text: They’re not real but apparently look real enough that they’re being passed off as authentic. Antigo police say Chinese “practice notes” are a problem of late. They look like $50 bills but upon closer examination they have Chinese writing on them. Investigators think there may be other denominations of the bills being circulated as well. They’re sending out a warning to retailers to look closely at the money they take in to make sure it’s legitimate.


text:
Huawei has now reportedly submitted a new trademark filing with Peru’s INDECOPI for a smartphone dock accessory called the MateStation. The accessory isn’t shown in diagrams or images but is well-defined in the associated documentation. As implied by the branding, MateStation is likely meant to work with the upcoming Huawei Mate-branded smartphones.
As described in the trademark filing, MateStation is a ‘mobile phone accessory’ capable of providing internet access. It’s meant for sending, storing, and receiving a plethora of information from calls to emails. And for transmitting other digital data from health metric measurements to media files.
The full description goes somewhat further, hinting at a device that can be used similarly to Samsung’s DeX. And, since Huawei has already rolled those kinds of features in the form of EMUI Desktop mode, that seems likely to be associated with the new accessory.
What’s less clear, is whether or not the accessory will transmit that data in a wired or wireless fashion. It wouldn’t be out of character for Huawei to move to a more advanced technology here. And the trademark description in the Huawei MateStation filing, though those are somewhat vague by design, does explicitly say that ‘internet access’ is used for transmission with the dock.
Which smartphones are likely candidates to work with this Huawei MateStation dock?
There are several key Mate-branded devices Huawei is expected to launch this year. Although none of those will make their way to the US, these are world-class flagships following a long line of devices. Some of which have helped the company rise to the top of the smartphone game in recent months. That’s also among the reasons the Huawei MateStation is thought to be a Samsung DeX-like smartphone dock. Samsung represents Huawei’s biggest competition.
Setting that aside, some probably upcoming smartphones include the Huawei Mate 40 series. That’s expected to land in October, bringing all of the latest specs and a wealth of user-friendly features. Around the same time, the company is expected to deliver on a new set of entries in the folding smartphone market.
There are two lineups to consider since it’s expected to launch both Mate V and Mate X variants. Those will fold, if rumors are accurate, on opposing axis.
When will this launch?
Any of those devices could feasibly be supported by Huawei’s MateStation, based on the branding. But since there’s no imagery and no specs or other information, it’s impossible to say with certainty when the gadget will launch. Or even if it will for this generation of devices, although a trademark typically isn’t filed until just ahead of launch in most cases.

domain: news


text:
Since the beginning of Mar-2020, the pandemic has resulted in nearly USD341 billion in losses for the US travel economy. The first half of Aug-2020 has seen USD22 billion in travel spending losses, putting the month on pace for USD46 billion, which would mark a +10% improvement over Jul-2020 and the best result since the pandemic began.
Air travel is also up with TSA screenings rising for a fourth week, up +5% over the previous week. The seven day average up to 18-Aug-2020 is now at 718,000, a +1.8% increase over last week, with a peak seen on Sunday 16-Aug-2020 of 863,000. TSA screenings are still -71% below last year's levels for the same period.
Car travel remains more or less level and just -0.5% below pre-pandemic levels recorded in Feb-2020. However that is much lower than would normally be seen for this time of year.
According to Adara's Traveler Trends Tracker, domestic air and hotel bookings rose by +7.3% last week although with vast regional differences. Domestic bookings to Wyoming (-4%) and Montana (-5%) exhibited by far the lowest year on year declines and performed significantly better than last week.
Domestic bookings to New York (-82%), Hawaii (-78%) and Massachusetts (-76%) once again saw the highest declines, although showing a little improvement on last week. International bookings for future travel to the US increased by +6%, but that is still down -76% year on year.
Regional cumulative travel spend losses since the beginning of the pandemic have totalled USD68.6 billion for the Northeast, USD53.0 billion for the Midwest, USD115.3 billion for the South, and USD103.5 billion for the West.
The numbers of states and territories experiencing travel spend losses exceeding -50% fell from nine to seven this week, with notable improvements from both Alaska and Nevada. The number of states posting weekly losses of less than -40% increased from 28 states to 31 states, of which, ten states have reached weekly losses of less than -30%.
According to the Tourism Economics report, the Northeast and the Pacific continue to trail the rest of the country in the travel recovery process. Connecticut and New Hampshire are the only states within these regions that are ranked among the 20 best-performing markets. New York, having seen travel spend shrink -7% over the prior four weeks, has finally seen a +9% increase.
According to Destination Analysts research, less Americans are feeling the pandemic will worsen next month. While 57% of Americans still do not want visitors in their communities just yet, this is the lowest level since the week of 15-Jun-2020. Also for the first time since the week of 29-Jun-2020 the percentage saying they would be happy to see an advert promoting tourism to their community has risen above 50%.
Regarding air travel, approximately 30% of respondents said they would consider taking a flight next month, although half of this group say they would still be nervous, with the behaviour of other passengers the issue that most concerns them. Just over 62% of respondents said they approve of travel restrictions taken by certain states to curb the transmission of the virus.
These are encouraging signs with various regions clearly showing more signs of recovery than others. It can only be hoped that this trend continues and more states start to show an increase in growth momentum.


text:
KANSAS CITY — Supermarket retailers worried more about stocking shelves than falling stock prices amid increasing concern over the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak. Other changes came in the form of hiring more workers, bumping up pay and changing hours of operation to provide more time to clean stores and restock shelves.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed down more than 6% at 19,898.92 on March 18, but the same day stock prices rose for Walmart Corp., the Kroger Co. and Amazon, which owns Whole Foods Market, as people sought essentials like toilet paper and canned goods.
Demand for supermarket items might be short-lived, however, according to a report issued March 16 by Barclays. Food retailers will benefit near term from stockpiling, and excess demand will lead to food inflation, according to the report. Once the demand surge abates, Barclays expects to see meaningful food deflation, meaning excess supply and declining demand.
“While grocers are considered safe for now, this could prove very short-lived, meaning the grocery sector is benefiting on the front end of this cycle but will be meaningfully challenged on the back end,” the report said.
Barclays said it is not inclined to make wholesale ratings changes at this time because it believes and hopes changes in behavior related to COVID-19 are transitory.
Barclays gave a scenario of three months of school closures and the restriction of public activities and travel due to the COVID-19 outbreak. If this scenario happens, a shift between $61 billion to $118 billion in sales could move to food at home from food away from home, which would represent an increase of 32% to 62% to food at home. Suppliers will increase production, but when the situation normalizes, food deflation could occur.
“When this lifts, cabin fever will kick in; excess supply could quickly lead to deflation for the grocery store,” the report said.
The S&P 500 on March 18 closed at 2,398.10, down 5% for the day and down 28% from a close of 3,337.75 on Feb. 21, when the COVID-19 outbreak began to affect many stock prices negatively.
The stock price for Amazon on the Nasdaq closed at $1,830.00 per share on March 18, which was up 1.2% for the day but down 13% from $2,095.97 per share on Feb. 21.
Seattle-based Amazon on March 16 said it planned to create 100,000 new full-time and part-time positions across the United States in fulfillment centers and delivery networks to meet the surge in demand. In addition, the company is increasing its pay to workers through the end of April. US workers will receive an additional $2 per hour from the current rate of $15 per hour or more, depending on the region. Other hourly pay increases are C$2 in Canada, £2 per hour in the United Kingdom and about €2 per hour in many European Union countries. The pay increases represent an investment of over $350 million in increased compensation.
The Amazon pay increases apply to Whole Foods Market, Austin, Texas, which on March 16 announced several changes in its stores due to the COVID-19 outbreak. The changes at stores in the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom include temporary closure of hot bars, salad bars, soup bars and self-serve pizza; the closing of seated restaurant venues and taprooms for in-store dining as only takeout will be offered; and making indoor and outdoor cafe seating temporarily unavailable.
Whole Foods Market stores in the United States and Canada on March 18 began allowing people age 60 and older to shop for one hour before opening for the general public. Starting on March 19, all Whole Foods Market stores in the United Kingdom were to allow customers who are 70 and older to shop one hour before opening to the general public. The action was designed to help people who have been identified by national health authorities as among the among the most vulnerable to COVID-19.
The stock price for the Kroger Co., Cincinnati, on the New York Stock Exchange closed at $36.23 per share on March 18, up 10% for the day and up 20% from the Feb. 21 close of $30.31 per share.
The stock price for Walmart Corp., Bentonville, Ark., on the Nasdaq closed at $122.58 per share on March 18, which was up 2.8% for the day and up 3.4% from a close of $118.58 on Feb. 21. Walmart stores and Neighborhood Markets beginning March 15 were open from 6 a.m. to 11 p.m. until further notice. The hours will allow workers to stock products and clean and sanitize stores.
The stock price of Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc., Phoenix, closed at $17.69 per share on March 18, which was down 7% for the day and down 1.7% from a close of $17.99 per share on Feb. 21.
COVID-19 has parallels to 9/11 and the recession of 2008-09, according to the Barclays report. The average share price of food companies, although down 8% overall from Jan. 21 to March 13 this year, was up 10% from the S&P 500, which was down 18% over that time.
After 9/11, food average was up 2.2% from Sept. 17, 2001, to Sept. 30, 2002, and the performance was 24% better than the S&P 500, which was down 21%. During the recession of 2008-09, food average was down 9% from Sept. 29, 2008, to March 31, 2009, but it did 20% better than the S&P 500, which was down 28%. The difference leveled off in the period of Sept. 29, 2008, to Dec. 31, 2009. The food average was up 4.9% in the period and up 4.1% from the S&P 500, which was up 0.8%.
“As we look to post-9/11 and ‘08/’09 as a guide, we are certainly seeing the same nesting/staples stockpiling (both perishables and non-perishables) elements today that we saw after the 9/11 attacks, perhaps in even more pronounced fashion given the quarantining many are preparing for/undertaking,” the Barclays report said.


