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Mark Berry received an unpleasant surprise when he began negotiating with an HR technology vendor he'd partnered with in a previous HR leadership job. "The vendor came in with prices that were three times higher for its software on a per-person basis than the last time I'd worked with them, and a higher implementation fee," said Berry, senior vice president of people for Inari, a seed technology company in Cambridge, Mass. "They'd completely changed their operating model in the time between those two contracts."
Berry isn't the only one who's had his eyes opened by new realities of the HR software market. Two recent studies show prices for HR software-as-a-service (SaaS) tools continue to rise, and that the overall cost of SaaS solutions for U.S. organizations has grown 3.5 times faster than the inflation rate.
A study from London-based Vertice, an SaaS purchasing and advisory platform, found the price of HR SaaS tools increased by 5 percent on average in the past year but that some individual vendors had hiked prices by as much as 15 percent. Research from Gartner also found implementation costs for new HR software increased significantly over the last year, driven by rising labor costs and inflation.
The costs to develop and deploy popular new generative artificial intelligence tools like ChatGPT also are proving exorbitant for some organizations. Analysts say as companies continue to find new uses for these tools, the larger the fees those organizations will have to pay the creators of the tools. That's largely due to the vast amount of computing power and specialized hardware needed to run large language models like ChatGPT.
What's Driving Price Hikes
Joel Windels, vice president of Americas for Vertice, said a need to grow revenue to keep pace with inflation along with a desire by many vendors to attract new capital investment has led to price hikes by HR software providers.
"SaaS companies are using as many advantages as they can to try to grow revenue from a potentially dwindling number of customers," Windels said. "That's led to more things like automated price increases and automated contract renewals. Those tactics have been employed more aggressively in the past year than we've seen previously."
Berry said he's witnessed a new push among HR software vendors to generate more revenue from clients and reduce costs by doing things like offering user training for new systems virtually rather than in-person. "In all my years in the HR industry I'd say there's been more of a change in that approach over the past year than in any time previously," Berry said.
He noted that recent HR SaaS contract renewal increases appear high relative to historical levels. "In several cases I've seen vendors use renewals as an opportunity to completely restructure their pricing models," he said.
Berry also said vendors are increasingly breaking out their system implementation expenses as a separate line item, a change from past practices of keeping those costs obscured in a bundled cost. "Vendors are much more specific now about calling out separate dollars around implementation, which likely is about trying to recoup rising labor costs on their end," he said.
HR Software Tops for Auto Renewal
Vendors use auto renewal of SaaS contracts as one way to increase pricing, and the Vertice study found that of all the software categories it tracks, auto renewal was more commonly used with HR software products than any other category except e-commerce and operations software.
Technology analysts say it's up to HR buyers and their internal negotiations teams to seek contract clauses like renewal price protection to mitigate high auto-renewal costs.
"It's important to look at what renewal price protections a vendor might offer and contingencies for those protections," said Brian Westfall, a principal analyst specializing in HR for Capterra, a software review company in Arlington, Va. "Clauses might say the vendor won't raise an annual rate by more than 3 or 4 percent, but tied into that the client might have to maintain a certain amount of usage or licenses. But that should all be negotiable."
Analysts say vendors often count on HR leaders being reluctant to move to new software providers given the time and resources needed to install a new platform and get employees trained on it. But that resistance to change shouldn't keep HR buyers from looking hard at renewal costs, they say.
"Ultimately auto-renewal clauses are just like any other contract term, which means they are something a customer can request to modify or remove," Windels said. "The challenge is that with decentralized buying processes growing more common, and typically split between HR, IT, legal and finance, it can be hard to have an aligned, cohesive strategy for negotiation."
Windels said the good news is in this era of easy-to-deploy SaaS platforms, departments outside of IT can now more readily purchase any software tool they need on their own to help boost efficiency, productivity or performance. "But the drawback to that is there's often less collaboration with other departments in the buying process, which can result in more immature contract negotiation strategies, avoidable cost increases and other issues with vendor contracts," he said.
Westfall said in addition to seeking clarity on contract renewal increases as well as on monthly or annual software subscription fees, it's important for HR buyers to understand other costs that can be hidden in vendor contracts. These include fees for software implementation, data migration, user training, customer support, additional data storage and early termination fees.
"These are costs salespeople may not be upfront about until you explicitly ask them," Westfall said. "You should be aware of all of those costs before you start to negotiate with vendors."
Tips for Improved Vendor Pricing
Analysts and experienced HR buyers say there are a handful of ways to improve your odds of getting better pricing from vendors. One way is to negotiate at the right time of year.
"Some of this comes down to timing," Westfall said. "If you're talking to vendor salespeople near the end of their fiscal year, for example, they'll be more inclined to give you a discount or meet you halfway on price because they're looking to boost their final sales numbers."
Westfall also said partnering with startup vendors with some experience under their belts can result in more flexible contract terms and lower prices. A startup preparing to raise funding might be particularly motivated to add customers and boost revenues in advance of a series funding round, Westfall said, giving HR buyers more leverage in negotiations.
Berry said startups are often more receptive to suggestions to modify or upgrade their platforms than established vendors. One startup he worked with made a change to its platform after Berry's team pointed out a critical-but-missing feature.
"There was a specific thing we wanted in the vendor's product which it hadn't yet considered doing," Berry said. "When we asked about it the vendor said it would come back within a few weeks with a new engineering road map that included the feature. They were good on their word, and we signed a contract because of that."
Westfall said it's also important to choose the right kind of SaaS license to match your company's characteristics. "Software that offers a license for unlimited users at a set price might seem cost prohibitive up front, but if you're a growing company and you lock in that rate now you can save a considerable amount of money down the road as you expand," he said.
Power of Win-Win-Win Relationships
In the end Berry believes it's important to view relationships with HR software providers more as partnerships than "vendorships" to get maximum value for all three parties impacted by a transaction—employees, the client company and the vendor.
"With a vendorship your sole goal is to get the best deal you can on price, but with a partnership you want it to be mutually beneficial so it's more of a win-win-win," Berry said. "I don't go for beating vendors down too much on price if I want to work with them long term. You might win on price but you'll likely have stripped out any incentive that vendor has to provide high-quality service and support over time."
Dave Zielinski is principal of Skiwood Communications, a business writing and editing company in Minneapolis.


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Upscale office-furniture maker Coalesse is closing its California manufacturing plant and expanding its operation in Grand Prairie.
Coalesse, a division of Michigan-based office furniture maker Steelcase Inc., has begun hiring 70 additional employees at its Grand Prairie plant, and will continue through July, said Plant Manager Hugh Caines.
The Grand Prairie plant produces about $70 million annually of a product line known as "Vecta," primarily office and conference tables and seating lines. Caines said Coalesse is moving about $25 million in annual production of its "Metro" line to Grand Prairie. The product line is primarily free-standing panel systems and office suites, and it's produced at a plant in Oakland, Calif., he said.
The move was driven by economics, as Steelcase strives to expand its lean manufacturing efforts that emphasize eliminating all waste, Caines said.
"This facility in Texas is very centrally located, and we're already doing similar type products," he said. "We didn't need two plants producing similar products."
The new employees are being hired primarily for production jobs, including woodworking, assembly and wood finishing, he said. Caines declined to disclose the average pay for the jobs.
The California plant employs 108, some of whom may transfer to Vecta, said company spokeswoman Felicia Hamilton. The plant will close in November, Caines said. The first of the transferred product line will start production in early August, and the transition will be complete by mid-October, Caines said.
In Grand Prairie, Coalesse operates from a 322,000-square-foot facility, where it employs 257 people in the manufacturing plant, a warehouse and offices.
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You can follow him on Twitter @rogernperkin or on Google Plus Roger Perkin and on Linkedin Comments Eric says February 19, 2014 at 11:38 pm Can this connect to an iPad.cheap personalised shot glasses uk designer Win Blogs Charity News Latest Headlines London News London Close Up Sports News Entertainment News Business News Weird News Traffic and Travel Weather Hatton Garden Heist Party Conferences The News Explained Tube Strike Travel News Podcasts LBC Podcasts Mobile Apps Why Subscribe. With social media playing an increasingly significant role in customer service, brands need to have the tools and teams in place to interact swiftly and effectively.
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- Gala Games announced a partnership with Endless AI to launch first-of-its-kind ‘living’ Fuzzles NFTs.
- Fuzzles is equipped with Language Processing AI that enables owners to speak with their collection.
- Owning the NFT will provide access to special community events, earn rewards, and unlock in-app gameplay in the future.
Gala Games, creator of blockchain games, has partnered with Endless AI to launch Fuzzle — a first-of-its-kind “living” NFT. The company aims to revolutionize AI and blockchain gaming via an innovative collective entertainment experience.
Endless AI is a tech-driven company that creates products that fuse AI-enabled interactivity and blockchain technology for the Web3 world. The team brought some of the largest games and interactive stories to date into the experience.
CEO and Chief Creative Officer of Endless AI Michael Fox said:
“Our mission is to make magical products that blow people’s minds. We see ourselves as pioneers navigating the uncharted worlds of blockchain-based entertainment and AI-enabled interactivity. With the “living” NFTs of Fuzzle, we’re just scratching the surface of what the future may hold. The possibilities are endless.”
Fuzzles, a collection of 9,997 NFTs, is called a unique “living” NFT because its features include a superior artificial intelligence (AI), yet described to be ignorant of Earth and its culture.
Endless AI’s intelligent production platform and OpenAI’s GPT-3 — Clockwork™ created the NFTs. With this, Fuzzles are able to speak naturally with their owner. They can also respond to relevant questions and ideas through dedicated iOS or Android apps.
Fuzzle Pod has been available to purchase since April 27. Owning a Fuzzle NFT has benefits including access to special community events, rewards, and in-app gameplay unlocking in the future.
“The first time my Fuzzle told me he was developing methods to turn me into human-meat meatballs, I knew we had a project like the world has never seen before,” the Games President of Gala Games John Osvald commented. He also added that “Fuzzles are right on the bleeding edge of AI, gaming, and blockchain and we can’t wait to see how people interact with them.”
On April 26, living NFTs made their way to the Time Square. The official Twitter account of Fuzzles also shared a short video of its upcoming Fuzzles NFTs via billboards. Furthermore, 180-degree view billboard at 7th and 48th will appear periodically until May 1, 2022.
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Samsung released its first phone with support for 45W wired charging in 2019 (Galaxy Note10+) and hasn’t moved an inch above that. In fact, 45W is still quite rare in Samsung’s line-up. Things may finally start to change with the arrival of stacked batteries, which is tech borrowed from EVs.
According to @RGCloudS, the stacked battery will be featured in the Galaxy S24 Ultra and possibly the S24+. It depends on the supply chain – currently Samsung is just running tests with batteries made at a Chinese plant as the plant in Cheonan is still waiting for manufacturing equipment to arrive.
One of the advantages of stacked batteries is faster charging – the S24 Ultra will go up to 65W (up from 45W for the 2023 model). Both the S24 Ultra and S24+ batteries will reportedly have 5,000mAh capacity, but the Ultra will have additional cooling, allowing it to hit the higher charge rate.
There may not be enough production capacity to also upgrade the small Galaxy S24, which could be stuck at 25W for yet another year. Once the stacked battery tech proves itself (and supply constraints are lifted), however, it could be used in the future Galaxy Z Flip6 and Z Fold6 too. By the way, Apple is expected to use stacked batteries for all iPhone 15 models.


