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Hospitality personality Jane Reese has launched a golf mentoring company that also operates rookie golf retreats in Queenstown.
Kiss My Putt’s packages are aimed at small groups (limited to eight people) who want to get together for a few days and combine luxury with learning ‘how
to love golf’, Reese says.
If Australia reopens its border to long haul visitors in 2021 and New Zealand does not, this country will lose the window of attracting those international guests for another five years, the 250 strong audience at a tourism conference in Auckland heard last week.
Lynda Keene, chief executive officer of Tourism Export Council (TEC) NZ, says many international travellers have dual destination itineraries. ‘They generally might have 15 days in Australia
The Board of Airline Representatives in New Zealand (BARNZ) continues to advocate for a two-speed then three-speed approach to travel from source markets depending on their Covid risk profile.
And BARNZ executive director Justin Tighe-Umbers told the Tourism Export Council NZ Xmas Symposium this week that he is still hopeful of an open border to the Cook Islands before
Corporate incentive travel out of Australia will provide a huge opportunity for the New Zealand tourism industry when a safe bubble opens, according to a practitioner
in the sector.
Jessica Ireland, of Melbourne based The Incentive Lab, has been in New Zealand since March and is returning to Australia in the New Year. She was at the business events expo BE
Business confidence in New Zealand’s tourism industry is improving but remains low, according to Tourism New Zealand’s latest industry survey.
‘As expected, the six month outlook is poor, with some optimism for the 12 month outlook. This shows that despite the increase in domestic tourism (and business reorientation) businesses are still concerned in the wake of Covid-19 and border restrictions. The poor six month outlook reflects the importance of summer months to businesses, a time when international visitors and
The opening of a hotel in Queenstown next month, followed by a Newmarket property next year, as well as the appointment of hospitality stalwart Richard Crouch as sales and marketing director, are among the developments heralding the arrival of Safari Hotels in New Zealand.
Crouch says he regards touching base with travel management companies (TMCs) and the New Zealand travel trade as a priority. This includes inbouders who may be currently focusing in the
Those tourism operators still in business are mainly intending to tough the current crisis out by adapting to the new conditions, the latest Covid-19 Tourism Industry Survey shows.
Released at the Tourism Industry Aotearoa Summit in Wellington this week, the survey revealed that 43% of respondents are staying in business ‘pretty much as they were’, while 47%
are continuing to operate but at a reduced capacity. Meantime 10% of respondents have placed their businesses in hibernation. None had ceased trading but TIA chief executive Chris Roberts,
Scenic is ramping up the promotion of its just released New Zealand programme and has a number of touch points planned for agents and their clients over the next couple
The company is also reminding travel advisors about some of its tours’ special attributes – such as Scenic Freechoice and Scenic Enrich – and emphasising that the Kiwi and (when the borders
Waiheke Island is encouraging the trade to look at mid-week packages for clients as they look to domestic bookings.
The island’s ‘mini regional tourism office (RTO)’ – Waiheke Island Tourism Inc – has had a new lease of life with a focus on the Kiwi market.
Daniela De-Bruyn, who represents the organisation (and is also marketing and communications manager for Waiheke Winegrowers Association) says operators got together via Zoom during
The country’s largest accommodation network says occupancy rates are on the rise in the wake of Covid enforced lockdowns.
Quest Apartment Hotels New Zealand CEO, Stephen Mansfield, says despite widespread set-backs July sales finished just 7% below revenue for the same time last year.
Leisure Time Travel representatives will be ‘on the road’ over the next couple of weeks distributing and promoting the company’s largest domestic offering in its 35 year history.
‘We wanted to provide some serious collateral that agents can get their teeth into, so a huge amount of what’s in the brochure is new,’ says Scott Mehrtens, Leisure Time’s managing director.
Viva has launched an easy getaway for couples, friends and foodies on Waiheke Island.
Clients stay in a boutique luxury lodge with ocean views and an in-house fine dining chef who will design a four course dining experience to suit.
Two travel industry stalwarts have launched what they describe as an ‘agent-centric’ domestic wholesaler. New Zealand 4 Discovery has been created by Mike Geary, formerly of GO Holidays and House of Travel; and Francis Mortimer, previously with Air New Zealand.
More recently, the two have run their own travel businesses – Geary in hotel representation across the South Pacific and Mortimer wholesaling inbound travel from the French markets.
Lesiure Time is promoting a range of tours in New Zealand that incorporate special interest themes. These include gardening, walking and wine and cuisine through to aviation, rail, agriculture and small boat experiences.
Vicki Annison, sales and marketing manager with Leisure Time Travel says the bespoke tours give definite opportunities to the trade.
Viva is offering an escape to the countryside region of Wairarapa, where the views and incredible wineries make an ideal setting for a short luxury getaway from Wellington.
Clients stay in the luxury of Wharekauhau's country estate, set above Palliser Bay. They can relax in front of the fireplace and/or take a walk or bike ride on one of the many trails over the estate.
A nature cruise on Okarito Lagoon, on the West Coast, is a key feature of MoaTours’ Southern Beauty tour.
MoaTours founder Ena Hutchinson points out that Okarito Lagoon is New Zealand’s largest pristine wetland and home to 76 bird species. Most notably it is the only breeding area in the country of the kotuku or white heron.
An ‘indepth and slower paced journey’ titled New Zealand Panorama is a new tour in AAT Kings’ 2021/22 programme launched last week.
The programme also includes added exclusive experiences in existing itineraries, plus stringent new wellbeing protocols. There is a 10% early bird discount on selected trips and a $99 per person deposit offer, allowing guests 30 days to change their mind.
Working with agents to tailor make packages for their clients has become a successful strategy for Inspired New Zealand Tours as domestic passengers look for something bespoke in a domestic holiday.
Director John Gregory says groups can be as small as six, benefiting on a personal level by touring with international standard drivers and guides.
Leisure Time Travel is promoting a five day Coromandel Sights and Beaches tour mid April.
Leisure Time’s marketing manager Vicki Annison says the itinerary from 13 to 17 April, takes in the Rapaura Water Gardens, Driving Creek Railway, Matarangi, Buffalo Beach, Whitianga, Cathedral Cove, Hot Water Beach and Whangamata.
Multi generational travel, ‘hub and spoke’ itineraries, and complex trips combining food, wine and adventure are all areas that travel agents can work in to benefit from Kiwis’ increasing desire to get on their bikes.
Janet Purdy, general manager of Ngā Haerenga The NZ Cycle Trail, says agents are definitely engaging with the organisarion and its operators and earning commission as a result.
Regions and other places that can tell a different story and provide a ‘deeper dive’ into local experiences are the ones that are most likely to succeed in the domestic market, says Louise Frend, destination advisor with Destination Kaikōura.
Cruise World reports its NZ Traveller series has had a solid start since it launched a few weeks ago.
‘We did a lot of quoting in the first couple of weeks and in the last two weeks bookings have been coming in, which is encouraging, ‘says general manager Cherryl Browne. ‘Some enquiry is for the standard package and others have done customising with pre and post package arrangements.’
Cruise World has released its latest New Zealand package – TranzAlpine, Vines & Whales, four nights, five days Christchurch return.
The independent itinerary showcases the TranzAlpine scenic train trip from Christchurch to Greymouth, with self-drive independence from Greymouth to Punakaiki and along to Blenheim. Clients help deliver
Travel agents gearing themselves more to the domestic market, and wanting to avoid challenges of dealing with individual properties and operators while looking like instant experts to their clients, have resources and channels at their fingertips, says David Kettle, director of nzsidekick.
MoaTours’ Country Roads & Cross Hills Gardens Fair is a seven-day, six-night small group tour that visits country gardens of the Waikato, Hawke’s Bay, Northern Wairarapa and Manawatu in the spring.
Tweaking the brand to reflect a more diverse offering and enhancing its agency portal for local trade servicing the domestic market, are two recent initiatives of Leisure Time Travel.
Managing director, Scott Mehrtens says the company’s name, Leisure Time Tours has strong recognition but there was a need to emphasise the wider range of travel offerings.
Apex Car Rentals has launched a new car subscription service. Apex Subscribe provides a 28-day car rental for a monthly fee and includes insurance, maintenance, registration, and roadside assistance.
A ‘technically overseas destination’ that is reached without leaving New Zealand is gaining popularity amongst consumers and consequently providing opportunities for the travel trade.
Tourism Chatham Islands manager, Jackie Gurden, says one of the key drivers for growth right now is the inability of Kiwis to head offshore for their holidays. ‘One operator has completely filled tours with people who have cancelled their overseas trip, and they weren’t necessarily existing clients.’
A group designed to ensure that small operators in the tourism sector get their say in the future of tourism has grown from a handful of members to more than 120 in its Facebook group in the space of a week.
Insight Vacations has launched its first Local Escapes collection, a selection of five itineraries across New Zealand and Australia.
Scott Cleaver, The Travel Corporation’s general manager says a recent survey of Insight Vacations’ Kiwi clients showed that 74% are comfortable to travel locally in 2020.
Further local research done by Insight revealed that 46% of domestic travel is driven by a desire to give back to local business and communities, and 56% of travellers want to see a clear and outlined hygiene and wellbeing policy before booking.
Agents are reminded that future travel credits may be redeemed to book the Local Escapes trips. Insight Vacations has also introduced $99 deposits on new bookings until 1 September 2020, and a 30-day refund guarantee.
The Local Escapes collection, available to book now, includes five itineraries across New Zealand and Australia with departures starting from September and continuing into 2021. Among the choices are: Taste of New Zealand’s North Island, Scenic Roads of the South Island, and Tasmania’s Food, Whiskey & Wine. All five itineraries are available to book now.
A touch of the Wendy Wu Tours’ international experience combined with a ‘behind the scenes’ look at New Zealand provide a point of difference for the company’s just launched domestic programme, says managing director Paul Dymond.
‘We didn’t want to put something into the market that was already there,’ says Dymond. ‘These are fully inclusive tours aimed specifically at the Wendy Wu customer – and we’ve got hundreds of
The combination of gardens and gold rush towns gives MoaTours’ Otago Farmhouse Gardens and Oamaru Victorian Fete tour a point of difference for clients.
New Zealand agents’ enthusiasm for promoting and selling domestic programmes has been an encouraging development in recent weeks, says Nick Guthrey, managing director of ANZCRO.
Guthrey has added his voice to calls for a trans Tasman travel bubble and feels that the desire to get people doing different things in their own country may translate to a new approach by Kiwis in Australia as well.
The ‘Fiordland - Beyond Belief’ campaign was launched this week, targeting domestic travellers now and positioning Te Anau as ‘base camp’, while opening the eyes of international visitors to the fact there’s more to Fiordland than Milford Sound.
Destination Fiordland manager, Madeleine Peacock says the challenge was to find a positioning that reflects all the region’s majesty and helps drive visitation by making Fiordland an authentic and unmissable part of
Leisure Time Tours is offering an escape to Fiordland on what it describes as the ‘ultimate fishing trip.’
Vicki Annison, sales and marketing manager with Leisure Time Group, says guests start the weekend flying from Queenstown by helicopter to a privately chartered boat cruising one of the fiords in the area.
They spend the next two days on-board exploring Fiordland, fishing, diving, kayaking, or paddle boarding. ‘Fiordland is a special place for fishing as there are a wide variety of local and seasonal fish species to be
What started as a ‘crisis project’ for Asian specialist Active Asia, has become an integral part of what the company does, says Valentina Mould-Morelli, creative director and marketing.
‘New Zealand is the natural world we call home and it will still cause clients to catch their breath.
‘Despite the plethora of competition out there selling New Zealand, we felt there was still space for something new.’
Inspired New Zealand Tours’ Essential North Island and Essential South Island are designed as comprehensive introductions to the destinations for Kiwi clients who may not have had any indepth experience of the island they don’t live in.
A new website has been launched by Inspired New Zealand Tours, setting out a range of 2020-21 itineraries that can be accessed by the New Zealand travel trade.
Director John Gregory says that while the company has nine core tours, with multiple departures between September 2020 and April 2021, Inspired New Zealand Tours is also keen to interact with any agents and brokers not only interested in selling the set programmes but also in developing bespoke tour options specifically for their client bases.
Leisure Time Tours is offering an 11-day tour through the North Island that discovers some of the most ‘Gram worthy’ destinations and activities that have been dominating Instagram feeds around the world.
There are three package levels (standard, superior and premium) to choose from plus a range of optional extras to produce a flexible holiday.
Destination Queenstown will launch a ‘dream, plan, book’ winter campaign on 1 June to stimulate demand for Kiwis to travel post-lockdown.
This includes a new hero campaign video that showcases the Queenstown winter experience, followed by targeted promotional content to communicate Queenstown’s offering and deals to different segments. Hero product and member deals will then be promoted to drive traffic to queenstownNZ.nz and generate referrals.
Tour company Bush and Beach has developed a series of tours especially for Auckland locals and New Zealanders visiting Auckland.
Managing director Ben Thornton says details will be announced shortly and the company intends taking bookings from 1 June.
Meantime, the company has extended its operations by delivering Auckland Council food parcels under contract to New Zealand couriers.
MoaTours’ Southern Odyssey: Stewart Island and the Catlins tour is one of the company’s favourites and gives Kiwi agents a chance to sell a product which is domestic but little visited by the local market.
‘Many travellers have had Stewart Island in their sights for a long time, so there is a sense of triumph from actually having made it,’ says MoaTours founder Ena Hutchinson.
A company which has been offering global trips to women for the past 13 years is currently putting together excursions in New Zealand and has already had its first such trip sell out.
Julie Paterson, founder of Venus Adventures, says she was stranded in New Zealand (she usually lives in Egypt to be close to her global destinations) and she has had to do a ‘quick pivot’.
Regional tourism office, ChristchurchNZ, has launched a campaign to promote the city, Canterbury and the West Coast to the wider domestic market.
It follows recent analysis from Deloitte that showed Canterbury has the potential to retain $1b in tourism spend that typically goes overseas.


