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A Silicon Valley startup founded by former Google employees is looking to radically change long-haul trucking. Otto is developing a self-driving truck upgrade kit for commercial rigs. As with the race to develop self-driving cars, Otto is not alone in these ambitions, but self-driving trucks could lead to unintended consequences for local economies, particularly in small towns that rely on the trucking industry. Otto debuted with its plan in a Medium post published Tuesday. The startup highlights the need for self-driving trucks by citing the deteriorating quality of life for drivers, road congestion, pollution and safety.
Uber is folding its self-driving truck program, the company confirmed Monday, to focus exclusively on building its own self-driving passenger car technology. "We recently took the important step of returning to public roads in Pittsburgh, and as we look to continue that momentum, we believe having our entire team's energy and expertise focused on this effort is the best path forward," Eric Meyhofer, head of Uber Advanced Technologies Group, said in a statement provided to ZDNet. Back in March, Uber halted its self-driving car tests in every city in the US after a pedestrian in Arizona was killed by an Uber car operating in autonomous mode. Just last week the company announced it would resume testing its self-driving cars in Pittsburgh -- but in manual mode, with a human driver always in control. Uber launched its self-driving truck division with the 2016 acquisition of Otto.
Two years after Uber paid $680 million to buy the self-driving truck startup Otto, the company is folding that effort. In this photo from 2016, an Otto engineer sits behind the steering wheel of a self-driving, big-rig truck during a demonstration in San Francisco. Two years after Uber paid $680 million to buy the self-driving truck startup Otto, the company is folding that effort. In this photo from 2016, an Otto engineer sits behind the steering wheel of a self-driving, big-rig truck during a demonstration in San Francisco. Uber is shutting down its self-driving truck program, nearly six months after it settled a lawsuit from Waymo, the Google spinoff that accused Uber of using its proprietary designs.
Everyone in San Francisco these days wants to build a self-driving car. So in a company town that prides itself on going against the grain, this startup wants to build a self-driving truck. On Tuesday, several former Google, Tesla and Apple engineers announced they had quit their prestigious jobs to start Otto, which aims to sell automation kits for the massive semi-trailers that crowd America's highways. The company says it has logged more than 10,000 test miles and recently tested its truck on a Nevada highway. Self-driving startups have become commonplace in the latest tech boom as many engineers have lost interest in simply building apps and robotics technology becomes cheaper.
Former NASA engineer Mark Moore will now be working on Uber's flying car project, Uber Elevate. SAN FRANCISCO -- Seems like Uber is in another tussle with the California Department of Motor Vehicles over its self-driving vehicle testing. A few months ago, the ride-hailing giant announced that it would begin testing self-driving Volvo SUVs in this hilly city, but a day later that process was halted after the DMV said Uber had not applied for the proper permits. Uber moved its fleet to Arizona. Uber cars laden with sensors still troll San Francisco, but the company said it is only for mapping purposes.


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By NATARIO McKENZIE
Tribune Business Reporter
A Family Island resort operator yesterday urged the Government to "get a handle" on the vacation rental industry and introduce a tax structure to collect the "millions" it is currently forfeiting.
Edwin Mulford, a long-time boutique resort operator on Cat Island, reiterated concerns that the Government is missing out on significant tax revenues related to vacation rentals, given that payments to landlords - locals and foreign - are frequently made outside The Bahamas via the Internet, never touching this nation.
"I think something needs to be done before it's too late," he argued. "If this isn't handled properly, government is setting themselves up for a lot of headache. The problem is policing the situation."
Mr Mulford added that boutique operations such as his were being even more significantly impacted than larger hotels/resorts by Airbnb-type operations.
"The Government must understand the significance of this. It's automatic revenue the Government can get. This is worth a lot of money for government. We're talking millions and millions of dollars where people are renting out their place online and the Government never gets a dime," he said.
The Central Bank of The Bahamas' monthly report for August, released on Monday, said vacation rentals continued to grow in popularity among stopover visitors with average daily room rates (ADR) jumping by 1.8 percent to $319.77. Airbnb bookings increasing 41 percent year-over-year for August.
The Government has said it is seeking to levy VAT on Airbnb-type vacation rentals, but Dionisio D'Aguilar, minister of tourism, previously told Tribune Business it has yet to develop "a working mechanism" for its collection.
Ms Mulford suggested that instead of introducing VAT on vacation rental businesses, the Government should look at an all-inclusive licensing fee based on the number of bedrooms per house, with annual inspections for compliance by local authorities. He added that the Government could consider a separate programme for Bahamians and their bed and breakfast offerings.
"Indicative of the growing popularity of the short-term private rental market, data from AirDNA showed a 41.2 percent increase in booked listings via the Airbnb platform during August for all Bahamas in comparison to the same period in 2017," the Central Bank said in its report.
"These results are also influenced by the fact that more properties are listing on the site each year. In terms of the broad trends in the major markets, the number of listings in Exuma firmed by 54.7 percent, while gains of 37.8 percent, 34.8 percent and 28 percent were noted for New Providence, the Abacos and Grand Bahama, respectively.
"In terms of the key segments, the ADR for the entire place listings rose by 1.8 percent to $319.77, while that of hotel comparable listings fell by 3.1 percent to $132.19."
A report commissioned by the Bahamas-based Organisation for Responsible Governance (ORG) previously identified the vacation rental market as a potential growth opportunity that could boost Bahamian ownership and entrepreneurship in the tourism industry, plus aid economic diversification.
The report, conducted on its behalf by Oxford Economics, the research consultancy, argued that this nation's ability to make greater inroads into the vacation rental market was being impeded by old, impractical laws and regulations.
Apart from the International Persons Landholding Act imposing "especially strict rules" on foreign home owners, the study said all vacation-based properties have to be approved by the Bahamas Investment Authority (BIA).
Data obtained by Oxford Economics showed that the Bahamas had 1,878 properties registered with Airbnb, of which 908 - just under half - were deemed to be active.
The ORG report suggested that "more relaxed investment requirements" for vacation rental home developers could be restricted to specially-designated areas, such as Trade Development Zones (TDZs), located near ports and airports.

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Harsimrat Kaur Badal, Union Minister of Food Processing, Govt. of India
Focusing on SMEs and reducing food wastage
India has a USD 600 billion retail sector, out of which 70 pc is food, which is set to further increase by 2020, says Badal.
With India being the one of the largest food producer in the world, Indian food processing industry has a lot of potential in the perishable sector. However, at the same time, issues related to food wastage remain.
Harsimrat Kaur Badal, union minister of food processing, India, talks to Biz@India about the food processing infrastructure, cold chain facility, World Food India 2017 summit, and more.
India is hosting the World Food India summit this year. What do you see this event to be? What are the various components that are being placed?
India is one of the largest producers of food and we are also one of the largest consumers. We have a USD 600 billion retail sector out of which 70 pc is food, which is set to further increase by 2020. Over the last three years, government has taken a number of initiatives to double farmers’ income, to have happy farmers and happy consumers by 2022. To ensure this, there needs to be a lot of improvement, so the government has given lot of emphasis on food processing because the more this industry expands, the more the farmer will benefit as the raw material for this industry is the farmers’ produce. As of today, a big producer like India processes only 10 pc of what it produces and smaller countries like Malaysia and Indonesia process almost 70-80 pc of what they produce. As a result of low processing, we have very high wastage, which obviously leads to low availability therefore higher prices.
And that is how the idea of World Food India came up – to provide a platform for global companies to interact with domestic companies. World Food India is scheduled for November 3-5 this year in the national capital, New Delhi where all Indian states are going to be showcasing their produce, policies, infrastructure and what tie-ups they are interested in. Over 20 international countries are coming with strong business delegations, some with even ministerial delegations. We have partner and focused countries, sectorial meets and a lot of B2B and G2G networking.
Along with this, there is going to be a Vibrant Food Street, which is to highlight cuisines of India. Because internationally when you go to Indian sections at big retail chains, you’ll be lucky if you find Indian curry, but nothing more.
Whereas in India, cuisines, beverages, and desserts, differ from state to state. We will showcase this diversity to the world. Today, a large number of Indian population lives overseas, and they often want what is traditional and native to their state. So it’s to tell the retail chains that if you got Indian diaspora there then there is a lot you can take back from India.
At the same time, international companies will have a chance to test that produce on the Indian palate to see how it reacts. The street not only comes with business opportunities but there will also be a light side to it where there will be international chefs working together with top Indian chefs to create something that is international but with Indian ingredients, spices or may be come up with a new type of fusion food.
You mentioned about participation from over 20 countries. How much overseas business do you expect?
Out of 20, two-three countries are going to be the partner countries, and two focus countries. The numbers are increasing but the problem is that we are running out of space so we are trying to expand to get some more space in which case, there will be a lot more participation.
Food processing sector in India and also across the world, notably in Europe, is driven by small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). So are you also getting them on-board?
This time we are targeting more on SMEs because the giants manage to go across continents and find their partners. It’s the small and medium sized companies who have the know-how and want to expand their footprint and want to enter Indian market but don’t know how to go about it. We are keen that they are the ones who come here and they too then partner with us. We also want that our SME industry is the one to benefit maximum from this so that maximum amount of movement starts at the ground level.
In Europe, which countries are you focusing on?
We have Denmark as the partner country and Germany most likely will be the partner country as well, with Netherlands and Italy as focus countries. A whole lot of other countries like France and Spain are also participating.
Do you think that there is a hesitation about India still being a difficult place to do business?
No, I don’t think so. Especially after the Goods and Services Tax (GST) becoming a reality. There’s a huge amount of interest that such a huge economic reform has taken place and made things lot easier for businesses to enter. Of course, we are the fastest growing economy and the highest amount of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) that has come in, has placed a faith to conduct business in India. ‘Digital India’ and ‘Make in India’ are initiatives taken in this regard by the government and the difference has begun to show on ground in every sector. But when I talk about FDI in the food processing sector, there has been a 40 pc increase from last year.
As the sector expands, what about availability of efficient manpower? Also, are we keeping pace with training enough people?
The Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi, foresaw all this and that’s why he came up with ‘Skill India’. We were given targets as to how many people we have to skill and for that we made a list of different sectors in food processing. We asked companies about the kind of skilled manpower they look for while hiring and based on their requirements, we made a cost content and then hired a company that would go out and impart those skills.
Food is perishable. Do you think we are adequately using air cargo and other transport mediums for logistics?
Of course, there is a lack of infrastructure not only in processing but also in everything else connected to it – cold chains, refrigeration, transportation, warehouses, etc. DHL Express (a division of the German logistics company) was interested in getting not only refrigerated ships but also bogies in trains. GMR (an infrastructural company) from south Indian city Hyderabad has applied for one of the cold chain projects to be build at the airport there and as this sector grows, there will be a lot more interest from lot more people. I am very keen to have refrigerated bogies attached to our passenger trains especially for the north-east and naturally organic areas as they have a lot of exotic fruits and vegetables, which are not available anywhere else in the country.
Are you also providing training to farmers to improve their farming practices and provide better technologies?
Yes. One of the components of the new ‘Sampada Scheme’ for which INR 60 billion have been allocated, is the creation of backward and forward linkages as well as promoting farmer producer organisations, cooperatives, women self help groups and anyone else who comes under the group. Backward forward linkage is for the farmers to turn them from farming to value addition and agro-processing.
For their processing and preservation requirements, we have hired a company who will go and help them apply electronically through e-mapping. We have mapped clusters in India, where there is raw material availability but not enough infrastructure. Because farmers are not educated enough to come together, apply, get grants and set up infrastructure, the ministry is going to hire people who will go into those clusters, make an FPO (Farmer Producer Organisation), make their DPRs (Detailed Project Reports), apply in the ministry, set up infrastructure, take them to markets, handhold them for two years, make them sustainable and then back off.


