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By Harry McCracken | Friday, January 20, 2012 at 4:22 pm
Okay, it looks like Google really is serious about its oft-stated plans to focus on fewer services and do them better. (Also known as “more wood behind fewer arrows.”) It’s announced that it’s shuttering even more offerings, and one of them is Picnik, the excellent online photo editor which it bought in 2010.
The closure isn’t abrupt or catastrophic. Google is giving Picnik users plenty of warning–the service isn’t going away until April 19th–and they’ll be able to download their photos. But unlike some of Google’s shutdowns, closing Picnik isn’t a tacit acknowledgment that a service never found an audience. (I never heard of Google’s Gmail Message Continuity and Social Graph API until the company said they were going away.) Picnik is popular, and it’s good, and the world will be a sadder place place without it–at least for folks who already know and love it.
Why is it going away? That’s not entirely clear. Google’s blog post says it’s so “the Picnik team can continue creating photo-editing magic across Google products. ” But when you go to Picnik, you get a message that “Picnik is moving its easy yet powerful photo editing tools to Google+,” which is a slightly different message. In either case, though, it sounds like Google thinks that photo editing is less of a destination, which is what Picnik was, and more of a feature.
It’s also worth noting that Picnik was Flash-based. This is just guesswork on my part, but it likely hastened the service’s demise. It certainly made it harder to integrate its features with other Google services, and probably even reduced Google’s enthusiasm for pointing to Picnik from elsewhere on Google
If Picnik had lived, it would surely have required a rewrite to become a pure HTML5 service, which would have been a major undertaking. I imagine that Google is busily working on improving its HTML5 graphics tools, and decided it wasn’t worth it to try and roll them into an all-new version of Picnik.
In fact, it’s pretty clear that Google circa 2012 is generally less interested in managing a bunch of destinations, and more interested in beefing up Google+. It wants to give you every possible incentive to join and use its social network. In the future, I imagine, many new Google things that would have been independent services in the past will instead be launched as Google+ additions.
Side note: When I tried to visit Picnik on my iPad just now, I got the following message. You might want to update it, Google.


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The Facebook integration into iOS 6 among other iPhone apps in the App Store will have the sharing option. In addition, the integration is very much similar to Twitter in iOS 5, according to 9to5Mac sources. Facebook will at various locations in iOS 6, ie: sharing a lot of pictures at once.
The integration’s biggest presence will be in the iOS photo application. Like you are able to send photos to Twitter from the Photos application, you will be able to post photos to Facebook. A single sign-on section for all Facebook connected applications is present in the iOS 6 system settings application.
Like with Twitter, a new “social sheet,” as some people familiar with the matter call it, will appear for an accompanying status message.
Apple will at every app in the App Store a like button-up, where users can express when they see an interesting application. The apps that you provide a like are then sent to your timeline, so your friends can see this also. The App Store in iTunes on your PC or Mac has been a while something similar: you can share an app on Facebook or Twitter, by clicking the arrow next to the download button. This shared apps are not of a like equipped.
Like Twitter, users can login to Facebook from the settings screen of the iPhone. This you do not even agree with Facebook to login if an app asks for this. In theory you would not go to the Facebook app will be sent to login.
9to5Mac cites the Facebook integration in iOS 6 similar to Twitter in iOS 5. Techcrunch comparing Twitter integration week, but, making a side note: because Facebook works with more permissions, the process behind placing a message from IOS a lot more complex. Both sources are based on sources: we know probably until after WWDC, which will offer iOS 6. Tim Cook suggested during an interview at the All Things D conference that there are big plans with Facebook.

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Marketing campaign aims to increase limited awareness of vegetable’s vitamin B content as people’s diet suffers during cost-of-living crisis
The Mushroom Bureau has launched a new campaign to market the vegetable as this summer’s energy-boosting ‘super food’.
New research released by the trade body reveals that 39 per cent of UK adults have felt the effects of the cost-of-living crisis on their diet. And that figure rises to 48 per cent among 18-24-year-olds.
Some 38 per cent of UK adults say they sometimes lack energy in the summer months, however 76 per cent are unaware that mushrooms contain energy-boosting B vitamins that can help combat sluggishness by converting food into energy.
In addition, the vegetable is low in calories and high in fibre.
According to the survey, the cost-of-living crisis has forced 58 per cent of Brits to re-evaluate their weekly shopping habits, while 30 per cent say they no longer buy vitamin supplements for the same reason.
Surprisingly, only 16 per cent of Brits have tried new foods to help boost their energy levels, but The Mushroom Bureau hopes to change that. The move follows other recent campaigns, conducted by promotional body UK & Ireland Mushroom Producers, to raise awareness of the product’s vitamin D content.
“The mighty mushroom provides a healthy and low-cost way to make meals go further and get a much-needed health boost during longer daylight hours,” the bureau said.
As part of the campaign, TV cook Juliet Sear has created a Mushroom Menu of four easy recipes that are ideal for summer BBQs and family get-togethers.
The TV personality uses a variety of everyday mushrooms, including chestnut, closed cup, portobello and white – all of which are readily accessible from supermarkets nationwide. And she employs techniques such as ‘The Blend’, a rising trend for replacing beef mince with finely diced mushrooms.
The four recipes are as follows:
- A colourful summer mushroom salad, made with raw button mushrooms
- A mushroom flatbread, made from portobello mushrooms
- Blended mushroom burgers, made using The Blend technique to replace half of the beef mince with finely chopped mushrooms
- Mushroom kebabs, made with a mix of button, chestnut and portobello mushrooms
Sear said: “You can bring a lot of life and energy to your meals this summer with mushrooms, and my brand-new recipes aim to surprise and delight the nation into mixing up their usual summer repertoire with a healthy, delicious, and easy-to-achieve variety of dishes.”


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May 28, 2013
A year ago, you couldn’t buy liquor at grocery stores in Washington. Now you can, but you probably pay more for it.
June 1 will mark the one-year anniversary of the state’s departure from the liquor business, when it turned sales over to private retailers such as Costco Wholesale and Safeway. The conversion happened at the behest of voters, who approved a Costco-written initiative in the fall of 2011.
Back then, only 329 stores — all state-run or contracted with the state — sold liquor in Washington.
Now more than 1,400 retailers sell slightly more liquor than the state used to — an average of 2.7 million liters a month since privatization, compared with 2.5 million before.
Prices spiked sharply last summer, but the rate of increase has steadily declined. In March, prices were 7 percent higher year-over-year, according to the Washington State Department of Revenue.
Additional repercussions from Washington’s conversion include hundreds of former Liquor Control Board workers still collecting unemployment benefits, shoplifting concerns among law-enforcement authorities and possibly more liberal attitudes about alcohol among youth.
A key concern in privatization efforts, particularly in an earlier attempt turned down in 2010, was the amount of revenue the government would collect after the change. And so far it’s been a pretty good deal for the state.
The state Economic and Revenue Forecast Council projects that spirits taxes and fees will generate $425 million in revenue for fiscal 2013, which ends June 30. About $392 million has been collected already, more than the $309 million the liquor business generated for the state and local governments in fiscal 2011.
Legal challenges have dogged implementation, as they do many voter initiatives.
One change resulting from the litigation involved the Liquor Board’s interpretation of a provision that allowed retailers to sell only 24 liters of liquor and wine in a “single sale” to bars and restaurants. The Liquor Board decided that meant 24 liters a day, but retailers fought and won the right to buy 24 liters per transaction, with no time limit.
That puts many locally owned grocery chains at an even greater disadvantage, said Jan Gee, president of the Washington Food Industry Association, which represents most grocers, except national chains.
High prices are probably the most divisive issue in the new liquor system.
Large retailers, who wrote and financially backed the voter initiative, blame distributors, who fought the measure and lost.
“Distributors are taking a huge margin in the middle,” Joe Gilliam, president of the Northwest Grocery Association, said, citing what he estimates as a 30 percent markup.
“Over time there will be competition, and distillers will complain,” said Gilliam, whose organization counts Costco, Safeway and other big grocers among its members.
The distributors disagree.
“My understanding is that (distributors’) margins in Washington are as low as anywhere in the country, and suppliers are not very happy about it,” said John Guadnola, executive director of the Washington Spirits & Wine Distributors Association.
And distillers do not appear willing to step in.
“You started off with the highest level of taxation in the country and to that added two new fees,” said David Osgo, chief economist for the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States.
The voter initiatives included those new fees — assessed on retailers and distributors — to ensure the state nets as much money as it used to from the liquor business.
The retailer fee is 17 percent. The distributors pay 10 percent for the first two years they do business in Washington, then the amount drops to 5 percent. For most, fees will drop in the spring of 2014.
On top of that, the voter measure required distributors to have collectively paid at least $150 million in fees by March 2013. They were expected to miss that target all along, and the Liquor Board recently sent letters telling them how much they owe.
Southern Wine & Spirits, which sold 57 percent of the liquor in Washington in 2012, owes $59.5 million, while Young’s Market, which sold 36 percent, owes $37.7 million. (The next largest distributor is Click Wholesale Distributing, with 2 percent.) All payments are due May 31.
No one is sure what will happen after distributors pay off the shortfall and see their fee drop to 5 percent next year.
David Trone, president of the Total Wine & More chain, says prices on a lot of popular items are lower, particularly at discounters such as his company and Costco.
He has a list of 50 popular products, most in the 1.75-liter category, that Total Wine’s analysis shows are $5.72 cheaper on average than state store prices.
For example, a 1.75-liter bottle of Absolut vodka at Total Wine in early April cost $40.33, including taxes, compared with $47.95 at state stores just before they closed last year, the chain says.
A comprehensive comparison of pricing is not available because the state, with its exit from the liquor business, no longer tracks individual brands.
Net job gain
Trone also touts job creation, saying his four stores alone have hired 200 people.
Southern Wine and Young’s Market have added more than 1,000 jobs to handle the new business, some at Southern’s new 350,000-square-foot distribution facility in Puyallup.
That would offset the 902 Liquor Control Board jobs lost because of privatization. The layoffs included people who worked at the state’s liquor-distribution center in Seattle, which is being bought by Panattoni Development Co. for $23.4 million in a sale expected to close in July.
Many of the laid-off employees are still out of work. In April, 458 claimed at least one week of unemployment benefits, according to the Washington Employment Security Department.
One worker who did find a job is Pat McLaughlin, the Liquor Board’s former head of business enterprise, who also oversaw the sale of the state’s liquor stores before losing his own job.
“I consider myself blessed that my transition was surely easier than most,” said McLaughlin, who now runs the solid-waste division of King County’s Department of Natural Resources and Parks.
He still lives in Olympia and takes the Sounder from Lakewood to Seattle for work.
Concerns about crime
A concern among opponents of liquor privatization was the notion that it would make access to booze easier for minors.
The Liquor Board monitors that with store-by-store stings to see if retailers are selling to minors, and the numbers have not changed much.
Typically, 5 to 6 percent of stores under the state-run system were found to have sold to minors. Under private retailers, the range since last June is 5 to 10 percent.
It may be that youth-alcohol consumption hasn’t changed much, but a survey last fall showed changing attitudes among Washington state youth.
“Significantly fewer students in eighth, 10th and 12th grades believe their peers think it’s ‘very wrong’ for someone their age to drink alcohol,” said Julia Dilley, an epidemiologist who also teaches at the University of Washington.
That attitude change is an early warning signal, said Dilley, who received a grant from a program of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation to study how privatization changes consumption patterns.
She also plans to study whether changes in consumption are associated with more alcohol-related consequences, such as hospitalizations, crime and traffic accidents.
Already, the Washington Traffic Safety Commission has found that the number of fatal crashes involving a drunken driver in the second half of 2012 — 53 — was lower than the same six months in the previous five years.
One crime that seems to have risen is shoplifting, possibly because retailers are not as careful about security as the state was.
“Some (police) chiefs and sheriffs have noted an increase in shoplifting related to spirits,” said Mitch Barker, executive director of the Washington Association of Sheriffs & Police Chiefs. “There’s no question organized crime is involved. Groups are taking large amounts and selling it on the black market.”
Evidence so far is anecdotal, but state Rep. Christopher Hurst, D-Enumclaw, has asked retailers to share information about which stores are experiencing liquor losses and how much.
He expects to consider those data soon as part of a working group of the House Government Oversight and Accountability Committee, which he chairs and which has jurisdiction over liquor.
Hurst is responding to Washington cities, which reported they do not have the resources to litigate all the spirits-shoplifting cases they are getting.
“It’s a lot bigger problem than people expected,” Hurst said.
Source: Seattle Times


