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Due to the ongoing effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, most prognosticators were uncertain what trends we might see in 2021 regarding supply chain management.
While industries and economies across Canada have been slowly but surely reopening, COVID-19 is still raging and has significantly impacted many sectors, including supply chains.
But now, as we inch past the pandemic, we are starting to see specific supply chain trends evolving.
Gretchen Friedrich, with AFFLINK, notes that some trends “appear to be long-lasting” and will likely become core to supply chain management in the future.
Traditionally, distributors have not planned for major unforeseen events. Now, looking beyond COVID-19, manufacturers and distributors must become much more agile, willing, and able to make changes quickly so that they can respond to disruptions promptly.
Green logistics is here to stay; it benefits the environment and proves to be a cost saving while also promoting goodwill and brand loyalty. “Millennials look for companies that promote sustainability, and there are even studies suggesting sustainability-focused brands grow faster than those that are not,” notes Friedrich.
Blockchain technology is evolving, it is helping manufacturers and distributors deliver products faster and eliminate waste and fraud. Further, it is cost-effective and transparent. Supply chain managers find they can detect issues quickly using blockchain technology. This can be a significant cost saving and can improve customer satisfaction tremendously.
Internet of Things
“IoT is just starting to play a big role in distribution,” says Friedrich. It is being used in manufacturing and distribution to monitor products during shipment, send alerts when equipment needs maintenance, and track the speed, safety, and fuel efficiency of trucks.
Related to IoT is Machine Learning. This refers to the ability of machines to read, identify, and replicate procedures and patterns. It eliminates the need for employees to perform repetitive tasks, performing them faster with fewer errors.
With Blockchain, IoT, and Machine Learning, it may appear that the role of the individual and specifically the distributor is likely to be ending.
However, notes Friedrich, “we see just the opposite happening. Distributors proved themselves during the pandemic. End-customers relied on them more than ever before. We see this continuing.”


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Florida Citrus Commission Chairman Ned Hancock reports that the news continues to be positive on the retail sales front for orange juice.
“During this time of great uncertainty, Americans continue to seek out products they know and trust,” he said in an April 10 report to Florida citrus industry members. “Additionally, they are turning to items they know may help support a healthy immune system. For many, that means 100 percent orange juice.”
WHAT CONSUMERS ARE SAYING
Hancock says the Economic and Market Research Department at the Florida Department of Citrus (FDOC) recently added a new question to its monthly survey of American consumers to measure how COVID-19 concerns have altered their behavior when it comes to purchasing 100 percent orange juice.
“Nearly 40 percent of respondents indicated they have purchased more OJ recently, with over one-fifth of them indicating they purchased more OJ because it’s good for a healthy immune system and has vitamin C,” Hancock reports. “A small percentage indicated they have bought less OJ, and specifically noted it was due to decreased availability.”
RESPONDING TO CHANGES
According to Hancock, some retailers have placed a limit on the number of OJ containers each consumer can purchase. “Similar restrictions have been placed on other popular items to help retailers ensure more customers have access,” he explains. “For some items, this may be due to scarcity. For OJ, as reported by Commissioner Bill Poulton at (Florida Citrus) Mutual’s board meeting this week, it comes down to logistics. While supply of 100 percent orange juice is not an issue, moving the juice from processor to retailer takes time. Brands are replenishing store shelves as quickly as possible to meet the unexpected increase in demand.”
Due to these short-term constraints, Hancock says changes are being made on the FDOC marketing front. Since January, the FDOC’s e-commerce campaign has led to $2.2 million in attributed sales of 100 percent orange juice across Instacart, Walmart and Amazon.
“However, with demand high due to increased awareness, consumers are turning to orange juice of their own accord,” Hancock says. “The FDOC has adjusted its spend to extend the campaign into May and June. This allows the department to build off current momentum and ensure 100 percent orange juice remains relevant as consumers slowly return to their normal shopping patterns.”
To increase communication with the citrus industry, the FDOC is introducing a series of webinars.
On April 16 at 11 a.m., Jackie Hopkins with FDOC partner agency Edible will provide a live presentation on FDOC’s new marketing campaign using e-commerce as a way to drive OJ sales.
On April 30 at 11 a.m., Marisa Zansler, director of FDOC’s Economic and Market Research Department, will present the latest Nielsen retail sales data for the 4-week period ending April 11.
Details on how to access these webinars are available by clicking the hyperlinks above and at FDOCGrower.com.

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Laptops can help kids learn, voting machine security, algorithm to remove watermarks, Bing still going and strong, iOS 11 updates, anti-bullying AI not so good, and more with Miles and Lyle.
It was the year 2000 and Maine’s governor at the time, Angus King, was excited about the Internet. The World Wide Web was still relatively young but King wanted every student in the state to have access to it.
A recent international study by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development found no positive evidence of impact of educational technology on student performance.
Cybersecurity firm UpGuard has discovered that personal information from over 1.8 million Chicago residents was unintentionally exposed by voting machine supplier Election Systems & Software (ES&S). The backup files of voter data were found on an Amazon Web Services device and weren’t protected with a password.
Researchers at Google have found a vulnerability in the way watermarks are used by stock imagery sites like Adobe Stock that makes it possible to remove the opaque stamp used to protect copyright.
Watermarks are widely used by photographers and stock agencies to protect their digital property in an online world where very little stands between an eager image thief and your photography. However, even complex watermarks might not be as secure as you’d think when the same pattern is applied to a large number of accessible images.
We’ve known from Microsoft’s financial reports that Bing has been growing. The search engine became profitable in the third calendar quarter of 2015, and Microsoft says it has continued to grow both the market share and revenue-per-search since then.
Prevent your fingers from unlocking your iPhone when you’re in a sticky situation.
A video posted to YouTube by users EverythingApplePro yesterday shows a small $500 box unlocking an iPhone 7 locked with a short passcode. The box works on all iPhone 7 and iPhone 7+ models, as well as some iPhone 6 and 6S models and, unless you’re willing to wait an incredible amount of time, only works in a small subset of edge cases.
The culture of online civility is harming us all.
Your phone, TV, or connected device could become a sonar spy, as white hat hackers at the University of Washington give new meaning to bad music.


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Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) will start rewarding hackers through a bug-hunting scheme, which will encourage people to report security problems on Tesla’s website. The program is official on a crowdsourcing company website, Bugcrowd.com which has already reported 22 bugs found so far.
Based on the severity of the security vulnerability, the security researchers will be paid any amount between $25 and $1,000. According to a Forbes report, such bug hunting schemes are a common practice among several tech companies, such as Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG), Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB), which have previously awarded as much as $22,000 and $33,000 to hackers. Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) and AT&T are also amongst several companies which support reporting glitches for an exchange of prizes.
This bug bounty program is not new for Tesla Motors. Previously, the electric vehicle (EV) maker has been unofficially rewarding Hall of Fame perks to people uncovering security flaws. But this time the company wants to put it in a formal process.
"We are committed to working with this community to verify, reproduce, and respond to legitimate reported vulnerabilities. We encourage the community to participate in our responsible reporting process,” stated on Tesla Bugcrowd page.
People who want to participate for this program can report their identified security problems on tesla.com, and then wait for a “reasonable time” to allow the company to manage and fix the problem. The researchers are also asked not to disclose or share the reported glitch on public forums, until the company acknowledges the reported bug. Researchers are also asked to not access and change any of the data not belonging to them.
If hackers have found a security issue with Tesla vehicles, they are asked to report it at firstname.lastname@example.org. However the company has not mentioned any reward for this. As pointed out in a Forbes report, the bug bounty program does not yet include finding problems with Tesla vehicles, despite the company being informed about several issues with its EVs previously. Although Tesla Motors has not officially rewarded anyone pointing out security issues in its vehicles, a Chinese company, Qihoo 360, is known to have gotten $10,000 from Tesla for winning an informal hacking challenge.
A few months back, Tesla Motors warned customers not to tinker with internal automotive features of its vehicles to ensure driver safety. For this, Tesla Motors just issued a warning, but other automakers, such as General Motors Company (NYSE:GM), with partnership of Auto Alliance, have found a way to legally challenge anyone who wants to change the code in their own vehicle.
As reported by Forbes, executive partner at Independent Security Evaluators, Ted Harrington proposed the idea for increased collaboration between hackers and auto manufacturers to ensure security of connected cars.
“With lives at stake, auto manufacturers in the era of the connected car should consider robust security assessment a business-critical mandate,” said Mr. Harrington.


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Green is the world
As of April 2009, Datamonitor found 458 launches of package-goods products that claim to be sustainable, environmentally friendly or 'eco-friendly.' If that pace holds all year, it will triple the number of green launches last year, despite the recession.
Monsanto hears 'nein'
German Agriculture Minister Ilse Aigner announced in April that the cultivation of MON 810, a GM corn produced by the American biotech giant Monsanto, will be prohibited in Germany, as will the sale of its seed.
Canada has a big "O"
Canada's Organic Products Regulations went into effect June 30. A new organic logo will be allowed on products that contain at least 95 per cent organic content. The regulations apply to both domestic and imported products.


