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TAMPA — Charles Calise decided to jump into the auto repair business while waiting for his car to be fixed.
"I was trying to get some work done in this decrepit waiting room with my laptop balanced on a metal folding chair that was held together with duct tape," recalled the 43-year-old former packaged goods industry executive. "It hit me that auto repair is among the last industries getting away with abusing its customers. As a marketing guy, I saw that as a point of difference."
Research told him motorists keep their cars longer. Two-thirds of all repair work is done at nondealer shops. Half the customers are women who think repair shops overcharged them for years.
So at his 2-month-old Signature Tire & Auto Care at 2205 W Kennedy Blvd., Calise is trying to one-up even the new car dealers who ladled on creature comforts.
• A no-kids-allowed business center equipped with a desktop computer, color printer, HDTV with a remote, free WiFi and easy chairs with laptop holders.
• A glassed-in kids play area outfitted with an Xbox, a toy kitchen, games, coloring books and HDTV tuned to the Disney Channel.
• Free coffee, tea, soda, juice boxes, bottled water and salty snacks.
• Picture windows with bar stools for customers who want to see every lug nut spun in the 12 service bays. Signature posts prices, pays mechanics by the hour rather than commission and limits mechanics to separate restrooms.
There's more. The bathroom countertops are granite. The tire display has its own room because not everybody likes the scent of rubber. Customers control the remote on a big-screen HDTV, which offers HBO channels.
Car repair was not a big step for Calise, who graduated from Citrus High near Inverness as the kid who drove the 1957 Chevrolet Bel Air, a 1964 Impala and a 1966 Mustang. He grew up in a family of car restorers led by a father, a former New York City sanitation foreman, whose spotless 1951 Nash Ambassador is displayed in a floor-to-ceiling photo at Signature.
Calise parlayed an MBA from Notre Dame into a brand management career at Kimberly Clark, the maker of Huggies diapers and Viva paper towels. He ventured out on his own two years ago after losing his Cott Corp. job when the Tampa soda bottler chose to stick with making store brands that mimic the big brands rather than dream up its own drinks.
He envisions two or three Signature stores, then franchising.
To be sure, Signature will live or die on its repair work, not the frills. So Calise recruited a 22-year service manager from Courtesy Nissan. He invested in diagnostic computers.
So far only half his customers use the waiting room. So staffers uses their own cars to ferry customers around until he gets a courtesy van.
Despite the extras, Calise insists he is not pandering to the premium market. He priced Signature in the middle of the aftermarket repair shops clustered along South Tampa's Gasoline Alley. Of the $2 million he spent transforming a former postal annex into an auto repair shop, only $45,000 of it went to waiting room extras.
"And we'll get that back in a year or two," he said.
The only drawback, he said, has been kids bellyaching when it's time to leave.
Signature struck a chord with Laurin Jacobson, owner of a Mercedes, a BMW and a Mini Cooper.
"I ditched all my car guys," said the 59-year-old teacher. "This waiting room is so nice I bring a book and just have a good time."
She got so caught up in the spirit she donated two dishes of hard candy and potted orchids to spiff up the service desk.
Mark Albright can be reached at email@example.com or (727) 893-8252.


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Zynga reportedly is one of the most successful gaming companies to rise in the last years. They gained huge amounts of notoriety based on massively successful games they have delivered for Facebook, such as Zynga Poker, FarmVille and Mafia Wars.
However, things aren’t too bright for the game developing company, as this month numerous investors are backing down from Zynga, in consequence of USA new money regulation on online gambling. Both Delaware and Nevada over the course of 2012 approved new online gambling regulations and just before the end of the year, New Jersey united to this motion.
The direct consequences of this casino news were that Zynga stock fell 3% last week. Even if these online casino regulations continue to appear, Zynga in no way would be facing closure. The game development company has many contracts and partnerships with fellow major gaming companies and could easily change up their preferred gaming platform to develop for.
Mafia Wars and Farmville already have a design done to let players play through the game without having to invest a single dollar, although to get extra items to build farms and mafias, credits are needed. Since the inception of both games, millions of dollars are being invested by players towards their Zynga games experience, probing the quality of the game developer.
New Markets and expert point of view
Zynga is already trying to get new licenses in order to expand their market. For this reason, they have applied for a Nevada license and they are also trying to get a license for the UK. With this they would began expanding to the international market. A spokesman of Zynga already expressed the desire of the developer to take the Zynga experience to every corner of the world.
This decline on the investor’s side is a direct consequence as we said, of the new regulations for online casinos and online gambling in general. Analysts expect this phenomenon to calm down in near years, as the online casinos scene reaches a point where it becomes fairly regulated, to both states and online casinos
An analyst shared with the media “I doubt the Zynga shares will drop for any extent of time. When investors start to figure out that Zynga will be right in the middle of this online gambling explosion in the US, the stock will regain traction at a rapid pace.”

domain: news


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Katrina to hurt GDP as petrol prices soar
US TREASURY Secretary John Snow now expects Hurricane Katrina to trim 0.5% from GDP growth this year.
'It would seem to make sense to think that we could see loss of GDP growth rate in the quarters ahead of half a percent or so,' he told reporters after meeting bank and financial regulators.
Rising fuel costs will be the main brake on growth, Snow said. Petrol soared to a record $3.07 (£1.67) a gallon but round-theclock
working has got nearly half the 20 refineries closed by the storm back in service, helping US light crude futures to ease 40 cents to $65.50 a barrel.
'There's been some good progress made,' said White House spokesman Scott McClellan. 'Major pipelines are up and running - two are fully up and running and two others are near capacity.'
However, Anglo-Australian resources giant BHP Billiton said today that it faces further delays in its efforts to restore production in the Gulf of Mexico.
• Chaucer and Beazley today became the latest Lloyd's insurers to quantify losses from Katrina. Chaucer expects a £35m bill, and believes the total damage done will amount to the 'largest single insured loss on record'.
Beazely said Katrina was likely to wipe £20m from its bottom line this year and cost it $50m (£27.2m) in total.
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Context is everything and in the case of San Francisco home goods retailer Batch, contextual commerce equals conversion.
The company, which recently opened its first showroom, aims to begin rollout of what founder and chief executive officer Lindsay Meyer called a hub-and-spoke model on future retail for the company, which aims to be a marketplace for beauty, home, art, electronics and food products.
That means Batch’s San Francisco space in a 101-year-old historic firehouse will ultimately serve as the hub showroom with future six- to eight-week pop-ups in the vicinity to be held in real residences. The first of those is likely to open by year’s end in San Francisco with expansion outside of the city as early as next year, Meyer said.
“Part of what’s catalyzed us is the growth and profile of e-commerce brands. Yet, if you talk to some of these entrepreneurs, they have a lot of success popping up in these physical locations,” said Meyer, who previously worked at home goods e-tailer One Kings Lane.
Batch is currently working with about 19 brands at a time with a new set of lines to be switched in every eight to 10 weeks. The current lineup is set to be in the showroom through Halloween and includes Parachute Home, Grown Alchemist, Voyage et Cie and Far & Wide Collective.
“If you shop at Pottery Barn or you shop at West Elm it’s a very singular kind of design perspective, but the beauty of Batch is we’re working with all these different brands,” Meyer said. “It’s all about the mix of high and low because that’s how people actually shop. Sometimes you buy sheets at Target, but you put them on a really good bed frame.”
The San Francisco showroom includes ground floor space totaling roughly 3,000 square feet with a mezzanine level that’s about 1,000 square feet. A portion of the space also serves as headquarters for Batch’s five employees.
Part of the premise on which Batch was built is in the concept of contextual commerce. That is, placing products in their relevant environments when presenting them to consumers. Being able to see and touch, for example, a $3,000 sofa or $5,000 rug, in a space that mimics the comforts of home, makes it easier to rationalize the buy some would say.
The company, which is aimed at Millennials, has won the attention of Montage Ventures with a seed round of less than $1 million closed right after Memorial Day. Montage has also invested in companies such as Carbon38 and Project September.
For More West Coast News in WWD:


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The cloud computing space is benefiting from widespread digital transformation. As people are working remotely and maintaining stringent social distancing measures, cloud businesses have been gaining popularity.
In the current scenario, wherein the coronavirus pandemic is turning from bad to worse, people have to maintain social distancing and work remotely. Therefore, most of the companies need to move bulk of their workloads to the cloud. On top of that, consumers have started to shop online due to coronavirus-induced lockdown. Thus, any consumer-oriented business needs to have a digital presence in order to survive.
Resultantly, cloud computing is emerging as a key technology to fight the battle against coronavirus. This technology is seeing higher usage globally as it allows data interoperability in a scalable, cost-efficient way by data collection, processing, analyzing and sharing across platforms.
Notably, Alibaba Group BABA has been making great efforts to expand cloud presence beyond its China stronghold.
Alibaba’s Cloud Momentum Continues
Recently, Alibaba partnered with Equinix EQIX in a bid to expand its cloud services to new markets.
In its latest step toward international expansion, Alibaba Cloud — the cloud computing arm of Alibaba Group — has partnered with data center and interconnection provider Equinix to offer its cloud services in 17 additional metros worldwide including Europe, America and Asia Pacific.
The deal will enable Alibaba to benefit from Platform Equinix’s robust interconnected ecosystem that consists of more than 9,700 customers.
Therefore, the deal will give Alibaba access to Equinix’s huge existing business customer base that consists of enterprises, network operators, cloud and IT service providers. It will now enable enterprises to connect more easily and privately to Alibaba Cloud.
The move will give Alibaba a competitive edge against rivals and further expand market share in the growing cloud market. We expect international expansion to back the momentum going forward.
Alibaba Poised for Growth
Alibaba’s cloud computing revenues have been surging over the past few years. Cloud computing has now become one of Alibaba’s fastest-growing initiatives beyond the traditional e-commerce sphere.
In April, the company announced that it will invest 200 billion yuan ($28 billion) in cloud infrastructure over the next three years. The amount invested will be used to develop technologies related to operating systems, servers, chips and networks.
In fiscal third-quarter 2020, the company’s cloud computing business segment reported revenues of RMB10.7 billion (US$1.54 billion), up 62% from the year-ago period. The increase was driven by higher revenue contribution from both public cloud and hybrid cloud businesses.
With the help of artificial intelligence (AI)-led technologies, Alibaba’s cloud unit is providing data on coronavirus and its diagnosis. Applications developed by cloud experts and researchers from the company’s subsidiary, DAMO Academy, are expected to provide the necessary support to medical professionals across the globe in combating the virus spread.
Moreover, it has been making all efforts to provide medical workers across the world with advanced cloud-based apps to help battle the coronavirus outbreak.
These steps taken by the company highlight the growing importance of the cloud business, which is likely to boost revenues in 2020.
Given the growing position of Alibaba’s cloud business in China and aggressive international expansion strategies, we believe that cloud computing will be one of the major growth drivers in the long run.
Notably, Alibaba currently carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
One-Year Price Performance
Alphabet, Amazon & Baidu Cloud Initiatives
Alphabet’s GOOGL Google Cloud is making every effort to further bolster presence in the cloud space. Recently, the company signed a long-term partnership with Deutsche Bank (DB), the largest bank in Germany.
Per the new alliance, Deutsche Bank will leverage Google’s cloud services to build technology-based financial products for clients and deliver enhanced cloud services. These financial products will be based on growing technologies like AI, data science and machine learning.
In April, Google announced first-quarter results, wherein the company’s cloud sales — which include Google Cloud Platform and G Suite — surged 52% to $2.77 billion from $1.83 billion a year ago.
Its G Suite collaboration and productivity tools — which include Gmail, Hangout, Calendar, Currents and Docs — have more than 6 million paying customers. Google Cloud’s annual revenue run rate is now more than $11.08 billion.
Meanwhile, Baidu BIDU recently announced plans to expand investments in emerging technologies like AI, cloud computing, 5G, IoT and blockchain, among others.
The China-based e-commerce giant plans to deploy 5 million intelligent cloud servers by 2030. In addition to this, it plans to train 5 million AI specialists over the next five years.
Markedly, Amazon AMZN is focused on strengthening the cloud computing division — Amazon Web Services (AWS). The e-commerce giant is leaving no stone unturned to expand AWS offerings in a bid to deliver enhanced cloud experience to customers.
In first-quarter 2020, AWS generated $10.2 billion sales, accounting for 14% of Amazon’s net sales. The company’s constant efforts toward reinforcing the cloud offerings portfolio in this data-driven world hold promise and instill investor optimism in the stock.
It is likely to sustain the dominant position in the global cloud computing space on the back of expanding clientele and services portfolio.
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ProgrammableWeb tracks the latest API news to keep you on top of the API economy
Searching: No Search Term , Filtered By Category: "Payments"
Apple Watch features Apple Pay which incorporates NFC technology for security, contact sensors and pin number for authentication of purchases.
BlueSnap's new Coupon and Bank Transfer APIs allow visitors to save with online shopping deals and purchase directly from their bank accounts.
The new Ziftr API will incorporate LiteCoin and other burgeoning digital currencies as supported payment options. Ziftr plan to release the ZiftrCoin currency in early 2015.
With GoGardless Pro, large scale businesses can now collect and receive recurring payments for subscriptions via direct bank deposits.


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Tourism ministers of the five countries under the Ayeyawady-Chao Phraya-Mekong Economic Cooperation Strategy (ACMECS), including Viet Nam, have agreed to cooperate more fully on responsible tourism, tourism marketing activities, and creation of more diverse tourism products.
|Tourists ride elephants in the Yok Don National Park in the Central Highlands province of Dak Lak. — VNA/VNS Photo Duong Giang|
The ministers from Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Viet Nam spoke on Thursday (September 7) at the 3rd Meeting of Tourism Ministers of countries under ACMECS in HCM City.
Nguyen Ngoc Thien, Viet Nam’s Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism, noted that last year, the number of international tourist arrivals in ACMECS countries reached 54.75 million, an increase of 5.29 per cent compared to the figure of 2015,
The number of intra-regional tourists was 8.95 million, accounting for 16.35 per cent of the total number of international tourists, a year-on-year increase of 5.04 per cent compared to 2015.
In October last year in Ha Noi, the tourism ministers adopted the Declaration of the 7th ACMECS Summit, while a Plan of Action on ACMECS Tourism Cooperation 2016-2018 was agreed in 2015.
Thien said that joint tourism promotion and marketing activities among the five countries include participation in international tourism events, travel fairs and exhibitions; and support from each country for road shows to promote intra-regional travel and organisation of familiarisation trips (FAM Trips) with travel agencies, investors and media agencies.
At the meeting, the ministers emphasised the significance of tourism product linkages promoted by ACMECS countries, particularly thematic multi-country tour programmes, including the Southern Coastal Corridor (Cambodia, Myanmar, Thailand and Viet Nam); Northern Heritage Trail (Laos, Thailand, and Viet Nam); Mekong Discovery Trail (Cambodia, Laos, Thailand and Viet Nam); Cruising the Mekong Delta; The Middle Path (Myanmar and Thailand); Golden Triangle Mekong River Cruising (Laos and Thailand); Route 8 (Laos, Thailand, and Viet Nam); and the East–West Corridor (Laos, Thailand, and Viet Nam).
Many activities have been held to develop specific tour programmes, including the first East-West Corridor Tourism Cooperation Meeting, and the first and second Meeting of the Southern Coastal Corridor, with technical tours in all provinces of Cambodia, Thailand and Viet Nam along the Corridor.
The Plan of Action on tourism cooperation from 2016 to 2018 will continue to emphasise connections among routes and corridors, as well as marketing activities and sustainable tourism.
The Plan also calls for promotion of major international forums and events in the region, particularly Cambodia Travel Mart 2017, Visit Laos Year 2018, ATF Thailand 2018 and ATF Viet Nam 2019.
The ministers said that ACMECS tourism cooperation in the “Five countries-One Destination” programme has been useful as it “brands the unique characteristics of the region”.
They urged the private sector to become more deeply involved in tourism public-private partnerships, and said that new internet-based applications for information exchange and marketing should be used more frequently.
22 million tourists
On the same day, the 4th Meeting of Tourism Ministers of four countries, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, and Viet Nam (CLMV), met and discussed travel facilitation, tourism-capacity building, involvement of the private sector and local communities, tourism product development, and tourism safety.
Last year, the number of international tourist arrivals in CLMV countries totalled 22.16 million while the number of intra-regional tourists was 2.79 million, accounting for 12.6 per cent of the total number of international tourists.
Visa procedures have been increasingly simplified, more direct flights connecting regional destinations have opened, and travel by land among regional destinations has become more convenient, according to the ministers from the four countries.
The CLMV promotes the East-West Corridor, Northeastern Corridor, Southern Coastal Corridor, and Southern Corridor as joint tourism products.
The ministers stressed that CLMV tourism cooperation should be more outcome- and action-oriented, and agreed that it was necessary to enhance coordination with other relevant sub-regional cooperation frameworks.
Thailand will host the 4th Meeting of ACMECS Tourism Ministers in 2019 and provide a venue and facilitation for the 5th Meeting of CLMV Tourism Ministers.
“For more than a decade, tourism cooperation among Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Viet Nam within the framework of ACMECS, including the ACMECS Tourism Cooperation Plan, has achieved significant economic results,” said Nguyen Thanh Phong, chairman of HCM City’s People’s Committee.
In the spirit of the “Five Countries – One Destination,” Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Viet Nam have developed tourism products, inter-connected tourism spots and regions, and invested in and upgraded tourism technical infrastructure, while preserving traditional cultural values and protecting the environment, Phong added.
HCM City, which is one of the hubs for economic activities and culture, takes pride in the annual increase of international visitors of over 10 per cent during the 2006-16 period, Phong said.
During this period, the number of foreign visitors to the city accounted for 56 per cent of the total number of international tourists to Viet Nam.
Tourism revenue in the city rose by 30 per cent per annum, making up 43 per cent of the total national revenue from tourism.
Last year, the city welcomed 5.2 million international visitors. The city’s tourism sector targets more than 10 million foreign tourists this year.
In the long run, the city is set to turn tourism into a leading-edge economic sector by 2020, creating momentum for socio-economic development among all sectors.


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Complaints about the cost of water services in England and Wales have soared by more than 150 per cent in the past 18 months, according to an industry watchdog.
Forty thousand smuggled cigarettes and other counterfeit goods have been seized after police and customs officers swooped on markets across Manchester.
Consumers are losing up to a billion pounds a year to mass-marketing fraudsters whose cons include falsely claiming you've won a prize - but must pay to get it.
The company behind the Crazy Frog ringtone craze has been rapped by a watchdog after parents complained that children were being tricked into running up huge bills.
A new scheme has been unveiled which aims to protect motorists from dodgy garages and rogue mechanics.
Appleand Motorola have announced the world's first mobile phone with iTunes.
British companies who illegally spam consumers' mobile phones with calls and messages have had their own wake-up call from a landmark case in the Irish courts.
Two motoring organisations are calling on Gordon Brown to tackle rising oil prices by radically changing the way the government collects tax on petrol.
Gardeners are being asked to look out for a Chinese, tree-destroying beetle after several were found in the UK.
A new study by Gardening Which? has found many exotic plants can weather even a bitingly cold British winter - with the right care.