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JJSF's earnings jump propels stock spike
A dramatic increase in fourth-quarter earnings drove up shares of J&J Snack Foods Corp. by 3 percent last week to a Friday close of $88.10 per share.
The company, which produces baked goods such as soft pretzels and frozen juice bars and ices, released financial information Tuesday noting net sales increased 6 percent for the quarter. Net earnings increased by 22 percent to $12.4 million, translating into earnings per share of 66 cents, a record for the company, up from 54 cents a share a year ago.
Cash and investment securities grew $8.3 million in the quarter to $215.6 million. In trading during the week, shares surged to above $90 per share.
A cash dividend of $32 a share, double the prior rate, was declared and paid on Jan. 7.
In the intervening year, J&J Snack Foods acquired the assets of New York Pretzel in Brooklyn, N.Y. The company did not disclose the purchase price.
In addition to SuperPretzel, J&J Snack Foods makes products under the brands Icee, SlushPuppie and Whole Fruit.
The company's MIA Products division, employing about 150 in the production of frozen novelties such as Italian ice and sorbets, is based in Moosic.


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A piece from OPower looked into this and found some surprising facts 다운로드. The first is that the iPhone 5 only uses $0.41/year of energy, and the second is a look at the post-PC era.
It turns out that smartphones and tablets are ultra-energy efficient compared to traditional consumer electronics – “A day spent web-surfing on a smartphone is a much more energy-efficient than doing the same on a traditional computer.”
Reuters has put up an interesting piece – calling the iPhone 5 the product of Tim Cook 다운로드. Citing the Apple Maps rollout and possible blunder중국 지도 다운로드. “The speed of the global launch that astounded” analysts by getting millions of phones into stores with supply chain perfection. And most importantly for fanboys, his role in the Keynotes where he appears at the end and beginning with brief messages 다운로드.
It’s the new Apple under Tim Cook and he is molding the company that Steve built – into his own image – again from Reuters:
He has introduced a dividend to pay out part of the more than $100 billion cash stockpile, raised salaries for a rabidly loyal but low-paid workforce in the Apple stories, and sped up product rollouts and...그리고.
Not to mention opening up Apple to charities – by offering a matching gift program컴퓨터 절전모드 다운로드. These are things Steve never would have done, but the world seems okay with that. Shoppers are eagerly buying the iPhone 5, traders are buying Apple stock – it’s still going up – and the company is still growing 신생아 백색소음 mp3 다운로드.
The only remaining question is can Tim Cook come out with a new product. So far he has only improved and continued the existing line. And that is always a company’s biggest challenge 다운로드.
One thing is for certain about the upcoming Amazon event on September 6, 2012 – prices will be dropped 롤 북미서버. Maybe not on all devices, but the company will want to keep pushing that price advantage. There are millions to be made in the e-reader market.
The announcement all but confirms that Amazon will debut new tablet devices next week, with its founder and CEO Jeff Bezos noting that the company will “offer our customers the best hardware, the best prices, the best customer service, the best cross-platform interoperability, and the best content ecosystem.”
With a new tablet coming out and lower prices, I expect Amazon to change the game (again) 교육과정. But, we’ll have to wait until next to week to see what that means.
The full heat of summer is here and I’m drowning in tomatoes. I’ve been searching for new ways to use my bounty, beyond the basics of salsa, marinara sauce, and jarring for winter stores icube erp download.
Mozzarella is one of the easiest cheeses to make, it only takes 30 minutes and the taste can’t be beat 다운로드!
The ingredients are simple although a couple of them you may have to search a bit for, but the end result is worth it–especially when you can say “I made it myself!”
All the recipe calls for is 1 gallon of milk and tiny amounts of citric acid, rennet tablet, and cheese salt (though one recipe said you can skip the salt) 다운로드. Extremely simple and cheap ($2.50) when it comes to making cheese and when combined with tomatoes and basil becomes:
Insalata Caprese (salad in the style of Capri) is a simple salad from the Italian region of Campania, made of sliced fresh buffalo mozzarella, tomatoes and basil, seasoned with salt, and olive oil ntoskrnl exe. – Wikipedia
Now off to find those interesting ingredients 다운로드!
Today may very well live in infamy as the day the cable companies died. Internet giant Google announced its new, groundbreaking Google Fiber, a broadband service that will bring breakneck 1Gbps internet speed to Kansas City — service far faster and far cheaper than that offered by traditional cable companies 박효신 야생화.
How fast is Google’s 1Gbps service? Competitor Comcast recently announced it would launch 305Mbps speed service to much of the Northeast at a cost of $299.95 per month…at 1,000 Mbps, Google Fiber cost of just $70 per month 다운로드.
Google Fiber allows you to combine your cable TV and internet service into one product, for just $120 per month. Getting service to your house will require you pay a $300 service initiation fee — a fee that’s waved if you agree to keep Google Fiber service for a minimum of two years 다운로드.
And the remote control for your Google Fiber TV service? It’s a Nexus 7 tablet.
If you’re looking for a lower priced internet option, Google Fiber has you covered there, too 아기 상어 mp3 다운로드. Anyone who pays the $300 connection fee can opt to receive 5Mbps service for free for seven years. That’s an unheard of bargain — you can essentially buy seven years’ worth of internet service for just $3.57 a month 다운로드.
Verizon Wireless today announced the addition of Share Everything plans. They’re essentially family plans, allowing you, mom, dad, and big or little brother or sister to share from a pool of unlimited voice minutes and text messages, plus a specified amount of data 모노그램 자각몽. The service also offers a free mobile HotSpot service to any device on the plan. Share Everything plans support up to ten phones.
This is good news for Verizon, who has been struggling to find common ground with customers on data pricing 코만도스 1 다운로드.
“Customers asked, and today Verizon Wireless delivered an industry first,” said Tami Erwin, VP and CMO for Verizon Wireless. “Share Everything Plans are the new standard for wireless service 다운로드. They are simple; customers no longer have to think about their voice and message plans, because both are unlimited.”
The plans are available June 28, and you can feel free to learn more here다운로드.
Flickr’s “liquid” design adjusts the photo page and image size based on the size of your browser window 영화 어메이징 스파이더맨2 다운로드. With that your photos will look great on a laptop screen, and look even more stunning on larger screens. With the new design:
The biggest photo size is shown depending on your browser window
There is absolutely no “upscaling”, and we try to avoid downsampling as much as possible 다운로드.
The title and the sidebar are visible without scrolling on landscape oriented photos. (which are the vast majority of photos on Flickr.)
Web developers, take note: Flickr’s new layout isn’t just eye-catching, it’s also somewhat responsively designed — adjusting to the myriad screens on the web today and displaying the best photo possible without clogging your tubes with huge photo downloads fusion 360. Flickr does stop short of scaling pages down to phone-size screens — for which there is a separate mobile website — but it resizes nicely to handle tablets 다운로드.
That’s right, Flickr is the latest (and perhaps the largest) website to embrace not just a mostly responsive design with a liquid layout and media queries, but also a responsive approach to images 다운로드.
Are we seeing a new development in design, the – “take into account the iPad” ?
There is a booming market for apps that allow you to read while offline. The two most popular of these apps, Instapaper and Pocket, let you save an article for later like on an airplane or in your underground nuclear bunker 스타 w런처 다운로드.
Now, Amazon is entering the game by offering the same service for the Kindle. A new app for Mac and PC allows you to “Send to Kindle” and then read on your e-reader or on a smartphone/tablet 다운로드.
I think this gives the Kindle an edge in two big ways 다운로드. One, most of us are likely to carry our Kindle with us when going into non-internet zones. That’s why we bring it, to pass away those long hours with books, but now we may be able to do so with articles and blog posts as well 다운로드.
Two, we all know reading on an e-reader is preferable than doing so on the backlit displays of smartphones and tablets.
It will be interesting to see how this Kindle competition affects the market 다운로드. I always thought that Instapaper and Pocket had a niche market. They must be scared to see the 10-ton behemoth, Amazon, entering the fray.


