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Growing internet use: Social and economic impacts
The use of internet is growing at a faster rate than any other technology since the last one and half decades in both developed and developing countries. Moreover, internet has
become a marketplace
for producers, consumers and traders cutting out the role of middlemen, hence making markets efficient. Efficient markets could provide transparency in prices of goods and services that people value.
Internet has a variety of uses. It has to offer beyond expectation and for all kinds of users. Students get important materials for learning. Professionals and scholars get a wide variety of related materials to teach and research. Businessmen have wide range of use of internet for accelerating their businesses. Both sellers and buyers now-a-days are using internet service to buy and sell products. A customer of a bank has easy access to view his/her saving/deposit and loan account through the internet. A job seeker finds vacancies on the internet. A farmer finds new methods to cultivate via internet. These are a few examples of ordinary use; there are more things that internet offers such as email, instant messaging and even video conferencing.
It is believed that the internet has boosted up economies just like mobile phones have. Macroeconomic studies suggest that the internet and mobile phones boost growth. In 2009, World Bank published a study conducted by Christine Zhen-Wei Qiang on the impact of internet and mobile phones on economic growth. The study found interesting results with their contribution bigger in developing countries than in developed ones. A 10% increase in mobile phone adoption has increased growth in GDP per person by 0.8% in a developing country while it is only
0.6% for developed countries. In a similar manner, a 10% increase in dial-up and broad-band internet access has increased growth in GDP by 1.1% and 0.75% and 1.4% and 1.2% respectively for developing and developed countries.
Similarly, a study was carried out by Aparajita Goyal of World Bank with an objective to examine how the gradual introduction of internet kiosks affected the market for soyabeans in Madhya Pradesh of India. According to “The Economist”, farmers in the region sell their soyabeans to intermediaries in open auctions at government-regulated wholesale markets called mandi. The intermediaries then sell on the produce to food-processing companies. The problem with this approach for the farmers is that the traders have a far better idea about the prices prevailing in different markets and being offered by processing companies. With only a few traders at each mandi, they can easily collude to ensure that they pay less than the fair market price; they can then boost their profits by selling the beans at a higher price.
Ms Goyal evaluated the impact of kiosks on prices using historical data from mandis and the locations and installation dates of the kiosks. She found that the presence of kiosks in a district was associated with an instant and persistent increase of 1.7% in the average price paid at mandis in that district. As expected, the availability of price information increased the level of competition between the traders, raising prices and reducing the variation in prices between nearby mandis. Farmers’ profits increased by 33%, and the cultivation of soyabeans increased by an average of 19% in districts with kiosks.
Boston Consulting Group and Telener Group in a study of analyzing the social and economic impact of internet in emerging economies found that a 10% increase in internet penetration could increase GDP by 1% to 2.5%, increase new business activities by approximately 1% and boost total government revenues in some countries by 8% to 9%. It also emphasized that internet can increase and diversify income, increase access to information and essential services such as banking and government and enhance life style and entertainment options regardless of people living in urban or rural areas.
Most of the developing countries like Nepal are ill-prepared to benefit from the opportunities that the internet has brought to the developed countries. It is because they lack the physical and human capital along with the institutions required to exploit e-economy. Despite the lack of adequate infrastructure, the internet users in Nepal have been increasing over time. A considerable number of households in urban areas have Internet access, however, it is a rare species in rural areas. Cyber cafés are in operation in every corner of the urban areas to provide internet access to ordinary people. The initiation of the use of internet for gainful purpose is not yet introduced.
There is no facility of internet to the farmers to
update their knowledge about their product prices, market situation, input prices and other related efficient technology to increase the production and productivity. To take advantage from this, access to internet should reach the people of rural areas and a study should be undertaken focusing on the impact on economic growth.
Dr. Dhungel is
Associate Professor, Central Department of Economics, TU


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Some e-cigarette batteries are exploding without warning and causing blindness, serious burns and permanent injuries. A teenager in New York was blinded in one eye and may have permanent damage to his hands. An e-cigarette he was testing at a mall kiosk in Brooklyn exploded. In Florida, a 21 year old man almost died after his e-cigarette exploded in his face. This left the man with third degree burns to his entire face, serious burns to his esophagus and battery acid in his lungs. Another man from Longboat Key was hospitalized with serious burns and required skin grafts after his e-cigarette exploded in the pocket of his shorts. These are just a few examples of the growing number of exploding e-cigarette tragedies which have prompted numerous lawsuits and calls for mandatory consumer warnings and regulation of the e-cigarette industry.
What is it that’s causing these explosions? It’s the small rechargeable lithium ion batteries that power the devices. These batteries contain highly flammable electrolytes that can ignite with explosive force if overheated, overcharged or misused. Carrying e-cigarettes and/or spare batteries in your pocket with car keys or other items can also lead to battery damage and explosions. There are also a lot of shoddy “no name brand” batteries and chargers on the market that may be more likely to explode than their more expensive brand-name counterparts.
Since there are very few laws currently applicable to e-cigarettes in the U.S., e-cigarettes are not subjected to mandatory safety testing and regulation. Consumer advocates are hoping that this will change, but even with mandatory testing and regulation, as long as lithium ion batteries continue to be used to power the devices, there will be a risk of fire and injury. In addition to wanting to get to get the word out about the dangers of e-cigarettes, the attorneys at Heintz & Becker have made it a priority to hold e-cigarette sellers and manufacturers responsible for the injuries and damages they have caused. If you or a member of your family has been injured by an e-cigarette battery, dispenser, or e-liquid, call us for a no-obligation consultation and evaluation of you case.
Source(s): FOX 13 News, "Longboat Key man has grafts after e-cig battery burns", posted May 10, 2016; FOX 13 News, "Video shows e-cigarette explode in man's pants", posted February 25, 2016; FoxNews.com, "14-year-old boy left blinded after e-cigarette explodes at Brooklyn mall", posted April 15, 2016; FoxNews.com, "Florida man placed in a coma after e-cigarette explosion", posted October 28, 2015; Naples Daily News, "Exploding e-cigarette sparks lawsuit", posted January 27, 2016; CBS Chicago, "2 investigators: Smokers Get Burned From Exploding E-Cigarettes", posted February 16, 2016; HowStuffWorks, "How Lithium-ion Batteries Work"; Wired, "Why Hoverboards Keep Exploding", posted December 12, 2015
Related Posts: Urgent Health Warning: Keep E-Cigarettes and Poisonous Liquid Nicotine Away From Children, News about Electronic Cigarettes and Minors, Health Alert: Warnings Issued for Contaminated Tattoo Ink
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Stramaglio Consulting has announced a new partnership with logistics firm Offsite Office Equipment Storage to provide solutions to businesses in the imaging channel.
Offsite Office Equipment Storage has been serving office equipment dealers and OEM direct branches for many years with its service options for transportation, delivery, storage and management of equipment. Working with Stramaglio Consulting, Offsite will expand its customer base across the nation and create new partners in the imaging channel.
“We are thrilled to be working with Mike and the Stramaglio Consulting team,” said Offsite President Scott Murr. “We have a unique product offering, and I cannot imagine a better group to work with to help get Offsite Office Equipment Storage and RenewAlert to the next level”
“I’m so pleased to announce that Offsite is our first client,” said Mike Stramaglio, founder of Stramaglio Consulting. “They are a well-established company on the Inc. 5000, and I’m happy to be working with them to bring transportation and logistics solutions to the imaging channel.”
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3D printer manufacturer Mcor Technologies has announced a partnership with Staples that will enable the office supplies retailer to launch a new 3D printing service.
Dubbed \”Staples Easy 3D,\” the service will be available via the online Staples Office Center, and will utilize Mcor\’s IRIS 3D printer, which prints 506 dpi, fully 3D models. Customers can upload their desired 3D objects electronically to the Center, and then either pick them up at a nearby Staples store or have them delivered to their address.
Sounds great, right? Well, unfortunately, the service has only officially been confirmed for a Q1 2013 release in the Netherlands and Belgium thus far. Staples Printing Systems director of business development Oscar Pakasi says that the service will be rolled out to other markets in the future, but no specifics were given.
Same goes with what the price of these 3D prints will be, although Mcor\’s press release did term them as \”low-cost.\” For what it\’s worth, impatient printers can pick up the Mcor IRIS when it goes on sale in December for the not-so-low price of €11,300 (or roughly $15,900).
3D printing, for the uninitiated, is just about exactly what it sounds like. It\’s still in its early stages, but rest assured that turning digital models into actual three-dimensional ones is something people can do now. Expect to see much more of it in the future.


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Bengaluru: CureFit, a healthcare and fitness start-up launched by former Flipkart executives Mukesh Bansal and Ankit Nagori, has raised as much $15 million in Series A funds from Kalaari Capital, Accel Partners and IDG Ventures, one of the largest early rounds of funding ever by an Indian start-up.
CureFit will launch an app in the first half of next year that will offer preventive healthcare services.
It also plans to tie up with offline health and fitness service providers such as gymnasiums.
The company has hired 10 employees to work on product, technology and other functions. Kalaari’s founder Vani Kola will join CureFit’s board of directors.
“We aim to build out an innovative product which will help the consumers manage their health proactively with heavy use of technology and data. We will offer solutions to all people who want to live healthily and avoid lifestyle diseases. So, we will first focus on preventive healthcare and then expand to other areas. We’re looking at this market as a 8-10 year play," Bansal said.
All the three investors, Kalaari, Accel and IDG, had also backed Bansal in his previous venture Myntra, the online fashion retailer that was bought by Flipkart in May 2014 in a $330 million-plus deal.
“We believe that proactive health management is a large space and requires the right mix of online and offline channels," said Subrata Mitra, partner, Accel Partners. “Both experiences, seamlessly integrated will provide end-to-end proactive health management to consumers. It’s a complex problem and, therefore, needs the right entrepreneur to address. This is where the combined strength of Mukesh and Ankit will be invaluable. Mukesh is an outstanding entrepreneur and CEO. Adding Ankit provided the right balance of strategy and execution to the team."
Bansal and Nagori resigned as commerce platform head and chief business officer, respectively, from Flipkart in February. Their departures followed a restructuring at Flipkart in January in which the firm named Binny Bansal as its new chief executive, replacing Sachin Bansal.
In March, Bansal and Nagori said they pooled in $5 million to launch a start-up in the area of healthcare and sports and fitness.
Existing healthcare start-ups such as Practo and 1mg are also adding sport and fitness categories to boost user engagement.
Given the massive size of the healthcare sector, many start-ups and investors are aggressively looking for opportunities to build businesses in this space.
“Currently, there are multiple service offerings available in the market in a fragmented manner, but none of them lets users manage their health needs end to end. CureFit is an end-to-end solution that will enable users to take full control of their health to improve the quality of life and reduce long-term healthcare costs," said Nagori.


