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NFT Marketplaces are Going Royalty Free. So What’s Next?
by corporate trash
Once seen as one of the most important features of NFTs, NFT royalties have become a hotly contested topic in the space, as marketplaces, collectors, and artists alike search for sustainable business models. As prominent collections and marketplaces switch to remove royalties to gain market share, many argue that it is a “race to the bottom.”
Artists who depend on the royalties from their work to make a living and grow their community are concerned. Projects that have relied on them have begun searching for new options to replace the revenue from royalties. But many say that because royalties aren’t enforceable on-chain, they will never be sustainable.
Are zero percent or optional royalties the a superior model, or could there be other solutions?
What are NFT Royalties?
NFT royalties are a percentage (usually zero percent to 10 percent) that creators set on marketplaces in order to compensate them each time one of their NFTs sells.
In early 2021, when NFT volume picked up, the standard royalty was 2.5 percent. Later on in the year, many increased their fees to 5 percent to keep up building for their highly popular ecosystems.
The free mint meta began at the start of 2022, which was a business model of free minting with a higher royalty percentage. Projects like Truth Labs’ Goblintown are one example of this.
The biggest challenge? It is difficult to enforce royalties on-chain within the smart contract. Therefore, project creators have left it to secondary marketplaces to dictate it. But developers are actively working on ways to enforce royalties by code, or blacklist certain marketplace contracts in their own smart contracts.
The 0% Royalties Debate
Some projects like CryptoPunks have always been at 0 percent royalties — instead keeping a percentage of all minted NFTs. But this was rare when many popular projects initially took off in 2021.
As NFT flipping has become more prominent, many searched for alternatives to OpenSea when selling their NFTs to avoid paying royalties. With each trade, royalties take out a small percentage of profit, which adds up over time. It isn’t just flippers that do this, though; others are looking for savings while selling expensive NFTs.
0% Royalty NFT Marketplaces
X2Y2 released a 0 percent fee P2P listing service, and took some market share from OpenSea as a result. Collectors of many high-value NFT collections, especially Bored Ape Yacht Club, opted to circumvent royalties by listing there and on SudoSwap. Most of the lowest priced Bored Ape listings now are not on OpenSea, but other NFT marketplaces.
Other collectors completed trades with ETH or other NFTs directly with another person, again cutting out royalties altogether — though there is always a risk of being scammed in these transactions.
NFT marketplace LooksRare recently moved to remove creator royalties. However, they are replacing royalties with a 25 percent share of the marketplace’s protocol fees — or .5 percent of sales. However, this fee pales in comparison to most collections standard royalties.
Magic Eden, the top Solana marketplace which has since added Ethereum collections, has also moved to a royalty-free marketplace. On all of these marketplaces above, paying royalties is now optional for the buyer.
Tyler Hobbs’ QQL project blacklisted secondary sales in its smart contract to marketplaces that don’t enforce royalties, including X2Y2. X2Y2 was not happy, claiming Hobbs was compromising holders’ ownership rights. However, this will continue to be a last resort for artists and projects who want to enforce royalties.
Pros and Cons
The clear pro of NFT royalties are that artists are being paid for their work on a consistent basis, any time their work is sold. This is one of the driving forces and top use cases to bring artists to the NFT space. With these ongoing funds they can continue to build out their project and pay to live.
Lower mint prices with higher royalties can help projects succeed by providing an ongoing source of income. It can also bring more people into the space with a lower cost of entry.
Royalties can make liquidity difficult. Like it or not, NFT flippers seeking short-term gains are a large source of liquidity in the space. Without them, it will be harder to sell, and volume may decrease. This is especially the case with collections with 10 percent or higher royalties.
When people go off-market for transactions to avoid royalties, they are more prone to be scammed and hacked. But now that Pandora’s box is open, buyers and sellers will continue to skirt royalties, even with increased risk. So, some would say providing a reliable marketplace to do 0 percent transactions will reduce risk.
Magic Eden and Solana
While the largest Ethereum marketplace OpenSea still enforces royalties (for now), Magic Eden recently decided to move to optional royalties. Overnight, around 80 percent of trades that paid royalties decreased to 20 perecnt. They are primarily a Solana NFT marketplace, but also support Ethereum projects.
Volume in general across Solana dipped in the month of October after this news.
While Magic Eden accounted for 86 percent of all Solana NFT volume within the past month, Solanart and Hadeswap started cutting into their market share, and they needed a way to get some back. This move led to an increase in wash-trading and caused influencers and creators to weigh in.
One thing Magic Eden did do, however, was changing it from a seller’s fee to a buyer’s premium. This charges any royalties to the buyer, not the seller.
Frank, founder of DeGods and Dust Labs — the most popular Solana NFT collection — offered his own thoughts around 0 percent royalties and Solana NFTs. He made a controversial decision to set 0 percent royalties for his collections y00ts and DeGods, just a few days before Magic Eden — an investor in Dust Labs — announced the same.
An Unknown Future for NFT Royalties
Many have strong opinions on NFT royalties because of how crucial it is to scale Web3. Until it is possible to enforce royalties at a code-based level in the smart contract, secondary marketplaces will largely dictate what happens.
Without royalties, creators are left with some options. These include increasing prices on primary sales, encouraging tips to the creators, increasing supply, charging for additional utility, and discovering other revenue streams, like merch and events.
Other more system-wide solutions have been proposed to only do royalties on the gains amount, have larger collections create their own zero-fee marketplaces, restrict utility for those who don’t choose to pay royalties, and more.
Time will tell how all of us will come together as a community to incentivize creators, buyers, and sellers if royalties don’t exist.
The image accompanying this article was created using Dall-E 2 by Open AI.


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13 Jul 2017 laia
Fidget spinners – Are they spinning out of control?
The new fidget spinner fad has fast become a ‘must-have’ toy among scholars, students and corporate executives, but with an increasing number of injuries related to the devices being reported globally, the question of who is liable for the related damages is being raised.
This is according to Simon Colman, Executive Head at SHA Specialist Underwriters, says who says over the past two months, there has been a number of cases reported in Australia and the US of injuries caused by fidget spinners, ranging from fingers getting stuck in the spinners to parts of the spinners being swallowed. “The major question that has arisen from these incidents is whether the manufacturer or the retailer should be held liable for the damages that were caused.”
In South Africa, these types of liability claims can find themselves in court or at the very least, in front of the National Consumer Commission, even if the matter involves an international supplier, says Colman. “Section 61 of the Consumer Protection Act (CPA) imposes joint and several liabilities upon all of the members of the product supply chain. Therefore, not only can the manufacturer be held liable for injuries caused, but also the retailer or any other party that assisted in getting the product to the marketplace, giving the consumer several parties that they can seek recourse from.”
Colman says the fidget spinner cases serve as a reminder to all South African businesses, to be aware of the importance of understanding the consumer protection framework. Particularly in terms of product liability and product safety issues.
He explains that when Section 61 of the Consumer Protection Act came into full effect in April 2011, it was quite contentious because of the impact on suppliers of products. “Prior to 2011, the common law (of Delict) was applied to cases where a consumer was injured by the use of a product. This meant that the injured party had to prove that the negligent actions of the supplier had caused the injury. If the consumer could not prove negligence of the supplier their claim against the supplier would not have succeeded. Section 61 really turned this on its head because it imposes a form of “strict liability” where it is not necessary for the victim to establish negligence on the part of the supplier.”
However, the CPA does provide some limited defences where retailers may escape liability if it can be proven that the defect that caused the injury only occurred after the product was sold, or if it would be unreasonable to assume that the retailer could have discovered the unsafe properties of the product, says Colman. “A retailer of foodstuff, for instance, cannot conceivably open and test every tin of beans it sells.”
All members of the product supply chain should protect against financial losses related to product liability by ensuring that they have an adequate liability insurance policy in place, he says. “These issues are best discussed with the guidance of an insurance broker who can make sure that they have the widest possible cover that will respond to CPA related actions.”
It is also a very good idea that retailers consult with their attorneys to make sure they have adequate indemnities with the other members of the supply chain, he adds. “Whilst the retailer cannot contract out of liability with the consumer, they can ensure that the manufacturer indemnifies them for losses.”
‘’Retailers and distributors should not make the mistake of thinking that the product liability exposure rests only with the manufacturer, the Joint and Several liability provisions Act found in Section 61 of the CPA places them in the direct firing line,” concludes Colman.
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The Johnson Group Will Now Support The Chain’s Marketing Efforts
Salsarita’s Fresh Cantina, the popular fast-casual Mexican restaurant chain known for its depth of authentically inspired menu choices, proudly announces it has signed on The Johnson Group of Chattanooga, TN. to represent the growing chain and implement aggressive marketing programs for their 80 locations. The Charlotte based franchised chain will have opened 8 new units in 2016, with 10 more in different development stages.
The Johnson Group is a full service traditional, digital and alternative media ad agency specializing in promoting ambitious brands successfully. Since their founding in Chattanooga, TN, in 1996 brands such as Cricket Wireless, Sunbelt Granola Bars, Krystal, Dean Food dairies and US Xpress transportation have benefited from unique ideas that have made them the South’s most awarded agency.
“We couldn’t be happier to be teaming up with The Johnson Group,” said Salsarita’s CEO Phil Friedman. The Johnson Group was the top agency in a 3-agency evaluation process to secure the Salsarita’s account.
Friedman is a restaurant growth specialist revered by the industry. His turnaround and sale of Jackson, MS based McAlister’s Deli 6 years ago was just his latest success story. Now he’s building Salsarita’s into the same sort of brand leader in its category.
“We have great food, terrific franchisees and more of them joining our family,” continued Friedman. “It’s the right time to step up our marketing initiatives and treat our guests and fans to some fun events and participative programs.”
One such example is the initiation of an alliance with a program started by popular local football favorite Shaq Thompson.
Linebacker Shaq Thompson, through the Dreambuilders Foundation, is spearheading “Shaq Thompson’s Sacks for Kids,” an effort to raise funds and awareness for the local Salvation Army Boys & Girls Clubs. This season, when Shaq and his teammates record a sack, pledges turn into dollars that will directly benefit youth in the community at the eight area Boys & Girls Clubs.
Salsarita’s is the exclusive sponsor and recently presented the foundation with a check for $15,000.00. Learn more about this charity at (www.pledgeit.org/shaq-thompson).
On the growth side, focus will continue to be on signing new multi-unit franchisees, many of whom are already in the company pipeline or have expressed interest in partnering with Salsarita’s due to CEO Phil Friedman’s reputation, leadership and the new look and plans for the future of the brand.
“Salsarita’s is now in the perfect position to support both company and franchisee expansion properly for years to come,” said Friedman. “The confidence franchisees have expressed in us is tremendously telling of where Salsarita’s stands in the industry as an opportunity for sustained growth.”
Salsarita’s restaurants can be found at universities, airports, corporate headquarters and stand-alone locations across the country and will continue on this growth path in 2017.
Founded in Charlotte, N.C. in 2000, Salsarita’s Fresh Cantina offers Mexican favorites such as five flavorful house-made salsas, custom burritos, tacos, nachos and salads made fresh to order with an extensive selection of proteins, toppings and fillings. Salsarita’s was acquired by franchise industry veteran Phil Friedman in 2011 and operates more than 80 locations in 18 states, including 11 that are company-owned. For more information, visit www.salsaritas.com, like us on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/salsaritas and follow us on Twitter and Instagram @salsaritas.


