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India’s biggest ecommerce site Flipkart is often benchmarked against Amazon. People ask: Can it be the Amazon of India? But today, Sachin Bansal, cofounder and CEO of Flipkart, set the record straight. With US$1 billion of fresh funding under its belt, Flipkart, he pointed out, is in the same position as Alibaba was in 2005. “We want to shape the ecommerce ecosystem in India. We want to be India’s first US$100 billion technology company,” he added.
India’s ecommerce poster-boy Flipkart has raised over US$1 billion. According to The Economic Times, Flipkart will make the official announcement next week. Half of the fresh funds are expected to come from existing investors: Tiger Global, Russian billionaire Yuri Milner’s DST, and Accel Partners. This is not only the biggest ever funding round by an Indian e-commerce company, but comes close to global taxi services company Uber’s US$1.2 billion round last month.
Thai shoppers, rejoice – popular Japanese chat app Line, which has 24 million registered users in the Land of Smiles, just rolled out a standalone ecommerce app specifically for its fans in Thailand. The move follows the company’s release of a similar app for Japan last March. We took that app for a test drive but couldn’t really get more than a superficial understanding of what it was about due to this writer’s inability to read Japanese. Luckily, however, Thailand’s Line Shop is partially in English, so it’s time to jump iTunes’ fence again and go for a spin.
Masayoshi Son’s SoftBank empire has been getting a lot attention in recent months, with a US$20 million splash of venture funding for the Phillipines, the debut of Pepper, the family friendly robot, and, the impending financial windfall from Alibaba’s IPO. Today, at the SoftBank World 2014 event, Alibaba’s founder and executive chairman, Jack Ma, talked about Alibaba’s business philosophy and the coming shift of Customer to Business (C2B) corporate strategies.
Amazon announced that Doug Gurr will replace Steve Frazier as the new president of Amazon China. Meanwhile, Frazier will be transferred back to the Seattle headquarters and continues to work as global vice president of the international business unit. Frazier was leading Amazon’s Chinese Internet retailing business in the past two and half years. In the future, he will be responsible for business expansion in international markets, including supporting the Chinese business.
The budget smartphone market in India keeps getting more crowded by the day. Just a week ago, Google announced plans to build and sell affordable Android One smartphones in India in partnership with local phone makers. But before Google’s phone could arrive, Indian ecommerce leader Flipkart has pressed ahead by launching a range of budget smartphones, starting at INR 2,699 (about US$45), in partnership with smartphone maker Karbonn.
As Alibaba prepares for its IPO and Tencent aggressively pushes its WeChat messenger all over the world, it’s easy for folks in the west to forget that there’s another Asian internet giant gunning for a broader global presence – Japan’s Rakuten. Founded in 1997, the Tokyo-based firm earned a name for itself domestically with Rakuten Ichiba, a marketplace that sells virtual store space for vendors looking to reach online customers. Rakuten Ichiba’s success helped it gain the reputation as “Japan’s Amazon,” the firm quickly proved to be about more than ecommerce – it successfully branched into the banking, securities, and travel industries. It even created a juggernaut baseball team in northern Japan.
Perhaps inspired by arch-rival Amazon, India’s top ecommerce store today unveiled its own-brand tablet. The Flipkart Digiflip Pro XT712, despite the awful, convoluted name, is a simple and affordable gadget that seems designed to help people spend more money on Flipkart from their mobile device. The new Flipkart Digiflip – let’s stick with that abbreviated name for now – costs Rs 9,999 (US$160) and is now on sale exclusively from the Flipkart estore. It comes, the company says, with “shopping benefits” worth over Rs. 5,000 (US$83) and complementary ebooks worth over Rs. 2,000 (US$33).
SINGAPORE — (Marketwired) — 06/23/14 — iBuy Group, the parent company of DEAL.com.sg, has emerged as the number one e-commerce player in Southeast Asia, based on turnover, according to a ranking by Business Insider Singapore, the Singaporean edition of a leading business and technology news website. iBuy Group, topped four other ecommerce sites to emerge as the winner in the ranking, with a turnover of S$153 million.
SINGAPORE — (Marketwired) — 06/22/14 — Euromonitor International and Retail Asia are pleased to announce the launch of the eleventh edition of the Retail Asia Top 500 Retailers Ranking, listing the largest retailers in the region. The retailers on the Retail Asia Top 500 Ranking had total combined revenue of $1.035 trillion, down nearly 3 percent from the previous year, due to a weakening yen. The decline in combined sales primarily was caused by the weakening exchange rate of major Asian currencies against the US dollar, which was the common denominator used for the Top 500 ranking.
Walmart (NYSE:WMT) will launch a business-to-business (B2B) ecommerce site in Lucknow and Hyderabad in the first week of July, Reuters reports today. Krish Iyer, India Walmart president, told Reuters that sales through the firm’s ecommerce service will be available only to its trader members, who are owners of small businesses that purchase from the company’s Best Price Modern Wholesale stores across India. That could change later once India relaxes regulations on foreign firms involved in ecommerce, allowing Walmart to open its estore to all consumers.
SAN FRANCISCO: China’s e-commerce giant Alibaba has launched an American shopping website as the company continues a deal binge ahead of a widely anticipated US listing. The online shopping site, called 11 Main opened on a beta, or test, basis for consumers and is invitation-only in terms of the merchants it features, the site said in a statement.
TAIPEI–The Taiwan External Trade Development Council (TAITRA), the country’s major trade promotion body, signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) Monday with Amazon.com Inc., the world’s largest online retailer, to forge a partnership agreement. Following cooperation with eBay Inc. and Newegg.com Inc. of the United States, along with Japan’s IPROS Corp., the signing of the MOU marks TAITRA’s latest efforts to promote e-commerce platforms, expand overseas markets and boost exports.
Alibaba’s Tmall, China’s largest online retail marketplace, beat all traditional retail giants to head a new list of China’s top retailers. It was compiled for the 9th China Retailer Conference. Compared to the list’s rankings for 2012, Tmall surpasses electronics retail chain Suning (SHE:002024) for the first time and leaps to first place with a turnover of RMB 347 billion (US$55.5 billion) in 2013. Suning is one of the largest traditional retailers in the country, covering brick-and-mortar stores in over 700 cities in China as well as a fast-growing ecommerce site.
About two months after Tencent (HKG: 0700) purchased an 18 percent stake in it, Chinese ecommerce site JD (NASDAQ: JD) has finally been integrated into WeChat (or Weixin, as it’s known domestically), Tencent’s monster messaging app. Technode reports that a new “Shopping” tab appears under the app’s “Discover” page.
Just one week after acquiring India’s biggest fashion and apparel estore Myntra, the country’s biggest online marketplace Flipkart has raised US$210 million in funding. The investment is led by Russia’s DST Global, followed by existing investors Tiger Global, Naspers, and Iconiq Capital, according toNextBigWhat. This bring’s Flipkart’s total funding to date to US$750 million, the highest of any Indian startup. It’s previous round closed out at US$360 million in October.
Stock market speculators are salivating over Alibaba’s eventual IPO later this summer, but it’s far from the first appearance China’s ecommerce leader has made in the US. Alibaba has invested almost US$1 billion into American tech firms, both within the ecommerce sector and outside of it. The company even has a special investment office based in San Francisco, where it scouts out promising startups to support.
With Indian ecommerce leader Flipkart and the country’s number one online apparel shop Myntra on the verge of announcing their merger, the former’s biggest rival is upping the ante. EBay-backed Snapdeal yesterday revealed another US$100 million funding round from five new investors: Premji Invest, Temasek, BlackRock Inc, Myriad, and Tybourne, according to NextBigWhat.
Another week, another Chinese tech IPO. The latest one lined up to hit US markets is JD, the estore that’s a close rival to Alibaba’s Tmall and other general ecommerce sites such as Amazon China. JD goes public today upon opening of Thursday’s trading. The company has just priced its shares at $19 each, which is above the initial $16 to $18 range it advised a few days ago, reports CNN Fortune. If it debuts at that price, JD will raise $1.78 billion from its listing.
The world is waiting for Alibaba to hit Wall Street this summer as its IPO will likely be bigger than Facebook’s. That means China’s ecommerce market matters more than ever. New figures out today show that spending on China’s ecommerce sites keeps growing, hitting a grand total of RMB 446.44 billion (US$74.03 billion) in Q1 2014 – which is up 27.6 percent on the same time a year ago.


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It has a been a rocky start for Bethesda’s Fallout 76, but it seems that the studio managed to make the game better and save as many players as they could. The plan for the future is clear – attract all those gamers that left (and some new ones) by offering great content. In the newest blog post, the studio announced its plans for the upcoming year.
“We are aware of our mistakes, but we are doing our best to fix them and make this game reach its full potential. The studio believes Fallout is a franchise that will be around for years to come.”
To show that they have reasons to be optimistic, Bethesda mentioned that we could expect no less than three major updates for Fallout 76. These include Wild Appalachia, Nuclear Winter, and Wastelanders. As expected, the studio revealed most details about the first update. As for the other two ones, you can expect new game modes, quests, and events, but we will probably know more when their release date gets closer.
Plenty of New Things to Come
When it comes to Wild Appalachia, the party will start on March 12th. The Fasnacht Parade, a time-sensitive event, and new features in the form of brewing and distilling will be available immediately. Seven days later, the players who complete the event will receive Fasnacht masks.
The biggest addition, however, is the Survival mode, which will come to Fallout 76 on March 26th. Bethesda describes it as PvP taken to the next level, including fresh challenges, tempting rewards, and fewer restrictions.
The following weeks will bring new features, including vending machines and cameras. An event known as the Sheer Terror will be available on April 9th, and the studio describes it as an opportunity to identify the hidden secrets of Appalachia.
In May, we will get to play even more new quests, as well as a customizable backpack feature. The last in the line of small updates will arrive on May 23rd when a new Purveyor will become available to give an opportunity to trade legendary items for new gear.
The important thing to mention is that all the updates mentioned above will be completely free. Bethesda emphasized that they will listen to the feedback of the community so that they could make Fallout 76 even better throughout 2019.

