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Gemballa reveals sketches of off road spec Avalanche 911
Famous Porsche tuner Gemballa has revealed a wild off-road-specification 911.
While it’s currently only been shown as a computer-generated rendering, the firm seems keen to put it into production, having built a reputation for creating some outlandish modified Porsches over the years.
Dubbed the Avalanche 4×4, this heavily modified Porsche 911 wears a chunky body kit, large knobbly off-road tyres, and a massive rear spoiler.
Although details of the powertrain remain under wraps, the firm does point to the fact that its customisation division already offers an 818bhp engine update for the 911, making that a feasible option for the Avalanche. Gemballa also says it is working on an upgrade that will offer 1,000bhp.
Steffen Korbach, owner and chief executive of Gemballa, said: “After years of consolidation, we are now preparing a major product offensive with new considerable investments.
“A lot has changed in our sector. Stricter state guidelines and laws, new trends, and competition from vehicle manufacturers are having a massive impact on the vehicle customisation business.
“The prototype of the Gemballa Avalanche 4.2 RS based on the Porsche 991, which was presented at the Geneva Motor Show in 2017, is now to be launched this year in an exclusive small series based on the Porsche 991 and 992. The performance data will outshine all comparable vehicles.”
This reveal comes shortly after another Porsche tuner, Ruf, revealed its take on a classic 911 Safari model. That car has a similar ethos, but it is presented in a more subtle way.


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CEO quits Russia's largest retailer
Andrei Gusev has resigned as X5 Retail Group CEO after just a year in the job. The lack of clarity over the reasons for the departure have increased concerns about the retailer, which is battling to turn around sales.
News that Andrei Gusev will stand down as X5 Retail Group chief executive caused shares in the Russian retailer to sink to a 52-week low on Saturday (14 July). The market responded negatively to fears that an unstable management team will be unable to drive growth as X5 struggles to improve organic sales trends. The sudden nature of the announcement and lack of clarity over the reasons for Gusev's departure augmented these concerns. Katy Askew reports.
Last week's shock announcement that X5 Retail Group CEO Andrey Gusev resigned caused the Russian retailer's share price to tumble. X5 also booked a mixed set of second-quarter results that showed the retailer was only able to slow - but not reverse - declining like-for-like and customer traffic trends. Analysts in Moscow are split over its performance in the market and the outlook for the country's largest retailer, but there is agreement the departure of Gusev will come as a blow.
Russian retailer X5 Retail Group has reported a fall in half-year sales, although there are signs its performance could be improving.
The CEO of Russian retailer X5 Retail Group Andrei Gusev has quit after just one year in the role.
Russian retailer X5 has booked a 32% drop in net profit for the first quarter as depressed consumer sentiment left sales flat.
X5 Retail Group saw its like-for-like sales fall almost 4% in the first three months of the year, the Russian retailer reported today (11 April).
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The iGaming industry is booming, and there are tons of different companies and game providers vying for player’s attention (and wallets) as its popularity increases. Inevitably, many of these companies end up either acquiring the smaller fish or merging with similar ones to maximize profit or just survive in an extremely competitive field.
As online gambling booms, many traditional betting firms are merging with online providers who have the experience, infrastructure, and platform to support this new audience. There can sometimes be business-related tech problems involved, but usually, it’s beneficial for both sides. The traditional betting companies get access to the online market, and the iGaming firms get the trust that comes with long-established companies.
It’s a mutually beneficial arrangement in that regard, but it’s obviously all driven by profit at the end of the day. One of the absolutely smartest examples of this was FanDuel and Paddy Power Betfair, which was just a perfectly timed merger (fresh off the back of another one, no less).
We’ll go into a little detail about some of these big mergers below. It’ll give you just a taste of how complex the global gambling industry can be!
FanDuel and Paddy Power Betfair
The most prolific example of an iGaming merger comes in the form of the American outfit FanDuel, which merged with Paddy Power’s U.S operation in 2018. This was timed quite nicely with the widespread legalization of online betting in the United States. Rules can still vary quite intensely from state to state, but the overwhelming wave of legalization is set to hit basically everywhere besides Texas.
Now, the FanDuel Group is one of America’s biggest iGaming companies. They’re one of the exclusive providers of online gaming in the state of Connecticut – providing the platform for the state’s Native American casinos to operate online.
Back in the nineties, all types of sports betting were basically outlawed in America by the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act. This was deemed unconstitutional and overturned by the Supreme Court, and both Paddy Power and FanDuel were in just the right place to target this new industry before it exploded. It was an extremely savvy move.
Here’s the interesting bit, though. Paddy Power Betfair itself was the result of a merger all the way back in 2016 – Paddy Power and Betfair were two rival companies that merged in order to maximize profit and market share.
The corporation has continued to absorb and expand all over the world. It now operates under multiple names in several countries, all under the “Flutter Entertainment” banner. FanDuel is essentially the American operating name of the firm, as the very Irish term “Paddy Power” doesn’t have a lot of relevance to that audience.
FanDuel has recently launched its online sportsbook in Arkansas, following the state’s legalization of online sports betting. The company has had a presence in the state for a while now thanks to the fantasy sports app it offers, but now bettors will be able to make use of the company’s range of offerings.
Arkansas has only very recently legalized online sports betting. The legislation was passed in February this year. The state’s three major casinos are expected to provide online themed sportsbooks in due course.
William Hill was acquired by Caesars Entertainment… and then sold to 888 Holdings
William Hill is a long-established UK bookmaker, going all the way back to the 1930s. In September 2020, William Hill agreed to a monstrous bid of 3.7 billion by Caesars Entertainment. Caesars is a name many bettors in the online sphere will be familiar with – the Nevada-based company operates tons of physical locations and iGames at various sites. They basically have a casino, online or otherwise, and in every American state it is legal to do so.
The acquisition went through, unopposed, by April 2021. Within that same month it was delisted from the stock exchange, but just a few short months later in September Caesars sold William Hill’s European company to 888 Holdings for 3 billion. William Hill’s American offerings were all rebranded to Caesars Sportsbooks, so the brand has essentially disappeared.
888 is another massive iGaming company, which, like Flutter Entertainment, has been expanding aggressively along with America’s continuing legalization of online betting. 888 operates under a ton of different brands, offering bingo, betting, and casino games. William Hill itself is still doing well, although the company did have to return 24.5 million in furlough funds it received from the UK government during the coronavirus pandemic.
It has also moved predominantly online, partnering with Relax Gaming to deliver the latter company’s huge portfolio of online casino games.
Eldorado Resorts acquires Caesars Entertainment
If by this point you’re wondering if the entire gambling industry is just lots of different companies buying and selling each other, you’re not far off from the truth. This one is a little bit unique in a way because El dorado Resorts acquired Caesars Entertainment and then assumed its identity back in 2020.
Eldorado already had a bunch of casinos in its portfolio but presumably was looking to maximize profits by merging with a business that already had a significant presence in the iGaming industry. Caesars, as mentioned above, is one of the most recognizable names in the American gambling industry full stop – so the name alone was probably worth quite a bit to Eldorado.
Caesars announced a multi-year deal back in February which made them the exclusive sportsbook partner of the NBA team, the Cleveland Cavaliers.
With the American sports betting and iGaming industries still so relatively young, companies are practically climbing over themselves to get through the door first. In this writer’s humble opinion, the Paddy Power Betfair/FanDuel merger was a stroke of absolute genius and one that really sets the tone for the future of the industry.
With such a huge, profitable market, companies can either struggle against each other as rivals or absorb each other to keep on upping the profits and expanding. As more and more American states legalize the pastime, we’re likely to see mergers on an even grander scale.


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The Consumer Electronics Show is opening this week, meaning the Automakers are announcing more hi-tech wizardry integration with the automobile.
The highly anticipated U.S.
Most of the investment will go towards the development of more lightweight auto designs, electric powertrains and boosting production capacity in Hungary, China and a new plant in Mexico.
The Audi TT was introduced in 1998 with a small, curvy design that met the world with excellent reviews but as time went on, the TT’s rounded styling was pinned as being more feminine – a problem t
The heart and soul of the 2013 Audi RS6 Avant is the 4.0L twin turbocharged V8 engine that churns out a whopping 560 horsepower and 516lb-ft of torque.
According to sources at Audi, the German automaker is planning a new city car that would be a small four-seat commuter that would get more than 280 mpg.
Rumors are flying in the United Kingdom, finally removing some notice from Prince Harry and instead putting it on the sleepy manufacturing town of Crewe, where Audi lives.
Forget the Burj Khalifa which is the world's tallest structure in the world, underwater hotels, manmade islands and huge shopping malls, the city of Dubai is now home to the world’s biggest and bad
Audi of America announced today the arrival of four new TDI clean diesel models for the 2014 Audi A8, 2014 A7, 2014 A6 and 2014 Q5 lineup.
When an automaker is the leader in performance, they can’t stand still and Audi is moving forward by updating the whole R8 high-performance model range for 2013.
Basically, Audi is still working on how to use its irresistible R8 platform for a high-performance electric drive.