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Thinking of leaving the daily commute behind to start that small cheese-making business of which you've always dreamed? Perhaps now is the right time to do so. After several tough years, the British economy is showing signs of recovery and small business owners are finding reasons to be cheerful.
According to the Federation of Small Businesses, confidence among small businesses in the U.K. is at an all-time high. Forty percent reported an increase in revenues for the third quarter of 2013, while 54 percent said they planned to expand over the next year.
This optimism is shared by leading U.K. entrepreneur, James Caan, who said he was encouraged by the government's positive attitude towards business start-ups.
"They've been encouraging the banks, they've been providing start-up capital, they're relaxing taxation," Caan told CNBC on Monday. "I would say, right now, if I was an entrepreneur, Britain would be the number one place I would look to start a business."
However, Mike Cherry, the policy chairman of the Federation of Small Businesses, called for more clarity in government policy.
"Government has helped 30,000 businesses through its support schemes in the past two years," Cherry told CNBC. "But new businesses would benefit from more unified and coherent support,as currently not all employers are aware of the help that is available to them."
There are also lingering concerns that big banks aren't lending enough to entrepreneurs. The Bank of England's most recent report on lending in the UK economy, Trends in Lending, was published in July 2013.
It showed that net lending to small and medium businesses was negative throughout 2012, and that while lending to businesses picked up in 2013, it was still less than loan repayments made by small to medium sized companies.
However, Hayley Conboy, head of enterprise at the Confederation of British Industry, a business lobbying group, argued that this had helped stimulate the provision of alternative finance sources, such as crowd funding sites, business angels and "challenger" banks.
"What we've seen after the financial crisis is that small-and medium-sized businesses were over-reliant on traditional forms of finance," Conboy told CNBC. "The fact that we're seeing a growth in alternative finance providers, and alternative finance options, is only a good thing. It's a positive that the U.K. is now diversifying the different types of finance available."
Consumers have a role to play too, and December 7 will see the UK.'s first "Small Business Saturday", when customers will be encouraged to get on their high street and support local independent businesses.
Amid the positivity and confidence, there is a note of caution to be struck. The U.K. economy is still in its early stages of recovery and small businesses should remain watchful, said Conboy.
"Any savvy business owner will be monitoring the markets, but our main message is a positive one," she said. "If you've got the right product, the right service and the right technology, then have the confidence and ambition to maximize and commercialize that right now, because support is available."


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Three of the buildings of the Mueller Corner shopping center will be demolished next week to make way for a couple of national chains.
One of those chains is a CVS pharmacy, as the Business Journal reported two weeks ago. Now we can tell you that the fast-food restaurant coming to the center at Fulton and Marconi avenues is McDonald’s.
Local developer Tim Taylor, who with partners, is in escrow to buy the 35,000 square-foot shopping center, said Tuesday that those three buildings will be torn down next week.
The demolition is part of a redevelopment project meant to pump new life into the site now occupied by the scattering of outdated buildings that have been rented primarily to smaller, local tenants.
Potter-Taylor & Co., which develops, brokers and manages commercial properties, is in escrow on the six buildings and 5 acres that make up Mueller Corner.
The Mueller family, longtime owners of the center, will keep 6 acres south of the retail buildings. That property is occupied by Sacramento Kia.
CVS plans to build a store of about 13,000 square feet. In an interview, Taylor declined to name the restaurant coming to Mueller Corner. But his company’s investor website reveals that the restaurant is McDonald’s, and that it has a ground lease.


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Edge Releases Expansive Suite of Updates
October 25, 2018 By: Payment Week
San Diego, CA –– October 25, 2018 –– Edge, the security platform and multi-asset mobile wallet, has announced a significant version update to Edge Wallet, which enhances user privacy while expanding users’ ability to securely buy, sell, and trade cryptocurrencies. The Version 1.4.0 update integrates leading exchanges Changelly and ShapeShift for additional currency support, and offers users the first decentralized crypto price hunting service. Additionally, the update makes Edge Wallet the first-ever multi-asset mobile wallet to support the sixth largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization, Stellar, as well as let users purchase XRP with a credit card.
Paul Puey, Edge CEO, said: “Our fundamental goal is to provide our community with the market’s most convenient platform for buying, trading, and storing cryptocurrency while maintaining optimal data security. Today’s update ensures Edge Wallet users have access to the most competitive trading options available and furthers our mission to build easy-to-use products with cutting-edge security and user privacy.”
Changelly will provide Edge Wallet users with access to additional coins including Stellar, ZCoin, and EOS. The update also supports ShapeShift membership so Edge users can access higher trade limits and rewards. Additionally, Edge Wallet’s newly launched crypto price hunting service will be the first-ever non-custodial, best-price hunting exchange service.
Ilya Bere, Changelly CEO, said: “At Changelly we are truly excited about this partnership as the main idea of simplicity and edge-security that forms the core of Edge’s ideology is very aligned to ours. Changelly support now gives Edge users the ability to exchange dozens of new cryptocurrencies including Stellar and Zcoin, two supported assets in Edge that were not previously supported without Changelly.”
Version 1.4.0 also includes a highly-requested feature: the ability for users to choose their preferred Electrum server node for connection to various currencies including bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Dash, Litecoin, and Qtum. This change gives users the option to select nodes that prioritize desirable features such as privacy, speed, proximity, and more.
The update will support new language options, including Spanish, Italian, Russian, and Portuguese to increase access to the Edge Wallet worldwide.
Edge is a security platform and multi-asset wallet offering privacy, autonomy, and protection, on personal mobile devices. Founded in 2014 as Airbitz, the edge-secure client-side encryption secures user private keys before ever leaving a personal device for the utmost decentralized wallet protection. Edge supports Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Ethereum, Dash, and other top cryptocurrencies. For more information, visit edge.app.


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Private sector lender ICICI Bank on Thursday announced the launch of a service enabling customers to make electronic payments from their smartphones at physical stores. It can also be used for e-commerce & other deliveries at home, radio taxis and utility billers among others, the bank said in a statement.
Based on ‘mVisa’, a new mobile payment solution from Visa, this service will enable users of ‘Pockets’ to make cashless payments from their smartphones using their debit card by simply scanning a ‘mVisa’ Quick Response (QR) code at a merchant location without swiping the card.
To use this facility, a customer is simply required to click on the ‘mVisa’ icon on the home screen of the ‘Pockets’ app. The app automatically activates the camera in the phone, allowing customers to scan the QR code and enter their debit card PIN.
Rajiv Sabharwal, executive director, ICICI Bank, said: “While there are 570 m debit cards in the country, there are only 1.1 million point-of-sale machines available for card payments. This restricts cashless payments to be made only at a certain category of merchants.” To start with, this facility has been introduced in Bengaluru with 1,500 merchants.


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Mail Online revenues up 27% as it maintains position as most popular English language newspaper website in the world
Revenues at Mail Online rose by more than a quarter while its parent company beat analyst expectations, it announced yesterday.
The Daily Mail and General Trust, which publishes the Daily Mail and The Mail on Sunday, saw revenues rise 1 per cent to £500million in its first-quarter trading update.
Its flagship website saw revenues climb by 27 per cent to £23million – partly offsetting a decline of 14 per cent, to £41million, in print advertising revenues.
Well read: Mail Online saw revenues climb by 27 per cent to £23m. The website has maintained its position as the most popular English language newspaper website in the world
Stephen Daintith, DMGT finance director, said: ‘We’re particularly pleased with the way the enthusiasm of American readers for Mail Online is turning into real money.
'Our US ad revenues were up 66 per cent in the quarter.’
Both the Daily Mail and The Mail on Sunday increased their market share, to 23.4 per cent and 22 per cent respectively. The cover price of the Daily Mail is set to rise from 60p to 65p from February 1.
Euromoney, the online information and events group in which DMGT holds a 68 per cent stake, saw revenues fall by 6 per cent, but the company said the results were in line with expectations.
Shares at DMGT were down 0.45pc at 658.5p, while Euromoney shares were up 3.33 per cent at 915.5p.
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This start-up has promising marketing technology … but it’s only for Democrats
(This post originally appeared on The Washington Post)
Hustle is a San Francisco-based start-up that wants to change the way companies and organizations market to their communities … through mass text messages.
“People don’t pick up the phone as much any more,” says the company’s co-founder Roddy Lindsay in this TechCrunch article. “Having a one-on-one conversation on text is the best way to get people to participate.”
The company, which just raised $8 million from a group of venture capitalists, offers a platform that lets users send personalized text messages to self-created lists of targeted customers and prospects. The software then enables a continuing one-on-one text conversation, via customized scripts, to nurture the relationship, gather data (including payment if desired) and connect further.
But there is one small catch. If you want to sign up for the service it’ll help if you’re a Democrat.
“We’re focused on building a strong business supporting clients in the Democratic Party and Progressive movement, and expanding into markets like higher ed and relationship-driven enterprises,” Lindsay said in the TechCrunch article. Does this mean that the company would refuse a right-leaning prospective client? Actually … maybe. Lindsay said “if a potential client would violate our core values of authenticity, empowerment, impact, and respect, or erode the trust that our existing clients put in us, we would politely turn them away.”
Consumers aren’t crazy nowadays about receiving mass emails and many will likely be less than thrilled to get additional solicitations via text messages. So the founders of Hustle will certainly have their hands full dealing with the many challenges they’ll face selling a marketing technology that many will consider to be invasive, annoying and “spammy.” So why add yet another hurdle by refusing to sell to someone that doesn’t meet their “core values”?
The founders want to revolutionize grass roots activism to support organizations and companies that further the causes they believe in. So far the strategy has been working. Their technology was used heavily by Bernie Sanders during his presidential campaign and other like-minded candidates and organizations have jumped on the train. Hustle, founded in 2014, has now grown to 40 people with a $3 million recurring revenue base made up primarily of left-leaning political candidates, nonprofits, fundraising groups and educational organizations.
Given today’s highly polarized climate maybe choosing sides and sticking to your beliefs, regardless of whether it results in lost opportunities, may not be such a bad strategy after all.


