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Speaking to Both Sides of Oregon’s Cannabis-Aspergillus Testing Debate
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The Oregonian cannabis community is rattled. One issue has come to divide the state’s legal cannabis industry in recent months: Aspergillus testing. And there’s no obvious resolution in sight. Here’s the quick summary of the story so far:
On March 1, the Oregon Liquor and Cannabis Commission (OLCC) began requiring all cannabis flower harvested in the state to be tested for Aspergillus fungi. It’s a standard testing requirement in many states with legal access to cannabis, but Oregon’s cannabis community proved to be more resistant to the stipulation.
In late July, the largest cannabis trade association in the state, the Cannabis Industry Alliance of Oregon (CIAO), sued the Oregon Health Authority (OHA) over the fungi testing rule, claiming that the requirement was unnecessarily leaving cultivators out of pocket.
And the Oregon Court of Appeals was sympathetic to the argument. On August 25, it issued a motion that paused the requirement until at least next March.
So, now cannabis samples in Oregon, once again, don’t have to be tested for Aspergillus. But will the testing resume come March? Or will some other, modified requirement be enforced? And why are Oregonian cultivators seemingly so determined not to test for potentially harmful fungi anyway?
There are lots of questions flying around Oregon’s cannabis fields these days. So Analytical Cannabis spoke to a few of the people on both sides of the Aspergillus debate to get some answers.
Testing at a cost
“A lot of my clients were eager to figure out how this might impact them,” says Kevin Jacoby.
Jacoby is a lawyer representing the CIAO in the legal challenge against the OHA. He says, prior to the original March 1 deadline, many of his clients were experimenting with remediation technologies to see if they could get their crops to pass the incoming zero-Aspergillus limit. There were mixed results.
“Certain remediation techniques just didn’t work. They [the growers] would spend all this money to run it, for example, through an ozonator, and then get retested and it would still fail. The only [technique] that one of my clients was able to get a pass afterwards was irradiation. But that process negatively affected the color and the smell of the product – and it reduced the THC content by 25%.”
“That particular client was adamant that he was going to disclose that this product was irradiated,” Jacoby adds, “which means he couldn’t sell it – or, if he could sell it, it [would be at] 60% discount.”
This discounted, diminished cannabis may have been sellable under the incoming Aspergillus testing rules, but, according to Jacoby, at least 20% of his clients’ crops still weren’t.
“We were seeing a failure rate of about 20%, and that was just on product that was harvested primarily indoors – greenhouse crops – in Oregon.”
“That does not bode well for outdoor producers.”
Given that most of the state’s cannabis growers cultivate outside in Oregon’s precipitous climate, Jacoby’s clients were concerned that their true Aspergillus failure rate, come the harvest in September/October, would be much greater.
“At that point, they [the growers] could be looking at potentially their entire harvest being failed for Aspergillus,” says Jacoby.
Fearing impending losses, the CIAO filed its lawsuit against the state regulator in July, successfully stalling the requirement by August.
But what about the threat Aspergillus poses? some might ask. Now that it no longer has to be tested for, are consumers not at risk from fungi-tainted cannabis? Well, not really, argue some of Oregon’s growers.
“By their own admission, OHA has no record of an actual health crisis being caused by consumption of cannabis in Oregon since at least 2016,” Les Helgeson, manager of Green Hills LLC, a cannabis producer in Oregon, tells Analytical Cannabis.
“Unfortunately, unscrupulous corporate interests have manufactured an imaginary crisis, especially for Aspergillosis that is so rare it is not a reportable disease in the United States,” he adds.
Aspergillosis is a disease caused by inhaling Aspergillus spores. Most people can inhale such spores without issue but people with weakened immune systems and lung diseases are less resistant to the spores’ detrimental effects and can develop complications following an aspergillosis infection, such as lung damage.
The disease has been linked to cannabis consumption in several medical case studies, most involving immunocompromised patients who smoked medical cannabis.
Primarily for this reason, many US states with legal cannabis require labs to test cannabis samples for Aspergillus before the products go to market. Helgeson, however, says other policies could be pursued, policies that ultimately put responsibility in the hands of the consumer rather than the producer.
“A suitable alternative to expensive, unreliable and misleading testing requirements would be to post signs in retail establishments advising immunocompromised people to avoid inhaling cannabis or any other inhalable products (such as tobacco, etc.),” he told Analytical Cannabis in an email.
So, with the court suspension in place and the future direction of Oregon’s cannabis testing policies unclear, is such a labelling-only program the way to go? Not according to Medicinal Genomics.
“From our experience, looking at California and other states that have made this transition from totally yeast and mold [testing] to Aspergillus testing, the actual fail rates go down, because you’re only targeting for the Aspergillus species; you’re not targeting every single yeast and mold that’s in the plant,” Brendan McKernan, the chief executive officer of Medicinal Genomics, tells Analytical Cannabis.
Medicinal Genomics produces assays to test for Aspergillus mold on cannabis samples. McKernan and his team submitted some suggestions last year to the OLCC during its open comment period on the proposed Aspergillus testing rule. Perhaps unsurprisingly, they recommended the regulator require Aspergillus testing. Aspergilloses, they say, should not be underestimated.
“Even with an underreporting issue, the number one thing that kills cannabis users is aspergillosis,” McKernan says. “There’s nothing else that touches it.”
“If you do get aspergillosis – granted, it might be very rare – it has a 50% mortality rate,” he adds. “So it’s very serious thing that happens at a very rare rate.”
But what do McKernan and his colleagues make of the CIAO’s concerns? Specifically, what about Oregon’s precipitous outdoor growing climate? Aren’t such conditions always going to lead to a certain amount of Aspergillus growth? Well, it’s an issue that’s been overcome before, they say.
“California has been doing it [Aspergillus testing] for two years and their climate – at least Northern California – is not too different from Oregon,” says McKernan. “So I don’t think there’s a radically different amount of Aspergillus in the air between the two geographic regions.”
Jacoby, however, is a little more skeptical about the similarities between California and Oregon’s climates. While accepting that the geographic climates are much the same (along the border, at least), Jacoby says the testing climate is a little looser down in the Golden State, to the advantage of the labs.
“Essentially, the industry had figured out how to game the system in California,” he claims. “So that there would be no fails or very little fails for Aspergillus.”
“Whereas in Oregon, our system is much more rigorous,” he adds.
But, within this general complaint of stringency, Jacoby and McKernan can find common ground. The Medicinal Genomics team think Oregon’s cannabis sampling rules, for instance, could be more lenient, especially the requirement to test just a gram of cannabis for Aspergillus.
“The sampling of a gram is too small to really get a good survey of the plant,” McKernan says. “We did all of our testing on 10 grams.”
The regulator’s decision to require zero Aspergillus spores in a sample rather than less than one colony forming unit (CFU) per gram is also potentially troublesome, he says.
“I understand they’re [the growers are] concerned,” says McKernan. “I think they’re zeroing in on this zero-detect language in the test. And so that’s something that perhaps some Oregon regulations can better clear up.”
“If they [the regulators] go to 10 grams, they can have nine [CFUs] there; they go to 25, they can have 24 [CFUs]. But when you say absent, they’re assuming when you scale the subtenants to 25 it [the number of CFUs] stays at zero, which is a bad metric,” he adds. “Because if you increase the sampling size, you’re still stuck with absent, which means it gets harder and harder for you to pass if you go to the larger sampling. That’s not fair.”
So, is there any chance that the OLCC and OHA will adopt this higher-sampling suggestion as a way of appeasing Oregon’s growers? Only time will tell. For now, both the regulators and the CIAO are preoccupied with jumping through the legal hoops of the court’s order that suspended the testing requirement.
“The court has already signaled that we’re likely to prevail on the question of validity of the rule,” says Jacoby, “but that we have to file an opening brief and then the state gets to file a response, we get to file a reply, and then we have oral arguments, and then we wait for a decision. So that process takes about 12 to 18 months.”
“In the meantime, the agency can have the option to promulgate and move the appeal,” he adds. “But, in order to replace the rule with a new one, they would have to go through full permanent rulemaking procedures first. And that process takes six to eight months.”
Analytical Cannabis reached out to the OLLC, asking how the agency plans to respond to the court’s order. The regulator replied with the following:
“OLCC will refrain from additional public comment at this time.”
The CIAO, on the other hand, isn’t so shy about declaring its plans. According to Jacoby, the group of growers are just getting started with their fight with the regulators.
“The CIAO members are on alert,” he says. “They’ve been on alert since this rulemaking effort was initiated just a couple of months ago. And they've been trying to get people on the rules advisory committee that OHA is setting up, because usually industry groups get at least one seat.”
“I will say that, having represented this industry since 2016, this is the first time that they’ve been this organized,” Jacoby adds. “They’re prepared for this fight now.”
*Update: The article was updated on September 21, 2023. A previous version of the article incorrectly stated that the Oregon court's order had suspended the Aspergillus testing rule "indefinitely". The court's suspension order lasts 180 days. A portion of a quote from Kevin Jacoby was also removed for the sake of accuracy.