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GEORGE TOWN: Fuel pump prices will be capped when the country reverts to the weekly price float price even if the market price goes up, Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng said today.
Lim said in order to protect consumers from the impact of price increases, the retail prices for petroleum products would be retained at not more than RM2.20 per litre and RM2.18 per litre for RON95 and diesel respectively, through subsidies.
“The Pakatan Harapan government is committed to implementing the retail price stabilisation policy and at the same time implementing prices that will benefit the people,“ Lim said.
“This means that when the price of petroleum in the world market is down, the retail prices of petroleum products will also be lowered to enable consumers to enjoy the immediate benefits of falling oil prices.”
He said the prices would be maintained at that level until the implementation of RON95’s petrol targeted subsidies in mid-2019, before the retail prices of petroleum products were floated at market prices.
“People will be paying less when petrol price drops but when it increases, they need not worry as any increase exceeding RM2.20 will be subsidised by the government,“ he said.
Meanwhile, five representatives of the Petroleum Dealers Association of Malaysia (PDAM) today met Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad on their concern over the proposed weekly float of fuel prices.
PDAM president Datuk Khairul Annuar Abdul Aziz and four other representatives met with Mahathir for about 45 minutes at Perdana Putra here before the Prime Minister chaired the weekly meeting of the Cabinet.
Khairul Annuar told reporters later that the meeting discussed the concern and proposals of the association on the issue.
“We discussed all our proposals and highlighted our concern. He (Mahathir) seemed to be very understanding,“ he said.
Mahathir reportedly said today that the government would make a decision on the proposed weekly float of fuel prices at the meeting of the Cabinet tomorrow after taking into account the views of fuel station operators.
“We are looking forward to that – until the decision is made by the Cabinet. Let the Cabinet decide first,“ Khairul Annuar said.
Lim had announced on Dec 23 that petrol and diesel prices would be subject to a weekly float beginning Jan 1.
PDAM had also asked the government to raise the fuel sale commission for fuel station operators to reduce any loss they might face due to the fuel price float.


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UK Secretary of State Karen Bradley recently confirmed that the United Kingdom will implement the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), the regulation by which the European Commission intends to strengthen data protection for individuals within the European Union. UK companies will be expected to comply with the GDPR when it takes effect in May 2018. Secretary Bradley made the announcement last week during her appearance before the Culture, Media, and Sport Committee. We’ve previously covered data privacy compliance considerations for UK companies and their business partners after the United Kingdom decided to leave the European Union by a referendum vote in June 2016.
After this announcement, UK Information Commissioner Elizabeth Denham posted on the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) blog that the ICO is committed to assisting businesses and public bodies to meet the GDPR’s requirements by May 2018. Commissioner Denham pointed to some existing guidance that the ICO has prepared, including an overview of the GDPR, its 12 steps for businesses to take toward compliance, and its recent privacy notices code of practice.
Within the next 30 days, the ICO plans to issue a revised timeline outlining the guidance areas that the ICO will prioritize for the next six months. This revised timeline will be available on the ICO website, and future updates will be available through the ICO’s Twitter account and the ICO's newsletter.
Commissioner Denham did acknowledge that issues still surround how the GDPR will work after the United Kingdom leaves the European Union, but in the meantime, UK companies should be prepared to comply with the GDPR by May 2018.


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Consuming nutritious meals while grappling with a hectic schedule during the holiday season can be challenging.
Skipping meals, eating larger portions and skimping on exercise becomes a daily routine for most, said Lorie Armstrong, a dietitian at Henry Ford Wyandotte Hospital.
A useful tip is to cook the healthy meals in advance and freeze them for later. That way, people are not relying on restaurant or fast food, Armstrong said.
Foods ideal for freezing include chili, casseroles and soups, which can sit in the freezer for up to a month.
“There’s a lot of hidden calories in restaurant food,” she said.
For most, it would not be the holidays without the scrumptious desserts. Instead of cutting a pie into eighths, though, dice it into sixteenths, Armstrong said.
“I think a lot of people have food only that they make around the holidays and they don’t want to skimp on the ingredients,” she said.
Enjoying sweets without feeling guilty is possible. The key lies in serving sizes.
“We don’t want to deprive everyone of their special food, just monitor portion sizes,” Armstrong said. “In most situations, having a small amount of dessert is OK. … Don’t use it in place of a meal.”
The ideal serving for plain meat such as chicken or roast beef is comparable to a deck of cards, she said. Portion size for starchy food should equal the size of half of a tennis ball or the palm of a hand.
Two foods to load up on are raw vegetables and fruits, but go easy on the dip, Armstrong said.
One person who eats veggies as meals throughout the year is Susan Czarnecki of Lincoln Park.
That doesn’t mean the 18-year vegetarian has a nourishing diet, though.
“I don’t try to eat healthy,” Czarnecki said.
Instead, she prefers to indulge in desserts and satisfy her sporadic cravings of a Coney Island hot dog.
“Isn’t that what holidays are for,” she said.
A clown by profession, known as “Soodles the Clown,” Czarnecki said she eats “everything but the turkey” during Thanksgiving dinner.
Exercising goes hand and hand with nutrition. However, it is more easily preached than practiced.
After meals, Armstrong recommends taking a stroll in the neighborhood with loved ones while gazing at holiday decorations.
“(People should) continue with an exercise plan, which can help counteract the extra pounds, and it helps release stress around the holidays,” she said. “We can watch calories and we can watch the fat, but it works so much better when we are exercising, (too).”
Armstrong also recommends that instead of guzzling only sparkling champagne or other alcoholic beverages, partygoers alternate with sparking water or diet soft drinks. That’s because alcohol has “empty calories,” meaning it is rich in calories and low in nutrients, Armstrong said.
Dietitians, like everyone else, have weaknesses and could fall off the fitness wagon, too
“The holidays are risky for everyone,” Armstrong said. “The best you can do is try to watch your portions.”
Other suggestions include actually distancing yourself from food to avoid snacking all night. While family gatherings are often synonymous with delectable cuisine, sitting farther from the table puts the focus more on socializing and less on munching, she said.
Another idea is to change the venue for a gathering to an activity-oriented place like an ice skating rink that incorporates movement and mingling.


