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As the decade draws to a close, ExchangeWire has invited thought leaders from across the industry to share their predictions and insight into what 2020 will hold for the ad tech and martech industries. Under the spotlight today is in-game advertising, where marketers are increasingly realising the value in the medium as a result of a diverse and engaged audience, esports growing at a phenomenal rate, and implementation of sophisticated technology solutions.
The stats and headlines continue to pour in - gaming represents a big opportunity for marketers. And yet, adoption remains, at best, uneven. That said, we’ll see a number of shifts going into 2020 where game platforms will be making strategic moves to that woo even the most reluctant brands:
Relentlessly player-first philosophies: Context matters, and the consumer experience matters. This has become all the more apparent as consumers have been increasingly exposed to the “toll” they pay to social networks for utilisation of these services by merit of breaches of trust or personal data. Game studios, particularly ones with robust direct-to-consumer strategies, must see disruptive ad-experiences as non-starters, as having a healthy player base is paramount.
Naturalistic integrations: Being player first has a natural outcome of in-game ads continuing to wax more naturalistically integrated into the game experience. Gone are the days of clumsy and messy brand takeovers being something players can or should put up with, nor should game studios be willing to diminish their valuable IP in that way. Gaming is increasingly an entertainment sector tantamount with movies or TV in its place within the cultural zeitgeist – game studios will increasingly be invested in the concept of building franchises with a loyal consumer base. Doing so can pay dividends for both the brands and game studios, as an engaged fanbase is one that is much more likely to pay attention to brand messages.
Full portfolio plays: Perhaps one of the biggest barriers for brands into gaming is that it is a complicated space. With the rising proliferation of esports, though providing some of the most fertile ground for brand messages, never has in-game advertising been more daunting. However, game companies will increasingly leverage opportunities to bring the full heft of their portfolios – not just the esports, but the games the esports are played within, etc. – to bring opportunities to market that introduce multiple touchpoints to marketers for one of the most under-leveraged audiences in advertising, game enthusiasts.
Jonathan Stringfield, VP of marketing, measurement and insights, Activision Blizzard Media
In the last decade, gaming has changed — and so have the gamers. Gaming has become more immersive, enriching, and personalised. As a result, the advertising of the future will have to mirror those developments. Take a look at any advertising landscape and you will notice the trend: the era of blind promotions is behind us. We are now looking towards a future of ultra-targeted messaging and dynamic creative optimisation. This is where in-game advertising is king.
I’m excited to watch the new decade bring us totally immersive and custom in-game experiences on the back of the continuous adoption of battle-tested digital advertising standards — viewability, programmatic capabilities, brand safety, and others. “Omnichannel” is the buzzword for brands that want to use all possible touchpoints to reach their customers and connect their online and offline interactions. In-game advertising is definitely the go-to channel for this.
The introduction of 5G will provide an extra boost by empowering advertisers to leverage targeting options for in-game advertising. 5G will also enable brands to find new channels to connect with their audiences and procure better-quality data while taking into consideration the global data minimisation trend. As 2020 approaches, technological developments continue to speed up, and gaming grows much bigger than before, I expect “in-game popularisation” to be the catchphrase of the year.
Natalia Vasilyeva, VP Marketing, Anzu.io
In-game advertising as a monetisation model continues to grow rapidly across mobile gaming clients, especially in the casual and hyper-casual genres. We anticipate this will push developers to focus on improving user experience.
Brands will also continue to increase in-app marketing spend, due to changes in online data privacy, the advent of 5G, increased time spent playing games, and the ever-expanding types of audiences that play games globally.
One of the main challenges to in-app advertising for developers is that ad networks typically pay more slowly than Google or Apple. This can create constraints on working capital, slow down business growth, and impact how quickly developers can re-invest revenue into UA campaigns. In fact, it wouldn't be surprising if ad networks increased their payment terms even further as media agencies and brands move to net 90, or even net 120 days as standard.
A shift from in-app purchases towards ad monetisation will also naturally lead to a lower LTV for most games. In order to reduce the decline in LTV, publishers will need to increase session duration, as well as retention rates. These can only be achieved by improving game quality and design.
If LTV does decline, then UA will become even more important for gaming businesses. Developers will need to improve their existing ad campaigns, as well as experiment with new channels to maintain the profitability and scale of their UA efforts.
2020 will be an interesting year for ad-funded game developers and their partners. Ultimately, these trends should lead to improvements across the ecosystem, especially for end users.
Sergei Kovalenko, CEO, Braavo Capital
Gaming is on a positive trajectory. The popularity of free-to-play games such as Fortnite – offering access to more than 250 million users – has attracted the attention of marketers, and even has the potential to emerge as a new social network for certain demographics to play games but also socialise with their peers. For marketers, gaming presents a variety of opportunities – which previously may have been overlooked – and should be considered a strategic component of omnichannel campaigns.
The premium environment offered within gaming has potential to deliver high levels of engagement with a vast, and growing audience. Its untapped potential to reach specific demographics through immersive in-game ads and video in high-performing mobile environments can deliver greater brand awareness for a multitude of brand advertisers.
To achieve scale with key demographics beyond 2020, audience perception must be addressed. To widen the appeal and combat misconceptions, "gaming" could be rebranded as "virtual environments". These virtual environments have the ability to mimic real-life advertising, and can take inspiration from digital out-of-home learnings, to generate an outcome when a direct path to purchase isn’t possible and create a truly engaging experience for the user.
Chris Hardiman, product director, Xaxis
In-game advertising has the opportunity to reach millions of focused and engaged gamers, but as an increasing number of brands look to move their digital ad spend in-game, measuring ROI will be called into question and become an understandable area of focus.
To date, in-game advertising has been classified as a subset of digital advertising, subject to the same performance metrics. But measuring an in-game ad against the same success criteria as online banner ads, for example, falls short of reflecting its true impact.
2020 will be the year that in-game advertising measurement comes of age. We’ll see a new framework emerge, focusing on metrics such as viewability, visual engagement and brand recall. As a result, the industry will be able to identify where the premium ad placements are in-game and refine creative guidelines by genre, i.e. for football titles, racing titles, etc, and in turn, programmatic pricing structures will evolve, boosting ROI.
By defining a bespoke measurement approach for in-game advertising, and benchmarking against digital browsing norms, brands will be able to accurately track and improve the performance of their in-game ads, and effectively reach an audience of consumers rapidly growing in significance.
James Draper, CEO, Bidstack
The growth of hyper-casual gaming apps (games that rely primarily on in-app advertising for revenue) has seen downloads surging 150%, but due to rising competition, cost per impressions (CPIs) have increased, leading to advertisers diversifying their monetisation strategy. While the current data might suggest next year will be one in which in-app ads dominate, we can in fact expect a pivot from the industry as it moves to a hybrid model that seeks to drive revenue both through in-app ads and in-app purchases.
Retargeting is the other logical response – generating additional revenue from existing paying users to address the fact that 90-95% of gamers are currently not making in-app purchases. Currently, retargeting is surprisingly uncommon among gaming apps given that it has been shown to generate revenue uplift of over 50% among paying users in this category, more than double the industry average. We can surely expect the industry to take steps to realise the untapped opportunities this offers next year.
Paul Wright, managing director for UK, France & ME, AppsFlyer
While in-game advertising and the game industry as a whole has seen consistent growth for the last few years, 2019 was an incredibly exciting year for the sector, with technological innovation in the form of tools for better measurement and automation across both the monetisation and user acquisition sides, and an explosion in the importance and impact of interactive creatives.
From a gametech perspective, the year saw the launch of tools for true monetisation A/B testing, more cost-effective and targeted cross-promotion and, arguably most importantly, the launch of in-app bidding solutions from most of the major industry players.
On the creative side, we saw a massive spike in average IPM (install per thousand impressions), powered on the one hand by increased investment in creative innovation and optimisation, but also by increasingly aggressive creative tactics like click-to-store mechanisms and deceptive gameplay. In a world of increasing automation across the board, creative remains one of the last levers available giving user acquisition campaigns an edge, but abusing that power will ruin the trust of users in the long-term, ultimately resulting in lower performance across the board.
Having said this, we expect to see investment in creative continue to scale up in 2020, where the core of creative innovation will be a tighter combination of human creativity and data. Iterations and improvements will increasingly be carried out together with a machine, where in-ad data and external measurements will connect the dots and lead the creative change. The new brainstorm will be together with a machine.
Finally, 2019 was the year we saw the monetisation and marketing elements of a given game business work much more closely together, if not combine entirely. With one person or team overseeing game growth as a whole, studios or publishers are empowered to leverage both sides of their business to accelerate business success.
Dan Greenberg, chief design officer, ironSource
Augmented Reality (AR) isn’t a new concept, but it’s very much exploded in popularity in the last few years, with increased use on various social media platforms, and the massive success of Nintendo’s “Pokemon Go!” mobile gaming app. Up until recently AR experiences required apps to deliver them, but with the emergence of WebAR technology, that’s all changing. WebAR allows users to have AR experiences directly via a web browser, without the need for a specific app,and it’s easily run across browsers on Android, iOS, Windows or Mac systems. WebAR provides the advertising ecosystem with a great new playground to reach users with more immersive branding experiences, but as AR ads grow in both exposure and profitability, it won’t take long for cyber criminals to start exploiting the user interaction, either.
Third party WebAR ad delivery is already being employed by ad networks and exchanges, and as WebAR is usually delivered via URLs, it’s entirely possible to trick a user into clicking a call to action button in an AR ad that redirects them to a malicious landing page, or click on a special offer that implements a phishing attack.
Bryan Taylor, sales manager, Adsecure