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RICHMOND, Va. (WWBT) - A new brunch restaurant is opening in Willow Lawn — bringing the sixth First Watch location to the Richmond area.
The new location will open on Monday at 5310 W. Broad Street, across the street from Target. Breakfast, brunch and lunch will be served from 7 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.
First Watch will open for dine-in at 50% capacity with online ordering and curbside pickup available. The menu includes items such as avocado toast, smoked salmon eggs benedict, breakfast tacos and lemon ricotta pancakes.
First Watch’s new location will also include alcoholic beverages and several signature cocktails, including Cinnamon Toast Cereal Milk, the Million Dollar Bloody Mary, Pomegranate Sunrise and Vodka Kale Tonic.
With more than 400 locations nationwide, the chain has won more than 300 local “Best Breakfast” and “Best Brunch” accolades.
For online ordering, full menus and more information, visit this link.
Copyright 2021 WWBT. All rights reserved.


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sommai - Fotolia
Wireless network provider Aruba Networks has introduced indoor tracking and marketing technology that retailers, stadiums and other businesses can use on any vendor's Wi-Fi network.
Aruba Sensor, introduced this week along with new analytics, is the latest addition to the company's Mobile Engagement product line, a collection of software and hardware that includes tracking beacons, Wi-Fi and application development.
Aruba, which is owned by Hewlett Packard Enterprise, engineered Mobile Engagement to tap the Wi-Fi indoor positioning market. Venues from stadiums and airports to hospitals and museums use the technology to push messages and promotions to people's mobile phones, based on their location. Accessing a venue's services requires users to download a mobile app.
Enabling beacons to work on any network
Communicating with mobile devices is done through beacons, which are battery-powered, matchbook-sized devices with a Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) radio that can transmit a signal about 100 feet. Until Sensor, Aruba's beacons operated only on the vendor's Wi-Fi network.
The new technology, which is about the size of a deck of cards, talks to the beacons over BLE. Sensor uses the resident Wi-Fi network to connect to Aruba's online beacon management platform, which also provides tools for building the applications used to deliver location-based services.
The use of Wi-Fi networks to connect to management and security software is a trend among beacon makers, said Mark Hung, an analyst at Gartner Inc., based in Stamford, Conn. "You can expect to see other similar solutions coming to the market in the near future."
Aruba Sensor, which has a list price of $195, can communicate with beacons within a radius of 80 feet. Customers can plug the devices into an AC power outlet.
Tracking beacon management, analytics
Aruba's management platform spots beacons that are not working. It can also change the power level of the devices to increase or decrease their range.
Aruba has added to the platform analytics for beacon-collected data, which includes the types of devices people are carrying and their location. The software can also track the movement of mobile devices in a building. To ensure privacy, Aruba aggregates the data, so an organization can track people's activities as a whole, as opposed to individually.
Aruba beacon users include Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif.; Nebraska Furniture Mart in Omaha, Neb.; Orlando (Fla.) International Airport; and the American Museum of Natural History in New York.
While some venues have successfully deployed tracking technology, others, including retailers Nordstrom Inc. and Philz Coffee, have had to drop its use due to shoppers' privacy concerns. In a study conducted last year, OpinionLab Inc. found that 80% of shoppers do not want stores to track their movements via smartphones. More than 40% said they were less likely to shop at a retailer that used tracking technology.
Nevertheless, Aruba hopes to grow its customer base by making it easier for developers to build applications for its products. In addition to Aruba Sensor, the company introduced a partner program that lets developers download a software developer's kit for connecting their apps to Aruba beacons. Also, Aruba is willing to partner with app makers that want to resell the vendor's products.
The possibility of a reseller agreement gives developers "more incentive to use our beacons over some startup's or competitor's," said Jeff Hardison, director of product marketing for Aruba.
Indoor tracking technology raises privacy concerns
Retailer Nordstrom seeks better customer service with indoor beacons
How to get the most out of indoor beacon technology in retail


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Skellerup profit falls 10%; trade war dents US demand
By Dan Brunskill |
Thu, 13 Feb 2020
Skellerup Holdings reported a 10 percent decline in first-half profit as the US-China trade war dulled demand for its rubber industrial components.Net profit fell to $12.1 million in the six months ended Dec. 31, from $13.4 million a year earlier. Revenue edged up 2 percent to $122.9 million, while earnings before interest and tax fell 7 percent to $18 million.That was short of Forsyth Barr analyst Guy Hooper’s forecast for ebit of $19.9 million on revenue of $125.9 million.The weaker earnings came from Skellerup’s industrial division, which th...


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In a room full of avowed capitalists, policies that sound to some like socialism are bound not to go over well.Delivering Alpharead more
At least in terms of monetary policy, Pence says should be taking after other regions who keep their benchmark interest rates near zero.Delivering Alpharead more
AT&T isn't focused on selling or divesting DirecTV, despite pressure from stakeholder Elliott Management, sources tell CNBC.Technologyread more
Amazon's purchase comes as part of its plan to convert its delivery fleet to 100% renewable energy by 2030. The e-commerce retailer already runs 40% of its fleet on renewable...Autosread more
As part of the plan, Amazon has agreed to purchase 100,000 electric delivery vans from vehicle manufacturer Rivian.Technologyread more
Apple's iOS 13.1 will be released on Sept. 24, six days earlier than previously announced.Technologyread more
The plan will allow Medicare to negotiate lower prices on as many as 250 drugs and apply those discounts to private health plans.Health and Scienceread more
Hedge fund titan Leon Cooperman said he's concerned about a shift to the left in the political landscape, which could harm the economy and the stock market.Delivering Alpharead more
The move could bring a welcome salve to farmers caught in the crosshairs of the trade war if it results in a reopening of the market.Politicsread more
The pilot program will deliver food and beverage, over-the-counter medications and other items within minutes, the company said. Prescription deliveries will not be available.Health and Scienceread more
Check out the companies making headlines in midday trading:Market Insiderread more
Hurricane Maria, a category 3, thrashed parts of the Dominican Republic with heavy rain and high winds as it passed off its east coast this morning after making a direct hit on Puerto Rico that caused severe flooding and cut power to almost all the island. (Reuters)
The wiggling fingers of a young girl trapped in the quake rubble of her collapsed school in Mexico City raised hopes and prodded rescuers to work furiously hour after hour early this morning. At least 245 people have been killed after a powerful temblor struck the capital. (AP)
Senate Republicans announced plans to vote next week on their latest bid to scuttle Obamacare even as a popular comedian who has become part of the U.S. healthcare debate denounced the bill. Former President Obama warned of "real human suffering." (Reuters & CNBC)
*Sen. Graham overheard on phone call imploring colleague to vote for GOP health bill (AP)
*Trump endorses GOP senators' last-ditch Obamacare repeal plan (CNBC)
President Trump was met with silence when he congratulated the leaders of African countries on the continent's economic progress, telling them, "I've so many friends going to your countries, trying to get rich. I congratulate you. They're spending a lot of money." (CNBC)
S&P Global Ratings downgraded China's long-term sovereign credit rating by one notch to A+ from AA-, citing increasing risks from the country's rapid build-up of credit. S&P's downgrade follows a similar demotion by Moody's Investors Service in May. (Reuters)
Hackers roamed Equifax's computer network for more than four months before the company's security team uncovered the data breach, the Wall Street Journal has learned. Equifax sent the information in a note to some of its customers.
*Equifax tweets sent breach victims to phishing site (CNBC)
*Why the United States was wide open to a disaster like Equifax (CNBC)
The Securities and Exchange Commission disclosed that hackers penetrated its electronic system for storing public-company filings in 2016 and could have traded on the information. In a statement, SEC Chair Jay Clayton didn't provide much detail about the intrusion. (WSJ)
Twitter will meet with the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence staff next week in relation to inquiries into the 2016 U.S. election. The committee, along with other congressional committees and special counsel Robert Mueller, is investigating possible links between Trump's campaign and Russia. (Reuters)
Albertsons, one of the largest U.S. grocers, is acquiring meal kit service Plated, the company's first high-profile move since Amazon bought Whole Foods Market. The deal distinguishes Plated from the meal kit industry's largest competitor, Blue Apron (APRN), which was higher in the premarket.
Google announced that it signed a $1.1 billion cooperation agreement with Taiwanese smartphone maker HTC to bolster its smartphone and emerging hardware business. Under the agreement, Google will acquire a team of HTC employees. HTC will receive $1.1 billion in cash.
Apple (AAPL) admitted that its new Series 3 smartwatch with built-cellular capabilities is having some technical issues when making calls. The company says it is working to fix the problem.
Tesla (TSLA) is teaming up with AMD to develop an artificial intelligence chip for its self-driving cars, a source told CNBC. The carmaker has more than 50 employees involved in the project, including chip star Jim Keller.
Anadarko Petroleum (APC) says that its board had authorized a $2.5 billion share repurchase program through 2018. Anadarko also reaffirmed its 2017 production forecast for its Gulf of Mexico and Delaware Basin assets.