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The Chinese Version of ArcheAge will Launch in July of 2015
If you want to relive the experience of ArcheAge‘s launch again or just love seeing the game come out in new regions, you’ll want to keep your eyes on the game’s Chinese version. Tencent Games recently announced that the game will launch in China in July of 2015, complete with some exclusive content to entice players who may have already heard of the game.
Players in the Chinese version can look forward to what appear to be panda-styled gliders, special pets, some new costumes, new ship designs, and traditional Chinese house designs. No word has been released on business models, although it’s almost a given that the game will be free-to-play as it is almost everywhere else in the world. Let’s hope for a smooth launch for Chinese ArcheAge fans free of bugs and game-breaking exploits.

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Future of Financial Services - The Trends That Will Shape 2021 (and Beyond)
28 Jan 2021
Life under coronavirus has altered so many aspects of consumer behaviour over the last year and this looks set to continue into 2021. The key trends impacting the Financial Services industry, in particular, are something I shared and discussed with Datorama’s Jonathan Beeston and Direct Line’s Mark Evans on a recent webinar.
During the webinar, we presented details on five key trends, which included some key insights, takeaways for brands and an example of how this is already being implemented in the real world.
To give a brief overview of the trends:
- Latchkey Loyalty: Consumers are calling for more freedom to choose the brands they want to commit to, meaning flexibility and control are becoming key drivers of long-term loyalty (something seen in our recent ‘How to Win Trust and Loyalty’ report too)
- Presence-free Living: The need to be physically present to work, shop or play has been challenged by digital communication and accelerated by the pandemic – to the extent that people may never again offer their presence as freely as they once did (something seen in our most recent Customer Engagement research)
- Professionalised Budgeting: Consumers are embracing the opportunity to micro-manage their finances (even daily), supported by a host of services making is a less daunting and easier process
- Human Encounters: Despite the growth in digital communications, consumers want a human touch – whether online or off – putting brands under pressure to provide this at scale in an omni-channel world spanning sites, stores, smart speakers and a myriad of other new technologies (this includes the growth in consumers calling for compassion revealed in research conducted during the pandemic research)
- The Death of Risk: At a time when potential dangers are more visible than ever, consumers are hyper-vigilant, and brands must help to mitigate these risks where they can – even while leaving room for consumers’ pursuit of feelings of adventure and fun too
Whether the changes we’ve seen in the last year will ultimately stick, we’ll have to wait and see. One thing that will continue to be key for financial services brands is the ability to understand customers, being able to deliver data-driven customer experiences and being willing to adapt as the world around us continues to change. This is something Jonathan and Mark then went on to discuss in more detail too:
Mark Evans, Managing Director, Marketing & Digital at Direct Line Group said: “This session was a great reminder that this is the time for marketing to shine. In a rapidly changing world that is further disturbed by Covid, it has never been more important to bring the outside in and the future forward. The key challenge is to discern what changes are temporary and what are permanent. What is indisputable is that more consumers are now prepared to do more complex things digitally more of the time. Digital sophistication has rocketed and will be enduring, which forces all brands and companies to accelerate their digital transformation.”
Jonathan Beeston, Product Marketing Director at Salesforce Datorama continues: “These trends show how the last year has accelerated consumers to become ‘all digital’ customers. As digital customers move across online channels, apps and experiences, the journey blurs the lines between marketing, commerce and service. Marketers are right in the middle of this digital transformation. Agility is key to capitalise on new consumer behaviours and digital budget shifts. To be effective, marketers need to unify data from all their activities to deliver personalised customer experiences and to optimise every investment for budget efficiency and growth. Marketers equipped with the right tools for data analytics and measurement will be able to find success.”
Whether, ultimately, the trends that come to fruition over the next 12 months (and beyond) are the five I discuss here, nobody knows. The one certainty is that the world will continue to change, while in some ways it will stay remarkably unchanged. The trick is to be able to know where these shifts are happening and being able to meet your customers there.
To find out more about the trends and how brands like Direct Line are responding to these trends, you can find the full recording of the webinar on the Datorama website here:


