two airbags (dual front airbags) for category M1 vehicles manufactured from Jan 1, 2022. M1 vehicles are those that can seat up to eight passengers and weigh less than 3.5 tonne.
Going forward, for M1 category vehicles that will be manufactured from October 1, 2023, two side airbags and two side curtain airbags have been mandated. This move was undertaken to prevent torso injury for people occupying the front row outboard seating positions and prevent head injury for people occupying the outboard seating positions, it added.
Vinutaa S said the cost for original equipment manufactures could increase further depending on modifications required in cars’ structural changes and deployment of additional sensors. Moreover, she said capacity building in the next one year is critical to meet regulatory requirements in a timely manner.
Several players have started undertaking capacity enhancements in the last six to eight months to gradually scale up their facilities, and ICRA expects a capex of around Rs 1,000-1,500 crore in the next 12-18 months for capacity enhancements and localisation measures," Vinutaa S added.
ICRA pointed out that the inflator forms about 50% the total airbag cost, while cushion and other components form the remaining.
The industry currently imports 60-70% of its components primarily from overseas parents or joint venture partners, stemming from the lack of indigenous technological capability and absence of adequate volumes.
“Unless there is adequate backward integration for the incremental airbags expected to be produced, the import content would only increase further going forward,” ICRA said.


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The Convenience U CARWACS Show is Canada's largest convenience, gas and car wash event and you don't want to miss it!
In addition to Anastasopoulos' deep insights designed to help your business flourish, the two-day event marks the first time the industry has come together in-person.
In the past, the show has seen strong attendance from key decision-makers.
- An estimated 92% of past attendees had purchasing authority or direct purchasing influence.
- Close to 93% of past attendees planned to purchase products they saw on the trade show floor.
With so many new innovations coming to market over the past two years, The Convenience U CARWACS Show will be the one-stop shop for catching up and powering forward.
“There is no other place in Canada where all the key stakeholders and buyers from petroleum, car wash and convenience come together in one place,” says Michael Cronin, VP, The Convenience U CARWACS Show. “Whether you’re already an operator and you’re looking to expand or you’re a vendor looking for growth opportunities, you need to be here.”
In addition to the valuable keynote, the opening conference on Day 1 will place increased emphasis on consumer insights in a shifting market. Attendees will have access to exclusive research on Canadian convenience shoppers, gather insight from a top business coach and be better equipped to understand customer expectations and how to meet them.
Plus, the Canadian Carwash Association is back to host exciting wash-specific education!
Stay tuned for more exciting announcements, conference details and more!


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ISLAMABAD: The federal government has started a review of recommendations aimed at developing the cottage industry, including policymaking for small and medium enterprises (SMEs), an easy taxation system and establishment of an authority for the cottage industry.
On the other side, the Ministry of Finance has sought opinion of the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) on the recommendations for waiving taxes and duties on the SME sector.
According to Muhammad Farooq, a cottage industry representative who wrote a letter outlining the recommendations, Pakistan does not have any policy or classification of various segments within the cottage industry.
“We have advised the government to pay attention to this sector as it can greatly contribute to GDP growth as well as assist in expansion of the tax net,” he said.
While SMEs require investments of millions, the cottage industry units operate with meagre investment of a few hundred thousand rupees and can be started as a small-scale business from home. In addition to promoting economic activities and employment, the cottage industry ensures provision of low-priced goods to the consumers, he added.
According to sources, the finance ministry has forwarded the three-page letter to the FBR through Adviser to PM on Finance Dr Abdul Hafeez Shaikh. After its review, the FBR may finalise tax and duty exemptions for the SME sector and cottage industry.
As per the letter, the cottage industry is engaged in scores of businesses including food items, moulding products and handicrafts. The industry creates a large number of employment opportunities with very little investment while the income generated from it is spent locally due to which business and economic activities get a further boost.
According to the letter, India is immensely gaining from the cottage industry as its government has given technical and financial assistance to small businesses as part of its policy.
Published in The Express Tribune, October 22nd, 2019.
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HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — This Thanksgiving the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is encouraging food safety for a safe holiday.
According to the CDC undercooking and handling poultry incorrectly are the most common problems that lead to food-borne disease outbreaks.
Environment Health Director for the city of Harlingen Josh Ramirez said they want people to enjoy their Thanksgiving meals but also want people to be safe.
Ramirez said most food products including turkeys, should have a tag with proper instructions that specify how to cook and prepare properly.
Before prepping food items, Ramirez encourages you to wash your hands and be vigilant of where certain items are being placed.
“Once you are in the preparation of the product, make sure you separate your meats, your vegetables, and other products that you are going to be cooking because you don’t want to cross-contaminate the rest of the products,” said Ramirez.
According to Ramirez, food items that are not in their required temperature for more than two hours are a red flag.
Rodriguez said food poisoning and allergic reactions are both issues people experience. According to Rodriguez, symptoms must be taken seriously because in a matter of time they can potentially harm someone.
The CDC encourages you to seek professional help if you experience severe symptoms such as fever, frequent vomiting, and diarrhea that last more than three days.


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If all goes as planned, by 2022, employees of Cruise Automation, General Motors’ autonomous technology subsidiary, will have a lot more co-workers to have an after-work beer with.
On Thursday, GM announced it will invest $14 million in a research and development facility for Cruise Automation, the autonomous vehicle technology startup it purchased in March 2016. The plan is to repurpose an existing facility in the San Francisco area, more doubling Cruise’s current R&D space, and add 1,100 jobs over five years there.
Cruise is listed on Glassdoor.com as having under 200 employees, and currently has about 30 open positions listed on its website, in San Francisco, Scottsdale, and Washington D.C.
GM said in an earnings call last year that it paid $581 million for Cruise, after spending the previous two years watching the company test self-driving cars on San Francisco streets.
GM Chairman and CEO Mary Barra said in a statement on Thursday that the plan is to continue running Cruise as a startup to give “us the speed we need to continue to stay at the forefront of development of these technologies and the market applications.”
According to GM, Cruise and GM engineers are testing more than 50 Chevrolet Bolt EVs with self-driving technology on public roads in San Francisco; Scottsdale, Arizona; and metro Detroit. The autonomous Bolts are built at GM's Orion Township, Michigan, assembly plant.
“We are excited to significantly expand our footprint in California and continue on our rapid growth trajectory,” said Kyle Vogt, CEO of Cruise Automation, in a statement. “As autonomous car technology matures, our company's talent needs will continue to increase. Accessing the world-class talent pool that the San Francisco Bay Area offers is one of the many reasons we plan to grow our presence in the state.”
GM received $8 million in tax credits from California’s Office of Business and Economic Development for the Cruise expansion.
In its annual Leaderboard report on automated driving, released in March, Navigant Research ranked GM second to Ford in the development of autonomous vehicle technology—and just ahead of Renault-Nissan and Daimler. Eighteen automakers were ranked in 10 criteria: vision; go-to market strategy; partners; production strategy; technology; sales, marketing, and distribution; product capability; product quality and reliability; product portfolio; and staying power. The previous year, GM ranked fourth.


