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Ubisoft Announces Protöthea WiiWare Title
SAN FRANCISCO – May 6, 2008 – Today Ubisoft, one of the world’s largest video game publishers, announced that Protöthea™ will be available in May for WiiWare™ in North America – Protöthea is rated “E” for Everyone.
Protöthea, Ubisoft’s exclusive WiiWare launch window title, is a 3D top-down vertical scrolling shooter game putting players in complete control of a last-generation spaceship via the Wii Remote™ and Nunchuk™. The easy-to-play game introduces new concepts to a beloved classic game style while mixing genres and utilizing the full capabilities of the Wii™ system, from graphics to controls.
“Ubisoft is excited to bring Protöthea exclusively to the platform and we feel it’s a must-have WiiWare title,” shared James Regan, vice president of third party operations, Ubisoft. “Protöthea really reminds me of some of the best arcade games, with the Wii Remote as an added dimension. It’s just a flurry of fast-paced action that anyone can simply pick up and enjoy.”
The compelling storyline immerses players into an adventure where they will need to destroy an asteroid called “Maqno 01” and sabotage the plans of a political faction called “The Core.” Players will quickly jump right in and guide their ship through multiple missions on futuristic planets where enemy AI is dynamic and will change based on the player’s actions – so there are no predictable enemy paths, and therefore always a different game play experience. Players will have a wide range of eight different air-to-air weapons and two different air-to-ground bombs at their disposal, and can attack however they choose. In addition, there is a special power that decelerates time, allowing players to easily avoid enemy fire while they are able to move rapidly and attack enemies.
Protöthea is developed by Sabarasa & Digital Builders and published by Ubisoft. For more information, please visit www.ubisoft.com.


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Confronting a climate crisis that threatens the fossil fuel industry, oil companies are racing to make more plastic. But they face two problems: Many markets are already awash with plastic, and few countries are willing to be dumping grounds for the world’s plastic waste.
The industry thinks it has found a solution to both problems in Africa.
According to documents reviewed by the New York Times, an industry group representing the world’s largest chemical-makers and fossil fuel companies is lobbying to influence U.S. trade negotiations with Kenya, one of Africa’s biggest economies, to reverse its strict limits on plastics — including a tough plastic-bag ban. It is also pressing for Kenya to continue importing foreign plastic garbage, a practice it has pledged to limit.
Plastics-makers are looking well beyond Kenya’s borders. “We anticipate that Kenya could serve in the future as a hub for supplying U.S.-made chemicals and plastics to other markets in Africa through this trade agreement,” Ed Brzytwa, director of international trade for the American Chemistry Council, wrote in an April 28 letter to the Office of the United States Trade Representative.
The United States and Kenya are in the midst of trade negotiations, and the Kenyan President, Uhuru Kenyatta, has made clear he is eager to strike a deal. But the behind-the-scenes lobbying by the petroleum companies has spread concern among environmental groups in Kenya and beyond that have been working to reduce both plastic use and waste.
Kenya, like many countries, has wrestled with the proliferation of plastic. It passed a stringent law against plastic bags in 2017, and last year it was one of many nations around the world that signed on to a global agreement to stop importing plastic waste — a pact strongly opposed by the chemical industry.
The chemistry council’s plastics proposals would “inevitably mean more plastic and chemicals in the environment,” said Griffins Ochieng, executive director for the Centre for Environmental Justice and Development, a non-profit group based in Nairobi that works on the problem of plastic waste in Kenya. “It’s shocking.”
The plastics proposal reflects an oil industry contemplating its inevitable decline as the world fights climate change. Profits are plunging amid the coronavirus pandemic, and the industry is fearful that climate change will force the world to retreat from burning fossil fuels. Producers are scrambling to find new uses for an oversupply of oil and gas. Wind and solar power are becoming increasingly affordable, and governments are weighing new policies to fight climate change by reducing the burning of fossil fuels.
Pivoting to plastics, the industry has spent more than US$200-billion on chemical and manufacturing plants in the United States over the last decade. But the United States already consumes as much as 16 times more plastic than many poor nations, and a backlash against single-use plastics has made it tougher to sell more at home.
In 2019, U.S. exporters shipped more than 1 billion pounds of plastic waste to 96 countries including Kenya, ostensibly to be recycled, according to trade statistics. But much of the waste, often containing the hardest-to-recycle plastics, instead ends up in rivers and oceans.
And after China closed its ports to most plastic trash in 2018, exporters have been looking for new dumping grounds. Exports to Africa more than quadrupled in 2019 from a year earlier.
Ryan Baldwin, a spokesman for the American Chemistry Council, said the group’s proposals tackle the global importance of dealing with waste. The letter says that there is “a global need to support infrastructure development to collect, sort, recycle and process used plastics, particularly in developing countries such as Kenya.” The chemistry council includes the petrochemical operations of Exxon Mobil, Chevron and Shell, as well as major chemical companies including Dow.
The talks are in early stages, and it is not yet clear if trade negotiators have adopted the industry’s proposals. But industries typically have a strong voice in shaping trade policy, and business lobbyists have won similar concessions before.
In talks with Mexico and Canada in 2018, for instance, chemicals- and pesticides-makers lobbied for, and won, terms making it tougher for those countries to regulate the industries. At the same talks, trade negotiators, urged on by U.S. food companies, also tried to restrict Mexico and Canada from warning people about the dangers of junk food on labelling but dropped the plan after a public outcry.
The Kenya proposal “really sets off alarm bells,” said Sharon Treat, a senior lawyer at the non-partisan Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy who has worked for more than a decade advising trade talks in both the Trump and Obama administrations. Corporate lobbyists “frequently offer up very specific proposals, which the government then takes up,” she said.
The plastics industry’s proposals could also make it tougher to regulate plastics in the United States, since a trade deal would apply to both sides.
The Office of the United States Trade Representative did not respond to interview requests or to detailed lists of written questions, nor did officials at Kenya’s Trade Ministry.
Last year, Kenya was one of many countries around the world that signed on to a global agreement to stop importing plastic waste — a pact strongly opposed by the chemical industry. E-mails reviewed by the Times showed industry representatives, many of them former trade officials, working with U.S. negotiators last year to try to stall those rules.
Royal Dutch Shell’s 386-acre plastics plant outside Pittsburgh is billed as the anchor for a new petrochemical hub in Appalachia, a region reeling from the collapse of the coal industry. Plants like these have revolutionized the plastics industry by turning fracked natural gas into the manufacturing material for millions of plastic bottles, bags, clamshell containers, drinking straws and a parade of other products, tapping into a seemingly endless supply of cheap shale gas from America’s booming oil and gas fields. Among local communities, the plants have raised air pollution concerns.
Across the U.S., almost 350 new chemical plants are in the works, according to an industry tally, together representing oil companies’ life-or-death bet on plastics as the future.
But now the coronavirus pandemic has caused not only oil and gas prices to plummet, but plastics prices, too. Last month, oil giants including Shell, Exxon Mobil and Chevron reported some of their worst financial results in history, leading some analysts to question whether the new plastics plants would deliver on the profits the companies expected.
A Shell spokesman said that while the “short-term outlook for this business is challenging,” over the long term, “products derived from petrochemicals will continue to grow and provide attractive returns.” An Exxon Mobil spokesman said the company “shares society’s concern about plastic waste” and aims to invest more in solutions to end it. Dow referred queries to the American Chemistry Council. Chevron did not respond to requests for comment.
Against that backdrop, Mr. Kenyatta visited the White House in February, eager to start trade talks. Kenya currently can send most of its exports to the United States duty-free under a regional program, but that expires in 2025.
The petrochemicals industry sensed an opening.
Exxon Mobil has forecast that global demand for petrochemicals could rise by nearly 45 per cent over the next decade, significantly outpacing global economic growth and energy demand. Most of that would come from emerging markets.
The American Chemistry Council’s April 28 letter to the trade representative’s office laid out the group’s vision. Kenya’s growing ports, railways and road networks “can support an expansion of chemicals trade not just between the United States and Kenya, but throughout East Africa and the continent,” Mr. Brzytwa wrote.
To foster a plastics hub, he wrote, a trade deal with Kenya should prevent the country from measures that would curb plastic manufacture or use, and ensure Kenya continues to allow trade in plastic waste, demands that experts said were unusual and intrusive.
Those terms could “literally encapsulate every kind of bag ban, bottle ban,” said Jane Patton, a plastics expert at the Center for International Environmental Law. She called it an industry-led effort “to erode these democratically enacted policies” in foreign countries.
Daniel Maina, founder of the Kisiwani Conservation Network in Mombasa, Kenya, said the trade talks were coming at a particularly vulnerable time, as Kenya was starting to feel the economic effects of the pandemic. “If they were to force this sort of trade agreement on us, I fear we will be easy prey,” he said.
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From air-purifying paint to beer made from bread, here are 8 sustainability startups in Singapore to look out for in 2021.
Singapore is becoming one of the most environmentally sustainable nations in the world, taking pride in their “Garden City” title, coined by the late Lee Kuan Yew in 1967. Although the Covid-19 pandemic has put a hold on many industries, the country’s sustainability plan is continuously thriving. Singapore’s Green Plan 2030 just announced more improvements to be made by the city including increasing the need for electric vehicles, transforming recreational spaces to become carbon neutral destinations, and further development of their upcoming Forest Towns. With this new direction, here are 8 sustainability startups in Singapore working to shape environmentally conscious living in the city.
1. Ecoworth Tech
Ecoworth Tech is a waste-to-worth solutions startup that transforms waste materials into reusable products. Their Carbon Fibre Aerogel (CFA) is made from raw cotton, a non-toxic, recyclable, and natural material used to absorb organic material from waste water. Through absorbing those products, they then will use it to produce various cellulose-based materials like cotton or paper. Using the CFA technology, Ecoworth Tech hopes to clean up liquid industrial waste.
Transkinetic’s new technology, Moventic, is a smart road hump that absorbs kinetic energy from cars and transforms it into clean energy. The purpose of this invention is to transform every road into a sustainable power source, to help reduce the world’s dependence on natural resources. Transkinetic is working with the National University of Singapore’s Department of Engineering and is funded by government agencies and regional venture capitalists.
3. Green Koncepts
Using internet of things (IoT) solutions and cloud-based systems, Green Koncepts tracks energy consumption for real estate companies. Its mission is to create an affordable and sustainable solution to not only reduce your company’s carbon footprint, but also to use as leverage in a growing competitive market. Green Koncepts has tracked over 800 energy million transactions for their growing database.
Each year, 1.4 billion people throw away 80 billion pairs of chopsticks, and China produces 45 billion pairs- the equivalent of 25 million trees being cut down. Deforestation causes climate change, reduced crop output, and increased greenhouse gas emissions. ChopValue SG is the world’s first circular economy franchise, originating from the company’s base in Vancouver, which was founded in 2016 as a startup that upcycles single-use bamboo chopsticks into furniture and other interior decorations. Currently, ChopValue has already partnered with multiple restaurants and have recycled over 33 million chopsticks.
92% of the air we breathe contains pollutants like carbon monoxide, ozone, and nitrogen dioxide. Poor air quality can cause irritation to the eyes, nose, and throat, shortness of breath, asthma, respiratory conditions, and an increased risk of developing cardiovascular diseases. Wanting to change indoor air quality, Gush created an odourless, sustainable paint that purifies air. The paint can also regulate humidity, prevent mould, contains no volatile organic compounds (VOC), and eliminates 99.9% of bacteria. In addition to creating a clean indoor environment, Gush has also committed to planting 10 trees per house painted through Eden Reforestation Projects. Since 2017, Gush has raised US$2.1 million in funding from the property group City Development Limited SG.
3. Aerospring Hydroponics
A vertical garden is the result of growing plants vertically on a suspended panel using hydroponics. Aerospring Hydroponics designed a simple and low maintenance vertical garden for those who are living in areas with less space. After realising the limited options of locally grown produce and expensive organic products, founders Thorben Linneberg and Nadine Keller have created a sustainable food system out of a 3D printer. One small correction though just for your reference – we started out with prototyping the system in a 3D printer back in 2015 and of course grew plants in the printed modules until we finalised the design. Once they had perfected the design and function of their system, they created injection moulded tools, so every Aerospring can be locally produced in Singapore. Each vertical garden is designed to be able to fit into any balcony and can grow healthy, nutritious, and pesticide-free foods like basil, chives, passionfruit, and spring onions.
Asia produces over 65% of eggs globally, with the average Japanese individual consuming 320 eggs annually, and the average person in China consuming 300 per year. Egg production accounts for high levels of carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide (greenhouse gas) emissions, and producing eggs also causes contamination of soil and the water we drink. Each year, the egg industry kills 6 billion “waste” male chicks because they are deemed useless. OnlyEG is a FoodTech startup created to produce a plant-based whole egg substitute. Their egg is a sustainable option that also contains nutritional value that matches a whole chicken egg, without any cholesterol, hormones, and drug residue. Just last week, OnlyEG gained US$1.7 million funding in a seed round from Insignia Ventures Partners and DSG Consumer Partners.
CRUST, a FoodTech startup in Singapore, was founded in 2019 by Travin Singh, a self taught home-brewer. With a mission to reduce food waste by 1% by 2030, CRUST turns surplus ingredients like bread, cereal, malt, and fruit peels into beer and other non-alcoholic beverages. With creative beer names combined with unique ingredients, CRUST is hoping to expand to the hotel industry in other countries like Japan and Europe.