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First new engine rolls off line at Toyota’s Huntsville facility
HUNTSVILLE, Ala. – Toyota rolled out its first engine on the Huntsville plant’s new assembly line, a year after announcing the change that added more jobs to the Huntsville plant.
Toyota Alabama announced in September 2017 that it was replacing the 4-cylinder engine line at the plant with a line that can build 4-cylinder, V-6 and V-8 engines under the same roof. The investment was so Toyota could build its next generation of engines with its Toyota New Global Architecture.
Toyota says the new engines increase power performance and fuel economy. They will be used in RAV4s and Highlanders.
The new line at the plant added 50 jobs, according to the company.
Toyota’s Huntsville plant is one of the company’s largest engine facilities.
The company also has announced a joint venture with Mazda to build a production facility in Huntsville-annexed Limestone County. That facility is expected to bring thousands of jobs.


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Tax-free shopping holiday begins Friday
Local, state sales tax waived this weekend
The tax-free shopping weekend begins just after midnight Friday.
Gov.Rick Scott and lawmakers are giving back-to-school shoppers a break on the 6 percent state sales tax, and in some counties there are local sales taxes, but those taxes will also be waived.
School supplies costing $15 or less are tax-exempt.
Clothing items, shoes and some accessories that cost $75 or less are also tax-exempt.
The tax-free holiday ends Sunday at midnight.
In 2011, the average family spent more than $680 on their children for back-to-school clothes and supplies.


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The 500,000 pound GoogleGorilla in the room has gobbled up more of the competition. According to TechCrunch, Google has bought out (hired away?) the founders of the Israeli web-based spreadsheet company called iRows.
I have preferred ZohoSheet over iRows as my web-based spreadsheet of choice, but I feel like my choices are being reduced on an almost daily basis. At least it's not Microsoft. Although, if pink is the new black, is Google the new Microsoft?


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Week in review: Mainframe security, cross-device tracking, and how online fraud will evolve in 2016
Here’s an overview of some of last week’s most interesting news, interviews and articles:
Android adware tricks users into giving it power to secretly download other apps
Lookout researchers discovered and shared another trick that Shedun uses to install additional apps on the compromised devices: it tricks users into enabling it to control the Android Accessibility Service.
Inside the largely unexplored world of mainframe security
The security of mainframe computers – the so-called “big iron”, which is mainly used by large organizations for critical applications, bulk data and transaction processing – is not a topic that has garnered much interest from the public. And, according to Phil “Soldier of Fortran” Young, the security community has not shown much interest so far, either.
Cross-device tracking via imperceptible audio beacons threatens user privacy
As consumers use multiple devices through the day, and tracking cookies become increasingly less effective, the advertising industry is looking for new ways to track users’ online behavior.
Five hacks that will affect your life in 2016
While data breaches are common news today, here are the top five hacks that are likely to affect your life in a variety of ways in 2016.
Exploit kit activity up 75 percent
Exploit kits are a particularly alarming category of malware because they represent automation.
eBook: Website Security for Dummies
Website Security for Dummies demystifies the science behind SSL authentication, encryption and more in the world-famous ‘For Dummies’ style. It’s the how-to guide to keeping a company safe from online threats.
Information security innovation and the fast-paced threat landscape
Gary Warner recently became the Chief Threat Scientist at PhishMe. In this interview he talks about how his past positions prepared him for this new job title, information security innovation, the greatest challenges that we face in the current threat landscape, and more.
BadBarcode: Poisoned barcodes can be used to take over systems
Researchers from Tencent’s Xuanwu Lab have proved that a specially crafted barcode can be used to execute commands on a target system, saddle it with malware, or perform other malicious operations.
Bug in Android Gmail app allows effective email spoofing
Yan Zhu, a Technology Fellow at the Electronic Frontier Foundation, has unearthed a flaw in the Gmail Android app that can lead to very effective phishing attacks.
Cyber crooks actively hijacking servers with unpatched vBulletin installations
Administrators of vBulletin installations would do well to install the latest vBulletin Connect updates as soon as possible, as cyber crooks are searching for servers running vulnerable versions of the popular Internet forum software package.
9271 crucial vulnerabilities found in 185 firmware images of embedded devices
A study into the security of the Internet of Things has confirmed that the web interfaces for user administration of commercial, off-the-shelf embedded devices – routers, DSL/cable modems, VoIP phones, IP/CCTV cameras – represent a significant attack surface.
Unsafe password policies leave shoppers vulnerable
Dashlane examined password security policies on 25 of the most popular online retailers. They tested 22 criteria.
Will 2016 mark the end of the Advanced Persistent Threat?
Advanced Persistent Threats (APTs) as we know them will cease to exist in 2016, replaced by deeper, embedded attacks that are harder to detect and trace back to the perpetrators, according to Kaspersky Lab experts.
Microsoft’s new security posture leads to baked-in security
More than ever, Microsoft wants its products to be the first choice for enterprises, organizations, and governments. And to do that, they embedded security in the core.
Point of Sale malware gaining momentum as holiday shopping season approaches
Point of sale (POS) systems – what consumers often call the checkout system – are often the weak link in the chain and the choice of malware.
New Dyre variant can target Windows 10 and Microsoft Edge users
As Microsoft continues to push Windows users towards adopting the latest version of the popular OS, malware authors have started adding support for it.
A Jihadi Help Desk assists ISIS terrorists and sympathizers with encryption?
The terrorist group has apparently set up a 24-hour help desk service for all its members, followers and sympathizers who need help with using encryption and other secure communications for recruitment, propaganda and operational planning purposes, counterterrorism analysts claim.
Mass adoption of mobile payment services derailed by security, privacy concerns
Evaluating the mobile payment preferences of 1,217 consumers from the U.S., a new Research Now survey revealed that 17 percent of respondents who did not make holiday purchases with their mobile phone last year, plan to use a payment service such as Apple Pay, Android Pay, Samsung Pay or a proprietary service from their bank or card issuer to make the leap to mobile payments this holiday season.
The worst data disasters from 2015
What’s stronger than a speeding locomotive and can survive the heat of a fire? Data. The device that contains that data is a different story. Each year, Kroll Ontrack – which performs over 40,000 data recovery jobs each year around the world – collects and publishes a list of the toughest physical and logical data losses from its global offices.
How fake users are impacting business through acts of fraud and theft
A new report by The Ponemon Institute highlights the average economic value of a company’s user base ($117M) and the financial and brand reputation damage that can be done if fraudsters are allowed to create fake accounts and wreak havoc within a business and across the Internet.
Secure messaging service Telegram blocks 78 ISIS-related channels
The company introduced channels in September 2015, and presented it as a tool for broadcasting messages to large (unlimited) audiences.
University implies they helped FBI break Tor protection because of a subpoena
The University dubbed media reports that publicized Tor Project Director Roger Dingledine’s claims that the researchers were paid for this work as “inaccurate.”
FTC amends telemarketing rule to ban payment methods used by scammers
The Federal Trade Commission has approved final amendments to its Telemarketing Sales Rule (TSR), including a change that will help protect consumers from fraud by prohibiting four discrete types of payment methods favored by scammers.
How online fraud will evolve in 2016
To prepare users for the year head, researchers at Visor released their top 5 online fraud predictions for 2016.
PwnBin: A script for scraping Pastebin for leaked API keys, SSH credentials
Finding out if your API keys and other critical credentials have been compromised is crucial for developers and system administrators, and Canada-based developer Luke Mclaren has created a script that can help them see if they were dumped online.
ISIS operation security guide gives insight into group’s cybersecurity practices
The Combating Terrorism Centre (CTC), an academic institution at the US Military Academy in West Point, has managed to get their hands on a guide to operational security that’s apparently given out to members and sympathisers – a guide that defines which tools to use (and how to use them correctly) and which to avoid.


