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Strong pound keeps prices in check
The soaring oil price continued to feed through to factory gate prices in January, but the strong pound and fierce competition helped to keep the increase in check.
Government figures out today showed that producers' output prices ticked up by 0.2% last month, nudging the annual growth rate up from 2.3% to 2.5%. On the input side, prices fell by 1%, with the annual increase dropping to 10.4%. The pound was steady at around $1.5890.
Last week saw the oil price reach nine-year highs above $28 a barrel amid reports that inventories were being drained at an accelerating rate. This will lead to fears that input prices will resume their recent climb in the months ahead.
However, economists remain confident that higher production costs will not be passed on to High Street prices. Economists at HSBC Markets said: 'Leaving oil aside, there are still no signs of general inflation pressures emerging at the factory gate despite the recent recovery in industry.'
This view was backed by the latest survey of small and medium-sized manufacturing firms from the Confederation of British Industry which showed prices charged by firms continued to fall over the past four months.
The benign inflation environment was also highlighted by a report from the Centre for Economics and Business Research which predicted that underlying inflation will end the year at 1.7% - well below its 2.5% target.
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At CES 2015, CEO Brian Krzanich shows Intel's RealSense technology, which lets users control a screen by waving and pinching their hands.
No time to format a new resume? Check out this tool from LinkedIn that can save time and hassle by creating a resume with your profile information.
Facebook is rolling out new photo-editing tools for iOS users to get more creative with photos.
After a brief course correction, New Horizons is on track to get up close with Pluto on July 14. Here are two awesome ways to catch Pluto fever.
Google introduces several new features in its Photo app, including pinch and drag gestures, search capabilities and sharing tools.
Shame about the supply pinch, though. Without that, sales might actually soar as high as 50 million, says a Morgan Stanley analyst.
Apple will likely announce iOS 9 at its World Wide Developer Conference on Monday, and I have a few ideas for features that should be included.
Forget swiping across a notebook trackpad-- the SmartBar lets you highlight text, zoom in on your screen and power through games by supercharging the spacebar.
Finally, the photos app you've been waiting for.
Learn how to make cool miniature effect photos using nothing more than your smartphone.

domain: news


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The Sausages were out in force last night attending a 20th anniversary MGS party.
Here are a few highlights:
- Series producer Hideo Kojima demonstrated MGS4 running on the PS3
- Metal Gear Online, a 16-player multiplayer PS3 game was revealed
- A Metal Gear cell phone and 3D mobile game were shown
- A new Metal Gear digital comic based on MGS2 is headed to PSP
- A special Metal Gear anniversary collection pack was revealed


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RESIDENTS are being urged to manage their waste over Christmas by checking when their bins are due for collection and by keeping up good recycling habits.Bins will be emptied as normal on Christmas Eve (Mon, Dec 24) but there will be no collections on Christmas Day (Tues, Dec 25) or Boxing Day (Wed, Dec 26).
Residents due a green bin collection on Christmas Day are asked to put it out on Thurs, Dec 27. Black and blue bin collections will be on New Year’s Eve (Mon, Dec 31).
Those due a green bin collection on Boxing Day should put it out on Fri, Dec 28. Black or blue bins will be collected on Wed, Jan 2.
Normal collections will take place on Thurs, Dec 27, Fri, Dec 28, and Mon, Dec 31.
However, if you are due a green bin collection on New Year’s Day, it will take place on Thurs, Jan 3. Blue and Black bins will be collected on Fri, Jan 4.
Please note there will be no brown bin collections from Christmas Day until Mon, Jan 7 when the full programme of collections will resume.
Residents are being urged recycle as much waste as possible to help manage the extra waste created over Christmas.
Here are some tips to keep waste to a minimum over the holiday:
• Recycle real Christmas trees by leaving out with the brown bin for free collection
• Use the brown bins for food waste
• Use the blue bins for all the extra paper and card
• Use the black bin for all the extra glass, cans, foil and plastic bottles
• Leave additional cardboard/paper out with the blue bin on collection day. Please ensure loose paper is secured in a clear or labelled bag
• Please park considerately so we can get bin wagons down the street.
The household recycling centres at Bayley Street and Ash Road are open every day except Christmas Day and Boxing Day 8am to 6pm
For more information visit the website www.tameside.gov.uk/recycling or download a free app – search Apple Store or Google Play Store for Tameside Bins.


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Join tech giant Huawei at this year’s CSR Asia Summit
Huawei has confirmed Gold level sponsorship for the CSR Asia Summit 2019. This is the fifth consecutive year that Huawei has supported Asia’s signature sustainability event.
As a global leader in information and communications technology (ICT) solutions, Huawei is committed to sustainable business practices. With nearly 188,000 employees and operations spanning more than 170 countries and regions, Huawei sees sustainability as not only the right thing to do, but as a way of boosting efficiency and competitiveness, and creating business value.
This year, Huawei’s Vice President Procurement and Chief Sustainability Officer Supply Chain, Alan Aicken, will join our Leadership Panel to share experiences and insights from managing environmental and social impacts across a global value chain.
We will also hear from Richard Liu, Head of Sustainability, Huawei Consumers Business Group, who joins the session on Big Data, Technology and Sustainability in the Age of Digital Transformation on Day 2 of the Summit. He will share how Huawei is using artificial intelligence (AI) to help empower disabled children through two innovations: Track AI, a system that supports fast, accurate and automatic diagnosis of visual disorders in children and infants to facilitate timely intervention and prevent long term impairment; and STORYSIGN, a first-of-its-kind free application that translates selected children’s storybooks into sign language to help deaf children learn to read.
Join us in Bangkok next week to hear from Huawei and other leading sustainability practitioners and experts!


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Early Mobile ‘Wallet Wars’ Lessons Learned
Mobile wallets are still in the formative stage of their development but a few lessons already are emerging, according to certain payment industry players sharing their experiences this week at CARTES America in Las Vegas. Inventing new ways to pay using a smartphone is not enough to justify the effort to develop mobile wallets because “cards work just fine,” said Chris Cox, First Data Corp.’s vice president of product development, during the conference’s “Wallet War” track. Several dozen mobile wallets exist, but their goals are fuzzy, Cox suggested. Consumers want mobile wallets with extraordinary services that recognize them and reward their commerce, Cox said. The danger is merely emulating cards in virtual mobile wallets, and the stakes are high, he warned. “Half of consumers feel that if a [mobile wallet] technology isn’t easy to use the first time, they will stop using it.”
Mobile wallet pilots also are providing some valuable insight into what may appeal most to consumers and merchants. Consumers in the Isis mobile wallet pilot that launched last fall in Salt Lake City and Austin, Texas, are “tapping twice as much” to pay at merchants with appealing offers, said Tony Abruzzio, Isis business development executive. Vending machines and fast food are driving strong everyday usage among Isis customers for low-ticket purchases, while dry cleaners and—to his surprise—veterinarians also are among merchants generating healthy traffic from users, he said, based on data from Heartland Payment Systems, which works closely with Isis.
American Express Co. also has gathered some intelligence about how consumers want to use its Serve mobile payment platform, said Stefan Happ, senior vice president and general manager of online and mobile. “We thought we’d have tens of thousands of young people” flocking to use Serve as a convenient payment tool, but instead Serve took off fastest with social media gaming aficionados, he said. “The gaming phenomenon in terms of scale has surpassed our most optimistic expectations,” he added. Succeeding in the mobile payments arena will take time and while no one knows yet how it will all shake out, “the prize is so high” it will be worth the challenge and investment, Happ said. “The [widespread] adoption of mobile payments … is as inevitable as the success of the Internet was.”


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Welcome to the era of sharing: Uber, Airbnb, Rent the Runway… But can “borrowing” ever be luxurious? According to Nova Octo founder Silje Lübbe, it can. Her couture rental company offers one-of-a-kind pieces that perhaps wouldn’t have seen the light of day without her help, as she outfits New York’s elite for charity galas, fashion events, and red-carpet appearances. “Working in the industry, I would see these pieces go into stock rooms, or marked down 70-percent,” Lübbe notes. “And with the sustainability movement, many women won’t spend $8,000 on a dress to wear once, even if they have the money. So, I thought, let me create this archive of beautiful pieces.”
Drawing upon her connections with designers and luxury retailers culled over years in the industry working as a buyer, Lübbe has created such an archive, including pieces from Giambattista Valli, Oscar de la Renta, Elie Saab, Marchesa—you name it—in Nova Octo’s Tribeca showroom. But don’t expect to shop looks that just came off the runway; the product mix includes vintage and couture pieces that don’t put an emphasis on season. And if it is brand new, you won’t know it, as Lübbe will order gowns in a different color or slightly customized style than what you’ll find at retail, so customers never run the risk of showing up at an event in the exact same gown as someone else.
The idea behind Lübbe’s concept is that everyone wins: “My goal isn’t to compete with retail—they’re the ones keeping the brands alive,” she says, noting that even celebrity stylists can’t tell the seasons apart when they come into her boutique. Her hope is to never see a couture gown hit the sale rack. “I think eveningwear shouldn’t fit into the same cycle as ready-to-wear—so much work goes into these items,” she says.
Celebrating her grand opening this month, the reception to Nova Octo has been astounding. So far, Lübbe says two demographics have formed her client base. “I have the young, New York girl about town who’s coming in for a Balmain short dress to wear to an event or dinner. A lot are models,” she explains. “My second client is in her mid-30s—the gala attendee. She’s an executive who is definitely well-off, she knows the value of what a couture gown is and what she can rent it at.”
So far, many customers have lived in the Tribeca area and have discovered Nova Octo by chance just walking by, but Lübbe says the brand isn’t just appealing to downtown women; many items have shipped internationally. “More than anything, it’s a real chance to dress up,” she notes. “My client wears this quality in her day-to-day life, but she’s conscious at this moment about how she spends and waste. We want to get women in here with our professional stylists and feel amazing—feel like how a celebrity looks on the red carpet.”
She should know—so far, Nova Octo has dressed Josephine Skriver for the Cannes Film Festival, Mallory Edens for the ESPYs, and other celebrities including Nina Agdal, Melissa Joan Hart, and Jennifer Morrison.
Moving forward, Lübbe sees Nova Octo’s online presence and international business taking off, and is starting to dabble in accessories, but she’s taking her time growing the business. “We don’t want to rush. We take a lot of pride in the pieces we’re picking, not just because they’re popular in the moment,” she says. “It’s not going shopping—we’re going to dress you for an event.”