text:
Why Millennials Choose to Be “Unbanked”
Millennials and their unconventional approach to traditional processes have had a big impact on the retail and banking industries. Their generation makes up about a third of all convenience store traffic, according to Convenience Store News. This means there’s a big financial benefit in wooing millennial customers and paying attention to their behaviors.
Some financial experts refer to millennials as the “Unbanked Generation” since they are the first generation to rely heavily on smartphones and digital technology for their financial transactions. Here are some statistics and trends that may be helpful to merchants and businesses interested in tapping into this generation of consumers.
Who Are Millennials
Millennials were born between 1981 and 2005, and are considered the largest generation of Americans to date with 80 million people. This group, which is the most racially diverse and educated in U.S. history, is fairly young with the oldest member turning 36 in 2017.
Many millennials opt to be unbanked and underbanked, as 71 percent of them believe they will have no need for a traditional bank in the next five years, according to a First Data poll.
Making a Choice
Millennials choose to shy away from traditional banks because technology provides a variety of banking alternatives that meet their financial needs. Unbanked and underbanked millennials rely on mobile banking and alternative financial services, such as electronic money transfers. According to a recent poll, 20 percent of millennials have never written a check and 63 percent don’t even have a credit card. In 2015, 37.5 percent of underbanked millennials polled said they only went to a financial institution for services like obtaining a loan, picking up a pre-paid card or cashing in coins. They did not use banks for traditional services, viewing trips to a branch as inconvenient and unnecessary.
They Want Something New
Trends show that millennials reject traditional banking methods, instead preferring to bank on their own terms. If businesses aim to connect with millennials, it’s important to zero in on the fact that 86 percent of the millennial generation are dependent on their smartphones. Their generation relies on phone apps and mobile tools to pay bills, view statements and set up recurring payments.
In addition, 27 percent of millennials polled admit they like the concept of using a branchless bank for their financial needs. Millennials are open to online-only banks. They want the convenience of real-time updates on their finances instead of waiting for a monthly bank statement in the mail.
This shift toward online convenience and unconventional methods is transforming the retail setting, as well as banking. Millennials value a personalized experience when it comes to banking and shopping. They want to know merchants are paying attention to them and their shopping needs. Considering the growing influence of millennial shoppers, it’s wise to be responsive to their needs and preferences.
By 2025, experts say millennials are expected to make 46 percent of all income in the U.S. Millennials’ buying power is growing, and it’s important for retailers to understand how this market segment operates. Millennials are dependent on digital technology for buying and selling items. They prefer online payment over checks and cash, as 47 percent of millennials have used a money transfer service, according to a recent poll. This generation also favors technology such as fingerprint, eye scan, voice and facial recognition to process payments electronically. More are also using their mobile phone as a virtual wallet instead of using a physical debit or credit card.
How to Connect
If you are a retailer in this digital age who is struggling to connect with millennials, consider learning to speak their language. It’s crucial to adapt your marketing and sales strategy to meet millennials’ unconventional habits.
As business practices evolve, try to embrace innovation in every aspect of interaction with your younger customers. For example, be sure that millennial shoppers can find your store in web searches and that your business name ranks high to attract attention over the competition in your area.
Consider investing in an updated website that will provide a smooth electronic experience, since millennials place a high value on a retailer’s social media presence. Since social media platforms influence buying behavior, it makes sense to include social media as part of your marketing strategies. They are also using social media platforms to influence their buying behavior.
Whether millennials are unbanked, underbanked or otherwise, it’s important to pay close attention to this generation and its preferences. Knowing more about millennials and catering to them will help merchants to better earn their business and consumer trust.


text:
Samsung Galaxy S10 triggered a global war on DAAP race. Its latest model has Blockchain Keystore and Blockchain Wallet.
The key store is the place where users can keep their private keys to use cryptocurrencies. When investors lost the private keys, namely arithmetic numerical data, they lose their cryptocurrencies. Thus the Keystore is quite essential.
Through the Blockchain Wallet, you can settle bills at shops, both online and offline, which accepts cryptocurrencies.
Samsung set the trend toward popularizing cryptocurrencies. Now Apple and other smartphone makers are likely to follow Samsung’s lead when they unveil new models.
A decade ago when the APP appeared on a mobile app, many people wondered what this means. But in so short a time, many companies have debuted their APPs.
Now people are wondering what the DAPP means. They have little understanding of the Decentralized Application.
Simply speaking, it is the blockchain-based APP. Why is the D added to APP? What’s the difference between APP and DAPP?
Unlike APP, DAPP is no central intermediary. No one can fabricate data and records in the blockchain-based DAPP.
In smartphones and PCs, you can download whatever APPs you want. Soon, you can download whatever DAPPs you want.
Only 1-2 percent of smartphone holders use cryptocurrencies. But in the future, more and more people are likely to use DAPPs on their smartphones to use cryptocurrencies, a Seoul analyst said.
Through the DAPP, you can participate in the blockchain-based online game, post views on cosmetics you use, settle bills through Coinduck online payment system and can buy and sell cat characters.


text:
Xeretec, the largest reseller channel for Xerox in the UK, has bought Landscape Group, a major reseller for HP to education and corporates.
The businesses overlap in the sales and support of multi functional printers and workgroup printers, but not in production print where Xeretec handles the full range of Xerox cutsheet machines, but Landscape does not sell HP’s production level technology.
Xeretec chief executive Steve Hawkins says: “The game-changing acquisition of Landscape Group is a transformational moment for Xerox, HP, our customers and our staff. Xeretec will continue to consolidate and develop its longstanding commitment to the Xerox brand, building on its exceptional track record of success. This best of breed acquisition plays to the strengths of both respected brands and both resellers.”
The move reflects broader changes in the office equipment market which Xerox in particular has made a key growth area since the separation of Xerox and Conduent at the beginning of the year. Both Xerox and HP have launched a clutch of new machines in the sector this year, ramping up quality, features and functionality. Both are exploiting opportunities with inkjet technology.
George Brasher, managing director of HP UK & Ireland, says the deal “comes at a pivotal time for HP, as we set out to disrupt and reinvent the A3 copier space and provides the perfect foundation for Landscape to play a major and highly successful role in that”.
The Landscape name will remain and it stays in Portsmouth where it is able to handle the repair and rebuilding of HP MPS machines.
Xeretec says its commitment to Xerox remains undiminished. The Wokingham business has grown to sales of £56.1 million in 2016 (£61.7 million) with a pretax profit of £3.3 million (£2.9 million). It has grown through acquisition of other Xerox concessionaires, this the first to step sideways to another technology supplier.
Xeretec continues its growth by acquisition strategy with purchase of key HP distributor the Landscape Group. It brings a closer relationship with HP though the name will remain.
No comments to display, be the first! Leave a comment in the box above.


text:
The Chinese e-commerce giant has announced a maxi-restructuring, the most significant since 1999, the year the giant was founded by Jack Ma. The assets, worth a total of 220 billion dollars, will be divided into six main units of business. It is a decision taken “to unlock shareholder value and promote market competitiveness”, commented the Hangzhou company
Alibaba, one of China’s most important technology companies, with activities ranging from cloud computing to e-commerce, from logistics to media and entertainment to artificial intelligence, has announced a maxi-restructuring, the most significant ever carried out since 1999, the year the giant was founded by Jack Ma. The assets, worth a total of 220 billion dollars, will be divided into six main business units, each of which will evaluate the hypothesis of external fundraising or initial public offerings ” when the time is right”.
“Promoting market competitiveness”
It is essentially a decision taken “to unlock shareholder value and promote market competitiveness”, commented the Hangzhou-based company in a note, flying among other things at the opening of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange: after 14 .26% gained at the Nyse, the shares of the e-commerce giant also replicated the performance on the former British colony’s stock market, posting a leap of 13.53% in the initial stages, to 95.65 Hk dollars.
Growth despite difficulties
Alibaba has faced rather complex growth challenges, considering Beijing’s regulatory tightening on the hi-tech sector and the slowdown in China, but industry experts believe that the group’s growth could resume in 2023, albeit in a difficult scenario . In fact, around $600 billion of the company’s stock market value was wiped out by the October 2020 share price peak and the communist leadership, as mentioned, has launched a crackdown on private technology companies over the years. The giant, among other things, had been fined 2.6 billion in 2021 as part of an antitrust investigation.
The new corporate groups
With the new reorganisation, new corporate groups will therefore revolve around the strategic priorities of the group. It will start from the Cloud Intelligence Group, from the cloud to artificial intelligence headed by the CEO of Alibaba, Daniel Zhang, passing through the Taobao Tmall Commerce Group, the company’s online shopping platforms, including Taobao and Tmall, the only ones to remain in total control of Alibaba and for the Local Services Group, the food delivery Ele.me. Here, again, the Cainiao Smart Logistics (logistics), the Global Digital Commerce Group (international e-commerce activities, including AliExpress and Lazada) and the Digital Media and Entertainment Group (streaming and films). “This transformation will enable all of our businesses to become more agile, improve decision-making, and enable faster responses to market changes,” Zhang said.


text:
Prior to the debut of the V-Series.R for the 2023 racing season, the luxury marque offered a customer car program, making its DPi-V.R race cars available to the Spirit of Daytona/Flis Motorsports, JDC-Miller and Juncos, along with Wayne Taylor Racing and Action Express through 2022. However, the new car demanded a change in strategy, which meant pulling the plug on the program.
Laura Wontrop Klauser, sports car racing program manager at Cadillac for GM, indicated that a customer program just isn’t in the cards right now, saying, “It just doesn’t make sense to go down that path at this point. Customer cars are not happening as of now, but you never use the word definitely in this sport… Different car, different program.”
Currently, Cadillac’s factory racing program supports efforts by Chip Ganassi Racing (CGR) and Action Express Racing (AXR) in the WEC and IMSA, respectively. AXR fields a team of two V-Series.R race cars in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship in the LMDh division, while CGR fields one in the WEC Hypercar class. All three race cars will be on track at the same time in Le Mans this summer, and the luxury marque hopes to build on last year’s podium finish in the historic event.
Cadillac’s decision to forego a customer racing program is almost exactly the opposite of Corvette Racing’s latest business model. GM nixed its factory ‘Vette alliance alongside the discontinuation of the Corvette C8.R race car after the 2023 season. However, Corvette Racing lives on in the form of the new Corvette Z06 GT3.R, which is exclusively available as a customer car.