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Apple fans and tech enthusiasts alike are eagerly anticipating the annual Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) that is set to take place in June 2023. This year’s event promises to be particularly exciting, as rumors are swirling that new Macbooks will be announced at the conference.
While Apple has not officially confirmed the announcement of new Macbooks, many experts in the industry believe that it is highly likely. In fact, it would be surprising if Apple did not release new Macbooks this year, given that the company has been releasing new models on an annual basis for several years now.
So, what can we expect from the new Macbooks that are rumored to be announced at WWDC 2023?
While there are no official details available, we can make some educated guesses based on past releases and industry trends.
First and foremost, it is likely that the new Macbooks will feature the latest and most powerful processors available at the time of release. Apple has been known to push the boundaries when it comes to processor technology, and we can expect nothing less from the company in 2023.
It is possible that the new Macbooks will feature improved displays, perhaps with higher resolutions or improved color accuracy. Apple has always been focused on delivering the best possible user experience, and an improved display would be a welcome addition for many users.
Another area where we might see some improvements is in the design of the new Macbooks. Apple has always been known for its sleek and stylish designs, and it is possible that the company will continue to refine and improve its aesthetic with the new models.
As more and more devices become wireless, it is possible that Apple will focus on improving its Bluetooth and Wi-Fi capabilities, or perhaps introduce new wireless protocols altogether.
With more and more people working remotely and relying on their laptops for extended periods of time, battery life is becoming an increasingly important factor in the decision to purchase a new laptop. Apple has already made strides in this area with recent models, such as the MacBook Air with M1 chip, which boasts an impressive battery life of up to 18 hours. It is possible that the new Macbooks will feature even longer battery life, thanks to advancements in battery technology.
Furthermore, Apple has been pushing the envelope in terms of environmental sustainability, and it is possible that the new Macbooks will feature improvements in this area as well. The company has committed to becoming carbon neutral by 2030, and has made significant strides in reducing its carbon footprint over the past several years. We may see new Macbooks with more environmentally-friendly materials, or with features that help users reduce their own carbon footprint.
In addition to the potential improvements in processors, displays, and design, there are several other areas where the new Macbooks could see upgrades. For example, Apple may introduce new features that take advantage of the latest advances in machine learning and artificial intelligence. We could see improvements in areas like voice recognition, image processing, and natural language processing.
Finally, it is worth noting that the new Macbooks may be accompanied by updates to Apple’s software and operating system. WWDC is traditionally a venue for Apple to announce updates to its iOS, macOS, and other software platforms, and it is likely that we will see some new features and improvements in these areas as well. These updates could include improvements to Siri, new privacy features, or updates to popular apps like Safari and iMessage.
All in all, there are many reasons to be excited about the potential announcement of new Macbooks at WWDC 2023. With improvements in areas like processors, displays, battery life, and sustainability, these new models could represent a significant step forward for Apple’s laptop lineup. And with the possibility of new software updates as well, it is shaping up to be an exciting time for Apple fans and tech enthusiasts alike.
Also Read: Best Green Technology Innovations in 2023


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Shift Changes: Furniture manufacturer brings jobs back to North Carolina, discusses success with President Obama
Yesterday, President Obama gathered about a dozen businesses and many more experts at the White House to strategize about bringing manufacturing jobs back to America. Bruce Cochrane, owner of Lincolnton Furniture was among the President’s guests, and Cochrane's company is a shining example of how it’s possible—and lucrative—to bring manufacturing jobs back to the U.S.
Cochrane recently invested $5 million in a Lincolnton, NC facility and plans to hire 130 workers to build middle-to higher-priced solid wood furniture in the same warehouse that his family once ran, reports the Charlotte Observer.
While many companies have viewed overseas operations as a cheap alternative to domestic manufacturing, business owners like Cochrane are beginning to take advantage of the benefits of domestic production—benefits that the Obama Administration wants to plans to promote.
“Cochrane, though, sees opportunity [in the U.S.]: He said labor costs are rapidly increasing in China, shipping costs have doubled, and the rising yuan has begun to eliminate many of the benefits that attracted furniture companies overseas.”
We’re pleased that the President chose to include a furniture manufacture like Lincolnton in yesterday’s forum, as the American furniture industry, the epicenter of which is located in High Point, NC, has long been a respected and job-creating industry for the U.S.
We hope that more manufacturers learn from Lincolnton’s positive experience with keeping their products manufactured domestically, and that “insourcing” becomes the new norm.
Click here to read more.
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MIDAS: Profits poised to soar at vet practice chain
We claim to be a nation of animal lovers and we certainly spend serious amounts of money on them, making sure they get the right food and pills for good health.
CVS Group is perfectly placed to benefit as it owns and manages vet practices across the UK. Formed with the purpose of creating a nationwide group of vets, it has 60 practices and 167 surgeries as well as a pet cemetery and four diagnostic laboratories.
Originally backed by private equity, CVS joined the Alternative Investment Market in 2007, since when it has delivered muscular growth, both organically and through acquisition. Sales in the year to June 2007 were £39million and this year turnover is expected to be £77million, rising to more than £90million in 2010. Profits in 2007 were £2.3million and should top £6million this year, increasing to at least £8million next.
Time to care: Pets like CVS because it reduces their administrative burden
Yet the share price has not done well. CVS shares floated at 205p and rose to more than 270p last year. Since then, they have fallen back to just 142p. The decline is largely due to concerns about the group's debt position. Capitalised on the stock market at £73million, CVS owes its banks £44million and some analysts worry this is too much.
These fears are almost certainly overdone. CVS generates plenty of cash and is perfectly capable of paying off its debts as they fall due. Customers pay vets immediately so there is little danger of the company running into cashflow problems.
In fact, chief executive Simon Innes and finance director Paul Coxon are sufficiently confident about the company's position that they believe they can continue to acquire practices out of existing cash.
Innes is an experienced operator. He was chief executive of optician group Vision Express from 2000 to 2004, during which time he transformed the company from a lossmaking business to one of the most profitable optician chains in the UK. Coxon, meanwhile, provides a steady hand on the tiller, having spent 19 years in finance and accounting.
CVS is not completely immune from the forces of recession. Some pet owners are grooming their animals less frequently or buying them fewer toys, but they are still extremely focused on pet health, often spending more money on their animals' wellbeing than their own.
Midas verdict: CVS Group still has less than eight per cent of the vet market for small animals but it is keen to grow and is well positioned to do so. Many vets prefer to devote their time to caring for animals rather than worrying about the administrative burdens associated with running a practice. CVS gives them this freedom and is the largest company in its sector. The more it grows, the more profitable it becomes and the more vets want to be a part of it. This virtuous circle has already begun and should gain momentum over the next few years. Also there is always the possibility of bid interest from overseas. Buy and hold.
MIDAS UPDATE: Drug trials could boost ImmuPharma
Immupharma was initially recommended by Midas in December 2007 when the shares were 70p. Now they are 831/2p, a rise of 19 per cent. The biotech company has several drugs in the pipeline, the most highly developed of which is called Lupuzor, designed to treat lupus.
Lupus is an extremely unpleasant disease in which the body attacks itself, causing inflammation, pain and organ damage. Often ultimately fatal, there is no cure yet and there are more than 1.5million sufferers worldwide. Lupuzor could offer much-needed relief but it is still being tested by regulators globally.
Testing drugs is a lengthy process, divided into three main phases. Lupuzor is in the second phase but it is expected to move into the third by the end of this year or early in 2010.
Early signs are encouraging, so much so that US pharmaceutical group Cephalon recently gave ImmuPharma $30million (£18.5million) as part of a licensing agreement, that will allow the American company to share in the profits generated by Lupuzor if and when it goes on sale. Cephalon has also agreed to pay for phase three trials and cover the costs of turning Lupuzor into a commercial product, which puts ImmuPharma in a much more financially secure position than most biotech stocks.
Biotech shares tend to move when news is released about their drugs. ImmuPharma should update the market about the phase two trials later this year and it should also have some information about a cancer drug undergoing early tests.
Looking further out, there should be steady newsflow about Lupuzor's progress through the regulatory system and if it is positive, ImmuPharma will receive further payments from Cephalon.
Midas verdict: ImmuPharma has done well for investors over the past 18 months. But most brokers believe the shares will continue to rise and could even double by next summer. Investors who bought at 70p should sell 25 per cent to take some profit but keep the rest. New investors might consider a punt at these levels.
ASK ANDY: Mothercare goes abroad to grow up fast
All the kit: World birth rates remain high
Declining birth rates are hitting the West. The UK is likely to escape this because of the level of immigration, but many countries on the Continent are effectively in decline. However, this is not true in places such as Asia and the Middle East, where birth rates remain high.
The United Nations forecasts that the world population will exceed nine billion by 2050, up from about 6.1billion now. That means there will be a lot of babies about who will need lots of kit.
Mothercare seems to have been around for ever, but it is only since the new management team arrived under Ben Gordon that the company has started to live up to its brand name.
In the UK the strategy has been to increase the size of the shops and migrate out of town. Bigger sites mean more of the range can be displayed.
More than half of the company's UK shops are coming to the end of their leases, which should lead to some interesting discussions with landlords, who will be desperate to hold on to Mothercare as a tenant --probably at a lower rent. The internet has been a big growth area for the company and 25 per cent of UK sales are now generated this way.
Half of the internet sales come from home computers with the other half being generated via the internet in the stores themselves.
The great thing about the internet is that space is limitless - for example, all the buggies in the range can be shown as opposed to just what might be expected to sell in the shops.
Used in this way, the internet is an effective form of market research as the information from what customers are ordering can be used to make sure the shops have the best-selling items in stock.
The UK has attractive growth characteristics, but it is overseas where this company could really generate some stellar earnings growth.
The model overseas is to operate outlets as franchises. All the sites have to be approved by the Mothercare management to ensure they are viable and the company plans to increase the size of the stores.
There are more than 600 overseas stores in countries including Australia, Dubai, India and China.
The plan is to open 100 more a year. This is attractive as Mothercare does not have to put up capital. The franchisee pays for the store and the fitting out. All goods are ordered through Mothercare, with the company taking a royalty on everything sold. This means the company can expand without tying up large amounts of capital and all the profits are cash.
In China, where Mothercare has two stores, the model is different. The company has a 30 per cent stake in a joint venture, but as it costs only £100,000 to open a store, the target of ten new ones this year will hardly be a drain on resources.
Mothercare is also developing a global internet platform that it hopes will replicate the success of UK internet sales in other countries.
In results just announced, profits rose by 12.4 per cent and the dividend was up by
20 per cent. Overseas sales account for 30 per cent of profits and I expect this to rise to 50 per cent within three to five years.
I bought the shares below 440p last week as there are not many companies with the growth opportunities that Mothercare has, both from opening stores and the expected increase in the customer base.
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A new all-in-one take on a cyclist’s interaction with the motorist has come to market in the form of the Hexagon from Smart Bike Systems.
Touted as a safety gadget, the Hexagon builds in a rear-facing camera that links via wifi to a handlebar mounted smartphone, enabling the rider to see in real time what’s approaching from behind without having to look over the shoulder. The unit also builds in turn signals, actuated via a handlebar-based remote, as well as an automatic braking signal. Should you feel like it, you can also live broadcast to friend’s smartphones or computers.
As well as offering a power-bank functionality, the Hexagon also builds in a crash sensor that will alert predetermined contacts from the riders phone in the event of any usual activity. Easily cancelled GPS coordinates are sent to the chosen contact in this eventuality.
Finally, the unit also captures some exercise data, including measuring calories spent and distance ridden.
Supplied with a 32Gb SD card, the unit will deliver four hours of video of photo playback in HD quality.
Vitorrio Brumotti, holder of 10 world
records as recognized by the Guinness Book of World Records, has become the brand’s main ambassador ahead of a marketing push through 2017.
The firm is now recruiting for a freelance PR manager ahead of a hard launch later this year. Those interested at present can buy the system on the firm’s website for $99. Retail price is likely to settle at $129 at a later date.