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Hanoi, Vietnam, November 18, 2021 –(PR.com)– According to the Asian Development Outlook (ADO) 2021 report of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) 2021, ADB commented that Vietnam’s economic growth is forecast to recover to 6.2% next year despite the re-emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic and may accelerate to 7.0% in the upcoming 2022. This growth will be driven with the export-oriented manufacturing industry followed by increasing investment and expansion of trade. Due to the complicated and unpredictable situation of the COVID-19 pandemic taking place in Vietnam and globally, there is the rising in high demands and needs of practical opportunities for businesses in the electronic and supporting industries in Vietnam to approach and update with new market trends, new techniques, and technologies as well as directly meet-up with potential partners from internationally.
Mr. Vu Trong Tai, General Manager, Reed Tradex Vietnam, representative of the Organizing Committee – NEPCON Vietnam 2021 shared: “The fight against the COVID pandemic continues globally with difficulties everywhere, but Vietnam is still being considered as top destination for investors, with its economy continuing to grow among the highest rank in the world. In 2021, NEPCON will be conducted on an online platform, using multimedia technology for easy connection via various types of smart devices. We also bring many activities such as Vietnam Electronics Forum, Business Innovation Zone Panel discussion and Webinars for Tech-Update as well as announcement from IPC Hand Soldering Competition. This year, NEPCON attracts nearly 100 brands and suppliers from Japan, Korea, Taiwan, China, and Vietnam, expected to welcome more than 2,000 visitors from Vietnam and other countries worldwide.”
In response to the impact of COVID-19, both local businesses and foreign investors are interested in: When the age of digitization begins inside out the markets, how can the electronics and supporting industries in Vietnam, especially the SMEs, enter the global supply chains?
Speaking at the digital opening ceremony of Vietnam Electronics Forum, under NEPCON Vietnam, Mrs. Do Thi Thuy Huong, Board of Director, Vietnam Electronic Industries Association commented: “With positive results in production and import-export results in the nine months of 2021, the electronics industry continues to play a pioneering role in leading the export turnover of manufacturing industries with export value in 3 quarters of 2021 reached 77.57 billion USD, accounting for 32.24% of the total export turnover of the country, of which the trade surplus reached 8.99 billion USD, significantly contributing to the growth of the economy and the country’s foreign currency balance in 2021. Despite facing challenges during 02 years by the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, with the unremitting efforts of the Vietnamese government, business support agencies and the high determination of the business community, the Vietnamese electronics industry firms have ensured that the supply chain is not totally disrupted, while continuing to increase orders and increase FDI in high-tech fields, which play a key role in the electronics sector such as: semiconductor technology, OLED screen technology, assembly technology, automation technology of production lines, etc… Therefore, the first digital NEPCON Vietnam will become the opportunity for businesses and partners of the electronics industry to meet and connect with vendors, manufacturers, and suppliers in the field of SMT assembly, testing technology, equipment and supporting industries.”
Especially, to support the local and SMEs in maintaining the vitality of the business in the complicated business environment with many difficulties and constant changes, in cooperation with NEPCON Vietnam 2021, the USAID LinkSME Project will join hands in supporting Vietnamese SME manufacturers to develop and participate in the global supply chain. “The USAID LinkSME project is all about facilitating connections—between SMEs and international firms, between Business support organizations and the companies they serve, and between the business sector and government agencies working to improve the business environment. These connections have become only more important during these challenging times. But challenges inspire innovation, as shown by the new approaches to exhibitions pioneered by Reed Tradex and its partners,” said Mr. Daniel Fitzpatrick, Director, USAID LinkSME Project.
With the participation of exhibitors from more than 10 countries and over 100 brands of famous technology & machinery joined in international pavilions coming from Japan, USA, Korea, China, Taiwan, Singapore, Thailand, Germany, Russia, India, …The 13th Vietnam’s Only Exhibition on SMT, Testing Technologies, Equipment and Supporting Industries for Electronics Manufacturing – NEPCON Vietnam will be held online via NEPCON website.
During three days from 17-19 November 2021, the digital NEPCON Vietnam will cover many activities such as the series of customized seminars, advanced technology updates from leading brands around the world and especially the completely free Panel discussion for business consulting: Business Innovation Zone 2021. This is a part of the Business Innovation Zone Project, initiated by Reed Tradex since 2020 to support businesses to recover during and after COVID-19. The digital exhibitions have so far attracted on-line registration of more than 2,000 visitors from Vietnam and other Asian countries. For more details, please visit: www.nepconvietnam.com.


text: Previously scheduled for February 17th in Europe, Twisted Metal, a car combat game developed by Eat Sleep Play for PS3, will launch across this continent on March 7th, 2012, Sony Computer Entertainment announced. With four factions battling for control, players step into the combat boots of a twisted disciple in a high octane, highly destructible world. Players fight for the prize of one wish fulfilled by the stylishly evil Calypso, the mastermind behind the Twisted Metal tournament. With a robust online system, players unleash destruction with up to 16 players through PlayStation Network and battle through a variety of favorite and new game modes. Twisted Metal will still be set to be launched in North America on February 14th.


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Global Lighting Association and Zhaga sign liaison agreement
Posted on Tuesday May 28 2013, by Tim Whitaker
>>> Download the full Zhaga press release.
The Zhaga Consortium has signed a liaison agreement with the Global Lighting Association (GLA).
The Global Lighting Association is a grouping of peak national and regional lighting associations representing over 5,000 lighting manufacturers and US$50 billion annual sales.
The Zhaga Consortium is an international group of companies that is developing interface specifications for LED light sources. These enable LED luminaire manufacturers to interchange LED light sources from different suppliers.
Zhaga and the Global Lighting Association believe that the global lighting industry – and users of the lighting industry’s products – will benefit in a number of ways from the availability of interchangeable LED light engines. These benefits include a wider choice of suppliers of compatible components, lower R&D costs for luminaire makers, and reduced risk concerning the availability of replacement parts.
“The lighting industry operates on a global scale, and the specifications being developed by Zhaga are for global use,” says Menno Treffers, secretary-general of the Zhaga Consortium. “It is very important for Zhaga to be able to share the results of its work throughout the international lighting community, and the liaison with GLA provides a clear route to achieve this goal.”
The two parties will cooperate to make the lighting industry aware of the advantages and benefits offered by interchangeable LED light sources. As part of the agreement, Zhaga will provide the Global Lighting Association with regular updates on the activities and progress made by Zhaga. In turn, the Global Lighting Association will pass this information to its members and offer feedback to Zhaga.
For more information, please contact:
Communications Director, GLA
Marcom Director, Zhaga


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Mitsubishi has released details on its popular Outlander Sport crossover for model year 2013, including pricing information.
Read This Article
Have you gotten your 2012 Mitsubishi Eclipse yet?
Mitsubishi reports record profits and rising global sales.
On January 25, 2013, Mitsubishi Motors North America sent out a recall on 1,400 2012 i-MiEVs with a manufacturing date between December 2, 2011 and September 7, 2012.


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According to CNN, the good news came as Google boss Sundar Pichai joined members of his executive team on his first visit to Nigeria as the company announced a series of products for the country, including YouTube Go, a platform where users with slow Internet can preview and save videos with little data.
YouTube users in the country can now download any video in a range of different resolutions so that they can watch it later without an Internet connection.While Nigeria has about 93 million mobile Internet users, the cost of data is expensive and at times the Internet is very slow.
Nigeria is the second country after India to have the YouTube Go capability. Google has owned YouTube since 2006.
The Google Go App is meant only for emerging markets and Nigeria happens to be one. The app is going to serve the population in the following:
Advantages of YouTube Go
- Easy video downloading
- Phone-number sign-in
- Effortless searching
- Effective ways to control data usage
- A home screen that shows both personalized recommendations as well as trending and popular videos nearby, allowing users to see the latest content that the people around are watching, upfront
- A ‘preview video’ function to make it easier to decide what to watch or download
CNN reporter, Stephanie Busari, and Osman Mohamed reveal that Over 1.2 billion Africans are connected to the internet and Nigeria has over 100 million internet users, making it the highest in Africa. The high number of African internet users comes in handy as the tech giant is set to launch Google Impact Challenge in Africa in 2018.


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With the 'working from home' trend seemingly set to continue, there are ways to help smooth the process and ensure staff satisfaction.
A new digital plan announced by the federal government could help modernise how Australians do business and help companies execute documents remotely.
As part of the $800 million JobMaker Digital Business Plan, the government will expand the ASBAS Digital Solutions Program to urge businesses to go digital.
Overall complaints to the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman fell 4% in FY20 despite the impacts of the natural disasters of the summer followed by COVID-19.
Amazon Web Services and Wipro have opened a tech launch pad in Parramatta to provide in-house technical expertise to drive the adoption of cloud services.
A study by DXC Technology and Telsyte has found that businesses across Australia and New Zealand could recover from the 2020 disruptions within three years.
The Australian Information Industry Association is calling on the next Queensland Government to commit to sourcing 30% of its IT needs from local SMBs by 2022.
Technology and services giant Accenture will establish a hub in Adelaide, to collaborate with other hubs across Australia as well as overseas operations.
The bizhub C450i and bizhub C650i A3 multifunction printers from Kinoca Minolta feature a dual-scan document feeder and smartphone-style user interface.
More than 40 women from across Queensland have been announced as finalists in the 2020 Women in Technology Awards, with winners to be announced in October.
The AIIA is calling for the Victorian Government to provide a clear roadmap and exit strategy post-COVID-19 for tech businesses in Victoria.
Research has revealed that Australian office workers have spent $2.3 billion over the last three months on technology needed to work remotely.


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Refurbished smartphones are a common way to save a few bucks on an upgrade, and this week, Samsung is expanding its list of official offerings. Now, you can buy a refurbished Galaxy S20, S20+, or S20 Ultra that’s certified by Samsung itself.
Starting at $650, these “re-newed” Galaxy S20 phones have been refurbished by Samsung and “thoroughly inspected and updated to like-new condition.” The refurbishment takes place in a Samsung factory and includes replacing the internal battery.
This program isn’t new. Samsung has been selling refurbished Galaxy S10, Note 9, and S9 devices for a while now, but the program is just now adding Galaxy S20 devices to the list. You can get the S20 for $650, the S20+ for $750, or the S20 Ultra for $950. The phones are sold exclusively unlocked and come in either gray or black, depending on the model you select. They’re all marked down by about $350 ($450 for the Ultra) from the launch price, leaving them just $150 cheaper than the new Galaxy S21 series.
Samsung says that the Galaxy Note 20 and Galaxy S20 FE will also be added to the “re-newed” program in the near future. Going by the same discount pattern, that would see the Note 20 (not the Ultra) down to $650, and the S20 FE could drop as low as $400 or less, which would be a killer deal. We’ll update this article when those listings go live.
More on Samsung:
- Samsung July 2021 security update is rolling out now to these Galaxy devices
- Latest leaks show Galaxy Buds 2 from every angle, tease sound improvements
- Report: Samsung to launch Galaxy Z Fold 3, Galaxy Watch 4, more at August 11 event
FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.


