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Iranian state TV has broadcast footage it claimed was a Hezbollah sniper shooting six ISIS soldiers in just two minutes.
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UPDATE: The official Medal of Honor site has confirmed the game's existence and posted a piece of concept art. Take a look below.
Two video games, Grand Theft Auto 5 and Call of Duty, will account for around a quarter of all video game sales in the coming financial year, a report suggests.
A third of all money made from video games in the next year will also come from just those two titles, US financial analyst Baird Equity Research states (reported by Gamasutra).
Release dates for Rockstar's Grand Theft Auto 5 and Activision's next Call of Duty game have yet to be announced, although it's a fair bet that both will launch before April 2013.
Retailer GAME has let slip the contents of a confidential EA meeting on Twitter.
EA has teased a Medal of Honor sequel with a leaflet found inside Battlefield 3.
The Battlefield 3 alpha test is not the same as the beta test, DICE has explained. Therefore, Medal of Honor: Limited Edition owners are not eligible to join the alpha test.
"The alpha is a closed test and by invitation only," wrote DICE on its website.
"If you'd like to have a chance to be called upon, make sure to register for our newsletter and ensure your Veteran status is up to date.
A sequel to last year's Medal of Honor reboot is currently under development at Danger Close, the developer has confirmed.
Five games Electronic Arts launched last year sold over five million copies.
EA's inclusion of the Taliban as a playable faction in the multiplayer portion of last year's Afghanistan shooter Medal of Honor turned enough heads to force it to scrap the idea at the 11th hour, but for THQ core games boss Danny Bilson, the Taliban should never have even been considered.
First person shooters based on real world conflicts are neither "tasteful" or "appropriate", so says a Codemasters developer.
EA has revealed its out-there strategy to take the FPS crown away from Activision and its Call of Duty series: make a superior game.
Senior producer speaks.
At EA's winter showcase event last week DICE's Patrick Liu took centre stage to reveal the first batch of downloadable content for the two-million-selling shooter Medal of Honor.
DICE, the studio behind the multiplayer portion of the recently released Afghanistan shooter Medal of Honor, reckons reviews were affected by the controversy surrounding the game's setting.
Medal of Honor hit the headlines for being set in Afghanistan, touching on fresh in the memory battles, and allowing gamers to play as the Taliban in multiplayer - the faction was eventually changed to Opposing Force.
"The controversy did affect some reviews," DICE veteran Patrick Liu told Eurogamer.
Despite middling review scores and analyst scepticism, Medal of Honor has been an unmitigated success story for EA, CEO John Riccitiello has insisted.
EA's admitted Danger Close and DICE's recently released Medal of Honor reboot "didn't meet our quality expectations".
A new multiplayer DLC pack is on its way to Medal of Honor, publisher EA has announced.
EA's attempt to muscle in on the mixed martial arts market with EA Sports MMA has been an unmitigated failure, according to industry analysts.
Imagine being an international rock star. The girls! The parties! The drugs! The endless interviews with videogames reviewers who demand you justify your latest adventure in corporate schilling and obvious choice of football team!
PC users are set to be the lucky recipients of a Medal of Honor patch, developer Danger Close has announced.
The studio made the announcement on its blog, stating, "We have been working on the feedback from the forums that you posted during the PC beta. We are listening to your major concerns and are pleased to show you the change/fix list."
The list, which you can see in full below, includes a number of weapon and control tweaks, as well as various bug fixes.
Expands multiplayer modes and maps.
Did EA's Medal of Honor make more money at launch than Activision's last Call of Duty game, Modern Warfare 2? In a word, no. More than Halo: Reach? No.
Medal of Honor users will be on the receiving end of free multiplayer DLC next month, publisher EA has announced.
EA's war game Medal of Honor has surged into the UK all-formats chart at number one.
DICE's PS3 Frostbite 1.5 put through its paces.
DICE's Frostbite 1.5 tech put to the test.
Xbox 360 demonstrates a smoother gameplay experience.
Comes free in PS3 MOH box.
After months of controversy, Medal of Honor finally went on sale today. You know, just in case you didn't notice.
Capture from the Belly of the Beast mission.
EA has trumpeted "great" day one sales for Medal of Honor in the US.
Badge of courage.
Is it a true COD rival? We asked you.
The free ride is over - at least for now. Yesterday's US release of Medal of Honor confirms that Sony has nullified the piracy-enabling PSJailbreak by locking the code to the new 3.42 firmware. While "backups" of the game are now circulating the internet, the game is completely unplayable with the hack as is.
EA has defended shooter Medal of Honor after critics claimed "lukewarm" review scores led to a six per cent share drop in the company.
EA described the launch of the game as a "marathon not a sprint" as Metacritic showed a 74 per cent review score average.
"Critics' scores are highly subjective," EA told The Los Angeles Times.
War is serious business, and if you doubt how seriously Medal of Honor developers Danger Close and DICE are taking the conflict their game portrays, consider the public explanation for the decision to change your multiplayer opponents from "Taliban" to "Opposing Force". It was taken "for the men and women serving in the military and for the families of those who have paid the ultimate sacrifice," according to executive producer Greg Goodrich, because "this franchise will never wilfully disrespect, intentionally or otherwise, your memory and service." Serious words delivered with humility, but still words from a man who at some point during the game's development sat in a meeting where someone said, "Yes, let's have a quad-bike level."
Whereas films like The Hurt Locker evade accusations of insensitivity through their dispassionate and meticulous observations of the conflicts they portray, Medal of Honor ostensibly dodges the issue by not really being about anything except what's happening on-screen. There are no politics – there's arguably a subtext about the dehumanisation of US military personnel, but the B-movie story dialogue and CG cut-scenes borrowed from 1998 do little to convince you it was deliberate – and beyond a stylish Modern Warfare-inspired introductory sequence there's relatively little to explain the context of the actions you're taking as a Navy SEAL, a US Army Ranger, a Tier 1 Operator or an Apache gunner.
Still, this tunnel-vision approach to the campaign is hardly disrespectful to the troops Danger Close so venerates. It's set at the outset of the war in Afghanistan and chronicles the efforts of soldiers fighting over the complicated terrain of Shahikot Valley, a sprawling expanse of rock, sand, dust, snow and militants. We see how the conflict begins with intelligence-gathering and surgical incisions into Taliban and Al Qaeda strongholds and outposts, before the pressure for results from Washington leads to some bad decisions, near-defeat and considerable heroics.
Games can never replicate an actual war and EA has created misconceptions by claiming Medal of Honor does, former US Marine Corps infantryman and Iraq veteran Benjamin Busch has argued.
Medal of Honor developer Danger Close Games has urged gamers to try controversial Afghanistan shooter Medal of Honor before judging it.
EA will stabilise servers running controversial first-person shooter Medal of Honor as more players join the fray.
Digital Foundry's Face-Off coverage of the new Medal of Honor should be complete for tomorrow, but in the meantime the chance to check out the HD remastering of the 2002 classic Medal of Honor: Frontline - bundled in free with the PS3 limited edition - proved irresistible.
Full face-off coming soon.
The US military has no plans to reverse its decision about stocking Medal of Honor on Army and Air Force bases around the world.
PC gamers today have the opportunity to try out the multiplayer portion of controversial shooter Medal of Honor for free with an open beta.
You can download the client from the official site now.
The open beta runs until 7th October, and will shut down at 11.59 PDT, or 8am BST.
Videogame analysts have criticised EA for renaming Medal of Honor's Taliban faction to Opposing Force, one even accusing the US company of "caving in".
EA and Danger Close Studios have axed the Taliban from controversial Afghanistan shooter Medal of Honor.
More people have pre-ordered controversial shooter Medal of Honor than any other game in the franchise's eleven-year history, Electronic Arts has announced.
Electronic Arts has revealed the minimum and recommended hardware specifications for the PC version of Medal of Honor.
It was actually a beta! These days when developers tell you that they're doing a multiplayer beta, it usually means they're doing a multiplayer demo which you can only access by redeeming a code. The price they pay in spreadsheet maintenance is covered by the resulting media frenzy.
Objective Raid mode revealed.
More multi-player screens.
EA has organised a last minute PC open beta for Medal of Honor to "clear up any misunderstanding" about the Afghanistan setting of the modern war game.
Just last week, EA beat off accusations about manipulating a topic - a very sensitive one - to shift games. Executive producer Greg Goodrich explained that MOH was "not about the Taliban or Al-Qaeda" but about honoring the soldiers that fought them. Even Call of Duty: Black Ops developer Treyarch jumped to its rival series' defence.
Doors will open to the Medal of Honor PC beta on 4th October, and close again on 7th October (middle-of-the-night 8th October here in Europe).
Call of Duty: Black Ops developer Treyarch has declared its support for EA's Medal of Honor team following controversy over its decision to let gamers play as the Taliban.
Greg Goodrich looks tired. We expect he's tired because he's flown 5500 miles to sit in a room answering questions about Medal of Honor, on which he's executive producer. His weariness is probably more acute though because those questions aren't really about his game - a cleverly scripted and interesting FPS that looks smart and inventive - so much as they are about the ground beneath its feet. Everyone wants to talk about Afghanistan. Just ask Liam Fox.
