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Two news stories on Klei Entertainment in one day, I hear you cry? Yes, actually. Yes.
Previously known as Incognita, they’ve renamed their upcoming title to Invisible, Inc – and also released a gameplay trailer, which you can see below. You can pre-order the game and join the early access alpha on their official site.


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General Motors Co.'s beefy Hummers will join its Pontiac and Saturn in the scrap yard of failed brands after a $150 million deal to sell the line to a Chinese equipment maker collapsed.
Sichuan Tengzhong Heavy Industrial Machinery Wednesday failed to win approval from Chinese regulators for its bid. GM said it would wind down Hummer operations after concluding Tengzhong would not be able to finalize the deal.
"We are disappointed that the deal with Tengzhong could not be completed," said John Smith, GM vice-president of corporate planning and alliances. GM sold just 9,046 Hummers in the U.S. last year, down from more than 71,000 in 2006.
The Detroit auto maker's efforts to sell its Saturn brand unexpectedly collapsed last year. Later the company reversed plans to sell its Adam Opel European unit after months of intense negotiations failed to produce a favorable deal.
Wednesday's decision follows months of uncertainty about Tengzhong's bid, which was first announced last June and accepted by GM in October. Around the time of the June announcement, Tengzhong applied for approval from the provincial government of Sichuan, where it is based, according to a person familiar with the matter. From there, the application was supposed to be sent to the National Development and Reform Commission, the central government's top planning agency, and to the Ministry of Commerce, among other agencies.
But it is now clear that the application made little or no headway in the intervening eight months. On Wednesday, Assistant Commerce Minister Wang Chao said his ministry never received an application from Tengzhong, echoing other comments from the ministry in recent months. An official in the foreign affairs department of the NDRC said the commission also hasn't received any application.
"It looks like no one took responsibility" for the deal inside the bureaucracy, said the person. But since Tengzhong's application "was never formally received" by regulators, "it's not going to be formally rejected." The person said that officials didn't give a specific reason for withholding approval but that it's "reasonable" to assume—as analysts have speculated since the deal's announcement—that Hummer's reputation for "not being green" doesn't fit with Beijing's efforts to promote fuel efficiency and green technologies in its auto industry.
Lawyers and others involved with deals in China say the failure of the Hummer bid reflects in part a regulatory process that remains remarkably opaque despite China's enormous economic clout and its status as one of the world's biggest sources and recipients of global capital.
"The official approval process is a big barrier to getting a deal through" in China, said Antony Dapiran, a China-based partner at law firm Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP who advises Chinese companies investing overseas and foreign companies investing in China. Mr. Dapiran said one of the first questions investors ask about deals is what they can do to boost their chances of approval. But "there's not a lot of concrete advice, guidance or steer you can give clients," he said, citing a "fairly low degree of transparency on how decisions are made."
In addition to approvals from the provincial government, the NDRC and the Commerce Ministry, deals as big and prominent as the Hummer bid may need clearance from other agencies, such as the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and the State Administration of Foreign Exchange, which would have to approve any conversion of Chinese yuan into dollars. or other foreign currency that most global deals involve.
China's murky approval process has also affected foreign investments coming into the country, such as Coca-Cola Co.'s $2.4 billion bid for China Huiyuan Juice Group Ltd., which was rejected last March on antitrust grounds after a lengthy wait. The process has even hobbled well-connected government companies. State-owned China Development Bank, for instance, had to abandon its planned multibillion-dollar investment in Citigroup Inc. in early 2008 after the government rejected it.
Tengzhong and its main co-investor, Sichuan tycoon Li Yan, had intended to make Hummer, currently focused on North America, a more global brand, expanding its reach into mostly untapped markets such as Australia and Russia and especially China, where it currently sells very few vehicles.
To reinvigorate the brand, whose sales have languished in recent years because of high gasoline prices, Tengzhong had hoped to add a manufacturing plant in China that could export vehicles to Russia and Australia and set up a network of dealers to quickly expand sales here, executives have said.
contributed to this article.
Write to Norihiko Shirouzu at email@example.com

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AC Milan Secure Japanese Partnership
By iSportconnect | November 11, 2014
Japanese convenience store Lawson, Inc. has agreed a partnership with Italian football club AC Milan for the Japan region.
International sports marketing company, Infront Sports & Media, facilitated the partnership for the Italian club. The agreement was announced today at Casa Milan, the headquarters of AC Milan, at the official Sponsor Day .
Ken Sakamoto, President and Representative Director of Lawson HMV Entertainment, commented: “We are honoured to have the opportunity to support the world’s most beloved sport and specifically a club that has always led the world of football.
“As someone involved in the entertainment business and also being a football fan myself, I am extremely excited about this partnership.”
Barbara Berlusconi, Vice President and CEO of AC Milan, said: “We are delighted to welcome the Lawson Group as the Official Partner of the club in Japan.
“This partnership reflects the global reach of AC Milan and we are truly honored to be partnering with a ‘community-based’ organisation like Lawson.”
Marco Bogarelli, President of Infront Italy, concluded: “Our leadership in the sponsorship market and in rights management allows us to create synergies between local companies and high profile brands such as AC Milan – going beyond each individual market border, to extend brand visibility and create global awareness.”
At the Sponsor Day, AC Milan’s complete sponsor line-up and marketing features for the 2014/15 season were presented.
New sponsors have been secured, including private postal service Nexive, alongside the retention of long-term partners that have enhanced commitments such as tire manufacturer Toyo Tire and snack food brand McVities – both now involved as Premium Sponsors on the second tier.
Marco Bogarelli, President of Infront Italy, commented: “AC Milan is at the forefront of enhancing interaction with fans, focusing on in-stadium entertainment – before, during and after the matches with fan villages, video programming and digital engagement.
“With our expertise across sports marketing, digital media and event organisation, we can add value to the club, its commercial partners and fans.”


text: Huge Tech once more leads decliners on Wall St.NEW YORK — One other slide in know-how firms helped pull stocks decrease on Wall Street Thursday, extending losses from the day earlier than.The S&P 500 misplaced 0.eight % after having been down 1.7 % earlier. The promoting was widespread, with eight of the 11 sectors that make up the benchmark index ending the day decrease. The sectors that embrace Amazon, Fb and Apple took the heaviest losses.The promoting got here a day after the Federal Reserve stated it’ll hold rates of interest at almost zero for years to help the wheezing economic system. The assertion didn’t encourage Wall Street and the S&P 500 recorded its first loss in 4 days Wednesday.Low rates of interest are normally a boon for traders, sending stocks hovering. So why the sell-off? Analysts gave various causes for the market’s weak spot. Amongst them: the gloomy outlook Fed Chair Jerome Powell gave for the economic system’s prospects and built-up expectations by some that the Fed could be much more beneficiant with its stimulus. It is not the primary hangover stocks have suffered following a charge announcement by the Fed.”The market actually obtained a bunch of nothing from the Fed,” stated Shawn Cruz, senior market strategist at TD Ameritrade. “Possibly that might be OK if we had been persevering with together with the restoration, however the restoration is beginning to decelerate.”Residence constructing features led to AugustWASHINGTON — U.S. housing building fell a shocking 5.1 % in August after three months of sturdy features when residence builders ramped up initiatives following a pandemic-induced shutdown in March and April.Functions for constructing permits, which is an efficient barometer of future exercise, dipped a slight 0.9 % in August to a seasonally adjusted 1.47 million however that decline adopted stable features within the earlier three months together with a 17.9 % rise in July.New properties had been began at a seasonally adjusted annual tempo of 1.42 million final month after a 17.9 % surge in July, the Commerce Division reported Thursday.Whereas the drop-off in new properties was higher than economists had anticipated, building stays 51.6 % above an April low.Additionally, this week a survey gauging builder sentiment discovered sturdy optimism. The survey by the Nationwide Affiliation of Residence Builders and Wells Fargo confirmed that builder confidence reached to an all-time excessive in September, even within the face of rising prices for constructing supplies.Declines in exercise had been led by the Northeast, the place residence building fell 33.1 %. There was additionally a decline of 17.7 % within the South, historically a robust area.Ford to construct e-truck plant in MichiganDEARBORN, Mich. — Ford says it’ll add 300 jobs at a brand new Michigan manufacturing unit that is being constructed to assemble batteries and manufacture an electrical model of the F-150 pickup truck.The brand new plant is being inbuilt Dearborn, the place Ford is beginning to produce a brand new model of the F-150 that is due in showrooms this November.Ford’s F-series pickup is the top-selling automobile within the U.S. with almost 900,000 bought final 12 months.Ford says the brand new electrical truck will go on sale in mid-2022. The corporate says it is investing $700 million in its Rouge manufacturing unit advanced to make the brand new vehicles. Ford additionally plans a plug-in gas-electric hybrid model.The corporate says a examine completed by the Boston Consulting Group discovered that the F-Sequence brings in $42 billion in U.S. income. That is greater than complete firms akin to McDonald’s, Nike and Netflix.Sony PlayStation 5 to launch Nov. 12SAN FRANCISCO — Sony’s upcoming PlayStation 5 online game console will value $500 and launch Nov. 12 within the U.S., the corporate stated Wednesday, organising a vacation battle with Microsoft’s Xbox Sequence X over whose new console will flip up below extra bushes this 12 months.Online game followers have been chomping on the bit for the brand new consoles, and never simply because they have been caught inside since March. The roughly 7-year life cycle of a online game console has been nearing an finish. Each predecessor consoles, the Xbox One and the PlayStation 4, launched in 2013.The brand new consoles promise sooner load instances, souped up graphics and new video games. Sony’s console can be costlier this time round; the PS4 launched for $400 in 2013.Sony’s PS5 will are available in two completely different models — a regular model with an Extremely HD Blu-ray disc drive for $500, and a digital-oriented model with no disk drive that prices $400. When you can nonetheless purchase video games on optical disks, it is more and more frequent for avid gamers to obtain them in digital kind as a substitute.Little change this week for mortgage ratesWASHINGTON — U.S. common charges on long-term mortgages modified little this week as they hover at traditionally low ranges.Mortgage purchaser Freddie Mac reported Thursday that the typical charge on the 30-year residence loan edged as much as 2.87 % from 2.86 % final week. In contrast, the speed averaged 3.73 % a 12 months in the past.The common charge on the 15-year fixed-rate mortgage slipped to 2.35 % from 2.37 %.Housing demand continues as considered one of few brilliant spots within the pandemic-hobbled economic system. Spurred by the low loan charges, first-time residence purchases jumped 19 % in August from July, to the very best month-to-month stage ever tracked, in line with Freddie Mac. Nonetheless, the shortage of accessible properties on the market is a constraint.Papa John’s plans new hub in AtlantaATLANTA — Pizza purveyor Papa John’s introduced plans Thursday to open a brand new Atlanta-area facility housing a number of key departments together with about 200 jobs.The pizza supply firm stated in a information launch that the situation will probably be considered one of three world headquarters, together with its Louisville workplace and its worldwide hub outdoors of London. The Georgia location and related organizational modifications are anticipated to be full by subsequent summer time.The plan comes as Papa John’s charts a brand new strategic course after fallout with its founder, John Schnatter, and as its stock price rises amid rising demand through the coronavirus pandemic.Papa John’s Atlanta workplace will home departments together with menu innovation, advertising and marketing, human sources, communications and improvement, whereas IT, provide chain and authorized groups will keep at its Kentucky headquarters.The corporate has greater than 5,300 places worldwide.