text:
The new ability of technology to link consumer behavior to connected TV ad exposure is changing the habits of ad buyers, says an exec trying to spread the software.
“Whereas traditionally, (ad buyers) were digital shops, they’re now coming in and saying, ‘what should my mix look like?’, says Jo Kinsella, chief revenue officer of TVSquared, a performance TV attribution vendor.
Kinsella’s TVSquared helps brands learn how TV advertising is driving traffic to their websites.
One of the company’s two main software pieces is ADvantage, a platform providing offering insight in to how each TV impression drives revenue through online, mobile and second screen for advertisers looking for accurate same-day TV attribution.
The company’s Predict tool helps advertisers automate the creation of their buy specifications based on predictive analysis of historical attribution data that is optimized, whether the objective is to generate sales, registrations, web site visits or any other kind of response.
TVSquared also helps power Instant Impact, an analytics platform at Comcast Cable’s Spotlight ad sales unit which shows the impact on web traffic from airing an ad on Comcast, within 30 minutes of transmission.
This video is part of a series of interviews conducted during Advertising Week New York, 2019. This series is co-production of Beet.TV and Advertising Week. The series is sponsored by Roundel, a Target company. Please see more videos from Advertising Week right here.


text:
Big is a small word that succinctly describes the role cheese mecca Murray’s Cheese has played in Rob Kaufelt’s life. The relationship began in 1991 when Kaufelt — badly in need of a job after a failed New Jersey business venture and divorce — moved to Greenwich Village looking to start over. He got his big break when, by chance, he was standing in Murray’s Cheese and learned that New York’s oldest cheese store had recently lost its lease and owner Lou Tudda was thinking of returning to Italy.
Twenty five years later, Kaufelt’s purchase, enhanced by astute vision and tireless efforts, has grown Murray’s Cheese’s revenue to a $250 million national enterprise. According to the Specialty Food Association, these sales represent a big share of the $3.7 billion gourmet cheese market that places cheese at the top of the fast-growing $100 billion artisanal food industry. Along the way, Kaufelt has grown into an important presence in the specialty food industry as an innovative retailer, author of The Murray’s Cheese Handbook, educator and sought-after speaker.
And most recently, this led to big news throughout the cheese industry.
In early February, Kaufelt announced that Cincinnati-based Kroger — the country’s largest traditional supermarket — had purchased Murray’s 2,000-square-foot flagship store at 250-254 Bleecker Street for $20.6 million. In a separate deal, Kroger’s also bought the company’s equity and forged a merger between the two companies. Kaufelt will remain as a strategic adviser, and the store will stay in place while Nick Tranchina, executive vice president, will continue to lead the Murray’s Cheese team in New York. He will report to Daniel Hammer, Kroger’s vice president of culinary development and deli/bakery merchandising.
The partnership between the supermarket chain and Murray’s began in 2005, when Kroger’s then vice president of deli and bakery, Margaret McClure, approached Kaufelt about working together to develop a broader market for cheeses and charcuterie across the country. After taking a few years to strategize how to duplicate the New York stores’ experience and the staff’s expertise to “bring the neighborhood across the country,” Kaufelt accepted the offer. Donald Becker, the company’s late corporate vice president, then set the relationship in motion.
What began with the first kiosks in 2008 blossomed to where today there is a Murray’s presence in 350 Kroger stores across the country, including those under the Ralphs, King Sooper, Fred Meyer, QFC and City Market names. Ironically, there is no Kroger presence in New York City.
Although the kiosks carry the Murray’s name, it is Kroger employees personally selected by each store’s manager for their passion for cheese and enthusiasm who communicate with customers. The number of cheeses in each location is selected by the store and varies widely, depending on the available space within the cheese shop itself. Some have around 100 cheeses, while the Bleecker Street store can carry up to 400 at peak times of the year. About 60 percent are domestic, with imported cheeses mainly from European countries, but this mix also changes throughout the year.
In its close to eight decades, Murray’s has become an icon and must-visit stop for cheese devotees. But early on, cheese wasn’t the primary focus. The store’s original owner, Murray Greenberg, was an Eastern European immigrant and veteran of the Spanish Civil War, who opened his store at 42 Cornelia Street in New York City in 1940. He stocked general foodstuffs like butter, eggs and cheese typically in big hunks. In an era when business was often cash only, the savvy Greenberg had a knack for buying and selling advantageously — including trimming and repurposing products on the edge of viability — and the business prospered.
When Greenberg retired in 1970, he sold the store to his longtime clerk, Lou Tudda, an Italian immigrant. By this time, the neighborhood was primarily Italian and Tudda featured Mediterranean provisions like vinegar, olive oil and cured meats, along with cheeses, to suit his clients’ tastes. Then his lease expired and Tudda was thinking about moving to Calabria.
It seemed to be his destiny to become a part of this thriving business, since Kaufelt was literally born into the grocery business. His Polish grandfather, Irving Kaufelt, immigrated to the United States in 1914 and opened Felt Brothers Fancy Groceries in Perth Amboy, NJ in the 1920s. In the late 1940s, Kaufelt’s parents, Stanley and Florence, convinced his father to shutter the store and buy a 6,000-square-foot supermarket in North Brunswick. The larger market concept was rapidly expanding to include health and beauty aids and photo development, along with pre-sliced meats and cheeses and salad bars. Mayfair Supermarkets eventually grew to include 30 stores.
Two years after graduating from Cornell University, Kaufelt joined the family business in 1971. He saw an opportunity for the retailer to distinguish itself and pushed for innovations in the growing area of prepared foods, fresh fish displayed European-style on ice and sales of artisanal products like pastas. He also felt that good service and the quality of food were as important as convenience and quantity. As president for a few years, he felt constrained by his father, who didn’t share his views, so he left in 1985.
When he opened his two full-service gourmet stores in Summit and Princeton, NJ, he named them Kaufelt’s Fancy Groceries in homage to his grandfather. But unfortunately the business climate in the late 80s was challenging. When the Princeton store failed, he sold Summit and left. In the process, Kaufelt discovered his passion for cheese.
Shortly after moving to Cornelia Street, Kaufelt walked into Murray’s and overheard that fateful conversation. Using the capital from selling his second store, he quickly negotiated a deal with Tudda, who he convinced to stay on for a while, and began his climb back up. The staff also included a Dominican counterman named Emilio and Frank Meliak, a local Maltese high school student who was a stock boy and made deliveries for the store at the time Kaufelt bought it. Before retiring more than 25 years later, Meliak had become the vice president of operations. He also represented Murray’s in the International Best Cheese Monger contest in Lyons, France, in 2008 and 2012. Murray’s has dozens of cheesemongers in New York and thousands in their Kroger locations.
Throughout the 90s, Kaufelt worked behind the counter and did whatever it took to succeed. While expanding his knowledge of cheese, he also explored creative merchandising ideas like having his staff share the romance and journey of each cheese to help customers better appreciate what makes it unique and, borrowing a page from Grandpa Irving, he offered them samples. He also stocked products like homemade preserves purposefully chosen to pair with cheese.
By the end of the decade, business was growing and Kaufelt knew he needed to travel to develop a closer relationship with international cheesemakers and to bring fine artisanal products directly from these artisans and farmers to Americans. He says New Yorkers first bought Spanish Idiazabal and Manchego, now household staples, at Murray’s. Along with familiar and lesser known cheeses from Italy, France, Spain, Great Britain and Switzerland, he ventured further afield.
As for some of the weirdest or more exotic cheeses he’s tasted, he says, “Casu marzu, a Sardinian sheep cheese that includes maggot larvae, is always fun; yak cheese from Afghanistan? Not so much fun. Breast milk cheese from France is an urban cheese myth and camel cheese is not recommended.”
A Big Step Forward
In 2002, the expansion of food purveyors at Grand Central Terminal led Murray’s to open its second location. A charcuterie, Murray’s Real Salami, followed in 2008; the two merged two years later to become Murray’s second flagship store. Like the Greenwich Village original, it grew to include a cheese-centric restaurant and wine bar.
Meanwhile, by 2004, the Greenwich Village store was beyond crammed full of hundreds of small and large pyramids, wheels and logs of cheese, sometimes teetering precariously. So, for the second time in its existence, Murray’s Cheese moved across Bleecker Street to number 254. With more than twice the space, the emporium included more dairy products, charcuterie, specialty foods, cheese-based take out foods and a yogurt bar.
Upstairs in the new education department is where thousands of classes and special events have been held, including a popular three-day Cheese U Boot Camp and 90-minute participation evenings where cheese is paired with beer, whiskey or chocolate truffles. “Originally, Kroger’s main interest in us was teaching their sales staff and customers about cheese. And Murray’s is all about education,” says Kaufelt. The store’s most popular class is still Rob’s Cheese 101, where typically participants have a tasting of seven families of cheese — from fresh to bloomy to blue and everything in between — along with unlimited house sparkling and red wine
This focus on education led to Murray’s Red Jacket or Certified Cheese Professional (CCP) program. “Now, besides chefs and sommeliers, there is a new career path for people with a passion for cheese,” says Kaufelt with pride. Participants take several classes and must pass a rigorous test from the American Cheese Society. “Of the more than 3,000 attendees who have gone through the training, hundreds of New York and Kroger staff are certified CCPs.”
Below ground, three rooms for aging and storage were added, plus a window in the sidewalk where customers could look down from the street to see the cheeses. The caves became a very big deal for chefs of A-list restaurants like Jean Georges in New York. Eventually, they outgrew the Bleecker Street caves space and moved to a large warehouse in Long Island City, where they finish their own cheeses and those from other cheesemakers, as well. It’s a boon for small farms that would otherwise not have the necessary space. Murray’s customers include the best restaurants across the country. The former caves were turned into walk-in coolers.
In their new space, Peter Jenkelunas, an affineur or cave manager who closely monitors the aging process, works in a state-of-the art environment of strictly controlled humidity and temperature to ensure cheeses are ripened to perfection. Greensward, one of the Murray’s proprietary cheeses, is a pasteurized cow’s milk cheese first created in a secret partnership with Jasper Hill Farm of Greensboro, VT, for Eleven Madison Park in New York City. The cheese was recognized as an Industry Best by the American Cheese Society in 2016 at its annual awards presentation, and was also acknowledged as number one in the Washed Rind Cheese category and took third place in the Best of Show category.
Another major improvement was building a proper kitchen for the company’s catering department, which led to developing an on-site prepared foods program. “In 2009, we instituted Murray’s Melts — the world’s best grilled cheese sandwiches served all day — and, in 2012, we opened Murray’s Cheese Bar nearby at 264 Bleecker,” described by some food lovers as a shrine to cheese, says Kaufelt. The selection varies according to the seasons, as cheeses can be affected by factors like the kind of grass the cow or other animal eats, how much humidity is in the air, and the time of year. On average, there might be cheeses from 15 different countries, but this changes all the time.
The State Of The Industry
Kaufelt sees more commendable American cheeses today as part of a steady trend he noticed in his 25 years at Murray’s. “It started in a few places like Northern California and Vermont. At this point, however, it’s everywhere,” says Kaufelt. “One of our main accomplishments is that because we have so many stores throughout the country, many artisanal cheeses have a local outlet beyond what was previously available to them. Cheesemakers need an outlet to survive. With educated professionals, the chances are much greater that they can make a proper living from what they are passionate about.”
At the 2016 World Cheese Awards in San Sebastian, Spain, Michigan cheesemakers Anne and John Hoyt of Leelanau Cheese Co. recently won a Super Gold award for their Raclette. The competition included more than 3,000 cheeses from around the globe. The only other American cheese on the list of the 66 World’s Best Cheeses was Harbison from Jasper Hill Farm.
When asked about the timing of the sale, Kaufelt answers wryly, “Well, Kroger wanted to buy it. With Murray’s in hundreds of Krogers locations, I realized I’d taken the store much further than I’d ever anticipated. It’s taken on a new life and so it’s a good time to exit. Besides, it’s the opportunity of a lifetime.” While the terms of the property sale are public, the rest of the deal is not.
Clearly one compelling reason for the exit is that Kaufelt and his wife, Nina Planck, have three young kids at home: 10-year-old Julian and seven-year-old twins Jacob and Rose. Planck, a celebrated journalist and author of The Real Food cookbook, originally came to New York to be the executive director of the New York City green markets. Some of her recipes are used for Murrays’ prepared foods.
The couple now divides their time between a recently restored townhouse in Greenwich Village and their 18th century farmhouse in Stockton, NJ. Kaufelt laughs when he says he never expected to be having mature conversations with their wise-beyond-their-years kids, recounting a recent one about the taste properties of a certain cheese.
He says he enjoys cheese at any time of the day. Standards in the refrigerator typically include raw milk Cheddar, Parmigiano Reggiano, a blue and a goat cheese. For parties, there’s usually a triple crème. These days, he adds, it’s more often sliced cheeses for his kids’ sandwiches and, of course, Mozzarella.
As for his favorite, Kaufelt reveals that “as a kid, cream cheese was my favorite…and it still is. Nina recently made banana bread and spread it with Ben’s Cream Cheese.” The tangy, dense, all-natural product is made without stabilizers and gums and is sold at Murray’s. It harkens back to earlier days on East Houston Street when immigrant peddlers sold bagels, pickles and knishes in the neighborhood. “Now that’s a high-level food experience,” says Kaufelt.
Of the people who played important roles in his career, Rob mentions two — Gerd Stern, the first president of the American Cheese Society in the ‘80s, and Kroger’s Don Becker, who became a close colleague. Stanley Kaufelt once asked his son rather scornfully if he could make a living at “just selling cheese,” referring to his plans to buy Murray’s. Recently, he said he was very proud of him.
In a Crain’s New York Business article, writer Richard Morgan wrote that Kaufelt transformed Murray’s into “America’s Apple Store of Fromage.” Now it seems the seeds of Murray’s orchard will blossom across the country.


