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Results from the Kagan year-end 2021 Germany Consumer Insights survey show a substantial spike in online subscription video use last year, with overall subscription video-on-demand use climbing 9 percentage points over 2020 to 81%. Historic survey data illustrates the steady increase of SVOD services over the past five years.
Use of Amazon Prime Video, the most widely used SVOD service among respondents in Germany, reached 52% at year-end 2021, an increase of 24 percentage points from 2017 and a 7 percentage point growth year over year. Netflix was not far behind, with 22% of internet households using the service in 2017, climbing to 49% in 2021.
The survey found that most SVOD services in Germany showed at least modest subscriber growth last year. Both RTL’s TV Now service and Deutsche Telekom’s Magenta TV showed positive year-over-year growth, each reaching 14% of internet households. Joyn+ — a joint venture offering from ProSiebenSat.1 and Discovery— Apple TV+, Zattoo and Eurosport Player were statistically flat year over year.
SVOD stacking is also a growing trend in Germany. At year-end 2021 the average internet household subscribed to just over two SVOD services, double the number from just four years ago. The vast majority of households subscribing to an SVOD service for the first time in 2021 subscribed to either Amazon Prime Video or Netflix. Yet, overall, Amazon Prime Video and Netflix users both average three SVOD subscriptions per household, while those using Disney+ and the Sky Ticket service average over four SVOD service subscriptions.
Despite typically having multiple SVOD subscriptions, Netflix users report that they spend, on average, more than half (55%) of their daily SVOD viewing hours watching Netflix content. Amazon Prime Video content consumes an average of 41% of daily SVOD viewing hours for its subscribers. SVOD service providers with a majority of users subscribing to four or more SVOD services find it difficult to capture more than one-quarter of daily SVOD viewing time. An exception to this rule is DT’s Magenta TV service where its users spend nearly half (47%) of their daily SVOD viewing hours watching Magenta TV/video content, despite subscribing to 3.8 SVOD services, on average.
In addition to SVOD services, three-quarters (75%) of internet adults in Germany also watch free online ad-supported video services. The survey found that over half (55%) watch YouTube short-form videos. German public service broadcasters ZDF and ARD also have popular online services, attracting 42% and 40% viewership, respectively. Over one-third (37%) of surveyed internet adults said they watch videos on Facebook. Other U.S.-based AVOD services, including Twitch, Pluto TV and Peacock have attracted a much more modest following among German consumers.
The continued expansion of SVOD/AVOD households in Germany, as well as a growing trend toward SVOD stacking has translated into more time watching video-on-demand content. For example, in 2017 60% of survey internet adults reported watching primarily live TV compared to only 26% in 2021. The growing number of new SVOD households can be seen among those who watch mostly live TV, expanding from 22% in 2017 to 37% last year. Those spending one-half or more of their daily TV/video hours watching VOD content has grown from 19% in 2017 to 36% in 2021. S&P Global


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We could be in for a massive push from Nissan in the manufacturing realm if Vice President of US Sales and Marketing Fred Diaz has anything to say about it. Speaking to the Automotive Press Association not too long ago, Diaz (above) expressed a need to construct some 85 percent of the autos Nissan sells to Americans in the US, claiming it will occur “in the really close to long term.” Nissan has previously moved to improve exports of its US-built products, and in 2013, it created just above 76 % of the models it offered in this market place within our country’;s borders.
“Any problems of us taking benefit of the value of the yen, we want to dispel that,” Diaz informed reporters, pointing out the contentious situation of currency manipulation. There is also the clear aim of positive PR – Americans like things made in America, and they like companies that invest in America. Diaz is rapid to level out that Nissan had done just that: “While a good deal of individuals retrenched [during the economic downturn], as an alternative we leaned into it and we continued investing and in fact created over $ 5 billion in investments, bringing a lot of manufacturing from Japan to the United States and to Mexico,” Diaz said, pointing out that Nissan has aided produce 8,000 jobs by means of its investments.
Nissan runs 3 factories in the US, 2 in Tennessee and a single in Mississippi. Amongst the 3, production is up 22 %, whilst the overall exports from the facilities have elevated by 100,000 units, Diaz advised reporters.
Nevertheless, there is explanation to feel that Nissan’;s purpose of sourcing 85 % of the vehicles it sells in the US from the US is going to be hard to attain, in accordance to The Detroit News. “We see them forecast for 1.15 million in 2014, which is somewhat up from 2013. But we see them flat all through the rest of the decade,” Stephanie Brinley of IHS Automotive advised the newspaper. “Compared to some of the other organizations, there is not as many new additive goods coming.”

domain: news


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We’re a quarter of the way through 2018 and it’s time for some trend spotting. Despite a rocky start to the year including some troubling news about privacy on social media, new research shows that social media use continues to be on the rise. Among which demographics and on which platforms might surprise you – so be sure to dig into the trend articles below to find out who’s using which platforms. Reading this around lunch time? You’ll want to see which fast food brands are best at tantalizing taste buds. And, if you’re daydreaming about summer vacation, learn more about how savvy brands might just enhance your downtime. Finally – a few tips about Instagram and Snapchat will leave you with some news you can use.
The Next Web: Social Media Use is Increasing Despite Privacy Fears
Chances are you know someone who has abandoned social media or certain platforms due to privacy fears. You might even have considered removing your brand’s presence – but before you make any decisions, read this recent research which shows that the number of social media users worldwide grew by more than 100 million in the first quarter of 2018. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg…
QSR: Which Restaurant Brands Rule the Social Media Universe?
Whether or not you’re a fan of fast food, it’s always fun to take a peek into a familiar industry and see who’s winning the social media race to engage with customers. This recent study looked at the top restaurants in the $200 billion industry and shares who comes out on top on Facebook and Instagram.
Adweek: How to Use Social Media to Bring Customers Closer to Your Brand When They’re Vacationing
Summer is just around the corner and while you might think people take a break from social media when they’re on vacation – it turns out the opposite is true. Whether you’re a location-based business looking to pull in tourists or a brand looking to keep up with your fans when they’ve got more time to engage, this article offers some good tips.
Adweek: 9 Instagram Tips From High-Reach Instagrammers
An Adweek poll of around 600 social influencers revealed Instagram as their favorite platform. Almost 80 percent of them are using Instagram stories, and another 50 percent are using albums. Learn top tips from these power users in this helpful article.
Digiday: Instagram Stories Have Become Traffic Drivers for Publishers and Influencers
Curating an audience on social media is one thing – but converting them from social into an audience you truly own, such as a targeted email list, is even more valuable. Experts share how they’re converting about 2 to 5 percent of impressions on Instagram stories into valuable conversions in this short piece.
The Verge: You Can Now Build Your Own Face Filter For Snapchat
Exciting news from Snapchat this week – the platform is releasing seven new templates in Lens Studio where creators will have the chance to create digital masks. If this sounds too technical for you, take heart, as the templates range in complexity and creators can build face filters in a few as five minutes. We can’t wait to see what you create!
Venture Beat: Snapchat Launches ‘Shoppable’ Augmented Reality Feature in Lenses
Snapchat has launched a new ‘shoppable’ augmented reality (AR) Lens feature for advertisers worldwide. With more than 70 million users using Lenses in Snapchat daily, this is a feature worth reviewing for any brand considering using Snapchat advertising to reach its consumers.
On the Blog:
- Starbucks Shows it Takes Discrimination Seriously: We love to showcase companies that handle a crisis scenario well, and this week Starbucks gets a nod from our own Jeremy Story in this blog post.
- Get Grounded Spotlight: Denver Children’s Advocacy Center: Hear from CenterTable team member Justin Szykowny as he summarizes one in the series of recent Get Grounded Spotlight videos.


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SALT LAKE CITY, Utah(News4Utah) The E. coli outbreak on romaine lettuce has hit Utah. The outbreak has killed one person and sickened nearly 150 others. Utah is now one of the 29 affected across the country. Jack Wilbur from the Utah Department of Agriculture and Food, joined Brian Carlson, to help us better understand what’s happening.
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has expanded its warning about an E. coli outbreak connected to romaine lettuce to cover all forms of romaine, including whole heads and hearts of romaine grown in the Yuma, Arizona, growing area. A previous warning was limited to chopped forms of romaine, including salads and salad mixes. Now, the CDC is warning consumers not to buy or eat romaine lettuce at a grocery store or restaurant unless you can confirm it’s not from the Yuma, Arizona area.
Unless you know where the lettuce came from, consumers anywhere in the U.S. who have any store-bought romaine lettuce at home should not eat it and should throw it away. This goes even if some of it was eaten and no one has gotten sick. Product labels often do not identify growing regions; so, throw out any romaine lettuce if you’re uncertain about where it was grown.
For more information, visit www.cdc.gov.