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When it debuted in 2002, the Buick Rendezvous crossed over all the lines that had previously separated sedans, minivans, and...
According to a recent report in Wards Auto, midsize cars and crossover utility vehicles will lead sales—Wards projects 60 percent—of all new and redesigned vehicles in 2013.
Read This Article
Buick is recalling approximately 4,077 2012 Buick LaCrosse sedans due to issues with the Electronic Stability Control (ESC).
General Motors is recalling more than 50,000 of its full-size crossover SUVs, specifically the 2011-2012 Buick Enclave, Chevrolet Traverse, and the GMC Acadia.
The 2014 Buick Regal receives added power for the new model year.


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Yesterday, we posted a new trailer from Watch Dogs. If you’ve already watched it, then you’ll be definitely wondering why that trailer looked so awful. Our guess was that the game was captured from the current-gen (PS3/X360) version of the game, and that the PC/PS4/Xbox One versions would look way better. Although we don’t know about the visual state of the current-gen version, the creative director of Watch Dogs decided to break his silence and reassure fans that the game will look way better than the Aisha Tyler trailer.
According to Jonathan Morin, this trailer was the result of someone who messed things up. That ‘someone’ did not know the tech or what stuff to check. When a fan asked why Ubisoft to give the green light to this trailer and release it, Morin had this to say:
“You know sometimes 100s of people working together causes communications issues lets just say that”
In short, this video was never meant to be released in its current form.
Morin then reassured fans that the game featured better graphics than those showcased in the Aisha Tyler trailer.
‘No worry to have on graphics at all, believe me‘ said Morin to a fan, followed by a ‘Love your passion guys but I see the game every day and I can tell you, this trailer is far from it‘ comment to another fan.
When a fan asked about the WiiU version, Morin said that it looked fine on Nintendo’s hardware.
“Agreed, I played the Wii U version last week… Should be fine”
Morin concluded that this trailer was ‘hilarious in its own way‘ due to the reaction of the media and the public.
So there you have it everyone. It seems that something went wrong when Ubisoft captured this gameplay footage. What went wrong? Well, only the one responsible for that trailer is aware of.
Watch Dogs is planned for release later this year on PC, PS3, X360 and WiiU, and will also appear on PS4 and Xbox One!
Watch Dogs - Aisha Tyler Trailer


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As Ford Exits, Auto Dealership Seek Govt Intervention
With Ford’s exit, a total of 464 dealers (excluding those dealing with Fiat, Mitsubishi) are said to have pumped in Rs. 2,485 crore with nearly 64,000 people employed thereof who were either axed or are about to be axed, claims FADA, industry association of auto-dealers in a letter sent to the Minister for Heavy Industries.
After US-based Ford Motor Company exits the India operations, the 170-dealer network under the aegis of its industry association—Federation Of Automobile Dealers Associations or FADA—has sought clarification on the contours of the compensation package. The association has also written to Minister of Heavy Industries wherein it has reinforced its plea to bring in a law which would make sure that auto OEMs don’t exit the market overnight and leave their dealers, employees and customers high and dry.
FADA President Vinkesh Gulati has written the plea in a letter to the Minister of Heavy Industries Mahendra Nath Pandey, a copy of which was shared with the media on 23 September 2021.
Ford India, which has invested about US$ 2.5 billion at its Chennai and Sanand (Gujarat) plants, has already announced that it will stop selling vehicles like the EcoSport, Figo and Aspire manufactured from these factories. On 22 September 2021, Ford India management met its principal dealers to work out a compensation formula as it prepares to exit India's automobile market.
FADA mentioned in the letter that it has also written to Ford India President & MD Anurag Mehrotra requesting him to share the broad contours of the compensation package which they would have already decided upon and his response is eagerly awaited by the association.
However, FADA asserted that despite the tall claims made by Ford India, the modalities of the so-called restructuring of Indian operations suggest otherwise. The association claims that nearly 170 Dealers who in-turn have 391 outlets and have invested Rs 2,000 crore for setting up their dealerships and have around 40,000 people on its roll will be done away with.
The dealer association claimed that auto dealerships’ turnovers that range from Rs. 5 crores and upwards, largely are family owned small, mid-sized businesses, partnership firms operating all across the country. With Ford’s exit, the 464 dealers (excluding those dealing with Fiat, Mitsubishi) have pumped in Rs. 2485 crore and nearly 64,000 people employed there are either axed or are about to be axed (see table below).
“A Dealer invests his entire savings to get into auto trade business with a long-term investment plan but the dealership agreements to effectuate this business only happen on a yearly basis. I would request that your Ministry work on protection of auto dealers’ rights, possibly through a legislation as suggested by Parliamentary Committee on Commerce and Industry in Report No.303 and create a sense of equilibrium in the industry as an increasing number of international players are entering the Indian auto market. This will not only safeguard the Dealers’ and customers’ interests in India, but would also protect the interests of people employed by the Dealerships. A protective legislation would also ensure that adequate information is available to the customers, protect dealers from sudden exits by OEMs and ensure protection form unfair termination of dealership agreements, as mentioned by FADA President Vinkesh Gulati, in its letter to Minister of Heavy Industries Dr. Mahendra Nath Pandey.


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CATL strives to be NIO's 600-mile range semi-solid state battery supplier with a new 'ultrahigh nickel' tech
The red-hot Chinese battery industry has companies jostling for influence and automaker contracts worthy of an HBO series. A new investigative report lifts the veil over the movers and shakers there when it comes to innovation. CATL, it turns out, which counts most major electric car makers among its clients, and is the largest EV battery company, may have traded R&D investments for mass production excellence. When NIO approached its exclusive battery supplier and wanted it to produce the 150 kWh semi-solid state battery pack that the ET5 and ET7 sedans will use to hit their promised 600+ mile range, CATL reportedly scoffed at the idea. Since such a battery has never been done before on a mass scale, CATL felt it will have to invest too much in R&D as well as new production tools and chemistries for the project to be as commercially viable as its other contracts.
NIO was forced to take part in a smaller, nimbler competitor - WeLion New Energy Technology - which took the matter to heart, and co-developed the first "semi-solid state" 150 kWh battery pack. NIO needs the new chemistry in order to fulfil the promised 1000km (~626 mile) all-weather range on a charge with its new models that are to be released next year. The semi-solid state battery offsets the cold weather problems that LFP packs of the type Tesla intends to equip all of its standard-range EVs with have. After seeing that NIO has successfully developed the groundbreaking 150 kWh pack with another company, CATL reportedly came back to the negotiation table, and is now developing one for NIO, too.
CATL's semi-solid battery, however, will be using a different, "ultrahigh nickel" technology that may usher in a brand new longer range EV battery era. CATL's management is now even "committed to keeping pace with NIO on high-performance battery development, which is also written into the KPIs (Key Performance Indicator) of the executives," claims the report, citing the fact that they have all become millionaires since CATL's IPO as the main reason for the reduced pace of innovation within China's largest battery manufacturer.