text:
At CES 2013, the Wireless Power Consortium displayed dozens of devices that were designed to the Qi wireless charging standard, suggesting that 2013 may be the year wireless charging becomes a feature consumers expect to come standard in new smartphones.
It's official: We've entered the tablet age, and 2013 looks to be a greatA year for slates. Tablets appeared in all forms at the International CES and were just about everywhere you looked--and the noteworthy and innovative models featured Windows 8, not Android, inside.
While at CES this year, we looked for but didn't find any evidence that tablet computers will replace the laptop anytime soon, but we did observe some progress in the public cloud that will enable the "connected home" and the "connected car."
The latest TVs and tablets are only part of the fun that International CES has to offer. This is about the biggest tech trade show in the world, after all, with thousands of vendors falling over each other to get noticed. Live demos go wrong, marketing tricks backfire and the antics on the show...
A big theme at this year's Consumer Electronics Show (CES) has been the connected home. There are televisions connected to the cloud; refrigerators connected to the Internet; heating, lighting and security systems connected to sensors and monitors. And IBM wants all of those devices to be connected...
Research in Motion is at CES this week talking up BlackBerry 10, the company's smartphone refresh set to debut January 30. Despite five years of floundering behind Apple's iPhone and Google Android devices, RIM is generating interest in BlackBerry 10 with a slick, touch-centric smartphone...
ZTE and Huawei took home most of the device-related headlines from this year's International CES in Las Vegas, which didn't exactly provide an earthshaking amount of Android news for a show of its size. Nevertheless, the companies both demonstrated strong new offerings, and other players, including...
Network gear may not be the sexiest stuff at the International CES, but it provides the infrastructure for lots of cool gadgets and cloud services on display here. And those products will benefit from the improved networks and network devices that vendors plan to ship this year.
Flexible OLEDs that can be rolled up or wrapped around the sides of smartphones are getting closer to reality. Samsung Electronics showed some of its prototype flexible displays at CES Wednesday and launched a new brand name for them, Youm.
After Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer made a surprise appearance during a Qualcomm keynote at International Consumer Electronics Show (CES), some analysts wondered how married the company is to Snapdragon chips and the ARM-based ecosystem.
Oliver Bussmann, CIO at SAP, boasts he has 6,000 followers on Twitter. He also makes a point of attending trade shows like the International Consumer Electronics Show (CES) to grab ideas on new innovations.
It should've been awkward. This year's CES is the first show since Microsoft's amicable split with the Consumer Electronics Association. Redmond severed deep ties, giving up an annual booth in a marquee floor spot, and sidelining theA dynamic duo of Ballmer and Gates, who had warmed up...
Behold the PCs of CES 2013. They are simpler, smarter, easier to use, and more portable than their now ever-so-clunky predecessors. No mice or keyboards are required. Indeed, these are not your daddy's computers. And let's not even call them PCs. How about: Tablets, hybrids, all-in-ones,...
It's been a year since the introduction of the first Intel Inside handset, but the company's struggles to break into the smartphone market continue as rivals Nvidia and Qualcomm improved speed and power efficiency of ARM chips, which dominate that market.
Former U.S. President Bill Clinton made a surprise appearance at the International CES on Wednesday, where he talked a little about technology and a lot about hot-button political issues like the environment and gun control.
In 2013, a high-end smartphone should have a full-HD 5-inch screen and a 13-megapixel camera to remain competitive, if products launched at International CES in Las Vegas this week are an indication of the state of the art for mobile devices.
As old CES hands like our own Keith Shaw advised, Tuesday was orders of magnitude more busy than Monday. Now the show had a crush of people to go with its gargantuan physical scale. All the booths were put together and running, everyone's gear was on display - the effect was overwhelming.
Asus , Lenovo, Intel and Nvidia are using CES to show off their latest tablet and PC innovations headed to store shelves later in 2013. But gadget makers would be better off focusing on slates rather than notebook PCs, one market research firm suggests.
When your kids see you using a tablet, of course they want to use one, too. Thank goodness there are some tablets out there tailored to them, so they can share the experience--without begging for time on your own device.
CES is one of the few big techie events that I was at least moderately familiar with before I started working here at Network World, less than a year ago. I always thought of it as the nerd playground to end all nerd playgrounds, with years-from-release technology available to the eager gadgeteer.
Sorry folks, the phones have left CES--and it doesn't look like they'll be coming back. What was once a waterfall of shiny new handsets has turned into a pitiful trickle as phone manufacturers and carriers opt for mobile-only conferences and private events to launch their hot new devices.
Qualcomm's keynote at the International CES was packed with big names and even a Big Bird, but CEO Paul Jacobs' focus was on something much smaller -- a new family of processors aimed at high-end smartphones and tablets.
Qualcomm called on some big names Monday to ensure its opening-night keynote at the International CES wasn't a dud. Steve Ballmer, Big Bird, the pop group Maroon5, and even former Archbishop Desmond Tutu all made appearances to keep things rolling along.
As TVs get higher resolution and bigger displays, while getting cheaper over time, cable operators may be able to cover an entire wall of your home with a screen that includes two full-size TV shows plus weather, upcoming show information, a social media feed and other elements, according to Cisco...