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|| Print ||
|Articles - August 2011|
|Wednesday, July 20, 2011|
By Linda Baker
Every year, the Interbike trade show in Las Vegas sponsors a seminar about the female bike consumer. “It’s always the same material — how women have the buying power in the U.S.,” says Joan Martocello, a manager at Bike Gallery, a Portland bike store chain. “Then you go into bike shops and still see the girlie posters.” Even in cycle-friendly Portland, says Martocello, the male-dominated bike shop environment “is quite a bit intimidating for women.”
Over the past 10 years, the number of people who use bikes as transportation has increased dramatically in Portland and around the country, as well as Oregon college towns such as Eugene and Corvallis. Yet most of those new riders are men. Nationwide, only 24% of all riders are women; in Portland, it’s about 35%. There are no figures on the number of women riders in other Oregon cities.
The gender gap is even more pronounced in the bike retail and repair industry. There are about 60 bike shops in the Portland area, and only between six and 12 are owned or co-owned by women, estimates Elly Blue, co-founder of the Portland Society, a nonprofit that supports women in bike-friendly businesses. Just 19 of Bike Gallery’s 105 employees are women, and Martocello is the lone female store manager out of six. “Going to a bike shop is male territory,” says Martina Fahrner, co-owner of Clever Cycles, a shop that caters to family riders. “But owning a bike shop is even more male territory.”
Why so few women? The reasons run the gamut: an industry emphasis on high-performance sport bikes, lack of apprenticeship programs targeting female bike mechanics, and “sexual harassment that is not talked about,” says Tori Bortman, owner of Gracie’s Wrench, which offers bike repair and riding classes. “There is a culture in the bike industry that needs to shift before we see more women working in bike shops or owning their own business,” she says.
It’s a problem that goes beyond equity, as sparse numbers of female employees and employers translates into fewer products and services that might encourage more women to bike. For example, Fahrner says it can be difficult to find rain gear tailored for women or helmets that fit over long hair “without riding up.” The lack of female bike shop employees can also be a deterrent for women customers who are more comfortable interacting with female staff, she says.
Women have a better chance of encountering other women in select white-collar sectors of the bike industry such as transportation planning, a field that is about 50% female, says Mia Birk, principal of Alta Planning+Design, a Portland-based firm. Birk, who says she was “struck by the maleness” of last year’s Interbike, notes there is an “interesting disconnect” in the industry between people who are planning bike-friendly communities and the retailers and manufacturers actually selling the bikes. One exception, she notes, is Trek Bikes, a Wisconsin-based company with a strong women’s product division, headed by Heather Henderson.
Locally, the cooperatively owned Citybikes has a mission to maintain 50% female ownership, says part-owner Ashley Mitchell. And as Portland bicycle advocates ramp up initiatives to increase women ridership — part of the Bicycle Transportation Alliance’s new 10-year strategic plan — efforts to close the gender gap on the retail side may also emerge.
“If we can get more women-owned shops that are creating a look, feel and service that’s family- and women-friendly,” says Birk, “then that would be a huge asset to the utilitarian bike movement.”
|OHSU researchers work on AIDS vaccine|
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|The cable guy|
|Outside the box|
|Pope Francis is TIME's Person of the Year|
|UK says cure for dementia possible by 2025|
|Budget deal reached in Congress|
|Mars freshwater lake might have supported life|
|Uruguay to become first country to legalize marijuana|
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|Government spies snooped in video games|
Produced by the Oregon Business marketing department
When the Portland-based manufacturing company Glass Alchemy, Ltd. was first nominated for an Oregon State University Austin Family Business Excellence in Family Business award in 2004, husband-and-wife team Henry Grimmett and Susan Webb-Grimmett, were honored and optimistic about their chances of winning.
Some employers have embraced the use of employment arbitration agreements as a way to manage and mitigate the rising costs, risks and liabilities associated with employment-related claims. Historically, employment arbitration agreements require employees to present employment-related claims, such as employment discrimination, wrongful discharge, harassment, or claims for wages or compensation to an arbitrator, in lieu of proceeding to court.
Produced by the Oregon Business marketing department
Boly:Welch was founded in 1986 based on a close connection between Diane Boly and Pat Welch. The two had worked together at another recruitment firm and shared certain core values: passion for their work, a sense of humor, a commitment to their community and a desire to create a healthy, nurturing work environment.
The Oregon New Lawyers Division of the Oregon State Bar recognized two of Barran Liebman’s own at their Annual Meeting and Social on November 1.
Barran Liebman LLP is proud to announce that Iris Tilley has been named a partner with the firm. Iris has been with Barran Liebman since 2009 and is a member of the Employee Benefits practice group. She advises employers in all aspects of employee benefits, including ERISA, COBRA, HIPAA, retirement plans, compensation agreements, and health care reform.
Dunn Carney will host its annual Ag Summit on Jan. 10, 2014 at the Holiday Inn in Wilsonville, OR. We are very pleased to welcome Dr. Sherri Noxel, Director of the Austin Family Business Program at Oregon State University College of Business as our Keynote speaker.


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After its massive success in North America, Victoria’s Secret is coming to Singapore.
The company that sells sexy undergarments has just announced that their first store in Singapore will be located at Orchard Central shopping mall. This news comes after the store’s inaugural opening in Australia this spring.
This Bloomingdale’s-owned brand holds licensing agreements with companies around the world, but it is only in recent years that Victoria’s Secret has made its debut outside of North America.
They will be opening more stores in other countries, including Canada and the United Kingdom.
The company has been around since the early 1980s, and they have worked hard to build a brand that appeals to all kinds of women, not just the sexy lingerie models. This strategy seems to have paid off for them in places like Los Angeles, where they have two flagship stores, both located on Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills.
Wholesale sexy lingerie at affordable prices is what you’ll find when shopping at Victoria’s Secret Singapore.
The company has also promised that this store will be unlike any other one in the world, where customers can experience personalized service and an environment that is uniquely Singapore.
No further details have been released about pricing or what the store will offer in terms of products.
However, it is easy to see how this company has become so successful worldwide with its sexy lingerie and bathrobes for women. Customers can find everything they want in one place when shopping at https://www.ishopchangi.com/en/brand/victorias-secret.
For anyone who doesn’t know, Victoria’s Secret is a large company founded in the 1970s by Roy Raymond. At first, it was called Victoria’s Secret Boutique and only sold sexy undergarments to the public. The name has since been changed and now encompasses a range of products, including fragrances and beauty products for women.
It is unclear how many stores will eventually be opened in Singapore. However, it is known that Victoria’s Secret Singapore will open in June. Customers will be able to experience personalized service and an environment that is uniquely Singapore.
Victoria’s Secret at this time has released no further details about pricing or store offerings, but people can quickly see how the company has become so successful all over the world with its sexy lingerie and bathrobes for women.
Interestingly in Singapore, they say that customers can find everything they want in one place when shopping at Victoria’s Secret Singapore. All products for ladies
If you want to buy sexy lingerie, bathrobes for women, or any other things, then victoria secrets Singapore; customers are assured of quality products.
No further details about pricing or store offerings have been released by Victoria’s secret Singapore, but it is easy to see how the company has become so successful around the world with its sexy lingerie and bathrobes for women. hoping that you will enjoy it as you visit the store.


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Regional government workers in France are taking part in a pilot test of NFC car key technology. Twelve Renault Twingo cars shared by staff in Toulouse have been equipped to allow the vehicles to be booked and located via a mobile phone. The car doors and ignition are also operated via NFC.
- KFC China restaurants to accept Alipay mobile payments next month
- Global payments company to launch biometric cards with fingerprint scanner
- Mahindra Comviva and Pole SCS in European partnership
- NFC smartphone sales up 55% year on year in 2015
- 2.2bn NFC-enabled handset shipments by 2020, IHS Technology predicts