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The upcoming year is bringing along with it a huge wave of new cars. The sedan segment will witness much more addition and editions next year. Even after the shift of trends towards crossovers and SUVs in India, the sedan segment is still irreplaceable. Listed here are few of the most anticipated sedan launches of 2017.
1. Maruti Suzuki Ciaz facelift: The Ciaz last received an update in 2015. The C-segment sedan is now expected to shift to Nexa next year with a mid-life facelift. The move to Nexa will add a premium touch to the Ciaz, as the sedan will face revamped competition in the form of Honda City facelift and the new Hyundai Verna, both of which are expected next year as well.
2. Maruti Suzuki Swift Dzire: The new-generation Swift Dzire will enter its third generation next year. The sub-four-metre sedan is expected to receive a newer platform, powerplant and features similar to the new Swift and will be making its way to India late next year.
3. Hyundai Verna: The 2017 Verna made its debut in China earlier this year. The Verna is now more than five years old after the introduction of the fluidic design in India. Expected to be launched next year, the new generation Verna will carry the same powertrain but will get refreshed looks to maintain its momentum in the C-segment.
4. Hyundai Xcent: After a midlife update to the Grand i10, Hyundai will shift focus on the Xcent to give the car a fresh breath of air and offer more choices to the Hyundai customers. The sub-four-metre sedan from the Korean carmaker witnessed steady sales throughout the year, and Hyundai wants to continue the same with new Xcent which is expected by August 2017.
5. Tata Kite 5: The newest product from Tata’s stable is the Kite 5 sedan. The sub-four-metre sedan is production ready and will slot below the Zest in Tata’s line-up. It will carry forward the powertrain and features from the Tiago, and is expected to hit the roads by March next year. Expect it to be priced competitively as well.
6. Honda City: Honda already teased the new City facelift in Thailand where it will be launched in January with the Indian debut will follow. The new City will carry the same mechanicals but will get new features like touchscreen infotainment system with Smartphone connectivity, LED lights with DRL and new body colours.
7. Toyota Altis: The Toyota Altis already received a facelift in some countries, and is expected to make its way onto Indian shores sometime next year. The Altis facelift will be sharper and come with a modern fascia with newly designed LEDs. Insides will receive soft touch material but the powertrain will be carried forward from the current generation car.
8. Volkswagen Vento: The Vento will receive a mid-cycle refreshment with a new fully LED headlamps and DRLs. The car will also receive a tweak under the hood with a 1.5-litre diesel engine. Expect the car to receive new alloy wheels and a few nip and tuck as it will be launched sometime next year.
9. Volkswagen Passat GTE hybrid: After Toyota Camry and Honda Accord hybrids, the Volkswagen Passat GTE will make its debut in the hybrid embodiment in India. The car has been spotted on the Indian roads a few times now and will mark Volkswagen re-entry into the D-segment, though it is expected to be priced comparatively higher than its rivals.
10. Skoda Octavia Black Edition: The Octavia facelift was unveiled globally a few months back and will be launched in India next year. The engine might be upgraded from 1.8-litre to 2.0-litre with some cosmetic changes such as the split headlamps. The new Octavia will also receive a Black Edition later next year.
11. Skoda Rapid Monte Carlo: The Skoda Rapid facelift was launched just recently in India. The Monte Carlo Edition, which is expected next year, will be available in a special shade of red with blacked out headlamp and tail lamp insides, black grille finish, black bumper inserts, blackened ORVM and black alloys. Mechanicals will remain the same.
12. Chevrolet Essentia: The Essentia was showcased at 2016 Delhi Auto Expo and has been spotted on test on Indian roads. The compact sedan is based on the new-generation Beat and will rival the likes of the upcoming Tata Kite 5. The Essentia will have the same engine configuration as the Beat and is expected by end of the first quarter of 2017


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Mrs. Fields Famous Brands is looking forward to a much sweeter and profitable future.
The Salt Lake City-based company, made famous by cookie entrepreneur Debbie Fields, said it has successfully completed a refinancing of its operations and is headed into 2012 with the additional capital it needs to grow and expand its business in the years ahead.
"This refinancing represents an important first step toward the future for our Mrs. Fields and TCBY [frozen yogurt] brands," said Tim Casey, the company's president and chief executive. "And we are now in the position to grow our consumer and franchise bases both domestically and internationally."
The refinancing was completed last week. It saw The Carlyle Group and Z Capital Partners, which combined held the majority of the treat vendor's $65 million in senior secured notes, swap that debt for controlling interest in Mrs. Fields.
"We have tremendous financial partners in Z Capital and The Carlyle Group," Casey said, explaining that those two private investment companies remain committed to the future financial success of Mrs. Fields and its brands.
Mrs. Fields, which emerged from a bankruptcy three years ago, franchises more than 950 stores under its brand and the TCBY frozen-yogurt banner. Last year the company generated more than $60 million in revenue.
Along with controlling interest in Mrs. Fields, the two new owners also have gained a big presence on the company's board of directors, Casey said. "Both companies will bring a rich level of experience to the board and can offer insight and brand guidance that can only help our long-term growth."
Among its many holdings, Carlyle, for example, has an interest in Dunkin' Brands, which is the franchisor of the Dunkin' Donuts and Baskin Robbins stores. And Z Capital counts among its holdings interest in the Real Mex Restaurants chain and New World Pasta, which markets such brands as American Beauty, Ronzoni and Creamette.
"We continue to believe in the growth potential of the company [Mrs. Fields] and two of America's most recognizable food-related brands," Carlyle Managing Director Michael Stewart said in a statement announcing the successful refinancing of the company, which at one time was based in Park City.
Casey said the company will place a big emphasis in the years ahead on developing new products that will keep both brands relevant to consumers and "always on the front end" in the industry.
Earlier this year, Mrs. Fields and TCBY announced one the industry's biggest franchise deals, a 200-store TCBY agreement in Texas. And Casey said Mrs. Fields also is working on an international "multi-territory franchise agreement" that it hopes to be able to announce in the months ahead.
The Utah company was founded when Debbie Fields opened her first cookie store in Palo Alto, Calif., in 1977 and began franchising in 1990. Although she no long holds an interest in Mrs. Fields Famous Brands, Casey said the relationship between the company and its founder remains cordial.


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Nowadays, e-commerce companies are growing more and more seen the ease of buying and selling. Consumers have already become hostage to this type of commercial technology because it ensures greater practicality and convenience. This e-commerce is known as B2B Marketplace Sites Platform, which consists of business transactions. And you will now know the key facts and curiosities about the mobile platform of B2B marketplace on any device.
What different surveys and reports said about B2B Marketplace Sites Platform on mobile
- More than 72.4 million Americans have smartphones. In the second half of 2015, more than 72 million Americans had a smartphone and used it to get on the internet. Compared to the previous half, it is an increase of 4%. It means most Americans make technology their daily ally to perform tasks and shop online.
- 65% of B2B buyers rely on buying via mobile devices. Three-quarters of B2B buyers, who have smartphones, responded to the survey. 37% bought a product whenever watching commercial on a mobile just within six months; 42% searched for a product in a store after looking at a mobile advertisement, and 34% just clicked on the ad on their phone.
- Almost half of B2B buyers are influenced by the media. According to 40% of people, the presence of marketers in social media influenced their satisfaction with the company positively. Another important consideration is that the top application on smartphones is Facebook, with 79% of mobile users active in that application. The second most popular social media application is Instagram with 32% of users, followed by Twitter with 26%.
- Three-quarters of B2B companies believe that mobile commerce is the future. About 78% of B2B companies believe that mobility is the future of online commerce, half of the B2B suppliers had the capacity to support the mobile e-commerce, and 80% planned to offer it by the end of this year.
- Nearly two-thirds of B2B companies have mobile customized sites and also offer mobile applications to ease shopping.
- More than half of B2B customers are comfortable buying on mobile.
B2b Marketplace Sites Platform
Can you see how the world is becoming more and more dependent on these business transactions with B2B Marketplace Sites Platform on mobile devices, and make our lives easy.


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SHANGHAI—China’s cooling economy shrank the ranks of the country’s millionaires last year, according to a consulting firm report, weighing on the total value of assets held by the rich globally.
The number of Chinese individuals with more than $1 million in financial assets slid 5% to 1.2 million during 2018 on the back of a $500 billion drop in the value of the assets they held, according to Paris-based Capgemini SE. The research shows China’s tug was a big contributor to a 2.9%, $2 trillion loss in wealth among the richest world-wide.
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REBELLION: Our new exclusive feminist t-shirt collection
We have recently teamed up with street wear company Everpress, to launch REBELLION, a new range of limited-edition feminist t-shirts, inspired by the incredible women in our Write For Rights campaign this year. Nine women and non-binary artists have used their talent to create stunning art, as an act of solidarity with inspiring women activists around the world.
Art and Fashion have long been used for tools of social change. In 1984, UK designer Katherine Hamnett famously met Margaret Thatcher in her hastily designed ‘58% Don’t Want Pershing’ t-shirt, creating a media storm and ensuring the controversial nuclear issue was firmly on the political agenda. On the current political climate, she said:
‘I think if we up our game now and use the power of our vote, we can still change the way things are. Political T-shirts are a start. The tragedy is that they are even more relevant now than they were when I started making them, 39 years ago.’
Most people who know me, my friends, family, colleagues, regular barista, are probably very familiar with one particular item of clothing of mine, my ‘Smash the Patriarchy and Chill’ t-shirt. My brother once joked that he assumed I was like batman and have a dozens of them, and just wear them like a uniform. That one item of clothing has sparked so many conversations with friends, family, strangers, about feminism, racism, privilege, power, and social change. Of course, a t-shirt on its own is not going to change the world. But it’s a small act of resistance, and the start of a conversation. Combine that with lobbying your MP, getting out on the streets to protest, volunteering, and direct action, and we are getting somewhere.
The REBELLION campaign is all about sisterhood and solidarity. We have brought together incredible artists who regularly use their art for grassroots activist work in the UK and have asked them to show solidarity with women’s human rights defenders, in the form of a t-shirt.
‘I felt a play on “keyboard warriors”, which is often depicted as a negative thing, could be flipped around and used as a positive. I have formed and am part of so many incredible online spaces for womxn, who always have each other’s backs and I thought my illustration would be a great way to demonstrate this allyship and women coming together on the internet to help create communities.’
Jacob V Joyce, a non-binary artist, said of the quote on their t-shirt:
‘“The Future is Queer" and image of hands sporting nails adorned with queer symbols are an invocation of change, LGBTQIA empowerment and criticality of the creeping rise in white supremacist, hetero-patriarchal, ableist values. I hope it will resonate with the same urgency as Angela Davis’ quote “you have to act as if it were possible to radically transform the world, and you have to do it all the time”.’
Write For Rights 2018 is supporting women human rights defenders who are currently in jail, or suffering harassment or persecution, including women affected by Northern Ireland’s restrictive abortion law and those who have been victims of online abuse.
The t-shirts are available to buy online from 7 November for three weeks only – until Monday 26 November – with 50% of the profits going to Amnesty, and 50% going to the artists. T-shirts are available in sizes from XXS – 5XL (due to an annoying technical glitch, some sizes are not available on the drop down list on the website, but just email firstname.lastname@example.org if your size is not available and they will sort it out). The t-shirts are ethically manufactured, on Fair Wear Foundation and Organic cotton. Everpress will make sure all t-shirts arrive before Christmas, so buy one for yourself, and one for every feminist on your Christmas list.
Our blogs are written by Amnesty International staff, volunteers and other interested individuals, to encourage debate around human rights issues. They do not necessarily represent the views of Amnesty International.


