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Our Cupping Runneth Over
Sep 2, 2015 by
Cupping Therapy, explained
After two thousand years, acupuncture is finally gaining traction outside of Asia; more and more people are finding relief, and now they're asking questions about "all that other stuff"-complementary therapies, including cupping!
In cupping therapy, cups made of glass, plastic or even bamboo, are placed on the skin in such a way that creates suction. Skin, superf...


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Beijing on June 30th news, holiday rental service HomeAway today listed on the Nasdaq, ticker symbol "AWAY", the share price up to $37.10 per share, compared to the initial trading price of $27 / share rose 39%, a market capitalization of $3 billion, raising a total of $216 million.
HomeAway submitted to the IPO application in March this year. Documents show that HomeAway revenue of $167 million 900 thousand in 2010, an increase of 39.6%. 37.9% of the company’s revenue in 2010 came from outside the United States, of which 36.6% came from Europe, and 1.3% from Latin america. Lease listing contributed 91.1% of HomeAwa’s revenue in 2010. Its 2010 net income of $16 million 900 thousand, compared with $9 million 300 thousand in 2009. 2010, the United States and Europe holiday house rental market valuation of $85 billion.

domain: news


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Naturipe Farms’ Starts Harvest Season for New Jersey Blueberries
- by Jessica Donnel
HAMMONTON, NJ – New Jersey blueberry harvest season is upon us! And Naturipe grower Dacosta Blueberry Farms is happy to report the state has another great season in store.
From its roots as a 26-acre operation back in 1953, Dacosta Blueberry Farms is now run by second generation Macrie brothers, Michael, Nick, and Paul, who have turned their father, Paul Sr.’s, land into over 800 acres of blueberry operations.
“It’s about adapting to things that happen,” Paul Macrie says. “Being a fruit farmer teaches you patience. We were always taught to respect the land and environment.”
Paul noted that both New Jersey’s production and volume are looking good for the upcoming harvest. Despite the cold winters these past few years, the grower’s plants are still looking to be in great shape, according to a press release. Knowing which varieties adapt better during different parts of the season is a crucial part of being able to provide the best taste, shipping, and storage capabilities for blueberries.
“Pollination went well this year,” added Paul. “We have more acreage of the Draper variety this year. The size looks good and the color is bright white, an indicator of good health.”
One of the biggest states for blueberries, Paul shared that New Jersey can produce as many as 250,000-300,000 crates per day at peak production, adding that the Duke variety is one that helps to bump up the poundage.
“Watching the plants grow and seeing what you have done from a small cutting to a plant large enough to produce fruit, is one of the most gratifying things in life,” adds Paul. “Knowing you put your heart and soul into every berry and crate makes for a good feeling.”
Naturipe shared that the efforts and time put forth by Paul Macrie Sr. and his three sons are now paving the way for the “next generation” of growers. With the third generation of Macrie’s just beginning to get involved in the business, AndNowUKnow will keep our eyes on this dynamic blueberry powerhouse.


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We are excited to confirm that our Junior/Senior prom will be held Saturday, APRIL 2. Prom will take place at The Loveless Barn, 8400 Highway 100, from 8:00 – 11:00 PM, featuring our favorite band, Prime Time.
Location: The Loveless Barn - 8400 Highway 100
Time: 8:00 PM – 11:00 PM
Tickets are $40 per person and may be purchased using a credit card via the BA website beginning Thursday, February 24. Students may also purchase tickets during lunch starting March 24. ONLY checks will be accepted at school.


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Playson will be the first to receive a license in the Georgian market. The company is a Content development firm in Georgia.
The regulation will allow Playson to raise its CIS presence. The business access will allow it to expand its regional customer reach.
Sped-up growth forced the market to consider new regulations. The market shows commitment to companies like Playson. As history suggests that the fruit-themed games are successful there
Georgian customers can reach the Playson’s Funky Fruits series.
Alex Ivshin, CEO at Playson, said. “I am happy to announce our achievement of the license. We will continue to supply games within Georgia. The area is an amazing jurisdiction at the heart of a crucially important region.
“The company will continue to build highly celebrated product series. We are confident that Playson will continue to extend its commercial reach.”
Recently, Playson expanded its reach into Latin America. The company also has access to European markets. Deals with Solbet and White Hat Gaming made this happened.


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Unocoin, certainly one of India’s premier cryptocurrency exchanges, is located in Bengaluru, the money of Karnataka. Next the crypto banking ban through the state’s central lender, the Reserve Financial institution of India (RBI), the corporation positioned a equipment in a local shopping mall in October to take care of fiat deposits and withdrawals for its shoppers. This machine was at first marketed as being a Unocoin ATM but the company before long rebranded it into a kiosk.
Marketing of shopper software program which attempts to alter the Bitcoin protocol with out overwhelming consensus is just not permitted.
Cryptocurrency is a time period describing digital currencies dependant on blockchain which include bitcoin, Ethereum and Ripple. Crypto tokens are not Actual physical dollars but as a substitute fully digital cash and property. We'll convey you the most up-to-date cryptocurrency news, token costs and crypto market capitalisations listed here.
South Korea is without doubt one of the globe’s important cryptocurrency investing centres, which is residence to among the busiest virtual coin exchanges, Bithumb.
Quoine explained that it had been “unable to obtain exterior industry cost data” for BTC and ETH at some time with the disputed trades since it endured a glitch in its application.
News Bitcoin selling price crash: Cryptocurrency loses ten for every cent of its value This most up-to-date dip may not be the final of 2018, a prediction from one particular crypto analysts indicates
United kingdom police imagine the Swede despatched the "likely lethal" bomb following a password reset request was refused.
Unocoin clarified that “The problem ultimately came beneath control after the police authorities understood our initiative in its first intent.
Amidst the continued market rout exactly where A huge number of crypto miners are shutting down their rigs, crypto mining enterprise, Argo blockchain claims it can be registering substantial […]
Neil Wilson, chief sector analyst for Marketplaces.com has warned that it seems to be prone to be Yet another poor day for cryptocurrencies. He reported:
Submissions that happen to be generally about A few other cryptocurrency belong somewhere else. By way of example, /r/CryptoCurrency is a great place to discuss all cryptocurrencies.
Since the crypto sector matured and produced, we saw the increase of 2nd technology exchanges. Visualize Fcoin: These kinds of exchanges, knowing that buying and selling might be incentivized in new and other ways, permitted consumers to save lots of on investing expenses by website making use of Unique trading tokens issued through the Trade itself, and by allowing buyers to mine System-unique tokens which could then be used to fork out transaction charges.
FXStreet will never accept liability for any loss or injury, which includes with no limitation to, any lack of financial gain, which may occur immediately or indirectly from utilization of or reliance on these kinds of info.
Considering the fact that its creation, Bitcoin Funds ( BCH ), the altcoin born following A very powerful fork from the Bitcoin blockchain has produced lots of controversy while in the Group due to the perseverance of its leaders to proclaim the altcoin as the true Bitcoin, Though no person shares that impression exterior this circle. Lots of […]


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FROM humble coffee to high-end Champagne, Gene Cap-uano (left), vice president of convention and exhibition operations for Sands China, has helped broker a variety of sponsorship deals. He explains:
“In our recent G2E Conference we were approached by a company from Hong Kong who does gourmet coffee in a café-style set up. It is a three-day tradeshow and conference, so having coffee is a must.”
Capuano says the company offered its product and services free, while allowing The Ven-etian in Macau to charge for the coffee. In return, it requested accommodation for its staff and marketing exposure.
“The café corner was set up as a lounge-style setting, and the gourmet coffee was sold along with pastries and other snacks. This enhanced the show, created revenue for us, and the company received exposure and made further business prospects with the attendees. This was a win-win sponsorship for both parties.”
Capuano says more “generic situations” involve beverage sponsors, with Champagne companies among those wanting to be part of high-end company launches and events.
“We frequently see events like fashion shows that have beverage sponsors, mainly using Champagne.”
Champagne and high-end fashion often cross paths. “It makes sense to try to partner up.”


text: Token Effort - A cartoon that illustrates how a new token economy is emerging that is impacting finance, identity and commerce. Most consumers think of tokens as substitute money (e.g. a coin token for game slots at an arcade), but this is changing to the concept where any data can be converted into a token. For example, already consumers use a ‘token’ version of an underlying credit card whenever they use ApplePay and there are already four States in America that allow ‘ID with a tap’ where a token of a driver’s license is used to confirm identity. The next bull run in blockchain will likely be based on real world tokenization of assets, which is turning any financial product into a token and fractionalizing it. For the consumer market, this could upturn the home buying market, enabling Gen Z home buyers a chance to buy a fraction of a home for investment or slicing up the downpayment of a home with multiple parties, thereby addressing the home affordability crisis. Blackrock’s CEO remarked, “tokenization of asset classes offers the prospect of driving efficiencies in capital markets, shortening value chains, and improving cost and access for investors.” According to a report by Citi, tokenization will grow by a factor of over 80x in private markets and reach a value of almost $4 trillion by 2030 (global GDP is roughly $100 trillion, for context).