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The new Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2015 release is striving to bridge the gap between marketing and sales to deliver the personalised, high quality experiences that customer’s desire.
But it gets more exciting! Microsoft are really investing in their mobile strategy for Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2015. Have you seen this demo of Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2015 and Cortana?
"Gap have been able to adapt and develop to meet our particular needs. There’s a lot of understanding and a real willingness to go the extra mile."
Martin Ferry, Head of Development, Youth Business Trust


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WARNING: NSFW images included in this post.
As we all know, businesses try various tactics to bring in customers but some push the boundaries more than others.
Take Starbucks for example, the coffee chain recently announced that it will be offering gluten-free and vegan options as a means to include a demographic they haven't catered to much in the past. This is a pretty smart and normal marketing strategy for a coffee shop.
Then there's the Washington-based Bikini Beans Espresso, a coffee shop that employs baristas to make and serve coffee while almost naked.
Yup, the staff dress code calls for bikinis or underwear but some of the girls go as far wearing nothing but nipple pasties and tiny bottoms.
Although having scantily clad women serve patrons may seem degrading, the restaurant's owners emphasize that this is actually all about gender equality.
The website reads: "'As the first bikini barista shop in Arizona, we want to empower women to be, and feel good about, themselves. Women everywhere have the right to vote, to be gay, to be successful community leaders and business owners, or even run for president! We have the right to work with grace, confidence and dignity, regardless if it's in a business suit, scrubs, or a bikini."
The coffee shop which has been popular among men, has been surrounded by controversy since it's opening. City councillor Mike Fagan, attempted to regulate it's stands citing exploitation of women as a reason but his efforts were to no avail.
Some parents have also voiced their shock and discontent with the business model. One mom whose kids were subjected to the sight of the half-naked baristas said, "the problem wasn't as much what they saw, it was having to explain to my eight, seven and five-year-old kids why there are women without shirts on serving coffee and why there are men in line to get this coffee." She added,"I'm all for people doing what they want to do. But I don't want it imposed on my family"
But, surprisingly there are many other parents with young children who frequent the Bikini Beans Espresso stands according to employee Brittany Paterson. "I have full families that come in that love me" she explained. "So it really doesn't affect kids at all, I think they're just trying to find another thing to be offended by."
Bikini Beans Espresso is raking up stellar reviews online and it looks it's going to be sticking around for a long while, so if this isn't your cup of joe then you might want to start getting to used to the idea.
Would you grab a drink from this coffee shop?
[Source: Daily Mail]


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“The Next Decade in the Commercial Vehicle Industry” has been announced as the theme for Heavy Duty Dialogue 2010 (HDD'10). HDD'10 will be held January 18, 2010 at The Mirage in Las Vegas NV. A business conference developed for executives in the global and domestic commercial vehicle industry, HDD'10 immediately precedes Heavy Duty Aftermarket Week '10.
Confirmed contributors include: Dr Thomas PM Barnett, Enterra Solutions; Juergen Reers, Roland Berger Strategy Consultants; Eric Starks, FTR Consultants; Stuart MacKay, MacKay and Co; Robert McKenna, MEMA; Dennis Michels, Link Manufacturing; Bill Strauss, US Federal Reserve; and Sandeep Kar, Frost and Sullivan.
“Although the global commercial vehicle industry is always challenging, the next 10 years promises to be a period of significant change. Many leaders are discussing thoughts on what will represent the ‘new normal for the industry’,” said Timothy Kraus, president and chief operating officer of Heavy Duty Manufacturers Association, the host of HDD'10.
For more information, visit www.hdma.org or contact HDMA directly at 919.406.8847.


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The iconic Defender is nearing the final months of production. The current models of Defender will reach the end of production in January the Defender which has remained relatively unchanged through out its history of 65 years is where Land Rover started as just a drawing in the sand the concept went from strength to strength as the car that was capable to go any where and handle everything. It has now be recognised by Auto Express to be the first car to enter the Auto express hall of fame.
“Evolved over 65 years but still completely recognisable, Land Rover Defender retains its iconic outline.”
Land Rover have plans to bring out a new Defender in 2018. However this will be a change on the Defender as we know it.
Demand is high to have one of the last of the iconic cars.
To mark the end of there have been 4 limited edition ranges released to celebrate the Defender. These are “The Heritage” and “Autobiography” are both sold out due to the popularity. But there is some availability for “The Adventurer” and a final run out edition of “The Landmark” to follow.
“Defender is the epitome of toughness, of ruggedness, of strength and most importantly of capability.”
GROUP MARKETING DIRECTORJAGUAR LAND ROVER
As the Defender comes to an end, this could be your last chance to have your piece of history in this exceptional utility vehicle. Call our sales team at Grange Land Rover Swindon today to arrange an appointment: 01793 852381. Or visit our website: http://www.grange.co.uk/dealerships/land-rover-swindon


