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With the annual Computer Electronics Show (CES) upon us, there are many predictions on what tech products will be trending in the new year. CES is an amazing, bustling platform—with 180,000 plus attendees— where every sparkly new consumer product can make its way to the public sphere. There are two areas of huge interest that Cisco continues to make waves: see how the company is changing the future for smart cities and the connected car.
CES has its own Smart Cities conference track—meaning that the ecosystem is booming and many are invested. Smart cities help places become more connected, bringing together technologies, solutions, and citizens. Some talks within the track include themes on finance, energy consumption, and cyber privacy.
Cisco has worked to transform the city of Las Vegas—the very city CES is held in—into a smart and connected city. The company will showcase its work with Las Vegas during the conference, presenting a tour of smart city tech including things like connected cameras, sensors, lighting, and driverless trolleys.
Another big drive at CES is the connected car, and top car companies will be showing off their latest innovations. Look for self-driving car demonstrations and plenty of presentations dedicated to concept cars and self-driving technology.
Cisco’s Connected Car experience is all about helping create the smart vehicle of the future. The company works with partners like GM and Hyundai to implement high-speed connectivity and end-to-end security into cars.
And because these cars will have the technology that can collect crucial data, Cisco and its partners can help create new services based on that data that can best personalize the driver experience.


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The world is becoming a smaller place. The accelerating pace of technology is pulling people together through communication, travel, business, and industry. Globalization makes it easier to for us to share – a phenomenon with both positive and negative implications. In the great melting pot of world industry, radiation contamination is proving to be an increasingly harmful side-effect.
As discussed in the previous post, much of the radiation contamination of consumer goods has been linked to contaminated scrap metal. Metal used in the production of goods comes from a variety of sources and almost invariable contains a large amount of recycled materials – a fact that efficiency and environmental controls demand. The problem is that long-lasting radioactive scrap from sources such as medical equipment, food processing, mining equipment, and even decommissioned power plants, is making its way into smelters. The metal turned out from these contaminated batches spreads to other consumer goods – most of which are never checked for radiation.
|A scrap metal foundry. source|
Another aspect that further complicates the scrap contamination problems is size – the scrap metal market is worth over $140 billion1. With so much material in flux, an unreported contamination event can send radioactive material to unknowing manufacturers across the globe. Although the US has stopped over 120 major radioactive shipments since 20032, there is ample evidence that radioactive scrap is still slipping through the cracks. For example, a Texas recycling facility accidentally created 500,000 pounds of radioactive steel byproducts after melting metal contaminated with cesium-137 according to U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission records for 2006.
Scrap yards and recycling operations truly are the primary line of defense against rogue radiation but most of these facilities are under no specific federal government or state regulations and reporting is often voluntary if problems are found.
We’ve seen the results of contamination close at hand – at a recent visit to the nearby landfill, we were told that almost every load of scrap metal that comes in sets off radiation detectors and has to be scanned a second time.
To aid in this crucial detection stage of industry and commercial operations, D-tect Systems has designed several radiation detectors that are sensitive and easy to mount. The Rad-D is currently being used in hospitals, factories, embassies, and waste disposal locations. It can easily be mounted to scan conveyor belts and integrate with existing security systems. The Rad-DX, D-tect’s newest product, is smaller and more visually innocuous. The Rad-DX also has novel mesh-networking abilities that allow an operator to monitor multiple radiation detectors in real time or look at past event logs.
|The Rad-D is easily mounted to a wall or pole and monitors for radiation in real time.|
D-tect Systems is a supplier of advanced radiation and chemical detection equipment sold around the world. www.dtectsystems.com.

domain: news


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It's currently Fairtrade Fortnight, and each year the organisers announce at least one major win for its ethical trading scheme. This year's big announcement is that all retail sugar sold by Tate & Lyle will become Fairtrade-Foundation certified. The decision has been widely welcomed. But having researched how the sugar market works, I'm left dumbfounded.
Tate & Lyle may be able to buy an ethical halo, but that does not stop its profits and market dominance benefiting rather heavily from unfair trade rules. According to farmsubsidy.org, it is Britain's biggest beneficiary of agricultural subsidies, raking in nearly €200m a year of taxpayers' money. "There is clearly something wrong," says Matthew Elliott, chief executive of the TaxPayers' Alliance, "when families and pensioners are paying taxes so that huge firms like Tate & Lyle can be subsidised."
Distorting trade rules are forcing consumers to pay higher prices in the supermarkets, too. Tate & Lyle's producers receive tariff-free access into EU markets through the so-called "Everything but arms" agreement, but lower-cost producers like Brazil and Thailand face duties of €33.90 per 100kg of cane sugar imported.
That massively restricts competition, and it stops producers in emerging countries from climbing up the economic ladder by supplying refined, packaged and branded products in UK supermarkets. Labour MP Doug Henderson has been particularly critical of the current "duopoly" enjoyed by Tate & Lyle and British Sugar. In a House of Commons speech, he criticised these companies' stranglehold, pointing out that they had already "been fined by the European Union on a number of occasions for anti-competitive price-fixing policies."
Since EU regulators seem ineffective at introducing competition, what can be done? Ironically, this is one of those areas where Fairtrade could have played a useful role. It could have highlighted the injustice of all the corporate welfare and protection given to Tate & Lyle, by giving its mark to excluded producers and by campaigning against sugar subsidies. But in its quest to "scale up" the idea of fair trade, it seems willing to accept dominant players without fully thinking through the consequences.
Giving fair trade status to a company that so massively benefits from unfair trade rules is perhaps not surprising. "Time and time again," says Marc Sidwell of the Adam Smith Institute, "the scheme claims to promote fairness while making excluded producers even worse off."
Certification schemes can be an important help for consumers. They help us make informed choices in the supermarket. But for those schemes to remain relevant, they have to be true to their claims. At a time when the fair trade scheme is coming under increasing scrutiny, it seems to me that Fairtrade is failing to provide a meaningful standard of fairness. Certainly some Thai and Brazilian producers will find the scheme's conception of fair trade sugar leaves a very bitter aftertaste.


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The brothers, described a few years back by GQ as Best New Designers in America have a fashion line described as “chill and fresh”and having the “exact charm, edge and creativity of New York". WWD marvels “ how two kids without a college education or any design experience launched themselves from the observant Jewish enclave of Flatbush, Brooklyn, to a Vogue-sponsored fashion show at the Chateau Marmont. And did it without working on the Sabbath.”
From the New York Times, writing about 2017 New York fashion week
The New York Giants wide receiver Victor Cruz, left, and the rapper Fabolous sat front row.
He went on to praise the fellow New Yorkers, less like a football star than a fashion editor: “I love their aesthetic — from the energy that they put into their clothing, to the silhouettes, to the cuts of their T-shirts. It’s just really beautiful.”
On the same front-row bench sat the rapper Fabolous, who appeared not to mind the fashion-mad fan crawling at his feet, trying to get a clear smartphone shot of his Puma x Trapstar sneakers.
“One thing that Ovadia has is the dope streetwear, but there’s a little touch to it that screams New York City, screams high-end,” Fabolous said. “But it’s still comfortable and casual at the same time.”
Yet the Electronic Intifada’s Ali Abunimah can’t see beyond his seething hatred of the Ovadia Brothers Jewish/Israeli background, describing their New York Fashion Week lineup as “ racist chic”
Its hard to imagine anyone looking at this gritty, diverse cross-section of New Yorkers and thinking "Hmmmm. Thats racist", but Ali Abunimah manages.
|Photo by John Taggart for The New York Times
Could it be this proud homage to the twins Israeli heritage that set him off? Could this mainstreaming of Hebrew, the the language of the Jewish people, have triggered Ali Abunimah's latest outburst?
Perhaps Ali Abunimah would find the designs of Paloma Spain, also exhibited at Fashion Week more to his liking?


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CYPRESS, Calif. (Nov. 22)—Toyo Tire USA Corp. said it will raise its tire prices on Jan. 1. The U.S. arm of Japan´s Toyo Tire & Rubber Co. Ltd. will boost passenger, light and medium truck tire prices by 3 to 5 percent, and off-the-road tire prices by 1 to 2 percent. The company didn´t give a reason for the increases. Bridgestone/Firestone North American Tire L.L.C. and Pirelli Tire North America Inc. recently announced price hikes of up to 5 percent, effective Jan. 1. Japanese-owned competitor Yokohama Tire Corp. is boosting prices on Dec. 1.
Toyo to raise tire prices Jan. 1
Rubber & Plastics News wants to hear from its readers. If you want to express your opinion on a story or issue, email your letter to Editor Bruce Meyer at [email protected].