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added to basket
Rolawn have been hard at work fundraising for the Greenfingers Charity Garden Re-Leaf day. This year staff took part in a range of activities to mark the event and generate funds for the charity.
2 April 2019
Rolawn has once again decided to support its nominated charity and send e-cards to customers and suppliers this Christmas.
12 December 2018
FutureScape will be opening its doors to the landscaping industry on Tuesday 20th November at Sandown Park Racecourse, Esher in Surrey. We are excited to be exhibiting at the show for the first time this year.
15 November 2018
1st – 5th October is National Customer Service Week, a week-long opportunity to raise awareness of how important good effective customer service is in any successful business. This year, for the first time, Rolawn will be celebrating the event led by The Institute of Customer Service, with a range of activities that will focus on what goes in to providing high service levels.
1 October 2018
Against a tide of challenges, the humble bumble bee is fighting back with a little help from conservationists, bee lovers and gardeners keen to see the bee back in our gardens and once again adding to the eco-system and food chain.
28 August 2018
Independent research by the Sports Turf Research Institute (STRI) has underlined the credentials of younger thinner cut turf for its ability to root more quickly and vigorously than the traditional older thicker cut product, allowing faster establishment and a healthier and more attractive lawn.
16 August 2018
Rolawn’s continued support and sponsorship during the show season has paid dividends for many of the show gardens at this year’s RHS Hampton Court Flower Show.
17 July 2018
Rolawn is proud to be one of the key supporters and suppliers to this year’s BBC Gardeners’ World Live show at the NEC, Birmingham.
8 June 2018
A hugely successful RHS Chelsea Flower Show was enjoyed by companies using Rolawn products at this year’s event with 20 exhibitors achieving show accreditation including one silver award, 4 silver-gilt and 7 gold awards.
5 June 2018
Rolawn, the UK’s premium turf and topsoil supplier is working with Welcome to Yorkshire, the region’s tourism destination specialist, to provide 60 square metres of Medallion® Turf for its 2018 RHS Chelsea show garden. Medallion® was chosen for its ability to establish quickly and provide a high quality and wear resistant carpet of home-grown turf to complement the truly Yorkshire scene.
18 May 2018
This news feed is used to provide updates about our company and customers. To submit an item or for media enquiries please email email@example.com

