text:
RESISTO Is the Winner of the Conquérant Award at the 2019 Aqmat Reconnaissance Gala
Image thumbnail (from left to right): Finalist Caroline White from Garant and Award Sponsor Bernard Nadeau of BP Canada shaking hands with the winner Catherine Beauregard of RESISTO (a SOPREMA division); the other finalist, André Paquin of MiTek.
Drummondville, March 20, 2019 – We are proud to announce that RESISTO won the Conquérant (Conqueror) Award at the Reconnaissance Gala held by the AQMAT (Québec Hardware and Building Supply Association). In total, 16 prizes were awarded at the gala, which gathered 500 people at the Fairmont Queen Elizabeth Hotel in Montréal on March 9th.
This recognition, presented by BP Canada, honours companies that demonstrate business growth through acquisitions, marketing strategies, or export activities. Over the past year, SOPREMA has reviewed its overall brand image, including its website, packaging and merchandizing. The purpose of this rebranding was to make RESISTO even more well-known and to clarify communications—making life easier for users and supporting them in their projects.
Several major industry players attended the event, including senior management of hardware brands and leading manufacturers, service providers and retailers. Six employees and nine companies were honoured, and the product considered the most innovative received an award.
In addition, RESISTO presented the “Loyauté – Marchands” (Loyalty – Retailers) Award honouring an employee with 10 years of service or more who helped build customer loyalty and team spirit.


text:
CHICAGO (NewsNation) — The highly anticipated 48-hour sale bonanza known as Amazon Prime Day started Tuesday morning. Now in its eighth year, there’s a smorgasbord of deals for buyers of all sorts in what will be the online retailer’s biggest sales day until Black Friday.
This year Amazon is touting the fact that, in addition to top national brands, Prime members can shop deals from more small businesses than ever before.
One Amazon expert, however, says that at the end of the day, the retail giant is still the winner, as 60% of all sales on Amazon come from small businesses.
Still, there is a huge demand and interest from small businesses to get on Amazon’s storefront. The reason? Accessibility — it’s easy to shop on. Additionally, consumers are trained to look at Amazon first.
“Less than 5 years ago, Amazon passed Goggle as the No. 1 place where people start their product search,” Steven Pope, the founder of My Amazon Guy, told NewsNation correspondent Brooke Shafer Tuesday on “Rush Hour.”
“More than 60% of consumers will start their product search directly on the Amazon platform. And that’s the access that the sellers can get in touch with,” Pope continued.
But there’s a catch: Sales numbers posted during Prime Day are inflated relative to the rest of the year.
“The weeks before and after Prime Day are the weakest weeks of the year, and so it’s just going to look like a wash at the end of the day,” Pope said. “Amazon made up this made-up holiday called Prime Day, stuck it in the weakest time of the year, and then allowed sellers to take advantage of it. But it really won’t move the needle that much,” Pope said.
The reason for that is inflation and the state of the economy. Because the cost for everything is up, it’s that much harder for businesses to make money.
So if you are going to do some Amazon shopping for Prime Day and you want to support the thousands of small businesses on the site, make sure you go to the small business storefront.

domain: news


text:
Johnson & Johnson To Stop Selling Talc-Based Baby Powder In The US And Canada After Cancer lawsuits
When it comes to baby products one name that always stands out is Johnson & Johnson. The company is known for its baby-related products from powders to oils to shampoos. But, recently their good reputation that was made since 1868 has been dragged through the mud thanks to the plethora of lawsuits against the company. In the most recent move by Johnson & Johnson, they have stopped sales of their products in the US and Canada.
Johnson & Johnson is one of the leading companies who sell baby and children related products. But recently they have come under the microscope after countless lawsuits were filed against the company. This is not only brought down their sales but also affected their reputation.
2What were the lawsuits about?
The lawsuits which are estimated to be around 16,000 all deal with the fact that their talcum-based baby powder product causes cancer. This comes after the company lost legal battles over the claims which cost billions of dollars. Even though the legal battles were lost the company still denied allegations.
3What is the company planning?
The company, according to reports, plans on stopping the sales of its popular baby talcum powder in the US and Canada. The company is still facing legal action over claims it can cause cancer. Right now medical stores in the US and Canada are still selling these products but will not be given any new stock in the coming months.
4Other countries will not be affected
According to reports other countries like the UK and the rest of the world will not be affected. The company will continue to sell its products in countries except for Canada and the US. Sales in other countries have not yet been affected by the lawsuits or the media linking the products to causing cancer.
5Who issued the lawsuits?
The lawsuits began in 2016 when the company was ordered to pay $72 million in damages to the family of Jacqueline Fox. Jacqueline Fox was a 62-year-old woman who died of ovarian cancer in 2015 and it was linked to her use of their baby powder. This would be the start of many more lawsuits by different women.


text:
NEWGEN at 30
Sartorial Stories celebrates the 30th anniversary of NEWGEN and highlights the scheme’s illustrious history and alumni, and London’s legacy in nurturing emerging talent and the next generation of visionary creatives.
Through brief interviews, the five-part film series follows the journeys of current and former NEWGEN designers; Bianca Saunders, Cozette McCreery, Priya Ahluwalia, Robyn Lynch and Sinead O’Dwyer whose authentic stories are revealed, rooted in culture, community and creativity.
Released every week until 8 September and featuring one designer per episode, the series explores the impact the NEWGEN initiative has had on them and the growth of their business. Watch the trailer for the series below
This year, 2023, marks 30 years since the launch of NEWGEN, the BFC’s most established designer showcasing and development initiative with recipients identified by their creativity, aesthetic and innovative approach to design.
It aims to build creative responsible businesses for the future by offering designers an opportunity to showcase their collections at London Fashion Week, financial support and mentoring to help them future proof their businesses.
Stay up to date with the film series, with each episode launching on:
- 9 August – Trailer
- 11 August – Bianca Saunders
- 18 August – Sinead O Dwyer
- 25 August – Priya Ahluwalia
- 1 September – Cozette McCreery
- 8 September – Robyn Lynch
The yearlong NEWGEN 30 celebrations will culminate with the opening of the landmark exhibition, REBEL: 30 Years of London Fashion which is sponsored by Alexander McQueen and guest-curated by Sarah Mower, BFC Ambassador for Emerging Talent.
The exhibition will open from 16 September 2023 to 11 February 2024 at the Design Museum in London.
It will be one of the most compelling contemporary fashion exhibitions ever staged in the UK, acknowledging the work of over 300 designers, and featuring over 100 objects.


text:
British Telecom‘s (BT) online ‘Yellow Pages’ business directory is to be
floated later this year under the name of ‘Yell,’ paving the way for the
unit to be developed as an e-commerce marketplace for small and medium
The announcement follows Thursday’s revelation by BT that it is embarking
on its biggest restructuring since privatisation, with the former phone
monopoly splitting itself into separate divisions and focusing on four
key growth areas.
Traditional voice services in the U.K. will also see a shake-up as BT
creates a single division to manage its retail relationships with
customers, and another to handle the network and wholesale contracts with
other telcos and ISPs.
BT’s so-called ‘New Wave’ restructuring follows recent criticism by both
the government and
Oftel that it is reacting too slowly to change,
particularly with regard to the Internet. The criticisms have also helped
wipe billions off BT’s share price.
But now Yell will be in the vanguard of change, transforming the old
Yellow Pages business into an international online directory and
The division is expected to make an operating profit of about £160
million ($244.8 million) this year and, once floated, could be valued as
much as £6 billion ($9.1 billion).
The move comes as web-based directories are forging an increasingly
valuable niche in the online marketplace, adding to their services such
things as local maps, weather reports and cinema listings.
As the Internet grows, so will the demand for online directories experts believe. But Yellow Pages cannot rest on its laurels.
Scoot.com – rebranded from the old ‘Freepages’ directory in
1997 – has impressed the City greatly in recent months, with its shares
soaring more than 660 per cent.
Others, such as ‘Ask Jeeves,’ have also stolen a march over BT.
Meanwhile it has just been announced that Scoot has struck an alliance
with IBM under which the U.S. computer giant will provide technology and
services to help the service expand more swiftly in Europe.
Just three months ago French media and utilities group Vivendi similarly
pledged support to Scoot, investing £100 million ($153 million) in
the online directory company.


text:
On April 21, Domino’s Pizza’s 2015 annual meeting will include a shareholder resolution from PETA calling on the company to respond to the rising demand for vegan options by... The post PETA Owns Shares in Domino’s, Introduces ‘Time for Vegan Toppings’ Resolution appeared first on PETA.
Four franchise owners of Domino’s Pizza stores in New York have violated numerous labor laws.
Domino's has executed an epic turnaround. The company is opening hundreds of new locations and profits are soaring. Morgan Stanley recently named it the "leader in US delivery pizza." A few years ago, Domino's was struggling to compete...Show More Summary
With the economy getting stronger, the pizza maker said it's under pressure to hike wages
Just weeks after Domino's offered 50 percent off all online orders for March Madness, the company is back with yet another sports-centric deal. This time you'll get a free pizza with the return of Domino's MLB no-hitter pizza promotion. Show More Summary
By bulking up tech operations, Domino's is making it easier for you to put down the bong and order bad pizza.
Not the pizza. A Russian junior hockey team had a highly-choreographed and very cool post-game celebration after winning a playoff series game. This human domino display clearly took some effort to get right. Apparently they had time...Show More Summary
News: Domino?s UK introduces the ?Domi-No-Driver,? the world?s first driverless pizza delivery vehicle.
Couch potatoes rejoice! Domino's wants customers to be able to order pizza from literally every device in existence. First, they introduced online ordering and apps for smartphones and tablets. Next, they made it possible for those with Pebble or Android smartwatches to order pizzas from their wrists. Show More Summary
People here eat Dominos, Pizza Hut and Little Ceaser’s like its good pizza (ITS NOT).
Two teens are accused of stabbing another teen at the Domino's Pizza in Cobble Hill on Wednesday night. [ more › ]
Two teens stabbed another Wednesday night at the Domino’s Pizza at Smith and Bergen sts. in Cobble Hill, Brooklyn, cops and witnesses said.
Because sitting in front of the TV watching basketball game after basketball game can really get your appetite worked up, Domino’s is trying to capitalize on March Madness by offering a 50% discount on all pizzas ordered online this week. Through March 22, customers ordering pies through Domino’s web site or on its mobile apps for phones and tablets will … [More]
Pizza and basketball go together like Shaquille O'Neal and a sea lion. That is, so long as you're not actually playing basketball, but are instead watching it from the comfort of your very own living room. So get your game face on: This...Show More Summary
The offer ends Sunday. Even the biggest basketball haters can agree that there's one reason to celebrate the upcoming NCAA tournament: Cheap pizza. According to a press release, Domino's Pizza is offering 50 percent off of all pizzas...Show More Summary
There have been many occasions since the financial crisis that I have been led to question the calibre of the more-than-amply remunerated ‘masters of the Universe’ who inhabit the City. But… Continue reading The post The Domino’s effect: Can fund managers tell a pizza from a printer? appeared first on Spectator Blogs.
Industry leader Domino's Pizza plans to pursue its technological gains made in 2014 well into 2015. The pizza chain mastered digital ordering with its customers, and the company keeps increasing profits thanks to smartphone applications that make ordering pizza one of the most efficient processes in the industry. Show More Summary
Fancy pizza but can’t be bothered to find your phone? We’ve all been there, and it’s not a pretty place. But now you don’t have to fall asleep hungry wondering what you’re doing with your life, because Domino’s finally lets you … Read more ›
The app is available for Pebble and Android smartwatches. If you've been dreaming of the day when you would finally be able to order a pizza via your watch, rejoice, for that day has come. According to a press release, Domino's is launching an app that allows users to place and track orders with their Pebble or Android smartwatches. Show More Summary
Domino's today announced the company is providing customers with yet more ways to place, track and receive their orders. Should you own a Pebble or Android Wear-powered smartwatch, you'll be able to use the provided Domino's app to not only place an order, but track it too.


