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- Roku's future is in advertising, and it wants to own as much of the connected TV ad ecosystem as possible.
- That's leading Roku to throw its weight around with publishers and advertisers – borrowing tactics from the "walled garden" playbooks of Google and Facebook.
- The streaming TV company has a strong position. But Amazon is gaining steam with Fire TV and could build an equally powerful 'OTT' ad infrastructure.
Roku has made it very clear of late. The company best known for selling inexpensive hardware to help cord-cutters stream video on their TVs sees its future as an advertising company.
And to secure that future, Roku is playing hardball with partners and advertisers, say people who work directly with the company.
- Specifically, it wants to control as much of the advertising infrastructure on its devices (and smart TVs that employ its software) as possible, including the data used to target people with ads as well as the data derived from individual apps.
- Roku would also like to sell as much ad inventory on Roku apps as it can.
- And generally speaking, Roku would like ads and apps and tracking mechanisms to be built using Roku's proprietary technology. In other words, they want things to work their way.
Over the past few months, Roku has gotten more demanding with some partners, people familiar with the matter say. This aggressive elbow-throwing is rubbing some the wrong way, as it smacks of classic "walled garden" behavior, the kind of "it's our platform/our data/our rules" muscling that Facebook and Google are known for.
Roku is a crucial player in the very nascent 'OTT' ("over the top") ad space, but it's hardly got the clout Facebook or Google have in digital advertising. In fact, Amazon is coming on strong in this market, as sales of its Fire TV product surge.
Still, Roku is seen as having a huge early lead in OTT ads. And for now, that means it can throw its weight around.
"They are the biggest player in the space," said Jason Burke, VP of strategic development at Clypd, an ad tech firm that work with big TV networks. "So they can somewhat get away with having equal or higher walls than those other guys."
The stakes are huge. As Google has demonstrated, the company that controls how ads are delivered, tracked, targeted and sold can play a massive, if not dominant role in how a market evolves.
Whoever can do that in connected TV would seemingly have a massive opportunity.
Connected TV is seen as the holy grail of advertising
While linear TV viewing continues to slide, causing advertisers to pull back on traditional TV ad spending, 'OTT' is seen as holding huge potential for the ad business.
True, loads of people use Rokus and Apple TVs and Amazon Fires to stream non ad supported content from the likes of Netflix, Amazon and HBO. But ad-supported OTT is growing fast. as more people stream sports on apps for networks like ESPN or NBC or binge scripted shows on apps for networks like AMC or FX.
The video ad tech firm Innovid says that this past May was the first time it tracked more ads delivered on TVs than on desktops. Of all the video ad inventory Innovid sees, 27% of it is being delivered on smart TVs, up from roughly 10% 18 months ago.
The great promise of 'OTT' ads is that they theoretically combine the best of TV and digital media. That is, these ads appear on big TV screens in the living room, offering advertisers large canvas and sight, sound and motion to get their messages across.
And because they're delivered over the internet, OTT ads can theoretically use data and targeting to deliver individualized messages to consumers.
The industry is a long way from fully supporting that reality, but the growth is promising.
According to eMarketer, TV ad spending in the US is expected to slip by 0.5% to $69.87 billion this year.
Meanwhile, OTT spending is on the rise. Roku’s US ad revenue is projected to jump by 93% this year to $293 million, per eMarketer. Again, relatively small, but growing fast.
It helps that Roku, thanks to its 20 million-plus users, has a commanding share of the ads delivered, according to the analytics firm Pixalate.
The Roku Advertising Framework
In many ways, Roku is a device company that is also an ad tech company. It has built a proprietary platform, the Roku Advertising Framework, designed to help publishers make money and advertisers to reach OTT viewers effectively.
As part of that framework, Roku sells ads for many of the publishers on its platform. In fact, in its most recent earnings report, Roku's 'platform' business accounted for 55% of its revenue.
In some cases, Roku insists on selling 30% of a publishers ad inventory for an app if they want to be distributed on Roku devices. There's even talk in the industry that Roku may look to charge smaller publishers for distribution. Roku declined to comment on that point.
Not every publisher agrees to this type of arrangement. Hulu, for example, doesn't let Roku sell any of its ad inventory. But many others, like Pluto TV, Tubi TV, and Crackle do.
And in recent months, Roku has pushed for more concessions from its publishers, while also not keeping them in the loop on changes, say partners.
"They have a tendency to own as much as they can," said one app executive. "Partners do not like working with them. They do try to strong arm. And they are very important."
Maybe that's just good business, others argue.
"Roku has built the only good ecosystem in the connected TV space," said Tal Chalozin, CTO and cofounder at Innovid. "They've enabled monetization and have done an amazing job. So they deserve a lot of credit. And they charge a nice fee for it."
Roku bills itself as publisher friendly
Scott Rosenberg, Roku's SVP, Advertising, said that Roku has worked hard to build an ad ecosystem that works well for publishers. He pointed to the company's work with Nielsen and other third party researchers as evidence that Roku tries to deliver on its partners' needs.
"Contrary to a lot of platforms, we are very invested in making sure that our pubs are successful," he said. "That’s a differentiator. A lot of other platforms don't offer marketing tools to help them grow their audience, for example."
To be sure, there are media companies that are very pleased with their Roku distribution.
"I think we’re really progressive,"Rosenberg said.
Whose data is it anyway?
Consumer data – whether it's who people are, what they do on the web, their age, sex, location, shopping preferences – is the lifeblood of digital advertising. It's what makes Google (who knows what you search for) and Facebook (who knows what you like) so powerful.
So whichever company controls the data that is used to target and track what goes on in OTT should have huge clout.
Roku would like it to be Roku.
"They have to win this battle," said a top ad buyer. "If they can force the ad community to rely on their identifier, they can make money on every single ad on the platform."
Specifically, Roku wants publishers and advertisers using its anonymous device ID rather than other sources. And every time a person visits an app, a different device ID is generated. So marrying up data across apps is difficult, as is connecting the dots with what consumers do on other platforms.
For publishers, this means that Roku often knows more about how people consumer their content than they do.
For apps like Hulu, or NBC Sports, users likely og in to use these apps. So these companies are able to collect decent viewership data. But for many other publishers, they're relying on Roku's permission to extract data on viewing patterns or audience makeup. Some say you can pay to get access to more data.
That's led to tensions on some fronts.
"What this potentially does is it ties an arm behind the media seller's back," said one ad sales executive.
"There attitude is, 'if you don’t like it you’re off the platform,' said one media CEO. "A lot of people don’t like them."
Besides battles over ad sales control, some larger media companies wonder whether Roku appreciates the role that media companies play in its success. "We're helping them sell a number of devices," said one media executive. Yet with these tech companies, "there's constant disregard for the value of IP."
Identity is the key to Roku's future
Advertisers want to be able to use all sorts of data, including their own customer files, to target people with ads. For instance, a bank might want to run certain ads at people that are already customers and different ads aimed at prospective customers.
These kinds of brands also want to evaluate ad campaigns across channels, so they know how many people they reach on TV, the web, and other channels, and how often they reach the people they are trying to target.
Ad buyers say Roku doesn't make that easy. "Looking holistically across ad campaigns is a huge challenge in this space," said one ad buyer. "They've never been willing to help."
And some contend that Roku may hide behind user privacy concerns in keeping some advertiser' data needs at bay.
"What we've seen lately is that Cambridge Analytica plus GDPR is giving big powerful places the license to be walled gardens," said Tracey Scheppach, CEO of Matter More Media, which specializes in targeted TV ads.
A walled garden stance may limit Roku's growth over time.
"I applaud Roku, they've put a lot of effort into building an ad platform," said Michael Bologna, President of one2one Media, which specializes in advanced TV advertising. "Siloed single approaches only last so long and go so far."
Roku for its part doesn't agree that its been difficult to work with when it comes to data or targeting. Rosenberg said the company has demonstrated a willingness's to integrate with outside research firms and ad tech purveyors to help brands reach the targets they want.
At the same time, Roku won't compromise on its customer relationships.
"This is about honoring a customer," Rosenberg said. "Our data never leaves our house. We’re very, very protective of it. We dont want to sidestep user preferences. That's our guiding light, that the consumer is in control."
"One of the most basic challenges marketers face in an increasingly fragmented market [is reconciling data across devices]," he said. "It's a hard problem, and we don’t have a short answer for it."
Amazon is coming
Roku's position may just be really good business. The company sees an asset it uniquely controls, and it's looking to make the most out of that advantage. Again, much like Google and Facebook do.
The difference here is that Facebook and Google's market shares are much more defensible. Roku's growth has been a terrific story. But Amazon's Fire TV product is stealing share fast.
And while ad buyers say that Amazon's TV ad business has been nascent, the company is working on its own OTT ad network, say people familiar with the matter.
As its demonstrated in the past, once Amazon gets serious about something (like say, digital advertising), watch out.
"The picture is changing so fast due to Amazon," said one digital publisher. "Roku is under huge pressure."
What's next for Roku?
Roku's ride as a public company has been up and down. The company's recent embrace of advertising seemed to please Wall Street. Yet continuing its growth won't be easy, as Amazon and other contenders like Samsung push for market share.
Meanwhile, when it comes to OTT advertising, the industry's two dominant players won't stand pat. Could Google or Facebook ever make a play to acquire Roku?
It's purely speculative in this case, but buying Roku might be an easy entry point into the nearly $70 billion TV ad market – a market both companies crave cracking.
"Roku has ad tech and ID, but it also has relationships with TV networks that Google, Facebook and Amazon don't have," said Clypd's Burke. "A buyer would inherit that."
The fact that Roku is public complicates matters. And in Google's case, it already does manufacture an OTT device in Chromecast.
Some don't see Roku having any interest in selling. Others see Facebook as a natural acquirer, given its interest in TV ads and the fact that it doesn't make any OTT hardware.
"They could overnight put Facebook Watch on every Roku TV," said Bologna.