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[Tech] Co-developed Toppan’s next-gen ToF sensor capable of measuring distances of up to 30 meters
We have cooperated with Toppan Inc. and Shizuoka university in the development of Toppan’s new “3D depth image sensor (ToF sensor)” that can measure distances in the range of 1 to 30 meters.
This newly developed ToF sensor has been published at the international conference “2022 IEEE Symposium on VLSI Technology & Circuits” (IEEE of America, June 12-17, 2022).
For the official press release of this sensor from Toppan Inc.
Toppan and Brookman Technology’s Next-Generation Time-of-Flight Sensor Is World’s First Capable of Measuring Distances of up to 30 Meters
For any inquiries about this newly developed ToF sensor, please contact Toppan Electronics Division.


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Private equity has been a like a drug dealer Advanstar Communications just can’t shake. For the past 20 years, the company’s entanglements with buyout firms have created a rollercoaster of near-disasters, yet the company keeps going back for more.
Advanstar been around the Park Avenue block, with private equity fingerprints going all the way back to when LBOs were still called LBOs. In 1987, the company underwent a Kidder Peabody-backed MBO after fending off several hostile takeover bids. The debt from that deal eventually sent the company into bankruptcy in 1989, at which point Goldman Sachs gained control of the company through a debt-for-equity swap.
Then in 1996, the company narrowly avoided another bankruptcy (according to reports at the time) when Hellman & Friedman purchased the company for $237 million. H&F led Advanstar through 28 acquisitions over its four-year stewardship, including a deal for its most profitable business, apparel industry expo MAGIC Marketplace. H&F exited Advanstar with a sale to DLJ Merchant Banking in 2000 for approximately $900 million. After at least one failed exit attempt, DLJ sold the business to Veronis Suhler Stevenson, Citigroup Private Equity and New York Life Capital Partners, for $1.14 billion.
So to recap: Kidder Peabody –> Goldman Sachs –> H&F –> DLJ –> VSS and friends.
I’m not saying Advanstar’s five sponsors haven’t contributed to improvements in the business (H&F in particular) or earned a positive return on their investments. But, like its first LBO in 1989, the company’s most recent near-death experience was caused by its buyout-related debt load. When VSS bought the company, it had around $835 million in debt and annual sales of $328 million, according to Moody’s. The company was assigned a corporate family rating of B3 at the time, which reflected Advanstar’s “high leverage, its vulnerability to B-2-B advertising spending; and the competition faced by many of its product offerings.”
Earlier this month, Advanstar’s private equity backers infused $35 million of new equity in the company and eliminated $385 million in debt. Bad deal for the company’s lenders, but Advanstar staved off bankruptcy for another day.
Despite the reduction, according to last week’s report from Moody’s, this band-aid doesn’t make the company’s leverage ratio anywhere near healthy. The company remains levered at greater than 10x, and Moody’s doesn’t expect Advanstar be able to lower that load in 2010. In fact, 2010 looks pretty grim.
Advanstar’s highest margin business, MAGIC Marketplace, has suffered from the decline in sales in the apparel industry, which is not expected to rebound. Meanwhile, the company’s life sciences trade publications are experiencing a “secular decline,” Moody’s wrote. In the first half of the year, revenues declined by 27%, and Ebitda declined even more. If those numbers keep falling, the company’s leverage ratio will only rise.
The company’s CEO, Joe Loggia, told Folio that the debt structure is manageable. “I can’t reiterate this enough,” he said.


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World High Life Plc (AQSE:LIFE)(OTCQB:WRHLF), is pleased to announce that Love Hemp Limited (“Love Hemp”), a wholly owned subsidiary of World High Life, achieved 2nd quarter unaudited sales (October 1 to December 31), of £1,562,000 ($2,175,000), a 97% increase from Q1 sales of £793,500 ($1,105,000
The continued rise in sales represents a strong increase in demand during the COVID 19 pandemic across all platforms: Love Hemp, CBDOilsUk.com and wholesale activities via LH Botanicals.
Q2 Highlights (October 1 to December 31)
- £1,562,000 ($2,175,000) in revenue – up 97% compared to Q1 revenue of £793,500 ($1,105,000)
- £764,000 ($1,062,500) in gross profit
- 11% online conversion rate increase compared to Q1 rate of 12%
- Over 69,000 units sold online
- Over 10,500 online customer accounts created
First Half Year (July 1 to December 31)
- £2,355,000 ($3,280,000) in sales
- £1,311,000 ($1,825,500) gross profit
Tony Calamita, CEO of World High Life and Founder and CEO of Love Hemp, commented
“Continuing to aggressively increase our sales across all of the platforms is a testament to the dedication and hard work our teams have put into the Company. We have seen huge growth potential during the pandemic and are pleased to have been able to consistently provide our consumers with high level products and service.
“We continue to keep positioning for future growth and look forward to expanding what is already an exciting and promising business both across the UK and further afield.”
The Directors of the Company accept responsibility for the contents of this announcement.
About Love Hemp
Love Hemp is one of the UK’s leading CBD and Hemp product suppliers and has more than 40 product lines, comprising oils, sprays and vapes and a variety of edible and water-based CBD products. Love Hemp has established relationships with over 1,500 stores in the UK, including leading brands such as Sainsbury’s, Boots, Ocado and Holland & Barrett.
About World High Life
World High Life was established by the founders of Supreme Cannabis (TSX:FIRE), and 1933 Industries (CSE:TGIF), both companies at the forefront of the legalized cannabis industry. LIFE was established to take advantage of the huge opportunities available in the UK and European legal cannabis space, which is set to be the largest in the world within five years.
For further information please contact:
AQSE Corporate Adviser
Mark Anwyl/Allie Feuerlein
Peterhouse Capital Limited
+44 (0) 20 7469 0930
+44 (0) 207 318 3205
Market Abuse Regulation (MAR) Disclosure
The information contained within this announcement is deemed by the Company to constitute inside information. Upon the publication of this announcement via a Regulatory Information Service, this inside information is now considered to be in the public domain.
This information is provided by RNS, the news service of the London Stock Exchange. RNS is approved by the Financial Conduct Authority to act as a Primary Information Provider in the United Kingdom. Terms and conditions relating to the use and distribution of this information may apply. For further information, please contact firstname.lastname@example.org or visit www.rns.com.
SOURCE: World High Life Plc
View source version on accesswire.com:
News Provided by ACCESSWIRE via QuoteMedia
World High Life Plc
American cannabis sales hit US$17.5 billion in 2020, a research group’s new study shows.
Meanwhile, a Canadian cannabis producer began offering CBD beverages in the US, another move that shows how interested Canadians are in the overall US cannabis market at the moment.
Some pretty important news out of health and wellness; beverage and natural products company BevCanna Enterprises Inc. (CSE:BEV, Q:BVNNF, FSE:7BC) this week. For those of you following the Company with us, stay tuned.
As investors continue to prioritize cannabis opportunities in the US, market watchers expect mergers and acquisitions (M&A) to play a role in the future for Canadian companies.
A consolidation trend has been expected in the Canadian cannabis space for some time now based on the size of the market compared to the number of operations in the country.
BioHarvest Sciences Inc. Unveils the Unique Polyphenolic Content of Its Upcoming Olive-Based Nutraceutical
The product will include polyphenols known to have significant health benefits.
BioHarvest Sciences Inc. (CSE: BHSC) (“BioHarvest” or the “Company”) has reached an important milestone in its development program of additional Nutraceuticals. The olive-based Nutraceutical product scheduled for market availability in the second half of 2022 will contain the following unique matrix of polyphenols: hydroxytyrosol, trosol, and verbascoside. These compounds are the major polyphenols in naturally grown olives and are responsible for the high antioxidant activity of olives and olive oil. Importantly, the BioHarvest olive-based Nutraceutical product will provide all the benefits of olives and olive oil with a low calorie count per serving.
Cresco Labs (CSE:CL) (OTCQX:CRLBF) (“Cresco” or the “Company”), one of the largest vertically integrated multistate cannabis operators in the United States, announced today that it will report financial results for the fourth quarter and full year ended December 31 st , 2020 on Thursday March 25 th , 2021 before the market opens.
The Company will host a conference call and webcast to discuss its financial results and provide investors with key business highlights on Thursday March 25 th , 2021 at 8:30am Eastern Time (7:30am Central Time).