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Jennifer Cheslock, 21, never goes anywhere without her Summer’s Eve products. They are in her gym bag and in her apartment at college. And it isn’t something she learned from her mom — her friends suggested the brand.
Over the past 15 years, studies have indicated how different America will look in the future — in 2020, 2040, 2050 and beyond. However, the United States isn’t on the brink of change. It has indeed already changed well beyond demographics, and the cultural shift that we are now witnessing will continue as a defining part of the landscape and future of the nation.
A new wave of consumers is quickly becoming the most powerful economic force in retail, and it is causing every company — retailer and supplier alike — to think differently about how they engage, market and build relationships with this new generation.
Kashi recently introduced Organic Chewy Granola and Seed Bars. Made with a nutritious, plant-based blend of 100% whole grains, fruits, nuts and super seeds, Kashi Organic Chewy Granola and Seed Bars are free of highly refined sweeteners.
Kind has added super grain sorghum to its line of Healthy Grains Bars in a new offering: Popped. Sorghum, the sixth super grain in the Healthy Grains line, is popped to offer a super grain twist on two popcorn favorites, Popped Salted Caramel and Popped Dark Chocolate with Sea Salt.
Designer Greetings recently launched Around the Corner, a line of die-cut, accordion, tri-fold cards with such special features as tip-ons, stamps, glitter and embossing treatments that give the cards a 3-D look.


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K-Cup killers? Hotel suppliers seek better single-serving coffee
The search for sustainable alternatives to hard-to-recycle coffee and tea cartridges.
Much has been written about the many millions of partially used bars of soap and amenity bottles disposed of each year. Thanks to Clean the World and other nonprofits, a sizable amount of that waste is being repurposed.
But what about K-cups, those little single-serve beverage (mostly coffee) pods used in Keurig Green Mountain brewers? According to research by data firm NPD Group, 40 percent of Canadian homes have a single-serving coffee brewer. In the United States that number is closer to 30 percent.
An estimated 20 billion K-Cups will be consumed in 2015. Many of those will reach the landfill by way of a hotel guestroom, lobby or breakfast area.
Waterbury, Vermont-based Keurig, which chose not to be interviewed for this article, said on its website that it has committed to making 100 percent of its K-Cup packs recyclable by 2020. By then, its K-Cup packs will be made from polypropylene No. 5 plastic.
Keurig said it will take until 2020 to reach its goal because it wants to make sure that its cups effectively can be recycled in most community programs. Keurig’s aim is to also encourage long-term end-market demand for recycled material, which will create buyers for the material recyclers collect.
As it works toward 2020, Keurig is offering a Grounds to Grow On program. It allows customers in the United States to collect used K-Cup packs and return them to Keurig’s disposal partner for composting and energy-from-waste processing. The program is available throughout the United States, except for Alaska and Hawaii.
A greener coffee source
While millions of customers wait for Keurig to make K-Cup recycling easier, a number of companies already offer or are developing eco-friendy versions of the K-Cup — sometimes known as a “kup.”
Intelligent Blends, San Diego, anticipating the 2013 expiration of the K-Cup patent, developed and is offering a recyclable k cup made from a blend of No. 5 recyclable polypropylene along with other eco-friendly materials. According to John Lenz, president of the Hotel Division of Intelligent Blends, the cups feature a moisture/oxygen barrier that is up to 10 times less permeable than typical polystyrene cups.
“Our cups have a longer shelf life than a typical cup,” Lenz said.
Since introducing its version of the cups in March 2014, Intelligent Blends has packed millions of cups for brands and roasters all over the United States and abroad. Lenz said his company’s product does not cost more than K-Cups and the single-serve containers of everything from coffee to apple cider to energy drinks can be privately labeled.
Like Keurig, Intelligent Blends has consulted with experts regarding issues around product recyclability. A representative of Waste Management, Inc. told Intelligent Blends that its recyclable cups can be placed in recycling bins for recycling — even with the peel-off lid, biodegradable filter and contents.
One Intelligent Blends customer, The Ranch at Laguna Beach in Laguna Beach, California, has plans to place display mat signage close to its single-serve coffee brewers to inform guests that they can place their cups in a container provided by the property. The signage explains that coffee grounds will be composted to be used in the Harvest Garden at the hotel. Intelligent Blends is providing the signage.
A compostable cup
While Intelligent Blends already offers a greener alternative to the K-Cup, G-Kup’s launch of its compostable product line is still months away. According to the Vancouver, B.C.-based company, it just recently closed on its initial seed round of funding.
“We are excited to have closed our first round of funding,” said Darren Footz, CEO of G-Kup, in a press release about the G-Kup. “We now have the team, capital and production facility in place to execute on our next phase of plans, which includes the commercial production of the G-Kup later this year. As a contract manufacturer, we believe we can meet the demand from major brands and independent roasters interested in utilizing the G-Kup for their coffee.”
The design of the G-Kup allows for more volume of coffee than conventional rigid or soft bottom single serve pods (15 percent more coffee per pod).
Canadian coffee roaster Club Coffee announced earlier this year that its new PurPod100 will be available this fall. The single-serve beverage pod will be 100 percent compostable. The ring of the pod is made using coffee chaff — the skin of the coffee bean that comes off during the roasting process.
Every single part of the PurPod100 is designed to be digestible by, and accessible for, bacteria. The PurPod100, which will break down fully in commercial composting facilities, was developed in conjunction with international experts and scientists at the University of Guelph (Ontario).
Mother Parker’s Tea & Coffee Inc. offers Numi Organic Tea in recyclable RealCup capsules.
This month AP Plastics Inc. is rolling out its newest single-cup displays for hotel rooms. The k-cup holders will be part of the company’s Guest Room Single Cup Display System.
The new “ship flat” displays are manufactured in North America with 100 percent reprocessed and recyclable plastic. Their unique “click open” design reduces both packaging and freight costs. AP Plastics also offers brewer trays with built-in compartments to organize condiments and accessories.
For those interested in disassembling single-serve cups for recycling, Recycle A Cup offers a Recycle A Cup Cutter.
This story first appeared on:


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Warehouse fire costs Ocado £110m
The massive fire at Ocado’s robotic warehouse in Hampshire in February has led to heavy losses at the business.
The company, which had to write off the cost of the building and the stock held there, said that the blaze had cost it £110 million. It expects to reclaim the full amount from its insurance “over time” and it has already received £11.8 million in payouts so far. Ocado plans to rebuild the automated warehouse by late 2021 or early 2022.
The Andover warehouse fire, which was caused by an electrical fault, led to statutory losses of £142.8 million for the six months to June 3, compared with a £9 million loss a year earlier. The fire also knocked 2 per cent off sales growth