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Expanding on its success of the sales holiday known as Prime Day earlier this year, Amazon has announced that it is now going to launch a store that is dedicated only to deals for Black Friday, where members of Amazon Prime can have early access to some of the company’s best discounts.
The Deals Store is open to any consumer, as the shopping season for the holidays begins with some forecasts for record numbers. However, the additional bonus for Prime members is they will have access of more than 30,000 Lightning Deals a full 30 minutes prior to others.
The idea is to make some of the savings exclusive for Prime Members who helped make the first ever company Prime Day a huge financial success that was bigger than Black Friday.
However, holiday online shopping season is not confined only to a day for of solid sales, it is an ongoing stampede as consumers do their buying of gifts through online sites such as Amazon more that at brick and mortar establishments.
Some retailers are choosing to remain closed Thanksgiving in response to consumer pushback about being open and beginning the holiday shopping season on a holiday itself that is so family oriented.
Companies also know that people are not as keen on standing in line for an event like that if they can person the same thing on their smartphone or tablet.
Amazon said that its Deals Store for Black Friday would feature thousands of different deals for all shoppers online in categories such as electronics, toys, jewelry, clothing, kitchen and much morning through the end of December 22.
At the same time, members of Prime can access more than 30,000 deals ahead of other consumers including between 30% and 50% discounts on certain items.
However, it is not clear if the early access to the deals alone will be sufficient to drive an increase in the number of Prime Members on the site or if those deals are strong enough to convince consumers to sign up as a member of Prime.


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, Delhi India (PressExposure) June 23, 2008 -- A new market research report, âAsian Automotive Industry Outlook (2007-2011)â, by the leading market research firm RNCOS reveals that Thailand is emerging as a major manufacturing center for foreign automobile makers.
As per the report, automobile industry forms an integral part of the overall Thai economy. Thus, by offering various investment incentives to automotive manufacturers, the Thai government is actively pitching in the country as an automobile production base. Consequently, many big car manufacturers are establishing their regional production bases in the country.
Moreover, the Thai auto industry is fully liberalized and open to foreign investments. Foreign players are allowed to have majority share in vehicle assembly facilities of the country and assemblers are allowed to export their auto parts worldwide. However, the government of
Apart from this, Thailand has one of the highest import duties in the region, which is encouraging many auto manufacturers to set up their production bases in the country to satisfy the demands of domestic as well as export market. Further, the demand for passenger cars is expected to increase in Thailand at a CAGR of around 14.4% during 2007-2011. Thus, to satisfy the rapidly increasing demand for automobiles in the country under a high import duty framework, manufacturers are likely to increase domestic production instead of depending upon the imports.
Further, increase in production of automobiles due to high import duty is leading to an increase in export of Completely Built Units (CBUs) of automobiles and this export had been steadily rising since 2000 till 2006.
Thailand is just one of the countries covered in âAsian Automotive Industry Outlook (2007-2011)â. The report provides complete overview of automotive industry of other Asian countries, including China, Japan, India, Malaysia and Taiwan. It gives rational and prudent analysis on various market segments, key drivers, challenges and opportunities critical to the success of the Asian automotive industry. The report also gives forecast on registration of passenger car and passenger car stocks by region.
For more information visit: [http://rncos.com/Report/IM514.htm] Current Industry News: [http://www.rncos.com/Blog/]


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If you’re one of the very few businesses out there that can trust your brand identity will remain unchanged six months or even a year from now, we’ve got some pretty spectacular news for you. The Twitter Ads Team has announced that those utilizing Twitter’s Ad Products can now schedule Tweets up to a year in advance!
So, how does it work?
While logged into https://ads.twitter.com/, write a tweet as you normally would, by clicking the “Compose Tweet” button to the top right of the page. If you’ve advertised with Twitter in the past, you’ll see that now you have a few new, super sweet options:
Compose your tweet as usual, add a location, photo, or card, and then schedule that baby! Remember, too, scheduled tweets can be part of a Promoted Tweet campaign, but they can also be organic. Use the “Delivery” and “Promotion” tabs to configure your options. (Oh, and check out the new “Creatives” tab where you can manage your scheduled tweets and cards, too!)
With the ability to schedule tweets now, the possibilities are nearly endless for marketers. No more staffing overnight for special events, forgetting holiday tweets, or even logging in on weekends. The ability to build campaigns in advance means a greater opportunity for consistency, but could this be the demise for those willing to “set it and forget it”? Could this be the beginning of missed opportunities for marketers to be truly social?


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Leading Russian food retailer X5 Retail Group (NV) has announced the opening of two new distribution centres (DCs) in the Republic of Adygeya (Southern Russia). The new logistics facilities, Yuzhny and Adygeya, will contribute to the efficiency of X5’s supply chain and are hoped to encourage local business.
“This year, we have opened four distribution centres: in St Petersburg, in the Moscow Region, and two in the south of Russia. Our logistics infrastructure is now more than just a platform to support the development of our own retail chain. With each new DC, we also provide more and better sales opportunities for our partners, especially local food producers,” said X5’s CEO, Igor Shekhterman.
The new logistics facilities can store all categories of food in nine separate storage zones, ranging in temperature from -21 to 25 degrees Celsius. The centres will supply 105 towns and cities in the Krasnodar and Stavropol territories and the Republics of Adygeya and Karachay-Circassia.
The opening of the Yuzhny and Adygeya distribution centres has created over 240 new jobs in the region.
© 2016 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Martha Sparrius. To subscribe to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine, click here.


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With bitcoin currency currently sitting at above $8,000, there have been reactions and talks about the coin’s ability to maintain the price level and break through. Speaking on a CNBC panel on May 15, 2019, two analysts predict that bitcoin’s fatigue could possibly cause a price pullback despite its current surge.
Bitcoin Price Could Fall Back to $6,000
The current surge in bitcoin price caused a stir in the crypto community, after suffering an 80% market correction in 2018. With the ice of the 2018 crypto winter finally melting, analysts and enthusiast alike are already predicting high figures for the number one virtual coin.
Commenting on the current price surge, Anthony Grisanti of ERZ Energy who is foreseeing a price pullback said:
“We had rallied above [key resistance] but then failed on two different occasions. [Bitcoin] has doubled in the last five months, so I would expect a bit of a pullback, and on the downside, there’s a very interesting gap there, from $6,870 to $6,425.”
Grisanti further states that if traders start showing interest in profit-taking beyond $7000, it could cause a downward strain on the bitcoin price movement. However, the continuous bearish attitude from CNBC would most likely cause a surge in price growth instead of a pullback.
Lightning Network Makes Bitcoin Adaptability Easier
Bob Iaccino of Path Trading Partners also stated that there was a reason behind the surge in bitcoin. Traders who bought during the market dip in 2016 and sold at the peak of 2018, are back to the virtual currency market. According to Iaccino, the bitcoin boom is as a result of the application known as the Lightning Network (LN).
In Iaccino’s words:
“I do believe I know part of the reason why [Bitcoin is booming],


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Coleraine Business Improvement District has welcomed Regatta to the town centre.
Founded in Manchester in 1981, the outdoor clothing and leisure company has given shoppers a huge choice in quality outdoor wear and equipment for decades.
Regatta’s Coleraine store opened this weekend, just in time to help kit out shoppers this Spring. Regatta’s range of waterproof jackets, walking trousers, warm fleece, hard wearing walking boots, tents and more, are perfect for any outdoor adventure planned this year.
CBID manager, Jamie Hamill said "We warmly welcome the Regatta team to Coleraine Town Centre.
"This is another significant national brand offering high-quality outdoor clothing and I have no doubt that the new store will be an immediate hit with the thousands of town centre visitors who love the outdoors and adventure.
"Along with a number of new independents who have opened in Coleraine, this is a further boost to the main shopping destination town of the Causeway Coast and Glens."