Greg Goodrich has told Eurogamer that the new Medal of Honor uses the Afghanistan war, Taliban insurgents and Al-Qaeda because that's where the game's stars, the Tier One Operators, were deployed.
Danger Close - the developer formerly known as EA Los Angeles - has been adamant about one thing throughout its work on the single-player campaign for this Medal of Honor reboot: it's not about the setting, it's about the individuals.
EA's blockbuster shooter Medal of Honor must sell more than 3 million copies or there will be no sequel, if you can believe that.
Executive producer Greg Goodrich told the New York Times that if the milestone wasn't met, "I'm not going to be able to do another one."
Goodrich also went on to reveal that the game was nearly subtitled Anaconda, after the failed Afghanistan operation of the same name - not the 1997 film in which Jennifer Lopez tussles with a giant snake.
A raft of upcoming EA games will be playable ahead of their release at the Eurogamer Expo this October.
Published as part of our sister-site GamesIndustry.biz's widely-read weekly newsletter, the GamesIndustry.biz Editorial, is a weekly dissection of an issue weighing on the minds of the people at the top of the games business. It appears on Eurogamer after it goes out to GI.biz newsletter subscribers.
The retired soldier employed by Activision to ensure Call of Duty games are an authentic representation of real war has defended rival game Medal of Honor for allowing gamers to play as the Taliban in multiplayer.
Publisher EA has responded to the accusation from the Defence Secretary that Medal of Honor is "un-British" because it allows players to kill Allied troops as Taliban soldiers.
The Department for Culture, Media and Sport has this morning distanced itself from the Defence Secretary's call to "ban" Medal of Honor in the UK – describing his comments as "a personal view" while backing the game's existing BBFC 18-rating.
Defence Secretary Liam Fox has demanded shops refuse to sell EA's Afghanistan first-person shooter Medal of Honor because it allows players to kill British troops as the Taliban.
DICE, the developer behind the multiplayer portion of upcoming Afghanistan shooter Medal of Honor, has defended the decision to allow gamers to play as Taliban soldiers, saying: "It's a game."
EA COO John Schappert has admitted Activision Blizzard's behemoth Call of Duty and Microsoft's all-conquering Halo will remain top FPS dogs this year - but insisted they won't be so for long.
Linkin Park's new song "The Catalyst" was world premiered yesterday in a brand new Medal of Honor trailer.
Whether or not you like the rock band shouldn't overshadow the large chunk of campaign footage on offer.
Watch as Dusty - the bearded bloke - and friends escape a Taliban attack in an Afghan village, fly helicopters, drive trucks and generally do some war without looking perturbed.
Ignore the song, as there's tons of campaign footage from the game on offer here.
EA has secured the worldwide debut of Linkin Park's new single "The Catalyst" for a Medal of Honor video.
Well, this just seems all sorts of wrong.
The team behind upcoming Afghanistan shooter Medal of Honor has re-branded itself as Danger Close Games.
"Apply the precise amount of damage to the bad guys."
The Xbox 360 Medal of Honor beta has finally begun.
Head to the MOH website and log in to your EA account to redeem a beta key. When that key is redeemed you'll be given a token. That token can be used on Xbox Live to download the beta demo.
It sounds like a key is given to anyone with an EA account.
Owners of the Steam version of Battlefield: Bad Company 2 have been granted access to the Medal of Honor beta test.
Both, of course, are EA games, and both have multiplayer made by DICE.
An Xbox 360 beta is "coming soon", EA has promised, but we don't know exactly when.
Electronic Arts has announced a limited edition version of Medal of Honor, the PC, PS3 and Xbox 360 game due out this October.
The Xbox 360 beta of upcoming shooter Medal of Honor is "coming soon", EA has promised.
Only those who pre-order the game will be sent invites, although EA has committed to extending the 360 beta to ensure "Xbox 360 players have ample time to play and provide feedback for the final product".
The news comes as the beta enters phase two on PC and PS3.
If you can't keep up, you don't belong.
"Everybody comes home."
We speak to developers Treyarch and EA LA ahead of their Q4 showdown.
In all their interviews regarding Medal of Honor, the folks at DICE have been adamant that just because they've been brought in to create the multiplayer component doesn't mean it's going to be a clone of Bad Company 2. While that may be technically true, you'd be forgiven for thinking the two games were twins, at least.
Created using DICE's proprietary Frostbite engine, and now snuggled up in a beta test for PC and PS3 players (Xbox 360 has been delayed, but should kick off this week), Medal of Honor's modern-day makeover can't help but look a lot like its nearest genetic relative. Partly, this is because DICE is pretty hot at FPS multiplayer, and if it ain't broke, blah blah blah.
That certainly explains why the two maps on show in the beta - Kabul City and Helmand Valley - bear all the hallmarks of the Swedish developer. These are organic, sprawling locations, jam-packed with hidey-holes, rat runs and sniping spots that change the gameplay on the fly. They're fun to discover, and even more fun once you've memorised some of the more useful spots and start to lure enemies to their doom in confined alleys or bullet-hell bottlenecks.
EA and DICE have said that the Xbox 360 version of the Medal of Honor multiplayer beta won't start until next week.
The PC and PS3 versions begin on 21st June, although people who own Battlefield: Bad Company 2 and have pre-ordered MOH can start playing today.
Xbox 360, however, faces a delay - the length of which hasn't been discussed.
EA's COD rival gets a singleplayer movie.
Sony has announced a bunch of exclusive tie-ups with third-party publishers to provide downloadable content, betas and limited editions only available to PlayStation 3 owners.
EA will launch special versions of the new Medal of Honor (12th October) and Dead Space 2 (28th January) that include exclusives bonuses. Medal of Honor will ship with an HD remastering of Medal of Honor: Frontline (remember that?), while Dead Space 2 will include a copy of Dead Space: Extraction featuring PS Move support.
2K, meanwhile, will offer exclusive day-one downloadable content for Mafia II on PS3. "Loads of new missions and hours of additional arcade gameplay," apparently. Mafia II's out on 27th August.
EA has announced a DLC multiplayer expansion pack for Battlefield: Bad Company 2 set in Vietnam. It will be released in winter 2010.
A very short teaser was shown of jungle action set to a Creedence Clearwater Revival tune. The press release confirms that you'll be able to play as either US Marines or North Vietnamese Army.
Meanwhile, Medal of Honor was confirmed for a 12th October release date, and Dead Space 2 will be released on 25th January 2011 (28th in Europe).
EA will launch a multiplayer beta for the new Medal of Honor game on 5th July according to retailer Play.com.
"Pre-ordering Medal Of Honor from Play.com will give fans the opportunity to join the Medal of Honor multiplayer BETA when it goes live on July 5th 2010," according to the listing (thanks VG247).
"The BETA will take place between July 5th and July 17th - access codes will be emailed on July 5th. All pre-orders through Play.com will entitle customers to an access code. BETA access details are subject to change at any time."
Greg Goodrich on rebooting the war series.
Some people love music, others love comic books. Some people love more than one thing, and how they fit it all in their heads I will never know. Me, I love listening to people talk. Sometimes a game sneaks its way into the middle of that and I'll play it, but great conversations can make me love an ostensibly dull game and poor dialogue can ruin what might otherwise be a great experience.
EA will show a beefy line-up of games at E3, including the new "action" Need for Speed game and FIFA 2011.
Hanging on the telephone.
EA has announced that Medal of Honor will be released on 15th October in Europe.
With its latest Medal of Honor game, EA wants to show you a different side of modern warfare, and that different side - whisper it - has goats in it. You can't turn them into vehicles, though, and you can't strap Semtex to them and coax them towards trundling into enemy boltholes before obligingly exploding. I doubt you can even use them as cover. They're just trotting around the game's Afghan landscape, chewing grass, staring into the distance with that strangely sage look that goats often have, and thinking their goaty thoughts.
EA has said to expect Crytek's first-person shooter sequel Crysis 2 somewhere in the last three months of 2010.
EA's new Medal of Honor game features multiple playable characters, according to the UK's Official Xbox Magazine.
Electronic Arts has said that the recently released Medal of Honor trailer is "100 per cent in-game footage".
Speaking on the official website, executive producer Greg Goodrich also confirmed that the rebooted first-person shooter series has vehicle gameplay.
The new Medal of Honor takes place in Afghanistan and focuses on a group of "Tier 1 Operators". Goodrich explained that Tier 1 is a designation given to only a few units in the US special forces structure. Basically it means they're pretty wicked.
The army has explained to Eurogamer that Medal of Honor's Tier 1 soldiers really are the best of the best, and "take on missions that no one else can handle".
Electronic Arts has revealed the next Medal of Honor game will be released in the "fall".
Electronic Arts boss John Riccitiello has said the Modern Warfare games are all starting to look the same to him.
EA has officially announced the new Medal of Honor game for release on PC, PS3 and Xbox 360 in 2010.
Simply called "Medal of Honor", the game is set in present-day Afghanistan and focuses on Tier 1 Operators - super army soldiers, in other words - who get involved in situations all around the world.
"The development team has been working closely with Tier 1 Operators from the US Special Operations Community since the earliest stages of development to create the most authentic modern war experience," EA said in a press release.
We still don't know anything about the new Medal of Honor, but EA Games vice president Nick Earl has told staff that it looks "simply stunning".
Electronic Arts boss John Riccitiello has revealed another Medal of Honor game is on the way.
EA is planning to bring Medal of Honor, Battlefield and Spore to mobile phones, EA Mobile senior veepee Mitch Lasky told a mobile games conference this week.