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Comcast-TWC, TIM Brasil, Huawei, HKBN, TalkTalk - Telco 2.0 News Review
- Regulation: Comcast-TWC on hold again; net neutrality vote on 26th February; Telefonica sale of TI shares OKd
- BRICS: Blocked in India; Huawei forecasts; Chinese carriers' $3.5bn gadget fund; an inspector calls at Unicom
- Carriers: Europe's converged future? TalkTalk buys Blinkbox; T-Mobile vs,. VZW; 48 hours of cloud downtime
- Broadband Connectivity: HKBN IPO; 10Gbps to the home (if you pay $399/mo); SKT has tri-band LTE-A
- Technology Roundup: Samsung wins back Apple's heart with 14nm gift; Microsoft builds an all-new browser
- Privacy & Security: Hackers blow SS7 wide open; Christmas Eve NSA document dump; Aussie Santa raid
Comcast-TWC on hold again; net neutrality vote on 26th February; Mexican spectrum; Telefonica sale of TI shares OKd
The FCC has stopped the clock on the Comcast-TWC deal again, holding the process at Day 104 of 180, rather like that rocket launch before Christmas that kept getting put off. They have decided to resume the review after the 12th of January - wouldn't we all? The problem is that 31,000 documents have turned up that the cablecos should have already disclosed, and the FCC staffers need more time to read them.
Meanwhile, the regulator is moving forward with its proposed net neutrality rules. A final draft is expected in early February, with a vote at the open meeting on the 26th. Republican politicians are hopping mad and are speculating about trying to close the FCC.
The E-Rate program is re-allocating about a billion dollars from telephony to WiFi in schools and libraries, while the regulator has begun reviewing the low bids for its Rural Broadband Experiment project. And although they already got fined once, Marriott is at it again trying to jam portable WiFi hotspots.
Meanwhile, Mexico's brand new regulator approved the AT&T acquisition of Iusacell and announced the auction of 60MHz of 4G spectrum, in the AWS-3 bands, for some time this year. There's also 10MHz of 450MHz and some GSM900 going.
ANATEL has cleared Telefonica's plan to exit Telecom Italia. Under the plan, the consortium of three Italian banks and Telefonica that owns the biggest stake in TI will be broken up, and Telefonica will sell its 14.8% within 18 months. In the meantime, it will waive its voting rights in TI.
TIM Brasil zero-rates WhatsApp; Blocked in India; Huawei forecasts; Chinese carriers' $3.5bn gadget fund; an inspector calls at Unicom
TIM Brasil, meanwhile, has an understanding with WhatsApp, letting them offer a tariff that zero-rates WhatsApp usage. Here's an interesting quote:
"TIM has a strong affinity with OTT. We don't see them as a threat," Cristilli said. "They have a lot of services that customers highly value." TIM's strategy includes searching for the best OTTs for possible agreements.
Meanwhile, Indian MNOs are lobbying their regulator to stop WhatsApp deploying its voice features in their market.
Censorship seems to be flavour of the month in India at the moment - the government banned a swath of websites including pastebin and its clones, DailyMotion and Vimeo, the Internet Archive, and the huge Github version-control hosting service. Apparently they're "anti-Indian content".
The Indian government also hopes to reach the last 10% of villages with mobile service by December 2016.
Huawei, meanwhile, expects its revenue to grow 15% this year, mostly from mobile phones and enterprise products rather than network infrastructure. Having shifted 4 million Ascend-7 smartphones in the first six months, they're now the third biggest smartphone vendor.
In our March, 2013 Executive Briefing Smartphones: How Long Until Huawei is No.1?, we forecast that they might hit the lead in 2017.
Both China Telecom and China Unicom have set a target of moving 100 million 4G smartphones on contracts this year. Between them, that translates to a budget of $3.5bn for additional smartphone purchases out of the supply chain this year.
Zhang Zhijiang was the head of network construction projects at China Unicom. Now he's not, and he may be lucky to be anything once the Chinese Communist Party's Central Discipline Inspectors have finished with him. Inevitably, he is accused of taking bribes in exchange for contracts.
Tata Teleservices, meanwhile, is getting sued by NTT DoCoMo, which wants out of their IT joint venture. The contract stated that in this case, Tata had to put the business on the market. NTT alleges this hasn't happened, and has invoked binding arbitration - probably better than the Discipline Inspectors, at least.
Europe's converged future? TalkTalk buys Blinkbox; T-Mobile goes "toe to toe with VZW"; 48 hours of cloud downtime
Faultline reckons that the BT-EE deal will trigger a wider wave of consolidation and fixed-mobile convergence around Europe, with the typical market settling down to around three converged operators, one cableco, one incumbent, and perhaps a rebel of some sort. This is hugely dependent on regulators' acquiescence, of course, and the UK's structure seems unique in context.
They argue that TalkTalk is now the most likely UK operator to become a Free Mobile-like disruptor. Quietly, TalkTalk has taken control of Blinkbox, a TV streaming service.
Meanwhile, BT Openreach prices change in April, with wholesale line rental going down and local loop unbundling, power, and engineering charges going up.
Free Mobile is refarming its first 1800MHz block to 4G.
Deutsche Telekom is beginning to deploy its all-IP network, starting with the smaller OpCos. After Macedonia, now Telekom.sk is moving over.
In the States, meanwhile, here's a case that AT&T and Verizon are likely to be quite happy to lose some of their lower-spend customers, which might keep the four-carrier status quo around longer than you might think.
The troublemaker is of course T-Mobile, and here's an interesting announcement. They will be running LTE in the unlicensed 5GHz band from the end of this year, immediately adding a lot of extra spectrum. Meanwhile, it's argued here that T-Mo has a lot of capacity banked for the future, with the refarming of its 2G spectrum, the availability of 700MHz and unlicensed, and a surprisingly big portfolio of cell sites. How's their fibre-to-the-cell position?
John Legere, typically, is stirring the pot, boasting that they will overtake Sprint in 2015 and "take on" VZW's network.
AT&T's interest in Latin America is increasing, with an MVNO coming for Peru.
Verizon's cloud is going down for a 48 hour planned outage. When was the last time Amazon Web Services did that?
And the 3G, 4G, and 5G Wireless Blog reports on the standardisation of M2M remote provisioning. It's dependent on the existing MNO, which may trouble some people, and it's complicated!
HKBN IPO; 10Gbps to the home (if you pay $399/mo); Reggefiber at 2m lines; SKT has tri-band LTE-A
HKBN, the No.2 ISP in Hong Kong, is famous for being one of the very first ISPs to offer 1Gbps speeds at remarkably low prices. Now it's going for an IPO, valued at $500m or thereabouts. The transaction is meant to let its venture-capital owners exit and won't raise net funds.
"Parts of Minneapolis" are getting 10Gbps to the home from the appropriately named Ultrafast, if they're willing to fork out $399 a month.
Reggefiber has hooked up its 2 millionth customer.
In the mobile version of ultra-fast broadband, SK Telecom has announced the first commercial tri-band LTE service, aggregating 800, 1800, and 2100MHz spectrum.
Samsung wins back Apple's heart with 14nm gift; first high spec Firephone; Microsoft builds an all-new browser; WebRTC news
Samsung and Apple may sue each other, they may compete with each other, but they love each other all the more for it. Samsung's Austin, TX plant is sampling a new version of the Apple A9 chip, shrunk down to fit their new 14nm manufacturing process. This means Apple is switching back from TSMC as its key chip maker, drawn by the prospect of a cooler, faster 14nm chip. It also implies that Apple will be thinking of how it would use a faster A9, so a product might be coming.
NVIDIA, meanwhile, announced the Tegra X1, the first mobile chip using its desktop architecture. They claim it is also the first to achieve teraflop performance. They are also offering an adaptation of the X1 as a special connected-car product.
Mozilla and KDDI are launching a new FirefoxOS smartphone, in Japan. This is the first high-specification device using the free OS.
Google has expanded its Android One program to include Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and Nepal.
Horace argues that the reconciliation of Apple and IBM was the biggest technology news of 2014, representing the end of three decades of competition as plotted on this chart of shipments by various technologies:
He argues that this represents a major change in the relationship between hardware and software companies, and between enterprises and consumers. Meanwhile, tablet sales are slowing down further.
Microsoft is working on a new Web browser that isn't Internet Explorer - so will their promised WebRTC/ORTC support be in IE 11 or in the new project, codenamed Spartan? Also, Cisco's Project Squared WebRTC app will only work on Firefox for the time being.
There seems to be some interest in using the Bitcoin blockchain for other applications (might we even say "something useful"?). Eris is an applications server that uses it as a distributed database. A downside is that the maximum record size is 1MB, which is a major limitation for its primary payments mission, let alone being a generalised database.
Hackers blow SS7 wide open. So do the Russians; Christmas Eve NSA document dump; Aussie government's Santa raid
This was always going to happen. Every year, the CCC hacker con in Germany unearths more security problems in GSM and cellular more generally. This year, they signed up for a SS7 service provider and realised they could do...anything they wanted.
Not only that, it turned out that Ukrainian telco regulators caught a Russian operator sending dodgy SS7 messages to their mobile operators in order to divert and intercept calls.
In that light it seems almost reassuring that the NSA confessed to spying illegally on Americans, releasing documents on Christmas Eve. Our favourite is the NSA analyst who accidentally requested surveillance of his own codename.
Meanwhile, Australian officials staged their own Santa raid, asking operators for costings of a much-increased data retention requirement over the holiday.
Here's a rundown of anti-NSA court cases.
And finally, it's been 30 years since the very first mobile phone call in the UK.


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Rewind a few years ago in the electric segment of the motorcycle industry, and you found a landscape where manufacturers published wildly inaccurate numbers relating to speed, range, and power. The situation of over-promising and under-delivering was so bad, virtually any figure quoted, whether it was made with the best or worst intentions, was immediately called into question. The issue of course stemmed from the fact that OEMs were unable to deliver motorcycles with specifications that were remotely acceptable to a savvy motorcycle market. 20 mile ranges? 15hp available continuously? 60 mph top speeds if you’re downhill, tucked in, have a tailwind, and add five to the speedo’s reading? Yup, those were the good old days.
As the industry matured, so did our expectations, and it looked like some sanity was going to come to fruition as the MIC began pooling interest on developing a standard to rate the various performance specifications of electric motorcycles. An industry group setup to look after the best interests of the OEMs and other business in the motorcycle industry, you only need to follow the cash to see whose best interests are really being served by this group.
So, it should not surprise us then that the latest “standard” from the MIC, which establishes criterion on how the highway mileage of an electric motorcycle should be rated, is doing a downright scandelous disservice to consumers and the industry itself, as the proposed standard massively overrates the highway range of electric motorcycles.
The nearly two-year wait for the Brammo Empulse is nearly over, as the Ashland-based company is set to debut the Brammo Empulse and Brammo Empulse R in Los Angeles (and online) May 8th. It should come as no surprise then that the A&R Bothan spy network is picking up on murmurings from Zero Motorcycles, and that the Californian company is working on an Empulse-killer for the 2013 model year.
Said to be building a proper electric sport bike, as well as suitable electric dirt bike package, Zero is seemingly finally on the verge of sunsetting its current motorcycle designs for more mature motorcycle offerings, and is putting companies like Brammo and BRD squarely in its sights.
While still maintaining the product line’s general aesthetic from its previous generations, Zero Motorcycles has refined and polished its electric motorcycles for 2012. This is primarily due to the Zero’s limited amount of time to further develop its 2011 models for the 2012 model year (roughly nine months says the Californian company), but still Zero has been able to revise most of the Zero S’s components to warrant this year’s models to be visually and functionally set apart from its predecessors.
This bodes well for Zero Motorcycles, because bluntly, the startup has had extremely unrefined and unpolished motorcycles from its inception to the 2011 model year (if you heard otherwise from somewhere else, they were trying to sell you something). Walking up to the 2012 Zero S, it is immediately clear that the electric motorcycle has been touched by people who understand motorcycles. Gone are the on/off switches marked in Sharpie (I wish I was making this up), though you’d be hard-pressed to find top-shelf components on the Zero line. This makes for a mixed response regarding the bike, from a visual perspective.
I wanted to give our readers a heads-up that we have been working on a new article series that will feature electric motorcycles. A space has been maturing at a rapid pace, we have already seen several manufacturers come out with electric motorcycles available for consumers, with several more companies coming closer to market as well.
While early-adopters have been touting the benefits of electrics for some time now, the infancy of this market has many riders remaining on the fence about the gas vs. electric debate. While we here at Asphalt & Rubber believe the future of motorcycling is through electric motorcycles, we wanted to take an in-depth look at this budding sector, and ground some of the debate that has been going on in the industry with some actual experience.
Zero Motorcycles has announced the full-commencement of production for its 2012 model line, which is expected to hit dealers in February & March of this year. First off the line was the 2012 Zero DS back in December, though the electric motorcycle company has recently started building the Zero S, Zero XU, Zero X, and Zero MX at its Scotts Valley facility as well. A story we broke back in November, Zero Motorcycles debuted its important 2012 electric motorcycle line up at the 2011 EICMA show in Milan, with the 2012 range being a substantial improvement upon the company’s previous offerings.
Boasting 6kWh & 9kWh battery packs, the 2012 Zeros have nearly double the available energy on board, with the styling and performance aspects of the bikes have been improved upon as well. Zero claims that the street-focused Zero S can hit up to 114 miles on that 9kWh pack (and also does a top speed of 88 mph on its new motor), making it more practical for the urban commuter. For 2012, all of Zero’s street models feature new brushless motors, and include regenerative braking, which charges the motorcycle’s batteries during deceleration.
Our first proper leak ahead of the upcoming EICMA show in Milan is now officially in the bag, as Asphalt & Rubber has gotten word on Zero Motorcycles’ 2012 electric motorcycles. Completely revamping its model range, our sources tell us that the 2012 Zero Motorcycles will have all-new motors, battery packs, and bodywork. Talking in numbers, the battery pack options will be 6kWh & 9kWh, with prices expected to be $11,000 and $13,000 respectively. Perhaps the most compelling news (and there’s plenty to be compelled about with this news) is that Zero Motorcycles plans to have the new models under production in December, and on dealer floors by January.
An article from our friends at CMG tipped us off to the fact that Zero Motorcycle has begun promoting its electric motorcycles through several Costco stores in Canada. Taking a page from Kawasaki’s playbook in working with Costco (which is itself a take on what automobile dealers have been doing with the warehouse brand for years), Zero currently has displays in six Canadian Costco warehouse stores, working as a part of the wholesaler’s Membership Benefits Program. Like the Kawasaki program, Costco isn’t actually selling Zero Motorcycles, but instead Costco members recieve a special value package if they purchase a Zero through the promotion.
If that raises your eyebrows, here is a quick primer on the Costco business model. Generally speaking, Costco keeps its company very efficient and lean by keeping very low inventories — I’ve heard it quoted that the company won’t carry more inventory than what it can sell in one to two weeks. Helping drive that turnover are the low prices that the company is known for, but instead of doing a high volume/low margin sales approach, Costco’s true bread & butter is its membership fees.
Zero Motorcycles is recalling 160 of its electric DS & S motorcycles for an issue with the front brake caliper. Because of the defect, owners may experience permanent deformation of their brake discs when subjected to high braking loads, which induce misalignment of the front brake pads with respect to the front brake rotor. Accordingly, misalignment of the brake pads in relation to the rotor may cause reduced front braking performance, which could lead to a possible crash and potential injury or death of the rider.
The pertinent models and build dates are as follows:
- 2009 Zero S – September 2, 2009 through December 22, 2009
- 2009 Zero DS – July 27, 2009 through December 28, 2009
- 2010 Zero S – February 1, 2010 through March 31, 2011
- 2010 Zero DS – January 20, 2010 through March 31, 2011
Zero Motorcycles has quietly announced some interesting news: that Mark Blackwell, V.P. of Motorcycles at Polaris Industries, will be joining the electric motorcycle company’s Board of Directors. With a plethora of reasons as to why an industry veteran like Blackwell would join Zero’s board, it’s been no secret that the Scotts Valley company has been collecting seasoned industry professionals like pokemon characters, seemingly building a brain trust of people who actually know how to run a motorcycle company.
Blackwell’s addition to Zero is interesting because it could signal a relationship with the Polaris V.P. that goes beyond merely an advisory/visionary position, which is the core responsibility of a companies board. The timing is interesting as well, as Polaris has been on a buying spree, first acquiring the original American motorcycle company brand: Indian Motorcycles, and a few days later electric car manufacturer GEM. With a Polaris executive sitting on Zero’s board almost immediately after these aquisitions, one has to wonder if this isn’t a precursor to some sort of larger arrangement between the two companies.
The news coming out of the Santa Cruz area today is that there’s been a management shake-up at Zero Motorcycles, as multiple people at the top of the company’s leadership have been given pink slips, including company Founder & CTO Neal Saiki. Recently talking to PlugBike.com‘s John Adamo, Zero Motorcycles CEO Gene Banman denied that Saiki had been let go from the company, saying that Saiki’s absence at the company was due to his child’s recent birth and Saiki’s desire to spend time with his newborn.
However multiple sources close to the company have confirmed to Asphalt & Rubber that Neal Saiki was a part of a larger management shake-up that was precipitated by the company’s lead investor. With many of the terminations expected to be finalized next month, and spanning more than one division at the California-based startup, there appears to be a considerable personnel and culture shift occurring at Zero at this point in time.
Fresh off its latest $2 million fundraiser, we get more news from Zero Motorcycles, as the Santa Cruz, CA company has released its 2011 line of electric motorcycles. Immediately noticeable is new livery and color schemes, but we think it’s the technical changes that will get people truly excited. Most prominant in the model year unveiling is the fact that every bike in Zero’s 2011 line-up can have a quick-charge option installed.
A major highlight, the quick-charge system will allow Zero Motorcycles with the add-on feature to be charged in nearly half the time of the standard version. Also a part of this technology’s allure is the ability for Zero Motorcycles to be charged off the J1772 public charging stations, which municipalities are starting to install in public parking spots.