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MERRILLVILLE – Janice Ortbring has been named vice president and director of marketing at Centier Bank.
Ortbring bring more than 25 years of experience in developing marketing and advertising campaigns.
“I am thrilled to join the team at a well-established but growing organization at Centier Bank,” Ortbring said. “The bank has a unique brand that connects well with its audience, and I look forward to exploring new ways to introduce the products, services, and philosophy of what makes Centier unique to an ever-expanding footprint.”
Ortbring is a graduate of the College for Creative Studies in Detroit and was named one of Business Weekly’s 30 Most Influential Women.
Ortbring served on the Chelsea, Mich. Village Council for two terms and was elected for one term as a charter commissioner to work with eight other commissioners to write the new city charter for Chelsea, Mich.
Merrillville-based Centier Bank, which has $3.8 billion in assets, operates 59 locations mostly in Northwest Indiana and employs 800 people.


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We’re almost through the first quarter of 2021. How time flies! So, with spring here and summer beckoning, I want to look at some of my best stocks to buy now for the rest of the year. Also, I’d much rather do my research and buy the stocks now given the time I have available during lockdown. This also ties in with buying now ahead of the upcoming ISA allowance deadline.
A gamble or dead certain?
First up is Entain (LSE:ENT). It was previously called GVC Holdings, and is a company that owns gambling brands such as Ladbrokes and Coral. I think it’s a great stock to buy now based on recent news and share price performance. The stock is up over 300% in the past year.
Even with physical stores closed for much of the past year, full-year results showed that online sports and gaming growth beat the negatives. This allowed for 1% top line growth versus 2019.
Another positive story within the past week is the acceptance of a takeover bid by Enlabs. This deal will see Entain buy Enlabs for £316m, in what should be a good acquisition of a similar betting company.
The risk I see with the company is the potential drop in online revenue following lifting of lockdowns around the world. Even though physical stores can reopen, the risk is that foot traffic won’t be enough to counterbalance the fall in online numbers, leading to a fall overall.
Another top stock to buy now
The second company that I think is one of the best stocks to buy now is Kingfisher (LSE:KGF). Similar to Entain, it owns different brands under the corporate umbrella. These include B&Q and Screwfix. Share price performance has been impressive, up 156% over the past year.
I think the outlook is positive for the company, even despite the potential hit from lockdown easing. As I noted back in January, the business has seen a boom during 2020 thanks to all of us tackling more DIY projects and making home improvements. This drove double-digit sales growth in both Q3 and Q4.
Even though I do think easing lockdown will reduce demand slightly, I feel consumer mindsets will have changed having realised a lot of DIY jobs aren’t that hard (I’m speaking from experience here). Add into the mix the likely strong housing demand thanks to the stamp duty extension period, and I think Kingfisher will be a top stock to buy for the rest of the year.
One issue that Kingfisher need to monitor is operational performance with the brands (such as Castorama) within Europe. The company mentioned this in the full-year report that operations needed to be improved, particularly in France. The impact on distribution post-Brexit is also something that won’t be easy to adjust to.
Overall though, I think both Entain and Kingfisher are top stocks to buy now.
Cybersecurity is surging, with experts predicting that the cybersecurity market will reach US$366 billion by 2028 — more than double what it is today!
And with that kind of growth, this North American company stands to be the biggest winner.
Because their patented “self-repairing” technology is changing the cybersecurity landscape as we know it…
We think it has the potential to become the next famous tech success story.
In fact, we think it could become as big… or even BIGGER than Shopify.
jonathansmith1 has no position in any of the shares mentioned. The Motley Fool UK has no position in any of the shares mentioned. Views expressed on the companies mentioned in this article are those of the writer and therefore may differ from the official recommendations we make in our subscription services such as Share Advisor, Hidden Winners and Pro. Here at The Motley Fool we believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors.


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To help reduce range anxiety in the Mustang Mach-E, Ford has announced a new range estimator that more accurately predicts how much driving range drivers have. The Intelligent Range estimator uses data from past driving behavior, weather forecasts and crowdsourced data to more accurately predict how much range is left.
“Electric vehicle customers need to be able to trust their range estimates,” said Darren Palmer, Ford global director, battery electric vehicles. “People want to be confident they’re going to make it where they need to go, whether they’re on a road trip or coming home from work. Our new Intelligent Range feature helps ensure Mustang Mach-E owners around the globe know where they stand ahead of time, freeing them up to enjoy the ride.”
The Intelligent Range estimator calculates the range based on based on several conditions, like if its cold or hot weather or if the driver tends to drive more aggressively. The vehicle battery system reports how much energy is available, while the powertrain module tracks how much energy is being used. The system also keeps the driver updated about any notable changes.
Ford also plans to continuously update the Intelligent Range system through over-the-air updates.
If the Mustang Mach-E does happen to run out of charge, the Ford Roadside Assistance program will tow customers free of charge to where they want within 35 miles, like to their home or a public charger.


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Microsoft's $68.7 Billion Deal For Activision Approved In Another Country
The biggest acquisition in the history of video games--by far--has now been approved by South Korea.
Microsoft's blockbuster $68.7 billion deal to acquire Activision Blizzard has been approved in yet another region: South Korea. The country's Fair Trade Commission announced that it has cleared the deal. According to VGC, the approval was "unconditional."
GameSpot has contacted Microsoft to get more details on the reported clearing of the deal in South Korea. VGC reported that Microsoft and Activision Blizzard games are not very popular in South Korea relative to other parts of the world.
"And there are a number of popular game developers that competitors can deal with alternatively, so there is no possibility of foreclosure to exclude competing game service companies," a statement from the Fair Trade Commission said.
An Activision spokesperson said in a statement shared with GameSpot, "The world's most formidable gaming companies are based in Asia. Yet their home countries are allowing American companies to compete on a fair playing field, while regulators elsewhere seem to be helping market leaders enshrine their dominance. With its unconditional approval for our merger with Microsoft, South Korea joins dozens of other countries--including China and Japan--in welcoming more competition and consumer benefits in the growing gaming industry."
Microsoft's proposed acquisition of Activision Blizzard has been approved by South Korea's Fair Trade Commission. South Korea is the 38th country to support the deal https://t.co/6jVD6r47KZ pic.twitter.com/RwsFt8BLKD— Tom Warren (@tomwarren) May 30, 2023
The European Union cleared the deal earlier in May, a move that was expected. What Microsoft was not expecting, though, was how the UK's Competition & Markets Authority blocked the buyout over concerns around the cloud gaming market.
Microsoft and Activision Blizzard are appealing that decision, and Activision Blizzard has hired the lawyer who represented the Queen and Princess Diana.
Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer has said the company does not need to acquire Activision Blizzard to deliver on its ambitions in the gaming space, but doing so would accelerate those plans.
Other places that have approved Microsoft's deal include the aforementioned Japan and EU, as well as Saudi Arabia, Brazil, Serbia, and South Africa, among others. In addition to the appeals process in the UK, Microsoft still needs to get approval in the US by the Federal Trade Commission. A hearing is set for early August 2023.
The $68.7 billion that Microsoft is proposing to pay for Activision Blizzard represents the biggest-ever acquisition in gaming history and among the largest in any business. Microsoft's biggest acquisition ever was LinkedIn, which it acquired in 2016 for $26.2 billion. The Activision Blizzard deal is 2.5x bigger than that.