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WATCH: Target’s customer satisfaction flops. Sean O’Shea reports.
TORONTO – The latest customer satisfaction data shows Costco coming out on top, and new-to-Canada Target missing the mark.
The Forum Poll surveyed 1,578 Canadians 18 and older by phone, who gave eight retail stores a score out of 4.0.
Here are the results in order from best to worst:
Costco – 62 per cent of customers very satisfied
Ogilvy – 59 per cent
Walmart – 40 per cent
Hudson’s Bay – 40 per cent
Winners – 35 per cent
Marshall’s – 35 per cent
Sears – 34 per cent
Holt Renfrew – 32 per cent
Target – 27 per cent
“Considering that nearly everyone who shops at Costco is satisfied with the store, they are the natural leaders. It is interesting to see Target dropping the ball on customer satisfaction after the big entrance they made into the market,” said Forum Research President Dr. Lorne Bozinoff in a release.
Target’s Canadian launch was in March, with up to 135 new locations planned across Canada after more than two years of hype. The company acquired most of the real estate assets operated by Zellers for nearly $2 billion in late 2010.
The Forum Poll also compared the Aug. 14 results to how the stores were rated in April. Costco and Holt Renfrew were consistent, while Walmart, the Bay, Winners and Marshall’s have all improved. Marshall’s showed the greatest improvement, up to 35 per cent very satisfied from 24 per cent in April.
Sears and Target have both declined in ratings of “very satisfied” since the spring.
The survey is considered statistically accurate to plus or minus three per cent, 19 times out of 20, and is meant to capture public opinion at one point in time rather than to predict future outcomes.
With a file from The Canadian Press


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Twitter slips into the world of venture capital with barely a chirrup
Hopes investment in Android competitor Cyanogen will make it leader of the peck...
Twitter has quietly extended its venture-capital appendage for the first time to invest in Cyanogen, a start-up challenging Google's Android.
The creatively named "Twitter Ventures" was announced as party to Cyanogen's recent $80m pass around of the collection plate, and is listed alongside Rupert Murdoch, Vivi Nevo and a handful of mobile money moguls as a strategic investor in the company.
Twitter's revenue increased by 97 per cent to $479.1m in Q4 2014. Although the birdy bunch are still loss-making, they managed to slim their net losses down to $125.4m last year.
According to Bloomberg the company has previously blamed poor quarterly performances on mobile integration issues, saying that the "introduction [and integration] of a new mobile operating system from Apple Inc... cost it four million new users".
Cyanogen CEO Kirt McMaster has said the company is "committed to creating an open computing platform that fundamentally empowers the entire mobile ecosystem, from developers to hardware makers, and most importantly, consumers around the world."
Cyanogen has not offered a breakdown of the recent financing round, although perhaps significantly, Twitter receives top billing in the press release's list of "new strategic investors".
A deceleration in user growth has been Twitter's most significant issue since the company went public in November 2013. According to Bloomberg, CEO Dick Costolo recently told a conference "that the slowdown of new monthly active users is already turning around", although the issue already presents as a long-term trend.
The quiet surrounding Twitter Ventures seems to be temporary. The domain www.twitterventures.com offers a "website coming soon" sticker. ®
Sponsored: Quit your addiction to storage


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New Video Slots: Temple of Luxor & Bullseye
The first week of December saw a bundle of new online slots, Temple of Luxor & Bullseye, released by two of the leading software developers: Genesis Gaming and Microgaming.
Microgaming’s latest online slot is based on Bullseye, a TV game hosted by Jim Bowen. The classic game show has three pairs of contestants competing against each other for the win. Bully, the bull, is the dart-playing mascot. The online slot edition is a 5×3 reel game with 243 ways to win. The reels are patterned on the original program’s prizes such as a car, caravan and a speedboat. What makes this online slot very interesting is that players are actually given the chance to throw darts at the board during the bonus round. The prize is 15x the total bet for every dart thrown that finds a mark.
Mike Hebden, the head of Microgaming’s casino games, claims that the online slot truly depicts the very popular TV game show with its retro graphics and sounds, including the classic one-liners voiced by Jim Bowen, star prizes and prize board. Hebden expects this Bullseye online slot to be well-accepted by online gamers what with the dart season coming soon. This online slot is available to all online Microgaming casino operators now.
Temple of Luxor, Genesis Gaming’s latest offering, has two 50-line reel sets combined for an 11-reel game that features a 4 Wild reels bonus. The base game of two 4×5 reels creates a collective 100 lines of action to make this online slot unique. Wins are calculated from right to left on one side and from left to right on the other side. The potential to win big is huge due to the large symbols stacks.
Geoffrey Hansen, managing director of Genesis Gaming, comments that Temple of Luxor with its multiple sets and its huge reel set in the bonus round afford a new gaming experience for gamers. According to the Genesis Gaming’s European sales director, James Watson, Temple of Luxor‘s massive stacks of symbols and high line count make the possibility of large pot and frequent winnings for players. As of this writing Temple of Luxor is only available at Unibet.


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ICG President Steven Poster Urges Color Management Development
“An end to end, device independent color management system that delivers nearly a transparent process to the artist is the Holy Grail,” Poster said at the HPA Tech Retreat.
International Cinematographers Guild president and director of photography Steven Poster urged the production industry to develop a color management system for use from principal photography to home entertainment deliverables, Thursday at the Hollywood Post Alliance Tech Retreat in Palm Springs.
Today a plethora of digital cameras, formats, and postproduction systems have complicated the ability of filmmakers to maintain consistent color. “An end to end, device independent color management system that delivers nearly a transparent process to the artist is the Holy Grail,” Poster said.
“As an industry we need to develop a process, just like Digital Cinema Initiatives (the industry consortium that developed the digital cinema specification), to truly define what it takes as a business model to deliver from the set those components that we all need to make the movies, television shows and TV commercials that are the life blood of our industry.”
Poster suggested that such a development effort involve the studios and key industry organizations.
“I can see that it is really a possibility,” he said, acknowledging that today there are complex and nonstandardized technology options available. “As a director of photography, I’m hired to deliver a photographic style that helps the director tell the story. Delivery means initiating a data flow that begins at the camera’s sensor and continues thought post to the motion picture or television screen and then onto Blu-Ray, DVD and Netflix as it travels toward the studio’s archives. This data stream, flowing from the camera, should be optimized in ways that serve everyone who has an interest in the frame—which is just about everyone.”
During the session, Poster reported that the ICG will offer training on Sony’s new F65 4K digital camera and the related workflow methods. The F65 began shipping in January and has had an enthusiastic response from the production industry.


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Regions Sponsored by
Iran and Korea signed an agreement to ease regulations the government on Korean cosmetics exports, making way for expanded sales.
Shiseido announced the opening of its new global supply chain management base.
Clariant announced the achievement of Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil Mass Balance certification for a couple of its production sites.
BASF completed a surfactant capacity expansion project at its Cimanggis site in Indonesia to help serve the home and personal care industries.
Single people spent $14.3 billion in one day, according to the Chinese e-commerce giant. And wait until you see the m-commerce portion.
Asian daily face care rituals are driving new innovations around the world. In response, AAK Personal Care has developed a six-step face care ritual featuring its multifunctional emollient ester Lipex SheaLight.
Ashland announced Elixiance biofunctional recently won the silver award for best active ingredients at in-cosmetics Asia 2015 Innovation Zone Awards.
Although Halal beauty is still a niche category, it is becoming increasingly mainstream in Islamic markets, according to a Klineblogs post.
India’s cosmetic market growing at a compound annual growth rate of 17.06% over a five-year period and is expected to grow more than double that amount by 2021.
Consumer demands for tailored solutions are impacting product segments and digital retail platforms.


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Why Lupita's Oscar win is such great news, particularly for women of color.
Marc Jacobs took us on an ethereal, heavenly journey on Thursday, Feb. 13,the last day of Fashion Week. For his namesake collection, the designer filled the Lexington Armory with puffy clouds suspended from the ceiling.
A new exhibition at the Pratt Manhattan Gallery brings together the work of various black designers in honor of Black History Month.
When I was little, my mom was the kind who always offered to talk about “my changing body.” Those three words still remain the most cringe-inducing in my repertoire, even almost 10 years later.
Lea Goldman, CC '98, sat down with Spectator to talk about her journalism career and time at Columbia.
F.I.T. pulled together a historically significant exhibit of LGBT fashion for their new exhibit, opening Sept. 13.
First-years, take heed: Absurd amalgamations of this figure will haunt your next four years.
Experiencing college through fashion can be an armor to protect from other experiences.
On Thursday, Feb. 28, the Chinese Students Club of Columbia University put on its annual Lunar Gala, which included performances by several student groups and a four-scene fashion show that featured the clothing of many big-name designers.
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Asda has knocked 2p off the cost of fuel at its garage forecourts.
The supermarket chain said it was taking unleaded down to 118.7p per litre with immediate effect, along with diesel down to 119.7 a litre.
Morrisons revealed plans to match Asda's 2p reduction - at all 333 filling stations across the UK.
From tomorrow, Sainsbury’s is cutting the price of both unleaded petrol and diesel by up to 2p per litre across its 311 forecourts.
Tesco has not made an announcement of cuts but motorists have seen prices reduced in recent days.
This follows a 5% fall in the price of oil this week.