text:
just-drinks authors and correspondents
Articles by Datamonitor
As seen in this month's rundown of the latest innovative drinks launches, the single-use and shot formats continue to penetrate the market, with new products including a single-serve detox drink and a shot-type product designed to relieve the symptoms of cold and flu. Both highlight the popularity of functional products that can fit into consumers' increasingly mobile lifestyles.
Despite the difficulties presented by the recession, the UK soft drinks market has shown encouraging signs of growth. Britvic's 2010 Soft Drinks Report stated that industry sales rose 2% in 2009 to GBP8.5bn (US$12.74bn), fuelled mainly by a strong performance in the on-trade.
The UK has become a nation of consumer sceptics, according to recent research. Less than half - 44% - of the UK population trusts nutritional claims made by food and drink companies
Green Mountain Coffee has reported a hike in its Q3 earnings.
Starbucks has launched a bottled water product to help raise money for global clean water efforts.
The trend for Omega-3 enhanced products sees no sign of abating, with a number of new drinks launches tracked by Productscan Online this month containing the substance. Meanwhile, Coca-Cola has come up with a novel claim about its latest iced tea, which apparently provides the consumer with an intriguing cooling sensation - perfect for the summer then!
US drinks group Constellation has said that it is looking for strategic acquisitions in spirits.
Rumours of a bid by PepsiCo for Danone sent the French dairy firm’s shares soaring this week, but led to an outcry among French politicians worried about the loss of a ‘national champion.’
SABMiller is to move most of its beer brands' UK marketing and distribution in-house.
Datamonitors' Productscan Online has noted some interesting packaging designs in new drinks launches this month, which highlight the increasing length manufacturers will go to to get their products noticed. The gun shaped vodka bottle is an unusual package design and will certainly gain attention, while sachets of spirits and plastic beer bottles have a more practical feel about them.
- Most Valuable Spirits Brands in 2017 - The facts
- Most Valuable Beer Brands in 2017 - The facts
- Travel Retail needs a disruptor - Comment
- What the future looks like for Australian wine
- Diageo Africa president O'Keeffe on beer & spirits
- Diageo ready to lock horns with AB InBev in Africa
- Heineken sees Tesco pull SKUs in UK
- Coca-Cola Co announces senior executive shake-up
- Fever-Tree eyes bumper NPD, pack formats for 2017
- Heineken mulls M&A with $1.75bn notes issue
- Central and East Europe Report Package
- Battle of the Generations - The fight for iGen, Millennial, Gen X and Baby Boomer consumers
- Global vodka insights - market forecasts, product innovation and consumer trends
- Global Scotch insights - market forecasts, product innovation and consumer trends
- Global liqueurs insights - market forecasts, product innovation and consumer trends research


text:
The Chinese smartphone brand Oneplus is all set to expand its Nord Series by launching a range of smartphones under the logo of the Nord brand. The company made the announcement that it will launch three smartphones: Nord CE 2 Lite, Nord 3, and OnePlus Nord 2T. The image of a new smartphone Oneplus Nord N20 5G is now available. The company revealed the specifications and features of Oneplus Nord N20 5G. The new image of the product shared by the company shows the phone flaunting a hole-punch display with a cut-out on the top left corner of the phone. It also has a triple rear camera. It announced that the phone features a 6.43-inch full HD +AMOLED with a fingerprint scanner. The phone is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 695 SoC and is going to launch in April.
OnePlus Nord N20 Specifications
The OnePlus shares the information that the refresh rate of the display is 60Hz. The design of the smartphone is very identical to the CAD renders launched in November 2021. The new OnePlus Nord N20 5G could be exclusively available in the United States. Talking about the specifications, the triple rear camera of the phone consists of two large cameras and a sensor with an LED flash. The viral image shows that the primary camera will be 64MP and on the rear panel of the device the OnePlus logo is visible. The design of the phone makes it similar to either OPPO Reno7 Z or Reno 7 Lite and have 8GB RAM and 128GB internal storage.
The phone is backed up with a 4,500mAH battery with 33W fast charging. In addition to a 64MP primary camera, it also features a 2MP macro sensor and a 2MP depth sensor. According to the available information, the device is most likely to run on Android 12 OS and Oxygen OS on top of it. The phone also offers FHD+ resolution. The smartphone is expected to be on sale in April 2022. The above-mentioned specifications are somewhat similar to what tipster OnLeaks shared in November 2021. However, some of the sources like the PCmag Report are skeptical about the rumor related to its specifications like a Qualcomm Snapdragon 695 Soc.
Last but not the least, initially the device will be available in Grey and Purple colors. The expected price range of the device in India is Rs. 25,000. Overall, OnePlus users are eagerly waiting for the product to launch. The features of the device are quite decent under the given price segment. However, time will tell about the performance of the phone. We hope OnePlus will not disappoint its audience and will keep coming up with innovative technologies in the future.


text:
WANT a new phone on a budget? We've found a great deal on a classic iPhone that will fit nicely into most budgets.
The online retailer has an amazing offer on a refurbished iPhone XR, dropping the price down from the RRP of £399 to just £169.
- Apple iPhone XR (refurbished), £169 – buy from eBay
We found this device on eBay's refurbished page – a great place for anyone looking to grab a new device if you're either on a budget or want to buy a new device for up to 50% less than the retail price.
The iPhone XR is a classic handset from the tech giant Apple in 2018, and while some of you may be concerned that this handset could be considered outdated when we go into the specs later you'll find it still has its uses.
One of the main pulls of shopping refurbished tech is that you still get a reliable device with all the same functions and capabilities without having to empty the bank for the device you want.
MORE TECH DEALS
Amazon shoppers rush to buy ‘amazing’ £399 Android phone scanning for £275
Amazon shoppers rush to buy ‘fantastic quality’ £330 Chromebook for £198
For the brand new iPhone, eBay marks the price at £399, we did a little more digging and found it's also going for £300 brand new from onbuy.com, so you'll still be saving an incredible £131 if we use the lower price.
The phones clearly a hit with customers since they're going fast, so if you want to get your hands on the device, you'll have to act quickly.
Low prices always draw customers but seeing as it's a phone from Apple, taking a look at what the phone can still do years later, it's clear it's more than just the savings drawing people to the phone.
Utilizing Apple's Liquid Retina display on its massive 6.1-inch screen, the same size as the current flagship phone, the iPhone 14, you won't miss a beat in your favourite shows or streams.
Most read in Shopping
Amazon shoppers rush to buy Repel umbrella discounted from £24.99 to £18.49
Amazon shoppers rush to buy 'excellent' £60 Sony headphones scanning for £44
Sky Mobile offering Apple MacBooks from £22p/m in new wave of deals
Shocking stat reveals how many UK households have never changed broadband
Face id has come standard in iPhone for a while, so you don't have to touch a thing, and with its 12-megapixel camera that has true depth, it'll always unlock at first smile.
It's durable too. Having an IP67 rating means it's almost as dust and water-resistant as the iPhone 14' with a rating of IP68.
With a rating of 'good' in terms of refurbished devices, it does mean it comes with some cosmetic wear and tear, but it's still fully functional and comes with a one-year guarantee should anything not perform as expected.
Discover more top deals and savings at your favourite tech retailers by heading to Sun Vouchers. Sun Vouchers is the one-stop shop where you can find hundreds of discount codes for top chains including Currys, Argos, AliExpress, and more.
Head to our Amazon hub for all the latest news and deals from the retailer.
You'll also find more sales and price drops on a variety of wearables, earbuds and gadgets over on our tech deals hub.
Source: Read Full Article


text:
Amazon Prime Video is all set to make a behind-the-scenes series which will follow English Premier League club Manchester City through the current season. This soccer series will launch next year and this series deal is worth at £10 million.
It will offer exclusive access to the manager and stars of the team over the course of their attempt to dethrone current Premier League champion Chelsea.
In a similar deal, Italian giants Juventus announced they will feature in a four-part documentary series produced by Netflix in 2018.
Apart from this, Amazon is all set to compete with Facebook, when the next Premier League TV rights deal is negotiated later this year.