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We’re paying attention, so you don’t have to. Here are a few of the most interesting things happening in the marketing world this week, courtesy of some of the top experts, thought leaders and CMOs in the industry.
The native advertising debate continues. One problem — the noise around native ads gone bad — seems to overshadow native ads done well. EConsultancy even asked whether it will result in a reader revolt.
As with planning any branding campaign, it all comes down to approach, presentation and how it fits in with existing content.
Econsultancy recommended publications define what native advertising means to them and consider what their readers will accept. It pointed out good examples native ads such as Buzzfeed’s Purina video and the Telegraph’s Steinway campaign. See Rock Content’s chat with experts on sponsored content.
Object Lesson: The Steinway & Sons Model B grand piano
by The Telegraph via YouTube
Metrics, digital among top ad trends
Ad trends were discussed at the 24th World Advertising Forum, which wrapped up in mid-June and was held in conjunction with the World Newspaper Congress and the World Editors Forum.
Several speakers stressed key points at the ad forum, according to a World Ad Forum blog post:
– ROI and new ways to measure impact are increasingly essential.
– Tablets bring good ad value.
– Programmatic is saving digital advertising.
– Print remains a main source of revenue.
Accountability is higher than ever. Increasingly, advertisers not only want to know if their ads are working, but those measurements are also guiding their decision making, says Nic Pietersman, Business Director Ebiquity, South Africa, according to the ad forum blog post. That said, platforms are finding new ways to measure ads’ impact. New metrics mentioned at the forum include Australia-based Newsworks’ that allows newspaper publishers to hone in on the content their readership is engaging with during specific times.
Nearly half or 42 percent of U.S. adults own a tablet, according to the Pew Research Internet Project. With more people owning and viewing content on the devices, it’s no surprise that tablet ads are gaining traction.
Vanessa Clifford, the Deputy Chief Executive of UK-based Newsworks, says responses to tablet advertising can be up to 40 times higher than online based on their project findings, according to the blog. Their project looked at 20 campaigns involving 20 major brands such as Sony and Audi.
Programmatic ad strategies are gaining ground. A survey released in late 2013 of more than 250 ad, marketers, publishers and other executives by the Interactive Advertising Bureau called “Programmatic Everywhere? Data, Technology and the Future of Audience Engagement”, found that 85 percent of advertisers and 72 percent of publishers use programmatic buying strategies.
Usage is also strong in Europe, where it’s up 366 percent, says Danny Hopwood, Head of Platform, for VivaKi, EMEA, UK, according to the World Ad forum blog post. He stressed that it’s not going away and cannot be ignored.
Standing out among the loyal crowd
Is customer loyalty dead? Mobile Marketer reported that Forrester Research analyst Emily Collins told conference attendees at the Forum for Customer Experience Professionals that loyalty is dead due to consumers’ empowerment in the “always on” environment. That means consumers have fewer reasons to be loyal and marketers must adapt. Consumers on average are enrolled in eight loyalty programs, and marketers’ No. 1 challenge is “ensuring member awareness”, Mobile Marketer reports.
Building brand loyalty goes hand and hand with relationship building through engagement on social media, user-submitted content and even interactives, such as games.
Most businesses or 88 percent are actively engaged on Facebook followed by Twitter at 85 percent, according to the 2014 PR News/Cision State of Social Media Survey. But is it having an impact? Here’s the
Gallup data show that 64 percent of 18,000 consumers surveyed say social media has no influence on their purchasing decisions.
Perhaps businesses need to work harder on loyalty plays on social media so they can convert audiences there to customers.
Rock Content can help you reach your audience on several mediums at the same time.


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Mukesh Ambani 18th richest man in world
By ENS Economic Bureau - HYDERABAD
04th January 2013 09:51 AM
Business tycoon Mukesh Ambani jumped a step above to rank as the 18th richest person in the world with a personal wealth of $24.7 billion in 2012, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index -- a daily ranking of the world’s 100 wealthiest individuals. Last year, he was ranked 19th richest person in the world with a personal wealth of $21 billion.
The 55-year-old Ambani, Chairman & MD, Reliance Industries, also retained his position as the world’s richest Indian for the sixth year in a row.
The world’s top 100 billionaires got even richer in 2012, with their total wealth rising by around 15 per cent to $1.81 trillion, it said.
Mexican telecommunications magnate Carlos Slim remained the world’s richest person last year holding a personal fortune of more than $70 billion, it said. Microsoft founder Bill Gates and the founder of fashion retailer Zara, Amancio Ortega, rounded out the top three spots, with wealth estimated just over and just under $60 billion, respectively.
Renowned investor Warren Buffett slipped to fourth place, but added around $5 billion to his fortune over the year despite donating a substantial amount to charity last year.
IKEA founder Ingvar Kamprad saw his net worth rising 16.6% to approximately $40 billion, putting him in fifth place on Bloomberg’s billionaire index.
- India's bleeding insurgencies: Lessons from Latin America
- Western Ghat report has imperialist mindset: Ecologist
- Lot more to India-China ties than border stand-off: Experts
- Major industrial conglomerates making a beeline for Haryana
- Man kidnapped 23 years ago finds kin thanks to Google Maps
- Bangalore's techies start 'brand tattoos' craze
- Indian circuses struggle to adapt after court bans
- Want hassle-free tatkal ticket? Personally visit special counters
- Rs 8K-crore plan for upgrading ICVs of Army
- Man arrested for attempt to attack TV host Ranjini Haridas
- The toxic truth about ripe mangoes
- Shift me from ‘Anda’ cell, pleads Sanjay Dutt
- Indefinite strike leaves city parched; mineral water bottles fly off shop shelves
- Jiju Janardhanan’s house in Kannur wears deserted look
- Sreesanth, 2 other players 'confess'; more players under scanner
- Meghalaya's CMJ University faces probe after awarding suspicious PhDs


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Officer elections for the Tennessee Pharmacists Association (TPA) and its affiliated Societies are being conducted online – and the polls are now open!
The online voting process is fast, easy, confidential, and secure. And, by eliminating the need to print and mail thousands of ballots and bios, voting online frees up dues dollars for member benefits and is kinder to the environment.
All in-state pharmacist members and pharmacy technician members were emailed a message on May 3, 2016, with instructions about how to vote. The message included the unique Member Number you will need to log in to the online voting system. If you have any questions or didn’t receive the email, please contact Gina at gina@localhost or 615-256-3023.
Be sure to vote online on or before midnight on June 2, 2016! Thank you for exercising your right to vote in TPA elections!


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Walmart announces next Neighborhood Market
Bentonville, Ark.-based Walmart Stores Inc. is bringing more convenience to San Antonio’s neighborhoods.
The company has announced plans for a new Neighborhood Market, at Guilbeau and Tezel roads on the city’s Northwest Side.
Construction on the store is slated to begin this coming January. It is set to open next fall, and will be the third Neighborhood Market for the Alamo City.
A Neighborhood Market at Marbach Road and Ellison Drive is set to open next spring, followed by a store at Hunt Lane and Military Drive West in summer 2014. Both stores will be on the city’s far West Side.
On average, the Neighborhood Market stores span about 41,000 square feet and sell about 26,500 items — from fresh produce and dairy and bakery products, to household supplies and health and beauty aids. The stores also feature a pharmacy.
The goal with these stores has been to create a quick and convenient way to shop for groceries.
“Our customers like the convenience of our Neighborhood Market format and we are excited to make it available for more families in San Antonio,” says regional general manager Randy Green. “With our smaller Neighborhood Markets, we still provide the same great access to healthy, affordable foods and familiar brands, plus convenience — it’s perfect for our customers who are always on the go.”
The new Neighborhood Market will create up to 95 new jobs. Walmart will offer a job to any honorably discharged veteran within his or her first 12 months off active duty. Walmart projects to hire more than 100,000 veterans over the next five years nationwide.
“District 7 is proud to welcome our first Neighborhood Market, and the convenience it will bring to our community,” says Cris Medina, San Antonio City Councilman, District 7. “Not only am I thrilled about nearly 100 new career opportunities coming to our community, but as a veteran, I am proud of Walmart’s commitment to our military.”
On the web: Click here.
Tricia Lynn Silva covers real estate, retail, construction, and law firms; she also plans and edits some special reports.
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Business news giant CNBC announced the launch of a podcasting service for the Asia Pacific region.
In a statement, CNBC said the new service, called CNBC Podcast, will allow users to listen to popular programs and segments, including Managing Asia, CEO Call, The CNBC Conversation, and Grow Your Wealth.
The company also said it will roll out more programs in the coming months.
The CNBC Podcast service joins CNBC's mobile content as another way to get the best of CNBC, the firm said.
'CNBC's podcasts will extend our unrivaled business news to our loyal audience,' said Cynthia Owens, SVP for news and programming at CNBC Asia Pacific. 'CNBC Podcast is another vehicle that allows us to reach our viewers where they want CNBC.'


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Much has been made about the retail aspect of Google Wallet and how NFC will revolutionize payments at stores and restaurants. The idea of tapping your handset against a card
The service has expanded to 13 cities, with 25 more on the way.
Yesterday, Motorola added yet another Android device to their Android line-up and it’s known as the Motorola Droid RAZR. Everyone has been looking forward to it for a while, and
ZTE, a company that we primarily see across the lake in places like Korea, has decided to give the U.S. some love with their newly announced “ZTE Warp.” The company
A Samsung Mobile USA employee tells a Facebook follower that Verizon gets first dibs.
HTC’s got a fever, and the only prescription is more cowbell beats. When HTC gobbled up some stock in Beats by Dr. Dre, it had yet to be seen what
Let’s Golf! 3 by Gameloft hit the market last week and has added some cool new features to the popular Let’s Golf! franchise. Let’s Golf! 3 features 3D courses, far
Can this ereader compete with Amazon and Barnes & Noble?
GetJar Users Get First Glimpse of Dolphin Connect
You may or may not be disappointed with the Motorola RAZR after the Galaxy Nexus announcement but Motorola still thinks you should buy it. In fact, if you live in
Clove Technology (who I’ll admit I’ve never heard of before today) have just announced via their Twitter that they are taking pre-orders for the upcoming Galaxy Nexus. They’ll be selling
Sprint debuts the fifth member of its growing EVO family.
A new YouTube video tells us that the “Next Transformation” is coming soon.
In theory, those with Android 2.3 should see an Ice Cream Sandwich update.