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We first detailed the new Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 5 for Xbox One and PlayStation 4 last month. Today, the first official trailer has been launched with a full break down from Tony Hawk himself. You’ll see the classic gameplay that made THPS famous over a decade ago, with improved graphics and new larger maps for play.
Although Amazon’s official listing says the end of the year, Tony Hawk himself tweeted that the game would be released in September.
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888 “Ready to Go” Online Poker, Casino and Sportsbook in Ontario Next Month
We’re thrilled to be licensed…and can’t wait to hit the market when it officially opens.Global online gaming giant 888 Assets – the parent company of 888poker, casino and sports – will be be ready with a full list of online games in Ontario next monthincluding online pokerrevealed the company.
In a press release on Thursday, the company said it was “among the first operators” to obtain an iGaming license from the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO) which, in parallel with iGames Ontario (iGO), supervises new regulated online gaming market in Ontario.
This is the first confirmation from any operator that they hope to launch regulated online poker in Ontario next month.
“The newly regulated market is expected to launch on April 4, with 888 ready to offer its leading, innovative and content-rich casino, sports and poker products to players located across the province, all powered by its proprietary technology,” the company said.
Learn more about Ontario online poker in our complete guide for players »
888poker Ontario could be ready on April 4
Although there were few additional details, the press release certainly suggests that he plans to launch 888poker Quebec on the regulated market when it opens in a month.
fuse poker understands that when the market opens up, online poker rooms in Ontario will be separated from the global player pool.
Ontario represents an attractive long-term growth opportunity for 888 and this is an extremely important strategic step for us.“We are delighted to have obtained a [license] speak AGCO and I can’t wait to launch it in the market when it officially opens,” said 888 CEO Itai Pazner. “As a group, we are focused on strengthening our presence and offering to clients in the main regulated markets. To that end, Ontario represents an attractive long-term growth opportunity for 888 and this is an extremely important strategic step for us.
This would represent the fifth such network for 888 worldwide — He operates a global online poker room on 888poker.com, a European network with players in Spain and Portugal, and a separate Italian poker room. In the United States, its platform powers the various WSOP PA in addition it runs on the 888/WSOP network across New Jersey, Nevada and Delaware.
Its software should also be used for launching a WSOP Michigan soon, with the hope that she and the WSOP Pennsylvania room will be able to combine with the larger US network in due course.
Existing and upcoming online poker networks powered by 888
|888poker Europe||Spain and Portugal||active|
|888/WSOP United States||Nevada, New Jersey, Delaware||active|
|WSOP MID||Michigan||Coming soon|
|888 Ontario||Ontario||Coming soon|
Other poker operators expected in the Ontario online gaming market
Although the first to officially announce plans to launch online poker in Ontario next month, 888 Holdings is not the first company to confirm receipt of a license. Earlier in February, USGR reported that there were 30 license applicants. BetMGM said it set to go live in Canada in April. Based in Toronto the score bet noted he had received approval in February. Another local business, Rivalry Corpand Australian bookmaker Pointsbetalso confirmed their approval.
While no other online poker operators have confirmed receipt of a license, PokerStars has indicated that it is also actively seeking a PokerStars Ontario license – although launch timelines are unclear.
Entertainment Caesars has mentioned in the past that it expects it “to be among the best positioned operators in Ontario”. Although the company didn’t specifically mention poker, as the parent company of the dominant company World Series of Poker mark, this could definitely be on the cards.
In effect, the idea of a WSOP Ontario is only strengthened by today’s news of the 888 demand. As noted, the pair have a longstanding partnership in the United States that could certainly be extended north of the border.
Other potential candidates include GGPoker and partypokerthough the two currently remain tight-lipped about their plans.
Possible timeline for the launch of regulated online poker in Ontario
The go-live date is fast approaching — April 4th is only a month away. Much is still unknown about online gambling in Ontario. It is well understood that regulations are still being developed — the operators’ tax rate has not even been disclosed, at least not publicly.
However, assuming these 11-hour attempts to disrupt the timeline fail, the Ontario regulators seem determined to move forward with an April 4 launch – but the good news is that the regulator has made it clear that it wants to avoid any sort of “blackout” period in the market.
As discussed in detail in pokerfuse’s exclusive guide to online poker in Ontario, operators who applied for a license before April 4, should be able to continue operating in the market while their applications are being considered. Once their licenses are granted, the regulator wants to work with the operators to ensure a smooth transition from offshore online poker sites to Ontario licensed online poker sites.


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Following up on the miniature six-inch figurines they released previously, UNDERCOVER continues its partnership with Medicom Toy by introducing a couple of brand new, 12-inch figures. Designed in the likeness of hero UNDERMAN and his nemesis Piranoido, the highly detailed characters are each wearing pieces from the Spring/Summer 2011 collection. Set to be released sometime this summer, the figurines will be available for purchase through select stockists.
Source: Jun Takahashi


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Olam recognised as champion of inclusive agribusiness in ASEAN at inaugural AGROW Awards
Olam International has been recognised as a champion for inclusive business in the ASEAN agricultural sector at the inaugural AGROW Awards, organised by the ASEAN Business Advisory Council (ASEAN-BAC).
The AGROW Awards aim to recognise the achievements of inspiring agribusinesses and game-changing stakeholders enabling innovation in agriculture advancement in the region. Olam took home the Golden AGROW Award (Singapore) for its outstanding contributions in the field of agriculture by helping micro, small and medium enterprises in the region to prosper, and for advancing the field of agriculture overall.
Prakash Jhanwer, President of Southeast Asia and China, Olam International, said, “We are honoured and excited to receive this award. Olam has a significant footprint in Southeast Asia across the agri value chain, and this recognition is a strong testament to how the team is re-imagining global agriculture and co-creating innovative solutions to improve farmer productivity, bring quality products to consumers and benefit wider communities. We will catalyse more positive change as we invest into more value-adding capabilities in the region.”
Held as part of the 2nd ASEAN Agriculture Summit 2018 that took place on Monday in Manila, Pasay City, Philippines, Olam was one of 15 AGROW awardees across categories that also included Financial Inclusivity, Young Agripreneur, Inclusive Business and Groundbreaker.
Sunny Verghese, Olam’s Group Co-Founder and CEO, joined fellow speakers from the food and agri sector at the summit to discuss the Mentorship, Money and Market (3Ms) model in enabling disruptive agri-technology and innovation across the region.
The ASEAN-BAC was established in April 2003 with the mandate to provide private sector feedback and guidance to boost ASEAN’s efforts towards economic integration. The Council also identifies priority areas for consideration of the ASEAN Leaders and organises activities primarily focused on reviewing and identifying issues to facilitate and promote economic cooperation and integration.