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Subscribers to the Wall Street Journal may have seen wine editor Lettie Teague’s article March 2nd which, among other things, highlighted consumer support for Free the Grapes! and our role in helping to support legal, regulated direct wine shipments.
Here's a link to the article: [Paywall] https://www.wsj.com/articles/why-is-it-so-hard-to-get-wines-out-of-state-3a2e6825
She mentioned that several states are about to consider new legislation, and we’ve devoted this newsletter to a timely update across the legislative landscape.
NEW JERSEY: No Action (Yet) on Capacity Cap Bills
As we enter the second year of NJ’s two-year legislative session, we anticipate committee action on HB2432 and S549 later in spring. These bills address the state’s current “capacity cap” statute by introducing a new license allowing wine companies producing more than 250k gallons per year to ship directly to consumers.
Complicating matters, Naked Wines has proposed similar legislation, but it would only apply to wineries without a NJ wholesaler – which means it would apply only to Naked Wines.
DELAWARE: 2022 Bill to be reintroduced in 2023
Back in 2022, the wine industry’s model direct-to-consumer (DTC) shipping bill, HB210, passed the House Committee on Economic Development, Banking/Insurance, and Commerce. Unfortunately, it did not move before the session adjourned June 30.
This year, the bill is being reintroduced with strong and very public support by its author, Representative Mike Smith. Free the Grapes! will keep our friends in DE informed when to write state legislators.
HAWAII: Two bills would add spirits and beer DTC language to the current winery DTC statute. Ideally, this language should be in its own statute or section from wine. The bills would also remove the winery shipping limit of six cases/person/year.
MINNESOTA: HB 417 is similar to a bill passed in the House last session and would increase the shipping limit from 2 to 12 cases/person/year and add in winery licensing and tax payment requirements common in other states.
MISSISSIPPI: HB 385, similar to the wine industry’s model DTC bill, was introduced in early January, amended, but ultimately did not make it out of committee prior to the January 30 deadline.
WASHINGTON: Two bills, H1016 and SB5007, would allow in-state and out-of-state retailers to ship directly to consumers.


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Egg prices surge after chicken imports stopEgg prices are on the rise again after the government halted chicken imports from the United States and Spain due to outbreaks of bird flu there, industry sources said Thursday.
In recent months, chicken and egg prices have surged to their highest levels in three decades as a result of mass culling following a nationwide outbreak of avian influenza late last year. More than 33 million chickens were slaughtered.
Prices fell briefly after chickens and eggs were imported from the United States and Spain, but they have begun moving up again. The retail price for a carton of 30 eggs rose to 7,696 won ($6.70) as of Wednesday, up from 7,311 won a month earlier and 5,350 won from a year earlier, according to the Korea Agro-Fisheries and Food Trade Corporation.
“Avian influenza has subsided recently, but the outbreak of bird flu in the United States and Spain has made it difficult for us to import chickens,” an official at the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs said. “Eggs are currently in short supply, and it will take considerable time for egg prices to stabilize.”
An industry source estimated it would take at least half a year.


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The Least Reliable Chevy Models
Some models just can't seem to get out of their own way. We've created a list of the least reliable Chevy models using data such as complaint volume, average cost of repairs, age of the car when it breaks down, and recall frequency. Here's the worst of the bunch.
What Owners Complain About the Most
Sometimes it's easiest to just tally up all the complaints and see where the biggest stacks are.
- 2005 Trailblazer fuel gauge not working 225 (100%)
- 2002 Impala passlock problem, won't start and security light is on 224 (100%)
- 2004 Impala speedometer gone haywire 187 (83%)
- 2007 Suburban excessive oil consumption 186 (83%)
- 2002 Impala intake manifold gasket failure, leaking coolant 142 (63%)
- 2005 Cobalt power steering failure 128 (57%)
- 2003 Impala security light comes on, won't start 125 (56%)
Recent Chevy News
TBD … continue reading
General Motors is facing a second legal challenge for problems related to warped and cracked wheels in the C7 Corvette.
As reported by the Detroit Free Press, the consolidated class-action lawsuit was brought by eightteen 2015-2019 C7 Corve … continue reading
GM used heat shields that don't curve under the starters in the 5th and 6th generation Camaro, according to a new lawsuit. That leaves them exposed to heat and makes them completely unreliable.
The plaintiff says the problem is particularly … continue reading
The frunk is back in the news.
Just a couple weeks after being recalled for failing to meet latch safety standards the front trunk is being recalled again for flying open while the vehicle is in motion.
So it stays closed when you need it t … continue reading
The 8th generation Corvette has a front trunk, sometimes referred to as a frunk. Despite the name change the frunk is still required to have an internal release mechanism in case your kid climbs into the frunk and gets themselves locked ins … continue reading
By the Numbers
Have a complaint about your vehicle?
The best way to find out what's wrong with a vehicle is from the people who drive them. Not only do owner complaints help us rank vehicles by reliability, but they're often used to spark class-action lawsuits and warranty extensions. Plus, they're a great way to vent.


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The UK's house prices have risen by 1.1 per cent in October, the highest month-on-month rise rise for any October since 2014. But that isn't translating into sales, according to a closely-watched index.
The Rightmove house price index, which measures the prices of homes put on the market, said the average property price has risen £3,432 to £313,435 since September and up 1.4 per cent since last October.
And while 104,000 new homes have been put on the market since last month, a three per cent rise, the number of sales agreed is down 5.9 per cent since last year.
The average time between putting a home on the market and finding a buyer is now 63 days, although those selling larger homes are having more trouble: properties with five bedrooms or more take an average of 76 days to sell, while in the capital that figure is 86 days.
In fact, the number of sales agreed in London's top-end market is down nine per cent, compared with a three per cent drop in the North of England.
“While affordability is stretched, it is still countered by the motivation to own a home rather than rent, or the need for extra space to house a growing family," said Miles Shipside, a director at Rightmove.
"With buyers’ average wage rises often falling behind retail price inflation, and with a rise in interest rates being more heavily trailed by the Bank of England, sellers in these most popular sectors should still be wary of over-pricing. Buyers will be looking for the best buy on the market in their desired area either in terms of price or quality of finish."
Highest on record
Last week figures by Halifax suggested house prices had hit their highest on record in September, despite relatively weak growth of 1.4 per cent.
House price growth has been hit by changes to stamp duty rules on buy to let homes and political uncertainty, although in some regions there is growing speculation they have also hit a so-called affordability ceiling, with buyers unwilling to go any higher.
There are also concerns an interest rate hike, which the Bank of England's monetary policy committee is expected to announce in November, rise may dampen enthusiasm.


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Cao Thị Thanh Van, deputy director of the HCM City Investment and Trade Promotion Centre (ITPC), said the disruption in global supply chains was both a challenge and an opportunity for Vietnamese businesses to make inroads into the global supply of Halal products.
Some businesses have been actively seeking new markets, including the Muslim market. “However, the market has specific standards that Vietnamese firms must study and follow,” she said.
The Muslim community represents a major potential market for Vietnamese exports, although many Islamic countries have imposed specific standards that local businesses must strictly follow in order to gain entry into the market, according to Van.
Ramlan Osman, sales director at the Halal Centre in Vietnam, said more than 1.8 billion Muslims worldwide only consume Halal-certified products with annual consumption demand reaching $2.8 trillion.
Most of them live in Malaysia, Indonesia, Brunei, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates (UAE) and other countries in the Middle East.
Since only a few of these countries produce halal products, the market potential is huge.
Entering the markets would improve Vietnam’s ability to sell products and open up greater export opportunities for local firms.
Vietnam has great potential to develop a halal economy. With Vietnam’s GDP growth increasing on average of 6 to 7 per cent per year, Vietnam has a strong base for halal industry development.
Vietnam also has an advantage in raw materials for halal production such as coffee, rice, seafood, spices, beans and vegetables, among other items.
Businesses must first obtain Halal certification, which meets strict religious requirements and complies with food safety and hygiene standards imposed by Muslim countries, before products can be sold in the market.
However, the requirements and standards can vary among countries, so local firms should consult with their partners to fully grasp standards set by each particular market.
Of the 1.8 billion Muslims worldwide, one billion are from Asia.
Many countries are exploiting the Halal market. Among the seven countries with the highest exporting rates, only two are Muslim countries, Malaysia and the UAE.
Malaysia has developed its Halal Industry Master Plan 2.0, which aims to create Halal Malaysia, with a globalized culture and economy.
Meanwhile, the UAE plans to become an Islamic economic center, focusing on Islamic finance and Halal.
Demand for imported Halal products is valued at about $34 billion per year. Exports of halal products from Vietnam to these markets currently total about $10.5 billion.
The online event was organised by ITPC and Halal Vietnam Center


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World's Best Eco-Luxury
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Saint Lucia: A Dreamworld of Rainforests, Volcanoes, Waterfalls, and the Caribbean Coast
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On 4 March 2020, the European Commission launched a consultation for a carbon border adjustment mechanism (CBAM) with the publication of an inception impact assessment (IIA).The CBAM is part of a proposed suite of tools to support the long-term objectives of the European Green Deal. The CBAM could take various forms but would largely amount to an effective tax on carbon emissions associated with imported goods. When implemented, it could potentially change the pattern of trade flows as well as the geography and type of energy demanded across the world, creating risks for stranded assets but also new opportunities to deploy capital.
In this edition of CRA Insights: Energy, our London colleagues discuss their initial views on the potential impact of the CBAM. We first summarise the key points from the IIA. We then outline some potential design features and discuss their implications. We then discuss key questions for energy and manufacturing firms.
When Antitrust's Consumer Welfare Standard And ESG Collide
The consumer welfare standard has been a subject of intense interest and debate recently in the U.S., punctuated by the 19-hour debate session in Congress in...