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Television audiences have more ways to see their favorite programming as internet connectivity expands beyond desktop computers and smartphones. Smart TVs give them broader choices of individualized content and an improved viewing experience that supports their receptivity to advertising that’s more targeted.
“There’s a whole new evolution of opportunity out there within the CTV landscape, with performance-based and direct response television,” Trevor Hamilton, managing director, Americas at data analytics firm Kochava, said in this interview with Beet.TV. “There’s a lot going on within the environment as it relates to forward-leaning trends just in terms of people engaging with content, doing more with the hardware.”
Kochava’s roots are in mobile advertising, where performance metrics are a key part of figuring out how campaigns deliver results such as app installs. As television becomes more cross-platform, advertisers are gaining similar insights into performance. They also have more ability to reach target audiences who show their interests by downloading CTV apps for Roku streaming devices or smart TVs from manufacturers including Samsung and LG.
“The hardware manufacturers — the Roku’s and the LG’s and the Samsung’s of the world are indeed becoming the new app stores,” Hamilton said, pointing to Roku’s data showing it offers 40,000 apps to customers, “and consumer behavior is now leading in the direction where people are more savvy and sophisticated to seek out new content and apps that make sense for their consumer-viewing tastes.”
CTV apps and the supporting technological infrastructure are helping brands to expand their metrics beyond reach and frequency to include data about other parts of the consumer purchase funnel.
“This full-stack end-to-end capability is enabling brands to engage with consumers within CTV content in ways that are really sophisticated and really taking it up a step from where linear left off in sort of the new evolution of digital,” Hamilton said.
You are watching “Driving Audience Strategies with CTV Performance Data,” a Beet.TV Leadership Series Presented by MNTN. For more videos, please visit this page.


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H&am is cutting 1,100 jobs at its frozen food and grocery stores and shutting down its frozen products business, the retailer said Thursday.
The news comes just one week after the U.S. Department of Agriculture said H&ams frozen foods business is in serious need of a $50 million capital improvement.
H&s frozen food business is a subsidiary of the American grocery chain, which owns the H&AM brands.
The company said in a statement that it is working closely with its suppliers to secure a long-term financing plan that includes the sale of its frozen foods, which include H&AMS frozen fruits and veggies, H& frozen meat products and H&M frozen cheeses.
The decision to sell the frozen foods and grocery business comes at a time when many frozen food companies are struggling with high commodity prices and dwindling consumer demand for its products.
The move by the company marks the first time the retailer has shut down a food and frozen food product business.
The company did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
In November, the company announced that it was selling the H &B frozen food unit to Walmart for about $25 billion.
The retailer said the sale includes H&ing food products including H&ammel ice cream, H &am canned ice cream and H &ams frozen meats, and Hampons frozen eggs, but it declined to detail any additional details about the sale.


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How Microsoft Partner of the Year winners are planning for FY23
Microsoft kicked off its new fiscal year in July with its annual Partner of the Year Award winner announcements. The yearly awards recognize significant established and up and coming partners across diverse industries and technological use cases. MSCloudNews reached out to several award winners to learn about their latest perspective on going to market as a Microsoft partner, what customers are asking for, and their outlook for the rest of FY23.
Meeting market needs
Many supply chain technology companies focus on only one segment of the supply chain, but Microsoft Global Automotive, Manufacturing & Supply Chain, and Retail & Consumer Goods finalist Blue Yonder focuses more broadly on warehouse and transportation management, commerce capabilities like order management, and shop floor management, says Carl D’Costa, SVP and General Manager for Worldwide Partner Success. Over the years, Blue Yonder has acquired smaller technological companies to grow its portfolio and currently has over 3,000 customers. A typical Blue Yonder customer is a large enterprise, but the company is increasingly expanding its business to target large SMBs by building integrations with Microsoft Dynamics. D’Costa explained:
Supply chain is unlike CRM or other widely deployed SaaS segment, because supply chain is ripe to move to SaaS with only 11 percent of supply chain deployment customers using cloud-based SaaS. Most are traditionally on-prem, so the market opportunity for Blue Yonder moving our segment to the cloud means there is a huge opportunity with Azure.
Insight Enterprises received the Canada Partner of the Year Award and its CISO was recognized by Microsoft as an industry changemaker of the year. The company also won a Partner of the Year Award for its work as a manufacturing industry partner. Paul Erhardt, VP of Insight Enterprises told MSCN:
Application modernization as well as data and AI were the two key things that really drove our excellence in that category. Taking AI from an app [modernization] perspective, and refactoring, rewriting apps into the cloud—we leverage a lot of native Azure capabilities there. We focus on accelerating Microsoft clients to help them build modern data warehouses.
For its part, WANdisco, which self-describes as a “data activation” company, featured on the list as a finalist for the 2022 Microsoft Rising Azure Technology Partner of the Year Award. Chris Cochran, WANdisco’s VP of Alliances said that Hadoop data migrations remain a core part of WANdisco’s business, but massive quantities of data are becoming available at the edge from sources like IoT sensors and autonomous vehicles. WANdisco views this data as a big opportunity and recently concluded two projects with major automakers to migrate petabytes of IoT data from the edge. “We’re trying to monetize at the edge and support high-definition data capacity,” Cochran said.
Managing data is a big part of what local governments do and a key area of focus for Accela, according to Chief Operating Officer Tom Nieto. The company won the Microsoft US Government Partner of the Year award, and has started working with customers to support Azure data warehouses, while simultaneously building up its Azure PaaS and security support. Local policymakers often have access to massive amounts of data, but no easy means to analyze it. In one recent project, Accela helped a large city government create live data dashboards to view gaps in community engagement for a broadband strategy. Nieto explained that embedding Power BI and analytics into Microsoft-based solutions has been a winning model for their clients.
A lot of agencies really run in silos. With the rise of [municipal] CIOs and really informed elected stakeholders, they’re thinking about how to deliver to end clients and communities in a much more cohesive way. For instance, residential building [contractors] often have to go to multiple agencies, which is a big pain especially across jurisdictions [and we can help to streamline that business licensing process].
Investing in Azure
Partner of the Year award winners have each chosen to invest in Azure in different ways. Blue Yonder made the choice years ago to focus exclusively on customers that use Azure. As a result, Blue Yonder uses Azure building blocks throughout its products, relying on IaaS, middleware, and AI technology for instance. Because of the significant component of Microsoft technology in its products, it is building integrations with Teams and working closely with Microsoft’s internal sales teams. D’Costa said:
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Meta-owned Facebook is trying to up the short video game by adding a new feature, Sharing to Facebook Reels. It will allow other app developers to add a new “Sharing to Facebook Reels” option to their apps.
Short-form content has taken the world by storm. More and more smartphones users are consuming short-form content. Short video sharing platform TikTok is among the most downloaded apps on Android and iOS. Looking at the popularity of TikTok, every other major player in the social media space added short videos to their platforms.
Facebook was not going to be far behind in this race. So the company added Reels on both Instagram and Facebook. Leveraging its vast user base, Facebook Reels is already seeing high engagement. Now the company is planning for more app developers to add Sharing to Reels feature in their app.
Facebook Sharing To Reels Feature
The feature sounds very exciting for third-party platforms as their users will be able to distribute their content on Facebook Reels. It will help creators reach a wider audience. If utilized by businesses, they can also promote their brands easily.
The feature is already rolling for both Android and iOS platforms. Developers can add the Sharing to Reels features and make it possible for their users to tap into Facebook’s 1 Billion strong user base.
So you might expect to see a ‘Share to Reels’ feature on your favorite app very soon. Would you like to share your short-form content on Facebook Reels, or do you think other platforms like TikTok and YouTube Shorts are the future? Do let us know in the comments.


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Redmi K20 has started receiving Android 10 update in China. The latest update version number is MIUI V188.8.131.52.QFJCNXM.
Redmi K20 Android 10
There is news of an update. This update has just been rolled out in China. This update is expected to be received in other regions soon. Remember that Redmi K20 Pro received this update in September itself.
Now the non-pro variants of this series will get this update.
focus mode, preference for system notifications, bubble notifications, smart reply and new gesture navigation mode.
According to a report by Chinese tech publication ITHome, the Redmi K20 has started receiving Android 10 updates in China. The latest update version number is MIUI V184.108.40.206.QFJCNXM.
The report also shared screenshots of 20 of Redmi getting updates in the Chinese market. According to the screenshot, the update is 2.3 GB.
At the moment, it is not clear how long the update will be released for 20 Redmi users in India.
How to download Android 10-based MIUI 11 update
With Android 10 update available, your notification should come in 20 Redmi handsets. If you cannot wait, then go to Settings> About phone> System update in Redmi 20 and check it.
If the update is available, select the download and install option. There is nothing wrong with taking backup as a precaution before major updates.
The Redmi K20 has already received the MIUI 11 update. It brings with it modern UI, dynamic sound system, dynamic font system, me work app, me go app and more.
With Android 10 update, almost all the features that should be released in the phone were released by Google.
But there is a lot of customization in the MIUI. In such a situation, the avatar of features may be changed.