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SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- A coalition of health, nutrition and education professionals -- and dairy producers and processors -- has released statistics showing California's controversial milk prices have dropped over the past year.
id in September last year. The figures, compiled by the California Department of Food and Agriculture, showed that all varieties of milk in California were selling for less than they were at the same time last year, an estimated savings of more than $50 million, the group stated.
The greatest savings were found in 1% milk, which saw prices drop from an average of $2.91 a gallon in September 1999 to $2.73 a year later, a savings of 18 cents. This was followed by whole and skim milk, which saw prices drop 8 cents per gallon ($2.65 to $2.57 and $2.54 to $2.46, respectively).
Two-percent milk experienced the lowest drop in price, totaling 6 cents, from $2.58 to $2.52 during the one-year period, the figures show.
Los Angeles consumers have seen some of the biggest decreases, said CNM officials. A gallon of 1% lowfat milk in L.A. was averaging $2.95 per gallon in September last year, compared to $2.74 in September this year -- a decrease of 21 cents. Similarly, Bay Area consumers have also benefited from the decline in prices with a matching 21-cent decrease in the 1% lowfat milk variety from a year ago.
But Elisa Odabashian, policy analyst for Consumers Union, headquartered in Yonkers, N.Y., told SN she's noticed little, if any difference, in retail milk prices.
"Nielsen figures have always seemed extremely low compared to our own studies," she said, noting that she recently paid $3.99 for a gallon of whole milk at a supermarket in the Bay Area of San Francisco, where the organization's West Coast office is located.
Odabashian, whose group has waged a long-running battle for lower retail milk prices, also questioned the California Department of Food and Agriculture's figures.
"I think they're skewed because CDFA allows retailers to include their '2-for-1' prices as a single gallon, diluting the real numbers," she said, referring to popular buy-one, get-one-free deals offered by the state's retailers on fluid milk gallons.
CNM officials also cited figures showing that California milk prices are well below U.S. average prices. For example, a gallon of whole milk had a nationwide average price of $2.68 in September 2000, while the typical price in California was $2.57.
The margin was less for 2% and skim milk. But, for 1% product, prices were actually higher here, $2.73, versus a national average price of $2.57.

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Vital Signs: The State of the Markets is a quarterly overview of key trends and market conditions in the capital markets in which PBMares is active and engaged. Download our key takeaways for the 4th Quarter of 2020.
The Covid-19 pandemic has disrupted most economic sectors worldwide prompting governments to enact emergency stimulus measures to help businesses navigate the situation.
The rapid spread of Covid-19 has sparked a health and economic crisis affecting most industries worldwide. In the hospitality industry, the impact has been particularly sudden and severe.


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Midscale brands appeal to developers and operators, as well as consumers, because they’re adaptable and dependable, while being flexible enough to meet the technology needs of consumers.
“Most midscale hotels are being built out of the core — it’s more cost effective and has lower land costs. The ROI window has a quicker turnaround. Building a midscale is ‘cookie cutter;’ it’s not complicated,” observes Justin Meffe, vice-president of Operations, Monte Carlo Hotel Motel Innternational.
Fraser Macdonald, senior analyst at Toronto-based Colliers International Hotels, notes that within the midscale spectrum, there are opportunities to “build variety” and “operate mortgages,” while the reduced services offered involve fewer staff, which equals reduced costs for operators.
Monique Rosszell, managing director, HVS, agrees, saying “full-service hotels have more costs” and for midscale “the bottom line on a percentage basis is higher.” She adds that midscale “doesn’t require the expertise that full-service needs.” Rosszell also notes, midscale hotels are “more appealing to developers [as they require] less capital investment, which means easier financing.”
Midscale hotels are a dependable investment. “For the Canadian hotel industry, research from Cushman & Wakefield shows that, as asset values have risen, new construction may be a more appealing option. New development opportunities, like Tru by Hilton properties, offer the ability to enter markets with new and modern products, which developers are finding will often outperform their competitive set,” explains Alexandra Jartiz, global head of Tru by Hilton.
Consumers are attracted to midscale hotels precisely because they offer fewer, but specific, services that particular consumers value deeply, such as being dependable for offering efficiency and cost effectiveness.
Measuring Service Quality in Mid-scale Hotels — an American study published in the International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management in 2015 — stressed the importance of understanding what individual consumers value in a midscale hotel’s services, such as “service product and service environment” over “service delivery.” The researchers concluded that “midscale operators and developers may want to continue to focus on delivering a wider range of services than their guests anticipate.” Meffe believes the corporate traveller “drives” the services midscale brands offer. “They are cognizant of what they spend. [They want] efficiency, cleanliness and a healthy breakfast” as well as an “office away from the office.” Midscale hotels, he adds, “cater to white-collar corporate” clients who want easy access to HQ and [their] clients,” which means midscale hotels tend to be located away from urban cores.
Meffe and Macdonald agree lobbies in midscale hotels are adapting to customer needs. Meffe notes “some brands are being developed with game-changing lobbies with a fully open concept [with services] all in one space.”
According to J. D. Power’s 2017 North American Hotel Guest Satisfaction Index Study, hotel guests report higher satisfaction when apps and functionality are a part of their hotel experience. Rosszell also notes the significance of millennials to the midscale segment. “They don’t want the bells and whistles that baby boomers wanted.” They’re “autonomous,” using their phones to choose their rooms, check in and as room keys. Not unlike white-collar corporate clients, millennials, Rosszell notes, want simplicity, efficiency and smaller rooms.
Examples of these consumer demands being met are found in the offerings of IHG and Tru by Hilton. IHG’s presence in Canada now includes “12 new properties opening next year and 31 additional hotels in the pipeline,” says Jonathan Lund, regional vice-president, Franchise Performance Support, Canada, IHG. Its Avid hotels are designed for the midscale segment with “14 million potential customers.” Lund describes these guests as the “principled everyday traveller” who is “honest and practical…comfortable relying on themselves and value the basics done exceptionally well.” To meet these consumers’ needs, Avid’s key offerings include efficient and inviting public spaces that allow for work or socializing. Technology is also featured in the offerings. Lund notes a “next-generation reservation system” along with “IHG Connect-enhanced Wi-Fi/bandwidth technology” and the ability for guests to “stream content from their smart devices to in-room TVs” are part of what consumers can expect.
As Jartiz explains, offerings for Tru include an emphasis on technology. The hotel will offer “mobile check-in, digital key, free Wi-Fi, remote printing, a social-media wall, lobby tablets and easily accessible outlets.”
Lund says companies continue to rollout new brands within the midscale segment because “[IHG’s] extensive research showed there is a vastly underserved segment of midscale travellers who generate significant revenue. There is a need for hotels that deliver a superior guest experience at this price point. For owners and developers, we are targeting all-in build cost to be $85,000 to $90,000 per key.”
“We’re seeing a strong desire for this type of hotel in Canada,” Jartiz says. “As a result, [Canada is] home to our first international-development deals [for Tru]. The next few years will see a growth of midscale brands within Canada.” As of October 2017, Hilton had signed deals for three Tru by Hilton properties in Canada — the 92-room Tru by Hilton Edmonton-Windermere, developed by Rohan Investments Inc. (opening 2018); the 120-room Tru by Hilton Markham, developed by Hanisha Inc. and Lodson Investments Corp. (opening 2019); and the 95-room Tru by Hilton Kingston, developed by Canada Ltd. (opening 2019). Citing Smith Travel Research (STR) data, Rosszell comments that of recently opened hotels in Canada, 41.7 per cent are upper-midscale and midscale. Rosszell also notes STR’s four-year projection of construction and planning indicates this segment represents 37 per cent of new supply in the pipeline.
“Consumer demand is driving development in this segment,” observes Jartiz. “Travellers are looking for a fresh take on the midscale hotel. This has led to new brands that aim to provide consumers with the experience they’re looking for.”
In the future, midscale customers will come from within and outside of Canada. “There is tremendous growth in occupancy as the world becomes more globalized,” says Rosszell. “People are anticipating that the [travelling] Chinese middle class will equal a tremendous demand [for hotel rooms].”
“The future is bright for this segment,” states Macdonald. “Tourism is rising [and there is] a lot of room for growth.”
Written by J. Lynn Fraser


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The agency replied to users who tweeted about texting while driving.
The ordinance requires mobile phone retailers to hand out warnings about radio frequency exposure.
The telecommunications giant is stepping into a court case.
FTC is taking aim at "mobile cramming," where third parties bill consumers.
More than 4 in 10 American homes have moved to cellphone-only service.
The wireless industry is launching a new effort to crack down on cellphone theft.CTIA-The Wireless...
Democratic presidential frontrunner Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (N.Y.) is trying to conquer a...
The company is likely to face criticism for not disclosing the throttling to customers.
The government spent money on about 1.5 million devices in 2012.
Starting in July, all smartphones solid in the state must come with the anti-theft feature.
The bill now heads to the president's desk.
Rep. Alan Grayson wants the FCC to do something to protect people’s phone calls.
Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) wants wireless companies to adopt "kill switch" technology.