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A Macon-based cat rescue organization is seeking a new home after learning this week its current lease won’t be renewed.
Anne Brennaman, founder of Macon Purrs N’ Paws, said she was informed Monday by the company that owns the Fall Line Plaza shopping center off Rocky Creek Road that the cat rescue will have to vacate the premises when its lease ends Oct. 15.
Brennaman, who said the facility is at capacity with 105 cats, isn’t sure what may become of the rescue group. She said Tuesday she has been searching for other commercial spaces to rent, but she’s been unsuccessful for a variety of reasons: Her nonprofit organization can’t afford the rent, the space in question isn’t zoned for an animal-based business, or landlords don’t want to rent to an animal-based organization.
Several attempts to reach Alpine South Properties, the new owner of the near-vacant shopping center, were unsuccessful.
Brennaman said Macon Purrs N’ Paws is the only animal rescue organization she knows of between Marietta and Valdosta that almost exclusively rescues cats. She said she moved into the Fall Line Plaza location in October 2011, after the shelter’s previous space flooded, causing cost-prohibitive repairs.
Thanks to an agreement with the shopping center’s previous ownership, Macon Purrs N’ Paws also uses two connected adjacent commercial spaces in the shopping center as well as a warehouse space, but was paying rent for only one space. Brennaman said because her organization is a 501(c)3 nonprofit, the previous landlord was getting a tax write-off instead of the rent for the extra space.
Purrs N’ Paws gets by on the generosity of donors and can’t afford to pay more than it’s paying now, she said.
“I can’t afford to buy a new building,” she said.
According to a presentation made to the Macon-Bibb County Planning & Zoning Commission last spring to change the signs at the shopping center, Alpine South said it wants to “breathe new life” into the center “by attracting several national and regional retail brands.”
Two other tenants in the shopping center say they aren’t aware of any notices sent to them about their leases.
Diane Hunnicutt, who rents a booth at Classic Cuts beauty salon, said the shop’s owner hasn’t informed her about any changes.
“I hope they don’t make us move,” she said.
The owner of Lottery & Arcade, who declined to give her name, said she’s already in the process of selling her store, so her lease ending likely won’t affect her.
Brennaman said the shopping center is located in a crime-riddled, low economic part of Macon, and she doubts that the new ownership will be able to attract upscale new businesses.
“We’re a mile down the road from one of the worst neighborhoods in Macon,” she said. “There are shootings every week. The clientele from north Macon (the new owners) think they’re going to get, they’re not going to get.”
Brennaman said if the situation isn’t resolved before Oct. 15, she’ll likely be forced to close the rescue. Any cats she has at that time will have to be euthanized, since the Macon-Bibb County Animal Welfare shelter is almost always near capacity. She’s hoping to get an extension from the new owners at least until the end of the year.
“If I can’t find a place, I’m going to have to close up shop and go home,” she said. “I don’t know if I want to stay involved. I don’t know if I want to fight anymore. This has taken the wind out of me.”
To contact writer Phillip Ramati, call 744-4334.


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Facebook, Twitter Disable 3,500 Disinformation Networks; 300 UK Schools Affected in Wisepay Hack; Phishing Attacks Spike Heading Into Amazon Prime Days; Researchers Find Apple Flaws in 3-Month Hacking Project. Click “Continue reading” below.
Facebook, Twitter Disable 3,500 Disinformation Networks
Facebook and Twitter said Thursday that they had taken down more than a dozen disinformation networks used by political groups to deceive users.
The companies said in separate statements that when they identified the groups, they suspended more than 3,500 accounts that used fake identities and other deceptive behaviors, Reuters reports.
“Deceptive campaigns like these raise particularly complex issues by blurring the line of a healthy public debate and manipulation,” Nathaniel Gleicher, Facebook’s head of cybersecurity policy, told Reuters.
After coming under fire for not monitoring Russian activities in the 2016 election, Facebook and Twitter have announced multiple take-downs in the weeks leading up to the 2020 election, according to the report.
“Our goal with these disclosures is to continue to build public understanding around the ways in which hackers abuse and undermine open democratic conversation,” Twitter said in a statement.
Source (all external links):
300 UK Schools Affected in Wisepay Hack
Parents who made payments to U.K. schools through the Wisepay service were warned Thursday that their card information might have been compromised.
The payment company said an attacker breached its website and harvested payment details for three days beginning Oct. 2, BBC News reports.
Wisepay estimated that 300 schools were affected, but the firm said that a small number of parents would have used the system before it went offline.
“It’s quite a small subset of users of the platform,” Richard Grazier, Wisepay’s managing director, told the BBC.
Wisepay said the breach occurred over the weekend, but officials did not learn of it until Monday.
Company officials also contacted police for a computer-forensics expert to assist in its investigation.
Phishing Attacks Spike Heading Into Amazon Prime Days
Researchers said Thursday that phishing and fraud attacks have spiked since the announcement of Amazon Prime Days next Tuesday and Wednesday.
Hackers are fraudulently using the Amazon brand to break into the company’s annual discount for subscribers, Threatpost reports.
Bolster Research analysts said in a blog post that they analyzed hundreds of millions of web pages to track fraudulent sites using the Amazon brand and logo.
Earlier attacks were noticed in August, according to the report.
“As shoppers gear up for two days of great deals, cybercriminals are preparing to prey on the unwary, taking advantage of those who let their guard down to snap up bargains,” the researchers said in its blog.
Researchers Find Apple Flaws in 3-Month Hacking Project
Security researchers spent three months hacking Apple products to locate security vulnerabilities, garnering more than $51,000 in “bounty” payments for their efforts.
“Apple has had an interesting history working with security researchers, but it appears that their vulnerability disclosure program is a massive step in the right direction to working with hackers in securing assets,” Sam Curry, a Nebraska security researcher whose team worked with Apple, told the Apple Insider blog.
After the three months, researchers found 55 vulnerabilities in Apple’s system, with 11 ranked as critical.
The findings included a full compromise of Apple’s Distinguished Educators Program; a cross-site scripting attack that could allow hackers to steal user iCloud data via email, and a vulnerability that might have allowed attackers to compromise Apple’s internal inventory and warehousing system.
The average turnaround time for critical repairs, according to Apple Insider, was about four hours from submission to remediation. Typically, flaws were fixed within two business days, while others were repaired in as little as six hours.
Apple has been working with vulnerability disclosure — “bounty” — programs to secure its assets and strengthen infrastructure, according to the blog.
— By DPN Staff


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The scheme will also see Tesco build a new library on the site of the former East Durham College, off Burnhope Way.
The proposed £12m store will follow the Tesco Environmental Store Format.
This means it has been designed to deliver more than 50% carbon savings, a third less energy consumption, will use low energy LED lighting and be built to a BREEAM Very Good standard.
The main structural frame will be made of glulam timber and it will be powered using gas combined heat and power plant.
The planning consent comes as new research shows that planning approvals for large retail development jumped by 36% in the last quarter of 2010, compared to the same period a year before.
The rise will bring a welcome surge in fresh orders for builders this year, according to Giles Ferin, head of planning at EMW, the commercial law firms that released the research.
The expansion is being largely driven by Tesco and Sainsbury’s, with Asda and Waitrose starting to ramp up their new store conversion and opening programmes.


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Trend Micro study: Working from home and the Internet of Things are changing the way business data is handled and its security. […]
Trend Micro today released survey results on working from home. These show that smart home devices and their apps can represent a major weak point in corporate cybersecurity. As the lines between work and personal life become increasingly blurred, companies should revise their security policies to better protect business data. Among other things, the survey showed that 26 percent of Austrian respondents also access company data from private devices.
For Trend Micro’s Head in the Clouds study, over 13,000 remote employees in 27 countries worldwide (521 of them in Austria) were surveyed to find out more about the habits of home office workers during the pandemic.
It turned out that 26 percent of the employees surveyed in Austria (39 percent worldwide) use private devices to access company data. This is often done through services and applications that are hosted in the cloud. However, the personal smartphones, tablets and laptops used are often less secure than corresponding company devices and are also exposed to potentially vulnerable IoT applications and gadgets (Internet of Things) in the home network. For example, a third of those surveyed (33 percent in Austria, 36 percent worldwide) do not even have basic password protection on all personal devices.
Dr. Cyber Psychology Expert Linda K. Kaye explains, “The fact that so many employees use personal devices to access corporate data and services indicates a lack of awareness of the security risks involved. In order to remedy this and reduce the risks, I recommend companies offer specially tailored cybersecurity training. This should take into account the diversity of users and their different levels of knowledge and attitudes towards IT security. “
More than half (81 percent in Austria, 52 percent worldwide) of remote workers have connected IoT devices to their home network. 6 percent (10 percent worldwide) use less well-known brands of devices. Many such devices – especially from smaller, largely unknown manufacturers – have widely documented security gaps, such as unpatched firmware vulnerabilities and insecure logins. These can enable attackers to gain a foothold in the home network and to compromise unprotected private devices connected to it. For professional use, these devices can then serve as an entry point into the corporate networks.
After the lockdown has been lifted, there is a further risk for company networks: When returning to the office, malware infections that occur in the home office can be brought into the company via unsecured personal BYOD devices (“Bring Your Own Device”).
The study also found that 64 percent of remote employees working in Austria (70 percent worldwide) connect company laptops to their home network. Although these devices are typically better protected than private ones, they still pose a risk to corporate data and systems. This is especially the case when users are allowed to install unapproved applications on these devices in order to access or control private IoT devices in the home network.
“Although the IoT has also provided simple devices with computing power and connectivity functions, they do not necessarily have sufficient security measures,” says Richard Werner, Business Consultant at Trend Micro. “By opening back doors on these devices, it makes it easier for cyber criminals to compromise corporate networks. The threat is increasing as the boundaries between personal and business devices become increasingly blurred in today’s world of mass remote working. This puts both personal and business data in the line of fire of attackers. More than ever, it is important that everyone is actively involved in maintaining cybersecurity and that companies continue to train their employees on how to behave correctly. “


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Soon Times Square may be known for its iconic signage, its assortment of apparel shops like Forever 21 and American Eagle Outfitters, and, erm, Google?!
The vaunted tourist trap may be the perfect location for the web giant to test out a “brick and mortar” entity, said David LaPierre, executive vice president of CB Richard Ellis,.
“Theoretically at some point I envision brands like Google or like Amazon… finding a way to manage and spread, I think, their customer base beyond just the internet,” said Mr. LaPierre during CBRE’s third-quarter Manhattan retail media breakfast Monday.
“Time Square is a classic, great place to make that be your flagship.” Read More


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Dell is looking to include the channel in its desktop-as-a-service (DaaS) strategy and it is about to offer two options for channel partners. The first one will be straightforward, much like the usual resale relationship, but a deeper approach will let the partners themselves “own” the customers, reports MSPmentor.
The cunning plan is that organisations will find it a lot easier to get into the DaaS business without the hassle of building their own infrastructure. Such an approach should appeal to potential providers, including telecoms, reckons Dell. So far the push will apparently be limited to the American market, where the service launched a month ago, in cooperation with system integrators MCPC from Ohio.
However, the model itself sounds relatively flexible and it should be relatively easy to expand. Dell Director of Sales Enablement Terry Vaughn said the company has already come up with a playbook for the service, which resembles a franchise model. Affiliate/referral margins are percent of revenue in a monthly recurring model, while the co-delivery model requires the partner to achieve Dell certification, but it also provides better margins of 15 to 20 percent.
“We know what we are selling this for direct in the market place, and we are holding the pricing consistent,” said Vaughn. He added that the approach is designed to avoid any channel conflict.
In addition, Dell is offering a free proof-of-concept trial for anyone willing to give the new DaaS strategy a go.