domain: news


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Vegan Mothers' Breastmilk Contains Two Important Nutrients: Study
Using a technique that separates a sample into its individual parts and analyses their mass, this study challenges assumptions that vegan diets may not be nutritionally complete and that breastfed infants of vegan mothers may be at an increased risk of developing vitamin B2 or carnitine deficiency
The levels of carnitine and vitamin B2 in breastmilk, two elements crucial for the growth of a newborn, are not affected by a vegan diet. These are the findings of a study conducted by the Amsterdam University Medical Centre.
Research has found that lactating mothers following a vegan diet compared to mothers with an omnivorous diet showed no difference in the human milk concentrations of vitamin B2 or carnitine, despite these nutrients being found in highest concentrations in animal products.
The study was presented at the 55th Annual Meeting of the European Society for Paediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition (ESPGHAN).
Using a technique that separates a sample into its individual parts and analyses their mass, this study challenges assumptions that vegan diets may not be nutritionally complete and that breastfed infants of vegan mothers may be at an increased risk of developing vitamin B2 or carnitine deficiency.
In the last four years, the number of vegans in Europe alone has doubled. Lead researcher, Dr Hannah Juncker explains, "The maternal diet greatly influences the nutritional composition of human milk, which is important for child development. With the rise of vegan diets worldwide, also by lactating mothers, there are concerns about the nutritional adequacy of their milk. [...] therefore, it would be important to know if the milk concentrations of those nutrients are different in lactating women consuming a vegan diet."
Vitamin B2 (riboflavin) is an important co-factor for enzymes involved in many biological pathways. Previous studies have shown, that a significant shortage of vitamin B2 in infants can lead to anaemia and neurological problems.
Carnitine's primary biological role is in energy metabolism. Carnitine shortages in the infant can lead to low blood sugar, as well as the possibility to heart and brain dysfunction. Carnitine intake and subsequent plasma concentrations have also been previously found to be lower in those with vegan diets than with omnivorous diets. with previous studies even suggesting that certain lactating women may need to increase their animal product consumption to avoid deficiencies during breastfeeding. This study suggests that the influence of a maternal vegan diet on these two important nutrients in milk may be less significant than previously suggested.
While the presenting study reported lower serum free carnitine and acetyl carnitine concentrations in the mothers following a vegan diet, there was notably no difference in human milk carnitine concentrations between study groups.
Commenting on the findings, Dr Juncker summarises, "The results of our study suggest that vitamin B2 and carnitine concentrations in human milk are not influenced by consumption of a vegan diet. These results suggest that a vegan diet in lactating mothers is not a risk for the development of a vitamin B2 or carnitine deficiency in breastfed infants. This information is useful for breastfeeding mothers and also for donor human milk banks, which collect milk for provision to premature infants who do not receive sufficient mother's own milk." (ANI)
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EatFit And HRX By Hrithik Roshan Unveil Offline Stores
This will reinforce the strength of their partnership in promoting healthier lifestyles ...
The Holistic Approach To Care Is Taking Centre Stage In The Health Sector
The blanket term ‘Alternative healing practices’ encompasses a plethora of options ...


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I use the Instacart delivery service; at least I did before the COVID-19 (coronavirus) outbreak. The ability to order from your mobile device or home computer and have it delivered to your home within an hour or so was very convenient.
Now, it’s a couple of days away due to massive crowds cleaning out stores before 3-4 p.m. Instacart employees have a legitimate beef with not being protected from possible coronavirus conditions. Many supermarkets have given their employees a raise during the last week or so. But Instacart has not been on the receiving end of that good fortune, and are now considering going on strike if they are not compensated better and provided protection against contracting coronavirus during the course of their duties.
The workers are asking Instacart for an additional $5 per order and a default tip of at least 10% per order, they said in a statement, along with the Gig Workers Collective.
“For the past several weeks, Instacart Shoppers and Gig Workers Collective have been urging Instacart to take proper safety precautions,” the statement said. “We have been ignored.”
The group is also asking Instacart for safety provisions like hand sanitizer, disinfectant wipes, and soap, as well as expanded paid leave for people with preexisting conditions or those who are required to self-quarantine. They’re seeking an extension of the paid leave past April 8, when they said it is set to expire.
“Instacart has turned this pandemic into a PR campaign, portraying itself the hero of families that are sheltered-in-place, isolated, or quarantined,” the group said.
“Instacart has still not provided essential protections to Shoppers on the front lines that could prevent them from becoming carriers, falling ill themselves, or worse.” [Business Insider]
This piece originally appeared in WayneDupree.com and is used by permission.
Read more at WayneDupree.com:
Meghan Markle Secures Disney Film Role, As UK Royals Descend Into Complete Chaos
Report: Meghan Lays Down the Law, Forbids Harry From Returning to UK After His Father Tests Positive for COVID-19
Royals Horrified as Harry and Meghan Flee Canada for LA to Be Closer to “Hollywood PR Team” During Corona Crisis
The opinions expressed by contributors and/or content partners are their own and do not necessarily reflect the views of LifeZette.