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Antwerp Exapansion Builds on the Groups’ Recent Move into the ARA Market
Gulf Petrochem Group, the UAE based global bunker supplier, has today announced that it is now officially offering physical bunker supply in the port of Antwerp (Belgium) from its existing office in Rotterdam (Netherlands) with immediate effect.
The new offering will cater to the group’s global customers and provide them with a wide portfolio of marine fuel products such as RMG 380 and LSGO from two exclusive time chartered barges, the Valsinni and the Chardonnay. Both barges have a capacity of 4,600 dwt (deadweight tonnage), Valsinni at 3,000 dwt and the Chardonnay at 1,600 dwt, and pumping capacity of 960 cbm/hour and 840 cbm/hour respectively. Both barges have been exclusively chartered from Gulf Petrochem’s reliable and existing barge partner, Dari BV.
The launch of physical supply operations in Antwerp comes off the back of Gulf Petrochem’s successful launch of its Rotterdam operations earlier this year. The group’s ARA expansion will further compliment its growing global footprint in bunker supply which to date includes all ports in the UAE, West Africa, Gulf of Kutch, Indian ports of Kandla, Sikka and Vadinar as well as the expansion of the Singapore and London offices.
Speaking of the developments in Antwerp, Neil Lamerton – Global Head of Bunkering at Gulf Petrochem Group said, “Entering the Antwerp market only serves to reaffirm the group’s commitment to grow the business off the back of a very successful start in Rotterdam. Further to this, our latest expansion now allows us to supply our customers with consistently high quality products and customer service to match with a fully-fledged, first class ARA service.”
Lamerton went on to add, “our operations in Antwerp will be handled from our established office in Rotterdam which also undertakes worldwide back-to-back bunker and cargo trading, as well as housing the group’s West Africa desk supplying the Ports of Tema and Takoradi respectively.
About Gulf Petrochem Group:
Gulf Petrochem Group is a leading player in the oil industry, specializing in Oil Trading and Bunkering, Oil Refining, Grease Manufacturing, Oil Storage Terminals, Bitumen Manufacturing, and Shipping and Logistics. Headquartered in United Arab Emirates, and having a presence in South Asia, the Far East Asia, Africa and Europe, Gulf Petrochem has emerged as one of the well-established manufacturers and traders of petroleum products in major parts of the world.


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Dec. 13 kicks off what is expected to be the busiest week of the year for the Postal Service, the peak of peak season.
Nearly 2.3 billion First-Class Mail pieces, including greeting cards and packages, are expected to be processed and delivered this week.
The organization, which is encouraging customers to use usps.com for at-home shipping, estimates that on Dec. 14, nearly 500,000 consumers will use online services such as Click-N-Ship to order free Priority Mail boxes, print shipping labels, purchase postage and request free Package Pickup.
Dec. 19 is predicted to be the Postal Service’s busiest day online, with more than 12.5 million consumers expected to go to usps.com for help shipping their holiday gifts.
In total, the organization expects more than 12 billion letters, cards and packages to be processed between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Day.
“Now is the time to mail your holiday greetings and packages to make sure they reach their intended destination in time for holiday gatherings and celebrations,” said Postmaster General Louis DeJoy. “This will be the busiest week of mailing and shipping across the nation, but there is a spirit of excitement throughout the organization and our entire team is working around the clock to deliver the holidays for the nation.”
The Postal Service has been getting ready for peak season since spring.
Preparations included the conversion of 63,000 precareer employees into career positions and a national drive to hire an additional 40,000 seasonal employees; the leasing of 13 million square feet of additional space across more than 100 locations, including more than 50 annexes with multiyear leases to handle the increase in the number of packages; the installation of 112 new package sorting machines; and the expansion of Sunday delivery in select cities with high package volumes.
Additionally, the Postal Service is educating the public.
In a Dec. 13 news release, the organization reminded customers of options such as Click-N-Ship and Package Pickup, encouraging them to go online for tips and videos on at-home shipping and for recommended deadlines for domestic, international and military mail.
The release also salutes USPS employees — a sentiment DeJoy echoes in a new video message.
“Please join me in thanking our nation’s postal workers and wishing them a great holiday season,” he says. “They do an amazing job every day.”


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The West Midlands is well placed to thrive in new world markets because its people understand how trade works, according to Sir Digby Jones.
Sir Digby, soon to stand down as director-general of the CBI, said the 21st century would be all about Asia.
"We can fight it - like the US and France will - and lose, or engage with it and thrive."
Sir Digby was speaking at the annual business dinner organised by Dudley South MP and Trade Minister Ian Pearson.
The event, at the Copthorne Hotel, Brierley Hill, was supported by Black Country Chamber of Commerce and attended by around 150 business leaders.
Sir Digby said: "The West Midlands has a worldwide reputation for trading and liberalised economics. We are globally engaged. The people of the UK actually understand how trade works. Don't forget that per capita we are the biggest traders on earth."
He said the growth of the Indian and Chinese economies meant Britain had to identify new areas to compete.
And he told delegates: "We are moving from traditional commodities to value-added, innovation and brand. Your responsibility as business leaders is to equip and skill your people for the jobs of the future."
The UK still had manufacturing success stories including Airbus, BMW, Nissan and Toyota, as well as booming sectors like pharmaceuticals, financial services, creative industries and academia.
Britain had to face the fact that some companies could not survive. "MG Rover, for instance, was a basket case. I begged the Prime Minister not to put any more money into it. We had to let it go and make sure that the people who lost their jobs could be reskilled to face the future. And that is happening."
He urged the Government to let the private sector get on with what it did best - generating wealth. "If it wasn't for the profits business makes, there would be no tax for schools, hospitals, police officers and prisons.
"Politicians must create an environment where we can get on with doing the business."
Mr Pearson said he believed the Black Country was up to the challenge of the changing world. "There is no doubt that we understand globalisation. For generations we have made our living by exporting our talents and skills.
" There are enormous opportunities for two-way trade with India and China. The key is to make sure you buy them before they buy you."
He also highlighted growth in the Middle East, where more than £600 billion would be spent on infrastructure over the next ten to 15 years.
"They are very keen to do business with us, but we need to get out there and see the opportunities there are."
Sir Digby presented a badge of office to the Chamber's immediate past president Mike Holder, in recognition of his long service to the Black Country business community.


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NYK Line has teamed up with Gujarat Pipavav Port, an APM Terminals facility on India’s west coast, to build and operate a new dedicated automobile logistics terminal at the Pipavav port complex.
HONG KONG — The Austrlalian operations of DP World will face a tough start to the year after a series of bitter disputes in recent months with local trade unions over pay and working conditions at its four port facilities.
The berthing delays that have seen ships back up at anchorage off the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach for the past several weeks are now spreading up the coast to Oakland, in a spillover effect from the Southern California congestion.
With the year coming to a close with no end in sight to the delays at West Coast ports, pressure is building for the federal government to intervene in stalled negotiations between longshoremen and employers that are blamed for at least of the congestion.
Signaling that resolution of congestion issues in Southern California is still a ways away, the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach are taking the additional step of asking the federal government for permission to work together to resolve the worst congestion seen in years at the largest U.S. port complex.
The Port of Long Beach on Monday will open a temporary 30-acre site for empty containers in an attempt to free up chassis and ease congestion that has frustrated shippers for months.
Less than a month before it takes effect, the Port Metro Vancouver drayage program faces major headwinds with truck drivers threatening to strike if changes to pay aren’t made.
The U.S. Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service said today it’s reaching out to the International Longshore and Warehouse Union to see whether it can help in labor talks with U.S. West Coast port employers, and if so, when it could aid.
Truck congestion caused by the deteriorating quality of road networks around the Nhava Sheva port complex, India's largest container gateway, is creating a nightmare for shippers already dealing with months-long rail delays and ocean carrier surcharges at India’s largest container gateway, also known as Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust.
The Nigerian Shippers Council hopes its new regulatory powers will help bring Nigerian ports up to global standards by ensuring concessions are awarded fairly.