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GUS shocks City with its first profits warning
Friday 03 May 1996
Though the warning was mild, it surprised City analysts who have come to rely on GUS as one of the market's steadiest, if unspectacular performers.
John Richards of NatWest Securities said: "It is only a modest adjustment but it is a shock coming from GUS. The whole idea of GUS is that it is a stock that allows you to sleep at night."
Another analyst said: "It is unprecedented. These things just don't happen with GUS." The shares fell 30p to 687p.
The company warned that market expectations of its profits were too high and that its profits for the year to March would be between pounds 578m and pounds 581m. This was 2 per cent lower than the consensus forecast of pounds 595m.
The company insisted that its first ever trading statement was not a "warning" but a "clarification". Richard Pugh, chairman of the group's home shopping division, said: "It is not any sort of warning. We saw what the forecasts were and felt the market would appreciate us clarifying the position. Some analysts' forecasts had run rather ahead."
He added that, barring unforeseen circumstances, GUS would still report its 48th consecutive year of increased profits when it reports its results in July. Even the lower profits of pounds 578m would be higher than 1995's pounds 560m.
The company said unaudited profits for the year to March 1996 indicated a 3.5 per cent increase in group sales with consumer and corporate finance advances up 5 per cent.
The home shopping business has seen demand affected by a "cautious and selective approach from customers", as well as the unseasonal weather and higher paper and printing costs, which had made the group's catalogues more expensive to produce.
Home shopping sales in the UK would be some 2 per cent lower, though sales in Europe were 5 per cent up.
Other main trading divisions in the group, such as the Burberrys chain, should show a "satisfactory improvement" in profits, the company said. The company has also collected a lower level of VAT. In previous years the company has received interest payments on VAT over-payments.
- 1 Hilary Mantel 'should be investigated by police' over Margaret Thatcher assassination story, says Lord Bell
- 2 Rihanna 'nude pictures' claims emerge on 4Chan as hacking scandal continues
- 3 Kim Kardashian 'nude photos' leaked on 4chan weeks after Jennifer Lawrence scandal
- 4 'F*ck it, I quit': KTVA reporter Charlo Greene quits live on air in spectacular fashion
- 5 Hitler’s former food taster reveals the horrors of the Wolf’s Lair
Rihanna 'nude pictures' claims emerge on 4Chan as hacking scandal continues
Kim Kardashian 'nude photos' leaked on 4chan weeks after Jennifer Lawrence scandal
'F*ck it, I quit': KTVA reporter Charlo Greene quits live on air in spectacular fashion
Jennifer Lawrence: Leaked 4Chan sex video branded 'fake' by users
Jennifer Lawrence 'naked sex video' will be leaked next, threatens 4Chan celebrity photo hacker
Scotland could still declare independence – even without referendum, says Alex Salmond
Scottish referendum results: Cross-party consensus collapses amid Tory-Labour spat on the 'English question'
Hilary Mantel 'should be investigated by police' over Margaret Thatcher assassination story, says Lord Bell
Scottish independence: David Cameron is becoming the 'George Bush of Britain'
Plebgate MP Andrew Mitchell called officer a 'little s**t', claim court documents 'exposing ex-Chief Whip's 'record of abusing police'
Archbishop of Canterbury admits doubts about existence of God
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Sydney’s largest celebration of craft beer, Sydney Craft Beer Week
(SCBW), is back with a magnificent program brimming with beer-tastic adventures from Friday 21 to Sunday 30 October 2016. More than 100 events at over 75 different venues around Sydney will bring the brew to Sydneysiders, bigger and better than ever.
From axe throwing competitions, international brewery guests, hangover curing brekkies, beer matched chocolate desserts, sausage making classes and beer guzzling history lessons, the SCBW program offers up a smorgasbord of glorious hoppy-goodness for both craft connoisseurs and occasional drinkers alike.
No longer just a trend, craft beer has become ingrained in Sydney’s social culture. SCBW Director Joel Connolly said, “This year’s program is a reflection of the craft beer industry’s growing popularity. I started Sydney Craft Beer Week six years ago for quite selfish reasons, I just wanted to drink good beer and Sydney was in short supply. Now there are hundreds of incredible brewers doing some awesome things all across the city, which makes programming an event like Sydney Craft Beer Week a whole lot more fun!”
The festival kicks off with the pinnacle of craft beer experiences, the Opening Gala Night at the Giant Dwarf in Redfern. Each year the Gala is a sell out, so for 2016 the event will run two sessions across two days of the opening weekend. Thirsty hop diehards won’t miss an opportunity to sample a showcase of handpicked beers and brewers who will be featured over the Festival’s week long run.
The Crafty Pint is bringing the popular Pint of Origin™ to Sydney Craft Beer Week for the first time, turning Sydney into a microcosm of the Aussie beer world for the week. Six pubs across Sydney turn their taps over to beers and brewers from the six Aussie states to give small breweries a chance to showcase their wares to lovers of a good brew.
Pizza and beer has been an age-old match made in heaven, and this year everyone’s late night favourite, Frankie’s Pizza joins in on the fun, releasing nine brand new beers produced by top brewers from around Oz and NZ. The free entry event on October 24, will see the masses swiggin’ on cold crafts, sampling some top notch slices and rockin’ and rollin’ to Frankie’s World Famous House Band.
Now here’s a history lesson your taste buds will thank you for, Beer through the Ages: A Beer History Experience, is a brand-spanking new event for the Festival and takes beer lovers on a drinkable journey through time. Learn about the migration of beer from Mesopotamia to Egypt, Scandinavia and beyond, all while enjoying five historical styles of beer from different periods of time.
Beer is great, but free beer is LEGENDARY! Beer Cartel’s Ultimate Free Beer Tasting is giving a chance to taste over $1000 worth of craft beer - for free. Brewing powerhouses Westvleteren 12, Founders KBS, Stone & Wood and many more have banded together to deliver the ultimate tasting experience. Like a beer themed tour of Willy Wonka’s Chocolate factory, there’s a lottery to decide the lucky few who get to snag a golden ticket to this event. Register on the SCBW website to enter the draw to win a seat!
To celebrate the thriving craft beer industry, SCBW are hosting the inaugural Sydney Craft Beer Awards. Not only will the best of beers and brewers be celebrated in this industry night of nights, but also all those behind the scenes that make the craft beer scene in Sydney as rich and vibrant as it is today.
After the awards, punters can sooth their fuzzy heads with the Hair of the Dog Breakfast at the Rocks Brewing. Six indulgent courses will be paired with six of the best beers to help relieve the craft comedown bought on by the night before.
Festival favourites also return in 2016. Last year Holes ‘n’ Hops was a sell-out with punters starting the day smashing burgers and brews before taking to the greens for a nine-hole golf tournament - with a beer for each ball sunk.
Most wouldn’t think sharp tools flying through the air and beer would be the best mix. Not so, says SCBW! Last year’s Meat, Beer Axe event was as thrilling as it was safe, and returns in 2016. Willie the Boatman is teaming up with Maniax axe throwing centre and the juicy lads of Bovine and Swine to present another night of axe throwing, beer drinking and meat eating fun.
Like Sydney’s craft beer movement, Sydney Craft Beer Week has grown to be hugely popular with locals and visitors alike. So gear up, polish off the beer goggles and get ready to say a toast to Sydney’s favourite Festival.
To check out the full program of events, visit www.sydneycraftbeerweek.com
What: Sydney Craft Beer Week
Where: Over 75 venues across Sydney
When: Friday 21 – Sunday 30 October, 2016


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With Pokemon GO having put out its latest update, a plethora of fans of the title have been spending their waking hours datamining the game’s patch to find out more about what’s to come. Interestingly enough, newly discovered code potentially points to the mobile release having legendary creatures be offered to players as rewards for completing the game’s new feature known as Raid Battles.
This revelation comes from the subreddit known as The Silph Road, as its members have been combing through the code for the latest update to find as many details as they can about Pokemon GO‘s new gym and Raid Battles. According to the group’s findings so far, legendaries are connected to Raid Battles, as code for a legendary-class Raid Battle ticket – that is, the item used to participate in these co-op challenges – and badges tied to winning against legendary Pokemon have been found in the files.
As the Silph Road member dronpes has speculated, “Legendaries will be encountered in Raid situations (either at events, or under special circumstances isn’t clear). They will require a ‘Legendary Raid Ticket’ item to enter the legendary raid.” Furthermore, the Pokemon GO community on Reddit have surmised that after one acquires a legendary Pokemon, they will not be able to deploy the creature to defend a Gym, as the restriction “may help prevent a significant imbalance between botters/illegitimate players (who oft find ways to score rare Pokemon) with legitimate trainers.”
As of now, Niantic has yet to explain how players will actually encounter legendaries in Pokemon GO, but their existence in the title has been hinted at for quite some time. As a matter of fact, Niantic’s CEO, John Hanke, has mentioned in the past that legendary Pokemon would be added to the game before 2017 is finished. Furthermore, when accepting the Webby Award for Best Mobile Game of 2017 about a month ago, the company’s’s global marketing lead Archit Bhargava said that “this summer will be legendary,” hinting at their addition to the game in the middle of this year.
With practically all of the past datamines for Pokemon GO having been an accurate assessment of what’s on deck, it seems likely that legendary creatures are indeed going to be the rewards for the game’s Raid Battles. After all, Niantic teased the prospect of players being able to capture the likes of Mewtwo when it released the first trailer for the game, so coupling legendary Pokemon with the highly anticipated multiplayer feature makes plenty of sense.
Pokemon GO is available now for Android and iOS devices.