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With advances in machine learning and the deployments of neural networks, logistic regression-powered models are expanding their uses throughout PayPal. PayPal's deep learning system is able to filter out deceptive merchants and crack down on sales of illegal products. Kutsyy explained the machines can identify "why transactions fail, monitoring businesses more efficiently," avoiding the need to buy more hardware for problem solving. The AI Podcast is available through iTunes, DoggCatcher, Google Play Music, Overcast, PlayerFM, Podbay, Pocket Casts, PodCruncher, PodKicker, Stitcher and Soundcloud.
For example, for personalized recommendations, we have been working with learning to rank methods that learn individual rankings over item sets. Figure 1: Typical data science workflow, starting with raw data that is turned into features and fed into learning algorithms, resulting in a model that is applied on future data. This means that this pipeline is iterated and improved many times, trying out different features, different forms of preprocessing, different learning methods, or maybe even going back to the source and trying to add more data sources. Probably the main difference between production systems and data science systems is that production systems are real-time systems that are continuously running.
By using memory-optimized tables, resume features are stored in main memory and disk IO could be significantly reduced. If the database engine server detects more than 8 physical cores per NUMA node or socket, it will automatically create soft-NUMA nodes that ideally contain 8 cores. We then further created 4 SQL resource pools and 4 external resource pools  to specify the CPU affinity of using the same set of CPUs in each node. We can create resource governance for R services on SQL Server  by routing those scoring batches into different workload groups (Figure.
SQL Server 2017, which will run on both Windows and Linux, is inching closer to release with a set of artificial intelligence capabilities that will change the way enterprises derive value from their business data, according to Microsoft. The Redmond, Wash., software giant on April 19 released SQL Server 2017 Community Technology Preview (CTP) 2.0. Joseph Sirosh, corporate vice president of the Microsoft Data Group, described the "production-quality" database software as "the first RDBMS [relational database management system] with built-in AI." Download links and instructions on installing the preview on Linux are available in this TechNet post from the SQL Server team at Microsoft. It's no secret to anyone keeping tabs on Microsoft lately that the company is betting big on AI, progressively baking its machine learning and cognitive computing technologies into a wide array of the company's cloud services, business software offerings and consumer products. "In this preview release, we are introducing in-database support for a rich library of machine learning functions, and now for the first time Python support (in addition to R)," stated Sirosh, in the April 19 announcement.
A customer benchmarking engine is an emerging technology which uses an artificial intelligence approach to automate the reasoning that underlies data-driven benchmarking. Its benefits are discussed here, there, and elsewhere. Briefly, it uncovers comparative insights on customers which empower customer-focused employees to be more proactive, or which are shown directly to those customers as a premium information service. The business benefits include churn reduction, market differentiation, extra revenue, and deeper customer relationships. But, automated customer benchmarking doesn't always make sense.
Vlad Lata is Chief Technology Officer and Co-Founder of KONUX the Industrial IOT company specialised in creating customised sensor and AI-based analytics solutions for the industrial world. Founded in 2014 in Munich, KONUX combines Silicon Valley digital thinking with German engineering, and focuses on improving asset availability, network capacity and reducing maintenance costs for their clients; namely rail operators and industrial companies. Heading up the product development for KONUX with a focus on AI and Big Data, Vlad Lata and his engineering department have made huge strides in predictive analytics, smart sensors and offering a complete end-to-end solution for their clients. We're thrilled to hear more during Lata's talk at AI With the Best online conference April 29–30th, and are pleased to have had a chance to interview the KONUX CTO ahead of this event. Q Konux is famed for the highly accurate smart motion sensors paired with AI data analytics -- what skills sets you apart from other engineering firms?
How can finance become a better business partner through utilizing emerging technologies? Here are 7 recommendations on how to unlock finance's potential. Over the last couple of years, companies have started to prepare for the 2020s and beyond; constantly responding to their rapidly changing environment. These changes are powered by emerging technologies, macroeconomic trends, consumer expectations and business models. Until recently, developments have been traditional and linear, following an incremental pace.
By way of example, the Google engineers said that if people used voice search for three minutes a day, running the associated speech recognition tasks without the TPU would have required the company to have twice as many datacenters. Based on the scant details Google provides about its data center operations – which include 15 major sites – the search-and-ad giant was looking at additional capital expenditures of perhaps $15bn, assuming that a large Google data center costs about $1bn. As it applied machine learning capabilities to more of its products and applications over the past several years, Google said it realized it needed to supercharge its hardware as well as its software. It took years for Kubernetes and TensorFlow to become publicly available, both of which Google had used extensively on its own (albeit in somewhat different forms). Due to that inherent efficiency, the chips can squeeze more operations per second into the silicon using more sophisticated and powerful machine learning models to get results more rapidly.
Analysis In 2013, Google realized that its growing dependence on machine learning would force it to double the number of data centers it operates to handle projected workloads. Based on the scant details Google provides about its data center operations – which include 15 major sites – the search-and-ad giant was looking at additional capital expenditures of perhaps $15bn, assuming that a large Google data center costs about $1bn. The internet king assembled a team to produce a custom chip capable of handling part of its neural network workflow known as inference, which is where the software makes predictions based on data developed through the time-consuming and computationally intensive training phase. The processor sits on the PCIe bus and accepts commands from the host CPU: it is akin to a yesteryear discrete FPU or math coprocessor, but obviously souped up to today's standards. The goal was to improve cost-performance over GPUs tenfold.
Four years ago, Google started to see the real potential for deploying neural networks to support a large number of new services. During that time it was also clear that, given the existing hardware, if people did voice searches for three minutes per day or dictated to their phone for short periods, Google would have to double the number of datacenters just to run machine learning models. The need for a new architectural approach was clear, Google distinguished hardware engineer, Norman Jouppi, tells The Next Platform, but it required some radical thinking. As it turns out, that's exactly what he is known for. One of the chief architects of the MIPS processor, Jouppi has pioneered new technologies in memory systems and is one of the most recognized names in microprocessor design.


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I think it’s safe to say that everyone has shopped at JCPenny at least once in his or her life. The department store JCPenny found itself in a bind earlier this month as an online sale for a t-shirt offended many. Not found in stores, but available online only, JCPenny had a girls age 7-16 shirt for sale that says “I’m too pretty to do homework so my brother has to do it for me.”
Not only was the shirt itself offensive, but the promo for the shirt read “Who has time for homework when there’s a new Justin Bieber album out? She’ll love this tee that’s just as cute and sassy as she is.”
The public lashed out by writing on the company’s facebook page going so far as to refuse to shop at Pennys any more.
JCPenny has pulled the shirt from their website and says they will not be selling the shirt online any longer, and that it won’t be put into any stores.
A representative for the company commented to the Village Voice that they are not happy about the shirt and that they are looking into the situation to see how it happened.
The company has apologized to its customers and wishes to reinsure its customers that JCPenny will continue to uphold the integrity of their merchandise.
JCPenny’s PR group reacted very quickly to the online outcry from its customers, which is completely necessary for a company as large as this one. I think that they handled this situation rather well. They did what they could to please their customers; they removed the t-shirt from the shelves and promised to maintain integrity in the items they sell in the future.
It’s difficult for me to say how I would have handled this differently. It’d be nice to say I never would have allowed the shirt to be created or even thought of, but having to think from a PR perspective, I have to handle the situation after the offense can’t be reversed. I would have pulled the shirt from the website to never be sold again, and I would have had a figurehead of the company make a public apology to all who were offended.


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In W36 in the olive and olive oil landscape, Spanish olive oil sales faced an 18.22% decline in the first seven months of 2023 compared to the same period in 2022, with a total of 147.48 million liters. Specifically, extra virgin olive oil sales dropped by 13.99% to 63 million liters, "soft" olive oil sales fell by 28.53% to 47.4 million liters, and "intense" olive oil sales decreased by 19.87% to 19.76 million liters. However, virgin oil saw a 6.14% increase in sales, reaching 16.77 million liters during the Jan-23 to Jul-23 period.
With two months left until the end of the campaign, 221.22 million liters of olive oil have been placed on the market in the 2022/23 campaign, marking a 14.05% decrease compared to the same period in the 2021/22 campaign. Spanish olive oil prices have doubled in the past year and continue to rise, reaching the highest prices in a decade. In Aug-23, a liter of olive oil cost between USD 10.72 to USD 13.93, while a 5-liter bottle ranged from USD 28.94 to USD 48.23, depending on the type.
The Extremadura Manzanilla Cacereña Olive Association (ASEXMAC) has announced the start of the 2023/24 Cáceres manzanilla olive campaign in Extremadura, Spain, on September 11. This decision comes in response to significant challenges such as drought, adverse weather conditions, and expected low production levels. ASEXMAC plays a pivotal role, representing over 80% of the olive sector in northern Extremadura, which includes various stakeholders engaged in the production process of Manzanilla Cácereña olives.
Meanwhile, in Cáceres, Spain, olive producers and cooperatives are being urged by the UPA-UCE Extremadura and Manzanilla Cacereña Traditional Olive Grove Association (ASOMANCA) not to accept prices below the production cost of USD 1.26 per kilogram (kg) in the current season. Despite this, the ongoing campaign is expected to have normal production levels, estimated at 45 thousand metric tons (mt) to 50 thousand mt, and is characterized by high-quality olives. Unlike the previous year, which suffered an 80% reduction in production due to drought, the 2023 crop has not encountered significant issues apart from isolated hail incidents.
A sensory analysis conducted by the Brazilian Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock revealed that a staggering 84% of olives identified for the production of extra virgin olive oil in Brazil are not of the claimed quality and may even pose health risks. This finding highlights a problem of deceptive marketing and fraudulent olive oil products in the country. Consequently, the Brazilian government is increasing its investments in laboratories to conduct more comprehensive analyses and ensure accurate information reaches consumers effectively.
Lastly, the Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed (RASFF) issued a notification on September 5 regarding the importation of Moroccan olives into Spain. These olives were found to be contaminated with a banned pesticide, Chlorpyrifos, at concentrations exceeding the authorized maximum residue limit (MRL) in Europe. The contaminated olives were distributed exclusively within Spanish territory, raising concerns about food safety.