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Powerade celebrates the power in numbers and all athletes in a new commercial.
The spot, part of the brand’s latest campaign from Haymaker and Radical Media director Dave Meyers, titled “POWER in Numbers,” features a variety of silly situations that involve athlete jersey numbers between 0 and 99. A power forward wearing number 1, for instance, turns into a chef and cooks while driving down court, a wide receiver wearing number 87/barber sets up a shop in the end-zone, and a softball batter freezes in ice at the plate.
The commercial debuted on March 14 on CBS, TNT and other channels, and will also air, along with other ads, during coverage of the NCAA men’s and women’s basketball tournaments, Powerade being the official sports-drink sponsor of March Madness. The campaign also includes in-game billboards, mobile video and banners on YouTube and Instagram.
For a limited time, athletes can pick up special Powerade and Powerade Zero Sugar bottles emblazoned with their own number. Bottles are available in 28 oz. bottles at retailers nationwide.


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Woods briefly led at the British Open, but there were signs that this player was much different from the version that last won a major 10 years ago. For the first time, astronomers followed cosmic neutrinos into the fire-spitting heart of a supermassive blazar. The 43-year-old played with a host of world class players during his stunning career at Old Trafford and was given the unenviable task of naming a team of those players he played alongside.
Glaucoma affects 300,000 people in the UK and is a leading cause of buy cabergoline canada fast shipping
blindness. Here, Bernie Pedley, 73, from Preston, Lancashire, tells her story of life-changing surgery. Our top photos from the last 24 hours. The reason newlyweds curate a gift registry is so that their guests don't need to think of an original present for the bride and groom - but some guests decide to get creative. Bastiman has been disqualified from racing for three years after a BHA inquiry found the former trainer guilty of injecting 2016 Wolverhampton winner John Caesar with cobalt. An earnings beat boosted Walmarts market value by nearly $25 bln Thursday morning. Even more impressive, Jennifer Saba explains, is how the giant retailer is closing the gap with e-commerce rival Amazon in the productivity of its 2.3 million-strong workforce.
The 29-storey building, which is also said to include a gym, sauna and a private lift for the country's leader Evo Morales, looms 394 feet over the country's capital La Paz. Raouls in SoHo is less riotous now than during the restaurants 70s and 80s heyday. But its charm remains much the same. Business managers worry whether a cease-fire between Brussels cheap prazosin 50mg online with american express
and the White House will hold. The uncertainty is bad for growth. Her latest film was A Bad Moms Christmas. But Christina Applegate, 46, seemed quite the doting parent indeed when she enjoyed a family beach day this Tuesday.
C.J. Chiverss The Fighters provides gut-wrenching descriptions of the battles in the Middle East. Fans can expect the 24-year-old Grammy winner's bizarre public prank to be featured on a future episode of The Tonight Show Jimmy Fallon joked that after President Trump called Ms. Manigault Newman a dog on Twitter, he rolled order divalproex 50mg no prescription
over for Putin, barked at his staff and ate a bunch of paper. At recent tournaments, the ATP and WTA Tours have implemented a countdown clock that will be used at the United States Open later this month.
In her original post about the tot's favoured new viewing, she shared a video of the pair cuddled up in bed, the 44-year-old appeared bemused when her youngest child said she wanted a 'Gucci dress' Elon Musk, the chief executive, said the electric-car maker was about to turn a corner with output of its mass-market Model 3, buoying cheapest order online shopping uk
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a Diamond League engagement on Saturday. Stormzy announced the plans at his former school, the Harris City Academy in Croydon, south London, whereA-level students are today opening their results. The engineering and maintenance of Riccardo Morandis 1967 cable-stayed bridge are under scrutiny, where can i buy isoxsuprine in south africa
days after it collapsed in Genoa. The clip, believed to be filmed in India, begins showing the man dressed in all white standing up while straddling his moving motorbike. He was not wearing a helmet or any protective gear. The sellers tout for business on beaches in resorts such as Barcelona and Benidorm selling drinks including pina coladas and mojitos made in disgusting conditions for around 5. It's called the Nevis Catapult and gives thrill seekers the experience clostilbegyt where to purchase shopping
of 3G of force as they are propelled over the remote Nevis Valley near Queenstown, New Zealand. Brendan Rodgers acknowledged Celtic will face their biggest Champions League qualifying challenge in his time as Parkhead boss against AEK Athens on Tuesday night. Mike Hughes, 52, used a string of UK and offshore companies and bank accounts to steal 6.9million in taxes deducted from workers wages, through fraudulent payroll schemes.
Competitors using long poles push their punts through the water in the English town of Maidenhead outside London, in a contest that dates back to the mid 19th century. Rough cut (no reporter narration). Lyric McHenry, who was EJ Johnson's best friend, was discovered above an expressway around 5am on Tuesday. She was wearing a pajama top and underwear and died of a suspected drug overdose. Our map of crime novels and detective fiction offers far-flung suggestions for purchase cheapest mastercard
your summer reading. Outside of Amsterdam, Jaap Sinke and Ferry van Tongeren make magic in their mad-scientist lab. More companies are getting into the hotel business, from home furnishing retailers to fitness clubs and film companies. Small companies, which have increasingly turned to the internet, worry that a pay-for-play system online could price them out of doing business.
The E-type Jaguar made in 1961 is expected to wow car collectors. The convertible was one of only 92 released ketorolac money order now payment australia
by Jaguar, and will be auctioned in October in England. U.S. Senate Republicans on Thursday sought to correct a section of President Donald Trump's tax overhaul that threatened to prevent sexual harassment victims from claiming a tax deduction for the legal costs they incur while pursuing their cases.
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after enduring repeated treatments for leukemia over almost two decades. Hockwold Hall in Thetford is set among 50 acres. Friends star Courteney Cox celebrated Christmas there once with musician fiance Johnny McDaid. The 42-year-old's Audi A6 was parked outside his business in Newcastle, last September when it was chipped by loose stones following the surface dressing of the road. Award-winning photographer Renato Granieri, who order aleve review
hails from Sardinia, spends seasons sailing around the Arctic on an expedition boat. He kindly shared some of his snaps with MailOnline. SAN FRANCISCO - Hewlett Packard Enterprise President and CEO Antonio Neri joins Reuters Technology Correspondent Salvador Rodriguez to discuss what it means to run one of purchase escitalopram 100mg in florida
the worlds largest technology companies. The conversation will cover Neris more than 20 years at the Hewlett-Packard Company and HPE and his vision for the companys future in his new role as CEO.