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Tesla Model Y electric crossovers equipped with the optional tow package are being recalled for inoperative trailer-brake lights, but Tesla claims to have already remedied the issue through an over-the-air (OTA) software update.
In the 2,567 affected vehicles, a software error could prevent illumination of trailer-brake lights, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) recall notice. That represents a failure to comply with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 108, the agency noted.
Tesla will notify owners of the issue, but has already released a firmware update OTA as of September 23, 2020, to address the problem, according to the recall notice.
In other words, this required the issue of a recall for being out of compliance with a federal regulation, but it’s already been fixed—without a trip to the dealership or store, and likely in very close to 100% of vehicles.
The ability to fix certain problems via OTA software updates has been a Tesla strength for years. And it has applied significant safety upgrades at several other points to its vehicles.
2020 Tesla Model Y
In 2018, for example, Tesla released a software update for the Model 3 to improve braking performance after poor results in a Consumer Reports test.
Tesla has offered OTA update capability since the launch of the Model S in 2012, but other automakers are only now catching up.
The Jaguar I-Pace electric crossover got OTA capability after its launch, and has received at least one update based on lessons learned from racing.
When it launches, the Ford Mustang Mach-E will get OTA capability from the start, and that will also be the case with most of the automaker's other models going forward.
OTA can be a double-edged sword, however. While Tesla uses it to add new features and correct faults, it also exerts an unprecedented amount of control on its cars, allowing it to potentially delete or disable features as well. Let's hope that doesn't become the norm as other automakers adopt OTA capability.


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I have your rounds of involving Google news today care --
Not required and -- averaging -- and this is your -- -- a --
It's time to say hello to the Kindle -- greatest nemesis Google -- seven inch Galaxy Nexus tablet called the nexus seven.
It's much more help for a tablet and the Kindle fire and the Barnes and not get it at a low price to 200 bucks.
And nexus will have the latest four point one.
Jelly -- Android operating system it'll have a Quad Core processor and a front facing camera because really -- would use a back camera on a tablet.
But again I have more than just hardware to compete -- -- -- says Google also built in features and its entertainment hub Google play.
Now you can purchase movies and television shows and yet easy issues or subscriptions the nexus seven is take computers now in the Google play store and will ship in mid July.
But don't expect Amazon -- sit back and take this quietly.
In the next month we could see an Amazon buyers drop its price and some reports say and you Kindle fire to you'll come out and July and it to compact camera so.
-- -- an Android four point one jelly -- system it'll be faster with improved notifications and widgets.
There's also something called Google now he gives advice for your life.
Based on your location calendar and your habits.
If you have an appointment on your calendar -- tell you when to leave your house based on the route traffic and motor transportation usually take.
Even updates you my favorite sports teams without telling it what your favorite sports teams -- just knows what they are based on what usually search for kind of weird right.
-- got a bit of a slap to ask your -- a question it'll pull the results very fast and speak answer back to you.
Google also is coming out with a home theater invited to take on Apple TV.
It says here called the nexus Q and it taps into the content stored in your Google play cloud.
So it can stream audio and the -- alone to your home theater and your friends and possibly the DJ -- -- songs from their accounts.
It's a bit more pricey than him might expect it's 300 dollars and it also ships in mid July.
And if you're curious about Google's project last well.
The camera enabled headsets stole the show stunt men wearing the glasses -- -- a Google hangout video wild sky diet eat into the -- -- the -- -- stump acres zoomed across the room and some repelled on the side of the building.
Call -- to show how wearable computer adds new perspectives. It's a prototype but people at that could sign up to be the first pre ordered them for 15100 dollars.
To help shape -- development are behind where the first versions will ship next year.
That's your tech news update board today for more stories in today's show you can go to cnet.com slash update -- using New York -- yeah --


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WILMINGTON — Bane-Welker Equipment was recently recognized as one of Woods Equipment Company’s Top 100 dealers in the United States. This nationwide award honors dealerships for the volume of equipment they sell, as well as their commitment to representing Woods in their local market.
“We’re proud to sell such a great brand and proud to accept this award,” stated Phil Bane of Bane-Welker Equipment. “We’re fortunate to have a great team of employees who work hard to educate themselves about the brand and in turn, help educate our customers about what best fits their needs.”
Woods created the “Top 100” award as a way of recognizing its American dealer network as an integral component of the company’s success.
“Our top performing dealers rely on us as partners,” stated President, Jerry Johnson. “We work together to take care of their customers and keep them coming back for more.”
Woods products are manufactured to American Welding Society standards; tested in rigorous, real-life conditions; and comply with recommended industry safety standards. Woods, a brand of Blount International’s Farm, Ranch and Agriculture Division, is headquartered in Oregon, Illinois. Visit www.woodsequipment.com for more information.
Bane-Welker Equipment is an agriculture equipment company representing Case IH and other complimentary brands. Bane-Welker offers new and used equipment, parts, sales, service, precision farming, online parts sales and customer support. The 50-year-old company operates 10 stores in Indiana and three stores in Ohio, including Eaton, Wilmington and Georgetown.
For more information, visit www.Bane-Welker.com.


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Amazon’s goal of getting Alexa everywhere is taking a step forward today as the retail giant announced two new development kits for third parties to embed the digital brain within their products.
One of those kits focuses on mobile devices such as headphones, smartwatches, fitness trackers and more. The Alexa Mobile Accessory Kit enables these products to connect to the Alexa Voice Service, Amazon’s hub for adding Alexa to connected devices, via bluetooth.
Amazon said partners like Bose, Jabra, iHome, Beyerdynamic and Linkplay are working on new mobile Alexa devices using this development kit that will come out this year.
Amazon’s Alexa Premium Far-Field Voice Development Kit is a different kind of tool for developers. Rather than a set of APIs, it is the physical bones of Alexa. It actually uses the same microphone array configurations found in the Amazon Echo and Echo Show. Also included are the audio algorithms and wake word engine on a single chip.
Amazon said it is working to bring this kit to market on a limited basis and will share more information about how to request it later.
Amazon’s decision to open the digital brain up to developers and device manufacturers in 2015 has contributed to its early lead in the competitive smart speaker race. In August, Amazon introduced a new set of tools to help commercial device makers build the technology into their products. Amazon also last April opened up what amounts to Alexa’s ears, her 7-Mic Voice Processing Technology, to third party hardware makers who want to build the digital brain into their devices. Amazon opened up Amazon Lex, the artificial intelligence technology that powers Alexa to developers.
The Alexa Skills Kit encourages third-party developers to build skills for Alexa. Developers who want to add to Alexa’s abilities can write code that works with Alexa in the cloud, letting the smart assistant do the heavy lifting of understanding and deciphering spoken commands.
That has led Alexa to amass more than 25,000 skills and counting.


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Shifts Focus to International Expansion and Retail Market
February 11, 2001 (Ft. Lauderdale, FL and Los Angeles, CA) - Despite the soft economy, iBill (Internet Billing Company, Ltd.), a global leader in online transactions processing, announced today a 47 percent increase in revenue and a 110 percent increase in signed customer agreements for 2001.
“Our growth and stability is a true testament to our business model and market leadership,” said Garrett Bender, iBill’s President and CEO. “This has been the most successful year in our history. The opening of our Los Angeles office, the acquisition of ShopEasy.com and the launch of a multi-media advertising campaign well position us for an even more successful 2002.”
iBill’s increased market presence is further demonstrated by a 75 percent increase in website traffic and an 89 percent increase in unique visits. The site’s “Getting Started” page easily directs prospective clients to the information most relevant to their needs, reducing confusion and increasing the percentage of site visitors who become customers.
“iBill’s ability to continue its advertising and marketing efforts during a tough economy are two strong indicators of stability and smart growth,” said Todd Moran, iBill’s vice president of sales. “We’ve had to increase our inside sales force four times due to the team’s inability to make outgoing calls with the influx of incoming calls.”
With iBill’s industry leadership position firmly established, the company is entering the traditional retail sector as part of its transition from small to mid and large volume sellers. iBill’s recent acquisition of ShopEasy.com , an online shopping site that utilizes live personal shoppers to suggest gifts for consumers, allows the company to extend its reach into the retail market while positioning current customers in front of ShopEasy’s 67,000 registered members.
Additionally, it plans to aggressively pursue the international market, beginning in Germany, by launching two new international payment products - International Direct Debit and Web 900 Dialer. An upgrade of online checks, iBill’s International Direct Debit allows users in certain countries to pay for iBill’s subscription services using the domestic debit system in their own country. The Web 900 Dialer is an international telephone billing product that allows clients to accept charges from any country’s domestic premium rate telephone number system.
Established in 1996 and headquartered in Ft. Lauderdale, FL, iBill provides turnkey e-commerce solutions to thousands of business customers around the world. The company`s service is powered by proprietary technology that integrates online payment processing, fraud control, affiliate management and financial reporting and tracking. For more information about iBill, visit the company on the web at www.iBill.com or call (888) 371-7800.


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City Planning to hold Willets Pt. hearing as plan gets OK from Queens BP
The public will be able to give their two cents about the much-delayed and controversial Willets Point project Wednesday.
The City Planning Commission will host a public hearing at 9 a.m. at its offices at 22 Reade St. on the $3-billion redevelopment plan for the land near Citi Field.
For years, the mayor and the city's Economic Development Corporation hav. tried to transform the 23 acres into a hot spot, only to be hit with setbacks.
Last year, the EDC made a deal with two Manhattan-based developers, one of which is run by Mets owner Fred Wilpon, to create a site that includes a 200-room hotel and 30,000 square feet of retail space.
There has been a lot of opposition to the development from car shop owners and other business members who work in the area because they have been forced to relocate their stores.
Queens Borough President Helen Marshall sent the commission a letter of recommendation supporting the plan, which also must be passed by the City Council.