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The smartphone will run on Meizu’s operating system in China, but will switch to Google OS in Europe & US markets.
Polestar is developing its own smartphone, designed to seamlessly integrate with its EV offerings. The Swedish EV brand is owned by Geely, which also owns the Chinese smartphone brand Xingji Meizu.
The new phone from Polestar is said to be offered to customers as a smart device designed from the ground up to integrate with their vehicles. The smartphone will be a “premium” device, matching Polestar’s car portfolio and will also be a step up for Xingji Meizu – largely considered a mid-tier phone brand in China.
The new smartphone is expected to be launched alongside the brand’s upcoming Polestar 4 EV, which is scheduled to go on sale by the end of this year. The smartphone from Polestar won’t be unique as its Chinese rival NIO is also planning to launch a self-developed smartphone sometime soon.
Talking about the smartphone, Thomas Ingenlath, CEO of Polestar, stated, “Where you have an opportunity to link these two worlds, without any border, then you can really have a seamless transition.” Ingenlath also confirmed that the smartphone will run on Meizu’s operating system in China, but will switch to Google OS in Europe & US markets.
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Infiniti has revealed its Q60 Concept ahead of its global debut at the Detroit Motor Show this month, showing “its vision of a premium sports coupe”.
The 2015 Ford Ranger Wildtrak has been spied driving around in Thailand completely undisguised with images appearing on Performance Forums.
Former Inifiniti boss, Johan de Nysschen has taken to Facebook to hint at the shelving of the Infiniti Q50 Eau Rouge.
Former Jaguar test driver, Norman Dewis, has received an Order of the British Empire in Her Majesty’s New Year Honours List.
More than 100 cars have set a new world record at Summernats 28 (2015) for the most number of burnouts performed simultaneously.
Subaru Australia has announced it will slash the price of Impreza, XV and Forester from January 16 by up to $1000.
January is going to be a big one for carheads with the Detroit Motor Show and the Dakar 2015 Rally. Watch the Dakar teaser video.
Porsche has released a video showing how it builds a Porsche 918 Spyder.
Prodrive Racing Australia has revealed the Ford Falcon FG X V8 Supercar – the last-ever Ford-backed V8 Supercar will get its public debut in February.
Mitsubishi will send its all-paw terror, the Evo X, out with a bang when it shows the 353kW Lancer Evo X Final Concept at the Tokyo Auto Salon in January
Ford has hoisted a 2015 Ford Mustang high above the Sydney Opera House as part of Sydney’s New Year’s Eve celebrations.
Porsche has announced a worldwide recall of the Porsche 918 Spyder to replace “chassis components” in 205 vehicles.
Ford Racing is developing custom engine calibrations for the 2015 Ford Mustang EcoBoost, with a product expected on the market by the end of 2015.
Google today revealed its first ‘real’ self-driving car with working manual ‘car’ parts and ‘self-driving’ parts.
Ford has announced it will sell the first 2016 Shelby GT350 at Barrett-Jackson’s Scotsdale auction on 17 January with all proceeds going to charity.


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Team Ouya has confirmed that its long-awaited Android-powered console will launch in the United States, Canada and the U.K. on June 4, 2013, for a cool $100.
According to Ouya CEO Julie Uhrman, the system "upends" the current console model by being open to any game developer who wants to create and publish games for the TV.
"For gamers, this means they can now download any game they choose, and try it for free - no more discs to buy and no more risk of paying for games you don't love," she explained.
"Featuring vivid HD graphics, immersive sound, and a gamer's controller, Ouya delivers a unique platform for enjoying games of every genre, from racing to shooter, action-adventure to RPG, and platformer to puzzle."
Indeed, says Uhrman, more than 8,000 software engineers worldwide are currently developing games, including those from Square Enix, Double Fine Productions, Tripwire Interactive, Vlambeer, Phil Fish's Polytron Corporation and Kim Swift's Airtight Games.
"We're giving early backers the first look at the final OUYA console and controller, and we look forward to their continued input as we gear up for the official launch at retail on June 4," she added.
The current Ouya system includes:
As noted above, Ouya is now shipping to early backers as part of a preview program. Starting June 4, the console will be available for purchase in the United States, Canada, and the UK through retailers Amazon, Best Buy, GAME, GameStop, Target, and the store on OUYA.tv for $99.99. Extra controllers will retail for $49.99.


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COOL Shrimp Tests Baffle Authorities14 January 2009
INDONESIA - One of the world's largest grower/processors has come under attack for its country of origin testing methods. Customs and border protection have said that they do not even understand how the tests came to such conclusions.
Customs and Border Protection is challenging the country of origin of his company’s product based on laboratory test results, but has been unwilling to discuss the laboratory testing that made the determination.
According to PacificShipper, Erwin Sutanto is president-director of Jakarta-based CP Prima. The news organisation says that last August, Customs began detaining containers of the company’s frozen shrimp at the Port of Los Angeles. Officers said that trace mineral tests indicated that the crustaceans were transshipped from China. So far, Customs has held about 40 containers. Some were later released, but Customs hit importers with a 112 percent anti-dumping duty.
CP Prima vigorously disputes the transshipment allegation, and said the Customs’ testing was invalid for determining the origin of farm-raised shrimp. “The typical way to discuss country of origin is through production records,” Sutanto said. “We have them all the way back to the brood stock. For every bag of shrimp that we sell, we can tell you which farm it came from, what the growing conditions were, where the feed came from, and even the mother of the shrimp. That’s not easy to find in our industry.
“This lab test, unfortunately we don’t know what it is,” Sutanto told PacificShipper. “We don’t exactly know which minerals they’re testing for, or how they came up with the conclusion that the shrimp are from China and not Indonesia.”
Customs officials declined to comment about CP Prima or the laboratory testing, saying the case is still under investigation. CP Prima representatives met with Customs in November. Attorney Susan Kohn Ross, who represents CP Prima, said Customs indicated it would send investigators to Indonesia to sample the company’s production ponds, but has not done so.
TheFishSite News Desk


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Customers make a killing after Tesco is forced to pay out refunds as price pledge backfires
Tesco has been forced to issue a flood of refunds after its efforts to beat Asda on price backfired.
The supermarket had promised to reimburse customers twice the amount of the price gap if they could show products bought from their biggest rival were cheaper.
But hundreds of customers have claimed money back after finding that some of Tesco’s products were indeed more expensive.
Blunder: Tesco's price pledge to refund double the price difference backfired after customers found cheaper products at Asda
Many have claimed cash refunds of more than £100, and covered the cost of their entire basket.
The fiasco is a reminder of a disastrous promotion by Hoover 18 years ago.
Details of how to take advantage of Tesco’s refunds pledge – known as PriceCheck – have been appeared on internet chat forums on personal finance websites and even on a Manchester United fans’ site.
THE HOOVER FACTOR
Hoover almost bankrupted itself with a competition 18 years ago.
The firm offered free airline tickets to customers who purchased more than £100 worth of their products.
But huge numbers started buying Hoover products not because they wanted the actual appliances, but because they wanted the tickets.
The firm had to pay out £50million.
Last year Walkers Crisps fell victim to the ‘Hoover factor’ when it had to stump up more than £660,000 in prize money after a competition proved too easy for consumers.
The online game challenged players to pick a time and place where they thought it would rain.
But with rain falling on average 154 days of the year in Britain, thousands struck lucky, winning £10 each.
One example showed a shopping basket that included two bottles of
Chardonnay, two bottles of Magners pear cider, two bottles of Nivea rich
body moisturiser and a pack of mature cheddar.
It came to £17.48 at Asda and £38.46 at Tesco – a difference of £20.98. Tesco is therefore required to give a shopping voucher equivalent to £41.96.
This would allow customers to buy the items they wanted and get enough money back to cover the full bill, with some left over.
One fan on the Manchester United website claims to have made £600 from the PriceCheck guarantee. Customers can claim the vouchers by going to the Tesco website, putting in their receipt number and purchase details and an email address.
The voucher is then emailed to the customer.
Tesco has responded to the problem by putting a cap of £20 on the value of refund vouchers.
But Asda said the problems demonstrated that Tesco was unable to live up to its promises on low prices. A spokesman for the store, Nick Agarwal, said: ‘If you claim to be the cheapest, call me old fashioned, but it helps to really be the cheapest.’
The development is the latest in a tit-for-tat row between Tesco and Asda, which has included complaints to the Advertising Standards Authority over which offers the lowest prices.
Price clash: A shopping basket that included two bottles of
Chardonnay and two bottles of Magners pear cider was more expensive at Tesco than Asda
A spokesman for Tesco said: ‘We were made aware via web forums that PriceCheck might not be being used for its genuine purpose by a small number of people.
‘Having looked into it, we’ve taken some steps to protect the initiative.
‘We have now placed a cap of £20 on any refund entitlements – the vast majority of refunds have been nowhere near this figure.
‘In fact, a very small number of customers receive any refund at all after they check their real shop against Asda because they see that Tesco is cheaper.
‘Separately, we have had technical issues with a comparison feature of PriceCheck which we continue to work on. In the meantime, customers can see all our prices at Tesco.com.’
Price war: The disastrous Tesco promotion was a result of attempts to lure customers from the rival Asda
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American e-commerce group Amazon has officially located its Asia-Pacific headquarters in the Chaoyang District of Beijing.
The Joint Innovation Lab established by China Mobile, Softbank and Vodafone to help accelerate the uptake of innovative mobile technologies on a mass-market scale
Trace Laboratories, a supplier of independent testing, analysis, and qualification services, is opening a new test laboratory in Shanghai.
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Power firm shocks with huge price rise
EDF Energy, one of the big six UK power firms, today shocked customers with tariff rises that will see fuel bills soar by more than 20%.
Bill shock: The 20% price rise will leave EDF customers £200 worse-off on average
EDF has increased its electricity prices by 17% and its gas prices by 22%. The hikes, which some into effect immediately, will put a massive £200 on the average annual dual-fuel bill of £1000.
The company blamed record wholesale energy costs for the increases. This is the second hike this year for EDF, which raised its tariffs by 8% for electricity and 13% for gas in January.
Eva Eisenschimmel, chief operating officer of EDF Energy customers branch, said: 'Record world oil prices have continued to drive up wholesale gas prices.
'Alongside unprecedented rises in wholesale coal and electricity costs, this has impacted hugely on the cost of supplying energy to our customers.'
The French firm is one of Britain's biggest energy suppliers with 5.1m customers. Other energy companies are expected to follow the move.
Today's increases will mean typical customers on a dual fuel tariff will pay £3.97 a week more for their energy, it said. The company said wholesale energy prices had increased by 70% for coal, 63% for gas and 47% for electricity since it last increased its prices in January.
Ms Eisenschimmel said: 'We have been absorbing some of these costs in recent months, but we now have to pass on some of the resulting rise in wholesale costs to our customers.
'While the rise in wholesale prices is out of our control, we have been doing everything possible to keep our own costs in check.
'In this difficult economic climate we are very concerned by the impact any price rise will have, especially for those on low incomes. As a result, we have expanded the number of customers on our Energy Assist social tariff by a half, bringing the total to 100,000 customers.
'We are also working with the Government on new initiatives to help low-income households this winter. We have also launched a new fixed-price tariff for our customers who want security in their budgeting.
'In addition, we were the first supplier to align electricity prepayment customer tariffs to that of credit meter customer tariffs.
'Further, we will also continue to help customers keep control of their costs through energy efficiency advice and our range of products including Read, Reduce, Reward.'
British Gas said its pricing had not changed.
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The movie will be available for your streaming from January 12th. This means that from January 12th, 2022 all the people who are interested in watching Eternals can watch it out on Disney+. This is just over two months after the most recent Marvel Cinematic Universe film received the lukewarm reviews, arriving in the theaters.
In the month of September, Disney announced that its remaining slate of theatrical releases are going to get at least a 45-day run in theaters before they get available to stream on the streaming platforms- save for Encanto will be hitting the streaming platform Disney+ on December 24th, after around 30 days it made the way in cinemas. Eternals are the movies that Disney evidently decided to keep exclusively in theaters beyond that minimum timeframe of 45 days. In simple words, the Eternals is the movie that will be hitting the streaming platform Disney+ beyond that minimum timeframe of 45 days. So, if you are a fan of Marvel Studio releases, then this is the good news for you for 2021.
Starting with Mulan last September, Disney has experimented by allowing the subscribers to stream theatrical releases at their home only on the same day they debuted in the cinemas for an extra fee. This experiment was so very successful, people are very much interested in watching the movies just by sitting at their homes. But for all this, Scarlet Johansson sued the company and claimed that the strategy of streaming cost her up with $50 million in lost earnings from Black Widow. Disney settled the suit and now the movies arrive after around 45 days of the theatrical release.
Get ready for the ‘Eternals’ as it will release on 12th January on Disney+