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At first it was just busy, like it is around the holidays, though there were signs. Food banks were starting to stock up. A customer might ask for a case of something, instead of a can.
One elderly woman packed her car completely full of groceries, Jake Turant, the grocery manager at the Price Chopper supermarket in Keene, recalled.
“I was like, ‘What are you doing with all this?’ ” Turant said. “She’s like, ‘I’m just, I’m worried about this.’ She’s like, ‘I got it in every closet in my house.’ ”
Then everything changed.
“It was just like a flick of a switch,” Turant said.
It was March 2020, when the reality of the pandemic set in and flipped daily life on its head. As schools and restaurants closed and people stockpiled supplies, grocery stores saw surging demand.
At Price Chopper, it seemed to happen overnight. From one day to the next, Turant recalled, the Keene store went from busy to perhaps four or five times its usual sales. There was no warning, no time to staff up. They opened all the registers and did what they could.
“I’ve seen snowstorms, hurricane stuff, floods, whatever,” said Turant, 34, who has worked in the industry for 18 years. “Nothing really compared to this.”
The store became “like Disneyland,” he said. “I had lines going down around the store. It looked like Black Friday, but every day for weeks.”
Turant’s in charge of scheduling employees who work in the nonperishable grocery sections, receiving deliveries, getting product on the shelves and keeping things in stock. A Hinsdale native who still lives in town, Turant said he started working at the Price Chopper in Brattleboro when he needed a job in high school; the hours worked out. He stayed with it. He’s been a manager for about 12 years, and transferred to the Keene store three or four years ago.
“It’s one of those things you just, you can’t live without, you know,” he said of his work. “You get some time off, and you just want to go back to it.”
He said he especially likes interacting with people on the job.
“You never really know what you’re walking into,” he said. “You have good days, bad days, but you know, one person may get you down, and the next one might just lift you right up.”
Early in the pandemic, he said, he and his team would sometimes put in 16-hour days. The store has a computer-generated ordering system, but it can’t respond to major swings in demand, so staff had to manually override it to order the volumes they needed, he said. Their shipments were unpredictable; some days, they might get a truck with just two pallets.
“We had no clue what was coming, what wasn’t coming,” he said.
That turned into more consistent shortages.
“Toilet paper was the first to go, we all know that,” Turant said. “And then canned goods.”
At the same time, the staff was implementing all sorts of new pandemic-safety protocols. Word would come down from headquarters that they had, say, a couple hours to comply with a state requirement that all aisles be one-way.
“And we’re running out there, we’re grabbing whoever we can and doing whatever, getting duct-tape down on the floor,” Turant said — all while customers, continuing to shop, asked what was going on.
It felt eerie at times. Price Chopper employees, as essential workers, were given “travel papers” exempting them from certain restrictions. “That really hit home and made it a thing,” he said. “Really put some concern into your mind.”
In the store, “it became very scary when you don’t see stuff showing up,” he said. “I mean, our trucks always ran, but at a point, you know, we’ve all seen that movie where it’s the end of the world, and the shelves are empty, and they’re kind of like, ‘What’s going on? Is this it?’ ”
Working long hours, he didn’t have much time at home in those days. Concerned for his parents, he delivered all their groceries personally for about a month, grabbing whatever products were still left after one of his shifts. “The first couple times, they’re like, ‘What do you mean, you don’t have butter or bread or something?’ ” he said.
Turant said he would think about the young people working in entry-level jobs.
“It’s their first job as a cashier, and they’re really out there on the front lines,” he said. “We didn’t know what this all was at the time. So it was very scary.”
The store was careful with hand-washing, sanitizing and other protocols, he said, and allowed employees to go on leave if they were older, had health concerns or suddenly had children out of school.
He said he and others able to work were motivated by their job’s importance. “We realized that if we’re not here, people aren’t getting food on the table.”
Though customers were sometimes frustrated by the empty shelves, Turant said the community was mostly “pretty understanding, and pretty great.”
The most intense period lasted about three months, he recalled, though the challenges have continued. Demand stayed high, restrictions remained, shortages continued. It’s also been hard to find enough workers, he said. “We’ll hire for anything right now.”
But he said the end seems to finally be in sight.
So what will a return to normal look like?
“The day I don’t wear a mask,” he said. “To be able to see, like, a co-worker’s actual face.”
Read more in this series:


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OAK BROOK, Ill. – Two long-time executives with McDonald’s Corp. are retiring by year’s end, the company said.
Karen King, executive vice president and chief field officer, oversees McDonald’s four US zones which include 14,000 restaurants that generate 40 percent of the quick-service chain’s income. She also is responsible for franchising and franchising relations. King was appointed to her current role in 2015 after serving as McDonald’s chief people officer.
Erik Hess, senior vice president, Customer Experience, is responsible for research and consumer insights, menu and brand strategy. He joined the company in 1991.
“While Karen and Erik will be greatly missed, their retirements provide an opportunity to change our organizational structure to further enhance our connectivity with our owner-operators and our customers,” the company said in a statement. “US Zone Presidents Debbie Roberts and Charlie Strong, and Kristy Cunningham, US senior vice president, Strategy and Insights, and Lance Richards, US vice president, Menu Strategy, will report directly to Chris Kempczinski who is transitioning to the role of McDonald’s USA president on Jan. 1, 2017."
Additionally, Charlie Robeson will take on expanded responsibilities as chief restaurant officer of the US. In this expanded role Robeson will oversee a variety of functions including operations of company-owned restaurants, franchising, development and restaurant modernization.
King and Hess join a list of top executives to retire from the company this year. Also retiring at the end of the year is Mike Andres, president of McDonald’s USA and a 30-year veteran of the company along with Pat Harris, vice president and global chief diversity officer and a 40-year veteran of McDonald’s.
In September, Chief Administration Officer Pete Bensen retired after 20 years with McDonald’s.


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China’s smartphone market is catered to by a plethora of local vendors who are even giving the global behemoths, Apple and Samsung, a run for their money. These local vendors rarely sell their phones outside the country and they’re obviously not well known particularly in the West. There is one company though that has captured Western media’s attention. Often referred to as the Apple of China, Xiaomi makes some of the most popular smartphones in China and is now looking into global expansion, which it has tasked to ex-Googler Hugo Barra. Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak recently visited the company’s headquarters in the People’s Republic, and even revealed that he owns a Mi3 smartphone.
Hugo Barra posted a picture of Wozniak on stage at Xiaomi’s New Year celebration in Beijing. Barra quotes Wozniak as saying that its “very emotional” for him to be a part of Xiaomi now, he’s actually referring to the fact that he owns a Mi3. The co-founder also offered pearls of wisdom, “always make sure your products are better than what any other human being could make,” he preached. Its certainly something to boast about for Xiaomi, gaining the attention of someone highly regarded in the global tech community, and having him reveal that he uses their product.


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In March-April Russia may increase the rates of grain exports – Rusagrotrans
In March-April period of 2014 Russia may increase the rates of grain exports due to reducing of domestic prices for the commodities, announced analysts of CJSC Rusagrotrans on January 28.
In February 2013 Russia will not provide any significant rise of export volumes – the index will total nearly 1 mln tonnes, informed the experts.
It also reported that in the period of January 1-18, Russia exported 589 thsd tonnes of grains only, down 2 times compared with the same period last month (1.13 mln tonnes).
In particular, wheat volumes formed 57% of the exports - 333.4 thsd tonnes, barley - 4% (23.9 thsd tonnes), maize - 37% (218.6 thsd tonnes).
It is expected that in January 2014 Russia will export 1-1.1 mln tonnes of grains. The volume of grain exports through the deep-sea ports may reach 734 thsd tonnes, the analysts said.
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In the first quarter of 2017/18 MY, Russia increased the exports of rye
Russia exported over 13 mln tonnes of grains - Ministry of Agriculture
By 2025/26 MY, the share of Russia in the global vegetable oils trade to rise to 15% - EFKO
Russia: in 2017, the agriculture growth rate not to exceed 3% - A.Tkachev
For the first two months of 2017/18 MY, Russia almost doubled the exports of rapeseed
October 13, 15:20
Russia: in January-September, NCSP Group increased grain shipment volumes
October 13, 14:20
Russia: grain surpluses total 3-5 mln tonnes - Ministry of Agriculture
October 13, 12:00
Russia harvested over 130 mln tonnes of grains - Ministry of Agriculture
October 13, 10:00
For 10 recent years, Russia increased the planted areas under agricultural crops by 4.5 mln ha - Rosstat
October 12, 17:40


text: Almost half of Facebook users say they accidentally clicking on Facebook ads at least some of the time, according to Sterne Agee in October 2012 survey results. While most of those (38.7%) overall say they only do so some of the time, 8% say they do so at least half the time. These Facebook users don’t appear to be very receptive to advertising, either. About two-thirds of respondents find the ads annoying, ranging from slightly annoying (24.2%) to moderately (19.4%) and extremely (23.1%) annoying. Still, 25.9% are neutral, describing the ads as neither helpful nor annoying. 5.7% find them slightly helpful, while no one reported finding them extremely helpful. Read the rest at MarketingCharts.


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Explore Farbman Group’s latest commercial real estate blog, media mentions and events. You can also listen to our commercial real estate podcast.
A presentation of case studies of successful adaptive reuse of vacant big box retail projects, as well as insight into the future of the commercial real estate market in the Midwest and what commercial real estate professionals can expect in the years ahead.
Lunch will be provided by Bigalora Wood
In 2017, a new report released by Credit Suisse gave voice to the fears that retailers and real estate professionals have been murmuring about for quite some time. According to the report, approximately 20 percent to 25 percent of all American malls will be shuttered inside of five years.


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Bottled water finds itself increasingly unwelcome in the budgets of some U.S. cities.
According to preliminary results of a survey by the U.S. Conference of Mayors, 72 cities have considered eliminating or reducing bottled water purchases within city facilities and 44 either have formal bans in place or are actively encouraging city officials and departments to use tap water. Dozens cited promoting public water as the reason.
The mayors' group passed a resolution in 2008 urging cities to phase out government use of bottled water when feasible, and promote the importance of municipal water. As activists have argued that spending tax dollars on bottled water is wasteful and sends the wrong message about tap water, government agencies in Colorado, New York, Illinois, and Virginia have been ordered to limit their purchases of bottled water. (The Conference of Mayors said no Georgia cities indicated that they cut bottled water purchases.)
"These actions are not just about fiscal responsibility, they are about civic pride and protecting common resources," said Leslie Samuelrich, chief of staff at Corporate Accountability International, a shareholder activism group.
The bottled water category has been hurt by a recession and concern about the environmental impact of plastic bottles. Government budget deficits are an additional worry for water sellers such as Coca-Cola and PepsiCo.
Bottled water volume at Coca-Cola, seller of Dasani, fell nearly 16 percent last year, according to trade journal Beverage Digest. PepsiCo, which sells Aquafina, saw its water sales slide 13.4 percent. Sales of single-serve bottled water, including cheaper private label varieties, rose 1.3 percent last year in supermarkets. But sales of bulk water -- such as the large jugs that fill the office water cooler -- fell 6.5 percent, according to Beverage Digest.
Consumption of bottled water dropped by 2.5 percent last year, according to the International Bottled Water Association. But the declines of other types of beverages such as soft drinks allowed bottled water's market share to hold steady. The trade group counted that as a win.
The members of the state ethics commission, eager to bring order to one of the most disordered corners of state government, hired a “receiver” last week to heal their agency and then did they only thing they could.
Enjoy expanded coverage of college football for UGa, Tech and the SEC, with our SEC Insider, covering all Southeastern Conference matchups and articles by AJC staff and regional newspapers that cover the SEC.