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Psy, the pop artist behind the song “Gangnam Style,” will make at least $7.9 million this year. The Gangnam Style music video is nearing close to 1 billion YouTube views. Currently it has 887.7 million views as of the time that I have written this article.
The amount that he earns will be from various sources including commercial endorsements from ads put together by Samsung and LG. Kyobo Securities analyst Chung Yu-seok put together the estimate.
Psy is estimated to make around $870,000 from the ads shown during the video. Google will take around half of those ad revenues. On iTunes, there was about 2.7 million downloads for the song, which will earn him about $2.4 million. Psy will also make $0.02 every time his song is played on a streaming service in South Korea which is about $61,000.
Psy also is part of a family that owns 30% of DI Corporation, a South Korean company that makes computer chips. DI’s stock has doubled since Gangnam Style was released.

domain: news


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July 30, 2020
I've warned that the big economic crunch wouldn't hit right away, but that it would come down the road as the dominoes inexorably fall.
Well, we now learn the U.S. economy fell during the lockdown at a rate never before seen - 32.9% GDP drop!
Fox Snooze Business:
The Commerce Department’s estimate of the second-quarter decline in the gross domestic product, the total output of goods and services, marked the sharpest such drop on records dating to 1947. The previous worst quarterly contraction, a 10% drop, occurred in 1958 during the Eisenhower administration.
Last quarter’s drop followed a 5% fall in the January-March quarter, during which the economy officially entered a recession triggered by the virus, ending an 11-year economic expansion, the longest on record in the United States.
The contraction last quarter was driven by a deep pullback in consumer spending, which accounts for about 70% of economic activity. Spending by consumers collapsed at a 34% annual rate as travel all but froze and shutdown orders forced many restaurants, bars, entertainment venues and other retail establishments to close.
And a lot of small businesses are going to be unable to dig their way out of the hole. Bankruptcies are going to rise catastrophically this fall, I fear.
You can't just turn the economy on and off like that.
And people are going to die from this.
I hope these people are proud...
Posted by: Bill H at July 30, 2020 02:42 PM (vMiSr)
We need to get back to an economy based on production and not just consumption. But I fear Americans have gotten too used to cheap Chinese (and other foreign) goods. It's going to be hard to ween us all off that.
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Resveratrol is an antioxidant naturally found in grapes and red wine, mulberries, peanuts and 'knotweed' (polygonum cuspidatum). It has been shown to have positive anti-aging benefits, and has also demonstrated benefits in diabetes, heart health, obesity and some cancers.
These documented health benefits have generated significant interest in the ingredient from the supplements industry in particular.
However, there are signs that the market remains underdeveloped, with consumer awareness still low. Even a scan of market reports from the major market analysts revealed very little published data on the ingredient.
Nevertheless, statistics on new resveratrol-containing product launches provide some insight into were the market is, and where it is going.
Datamonitor’s Product Launch Analytics database tracked 93 new products launched globally between January 1, 2002, and September 2, 2009. The peak year for launches was 2007, which recorded 24 new products, compared to nine in 2006 and eight in 2005. In 2008 launches dipped to 18; in 2009 to date there have been 16 new product introductions.
“Looking at these numbers, it appears that resveratrol became more common mid-decade, though products containing the substance still tend to be uncommon. This would suggest that consumer awareness of resveratrol is still quite low,” said Tom Vierhile, director of Product Launch Analytics at Datamonitor.
A break-down of these data by category reveals that only 16 percent of all products noting or containing resveratrol since 2002 have been food or beverage products. Some 84 percent are non-food products, including supplements and cosmetics.
Dietary supplements are by far the most popular category for resveratrol, with 35 new product launches in the seven-year period. This compares to 29 cosmetics products and only 11 foods and beverages.
Out of the food and beverage product launches, four were in the ‘functional drinks’ category, three in ‘still wine’, two in ‘beverage concentrates’ and two in ‘chocolate’.
“The beverage industry is clearly more receptive to this ingredient than the food industry. In particular, functional beverages are far more popular than most other categories for resveratrol,” Vierhile told NutraIngredients.
“The only food categories that have used the ingredient (outside of beverages) were chocolate as well as nuts & seeds. Since the substance is not common in food, it is going to take time and money to educate consumers on the health benefits of resveratrol.”
“Though usage of it is on the rise, it does not look like resveratrol is on the sales fast track right now and I don’t see packaged food and beverage makers flocking to it right now.”
In contrast, the potential for resveratrol in supplements remains strong, according to market analyst predictions, with particular potential for condition-specific positioning.
“There remains significant scope for penetration in the supplements category,” said Sangeetha Srinivasan, program manager, Food & Beverage Ingredients Practice at Frost & Sullivan.
“Resveratrol is expected to benefit from the growth of the condition-specific products. In addition, consumer preference for natural products is likely to drive the use of resveratrol in supplements.”
In addition, a report on condition-specific products published at the end of last year by Packaged Facts highlighted resveratrol – from moderate consumption of red wine – as being top of mind for consumers wishing to address heart disease via nutrition.
Geography and tons
Figures from Datamonitor reveal the vast majority of new products containing resveratrol come from the US, which accounted for 76.3 percent of all resveratrol-containing products since 2002. Europe accounted for 15.1 percent of all launches.
Frost & Sullivan said the European market for resveratrol was forecast to be around 2.0 tonnes in 2008, while the US market was forecast at 7.5 tonnes.
The latest sales figures available were for 2006, when the European market was worth €0.73m ($1.05m), and the US market was worth $2.4m (€1.7m).
More on resveratrol
In the coming days, NutraIngredients will publish articles examining the science behind resveratrol, as well as the regulatory framework and the supply for the ingredient.


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Wilsonart to Acquire KML
September 12, 2017
Bethpage, N.Y.-based Wilsonart Engineered Surfaces has announced plans to acquire Tacoma, Wash.-based decorative surfaces and panel manufacturer KML. The acquisition will support the growth of Wilsonart’s coordinated surfaces program and expand its capacity to manufacture Thermally Fused Laminate Panels.
“Our Coordinated Surfaces offering, a suite of best-matched surfacing options in high pressure laminate (HPL), TFL panels, and edgeband featuring more than 230 Wilsonart designs and textures, has garnered tremendous support from both specifiers and fabricators,” says Ron Ubertini, vice president of product management for WilsonArt. “TFL is a key part of that offering and expanding our manufacturing footprint enables us to improve service and meet growing demand.”
“KML has a good name and reputation for taking care of customers with high-quality products and on-time shipments,” adds KML General Manager Willie Wanker. “Now part of the Wilsonart organization, KML has strong support for our brand. Customers can count on continued service from the KML team during the transition.”
Valley Forge Fabrics Announces New Acquisition
November 14, 2017 • Industry
Fort Lauderdale, Fla.-based textile provider Valley Forge Fabrics has acquired Brockton, Mass.-based window treatment manufacturer Contract Décor International.
Full Story ›
Smart Cooler Helps Companies Sell More
November 9, 2017 • Industry
Embraco has created an Internet of Things-based platform to help customers market more drinks and food at the point of sale.
Full Story ›


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This new healthier pasty will not use the buttery puff pastry so beloved of the melt-in-the-mouth sausage roll and rich steak bake. So selective diners can forget those flaky moustaches and opt instead for chicken katsu or Bombay potato fillings, with flavours inspired from around the globe.
They are being added to its new “balanced choice” options, which also include salads and fruity yoghurts – frequent partakers of Greggs recoiled in horror when these first hit the shelves. However, this year they accounted for ten per cent of sales.
Roger Whiteside, the group’s chief executive officer, said: “Greggs is well-loved for its traditional pasties and sausage rolls, but we recognise that our customers are increasingly looking for lower calorie and lower fat options.”
These pasties are under 300 calories and appeal to the new Food Standards Agency traffic light system – meeting green or amber instead of an angry red.
So much so that after Greggs posted an increase in profit in the first half of this year, Mr Whiteside said he was thinking about expanding into sushi and Mexican food.
He’s not joking about Greggs being “well-loved” either – when people love Greggs, they really love Greggs. A quick scan through their Facebook page shows anger is already mounting over the changed recipe for the Cheese and Onion pasty, as well as residual ire over the altered vegetable pasty taste.
Last year a campaign to bring back the Greggs macaroni pie gained hundreds of supporters.


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HTC postpones launch of “smart” hours before the release of the Apple Watch 2
The author of leaks Evan Blass, better known online as @evleaks, announced the postponement of the release of “smart” watches HTC. The device will hit the market at the same time with the second generation Apple Watch.
The audience will see a new Halfbeak this fall, says Blass. HTC has already informed the press several times that he was preparing to release its own smart timepiece. The last time reporters “absolutely” was promised that the presentation of the gadget will be held on June 6. That the appearance of new items pending before the launch of a new model of “smart” watches Apple has learned from sources close to the company.
About smart watches HTC is little known: the PSU Halfbeak will get a square display with a resolution of 360×360 pixels and operating system Android Wear.
HTC brings release its first smartwatch isn’t the first time. First information about Halfbeak appeared the year before.


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A woman has filed suit against the Corbin K-mart over shoplifting charges.
Deborah Morton says she was wrongfully accused, and then strip searched in view of other customers.
The Times Tribune quotes Morton as saying she brought the items she was accused of taking into the store with her.
The shoplifting charges were dismissed in court. Morton is seeking actual and punitive damages.