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You'll find the term “sustainability” on almost every list of hot restaurant trends for 2010. But while operators endorse sustainable practices in principle, many wonder if they can afford them in practice.
How come? A restaurant's costs go up when it installs pricey equipment to make its operation more sustainable and pays extra to source ingredients that meet sustainability standards. Not a problem if customers will pay more when menu prices inevitably rise to cover these added costs.
But will they? They did at burrito chain Chipotle Mexican Grill, which has shown that a commitment to buying food from sustainable sources does not have a negative impact on its menu pricing power. Chipotle was able to impose a big price increase in the middle of the recent recession without seeing much falloff in traffic. Strong testimony, indeed.
Now the chain is tackling the other part of the sustainability equation: energy. Chipotle has committed to installing solar panels on 75 units over the next year. Collectively, the panels will produce 500 kilowatt hours of electricity annually. And the chain is greening up other aspects of its buildings, too.
“Our effort to change the way people think about and eat fast food began with our commitment to serving food made with ingredients from more sustainable sources, and that same kind of thinking now influences all areas of our business,” says Chipotle founder and chairman Steve Ells. “Today, we're following a similar path in the way we design and build restaurants, looking for more environmentally friendly building materials and systems that make our restaurants more efficient.”
The solar panels are being installed in markets that have lots of sunlight (Denver, Austin, Dallas, San Antonio) and whose local utilities offer solar rebates. The panels can't fully power these units. Rather, the idea is to reduce the restaurant's energy consumption during peak hours (11 a.m. to 7 p.m.), taking pressure off the locale's energy grid and, collectively, eliminating more than 41 million pounds of CO2 emissions.
“Chipotle has recognized an eco-friendly method of reducing its operating costs while reducing its carbon footprint,” says John Berger, c.e.o. of Standard Renewable Energy, which is supplying Chipotle with its solar panels. “By applying solar, each individual restaurant will be decreasing its reliance on the local grid and fossil fuels and supplementing it with clean, renewable energy.”
The question about this effort is whether customers will notice. Chipotle's sustainable food practices are intertwined with quality, and they produce benefits customers can taste and see. Ultimately, this strategy has made the company money.
On the other hand, its solar panel installations sit on unit roofs. They are difficult for customers to see unless they happen to do a flyover in a helicopter.
Some other company initiatives along these lines are more visible. Chipotle's Gurnee, IL, unit was the first restaurant to received platinum-level LEED certification from the Green Building Council. It features an on-site wind turbine and an underground cistern that captures rainwater for irrigation. There's another LEED unit in Long Island, NY, and one in Minneapolis that hopes to get certified soon. New units elsewhere in the chain now incorporate environmentally friendly materials throughout their buildings.
All we have to watch now is whether the upfront investments in these initiatives pay off if and when Chipotle raises prices again. If the trend predictors are right, customers now value sustainability so highly that they'll pay more to restaurants like Chipotle that do business this way.


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Nov 5 (Reuters) – AOL Inc reported
higher-than-expected third-quarter revenue on increased
advertising sales, but earnings fell sharply because of
challenges at its network of community news websites known as
The digital media and entertainment company said on Tuesday
it took a pre-tax restructuring charge of $19 million and an
impairment charge of $25 million, both related to Patch, sending
income down 90 percent to $2 million, or 2 cents per share.
(Reuters) – About half of all adult Twitter users in the United States said they get news through the social media platform, mainly on mobile devices, according to a new survey.
The report by the Pew Research Center in collaboration with the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation was released on Monday. The results are based on a the survey of more than 5,000 U.S. adults including Twitter and Facebook users.
NEW YORK (Reuters) – The Financial Times plans to retain its famously salmon-hued print edition even as it aggressively ramps up digital distribution, its chief executive said in an interview.
FT Group CEO John Ridding said a “digital first” strategy that will eliminate the paper’s current regional editions in favor of a single global one does not sound a death knell for the physical newspaper.
(Reuters) – Norman Pearlstine is leaving Bloomberg LP to return to Time Inc in the newly created position of executive vice president and chief content officer as the magazine publisher moves to split with Time Warner Inc.
The return of Pearlstine to Time Inc is a homecoming for the man who was the company’s editor-in-chief from 1994 through 2005.
(Reuters) – New York Times Co reported higher third-quarter revenue on Thursday after more readers paid for its flagship newspaper and its digital products.
The company is relying on customers to open their wallets as advertisers pull back from newspapers.
NEW YORK/PARIS (Reuters) – Shares in French online advertising firm Criteo rose more than 30 percent in its stock market debut on Nasdaq on Wednesday, showing investor appetite for technology start-ups and delivering a payday to its venture capital backers.
Shares in the company, which uses tracking technology to target ads at consumers surfing the web, opened at $31 and were at $41.40 by 1625 GMT, giving the eight-year old start-up a market capitalization of roughly $2.3 billion.
By Jennifer Saba
(Reuters) – Thomson Reuters Corp said on Tuesday that new sales of its financial terminals outpaced cancellations in the third quarter for the first time since 2011, and it announced 3,000 job cuts to reduce costs.
The global news and information company’s stock rose more than 2 percent to hit a two-year high on optimism that the positive turn in net sales will translate into stronger revenue growth next year, since terminal subscriptions are signed on an annual basis. Thomson Reuters also announced a $1 billion share buyback program.
(Reuters) – Thomson Reuters Corp (TRI.N: Quote, Profile, Research) (TRI.TO: Quote, Profile, Research) said on Tuesday that new sales of its financial terminals outpaced cancellations in the third quarter for the first time since 2011, and it announced 3,000 job cuts to reduce costs.
The global news and information company’s stock rose more than 2 percent to hit a two-year high on optimism that the positive turn in net sales will translate into stronger revenue growth next year, since terminal subscriptions are signed on an annual basis. Thomson Reuters also announced a $1 billion (623 million pounds) share buyback program.
(Reuters) – Thomson Reuters Corp (TRI.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) (TRI.TO: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) said on Tuesday that net sales in its financial business turned positive for the first time since 2011 and announced 3,000 job cuts aimed at streamlining the global news and information company.
Logging positive net sales is an important milestone for Thomson Reuters because it shows new sales outpaced cancellations in the Financial & Risk division, which serves banks and financial institutions. Since subscriptions are signed on an annual basis, net sales are a key indicator for future revenue.
Oct 24 (Reuters) – One in three Americans get news through
Facebook, according to a study from the Pew Research
Center released on Thursday.
Almost 80 percent of those surveyed happen upon news when
they are checking up on friends or sharing photos. Heavy news
consumers did not describe Facebook as an important source of
news, the study found.


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The farm in question is located in Mahajamba, in the northwest coast of Madagascar and is the first shrimp farm in Africa to receive ASC certification, an internationally recognized labeling scheme that promotes responsible fish farming practice.
The ASC standard for farmed shrimp stipulates that farms certified by the ASC can’t destroy mangroves, operate in natural wetlands or where endangered species live. There are strict controls, under the standard, over escapes of farmed fish into the wild and on waste management.
And farmers who want to use fish meal made from wild-caught seafood in their feed have to ensure it comes from credibly certified sources.
The Standard applies to all locations and scales of shrimp farm-based aquaculture production systems globally, although it is thought the certification is of greater interest to producers trading internationally.
The WWF welcomed the ASC approval of French owned Unima, saying it has partnered with the shrimp producer to develop and implement good social and environmental practices, an alliance that began in 2007.
Low density model, strict feed rules
Unima said it uses a low density stocking model of 5 to 10 shrimp per square meter, instead of over 50 in intensive farming, to ensure sustainable production.
The two farms of the group, spread over 1,600 hectares of natural clay soil, produce over 5,000 tons of shrimp per year.
Unima is the only Malagasy operator which has a fully integrated production model. It produces its own feed at a mill in Reunion which has allowed significant production cost efficiencies and low FCR along with reduction in waste and pollution from waste effluents, according to a report commissioned by the WWF and Unima.
Malagasy shrimp production
While the region’s fish farms have faced significant threat of disease in the past few years, the WWF said production has resumed with the implementation of new, innovative biosecurity technology.
In 2014, shrimp fishing and farming represented 49% of Madagascar’s fish products exports.
Europe is the main consumer of Malagasy shrimps, with imports of 400,000 tons of tropical farmed shrimp per year. Most of the shrimp is exported to France, only 10% goes to Spain, Portugal and the UK.