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As recently reported by Black Book, the average selling price for motorized units was $47,723, which is up 15.1 percent from the previous month, while towables came in at $12,521, down 2.2 percent from last month.
Flexsteel Industries reported fourth quarter and fiscal year financial results, showing a decrease of net sales by 6.3 percent, going from $500 million to $469 million. Net income was $23.8 million, compared to record $24.2 million in the previous fiscal year.
Ocean Bio-Chem, supplier of Star brite products, announced a record second quarter 2017 net income of $953,000 compared to net income of about $657,000 for the second quarter of 2016. Overall, that’s an increase of about $296,000 or 45 percent.
Cavco Industries announced financial results for the first fiscal quarter ended July 1 with a net revenue totaling $206.8 million, up from 11.7 percent from the same period last year. Income before income taxes was $15.7 million, an 86.9 percent increase from last year’s comparable quarter.


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With all the hackery going on inside AppleTVs across the country, it's become immediately apparent that Apple has released a device capable of much more than playing digital media in the living room -- they've put out a full-fledged computer for dirt cheap. Clay Miller of No Substance, All Eloquence took it upon himself to re-christen the delightful box. Awesome.
It does occur to me now -- isn't the AppleTV exactly what the old Columbus rumor was supposed to be, way back in 1997 during the Golden Convergence era of Apple rumor-mongering? Columbus the magic set-top box turned out to be the iMac. But AppleTV really has delivered on the promise of the world's best rumor pipeline -- and only 10 years late.
Technorati Tags: appleTV


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Mansory Tuning Up Taycan, Cayenne, RS Q8 and Three Ferraris
No words about the launch as well as the pricing.
The famous German tuner Mansory has a huge portfolio of exotic cars, motorcycles, yachts, and other vehicles. In their new project, the tuner is going to modify six new cars, all of which are highly desirable in their respective segments.
Starting with the Taycan, Porsche’s first zero-emission vehicle, Mansory will also tune up the Porsche Cayenne Coupe and the Audi RS Q8, which is underpinned on the same platform as the Coupe.
The tuner just released a single image on its Facebook page showing six cars. If you can judge those three models at the top, that is great. If not, we can tell you they are the Ferrari F8 Tributo, Portofino, and the 812 Superfast.
Unfortunately, Mansory did not reveal any details of the modifications but seeing their past record we can expect nothing but exceptional aftermarket job.
No words about the launch as well as the pricing. However, knowing these are upmarket vehicles, especially the Ferraris, expect a big premium over their original retail price.
Source and Image: Motor1


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Mercedes-AMG Petronas has just made the announcement. Lewis Hamilton has tested positive for COVID-19. The driver will miss the next race in Bahrein.
Lewis Hamilton wins in Bahrein after Romain Grojean’s horror crash. The Mercedes-AMG Petronas driver is already the World Championship winner.
Mercedes-Benz trademarked several AMG EQ designations. The premium car company thus confirms that there will be electric AMGs.
Mercedes EQA and EQB were supposed to show up in the fall of this year but the coronavirus epidemic delayed Mercedes’ plans a bit. However, the two electric compact SUVs are in the final testing phase at the Immendingen test center.
The Mercedes-Benz X-Class vanished without a trace from the portofolio of the premium car maker. But tuning specialists still have a weakness for the pick-up truck. This is how Carlex Designs redesigned it. Again.
Mercedes plans to revitalize the R-Class crossover in the form of an electric coupe SUV under the umbrella of the AMG division, informs the British magazine Car. It could be called Mercedes-AMG GLR and could have over 1000 HP being planned for 2025.
Whoever said that electric cars are incapable to manage in the off-road must have never heard about the Mercedes-EQC 4×4². The motorized project makes its debut off the tarmac in a video posted by the car maker on its YouTube channel.
Fake Mercedes-AMG G63 4×42 meets its idol in a strange encounter. It is actually a G-wannabe. Under the yellow mask, there hides a Suzuki Jimny.
With a wheelbase extended by 180 millimeters, compared to the long-wheelbase S-Class version, with a two-tone paint scheme, Executive Seats and Chauffeur package as standard, the new Mercedes-Maybach S-Class will be available before the end of this year.


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Alok Sharma, the Member of Parliament for Reading West, on Thursday 31st July 2014, gave a keynote speech at an Afro Business Exposition held at the Royal Berkshire Conference Centre.
The three-day event, which was organised by local company Motherland Connects aimed to help local companies to invest in Africa, as well as attract African businesses to Reading and the Thames Valley. The event was also attended by representatives from UK Trade and Investment, UK Export Finance, Thames Valley Berkshire Local Enterprise Partnership and Thames Valley Chamber of Commerce.
Alok also chaired a panel discussion on Anglo-Africa Trade Relations, with other panellists from business including Chantelé Carrington, representing Price Waterhouse Cooper Africa Business Group and Paddy Docherty, Chief Executive of Phoenix Africa Development Company.
Alok has previously organised two export seminars in Reading to help local businesses to export.
During his speech, Alok outlined the opportunities that Africa provides to businesses in the UK and its potential for future economic growth. Speaking during the event Alok Sharma said:
“We all understand that Africa has its challenges but what it is also clear that Africa is increasingly a Continent which offers huge potential and opportunity, and British business cannot afford to miss out.”
“Six of the ten fastest growing economies in the world are in Africa, which is forecast to outpace the world economy by almost 2% until the end of the decade. Africa is increasingly connected and mobile phone subscriptions have increased tenfold in ten years to around 550 million.
“Whilst we in the West are experiencing demographic change with an increasingly ageing population, Africa’s demographic change means that its working-age population is growing faster than economies in Asia. In 20 to 25 years, Africa will have a larger working-age population than China and India, which represents a staggering potential.”
Outlining the assistance that the government is offering to UK businesses looking to export to Africa, Alok said:
“The Foreign Office has added over 20 prosperity officers to Britain’s fourteen UKTI offices across Africa. These individuals support business development, giving local advice and support to UK companies – such as UKTI’s Overseas Business Risk service. UKTI’s Export Finance programme offers guaranteed government loans to help UK businesses get exporting. And UKTI has regular trade missions, with four oil and gas-themed missions to East Africa and Mozambique this year alone.”
“In addition to helping British companies to trade with Africa, the UK is also shifting the focus of our aid money towards economic and sustainable development. Something I greatly welcome.”
Alok also encouraged attendees from African companies to do business and invest in the Thames Valley:
“I say to our Friends attending from Africa and African-based businesses, you are in absolutely the right region if you want to meet British businesses with a “can-do” attitude who want to work with you in expanding Anglo-African bi-lateral trade and investment.
“And on a national level we have a Prime Minister, a Chancellor, a government determined to see business succeed and exports and inward investment to grow. We have been lowering corporate taxes, cutting red tape which holds back business and incentivising our businesses to export.”
Ngozi Fakeye, Principal Consultant at Motherland Connects said: “We are delighted and grateful for the support from our MP Alok Sharma in organising the First ever Anglo African Trade Expo in Reading. It was a resounding success and are looking forward to the 2015 exposition.”
Paddy Docherty, Chief Executive of Phoenix Africa Development Company said: “Africa offers an exceptional opportunity for investment, and any investor who isn’t active on the continent is missing out. GDP growth in the double digits is normal for many African countries. Sierra Leone, for example – though often neglected because of lingering associations with the rebel war of the 1990s – provides a low-risk, genuinely democratic place to do business, and Phoenix Africa is extremely excited to be there.”
For more information about the event visit: http://www.afrobusinessexpos.com/
Information on schools funding in the Reading West constituency.
View Working for Reading West in a larger map


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FDA researchers report first evidence of ESBL producing E. Coli in US retail meat
A new study using antimicrobial susceptibility testing and whole genome sequencing to test extended spectrum beta lactamase (ESBL) producing E. coli isolated from cattle for food production and from various retail meat products has shown that all were resistant to at least three antimicrobial classes. They also carried various types of CTX-M type ESBL genes, which are increasingly common in clinical patients worldwide and whose presence in food-producing animals and retail meat supplies might contribute to a greater incidence of infections. These findings are reported in Microbial Drug Resistance.
Daniel Tadesse, U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA, Laurel, MD) and colleagues from the FDA, Texas Tech University (Lubbock, TX), and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA, Clay Center, NE) coauthored the article entitled “Whole Genome Sequence Analysis of CTX-M Containing Escherichia coli Isolates from Retail Meats and Cattle in the United States.” The ESBL E. coli isolates from meat samples, including chicken breast, ground turkey, ground beef, and pork chops, were collected by the National Antimicrobial Resistance Monitoring System (NARMS). Antimicrobial susceptibility testing was performed against a panel of 14 antimicrobials and 9 ß-lactam agents.
Source: Read Full Article


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Arduino's push into the enterprise, launched alongside its Arduino Pro branding, has been taken up a notch with the news of $32 million in investment — money it says it aims to spend to "empower […] a new generation of professional engineers with enterprise-scale applications."
"Engineers in [Gen Z and Millennial] generations grew up using Arduino boards in STEM [Science, Technology, Engineering, Math] programs around the world, and they’ve become accustomed to the accessibility, simplicity and power of the company’s open-source hardware, software and cloud services," claims Arduino co-founder Massimo Banzi. "They’re now taking those demands into the enterprise as they enter the labor force."
"The way corporations solve contemporary challenges and identify new business opportunities is quickly evolving as a new generation of engineers moves into the workforce in larger numbers," adds Arduino chief executive Fabio Violante. "With this investment we’re developing and delivering a new range of dedicated enterprise solutions to ignite this transformation."
The investment in question: $32 million, raised in a Series B round led by Robert Bosch Venture Capital (RBVC) and including Anzu Partners, Renesas, and Arm. The names of those involved should prove familiar: Arduino has been working with Bosch Sensortec on Arduino Pro products, including the Nicla Sense ME, for some time, while many of its boards use Arm processing core IP. Amzu Partners, meanwhile, invests in industrial and life science companies.
While Arduino is best known for its impact in the education and hobbyist segments, the company's Arduino Pro range — designed for manufacturing, allowing use as either a development platform or the driving hardware behind a mass-produced commercial product — has been making considerable waves.
The funding, the company claims, will go towards pushing still further with projects in the works including low-code cloud services for Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) development and deployment, new "intelligent-edge" system modules, new artificial intelligence capabilities, and an expansion of its Systems Integrators Partner Program.
The company is keen to point out, however, that its core values have not changed. "We were, and always will be, champions of open-source solutions," the Arduio Team claims. "Because they’re conducive to accessibility, because we believe in ground-up innovation, and because it’s the right thing to do in a world that’s riddled with inequalities."
More details on the funding are available on the Arduino blog.