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Despite slowdown, Ruia to go ahead with Rs 23-bn expansion
The Ruia Group will go slow on some of its projects, though group chairman Pawan Kumar Ruia says the global economic crisis has not affected the diversified business house's Rs 23-billion expansion plans.business Updated: Mar 17, 2009 13:21 IST
The Ruia Group will go slow on some of its projects, though group chairman Pawan Kumar Ruia says the global economic crisis has not affected the diversified business house's Rs 23-billion expansion plans.
The city-based group, which has interests in infrastructure, electronics, tyre and sugar businesses, said its plan to set up a Rs 4-billion (Rs 400 crore/$78 million) greenfield tyre plant at Chayagaon near Guwahati in Assam may get delayed, but is still on track.
"We have already acquired land (60 acres) for the project. Our project report has been finalised. We have submitted it to banks for consideration. Now we are waiting for banks to sanction the loan," Ruia told IANS in an interview.
He added that the investment size remained unchanged despite the financial crisis.
Though banks and other financial institutions are reluctant to lend these days, the group's earlier plan to inject Rs 22-23 billion for its organic growth was still on, the chairman said.
The company will invest Rs 8 billion in sugar, Rs 10-12 billion in tyre and Rs 3-4 billion for heavy engineering and infrastructure.
The group is building a sugar complex at Shariyatpur in Bihar's East Champaran district. The project will have 10,000-tonne cane crushing capacity per day, an ethanol manufacturing unit with a daily capacity of 240 kilolitres and a 50-MW power plant.
The company already has a sugar plant, Kamlapur Sugar and Industries Ltd, in Uttar Pradesh, with a daily capacity of crushing 4,000 tonnes of cane.
The Shariyatpur complex, set to be completed in two years, is coming up on 180 acres, of which 102 acres have been acquired so far, Ruia said.
"In sugar, work is going on. We have already firmed up things. The only thing is that the time period that we have envisaged earlier has slightly changed," he said.
The company is extremely bullish on its tyre plans.
"Falcon is going for major expansion in Karnataka and Uttarakhand," Ruia told IANS. It is now scouting for land in both states. Falcon has one plant in Karnataka already.
Now, Falcon and Monotona have the capacity to manufacture 950,000 tyres per month. "We expect this to go up to 1.25 million per month within three months," Ruia said.
"We will build a separate plant in Uttarakhand to make two-wheeler and three-wheeler tyres and another small plant in Karnataka."
The group got into the tyre business in 2005 by acquiring Dunlop India and Falcon Tyres. In 2007, it acquired Monotona Tyres at Mumbai and bought controlling stake of electronics company Industronics Berhad in Malaysia.
In 2008, the company acquired British auto component company Schlegel Automotive Europe.
The group is looking at a few overseas buys soon, Ruia said, but declined to give details.
Asked what made him think of acquisition at this time of economic turmoil, Ruia said valuations of many companies have plummeted owing to the economic crisis, making the price favourable for buying.
On the company's planned Rs.500-million investment to kickstart a 10-MW captive power plant in Dunlop, Ruia said: "If everything goes well with Dunlop, then the project will come up soon."
Dunlop declared suspension of work at its Sahaganj plant in West Bengal's Hooghly district on Nov 30 last year, but reopened on March 6.
Falcon and Monotona produce two-wheeler, three-wheeler and light commercial vehicle (LCV) tyres, whereas Dunlop produces
four-wheeler and truck tyres, off-the-road (OTR) and industrial products.
The company will focus more on OTR and truck tyres this year, Ruia said.
The group expects its turnover to rise to Rs 20 billion this fiscal from from Rs 15 billion in 2007-08.
Ruia acquired sick heavy engineering and infrastructure company Jessop and Co in 2003 and turned it into a profit-making business.
"We have done a lot of restructuring in Jessop. This is one company which in this meltdown is not seeing any loss of orders," Ruia said.
"We are in the process of building up a nice management team," he said, adding that Jessop now has an order book of Rs 4 billion to be executed over the next two years.
First Published: Mar 17, 2009 13:19 IST


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The Criterion Channel has upended my expectations of what a streaming service can be. Smart curation changes everything in a way that makes Netflix feel flat-footed.
It shouldn’t have turned out this way. Years ago I expected the powerhouse streaming trio of Netflix, Amazon Prime, and Hulu to be must have destinations for movie content. The ingredients were all there: multi-billion dollar war chests, A list talent, and big tech to drive smart recommendation algorithms. But today it’s a struggle to find a decent movie to watch on any of the three big services. “Netflix original” has become the modern equivalent of a made for TV movie of yesteryear. Occasional highlights do pop up (Roma, Moonlight, You Were Never Really Here, Annihilation, Minding the Gap), but they are few and far between, buried under mostly lukewarm content.
Game streaming services depend on three big factors for success: technical prowess, cost, and games. Based on Google’s track record and their recent GDC pitch, Stadia’s tech chops will likely hold up well in real world testing. Consumer cost I’d anticipate won’t be high either. The big unresolved question is what actual games Stadia will have for its release later this year. And it’s on games that give Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo solid footing for blocking Stadia’s advances.
Games carry an outsized significance when considering past PC and console platform battles. For example, the PS4’s “must play” exclusives helped buttress their lead over the Xbox One over the last few years. This is where Google will run into a substantial headwind; game libraries on Switch, Xbox One, PS4, and PC are gigantic, with many critically acclaimed exclusives bound to a single platform. Assuming next-generation consoles from Sony and Microsoft support backward compatibility, this “lead” from Google’s competition should only grow.