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After more than two years at HarperCollins, where she was executive editor at It Books, Esther Margolis is leaving the company on February 14 and reclaiming the Newmarket Press. She will establish a new publishing and media venture to agent, package and consult on books, publishing, marketing and cross-media strategies, especially in the film and entertainment area. Margolis founded Newmarket Press in 1981 and sold the company and backlist to Harper in 2011. She will assume full rights to the Newmarket Press name and logo after the fall season launch.
At The Experiment, Nicholas Cizek and Molly Cavanaugh have both been promoted to associate editor.
At Chronicle Books, Ali Presley has been promoted to associate director, online marketing.
Former CNN correspondent Alino Cho (host of their Fashion: Backstage Pass) will join Ballantine Bantam Dell as editor-at-large, acquiring fashion and style projects.
In annual SEC filings, Books-A-Million investor Harsha Gowda disclosed that sometime within the past year he raised his stake in the company to 5.9 percent, while Dimensional Fund Advisors indicated their stake in BAMM is virtually unchanged, now 5.88 percent. Separately, Dimensional indicated in their annual filing that they increased their shares in Barnes & Noble slightly during 2013, now holding 7.9 percent of shares, up a few hundred thousand shares to 4.74 million in all.


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Following a teaser image released a few days ago, Lexus’ first-ever luxury van, the LM has broken cover, making its world debut at the Shanghai Auto Show.
Lexus says the LM luxury MPV has been developed specifically for the Chinese market but will also go on sale in other Asian markets such as Malaysia, Singapore and the Philippines where luxury vans are highly popular.
The model will go head-to-head against the equally popular Mercedes-Benz V-Class – currently its only rival. While it remains to be seen whether the new Lexus LM will make it to Australian shore, the Toyota Alphard – on which the LM is based – is increasingly visible on our streets, thanks to grey importers and demands from the Asian communities in Australia.
According to Lexus, the new LM integrates oriental car philosophy, combining unique craftsmanship with hospitality and comfortable driving experience. While the car certainly stands out, especially with the biggest spindle-grille ever on a Lexus, it’s the LM’s interior that is the model’s biggest selling point.
Shown here in “opulent four-seat configuration” that effectively turns the rear passenger compartment into a super luxury business-class lounge, the rear seats are separated by a dividing panel with a glass screen that can be raised or lowered. The panel also incorporates a giant 26-inch digital flat-screen TV, along with other amenities.
The rear executive seats features heating, ventilation and massaging functions, as well as a multiple of adjustments. They are filled with low-density urethane foam which is said to allow them to combine “ideal support with couch-like comfort.” Alternatively, the LM can also be ordered in a seven-seat layout with dual bucket seats for the first two rows and three seats for the rearmost row.
Besides lounging on sofa-like seats, occupants will be isolated from road imperfections as the LM uses suspension technology derived from the new ES sedan, specifically the swing-valve shock absorbers.
Other goodies include retro-styled analogue clock, umbrella storage within the doors and space for two bottles of champagnes in the onboard mini-fridge.
At launch, the LM will be offered with either the LM 350 with a 3.5-litre petrol V6, or the LM 300h with a hybrid 2.5-litre four-cylinder petrol. The LM can also be had in front- or all-wheel drive.
The Lexus LM will hit the Chinese and Asian markets later this year. As for pricing, expect to pay a premium over the more cost effective Toyota equivalent.