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Pop-up Makers Market in Craig begins Tuesday
CRAIG — Autumn Pop-Up Makers Market, featuring locally made artwork for sale, is set for noon to 7 p.m. daily Tuesday, Sept. 26 through Friday, Sept. 29 at 59 West Sixth Street in Craig.
Artwork for sale will include ceramics, hand-painted glassware, jewelry, metal sculptures, note cards, photography, poetry books, functional/decorative/
whimsical pottery, slumped glass bottles and more.
Responders were on the scene Monday afternoon with a dual-vehicle collision at the intersection of Fourth and Ranney streets.


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Investors who took a chance on Canadian Tire Corp. Ltd. during one of the most competitive periods in this country's retail history are being richly rewarded, and analysts believe there are more benefits to come.
The stock is trading near record highs as the iconic retailer successfully stickhandles its way around challenges posed by the growing presence of discount retailers from the United States, as well as increased competition from some of its homegrown peers.
The Toronto-based retailer is posting strong sales at its namesake locations, as well as at Mark's and its FGL Sports division, which includes Sport Chek and Atmosphere stores.
Investors are also keen on the growth from Canadian Tire's recent spinoff of its real estate investment trust. The company is also expected to get a financial partner for its credit card business, which analysts say would free up cash for the company and clean up its balance sheet. That money could be used to increase its modest dividend, buy back shares or make an acquisition.
Some analysts believe what's most attractive about the stock right now is that it's still considered a good deal for investors.
"From a valuation perspective, I think that Canadian Tire offers a good value as a retailer," said CIBC World Markets analyst Mark Petrie. "It's a challenged environment, but you're not paying a lot for the stock."
Canadian Tire shares are valued at about 8.5 times EV/EBITDA (enterprise value divided by earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization), according to the analyst consensus for 2015 from S&P Capital IQ. When the retail division is broken out, that number drops to 4.1 times EV/EBITDA for next year, according to estimates from CIBC's Mr. Petrie.
"[Canadian Tire] continues to trade at the low end of its long-term valuation … and remains one of the cheapest discretionary retailers in North America," RBC Dominion Securities analyst Irene Nattel said in a note.
She is one of 10 analysts with a "buy" or equivalent rating on the stock, while two say "hold," according to S&P Capital IQ. It says the consensus price target for the next 12 months is $111.86.
Canadian Tire shares hit an all-time high of $107.35 last week, and are up almost 50 per cent over the past year. For long-term investors, the stock is up about 120 per cent since the depths of the last recession five years ago.
"Canadian Tire has good operating momentum and remains inexpensively valued, in our view, relative to its retail peer groups," Desjardins Securities analyst Keith Howlett said in a note.
Last week, he increased his price target to $125 from $113, believing the company's value will increase once it gets a credit card partner. That announcement is expected in the coming months.
Still, not everyone is as bullish on Canadian Tire stock.
Credit Suisse analyst David Hartley has a "hold" on Canadian Tire shares and a $97 price target, believing the stock is overvalued.
BMO Nesbitt Burns analyst Peter Sklar lowered his first-quarter earnings expectations for Canadian Tire, citing higher marketing and sponsorship expenses around events such as the Winter Olympics, but still rates the company "outperform" with a $110 price target.
Michael Bowman, portfolio manager at Wickham Investment Counsel Inc., has owned the stock for about two years and has no plans to sell at this time. "It has done extremely well in a very challenging retail environment," he said. "I see the trend continuing."
Bruce Campbell, a portfolio manager at StoneCastle Investment Management Inc., doesn't own the stock right now, but he said he's considering it. "If we got some sort of substantial pullback, then we would potentially add to our portfolio," he said.


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Blaze at Qatar shopping centre kills 19
28 May 2012 Last updated at 22:54 BST
A fire at a shopping centre in the Qatari capital Doha has killed at least 19 people, local officials have said.
The interior ministry said 13 of the victims at the Villaggio centre were children.
The cause of the fire - believed to have started in the centre's nursery - is being investigated.
The Villaggio mall is one of the most popular shopping and recreational complexes in the small Gulf state.
Peter Wilson reports.


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Mumbai based local search services firm JustDial Ltd. (BSE:535648; NSE:JUSTDIAL) yesterday announced plans of expanding its operations to overseas markets in the UK and the UAE in September and October, respectively. The announcement was immediately followed by a 4.31 percent leap in trade, according to a report by The Economic Times.
Besides the UK and the UAE, JustDial also has plans to enter into a number of Southeast Asian markets, especially those in the emerging phase.
Initially, the JustDial model was just about local search and listings. That worked well for the company in India, prompting it to expand to food ordering and ecommerce. Its ecommerce platform ‘Search Plus’ services allow business to consumer commerce via the JustDial platform, which means that JustDial can make use of its ever-increasing database of consumers and network of businesses.
“The idea is that diehard users of JustDial should be able to use it wherever they go. And in countries where they don’t have a product like JustDial, they will be addicted once they discover it,” says VSS Mani, CEO and founder of JustDial.
This represents a reversal of sorts. Mostly, we have seen Indian startups replicating internet-based business models that have worked in the West, as in Flipkart and others being inspired by Amazon. JustDial is an example of a home-grown Indian business model that is being taken abroad.
Thanks to greater internet penetration in the UK and the UAE markets, JustDial could very well focus more on services through its mobile app and web-based apps. This could mean that a lot of the operations that need local involvement otherwise can be avoided, possibly allowing JustDial to work better on a few specific areas rather than the entire spectrum of platforms like it does in India.
The company is currently working on bringing operations of its US and Canadian wings under its direct control after a terminated deal with its licensee. JustDial first entered the US and Canada markets in 2010 via its subsidiary, JustDial Global, which recently announced that it was unable to operate in the two markets, forcing JustDial to take over.