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Robert Siegel speaks with local political leader Patricia Bynes of Ferguson, Mo., about the clashes between residents and police taking place there since the weekend. Unrest erupted after an unarmed black teenager was shot and killed by police recently in the St. Louis suburb.
The community of Ferguson, Mo., remains on edge after a police shooting left an unarmed black teenager dead over the weekend. Clashes have erupted between protesters and police, and an officer was involved in another shooting overnight.
After a long period of supporting Islamist militants like the Islamic State, Turkish towns along the Syrian border are now cracking down. Souad Mekhennet co-wrote a story in The Washington Post about the formerly friendly attitude and its reversal. She speaks with Robert Siegel.
The era of Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki appears to be coming to an end after eight turbulent years. Haider al-Abadi, the man set to replace him, is not a previously well-known figure. NPR's Alice Fordham has interviewed him, and she tells Melissa Block more about him.
The International Mathematical Union has announced the four winners of its prestigious Fields Medal. The group includes Maryam Mirzakhani, the first woman to win the prize in its long history.
The Ebola outbreak has taken a particularly high toll on health workers, with more than 100 cases of health workers infected with the disease. West Africans are now requesting access to experimental drugs that have been used on Western health workers.
You might have heard a lot recently about non-Asian people donning makeup or clothing to appear Asian. But why is it that we're seeing so much of this phenomenon, widely referred to as "yellowface"?
The man running third in the race to be Brazil's next president has died in a plane crash. Eduardo Campos' small plane crashed in bad weather south of Sao Paulo as it was preparing to land.
Paid paternity leave is a luxury in the U.S. Just 10 to 15 percent of employers offer it, even though an increasing number of fathers want, and expect, time off with a new child.
Flood warnings are still in effect for other parts of New England after an early-morning downpour jeopardized commuters in New York. One town has been hit with more than a foot of rain.
Even though they are bad for state budgets and aren't necessarily good bargains, Americans love sales-tax holidays. Retailers like them too, because the tax holidays motivate consumers.
“It can be a pretty significant increase in traffic in the store and sales,” says Jim Sluzewski, a spokesman for Macy’s.
So why are tax holidays so popular?
“There’s absolutely a psychological impact here that is bigger than the money,” says Craig Shearman, spokesman for the National Retail Federation.
He says consumers generally hold out for sales offering at least 25 percent off.
“If retailers were to offer 5 or 10 percent off, consumers would laugh at them,” says Shearman. “But when shoppers can save that same 5 or 10 percent by virtue of not paying tax, it goes way beyond the amount of money involved.”
While consumers save money at the cash register, it’s really the states that pay.
“The first time I heard about a state tax holiday, I laughed until I cried,” says Verenda Smith, deputy director at the Federation for Tax Administrators, an association of state tax agencies.
There are 27 tax holidays this year.
“They’re expensive. They tend to distort the economy a little bit. But people love ‘em,” says Smith.
If tax holidays disappeared, would retailers lose much business?
Joy Hyrons, who handles accounting for Miller’s School Supplies in central Florida, says not necessarily.
“Well, to be honest with you, it probably wouldn’t make a whole lot of difference because the people have to purchase these items anyway,” says Hyrons.
A geographical analysis of comments to the Federal Communications Commission shows wide disparities on the issue of an open Internet.


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Joel McHale Joins Q Mixers as Chief Happy Hour Officer
Q Mixers, America’s leading premium carbonated mixers company, today announced that actor, comedian, hair icon, and television host, Joel McHale, is joining the brand as the category’s first-ever Chief Happy Hour Officer (CHO). As CHO — and Q Mixers’ first celebrity partner — McHale’s official responsibilities will include showing how great Happy Hour can be when we make great drinks and laugh with friends and colleagues in person again.
“I founded Q Mixers with a simple purpose: to make superior mixers so that my favorite drinks could be even better. As we look ahead to the summer when people will start getting together again, Q Mixers will help bring the joy back to Happy Hour,” said Jordan Silbert, Founder & CEO of Q Mixers. “Our spectacular mixers will easily make everyone’s favorite drinks even better and Joel will make sure people remember how to do Happy Hour properly — starting with easy, great drinks but also focusing on important lessons such as wearing pants and telling new jokes that you haven’t been telling for the last year.”
Over the last year, Q Mixers (+70%*) and the mixer category (+24%*) have seen tremendous growth as people learned how to make cocktails at home and discovered the importance of premium mixers. With that, the brand has made 2021 a year to step things up with a complete rebrand across multiple consumer touchpoints and adding Joel McHale to its executive team.
As a self-avowed foodie and drinker, who already stocked Q Mixers at his home, joining Q Mixers was a no-brainer for Joel. “I had Q Mixers in my house even before we worked together — crappy mixers ruin a great drink. They have 11 flavors, so it’s incredibly easy to make any of your favorite drinks even better.”
Q Mixers’ new branding can now be found across all consumer touchpoints including packaging, the website, social channels and more. This refresh was inspired by a desire to make Q Mixers’ branding as terrific as the liquid inside our bottles and cans.


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The trucking industry is worth hundreds of billions of dollars per year. Uber is going after this market with Uber Freight, an online platform that matches truckers with...Technologyread more
Drone strikes attacked an oil processing facility at Abqaiq and the nearby Khurais oil field on Saturday.Marketsread more
Trump said oil would be released if needed to keep the market well supplied and he would expedite the approval of pipelines in Texas and other states.Marketsread more
Saudi Aramco is aiming to restore by Monday about a third of its crude output that was disrupted after drone attacks on two key oil facilities, The Wall Street Journal...Marketsread more
Apple's new iPhones can still send texts, download apps, and make video calls, but the company spends a lot of time and effort marketing its new phones as powerful photography...Technologyread more
Some U.S. manufacturers say tariffs, if targeted, will help address longstanding unfair trade practices like intellectual property theft.Traderead more
Supporters of a $15 minimum wage ballot initiative in Florida argue the state's inflation-tied pay hikes have not gone far enough.2020 Electionsread more
Saudi Arabia shut down half its oil production Saturday after drone strikes hit the world's largest oil processing facility in an attack claimed by Yemen's Houthi rebels.Politicsread more
Trusii's hydrogen water machines were supposed to help users with their health problems, but customers claim the company is involved in a giant scam.Technologyread more
The decoupling of the world's two weightiest economies seems as inescapable as its extent and global impact remains incalculable.Politicsread more
BlackBerry has reinvented itself to become a leader in securing mobile communications and in embedded communications. Next year it plans to roll out new products. CEO John...Evolveread more
Qualcomm has applied for licenses to continue selling its technology to Chinese tech giant Huawei, which has been placed on a U.S. entity list blocking it from doing business with American companies amid the U.S.-China trade war.
In an interview with CNBC at the IFA consumer electronics show in Berlin Friday, Qualcomm President Cristiano Amon said the company is "waiting for a response" from the U.S. Commerce Department for approval to continue selling key technology to Huawei.
The U.S. gave a temporary reprieve to Huawei in August, extending its ability to buy from American firms until mid-November. Huawei relies on U.S. companies for various components in its devices like smartphones and laptops.
Amon said he was "optimistic" short-term uncertainty over Huawei will be resolved as mobile operators around the world look to build out next-generation 5G networks.
"At the end of the day, in the middle of all of this, we see operators, whether they have Huawei or not have Huawei infrastructure, saying they're going to stand firm with their plans of launching 5G because that's a market need and we're moving forward one way or the other," he said.
5G is a wireless network that promises faster speeds and lower lag times between devices, potentially transforming industries like driverless cars. Amon said he expects 5G will reach 2.2 billion people next year as networks get deployed around the world.
"Unlike what we've seen to other generations of wireless transitions, 5G is happening around the globe at the same time," he said.
Qualcomm develops technology behind the 5G ecosystem, like chips in the new devices. Amon said Huawei, which unveiled its own new 5G chip for mobile devices Friday, is both a "competitor" and "partner" of Qualcomm.
"When we think about the future of our company, we see opportunities that 5G is going to go through now the automotive sector, the iOT, it's going to go to the connected home, so we see actually extensions to become even a broader ecosystem across both licensing as well as chipsets," he said.