text:
SSE announces 7.5% hike in household electricity bills
HOUSEHOLD electricity supplier SSE Airtricity has announced a 7.5 per cent increase in its prices, effective from October 1.
The price hike from the north's second largest energy company comes just a week after market leader Power NI reported a 5.6 per cent tariff rise.
SSE has said that a increase in external costs, including wholesale energy costs, are to blame for a first electricity price jump for household customers in over four years.
In total over 200,000 households across Northern Ireland will be affected by this change and will see a typical customer's household electricity bill rise from £470 to £505, an increase of £35 per year.
Director of home energy at SSE Airtricity David Manning said the decision to increase prices was "not taken lightly".
“Having consistently delivered price decreases to our customers in recent years today’s decision is not taken lightly and is the result of increasing costs outside of our control.
“Since 2013, we’ve cut electricity prices three times, reducing the average household bill in that period by over £100. At all times we are focused on delivering value and service to our customers and despite this price change, the average SSE Airtricity bill remains £68 cheaper than it was in 2013.”
The Consumer Council described the latest tariff hike as "unwelcome news", with chief executive John French calling on SSE to explain to its customers why the increase in tariff is higher than Power NI's, which was scrutinised by the Utility Regulator.
“Our message to consumers is to check if an alternative supplier can offer a better deal. Households may be able to save around £75 per year by switching supplier."
“If SSE Airtricity customers remain happy with the service they receive, we would still recommend that they act. They should contact SSE Airtricity to see if they are on the best possible deal, or if they could save money by using direct debits or receiving e-bills; where a saving of £35 per year can be made against the standard tariff," he added.
Last week Power NI announced a 5.6 per cent jump in its electricity prices to come into effect on October 1.
The energy supplier said that due to rises wholesale energy costs the tariff change was "unavoidable".


text:
Canada Goose Appointed Kate Upton as its Brand Ambassador
Canada Goose has allegedly appointed model and actress Kate Upton as its brand ambassador. Kate will be responsible for the brand’s spring 2020 global campaign, and also be raising awareness on climate change, as the company is planning to continue its support of Polar Bears International.
The spring campaign, fronted by Kate, will be featuring a seasonal expansion of the Polar Bears International collection.
Speaking about the association, Kate said, “I first discovered Canada Goose when I was in Antarctica and temperatures were as low as -20°F… that jacket kept me from freezing! I’ve used their products from the most extreme cold temperatures to rainy downpours and their quality is second-to-none. After being a long-time fan, I’m proud to officially partner together and to support the incredible work they do for the environment. I’ve learned that what’s happening in the Arctic, doesn’t stay in the Arctic – and Canada Goose is a company that is making a difference.”
President and Chief Executive, Canada Goose, Dani Reiss said, “Kate is a progressive thinker, a role model, and a passionate advocate who has a positive influence on the world. We admire and are inspired by her focus on making this a better place for future generations. As an authentic and driven entrepreneur who inspires those around her, Kate naturally exudes our brand values, and we are thrilled to have her represent this important collection.”


text:
In 2011, Apple became the first company to place artificial intelligence in the pockets of millions of consumers when the firm's co-founder Steve Jobs launched the voice assistant Siri on the iPhone.
Eight years later, the technology giant is struggling to find its voice in AI.
Analysts say the question of whether Apple can succeed in building great artificial intelligence products is as fundamental to the company's next decade as the iPhone was to its previous one. But the tech giant faces a formidable dilemma because the nature of artificial intelligence pushes Apple far out of its comfort zone in sleekly-designed hardware and services.
AI programming demands a...


text:
Tech giant Microsoft is associating with the audio streaming and services provider Spotify with new Window 11 focused features. In line with the media reports, “Microsoft is integrating Swedish audio streaming and repair provider platform into a brand new Windows 11 feature”.
Microsoft, one of every of the biggest technology services providers organization teased a spotlight session. Microsoft’s head and devices Panos Panay obtain session window 11 feature on social media platform site Twitter on itself, and it shows the most recent thanks to target the task and works too. Microsoft didn’t yet commence its testing focus session on window 11, but the video launched on Twitter appears to be built into a system clock app, the newest report said.
It looks like Microsoft is following the Pomodoro technique, it’s a way of managing the timings by breaking the work into small chunks with the break, per the verge. it is the first time when Spotify’s audio streaming music integrates with the windows has been seen together since the tech giant retired its groove music service in 2017. Microsoft associates with Spotify to aside the groove music subscribers and their playlist above among the rival music streaming services.
Also, tech giant Microsoft and also audio streaming Spotify backed the move to figure on the window 10 apps and one separate app called Xbox consoles. Focus session could be a newly launched feature that’s being joined with the Alarms and clock apps, which eventually renamed to put down Windows 11. Including other features within the same app like Alarms, Stopwatch, Timers, and world clocks. It’ll seemingly be the default view in Window 11.
Mr. Panay tweeted, “This has been a game-changer on behalf of me when it all about the Spotify”. His tweet includes all the short videos that the window enthusiastic will pore over.
According to the UI shown within the video, the main focus session by Microsoft will ultimately help in achieving the goals and acquire things quite previously done. Firstly, you work out slow with a timer and an optional break. Then you continue with the task you chose from your tasks list to try and do. Then you select a Spotify playlist to enjoy while continuing along with your task. And eventually, you begin the main target session and obtain to figure.


text:
Apple’s Beats is currently preparing to launch really wireless Powerbeats earbuds in April, CNET reports. CNET’s origin, who it claims is near the retail station, says that the new earbuds will allegedly utilize Apple’s new H1 processor that is employed in the wireless charging AirPods, also possess exactly the identical always-on Siri voice helper. Additionally, it is likely to have a longer battery life compared to AirPods, which have approximately five hours of listening.
CNET points out that the timing of this wireless Powerbeats lines up with if the Beats X have been declared, which was soon after Apple first introduced AirPods at 2016. Rumors of higher-end AirPods have been circulating since this past year, suggesting they would be a noise-canceling, over-ear headset. The wireless charging AirPods declared this week do not line up with exactly what the rumors have been indicating, but the Powerbeats could target a marketplace that’s searching for much more features compared to that which the AirPods offer. The recent Powerbeats are sweat-resistant and extend a more secure fit than AirPods, to get started.
There is no pricing info yet, even though the Powerbeats3 Wireless (that are still connected by a cable ) now retails for $199.95 on the Beats site, but can be purchased for as low as $99 on Amazon, indicating an upgrade may be arriving. When the rumors are true, the newest cordless Powerbeats3 are the very first in the whole Beats lineup to become wireless earbuds.


text:
Agriculture grants will benefit some Sandy area nurseries
The federal government is investing in Oregon agriculture, and several Sandy area businesses could benefit from the plan.
In an effort to grow Oregons specialty crop production to more competitive levels, the United States Department of Agriculture announced $1.5 million in block grants that will benefit the states fruit, vegetable, nut and nursery crops. Part of the grant money will go to market development and access.
For that purpose, the Oregon Association of Nurseries received $90,250 for its Plant Something campaign, a marketing strategy designed to popularize gardening and backyard agriculture.
Its an effort to generate more interest for the retail growers, and that would translate to the commercial growers as well, said association Marketing Director Ann Murphy. The Plant Something initiative was started in Arizona, and it has grown to 11 other states, including British Columbia.
Murphy said only nurseries that belong to the association will participate in the campaign. In the Sandy/Boring/Gresham area, there are four such nurseries. Murphy said she hopes the campaign will grow into a grassroots Got Milk? type of campaign.
If we can get people thinking about the value of adding plants to their life, then there will be an indirect benefit for the wholesalers, she said.
The grassroots approach, Murphy said, is a new strategy.
A top down approach was tried a few decades ago, and it didnt fly, she said. The approach that we anticipate well be taking will have a large social media online component.
The association will use the grant money to hire a marketing firm to develop the campaign.
Well be putting out a request for proposals to find a partner for it, Murphy said.
The Plant Something campaign will launch in the spring of next year.JW_DISQUS_ADD_A_COMMENT


text:
Highly anticipated 5v1 online multiplayer PC game launches today on Discord's digital distribution platform
Elastic Games has announced the release of its online action survival multiplayer game, Last Year: The Nightmare. Available today for US$29.99 on the Discord Store, the game is launching through the "First to Discord" program.
For more information on LAST YEAR: THE NIGHTMARE, visit lastyearthegame.com and join the official Discord server at discord.gg/lastyearofficial. You can also follow the social feeds on Twitter at @LastYearGame and Facebook at facebook.com/lastyeargame.


text:
Azerbaijan ranks third among Georgia's foreign trade partners
Azerbaijan ranks third among Georgia's foreign trade partners after Russia and Türkiye, Georgia’s National Statistics Service said in its report on last year's results.
In January of this year, Georgia's foreign trade turnover increased by 29.1 percent compared to the same period of 2022 and amounted to $1 billion 461.8 million.
The volume of exports in foreign trade amounted to $459.0 million, which is 38.5 percent more than the same period last year.
The volume of imports increased by 25.2 percent making up $1 billion 0002.8 million.
Russia's share in Georgia's foreign trade made up $263.6 million, while Türkiye's share $196.1 million and Azerbaijan's share $120.4 million respectively.