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Total Immersion (TI) may not be at the center of the Augmented Reality (AR) browsers frenzy these days – but when it comes to delivering AR on a large scale – it’s still the 800 pound gorilla.
Nicolas Bapst, responsible for Product Marketing for Amusement Parks at TI – recently shared with me their latest achievements: a totally new kind of interactive 3D live show and an AR goggles experience The Networked City developed for TomorrowCity in South Korea .
The 3D live show is based on TI’s 3D Live Show technology (naming coincidence?):
…a very innovative and interactive screen movie production…This show introduces the U-city in a spectacular method and the audience can participate directly in the story performance.
With the new offering from Total Immersion, spectators share the stage with virtual live performers, playing a guessing game around what’s real and what’s not.
See the hilarious video on TI’s site
The 3D live show is not all TI had up its sleeve for the U-city. A second project, involving augmented reality (AR) goggles is: the Networked City
How does this new world looks like?
Can’t say…no video of the exhibit was released so far.
Until then, you’ll have to travel to South Korea to see for yourself…


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Hexxeh has just posted the link to the next build of Chromium OS. This Vanilla build has loads to offer and if you are using Flow, you’ll be impressed. The build process has also been automated and now you don’t need to manually upgrade to the latest builds of the next generation Operating System from Google.
Google has just updated its Google Chrome BETA Channel that adds a lot of new and essential features to Chrome. The new Beta adds support for Autofill, has better syncing capabilities and is faster than before.
Google has just announced that you could now convert files already uploaded to your documents list into a Google Docs format. You could even convert PDFs and images that you’ve already uploaded to text using the Optical Character Recognition (OCP) technology.
Google Tags is a new advertising system by Google that let’s you advertise about your business on Google Places. Google Tags will help small business owners learn more about their customers and attract potential customers through Google Places.
Has privacy ever been a matter of concern for you? Do you really care if Google collects your personal online data? If the answer to the above questions is yes, here’s another thing which will concern you. Today, Google has announced that your Google Search history could now be viewed from your phone.
Most of you probably have two or more Gmail accounts and can’t use them together in one browser. Well, Google has a solution for you. Google has been testing this feature for quite some time and has finally enabled it in Gmail.
Till date, you could only upload videos on YouTube which were worth 10 minutes. This time limit was good for reviews and news of some sort, but really not enough. Today, YouTube has announced that the video time limit has been increased to 15 minutes. Not a huge increase, but a necessary update.
Google announced Google TV at Google I/O. They plan to bring the web to your TV along with hi-def YouTube videos. Google has partnered with Logitech and Sony to manufacture the device. According to Peter Sherman, Google is really excited about the new product and thinks that watching YouTube videos on your TV would be cool.
iPhone 4 and iPad have distracted tech minds and we have almost forgotten that there are loads of other great phones from different manufacturers available in the market. Android offers users another choice and stops the future from being dominated by only one carrier, one manufacturer and one company that controls all our data.


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PORT St.LUCIE, Fla. (Jan. 29, 2002)— Perhaps serving as a model for future locations, Tire Kingdom Inc. has opened its first tire clearance center.
The inaugural facility is in Port St. Lucie, Fla., and will house between 15,000 and 20,000 tires no longer included in Tire Kingdom's model stock plan.
“As most tire companies do, when you change line-ups you get rid of inventory,” said Aubrey Felton, Tire Kingdom's regional vice president in southeast Florida.
The new clearance center is in a converted Tire Kingdom store.
The retail location was moved to a new building about five miles away, Mr. Felton said.
The clearance center is 6,500 square feet with eight bays. It has a staff of eight, including three in management and sales and five shop staffers.
Mr. Felton said the clearance center currently has enough stock to sustain the store for two or three years with discontinued products alone. The store also will carry Sigma brand tires, which are marketed by TBC Corp., Tire Kingdom´s parent company.
The store, which opened about four months ago, has what Mr. Felton called a different look from a typical Tire Kingdom location, similar to the distinct appearance of the company's performance center in Jacksonville, Fla. It is also advertised separately from other Tire Kingdom locations.
Mr. Felton said the store was initially expected to move about 500 tires per month.
That number already has been exceeded by 300. He said its potential is to sell nearly 2,000 tires per month, if the store affiliates with car dealers or wholesalers.
“It's unlimited. The potential could be huge,” he said. “We're pretty much dealing with just (individual) customers right now.”
Mr. Felton said tentative plans are on the drawing board for similar centers, “not only in the state of Florida, but throughout our retail chain,” but said there is no set timetable.
He did say that Tire Kingdom expects to have at least one more by the end of 2002.
Tire Kingdom has a total of 182 stores in the southeastern U.S., including three retail outlets in Port St. Lucie.


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Even as the COVID-19 reshapes daily life for people all around the world, video games keep rolling. They’ve become crucial entertainment during times of lockdown, and they’re still preparing for one of the biggest events in the broader industry: a console transition. Microsoft and Sony are planning on releasing the Xbox Series X and PS5 in the fall, and so far COVID-19 has not caused either to shift those plans.
Pricing is the biggest question mark for both of these machines: we know what’s inside, we know what one of them will look like, but we don’t know how much it’s going to cost us. What we do know, however, is that Microsoft will be pushing Xbox All Access, the subscription service that gets you a console and an Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscription for monthly payments instead of a lump sum—pending a credit check.
Speaking to IGN, Head of Xbox Phil Spencer said that Microsoft expects to “go big” with All Access for the launch of the Series X, which will add an interesting dimension to the console launch. Whatever the full price of the PS5 and Series X, you’ll be able to get the Series X for less up-front money unless Sony launches a competitor program. That’s not impossible, but we haven’t heard anything from Sony on the matter, and Xbox has had this program for years.
Right now, you can get an Xbox One X with 24 months Game Pass for $24.99 a month, an Xbox One S for $22.99 a month, and an Xbox One S all digital for $19.99 a month—the Xbox One X comes with an upgrade option. We clearly don’t know how much the Series X will cost, but it’s not unreasonable to imagine it will come in under $50.
This could be especially critical this fall in a situation where the economy has suffered lasting damage from coronavirus and the associated lockdowns. Dropping $500-$600 on a new console is a tough proposition for most in any economy, but that decision becomes difficult to impossible among job losses and economic contraction. Spencer touched on this in the interview.
"We would be remiss if we did not talk about the economic realities that could be here next fall," Spencer said. "Not to be all doom and gloom, but we saw the jobless claim numbers last week that came out. There is a lot of uncertainty in the market. I think gaming is a luxury and we should all understand that."
He added: "When we look back at 2008 and what happened with gaming; gaming tends to be durable. It seems that people see it as a value and they’ll continue. But obviously, people have to take care of their families first."
Xbox All Access might make that decision more palatable to some, reducing the amount of money you need to have on hand to actually get in and start playing. And while All Access would be an interesting option all on its own, but it’s much more enticing alongside Microsoft’s Game Pass. That means your monthly payments include everything you need to play, from the online subscription to the hardware and software.