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Good morning! Digital Media Weekender is a collection of our favorite digital media news of the week, delivered Saturday mornings exclusively to BI Intelligence members.
WIRELESS CARRIERS WANT A CUT OF MOBILE AD REVENUE
Wireless carriers in the US, Europe, South America, and Asia may start using a new tool called AdSight to identify and block any types of mobile ads that are delivered over their network unless advertisers are willing to share some of their profits, according to the Wall Street Journal. AdSight was developed by Shine, an Israel-based company that originally set out to build a real-time antivirus platform, but later re-purposed its technology to detect mobile ad traffic.
Opponents of the plan warn that AdSight is a clear violation of net neutrality regulations because it allows wireless carriers to intentionally manipulate data traveling across their networks. The carriers have an obvious incentive to use the technology — US mobile ad revenue is on pace to top $42 billion in 2018, up from $11.9 billion this year. Even just a small cut of this revenue would provide a big source of income for wireless carriers.
BI Intelligence spoke with Shine and mobile ad tech insiders this week and will have more on this story soon.
CBS AND HBO TARGET DIGITAL AUDIENCES, LAUNCH STAND-ALONE WEB SERVICES
CBS is the first of the big three broadcasters to offer a stand-alone online subscription service. The new digital desktop and mobile platform is called CBS All Access, and will allow subscribers to stream live and on demand original CBS content for $5.99 per month. Customers living in 14 of the largest US markets will be able to watch local stations as well, with more stations to join later.
This is the first time that a traditional network is trying to make money from direct-to-consumer digital subscriptions.
CBS launched CBS All Access a day after cable channel juggernaut HBO announced that it will release a stand-alone video on demand service next year.
HBO will not only exist as a stand-alone over-the-top (OTT) subscription service, but it's also possible that HBO's original content could be streamed through existing digital media platforms like Amazon and reports., Re/code
"There are 80 million homes that do not have HBO, and we will use all means at our disposal to go after them," the channel's CEO Richard Plepler said at an investor event this week.
Given that more TV networks are trying to sell programming directly to customers, this week's news from CBS and HBO is unsurprising. The decision to un-bundle is also likely a response to the rise ofand other OTT services.
NETFLIX SUBSCRIBER GROWTH SLOWS SLIGHTLY IN Q3
This week, Netflix released its third quarter earnings report, showing that overall subscriber growth is slowing slightly despite strong international results. Thevideo service grew its user base to 53 million subscribers at the end of September – a 32% year-over-year increase compared to 37% in the same period a year ago.
The company attributed the slowdown to its recent price increase. Notably, the $1 (£1 and €1 in the UK and Europe) price increase did not have a major impact on subscriber growth during the second quarter. Netflix believes that the effects of the price increase were initially offset by the launch of the hugely popular original series Orange Is the New Black.
On the earnings call, Netflix executives talked extensively about the company's international strategy and how they view HBO's plan to launch a stand-alone streaming video service next year:
- Netflix will put all of its profits toward international expansion, Netflix CEO Reed Hastings said. The company's international growth strategy appears to be working.
- HBO's forthcoming streaming service isn't a "direct competition" to Netflix on the consumer side, according to Hastings, who has said HBO is the company's main competition in the past. The contest, he said, will be bidding for content in the same marketplace as Netflix. "Many, many people will subscribe to both services ... We're excited that HBO is in the internet game," said Hastings. "It will be a really fun couple of years."
GOOGLE AD REVENUE UP, DESPITE SLOWING PAID CLICK GROWTH
Google reported solid third quarter results this week as well. Ad revenue, the company's largest source of revenue, reached almost $14.7 billion, up 17% year-over-year.
Non-ad business segments also grew. Revenue from Google Play, hardware, and other sources exceeded $1.8 billion and accounted for 11% of the company's total revenue. Last year, non-ad business revenue made up 9% of overall revenue, and two years ago this share was just 6%.
Paid clicks grew at a slower pace during the quarter (17% year-over-year) than the second quarter (25% year-over-year), but cost-per-click (CPC) across Google's ad networks improved, despite concerns over downward pressure resulting from Google's growing inventory of lower cost mobile ads. CPC was down by 2% over the prior year, a notable improvement over negative 6% year-over-year growth in the second quarter.
On the earnings call, Google executives fielded a lot of analyst questions about the company's YouTube strategy and its digital media business:
- Google CFO Patrick Pichette called Chromecast, its streaming media dongle, a "smashing success" after launching just a year ago. Pichette also said that Google Play's success continues to impress.
- YouTube has become synonymous with Google's brand advertising business. Google has sold out of its Google Preferred inventory (the top 5% of YouTube content) and is working with top agencies and brands such as Digitas, Carrot Creative (Vice's ad agency), GM, and Coca-Cola.
Google execs didn't directly answer a question on how the company plans to reduce dependence on cookies, which are ineffective for tracking users on mobile. Google's new chief business officer, Omid Kordestani, said it's something the company is still working to figure out.
Earlier this week, Google executive chairman and former CEO Eric Schmidt admitted that Amazon is Google's main competitor in search during a speech in Berlin. "People don’t think of Amazon as search, but if you are looking for something to buy, you are more often than not looking for it on Amazon," Schmidt said, according to a transcript on Google's blog.
SNAPCHAT'S REAL GOAL – TO BECOME A MOBILE PLATFORM LIKE FACEBOOK, BUT BETTER
Although Snapchat is going ahead with its ad-based monetization strategy, the ephemeral messaging app's real goal is to become a mobile-social platform that makes money through a variety of services, The Information's Tom Dotan has learned (paywall).
Snapchat has already started talking to the same company powering Twitter and Facebook's upcoming payments products, Stripe. Once payments is enabled, Snapchat could then sell virtual and real goods. This model has already proven successful for Asian messaging apps, especially China's mobile messaging app WeChat, a company that Snapchat CEO Evan Spiegel has openly admired.
To become a big business in the mobile era, consumer tech companies know they need to be a hub for services beyond their own, Dotan writes. This is the same strategy that Facebook and Twitter are trying to implement. But, where Snapchat differs, is in its mobile-only presence. The lack of desktop properties could enable Snapchat to be more selective with the companies it deals with as it expands. It's not about supporting thousands of partners, but just 10 or 20 really well, an investor and former director of Twitter's platform told Dotan.
WHISPER AND SNAPCHAT ENSNARED IN PRIVACY DEBACLE
Anonymous sharing app Whisper was under fire this week following a report claiming it tracks users’ data. The Guardian article details how the app is reportedly able to track user location among users who have opted out of geolocation services, as well as keep tabs on specific users’ posts.
This follows a huge scandal with Snapchat after a third-party service that people use to store their snaps was hacked and users’ snaps were leaked. These two incidents highlight how mobile security is becoming a more and more pressing issue.
BI Intelligence Research Analyst Mark Hoelzel, Reporter Cale Guthrie Weissman, and Research Associate Jessica Smith contributed to this week's briefings.
Enjoy the rest of your weekend!


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| March 1, 2017
Members of RENEW’s Impact Angel Network visit Ethiopia to review investment opportunities.
| January 20, 2017
A new partnership that will lead to better emergency care in Ethiopia.
| January 11, 2017
An overview and analysis of one of the key ingredients that drive many of dVentus’ product lines.
| December 6, 2016
A toast to the official launch of the ABG Project!
| December 5, 2016
Celebrating how one company has saved and positively changed the lives of so many.
| November 2, 2016
The RENEW team takes a closer look at the cotton, textile, apparel value chain and its role in Ethiopia’s economy.
| October 28, 2016
My personal experiences living in Addis Ababa and participating on a RENEW Econ-Tourism trip.
| October 25, 2016
RENEW's Senior Investment Manager breaks down stereotypes, clichés and outdated perspectives about the continent of Africa.
| September 23, 2016
RENEW takes a closer look at the key ingredient of Mama Fresh's injera; a small but important super grain.
| August 30, 2016
How a conversation in Washington, D.C. led to new job opportunities in Addis Ababa.


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TOKYO: State-owned Japan Oil, Gas and Metals National Corp (JOGMEC) and Japanese trading house Sojitz Corp have invested $9 million to buy an additional stake in Lynas Rare Earths to aid the Australian miner’s expansion project, they said Tuesday.
Lynas, the world’s largest producer of rare earths outside of China, unveiled plans in August to invest A$500 million ($335.35 million) to expand the capacity of its Western Australia-based Mt Weld mine to meet the market demand for rare earth metals.
The Mt Weld mine has deposits of rare earth elements neodymium (Nd) and praseodymium (Pr), which are in high demand to make magnets used in electric vehicles (EVs) and wind power, amid a global urge for decarbonization.
Lynas’ longtime Japanese backers are happy to support the expansion project, as it could help ensure stable supplies of rare earths to Japan, JOGMEC and Sojitz said in a statement.
“The long-term stable supply of rare earths is extremely important for Japanese manufacturers, given the increasing demand for rare earths as an important material for magnets indispensable for environmentally friendly products such as motors for EVs and wind power generators.” according to the Japanese companies.
In 2011, JOGMEC and Sojitz provided a total of $250 million in loans and stock to Lynas. In return, Sojitz became the exclusive distributor of Lynas products in the Japanese market.
In 2019, Lynas signed a 10-year loan extension with the Japanese lenders, increasing its commitment to supply rare earth metals to Japanese customers.
As part of a March agreement between Lynas and the Japanese lenders, the Japanese side deferred the payment of $11.5 million in interest on that loan until October 31, with no penalty and no additional interest.
($1 = 1.4910 Australian dollars)


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The Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg has secured General Motors Co. as a sponsor for the 2014 event.
Under terms of the deal, Chevrolet trucks and Cadillac cars will be the official vehicles of the race, scheduled March 28-30. Financial terms were not disclosed.
The Grand Prix named Firestone its new title sponsor on Nov. 20.
Organizers of the event, formerly known as the Honda Grand Prix, had to find a new title sponsor when Honda declined to renew its contract last year.
The Firestone Grand Prix will run on a 1.8-mile, 14-turn waterfront circuit.
Ticket sales for this year’s event are pacing ahead of last year’s, which roughly 125,000 people attended, Ramsberger said Tuesday.
Tickets went on sale to the public on Dec. 1.