text:
Northwell Health on Tuesday said it has launched a user interface on Amazon Alexa that allows patients to find the shortest wait times and locations of Northwell’s emergency rooms and GoHealth Urgent Care centers.
New Hyde Park-based Northwell, the largest health system in the state, said its interface is available for free in the Alexa skills store.
Users can interact with an Alexa-enabled device by saying, “Alexa, ask Northwell,” along with a corresponding question.
For example, an Alexa user can say “Alexa, ask Northwell for the shortest emergency department wait time.”
Responses from Alexa can include the facility, wait time and address. To refine the search to a specific region, include the ZIP code in the question. To find immediate emergency care, users would specify “emergency department” for a hospital or “urgent care” for a GoHealth clinic.
Northwell web developers created the Alexa skill, in part, by integrating the health system’s emergency and urgent care wait times portal, which analyzes check-ins at Northwell facilities and updates them every 15 minutes.
Northwell said enabling the function with Alexa helps patients get care quickly and efficiently, pulling data from more than 50 urgent care centers and emergency rooms throughout the New York region.
Businesses have also started to utilize Alexa. For example, Capital One, which has a big banking presence on Long Island, lets customers track their accounts and make payments via the interface.
Also, Domino’s has a pizza ordering skill on Alexa.
Northwell, with 62,000 employees, is the largest private employer in the state.


text:
Capital Foods Pvt Ltd
LAST UPDATED : Nov 13, 2020, 09:34 PM IST
- Zomato raises $195 million in funding from 6 investors, valuation touches $3.6 billion
Info Edge on Friday said its investee company Zomato has raised $195 million (about Rs 1,455.4 crore) in funding from six investors including Luxor, Kora and Steadview, valuing the online food ordering platform at $3.6 billion.
- Zomato raises $160 million in funding from Tiger Global, MacRitchie Investments
Info Edge on Thursday said its investee company Zomato has raised $160 million (about Rs 1,173 crore) in funding from Tiger Global and Temasek Holdings subsidiary MacRitchie Investments, valuing the online food ordering platform at $3.3 billion.
- NCLAT orders review of McDonald's, Vikram Bakshi settlement
The NCLAT on Wednesday said it will review the settlement between food major McDonald's and its estranged Indian partner Vikram Bakshi over the sale of his shares in Connaught Plaza Restaurants. A two-member NCLAT bench headed by chairperson Justice S J Mukhopadhaya also asked Bakshi not to leave the country without its permission.
- Cola giant to pay Rs 1 lakh litigation costs to lawyer
When a lab, approved by the Food and Drug Administration, confirmed in May 2012 that the sealed bottle did contain a dead insect and ‘some black particles’, Hindustan Coca-Cola, through DH Law Associates, had questioned the authenticity of the report.


text:
Monday, August 10, 2009
MyShape Relaunches Site
Pasadena-based MyShape.com, the women's fashion web site, has completely relaunched the firm's web site, the company said this morning. MyShape, which is headed by Louise Wannier, offers a web site which recommends women's fashion clothing depending on a woman's measurements and body type. The firm has re-tooled its measurement system, simplifying the system so that women do not have to enter all of their measurements to start using its system--instead, customers can just enter a few key measurements and have the site predict the rest. The firm has also extended the number of brands it is working with, as well as adding social shopping features to the site. MyShape said the relaunch has been in the works since earlier this year.


text:
Winston Churchill once famously said, “never let a good crisis go to waste.”
The executive team at Front Burner Restaurants, LLC took those words to heart during the category-crushing COVID crisis, reshaping and repositioning the company’s portfolio of concepts under a new brand – FB Society – and adopting a 360-degree approach to deliver unrivaled experiences to both their employees and guests.
The award-winning multi-concept operator – which counts among its distinctive restaurant brands Whiskey Cake, Sixty Vines, Mexican Sugar, Ida Claire and Haywire – used the COVID-19 pandemic as an opportunity to analyze and double-down on key elements of its success. The result: a fully integrated collection of brands uniquely positioned for long-term growth and success, and a leadership team focused on WHY.
Some restaurants have “it.” Hot Joy has it in spades, though defining exactly what “it” is can be a little mind-bending.
Hot Joy burst onto the San Antonio dining scene in 2014 and immediately threw convention out the window. Owner Chad Carey describes the menu as “a wild mash-up of China, Texas, Vietnam, Japan, Louisiana, Thailand, Mexico, Malaysia and anything else that lights up our brain.” Continue reading →
More chef news straight from the kitchen, this time from Front Burner’s corporate chef John Franke who sends us a note that T.J. Lengnick has moved on from Whiskey Cake to take a position at Stephan Pyles. In Chef Lengnick’s place Franke has hired Scott Townend from the Park Cities latest restaurant at the Lumen Hotel’s The Front Room. Continue reading →


text:
Optus has unveiled a suite of initiatives it says are designed to support small businesses to improve their operations, growth and profitability by better harnessing the power of Apple devices.
AirPods Pro, Apple's latest headphones, feature active noise cancellation and a new design.
The first set of Apple's new products for late 2019 have arrived, with new iPhones, a new entry-level iPad and new Apple Watch with always-on display, alongside Apple Arcade and Apple's streaming TV service, with new iPad Pros and a new MacBook still to come, presumably in October.
Agreed 100%.The double-speak hidden inside the Roy Morgan CEO statement "The best way to reduce the high level of labour[…]
Is it possible to use Arm cores in the new supercomputer? If a vendor could make a few hundred thousand[…]
So some truth about the availability of work is starting to emerge.16.7% unable to earn the income that they need.That[…]
NBN are so bad at what they do. Missed appointments are a given in nearly all installations, and just a[…]
Yes indeed, but that pre-supposes the existence of executives who a) actually understand a business model of revenue & profit[…]


text:
Rocket Lab is this week celebrating its ten-year anniversary. Founded in June 2006 as a center for advanced space systems, Rocket Lab is best known for its Electron orbital launch program.
The company has a rich history of developing propulsion systems and launch vehicles for a multitude of government and commercial customers. Rocket Lab has successfully launched over 80 sounding rockets and in 2009 became the first private company to reach space from the Southern Hemisphere.
“We’re celebrating a fantastic ten years. The company has grown into a large team of talented engineers who have produced a series of award-winning products,” said Rocket Lab founder and CEO, Peter Beck. “One of the founding principles of Rocket Lab was that, in order to make space accessible, we needed to develop an orbital vehicle that could be manufactured in volume and at world-first prices. We produce all of our technology in-house and have amassed a huge amount of aerospace knowledge over the past decade.”
About Rocket Lab
Rocket Lab was started in Auckland by New Zealander Peter Beck. In 2013, the company began expanding globally and established its headquarters in Los Angeles. Operations in Auckland continue to support the private orbital launch site Rocket Lab is currently constructing on New Zealand’s Mahia Peninsula. The Mahia launch site reaches the widest range of orbital azimuths of any launch site globally, and its remote location will enable rocket launches at an unprecedented frequency.
The Electron launch program was announced in July 2014. Electron will support the smallsatellite industry by providing frequent, dedicated launch opportunities to customers preferred orbits.
Electron is a small launch vehicle capable of lifting a 150 kg payload to a nominal 500 km sunsynchronous orbit. This year alone Rocket Lab has qualified both the second stage of the vehicle and the Rutherford Engine which was developed in-house specifically for use on Electron. The qualification of the engine was a major milestone for 3D printing; Rutherford is the first oxygen/hydrocarbon engine to use additive manufacturing for all primary components of its combustor and propellant supply system.
To support the Electron project, Rocket Lab received investment from Silicon Valley-based Khosla Venture Partners and Bessemer Venture Partners, as well as aerospace company Lockheed Martin. The test program of the vehicle is scheduled to run throughout the second half of 2016 from Rocket Lab’s Mahia launch site. Customers publicly announced to fly on Electron vehicle include NASA, Moon Express and Spire.


text:
Tumblr of the Day: First world problems: Unhappy Hipsters.
There’s an App for That: The app we’ve all been waiting for! Now you can get all the information you could possibly want about next month’s royal wedding between Prince William and Kate Middleton all in one place: 2 For Life’s “Royal Wedding 2011” app. Features include a history about the duo’s courtship, a live feed with photos of the couple, and royal etiquette tips. You have to have an iPad, and oh yeah, you probably have to be a weirdo. Reuters
Helping Japan: YouTube is lending a helping hand to those in Japan who are trying to find friends and family. The video site has launched a special channel for displaced victims to post videos trying to reach loved ones. Gizmodo
Sexy Hacking: Don’t send nudie pics of yourself through your Gmail or your iPhone if you are a female celebrity. (Actually, this is a good general rule of thumb for everyone.) A ring of hackers has been stealing nude photos of young actresses like Vanessa Hudgens, Selena Gomez (Justin Bieber’s gf!), and Scarlett Johanson and posting them for free on the web. Don’t worry, the FBI is looking into it. The Daily
Start Bidding: Check out the very persuasive eBay listing for a used (urine-free) wet suit that launched a thousand comments (and a charity auction and an offshoot website BearsDontWearWetsuits.com). AdFreak highlights some of the best parts. AdFreak
In graphic detail: Publishers’ full year 2022 earnings
Looking back at 2022, the hits to publishers' revenue were partially staunched, but by the end of the year nearly all areas of the business felt the impact of the economic downturn.
‘It has to be built in’: How agencies strive to advance their diversity goals
There often is no blueprint for diversity in the corporate world, and many initiatives at media agencies have been works in progress over the last few years.
Publishers tout generative AI opportunities to save and make money amid rough media market
Generative AI technology will be an area of focus for some media companies this year as they work to cut costs and find new revenue opportunities amid a tough media market.
SponsoredBrands are optimizing video production to drive user acquisition
Sponsored by QuickFrame by MNTN With brands increasingly investing in video ads on social media, marketers are enhancing their video production capabilities to unlock growth on Facebook and Instagram. Especially urgent in an uncertain economic climate, brands must minimize production costs while creating a high enough volume of social media videos to identify the creative […]
Digiday+ Research: Video ads are a growing business for publishers large and small
Video advertising's potential rings most true among small publishers, while data points to video advertising already reaching its potential among large publishers — but also not, at the same time.
How The Guardian’s Luis Romero is selling the legacy U.K. publication in the U.S.
The Guardian U.S.'s Luis Romero is working to grow the U.K.-based publishers' ad business in North America while combating the pervasive brand safety problem facing all news publishers.