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WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Overall U.S. bankruptcy filings fell in April compared to the year before, a possible sign the massive Federal Reserve and government response to the coronavirus pandemic may have helped stave off economic damage, or at least provided enough hope to families and firms to try to wait it out.
In a potential warning sign, however, filings of the Chapter 11 bankruptcies used by companies to restructure their debts jumped 26% to 560 last month, from 444 in April, 2019, according to data compiled by Epiq Systems and provided by the American Bankruptcy Institute.
The 2,270 Chapter 11 filings through April is the largest four-month total since 2013.
Overall, bankruptcy filings by households and companies fell sharply to 38,428 from 71,303 a year ago, a decline of 46%.
ABI's executive director, Amy Quackenboss, said in a statement that the steps taken by the federal government beginning in March "have likely staved off bankruptcy filings to date."
Those measures included loans to help small businesses stay afloat, one-off emergency payments to families, and unemployment benefits expanded to be both more generous and available for the first time to groups of people like self-employed entrepreneurs and contractors.
Banks have been encouraged by the Fed to give strapped customers leeway with loan payments, landlords urged to do the same by local governments, and many utility firms have suspended disconnections for overdue bills during the crisis - all steps that may help keep family and business finances intact for now.
Like recent economic data, however, the true picture may only emerge over time, as social distancing rules are eased, firms see whether customers return, and laid-off workers have a more accurate sense of whether they will be asked back to their old jobs.
The small business loans, for example, are designed to cover about two months of payroll, though it remains uncertain whether business will be back to normal by then for thousands of restaurants, hotels and others in the hardest-hit sectors.
(Reporting by Howard Schneider; Editing by Paul Simao)

domain: news


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Walt Disney Co. announced its plans to build theme-park rides and attractions based on the 2009 hit film Avatar, by James Cameron. The first is to appear at Walt Disney World around 2017.
According to the WSJ, Disney would be building the attractions under long-term, exclusive agreements with Twentieth Century Fox, which distributed Avatar, and director James Cameron’s production company, Lightstorm Entertainment.
Construction is to begin in early 2013 and the estimated cost of the project is about $400 million. The attractions are to be constructed by Walt Disney’s ride designers, known as Imagineers, in collaboration with Mr. Cameron.
The companies are still discussing the plans. Speaking at a Tuesday press conference, Disney Parks and Resorts Chairman Thomas Staggs said: «We’re just beginning the development phase on this project.»
James Cameron said the attractions would probably include recreations of environments from Avatar and possibly from two sequels that are planned for release in 2014 and 2015. It means, the new attractions will feature a plethora of exotic blue-skinned creatures, plants and scenery. Many of these elements, including a bioluminescent forest and dragon-like flying animals, are likely to be part of the Disney World installation, according to Disney.
The new theme-park might be extremely popular place of attraction for numerous fans of the movie. Mr. Cameron said, «The scenes people liked best weren’t the obvious ones, like the big battles.» Instead, he said, the favorites were «The creatures, learning to fly, being in the forest at night. The impression we got was that people just liked being in that world.»
With sequels to be on screens in two or three years, the project will have new theme elements to develop.
Some global brands have already used Avatar in its marketing campaigns. For example, McDonalds had an in-restaurant promotion with a special sweepstakes incentive for Twitter followers when the film launched. Coca-Cola Zero used it in a promotional viral.


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When I was a young kid, my family drove a white Rambler station wagon. Ramblers were made by the American Motors Corp.. Some might ask: Who?
American Motors ceased to exist when it was absorbed by Chrysler in 1987. Chrysler’s chief executive Lee Iacocca particularly wanted AMC’s Jeep line.
It looks like President Barack Obama has a new, very different kind of “American Motors” in mind.
The auto industry is littered with many companies that no longer exist. American Motors, for example, was given birth when Nash-Kelvinator merged with the Hudson Motor Car Co. in 1954. In that same year, Packard and Studebaker merged, with the Packard name ending in 1959 and Studebaker going out of business in 1966. Earlier, many auto companies did not survive the Great Depression.
But in 1979, when Chrysler was in trouble, they went to the federal government for a handout and received $1.5 billion in loan guarantees.
Of course, automakers are in trouble again. Late last year, General Motors, Chrysler (again) and Ford went to Washington looking for bailouts. If politicians were doling out big bucks to financial firms, why not auto manufacturers?
With Congress saying no, President George W. Bush nonetheless doled out $17.4 billion in loans in December. While GM got $13.4 billion and Chrysler $4 billion, Ford turned down the money.
GM and Chrysler were back in February looking for another $21.6 billion in loans promised by the Bush administration if the companies came up with new business plans. President Obama served up his response on March 30. It was very Obama-like.
It sounded like he was getting tough. GM needed a more substantive and realistic restructuring plan in 60 days, and Chrysler had 30 days to merge with Fiat. But if done to the White House’s satisfaction, there would be more handouts from the taxpayers. So much for getting tough.
The president also declared: “The United States government has no interest in running GM.” But this came after Obama forced out GM CEO Rick Wagoner. And the president clearly is intent on dictating the kinds of cars GM and Chrysler make, according to the preferences of the environmental movement.
In addition, President Obama declared: “We cannot, we must not and we will not let our auto industry simply vanish.” Golly. Vanish? Does that mean U.S. consumers would not be able to buy cars built in the United States by American workers?
Of course not. Not only did Ford not take a bailout, but other companies with auto plants in the United States include Nissan, Toyota, Hyundai, BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Honda, with new plants for Kia and Volkswagen coming.
The Wall Street Journal reported that a third of U.S. auto workers – about 100,000 – work in dozens of U.S. plants operated by transplanted car companies.
Both the Bush and Obama administrations have antiquated views of the auto industry, and failed to grasp how markets work. Considering that automakers produce vehicles all around the globe, the terms “domestic” and “foreign” automakers hold little meaning.
GM and Chrysler are suffering more than other manufacturers due to their enormous debt and labor costs (for both current and retired workers). These companies need to go into bankruptcy in order to truly restructure and have a real chance to compete.
The bulk of the American people seem to get it. A recent USA Today poll found that 59 percent of adults disapproved of the earlier loans meant to keep the firms out of bankruptcy.
The Bush White House should have let the bankruptcy process start. Taxpayers wouldn’t be on the hook, and the firms would be that much closer to getting back to business. President Obama at least raised the possibility of bankruptcy. But bankruptcy needs to be the reality, not just a threat. The government could help by setting up an accelerated bankruptcy process for GM and Chrysler.
U.S. consumers and taxpayers do not need a new kind of American Motors, that is, auto companies subsidized and run by the American government. Instead, stop the government bailouts and dictates, and let consumers decide what kind of vehicles they want to drive and which companies make the best cars, SUVs, minivans and trucks at the right price.
Raymond J. Keating is chief economist for the Small Business & Entrepreneurship Council. He can be reached at email@example.com.


text: Alan Buxton tipped me off to this recent IBM announcement that the computing and services giant plans to increase its Sub-Saharan African investments "by more than $US120 million over the next two years." But if you read between the lines of the news, it would appear that the investment is destined entirely for South Africa. Clearly, this supports the notion that Thomas Otter and others have defended that Africa is ripe for investment and export potential. But it also supports my belief that Africa as a whole -- at least 90+ percent of it except South Africa and maybe a smattering of other countries -- is not ready for prime sourcing time. In ten years, maybe, but certainly not today, with the exception of South Africa, which continues to draw investment interest from certain segments of Western industry (e.g., automotive, high tech, etc.) South Africa, however, is not without its own set of challenges, especially in the manufacturing world. According to a recent Reuters wire dispatch, a "shortage of skilled labour remained the most serious constraint on manufacturing activity in South Africa, with 43 percent of producers surveyed, singling it out ... Other restrictions included a shortage of raw materials and higher short-term interest rates."


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China's fluorspar production falls to 60% of capacity
Published: Friday, 06 December 2013
Weak fluorspar demand globally pushes higher cost Chinese producers out of the market
The weak demand which has plagued international acid-grade
fluorspar (acidspar) markets for the past 18 months has caused
Chinas total fluorspar production to fall to 60% of
capacity over the space of this year.
With the downturn in fluorochemical production compounding
pressures on sales, short terms deals have...