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In the past year, IoT security has quickly escalated as a hot-button issue with multiple threats against the enterprise such as the Mirai botnet that took down Twitter, Amazon, and Netflix. What’s most alarming, though, is that it’s likely only the beginning as more companies deploy IoT sensors and devices across their networks.
According to Gartner, more than half of major new business processes and systems will include an IoT component by 2020.
Predicting the future is never easy, but TechRepublic talked to IoT security experts to find out what to expect in 2017. Participants were Frank Gillett, Forrester analyst; Sanjay Beri, CEO of Netskope; Adnan Amjad, partner, Deloitte Cyber Risk Services; Simon Moffatt, senior product manager, ForgeRock; Eve Maler, vice president of innovation and emerging technology, ForgeRock; Javvad Malik, security advocate at AlienVault; Jason Collins, vice president of IoT marketing at Nokia; David Campbell, chief security officer, SendGrid; Kirstin Simonson, second vice president at Travelers Global Technology; Chip Witt, senior product manager, threat intelligence, HPE Security Research, Hewlett Packard Enterprise; Kurt Collins, director of technology evangelism and partnerships at Built.io; and Tom Kellermann, CEO of Strategic Cyber Ventures.
SEE: Progress in ransomware battle remains murky despite industry efforts (TechRepublic)
TechRepublic: How serious is the IoT cybersecurity threat for the enterprise in 2017?
Frank Gillett: Forrester predicts a large-scale IoT security breach will occur in 2017. The biggest targets are fleet management in transportation, security and surveillance applications in government, inventory and warehouse management applications in retail, and industrial asset management in primary manufacturing.
Javvad Malik: In 2017, the IoT device security debate will escalate, putting pressure on manufacturers to architect fundamental security principles into the designs of internet-connected products. We may even see governments around the world take an active role in IoT safety legislation. Everyday appliances (e.g., the iron, washing machine and dryer) are subjected to rigorous testing, both by the manufacturer as well as independent testing labs, but a similar approach is not being taken with respect to cybersecurity for IoT devices. As a result, most are unsecure by design, and many vendors choose convenience (e.g., using default credentials in their appliances) over implementing proper security measures–a flagrant violation of best practices in product development.
Tom Kellermann: In 2017, I predict we’ll see at least two polymorphic worms targeting IoT will spread in the wild and be leveraged for widespread DDoS attacks. One of these will be developed by North Korea and it will be used to punish the West via internet outages.
Jason Collins: There will be more and more IoT security breaches that will impact service acceptance. A growing realization is that the network has a large role to play in security for IoT because devices will not be able to handle the threat.
Adnan Amjad: In 2017, the continued rise in popularity of connected products results in an increase in the number of back doors open to an adversary, and IoT devices will become a target for ransomware. For manufacturers, building security in from the ground up and making it an integral component of the product–as opposed to adding in security at the final stages of manufacturing–can help prevent security issues later on in the product lifecycle. For businesses, develop your cybersecurity plan under the assumption that you will be breached. Prioritize the things that you need to keep safe and embed security elements into everything, beginning at the earliest stage of development.
Simon Moffatt: DDoS attacks, internet shutdowns powered by cheap, insecure IoT devices will become more common but become less lethal as backbone providers harden their defenses and device manufacturers adopt identity-based security to close vulnerabilities. However, the sheer number of cheap and insecure IoT devices deployed globally will ensure DDoS attacks continue sporadically through 2017. Catastrophic DDoS attacks might dominate tech media coverage, but the failure of IoT devices, service, and infrastructure to adopt and scale robust security and privacy tactics will play out in several ways also through 2017.
Chip Witt: The security industry has been talking about the security challenges IoT devices present for a few years, but 2017 will see attacks truly proliferate with the exponential adoption of connected devices and their associated (lack of) security. IoT sensors, with their limited computing power are only as secure as the firmware running on them, which means that their security posture depends on the readiness of device manufacturers to quickly react to attacks when they happen. Successful attacks on IoT sensors are difficult to detect because of the limited access to the device’s system state, insufficient computing power for endpoint protection software to be installed on them, and lack of security compliance standards for IoT security best practices.
TR: Do you see more security intervention happening in the enterprise in 2017?
Sanjay Beri: 2017 is the year of the security intervention. The recent Dyn DDoS attack plus IoT plus cloud will force board-level meetings on cybersecurity at most Fortune 500 companies. This will force a doubling down on hiring and spending to quickly deal with enterprise blindspots.
David Campbell: DDoS mitigation will be center stage for internet-based companies in 2017. After the widespread DDoS attack of hosting company OVH in 2016, in which 150,000 Internet-connected devices were leveraged for a 1 Tbps attack, companies are going to have to start getting on the defensive side of DDoS mitigation. The Internet of Things is not going away, and without a way to regulate the resiliency of the firmware that operates these devices, the best way companies can protect themselves is with a clear DDoS mitigation strategy. It’s not a matter of if anymore, but when, so having a mitigation strategy and having a relationship with a DDoS mitigation provider is table stakes for doing business on the internet in 2017.
Kurt Collins: In the next year we’ll start to see more security-oriented measures put in place for IoT, and blockchain will play an integral role in that. One of the foundational premises of blockchain is to make sure that certain records and requests are accurate, just like an accounting ledger. When it comes to IoT, that is perfect because devices are widely distributed, sometimes calling back to the server and sometimes not. However, if they don’t call back to the server, you want to make sure that the call any IoT device makes is actually the call it is supposed to make. By using blockchain on top of IoT, companies can implement a ledger methodology to any request that needs to be made to, or from, an IoT device and verify it is doing the right thing. Blockchain is critical in this because it is very difficult to fool blockchain and it creates a method of transaction verification.
TR: What impact do you think the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) to strengthen and unify data protection in the European Union will have on security?
Beri: With the GDPR deadline fast approaching, we’ll see an increase in governance over unsanctioned apps where risky activities are blocked. Since the GDPR was adopted in 2016, we are now within the two-year countdown for compliance which will provoke a sense of urgency for organizations in 2017. Compliance is going to play a bigger role in the cloud as organizations become savvier to the apps people are using and increasingly realize how much sensitive data they have in their environments. 2017 will be ransomware’s biggest year yet because organizations aren’t inspecting for malware in the most commonly used apps. Malware is hiding in plain sight as SSL traffic passes through uninspected (which is a huge issue in general for enterprises).
Eve Maler: The most mature part of the IoT security and privacy technology stack comes from its web API heritage, with protocols such as OAuth and OpenID Connect playing a key role. With the FCC tightening privacy rules for broadband providers in the US, and the GDPR looming in the EU, the adoption of the OAuth-based consent and delegation standard User- Managed Access (UMA) protocol is likely to accelerate.
TR: What might happen in 2017 so that IoT device makers can provide additional security before rolling out devices to a broader audience?
Gillett: New certifications will be born. Major vendors like Cisco, Microsoft, IBM, and others will invest heavily in the form of low or no-cost training and certifications. Meanwhile, Forrester expects that 10 industrial vendors will jointly certify their IoT-enabled products with enterprise vendors, as Rockwell Automation has done with Cisco.
Kirstin Simonson: Security standards are still evolving to accommodate the plethora of devices coming to market without the necessary internal security features in place. For makers and manufacturers of these connected devices, it is extremely important that consideration for the digital security of each device is incorporated into the development protocols or methodology behind their production. In other words, security should not be an afterthought of product development. As a reference point, the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) provides a comprehensive framework for businesses who design or develop numerous types of devices, which provides information that is very relevant to this topic. There are also other organizations that provide useful information for building security into the development methodology of electronic devices.
Witt: While it is likely that more security features will be built into IoT devices in 2017, making IoT inherently more secure, a large number of existing insecure devices will be used as the platform to launch targeted breaches and DDoS attacks. The trend will likely lead many companies to rethink the approach of protecting their internet-facing services against the DDoS attacks. Organizations will need to ensure they are implementing proper application security testing of connected devices and taking a data-centric approach that protects the sensitive information throughout its lifecycle with proven encryption and tokenization techniques.
Jason Collins: Governments will start exploring moves to regulate the IoT. Security and privacy concerns around IoT will create a situation where governments will push to regulate in a patchwork fashion. They will move to push the regulations into the network where there are more reasonable controls than controlling the end-user devices.
TechRepublic: What impact do you think a new president will have on IoT security?
Beri: With the increase in high profile data breaches in 2016 such as the Yahoo data breach and DNC hacks, the incoming administration will make cybersecurity a key focus. Particularly, the newly-appointed federal CISO will make cloud security and safe cloud enablement a priority, as it’s expected to be the biggest threat vector for the government. Cloud adoption is only going to rise from here, and the federal CISO needs to be aware of the threat shadow IT poses to the government.
- The smart city security nightmare: How cities can stay awake (TechRepublic)
- How risk analytics can help your organization plug security holes (Tech Pro Research)
- Experts predict 2017’s biggest cybersecurity threats (TechRepublic)
- Cybersecurity ebook: The ransomware battle (Tech Pro Research)
- Interview with a hacker: Gh0s7, leader of Shad0wS3c (TechRepublic)
- Gallery: The 10 biggest business hacks of 2016 (TechRepublic)
- Internet of Things: The Security Challenge (ZDNet Special Report)


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Vice President Mike Pence on Saturday, March 21, urged Americans to donate medical masks to health care professionals fighting the CCP Virus (Wuhan coronavirus) as fears grow they will run out of essential medical equipment.
“It’s a great time to go to your storeroom, and if you have N-95 masks, if you’ve got 100 of them, if you’ve got 10,000 of them, is to load them up, drive them over to your local hospital,” Pence said during a White House press briefing, directly addressing American businesses and construction companies.
“The American people are all doing this now, so allow me to say on behalf of the president, thank you for what you’re all doing today,” Pence added. “We want to encourage people in business, people in dentistry in particular, look at those supplies in N-95 masks, park up as many as you can spare, drop them up to your local hospitals, it would be great service to your country.”
The vice president announced that Apple was donating masks to help address the needs of health care workers in areas hit hard by the CCP Virus.
“This is another story of great American industry,” Pence said. “The president and I literally heard directly from Apple that they’re donating 2 million industrial masks to this effort around the country and working with our administration to distribute those.”
Apple CEO Tim Cook alluded to the donation in a tweet later Saturday, saying Apple is donating “millions of masks for health professionals in the U.S. and Europe.”
Our teams at Apple have been working to help source supplies for healthcare providers fighting COVID-19. We’re donating millions of masks for health professionals in the US and Europe. To every one of the heroes on the front lines, we thank you.
— Tim Cook (@tim_cook) March 21, 2020
In hard-hit areas like Washington state—an epicenter of the CCP Virus pandemic in the United States, health care workers are grappling with shortages of personal protective equipment such as masks. The masks not only prevent the spread of infection but also protect those on the front lines treating patients from falling ill and dropping out of the workforce.
N-95 masks are used to protect the wearer from airborne particles and from liquid contaminating the face. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention does not recommend that the general public wear N-95 masks to keep from being infected by the virus.