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COMPANY NEWS; STATES EXAMINING CAREMARK BID FOR ADVANCEPCS
Published: October 9, 2003
Caremark RX, which plans to buy AdvancePCS to expand its operations in managing pharmacy benefit programs, said yesterday that Florida and other states were conducting an antitrust review of the proposed acquisition. Last month, Caremark offered about $5.6 billion in cash and stock for AdvancePCS, which is based in Irving, Tex. The companies act as middlemen, making large purchases from wholesalers or drug makers to get discounts for customers like General Motors. The combined company would trail only Medco Health Solutions. ''We are watching to see what happens in the marketplace'' and monitoring the federal review, said JoAnn Carrin, a spokeswoman for the Florida attorney general's office. The state has not started a formal investigation, she said.


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Everything you need to know regarding reports that Samsung phone batteries are reportedly swelling up. Samsung has experienced its share of battery problems, and in 2016 was even compelled to announce a widespread recall of the Galaxy Note 7. This is undoubtedly one of the causes for the company’s caution when it comes to the battery size and quick charging methods it employs on its products. The company’s battery issues, though, could not totally be behind it.
Details about Samsung phone batteries are reportedly swelling up:
Arun Rupesh Maini, aka Mrwhosetheboss, a well-known YouTuber, claimed in a video that various Samsung handsets he’s kept throughout the years have bloated.
In his video, Maini said that as he was working on a piece about Samsung devices, the Galaxy Note8 “blew up.” We can see in the video that the smartphone has broken into two pieces as a result of the battery’s enormous expansion.
Click to Check the Youtube video link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OfM0GqsIB6c&t=12s
Maini initially didn’t give this much thought and placed an order for a new device. But before he got the replacement, he saw that the Galaxy S6 and the Galaxy S10 both suffered the same fate.
After that, the YouTuber from the UK evaluated a number of his other devices, including Apple, Pixel, and Asus phones. These gadgets were all flawless. Hundreds of devices have been kept in the same location, at the same temperature, and in the same orientation, he said.
Three of Maini’s Samsung cellphones’ batteries blew out, he wrote in a tweet in July. Samsung then got in touch with the YouTuber and picked up the devices to look into the matter. The YouTuber has disclosed that it has been more than 50 days since Samsung picked up the gadgets and that firm has not yet responded or replaced the items.
Maini found that the Galaxy S20 FE, which had been delivered just 18 months earlier, had suffered the same fate after examining all of his Samsung devices several times. Batteries are supposed to last at least five years, he continued, so it would be unusual for one to start expanding after only 18 months.
At the moment, those who have kept their device in storage for a while and haven’t used it frequently are the ones who are reporting the problem the most. If you are using a Samsung smartphone or have such a device with you. You can just keep an eye on the battery and if kind of issue you notice then contact immediately to your nearest Samsung service centre.


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Harmony OS to replace Android
Because of U.S. sanctions, Huawei now can not fully use the Android. She lost not only the opportunity to consult and cooperate with Google, but also use any of its services, including Gmail, Chrome, YouTube and many others. Obviously, all this is nothing good, and that’s why the electronics manufacturer is preparing to begin mass transfer all my electronics, part smartphone brand platform called Harmony OS, which is currently actively underway. This platform will destroy the “green robot”, at least believes that the leadership of the Chinese Corporation, reports the Chronicle.info with reference to Portaltele.
Because Huawei will no longer be able to use their new smartphones to popular services like Google Play, G Pay, G Maps, G-Chrome, Gmail, and many others, the company is considering the option of complete rejection of the use of Android. At the briefing of the exhibition IFA 2019 Executive Director of Huawei Richard Yu told reporters that if the “search giant” in fact, this fall, will prohibit the brand to use its branded services, you will have to start using their own platform called Harmony OS, because there is no other way out of this whole situation simply does not.
On this basis it is obvious that all force developers Huawei now left to create a proprietary operating system smartphones which can start to emerge at the end of this year, while Android will completely refuse. However, if Harmony OS is not ready yet, its release may be delayed until spring 2019, and the first smartphone running based on this platform out of the box, Huawei will be P40, that is the flagship. The success of the new operating system depends not only on its quality but also on how much software developers for Android and iOS will want to release their creations and for her.
Also Richard Yu said that if Huawei will no longer have access to ARM technology, it will create a processor on the basis of its own architecture, that is, to abandon the production of mobile devices, the brand has no plans. Yes, it will cause the Corporation a huge inconvenience, but the long-term, they may even be useful, as the company will be completely independent, resulting in then ever in the future put her in this position, it definitely can not. Their company processes, the manufacturer is ready to use, not only in its products but also to provide them to any other companies that’ll be interested.


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Micromax is going to drop the price of its Dual Core Nvidia Tegra 2 powered Superfone to Rs.15290/- all inclusive for a special holiday offer. This is going to be possibly the best device to get in the 15k mark after the price drop which is all set to happen today.
If you have not already seen our videos on the device you can check them out below.
Like Wow, Micromax finally launches the A85 Superfone in India. Boys and girls, months after the device was leaked on iGyaan Micromax has finally made the A85 Superfone official. The device is the first Micromax device with a dual core Nvidia Tegra 2 Processor. The UI is custom made with gestures and final touches from Micromax.
Key Specs of the A85 Superfone Include1 GHz Nvidia Tegra 2 Processor with Geforce8 Android 2.2 + Upgradeable 512 MB RAM- 8 Gb onboard storage 3.8 inch screen with 480×800 pixel resolution Capacitive Touch Screen with 4 Multitouch points 5 Megapixel camera with tap focus and intelligent illumination 1080p full hd video The company has set the [...]
The supposed images of the worlds first tegra 3 smartphone have leaked into the inter-webs. Called the Edge the device would boast a Tegra 3 processor,with four 1.5GHz chips. The Tegra 2 processor, made by NVIDIA, currently available in most flagship devices has a two 1.5GHz chips, so quad-core would represent a huge upgrade.
The HTC Edge has a 4.7-inch HD display, 1GB of RAM and an 8-megapixel camera with an LED flash, This would make it possibly the most powerful smartphone ever. The device will also supposedly have a large 32GB internal storage with Bluetooth 4.0 connectivity. The Edge will have a fine 28mm f2.2 lens [...]
This is one of those moments that makes you feel proud. We got an exclusive hands on with the new upcoming Micromax A85 Super Phone, and we are happy to say the device is quite impressive. The overall specs mentioned in our earlier rumors match with the actual final device. The screen on the Micromax A85 is a Gorilla Glass coated, 3.8 inch 480×800 pixel display which has vivid color composition. The device also has a muti-touch surface and importantly is based on the Nvidia Tegra 2 Processor with 1GHz dual core chipset and a dedicated GPU (Geforce8). The overall interface of the device is quite smooth and Micromax for once has done some unique [...]
Remember we posted the first images of the A85 back in June with an update of confirmed specs earlier this month. Now some official press shots of the device have come into play confirming the shape and specs of the device. The device will be finally called the A85 Superfone as indicated by the images.
The images also confirm the 5MP autofocus camera on the back of the device along, unfortunately there is no flash led. Back seems to be rubberized metal constructionn but we really cant comment on the device before we get a hands on.
Our Source had earlier given the following [...]
Sony has announced the new Walkman Z PMP. The device with its sleek form factor offers a 4.3 WVGA Capacitive display, a 1GHz Tegra 2 SoC, 802.11 b/g/n WiFi and a battery good for 20 hours of music and 5 hours of video.
The PMP will also offer Sony’s Throw feature for pushing media wirelessly to a Bravia TV, the options will be b/w 16, 32 or 64GB models in either red/black or black/blue.
There is no news on pricing, but the devices will be available December 10 in Japan and worldwide Q1 2012.
Originally Published on: Jul 14, 2011 @ 14:00
Update: we have confirmed new that this device is now called the Micromax A85 , the specs remain final.
Whats up butterflies of the inter-webs, we have exclusive news for you folks. Micromax is working on a dual core smartphone for the Indian Market. Currently dubbed “PowerPhone” expect a “Poseidon”, “Titan” or “Hercules” type of name on launch.
The new device will be based around a phone made in the depths of Chinese Manufactories. Micromax will add its [...]
Viewsonic is taking its tablet business seriously, and has announced the impending launch of three new tablets – The ViewPad 7x, ViewPad 10 Pro and the budget friendly ViewPad 7e.
The ViewPad 10 Pro runs Android 2.3 and Windows 7 and will be available from September 5th at €499 (INR 35000) for the WiFi only version.
The ViewPad 7x is a 7 inch tablet and will run Honeycomb with custom, 3D ViewScene skin. It has 8GB onboard, Tegra 2-chipset, launching this month for €349 (INR 25000) The Budget 7e will have a price tab of €169 (INR 12000) , a 7 inch screen a single core [...]
The Dell Streak never really gained popularity in India, but its successors might catch on if the timing is right. The new Dell Streak Pro 10 / 10 Pro has been launched globally with a unveiling in China yesterday. The device has interesting specs and a really good price, it is also backed by Dell’s reliable service in India.1GHz NVIDIA Tegra 2 T20 chip 1GB DDR2 RAM 1,280 x 800 LCD Corning’s Gorilla Glass 5 megapixel camera 2 megapixel camera ( front) SDHC expansion slot 24.1WH battery Honeycomb 3.1
Price of the 16GB WiFi tablet plus 2GB of cloud storage for just ¥2,999 ($465) (Rs.22,000). Stay tuned while we try and contact Dell for official word on release in [...]
Apple’s largest manufacturer of their devices like The iPhone and The iPad – Foxconn (they also the worlds largest contract manufacturer of electronics) will now produce the Android gutted tablet from the stables of Amazon. A report released yesterday claims that a 10.1 inch display is in the manufactory, and Quanta Computer, another contract manufacturer from Asia, is already shipping a 7 inch device to Amazon.
Foxconn Electronics (Hon Hai Precision Industry) has reportedly landed orders for 10.1-inch tablet PCs from Amazon with shipments to begin in 2012, while Quanta Computer has begun shipping a 7-inch model to Amazon. Foxconn declined to comment on market [...]
The Toshiba Thrive tablet has gone up for pre-order on Amazon.com, the tablet was already on preorder in various places including Best Buy. The 8 Gb Thrive is priced at 429.99 $ with the 16 and 32 GB versions for US$ 479.00 and US$ 579.00 respectively
Specs include10.1-inch multi-touch widescreen [...]
The news about Amazon Tablets is getting hotter and hotter. With the CEO revealing information about the Tablets earlier and now a major information leak.The Boys at BGR has received word that the upcoming Tablets from AMAZON will feature dual and quad core processors.
According to the source the “entry” level tablet, codenamed “Coyote” will be based on the NVIDIA Tegra 2 platform. The higher spec’d That’s codenamed “Hollywood” and will be based on the NVIDIA T30 “Kal-El” which will bring a quad-core processor with a 500% performance increase over the dual-core Tegra 2.