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The entire Cannabis industry has been waiting since last year’s successful Spannabis event, and now it is just around the corner!
After launching over 10 years ago, the fair is once again opening its doors in Barcelona to bring together cannabis growers, activists, users, businesses and associations. Welcome to the biggest European cannabis trade show!
What Is Spannabis?
Spannabis Hemp Fair – or Spannabis Feria del Cáñamo here in Spain – is the biggest cannabis event in Europe. This three-day event, organised annually, will be held the 10th, 11th and 12th of March 2017 in Barcelona, Spain. The Fira de Cornellà will be the home of this year’s Spannabis celebration, a venue chosen due to its easy accessibility for cannabis fans worldwide.
Spannabis attracts huge numbers, making it an amazing place to discover everything going on in the world of cannabis. In 2016 there were 200 stands where exhibitors promoted their latest strains, cannabis innovation and newest technologies. Most of the stands are typically about horticulture, cultivation, cannabis, hemp and marijuana. Last year, Spannabis visitors also got a peek at the wave of new vape technology as experts were happily demonstrating the latest advances.
Spannabis not only celebrates the industry but recognises the best of the best in the cannabis industry with 2 award ceremonies. “The Spannabis Champions Cup & Spannabis 2017 Awards Ceremony” take place during the trade show and awards will be given for:
the best stand, the best seeds bank, the best nutrient, the best paraphernalia, the best hemp product, the best growing tool, best cultivation equipment, best product, best concentrate, best hash, best indoor hydro, best indoor bio, and best outdoor strain.
Finally, it is important to remember that only adults over the age of 18 can enter the fair. Entry costs 17 euros per day or 39 for the full weekend.
Opening hours are Friday and Saturday from 11,00 to 20,30 – Sunday from 11,00 to 20,00
You can find more information here: http://www.spannabis.com/barcelona
Spannabis in Numbers
Last year the trade show drew more than 3,000 registered professionals, with 200 media outlets in attendance and 500 companies exhibiting. They were visited by thousands of participants from 18 different nationalities. A space of 17,000m2 is allocated for professionals and cannabis enthusiasts alike, guaranteeing that there is plenty of space and maximising the amount and variety of exhibitors.
Considering the accelerating rate of legalisation movements today, Spannabis is expected to grow rapidly over the coming decade. The first Spannabis conference was held in 2002 and has already expanded to Spannabis Madrid and Spannabis Malaga. This year 3,000 guests are predicted to visit Spannabis 2017 on its 14th birthday.
Spannabis: The First to host a “World Cannabis Conference”
One of the most anticipated moments this year will be the incorporation of the third edition of the World Cannabis Conference. Spannabis aimed over the years to provide a space to connect and share worldwide knowledge about cannabis and hemp, and were the first trade show to integrate a conference of this kind. Professionals from the fields of science and politics are great influencers in cannabis culture and will speak about four main areas of interest this year: the medicinal, the scientific, and the national and international cannabis scenes.
The conference seeks to educate all about cannabis and its evolution in society. These series of talks, a focal point of the trade show, will take place at the Auditorium of Fira de Cornellà, which can seat up to 800 people and will have simultaneous translation during the presentations. The audience will be able to take part in the debates and interact with the speakers.
The World Cannabis Conference will provide attendees with 20 different speakers on various subjects. The 2016 edition also introduced the platform for “The Gathering of Cannabis Women”. This event allowed women from the cannabis culture and sector in Spain to meet, with the aim of promoting female entrepreneurs and gender equality in the industry and in the drug policy sector.
There will also be a discussion about the “Responsible Regulation Initiative”, a group of citizens and social organisations that want the consumption, production and distribution of cannabis to be regulated.
Over the weekend, you will also be able to enjoy great musical performances, check out the program here.
FYI: Cannabis Legislation In Spain
- Possession is illegal (decriminalised) in public areas and legal in private areas (cannabis clubs) only. Offenders receive an administrative fine. Ownership of more than 70/100g is considered as possession with the intention of trafficking.
- Selling is technically illegal, but cannabis can be acquired in private smoker/cannabis clubs. Selling it is punished with prison time even for first-time offenders.
- Transportation is illegal (decriminalised)
- Cultivation is legal (only for own consumption.) If the plants are located where they are visible from the street/public place, it’s an administrative offence.
Over the years, the country has progressively decriminalised to the point where Spain is now one of the most cannabis-friendly countries in Europe. Particularly in Barcelona, Catalunya, where Spannabis is hosted. Cannabis users can freely buy diverse flowers or concentrates in cannabis clubs. This type of system offers a safe environment to users and ensures safe, quality products.
Unfortunately, this year, the Spanish cannabis scene hasn’t been so green, either in Parliament or in the courts. Events like Spannabis can be so influential in the legal realm and play a huge part in forwarding the future of cannabis’ legal status in Spain, by gathering a broad forum of people interested in discovering the current status and how it can be improved.
Spannabis has succeeded over the years in becoming one of the can’t miss and most anticipated events in the industry, and as Spain’s cannabis scene continues to step up, it’s only set to get better. See you there!
Harmony is celebrating Spannabis’17 by launching the biggest giveaway in our history:
Win 42 g of 99.6% pure CBD crystals!! (Value: 3,780€)
To enter the competition: Follow @harmonyhemp on Instagram and follow the rules!


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New Renault Air4 concept to be revealed on 26th November
New Renault concept could preview reborn all-electric 4L, but with an aviation twist
Renault has signalled that the iconic 4L will be reborn, confirming that a new concept car taking the model into “the future” will be revealed on 26 November.
The concept’s debut will coincide with the 60th anniversary of the original 4’s launch in 1961. That model sold more than eight million units during its extraordinary production run, which lasted until 1992.
The production version of the Air4 is touted to corner the same niche as its predecessor, as a small, cheap and utilitarian means of transport, but using electric power. It should also be more practical than Renault’s current EVs, sporting a large boot, a pared-back cabin and potential scope for a commercial van variant.
Pictures of a proposed Renault 4 design have also been uncovered on a trademarking website, as well as a new version of the Renault logo featuring the number 4, adding further authority to the rumours that a production model is on the way. Our exclusive images show how the finished car could look.
The new Renault 4 will join the reinvented Renault 5 in the brand’s retro-themed electric car line-up and, judging by this teaser video, it’ll retain plenty of the original car’s design cues, sharing the classic car’s boxy shape, round headlamps and upright front end.
The concept also features a pair of LED daytime running lights, which frames the space that was occupied by the original car’s radiator grille. However, it’s possible that the Air4 concept may not be a car with four wheels, but will be a flying car concept of some sorts, developed with the assistance of mobility company TheArsenale.
The new Renault 4 is part of an aggressive push towards electrification; Renault is already gearing up to launch its all-new, pure-electric Megane next year, and says it will introduce a total of 10 new EVs by 2025. Seven of them will be Renaults, and the other three are likely to be Alpines, as the sports car brand moves to full electrification from 2024.
Renault believes it will have the greenest sales mix in Europe by the middle of this decade, when over 65 per cent of its line-up will be fully electric or electrified. And it says up to 90 per cent of its models will be pure-electric by 2030.
The brand’s chief executive officer Luca De Meo recently confirmed to Auto Express that there would be more retro-inspired models in the future line-up after the well received launch of the Renault 5 Prototype. “There have been so many products that made history, so it would be a pity not to reconnect with that long history and tradition.
“We’re not here to only look in the rear-view mirror, we’re here to reinvent things and I think the Renault 5 is a good example,” he told us. “A lot of people say to me, ‘why are you doing retro design?’ This is not retro design, it’s just reinvention of a concept. In our library we have a lot of things that we can reinvent.”
New Renault 4: platform and powertrain
When the original R5 was launched, it borrowed its mechanicals from the R4. This time around, though, the roles are expected to be reversed. The upcoming Renault 4 is expected to use the same CMF-BEV platform as the hatchback to help keep costs down.
Renault has hinted of a maximum range of 249 miles for cars using its CMF-BEV platform, which has been designed specifically for cheap, small electric cars and comes with a standardised 134bhp electric motor.
Traditionally the R4 was priced slightly below the R5, but with the cost of the technology and Renault hinting at a sub £20,000 price for the R5, we’d expect Renault to aim for similar prices for its retro twins.
If the concept is well received, De Meo could give the project the green light to go on sale shortly after the new 5’s debut, meaning first deliveries in late 2023 or early 2024.
What do Renault 4 fans think?
We asked members of the renault4.co.uk forum what they thought of Renault’s plans to revive the nameplate.
“It will be interesting to see what aspects of the original Renault 4 the new car will use,” said one. “The original was proper French out-of-the-box thinking. It was one of the first small hatchbacks, one of the first cars with a maintenance-free cooling system, it had folding rear seats and a fold-down front seat in the van.”
“The original R4 was cheap to buy and run and was very practical,” commented another. “It had more boot space than the average estate, and there were some great practical touches. The car was cute and it became classless.”
“A new Renault 4 would have to be practical, innovative and cute,” said one user. “It will need to find a way to appeal to everyone.”
“Should the new car show clean-sheet French automotive thinking it’s going to be brilliant,” believed another. “If it’s somewhat derivative it won’t have the spirit of the original, but hopefully it will still be really cool.
What are the best electric cars on sale right now? Click here for our list of the top 10…