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Ski area for sale
Debt-ridden American Skiing hopes to find buyer this year
Steamboat Springs — American Skiing Co. has decided to sell the Steamboat Ski Area along with all of its related assets as part of an overall strategy to get the company out from under crippling debt.
Company officials said Wednesday there is no one buyer in line to acquire the ski area. Instead, the marketing of the Steamboat Ski Area has been turned over to an investment banking company, Credit Suisse First Boston. The goal is to consummate a deal by the end of the year.
American Skiing Chief Executive Officer B.J. Fair said Wednesday the sale of Steamboat represents the company’s best opportunity to reduce its debt load and realize growth potential by building out resort villages at its eight other ski areas.
Fair promised to continue operating the ski area as if it were not for sale and said American Skiing would continue to support the Steamboat Ski Area with money and human resources.
“Steamboat has done an excellent job creating its own strategic plan and determining how it’s going to be successful going forward,” Fair said. “We will continue to support it with all our resources. It’s important to remain focused on the upcoming season. We don’t believe you can give up on a resort if you put it up for sale.”
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The ski area is Routt County’s largest seasonal employer, with more than 1,000 people on the payroll during the height of ski season.
George Noyer, president of the executive board of the Steamboat Springs Chamber Resort Association, said the pending sale isn’t necessarily bad news.
“If anything, I would have some cautious optimism,” Noyer said. “This is not surprising news. We’ve all been watching it. Making the news public makes it a sure thing.”
Noyer said he does not expect news of the decision to sell to change the way the ski area operates over the short term.
“If you are preparing to sell, you want to make sure that asset is in as good shape as it can be,” Noyer said. “My anticipation is that summer operations will go ahead at full speed and there will be no marketing letdown for the coming ski season.”
All assets for sale
All of American Skiing Co.’s Steamboat properties including the ski area, most of which is on the Routt National Forest; the Steamboat Grand Hotel; undeveloped land in Tennis Meadows; and Steamboat Central Reservations are for sale. Steamboat is among the three largest of the nine ski areas owned by American Skiing. The others in the top three are Heavenly Valley, Calif., and Killington, Vt.
Other ski areas owned by American Skiing include Attitash Bear Peak, N.H.; Mount Snow and Sugarbush in Vermont; The Canyon in Park City, Utah; Sugarloaf/USA; and Sunday River, Me.
Fair said it’s not his company’s intent to split off different pieces of its assets in Steamboat, like the Steamboat Grand, and sell them individually.
“What we’re going to be selling right now is an entire package,” Fair said.
Steamboat Ski Area President Chris Diamond was attending a convention of Colorado Ski Country U.S.A. in south Denver Wednesday. He said he and his management team have been consulting with representatives of Credit Suisse First Boston for about a week on a marketing plan for the sale of the ski area.
Diamond said the ski area’s budget for the coming winter, including the marketing and airline flight guarantee program, will remain in place.
Steamboat Ski Area has a $12.2 million capital improvement plan for the summer. That short-range plan remains in place, Diamond said. It includes replacing parts of the snowmaking system and relocation of a major snowboarding half-pipe.
“Steamboat, as a resort, really came to the top of the list,” Fair said. “Steamboat was the resort that achieved the results we really needed. Steamboat has been a consistent performer.”
The crown jewel
Although Steamboat Ski Area officials have said they expect skier day totals from the past winter to be off by more than 10 percent, the area has stayed above the 1 million skier-day level for more than five years. By that measure, Steamboat is the biggest of American Skiing’s big three mountains.
Killington, Vt., has 200 trails on 1,160 acres of terrain, and sometimes goes over one million skier days. Heavenly has 82 trails on 4,800 acres, but reached 900,000 skier days, then retreated this year. Steamboat has 141 trails on 2,939 acres. Last winter’s skier days won’t be released until American Skiing’s third-quarter earnings report is out.
One bond industry analyst said it’s apparent American Skiing decided to sell its most valuable asset rather than go bankrupt.
“They’re selling the crown jewel,” Phelps Hoyt said. “They’ve decided they can get the best price for Steamboat and it’s their best chance to survive as an independent company.”
Hoyt follows American Skiing because he tracks junk bonds for KDP Investments in Montpelier, Vt.
He said in late March that although selling one of its ski areas was one of the options available to American Skiing to reverse its fortunes, he didn’t think that course fit the operating history of Oak Hill Capital Partners.
Oak Hill acquired majority shares of American Skiing when it loaned the company $150 million in August 1999. Oak Hill is backed by financiers, the Bass brothers.
“Apparently, the Bass brothers aren’t willing to put in as much money as the bankers wanted,” Hoyt said. He added Oak Hill must have felt it was better to avoid bankruptcy by selling a major asset and keeping “a seat at the table.”
Fair declined to discuss the decision to sell Steamboat in terms of it being a choice between the sale or bankruptcy. He said all of his company’s interaction with its lenders have been supportive.
The decision to sell Steamboat was a result solely of the company’s analysis of how best to meet its goals as a restructured company, Fair said. It was not the result of any problems at Steamboat.
Hoyt said it’s important to note that bankruptcy would not signal disaster for American Skiing’s ski areas. As sources of revenue, they would continue to operate through a bankruptcy, he said.
During a Wednesday conference call, American Skiing Chief Financial Officer Mark Miller said as part of the strategic reorganization of the company, it would ask to revise terms of its loans for both its resort operations and real estate divisions. In addition, the company plans to bring in another infusion of capital. He declined to name the source or the amount.
Fair said the roots of the decision to sell Steamboat go back to December, when it announced its planned merger with MeriStar Resorts and Hotels. MeriStar has contracts to manage brand name hotels all over the country. The acquisition of MeriStar was intended to stabilize American Skiing’s year-round revenue stream. When the merger was called off in March 2001 (CEO Les Otten resigned five days later), the senior management team at American Skiing had to look at a new strategy for de-leveraging more than $40 million in debt, Fair said.
American Skiing’s assets in Steamboat serve as collateral for the company’s loans, and all proceeds of the sale will be applied exclusively to that debt, Fair said.
Potential price tag
American Skiing hasn’t revealed exactly how much it paid for Steamboat in 1997, and the issue is clouded by the fact that it was packaged with Heavenly Valley for $300.5 million. However, it was thought at the time American Skiing paid considerably more than the rumored $110 million paid by Kamori Kanko to purchase the ski area in June 1990.
Fair said American Skiing has established a minimum it would accept based on how much money it needs to achieve its debt-reduction goals. Fair declined to name the bottom line.
Hoyt said he really doesn’t have a good estimate of the Steamboat Ski Area’s value.
“What could they get for this thing now? I don’t know,” Hoyt said. “With a slow economy, it’s not a real favorably time to look at buying property.”
Hoyt said he is using very rough numbers to create models of American Skiing’s future performance, based on the transaction. Assuming Steamboat represented about 55 percent of the 1997 purchase, and Heavenly 45 percent, Hoyt is placing the purchase price at about $165 million and discounting the value to $150 million.
Steamboat has completed two terrain expansions since American Skiing purchased the ski area: Morningside Park and Pioneer Ridge. Hoyt said those major additions, each of which included a chairlift, don’t really add to the sale price.
Fair, who grew up south of Littleton, said a significant portion of his heart remains in the state, but that as the company looked for ways to restructure and reduce debt, it became apparent selling Steamboat was the best option.
“The decision to sell Steamboat was a difficult one,” he said. “If we had our druthers we wouldn’t be selling it.”
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NASHVILLE – The NFIB Small Business Optimism Index dropped 3.6 points in June to 89.5, marking the sixth consecutive month below the 48-year average of 98. Small business owners expecting better business conditions over the next six months decreased seven points to a net negative 61%, the lowest level recorded in the 48-year survey. Expectations for better conditions have worsened every month this year.
Inflation continues to be a top problem for small businesses with 34% of owners reporting it was their single most important problem in operating their business, an increase of six points from May and the highest level since quarter four in 1980.
“As inflation continues to dominate business decisions, small business owners’ expectations for better business conditions have reached a new low,” said NFIB Chief Economist Bill Dunkelberg. “On top of the immediate challenges facing small business owners including inflation and worker shortages, the outlook for economic policy is not encouraging either as policy talks have shifted to tax increases and more regulations.”
State-specific data is unavailable, but NFIB State Director Jim Brown said, “Lawmakers at all levels should be especially mindful of doing no harm to small business owners during this period of uncertainty and strain on their operations.”
Key findings of the national survey include:
- The net percent of owners who expect real sales to be higher decreased 13 points from May to a net negative 28%, a severe decline.
- Fifty percent of owners reported job openings that could not be filled, down one point from May, but historically very high.
- The net percent of owners raising average selling prices decreased three points to a net 69% seasonally adjusted, following May’s record high reading.
As reported in NFIB’s monthly jobs report, owners’ plans to fill open positions remain elevated, with a seasonally adjusted net 19% planning to create new jobs in the next three months, but down seven points from May. Ninety-four percent of those hiring or trying to hire reported few or no qualified applicants for the positions they were trying to fill.
Fifty-one percent of owners reported capital outlays in the last six months, down two points from May. Of those making expenditures, 37% reported spending on new equipment, 23% acquired vehicles, and 14% improved or expanded facilities. Five percent acquired new buildings or land for expansion and 13% spent money for new fixtures and furniture. Twenty-three percent of owners plan capital outlays in the next few months, down two points from May.
A net negative 2% of all owners (seasonally adjusted) reported higher nominal sales in the past three months, down three points from May. The net percent of owners expecting real sales volumes decreased 13 points to a net negative 28%.
The net percent of owners reporting inventory increases fell three points to a net negative 4%. Thirty-nine percent reported that supply chain disruptions have had a significant impact on their business. Another 30% report a moderate impact and 23% report a mild impact. Only 6% report no impact from recent supply chain disruptions.
A net 5% of owners viewed current inventory stocks as “too low” in June, down three points from May and still surprisingly high. By industry, shortages are reported most frequently in manufacturing (19%), retail (18%), agriculture (18%), construction (16%) and non-professional services (15%). A net negative 2% of owners plan inventory investment in the coming months.
The net percent of owners raising average selling prices decreased three points from May to a net 69% (seasonally adjusted). Price raising activity over the past 12 months has escalated, reaching levels not seen since the early 1980s when prices were rising at double-digit rates.
Unadjusted, 4% of owners reported lower average selling prices and 69% reported higher average prices. Price hikes were the most frequent in retail trades (80% higher, 3% lower), transportation (78% higher, 0% lower), construction (75% higher, 4% lower) and wholesale (69% higher, 7% lower). Seasonally adjusted, a net 44% plan price hikes.
A net 48% (seasonally adjusted) reported raising compensation, down one point from May. A net 28% of owners plan to raise compensation in the next three months, up three points from May and historically very high. Eight percent of owners cited labor costs as their top business problem and 23% said that labor quality was their top business problem.
The frequency of reports of positive profit trends was a net negative 25%, down one point from May. Among the owners reporting lower profits, 30% blamed the rise in the cost of materials, 16% blamed weaker sales, 14% cited labor costs, 14% cited lower prices, 7% cited the usual seasonal change, and 2% cited higher taxes or regulatory costs. For owners reporting higher profits, 51% credited sales volumes, 19% cited higher prices, and 17% cited usual seasonal change.
One percent of owners reported that all their borrowing needs were not satisfied. Twenty-seven percent reported all credit needs met and 61% said they were not interested in a loan. A net of 3% reported their last loan was harder to get than in previous attempts. Only 1% reported that financing was their top business problem.
The NFIB Research Center has collected Small Business Economic Trends data with quarterly surveys since the 4th quarter of 1973 and monthly surveys since 1986. Survey respondents are randomly drawn from NFIB’s membership. The report is released on the second Tuesday of each month. This survey was conducted in June 2022.
For almost 80 years, NFIB has been the voice of small business, advocating on behalf of America’s small and independent business owners, both in Washington, D.C., and in all 50 state capitals. NFIB is nonprofit, nonpartisan and member-driven. Since our founding in 1943, NFIB has been exclusively dedicated to small and independent businesses and remains so today. For more information, please visit www.NFIB.com.