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Cousins Subs announced that TMart Operations I, LLC, represented by company president Jeremy Alsaker, is the proud new owner of the Cousins Subs location in Lodi, Wisconsin.
Wienerschnitzel, the world’s largest hot dog franchise, announced a new area development agreement with Lake Charles-based, Henderson Family Restaurants, LLC, to build 20 ne
Leading cold pressed juice brand and New York City-based restaurant chain, Pure Green Franchise is gearing up for national expansion with the opening of its first franchise
Fruitive, a vegan fast-casual restaurant offering healthy, made-from-scratch meals, is now franchising across the United States, offering
Stoner's Pizza Joint, a quick-service pizza franchise, announced Wednesday that it would expand its footprint via a three-unit expansion with existing South Florida franchisee, John Stetson.
Pizza Guys, a Sacramento-founded pizza restaurant that specializes in fresh, high quality food, is planning to expand beyond their 69 locations and bring their menu to Southern California.
Jeremiah’s Italian Ice has surpassed yet another milestone in its fruitful first year of franchising.
Artichoke Basille’s Pizza is expanding its West Coast footprint into Arizona with a restaurant op
Edible, the world's largest franchisor of fresh fruit arrangements and all-natural fruit snacks and dipped treats, is creating a new path to franchise ownership with the launch of a “Manage-To-Own”


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The Federal Reserve has reported that, as of December 2010, credit card debt is up for the first time since 2008 which many are viewing as a good sign for consumer spending, but this could necessitate a problem with some consumers if long-term unemployment remains in place. Obviously, there are numerous individuals who have been looking for ways to lower consumer credit card debt through repayment plans or budgeting strategies that are particular to their personal situation, and as a result, these consumers have turned to credit counseling organizations as a way to find solutions to their credit card debt difficulties.
It goes without saying that there are some consumers who can handle a higher amount of credit card debt as they may be on a stable financial ground, have a solid income, or may have recently acquired a job after being unemployed and were simply unable to spend on credit. There are cardholders who can properly use their credit card by spending within their means, budgeting in a way that allows them to promptly repay what purchases they make on their credit card, and generally have little trouble related to credit card debt.
However, there are also consumers on the other side of the coin who have either practice poor budgeting habits and spend beyond their means to repay or, sadly, there are cardholders who have had to rely on their credit card as a way to simply stay afloat during times of economic distress. Yet, credit counseling agencies who work with consumers to address credit card debt issues are usually able to find some form of solution that will help consumers get their credit card debt spending under control and formulate a budget that will allow them to repay what they owe and, essentially, lower their consumer credit card debt obligations.
Advisers also point out that before a consumer even begins addressing credit card debt issues, spending needs to stop on credit cards that may be the source of personal financial trouble as erasing debts while still acquiring credit card debt will obviously make the task of paying off debt incredibly difficult, if not impossible. Yet, consumers also need to give considerable care to choosing a credit counseling organization to make sure they find a reputable company that will work with them on a one-on-one basis to address a consumer’s particular issues. Also, aside from avoiding scams and fraudulent credit counseling agencies, a consumer obviously wants to simply find a credit counselor that has positive comments and recommendations from past customers.
Yet, consumers who are struggling with credit card debt need to address this issue early so that a credit counselor may be able to set them on the right track. In many cases, consumer credit card debt can easily be repaid through proper budgeting habits and repayment plans, but if the problem becomes too insurmountable, a debt management plan may be necessary which could require that a consumer close out credit card accounts, or if debt settlement is necessary this could do damage to one’s credit score. However, while there are areas of the economy that have needed consumer spending to increase, consumers are still being cautioned to avoid excessive spending and credit card use as this could lead to financial trouble down the road and the need for outside assistance to address repayment issues.


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Unchain.io helps businesses connect blockchain networks to their existing IT systems, and made the announcement on October 9, 2018 via press release. IT services company Schuberg Philis collaborated on the placement. Unchain.io’s Blockchain Adapter allows companies to securely and easily connect any app or IoT device to an Ethereum blockchain network and is one of a number of solutions in its Blockchain Gateway, which will be available on AWS Marketplace in early 2019.
The company’s Blockchain Gateway allows organisations to link any app to any blockchain network.
The Adapter is available as a CloudFormation Template on AWS Marketplace. Customers can deploy the Adapter directly into their AWS environment, paying as they go.
Thatcher Peskens, director of cloud at unchain.io, noted that many of the present initiatives exploring blockchain have a limited scope and that with his company’s Adapter, “we now provide a specific piece of the Blockchain Gateway, easily enabling a basic connection to Ethereum with virtually any application, while at the same time leveraging the broad reach of AWS Marketplace and the use of AWS Key Management Service.”


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The 2019 Trends Impacting Mobile On The African Continent
According to the GMSA Mobile Economy 2018 report for sub-Saharan Africa, mobile subscribers rose by 44% in 2017 and this was further bolstered by an increase in smartphone penetration that rose by 75%. Mobile broadband is anticipated to comprise 87% of total connections by 2025 across 690 million smartphones. According to Joachim Wuilmet, Head of Customer Marketing and...
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VANCOUVER • Digital currencies have been accused of worsening the opioid crisis because they make it easier to buy and sell drugs anonymously.
Now, Intel Corp and the pharmaceutical industry are planning to fight fire with fire.
The chipmaker, working with health companies, aims to use so-called blockchain technology — similar to the one that underpins the digital currency bitcoin — to better trace drugs and potentially stem the epidemic.
The idea is to pinpoint where drugs leak out of the supply chain. Blockchain also could help flag “double doctoring”, where an addicted patient takes out more than one prescription from multiple physicians.
“It will vastly reduce the opioid epidemic,” said David Houlding, director of healthcare privacy and security at Intel Health and Life Sciences. “I would not say this will eliminate the opioid problem, but this will help.”
The approach is being tested this spring, when Johnson & Johnson, McKesson Corp and other companies enter simulated data into new digital ledgers.
The experiment will see how easy it is to track pills as they travel from the manufacturer all the way to a patient’s home.
Their tests could progress to a live pilot project and possibly a limited deployment by year-end, said Intel’s Houlding, whose company is providing some of the technology.
The ultimate goal, he said, is for all drug-related companies and their suppliers worldwide to be on blockchain, an online ledger that can’t be erased.
Then, government agencies such as the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) could potentially plug into the blockchain and provide oversight, he said.
The opioid crisis has been driven by booming prescriptions sold to pharmacies, hospitals and doctors’ offices. They nearly quadrupled in the first decade of 2000s, despite no signs that Americans were reporting more pain.
One study showed that every year more than 100 million pills pre-scribed just for tooth extractions may go unused and unaccounted for.
Opioids include the illegal drug heroin, prescription painkillers like OxyContin, and street versions mimicking their effects such as fentanyl. Deaths from overdoses have been steadily rising for 16 years. Roughly 115 Americans die on average each day from an overdose.
The severity of the epidemic has attracted a broad swath of businesses and organisations, including technology companies.
Intel is working on fighting the opioid crisis as part of a broader industry effort coordinated by the Centre for Supply Chain Studies. Its aim is to help the pharmaceutical industry comply with the Drug Supply Chain Security Act, which requires companies to better track medicines.
The key to the project’s success will be getting as many companies as possible to use the same system. It also will depend on everyone entering the drug data correctly, which is a challenge. Since many opioids come from China, those may continue to fall through the cracks.
“Ultimately, it needs to go worldwide,” Intel’s Houlding said. — Bloomberg


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Google working on set-top TV boxes
Specific details are hazy, and the companies themselves haven't actually announced anything specific. According to the Times, "spokesmen for Google, Intel and Logitech declined to comment. A Sony spokesman said he was not familiar with the project." Still, the project's existence seems to be supported by the companies hiring Android developers.
Hopefully the product will be announced by the end of the year, released by 2012, and, since Google is doing it, come out of beta in 2024.
— Will Greenwald


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Viking SupplyNet, a global leader in fire protection products and services, has opened a new distribution and fabrication center serving northern California and Nevada. In addition to stocking one of the area’s broadest inventories of fire protection products, the new facility will provide complete pipe fabrication services including threading, grooving and welding of black or galvanized pipe.
Conveniently located near I-5 and I-80 in Sacramento, this 24,000-square-foot facility will provide dedicated delivery services to area facilities and job sites. The new center, which officially opened on December 17, is the 28th Viking SupplyNet location in the U.S. and the eighth in the Western region.
The address of the new facility is 5081 Kelton Way, Suite 100, Sacramento, CA 95838. It can be reached by phone at 916/923-1080 or by e-mail at email@example.com.


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These users spent less time on the company's website, choosing instead to browse from the company's pinboard.
In 2014, Pinterest generated its first revenue, when it began charging advertisers to promote their wares to the site's millions of hobbyists, vacation planners, and do-it-yourselfers.
Ads on the site could generate as much as $500 million in 2016, estimates Michael Pachter, an analyst at Wedbush Securities. Rich Pins – pins which have more information than a normal link – will get a new button that allows users to purchase things directly from partners that it's working for.
They can follow other users' boards if they have similar tastes.
The evolution of Pinterest is based on the shared interest of its users and relies on its members to produce the content.
Pinterest said they want to keep their community "positive and respectful." Much of the service's early user base consisted of infrequent contributors.
The site's user growth, which slowed in March 2012, could pick up as the site's user base solidifies around dedicated users according to a com Score representative.
Business pages can include various data, topics and information such as prices of products, ratings of movies or ingredients for recipes.
Pinterest plans to eventually add them to results displayed when people use its Lens feature to scan a photo from their phone to find related pins as well as the Shop the Look feature that lets people tap products featured in a photo to reveal a list of links to similar products available for purchase.
Four months after being launched, Pinterest only had a few thousand users, compared to Instagram which had about 1 million users after that same amount of time.
Early in 2010, the company's investors and co-founder Ben Silbermann tried to encourage a New York-based magazine publishing company to buy Pinterest but the publisher declined to meet with the founders.
They can then jump straight to that pin and make the purchase." On August 23, 2016, Pinterest announced that it would be acquiring the team behind Instapaper, which will continue operating as a separate app.