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Samsung is, however, still the largest Smartphone vendor in the world according to IDC Q2 2014 shipment figures.
Xiaomi has achieved some rather exponential growth in the past year and holds about 14% of the Chinese Smartphone market.
Xiaomi shifted about 15 Million units in the Chinese Market the second quarter of 2014. This is an impressive feat compared to just the 4.4 Million units the company shifted in the same period (this about 240% growth).
Samsung shipped about 13.2 Million units to the Chinese market in Q2 2014, which is a slight drop from the 15.5 million units the South Korean Tech Giant shifted in China last year.
Industry watchers have attributed the spectacular growth of Xiaomi, a company dubbed the ‘Apple Clone’ in some circles, to its successful strategy to deliver great devices at a fantastic price point.
One of the interesting bits about this issue is that about 97% of all the shipments by Xiaomi is just from Mainland China. This implies that only a tiny fraction of the Xiaomi shipments is contributed by Smartphone markets outside Mainland China.
It will, therefore, be very enthralling to see the disruption of the Smartphone market once Xiaomi goes global.
Xiaomi already has its eyes set on the global market as it looks forward to shifting about 60 million Smartphones in 2014.
Closely Related: Check out Xiaomi’s $13 Fitness Band


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Advertiser Disclosure: At ElectricityRates.com, our number one goal is to help you make better energy decisions. We adhere to strict editorial guidelines, however this post may include references to products offered from our partners.
Another Texas-based retail energy provider is making headlines after being named one of the largest retail energy providers in the state, which comes as a major win for the company as it looks to spread its customer base into new areas, the company said in a recent release.
According to a statement, Mega Energy, which is based in Houston, was recently named in the Dallas Business Journal's list, the "Largest North Texas Retail Electricity Providers." The special recognition was found in the November, 2012 issue of the Dallas Business Journal.
A spokesperson for the company said that Mega Energy was thrilled to be given such a high honor, and that it will continue the work it has done to become a major player in Texas' competitive energy market.
"This is quite an honor for us. The fact that Dallas Business Journal included Mega Energy in its selection of "Largest North Texas Retail Electricity Providers," signals that our constant efforts towards business excellence are paying off. We are proud to be included in this recognition," the spokesperson said.
"At Mega Energy, we believe in providing our Texas energy customers with world class customer service as well as savings," the company said in a release following the publication of the list. "The electricity delivered to your door is the same so why pay more? We offer a variety of products and billing options. Our number one priority is managing your residential and or commercial electricity needs. All you need to do is tell us how we can help you today."
In addition to making it onto the publication's list for the largest retail energy providers, American Registry also included Mega Energy on its list of "Registry Business Excellence." The company was awarded a plaque that was custom designed to show the company's accomplishments.
With Texas' retail energy sector going strong for 10 years now, a number of providers are upping their size and commitment to customer service in an attempt to gain such recognition. By attracting the spotlight, these providers will likely spread their goal and message of offering affordable energy all over the state.
As more providers enter Texas, the market has become increasingly competitive, which has driven down the cost of distributing electricity, much to the satisfaction of customers.


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DETROIT - China's ambassador to the United States has warned against the potential risks of trying to cut off China, using a visit to the Detroit auto show to highlight the "intertwined" interests of the world's two biggest economies.
"To decouple with China means to disconnect from the world's largest market, as well as the biggest opportunity," Mr Qin Gang said Wednesday.
The interests of both nations are "intertwined", he said, pointing out that General Motors' latest models are "designed, developed, produced and to be sold" in China, while more China-built cars are being exported to the rest of the world.
Trade and political tensions between China and the US will "for sure" impact industry collaboration in the short term, Mr Qin said. "But the industry chain has been relatively well established over past years, and there would be no winner if anybody wanted to intervene or even destroy" that, he added.
US President Joe Biden, who attended the show earlier in the day, attributed the electric transformation sweeping the US auto market to American innovation.
"It used to be that to buy an electric car you had to make all sorts of compromises," Mr Biden said after touring the show. "Thanks to American ingenuity, American engineers, American auto workers, it's all changing."
Mr Qin, however, stressed the importance of global coordination.
"The electric vehicle value chain, or specifically the supply chain, is very globalised," he said, adding all players will continue to "work in accordance with economic laws".
China and the US are sparring on several trade fronts.
The Biden administration earlier this month said it would allow Trump-era tariffs on hundreds of billions of dollars of Chinese imports to continue while it reviews the need for the duties.
The US has also placed export curbs on advanced computer chips to China and is seeking to reduce reliance on Chinese materials in the EV supply chain, particularly batteries. BLOOMBERG


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The situation is far different in Marquette, the peninsula's largest city. V.I.O., the helmet camera company, sells, markets and distributes its products online to customers in dozens of countries from its downtown office. Its website, operated by a local company, features videos made by an extreme snowmobiler streaking down mountain slopes and troops in a firefight with the Taliban in Afghanistan.
"People are quite shocked to learn we're operating from the U.P., especially if they have any familiarity with the area," sales associate Patrick Myron said. "This is where we want to be, this is where we want to raise our families. Without reliable Internet, we couldn't do it."
The web also is a lifeline for Getz's Clothiers down the street. Founded in the 1880s, the retailer's shelves are packed with clothes for outdoor work and play — coats, boots, jeans, jogging suits. The venerable store went online in 1997, and now generates two-thirds of its sales from the Internet. Its online staffers are Northern Michigan University graduates.
"People see us online and it helps get them through the door," manager Dennis Mingay said.
Some of the area's web-based workers are telecommuters whose companies are based in other states.
"My co-workers look longingly at what I do and wish they could work from home," said Jim Argeropoulos of Marquette, an engineer for a Wisconsin educational software company.
Stu Bradley, a retired Air Force colonel once stationed at a now-defunct base near Marquette, returned to the area after retiring and later served as the city's mayor. Nowadays he's among the founders of a website where small vendors from across the peninsula advertise wares ranging from knives to jewelry to maple syrup.
"We're really an example of what the president is talking about," Bradley said. "We wouldn't be in existence if it wasn't for the web."
Getz's Clothiers: http://www.getzs.com
V.I.O. Inc.: http://www.vio-pov.com
Northern Michigan University: http://www.nmu.edu
Marquette Backcountry Ski: http://www.marquette-backcountry.com
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It’s not coming until early 2023, however.
Indie game developer Monsoon Studios has revealed that the crowdfunding campaign for its NES action title Cooper Jacket has been a success.
The game – which offers a simultaneous 2-player mode and takes inspiration from the likes of Contra and Commando – had a very modest funding goal of just $9,000. Thanks to the support of 244 backers, it has managed to raise almost twice that amount, finally securing $16,000 of cash.
Read the full article on nintendolife.com


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GoToko: Digitization Provides Business Efficiency to Warung UKM , GoToko, a joint business unit of Gojek and Unilever Group, ensures that digitalization is a factor driving the growth of micro, small and medium enterprises ( SMEs ), including warungs.
The challenge of stall inefficiency that has been happening so far has been successfully overcome via digitalization.
With efficiency, now the warung business can increase its turnover while increasing the standard of living of those of their families. Gurnoor Singh Dhillon, CEO and President Director of GoToko, said that so far, the shop’s business operations have been run inefficiently.
For example, in terms of fulfilling the supply of goods, shop owners need to close their stalls when shopping for supplies to not one, but several distributor agents, which creates potential losses for them because they run an inefficient business.
“Digitalization provides business efficiency, shop owners can access products from many principal brands in only one platform, they also don’t need to close their shop to shop so it will save costs, time, and energy. With direct support from brand principals, shop owners can also get competitive prices,” said Gurnoor in his statement in Jakarta, Monday (3/10/2022).
This has been done by GoToko since its establishment in 2020 to connect stalls with principal brands with competitive prices, certainty of delivery, and certainty of goods in the application.
With the added value offered, GoToko also managed to record growth of more than 47 times.
GoToko exists as a platform that creates added value for the warung ecosystem through technology, instead of disrupting it.
Gurnoor also added that digitalization is not only beneficial for warungs but also for the retail ecosystem as a whole, including for brand principals because it can expand their reach.
This includes increasing brand revenue . This, for example, happened with a number of brands on GoToko such as Coca-Cola Europacific Partners (CCEP), Indolakto, and other brands.
On the platform, GoToko has also collaborated with almost all major brands and to encourage the progress of stalls and enjoy a wider network effect.
“At GoToko, we have a vision and mission to move forward with GoToko for stalls, stakeholders, including our employees, which we call GoToko Guardians. Because we believe that
digitalization has an important role in improving the warung business and SMEs in general,” said Gurnoor.
GoToko focuses on implementing strategies to win in many parts of Indonesia and being the best friend of warungs. Gurnoor said each cluster in Indonesia is unique and it is impossible to succeed without winning in small areas.
Therefore, GoToko has a strategy to reach deeply in each of its operational areas and provide a positive economic impact as soon as possible to encourage sustainable growth. Through its platform, GoToko is committed to serving underserved retailers and being a stall friend who will always be there for the warung and guide them towards growth, helping them increase their family’s income and standard of living.