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There are a lot of question marks over the Huawei Mate 50 series, the anticipated 2021 entry in Huawei’s top-end Mate line of powerhouse mobile phones.
With the Huawei P50 series delayed, and months still expected, some would be surprised to hear that the Mate series was delayed as well – but then some sources seem to have been canceled altogether, And we will have to wait a year to see another Mate phone.
It’s a shame, because if it’s real, the Huawei Mate 50 could be one of the best handsets of the year. This was true of the Huawei Mate 40 range in 2020, phones that – especially in the case of the Huawei Mate 40 Pro and Pro Plus – had great screens, great designs, class-leading cameras, good battery life, and plenty of power.
So far we don’t know much about the Huawei Mate 50 range, but we expect all this to continue – possibly coupled with the higher price tag.
Below we’ll look at everything we’ve heard so far, along with release date and price details, and then a wish list of what we want out of the phone, as there’s always room for improvement.
According to a source, there will be no new Mate phones this year – so no Huawei Mate 50 or 50 Pro – for the first time since 2013.
cut to the chase
- What is this? Huawei Mate 40 . the phablet successor
- When is it out? maybe September or October, if at all
- How much will it cost? vague but a lot
Huawei Mate 50 release date and price
The Huawei Mate 50 will likely be announced later in the year, but exactly when is less clear. The Huawei Mate 40 range was unveiled in late October of 2020, and went on sale from November, but last year the Huawei Mate 30 was both announced and released in September.
We may see a delay – the Huawei P50 series has not launched at the time of writing despite the usual March appearance, and perhaps the Mate line will be pushed back so that the P devices have a chance to shine. That is, if the phone hasn’t been canceled, as one source thinks.
As for the price, the Huawei Mate 40 Pro was the only model in the current range to get a UK or Australian release, and was priced at £1099.99 / AU$1,999 (about $1,430). No phones were released in the US, but the standard Mate 40 debuted in Europe at €899 (about £810 / $1,065 / AU$1,500).
So pricing for the Huawei Mate 40 range could be similar – as could availability, but with no rumors yet, we’re not quite sure. We can only trust that the Range probably won’t land in the US thanks to the Huawei ban, though even with a new administration in power that may not be set in stone.
news and leaks
We don’t know much about the Huawei Mate 50 yet, but it is possible that it will be powered by the Kirin 9000 chipset. This is actually the same chipset that the Huawei Mate 40 has, which means the new phone won’t get as much power boost as usual.
The reason for this chipset likely is because Huawei’s US trade embargo means it can’t easily source the components to make the chipsets. However, it reportedly holds back enough Kirin 9000 stock to be able to equip the Huawei P50 range and perhaps the Mate 9000 range with it.
Genuine and rumored LTPO smartphones so far for 2021- S21 Ultra- Oppo Find X3/Pro- Z Flip 3- Z Fold 3- Xiaomi Mi 12- Huawei Mate 50 Pro- Apple iPhone 12s Pro- Apple iPhone 12s Pro MaxJanuary 22, 2021
elsewhere, Ross Young (a display industry expert and leaker) has tweeted that the Huawei Mate 50 Pro is among the 2021 phones that are rumored to have an LTPO (Low Temperature Polycrystalline Oxide) screen.
This is the type of screen technology we’ve seen on some phones, such as the Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra, but not many. This allows the refresh rate of the display to be changed dynamically, without additional hardware components.
This in turn probably means two things for the Huawei Mate 50 Pro. Firstly, it will likely have a refresh rate above 60Hz (which is hardly surprising given that the Mate 40 range has a 90Hz refresh rate), and secondly, it will likely have a variable refresh rate, which means it will be slower Switches on when an additional refresh is not needed, thereby conserving battery life.
what do we want to see
We don’t know much about the Huawei Mate 50 range at the time of writing, but we do know what we want.
1. More Apps
One of the biggest problems with Huawei’s recent phones is software, and apps in particular. The company’s phones can’t access the Google Play Store or use Google apps like Maps because of a US trade ban.
Huawei has its own alternative store, called AppGallery, as well as access to some third-party stores on its phones, but none of these can compete with Google Play, or in many cases Google’s own apps. , so there are a lot of gaps in its app library.
Fixing this for the Huawei Mate 50 range would make it more desirable, but short of the end of the trade embargo (which may not be entirely impossible now that a different government is in power) the situation probably won’t be much better.
2. Wide availability
None of the Huawei Mate 40 range landed in the US, and only the Huawei Mate 40 Pro landed in the UK or Australia, so for the Huawei Mate 50 range we want wider availability.
Specifically, we want to see every model in the UK and Australia. The US is still likely out of the question given the Huawei ban, but we want every region to have these phones.
3. A 120Hz or higher refresh rate
Every model in the Huawei Mate 40 range has a 90Hz refresh rate, which is a reasonable refresh rate for the basic model, but less impressive for the Mate 40 Pro, let alone the Mate 40 Pro Plus.
So we want the Huawei Mate 50 range to at least match the likes of the Samsung Galaxy S21 range in offering 120Hz refresh rate on every model.
Better yet, we’d love to see an even higher refresh rate. Few gaming phones offer this, so there’s no reason a general-purpose flagship can’t.
4. Low Price
The Huawei Mate 40 Pro was an expensive phone at launch, and if the rest of the phone were available in the regions we covered, they might as well, so we’d be looking to see a price cut for the Huawei Mate 50 range. .
Samsung slashed the prices for the Galaxy S21 range, so it’s not out of the question, especially as Huawei would like to be able to compete with those phones.
5. An in-screen camera
One thing that can help make the Huawei Mate 50 range stand out is the in-screen selfie camera. It’s a feature we’ve now seen on the ZTE Axon 20 5G, and it’s also one that other companies are rumored to be working on, so it’s not unreasonable to expect the flagships to have a camera in the screen by the end of this year.
Also, one of the problems we had with the Huawei Mate 40 Pro was its large camera cut-out, which is what an in-screen camera will solve.
- Check out the best Huawei phones


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If there’s one thing that marketers agree upon these days, it’s the new reality of the world in which they operate. It’s more complex and challenging than ever before, requiring increasingly sophisticated thinking to keep up with – not to mention, stay ahead of – the curve.
So why is it still the simple stuff that trips them up?
As we headed through the home stretch of 2011 and into 2012, a series of brand stumbles was enough to make you wonder if marketers can really handle the hard stuff when so many have trouble with some of marketing’s most basic tenets.
The BofA Lesson
Apparently Verizon Wireless missed the news. Or thought the sentiment behind the outcry against Bank of America (and others) for its proposed-then-cancelled fee on debit card transactions was not relevant to mobile. In fact, Verizon’s customers perceived its plan to impose a $2 “convenience” fee on certain types of bill payments the same way bank customers did: as an infuriating case of nickel and diming. In the face of huge, social media-led backlash, Verizon backed down from the plan in record time. The takeaway: Pricing is a delicate issue, particularly in the consumer space. Due diligence for pricing moves includes not just an eye to what competitors are doing, but to other industries, as well.
Don’t Mess with the Icon
It wasn’t that people disagreed with the message. They were all for saving polar bears. But the white, holiday “Arctic Home” cans featuring the bears as part of a $3 million initiative to help save them were nearly a mirror image of the silver Diet Coke packaging. After a groundswell of confusion and complaints, the special edition cans are being re-issued in red. And Coca Cola has helped to reinforce the proviso: Mess with the packaging at your peril, particularly when it is a signature touchpoint for your brand.
More: Taylor Swift and fois gras – what’s the common denominator?
While a lovely and effective celebrity spokes-singer, even Taylor Swiftcouldn’t possibly have eyelashes as incredible as they looked in the ads for CoverGirl’s NaturelLuxe Mousse Mascara. Indeed. The large print promised “2X more volume.” But the disclaimer: “Lashes enhanced in post production.” The ads were yanked by Procter and Gamble after complaints by watchdog National Advertising Division for their misleading messages, another success by the photoshop police in the campaign for honesty in beauty ads. Truth in advertising has always been critical, but the bar in beauty and particularly when targeted to impressionable younger women, is much higher. Moreover, transparency is not optional.
The Jury’s Out
There’s something oxymoronic about teaming “fast food hamburger” with “fois gras,” but Wendy’s is betting its premium Fois Gras Rossini Burger will play in Japan even if it probably wouldn’t in Peoria. The idea is to differentiate Wendy’s upon its re-entry to the Japanese market after a two-year absence. Maybe. McDonald’s has gone with gut-busting size to solidify its claim. Local rivals like Lotteria go with items like the Matsuzaka beef burger on the premium front. The issue is, as Prophet’s own David Aaker argues, that success in dynamic markets requires creating offerings so innovative that they create new categories or subcategories — making competitors irrelevant. Does Wendy’s offer have that kind of power?
Stay tuned as 2012 progresses. Somehow, I’m certain there are more missteps to come.


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Reuters - Apple Inc unveiled a new vision for its hugely successful retail stores on Thursday, aiming to give shoppers the experience of setting foot in the headquarters of the company credited with inventing the smartphone.
Speaking at a media event in San Francisco on Thursday, Apple executives offered a sneak peak of a new store that features design elements that will later roll out to more locations worldwide, including new spaces for socialization and collaboration.
The makeover follows Apple's first-ever decline in iPhone sales and its first revenue drop in 13 years in an increasingly saturated market.
While the redesign includes plenty of glass, metal and blonde wood – the sleek materials shoppers have come to associate with the company – it also borrows features from Apple's hotly anticipated new headquarters in Silicon Valley, which is set to open early next year.
Much of the furniture is identical to that Apple employees will find in the new campus, including tables designed in part by Jonathan Ive, Apple s chief design officer.
The Apple Store is the envy of many in the retail world, with the highest sales per square foot in the industry, but some say the stores have lost their edge since the first one opened 15 years ago.


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The full integration of online marketing services provider Digital Impact into Acxiom Corp. has resulted in the renaming of the business unit as Acxiom Digital, the appointment of a new top executive and the expansion of its product offerings, Acxiom said yesterday.
The changes at Acxiom, Little Rock, AR, come nearly a year after the Digital Impact deal was completed in May 2005.
Kevin H. Johnson, former vice president of products and marketing for Digital Impact, becomes leader of Acxiom Digital while former Digital Impact CEO William Park has been tapped to oversee Acxiom Digital as well as Acxiom's InfoBase data business and Acxiom Direct as client services organization leader.
The first new service under the Acxiom Digital banner is customer acquisition lead generation on the Web, Mr. Johnson said in an interview with DM News.
“Acxiom Digital will create Web sites to appeal directly to consumers for lead generation purposes,” he said. “It makes sense in a couple of different ways. One is, clients were asking for it, and the other is that we have the capabilities and we believe in our ability to draw traffic cost effectively, and so now it's essentially putting our money where our mouth is.”
The first such Web site is www.healthcareers.net, designed for consumers to obtain more information about careers in healthcare.
“The site is built to let people know how they can pursue a career in the healthcare industry and captures people interested in an education or going to school in order to help further that career,” Mr. Johnson said.
Leads generated at the site are shared with appropriate clients.
The health careers offering is the first but Acxiom Digital is exploring other markets.
“As you can guess, we will be looking at verticals and topics that are most appealing to the Acxiom client base but we don't want to tip our hand on where we're going yet,” he said.
Mr. Johnson said that other companies do lead generation but that the services vary widely.
“Other companies do this in a variety of ways,” he said. “The term 'lead gen' is kind of a loaded term these days, and most people associate it with the not-too-spectacular sites that you click to and they just give you another list of links. I think it's a growing business, and we'll see a lot of others getting into it as well.”
Marketing continues to evolve, with more marketers moving toward real multichannel integration, he said.
“I think for years people have been talking about bringing together their databases and having a single data source from which to drive marketing, and it really feels to me like more companies are achieving that reality this year and are much more integrated in their marketing programs than they used to be,” he said.
Mr. Johnson said the former Digital Impact and Acxiom continue to add joint clients in industries such as transportation, technology, publishing, retail and financial services.
Access to Acxiom's data and products such as the Personicx database and customer recognition tool AbiliTec also has been a key factor in the integration.
“We are still finding new ways to use Acxiom's existing data that can help drive the coveted personalization and relevance of our marketing programs,” Mr. Johnson said.
Acxiom announced its intent to buy Digital Impact in March 2005 and made a $140 million tender offer of $3.50 per share of common stock. When the deal was first announced, Acxiom company leader Charles D. Morgan said a growing need for integrated online and offline marketing solutions sparked the acquisition.
Kristen Bremner covers list news, insert media, privacy and fundraising for DM News and DMNews.com. To keep up with the latest developments in these areas, subscribe to our daily and weekly e-mail newsletters by visiting www.dmnews.com/newsletters