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Square Enix promised in 2019 that it will never add “pay-to-win” mechanics to its Avengers game.
(Image credit: Crystal Dynamics)
While Marvel’s Avengers is still dragging downwards on Steamits’ average concurrent player count over the past 30 days is only below 800, the recent addition to Xbox Game Pass has given it a real boost on other platforms. It’s not entirely surprising: People are more likely to play a free game than those that cost $40, after all.
However, an average player community is very unsatisfied instead of the usual positive attitude. The problem is that Square Enix began selling consumable XP boosters in the game shortly after the Game Pass appearance, all of them ranging in price from 100 to 500 credits. A package of 500 credits is worth $5.
All of these reasons are irritant to players. First, developers increased the grind, slowed the levelling process in March, and second, it is a comparison to a promise the studio made in June 2019 that Marvel’s Avengers “nell’t have random loot boxes or pay to win scenarios”
Some of the players in this Steam thread, for example, argue the XP boosters as “pay to win,” because there’s no PvP element in the game: People who aren’t paying for the consumable will advance faster than those who aren’t, but it doesn’t really affect anyone else’s game either way. Others express their displeasure over the fact that the in-game store will continue to evolve into more of a free-to-play style, and that the free consumables currently offered to players will be completely eliminated.
Unbehaginess with the idea that Crystal Dynamics and Square Enix have gone back on their promises seems a little trickier to debate, particularly among long-timer players. “SE and CD agreed a long time ago that new players were their priority, and those of us that had already been ordered were paid beta testers,” a redditor dubbed FantasticMeddler stated. “They might give a fuck for any existing player, except the whales.”
“They immediately and repeatedly stated that there would be no Loot Boxes or Pay-to-win mechanics,” Motor_Structure7156 added in a separate post. “Apologies for saying this Pay-to-progress-a-bit-faster are somewhat correct, but it does not negate the lie they made. If I’m ignorant or disingenuous for calling a spade a spade and not a ‘human-tool digging interface appliance’, then so should it be.”
It’s not a universal blowback, but it appears to be enough of it to be worrying for a game that’s struggled to find an audience since it launched. Naturally, there are risks to quit the game outright amongst all the complaints; I suspect that most aren’t serious (and a few people even believe that that’s the case), but even so, I must say that some concerns are that the change will cause more harm than good in the long run.
I’m not unmazed in player complaints, but I believe that people might be a little more aware of videogame monetization commitments that were made more than two years ago, in somewhat different (and far more hopeful) conditions. While Marvel’s Avengers were underperforming poorly, putting it on Game Pass will increase the player count, it doesn’t matter if that can’t be translated into a revenue boost. The absence of PvP means no harm is done to individual player experiences, and the choice between new, expanded monetization models and pulling the plug on the whole thing seems to be a little daunting task.


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Ford Motors Co has announced that it has parted ways with Raj Nair, the North America President, after an internal investigation by the multinational automaker found his behaviour to be 'inconsistent with the company's code of conduct'.
The probe was carried out after an anonymous tip was received by the US giant auto company regarding his misconduct. The company, however, did not elaborate on the behaviour.
The company headquartered in Dearborn, Michigan, did not give the nature of his misconduct that led to the Indian-American executive's departure but the official statement read: "We made this decision after a thorough review and careful consideration. Ford is deeply committed to providing and nurturing a safe and respectful culture and we expect our leaders to fully uphold these values."
Nair felt regretful of his actions and confirmed that he had parted ways with the company. "I sincerely regret that there have been instances where I have not exhibited leadership behaviours consistent with the principles that the company and I have always espoused," the 53-year-old executive said in a press release.
He further added, "I continue to have the utmost faith in the people of Ford Motor Company and wish them continued success in the future."
Nair was responsible for handling the operations of the company that generated 90 percent of Ford's global profits, according to Reuters. The Indian-American was made the North American Chief of Ford Motors after the-then president, Jim Hackett, was promoted to the post of CEO in May 2015.
After joining the giant automaker company in 1987, Nair climbed up the corporate ladder and even served as the Chief Technical Officer of Ford before becoming the North American President in June 2017.
The news of the executive parting ways with Ford could not have come at a worse time, as "Ford is lacking a clear direction in terms of future mobility services. Even the stock prices have fallen," Michelle Krebs, an executive analyst at Autotrader was quoted by Reuters as saying.


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IPO profile: DoorDash part of the ‘accelerated future’
- DoorDash is a food delivery company that is set to become public before 2021.
- According to regulatory documents, total revenue for the first nine months of 2020 was $1.9 billion.
- By contrast, total revenue in 2019 was $885 million.
Invezz and other media outlets reported that DoorDash is planning to list its shares on the public market. But what exactly does the company do and is it properly valued at a reported $25 billion?
All companies looking to become public must release to the public a regulatory S-1 filing. The document gives potential investors an inside look at the company’s operations.
Are you looking for fast-news, hot-tips and market analysis? Sign-up for the Invezz newsletter, today.
The concept of DoorDash was born in early January 2013 when its first customer ordered prawn pad thai and spring rolls for delivery to his home. Since then, the company has grown to connect 390,000 merchants, more than 18 million consumers, and more than 1 million delivery personnel in the U.S., Canada, and Australia.
DoorDash’s business model solves a prior problem of consumers wanting to order food to their homes or business but was limited to traditional delivery food items like pizza.
“We enable local brick-and-mortar businesses to thrive in an increasingly convenience-driven economy with rapidly evolving consumer expectations,” the company said in its S-1.
The company believes it holds a 50% market share in the U.S. local food delivery logistics category and a 58% market share within suburban markets.
Curious how to buy the DoorDash or any other IPO? Check out this in-depth guide.
DoorDash generated revenue of $885 million in 2019 and $1.9 billion in the first nine months of 2020. But the company is not profitable as it heavily investments in sales and marketing and promotions to attract and retain customers. But as DoorDash gains a new customer that is happy with the platform, incremental marketing spend per customer mostly normalizes by the second year.
DoorDash’s investments are part of the company’s goal to dominate the food delivery market. Throughout 2019, Americans spent $1.5 trillion on food and beverages, of which $600.5 billion was spent at restaurants and other consumer food services.
To better capture market share, DoorDash’s investments have three main objectives: 1) help merchants grow their business, 2) increase consumer adoption so DoorDash is viewed as a daily activity, and 3) build a reliable, high quality, and operationally efficient logistics network.
Pro: DoorDash part of the ‘accelerated future’
DoorDash’s $1.9 billion of revenue in the first nine months of 2020 is particularly small given expectations for the company to fetch a valuation of around $25 billion, Recode Executive Editor Kara Swisher said on CNBC’s “Squawk Alley.” But investors are left with limited other compelling options to buy a company that is part of the “accelerated future.”