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NEW YORK — Top-tier jewelry companies aren't flinching in the face of the U.S. economic slowdown — and are proceeding full-speed ahead with their store expansion programs.
Chanel is the latest brand to open a well-appointed jewelry flagship to service its ultrawealthy clientele, joining the likes of De Beers, Graff, Cartier, Leviev and Bulgari in creating Manhattan showcases to opulence. And, despite seesawing stock markets, the weak dollar and the subprime mortgage crisis, the well-heeled show no signs of cutting back on jewelry purchases. In fact, they see the products as an investment, especially in a era of skyrocketing precious metals and gems prices.
Chanel will open a 1,838-square-foot expanded Madison Avenue fine jewelry and watch boutique on Tuesday offering pieces starting at $1,450, but much of the focus is on the rare, exclusive and expensive. The store will house a collection of high jewelry that starts at $150,000 and climbs to $2.3 million for the La Pluie Diamant necklace set with a 10.16-carat diamond.
To mark the opening, the store will offer a 12-piece special ring collection with prices over the million-dollar mark. The company also recently partnered with Swiss watchmaker Audemars Piguet to create complicated movements for its successful J12 ceramic watch. One such watch is set with sapphire baguettes and costs $195,000.
"Business is performing very well around the world and in the U.S.," said John Galantic, Chanel Inc.'s president and chief operating officer, referring to the jewelry and watch operation. "The business is particularly growing at the level of high jewelry. The ultraluxe shopper is looking for special, one-of-a-kind pieces."
Chanel's Madison Avenue boutique itself is a luxury experience. Peter Marino, who also is working on Graff's new, expanded digs across the street, modeled the store after Coco Chanel's legendary 31 Rue Cambon apartment, replete with a paneled library, a fireplace with a selenite crystal centerpiece, Garouste and Bonetti lamps and Coromandel screens. A bronze stag sculpture by François-Xavier Lalanne, a Joseph Stashkevetch photograph and a Yto Barrada piece of art punctuate the space.
The VIP room has hand-stitched, silk-tufted walls for an exclusive feel.
"When we open these very special boutiques, we're creating exclusive, limited edition pieces for them," said Galantic. "We want [customers] to feel the experience of buying something exclusive."
Chanel introduced its first fine jewelry collection in 1932. In 1993, the collection was relaunched with the opening of a boutique at 18 Place Vendôme in Paris. There are eight Chanel fine jewelry boutiques in the U.S., including Beverly Hills, and there are 41 such stores worldwide. Fine jewelry is sold exclusively in these shops and in select traditional Chanel fashion stores.
Although he declined to provide sales projections, Galantic anticipated that the store would do well among local shoppers and tourists, and he doesn't see the business waning.
"When you talk about those consumers who can afford that price range, you can't really talk about recession," said retail consultant Dana Telsey. "They are looking for exquisite pieces all the time. There's not enough quantity at this quality."
Graff, which focuses exclusively on rare diamonds and large gemstones, has plans to open a 5,600-square-foot store at 710 Madison Avenue at East 63rd Street, down the block from its current 800-square-foot store on Madison Avenue.
"Our important sales have grown tremendously since the beginning of the year," said Henri Barguirdjian, president and chief executive officer of Graff, America. "Fine stones are extremely rare and have increased in value steadily over the years. It is a well-known fact that when the general environment is very challenging for investing in the stock market and real estate, people that have cash available tend to acquire very rare items. I have clients that want to invest a few million in diamonds. It is a safe haven."
Barguirdjian said the company welcomes new clients from emerging markets all the time. Those from Russia, China and India are buying important pieces. The average sale at Graff is $400,000. This year, the London-based firm will open stores in Geneva and Moscow, and next year there are plans for a boutique in Shanghai.
De Beer's 2008 plan is to open 25 stores, including six in the U.S. By the end of this year, the diamond jewelry brand plans to have a total of 50 stores across the globe.
"Europe and the U.S. are expected to be more challenging in the months to come, particularly on the entry price [below $5,000]," said De Beers ceo Guy Leymarie. "But the upper market is very dynamic and is expected to continue to be, as diamond supply above 5 to 10 carats is increasingly short compared to a strong unsustained demand. The market volatility plays in favor of diamond jewelry more and more as it is seen as a safe investment."Van Cleef & Arpels is opening its 10th U.S. store next month in Naples, Fla. This year, the exclusive jeweler has opened a store in Las Vegas.
Other jewelry brands, such as Bulgari and Cartier, have multiple categories in addition to high jewelry. Both brands are respectively pushing their handbags, eyewear and entry-price jewelry. Cartier is placing emphasis on its Marcello handbag, while Bulgari's range of handbag styles is large and growing. Either way, both Bulgari and Cartier are continuing to be aggressive with store expansion.
In the past few months, Bulgari — which last week reported that profits slipped 4.6 percent in the first quarter because of weakness in Italy and the U.K. — opened stores in Panama and Costa Mesa, Calif. There are plans to open units in Atlanta and Short Hills, N.J.; to expand the San Francisco store, and the firm is in negotiations to open a shop in Boston.
"We will basically continue to implement our strategy, especially in jewelry and watches," said Bulgari ceo Francesco Trapani, who admitted the U.S. has flailed in the first quarter. "On the one side, there is a mood that is not pushing toward high consumption. On the other side, you have a real sect that's suffering. I don't know if the clients of high jewelry are really suffering. We always say in the end that when you have an economy suffering, all people are suffering."
Bulgari has recently increased its high jewelry and diamond assortment. Leviev is one if its suppliers for large and colored diamonds.
"Traditionally, diamonds have not been the most important segment for Bulgari," said Trapani. "But we have grown our diamond business pretty aggressively."
Bernard Fornas, ceo of Cartier International, said that since Cartier has multiple categories, including handbags, eyewear, watches, jewelry and gifts, its growth is infallible.
"It's a high-end business, but it's better protected," said Fornas. "For the moment, we don't feel anything in the U.S. We will continue to develop as we are used to doing."
Cartier has 34 North American boutiques and has plans to open another Las Vegas store, is renovating three stores and is opening boutiques in two Neiman Marcus locations."A lot of these stores aren't just opening for today, they're opening years from now," added Telsey. "The locations help extend brand awareness."
“What he has done at Vuitton is really exceptional,” said @gameofthrones’ actress Gwendoline Christie on @mrkimjones’ final show for @louisvuitton. “He has rebooted luxury in terms of making it commercial, viable and contemporary. And most importantly artistic. He has never compromised his artistic vision for the sake of commodity.” (📷: @zefashioninsider)
After seeing a demand for men’s wear from its customers, British contemporary women’s wear label @ariesarise has added a men’s wear component and will launch a unisex collection with @mrporterlive. The 20-piece collection includes jackets, denim, logo T-shirts and more with deconstructed ‘90s vibes. Set to launch on January 18, you can shop the pieces on Aries’ website and on mrporter.com. #wwdfashion
“And so spending so much time with a character who thinks like that, inevitability you try and analyze yourself and go back and think about your own demons and dark chapters that you had in your life,” says @thedanielbruhl of his role in TNT’s “The Alienist.” The show, set in the Gilded Age of New York, also stars Dakota Fanning and Luke Evans. Head to WWD.com to read about how 39-year-old Brühl prepared for the role and why he thinks the show is so relevant to today #wwdeye ( 📷: @Eriktanner)
Now that Celine Dion’s collection has topped $10 million in sales, the pop superstar, fashion icon and newly-minted industry player is eyeing growth in Asia. Read the full report by @tiffanyap, link in bio. #wwdnews #celinedion
“My personal philosophy to beauty is paying attention to oneself. I love to be outdoors, lots of fresh air, trying to take care of yourself as best you can. I always notice that comes through,” says Felicity Jones, the global face of @shiseido-owned @cledepeaubeauteus, which launches today. Head to WWD.com to read more about the actress’ love for beauty and how she prepared for her new role in “The Basis of Sex,” playing the young Ruth Bader Ginsburg. #wwdbeauty (📷: @dandoperalski)
Among the familiar faces at @off____white’s show was a surprise figure: Japanese artist @takashipom, pictured here on Wednesday morning. Other show-goers included @jerrylorenzo, who spoke about his upcoming project: a @nike collaboration for back to school, with designs inspired by his childhood on the West Coast. Sitting in the front row were Future, Don Crawley, @miguel and more. See the rest of the photos on WWD.com #wwdeye (📷: Stephane Feugere)
According to @laurentsai, former “Terrace House: Aloha State” cast member, she didn’t know she was auditioning for the Japanese version of “Real World.” “I was telling a couple of my friends and someone’s like, ‘That sounds a lot like Terrace House.’ I was like, ’No it can’t be.’” Turns out, it was. But Tsai isn’t just a reality star — she’s an illustrator who has worked with Starbucks Japan and most recently, she’s dipping her toes into the fashion world. Head to WWD.com to read about her time on the show, modeling and her art. #wwdeye (📷: @danieldorsa)
More changes are coming to New York Fashion Week: Beginning with the spring 2019 collection, @alexanderwangny will move his New York show to June from September, adopting a biannual schedule with collections shown in June and December. Additionally, the @cfda is planning for an official summer/winter fashion season taking place as soon as June and December 2018. Read more about the upcoming changes on WWD.com. #wwdnews #wwdfashion (📷: @slovekinpics)


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and corruption in Russia and the laundering of criminal proceeds
through Switzerland, the British Virgin Islands, Dubai and Cyprus will
be analyzed at the upcoming OffshoreAlert Conference.
Moscow-based tax attorney Sergei Magnitsky blew the whistle on a $230
million tax fraud in which his client, UK-based investment advisory firm
Hermitage Capital Management, was one of the victims, he was taken into
custody by the officials he accused and held without bail in primitive
and deadly conditions until he died in his cell in 2009.
The OffshoreAlert Conference will look at evidence of corruption by the Russian...
The International Bar Association (IBA), the 40,00-plus strong legal organisation, held its Management Board meetings at the Higgs & Johnson Ocean Centre office in the Bahamas.
The IBA is an organisation of international legal practitioners, bar associations and law societies. It influences international law reform and shapes the future of the legal profession worldwide. The Management Board represents the leading partners of major firms in countries around the globe, such as the UK, the US, Japan, Belgium, Germany, Ireland, Spain, Australia and the Bahamas.
IBA president Akira Kawamura, of Japan, said in a letter: "It was a delight to be in the Bahamas for the Management Board meetings, ...
By GENEA NOEL
Freeport News Reporter
Several stores in New Providence have insisted that all Similac products made by Abbott Labs be removed from their shelves despite confirmation that only certain Similac-branded products were affected by the recent recall.
The recall was made following an internal quality review by the company, which detected the remote possibility of the presence of a small common beetle in the product produced in one production area in a single manufacturing facility.
According to officials from the Nassau Agencies Limited, local distributors for Similac, since the recall of some brands of the product last week, major stores have been requesting that their entire supply be re ...
FREEPORT, Grand Bahama - Three companies are taking legal action against the Department of Customs over its decision to require Grand Bahama Port Authority (GBPA) licensees to obtain a letter of good standing from the National Insurance Board (NIB) to receive authorization to purchase goods in bond over the counter.
An application for leave to bring judicial review proceedings against the comptroller of Customs was filed yesterday by Smith Point Limited, Callenders and Co., and Bahamian Outdoor Adventure Tours Limited on the grounds that there is no lawful basis on which Customs can impose such a requirement on a licensee before issuing an over-the-counter letter.
The application, filed by attorneys o ...
THE New Providence Road Improvement Project has proved to be "the kiss of death" for many small Bahamian-owned businesses in the Robinson Road and Market Street areas, a leading consultant to the sector telling Tribune Business "at least 25" had gone out of business.
Brownouts, blackouts and fried equipment continue to plague Abaco, with one store owner Monday saying business had fallen 50 per cent because of the power issues, while one hardware store said commerce was flowing because of it.
Peter Bradley said his company, Conch Pearl Gallery, had lost half its business because of the consistent power cuts across the island, as tourists - his biggest customers - peer into the darkened store and subsequently leave.
FOUR Bahamian businesses - a restaurant and three luxury retailers recently came up winners in the MasterCard-Ministry of Tourism 'Find Your Way' initiative, walking away with an early Christmas present of cash from the international credit and debit card company for being number one in the increase of MasterCard sales volume for the month.
The most recent winners were the Kafe Kalik restaurant at Lynden Pindling International Airport, Carlo Milano and Effy Jewellers of Bay Street, and A la Plage, Marina Village, Paradise Island. Each received international recognition and a cheque for $1,000, rewarding them for their performance.
"The outstanding performance of our winning merchant ...
BTC, Commonwealth Brewery and international banks operating Bahamian subsidiaries are among those companies who will be subject to a 3.5 percent increase in the cost of remitting profits out of the country as a result of a new tax on the repatriation of profits imposed by the government.
Minister of State for Finance Michael Halkitis yesterday clarified an amendment to the Stamp Act highlighted by Guardian Business on Friday, which had caused considerable concern among practitioners in the financial, legal and real estate sectors who feared their transactions would be impacted...
By NEIL HARTNELL
Tribune Business Editor
With major Freeport businesses and wholesalers having suffered year-over-year top-line sales reductions of between 30-60 per cent for January, a leading attorney told Tribune Business that central government pressure meant that "the rule of law and governance under the Hawksbill Creek Agreement has nearly complete collapsed".
Fred Smith QC, the Callenders & Co attorney and partner, warned that various government initiatives, such as Customs' demand for a National Insurance Board (NIB) Letter of Good Standing before bonded letters were renewed, were in danger of "throwing the baby out with the bath water" and "could easily k ...