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Written by: Victoria Broehm | March 29, 2022
Ahh the Golden State – California. A state known for its picturesque beaches, its tall redwood trees and its laid-back West Coast style. It is also known for its active and connected grassroots networks that lobby for ballot initiatives aimed at chipping away at U.S. production agriculture, with little benefit to animal health and welfare, but at a huge cost to farmers and consumers.
Take, for example, Proposition 12, which passed the state with a large majority in November 2018, with implementation, set to take place Jan. 1 of this year, currently stalled. The ballot initiative was billed to California voters as the “humane” thing to do – to make all pork sold in the state come from sows that farrowed pigs in housing structures with at least 24 square feet of floor space – without scientific justification for doing so. Given the intricacies of the law, however, it only results in about 680,000 sows across North America (representing roughly 9% of pork sold in North America) getting more space, at a huge expense to farmers and processors outside of California and California consumers.
“If proponents would have been more concerned about animal welfare, they would encourage California to pay farmers directly to make the changes to sow housing, and not put the charge on consumers for cuts of meat,” explained Daniel Sumner, distinguished professor of agricultural economics at the University of California, Davis, at the American Feed Industry Association’s recent Purchasing and Ingredient Suppliers Conference. “That could have a much bigger impact on the space available to the hogs.”
Sumner explained that Proposition 12’s rules apply specifically to sows farrowing pigs for uncooked cuts of pork (e.g., pork chops, uncooked bacon, uncooked ham) sold in the state and not other pork (e.g., ground pork, sausages), cooked pork (think: lunchmeat pork in a can) or products mixed with other meats or ingredients (e.g., hot dogs). What California voters may not understand is that all this other pork (about 40% of pork consumed in the state) may come from pigs farrowed by sows in housing systems as they currently stand.
He goes on to explain that the law is affecting the whole supply chain for pork, given its extensive rules on segregation and traceability and that about 10% of North American pork is sold to California buyers.
The law makes it so that “any businesses in the pork supply chain handling pork destined for California must comply with California rules and assure that no non-compliant pork products get into the California market,” Sumner explained, and achieving this has “costs that are not trivial.” For example, he explained that we could see situations where half the pork processing facilities will process products bound for other markets on Mondays, and then need to do a complete clean out to segregate products from farms not required to be in compliance with the law before processing pork for California on Tuesday. Tracing products through the system would result in cumbersome challenges as well. Feed costs could increase as well, given sows in group housing use more feed, but overall pork consumption will fall.
By his estimates, the additional processing and marketing costs will raise retail prices for uncooked pork cuts by 7% (or roughly 24 cents a pound) for California consumers, which he expects could reduce purchases by about 6%. All the while, if you instead took the additional money Californians will pay for uncooked cuts of meat and instead provided that directly to U.S. farmers, it could result in a broader impact – with another 2 million sows having more space versus the 680,000, he explained.
Unfortunately, incentivizing farmers to change their production practices is not the end goal of animal rights extremist organizations. Selling legislation to consumers as a means of effecting broader protections for animals is part of a broader strategy to end animal agriculture altogether, making animal-based foods more expensive, thus less desirable, for American families.
“They start with ballot initiative campaigns targeting states with little of the production in question,” said Hannah Thompson-Weeman, vice president of strategic engagement at the Animal Agriculture Alliance, as is the case with California, which imports nearly all of the pork it consumes. “Another strategy is to start at the local level – by getting towns to pass resolutions or ordinances or states to pass ballot iniatives, it establishes a precedent for them to push for more.”
These groups then use the positive momentum to push for changes in other states, creating a patchwork of rules and regulations for the industry to abide by.
Thompson-Weeman said that the feed industry needs to take California’s Proposition 12 as a warning that these groups could push for legislation targeting animal feeding practices in the future. She advised attendees to stay informed about what’s happening at their local and state levels and build proactive relationships with legislators now, such as hosting them for tours, so they are viewed as a reliable resource.
It is up to the industry to continue share its story so that these groups, with no connections to agriculture, do not succeed in taking safe, nutritious and sustainable food options off Americans’ plates.


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Televisions fans can watch the 67th Annual Emmy nominations live online and find out all the nominees while getting some expert commentary.
The live streaming video is offered through Yahoo, the digital partner of the Television Academy. The broadcast will start Thursday at 11:20 a.m. ET (8:20 a.m. PT) and include commentary from Yahoo TV Editor-in-Chief Kristen Baldwin and Critic-At-Large Ken Tucker. The event will be hosted by Brianna Golodryga, Yahoo's global correspondent.
Fans who watch the 2015 Emmy nominations live online will see some exciting competitions, including a heavy-hitting newcomer making a bid for Best Drama. While established hit shows like Game of Thrones and Mad Men are expected to be nominated, many also believe the Breaking Bad spin-off Better Call Saul will also get a nomination (a full list of Inquisitr's predictions can be found here).
While there are some clear frontrunners, the road to the nominations is always bumpy and there are often snubs.
"The Emmy bylaws – the rules and regulations surrounding the event – can read like a strange artifact from an earlier time, though there have often been updates that offset some of — though not all of — TV's evolution," Entertainment Weekly noted. "Still, Emmy rules (which are fascinating to read if you have the time or stamina) often result in so many beloved shows and performances being snubbed."
As Yahoo noted, those watching live online will have a full slate of television award drama:
Those who want to watch the 2015 Emmy nominations live online will have a few options. It can be seen through Yahoo TV along with the Yahoo Screen App, which is available for both iOS and Android and through devices including Apple TV, Roku and Xbox.
[Picture by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images]


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Telltale Games is bringing The Walking Dead: Season 2 to nearly every platform imaginable, which means a lot of people are struggling to keep the release date secret. But it looks like the people who run Steam and Microsoft’s Major Nelson aren’t very good secret keepers as both have leaked the release date for Episode 1.
The game’s Steam page has confirmed that The Walking Dead: Season 2 Episode 1 – All That Remains will be available for download on December 17. Thanks to the Major, we also know that the Xbox Live Arcade edition will follow on December 18. Sony has been tightlipped about The Walking Dead: Season 2, but it’s a safe bet that the game will be added to the PlayStation Store on December 17 as well (a Tuesday, which is the online storefront’s regular update day).
The only question that remains is the release date for the iOS and Vita versions. Oh, also, do you think is Telltale readying a release of The Walking Dead: Season 2 on the PS4, Xbox One, and Wii U? That’s a good question to ask too.


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Don’t get excited, because the GeForce RTX 3060 is coming soon and will definitely sell out before you can buy it.
It’s no secret that Nvidia was working on a GeForce RTX 3060 card priced at $ 330, well below the rest of the line. While it is the weakest card in the RTX 3000 series, the fact that it falls into this category speaks volumes about its potential. And now, the company has announced that this card will hit stores on February 25. Are you interested in one like this? If you have contacts abroad, you can do the pre-sale from 12 pm on the 25th.
The GeForce RTX 3060s are designed to continue the RTX 1060s, which are Jurassic today. It will have 12GB of GDDR6 memory, DLSS and the capabilities to support the applications that Nvidia has made for the 3000 line. It looks like a card that, without costing too much, could give the computer power that will serve you for a long time. Compared to paying $ 350 and paying $ 1500, the first option is always going to sound much more attractive.
However, here comes the inevitable part of these conversations: the RTX 3060 is going to sell out quickly. All, the previous cards in this series are instantly sold out. And Nvidia responded by stating that the supply would remain low throughout the quarter. So don’t expect this situation to change until the end of April. It’s chaos and those who benefit the most are the resellers.
With the depletion of cards and the absurd prices of the new consoles, getting into gaming has never been so expensive. Hopefully the year ends with a world where getting all these parts and devices is easier. Until then, we will have to survive on our old cards.


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Bella Hadid has landed her first major beauty contract with Dior.
The House of Dior announced the news as the 19-year-old makes an appearance at today's Cruise Collection 2017 show at Blenheim Palace. In her new role as make-up ambassador, Hadid will appear in a series of web videos alongside Peter Phillips, Dior Make-Up's creative and image director, the first of which will be released on 6th June.
Having previously walked for the likes of Chanel, Givenchy and Miu Miu, Hadid is no stranger to working with fashion houses, but has yet to front a beauty campaign. The year 2016 has so far been the year in which Hadid began to make as much a name for herself as older sister Gigi, who is currently a face of Maybelline.
The younger Hadid's red carpet appearance in Alexandre Vauthier at Cannes earlier this month ensured she found herself on the radar of anyone who had until that point missed her off. Hadid has more recently been in Italy shooting for Vogue Japan alongside Irina Shayk.
The new Dior series, 'Dior Makeup Live with Bella Hadid' will feature Hadid telling all regarding her favourite items. For anyone looking to pick up tips...


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Young Thug Announces Partnership with Luc Belaire for New Luxe Rose – Details Here!
Young Thug in addition to the premiere of his Young Stoner Life Record label and its premiere compilation project, Slime Language, has signed a new partnership deal with, Luc Belaire. Through the deal, Young Thug has launched a strawberry flavored Belaire Luxe Rosé which comes in a crystal bottle. Young Thug is represented by United Talent Agency, who brokered the deal on his behalf.
“Belaire have consistently supported the culture,” Young Thug said. “I’ve been friends with Brett Berish [CEO of Sovereign Brands for Luc Belaire] for a while, and we’ve been talking about doing something together for a couple years and then we finally linked up. As a businessman, I took a look at the fact that I was drinking other people’s stuff who really don’t care nothing about us and never cared to support us.”
Wasting no time in getting the new drink out there, Luc Belaire has already released a new commercial for the Luxe Rosé bottle. Check it out below.
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Pagely, a WordPress hosting and support service for enterprise, public sector and media companies, has been acquired by GoDaddy, an all-in-one website building platform and one of Arizona’s most successful tech startups.
The companies haven’t disclosed the terms of the deal, but both companies are excited about the acquisition.
“Pagely possesses the platform, expertise and reputation to help us extend that mission to the WooCommerce ecosystem, creating the next generation of managed commerce,” said GoDaddy President Osama Bedier.
GoDaddy plans to use Pagely’s platform and cloud resources to build a WooCommerce SaaS platform designed to provide quality services like site reliability, scalability and security, among other things. WooCommerce, a leading open-source eCommerce software, is used by 94% of WordPress eCommerce stores.
Tucson-based Pagely is confident it can live up to the challenge.
“We proved our way worked as a revenue funded, successfully founder-led company sticking to our core values — that employees and customers are the most important stakeholders. GoDaddy is investing in that ethos today,” said Sally Boldt-Strebel, co-founder and COO of Pagely.
Meanwhile, the deal also allows for Pagely to continue to offer its Managed WordPress services.
“Pagely gets to do more of what we’re good at. More of the things our customers love, with the greater operational scale and vast product catalog provided by GoDaddy,” said Joshua Strebel, co-founder and CEO of Pagely. “We look forward to helping bring this new WooCommerce specific platform to market and continuing to be a leader in the vibrant WordPress ecosystem.”