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NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Foursquare today announced the appointment of Oren Teich as its new Senior Vice President, Product. With over twenty years of experience driving innovative software solutions for developers and enterprises, Teich has the ideal experience and expertise necessary to oversee Foursquare’s entire product portfolio and organization. Teich will report directly to CEO Gary Little.
Foursquare made a strategic decision to hone its company focus on building the leading location technology and data cloud platform for developers, marketers, and data scientists that would enable businesses to unlock the value of location software to tackle their most pressing challenges; these objectives made Teich a natural hire.
With the emergence of new platforms in areas like mobility and augmented reality, mass digitization from all businesses, and continued demand for understanding the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on consumer behavior, supply chain, and other critical areas, the demand for location intelligence is rapidly growing. Few people understand how companies can embed that intelligence layer into their infrastructure and data better than Teich.
“Oren has deep experience building developer and enterprise software with superior usability and impact,” said Gary Little, Foursquare CEO and President. “By adding Oren’s talents to our growing bench of technical leaders, Foursquare is better equipped than ever to expand our industry-leading location technology and data cloud platform to meet the needs of our customers.”
Since taking the helm of the company in January 2021, Little has actively expanded the executive team and added senior level talent. In addition to Teich, Little has brought on Ankit Patel, Michele Morelli, and Jonathan Bank as SVPs of engineering, marketing, and business operations respectively. Little also added Sina Kashuk to the Executive Team following the acquisition of Unfolded earlier this year.
Teich joins Foursquare after spending over four years at Google, where he served as Director of Product Development. In that role, Teich ran product management for over 30 developer focused products, including Cloud Run, App Engine, and Cloud Build. Teich joined Google following it’s purchase of the real-time collaboration company Canvas, which Teich co-founded in 2014. Previously, Oren served as General Manager and Chief Operating Officer at Heroku prior to its acquisition by Salesforce.
“I’m very excited to be joining Foursquare and embracing location tech solutions at such a critical moment,” said Teich. “Foursquare’s experience as a pioneer in the industry, its broad portfolio, and its acquisitions, mergers, and innovations all add up to a huge opportunity. I look forward to using this opportunity to help Foursquare continue to be a leader in building privacy-first, user-centric products and services.”
Teich takes over the role from Josh Cohen. Cohen will stay with the company through the end of the year, and Teich will start today, ensuring a smooth transition.
Foursquare is the leading independent location technology company dedicated to building solutions that help businesses make smarter decisions and developers create more engaging experiences. A pioneer of the geo-location space, Foursquare’s location tech stack is being utilized by the world’s largest enterprises and most recognizable brands, helping them tap into location intelligence to create better customer experiences and smarter business outcomes.


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When we first wrote about Joe Einhorn’s company, thingd, it was mostly flying below the radar, and surprised the blogosphere with its all star cast of investors and board members. This week, Betabeat has learned, Mr. Einhorn will be surprising the NY tech scene a second time. The Fancy, one of the consumer facing projects under the thingd umbrella, has secured a $10 million round of financing at a valuation north of $100 million.
Interestingly, the big bucks don’t come from a typical venture investor, but from a new lead investor PPR, the $16 billion French multi-national run by Francois Henri-Pinault, which owns the globe’s biggest fashion brands, including Gucci, Bottega Veneta, Yves Saint Laurent and Balenciaga. PPR has earned a reputation for its smart, aggressive acquisition strategy and saw its stock jump after an impressive third quarter, but is little known in the tech world. Read More


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Elmia Subcontractor is Sweden’s biggest industry event and a clear indicator of the health of the manufacturing industry and what’s happening both today and in the future. On 14–17 November it’s time for the fair’s 2017 edition.
The manufacturing industry is evolving faster than ever. Keeping up to date in order to maintain a strong competitive position has never been more important.
Business deals and industrial development are the distinctive features of Elmia Subcontractor, northern Europe’s leading trade fair for the manufacturing industry and its customers. Here 1,200 exhibiting suppliers meet with thousands of purchasers, product developers, design engineers and business leaders from the entire industry. New contacts, new solutions and above all new deals are on the agenda.
In addition to being the Nordic region’s largest exhibition and marketplace for suppliers to the manufacturing industry – this year with several hundred new companies more than last year – we also lay the groundwork for the future with a range of new offerings.
We present the Internet of Things as a new exhibitors’ segment and open up the doors to the new Subcontractor IoT Arena, which is filled with concrete examples of products being developed and improved with the aid of connected technology.
Also new this year is our Pop-up Expo, an exhibition with a daily new focus plus exhibitors on a current topic, which is then followed up on stage. And don’t miss the premiere of Subcontractor Jumpstart, where technology-driven start-ups get a minute each to pitch their ideas to a jury of experienced industry figures and compete for an innovation cheque worth 100,000 kronor.
The popular innovation arena Subcontractor InnoDex will of course also be here this year, as will an in-depth and future-oriented stage programme.
Welcome to Elmia Subcontractor where you can take the industry’s beating pulse and scout out tomorrow’s trends!
You will find the complete programme of the fair here:
For more information contact Karla Eklund, Business Manager for Elmia Subcontractor,
Tel: +46 36 15 22 61
Elmia Subcontractor brings together the manufacturing industry’s experts under one and the same roof. With 1,200 exhibitors from about 30 countries, unique conditions are created for business development and profitable deals.


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TV networks and advertisers have been rushing to get ready for the release of Apple’s iPad on Saturday and from the looks of it, they all wish they had a little more time. The WSJ has a pair of articles detailing the initial efforts of ABC (NYSE: DIS) and CBS (NYSE: CBS) to get free streaming streams of their respective primetime programs available for the device, while dozens of advertisers are excited by the potential of the iPad appears to present, but most haven’t been able to showcase the burst of creativity in time for the iPad’s debut.
Update: Disney unveiled a few more details about the wide range of iPad wonders it has prepared. iPad users will be able to watch 20 popular ABC series through a WiFi connection. The company makes a point of noting that this is the first time its ABC Player has been made available for a mobile device. The app will also allow iPad users to purchase downloads of episodes via the iTunes store. More on Disney’s other iPad plans here and on ABC’s iPad site.
— Sidestepping the iTunes Store: Both ABC and CBS already make a large number of their shows available for ad-supported streaming on the web. So what’s the difference with the “iPad-specific” streams? Not much, it seems, according to this WSJ piece. Nevertheless, CBS Interactive’s Neil Ashe tells the Journal, it’s inspiring a much bigger push to make its shows more widely distributed. “We’re working very hard to make as much of it available as possible. Over time, it’ll be the same as online.”
While CBS will rely on viewers seeking out programs like Survivor on the iPad-version of its site ready to go for the weekend, ABC will be release a free app for the device that will mirror the ads and offerings on ABC.com, unidentified sources tell the WSJ. CBS has an iPhone app, but that only shows clips. NBC also makes shows available on its iPhone-enabled site, but the network doesn’t appear to be joining its two broadcast rivals in making an extra effort for the iPad. Either way, the intense interest ABC and CBS have getting their shows ready for the much-hyped device is matched only by their desire to avoid the iTunes Store, where Apple (NSDQ: AAPL) is struggling to sell 99-cent episodes for download-to-own.
— Advertisers prep iPad-ready ads, but creativity waits: For marketers, the iPad represents a two steps forward, one step back in the advancement of mobile advertising. The wider canvas of the larger mobile screen when compared to the iPhone promises to allow for greater creativity. But the constraints of working on the new system and the absence of the popular Adobe (NSDQ: ADBE) Flash program for animated images, represents a significant hurdle to overcome. The WSJ details Buick’s problems in trying to use a Flash-based campaign on the WSJ app. The carmaker hoped to send users interested in clicking on Buick ads for the midsized LaCrosse sedan to its Buick.com site, but since it features Flash, users would see a lot of empty white space where the multimedia content is situated. When it thought of sending users to its mobile wap site, which doesn’t have Flash, the site looked too shrunken on the iPad. “It was not pretty,” says Pamela Neville, a manager at Digitas, which created the ads.
But marketers are willing to make the effort for now, in hopes that they’ll be better able to figure out new ways of advertising on the iPad, assuming the device does take off.


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Samsung caught in storm over phones for Iran’s Olympic team
Samsung smartphones are at the center of a diplomatic spat between Iran and South Korea that erupted ahead of the Winter Olympics in PyeongChang.
The Iranian Olympic Committee said its athletes were initially excluded from a giveaway of special edition Galaxy Note 8 phones that was arranged by the organizers of the games.
“The athletes didn’t receive phones when they arrived in [South] Korea. The reason given was because of sanctions,” said Mahmoud Abdollahi, spokesman for the Iranian Olympic Committee.
Iran summoned South Korea’s ambassador over the incident and demanded an apology, Iranian state media reported. ISNA, a semi-official Iranian news agency, said the South Korean official was warned that the episode could have “dire negative consequences” for Samsung’s business in Iran.
The country’s four athletes were later handed the gifts, Abdollahi said.
“The issue is that Iranian athletes were not treated equally and this goes against the spirit of the games,” he added.
Samsung announced last month that it would be providing the special edition smartphones “as encouragement to do bigger things at the Olympic Winter Games.”
The company and the PyeongChang Organizing Committee declined to comment on the dispute with Iran, referring questions to the International Olympic Committee (IOC).
In a statement on Thursday, the IOC said it would provide the phones to all participating athletes.
“These phones contain essential logistical and competition information,” the IOC said.
Iranian athletes will be allowed to keep their devices. Those from North Korea will be asked to “only use them during their stay in PyeongChang,” the IOC added.
Samsung electronics are widely available in Iran, and not subject to international sanctions. Many Iranians turned to social media to express their anger at the treatment of the Olympic team and demand a ban on Samsung products.
“Our government and president Rohani should not allowed [sic] any South Korean products to enter Iran!,” tweeted one user.
Iran’s semi-officlal news agency, FARS, said it was suspending an advertising deal with Samsung.
FARS “has removed [Samsung’s] advertising banner from its website following the unsportsmanlike and dishonest action taken by Samsung at the Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang,” it said in a statement.
— Amir Daftari, Hami Hamedi, Alireza Hajihosseini, Vasco Cotovio and Sophie Jeong contributed to this report.