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As the entire financial world remains atitter about the upcoming Facebook IPO, numbers are flying around about pricing and valuation. In essence, the initial pricing will determine how valuable Facebook thinks it is as a company, and the early predictions are staggering. Early estimates have Facebook raising some $10 billion for a total market cap of between $75 and $100 billion. But what does that mean, exactly? How big is that sort of valuation? Here's a list of some major American companies that have market caps at approximately the same levels just to give some context to that number.
Verizon is currently valued at just over $105 billion as a company, a number that reflects the fairly massive mobile phone business it controls.
McDonald's Corporation (MCD)
The Golden Arches belong to company that's reached a value just over the number of burgers their signs indicate they've sold. McDonalds has clearly gone on to serve more than 100 billion, and the company's market cap is currently just under $101 billion.
This megabank based out of Manhattan commands a total market value of just over $90 billion.
Finally, another website. Amazon's current market cap is just under $90 billion, but it's interesting to note where Facebook might fall in relation to the company. Facebook clearly won't be able to touch Google (GOOG) as the most valuable internet company in the world (Google's market cap is just under $190 billion), but beating out Amazon would at least give Facebook the number two spot.
While not quite as ubiquitous as, say, McDonald's, it's still hard to think of many companies that play a comparable role in the life of an average American than Visa. The credit card company is currently valued at $82 billion, putting it near the lower end of the potential Facebook valuation.
Bank of America (BAC)
Bank of America could be America's least popular bank after the flap over potential debit card fees last year. Now, the company is still in the middle of a pretty substantial downswing, losing nearly 60 percent of its share value in 2011. This means that, should the bank recover, there's a good chance its market cap will overtake Facebook (or not, depending on how the market reacts to the first chance to get shares in Mark Zuckerberg's company), but it's currently valued at $76.8 billion.
DISCLOSURE: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the authors, and do not represent the views of equities.com. Readers should not consider statements made by the author as formal recommendations and should consult their financial advisor before making any investment decisions. To read our full disclosure, please go to: http://www.equities.com/disclaimer


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The Digital Place-based Advertising Association has appointed two new members, both representing suppliers of digital signage, to its board of directors -- a first for the industry organization, whose board was previously composed entirely of executives from digital ad networks and network aggregators.
BroadSign International president and CEO Brian Dusho and NEC Display Solutions president and CEO Pierre Richer are both joining the DPAA board of directors; their appointment comes following a recent amendment to the organization’s bylaws allowing suppliers to serve on the board.
Before joining BroadSign in 2003, Dusho was co-founder of AV Nation, president and founder of Synapse Digital, and president of Hoffman Video Systems. He also held management and sales positions at MCSI, Intellisys Group, Technical Innovation, Baker Audio and YKK Corporation.
Richer has served as president of NEC since 2007; the company gave him the additional role of CEO in May of this year. Before being appointed president, Richer served as senior vice-president and general manager of NEC’s Visual Systems Division, where he also served as the division’s vice-president of sales and new business development. Prior to joining NEC in 2003 Richer spent almost a decade at InFocus Corporation.
The appointments follow a busy first half of 2012 for the DPAA, NEC, and BroadSign. BroadSign is rolling out digital installations around the world as part of an agreement with JCDecaux first signed in 2011. Meanwhile NEC recently announced it is installing 900 large-screen displays at Las Vegas-McCarran International Airport’s new Terminal No. 3, which will be used for airline branding and to provide travelers with flight, baggage and gate information and directions.
In June the DPAA announced that it had subscribed to Media Behavior Institute’s USA TouchPoints, a syndicated service that provides advertisers and media companies with insights and data on consumer behavior based on location, activity, social setting and mood, by time of day and day of week. USA TouchPoints will advise and collaborate with DPAA on analyses of TouchPoints data for the association's presentations, presumably focusing on the ways that digital out-of-home video networks reach consumers, and their advantages relative to other media platforms.


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Diplomatic relations between Asia's two biggest economies remain strained, but cheap prices are driving savvy Chinese shoppers to Japan with many making an unexpected purchase: Electronic toilet seats that heat up, wash, dry and disinfect.
The Japanese yen has weakened by nearly 40 percent against the Chinese yuan over the past two years, making it cheaper for mainland tourists to shop in Japan, analysts say.
Indeed Chinese tourists are visiting in droves and spending big time: The number of mainland Chinese tourist arrivals in Japan nearly doubled on year to 2.4 million in 2014, while their average spending rose 10.4 percent to 231,753 yen ($1,935), according to government data.
One of the principal reasons the Chinese are choosing to go to Japan is "rising affordability given the yen's decline," said Nomura China Consumer analyst Katherine Chan in a note published on Tuesday.
Tourists often marvel at Japan's multifunctional electronic toilet seats, but until now few took them home.
Over the recent Chinese New Year holiday electronic toilet seats were the third most popular item among Chinese shoppers in Japan, even outperforming rice cookers, according to a social media posting survey by Japanese big data analysis firm Hotto Link.
"The heated toilet seats are among our top selling items to Chinese customers – we have set up dedicated display areas for them in our biggest Tokyo stores," said Yasuaki Beppu, a spokesperson for Bic Camera, one of Japan's biggest electronics retail chains.
"We have selected a range of easy to install models specifically for our Chinese duty free customers," Beppu said.
Read MoreWhy record tourists to Japan won't matter much
Many retailers highlight models that do not require plumbing work and need only be hooked up to water tanks.
Get clean without getting cleaned out
Cheaper prices are the main draw for Chinese tourists.
For example, the Toshiba's SCS-T160 Clean Wash model sells for around $441 in China,, compared to $117 in Japan, according to a February 26 report by Chinese state-run English newspaper Global Times.
In Japan, prices range from 10,000 yen ($84) to 70,000 yen ($585), according to Bic Camera's Beppu. Chinese shoppers typically opt for models in the 30,000 yen range, he said.
"[Electronic toilets] are not cheap, but they are able to prevent germs from piling up as well as having washing and instant heating functions," said Sina Finance columnist Wu Shaobo in his January 26 article. The seats can be installed on all types of toilets, Wu said.
-- Chehui Peh contributed to this report.


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NSW unveils corporate bailout
Dominic Perrottet has finally released details of the highly anticipated business support program that he says will be available to small and medium businesses across the state, not just in COVID hotspots forced into lockdown.
Small businesses with 20 or fewer employees who can prove a 75% drop in sales will be eligible for payments of $ 10,000, Perrottet said.
Businesses that can prove a 50% reduction in sales will receive a payment of $ 7,000, while businesses that experience a 30% decrease in sales may receive $ 5,000.
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If you’re in search of an easy and quick way to receive cash with the things you already own, instead of relying on your credit score to determine if you qualify an ideal way to start your search is through the internet-based title loans.Here with us at Green Day quick title loan We strive to ensure that you’re in a position to locate title loans on the internet in the time you need them. We provide a simple online service that allows you to be eligible to apply to and be eligible for an online title loan from the comfort of your home. We are an online-focused auto title loan service. We have processed more than 1,000 applications for title loans and insist on providing you with the money you require, and allowing you to make manageable payments. The best part is that you are able to pay your loan off at any point.
“Our message today to all businesses and people in New South Wales is that we stand with you,” said Perrottet.
Payments will also be available for the tourism, hospitality and accommodation sectors with payrolls of up to $ 10 million, he said, as well as for independent traders and non-profit organizations. lucrative.
The hotels will also be exempt from payroll taxes and gambling taxes “for the period from July to August,” he added. “This will provide affected businesses with the liquidity they need during these difficult times. ”
The cash increases will be available later this month, Perrotet confirmed. “The funds will be available from July 19.”
Dine & Discover vouchers extended again
The NSW treasurer also urged landlords to “work with tenants” who were struggling to make their payments amid the foreclosure.
“As we have said over the past 18 months, we are all in the same boat. We are deferring these responsibilities and want to make sure that landlords support their tenants during this time. ”
The support program announced today is also good news for NSW residents who have yet to redeem the $ 100 Dine and Discover vouchers, which have now been extended until August 31.
Vouchers can now also be used for take out food to be delivered to their doorstep.
“We have always said that we will do everything in our power to support businesses and keep people working during the pandemic and that is exactly what we are doing,” said NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian.
“Unfortunately, businesses continue to incur costs such as rent, electricity and lost product, and this will go some way to alleviate this financial pain.”
The support program is expected to cost NSW state coffers “hundreds of millions of dollars,” Perrottet said.
What about the workers?
The federal government has reported that Sydney-based workers are eligible for COVID lockdown payments of $ 500 – but only if they have been out of work for more than a week.
Payments are eligible for workers in regions defined as COVID hotspots, but you will need to have lost income for at least seven days to access it.
“The Commonwealth Government also provides support to individuals and casual workers, so if you are a casual worker and your hours have been reduced by more than 20 hours, you are entitled to $ 500 per week – less than $ 325 per week. week. – and I ask these people to go to Services Australia to get this information, ”Perrotet said.
Those who have been made homeless since the lockdown will also receive aid of $ 10.3 million, which will be provided to help street sleepers find temporary accommodation.