text:
hd 7790 content on TweakTown - Page 1
We found 5 items for the tag: hd 7790
MSI Radeon HD 7790 1GB OC Overclocked Video Card Review
May 22, 2013 5:01 am
We check out another retail AMD Radeon HD 7790 1GB video card. This time it's from the folks at MSI and we overclock it.
GIGABYTE Radeon HD 7790 1GB OC Overclocked Video Card Review
Mar 26, 2013 4:56 am
With a new GPU model from AMD we're got some different versions of the new Radeon HD 7790 and today we look at one from GIGABYTE and overclock it.
AMD's Radeon HD 7790 launched, welcome to the new mid-range champion
Mar 22, 2013 7:48 am
AMD lunges at the mid-range graphics market with their Radeon HD 7790
Sapphire Radeon HD 7790 1GB Dual-X OC Video Card Review
Mar 22, 2013 7:45 am
AMD has released a new model and we see just what the Radeon HD 7790 is about with the Dual-X OC model from Sapphire.
Leaked details on AMD's upcoming Radeon HD 7790 "Bonaire" GPU appear
Mar 11, 2013 10:09 am
AMD Radeon HD 7790 "Bonaire" GPU sees some more details leaked


text:
MADISON, Wis. (AP) - The Legislature's finance committee is set to decide whether to exempt rent-to-own stores from Wisconsin's consumer protection laws.
Rent-to-own businesses offer customers a chance to rent items without a credit check. Customers can exit and rejoin their contracts with an option to buy the items when they fulfill the terms. Critics contend the businesses prey on the poor and charge exorbitant interest rates. Industry advocates maintain the contracts aren't credit transactions and shouldn't fall under the state's consumer protection laws.
Gov. Scott Walker's budget would create a new section of state law governing the industry. The new statutes wouldn't require the businesses to disclose interest rates.
The finance committee is expected to review Walker's proposal Thursday. The panel could approve the plan as is, modify it or delete it.
- Safe cams help police, local businesses solve crime
- UW-L celebrates School of Education
- Gundersen Health System considered top hospital for enviornmental excellence
- Downtown Mainstreet hosts 'Clean Your Block Party'
- March for Science runs through La Crosse
- Earth Buzz! raising awareness for polinator importance
- Police: Stop calling about urban wild turkeys
- Volunteers offer support for people who recently left jail
- UW-L softball takes two versus UW-River Falls
- Minnesota farmers begin planting under optimal weather


text:
Luxe Beauty in Whittlesey beats 1,000 other businesses to win top award
PUBLISHED: 16:49 24 October 2019 | UPDATED: 17:17 25 October 2019
A Whittlesey beauty company beat 1,000 other businesses to be crowned the top company in it’s industry.
Luxe Beauty made the final of the Peterborough Small Business Awards and won the best beauty business award.
You may also want to watch:
The judging process included nominations, applications, interviews, public votes and video and panel interviews.
Abbie Benstead-Evans, salon owner, said: "We're over the moon to have won this award this year, having expanded the team and launched our own beauty brand 'The Luxe Blender' which is going from strength to strength, amongst many other big achievements."
Earlier this year Abbie decided to raise money for a different charity each month in memory of her school friend Hannah Overton who died just before Christmas aged 28.
She said at the time: "I figured that using the platform of my business and my wide reach would only be a positive in raising awareness of different causes that are all close to our hearts."
If you value what this story gives you, please consider supporting the Cambs Times. Click the link in the orange box above for details.


text:
This morning, Hideo Kojima showed off his classic Metal Gear Solid 4 running on Sony's NGP - or 'PSP2'.
The tech demo was a hit with the audience, including our man at Sony's Tokyo conference, who said character animation was on a par with the PS3 original.
Now, you can judge for yourself. Check out the video of Kojima's on-stage demo below - and let us know what you reckon in the comments.
Sony has confirmed a dazzling line-up of new games for NGP - including new additions to the Killzone, Call Of Duty and Resistance series.
Sony's NGP (Next Generation Portable) will launch later this year. The firm has revealed the official specs revealed earlier today, and they're mighty impressive - including a five inch OLED screen.


text:
Why Apple’s next-gen CarPlay probably won’t come to your car
Apple’s next-gen CarPlay supports a vehicle’s instrument cluster and all other displays, but it probably won’t come to your car.
The next generation of Apple CarPlay is set to revolutionize the driving experience by supporting a vehicle’s instrument cluster and all other screens, but it likely won’t come to current model year or older vehicles. CarPlay is software created by Apple for medium-sized media screens on cars and is very similar to iOS. By connecting to a compatible iPhone, users can use an iOS-like experience on their car screen to send text messages, consume media and get directions on the road. Apple’s next-gen software was unveiled at the Worldwide Developers Conference in June alongside iOS 16, and both are expected to release in the coming months. The problem for CarPlay, it will take quite a bit of development from automakers to support the new features.
Before the official announcement of the next generation of CarPlay at WWDC, rumors were circulating that Apple was working on a more extensive software release for vehicles. The company has been working on its own car behind the scenes for years, despite the turbulence and turnover of the project’s engineering team. A report suggested that a version of CarPlay would be the single point of control for all aspects of the vehicle, sort of the way a Tesla is controlled. Turns out, users didn’t have to wait long to see what it might look like. Apple unveiled the full version of CarPlay without any hardware of its own, allowing other automakers to integrate the software into their vehicles. However, the adoption rate might not be as high as end users expect.
Current generations of CarPlay can handle the car’s media console, but all other screens in the vehicle match the automaker’s user interface. With the latest generation of CarPlay, the software can support multiple screens of different sizes and uses in a car, providing a universal experience. According to Apple, the company is aiming for deep integration with cars, offering the ability to control the radio or change the climate within the CarPlay environment. The software would also communicate directly with the vehicle, displaying metrics such as fuel and speed via CarPlay. If the software is widely adopted, it would be a huge selling point for iPhone users, but that’s doubtful. Due to the tight integration with specific cars that next-gen CarPlay would need, it’s unlikely to make its way to most cars.
Next-gen CarPlay could be a test drive for Apple Car
The tight integration between the car’s on-board computer and next-generation CarPlay virtually rules out the software’s arrival on existing vehicles. Even for new cars coming out in the coming years, the amount of development support needed puts its adoption in doubt. At the WWDC event where the next generation of CarPlay was announced, there were no car manufacturers confirmed to support the feature. The company said in a press release that vehicles supporting the next version of CarPlay would be announced starting next year, but no further information was provided.
The edge contacted 12 different automakers after the announcement to gauge their interest in the new software, and their responses were not promising. Stellantis (formerly known as Fiat Chrysler), Ford and General Motors – three of America’s biggest automakers – did not comment on their next-generation CarPlay support, but the former noted the impact of its integration. “It’s more of an Apple OS for car apps than a CarPlay upgrade“said a spokesperson for Stellantis without any specific announcement. Since Apple’s new CarPlay is global and requires tight integration with the car, it will probably not be available on most cars. On the contrary, the next version of CarPlay is probably just a test drive for a possible Apple Car.
Next: Ok, what’s up with the Apple car project?
Source: Apple, The Verge
Lenovo’s ThinkPad X13s ARM laptop costs more than expected
About the Author


text:
Boxed Wholesale has invested heavily in fulfillment technology since its launch in 2013. And last week it unveiled another tool designed to get orders out the door quickly—self-driving vehicles that navigate through a warehouse and pick products.
The company’s new technology aids in fulfilling consumer orders as well as orders from businesses, through its Concierge program.
Boxed, No. 326 in the Internet Retailer 2017 Top 1000, is a web-only merchant of groceries and household products. Similar to Costco Wholesale Corp.(No. 8), Boxed mainly sells bulk products. The retailer says it generated more than $100 million in online sales last year. There is no membership fee required for consumers to buy from Boxed, delivery is free for purchases of $49 or more, and packages usually arrive within two days. Boxed also sells its own brand of affordably-priced goods. The retailer sells about 1,600 SKUs.
Initially, the self-driving vehicles will travel the picking route. Human warehouse workers pick the items and punch into a computer screen that the item has been selected and then the cart delivers the finished cart to a packer. This will increase picks per hour by an estimated 80%, Boxed says. Boxed also plans to use the vehicles for replenishment and transportation of supplies.
“Long term, we’re aiming to expand the functionality of the vehicles to complete other warehouse tasks that can be made more efficient,” says Will Fong, the retailer’s chief technology officer. “For example, rather than sending a human to restock a picking zone with paper towels, the vehicle could soon be able to recognize the need to replenish the product and complete the task, all without humans needing to get involved.”
A Boxed in-house team of two engineers developed the autonomous cart in 90 days. Now, Boxed is manufacturing hundreds of the carts (they are starting by naming each cart after a member of the Wu-Tang clan, such as Ghostface Killah and Method Man) to unleash in its warehouses. It plans to roll out between 30 and 40 in its Dallas warehouse in the next several months, Fong says.
Boxed first added the carts to its warehouse in Union, N.J. The retailer says it spent tens of millions of dollars on automation of that warehouse, which launched earlier this year, to triple the output of the 140,000-square-foot center without needing more space or workers. It’s now adding the self-driving carts to its fulfillment centers in New Jersey, Dallas, Las Vegas and Atlanta.
This isn’t the first time Boxed has used automation to benefit its business. This summer it unveiled Smart StockUp, a feature that predicts when shoppers will most likely run low on particular household products and makes it simple for them to reorder by sending them a reminder about the items they are likely running low on. Boxed is also taking Smart StockUp one step further with Concierge, which not only predicts when a shopper is running low on goods, but preemptively fulfills the order and sends a customer products without them needing to engage at all. Concierge is geared toward businesses. For example, a company might use Concierge to reorder office supplies or snacks, Boxed says. B2B orders make up 20% of Boxed revenue or about $20 million, Fong says.
Boxed uses machine learning to scan customer data and predict what shoppers are going to run out of. Machine learning describes the ability to program an algorithm that teaches a machine what it should be looking for so computers can learn over time when they are exposed to new data. Boxed’s in-house team of data scientists created the machine-learning algorithm in three months.
Boxed also recently announced it is rolling out a real-time auction platform for search ads. The platform works in much the same way that search-based ad-bidding platforms work on Google, Amazon.com Inc. (No. 1) or other platforms. As an impression loads in a shopper’s browser or app, information about the page and user is passed on to the auction platform, where it is auctioned off to the advertiser that is willing to pay the highest price. That winning bidder’s ad is then loaded almost instantly.Favorite