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Feds Say Not Legal, But Still It’s Not Rare: Why’s CBD for Sale Everywhere?
By Eric F. Greenberg, Attorney-at-law
In our column’s continuing effort to correct common misconceptions about packaging law, this month we turn to cannabidiol, or CBD. Lots of people are wrong in their current thinking about CBD, but in fairness to them, it’s not hard to see why.
First, many people heard that Congress did something in the
most recent Farm Bill that legalized some forms of hemp, but
people mistakenly conclude that what Congress did made CBD completely lawful.
Second, CBD products are more prolific than Starbucks, with available information flying around freely about the substance’s touted benefits for treating pain, anxiety, sleeplessness, heart disease, cancer, Alzheimer’s disease, and many other ailments.
All of which leaves the average packager or consumer asking, how can an ingredient be illegal if you can find it everywhere in everything? And what about the fact that so many states have made cannabis and related products lawful for sale in their respective states? Let’s see if I can provide some answers.
The 2018 Farm Bill removed industrial hemp containing less than 0.3% of THC—the stuff in cannabis that gets one high—from the list of “controlled” substances, but, importantly, that didn’t change anything about FDA’s powers to regulate what goes into products such as dietary supplements or drugs, and so far FDA is not persuaded that CBD lawfully can be put into those products.
The question of whether the federal government considers a particular product containing CBD lawful depends largely on whether it’s a food such as a dietary supplement, or a drug, or a cosmetic, or something else, because the legal strictures applicable to each such category differ. For example, it appears that FDA is taking the position that CBD can be added to topical cosmetic products, but if those products feature label claims of effect on the body’s structure or function, FDA could consider them unlawful drugs and not cosmetics.
FDA is concerned about safety risks from CBD, pointing especially to concerns with cumulative exposure and the possibility of liver injury. And the agency really really dislikes products containing CBD that claim to do things like alleviate schizophrenia, anxiety, depression, arthritis, heart disease, and cancer, because such claims make the products drugs under the law and besides FDA doesn’t think the claims are proven. FDA sent warning letters in November to 15 companies doing such things, and the Federal Trade Commission, which regulates advertising, has sent notices to some companies
FDA says, “Misleading, unproven, or false claims associated with CBD products may lead consumers to put off getting important medical care, such as proper diagnosis, treatment, and supportive care. For that reason, it’s important to talk to your doctor about the best way to treat diseases or conditions with available FDA-approved treatment options.”
What’s more, FDA says foods and dietary supplements in interstate commerce cannot lawfully contain CBD, even if the products’ labels don’t claim any effects or benefits. There are two big legal reasons: First is because the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act prohibits dietary supplements from containing a drug ingredient, and FDA approved CBD as an active ingredient in a drug for rare forms of epilepsy in 2018.
Second, as it said in late November 2019, FDA doesn’t think CBD is Generally Recognized As Safe (GRAS) as an ingredient in food, which would allow it to be included as an ingredient in food, unless it had clearance for that use as a food additive or some other legal clearance. (A company could determine CBD in its product is GRAS without FDA’s concurrence.)
Adding to the confusion is that it’s also the case that in states that have legalized sale of cannabis and CBD, the products and their sellers might be left alone by federal regulators. Though FDA and FTC may take action against companies who make improper label or advertising claims for specific products, the U.S. Justice Department has said it will refrain from taking enforcement action against companies who relied on earlier Department reassurances, provided the products meet the state’s requirements and meet several other conditions.
Class action plaintiffs’ lawyers always seem to find creative angles on legal issues, and the CBD trend is no exception. In one example, a company was sued because the plaintiffs say that by marketing dietary supplements containing CBD, an activity the FDA says is unlawful, the company has violated California law against products that are “deceptive, unfair, and unlawful,” misleading consumers into thinking the product is legal to purchase. We shall see how successful cases like those turn out to be.
In the meantime, FDA is working on long-term solutions, having received public input and studying various ways forward, including possibly making changes in its regulations or policies, or recommending changes in the law. Its next steps could be announced soon.
Let’s hope so. It’s never a good thing when the public sees everyday activity with their own eyes that violates what authorities tell them the law requires. PW
INFORMATIONAL ONLY, NOT LEGAL ADVICE.
This article is informational only and is not intended as, and should not be considered to be, legal advice.
Be sure to check for any updated information about the topics discussed in this article.


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Delhi-based vernacular gaming platform WinZO has raised $18 million in a Series B investment round led by global interactive entertainment fund Makers Fund based in Singapore, and New York-based Courtside Ventures. Both funds are making their first-ever investment in India through WinZO.
With the funding, WinZO plans to strengthen its content pipeline, captivate mobile-first consumers and their gaming needs, and become the go-to gaming app in India. The startup claims that its revenue has grown 1,500 percent and acquired 20 million users in the last 12 months, who spend over 45 minutes every day on WinZO’s platform. WinZO said it has achieved this on the back of its network of vernacular micro-influencers and 30-plus partner game developers through which it strives to become the go-to gaming platform for Bharat.
Kalaari Capital, which first invested in WinZO in 2018 and led the company’s Series A in 2019, also participated in the round. WinZO is Kalaari’s second-largest bet in gaming after Dream11. WinZO’s co-founders Paavan Nanda and Saumya Singh Rathore also joined the round.
Launched in early 2018, WinZO partners with third-party game studios to host their games on their Android app, creating a Netflix-like experience for users who can enjoy multiplayer formats with their friends or strangers in a localised fashion. The platform is available in 12 languages.
Clocking over one billion micro-transactions per month, WinZO offers 70-plus games across various multiplayer formats. This vernacular social gaming platform focusses on building a community of gamers and game influencers in Tier-II to Tier-V cities of India.
South Africa Today


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The building and construction sector in Jebel Ali Free Zone (Jafza), the flagship free zone entity of Dubai, has posted 74% growth in the last 5 years growing from AED 10.7 billion in 2009 to AED 18.6 billion in 2014. The Free Zone expects to double its growth in the next 3-4 years. The growth in the sector will largely be driven by the continued focus of GCC countries on building economic infrastructure and stimulus generated by Dubai 2020 related infrastructure projects.
Jafza participated in Big 5, the largest construction industry event in the Middle East held on 23-26 November at the Dubai World Trade Centre, to highlight huge opportunities in the rapidly growing construction market in the GCC and the status of Jafza as the business and logistics hub to efficiently serve the industry in the region.
Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem, Chairman DP World and Ports, Customs and Free Zone Corporation, commenting on Jafza participation in Big 5 said, “The building and construction is one of the most dynamic business sectors in the GCC and the Middle East region. According to a recent industry report (Venture Onsite Report) major building projects worth AED 1.2 trillion are currently underway in the GCC alone. This unveils huge opportunities for multinationals in the construction sector, which they can capitalize on by being in Jafza, a globally renowned trade and logistics hub for the wider Middle East region that spans from West Asia, the CIS, Africa and the Indian Subcontinent.”
Jafza is currently home to over 800 world’s leading steel, building material and other construction sector related companies, most of which have set-up their regional headquarters in Jafza to serve the entire region most efficiently
Featured image by Imre Solt


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IBOS member NatWest has announced the launch of a new online payment service, Payit™, targeted at mid to large corporate companies.
Payit™ allows customers to make instant online payments to participating retailers, without the use of a debit or credit card. This new payments service results in an efficient, fair, simple and safe payment experience, using the Open Banking infrastructure to allow customers of UK banks to pay for products and services offered by retailers who use the service.
Open Banking was introduced in 2018 by the CMA to allow licensed financial service providers to share customer data, and NatWest’s use of the technology means it is the first major UK bank to utilise open banking to facilitate payments in this way.
With customers of the UK’s nine largest banks eligible, consumers don’t need to bank with NatWest to use this service. It can be used by selecting the Payit™ button on the merchant’s payment page and then selecting the bank they wish to pay from. The consumer is then automatically redirected to their bank’s mobile or online banking to complete the payment. Payit™ then provides settlement to the merchant within two hours via faster payments.
Accountancy software provider FreeAgent will also offer Payit™ on its online and mobile platforms imminently, allowing customers to make instant payments from the UK’s nine biggest banks (CMA9).
Payit™ was the winner of the Celent Model Bank Innovation Frontier Award in 2020, in addition to the Best Open Banking initiative at the 2019 Financial Innovation Awards.
Read the full press release via RBS here.


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What: Data management platform Lotame has acquired mobile ad targeting startup AdMobius for an undisclosed sum.
Why it matters: Following the acquisition, Lotame adds cross-device targeting data and capabilities (desktop machines, tablets, smartphones and SmartTV).
Lotame has acquired mobile ad targeting startup AdMobius. This startup, founded in 2012 by former leaders of Apple’s mobile ad network iAd, identifies audiences across devices for ad targeting purposes. It basically aggregates data to create audience segments that mobile ad networks, publishers, and demand side platforms can use to improve their ad targeting.
Following this purchase, Lotame will accelerate its ability to use non-cookie methods to find users across their devices, including mobile and desktop. Its clients, including ESPN, The Weather Company (a joint AdMobius client), Advance Publications, and Politico, will be able to create more personalized user experiences with desktop machines, tablets and smartphones.
Adding cross-platform tracking is an increasing priority for DMPs.
Companies such as Acxiom, BlueKai, Krux, Turn, and [x+1] are all deeply focused on it. As these companies move through their separate build-versus-buy calculations, they are likely to look at AdMobius competitors like Drawbridge, TapAd, Adelphic Mobile as possible acquisition targets. Actually, some already have. AdMobius’s sale follows by six months Experian’s acquisition of 41st Parameter, another cross device ID firm, for US $324 million.
AdMobius’ leadership team includes CEO Dan Grigorovici, a product exec at Quattro Wireless (before Apple bought it in 2010) who has stepped into a product role. Grigorovici and most of the company’s staff will be retained by Lotame, but current CEO Peter Bassett is moving on, as is CFO Bill Tinsley. Lotame employs approximately 70. AdMobius has raised US $5 million from Storm Ventures and Opus Capital while Lotame has raised US $44 million, including a US $15 million “Series D” round that closed earlier this month.
“This acquisition will empower our clients to engage with unique and relevant consumer audience segments across devices at a deeper, more accurate level than ever before. The key element of this is overcoming limitations in the platform space,” said Lotame CEO Andy Monfried in the acquisition press release.
The financial terms of the deal have not yet been disclosed.


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Moderate coffee consumption may reduce the risk of several chronic diseases, including type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and certain cancers.
Just one or two servings of whole grains per day may help reduce diabetes risk.
Women who eat a plant-based diet before becoming pregnant may have a lower risk of developing gestational diabetes.
Full implementation of a 2018 law requiring major chain restaurants to list calorie counts on their menus could prevent 136,000 new cases of heart disease, 100,000 new cases of type 2 diabetes, and 28,000 early deaths over the…
Diabetes rates among women in India were highest in the south and east, and lowest in the center of the country.
Adding warning labels to sugary beverages such as soda and sports drinks led to a drop in sales of such beverages and strengthened perceptions among consumers that sugary drinks contribute to disease, according to new research from Harvard…
If people opt to eat less red meat as a result of meat shortages during the COVID-19 pandemic, it could be good for their health.
Moderate coffee consumption has been linked to a range of health benefits.
Consistently getting 7 to 8 hours of sleep may reduce the risk of developing type 2 diabetes, according to new research from Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Megu Baden, a postdoctoral fellow in the Department of…
Consuming between 22 and 34 grams of fiber a day can help keep the gut healthy, and it also has been linked to a number of other health benefits.