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The New FTC Debt Settlement Rules -Loopholes To Be Aware Of Before You Sign Anything
Since 2010, the FTC has updated the rules that debt relief companies are expected to follow. Many of the changes have been positive. Debt relief companies are no longer allowed to charge up-front fees according to the FTC. They are forbidden from providing dishonest information about previous successes and are required to offer honest advertising.
Unfortunately, many debt relief companies have found loopholes in the laws. These loopholes make it possible for them to completely avoid following the rules. Some of these companies are now exploiting these. They want to line their pockets with profit – much to the dismay of their customers.
Here are some of the loopholes that these companies are now exploiting. Make sure that you are aware of these potential failings. Do your research before working with any company that offers debt services.
Be Wary of Legal Fees
Debt relief companies cannot charge legal fees under the new rules. However, this rule only applies if the sales pitch for the services comes over the phone. In response to this, many of the credit relief companies are now sending people out in person to attempt to sell their services door to door. In other cases, they will meet up with potential customers at coffee shops like Starbucks and Dunkin Donuts.
Because of the fact that the conversation is taking place in person, instead of over the phone, the law doesn’t prevent the companies from charging legal fees. This, of course, breaks the spirit of the rule and is evidence that legitimate companies certainly don’t need to charge upfront legal fees in order to stay in business.
Taking Advantage of Surveys
As with the previous example, many of the rules revolve specifically around telemarketing. Businesses are finding clever ways around this, and they don’t necessarily have to send somebody in person to accomplish it. One way is by claiming that the conversation is for survey purposes, rather than for telemarketing. They are doing this as they are regulated by two federal statutes. SBA shares that these are the Telephone Consumer Protection Act of 1991 (TCPA) and the Telemarketing Sales Rule (TSR).
They can get away with this because, instead of calling the target, they send them a text message asking if they would like to take part in a survey. Once the debtor agrees to the survey, the debt settlement company no longer needs to abide by the telemarketing rules. Many of these con artists will ask for as much as 10 percent of the total debt before they “help” the customer.
Once again, this gets around the telemarketing laws because the conversation is not taking place over the phone. The government borrowed this tactic from the illegal gambling industry. They exploited a similar loophole until the Department of Justice can down hard on the industry.
The new FTC rules only limit what debt settlement companies are allowed to say over the phone. This allows them to effectively charge whatever they want or make false claims without being held liable. Avoid working with any company that attempts to set up a debt settlement plan over the internet. Something this sensitive should not be done through an internet chat unless you explicitly asked to do so. Be especially wary if the company refuses to set up the plan over the phone or through the mail.
To get around the upfront fee rules, some settlement companies are instead charging fees for merchandise. They may require you to purchase books, CDs, or videos and charge a highly inflated price for these materials. The merchandise serves no genuine purpose and is really just a stand-in for the upfront fees that the businesses used to charge. Legitimate debt settlement companies do not charge for information about settling debt, and many of them provide free resources during their meetings or online.
Avoiding the Laws Entirely
Unfortunately, the FTC has not come down hard on these companies and has only filed lawsuits against two of them. For this reason, it’s not necessarily safe to assume that a debt settlement company is following the rules. This is true even if they are speaking with you over the phone. Always do your research before working with a settlement firm.


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Nintendo has announced a new Nintendo Direct presentation for tomorrow, April 1st. The presentation will air at 3pm Pacific time, which translates to 6pm Eastern time for those on the east coast.
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Since Jason won't be available for Class vs Crass, I've decided to make a new episode of Nintendo Rants! Join me as I share my scathing thoughts on people saying the Wii U is now
Yesterday Nintendo fans received word that The Legend of Zelda for Wii U was slipping to a 2016 release date. This came as a bit of a shock, but not necessarily a surprise, to Nintendo
When it was announced that the Wii U would have "unprecedented 3rd party support" during the initial E3 presentation, many gamers were interested to see if more mature IP's would end up coming to the
Amiibo has taken the Nintendo world by storm by adding additional ways to interact with games, along with being a cool collectible. When amiibo Party was announced by Nintendo for Mario Party 10,
Developer POWGI has announced Word Search, a new puzzle game based off of the word search puzzles from elementary school. The game has more than 300 puzzles that are man made rather than computer generated.
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Famitsu DS + Wii has revealed that it will be revealing a brand new 3DS and Wii U title next issue. Supposedly, the new game will have Mario-like potential to sell both


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Leading Prosecco producer Sandro Bottega has released a cookbook featuring 100 different recipes that pair well with the Italian sparkling wine.
Called The 100 Prosecco Recipes, the 192-page tome, published by Mondadori, has been released in English and Italian.
The book takes readers on a journey through the Prosecco hills, and includes recipes for all dining occasions, from apéritifs to desserts, alongside Sandro’s food stories from the northern Italian region.
With an emphasis on simplicity, the recipes are a reflection of the land and the seasonal ingredients from Valdobbiadene and the Veneto.
With the book, Bottega wanted to pay homage to the people who live in the Prosecco region and have created and preserved its culture.
Bottega told db last month that he would like to change consumer mindsets with regards to how Prosecco is consumed.
“Prosecco is something you can drink throughout a meal, not just as an apéritif. It can be enjoyed with everything from pasta and pizza to barbeque food.
“We always drink Prosecco with food in northern Italy, and enjoy it throughout a meal. But in other parts of the world it’s treated more as an apéritif.
“I don’t want people to only drink it like a beer after work – the best way to enjoy a Prosecco is during a meal, and it has a great ability to refresh the palate between dishes. We have to educate consumers and teach them to enjoy Prosecco with food,” he said.


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UPS (UPS), CyPhy Begin Testing Urgent Commercial Delivery-Focused UAVs
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UPS® (NYSE: UPS) announced today that it has begun testing the use of drones to make commercial deliveries of packages to remote or difficult-to-access locations, working together with drone-maker CyPhy Works.
Testing began on Thursday when the companies staged a mock delivery of urgently needed medicine from Beverly, Mass. to Children’s Island, which is about three miles off the Atlantic coast. The drone flight advances an investment made by The UPS Strategic Enterprise Fund in CyPhy to gather information about drone uses and capabilities.
“Our focus is on real-world applications that benefit our customers,” said Mark Wallace, UPS senior vice president of global engineering and sustainability. “We think drones offer a great solution to deliver to hard-to-reach locations in urgent situations where other modes of transportation are not readily available.”
Last month, the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), issued new rules that expanded the uses of drones in commercial applications. Operators must adhere to important safety regulations. UPS believes these new rules are a step in the right direction. With the recent appointment of Captain Houston Mills, UPS Airlines’ director of safety, to the FAA’s new drone advisory committee, UPS intends to keep working closely with regulators to stay on the right path.
Innovation through automation and robotics has long been a focus for the world’s largest package delivery company. In fact, UPS has been testing drones in warehouses to check high storage racks to confirm stock or available space. The company also is exploring the use of drones to deliver humanitarian aid in hard-to-reach parts of the world.
“We’re thrilled to partner with UPS in this endeavor,” said Helen Greiner, CyPhy’s founder and chief technology officer. “Drone technology used in this way can save lives and deliver products and services to places that are difficult to reach by traditional transit infrastructures.”
The CyPhy drone used in Thursday’s test is the Persistent Aerial Reconnaissance and Communications (PARC) system. The battery-powered drone flies itself, so very little user training is required. It is extremely durable, has night vision and features secure communications that cannot be intercepted or disrupted.
UPS and CyPhy flew the PARC from Beverly to Children’s Island to test the viability of using the drone to make a time-critical delivery. In the mock scenario, the drone successfully carried an asthma inhaler to a child at a camp on the island, which is not reachable by automobile.
“UPS has a history of innovation that reaches back more than a hundred years,” Wallace said. “UPS uniformed employees remain a vital connection to our customers, but tests like these reveal a bridge to the future of customer service and urgent package delivery. We are continuously exploring ways to improve our network to efficiently support our customers’ demanding requirements.”
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The 2018 budget contains positive measures for SME exporters, but there’s still more to be done, says Heath Baker, head of policy at the Export Council of Australia (ECA).
Mr Baker says overall the budget is an incremental step forward for Australian exporters, not a major leap.
“The government has rightly been a champion of trade and has trumpeted its achievements in signing FTAs (Free Trade Agreements),” Mr Baker said.
“But if you want to grow trade, FTAs are only part of the answer. This budget goes some way to addressing SME exporters’ other needs – but there’s still more to be done.”
The ECA has welcomed the $20 million allocated to establish an SME export hubs program, as well as extending funding for the export growth centres.
“These programs should help many SMEs make the jump into international business and we look forward to seeing the detail,” Mr Baker said.
Funds to develop new national brand
As announced in the budget, the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade’s (DFAT) economic diplomacy efforts will receive a valuable injection of $15 million. This will go towards expanding FTA outreach, helping businesses better access DFAT’s economic and security insights, as well as developing a strategy to address the “non-tariff measures” that stop businesses from exporting.
Austrade has received a small boost, including $3.2 million to develop a new national brand.
But future budgets will need to commit significant money to implementing this brand if it has any chance of succeeding, says Mr Baker.
The government will also allocate funds to employ six new food and agriculture counsellors.
“Australia’s offshore agricultural counsellors play an essential role in facilitating trade in food and agriculture – adding six new counsellors is a wise investment,” said Mr Baker.
“We also welcome additional funding for initiatives to increase agricultural access in key markets.”
Port Botany upgrade
Getting goods out of Australia should become a little easier with additional infrastructure spending, including the $400 million Port Botany line duplication.
“There’s also a $10.5 million commitment to complete a business case for a ‘single window’ for international trade – but this is slow progress given that implementing a single window was a 2016 election commitment,” Mr Baker said.
The government has also announced tighter security at airports throughout Australia, which could complicate exporters’ supply chains, he said.
“While exporters accept the need to ensure aviation safety, these measures need to be implemented in a business-friendly way, and supply chain participants will need adequate time to adjust.”
No additional funding for EMDG scheme
On the downside, the Export Market Development Grant is still underfunded.
“This blunts some of the good measures in place to grow exports, as new exporters will only be able to fully realise international opportunities if they invest in building their brands overseas,” said Mr Baker.
“Underfunding EMDG means they will lack the certainty and confidence to fully commit to building their brands.”
The ECA’s 2018 trade policy recommendations highlight practical steps the government can take to increase the number of SMEs exporting and the value they export. You can read the ECA’s recommendations here.
The ECA is the leading industry body focused on Australia’s international businesses, particularly small to medium-sized enterprises. Its core activities include research, advocacy, skills development and events.