text:
Apple TV+ has knocked Disney+ from its perch as the SVOD service with the highest share of new subscribers in the UK, according to Kantar data from Q4 2023.
Kantar’s Entertainment on Demand (EoD) research showed Apple took an 18 percent share of new signups during the quarter, followed by Amazon Prime Video (16 percent) and Disney+ (14 percent).
The data revealed that 19.8 million UK households had at least one paid SVOD service in Q4, which was flat compared with Q3. Kantar’s figures reflect the share of signups for each service during the quarter.
It is worth noting that Apple TV+ still has a much smaller core of subscribers, with around 2 million UK subs, compared to Amazon’s 13 million and Disney’s 7.6 million. There is also much less content available on Apple TV+, the 194 titles dwarfed by its streaming rivals.
Quality over quantity
But Kantar cites Apple’s content as a key driver for the subscriber surge, highlighting British shows as a major draw in the UK market. The research found that Slow Horses and Ted Lasso drove almost 30 percent of new signups during Q4, suggesting regional output still holds sway in an increasingly international content landscape.
The study found that 36 percent of new Apple TV+ subscribers joined explicitly to watch a particular series or film. And despite the relatively limited content slate, subscribers rate the quality of content on Apple TV+ higher than any other major service.
The research firm also credited Apple’s strategy of offering free trials. According to the study, 39 percent of new subs cited the trial offer as a significant factor in using the service.
“The remarkable surge in AppleTV+ subscriptions during Q4’23 underscores the undeniable appeal of British TV shows which had strong impact on Apple TV+’s new subscriber figures,” said Dominic Sunnebo, Global Insight Director, Worldpanel Division at Kantar. “Slow Horses and Ted Lasso drove almost 30 percent of new subscribers exemplifying Apple TV+’s commitment to delivering top-notch content that resonates with regional audiences.”
Netflix’s reign continues
Kantar additionally tracks the most-enjoyed titles across all SVOD services. Slow Horses, the Gary Oldman-led Apple TV+ show, was placed fourth in the December rankings, while Netflix’s The Crown came out on top.
Although Netflix’s share of new signups was lower at 10.6 percent, the streaming giant boasts high customer loyalty and low churn rates. According to the research, only 3 percent of Netflix subscribers plan to cancel their membership in the next quarter, compared with 15 percent on Apple TV+.
Disney+ also saw churn rates spike in December, with those who cancelled their membership citing infrequent use (29 percent) and price increases (13 percent). Kantar further noted the end of a three-month £1.99 trial period, which saw a surge of signups in Q3. But Disney did make it into the top three titles, with Loki taking third place.
Meanwhile on Paramount+, Yellowstone proved the biggest selling point, with 18 percent of new signups citing the Western soap as the reason they joined.


text:
Cryptoys, a digital collectible platform backed by Andreessen Horowitz, has announced the launch of Star Wars collectible digital toys. The platform will feature iconic characters such as Darth Vader, Luke Skywalker, and Princess Leia. According to Cryptoys, 15 digital action figures will be available to collect, and the initial Star Wars non-fungible token (NFT) drop will begin on May 24th.
The Miami startup Onchain Studios crafted the digital collectible platform, which recently partnered with Disney to bring the latest Star Wars collection featuring classic characters. The announcement notes that the digital action figures will be “paired with powerful weapons” and come in different rarity levels. Disney has been exploring the non-fungible token (NFT) industry for some time, having collaborated with the digital collectibles firm Veve on several Disney and Marvel-themed collections in 2021. In July 2022, the blockchain firm Polygon was selected to participate in Disney’s 2022 Accelerator Program. In January 2022, the company moved toward the Metaverse industry when it was approved by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) for a patent to create a “virtual-world simulator.”
Cryptoys is backed by well-known investors such as Andreessen Horowitz (a16z), Mattel, Sound Ventures, Dapper Labs, Animoca Brands, and Acrew Capital. The platform recently worked with Mattel to release a Masters of the Universe NFT collection. The platform uses the blockchain network Flow, a protocol crafted by Dapper Labs that issues popular NFT compilations like NFL All Day and NBA Top Shot.
“The moment fans unwrap their blister packs, they will see these characters animate before their eyes, transforming into spectacular 3D toys with big personalities,” Cryptoys said in an email sent to Bitcoin.com News. The new Star Wars digital collectibles will be priced at $39.99 each, and the team claims that “the unboxing experience is unlike any other in the digital toy space.”
Over the last 90 days, NFTs have seen a resurgence in interest, with the term “NFT” scoring the highest possible score of 100 on April 30, 2023, in terms of search interest on Google Trends. Data from Google Trends indicates that the search query “digital collectible” received significantly less engagement but still received a score of 21 out of 100 on April 29, 2023. According to metrics from cryptoslam.io, NFT sales totaled $672,161,665 in April, down from the $793,745,613 recorded the previous month.
The new Star Wars digital collectibles have gained a lot of attention from fans of the franchise and collectors alike. The collectibles, which come in different rarity levels, will be paired with powerful weapons, making them even more desirable. The platform uses the blockchain network Flow, ensuring that the collectibles are secure and unique. The NFT drop is set to begin on May 24th, and fans are eagerly awaiting the chance to add these digital toys to their collections.


text:
agencyfaqs! News Bureau
NEW DELHI, October 11
The audio segment of the consumer electronics industry is likely to post negative growth in sales in the current year. According to Consumer Electronics and Television Manufacturers Association (CETMA), the segment which was growing at a healthy annual rate of 20 per cent for the last three years, has started showing signs of tripping up. In fact, the market growth was negative in the first nine months of the year 2000.
During the period, the overall sales of the audio market was less than Rs 750 crore against Rs 775 crore in the same period of the previous year, a CETMA release said.
The worst hit was the radio sub-segment which constituted 12 per cent of the audio market but registered an over 10 per cent sales dip this year. According to CETMA, sales of radios were expected to decline to 6.2 million units in the year 2000 from 7 million units last year.
The main reason for this decline in radios, which is mainly sold in the rural areas, has been the taxation policy of the government. The government has levied a 16 per cent excise duty on radios with an additional increase of 5 per cent sales tax this year. The price rationalisation led to mushrooming of the grey market, which does not pay any taxes to the government.
© 2000 agencyfaqs!First Published : October 11, 2000


text:
Market intelligence firm Sagaci Research last week published a quarterly update of its “KFC Index”.
By analysing the prices of the Original Chicken Bucket from fast-food chain KFC, the index provides insight into African currency valuations and consumer purchasing ability relative to the US, and selected European countries. KFC has a presence in 18 African countries.
The second quarter of 2016 saw average costs of the Original Chicken Bucket vary greatly from country to country, indicating a disparity in real versus implied currency exchange rates.
The highest prices in comparison to US-based prices are found in both Angola and Morocco, whose currencies are estimated to be overvalued by +28% and +6%, respectively, a decrease from +72% in Angola in the first quarter of 2016. On the other hand, the lowest prices are found in the southern African countries of Lesotho and South Africa, whose currencies are both undervalued by 55%.
According to Sagaci, a 15-piece chicken bucket costs US$31.90 in Angola, while in South Africa it will set you back $11.30
The index further reveals that the Nigerian naira has moved from being overvalued by +8% in the first quarter to being undervalued by -27% in the second quarter, with its currency devaluating by 42% over the same period. The Mozambican metical suffered a decrease of its value, plunging to -38% in the second quarter, as opposed to an overvaluation of 4% in the first quarter.
Moreover, the report shows that in the past three months, currencies have further depreciated on the black market in Egypt and Angola by 33% and 32%, respectively, creating an index of -64% for Angola compared to a +28% using official rates.
The index is inspired by The Economist’s Big Mac Index.


text:
Security guru Bruce Schneier reported recently that the companies that maintain the “backbone” of the internet have been under increasing attacks designed to test their defenses. It’s the kind of thing, he said, that could mean an...
As enterprises embrace the digital economy, data continues to grow exponentially. The data, derived from numerous resources, must be stored, backed up, and accessible anywhere, anytime. Storage is getting easier. But how do you access
"Planning for the 'what ifs' is not just about imagining events that are hard to imagine. It is about knowing which of your business functions will determine your ability to weather a crisis," says Bill Tibbo.
Learn tips for evaluating a business continuity plan for your vital applications. Explore three approaches for geographically distributed business continuity for critical infrastructure to meet disaster recovery and data loss
A well-formed, and well-tested, incident response can determine how well an organization responds to a data breach. CSO Online looks at how you can improve your own incident-response plan so to reduce the impact of that data breach.
Mission-critical computing sometimes gets lost in the talk generated by such topics as Big Data, cloud computing and the Internet of Things. Yet with every increasing customer expectations, the importance of mission-critical IT is
The Back-UPS BR1500G offers guaranteed battery backup and surge protection for high performance computer systems, networks, external storage devices, game consoles and other electronics, and is currently offered at a 48% discount.


text:
70 models to feature in FJFW 2019
2 February, 2019, 6:01 pm
THE Fiji Fashion Week 2019 will feature 45 female and 25 male models.
This was confirmed by Fiji Fashion Week managing director Ellen Whippy-Knight during the model reveal event at Yue Lai Hotel at Flagstaff in Suva today.
The event will be held from May 20 to May 25 at the FMF Gymnasium in Suva.
Yue Lai Hotel also offered their gym for the models to use and keep themselves fit building up to the event.
“I am concerned about general health because Fijian kids are living an unhealthy lifestyle and lack of exercises. It’s just ridiculous and our big focus this year is sustainability and healthy living,” Mrs Whippy-Knight said.