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Black Friday shopping is still a deal in Upstate SC, but less so than in past years
Dozens of people lined up before dawn outside stores along Woodruff Road in Greenville to take advantage of Black Friday sales, but the crowds were far smaller than during past years.
"It is very different this year," said Greenville resident John Godwin, who waited about two minutes to get into Best Buy at 5:30 a.m. to purchase a Fitbit activity tracker. "There's hardly anybody here and not as many things to buy."
Not far away in the parking lot, a man struggled to squeeze a 70-inch TV into the back of his family's minivan.
Black Friday has long been considered the busiest day for many stores. But the ongoing coronavirus pandemic has altered shopping practices. More consumers are expected to do their holiday shopping online in 2020. Unlike past years, almost none of the biggest retailers were open on Thanksgiving night.
Black Friday veteran Sheba McCullough was the first person in a line of about 60 shoppers at Walmart. She arrived at 4:30 a.m., a half-hour before the store opened its doors.
McCullough, who lives in Greenville, said her Black Friday strategy remains the same as in previous years.
“You have to get here early," she said. "It's survival of the fittest at this point.”
Big demand and scarce supply of gaming consoles
A hot item Friday was new video game consoles, of which there is a scarce supply.
McCullough was hoping to buy a PlayStation 5 gaming console at Walmart for her nephew.
Isaiah Jordan had been waiting outside a GameStop store in Anderson since 11 a.m. Thursday. He and seven other people had already reserved the store's entire supply of PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X consoles by 6:30 a.m. Friday, 30 minutes before the store officially opened.
Jordan said he waited a similar amount of time when the PlayStation 5 first came out earlier this month.
"I love it," he said. He was planning to buy a PlayStation 5 on Friday for his younger brother.


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Tax hike on slot machines slammed
The Government will introduce a new 20% Machine Games Duty (MGD) to replace the existing Amusement Machine Licence Duty and VAT, which equated to 17%, from February next year.
Simon Davies, analyst at brokers Collins Stewart, said the MGD would hit William Hill profits by around £11 million in the first year while Ladbrokes can expect a £14 million impact.
Mr Davies added: "The Budget has demonstrated the vulnerability of so-called 'sin' industries at a time when governments are under pressure to grow tax revenues."
The Chancellor also announced plans for a UK online gaming tax.
William Hill and Ladbrokes, which have moved their online operations to Gibraltar, will have to pay a 15% tax based on the location of the player rather than the location of their business.
Mr Davies said the online gaming tax was a "bigger concern" but the pain would not be felt until 2015.
The Association of British Bookmakers said the MGD was "unsustainable" at a time when bookmakers already pay more than £1 billion in tax each year. It said: "The Government made clear the premium it places on economic growth. This measure does not protect jobs or provide the sector with incentives for growth."


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NEW DELHI: American automobile manufacturer Ford India
has inaugurated two new showrooms and two new workshop facilities, from Tanish Ford, in Gurgaon, the company announced in a press statement.
The move is aimed at strengthening the company's sales and service presence in Delhi, Haryana and National Capital Region.
Both showrooms will showcase Ford’s newly launched product range including compact sedan Figo Aspire
, hatchback New Figo
and Compact SUV new EcoSport
Ford India’s compact sedan the Figo Aspire, introduced in August at a price of Rs 4,89,990 (ex-showroom Delhi), has introduced a host of industry and segment-first features. The New Figo is the only hatchback to offer up to six airbags for an all-around protection.
Ford has 352 sales and service facilities across 189 cities in India, the company claims.


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The Parisian Fashion house par excellence has released a cruise collection that has given the world a series of simply iconic...FashionJuly 31, 2018
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Nike unveils new self-tying shoe
NEW YORK - Nike unveiled a new futuristic shoe model, HyperAdapt 1.0, with power-operated laces.
Nike CEO Mark Parker unveiled the shoe at an event in New York on Wednesday and says they are expected to be available by the holiday season. The price of the futuristic shoe has not yet been announced.
The new shoe is “powered by an underfoot-lacing mechanism.” The shoes are battery operated and come with buttons marked with a “+” sign and a “-” sign to adjust the laces and the shoe also lights up.
The company says it takes three hours for the shoes to charge to full and says with average use, the battery will need to be charged every couple of weeks. A lighting system on the shoe will indicate when the shoes need to be charged.
The company says that if the battery dies, customers will still be able to pull off the shoe.
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31 Oct 2018
Exeter businesses make Making Tax Digital for VAT seminar a success
Thompson Jenner LLP, one of Devon’s leading firms of accountants and business advisers, has hosted a packed seminar to help Exeter businesses prepare for the Government’s online tax regime Making Tax Digital (MTD) for VAT. The MTD for VAT deadline is on the 1 April 2019, when most UK businesses with turnover above the £85,000 VAT threshold will need to keep records digitally and submit VAT returns to HMRC using MTD-compatible software.
The seminar follows a similar event which took place place on the 11th October at the Manor Hotel in Exmouth. Following the same successful format, Thompson Jenner LLP Partner Jon Westley and invited leading accounting software specialist Xero, gave an overview of the new requirements, the software solutions that are available and what businesses need to be doing in order to be compliant with the new reporting requirements.
Jon Westley of Thompson Jenner LLP said “We are really pleased with the turn out again today to our seminar. Although HMRC made the surprise announcement on 16 October that certain complex and specialist businesses will have a new deferred filing deadline of October 2019, most businesses will need to be ready for April. However, those moved to the new October deadline should still take note as the same rules will apply to them. With businesses potentially having the added complication of having to adapt to new VAT legislation from March, after Brexit, the smart solution is to prepare now.”
He went on to say
“It has been well publicised that a lot of businesses are not fully aware of the MTD for VAT requirements and we have therefore been very pro-active in getting our clients well prepared in good time. Running these events is just a part of the help and support we are giving our clients to ensure that they are ready.”
The firm’s Partner’s and Exeter team of VAT, bookkeeping and cloud accounting specialists made themselves available after the seminar to discuss individual client requirements and to arrange further meetings.
The feedback from the attendees was once again extremely positive and we would like to thank everyone for coming along and for making the event such a success.


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Updated integrity system detects and deletes fake Facebook Likes
Facebook has updated its integrity system to automatically detect and delete 'fake' Likes, benefiting both the brands that use the site and the social network's users.
Facebook Pages will soon more accurately reflect the demographics of users and have a more accurate Fan count, according to a new announcement on the Facebook blog. That's because the social network has updated its integrity system to detect and delete Likes that come from purchased bulk Likes, malware, hacked accounts or deceived users.
"When a Page and fan connect on Facebook, we want to ensure that connection involves a real person interested in hearing from a specific Page and engaging with that brand's content," says Facebook on its Security Page. "As such, we have recently increased our automated efforts to remove Likes on Pages that may have been gained by means that violate our Facebook Terms."
As well as ensuring that Facebook users connect only to brands and Pages they authentically like, the move will enable more accurate demographics for brands and, consequently, the ability to produce more relevant and engaging content.
"On average, less than 1% of Likes on any given Page will be removed, providing they and their affiliates have been abiding by our terms," says Facebook. "While we have always had dedicated protections against each of these threats on Facebook, these improved systems have been specifically configured to identify and take action against suspicious Likes."
In the social network's latest quarterly report it revealed that the number of accounts that violate its terms of service, such as 'duplicate' and 'false' ('user-misclassified' and 'undesirable accounts'), had risen sharply since the first quarter.
The company estimates that the number of dodgy accounts now stands at 8.7% of worldwide monthly active users, or just over 83 million accounts, of which 4.8% are 'duplicates' and 3.9% are 'false'. At the end of the first quarter, Facebook estimated the number to be 5-6% overall.
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Demand for Bitcoin Latinum shows strong appetite for new digital currencies around the world
PALO ALTO, Calif., October 30, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) – Bitcoin Latinum (LTNM), the next generation of insured asset-backed cryptocurrency, continues its aggressive expansion strategy and will be listed on Hotbit, a leading global trading company digital asset platform, in mid-November 2021. LTNM will be available for trading with BTC and USDT pairs, and demonstrates the growing appetite for additional digital currencies such as Bitcoin Latinum to start trading globally whole.
âThe strong demand for new digital currencies such as Bitcoin Latinum is clear. Hotbit is the perfect digital exchange partner as this is our eighth exchange to date. This is a milestone in the history of Bitcoin Latinum and we continue to reach a wider audience and showcase the unique digital assets of our coins across the world, âsaid Donald Basile, Founder of Bitcoin Latinum and CEO of Monsoon Blockchain Corporation.
Bitcoin Latinum is a fully insured asset-backed cryptocurrency based on the Bitcoin ecosystem. Developed by Monsoon Blockchain Corporation on behalf of the Bitcoin Latinum Foundation, LTNM is a greener, faster, and more secure version of Bitcoin, capable of handling massive crypto transactions while being very cost effective and scalable. As a revolutionary new token based on the Bitcoin blockchain, LTNM focuses on disrupting high growth industries such as media, gaming, telecommunications, and cloud computing.
Improving Bitcoin’s power consumption issues, LTNM uses a Proof of Stake (PoS) algorithm to achieve consensus, which not only increases the network’s TPS rate, but also dramatically minimizes charges. Also, unlike other crypto assets, LTNM is insured and backed by real and digital assets. Its asset backing is held in a fund model so that the value of the base asset increases over time. It accelerates this growth of asset-backed funds by depositing 80% of the transaction costs in the asset fund that backs the currency. Thus, the more Bitcoin Latinum is adopted, the faster its asset fund grows, creating a self-inflating currency. Additionally, users and businesses can unlock new revenue streams while reducing transaction costs. The listing on Hotbit highlights the Bitcoin Latinum Foundation’s commitment to supporting the growth of a sustainable crypto ecosystem.
Hotbit is happy to add LTNM to our portfolio. As the ecosystem evolves towards energy efficiency, next generation assets like Bitcoin Latinum with its increased speed and low transaction fees are set to grow exponentially within the industry as a digital transaction method. . Hotbit believes in the ability of Bitcoin Latinum to provide a simple, secure and sustainable experience for Hotbit’s emerging market community.
About Bitcoin Latinum
Bitcoin Latinum is the next generation of fully insured asset backed cryptocurrency. Based on the Bitcoin ecosystem, Bitcoin Latinum is greener, faster and more secure, ready to revolutionize digital transactions. Using an energy-efficient Proof of Stake consensus algorithm, Bitcoin Latinum plans to bring better transaction speed, lower fees, and more security to high-growth markets such as media, gaming, telecommunications, and the cloud. computing.
For more information, please visit https://bitcoinlatinum.com
About Hotbit Exchange
Hotbit exchange is a leading global digital asset trading platform with over 2000 trading pairs in total and has been ranked # 1 among all exchanges for the number of types of cryptocurrency projects listed. . Hotbit has accumulated over 3,000,000 registered users in more than 210 countries and regions around the world. To learn more about Hotbit, visit their website, follow them Twitter for more updated news and promotions.
FOR EDUCATIONAL AND INFORMATION PURPOSES ONLY; NO INVESTMENT ADVICE. Any information offered is for educational and informational purposes only and should NOT be construed as an offer or solicitation related to securities or be viewed as personalized investment advice. Bitcoin Latinum strongly recommends that you consult a licensed or registered professional before making any investment decisions.
Company: Bitcoin Latinum
Contact: Kai Okada, Director of Communications
Email: [email protected]
Address: 2100 Geng Road, Palo Alto, CA 94303, USA
Telephone: +1 800-528-0985
THE SOURCE: Latin Bitcoin