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How better railcar visibility can improve freight rail shipment management.
RAILWAY AGE, FEBRUARY 2021 ISSUE: When freight moves across North America’s major railroads, shippers need to know the location of their cargo and its status. Cars in motion frequently pass Automatic Equipment Identification (AEI) readers and other data collection devices. That information is instantaneously transmitted to rail industry systems and is available to railcar users in near real time.
Though this system works well for most shipments, it’s not perfect. In the real world, visibility can fade for a number of reasons, such as when cars are shunted into yards or industrial facilities, or when they are on “last/first-mile” short line railroads. In these locations, shipments can essentially drop off the grid, and shippers become more dependent on sporadic manually generated reports and cumbersome tracing methods.
These information gaps are frustrating for plant managers, retail operators and others who expect the seamless stream of location data that is now standard in the trucking industry. Most shippers depend on end-to-end supply chain visibility to manage inventory, staffing levels and storage allocation in a process that keeps costs low and customer satisfaction high.
RAIL FREIGHT VISIBILITY STILL HAS GAPS
Intermittent visibility of rail shipments can diminish rail’s competitive advantages, which include low per-mile transportation costs, superior sustainability performance and an excellent safety record. Fortunately, advanced information technology systems are in the process of filling in the gaps, providing visibility that will be more competitive with highway shipping.
A leader in these developments is Cando Rail Services, based in Canada and serving all of North America. Last year, it launched Quasar, a cloud-based GPS system that tracks the location of railcars in real time, from origin to destination. Heading the development and launch of Quasar is Corrie Banks, Cando’s Director of Logistics. She joined Cando following a stellar rail industry career that began with development of e-commerce systems for a Class I railroad. That experience led her to managing complex supply chains. “Through those experiences,” she says, “I formulated a guiding principle that supply chain systems—which are highly interconnected end-to-end entities—offer lots and lots of opportunities to improve both the associated operating practices and the technology processes.”
AN IDEA BECOMES REALITY
Eventually, Banks says, “I met Cando President and CEO Brian Cornick, and we started talking about some of the rail supply chain ideas and innovations he wanted to develop. At that time, I was also writing a white paper called Digital Supply Chains: Creating Skills for the Future for the Canadian Supply Chain Sector Council. All this led us to create a shared vision, which has resulted in today’s Quasar system.”
The Quasar platform is a set of technology tools that includes location sensors, geofencing, and network health and performance maps to create visual data. Functioning across the various applications, users access the visual data to create metrics and interact with predictive and prescriptive analytics. The entire system is designed to enable customers to get their goods to market at the lowest possible cost in the shortest possible time.
RUGGED TECHNOLOGY NEEDED
It’s one thing to plan for improved railcar shipment visibility that looks good on paper, and quite another thing to implement it in the sometimes-brutal and often-isolated environment of the railroad network. Among the tools Quasar uses to close data gaps in remote locations are railcar-mounted GPS units.
“We know that railroad operating conditions can be unforgiving, which is why we vetted various products until we found units that are capable of supporting our commitment to provide car location data at least every 10 minutes. The units we selected have solar-powered batteries that have proven up to the task, and they are sufficiently rugged to operate without problems during the impacts of train operations,” says Banks.
Once Quasar developers had technology that met reliability requirements, they initiated a search for a single-source information technology partner that would feed data from the rail industry’s existing car location reporting network.
SELECTING THE RIGHT RAIL DATA PARTNER
“Ultimately, we selected Railinc,” Banks says. “Not only were they able to provide the connection to industry data Quasar needs, but they also have been able to help us integrate that data seamlessly, and to make sure we were following the correct protocols and putting the right structures in place. It’s been very valuable for us.”
Quasar relies on Railinc as a sole source of critical visibility data including Umler®, railcar ownership information, industry reference files, messaging and more.
More than a year into real-world operations, Quasar users are starting to see the expected benefits. Shippers now have greatly improved visibility into what is arriving at their plants and distribution centers. This makes it possible to better plan production and distribution operations.
Once cars arrive at destination yards, Quasar provides complete yard management services including:
- Inventory status.
- Railcar inspection management.
- Railcar cleaning management.
- Loaded or unloaded, and order status.
Managers can now easily see where all their rail equipment is located, its status, available capacity, and other parameters that were previously difficult to gather, or even unavailable.
The essential capability that makes this all possible is Quasar’s ability to digitize and blend information. “We take data from an amazing array of sources,” Banks says. “Quasar processes documents generated by supply chain participants including emails and PDFs. Using artificial intelligence, Quasar extracts relevant information and digitizes it.”
MAPPING, ANALYTICS OPEN NEW OPTIONS
All of that data is then brought together and leveraged by geospatial intelligence and analytics capabilities provided, in part, by SensorUp. It collects, cleans and aggregates IoT (Internet of Things) data for analysis across all aspects and silos of an enterprise. SensorUp provides a level of granular insight—observed in real time—that enables managers to locate and direct railcars throughout North America.
After a car leaves a yard, for example, it might be some time before it passes an AEI reader. In the past, this has been one of the instances when shipment visibility could be temporarily lost. Quasar fills in those gaps with other information that documents the time the car departed the yard.
“Because Quasar is cloud-based, all this data is now presented in one central view, giving managers the story of what’s happening in their supply chains,” says Banks. “That view is literally presented on a map that shows the physical location of each car we are tracking.”
This information is automatically organized to display dwell- and cycle-time calculations, generated instantaneously as the data enters the system. The user can generate tools including heat maps with analytics that show which corridors are faster or slower in real time, as well as analyzing transit time trends.
“If you are a plant manager and you need to know how your inventory will be flowing over the next couple of weeks, Quasar gives you a pretty good idea,” Banks says. “You can see in one view how things are shaping up.”
A BETTER SHIPPER/RAIL RELATIONSHIP
Users are realizing an additional benefit from this wealth of real-time information. Now, instead of contacting a railroad’s customer service group for help in figuring out where a car is, or what is happening to it, they have that information right in front of them. This enables faster recognition of shipment exceptions, development of resolutions, and better communication with customers.
“There are benefits for our Class I partners, too,” Banks says. “They can reduce the amount of time and effort they are spending to mediate or manage issues. That can translate into better customer service because the railroads can also act earlier to resolve railcar delays.”
As the aggregator of tracking data and developer of innovative visibility solutions for all North American railroads, including Class I’s, Railinc is integral to Quasar’s visibility. “Railinc’s role goes beyond the fact that they have a lot of the information we need to supplement IoT and other technologies,” Banks says. “We also have found them to be a very collaborative partner.”In its overall operations, Cando provides services to both Class I railroads and shippers, and Railinc “provides strategic support, helping the company align with the industry’s overall digital transformation,” Banks says. “Railinc has the bench strength to serve as a key Quasar partner, and we’ve also been impressed with their dedication to providing comprehensive customer support. On a day-to-day basis as we deal with the customer service group, we have found they are incredibly helpful. We now rely on them for their deep industry knowledge and expertise. It’s a relationship that has been very beneficial to Cando and its customers, and it’s one we look forward to continuing.”


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Google gets it from all angles at all times – the criticism, that is. In the search industry, it’s an everyday thing. It comes with the territory of search market dominance. Google obviously has a lot more to its brand than search, however, and according to a new report from YouGov BrandIndex, the company’s perception among U.S. consumers is on the rise. Perhaps even more notably, Google+‘s brand perception is trending upwards.
“Google may not have many fans with privacy advocates and some reports indicate Google Plus is a ‘ghost town,’ but they are both the biggest gainers in consumer perception for the month of April,” a spokesperson for YouGov BrandIndex tells WebProNews.
The firm says it chalks up Google’s gains to Google Glasses creating a buzz in social media and a spot on the Jon Stewart show, Instagram arriving in Google Play, and the annual Google Doodle contest.
Netflix also saw a noteworthy rise in the firm’s index, which may be because of its intent to release new Arrested Development episodes and its Xbox 360 app upgrade.
To get its results, YouGov analyzes over 1,100 brands, measuring them with its own “Buzz score” concept. It asks respondents: “If you’ve heard anything about the brand in the last two weeks, through advertising, news or word of mouth, was it positive or negative?” Scores range from 100 to -100, and are compiled by subtracting negative feedback from positive, the firm explains. 0 means equal positive and negative feedback.


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At a recent roundtable titled “Digital Toolkits for Medical Projects”, the Russian Ministry for Economic Development announced that it was considering legislative measures to facilitate the testing of new technologies in healthcare.
“This experimental regime for telemedicine and prescriptions will increase the availability of consultations for patients and increase the speed of medical care without the need to personally visit doctors,” said Deputy Minister Vladislav Fedulov, emphasising that this was particularly important during a pandemic.
The announcement comes as growing demand for fast and convenient service has transformed the way that Russian businesses operate, driving a shift online and a craze for near-instantaneous service. The latest sector to be disrupted by this trend is healthcare, where telemedicine and online ecosystems are becoming increasingly dominant.
In Russia, the same impulse which catapulted e-commerce to new heights, fuelled a boom in food tech and delivery services, and even brought real estate online is also revolutionising healthcare.
The convenience trend
As Russian consumers get increasingly accustomed to receiving services from the comfort of their homes, industries have had to adapt to make their offerings as convenient as possible. Medicine is no exception.
SmartMed, the app of Russia’s largest private healthcare provider Medsi, has a fully digital client path. Almost everything that patients can do in a clinic they can also do online: from choosing a preferred clinic and doctor (there are more than 850 to choose from) to saving their medical history, the results of their medical tests, and their prescriptions on the app. Clients can also receive QR-codes for picking up medicine from the pharmacy, receive online consultations or even call doctors to their house. Since its launch in 2018, the app has garnered more than 1 million downloads.
Medsi is seeing demand for this sort of convenience grow exponentially. The growth of active users of its app constituted 225% year-on-year in 2021. And where only 20% of patients registered for in-person appointments through the SmartMed app in 2020, more than 50% did so in 2021. EMC has observed the same increase in uptake, with 860% growth in the number of telemedicine appointments since the start of the pandemic.
Accurate medical information is in high demand these days. Clients want a trusted provider, rather than trawling through endless google search results with varying degrees of credibility.
Insurance company Renaissance Insurance took that on board while pushing the notion of a complete digital offering to its extreme. It developed an e-health ecosystem where customers can find not only medical insurance but also verified information on health in the form of podcasts and articles, as well as video appointments and prescription deliveries by couriers. Digitalisation runs through Renaissance Insurance’s entire value chain, including medtech startup Budu, which was launched with the aim of capitalising on Russia’s growing digital health services segment.
Ahead of the (infection) curve
As the coronavirus pandemic continues to rage, more people are turning to preventative healthcare solutions (in addition to curative ones) as a way to contain the spread of disease. Online healthcare platforms allow users to regularly monitor their condition, rather than waiting until they have discernible symptoms before seeking help.
The European Medical Centre (EMC), one of Russia’s biggest private healthcare providers, developed the idea of “360˚ health” at the end of 2019. It has since created an online platform that helps guide patients through every step of a long, active and healthy life.
Although online consultations play a big part, doctors can’t do everything using just a phone camera. Instead, EMC decided to build a “multi-platform digital hospital”, where everything – from diagnostics and consultations to medicine delivery and post-care treatment – could be managed online.
EMC’s new site allows users to perform medical exams using remote diagnostics systems like TytoCare with the supervision of a medical professional online. By reading a variety of statistics like blood oxygen levels, body temperature and heart rate, patients can catch or monitor chronic diseases more quickly.
EMC also uses Zebramed technology, which allows medical visualisation of computer vision to identify problems early on. The system also sets doctors’ tasks automatically after recognising abnormalities on scans. With one doctor leading each patient’s case, there is a central contact point and decision maker, which further speeds up the process.
The question for consumers and investors alike is where the trend for accessible medical care will take the industry next. The secret to success will likely include optimising the client experience and integrating new dynamic technologies into existing platforms.
In part, this means gathering large amounts of client feedback. In addition to email questionnaires and a personal account feedback functionality on its app and website, EMC also allows direct feedback to its CEO via the company site.
Another likely direction of development will be the incorporation of big data solutions. EMC is working on a predictive system which can use big data and AI to make medical decisions, and which has the potential to digitalise up to 60% of medical files. Medsi is also developing AI use for healthy lifestyle services together with partners.
Regulations can be a significant facilitator of the development of anything digital. It is therefore good news for the healthcare sector that the Russian Ministry for Economic Development is working on a regime to relax legislation around the creation and testing of new technologies, aiming to make Russia’s medtech solutions as competitive as possible among developed markets. As the digital revolution spreads across emerging markets, Russia’s healthcare sector looks set to receive a welcome dose of innovation.