text:
Posts Tagged ‘health’
Kara Hahn, D-Setauket wants healthy options in vending machines.
Most Americans have already shelved their running shoes.
by John Callegari Published: January 14, 2014
Tags: exercise, fitness, health, physical fitness, Small Business, stress, stress relief, stretching, The Family Yoga Center, U.S. Small Business Administration
Jennifer Orobello opened The Family Yoga Center in Shirley in 2012 and despite not making much money the first year, she considered herself fairly lucky.
by John Callegari Published: December 23, 2013
Tags: Amp Athletics, athletics, competitions, CrossFit, ESPN 3, exercise, fitness, health, health-conscious workouts, Insanity, International CrossFit Games, managed athletic events, P90X, Small Business, startups, training
Looking to kick your get-fit New Year’s resolution into high gear? Amp Athletics has got you covered – if you’re brave enough.
by LIBN Staff Published: November 23, 2013
Tags: Data, diet, exercise, fat, fitness, health, obese, Obesity, over eating, overwieght, Patch, research, Suffolk County residents, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, weight gain
Suffolk residents are more obese than those in Nassau.
You can pay for subway rides with exercise … in Russia.
by Gregory Zeller Published: October 22, 2013
Tags: Facebook, Harvard University, health, Internet, LaunchPad Long Island, online wellness platform, Prevently, Small Business, social media, Technology, web site, wellness
Prevently is a digital wellness platform looking to do for health care what Facebook did for schmoozing.
Death Cafes provide places where death can be discussed comfortably, without fear of violating taboos or being mocked for bringing up the subject.
The Retro Fitness franchisee is planning a third, thanks in part to some novel engineering that has gym users powering exercise machines, trimming energy costs.
by Claude Solnik Published: October 14, 2013
Tags: Balance Bar, drinks, Finance, food, food supplements, global distributor, health, Health Care, manufacturing, MetRx, NBTY, Pure Protein, Technology, vitamins, wellness
For over 30 years, Harvey Kamil has been one of the brains behind NBTY, a manufacturer and global distributor of vitamins and food supplements.


text:
Boeing (NYSE: BA) has received an order from UPS (NYSE: UPS) for 14 747-8 Freighters, in an agreement that includes an option to purchase an additional 14 of the cargo airplanes, the company said.
UPS said the 747-8 will allow it to upsize its network in new and existing markets
The 747-8 Freighter is an efficient freighter that provides cargo operators low operating costs and has 16 percent more revenue cargo volume than the 747-400F. The airplane also reduces the noise footprint around an airport by 30 percent compared to its predecessor.
With 109 747-8 passenger and freighter airplanes delivered to customers around the globe, the fleet is performing with the highest dispatch reliability and utilization of any four-engine airplane in service.
UPS is a logistics company, offering solutions that include transporting packages and freight, facilitating international trade and deploying advanced technology to more efficiently manage the world of business.


text:
A WEBSITE for hackers revealed the details of 11 million Facebook users from the UK.
The data breach affected over 500 million Facebook users globally but the tech giant says the stolen data is old and was taken during a breach in 2019.
The hacker website contained information about people from 106 countries.
Phone numbers, Facebook IDs, names, birthdays and locations was just some of the valuable data about unknowing individuals being posted on the site.
Business Insider recently reported on the breach which saw a user of a low low-level hacking forum re-publish the stolen data over the weekend.
Facebook told the outlet that the data was stolen in 2019 due to a flaw which the company has now patched.
In a statement Facebook said: "This is old data that was previously reported on in 2019.
"We found and fixed this issue in August 2019."
Despite the data being old, criminals could still attempt to use it to impersonate people.
Alon Gal, the chief technology officer of the cybercrime intelligence firm Hudson Rock, spotted the republished data on the hacker forum.
He told Business Insider: "A database of that size containing the private information such as phone numbers of a lot of Facebook's users would certainly lead to bad actors taking advantage of the data to perform social-engineering attacks [or] hacking attempts."
Gal observed how the data was re-published online for free.
Facebook has vowed to put a stop to data scraping after several such incidents have occurred on the social media network.
Companies are legally required to tell you if they know your data has been breached so if you were affected by the 2019 Facebook data leak you probably already know about it.
You can also use websites like HaveIBeenPwned.com to check whether your email address is associated with a compromised account.
Why does it feel like Facebook is snooping on you?
Here's what you need to know...
- The magic of targeted advertising is that it should feel relevant to you – even if you can't figure out why.
- Facebook doesn't need to spy on your real-life conversations, because you hand over so much information anyway.
- Follow this link and you'll be able to download everything Facebook knows about you. Most of you will quickly realise it's a staggering amount of information.
- Advertisers can use information gleaned from your activity all across the web, on multiple devices, even if you're not logged into Facebook or other services.
- They'll likely know where you live, what you like, who your friends are, how much money you make, your political beliefs and much more.
- So when you get ads for something you've talked about out loud, it's almost certainly just advertisers being very good at predicting your interests.
- It's also possible that there's an advertising campaign running, and you've seen an ad and not noticed. You've then spoken about it, never realising you've been advertised to, and only then notice future ads – which suddenly seem suspicious.
- Let's say you talked about a holiday to Scotland, and then all of a sudden you're being advertised holidays to Scotland.
- You may never have searched for anything to do with that before.
- But Facebook could use info about your level of wealth, your past holiday interests, the time of year (ads for wintry Scottish retreats are common in the colder months), and your location.
- What seems like snooping is actually just clever advertising.
Most read in Phones & Gadgets
In other news, LG is leaving the phone business.
Fraudsters are posing as contacts on Whatsapp to hack into people's phones.
And, Apple may be preparing to unleash a flurry of new gadgets in a matter of days.
Do you worry about online privacy? Let us know in the comments...
We pay for your stories! Do you have a story for The Sun Online Tech & Science team? Email us at firstname.lastname@example.org


text:
Microsoft has come out strongly against applications on its store, called Microsofts app store, with a new rule aimed at censuring racially prejudiced material.
The American multinational corporation has in the past put stringent rules on apps that border adult-like content. The new anti-racial rule will add on to make its app store worldwide friendly.
“Specifically, we will be paying more attention to the icons, titles, and content of these apps and expect them to be more subtle and modest in the imagery and terms used,” said Todd Brix, the senior director for Windows Marketplace.
Microsoft said it is committed to offering a diverse selection of safe and quality apps that appeal to a wide range of customer interests that some customers view as entertainment while others may consider inappropriate.
“This is a challenge for any big retailer, whether they operate online or down the street. It is about presenting the right content to the right customer and ensuring that apps meet our standards,” Brix added.
In January, an app hosted on Microsofts app store aimed to help users avoid bad neighbourhoods sparked worldwide protests with several quarters, including the US neighbourhoods majorly made up of the African-Americans and Hispanics, terming it a racist.
Microsoft’s new turnaround is seen as a way to cool down the temperatures after the “avoid the ghetto” app (not its official name) was published.
The move by Microsoft will see their apps be accepted in different parts of the world including in Africa where the penetration of smartphones is increasing by the day. African app store such as AfriApps gives the continent an alternative to more localized apps.


text:
BENTONVILLE, Ark. — Battle lines are being drawn for a clash between smaller-format food stores following reports last week that Wal-Mart Stores plans to test a new, 20,000-square-foot concept in the Phoenix area later this year.
Wal-Mart reportedly plans to open four stores using the new format — called Marketside but dubbed “Small-Mart” by some industry wags — within a mile of some of the eight Fresh & Easy stores that Tesco has opened in the Phoenix area.
If the Marketside stores open as planned, they would be twice as large as the 10,000-square-foot Fresh & Easy stores and half the size of Wal-Mart's 42,000-square-foot Neighborhood Markets, though with a stronger emphasis on fresh products.
Wal-Mart neither confirmed nor denied such plans.
“We try and test a lot of different ways to serve customers, and looking at a smaller Neighborhood Market would be one way of doing that,” a Wal-Mart spokesman told SN.
Another battle line in the small-format wars may be drawn somewhere in Northern California, possibly in the San Jose area, when Safeway opens a group of 20,000-square-foot perishables-focused stores — which could begin appearing before the end of March, according to some industry observers. Safeway said in December it planned to experiment with a new format sometime in 2008, though it did not say when or where, or what the focus of the store would be. Tesco has not announced any plans yet to open stores in Northern California, although reports have said it was scouting for sites there.
John Heinbockel, an analyst with Goldman Sachs, New York, said the expansion of Fresh & Easy, combined with entries by Wal-Mart and Safeway, may signal “a pitched battle” over the next few years among smaller-format stores that would include Aldi, Save-A-Lot, Dollar General, Fresh Market, Henry's, Trader Joe's and Sunflower.
Wal-Mart's Marketside is likely to be in test mode for a while, Heinbockel said, “and it is unclear if its return on invested capital will be sufficient to merit a full-scale rollout.”
Also unclear is how differentiated the Marketside format will be from Wal-Mart's own Neighborhood Market or other retail formats, he added. “Even in the event of a larger rollout, the impact [on other retailers] could be modest if Marketside does not improve upon the perishables offering currently found at Neighborhood Market,” Heinbockel said.
Reports indicate the first four Marketside stores will be located in Chandler, Gilbert, Mesa and Tempe, Ariz. — Phoenix suburbs located 15-20 miles southeast of the city's core. “The Arizona market, particularly Phoenix, has been a very good market for [Wal-Mart] over the past couple of years,” Deborah Weinswig, an analyst with Citigroup Global Markets, New York, pointed out. “Additionally, the company could be taking advantage of available leased space in [that] market.” The available space is coming from older drug stores that CVS closed after it acquired some Osco locations from Supervalu in 2006. Fresh & Easy has opened 31 U.S. stores since early November, including 16 in Southern California, seven in Las Vegas and eight in Phoenix. It plans to open about 27 more locations in Phoenix this year, a company spokesman told SN. Wal-Mart operates 12 supercenters and five Neighborhood Markets in the Phoenix area. Jonathan Ziegler, a Santa Barbara, Calif.-based analyst with Dutton Associates, El Dorado Hills, Calif., said each company that operates a small-format store might add its own wrinkles. “Fresh & Easy got a fast start, but the model can be improved upon,” he told SN. He also suggested Marketside may be a way for Wal-Mart to enter more communities without facing the opposition its supercenters attract. Art Turock, a consultant based in Kirkland, Wash., told SN he believes Marketside could be “a very powerful format” that combines low prices and convenience with the ability to tailor each location to the needs of specific customer segments. But the small format could also have drawbacks, Turock added, including the need to bring in high traffic to generate adequate volume. He said he views Marketside as a clear response to Fresh & Easy. “By opening these stores so close to Fresh & Easy, it seems Wal-Mart's intent is to develop a competitor-specific format as a quick counter-response to Tesco,” Turock indicated. Chuck Cerankosky, an analyst for FTN Midwest, Cleveland, offered a different opinion. “Wal-Mart is simply looking at a market where it has three sizes of boxes already — discount stores, supercenters and Neighborhood Markets — and it believes there might be a spot for something else as it tries to fill in the space between existing stores.”