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In the digital age, the concept of privacy has become increasingly elusive, as demonstrated by the recent exposure of sensitive financial information from California by the infamous hacking group briansclub.cm. The leak has raised numerous questions about cybersecurity, personal financial security, and the ethical implications of such breaches. This article delves into the California Money Matters leak orchestrated by briansclub.cm,exploring its ramifications and shedding light on the complexities of our interconnected financial world.
**The briansclub.cm Phenomenon: A Recap**
briansclub.cm has carved a niche for itself in the criminal underworld, specializing in the sale of stolen credit card data, personally identifiable information (PII), and financial credentials. The California Money Matters leak is just one instance of their audacious exploits. The leak included a trove of financial records, bank statements, and credit card details, painting a vivid picture of the financial activities of thousands of individuals and businesses in the state.
**Unveiling the Web of Intrigues**
1. **Data Security Gaps**: The leak serves as a glaring reminder of the vulnerabilities in modern financial systems. From lax security measures to outdated encryption protocols, financial institutions often struggle to keep up with the rapidly evolving techniques employed by hackers. This incident underscores the pressing need for stricter cybersecurity regulations and constant innovation to stay ahead of cybercriminals.
2. **Identity Theft and Fraud**: The leaked data has provided cybercriminals with a treasure trove of personal information, potentially enabling identity theft and various forms of fraud. With access to names, addresses, social security numbers, and credit card details, criminals can seamlessly orchestrate scams that can have devastating consequences for victims.
3. **Economic Impacts**: The ripple effects of the California Money Matters leak extend beyond individual victims. The economy could suffer from reduced consumer trust in financial systems, leading to decreased spending and potentially impacting businesses, particularly those in the retail and e-commerce sectors. Restoring this trust will require a collaborative effort between regulatory bodies, financial institutions, and cybersecurity experts.
4. **Legal and Ethical Considerations**: The leak raises ethical questions about the sale and purchase of stolen data on the dark web. It also underscores the need for updated legislation to address these emerging cyber threats adequately. Striking a balance between individual privacy, security, and law enforcement’s capacity to combat cybercrime is a challenge that societies must confront head-on.
**The Road Ahead: Mitigating Future Threats**
1. **Enhanced Cybersecurity Measures**: Financial institutions must proactively invest in advanced cybersecurity tools, real-time monitoring systems, and employee training to identify and mitigate potential breaches swiftly. Employing multi-factor authentication, end-to-end encryption, and regular security audits can help fortify defenses against cyber threats.
2. **Public Awareness and Education**: Empowering individuals with knowledge about cybersecurity best practices is pivotal. By understanding how to safeguard personal information, people can reduce their vulnerability to cyberattacks. Governments, educational institutions, and corporations should collaborate to create comprehensive awareness campaigns.
3. **Collaborative Efforts**: The California Money Matters leak highlights the importance of collaboration among governments, law enforcement agencies, and private enterprises. Sharing threat intelligence and pooling resources can bolster the global fight against cybercrime, preventing attacks before they escalate.
The California Money Matters leak by brians club serves as a stark reminder of the fragility of our digital financial ecosystem. It underscores the urgent need for comprehensive cybersecurity measures, ethical considerations in handling stolen data, and cooperative efforts to combat cybercrime. As individuals, businesses, and governments grapple with the aftermath of this breach, it is crucial to seize the opportunity to enhance data protection, rebuild trust, and ensure a more secure and resilient financial landscape for the future.


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Maize Milling companies have expressed concern over the awarding of maize product tenders to non milling companies – a move they feel undermines the efforts of local manufactures.
Though there is no piece of legislation that stipulates that milling companies should be given first preference, millers believe that, as part of promoting local manufacturers, they should be given the first preference. In any case, companies which might have won tenders should outsource from them instead of outsourcing elsewhere.
This complaint follows the awarding of a tender for the supply of 2400 metric tons of white maize samp to non milling companies by the Local Government Finance and Procurement Services.
In a letter written to the different bidders on the 12th July 2013 by Local Government Finance and Procurement Services, it read the tender had been given to Bonanza Equipment PTY LTD and Megabyte Doctor PTY Ltd. Of the 2400 tons Bonanza Equipment will supply 1,628 metric tons while Megabyte Doctor will supply 774 metric tons.
Bonanza Equipment PTY Ltd specializes in mechanical contracting, industrial catering and laundry equipment while Megabyte Doctor specializes in computer hardware.
A concerned miller, who preferred anonymity, said he is surprised that non milling companies outclassed the milling companies and won the tender. “They don’t manufacture these products instead they go to South Africa to outsource, promoting the South African manufactures,” he said.
Millers are of the view that this defeats efforts to grow the local manufacturing sector.
“We are appealing to government to give us a chance to supply them as we have the capability,” he said.
Commenting on the issue, the Chairman of Maize and Wheat Millers Association (MWMA), Nkosi Mwaba, said it is of great concern to the industry that tenders for maize products are being awarded to non-millers.
Mwaba said it is even more disturbing that these companies are being allowed to source their supplies from outside the country when there is an active and capable Milling industry here in Botswana.
“We cannot blame the non-millers for winning the tenders as they have seen and taken advantage of a business opportunity, what we would like to see, however, is the Government actively giving preference to local producers,” said Mwaba.
Mwaba encouraged government and private sector not to fall back on the tools and mechanisms such as the Economic Diversification Drive (EDD), and the Local Purchase preference Scheme which are actively in place and designed to govern and police fair opportunities for local industries.
When reached for comment on how the two tenders were awarded, a Mrs Mokwena, from Local Government Finance and Procurement Services, noted that the issue was beyond her reach and directed us to the Director who was not available to comment.


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Another incident of a Samsung Galaxy handset exploding have been reported, this time in France and it has nothing to do with the Galaxy Note 7 in fact this time it was the Samsung Galaxy J5. Note 7, Washing Machine, now Galaxy J5, what next?
A user in France Lamya Bouyirdane told Associated Press that she noticed something weird with the Galaxy J5 handset that her son was using, she asked him to pass it over to her. The handset was really hot and had already swollen up, smoke was coming out.
She immediately threw the handset that exploded seconds later, back cover came off and handset caught fire. Her partner then quickly extinguished the J5. Lamya Bouyirdane had bought the Samsung Galaxy J5 last June from a website with discount.
Samsung will be investigating the issue before making a comment. Batteries are really delicate even a small defect (manufacturing or physical) can potentially cause fire and explosion.
Source : AP.


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Tesla Co-founder Sells Hybrid Engines to FedEx
FedEx will add hybrid powertrains to its delivery truck fleet. The supplier, Wrightspeed, was founded by Tesla Motors co-founder Ian Wright. According to a report by SF Gate, FedEx had previously tried out Wrightspeed’s products in two of its trucks and is now ordering 25 more.
Wrightspeed, founded by Wright after leaving Tesla in 2004, builds engines and transmissions for vehicles that have already been constructed. Its products use a lithium-iron battery pack with a range of around 30 miles, depending on how the truck would be driven.
Wright has said that each powertrain costs less than $100,000. He also expected that because of the money it is saving on fuel, FedEx would make that money back within three or four years.
FedEx has a history of testing new technologies for its vehicles, aiming to cut fuel costs and negative environmental effects. It currently has more than 300 hybrid vehicles, more than 100 electrics vehicles, and trucks running on other various alternative fuels such as propane and hydrogen.
Wrightspeed plans to expand its powertrain sales by offering kits that can be installed by other companies. Wright also plans to use the technology in garbage trucks.


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The amount of money Facebook is planning to collect from Vietnamese partners accounts for 5 percent of invoice value. The money will be used to fulfill tax obligations.
Meta’s survey shows that small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in Vietnam are affected by the new Covid-19 strain, but optimistic signals are revealed.
More than 3,200 videos and articles with false or fake information were removed by cross-border platforms in Vietnam in the first quarter of 2022.
According to the General Department of Taxation, there are 15 large corporations and technology companies in the world earning a lot of money from Vietnam through cross-border businesses.
Australia has been at the forefront of an uphill battle against tech giants, though it's still at a starting point.
People under the age of 26 in Vietnam spend more than seven hours a day on mobile apps such as Facebook, Youtube, Zalo, Tik Tok, Facebook Messenger and Shopee, among others.
Meta has announced the four most discussed topics of the year in Vietnam on their two social networking platforms Facebook and Instagram.
Domestic social networks would promote the strengths of their specialized foundation to develop niche markets and build specialized social networks, combined with mobile payments to create an digital ecosystem of Vietnam.
Meta Platforms Inc. (formerly Facebook Inc.) has announced the establishment of climate science centres (CSCs) in Vietnam and over 30 countries in the Asia Pacific region.
A Facebook survey rates Vietnam as a home for digital transformation and forecasts that the market will lead the region in terms of e-commerce growth.
After changing its name from Facebook to Meta, the corporation has launched a new operation in Vietnam and other Asian countries.
The General Department of Taxation directly administers taxes on overseas suppliers and is responsible for granting tax identification numbers to overseas suppliers in accordance with Vietnamese regulations.
A vulnerability on Facebook has been exploited by hackers to change the name of many fanpages of universities in Vietnam.
Vietnamese are heavily reliant on Facebook as a communication channel, as was clear when Facebook had an outage Monday night.
Many Facebook accounts in Vietnam have received notices of suspension due to violations of community policy. If the users do not give a compelling reason, their accounts will be permanently locked.


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Apple has hosted its Spring launch event in California, releasing a huge range of new devices.
During an event headlined by the small, cheap iPhone SE, the company also released a new iPad Pro and Apple Watch accessories. As well as the new products, it unveiled new software and new programmes centred around health and sustainability.
The iPhone SE is Apple's cheapest phone ever made. It said it had launched it to appeal to those people who continue to use smaller handsets, as well as people who want a cheaper phone and could be encouraged into buying their first ever iPhone.
That set the tone for an event focused on bringing Apple's biggest features to some of its more neglected lines. The iPad Pro, for instance, was a new smaller iPad that featured many of the same features as its bigger sibling – all packed into a box the same size as the iPad Air.
The company didn't release the iPhone 7 at the event. That's due for September.