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Raymond receives 2020 Green Supply Chain award
The Raymond Corporation is a recipient of a Supply & Demand Chain Executive magazine 2020 Green Supply Chain Award. The award recognizes companies making sustainability a core part of their supply chain strategy as well as those working to achieve measurable sustainability goals within their own operations. Raymond’s investment in energy- and water-saving solutions, recycling of plastic packaging materials, and use of sustainably sourced materials garnered the company a spot on this list.
Raymond has partnered with faculty at Binghamton University over the past year to develop and demonstrate a new energy storage process and solution for warehouse energy management, which has resulted in reduced energy costs. The solution will use solar panels, a stationary energy storage system, and lithium-ion batteries on forklifts to reduce energy costs for warehouse owners. This project will turn warehouses into controllable energy hubs that can be optimized to support the power grid during normal and peak operations.
“Sustainability has always been a vital component of Raymond’s culture, and we are honored to see our efforts recognized by the Supply & Demand Chain Executive Green Supply Chain Award,” said Dave Norton, vice president of customer solutions and support at The Raymond Corporation. “We look forward to building on our established sustainability processes in the years to come.”


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A specialist handbag repair service is set to come to the rescue of the crowds of style conscious females who are heading to Ladies Day at Newcastle Racecourse on Saturday.
Newcastle based Handbag Clinic, which has a branch in Tyneside as well as a new store in London, will be setting up a pop-up emergency cleaning and repair stand at the huge social event where glamorous outfits and perfectly co-ordinated bags and accessories are the order of the day.
Handbag Clinic will have a pop-up shop at the racecourse, with technicians on hand to rescue any bags at risk of long-lasting damage.
Any racegoers who drop their bag in the dirt or spill champagne on the leather or lining while celebrating a big win can head over to Handbag Clinic to have their accessory restored back to pristine condition.
Ben Staerck, managing director of Handbag Clinic, says that Ladies Day is an ideal platform to showcase the business.
He commented: “Ladies Day is very much associated with style and glamour, and having that perfect handbag to complete a look is all part of the preparation that goes into getting ready for such a major social occasion.
Handbag Clinic launched in summer 2013 and was borne out of Furniture Clinic, a leather cleaning and repair business set up by Ben’s father Keith Staerck, following an increase in the volume of requests to repair and restore high value designer handbags.
Earlier this year, the complementary business launched its first dedicated cleaning and repair boutique in the heart of Chelsea, where it has quickly established a high profile client base including Daily Mail columnist Liz Jones and TV personalities Imogen Thomas and Stephanie Pratt.


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The French Finance Ministry has sent out notices to big tech companies liable for its digital service tax to pay the levy as planned in December, the ministry said on Wednesday.
France suspended collection of the tax, which will hit companies like Facebook and Amazon, early this year while negotiations were underway at the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development on an overhaul of international tax rules.
The Finance Ministry has long said it would collect the tax in December as planned if the talks proved unfruitful by then, which is what happened when the nearly 140 countries involved agreed last month to keep negotiating until mid 2021.
“Companies subject to the tax have received their notice to pay the 2020 installment,” a Finance Ministry official said.
France last year applied a 3 percent levy on revenue from digital services earned in France by companies with revenues of more than 25 million euros here and 750 million euros worldwide.
The ministry had hoped to raise about 500 million euros this year from the tax, but the 2021 budget bill puts the figure at 400 million.
Facebook’s stance is “is to ensure compliance with all tax laws in the jurisdictions where we operate.” Other tech companies have made similar statements.
Paris has said it will withdraw the tax as soon as an OECD deal is reached to update the rules on cross-border taxation for the age of online commerce, where big internet companies can book profits in low-tax countries regardless of where their customers are.
The talks stalled as the Trump administration became reluctant to sign on to a multilateral agreement ahead of the U.S. presidential election while the global pandemic added to practical difficulties in the negotiations, officials have said.
“We will levy this digital taxation mid December as we always explained to the U.S. administration,” French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire told a Bloomberg event on Monday.
“Our goal remains to have an OECD agreement by the first months of 2021 because we remain deeply convinced that ... the best way of dealing with this key question of digital taxation is to get a multilateral agreement within the framework of the OECD,” he added.


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For the first time in its history, H&H Classics Summer Sale at Britain’s National Motorcycle Museum topped the £1 million plateau with total sales of £1.2 million ($1.57 million), the company reported Friday.
The event drew more than 1,000 people, 550 bidders and 290 motorcycles. Those motorcycles reached a sell-through rate of 81 percent.
“We were delighted to be able to offer the best of British with five magnificent Vincents on offer as well as a vast range of collectable classic motorcycles,” Mark Bryan, head of the company’s motorcycle sales department, was quoted in the post-auction news release.
“This was a ‘must do’ sale if you are currently bike-hunting or simply wanted to have a great day out to look at the sheer breadth and depth of what is on offer at this landmark for H&H sale.”
The five Vincents to which Bryan referred were from the 1947-1955 era. A 1955 Black Knight Series D with sidecar sold for £51,750 ($67,798), a 1947 HRD Rapide Series B sold for £40,250 (nearly $53,000), 1949 Rapide Series C brought £39,100 ($51,225), a 1951 Comet Series C went for £25,300 ($33,145), and a 1951 Comet Series C went to a new owner for £15,525 (more than $20,300).
H&H Classics has another auction scheduled at the museum on November 2.


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Jelly Bean comes to the RAZR M
On November 9th Motorola and Verizon announced that the Droid RAZR M would be receiving the all new Android 4.1 Android update. Bringing a slew of new features like Google Now which acts like a specialized productivity assistant. One of the biggest upgrades is what Google calls Project Butter, which optimizes the phone to be up to ten time faster than previous versions. Google has been doing much better on supplying updates than in the past and, with their recent purchase of Motorola, it seems as though they are really starting to nail the timeline.
Motorola also recently updated the Droid Bionic to Android 4.0. With Jelly Bean soon coming to the RAZR HD and HD Maxx, it seems as though Motorola is serious about competing with Samsung for the top spot on the Verizon Network. For more info on these phones or the updates, come by your local GoWireless Store and speak with a Wireless Consultant today!
Source: The Verge
Follow GoWireless on Twitter or Like GoWireless on Facebook to stay up to speed on the latest Verizon Smartphones and News. You can also visit http://tiny.cc/m5wfkw to find a Store near you for more information.
This post is an original post written by Jake Calland, Store Manager of the Forest Graves Mill Center Mall location in Forest, Virginia.


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United Arab Emirates (Dubai)
Dubai wants to be the world leader in 3D printing – and the ‘City of Gold’ has a mega-plan. Their ‘Office of the Future’ in the Persian Gulf is just the start.
Dubai has turned to 3D printing to construct a futuristic office. Using a special mixture of cement, the unique TV-shaped space took just 17 days to print and two days to install with a giant industrial 3D printer, which is significantly faster and lower cost than traditional construction methods.
Set in the gardens of Emirates Towers, it will act as the temporary office for the Dubai Foundation of the Future, an organisation that will help deliver smart technologies, such as driverless cars, to the emirate.
Forming part of the Dubai Future Agenda, and revealed on twitter by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the ultimate goal is to add social and economic value by 2030. The full strategy focuses on construction, medical products and consumer products as Dubai plan to print super-cheap artificial limbs, teeth and even fast food in minutes.
Watch this video by Futurism for an idea of how it was printed:
His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum and Saif Al Aleeli, CEO of Dubai Future Foundation
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Takeaway coffee cups are notoriously difficult to recycle: the tiny layer of plastic that sits inside the Australian obsession leads to a huge amount of landfill.
Not so in Penrith. There, used coffee cups dropped off at locations throughout the city were reused to build large stretches of road in the area.
Penrith City Council has worked with an environmental agency and a local asphalt supplier to produce asphalt pavements for roads, as part of an Australian-first trial of using the materials on local roads.
Almost 400 meters of road at Jamison Road, South Penrith, and 350 meters of road at Swallow Drive, Erskine Park, have been resurfaced since March with a road resurfacing mixture called PAK-PAVETM.
In addition to thousands of coffee cups, there are also 1.2 million glass bottles in the area.
Coffee cups “contain very high quality fiber,” said Rob Pascoe, managing director of Closed Loop, which collected the majority of the cups as part of its Simply Cups program within Penrith LGA.
“But [they] are difficult to recycle due to their waterproof lining.”
“The Simply Cups program has saved more than 30 million paper cups, such as coffee cups and take-out soft drink cups, from landfills since it began in 2017,” Pascoe said.


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Education Times recently launched Edupreneurs, a coffee table book that features 11 entrepreneurs in the field of education.
At a recently held event, Education Times, amidst much grandeur, launched Edupreneurs, a coffee table book. The book, that was inaugurated at the hands of Hon. Vice Chancellor, University of Mumbai, Dr Rajan Welukar, renowned fashion designer Shaina NC and Deepak Lamba, President, Times Centre for Learning and Times Conference Ltd, features 11 entrepreneurs, who, through their ideas, have established a name in the field of education. In recognition of their work, the Edupreneurs were awarded trophies at the event.
Mahesh Shetty’s strategy for scaling up the usually ‘localised’ tutorials business is based on standardising teaching processes. And, to overcome the constraints of the brick and mortar model, he now has his eye on the digital classroom.
MT Educare, a leading education support and coaching services provider in India, has received Forbes Asia’s ‘Best Under a Billion’ Company award on October 29, 2013 at the award ceremony held in Singapore.
MT Educare was one amongst the only 19 Indian Companies to feature in the list of 200 exceptional small and midsized companies from Asia Pacific, which were selected from the universe of 15,000 companies, wherein the qualified companies were screened on sales growth, earnings growth and return on equity.