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NEW YORK (WABC) -- As New York state begins the distribution phase of its cannabis program the governor and mayor are cracking down on pop-up smoke shops and illegal cannabis products.
"You tell me, can you tell the difference between what is legal and what is illegal?" Mayor Adams asked holding two virtually identical, brightly colored snack bags. "It is extremely difficult to do it."
One bag contained cannabis edibles, while the other was a standard packet of gummy candies.
"This is what we are finding in our stores across the city that are popping up," Adams said. "Many of these stores are unsafe and are targeting our kids."
Adams announced that the city is teaming up with the state of New York and cracking down on unlicensed cannabis dispensaries that have popped up around the city.
The state Office of Cannabis Management seized more than $4 million of illegal products during a 2-week pilot program in partnership with several city agencies.
A task force inspected 53 locations throughout the 5 boroughs and seized more than 100,000 illegal products.
As the state continues to move forward with opening legal, equitable cannabis dispensaries New York Governor Kathy Hochul announced a plan to help consumers easily identify state-regulated dispensaries.
"We will use every tool available to strengthen the equitable, legal adult-use cannabis market we're building and the dispensary verification tool Governor Hochul unveiled today is one step in that process," Executive Director of the Office of Cannabis Management Chris Alexander said. "Our enforcement team has been growing its partnerships and ramping up activity from Buffalo to New York City and will continue to do so until these illicit stores and trucks are shut down."
A QR code will be prominently posted in the windows of legally licensed retail dispensaries, which are set to begin opening before the end of this year. The designation will easily allow consumers to identify dispensaries regulated by the state versus illegal pop-up shops.
There will also be a universal symbol on products sold to show they meet standards set up by the state.
"These tools will help to protect public health and strengthen our ability to deliver the equitable cannabis market our law envisions," Hochul said. "We will continue to work with our partners in municipalities across the state to enforce the law and shut down illicit operators who are selling products that put New Yorkers at risk."
The state will also release a public education campaign at the beginning of 2023 to explain the benefits of purchasing legal cannabis regulated by the state.
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The Packard Motor Car Co., in August (generally a poor month) shipped 4,000 cars best month's record in Packard history. President Alvan Macauley predicted the record would be broken by September sales.
Delays in reconstructing the plant make it seem improbable that Henry Ford will be able to put his new model car on the market before December. In its manufacture he will use salvage steel reclaimed from the fleet of discarded merchant vessels built by the government during the War.
In Detroit, centre of automobile manufacture, 40,000 fewer men are being employed than a year
In August, 1927, a greater number of...


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Read the most popular stories from the past week from the Central Texas area.
Hundreds of acres, billions of dollars: Three major developments to follow in Austin
These three mixed-use developments that have been proposed in the southwest, southeast and northeast areas of the city could transform those sections of town in the next decade through billions of dollars of investment in new apartments, condos, office space, retail shops, restaurants and more.
Samsung seeks 100% tax rebate from Austin for proposed $17B plant expansion, threatens to build elsewhere
If Austin wants Samsung Semiconductor to bring its $17 billion state-of-the-art chipmaking plant to the Texas capital, Samsung wants a 100% property tax reimbursement on the project from the city for more than 20 years, according to documents reviewed by Community Impact Newspaper.
Here is what you need to know about vaccine distribution in Williamson County
With all the confusion surrounding vaccinations in Williamson County, here are some keys things you need to know.
Here are 6 businesses that opened in the last month in New Braunfels
From a bicycle training studio to a drive-thru margarita store to a Mexican restaurant, many businesses have been opening in New Braunfels in the last four weeks.
Council OKs $1B Leander Springs development, addresses water concerns in agreement
Leander City Council has approved a development agreement and conditionally approved a zoning ordinance for Leander's next big project.
Jack Flagler, Christopher Neely, Ali Linan, Brian Rash and Taylor Girtman contributed to this report.


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In a bid to sort out ‘legacy issues’, the group announces a write-off of R12m in defunct assets and settles its second case with the competition authorities
Telkom’s new leadership is dramatically cleaning its house of “legacy issues”.
Not only did the group this week announce the write-off of R12 billion in defunct assets, it also settled its second case with the competition authorities, making far-reaching commitments to level the playing field in South Africa’s telecommunications market.
Telkom has agreed to pay another R200 million in fines on top of the R449 million it was fined last year in a separate case before the competition tribunal.
The settlement was simultaneously announced by the competition commission in a statement and by Telkom’s new CEO, Sipho Maseko, at the company’s annual results presentation on Friday.
Maseko was appointed less than three months ago and is attempting to right what many analysts viewed as a sinking ship.
The “in principle” settlement relates to complaints made between 2005 and 2007 by the Internet Service Providers’ Association as well as MultiChoice subsidiary Internet Solutions.
The gist of the complaints is that Telkom abused its control of infrastructure to benefit its own retail internet offerings at the cost of competitors that also rely on Telkom infrastructure.
In the first competition commission case, Telkom was found guilty of anti-competitive practices after complaints, between 1999 and 2004, that it refused other Internet Service Providers (ISPs) access to essential infrastructure.
Initially, it appealed this decision to the Competition Appeal Court, but that appeal was recently dropped.
The negotiation of an additional R200 million fine for the second case appears to be a sensible move for Telkom, as sources familiar with the investigation have described as “stronger than the first case”.
Considering that Telkom’s profit was R501 million (excluding the write-offs) in the year to March, these are sizeable fines. However, they are all payable via instalments in terms of the agreement with the commission.
According to the competition commission, the settlement includes an admission of guilt, the financial penalty of R200 million, as well as a “functional separation” between Telkom’s retail and wholesale divisions.
This means that it has to ensure non-discrimination against other ISPs and also protect the confidential information of ISPs that use its services from abuse by Telkom’s own ISP retail segment.
The company will have to account for its retail operations separately to allow scrutiny.
Telkom will also have to ensure price reductions, mostly in its wholesale business selling access to infrastructure like ADSL lines and undersea cables to other ISPs, that will save customers altogether R875 million over five years.
Its prices need to fall in 2014, 2015 and 2016, and Telkom must “ensure” the reductions are not reversed in 2017 and 2018, says the commission.
Altogether 30% of the price reductions’ effect need to be felt in the retail segment by normal consumers.
Shan Ramburuth, the competition commissioner, said they “are satisfied with the settlement agreement and expect it will lead to a more open and competitive market, and translate to lower prices for consumers”.
Another talking point of the annual results was Telkom’s decision to impair the carrying value of its fixed-line network by R12 billion.
This move will reduce its net asset value from about R57 a share to R34 a share.
That is still far more than the price Telkom is trading at on the JSE: roughly R15.55 on Friday.
Maseko said that for the past five or six years Telkom’s share value was trading below the net asset value and this was a major driver behind the decision.
He admitted that some of the “legacy assets” were outdated and delivered returns “below commercial norms”.
Telkom was at pains to point out that the impairment charge is a non-cash item that does not affect its cash flow or ability to fund investments.
It nevertheless made the group’s loss in the year rocket to R11.5 billion as opposed to its loss of R78 million a year earlier.
“The decision to impair is another important step in this transformation journey,” said Maseko.
“It allows us to draw a clear line between our historic position and our future, enabling us to reset our base to become competitive and efficient.”
Maseko described Telkom as “severely challenged” but “not broken”.
“Our key shareholders are frustrated, our customers are frustrated and I can promise that we will not repeat the same mistakes of the past,” said Maseko.
He said senior executives were looking at how to restructure Telkom’s management so that there were less layers between the “top man and the customer”.
“Telkom is at a crossroads and perhaps has been stuck at this point for quite a while,” said Jacques Schindehütte, Telkom’s chief financial officer.
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Increased demand for energy efficient lighting solutions in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) is spurring fresh growth for the LED market, as the sustainable and long-lasting luminaire looks to dominate the regional architectural and public lighting landscape.
Analysts Frost & Sullivan estimate that the GCC’s LED (light-emitting diode) market was worth $900 million in 2015, comprising 38 per cent of the region’s total $2.4 billion lighting fixtures market for the year.
As regional governments implement eco-friendly green building regulations along with public and street light retrofitting programs, demand for LED technology is expected to grow by 16-17 percent annually over the next five years.
According to Frost & Sullivan, more than 60 percent of all inquiries for lighting in the region are now for LED systems, indicating that smart and sustainable solutions are the way forward in place of traditional incandescent and fluorescent bulbs.
The Gulf region’s lighting fixtures market alone will be worth $3.5 billion by 2020.


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Your CPU for autopilot and automotive AI at Tesla will appear after four to six months, promises Elon Musk.The new complex called Hardware 3 can be used on all cars manufactured after October 2016. And some will get it for free, writes the Chronicle.info with reference to Internetua
Last week, the head of Tesla Elon Musk told investors on a “semi-secret” plan production of chips for the Autonomous driving mode. Now appeared more details about the complex called Hardware 3, which should become a “key for full autonomy Tesla”.
The upgrade should be to replace the chip Nvidia Drive, which is used in all Tesla vehicles manufactured after October 2016. According to the company, approximately 196 000 of 360 000 cars delivered to owners. Those who paid $3000 for pre-order features of the full autopilot, get 3 free Hardware.
The processor is designed to run machine learning at the level of “bare iron” unlike graphics chip Nvidia Drive PX 2. While PX 2 can process 20 frames per second, the chip Tesla will provide 2000 fully redundant and overcoming failure, promised Musk.
Manages a team of developers Pete Bannon, a former Apple employee, on account of which the world’s first 64-bit processor for a smartphone, reported Inverse. According to him, the new chip will support the existing network of machine learning and will provide a reserve for development.
However, issues associated with the release of this CPU is still a lot. Tesla requires that those wishing to use the full range of opportunities has gained the “advanced autopilot” at a price of $5000 at the time of purchase of the car or $6000. Now the company charges $3000 for full autonomy, but Musk hinted that after the update the price will rise. When these changes will happen, and how they will be associated with the release of the new processor is not yet clear.
Another issue was the software for the new chip. In 2016, Musk promised that in 2017 Tesla will be able to drive from the Western to the Eastern coast of the US on autopilot. As in the case with a number of other promises, he had to admit that the timing is broken. Now the developers are aiming to release the ninth version of Autopilot by September, so that the software for the Hardware 3 hardly makes sense to wait before.
After the introduction of the new system, Tesla drivers will be able to take your hands off the wheel, but to talk to my car. Management will be fully under voice control, and artificial intelligence will make machines fully-fledged interlocutor.