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President Benigno Aquino III has yet to meet with US President Barack Obama at the time of this writing. I don’t know how much you could really discuss with the US President on such a short visit or how substantial these discussions are going to be. It is very likely that China’s intrusions into Philippine territory and the US commitment to help with our country’s security would be discussed.
When Obama visited Japan as part of his Asian trip last week, he reassured the nation that it will abide by its commitment to help Japan once China seizes the Senkaku Islands, which has of late soured ties between Japan and China.
With the Enhanced Defense Cooperation deal allowing American soldiers greater access to local military bases expected to be signed to coincide with Obama’s visit, we expect more security cooperation from the US.
There is nothing wrong with the US government increasing joint military exercises with the Philippines in a bid to offset the increasing influence of China in the region.
The Philippines has a Mutual Defense Treaty with the US after all.
It may not be an end-all solution to help peacefully resolve our escalating tensions with China concerning various islands within our territorial waters, but faced with China’s display of irresponsible militarism, our collective attitude should be “let’s get all the help we can get.”
I hope though that President Aquino could also personally lobby for the Save Our Industries Act, a bill in the US Congress that would enable the freer entry of Philippine-made garments into the highly lucrative US market.
The SAVE Act needs to be revived in the US Congress after it failed to pass in the 111th and 112th Congresses. And the Philippine government is looking for new sponsors after the bill’s primary sponsor and champion, Hawaii Senator Daniel Inouye, passed away last year.
Hopefully the SAVE Act could not only be re-filed but passed in the 113th US Congress, of course with the support of the Obama administration and key American legislators.
I don’t think President Aquino would be out of line if he personally lobbies for the SAVE Act.
Mr. Aquino’s popular mandate puts him in a superb position to influence not only the US President but key US legislators to approve the bill. He needs to move fast so that the bill would have a chance this time around. It did not even get past the committee level in the last US Congress sessions.
One of the many hurdles to the bill is China’s special-interest group.
China controls 42 percent of the apparel market in the US. The Philippines’ share is only 1 percent.
SAVE Act is named accordingly because it is meant to “save” or rescue the moribund US textile industry, but it would also benefit the Philippines’ labor-intensive garments industry in a big way because it would allow Philippine-made garments using American fabrics greater access to the US market for men’s, women’s and children’s apparel, worth some $200 billion annually.
Ready-to-wear (RTW) clothes made in the Philippines using American textiles would enjoy definite advantages such as duty-free privileges, thus making them even more price-competitive when they reach US stores.
This will surely encourage more apparel makers from the US to build new factories here, bring in American textiles, harness skilled Filipino workers to design, cut and sew the garments, and then re-export the RTW clothes back to the US.
They will be driven to do this because once their Philippine-made garments are shipped to America they will enjoy higher margins not just because of the low cost of production here, but also owing to the reduced if not zero US tariffs.
The SAVE Act’s backers are predicting 10 to 12 percent lower production costs in the Philippines than in China.
The bill is obviously mutually beneficial to the Philippines and the US. It will spur thousands of new jobs, both in our labor-intensive garments industry and in America’s textile sector.
Garments are already our second-largest export to the US, after semiconductors. The local garments industry, now employing some 150,000 Filipinos, could easily add 100,000 new jobs once the US bill is enacted. In its heyday it provided jobs to 600,000 Filipinos and accounted for export receipts of about $3 billion.
Local contract manufacturers for American apparel makers would also benefit. The Philippines already has a solid reputation when it comes to the manufacture of garments meant for American stores, particularly the high-end ones. Some of these brands have already expressed support for the bill.
The American firms likely to be drawn to the Philippines include Polo Ralph Lauren Corp., Levi-Strauss & Co., Guess? Inc., Urban Outfitters Inc., Aeropostale Inc., American Eagle Outfitters Inc., Pacific Sunwear of California Inc., Hot Topic Inc., Abercrombie & Fitch Co., True Religion Apparel Inc., The Gap Inc.;
Limited Brands Inc.; Buckle Inc.; The Wet Seal Inc., Zumiez Inc., J. C. Penney Co. Inc., Sears Holdings Corp., AnnTaylor Stores Corp., Cache Inc., The Cato Corp., Charming Shoppes Inc., Chico’s FAS Inc., Christopher and Banks Corp., J. Crew Group Inc., Bebe Stores Inc., The Talbots Inc., New York & Co. Inc., and Coldwater Creek Inc.
Many of the American firms are specialty apparel retailers or department stores that produce their own lines of clothing for men, women and children, and some of them already have existing Philippine facilities.
So how about it President Aquino? Can the garments industry count on your personal endorsement of the SAVE Act to President Obama?


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By Divya Thotawatte
Bio Foods celebrated its 25th anniversary last week with the launch of a range of products marketed under its own brand.
The launch is a part of the company’s initiative to give back to the people of the land from which it harvested its wonderful produce. The products launched range from teas, spices, herbs, fruits and vegetables to coconut products and whole grains, and will be accessible to health conscious consumers in Sri Lanka. Bio Foods also plans to introduce the same products to the international audience as well.
Bio Foods Chief Marketing Officer Madusha Ranaweera said: “Our main objective is to give back to the country that produces everything that we export. We export the best produce while the foodstuffs of less quality are sold here. The idea is to make our organic products accessible to Sri Lanka as well since we believe that all people should have access to food of the same quality.”
“Part of our plan is to spread awareness, educate the public on exactly what is certified organic and what is not. Our products are entirely organic, fair trade and biodynamic. What we do doesn’t hurt animals, what we do doesn’t hurt people, and ultimately what we produce doesn’t hurt our bodies,” she added.
Bio Foods Chairman and Founder Sarath Ranaweera stated that from its very inception, Bio Foods implemented fair trade standards to protect its farmers from market prices fluctuations and middle-man exploitation.
“For the assurance of farmers, we calculate the cost of production and add 10% to it. We then call it a minimum farming price and therefore whatever happens we never buy products below that price. So even in the worst cases in the market situations the farmers will have a 10% profit. But if the price moves up they get the conventional price and the premium on top,” he explained, stating that due to this assurance the farmers never leave the project which has led to Bio Foods’ success as well.
As it celebrates its 25th anniversary, Bio Foods has grown to be a leading exporters of tea, spices, and coconut products. With its goal of leaving behind clean air, water and soil for all living things, Bio Foods believes in clean and agro-chemically uncontaminated produce.
Bio Foods Brand Ambassador Otara Gunewardene also speaking at the event stated: “It is important to pay attention to the food that we are consuming and how they are grown, because we’re what we eat. There is a reason as to why hospitals are booming and that is the effect of the change in our lifestyle. We need to create awareness to take the right path in the food that we’re eating.”
Bio Foods, which has been an exporter for the last 25 years, was the first company in the world to export certified organic, bio dynamic and fair trade spices. It continues to supply for several large organic brands in Europe and North America, with an expanding market as the world population gets increasingly more educated and conscious about health and wellbeing.
Pix by Indraratne Balasuriya


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Archive for June 2012
Potato Sack bundle takes root on Steam
Remember the Potato Sack game that Valve used to promote Portal 2?
You could own Sony’s New York HQ
Financial realities are setting in for Sony, who are reported to be considering buyers or renters for its expensive New York headquarters.
Jagged Alliance’s ‘Crossfire’ adds 15-20 hours of gameplay
A standalone expansion (ie; you won’t need the original game to play it) to Jagged Alliance: Back in Action has been announced by bitComposer Games.
A guided tour of Assassin’s Creed 3’s frontier [Video]
Need a bit more information about the Assassin’s Creed gameplay that was shown at E3?
New features and civs explored in Civ V: Gods and Kings dev diary [Video]
2K Games and Firaxis have released a developer diary for the upcoming “Gods and Kings” expansion for Civiliation V, you can watch it in full below.
Dust 514 is free-to-play, but a top loadout costs $0.24
According to CCP vice-president Morgan Godat, a “very, very top end” loadout in PlayStation 3-exclusive free-to-play shooter Dust 514 will set you back $0.24.
If you cheat in Max Payne 3, you will only play other cheaters
Rockstar is testing the waters with a new system for dealing with those players that decide to in Max Payne 3 multiplayer.
Microsoft say that they are not neglecting gamers, but are they?
In the wake of Microsoft’s E3 2012 press conference, the general consensus is that the games are taking a back-seat to the platform holder’s plan to turn the Xbox 360 into a catch-all entertainment and social media device.
EA wins the Mass Effect 3 ending investigation farce
EA has won in the investigation into the advertising campaign for Mass Effect 3.
Second part of Max Payne 3 comic, “Hoboken Blues”, out now
Rockstar has released the second chapter of the Max Payne 3 comic series.
No such thing as a Left 4 Dead prequel, it was all a rumour
Last week there was a rumour going around that Valve were working on a prequel to zombie-fest Left 4 Dead.
Tomb Raider is not like Uncharted, it has attempted rape
Crystal Dynamics has released a statement denying the existence of an “attempted rape” scene.
Gameplay from Microsoft’s Summer of Arcade line-up [Video]
Microsoft is keeping the Xbox Live ‘Summer of Arcade’ line-up pretty much in-house this year, with four of the five games coming from Microsoft’s own Game Studios.
European PS Store launches Vita sale
From tomorrow (that’s 13 June for the time zonally challenged), the EU PlayStation Store will be kicking off a few weeks of Vita-related sales.


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Porsche expects most of its sales to be electric by the end of this decade1 min read . Updated: 08 Feb 2021, 11:19 AM IST
Over the next five years, Porsche will invest 15 billion euros in electrification of its vehicles.
- Porsche sold 20,000 units of its all-electric Taycan last year.
By the end of this decade, more than 80% of all vehicles sold by Porsche Automobile Holding SE will be electric, Chief Executive Officer Oliver Blume told Bild am Sonntag in an interview published on Sunday.
This will include fully electric and hybrid variants, while Porsche will continue to offer its 911 model with internal combustion engines, albeit able to handle synthetic fuels, the newspaper cited the executive as saying.
Porsche said earlier that it expects about half of the cars it sells by 2025 will be electric.
Over the next five years, Porsche will invest 15 billion euros ($18.1 billion) in electrification of its vehicles, the newspaper said. Of the company’s fully electric Taycan model, that starts at 80.000 euros, over 20,000 units were shipped to customers last year, the newspaper said.
This story has been published from a wire agency feed without modifications to the text. Only the headline has been changed.


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Greenyard Foods Secures Real Estate at UK Site
Gent, Belgium-headquartered Greenyard Foods NV has acquired the real estate company of its frozen vegetable production and cold storage site in King's Lynn, United Kingdom. The facility, which freezes and packs peas and beans and a variety of other items, is capable of processing up to 16 tons per hour thanks to systems upgrade in recent years.
Demonstrating further implementation of an ongoing strategic plan, the company now owns all of its production facilities. The latest acquisition is part of the allocation of a bond loan that was issued in July of 2013.
The vegetable and fruit processing and marketing company, whose holdings include the Pinguin frozen division and Noliko canned products unit, operates 15 factories in six European countries. It has acquired a number of production facilities over the past 12 months or so, which optimized investments and accelerated efficiency improvements.
Meanwhile, publically traded Greenyard Foods (Euronext Brussels: GRYFO) has scheduled release of its 2013-14 Annual Report on July 23. Recently the company reported that sales rose +1.8% (or +3.1% at stable exchange rates) to €623.1 million during the fiscal year that ended on March 31, 2014.


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A new joint venture called Hyperbat Limited (Hyperbat combines the strengths of two of the UK’s leading companies, Williams Advanced Engineering and Unipart Manufacturing Group to create the UK’s largest independent vehicle battery manufacturer.
The new company in Coventry will create around ninety new jobs at a new, multi-million pound, high-tech facility that will produce batteries for future hybrid and electric vehicles.
The new company and factory combine world-leading expertise in manufacturing, logistics and safe, innovative, high performance vehicle battery technology from Unipart and Williams. The facility provides a secure future supply chain for UK-based car-makers as their vehicles transition to electric power, with the potential to provide similar solutions to developing marine and aircraft projects in future.
For more about Unipart Manufacturing click here.