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If you’re looking for a motion tracking app for your Nokia Lumia device, perhaps as a way to keep track of your fitness and your daily activities, you might be interested in the recently released Motion Monitor app by Nokia. The app, as it stands, is currently in beta, but basically what it does is that it follows similar fitness tracking apps by monitoring the user’s physical activity, such as motion and steps. The app will be able to run in the background and reportedly consumes very little power because it uses one of the Lumia 1520’s cores to off-load sensor data, similar to how the Apple M7 chip works in the iPhone 5s.
As expected this means that the Motion Monitor app will be an exclusive to the Lumia 1520, although it wouldn’t be a complete surprise if Nokia and Microsoft eventually open up the API to third party developers who might be thinking of creating something similar as an alternative. In the meantime if you’re an owner of the Lumia 1520, you can head on over to the Windows Phone Store for the download, but like we said the app is currently in beta, so do expect the occasional bug every now and then.


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For those unbothered by the wide-spread Coronavirus, interrupting the busiest month in fashion may seem extreme – however with over 210 cases confirmed in Italy, Giorgio Armani wasn’t taking any chances.
He decided that Armani’s Autumn/Winter 2020 show in Milan would happen behind closed doors as a preventative measure and in an effort to “support national efforts in safeguarding public health”. Rather than have individuals (that have travelled in from across the globe) germ-sharing on the FROW, Giorgio Armani’s latest collection was streamed from an empty theatre for all to watch via IGTV.
He ended the show with a personal tribute to China by showing select looks from the China-inspired Giorgio Armani Privé Spring/Summer 2009 and 2019 collections.
While we’re sure there were a few flustered influencers that couldn’t get their front-row ‘gram, the choice was a safe one given the rising numbers in the country. Alarmingly, Giorgio was the only one to make the change out of the nine shows that were scheduled.


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Everyone loves a meal deal.
And luckily a lot of our favourite shops have got us covered, no matter what we're in the mood for.
Whether you're up for a luxurious £10 dinner for two from M&S, a cheeky something special from Tesco or a healthy treat from Asda, Glasgow is your oyster if you're a shopper with an eye for a bargain and a hunger for good food.
Now frozen food giants Iceland are getting in on the act for the first time in a while, and it's a belter.
But it's maybe not the ideal option if you're counting the calories - because the chain has announced they're teaming up with those makers of all things delicious, Pizza Express!
For just £5 you can stock up on two large pizzas, a tub of Pizza Express ice-cream and a big bottle of Pepsi at any of the stores throughout the area.
An Iceland insider spilled the beans on online deals finder HotUKDeals revealing the fabulous feast was set to hit shelves today.
But before you go rushing out to pile your trollies full of pizza, be warned The Mirror reports that despite saving you £3.50, the deal can be recreated with smaller brand names for almost the same price.
But if you're a Pizza Express loyal, this will be music to your ears.
So get yourselves out and grab a pizza the action!! (sorry).


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Just a few days into the new year, a trial over Qualcomm Inc.’s licensing practices could change the future of its business.
The Federal Trade Commission’s antitrust case against the San Diego chipmaker will go to trial on Jan. 4. It will be tried as a bench case at the U.S. District Court in San Jose, meaning District Judge Lucy Koh will make the final determination — not a jury.
The FTC filed the case in early 2017, accusing Qualcomm of using anticompetitive tactics by charging companies elevated royalties on its products, and failing to license standard-essential patents to its competitors. It also alleged that Qualcomm reduced the patent royalty rate it charged Apple Inc. in exchange for Apple exclusively using Qualcomm's modems.
In November, Koh granted the FTC a motion for partial summary judgment, stating Qualcomm must license standard-essential patents to its competitors. Standard essential patents are technologies that are deemed necessary by telecommunications standards bodies. Without them, smartphones and other devices wouldn’t be able to connect to a network.
Currently, Qualcomm collects licensing fees as a percentage of the total cost of the device. Qualcomm reported $5.16 billion in licensing revenues in 2018, down from $6.4 billion in 2017, and $7.6 billion in 2016. The segment accounts for just under a quarter of Qualcomm’s total revenues.
The FTC’s case is also a cornerstone of Apple Inc.’s extended legal battle with the chipmaker. While Qualcomm has seen early victories over patent skirmishes in China and Germany, the result of next week’s trial will play a larger role going forward.


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4 Top Stories Affecting Dow 30 Consumer Stocks This Week
The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS): Current price $
Disney Interactive and VEVO are collaborating to create premier family-friendly music experiences and the resultant partnership will include co-branded complementary destinations. For its part, Disney will feature videos from VEVO’s premium catalog of over 50,000 music videos on Disney.com and will also curate and program the family-friendly music video experience across VEVO’s online, mobile/tablet and connected TV platforms. VEVO is a top all-premium music video and entertainment platform.
Disney is looking for an exit of ESPN from the United Kingdom, says the Financial Times. The decision comes following BT (NYSE:BT) outbidding ESPN for the broadcasting rights to Premiere League football more than three years after it lost mobile rights when it was outbid to a rival offer from News Corp (NASDAQ:NWSA).
Investing Insights: Will Disney’s Magical Ride Continue?
George Lucas sold his Lucasfilm to Disney, but does not intend to divest his $2.02 billion stake in the company, says a spokeswoman, after a regulatory filing by the firm that permits the Star Wars creator to divest the stock at his discretion, says Bloomberg Businessweek. Lucas holds 37.1 million shares or 2.1 percent of Disney, according to a registration on Wednesday by the company.
Wal-Mart Stores (NYSE:WMT): Current price $
Western Union (NYSE:WU) has reached a three-year renewal arrangement with Walmart Canada. Through the terms, over 330 Walmart locations in the country will continue to offer Western Union global money transfer services.
Don’t Miss: Microsoft: Full Steam Ahead?