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MapleStory 2 Joins the Battle Royale Bandwagon – Here’s How to Access the Game
It would seem that MapleStory 2 will also be taking part in the battle royale frenzy as it includes a new Mushking Royale mode.
March 26, 2018
How Many People Are Working on Fortnite? The Number of People at Epic Games is Huge
With the recent surge in battle royale games, Fortnite has become one of the most popular games right now. Have you stopped to wonder how many people at Epic Games are working on the game? Hint: It's not far from a thousand.
January 23, 2018
Monster Hunter World Day One Patch Details; Almost 1GB in Size
Capcom has shed light on the Day One patch for their upcoming blockbuster game, Monster Hunter World. Keep in mind, you need this update in order to get all the DLCs as well as online functionalities to work.
January 18, 2018
Blizzard World Map is Coming to Overwatch; And It’s “Opening” Very Soon
The new Blizzard World Map, a showcase of Blizzard's legacy in the gaming world, is coming to Overwatch very soon. It's a very interesting concept to say the least.
January 9, 2018
Fortnite Login and Server Stability Issues Addressed; Meltdown Prevention?
There's been some annoying issues that have been happening on Epic Games' Battle Royale game, Fortnite. Now we know what it is and why it's happening.


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To research his business idea—an in-restaurant tablet for ordering—E la Carte founder Rajat Suri dropped out of MIT and waited tables at a local restaurant. One day some former classmates walked in. “I had to serve them,” remembers Suri. “There was an awkward silence, and I could see them thinking that they better study harder or else this would be them one day.” But Suri came out just fine: He developed a tablet for restaurant tables called Presto that increases sales by up to 25%—so much so that Applebee’s ordered 100,000 of them, and Johnny Rockets is now using them at 200 restaurants.
- Tap to eat: Customers order food on the tablet—and then some. Checks are an average of 25% higher.
- Wait and play: Diners can play trivia or memory games, or add music to the restaurant’s communal queue.
- Pay and leave: No checks. Johnny Rockets says the tablets helped cut bill paying from eight to two minutes.
Illustration: Chris Philpot
With Presto, diners can order food and beverages on demand, play games while they wait for their plates, and then pay the check without having to flag down a waiter. Why do restaurants want this? “The tablet never forgets to upsell,” explains Suri. “People who order on Presto are 25% more likely to get upsold.” And Johnny Rockets adopted the technology because its restaurants were able to serve 11% more people on any given night during its pilot-testing program. “Before implementing E la Carte, we reviewed market research surveys and discovered that customers would downgrade five-star reviews if it took too long for them to receive the check,” says Johnny Rockets’ VP of information technology Lacy Morris. “With Presto, it now takes our customers an average of two minutes to pay their bills as compared to the industry average of eight minutes.” Every win for a restaurant is also a win for Suri. E la Carte owns the Presto tablets and earns recurring user fees from clients.
Now Suri is setting his sights on more casual restaurants—and upscale ones, too. “If you talk to anyone in the restaurant industry, they’re not going to doubt it,” he says.
Founder Rajat Suri spent the first 18 months of his business working at Asgard, a local Irish pub near MIT, to develop Presto. He gave customers an early incarnation of the tablet and then made technical changes to the device between orders, based on the suggestions of the guests. The finished version of the tablet is still used at the pub today.
[Photo: courtesy of E La Carte]


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Eleven strong haulier consortium Jigsaw has won a contract with food manufacturer Kellogg’s to handle less-than-truck-load volumes. The deal will see it consolidate smaller consignments and partial loads into full loads at Kellogg’s distribution centres in Manchester for delivery to retail warehouses across the UK. “This is another example of how we can support big brands like Kellogg’s by reducing supply chain complexity and adding value through our expertise,” said Andy Humpherson, MD of Jigsaw. “Our unique network approach means […]
Norbert Dentressangle (ND) has won a three-year contract with Tata Global Beverages for the UK storage and distribution of Tetley teas, with its shared-user network cited as a major factor in clinching the deal. The contract will see ND relocate the warehousing from the current Tetley warehouse at Newton Aycliffe, County Durham, to its own Merlin warehousing facility in Manchester, which will be shared with existing occupant, Kellogg’s. The facility will also consolidate goods from manufacturer Kimberly-Clark’s northern distribution centre […]
XPO Logistics has begun raising $3.26bn (£2.1bn) to finance its takeover of Norbert Dentressangle and for other, as yet unspecified acquisitions.
Norbert Dentressangle (ND) has revealed a first-half consolidated revenue increase of 13.3% to €1.9bn (up from €1.7bn in the same period last year) despite struggling with volumes. Like-for-like growth remained flat, dipping by 0.2% compared with H1 2011, which ND attributes to a sharply deteriorating European economy during the second quarter. ND’s transport division took a 1.3% hit on a like-for-like basis (consolidated revenue is up 7.7% to €1bn), which the company says is due to a sluggish economy, with […]


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Despite facing slowing user growth and increased competition from Facebook and Instagram, Snap is setting its sights on profitability in 2019. Cheddar has obtained a memo from Snap CEO Evan Spiegel, which was sent to all Snap employees, in which he explains how the company plans to combat its growth struggles, the lingering effects of its controversial Snapchat redesign, and more.
In the memo, Spiegel says that 2018 has been the most “challenging, transformative year” in Snap’s history. He says the company is working hard towards its “stretch goal” of breaking even in the fourth quarter of 2018, and wants to “achieve full year profitability” in 2018.
Regarding the controversial Snapchat redesign, which is internally referred to as “cheetah,” Spiegel admits it was “rushed” and solved one problem, but created many others. The Snap CEO explains that the Snapchat redesigned “got ahead of the existential crisis faced by many platforms today” by separating friend content from professional content, but the transition caused “frustration for our community.”
“We rushed our redesign, solving one problem but creating many others,” says the Snap CEO.
By launching our redesign quickly, and separating social from media, we got ahead of the existential crisis faced by many platforms today. We led the way in our industry by curating broadcast content, and separating Friends from professional content creators. Unfortunately, we didn’t give ourselves enough time to continue iterating and testing the redesign with a smaller percentage of our community. As a result, we had to continue our iterations after we launched, causing a lot of frustration for our community.
To help combat some of the issues still plaguing the Snapchat user interface, Spiegel says the company is working on new designs of its Discover tab, and will continue to add new partners and content to that section based on what is performing well “outside of Snapchat.”
Spiegel also address growing competition from Facebook, citing University of Michigan research that shows “Snapchat was second only to face-to-face communication when it comes to generating positive feelings.”
As Cheddar explains, Spiegel’s full 6,500 word, 15-page memo offers a “unique window into the mind of Snap’s reclusive CEO at a time when the company is under intense pressure to grow its business and appease investors.”
Read the full memo at Cheddar.
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VitaminShoppe.com Makes Pact with AOL
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The deal places VitaminShoppe.com in an anchor tenant spot in the diet and nutrition department of AOL's Shop@AOL marketplace.
The retailer will also receive gold tenant positions in several other departments and will be featured in promotions on AOL's other properties CompuServe, AOL.com, Digital City and Netscape Netcenter.
"VitaminShoppe.com's alliance with AOL puts us in an even stronger position in this important winter buying season," said Kathryn Creech, president and CEO of the company.
The health-related products sector including vitamins and pharmaceutical products is turning into one of the most competitive, with competitors like Vitamins.com, PlanetRx.com, and Drugstore.com fighting for dominance and consumers' attention.


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As Managing Director and Vice President of Starbucks’ coffee trading division, Berron will oversee the coffee chain’s vast green coffee supply chain globally, including transportation and quality
Starbucks buys approximately 3% of the world’s annual coffee production | Photo credit: Starbucks
Starbucks has appointed Andres Berron as Managing Director and Vice President of Starbucks Coffee Trading Company.
In the strategic leadership role, Berron will be responsible for Starbucks’ coffee trading division’s green coffee supply chain, including transportation, ethical sourcing and quality assessment.
Starbucks, the world’s largest coffee chain with more than 36,000 outlets globally, buys approximately 3% of the world’s annual coffee production, sourced from more than 400,000 farmers across 30 countries.
Berron has worked for Starbucks Coffee Trading Company since May 2016, most recently as Director of Trading and Traffic where he led on ethical sourcing, supplier relationships, risk management and green coffee and cocoa distribution globally.
He also oversaw Starbucks’ Coffee and Farmer Equity (C.A.F.E.) Practices, a set of ethical sourcing standards launched by Starbucks in 2004 to measure coffee farms against select economic, social and environmental criteria.
A Starbucks spokesperson said: “His [Barron’s] expertise and leadership during the most tumultuous time in modern supply chain and coffee market history proved invaluable in managing risk and ensuring the continued and uninterrupted supply of the highest-quality, ethically-sourced coffee to our global network. His in-depth knowledge and experience of the coffee trade has enabled us to service both our suppliers and customers at the highest possible level.”
Founded in 2002, Starbucks Coffee Trading Company is headquartered in Lausanne, Switzerland.
Barron replaces Tim Scharrer who left Starbucks in October 2022 to join Swiss coffee trader Volcafe as Chief Operating Officer and Regional Director for Europe & East Africa.