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Coextro provides high speed internet service in Canada. Lowest internet plans by Coextro starts at $39.00. Coextro offers 4 unlimited internet plans. Highest Download speed provided by Coextro is 500 mbps. Coextro provides 4 internet plans in Canada.A young company, Coextro was established only in 2012. Since its founding until to this day, the company has been offering high-speed internet plans with no data capping. However, its products are offered only to apartment complexes, condominiums, and hotels but not to other types of residence units like houses.
We found 4 best and most popular internet plans in your area
Apart from its trademark internet services, Coextro also offers telephone and television services. Despite being new, it already has managed to make its mark on the telecommunications industry.
So how does Coextro compare to its competitors when it comes to residential internet plans?
Among internet service providers catering exclusively to apartments, condominiums, and hotels, Coextro offers the most cost-efficient plan. For the price of $45 per month, customers can enjoy an internet speed anddownload speeds of 100 mbps with unlimited bandwidth.
Installation is free when you opt to subscribe to Coextro’s services. And here’s what seals the deal for many customers: no lock-in periods. The only possible problem a customer might come across is that if there are no other customer in the building apart from them, they might have trouble convincing the building supervisor to apply for the service.
Until a good number of people requests for the service’s application, then the chances to avail a plan from any ISP is slim.
In summary, Coextra trumps other key players in providing excellent service at a reasonable price --save for the fact that it doesn’t offer its products to homes.
Here's a list of top rated internet providers in your area
The Entertainment Software Association of Canada this week launched a new report on the Canadian videogame industry. According to ESAC, there are 329 videogame companies in Canada who support a total of 16,500 full-time employees, which is up 5% from … Read the full article
Startup Hubs to Partner with Microsoft Ventures Article Posted by Techvibes Newsdesk November 1 Startup Hubs Across Canada Partner with Microsoft Ventures to Support Local Ecosystems Working to help foster Canadian innovation and entrepreneurship, Microsoft Canada has announced new relationships … Read the full article
Posted by Chris Spoke on Techvibes Nov 1, 2013 “We are in this really huge, secular transition away from degrees, towards skills. It no longer matters where you went to school, what you did. Don’t tell me you have an … Read the full article
Amazon plans to open a gargantuan office in Vancouver, Techvibes has learned. The venerable online retailer plans on taking up space in the Telus Garden, a massive residential and office development currently under construction in the heart of downtown Vancouver. … Read the full article
Last year patent licensing company Wi-LAN filed a lawsuit against what was then Research In Motion for infringing a patent that relates to Bluetooth technology. Wi-LAN, which licenses its intellectual property to over 250 companies, alleged in 2012 that several … Read the full article


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Extreme weather conditions in 2021 caused increases in the prices of agricultural commodities, which remained high until 2022, as the unusual conditions that damaged crops resulted in continuous shortages.
The price of goods, including Brazilian coffee, Belgian potatoes and Canadian yellow peas – in demand as a protein substitute in plant-based foods – rose sharply last year in response to extreme temperatures and floods.
Scientists have warned that these conditions will become more frequent and intense as climate change accelerates.
Logistics issues and changes in consumption habits due to the pandemic also drove up the price of staples such as sugar and wheat last year.
“Agriculture is one of the sectors most exposed to climate change,” at risk of both individual extreme weather conditions and long-term shifts in climate patterns, a report by Stockholm Environmental Institute. The risks were “many times greater” than the opportunities for the sector, it said.
A succession of extreme weather conditions that took place around the world during the middle of 2021 damaged a series of crops, causing prices to rise.
Severe frosts in Brazil hit the country’s coffee belt in July, causing prices to plummet seven year highlights. Global supply chain disruption and a shortage of container vessels also caused prices to rise later in the year.
The weather in Brazil continued to be erratic, raising concerns about further crop damage.
“When we know that La Nina will strike this year, we can already see how prices react in advance, even before the real phenomenon occurs,” said Mario Zappacosta, a senior economist at the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
It could have an “infectious effect” where the price of substitute crops also rises, he added.
Meanwhile, an unprecedented heat wave and drought hit Canada during mid-2021, sending pea prices down rocket. The price of peas has more than doubled, affecting manufacturers of plant-based meat alternatives that rely on the ingredient.
The price of Belgian potatoes also rose after floods devastated large parts of Europe during the continent’s summer.
In their report, researchers at the Stockholm Environment Institute said that climate change “would dramatically affect agricultural production around the world,” and reduce crop yields in certain areas.
Global sugarcane yields could fall by 59 percent in the last three decades to 2100, compared to yields in the period 1980-2010, while Arabica coffee and maize could fall by 45 percent and 27 percent, respectively, they estimated.
“This is a big gap in our planning for [climate] adaptation, ”said Magnus Benzie, one of the report’s authors. Lower yields and higher prices could cause food insecurity in less resilient, import-dependent countries, and also drive up costs for consumers around the world, he said.
How countries have responded to extreme events and deficits – whether they have accumulated or imposed trade restrictions, for example – could exacerbate crises, he added.
Simultaneous crises, such as successive or simultaneous droughts, are also likely to exacerbate deficits, and are expected to become more common as the world warms, Benzie said.
Additional reporting by Emiko Terazono.
Where climate change meets business, markets and politics. Explore the FT’s coverage here.
Are you curious about the FT’s commitments for environmental sustainability? Find out more about our science-based targets here


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This snack pack containing Jif peanut butter is being recalled.
F&S Fresh Foods is recalling Garden Highway Snacks brand protein power snacks due to Jif peanut butter.
We’ve seen several items being recalled due to Jif peanut butter being linked to a recent salmonella outbreak.
Well, it looks like another product will be added to that list.
Garden Snacks brand protein power snacks are now being recalled.
An article by the FDA says that these snack packs contain Jif.
This means anyone who eats these snacks runs the risk of salmonella infection.
The product being affected and its best by date are listed below
- Protein Power Snack – 05/28/22
These 0.75 oz packs were sold at Walgreens stores in New York and New Jersey.
No illnesses have been linked to this product but since it contains the peanut butter a recall and safety precautions are needed.
If you have purchased this item do not consume it, it should be thrown away or returned for a refund.
Anyone with questions about this alert can call 856-391-7122 to speak to a representative.
What is Salmonella?
Salmonella is an infection caused by ingesting contaminated food or water.
Sometimes an infection will cause no symptoms at all.
Symptoms that do pop up should only last a few days.
These symptoms will start to show within 8 to 72 hours
- Stomach Cramps
- Blood in stool