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Twinfinite writes, " Even though he's creeping up there in age, Ryu has never stopped being a popular and effective street fighter. He's a true role model for the rest of us as we get older."
Street fighter 2 a cultural phenomenon Brought all the gamers to the arcades like trocodero Great memories... Best fighting game made imo
N4G is a community of gamers posting and discussing the latest game news. It’s part of NewsBoiler, a network of social news sites covering today’s pop culture.


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Taco Bell has announced its new partnership with Lil Nas X, appointing the 22-year-old artist as the brand’s first “Chief Impact Officer.”
The honorary role will allow Nas X to collaborate on some exclusive experiences, marketing, and menu innovations around the release of his forthcoming album Montero.
As one of his first initiatives, Lil Nas X will make a cameo in Taco Bell’s breakfast campaign. X will also support the Taco Bell Foundation’s mission in helping announce awards to recipients of the Live Más scholarship program.
“Lil Nas X knows the job, the experience and the culture Taco Bell creates for its fans—including its people,” Mark King, CEO of Taco Bell, said in a statement. “This unique partnership will deliver on more than just marketing, allowing us to tap into the genius of Lil Nas X to inspire our team members and align with our commitment to unlocking opportunities for young people.”
Shortly after the announcement, X took to Twitter to joke about previously working at an Atlanta-area Taco Bell back in high school. “Life has come full circle, I officially work at Taco Bell again,” he wrote.


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Supermarkets are shifting their advertising focus from discounting to promoting core brand values.
The trend, indentified by industry analysts IBISWorld, is confirmed in a study by investmnet bank UBS -- the discounting war which kept grovery prices down has eased.
Supermarkets in Ausrtralia have been enaged in price-based competition for almost a decade, with discounting the typical strategy for most supermarkets.
IBISWorld says Coles and Woolworths have shifted focus from increasing market share to boosting profit margins. This strategic change is most noticeable in advertising campaigns.
“Advertisements now entice consumers with discounts less frequently and instead focus on promoting core brand values," says IBISWorld Senior Industry Analyst Tom Youl.
Woolworths has revamped its Fresh Food People campaign, leveraging the brand’s association with quality produce.
And last month Coles announced a refreshed strategic direction with three core pillars, none of which reference winning market share or lowering prices.
Campaigns to boost loyalty from shoppers include the Coles’ Little Shop campaign.
The German discount chain ALDI has also shifted focus. ALDI’s business model formerly involved offering a limited range of branded products and a range of private-label products, and little to no marketing. This strategy allowed ALDI to pass on savings to consumers.
“Notably, ALDI has increased its advertising expenditure over the past two years, promoting product quality and range, rather than low prices. Coles and Woolworths have reported similar changes to their strategies over the past two years,” says Youl.
The big supermarkets havealso incerased digital capabilities to better understand consumer trends and meet buyer expectations.
“Woolworths has been growing its WooliesX division, which uses data to improve its digital offerings, such as mobile apps and scan-and-go shopping.," says says Youl.
In March 2019, Coles announced a partnership with Ocado, an online grocery website specialises in optimising digital shopping experiences, packing technology and home delivery.
The latest Grocery Price Monitor by UBS suggests supermarket grocery prices are steadying, rather than falling.
"We were most surprised by the size of the fall in promotional intensity across both retailers," write UBS analysts in a note to clients.
"We believe the market is becoming more rational, a positive for sector sales, margin and valuations. As a result, we expect easing deflationary trends (price discounting) over 2019 to continue."
UBS says Coles and Woolworths appear to be focussed on delivering fewer, more impactful promotions.
Have something to say on this? Share your views in the comments section below. Or if you have a news story or tip-off, drop us a line at email@example.com


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The Indian Government is monitoring 275 Chinese apps for violation of national security and user privacy, as reported by the Economic Times. This list of Chinese apps facing a ban threat in India includes popular mobile games like PUBG Mobile and Clash of Clans, and other Supercell games as well. This follows the ban of 47 Chinese apps recently, which were found to be cloned versions of some of the 59 Chinese apps which were banned last month including major games like Mobile Legends and Clash of Kings. All of this comes from the aftermath of a clash involving India & China at the Galwan Valley on June 15 which led to 20 Indian soldiers losing their lives.
Why are the Chinese apps including PUBG Mobile & Clash of Clans being considered for ban in India?
Previously, the 59 apps including Mobile Legends & Clash of Kings were banned for misuse on both android and iOs platforms for “stealing and transmitting users’ data in an unauthorized manner to servers located outside India“, as announced by the Ministry of Electronics & IT. Very recently, another 47 apps were banned by the Government after being found to be the clones of some of the previously banned apps.
About the 275 apps being scrutinized for a potential ban including PUBG Mobile & Clash of Clans, official sources close to the Union Home Ministry said that reviews aimed at identifying more Chinese apps and their funding is underway.
Additionally, officials are also looking at the data-sharing norm of China that requires companies of Chinese-origin to share data with the home country, irrespective of where they operate.
Which apps other than PUBG Mobile & Clash of Clans are being considered for ban?
Among the Chinese apps being scrutinised now are 14 Mi apps by Xiaomi. Apps from other Chinese internet and tech majors like Meitu, LBE Tech, Perfect Corp, Sina Corp, NetEase Games, Yoozoo Global are also present apart from China’s largest internet major Tencent Games. Also in the list are Helsinki based publisher Supercell, where Tencent bought a stake last year. That means major games from these companies such as PUBG Mobile, Clash of Clans, Clash Royale, Brawl Stars, Marvel Super War along with upcoming Eve Echoes are all facing a potential ban threat in India.
When will these apps be banned?
An official from the Ministry of Electronics & IT said the Indian government will follow due process before undertaking any ban on all, some or none of the 275 Chinese apps. “There is a process involved, there is a committee in place for such ban orders. If there is such an order, then MeitY will act”, said the person.
Meanwhile, the Indian government set up a committee to examine the data practices of the 59 Chinese apps previously banned will review the companies’ responses, the deadline for which expires this week. Further actions will be taken if needed. As we understand, there are some procedures currently going on regarding the potential ban of the 275 Chinese apps including the likes of PUBG Mobile & Clash of Clans in India.
The apps being considered for ban currently have a huge market in India, particularly PUBG Mobile and Clash of Clans. PUBG Mobile recently reached $3 Billion in lifetime revenue with 734 million downloads, where India ranked in No.1 with 175 million total installations, 24% of the total. Supercell Games such as Clash of Clans, Clash Royale and Brawl Stars have been massively popular in India as well. So it’s understandable that many of the Indian gamers won’t be happy as these apps are being considered for ban.
There have been recent movements like #BanChineseProducts and #BoycottMadeInChina on social media, where people from different communities raised voice for banning Chinese apps, games and other products as well. The Indian government is taking serious steps as they look to tighten the security of the Indian cyberspace.
That’s all we got for today regarding as Indian government considers 275 Chinese apps PUBG Mobile & Clash of Clans for ban in India. What is your opinion on this? Let us know in the comment section below.