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Radio Shack to close up to 1,100 U.S. stores after big Q4 loss
Electronics retailer lost $191.4 million in the last quarter of 2013, the critical holiday season.
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FORT WORTH, TEXAS — RadioShack plans to close up to 1,100 of its underperforming stores in the U.S. and reported a wider loss for its fourth quarter as traffic slowed during the critical holiday season.
The stock tumbled more than 24 per cent in Tuesday premarket trading.
The store closings would leave RadioShack with more than 4,000 stores.
For the period ended Dec. 31, the electronics retailer with a 90-year history in the United States, lost $191.4 million, or $1.90 per share. That compares with a loss of $63.3 million, or 63 cents per share, a year earlier. Excluding items, RadioShack Corp. lost $1.29 per share. Analysts expected a loss of 16 cents per share.
Revenue declined to $935.4 million from $1.17 billion. Sales at stores open at least a year fell 19 per cent on weaker traffic and the soft performance of its mobility business. Analysts expected revenue of $1.12 billion.
The Source in Canada was known as Radio Shack until it was bought by U.S.-based Circuit City and operated as The Source by Circuit City. The Source stores were purchased by BCE in 2009 after Circuit City went bankrupt.
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Apple has released the sixth beta version of its iPhone Software Development Kit (SDK). The new beta, labeled build 9M2192 beta 6, requires Mac OS X 10.5.3, the latest update to the Mac operating system which was released earlier today. The updated SDK, which is available as a free download for registered iPhone developers from the iPhone Dev Center, is a 1.19GB download. Complete release notes are available here.
Apple releases sixth update to iPhone SDK
Charles Starrett was a senior editor at iLounge. He's been covering the iPod, iPhone, and iPad since their inception. He has written numerous articles and reviews, and his work has been featured in multiple publications.


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Holt Renfrew will next year launch hr2, a lower-priced alternative to its luxury stores.
The Toronto-based retailer said the concept will “fill a void in the Canadian market” and will debut in March with a 30,000-square-foot store in Montreal’s Quartier DIX30 shopping center. Another location is planned for Ontario early next year. The company expects to open hr2 stores across the country but did not specify how many.
"You start one way as a baby, but why shouldn't you be able to choose your own path as opposed to culturally people telling you which way to go?" - Thom Browne at his men's spring 2018 show, where he celebrated gender fluidity. #pfw #wwdmens (📷: @delphineachard)
"I think that all anyone really wants in life is to have people understand us for who we actually are, despite everything," says Ruth Negga. The actress talks "Preachers" season 2 and more on WWD.com. #wwdeye (📷: Dan Doperalski)


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BRADFORD, Pennsylvania — Shults Toyota hopes to score a touchdown with its dealership expansion on Saturday when it hosts its grand opening from 10 a.m.-3 p.m. with family games, 99-cent chicken dinners and new Buffalo Bills Quarterback Matt Cassel.
Cassel's visit has the town, about 90 minutes from Buffalo, buzzing about his 1-2 p.m. visit, where he'll sign autographs and pose for photographs.
"We even have Pittsburgh Steelers fans coming for his autograph," General Manager Steve Hopkins told Edmunds.
To encourage customers to check out the new facilities, it has a treasure-map hunt that will take families throughout the expansion, rewarding them with prizes.
"It's a fun activity for children and their parents to see the entire dealership and notice the details like the mosaic fireplace and flat screen TV in the lounge, the children's play area and our spacious consultation area," Matthew Kahm, vice president of marketing for Shults Auto Group, told Edmunds.
Other games include a race-car pit stop challenge and a football toss.
"The grand opening will bring people in and we will show them what cars we have available," Hopkins said.
Edmunds says: A grand opening gets even grander with a sports celebrity, freebies and car sales.


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New-style window shopping… BlackBerry under attack… Technology’s generation gap… ABC online redesign…
Tuesday, June 26, 2007/
Window shopping goes digital
Not content with being a leader in fashion, Ralph Lauren is now pushing window shopping to new places. Trendhunter says Ralph Lauren’s flagship London store has installed a giant 78-inch touchscreen in its front window, where you would normally see a merchandise display.
Not only does the screen display the products available inside the store, passers-by can use it to browse and order directly from the window. If you place an order, you will be contacted via email within 24 hours to provide your payment information and the item will be delivered soon after.
So much easier than actually going into the shop?!
BlackBerry under attack
Next time you tap some confidential competitive information into your BlackBerry consider this: somebody may be able to intercept it because most messages are routed through servers in the US and Canada.
The French Government has imposed bans on the use of BlackBerrys by staff in the French President’s and Prime Minister’s offices because of concerns that US eavesdroppers the national Security Agency many be listening. The use by Australian Government officials is coming under scrutiny for the same reason, according to a report in the Australian Financial Review.
BlackBerry manufacturer Research in Motion yesterday dismissed the allegations as speculation based on “false and misleading information”.
Technology’s generation gap
As small firms increasingly rely on high-tech applications to grow, a generation gap is emerging in family-run businesses over the importance of investing in technology, a new study shows.
Inc.com reports that a survey by Microsoft found conflict between older business owners, who want to see a direct impact on the bottom line before investing in technology, and their children, who want the latest high-tech products and applications.
The survey, of more than 250 small-business owners in the United States, found six in 10 admitted to having disagreements with younger family members over technology issues.
Yet, despite the occasional family squabbles, more than three in four business owners surveyed agreed that technology was important to sustaining their business, while nearly half said it was very or extremely important for growth.
ABC online redesign
The ABC has revamped its website to adopt web 2.0 philosophies and encourage user-generated content. ABC journalist Stuart Watt told the Australian Financial Review that the Flash-based site is designed to put the power into users’ hands.
Users can create their own playlists of video and audio and time shift their viewing and listening experience.
Quote of the Day
Business opportunities are like buses, there’s always another one coming.
– Richard Branson
Feel the churn: How to bounce back after losing staff and clients Sue Parker DARE Group founder
Own it: The 10 things you need to do to manage your personal brand Lisa Stephenson Who Am I Projects founder
How to call your team into action with a winning presentation Emma Bannister Presentation Studio founder
The link between diet and mental health — and how to eat your way to wellbeing Kate Save Be Fit Food co-founder
From interactive videos to AI: The five marketing trends that will dominate 2019 Warwick Boulter Collaboro co-founder
Australia is leading the legaltech revolution, but what does this mean for lawyers, firms and clients? Jodie Baker Xakia founder
Why a video news release needs to be part of your PR strategy Leisa Goddard Adoni Media managing director
Want to catch more customers? Here's how to create a super sales funnel Jovana Vujnic Bumper Leads founder


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The store’s liquidation sale will showcase the mix of classic and unique jewels it’s known for stocking.
Elvis TCB Ring Takes in More Than $400K at Auction
The buyer apparently couldn’t help falling in love with the bold, chunky piece.
The piece, auctioned as part of Kruse GWS Auctions’ sale of Hollywood and music memorabilia over the weekend, attracted 31 bids and ultimately pulled in $440,625.
That made it the highest grossing lot in the sale, and the most expensive ring once owned by Elvis Presley ever sold at auction. (The previous record belonged to a horseshoe-shaped ring that went for $204,800.)
Designed according to the singer’s specifications by jeweler Lowell Hays Jr., the 14-karat yellow gold piece features a 7.56-carat VS2 diamond center and diamond accents totaling 2.25 carats.
Just below the center stone are the diamond-set letters “T,” “C” and “B,” which stand for “Taking Care of Business,” the mantra Elvis adopted when he returned to the concert circuit in 1969.
The singer was known for giving away his jewelry.
He gifted this particular piece to friend and backup vocalist J.D. Sumner, lead singer of Sumner & The Stamps, on stage at a concert in Asheville, North Carolina in 1975.
Elvis can be heard in an audio clip from that concert telling the crowd the ring—the first of numerous “TCB” pieces—cost him $40,000, the equivalent of nearly $200,000 today.
Hays, who closed his Memphis, Tennessee jewelry store in 2005, was known as the official jeweler to the King. He also made a TCB necklace and a TLC, or “Tender Loving Care,” necklace.
GWS Auctions called this size 10 TCB ring “arguably the most significant and well-documented piece of Elvis’ jewelry on the planet,” noting that not even Graceland has “a piece of this magnitude.”
It said the ring has never been offered at auction or any kind of public sale.
Sumner, who died in 1998, kept it for years then gave it to Mike Moon, founder of the Elvis Museum in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, in the 1980s. It’s been in Moon’s collection ever since.
Kruse GWS Auctions’ “Artifacts of Hollywood & Music” sale closed Saturday.
It featured more than 300 lots of music and movie star memorabilia, like a Louis Vuitton secretary trunk and antique typewriter Marilyn Monroe gifted her third husband, the playwright Arthur Miller, that sold for $51,200 and the late Robin Williams’ striped rainbow suspenders from “Mork & Mindy,” which sold for $2,375.
Other jewelry lots included a size 5 platinum ring owned by ’50s actress Arlene Dahl that features 13 total carats of round and baguette-cut F-G/VS1-VS2 diamonds set in a spiral shape. It sold for more than $9,000.
Muhammad Ali’s Omega watch engraved with “Ali 10/30/1974,” commemorating his victory over George Foreman at the famous “Rumble in the Jungle” event in 1974, went for more than $5,000.
A pair of Bulova watches that belonged to screen legend Greta Garbo sold for more than $1,200.
It follows Creative Director Lucia Silvestri as she crafts the brand’s high jewelry collections.
Learn how to better serve your employees, customers and community by having a dynamic and supportive company culture.
The competition takes place in tandem with TJA’s annual convention, known as the Texas Jewelers Roundup.
The limited-run collection features figures from Haring’s iconic street art on charms, bracelets, rings, and more.
While ethical mining is essential to a diamond business, they represent only a fraction of the responsibility bestowed on jewelers.
One hundred percent of proceeds will benefit the nonprofit’s silicosis prevention initiative.
Gemstones Editor Brecken Branstrator dishes on the latest color to trend, the show floor buzz, and more from Denver.
Sponsored by Bloomreach
Burgundy also announced the retail launch of its diamond brand, Maison Mazerea.
As the end of 2022 draws near, National Jeweler offers another deep dive into lab-grown diamond market data.
These trending-yet-timeless pieces are no-brainers for customers in search of the perfect gift.
Namdar joins a long line of diamond experts, but his love of the trade was learned rather than inherited.
Growing supply and falling prices likely will make differentiation a necessity and a reality, according to analyst Paul Zimnisky.
Agents in Cincinnati intercepted three shipments of fake brand-name jewels that would be worth more than $10 million if genuine.
From free shipping to early shopping, Emmanuel Raheb outlines a handful of factors expected to shape the holiday season this year.
The sole fine jewelry nominee, the brand is up for an award in the emerging designer category.
Customers earn one “gem” for every dollar spent as part of the “Vault Rewards” program, unlocking discounts and special member-only offers.