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Policybazaar.com, (twitter handle: @policybazaar_in), India’s largest insurance website and comparison portal has crossed Rs. 10 crore a day premium mark, becoming the first player in the country to achieve this milestone in online insurance sales. The Gurgaon-based company clocked a whopping sum of Rs. 24 cr. premium in the last three days of the financial year.
“Honestly, we have crossed our own expectations. Going by the last month activity, we should easily beat the Rs. 200 cr. revenue mark (our initial target). This is the result of sustained effort over the last 9 years and the goodwill built with the customers,” said Yashish Dahiya, Co-founder & CEO at Policybazar.com on the achievement of this milestone.
PolicyBazaar.com, which broke even in November, last year, has become the first internet company in India to turn profitable on yearly basis from among the start-ups that have emerged in the last decade. The company has also hit a new milestone of 2 million online insurance buyers.
While expressing his gratitude, Mr. Yashish Dahiya – CEO and Co-founder, Policybazaar said, “This is the result of hard work of all employees and the backing and direction of our investors and board. With the financials auguring well, we plan to go more aggressive in marketing and technology in the current fiscal year. The company recorded more than 100% growth in FY17 and sold more than 750,000 policies in the last 6 months of FY17.”
He further added, “We are now targeting Rs. 2,000 cr. insurance premium in the year starting 1st April 2017 and add 1,000 more people to our workforce. Having comfortably broke even this year, we are now looking at profits of Rs. 50 cr in the coming year. We believe that protection products will be driver of future insurance growth. Overall, we are confident of reaching 1 crore customers by 2020.”
One of the most successful start-ups in the consumer internet space, Policybazaar.com has backing from a host of high-profile investors including InfoEdge (Naukri.com), Inventus Capital, Tiger Global Management, Steadview Capital, Premji Invest, Temasek and Ribbit Capital. The 2,500 – headstrong company has raised so far Rs. 500 cr. from its existing investors and is valued at Rs. 2,500 cr.
A recent KPMG global report rated Policybazaar.com as India’s finest fin tech innovator, recognizing its efforts in changing the way India buys insurance. From receiving traffic of 180,000 visitors in 2008, Policybazaar.com today hosts over 60 million visitors yearly. Policybazaar.com started its operations in 2008 with a one-room office that was cramped for space with twenty close associates. Today, it has four office buildings in Gurgaon.
Policybazaar is India’s largest online financial services platform and is an InfoEdge (Naukri.com), Inventus Capital, Tiger Global Management, Steadview Capital, Premji Invest, Temasek and Ribbit Capital Investee Company. The portal specializes in making purchase decisions easy by helping consumers with analysis of financial products based on price, quality and key features. It showcases an array of insurance plans offered by almost all insurers as well as up-to-date information on financial products and prompt, solution-driven customer service.
The portal has been conferred with the “Best Financial Website” award for two years in a row (2013 & 2014) at the prestigious India Digital Awards presented by the Internet & Mobile Association of India (IAMAI). The company has been also recognized as India’s top “Fin Tech Innovator” by the Global consultancy firm, KPMG and venture capital fund, H2 Ventures in their Leading Global Fintech Innovators Report 2015 & 2016. Currently, the website boasts of over 60 million visitors every year and records sale of nearly 125,000 transactions a month.


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We are happy to introduce a new project that has already launched its pre-sale. It is Tutellus, the biggest online collaborative platform in the Spanish-speaking world. It started pre-sale on May, 10. For four days only, from May, 17 to May, 20 Tutellus offers special terms: the minimum purchase is 1 ETH. Starting from May, 21 the sum will rise to 5 ETH. Do not lose your chance to benefit from the offer!
Tutellus started in May 2013 and now has a community of 1 million users from 160 countries. Now it is creating a decentralized blockchain-based system that will pay students for learning and renumerate teachers according to the impact in the success of their students.
The reward system will be built on the basis of two tokens: TUT and Smart TUT (STUT). TUT tokens will be used as the platform’s currency and to interact with other platforms and currencies. STUT tokens will not be directly tradable in fiat, and will be granted to reward users who contribute educational value to the.
Tutellus wants to raise in its ICO $40 million (hardcap). During the presale ETH, BTC, XEM, LTC, BCH, ZCASH, DASH, and USD are accepted, the minimum purchase is 5 ETH. Early-bird participants may expect rewards of up to 20 percent.
The main sale will begin on June, 12. The minimum purchase during the main token sale will be 0.05 ETH, and early-bird participants are promised bonuses of up to 10 percent.
DISCLAIMER: TUT public sale will not be open to citizens, residents or green card holders of the USA (including Puerto Rico, US Virgin Islands, and any other protectorate of the USA) or other representatives of the USA.
TUT tokens will be sold on the Cryptonomos platform. Please, visithttps://tutellus.cryptonomos.


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T-Mobile US (TMUS.O) on Wednesday raised the lower end of its annual free cash flow forecast after quarterly subscriber additions topped estimates as customers flocked to the company’s more affordable plans in a highly competitive market.
Wireless carriers have been vying for customers as they tighten their purse strings, including delaying phone upgrades and hitting purchases of bundled plans, due to an uncertain economy.
T-Mobile now expects adjusted free cash flow for the year to be between $13.4 billion and $13.6 billion, compared with its prior forecast of $13.2 billion to $13.6 billion.
Fewer customers switching operators and solid promotional activity along with migration to higher-tiered unlimited plans also helped T-Mobile drive subscriber growth.
The company added 850,000 postpaid phone customers in the third quarter, the highest among peers, beating FactSet estimates of 773,400 additions.
The company also raised its full-year forecast for wireless subscriber growth and now expects wireless subscriber net additions between 5.7 million and 5.9 million, up from its earlier forecast of 5.6 million to 5.9 million.
T-Mobile has been trying to outdo peers with its bundled deals following the recent launch of the iPhone 15.
However, analysts said that overall industry promotions have been less aggressive compared with those offered following the launch of iPhone 14 last year.


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VentureBeat presents: AI Unleashed - An exclusive executive event for enterprise data leaders. Network and learn with industry peers. Learn More
Thirteen million times a day, someone, somewhere, clicks a Google ad and becomes someone’s customer.
An angel may not get its wings, but somewhere, a click sells a product, downloads a white paper, or takes some personal information. In short, some exchange of value takes place — at huge, mind-boggling scale.
Larry Kim of the web marketing firm WordStream analyzed a huge divot of Google data — which I published in infographic form earlier today. WordStream offers a free Adwords Performance Grader, which gave it access, Kim told me, to about 1 percent of Google’s revenue over the past quarter.
And the data that comes out is fascinating.
For instance, the finance industry places 617 million ads on Google.com and 5.32 billion ads on Google’s ad network each and every day, generating 28 million clicks at the highest average cost per click of any industry: over $3 on google.com, and over $1 for ads in the network. Top five advertisers in finance include names like State Farm, Geico, and Quicken Loans.
The second most prolific industry buying Google ads is travel, where brands like Expedia, Hotels.com, and Kayak place 2.5 billion ads a day to generate over 20 million clicks at an average price of just under $0.30, and complete 360,000 sales a day.
“Different advertisers define conversions differently,” Kim told me today, so those sales include not just actual flight, rental car, and hotel bookings but also any leads generated via an ad.
But the highest conversion rates belong to the education industry, which enjoys almost three times the conversion rate of travel companies. Education advertisers such as the University of Phoenix, DeVry, and Kaplan University convert at a red-hot 6.27 percent.
30 billion ads served … a day
All those millions of click and hundreds of thousands of conversions come out of probably the biggest advertising engine in the history of the world. Between ads on its own site and ads on its network, Google delivers an astounding 29.8 billion ad impressions every single day. That’s mind-boggling.
The good news for advertisers is that Kim’s data shows that average cost-per-click has come down significantly, which is part of the reason why Google lost almost $20 billion in market value in a single morning last week. Advertisers are now paying between 16 percent and 18 percent less for clicks than they did just four months ago.
“I think that’s fantastic news,” Kim says.” “It’s not only cost-per-click going down, but also that the inventory of ad impressions is going up substantialy … it means you can get more customers for less money.”
That sounds bad for Google. But not really, he told me.
“It’s actually really good news for Google, too … even though Wall Street cheers when the cost-per-click goes up and Google gets more money from advertisers … that’s not sustainable. By increasing the available impressions and clicks and lowering the costs, more advertisers will see more value from online advertising and that will be beneficial for Google in the long run.”
One caveat: While Kim is pretty confident in the data, saying that by analyzing 1 percent of Google’s revenue he’s checking a far higher percentage than Gallup, for instance, would poll for an election preview, it’s not Google data.
So it’s possible that WordStream’s data is off. With such a large sample, however — over a billion dollars in annualized revenue — it’s not likely that it is very far wrong.
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You have to hand it to them, the pharmaceutical industry just doesn’t stop trying to force people to purchase their chemicals, but now they’re even trying to convince you to purchase pharma drugs for your dogs! The insanity never ends when it comes to these people because they have the backing of the United States federal government to help them out.
Despite evidence to the contrary, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) continues to push the belief that everything they approve is completely healthy, while simulatenously trying to tell everyone that marijuana is some sort of life-threatening drug that will kill you quicker than crystal meth. If that doesn’t instantly disqualify an organization from appearing legitimate, I don’t know what does.
But you can’t ignore the truth of the situation, which is that there is an unfortunate amount of people out there that will definitely purchase the canine anxiety medication that Big Pharma is currently producing. Yes, you read that correctly: canine anxiety medication.
A new product named Sileo (dexmedetomidine oromucosal) claims to help cure a dog’s noise anxiety whenever it is rubbed all over its gums. Nicole Lynn Pesce of New York Daily News reports, “Each Sileo syringe costs about $25, and one syringe can contain several doses, depending on the size of the dog. The FDA said the drug can be used up to five times during an anxiety-provoking event when used as directed. It should take effect within 30 to 60 minutes. Possible side effects can include vomiting and drowsiness.”
Of course there are negative “side effects.” Everything that the pharmaceutical industry creates in a lab has negative side effects, yet so many have yet to catch on to the fact that there is something wrong with that. Why do we continue to reject safe, natural alternatives to these lab drugs when it has been shown time and time again that they are significantly healthier for all of us.
Do not make your pet consume this gel. Do not consume the products that pharmaceutical companies are manufacturing for human consumption. Our entire nation needs to start taking its health more seriously and that starts with cutting this garbage out of our diets. We have already taken back our country from the global elite — now is the time to take back our bodies from these prescription drugs. This should be our next battle. It’s time to actively start fighting back against Big Pharma.
Sources:Submit a correction >>