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The Hyundai Santa Fe, the flagship SUV of the Korean manufacturer got off to a good solid start in India but could not capitalise on the momentum it gained. The car is brought in the country as a Completely Built Unit(CBU) which accounts for a higher cost than the rest in the Rs.20-25 lakh SUV segment. The car’s next generation model was shown off by the company a while ago and the same has been caught testing in India, indicating towards an impending launch in the country. The car was showcased at the New York Motor Show in 2012 and the same got launched in a number of markets after that. India will be the latest country to get the 2014 Hyundai Santa Fe.
The test car in the pictures carries a pretty heavy camouflage and does not reveal much details about the India spec SUV. The car is available in 5-seater and 7-seater options and the one which goes on sale in India will most probably be the 7-seater unit. The car gets longer and wider than the previous generation Santa Fe by 30mm and 5mm respectively. At the same time, the car will gets lower by 45mm than the previous generation Santa Fe.
The car will be assembled in India this time around which will lend the company a cost advantage over the previous generation of the car. It will come with a slew of features such as Hill Assist, ESP, 19 inch alloys, a touchscreen infotainment system, a satellite navigation system and Xenon headlamps which will be coupled with day time running LEDs. The car will get a keyless entry and go as standard as well.
The car will also come shod with a reverse parking camera and a tyre pressure monitor as well. For the safety, it will get multiple airbags. The Santa Fe in its next generation will continue the legacy of the fluidic design philosophy.


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Interxion has partnered with RStor, enabling Interxion customers access to RStor’s performance-based cloud management services, including easy-to-use tools to manage backup storage, disaster recovery, and archival of data.
This new service offering is directly accessible via Interxion’s London campus, where RStor has positioned its first Point of Presence. The service is also available to all customers at all Interxion’s other sites via Cloud Connect.
Using RStor, Interxion Cloud Connect customers can now deploy scalable, resilient network infrastructure and benefit from enterprise performance management across multiple public Cloud Services Providers (CSPs) without vendor lock-in or product complexity.
Designed for cloud native workflows, RStor connects customer environments with cloud service providers through its innovative fabric technology.
It delivers object-based, secure cloud storage through a single interface that allows customers to manage and scale data, and unlike traditional CSPs, RStor provides flexible access to multiple cloud storage systems to help users increase innovation and achieve unprecedented cost savings in virtual environments.
Enterprises looking to invest in emerging technology services such as AI and Big Data analytics, can produce High Performance Computing (HPC) environments at Interxion London whilst also taking advantage of RStor’s agile, cloud agnostic management portfolio.
Andrew Fray, UK managing director at Interxion commented, “We are delighted that Rstor has chosen London as their first location with Interxion in Europe and that they are able to launch amid turbulent times.
“Rstor’s product line up complements our other cloud products and we anticipate that companies in several key sectors of London’s communities of interest, such as law firms, digital media companies and healthcare want and need object storage close at hand.
“Companies looking to invest in emerging technology services such as AI and Big Data analytics, can roll out High Performance Computing (HPC) environments at Interxion London, while also utilising RStor’s agile, cloud agnostic management portfolio.”
Conor Malone, chief information officer at RStor added, “We are excited about working with Interxion to bring the RStorage service to customers across Europe. Interxion provides RStor with the high carrier density and partner ecosystem that enables RStor’s storage to be a single cross connect away from as many of our customers as possible.”


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Latest News – July 14
Shopko Hometown Grand Opening Held Friday
Nearly 100 days to the date when Shopko announced that it would be taking over the retail space at 401 US Highway 24 South, it held its the Grand Opening last Friday, July 10.
Among the fanfare of local dignitaries, Leadville’s Shopko Manager Lana Marsh welcomed a few dozen shoppers to the official Grand Opening, although the store has been open since last month, to help train staff and “work the bugs out.”
But as of Friday, the Shopko store is officially open Monday thru Saturday 9 a.m. – 8 p.m. and Sunday 9 a.m. – 6 p.m. This new store is now part of the over 175 Shopko Hometown stores, making Shopko one of the nation’s largest retailers serving smaller communities.
One thing that was apparent last Friday, is that the retailer is serious about hiring locally. Most of the familiar, smiling faces were Leadville residents as well as former ALCO employees, the former tenant and retailer who filed for bankruptcy last fall.
According to the company website, the Shopko Hometown retail format focuses on serving the needs of smaller rural communities, providing a broad and dynamic offering of strong national brands and high-value private label brands of apparel, home furnishings, toys, consumer electronics, seasonal items, every day consumable items and lawn and garden products – all in an attractive, well laid out, easy-to-shop store format.
Shopko is owned by an affiliate of Sun Capital Partners, Inc., a leading private investment firm focused on leverage buyouts, equity, debt, and other investments in market-leading companies.
Founded in 1962 and headquartered in Green Bay, Wisconsin, Shopko Stores Operating Co., LLC is a $3 billion retailer that operates 320 stores in 21 states throughout the Midwest, Mountain, North Central and Pacific Northwest regions. Retail formats include 133 Shopko stores, providing quality name-brand merchandise, great values, pharmacy and optical services in small to mid-sized cities; 5 Shopko Express Rx stores, a convenient neighborhood drugstore concept; 4 Shopko Pharmacy locations; and 178 Shopko Hometown stores, a smaller concept store developed to meet the needs of smaller communities. For more information, visit www.shopko.com.


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O’Reilly: Watson and the future of machine learning
IBM’s Watson has taken the AI world by storm, for very good reason. Mike Loukides looks at where this might be going. “Now that we can build machines that can answer tough and ambiguous questions, the next step is to realize that the answer to a question isn’t the end of the process. What characterizes human thought isn’t the ability to produce answers, but the process that leads up to the answer: assembling and evaluating alternatives, both internally and in conversation with others.”
Tech Flash: How Kinect and its offspring are shaping the future of Microsoft
It started as a game controller, it may end up as a key part of Microsoft’s future. “Gee-whiz conceptual demos of “natural user interfaces” are a longstanding tradition at Microsoft, but the early success of the Kinect motion controller for Xbox 360 has given these projects new energy, demonstrating their potential to impact the company and the world.”
Business Insider: What To Expect When Apple Reveals iPad 2 On Wednesday
Giving hostage to fortune, Business Insider makes a string of predictions. Let’s see what their hit rate is like?


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2018 BMW X7 spied
The BMW X7 has been spied undergoing testing ahead of its sales debut in 2018.
Although we can see the overall shape and size of the X7, we can't make out too many of its finer styling details as BMW has fitted false body panels to the fenders, doors and bonnet of this prototype. We can see, though, that the new SUV will feature a set of tall kidney grilles.
The X7 will become the brand's flagship SUV, with pricing and sizing to match. Compared to the next-generation X5, the X7 will have a longer wheelbase and longer rear overhangs.
Under the bonnet, the X7 will likely be powered by a selection of turbocharged six- and eight-cylinder petrol and diesel engines. A plug-in hybrid variant will also be featured as part of the drivetrain mix.
Although the company confirmed plans for the X7 way back in 2014, production and sales, at least in North America and Europe, aren't said to begin until 2018.
MORE: BMW X7 news


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I wouldn’t really call 2011 a good year for LG although they have released a few awesome Android devices like the Nitro HD. Hearing leaks about upcoming devices is nothing new especially with CES getting closer and closer. We’ve heard a few reports that Samsung will be pairing with Intel’s new Android-aimed Medfield mobile processor but now it appears that the other Korean manufacturer LG is too — or maybe it was them all along.
If you remember Intel and LG announced a device at this years CES that never went past the show room floor. They called it a lack of “Marketability”. Now that Intel has made some huge strides with their mobile processor, and shown off a few details not to mention benchmark leaks its safe to say I’m starting to get a little excited — and so has LG. Apparently “high ranking executives” from both LG and Intel are saying that LG will produce the first market-ready Intel powered smartphone with Android for a March release.
Most likely this device will be launched with Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich but that is anyone’s guess really. Benchmarks of the new Intel Medfield mobile processor have recently leaked showing some pretty stellar performance, although battery and power consumption was still a small concern. Hopefully Intel will be able to make a highly efficient chip in time for an LG release.
These comments from “high ranking execs” could be rumors or just outright false but either way we’ll be live at CES 2012 in just a few short days and will learn the true details right from whatever Intel has on the show room floor. We’ll be sure to snap plenty of photos that is for sure so stay tuned.


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PlayStation and Nintendo dominate in Japan and the rest of Asia, and for years Microsoft have tried to push into the region. But it's come up empty handed every time.
That said, it appears Microsoft is once again giving it another shot.
According to some new job listings on Microsoft's career page, the company is looking to create a brand-new Xbox Asia Division that would be dedicated to seeking partnerships in the area and expanding in relevant markets.
“The Microsoft Global Gaming Partnership & Development team (GGPD) is looking for a knowledgeable, experienced, and energetic leader to lead partnership and business development in Japan, China, and South Korea to make Microsoft the global leader in Gaming," reads the job description.
"As a leader across the Asia region, you will work with other business development leads, finance and legal teams to source, develop and manage key partnerships to support Microsoft’s strategic gaming initiatives including Xbox One, Mixer, Game Pass and Gaming Cloud. You will collaborate closely with engineering and marketing teams and lead local resources to advance the Microsoft presence in these key markets. You will also be asked to assist in creating strategies for new gaming-related services and/or business models that will drive revenue and user growth across all gaming platforms, including, but not limited to, subscriptions, streaming, and mobile.”
Recently, Phil Spencer has headed a push back into the area after Microsoft seemingly gave up on it for awhile. However, despite numerous trips to Japan, it seems the attempts haven't changed much, or at least the impact of a new Japan and Asia initiative hasn't produced its fruit yet.
With the Chinese console and PC market rapidly expanding and the Japanese development scene in a bit of a renaissance, getting a foot into Asia could prove crucial for Microsoft going forward.0comments
As you may know, many of the best games have come out of Japan from third-parties this generation, and a considerable amount of them skipped Xbox entirely or arrived on the platform well after launch.
That said, with games like Kingdom Hearts III, Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, and Devil May Cry 5 all appearing on Xbox's E3 stage this year -- the latter notably being revealed there -- it appears Microsoft under Spencer is finally striking some deals in at least Japan. But not only will it need to expand to other parts of Asia, it will need to do so while growing its market presence there.