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Nvidia is going through some trying times, grappling with defective chips, falling shares, and a resurgent AMD-ATI.
Brooke CrothersFormer CNET contributor
Brooke Crothers writes about mobile computer systems, including laptops, tablets, smartphones: how they define the computing experience and the hardware that makes them tick. He has served as an editor at large at CNET News and a contributing reporter to The New York Times' Bits and Technology sections. His interest in things small began when living in Tokyo in a very small apartment for a very long time.
Nvidia is in the throes of a minor meltdown. Its share price is collapsing as it grapples with widespread product defects, a resurgent Advanced Micro Devices, and a weak market.
It all started when Nvidia released a statement on July 2 saying it would take a $150 million to $200 million charge to cover the costs for repair and replacement of defective graphics silicon in notebook PCs. Though Nvidia didn't name any names, Hewlett-Packard, Apple, and Lenovo, among others, use Nvidia graphics chips in their notebooks.
Then on Thursday, July 3, shares plunged $5.54, or just over 30 percent, and closed at $12.49. And share prices have continued to fall--though how much of the post-30-percent drop can be attributed to the weak stock market is not clear.
"There are two piece of news. One is the technical problem, the other part is that (Nvidia) isn't happy with where their business is going," said Dean McCarron, principal at Cave Creek, Ariz.-based Mercury Research.
Keener-than-usual competition is adding to product-defect woes. "Pricing has been more aggressive," McCarron said, referring to more competitive products from AMD's ATI graphics unit.
"They did make some price adjustments on their GPU (graphics processing unit) products based on AMD being more competitive," McCarron said.
PC makers such as HP and Toshiba are also using more AMD-ATI graphics chips in notebook PCs, though the impact of this trend may be felt later rather than sooner. "I wouldn't necessarily look at it as being a tremendous share shift. We won't know until the end of the quarter. My suspicion is that (this quarter) a market share shift could be a small component," he said.
Beyond Nvidia's internal problems and the inter-company rivalry with AMD, McCarron sees a bigger issue looming that may affect not only Nvidia in a big way but AMD and Intel, too. "I am seeing some early signs that the market is weaker than forecast. China in particular seems to be much softer," McCarron said. This is a concern because China is now driving a lot of the growth, he said.
Stateside, an ill-timed Rambus lawsuit against Nvidia falls into the kick-them-when-they're-down category. Rambus, which makes a living--though not that successfully in recent years--suing other companies for patent infringement, has now set its sights on Nvidia. The Los Altos, Calif.-based company filed a lawsuit Thursday claiming Nvidia products with memory controllers for synchronous dynamic random access memory (SDR) and double data rate memory (DDR, DDR2, DDR3, GDDR, and GDDR3) infringe 17 Rambus patents.
But product defects will be the big issue that dogs Nvidia over the summer and weighs on its stock price. Here is an excerpt from Nvidia's 8-K filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission on July 2. "While we have not been able to determine a root cause for these failures, testing suggests a weak material set of die/package combination, system thermal management designs."
McCarron said in some cases "you're getting enough mechanical stress that you're actually breaking the bond between the chip and the motherboard" which can cause a system with an Nvidia chip to fail.


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A number of UK consumers who have used Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) products to pay for online shopping are then chased for payments despite having returned their item, a survey by Citizens Advice has found.
The charity estimated that 14 million people in the UK have used a BNPL service in the last year, and looked to discover if consumers run into any difficulties if they need to return shopping. It surveyed over 1,000 people who had used BNPL to order something in the past three months. For people who wanted to return their item, 1 in 10 found their returned item didn’t arrive. Even for those who were able to return their item, almost half experienced a further problem.
The biggest problem people faced was being chased for payments despite having returned their item, with 16% of respondents who returned their item experiencing this. And 1 in 10 were charged late payment fees when they refused to pay for the items they had already returned, with further payments taken at a later date.
People that had already paid for their item and no longer owed the BNPL firm money still found it very difficult to get a refund. Around 1 in 10 people never received a refund even after successfully returning their item. Of those who returned items 11% felt pressured into completing payment to avoid penalties, even though they’d already returned their item, and then didn’t get a refund.
Citizens Advice stressed that the retailer should be responsible for resolving any issues with receiving a refund. However, often the retailer will also need to interact with the BNPL and parcel companies, meaning many people are forced to contact multiple agencies. Of those surveyed who returned their item, 15% experienced “time consuming and stressful tasks” to recieve their refund.
The charity advised keeping proof of postage and suggested consumers consider tracking returns. It recommended that anyone thinking of using a BNPL service do research first and understand how it works. In a blog post, the charity said: “reading the retailer’s Terms and Conditions is a good place to start”.
It added to check if the BNPL company has a Buyer Protection policy or what the BNPL Terms and Conditions said about buyer protection and how they will deal with any issues.


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Waylands Automotive has officially opened the doors at its new 10-car Oxford Volvo car dealership following a £1 million investment in the site.
TrustFord has celebrated the opening of its newly upgraded Staines FordStore with a meeting of old and new…as the classic Model T Ford appeared alongside the newly-unveiled Puma crossover.
JCT600 has opened the doors at its new Mitsubishi Motors dealership in the city following a six figure investment to re-purpose the former BMW franchised site.
The Trade Centre Group will expand into the North with the opening of a sixth car supermarket site in Rochdale before the end of the year.
Marshall Motor Group has opened the doors to an all-new Nissan dealership in Lincoln with a special sales event celebrating the opening until September 15.
Richard Hardie Group has expended with the opening of a new MG Motor UK franchised car dealership in Ashington, Northumberland.
A classic car restoration company that specialises in the installation of modern electric vehicle technology into Jaguar E-Types and MG Bs has attracted local authority funding to open a new showroom.
Fred Henderson has added the SsangYong franchise to its Durham showroom as the Korean brand continues its dealer network expansion in the UK.
Marshall Motor Group hosted around 600 people at an official opening event for its £10 million, 40,000 square foot Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) dealership in Lincoln.
SsangYong Motor UK has added Somerset’s Platinum Motor Group to its list of franchisees with the opening of a new dealership in Frome.
Snows Motor Group has become the UK’s largest franchised partner of Seat with the opening of a seventh dealership with the Spanish car brand in Basingstoke.
JCB Group has been revealed as Suzuki GB's latest new franchisee with the opening its first showroom with the brand in Ebbsfleet, North Kent.
HR Owen has revealed Automobili Lamborghini’s new dealership corporate identity with the opening of a new supercar showroom in Pangbourne, Reading.
Jardine Motors Group has officially opened the doors of its new £9 million Audi dealership as part of a new major gateway project in Bolton.
Independent used car supermarket owner James McConville has said that the search for larger premises is the biggest challenge he currently faces as he seeks expansion for his Solo Cars business.
Farnell Land Rover Guiseley is expanding its offering to incorporate the prestigious Jaguar brand following a £4 million refurbishment of its showroom facility.
West Yorkshire Van Centre has officially opened the doors at a new Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles Used Van Centre in Leeds.
HR Owen has brought Ferrari fever to Mayfair with a display of classic Italian sports cars ahead of the opening of its new Mayfair supercar showroom this week.
Eden Motor Group has opened the doors of Suzuki GB’s 161st franchised car dealership in Stratford Upon Avon.
MG Motor UK has announced a further two new franchisees in Wakefield and Kidderminster, taking its total to more than 90 sites in the UK.
Automotive Management Live: Where franchised and independent dealers will find everything they need to know about operating a modern showroom and service and repair facility fit for the digital age.
When: November 12 2020
Where: Birmingham NEC
Find out what features are in this month's, and future, issues


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In an effort to cater to the growing number of consumers who want to make healthy food choices, but don't want to sacrifice flavor, The Habit Burger Grill has introduced a new Sesame Ginger Salad. Instead of the same old combination of leafy greens, the new salad offers an extra bite, thanks to a tangy sesame ginger dressing.
The Sesame Ginger Salad is a new Asian-inspired offering from The Habit. The salad itself consist of garden greens tossed with carrots, chopped tomatoes, cilantro, edamame, and wonton strips. Customers can then add their choice of chargrilled chicken or sushi-grade ahi tuna, before topping their salad with the flavorful sesame ginger dressing and a drizzle of teriyaki sauce.
Available for just a limited time, the new salad is a healthy, yet tasty option.
Image Credit: The Habit.