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With just one month to go, there’s a lot of noise about American Airlines’ decision to hold back 40 percent of its fares, mostly for business travel, for so-called New Distribution Capability-powered channels and direct channels, such as its own website .
To recap: New Distribution Capability is a technology standard developed by the International Air Transport Association. The idea is to give airlines more control over their airfares, rather than relying on global distribution systems.
Traditionally, these global distribution systems (namely Saber, Amadeus and Travelport) act as middlemen who pass on airline information that travel agents and other retailers use to provide booking services to customers.
So What Changes?
From April, America is pulling about 40 percent of its content that is transmitted by Edifact (Electronic Data Interchange for Administration, Commerce, and Transport) — a protocol that pre-dates the internet, and one that the global distribution systems use. It’s currently the main third-party distribution method used by the industry.
The content describes anything sold or offered by an airline including tickets, ancillaries like seats and bags, frequent flyer program benefits, and anything related to order management like changes or cancellations (according to tech company Duffel). This content will likely include America’s cheapest fares.
Amadeus and Travelport have developed ways to handle New Distribution Capability content from American, with Saber going live in April. They’re all prepared, as American said it had signed deals with all three in October last year. They will “offer travel retailers and corporate customers the airline’s best content through New Distribution Capability connections in 2023.”
Airlines argue this method lets them offer broader access to their products and services. In American Airlines’ own words: “In the past, customers who booked travel through third-party distribution partners may have had subpar bookings and travel management experiences with limited access to fares and packages.”
In America’s case, it said travel retailers and corporate customers get enhanced offerings that include Main Plus, Main Select and Flagship Business Plus fares, carbon offsets via Cool Effect, and day-of-travel features such as seat choices, upgrades and pre-ordered meals.
Who wins from this? Let’s break it down into four areas.
What changes for the passengers? Very little this year. The name of the game is personalization, so passengers may start seeing more opportunities to put bundles together, such as WiFi and a seat upgrade. Prices may be cheaper too, as American Airlines pays less to distribute its airfares directly.
“Most if not all travelers don’t care about the New Distribution Capability, they only care if they are getting the fare that is in line with their personal or company price elasticity and policy,” said Gavin Smith, director of Element Travel Technology. “I haven’t seen any real benefits to travelers around offers or bundles. For corporates, there may be the option to create these in the future.”
The company travel manager perspective. The switchover in April will affect travel managers in a variety of ways. Perhaps the biggest impact will be around tracking fares. With new systems in place, will companies be able to keep an eye on how much they’re spending? How do they compare their spending on America with other airlines that’s not selling so many fares via this new model.
Lisa Reilly, director, global sourcing for travel at Japanese tech giant NTT, has a lot of questions.
“What does that mean for your current contacts? Can you book on codeshare flights to still get access to those lower fares?” she said. “How are you going to negotiate that? Will you have visibility into what you’re using currently in those lower (price) buckets, so come April you can see what the difference is?” she said during a recent webinar, hosted by travel and expense platform Itilite. “Now maybe you’re going to have to start looking at: do I want to buy bundles? Do I want to display bundles? Do I want fares that include WiFi, fares that include baggage?”
American Airlines has also been working with its large corporate customers since 2021 to create bespoke product offers that cater to different subsets of their employees, such as senior managers.
How does it impact corporate travel agencies? The main plus here is that they gain visibility into more product details and content previously only available in the airline’s direct channel. That includes any cheaper fares.
For Airlines Reporting Corporation, which works with Saber, the new way of retailing also gives agencies a consistent settlement experience. “This allows travel agencies to make better-informed decisions for their customers,” said Paige Blunt, head of New Distribution Capability.
But if there’s one disgruntled party here, it’s the agency, as it will mean increased costs and complexity. These agencies are responsible for ensuring that passengers can not only book the fare, but be able to change it as well if needed — something known as “servicing” in industry speak.
“As more of the major carriers push new forms of distribution, it forces change within the travel management companies, although very slowly,” Smith said. “Agencies have to deliver real innovation for their clients. The resistance we see is not good for the sector, our clients or the suppliers.”
Alice Ferrari, founder and CEO of Kyte, a next-generation distribution platform that connects airlines to travel retailers, agrees. “Sustaining the laborious work required to connect to an airline’s NDC APIs and maintaining these connections is extremely costly and resource intensive,” he said. “There haven’t really been visible benefits for travel agencies so far with New Distribution Capability, other than arguably the ability for sellers to negotiate better deals directly with the airlines, strengthening their partnerships.”
To help agencies, American Airlines is reportedly setting up a dedicated “special servicing desk.” A spokesperson for the airline told Skift: “Through modern retailing, we expect our travel agency partners to provide service to our customers who transact through indirect channels. We, of course, maintain an industry leading sales support team to assist agents and these team members have received modern retailing training as we would do with any updates to our products and services we introduce into the market.”
How do global distribution systems benefit? This is a difficult question to answer. But according to one expert, it forces them to innovate. “It’s not easy to find ways monopolistic players are taken down from their thrones to a competing arena, but if we have to mention one, they will finally be forced to rebuild nearly from the scratch their GDS legacy (if not ancient) text-parsing -based technology platforms into modern API-enabled web/rich content retailing ones,” said Jorge Diaz, CEO and founder of airfrare aggregator AirGateway. “So we could call NDC an obligation to be dramatically innovative.”
But as with the airlines, they may also get to save money through more efficient use of technology, but only if the traveler is happy, and the travel agency experience is smooth, Smith reckons. “New Distribution Capability aggregators are feeling this effect of the headwinds,” he added.
And, finally, what about American Airlines? Industry cynics will say this is purely about money, under the guise of offering more flexibility. Ultimately, yes, carriers like American Airlines in the long term will lower total distribution costs, in terms of commission, technology and people. But Element’s Smith argues the process of filing and maintaining airfares the “Edifact” way, along with the reservation system, has a greater cost compared to the amounts they pay out in commission.
For the less cynical? “It’s the freedom to retail and differentiate their products according to their own interests, regaining ownership of such processes,” said Diaz.
Saber also argues that NDC is a technical standard, not a commercial model. “Commercial structures are evolving as business strategies evolve across the ecosystem — this will continue regardless of technology standards,” said Kathy Morgan, vice president of product, airline supply and NDC at Saber in a recent blog post.
The Bigger Picture
Whether travel agencies are ready or not to start offering American’s fares, New Distribution Capability will be widely discussed this spring, and particularly in the US and Canada. It’s rather here that travel agencies will bear the brunt of the changes, rather then Europe which has a greater number of smaller airlines.
The move also needs to be viewed in the wider context of a slower recovery in business travel volumes, or at least from larger companies. According to reports American Airlines isn’t bothering with corporate contracts worth less than $1.5 million a year.
It is also phasing out its VIP-corporate membership AirPass scheme.
But it is seeing an uptick from smaller companies, many of which are likely to book direct or through lower-cost retailers compared to large travel management companies. Vasu Raja, American Airlines’ chief commercial officer, had plenty to say about that during Skift Global Forum last year.
“Like it or not, good or bad, I’m not saying either way, it’s pushing NDC further into the forefront, which is going to make sourcing different,” said NTT’s Reilly. “If the rollout is successful, there’s no reason that we shouldn’t see that from other carriers.”


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BUSINESS ECONOMICS CONFERENCE 2021
“Resetting Indonesia’s Economy in the Post COVID-19 Recovery”
COVID-19 Pandemic has resulted in Indonesia's first economic recession in 22 years. Since the second quarter of 2020, our economy has contracted by about 5.32% and caused the beginning of our recession. Authorities in Indonesia have predicted that 3.5m people could lose their jobs due to the outbreak. To recover the economy, President Joko Widodo has launched a new program called “Pemulihan Ekonomi Nasional” (PEN) and achieved the target of 4.5-5.5% economic growth in 2021.


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The new Apple Homepod has just been announced and it looks like a game-changer in the world of speakers. It boasts spatial sound, which creates an immersive audio experience, and you can even pair two Homepods together for stereo sound. You can also chat with Siri and get answers to Continue Reading
The reason why many consumers are not connecting their smart appliances to the internet is that they do not see the value in it. The manufacturers believe that connecting the appliances to the internet can provide them with data and insights about how customers use their products, allowing them to Continue Reading
This article is sponsored by Hitachi. Measuring the right amount of detergent and softener to ensure our laundry is always sufficiently cleansed and smelling good is always a struggle, not to mention the setting types and long laundry list of do’s and don’ts when it comes to doing the laundry. Continue Reading
LG’s latest innovation brings us a portable TV on wheels that also doubles up as a touchscreen tablet. Say whaaat! What device would be best suited for you to enjoy entertainment in both landscape and portrait modes, anywhere in the house? With a full repertoire of built-in apps and a Continue Reading
The Nanoleaf Lines is a set of modular backlit LED light bars that you can customise its design. Is it worth your moolah? Read on to find out!
Smart lighting company Nanoleaf, known for their RGB panels, has launched Lines here. It is the world’s first customisable backlit light bars, according to its maker.


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Nvidia Next Gen GPU 'Prototype' Leaks, Features 12GB, 384 Bit GDDR6 Memory
Nvidia Next-Gen GPU 'Prototype' Leaks, Features 12GB, 384-Bit GDDR6 Memory
By Rishi Alwani | Updated: 26 June 2018 18:29 IST
Photo Credit: dustinbrooks/Reddit
Nvidia's next GPUs are being tested by external agencies
They could have three 8-pin connectors
In the past Nvidia has said it won't have new GPUs for a long time
Nvidia's next-generation GeForce GPUs are in the works and one of the prototypes has found its way to Reddit. It seems to sport a 384-bit memory bus, 12GB VRAM, and three 8-pin power connectors along with a second generation NVLINK connector. As per estimates it could result in bandwidth output of 672GBps which is more than any Nvidia consumer grade card at the moment. To put it into perspective, a Titan V has 652.8GBps while the Tesla V100 is 897GBps. The prototype was posted by a Redditor claiming his "buddy works for a company that is testing Nvidia boards and this is apparently their new line up".
Some commenters suggest this prototype exists to prepare for 16GB density chips as what's in the picture appears to be unbalanced with "too much core and not enough VRAM for a pure compute card".
Nonetheless, Nvidia prepping a new line up of cards to the point where its being tested by external agencies is an interesting development when you consider that Nvidia CEO Jen-Hsun Huang announced that the company would not be launching any new GPUs for "a long time". Perplexing when you consider that the GeForce 10 series of cards have been around for two years, which has led some to speculate that the lack of next-generation GeForce cards has to do with the company overestimating Bitcoin demand. Perhaps this time Nvidia, would be able to answer the age-old question slash meme of a GPU being able to run Crysis maxed out.
Jokes aside, we won't be surprised to see Nvidia launch something this year, if for any reason but to stay relevant. There's proof of a launch in the works with Nvidia signing a deal with memory giant SK Hynix that could include GDDR6 memory supply for future GeForce cards.
Plus, cooling fan manufacturer Power Logic has stated it expects shipments to increase in the third quarter. The company makes fans used by global graphics card brands so it probably has an idea of Nvidia's roadmap, particularly with the rumoured GeForce GTX 1170 and 1180 GPUs.
Power Logic Chairman Hsu Wen-feng specifically called out the Asian Games 2018 in August as a possible tipping point for greater demand, perhaps hinting at when Nvidia may just announce its next-generation GPUs in August. Hopefully they won't be priced as badly as 10 series GPUs are right now, forcing Nvidia to sell its current range on its own website to undercut OEMs in markets like India.
If you're a fan of video games, check out Transition, Gadgets 360's gaming podcast. You can listen to it via Apple Podcasts or RSS, or just listen to this week's episode by hitting the play button below.


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All search engines consist of three main parts: a robot that gathers information as it crawls the World Wide Web, a database that stores information that the robot gathers, and a search tool that enables users to find information.
The regional directory is a database of local organizations in the United States of America, organized by category. Listed organizations include product suppliers, service providers, and non-profits.
Founded in 1983, Zeducorp is a professional consulting firm that offers web consulting and marketing solutions, including targeted website marketing and custom database development services.
A father whose teenager was murdered at the Peach Stand in Fort Mill earlier this year is now pushing for a law that would require medical professionals to report mental health issues to a database for gun sellers.
Robin Kanady. Fox News. Sat, 15 Dec 2018 01:15:41 GMT.