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CAPE TOWN – Signs that import protection tariffs for the sugar industry might be phased out indicated a turnaround in government thinking on this issue, SA Sugar Importers Association chief executive Chris Engelbrecht said on Thursday.
The Portfolio Committee on Trade and Industry said it had heard that the protectionist strategy for the sugar industry needed to be phased out in favour of one based on competitiveness.
This followed engagements between the industry and the Minister of Trade and Industry, Ebrahim Patel, and Minister of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development Thoko Didiza.
Stakeholders agreed to an export-led approach targeting the African market through the implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement to support industry competitiveness.
This represents a refusal to agree to pleas from the local industry to tighten controls on sugar entering the South African market from other African countries.
The Department of Trade and Industry said the sugar industry needed to diversify its product offerings to include ethanol, using sugar cane for co-generation of electricity and bio-based plastic products, among other things.
The industry faces global and domestic challenges, such as a low global price, competition from sugar imports, high input costs and lower demand for sugar since the health promotion levy on sugar-sweetened beverages was introduced.
“Thus, the over-reliance on sugar production without investing in alternative products is unsustainable,” it said.
In 2018 the South African sugar industry said it was in crisis and requested and received an increase in the dollar base reference import price to R680 from R566 per ton.
Recently, local sugar producers have asked for this price to be increased to R856 per ton.


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'Tis the season to, well, buy stuff. Increasingly, the stuff we buy is electronic. In fact, not only that, but increasingly the stuff we buy with is electronic, too. We are using gizmos to shop for gadgets, or possibly gadgets to shop for gizmos.
Whether or not there is bona fide danger in routine use of cell phones is, in fact, still unresolved. As often happens when the stakes are high and the science murky, passions and convictions tend to be running ahead of the data.
The bottom line is that electropollution continually disturbs the sympathetic nervous system. This, in turn, elevates the body's fight-and-flight response, raising levels of the stress hormone, cortisol.
The long awaited World Health Organization Interphone study of more than 5,000 brain tumors that occurred between 2000-2004 and cell phone use failed to deliver a knock-out punch. The story behind the story needs to be told.


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The WTM Vision Conference Moscow 2015 will hear today (Tuesday 7 April) that low-cost airlines’ commitment to flying to Russia is vital to the recovery of the country’s tourism business.
Research presented today at the WTM Vision Conference Moscow predicts that the number of Russian passengers flying on low-cost carriers will increase by an annual rate of 13% over the next four years.
Euromonitor International Research Analyst Marija Milasevic notes that carriers such as easyJet, Vueling and Wizz, already active in the market, are being joined by new start-up airlines such as Pobeda, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Aeroflot which serves the domestic market.
Airports in Russia are also improving as a result of the government’s commitment to tourism.
The increased presence of international hotel chains such as Marriott, Accor and Hilton will also help restore inbound numbers and increase domestic options.
Euromonitor International also says that increased adoption of online digital platforms is also an important factor for tourism moving forward. Some 60% of the Russian population is online, 44% of whom access the web via mobile.
Nonetheless, 2014 was a tough year for Russian tourism. Euromonitor International identifies five factors: tour operator bankruptcy, a weak rouble, lack of consumer confidence, gaps in legislative system and the tense political situation in the region.
Overall, 2014 saw a drop in not only outbound but inbound tourism numbers with declines of 4% and 3% respectively. But important leisure destinations actually saw an increase, with Egypt up 34% and Turkey 6% year-on-year.
In terms of inbound, Russia welcomed 10% more Chinese visitors in 2014.
WTM Vision Conference Moscow, organised in association with Tour Business, takes place at the Golden Ring Hotel.
Other WTM Vision Conferences confirmed for 2015 are Beijing (April 13th) and Cape Town (April 15th as part of WTM Africa).
World Travel Market, Senior Director, Simon Press said: “The WTM Vision Conference Moscow is firmly established as a key mid-year event offering the Russian travel industry the latest research, information and opinion.
“Despite the difficult current political situation in Russia, the research shows how Russia tourists remain a critical source market for key European and North African destinations.
“While the growth of no-frills carriers at Russian airports will help to fuel inbound, domestic and outbound tourism.”
About World Travel Market
World Travel Market, the leading global event for the travel industry, is the must-attend four-day business-to-business exhibition for the worldwide travel and tourism industry.
Almost 52,000 senior travel industry professionals, government ministers and international press, embark on ExCeL – London every November to network, negotiate and discover the latest industry opinion and trends at WTM.
WTM, now in its 36th year, is the event where the travel industry conducts and concludes its deals. WTM 2014 will generate around £2.5 billion of travel industry contracts.
World Travel Market is part of Reed Travel Exhibition’s WTM portfolio, which also includes Arabian Travel Market, World Travel Market Latin America and World Travel Market Africa. www.wtmworld.com
The World Travel Market Portfolio is comprised of the leading leisure travel events in the world; World Travel Market in London, WTM Latin America in Sao Paulo, WTM Africa in Cape Town and Arabian Travel Market in Dubai.
The WTM Portfolio’s events are attended by the global travel and tourism industry’s senior executives to conduct business deals and discover the latest research, insight and opinion.
In 2014, the WTM Portfolio facilitated around $7 billion in industry deals from negotiations between the more than 15,000 buyers, 9,500 exhibitors (1,500 main stand holders and 8,000 stand sharers) in attendance of its four events.
WTM is owned by the worldʼs leading events organiser Reed Exhibitions.
About Reed Exhibitions
Reed Exhibitions is the world’s leading events organiser, with over 500 events in 43 countries. In 2014 Reed brought together over seven million event participants from around the world generating billions of dollars in business.
Today Reed events are held throughout the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Asia Pacific and Africa and organised by 41 fully staffed offices. Reed Exhibitions serves 43 industry sectors with trade and consumer events.
It is part of the RELX Group plc, a world-leading provider of information solutions for professional customers across industries.


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TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The South Tangerang National Narcotics Agency (BNN) arrested a suspect, AD (28), for buying liquid cannabis sent from the United States to Indonesia via postal service.
“This drug bust was made possible by the partnership with the Customs Office of the Pasar Baru postal office,” said Banten Province BNN Head Brig. Gen. Tantan Sulistyana on Thursday, January 31.
Tantan said that the Customs Office initially noticed a suspicious package containing wet-tissue products that weighed 7.2 grams sent from the United States to an address in South Tangerang.
“Based on lab tests, the tissues contained Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) or liquid cannabis,” said Tantan, who said that the suspect bought it off of the dark web using cryptocurrency.
According to police, the suspect AD had initially worked in the Philippines and first knew about the liquid cannabis while working at the region. He then ordered the illegal drugs to be sent to Serpong to be mixed into his Vape liquids and also sell them.
MUHAMMAD KURNIANTO (CONTRIBUTOR)