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This week's latest updates to Windows XP from Microsoft seem to have finally fixed the SVCHOST bug, just a few months before all support for the OS ends on April 8th.
A week of Windows 10 news, Apple allegations and Sony's week of hell
Nest Learning Thermostat: The Next Generation, review
Microsoft's low end smartphone strategy needs a reboot
The latest table for Pinball FX2, Venom, reviewed
Hands On: Preview of HP's new $200 laptop
Latest deals in the Steam Holiday Sale 2014
Steam Holiday Sale 2014


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Xerox goes on charm offensive to woo HP investors
Slap-up dinner intends to whet appetites for $35bn takeover bid
Printer manufacturer Xerox will hold a dinner for HP investors this week in an attempt to gain support for its $35bn (£26.8bn, €32.2bn) takeover bid.
Xerox recently upped its bid by $2 to $24 a share and announced its intention in January to try to replace the entire HP board at the company’s shareholder meeting in April.
HP’s board has so far unanimously rejected the hostile bid and is expected to dismiss the sweetened offer when it releases quarterly earnings next week. It believes the offer significantly undervalues the company, which is nearly four times the size of Xerox.
In response, computer and printer-maker Xerox will woo investors at a dinner in Connecticut on Tuesday, February 18, sources told Reuters. Xerox CEO John Visentin is expected to attend.
Xerox believes that combining the companies would lead to $2bn in cost synergies, as both companies chase similar customers in a declining printer market. HP has disputed this figure.
Billionaire investor Carl Icahn, who owns significant shares in both businesses, said late last year that combining the companies was a “no-brainer”. He added that both HP and Xerox were operating in shrinking but still potentially profitable markets.
But while initial contacts between the businesses were viewed as constructive, dialogue has descended into a public war of words in recent months as Xerox has pursued ever more aggressive tactics.
In January Xerox announced that it had nominated 11 people to replace HP’s current board of directors, a move HP rejected as “a self-serving tactic by Xerox to advance its proposal, that significantly undervalues HP and creates meaningful risk to the detriment of HP shareholders”.
FURTHER READING: Xerox secures $24bn financing for proposed HP takeover
FURTHER READING: HP beats profit forecasts due to higher PC sales


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Reading-based Jacobs the Jewellers has beaten its 70th anniversary fundraising target.
To celebrate its significant milestone, Jacobs the Jewellers announced ambitious plans to raise £70,000 for Royal Berkshire Hospital’s Cancer Centre through a scheme it named ‘Seventy for Seventy’.
To date, the jeweller has already raised £77,000 – news the company shared in front of 270+ customers are its annual Christmas Jewellery and Watch showcase held at the Hilton in Reading. On the night the, chief executive officer of Royal Berkshire Hospital NHS Foundation Trust was presented with a cheque for that amount on stage.
Jacobs the Jewellers co-owned, Adam Jacobs, shares: “It’s been an amazing year for us. Our birthday celebrations have sparked so much interest and enthusiasm -we’re grateful to our customers, team and suppliers for all their support. We won Reading’s Retailer of the Year back in September – I thought it would be hard to top but knowing we’ve raised over our target does it! During the course of the year, we’ve heard from many customers who have been diagnosed or undergoing treatment with Cancer – it really hits home how we can make a difference.”
Revealed a year ago, the family run independent retailer delivered a raft of activities over 2018. Co-owner Adam Jacobs skydived with four customers from 10,000 ft, the shop also sponsored and supported both the Royal Berks Charity Soapbox Derby and Golf days.
The jeweller also created seven unique pieces of jewellery inspired by seven decades of style. When sold, a proportion has been donated to the Charity.
As the year draws to a close Jacobs the Jewellers still has more events in the pipeline, so the £77,000 is just a minimum donation at this stage.
All proceeds from the Seventy for Seventy program are going to the Royal Berkshire Hospital Charity’s Cancer centre to purchase cutting edge equipment for Surface Guided Radiotherapy treatment.


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Microsoft Teams will be natively integrated into Windows 11 at launch
The app gets prominent placement on the Start menu while Skype fades further into the background
Microsoft has announced that its business communications platform, Microsoft Teams, will be natively integrated into Windows 11 at launch.
The app's new prominent placement on the operating system's Start menu was one of the biggest reveals from the 'What next for Windows' event on Thursday, with Panos Panay, Microsoft's chief product officer, explaining how it will be a quicker way for users to launch and create Teams meetings.
This won't be a direct installation of the app, rather a selection of its functions readily available in the Start menu. For the full services, users will still need to download Microsoft Teams, which will be available via the Microsoft Store.
"Now you can instantly connect through text, chat, voice or video with all of your personal contacts, anywhere, no matter the platform or device they're on, across Windows, Android or iOS," the company said in a blog post. "If the person you're connecting to on the other end hasn't downloaded the Teams app, you can still connect with them via two-way SMS."
The integration is a nod towards the success of Teams over the course of the pandemic and how it is at the forefront of our changing approaches to work. The service surpassed 145 million daily active users back in April, and it has undergone a number of changes over the last 12 months to reposition it as a tool for the hybrid workforce.
However, while Teams took top billing for the Windows 11 event, Skype was hardly spoken of, leading many to suggest it has been pushed out. Skype was originally integrated as an "inbox app" as part of Windows 10, similar to how Teams will function as part of Windows 11, but it was noticeably absent from Thursday's promotional material.
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10/31/2013, The Samsung Galaxy Note 3 has been making itself available across U.S. wireless carriers just a few weeks ago, with those who picked up the phablet stuck between purchasing the device in either white or black. It looks like a new color option for the Galaxy Note 3 may be just around the corner, according to a listing on Newegg.
04/22/2013, The latest Nintendo 3DS XL the U.S. will be getting is the Animal Crossing: New Leaf-exclusive device that features polka dots of images that are well known within the Animal Crossing world. But if you saw the new Luigi-themed Nintendo 3DS XL, we’re sure you’re green with envy over its upcoming release in Japan on July 18. Another 3DS XL is being introduced that adds some much needed pink to the […]
11/10/2011, Back in September 2010, Samsung’s flagship Android phone, the Galaxy S, received a pink makeover in the form of the Samsung Galaxy S Femme edition. Well, it looks like its new flagship device this year is about to receive the same treatment as well. The company has just launched the pink version of the Samsung Galaxy S2 in South Korea. Other than the face and back of the phone given […]
09/13/2011, As if announcing that Monster Hunter 3G is arriving on the 3DS later this year isn’t good enough, there’s more good news for the 3D console. At the Nintendo 3DS conference today, Nintendo and Capcom announced that the next game in the franchise, Monster Hunter 4 will be arriving on the 3DS as well! It looks like there’s still a lot of life left in the 3DS despite the lackluster sales […]
11/07/2010, This isn’t exactly the happiest news for folks who are eager to get hold of the Windows Phone 7-powered HTC HD7, but folks who have been reviewing the HD7 have noticed that there seems to be a flaw with the camera on the phone. Turns out that when you take low light pictures with it, white colored objects seem to have a heavy pink tint on them. This issue is […]
09/10/2010, Not everybody is fond of pink, but we’re fairly sure that there are enough gamers out there to warrant a pink-colored DualShock 3 controller. In case you think this is the perfect gift for your partner, it’s already listed online for $55 and is expected to hit store shelves on September 21, which is just around the corner.
06/30/2010, The Sony Ericsson Vivaz will not stop at just Silver Moon, Cosmic Black, Galaxy Blue and Venus Ruby colors, as it will soon arrive in pink to make it the fifth color in the handset range. Since the smartphone is already approved by the FCC, it should be able to see action Stateside pretty soon via AT&T, where this Android-poweres smartphone will be equipped with a 3.2″ touchscreen display at […]
04/12/2010, It seems that the upcoming Pink handsets from Microsoft will be able to handle the microSD memory card format without missing a beat according to the folks at SanDisk, and this is news worth cheering about if your previous handsets already groove to the microSD format, making migration of platforms a whole lot easier. It looks like the microSD memory card format isn’t going to go away anywhere anytime soon, […]
04/06/2010, You may have caught wind of the news of Microsoft’s event on April 12th in San Francisco, and new information has surfaced, indicating that the event will be to introduce the long-awaited Microsoft phone, probably the Pure and Turtle from Project Pink. According to the details, the phones will be running on Verizon Wireless’ network, and should be on sale within the month after the event. This event will probably […]
03/16/2010, This actually feels more like a spy camera than your normal USB webcam, seeing that it can be operated wirelessly thanks to a wireless connection on the webcam and the USB-powered receiver. Of course, what you use it for it entirely up to you, since you already know the “with great power comes great responsibility line”. What we’re going to fill you in is that this USB Wireless Web Camera, […]
02/10/2010, If you’re still rushing to find a gift for your significant other this coming Valentine’s Day, a good guideline would be something that has a heart in it. If you agree with that suggestion, then this pink heart-shaped aluminum iPod speaker dock is probably something you might want to consider. It claims to support all the iPods and iPhones, so if you have one of those MP3 players, you should […]
01/26/2010, A Zune phone? We’re sure you’ve heard plenty of rumors indicating of such a device, so what’s so special about this one? Well, a new Zune software update that was just released (version 22.214.171.124) seems to be hinting of such a device. Inside the Zune.inf file, code has been found that identifies a “Phone”, along with a vendor ID that is locked to Microsoft, along with 3 different product IDs […]
12/02/2009, Could it be due to the upcoming holiday season that Sony Ericsson has introduced 2 new pink versions of the W595 and W395 what come complete with Benefit Cosmetics? Whatever the reason behind it, if your girlfriend is fond of pink, this might be just the gift for her. It’s currently available as an Orange and Phones4U exclusive.
11/20/2009, Pink certainly isn’t a manly color, but if you’re looking for a UMID for your significant other during the Christmas, you could always check out the UMID mBook that we reviewed a short while ago. More importantly, especially as a gift for the fairer sex, the UMID mBook is currently also available in pink Features stay the same with its 4.8-inch WVGA touchscreen, 5 hour battery life, powered by Atom […]