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As several recent articles, such as by Daniel Imhoff and Michael Dimrock, have clearly articulated, the most compelling reason to support labeling of genetically engineered (GE) foods is simply the right to know and control what we put into our bodies. We should not have to provide reasons or justifications to food companies, politicians, or scientists for our personal choices.
From an economic perspective, a properly functioning market-based system — the kind that companies love to tout when it suits their purposes — depends on the free flow of information. We seem to have no problem supporting choice for everything from cars to smart phones, but it seems that despite polls that consistently show that over 90 percent of our fellow citizens want labeling of GE foods, the companies and their supporters think that democratic choice should not extend to what we eat.
What about the cost of food?
Monsanto, DuPont, and the big food companies that are pouring big money into scaring consumers to vote against proposition 37 in California, know from surveys that their best argument is to convince voters that their food will become much more expensive if labeling goes forward. But let’s look at this claim more closely.
The cost of changing labels is trivial. It can be done at virtually no cost over time.
The cost of reformulating should also be minimal, because non-GE sources could be substituted for GE corn and soy and their products like corn starch, soy lecithin, and so on. This is different than where new types of ingredients, that may have different taste or texture, are substituted for previous ingredients.
However, substituting non-GE ingredients such as non-GE corn or corn starch for GE versions does impose a cost on food producers. Probably the main cost for labeling would be in segregating of GE from non-GE crops and food, and testing for GE contamination of non-GE food. This may be passed on to consumers.
But segregation or testing would not be needed for the large majority of corn and soy, which is used for livestock feed and ethanol production — now accounting for about 40 percent of our corn crop — because these uses are exempted by schemes like proposition 37 in California, or labeling in Europe. So probably no impact on the price of meat and milk would result from labeling.
That leaves the corn, soy, and canola and their byproducts that are used in our food. But the cost of these ingredients in processed foods, which make up the large majority of products that contain GE, is only a small fraction of the cost that consumers pay. Most of the retail price represents packaging, processing, advertising, transportation, profit, and other costs. For example, according to USDA, the corn in an 18-ounce box of cornflakes contributed only 4.9 cents to the price in 2007, during high corn prices. This was up from a 3.3 cent average for previous years — or a 1.6 cent increase per box — despite corn prices that had risen by about 50 percent. This amounted to only half a percent increase in the price of cornflakes at the time.
And GE ingredients make up a much smaller percentage of most processed foods. So for most of those foods, even if the cost of GE ingredients doubled — way more than is likely — the cost increase to consumers is likely a few percent or less.
You wouldn’t know it from the stink that opponents of GE labeling are making.
Tomorrow: Labeling and GE health and environmental risk.
Feature Image: Wikimedia Commons, Fir0002/Flagstaffphotos
Support from UCS members make work like this possible. Will you join us? Help UCS advance independent science for a healthy environment and a safer world.


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The 2010 SEMA Show is a specialty automotive product trade event. The SEMA Show is held at the Las Vegas Convention Center. The show ran November 2 through November 5, 2010. The show is a trade-only event and not open to the general public.
See news coverage of the SEMA Show 2010 below. Also check out our news coverage of 2009 SEMA Show.


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YAHOO: Eating Red Meat Twice Weekly May Up Cancer Risk Nearly 20%
“Days after the World Health Organization classified red meat as a probable human carcinogen, new research has strengthened the link between red meat consumption and cancer. A University of Oxford study discovered that participants who ate four servings of red meat a week were 42 percent more likely to develop colorectal cancer than those who had one serving or none at all. Participants who ate red meat at least twice a week were 18 percent more likely to develop colorectal cancer than vegetarians.“ Read full story.
Considering putting red meat back on the shelf? Check out our list of the Best Vegetarian Sources of Protein!
SCIENCE DAILY: Even A Little Is Too Much: One Junk Food Snack Triggers Signals Of Metabolic Disease
“We hate to ruin Thanksgiving, but a new report appearing in the Nov. 2015 issue of The FASEB Journal suggests that for some people, overindulgence at the dinner table or at snack time is enough to trigger signs of metabolic disease. Specifically, in some people just one high-calorie shake was enough to make people with metabolic disease worse, while in others, relatively short periods of overeating trigger the beginnings of metabolic disease. This information could be particularly useful for health care providers, nutritionists, and others who counsel people on disease prevention and eating habits.” Read full story.
NPR: Move Over, Yellow 6. More Natural Colors From Plants Are Coming
“From purple carrots and cabbage to grapes, the food industry is finding new ways to derive natural colors from plants. It's happening just as consumers are pushing Big Food to ditch artificial colors.’ Read full story.
REUTERS: Menus With Calorie Info May Not Change Long Term Habits
“Knowing how many calories are in a fast food chain's hamburger may not change people's eating habits, suggests a new study. New Yorkers exposed to calorie counts on fast food menus for years haven't changed how much or how often they eat at popular fast food restaurants, researchers report in Health Affairs.” Read full story.


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CSIRO researchers find Australia’s ‘diet personalities’
Uncontrollable food cravings are one of the main reasons Australians fall of the diet bandwagon new CSIRO research has found.
In conducting Australia’s largest-ever diet and personality survey, the CSIRO has discovered Australia’s biggest diet downfalls and what type of “diet personalities” Australians typically fall into.
Australia’s five diet personalities
According to the CSIRO, there is five different diet personality types in Australia.
- The Thinker (37 per cent of the population) – The most common diet type. Thinkers tend to over-analyse their progress and have unrealistic expectations. This can result in a sense of failure and derail a diet.
- The Craver (26 per cent) – One in four respondents is a Craver and finds it hard to resist temptation. More than half of all Cravers (58 per cent) are obese.
- The Socialiser (17 per cent) – Food and alcohol play a big role in the Socialiser’s active social life, so flexibility is key to maintaining a healthy diet.
- The Foodie (16 per cent) – Foodies are most likely to be a normal weight. Passionate about food, this type has the healthier diet with a high variety of vegetables in their diet. Alcohol makes up one-third of their discretionary food and beverage intake.
- The Freewheeler (4 per cent) – Spontaneous and impulsive eaters, Freewheelers have the poorest quality diet. With a higher proportion of men in this group, Freewheelers avoid planning meals and over half (55 per cent) are obese.
CSIRO Behavioural Scientist, Dr Sinead Golley, said knowing one’s diet personality could provide an explanation as to why past weight loss attempts have failed.
“One in five Cravers have tried to lose weight more than 25 times and they say that chocolate and confectionery are the biggest problem foods to resist,” Dr Golley said.
“On the other hand, people with the most common diet personality type – known as the ‘Thinker’ – tend to have high expectations and tend to be perfectionists, giving up when things get challenging.”
Diet personalities change across generations
Dr Golley said she and her researchers found some interesting food personality trends across generations.
“Baby boomers and the older, silent generation (aged 71 years and over) were more likely to be Socialisers and Foodies – suggesting lifestyle and social connections influence a person’s eating patterns at different stages of life – while millennials and Gen X were more likely to be Cravers, Thinkers and Freewheelers,” Dr Golley said.
“We also found younger people commonly used fitness trackers and apps to lose weight, while older generations turned to diet books and support groups.”
Anyone who wants to find out their diet personality can take an online quiz at www.diettypes.com.au
- Australia’s “below par” diet uncovered, 2016 CSIRO Healthy Diet Score released
- Two out of three Australians failing to eat their veggies, CSIRO Report
- Scurvy cases reported in Australia due to poor diets