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Businesses looking to open up new export and distribution routes will often look to English-speaking nations as a logical first step. However, whereas travel to continental Europe can be relatively affordable, journeying across the Atlantic to the US can see costs quickly rack up.Having first launched flights involving a UK destination in the summer of 2003, Norwegian Air began running what it classifies as low-cost flights to the US in 2014. From its base at Gatwick, the airline will soon be flying passengers to New York, Boston, Los Angeles, Orlando and San Francisco. For Dominic Tucker, who has been with Norwegian Air for a little over a year after spending the lion?s share of his career at British Airways, there are three main things business owners are after when it comes to corporate travel: price, schedule and direct flights. Now the third largest low-cost airline in Europe, and seventh biggest low-cost airline in the world, it has 130 pilots and 300 cabin crew operating out of Gatwick. ?Our company?s name is Norwegian ? which in our eyes stands for the solid reputation of Scandinavian products such as Ikea and Volvo,? Tucker explained. ?However, it also comes with a challenge in that people think our flights are via Norway and not direct. We want to position ourselves as a solid, reliable product that has direct flights.?
Real Business joined Norwegian Air and ten exciting small businesses based in the South East of England as part of a UKTI-led trade mission to New York. With all businesses operating in the homeware, gift and lifestyle sectors, the aim of the trip was to allow each to forge new contacts with possible US buyers and distributors. Business with the US is on the rise. For 2015, trade hit ?45.3bn, according to HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) ? up 14.9 per cent over the previous period. December alone accounted for ?3.3bn, a 16.4 per cent jump when compared with the same month in 2014. Brands such as alcoholic ginger beer brand Crabbie?s and technology business Blippar have proved particularly adept at exporting both tangible and intangible products. In fact, Crabbie?s recently sold its one millionth case in the US, and now has sales topping ?18m in the country. Norwegian Air partnered with the trade mission to shed further light on its trans-Atlantic offering, believing it has a unique proposition that will encourage more ambitious business owners to consider overseas trade as more affordable. The trade mission is one of a series of initiatives Norwegian Air is looking at to increase word of mouth referrals. By engaging with customers, and not just travel agents, Tucker believes Norwegian Air can plug into a lucrative and fast-growth South East of England business cluster. Businesses in attendance on the trade mission ranged from a men?s hair care brand to an innovative baby carrier, and all will need to make frequent trips to and from the US to secure the new business being sought.
Asked to identify what was unique about Norwegian Air, Tucker added: ?When it comes to prices going up, the rule of thumb tends to be booking advance for cheaper fares, while closer becomes more expensive. ?We have a gradual price increase with regards to availability nearer to demand, and we never yield or have high fares like British Airways and easyJet on some routes and peak dates.? Within Europe, Norwegian Air is the only airline to offer free inflight WiFi and live TV on all fights from the UK to some 30 destinations. Going to the US this is still a logistical problem, but it has got a premium offering for business users. There is also its Norwegian Rewards loyalty programme which is free to join and offers members costs savings on all flights. Cash rewards are earned on bookings, which can then be spent on flights, hotels or car rental.
Looking forwardTechnology is one medium which has managed to break down the barriers associated with cross-border trade. It has made communication easier and made processes such as payments easier. For any company owner which still believes in face-to-face business and the benefit of pounding the pavement, travel costs are still one area in need of tinkering. Having been ranked the second most punctual budget airline, Norwegian Air is hoping its offering strikes a chord with entrepreneurs and business owners throughout the South East of England and rest of the UK.
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Gorilla Glass Deux to show at CES4
82 inch LCD touchscreen Gorilla Glass 2 panel will be on display at CES. Touchscreens for the automobile and home appliance industry will be displayed via simulators that show off how thin, durable glass like Gorilla Glass 2 can help in making new designs. The centerpiece of Corning's display will be a Gorilla Glass covered video wall with speakers made of the durable glass pounding out the latest news about Corning's glass technology. Those visiting the booth will be allowed to try to damage a sample of Gorilla Glass 2.
As wireless devices become thinner, Gorilla Glass 2 is "very well positioned to meet these challenges and enable broader touch technology penetration," according to James R. Steiner, Corning's senior vice president and general manager. For those who have ever gingerly picked up their dropped smartphone off the floor expecting to see a cracked screen, but finding no damage, it is apparent that when it comes to protecting your expensive devices, Corning is not monkeying around.


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Latest Demand Stories
DALLAS, October 20, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- ReportsnReports.com adds 2014 aerial work platform truck market and earthmoving equipment industry research reports, with 2020
The falling price of street sweeping vehicles and the low volatility of these prices have been the biggest advantages for buyers during the past three years.
LONDON, Oct. 15, 30, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- In India, there is a potential ground of opportunities for the construction sector.
Changing consumer preference and new product development will lift revenue slightly.
Increases in corporate profit, the number of businesses nationwide and the percentage of services conducted online have been boosting demand for equipment rentals, leading to higher prices; as
As disposable income, consumer confidence and advertising expenditure all increase, demand for photography services will rise.
- The act of burning, scorching, or heating to dryness; the state or being thus heated or dried.
- In medicine, cauterization.


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GodwinGroup hosting global MAGNET organization
JACKSON, Miss. (Sept. 25, 2013)—GodwinGroup on Sept. 26-28 will host in Jackson an estimated 50 top advertising executives hailing from 20 states as well as France, Spain and Denmark.
The attendees are members of MAGNET, the Marketing & Advertising Global Network, an affiliation of successful, independent advertising and marketing agencies that represent a combined $4 billion annually in billings. The group met earlier this year in Milwaukee and next year meets in Newport Beach, Cal.
GodwinGroup is proud to bring some of the most creative, outstanding advertising minds to Jackson and show them what Southern hospitality is all about,” said Philip Shirley, Godwin’s chairman and CEO. “These meetings are attended only by MAGNET members as we spend two days sharing best practices and professional development.
“Our members are excited about coming to Jackson and we have had a great response.”
The group will start the conference Thursday evening with a reception at the Mississippi Museum of Art and Friday morning will be greeted by Gov. Phil Bryant.
GodwinGroup was founded in Jackson in 1937, and just last week was named as the top agency in Mississippi by AdWeek. It is the state’s oldest and largest communications company.
GodwinGroup, founded in 1937, is headquartered in Jackson, with offices in Gulfport. It serves clients nationwide, primarily in healthcare, banking, finance, utilities, tourism, manufacturing, food and consumer goods. The agency has been recognized numerous times among the nation’s leading agencies as measured in revenues by Ad Age and AdWeek. GodwinGroup provides branding, advertising and reputation management services, as well as web marketing services through its digital arm WebMetro/Godwin.


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The latest Ice Cream Sandwich update 4.0.2 has had no time to thaw before another was announced. Google is going to release "in the weeks ahead" 4.0.3. They say the update is "an incremental release of the Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich) platform" that will bring "a variety of optimizations and bug fixes for phones and tablets as well as a small number of new APIs for developers.
Some of the new API's in 4.0.3 include:
Social stream API in Contacts provider: Applications that use social stream data such as status updates and check-ins can now sync that data with each of the user’s contacts, providing items in a stream along with photos for each. This new API lets apps show users what the people they know are doing or saying, in addition to their photos and contact information.
Calendar provider enhancements. Apps can now add color to events, for easier tracking, and new attendee types and states are now available.
New camera capabilities. Apps can now check and manage video stabilization and use QVGA resolution profiles where needed.
Accessibility refinements. Improved content access for screen readers and new status and error reporting for text-to-speech engines.
Incremental improvements in graphics, database, spell-checking, Bluetooth, and more.
Google added that "going forward, we’ll be focusing our partners on Android 4.0.3 as the base version of Ice Cream Sandwich."


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Santa Cruz, CA (PRWEB) October 6, 2010
In honor of breast cancer awareness month, Girls4Sport is aiding breast cancer treatment through charitable contributions from its Pink Store, development of swimwear options for cancer survivors, and the sponsorship of female athletes who have battled the disease.
Throughout the year, Girls4Sport donates five percent of all of its Pink Store purchases to The U'ilani Fund. The U'ilani Fund was created to honor the memory of Marina Lee U'ilani Bermudez, a physician who passed away from breast cancer in July 2000 at the age of 42. During her chemotherapy and radiation, U'ilani took advantage of alternative and complementary care strategies which helped her remain strong and positive throughout her treatment. Recognizing that many women may not be able to benefit from treatments such as massage, acupuncture, chiropractic care, and herbs due to cost and lack of coverage by insurance, The U'ilani Fund was created to offer women with breast cancer access to the same opportunities for comfort and support that bolstered U'Ilani during her battle with breast cancer.
The Girls4Sport’s online Pink Store features pink sun-protective swimwear with a range of coverage options, rash guards, board shorts, fitness wear, pocket scarves, ball caps, and other products designed for active women. The store is available online at http://www.girls4sport.com.
Breast cancer survivor Lizabeth Horstman Mattson credits Girls4Sport with helping her get back to the beach following her cancer treatment. “I was so glad that Girls4Sport was there with cute and sexy sun protective beach wear,” said Horstman Mattson. “I had radiation on my chest and couldn’t expose any of it to the sun. Girls4Sport had a hand in helping me get my life back to order.”
After her mastectomy, another breast cancer survivor, Lorraine Guthrie, faced the challenge of finding a swimsuit she could wear with her prosthesis. “The other suits were so low cut so that it was obvious that I had something missing on one side of my body, and suits made specifically for prostheses were expensive and old-fashioned looking,” said Guthrie. “The Girls4Sport suit was perfect. It has a built-in shelf bra that holds the prosthesis in place very comfortably, and it’s completely hidden because of the style of the suit. It’s stylish, comfortable, and very inconspicuous. I don't think anyone would ever know that one of my "girls" was fake!”
In addition to supporting breast cancer treatment and providing swimwear options for cancer survivors, Girls4Sport also sponsors female athletes like Girls4Sport team rider Robin (Zeuf) Janiszeufski Hesson. The 51-year-old surfer has successfully battled breast cancer three times: first at the age of 33, then again at 41, and most recently in 2007. She credits surfing as a significant part of her recovery. Hesson is a registered nurse and lives in Santa Cruz with her husband, Frosty. To read more about Hesson, visit: http://shop.girls4sport.com/category-s/300.htm.
“Girls4Sport is committed to supporting breast cancer awareness and the inspiring women who battle the disease,” said Kim Ruby, president of Girls4Sport. “We hope to encourage more women to take early preventative measures and lead active, confident lives.”


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Hammerson plc ("Hammerson" or the "Company")
21 April 2021
THIS ANNOUNCEMENT CONTAINS INSIDE INFORMATION
Hammerson disposes of retail parks portfolio
Hammerson has exchanged unconditional contracts on the portfolio sale of its seven retail park assets to Brookfield for £330m cash proceeds, representing an 8% discount to the 31 December 2020 book value of £357m. This transaction concludes Hammerson's exit from the UK retail parks sector.
As previously announced, Hammerson has also recently disposed of Brent South Shopping Park (£22m at Hammerson share) and its minority interests in Nicetoile and Espace Saint Quentin for £73m, these were in line with 31 December 2020 valuations. The transaction announced today takes the total gross proceeds of Hammerson's disposals in 2021 to £403m at an average discount to 31 December 2020 valuations of 6%.
The proceeds of these disposals will further strengthen the balance sheet, reducing net debt, which was £2.2bn at 31 December 2020, and increasing liquidity, which stood at £1.7bn at the same date.
Rita-Rose Gagné, Chief Executive of Hammerson, said: "As highlighted at the full year results, our immediate priority is to strengthen the balance sheet. This latest disposal is a positive step. Alongside this, we continue to focus on delivering operationally. We have successfully welcomed back our customers in England to our flagship venues, with footfall levels well above the June 2020 reopening, and look forward to reopening our other destinations as local restrictions allow over the coming months."
Details on the retail parks portfolio disposal
The portfolio comprises 205,000m² of space across the following retail parks:
· Central Retail Park (Falkirk)
· Cleveland Retail Park (Middlesbrough)
· Cyfarthfa Retail Park (Merthyr Tydfil)
· Elliott's Field Shopping Park (Rugby)
· Telford Forge Shopping Park (Telford)
· Ravenhead Retail Park (St Helens)
· The Orchard Centre (Didcot)
The total sale price of this portfolio transaction represents a net initial yield of 8.6%. Completion of the transaction is expected by the end of May.
The announcement above has also been released on the SENS system of the Johannesburg Stock Exchange and Euronext Dublin.
Hammerson Investor Contact
Josh Warren, Hammerson, Head of Investor Relations
T: +44 20 7887 1053 E: firstname.lastname@example.org
Hammerson Media Contacts
Catrin Sharp, Head of Corporate Communications
T: +44 20 7887 1063 E: email@example.com
FTI Consulting (for Hammerson)
T: +44 20 3727 1000 E: Dido.Laurimore@FTIConsulting.com
Notes to editors
Hammerson creates vibrant, continually evolving spaces, in and around thriving European cities, with a focus on flagship retail destinations and premium outlets. As at 31 December 2020, our portfolio of high-quality venues had a value of £6.3 billion and included 20 flagship destinations in thriving cities and investments in nine premium outlet villages through our partnership with Value Retail. Key retail venues include Bullring & Grand Central, Birmingham, Bicester Village, Oxfordshire, Dundrum Town Centre, Dublin, and Les Terrasses du Port, Marseille.