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While Amazon.com (AMZN -1.32%) is dominating and taking names in the retail industry, Walmart's (WMT 0.05%) dependence on store traffic means it's not growing sales nearly as fast. The growth is in e-commerce. That's not in Walmart's DNA -- or is it?
Walmart is on pace to generate about $16 billion in e-commerce sales in fiscal 2018 (which ends in January). That's an increase of 40% over last year, which is slightly faster than Amazon's 37% year-over-year growth in sales over the previous year. While the total of Walmart's online sales still pales versus Amazon's $221 billion in trailing 12-month sales, Walmart's e-commerce growth shows that it's not going to roll over before Amazon's onslaught.
Check out the latest Walmart earnings call transcript.
The Bentonville, Arkansas, company has made several moves in recent years that reveal a company taking risks, experimenting, and playing offense to remain true to its roots of being aggressive to win over customers. Walmart may never catch Amazon, but Amazon may never knock out Sam Walton's company.
Walmart's secret weapon
Walmart's focus on opening Supercenters all over the country distracted management from the real competition emerging with online competitors 20 years ago. But that distraction might have been a blessing in disguise for Walmart. The company's footprint of 4,761 stores in the U.S. gives it a significant advantage over Amazon in one crucial category where people are starting to shop more online: grocery.
Most people visit a Walmart to buy groceries, which made up 56% of its unit sales last year. The company has nearly 2,100 grocery pickup locations and 700 pickup towers. It has had tremendous success with its grocery pickup service, and management is now using its newfound expertise in this area to begin grocery delivery.
By the end of the year, Walmart expects to cover about 40% of the U.S. population with delivery through about 800 stores. That's a coverage area that Amazon's Whole Foods Market can't match -- the organic grocery store had 465 stores open in North America at the end of 2017.
Thinking beyond the grocery cart
Grocery pickup has been a significant contributor to Walmart's e-commerce growth. But don't think that its e-commerce strategy is just about groceries. Over the last two years, the company has spent $2.8 billion on acquisitions to beef up its e-commerce operations. Walmart has a 10% stake in China's JD.com and recently invested in India's Flipkart. But one of the most significant acquisitions Walmart made was Jet.com, which helped Walmart connect with the high income, urban, millennial shoppers whom it has historically had trouble reaching.
It's not so much the business operations of Jet.com that benefits Walmart (although it has been a successful duo), but the man behind the curtain. Marc Lore founded and was CEO of Jet.com before Walmart's acquisition. Lore has a long record of starting and growing several online businesses. Before starting Jet.com, Lore founded Quidsi, which owned Diapers.com, Soap.com, Wag.com, and other companies. Quidsi was sold to Amazon in 2011 for $550 million. Amazon's mistake was that it didn't bring Lore along.
Walmart didn't make that mistake. Lore is now head of Walmart's U.S. e-commerce operations. Other than overseeing Walmart's impressive growth in e-commerce over the last few years, Lore has brought a forward-thinking, experimental, risk-taking culture to the Arkansas retailer -- an approach that may sound familiar to Amazon shareholders.
Under Lore's influence, Walmart formed Store No. 8 in 2017 -- "the incubation arm of Walmart," as written on its home page. The purpose of Store No. 8 is to make "big bets on transformative ideas that have the potential to fundamentally change how people shop in the future."
One of those bets is Jetblack, a members-only personal shopping service that just launched in Manhattan. Customers order what they want via text messages, and a team of shopping assistants handles the rest. While Store No. 8 is testing and building businesses that can stand alone on their success, the goal is to test new technologies that could significantly transform how customers shop at Walmart.
Store No. 8 is working on other projects that it's not disclosing yet. But in early 2018, Walmart acquired a virtual reality start-up called Spatialand to add to its Store No. 8 portfolio. A Google alum, Bart Stein, is running another project. On Store No. 8's website, it says that "Bart and his team have created some of the most thoughtfully designed and technologically advanced home devices on the market and will bring those past experiences and learnings to Store No. 8."
The changes continue
There's much more Walmart is doing in the digital arena. For example, the company has partnered with Alphabet's Google to personalize shopping, and recently struck a deal with PayPal Holdings to help the underbanked have easier access to cash in a more digitized economy.
The Arkansas retailer is on the move, and investors should take notice.