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'Superfood' label sees Pomengranate sales soar
Last updated at 11:03 16 March 2007
Demand for the seed-filled fruit has grown by 76 per cent across all stores over the past year, figures from market analysts TNS show.
Pomegranates have overtaken blueberries as Britain's fastest growing superfood, according to Tesco.
The country's biggest supermarket chain sold 3.8 million pomegranates in the past year - an increase of two million on the previous year.
Consumer demand for the fruit was prompted by the launch of pre-packed pomegranate juice.
Tesco pomegranate buyer Kevin Patel said: "In the last few years there has been tremendous publicity surrounding pomegranates and their supposed health-giving qualities and that has led to the phenomenal rise in demand."
Other products dubbed "superfoods" because of their health benefits include spinach, broccoli, avocados and fish rich in omega 3 oils.
A single pomegranate provides around 40 per cent of the daily recommended vitamin C intake, Tesco said.
They are also a good source of antioxidants which can help prevent illness.
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Skilling today announced that it has hired David Hodge as Chief Marketing Officer. The new appointment is part of the fintech firm’s global expansion strategy
In his new role Hodge will report directly to Michael Kamerman, Skilling Group CEO. Skilling noted that the Hodge will help facilitate the company’s goal to scale up operations internationally.
Hodge brings more than two decades of experience. He has worked for established industry players such OANDA, where he served as Chief Revenue Officer, responsible for driving growth and digital transformation across retail, as well as premium sectors overseeing retail sales, relationship management and marketing.
Before that, Hodge worked as Chief Commercial Officer at CMC Markets. While there, he led the marketing, brand, digital, influencer, PR and sponsorship teams.
The appointment of Hodge follows a year of significant growth for Skilling with record increase in accounts and the launch of new partnership portal its own Skilling Copy platform.
David’s appointment as CMO comes at an exciting time for Skilling as we continue to expand our operations and services globally. Today’s traders have rapidly evolving needs and David’s experience will be instrumental in executing Skilling’s targeted growth strategy, solidifying our position as a leading and trusted next-generation fintech provider.
We look forward to welcoming David to Skilling as we strive to remain one step ahead and continually provide the best possible services for our growing customer base.
David Hodge, Chief Marketing Officer of Skilling, said:
David Hodge Source: LinkedIn
The financial landscape has undergone significant changes over the last few years, bringing new and exciting opportunities for investors and traders. The demand for agile, credible brokers with a diverse product range such as Skilling has never been greater, and I’m delighted to take on this role and to bring Skilling’s services to more traders globally.
Experienced writer and journalist, working in the global online trading sector, Steffy is the Editor of LeapRate. She has previous experience as a copywriter and has been with the company since January 2020. Steffy has a British and American Studies degree from St. Kliment Ochridski University in Sofia.


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Last night our BA Fashion students unveiled their final collections at the annual BA Fashion Press Show.
Presenting the collections of 41 students from across all five pathways (Womenswear, Menswear, Knit, Print and Fashion Design with Marketing), the show featured sculptural garments, written statements and surreal concepts, showcasing the diverse talent of our students. For the first time, the show took place in the fashion studios, bringing the guests right into the centre of Central Saint Martins’ fashion department and was live streamed via Vogue Italia for all to enjoy.
The evening saw the announcement of this year’s L’Oréal Professionnel Young Talent prize which was awarded to Paolina Russo for her innovative sportswear-inspired collection created from deconstructed athletic equipment with Matilda Söderberg, Simon Valer Dacsef and René Scheibenbauer all announced as joint runners-up.
View the gallery below for a quick glimpse of each collection:


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Most industrialists feel that a Sunday lockdown or night curfew is pointless as it only ruins businesses, hurts economy and doesn’t do much to curb covid-19
With a surge in covid cases, talks of ‘lockdown’, ‘night curfew’, ‘Sunday lockdown’ are doing the rounds again. While CM BS Yediyurappa warned of harsh measures if rules were not followed, former CM HD Kumaraswamy said that lockdown may be necessary to make people follow the rules. However, industrialists and citizens agree that the lockdown is sure to ruin the economy.
Perical M Sundar, President, Federation of Karnataka Chambers of Commerce and Industry said, “Businesses are still grappling with last year’s lockdown impact. We estimate that it had affected close to two million people who faced job losses or salary cuts. If we go for another lockdown or night curfew, this may have a terrible effect on the economy.”
Srinivas Asranna, ex-president of Peenya Industries Association, said that they were strictly against the lockdown. “After severe economic turmoil, if there is another lockdown, many industries will be shut permanently, leading to lakhs of people losing their jobs.”
“If you have a night lockdown from 8 pm or 9 pm, this would mean that all businesses have to shut shop by 6 pm because people have to come back home. Buses will be crowded, and physical distancing will go for a toss,” added Sundar.
Businessmen say that Sunday lockdowns were also of minimal use as it resulted in roads being blocked with barricades and shops forced to close but but had little effect in curbing covid.
A city doctor said, “Night curfews were primarily imposed to restrict people crowding in the evening. During the eight-day lockdown in July last year, there had been no drastic reduction in cases, and it turned out to be a lockdown only for namesake. It was the same for the Sunday lockdown.”
Health Minister Dr K Sudhakar said that if covid-appropriate behaviour was not followed, the government would have no option but to take tough measures. “Covid cases are increasing in the state. Decision will be taken after the PM’s video conference with Chief Ministers of all states scheduled for Wednesday,” he said.


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August 1, 2019
IRVINE, Calif. (Aug. 1, 2019) – Mazda North American Operations (MNAO) today reported total July sales of 23,292 vehicles, a decrease of 3.5 percent compared to July 2018. Sales through July saw a decrease of 13.9 percent, with 161,847 vehicles sold. With 25 selling days in July, compared to 24 the year prior, the company posted a decrease of 7.3 percent on a Daily Selling Rate (DSR) basis.
Mazda’s best-selling vehicle in the U.S., the CX-5, saw its best July ever with 13,391 vehicles sold, an increase of nearly 10 percent. This month also saw best-ever July results for CX-3 with 1,523 vehicles sold, an increase of nearly 10 percent. July sales of the MX-5 increased 31.4 percent compared to July 2018, with 1,109 vehicles sold.
CPO sales totaled 5,533 vehicles in July, an increase of 18 percent compared to July 2018. CPO sales through July increased 19 percent, with 35,787 vehicles sold.
Mazda Motor de Mexico (MMdM) reported July sales of 4,826 vehicles, a decrease of 4 percent compared to July last year. Sales through July increased 9 percent, with 34,184 vehicles sold.
Mazda North American Operations is headquartered in Irvine, California, and oversees the sales, marketing, parts and customer service support of Mazda vehicles in the United States and Mexico through nearly 700 dealers. Operations in Mexico are managed by Mazda Motor de Mexico in Mexico City. For more information on Mazda vehicles, including photography and B-roll, please visit the online Mazda media center at InsideMazda.MazdaUSA.com/Newsroom.


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First things first: if you’re a manufacturer or distributor and you don’t have some sort of mobile-friendly website right now, stop everything you’re doing and go make that happen. While only 57% of B2B companies reporting they had a mobile-enabled website in 2014, that number had jumped to 79% of B2B companies by 2016, and will only continue to increase.
But what are they doing on mobile?
Well first of all, the average American is spending five hours a day on their mobile device, checking their phone for updates or notifications an average of 47 times in just a single 24 hour period. These stats are even more impressive when you look at them across generations. When it comes to work, 84% of millennials consider their mobile device essential to their jobs, and even 76% of Gen X respondents said the same.
The many B2B personas have many different reasons to use their device as part of their jobs. Perhaps the construction site foreman needs to reorder electrical outlet boxes for their jobsite, or a procurement specialist is price comparing SKUs across a few distributors in between meetings. A Google study found that: “49% of B2B researchers who use their mobile devices for product research do so while at work. They’re comparing prices, reading about products, comparing feature sets, and contacting retailers.” They’re converting into sales as well, as Google notes: “purchase rates on mobile are up 22% in the past two years.”
Mobile websites vs. native mobile apps
While its true that smartphones, data connectivity, and browser features are making websites more powerful every day, there is still value in having a robust mobile web presence as well as a native mobile app (a branded app for your company for download on Apple, Android, and other devices).
Native mobile app capabilities and benefits include (but are not limited to):
- “Screen-share” or your logo on someone’s device homescreen for visibility and top-of-mind recognition
- App SEO, or showing up in Google search results with download to your app, and also showing up in App Store searches
- Device capability extensions, such as: location services, push notifications, and camera access for barcode scans
- Offline data access and experience for access in locations with limited data access
As well as many other benefits as devices and experiences continue to evolve. In the future we may even see manufacturers and distributors taking advantage of the latest digital trends, such as virtual or augmented reality to enable service techs or distributors to position replacement parts in a machine, or help with correct servicing instructions.
While mobile apps can be a bit more time-consuming and sometimes expensive to maintain, many manufacturers and distributors are beginning to reap the benefits of increased engagement and revenue from the new generation of B2B buyers with new expectations.
Want to read more? Check out our latest whitepaper
B2B on the Small Screen:


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Huawei wins award
Huawei was honoured the 5G World 2020 ‘Best Edge Computing Technology’ Award. — VNS Photo
At the 2020 5G World Summit hosted by Informal Tech, Huawei Deterministic Networking Oriented 5G MEC Solution won the Best Edge Computing award, which the company said was a testament to Huawei as a recognised player in the industry when it comes to innovation in 5G edge computing technologies and commercial practices.
More and more applications in 5G have differentiated and deterministic requirements. To this end, Huawei introduces the 5GDN, offering customers a predictable and differentiated service experience through manageable, verifiable, and deterministic virtual private mobile networks.
The 5G MEC solution is the key to the 5GDN. It uses ultra-high-performance heterogeneous computing hardware to establish intelligent connections, so as to satisfy differentiated and deterministic requirements from vertical industries. Thanks to the MEC solution, carriers can provide a wide variety of new business at the network edge and steer digital transformation towards a new and exciting world.
Assessing the Vietnamese market, a representative of Huawei said their business in Viet Nam was still growing well. Viet Nam is a country with a large population and high ratio of young people. Moreover, Viet Nam is a developing country and is in the process of industrialisation and modernisation, making a need for technological infrastructure according to the representative. — VNS
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Opportunities ahead as int’l trade continues post-pandemic recovery


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Edison Properties, which provides parking, storage and office space across New York and New Jersey, has hired BerlinRosen to handle PR as the states begin to reopen their economies.
The agency will work to amplify Edison as an industry leader across all areas of its portfolio, which includes Edison ParkFast, Manhattan Mini Storage, Ironside Newark, Hippodrome NYC, Workspace Offices, ElevatedNY and The Ludlow.
In addition to supporting communications for the company’s businesses as they plan for COVID-19 recovery, BerlinRosen will collaborate with Edison on launching campaigns, announcing lease signings, sharing other development activity and creating special events.
“BerlinRosen will be a strong addition to our team as we seek to consolidate public relations activities with one partner to help us reach both consumer and business audiences,” said Edison Properties VP, marketing Jason Morros.
BerlinRosen’s roster of real estate clients also includes SL Green, Silverstein Properties, Brookfield Properties, Boston Seaport and the Wythe Hotel.