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As part of the China New Zealand Year of Tourism, New Zealand Maori Tourism (NZMT) supported ten performing artists to attend a multi-sector trade mission to China that showcased Māori tourism and culture.
Te Wehi Haka - The HAKA Experience(external link) performed kapa haka at the Opening Doors to the West Business Forum, held in Chengdu and Xi’an, China from 7 – 13 September.
Te Wehi Haka - The HAKA Experience is a Māori performing arts troupe directed and managed by successful kapa haka leaders, Tāpeta and Annette Wehi.
Based in Tāmaki-Makaurau, Te Wehi Haka presents authentic Māori cultural experiences all over the world.
Before departing, Tāpeta Wehi said, “We are so excited to attend the Opening Doors to the West Business Forum with New Zealand Māori Tourism.
“We cannot wait to share our expertise with our Chinese counterparts and bring a sparkle to their eye through our engaging performances.”
The Opening Doors to the West Business Forum was organised by The China Chamber of Commerce in NZ, along with China Travel Services and NZMT.
The forum was an opportunity for participants to make valuable connections, experience “China’s West” first-hand, and learn from specialists about the markets and consumers in the region.
New Zealand Māori Tourism Deputy Chief Executive Hoki-mai Chong said, “The Opening Doors to the West Trade Mission Business Forum provides an unprecedented opportunity to promote Māori culture and increase awareness, especially during the China-New Zealand Year of Tourism.
“The China-New Zealand Year of Tourism is a fantastic opportunity to continue to build relationships with China.
“Māori and Chinese have a natural affinity with each other. Chinese value relationships and long-term investment which are closely aligned with Māori business strengths.
“Māori culture is the distinguishing feature of the NZ Aotearoa visitor experience that creates competitive advantage for the NZ tourism sector. That is why it is vital that we give the platform to showcase it to the world.”
Notable speakers included Te Puia Chief Executive Tim Cossar, Ngāi Tahu Tourism GM Sales and Market Development Stephen Lester and Auckland Airport’s International Market Development Manager Mark Frood.
For further updates and a video on the group's experience, see:


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Under specific circumstances, food importation is allowed
Rabu, 17 Oktober 2012 | 10:06
Food importation will still be allowed to meet the shortage of food supply in the country. However the government will arrange the importation in order not to harm farmers, fishermen and small-scale and micro food-related businesses.The food bill has been agreed by government and House, said Minister of Agriculture Suswono. The bill will be ratified in the House of Representatives plenary session on October 18.
“It is quite comprehensive. I believe it will advantage Indonesia,” he said after working meeting with House’s Commission IV, Tuesday (10/16/2012).
Food Importation is allowed only if food needs cannot be met by domestic, he added.
The future law, he added, is in contrast with Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) recommendation that suggested Indonesia to not to focus on food self-sufficiency. (T05/TW)
by Sepudin Zuhri, Reviana Rahmania Surya


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2023 was a year when artificial intelligence (AI) and blockchain technology took center stage, blockchain and VR propelling us into a future that was once only imaginable in science fiction. These advancements have not only revolutionized our digital landscape but have also set the stage for the convergence of AI, blockchain, and virtual reality (VR) in 2024. This convergence holds the promise of limitless potential and unprecedented digital interaction.
The Rise of AI and the Metaverse
One of the most intriguing aspects of this convergence is the symbiotic relationship between AI and the metaverse. GPUs, the powerful processors that drive rich virtual spaces, are not only instrumental in rendering these environments but also play a crucial role in training AI models. This parallel computing capability has led to the intertwined growth of AI and VR technologies, exemplified by the soaring value of GPU manufacturers like Nvidia.
As we enter 2024, we stand on the precipice of witnessing AI transform the very act of creation within the metaverse. This year, AI is predicted to evolve beyond its current capabilities, allowing creators to construct expansive virtual worlds solely through the power of description. No longer will intricate skills in 3D modeling and animation be necessary; instead, the metaverse will respond to the creative impulses of human thought, brought to life by AI.
The Evolution of Blockchain and VR
In 2023, blockchain weathered legal challenges and corporate upheavals, ultimately solidifying its position as a transformative technology. Despite these trials, the essence of blockchain, the digitization of asset ownership, remained steadfast, paving the way for its integration into the fabric of the internet. This convergence will make blockchain assets a native dialect for the digital realm, seamlessly woven into our online interactions.
By 2024, blockchain will become an invisible yet omnipresent orchestrator of digital trust and ownership. Interacting with blockchain will become as effortless as sending an email, with its complexities hidden from the user. This silent integration will ensure the efficacy and security of digital transactions, making blockchain an integral part of our daily lives.
The Potential of blockchain and VR
Virtual reality has made significant strides in recent years, offering unparalleled opportunities for human-computer interaction and presence in digital realms. Advancements in hardware, such as the Meta Quest 3 and forthcoming VR headsets from industry giants like Apple and Nintendo, have propelled VR to the forefront of technological innovation
Looking ahead to 2024, we find ourselves on the verge of a transformative moment in the spatial computing industry. Blockchain and VR ability to experience events like the NBA finals from the best seats in the stadium, all from the comfort of our homes, is poised to captivate the masses. This bridging of the physical and digital worlds will likely drive widespread adoption among the early majority, setting the stage for a seismic shift in how we perceive and interact with digital spaces.
The Cultural and Economic Impact
In the narrative of our digital evolution, Generation Z emerges as the vanguard of a new cultural epoch. Born into a world where virtuality is as real as the air they breathe, these digital natives are not merely users but active creators within these realms. Equipped with AI and metaverse tools, they are reshaping technology to suit their imagination and whims.
The rise of Generation Z as active creators within the metaverse heralds a new economic frontier. User-generated content, once a pastime, now holds the potential for value creation and influence. With creativity and innovation at their fingertips, these young minds are democratizing the power once held by a select few, ushering in a future where the digital realm is limited only by imagination.
The Future of Technological Convergence
As 2024 unfolds, we find ourselves at the dawn of a transformative era in technology. The convergence of AI, blockchain, and VR is shaping a new digital landscape, expanding the boundaries of what is possible in the digital realm. AI’s advancement is revolutionizing creative possibilities in the metaverse, enabling environments to be shaped by thought alone. Blockchain is evolving into a fundamental layer of digital trust, seamlessly integrating asset ownership into our daily lives. VR, on the cusp of a breakthrough, promises to redefine our sensory experiences in digital spaces.
Crucially, this technological synergy is the domain of Generation Z, who are not only users but active creators and shapers of these realms. Their engagement with these technologies is propelling a new economic and cultural landscape, where imagination is the primary currency.
In this new era, blockchain and VR world are defined only by our creativity, opening unprecedented avenues for innovation and interaction. The year 2024 marks the beginning of an exciting journey, promising a future where technology and imagination converge to shape a digital landscape that knows no bounds.


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Here are some of the food stories we’re reading at The Chew today:
Following Michelle Obama’s announcement about Disney’s planned reduction in advertising unhealthy foods to kids, she showed up on the David Letterman show with her “Top Ten Fun Facts About Gardening”.
Speaking of the Obamas, and since we just did a show all about beef featuring a White House chef, the President is apparently a big steak lover. Beef has become the default entrée at Presidential dinners.
The Chew’s own Mario Batali was a co-signer on an open letter to Congress about needed changes to the 2012 Farm Bill which could affect all of us.
Mario’s also continuing on his Food Stamp campaign with an article he co-wrote in the Huffington Post:
“Foods stamps support more than a family; they support entire communities and cities. Every $1 billion spent on food stamps enables 14,000 jobs, mainly in food-related industries. In New York City alone, nearly 50,000 people are able to work each year when when food stamp recipients redeem their benefits.”
Food guru Mark Bittman weighs in on the on-going soda debate in New York City. He says it’s not food an inherently bad for us:
“Sugar-sweetened beverages are nothing more than sugar delivery systems, and sugar is probably the most dangerous part of our current diet. People will argue forever about whether sugar-sweetened beverages lead directly to obesity, but Bloomberg’s ban should be framed first and foremost as an effort to reduce sugar consumption. Good.”
Read his whole opinion here.


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Mobile technology news, reviews and advice
Samsung Galaxy S8
Huawei announces new devices at CES 2016
5 January, 2016
Huawei has just announced a bunch of new devices at CES 2016, including a brand new smartphone, the Mate 8, and two new smartwatches.
Hot new releases from IFA 2015
4 September, 2015
We've had an even better chance to look at all the latest and greatest tech from IFA Berlin 2015 today, Friday 4 September
Huawei launches phones and smartwatch at IFA
2 September, 2015
We're at IFA in Berlin, and we've just seen the announcement of the new Huawei Mate S, G8 and Huawei Watch. This is everything you need to know.
The most elegant smartwatches
10 March, 2015
Wearables look set to be one of the big trends this year. Here are some of the most elegant smartwatches around
What do the symbols on my screen mean?
9 October, 2016
Find out what all the symbols on your phone screen actually mean...
How to fix a mobile internet connection
3 February, 2017
If you're having problems with your mobile internet connection, here are some tips...
The 6 best camera phones
18 May, 2017
Whether you're a selfie lover or a fully-fledged photographer, these are the best...
Data test: How much is 1GB?
1 June, 2017
Those videos that automatically play on Facebook and Twitter could be pushing you...