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Ubisoft are no doubt pleased with them selves, as Assassin’s Creed 3 is now the fastest-selling game in the company’s history, with total sell-through topping the 7 million mark worldwide just one month after its release.
Fans have wasted no time exploring the game’s open world and getting involved in the action-packed story. In solo missions alone, players have accumulated more than 82 centuries of gaming time and committed more than 3 billion assassinations. The deadly action continues in the multiplayer, where more than twice as many players have joined the multiplayer mode compared to Assassin’s Creed® Revelations. To date, more than 250 million assassinations have been performed in more than 5 billion multiplayer sessions.
“We are delighted with the performance of Assassin’s Creed III this Christmas,” said Rob Cooper, UK managing director, Ubisoft. “This is a beautiful and epic game of exceptional quality and we’re pleased that our fans have responded so well to the brand new universe, storyline and game experience.”
I personally have been getting stuck into the game this last couple of week, anyone been playing or wanting to play this game?


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July 29, 2020
Dylan Grundman O'Neill
Senior State Policy Analyst
July 29, 2020
In South America, Colombia kept its COVID-19 cases relatively low for much of the year by embracing distancing and quarantining measures. This did not protect the country from the economic and tax revenue losses affecting most nations but greatly reduced its number of lost lives.
After months of this relative success, officials decided to use some of their already limited tax revenues to encourage as many people as possible to swarm crowded indoor spaces all at once, creating “a flood of people into retail stores in Black-Friday style mobs.” Since then, coronavirus cases have risen and lockdown policies have been re-instated, lengthened and strengthened.
If this “public health fiasco” sounds like shockingly bad policymaking for the people of Colombia, South America, consider that this very policy will be used in the coming weeks in Columbia, South Carolina, Columbia, Missouri, and Columbus, Ohio. In fact, 16 U.S. states will hold “sales tax holidays” this year. As ITEP’s newly updated brief explains, these events offer dubious benefits at significant public expense even in normal years, problems which are only amplified in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.
For example, sales tax holidays:
- Will deprive state and local services of more than $300 million this year—a cost felt even more acutely as the pandemic wreaks havoc on budgets with major funding cuts already in place;
- Contradict public health guidance against large in-person gatherings, including restrictions on the capacity in retail stores—which is particularly true in Florida and Missouri, where online sales are always exempt from sales taxes so the holidays only apply to in-person shopping;
- Are most likely to benefit higher-income households who can time their purchases as they please and shop around online—an inequity with even higher stakes as these are also the households most likely to be able to shop safely during the pandemic, whereas lower-income families who lack the conveniences of flexible timing, credit cards, and internet access are not only less likely to be able to take advantage of a holiday, but may even have to choose between keeping their families safe or going into crowded stores during peak hours to get the savings; and
- Fail to deliver on their promised economic benefits—a policy debacle that is even less excusable when families, businesses, and local economies are in dire need of policy solutions that actually work.
Read ITEP’s newly updated brief on sales tax holidays here.


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Professional skateboarder Jason Dill spoke in a podcast about a new game by Tony Hawk's Pro Skater and a mobile version of Skate 3, both of which are currently in development. EA is still said to have no plans for Skate 4 – despite the fact that fans have expressed a wish for a successor for years.
Skateboard simulation fans may be able to look forward to supplies in the near future. According to current rumors, new games from Skate and Tony Hawk's Pro Skater are in development. However, the supposed announcement around skate will probably not be what fans have been wanting for many years.
In a podcast, professional skateboarder Jason Dill revealed that Electronic Arts contacted him about a mobile version of Skate 3 ten months ago. And he doesn't seem to be completely satisfied with it either. After EA's request, Jason Dill wanted to know if there was anything else – a hint whether a successor might be under development. However, this does not seem to be the case. Jason Dill subsequently declined to cooperate with the following message.
"No, big deal, no one wants your stupid mobile versions of Skate 3. Make Skate fucking 4 already. Just do it."
In 2010, Skate 3, the last offshoot of the simulation, was released. For years, fans of Skate 4 have wanted a real successor to the game. So far there are no indications. An announcement from Skate 3 Mobile could have similar consequences for EA as the Blizzard debacle with Diablo Immortal at BlizzCon.
In addition to Skate 3, Jason Hill also spoke about a new Tony Hawk's Pro Skater, which is expected to appear in 2020. There have been several rumors about a new game in the past. In 2019, professional skateboarder Lizzie Armanto spoke in the same podcast about appearing in a new Tony Hawk title. The band "The Death Set" recently announced that five of their songs were licensed for a skateboard game with Tony Hawk. We will keep you up to date in this regard.
Also popular with PC game readers
E3 2018: We want these games – video special for the big fair
Skate 3: Now playable on Xbox One via EA Access
Skate 3: Skateboard game now playable on Xbox One


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16 Aug 2020
Jio is offering free data for 5 months: Details here
As part of a special offer, Reliance Jio is providing unlimited 4G data and free Jio-to-Jio phone calls for up to five months, to all the customers who purchase a new JioFi 4G wireless hotspot device.
12 May 2019
Reliance Jio renews Prime membership for existing customers for free
Reliance Jio has disrupted the Indian telecom sector by offering more data, unlimited calling, and a bunch of freebies at affordable tariffs.
06 May 2019
Which telco offers the best content: Jio, Airtel or Vodafone-Idea?
In a bid to retain existing customers and attract new ones, all the major telcos have started revising their plans to offer more calling, data as well as bundled content benefits.
20 Apr 2019
Jio TV launches four new exclusive HD channels: Details here
Expanding its bouquet of services, Jio TV has added four new exclusive HD channels to its video-on-demand and live TV platform.
20 Jan 2019
Best annual recharge plans from Airtel, BSNL, Reliance Jio, Vodafone
Ever since Jio entered the telecom space, competition has made telcos like Airtel, Vodafone, and state-run BSNL to update their plans to offer more benefits to users.
30 Mar 2018
Jio Prime membership extended for 1 more year
Reliance Jio has today announced that customers who took Prime subscription at Rs. 99/year will be able to avail its benefits for another year, free of cost.
25 Mar 2018
Jio Prime subscription expires on March 31. What happens then?
Jio, launched in September'16, disrupted India's telecom sector by offering free data and unlimited voice calls over its VoLTE network.
17 Mar 2018
Buying Samsung Galaxy S9, S9+? Check these Airtel, Jio offers
Samsung Galaxy S9 and S9 Plus went on a worldwide sale yesterday. Now, if you happen to be in India and also planning on buying either of the two smartphones, Airtel and Reliance Jio have some interesting offers for you.
23 Dec 2017
Jio's Happy New Year offers: Special treat with new plans
Amidst cutthroat competition in the Indian telecom industry, Reliance Jio announced the launch of two new plans on Friday as part of its Happy New Year 2018 offers.
09 Sep 2017
Jio offers 25GB free data to Intex 4G smartphone users
Jio is the gift that keeps on giving. Every Reliance Jio user will now receive up to 25GB of additional 4G data if they purchase an Intex smartphone, thanks to the partnership between the two firms.
29 Jul 2017
Reliance Jio Effect: Telecom operators roll out cheap data plans
When Reliance Jio launched last year, it took the telecom sector by storm.
19 Apr 2017
Jio to offer Air Asia ticket discounts for users
Between June 20 to September 30, Reliance Jio users will be able to secure a 15% discount on flight tickets on Air Asia booked through the Air Asia app.
11 Apr 2017
Reliance Jio announces 'Dhan Dhana Dhan' offer for 3 months
There is good news for Reliance Jio customers as the company announced Dhan Dhana Dhan offer which entails 3-months worth of free services.
11 Apr 2017
Reliance Jio and its never ending "surprises"
It appears that TRAI restriction on Jio 'Summer Surprise' offer has not dampened the firm's aim of doling out offers to consolidate market share.
06 Apr 2017
Jio Summer Surprise: Reliance withdraws complimentary benefits after TRAI advisory
Reliance is discontinuing 'Jio Summer Surprise' -three months complimentary benefits- after receiving an advisory from the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI).
31 Mar 2017
Jio to launch Prime sequel
Reliance Jio is likely to release new disruptive plans starting from April 1, as its 'Happy New Year' free data plan is set to expire.
28 Mar 2017
Jio offers 120GB extra data for Prime users
Jio has started a new 'Buy one get one' offer, that gives Jio Prime members up to 120GB extra data for a nominal price.
21 Feb 2017
Reliance Jio extends free offer for 100 million customers
To celebrate 100 million-strong telecom customers base, Reliance Industries chairman Mukesh Ambani today announced a new Jio Prime offer beginning April 1, 2017.


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The shop manager watched as two young men played chess in his tiny downtown café. Business had been dreadful since the pandemic hit, and the return of customers gave him new optimism.
After nearly two years of health measures aimed at slowing the coronavirus, the government began lifting Covid-19 restrictions late last month. At Zhona Café, a cozy, street-side coffee shop in the shadows of Central Market, things were starting to feel busy again.
“I support the reopening,” said Kith Chab, a 22-year-old barista at Zhona. “Coffee sales are up from 50 to around 80 cups per day.”
Prime Minister Hun Sen began loosening pandemic health regulations in late October. He cited the country’s remarkable vaccination rates as a key driver of his decision. Cambodia has inoculated nearly 90% of its population, including most children.
Since Hun Sen’s announcement, most health restrictions have been lifted and companies are again fully operational. Yet for all the problems the reopening has solved, many shops are finding that customers, and even staff, remain scarce, and pre-pandemic ways of life are unlikely to return soon, if ever.
Li Heng, a stall owner at Tuk Thla market on the capital’s west end, said he was thrilled the government finally allowed businesses like his to reopen. But after two weeks, he was earning less than half of what he did before the pandemic. “My business is recovering,” he told Kiripost, but he was unsure when, or if, sales would ever return to pre-pandemic levels.
Companies that catered to large groups were among the hardest hit. Restaurants had endured seating limitations since February 2020. Cinemas were shut completely. Both were allowed to reopen with few restrictions as part of the prime minister’s measures.
As elsewhere, life in the entertainment industry was improving. But normal? Many wondered if that would ever return.
Legend Cinema, which operates nine capital movie theaters, was struggling with staffing shortages as well as slow ticket sales. “Business is not like before,” said Tevoneath Ros, operations director at Legend. “It is much quieter. People still seem afraid of public gatherings.”
As movie-goers trickled back, Rothana Tevy lined up for a ticket to see Marvel Studio’s latest, “Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings.” As thrilled as she was to be back at the movies, she couldn’t help worrying about Covid-19 either.
“Even though everyone was wearing masks, and the cinema followed Covid-19 preventive measures, I still felt unsafe because there were so many people,” said the 22-year-old RULE senior.
“It’s not the same feeling,” she said. “Life now is a lot different than before, in a world with no Covid.”