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Samsung unveiled the Galaxy S7 Edge Injustice Edition smartphone late last night, a special edition Batman-themed version of its popular Galaxy S7 Edge. And it looks freakin’ awesome, complete with a black and gold color scheme. The phone was launched to commemorate the anniversary of Injustice: Gods Among Us, a mobile game that launched three years ago.
Unlike the special edition Iron Man Galaxy S6 Edge (pictured above), the Galaxy S7 Edge Injustice Edition sounds like it might be a bit easier to get your hands on. It will debut in China, Singapore, Korea, Latin America and Russia, but Samsung said it’ll discuss other markets soon. That suggests it isn’t too limited in number. There aren’t any special features under the hood, but you do get a special theme, a Gear VR and Oculus VR coupons.
I love the gold accents in places like the ring around the home button, front speaker grill and around the camera sensor, not to mention the gold Batman logo on the back of the phone. Check out the Galaxy S7 Edge Injustice Edition unboxing at the bottom of this post fora closer look.
The Galaxy S20 Ultra's Space Zoom camera is amazing and a bit creepy
The Galaxy S20 Ultra supports up to 100X zoom, which Samsung calls Space Zoom, but is it any good? Can a phone really product usable photos at 100x zoom? We've got our Galaxy S20 Ultra already so join us to find out!
Win an iPhone, iPad and Apple Watch with the Reader's Choice giveaway!
What's the best phone of 2019? Is it the iPhone 11 Pro, Pixel 4 or OnePlus 7T? What about the best laptop, games console, tablet and more? Vote NOW in the Reader's Choice awards and win BIG in time for the holidays!
Here are the best products from IFA 2019!
Here are the products announced at IFA 2019 that were worthy of our Best of IFA 2019 awards. Also featuring MrMobile's single best product at the show!
Make your foliage a feature with the best plant stands
Really show off your home's foliage with a plant stand that makes your greenery a statement, rather than just background noise. We've found a dozen desirable plant stand solutions to suit all types of spaces, all styles of decor and all kinds of plants.


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iPhone 5 Sales in Q4 Reinstated Apple as Top Smartphone Maker
The Samsung Galaxy S III was the best-selling smartphone in Q3. But during Q4 2012, the iPhone 5 and iPhone 4S each outsold the Galaxy S III.The Apple iPhone 5 became the world's best-selling smartphone worldwide during the fourth quarter of 2012—a distinction that Samsung's Galaxy S III held during the third quarter. Apple not only outsold Samsung's most popular Galaxy device with the iPhone 5, but it did it with the iPhone 4S, as well, research firm Strategy Analytics reported Feb. 20. Apple shipped 27.4 million iPhone 5 smartphones during the quarter and 17.4 million iPhone 4S models, compared with Samsung's 15.4 million Galaxy S III devices, according to Strategy Analytics. The iPhone 5 garnered 13 percent of the global smartphone market, and the iPhone 4S had 8 percent of the market. Together, the iPhones accounted for one in five of the smartphones that shipped worldwide during the quarter, Neil Mawston, Strategy Analytics' executive director, said in a blog post. "A rich touch-screen design, extensive distribution across dozens of countries and generous operator subsidies have been among the main causes of the iPhone 5's success," wrote Mawston. He added that, given the iPhone portfolio's "premium pricing," Apple's was "an impressive performance."
Samsung introduced the S III in May 2012, and during the third quarter it became the top-selling smartphone, knocking Apple from a position it had held for more than two years. At the time, Strategy Analytics estimated that Samsung had sold 18 million Galaxy S III smartphones to Apple's 16.2 million iPhone 4S devices and 6 million units of the recently introduced iPhone 5, but also that Samsung's victory was likely to be "short-lived."


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A.P. Møller-Maersk has extended its partnership with The Ocean Cleanup for three more years continuing this way to provide marine support to rid the ocean for plastic.
To achieve this goal, they aim to stop the inflow via rivers and clean up what has already accumulated in the ocean. Its ultimate goal is reaching a 90% reduction of floating ocean plastic by 2040.
The Ocean Cleanup
Since 2018, Maersk Supply Service has provided marine support for The Ocean Cleanup. Its anchor handlers Maersk Launcher, Maersk Transporter and Maersk Handler and crew have been supporting various test phases of the off-shore operation in the Pacific Ocean and the North Sea. The first collection of plastic waste was turned into new, fully recycled products in late 2020.
“Our seafarers sail the ocean every day and see the increasing problem with plastic polluting our oceans. As a responsible maritime operator, Maersk Supply Service is committed to ensuring the oceans remain a healthy environment for future generations to come. We look forward to continuing the collaboration with The Ocean Cleanup and providing project management and marine support over the coming years,” said Steen S Karstensen, CEO of Maersk Supply Service.
Besides support with vessel operations and offshore project management, Maersk will now support The Ocean Cleanup with:
- logistics end-to-end handling services, ranging from worldwide shipment from different locations to airfreight, container & special transport, customs clearance and warehouse and storage management;
- by deploying scientific sensor technology aboard Maersk’s own fleet to map plastic floating in the oceans and help the organization have a better understanding of the severity of the problem they are working to solve.
The goal is to assist The Ocean Cleanup in mapping concentrations of harmful plastic in the world’s oceans to better focus The Ocean Cleanup’s efforts. “What better way to map the oceans than to harness one of the world’s largest fleets?” said Robin Townley, Head of Special Project Logistics at Maersk.
A Plastic Policy
At the same time, Maersk Supply Service is launching a Plastic Policy to increase its focus on how it can reduce plastic waste from its own operations and supply chain. The policy has three guiding principles:
- To use their marine expertise to help come up with solutions to rid plastic from the oceans
- Avoid unnecessary plastic in their operations
- Engage with suppliers, partners, customers and employees to find solutions to minimise plastic use and then be transparent about results and learnings
“Plastic waste in our oceans is an increasing issue. With the new Plastic Policy, we commit to how we will work to reduce our plastic footprint and actively take part in solving this global environmental problem. We will do this in partnerships and close collaboration – with our employees, suppliers, partners, customers and industry peers. A great takeaway from the collaboration with The Ocean Cleanup is the willingness people have to find solutions that are both impactful for the marine industry and are bettering for the environment. We believe that we can make a change and we can do more together,” said Karstensen.


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Hardware manufacturer Patriot has today unveiled a new addition to its range of performance memory announcing the imminent availability of its new Viper Steel DDR4 16GB 4400MHz Extreme RAM. Specifically built for the latest Intel and AMD platforms the latest addition to the Viper series once again provides stability and performance for the most “demanding computer environments” says Patriot.
The new Viper Steel DDR4 16GB 4400MHz Extreme performance memory kit brings Intel XMP 2.0 performance to achieve up to 4400 MHz with a simple setting on supporting Intel’s latest processors and motherboards. Patriot explained a little more in today’s press release :
“The VIPER STEEL SERIES utilizes a custom designed high-performance aluminum heatshield for providing optimal heat dissipation when overclocking and foregoing high-performance tasks. These hand-tested memory modules feature the highest quality memory chips and are running performance timings of CL19-19-19-39 at 1.45 V. VIPER STEEL SERIES DDR4 4400 MHz is optimized for PC enthusiasts, overclockers, or those who want to push their system’s performance to the limit through the use of extremely fast components.”
The new Viper Steel DDR4 16GB 4400MHz Extreme performance memory will be available to purchase next month and more information is available from the official product page via the link below.
Latest Geeky Gadgets Deals
Disclosure: Some of our articles include affiliate links. If you buy something through one of these links, Geeky Gadgets may earn an affiliate commission. Learn more.


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TRENDY Japanese fashion chain Uniqlo is to pull out of Manchester.
Fast Retailing, the Japanese group behind the Uniqlo brand, will close most of its UK stores in a bid to halt a rapid fall in profits.
They will close their two Manchester stores - at Market Street and the West One centre, Eccles - as part of a programme of 18 closures. They will keep just five stores - all in London.
Sales in the north west stores were said to be disappointing. In January the struggling fashion chain made its UK property director redundant to rein in costs.
Uniqlo opened its first UK stores in November 2001 and had planned to open 50 stores by this year. That plan is now in ruins.
Patrick Heaps, retail director at FDP Savills, who is handling the sell-off for Uniqlo, said: "This is about the national perspective, about Uniqlo deciding to keep the five most profitable stores and disposing of all the rest. It just so happens that all the ones they are keeping are in Greater London.
éI don't think it tells us anything about Manchester - Manchester is a fantastic city with tremendous retail growth. The pull-out is not so much because Uniqlo is disappointed with Manchester but because they are pursuing a strategy."
The withdrawal from Manchester is a blow to the West One centre at Eccles and will leave a gap on Market Street.
At West One Uniqlo occupies a 678-sq m ground floor store paying a rent of é187,050 a year, while at 19 Market Street it has a 307-sq m ground floor store paying a rent of é412,500 a year.