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The library will be taking donations of books for the book sale starting April 1, but is requesting no encyclopedias or how-to books. The Bottle Bin is always open for dropping off redeemables for donation to the library.
Recycling dates for April are Thursdays, April 14 and 28. Patriot’s Day is Monday, April 18, here in Maine and the Town Office will be closed. The second half of real estate taxes is due Tuesday, April 19.
Don’t forget bingo night will be Tuesday, April 12, at the Town Office lower level from 5:30 to 7 pm Come out and have some fun!
There will be an open house for Boy Scout Troop 215 Monday, April 4, at 6 pm for new members to get information about joining. It will take place at the Searsport Community Building, 42 Prospect St., and is open to children in Stockton Springs and Searsport. Also, if you join there is a promotional price for new scouts, courtesy of Katahdin Area Council. Stop by if your youth is in kindergarten through 5th grade and interested in joining scouts. The troop has an FB page so check it out!
Have to Have It store at 208 Main St. is just starting to think about renting spaces outside the shop for weekends this spring and summer. Tables will be $10. They are open Wednesday to Sunday, 10 am to 5 pm The Club Marina and Bar is taking reservations for Easter Brunch Sunday, April 17, from 9 am to 2 pm Call 567-3005 to make a reservation. Milkroom Farm Stand and Crafts, 25 Cape Jellison Road, will be opening with regular hours starting April 1. The shop will often be self-serve with prices marked and a lock box with a slot for cash or checks. As it gets towards summer, they will have fresh veggies and fruit, jams, pickles and other food items. Hours in April will be 10 am-4 pm Monday to Saturday. The Dairy Port opens in Bucksport Saturday, April 2.
Reports of coyotes being seen in town have been posted on the Stockton Springs Talks FB page. So if you and your dog are out for a walk, be careful. Every day has been different here, with rain, sleet, ice pellets and snow. April usually brings temperatures around 50 and rain for the flowers. Everyone is ready to garden, and pansies with their pretty faces are being sold in stores. Robins are strutting around the yards looking for a meal. The ospreys usually return around the middle of this month, so the screeching will begin over the harbor.
Thought for the week: “Success is the sum of small efforts — repeated day in and day out.” —Robert Collier.


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| Feb 27, 2014
| 10:59 AM
Aiming to give Americans the tools to make healthier dietary choices, the Food and Drug Administration has unveiled a revamped version of one of the nation's most recognized graphics -- the "Nutrition Facts" box that appears on the back or side of...
| Mar 2, 2014
| 5:00 AM
Peter Altschuler's back surgery had been a long time coming. The 66-year-old marketing professional and actor from Santa Monica slipped a disc about 10 years ago, and he's been coping with it ever since.
A series of injections kept him pain-free for...
| Feb 27, 2014
| 5:37 PM
The Generic Pharmaceutical Assn. says a proposed federal regulation that would allow makers of generic drugs to inform people about all known health risks would create "dangerous confusion" and have "harmful consequences for patients."
And why would...
| Feb 26, 2014
| 6:11 PM
It's billed as a faster, safer and more accurate way of screening expectant mothers for fetal abnormalities like Down syndrome, and proponents say it has already become the standard for prenatal care.
But as a handful of California companies market...
| Feb 28, 2014
Re "Farmers caught up in food safety net," Feb. 23
Contrary to what an anecdote in this article implies, the Food Safety Modernization Act does not give Food and Drug Administration inspectors the power to impose fines on organic or other farmers. Plus,...
| Feb 27, 2014
| 1:57 PM
Condemned Oklahoma inmates filed a lawsuit this week seeking details about the drugs that will be used to execute them amid a growing national debate about how to deal with the shortage of lethal injection drugs.
Oklahoma, Ohio, Missouri and other death...
| Feb 16, 2014
Could you have low testosterone?
That's the question Abbott Laboratories (now AbbVie) has been urging men to consider with its "Is It Low T?" awareness campaign, a highly effective effort to change how doctors and the public think about managing aging...
| Feb 14, 2014
| 2:40 PM
Lengthy lists of drug side effects recited in TV ads are so baffling that they may cause consumers to overlook the worst harms of the medicine, U.S. regulators said.
The Food and Drug Administration said Friday that it is studying whether disclosure...
| Feb 15, 2014
While recreational marijuana is legal in just two states (for now), 20 states plus the District of Columbia already allow marijuana for medicinal uses, and up to nine other states may soon follow suit. Many patients swear that cannabis helps ease their...
| Feb 25, 2014
The manipulation of human genes could lead to profound advances in our ability to cure or prevent terrible diseases. But in some cases, it might also mean introducing genetic material that could be passed from one generation to the next, changing the...
| Feb 24, 2014
| 10:00 AM
The opening of the first Trader Joe’s store in Boise, Idaho, has become the latest front in a campaign to get the Monrovia company to stop selling meat from animals raised with antibiotics.
Consumers Union, which publishes Consumers Report...


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WONDERING what tattoo to get in 2018?
Two celebrity tattooists have revealed the inking styles set to be huge next year.
Meanwhile, Nikole Lowe, 44, has worked in the industry since 1991.
She set up the Good Times studio in Shoreditch, London, in 2009, and has appeared on the reality show London Ink.
From pocket watches to minimal, dainty designs, here’s what the experts say tatt lovers will be coveting.
“Pocket watches and clocks are incredibly popular, and will continue to be so,” Lal told The Sun Online.
“A lot of people have the time their children were born, or the time a loved one died on them.
“I did a pocket watch on a guy with the words to Everybody Hurts by REM, which was in memory to his dad.”
Lal varies designs by using Roman numerals, quotes on the clock face and decorating around the inking with flowers.
Miley Cyrus, Rihanna and Cara Delevingne have flaunted their underboob designs.
And Nikole says they’ll continue to be a popular body part to adorn.
“You don’t want anything too small there because the ink will spread over time and become a blurry mess,” she warned.
Nikole says it’s “really hard to predict trends” but believes bold, black designs will be big news.
“Tattoos with not much colouring will be popular,” she told The Sun Online.
“Japanese, traditional old school and tribal designs always stay looking good. Some other don’t stand the test of time.”
Rather than leafing through tattoo books, many body art lovers get their inspiration from Pinterest.
Lal says infinity symbols, nature, dainty flowers, hearts, lines and dots, plus meaningful quotes will be adorning skin.
He added: “The wear-ability of some of these tattoos is questionable, for example if they’ve been done in the wrong place or are too small.
“Doing something on the sole of your foot or inside of your lip won’t last, it’ll wear off.”
Watercolour tattoos tale inspiration from watercolour paintings, with bright colours and abstract prints.
While some artists say they shouldn’t be done in this style as they aren’t robust enough to stand the test of time, Lal says they’ll still be popular.
“I do wonder in the next few years if people will have tattoos in places that are not so visible,” said Lal.
“We’ve gone through a trend of lots of high visibility - hands, necks, legs, ears… and I wonder if people are going to start thinking, ‘I want to look smart without my tattoos being shown’.”
Meanwhile, proud parents are getting tattoos of their babies permanently inked onto their bodies.
Lal and Nikole’s shops appear in London Tattoo Guide by Tom Angell (Hardie Grant £12.99)
They will both be appearing at The International London Tattoo Convention, which takes place 22-24 September 2017.