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Connected car analytics startup Aurora Labs today raised $23 million, bringing its total raised to $34 million. Notably, the capital comes after Porsche SE expanded its investment in Aurora to $2.5 million, which gave the automaker a “low single-digit” percentage stake in the startup.
Modern high-end cars feature codebases exceeding 100 million lines, and it’s not uncommon for them to contain bugs. For example, the software for an electronic control unit (ECU) — the device responsible for regulating a car’s electronic systems — can experience drift that reduces engine life span. Carmakers employ algorithms to identify such problems, but those algorithms’ computational requirements tend to be high, making them slow. This is one reason software-related recalls for safety and security are predicted to comprise over 50% of all recalls by 2025.
Aurora claims to solve this challenge with “self-healing” software that employs efficient models to spotlight line-of-code faults and anticipate downtime. The platform provides the ability to visualize code and the relationships between car functions, refreshing code and configurations in parallel to upgrade firmware with the least possible impact on battery. Aurora provides evidence of which code has changed to facilitate validation processes, enabling all ECUs in a car to be remotely updated. And in the event something goes wrong, Aurora can recover to a safe, secure, and certified firmware version.
Aurora’s product can automatically detect faults and apply fixes on the fly, and it ships with an auto-update framework the company claims takes as little as 3% of ECU cycles and 1% of memory. A fourth component — an auto-validator — creates a digital thumbprint of functionality relationships to expedite type approval, a method of classifying cars in Europe to certify specific safety requirements.
An exclusive invite-only evening of insights and networking, designed for senior enterprise executives overseeing data stacks and strategies.
CEO Zohar Fox claims Aurora is being used in the U.S., Europe, and Asia by four automakers, a global electronics manufacturer, and an automotive aftermarket customer that collectively cover a third of global car production. He is bullish on growth and points to a 2019 report from IDC that predicts connected car shipments will hit 76.3 million units by 2023. By 2020, 75% of the world’s cars will be connected to the internet, and the growth of “internet of vehicles” will bring in around $2.94 billion in revenue, according to a 2015 study by Topology.
“As auto manufacturers plan for the new regulations … and all manufacturers prioritize software in their product development, Aurora becomes a strategic partner helping manufacturers differentiate and update their vehicles and devices and create recurring revenue streams,” Fox said. He estimates that automakers lost $15 billion — about 10% of their operational costs — in 2017 because of “software ripples,” or oversights that necessitated rollbacks. “This cross-industry commitment from investors is evidence of the need to continuously improve the quality of software [and] keep it safe, secure, and updated in all devices,” he added.
Aurora, which Fox cofounded in 2016 with former McKinsey manager Ori Lederman, has offices in Tel Aviv; Munich; and Skopje, Macedonia. The company’s oversubscribed series B was jointly led by LG Technology Ventures, Check Point cofounder Marius Nacht, Porsche SE, Toyota Tsusho, and UL Ventures. Aurora previously raised $11.1 million from Fraser McCombs Capital, MizMaa Ventures, and others.
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Dented by algorithm changes and decreasing organic reach, news publishers and industry executives in Germany are questioning the impact of Facebook’s latest push to get more news content on the platform.
Over the last few months, Facebook has been contacting German partners about its initiative to index news pages on the platform and classify “trustworthy” news sources. While it’s not difficult to register a news page, German publishers, which have always held firm against the growing dominance of U.S. tech platforms, have questions about how the initiative will benefit them.
The aim of Facebook’s news page indexing is to iron out a number of wrinkles it has with the news industry, like clamping down on clickbait and the spread of misinformation, in theory, by giving readers more information about where content comes from. Since launching in the U.S. last May, it now allows Spanish, French, Italian, Dutch and German language pages. Any news page can register as long as it follows set guidelines which have developed with news organizations, academics and industry groups. Indexing news pages will also help determine which news publishers should be exempt from all of its Ad Libraries, which aggrieved publishers.
When contacted for this piece, a Facebook spokesperson said it expects the index to impact products in the future, but it doesn’t have an immediate impact.
A few weeks ago, Jesper Doub, Facebook’s director of media partnerships for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, said the platform is looking for ways to help news publishers make money, referencing that it’s classifying trustworthy news sources to reduce clickbait.
“Based on the News Feed changes a year ago, everyone is still hesitant and doubting Facebook’s actions,” said Oliver von Wersch, an independent publishing consultant and former Gruner + Jahr executive. “That is of no big surprise that someone like Spiegel is ‘trustworthy.’ The big question is the impact on reach and monetization for publishers, and that is still unclear. The question is: How can Facebook become more relevant as an organic news channel?”
Another issue is how to gauge what makes content trustworthy. And there’s a fear that Facebook could take too much of a binary approach.
“They’ll want to do this programmatically or algorithmically. But to date, I’ve not seen a successful attempt at that,” said a publishing executive who had contributed suggestions to the guidelines. “Will it benefit news publishers in their drive to sustainability? I don’t really see that it would.” The publishing executive added that it sensed “zero commitment from Facebook” to help with sustainability.
Ultimately publishers want to make money from their content, but publishers’ Facebook referral traffic has decreased over the last 18 months, making the platform a less significant traffic and revenue driver.
For Facebook, having news on its platform gives it credibility but isn’t much of a money maker. The focus tends to shift to products that do, like video.
All U.S. tech platforms have to work harder in Germany to entice publishers and advertisers to work with them, particularly after so many data-privacy and brand-safety errors.
“I think social platform usage is primarily influenced by trust in the platforms. I think overall Cambridge Analytica did great harm here,” said Robert Jacobi, activation director at Essence, Germany. “What is different here is the strong local publishers, which are also quite reluctant to work with the big platforms like Google or Facebook and therefore build up their own data alliance instead.”
There are glimmers of more willingness to pay publishers for news. Facebook has been talking with news publishers about a dedicated news tab where publishers expect to share the ad revenue with Facebook from their stories and keep revenue from subscriptions. In Germany, media company ProSiebenSat. 1 has a deal with Facebook to publish short episodes and clips of its popular TV shows like “Germany’s Next Top Model” on Facebook Watch.
Where Facebook could prove more helpful in Germany is by developing products with local news organizations; in April, it made headway with the launch of a local news accelerator program. But Facebook Instant Articles is one example where publishers have pulled away because they’ve been unable to generate much revenue, given the development costs and investment.
“Everyone has kept a distance and is quite critical. Facebook has to create something positive,” said von Wersch. “Right now, it’s a partner which is important, for sure, but [referral traffic] has decreased so much it’s not necessarily worth the effort in investing in cooperation with Facebook. A lot of publishers are waiting to see what bets [Facebook] will make.”
One hope is that Doub, who joined Facebook last year after previously having been one of its critics in his role as managing director at Spiegel Online, will help drive an agenda of more collaboration with publishers on developing products. Previously, publishers have grumbled that either there were too few people in Germany to contact about European-publisher related issues or the matrix structure at a company as large as Facebook made it more tricky to work out who.
In this sense, the situation is looking more optimistic for Facebook in Germany.
“This is a positive,” said von Wersch. “In the past, Facebook would announce products, and nothing would happen. Now, there are operative people really working on these projects.”
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Remember the Spain vs. Netherland match where the on-ground crowd went berserk. A similar phenomenon was observed with the mobile users all over the world. Smartphones are playing a crucial role in the ongoing FIFA World Cup, and it's not...
The much awaited Game on PC platform 'Lords of Football" is finally launched yesterday by Fish Eagle and development studio Geniaware. The game is now available to download through Steam and other digital channels. The Makers Lords of Football is mainly...
thanks to a chemical and biological engineer at Northwestern University who is also a self-proclaimed football fanatic, we can compare our number-crunching with a much-touted new algorithm. Professor Lu?s Amaral's rating system, unveiled Wednesday in the online journal PLoS ONE, was first put to the test after the 2008 European Cup, when it ranked the 20 best footballers that played--a list that lines up pretty well with general analysis.


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LeapFrog Enterprises (LF.DL) posted surprisingly weak fiscal fourth-quarter results today, as it endured a massive drop in demand for its educational products. After suffering a 23% slip during the holiday quarter, the company booked an even heftier sales drop this quarter: Revenue plunged lower by 40%.
The stock, which is down 56% this year, fell 16% immediately following the announcement.
Here's a big-picture look at how LeapFrog's headline results stacked up against Wall Street's expectations.
|Revenue||$48 million||$34 million|
|Profit||$-0.21 per share||$-0.56 per share|
The fourth-quarter results, which were delayed due to an accounting review, showed that sales shrunk by 37% in LeapFrog's U.S. market, and by 33% overseas. The company's learning tablets and instructional video-game devices failed to sell through at retailers during the holidays, and that demand slump accelerated this quarter. That left LeapFrog pinched with the twin problems of lower sales and higher inventory. While revenue fell by 40%, inventories rose by 39%.
Meanwhile, operating expenses doubled, thanks to a $37 million impairment charge tied to the accounting review that held up the reporting of the fourth-quarter results. In that review, LeapFrog accountants determined that the company paid more for certain corporate assets, including its website and new enterprise system, than the products are objectively worth today. That finding led to a writedown that pushed the company into a $76-million loss for the quarter, compared to a $12-million loss in the prior-year period.
LeapFrog executives plan to respond to the shifting demand by moving into new and more varied product categories that target what they believe is a large untapped educational market of millennial parents. "We are uniquely positioned to take advantage of this opportunity through the extension and evolution of the LeapFrog brand, products, and services," CEO John Barbour said in a press release.
Still, management warned that the new products won't hit stores until fiscal 2017, so the year ahead will be at least as bad as the one that just closed. LeapFrog projects another significant annual sales drop along with losses of as much as $100 million.
"This will be a year of rebuilding," Chief Financial Officer Ray Arthur said. "We will continue to prudently manage expenses and cash as we stabilize the business and position LeapFrog for long-term growth," he added.


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27th February 2019
FedEx unveils autonomous delivery robot
FedEx Corp. has today announced the "SameDay Bot" – an autonomous delivery service, designed to help retailers make same-day and last-mile deliveries to their customers.
Using this machine, retailers will be able to accept orders from nearby customers and deliver items directly to homes or businesses the same day. FedEx is collaborating with companies such as AutoZone, Lowe's, Pizza Hut, Target, Walgreens and Walmart to help assess retailers' autonomous delivery needs. 60% of these merchants' customers live within three miles of a store location, demonstrating the opportunity for on-demand, hyper-local delivery.
“The FedEx SameDay Bot is an innovation designed to change the face of local delivery and help retailers efficiently address their customers' rising expectations,” said Brie Carere, executive vice president for FedEx. “The bot represents a milestone in our ongoing mission to solve the complexities and expense of same-day, last-mile delivery for the growing e-commerce market in a manner that is safe and environmentally friendly.”
The FedEx bot is being developed in collaboration with DEKA Development & Research Corp. and its founder Dean Kamen – inventor of many life-changing technologies including the iBot Personal Mobility Device and the Segway.
“The bot has unique capabilities that make it unlike other autonomous vehicles,” said Kamen. “We built upon the power base of the iBot, an advanced, FDA-approved, mobility device for the disabled population with more than 10 million hours of reliable, real-world operation. By leveraging this base in an additional application, we hope that the iBot will become even more accessible to those who need it for their own mobility.”
The FedEx bot is designed to travel on sidewalks and along roadsides, safely delivering small shipments to customers' homes and businesses. Its features include pedestrian-safe technology, LiDAR and multiple cameras, allowing the zero-emission, battery-powered bot to be aware of its surroundings. These features are coupled with machine-learning algorithms to detect and avoid obstacles, plot a safe path and allow the bot to follow road and safety rules. Proprietary technology makes the bot highly capable, allowing it to navigate unpaved surfaces, curbs, and even steps for an extraordinary door-to-door delivery experience.
FedEx plans to test the bot this summer in select markets, including Memphis, Tennessee, pending final city approvals. This prototype will be refined to meet safety standards and regulations, and the specific needs of customers.
“We couldn't be more excited that FedEx chose its hometown as one of the pilot cities for this revolutionary innovation,” said Jim Strickland, City of Memphis Mayor. “We look forward to working with FedEx to continue introducing technologies that will help improve the quality of life in our community.”