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Redmi Note10 Series Release Date
Earlier, Redmi India officially announced that the Redmi Note10 Series of phones will be officially unveiled in March this year with a focus on 108 megapixels and ultra-high refresh rate screens. Today, Redmi India officially announced the Redmi Note10 Series release date: 4th March 2021, and the first sale is expected on March 10.
Redmi India is expected to launch Note10 Series’s three models including – Redmi Note10 4G, Redmi Note10 5G, and Redmi Note10 Pro 5G. The company’s main goal is to provide the best specifications at the lowest price.
Xiaomi has previously confirmed that the new generation of Redmi Note series models will be sold exclusively by Amazon India like the Redmi Note 9 Pro and Redmi Note 9 Pro Max. According to reports, the Redmi Note10 will come in at least one 4G-only version. It is expected to come with a 6.5-inch FHD+ display, three rear cameras, a 6000mAh battery, and 22W fast charging support. The Redmi Note10 Pro will come with an AMOLED screen and 108MP camera and is expected to offer 8GB of RAM and 128GB of onboard storage.
According to reports, India has been the hottest smartphone market outside of China, recently the market research firm IDC released a report on the Indian smartphone market in 2020, the market shrunk slightly, Xiaomi Samsung two giants occupy the top two positions. IDC report shows that due to the impact of the new crown epidemic, India’s smartphone market shrank by 2% in 2020, with total sales of 149.7 million units.
The report also predicts that the Indian smartphone market will grow between 5 and 9 percent this year, with sales driven by demand for mid-range handset replacements and more affordable 5G phones. Besides, offline channel sales will also recover, and the Redmi Note10 Series phones will have high contributions.


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Andre Elijah created a virtual reality yoga app, with avatars of top instructors teaching various poses as well as pilates and mindfulness.
But users may never see it. Meta Platforms Inc. killed it just before launch time when Meta learned Elijah had talked with Apple Inc. and ByteDance’s Pico about launching the app on their competing VR platforms, he alleges in a lawsuit.
Meta canceled his AEI Fitness app days before its unveiling at Meta Connect, the world’s biggest VR conference, Elijah says. He says the conference would have propelled it to the top of the VR fitness app market, eventually reaping him tens of millions of dollars.
“It was hell working on it, and we got there,” Elijah said in an interview, adding that the company made a “gorgeous” trailer for its presentation at the conference. But while preparing to be part of Chief Executive Officer Mark Zuckerberg’s keynote, he says, he was told, “‘No, the project’s killed, we’re not giving you your money.’”
The lawsuit offers a rare look inside the personal sacrifices developers make to hitch themselves to Meta’s full-throttle push into the metaverse. The company has been under pressure from investors to sell more of its VR headsets after years of operating losses in its VR tech division. One of the barriers preventing consumers from buying more VR headsets is the lack of apps and content compared to mobile phones or computers.
The VR fitness app market was valued at $16.4 billion last year and is expected to grow to more than $109 billion in the next seven years, according to the antitrust complaint Elijah filed this week in federal court in San Jose, California.
The complaint portrays Meta as conspiring to kill his app as part of an ongoing effort to control the market for VR headsets and app distribution. Meta banned Elijah from the conference and added his name to a “blacklist” of developers it refuses to do business with, he claims.
Eliminating Elijah’s app will “result in reduced innovation, quality and choice, less pressure to compete for the most talented app developers, and potentially higher prices for VR fitness apps,” according to his lawsuit.
Meta didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
Elijah says Meta had already paid him about $1.5 million. He is seeking $3.2 million more in the near term, and hundreds of millions in lost revenue and damages. The lawsuit also names Zuckerberg and Alo, a Beverly Hills fitness apparel and accessories company that Elijah said his app would use, as defendants.
It’s unusual for developers to sue a platform and risk scaring off other companies they might want to work with.
“I never counted on this being the situation — I’m still dealing with it,” Elijah said. “It’s rough.”
The lawsuit comes as Apple plans to release its competing headset, the Apple Vision Pro, in the coming months. Meta has been the industry leader in the VR headset market for years but could face considerable competition from Apple.
It’s not the first time Meta has been accused of trying to corner the VR fitness app market. The US Federal Trade Commission sought to block the company’s acquisition of Within Unlimited Inc., maker of the popular Supernatural app, alleging that Meta was denying consumers the benefit of adding another competitor to the market. The agency backed off this year after a federal judge in San Jose rejected its request to halt the deal.
The case is Andre Elijah Immersive Inc. v. Meta Platforms Technologies LLC, 5:23-cv-05159, US District Court, Northern District of California (San Jose).
— With assistance by Mark Gurman


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Japan's car industry is still expected to remain strong.
During the past few decades the auto industry has experienced an evolution in sourcing patterns. Since the deep sea trade of autos started in the 1960s, and until the 1990s, there were just a few important main trade routes including Asia to North America and Asia to Europe.
More recently, deep sea trade routes have spread right around the globe, triggered by changing sourcing patterns. Several factors are driving this evolution in sourcing in the auto industry, not least currency fluctuations and trade taxes.
Avoiding currency fluctuations
Lately, the strong Japanese Yen has made it increasingly difficult to profitably produce assembled mass-market cars in Japan. According to estimates from IHS, the net profit for Japanese-produced cars sold in Europe is roughly half the level of Volkswagen and Hyundai-Kia. The Japanese OEMs (Original Equipment Manufacturers) have responded by reorganising and overhauling their domestic operations, and increasingly using cheaper imported parts. Toyota and Nissan, for example, are increasingly importing parts from China and South Korea for use in their factories in Japan.
Japan’s three largest OEMs, Toyota, Honda and Nissan, have also taken action by shifting output closer to where the cars are sold. Nissan has been the most aggressive in relocating production outside of Japan; in July 2012, it announced a cut of 15% in its domestic production. Likewise, Toyota plans to ramp up US production of its Highlander and to phase out Japan as an assembly site; Toyota is also exporting its US-built Sienna minivans to South Korea. In addition,Toyota plans to export some of its US-sold Yaris subcompact cars from France instead of from Japan. Once its new Mexican plant is finished, probably in 2016, all Yaris models sold in the US will be produced in Mexico.
Despite these cuts, Japan’s car industry is still expected to remain strong as the country is an important auto research and development base, as well as a buffer for variations in other markets. Exports from Japan are expected to stay at almost 4 million units per year for the remainder of this decade.
When setting up a new auto assembly plant in a country, trade agreements are an important deciding factor for OEMs. Factors like labour costs, skills of the work force, taxes, free space as well as inbound and outbound logistics, are also considered. Mexico, for example, which has been successful in attracting OEMs, currently has free trade agreements with 44 countries.
OEMs such as Volkswagen, Nissan, Mazda and Honda are establishing themselves in Mexico. While Volkswagen’s Mexican plant is scheduled to produce the new Q5 SUV from around 2015, Nissan’s new plant is expected to be up and running in 2014. Mazda also plans a new plant to produce its small 2 and 3-series models. Meanwhile, Honda aims to trim exports from Japan gradually from the current rate of 35-40% of its total output to 10-20%. It has started to construct a new plant in Mexico, which will produce the Fit (Jazz) for the entire North American market as well as other regions. Honda’s next NSX sports-car will be built in the US, making it the first non-US automaker to manufacture its entire range of vehicles in North America.


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Just days after announcing its content deal with PokerStars in Italy and leading casino games developer, Red Tiger Gaming, has now revealed that it has signed a similar agreement with Malta-based technology firm, SuprNation. The fresh tie-up will see the developer’s games integrated with the operator’s casino brands, including Duelz.
According to the official press release…
Under the terms of the new commercial deal, the Gżira-headquartered developer’s portfolio, which features popular titles such as Pirates’ Plenty, which was released on February 28, and the Norse mythology-themed, Thor’s Lightning, will now be available to the gamification-focused website’s players.
“commitment to innovative features”
Commenting on the new collaboration, Chief Executive Officer for Red Tiger Gaming, Gavin Hamilton, said…
“We are delighted to be partnering with SuprNation which operates a number of stellar casino brands. Their commitment to innovative features and gamification in particular is something that is very close to our own ethos, and we are looking forward to working with them.”
Multiple brand integration:
Also ‘delighted’ with the freshly-inked partnership, Henric Andersson, Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder of SuprNation, added…
“Red Tiger offers some of the best products available, and we are delighted to be able to add them to our burgeoning offering. We are super excited to be welcoming them across our brands and to roll out their exciting games over a long and fruitful partnership.”
SuprNation has been busy as well, having recently entered into a supply deal with market-leading online and mobile casino software provider, iSoftBet.