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MediAvataar's News Desk
MEC Singapore Announces new Digital Leadership
MEC Singapore Ramps up Digital Offering with a String of New Hires
MEC, a leading media agency www.mecglobal.com, has announced a series of new digital hires in Singapore to fuel the agency’s digital and data acceleration.
Amy Dabbs joins MEC Singapore as its new Head of Digital, adding to a string of senior and specialist hires that started earlier this year with Kunal Robert joining as Digital Director and Joshua Campanella joining as Associate Digital Director.
Sharon Soh, Managing Director of MEC Singapore said “The current Singapore team and our clients are already very digitally savvy so it’s natural that we want to accelerate our growth in this area. With Amy, Kunal and Joshua on board, we have made a huge investment in our future and our clients’ futures, with genuine, proven talent leading our digital development charge. I’m excited to have them on board and look forward to creating a thriving, digital culture at MEC.”
FCB Ulka creates new TVC for Sunfeast Dark Fantasy
Sunfeast Dark Fantasy, the premium biscuit brand launched by ITC in 2005, has been very successful in carving out a niche for itself at the top end of the market.
The brand has over the years become the gold standard that competition is forever trying to match and has expanded its offering to include variants like Dark Fantasy Choco Fills, Dark Fantasy Choco Meltz, and Dark Fantasy Luxuria.
Over the years, the brand has pegged itself as the ultimate in indulgence - just one bite is all it takes to get transported into the world of Dark Fantasy – making every biscuit a doorway to a truly memorable experience.
The latest communication from the brand tailors this promise to suit Crème Biscuits, a format that is intrinsically associated with one’s childhood. Conceptualized by FCB Ulka Bangalore, the film revolves around a young man who encounters the brand in the lobby of a luxury hotel. Just one bite of Sunfeast Dark Fantasy Crème Biscuit is all it takes to bring out the child in him, inspiring him to hop on to a bellhop trolley and ride it around the lobby, much to the amusement of the people around him.
Dennis Koshy, Vice President–Bangalore, FCB Ulka, has this to say: “Crème Biscuits are part and parcel of one’s growing up years. Even as adults we have fond memories of splitting them open, licking the cream etc. This coupled with the fact that every adult has an inner child waiting to burst out, gave us a unique platform to anchor the brand to”.
Dharmesh Shah, Creative Director–Bangalore, FCB Ulka, adds: “Crème biscuits are primarily targeted at kids. However, Dark Fantasy is an adult brand. The new film straddles the sweet spot, appealing to the child in every adult, thereby keeping the brand codes intact.”
Sunfeast Dark Fantasy Crème Biscuits are available in two variants – Choco Crème and Vanilla Crème, and comes in an all new premium packaging.
Client: ITC Foods
Brand: Sunfeast Dark Fantasy Crème Biscuits
Agency: FCB Ulka, Bangalore
Creative Team - Dharmesh Shah, Rama Krishnan, Supreeth Nagaraja
Servicing Team - Vignesh Babu, Priyank Vaghela & Shreyas Upadhya
Account Planning – Menaka Menon
Agency Producers – Alpa Jobalia, Mazhar khan
Director: Zap (Gingerwater Films)
TV18 and CNN to conclude their licensing arrangement for CNN IBN
TV18 and CNN will be successfully concluding their 10-year licensing arrangement in January 2016 for CNN IBN.
The conclusion of the arrangement will enable each company thereafter to chart its own growth trajectory independently in one of the most dynamic, complex and fast growing markets in the world.
A.P. Parigi, Group CEO, Network18 said “The last decade has seen a lot of momentum in the Indian media industry and has been particularly exciting for us. During this time we witnessed two media houses coming together to redefine the way news is presented to a demanding audience; we at TV18 have benefited from this relationship with CNN. At the launch of the channel, TV18 was a relatively small organization; that has changed now. Network18 has grown from 2 news channels in 2005 to 17 news channels in 2015. Today, we have the largest footprint in the current affairs, regional and business news space in India. The TV18 line-up of channels today are well established and highly regarded in this dynamic, complex and challenging environment.”
Rani Raad, Chief Commercial Officer, CNN International said, “We are very proud to have created CNN IBN in our decade long partnership with TV18. The channel was a pioneering initiative that combined the best of CNN’s global expertise with TV18’s journalistic and newsgathering capabilities. We have truly valued this long standing partnership.” He further adds, “As the number one international news brand in Asia Pacific and the rest of the world, and the winner of multiple prestigious awards, CNN International, continues to lead and serve consumers in India with the best of global news content across multi-platforms.
WPP named Holding Company of the Year at Cannes Lions
High fives as WPP scores “un quintuplé” in Cannes
For the fifth consecutive year, a winning performance from its agencies has handed WPP the title of Holding Company of the Year at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity.
Cannes Lions is the world’s biggest celebration of creativity in a commercial setting, and a Lion trophy is the highest accolade in the advertising and marketing services industry. The holding company award is based on the total number of points won by each group’s agencies during the week of the festival.
Agencies from more than 50 different countries contributed points to WPP’s total. WPP finished first ahead of Omnicom and Publicis respectively. Ogilvy & Mather won Network of the Year for the fourth time in as many years.
Earlier this year WPP was also named – for the fourth time in row – the world’s most effective holding company by the Effie Index, which recognises the effectiveness of marketing communications.
Winning work from WPP agencies included: Grey London’s “Life Paint” (Volvo); Ogilvy Beijing’s “Great Chinese Names for Great Britain” (Visit Britain); “Red Light App” by Y&R Team Red Istanbul (Vodafone); “Abla Fahita” by J. Walter Thompson Cairo (CBC Egypt); “Interception” from Grey New York (Volvo); David Miami’s “Proud Whopper” (Burger King); “Melanoma Likes Me” (Melanoma Patients Australia) by GPY&R Melbourne and Brisbane; Grey New York’s “Gun Store” (States United to Prevent Gun Violence); “House of Mamba” from AKQA London (Nike); “The Marathon Walker” by Ogilvy Paris (Water for Africa); Grey Germany’s “The Berlin Wall of Sound” (Soundcloud); “It Happens Here” (28 Too Many) by Ogilvy London; “Microsoft Collective Project” by POSSIBLE Seattle; “Coke Thirst” by J. Walter Thompson Brazil; “The Last Shot” from AKQA San Francisco (Jordan Brand); and Prolam Y&R Chile’s work for UNICEF.
Sir Martin Sorrell, founder and CEO of WPP, said: “We are delighted to have made it a quintuplet (or should I say quintuplé?) of wins in Cannes. The holding company award is special because it is a shared achievement, reflecting the hard work, passion and commitment of every member of the WPP family. A big thank you to our agencies and all the hugely talented and creative people within them.
“However, this week of celebration has been overshadowed by loss and sadness for many people after the untimely deaths of two colleagues and friends during the festival. On behalf of WPP I would like to extend our deepest sympathy to everyone affected by these tragic events.”
John O’Keeffe, Worldwide Creative Director of WPP, said: “Anyone who doubts the transformational power of creativity need look no further than the Palais this evening. Of course it’s wonderful to be named Creative Holding Company of the Year, but each individual winner tonight, from wherever they came, is testament to an amazing industry full of incredibly talented people. My congratulations to them all.
“Regarding the sad events here in the past few days, I would, of course, wish to echo the sentiments expressed by Martin.”
Havas Media wins Digital Mandate of Turtle
Havas Media has won the Digital Mandate of Turtle Limited. One of India’s fastest growing menswear companies, the Turtle mandate includes media planning and buying and digital solutions including social, search and mobile.
The account will be lead out of Havas Media’s Kolkata office.
Turtle has a pan India presence with its own Turtle Stores as well as TurtleOnline.com. It also retails through leading online and store-in-store outfits which also includes the large format stores. Set up in 1993 Turtle is today a force in the apparel industry providing a complete range of dressing across Shirts, T-shirts, trousers, Suits, Jackets and accessories for men with a reputation for delivering value and international style. In short they provide complete men’s range from head to toe.
Shitanshu Jhunjhunwalla, Director Turtle Limited said, “Turtle is young and ambitious. We are on a high growth path and looking to expand our pan India footprint. At our core is delivering value, variety, quality and a great experience to our customer. Havas Media shares the same passion and philosophy of being meaningful. Their understanding of the category and customised digital strategy are in line with our growth plans and we look at them as long term partners.”
Anita Nayyar, CEO, Havas Media Group India and South Asia explained, “Turtle is in a fast growing, interesting and challenging category. Today’s Indian male is always on the move, has a sense of style, likes choice and dresses for the occasion. We look forward to partnering with Team Turtle to scale their offering to the digitally engaged mobile Indian male.”
Mohit Joshi, Managing Director, Havas Media India, continued, “This is a good win - a great brand and team to work with. Havas has been on a winning spree of mandates with digital focus. We are glad that clients find us as the go-to brand keyed in on their marketing plans. The win further boosts our Kolkata operations.”


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The Office of Fair Trading said it believed Pride Mobility from Bicester, Oxfordshire had "infringed competition law" and restricted consumers' ability to get value for money.
Shoppers looking for deals on up to seven different models of Pride Mobility scooters were unable to shop around because internet retailers only ever gave the recommended retail price, the Office of Fair Trading said. The "practices" occured over a two-year period from 2010 to 2012.
Pride are the market leader in the mobility scooter sector, selling the "Jazzy Power Chair" and "GoGo Es 8" scooter. Today's provisional finding from the OFT is the latest case to stem from an investigation of the entire mobility market two years ago. Then, it said prices for mobility scooters could vary in price by as much as £3,000.
Last month, Roma Medical Aids was accused of breaching competition law by preventing online retailers from selling its scooters or even advertising their prices on the web. In July last year, regulators criticised Derby-based Optimum Care Mobility for mis-selling to the elderly and disabled.
The OFT found that Optimum falsely told customers they were connected to the NHS, were qualified to make medical judgments, made "excessively long sales visits" to customers homes, and made "persistent and unwanted telesales calls".
Pride did not return calls after being contacted by The Daily Telegraph.
The OFT said its decision was a "provisional conclusion" and that "no assumption should be made" that an actual infringement of competition law had been made.
But Louis Christofides, OFT's director of competition law, said: "The internet is a vital tool for shopping around. If retailers are prevented from advertising their discounts online, consumers are significantly restricted from identifying and obtaining lower prices, and it is harder for innovative and efficient retailers to win new customers."
The OFT launched its investigation of the mobility aids market, worth an estimated £500 million, after a flood of calls to consumer watchdogs.
Richard Lloyd, executive director at Which? last night said: "It's unacceptable for firms to flout competition law in any market and all the more so when it's products that are for vulnerable people.
"We hope the regulator will use all its powers to protect consumers from sharp practices where they're proven, and stamp out anti-competitive behaviour that drives up prices."
Britain's biggest pensioner pressure group, the National Pensioners Convention said regulators had been slow to spot bad behaviour in the industry.
NPC spokesman Neil Duncan Jordon said: "The action by the OFT is welcome but still have a great number of concerns about how the elderly and vulnerable are being exploited.
"Far more needs to be done in terms of consumer protection."


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The 2015 Audi A8 and S8 have made their introductions ahead of the Frankfurt Motor Show with many all-new engine options.
Read This Article
Audi is the first to debut 4G LTE broadband in its cars, which means Americans can soon soon stream high-speed internet, with their cars as a dedicated hotspot.
If this were a battle of which sports car had more syllables in its name, the 2014 Nissan GT-R Track Pack would be at a dead heat with the 2014 Audi R8 V10 Plus, as both have inordinately long names.
Last month was Audi's 18th consecutive sales record.