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Premium TV’s educational website, www.footee.net, has launched an on-line cartoon series called Footee Junior High. Designed in-house, it went live last week and is accessible via the core site.
Visit an interactive installation inspired by the Windrush Generation at Somerset House, head to Stockholm for a design festival and more this month.
The founder at creative networking platform and jobs site The Dots talks about why art and design skills should not be reserved for the middle class, and
Design studio Lippincott was commissioned to create a new visual identity for the toy store chain, which was fully completed – just before the company filed for bankruptcy earlier this
The annual design fair and exhibition, which takes place during London Design Festival, is moving from King’s Cross to South Bank this year, and has announced a host of exhibitors


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General Motors rival Dodge has announced it will build a new all-electric muscle car. The up-and-coming Dodge EV muscle car was announced during the recent Stellantis EV Day 2021 event, and is set to launch in 2024.
“Our engineers are reaching a practical limit of what we can squeeze from internal combustion innovation,” said Dodge Brand CEO Tim Kuniskis. “They know, we know that electric motors can give us more, and if we know of a technology that can give our customers an advantage, we have an obligation to embrace it.”
Framing the new Dodge EV muscle car as a “natural evolution” of performance, Kuniskis reiterated that the Dodge brand wouldn’t sell “electric cars,” but it would sell “American eMuscle.”
“So if a charger can make a Charger quicker, we’re in,” Kuniskis said.
The announcement included a teaser image showing a shadowy new muscle machine with large polished wheels and illuminated front grille. The new Dodge EV muscle car also appears to be all-wheel drive, as indicated by a four-wheel burnout performed at the end of the teaser. The lines look somewhat old school, with a wide, square, flat stance.
It’s believed the new go-fast battery-electric vehicle will utilize Stellantis’ new STLA architecture, a dedicated electric vehicle platform that may offer upwards of 500 miles of range.
Stellantis also announced a new fully electric Ram 1500 pickup truck, which is also set to arrive in 2024. The new all-electric pickup will ride on the body-on-frame “STLA Frame” architecture, and offer upwards of 500 miles of range. When it arrives, the Ram EV will compete directly with the upcoming Chevy Silverado EV.
As for the new Dodge EV muscle car, General Motors currently has no direct competitor. The most obvious answer would be an all-electric Chevy Camaro or some other Chevy EV muscle car, but at this point, there’s nothing concrete to indicate GM will offer such a vehicle.


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The global near field communication (NFC) market is expected to reach USD 47.43 billion by 2024, according to a new report by Grand View Research, Inc. The industry is poised for an unprecedented growth over the forecast period owing to the increasing penetration of smartphones in the developing economy. Increasing adoption of mobile payment services has led to the intensive utilization of POS with the launch of e-wallet and Apple Watch. Banking entities, payment gateways, and payment processors are expected to expand the capabilities for accommodating the new enhanced technology. The emergence of the mobile wallet services has allowed users to pay for services through mobile devices or through cashless payment modes, which have further enhanced near field communication market growth.
The increasing demand for the NFC-based payment solutions has led the manufacturers to develop an enhanced version of the digital payment platform, further developing the market growth. Growing penetration of wearable technology devices as a significant component of Internet of Things with lowered costs have immensely contributed to the industry growth.
The emergence of mobile wallets, such as Android Pay, Apple Pay, and Samsung Pay, are also expected to further drive the substantial mobile payments growth, owing to their capability of paying through mobile phones instead of cards or any other cashless payment modes. The increasing number of vendors is expected to increase the concentration and propel the development of near field communication infrastructure, thus accelerating the market growth. The increasing need for lowering the cost of ownership and the increased convenience need will continue to dictate the market development.
To request a sample copy or view summary of this report, click the link below:
Further key findings from the report suggest:
Banking entities, payment gateways, businesses and payment processors are expanding with the emerging payment technologies.
Near field communication Tags is expected to grow with a significant CAGR over the forecast period as the technology provides a possibility of data exchange within the range of 10cm wirelessly.
SIM card type near field communication is expected to have the substantial transaction revenue over the projected period owing to the technological advancement and increasing penetration of smartphones
The transaction segment is estimated to have the significant market share and is expected to remain as the key segment for generating revenue over the forecast period. The increasing demand for contactless payments and growing interest of banks and other financial institutions in the segment have led to the immense growth.
The data sharing application is expected to have the considerable growth as data sharing segment includes the sharing of consumers’ personal data, such as pictures, videos, and MP3
U.S. NFC market is driven by in-store payments as a smartphone ecosystem leads to enhanced mobile platforms. Canadian smartphones are used widely for checking balances, online transaction, and funds transfer, which offers an opportunity of further technological advancements.
The key players in the NFC market include Identiv Group Inc (U.S), Broadcom Limited (A subsidiary of Avago Technologies) (U.S), Gemalto NV (Netherlands), Inside Secure (France).
Grand View Research has segmented the near field communication (NFC) market on the basis of product type, application, and region:
Product Outlook (Transaction Revenue, USD Billion, 2014 - 2024)
Application Outlook (Transaction Revenue, USD Billion, 2014 - 2024)
Regional Outlook (Transaction Revenue, USD Billion, 2014 - 2024)
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Mobile Tech and Advertising Options Grow
July 7, 2010
This summer has featured the release of the iPhone 4 and a wave of new Android phones. Bruce examines the mobile marketplace and mobile ad platforms including Google, Apple iAd, the upcoming Windows Phone 7 and the fierce mobile advertising battle likely to come.
Mobile technology and marketing specialist Michael Martin then talks to Virginia about the changing mobile market, the options available to consumers and the opportunities opening up for marketers. The growing number of smartphone manufacturers is pushing mobile technology forward, giving strength to the marketplace. Advertisers are also able to benefit from the range of competitive ad solutions. And new technologies like location services are opening doors for advertisers to reach consumers in engaging ways.
Jessica, Susan and Virginia then critique a number of popular services which have undergone redesigns recently. Flickr’s overhaul highlights a photo’s capture location, improves the navigation and helps tell a story. Google Voice is now available to everyone, but it’s important for businesses to remember that the free service has no support. And Bing’s full-featured Entertainment vertical raises the question of whether improving niche verticals is a good strategy for a search engine that wants to build general search market share.


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The Canadiens should really think about selling Alexander Radulov wind-up toys.
tap here to see other videos from our team.
They’d be a big Christmas hit with kids — and maybe even some parents. All you’d have to do is wind the toy up and it watch it go, just like Radulov on the ice. The big Russian forward has quickly become one of the Canadiens’ most popular players, if not the most popular. Kids could even have fun putting in and taking out the toy Radulov’s front teeth, sort of like a Mr. Potato Head.
I’ll wait for my commission cheque if the Canadiens ever go ahead with the idea, but in the meantime some sick kids at the Montreal Children’s Hospital got to see the real-life Radulov up close Wednesday afternoon during the team’s annual Christmas visit.


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The UK’s landmark deforestation legislation could possibly be ineffective at stopping injury to vital ecosystems in its present kind, a brand new evaluation has concluded.
The federal government in November introduced new guidelines to forestall UK companies from utilizing commodities linked to unlawful deforestation abroad.
Worldwide atmosphere minister Lord Goldsmith stated the legislation represented an important step ahead in “shield[ing] the world’s valuable forests”.
However new evaluation from the environmental charity WWF discovered exemptions included within the new legislation imply it “might have a restricted affect” on curbing deforestation linked to UK provide chains.
One main purpose for that is


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News and Events
24 Mar 2015
China Pulp Summit Shanghai, China
Over 250 participants and executives from top mills witnessed the launch of Amazon’s new logo and toasted its 15th anniversary. CEO, Mike Grundy, gave the opening speech.
31 Dec 2014
15 Dec 2014
announcement - SCS
Amazon Papyrus Chemicals Ltd announces purchase of the assets of Specialty Chem Solutions Co Ltd. (SCS), in Thailand.
14 Aug 2014
Arab Paper Manufacturing Co. (Waraq) Startup New Machine PM3
On 13th July 2014, one of our key customers in Saudi Arabia, Arab Paper Manufacturing Co. (Waraq) started the commissioning for new machine (PM3) for liner and medium grade and celebrated with first paper roll


text:
Nokia will invest in California based imaging start-up Pelican Imaging. The company deals with camera array-type software and Nokia hopes this will bring further innovation to smartphone cameras.
Giveaway: Win the Logitech G910 Orion Spark mechanical keyboard!
Six Windows 10 features not available to Insiders... yet
All the latest on Windows 10 build 10041
windows 10 technical preview
Microsoft wants to turn Android phones into Windows 10 phones
LG Windows Phone mock-up
How to get Cortana working outside of the US in preview build 10041


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Latest Campaigns for Innocean
Australian Marine Conservation Society's ‘Fantastical Sharks & Rays’ exhibition via Innocean
Using children’s imaginations and iconic Australian artists.
Surfing Australia and 'She’s Electric' via Innocean
Leveraging LiveHeats performance data from Australian Boardriders Battles.
Fck The Cupcakes urges men to 'Be the Change' via Innocean Australia
The opportunity to enter the conversation and actively support women in all aspects of their life.
Hyundai takes to the air with Surfing Australia and Innocean
The Hyundai Electric Air Exhibition saw a branded blimp hover above a line-up of surfers in Newcastle.
Innocean and No Ugly team up to help Australians sleep better
The No Ugly ‘Lullabies’ campaign aims to put Aussies to sleep, by turning whatever’s keeping them awake at night into a tranquil lullaby.
Hyundai's new Palisade is 'Kidult' approved via Innocean Australia
In online channels, ‘Kidults’ were used to review the features and specs of the Palisade with honest appraisals.
Innocean's new team launches first work for Hyundai's Santa Fe
The campaign sees two bickering siblings instantly transformed into little angels complete with harps, singing Enya’s 80s classic Orinocco Flow.
Hyundai dips a toe into fashion world via Innocean Australia
The car company has teamed up with Australian fashion designer Emma Mulholland to celebrate its new Veloster.
Kia's new Sorento Black Edition has the power to surprise
The national campaign, created by Innocean Australia, begins with an object rising up from a pool of black paint.