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DAVID Cameron and his ministers have been urged to back UK business — by
dressing exclusively in British-made clobber.
The Sun yesterday revealed that the PM wears M&S pants.
Clothing boss James Eden now wants him and other members of the Cabinet to go
further and wear “real British from top to toe”.
His call comes amid growing tension between firms selling UK-made clothing and
others who market themselves as British but make clothes overseas.
Mr Eden of Salford-based PRIVATE WHITE VC said: “We’d like to see them
lead by example and wear British. It would boost those in the industry that
are British-owned and use British components. People need to look beyond
packaging and slogans used by some UK retailers. A Union Jack on a tag is
Industry experts said it would be simple for the PM to adopt all British gear
— as we show on the right.
He often jogs in trainers made by US giant NIKE, but he could wear
shoes made by NEW BALANCE of Flimby, Cumbria or Bolton-based WALSH
SPORTS. Ministers could go to work in brogues made by JOSEPH CHEANEY &
SONS, a 127-year-old Northamptonshire-based firm.
Home Secretary Theresa May could spice up her image with FRANK & FAITH
knitwear, or maybe, when away from the chamber, in lingerie from UK-made KINKY
The Buy British row erupted last year when we revealed neither HACKETT nor
JACK WILLS, which trade on their British heritage, made anything in
Shirt-maker CHARLES TYRWHITT makes only ties, shoes and scarves here.
Local government minister Don Foster — in an M&S suit — said: “It
makes sense for all politicians to back British items.”
Baker rolls back
FASHION giant TED BAKER is looking to bring more production back to
Blighty, it said yesterday.
Finance chief Lindsay Page said a “growing proportion” of clothing, such as
knitwear, was UK-made as increasing costs overseas improved the “competitive
Sales soared 20.9 per cent over the 8 weeks to January 5. Shares rose 7p to
1169 — up 79 per cent in a year.
M&S clothing figures shock
MARKS & SPENCER last night admitted it had still not got its
clothing right — as it was forced to issue its Christmas trading statement
After figures were leaked to Sky News, the retailer confirmed general
merchandise sales, dominated by its clothing lines, dropped 3.8 per cent.
Chief exec Marc Bolland admitted: “Our performance is not yet satisfactory.”
Food sales hit a record but M&S now faces a daunting spring trying to
convince doubters it can revive its fortunes.
Experts said there were also huge question marks over the company leadership
given the figures were leaked — unprecedented for such a business the size
Earlier this week, DEBENHAMS posted a five per cent Christmas sales
Growing pain at Sainsbury’s
SAINSBURY’S suffered its weakest Christmas sales growth for seven
years — and said Brits were buying less food.
The supermarket chain’s chief executive Justin King revealed that food volumes
were down on the past two years as hard-pressed families budget more and
But he insisted that the company would “emerge clearly as the winner” among
the Big Four grocers for the Christmas period. Sainsbury’s yesterday posted
sales growth of 0.9 per cent for the 14 weeks to January 5 — stripping out
new stores. Some of its biggest growth came in non-food, with clothing up 10
Shares fell 3 per cent to 329.20p amid concern on returns. Sainsbury’s plans
to spend £1billion this year on expansion, despite the tough economy.
‘Women can save the City’
A TOP banker yesterday gave evidence to MPs about crookedness in the City —
blaming it on too few women holding senior posts.
Andrea Orcel — who despite the first name is a fella — admitted it was a
“shortcoming” at his own bank UBS.
He said a testosterone-fuelled culture in which 90 per cent of trading teams
are men probably contributed to fiddles such as that of the inter-bank
Mr Orcel heads the investment arm of his Swiss-based bank — fined £940million
last month over the Libor rate scandal.
He declared as he was grilled by the Banking Commission that he wanted to
“recover the honour” of UBS, which has sacked 18 staff.
Mr Orcel stressed a “limited number of people” were responsible.
Boeing’s jet jitters
BOEING was humiliated yesterday as a third problem in as many days
emerged with its 787 Dreamliner.
A brake scare on one of the US manufacturer’s jets saw Japan’s
ALL NIPPON AIRWAYS cancel a flight.
It comes just five months before BRITISH AIRWAYS takes delivery of its
Earlier this week, one Dreamliner was hit by a battery fire and another by a
fuel leak. Boeing said it had “extreme confidence” in the jet.


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Driver Hire franchise announces “record” £78m turnover for 2013
Transport recruitment chain sees growth up by 19% on previous year
Transport and logistics staff supplier Driver Hire has reported “record” figures for the 2013 financial year with its overall turnover totalling £78m, a 19% increase on 2012 and a £1m increase on its “previous best” achieved in 2008.
Celebrating the recent success of its franchises, which are sold for £30,000, the chain announced that 38 of its UK franchise outlets have increased turnover by 25% with 18 of those sites achieving 50% growth or more, and 29 offices passing the £1m turnover mark.
Now in its 30th year of business, Driver Hire claims to be the UK’s largest specialist supplier of staff to the transport and logistics industry, providing temporary and permanent drivers and other logistics staff to the public and private sector.
The transport recruiter also offers CPC training to drivers looking to obtain large goods vehicle licences and says that, over the last year, it has helped around 30,000 drivers to complete the qualification.
The chain is keen to “make a flying start to the new financial year” and aims to build on its average growth over final weeks of the 2013 financial year, which has stood at 27.5%.
Driver Hire group chief executive, Chris Chidley, discussed its “record” figures: “Whilst there’s no doubt that the economy is improving, our rate of growth is easily outpacing it.
“There’s a definite flight to quality with an increasing number of businesses and organisations recognising that Driver Hire is a recruitment agency they can trust – a reliable and compliant nationwide partner for all their staffing needs.
Building a website for your business idea is easier than you might think. Our online tool ranks the top website builders that offer free trials.
“Breaking the record is a fantastic way to celebrate our 30th year in business.”


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- Credit card holders have an average of 16 benefits available to them, but only about 36% of people said they understood all of them, a study released Thursday by marketing research firm J.D. Power found. That figure includes core rewards, as well as supplemental perks like airline passes for travel companions, travel insurance or free late checkouts, which many users say are confusing.
- BB&T and PNC Bank customers reported the highest satisfaction among regional banks, at 811 and 810, respectively, on a 1,000-point scale. Those scores topped such national banks as Capital One and Chase (both 807) but were outpaced by Discover (842) and American Express (838).
- Card issuers have offered ever more benefits to lure customers and expand their market share. But user confusion may prompt companies to cut back, John Cabell, J.D. Power's director of wealth and lending intelligence, told American Banker. "The pendulum may swing back as issuers try to work through this," he said.
Customer satisfaction with regional banks' card programs was measured for the first time in the study's 13 years. The study measured six factors: interaction; credit card terms; communication; benefits and services; rewards; and key moments. Benefits and services ranked lowest (758), with customers least impressed with the issuer's explanation of benefits.
Although 66% of people reported completely understanding their cards' core rewards, that figure drops to 36% when supplemental benefits are taken into account. And customers who reported completely understanding those benefits cited having "significantly fewer" offered to them.
Six of the study's 13 highest-ranked companies were regional banks and, as Cabell noted, those banks tend not to be as burdened by issues that often plague their national counterparts.
Cabell added that his firm will look at innovations in the card space and will begin surveying customers about the newly issued Apple Card next year.
Card issuers' reputations leave room for improvement, customers reported. About 41% said they "strongly agree" the company acts in their best interest.
Companies' scores on cybersecurity increased, however. About 52% of customers said they "strongly agree" their card issuer protects their personal identity, up from 49% in 2018. That figure may fall next year; the Capital One data breach came to light in July, a month after this year’s survey closed.
The overall average customer satisfaction figure (806) rose five points from last year's study.


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The two weeks since the election have been filled with theories about what, precisely, fueled the Obama victory. Technophiles and social media gurus have been quick to connect the dots between the huge gap in the youth vote (Obama led McCain among the under thirty crowd by a 2-to-1 margin) and the Obama campaign’s extensive use of ÃƒÂ¬hipÃƒÂ® technologies to announce his running mate, raise money, and defend himself.
It is a joke to assume that every one of Barack Obama’s 3,164,379 Facebook friends voted for him. The lesson behind the punchline is that “friending” is a lesser commitment than voting?but the latter is fostered by the former. The real takeaway for brand managers is not the Obama campaignÃƒÂs use of the internet to make news or to raise money; it is its use of the internet as a way to turn semi-interested supporters into devoted, uber-committed brand evangelists?especially via fightthesmears.com?that we find most exciting.
To paraphrase Mack Collier, brand evangelists are committed to your brand to the extent that they are willing to go the extra mile in order to see the brand succeed. The Obama campaign recognized that whether the ÃƒÂ¬extra mileÃƒÂ® is spent driving a bit further to a beloved local book store or walking down a stretch of sidewalk knocking on doors for your candidate, the principle is the same.
What’s the next “brand” challenge for Obama? Obama has set the bar high by connecting directly with voters to drive evangelism/engagement. It’s an entirely new order of magnitude?and perhaps an important measure of success?to maintain this connection as he transitions from campaigning to governing.