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During today’s second quarter earnings call, Apple’s CEO Tim Cook said that the company is gearing up to launch “amazing new hardware, software, and services” this fall and throughout 2014.
Tim Cook said:
We’ve got a lot more surprises in the works. Our teams are hard at work on some amazing new hardware, software, and services that we can’t wait to introduce in the fall and into 2014. We continue to be very confident in our future product plans.” Cook said that there will be “really great stuff coming in the fall and across all of 2014.”
When he was asked to reiterate about the fall announcement, he had this to say:
We don’t want to be more specific, but we have some really great stuff coming in the fall and across all of 2014.
He later said that one the areas of growth were potential future categories:
Q: Did you mention new product categories in the introduction?
A: One of our areas for growth are potential new categories.
Q: Would that be in the next year?
A: We didn’t announce a specific time frame.
Tim Cook comments are interesting as it indicates that Apple is planning to launch the next generation iPhone, iPad, iPad mini and possibly iPod touch later this fall rather than in summer as some rumors have suggested.
Apple is also rumored to be working on a smartwatch, dubbed iWatch, a television set and a killer app that could be bundled with iOS 7, which could be Pandora-like streaming music service or a mobile payment system that makes use of fingerprint sensor and NFC technology in the next generation iPhone.
We can’t wait to find out which what Apple has in store for us later this fall.


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The Today Show on NBC Monday morning featured a stunning report on the auto industry, with reporter Tom Costello saying shortages of parts and labor is crippling the car repair business, adding to the woes of a shortage of new cars and skyrocketing prices for used cars. One analyst cited in the report said the situation was the worst since World War II when the U.S. was emerging from the Great Depression and was under mandatory rationing for the all-out war effort against the Axis powers Germany, Italy and Japan.
Oil filters, wiper blades, brake parts, engine parts, even entire engines are in short supply according to Costello. The report closed with a warning that tires could be in short supply this winter due to a rubber shortage.
In yet another problem tied to the global supply chain crisis, massive shortages in automobile parts and supplies are wreaking havoc on the automotive industry from dealerships to mechanics. @tomcostellonbc reports. pic.twitter.com/bFZ1aD0pry
— TODAY (@TODAYshow) October 18, 2021
Bloomberg reported Saturday on the shortage with this headline:
The $300 billion auto-parts and repair industry is facing widespread operational challenges, from spikes in the price of steel and other materials to workforce shortages and — like everyone else — delays getting goods unloaded at U.S. seaports, said Paul McCarthy, chief executive of the Automotive Aftermarket Suppliers Association.
No garage is being spared, whether franchise dealers who get their parts from the major automakers, independent warehouses, or small corner garages, McCarthy said.
“This is the most difficult supply-chain environment that I have ever seen,” AutoZone Inc. Chief Executive Officer William Rhodes said in a September earnings call. AutoZone is running “the lowest level of in-stock that I can ever remember,” said Rhodes, who started his career at the Memphis, Tennessee-based auto-parts retail giant in the 1990s and has been CEO since 2005.
“Oil filters are becoming harder to get, so when I buy them, I buy them in as big of quantities I can get,” said River Road Auto Service manager Danny Tomasian in Bethesda, Maryland.
The auto repair delays seem particularly acute in the U.S. because spare parts produced in Asia get tangled in the global shipping clog and cargo jams at seaports.
Xu Haidong, a vice chief engineer at the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers, said production and supply of parts are sufficient in his country…
While the nation’s transportation system has been in a growing state of crisis, Biden’s Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg has been away from his job for much of the past two months for paternity leave, not informing the public about his months-long break until last week.
They didn’t previously announce it, but Buttigieg’s office told West Wing Playbook that the secretary has actually been on paid leave since mid-August to spend time with his husband, Chasten, and their two newborn babies.
— Matthew Kaminski (@KaminskiMK) October 15, 2021


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A Tidy Bundle In Air Cargo
Michael A. Chowdry remembers the exact moment Atlas Air Inc. was conceived. It was August, 1991, six months after the Persian Gulf War, and he was peering out of his hotel room window overlooking Hong Kong's Kai Tak airport. Although lingering fears of terrorism had sharply thinned the number of passenger flights, the landing lights of cargo planes stretched like pearls to the horizon. Leisure travelers can be fickle, but as Chowdry was learning, not even a war slows air freight.
He didn't dawdle. Starting with just a single plane, Chowdry launched Atlas Air a year later in Golden, Colo. Since then, the company has grown into the world's third-biggest cargo carrier. Although it's far behind Federal Express Corp. and United Parcel Service Inc., some argue that its low-cost, high-margin structure may in some ways be the best in the business. Steering clear of overnight letter delivery, Atlas instead is an outsourcer, leasing planes with crews for long-haul transport of manufactured goods and farm products. "They've developed a really unique niche," says analyst Ray E. Neidl of ING Baring Furman Selz.
FREIGHT BOOM. The trend toward global manufacturing and shrinking product cycles has demand for air cargo booming, and Chowdry, 44, is reaping the rewards. Sales last year hit $422 million, up tenfold since 1993, while operating earnings reached $136 million. Atlas shares have more than doubled since their 1995 initial public offering, to a recent $29.
Outsiders see more clear skies ahead. Worldwide cargo shipping will triple over the next 20 years, Neidl estimates, and Atlas continues to expand rapidly. The company just added five new 747-400s, the longest-range, most fuel-efficient freighters in the world, to its fleet. The new jets, which cost an estimated $600 million, can save shippers money by eliminating stops and can shave hours off shipping time.
The new planes have weighed on Atlas' balance sheet. Atlas pays 20% to 30% of a plane's cost in cash. Institutional investors finance the rest. Total liabilities last year rose to $1.7 billion, or 82% of capital, from 76% the year before. But thanks to stronger cash flow and better interest terms, debt coverage actually improved.
Atlas has also minimized risks by renting its planes for three to five years to customers such as China Airlines Ltd. of Taiwan and British Airways PLC, giving it revenue stability uncommon in the industry. Atlas provides exclusive use of jets, and nonunion crews. The biggest risks--fuel prices and shipping demand--are borne by the customer. Plus, Atlas doesn't have to maintain fleets of trucks for door-to-door delivery. Speeding German-built Volkswagen engines to Brazilian assembly lines and U.S. cattle to Asia, Atlas planes, Chowdry explains, are just "flying warehouses."
Analysts reckon Atlas' formula will triple sales over the next three years, even as operating margins remain strong. Stricter noise regulations and a likely decline in air-cargo shipping by passenger airlines should benefit Atlas' young fleet.
GLOBE-TROTTER. Selling shipping services to clients around the world comes naturally to Chowdry, who had lived on three continents before he was 20. After leaving war-torn Lahore, Pakistan, he moved to London at age 15 and then to the U.S., where he learned how to fly. By the early '80s, Chowdry was in business, trading landing and take-off rights at major airports. After founding a commuter airline, and doing some buying and selling of planes, Chowdry took the $4.2 million he pocketed on one deal and launched a plane-leasing company that was the precursor to Atlas.
Having built Atlas to a power in cargo, Chowdry, who is chairman, CEO, and president, faces new challenges. Pilots are threatening to unionize. And Chowdry, who owns 59% of the company, is stretched thin, traveling some 220 days a year to meet with clients in Asia and Europe. But giving up control to a strong No. 2 could be tough for Chowdry, who gets his kicks flying acrobatics in his Czech L-39 fighter jet at near supersonic speeds over the Rockies. He relishes flying "because it requires complete focus and attention, as in business," he says. So far, at Atlas that focus has been dead-on.


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More than 400 participants are expected to come together, learn and network about the technology behind digital print at The Inkjet Conference 2015. The Inkjet Conference, organized by ESMA and developed in partnership with drupe, offers a two-track program and over 50 technical presentations from Oct. 7-8 at the Swissôtel Neuss/Düsseldorf hotel in Neuss, Germany.
“The narrow web sector has witnessed recent important players challenging the market with new digital solutions. The movement towards digital is starting to also include traditional brands, which only shows how digital inkjet technology has matured in the last couple of years,” said Peter Buttiens, CEO of ESMA.
The full impact of inkjet print has reportedly not yet been seen in the label and packaging market and the core technology still continues to evolve. Innovations in re-circulating ink systems and small multi-level drops, in combination with increased nozzle density and ink improvements, has led to reliable high-speed, high-resolution, single-pass digital label presses. The first generation of machines reportedly satisfied market’s demand for flexibility, and the second quickly followed with improvements in image quality.
“Each successive generation of machines shows higher performance and more integration to a digital workflow. Now we are starting to see direct to object printing which–when fully implemented–will revolutionize the production process,” said Steve Knight, CEO of Digital Direct Technologies and co-founder of The IJC. “Thankfully it is not just labels and packaging that are fuelling the core technology. Inkjet has already proven itself in large scale industrial applications and is widely used in the production of ceramic tiles, textiles, display graphics, newspapers or transactional mailing.”
The Inkjet Conference intends to focus on all aspects of Inkjet Engineering and Inkjet Chemistry. Invited speakers will present the progress in printheads, inks, software, electronics, chemistry and integration knowhow, which continue to drive trends and ultimately leading to a digital production process that will challenge the conventional product marketing.
“As technology enables a new print process, we see different challenges face the printer,” said Knight. “The business of tomorrow will not look like the business of today. The business of tomorrow will be more IT-centric with database management and workflow automation at its core and with inkjet printing being part of an automated manufacturing process. For those willing to take advantage of the opportunities offered by inkjet, there is a bright future.”
For more information, visit www.theijc.com.