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High Bluff Capital Partners will acquire Atlanta-based Church's Chicken from FFL Partners for an undisclosed amount. High Bluff's growing restaurant portfolio under its REGO Restaurant Group arm includes Quiznos and Taco Del Mar, and the Church's deal will add 1,500 units around the world that collectively generated $1.2 billion in sales last year.
Advocates for children are asking Congress to permanently extend access to free school meals that have been permitted because of a pandemic-related USDA waiver. Ashley Wheeland, director of public policy for nonprofit Hunger Free Colorado, said universal school meals help curb hunger, reduce the stigma associated with free meals and improve outcomes for students.
More restaurants across the country are now requiring dine-in customers to show proof that they've received the COVID-19 vaccine. Restaurateurs are taking the proactive step in an effort to avoid the strict lockdown measures of last year that led the industry to lose 2.5 million jobs and $240 billion collectively, according to National Restaurant Association data.
Around the country, several states and jurisdictions including Louisiana and parts of California have reinstated mask mandates as the Delta variant of the coronavirus drives a rise in new cases. McDonald's announced that it will once again require all employees and customers to don masks in restaurants located in areas where COVID-19 cases are increasing.
The Cheesecake Factory will debut a loyalty program next year developed in large part using consumer research that has been gathered during the pandemic. The chain, which is generating around 27% of its sales from off-premises orders, also has plans to revamp its website with a focus on commerce.
Every student in Warren County Public Schools in Kentucky will be eligible to receive a free breakfast and lunch daily during the upcoming school year under the USDA's extended Seamless Summer Option. Kelly Holt, the district's nutrition and dining department director, said parents should be assured that the meals being served are nutritious.
The Delta variant of the coronavirus is spreading rapidly and will require additional consideration as schools prepare to reopen. This article includes four considerations for educators and school leaders, including the potential need to pivot if there is an outbreak and knowledge of available tactics to prevent the coronavirus from spreading in schools.
Capsaicin, a compound found in many spicy foods, boosts the body's fat-burning mechanisms and stimulates the gut microbiome, says registered dietitian nutritionist Patricia Bridget Lane. Research also has shown that capsaicin has benefits on heart health and immune function.
Outback Steakhouse parent Bloomin' Brands reported a 12.1% same-store sales increase in the second quarter compared to the same period in 2019. The company attributes the improvement over pre-pandemic performance to digital marketing and delivery programs that were in place years before 2020 and that allowed the company to become a multichannel business, CEO David Deno said.
McAlester Public Schools in Oklahoma has a new foodservices van to use for meal deliveries to students in the next school year if schools must close again because of the coronavirus pandemic, said Donna Green, child nutrition services director for the district. Green said she is hopeful the district can use the van to provide food for mobile picnics by next summer.
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Goldman Sachs has said that the UK and the European Union could possibly reach a post-Brexit trade deal by early November, but that the risk of a failure in negotiations cannot be ruled out.
"Our core view remains that a ‘thin’ zero-tariff/zero-quota trade agreement will likely be struck by early November, and subsequently ratified by the end of December”, Goldman analysts said.
"The risk of a breakdown in negotiations cannot be ruled out”, analysts added. "We continue to think the perceived probability of 'no deal' will persist beyond the next European Council meeting in mid-October”.
UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Sunday that the United Kingdom “can prosper mightily” in the event current post-Brexit trade negotiations with the European Union end without a deal once the transition period expires on 31 December.
Last month, London refused to withdraw the Internal Market Deal, which is changing Brexit rules.
In turn, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced that the EU was taking the first step in an infringement procedure against the UK.
The Internal Market Bill is designed to give Westminster more power over devolved areas, including Northern Ireland in the EU's Customs Union in order to prevent a hard border on the island of Ireland.
The UK left the EU in January but remains under the current EU trade terms. However, if no trade deal is secured before the so-called transition period expires on 31 December, the World Trade Organisation's rules for both parties will come into effect starting 2021, including customs tariffs and full border checks for UK goods entering the EU.


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By Leika Kihara and Tetsushi Kajimoto
TOKYO (Reuters) -The mood among Japan’s big manufacturers’ soured for a second straight quarter in the three months to June, a central bank survey showed on Friday, hit by rising input costs and supply disruptions caused by China’s strict COVID-19 lockdowns.
But confidence among big non-manufacturers improved in the quarter, the “tankan” quarterly survey showed, suggesting service-sector firms are shaking off the drag from the pandemic as the government lifts curbs on activity.
Firms expect to ramp up capital expenditure and are steadily passing on costs to consumers, the tankan showed, suggesting the economy remains on course for a moderate recovery.
Analysts, however, warn of a murky outlook as growing fears of a U.S. economic slowdown and steady price hikes for daily necessities weigh on exports and domestic consumption.
“All in all, the tankan figures aren’t too bad. The strong capital expenditure plan is a surprise and shows corporate spending appetite remains solid,” said Yoshiki Shinke, chief economist at Dai-ichi Life Research Institute.
“But manufacturers expect to see profits fall, which could affect their spending plans ahead. Rising input costs and prospects of slowing U.S. growth also cloud the outlook.”
In a sign of mounting inflationary pressure, separate data showed core consumer prices in Japan’s capital Tokyo – a leading indicator of nationwide trends – rose 2.1% in June from a year earlier to mark the fastest pace of increase in seven years.
The tankan’s headline index gauging big manufacturers’ mood slipped to plus 9 in June from plus 14 in March, hitting the lowest level since March 2021. It compared with a median market forecast of plus 13.
The big non-manufacturers’ sentiment index improved to plus 13 in June from plus 9 in March, just below a median market forecast of plus 14.
In a sign more companies were able to pass on rising costs to consumers, an index measuring output prices hit the highest level since 1980 for big manufacturers and the highest since 1990 for big non-manufacturers, the tankan showed.
Big companies expect to increase capital expenditure by 18.6% in the current fiscal year ending March 2023, much higher than a median market forecast for an 8.9% gain.
Japan’s economy likely stalled in the current quarter as China’s strict COVID lockdowns, soaring raw material costs and supply chain disruptions hurt factory output. Data on Thursday showed output fell the most in two years in May.
Policymakers are hoping that consumption will rebound from the pandemic’s drag and offset the weakness in manufacturing activity. But the yen’s recent plunge is pushing up prices of imported fuel and food, adding pain for households.
The tankan showed companies’ inflation expectations heightening in a sign they expect the recent upward price pressure to persist, contrary to BOJ Governor Haruhiko Kuroda’s view that current cost-push inflation will prove temporary.
Companies expect consumer prices to rise 2.4% a year from now, the June tankan showed, higher than a 1.8% rise projected three months ago. Three years ahead, companies expect consumer prices to rise 2% from now, up from 1.6% in the March survey.
That compares with the BOJ’s current forecasts, made in April, that core consumer inflation will hit 1.9% in the current fiscal year ending in March 2023 before slowing to 1.1% the following year.
Many analysts expect the BOJ to revise up this fiscal year’s core consumer inflation forecast above 2% when it produces fresh quarterly projections at an upcoming meeting on July 20-21.
Some analysts, however, doubt whether inflation will keep accelerating at the current pace.
“I expect inflation to stay at the current level through year-end but peak out thereafter,” said Takeshi Minami, chief economist at Norinchukin Research Institute.
“Other major economies are tightening monetary policy, which could trigger a global recession. If that happens, the BOJ will lose a chance to normalise policy and instead could be forced to ease again.”
(Reporting by Leika Kihara and Tetsushi Kajimoto; Additional reporting by Daniel Leussink and Kantaro Komiya; Editing by Sam Holmes and Richard Pullin)
Copyright 2022 Thomson Reuters.


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REI Co-op is offering up to a whopping 50% off on a wide selection of past season gear.
The holiday season is fast approaching. And perhaps more importantly for some, today marks the start of REI’s Gear Up Get Out Sale! REI Gear Up Get Out Sale 2022 REI has marked tons of outdoor gear, travel accessories, and active clothing at up to 30% OFF, and co-op members can save even more. The […]
Only at REI Co-op can you find amazing discounts of up to 70% off clothing, footwear, and gear from top brands.


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Simply You Magazine November 2019 Feature
A fantastic feature on Instepp & Julie Ford in the November 2019 issue of Simply You magazine.Read more
Love Island's Georgia Harrison packs her Instepp for holiday!
The wonderful Georgia Harrison featured on a recent People TV feature and included Instepp in her 10 Suitcase Essentials.Read more
Simply You Magazine Feature
Brilliant feature about Instepp & Julie Ford in the October 2019 edition of Simply You magazineRead more
Instepp featured in the Eastbourne Herald Newspaper
Eastbourne woman says her new fitness invention is a cheap & easy way to improve physical and mental health. The gym takes time, money, commitment & limits you to its four walls but fitness expert Julie Ford has found a solution to these problems and invented a product which allows people to walk and tone their way to good health.Read more


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Jun 08, 2012 2:52pm
When IT goes BAD.quick fast loans Ever get so frustrated trying to fix a PC problem that you feel it might be the death of you? Well, according to these classic (and some not-so-classic) movies, it just might. Troubleshooting won’t help you... continued.
Jun 04, 2012 12:25am
Epson America has expanded its line of professional sheet-fed scanning solutions with the EPSON WorkForce Pro GT-S55 and WorkForce Pro GT-S85 document scanners. The WorkForce Pro GT-S55 and GT-S85 are sheet-fed scanners with the ability to scan... continued.
Jun 04, 2012 12:01am
It was announced this week that Super Micro Computer Inc.’s X9 SuperWorkstation (7047GR-TRF) will be offered with NVIDIA’s Maximus technology, enabling SMB users to simultaneously design, render, and simulate on the same workstation with... continued.
May 25, 2012 11:49pm
Manufacturer Eaton Corp. is rolling out the latest version of its Intelligent Power Manager software.The new version features improved capabilities designed to remotely shut down a host server during a power outage within VMware vSphere High... continued.
May 25, 2012 11:01pm
Components manufacturer Corsair has upgraded its GS Series line of high-performance power supply units (PSUs). The new design is meant to boost energy efficiency, help the GS Series line achieve 80 PLUS Bronze certification. The new models... continued.
May 22, 2012 9:34am
Intel hopes their new line of motherboards supporting their Xeon processor E5-2400 chip sets are not too big, not too little, but just right for smaller companies moving up and mid-size companies on a budget. Four boards, all with dual-socket... continued.
May 20, 2012 11:37am
Chipmaker Intel Corp. has announced the availability of its 3rd Generation Intel Core vPro processor-based platforms for business and intelligent systems. Businesses can take advantage of the latest Intel Core vPro processor platform through a... continued.
May 18, 2012 4:36pm
Supporting Ivy BridgeFirst to press was Supermicro’s immediate availability announcement of single processor (UP) systems and motherboards supporting Intel Xeon E3-1200 v2 (Ivy Bridge). The new platforms are designed to boost system... continued.
May 18, 2012 10:00am
Bill Dominici from Lenovo walks ChannelPro-SMB through the new Lenovo ThinkCentre M92p “tiny,” including a demonstration of the desktop displaying on four 24” screens in mosaic mode. At the width of a golf ball, the M92p is... continued.
May 16, 2012 2:39pm
Who knew the video demands of computer games like Halo would also lead to advances in high performance computing (HPC)? NVIDIA did, and the results of that insight were announced May 15th at the GPU Technology Conference in San Jose, Calif. Based on... continued.