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Inside the electric scooter divide in San FranciscoPlay Video - 3:45
June 3rd, 2018
Inside the electric scooter divide in San Francisco
Electric scooters are gaining popularity again in several cities across the country, but its causing a bit of a headache for local officials in San Francisco, California. In this week’s Sunday Spotlight, NBC’s Joe Fryer reports on the growing pains to make sure people stay safe.


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Apple says it will increase pay for corporate and retail employees in a tight job market
Steve Prohl | Unpublished Corbis | Getty Images
Apple said Wednesday it would increase pay for corporate and retail workers by the end of the year. The move comes during a historically rigid labor market in the United States and how employees do it increase in inflation and the cost of living.
“Supporting and retaining the best team members in the world allows us to provide the best and most innovative products and services for our customers,” an Apple representative said in a statement. “This year, as part of our annual performance review process, we are increasing our global compensation budget.”
Apple also wants to raise the starting wage for its retail employees in the United States to $ 22 an hour, up from $ 20. Stores in some regions may have higher starting wages, Apple said.
The hike in retail wages was announced as Apple faces initiatives from retail unions across the country demanding higher wages. Employees of a store in Atlanta, Georgia want vote in June whether to organize with the Communication Workers of America.
Inflation hit 8.3% in April, the fastest rate in over 40 years, while unemployment remains low at 3.6%. This combination of factors has prompted many workers, especially in high-demand industries such as technology, to seek better pay or more flexible terms at other companies.
There are some signs that the hot labor market for tech workers could slow in response to market conditions. Facebook, Snap and Nvidia recently said they will slow hiring to control costs in response to market conditions.
Apple remains a giant with a strong cash position, with sales up 34% in 2021 to over $ 297 billion with a gross margin of 43%.


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GM 363 Asset Sale Approved By U. S. Bankruptcy Court
Judge Robert E. Gerber of the U. S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York approved the sale of substantially all of General Motors Corporation's assets to NGMCO, Inc., an entity funde...
Judge Robert E. Gerber of the U. S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York approved the sale of substantially all of General Motors Corporation’s assets to NGMCO, Inc., an entity funded by the U. S. Department of the Treasury. In connection with the closing of the sale transaction, NGMCO, Inc. will change its name to General Motors Company and continue to operate under GM’s historic corporate and sub brands.
The new company will acquire GM’s strongest operations and will have a competitive operating cost structure, partly as a result of recent agreement with the United Auto Workers (UAW) and Canadian Auto Workers (CAW).
The new GM will be headquartered in Detroit and will be led by Fritz Henderson as president and chief executive officer and Edward E. Whitacre, Jr. as chairman of the board of directors. Also, GM’s subsidiaries outside the United States will be acquired by the new company and are expected to continue to operate without interruption.
“A healthy domestic auto industry remains vital to the global economy and we deeply appreciate the support the U. S., Canadian and Ontario governments and taxpayers have given GM, and the sacrifices that have been made by so many. This has been an especially challenging period, and we’ve had to make very difficult decisions to address some of the issues that have plagued our business for decades. Now it’s our responsibility to fix this business and place the company on a clear path to success without delay,” said Henderson.
The new GM’s common stock will be owned by: U. S. Department of the Treasury: 60.8 per cent; UAW Retiree Medical Benefits Trust: 17.5 per cent; Canada and Ontario governments: 11.7 per cent; and the old GM: 10 per cent.
Additionally, the old GM and the UAW Retiree Medical Benefits Trust will hold warrants that are exercisable for 15 per cent and 2.5 per cent of the interests in the new GM, respectively. The UAW Retiree Medical Benefits Trust and the Canadian government each may nominate one member to serve on the board of the new GM. The retiree benefits trust has selected seasoned auto industry analyst Stephen Girsky. Judge Gerber’s order includes a four-day stay before closing of the sale can occur. However, GM expects the sale to close in the near future.


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VR Gaming To Revolutionize Horror?
VR is the next evolution in gaming. The experience will redefine video gaming experience t it’s core. Although still in its infancy the technology is maturing at a rapid rate. In 2016 consumers will have a cornucopia of gadgets to choose from.
These products will have close relation to the delivery of engaging Horror themed content. Yet, as with any new invention comes concerns for debate. There’s a division among game developers on creating Horror content for the gaming community. Let’s begin with a brief summary of the line up of VR gaming devices.
The design to these systems is about engagement. Simulations will put the player within the game environment. Unlike today’s available gaming platforms. Virtual reality devices will toy with the player’s audio and visual senses. No longer will gamers be sitting idle, twiddling thumbs over bulky controllers. The player will react to a computer generated 3-D environment mapped to room scale.
Major developments have erupted at this year’s Game Developers Conference (GDC). Tech giants offered demonstrations and insight to their respected line of Virtual realitydevices. Sony made waves in the gaming community with the unveiling to PlayStation VR. The product will launch October 2016. PlayStation VR are offering a competitive priced product within the Virtual reality gaming market. The affordability will push sales for the device.
The Oculus Rift VR headset/device would be available to the general public in March 2016. Samsung also enters the VR gaming market with Samsung’s Gear. HTC will offer Vive. The Steam /Valve/ HTC VR device will be available sometime in April 2016.
This leads us to the second installment to this article. There’s mixed opinions on the development of Horror content for VR platforms. Opinions vary on exploiting VR technology to its full potential for Horror themed games. Most are in favor establishing heart-pounding concepts. Others resort to toning down Horror VR experiences.
Turn to page two for the discussion on VR and Horror.


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In return, brand trust clearly drives growth, with 61 percent of respondents prepared to advocate if they fully trust a brand, 57 percent prepared to purchase a new product or service, and 31 percent willing to share personal data or participate in activities sponsored by the brand. Those brands emphasizing only functional aspects earn an Edelman Brand Trust Score of 27 but those changing culture achieve a score of 65. Consumers are 4.5 times more likely to buy if a brand addresses human rights, 4x more likely if it speaks out on systemic racism and 3.5x more likely if it takes on economic inequality.
Four years ago, we saw the rise in ‘belief-driven buying,’ driven in part by the belief that brands were better able to address major societal challenges than Government. In the wake of the pandemic, there is a further evolution from Me to We. Value, customer safety and putting people before profits have soared in importance (up 37 points) while personal image, trendiness and excitement are down 15 points. Nearly two-thirds of respondents say that they are more attracted to brands that focus on making the world a better place while slightly more than a third want brands to focus on individual benefits.
To download report, CLICK HERE.


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French spirits group Rémy Cointreau said on Wednesday it had picked Richemont's Eric Vallat as its new chief executive officer.
Vallat, who used to work at the French cognac maker, will replace on 1 December chief executive Valerie Chapoulaud-Floquet, confirming a Bloomberg report.
She had said in early July that she will step down by the end of 2019 for personal reasons.
"We are convinced that his expertise and charisma will enable him to pursue, develop and spearhead the value strategy that will lead Rémy Cointreau on to further successes and help the group achieve its ambition of becoming the leader in exceptional spirits," Marc Hériard-Dubreuil, Rémy Cointreau’s Chairman, said in a statement.
Rémy Cointreau's share price has more than doubled since Chapoulaud-Floquet, a luxury sector specialist, took over in September 2014 with a strategy focused on selling spirits priced at $50 (€44.66) or more a bottle.
Richemont said earlier this week that Vallat would leave the owner of the Cartier and Montblanc brands in October after little more than a year as chief of fashion and accessories.
Vallat began his career in investment banking before joining luxury brand Louis Vuitton. He headed Rémy Martin's cognac division from 2014 until he left for Richemont in 2018.


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What you need to know
- A former Apple employee is helping millions of Indians find jobs.
- Nirmit Parikh has created Apna to help India's millions of low-skilled, migrant laborers.
- 1.25 million have signed up for the app, and over 1 million interviews have been arranged as a result.
A new Bloomberg report has revealed how a former Apple employee has created Apna, a job app to connect millions of migrant laborers in India with work.
From the report:
Parikh, a 32-year-old Apple Inc. alum with an MBA from Stanford, has created Apna, which he envisions as a sort of LinkedIn for non-English-speaking, nonaffluent Indians. When these people move to the cities, they typically find work via small-time employment agencies or on street corners crowded with men and women waiting for someone to hire them for a few hundred rupees a day. With Apna, job seekers enter their name, age, and skills to generate a virtual "business card" that's passed out to employers in Bangalore, Delhi, Mumbai, and Pune, with more cities on the way. "A digital business card is a confidence booster for many who've only seen their super bosses carry business cards," Parikh says. "We want to give millions of bottom-of-pyramid workers a career path."
Interestingly, despite Parikh's two-year stint at Apple in its Product & Strategy department for the iPhone, the app isn't currently available on the App Store, only Google Play. Despite this, 1.25 million people have signed up for the app, and its website says that it has helped arrange over a million interviews in the last 30 days alone.
As the report notes, millions of low-skilled workers in India "crowd into shantytowns and slums" after traveling to the cities from villages hundreds of miles away. The coronavirus pandemic has seen many of them left out of work.
The app was reportedly created out of Parikh's own experience trying to hire a welder decades ago, after which he realized "the system was broken."