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The statement, issued with the Food Standards Agency (FSA) at the end of last week, talked of a "significant association" between the E. coli outbreak - unrelated to those in Germany and France this summer - and soil on raw, loose leeks and potatoes.
Some industry members fear its release could damage the fresh produce sector, hitting consumer confidence in UK-grown vegetables in the same manner in which salad sales suffered earlier this year during the German E. coli outbreak. But others backed the HPA's decision to reiterate the importance of safe food preparation.
The exact source of the UK's unusual strain of E. coli 0157, which occurred from December 2010 until the beginning of July, has not been traced. The outbreak infected 250 people. Most cases were mild but one patient with underlying health problems died.
The link to fresh vegetables was made by statistical analysis of 30 of a total of 250 reported cases and based on people recalling what they ate.
The Fresh Produce Consortium (FPC) raised concerns with the HPA, the FSA and Defra about issuing a health statement before the HPA's final report on the outbreak was made available.
However, the authorities went ahead and published the statement, which has since been widely reported in the national press.
FPC chief executive Nigel Jenney said: "This decision to make a public statement without sharing their full findings with the industry and the public smacks of a complete disregard of consequences on the industry and consumer confidence."
The FPC also expressed concern that the fresh produce industry was not informed of the potential link to fresh vegetables until 20 July, even though the HPA advised the FSA in June.
Jenney said: "It is vital that UK authorities share information with us much sooner and that they understand more about industry processes as part of any thorough investigation before pointing the finger at certain sectors."
Speaking on behalf of the Leek Growers Association, NFU horticulture adviser Chris Hartfield said: "The main thing is that they have consulted us. In the wake of the German outbreak there was a lot of concern that it could cause another scare.
"But we've been working with the FSA and the HPA for three months and all parties are aware that we don't want this. It would have been irresponsible to ignore this link to soil on loose leeks and potatoes."
Hatfield added that the industry would have preferred it if the HPA had not specifically mentioned leeks and potatoes.
"This confuses things. Why mention leeks and potatoes and not mention any specific advice for these products?" he asked. However, he said the authorities' liaison with the industry, including the time it was informed of the link to vegetables, was fair.
Potato Council head of marketing and corporate affairs Caroline Evans added: "The Agriculture & Horticulture Development Board has worked with the HPA and the FSA to provide as much information as possible about good practices already used in the industry in supplying safe products to consumers, most under farm assurance.
"The outbreak is now closed by the HPA and the advice is that provided potatoes and leeks are washed clean, they are safe to eat.
"Importantly, the message we need to give to consumers is that potatoes and leeks are safe to enjoy. We would advise everyone to follow the normal good hygiene procedures when preparing them."
Health Protection Agency - Evidence study
The Health Protection Agency said there was no evidence to suggest that any particular retail source or variety was responsible for people falling ill.
"It appears to have been caused by traces of soil carrying the E. coli 0157 present on the vegetables," it added.
"Now that we have established a statistically significant association with the handling of certain loose vegetables, it warrants us sharing these findings with the public to enable them to take the necessary steps to minimise their risk of food poisoning."
Growers respond to announcement
Lincolnshire-based leek and potato grower Mark Tinsley echoed the Fresh Produce Consortium's concerns over the Health Protection Agency statement on the outbreak. "Many in the industry are highly upset that it made this announcement," he said.
"The indication was far from a proven case but the fact that leeks and potatoes are mentioned is just going to create problems for us. I cannot see why leeks would be different to any other vegetables. This is the last thing that the industry needs."
The statement could damage consumer confidence if it is not accurately reported, Tinsley warned. "People don't understand the details. It needs to be thoroughly researched.
"The amount of leeks and potatoes sold with soil on them to the main market is infinitely small. We are talking about local shops," he pointed out.
"If they feel that there's a statistically significant situation, they should look further into that and analyse soils to prove that potentially risky organisms are in them. Until the case is proven they should not come out with such statements."
Leek grower Mervyn Casey added: "It could be damaging but what they have said about washing vegetables is common sense. The crops, after all, are grown in soil, not a laboratory."


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Worker pay is taking center stage as protesters push for $15-an-hour minimum wage from McDonald's. USA Today looks at how top executives compare.» Read More
Talk about job security—McDonald's clown isn't going anywhere, its CEO told shareholders.
Matrix Asset Advisors is increasing its stake in McDonald's on the expectation CEO Steve Easterbrook's turnaround plan will succeed.
Hundreds of protesters marched around McDonald's suburban Chicago headquarters Wednesday, calling for pay of $15 an hour and a union.
Long known more for burgers, Shake Shack is turning an eye toward chicken, according to one recent trademark filing.
One mega-franchisee CEO is already changing his growth strategy as a result of minimum wage hikes.
Egg prices have surged higher as the death of millions of hens from bird flu is beginning to tighten supplies.
McDonald's is turning to automation and customization to keep things fresh with customers in Asia, amid falling revenue and food safety scandals.
What's old is new again at fast food chain Kentucky Fried Chicken.
This firm says playing classical music could, in part, lead to healthier chickens.
The SEIU it would petition the FTC to investigate alleged abusive practices by major franchisors, including McDonald's.
While investors were apparently disappointed by El Pollo Loco's weak outlook, CEO Steve Sather says business is good.
After reporting growing sales at established stores for 15 consecutive quarters, investors were caught off guard when the company stuck by its previous projections.
The secret of Jack in the Box, which reported a quarterly cash dividend increase of 50 percent, is in the lease of real estate.
"Fast Money" traders discussed their fast-food stock picks after Shake Shack's better-than-expected quarterly report.
Shake Shack reported earnings that beat expectations on Wednesday, but guidance came in a little weaker than expected.
Pedialyte is going after a new market, and they don't have a bedtime...
Criminals are targeting consumers' Starbucks cards then hacking the associated debit and credit cards.
'Fast Money' traders discussed how to play changes at McDonald's and Shake Shack's upcoming earnings.
One California man has been accused by prosecutors of selling fake In-N-Out franchises in the Middle East, reported the L.A. Times.
In 12 states and Washington D.C., nail salons are more common than McDonald's locations, the most common of fast food locations.
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Turkish mobile game company Dream Games received a $155 million investment from investors. The field of gaming startups is becoming less and less of a secret for Turkey, which is increasing its success in the sector by the day. The latest development in this field is Dream Games, which develops puzzle games for mobiles.
Dream’s founding board got their start at Peak Games, another Turkish mobile games company behind such hits as Toy Blast and Toon Blast, which was acquired by Zynga for $1.8 billion in June last year.
Dream Games, which has received a $50m Series A investment in recent months, said this time it had received a Series B investment.
Soner Aydemir, co-founder and CEO of Dream Games, said that the investment will be used to attract new users. He also said that the focus would be on the Asian region.
According to the statements, the Turkish video game company has received a Series B investment of $155 million, with a total valuation of $1 billion. The investment is said to be jointly made by Index Ventures and Makers Fund, with contributions from Balderton Capital, IVP and Kora.
It is true that the company has undertaken the development of multiple mobile games. However, it is fair to say that Royal Match, available on iOS and Android platforms, is one of the company’s flagship games.
It is reported that the game in question, which was launched last March, has 6 million active users to date, and generates around $20 million in monthly revenue exclusively from in-game purchases. It should be noted that these revenues do not involve any advertising promotion.
The company aims to develop more successful games with the $155 million investment.
Dream Games is perfectly able to distinguish itself in terms of mobile game promotion. Indeed, the company does not include any advertising in its games but generates a set of revenues through in-game purchases. This allows for a more wholesome user experience.


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PARIS — Net profits at Puig declined 28 percent in 2015 to 126 million euros, or $139.8 million, dented by expenses related to the integration of the Jean Paul Gaultier perfume business and investments in its other brands.
The Barcelona-based fragrance and fashion company maintained the objective of reaching a 2 billion euro, or $2.23 billion, sales target in 2017.
Its sales came in at 1.65 billion euros, or $1.83 billion, up 9 percent in reported terms and 2 percent on a like-for-like basis. Dollar figures are converted from euros at average exchange rates for the period in question.
Marc Puig, chief executive officer of Puig, told WWD he recognized that company growth had stalled over the past two years, but emphasized that was foreseen as part of the strategy put in place to attain the revenue goal in three years.
“Last year at this time we said that for 2015 we were projecting a midsingle-digit [sales] growth, but a reduction of profits,” he said in an interview.
There were investments made to support its brands and expenses linked to the preparation for the incorporation of the Gaultier fragrance business, which began on Jan. 1, 2016. These included an early termination compensation, since the license with Shiseido’s Beauté Prestige International originally ran through June 2016, and IP rights valued at 69 million euros, or $76.5 million.
Puig had become the majority shareholder of Gaultier’s fashion house in 2011.
On the perfume front, the company trumpeted a robust performance for the Paco Rabanne brand, including the ongoing successes of the 1 Million and Invictus men’s scents and the more recently launched Olympéa feminine fragrance. There was also L’Extase from Nina Ricci, plus premium offers from Prada and Valentino. Puig also highlighted the strength of the Carolina Herrera brand, and of some of the masstige labels, especially in many of the emerging markets.
The company did not break out financials related to its fashion activity. However the executive did say, referring to Guillaume Henry and Julien Dossena, respectively: “We have two new designers at Nina Ricci and Paco Rabanne, who are in their third or fourth seasons, and we are very happy with how this is evolving. Carolina Herrera is evolving very nicely.”
When asked whether there are any plans afoot to reintroduce a ready-to-wear collection at the Gaultier fashion label, which produces just couture, Puig said: “Not for the moment.”
In general these days, big luxury players are not having an easy time with fashion and leather goods businesses. Sales for that activity at LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton, for instance, stalled in the first quarter, as reported.
Yet Puig remains bullish on the categories.
“As long as you do a good job, when you’re still a small player there are always opportunities for growth,” he said. “It’s more difficult when you are the leader and have such huge brands.”
Last year, 86 percent of Puig’s revenues were generated abroad. Domestically, company sales grew 8 percent.
Puig’s three production facilities in Spain manufactured 68 percent of the company’s products, while its factory in Chartres, France, generated 29 percent.
Puig’s products were sold in more than 150 countries. It has subsidiaries in 22 of them.
In 2015, the company had 4,483 employees, of which 1,620 were domestic.
It launched in Spain and Latin America a social action initiative, called Invisible Beauty, which supports entrepreneurs with innovative projects created to better the lives of young people. The program is run by the Puig Foundation with Ashoka, a global nonprofit organization.
Looking ahead through year-end, Puig said: “We are expecting sales growth of low double-digits.” That’s despite the ongoing macroeconomic volatility and uncertainty in emerging markets such as Latin America, the Middle East and Russia, which are key for the company, he pointed out.
To continue bolstering sales growth, so it gains the targeted 33 percent between 2015 and 2017, the company will invest more in its own brands again this year. That means lower profitability until the end of the three-year period.
The organization’s priority is to extract the maximum potential from its brands, which still have large growth opportunities, according to Puig. However, he is not adverse to considering acquisitions, depending on the added value they represent and the fit in the company’s existing portfolio.
Puig has a combination of owned brands, such as Carolina Herrera and Nina Ricci, and licensed fragrance labels like Prada, Valentino and Comme des Garçons.
In early 2015, Puig purchased L’Artisan Parfumeur and Penhaligon’s.
“The experience of retail is different that what we normally do, and it has really helped us understand a different dimension of this [fragrance] process,” said Puig.