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After previously closing one of its iconic arcade game centers in Japan, Sega has become more and more fully engaged in the world of blockchain and NFT. One of the latest news is that they will be releasing their first blockchain game.
According to Japanese media report 4 Gamer, Sega has now signed a partnership with Japanese blockchain company Double Jump Tokyo. The collaboration’s mission was to produce new games based on Sega’s classic titles.
Sangokushi Taisen Chosen For Sega First Blockchain Game
And Sega’s first game to be developed into a blockchain game will be based on the Sangokushi Taisen series. For those unfamiliar with this title, Sangokushi Taisen is a real-time strategy (RTS) series released for arcade platforms.
This game combines arcade games with physical cards. So that players must collect character cards to be placed in the game area so that these characters appear in the game.
We are excited to announce officially @oasys_games was chosen for the first blockchain game by @SEGA !!🔥
The game will be developed and operated by @doublejump_en, expected to be released on @homeverse_games !
— Oasys🏝Blockchain for Games (@oasys_games) September 27, 2022
Sangokushi Taisen is very popular in arcades in Japan, but is probably not very well known to gamers outside of Japan. Even though this series is said to have sold more than 500 million game cards worldwide.
The new Sangokushi Taisen title that will be developed will be done entirely by the developer Double Jump Tokyo. Meanwhile, Sega is only tasked with lending the title to be adapted into a blockchain game.
Game Will Be Using Technology Called Oasys
The game is said to be built using Double Jump Tokyo’s exclusive blockchain technology called Oasys. The Oasys platform is claimed to operate with various environmentally friendly systems.
“With a unique architecture that is optimized for blockchain gaming, Oasys aims to break the barriers of gamers by offering fast transactions and no gas fees. As well as providing users with a more comfortable gaming experience,” said Hironobu Ueno, CEO and founder of Double Jump. Tokyo.
This Sangokushi Taisen blockchain game project is not the first collaboration between the two companies. Because previously Sega and Double Jump Tokyo have initiated the Sega NFT project and also the Sega Classics NFT Collection.
As the name suggests, the two previous projects focused on a collection of exclusive digital works that will be traded by Sega as NFT. And with the presence of this blockchain game, it appears that Sega is very total in bringing its trademark in that direction.
A week after CEO Haruki Satomi seemed to have partially softened his stance on the notion, given the present unfavorable climate around the NFT environment, it registered a trademark for “Sega NFT” in January.


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Low-income Americans would have free and easy access to vital information under an effort announced Thursday to create a bilingual website. One Economy, a nonprofit group that uses technology to upgrade the lives of the poor, said it aims to raise $20 million to start the project, Public Internet Channel.
The site would provide information about such basics as public safety, emergency services, education, health care and jobs.
U.S. Senators John McCain, an Arizona Republican, and Barack Obama, an Illinois Democrat, serve as honorary co-chairmen of the group.
One Economy said it plans to launch prototypes in several cities in the next year, beginning with Baltimore. As part of its programs, the group also runs a website called the Beehive that offers tips for managing money and starting a business. It has also helped bring broadband internet access into the homes of 200,000 poor people.
Much of the information the new site will provide is now available elsewhere. The new initiative would allow internet users to obtain it quickly on one site in English and Spanish.
Competing communications: The House of Representatives, by a vote of 321 to 101, passed a bill Thursday allowing companies like AT&T and Verizon to apply for a nationwide license to offer TV service instead of negotiating with each city for permission, which they argue could take years.
The bill differs significantly from legislation pending in the Senate. With a short legislative session ahead of the November elections, that could make it difficult for Congress to pass a new law this year.
The phone carriers want to speed their expansion into the lucrative TV business to better compete against cable companies which are rapidly encroaching into the communications business with their own telephone and broadband services.
Some Democrats argued the House measure would allow the phone carriers to avoid building their networks to lower-income areas and that local authorities would lose control of services in their cities while consumers would face higher prices.
Online TV in France: Deutsche Telekom's French internet arm, Club Internet, will this month become the first in Europe to offer an internet-based television and video-on-demand service using Microsoft's TV software.
The software giant's TV software package, which was commercially launched in the United States in September, is a key plank of the group's strategy to diversify into telecoms, media and the home-networking market. Microsoft's TV software allows users to watch high-definition TV, pause live TV or watch two programs at the same time and record up to 50 hours.
Existing customers at Club Internet will be able to start using Microsoft's TV software at the end of the month while new customers will wait until August. The U.S. software provider expects to launch its TV software commercially with Deutsche Telekom in Germany starting this summer and BT Group in Britain later this year.
Beware lurid content: Take-Two Interactive Software, publishers of the popular video game Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, agreed to settle Federal Trade Commission charges for failing to disclose that animated sex scenes were hidden on the discs.
The deal requires Take-Two and Rockstar Games, the developer of the game, to properly notify consumers of racy content on future games and not to misrepresent rating or content descriptions. The companies face fines of up to $11,000 per violation if they violate the order, once it becomes final.
When the lurid content was first discovered, the two companies initially said it was the work of third-party video game modifiers. They later acknowledged it was their work after The Associated Press tracked down a Dutch programmer who developed software to unlock the sex scenes. The companies said the content was never meant to be accessed by consumers during normal game play.


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Mariah Carey is really sick of being shafted by the Grammys — she’s been nominated 21 times, but has only won five awards. So this year, the songbird has basically told the Grammy people to kiss it where the sun don’t shine. Mariah pushed back the release of her album, Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel, to Sept. 29, one day after the Grammy cut-off date. The album’s first single, “Obsessed,” debuted on Billboard’s Hot 100 at No. 11, so don’t try to theorize that the album is garbage and Mariah’s trying to save face. She doesn’t need the Grammy accolades because her career has been successful with only five awards. Plus, she’s kind of throwing a bone to Whitney Houston, whose first album in seven years will be released Sept. 1. Who’s a diva now? [NY Daily News] Keep reading »
Mariah Carey’s next album, Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel, hits shelves on September 15th. And it’ll be a lot bigger than your traditional CD. The album will come bundled with a 34-page magazine made by the folks at Elle. The ad section of the book, which covered the costs for this endeavor, will be home to lifestyle ads that reflect Mariah’s taste—Elizabeth Arden, Angel Champagne, Carmen Steffens, Le Métier de Beauté, and the Bahamas Board of Tourism. A second section of the magazine will contain articles all about Mariah, with “VIP Access to Her Sexy Love Life,” “Amazing Closet,” and “Recording Rituals.” The third part of the book will be your traditional liner notes, full of lyrics and images. The entire booklet will also be available in digital form, and an abridged version will be tucked into 500,000 copies of Elle’s October issue.
Sure, this is the first cross-platform collaboration of its kind. But isn’t this shill-fest taking things way too far?
Keep reading »


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Rate Your Food
Does nutrition score big at the supermarket?
The latest rating system to hit supermarkets awards points to foods based on how nutritious they are. It makes sense that broccoli and raspberries score a "perfect" 100 and soda a measly 1. But why do steel-cut oats score 60 and instant flavored oatmeal only 28? "The NuVal™ algorithm is a complicated mathematical formula that evaluates over 30 nutrients in a food and their impact on health. We’ve created an easy-to-use tool for people to compare foods sitting side-by-side on the grocery shelf," says David Katz, M.D., M.P.H., director of the Yale Prevention Research Center, whose team developed the NuVal rating system that is rolling out in U.S. supermarkets. Complex as it may be, the formula’s premise is simple: NuVal weighs favorable nutrients (e.g., folate, fiber, calcium) against unfavorable ones (saturated fat, trans fat, salt) and also takes into account, gram for gram, how many calories each food contains. See how some common items in your grocery cart stack up.
An orange’s high vitamin C, folate and potassium content give it a perfect score. Apples, high in fiber yet relatively lower in other nutrients, score slightly lower.
Whole-Wheat Spaghetti (91)
Whole-wheat spaghetti has twice as much fiber as white. It also contains magnesium and zinc, two nutrients found naturally in whole grains.
Steel-cut oats (60)
Honey Nut Instant Oatmeal (28)
The added sugar and salt in honey nut–flavored instant oatmeal brought its score down by more than half.


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Clif Shot Roks available in sports retail stores
September 21, 2009
by Eric Schroeder
BERKELEY, CALIF. — Clif Bar & Co. is expanding its Clif Shot Roks to sports retail stores nationwide.
The products are protein bites with all-natural and organic ingredients and are designed to provide athletes with a way of getting the amount of protein they need for muscle recovery after workouts or races.
"Each athlete is unique, especially when it comes to sports nutrition," said Chris Randall, brand manager. "Every sport and every workout requires something different. The bite-size nature of Clif Shot Roks enables athletes to consume the amount of protein they want when they want it, whether it’s for post-exercise recovery or meeting basic levels for daily protein consumption."
The product is sold in 20-gram packets with 10 protein bites per packet. They come in three flavors — peanut butter, chocolate and chocolate chip cookie dough — for a suggested retail price of $2.99.


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Update: 4:28PM FIJI saw a drop in imports for the month of June this year. more…
Update: 4:28PM FIJI saw a drop in imports for the month of June this year.
This included major sources such as China, Singapore, Australia and Japan as highlighted by recent statistics released by the Fiji Bureau of Statistics.
Singapore recorded a steep fall of 33.7 per cent, attributed to the decrease in importation of gas oil to Fiji.
Import from China was also down $11.8million as a result of decreased imports of fresh fish.
Imports from New Zealand and Australia also dropped , attributed to decreased imports of potatoes, and wheat and meslin, respectively.