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Greenlea Premier Meats, a family business in the heart of the Waikato, had the ambition to take on the big players in the industry with an innovative approach to meat processing while giving back to their community.
Managing director Tony Egan says the company was founded by his uncle Peter Egan 21 years ago, with Greenlea’s first meat processing plant opening in Hamilton in 1993. A second plant was opened in Morrinsville in 1997.
“We got started in the Waikato because there was a demand for beef processing here,” he says.
“We saw an opportunity with the growth of the beef industry in the Waikato and the upper North Island in general. We had a view that bigger competitors were not providing the level of service farmer suppliers wanted.
“We wanted to take a modern approach to meat processing, with new techniques and new technology.”
The plants currently process more than 200,000 cattle and 100,000 calves, and employ 425 staff. Greenlea export more than 300 types of beef products to more than 40 countries.
“As we’ve grown we’ve become more focused on innovation – our aim is to be the most progressive meat processor in the business. This has opened opportunities to do things differently.”
The industry faces its fair share of challenges, so Mr Egan says it is vital the business can survive the highs and the lows.
“I think the market, currency and the competing proteins in other parts of the world create challenges, and these go in cycles. It’s important for us to have a business model that can weather any storm and survive.
“ASB has been there from the very beginning. Back then ASB was not associated with the meat processing industry, so they’ve learnt with us. We’ve built growth and performance together. The relationship has been about doing the business properly and creating confidence that we know what we’re doing.”
Egan says the ambition for the future is to continue to make positive progress.
“We want to be relevant to our farmer suppliers with initiatives that ensure we keep clear blue water between us and our competitors.”
It’s also important for the family company to give back to the community, Mr Egan says.
“One of the more recent initiatives we’ve had has been the Greenlea Foundation Trust, which supports the community and charities, such as KidsCan and the Greenlea Rescue Helicopter (which services the Taupo and Central Plateau regions). The trust also offers scholarships.
“We've had a lot of support from the community so it is important that we give back.”
For more stories of ambitious ASB customers make sure you follow us on LinkedIn.


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A Los Angeles federal judge ordered the Web site ParisExposed.com – which was offering a peek of Paris Hilton’s personal items – to be temporarily shut down on Friday.
The site, which launched on Jan. 23, let visitors view the heiress’s bank records, personal diaries and home videos for a $39.97 fee.
The judge issued the temporary shut-down “because the site violated my client’s right to privacy and was a copyright infringement,” according to Hilton’s lawyer, Howard Weitzman. “The owner of the site, (Bardia Persa), has an opportunity on Feb. 16 to contest the order. He can either do it in writing or orally in court. If he doesn’t show up, or the judge isn’t swayed, the order can turn into a permanent injunction.”
The site claimed the items were auctioned off after Hilton failed to pay the rent on a Los Angeles-area storage facility.
Last week, Hilton sued over the site, claiming that the items went into the 6,000-sq.-ft. storage unit two years ago when she and her sister, Nicky, 23, moved out of a house that had been burglarized.
Gregory Korn, a lawyer for Hilton said in the filing: “Unscrupulous individuals can use such information to steal Hilton’s identity, or even worse, to stalk and even physically harm Hilton.”
The lawsuit alleges that defendants Nabil and Nabila Haniss of Culver City, Calif., paid $2,775 for Hilton’s items and then sold them for $10 million to entrepreneur Persa, creator of Parisexposed.com.
Persa did not return calls for comment.


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NEW YORK (AP) — Chocolate and candy maker The Hershey Co. is acquiring Amplify Snack Brands for $1.2 billion as it ventures into the healthy snack aisle.
The boards of both companies have agreed on the deal in which Hershey will acquire all outstanding stock of Amplify for $12 per share in cash. The deal is expected to close in the first quarter of 2018.READ MORE: Isaias Perez Arrested In Connection With Alleged Dallas Road Rage Shooting
Amplify, which makes Skinny Pop popcorn, Tyrrells potato chips and Oatmega protein bars, was founded in 2014 and is based in Austin. The company has about 600 employees.READ MORE: One Dead After Wrong Way Crash On I-30 In Fort Worth
Shares in Amplify, which closed at $7 on Friday, jumped more than 70 percent, to nearly $12, in premarket trading on news of the deal.MORE NEWS: NTTA Completes Hwy 121, Sam Rayburn Tollway Project
(© Copyright 2017 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)


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NARROWSBURG, NY — At a time when nothing feels like usual, Joan Santo is continuing to operate her store, Narrowsburg Proper, to provide “a sense of normalcy for the friends and visitors of Narrowsburg.”
Narrowsburg Proper was opened as specialty shop, but Santo said she restructured her business model when residents began asking her to carry more staple supplies, becoming a “not so general, general store” for the community. During this global pandemic, Santo said she is taking things “day by day,” while also taking extra safety precautions to keep the store safe and clean.
“Our hearts go out to all the shop owners who can’t be open during this time,” she said. “I’m trying my best to just be there for the town.”
Santo is asking customers to call in their orders ahead of time and to check the store’s Instagram account—which is updated daily—to see what’s in stock. Customers can reach the store by calling 845/252-5099. The store is open Tuesday through Sunday.


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Dec 07, 2012, 09.42 AM | Source: PTI
State-owned NMDC today said it has kept this month's iron ore prices unchanged for all categories after reducing them in the last two months.
"We have decided to keep the prices of iron ore lumps and fines unchanged," NMDC's acting chairman C S Verma told reporters.
In the last 2 months, the largest domestic iron ore producer had cut prices between by up to 11 per cent for both categories, lumps and fines.
Accordingly, average price for iron ore lumps with 65 per cent iron content are hovering around Rs 5,400 per tonne. Similarly, average price of fines, which have iron content of less than 60 per cent, are at Rs 2,600 per tonne.
However, the company has reduced premium on direct calibrated lumps from 15 per cent to 10 per cent, Verma said, declined to comment further.
Iron ore lumps and fines are vital steel making raw material and most of the Indian steel makers use lumps for their operations.
The two price revisions, of October and November, had come after various domestic steel firms and industry associations had complained to the Steel Ministry of NMDC misusing its dominant position in the domestic market.
The iron ore producer was accused of charging higher prices from the domestic firms, while exporting at lower rates as it had hiked the prices by 8 to 13 per cent for the July- September period, when international prices were down.
A nearly 15 per cent fall in company's net profit as well as in sales during the last quarter was also one of the reasons behind NMDC's decision to rationalise the prices in last two months.
NMDC stock price
On February 09, 2016, NMDC closed at Rs 84.70, up Rs 1.35, or 1.62 percent. The 52-week high of the share was Rs 146.15 and the 52-week low was Rs 76.60.
The company's trailing 12-month (TTM) EPS was at Rs 12.01 per share as per the quarter ended September 2015. The stock's price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio was 7.05. The latest book value of the company is Rs 81.55 per share. At current value, the price-to-book value of the company is 1.04.
NMDC high grade ore prices unchanged at Rs 1,800/tonne
"The prices of iron ore with effect from February
India's top ports see a huge 38% decline in iron ore handling
Miners body FIMI said the iron ore exports have ta
EAC gives green signal to NMDC's pellet's plant in Chhattisgarh
The state-owned miner is in the process of setting
Bharathi S Sihag appointed as CMD of NMDC
NMDC Ltd has informed BSE that in terms of order d
Metals, a tough quarter; earnings bottoming out:ICICI Securities
Industrial recovery fragile, IIP may grow 0.8% in Dec: Ind-Ra
"Industrial recovery in December 2015 is likely to
Yash Papers standalone Dec '15 sales at Rs 46.51 crore
Yash Papers has reported a sales total income from
VST Tillers standalone Dec '15 sales at Rs 151.79 crore
VST Tillers Tractors has reported a sales total in