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Right after the launch of Apple iOS 8 we witnessed a steady adaptation toward the new Apple operating system. Users turned to the new iOS 8 as it offered the demanding features alongside the launch of Apple’s amazing iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus. But fresh statistics revealed by Apple show a flat adaptation rate of the iOS 8 at 84 percent.
The report suggest that about 84 percent of its iPhone, iPad and iPod users have upgraded to the iOS 8 by beginning of July and the adaptation has than recorded statistics. Apple’s details shows that the adaptation has not increased in percentage. The new Apple devices with iOS along with the iOS 8 update on previous version is seem not enough to increase the rate any farther.
But there are some other interesting findings discussed by analysts about the adaptation of iOS 8. According to reports the recently launched updated iOS 8.4 version has gained much momentum in its week-long experience in the market. About 40 percent of iOS usage last week was contributed by the iOS 8.4. Alongside the 84 percent share of iOS 8 recorded in previous weeks, iOS 7 stood at 14 percent with two percent of earlier versions.
The outstanding performance of iOS 8.4 with forty percent share in is expected to bring customers toward the iOS 8 to move the adaptation rate forward. Many people are seemed appreciating the features included in the iOS 8. Alongside the other features the Apple Music gained attracted more users as it has been among the most demanding features promised on the iOS 8.4.
The iOS 8.4 is now just a week old but its adaptation rate has crossed widely used versions of Android OS including the Android KitKat and Jelly bean. The iOS 8.4 made its way to up to the mark against both Android versions which have been there for over two years.


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(Pocket-lint) - Siri has stopped working for thousands in the UK. The iPhone 5 was released to the public today and it's possible that the massively increased number of new iPhone users may have overloaded Apple's servers enough for the voice service to have gone down.
As Pocket-lint was trying to access Siri on an iPhone 4S, it came up shortly t after 5.30pm, but then went down again. Now Siri won't reply with any standard results. Instead, the software responds with, "I'm really sorry about this, but I can't take any requests at the moment. Please try again in a bit."
The failure of service will come as a massive blow to those who have just got their hands on the new iPhone 5, only to not be able to use one of its major selling points.
Angry iPhone users have taken to Twitter to post their rants. Some are even asking others on the social network whether their phones are faring any better. Pocket-lint can confirm that they're not.
Apple has already had one blow on the launch of its new operating system iOS 6, which is also found on the iPhone 5. Apple Maps, which the company has used to replace Google Maps as the integrated mapping service, has been found to contain numerous bugs, misplaced locations and many other glaring errors.
Pocket-lint has dubbed that scandal as "Apple Maps-gate", have we now got a "Siri-gate" on our hands too? It's certainly a shame that this may have marred iPhone 5 launch day as it seems that sales records could well be broken.
And Siri had only just started to work properly in the UK when iOS 6 was launched on 19 September. Typical.
Have you had problems using Siri? Let us know in the comments below...


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Drone startup General Aeronautics on Sunday said it has begun commercial production of agricultural drones and aims monthly production of 100 units.
General Aeronautics is into delivering advanced aerial technologies for agriculture, healthcare and unmanned aerial vehicle design.
"We have started commercial production this month after conducting trials for the last three years," Srikanth Srinivasan, Head of Sales and Marketing at General Aeronautics, told PTI.
The trials were conducted in 10,000 acres in 45 crops in 14 states in experimental plots of agrichemical companies. The trial results have been validated by 15 agricultural institutes, he said.
With brand name 'Krishak', the drone manufactured by General Aeronautics has 16 kg payload with 25 minutes flight time and has a coverage of up to six acres per battery charge with artificial intelligence assisted navigation, he said.
Srinivasan said nozzles used in Krishak are different as spraying happens in mist form without posing any hazard and increasing coverage.
"The battery used now has a capacity of 600 cycles. The company is working on a new battery of 6,000 cycles," he said.
Currently, the Bengaluru-based startup has priced its drones at Rs 25 lakh each with three batteries. Its main clients at present are agro-chemical companies like Syngenta, Bayer Cropscience and others. It is mainly focusing on B2B sales.
Last year, the government issued standard operating procedures for use of drones in the farm sector. The Union Budget too gave a push. The Agriculture Ministry has come up with a scheme to fund drones to cooperatives, entrepreneurs and farmer produce organisations.
Copyright©2022 Living Media India Limited. For reprint rights: Syndications Today


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- The low $4.99 monthly subscription fee is why Apple Arcade, not Google Stadia, will eventually dominate in Video-Games-As-A-Service.
- Apple’s big bet on subscription-only video games is well in-tune with GlobalData’s projection that the global video games industry can grow to $300 billion by 2025.
- Parents and players alike will eventually appreciate that the stigma of in-app purchases just got eliminated by Apple Arcade.
- Most iOS developers will initially be lukewarm to the idea of zero in-app purchases for their games. However, many of them will eventually warm up to Apple Arcade.
- AAPL has a bullish one-year algorithmic forecast score of +339.29. I Know First has a great 0.67 predictability score on AAPL’s one-year market trend.
As a long-time video games aficionado, I am highly confident that Apple (AAPL) will eventually become the leader in Video-Games-As-A-Service (VGaaS). The dirt-cheap $4.99 monthly subscription fee of Apple Arcade makes it super attractive to hardcore and casual gamers.
The low asking price of Apple Arcade is likely because it will available in more than 150 countries. It means even gamers in developing countries like the Philippines can afford Apple Arcade. Apple Arcade will go live in the Philippines on September 20 and I will likely be among the first subscribers.
My last buy rating for AAPL was in February 28. The stock back then was trading at less than $174. I still rate AAPL as a buy at its current price $220.70. One year from now, AAPL could be trading at $240 to $250 price range. Apple Arcade is an obvious long-term tailwind for AAPL.
Google (GOOGL) has yet to announce a final official launch date for its Stadia subscription gaming service. Apple Arcade is already going live in more than 150 countries two days from now. The $4.99 monthly fee for Apple Arcade is a killer deal. Up to six family members can use a single Apple Arcade subscription on multiple Apple devices. The seamless device-to-device gaming on Apple Arcade means players can continue their progress when switching from an iPhone to an iPad, iPod Touch or Apple TV.
It is true that there is a much larger number of Android devices. Sorry Google Stadia but the early bird advantage went to Apple Arcade. Just like how it was with Netflix’s early bird move on paid TV/movies streaming, Apple Arcade is taking an early lead in subscription gaming.
Further, the usually affluent crowd of iPhone and iPad owners means more of them will likely subscribe to Apple Arcade’s bargain $4.99/month subscription fee. I am highly confident that Apple Arcade (like Netflix on streaming videos) can also attract more than 100 million subscribers.
The Future Value of Apple Arcade
Going forward, Apple Arcade has the potential to generate additional annual revenue of $5.98 billion. I also believe that one year or two years from now, Apple Arcade will offer more expensive monthly subscription fees. My $5.98 billion/year forward estimate therefore can still go much higher.
The affordability of Apple Arcade can help Apple become less reliant on iPhone hardware sales. Apple is still known as an iPhone sales-driven company. However, five years from now Apple will probably generate more revenue from its Services business segment. Its subscription services for music, streaming TV/movies, software services, and video games will potentially generate more than 50% of the company’s revenue by 2025.
In video games alone, Apple has the potential of generating $10 billion/year five years from now. Apple Arcade will probably responsible for half of that. The other half obviously will still come from its 30% commission on iTunes App Store in-app purchases. Most top-earning developers will probably remain in the in-app purchase monetization camp rather than join Apple Arcade.
My forward estimates are very realistic. GlobalData Thematic Research expects the global video games industry can become a $300 billion/year industry by 2025. This significant because Newzoo only estimates that global video games will only generate around $152.1 billion in 2019.
You should invest in Apple right now if you like the idea of the global video games growing more than three times in size by 2025. Unlike the slowing/stagnating smartphone and tablet businesses, the video games industry has always been in an upward trajectory.
This fact is why Apple is very bullish on video games. Apple Arcade is clue to just how hungry it is to have a bigger slice of the future $300 billion/year video games industry.
Conclusion on Apple Stock Prediction
I firmly believe that Video-Games-As-A-Service will see major adoption by gamers. VGaaS gives more players and developers alike to get more from video games. The $4.99 Apple Arcade now gives Apple two sources of revenue from mobile video games. The 30% cut from iTunes app store in-app purchases will continue to flourish. I believe that many developers will continue to offer free-2-play iOS games because they like the lucrative in-app purchases and/or mobile advertising business.
Apple will likely initially attract mostly econd-tier game developers to join its Arcade subscription gaming. On the other hand, developers will eventually notice that most iOS gamers will probably switch to Apple Arcade. Paying a one-time monthly to access play more than 100 games is more cost-efficient than buying individual $0.99 to $4.99 iOS premium games.
Subscription gaming also eliminates the pay-to-win aspect of free-to-play games, which favors whales (big-spending players) who spend hundreds or thousands of dollars on in-game purchases. Apple Arcade is basically a gamer-friendly approach to mobile games. In the end, most developers and games publishers will realize the long-term advantage in joining Apple Arcade.
My buy rating for AAPL is greatly reinforced by its very bullish one-year algorithmic Apple stock prediction from I Know First. The 339.29 forecast score for AAPL is more attractive considering I Know First has a good predictability score of 0.67. I Know First has a great track record of correct Apple stock prediction for the upward movement of AAPL’s one-year market trend pattern.
The monthly review of technical indicators and moving averages also favor going long on AAPL right now. I do not see any near-term headwinds that could force AAPL to drop below $200.
Past I Know First Success Forecast
The following forecast refers to a previous successful I Know First algorithm prediction that gave a bullish long term outlook for AAPL which was included in a premium article on how the why Apple would release a new Mac Mini this year. The prediction was bullish in both in short and long term with a 3-month signal of 2.93 and a predictability indicator of .62. The Algorithm correctly predicted Apple’s share trend.