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A cricket ball embedded with a microchip stands to revolutionise cricket – and it is being developed in Victoria by renowned sports equipment innovator Kookaburra.
Kookaburra’s SmartBall has been in development with technology partner SportCor for the past two years and was revealed to the cricket world at a special launch in London on Saturday night.
The Moorabbin-based Kookaburra pioneered white and pink balls for use around the world and believes SmartBall has a future in Test cricket and top T20 leagues.
The key to SmartBall is a microchip embedded in the core which provides advanced, real-time data for players, coaches and viewers. The ball calculates speed at three points – release, pre-bounce and post-bounce.
A bowler will be able to release a delivery and then immediately look to his or her smartwatch and check the speed or degree of turn.
Data could be used just as readily by broadcasters or relayed direct to fans. Future capabilities include information on whether the bat has nicked a ball, whether the ball has hit the grass on low catches and improved tracking for DRS (decision review system).
The Kookaburra SmartBall joins other Victorian innovations in sports technology, including Catapult’s wearable performance trackers and Champion Data’s live performance-based stats. Australia’s sports technology exports were valued at $500 million in 2018, with around two-thirds generated by Victorian businesses.
The Andrews Labor Government has led trade missions to significant sport markets such as India and China to promote the state’s capabilities in sports technology, innovation and major events.
Established in 1890 and still family-owned, Kookaburra specialises in cricket and field hockey equipment and employs more than 200 people around the world including 80 who make balls at Moorabbin.
Quotes attributable to Minister for Jobs, Innovation and Trade Martin Pakula
“Kookaburra is a terrific Victorian company with a record of world-leading innovation and SmartBall is a stunning example of its commitment to staying ahead of the pack.”
“Victoria is the home of innovation and that means we are creating the jobs of the future right now.” Quotes attributable to Kookaburra managing director Brett Elliot
“Kookaburra has been at the forefront of innovation in cricket, from the first ever white balls used under lights in World Series Cricket, through to the pink balls now used for day/night Tests.”
“The logical next step is to combine the data and analytics side of cricket that is becoming so critical to players, coaches and fans, with our traditional style of hand-making cricket balls.”
Reviewed 19 August 2020


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The Walt Disney Co. could break the cable bundle completely. Instead, Disney is going to collect some of the money that runs through its channels while building streaming ammunition in case a war with the bundlers ever happens.
That is why the recent launch of the ESPN+ streaming service in a new ESPN app are important in the continuing transformation of how video content is consumed. It is the first step in Disney’s DIS, -0.67% role in supporting and helping solidify a new normal for how we will interact with our televisions: Taking the additional targeted “tiers” and other goodies that cable companies have traditionally offered and selling them directly to consumers in separate apps.
Opinion: The ESPN streaming service is not new, Disney just wants you to pay for it
In the traditional cable system, companies like Comcast Corp. CMCSA, -5.56% would sell consumers a base collection of channels, then offer smaller bundles aimed at specific interests, such as sports, for additional monthly fees. The content providers who produced the channels were paid, which made Disney—and especially ESPN, with more than a half-dozen channels that could be the base of additional sports tiers—a monster money machine.
As consumers have moved away from the bundle and toward ad-free streaming services like Netflix Inc. NFLX, +0.19% , ESPN has lost subscribers just as the price of live sports content has skyrocketed because fans will watch games live and stomach the commercials that come with it. That squeeze from both sides—lower revenue, higher costs—has damaged Disney’s stock price, but not enough for Disney to go nuclear with a streaming ESPN option that would forego the billions it collects from cable companies.
Instead, we have reached a middle ground. Cable companies and other providers are offering “skinny bundles,” mobile-friendly packages that offer fewer channels at a lower price. While many of those offer the same additional tiers as their larger predecessors, consumers are instead supplementing with Netflix or other streaming services, most of which are not the traditional content providers like Disney.
Don’t miss: Netflix is growing at a stunning rate—and so is its profit
Disney has decided that a system of smaller bundles and outside additions is the future, buying a majority stake in streaming-technology company BamTech to deliver its own on-demand services. The first offspring of that marriage is ESPN+, which will...


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Details on the Battlefield 1 Premium Pass were revealed on Wednesday morning including how many expansion and battle packs are going to be included in the DLC as well as how much it’s going to cost players to buy it. While the expansion packs and battlepacks will be available to be purchased separately as they’re released, Electronic Arts has bundled them up presumably to offer gamers a chance to save a little money by purchasing them all at once.
The contents of the Battlefield Premium Pass was revealed on the Battlefield Bulletin official Twitter account, and the first noteworthy detail is the price. The purchase price was revealed to be €49,95 which means it will be right around $60 in the U.S. In other words, the Premium Pass alone will cost about the same as if you were buying a whole other game.
So what comes packed into the Premium Pass? There will be a two-week headstart on the four expansion packs which will have a combined 16 new maps, and at least 20 new weapons. There will also be new game modes, elite classes and other unannounced perks. The first expansion for Battlefield 1, titled They Shall Not Pass is due to launch in March of 2017.
The Premium Pass also includes 14 battlepacks which EA has said will be delivered monthly. These battlepacks are going to contain things like special skins players can put on their weapons to stand out when it comes to the multiplayer maps. There have also been some special dog tags announced that will only be made available to those who purchase the premium pass.
Battlefield 1 is coming to PS4, Xbox One, and PC on Oct. 21, 2016.
Check Out More
- Is Sombra Being Announced For Overwatch Today?
- Sony’s Pre-TGS PlayStation Press Conference Dated for Second Week of September
- Humble Bundle Offers Up Classic Capcom Titles for the PlayStation Systems


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Airtel eyes further expansion of Next-Gen stores after launching 100th store
Telecom major Bharti Airtel on Wednesday announced the launch of its 100th Next-Gen Airtel store in the country with the opening of a store in Kolkata's Park Street area. In a statement, Airtel said that it plans to roll out 10 Next-Gen stores across Kolkata and other major cities across West Bengal over the coming months.
"The Next-Gen Airtel stores have been conceptualized by the UK based 8 Inc. The stores are open and minimalistic by design and do away with all barriers between the customer and the brand, and use cutting-edge digital technologies to make the customer experience highly interactive through the concept of 'Share, Create, Experience'," it said. Next-Gen Airtel stores are part of "Project Next", Airtel's digital innovation programme aimed at transforming and simplifying customer experience across all of its services and touch points.
(With inputs from agencies.)
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Fila collaborates with VegNonVeg for sneaker collection
Italian sports-fashion brand Fila has collaborated with Anand Ahuja’s multi-brand sneaker retailer VegNonVeg (VNV) to launch an exclusive limited edition ‘Masala (which means spices in Hindi) Mindblower’ sneaker collection.
The sneaker collection has been inspired by a masala box in design and colour scheme. With the collection, the brand is looking to make inroads in the country’s streetwear market and also plans to take the collection to global markets in the coming years.
Anand Ahuja, founder and co-owner, VegNonVeg, said in a statement: “Sneakers have always been more than just shoes to us. Over time, we are committed to developing India’s own story of sneaker and street culture and this collaboration is another step in that direction. We’re excited by the opportunity to create a concept that pays homage to our Indian origins yet something that we think will appeal to the global market.”
Abdon Lepcha, creative director, Fila India added, “The Mindblower has been a successful silhouette for us globally and in India. The shoe has been made with the right usage and mix of premium materials like multi-textured leather, short haired suede and the perfect balance of the colours makes it a must-have for all sneaker lovers."
Fila is licensed in India through Cravatex Brands Limited, part of the Batra Group. The company has plans for massive expansion in India and aims to reach a total of 100 exclusive retail stores in the next five years.
Talking about the collaboration, Rohan Batra, managing director, Cravatex brands said, “Working with VNV we have an opportunity to be a part of the conversation in the fast-growing streetwear community and work together with a team that is very committed to detail and craftsmanship in the product. India is a very important market for us and collaborating locally is part of a global strategy that has worked with some amazing talent."
The limited edition capsule will have only 100 pairs priced at Rs 9,999 (approx $140) each, available exclusively at VegNonVeg. Fila had earlier collaborated with Norblack Norwhite for a similar collection last year.
Copyright © 2022 FashionNetwork.com All rights reserved.


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Skoda Auto had showcased their upcoming models at the Auto Expo this year and one of the models that was launched at their pavilion during that time was the Octavia vRS. There is no doubt about the fact that the Skoda Octavia vRS is one of the best looking high performance sedan in the country. It is a sedan aimed at driving enthusiasts who want a regular looking car that can seat five and also is capable of having fun on an open road or a track. Skoda has now started dispatching vRS and the the same was spotted at a dealership recently.
The images of the Skoda OCtavia vRS at the dealership stockyard has been published on team-Bhp. Skoda had already started taking bookings for the 2020 Skoda Octavia vRS soon after its launch in February. The deliveries for the same however would only be starting after the nationwide lockdown due to the Corona virus pandemic is lifted. Coming to the design part, The Skoda Octavia vRS looks very similar to the regular Octavia.
It has some variation from the regular version like a gloss black grille with vRS badging, sporty looking alloy wheels, smoke headlamps and a boot lid spoiler. On the inside it has a flat bottom steering with vRS badging and red stitching on it. The whole cabin gets a black theme with red stitching to give it a powerful car appeal. It even has a vRS mode that alters the power delivery and gear shift of the car depending upon the mode chosen by the driver.
Coming to the engine, The Skoda Octavia vRS 2020 edition is the most powerful version of the sedan ever sold in the country. It is powered by a 2.0 litre turbocharged petrol engine which generates 245 bhp and 370 Nm of peak torque. The engine mated to a 7-speed DSG gearbox. It is capable of doing 0-100 kmph sprint in just 6.6 seconds and has a top speed of 250 kmph. The Skoda Octavia vRS will be sold in India as a CBU and only 200 units of the car will be made available to the customers. The price for 2020 Skoda Octavia vRS is 35.99 lakh, ex-showroom. Skoda has also started taking booking for Rapid 1.0 TSI and Karoq SUV. Delivery for these cars would also start in the coming months, once the Corona Virus lockdown is lifted. It’s likely that the lockdown would be extended until the end of April 2020.