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UK: Coke teams with soccer star Rooney
Coca-Cola Great Britain is using footballer Wayne Rooney and his fiancée to plug two of its Coke brands in the UK.
The company said today (13 December) that a shot of Rooney, holding a can of Coca-Cola Zero, with Coleen McLoughlin, posing with a bottle of Diet Coke, will be projected in Piccadilly Circus in London this month.
"We've been blown away by the consumer response to Coca-Cola Zero and wanted to celebrate its success with two of the country's biggest stars," said Cathryn Sleight, marketing director with Coca-Cola Great Britain.
"Wayne and Coleen are great ambassadors for Coca-Cola Zero and Diet Coke alike and we hope the public agree they look amazing in these pictures."
The company is looking to push Coke Zero as a drink for males and Diet Coke for females going forward.
Coca-Cola and PepsiCo have been the fiercest of competitors for decades but the fact that their rivalry now extends to 'outgreening' one another could be good news for the environment, writes Annette ...
PepsiCo's CEO has admitted she made a mistake in not standing up against the pesticides-in-cola controversy....
The Coca-Cola Company has launched an extensive mobile marketing campaign for its Sprite brand....
The Coca-Cola Co.'s Mexican unit has been hit by a fine for monopoly practices in the country....
Coca-Cola Icecek has posted a strong lift in sales for its first quarter....
Coca-Cola GB has not been drawn on reports that it is in talks with Highland Spring, despite recent press speculation....
Coca-Cola FEMSA and The Coca-Cola Company have seen their plans to buy Mexican fruit juice company Jugos del Valle hit the buffers....
Coca-Cola North America has reintroduced Vanilla Coke to its 'sparkling beverage' line-up....
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For the last three years, Craft’d Company has been hosting in-person Beers with the Brewers events with Massachusetts breweries. The Boston-based business actually offers a variety of special event production services for beer festivals, taproom openings, popups and beyond, as well as services for promotional products, event staffing, online marketing and even themed bar trivia. Its most popular event, the aforementioned Beers with the Brewers, allows attendees to experience a local neighborhood’s best beers while learning the story behind the brews.
But with events and taprooms closed across the country, Craft’d Company has adapted its services to the current world of digital beer entertainment. Its new Virtual Beers with the Brewers offering now orchestrates live stream guided tastings, giving viewers the opportunity to learn about, interact with and support their breweries while giving breweries the ability to connect, market and sell some product.
To celebrate American Craft Beer Week this week, Craft’d Company is actually hosting two Virtual Beers with the Brewers events with some craft beer legends — Harpoon Brewery CEO and Cofounder Dan Kenary will be featured today, Tuesday, May 12, and Brooklyn Brewery Cofounder Steve Hindy will be featured tomorrow, Wednesday, May 13. It sure doesn’t hurt to have some star power to attract attendees when doing these.
“The virtual events have been successful because it’s still an intimate, one-on-one conversation with the brewer, but we’ll have up to 500 viewers tune in throughout the hour-long tasting,” said Craft’d Company Founder and CEO Christine Healy. “Even after the live tasting, viewers can grab the beers we’re talking about and go back to watch anytime on our social media pages. It’s a great interactive activity when you’re spending a lot of extra time at home.”
Leading up to each live stream, Craft’d Company typically announces four beers for the tasting so viewers can purchase the variety pack in advance and taste along at home. Since launching the virtual series on March 19, 2020, Craft’d Company has hosted live streams with over 30 breweries in Massachusetts and Rhode Island including Wormtown Brewery in Worcester and Foxborough, Mass., Jack’s Abby Craft Lagers in Framingham, Mass., Lord Hobo Brewing in Woburn, Mass., and Foolproof Brewing in Pawtucket, R.I. Anyone can purchase the featured beers and go back to the guided tasting at any point. All live streams are archived and can be viewed on Craft’d Company’s Facebook and Instagram pages.
Each live stream is hosted by Healy who tastes along with the brewers while asking questions about the story behind the brewery, brewing process and different beer styles. Live-viewers have the opportunity to ask their own questions directly to the brewers during the event as well. Of course, the most amazing part is probably the price.
“There’s no cost to the breweries to be involved. This is one way we can support the fantastic community of breweries we’ve worked with over the past few years in a devastating time,” said Healy. “We take on most of the heavy lifting from marketing each tasting upfront to archiving the videos and making those available to the breweries afterwards. We’ll be hosting with breweries throughout the Northeast soon and hope to expand beyond that eventually too.”


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May 13, 2019
Cattle and beef markets move past spring peaks
by Derrell S. Peel, Oklahoma State University Extension livestock marketing specialist
Fed cattle prices matched March seasonal peaks with another peak in late April but appear to be declining seasonally now. From the April peak just over $128/cwt., fed cattle prices this past week dropped to around $120/cwt., the lowest fed prices since last December. Choice boxed beef price peaked in late April at just over $233/cwt. and have since decreased $10/cwt. in the past two weeks.
The early round of summer grilling wholesale purchases for Memorial Day are past and middle meat prices are steady to weak with an apparent early first seasonal peak for some cuts, especially ribeyes. This may reflect widespread wet, cold weather across much of the country that is delaying summer beef demand. Boxed beef cutout values will likely strengthen again with July 4 buying commencing in middle to late May. Warmer summer weather should also boost beef demand seasonally in the coming weeks.
Part of the weakness in boxed beef prices is due to weaker end meat prices in the chuck and round. While end meat prices are typically weaker in the summer, current weakness, especially for chuck products may additionally reflect weaker export demand so far in 2019. Latest trade data for March show beef exports down 5.7 percent year over year, with reduced exports to Japan, Canada and Hong Kong while South Korea and Mexico continue to be growing markets for U.S. beef. For the first quarter, total beef exports were down 4.7 percent from one year ago. Growth in beef exports the past three years has been especially strong for products from the chuck. Current forecasts are for total beef exports in 2019 to be quite close to 2018 levels, barring any major changes in global trade policies.
Also in the latest trade data, beef imports were up in March by 6.3 percent year over year leading to first quarter beef imports up 2.3 percent thus far in 2019. Beef imports are up for major import sources including Canada, Australia and Mexico but are down sharply from New Zealand. Total beef imports in 2019 are currently projected to hold close to year earlier levels.
Beef production thus far in 2019 is up less than one percent as cattle slaughter, up 1.3 percent for the year to date, is partially offset by lighter average carcass weights. Steer and heifer carcass weights are declining seasonally but latest weekly carcass weights for both steers and heifers are above year ago levels.
Calf and stocker prices have dropped significantly after peaking in April. While good moisture conditions implies good forage prospects this summer, cooler than normal weather has delayed pasture growth. Calf prices generally decline from first quarter peaks to seasonal lows in the fall. Heavy feeder cattle prices, which seasonally grind higher from now until late summer, have also dropped recently. I suspect this is largely due to delayed feedlot marketings resulting from earlier winter weather combined with continuing wet, sloppy feedlot conditions. Heavy feeder prices will likely get back on seasonal track as feedlots catch up from earlier delays and feedlot pen conditions improve in the next few weeks.
Wet pastures and foot rot
by Glenn Selk, Oklahoma State University Emeritus Extension animal scientist
Spring rains have filled the ponds and saturated the ground in many pastures. As the temperatures heat up, cattle will start to congregate around or in the ponds or other standing water. One of the challenges that cattle producers may face this summer is the occasional lame cow or yearling. Foot rot is a common cause of lameness in beef cattle on pastures.
Foot rot is an infection that starts between the toes of the infected animal and usually is a result of the introduction of a bacteria through broken skin. The infection causes pain and the resulting lameness. The lameness can cause decreases in weight gain of young cattle, milk production decline of adult cows and lame bulls will be reluctant to breed.
Treatment of foot rot can be successful when the treatment is started early in the disease process. Most cases require the use of systemic antimicrobial therapy. Your local large animal veterinarian will advise you on recommended antibiotics and dosages for your situation. Severely infected animals that do not respond to initial treatments will need to be re-evaluated by the veterinarian and more involved treatments may be required to salvage the animal. There are other causes of lameness. Therefore a proper diagnosis is important before treatment begins.
Preventative measures revolve around prevention of mechanical damage to the foot. Recently brush-hogged weeds or brush stubble will often be very sharp and cut the skin between the toes allowing the entrance of bacteria. If possible, avoid forcing cattle to spend long periods of time standing in very wet lots or pastures. Utilizing a good mineral program that contains the micro minerals zinc, selenium, and copper will aid in disease prevention.
A three year study in Kansas has shown that zinc methionine added to a free choice mineral supplement reduced the incidence of foot rot in steers grazing summer pasture .
Because cattle inflicted with foot rot are commonly treated with antibiotics, it is critical that producers follow their veterinarian’s instructions and label directions precisely. Because these are individual treatment incidences, ranchers may tend to neglect to keep the proper records of the treatments. Record the date, the dosage, route of administration, the lot number of the antibiotic given and the person giving the treatment. Then observe the drug withdrawal times completely before marketing the animals that have been treated.


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Intel has acquired a stake in Jio Platforms, becoming the latest in a long line of overseas investors in Reliance Industries’ digital unit.
Reliance Industries has to date sold 25.09% of Jio Platforms, generating INR1.2 trillion – enough to erase the parent company’s debt.
US-based Intel Capital paid INR18.9 billion ($253.6 million) for a 0.39% stake in the unit, which delivers broadband and eCommerce services in India as well as operating mobile unit Reliance Jio.
Intel Capital president Wendell Brooks said: “We believe digital access and data can transform business and society for the better. Through this investment, we are excited to help fuel digital transformation in India, where Intel maintains an important presence.”