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Wow. The iPad has turned out to be way more successful than I expected it to be. Apple has announced today that it has sold its two millionth iPad. Keep in mind that this milestone comes less than a month after the sale of the one millionth iPad and less than sixty days after the initial release of the iPad on April 3.
The iPad was released internationally and, according to Steve Jobs in a press release, “customers around the world are experiencing the magic of iPad, and seem to be loving it as much as we do.”
Apple has also announced that the App Store now has over 5,000 native iPad apps and over 200,000 apps total. Though Apple has not revealed specific sale figures for each of the iPad models or the number of iPads sold in specific countries, avid Apple watchers are hoping for such statistics at the Worldwide Developers Conference, coming up next month.
Via PC World, image via Apple.


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It’s that time of the year again. No, it’s not just summer again. Every PC gamer in the world looks forward to summer and winter as they prepare their wallets and bank accounts for the next Steam Sale. The starting date for the Steam Summer Sale 2018 has been leaked ahead of schedule and it’s only one month away.
The fact that the starting date has been leaked is not surprising, considering Valve never actually announces the dates for its different seasonal sales every year. Somehow, they are always leaked by someone, which Valve will then confirm by officially announcing the starting and end dates of those sales.
Steam Summer Sale 2018: When is it?
This time, it’s Steam Database, a third-party site which aims to provide “better insight into the applications and packages that Steam has in its database.” It broke the news via Twitter with a post which simply states, “Steam Summer Sale starts on June 21st.”
Steam Summer Sale: How long will it last?
The site didn’t reveal the end date for this year’s Steam Summer Sale 2018. However, last year’s sale began on June 22nd and ended on July 5th, 2017. Seeing as Steam Summer Sale 2017 lasted almost two weeks, it’s highly likely that this year’s sale will last around the same time frame, with a possible end date of July 4th, 2018.
According to VG247, game developers are often given the heads up on when each sale will begin. This is to avoid discounts to overlap if the developers are planning to introduce their own. As such, it’s safe to assume to that leaked starting date for the Steam Summer Sale 2018 to be true, or at least close to the actual date.
In other related news, Valve recently clarified that Steam Machines and Steam OS aren’t dead yet, despite the apparent removal of the links to Steam Machines from the front navigation page of the Steam Store. The games giant is still working hard to make “Linux operating systems a great place for gaming and applications.”


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Apple has failed in its bid to get Samsung's
popular smartphones banned from the US for alleged patent
Judge Lucy Koh, who is overseeing the patent court battle between the two tech giants, rejected Apple's bid for an injunction on the 26 Samsung products, saying that the patent infringements were only a minor part of the Samsung technology and did not merit a blanket ban, the San Jose Mercury News reported Tuesday.
"The phones at issue in this case contain a broad range of features, only a small fraction of which are covered by Apple's patents," Koh wrote in her ruling issued late Monday night. "The public interest does not support removing phones from the market when the infringing components constitute such limited parts of complex, multi-featured products."
Koh's ruling follows a jury decision in August which ordered Samsung's to pay 1.05 billion dollars for infringing on Apple's patents.
But she rejected Samsung's call for a new trial based on an alleged juror misconduct request, amid allegations that the jury foreman failed to reveal his previous participation in patent cases.
The ruling is by no means the end of the long-running patent saga which has seen the two companies face off in courts around the world.
Apple and Samsung are both expected to appeal Monday's ruling and have prior motions asking for adjustments to the damages. Apple has also filed a second patent case against Samsung alleging that the company's newer phones also use proprietary Apple technology.
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Microsoft turns on the heat on Google with 'Googlighting' ad
February 22, 2012
The war between Microsoft and Google is heating up, and a new ad shows just how vigorously Microsoft plans to defend its ...
Samsung’s Series 8: Just not worth it!
June 28, 2011
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Over 195 million tablets were sold worldwide in 2013.
Windows 8 preview
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In the highly uncertain business climate caused by Covid-19, The Travel Corporation (TTC) has come out to declare that the company and its portfolio of 40 travel brands are in a strong state of financial health with its US$300 Million Peace of Mind Promise.
While the privately-owned TTC is not obligated to release information around the financial status of the business, the company recognises that "these challenging times call for transparency and the reassurance of TTC’s current financial strength and integrity".
To give clients the comfort in knowing that the organisation is highly solvent, TTC has decided to "share tangible financial information so that agents are fully aware that their clients’ monies and future travels are safe", it said in a press statement.
Among the group of TTC brands is the five-star Red Carnation Hotels (RCH), which owns 14 properties across prime locations around the world, including the highly anticipated opening of the Xigera Safari Lodge. RCH is audited by the international accountancy firm, Mazars, which confirms that the company has unencumbered fixed assets in excess of US$300 million as of December 31, 2019.
“As The Travel Corporation celebrates our 100th year anniversary, we continue to be a very stable and solvent company. Our Peace of Mind Promise gives the reassurance to our loyal travel advisors and their clients that their monies for future travel are safe and this goes beyond our commitment to having a memorable holiday with us,” said Brett Tollman, chief executive of The Travel Corporation.
“The guest experience is always at the heart of TTC and we have further enhanced our well-being protocols and added our brand-new Well-being Director positions as we look forward to warmly welcoming back each and every guest on a future trip,” he concluded.
In response to clients’ needs for more flexible booking options in a post-Covid-19 world, TTC has implemented a refundable US$99 deposit, which allows guests to secure the trip they want without risk. Customers are allowed to make free changes up and until 30 days prior to travel, and if they opt to do so they can choose new dates and/or a new destination without penalty on the land portion of their trips.


text:
Korean memory master Hynix has squeezed the size of its NAND transistors all the way down to a piddly 20nm, and the semiconductor firm says flash chips based on the new tech are already in the mass production phase.
Hynix isn't the first memory maker to jump on the 20nm train; its fellow South Korean rival Samsung announced it was sampling its first 20nm chips back in April. However, Hynix says it first started developing the technology back in February 2009, and this is the first news we've had about mass production of 20nm NAND chips.
According to Hynix, the intricately engineered chips are currently being pressed at its 300mm fabrication plant in Cheongju. Like Samsung, the top capacity of the new chips is 64Gb (8GB), providing double the capacity of Hynix's current 32Gb (4GB) chips, which are fabricated on a 30nm process.
The company's executive vice president and chief technology officer, Dr S. W. Park, says the chips will be mainly targeted at mobile devices, including smartphones and tablet PCs.
In addition to the memory, Hynix has also announced a deal with Israeli NAND specialist Anobit, which sees Anobit providing a controller for Hynix's NAND memory. According to Hynix, the resulting combination is a reliable storage system that's also "high speed". The controller will be paired up with Hynix's current 30nm NAND chips initially, but will be partnered with the 20nm chips when they're available.
Hynix's new 20nm NAND chips are scheduled to become available in September 2010.


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Anne Boden, Rishi Khosla, Mark Zuckerberg and more.
The last 12 months have been a whirlwind of change and development in the worlds of fintech and alternative finance.
Here are eight quotes which capture the good, the bad, and the ugly of fintech in 2019.
It’s a cheap shot to point the finger at Facebook and Libra, but no project has garnered more attention for the crypto sector while at the same time flailing so spectacularly from the word go.
“Libra's mission is to create a simple global financial infrastructure that empowers billions of people around the world. It's powered by blockchain technology and the plan is to launch it in 2020,” wrote Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg announcing Libra.
Zuckerberg’s inaugural post on the project is now a bizarre time capsule, blissfully unaware of how incredibly quickly the project would descend into congressional hearings and abandonment by its founding members.
Speaking of the US, Former White House small business advisor Karen Mills had some wise words earlier this year on America’s lack of awareness on issues around fintech.
“The UK and Europe are ahead of the US, making it clear that customers own their banking data and can designate it to be available to a third party,” she said.
“Open data and open banking are important so that data streams are available to multiple financial institutions and entrepreneurs who could provide new products and services. We have a long way to go in Washington to be fully engaged and intelligent about these issues.”
Her comments certainly came to fruition as a host of UK fintechs took the fight to America in 2019.
Monzo’s attempt to launch a premium subscription service akin to Revolut ended in September with the surprise announcement that not only would Monzo Plus be shut down, but the entire team would be replaced.
“We’re going back to basics and starting from the beginning,” wrote Product Marketing Manager Tom Davies.
“While we are fortunate to see our customer base growing faster than ever, it’s important we take steps now to ensure we’re moving towards becoming a sustainable business.”
“2018 was our busiest year yet - our total loan book across business and property grew from £852 million at the end of 2017, to £2.2 billion by the end of 2018, and we had over £400m of repayments. To date, we’ve still not had a single default,” he said in March.
Unfortunately the words would come back to haunt him in December as the profitable lender revealed the first two defaults on its books.
"Open banking has not taken off yet, not because big banks are actively blocking it but due to huge organisational complexity, and ultimately the ability to transform is not there in mainstream banking."
Nearly 9 months later her words still ring true, although we’ll have to see if the tide turns for Open Banking in 2020.
"2018 was another strong year of growth for Metro Bank as we continued to invest in both new stores and digital capabilities to win customers, deposits, assets and to create FANS.”
Read more: Metro Bank CEO stands down
One of the greatest trends of 2019 was the growing popularity of profit within the fintech sector—a word that just a year earlier was barely spoken about.
“Investors will, and should, back companies with viable business models, enabling growth. But downturns separate the wheat from the chaff, and fintechs will need to prove their ability to deliver more than just user growth. They’ll need to be judged on something more meaningful, like, I don’t know… profit?”