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NEW YORK - KFC is tossing out the chicken bones and the quaint image of founder Col. Harland Sanders as it gets ready to test a more-upmarket restaurant.
NEW YORK — KFC is tossing out the chicken bones and the quaint image of founder Col. Harland Sanders as it gets ready to test a more-upmarket restaurant.
The fried-chicken chain says it’s opening a location called “KFC eleven” early next month near its headquarters in Louisville, Ky., that will serve flatbreads with toppings, rice bowls, salads and only boneless pieces of its Original Recipe chicken.
The restaurant’s exterior won’t feature Sanders, whose bespectacled, white-bearded likeness has long been front and center at KFC locations. But the name of the test restaurant is a reference to the 11 herbs and spices that Sanders used in the Original Recipe.
KFC eleven’s opening is a reflection of the challenges confronting traditional fast-food chains such as McDonald’s, Burger King and Wendy’s. The problem is that people in their 20s and 30s are increasingly heading to chains such as Chipotle Mexican Grill and Panera Bread, where they feel they get better food for slightly higher prices.
In a note to investors about KFC’s test, Janney analyst Mark Kalinowski said that such “ fast-casual” chains remain the fastest-growing segment in the restaurant industry. He noted that other chains, included Applebee’s and Red Lobster, recently have started testing similar formats as well.
John Cywinski, president of KFC, said in an interview that people often equate KFC with “buckets of fried chicken on the bone,” primarily as a dinner or weekend option. He said the company hopes to use the new test location to learn how it can update its offerings and draw in a broader customer base, particularly women.
KFC eleven will serve side dishes such as waffle fries, garlic mashed potatoes and coleslaw along with Original Recipe chicken. But the chicken will be the boneless variety that the chain rolled out in April as an easier-to-eat alternative to its traditional breast, thigh and drumstick pieces.


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Trading on ets alarm
BUNDABERG has nothing to gain and everything to lose from the proposed Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS), according to Queensland Senator Ron Boswell.
After visiting town this week, Mr Boswell said the Bundaberg region would be particularly hard hit by the scheme, because of its reliance on energy-intensive industries such as sugar-refining and horticulture.
“An Access Economics research paper, commissioned by Premier Anna Bligh as chair of the Council of Australian Federation, shows that the Wide Bay-Burnett area is forecast to lose 592 jobs, and $126 million in output by 2020 under an ETS,” Mr Boswell said.
“Refining sugar uses an enormous amount of power, and Millaquin is one of the leading refineries in Australia.
“Electricity prices are going to go up 40 to 50%, which will make many of Bundaberg's industries unviable.”
As well as the sugar industry, the Senator said that growers in the region would also suffer - and families would feel the pinch.
“Everything from fertiliser to transport, those costs will go onto horticulture,” he said.
“When that happens, the price of food will be forced up as well.”
And in even worse news for those who like a tipple, Mr Boswell said booze prices were likely to jump.
“Johnnie Walker will come in from the European Union (where alcohol-manufacturing is exempt from the ETS), and local products like Bundaberg Rum won't be able to compete (price-wise),” he said.
Mr Boswell said there was an urgent need to focus on trade-exposed enterprises in regional centres.
“This thing (the ETS) has no friends in regional Australia,” he warned.
“The ETS represents damage to jobs and businesses particularly in regional areas, and (small communities are) fearful of what it will mean to their jobs and families.”
Diageo, the parent company of Bundaberg Rum and Johnnie Walker, declined to comment.


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Honda India is gearing up to introduce the much awaited City Hybrid in our market in the coming months. The City Hybrid was slated to launch more than a year ago but the car's India entry was delayed due to COVID-19 related lockdowns and production delays.
- City Hybrid to get Honda Sensing tech in India
- Honda Sensing consists of many active and passive safety features
- Expected to be the most fuel efficient sedan in its segment
Honda City Hybrid: Honda Safety Sense incoming
Apart from the full-hybrid powertrain, Honda will also introduce the Honda Sensing technology on the City Hybrid. Honda Sensing tech is essentially a bundle of multiple active and passive safety systems that are not offered currently on any Honda car or SUV in India. While some of these features have been available on Honda cars and SUVs overseas since sometime, we can confirm that the City Hybrid in India will come with Honda Sensing features like lane departure warning system, adaptive cruise control, lane keeping assist, auto high beam assist, emergency braking and front collision warning system. Additionally, the City Hybrid will come with almost all safety features seen on the standard City, which includes six airbags, ESP, ABS, among others.
Honda City Hybrid for India: What all is known?
The City is Honda’s oldest nameplate in India and has been a strong pillar for the brand here. Honda has recently begun exporting LHD version of the City to countries like Mexico and Turkey. Adding a hybrid variant to the City line-up in India will not only help Honda stay on the top of the game with segment-leading hybrid tech, but could also prove an important selling point for dealers to appeal to safety-conscious customers, thanks to the addition of Honda Safety Sense.
The City hybrid comes with Honda’s i-MMD, the hybrid technology that is also used on the international-spec CR-V hybrid and in the new-generation Jazz sold abroad. Like the technology that powers the Honda Jazz e:HEV for international markets, the i-MMD hybrid set-up in the new City is made up of two electric motors and an internal combustion engine. A 98hp, 127Nm, 1.5-litre, four-cylinder, naturally aspirated Atkinson Cycle petrol engine sits under the bonnet of the new City.
The first electric motor, which is integrated in the petrol engine, assists and acts as an integrated starter-generator (ISG), while the second motor sends 109hp and 253Nm of torque to the front wheels via a bespoke gearbox with a single, fixed-gear ratio.
The hybrid setup is also likely to enable three drive modes – one where just the electric motors are used, one where just the internal combustion engine runs (a lock-up clutch sends power to the wheels directly), and a third which allows for a combination of both.
Thanks to this set-up, the City will be frugal in urban environs where it will just run on the electric motors, while out on the highway, the petrol engine will take over, providing much stronger performance.
Honda City Hybrid: expected to deliver segment-leading fuel efficiency
The City Hybrid is likely to be the first well-specified ‘mass market’ hybrid to go on sale in India. As reported by us previously, the Honda City Hybrid delivers an impressive 27.7kpl under test conditions in Malaysia (27.8kpl in Thailand). We expect a similar figure for India as both test cycles are very similar.
As far as the real-world figure goes, the Honda City 1.5 petrol CVT delivers 12kpl under Autocar India’s city test cycle. So, if we equate the City Hybrid and the standard City under our cycle, we get an approximate real-world figure of between 17 and 19 kpl for the City Hybrid. This could make it one of the most efficient cars in India.
Honda City hybrid: expected pricing for India
We had reported earlier that Honda aims to sell around 250-300 units of the City hybrid each month, which translates to about 10 percent of the regular model’s average monthly sales figure. The automaker has set a conservative target and is not banking on large volumes, as the hybrid is expected to command a Rs 2 lakh-2.5 lakh premium over the petrol sedan. As such, the top-end variant of the City hybrid is expected to come in at around Rs 20 lakh ex-showroom.
Does the provision of active safety tech on the City Hybrid make it more appealing? Let us know in the comments below.
Amit Nanda - 448 days ago
Yes, but Honda should not make a blunder of overpricing like it did other Hybrid cars it introduced in the past.
1 0 Reply


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Xiaomi is no stranger to the cheap phone market – in fact, that’s mainly what it’s known for – but its affordable phones usually come under the Redmi label. Now the company has a new phone, not from Redmi but from its Pocophone line, and it looks like a contender for our list of the best affordable handsets.
This new phone is the Xiaomi Poco X3 NFC, and it has just been announced for the UK. It could come to Australia at some point, as Xiaomi brings some of its phones there, but the company almost never releases its handsets in the US, so don’t expect it there.
The new phone costs £199 (roughly $260, AU$360) for a model with 64GB of storage or £249 (around $325, AU$450) for one with 128GB, so it’s very affordable.
The Xiaomi Poco X3 NFC has a 6.67-inch FHD+ display with a 120Hz refresh rate – there are barely any phones this cheap with snappy refresh rates like that, so that could be a major selling point, and it also has a large 5,160mAh battery.
It has four rear cameras led by a 64MP main snapper, a mid-range Snapdragon 732G chipset, 6GB of RAM, and either 64GB or 128GB of storage.
Pre-orders are open now on Xiaomi’s website, and it goes on sale properly on September 17.
This is the third Xiaomi Pocophone handset to launch in the UK after the affordable Pocophone F1 and the mid-range Poco F2 Pro. It’s not clear where the new handset fits into the range, especially as there’s no X2 phone or F3, and it’s starting to feel like there are no solid naming conventions for Pocophones.
It’s probably best to view the Poco X3 NFC as a spiritual successor to the Pocophone F1, as that was an affordable phone like the X3 NFC. It’s cheap, lacks 5G (while the F2 Pro has it), and has a focus on screen tech. The ‘NFC’ in the name probably harks back to the fact that the Pocophone F1 doesn’t have NFC, which was a source of concern for phone fans.
We’ve got the Xiaomi Poco X3 NFC in our labs right now, and we’ll bring you a full review to let you know how well it fares.