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refund for gtx 970
refund for gtx 970
A Class Action Lawsuit has been confirmed(lets hope all nvidia consumers get actual gtx 970 at said price or upgrade for free)
Letter to European Commission and Federal Trade Commission
Dear European Commission,
Dear Federal Trade Commission,
We address you by means of this writing to ask for your help.
About four months ago, Nvidia proudly presented their new innovations in graphical processing: the GTX 970 and GTX 980 GPU. Until today, both cards are officially specified as having the exact same memory composition and bandwidth.
Recently however, Nvidia was forced to step forward and explain to users why they have been seeing odd behaviour of the GTX 970. In this press release, Nvidia admitted that the memory composition of the GTX 970 vastly differs from what they initially announced, leading to limitations that could not be foreseen by the people who bought these cards. After this reveal, a storm of consumer protest arose, which, to this day, Nvidia has chosen to ignore.
Nvidia purposely omitted essential information from their consumers. Information which would not have been revealed if not for users noting unexpected behaviour of the hardware. Now, in the days following the revelation, Nvidia still keeps insisting that this was not misleading omission and continue to refuse consumers their lawful right for a refund.
Allowing Nvidia to continue to treat their consumers this way would open the way for other global businesses to treat their consumers dishonestly and hide vital information. By accepting the current state of this situation, you accept company dishonesty in the future. This would open a gate for more companies hiding vital information regarding their products and falsely advertising said products.
You have issued laws protecting consumers and other businesses against unfair competition, misleading advertising and misleading omission. We ask you now to enforce those laws. We ask you to send out a strong signal towards both businesses and residents that this behaviour will not be tolerated, not now and not in the future.
Nvidia advertised the GTX 970 as having 4GB of vram running at 224GB/S, it was later revealed that the first 3.5GB operates at 192GB/s (7/8th) while the remaining 0.5GB operates at 1/8th that speed.
Also mentioned in the review guide, the GTX 970 was supposed to operate with 64ROPs and 2MB L2 Cache, the actual specs were revealed to be only 52ROPs and 1.78MB L2 Cache.
It was made official by Nvidia that they made a mistake in advertising. Whether or not they lied is irrelevant. Customers were misled by the factually incorrect specs listed on the packaging.
When using GPU-Z, the specs actually reflect this error which still incorrectly reads the card as having 64ROPs, ie. a cover-up.
It is believed that Nvidia should offer it's customers a refund or at the very least acknowledgement and compensation, perhaps in the form of a "step-up" program, so the customer can choose what is best for them.
What Nvidia is doing today with the GTX 970 is illegal. Even today, they keep misrepresenting and selling the GTX 970 to consumers all over the world. The lack of an official reaction would mean that you accept this situation and opens a way to unfair trade in the future. You were created to protect your residents against unfair business practices, we thus ask you to act accordingly.
We believe in you.
And we need your help.
Pcworld,Gamespot and maximumpc noticed us. Thanks to them for putting links in their posts. Below are their links.
I would advise everyone to complain to the following commissions over world
It will definitely be noticed if thousands of people send in complaints.


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You are here
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. -- Pilot opened a new travel center Monday off Interstate 81 near Hagerstown, Md. The 11,044-square-foot facility has eight fuel islands, nine diesel islands, a CAT scale and nine showers, The Herald-Mail Online reported.
The new location -- the second Pilot travel center in Washington County -- also includes a McDonald's restaurant, a Subway restaurant, Western Union, an ATM, pay phones, fax services, UPS services, lottery and lotto games, an Airvac, laundry services, an expanded grill area with Oscar Mayer hot dogs and a deli, a company news release stated.
"We hope that Hagerstown-area residents and fleet customers will welcome having our new travel center just around the corner," Jimmy Haslam, president of Pilot Travel Centers, said in a statement. With headquarters in Knoxville, Tenn., Pilot has more than 300 locations throughout 40 states.
The travel center will employ at least 45 workers, according to spokeswoman Ellen Robinson. Craig Killmeyer is general manager of the Hagerstown location.


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Experts at stretching their dollar
NOT a cent goes unaccounted for in the Sullivan’s household budget as they battle to keep on top of the rising cost of living.
Their battle looks set to continue amid claims by the State Opposition that retail trade figures released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics prove Queensland has become the most expensive state in which to live.
David, 31, Alley, 26, and their children Ashley, 4, Preston, 2, and Lila Sullivan, seven months, live in a Harristown rental home on David’s sole wage as a pay clerk at a Toowoomba timber business.
They go out to dinner maybe twice a year and plan trips away weeks in advance to make sure they have enough cash for the extra petrol.
Their budget is stretched but not broken, however, pressure is rising with the cost of living.
“Everything keeps going up,” Mrs Sullivan said. “Milk and bread; it’s more than $2 a loaf even at the supermarket.
“Making a sandwich shouldn’t cost that much.”
Husband David said they had married and started a family quite young, before they had a chance to buy a house.
“Now, that would be just impossible,” Mr Sullivan said. “We try to save and save because we would one day like to buy a house.”
“But nine times out of 10 when you start to think you are getting on top of it something like a big electricity bill will come along,” his wife added. In the face of the daily struggles, the Sullivans have learnt to make their own fun.
“It is not expensive to catch up with friends to do something at home,” Mrs Sullivan said. “Life doesn’t have to be boring, although you do have to be organised.”


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Struggling Starbucks offers $2 afternoon promotion
This morning, our barista at 35th and 8th enthusiastically handed over our receipt and informed us of a special promotion: Come back after 2 p.m. and get a grande cold drink for $2, plus tax. (Which works out to about half the usual price)
Starbucks Gossip reports the chain has gone nationwide with the promotion, which began in select cities and requires making a purchase before 2 p.m. The promotion runs through Sept. 2 The chain is trying to "answer consumers' calls for more value at the chain, which has seen traffic drop as gas prices rise and consumer spending falters," the AP says.
The comments in the Starbucks Gossip thread are worth a read. This one caught our attention:
The (sweet?) irony is that the local shops were forced to do the $2 happy hour promos a decade ago, in the face of sbux predatory market practices.
And now the shoe is on the other foot.
Congrats. You are now fast food, sbux.
Unless you're a routine repeat customer, we're not sure how effective this will be. Will you visit again just to cash in on the deal? We won't.
-- Rolando Pujol