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All 7-Eleven stores in the Philippines will start selling Bitcoin (BTC) to users. In this way, individuals interested in entering the crypto market would be able to do so in a fast and easy way at any of these stores. The information was released by Abra in a blog post on September 18.
7-Eleven Stores To Start Selling Crypto
According to a recent blog post released y Abra, they announce a new partnership with ECPay in order for Abra users in the Philippines to add funds to their wallets. In order to do so, individuals will be able to go to any of ECPAY’s 6,000 retail outlets in the country, including 7-Eleven stores.
The main goal is to help users have easier access to the crypto market and purchase Bitcoin using cash in a fast and innovative way.
Abra explained about this new partnership:
“Converting fiat currency to bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies just got a whole lot easier. Now from any 7-Eleven store in the Philippines, anyone with an Abra wallet can convert cash to crypto in a few easy steps.”
In order to do so, users will have to locate a CLIQQ kiosk inside 7-Eleven stores in the country or download the CLIQQ mobile app. Users will also have to find the Abra option under the “Bills Payment” category and fulfil all the requested fields.
After it, individuals will have to add the amount to deposit in the Abra wallet. The minimum deposit is currently PHP500 (~$9.57), and the maximum amount is PHP 100,000 (~$1,913) per day. Each transaction has a 2% commission.
The funds will be added in one or two business days and it would allow Abra users to directly purchase Bitcoin through the application.
Abra has also informed that they are going to be announcing new exciting things in the coming weeks with the goal of “making money easier.”
As we reported a few days ago, two popular Lithuanian chains are starting to sell coupons that would allow users to exchange them for Bitcoin through an online platform. Individuals can simply pay with euros to have access to the cryptocurrency market at every single Lithuanian Press kiosk or Narvesen stores.
Paris Tabacs were among the first shops around the world selling Bitcoin to users in the form of coupons or tickets. The firm behind this initiative is the French group Keplerk.


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Which is the most beautiful and which is the least?
Beauty has long been a coveted title among the wealthy, with the average American spending around $1,300 on cosmetics each year.
But, according to a new survey, that number is set to drop in the coming years.
In fact, a new study by global research firm Lux Research finds that by 2033, the average US citizen will spend less on beauty than in 2010.
The study, which polled more than 1,000 people in 20 countries, finds that, by 2034, the majority of people will be spending less on cosmetics.
That will likely be because of advances in technology and new treatments, said Lux Research chief economist Roberta A. Stauffer.
The report’s authors noted that in the past, the perception of beauty was often based on appearance alone, with cosmetics viewed as something you could buy on the supermarket shelf.
In a new era, however, it’s becoming easier for people to see beauty in its broader context of wellness and wellness-related products.
“A lot of people are choosing to spend less,” said Stauff.
“The trend for consumers to buy healthier, more environmentally friendly products, including a healthy diet and lifestyle, is certainly a positive one.”
More than two-thirds of respondents in the Lux Research survey said that they had spent less on makeup in the last year.
“A lot more people are looking to invest in healthier and more sustainable ways of living,” said Elizabeth Schoen, Lux Research director of product innovation.
According to Lux Research, the trend towards spending less has not only affected the cost of cosmetics but also the health of the planet.
“While the trend toward healthier eating and lifestyle is helping people live longer, it is also affecting the planet’s water supply,” said Schoen.
“More people are also investing in sustainable manufacturing.”
The Lux Research report was published in the latest issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.
It examines trends in spending and spending habits, and looks at trends in the consumption of products, cosmetics and health.
- When you need to find the perfect dress for your wedding: the natural beauty quotes
- Why you should be on Twitter, according to the “Beauty of Beauty” author
- How to create a beautiful crazy lyric in your music
- How to find and edit your favorite GIFs on Instagram, YouTube, and Facebook
- How to Find the Best Black Women to Watch


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Backers of Bitcoin (BTC) have frequently touted it as a perfect safeguard against inflation, based on the belief that traditional fiat currencies will inevitably lose value due to excessive money printing by central banks.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, money supply increased in the economy as the governments created stimulus programs for their respective citizens. By June 2020, McKinsey Global reported that $10 trillion had been provided to avert the worldwide crisis. With increased money supply and production in most companies grounded, money lost much value.
Unlike fiat currencies, though, Bitcoin operates on a fixed supply of 21 million coins, and this restricted upper limit grants it a significant advantage in combating inflation. Yet, the question remains: Can Bitcoin genuinely be considered inflation-proof?
What’s inflation, and what’s its rate in the UK?
Inflation is an increase in consumer goods prices, where the currency shades off its value over time.
But the concept of cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, which have limited supply, is to beat inflation. As a result, these digital currencies often exhibit low inflation rates, setting them apart from traditional fiat currencies. In particular, Bitcoin is a prime example of the unique inflation dynamics.
Currently, in the UK, the country is yet to recover from the highest inflation rate in 40 years, which peaked in October 2022. There is a small relief as commodity prices attempt to stabilise, with the annual inflation rate declining to 7.8% during the 12 months leading up to April 2023, showing a decrease from the peak of 8.9% recorded in March 2023. Despite this modest improvement, inflation remains a significant concern for the UK economy.
Gas prices saw their first decrease since October 2020, dropping by 1% between March and April of this year, following a 66.8% increase between the same two months a year ago.
The gas prices alleviated some pressure on other sectors, resulting in the annual inflation rates for housing, water, electricity, gas, and other fuels falling to 7.3% in April 2023, down from 11.6% the previous month. House price growth also slowed, but private rental prices rose by 4.8% in April 2023, up from 4.7% in March 2023, representing the largest annual percentage change since this UK series began in January 2016.
Hedging Against Inflation
As cash loses value, you don’t want to hold onto it as you would lose your savings. You are inclined to put your money somewhere there’s a promise of better returns, like gold, real estate, stocks, and crypto. You do so to protect the purchasing power of your money. This action is what we call hedging against inflation.
But in an inflationary environment, hedging is not an easy feat.
As a store of value, the asset should lose value over time, and it should be accessible but scarce and durable.
Over the years, most people have used stocks, real estate, and precious metals (physical gold and silver), which all share these properties. But so do cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin.
While these traditional hedging commodities (gold, real estate, and stocks) have helped, they have had their limitations. Gold and silver are less dependable for short-term investors, and 2021 showed them consistently decrease in value.
Real estate is not a bed of roses, either. Converting your real estate investment into cash is not as easy, and holding onto them is also costly, with ongoing responsibilities like taking care of the property. While investing in stocks requires advanced financial knowledge and skills, which most regular people don’t have.
Cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin could be a perfect solThat’s why many are turning to cryptocurrencies as a hedge against inflation.
Another point is that central authorities still influence traditional assets like gold, silver, and fiat money, making them vulnerable to biases and external pressures. Governments can manipulate their price outcomes with the push of a button.
Is Bitcoin a good inflation hedge?
An effective hedge against inflation should possess four crucial properties:
Bitcoin outperforms stocks and real estate as an inflation hedge due to its low maintenance requirements. Besides, anyone, including staying-at-home moms, can invest in Bitcoins as it doesn’t need specific skills or expertise.
Bitcoin is a perfect store of value because of its ability to outwit inflation. Its limited supply, with a cap of 21 million coins, and slowing production rates over time, makes it scarcer than even gold. With a vast network of nodes worldwide, it is resistant to external attacks and ensures its limited supply remains intact.
Another important factor is that no one controls Bitcoin, not even its pseudonymous founder Satoshi Nakamoto. So, users have little to worry about the government or any central authority controlling its supply. It self-regulates, maintaining its decentralised and resilient nature.
How inflation impacts Bitcoin prices?
Bitcoin’s value has grown faster than inflation, so many see it as a way to protect themselves against inflation. But each person may have different goals, like making money, increasing their wealth, or using it as a safe place to store their value.
The remarkable rise in Bitcoin prices shows that the value stored in this cryptocurrency has increased more quickly than inflation. Even in 2021, a relatively calm year for Bitcoin, its value grew by 59.8%, much better than inflation rates in many countries.
When their traditional currencies lose value in economies facing challenges, people often turn to Bitcoin to safeguard their savings, increasing the demand for Bitcoin and driving up its price. So, it’s a popular choice for protection against currency devaluation.
How to Buy Bitcoin and Other Cryptocurrencies
Beyond serving as a store of value, cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin offer opportunities for profit through forex trading, similar to traditional currencies.
Cryptocurrency trading, facilitated by brokerage platforms, involves the buying and selling digital currencies on an exchange.
Using leveraged derivatives called CFDs (contracts for difference), you can buy or sell based on your expectations of price movements. Also, you can select from a diverse range of cryptocurrencies, open a CFD trading account, analyse the market for trading opportunities, effectively manage risks, and actively monitor and close their positions. You can learn more about this at TradingGuide.co.uk.
How Bitcoin Performs as a Hedge against Inflation
If Statistics is anything to go by, so far, so good for Bitcoin. The leading digital currency has exemplary results against inflation, much better than gold, and much of this is due to its underlying strength - scarcity and decentralisation.
Even as you use Bitcoin as a hedge against inflation, you should look out for extraneous factors like the regulatory environment. Some countries have tried to fight the digital currency by banning it, but it still stands.
Bitcoin is the best store of value because, like gold, it is widely accepted, highly liquid, scarce, easily divisible, and portable, and no central authority controls it. So instead of watching as inflation makes you lose the value of your savings, invest in Bitcoin and watch your investment grow.