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As streaming encroaches on the cinema window, the notion crushed by the media during the pandemic has been that the cinema is dead.
When it comes to streamers, however, the truth is, they still can’t live without the movie theater.
As new streaming services make waves in the fiercely competitive space, it’s the big-screen IP that is the eye-catcher. Disney announced on its Investor Day in December that the studio plans to invest up to $ 16 billion worldwide in consumer content for Disney +, Hulu, and ESPN through 2024. And those are the franchises. of features and the recently acquired 20th Century Studios library that the studio plans to leverage to amass premium content and meet the demands of frenzy consumers. And it’s not just Disney seeing future revenue in the franchises that the big screen has seen emerge, but WarnerMedia’s HBO Max as well.
AMC nears agreement for Grove and Americana leases for Pacific Theaters
“We had a $ 13 billion box office [in 2019], and it’s not something to sneeze at. We built these franchises through the cinema window, ”said Bob Chapek, CEO of Disney, at the studio’s Investor Day in December 2020 about the grease that runs his Disney + treadmill.
“It was much more of an opportunity and something that excited [me] when [Disney executive chairman and former CEO] Bob Iger asked us to start working on shows for Disney +, ”Marvel boss Kevin Feige said during the TCA Winter Tour in February.
Apart from his news The Mighty Ducks: game changers series based on the popular film from the 1990s, and series such as Turner & Hooch, Based on the 1989 Tom Hanks canine comedy film Touchstone, the aorta of Disney + caps on legacy cinematic material is as follows: about 10 Marvel series, 10 Star wars series and 15 live animations and Pixar series will be launched over the next few years. It was another piece of Disney Investor Day news, according to a statement from Kareem Daniel, president of Disney’s Media and Entertainment Distribution.
On the contrary, Disney + didn’t bury the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but rather improved it. The streaming service has become an outlet where Feige and his team can expand the plots of side characters they normally couldn’t focus on primarily in comic book movies, like Wanda Maximoff and Vision in the first MCU Disney + series. WandaVision; Sam Wilson and Bucky Barnes in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier; and Thor‘s Loki, whose eponymous series was discontinued on June 9. Feige uses these Disney + MCU shows to get in and out of the label’s big screen movies. The cliffhanger of WandaVision will be part of the continuation of the feature film by Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, which hits theaters on March 25, 2022, while The Falcon and the Winter Soldier will form a bridge to Wilson’s turn as Black Captain America in a new film sequel to this superhero from creator Malcolm Spellman. The next Black Widow July 9, tips for the next one Hawk Eye series with Yelena Belova by Florence Pugh.
As for concerns about whether the Disney + MCU shows will cannibalize the brand’s future box office of superhero films, which have grossed more than $ 22.5 billion, Feige isn’t worried. He told Deadline in January: “As long as [the series] are different, as long as they are unique and some of the characters can intersect and the Marvel logo is on the front, if these are unique and interesting stories, it doesn’t go out of style.
Beyond Loki in the interconnected MCU Disney + and cinema, and the upcoming Black Widow, there is Shang-Chi and the legend of the ten rings, which will play exclusively in theaters starting Labor Day weekend; and Eternal, which only debuts on the big screen on November 5. Sprinkled on and not yet dated on Disney +, for the rest of the year are MCU series such as Hawk Eye, Ms. Marvel, Moon knight and eventually She-Hulk. End of 2021 will be Marvel / Sony’s theatrical release Spider-Man: No Path Home on December 17 in theaters, another film in which WandaVision is widespread for food.
And how is the MCU doing on Disney +? Although the studio does not report audience figures, Disney said the weekend premiere of Falcon and the Winter Soldier was his most watched series. The third-party streaming statistics service Samba TV, which only monitors terrestrial smart TVs, confirmed this claim at the time, reporting that 1.7 million US households listened to the Spellman-created series for at least five minutes, surpassing the 1.6 million who listened WandaVisionopens. While Disney has remained silent on the success of Loki, SambaTV exclaimed that the first day of the 890,000 US household series is the best audience ever for Disney + on top of the show’s first 5-day draw of 2.5 million.
As Disney + subscribers reached 103.6 million worldwide as of April 6, fell below the 109 million and more expected by Wall Street analysts, Disney chose to put up its next summer masts – Marvel’s Black Widow and Dwayne Johnson and Emily Blunt’s Jungle cruise – on its PVOD portion of the service (Premier) for an additional $ 29.99 to subscribers, a move that could help the studio to further inflate its subbase over the summer. Again, Disney said nothing about Cruel, their other theatrical title — Disney + Premier which dropped on Memorial Day weekend. Samba TV reported that 686,000 American households watched the film Emma Stone. That translates to almost $ 21 million in additional revenue, which Disney keeps and doesn’t share with theaters. Sunday, for four weekends, Cruel will have made $ 64.4 million at the domestic soundtrack
The other opportunity for studios when it comes to developing streaming cinema IP is that they can tell deeper stories without damaging a box office franchise. Following Disney’s acquisition of Lucasfilm for $ 4.05 billion, there was a plan to develop the Star wars films in a similar fashion to the MCU, with standalone character films such as Obi-wan and Boba fett. The first of these character films, Solo: A Star Wars Story, bombarded at the global box office with $ 392.9 million out of a production cost of $ 275 million and marketing fees. This created a lot of worry among the brass at Disney and Lucasfilm as to whether they were hurting the goose that laid the golden eggs. It was then that Disney decided to pivot: Obi-wan became a Disney + series with Ewan McGregor reprising his classic role as Episodes I-III, and Boba fett transformed into two seasons of The Mandalorian, plus his own upcoming TV show, Boba Fett’s book, hitting the service this fall. The famous bounty character made his Disney + debut in season 2 of The Mandalorian, played by Temuera Morrison, the same actor who played her father, Jango, in Attack of the Clones.
WarnerMedia also has films in mind and emulates a similar plan to Disney’s by adapting feature films into spinoff series, albeit in a less aggressive manner. A Harry potter The series is reportedly in development for its HBO Max streaming service, despite the fact that there are no writers attached yet.
Casey Bloys, head of content at HBO and HBO Max, told Deadline earlier this year: “There’s nothing in development, but I think it’s fair to say through Game of thrones, Harry potter and DC, these are franchises that WarnerMedia values and that’s a big advantage for us, so there will always be an interest in doing something quality out of these properties.
Two great DC series coming to HBO Max include The peacemaker, based on the mercenary character of John Cena from the upcoming film directed by James Gunn The suicide squad, released on August 6. There’s also a new series in the works, a prequel to Matt Reeves’ upcoming 2022 The batman film, which the 6th & Idaho filmmaker is producing with Joe Barton in showrunning. The series will focus on corruption in Gotham that stretches back several years and is told from the perspective of a crooked cop.
Recently, HBO Max saw a pop in viewers, via Samba TV, starting with the release of the over four hour version of Justice League: the Snyder Cup, with 1.8 million American households watching in its first five days; that number ranked behind the studio’s drop in Wonder Woman 1984 during the Christmas weekend 2020, which drew 2.2 million U.S. households. The DC ensemble led by Snyder, unlike Wonder Woman 1984, did not receive a theatrical release.
Even Netflix wants its own franchises, but alas, much of it for its streaming service. Long before Snyder’s zombie busting movie Army of the dead Dropped out of the service on May 21, Netflix had previously given the green light for an animated series spinoff from the film and a future prequel film directed by and starring Matthias Schweighöfer who follows his character Ludwig Dieter. Army of the dead, which had an exclusive week-long theatrical release in limited theaters and grossed around $ 800,000, tied with George Clooney’s Midnight sky as the ninth most-watched movie on Netflix with 72 million households worldwide.
The cinema window experimentation gained momentum during the pandemic, primarily due to the shutdown of cinemas around the world for the majority of 2020. WarnerMedia has relegated its theatrical feature film day to day in theaters and on HBO Max for this year only. Meanwhile, Disney picked out titles that went straight to the service (like Pixar’s Luca and Soul) or became available on the day and date of their Premier PVOD level.
Chapek mentioned that Disney’s response to this was strictly a matter of flexibility to meet ongoing and ever-changing consumer demands.
“When we publish new content, people line up at midnight to watch it as soon as it goes live on the streaming service; I don’t think people have that much patience, ”he said recently at the JP Morgan Global Technology, Media and Communications Conference.
Warner Bros. has announced it will meet a 45-day movie window for releases in 2022 and beyond, however, it remains to be seen whether Disney will continue to practice a Disney + Premier movie day and date strategy. next year. While this continues to arouse the ire of exhibitors, it is evident that cinema, and its support for franchises, is the engine that is effectively driving streaming through the nose. The two, no doubt, cannot live without the other.
Chapek said on a February earnings call about Disney +: “The best insulation we have is to keep the price / value relationship very high, and there’s no better way to do that than powerful franchises that regularly release new versions on a monthly basis. “


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The Xbox team has yet to announce March’s full lineup of Game Pass additions, but we do already know of four games joining Game Pass next month.
March is on the way, bringing with it a whole new month of Game Pass additions — here’s four titles which have already been confirmed as joining Game Pass next month.
Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty — March 3rd
Team Ninja’s action-RPG Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty joins Game Pass on March 3rd. Set in a darkly fantastical version of the Later Han Dynasty, it sees a lone soldier trying to survive against the creatures and other enemies massing through the land through mastery of combat based on Chinese martial arts.
Way to the Woods
The beautifully atmospheric action-adventure game Way to the Woods doesn’t have a specific release date yet, but it is set to launch into Game Pass in March, when it’ll see a deer guiding her fawn through a strangely abandoned world, looking for the way home. We have a full Way to the Woods interview to check out if you’d like to learn more!
Amnesia: The Bunker
Amnesia: The Bunker also doesn’t have a set release date yet, but it too will come to Game Pass in March as a first-person survival horror game which sees you stranded alone in a WWI bunker with only one bullet, trying to survive against whatever lurks in the dark.
The massively popular survival game Valheim arrived for PC Game Pass a while ago and is set to come to Game Pass this spring — according to Embracer Group, we can expect the console version of Valheim in March too!
Those are just some of the games coming to Game Pass — which of March’s additions are you most interested in so far? Let us know in the comments!