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Liquor sales through the Tamil Nadu State Marketing Corporation (TASMAC) netted a revenue of around Rs. 250 crore for the government during the Deepavali weekend. On Saturday, as the State celebrated the festival of lights, TASMAC’s sales touched Rs. 135 crore. The day before Deepavali, it registered sales of Rs. 108 crore, according to a TASMAC official.
The sales figure for the two days, is also well above the average sales the State-run corporation sees on normal days.
On an average, it sees liquor sales of Rs. 50-60 crore on week days and Rs. 80-90 crore on weekends, according to the official.
The sales are also up 10 per cent when compared with the sales during last year’s Deepavali.
On an average, more than 70 lakh people consume liquor every day across over 6,000 outlets in the State. TASMAC is one of the major cash cows of the Tamil Nadu government.
According to the official, the closure of 500 shops did not have an impact on sales this Deepavali.
He added that sales would have been higher by Rs. 10-20 crore if only products of United Breweries were also available at TASMAC outlets.
Products of United Breweries, which has a 30 per cent market share in Tamil Nadu, have not available at TASMAC outlets since the beginning of this month due to production and tax-related issues.
Brands including Kingfisher Strong, Kingfisher Lager, Kingfisher Superior, Bullet Super String Beer, Signature Rare Premium Whisky and McDowell’s VSOP Brandy are not available anywhere in the State.


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It’s the age-old argument: Microsoft and Apple. Although this time, instead of the classic “Who’s better?”, the question is now, “Who will dominate 2017?”
Before you scoff at this question…
…consider a few things.
Apple suffered quite a bit in 2016. The company saw sales drag. Its profit was less than it was the previous year—a first for the company in fifteen years, and iPhone sales were at their slowest-ever rate in the last three months of 2015.
It wasn’t for lack of effort. In the last couple years, Apple has released several new products, like the Apple Watch, a new Macbook Pro, a new iPod Pro, and the iPhone 7.
The iPhone 7 let out a collective “meh” among its buyers. It didn’t have any particularly interesting new features, and there was the irritating absence of a headphone jack.
Similar complaints were made about the new MacBook Pros, which replaced familiar ports with USB-C ports—meaning consumers will need to purchase adapters. The new Touch Bar (a small touchscreen that replaces the traditional keys on the keyboard) also frustrated many buyers, who claimed it to be “gimmicky”, “dispensable”, and “inconvenient”. The Wall Street Journal criticized the Touch Bar, saying, “You can get used to the spring of the keys on the new flat keyboard. You also get used to sleeping on a rock when camping.”
Not only was the Touch Bar met with overwhelming negativity; it also adds $300 to the new Macbook Pro’s price. Apple products have never been cheap, but with the Macbook Pro, due to all these unpopular features and also the lack of much battery power, consumers are finding the model to be overpriced and underpowered.
2016 did see the release of Apple’s AirPods—a set of wireless headphones, which, to their credit, were an entirely new product. However, the Airpods suffered multiple delays upon release, and were met with mixed reviews.
Many are wondering if Apple is past its best with the loss of Steve Jobs. His successor, Tim Cook, is a masterful operator, but less of a creative force. Is Apple going through a mere rough patch, or is this the beginning of a steady decline?
Microsoft, Not Too Shabby…Almost
Microsoft arguably ruled the 1990s. Everyone had a Windows 95 PC. It was praised for its wealth of software. It was familiar, and it did the job.
But the early 2000s saw Apple blow up the industry to an entire new generation with the introduction of iMacs, iPods, and of course, the iPhone. Apple products were cutting-edge and trendy as could be—an idea that Apple very much milked. While many fans of Microsoft remained loyal and maintained their points, to many, the company seemed like a dinosaur and was pushed a bit into the shadows.
However, despite this, Microsoft never fell too far from grace. It quietly continued improving, and even had a few surprises of its own.
2016 saw the biggest resurgence of Microsoft in years, with the launching of Windows 10 taking place in mid-2015. Users loved the new OS touch screens, virtual assistant Cortana, and window management. Indeed, Windows 10 garnered much acclaim as a return to form, with consumers calling it “fresh and familiar”.
Microsoft’s features for Windows 10 also feature re-designed versions of core apps like Mail, Calendar, Maps, and the Windows Store. The most interesting aspect here is that these apps are universal, meaning they are the same apps that run on Windows 10 phones.
Moreover, Microsoft grabbed a good marketing spin with Windows 10, framing the OS as “Windows as a Service”—meaning it’s never fully done, and it’s constantly evolving. This is attractive to customers, and it doesn’t hurt that Windows 10 proves that Microsoft’s dream of delivering a single OS that can work across computers, tablets, and phones might actually come true.
And while Apple was charging its customers extra for adapters for its unnecessary upgrades (like the headphones jack and the USB-C ports), Microsoft surprised everyone by announcing that they would be giving Windows 10 away for free—proving that the company is more interested in getting consumers to use Windows than making them pay for it.
The Microsoft Surface Book also gained positive reviews, the biggest one coming from Business Insider.
However, the main issue that most people continue to have with Microsoft (besides the general “Apple is cooler” notion) is the privacy concerns.
This has been one of Microsoft’s biggest controversies. By default, Windows 10 allows itself to pass your data to Microsoft’s servers, use your bandwidth for Microsoft’s own purposes, and profile your Windows usage. Despite the success Microsoft has seen in the last couple of years, this is a serious issue that users have real qualms with.
“Finally, we will access, disclose and preserve personal data, including your content (such as the content of your emails, other private communications or files in private folders), when we have a good faith belief that doing so is necessary…Rather than residing as a static software program on your device, key components of Windows are cloud-based.
…In order to provide this computing experience, we collect data about you, your device, and the way you use Windows.”
Electronic Frontier Foundation employee Amul Kalia tells Microsoft that they should “come clean” with their user community. “Windows 10 sends an unprecedented amount of usage data back to Microsoft,” says Kalia, explaining that enabling virtual assistant Cortana increases the amount of data sent to Microsoft.
This is particularly worrisome, and if Microsoft doesn’t do something to fix this issue, many users will be too concerned to continue using their OS.
The Bottom Line:
So which mega company do most people believe will win out over 2017? It’s hard to determine. Here are some bottom-line pros and cons:
Apple Pros: They have the iPhone, as well as an outstanding track record with getting consumers extremely excited.
Apple Cons: Despite the unveiling of many innovative and thrilling surprises in the past, there now seems to be a serious lack of creative force behind Apple. The company’s recent releases have been called “boring for its uninspiring product launches in recent years.”
Microsoft Pros: They’ve never been bad; they’ve simply not had as much in-your-face relevance as Apple in past years. Despite the fact that Microsoft may not have the same charisma as Apple, they have steadily solid products.
Microsoft Cons: Serious privacy issues that are widely known, as well as a general sense of the company being second to Apple with millennials.
Apple supporters and Microsoft supporters are equally passionate, and both companies have seen better and worse moments in their time as industry leaders.
While Apple did have a rough year, most reviewers agree that their design and style is still second-to-none. Some Apple fans see 2016 not as a failure, but simply as the year that Apple took to regather itself—or, as others believe, the year they took to set up a surprise for everyone. June 2017 will be the 10th anniversary of the very first iPhone, and some theorize that Apple released the less-than-amazing iPhone 7 in order to make a bigger impact with the upcoming anniversary model. Others who are on board with this “Apple comeback” theory also point out that Apple may be also updating its Mac desktop computers in 2017—the first time they would be doing so in years. There could be other Apple products getting excited buzz in 2017, including the smart glasses that always seem to be hovering on the horizon of Apple rumors. If this is true, then Apple will come roaring back into the consumer spotlight.
But the glowing contender, Microsoft, could have a huge advantage over Apple if the company decides to do something about their privacy situation. It may very well be this “slow and steady wins the race” mentality that brings Microsoft back to the highest pedestal.
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South Florida Resident Pleads Guilty in Connection with Business Opportunity Fraud Venture
Employer Purportedly Sold Automated Teller Machines, Point of Sale Terminals, and Public Access Internet Terminals
WASHINGTON – Orlando Moncada entered a guilty plea in Miami federal district court to a charge of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, the Justice Department and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service announced today. Moncada, a resident of south Florida, worked as a reference for American Merchant Technologies Inc. (AMT), a Miami-based company that purportedly sold automated teller machines (ATM), public access internet terminals (PAIT), and point of sale (POS) terminal business opportunities to consumers across the United States as part of a fraud scheme.
AMT was in business from April 2004 until December 2004. According to AMT’s sales pitch, a locating company would place the ATM, PAIT and POS machines of AMT business opportunity buyers in high-traffic locations. The business opportunity buyers would, they were falsely told, earn profits when members of the public bought items from the machines or paid a fee to use them.
According to the indictment, AMT salespeople made materially false statements to potential buyers, including that AMT was a profitable business opportunity, and that a locating company would secure high-traffic locations for the company’s distributors to place their terminals. AMT salespeople provided potential buyers with the names of individuals who were purportedly successful AMT business opportunity owners, including Orlando Moncada, when in fact, such references were not successful AMT business opportunity owners, but were individuals paid by AMT to fraudulently induce potential purchasers to buy an AMT business opportunity. During the time period AMT was in business, these phony references, including Moncada, spoke to a number of potential purchasers of an AMT business opportunity.
"We are committed to vigorously prosecuting financial fraud, especially scams like these that prey on working people who may be down on their luck," said Tony West, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Division of the Department of Justice. "Business opportunity fraud, including the use of phony references, can and does deprive innocent people of funds they have invested to start a business and earn a living."
Moncada faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, a possible fine, and mandatory restitution. He is the fourth defendant convicted who was associated with the AMT scheme. Walter Henderson, a manager at AMT, was convicted in 2007 and sentenced to five years in prison. Two other individuals who acted as phony references for AMT were prosecuted and convicted in connection with another business opportunity scheme in which they were involved.
"Business opportunity scams can be very deceptive even to those who seek to do their own due diligence," said U.S. Postal Inspector in Charge, Henry Gutierrez, based in Miami. "Using phony references like the defendant defrauds potential purchasers even when they think they are doing all they can to make sure a business deal is sound. We are committed to investigating and ending this type of financial wrongdoing."
Assistant Attorney General West commended the investigative efforts of the Postal Inspection Service, as well as the Federal Trade Commission, which previously brought a related civil suit and made a criminal referral. This matter is being prosecuted by trial attorneys in the Justice Department’s Office of Consumer Litigation.