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In Bedford-Stuyvesant, where the ratio of bodegas to grocery stores has long been among the highest in the city, community leaders aren’t waiting for the city’s help to improve the food offerings in their own neighborhood.
“They’re not necessarily measuring whether the grocery stores have high-quality produce,” stated Rae Gomes, a Bed-Stuy food justice activist. “They’re not measuring whether it’s affordable to long-term residents, and they’re not looking to see if they’re paying people well.”
Gomes is on the board of the Central Brooklyn Food Cooperative, a Black-led grassroots project utilizing community strength to acquire space for a member-operated grocery store that could sell fresh food at affordable rates for residents in Bed-Stuy, Crown Heights and nearby neighborhoods, reports The City
Local residents say the city needs to start investing in community run food initiatives because the presence of a privately owned grocery store still does not ensure the community access to fresh and healthy food.
Mayor Eric Adams seems to agree: He has already spoken about food apartheid more than any mayor before him. But while food justice advocates laud these efforts, they say the administration needs to go further if it wants to transform the economics of food segregation.
The Central Brooklyn Food Coop would work as a non-profit, so to speak, whereby members are required to pay a $150 or $20 fee depending on their personal income, taking on volunteer shifts to staff the store.
Organizers have been trying to get the project off the ground for years, launching a campaign raising around $50,000 for a storefront slated to open the summer of 2019. But then the pandemic hit, pushing organizers to aid more pressing mutual-aid efforts. And now, securing a commercial space in rapidly gentrifying Central Brooklyn is harder than they previously imagined.
“I think that our best hope is to find a situation where we are getting financed," said Gomes. "Or we are getting supported by electeds or grants — a situation where we wouldn’t have to center profit at least for the first ten years.”
While many are still doubtful that Adams would follow through on his promise, some are still confident in his vision.
“He’s gonna reach out for those people because they’re important too, they’re in need also. You can’t give all to the rich,” said Elena Armstrong, an East Flatbush mother. “I heard Mayor Adams say something on that myself.”


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Court Dismisses Class Action Suit over Michaels Data Breach
A federal court has dismissed a class-action lawsuit stemming from a data breach that took place at Michaels in 2013 and 2014. The case sought damages for customers who were at risk of fraudulent card activity after the breach.
But District Court Judge Joanna Seybert said there was not enough proof of “substantial risk that the harm will occur.”
In early 2014, Michaels reported that up to 2.6 million customers could have been affected by a potential data breach occurring between May 8, 2013 and January 27, 2014. Customers were originally notified of the potential breach in January, followed by an official confirmation of the data compromise in April. Michaels said hackers were able to get into the company’s payment card system, but there was no evidence they took any personal data, such as PINs, addresses or names.
The plaintiff in the case, Mary Jane Whalen, cancelled her credit card shortly after the breach and had not experienced any fraudulent charges. Even if she had not cancelled her card, Seybert said the credit card company would have absorbed the costs of the fraudulent charges. Whalen would not have incurred any financial loss.


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Firefighters are battling a blaze that engulfed a house in Washington Courthouse, and authorities have been unable to locate a family of four that lives there. The Fayette County sheriff’s office says the fire is believed to be fatal. The fire was reported at about 4 a.m. Friday. Sheriff Vernon Stanforth told the Washington Court [...]
Columbus Unveils New Bike Share Program
The city of Columbus has a new bike share program.
Itâ€™s called “CoGo” and is modeled after similar programs in other cities. Columbus officials call it a green and affordable way for visitors making short stops around downtown. Riders can sign up for an annual membership of $75, or rent and return a bike at any of the 30 downtown stations for $6 a day.
The program requires riders to wear a helmet and use arm signals when making turns.
Some downtown hotels say theyâ€™ll make free helmets available to guests, and at least two bike shops will offer customer discounts to CoGo members.


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Huawei today unveiled in its Shenzhen headquarters a new AI chipset for IoT devices, in yet another move by the company to reduce its reliance on U.S. components. Named the Ascend 910, this chipset comes just two weeks after Huawei pulled back the curtain on its own proprietary operating system, HarmonyOS, which will be used in an upcoming smart TV and soon other smart home products from the company.
This isn’t Huawei’s first foray into building its own artificial intelligence into a chipset. Almost exactly two years ago Huawei introduced the Kirin 970, the first mobile chipset with a dedicated Neural Processing Unit (NPU), which brought on-device machine learning capabilities to the Mate 10 series of smartphones. Apple and Qualcomm didn’t implement a neural engine into their respective mobile chipsets (the A series and Snapdragon series) until a year later. The Ascend 910’s A.I. scale is much larger than the Kirin chips’ NPU, as it’s designed to handle large data networks and in the near future power smart cities and driver-less cars—in China, at least. It is very unlikely western countries will adopt Huawei’s A.I. framework anytime soon, given all the recent allegations made by the U.S. government.
The Ascend 910 will compete directly against Qualcomm and Nvidia, both U.S. silicon giants that have the bulk of the enterprise and IoT market share. Enterprise business is one of three major arms of Huawei’s business, with the other two being mobile devices and telecommunication network equipments. But in recent years, the Enterprise business has fallen behind the other two arms, accounting for 10% of Huawei’s overall 2018 revenue.
Huawei is still currently blacklisted by the U.S. government as part of the Commerce Departement's “Entity List,” although it was recently granted another 90-day reprieve to continue buying U.S.-made components, of which Huawei still needs in order to continue producing its popular line of smartphones and computing products.


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When you're listening to music, it's likely your earbuds are plugged into an Apple device. Making a phone call? One out of every five people buying a smartphone are choosing an iPhone. And Apple's share of consumer laptop sales jumped to 10.6 percent in the last quarter.
Now here's the big question: Does your IT department, the guys who think it's just fine that you're still using a Windows XP laptop (and P.S., stop whining about it), give a hoot about all this Apple stuff?
Apple executives hope so. The pitch the company has been making in recent months is simple: Employees are already using plenty of Apple products on their own time and like them, and the iPad is a great, lightweight tool for Web-based corporate software. If you thought this was just lip service, Apple is even now working with the decidedly old-school consultants at Unisys to approach big corporate and government customers.
If Apple can make these sorts of corporate inroads, it could be Steve Jobs' greatest trick yet, because he's got a lot going against him in the corporate market. As of the third quarter of 2010, Apple sold 1.4 million of the 40.8 million computers sold to commercial customers, according to data gathered by IDC. That's 3.6 percent of all corporate computer sales.
Blame history...and inertia. Large companies usually have a contract with a Windows-based PC seller, often a third party. Switching contractors could result in higher costs and a lot of hassle, and can also be stymied by an old-school perception among the often conservative IT outfits at large companies that Macs are "toys," and can't integrate easily with Windows-based systems. On the mobile side, corporate IT shops long ago became comfortable working with Research In Motion's Blackberry; supporting the iPhone could add new complexity and potentially more cost to their work. Many people don't even know Apple sells servers. (It does.) And the iPad? Well, you could argue the touch-screen tablet computing market didn't exist a year ago.
Andrew Kaiser, a former Apple business sales manager who hawked enterprise systems to companies of all sizes until recently, said often the biggest barriers in selling were opinions formed sometimes decades ago, before Office for Mac, before virtualization, and before Apple switched to Intel chips. "Some had no idea Apple could integrate into a Windows platform," he recalled.
Employees like Thomas Caleshu, an interactive producer for educational software maker WestEd, have seen that firsthand. Caleshu is an iPhone and Mac user outside of work, and though he said there were no technical issues in getting his company's IT guys to add his iPhone and MacBook to the network, they were definitely skeptical.
"Some of the established IT people didn't trust or believe that I could sync my calendar on my phone, and on iCal on my Mac, and in a (corporate) Web interface," he said. "I had to prove it to them."
That skepticism is almost always rooted in something real--bad past experiences with Macs before the technology improved, or in times before Apple products were properly compatible with Windows-based hardware. And even though much of that has changed, the features that now are selling points for consumers with the iPhone or the Mac--the focus on design, the cachet of the Apple brand, the idea of a unique experience--doesn't go over as well with the guy who's managing that stuff at work.
"IT managers in the past have said, 'I don't want unique experiences,'" pointed out Richard Shim, analyst for IDC. For IT department managers, people on different systems often just translates to a huge headache.
Plus, there's the reality of enterprise applications not being written with the Mac in mind, which is a huge hindrance for companies who've invested in software for their employees, Shim added. "Especially because some custom, propriety applications are expensive to create and maintain, as is having to come up with an alternative when people are used to using the old version." And many people are simply averse to change.
Apple's recent announcement that it isis also sure to irritate plenty of IT folks. Though others might say not that much has changed anyway.
"As far as I'm concerned, they don't support it today," said Robert Pickering, vice president of Information Services for the auto club AAA. He expects it will mean his employees will have to patch and update their software on their own, which he says they were already doing because Apple doesn't support the most up-to-date version of Java anyway.
And of course, there's a rich tradition of labeling Apple products as unnecessarily expensive.
All of those things amount to big hurdles, but Apple has one very important thing going for it: The end users are often very familiar with their stuff. And with its momentum in mobile devices and the overall "consumerization" of technology, now is the time to make this kind of move.
Apple has sold more than 12 million iPads worldwide in the first six months--for comparison's sake 170 million PCs shipped worldwide during the same time period. And the iPhone, already a success, has even beaten the workhorse of corporate smartphones, the BlackBerry, in unit sales for the first time ever.12.4 million BlackBerrys sold during the third quarter, compared to 14.1 million iPhones.
The people buying those for personal use have jobs, and like Thomas Caleshu, are increasingly asking their corporate IT folks to connect their new Apple device to their network. And more recently, large companies appear to be complying: Apple COO Tim Cook said recently that two-thirds of Fortune 100 companies are testing or deploying the iPad on their networks, and 85 percent are testing or deploying the iPhone. Those companies reportedly include Citigroup and Bank of America.
More employees asking for Macs
Now it looks like the Mac is starting to make inroads too. The Enterprise Desktop Alliance, a group of enterprise software companies that integrate Mac and Windows systems for businesses, said that during its recent survey of more than 460 IT administrators that more and more employees are asking their IT departments for Macs.
Pickering, who manages all employee computers at AAA, said there's been a noticeable change in the nature of employee requests just this year. "This is the first year, based on four years of supporting Macs, that we've received requests for Macs from what I would consider 'non-standard' Mac users," he said.
The Mac's stronghold in commercial sales has traditionally been to graphics and marketing departments, and that's long been the case at AAA. "But also now my membership department, which doesn't have a traditional reason for having a Mac other than they like the hardware" wants them, said Pickering. The travel department is now asking too.
"Our executive vice president for travel wants it mainly for the form factor," added Pickering. "He wants a MacBook Air."
That's not a unique story: Executives are frequently the reason Macs become an option at all for some companies.
"High-level people will have a Mac at home and they say I need to connect it here, and they have a wake that pulls other people (like the IT department) into providing the option," said T. Reid Lewis, president of enterprise software company GroupLogic, and of the Enterprise Desktop Alliance.
When people in the executive suite make a request they usually get it, no matter the cost. But now even regular employees are getting the choice of something besides a PC, as the idea of Macs being more expensive may also be fading. AAA's Pickering, who reports to his company's chief financial officer, says he and his boss are increasingly taking a longer view of the money they're putting down on computers for their workers. They don't mind paying a little more money up front for a Mac, a computer that, he says, doesn't require as many support resources dedicated to it over the years.
Ben Hanes, a senior systems analyst for Children's Hospital Oakland Research Institute, echoed that attitude. He says his department doesn't focus on the initial cost. Rather, "it's on over time how much it's going to cost us on support. We spend a lot more time supporting Windows OS than Mac OS," he said, pegging it to about three times as many man hours used supporting a PC as a Mac. So Hanes finds the initial investment worth the extra cash they spend at the beginning.
As these attitudes have begun to change, the Enterprise Desktop Alliance is predicting that Macs will climb from 3.3 percent of all systems at companies last year to 5.2 percent in 2011. That's still small, but it represents sizable growth: between 2009 and 2011 one of every four new systems added at companies will be Macs, though much of that will come from companies already deploying Apple machines, according to the IT administrators they surveyed.
But to make some real headway, Apple is going to have to convert non-believers too. That's likely where Unisys comes in.and other "iDevices" to large enterprises and governments could be an experiment for Apple, a testing of the waters. But the timing is good as the commercial market for computers is finally starting to rebound after a couple years of spending cutbacks driven by a weak economy.
But how much heft Apple will put behind this over the next few years is still a big question. This is, after all, a traditionally consumer-focused company, and the projects that Jobs himself is interested in--like the iPad--get the most attention internally. It's not clear how energized Jobs might be about the comparatively stale subject of commercial sales. But there are some signs that will indicate in the next months and years how Apple is viewing this business, said IDC's Shim.
"What will ultimately determine how dedicated they are to this space is what sort of applications they commit to it. That's what we learned in the consumer space: What differentiates you is a unique experience, and they nailed it on the consumer side," he said. "They've done better than anyone else. The question is, how do you do that on the commercial side or on the large enterprise side?"