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There is a growing clamour among offline retailers over huge discounts offered by the online retailers to lure consumers. Govind Shrikhande, Managing Director and Customer Care Associate at Shoppers Stop Limited, spoke to correspondent Sunil Pol about the strategies that the company is adopting to beat the heat of online retail, while prominently investing in store expansions, at the JDA Industry Connect event in Mumbai.
Why do you think that the 'achchhe din' are only coming for e-tailers?
I haven't seen big investments coming into retail. If you look at FDI policy for physical retail, it has got a number of compulsions because of which, nobody can invest, whereas, for online, there is no restriction. People are bringing billions of dollars and burning them that's why 'achchhe din' are coming only for online retailers. Presently, government doesn't look like promoting offline retail, may be, the strategies of the government are not planned that way. We believe that if the government understands the requirements of the physical retailers and the number of jobs being created by these retailers can be multiplied with effects then they should support this industry much better.
What are your plans of investment for store expansion this fiscal?
This year, we are planning to open around 6 stores and around 14 stores in the next two years, so in three years we will be opening total 20 stores. Approximately, capex investment annualise will be of Rs 100 crore, out of which, Rs 50 crore will be invested into omni-channel, online and infrastructure development.
Out of these, 10 stores will be set up in existing metro and tier I cities and the remaining 10 stores we will set up in tier II cities like Kolhapur and Goa. Each of the stores will be spread across 40,000 sq ft of area.
Are there any plans specific to mCommerce?
Currently, our online business is less than a year old and we are targeting it to grow to 10 per cent in the coming three years, therefore, we will be launching our mobile app in Q3.
We will be going ahead with the smartphones coming into play with speeds increasing faster, along with the increasing of size of the screens. In total, 90 crore mobile users are there in our country and around one-third of them are going online and only one-ninth of them are shopping online.
We will be investing around 50 crore on our entire omni-channel journey. We are first investing in hybrid right now and over the nine-month period we will scale up to multi-channel and then to omni-channel. We are looking forward for good growth. With lot of changes happening in the market, we are learning from customers, learning from changes and disruptions and trying to drive a faster growth by embracing uncertainty and embracing online.
What is your take on the growth of modern retail being steadily beaten by online retail?
Modern retail is set to continue to grow with about 15 to 20 per cent rate YOY. Modern retail is not growing dramatically. Earlier, people used to think that modern retail will grow by 20 to 22 per cent but it doesn't look like that's happening. The growth is likely to be of 15 to 20 per cent and another five per cent seems to be taken up by online retail. And if modern and online are put together, India might get 25 per cent of growth of that sort.
Why more number of logistics and delivery companies are coming up with IPOs than the e-tailers?
Today or tomorrow the e-tailers will come with the IPOs for sure, the minute they will get their model of profitability right. Anybody who gets into IPO model, they have to be clear about announcing their results every quarter transparently. In e-Commerce, every company is talking of GMVs which is not the right number. Nobody is talking of the losses that they are making. And the minute you become public, you have to state every number transparently, so till the time they have profitability at the bottom line level, I don't think that they are really going to come up for an IPO.
And for delivery companies, the demand is there for their services - the price for which has to be paid by the online companies. But the question is, will those prices hold further. The total demand on online is less than one per cent and even though it is going to be 10 per cent, the companies have to grow 10x so there will be a huge amount of demand upscale which will provide huge room for profiting for delivery companies.
What are your consumer acquisition strategies when e-tail is encroaching into the sale of brick and mortar stores?
We believe our scaling up should be taken care in the long run because globally, most of the department stores have taken on the omni-channel journey by scaling up convenience offerings, that is curated product merchandising to customers and seamless shopping experience.
Basically there are two things driving online sale, one is huge advertising spend and second one is discounting. Globally, online is convenience format, but in India it is discounting format. I don't think there is any need to fight this kind of discounting war because at the end of the day, you have to look at the profitability for the long run. Online companies are funded by PE companies and they are not bothered of profitability. They just want to spend so much of money on discounting and advertising.
Please tell us about your upcoming vendor management platform?
We are coming up with next level vendor management platform. Today, everything that comes to me I have to get it into the store and then I can only dispatch online. Now there are models called dropship in which you need not get the supply of merchandise from your DC or your pickpack station it can be directly shipped from warehouse of the supplier to the customer. So this is the vendor platform for the dropship model.
How has been your experience so far with ERP?
Initially, two to three years were spent to understand the ERP system better and now we are very well settled. And when you are wanting to scale up from 4 stores to 72 stores like us, you cannot manage on excel sheet, you need to have a proper Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) which can connect the supply, the store, the customer, the loyalty and everything. And JDA’s ERP has been very helpful for us to scale up our operations, get it to the next level and scale up across formats. Apart from Shoppers Stop, we have this software in Hyper City, Mother care formats and all other beauty care formats. I would say it's been a great journey with the use of this technology since the time we started using in 1998. The first two years were definitely tough as I have mentioned for any company which is not used to systems and to get into a system becomes difficult as it dictates over how to operate your system.
Any more new technology that you are keen to incorporate within your organisation?
Yes, one of them is intelligent fulfillment that we have adopted and second is Warehouse Management System (WMS). So, we are currently in the process of evaluating all these and currently executing the whole omni-channel strategy. Midway within the omni-channel strategy, we believe we will be working on both WMS and intelligent fulfillment.


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The iPhone 6 will be Apple’s largest iPhone and will likely come in two separate versions: A 4.7-inch model and a 5.5-inch model. Size isn’t the only big difference between the iPhone 6 and the iPhone 5s, iPhone 6 will also feature more rounded edges than its predecessors and a power button that’s been moved from the top of the phone to the right-hand side of the device.
The iPhone 6 is bigger yet slimmer than the iPhone 5s, which also appears in the video for comparison purposes, and features a design that’s more similar to the iPod touch than to previous-generation iPhones.
Info on iPhone 6 Specifications
The iPhone 6 is going to run on Apple’s new A8 processor, which will reportedly be a dual-core 20nm 64-bit CPU that will clock in at 2GHz or higher, based on previous leaks we also think the A8 could come with a disappointingly low 1GB of RAM as well.
we’ve heard rumors that Apple will primarily use Gorilla Glass for the regular version of the 4.7-inch iPhone 6 and will offer a sapphire glass-equipped model as a more expensive “premium” device.
It’s also been confirmed that Apple has decided to include an NFC radio in its upcoming iPhone 6 and that the technology will be used to facilitate mobile payments. Apple has already reportedly got MasterCard, Visa and American Express on board, and remember iPhone 6 will come pre-installed with Apple’s latest IOS 8.
We won’t have to wait too much longer to find out what Apple has up its sleeve because the company will finally rake the wraps off the iPhone 6 one week from now on Tuesday, September 9th.
Leave ur comments below, are you satisfied with what you see in iPhone 6?


text: You may know that the U.S. automotive manufacturing industry has shifted to the southeastern USA. But did you know that the Charlotte region is benefiting greatly from this trend? According to research from the Charlotte Regional Business Alliance, more than 63,000 people work in automotive sectors in our region (more than Greenville, SC and more than most of Charlotte’s peer cities). Over the past two years, 20 automotive-related companies have announced plans to locate or expand in the region, adding a total of nearly 1,300 jobs. Learn more here.


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The funding round for the Web audio host reportedly nets $50 million, which would give the company a $200 million valuation.
Web audio host SoundCloud announced a new funding round today led by Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers.
SoundCloud didn't reveal the size of the funding round, but TechCrunch reported the amount to be $50 million, giving the company a $200 million valuation.
In addition, Kleiner Perkins partner Mary Meeker will take an observer seat on the SoundCloud board, the company said in a statement. GGV Capital also participated in the round, which is expected to help the company grow more quickly.
Berlin-based SoundCloud, which was founded in 2008 by Ljung and Eric Wahlforss, launched as a sharing network for musicians looking to hawk their demos. It now has 5 million users and has expanded to include podcasts and audiobooks.
Two previous rounds of funding, totaling about $16 million, were backed by Union Square Ventures, Index Ventures, and Doughty Hanson Technology Ventures.