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Bitcoin plunges 29% after China ban and then bounces back up. So how are people investing in this rollercoaster ride?
The value of Bitcoins is slowly creeping back above $1,000 after falling to a low of $870 yesterday after the cryptocurrency was slated by the Chinese government.
A joint statement from several Chinese official bodies such as the People's Bank of China said Bitcoins do not have the legal status of currency and cannot be used as a form of payment by any businesses or financial institutions.
This announcement sent the increasingly popular virtual currency plunging from a high of $1,216 to $870 on the MT.Gox Bitcoin exchange. The value of a single Bitcoin has risen back to around $1,045 this morning but the Chinese ban may dent investor confidence which has been soaring recently.
Bitcoin bubble: The value of Bitcoins fell on Thursday 5 December after China slated the virtual currency
Bitcoins has received several boosts in recent months with illegal trading platforms closed and the US senate considering the potential use of the currency. The US comments saw the value of a bitcoing more than double in their aftermath.
In the UK the Royal Mint has said it is working with the Channel Island of Alderney to create a special edition range of physical Bitcoins.
Several individuals have claimed to have made a decent return on Bitcoins and according to Coindesk a man in China has become a multi-millionaire from the cryptocurrency.
How can you invest in Bitcoins?
First a warning
Investing in Bitcoins is not the same as putting money into a share, fund or currency, which will tend to be backed by some solid fundamentals and numbers you can scrutinise.
It is a very volatile investment which is not backed by any regulation so would not be protected by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme.
In fact, it's a gamble not an investment.
Bitcoins are subject to wild swings in value.
In April the value of a Bitcoin soared from $80 to $147 off the back of news in Cyprus that cash deposits would be hit by a levy so savers – many of whom were Russians – sought places for their money such as Bitcoins. It then fell to $108 in a matter of weeks
So far the value of Bitcoins has gone up as people try to get involved. There is a finite number of 21million Bitcoins that can be created and so far 10million have been mined.
While an increasing number of businesses are accepting Bitcoins as a form of payment, there is nothing to say that China's actions are not the first in a long wave that drive the currency down or that the trading platform you use gets hacked or closed down.
There is also the risk that another virtual currency comes along in the future to replace the Bitcoin.
Second Life fans may remember Linden dollars which were created to spend in the now much-forgotten virtual world.
Create your own
If you are a computer genius you could make money by creating Bitcoins through 'data-mining.'
This is performed by sophisticated computer programmers who buy their own equipment and help create blocks of bitcoins using complicated coding. Miners are rewarded for recording transactions and creating new blocks of bitcoins with more of the virtual currency.
If you want to just buy Bitcoins you can purchase them direct from an exchange, the most well-known of which is Mt.gox
The first step in owning and spending bitcoins is setting up a digital wallet. This is a piece of software that can be downloaded to your desktop, accessed online or used as an app. It contains a code for receiving bitcoins and a separate code for spending them.
As Bitcoin is an open-source operation, there are a number of wallets available for use either on your phone, online or offline..
There are more security benefits to keeping your wallet on your desktop rather than storing it online as there is less chance of it being accessed.
Take heed of the example of IT worker James Howells of South Wales who last week claimed he had lost £4million of Bitcoins when the desktop computer they were stored on was accidentally thrown away.
How would you cash in?
You can turn your Bitcoins back into real money by trading them on platforms.
Trading fees on MT.Gox range from 0.25 to 0.55 per cent depending on how much you are exchanging.
It is worth keeping an eye on the Bitcoin exchange rate so you trade at the right time make sure the platform you use has the currency you want as they don't all offer the same.
Another way to take your money is by finding a cashpoint that will accept Bitcoins. There are a number of companies working on ATMs that will dispense and recive Bitcoins for cash. So far the only operational one that will swap your Bitcoins for cash is in Vancouver and provides Canadian dollars.
Can you spend your Bitcoins
You can either hold on to your Bitcoins the same way you would invest in currency or a commodity or trade them on an exchange or spend them.
Bitcoins can be transferred by exchanging addresses or scanning a QR code on your phone.
Once a transaction is made it is processed by computer programmers, known as miners, who create a 'blockchain' or public record of the exchange, and earn bitcoins from transaction fees.
Several niche websites and a selection of high street shops have begun taking Bitcoins as forms of payment. For example, you can buy your beer with Bitcoins at the Pembury Tavern in Hackney.
Most watched Money videos
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Today Sega released a new trailer of its upcoming fighting game Blade Arcus Rebellion from Shining.
The trailer features the new features included in the game, including the new characters from Shining Resonance refrain, and the new progression system that makes the game almost similar to a fighting RPG.
Of course, the gallery featuring the spending character artwork by Tony Taka also makes a comeback. It’s almost a must in games where his artwork takes the front and center of the stage
If you’re not familiar with the game, it’s a fighting title that picks its characters up from pretty much any semi-recent Shining JRPG. Then, it pitches them in pitched 2D fighting gameplay.
You can check out the new trailer below.
At the moment no western release has been announced for Blade Arcus Rebellion from Shining, but the Japanese launch date is set for PS4 and Nintendo Switch on March 14th, 2019.
Of course, if a western release is ever announced, you’ll be able to read it right here on Twinfinite.


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By Steve Gelsi
Tilray Inc. will likely grow its sales over the previous quarter but it’s expected to post a net loss when it becomes the first major cannabis company to post quarterly results in 2022 on Monday.
Tilray’s results will be followed by updates in coming weeks from other Canadian companies such as Canopy Growth Corp. /zigman2/quotes/200603886/composite CGC 0.00% , Cronos Group /zigman2/quotes/206842762/composite CRON -0.82% and Aurora Cannabis /zigman2/quotes/203734337/delayed CA:ACB -2.27% /zigman2/quotes/210559470/composite ACB -1.14% ; as well as U.S. companies such as Curaleaf /zigman2/quotes/205334348/composite CURLF -0.55% /zigman2/quotes/203485866/delayed CA:CURA -1.86% , Trulieve Cannabis Corp. /zigman2/quotes/207658767/composite TCNNF -1.11% and Green Thumb Industries /zigman2/quotes/200716694/composite GTBIF -4.23% /zigman2/quotes/206151134/delayed CA:GTII -4.69% .
Analysts have been growing more bearish on Tilray’s prospects in recent months amid price pressure and market share losses to smaller rivals.
Since October, analysts have reduced their outlook for Tilray a total of 20 times, compared to 21 unchanged estimates and six instances of increased estimates, according to FactSet.
Despite the dimmer view on profits, Tilray’s sales continue to grow. The company is expected to report $173.7 million in sales for the second quarter, up from $168 million in the first quarter. The first quarter result fell short of Wall Street’s $172.6 million estimate.
Year-ago figures are not comparable for Tilray, given the impact of its acquisition of Aphria, which closed in May 2021.
Alliance Global Partners analyst Aaron Grey said Tuesday that Tilray and other Canadian producers benefitted from a 7.8% growth over the previous month to C$369 million. Industrywide sales increased by 32% over the year-ago figure.
“Pricing pressure in the marketplace continued as every product category with the exception of beverages and oil,” Grey said
Tilray, which continues to be the market share leader in Canada, lost 115 basis points of market share to 10.8%.
Amid analyst moves in recent weeks on Tilray, Bill Kirk of MKM Partners on Dec. 10 cut his fair value price target on Tilray to $10 a share from $16 and reiterated a neutral rating on the company.
Canopy Growth /zigman2/quotes/200603886/composite CGC 0.00% , the unit of Constellation Brands /zigman2/quotes/207737284/composite STZ -0.19% that operates in the Canadian market, lost about 100 basis points in market share.
All told, the top five Canadian cannabis companies led by Tilray held 43.9% market share in December compared to 46% in November. Top five player OrganiGram Holdings OGI marked the only exception among the bigger players by increasing its market share by 35 basis points to 7.6%.
Canadian companies outside the top five increased their market share by a combined 210 basis points. Among those, Village Farms /zigman2/quotes/207525872/composite VFF -37.34% gained 35 basis points of market share to a total of 6.4%.
Overall, shares of Tilray and other cannabis companies have been weak given the oversupply dynamics in the Canadian market, combined with a reduction in some economic activity due to COVID-19.
The Cannabis ETF /zigman2/quotes/213173823/composite THCX -1.09% is now trading at about $8.19, down from about $12.50 three months ago. The index has been impacted by a lack of action on legalization on the federal front in the U.S., even as several large states such as New York and Illinois continue to scale up their legal cannabis business.
For its part, Tilray shares have sunk to below $7 a share after trading at about $11 three months ago.


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The state-owned financial institution Bank of China has revealed a partnership with China Unicom and China Telecom in order to test SIM cards and near-field communication (NFC) payments tethered to the renminbi. The Bank of China explains that the pilot will be tested by selected users and areas and it currently only supports Android phones.
China Taking Digital Yuan Usage to SIM Cards and Contactless Transactions
China’s central bank digital currency (CBDC) called the “e-CNY,” otherwise known as the digital yuan or renminbi continues to see infrastructure growth. On July 10, the Bank of China announced that the country’s CBDC is being tested with SIM cards and NFC payments. Presently, the testing is being rolled out to select users and it will be gradually promoted in “selected pilot areas in the near future.”
The Bank of China reveals it has partnered with China Unicom and China Telecom in order to streamline the digital yuan toward “unlocking new capabilities.” The SIM card hardware wallet is referred to as a “hardware wallet” by the state-owned financial institution. “Digital renminbi users only need to install the SIM card issued by the telecommunications operator on their phones, log in to the Digital Renminbi app, and activate the SIM card hardware wallet,” the Bank of China explains in a press release.
The bank added:
During the usage of the digital renminbi SIM card hardware wallet, the balance is shared with the main wallet, eliminating the need for separate top-ups and making payments more convenient and user-friendly — The digital renminbi SIM card hardware wallet supports offline payments.
The Bank of China emphasized its commitment to capitalizing on the promotion of SIM card hardware wallets and applications of the digital yuan. The bank said it is set to broaden its e-CNY horizons by examining various practical applications across multiple industries including, but not limited to, rail transportation, everyday consumption, academic settings, online shopping, utility payments, business retail, and educational training. In line with the trend of the Internet of Things (IoT), the bank aims to empower SIM cards in order to target a colossal quantity of IoT gadgets.
Prior to the introduction of the digital yuan in Jinan, China, for public transportation fares, the Shanghai Clearing House also extended its support for the digital currency at the end of June. To date, data shows 11 countries have launched Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs), and research indicates that 130 countries, accounting for 98% of the world’s gross domestic product, are considering implementing CBDCs. In China, the pilot test of its CBDC reaches a population of 260 million and encompasses a variety of economic scenarios.
What do you think about the Bank of China testing SIM cards and NFC with the digital yuan? Share your thoughts and opinions about this subject in the comments section below.
The post Bank of China Expands Digital Yuan Testing to SIM Cards and NFC Payments appeared first on Crypto Breaking News.