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This is what normal used to look like.
In the year before the coronavirus pandemic, there was actually a whole lot of good news for the travel companies that reported their 2019 results for inclusion in the 2020 Travel Weekly Power List, our annual ranking of companies with $100 million or more in travel sales in the previous calendar year.
Many of these agencies had expanded their sales volume, with some making acquisitions, bulking up staff and investing in new technology.
However, there's at least one reason why the number of companies is down two from the 54 that made the cut in 2019: Some agencies told us they were too busy dealing with issues related to the Covid pandemic to take the time to fill out this year's Power List questionnaire. JTB Americas Group, which last year was No. 19, with $1.26 billion in sales, and Global Travel International, No. 46, with $221 million in last year's listing, each declined to participate, citing their need to focus on staff and clients.
H.I.S. U.S.A. Holding, last year's No. 33, didn't return a questionnaire. Booking Holdings also didn't return a questionnaire, but in its case, we were able to estimate its position using public documents (see note, below).
There was also one major Power List merger in 2019: Professional Travel, No. 31 on the 2019 list, was acquired by this year's No. 9, Direct Travel.
Meanwhile, Nebraska's Executive Travel and Oklahoma-based World Travel Service both joined the list.
For many of our Power Listers, 2019 was a productive year. Agencies invested in technology, with Direct Travel, Travel and Transport, ATG, Fox World Travel and Fareportal among the companies exploring artificial intelligence and related chatbot technology. OutsideAgents.com, KHM Travel Group, Cruise Planners and World Travel Service all launched or enhanced education programs in an effort to make agents more adaptable to changing conditions.
All of that investment may prove useful as the industry emerges from a punishing shutdown. As our profiled agencies can attest, some of that difficult work has already begun.
On that final note, it's worth keeping in mind that the questionnaire was completed by agencies between late February and mid-May. Answers, especially to the Looking Ahead portions of the profiles, may represent different corporate realities at different points of the crisis.
Start the Power List at Number 1.
Read our Methodology.


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The value of U.S.-Canada freight fell sharply in April, according to a new U.S. Transportation Department report, as overall freight traffic between all three North American Free Trade Agreement countries also declined.
U.S.-Canada freight totaled US$48.8 billion in April, down 12.5 percent from a year earlier, as all modes of transportation – truck, rail, air, pipeline and vessel – carried a lower value of U.S.-Canada freight than a year earlier.
The top commodity category transported between the U.S. and Canada was vehicles and parts, of which 58.2 percent moved by truck and 39.2 percent moved by rail.
Vehicles and parts replaced mineral fuels as the top commodity in March. Mineral fuels had been the top commodity by value moved between the U.S. and Canada for 29 consecutive months starting in November 2012. This change is due, in large part, to a decline in the unit price of mineral fuels in recent months.
Trucks carried 58 percent of the US$48.8 billion of freight to and from Canada, followed by rail at 16.9 percent.


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Meezan Bank Limited (MBL) customers have started facing technical issues as number of complaints have been posted against the banking institution on social media. It bears mentioning that the development comes just days after Habib Bank Limited (HBL) customers witnessed automatic deductions in the name of duplicate transactions.
According to the complaints being posted on social media, Meezan Bank Limited (MBL) customers are facing multiple issues, including their debit and credit cards not working properly on ATMs or POS Terminal. Meezan Bank (MBL) customers have reported that their transactions are being declined on POS Terminals and ATMs, however, the amount is being deducted (debited) from their accounts multiple times.
Furthermore, the same issue is being experienced while using the debit or credit cards for online transactions. Moreover, the Meezan Bank App is also experiencing similar issues with several errors while trying to perform any transaction. The amount is being deducted from customer’s account but the transaction is giving some kind of error.
Meanwhile, the Meezan Bank Limited (MBL) helpline is inaccessible for many customers, which is probably due to the high influx of complaints but some customers have reported that they were able to reach customer support and the bank’s representatives have assured them that the debited amount will be credited in their bank account by Monday.
Below are some of the complaints posted by Meezan Bank (MBL) customers on Voice of Customer:
I visited carrefour swiping the card, the card showed invalid transaction, to which the worker tried again as I asked him to but still the same message appeared on the screen. So, I payed with cash. While reaching home, I got to know the transaction has been made from the account three times and the amount deducted.Meezan Bank Customer
I was making Facebook Ads payment, But Facebook was showing that amount cannot be charged. When i checked my bank account.. Amount was deducted twice.. And now my account is in Negative while I don’t even have Credit Card or any credit type of account. I have been trying Meezan Bank Limited Help Line but it’s not in reach.Meezan Bank Customer
Have you faced any issues with Meezan Bank? Let us know in the comments below.


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Rogers and Shaw Announce Netflix Competitor ‘shomi’, Priced at $8.99/month [u]
Rogers and Shaw have announced today their new streaming service called shomi (pronounced show-me), their response to Netflix. The service will debut in the first week of November priced at a suggested price of $8.99 per month and will have over 14,000 episodes and titles at launch.
The subscription service will first launch in beta for Rogers and Shaw Internet or TV customers this fall, and will have exclusive past streaming rights to shows such as: Modern Family, Sons of Anarchy, Sleepy Hollow, Shameless, 2 Broke Girls, Vikings, New Girl, 24: Live Another Day, Chicago Fire, The Strain, and American Horror Story.
“We’ve taken the time to talk with Canadians to find out what they want and to create an unbelievable user experience,” said Keith Pelley, President, Rogers Media. “They told us loud and clear – they want all the past seasons of the most popular, current TV shows and they want it to be easy. shomi takes the guesswork out of finding what to watch, acting like a new-age video clerk serving up all the best content based on individual viewing habits.”
“We keenly understand the media landscape is rapidly changing and that viewers are looking for greater flexibility when it comes to what they watch and how they watch it,” said Barbara Williams, Senior Vice President, Content, Shaw Media. “shomi is our first step into the new world of content streaming and we’re so pleased to be able to bring this made in Canada service to the market.”
Both companies note at launch, there will be over 11,000 hours of TV shows, 1,200 movies, 340 TV series, with 30 percent of the content being Canadian. Shomi will offer six profiles per account to accommodate family members, with users being able to watch on two devices and their set top boxes at the same time.
The service will use expert programmers and algorithms to curate content for viewers, which the company website describes as “it’s magic”. Shomi will be available on the web, iOS, Android, Rogers and Shaw cable boxes and XBOX 360. So in other words, non-Rogers and Shaw customers are shut out from the start, which doesn’t make a whole lot of sense.
Rogers and Shaw note shomi is a joint venture that will operate as a standalone entity with its own management structure.
Rumours of Rogers creating a streaming Netflix rival started as far back as last May, with an earlier report from this year claiming up to $100 million would be spent on content deals. Netflix CEO Reed Hastings last year, upon hearing rumours of Canadian TV providers coming out with their own streaming services, noted his company was ready to compete with any new offerings.
For starters, the price of shomi rivals Netflix, but the question remains whether the content will as well. Shomi faces competition from Netflix out of the gate, plus other streaming services such as Videotron’s illico. Bell is rumoured to launch its own Netflix competitor sometime in the future too.
More details will emerge this morning after both companies hold a media event demonstrating shomi, set to take place at 10AM EDT.
What do you think? Is shomi something you’d be interested in signing up for?
Update: Here’s what the shomi iPad app looks like:
First peak at #shomi and look who shows up hot off their #Emmy win! #modernfamily http://t.co/NqShi4gmLL
— shomi (@shomicanada) August 26, 2014
Rogers just sent us the image below of what the shomi web interface looks like:


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Soaring cost of cream does little to dent sales at Dairy Crest
The soaring cost of cream did little to dent sales at Dairy Crest.
The owner of Cathedral City – Britain’s most popular cheese – and Clover margarine said it had a strong first half of the year, with profits for the period expected to be up on last year’s £15.6m.
The group said combined sales for its key brands – which also include Country Life butter and Frylight oil – would also be higher than 2016, with Cathedral City forecast to deliver ‘double-digit growth’.
The strong sales had helped to offset rising cream prices, which had affected butter, a spokesman added. Dairy Crest will publish its half-year results on November 9.
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H&M on Thursday arrived on South Beach (finally!) in style — with more than a thousand fashionistas waiting in a line wrapped around the block, dancing to DJ Irie spinning that Miami mix of pop and Latin music.
Energetic employees doubled as cheerleaders to pump up the crowd that had come for the affordable fashion that has made H&M an international sensation.
People started lining up Wednesday night when a star-studded red carpet welcomed celebrities like Flo Rida, Matthew Morrison of Glee and Chase Crawford of Gossip Girl for a private event. Bianca Deralus, 21, was the first person in line, hoping to snag one of the gift cards promised to the first 500 people. She scored a “Fashion Access Pass” for the store, worth $200.
“We’ve been waiting a long time for this and I’m so glad it’s here,” she said, referring not just to the night camping out at the door, but also to Miami’s long H&M drought. “I love fashion and H&M has great stuff.”
H&M president Daniel Kulle said the company was waiting to “come to Miami through the front door,” and the historic building on the corner of Lincoln Road and Pennsylvania Avenue was the perfect place to make a splash. The store occupies the building that used to be the Lincoln Theatre, and careful attention was paid to the restoration of the structure and the preservation of its history. On Wednesday night, Flo Rida took the stage that once belonged to the New World Symphony.
H&M’s approach to fashion is all about “challenging the borders and doing the unexpected,” Kulle said, which fits in perfectly with the diverse, funky style of South Beach.
Miami Beach Vice Mayor Michael Gongora said these energy and high traffic attractions are just the kind of businesses the city wants to attract. He said the “synergy between nightlife and fashion” helped the area’s renaissance in the 1990s, and the H&M store represents “another brick in the establishment of Miami Beach.”
Thursday afternoon, customers danced around racks of clothes, shelves of shoes and boxes of accessories, turning over price tags that promised to make high fashion affordable for all. Women can find dresses from $24.95, blouses for $14.95 and pants for $12.95. The men’s side of the store features dress shirts starting at $14.95, trousers from $19.95 and jackets for $34.95.