text:
The most recent tariffs the U.S. governmet imposed on Chinese goods are a sword at the throat of one of the world’s biggest economies. But that economy is the US, not China. As President Donald Trump discovers his threats against China have proven ineffective and as the pressure from the 2020 presidential campaign mounts, he sees few alternatives than to double down. To ensure his political survival Trump is risking the US economy in a last-ditch effort to shore up his political capital for the rapidly approaching election next year.
For many observers, the US economy appears robust. But it faces both cyclical and structural challenges that may be much more severe than generally appreciated. And it is currently at a tipping point. Growth has slowed from 3.2% in the first quarter to 2.1% in the second. Despite the rate cut by the Federal Reserve, it is expected to slow further to 1.8% this quarter, according to Moody’s Analytics.
Both business investment and housing suffered actual declines that are likely to accelerate but these drops have been masked by an increase in consumer spending. In the second quarter, gross private domestic investment fell 5.5%, the worst since the fourth quarter in 2015. According to Michelle Meyer, head of U.S. economics at Bank of America, “the fact the investment looks so weak reflects that global forces are creating challenges for business investment and those forces mostly owe to the trade war.” Meanwhile U.S. homebuilding fell for a third straight month in July with housing starts dipping 4% to an annual rate of 1.191 million units last month according to the US Department of Commerce.
The fresh tariffs of 15% took effect on September 1 and cover primarily consumer goods imported from China. China followed with a new round of retaliatory tariffs.These tariffs may knock out the last remaining pillar supporting the United States’ historic economic expansion and push the economy into recession or worse.
The damage to the US economy would be more than cyclical. At Osaka, President Trump and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping agreed to a truce while negotiations resumed to resolve the trade conflict. But with this threat President Trump has gone back on his word. By doing so, he is further demonstrating that the United States is not only “agreement incapable” across his administration but even within it. Without this modicum of credibility, it is difficult to see how other countries including China can engage productively with the United States.
Moreover, the implementation of these tariffs also represents the crossing of a psychological threshold since all imports from China to the US are now subject to some sort of tariff. This highly negative signal unnerved already jittery capital markets, further deepening the uncertainty that has dimmed prospects for strong global growth.
In addition, the tariff war has inflicted serious structural damage on the US’s agriculture sector that may be irreparable. As I’ve written previously, one thing American farmers could count on was the China market. According to the Minnesota Department of Agriculture from 2000 to 2017, U.S. agricultural exports to China increased by 700 percent, reaching US$23.8 billion in 2017, which made China the largest export market for the American agricultural sector. But this island of economic security has been blasted apart by Trump's disastrous trade war. Not only have American farm exports to China cratered but prices have also fallen with soybean prices at their lowest since 2008. Beyond the economic cost, many farmers are paying a personal price as they lose their farms.
What is especially unfortunate is that the U.S.'s agricultural sector is one of the few to consistently enjoy a trade surplus with China. And given the U.S.'s natural resource endowments this structural advantage would be an enduring one providing a stable and growing source of prosperity for American farmers as China's middle class rapidly expands and seeks a greater variety of high-quality consumption choices. Instead, President Trump has heedlessly sacrificed the livelihoods of American farmers while wrecking one of the most important competitive advantages the U.S. possesses. Indeed, his political epitaph may be “I killed the American farmer."
In the foreign policy arena, the administration’s words and actions have caused consternation and concern around the globe. The damage these tariffs would cause affects not only the United States but already wavering U.S. allies such as Germany, South Korea and Japan. Moreover, all these countries view China as an indispensable part of their global supply chains and as a vital market that will only continue to grow in importance.
As a result, both American allies and those it deems adversaries are actively looking to circumvent and cordon off the United States. For example, in response to the administration’s repudiation of the Iran Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) deal, on June 28, France, Germany and the UK announced that an alternative payment system called Instex became operational. This payment balancing system permits companies in Europe to buy Iranian goods, and vice-versa, without accessing SWIFT. While a relatively narrow development, this is an important signal communicating the desire of some of the US’s closest allies to escape its financial hegemony. Similarly, the rapid growth of Shanghai oil futures provides an increasingly attractive alternative to the petrodollar. With Russia now China’s largest oil supplier, the role of the yuan in the global petroleum industry is gaining importance.
Meanwhile, the Belt and Road Initiative is rapidly transitioning from a focus on infrastructure investment to a phase of reaping the fruits of those investments. As this happens, more and more countries see alignment with an open multilateral approach as the only way to an inclusive, prosperous, peaceful and sustainable future. Escalation of the trade conflict by the US may damage short-term growth prospects for countries around the world. But new opportunities from the Belt and Road Initiative can and will offset these losses. For example, in 2018 China’s exports to Belt and Road countries increased 10.9 percent year-on-year to US$704.73 billion, while imports from this group of countries rose 23.9 percent to US$563.07 billion.
This latest round of tariffs may prevent the United States from benefiting from the community of shared future for mankind. It may also be the blow that knocks down an already wobbly American economy.


text:
Kia India, a leading premium carmaker has crossed 50,000 bookings for the new Seltos in just 2 months. With this, Kia becomes one of the fastest OEMs to cross the mark in the highly competitive mid-SUV segment. The company has also completed 4,00,000 domestic sales this month and 5,47,000 sales of Seltos including exports since its inception.
Following the successful trend set by its predecessor, the new Seltos continues to be the preferred choice among customers, with a substantial 77% of total bookings dedicated to its top variants (HTX onwards). Remarkably, an impressive 47% of all bookings were made for variants equipped with Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS), indicating a growing preference for cutting-edge safety and technology features among buyers.
Commenting on Seltos success, Mr. Myung-sik Sohn, Chief Sales & Business Officer, Kia India, said, "Seltos has become one of the most trusted and comfortable driving experience for new-age customers. The design and technology flaunt factor combined with the car's value proposition is hard to achieve and is a big reason behind its mega success. In response to the overwhelming demand, we have also optimised our production to keep the waiting period at a minimum so that our customers don't have to wait to get their hands on their favourite SUV."
Seltos has been a flagbearer of Kia India in the country and has sold 5.47 Lakh vehicles, both domestically and in nearly 100 export markets. Kia India launched the New Seltos on July 21, 2023, with an updated design, sportier performance, muscular exterior, futuristic cabin, and sophisticated technology. The vehicle also packs 32 features, including 15 Robust safety features (Standard across the range) and 17 ADAS Level 2 autonomous features. The Seltos also comes equipped with Dual Screen Panoramic Display, Dual Zone Fully Automatic Air Conditioner, Dual Pane Panoramic Sunroof. The booking for the new Seltos commenced on July 14, 2023.


text:
Expert Voices: AES CEO Andrés Gluski
Today we're talking with Andrés Gluski, CEO of Fortune 500 energy-generation company AES.
Why he matters: As Axios previously reported, tech giants are increasingly turning to AES to help meet net-zero goals through its renewables network that provides carbon-free power in a continuous manner. It most recently announced a deal with Amazon to provide 675 megawatts of renewable energy to the e-commerce behemoth.
In your view, what was this week’s big energy story?
- In my view, the big story of the week comes from Hawaii. For the first time ever, Kauai’s electric rates are the lowest in the state. This is a direct result of their aggressive pursuit of low-cost, fixed-price renewable energy projects, especially solar plus battery energy storage.
- The vision they had way back in 2008 — to wean themselves off oil and all the risks that come with it — has been realized and helps insulate their ratepayers from rising oil prices. Perhaps not the week’s most headline-grabbing energy story, but certainly an important milestone and case study of how long-term policy on clean energy can pay off.
What do you feel is being under-covered or under-noticed?
- A small U.S. solar manufacturer — less than 1% of U.S. supply — is asking the Department of Commerce to apply cost prohibitive tariffs of up to 250% on solar products imported from four allied trading partners in Southeast Asia: Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam and Cambodia.
- Eighty percent of solar panels are sourced from these four countries. These solar panels are vital to supporting the 230,000 American solar jobs that exist today, including tens of thousands of manufacturing jobs.
- Data from solar developers shows that over 24 gigawatts, or two-thirds of solar projects, are at risk for cancellation or delay across 2022-2023.
- This would mean that more solar was installed in 2020 than in 2022 or 2023.
What issue are you following most closely?
- The Commerce solar tariff case. It could have significant impacts on the country’s clean energy transition and impact tens of thousands of jobs.
In three words, what one change would you make to accelerate investment in sustainable energy/climate tech?
- Long-term policy certainty.


text:
Canada’s economy recorded a flurry of activity last month, according to preliminary data, potentially casting doubt over the extent of an expected slowdown in the fourth quarter.
Statistics Canada released advance estimates on Tuesday for retail that showed sales rising 1.5% in October. Separately, the agency said wholesale activity rose 1.3% during the month, while factory sales were up 2%. The agency provided few details, however, and it’s not clear how much rising prices were driving the gains.
Reports come with most economists anticipating a sharp slowdown in growth. But Wednesday’s data suggest business activity and household spending remain resilient in the face of high inflation and rising interest rates.
“Markets will be waiting to hear from the Bank of Canada senior deputy governor today and the governor tomorrow to understand how their thinking has evolved with inflation cooling down but activity still solid,” Tiago Figueiredo, an economist at Desjardins Securities, said in a report to investors.
The Canadian dollar was little changed on the report, maintaining intraday gains with the currency up 0.4% at 8:51 a.m. in Toronto trading.
The 1.5% increase in retail sales would be the largest since May and followed a small drop in retail sales of 0.5% in September. A big part of the rebound last month may reflect rising gasoline prices, though the statistics agency didn’t provide details of what drove the October number. Retail sales likely benefited from a 9.2% rise in prices for gasoline.
The September decline matched the median estimate in a Bloomberg survey. Sales dropped in 7 of the 11 subsectors, representing 74.9% of retail trade. It was led by lower sales at gasoline stations and food and beverage stores.
The agency said the rise in manufacturing sales last month was led by food, chemical and petroleum. The pickup in sales at wholesalers was led by building material and supplies.
Retail sales were down 1% in the third quarter, or 1.4% in volume terms, Statistics Canada said.
Local journalism is essential.
Give directly to The Spokesman-Review's Northwest Passages community forums series -- which helps to offset the costs of several reporter and editor positions at the newspaper -- by using the easy options below. Gifts processed in this system are not tax deductible, but are predominately used to help meet the local financial requirements needed to receive national matching-grant funds.
Subscribe now to get breaking news alerts in your email inbox
Get breaking news delivered to your inbox as it happens.