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The sale of counterfeit automotive parts through online marketplaces is a significant and growing problem, posing a threat to the health and safety of U.S. consumers, according to a new white paper commissioned by the Automotive Anti-Counterfeiting Council, Inc. (A2C2).
The report details key factors contributing to the proliferation of counterfeit auto parts online, including an unwillingness on the part of e-commerce marketplaces to sufficiently, verify the legitimacy of the third-party sellers and products on their sites, and the general lack of awareness among consumers that some automotive parts sold online are counterfeit.
While calling for online marketplaces to be held accountable for the products available on their sites, the white paper also offers several suggestions to improve the situation, including implementation of industry practices to validate marketplace supply chains; a greater collaboration between marketplaces, brands and law enforcement to identify and
track counterfeiters; and improved consumer education.
According to the report, online marketplaces like Amazon and eBay have taken a hands-off approach to the third-party products sold through their platforms. The growth and increased consumer confidence in e-commerce marketplaces have accompanied a steady increase in the online availability of counterfeit products.
Taking advantage of the lack of seller or product verification online, counterfeiters avoid many safeguards that are in place to protect consumers. While the ease and convenience of online marketplaces benefit legitimate companies, and particularly growing companies and entrepreneurs, they also provide opportunities for unscrupulous and illegitimate sellers to prosper. As a result, when consumers turn to an online marketplace, they typically discover not only authorized dealers, but also counterfeiters who appear to be equally genuine.


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Recently concluded HackPrinceton 2018 in the Princeton University hosted thousands of programmers, developers, and entrepreneurs from around educational institutes across North America. The students worked to create functioning software or hardware projects within a set timeframe of 36 hours. Different companies including bigwigs tech startups sponsored the hackathon to become a brand recognizable among the up-and-coming peers.
Propy, which aims to become the world’s first international real-estate marketplace, will donate 50,000 PRO tokens as rewards at the upcoming World Crypto Economic Forum’s Blockchain Hackathon. The company’s CEO and founder Natalia Karayaneva is amongst the impressive line-up of experts to speak at the conference to be held at the South San Francisco Conference Center on January 13-16, 2018.
This November, Blockchain Education Network (BEN) will begin the hackathon Gauntlet. The exact date is still undefined. Individuals interested in Bitcoin (BTC) and Blockchain, or learning about BTC/Blockchain, can use this opportunity to learn more and have their business model, program, or service reviewed by a Bitcoin professional who can help bring your idea to fruition.
Individual producers and consumers of solar and wind energy will now have an instrument to integrate a Blockchain-based network into a new generation of energy trades. This comes thanks to three hackers who won the Dutch international energy hackathon H4ckenergy 2016 with their Blockchain project named EcoCoin.


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The report, which cites ‘people familiar with the matter’ said: “Like with its mobile devices - the iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch - Apple intends to frequently update the AirPods with new hardware features.
“The Cupertino, California-based technology giant is working on a new version for release as soon as this year with an upgraded wireless chip, the people said.”
While Apple’s voice assistant, Siri, is available in the current generation of AirPods, users have to physically tap the earphones to activate it.
But according to the report, the new AirPods will have an upgraded wireless chip, which will allow the user to summon Siri, simply by saying “Hey, Siri!”
Apple is also planning a subsequent third-generation model for 2019, which will be water resistant, according to the report.
Since Apple released the AirPods in 2016, they have been one of the firm’s most popular products.
Ming-Chi Kuo, an analyst at KGI Securities, predicts that Apple shipped 13 to 14 million AirPods last year, and that this could be set to double to 26-28 million units this year.


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British Street Food Awards 2018
British Street Food are now looking for traders to nominate themselves to compete for a British Street Food Award this year.
Founded in 2009 by Richard Johnson, the annual awards were set up to enable young street food traders to showcase their talent, to make street food accessible to all, and to celebrate the street food movement.
The heats released so far are:
BSFA Scottish Street Food Awards – May 4-6
BSFA Central heats – June 15-16
BSFA Northern heats – June 23-24
BSFA Southern heats – tbc
BSFA finals in mid-September
Over the years, prizes for winners have included business makeovers, pitches at the world’s best festivals and street food markets, and even pitches at the Olympic Games.
Traders can apply to the awards by emailing their CV, pictures, funny stories and multiple reasons why they should be chosen to compete to email@example.com
Keep your eye on the website for more info.
You can also look out for updates on the 2018 European Street Food Awards here.


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Apple: A few months ago, Apple’s goal was to manufacture 90 million iPhone 13 units, but it seems that demand will not be the same as the company imagined. According to information from the website Bloomberg, the company is having problems related to the supply of components for cell phones.
According to the information, Apple has started sending messages to iPhone 13 parts suppliers, saying that it will decrease the production of devices and, therefore, will not order as many units as expected.
Lack of demand and supply
In October, Apple had already cut part of the smartphone’s production, reducing it to 80 million units produced. However, the number could be even smaller if demand doesn’t increase — the company typically assembles 75 million units for each iPhone launch.
Before even finding out about the drop in demand, Apple was already suffering from problems related to the supply of components. Even some time ago, providers Broadcom and Texas Instrument warned that they would not be able to deliver all the orders.
The company’s CEO, Tim Cook, said the global semiconductor crisis and pandemic impacted the company’s quarterly earnings by $6 billion. Even so, market analysts estimate that the company’s sales should increase by up to 6% in the end-of-year period.


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- Tabloid Newspaper
- Printed on Newsprint Paper
- 30,100 Copies Distributed Weekly
- Frequency: Weekly Wednesday/Thursday
- Target Audience: Local Community
- Area of Distribution: Emdeni, Jabulani, Moletsane, Naledi, Naledi ext 1, Naledi ext 2, Tladi, Zola and Zondi
Johannesburg metropolis in Gauteng is modern and a pride of the country. Joburg boasts of distinct suburbs and townships. One of those contributing to what Johannesburg is is Midrand. Midrand is an area in central Gauteng Province, South Africa. It is situated between Centurion and Kyalami, and is part of the City of Johannesburg Metropolitan Municipality. Suburbs that are generally regarded as being in Midrand include among others: Country View, Carlswald, Crowthorne, Glen Austin, Halfway House, Halfway Gardens, Vorna Valley, Noordwyk and Randjesfontein.
Soweto is an English abbreviation for South Western Townships. Located in the south of the city and bordering the city’s mining belt, Soweto has over the years transformed from a legacy of the apartheid era to a vibrant, energetic hub which reflects the true South African culture and identity. Defined more as a city now than a township, Soweto has modern schools, hospitals, businesses and shopping malls as well as many social amenities.
Residents of this vibrant part of Johannesburg and thousands of tourists who visit always look out for the Zola Urban News to know what’s happening in the community. This newspaper is part of the Urban News publications which was launched in 2005 and also includes the Protea Urban News. This newspaper is trusted by both the young and old when it comes to coverage of community affairs.
The key decision makers and breadwinners who make the weekly shopping lists and decide about larger purchases enthusiastically welcome the Zola Urban News Newspaper every week in their homes. When it comes to advertising, this newspaper provides different advertising options that are aimed at suiting every budget, from the entrepreneur just starting out to large retail businesses.
Zola Urban News boasts of 30,000 print order with copies distributed every Wednesday and Thursday into areas such as Emdeni, Jabulani, Moletsane, Naledi, Naledi ext 1, Naledi ext 2, Tladi, Zola and Zondi.