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Construction supplies flow more freely, but the price of materials could affect construction plans for 2023, some construction workers have warned.
A new report shows that building material prices are the biggest concern for UK builders in 2023.
The shortage of building materials over the past two years appears to have eased,
but prices remain high across a range of materials.
What affects not only merchants but also those who undertake construction or renovation projects in 2023.
An ElectricalDirect survey of 500 builders and tradesmen found material prices to be the biggest challenge at the start of the New Year,
which was chosen by 46% of respondents.
The number of workers citing this as a concern has doubled from 23% in 2023,
with the cost of living crisis now deepening across the UK.
The reasons for the high prices of building materials
The cost of building materials has increased since the beginning of 2021,
following the impact of the pandemic and the UK’s official departure from the European Union,
which has led to shortages of materials and problems with shipping materials to the UK.
This year, costs have continued to rise amid the highest inflation rate in 40 years, and are expected to rise to 18% in 2023.
The Construction Leadership Council (CLC) said in November that inflationary pressures represented the main challenge for productive construction companies.
And energy-intensive products such as glass, concrete, cement, PIR, plasterboard, and bricks.
At the same time, skyrocketing energy prices have put pressure on construction companies because industries that produce these energy-intensive products pass on the impact of higher prices.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine caused major disruption to supply chains.
The building materials and components statistics report also revealed that the monthly material costs increased by 15% in October compared to last year.
Although the monthly costs decreased by 0.2%.
Building materials that have risen in price
These are some of the items that are still affected:
Aggregates (gravel, sand, clay and kaolin), which BEIS says increased by 56% year-on-year.
Bricks, Last November, brick maker Fonterra warned its customers to prepare for a fourth spike in brick prices within 12 months.
Timber, CLC said in November that prices remain high across Europe due to sustained demand.
Reinforced concrete, the EY Item Club warned in September that cement prices will continue to rise in the coming months.
How might your project be affected?
A study revealed another major concern among construction companies:
nearly 25% are concerned about a shortage of skilled workers in their sectors.
This was echoed elsewhere, as a Building Engineering Business Survey in December,
supported by trade bodies including the Confederation of Electrical Contractors,
revealed that just over half of UK engineering services cited staff shortages as their number one or number two concern,
while 52% highlighted a lack of electrical skills as a concern.
Rob Driscoll, Director of Legal and Commercial Affairs at the Egyptian Chefs Association, said:
“Persistent labor shortages and growing concerns about offering fixed-price contracts continue to keep business owners up at night.”
And earlier this year, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) reported that 25% of construction work in the UK was short of skilled labour.
The Office for National Statistics also says there are now nearly 244,000 fewer workers in the construction sector than there were three years ago.
This is attributed to workers returning to the EU and retiring early.
This shortage particularly affects small and medium business builders;
Because it takes at least three years to train a skilled trader.
If you are planning or in the middle of construction work,
planning as much as possible in advance is pivotal to ensuring that you are not affected by price increases.
CLC advises self-builders to work closely with their supply chain,
communicating your requirements early with suppliers, distributors and builder dealers.
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According to a report tabled in Parliament on Wednesday, the ministry approved the purchase of 26,500 pairs of shoes but records show that a supplier was indeed paid Sh267.9 million for 78,000 pairs of footwear.
“A physical check of the condition of shoes being used by the police across the country revealed a wanting situation as some officers use worn-out shoes while others have opted to buy shoes from various vendors, contrary to dress regulations for police officers,” Mr Ouko said.
The interior department officials when asked to explain the blown up figures, said that an additional 10,000 trainee officers made it necessary to procure more shoes.
The auditor general however found that 4,000 trainees were at the Kenya Police Training College in Kiganjo and 2,000 more at the General Service Unit.
There were however 4,000 trainees at the Administration Police Training College but their shoes paid for separately.
He also noted that 57 field units had asked for 12,852 pairs of shoes but only received 3,763 pairs.
In the report that will be examined by the National Assembly’s Public Accounts Committee, the auditor also notes that motorcycles were bought at a cost Sh866.2 million but were interestingly not in the ministry’s procurement plan.
The auditors say that 4,420 motorcycles were purchased but were overpriced and their contract, expired.
2,420 of the motorcycles were bought at Sh210,000 each leaving out a deal that could have seen one go for Sh161,733.
Auditors concluded that there was a loss of Sh116.8 million from the overpricing.
The report also indicates that the records in Nairobi were forged.
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ATLANTA — Apparel sales helped save snowsports specialty stores this year, according to a retail audit by the SnowSports Industries America (SIA) trade group.
“This season was a weather-driven roller coaster, and equipment sales suffered from it,” said Kelly Davis, research manager for SIA. “But apparel sales bolstered the market. At season’s end, total dollar sales in specialty stores were down by just one percent compared to last season.”
Specialty stores finished the August through March selling season with $1.8 billion in sales, buoyed by strong early and late season sales in the East and Midwest and consistently strong sales in the Rockies and West.
Apparel sales rose 8 percent during the season, while equipment sales fell 9 percent in specialty stores. The advantage of apparel, the SIA said in its report, is that “it appeals to a much broader customer base and is as likely to be seen in the checkout lines as it is in the lift lines. Apparel is fashionable and people are constantly updating their wardrobes to keep up with the times and/or Jones.”
Unit sales of softshell parkas rose 33 percent and fleece tops rose 34 percent. Dollar sales for women’s apparel in specialty stores surged 83 percent from $140 million to $285 million, while sales for men’s apparel rose 5 percent.


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Focus on subscriptions allows customers to leverage scalability of software suites
3D modeling software maker Autodesk next week is rolling out pay-as-you-go subscriptions for most of its design, engineering and entertainment suites.
The San Rafael, Calif.-based company said starting September 16, customers, for the first time, can buy access to several of its desktop software suites on a monthly, quarterly or annual basis with access to select Autodesk 360 cloud services and basic support. Autodesk said it will still sell its traditional, conventional licenses.
The subscription economy
Software as a service (SaaS), also referred to as “on-demand software,” is becoming a standard business model for many software developers looking to keep and lure more customers, who may be more willing to pay smaller incremental subscription, or rental, charges then thousands of dollars for an upfront license.
Autodesk sells SaaS to share and collaborate on architectural and engineering projects, among others, involving CAD modeling with 3D laser scan data and digital imagery, 2D CAD drawings, and both 3D and 2D meshes, as well as video, animations and other information. About 70 percent of Autodesk customers are already on a subscription plan.
Late last month, Autodesk reported second quarter sales of its flagship AutoCAD software used by designers, engineers and architects, suffered an 11 percent drop to $289 million, pushing overall quarterly revenue down 1.2 percent to $561.7 million.
But, sales from the company’s AEC business segment increased 9 percent to $177 million, building on a 4 percent increase in first quarter revenue for AEC and an 18 percent increase for the segment in FY2013. Revenue from its Suites segment, which provide software platforms combining desktop and cloud-based services, increased 18 percent to $193 million.
VIDEO: Autodesk launches pay as you go software: The Blind Date
Q2 license revenue down, subscription sales up
Autodesk reported license and other revenue fell 6.2 percent to $313.2 million in the second quarter, while subscription revenue was up 5.9 percent to $248.5 million.
“People are increasingly seeking out experiences with less financial or time investment, and consuming products and services through renting, sharing and purchasing subscriptions,” the company said in a statement.
For example, Autodesk’s Product Design Suite Premium 3D modeling software would cost $3,750 a year under the new subscription plan. That’s less than half the one-time price of $8,620 to permanently own the product, the company said.
“We expect rental plans to be attractive across all the industries we serve, especially for freelancers, startups or businesses that are project-based in nature,” said Andrew Anagnost, Autodesk senior vice president of industry strategy and marketing. The company said the new subscription plans can be started and stopped, and can be resumed without penalty.
Access over ownership
“We’re in a moment in which access to goods, services, and talent is going to triumph over the ownership of them,” said Lisa Gansky, author of “The Mesh: Why the Future of Business Is Sharing.”
The company forecast adjusted earnings of $0.36 to $0.40 per share for the third quarter on revenue of $540 million to $555 million, that’s less than analysts’ estimates of $0.50 and $581 million.
For the year, Autodesk projects revenue to reach nearly $2.4 billion, up about 3 percent, but analysts are reportedly predicting a small decline in revenue for the current fiscal year to $2.3 billion.
“The challenging dynamics within some of the end-markets that we serve has led us to adjust our growth assumptions,” said Autodesk CFO Mark Hawkins.
Shares of Autodesk closed Tuesday at $38.08. The stock is up just over 5 percent for the year with a 52-week price range of $30.20-$41.72. Autodesk’s market cap is $8.5 billion and P/E ratio is 39.46.
Rethinking the business model
“It’s no secret; it has been a challenging time to be in the visual effects business,” said Will Cohen, CEO of U.K.-based VFX start-up Milk. “Everyone needs to rethink the business model, and Autodesk launching rental plans will really help change the industry. Having scalability – the flexibility to easily ramp up or back depending on the project – means we can better compete in the modern visual effects industry.”
New rental plans apply to products including Autodesk:
- AutoCAD Design Suite
- AutoCAD Inventor LT Suite
- AutoCAD Revit LT Suite
- Building Design Suite
- Entertainment Creation Suite
- Factory Design Suite
- Infrastructure Design Suite
- Plant Design Suite
- Product Design Suite
- 3ds Max
- Maya LT
Availability varies by country. Click here for more info.