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Vivo is preparing to expand its V series smartphone lineup in a number of hours from now. The smartphone is allegedly featured color changes Fluorite AG Glass experience. Vivo V25 will be part of the mainstream lineup that already contains the Vivo V25 Professional 5G that was launched earlier this year. The company has officially presented the launch date of its upcoming smartphone on Twitter. Vivo V25 5G Release Date, Time and Various Details
Vivo V25 Professional 5G will be launched immediately (September 15th) at 12 noon. The smartphone must be available for purchase online via the e-tailer platform Flipkart
or the official website of Vivo.
Vivo V25 5G Expected Options and Specifications


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Japan’s biggest electronics trade show kicked off Tuesday, offering a future peek at how the latest technologies can be integrated into everyday living.
This year’s CEATEC (Combined Exhibition of Advanced Technologies) at Makuhari Messe in Chiba Prefecture is still making a push to cast off the image of being just a home electronics hardware exhibition.
Featuring 725 firms and organizations, up by 58 from last year and with 345 new entrants, all are eager to show off a preview of their possible future business models by combining services with hot technological trends such as artificial intelligence, virtual reality and the “internet of things.”
Convenience store chain Lawson Inc., joining CEATEC for the first time, demonstrated some concepts of its next-generation store.
For instance, visitors can shop at its pop-up store, which uses a QR code payment system, in the convention hall. Electronic tags are attached to the products, allowing the store to keep track of what the shopper picks up and puts in their shopping bag. When customers scan their QR codes and the electronic tags on the items, they receive their e-receipts on their smartphones and can just walk out through the gate with their bag.
Lawson already accepts QR code payment at its stores, but such special tags have yet to debut, according to spokesman Ken Mochimaru.
“Improving efficiency and hospitality is our focus here,” Mochimaru said.
The labor shortage is hitting Japan hard and is expected to continue as the population declines, so cashless payments and special tagging systems will help reduce the burden on workers, he said.
“Shop employees spend a lot of time serving customers at a cash register, so reducing this time will be key,” he said.
Lawson is also introducing an anime-like virtual clerk avatar through VR technology. The character is remotely controlled in real time, so it can chat with visitors, who the operator sees through a camera.
The aim of this kind of service is to motivate customers to come to the store in addition to just wanting to shop.
Lion Corp., a newcomer to the event that provides dental products and medicine, has come up with an app that can evaluate one’s risk of an oral malady. Users simply take a picture of their tongue and then an AI analyzes the coating, as it is the culprit behind bad breath.
Lion said it plans to sell the service to enterprises whose business mainly involves plenty of direct communication in order to avoid making the customer feel uncomfortable.
Although CEATEC has been distancing itself from the image of being a home electronics trade show, Sharp Corp. is heavily promoting its superclear image TVs, or 8K TVs.
The Osaka-based firm known for its LCD display technology is set to launch new 60- to 80- inch models soon, as the broadcasting of 8K content is scheduled to begin Dec. 1, starting with NHK.
The 8K, or Super Hi-Vision (SHV), display has a resolution of 7,680 pixels horizontally by 4,320 pixels vertically, or 16 times as many pixels as the standard high-definition display, which has a resolution of 1,920 x 1,080 pixels. Taking advantage of the high resolution, Sharp said it can be used in medical surgeries to show a clearer image of affected areas of patients.
Other home appliances, such as refrigerators, washing machines and air conditioners that are capable of connecting to an internet-based AI are also on display. Calling it AIoT (AI and IoT, or internet of things), these devices learn their owner’s behavior and preferences to try to work in smarter ways. For example, an air conditioner might try to find the most energy efficient way to cool or heat a room.
“With 8K and AIoT, we are proposing a variety of solutions to improve quality of businesses,” said Yoshihisa Ishida, vice president at Sharp. “Sharp has gone beyond the home electronics maker. We want visitors to see this new Sharp.”
Komatsu, a heavy machinery maker, exhibited gigantic construction equipment, as it is developing crawler dump vehicles and excavators capable of self-driving.
Not only will the automation help mitigate the labor shortage, it will also make construction sites safer, since it can reduce the number of human workers, a Komatsu official said.
This year’s CEATEC also features 162 startups and colleges, and 206 firms and organizations from other countries, including the United States, France, Russia and China.
The organizer said it expects to have 160,000 visitors in the four days through Friday.
In a time of both misinformation and too much information, quality journalism is more crucial than ever.
By subscribing, you can help us get the story right.