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Archive for "Microsoft" Tag
Welcome to the jungle?
"We had the game running on the hardware the first week we received it," says developer A44.
"It’s actually turning out to be a really interesting discovery tool for a lot of developers to have their g...
This takes the PS4's lifetime sales in the UK to well over 6 million.
Aaron Greenberg lauds The Game Awards for bringing the heads of all three companies together on the same stage...
All three companies ended up having a good year in 2018, but one reigned supreme.
Phil Spencer promises an even better 12 months for Xbox fans than 2018 proved to be.
Some reports on what Microsoft’s next gen Xbox strategy may be.
Hopefully we get to see the first gameplay footage of the upcoming Battletoads.
Project xCloud is "unlocking new business opportunities" for third party publishers, says Spencer.
Microsoft is more focused on finding "creative independent teams", says Spencer.
Both versions would have been difficult to develop together, says Bless Unleashed dev.
Microsoft is about to acquire Geoff Keighley.
Numerous quality of life changes and improvements come to Turn 10's racing sim.
Though the next generation is still a ways off, there's quite a lot happening behind the scenes.
Epic Games goes for the jugular in a move designed to grab the PC gaming market.
Phil Spencer talks about how E3 allows everyone to "come to one place and just share their love of video games...
Negotiations are currently ongoing, but the studio has been described as "mid-sized".
THQ Nordic's long-awaited sequel sold 84 percent less than Darksiders 2 in its first week.
Sony definitively won the exclusives war in 2018, but who might come out on top in 2019?


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US medical devices company Teleflex has said that it plans to create a 100 high-skilled jobs over the next three years at its operation in Athlone, bringing the size of its Irish workforce to about 435.
Speaking at a meeting with senior executives from Teleflex at its headquarters in Pennsylvania, Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation Richard Bruton said the jobs were in line with the Government’s strategy to create high-skilled employment. “Ireland has become a much better business environment in the last number of years and we want to sustain that, particularly for companies which enhance the sectors we have a competitive edge in,” he said.
In Dublin, technology company Openet said it is to create 30 highly-skilled jobs at its global headquarters in Dublin, with a further 15 roles created at its Asian hub in Kuala Lumpur. The roles include a number of graduate positions as well as senior technical and engineering positions.
Elsewhere in Dublin, menswear store Jack & Jones plans to open its new flagship store in Dundrum Town Centre in mid-November. The store – which will be one of the biggest in Europe – will create about 30 new jobs.
Click here for more on this story


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A remote village in Kenya could have access to 15 million gallons of clean water by the end of the year — funded by Unilever shampoo, deodorant and body wash sales at Walgreens.
For the first time, the CPG giant and the pharmacy chain have partnered with Toronto-based social enterprise Me to We to fund a clean water project through its charitable arm, Free the Children. Unilever will donate 6 cents to the project and supply 5 gallons of clean water to a developing community for each sale of select products at Walgreens. Consumers can contribute to the campaign, called Give H2OPE to Others (#GiveH2OPE), by purchasing TRESemmé, Suave and Caress products through September 30, 2015.
The campaign’s fundraising goal is $200,000, which would roughly cover the costs of a borehole project that is currently underway in the impoverished village of Kipsongol in southwest Kenya. Kipsongol is located near an underground reservoir, but the village’s existing primary water source is the muddy Mara River. The borehole will go about 2 miles into the ground to access the reservoir.
Me to We co-founder Marc Kielburger describes such rivers in Kenya as comparable in color to chocolate milk, and said they are “certainly not clean, [with] high incidence of water-borne disease.” Free the Children has previously completed seven borehole projects with funding from private foundations. Kielburger hopes the partnership with Unilever and Walgreens will establish a new model for funding projects and encourage consumer participation.
Three million units of the Unilever products need to be sold to reach the donation goal, and the campaign is over a third of the way there. Customers can follow their contributions with the Me to We ‘Track Your Impact’ function by entering their purchased product’s UPC code. Prominent displays of the products can be found in each of Walgreens’ 8,200 US stores under the banner “One Purchase Gives Five Gallons.”
Todd Tillemans, Corporate Senior Vice President and President of Customer Development at Unilever, said he believes the partnership is yet another proof point of Unilever’s commitment to purpose-driven business decisions that accelerate both profit and positive social impact. He noted, "We're also seeing results that map against this belief as we watch our brands with a strong social purpose become larger business drivers."
Not only has Unilever continued to be a sustainability leader, it has proven it is good for business. For example, the company is spearheading a movement for industrial waste reduction following its achievement of zero waste to landfill across its global network. And the company recently partnered with various NGOs on a study on why women’s equality hinges on water. The Give H2OPE to Others campaign is the latest water-related program from Unilever.


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The NFIB Research Center has released its new survey on the impact of COVID-19 on small businesses. Supply chain disruptions are impacting a majority of small business owners with 48% reporting the disruptions have had a significant impact on their business and another 34% saying the disruptions have had a moderate impact. While this share of owners is about unchanged from September, the majority of owners (62%) say that the supply chain disruptions are worse now than they were three months ago. The vast majority (90%) also believe the disruptions will continue well into 2022.
“Going into the busy holiday season, nearly half of small business owners who rely on holiday sales as a significant part of yearly revenue report that both the supply chain disruptions and the staffing shortage will impact their holiday sales,” said Holly Wade, Executive Director of NFIB’s Research Center. “Small employers continue to adjust their business operations and hiring practice to compensate for these issues, including for many dramatic price increases.”
Other key findings from the survey include:
- Forty-eight percent of small employers report a significant or moderate staffing shortage, with slightly more than a quarter (26%) reporting a “significant” staffing shortage. About half of those with a staffing shortage reported a moderate or significant loss of sales opportunities because of unfilled positions.
- To attract additional job applicants, 79% of respondents have increased starting wages, 21% have increased paid time off and 16% have offered or enhanced hiring bonuses, 19% have offered or enhanced referral bonuses, and 21% have offered or enhanced health insurance benefits.
- Due to a lack of full-time workers, the vast majority (91%) of owners are working additional hours themselves. Sixty-seven percent of owners have offered more hours to part-timers instead, and 67% are now offering overtime.
- To further compensate for both supply chain disruptions and increased spending on compensation, 69% of owners have increased sales prices.
- The majority of respondents (64%) say they have almost recovered, recovered, or more-than recovered from pre-COVID levels. Fourteen percent said that their sales level remained at 50% or less of pre-COVID levels.
- However, most owners do not expect their local economy to fully improve anytime soon. About a third (32%) say that they don’t expect full recovery until late 2022, and 27% don’t expect it until 2023 or beyond. Eighteen percent say that conditions have returned to normal in their area, and the remaining 24% expect it to happen soon.
- A quarter (25%) of small business owners are asking their employees if they’re vaccinated, and 35% are encouraging their employees to get vaccines.
This publication marks NFIB’s 20th Small Business COVID-19 survey assessing the health crisis’ impact on small business operations, economic conditions, and utilization of the targeted small business loan programs. The full edition of the 20th survey can be read here.
NFIB also wants to know how COVID-19 has impacted your small business. Let us know by filling out our brief survey here.


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Heck with the Malls returns to Centreville
CENTREVILLE — Heck with the Malls returns to Centreville for another year of local holiday shopping. For 20 years shoppers looking for unique gifts have found those gifts at Queen Anne’s County Arts Council “Heck With the Malls,” the holiday season’s best artisan shopping experience.
Over 40 vendors in two buildings will display and offer for sale gifts from pottery and prints to soap and sea glass. All items are uniquely hand crafted and presented by local talent.
The Dec. 3 event will be held from 9 a.m. until 2 p.m. at the Centre for the Arts, 206 S. Commerce Street, and St. Paul’s Church, 1 South Liberty Street, in Centreville.
“We encourage holiday shoppers to shop small and support local artisans,” said Arts Council Chairman Tom Helfenbein. Helfenbein also noted local businesses throughout Centreville will also be participating with special offerings and discounts.
For additional information, go to www.queenannescountyarts.com or call 410758-2520.
A local artisan sells handcrafted soaps at last year’s Heck with the Malls in Centreville.


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According to The Wall Street Journal’s Greg Bensinger and Sarah Nassauer, Jet.com could be on its way to being Walmart’s next acquisition.
The Journal reports that the details of the deal haven’t been revealed but that the purchase price could be “as much as $3 billion,” according to sources familiar with the retailer’s plans.
Launched in 2015, e-commerce website Jet.com grew itself into a unicorn startup with valuations over $1 billion and a direct competitor of Amazon.com. The website has products with prices 10% to 15% lower than those of its competitors.
Jet.com declined to make a comment.
Disclaimer: We have no position in Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (NYSE: WMT) and have not been compensated for this article.


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By Lilli Khatibi
Entirely East Lansing staff writer
Halo Burger, a fast-food chain that originated in Flint, Michigan, has opened its doors in East Lansing. The burger joint opened for business in 1923 in Flint by Sam Blair, who sold the first burger out of a boxcar wagon. Since then, it has expanded its reach to 14 different locations. The menu offers different types of burgers and sandwiches, as well as a variety of sides and shakes.
Halo Burger has its own unique menu item – the Vernor’s milkshake. The combination of vanilla ice cream and Vernor’s soda originated in 1951 when the franchise bought out the older Vernors Ginger Ale building to expand its second location. Recent desire to expand to mid-Michigan drew Halo Burger to come to East Lansing. General manager Laura Bell said she hopes the location in Frandor will bring in students, residents, and fans of Michigan State University in for business.
Halo Burger had its ribbon cutting on Oct. 7.