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Small businesses being “forced out” of Spitalfields
Independent businesses warn they are being “strangled” and forced out of east London’s most vibrant shopping area because rents have doubled in recent months.
This year has seen an exodus of small businesses from Spitalfields and Bethnal Green and some shop owners are now accusing “insanely greedy” landlords of risking the future of the area.
Music store the Duke of Uke – London’s only dedicated ukulele shop – is the latest to buckle under the pressure after its landlord increased rent from �12,500 a year in 2006 to �20,000.
It is closing on July 19.
The shop’s founder Matthew Reynolds said: “There are some insanely greedy landlords out there. It’s all these independent shops who have contributed to the atmosphere of the area and made it into a place where people want to come.
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“We are now being strangled. I don’t make a huge profit. The shop has always been about providing a good service.”
Another fashion shop in Cheshire Street has just had its yearly rent raised from �16,000 to �39,000.
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Katy Hackney, whose co-run crafts shops Shelf left Cheshire Street in March, agreed the area is changing, and said: “I think rents have got out of hand.”
Independent shops owners are so concerned about the new financial pressures they are rallying together to lobby the government and local powers to place more restrictions on the commercial rental market.
Community group Shoreditch Citizens has been spoken to many businesses in the area and said shops are “very concerned”.
Krissie Nicolson, community organiser, said: “Businesses which have been there for years are being kicked out by large corporations prepared to pay landlords extortionate rents.”
The group has set up Friends of Shoreditch Citizens to raise awareness about the pressures.
But one commercial property owner said landlords are only responding to the market.
Pearl and Coutts has let business units in Spitalfields for around 25 years and owns many properties.
Richard Doffman, from the commercial properties department, said: “Rents have gone up but they haven’t doubled. It’s not true that landlords are forcing rents up – it’s the market that does that as it’s what people are prepared to pay. The demand is still strong from independents.”
Meanwhile the Duke of Uke has set up a campaign including a fundraising gig and t-shirt sale to raise cash for the store to relocate to another part of the East End.


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Arizona residents may remember the settlement money banks paid out for errors in the foreclosure process. Unfortunately, the same inaccuracy and flawed documentation seems to be plaguing the credit card debt collection process. With more people falling behind on their credit card payments, borrowers are behind by $18.7 million--roughly three percent of total credit card debt.
Lenders are now turning to courts to collect debt, and they may not always follow the proper legal procedure. They sometimes add erroneous fees or go after people who have paid off their debt. Since credit card debt can contribute to bankruptcy filings, these inaccurate documents may cause people to consider filing for personal bankruptcy to wipe out their debt.
Some cases depend on mass produced documents, and lenders are unable to produce documents that prove borrowers ever borrowed any money, such as the original contract or any payment history. For these reasons, credit card companies are under fire. Some judges are seeing more of these problems in lawsuits.
Unfortunately, these problems may even go undetected at times, since borrowers often do not go to court to defend their rights-in their absence, default judgments are given to lenders. With a default judgment in hand, creditors can freeze bank accounts and garnish wages. Even if judges suspect flaws, they cannot question banks unless a consumer challenges the lawsuit.
Arizona residents facing piling credit card debt should comb their bills and be aware of their rights, to ensure they are not facing creditor harassment without reason. Where they have fallen behind on their payments and are facing wage garnishment and various other forms of creditor harassment, they should not hesitate to consider all available options, including filing for bankruptcy. Chapter 7 or 13 bankruptcy can to put an end to debt collection procedures and make a fresh financial start.
Source: The New York Times, "Problems Riddle Moves to Collect Credit Card Debt," Jessica Silver-Greenberg, Aug. 12, 2012


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Innovation in energy technology is taking place rapidly. Five technologies you may not have heard of could be ready to change the energy landscape by 2020.
Recent breakthroughs in natural-gas extraction highlight the speed with which game-changing technologies can transform the natural-resource landscape. Just over the horizon are others—such as electric vehicles, advanced internal-combustion engines, solar photovoltaics, and LED lighting—that are benefiting from the convergence of software, consumer electronics, and traditional industrial processes. Each has the potential to grow by a factor of ten in the next decade.
Placing rapidly evolving technologies such as these on a resource cost curve, however, is difficult: their impact could be very big or very small. And that’s even more the case for technologies that require significant scientific and engineering innovations to reach commercial scale at viable cost. This article describes five technologies that could start arriving in earnest by 2020 or so: grid-scale storage, digital-power conversion, compressorless air conditioning and electrochromic windows, clean coal, and electrofuels and new biofuels.
Data d’elaboració: 17/01/2012
Font: McKinsey quartely, gener 2012
Fotografia de BASF-The Chemical Company


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Tier III fuel standards. In March, the EPA proposed new fuel standards that require refiners to remove trace amounts of sulfur from gasoline. In 2004, the industry already removed 90 percent of sulfur in gasoline. Tier III standards necessitating further sulfur removal will impose the same cost as the 2004 sulfur reduction, with little, if any, additional benefit. In fact, the Tier III rule will likely increase net greenhouse gas emissions, as refiners will be forced to consume more energy to comply with this unnecessary and complicated rule. Such a result puts fuel manufacturers in conflict with the EPA’s greenhouse gas regulations. The impact of these standards will certainly be felt by consumers, as well: Petroleum prices will jump by as much as 9 cents per gallon.
Beyond the sheer cost and complexity of these regulations, what is perhaps most frustrating is the EPA’s ignorance of the huge strides the energy and manufacturing sectors have made in reducing emissions. Refineries have reduced emissions by 13.5 percent since 2006. During the same period, the electric power industry’s emissions have declined by 10 percent, and across the entire industrial sector, emissions have declined 6 percent since 2005.
This progress comes from technological innovation that increases efficiency, but it’s also the result of a concerted effort by industry to invest in efficiency. The refinery sector alone has spent $132 billion since 1990 to improve its environmental performance.
The EPA’s power grab will have terrible consequences for America’s economic bright spot. Should the regulatory state continue to run amok, our energy and manufacturing booms will subside, and the United States will have to once again look abroad for its resources, rather than producing them domestically and selling the surplus to the rest of the world.
Charles Drevna is president of the American Fuel and Petrochemical Manufacturers.


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We’ve heard a flurry of rumors and reports that an Apple TV model is being prepped that will be beyond anything customers have seen before thanks to the rumored A12X Bionic running inside it. Keep in mind that this is the same chipset running in the 2018 iPad Pro and it’s not much different than the A12Z Bionic running in the 2020 iPad Pro (the only difference being that one extra GPU core enabled).
The same A12Z Bionic was also present in the Mac mini intended for developers to test out their apps. However, that’s not the only machine that was sent out to developers, because a tipster claims that an Apple TV potentially being able to deliver simulated A14X Bionic performance was also sent out to developers.
Tipster States That the New Apple TV Was Sent out to Apple Arcade Developers
We’ve heard that the 2020 Apple TV should be available in two storage configurations and that it was slated to arrive in September. Well, September 2020 has concluded and there’s no sign of an updated Apple TV, but Twitter user Fudge wants readers to believe that the new hardware will be rocking immense firepower. According to a previous rumor, the new Apple TV should be able to deliver improved performance thanks to a superior cooling solution, which should help in increased sustained clock speeds.
However, if Fudge is talking about an ‘A14X-Performance-Simulating’ Apple TV being sent out to developers, it can mean one of two things. Either the new hardware can reach clock speeds to a stage where it can deliver similar performance to an A14X Bionic, or Apple is working on a new chipset for the Apple TV.
People have heard of the A12X powered Mac Mini, but I wonder if they've heard of the "A14X-Performance-Simulating" AppleTV sent out to Apple Arcade developers some time ago?
— Fudge (@choco_bit) October 2, 2020
In any case, we’ll know what the iPhone maker is planning in the coming weeks, as it’s rumored that there will be two more events hosted by the company before 2020 draws to a close. Just to remind you, mass production of the A14X Bionic reportedly commenced days ago, suggesting that newer and more powerful hardware could be unveiled soon.
As for the predicted A14X Bionic performance, an analysis based on incremental improvements shows that it’s on par with a Core i9-9980H, so we’re guessing what kind of strides a higher clocked A12X Bionic would be able to obtain while running in the Apple TV? Sounds like an exciting couple of weeks that we’ll be looking forward to. However, it’s important that you treat this tweet with a pinch of salt for now and prep yourself for future updates. There’s lots more to come, so stay tuned.
News Source: Fudge