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Women’s Wear Daily
12 March 2013
The stars may be aligning for bigger fashion and apparel deals in 2013, according to a Women's Wear Daily article. In the article, Kurt Salmon retail strategist Michael Dart said that boards that were hesitant to sell to a private equity firm could more easily justify a buyout now and that the recovery was showing consistent momentum. “You put all of that together and you start to see the right constellation of things … that would suggest a large-scale transaction really is in the realm of possibility again,” he said.


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Harlan County’s first Village Post Office officially opened Thursday in the Big Laurel community with a ribbon cutting ceremony. Additional sites are expected to open in the near future.
Remembering a time when post offices were located in general stores, Turner’s Grocery is the first site for Harlan County, said coordinator for the Kentuckiana District Nick Walker. He said six or seven more will be opened throughout Harlan County.
A new initiative for Harlan County, Ann Epperson, co-owner of Turner’s Grocery, said she and her sister, Abby Walker, are excited to be a part of the Village Post Office program.
“This will enable people to get stamps and be able to mail packages when the post office is closed,” said Epperson. “Before, when the post office was closed, people had to go all the way to Bledsoe to get these things done. This will be a good thing for our community.”
Walker said the Village Post Office concept is currently being used across the United States. There are approximately 54 being utilized with nine of those being in the Kentuckiana District, which includes the state of Indiana.
“The window hours at the Big Laurel Post Office will be reduced to two hours per day five days a week during the winter months,” said Walker. “They will also be open from 9 a.m. until noon on Saturdays. The home delivery routes will not be affected in any way.”
Walker said the Village Post Offices will offer limited services, selling only stamps and flat-rate packaging.
“There is no weighing, minimal work from the store owners,” said Walker. “This will help the working man who can’t get to the post office during that two-hour period the window is open during the week. If for instance, the post office were to close — there were no qualified applicants or the lease is terminated by the leasee, then we can bring the post office boxes into this store or on the outside of the store.”
Walker said the post office boxes could be placed in rotary cabinets, which hold 60 number one boxes. He said the cabinets have a lock on them and a highway contract person would come and unlock the cabinet placing mail in the boxes.
“This is a really good concept and right now it’s exploding,” said Walker. “There are certain qualifications stores must meet in order to become a Village Post Office. In most cases, local business owners will see increased customer traffic and revenue, as well as the opportunity to provide enhanced service to their customers and clients.”
Attending the event, state Sen. Brandon Smith said he was excited to attend this “community initiative.”
“I’m a firm believer in community first and Frankfort second,” said Smith. “These people have done this on their own. They’ve organized it. It’s a success story. I’m just here to say thanks on behalf of the state for them taking this initiative. Many times communities, instead of waiting around for Frankfort or Washington to tell them to do something, take it on themselves to do something. This pleases me as a native of the mountains more so than as an elected official. I’m proud of this community and what they have done.”
Reach Nola Sizemore at 606-573-4510 or at firstname.lastname@example.org


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Alibaba Sales Shrink but Beat Estimates in Rocky Economy
(Bloomberg) — Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. reported its first quarterly sales decline but beat analysts’ estimates, avoiding a sharp sales contraction despite a rocky Chinese economy that’s sapping consumer sentiment nationwide.
Revenue slid for the first time on record in the June quarter, though by an amount that was less than analysts projected. Sales by Alibaba’s core China commerce division declined 1%. The contraction marked an official end to a decade of sizzling growth for China’s internet giants, which began to wind down in 2021 when regulators slapped curbs on a range of sectors from e-commerce to social media.
- MOST POPULAR


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FreeCharge is now partnered with Jet Airways for a secure and convenient payment solution to travelers. FreeCharge wallet now allows its Customers to book their flights and extras on www.jetairways.com and pay for their ticket through the app.
India’s premier international airline service Jet Airways operates flights to 67 destinations which include domestic and overseas travel. Further than India, Jet Airways also offers service to the main international destinations in South Asia, South East Asia, North America and the Middle East.
The FreeCharge app enables its users to book train tickets, meals, and accommodation through irctc.co.in. It does offer bus rides to other cities through redBus.in, BusIndia.com and Mybustickets.in.
Many taxi services like Meru Cabs, Khali Peeli Taxis in Mumbai accept FreeCharge for daily commute within cities. Apart from that, FreeCharge also serves thousands of local cabs across the main cities in India. FreeCharge app also provides bookings facility at all Oyo Rooms properties across India at oyorooms.com and their app.
“Digital payments make the process faster and more efficient. Such partnerships are in line with our objective to make FreeCharge an every day, everywhere option for our users,” says, FreeCharge CEO Govind Rajan.
Recently, the Digital payment platform has also partnered with Mumbai Traffic Police for collecting traffic fines using FreeCharge wallet service. This move assumes the scarcity of valid currency notes doesn’t affect traffic fines.
Smaller cities like Ahmedabad alone collect over Rs. 17 crores annually in the form of traffic fines. Besides, FreeCharge has also partnered with Andhra Pradesh to be part of the ‘AP Purse’ initiative by the state government. Andhra Pradesh government’s ‘AP Purse’ helps consumers to make efficient and convenient use of digital payments including mobile wallets.


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A decade of partnership was celebrated when Culver’s awarded Hiebing the 2019 Premier Partnership Award. The highest honor a supplier can receive from the franchising system, this annual award goes to suppliers who collaborate to better understand the brand’s needs, give it a competitive advantage, and share similar values and beliefs. Hiebing was presented the award during Culver’s 35th annual Reunion—a gathering of franchise owners/operators and Culver’s Support Center leaders.
“All of us are honored to receive the recognition of Culver’s,” President Dave Florin said. “The award celebrates the mutual trust we have developed over the last decade and the impact we can make when we work together to connect a brand to its target audience.”
As its agency of record, Hiebing has been integral in successfully building the Culver’s brand for over a decade, from continuous improvement of guest learning and research, to effective and efficient media spending, to successful creative execution. Hiebing created the Welcome to Delicious campaign for Culver’s, highlighting the brand’s close ties with its producer-partners and showing people where their food comes from. Welcome to Delicious lives in restaurants, digital advertisements, television commercials, out of home, social media and all other marketing touchpoints.
“A great partner, like the one we’ve found in Hiebing, is one who shares your passion for the brand—who believes in you and truly cares, just as much as your in-house team does,” said Julie Fussner, VP of marketing at Culver’s.
Since the partnership began, Culver’s has grown from a regional chain to serving ButterBurgers® and Fresh Frozen Custard in 700 restaurants in 25 states.


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e-Commerce is already big in many countries around the world. In this post, I am going to write about the top ten e-Commerce companies in the world today. In October last year, Hamburg based market intelligence organization yStats.com published a report titled “The World’s Leading E-Commerce Companies 2014” which contained a list of top ten e-Commerce companies in terms of revenue. For the readers of ecombd.net.
Amazon.com is the largest internet-based retailer in the U.S. The company was established in 1994. Initially it sold books online. In January this year, Amazon posted financial results of last quarter. The company had a “higher-than-expected net income” but sales did not grow as expected. The company saw a 15% rise in sales in the Christmas. Net profit was $214 million. Not very impressive but far better than the 3rd quarter when Amazon made a net loss of $437 million. Overall, the company posted a loss of $241 billion as a whole.
JD.com or Jingdong Mall is the second largest e-Commerce companies in China after Alibaba. It was established by Liu Qiangdong aka Richard Liu in July 1998. The company launched its online sales operation in 2004. As of 2014, the company has a 54.3% market share in China. In order to supply products to its customers on time, JD.com maintains 97warehouses with a floor area of approximately 1.8 million square meters, 1,808 delivery stations and 715 pickup stations across China. As of July 2014, the company had 62,061 full-time employees. In its recent effort to diversify its business, the company partnered with the food producers in the U.S., Australia, Canada, Chile, France and New Zealand.
Wal-Mart Stores Inc.
Established by Sam Walton in 1962, Wal-Mart is the largest retail chain operator in the world. It is also one of the top buyers of Bangladesh’s readymade garments products. The company reported a 12% increase its profit in the fourth quarter of the last fiscal year. The company earned $4.97 billion compared to $4.43 billion in the same quarter previous year. Overall revenue stood at $131.57 billion an increase of 1.4% compared to last year. The hike in holiday season sales can be contribute to the lower price of gas and recovering economy. Recently, the company announced to increase its lowest wage to $9 an hour for its half million workers in USA.
Founded by Pierre Omidyar in 1995, eBay Inc. is another top earning e-Commerce website. The last year was not so good the company. In the fourth quarter, the company’s net income was $936 million, a 10% rise from $850 million in the same quarter last year. Revenue rose 9% to $4.9 billion. In the current quarter the company forecast revenue was $4.35 billion to $4.45 billion falling below Wall Street analysts’ prediction of $4.7 billion. Due to poor business the company announced to lay off 2,400 jobs; 7% of its current workforce. eBay also decided to split up its online payment gateway brand PayPal and make it and independent business.
The Otto Group is a German company. Established in 1949, the company currently has 123 companies with more than 50,000 employees. It is the largest mail order company in the world. The company started its online business in 1995. e-Commerce is currently the fastest growing sales channel of the company generating 60% of its total sales. Otto group is the world’s second-largest online retailer and the largest online retailer of fashion and lifestyle products in Europe. The company is planning to invest 300 million Euros within this year in online retail. However, the company is facing increasing competition from Amazon.com. In 2013, Amzon’s average operating margin on worldwide sales was 0.9% while Otto’s was 6%.
Alibaba Group Holding Limited
Alibaba Group Holding Limited is the largest e-Commerce site in China. It was founded by Jack Ma, a former English teacher from Hangzhou China. He established the company with a goal to further improve the capability of the small businesses through internet. Today, Alibaba is the largest e-Commerce company in China and one of the largest in the world. Its e-Commerce business is more than Amazon and eBay combined and the company is still growing. In November last year, on Singles’ Day the company sold more than $9billion. Yet, in the December quarter the company’s revenue fell short of analysts’ estimates. The average analyst estimate was $4.45 billion against Alibaba’s $4.22 billion.
Cnova N.V is a French e-Commerce company and one of the largests in the world. It has operations in Brazil, France, Colombia, Ecuador, Thailand, Vietnam, Ivory Coast, Belgium, Senegal and Cameroon, Cnova covering 530 million people. As of 2013, the company had a gross merchandise volume of U.S $4.9 billion. In Brazil and France, the company operates under sites like Extra.com.br, Pontofrio.com, Casasbahia.com.br, Comptoirsante.com, Moncornerdeco.com, Monshowroom.com, Barateiro.com.br. It also has B2B solutions such a eHub, an e-Commerce platform solution for third parties. Last year, the company online sales stood at $4.01 billion a 19.8% rise from 2013. Overall sales combining online and gross merchandise value was $5.22 billion.
Tesco PLC is a British multinational grocery and general merchandise retailer. The company was founded by Jack Cohen. The company currently operates more than 3,300 stores across the UK. The company is undergoing a tough period. Last year, the company’s name came up in an accounting scandal. Poor sales was another big company. In July last year, Dave Lewis was appointed CEO. Earlier this year, under his leadership, Tesco announced to shut 43 unprofitable stores across the UK. He also halted plans to open up 49 new stores.
Established in 1997 Rakuten is the largest e-Commerce site of Japan(www.rakuten.co.jp, www.rakuten.com). In the last quarter of 2014, the company performed well. The company’s fourth quarter profit rose 73% with an operating profit of 33.3 billion yen. Last year the company also observed 14% increase in domestic e-Commerce gross merchandise sales to $16.5billion. In order to boost its business, Rakuten is now focusing on smartphone users. At present smartphone transactions account for 44% of gross merchandise sales. However, there is huge challenge ahead. 90% of the Rakuten’s business is based in Japan and shrinking population is affecting consumer spending. Hence, it is now planning to spread its business outside the country.
Best Buy Co.:
Best Buy Co. is retail outlet selling consumer electronic goods. A traditional brick and mortar store, it also has its online business. In the holiday season of 2014, the company observed a 13.4% rise in online sales compared to store sales. It is now reconsidering to improve its online business. Best Buy’s holiday sales was $11.4 billion in U.S. Large screen TVs and mobile phones were the most popular product. Despite good sales, the company announced that this year there would not be much sales growth.