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On prominent display on the south Jersey shore.
(Page 2 of 2)
“Within eight months after the change in the law took effect, Viking Yachts, the largest U.S. yacht manufacturer, laid off 1,140 of its 1,400 employees,” reports George Mason University economics professor Walter E. Williams.
By the time the law was rescinded in 1993, Viking Yachts was down to 68 employees.
Not far from where we are in Sea Isle, Egg Harbor Yacht, one of the oldest boatyards in South Jersey, filed for bankruptcy and laid off its 250 workers in 1991, a year after the yacht tax was enacted.
“When it was all over, 25,000 workers had lost their jobs building yachts, and 75,000 more jobs were lost in companies that supplied yacht parts and materials,” states Williams. “The Joint Economic Committee concluded that the value of jobs lost in just the first six months of the luxury tax was $159.6 million.”
And the impact of the luxury tax hike on deficit reduction? Instead of adding the projected $31 million to federal coffers in 1991, the net effect of the luxury tax was $7.6 million more in federal red ink in fiscal 1991.
The impact of the luxury tax on “fairness” and equality? Workers lost their jobs and “the rich” still had their preexisting yachts. The redistributionists aimed at the wealthy and hit the middle class.
That’s not unlike the scenario at the Utz house. If the protesters had been successful in stopping the construction, the Rices would still have their preexisting $12 million beach house and the carpenters, roofers, landscapers, etc., would have paid the price with higher levels of joblessness.
Rather than judging what the Rice family “needs” and carping about the home’s number of master bedrooms, the picketers should have been counting the number of contractors’ trucks lined up in front of the house during the three years of construction.
In addition to those on-site jobs, add the number of jobs in manufacturing, marketing, and shipping for all the sinks, beds, tables, cabinets, chairs, roofing, stone, appliances, doors, windows, landscaping, etc., and new home was a one-man stimulus package.
The protesters may sneer at “the rich” and “unfair” advantages but Utz Foods began as a family business in 1921 when William and Salie Utz began making potato chips in their home in Hanover, Pa., producing 50 pounds of potato chips per hour in their kitchen.
Now in its third generation as a family business and still in Hanover, not China, Utz currently employs 2,200 people and is the largest independent privately held snack brand in the United States, producing a million pounds of potato chips and 900,000 pounds of pretzels per week.
That’s not unlike the Heinz story in my hometown of Pittsburgh. Now a Fortune 500 company, Heinz got its start when 8-year-old Henry John Heinz began selling vegetables to neighbors from his family’s garden. At the age of 12, Heinz was growing horseradish root on several acres and selling his homemade horseradish door-to-door in a wagon.
It is precisely that spirit of entrepreneurship, new ideas, risk taking, investing, productivity, and ambition that we have to commend and incentivize, not demonize, if we want a society with more growth, more employment, less joblessness, and less poverty.
As Milton Friedman put it, succinctly and accurately, “So that the record is absolutely crystal clear, that there is no alternative way so far discovered of improving the lot of the ordinary people that can hold a candle to the productive activities that are unleashed by a free enterprise system.”
A man of faith in a godless age is hitting Americans where it hurts.
Mr. and Mrs. American Spectator Reader, let P.J. O’Rourke talk sense to your kids.
In Britain, defending your property can get you life.
The debacle of this president’s administration is both a cause and a symptom of the decline of American values. Unless Congress impeaches him, that decline will go on unchecked. An eminent jurist surveys the damage and assesses the chances for the recovery of our culture.
It won’t take long for conservatives to scratch this presidential wannabe off their 2008 scorecard.
The American Christmas, like the songs that celebrate it, makes room for everybody under the rainbow. Is that why so many people seem to be hostile to it?
Was the President done in by the economy, or by the politics of the economy?


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Restaurants need a good estimate of demand to confidently plan their reopenings. But will office workers and tourists return?
Ethical questions have been raised over the fairness of demanding vaccination passports. Some venues want to see them, and some governors want to ban them.
There’s how the government looks at inflation, and then there’s what inflation feels like for you and me.
The eviction moratorium remains in place until summer, and cruise ships won't sail from U.S. ports until at least late November.
For COVID-19, predictions of what it will take to reach herd immunity vary wildly, and it's more complicated than one magic number.
Social places by nature, bars have faced tighter restrictions than many other businesses, and are suffering the consequences.


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What is Adobe's revenue in 2021?
— Adobe reported a record $15.79 billion in revenue in 2021.
What products are included in Adobe's suite?
— Adobe's suite of products includes Illustrator, Reader, Photoshop, Premiere Pro, After Effects, InDesign, and others.
How has Adobe embraced software as a service?
— Adobe has embraced software as a service through subscription plans, such as the Creative Cloud, which accounted for 90% of the company's revenue in 2021.
What was the impact of Adobe's acquisition of Figma?
— Adobe's acquisition of Figma for $20 billion showcased their willingness to adapt to a software as a service model.
What is the current trend in software purchasing?
— Software subscription, or SaaS, has replaced traditional software purchasing, allowing customers to rent software through monthly plans at a lower cost.
We’ve got the additional info


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It is almost the end of another year, as New Year’s Day and the start of 2012 is drawing closer. Here is a list of cars that we said goodbye to this year.
Nitro that was not a gas
According to USA today, two Dodge crossover SUVs that date to Chrysler’s tenure as a division of Daimler are officially no more. The last Dodge Nitro and Caliber have rolled off the assembly line. The cars weren’t Edsel-esque failures, but didn’t exactly leave dealerships in droves. The Nitro isn’t getting an immediate replacement, but the Caliber is being replaced by the upcoming Dodge Dart.
No more home in the Ranger
The Ford Ranger line has also come to an end, according to the Wall Street Journal, after a long presence in the American market as a solid choice for a small pickup. Ford isn’t bringing the international version here, though the WSJ speculates it might after Chevrolet decided to start selling the international version of the Colorado in the future.
Mazda takes sports car out of rotation
The Mazda RX-8 was another casualty of this year, according to AutoBlog. The only car available with a rotary engine in the U.S., the RX-8 wasn’t a strong enough seller to be able to keep it, and Mazda announced this summer that it had stopped production of the car. A rotary engine sports car has been a mainstay of Mazda for some time, but the company is believed to be hard at work at the next generation.
Brands that died
Saab and Maybach, both European automakers with long histories, are both dead in the water. The financial difficulties of Saab were too great for the company to surmount, and the company is headed for liquidation, according to the New York Times. Maybach, however, was killed by Mercedes as very few people bought the luxury cars that were the size of the Titanic and cost about as much, according to Time. The brand, which was brought back to life nine years ago, has sold only 3,000 units since then. Mercury, according to MotorTrend, also was wound down when Ford announced its demise in January.
According to CNN, Tesla stopped taking orders for its much-vaunted Roadster this year because it is concentrating on the Tesla S sedan until it unleashes a new Roadster, which will not be based on the Lotus Elise.
According to MotorTrend, some other exits were Chevrolet’s Aveo and the HHR, the Ford Crown Victoria, the Cadillac STS and DTS sedans, the Buick Lucerne, the Honda Element, the Mazda Tribute, and the Mitsubishi Eclipse and Endeavor.
According to AutoBlog, BMW bid “auf wiedersehen” to the X6 hybrid, Nissan dumped the Altima hybrid, Dodge dodged a redesign of the Dakota, and parting was such Swede sorrow as Volvo dropped the S40 and V50.


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Whether the team emerges triumphant this Saturday, Sept. 22, under new head coach Jeremy Pruitt is a mystery, but in the meantime, The Shrimp Dock owner Phil Dangel can give fans a “taste” of gator all the same, offering around 2,000 pounds of the fresh alligator meat at all three Shrimp Dock locations.
Regionally known as “Gator Hater Week” leading up to the big game, “it’s the highlight of our year,” Dangel said Saturday, Sept. 15, at his Farragut restaurant, 11124 Kingston Pike, with locations also in Bearden and Alcoa. “Friday will be our single busiest day of the year, from the point of view of total transactions.”
He expects this year to be even stronger. Not only is this year’s battle in Neyland Stadium, but it also is a night game (7 p.m. opening kickoff, “so we will sell gator all day.”
It is the 10th year the restaurant has offered the delicacy, and the demand has only grown over the last decade, with this year’s poundage amount “the most ever,” Dangel said.
“I like to think we are Gator Headquarters of Knoxville,” he added.
Fans must think so, too, as Dangel starts receiving gator meat inquiries “in May and June, asking when we will be getting it.” When it does come in, “we see people we don’t see for the rest of the year.”
The Shrimp Dock sells the meat frozen for $16.99 a pound, the same price it has been for “six or seven years,” Dangel said. The restaurant also will prepare various amounts in-house for sale.
“It is very popular for in-home parties, and we sell a lot for tailgating, too,” he added.
Really big orders already had been called in weeks in advance, Dangel said.
In addition to the meat itself, The Shrimp Dock also received several intact skinned gators — with the heads and feet still attached — last weekend, one of which was being purchased by an individual, Dangel shared.
Beyond just the obvious jab at the Florida football team, Dangel said he believes it is the novelty of the meat that makes it so popular.
“People will buy a pound or two and ask their kids what they think they are eating, for example, or ask them to guess before telling them,” he said.
Steve Presnell is assistant manager of the Farragut store, and he prepared a few pounds of gator last Saturday. He said he had flavored it with The Shrimp Dock’s special seasoning blend, drained it, marinated it about an hour before dredging it in cornmeal and flour then deep-frying the nuggets for about two minutes in hot oil. He recommended buttermilk as a good marinade.
Presnell said every pound makes about three po’boy sandwiches, and the stores will be cooking up plenty of those this weekend, too, for diners both on- and off-site.
The Shrimp Dock in Farragut will be open extended hours to accommodate the demand Thursday Sept. 20, Dangel said. It will close at 8 p.m. (the restaurant will shut down at 7:45 p.m.). The business closes at its regular time, 7 p.m., Friday, Sept. 21, and at 6 p.m., on game day Saturday.
For more information, call The Shrimp Dock at 865-777-3625.