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HONG KONG: Yue Yuen H1 profit up 15% despite EU shoe duties
The world's largest branded athletic and casual footwear maker, Yue Yuen Industrial Holdings Ltd, on Monday (19 June) posted a 15.1% rise in fiscal first-half net profit, despite rising production costs and an ongoing trade dispute with the EU.
Yue Yuen, a unit of Taiwan's Pou Chen Corp, said net profit was US$168.25m in the six months ending 31 March, up from US$146.23m in the same period the previous year.
The company, which makes athletics shoes for brands including Nike and Adidas at factories in China, Vietnam and Indonesia, reported a 16.2% rise in revenue to US$1.72bn from US$1.48bn.
Sales were helped by its core footwear unit and strong growth in the Greater China wholesale and retail business.
Sales of athletic shoes accounted for 59.1% of the total, compared to 62.2% last year. The decline in contribution from the core manufacturing operation was mainly due to accelerating sales from wholesale and retail operations, which accounted for 8% of total sales, up from 4.5% last year.
Turnover from wholesale and retail operations rose by 110.7% to US$138.0m. The company began its franchise operations in China in 2005, and at the end of March 2006 had more than 600 self-run and 200 franchised shops/counters in the country. It also had about 1,800 distributors for the three licensee brands - Converse, Hush Puppies and Wolverine - in the greater China region.
Yue Tuen said it produced a total of 96.6m pairs of shoes in the six month period, an increase of 6.9% over last year.
By the end of March 2006, the company was operating about 359 production lines, an addition of 17 lines over the last six months.
However, the company described the operating environment as "volatile" due to soaring fuel costs and increasing labour expenses. The firm relies on oil and petrochemical derivatives to make soles and linings. As a result, the Group's gross profit margin fell year-on-year by 0.8 percentage points to 23.4% during the period.
It also has to contend with anti-dumping duties imposed by the EU on Chinese leather shoes, starting from 4% in April and rising to 19.4%.
Looking forward, Yue Yuen says is intends to expand its production capacity to meet customer demand. But it cautions that mounting pressure from rising material costs and labor expenses is still expected.
"The Group will continue to quest for improvement in production efficiency and flexibility to mitigate the impact from rising production costs and the trade dispute," said Yue Yuen chairman Mr Tsai Chi Neng.
The company declared a first-half dividend of HK$0.29, an increase of 7.4% from HK$0.27 per share last year.
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Specializing in Collision Repair • Loaner Cars Available
We do our own Glass In-House • Fast Windshield Repair or Replace
• BASF Paint • 100% Warranty •
About Poynette Auto Body, LLC
To get your life back to normal after a collision experience as quickly and easily as possible by working with your insurance company and providing professional, quality work on your vehicle.
Poynette Auto Body has come a long way since Luke Walz, a “young and stupid” new graduate of Madison Area Technical College, bought the business with his wife, Jenny.
Now, 18 years later, the business has begun a new journey as it settles into its new location up the hill at 705 E North St. in Poynette.
Poynette Auto Body has long been a mainstay of the community. In 1999, Luke said he quit his technician job in Madison “cold turkey” after six months and moved to Poynette because he learned the Auto Body’s former owner was looking to sell.
The Walzes bought the shop in the spring of 1999, close to their one-year marriage anniversary. Three months later, their daughter, Grace, was born. And from there, the family and business continued to grow – they have five children and the shop has seven employees.
“They haven’t kicked us out of town yet, so we’re still here,” Walz said.
Until now, the shop operated out of a nearby building, less than a half mile away on North Street. But Walz said Poynette Auto Body had exceeded the space.
“It was really difficult because as a growing business we have a growing customer base,” Walz said. “…And we want to make sure everyone is taken care of in a timely manner. So when you’re scheduling three, four, five weeks out … you’re doing them a disservice.”
Luke and Jenny searched for years for a new location, and when a machine shop near the fire station went up for sale, they pounced.
Luke designed the building with an architect and engineer – a necessity because of the strict codes for auto shops. The plans will transform the boxy warehouse, turning it into an inviting building with a frame made of glass, brickwork and steel frames.
“My inspiration for my design was actually visiting the Union Station in St. Louis, Missouri,” Walz said. “I liked how the steel architecture was it made it look industrial … but on the other hand its very welcoming too.”
The shop’s exterior is a work in progress, but the inside is up and running, with room to grow. While they remodel the building, Walz said they’re using a third of the space – and that area is larger than the entirety of their old building.
In the old location, Walz said they had brought the technology up to date, using new welders and bodywork technologies. But with the new space comes more capabilities. For instance, Poynette Auto Body has a new baking booth that dries paint jobs in 20 minutes.
With the new tools, the shop can go through training to become Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) certified — meaning car manufacturers designate Poynette Auto Body to work on vehicles, as a dealership would.
And with all these new developments, Walz is excited about the future.
“I just know,” he said, “we are now ready for whatever’s coming our way.”


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Why is Australia's inflation rate so stunningly low?
Australia’s inflation rate is stunningly low. At just 1.0 per cent in annual terms, it is well below the bottom of the RBA target band of 2 to 3 per cent and it is low for reasons that are not all that favourable. In simple terms, the economy is too weak and the unemployment rate is too high. There is a simple and well established link between the strength of an economy and the rate of inflation. It suggests that when an economy is strong with people spending at a rapid pace, businesses ramping up their investment and the unemployment rate falling, inflation is high or rising. It is high because in these sorts of strong and optimistic economic times, businesses feel that they can edge up their selling prices without driving away customers. This is, by definition, inflation. The optimistic customers are willing to pay the higher prices because their financial circumstances are favourable. Click here for the rest of the article: (VIEW LINK)
Stephen Koukoulas has a rare and specialised professional experience over more than 25 years as an economist in government, as Global Head of economic and market research, a Chief Economist for two major banks and as economic advisor to the Prime...


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Croatia awarded for excellence and creativity in New York
- by croatiaweek
- in News
The Croatian Tourist Board (HTZ) has presented the Croatian tourist offer at the New York Travel Adventure Show, which was held in New York on January 28 and 29.
Confirmation of the successful presentation of Croatia came during the last day of the fair, when HTZ was presented with a special award from the organizers for excellence in performance and presentation for the most creative pavilion.
“Congratulations to Leila Krešić Jurić, director of the HTZ Representative Office in New York, who organized the presentation of Croatia at this fair. I also send my congratulations and thanks to all the Croatian co-exhibitors, who also made their exceptional contribution to the quality performance of Croatia and thus made our joint pavilion and exhibition space the most creative, but also the most active place at the fair,” said Kristjan Staničić, director of HTZ.
HTZ was awarded this award in the category of international countries, which makes this success even greater, and a special award was presented to director Staničić by John V. Golicz, director of the New York Travel Adventure Show.


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The funding will be used by Iron Ox to expand its presence outside of California, offering more fresh, clean and healthy food to consumers
Iron Ox, a developer of hybrid robotic greenhouses, has secured $20m in Series B funding to support its mission to produce fresh food.
Simultaneously, Iron Ox has also announced the opening of its first farm in Gilroy, California. The new farm is expected to supply fresh produce across the state to select restaurants and retailers such as Bianchinis and Whole Foods.
The firm plans to expand across the nation next year, bringing more fresh, clean and healthy food to consumers outside of California.
The $20m funding round was led by a collection of Family Offices and Pathbreaker Ventures, who had also led the pre-seed funding in the firm four years ago.
Other investors who participated in the round included Crosslink Capital, Amplify Partners, ENIAC Ventures, R7 Partners, Tuesday Ventures, At One Ventures and Y Combinator.
Iron Ox is supported by plant scientists, engineers, greenhouse operators
Iron Ox has developed hybrid robotic greenhouses to support a wide range of freshly grown vegetables. Using energy-efficient and flexible production techniques, the firm pushed traditional farm automation and optimisation to provide its customers with a one-stop-shop for fresh produce.
Iron Ox is supported by a team of plant scientists, engineers, greenhouse operators and roboticists who want to address the issue of sustainable food production.
Iron Ox CEO and co-founder Brandon Alexander said: “We have made it our mission to address food security by developing autonomous greenhouses that grow a variety of local and consistently delicious food for everyone.
“Today, we’re thrilled to announce the successful operation of our Gilroy farm as well as our consumer brand, and our plans to complete additional sunlight-enabled, out-of-state facilities in 2021.
“As our growing network expands, so too will our partnerships and distribution channels, which will enable us to delight even more customers.”
Pathbreaker Ventures founder and managing partner Ryan Gembala said: “Companies like Iron Ox show us what’s possible when a group of incredibly talented, cross-industry professionals are assembled to tackle a pressing global problem.
“Robotics and artificial intelligence can provide solutions to lower the cost of fresh, local produce while increasing its quality, cleanliness and availability to more communities. We’re excited to be part of Iron Ox’s journey in the years to come.”