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Supreme Court: After the Technical Committee and the Overseeing Judge submitted their reports in the Pegasus Spyware case, the 3-judge bench of NV Ramana, CJ and Surya Kant and Hima Kohli, JJ has listed the matter after four weeks for further hearing.
The Court had, on 27.10.2021, in Manohar Lal Sharma v. Union of India, 2021 SCC OnLine SC 985 appointed an Expert Committee to look into the truth or falsity of the allegations in the Pegasus Spyware case, “taking into account the public importance and the alleged scope and nature of the large-scale violation of the fundamental rights of the citizens of the country.”
The Pegasus suite of spywares, being produced by an Israeli Technology firm, viz., the NSO Group, can allegedly be used to compromise the digital devices of an individual through zero click vulnerabilities, i.e., without requiring any action on the part of the target of the software. Once the software infiltrates an individual’s device, it allegedly has the capacity to access the entire stored data on the device, and has real time access to emails, texts, phone calls, as well as the camera and sound recording capabilities of the device. Once the device is infiltrated using Pegasus, the entire control over the device is allegedly handed over to the Pegasus user who can then remotely control all the functionalities of the device and switch different features on or off.
The NSO Group purportedly sells this extremely powerful software only to certain undisclosed Governments and the end user of its products are “exclusively government intelligence and law enforcement agencies” as per its own website. Reports indicate that individuals from nearly 45 countries are suspected to have been affected.
On 18th July 2021, a consortium of nearly journalistic organizations from around the world, including one Indian organization, released the results of a long investigative effort indicating the alleged use of the Pegasus software on several private individuals. This investigative effort was based on a list of some 50,000 leaked numbers which were allegedly under surveillance by clients of the NSO Group through the Pegasus software. Initially, it was discovered that nearly 300 of these numbers belonged to Indians, many of whom are senior journalists, doctors, political persons, and even some Court staff. At the time of filing of the Writ Petitions, nearly 10 Indians’ devices were allegedly forensically analyzed to confirm the presence of the Pegasus software.
While the Supreme Court was initially reluctant in interfering in the matter due to lack of material placed before it, it eventually decided to step in after the subsequently filed petitions, as well as additional documents filed by others, brought on record certain materials that could not be brushed aside, such as the reports of reputed organizations like Citizen Lab and affidavits of experts.
Additionally, the sheer volume of cross-referenced and crossverified reports from various reputable news organizations across the world along with the reactions of foreign governments and legal institutions also moved us to consider that this is a case where the jurisdiction of the Court may be exercised.
[Manohar Lal Sharma v. Union of India, 2022 SCC OnLine SC 1085, order dated 25.08.2022]
For Petitioner(s): Mr. Kapil Sibal, Sr. Adv. Mr. C.U. Singh, Sr. Adv. Mr. Shadan Farasat, AOR Mr. Nizam Pasha, Adv. Ms. Vidusshi, Adv. Mr. Zubin, Adv. Mr. Shourya Dasgupta, Adv. Mr. Bharat Gupta, Adv. Ms. Tanvi Tuhina, Adv. Ms. Hrishika Jain, Adv. Mr. Dhruv Bhatnagar, Adv. Mr. Aman Naqvi, Adv. Mr. Arvind P. Datar, Sr. Adv. Mr. Prateek K Chadha, AOR Mr. Tanmay Singh, Adv. Ms. Anandita Mishra, Adv. Mr. Madhav Khurana, Adv. Ms. Natasha Maheshwari, Adv. Mr. Rahul Unnikrishnan, Adv. Ms. Radhika Dhanotia, Adv. Ms. Ayushi Rajput, Adv. Mr. Rakesh Dwivedi, Sr. Adv. Mr. Prateek K Chadha, AOR Ms. Vrinda Bhandari, Adv. Mr. Eklavya Dwivedi, Adv. Ms. Ayushi Rajput, Adv. Ms. Monika Dwivedi, Adv. Mr. Krishnesh Bapat, Adv. Ms. Radhika Dhanotia, Adv. Mr. Dinesh Dwivedi, Sr. Adv. Mr. Prateek Dwivedi, Adv. Mr. Nishant Singh, Adv. Mr. Prateek K Chadha, AOR Ms. Ayushi Rajput, Adv. Ms. Radhika Dhanotia, Adv. Ms. Vrinda Bhandari, Adv. Mr. Eklavya Dwivedi, Adv. Ms. Monika Dwivedi, Adv. Mr. Krishnesh Bapat, Adv. Mr. Tanmay Singh, Adv. Ms. Anandita Mishra, Adv. Mr. Madhav Khurana, Adv. Ms. Natasha Maheshwari, Adv. Mr. Rahul Unnikrishnan, Adv. Mr. Narendra Mishra, Adv. Mr. V.M. Eashwar, Adv. Mr. Abhimanyu Tewari, AOR Mr. Lzafeer Ahmad B. F., AOR Mr. Shyam Divan, Sr. Adv. Mr. Rahul Narayan, AOR Ms. Samiksha Godiyal, Adv. Ms. Ria Singh Sawney, Adv. Ms. Udayadita Banerjee, Adv. Mr. Govind Manoharan, Adv. Ms. Sugandha Yadav, Adv. Petitioner-in-person Ms. Resmitha R. Chandran, AOR Mr. Biju Joseph, Adv. Mr. Hardik Vashisht, Adv. Mr. Pramod P., Adv. Mr. Mishra Saurabh, AOR Mr. Colin Gonsalves, Sr.Adv. Mr. Sadiq Noor, Adv. Mr. Satya Mitra, AOR
For Respondent(s) Mr. Tushar Mehta, LD SG Mr. K.M. Nataraj, LD ASG Mr. Rajat Nair, Adv. Ms. Kanu Agrawal, Adv. Mr. Ankur Talwar, Adv. Ms. Deepabali Datta, Adv. Mr. Arvind Kumar Sharma, AOR Mr. M.K. Maroria, AOR Ms. Aishwarya Bhati, ASG Ms. Shagun Thakur, Adv. Ms. Poornima Singh, Adv. Mr. Manvendra Sing, Adv. Ms. Manisha Chava, Adv. Mr. Gurmeet Singh Makker, AOR Dr. Abhishek Manu Singhvi, Sr.Adv. Mr. Suhaan Mukerji, Adv. Mr. Amit Bhandari, Adv. Mr. Vishal Prasad, Adv. Mr. Abhishek Manchanda, Adv. Mr. Sayandeep Pahari, Adv. Mr. Tanmay Sinha, Adv. For M/S. Plr Chambers And Co., AOR Mr. Rakesh Dwivedi, Adv. Ms. Preetika Dwivedi, AOR Mr. Abhishek Mohanty, Adv. Mr. Milind Kumar, AOR Mr. Nishe Rajen Shonker, AOR Ms. Anu K.Joy, Adv. Mr. Alim Anvar, Adv. Mr. Rajiv Shankar Dvivedi, AOR Mr. Barun Sinha, Adv. Mr. Sushant Kumar Sarkar, Adv. Mr. Rishabh Jain, Adv. Ms. Arti Dwivedi, Adv. Mr. Ajay Pal, AOR Mr. Avijit Mani Tripathi, Adv. Mr. T.K. Nayak, Adv. Mr. Marbiang Khongwir, Adv.


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Who said you had to wait until October 26th to see Tesla's electric big rig? A succession of Reddit users have posted and reposted a photo that appears to show Tesla's semi truck sitting on a flatbed. And to no one's surprise, this isn't the Smokey and the Bandit-style truck of yore -- it's all swooping curves, complete with an expansive cockpit window. You can also see the vehicle's detached fairing off to the left.
The exact feature set of the truck is still somewhat mysterious, but there have been clues. It's expected to have a range of between 200 to 300 miles, so it'll be focused more on short hops than across-country hauls. And it's no surprise that Elon Musk likes the idea of autonomous trucks, so it's reasonable to see a more truck-oriented take on Autopilot that might include platooning when there's a multi-truck convoy.
The one thing for certain is that Tesla will have competition: more established brands like Cummins have already unveiled their own electric semis. Musk and company will have to show how their design stands out, and it's safe to say that it can't remain a prototype for long if Tesla wants to beat its challengers to market.


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Legal victories taste so sweet!
A judge has now issued an injunction preventing Haven Beauty from using any photos at all of the sisters.
However, even with this win, the case is far from being settled. We'll keep you updated!
[Image via WENN.]
She looks beyond AH-mazing. Like so far beyond, it’s out-of-this world. LOLz!
Which is obviously how Sandra Bullock stole the spotlight at the Gravity premiere in Tokyo on Thursday.
The hot mama was mesmerizing in her navy Carolina Herrera frock, featuring a flounce skirt with a sheer, floral underlay.
Dressed in a navy Carolina Herrera dress, featuring a flounce skirt with a sheer, floral underlay, she was mesmerizingly stunning!
And she complemented her chic ensem with black satin Charlotte Olympia pumps, as well as a touch of Martin Katz jewels on her lobes and wrist.
Though she probably could have gone out there barefoot and we still would have loved this look just as much!
[Image via BauerGriffinOnline.]