text:
UK MOBILE REGULATOR Phonepayplus has warned parents about a pocket-based threat, the smartphone application, or app.
A report from the regulator said it has seen way too much danger in smartphones and asks that parents step in and take some responsibility for what children access, play, and do.
Not being involved, it warned, puts children at risk from security issues, rogue apps, high bills and cruel tricksters.
Phonepayplus said that it has seen plenty of scams, including versions of Angry Birds that were downloaded through the Android app store yet pinched £15 from people, and it thinks that enough is enough.
"Complaints to the regulator about children and apps rose 300 percent in a year," it said in its report. "There are risks from apparently free services, with malware and in-app billing being particularly risky for children."
It named Angry Birds, Assassin's Creed and Cut the Rope as apps that have been copied by fraudsters, and in one case the regulator said these were able to steal £15 from users.
In another case people were exploited by tricksters who convinced them that paying for something in a game would help a friend in real-life.
"In one case a 14 year old girl was tricked into paying for virtual credits in a game when a social media 'friend' said she had no credits to phone her dying grandmother," added Phoneplayplus.
"In another case, children between 12-14 year olds were tricked into 'sharing' and 'liking' a promotion for supermarket vouchers on Facebook, virally spreading the promotion which misled users into taking part in a premium rate competition."
The regulator said that it is working with firms including Facebook to make sure that scammers are not able to exploit children in this way, and also recommended that parents start putting the 'smart' into 'smartphone'.
"Connected devices will define the age in which today's children live and we are determined to ensure that they can receive the benefits while being protected from the risks," said Paul Whiteing, chief executive of Phonepayplus.
"Smartphones in children's pockets can burn holes in parent's wallets, so we are working with partners across industry and other agencies to prevent this. This is a real challenge for parents and for us as a regulator but this plan meets that challenge head on."
Parents are advised that they can do things like registering the phone as a child's phone, keeping an eye on their bills and making sure that they know what apps they have and what those apps involve. µ
Next-gen devices enabled by integrating novel materials on silicon
Plus there's a new way to read comics in town
Find out which six games have most impressed us so far this year
Video shows off upcoming handset in Rose Gold compared to iPhone 6S predecessor


text:
Samsung Electronics Co.'s share in the global DRAM market rose to the highest in two years in the third quarter on robust chip demand for servers and smartphones, a report showed Tuesday.
The Korean tech giant's DRAM market share stood at 46.1 percent in the July-September period, the highest since the second quarter of 2017, according to market tracker DRAMeXchange.
Samsung's third-quarter revenue increased by 5 percent from the previous quarter to $7.1 billion with strong demand from Chinese smartphone vendors and server clients, DRAMeXchange said.
Its smaller rival SK hynix Inc. came next with a 28.6 percent share in the third quarter, with its revenue rising 3.5 percent on-quarter to $4.4 billion, it noted.
The combined DRAM market share by the two Korean chipmakers reached 74.7 percent in the third quarter.
The overall DRAM revenue ended a streak of three consecutive quarterly declines to rebound in the July-September period as demand gradually picked up and some vendors increased shipments to avoid potential negative impacts from impending tariffs by the United States, it noted.
DRAMeXchange said major DRAM manufacturers are expected to increase their shipments in the fourth quarter, driven by demands from the server and smartphone markets. (Yonhap)


text:
It is the Dawn of a New Week as the World was witness to #CES2018 and as we saw continued evolution. As a new Week dawns, Please Enjoy courtesy of the team at @Futurism ; Abundance360!!!
What it is: By the end of January 2018, 125 Walmart locations will feature "Scan & Go" technology, which enables shoppers to scan items and pay for their purchases directly from their phones while in-store. Upon departure from the store, shoppers simply present a digital receipt to a greeter.
Why it's important: This technology digitizes and dematerializes shopping lines, human cashiers and cash registers. Considering grocery chain Kroger's "Scan, Bag, Go" technology, which will be rolled out to 400 stores this year, and Amazon's Go concept store, we're rapidly heading toward an era of all-digital shopping transactions.
What it is: The Hyundai Nexo, introduced this week at CES, is a hydrogen fuel cell vehicle armed with an array of driver assistance technologies. Its Highway Driving Assistant, for example, keeps the vehicle centered in its lane at high speeds even when roads are completely empty. The car has a range of 370 miles, and just takes 5 minutes to refuel at a hydrogen filling station.
Why it's important: Hyundai plans to release 18 eco-friendly models globally by 2025 -- a great way to gather data on consumer preferences as attitudes toward internal combustion engines change. Will the SUV styling of the Nexo help Hyundai beat out rival hydrogen models from Toyota, Honda and Mercedes-Benz?
|An AI May Write Your Next Favorite Novel|


text:
AU Shares Fall $45bn Due to Greek Debt Crisis
The Australian financial market is in chaos as investors react to the possibility of Greece defaulting on its debt. Today the S&P/ASX200 index closed at a low 156.2 points, or 3.7 per cent, to 4038.5. The All Ordinaries index was 152.3 points, or 3.56 per cent, lower at 4125.1. This is its second-worst one-day fall since the end of the global financial crisis two years ago.
In early trade overnight, European exchanges dropped further, driven by fears that major French banks would be downgraded by Moody's this week because of their exposure to Greek sovereign bonds.
Yesterday, the dollar fell to US3c to a one-month low of $US 1.03, leading local stocks down as well.
This downward slide started off on Friday, when US and European stocks began fallingdue to fears over both the Greek debt crisis and the resignation of the European Central Bank economist, Juergen Stark. The DOW Jones dropped 3 per cent to under 11,000 points and the London FTSE 100 fell 2.35 per cent.
There was more bad news yesterday for global economic growth as the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) released data that predicts a slowing in economic activity in most developed countries.
SEE TOP STORIES IN THE WDM CONTENT NETWORK!
The worst performing stock in the ASX 100 was Cochlear Ltd, which plunged 20.3 per cent, or by $14.68 to $57.50, after it announced it is recalling its latest hearing implant the Nucleus CI 512.
Financials fell 3.9 per cent as all major retail banks suffered. Westpac shed the most value of the big four, closing 93 cents or 4.6 per cent down to $19.20.
Major miners dropped on the back of lower offshore commodity prices, with BHP Billiton ending the day $1.46, or 3.9 per cent down to $36.45. Fellow miner Rio Tinto closed $3.05 or 4.3 per cent down at $68.20.
Gold stocks were among the few that gained on the day, with AngloGold Ashanti rising 6.38 per cent to $9.17 and Newcrest Mining rising above the top 20 to maintain $39.80 and losing only .2 per cent.
Timeline: India takes unicorn leap with six in five days
We chart an historic week in India’s tech industry, where in just five days, between 5-9 April 2021, the country achieved six new unicorns, bringing India’s total to 10 in 2021 to date, an immense unicorn leap from just seven in 2020 and six in 2019.
April 5: Meesho
India’s first social commerce unicorn, Meesho raised US$300m from SoftBank, Facebook and Shunwei Capital, giving the Bangalore-based startup a US$2.1bn valuation, a threefold jump from its previous funding round in 2019. Founded in 2015 by two IIT-Delhi graduates, Meesho connects producers and resellers, helping small businesses sell through social media. It has 45m customers and has enabled 13m entrepreneurs to start their online businesses with no investment.
April 6: CRED
Founded just over two years ago, Bangalore-based credit card repayment app CRED raised US$215m from Falcon Edge Capital and Coatue, nearly trebling its valuation to US$2.2bn from its January US$80m round. Allowing customers to pay off their credit card debt while earning CRED coins which they cash in for rewards, CRED has grown rapidly during COVID-19, doubling its customer base to nearly 6 million in a year.
April 7: API Holdings / Groww
The first epharmacy startup to gain unicorn status, PharmEasy (API Holdings), which has digitised 60,000 brick and mortar pharmacies and 400 doctors across India, raised US$350m in a round led by Prosus Ventures. Founded by four former Flipkart employees as a way of making investing simple, investment platform Groww became India’s second-youngest fintech unicorn, raising US$83m in Series D funding led by Tiger Global, quadrupling its previous round in September.
April 8: ShareChat
New Delhi-grown social media startup ShareChat, founded in 2016 by Mohalla Tech raised US$502m from Lightspeed Ventures, Tiger Global, Twitter and Snap taking its raised total over six rounds to US$766m and pushing its valuation to US$2.1bn. The funding will be used to grow its user base and short video platform Moj, which launched in 2020 following TikTok’s ban in India. The regional language startup claims 280m users.
April 9: Gupshup
AI-led conversational message startup joined the unicorn club after raising US$100m from Tiger Global giving it a ten-fold valuation of US$1.4bn. The smart messaging platform, which has seen accelerated growth during the pandemic, was founded in Bangalore in 2005 by serial entrepreneur Beerud Sheth, whose online freelancing platform Elance is now listed. Gupshup’s API enables 100,000+ businesses to build messaging and conversation experiences across 30+ communication channels.


text:
Paytm becomes a strong force in online travel industry
Registering a whopping sale of 38mn travel tickets this year, Digital wallet company Paytm is reported to have recorded 3x growth in this financial year when compared to last year. In less than two years since its inception, Paytm has registered a colossal growth in ticket bookings. It claims to be IRCTC’s largest re-seller of train tickets, the second largest source for bus tickets, and ranks among the top three in flight tickets. As per company’s reports, more than 85% of all travel bookings are done through the app and its travel services are vastly accepted across the metros, mini metros and cities like Jaipur, Indore, Vizag, Lucknow etc.
The leap in ticket sales through Paytm is attributed to the wallet’s services like free cancellation which starts at very low rates. The charges are as low as Rs 49 for flights, Rs 3 for Bus, zero processing fees on cancellation of flight tickets and instant refunds among others. Paytm plans to boost the ticket sales in flight, bus and train ticket categories, and aims at 2x growth in ticketing volumes by end of next financial year. The company is going forward with a target of becoming the best in online travel booking space.
“We are excited about the overwhelming response received over the past year. We believe our focus on solving customer needs and creating disruptive product experiences has played a crucial role in offering the confidence to book their travel online. This year, we plan to double our tech team as we continue to focus on building experiences that travellers love,” said Abhishek Rajan, Vice-President, Paytm.
Paytm has already achieved 1 Bn transactions per quarter, registering a four-fold jump in its annualised gross transaction value (GTV) to $20 bn in March 2018. According to reports, the country’s travel market is expected to touch $48 bn by 2020. Also 40% to 50% of total transactions will be done online by 2020.