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Mobile payment is the next big thing. Almost any Android, NFC enabled, smartphone has the capability to use Google’s Android Pay.
Use of smartphone payment systems in Australia are growing – especially in a mobile first world.
According to the latest research from Kaspersky Lab and B2B International – 65% of Internet users are worried about online financial fraud, yet 11% of consumers use no security solution at all to protect themselves.
My 50Mbps connection is barely delivering 1Mbps. Bragging about handling a 70% increase in traffic does not equate to getting[…]
Another PR stunt from one of our Telcos? Why am I underwhelmed by their generosity?
The "Bully Boys" are still hard at it I see.
I find it incredible. VOIP is expected as an extra charge on top after cutting phone service. It should be[…]
TelSoc passed this resolution yesterday BTW…Telsoc calls upon the National COVID-19 Coordination Commission (NCCC):To include in its considerations the inequity[…]


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Europe's economy as a whole and individual European economies have been sort of not good since the global financial crisis.
So we decided to take a deeper look at how Europeans feel about this.
Using data from the fall 2015 Eurobarometer report, for which fieldwork was conducted in November, we put together a chart showing Europeans' perceptions of the EU economy as a whole compared with those of their own countries' economies.
Respondents from major developed-market economies, including Germany, the UK, and the Netherlands, were more likely to say their national economy was "good." By comparison, respondents from emerging-market European countries like Croatia, Romania, and Lithuania were less likely to say their national economy was good.
But things were a bit different for respondents' thoughts on the European Union economy. Those in emerging-market economies were more likely to say the EU economy was "good," while respondents from developed-market countries generally gave less positive assessments of the EU compared with their own economies.
This split is particularly interesting with respect to labor markets. Several emerging European countries that have more positive views of the EU overall also have insanely high unemployment rates (and even higher youth unemployment rates — at 29.7% in Bulgaria and a whopping 49.5% in Croatia). Young people in these countries tend to leave to find better opportunities in other parts of the EU (including the UK).
On the flip side, countries like Germany and the UK, which were less likely to give a more positive of assessment of the EU compared with their own countries, have much lower unemployment rates (and youth unemployment rates) and are often the dream destination point for unemployed people from other nations.
We should note, however, that this is just one of the many economic problems in the European Union and certainly not the sole driver of any of these sentiments.
And some folks were happy with neither. Respondents from Greece, France, Spain, Portugal, and Italy were not likely to give positive reviews of their own economies or the EU economy as a whole. (In terms of labor markets, it's notable that all of these countries have relatively high unemployment and have even higher youth unemployment.)
We arranged the countries in terms of percent of respondents saying their own national economy was good minus the percent of respondents saying the EU economy was good — from greatest to least. Check out the full chart below.


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Senior makes ports more efficient with its autonomous vehicles
Senior, a Chinese autonomous vehicle company, has recently announced the completion of a strategic funding round led by NWS Holdings. The injection of funds is set to empower Senior to ramp up its R&D efforts, widen its market reach, and enhance its overall financial stability. The company previously raised over RMB 100 million in a Series A+ funding round completed at the end of 2022, indicating strong investor interest in the company’s solutions.
Founded in April 2020, Senior specializes in port-based logistics, and aims to revolutionize the sector using its autonomous driving technology. The company’s two main products are autonomous container trucks and intelligent flatbed shipping vehicles.
Having added 122 units of its production-ready smart heavy trucks to its fleet in July earlier this year, Senior currently operates over 200 vehicles that it has deployed across seven harbors, three bulk cargo logistics centers, and two logistics parks. These deployments represent the strength of partnerships forged by Senior with more than 100 industry stakeholders, forming a solid foundation for its future endeavors.
According to Equal Ocean, port terminals in China remain reliant on human drivers to operate container trucks despite recent advancements in autonomous driving technology, with a penetration rate of less than 2%. Requirements for truck drivers are also exceptionally high, resulting in a near doubling of salaries and a shortage of manpower. The cost of employing truck drivers account for more than 50% of the total operating costs incurred by domestic ports.
He Bei, founder and CEO of Senior, outlined that the logistics sector serves diverse scenarios ranging from river ports to seaports, land ports, railways, airports, logistics parks, and more. Moreover, it encompasses heavy-duty logistics within locations, enclosed or semi-enclosed areas, as well as short-haul transportations between different locations, all of which present unique challenges and opportunities for self-driving vehicles to be implemented.
Senior operates with two concurrent business models: the first is an operational service model where the company leases its vehicles to logistics facilities such as ports, charging transportation fees that are lower than the average rate currently charged by traditional truck freight companies. The second involves the assembly and sale of its vehicles, subsequently charging for technical services and subscription fees based on operational mileage.
Beyond financial support, NWS Holdings will also collaborate with Senior to unlock new horizons for global market penetration. By leveraging its technological capabilities and NWS Holdings’ resources in the Greater Bay Area and Southeast Asia, Senior plans to scale up the development of its products and services as well as enter new markets.
This article was adapted based on an article originally written by Anqi and published on 36Kr. KrASIA is authorized to translate, adapt, and publish its contents.


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|Â No headway in production of â€˜technical textilesâ€™|
|By Shahzad Anwar
KARACHI: Pakistan still lags behind in technical textile products as neither the government nor the textile industry has made any serious efforts towards synchronizing textile products with the emerging needs of the world market by developing higher value-added products.
Although the textile sector is the backbone of Pakistanâ€™s economy, the government as well as the textile industry have kept their focus on conventional textiles, ignoring technical textiles and knowledge-based products.
Technical textile products are those required for special purposes such as fire fighting and protective gear, industry, aerospace, military, marine, medical, construction, geo-textile, transportation and other high-tech applications.
As competition continues to increase in the general and consumer textiles industry, even companies based in countries previously seen as low-cost producers are facing the question of how to survive in a truly global market.
Presently, Japan, Germany, the US, the UK, France and China have monopoly over knowledge-based textile sector, producing technical textiles. These countries except China have abandoned producing conventional textile products.
Traditional applications for technical textiles include tyre cords and ropes, but producers are increasingly manufacturing fibres used in high-tech products for a wider range of end uses. Industries, which are now involved in technical textiles, include agriculture, automotive, building and construction, medical/hygiene, packaging, protective clothing, sportswear and transport.
â€œBy realising its importance, China has launched a comprehensive programme called â€˜Double Incentive Scheme for Technical Textilesâ€™, whereas India has also announced a bundle of relief package for the promotion of technical textiles in the country,â€ a Karachi-based textile expert told The News.
Contrary to this, only one textile mill deals in production of higher value-added products in Pakistan and in the absence of incentives from the government besides unfavourable conditions it is passing through a very difficult phase.
Pakistan also spends a huge amount of foreign exchange every year on import of higher value-added textile products in order to meet its local demand including aerospace, military, marine, medical, etc.
THE NEWS – International,
Thursday, January 11, 2007,Â Zill-HajÂ 20,Â 1427Â A.H.


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Many parents were shocked to learn that a Missouri jury recently ordered Johnson & Johnson to pay $72 million to the family of Jacqueline Fox, whose death by ovarian cancer was linked to her daily use of talcum-based Johnson’s Baby Powder and Shower to Shower products. You know the product—that sweet baby scent, the soft puff of powder.
For decades, Fox used these talc powders on her most sensitive body parts. And for decades, according to the case, Johnson & Johnson knew about the cancer link but failed to warn consumers.
This might seem shocking. Millions of us have put these products on our bodies or our babies’ butts with no idea of the possible health risk.
But it’s actually not surprising. The fact is, many personal care products on store shelves—products we lather in our hair, rub on our skin, and put in our babies’ bathtubs—contain chemicals with known links to health problems, with no warnings at all to consumers.
Many of us assume the companies are using the latest science as a guide to choose the safest ingredients, especially for products used on babies.
We should be able to expect that.
Unfortunately, nobody is watching the store. Companies in the U.S. are allowed to put ingredients into personal care products with no required safety testing, and without disclosing all the ingredients.
For over a decade, I worked with the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics, the coalition of health and environmental groups at the forefront of researching the ingredients used in personal care products. We sent hundreds of products to labs to find out if they contained compounds not listed on labels; many did.
We discovered two chemicals that have been linked to cancer, formaldehyde and 1,4 dioxane, in dozens of leading baby shampoos and bath products. People were shocked. Two years later, after we reported that Johnson & Johnson was selling formaldehyde-free versions of their baby products in Europe and other countries, the company announced they would reformulate their products worldwide to remove the ingredient and others of concern.
It shouldn’t have to work this way. Companies should be using the safest possible ingredients in the first place, and the government should be holding them accountable to that.
In Europe, you won’t find talc in many baby powders, the skin-lightening ingredient hydroquinone in skin creams, lead acetate in hair dye, or many other toxic substances because they are banned from personal care products. Here, you can find those substances in personal care products, with no health warnings.
In the U.S., the Cosmetics Ingredient Review Panel, a non-governmental body that shares offices with the cosmetics industry trade association, is in charge of determining whether ingredients are safe. Even if they do recommend against using one, companies are free to ignore their recommendations.
Congress is finally considering updating the antiquated 1938 cosmetics laws, which regulates cosmetics sold in the U.S. In April of last year, Senators Senators Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., and Susan Collins, R-Maine introduced a bipartisan bill, the Personal Care Products Safety Act of 2015, that would give the FDA more authority to regulate the cosmetics industry.
But the bill must be strengthened; consumer groups are calling for tougher safety standards and better disclosure provisions so companies can’t hide toxic ingredients from consumers. The cosmetics and chemical industries are fighting hard to make sure that not much changes.
The most important thing I’ve learned from my years of advocating for safer beauty products: When we stand together, we can change the market. We can change products and companies, too.
We also need to change the laws so that consumers and companies have access to the best information to make the most informed choices about the safest products. Together, we can give the beauty industry a makeover.
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