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Benelli India with an aim of resurrecting its market share in the premium motorcycle segment has partnered with its former dealer, Adishwar Auto Ride India. In its second inning, the Italian brand is looking for a bounce back with its lately launched and upcoming flagship models. Speaking on the sideline of the launch of middleweight adventure-tourer- the TRK 502, Benelli India hints the launch of 5 new bikes this year. Not just this, the company also revealed the plans of expanding its dealerships network over 40 outlets by this year-end. Currently, it has 12 dealerships running PAN India.
Speaking to carandbike, Benelli India - Managing Director, Vikas Jhabakh said, "The Benelli business had come to a halt in the middle with few dealers opting to move out of the business and that's understandable. You can't really blame anyone there. But we are lucky we have 12 running operational dealerships right now and they were all here for the launch and they are showing a lot of faith still the brand and the vision and we are thankful and lucky to have them on board."
Further, Vikas added, "We have been working very hard and we are looking to launch about 10 new dealerships through March and April and by the end of 2019 we are looking to have closer to 40 outlets across the country. And the best thing about this is we are looking to be geographically spread out. So we will be in close to 35 different cities with 40 dealerships."
The further expansion of Benelli showrooms will be witnessed at the prime locations geographically which will be easily accessible for the potential customers at all times. Other than this, the existing locations with current customer base are also in the brand’s consideration.
As per the manufacturer, since its official entry in the Indian two-wheeler market in 2014, the company has over 6000 happy customers PAN India. And, Benelli India is focused to continue the success journey with five new products lined up for this year. The Benelli Leoncino which has been one of the much-hyped Italian motorcycles in India is confirmed to be brand’s next. It can hit the market around the month of April this year. Among other lined up products, there might be the Imperiale 400 and the 502C Urban Cruiser.
Moreover, the Benelli India has built a new production facility in the outskirts of Hyderabad for the local assembly of machines. Currently, the company is capable of rolling out 7000 motorcycles every year. Depending on demand this count can be expended up to about 10,000 units per annum.


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LAS VEGAS — Ten Russian organizations have tricked thousands of victims into downloading fake Android apps that send premium text messages, each costing from $3 to $18, according to a Lookout Security investigation called Operation "Dragon Lady."
The network is comprised of 10 organizations that create the malware — which makes up 30% of all malware detected by Lookout in 2013 so far — as well as thousands of affiliates that make up a vast distribution and marketing network. The affiliates use several techniques, including fake Twitter accounts, to reach as many victims as possible — and they rack up big profits doing so. Some regularly earn more than $10,000 a month.
Lookout revealed the malware operation in a talk at the Def Con hacking conference on Friday, after launching its investigation last December.
In addition to creating malicious apps, the 10 organizations — dubbed "Malware HQs" by Lookout — establish websites that offer affiliates an easy-to-configure platform to develop fake apps and download sites, themselves. What's more, all of this is done on the open Internet.
"These are not guys operating in the shadows," Ryan Smith, senior researcher at Lookout, explained to Mashable. "They're operating in a fairly public manner."
To become an affiliate, an individual simply has to fill out an online form, customize the app with pre-set options, and then copy and paste code into their distribution websites. Basically, no technical knowledge is needed.
The distributors then use Twitter to promote links to fake, free versions of apps that normally cost money, popular apps such as Skype and Opera, or simply porn and MP3s. Victims click, download and typically get an app that redirects them to a website while, in the background, actually sends out premium-rate text messages to phone numbers set up by the Malware HQs. The fraudsters then collect the money, and give a slice of the profit to affiliates.
The Malware HQs operate like a real business, Smith said, providing regular updates, customer service and online assistance to the affiliates. They also offer gamification features to motivate them, publishing rankings online and giving out rewards to the best distributors.
The campaign only focuses on Russia and its neighboring countries, as some of the distributing websites block out traffic that comes from outside these areas. Smith said this is likely because it's easier to maintain a localized business, and that "these affiliates like to be paid out in a very timely way" — something that's easier to achieve in Russia, where phone customers have a short window of time to dispute charges on their bills.
Still, frauds like these can also be reproduced in other countries, and users should be cautious when clicking on links in their smartphone browsers.
"Don't click on any links you don't trust, don't download any applications from sites you don't trust," Smith said, adding that people should also avoid installing apps from third-party sites, and only use Google Play, whenever possible.
As a general rule, being vigilant will help users steer clear of sites promising free apps that normally cost money. "If something seems like it's too good to be true," Smith said, "It probably is too good to be true."
Image: Flickr, sk8geek


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UPDATE: Major clothes stores in Weston enter administration
PUBLISHED: 12:00 17 January 2012 | UPDATED: 13:49 19 January 2012
TWO major clothing retailers with branches in Weston town centre have now entered administration.
The Peacock Group filed an intention to enter administration earlier this week, putting both Peacocks and Bonmarché stores, owned by the same group, under threat.
Bonmarché, in the Sovereign Shopping Centre, and Peacocks in Regent Street are currently still trading but the group has now formally entered administration.
The news comes after shoe store Clarks announced it will close on Thursday, with Priceless Shoes already shut - making 15 people made redundant between them.
Past Times, a retro gift retailer, has also entered administration and the future of its branch in the Sovereign Centre is uncertain.
For the full story on Weston’s troubled retailers, pick up a copy of today’s Mercury.


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Exactly a year ago, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman was asked if India was facing stagflation, which refers to a phase when an economy witnesses ‘stag’nant growth and persistently high in’flation’.
The question was asked because India’s growth rate in the first two quarters of the last financial year (2019-20) had decelerated sharply to a six-year low and retail inflation — or the rate of increase in prices that we face as consumers — had shot up in November 2019.
She had reportedly replied: “I have heard of the narrative going on and I have no comments to make”. To be fair, at the time, calls of stagflation were quite premature.
For one, retail inflation had gone up for just a couple of months. Moreover, the main culprits were food prices, especially fruits and vegetable prices, which had shot up after unseasonal rains curtailed supplies.
It was hoped that before long, the “transient” spike in inflation will subside and the GDP growth will resume momentum.
But neither happened.
GDP growth continued to falter — it kept getting slower in the third and fourth quarter before Covid forced it to contract by 24% and 7.5%, respectively, in the first two quarters of the current financial year (2020-21).
The rate of Inflation remained persistently high until Covid disruption made it worse.
This brings us to the worries of India’s central bank — the Reserve Bank of India — which released its latest bi-monthly review of monetary policy last week.
The RBI is, by law, required to maintain the retail inflation rate within a band of 2% and 6%. At the start of the Covid breakout in late March and again in end-May, the RBI furiously cut interest rates so as to boost economic activity, while largely ignoring the hardening retail inflation rate. Governor Shaktikanta Das made it amply clear that the RBI will do everything in its power to revive growth.
But in the last three policy reviews, including the latest one, the Monetary Policy Committee of the RBI has decided to keep the benchmark policy interest rate — the repo rate or the interest rate at which it lends money to banks — unchanged.
For those who track monetary policy closely, this decision was a foregone conclusion even before the RBI announced it.
Because even though India’s economy is struggling to grow, the retail inflation rate — calculated using Consumer Price Index — had remained above RBI comfort zone for almost every month since last November (see Chart 1).
Before the December 4 policy announcement, most people believed — much like in November and December last year — that it is just a matter of time that retail inflation will come down, and when it does, the RBI will restart cutting interest rates to boost economic activity.
But here lies the most important takeaway from the latest monetary policy review: At long last, the RBI admits that, far from easing up, the inflation outlook is getting worse. “The outlook for inflation has turned adverse relative to expectations in the last two months,” stated the policy statement. As a result, the RBI has substantially raised its inflation forecast not just for the current quarter (October to December) but also for the two quarters after this one — January to March and April to June in 2021.
Look at Table 2. It is taken from RBI’s latest “survey of professional forecasters on macroeconomic indicators”. The figures in parenthesis show the extent of revisions. As can be seen by a sea of plus signs, forecasters have bumped up inflation forecasts across the board — be it retail or wholesale, headline or core, this quarter or two quarters hence.
Also in Explained: Gold prices now down, but does it make sense to stay invested?
Table 3, which is taken from RBI latest “Consumer Confidence Survey”, is quite revealing too as it shows that, in the year ahead, consumers are optimistic about every macroeconomic variable barring the issue of prices.
The upshot of RBI’s assessment of the economy was that while growth is recovering, it is not as broad-based, and inflation is rising and it is becoming more broad-based.
The question some of you may justifiably ask is: Why hasn’t the RBI raised interest rates? Isn’t it bound by law to maintain price stability?
This is a valid query. After all, if one looks at Chart 1, it is clear that over the past 12 months not only has the headline inflation rate been outside RBI’s comfort zone but also food inflation has routinely touched double digits. Worst of all, even the core inflation rate — or the inflation rate after excluding food and fuel prices (both of which fluctuate quite a lot) — has continued to climb all through the year and is now threatening to breach the levels set for headline inflation.
A big part of the answer to this question lies in understanding the reason why inflation is high in India and whether raising repo rates is the solution to that. As the RBI notes, the ongoing inflation spiral is being fuelled by supply chain disruptions, excessive margins and indirect taxes.
For instance, if the fuel prices are higher because the government keeps raising indirect taxes on them, then how far will a repo rate increase bring down fuel prices?
Don’t miss from Explained: Why RBI has asked HDFC Bank to stop digital launches, new credit card sourcing
Similarly, if the price of a good is higher today because the supply of goods is disrupted thanks to Covid, can raising repo rates bring down prices?
If the cause of the current inflation spike was excessive demand — “too much money chasing too few goods” — then raising interest rates could have helped matters. Higher interest rates would have weaned off a sufficient number of people away from spending and into investing thus bringing down the price level.
But that is not happening at present. Industrial growth is almost non-existent (see Chart 4) and credit off-take is anemic (see Chart 5). Capacity utilisation in firms is low and they are laying off employees to cut back costs.
Moreover even raising repo rates or cutting them typically takes some time — at least a quarter — before influencing the market interest rates that you and I get paid.
That is why central banks are more bothered about managing people’s expectations of future inflation instead of reacting to monthly inflation movements.
If raising interest rates is not effective, then what is the way to cool down prices?
The RBI underscores the need for “proactive supply management strategies. “Further efforts are necessary to mitigate supply-side driven inflation pressures,” it states.
Who will do this? Of course, the government. The RBI is already doing the best it can — not raising interest rates even when all types of inflation parameters are off the charts.
A year down the line, India still cannot be characterised as facing stagflation. While GDP growth is expected to rebound, persistently high inflation is now becoming a worry that cannot be brushed aside as seasonal or transient.
An Expert Explains: Nature of economic recovery in India


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Egyptian entrepreneur Naguib Sawiris is close to selling a 10% stake in Italian multi-service operator (MSO) Wind to three private equity groups for about EUR1 billion (USD1.55 billion), reports the London Financial Times. Mr Sawiris controls Wind, through holding company Weather Investments. The deal would see UK-based Apax Partners taking a 5% share in Weather, while US equity houses TA Associates and Madison Dearborn would buy a further 5% between them. Sources close to the deal say it could be concluded as early as the end of this week, but was more likely to be signed next week.
Wind was purchased by Sawiris in 2005 from utilities group Enel for EUR12 billion, and has until June to come up with the final instalment of EUR1 billion. According to TeleGeography’s GlobalComms database, Wind had a 17% share of Italy’s mobile market at the end of March 2008, with just shy of 16 million subscribers. It also had 2.4 million fixed line customers (end-07) and over a million wholesale and retail broadband lines.