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Pending U.S. home sales jump to 5-year high
A day after a government report showed contracts signed to buy a new home fell 0.3 percent in October, the National Association of Realtors said pending sales of existing homes rose 5.2 percent last month, hitting a five-year high.
The D.C.-based association also revised upward the September pending sales.
Compared with a year ago, the number of buyers who signed a contract to buy an existing home rose 13.2 percent.
"We've had very good housing affordability conditions for quite some time, but we're seeing more impact now from steady job creation, and rising consumer confidence about home buying now that prices have clearly turned positive," said NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun.
Aside from spikes during the period when sales benefited from a homebuyer tax credit, pending sales are now at the highest level since March 2007, according to the NAR.
In the Nashville area, 2,367 sales were pending at the end of October, according to the Greater Nashville Association of Realtors, up nearly 36 percent.
Jeff Clabaugh covers general assignment and provides business coverage for WTOP.
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Announcement of Shahi Chair at NIFT New Delhi by Hon'ble Minister of Textiles
On 26 July 2019 in Delhi, the Hon’ble Minister of Textiles, Smt. Smriti Zubin Irani and Chairman of Shahi Exports, Sh. Harish Ahuja, inaugurated the Shahi Chair at the National Institute of Fashion Technology.
Named chairs are provided with funds to push the frontiers of their scholarship and these funds propel further research and even, help pay student assistance and research fellows or create opportunities for collaborative projects. With these objectives in mind, Shahi Exports, India’s largest apparel manufacturer has recently set up Industry chair at NIFT with clear emphasis to conduct research in the emerging technologies that is likely to disrupt apparel manufacturing industry. The activities will include research fellowship at PhD level, scholarship at Master’s and Bachelors level to NIFT as well as other institutes for cross domain expertise.
NIFT Delhi Campus is delighted to announce that Dr. Prabir Jana has been named Shahi Chair Professor Industry 4.0. Shahi Exports employs over 100,000 people directly of which 70% are women, having 65 manufacturing facilities across 9 states in India catering to the world’s biggest brands and retailers.
NIFTA Industry Mentor series session conducted at the Delhi Campus
The NIFTA Industry Mentor Series was launched in April, just before the students entered placement season. The Delhi chapter took the lead in this, and the proposal is to continue with weekly sessions conducted by NIFTA members in the various campuses once the next academic session starts in 2019.
This session was attended by around 20 students and a few of NIFT’s faculty. The mentors for this session were Manish Tribhuwan (GMT 1995-97, Kolkata) and Brajesh Rawat (GMT 2000-2002, Gandhinagar). The discussions covered a range of subjects including industry expertise, the industry’s expectations, new opportunities in the industry from online to AI-aided fashion, internships, design-based thinking and sensibilities as well as life skills. The students gained a lot of insight on practical experience of in-the-field issues and day-to-day issues in business. The students were also guided by mentors on their internships, job preferences, and many other aspects through a highly interactive Q&A Session
NIFTA Conclave at the India Fashion Forum in Mumbai
The recording of the NIFTA Conclave at the India Fashion Forum in Mumbai last month, for those who missed it and for those who wish to review and revisit…… Read More
NIFT and NIFTA signed a formal MOU in 2018
NIFTA signed an MoU with NIFT for NIFTA to directly engage more deeply with the NIFT and its stakeholders. The MoU covered areas including engagement of Alumni to teach at campuses of the Institute, through courses, seminars, workshops and guest lectures, to be involved in review of the course curriculum, to provide mentoring inputs for real-world experiences to be imbibed by the students and to be equipped professionally for the industry, creation of live industry projects and classroom projects for the students and the faculty, to foster entrepreneurship among NIFT students through mentoring, incubation, investment and/or business support, help in providing placement opportunities to the students of the Institute, and other areas.
NIFTA - Contribution to redesigning the NIFT curriculum
NIFT has begun the process of redesigning the curriculum of various courses with active inputs from internal and external stakeholders, and in consultation with alumni, industry leaders, and leading academics from institutions of higher learning. NIFT DG, Dean and Faculty from various departments met with the industry experts on 28 February in Delhi to present the new framework being developed and to incorporate their recommendations into the revised curriculum, so that NIFT is able to not only meet the industry’s future requirements but to lead the industry through times of global volatility and business uncertainty
NIFTA Signs MOU with AEPC
The overall objective of this Memorandum is to establish a mutual collaboration that seeks to bridge the gap and enhance the relationship between Alumni of the most prestigious Fashion institute of the country with the council that represents the Fashion export industry of the country for mutually beneficial working and future growth


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|A lawsuit seeks $750 million in damages for breach of privacy, breach of contract and breach of the Telecommunications Act. (CBC File Photo)|
A $750-million national class-action lawsuit has been filed against Bell Canada over alleged breaches of privacy arising from its recently discontinued target ads program.
The suit against subsidiaries of Bell alleges that the defendants used the program to track, collect and sell the sensitive account and internet browsing information of their customers to advertisers.
It seeks $750 million in damages for breach of privacy, breach of contract and breach of the Telecommunications Act.
A similar lawsuit has also been launched in Quebec, counsel for the plaintiffs, Charney Lawyers and Sutts, Strosberg LLP, said in a statement issued Thursday.
Bell issued a statement saying it would not comment on the allegations contained in the lawsuit, which have not been proven in court.
Although Bell has already cancelled the program, the company has indicated it plans to reintroduce it in the future and might expand it to include landline use and TV viewers.
However, it has said it would seek explicit customer consent through an opt-in approach. By building consumer profiles, such programs allows advertisers to tailor or target ads to specific consumers.
The suit, against Bell Mobility Inc. and Bell Canada Inc. on behalf of Bell Mobility and Virgin Mobile customers, targeted what Bell labelled as its "relevant ads program," which was launched in November 2013.


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Rumours have long been swirling around the Perth development scene that Something Big was in the works. A video game / tv series / toy line triple attack described as “Pokemon meets Fallout with a 90’s vibe”. Now, that Something is real: Skourge Legacy will be fully revealed at PAX Australia next week – and we’ve got some details already.
Creator and director Wade K. Savage – who also made the live-action Fallout film tribute Fallout: Lanius has been working on Skourge Legacy for years:
This project means a lot to me. I’ve never been more invested in something. Our panel will be a laid back introduction to something I’ve spent a long time on, and can’t wait to make a huge cultural phenomenon one day.
The panel Savage is referring to is Skourge Legacy: Monsters and Danger in a Post Apoc World, held on Friday October 30 at 10:30pm in the Dropbear Theatre at PAX Australia. That’s where the wraps will finally be taken off, and the audience given a sneaky peek at gameplay, characters, and the overall world of Skourge Legacy.
The game itself is a 2D side-scrolling brawler, drawing inspiration from not only Pokémon but also Miyazaki and HP Lovecraft, making for some pretty intense monsters in a colourful, vibrant world.
After a cataclysmic event unleashes a horde of amazing creatures onto the planet, the earth is forever changed. These Skourge Creatures transform everything we know about the world around us. Three kids must now adventure across a ruined land in hope of something better – keeping each other safe as they do so.
We don’t know too many details just yet – like what platforms we’ll be able to play the game on, what the tv series will look like, or when we can get our hands on those toys, but we’re guessing more will be revealed at PAX Australia, so stay tuned!


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Rendisk’s waste management equipment has landed an ‘innovation’ award at the recent Gulfood exhibition.
The brand, which is sold and marketed by Dawson MMP in the UK, picked up the top prize for ‘Best Sustainable Catering Equipment Innovation’ at the popular Dubai show.
Rendisk bagged the accolade after ticking all the boxes for product development, ecology and waste volume reduction.
Hans Hammer, sales and marketing manager at Rendisk, said: “We aim to bring to market the most innovative and sustainable solutions to end-users and caterers across the world. The award is credit to all our team who have been driven to offer such a green and ecological solution that truly tackles the issues of food waste management in a sustainable and cost effective way.”
Rendisk’s Flex WasteDispo is capable of dealing with 700kg of food waste per hour and provides automated hygienic processing of waste.