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Scientists have found a way to store data within DNA's structure that could last 2,000 years.
Scientists have discovered a way to use DNA’s double helix structure as a filing system to store reams of data for up to 2,00o years. According to the groundbreaking discovery, the structure of the data’s storage in relation to DNA’s framework would allow easier data acquisition.
Researcher, Robert Grass, said,”If you go back to medieval times in Europe, we had monks writing in books to transmit information for the future, and some of those books still exist,” and adds, “A little after the discovery of the double helix architecture of DNA, people figured out that the coding language of nature is very similar to the binary language we use in computers.” The binary language he’s referring to in terms of DNA is the four nucleotides A, C, T and G.
DNA was considered as a storage model because of its inherent durability and capacity to cache such large amounts of data. In comparison, a current external hard drive the size of a book can accumulate about five terabytes of information with a lifespan of around 50 years. But a DNA-framework hard drive could store more than 300,000 terabytes and last for generations.
In a recent test, scientists encoded DNA with 83 kilobytes of text from the Swiss Federal Charter from the year 1291 and the Method of Archimedes from the 10th century. Since the DNA hard drive is an organic compound, they warmed it to about 160 degrees Fahrenheit for one week, which equates to stockpiling it 50 degrees for around 2000 years and found that the information wasn’t corrupted.
As advanced as the discovery is, the technology won’t be available as a mass market product for some time, but its present intended purpose is to store data portals such as Wikipedia.
Grass concludes, “This interest in preserving information is something we have lost, especially in a digital world, and adds, “And that’s what I’d like to help address and encourage people to do: Save information we have today for future times.”


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Google has bluntly rejected widespread claims that it wants to clamp down on the open nature of the Android operating system.
Android VP of Engineering, Andy Rubin, said the firm “remains firmly committed to providing Android as an open source platform across many device types”.
Lately, Google has been subjected to growing speculation that it wants to curb the number of modifications made to its mobile operating system, which was born on the value of openness.
Game developers say the nature of Android has caused a fragmentation of the operating system, with numerous devices modifying it to suit their needs. This means that creating an app for each becomes an uphill struggle.
Moreover, alleged business insiders last week told Bloomberg that Google is trying to stop rival services – such as Facebook and Bing – from taking too much advantage of Android.
Facebook, for example, is trying to build an entire mobile operating system based on Android.
Adding to the rumours, Nokia CEO Stephen Elop recently said that Google’s philosophy of a true open software platform “may be where Android started but it’s not where Android is going.”
Yet Rubin said “there’s been a lot of misinformation in the press about Android and Google’s role in supporting the ecosystem”.
Writing on a Google Blog, he added: “We don’t believe in a ‘one size fits all’ solution. The Android platform has already spurred the development of hundreds of different types of devices – many of which were not originally contemplated when the platform was first created.”
He did not specifically address insider claims that Google was monitoring the development of Facebook’s own Android OS.
He did add, however: “If someone wishes to market a device as Android-compatible or include Google applications on the device, we do require the device to conform with some basic compatibility requirements.”


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Fiat SpA's board is not considering a plan to merge with another car maker, the Italian industrial group said on Friday, following a news report that Fiat was eyeing a deal with PSA Peugeot-Citroen.
Early in the day, Italy's Il Sole 24 Ore said a strategy consultant and Italian investment bank Mediobanca had drawn up a plan to merge Fiat's car business with PSA.
Without citing its sources, the newspaper said Fiat Chief Executive Sergio Marchionne had yet to decide if or when to present the plan to the board.
Fiat later said its board was not reviewing any merger plan, but reiterated its interest in collaborating with other car makers to cut costs and enter new markets.
“No proposal for a merger with another automotive group is currently under consideration,” read a statement. “It is a known fact that... Fiat frequently examines opportunities for agreements of various types which would offer it operational synergies and access to new markets.”
A PSA spokesman declined comment, but reiterated recent comments made by a PSA executive about the moment not being right to talk about mergers as management focused on dealing with the market downturn.
Morgan Stanley analyst Adam Jonas said the only justification for a merger between the two car makers would be to cut costs, production capacity and headcount dramatically.
“That is the logic and that logic is diametrically opposed to the political agenda in Europe right now,” he said, referring to government efforts to prevent massive job losses in the industry. “So we apply a low probability to this.”
A Paris analyst said consolidation in the industry would take years to occur.
“There are rumors every day but nothing will happen during the crisis,” he said. “Automakers are facing a major crisis and their only concern is managing their cash.”
In the news report, Il Sole 24 Ore said the plan would have PSA rather than Fiat cut jobs at its factories in exchange for having the head offices of the merged company based in Paris. Marchionne would be chief executive, it said.
Although the financial details were top secret, the most probable option would be to have Fiat merge its car business with PSA, it said.
The idea of a merger between the two car makers has often been postulated in newspapers and analyst reports, especially after Marchionne said in December that some automakers would have to consolidate to survive the global economic crisis.
True to his word, Marchionne announced early this year an agreement to form an alliance between Fiat and Chrysler LLC, the completion of which is contingent on the struggling US car maker getting US government loans.
Friday's publication of the latest figures showing a 18.3% drop in February new car sales in Europe was the latest reminder of the toll that the crisis was taking on the industry. (Reuters)


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Olympus released the full fiscal year report. Overall the company revenue grew 4% despite the Covid 19 outbreak. Olympus says:
Excluding this impact, both revenue and operating profit were in line with forecasts
In the Imaging Business:
Revenue Declined 8% due to difficult business environment, lack of new products in 1H caused by the restructuring of manufacturing bases, and COVID-19 impact in 4Q. Operating loss decreased due to absence of restructuring expenses recorded last year and improved SG&A efficiency.
Olympus also saw “a solid start of new product “OM-D E-M1 MarkIII”introduced in 4Q“. Regarding the forecast for the Imaging Business Olympus writes:
Some dealers are moving toward resuming business but still many regions are under severe outing restrictions. Online marketing (such as utilizing SNS) will need to be strengthened
Expect demand in end consumer market to take more time
In the digital camera field of the Imaging Business, if the market contracts more sharply than anticipated, the Olympus Group may be unable to adequately counter the resulting sales decline with the restructuring measures currently implementing, and this may adversely affect the Olympus Group’s earnings.
43rumors note: Call me crazy but I expected worse results. On a less optimistic note….I believe the upcoming year will be terrible too in terms of sales. Future Covid-19 outbreaks will create future mess in production and distribution.


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Michael Bradley Signs With PUMA
Written By: beans|
Oct 8, 2015
PUMA continues to add to the stable of soccer players with the announcement that US midfielder Michael Bradley has signed with the brand. The announcement comes ahead of the massive US v Mexico game this weekend where we will see Bradley feature in PUMA boots.
According to PUMA:
Bradley has signed a contract to be the face of U.S. Soccer for PUMA and will be featured in future campaigns and marketing initiatives for statement cleated footwear and other soccer inspired products. PUMA will also work with Bradley to create programming surrounding him during major international soccer tournaments.
Bradley comes from a very accomplished background, excelling on pitch and playing in over 106 USMNT games and scoring 15 goals. Midfielder Michael Bradley said, “I couldn’t be more excited to join PUMA and the roster of strong and talented athletes already in the family. Their Forever Faster positioning is not only the perfect fit for my soccer game, but also fits with my lifestyle off the pitch.”
PUMA named Bradley due to his consistent place as one of the best players in soccer. Tara McRae, Senior Vice President of Brand & Marketing at PUMA North America commented, “Over the past decade Bradley has proven to be a key player and leader on the U.S. National Team. This, along with his speed, touch and overall power on field has really impressed us from the beginning and makes him a great brand fit and Forever Faster ambassador. ”
Bradley will officially debut this relationship on field during the U.S.A game against Mexico on October 10th wearing PUMA cleats. Bradley stated, “I am always working towards being better and upping my game, and the PUMA products have been a great addition to that. I’m really looking forward to representing the PUMA brand moving forward.”
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If you’re concerned about the potential cancer risk associated with meat, but still feel it’s an important part of a well-balance diet, I have a tip for you — especially if you love the taste of it fresh off the grill.
Even before the World Health Organization came out with news that red meat has been classified as a ‘probably carcinogen,’ researchers found evidence that cooking meat at high temperatures, like on a grill, produced carcinogens known as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). PAHs are linked to colorectal cancer, and they’re also found in cigarette smoke and car exhaust.
But researchers at Ohio State University have come up with an easy method to keep the great taste without the cancer.
The secret is to first marinade the meat with beer before it goes on the grill.
When the scientists grilled meat that had been soaked in beer, they found that the preparation cut the formation of eight PAHs by about 50 percent. In the test, dark beer worked the best.
Spices that beat the cancer in meat
You can further decrease threats from HCAs by adding a few choice spices including:
- Black pepper
- Garlic powder
However there are other dangers that beer and spices may not help. They’re known as advanced glycation end products (AGEs).
In grilled meat, AGEs are found in the browned areas of well-done meat, which are formed when a sugar molecule combines with fats or other compounds in the high heat. About 10 percent of the AGES in your food are absorbed into your body and can stay there for a very long time.
A review of 30 epidemiological studies found that 80 percent showed a link between eating well-done meat and cancer.  A separate study also found a link between charred meat and pancreatic cancer, with those eating the most very well done meat at a 70 percent increased risk compared to those who ate the least.
You can cut-down on your risk from the AGEs in well-done meat by avoiding charring your food. Also avoid grilling meats that are considered the worst offenders for carcinogens like hot dogs, bratwurst and other processed meats.
Americans love to grill. According to consumer reports many of us do it year round, even in snow, sleet and rain. But knowing about potential dangers, you can still enjoy this great American tradition and feel safer by making these minor changes to the way you prepare and grill your meat of choice.
Editor’s note: Discover how to live a cancer prevention lifestyle — using foods, vitamins, minerals and herbs — as well as little-known therapies allowed in other countries but denied to you by American mainstream medicine. Click here to discover Surviving Cancer! A Comprehensive Guide to Understanding the Causes, Treatments and Big Business Behind Medicine’s Most Frightening Diagnosis!