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Thanks to Bees & Lemonade, This Austin, TX Teen is Now a Multi-Millionaire
Inspired by a couple of bee stings when she was just four-years-old, Mikaila Ulmer, of Austin, TX, became fascinated with bees; and eventually turned her lemonade stand into a bee-sweetened, multi-million dollar business.
Of course, it wasn't just bees and lemonade that made now 17-year-old Mikaila's business so successful, hard work and ingenuity played important rolls as well.
Her little idea from more than 10 years ago continues to grow and grow...by more than 500 percent since the company’s humble Austin, Texas-based beginnings. Today, the award-winning, ready-to-drink Me & the Bees Lemonades in five refreshing flavors is buzzing off the shelves of Whole Foods Market, The Fresh Market, World Market, H-E-B stores across Texas and Kroger stores in Houston. It is also available at a growing number of restaurants, food trailers and natural food delivery companies.
According to her website, it was with the encouragement of her family that she set out to make a product for the Acton Children’s Business Fair and Austin Lemonade Day. And that's when she got the idea to use her Great Grandmother's special recipe for flaxseed lemonade that she got out of her family's 1940s cookbook.
In fact her brand of lemonade scored her an $11 million deal with Whole Foods back in 2016, before she was even an teenager.
So you're probably wondering what bees have to do with lemonade and earning a million dollars. Well, it was actually after her fateful bee stings that she and her mother began researching bees, which is how she learned of their importance to the ecosystem and what would happen if they were to become extinct.
That served as the inspiration for her secret ingredient, “I decided to give her beloved lemonade a new twist by adding honey from bees, instead of only sugar."
Since she first began her business she has been "donating a percentage of the profits to local and international organizations fighting hard to save the honeybees. That is why she touts: “Buy a Bottle…Save a Bee.”
There ya go, folks. Two bee stings, a few major retailers, a stop on Shark Tank, and a name change, Mikaila is now a multi-millionaire and she can't even vote yet. Seems simple enough, right?


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October 11 - The Port of New Orleans has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Cuba, which pledges to expand trade and commerce opportunities between Louisiana and the Caribbean nation.
The agreement also calls for joint marketing and information sharing efforts to meet those objectives, explained the US port.
"The proximity and historical relationship between Cuba and the Port of New Orleans has us well-positioned should the trade embargo be lifted, and we are prepared to play an important role in trade when the time comes," said Port of New Orleans' chief operating officer, Brandy Christian.
Louisiana's governor John Bel Edwards added: "There remains much work to be done before our nation's embargo on broader trade with Cuba is lifted. However, there are new opportunities that can benefit Louisiana, and I am optimistic that we will be able to build on our existing trade partnership with Cuba following [a] bipartisan visit.
"We want Louisiana to be first in line to any new opportunities with Cuba, particularly the import, export and foreign direct investment possibilities that could range into the billions of dollars in the coming years. For those reasons, we are eager to embark on this trade mission and to place Louisiana in a unique position of leadership with respect to Cuba."
Manuel Fernandez Perez Guerra, director general of the National Port Administration of Cuba, and Brandy Christian, Port of New Orleans' chief operating officer, sign the MoU in Havana.


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Shereen Marisol Meraji
Oct 12, 2012 When you're poor, car trouble can spiral out of control -- but for those without access to public transportation, a car is essential.
Oct 2, 2012 The new Datsun will be sold in emerging countries like India, where it will be the first car for many buyers. It will not be as safe or as environmentally clean as cars in the U.S.
Kate Archer Kent
Sep 28, 2012 Dozens of shuttered GM plants across the country are for sale, and a recent uptick in manufacturing means there are many interested buyers.
Sep 27, 2012 Tesla's behind its production schedule, Toyota is all but abandoning its plans for a plug-in car, and the new Fisker gets a bad review from Consumer Reports.
Sep 18, 2012 Mark Fields is one of several Ford executives cruising through American cities today in a 2013 Ford Fusion hybrid. He takes Kai for a spin to talk about the youth market, social media, and Ford's future.
Sep 13, 2012 As CEO Alan Mulally nears retirement, his stellar performance in saving and reinvigorating Ford makes even employees wonder: who can replace him?
Sep 14, 2012 Car makers have produced special edition models before. Now Chrysler and fashion designer John Varvato team up to add some extra attitude to a model that already has street cred.
Stacey Vanek Smith
Sep 7, 2012 Ford Motor Company has announced plans to introduce more models into Europe, including the iconic Mustang. The timing seems strange -- Ford is expected to lose more than a billion dollars in Europe this year.
Sep 7, 2012 Americans are buying more cars this year due to incentives like zero money down, zero percent financing for five or even six years. Learn tips on how to buy your dream car for less.


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The gardening expert will star in a tongue-in-cheek TV advert, on screens from April to May, which suggests Dimmock’s horticultural success is not down to talent, skill or hard work but the judicious use of the planting mix which includes soil improver and nutrients.
Brand manager Rebecca Fairbairn said: "We are delighted to welcome Charlie on board with our quirky and fun TV advert. Our research confirmed that Charlie is much-loved by the entire gardening community.
"Because of this, we felt that she was exactly the right person to promote Planting Magic, a product which gives gardeners of all levels and abilities amazing and long lasting results."
The advert featuring Dimmock, who came to prominence in popular 1990s TV show Groundforce which also featured Tommy Walsh and Alan Titchmarsh, will be seen by more than 17 million consumers nationwide.
Planting Magic is aimed at strong root growth and contains water-storing pockets to keep plants looking lively all season long, according to manufacturers Westland Horticulture. It can be used with all types of plants.
Gro-Sure is spending £1.5 million in all on TV and press advertising.


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There are 2 electric car charging points available at Roadchef Taunton (South) - see details and other nearby charge points below. The charge points are operated under the Ecotricity network, more information on accessing points on this network can be found on the public charging network page.
To see all the publicly available EV charging points in the UK visit Zap-Map. Here you can search by location, connector type and speed, network, access type and EV model.
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Renault has announced that it will create the first ‘smart island’ in Porto Santo, Portugal, with energy provider EEM (Empresa…
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Renault has launched a new version of its Zoe – the Zoe R110. Offering more power over the existing model,…
There are more than three million electric vehicles on the road worldwide according to data collated by ZSW – the…
Wandsworth Borough Council has announced that it will install hundreds of new EV charge points for residents and visitors, to…
With the roll-out of more than 50 new charge-points, the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea has the largest lamp-post…
2 EV charge points at this location.


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Making the fabric in the Nest Mini from recycled plastic is part of a commitment by Google to make all of its products from 100% recycled material by 2022
All of the fabrics used in Google’s new Nest Mini speakers will be made with post-consumer recycled plastic bottles, the company has said.
Alongside this, 35% of the external enclosure will be produced from the same materials, with all Nest products launched in 2019 built using varying amounts of recycled plastic.
This follows moves by the company to re-use plastic across a wider range of products, with parts the new Stadia gaming handset made partly from recycled plastic.
Google’s head of design for all hardware products Ivy Ross said: “Instead of these materials ending up in the ocean or in landfill we are giving them a new life.
“We have designed and engineered the fabric on our Nest Mini speakers so that it’s made from 100% recycled plastic bottles.
“A single, half-litre bottle produces enough textiles to cover more than two Nest Minis, and we didn’t compromise on aesthetic or function.”
Google to make 100% of its products from recycled materials by 2022
The move to make part of the Nest Minis with recycled plastic is in line with the tech giant’s commitment to make 100% of its products from recycled materials by 2022.
Alongside this, the firm has pledged 100% of shipments both going to and coming from customers will be carbon neutral by 2020.
In a company blog, its head of sustainability for consumer hardware Anna Meegan said: “Most of us can’t get through the day without a phone, tablet, computer or smart speaker.
“But building these devices and getting them into the hands of our customers takes a lot of resources, and disposing of our old electronics can create significant waste.
“My job is to integrate sustainability into our products, operations and communities — making it not just an aspect of how we do business, but the centrepiece of it.
“It’s an ongoing endeavour that involves designing in sustainability from the start and embedding it into the entire product development process and across our operations, all while creating the products our customers want.
“This is how we will achieve our ambition to leave people, the planet, and our communities better than we found them.”
She said: “Revved-up carbon neutrality goals are a clear Silicon Valley trend right now, as the tech sector seeks to align itself with the Fridays for Future millennial mind-set.
“Google has long been attempting to make its public profile more green, and is anxious to show some near-term progress.”