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Why BuzzFeed, Time Inc. are bringing the holiday gift guide to Facebook Messenger
Publishers’ first messenger bots primarily served to send out the day’s news, but some are branching out. The perennial publisher holiday gift guide is now a shopping bot.
BuzzFeed recently launched its Ultimate Gift Finder on Facebook Messenger, an extension of its expanded e-commerce arm. The gift finder asks you a few questions like — Who are you shopping for? How much do you want to spend? — and then spits out one of 100 suggestions, like $8.99 unicorn slippers from Target, or a $49 pizza-print throw blanket from Society6. You can buy the item, get more suggestions like it or start over. The publisher collects a small portion of each sale.
BuzzFeed created a bot last summer to gather news during the political party conventions, but this is its first e-commerce bot.
“We believe bots have huge entertainment and commerce potential,” said Jesse Shapins, director of product for BuzzFeed. “The idea was to use emojis, GIFs and a playful quiz-like conversation to help people find fun gifts.”
Elsewhere, Time Inc.’s Real Simple just launched on Facebook Messenger with a focus on doling out last-minute holiday planning and gift buying tips. The bot was built with GameOn and it sends out daily holiday tips on topics like decorating and gift-giving. After the holidays, it will move on to tips and tricks for home and life and be applied to other holidays like Valentine’s Day and Mother’s Day.
From a user standpoint, the bots still have some kinks to work out, which isn’t entirely unexpected of a new product; one of BuzzFeed’s suggested gifts, gem earbuds, turned out to be unavailable on the associated Nordstrom product page. When you click on articles in the Real Simple, it takes you to full articles on its mobile site, which arguably doesn’t make the most of the messaging platform.
Time Inc. also will collect a small portion of each sale it drives, but the bigger purpose of the Real Simple bot was to see how much of an appetite there is for its vast library of lifestyle content on messenger bots. It’s already seen people want to read news there; five months since it launched Time magazine on the Asian messaging app Line, it has 800,000 users. The company started testing lifestyle content with an InStyle bot on Line. The company will be looking at how many users it racks up this way and how much time they spend, but hasn’t set specific targets.
“The purpose of the messaging app is really more content and utility,” said Regina Buckley, senior vp of digital business development & business operations at Time Inc. and also gm of Time Inc.’s lifestyle titles, including Real Simple. “I wouldn’t say this is not going to generate revenue, but the first goal is to learn and test and see whether it’s something our consumers are interested in. There are a lot of interesting opportunities that don’t come about in news.”
More in Media
Meta AI, which first debuted in September, also got a number of updates including ways to search for real-time information through integrations with Google and Bing.
The retail giant paired its insights unit Luminate with Walmart Connect to help suppliers optimize for customer consumption, just in time for the holidays, explained the company’s CRO Seth Dallaire.
In this week’s Digiday+ Research Briefing, we examine BuzzFeed’s plans to pivot the business to an AI-driven tech and media company, how marketers’ use of X and ad spending has dropped dramatically, and how agency executives are fed up with Meta’s ad platform bugs and overcharges, as seen in recent data from Digiday+ Research.


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WASHINGTON (AP) – US consumer confidence fell to a nine-month low in November, cut off by rising prices and persistent concerns …
WASHINGTON (AP) – US consumer confidence fell to a nine-month low in November, cut off by rising prices and persistent coronavirus concerns.
The Conference Council reported on Tuesday that its consumer confidence index fell to a reading of 109.5, down from 111.6 in October. It was the lowest reading since the index stood at 95.2 in February and would not include the consequences of omicron, a new variant of coronavirus that has begun to spread.
The Conference Council said that concerns about rising prices and to a lesser extent persistent concerns about the delta variant were the primary reasons for the decline.
There was an even bigger drop this week in the University of Michigan’s consumer satisfaction goals, which fell in November to a decade-low for many of the same reasons.
Copyright © 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, written or redistributed.


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After taking them down to investigate what it called a “cybersecurity incident,” TaskRabbit’s website and app are back online. The Ikea-owned platform for on-demand labor also posted an update from its chief executive officer Stacy Brown-Philpot about the incident.
“While our investigation is ongoing, preliminary evidence shows that an unauthorized user gained access to our systems. As a result, certain personally identifiable information may have been compromised,” she wrote.
While Brown-Philpot said that an outside forensics team is currently working to identify what information was compromised and will notify all affected users, she urged the platform’s customers and providers, called “taskers,” to monitor online accounts for suspicious activity and change passwords if they used the same login information on other services.
TaskRabbit will add several new security measures because of the incident. Brown-Philpot said they are working on ways to make their login process more secure, reduce the amount of data retained about customers and taskers and “enhance overall network cyber threat detection technology.”
The company will continue posting updates to a dedicated page on its website, which also includes a FAQ for taskers who were unable to complete jobs while the app was offline. TaskRabbit says people who were forced to reschedule or cancel tasks will be compensated.


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Between touch-screen laptops, sleep-tracking bracelets and wireless headphones, it's safe to say that most of our everyday needs are taken care of. Information comes with a touch of a button and interaction is as easy as SiriBut what if our gadgets could do even more?
相比較往年昨晚召開的2014年度Google I/O大會給人的戰略意圖更加的清晰--融入用戶日常生活。桌面有Chromebook；口袋有Android L；腕帶有Android Wear；家居有Android TV，甚至于汽車也有Android Auto。
French hardware startup Withings has released two smart-ish watches so far — the Activité and the Activité Pop. Today, the company is releasing a new model sitting between these two options, the Activité Steel. Read More
Acer has introduced a number of new laptops and desktops PCs at IFA 2015 in Berlin, Germany, alongside the new smartphones. Starting off with the notebooks, the Taiwan-based company introduced the convertible R 13...
法國硬件創業公司 Withings 推出過兩款微智能（smart-ish）手表——Activité 和 ActivitéPop。今天，這家公司發布了介于兩者之間的新型號，ActivitéSteel。 Activité Steel 僅限官網銷售，價格為 169.
Withings pretty much nailed the activity tracker with the Pulse activity tracker, which features a built-in heart rate sensor that uses pulse oximetry (just like the Galaxy S5). Now, it has updated that product with new sensor capabilities with the Pulse O2.
While not significant in North America, Windows 8.1 with Bing was a relative success in other areas. Back when Windows 8.1 was shipped to devices, Microsoft toyed with the option of offering a low-cost...The post More evidence points towards a Windows 10 with Bing SKU appeared first on WinBeta.
nginx的官方手冊: http://nginx.org/en/docs/ 編譯安裝下載地址: http://nginx.org/en/download.html 看到如下4個目錄 conf 配置文件 html 網頁文件 logs 日志文件 sbin 主要二進制程...
Here’s a curveball for you: Withings, which is an excellent fitness-based electronics company with all kinds of fun products like trackers and smart scales, has just bested all the smartwatch makers out there with the new Activité watch. At first glance, it looks like any other old analog watch.
Although Valentine's Day has passed, Microsoft has clearly not gotten the message. Players have a new reason to feel love all over again, the Ultimate Xbox One Game Sale has begun. Users should note that Gold subscribers will be offered a deeper discount than those who are not,
By most accounts, sales of Facebook's Portal devices have been pretty dismal. Now, the company is turning to a familiar source on inspiration in an effort to boost sales ahead of the holidays: TikTok.The company introduced a new, TikTok-like update to its Portal lineup called Mic Drop,
The Resident Evil remake train just keeps rolling.Sony revealed the first look at the Resident Evil 3 remake during its State of Play livestream on Tuesday, including a chase scene that was happening in first-person mode a-la Resident Evil 7,
TL;DR: Save ￡100 on the Apple Watch Series 4 among other smartwatches in the Amazon 'Last Minute' Christmas sale.?Amazon's 'Last Minute' Christmas sale is serving up some great discounts on a number of tech items. A highlight of the offers is the current sale on smartwatches,
2019 was a big year for TV. New streaming services showed up, tentpole shows wound down, and many others came and went without making much noise at all. These are not those shows. This list of the best TV shows on 2019 includes new and excellent seasons of shows that have been on for a while,
Scooter- and bike-share companies have been trying to get riders to protect their noggins for some time.?They've tried just about everything to get riders to fall in line, short of forcing a helmet on everyone's heads. But instead of incentives like discounted rides, digital gold stars,
Apple's got a nice one-two combo today for anyone looking to purchase a seriously powerful desktop computer.Dec. 10 is the date the long-awaited new Mac Pro becomes available for purchase (hasn't happened yet, but we'll update this article when it does).?The powerful machine starts at $5,
Hugh Grant was the last good prime minister to grace this Brexit-stricken land. Oh wait, that wasn't real. Grant's Love Actually days are long gone, but he's certainly not taken a backseat when it comes to politics.In an interview on BBC Radio 4 Today,
Microsoft finally revealed more details about its new Continuum feature Wednesday — and it only takes one click.Continuum is Microsoft's new feature that allows users with touch-enabled devices to easily switch between tablet and PC modes in Windows 10 .See also:
This kitty understands that it sucks when you're amped, but your friends just want to chill out.Squirt the kitten's Dalmatian buddies seem content to relax, but the playful kitty has other ideas — the persistent feline pounces on Lady the Dalmatian's tail until finally getting a little love.
DONETSK, Ukraine — Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has said that more than 9,000 Russian soldiers are backing up pro-Moscow rebels here in war-torn eastern Ukraine, where fighting raged on and the roars of artillery fire could be heard from all corners of the city on Wednesday.
微軟喜歡向人們展示IE瀏覽器多種內在特色，考慮到瀏覽器是PC最常用的應用程序之一，我們也不能責怪微軟這種努力。這一次，微軟與日本動畫制作公司Production IG推出了一款IE內互動游戲，游戲名稱是《Gargantia: Sky Courier》。
威鋒網訊，我們知道蘋果和IBM在企業方面建立了合作關系，而最近他們再次發布了 10 款全新的 MobileFirst 企業應用，這讓兩者發布的應用總數已經達到 32 個，新發布的 10 個新應用關注了一些新的領域，例如商務旅游、遷移管理工具和現場作業等。
HTC 宣稱可以完爆 iPhone 的這款 One 系列中端機，在硬件配置上并不搶眼，反倒是外觀特別讓人覺得眼熟，而且會讓「審美強迫癥」患者不太舒服。
Looks like investors approve of?former Adobe digital chief David Wadhwani. Just weeks?after it was announced that Wadhwani has?joined?seven-year-old, San Francisco-based AppDynamics as its new CEO, an SEC filing?shows the company has raised a fresh $83.
之前 Rockstar 曾經在手機上推出過多款《GTA》作品，而且今日起 iOS 用家就有 福了，因為《GTA: Liberty City Stories》已經正式登陸 App Store。雖然一如之前幾集今次依然是移植作品，但當中有不少功能已大幅改善，可以讓大家更輕鬆地在手機上遊玩。以下有更多資料：The post 支援 3D Touch！《GTA: Liberty City Stories》現已登陸 App Store appeared first on UNWIRE.HK 流動科技生活.
After a couple of weeks of rumors, The Beatles website confirmed that the entire band’s catalog will be available on Spotify, Apple music and all music streaming services out there starting tonight at midnight, local time. This is perfect timing for the holidays,