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Over the last five months, PC Jeweller has been caught in a spiral that has wiped off billions in investor wealth. To be precise, since Jan 19, 2018, the jewellery chain from New Delhi has lost over 75% of its market value, worth $2.8 billion up until last week, on the BSE.
Now, the company—with over 90 outlets across 70 Indian cities—is looking to staunch the bleeding by planning to buy back some of its own shares. The ploy seems to be working as its stock surged nearly 32% in early hours of trading on May 07. But behind this stock market see-saw is a curious backstory.
It all started in January this year when Mumbai-based financial and technology company Vakrangee bought shares in PC Jeweller. However, none of the exchange filings showed who the shares were bought from.
Then, in April, the company disclosed in a filing to the stock exchange that one of its promoters, Padam Chand Gupta, had gifted some of his shares to his family members through off-market transactions. This triggered concerns over transparency and the quality of disclosures by PC Jeweller.
Vakrangee has been under the Securities and Exchange Board of India’s (SEBI) scanner since February over its corporate governance practices and alleged market manipulation. The market regulator’s probe into Vakrangee is still ongoing, while PC Jeweller denied any association with the Mumbai-based IT firm.
Fears escalated again last week after reports of the arrest of PC Jeweller’s managing director, Balram Garg. The company has, however, so far denied all allegations.
“I would just like to say that don’t go by the rumours and have faith in us as you always had it,” Garg said in an interview with Zee News. On Friday, May 04, the shares of the company jumped 44% after Garg’s clarification.
PC Jeweller’s travails come as India’s gems and jewellery sector, one of the country’s largest exporters, has been battered after a banking fraud involving the country’s top jewellers, Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi, surfaced earlier this year. And these latest events at PC Jeweller will do no favours to the sector’s confidence.
PC Jeweller started as a stand-alone jewellery shop in Delhi’s busy Karol Bagh market in 2005, led by brothers Pramod Chand Gupta and Balram Garg. It eventually added more stores and set up manufacturing facilities for exports, wholesale, and retail purposes. Prior to setting up PC Jeweller, the Gupta brothers were engaged in the family business of selling jewellery.
PC Jeweller rode the wave in the last decade as more Indian shoppers turned to the organised jewellery market, leading to the rise of national chains such as Tanishq, Kalyan Jewellers, and Malabar Gold and Diamonds. These brands offered more designs, advertised heavily, and established a large network across the country.
India is one of the largest consumers of gold jewellery in the world. Weddings alone account for 40% of all gold sales, followed by the harvest season and festivals.
Buoyed by the rising demand in India’s organised gems and jewellery market, currently estimated at Rs1.7 lakh crore, PC Jeweller initiated a share sale, raising Rs600 crore from the initial public offering (IPO) in 2012. The company then had a turnover of Rs3,042 crore from its 20 stores.
Since then, the chain has added 70 more stores in over 70 cities, entering even small markets such as Alwar, Ajmer, and Hapur in the last few years. The company has opted for a franchise route to help it support this rapid expansion. It has also launched online sales through its own website, apart from selling its designs on Amazon and Flipkart.
For the financial year ending March 2017, the company posted a 21.6% growth, clocking a turnover of Rs 8,099 crore ($1.2 billion).
The stock of PC Jeweller has been a big wealth creator for investors; it more than doubled in 2017. However, all of those gains have been erased in the crises of last few months.
The company’s market value now stands below its projected sales of Rs10,000 crore for the financial year 2018, underlining the level of investors’ concern.
The proposed buyback may help improve matters temporarily, but the shine won’t return to PC Jeweller unless the management is able to move quickly and decisively, and assuage concerns about the lack of transparency for both the investors and regulators.


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The Government of Rwanda yesterday (18 January 2021) imposed tough lockdown measures on its capital Kigali and strict restrictions on the rest of the country after a surge in cases of Covid-19. The follwing measures took effect yesterday and will be reviewed after 15 days upon a health assessment:
- Unnecessary movements including visits outside home are prohibited except for essential services including medical/healthcare, food shopping, banking etc. and for the personnel performung such services. All movements will require an approved permit from Rwanda National Police.
- Travel between Kigali and other provinces and districts of the country is not permitted except for essential services and tourism (tourists must be in possession of a negative Covid-19 test).
- Public transport is prohibited. However, transportation of food and essential goods will continue to function. Motos and bicycles are not permitted to carry passengers, but may offer delivery services.
- … [READ


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Guatemala, Guatemala (PRWEB) November 19, 2013
“Through exporting, Guatemala moves forward” is the title of the awareness campaign that AGEXPORT launched on October,that will be broadcasted by different media.
The project aims to communicate that exports are an opportunity for the country to move forward: if everything Guatemala produces finds a market where it can be sold, there will be more investments, more enterprises, more production and more employment, leading to a decline in poverty.
In addition, this project seeks to represent the human face of Guatemalan exports and demonstrate that export activity is about more than numbers. There are hundreds of Guatemalans whose lives have been changed due to exports. This campaign seeks to reach Guatemalan households so they can see and feel the pride of being Guatemalan through the goods and services that today are sent all over the world, said the president of AGEXPORT, Estuardo Castillo.
In addition, AGEXPORT’S Director, Luis Godoy, said, that the first phase of the campaign will be directed at 12 departments: Guatemala City, Escuintla, Retalhuleu, Quiche, Chimaltenango, Alta Verapaz, Quetzaltenango, San Marcos, Huehuetenango, Sacatepequez, Peten and Izabal.
The campaign will pay tribute to those across the country who, with their hands, talent and hard work have produced goods for export, bringing wellbeing to thousands of people. It also seeks to motivate officials, the work force and all Guatemalans to understand the benefits of this activity to develop the country, assured Castillo.
Godoy concludes, “What are looking to promote the export model as a path for economic growth and as an opportunity to provide formal employment to more than 4 million Guatemalans that are unemployed today. The main message is that in the 30 years since the founding of AGEXPODT, exports have been vital to the socioeconomic development of the country, especially in rural areas.”


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Bookstore offers free digital books
Since its launch Wednesday, 50 books have been downloaded.
Feb. 09, 2010
University Bookstore began offering access to digital versions of more than 200 books on its Web site for free Wednesday.
The bookstore expanded its digital textbook program last summer, but the books usually cost the same or less than a print textbook.
Works in the public domain by authors, ranging from Plato to Dostoyevsky, are available for download as part of a pilot program with the National Association of College Stores and Canadian Campus Retail Association.
The bookstore, which had been looking into offering more digital options to customers, saw the program as an opportunity to gauge interest in electronic books among MU students, University Bookstore spokeswoman Michelle Froese said.
"Publishers are trying to figure out how to digitize their materials and still be compensated for it," Froese said. "Bookstores need to be relevant to the interests of their consumers, and I think you see an alliance with technology to make that happen."
The books, which are downloaded onto and then read on computers, might not seem ideal to some, but they appeal to an audience interested in having their books on the go, Froese said.
"Right now, the books that you're able to download from the Web site, you're reading them on the computer screen," Froese said. "I think it can be challenging, but I think it depends on the preferences of the user."
Froese said the bookstore has seen a rapid rise in the demand for digital books due to the popularity of electronic book readers that have triggered an increase in the public's interest in non-traditional formats, such as Amazon’s Kindle.
"Between August of 2009 and January 2010, we had 360 digital titles available, and 1,700 books were downloaded," Froese said. "Between August 2008 and January (2009), 212 digital titles were available, and 95 were downloaded. That shows student interest in purchasing digital books is growing."
The bookstore's expansion into the digital realm includes an increased focus on offering digital textbooks, Froese said.
"We've had some success with carrying digital textbooks," Froese said. "Though most faculty haven't specifically requested for the bookstore to carry digital, our goal is to carry digital options whenever possible."
Freshman Emily Giffin, who was required to use digital textbooks for journalism and theater courses, said having a book available only on the computer had its shortcomings.
"I definitely prefer normal textbooks," Giffin said. "I like to have a book in front of me, highlight — all that good stuff. If I actually had the option of a hardback, I probably would have picked that."
Junior David Stevens said less expensive digital books would be appealing alternatives to standard versions.
"If the digital books were discounted, I'd definitely be interested," Stevens said. "It uses less paper, and it's less stuff to carry around, so I don't really see a downside to it."
Although the books have not been available for long, bookstore officials are closely monitoring the popularity of the program in order to plan for a wider catalogue of digital works, Froese said.
"We're interested in customer usage right now," Froese said. "Since going live last Wednesday, 50 titles have been downloaded. That's not a huge number, but hopefully we can start to offer more digital content through the University Bookstore Web site."


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TIL hosts CEOs’ roundtable with the President of Tanzania
June 30, 2015
Tata International (TIL) sponsored and hosted a roundtable facilitating an interaction with President of the United Republic of Tanzania, Dr Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete, with a select group of Indian CEOs. The event was organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) in New Delhi on June 18, 2015. Ms Janaki Chaudhry, Head Strategy and Business Development, and Mr Ajay Mehra, Head – Non Auto Business (Distribution), represented TIL.
Mr Madhu Kannan, Group Head – Business Development, Tata Sons and member of the CII International Council, moderated the session. The Presidential delegation included the Tanzanian ministers of Industry and Trade; Water and Irrigation; Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, apart from High Commissioners of India and Tanzania, and other senior Tanzanian government officials.
President Kikwete invited India Inc to enhance bilateral economic ties with Tanzania, while emphasising the long history of friendship. He spoke on the business opportunities in Tanzania and urged Indian companies to explore, expand and invest in sectors like agriculture, manufacturing, infrastructure, healthcare, tourism, ICT, mining, oil and gas, and logistics.


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After severe US sanctions against Huawei and numerous problems for the company, Huawei has now decided to build a chip factory in Shanghai for its 5G telecommunications equipment.
Following the US sanctions against Huawei, the company faced several problems in producing its smartphones in various sectors. One of the limitations that bound Huawei’s hands and feet was the company’s proprietary chips, the Kieran chips. Because of these restrictions, the Financial Times now reports that Huawei intends to build a dedicated chip factory in Shanghai and turn it into a core production facility for its business. Of course, it seems that the IC Research and Development Center of this city will run this factory until this factory can produce the chips that Huawei needs and can use.
The plant will first start with the production of old 45-nanometer chips, and then in 2021, will move to the production of 28-nanometer chips, which is a good option for smart TVs and IoT devices. The plant plans to acquire the ability to build 20-nanometer chips by the end of 2022 so that it can be used in most 5G telecommunications devices.
Theoretically, it seems that Huawei will be able to continue to build its telecommunications equipment until it prepares its chips, using the chips it has stored to date and before the sanctions. Of course, from late 2021 onwards, the company may face a shortage of chips.
That way, if the news and reports are true, Huawei will not have to worry about its future. Of course, as you can see, this report does not talk about smartphone chips, because smartphone chips have advanced manufacturing technology. In other words, powerful chips like the Kieran 900 used in the Huawei Mate 40 Pro is a 5-nanometer chip that Huawei and the Shanghai factory will certainly not be able to build at the moment.