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Amazon is to create a new fulfilment centre in South West Sydney to bolster its expansion into Australia.
The new 43,000 square metre facility will be located in the Goodman Centenary Distribution Centre in Moorebank, South West Sydney, and the company has already begun recruiting for a range of roles including operations, support and technical specialists.
The new Sydney fulfilment centre, along with Amazon's existing building in Melbourne, will enable the retailer to handle current and future customer demand and speed up delivery to customers across the country, and is planned to start operations in the second half of 2018.
Amazon launched in Australia late last year and has also brought in its fulfilment service – where Australian sellers can utilise Amazon logistics to pick, pack and ship their goods directly from Amazon’s fulfilment centre. Amazon has also announced that its Prime membership service will be coming to Australian customers in mid-2018.
The e-commerce giant currently has more than 1,200 employees in Australia.
Robert Bruce, Amazon Australia operations director, said: “We are thrilled to be establishing our next fulfilment centre in Sydney and working with incredible people in the local community around Moorebank. Sydney represents another important development for our growth strategy in Australia, following a steady and progressive increase in customer demand.
“This new facility builds on the capabilities of our first centre in Dandenong South, allowing us to continue to fulfil our commitment to fast and reliable deliveries for Australian customers. This investment will benefit both customers and the local economy by generating new jobs and providing small and medium sized Australian businesses who sell on amazon.com.au and use our Fulfilment by Amazon program, with an opportunity to more easily access millions of customers across the country.”


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Vietnam’s Ministry of Industry and Trade is seeking feedback on a VND23.69 trillion (US$1 billion) battery cell production project within Vingroup’s VinFast automobile production complex in Hai Phong City.
The trade ministry recently sent a document to the Ministry of Science and Technology and the Ministry of Transport for opinions about the project.
The project is expected to be built within the VinFast automobile production complex at Dinh Vu-Cat Hai Economic Zone on Cat Hai Island off Hai Phong City, according to the report of Vinhomes Industrial Zone Investment JSC (VHIZ), a subsidiary of Vingroup.
In a document sent to the Ministry of Industry and Trade, VHIZ stated it had completed and supplemented necessary paperwork in accordance with the law on investment, construction, environmental protection, and fire and explosion prevention.
The firm asked the trade ministry to appraise the report in accordance with the law.
The project will produce cells to supply VinFast's car and motorbike battery assembly factory.
The battery production will help VinFast ensure the resources needed for the production and business plans of electric vehicle products.
The project will use technology developed by Vingroup's research institute, with the main equipment in the production line imported from South Korea to meet CE and UL standards.
This is a high technology that is widely used in the world, has never been applied in Vietnam, and is not on the list of restricted technologies according to regulations.
VinFast's battery cell products are also researched, developed, and manufactured to meet international standards, including the UN 38.3 Certification for lithium batteries.
In order to ensure an adequate and stable supply of raw materials for production, VinFast has signed cooperation agreements with partners specializing in manufacturing and supplying materials for battery cell production in major markets such as Japan, South Korea, and China.
VinES Energy Solutions JSC, another subsidiary of Vingroup, recently initiated the construction of LFP (lithium ferro-phosphate) battery cell factory at Vung Ang Economic Zone in north-central Ha Tinh Province.
Costing nearly VND6.3 trillion ($267 million), the project covers an area of 14 hectares and has the capacity of 5 GWh per year, equivalent to about 30 million battery cells a year.


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Tarsus On Demand Partners with Dropsuite to Offer Protection for Customer’s Office 365 Data
Dropsuite Limited (ASX: DSE), a leading cloud data backup platform for businesses has partnered with leading South African cloud enabler, Tarsus On Demand, a subsidiary of Tarsus Technology Group, to deliver scalable and secure Office 365 cloud backup services to South African businesses.
Tarsus On Demand will offer its customers Dropsuite’s powerful tools to protect their Office 365 data from cyber threats and accidental data loss. Office 365 Backup by Dropsuite is a comprehensive solution that safeguards Exchange Online, SharePoint, OneDrive, Contacts, Teams and more – all in single pane of glass control panel for ease of management.
According to Statista, African e-commerce will attract nearly 25 million shoppers by 2021, up from 18 million today. This increase in African Internet speed and eCommerce adoption will help drive cloud growth. Tarsus On Demand believes Microsoft Office 365 adoption will continue its impressive march forward as well, and with that, the need to safeguard data.
“Microsoft’s commitment to Africa confirms our belief that cloud-based solutions will continue to gain traction across South Africa,” said Anton Herbst, CEO of Tarsus On Demand. “Dropsuite has set a high bar for Office 365 cloud data protection with its backup, archiving, recovery, and email intelligence solutions and we’re proud to offer Dropsuite to our customers.”
“We have believed in Dropsuite’s potential since we first launched the company more than six years ago, and we were convinced cloud backup would expand to all corners of the globe,” said Ridley Ruth, Dropsuite’s COO. “With outstanding partners like Tarsus On Demand, there’s no doubt that Dropsuite will continue to grow throughout South Africa and beyond.”
Read the Tarsus on Demand Partners with Dropsuite press release for more information.


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Sony and Microsoft’s vast console empires have made it difficult for them to innovate and capitalise on the rise in low cost indie games, says Playjam CMO Anthony Johnson.
Playjam will release GameStick this summer for $79 in the US and £79.99 in the UK, where it will retail exclusively at Game. It is targeting casual and ‘mid-core’ games players – the kind that play low-cost mobile games but aren’t likely to pay a premium for a traditional, high-end games console.
“The issue is that as we all know, elephants can’t jump,” Playjam CMO Anthony Johnson told us. “[Sony and Microsoft] have built an extraordinary successful market which they have dominated for years, but times are changing and the underlying models employed by these manufacturers will make it extremely difficult for them to innovate. A model built around huge hardware subsidies and Hollywood-type budgets for content will only ever serve a relatively niche segment of the market.”
Johnson says that GameStick was conceived as a reaction to the ‘old’ marketplace, and it reached its $100,000 Kickstarter target with ease. It currently has $647,658 in funding – a not inconsequential sum, but one that’s dwarfed by the $8.5 million raised thus far by fellow microconsole Ouya.
“Ouya got to Kickstarter first and ran a legendary campaign,” says Johnson. “We would probably see them as our closest competition today although we have chosen to go down a different route in terms of form factor that we think offers players more. I know that this sounds canned but competition is good. We are looking to define a new market and realistically this is going to take a number of players to achieve.”
Its pitch to developers is to offer an easy way of getting games onto the big screen, but with competing tech on its way, fragmentation could threaten this new marketplace. ”If new hardware manufacturers insist on throwing up barriers by asking developers to follow proprietary key mapping technologies then we will see fatigue from the developer community hit pretty quickly,” says Johnson. “GameStick has decided to employ open standards to ensure as much cross compatibility between devices and content as possible. Developers are far more likely to support platforms which require the least effort to port to.”
Johnson says that GameStick is courting indies and large publishers, and tells us that “500 developers have signed up so far.”
“If your game runs on an Android device and would make sense on TV it will work on our platform with either minimal or no tweaking,” he says.
One million units sold is the benchmark for Playjam, at which point it would consider GameStick to be a viable platform in the long term. And Johnson doesn’t believe that the arrival of PS4 will dilute demand for GameStick in any meaningful way.
“I think Sony made a couple of neat innovations around the integration of social media within the platform but these will take time for developers to integrate, whereas the games we are targeting are inherently social given that they originated on mobile platforms,” he adds. “Their underlying model has not changed. Until it does, devices such as GameStick will legitimately be able to claim to be truly disruptive to the industry as a whole.”