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Tuesday, 28 Aug 2012
Symantec has identified Android.Loozfon, a rare example of malware which targets female Android users.
HTC Singapore has released a price revision for the HTC One X and Desire V. These new prices will kick in this Thursday.
Featuring the robust 32+3+2 power design with Ultra Durable 5 high current capable components including 60A rated IR3550 PowIRstages chips from IR, the Z77X-UP7 motherboard is able to share the workload between 32 phases, ensuring lower working temperatures and maximum CPU power delivery.
The new enterprise-class E100 SSD achieves up to 10 times improvements in endurance and reliability over client SSDs on existing hardware, while significantly reducing the physical footprint as notably fewer SSDs are needed to handle tasks of many traditional HDDs.
Hot on the heels of Samsung's Series 5 tablet/ultrabook tease are a handful of leaked images of Sony's upcoming Vaio Duo 11 Windows 8 hybrid device.
Another new high level appointment for Yahoo as Kathy Savitt joins the team in the capacity of Chief Marketing Officer. She was the founder and CEO for social commerce company Lockerz and has worked for American Eagle and Amazon as well.
A retailer document reveals that the Samsung Galaxy Note II will come in two colors: ceramic white and another labelled as TBD (to be determined). Inside sources point to an early October release.
One of Apple's Senior VPs remarked recently that the likelihood of an Apple HDTV display materializing in the near future is slim, mainly due to the company's inability to secure rights with major networks to broadcast their content.
Monday, 27 Aug 2012
Samsung has revealed (via Facebook no less) that a stylus toting tablet device with dock will shown during IFA 2012 in Berlin. This new device, one of likely many others from the Korean company, looks very much like the Samsung Series 5 hybrid PC first seen at Computex earlier this year.
With a 26x optical high zoom and 22.3mm ultra wide-angle lens, the 16.2-megapixel WB100 offers 3D photo capture and Live Panorama Mode, bringing 3D images and panoramic views to life.


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BEFORE the Covid-19 pandemic hit, Filipinos had been increasing their spending on holidays and vacations abroad, with an expectedly widening amount of extra funds for leisure and entertainment brought by an expanding economy.
Prior to the Covid-19 outbreak this year, outbound tourism expenditure had been rising and reached an all-time high of P341.56 billion (current prices) in 2019, data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) showed. This represented a 2.6-percent growth which, however, was a slowdown from the 8.4-percent rise in 2018, and 42 percent in 2015. The latter was the largest increase in outbound tourism expenses recorded over a 19-year history.
Philippine Travel Agencies Association (PTAA) President Ritchie Tuaño said he is unable to explain the slowdown in growth last year, because his members’ have recorded more outbound travels. “But it could be that people were more conservative in their spending abroad to be able to make two or more trips in a year,” he told the BusinessMirror.
He ruled out the possibility of the slowdown being foreign exchange-related since the Philippine peso averaged P51.80 to the US dollar in 2019, compared to 2018, when the peso averaged P52.66. “If the peso gained strength over the dollar, the more people would spend [on their trips abroad],” he said. Travel agencies usually quote vacation packages abroad in US dollars.
As per PTAA, the Filipinos’s top leisure destinations were Japan, South Korea, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore, Thailand, the United States, the United Kingdom, Israel, and Turkey.
“Japan has been the top destination for the past five to six years, and the demand has been sustained, if not increasing. There are many who make return trips to Japan,” said Tuaño.
He added, Japan and South Korea “are the closest countries that have four seasons. While China also has the same, Filipinos are more interested with Japan and Korea because of the people, culture, food and shopping. Also, Filipino travelers feel safer in these two countries.”
According to PSA data, the largest bulk of Filipinos’ spending in 2019 went to accommodations at P99.73 billion, or 29.2 percent of total outbound tourism expenditure. This was followed by P61.36 billion on shopping (18 percent), and P57.8 billion on food and beverage (16.9 percent).
Tuaño expressed optimism that outbound travel would see some recovery by 2023. “We should see the Philippine government allowing Filipinos to travel abroad before the year ends. I guess this is an important start. Soon after, we would see a few Filipinos traveling to countries which have opened up their borders to us. This will gradually grow back, and hopefully in two to three years, we can see figures close to 2019 levels. The recovery period might be shortened if a vaccine becomes available.”
Over the weekend, the PSA released newly adjusted tourism data with the change in their base period to 2018 from 2000. It reported the tourism sector’s contribution to the economy rose to 12.7 percent in 2019, from 12.3 percent the previous year. (See, “Pinoys’ local trips spending spells 22% of household bills,” in the BusinessMirror, June 22, 2020.)
Image credits: Noriko Hayashi/Bloomberg


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Bay Area restaurateur Reem Assil opened a new location of her bakery on San Francisco’s bustling Mission Street on March 11, but less than a week later, the city has basically shut down.
Reem Assil’s move into the former Mission Pie space at 2901 Mission Street was one of the city’s most anticipated openings of the spring (literally), a long-awaited return of the Palestinian-Syrian star chef to the neighborhood in which she began her career. Reem’s opened on March 11, prompting Eater SF to write that the venue is “a bright and airy cafe space; the city’s first proper Arab bakery; and, probably for many Arab Americans and fans of chef Reem Assil’s cooking, a destination restaurant.”
That was March 11. On March 16, as one of course knows, six Bay Area counties including San Francisco ordered all residents to stay home except for “essential” trips. Restaurants may remain open, but must pivot to delivery and takeout only. Reem’s “bright and airy cafe space” must remain empty until at least April 7 under the order, and she tells Eater’s Monica Burton that for now, the spot will do takeout and “delivery only with very limited hours,” but might have to eliminate takeout. “We’re taking it day by day,” she says.
However, it wasn’t until last Wednesday that Assil even realized how dire things might get, and she braced for a “quiet opening” as she assumed that “people are not really going out that much.” However, “we had a very busy first three days — so busy we couldn’t even handle it.” Now, Assil says, “our whole reason for existence is to provide community space and build community and it’s just such a weird time to be doing that. But I have hope we can build our community virtually for now. Once we all get through this it’s going to be stronger and better.” You can read Assil’s full interview with Burton here.
And in other news...
- Redwood City-based faux meat company Impossible Foods announced Monday that it’s secured an additional $500 million in funding. The new cash will help it “double production every year, on average, for 15 years,” CEO Pat Brown said, and CFO David Lee said that the business is “built to withstand short-term shocks” like the current coronavirus crisis. [SF Business Times]
- Here’s a running list of which chain restaurants, grocers, and delivery services are putting public health first by instituting paid sick leave during novel coronavirus pandemic. [Eater National]
- NFL great slash Emeryville restaurateur Marshawn Lynch appeared on the season premiere of Westworld Sunday. The Rob Ben’s owner appeared as G, a criminal gig-worker in a mood-LED shirt, and if that doesn’t drive Yul Brenner out of your head what will? [The Undefeated]
- The James Beard Foundation has postponed the March 25 announcement of the finalists for its 2020 awards, honors for which many Bay Area folks and businesses are in contention. [Eater National]
- Among the many measures being proposed during the shelter-in-place period, SF-based State Senator Scott Wiener is pushing for a ban on evictions of businesses like bars and restaurants during the ongoing public health emergency. [Curbed SF]
- Proper Hotel pastry chef Sohrob Esmaili is a contender on Food Network competition show Spring Baking Championship, which kicked off its season just last week. [SF Examiner]
- “America’s restaurant industry has never seen a crisis on this scale before,” writes Hillary Dixler Canavan, and many restaurants are already reporting that “delivery hasn’t kept pace with the loss of in-person customers.” [Eater National]
- Millbrae’s Hu Bei Restaurant is the only spot in the Bay Area that serves the cuisine of Wuhan, an area now known to all as the epicenter of the new coronavirus epidemic. Owner Nina Wei is now running the business with a single staffer, “even hand-delivering meals” to those who seek her home-style meals. [SF Chronicle]
- “The idea of ordering food delivery may raise a couple of questions,” writes Jenny G. Zhang. “First, is it safe? Second, is it ethical to expose a delivery worker to the risks you seek to avoid?” [Eater National]


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Sep 30, 2011 - PropertyGuru.com.sg While the ongoing economic concerns in the US and Europe have impacted luxury property sentiment, prices of mass-market homes have almost reached the psychological barrier of S$1,000 psf.
This contrasts with declining sales volumes, wherein the Outside Central Region (OCR) bucked the trend with estimated sales numbers of about 2,868 units in Q3, up 5.9 percent from the previous quarter.
Sales of mass-market homes made up 70 percent of new sales transactions, implying that they will remain the key focus this quarter.
Prices of suburban homes (non-landed private properties, excluding ECs) in Q3 2011 stood at S$941 psf, a 2.5 percent increase, as opposed to the 1.7 percent increase in the OCR real estate price index in Q2 2011.
Within the Core Central Region (CCR), including the CBD and Sentosa Cove, sales volumes are expected to fall 45.4 percent to an estimated 287 units in the third quarter, compared to 526 units in Q2 2011.
Prices of CCR properties fell by 3.6 percent quarter-on-quarter, selling at an average of S$1,800 psf in the third quarter.
Sales in the Rest of Central Region (RCR) are expected to decrease by 10.2 percent to 979 units in Q3 2011, from 1,090 units in the previous quarter.
Prices of homes in the RCR grew to an average of S$1,300 psf in Q3 2011, up 1.6 percent from 1.1 percent in Q2 2011.
Overall, Knight Frank expects 4,134 units (excluding ECs) to be sold in the primary market in the third quarter, a decline in sales of approximately seven percent quarter-on-quarter.
Meanwhile, rental prices in the mass-market and high-end segments saw increases of 0.4 percent and 1.9 percent respectively, compared to -1.4 percent and 6.5 percent in Q2 2011.
With mass-market homes recording strong sales, Knight Frank expects new sales (excluding ECs) to hit at least 16,000 units in Q4 2011.
“If the economic performance turns unexpectedly for the worse by a large magnitude, private home prices are expected to moderate albeit any corrections are expected to be marginal and not more than 5 percent yearly. Otherwise, private home prices in general should hold or increase marginally at less than two to three percent q-o-q in Q4 2011,” it said.
To contact the journalist, you may send your message to firstname.lastname@example.org