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SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The Latest on an agreement in the Volkswagen emissions cheating scandal (all times local):
A judge says an agreement will give consumers who bought nearly 600,000 Volkswagen vehicles rigged to cheat on emissions tests the option of having the automaker buy back the cars or fix them.
Senior U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer did not give details Thursday on how much car owners would be paid but said the deal between Volkswagen, the U.S. government and private lawyers would include "substantial compensation."
Breyer says the agreement will include a fund for corrective efforts over the excess pollution and that VW will be required to commit other money to promote green automotive technology.
The owners and the U.S. Department of Justice sued the company after it acknowledged in September that it intentionally defeated emissions tests and put dirty vehicles on the road.
Time is up for Volkswagen to meet a federal judge's deadline to detail how it will make nearly 600,000 diesel cars rigged to cheat on emissions tests comply with clean air laws.
Senior U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer said he wanted to know the timing of the fix and any planned payments to vehicle owners by a court hearing set for Thursday.
A person briefed on the matter says a deal is expected to be announced between Volkswagen, the U.S. government and private lawyers for the automaker to buy back some of the vehicles and spend just over $1 billion to compensate owners.
The person says the agreement, however, does not include plans on how to repair the vehicles.
It is unclear whether the deal will satisfy Breyer.


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Market Review. Results of the Day. Forecast for May
April 6, 2018
Bitcoin broke down the support level of $6,600 and was trading in a narrow range of $6,500-6,600 today. If the movement downwards accelerate and breaks the support level of $6,000, then the price can fall to $1,500 by the end of May.
It's official: Coincheck has been sold to Monex Group for approximately $ 10 million.
Tron (TRX) is believed to be listed on Coinbase on April 12th.
Alibaba Group sues Alibabacoin Foundation for deceiving users into believing that these companies are related, because they are not.
Thomas Lee predicts a massive selling of bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies by April 17. This is the tax day in the United States.
The Reserve Bank of India has banned all cryptocurrency transactions. It is believed that a national cryptocurrency of India to be launched soon.


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MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Members of the European Parliament are prohibited to reveal the details of the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP), member of the European Parliament Marina Albiol told Sputnik Thursday.
“They have made me sign the confidentiality declaration which prohibits to reveal the content,” Albiol said.
The TTIP is a deal currently negotiated by the European Union and the United States, which aims at eliminating trade barriers in a number of economic sectors to facilitate trade between the two regions.
“I could not even bring a pen,” Albiol told Sputnik.
Thousands of Europeans have signed petitions, urging to stop the negotiations on trade deal between Washington and Brussels. Many experts claim that the agreement would negatively impact the European Union's economy.
According to the recent study conducted by the US Tufts University, the TTIP can lead to the European Union loosing as many as 600,000 workplaces. France is expected to suffer the most from the new agreement, with each French worker losing $5,800 of income annually.


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Get Alerts »
State trooper shot in Philly; 17-year-old charged
A fire erupted in a barn in Paradise Township Wednesday evening, causing it to collapse.
Dispatchers say the blaze broke out along Big Mount Road around 6:30 p.m.
Crews say the barn was full of hay and there were no injuries reported.
Copyright 2013 by WGAL All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
For 13 straight years, energetic REI store manager Nikki Mashapure spent her Black Friday in the retail trenches, trying to keep from being overrun by invading shoppers at work.
But the day after Thanksgiving this year, the mother of three young daug...
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- Tech company Ekin today launched Ekin Spotter, a compact device that provides city officials and law enforcement with data and analysis on traffic trends, city safety and air quality.
- Once affixed to a sidewalk, the Ekin Spotter can be customized to use the following features/collect the following data:
- Ekin says the data collected by Ekin Spotter can also be displayed on digital billboards to offer the public a look at real-time information about their surroundings.
While the device is newly released, and therefore has not yet been tested in cities, it offers a promising way for city governments to streamline data collection and analyze data in a more holistic manner. Ekin claims the Ekin Spotter is the first of its kind to satisfy all of the needs of smart city data collection, and if proven successful, this type of device could change how other smart city tech vendors build data collection products.
However, by putting all of its data collection eggs in one basket, a city runs some interesting risks, most notably in cybersecurity. If a hacker were to tap into a device like the Ekin Spotter, the majority of a city's data collection — including sensitive information like facial recognition data, license plate recognition data and surveillance camera footage — would be at risk of theft or being wiped-out. Ekin says its AI-equipped system and proprietary Red Eagle (OS) can evaluate the health of the Spotter and send operators notifications if the system is at-risk, though as evidenced in other cybersecurity cases, not all OS systems are bulletproof.
Despite associated risks, Ekin is working to set itself apart from other smart tech providers. With a 20-year track record, the company has had ample time to establish itself in the smart city realm and polish its systems, and this latest announcement indicates that the company will continue to evolve with the industry.


text: Global PC market leader Lenovo continues to benefit tremendously from increased demand for laptops during the corona pandemic. In the last quarter, profit rose 119% year-on-year to $ 466 million, as the Chinese company said. Sales increased in the first quarter of the fiscal year ended June 27 to $ 16.9 billion. Lenovo was able to expand its position in Germany. The company sold 670,000 laptops to business customers, corresponding to a market share of 49%. Previously, the value was around 42 percent. The average selling price of computers sold in Germany was around 150 euros higher than the previous year. Overall, Lenovo assumes last year’s short-term corona boom is over.


text: Staten Island's Forest Avenue retail corridor looks like it will soon be getting some big-time new faces. A 26,000-square-foot building with ground-floor tenants including Papa John's Pizza and CKO Kickboxing recently sold for $5.25 million.With 12 retail spaces, the two-story building is currently fully leased, but more than half of the leases are set to expire within three years, according to Adelaide Polsinelli, the Eastern Consolidated senior director who, along with colleague Carlos Olson, represented the owner in the transaction. She noted that this "presents the new owner with inherent potential for rental upsides and an opportunity for repositioning." Current retail rents in the area are between $30 and $40 a square foot. Nearby retailers include TJ Maxx and Michael's. Many real estate professionals have recently touted Staten Island as a bargain destination with untapped growth potential for retailers and landlords alike. Spurring that interest are retail developments including the Empire Outlets, whose developers are in talks with Nordstrom Rack as an anchor and Kate Spade. Nearby will be the New York Wheel, billed as the world's tallest Ferris Wheel. Meanwhile, the highly successful Staten Island Mall is expanding and now touts Microsoft as a tenant.The Forest Avenue property, whose price included a 41-car parking lot, had been on the market since September with an asking price of $5.9 million. It is located near visitor hotspots such as the Staten Island Zoo and the Snug Harbor Cultural Center & Botanical Garden.


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The third entry in the Dark Souls series is almost upon us and fans are eagerly awaiting the moment on Monday night/Tuesday morning when they can press that beautiful “Play” button. But before fans can do that, they’ll need to pre-load the game and stare at it until it releases on Tuesday.
Some keen eyes have spotted Dark Souls 3’s install size on Steam which points to it being roughly 17 GB’s meaning fans will be able to pre-load the game before April 12th so they can start screaming and punching holes in walls the second the game releases!
In other Dark Souls news, Bandai Namco revealed a Dark Souls clothing line today. Yeah… so that’s a thing. Dark Souls 3 releases on April 12th for Xbox One, PS4 and PC and you can read our review here


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After getting buddy-buddy with a number with producers for distribution agreements (including Nelvana Studios, Nerd Corps, Vodka Capital, Zodiak Kids and DQ Entertainment), Ciwen Media Group announced today the launch of BuddiesTV, an on-demand kids content platform for mainland China, Macao and Hong Kong.
China-based Ciwen Kids acquired rights to a wide array of children’s programming in recent months—such as Franklin and Friends, Babar, Jelly Jam and Slugterra. The programming will be available on various online streaming platforms, IPTV, OTT TV, iOS and Android apps, as well as branded slots on traditional TV. All the episodes will be dubbed or sub-titled for the Chinese market, while Ciwen has plans to co-produce movies based on Slugterra with new characters and storylines from the East.
This will be the first on-demand children’s cross-platform service available in China, and Ciwen currently has several providers, including IQIYI, Tencent Video, BesTV, xiaomi box and China Telecomm. The company plans to announce more partners in the coming months.


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Linkin Park will be releasing a brand new single on 12 September. But, you will only be able to unlock/view the single if you play an online game in which the band themselves star. This is quite a strange launch to a single. We’ve seen bands get rather creative with the launch of singles, but this one takes the cake. The game, titled LP Recharge, will see players recharge an energy-sapped planet using various forms of sustainable energy. Linkin Park promoting ‘going green’?
Linkin Park releases new single through online game:
You can register for the game on the Linkin Park Facebook Page.
A Light That Never Comes will be the first piece of new Linkin Park material since last year’s Living Things opus.