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The long-term challenge for ready meal brands has been to persuade consumers that their products have strengths other than just convenience. This brief outlines the most important trends impacting the ready meal.
Ethnic/Traditional Snacks Market in Brazil to 2016
The report presents data on consumption trends in the Ethnic/Traditional Snacks category in Brazil, analysing consumption volumes and values. It includes data on distribution channels, company profiles and latest industry news.
Heinz stunned the global food industry with news it had agreed to a US$28bn takeover offer from Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway fund and private-equity firm 3G Capital - purported to be the largest-ever deal in the sector. Dean Best looks at what could lie ahead for the US food giant.


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Gridserve has announced partnerships with big name retailers ahead of completing in November its first high-powered EV charging forecourt near Braintree, Essex.
Brands including WH Smith, Costa Coffee and Booths will join forces at the charging station, while the firm has also struck agreements with the likes of the AA, Tesla and vehicle leasing firm Hitachi Capital.
The Electric Forecourt will allow 30 electric vehicles to charge simultaneously. Swiss-Swedish technology giant ABB will provide 24 high-power chargers, suitable for all EVs currently on the market. Of the 24 chargers, 12 deliver up to 90kW, the other 12 deliver up to 350kW. The remaining six are Tesla superchargers.
The site has a 6MWh battery storage system that can store up to 24,000 miles of charge from the grid. This allows the site to store energy while it is at its cheapest and provide it to EVs during the day at lower cost to customers, according to Gridserve. The site also has a 5MW bi-directional grid connection.
Gridserve has a £1bn plan to roll out more than 100 sites over the next five years, with Hitachi Capital and Innovate UK providing some funds. Planning applications for two sites in Uckfield and Norwich East have been submitted.
Gridserve also develops standalone battery storage and hybrid solar storage parks. it recently acquired the UK’s first subsidy-free solar farm, the Clayhill Solar Farm in Bedfordshire from Anesco to ensure that the energy used at the Braintree site comes from a zero-carbon source.
Meanwhile, it plans to work with Hitachi Capital to provide EV infrastructure and generation solutions where required to its corporate customers under a Hitachi banner.


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One of the Philippines largest conglomerates and the country’s biggest fast food company, Jollibee Foods Corporation (JFC), and its foundation are pledging P30 million for the relief and rehabilitation efforts in various communities in the Central Philippines affected by super typhoon Yolanda.
According to the statement released by Jollibee, around 300 employee volunteers from its various business units have been mobilized to (–foul word(s) removed–)ist the Department of Social Welfare and Development in repacking relief goods tomorrow, November 14, 2013.
The biggest fast food chain in the country, Jollibee have already provided in-kind donations, such as 600 sacks of rice, ready to eat meals and other Jollibee products, to more than 20,000 survivors and volunteers.
The company headed by Tony Tan Caktiong has also partnered with Air21 and NMC Shipping Line to transport relief goods like canned goods, bottled water and instant noodles, among others to the thousands of victims caused by devastation brought by Typhoon Yolanda.
The JFC Group includes Jollibee, Chowking, Greenwich, Red Ribbon, Mang Inasal and Burger King Philippines. Jollibee Foods started with just 5 branches during the year 1978, but right now, Jollibee grew to a strong network of 801 stores in the Philippines, and 95 stores internationally. In total Jollibee has 896 stores worldwide as of November 2013 and continue counting.


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The Ghana Tourism Federation (GHATOF) has organized the first in a series of training/sensitization programme on the 1% Tourism Levy for players within the hospitality and tourism industry.
The training which was held at the Coconut Grove Regency Hotel in Accra, also focused on ensuring safety and security and improving the quality of service delivery in the industry. Established in 2012, the tourism levy is mandated to be paid by tourists who patronize tourism or related services such as, hotels, restaurants, clubs, pubs, car rentals amongst others.
The levy which goes into the Tourism Development Fund is meant to go into the eventual growth and development of the sector. While many of the establishments who are mandated by the Ghana Tourism Authority to collect the levy on their behalf have over the years tried their possible best to do so, there are others who continue to default in the exercise.
It is in light of this, according to the President of GHATOF, Okatakyie Nana Anim I that his outfit is embarking on the nationwide sensitization programme for members to be equipped with the relevant information and the know-how to be able to collect the levy. He said GHATOF as the umbrella body for private sector trade associations within the tourism and hospitality would continue to be the main vehicle that drives the industry.
Nana Anim said GHATOF will work closely with the sector ministry and its agencies and other stakeholders to bring the needed growth to the sector.
Chairman of the occasion, who is the Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Tourism Development Company Mr. Kojo Antwi said he was delighted his office could be part of the process to train and sensitize industry players, stating that it was imperative that such programmes, frequently to help build the capacities of participants.
His colleague, Mr. Akwasi Agyemang, Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Tourism Authority made a case for the improvement of service delivery as a means advancing the hospitality sector. He urged participants to take advantage of the training to abreast themselves of best customer care practices in order to maximize customer satisfaction which will in turn grow their businesses.
Launching the training program, Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture, Hon. Mrs. Catherine Afeku reminded the industry players of the potential of the tourism sector for which reason all hands must be on deck to help boost it. She stressed that the sector has the ability to ‘’change the dynamics of job creation in the country.’’ According to her, in the face of constant global economic downturns, tourism is the only sector which is ‘’recession proof.’’
She said stakeholders must work together to elevate the status of the tourism and the hospitality industry in the country. On the levy, she opined that it was crucial to ‘’spread the net of the 1% Tourism Levy,’’ in order to bring in the needed revenue to support the industry. Hon. Afeku urged GHATOF to support small businesses engaged in the sector to grow. ‘’I entreat GHATOF to provide the needed support to the smaller business; hotels, motels – it is the smaller ones that are promoting domestic tourism,’’ she indicated.
The training, had sessions on the 1% Tourism Levy which saw the Fund Manager of the Tourism Development Fund, Prince Yaw Essah take participants through the modalities of by which the levy is collected. A lecturer at GIMPA, Dr. Mensah Ansah took the gathering through Customer Service and how it can be enhanced. There was also a presentation on ensuring safety and security at tourism and hospitality facilities for patrons.
The nationwide sensitization programme is being put together in partnership with GTA and GTDC and it is under the auspices of the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture. The next edition takes place in Cape Coast on July 27.


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Although most people associate lobster with higher-end dining and special occasions, Chef Marc Forgione isn’t letting that pinch his plans to bring it to a fast casual setting.
Forgione recently opened The Lobster Press in a new food hall, called The Pennsy, in New York City, where he’s serving a hot lobster panini, based off a popular Chili Lobster dish served at his higher-end establishment, Restaurant Marc Forgione in Tribeca. His menu at The Lobster Press includes fresh tail, knuckle and claw meat sandwiched between buttered Grandaisy Ciabatta bread. He pairs it with a side of Chili Lobster dipping sauce for dunking, similar to that of a French press.
“Even though we’re using a high-priced item like lobster, we’ve figured out a fun and creative way to use the whole animal, in soups, the sauce, the sandwich, so that the price of our sandwich is competitive with other vendors in the Pennsy,” said Forgione, who plans to add another location downtown. “It’s a perfect example of tail to claw cooking. And so far it’s been very well received.”
The lobster is hand-picked every morning off the coast of Maine, which means the price fluctuates at market price. Right now the Lobster Press is $17, and The Press Box is $21.
Forgione also offers a sandwich called The Chance that doesn’t contain lobster, priced at under $14.
Other menu items include:
Coconut Lobster Bisque
Da Dip (grilled cheese with a side of the lobster sauce dip)
Rye (expect to see a cold fried chicken too!)
Chili Lobster Salad with arugula, local vegetables, wonder grain sorghum (gluten-free)
The Press Box which is a Lobster Press with pickled veg and kettle chips
Drinks, which include fresh-pressed juices, seasonal lemonade tea
Lobster offerings at limited-service concepts have doubled
Forgione isn’t the first to serve lobster in a less expensive way, according to Mintel Menu Insights, which reports lobster offerings at limited-service concepts have doubled over the past 12 months and often served as bite-sized pieces in sandwiches, soups and pasta dishes. According to Technomic’s MenuMonitor database, lobster has increased 2.7 percent at fast casual restaurants in a year-over-year comparison with an average price of $14.46. It’s growing most as an appetizer/starter in that segment with 52.4 percent growth in a year-over-year comparison, said Technomic’s Rachel Royster.
“It also grew 0.4 percent at quick-service restaurants, with an average price of $14.65, growing mostly in entrées at 1.7 percent,” she said. “Just for comparison, it is trending down 4.3 percent at full-service restaurants, with an average price of $22.65. I think it’s safe to say that we have a growing trend in limited-service restaurants at a lower price point.”
In good company
The Lobster Press is in good company, said Mindy Armstrong of Food IQ, who pointed out that Lobster Joint in Brooklyn and the Red Hook Lobster Pound Food Truck in NY charge $17 to $18 for lobster rolls. The East Hampton Sandwich Co. in Dallas offers a version for $16, while the Woodhouse Fish Co., in San Francisco, is selling one for $21. Captain D’s, last year, even featured lobster bites as a limited-time offer.
Armstrong believes these offerings have set a precedent for other fast casual brands to deliver the premium treat for about $17, which isn’t a lot higher than the $7 to $13 price range that fast casual consumers already accept.
“Some of the best lobster rolls around can be found off of a truck, from a kiosk or in a restaurant off the docks on the east coast,” Armstrong said. “That’s even more limited than fast casual. Lobster may be seen as a luxury, a treat or an indulgent choice, but if I could get one easily, that delivered on the premium quality and fresh flavor I would expect, I’d get it.”