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In environments where products can be affected by extreme weather conditions while they are in near-constant use, reliability is key in keeping the wheels rolling. Miri Schroeter writes.
Just as employees can be struck by the consequences of long, hot days doing physical labour, machinery can also feel the strain of a full working day. Rest and recovery for employees is not only desired but also necessary in ensuring the day can begin over in a mine for weeks and months to come. While machines don’t necessarily have the luxury of shutting off for an evening, they need the support of quality parts to keep running efficiently and consistently.
Auto Control Systems (ACS) general manager John Watts works with mines across Western Australia to ensure companies get the best out of their machinery. He says in order to do this, he too needs access to the best equipment or it could be detrimental to his customers and ultimately to ACS’ reputation.
“When a machine shuts down you get upset customers. Sometimes it’s not the cost of the machine. It can cost millions-of-dollars per day if that machine is not producing what it should be,” Watts says.
“Some of our machines load the explosives in the blast hole. The old saying in the mining industry is, if you don’t drill you don’t blast, you don’t dig you don’t mine you don’t make money. If you don’t blast for a day or two that means every machine in the mine site starts shutting down. If you’re not blasting you’ve got nothing to dig up, nothing to process, nothing to put on the train to send out to the boats.
“A mine site shutting down can cost a million to two million dollars a day. It’s the cost of the downtime for the whole mine site that is the issue.”
With this in mind, ACS chooses to partner with companies that supply reliable products that are easily accessible to the Perth-based company. ifm is able to offer this reliability in its range of condition monitoring systems, connection technology, sensors and industrial imaging products.
“I’ve had it before where machinery up north in the Pilbara hits the summer and we’ve had products getting too hot and they just shut down. We’ve had older machines that did that, where we’ve replaced it with ifm products and it just powers through. We didn’t get that problem again,” says Watts.
He explains that ACS uses ifm equipment in its projects as it is robust enough to withstand Pilbara temperatures, which can soar to 55° Celcius, and temperatures in other sites that ACS delivers projects in such as the mountains in Siberia, which can drop to -40° Celcius.
“It’s fit for purpose. They know we’ve got quality and it guarantees our machinery does work.”
He says sometimes companies don’t even know their machinery has ifm products in it as they’ve never had to replace it.
“The reason they don’t know the ifm gear is in there is because it hasn’t broken down. If you’ve got a bad system or component that’s always breaking down, they really get to know the component and get to not like it sometimes. But if it’s in the machine dormant underneath, and there’s no problem for 10 years, they are not going to know it,” Watts says.
Systems that work
ACS has been working with ifm for a decade and it’s a partnership that keeps on working – so much so that ACS stocks spare parts on behalf of ifm.
“We can get it out the door on the same day. That keeps the ifm customers happier now that they’ve got someone on the West Coast to help them out. Whether its parts, support or trade we can help,” Watts says.
One of the benefits of working with ifm is its range of systems for mobile machines, which ACS encourages many of its customers to use.
“Some of the equipment we used with the trucks before wasn’t mobile ready. For the mobile side, ifm’s products are one of the most robust systems around. It’s high temperature rated, high vibration proof and keeps on repeatedly working out there,” he says.
ifm’s smart observer allows ACS to connect its customers’ machinery without re-configuring the entire fleet with ifm equipment. Watts says customers will often already be using ifm products without knowing it anyway.
“If you try to sell the smart observer and their response is, ‘there is no equipment to connect to,’ well they actually have six or so machines that already have ifm on it.”
The smart observer is a condition monitoring system that can identify possible damage or production stoppages, help reduce energy consumption, and help with the maintenance and repair of machinery.
“Getting the data helps us with servicing and improvements. If we can see that we can make something more efficient by even three per cent, we will,” says Watts.
He explains that customers are able to budget better and keep an eye on machinery and workload to determine whether machines need servicing or whether they need another machine to keep up with demand. It also helps monitor employees and work out whether they are working efficiently.
“Sometimes it highlights that if the person isn’t running it efficiently or correctly they need training. The person might be too frightened to put their hand up,” says Watts.
Safety at forefront
In an industry that needs stringent safety measures in place 24/7, ACS aims to offer the best solutions, with the help of ifm products. “For example, in the drilling industry as a whole, there is a big push to improve safety. The drilling companies and their customers see a need for this,” says Watts.
ACS is running pilot programs with drilling companies to implement better safety standards. ifm products such as cameras and sensors are helping in this program.
“If someone goes in a danger zone, you can stop the machine or make it go slower using safety controllers. When you’ve got sensors and outputs you want to make sure that if the controller is running well, it is running 100 per cent fine,” Watts explains.
“We’ve got current engineers that are TÜV safety certified. They can go and analyse a machine or a problem and give their recommendation on what needs to be done.
“If you have an ifm safety controller installed with redundant controllers, there is less chance of an unsafe condition occurring,” he says.
Upgrading machines is important for data and safety, and Watts says in remote locations it is having autonomous systems can minimise the risk to people.
“In some cases there will be a few staff in the remote area that aren’t easy to access if something goes wrong. The more you can automate a machine, the less people will be on site,” says Watts.
He explains that by having equipment that lasts, is reliable and promotes safety, such as ifm’s range, customers are more likely to come back to ACS.
This article appears in the June 2019 issue of Australian Mining.


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Key Specs of CRF1100L Africa Twin
Honda CRF1100L Africa Twin Highlights
Kicking the big bike launches for Honda in 2021 is the CRF1100L Africa Twin. You might be wondering, wasn’t this bike already on sale? Why, yes. This is a mere model year update with a small colour swap between the manual and DCT variants. The Africa Twin still arrives in its Adventure Sports avatar with prices starting at Rs 15.96 lakh for the manual gearbox option. The DCT option costs Rs 17.50 lakh now, making it exactly Rs 2 lakh more than the range-topping Triumph Tiger 900 Rally Pro.
Aside from the colours, there are no changes whatsoever. It still runs with the 1084cc engine that was introduced last year. It puts out 102PS and 105Nm -- 7PS and 7Nm more than the older-gen motorcycle. The subframe is now bolted on, making the rider’s section 40mm slimmer than before. Compared to the old CRF1000L, it is 6kg lighter, tipping the scale at 236kg wet (DCT variant).
It comes with a wide range of electronic goodies, like HSTC (Honda Selectable Torque Control), cornering ABS, wheelie control, and rear lift control. Moreover, Honda has equipped the 2020 Africa Twin with a brand new 6.5” TFT display with Apple CarPlay and Bluetooth connectivity.
Honda CRF1100L Africa Twin Price
The price of Honda CRF1100L Africa Twin starts at Rs. 15,96,000 and goes upto Rs. 16,10,000. Honda CRF1100L Africa Twin is offered in 2 variants - CRF1100L Africa Twin Manual and the top variant CRF1100L Africa Twin DCT which comes at a price tag of Rs. 16,10,000.
CRF1100L Africa Twin Price List (Variants)
|CRF1100L Africa Twin Manual1084 cc||Rs.15,96,000|
|CRF1100L Africa Twin DCT1084 cc||Rs.16,10,000|
3 Offers Available
Honda Bike Showrooms in Delhi
- FeaturedExcel Honda
A-56,Part of Plot No.70,Adjacent to Adidas Showroom,Main Najafgarh Road,Industrial Area,Motinagar, Delhi, Delhi, 110015
- FeaturedExcel Honda
28, Raja Garden, New Delhi., Delhi, Delhi, 110015
- FeaturedSmooth Honda
6-A Netaji Subhash Marg, Darya Ganj, Delhi., Delhi, Delhi, 110002
Honda CRF1100L Africa Twin Colours
CRF1100L Africa Twin Competitors
Honda CRF1100L Africa Twin Pros and Cons
Things We Like in CRF1100L Africa Twin
- Powerful engine
- Gets Apple CarPlay
- Both DCT and manual gearbox options available
Things We Don't Like in CRF1100L Africa Twin
- No electronically adjustable suspension
CRF1100L Africa Twin User Reviews
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Honda CRF1100L Africa Twin Images
CRF1100L Africa Twin Videos
- Ricky Brabec - Conversing With The 2020 Dakar Champion @ Honda Africa Twin LaunchMar 06, 2020
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CRF1100L Africa Twin Price In India
|Kolkata||Rs. 15.35 - 16.10 Lakh|
|Pune||Rs. 15.35 - 16.10 Lakh|
|Delhi||Rs. 15.96 - 16.10 Lakh|
|Mumbai||Rs. 15.96 - 17.50 Lakh|
|Chennai||Rs. 15.96 - 17.50 Lakh|
|Bangalore||Rs. 15.96 - 17.50 Lakh|
|Hyderabad||Rs. 15.96 - 17.50 Lakh|
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Vietnam GameVerse 2023, the first of its kind for game lovers, kicked off in Ho Chi Minh City on April 1.
The two-day event aims at creating an environment for game producers and distributors to introduce games to the market, and opening up opportunities to connect domestic and foreign game enterprises and investors.
At the Vietnam Game Forum.
Within the framework of the event, a Vietnam Game Forum was organised, bringing together representatives of management agencies, leading experts in the field, game studios, and domestic and foreign game distributors. Participating experts shared experience and solutions towards creating a healthy environment for the Vietnamese game industry to have more opportunities to develop in the future, contributing to the digital economy in Vietnam.
According to Director of the Authority of Broadcasting, Television and Electronic Information Le Quang Tu Do, the Ministry of Information and Communications has set a plan that the game industry's revenue will increase to 1 billion USD in the next five years from the current figure of 600 million USD.
Vietnam currently has 28.4 million game players with 200 producers and distributors.
There are also Game Arena competitions, the awarding ceremony of the 2023 Game Awards, a game workshop, and a cosplay contest within the framework of the two-day event.


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Microsoft has released a statement regarding the impact of COVID-19 on its upcoming exclusive Xbox and PC games. In short, no projects have been officially delayed, but Microsoft has acknowledged that its teams are facing “unique challenges and constraints” as they shift to a work-from-home setup.
2020 is a crucial year for Microsoft and the Xbox brand, as the Xbox Series X is lined up to release this holiday with Halo Infinite as a launch title. Microsoft remains committed to launching the Xbox Series X this year–the company doubled down on that earlier in March. But what impact COVID-19 has on in-development games–such as Halo Infinite, Grounded, and Everwild, among others–remains to be seen.
Echoing Xbox boss Phil Spencer’s previous statements, Booty said the health and safety of its development teams is Microsoft’s “top priority” currently. Additionally, the types of challenges that Microsoft’s development teams are facing are also impacting other developers around the world, he said. Just recently, Bethesda delayed the much-anticipated Wastelanders update for Fallout 76 due to the coronavirus.