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Whole Foods shoppers sue Amazon following end of free delivery for Prime members
Amazon could be facing two legal challenges from shoppers who say the company misled them and violated state law when it ended free delivery from Whole Foods Market for Prime members.
Two groups of shoppers separately filed proposed class action lawsuits against the company in May and June, one accusing Amazon of breaching its contract by taking away a benefit of the Prime membership without lowering the subscription price or offering a refund, and the other arguing Amazon hid extra fees in order to "bamboozle" customers.
Amazon "pulled the rug out from its customers" in October 2021 when it ended an offer for free delivery for Prime members on Whole Foods orders over $35, one lawsuit read. Since then, hundreds of thousands of shoppers paid for "a service that was unfairly terminated."
Since acquiring Whole Foods in 2017, Amazon had said under its ownership the grocery store would expand access to high-quality and affordable food for its customers, particularly Prime members who would receive "special savings and in-store benefits."
In February 2018, when Amazon first announced it would offer free two-hour delivery for Prime members on grocery orders over $35, Whole Foods Market co-founder and CEO John Mackey said the two companies "have already lowered prices on many items, and this offering makes Prime customers' lives even easier."
That April, it increased the price of a Prime membership from $99 to $119 annually, the first increase since 2014, when it went up from $79 to $99.
Three years later, in September 2021, Amazon told shoppers through an email blast it was ending free delivery for Prime members, and tacking on a $9.95 service fee for all grocery orders.
This May, two Prime shoppers from California sued Amazon in a federal district court in Seattle, accusing the ecommerce company of violating Washington's Consumer Protection Act when it stopped offering the free grocery delivery.
The free drop-offs were a "key perk" of Amazon's Prime membership offerings, the lawsuit read. Amazon ended the benefit after it increased the price of Prime but without offering Prime members a refund or an easy way to cancel their subscription as a result of the change, the plaintiffs argue.
"Amazon has engaged in unfair business practices, breached its duty of good faith and deprived Prime members of the benefit of their bargain," the lawsuit read.
The lawsuit comes months after Amazon again raised the price of a Prime membership, this time from $119 to $139 annually, or from $12.99 to $14.99 monthly.
In both instances, Chief Financial Officer Brian Olsavsky told shareholders and consumers the extra cost was coming with extra benefits. In 2018, he said the price increase was a "natural consequence" of new perks, pointing specifically to free deliveries for Whole Foods orders over $35. In February, he championed access to stream Thursday Night Football and "The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power," as well as the expansion of one-day shipping for some items.
"It's not a static program," he said on a call with investors. "We'll continue to add faster shipping, greater video and other features. ... We're pretty confident in the value proposition of our Prime offering."
This year, Olsavsky said the increased price would also bring in more funds to offset rising expenses related to inflation, transportation and wages.
Sales from subscription services, including Amazon Prime, increased 11% in the first three months of 2022, compared to the same time period the year before. That quarter, subscription sales totaled $8.4 billion, up from $8.1 billion at the start of 2021.
Another Prime member, also in California, sued Amazon separately Tuesday, accusing the company of misleading shoppers with ads that promised free delivery from Whole Foods as a perk of their Prime subscription.
Despite ads in print, on TV and displayed on Amazon's own website, the company tacks on a "hidden delivery fee" as customers move through the shopping process, the lawsuit alleges, referring to the $9.95 service fee.
Amazon also automatically adds a $5 tip on each order. That tip is optional but the text telling customers how to opt-out is small and hard to find, the lawsuit says.
The practice of initially advertising one price and then revealing service fees and other charges at the end of a transaction is called "drip pricing," according to the Federal Trade Commission.
Shoppers "would have wanted to know, as would any reasonable person, that [Amazon] charges a service fee in connection with grocery deliveries from Whole Foods Market," the lawsuit read. "And this information would have changed their and any reasonable customer's decision to purchase" from Whole Foods in the first place.
The class action lawsuits, both of which are filed in the U.S. District Court for Western Washington, could include thousands of Prime members.
Amazon and Whole Foods could not be reached for comment, nor could the plaintiff who filed the most recent lawsuit. The shoppers who sued in May declined to comment through their lawyer, Thiago Coelho from Wilshire Law Firm.
©2022 The Seattle Times.
Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.


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Ghana-based freight startup, Jetstream has announced the close of a $3million seed funding round to make freighting and port logistics easier for Africans.
Investors who took part in the round include Alitheia IDF, Golden Palm Investments, 4DX Ventures, Lightspeed Venture Partners, Asia Pacific Land, Breyer Labs, and MSA Capital.
Jetstream, a tech-enabled logistics company was founded in 2018 by Miishe Addy and Solomon Torgbor. The startup enables African businesses to have more control of their own cross-border supply chain by aggregating private sector logistics companies at various African ports and borders and makes them easily available to users through their online platform.
On how the insight for the company came about, Torgbor said his previous work experience with a Maersk freight forwarding subsidiary had exposed him to the inefficiencies associated with the freight process at African ports. He would later team up with Addy, a Harvard-trained lawyer who worked as a lecturer in the MEST Program, Ghana.
The partners launched Jetstream to act as a vertical broker between the fragmented and often-hidden segments of cross-border supply chains in Africa. It helps customers handle instant pricing, cargo tracking, and customs regulation transparency in a clear manner from its dashboard.
In a conversation with TechCrunch, Miishe Addy explained that Jetstream is working to bring many local freight providers in different African ports online for the first time.
“We are different from a more siloed freight management system because we are leveraging financing to integrate the customs brokers, freight forwarders, shipping lines, airlines, and container terminals all onto the Jetstream platform so that shipments can be managed and tracked every step of the way. We are bringing many of the local providers online for the first time.”
Through Jetstream’s mobile app, users can get quotes for their cargoes. The startup calculates the charges for each consignment on a per-container or per-kilogram basis when offering freight services.
While for customs clearance, it charges a flat fee based on tax category and location of the shipment. The only commission-based fee is for financing and insurance services and this is charged based on the value of the goods being shipped.
According to reports, intra-African trade makes up a small amount of world trade. Only about 7% and 5% of world trade are being loaded and unloaded respectively in Africa, making up a very small volume of intra-continental trade. While this is the case for African trade, trade between Africa and the rest of the world has ballooned to over $800 billion. Jetstream’s vision is to make it easier for companies to conduct regional trade across the African continent.
Bringing cross-border trade corridors online will speed up the growth of commerce on the continent and ultimately lead to the growth of the African economy. Jetstream aims to be a major force in bringing Africa to this point of growth.
“We see a future where trade running on Jetstream’s digital rails has a powerful competitive edge on logistics. Jetstream is to cross-border logistics what Flutterwave is to fintech in Africa,” Miishe Addy said.
The startup hopes to have a presence at ports and borders in Africa. It already has agents in Nigeria, South Africa, Europe, the United States, and the United Kingdom.


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A new law banning the sale of products cultivated in illegal Israeli settlements was recently signed by Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas, with violators facing up to five years in prison, according to the Associated Press.
The law also bans Palestinians from working on these settlements, but, according to economics minister Hassan Abu Libdeh, this will not be immediately enforced due to high unemployment.
Some 25,000 Palestinians currently work in settlements, but their expansion is seen as a major barrier to the creation of a viable future state.
In the UK, anti-poverty charity War on Want has accused UK supermarket chain Waitrose of misleading its customers after the retailer claimed to have ceased stocking goods from illegal Israeli settlements.
According to War on Want’s own investigation, Waitrose continues to sell goods produced in the settlements.
The charity’s executive director, John Hilary, said in a statement: “Waitrose should live up to its ethical claims and stop stocking any goods from illegal Israeli settlements or it will continue to face protests.”
Following the issuance of new guidelines by the UK government, both Tesco and Sainsbury’s now label products as either ‘West Bank (Israeli settlement produce)’ or ‘West Bank (Palestinian produce)’, insisting that the choice is up to the customer.
Meanwhile, KF, the Swedish Co-operative Union that runs a fifth of Sweden’s grocery retail sector, is one step closer to boycotting Israeli products.
During a meeting of the Western section of KF in Gothenburg last week, a majority of the members voted in favour of a boycott, according to a number of reports.
The Jerusalem Post quoted KF West head Carina Malmer: “The board of the section will now try to convince the other Swedish sections of implementing a nationwide ban on Israeli products in all the Coop supermarkets.”


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Ker Water S.C. invested 90 million Br to set up a water bottling company in the Southern Nations, Nationalities & People’s regional state. The new product, branded Ethio Water, will be available in the market by the end of this month.
Located in the Cheha wereda of Gurage Zone, 146Km southwest of Addis Abeba. Ker Water, a three-year-old company, received 20,000Sqm of land as an investment and constructed the plant on a 2,700Sqm plot, which consists of warehouses, offices and the production floors. Further expansion is planned to be initiated in the next three months.
The plant has a bottling capacity of 6,000 one-litre bottles an hour and 8,000 half-litre bottles an hour. It can produce 144,000L of water a day and 36,000L an hour with the planned expansion.
Ethio Water has already received the green light to start operations from the Ethiopian Conformity Assessment Enterprise and the Food and Drug Authority.
The company will be available in the market in packages of water bottles with a capacity ranging from half a litre to two litres of water sourced from spring water.
This will make Ethio Water the 72nd water bottling company in Ethiopia, most of which are located in the Oromia Regional State. Although 3.5 billion bottles of water are produced a year, these companies are only able to satisfy five percent of consumption.
But their numbers have significantly gone up over the past couple of years, with Wub Water entering the market last October. Located in Amhara Regional State, Wub Water invested 140 million Br for a plant capacity of 10,000 bottles an hour.
Azemi Engineering constructed the facilities, which took two years to complete, and the machinery was imported from Turkey at a cost of nearly 30 million Birr.
“Our major challenge was securing foreign currency to import the machinery,” Yohannes Sehale, one of the nine shareholders and board chairman of Ker Water, the holding company, said. “Nonetheless, we are still planning to go forward with an expansion of the plant.”
Ethio Water will not be the only bottled water in the Gurage Zone. Fiker, Eden and Wow waters are produced there, while Nebur, Mountain, Gerare and Xerer are in the pipeline.
“There are many investment activities in our zone, and we try to provide the necessary support to investors,” Feleke Abate, head of the Gurage Zone Investment Expansion, said.
Such investments are good for the country as they open new job opportunities and help stimulate the economy, according to Negussie Semmie (PhD), a university lecturer at Addis Abeba University with over one and a half decades of experience in water development and economics.
“The government should support and give incentives to private investors,” Negussie said.
Despite the flourishing of the water bottling market, the nation still lags behind Kenya in market saturation, which has less than half the population size of Ethiopia but almost 10 times as many water bottling companies.