text:
Looking back over the past two years, Alipay, a unit of China’s Alibaba Group, Ant Financial, has consistently held more than half of the global mobile payment market. Ant Financial’s future valuation is now in the spotlight due to the delay in listing.
On November 2, Ant Financial Group, which had just priced its shares and was about to go public in China’s A-share technology market, faced the last hurdle before going public. China’s Shanghai Stock Exchange has suspended the listing of Ant Financial Group due to joint supervision of the relevant authorities and changes in the fintech environment the company reported to be in, which may cause the company to fail to meet listing conditions or disclosure requirements.
Subsequently, Ant Financial Group stated that the simultaneous listing of H shares in Hong Kong would also be suspended. News of ant Financial’s IPO setback sent Alibaba’s U.S. stock price down 8.13% on Wednesday. Shares of Alibaba fell 7.5% in Hong Kong on Thursday, while U.S. stocks rose 1.6%.
Over the past decade, Ant Financial Group has changed the way Chinese people deal with money, the New York Times reported on its website Thursday. The company’s app, Alipay, has become an essential payment tool for more than 730 million users, as well as a platform for obtaining small loans and buying insurance and investment products. .
The New York Times reported that the China Banking Regulatory Commission (CIRC) on Monday released draft rules for the regulation of online small loans, which include higher capital requirements for loans and tighter controls on lending across provinces. The Shanghai Stock Exchange’s decision to suspend ant’s listing also noted that changes in the fintech regulatory environment could have a significant impact on Ant Financial.
Chinese regulators have instructed Ant Financial Group not to go public until it meets the new capital requirements and other restrictions imposed on Chinese financial groups earlier this month, Bloomberg reported on Thursday. People familiar with the matter said Ant Financial would have to make changes, including a capital increase in its lucrative micro-lending unit, the report said. It is unclear how far Ant Financial will overhaul its operations to meet all of China’s new rules.
Claims to be the strongest in the history, the world’s largest IPO this year in the name of the Ant Financial Group, listed by press “pause” moment has caused universal attention, after all, the ant gold service group at the listed price, many investors to participate in the preliminary inquiry, the suspension of listing is not just about Ant Financial Group, also involves the vital interests of the millions of people.
Investors are widely concerned about the impact of Ant Financial suspension on foundations that plan to participate in strategic placements. In response to the relevant questions on ant Group’s suspension of listing, the customer service of Alipay said that due to ant Group’s suspension of listing plan in A+H, the part of the fund that originally planned to participate in the strategic investment in ant’s listing was also suspended accordingly.
Ant Financial Group has invested in more than a dozen fintech companies around the world that offer electronic wallet services. Electronic wallets allow users to store money and make digital payments without relying on bank accounts.
The reason for the joint supervision of Ant Financial Services Group is related to its financial attributes — although ant listed on the technology board, credit accounts for a very high percentage of its main business income, and analysts estimate that ant charges an average interest share of 30-40 percent on the loans it provides.
Ant Financial is co-regulated because of its financial nature, which inevitably brings to mind its “history of development”. Ant, who made his fortune in finance, is often discussed without its mobile payment platform with a total user of over 1 billion — Alipay. As the most concrete application tool of Ant Financial, Alipay is in the process of promoting the great reform of China’s financial infrastructure. Aipay has played an important role in promoting the great transformation of China’s financial infrastructure. It has eliminated cash and bank CARDS, and changed the financial habits of ordinary people to some extent.
The IPO of Ant Financial Group has been put on hold. According to 21st Century Business Herald, some investment bankers pointed out that ant Group is under joint supervision during the ipo period, and it is a major event after the ipo, so it should be required to make supplementary disclosure. After the supplementary disclosure, it can be listed again.
Reuters said the market view is that Ant Group’s relisting is expected to be delayed by about half a year after it was halted by the Shanghai Stock Exchange.
A spokesman for the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) said ant group’s decision to suspend the listing was made by the Shanghai Stock Exchange in accordance with the law and regulations.
In response to ant Financial’s suspension of listing, the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) decided to suspend ant Financial’s listing in line with the principle of protecting the legitimate rights and interests of investors, fully disclosing information transparently and accurately, and earnestly safeguarding the fairness and justice of the market. The Shanghai Securities Exchange of China (SSE) decided to suspend Ant Financial’s listing in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Registration Management Measures of the Science Innovation Board.
Ant Financial Group has pressed the “pause” button before going public. Many media outlets believe that China’s move is aimed at strengthening supervision and regulation to control financial risks and effectively safeguard the healthy and stable development of the financial market.


text:
The Walt Disney Co. has canceled plans to build a 700-room luxury hotel near its Anaheim resort, citing the city’s elimination of a tax rebate agreement that would have saved the media giant $267 million over 20 years.
The cancellation of the hotel — what would have been the fourth at the resort — highlights growing tensions between the Burbank company and the city of Anaheim, once considered a reliable business partner for Disney.
“While this is disappointing for many, the conditions and agreements that stimulated this investment in Anaheim no longer exist and we must therefore adjust our long-term investment strategy,” Disney spokeswoman Lisa Haines said.
The conditions changed in August when the city notified Disney representatives that it was killing an agreement made last year to rebate 70% of the hotel’s transient occupancy tax back to Disney over 20 years — worth about $267 million. The transient occupancy tax is 15% of the overnight rate.
Anaheim officials say Disney was to blame for ending the agreement by changing the location of the proposed hotel after the deal was struck and the economic impact studies were completed.
Disney objected, saying the new location — in the resort shopping district — was only about 1,000 feet from the old one. Disney representatives say they have not decided what to do with the site of the proposed hotel, where several restaurants and shops were closed to make way for the project.
Business leaders and others in Anaheim lamented Disney’s change of plans, saying it will mean the city will lose out on adding hundreds of construction and hospitality jobs and much-needed tax revenues.
“This unfortunate outcome underscores just how important it is for the business community to have good city partners who understand economic development and the consequences of bad public policy,” said Lucy Dunn, president and chief executive of the Orange County Business Council, a business advocacy group.
Mayor Pro Tem Jose Moreno, who has been critical of tax breaks for Disney, said the city had no choice but to end the tax incentive deal for the hotel project when the location changed. He noted that Disney had the opportunity to reapply for the subsidy deal but did not.
Moreno acknowledged that the city has changed its attitude toward Disney and is now asking for more in return for tax benefits to pay for programs that benefit city residents.
“When people say we have changed our posture, we have,” he said. “We are now saying, ‘What about our kids?’”
Councilwoman Kris Murray, who supported the tax break for the Disney hotel, said Anaheim will take a big financial hit from the loss of the luxury hotel and she wants the city to repair its relationship with its biggest employer.
“We need to figure out a way to have a constructive partnership,” she said.
Hotel construction has been strong in California as companies try to take advantage of strong demand for leisure travel.
In Orange County alone, three hotels with 445 rooms opened in the first half of 2018, with nine hotels under construction and another 63 hotel projects in various stages of planning, according to a report by Atlas Hospitality Group. Of the 2,400 hotel rooms being built in Orange County, nearly 1,800 are in Anaheim.
“2017 was a record-breaking year for California hotel development, and as we predicted, 2018 is on pace to eclipse it,” the report said.


text:
In a new post on the Google Drive blog on Monday, the company announced that all the photos and videos on Google+ will now also be available in Google Drive.
The blog categorically states that Drive for Android, iOS and Web will have a new photos menu. What this essentially means is that users will now be able to manage any type of file directly from Drive. This is extremely beneficial in specific use cases like say for example wedding planning, where one can add pictures of wedding venues and cakes, along with a document of the guest list.
Interestingly, Google+ will continue to allow users to store, edit and share pictures.Google also states that new photos on Google+ will be immediately visible on Google Drive whereas it might take a few weeks for the entire library to show up. Similarly, all the automatic camera backups from the smartphone can now be directed to Google Drive.
This entire move could be an indication that Google has started to divide Google+ into Photos and Streams, as announced earlier this month. Bradley Horowitz, Vice President of Product Management, was said to be in charge of steering this particular ship for the search engine giant.
Google’s attempt to take on Facebook with Google+ hasn’t been successful and the split could be a good move forward for the beleaguered social networking website. However, we are still unsure what Google’s plan is with Streams.


text:
Universitas Gadjah Mada (UGM) released the G7 inbred rice variety named Gamagora 7 to the public after obtaining a decree from the Minister of Agriculture on March 28.
In the decree, Gamagora 7 rice is deemed capable of increasing rice production and is considered a superior variety with a potentially essential role in improving food security. This new variety has high production yields, is resistant to leafhoppers and diseases, and can be planted in paddy fields and rainfed areas.
Research team members Dr. Taryono and Dr. Supriyanta were grateful for the minister’s approval. Their long wait since 2006 has finally come to an end after years of research on rice that can withstand dry and paddy fields.
“We are thrilled. This indicates that our work has paid off,” said Taryono on Thursday (30/3).
He said Gamagora is short for Gama Gogo Rancah. Four people initially researched it, but the team grew to ten people during the process.
“Initially, we planted (the new variety) in the faculty garden. Then, we did multilocation tests at the UGM Center for Agrotechnology Innovation and in various places,” he said.
According to Taryono, UGM has released two rice varieties before Gamagora 7. This rice is the third variety from UGM. It came from radiation mutants of the parent rice, Rajalele, famous for its fluffiness.
This rice is also called “amphibious” rice because it can deal with the decline in rice production in Indonesia due to climate change and the impact of the conversion of paddy fields to non-rice fields, which reaches 96,512 hectares per year. It has a production potential of 9.80 tons per hectare, an average yield of approximately 7.95 tons per hectare, and a harvest age of about 119 days after sowing.
Multilocation testing was conducted in 14 locations across Indonesia, eight in paddy fields and six in rainfed fields. The Ministry of Agriculture requires this testing to grant distribution and release permits for new varieties.
As stated in the decree signed by the Director General of Food Crops, Ministry of Agriculture, Suwandi, Gamagora 7 rice has resistance to brown planthopper biotype 2 and bacterial leaf blight pathotype III, blast disease race 033, race 073, and race 133 and is suitable for paddy fields and rainfed soils.
Author: Gusti Grehenson