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COVID-19: Impact on the consulting sectorConsulting firms
How does the coronavirus affect the consulting industry?
The Covid-19 pandemic has disrupted the global economy like never before. From the travel industry to small businesses, all companies are losing revenue as the days of containment increase. It is difficult to say to what extent Covid-19 has had an impact on the consulting industry. According to a study by Consultancy.org, the global consulting industry could lose up to $30 billion in revenue by 2020.
Since the financial crisis of 2008, the consulting industry has grown exponentially. The value of the consulting market is estimated at $160 billion. The coronavirus caused customers to delay projects and cancel future plans. This has been a major blow to the consulting industry, as revenues are falling.
Source Global Research collected data from various consulting firms around the world to understand the impact of this pandemic on the consulting industry. The research concluded that Covid-19 could reduce the size of the consulting sector by 19%. This translates into a decrease in market value from $160 billion to $130 billion by 2020.
Global consulting markets, such as the UK (the largest consulting market), have seen stagnant growth. This is due to the UK's exit (Brexit) from the European Union. Growth fell to 4% last year, making it the slowest growth since 2012.
In addition to the UK, the consulting scene in Europe is also in decline. The European market generates €12 billion in revenues from Germany, Austria and Switzerland combined. Germany's contribution to the European consulting market in terms of revenue is 85%. Making Germany the second largest market after the UK. This is due to the fact that the German market has an extensive automotive manufacturing base. Like the UK, Germany has been hit by the Covid-19 situation. The supply chain and manufacturing industry are likely to see a sharp drop in revenues, and their market is expected to contract more than average.
An opportunity for consultants :
The current situation has not only affected the consulting industry, it has also transformed the way consultants work. Remote working is commonplace in the consulting industry. Whether on site, at the customer's headquarters or at home, remote working is part and parcel of everyday life in a consulting project.
The adoption of new technologies that facilitate remote collaborative working and the automation of recurring tasks remains key to facilitating projects that are now carried out far from the customer. The crisis has also given consulting firms the opportunity to take a hard look at their internal organization and ask themselves the right questions.
- While many work to optimize their customers' operations, are internal operations optimized?
- Is there sufficient visibility of resources and planning?
- Can we automate our management and processes at resource planning ?
- Can we provide our employees with better tools to save them time and improve company productivity?
At the same time, this period represents a real opportunity for the consulting industry. Companies the world over have found themselves obliged to drastically accelerate their digital transformation in response to this unprecedented situation. They often lack the in-house skills to carry out these digital transformation projects. They therefore call on consulting firms accustomed to carrying out this kind of project to help them.
In addition, the covid-19 crisis has put pressure on human capital. This period calls for significant restructuring to absorb the shock. HR and restructuring consultancies are in high demand to support management in these reorganizations.
The e-commerce industry for essential goods has rapidly returned to pre-crisis levels, and even exceeded them. Strained supply chains need to be reorganized, and require resources and skills that only consultants can provide in the short term.
A whole section of the consulting industry benefits from this situation, thanks to the skills and talents they are able to make available immediately to tackle problems that have arisen so suddenly.
Despite these opportunities benefiting part of the business, it seems that the consulting industry is still being hit hard by the crisis. According to research published by consultancy.org, the consulting sector could lose $30 billion in revenue worldwide by 2020 (out of $2,000 billion).
Since the crisis of 2008, the consulting sector had experienced very strong growth. But the coronavirus crisis has prompted customers to postpone their projects, and in some cases cancel them. This inevitably led to a drop in sales for consulting firms.
Source Global Research collected data from numerous consulting firms around the world to understand the impact of this pandemic on the consulting industry. The research concluded that the crisis could reduce the size of the sector by 19%.
The decline in growth varies for different reasons around the world. In the UK, for example (the most important market for the consulting sector), growth is currently stagnating. This is mainly due to the Brexit, which had already led to a 4% contraction in the market last year due to the uncertainties associated with the country's exit from the European Union.
Outside the UK, the European consulting sector is slowing down overall. Management consulting represents combined sales of $12 billion for the Germany, Austria and Switzerland region. Germany, Europe's 2nd-largest consulting player, alone accounts for 85% of total sales generated in the European Union (excluding the UK). This is due to the fact that the German economy has a very powerful automotive industry. This industry has been particularly hard hit by the covid-19 crisis. We can therefore expect a massive downturn in business in Germany, even more severe than in the other economies of the region.
How is the European consulting market trying to recover?
Recovery in the European consulting market may be slower than in the USA. This is mainly because the adoption and use of technology is higher in the USA than in Europe. A greater proportion of consultants' work is done remotely from customers. European companies that bring service to the customer's site, for example by providing IT resources, will see a greater impact.
European consulting firms who work for their customers from their offices will be less affected (strategy, management, etc...) since the vast majority of work can be done from home.
To overcome this crisis, it is probably necessary for consulting firms to diversify their services to adapt to the situation and the new challenges. Multi-faceted companies that provide a diversity of services find it easier to reorganize their resources to focus on areas less affected by the crisis, and better absorb the shock.
Strategic repositioning choices may also be necessary. In Europe, the leisure, aeronautics and tourism sectors will be seriously impacted for a long time to come, due to the travel bans that will last beyond decontamination.
Consulting firms specializing in these sectors must rapidly reinvent themselves and reposition their approach to sell projects to other sectors less affected by the crisis. A 29% drop in demand is forecast in the services sector. In any case, demand for consulting services will fall sharply in this sector.
Even for consultancies linked to the healthcare industry, a drop in activity is to be expected as the industry allocates all its resources to working on research to combat covid-19. In the short term, the impact will be felt, but it is likely that, due to the lack of resources in these companies, there will be an air gap in the medium term for consultants positioned in this field. Consultants working in the financial sector will be less affected. The financial sector, like banks and financial services, acts as a shock absorber for the rest of the economy. We can therefore expect a strong demand for consulting services in this sector.
At the same time, private equity and venture capital companies are likely to be affected in the short term, as the valuation of their portfolios has been severely impacted by the stock market crash at the time of the crisis. But this market downturn is opening up opportunities for buyouts at higher valuations. Transaction Services consultants could therefore benefit from the situation.
Strategies to reduce the impact of coronavirus on business :
1 Prioritizing safety and employee commitment
All companies must take measures to promote flexible working. If remote working is not feasible, companies must provide workers with an adequate level of protection against infection.
2. Optimize financial management
Companies are experiencing a shock to demand and an impact on their sales. The priority is to inject sufficient cash in the short term to avoid any cash shortfall that could lead to the company's downfall. We also need to look line by line at all direct and indirect costs that can be reduced in the short term.
Companies need to consider several scenarios and the financial and cash flow plans attached to each, in order to remain agile but anticipate different situations. They need to anticipate ways of raising short-term debt, obtaining government aid, and cutting less essential short-term expenses.
3. Communicate with everyone involved in your business
Communication with both employees and customers is crucial during this period. You also need to get in touch with suppliers to find alternative logistical solutions if necessary. You need to explain to customers the impact of the crisis on your business, and reassure them of the situation.
4. Maximize government aid and support policies
Finance departments need to optimize and "de-risk" their situation, by taking advantage of all the government assistance available: check tax credits, reductions and deferrals of charges, loan guarantees, etc. All this support is crucial, because no one knows how the crisis will impact business in the long term.
5. Promoting resilience and preparing for a return to normality :
Once all the risk reduction strategies have been put in place, it's time to focus on executing them and evaluating their performance. Then it's time to focus on other structural issues: how to optimize and reorganize resources? How to improve infrastructure? How to simplify processes?
This process of reflection should help to solidify the company, so that it is ever better prepared to respond to future, inexorable crises.
Article: The impact of the Coronavirus on the global consulting industry - Consultancy.org
Article: Europe's consulting industry hardest hit by Coronavirus - Consultancy.org
Other articles might interest you


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There has been a “shocking” rise in the salt content of food and seemingly healthy soups contain more than a portion of takeaway pizza, a study has found.
Despite dozens of firms signing up to a voluntary deal to cut salt levels, health campaigners say too many everyday foods still contain too much salt with major brands at fault.
Research from the Consensus Action on Salt and Health (Cash) found that products such as tinned tomato soup, cheddar cheese and chilled ready meals are among the worst offenders for increasing salt in recent years.
Salt acts as preservative and flavour enhancer in cheese. In addition, salt has a main role in the functional properties of the cheese. Accordingly, there is a challenge in reducing salt without affecting the cheese quality. The reduction of salt was achieved through the decrease of its content used and replacement by potassium chloride. In natural cheese, these approaches adversely affected the cheese properties, particularly the characteristic flavour.
Yep, salt, in cheese:
Salt is an essential ingredient in cheese making. This article is about salt’s function in cheese making, primarily: Moisture control, rind formation, control of production of lactic acid, texture improver, microbiological control, and flavour enhancer.
They’re complaining. And their solution?
“It’s imperative that responsibility for nutrition be handed back to an independent agency where it is not affected by changes in government, ministers, political lobbying and pressure from the food industry.”
Sonia Pombo, nutritionist and campaign manager for Cash, said: “Whilst many food manufacturers initially made a concerted effort to reduce the salt in their products, others are now failing to do so and, in turn, are putting the nation’s health at risk.
“To do this, an agency independent of political control and not run by the food industry needs to set regulated targets for salt, saturated fat and sugar to give the food industry a level playing field.”
To translate that. Give us all lovely highly paid jobs in the bureaucracy, the bureaucracy which we control, which no politician nor anyone else can touch, so that we can be the sole and inviolable controllers of what people eat.
Or, you know, that fascism of being ruled by an entirely unaccountable bureaucracy.
Not sure even the Carthage option is enough to deal with these fuckers.