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Among them, Crew Clothing tested a number of offers, including 15 percent off, free delivery and free returns; 20 percent off plus free delivery and returns and £25 off. Figleaves, Great Little Trading Co, Saltwater and Russ Andrews also sought to tempt shoppers with money off their orders. And it’s not just discounting—cataloguers are throwing in more incentives to persuade consumers to shop with them. The percentage of catalogues offering free delivery rose from 18 percent in November 2010 to 20.8 percent in November 2011. As a hook, apparel cataloguers coupled free delivery with free returns—as seen at White Stuff, Pure Collection and Brora.
When it came to free gifts, however, more catalogues used the tactic in the 2010 festive season than this year. It was just a marginal decrease though, from 8.4 percent in November 2010 to 7.3 percent in 2011. Among those promoting a free gift with purchase were angling catalogue Fishtec, packaging catalogue Rajapack, Laithwaites Wines, and kitchenware brand Jean Patrique, which gave away a free kettle.
November 2011 was generally more promotional on a year-on-year basis with more than half of the catalogues (51.1 percent) featuring some sort of offer on the cover (sale, discount, free delivery or free gift), compared with 46.7 percent in 2010. But it wasn’t on a month-on-month basis. The Catalogue Log shows, in what may seem a counter-intuitive move compared with how the high street is tackling Christmas, that as the big day approaches, cataloguers are toning down their aggressive promotional strategies. Just take a look back at September, when 39.4 percent of catalogues featured a sale or discount on the cover compared to 32.6 percent in November. In October, that percentage rose to 41.9 percent. More prevalent in the festive period 2011 are free delivery offers, which make home shopping even more convenient at this time of year. The 20.8 percent we tracked last month is the highest percentage recorded since August and up on last November’s 18 percent. Those offering free delivery included Bettys, M and M Direct and Lands’ End.
In total, we received 178 catalogues in November 2011, a 6.6 percent increase on the same month last year, and a 16.2 increase on November 2009. It is the highest number received in 2011--MT


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Despite what people might like think, Donald Trump is actually very smart, so don’t underestimate him, says former Australian Trade Minister, Andrew Robb.
While Australian agriculture will likely enjoy a temporary windfall from extra business in Japan, Korea and elsewhere, thanks to the US President’s dummy-spitting decision to quit the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) free trade deal, Mr Robb said the longer term Trump agenda was all about getting his own way.
His peculiar political style was little different to the way he had grown his multi-billion dollar business empire.
“I don’t think he’s barking mad,” Mr Robb said, responding to a question at a panel session at last week’s Beef Australia, where Trump’s trade tactics and disruptive style were a frequent discussion point during the week-long cattle show and agribusiness extravaganza.
Whether or not you support what he did to build his empire and reach this point, you have to realise he can’t be too dumb.Andrew Robb
“You don’t get to be as wealthy, or into the most powerful position in the world, without having some ability.
“Whether or not you support what he did to build his empire and reach this point, you have to realise he can’t be too dumb.”
Mr Robb, a former National Farmers Federation chief executive officer, was Trade Minister between 2013 and 2016, and now sits on the board of the S. Kidman and Company joint venture business Australian Outback Beef, owned by Hancock Prospecting and Shanghai Cred.
He is also an advisor to Beef Innovations Australia, and chairman of training and professional group, Asialink, and medical technology firm, CNSDose.
“Trump pulling out of the TPP means the US industry, which supplies about half the $1 billion market in Japan, is at a 13 or 14 per cent tariff disadvantage to us,” Mr Robb said.
“Good on him. We’ll take that.
“So far Trump has managed to shoot America in the foot because of his trade war with China and by pulling out of the TPP.”
However, he said the US President’s apparent efforts to take the trade world backwards were “all about popular politics in America”.
His strategy may work for the US, but he could do a lot of damage for the rest of us.Andrew Robb
Various market specialists at Beef 2018 agreed President Trump was largely playing to his 2016 election-vote base in the manufacturing sector and rural America, and he was sure to change direction if those sectors became obvious victims of his current “bluff and bluster” war on free trade.
“I can see Donald Trump’s style – he promises to smash everything down, then he says he won’t smash it all up if you give him a better deal,” Mr Robb said.
Removing the USA from the TPP meant, for the moment, a “high-quality agreement” in which the US would have represented more than two thirds of the total gross domestic product of the original 12 countries involved was now providing a host of fresh trade concessions to others at America’s expense.
A bigger downside, for everybody, was the US’s absence also denied the region further “massive” growth opportunities associated with having such a powerful economy in the trading pact while the trade stand-off with China had potential to incite more than just a trade war.
“Don’t underestimate him – Trump could do a lot of damage,” Mr Robb said.
“His strategy may work for the US, but he could do a lot of damage for the rest of us.”
The global audience takes Trump far more seriously than we doDon Close, Rabobank, USA
Indeed, President Trump’s political agenda already causes more consternation outside the US than among Americans, according to US-based beef market specialist, Don Close, also at Beef Australia.
“The global audience takes Trump far more seriously than we do,” said Mr Close, from Missouri, whose role as a Rabobank senior animal protein analyst has taken him to Canada, Mexico, Brazil, New Zealand and Australia in the past six months.
“At the end of the day the US will be a member of the TPP, although I can’t say if that will actually occur under Trump.
“There are too many reasons why it’s a good idea and very few why it’s a bad idea.
“The TPP makes for good trade policy, good national security policy and good neighbour policy.”
Donald Trump thinks ... the US has made bad trade negotiations in the past,Don Close, Rabobank
He said US farmers still largely supported the Trump rhetoric on trade because it centred on deals benefiting US producers and exporters.
“He thinks, given our current trade imbalance, the US has made bad trade negotiations in the past,” Mr Close said.
“His election campaign was strongly pitched at slowing imports, in particular playing to the auto workers’ vote.
“He is now testing his election support base in some areas, but Trump says in the event of any trade war agriculture will be compensated, and I think we’ll see his willingness to help as we get closer to an election.”
Mr Close cited speculation of potential price compensation for producers whose crops come under tariff pressure from China.
“It will probably be an insurance based product, or extended loans, and there’s even been discussion about reopening the commodity credit corporation to buying grain stocks to support prices.”


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BCA credits rose 9% in H1 2023 to IDR 753.9 trillion
JAKARTA - PT Bank Central Asia Tbk (BBCA) had channelled credits worth IDR 735.9 trillion in total in the first half of 2023, growing 9% from the same period in 2022.
Jahja Setiaatmadja, President Director of BCA, said that the highest credit growth was seen in the consumer segment, followed by commercial and MSMEs. "Consumer credits were supported by House Ownership Credit, bringing it to IDR 114.6 trillion," he added in a press release issued yesterday (24/7) in Jakarta.
Other consumer credits that showed improvement were Vehicle Ownership Credit, growing 19.2% year-on-year (yoy) to IDR 51.4 trillion, and Credit Cards that soared 15.4% yoy to IDR 14.6 trillion. Consumer and SME Credits also increased 10.9% yoy to IDR 219.2 trillion, while corporate credits grew 5.1% to IDR 326 trillion.
On top of those, BBCA also channelled credits of IDR 181.2 trillion to the sustainability sector. The segment that was benefitted from loan facilities is electric vehicle credits worth IDR 751 billion.
The at-risk credit ratio reportedly subsided to 8.7% from 12.3% seen in the same period last year, as did non-performing loan (NPL) ratio from 2.2% to 1.9%.
For the record, BCA is one of the constituents of Indeks52, an alternative index initiated by Tempo.co and IDNFinancials. This particular company is listed under four available categories: Main Index, High Dividend, High Growth, and Big Market Capitalisation. (LK/ZH)


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Residential sales in Miami are declining despite substantial increases in properties going on the market, a new report shows.
The Miami Beach/Barrier Islands market posted 1,334 closed sales during the second quarter for a year-over-year drop of 15.1 percent, according to the latest Elliman Report from Douglas Elliman Real Estate. The market had a 34.3 percent rise in listed inventory to 3,681 properties. The median sale price increased 5.4 percent to $390,000.
Closed sales in Miami’s Coastal Mainland market dropped 2.3 percent to 4,792. Listed inventory jumped 34.5 percent to 9,082. The market’s median sale price climbed 11.9 percent to $235,000.
Fort Lauderdale’s year-over-year luxury condo and townhome median sale prices jumped 16.3 percent to nearly $1.1 million, while luxury single-family prices rose 17 percent to $2.1 million during the quarter. Luxury condos in Fort Lauderdale spent an average of 140 days on the market, a decline of 14.1 percent. Luxury single-family residences averaged 235 days on the market, a gain of 42.4 percent.
The Palm Beach luxury market had a year-over-year drop in its median sale price and a major decline in how long homes and condos stay on the market. The median price for luxury condos and homes slipped 12.1 percent to about $6.7 million. Properties spent an average of 149 days on the market, down 57.3 percent from the second quarter of 2013. — Eric Kalis