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Chevrolet Volt has been a admirable and fairly successful first attempt by GM. By they weren’t content with what they’d achieved and kept busy studying the car in the past three years, so they can come up with something even better for the Volt 2.0. Those studies culminate in what Chevy calls the “Voltec Drive Unit”.
That is propulsion system that will power the 2016 Chevrolet Volt, set to debut at the Los Angeles Auto Show. It is basically the same range-extended electric drivetrain as the old Volt, but thanks to a range of modifications and enhancements, it operates approximately 5 to 12 percent more efficiently and weighs 100 pounds (45 kg) less than the current system.
2016 Chevrolet Volt comes with an all-new, high-efficiency 1.5L 4-cylinder engine that acts only as a range-extender – essentially a generator – and features a new battery pack with revised cell chemistry. The new technology has allowed the engineers to increase the capacity of the pack by 20 percent while reducing the number of cells from 288 to 192, thus making it lighter by 30 pounds (13 kg).
“It would have been simple for us to tweak our existing battery to provide nominally increased range, but that’s not what our customers want,” aid Larry Nitz, executive director of GM Powertrain’s electrification engineering team. “So our team created a new battery system that will exceed the performance expectations of most of our owners.”


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Google’s driverless taxis will soon take to the streets after being given the green light in Arizona.
Waymo, parent firm Alphabet’s self-driving car unit, will launch a commercial ride hailing service similar to Uber’s, using the automated technology.
Its first publicly-available service is expected to be unveiled in Phoenix later this year after the state gave the plans the go-ahead.
Google’s driverless taxis will soon take to the streets after being given the green light in Arizona. Waymo, parent firm Alphabet’s self-driving car unit, will launch a commercial ride hailing service similar to Uber’s using the automated technology
The launch comes after Arizona’s department of transportation approved Waymo’s application to become a transportation network company.
Waymo’s application was based on the autonomous Chrysler Pacifica minivans the firm has been testing in five US states.
The company has been trialling a self-driving car service in Phoenix since April 2017, which lets passengers hail cars through an app for free.
With the application’s approval, Waymo can now start charging for the rides.
First to use the new service will be those who are already part of this public trial.
‘As we continue to test drive our fleet of vehicles in greater Phoenix, we’re taking all the steps necessary to launch our commercial service this year,’ a Waymo spokesman said in an emailed statement to Quartz.
While Waymo will not run the world’s first autonomous taxi service – an accolade snatched by Singapore firm nuTonomy in 2016 – the company will operate the United States’ first commercial self-driving cab fleet.
Waymo’s vehicles in Phoenix have already driven more than four million miles (6.4m km) on public roads.
Waymo also began testing its self-driving service in Atlanta, Georgia, in January making it the 25th US city Waymo has tested its service in.
Among other cities the service is being tested are San Francisco, California, Detroit, Michigan and Kirkland, Washington.
The news comes after Waymo announced in January 2018 it was set to buy thousands more Chrysler Pacifica hybrid minivans.
The firm initially invested in a fleet of 600 of the minivans to carry out testing in five states.
The new deal, made between Google’s parent company Alphabet and Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, will expand upon this.
Its first publicly-available service is expected set to be unveiled in Phoenix later this year after the state gave the plans the go-ahead. This image shows an interior view from the rear of the car that will be used, a modified Chrysler Pacifica
The self-driving, ride-hailing service says the additional vehicles will support Waymo as it expands to more cities across the US.
The number of purchased vehicles has not been disclosed by either party, nor has the value of the deal.
Fiat Chrysler’s recommended starting retail price for the 2018 Fiat Chrysler hybrid is set at $39,995 (£28,000).
If Waymo’s order is in the 1,000s, the deal is worth at least $40 million (£28 million).
The first deliveries are expected to start arriving at the end of 2018.
Waymo hopes the self-driving minivan that could revolutionise the way we travel. This image shows the automated vehicle being tested at the firm’s The Castle facility
During the demonstration test, the minivan moved out of the parking lot and the screen showed passengers an avatar of the van moving along the track
‘Our partnership with Waymo continues to grow and strengthen; this represents the latest sign of our commitment to this technology,’ Fiat Chrysler Chief Executive Officer Sergio Marchionne said in a statement in January.
According to Reuters, the deal could put pressure on Uber and General Motors to speed up their efforts to start their own self-driving, ride-hailing services.
Driverless cars such as Waymo’s automobile work using sensor technology to detect structures and obstacles.
Waymo uses LIDAR – light detection and ranging- sensor technology.
In LIDAR scanning, one or more lasers send out short pulses, which bounce back when they hit an obstacle.
These sensors constantly scan the surrounding areas looking for information, acting as the ‘eyes’ of the car.
HOW DOES WAYMO TEST ITS SELF-DRIVING CARS BEFORE PUTTING THEM ON PUBLIC ROADS?
Waymo built ‘Castle,’ a hidden mock city that can quickly be configured to test different scenarios.
It’s located north of the Merced metro area where the Castle Air Force Base used to be an has been rented by Google since 2014.
As part of the initial two-year lease, the firm rented 80 acres from Merced Country for $456,000, being paid in $19,000 monthly installments.
It has different driving environments including residential streets, expressway-style streets, cul-de-sacs, and parking lots.
The Waymo test site is located north of the Merced metro area, where the Castle Air Force Base used to be
At Castle, the roads are named after famous cars, such as DeLorean, Bullitt, Thunderbird, Fury, and Barbaro.
For the structured testing, Waymo looks at how self-driving cars perform on real roads to determine how they need to practice – then they build what’s required at Castle.
The fake city has no buildings except one – a converted military dorm Waymo employees sleep in when they’re too tired to make it back to San Francisco.
It’s hidden, and you need GPS coordinates to find it.
Castle is located north of the Merced metro area where the Castle Air Force Base used to be, 2.5 hours from the company’s headquarters. There, Waymo is testing several types of self-driving cars, including Chysler Pacificas minivans


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SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — iProcessing has announced the celebration of its ninth anniversary.
The company has been offering financial services to high-risk merchants and online adult companies since November 2008.
Working with hard-to-place merchants, iProcessing specializes in sales and service before and after the sale, including merchant account acquisition and management and payment gateway solutions. The company helps each business to determine the bank and payment solutions that are best for it.
Solutions include merchant accounts at unique banks that most do not have access to, both domestic and international.
Other solutions include multiple gateways, third-party processing options, ACH, European direct debit and mobile processing.
“I’m so proud to celebrate our ninth anniversary,” said iProcessing President Hilda Tuel, who founded the company in her home after a 14-year career as senior vice president of Humboldt Merchant Services.
“I remember starting out in my game room with the dark loom of the banking industry falling apart. But I moved forward, forged ahead and never looked back.”
Since the 1990s, Tuel has worked directly with online adult merchants and has gotten to know them, she said.
“My team and I work hard for our customers,” Tuel explained. “Their business is our business, and I want to thank them all.”
iProcessing has moved its corporate offices to Scottsdale, with three additional offices in Medford, Ore.; Eureka, Calif.; and Sacramento, Calif.


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BLACK BUSINESS EXPO USA
Presents The Black Business Expo Olympics Virtual Expo Week November 7 -15
BLACK BUSINESS EXPO USA is now calling for program proposals from industry leaders who are interested in sharing their knowledge of inspiring creativity, trends, and breakthroughs at BLACK BUSINESS EXPO USA 2020, which runs from seventh to fifteenth of November online. Proposals must be submitted by Saturday, 10 of October.
The Tag Line for this event will be “The Black Business Expo Olympics!” This will be a seven- day experience during black business week in November! We are planning for Over One Hundred Speakers over seven days with outstanding topics. This year we will include different perspectives of The State of Black Business in North Carolina, a national perspective from corporations, diversity inclusion speakers, government perspective of how to marketing to them and small business and entrepreneurship perspective point of views. Seven days of education, inspiration, motivation, connections, networking and sales! Fireside chats, seminars, and workshops, corporate, organizational and entrepreneur presentations and more.
We are accepting applications for speakers and companies to present their products and services during Black Business Week for more info. Call: 919-308-9090 or email email@example.com