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Primark’s new sustainability drive may not increase customer loyalty
This week, high street king of fast fashion Primark revealed a new 10-year sustainability strategy called “Primark Cares”, pledging to make all of its clothing using recycled or more sustainably sourced materials by 2030, while reducing fashion waste and halving carbon emissions.
It’s new in-store “How Change Looks” campaign is aimed at its customers to embrace a way of thinking, and shopping, with sustainability at the core.
However, earlier this month, omnichannel customer engagement platform Emarsys launched its 2021 Customer Loyalty Index, to coincide with Sustainable Fashion Week. The findings from the study of 7,000 UK customers do not point to Primark gaining much customer loyalty from its newfound ethical stance.
In fact, it revealed that only one fifth of customers (21%) are loyal to fashion brands for ethical reasons, compared to two thirds (62%) who are swayed by product choice and 44% by discounts, points or incentives – which Primark already excels at.
Director of Customer Engagement Solutions at Emarsys, Payal Hindocha, said: “Sustainability is hugely important to fashion - more now than ever before. Nobody is saying fashion brands should give up on their sustainability effort. But sustainability is also being sold as a way to drive more sales and repeat purchases. In reality, that’s not necessarily the case. Loyalty is driven by a wide variety of factors, of which, unfortunately, ethical behaviour is still only one small part.
“Of course, it’s a given that consumers are motivated by price, as every fashionista loves an incentive such as a discount or reward. But we must remember that the key concern for most retailers, included those in the fashion industry, is keeping consumers returning regularly, instead of shopping just once for a one-off bargain. This is fundamental to achieving greater customer loyalty.
“Fashion retailers need to put sustainability at the heart of their brands, but in order to drive real customer loyalty they need to take a more all-encompassing approach. Ethical products, delivered with a strong customer service, at the right price.”
Primark has said that its move to use recycled and more sustainably sourced materials will not result in higher prices. For its customers to be swayed into making more ethically-minded purchases, the retailer may well need to stand firm on that commitment.


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Fresh off news of its first expansion outside of China into Germany, CATL is expanding further as part of a new $6 billion dollar battery chain project in Indonesia. Through its subsidiary and an agreement with Indonesia PT AnekaTambang (ANTAM) and PT Industri Baterai Indonesia (IBI), CATL will have a majority stake in five of the six planned battery projects.
Contemporary Amperex Technology Co Ltd., aka CATL, is a global energy technology company and the leading EV battery manufacturer in China. In fact, its ever-growing presence has helped it retain its crown as the world’s largest battery manufacturer by installed capacity for a fifth-straight year.
More recently, CATL has taken increased efforts to integrate more sustainability into the battery manufacturing process, announcing a new $5 billion recycling facility as well as a zero-carbon plant in China.
At the same time, the battery powerhouse (literally) is working to expand its manufacturing processes outside of China for the first time. Earlier this month, the battery maker received production approval to manufacture at a plant being constructed in Thuringia, Germany.
Not to be outdone, CATL has shared additional expansion plans, this time a bit closer to home in Indonesia.
CATL is helping build a new battery industry in Indonesia
The battery manufacturer shared details of the multi-faceted $5.968 billion project on its WeChat, explaining each company’s role. The multi-party agreement includes Prokin Times, which is a subsidiary of Guangdong Bangpu, which is a subsidiary of CATL.
The other two parties are Indonesia PT AnekaTambang (ANTAM) – a state-owned mining company –and Indonesian Battery Company (IBI) – another state-owned company dedicated to investments in battery production by Indonesia National Petroleum Corporation, State Electricity Corporation, National Mining Corporation, and ANTAM.
Combined, the three parties will invest nearly $6 billion to ensure the construction of power battery industry chain projects in the FHT Industrial Park in East Hamahela County, North Maluku, as well as other industrial parks in Indonesia. Zeng Yuqun, founder and chairman of CATL, spoke:
The Indonesian power battery industry chain project is an important milestone for CATL’s global strategic layout. The Indonesian project will become a symbol of the evergreen friendship between China and Indonesia, and we are very concerned about the future development of the project. full of confidence.
In addition to battery manufacturing in Indonesia, the investment will fund several sub-projects to support CATL, including battery recycling and mining vital materials like ore and nickel. As you can see from the chart above shared in CATL’s announcement on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange, it owns a majority stake between 60-70% on five of the six battery projects, and a 49% stake in a nickel development project alongside ANTAM.
According to CATL, these projects will further its strategic layout in the battery industry and ensure its supply of key resources and raw materials – all while reducing production costs and further promoting its dedication to battery recycling.
According to CATL, project construction will begin in Indonesia this year and should be complete in 2026.


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Time： 2020-03-09 10:40:45
From： electronics co., LTD.
Before the outbreak we make the giant that the circuit board fails
New Year's new atmosphere, shenzhen tongchuangxin electronics co., LTD. Started on February 24, 2020.The start date was originally set at the beginning of the decade, but the new coronavirus outbreak in the province at the end of 2019 required companies to start work on Feb. 10.Our employees of tongchuangxin arrived at the factory on February 10th, and the leader told them to isolate themselves for 14 days to make sure nothing was wrong before they could start work, so they officially started work on February 24th.
Restarting to work after the inspection of the health organization can be approved to go to work, it is understood that dongguan stone row as an industrial city in the day of 10 through the application is only 3 qualified through.And we and chuangxin circuit board in this severe outbreak of health issues in a vote. After the resumption of work, we set up a temperature measuring station to take the temperature of each person entering the factory, distribute masks and register them, so as to protect each other and refuel each other before the epidemic.
The outbreak has led to a demand for medical equipment, such as temperature guns and AI detection systems. As an old brand manufacturer specialized in making circuit boards for 20 years, we have our own professional technical team. For AI and electronic and electrical products often need the circuit board can be produced, you can contact us and pay attention to our official website


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How to enjoy popular animation experience exhibitions at home
Conjinwon’Confinity Business’ Launched’Shinbi Apartment VR Package’ in connection with CJ ENM and Alpha Circle
Realization of seamless 8K high-definition with 3D VR video playback service
Utilizing human resources and intellectual property rights of large corporations, adding ideas and technologies from startups
The area of realistic content using animation has been expanded. The media immersive experience exhibition has reached the stage of enjoying virtual reality (VR) at home. Korea’s most popular animation’Shinbi Apartment’ took its first steps.
On the 19th, the Korea Creative Content Agency announced on the 19th that CJ ENM and Alpha Circle, which were linked through’CON:FINITY’, a start-up development and support project linked to content companies, have released’Shinbi Apartment VR Package’. ‘Shinbi Apartment Media Adventure: I’m Going to Save!’ It is a product that reconstructs the program before the experience into VR content. CJ ENM XR Business Team Manager Lee Kun-chang explained, “You can experience the world of’Shinbi Apt.’ that can only be met in the exhibition hall,” and said, “You can feel like you have met with various ghosts as well as the main characters Mystery, Hari, and Advent.” .
There was a case before the exhibition space was implemented with VR video. However, it was not possible to convey full immersion due to poor image quality and stuttering. CJ ENM overcame the difficulties with’Alpha View’ developed by Alpha Circle. It is a service that plays local 8K three-dimensional (3D) VR images with a technology that divides the entire 360-degree image and synchronizes the divided images. It provides a VR playback player and codec files necessary for an optimized playback environment. It is evaluated that the technology to improve VR image quality through screen division and synchronization method is the most outstanding.
Eui-Hyun Shin, CEO of Alpha Circle, said, “We were able to realize 8K-class image quality in VR with an exclusive algorithm.” “Only the user’s viewing angle area up to the display limit is implemented in ultra-high quality, and the rest is waited with the minimum quality. It is expected to be used in a variety of ways by seamlessly connecting the segmented images without error of one frame.”
Technological innovation gained momentum by participating in’Confinity’. Instead of providing CJ ENM with various ideas and technologies, they were able to utilize their human resources and intellectual property (IP). CEO Shin said, “We were able to prove the possibility of our technology as a result of launching a cooperative business with the arrangement of Conjin One. With this product launch, we were able to commercialize’Alpha View’, as well as transmit 16K super-resolution VR contents and I will devote myself to developing video synchronization technology.” “We were able to meet customers”needs’ by meeting with excellent startups,” said Lee. “We plan to continue cooperative business in various fields.”
This achievement is likely to lead to the expansion of’Confinity’. Park Gyeong-ja, head of the corporate talent cultivation headquarters of Kon Jin-won, said, “12 content startups that successfully completed projects with large companies last year have more than doubled sales compared to the previous year and attracted an investment of 20.1 billion won.” I will contribute to the construction,” he said. He added, “We plan to carry out content open innovation worth KRW 1 billion, and support commercialization funds, business cooperation with partners, investment linkage, and customized consulting.”
Reporter Lee Jong-gil email@example.com


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After four years of planning and construction, Golden State Foods (GSF) officially opened its new 160,000-square-foot processing plant in Opelika, Ala. The plant will produce fresh and frozen patties and will serve six McDonald’s distribution centers and 2,900 McDonald’s restaurants throughout the Southeast, as well as four Nestlé manufacturing facilities. The plant’s opening has created more than 200 jobs for the local Opelika community.
The official ribbon-cutting was attended by GSF’s board of directors, CEO Mark Wetterau, McDonald’s executives and franchise owners, and city officials from Opelika. In his opening comments, Mayor Gary Fuller thanked the company for selecting the city and praised the organization for its values.