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Done deal! Betfred founder, 73, adds £10m to his £1.3bn family fortune
- Fred Done took out a £10.2 million dividend from the firm he set up in 1967
- In total, £10.8 billion was gambled last year via Betfred
- Done has several other business interests including property and truck stops
Betting shop mogul Fred Done has added to his fortune by taking a £10.2m dividend from the firm he set up in 1967
Betting shop mogul Fred Done has added to his estimated £1.3 billion fortune by taking a £10.2 million dividend from the firm he set up in 1967.
Accounts just filed for the Betfred Group, which is owned by Done, 73, and his family, revealed the £10.2 million payout as well as a jump in turnover for the year to September 25, 2016, from £526 million to £579 million.
The increase was due to a rise in customer numbers and an increase in the amount staked per bet.
In total, £10.8 billion was gambled last year via Betfred, which owns 1,358 betting shops and the on-course pools betting business, the Tote. It also has an online operation.
After paying betting and machine gaming duties and a £10.2 million horse-racing levy, plus costs and other expenses, Betfred Group recorded pre-tax profits of £32.4 million.
It recently acquired 322 more shops for £55 million, which came on the market after the merger of Ladbrokes and Gala Coral.
Betfred is understood to have appointed investment bank Rothschild to review strategic options, including a sale or floating it.
Done has several other business interests including property, digital marketing and truck stops.
Meanwhile, Megabet UK, formerly known as Stan James, has filed accounts showing it made a pre-tax loss of £597,000 on a turnover of £127 million for the year ending December 31, 2015.
The 112-strong betting shop firm said it had been hit by the increase in machine gaming duty.
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St. Cloud direct mail and telemarketing company Aria Communication Corp. might lay off 215 employees from its headquarters and its card-making facility in Waite Park before the end of the year.
The leadership of Aria, which makes calls and sends handwritten cards for companies and also assists in fundraising drives for nonprofits, has decided to sell the business, according to a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification letter the company sent earlier this month to the state Department of Employment and Economic Development.
It's possible that Aria or a future buyer could eliminate employee positions, Chief Executive and President Charles Lucas said in the letter.
"Aria's ability to remain economically viable as a stand-alone business has been challenged in recent years by shifting industry trends on the revenue end and by escalating labor and technology costs on the expense end, most notably by the increase in the minimum wage and the generally tight labor market," Lucas wrote.
Staff changes could occur as soon as Dec. 15.
According to its website, Aria was founded in 1985 by two St. Cloud State University graduates.
Direct marketing, like other advertising strategies, has faced mounting challenges as consumers are bombarded with marketing from numerous communication channels that can make it hard for brands to stand out.


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HEED, a revolutionary new AI platform that illuminates the invisible insights behind key moments from live events, has announced a USD 35 million funding round led by SoftBank Group International, the company said.
The investment will bolster HEED´s expansion as it partners with sports clubs and leagues around the world to create deeper connections with mobile fans.
HEED, co-founded by AGT International and Endeavor, uses AI to identify a game´s most exciting moments and IoT-based data analytics to generate groundbreaking exclusive new insights and automatically deliver them in near real-time to fans´ mobile devices.
Beyond analyzing the physical elements of a sporting event, HEED goes even deeper to unlock the emotional and behavioral realities of live sports events.This investment represents a major milestone for HEED, as it extends the development of its platform to create exciting new experiences connecting fans to the best moments in soccer, MMA, basketball and other sports categories.
HEED is a new consumer platform that is transforming the sports and entertainment experience. Using IoT analytics and AI, HEED delivers real-time stories, unique insights and a new way to visualize and engage with live events. Heed was co-founded by AGT International and Endeavor and is headquartered in New York City with offices in London and Herzliya, Israel.


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MEPs backed a -40% greenhouse gas efficiency target for shipping companies, to be reached gradually by 2030, as part of the revision of the EU’s monitoring, reporting and verification (MRV) system for ship emissions. They also said shipping companies must buy EU carbon permits for their pollution.
Faïg Abbasov, shipping programme manager at T&E, said: “The Parliament is tired of inaction in the face of steadily rising shipping emissions. This is a clear signal to President von der Leyen that the EU’s more ambitious 2030 climate target must apply to maritime emissions too and that ships must pay for all of their pollution in the EU carbon market.”
Ships should also be required to stop emitting harmful air pollutants and greenhouse gases when docked in Europe’s ports by 2030, MEPs said. They called for the monitoring system for shipping emissions to be made more transparent, too.
Today shipping is the only sector not yet subject to emission reduction targets or measures in the EU. The shipping industry’s carbon pollution has grown 10% in just six years and could increase 50% by 2050 if real action is not taken. This is mainly because maritime trade has grown more quickly than the efficiency of ships has improved.


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Lumirithmic raising $6M seed for hyperreal avatars
Lumirithmic is raising a $6 million seed round to make its hyperrealistic avatars accessible to the masses, CEO Gaurav Chawla tells Axios exclusively.
Why it matters: Retailers are increasingly adopting Web3 applications to give shoppers a more accurate, tailored way to find the products that fit best, and to reduce returns.
Details: Lumirithmic has lined up several angel investors, and it’s just a matter of “nailing down a lead investor,” Chawla says.
- The company has raised $1.2 million since March, bringing its total funding in the last 12 months to $2 million.
What they’re saying: “Many people believe the metaverse is the next big thing,” he says. “And we're going to make a huge impact in that space by making it actually be something that people want to spend their time in.”
- Key to that, he says, will be making it less gimmicky and more realistic.
The latest: The company has a pilot with a large but undisclosed French beauty, skin care and dermatology company.
- By next year, this contract will convert to hundreds of thousands of deployments, Chawla says.
What's next: The company aims to get its products in shopping malls and beauty stores.
- Lumirithmic, whose existing adopters include visual effects studios that work primarily on post-production with actors, also aims to penetrate ad tech.
- The company sees huge opportunities in video conferencing and video games and wants its tech “anywhere where the face is.”
How it works: The London-based company has a 3D facial appearance capture technology that constructs a realistic digital human avatar.
- Lumirithmic co-founder and CTO Abhijeet Ghosh co-invented the facial capture and light system used in the Hollywood movie “Avatar” to create the human-like characters.
- Similar to the large camera rigs and lights the movie deployed, that kind of technology was shrunk to a desktop version and can scan someone down to the pore level, at 1/10 of a millimeter — “which means your skin, your retina, your pore, your emotions are all preserved in it,” Chawla says.
- The idea is to give people access to high-quality scans that don’t cost many thousands of dollars.
State of play: The company has made the most inroads in skin care and cosmetics, Chawla says, offering biophysical imaging and biophysical simulation of the skin.
- With its 3D renderings, "it's not just a shade or color, but the skin health, like hemoglobin level or melanin levels," Chawla says.
- The technology can simulate how a lipstick’s color is going to react with the skin, not just replace the color of your own lips, Ghosh adds.
Yes and: The company also delivers forward simulation, enabling consumers to see how they'll look in a few weeks after using a certain product.
- “So within seconds, it's telling you these are the issues with your skin,” Chawla says, adding that this helps match the right skin care products and provides recommendations.
- “This specific application in hyper personalized skin care ... there's this massive demand,” Chawla says.
The intrigue: Lumirithmic aims to scan billions of people's faces, Chawla says. With that data, the company hopes to bring this technology from Hollywood Boulevard to Main Street USA.