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The African Regional Organisation of International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC-AFRICA) is to hold a three days capacity building for women and youths in the Trade Unions to comprehend trade dynamics, investment intricacies, industrialisation, and their nexus with sustainable development under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA)
The program which is coming up on 23- 25 November, 2023 in Nairobi Kenya, was as a result of yet to be answered inquiries about AfCFTA since it’s operation in 2021.
Giving insights on some of these inquiries , ITUC-Africa Deputy General Secretary, Comrade Akhator Joel Odigie said “How will informal economy participants, mainly women and youth, benefit from AfCFTA?, Is this trade project not putting the cart before the horse, as Africa is still grappling with the basis of industrialisation?, Will the trade pact align with Sustainable Development Goal 8, fostering inclusive and sustainable economic growth and decent work for all?, and Will Africa effectively maximise the gains of AfCFTA to achieve its integration agenda?
On why Women and youths were targeted for the workshop, Comrade Odigie disclosed that “Women in Africa contribute significantly to their communities, reinvesting a substantial portion of their income.
“The informal economy and cross-border traders have more women than their male counterparts. Similarly, the youth demographic, projected to skyrocket by 2050 to increase to 605 million, presents both a challenge and an opportunity. AfCFTA promises to catalyse job creation for this burgeoning population, emphasising more labour-intensive sectors like manufacturing and agriculture.
“The initiative aims to empower these groups to comprehend trade dynamics, investment intricacies, industrialisation, and their nexus with sustainable development under the AfCFTA.
“The workshop is titled “Informal Economy Actors in Trade – the Case of Women and Youth in the AfCFTA – a Trade Union Regional Capacity Building and Engagement Workshop”.
” The three-day engagement seeks to forge a continental advocacy agenda, amplifying the voices of women and youth within trade unions, crafting policy agendas, and steering discussions on trade, industrialisation, and economic transformation. The ultimate goal is to shape a trade union resolution for adoption, advocating for equitable inclusion and opportunities for women and youth in Africa’s economic landscape.
“As Africa stands at a pivotal juncture, harnessing the potential of its youth and women becomes paramount for realising a prosperous, inclusive, and sustainable future. For African trade unions, the interest is to see a practical application of the AfCFTA in ways that would promote integration, contribute to the continent’s industrialisation, and support shared prosperity. There are real concerns, but African trade unions vigilantly engage in the process”.


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Juteborg (Sweden), Quanscient (Finland), Tether (Sweden) and TG0 (United Kingdom) are the new startups joining the collaboration program.
The collaboration platform MobilityXlab has invited four startups to join the program’s twelfth batch. The emerging companies Juteborg (Sweden), Quanscient (Finland), Tether (Sweden) and TG0 (United Kingdom) will now be part of the program for at least six months to collaborate with global industry leaders CEVT, Ericsson, Magna, Polestar, Volvo Group and Zenseact. The goal is for startups and corporates to co-create innovative solutions for safe, sustainable and accessible transportation.
The startups bring to the table products and technologies like prediction and optimization of charging for electric vehicles, more sustainable and lightweight materials, and quantum computing for faster development of automotive parts. These innovations can support MobilityXlab partner companies in solving complex challenges or enhancing their product and service offers.
An example is TG0, founded in 2015 in the United Kingdom, at the forefront of developing a revolutionary touch-sensitive surface technology that operates without traditional electronic or mechanical components. This innovation positions TG0 uniquely in sectors ranging from consumer electronics to automotive interfaces.
"Joining MobilityXlab marks another milestone in TG0's journey, building on the success and recognition garnered among automotive OEMs. We are excited for the opportunity to further elevate our influence and contribution to the enhancement of automotive human-machine interfaces, sustainability, and safety standards within the industry," states Jakub Kamecki, Chief Commercial Officer at TG0.
The focus of MobilityXlab on providing a structure framework for collaboration has resulted in more than 100 validation projects, showcasing the potential of merging established industry knowledge with the agility and innovation of startups. In addition, MobilityXlab has also recorded 19 accelerations, or commercial contracts between startups and industry partners, since it has been founded, in 2017.
The relationship between established and emerging companies has great potential, as the mobility industry identifies collaboration areas to solve complex challenges, like moving towards carbon neutrality. Startups provide new perspectives and solutions to the industry’s tech development potential.
A recent example of this sort of relationship and its benefits is the project between the MobilityXlab portfolio startup Reselo and CEVT, Polestar, Volvo Group and Volvo Cars. Together, they are going to test possible applications of low-emission rubber produced from tree bark in vehicles.
“I am thrilled to announce the addition of Juteborg, Quanscient, Tether, and TG0 to our portfolio, collaborating with industry leaders for six months on cutting-edge solutions for safe, sustainable, and accessible transportation. The success over the years of hosting over 100 validation projects along with 19 accelerations showcases our commitment to bridging the gap between startups and giants in the automotive industry. We're not just pleased with the results; we're excited about the endless possibilities these collaborations bring. MobilityXlab is more than a platform; it's a driving force propelling the automotive industry into a future defined by innovation, collaboration, and positive change." says Katarina Brud, director at MobilityXlab.
Juteborg is a R&D partner and provider of hightech composites; JuTech™, based on the natural fiber jute. Our lightweight material replaces glass- and carbon fiber, plastic, and metals without compromising on quality, price or social aspects. We deliver circular system solutions across industries; automotive, construction, textile, and packaging.
Quanscient is revolutionizing multiphysics simulations using cloud and quantum computing. We can reduce simulation time from days to coffee breaks already today with cloud computing. With quantum, we will enable the impossible simulations of today.
Tether is the world's leading prediction & optimization engine for EV charging. Tether learns the behavior of millions of individual Electric Vehicle drivers to unlock the full value of their flexibility.
TG0 (United Kingdom)
We aim to revolutionise the way people interact with physical products. We envision a future where physical products are transformed from ordinary to extraordinary through a user experience that’s ergonomic, intuitive, and responsive. By redefining touch with our unique smart surface technology, we provide our customers with the ability to effortlessly bridge the gap between analog and digital.


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For the seventh time, NRW.INVEST organized the Business and Investors Forum China together with the state capital Düsseldorf and the German-Chinese Business Association. The focus was on future topics such as digitization and Smart City models.
"North Rhine-Westphalia has always played a leading role in Germany in exchange and cooperation with China," said Haiyang Feng, Consul General of the People's Republic of China, commenting on the forum. In view of the current international economic and trade turbulences, this cooperation between China and Germany is now more important than ever.
For North Rhine-Westphalia, Chinese companies are important cooperation partners for the advancement of digital transformation. "As an excellent research and business location, we have outstanding prerequisites for an innovative, digital future," explained Christoph Dammermann, State Secretary of the NRW Ministry of Economic Affairs, Innovation, Digitization and Energy.
Petra Wassner, CEO of NRW.INVEST, stressed North Rhine-Westphalia's excellent reputation in China. "Due to the high location quality and the link via Belt & Road, we have become the premium location for Chinese companies in Germany." More than 1,100 Chinese companies manage their German and European business from NRW. China is the clear leader in direct investment in North Rhine-Westphalia, ahead of all other states. More than 550 managers and experts from China and Germany attended the Business and Investors Forum.


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The Santander bank closure in Wisbech could signal long term impact on local firms and shoppers
- Credit: GOOGLE MAPS
Business leaders fear the closure of the Wisbech branch of Santander is a sign that if banks continue to close ‘at the rate of knots’ it could damage Cambridgeshire high streets ‘beyond repair.’
They say that while many companies and individuals do online banking there is still much that cannot be done via a computer.
Malcolm Lyons, area leader for the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) in Cambridgeshire, said: “When a community loses a bank branch, that can have a number of impacts on local small firms.
“Lost access to vital cash deposit and withdrawal facilities, reduced access to finance and a drop in shopper footfall.
“Of course habits are changing - more than 90 per cent of our members bank online - but lenders should do more to help consumers and small business owners transition to new banking methods.
“There are still actions that we as small business owners have to sign-off in a branch, in-person. That includes when we’re trying to switch to more competitive account providers.
“Equally, we need somewhere to turn when online services fail.
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“Post Offices can serve as an alternative, but services vary across locations.
“There’s an element of the rich getting richer when it comes to financial inclusion. Areas that are well-served for bank branches often end up with the best-equipped Post Offices.
“We need to move to a situation where we have branches that are viable for banks and customers alike.
“These are likely to increasingly encompass the provision of office spaces, meeting rooms, wifi lounges and workshops for local small business owners.
“If branches keep closing at a rate of knots there could well be many high streets and town centres in Cambridgeshire that end up damaged beyond repair.”
The Market Place branch in Wisbech will close on May 2. It is one of 140 Santander branches closing nationally.
Susan Allen, head of retail and business banking, said: “The way our customers are choosing to bank with us has changed dramatically in recent years.
“More and more customers are using online and mobile channels. As a result, we have had to take some very difficult decisions over our less visited branches.
“We will support customers of closing branches to find alternative ways to bank with us that best suit their individual needs.”
Santander will keep a nationwide network of 614 branches and say account holders can use Post Office branches.


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Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 28
By Maksim Tsurkov – Trend:
Joint Azerbaijan-Belarus tractor assembly plant will be opened in Turkey next year, Ambassador of Belarus to Azerbaijan Gennady Akhramovich said at a press conference in Baku Dec. 28.
He noted that the plant’s opening is scheduled for the third or the beginning of the fourth quarter of 2018.
“We have been cooperating with the Ganja Automobile Plant already for 13 years,” he said. “It is a big industrial facility. For 13 years of cooperation, more than 10,000 tractors and over 4,000 trucks and special purpose products were assembled. In 2018, we plan to implement quite an ambitious project on creation of a plant to assemble Belarusian equipment in Turkey together with the Ganja Automobile Plant.”
He added that the access to the Turkish market in such a complex and competitive industry is a grandiose success of the Azerbaijani industry.
The ambassador noted that the parties had a fruitful work on development of exports to third countries.
“Dozens of tractors were delivered to Georgia within this work,” said Akhramovich. “It is planned to continue supplying equipment to other neighboring countries.”