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Dole is one of the World’s biggest producers of bananas and pineapples. Greenyard was set up 2015 as a result of the merger of Greenyard Foods, Univeg and Peatinvest.
The stock market listed company supplies fresh fruit and vegetables, frozen fruit and veg, canned fruit and vegetable products, flowers, plants and substrates.
Its customers include the biggest supermarket chains in Europe. Greenyard has more than 9,000 employees in 25 countries worldwide and has an annual turnover of around 4.25 billion euro. The Deprez family controls 49.3% of its shares.
On Monday it emerged that Greenyard is involved in talks with Dole about a possible takeover. At first the company refused to comment on the talks. However, today Greenyard has conceded that "well-advanced negotiations are under way”.
In a statement the company that is led by Hein Deprez said "However, at the moment no binding agreement has been reached and there is no guarantee that the talks will result in a transaction between the two companies.
Greenyard adds that it has the funds to complete the deal. If the deal is completed Hein Deprez will become the world’s biggest fruit and vegetable trader.


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Zimbabwe: Telecoms Firms Embrace Innovation to Survive
Thursday, August 7, 2014
AS technological convergence redefines business models across nearly every industry, mobile telecommunications companies have shown a growing appetite for innovation in order to survive and thrive in a fast-paced and unpredictable environment. This year alone the country’s three mobile telecommunication companies Econet, Telecel and NetOne have launched a combined 12 new products in an attempt to increase revenue as mobile phone businesses go beyond just voice.
Telecel Zimbabwe last month launched its Telecash gold card, a debit card which can be used to pay for goods and services at any of the more than 5 000 ZimSwitch points of sale across the country. Announcing the introduction of the Telecash gold card, Telecel mobile financial services director Nkosinathi Ncube, said the debit card was a first from a mobile money transfer service provider.
The card can be used to pay for groceries, DSTV subscriptions, restaurant and hotel bills, and many other things. It can also be used to withdraw cash at ZimSwitch automated teller machines (ATMs). “Since we launched Telecash we have been looking at ways of broadening the offering. When we launched we started with only the basics such as sending and receiving money but now we are coming up with more functionalities,” said Ncube.


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The government is going after an industry that has long been hiding in the shadows, collecting your personal information and selling it for profit without your knowledge -- the data broker business.
The Federal Trade Commission is investigating how nine data brokers obtain and use information about consumers, the agency said Tuesday.
Data brokers, which collect and sell consumers' personal information, came under fire earlier this year when the FTC pushed the industry to have more transparency in their business practices. Now, the agency is taking further action by asking nine companies to disclose details regarding where they get consumer information, how they share that data and how they are allowing consumers to access their own information that is being sold.
Currently, data brokers are not required by law to disclose to consumers what information they obtain or how they are using it. Consumers don't even have the opportunity to correct misinformation that may be collected about them.
Yet data brokers sell the information they harvest about consumers—everything from online and offline behavior to household incomes and shopping habits—to different companies in various industries, including marketing companies.
While there are laws that regulate how data collected by these brokers are used in some cases, including employment and insurance instances, there is little regulation in tracking consumer behavior.
"Consumers are often unaware of the existence of data brokers as well as the purposes for which they collect and use consumers' data," the FTC said in its statement posted on its website. "This lack of transparency also means that even when data brokers offer consumers the ability to access their data, or provide other tools, many consumers do not know how to exercise this right."
Consumers may have never heard of data brokers like Acxiom, but they have probably heard of some of their partners.
According to the Acxiom's website, it partners with companies including Yahoo, Google and Microsoft to help its clients better target consumers. And Datalogix partnered with Facebook earlier this year to track effectiveness of ads on the social site.
Acxiom and Corelogic both said in statements to CNBC that they look forward to cooperating with the FTC. The other seven companies being investigated did not immediately respond to a request for comment.


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NEW YORK (Aug. 11, 2011) — Singapore-based tire wholesaler Omni United (S) Pte. Ltd. is launching a limited-edition pink sidewalled Radar-brand passenger tire to support its “Mobilizing Hope” campaign to raise funds for the Breast Cancer Research Foundation (BCRF).
Omni United's Radar brand has been donating 25 cents for every tire sold to BCRF since May to raise a committed minimum of $250,000. Its goal is to raise $1 million by May 2012.
Radar's first product specifically designed to support this campaign will be a limited edition of its RPX 900 tire, an all-season, high-performance, eco-friendly tire. The Limited Edition has all the features of the RPX900 plus the novelty of a pink sidewall, highlighting the emblematic pink color of the fight against breast cancer.
The tire will have a retail price in the range of $70-$110 and is expected to be available during the fourth quarter in the U.S.
“This is a more visible way to support our Mobilizing Hope campaign to benefit the activities of BCRF,” said G.S. Sareen, president and CEO of Omni United. “We are delighted to be able to develop this limited edition of one of our best selling tires, the RPX900, to reinforce our commitment to supporting breast cancer research.”
Omni United is a distributor of the Radar, Goodride, Roadlux and Corsa brands.


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Galaxy S3 refresh coming soon, what’s the point of a Galaxy S4 mini?
The Galaxy S4 will be unveiled in two days, but that’s not the only new smartphone Samsung will launch this year. The company is rumored to also release a refreshed Galaxy S3 model that will offer certain improved specs, which only makes us wonder why make a Galaxy S4 mini in the first place?
The new Galaxy S3 version will reportedly feature a better display, wireless charging and a larger 2400mAh battery. The news comes from Russian mobile blogger Eldar Murtazin, famous for his previous leaks related to various mobile products, although he’s not always right in his predictions.
Of course, launching a new Galaxy S3 version, maybe an S3 Plus model, would certainly be something that Samsung would do. After all, the company is still milking the Galaxy S2 cash cow with various updated models.
But since it started making mini models based on the flagship Galaxy S version last year as well, why not rebrand this rumored Galaxy S3 refresh as a Galaxy S4 mini. Won’t the Galaxy S3 basically become a smaller, cheaper version of the Galaxy S4 as soon as the latter starts selling?
We have no idea when this Galaxy S3 refresh will be launched, or how much it will cost once it’s available, but we’ll certainly keep you updated on this particular product in case it does become real.
As for the Galaxy S4 mini, it’s not yet clear whether the device will be unveiled on Thursday or only later this year.


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EU-Canada trade deal delayed by agriculture dispute
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The row could delay a deal for several weeks, the officials said, threatening European efforts to launch separate trade negotiations with the United States, which is waiting to see how far the EU will open up its markets.
“They still have a way to go. Agriculture is the big sticking point,” an industry source said.
Talks on a Canadian-EU trade deal began in 2009, and an agreement would be the EU’s first with a country from the G7 club of major economies and could be worth roughly $28 billion from extra economic activity.
The EU remains opposed to increasing quotas of imported beef and pork from Canada, while Ottawa does not want to allow increased imports of EU dairy products, eggs and poultry.
“Europeans can’t possibly give the amount of beef the Canadians are asking for. The Canadians are much more ambitious on the beef ask,” the same industry source said.
The two had hoped to conclude a deal during talks between the Canadian and EU trade ministers this week in Canada, covering issues from pharmaceutical patents to energy, but sources say that is not now possible.
Increasing access to the Canadian dairy market was particularly important for the EU side, which expects prices to fall and European producers to become more competitive after the phase-out of a milk quota system in 2015.
The EU is the largest producer of milk in the world.
Canada and the EU have also been involved in a separate debate over how to classify oil produced from tar sands under the EU’s Fuel Quality Directive, which Canada says are unfairly labelled as more polluting.
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