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'Cut fuel duty' plea after fall in retail sales as the cost of petrol soars by 16% in a year to eat into spending power
The soaring price of petrol is being blamed for causing consumers to slash their spending in shops.
Petrol rose 16.4 per cent in the three months to the end of March compared with the preceding three months.
Store sales fell by 1.4 per cent in the three months to March over the preceding quarter, said the Office for National Statistics. It was the first quarterly drop since 2013.
Brian Madderson, chairman of the Petrol Retailers’ Association, will this week write to Chancellor Philip Hammond urging him to cut fuel duty on petrol and diesel by 3p per litre from its current 57.95p.
Transport trouble: The soaring price of petrol – which has shot up by 16.4 per cent in the last year – is being blamed for causing consumers to slash their spending in shops
Madderson said: ‘We will tell the Chancellor that the increase in fuel prices over the past year has taken £6.3billion out of consumers’ pockets which would otherwise be spent in high street shops. It is an extraordinary imposition and brake on retail activity.’
Petrol has risen in price to 117.5p per litre, up from 106.4p this time last year. Diesel is 120.3p per litre, up from 106.9p last year.
The fall in sterling against the dollar since the referendum has contributed to the rise in prices with sterling down 11 per cent over the year.
Fuel is traded in dollars so the fall in the pound has made it more expensive for British retailers.
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With the help of the UN, the world’s USD 2.5 trillion USD fashion industry is shifting to more sustainable business models which can help fight climate change and achieve the Sustainable Development Goals.
The fashion industry, including the production of all clothes which people wear, contributes to around 10% of global greenhouse gas emissions due to its long supply chains and energy intensive production. The industry consumes more energy than the aviation and shipping industry combined.
Shifting practices in the fashion industry to reduce carbon emissions is key to limiting warming to as close to 1.5°C above pre-Industrial Revolution levels, in line with the goals of the Paris Agreement on Climate Change.
In addition to its carbon intensive supply chain and production processes, the fashion industry consumes a great deal of other precious resources.
To make just one pair of denim jeans, 10,000 liters of water is required to just grow the one kilo of cotton needed for the pair of jeans. In comparison, one person would take 10 years to drink 10,000 liters of water.
Cumulatively, the fashion industry produces about 20% of global waste water. Furthermore, 85% of textiles end up in landfills or are incinerated when most of these materials could be reused.
One good example of how ambition to tackle climate change is growing in the fashion industry is collaborative initiative called the UN Alliance for Sustainable Fashion, co-sponsored by 10 UN organizations including UN Climate Change.
To help build awareness around fashion’s impact on the environment, UN Development Program Goodwill Ambassador Michelle Yeoh explains the use of forest based materials for sustainable fashion in this video “Made in Forests”.
UN Climate Change encourages sustainable fashion through its Climate Neutral Now (CNN) campaign which connects organizations that want to offset carbon emission with investments in carbon emissions reductions across the developing world.
Lindita Xhaferi-Salihu, who works for Climate Neutral Now, described CNN’s involvement with sustainable fashion as “kick-starting a multi-stakeholder initiative to mobilize fashion around climate action through three work streams: enabling “within sector” collaboration; facilitating engagement with policymakers; and catalyzing action and providing recognition.”
At last year’s major UN Climate Change Conference in Bonn, Germany, the fashion industry outlined which steps it is taking to support the goals of the Paris Climate Change agreement.
For example, the fast fashion retailer H&M shared their strategy to be 100% run on renewable energy by 2040 with a fully circular production model, where the by-product of one industry serves the objective of another.
Other Inspiring Examples of Climate Action in the Fashion Industry
The 2018 Pulse of the Fashion Industry Report also contains positive news. There was a 6% increase in general sustainability efforts across the entire garment industry since last year’s report. The weakest points in the industry are small and medium sized enterprises in the entry- to mid-price segments which comprise just over 50% of the entire industry, pointing to issues of scale in implementing general sustainability measures. However, new data presented in the 2017 report shows that a failure to implement sustainability measures into garment production will cause companies to lose out on a 2% increase in earnings by 2030.
Additionally, the famous blue jean manufacturer Levi, Strauss & Co has announced a new climate change action plan. Using Science Based Targets, the company plans to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 40% across its global supply chain by 2025. The plan also includes a 90% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions in all owned-and-operated facilities, which will be achieved by investing in onsite renewable energy and energy efficiency upgrades.
To view the original article from the UNFCCC website, please click here.
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Horizon: Zero Dawn celebrated its second birthday recently and, to celebrate, Guerrilla Games Managing Director Hermen Hulst dropped some updated sales figures, as well as some fun behind-the-scenes details about the creation of the PlayStation 4 exclusive.
Horizon hit the scene on Feb. 28, 2017, introducing the world to its heroine, Aloy, and a world infested with mechanical monsters. Guerrilla Games’ follow-up to the Killzone series drew a lot of comparisons to Nintendo’s own The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, primarily because they launched at the same time and were surprisingly similar takes on the open-world adventure genre.
According to Hulst’s update on the PlayStation Blog, the two games received very similar commercial success, too. The Guerrilla big-wig announced that Zero Dawn has sold “well over 10 million” copies worldwide, with the latest reports for Breath of the Wild pegging it at 10.3 million copies sold. Since Horizon sold 7.6 million copies in its first year on the market, that means the game looks to have pushed about 3 million more copies out the door in year two.
With that kind of success, it seems pretty obvious that Guerrilla will be rolling out a sequel at some point, but I wouldn’t expect an announcement anytime soon. This late in the PlayStation 4’s life cycle, it’s unlikely any major titles are left to be announced for the console. Given the timing, I’m thinking it’s much more likely we’ll see Aloy’s next adventure announced for the launch window of the PlayStation 5, but that’s 100 percent speculation on my part.
On top of updated sales figures, Hulst included some rather impressive cosplay and art sent inspired by Horizon, as well as some interesting tidbits concerning development. For instance, in early production, since the character design had not been decided yet, Aloy’s model was a holdover from Killzone: Shadow Fall, and one of the images even shows her firing a more traditional machine gun at a robot dino. That robot dino is also unique, in that it was an early prototype that looks more like a kid’s toy than a threatening robotic T-Rex. Oh and, in case you’re wondering what went into the sound mixing for the game’s cast of creatures, the raptor-like Watcher’s feature barks recorded from a Chihuahua.
Anyway, it’s worth a read if you’ve got some time and are interested in some lesser-known facts about how Horizon got made.