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June 6, 2012 | Development
Napa visitors are about to get 115 more choices as to where they lay their heads at night.
A new Hampton Inn & Suites hotel will open at the Napa Century Center, adjacent to the 12-screen Cinemark Theater currently under construction in south Napa, developers announced. The hotel will also have views of the Napa River.
In late May, hotel developer OTO Development of South Carolina signed a ground lease with an option to purchase a portion of land in the Napa Century Center owned by the Gasser Foundation. The price for the lease was not disclosed.
Dave Vierra of First American Real Estate worked with OTO to find the site. Vierra said OTO is one of the largest developers for Hampton Inn & Suites hotels in the United States.
“We’ve been looking at Napa for several years,” Vierra said.
“The occupancy and daily rates have been great,” he noted. “It’s just that (OTO) hadn’t been able to find the right site until now.”
In addition to the hotel rooms, preliminary designs for the property include an outdoor courtyard with a fireplace and seating that can accommodate small events, Vierra said.
“We’re working to create a design that fits with the center. There’s going to be some nice synergy,” he said. “It will be a great new amenity for Napa.”
Room rates for the hotel will be competitive with other hotels of similar quality in the Napa area, Vierra said. “The price point is going to be a home run,” he said.
Joe Fischer with the Gasser Foundation said the property should open in the summer or fall of 2014. The 115-room hotel will be built on 4 acres that Gasser is purchasing from the Napa Sanitation District.
“We selected OTO because we felt that they would do a great job in designing a hotel we would be proud of,” said Joe Peatman, Sr., president of the Gasser Foundation.
“I have seen Hampton Inns that look like stucco boxes. We don’t want one of those,” he said. “OTO is working on hotels in Bellevue (Wash.), Palo Alto and Santa Monica. They understand we need something special and their early design work is right where it needs to be.”
Peatman said the hotel will benefit Napa by providing additional capacity for travelers who don’t want to stay outside the area when they have business in the valley.
“People staying here support our dominant business in the valley and the many restaurants and entrepreneurs in our downtown,” he said. “The TOT (transient occupancy tax) generated by our hospitality industry is an important source of money that the state cannot take away from our city.”
The closest other Hampton Inn & Suites properties are in Vacaville, Rohnert Park and Woodland.
Clay Gregory, CEO of the Napa Valley Destination Council, said an array of price ranges for overnight visitors in Napa is important. The county currently has approximately 5,200 hotel rooms, 3,000 of which are located in Napa.
As long as the new hotel provides an authentic Napa Valley experience, “it’s a good thing for the valley,” Gregory said.
The deal was brokered by local commercial real estate firm Strong & Hayden. Matt Connolly of Strong & Hayden could not be reached for comment Monday afternoon.
The Cinemark Theater will open by November, Fischer said.
Read more: http://napavalleyregister.com/news/local/hampton-inn-suites-planned-for-south-napa/article_930acf00-aec4-11e1-a3a2-0019bb2963f4.html#ixzz1x36ThX5L


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Latinx Travel Club to Host Inaugural Summit
WHY IT RATES: The inaugural summit takes place during Hispanic Heritage Month. –Janeen Christoff, Senior Editor, TravelPulse
Latinx Travel Club, a digital media company powered by Ventyour Inc., showcasing the beauty, power and diversity of the Latinx people through a portfolio of travel, technology, music and other channels, will host its first Latinx Travel Summit from October 15 to 17. , 2021, in Miami and Miami Beach.
Intended to connect, inspire and support Latinx entrepreneurs, the Summit evolved from the Latinx Travel Club’s primary mission of creating closer connections between Latinxes and their origins through travel, music, and cultural platforms.
“We cultivate a community that empowers and recognizes Latinx entrepreneurs,” says Pablo Segarra, Esq., CEO of Latinx Travel Club. “As the gathering of the world’s youngest, most diverse and fastest growing populations, we will celebrate the ingenuity and innovation of the Latinxes. Our summit will be the platform to connect companies, founders, organizations and thought leaders who focus on millennials and millennials. ”
The summit will highlight the economic and cultural impact of one of the world’s fastest growing, most diverse and youngest populations, with roughly 23% of the Millennial population. “We are often told that we are the minority, when in fact we are the majority of the Western Hemisphere,” says Michael Watson, co-founder of the Latinx Travel Club. The summit will focus on entrepreneurs, as Latinx small business owners are the fastest growing group of entrepreneurs in the United States.
Miami due to its large Latin American and Caribbean population and the city’s growing reputation as the next tech hub made it the big winner to host the inaugural summit. “Miami is leading the way as more entrepreneurs and investors move from traditional tech cities to emerging startup ecosystems,” Segarra continues. “The city also has a vibrant LGBTQ community and a non-Spanish speaking Latinx diaspora community, including Haitians, Brazilians and Jamaicans. We look forward to seeing them all represented at the Summit.
The weekend event includes a reception, panel discussions and a farewell party. The schedule is as follows:
—Friday, October 15: 6 p.m. to 9 p.m .: welcome reception at Lab Miami with open bar.
—Saturday October 16: 2:00 pm – 8:00 pm: Full day of panels and discussions at Lab Miami with an open bar cocktail.
—Banards to include investments in travel, technology, media, and startups.
—Sunday October 17: 3 p.m. – 9 p.m.: farewell party with DJ Citizen Jane, hosted by Hyatt at The Confidante Miami Beach Hotel
A portion of the proceeds from ticket sales will be used to fund local charities and the 501 (c) (3) Nexus Latinx non-profit organization which provides scholarships for Latinx students to travel on cultural immersion trips.
Tickets are available at www.latinxtravelsummit.com.
THE SOURCE: Latinx Travel Club press release.


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Adyen to double down on US payment platform market
In the Interview, the specialist said that North America processed volume growth will likely be driven by European and international merchants allocating regional volumes to Adyen. We were told that Adyen’s platform appeal is lower in the US given the lack of fragmentation in the US market.
However, the specialist said Adyen is “doubling down” on the US market. We heard that Adyen’s COO lives in the US and that the specialist believes Adyen could be more competitive and have more flexibility now it has a US banking licence. However, they also added that the US market is a “very credit-card-heavy society” compared to Europe – making the adoption of different payment systems in the US more challenging.
We heard that scale domestic merchants in the US receive low rates from incumbent processors. Merchants’ corporate banks usually offer low rates through captive merchant services businesses such as Chase Paymentech, and Adyen is currently up to 3-4 times more expensive than such businesses.
Meanwhile, the specialist said processing fees are likely to remain under pressure. The specialist said if Adyen wants to remain competitive in the US then it needs to be more astute in payment processing. The company also faces increased competition from smaller, well-funded companies, the specialist said.
They told us Adyen’s processing fees have reduced by 20 basis points over the past 2-3 years, and the specialist thinks they will continue to fall. They said there is unlikely to be a pricing uplift for unified commerce volumes and that point of sale and e-commerce volumes are typically priced at the same level.
The specialist concluded by discussing the impact of a recession on Adyen. They said Adyen could be vulnerable if a major merchant responsible for a high amount of process volumes left Adyen. However, they also said this is unlikely. In terms of Adyen’s future business growth, the specialists expects North America to have “double” the growth of Europe for the foreseeable future.
Click here to access all the human insights in Third Bridge Forum’s “Adyen – Processed volume, wallet share and unified commerce growth outlook” Interview.
The information used in compiling this document has been obtained by Third Bridge from experts participating in Forum Interviews. Third Bridge does not warrant the accuracy of the information and has not independently verified it. It should not be regarded as a trade recommendation or form the basis of any investment decision.
For any enquiries, please contact email@example.com


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Aussie crypto hardware wallet launched by cryptocurrency company chipblocker
How to get rid of all the paper at the post office, and back to a world where we can’t get away with using the word “honey”
Aussie cryptocurrency company Chipblocker has launched a hardware wallet for crypto hardware.The company’s flagship hardware wallet is based on the ARM-based chip architecture of the popular ARM Cortex-A9 platform, and can be used with a wide range of hardware platforms, from smartphones to tablets and laptops.Chipblocker’s flagship wallet is the CannaBank Lite Wallet.It’s a single […]
Which software to use when you buy a car?
The world has a lot of paper, and not all of it is perfect.That’s because when it comes to paper, it’s not the end all be all.And not all paper is created equal.Some paper is just too fragile to handle the heat, and it’s also the one we’re talking about right now.The Post Office is […]
How to buy a new car in Los Angeles
You can spend $1,000 on a new car, but you can spend more than that on a software upgrade that will make it more efficient.And if you don’t pay attention, you can buy the wrong one.Hardware vs. software article How to read the latest software releases to help you avoid the worst software errors.
Buy a new SUV or SUV/crossover or SUV with a bigger, better-looking engine, an SUV or crossover with a larger engine, or an SUV with an all-new engine.If you can’t get your hands on one of those, go for a brand-new one.That way, you’ll get a new engine and all-wheel drive that’s much more fuel-efficient […]