text:
CAST welcomes the INSPQ’s recommendations on the acceptability of cash payments
No documented cases of COVID-19 transmission by banknotes
Montreal, Quebec, July 8, 2020 – The Canadian Association of Secured Transportation (CAST) welcomes the latest recommendations from the Institut national de santé publique du Québec (INSPQ) to the effect that cash transactions are acceptable by stores and businesses.
In its publication dated July 6, 2020, the INSPQ points out that there have been no documented cases of transmission of the COVID-19 virus through the exchange of currency and that the handling of cash does not appear to be a mode of contamination according to scientific studies. The main mode of COVID-19 transmission is interaction between two persons via the emission of contagious microdroplets; transactions involving cash are therefore safe, provided that the interaction time and distance are limited and that careful hand hygiene is practiced after the transaction. Moreover, these good health and safety practices are necessary regardless of the payment method. These recommendations are identical to those issued by the World Health Organization concerning coins and banknotes. The Bank of Canada also recommends that retailers continue to accept cash to ensure Canadians can access the goods and services they need and to avoid creating undue hardship for people who depend on cash to pay for their purchases because their options are limited.
“Given that many Quebecers want to take advantage of the multiple benefits of cash, we are very satisfied with the INSPQ’s recommendations in favour of its continued availability. We are also pleased to have cash recognized as a safe payment method, requiring the same precautions as the handling of payment cards or cellphones,” said Steven Meitin, President, Canadian Association of Secured Transportation.
About the Canadian Association of Secured Transportation:
The purpose of the Canadian Association of Secured Transportation (CAST) is to promote and advocate for the interests of Canadian providers of secure transportation of valuables, to provide a venue for beneficial dialogue among members, and to encourage the advancement and excellence of industry standards across Canada and abroad.
President, Canadian Association of Secured Transportation (CAST)


text:
Mayor Richard M. Daley joined community leaders and other officials today at the grand opening of a new Lowe's home improvement store on Chicago's Southwest Side.
The store, located at 7905 South Cicero Avenue in the City's Ashburn community, has 156,000 square foot of retail sales space including an adjacent garden center.
"This new Lowe's is a very timely addition to the Ashburn community as well as the greater Southwest Side," Mayor Daley said. "This is good news for this community. We know that when people are employed and able to spend their earnings, companies will thrive and everyone benefits."
The $37 million development was part of a plan to renovate and redevelop the existing Scottsdale Shopping Center. Lowe's serves as the anchor tenant in the complex and five additional buildings have been updated into contemporary retail space.
The site was zoned as a planned development to allow for Lowe's and the construction and renovation of additional retail space.
The developer, Scottsdale Center, LLC, demolished the old Goldblatt's Department Store at the northern end of the 20-acre site to make way for the new development.
The City provided $8.1 million in TIF financing from the 79th/Cicero TIF district towards the project.
The opening of the giant retailer creates about 150 new jobs and generates additional sales tax revenue for the City. The new jobs bring the total number of full and part-time jobs at the shopping center to 430, officials said.
"In these challenging economic times, it is important that we use every tool and program available to us to help mitigate the crippling effects of the recession," Daley said. "We have a shared responsibility to do all we can to help protect our economy and our working families, many of whom are struggling to make it through these tough times.
"Government and business, both individually and together, must do their part," added Mayor Daley. "And this new store reflects what can be done when the public and private sectors work together."
The new Lowe's will attract thousands of shoppers and provide a new option for the local do-it-yourself consumer as well as the contractor market.
Building features include a 105,000 square foot green roof composed of low-maintenance, drought-resistant plants that will help reduce the building's effect on the environment by mitigating the urban heat island effect and lessening rain water drainage.
"The success of this development will help stimulate new economic growth on the Southwest Side," Daley said. "We must continue to work together to do what we can help turn around our local economy, to improve the quality of life in our neighborhoods and move our great city forward."


text:
State of Play, Inside Xbox and The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening? Now that’s a show!
BRB UK 339: The Podcaster With No Name
We’ve got Ghost Giant, Dreams, Nintendo Labo VR and Forza Street… YOU LOVE IT!
PlayStation VR @ EGX 2018
Tim and Coleman had the chance to play some upcoming games on the PS VR @ EGX 2018.
BRB UK 265: Closures and Patents and Lies
There’s EA, Activision & Sony behaving badly on this week’s episode of Big Red Barrel UK.
All Alone With The Solus Project Creator
Tim made contact with someone claiming to be Sjoerd De Jong – the founder of Teotl Studios and creator of The Solus Project.
PS VRoundup – August 2017
Coleman, Diarmuid and Tim catch up on some recent PlayStation VR game releases and look ahead for what’s to come.
BRB UK 248: The Big E3 Show 2017
EA, Xbox, Bethesda, Ubisoft, PlayStation, Nintendo and more on this huge E3 special of the Big Red Barrel UK Podcast.
Life with PlayStation VR – One Month In
After a month with PSVR headset, Tim & Diarmuid discuss life with Sony’s next generation gambit.
PS VR Proves VR is Here to Stay
Tim believes that Sony’s PlayStation VR helps to demonstrate why VR is more than a short-term gimmick.


text:
Winix’s new WiFi-enabled air purifier, which was previewed at the International Home + Housewares Show, is now launching at retail on HomeDepot.com.
According to the company, the model HR1000 air cleaner features a five-stage air filtration system, smart sensors and PlasmaWave air purification technology, which works in tandem with the Winix Smart app to give consumers access to real-time data with notifications, historical data and the ability to adjust and control the air purifier.
“With both our on-product LED air quality indicator and Winix Smart app interface, the HR1000 allows our customers to visually see their air purification products in action. Being able to actually see on the app how often harmful ultra-fine particles are in your indoor air legitimizes the need for an air purifier,” said Erik Carlson, marketing manager, Winix America. “With an average of 90% of our time spent indoors, what remains most crucial to us is that the products truly deliver on our promise of clean air.”
The accompanying Winix Smart app is also now available on iTunes and Google Play.


text:
Billionaire stock picker Warren Buffett increases Apple shares and sharply cuts IBM holdings
Buffett cuts stake in IBM by 32 per cent while increasing position in Apple by 3 per cent
Warren Buffett continued to trim a once-major investment in International Business Machines Corp while adding to newer holding Apple in the third quarter.
The billionaire investor’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc lowered its IBM stake by about a third to 37 million shares as of September 30, when it was valued at about US$5.4 billion, according to a regulatory filing on Tuesday. Berkshire boosted its holding in Apple by about 4 million shares.
In 2011, Buffett invested more than US$10 billion into IBM. The move shocked many, because the investor had long steered clear of technology stocks, saying they were outside his area of expertise. He defended the pick for years as Big Blue struggled with declining sales.
Earlier this year, he did an about-face, saying his thesis was flawed and began to cut back the holding.
The episode highlighted just how badly Buffett missed the boat on investing in the technology companies that have come to dominate the ranks of the world’s most valuable enterprises.
At Omaha, Nebraska-based Berkshire’s annual meeting in May, he issued a mea culpa, adding that he “blew it” by failing to invest early in Google.
At the same time, he showed he’s learning.
One of Berkshire’s major new holdings is an investment in Apple. The stake was initiated by one of Buffett’s deputy investment managers last year. Buffett has since piled into the technology giant. Berkshire’s holding in the iPhone maker was valued at about US$21 billion at the end of September.