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A cheat sheet for education in Silicon Valley
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The education technology sector exploded in 2012, spurred by higher education startups offering free online classes.
Mind-boggling student debt and lagging technology adoption by universities are just two of the factors that set the stage for startups like Udacity, Coursera and Udemy.
Their success in drawing millions of users to classes on multiple systems are now translating into sky-high market valuations.
In the U.S. alone, higher education e-learning was deemed a $17.4 billion market last year by GSV Advisors. That number is expected to increase to $39.8 billion by 2017.
Entrepreneurs are also now realizing that the field extends beyond the Web classes known as Massive Open Online Courses, or MOOCs. We put together a cheat sheet for you.
These companies offer customers, including universities, businesses or other institutions, the tools to make and distribute online courses:
Coursera: With $85 million in funding and a slew of university partners, Coursera aims to transform higher education.
Udemy: By offering an online learning platform where individual experts, not just academics, can offer their expertise, Udemy now hosts more than 15,000 courses.
edX: The Harvard and MIT-backed nonprofit is one of the only providers competing with Silicon Valley startups for high-profile university contracts.
Learning Management Systems
These technology systems allow online communication between teachers and students:
Lauren Hepler is the economic development reporter at the Silicon Valley Business Journal.
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The company will now grow an international e-commerce fulfilment network from Northern Ireland.
Belfast-based e-commerce business Selazar has secured what it claims to be the largest ever tech investment into a Northern Ireland company.
The £20m investment from a global investment group will support Selazar’s ambition to become an international e-commerce fulfilment company.
“Not only will it fund the opening of eight new warehouses, but it will also allow us to develop further our proprietary fulfilment technology and support customers trading in the UK, US, Europe and Latin America,” said Selazar CEO Jack Williams.
Williams added that the investment will help Selazar stand out from competing third-party logistics providers. “We will be a one-stop e-commerce fulfilment shop for retailers wanting to set up business in the US, Europe and beyond,” he said.
Founded in 2018, Selazar’s proprietary e-commerce fulfilment platform chiefly services medium to enterprise-size retailers in the UK. It now plans to open new warehouses in Ireland, the Netherlands, Mexico and Colombia, and four in the US.
Selazar clients will then be able to transfer stock between international warehouses, a measure that could mitigate against issues caused by Brexit as well as simplifying fulfilment and reducing costs.
This global fulfilment network will be operated from Selazar’s Belfast base.
The undisclosed investment group supporting this growth will acquire shares from Selazar’s existing investors.
Earlier investors in Selazar include Foresight Group and Co-Fund NI, along with local business angels. These investors are expected to see gains more than five times their original investment from this deal.
Co-Fund NI is backed by Invest NI and managed by Clarendon Fund Managers. Invest NI has also supported Selazar with a £93,000 R&D grant for the development of its e-commerce platform, and funding from its Covid-19 Equity Investment Fund.
William McCulla, director of corporate finance for Invest NI, said this prior support “helped Selazar get to the stage where it can take advantage of such a significant investment and has provided Invest NI with a very positive return on our investment”.
The company intends to quadruple its global team in the coming year to support its global growth. It will also expand its financial services offering for clients.
The £20m investment round for Selazar follows shortly after Belfast tech start-up Cloudsmith raised a landmark $15m Series A for a Northern Ireland start-up.
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Gen 16 will be displaying and demonstrating its range of intelligent percussion on Booth 3050 at the upcoming NAMM show, directly adjacent to the Zildjian stand and will also be involved with the new App and Gaming Pavilion in Hall E.
The Gen 16 Digital Vault series features high-quality, high-resolution acoustic samples of Zildjian's rare reference cymbals, along with a variety of hard-to-find limited edition cymbals that have never been made available to the public.
One particularly exciting launch will be Gen 16’s hotly anticipated Acoustic/Electric (A.E.) cymbal system – the world’s first hybrid acoustic/electric cymbal – which combines patented low-volume acoustic cymbals with innovative microphones, signal processing and tone modelling.
The A.E. Drum Rack will also be debuting, a modern percussion hardware system designed around a patent pending hinge system that leads to an extremely fast setup, easy portability and maximum functionality. It is lighter and stronger than conventional drum racks and supports a wide range of electric, acoustic and hybrid drum and percussion setups.
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Gen 16’s Groove Player app for iPhone and iPad will be another newcomer at NAMM, which places thousands of beats and percussion patterns into the palm of the user’s hand. With its powerful interactive user interface, the Groove Player gives control over tempo, time signature, drum and cymbal sounds and allows the user to play and program beats and post them to their favourite websites.
Several showcases and performances are set to take place on Gen 16’s 3050 booth. For more information visit the website here.