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NEW YORK (CBS.MW) -- Net shares ended their memorable, miserable week with their most severe lashing ever, as only a handful out of hundreds of Internet concerns posted gains.
Stamps.com vs. the Nasdaq
Internet indexes became stock incinerators, and the majors poured gasoline on the fire. The 17-stock Goldman Sachs Internet Index fell 10.1 percent, contributing to a 33- percent loss for the week. The Amex Internet Index lost 9.1 percent, adding to its 28-percent weekly plunge.
The market's mess
The Nasdaq Composite $compq dropped 355.61 points to close at 3,321.17. The index burrowed through what some analysts had thought was the index's 3,500-point support level. The tech-laden index had its biggest weekly point-and-percentage drop ever.
"A lot of people have never been through this kind of experience," said James C. Hale, independent research analyst and editor at The Online Investor. "It?s testing their confidence. You have to ask yourself if you?re a trader or an investor. If you?re an investor, your focus should be on picking stocks that are strong three, four or five years down the road."
The few -- the very few
Stamps.com STMP, +19.11% added 1, or 10 percent, to 11 9/16, as it was among an extremely sparse group of gainers in a sea of red. The company reported better-than-expected earnings this week, and added 114,000 new customers to its Small Business Postage unit. See earnings story.
Also, Peapod ppod rose 28 percent as The Netherlands-based grocery giant Royal Ahold said it bought 51 percent of the cash-strapped Internet grocer for $73 million. Peapod has been searching for more cash, or a major investment. Instead of folding it into existing operations, Royal Ahold plans to run Peapod as a separate company. Shares rose 11/16 points to 3 3/16. See full story.
Big stocks hang tough
Most larger-cap Net stocks took far less punishment than their smaller counterparts. EBay EBAY, -0.82% actually pushed up 3/4 to 139 9/16. Amazon AMZN, -1.12% fell only 1 1/8, or 2 percent, to 46 7/8, but hit a 52-week low. America Online AOL, -1.75% lost 4 47/64, or 8 percent, to 54 33/64.
Yahoo yhoo, meanwhile, sank 20 1/8, or 15 percent, to 116. Shares of Yahoo are now worth more than half their 52-week high of 250 1/16, set in January.
Other Internet sites that aggregate eyeballs tanked. Lycos lcos 5 13/16, or 13 percent, to 38 3/8.Go2Net gnet fell 9 47/64, or 17 percent, to 47 7/8. Quepasa.com pasa lost 3/4, or 16 percent, to 4. NBCI nbci lost 3 11/16, or 16 percent, to 19 1/16.
Among Internet software and services concerns, Akamai tumbled more than 23 points, or 26 percent, to 64 7/8, as its shares are worth about a fifth of its 52-week high of 345 1/2. Ariba arba lost 5 9/16, or nearly 9 percent, to 59 1/2.Inktomi inkt dropped 9 3/4 points, or 9 percent, to 100 13/16. Commerce One cmrc was off 18 9/16, or 22 percent, to 66.
The once-mighty Internet holding companies were big losers. CMGI " lost 14 3/16, or 21 percent, to 52 1/16. Internet Capital Group icge did considerably better than its rival, down 2 53/64, or 7 percent, to 38 63/64.
Smaller is better?
The smaller Net stocks that bucked the downward trend earlier in the week also buckled due to market pressure. Autoweb AWEB, -1.80% dropped 21/32, or 13 percent, to 4 15/32. Beyond.com BYND, -3.39% shed 3/4, or 27 percent, to 2 1/16.
Ameritrade AMTD, +1.33% dropped 18 percent, although its better-than-expected earnings were among a handful of positives for Net stocks in recent days. Credit Suisse First Boston published some cautious comments on the online broker. While the company's financials continue to improve and revenue growth for its March quarter was impressive, analyst Jim Marks advised caution, since the company is trading at a premium to its peers. See earnings story. That's despite Ameritrade's stock tumble from a high above 25 in March to its current price, at 14 1/4. Ameritrade gave back 3 3/16.


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Your Pizza Shop takes title in festival design contest
Your Pizza Shop stepped into the winner’s circle for the fifth annual Greater Alliance Carnation Festival display contest.
Nineteen businesses took part in the contest in which area companies are challenged to show their “Carnation Pride.”
Your Pizza Shop received more than 300 likes on the festival’s Facebook page, and received the Fan Favorite Award. In all, photos of the participating businesses received 1,181 likes.
Six judges visited all the businesses, which were judged based on ingenuity, originality and overall use of two dozen fresh or artificial carnations.
Several locations made their own carnations, including the YWCA of Alliance, where students from the Summer Explorers group designed the outside.
Receiving honorable mention were Altercare of Alliance, Coastal Pet Products, Consumers National Bank, Francis Jewelers and Yum Yum Tree.
The large business display winner was Alliance Community Hospital Gift Shop.
The small business display winner was Barnett Insurance LLC.
The overall winner of the display contest also wins the honor of being the ceremonial starter for the Greater Alliance Carnation Festival Grand Parade on Saturday.
All display winners received plaques.


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Westmorland announces new 25,000sq.ft commercial laundry facility with capacity for 23.5million items per year.
Tourism in Cumbria has hit £3bn for the first time as millions of visitors flock to the land of William Wordsworth and Beatrix Potter.
A weekend in the Lakes is now a much greater possibility for many, with the opening of a brand new airport in Cumbria. Marking the opening of the first commercial airport in the UK for over 14 years, Carlisle Lake District Airport is likely to prove to be a huge draw for Lake District tourism.
Thanks for dropping by and taking the time to look at our new website. You’ve probably already noticed that, as well as our new website, we’ve also rebranded.
Heart of the Lakes look after and manage 330 properties and are responsible for supplying 250 of these with linen. That's the equivalent of a 750 bedroom hotel with every room changing over on a Saturday.
With Westmorland Connect, managing your linen inventory and laundry requirements has never been easier.
Call us on 03333 446604 or send us an email


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Microsoft announced a major reduction to its smartphone unit today, confirming the company will take "an impairment charge of approximately $7.6 billion" from its deal to acquire the previous Nokia mobile devices unit. Additionally, Microsoft is eliminating 7,800 positions, most of which will come from the same unit.
The news creates a potentially gloomy future for first-party Microsoft smartphones, as well as the company's mobile operating system. In an email to employees, CEO Satya Nadella said the company will "run a more effective and focused phone portfolio" in the near term "while retaining capability for long-term reinvention in mobility." Nadella wrote that he is "committed to our first-party devices, including phones."
The phrasing appears to make it clear that Microsoft-made smartphones are guaranteed for the near future, while a "reinvention in mobility" could mean almost anything. Nadella's email also states the company is cutting its excessive range of smartphone devices down to three tiers (described as devices for business users, value phone buyers and Windows fans who want flagship phones). ZDNet's Mary Jo Foley reports that's the plan for now and that Microsoft "is not throwing in the towel" on its smartphone operating system.
But that's just for the near future. In the longer-term situation, Nadella states Microsoft will focus on "reinvention" of the market and "create new categories" of devices. He writes almost nothing about Microsoft's long-term scenario for first-party phone hardware. That could mean almost anything for the company's smartphone operating system, as the overwhelming majority of Windows Phone devices sold were from the Lumia line now run by Microsoft.
With the future hazy, fans of Microsoft's Windows 10 Mobile and Windows Phone operating systems now have a choice: Will you buy a phone using Microsoft's new OS given today's news?