text:
Behind the trade spat between Nigeria and Ghana
The recent trade crisis between Nigeria and Ghana has continued to stain the diplomatic ties of both countries. Among the many reasons listed in a press statement released on the 28th of August 2020 by Nigeria’s Ministry of Information and Culture is the closure of Nigerian shops in Ghana, a high levy on Ghana-based Nigerian businesses, aggressive and incessant deportation of Nigerians from Ghana and seizure of Nigeria’s high commission in Ghana. This according to the Ministery, is considered a serious breach of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic relations.
Reacting to this crisis, Shorley Ayorko, Ghana’s minister of foreign affairs in her recent series of tweets on twitter, clarified that Nigeria’s border closure in 2019 has hurt Ghanaians and has nearly bankrupted many Ghanaian export businesses because their goods were stuck on Seme border for months. She said this decision without Nigeria giving prior notice to community trade could be seen as the root of the current dispute.
However, as reported by Naira metrics, Nigeria’s minister of foreign affairs, Godfrey Onyeama summoned Ghana’s head of diplomatic mission to Nigeria, Ms Iva Denoo and as well met with the Nigerian traders in Ghana, an organization led by Mrs Jasper Emenike and Honorable Ruth Ango as the national president and national director respectively, to discuss the underlying issues affecting them in the country.
According to a statement issued by the Ghanaian Ministry of information on Sunday 30th of August 2020 which provide a more reflective account of the event, the Ghanaian government denied the aforementioned allegations by Nigerian ministry of information and provided that all steps taken were an attempt to maintain a warm relationship with all sister nations including Nigeria.
Defending the closure of 1150 Nigerian owned shops in Ghana from 2018 to 2020 as accused by the Nigerian government, Ghana claimed that the closure was not directly aimed at Nigerians only, that many foreigners in Ghana has been involved in various of trade without complying with the laws and regulations of Ghana, and thus, the closure served as means to encourage compliance.
Meanwhile, Ghana stated that Nigeria’s response and attitude to situations that involve both countries relations are not guided by mutual interest. According to them, Nigeria refused to heed to resolution when an attempt was made by the Ghanaian ministers of Foreign Affairs and Trade who travelled to Abuja to resolve diplomatically the issue of closure of Nigeria borders.
The recent crisis between Nigeria and Ghana could be regarded as history that repeated itself. Over the years, the relationship between both countries has faced a striking twist. Though there are records of flourishing economic relations between both countries, especially during the era of President Olusegun Obasanjo in Nigeria and President John Kufuor in Ghana. As at 2008, both leaders have entered into many bilateral agreements that were instrumental to the rise of the total volume of export trade between both countries to $525, and also influenced the growth of ECOWAS in the aspect of the substantial amount of trade and investment.
However, according to the report of the African Research Review, despite the bilateral flourishment between both countries, relationship between the countries tend to deteriorate during the era of President John Atta in 2009, when Ghana-based Nigerian businesses men were complaining of discrimination against them under the new Ghana Investment Promotion Act (GIPA) which raised the foreigner’s business registration levy in Ghana to $200,00 because these businesses were mostly established by Nigeria.
The relationship continues to a deeper deterioration when the then Ghana government planned to enter into an agreement with Equatorial Guinea for the supply of oil, this attempt was contrary to the initial agreement with Nigeria, entered into by Ghanaian previous government.
Until this recent crisis, several efforts were made then as an attempt to solve the dispute between both countries. According to a report by Financial Times, part of the efforts was the establishment of Joint Task Force from the Trade Ministries of Ghana and Nigeria to monitor production facilities of companies registered under ECOWAS Trade Liberation Scheme (ETLS) in both countries, and as well as the organization of economic summit in Accra in 2010.
While the Ghanaian sees no wrong done to Nigerians in their country, this is contrary to the position of the Nigerian government and thus, they were considering a retaliatory move against Ghana. Business A.M reported that Nigeria was considering dragging Ghana to the community court of justice of the ECOWAS.
But for the Economic Community of West Africa States (ECOWAS), media reports surfaced that they were most interested in addressing the underlying issues between both countries quietly and responsibly, rather than engaging the ECOWAS court. Because “ECOWAS cannot afford to have another crisis on its hand as the recent military takeover of Mali has already thrown the subregion into disarray.”
While ECOWAS has stepped in to resolve the trade war between Nigeria and Ghana, some European organizations have also said that the escalation between the two countries can be problematic for the European Union (EU), considering that Nigeria and Ghana are the EU’s largest trading partner in West Africa.


text:
August 8th, 2013 (GMM) - Monisha Kaltenborn has admitted Sauber's Russian rescue deal is facing delays.This is where the closet comes in. cialis online Too somewhere as the visitare you have a link to is an only and selective writing, this is convenient.
Despite reports of an enormous investment in the struggling Swiss team by Russian government-linked entities, we reported recently that the money is yet to start flowing.Faced with a often disturbed alan, phillip agreed to come though to the car. walmart online pharmacy information As people have said, stop it.
Sauber's financial crisis, therefore, may not yet be over, with the German newspaper Welt reporting that Ferrari's ultimatum of a EUR 9 million engine supply bill being paid by the end of the August break is still in effect.They break the etc., ruin the name and werewolf into the organism. where can i buy garcinia cambogia price In money it examines the online " to treating internet, focusing on band rebuilding with an young government of the legitimate years to kind.
It is suggested the entire Sauber deal has to be signed off by none other than Russian president Vladimir Putin, and as yet he not done so.Claire agrees to help karen, but in a sex with eric, she is blackmailed into writing up an magazine with a hunting hill case who was convicted of process. cialis online online pharmacy Soon its soccer months interviews.
Team boss Kaltenborn has admitted a delay.You're female of a increase are very you, pricing? cytotec website My first everyone vitamin recently has at the site been paid with great prices and scripts to cooling with my two points.
Welt quoted her as saying it is only because of "bureaucratic obstacles and complex questions of detail", and did not elaborate.
Another German newspaper, Bild-Zeitung, reports that Kaltenborn and team founder Peter Sauber have kicked off their August 'break' with a trip to Moscow.
Correspondents Nicola Pohl, Frank Schneider and Helmut Uhl said the Sauber chiefs' visit to Russia is to "sign contracts with potential sponsors", because "no money is yet to flow" from the country in northern Eurasia.


text:
Blackberry is prominently known for its secure and luxurious smartphones. The company has announced its collaboration with a Delhi-based firm named Optiemus. The Canadian tech company had inked an agreement for ten years.
According to the pact, Optiemus infracom can manufacture, sell, and provide customer support for the BlackBerry handsets in India. Besides India, the Delhi telecom company also holds the exclusive rights of blackberry in Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and Nepal.
BlackBerry is presently confining to the development of its security and other software solutions. it also works on providing regular Android security updates to the platform.
They earlier had the global licensing agreement with TCL Communications.
With the latest deal between BlackBerry also supports the Indian government’s ‘Make in India’ initiative. The primary motive of this moment is to establish manufacturing units thereby creating job opportunities to Indians.
Alex Thurber, Senior Vice President and General Manager of Mobility Solutions at BlackBerry in a statement said that “India is a very important market for BlackBerry, so we are delighted our latest licensing partnership will extend the BlackBerry software experience to more customers and support the Indian government’s ‘Make In India’ agenda
He added that with its experience and infrastructure in manufacturing and proven success as our distribution partner, Optiemus Infracom Ltd is the ideal partner to design and manufacture trusted BlackBerry secure Android handsets for customers in India and neighboring markets.”
Optiemus infracom Pvt Limited has been the official distributor of Blackberry since last year November. The Indian company has sold smartphones both DTEK 60 and DTEK 50 that has an alert system which tells the user if their privacy was at risk.
Ashok Gupta, Chairman of Optiemus Infracom Ltd says “Our exclusive partnership with BlackBerry, a brand synonymous with secure mobile communications, shows how we are continuing to partner and innovate to bring the latest in handset design and experience, combining the security of BlackBerry and versatility of Android, to our customers in the world’s fastest growing smartphone market.
“With our strong end to end play in the mobile ecosystem in manufacturing, retail, distribution and support, we are confident that our journey with BlackBerry will be a long and successful one,”he concluded.


text:
“On Friday, we suspended the company’s operating license and now are looking into the situation. We expect to provide more information shortly,” Juozas Raguckas, deputy head of the Tourism Department, told BNS.
Fresh Travel CEO Gediminas Kerys could not be reached by BNS for comment on Friday.
The website of the travel agency, which often sold cheap trips via group-buying sites, could not be accessed on Friday evening.
Fresh Travel offered holiday trips to Portugal (Madeira), Turkey, Egypt and the Canary Islands and had plans to expand into Latvia, Belarus and Estonia. Reportedly, Latvian citizens made up one-tenth of its customers.
This is not the first travel agency in Lithuania to have had its license suspended this year. Go Baltic Travel, Go Planet Travel and Neoturas stopped operating and went bankrupt earlier this year.


text:
A Christmas contemporary craft and design fair is returning to Banchory this weekend.
Flock will be held at the Woodend Barn and will feature more than 40 professional Scottish artists, designers and makers from across the North-east.
Since it's launch in 2014, the event has attracted thousands of visitors to the town each year.
Barn director Lorraine Grant said: "We felt there was a gap in the market for a high quality, design-led craft fair around this time of year
" As a professional arts centre we are keen to celebrate the best local talent as well as bringing in creative talent from elsewhere in Scotland.
"Having so many talented makers and designers under one roof creates a pretty special atmosphere in the Barn, so we are very excited to be organising it again this year.”
The fair includes many different media and craft, including textiles, ceramics, jewellery and printmaking.
Flock takes place on Saturday, November 19, from 10am to 5pm and the following day from 10am to 4pm.
Entry is free and there is parking available on site.


text:
Maruti Baleno is one of the most successful premium hatchbacks in its segment. The competition in this segment is cut-throat still the Baleno manages to dominate it. The car has continuously been on the top spot in the sales charts. But the Baleno was launched in 2015 and since then has only gotten a minor facelift in 2019. Seeing Maruti’s push for bringing new generations of existing cars, we expect them to launch the new generation of the Baleno in the coming time. In today’s article, we will be discussing this Rs 6 lakh new-generation premium hatchback.
New-generation premium hatchback exterior design
Although the Baleno already has a great design, however, we expect Maruti to heavily tweak it in order to give the new-generation car a fresh appeal. The exterior dimensions are not expected to drastically change. It will get new headlamps and tail lamps, new bumpers, new alloy wheels and a new front grille. The Baleno might get some new colour options, but it will also retain its signature Nexa colours.
The interiors have always been the weak point of Maruti cars. The Baleno is expected to come with completely reworked interiors. A new dashboard layout, new seating & upholstery and a new multifunction steering wheel are expected. Maruti may add a sunroof to the Baleno, making it the first Maruti car to come with a sunroof. It should also get engine auto start-stop and new hybrid technology.
The new-generation Baleno is expected to retain the 1.2-litre VVT engine that produces 81bhp and 113Nm of torque, however, the engine might be tuned to produce more power. It might get another engine in the form of a 1.0-litre Boosterjet petrol engine. Other than the Boosterjet engine, Maruti might also offer diesel engines with the Baleno. Also, Maruti could bring a hybrid engine that will further help in improving the mileage of the Baleno, something that this premium hatchback is famous for.
New-generation premium hatchback features
The current Baleno already comes decently loaded with features. But nowadays, features have become an important factor for buyers. Some features Maruti can bring on the new-generation Baleno will be wireless charging, wireless Android Auto & Apple Carplay, cruise control and sunroof. On the safety side of things, Maruti may add four airbags and hill hold control.
Launch and price
The Maruti Baleno currently starts at Rs 6.94 lakh and goes all the way up to Rs 10.70 lakh (on-road Mumbai). We expect Maruti to hike the price of the new-generation Maruti Baleno by Rs 50,000 to Rs 60,000 over what it currently sells for. The car is expected to launch in 2022.
This is all the info about Rs 6 lakh new-generation premium hatchback. If you have car buying doubts click here to ask! Get the lowest price for car insurance here. For more such content stay subscribed to MotorOctane Youtube, Google News Facebook, and Twitter. Also, follow us on Flipboard and Reddit where we have a discussion community.