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EPA Names DIRECTV 2013 ENERGY STAR® Partner of the Year
EPA Names DIRECTV 2013 ENERGY STAR®Partner of the Year
DIRECTV Earns Award for Protecting the Environment By Manufacturing Energy-Efficient Products
EL SEGUNDO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has named DIRECTV as a 2013 ENERGY STAR Partner of the Year for its outstanding contribution to reducing greenhouse gas emissions by manufacturing energy-efficient products and for educating consumers about energy efficiency. DIRECTV's accomplishments will be recognized at an awards ceremony in Washington, D.C. on March 26.
Since becoming an ENERGY STAR partner in 2009, DIRECTV has made significant contributions to energy efficiency, including:
- More than 40 million receivers, representing more than 95 percent of all DIRECTV receivers purchased since joining the ENERGY STAR program, are ENERGY STAR-qualified.
- Deployed more than 10 million ENERGY STAR-qualified receivers in 2012 alone, which will result in an estimated electricity savings of more than 900 million kilowatt hours each year.
- Delivery of energy savings to millions of set top boxes already in homes by enabling them to automatically go into an energy saving lower power mode when not in use.
- Helping educate millions of Americans about energy efficiency and the ENERGY STAR program through a variety of marketing tactics.
- Launching the innovative Genie™ whole-home HD DVR system, which utilizes a server and thin clients to offer customers substantial energy savings relative to whole-home HD DVR installations introduced only a few years prior.
- Implementing the RVU remote user interface technology (www.rvualliance.org), which drives down energy consumption even further by enabling a receiver-less connection to compatible RVU client devices including many available Smart TV models.
"Environmental stewardship continues to be an important aspect of our business and the actions we all take to conserve energy and reduce waste have an immediate impact," said Romulo Pontual, executive vice president and CTO of DIRECTV. "When they see the ENERGY STAR mark on their DIRECTV receivers, our customers recognize that they are saving energy and money while continuing to enjoy their high-quality, feature rich DIRECTV service."
"Through their commitment to producing quality energy-efficient ENERGY STAR products, DIRECTV has demonstrated their commitment to saving consumers money and protecting our environment," said Bob Perciasepe, acting administrator, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. "DIRECTV is recognized today for this outstanding effort that has helped protect the climate for all Americans."
Over the last 20 years, with help from ENERGY STAR, American families and businesses have saved more than $230 billion on utility bills and prevented more than 1.8 billion metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions.
The 2013 Partner of the Year Awards are given to manufacturers and retailers that successfully promote and deliver ENERGY STAR qualified products, saving consumers money and reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Award winners are selected from the nearly 20,000 organizations that participate in the ENERGY STAR program.
DIRECTV (NAS: DTV) is one of the world's leading providers of digital television entertainment services delivering a premium video experience through state-of-the-art technology, unmatched programming and industry leading customer service to more than 35 million customers in the U.S. and Latin America. In the U.S., DIRECTV offers its over 20 million customers access to more than 185 HD channels and Dolby-Digital® 5.1 theater-quality sound, access to exclusive sports programming such as NFL SUNDAY TICKET™, Emmy- award winning technology and higher customer satisfaction than the leading cable companies for 11 years running. DIRECTV Latin America, through its subsidiaries and affiliated companies in Brazil, Mexico, Argentina, Venezuela, Colombia, and other Latin American countries, leads the pay TV category in technology, programming and service, delivering an unrivaled digital television experience to more than 15 million customers. DIRECTV sports and entertainment properties include three Regional Sports Networks (Northwest, Rocky Mountain and Pittsburgh) as well as a 42 percent interest in Game Show Network. For the most up-to-date information on DIRECTV, please visit www.directv.com. For more information about Corporate Citizenship at DIRECTV, please visit www.directv.com/CorporateCitizenship.
About ENERGY STAR
ENERGY STAR was introduced by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in 1992 as a voluntary market-based partnership to reduce greenhouse gas emissions through increased energy efficiency. Today, ENERGY STAR offers businesses and consumers energy-efficient solutions to save energy, money, and help protect the environment for future generations. Nearly 20,000 organizations are ENERGY STAR partners committed to improving the energy efficiency of products, homes, and buildings. For more information about ENERGY STAR, visit www.energystar.gov or call toll-free 1-888-STAR-YES (1-888-782-7937).
KEYWORDS: United States North America California
The article EPA Names DIRECTV 2013 ENERGY STAR® Partner of the Year originally appeared on Fool.com.Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
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Peripherals specialist Blaze is set to release more devices in its retro range, following the success of its portable Mega Drive.
The firm’s latest handheld features 20 built-in Mega Drive games, including classics like Sonic and Knuckles, Echo the Dolphin, Alex Kidd and Golden Axe, and the company hopes that the device will continue to perform in the run-up to Christmas.
The response from consumers and retailers alike has been great and interest is very high,” claimed Blaze’s marketing manager James Gill.
We hope to gain traction in the market with these products in the run-up to Christmas, and we already have other products in development that will also be released and will continue the retro theme.”
Although the retro sector has been viewed in the past as a niche market, Gill feels that the success of Wii’s Virtual Console and Xbox Live Arcade shows that there is interest in classic titles:
We think the market for retro games is growing and has been strengthened by the support for classics on Wii, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 digital platforms,” he continued.
Everybody loves reliving their youth, which makes these retro devices appealing to those old enough to have played the games first time round. They appeal to younger gamers too, who are keen to find out what these old classics are all about.”


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California-based iPad point-of-sale maker Revel Systems has added a drive-through option to its lineup of software and hardware accessories, making it possible for business owners to get set up with a way to cater to their drive-up customers without the use of a central server and complicated dedicated systems. The package is available for a flat fee for the necessary hardware, and gets a restaurant ready to roll without any additional monthly costs.
The Revel drive-through setup includes two-way video chat between a server inside and the customer via a drive-up video display outside. This can work with an iPad embedded in a drive-through sigh, or by a larger connected display like a television if that’s already in place or more in line with a restaurant’s needs. The iPad can show the customer their order as they place it to make sure everything’s right, and there’s also going to be an option to allow them to pay for their order right on the display before pulling ahead to pick up their food.
“Twistee Treats, our initial customer, has ten shops and he’s growing to about 100 shops,” Revel co-founder and CTO told me on the phone. “A few companies have shown interest, but they want to see it working first, so we’re going to get them up and running at the Twistee Treats, do a nice case study and then broadcast it out there.”
The goal is to eventually make this a viable option for nationwide chains with hundreds or even thousands of locations – it’ll be hard convincing people to replace legacy systems, but for new builds, the Revel system is far less complicated and even less expensive than traditional installations that use walkie talkies and other hardware.
Revel also recently introduced accessibility features that make their iPad POS terminals easier to use for owners, customers and employees with visual impairment issues, thanks to textured keys on Bluetooth keyboards and verbal menu cues. Overall, the company is really moving into a maturation phase where they’re differentiating their basic product to stay ahead of the curve in this fast-growing industry.


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SNK has released the latest content drop for King of Fighters 15, as the KOF15 update 1.70 (PS5 version 1.007) is now out, and this adds Taekwondo master Kim Kaphwan to the roster! Read on for the King of Fighters 15 update for April 4 patch notes.
King of Fighters 15 Update 1.70 Patch Notes | KOF 15 Update 1.007 Patch Notes:
Update: Here are the official patch notes via SNK!
In addition to that, the official fighter profile for Kim and even his story for KOF15 has been released too!
Here’s the latest announcement from SNK:
DLC Character KIM KAPHWAN is planned to go live after 12AM, April 4th (PDT).
*Note, release times may differ between platforms.#KOFXV #KOF15 #KimKaphwan pic.twitter.com/9CSHVAYM13
— SNK GLOBAL (@SNKPofficial) April 4, 2023
Outside of this, no other gameplay-related changes have been revealed just yet. We are keeping an eye out if there are any balance changes, and will update the article if we see anything that got fixed.
In other King of Fighters news, SNK revealed the KOFXIII teaser trailer for the game’s incoming release on PS4 and Switch, which will also feature new improvements to online play. There’s also a new video featuring some of the incoming content for various SNK games, which you’ll want to watch.
Update: Added official patch notes.
Source: SNK (pdf)


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The concern Ford has two new sub-brand – Adrenaline and Badlands. We can assume that the “Blue oval” is preparing to release something very incendiary.
Strictly speaking, the word Adrenaline is not something fundamentally new with regard to Ford: in September last year, the company has already registered as trademarks in Mexico and Canada. Meanwhile, the Ford resource Authority found that Adrenaline appeared in the lists of the USPTO – and even not one. The second was a sub-brand is the word Badlands – “bad lands” or “wastelands”.
Official documents reveal very little information about what to prepare for Ford. Both trademarks are related to the category of “passenger cars, pickups and SUVs”. We can assume, for example, that Ford plan to release some new “hot” modification of available SUV or pickups, or plan something completely new – for example, sports a truck-based crossover Explorer.
It, by the way, Ford has already upgraded. Preparing to leave, according to rumors, and quite a few new pick-UPS – for example, a competitor of Jeep Gladiator on a platform of reviving the Ford Bronco cars and truck on “truck” Ford Focus.
Accordingly, the word Badlands can be used for particularly severe and hardcore modification of a pickup truck Bronco. She could compete with trained off-road versions of “Gladiator” from Jeep.
And on the other hand, this story could end up just anything. It often happens that manufacturers register a new trademark or sub-brand in order to avoid being taken by the competitors – or just in case.


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Fresh off a Salmonella outbreak that sickened at least 425, Kung Fu Kitchen & Sushi figured they’d dip into the lucrative food porn pool and start offering sushi served on naked men and women to the tune of $500 per “human platter” last month.
They discovered that if you put wasabi on your nipples, they’ll burn for a week.
“There’s a lot of things you don’t think about when it comes to naked sushi,” restaurant owner Nathan Lieberman told ABCNews.com. “Now, we put plastic over the nipples, like Saran, and then we cover the nipples in wasabi.”
Lieberman said naked sushi was the brainchild of Chef Glenn Lopez, who works in the kitchen. Lieberman figured the Japanese have been dining off naked bodies for “thousands of years” and wanted to give his patrons “the royal treatment” for Miami Spice, the city’s restaurant month, he said.
Initially, Lieberman said he was going to hire models from a modeling agency, but his servers begged him for the job.
Kung Fu’s most recent restaurant inspection occurred in May and included seven critical violations – one of them being a lack of soap for handwashing.
Sub Rosa describes itself as a virtual restaurant & secret bar located in Dundee, Oregon. By day, it’s a lunch room for the distillery office and stealth drop in bistro with thundering tunes, WiFi Internet connections and a limited lunch menu. By night, when we are open, it’s an underground fine dining restaurant and spirits bar.
Today, Sub Rosa posted on its web site that,
It will come to no surprise to many that Sub Rosa has a clothing optional policy.
This ‘tradition’ started with our wait staff. It was late July – the week of the annual International Pinot Noir Celebration and it was quite hot outside. We had to chill our Pinot Noir before serving because of the heat.
One wardrobe malfunction led to another that evening and soon the entire wait staff was topless. Being a huge wine tasting weekend, Sub Rosa was filled out-of-towners including some French guests. There is something about being on vacation that releases the inhibitions. It wasn’t long until half the female guests had doffed their tops as well. You would have thought you were at some French Rivera private party, but no – just another magical weekend night at Sub Rosa in Dundee.
We’ve been known to cook topless with only the benefit of a kitchen apron separating us from the raw flame. Nude barbecue, while not the rule can happen on hot summer evening at Sub Rosa.
Sub Rosa’s feeling is that both men and women deserve to go topless. Get over it already. You’re starting to accept screw caps as alternatives to cork in wine bottles. You might as well get used to both sexes running around topless.
Nothing says classy like, Show me your hooters – with a $100 bottle of wine rather than Miller LIte.
What with baby Sorenne, and the breastfeeding, and my general attitude, there’s been a lot of nakedness around the house lately.
However, with student Katie arriving tomorrow from Canada to take up residence in the basement, time to be more discreet.
Unlike the dude in Australia’s Northern Territory who was served hot chips (right, exactly as shown) at a Territory eatery wearing … nothing.
The late night reveller stripped bare before putting in his order at the Darwin City 24-Hour Eatery on Smith St early on Monday.
A witness said the naked man walked into the shop to order two buckets of chips with gravy.
And the female attendant was reportedly only too happy to serve the nude customer.