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Some analysts predict a four-figure return thanks to Hexo’s arrangement with Molson Coors
Instead of making a direct entry into the cannabis market, one of the most popular beverage brands in Canada, Molson Coors Canada Inc., is partnering with a cannabis venture to bring new products to the market. By signing a deal with cannabis company Hexo to co-create and co-market cannabis-infused products, Molson Coors is in great shape to expand its footprint. This partnership – which was set up in 2019 – has the potential to take Hexo’s share through the roof based on the current market cap and popularity Molson has in Canada, which makes it an attractive stock to consider for a profitable investment.
Even though Molson has enormous popularity, the market has evolved, and Molson has seeing its market share decline gradually as more craft producers step in. So, this is a match made in heaven, as Molson was looking for ways to not only recover its market cap, but also to take it to a new level with tetrahydrocannabinol (THC)-infused products.
Hexo, on the other hand, is a cannabis venture that has been seeking to stand out from the rest, and, instead of focusing on growing its own production operations, it has been securing long-term partnerships. This business model that Hexo employs was specially built for outside companies to join in the co-creation of products; therefore, each company only has to do what they know how to do best, and the rest will be in hands of the other partner.
“Molson Coors and Hexo have formed a joint venture to explore opportunities for non-alcohol hemp-derived CBD beverages in Colorado: part of Molson Coors’ strategy to grow beyond the beer aisle,” reports Beverage Daily, which means that these products are heading to the US market as well. This is the best time to acquire Hexo stocks as shares are still being traded near all-time lows.


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The markets are in the doldrums as an inflationary environment is keeping the Federal Reserve from easing up on rate hikes. As investors flee the markets in droves, economist Raoul Pal has this piece of advice for the community.
What Happened: Exponential-age technologies are so “incredibly game-changing” that this macro set-up is one of the best gifts we will ever be given, economist Pal said. But most people won’t take it because they consider interest rates and inflation as more important than exponential growth, he added.
“It is the rate of change of rates that hurts growth, not absolute rates, and when we hit ‘terminal’ rates the rate of change goes to zero (or negative if they cut),” the economist said.
He sees new-age technologies such as AI, metaverse, IoT, longevity, distributed computing, space, robotics, genetic science and blockchain as “unstoppable.”
Most people miss out on this, he said, adding it could be Apple Inc. AAPL or Tesla Inc. TSLA reinventing, or even a “shitty, low-cost capital” business model emerging.
Everyone will miss that 100% year-over-year growth, rendering those rate/inflation fears invalid, he said. This is “secular” and not “cyclical,” he added. Very soon, valuations will be very attractive, according to Pal.
“Exponential trends are not mean reverting except to the long-term long trends,” he said.
Why It’s Important: Most blue chips and high-growth stocks have taken a heavy beating in the current market downturn. Tesla, for instance, is down about 50% since its Nov. 4 record high. This is despite the company continuing to deliver despite the macro and geopolitical pressures.
Fund manager Cathie Wood has previously gone to bat for technology. In May, she suggested artificial general intelligence will likely transform the way the world works. This tech alone can help accelerate GDP growth from 3% to 5% per year currently to 30% to 50% per year, she said.
Photo: Thapana_Studio via Shutterstock
Image and article originally from www.benzinga.com. Read the original article here.


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The RoRo Rodeo is the premier training event of its kind.
The RoRo Rodeo is an annual event that brings the world leaders in rolling equipment to the Port of Baltimore to provide training for the port’s stevedores. Sponsored by the Steamship Trade Association of Baltimore and spearheaded byWallenius Wilhelmsen Logistics, the event, just celebrated its 20th anniversary. This year, 16 manufacturers sent 42 technical representatives to provide two days of training in the latest manoeuvring, loading and lashing techniques for 200 longshoremen. “The entire port community comes together to support this event because quality is good business,” says Captain Jonathan Streett, WWL cargo quality expert and co-chairman of the event.


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BODUM Design is an Icon; Equally as Strong as the Coca Cola BottleBy Bodum, PRNE
Sunday, October 9, 2011
COPENHAGEN, October 10, 2011 -
BODUM has just won a court case against Euroline, which produces an exact copy of the well-known BODUM French coffee press; Chambord. During the hearing the press was described as having the same iconic status as the characteristic Coca Cola bottle. BODUM will continue to bring other copy manufacturers to court the world over to protect its design. The number of copy products is increasing.
BODUM is pleased to have won its case against a copy manufacturer. The case was lodged in Australia against the manufacturer DKSH, which under the name Euroline manufactures and sells a coffee press exactly the same as the well known BODUM Chambord - both in design and packaging.
“The close similarity between the two presses caught the judge’s eye. It’s impossible to distinguish the Euroline press from our own, as there is no clear indication where it comes from on either the press itself or the packaging. And this is misleading for consumers,” said Priska Scherer, Design Manager at BODUM.
BODUM design is iconic
“The judgement also confirmed that the design of the Chambord is iconic, at the same level as the very characteristic Coca Cola bottle. Therefore it’s illegal for other manufacturers to copy it. Of course we’re very pleased about this, as our unique design is our living and we’ve spent many years perfecting it,” said Priska Scherer.
Another important reason for BODUM bringing copy manufacturers to court, and continuing to bring do so, is related to the quality demands BODUM places on its products; demands which copy manufacturers rarely reflect.
“Before our products are sent to retailers, and on to consumers, they must first go through a large number of quality tests so that we are sure that they have the required durability, for example. We don’t want our Chambord press to only withstand 100 brews, we want it to last for 100,000. And of course our brand is damaged if a poor quality copy product resembles our original Chambord so much that consumers believe they have purchased a genuine BODUM product,” said Priska Scherer.
Increasing number of copy products
Copy products are on the increase. According to the annual report from the European Commission on fake products, which was published this summer, 103 million products were confiscated at EU borders in 2010 following suspicions that they were in breach of intellectual property rights. This is double the number for the previous year. The majority of copy products, 85 %, come from China.
The EU has therefore intensified efforts in the area, amongst other things to stop copy products at the borders to the single European market and through work on revising the product labelling system, which is expected to be completed in late 2011.
“I am convinced that a robust system ensuring the right level of protection of intellectual property rights is essential for Europe’s economy. We proposed new rules last May to strengthen customs’ ability to fight trade in fake goods,” says Algirdas Šemeta, Commissioner responsible for Taxation, Customs, Anti Fraud and Audit.
“We will continue to step up our efforts within the EU and with our international partners to ensure the maximum level of protection for intellectual property rights for both legitimate businesses and consumers. By cracking down on counterfeiting and piracy, we ensure that European companies feel more confident investing in innovation and development of their brand,” says Algirdas Šemeta.
Priska Scherer, Design Manager, BODUM
Telephone: +41-41-935-46-23, e-mail: firstname.lastname@example.org
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Tags: Bodum, Copenhagen, denmark, October 10


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Honda is in the big leagues now.
"Once you cross the 1 million mark, the stakes are higher. Even though our product is outstanding, the competition suddenly became that much more intense, because now we're the target," Mason said. "Honda is bringing dealers into the process earlier, and our expertise is considered more valuable."
After the make meeting at the
NADA convention, American Honda Executive Vice President Dick Colli-ver said that dealers must control their selling expenses, which jumped 13 percent last year while sales increased 6 percent.
He predicted Honda sales this year will be even with the record 1,016,179 set in 2000. But with the market declining, Honda could increase its market share past 6 percent.
"We're coming out of the chute bullish," Colliver said.
As for incentives, Honda will not get into a cash-back battle, preferring to bundle options in special edition packages, as well as tactical lease and APR programs.
On the product side, Honda said it cannot provide more Odysseys to dealers until the Alabama plant starts production in the fourth quarter.
Although enthusiast magazines have criticized Honda for replacing the Civic's double wishbone front suspension with a strut-based version, dealers said the Civic still sells well.
However, Mason noted that Honda is starting to appeal to older buyers, even with entry-level cars such as the Civic. "Honda stoked the pipeline with high-quality, inexpensive products, and grew up with those buyers. We need reassurance that Honda is going to do that again with Gen X and Gen Y. We heard that the product planning department is listening."
Among the possibilities: the Model X sport-utility, which debuted at the Detroit auto show in January and would slot above the CR-V in the lineup.
Mason also expressed gratitude that Honda has not jumped whole-hog into the e-commerce world.
"Other manufacturers have plunged into e-commerce with mixed results," Mason said. "Honda has cautious, thoughtful strategies good for the dealer and manufacturer."


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Technology for MSMEs: Apart from the challenge of having limited technical staff to manage cloud solutions; cost, technical training and education, and time required to manage services were the barriers to cloud adoption for SMBs.
Technology for MSMEs: Cloud computing company DigitalOcean for developers, startups, and small-to-medium sized businesses (SMBs) has said in its latest report that 82 per cent of traditional SMBs globally have reported that their cloud usage has continued to increase this year. These 82 per cent SMBs were among the number of respondents who claimed increased cloud usage in 2020 amid Covid. Further, these respondents were part of DigitalOcean’s research report involving 2,400 interviews of respondents from enterprise companies, technology-focused SMBs, and traditional SMBs in 48 countries, including 300 from India.
“The cloud represents a massive opportunity for developers and SMBs to test their ideas and build their businesses and it’s more important than ever that they have access to easy-to-use cloud solutions that meet their unique needs,” said Yancey Spruill, CEO, DigitalOcean in a statement.
Among key findings of the report noted that apart from the challenge of having limited technical staff to manage cloud solutions, cost, technical training and education, and time required to manage services were the barriers to cloud adoption for traditional SMBs. Lack of cloud knowledge among SMBs was also reported in the report.
For example, 48 per cent of respondents were not familiar with the term “cloud-native,” compared to the 5 per cent of respondents from enterprises who are not familiar with the term. Also, 56 per cent of respondents from traditional SMBs were not familiar with the term “digital native,” compared to 18 per cent of respondents from enterprises who are not familiar. The study was conducted by Aspen Finn from September-October 2021. According to a Zinnov report, the market opportunity for technology providers and enablers in digitising MSMEs will grow at around 25 per cent CAGR from approximately $30 billion in 2019 to around $85 billion in 2024.
This story was originally published on November 18, 2021.