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NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Apple (AAPL) rose to a one-year high of $592.95 on Monday after a report from market research firm Kantar Worldpanel Comtech that the tech giant had increased its smartphone market share in several crucial international markets.
Apple's smartphone market share in five major European markets of the U.K., Italy, Spain, France and Germany ticked upward 0.1% year over year to 19.2%. Growth in Spain was particularly noteworthy, as it increased to 7.6% from 3.1% in the same period last year. Apple's smartphone market share also increased to 33.1% from 31.1% in Australia.
Apple's market share growth in Japan surged year over year to 57.6% from 49%.
Separately, TheStreet Ratings team rates APPLE INC as a "buy" with a ratings score of B+. TheStreet Ratings Team has this to say about their recommendation:
"We rate APPLE INC (AAPL) a BUY. This is driven by a number of strengths, which we believe should have a greater impact than any weaknesses, and should give investors a better performance opportunity than most stocks we cover. The company's strengths can be seen in multiple areas, such as its revenue growth, largely solid financial position with reasonable debt levels by most measures, notable return on equity, expanding profit margins and good cash flow from operations. Although no company is perfect, currently we do not see any significant weaknesses which are likely to detract from the generally positive outlook."


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General Motors Faces a Devastating Setback With Electric Vehicles
Sound the alarm! General Motors is stopping the production of all-electric vehicles. The GMC Hummer, Chevy Bolt EV and EUV, electric Chevy Silverado, and more now face delays. General Motors may have to set back their plans by months.
General Motors pauses all-electric vehicle production
Everything electric for General Motors just came to a screeching halt. This could disrupt its plan to stop selling gas-powered vehicles by 2035. Stopping production also impacts the launch of the upcoming GMC Hummer EV.
But General Motors doesn’t have much choice as they recall for every Chevy Bolt ever made keeps turning into a larger mess. GM will replace about 142,000 new batteries in existing models, including the new Bolt EUV introduced for 2022.
The batteries keep catching on fire, and this issue may cost General Motors over $1.8 billion. But the batteries were supplied by LG Energy Solutions. So, LG may pick up some of the tab.
Will LG help General Motors with the Chevy Bolt recall?
LG and General Motors are starting a dual investigation to determine the cause of the battery fires in the Chevy Bolt. But it’s unclear if LG will take any of the responsibility, but both companies have a lot riding on this.
The batteries in Chevy Bolt models that have been catching on fire are linked to LG factories. LG will need to take the time to discover the manufacturing defect and correct the issue to ensure defect-free batteries before mass production resumes. General Motors believes that the batteries suffer from two defects, including a torn anode tab and folded separator.
LG is currently supplying General Motors with batteries for new electric vehicles, such as the GMC Hummer EV. GMC also has another electric truck waiting in the wings, and the Chevy Silverado EV should arrive soon.
This is where the pressure really starts to mount. General Motors needs to roll out its new electric vehicles without any hiccups. But the Coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak and global semiconductor chip shortage already disrupted production.
When will production resume?
Production for the Chevy Bolt is expected to resume in the middle of September, so the clock is ticking. This seems like a short amount of time for LG and General Motors to identify and correct the battery issues. Also, if an argument over who should pay occurs, production could be set back even further.
The 2022 GMC Hummer EV will be produced at the General Motors Hamtramck Assembly plant in Detroit, Michigan. Availability is expected to begin in the fall, which is right around the corner. How does LG know if the batteries for the Hummer will catch on fire?
General Motors has invested $35 billion in electric and autonomous vehicles through 2025. The Chevy Silverado EV and another option are coming out soon. But will they arrive in time to face the Ford F-150 Lightning or Tesla Cybertruck?
We’re worried that the electric pickle could get worse for General Motors. They have a lot of money on the line as production for each electric vehicle has been stopped. We hope they don’t go bankrupt again.


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Nokia 2 India launch is highly anticipated as HMD Global readies to host an event in Gurugram to herald its next phone in the country. The company last week sent invites for a launch event on Tuesday, where it would "unveil the next milestone for Nokia phones." While the already launched Nokia 7, which has yet to make its way to India, is the obvious bet for Tuesday's launch, word about the Nokia 2 launch have been swirling in the rumour mill also. The Nokia 2 has been anticipated for a while, and was recently spotted on the Bluetooth SIG certification site as well a leaked AnTuTu benchmark, revealing some of its specifications.
The HMD Global launch event kicks off at 12pm IST, so stay tuned for updates from the event. The company will be live streaming the event on its Facebook page.
Nokia 2 specifications
The Nokia 2 listing reveals that the smartphone has a HD (720x1280 pixels) resolution display that would come in 5-inch size. Further, it reveals the presence of Qualcomm's Snapdragon 212 SoC on the new Nokia handset. The SoC is the successor to the Snapdragon 210 and is designed as an entry-level offering with four cores of ARM Cortex-A7 CPU at a maximum clock speed of 1.3GHz. Moreover, all this is an upgrade to what was reported regarding the Nokia 2 until now.
Apart from the quad-core processor, the Snapdragon 212 SoC has Adreno 304 GPU and is accompanied by 1GB of RAM on the Nokia 2. The smartphone also appears to have 8GB of inbuilt storage and run on Android 7.1.1 Nougat. Besides, the upcoming Nokia smartphone is listed with 5-megapixel and 8-megapixel camera sensors that are likely to be available on its front and back, respectively.
The Nokia 7 on the other hand, comes with flagship-like features at roughly half the price of Nokia 8. Among the highlights of the handset are the 7000 series aluminium body and Corning Gorilla Glass on the back panel. In fact, the Nokia 7 rear panel uses 3D glass thermoforming technology for casting and features with rounded corners.
The Nokia 7 also sports an f/1.8 aperture lens and comes with 'bothie' camera mode. It also comes with heavily marketed feature, the "Dual-Sight mode" which uses both front and rear cameras simultaneously. The handset also supports live video streaming to Facebook and YouTube from the built-in camera.
The new Nokia 7 was launched in China earlier in October. It comes in two variants: 4GB RAM priced at CNY 2,499 (roughly Rs. 25,000) and 6GB RAM at CNY 2,699 (roughly Rs. 26,500). There's no word on the availability of the Nokia 7 outside China as of now.


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N26 announced that it has convinced 2 million French customers to use its services after 4,5 years since entering the market.
Read also: Revolut launches Dogecoin as another push towards cryptos
The German challenger bank has set itself the goal of 5 million customers by 2024 in France.
For 18 months, N26 has managed to register 2,000 new customers per day, even on Sundays.
The company indicated that its mobile application is used on a daily basis by the majority of its customers. In France N26 represents a volume of more than 1 billion euros of transactions per month on average (over the last 6 months).
Today, of the 1,500 employees of N26, nearly 250 people are dedicated to the French market. 2021 also marks the opening of the Paris office with the N26 France management team.
“In 2020, the banking world changed rapidly. Overnight, we found ourselves in 2030. The mobile phone is now the daily wallet. Cash and branches are giving way to apps and mobile payments. No more hidden costs and paperwork—the French want to manage their bank like they manage their energy, telephone or entertainment—on their phone.”, explains Jérémie Rosselli, CEO N26 France & BeNeLux.
N26 is also about to launch some more functions aimed at making life easier for its customers.
By this summer, N26 will launch IBANs for each sub-account in 24 European countries. This function will be used to share the bills with friends or family this summer and, at the start of the school year, there will be the possibility of paying in installments to spread a large purchase.
N26: some figures on French customers
- 38% of French customers of N26 have between 25 and 35 years old; 23% are younger, 39% older.
- They spend 1050euros per month, on average, in 20 transactions.
- They put 370euros ct, on average, in Spaces sub-accounts.
- They performed more than 250,000 consumer credit requests Younited Credit, the partner of N26.


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Naver Corp. fielded as Korea’s big-tech main player flourished during social distancing height in the second quarter under virus risk on record quarterly revenue driven by surge in online shopping, webtoon and clouding demand.
The company in a regulatory filing on Thursday said its operating profit for the second quarter ended June 30 came to 230.6 billion won ($194 million), up 4.1 percent from previous quarter and 79.7 percent from a year earlier.
Revenue totaled 1.9 trillion won, a record quarterly high. It was up 9.8 percent on quarter and 16.7 percent on year.
Naver shares closed Thursday 0.68 percent higher at 294,000 won. Naver has ascended to No. 3 on Kospi in market capitalization.
The company scored high all across the board from its main internet business, thanks to e-commerce activity, to fledgling financial and cloud services.
Business platform Line Works gained traction from remote working, Naver CEO Han Seong-sook said in a conference call following earnings release. The service has been adopted in various sectors, and the number of global users has doubled, she said.
Operating profit also improved sharply compared to second quarter last year when it spent big to promote digital wallet Line Pay in Japan.
Its main business platform business delivered 777.2 billion won in revenue, up 3.7 percent from the previous quarter and 8.6 percent from a year earlier, on growth in online store transactions from robust online shopping demand. Its subscription-based shopping service Naver Plus Membership launched in June also made solid contribution.
Revenue from IT business jumped 70.2 percent on year to 180.2 billion won in the second quarter on growth in online shopping transactions. Both customer base and use for cloud increased, while Naver Pay saw surge in vendors in the second quarter.
The advertising business recorded 174.7 billion won in revenue, up 21.3 percent from three months ago and 4.9 percent from a year earlier, after successfully expanding performance ads - an advertising service that allows advertisers pay based on performance results.
Content service contributed 79.6 billion won to revenue, up 58.9 percent from year earlier. The webtoon service marked 64 million monthly active users worldwide in the second quarter, and the gross merchandise volume soared 58 percent year-on-year. The revenue from V Line streaming services also recovered as artists resumed activities.
Naver’s messenger app Line and other platforms delivered 690.8 billion won in revenue, up 8.8 percent on quarter and 16.7 percent on year.
By Cho Jeehyun
[ⓒ Pulse by Maeil Business Newspaper & mk.co.kr, All rights reserved]