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Dr. Martens (LON:DOCS) stock plunged at the open on Thursday to a new all-time low, after the bootmaker was forced to cut its forecasts once again in response to problems in North America. Dr. Martens said a variety of operational problems had created a bottleneck at its new distribution center in Los Angeles, leaving U.S. sales well below expectations in the third quarter of its fiscal year. As a result, it now expects revenue to grow by around only 12%, rather than the “high teens”
Analysts Had Expected Full-Year EBITDA To Be Around £285M.
Ironically, the bottleneck at LA was caused by the easing of others elsewhere: inbound shipping times shortened significantly during the quarter, resulting in inventory arriving more quickly than anticipated. However, U.S. wholesalers reacting to signs of a consumer slowdown were unable to take the new inventory as quickly as the company had thought. A planned transfer of inventory from a distribution center in Portland also went faster than expected, leading to shoes piling up in LA instead. Dr. Martens had already signaled in November that its direct-to-consumer business had been suffering as demand weakened but had nonetheless plowed ahead with heavy investment spending and raised its interim dividend. In the three months through December, sales slowed further. Group revenue rose only 3% in constant currencies from a year earlier, but it was the wholesale business, rather than DTC, which fared worst, with sales actually down 1%. Dr. Martens’ stock fell as much as 28% initially but had recovered a little by 03:55 ET (08:55 GMT) to trade down “only” 21.2%.


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Nearly 20 retailers on London’s Oxford Street have been forced to close while the Metropolitan Police investigate a fatal stabbing that took place yesterday outside McDonald’s, near Oxford Circus.
The authorities have cordoned off an area between Oxford Circus and Poland Street to enable them to conduct forensic investigations.
The shops that have been forced to close include Gap, Muji, Zara, Carphone Warehouse, Marks & Spencer, New Look, Bik Bok, Dorothy Perkins, H Samuel, Next, Paperchase and Mango.
The New West End Company is receiving regular updates from the police and will provide further information once it is available.
The stabbing took place yesterday at 4.45pm on the east side of the street.
In a statement, the New West End Company said: “Our sympathies are with the victim’s family and anyone affected by yesterday’s incident. We call on retailers and shoppers in the area to pass on any information they believe will be helpful to police investigations by calling Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.”


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Free smartphone apps are about to disappear from the Apple App Store, at least in name only. The tech giant has now begun labeling free games and apps as “GET” instead of “FREE” in the name of honest advertising. Google agreed to make a similar change in its Google Play store earlier this year.
“Over the last year we made sure any app which enables customers to make in-app purchases is clearly marked,” Apple explained in a statement. “We’ve also created a Kids Section on the App Store with even stronger protections to cover apps designed for children younger than 13.”
The change comes at the request of European Union regulators, who have long argued that the use the word “free” is misleading about the true costs of an app. “In-app purchases are a legitimate business model, but it's essential for app-makers to understand and respect EU law while they develop these new business models,” explains the European Commission’s Neelie Kroes.
Apple has faced a lot of controversy over the way its handled in-app purchasing, and not just over wording semantics. In January, the company reached a $32.5 million settlement with the Federal Trade Commission to reimburse parents for unapproved in-app purchases made by minors. In some cases, children had run up surprise bills of $1,000 or more buying virtual donuts and electronic farm animals to advance further in “free” games. (You can read Techlicious’s primer on disabling in-app purchases to prevent such a surprise from happening to you.)
The change probably won’t affect the way you use the Apple App Store or change how you obtain and download apps. It does, however, represent a shift toward more honest and responsible mobile purchasing. As the number of available free apps continue to grow and the number of new smartphone owners soars, that’s definitely a very good thing.


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Claudio Sgroi has been named president of Mombacho Cigars, a title that he will add to his existing roles as partner and master blender.
Both Sgroi and Markus Raty, co-founder and former president of Mombacho Cigars, confirmed the news to halfwheel on Monday afternoon. While a formal announcement is forthcoming, Raty will be changing his title to co-founder and director of marketing, a role that will include overseeing all public relations, branding, marketing collateral and new products and packaging, “and whatever else needs to be done,” he said.
Sgroi joined Mombacho Cigars in January 2012 as both master blender and director of operations. Among his first tasks was to revitalize the company’s existing portfolio, which included a reblend of Mombacho’s core line cigar, which is sold under the Tierra Volcan name in the United States. Soon after, he blended Liga Maestro, a cigar created in collaboration with Stefano Bertini of B.L.S. Sigari in Milan, Italy.
He also oversaw the acquisition, remodeling and launch of Casa Favilli, the company’s factory in Granada, Nicaragua, which opened in the fall of 2014.
More recently, he has been developing the company’s 10th anniversary blend that will be released this year, a limited edition cigar called Magnifico. A new regular production line blended by Sgroi is also expected later this year.
Sgroi’s previous title of director of operations will not be passed on, as Raty told halfwheel that it will evolve into a new role under the title of general manager, with an internal promotion to be announced soon.
(Photo by Corbin Smith)


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Kerala Day celebrants will be happy to hear that Jet Airways is reducing its fares from Oman to Kerala. The airline announced a three-day special. Travelers from Oman to Kerala, India will have 15 percent off all flights booked through Jet Airways' website on both economy- and business-class travel. The flights are on sale from November 1 to 3, 2015 and are effective for travel between November 1, 2015 and May 31, 2016 on flights between Oman and Kohikode, Kochi, and Thiruvananthapuram. According to the GM of the airlines, “We are pleased to offer our guests added value as they travel between the two regions and enjoy the airline's globally acclaimed product and service, on the ground and in the air. Guests from the Gulf can now celebrate “Kerala Piravi” with their families or plan vacations to Kerala.”
The above article is a summary. Please see the source article at Google News.


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On May 1, Hawaii lawmakers approved a bill that will ban many of the most popular brands of sunscreen from use on their island beaches, due to environmental concerns.
The bill itself lays out the numerous reasons for their decision. “The legislature finds that two chemicals contained in many sunscreens, oxybenzone and octinoxate, have significant harmful impacts on Hawaii’s marine environment and residing ecosystems,” it says. Two major ingredients in sunscreen brands like Coppertone and the ironically-named Hawaiian Tropic “cause mortality in developing coral; increase coral bleaching that indicates extreme stress,” and further “cause genetic damage to coral and other marine organisms.”
The description continues, describing the potentially devastating effects on marine life. Both vertebrate and invertebrate species, mammals included, have been shown to develop reproductive diseases and birth defects under the influence of these chemicals, which the bills says are “constantly refreshed and renewed every day by swimmers and beachgoers.”
If passed by Governor David Ige, the law will take effect on January 1, 2021. Hawaii Senator Mike Gabbard told the Honolulu Star-Advertiser that it “is a first-in-the-world law.” According to him, “Hawaii is definitely on the cutting edge by banning these dangerous chemicals in sunscreens.”
While doctor-prescribed sunscreens containing these ingredients will remain permitted, the lawmakers hope that restrictions on known harmful pollutants will help to extend the lifespan of critically endangered and dying reefs before it is too late.


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13,000+ exciting work-from-home opportunities for Internshala students of India with big brands including 9XM, FTV, WWF, IIFL, CRY, and Sportskeeda, and youth icons including Nidhi Mohan Kamal, Shivya Nath, and DJ NYK
The internship and training platform, Internshala, has launched the ‘May Internship Madness’ campaign. This initiative is a summer internship fair that features 13,000+ work-from-home summer internships. These internships also include opportunities with big brands such as 9XM, FTV, WWF, IIFL, CRY, and Sportskeeda, along with one-day internships with youth icons including Nidhi Mohan Kamal, a fitness influencer, Shivya Nath, a published author, and DJ NYK. The students can apply for these work-from-home internships by 26th May 2020.
Important Announcement – EasyShiksha has now started Online Internship Program “Ab India Sikhega Ghar Se”
All Indian students are eligible to apply to these interesting opportunities. All the internships in ‘May Internship Madness’ are work-from-home opportunities with an assured stipend as high as INR 1.8 Lac for the whole internship duration. The internship fair also offers internships in offbeat fields including blogging, social media influencing, and music.
Top Software Engineering Courses
Important Announcement – EasyShiksha has now started Online Internship Program “Ab India Sikhega Ghar Se” during this lockdown.
On the launch of the internship fair, the founder and CEO of Internshala, Sarvesh Agrawal said, “Due to the unfortunate COVID-19 outbreak, summer internship season has been affected adversely. Many students across India have lost their summer internships while other students aren’t able to find the much-needed summer internships as hiring and onboarding is paused in most of the companies. In a bid to help these students find the best of work-from-home internship opportunities amid these testing times, we have launched the ‘May Internship Madness’ campaign.”
Empower your team. Lead the industry
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“Through this internship fair, we aim to ensure that the students are able to pursue the internships to gain practical exposure and improve their skill-set from the safety of their homes.”
For more details or to apply to the internship, please visit: https://bit.ly/May-IF