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Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos loves Prime Video, and the reason should scare Netflix.
This week at Vox's Code Conference, Bezos outlined why he thinks Prime Video is a good business for Amazon. Having a subscription video section of Amazon Prime makes people more likely to both become a paying Prime member and to renew their Prime subscription when it ends, Bezos said.
In short, subscription video means more Prime users. And Prime users are more valuable customers for Amazon.
"We get to monetize [our subscription video] in a very unusual way," Bezos said. "When we win a Golden Globe, it helps us sell more shoes. And it does that in a very direct way. Because if you look at Prime members, they buy more on Amazon than non-Prime members, and one of the reasons they do that is once they pay their annual fee, they're looking around to see, 'How can I get more value out of the program?' And so they look across more categories — they shop more. A lot of their behaviors change in ways that are very attractive to us as a business. And the customers utilize more of our services."
This fact gives Amazon an advantage over competitors like Netflix, Hulu, and HBO, who are trying to use premium video to make money directly — not by using it to sell more shoes. They are bidding against Amazon for the same shows and chasing the same customers, but Amazon doesn't have to sweat the margins.
"Because we have this unusual way to monetize the premium content, we can charge less for the premium content than we would otherwise have to charge, if we didn't have the flywheel spinning to help sell more shoes," Bezos said.
And Amazon isn't going to take its foot off the gas pedal when it comes to premium video. Bezos said Amazon Studios, the company's original video arm, could be the "fourth pillar" of its entire business (after retail, Prime as a whole, and Amazon Web Services). Analysts at Bernstein estimate that Amazon spent $2 billion on video content for Prime in 2015.
Bezos, for his part, doesn't believe that Netflix and Amazon are competitors. "I think people are going to subscribe to both," he said (and there is some evidence he is right). But even he acknowledges that the different services compete on the "supply side" by bidding on the same shows and movies.
And even if you believe that there is enough room in the world for Amazon and Netflix, and Hulu, and HBO Now, and Starz, and Showtime, and Seeso, and whichever other streaming service will be announced tomorrow, Bezos' obvious enthusiasm for the side benefits of subscription video cannot be welcome news for his competitors.
Disclosure: Mathias Döpfner, CEO of Business Insider's parent company, Axel Springer, is a Netflix board member.


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Mumbai-based fitness startup SARVA has raised about $6 million – $8 million from a group of national and international celebrities such as global icon Jennifer Lopez, American baseball player Alex Rodriguez, Indian Bollywood actress Malaika Arora, and a fitness brand Zumba.
Other investors in the startup include Pi Capital’s chairman David Giampaola, founder of 24 Hour Fitness Worldwide Mask Mastrov, and MTV Networks CEO Bill Roedy.
“Stress, anxiety, sleeplessness, depression and obesity have become a global epidemic for people of all ages and we are trying to curate physical and digital offerings and services for different needs, ages and geographies to help people empower themselves with the tools to lead better lives,” said Sarvesh Shashi, founder & CEO of SARVA.
Fitness startup SARVA was founded by Shashi in 2016 at the age of 23. It envisions to build a global community of physically, mentally and emotionally fit individuals, through yoga, mindfulness, movement and beyond. SARVA provide access to yoga, mindfulness and wellness to the world through two approaches – physical and digital.
“After SARVA and my joint initiative to start women focused brand Diva Yoga, now I look forward to becoming a part of the overall company that comes with a vision of connecting seven Bn breaths globally, using finesse and a hi-tech approach,” said Malaika Arora.


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Almarai is seeking a new chief executive to head up the Saudi Arabia-based food and drink business after the resignation of Majed Mazen Nofal for personal reasons.
Nofal, who left Riyadh-headquartered Almarai on 17 November after only 11 months in the role, will be replaced by Bader Abdullah Al Issa in the capacity of managing director until a CEO replacement is found, the company said in a stock-exchange filing.
The departed CEO joined Almarai in 2007. He was the deputy CEO for six months until December last year before moving up to the top position at the company, and also served as finance chief from April to July 2019, according to his LinkedIn biography.
In a brief statement, Almarai said: “The board of directors wishes to extend its sincere gratitude and appreciation to Mr. Majed Mazen Nofal for his commitment and dedication during his tenure in Almarai. The board of directors also wishes him all the best in his future endeavours.”
Almarai produces a range of food and drinks products stretching across dairy, poultry, bakery, infant nutrition and juices. The company issued its results in October for the nine months ended 30 September.
Sales revenues grew 8.3% to SAR11.5bn (US$3.06bn), with operating profit up 2.4% at SAR2.02bn. It reported a net profit of SAR1.65bn, an increase of 9.9%.


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Privacy concerns hinder Facebook commerce
More research points to security and privacy concerns being the main reasons behind the slow adoption of shopping on social networks.
Last month a Havas Media Social/Lightspeed Research survey found that many British consumers don't shop via social networks because of security concerns. Even if a special offer was featured on a brand's social network page, most would prefer to redeem that offer on the brand's official website.
New research from marketing communications agency JWT echoes the Havas/Lightspeed research. It found that almost 80% of adults in the UK and US worry that Facebook isn't a secure environment in which to shop online.
Three-quarters said they "wouldn't use a shopping application on Facebook because of concerns that it could compromise my privacy--e.g., shared with third parties" or that Facebook wasn't secure enough to make purchases on.
A surprising statistic from JWT's findings is that Millennials were the most concerned about privacy for direct shopping via Facebook (81%) compared to Gen X (75%) and even Boomers (79%).
Many of these hurdles are the same ones retailers encountered when they first ventured into e-commerce more than a decade ago," says JWTs "Social Commerce" report.
"As they experiment with F-commerce, brands can look at the lessons from that time period for guidance on how to overcome these challenges and ease consumer concerns."
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A few weeks after United States President Donald Trump criticized its expansion plans overseas, Toyota announced that it set aside huge amount of money that it will invest in Indiana. The move is not surprising since several car makers already promised that they will expand their operations in the U.S.
Trump has been shaming companies that had been vocal about their plans to invest more money in other countries outside of the United States like Mexico and China. He has even threatened to impose huge amount of import tax on their products to punish them for their decisions.
Shares of car makers tanked following Trump's criticism. Toyota is one of the first companies that received the ire of the new U.S. president for its plan to open a factory in Mexico.
Deutsche Welle reported that it will now focus on improving one of its U.S. plants. The car maker said it allotted $600 million for the initiative. It also touted that the project will create 400 new jobs in the U.S., which appears to be a silent nod to Trump's campaign to bring back jobs to the country.
The plant that Toyota is planning to invest more money in is located in the home state of Vice President Mike Pence. This little nugget of information suggests that the car maker is indeed working on appeasing the new administration although it will not say so outright.
MLive reported that improvement of the plant, which mainly creates Toyota's Highlander will start in two years. Following Trump's criticism of its lack of initiative in the U.S., Toyota has been highlighting all of its effort in the country. The carmaker touted the number of carmakers it has in America as well the amount of money it has invested in the country so far.
General Motors is one of the car makers that promised to invest more in the U.S. and create several jobs in the country, Jobs & Hire previously reported.


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I wrote this month as a defective medical device attorney about a lawsuit involving an allegedly defective hip replacement implant. So a recent article about a different implant and its defects caught my eye when it ran in the New York Times this week. The newspaper reported that Johnson & Johnson emails reveal internal discussions about significant numbers of failures of the DePuy ASR artificial hip. That stands in sharp contrast to public statements made by the company that no studies showed signs of problems. The hip was ultimately not approved by the FDA or sold in the United States, but it was sold abroad and implanted in an estimated 93,000 patients before its safety recall. A companion version of the product that was sold in the United States, and was recalled at the same time after use in 30,000 American patients.
The DePuy ASR hip is made entirely of metal, which was one of the novel things about it. Unfortunately, the device sheds metallic debris with use, the newspaper said, leading to injuries to patients. It also failed much faster than conventional hip implants — within a few years, instead of after 15 years or more. As a result, the company now faces more than 5,000 lawsuits over the safety of the recalled hip implant models. In defenses against those cases, and in at least one earlier statement to the Times, Johnson & Johnson had said the FDA had not found any safety issues with the implants, and that its internal studies refuted the concerns raised by independent studies. But in the newly released messages, a company executive reported internally that the FDA planned to not approve the implants due to significant numbers of failures.
As a dangerous medical device lawyer, I’d like to point out that this new information comes from the pending litigation against Johnson & Johnson over the hip implants. Regardless of whether those plaintiffs ultimately prevail, the messages should help them in court because they clearly contradict public statements by the company’s executives. No federal law required Johnson & Johnson to publicize the FDA’s rejection letter, but it’s clear from that letter’s existence that the company has not told the truth to the public — and that’s what matters in lawsuits like these. For example, the Times reports that internal documents say executives did not believe they could overcome the FDA’s objections to the rejected device, even with new data. Nonetheless, the company said in 2009 and recently that its decision not to sell this device in the U.S. was based on declining overseas sales.
At Carey, Danis & Lowe, we focus our practice on patients who have suffered injuries or a loss in the family because of defective or dangerous pharmaceutical products. All manufacturers have a legal duty to ensure that their products are safe when they offer them to the public; if they know of safety risks, they must warn potential users of those risks. When manufacturers seem to be covering up a safety risk by misleading the public into making potentially dangerous medical decisions, people who get hurt have the right to hold them legally and financially liable. Our pharmaceutical liability attorneys based in St. Louis represent clients across the United States who are pursuing individual or class actions against these companies. We help clients win the money they need to get medical treatment, make up for lost income and more.
If you or someone you love suffered an injury because of a medical device you thought you could trust, Carey, Danis & Lowe can help. For a free consultation, send us a message online or call toll-free at -877-678-3400.
Similar blog posts:
Fifth Circuit Resurrects Defective Medical Device Claim Involving Hip Replacement – Bass v. Stryker Corp. et al.
Artificial Hip Manufacturer Gets Second FDA Warning Letter for Sterilization Problems
Ninth Circuit Upholds Dismissal of Contact Lens Case Based on Medical Device Preemption – Degelmann v. Advanced Medical Optics