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The UK’s largest independent car club, City Car Club, is working with innovative start-up LipraLoof Technologies Ltd, to trial smart power technology, which could soon see cars powered by AA-style batteries – much handier for women to carry in their handbag than a petrol can!
James Finlayson, Managing Director of hourly rental City Car Club said: “When LipraLoof approached us we realised just how exciting this new technology could be – it has the potential to revolutionise the way we all drive. However, as with all new technology, rigorous real-world testing is a must and with our fleet of 700+ cars, all used mainly for short journeys, we are in the perfect position to trial this in UK cities.”
The LipraLoof batteries contain a mix of four metal hydrates which creates a quad, or 4A battery which is much more power than a standard battery. Quad batteries store and reuse energy which is lost with a traditional car battery. Even over long journeys, the quad batteries will still allow us to hit 88mph should the need arise.
LipraLoof’s founder and managing director Dr Ed Heaverben, explains: “We’ve combined our quad batteries with virtually 100% regenerative braking which harnesses the energy normally lost when we brake. Another significant area where we’ve conserved energy is with the tyres – we’ve developed a specially designed tread that ‘grabs’ energy which normally escapes onto the road as heat. This saved energy is then stored in a Franco-Luxemburg engineered Flux Capacitor, ever ready for use when needed.”
Trial and development is expected to last around two years, with a commercial version available to hire from 2016-17. Needless to say, FOXY Lady Drivers Club is first in line for a test drive!
Car clubs are all about providing a realistic, environmentally sustainable and flexible alternative to car ownership that benefits individuals as well as the wider community.
For further information visit www.citycarclub.co.uk or www.lipraloof.co.uk.


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Pac-Man, Space Invaders, Galaga and other arcade classics are now playable on another platform: Facebook. The social media giant has introduced Instant Games, a new gaming feature, to Messenger and the news feed, making popular titles easily accessible while visiting Facebook.
Instant Games is now in closed beta, with a full launch date not yet specified. Players can launch the feature by tapping an icon in the messaging field, as well as while scrolling through the news feed. The feature will work on mobile and web, and will include social features without any added installations. Watch the how-to video above for a sense of how Instant Games will work once it’s live for everyone.
The full list of 17 games included in the Instant Games launch library features those familiar to heavy Facebook users, like Shuffle Cats and Words with Friends. More exciting are the old-school favorites, which run the gamut from Bandai Namco’s Pac-Man, to Konami’s Track & Field 100M, to Taito Corporation’s Puzzle Bobble. Here’s what’s playable starting today:
- PAC-MAN (BANDAI NAMCO Entertainment Inc.)
- Galaga (BANDAI NAMCO Entertainment Inc.)
- ARKANOID (TAITO CORPORATION)
- SPACE INVADERS (TAITO CORPORATION)
- TRACK & FIELD 100M (Konami Digital Entertainment Co., Ltd.)
- Words with Friends: Frenzy (Zynga)
- Shuffle Cats Mini (King)
- EverWing (Blackstorm)
- Hex (FRVR)
- Endless Lake (Spilgames)
- Templar 2048 (Vonvon)
- The Tribez: Puzzle Rush (Game Insight)
- 2020 Connect (Softgames)
- Puzzle Bobble (TAITO CORPORATION / Blackstorm)
- Zookeeper (Kiteretsu)
- Brick Pop (Gamee)
- Wordalot Express (MAG Interactive)
Facebook also has an array of games available as separate apps within the platform. While many of these remain popular, the Facebook game craze reached an apex in the late-00s, thanks to free-to-play titles like FarmVille.
In 2013, Dan Morris, Facebook’s head of gaming partnerships, told us that the social media company was looking into ways to keep players gaming on the site as downloadable, off-platform mobile games grew in popularity. Mobile gaming is now a huge industry, and Instant Games seems to be the realization of Facebook’s years of trying to break its way inside.


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Xiaomi has launched the Mi LED TV 4, the company’s first commercially available television set in India. The announcement was made during Xiaomi’s product launch event, where it also launched the Redmi Note 5 and Note 5 Pro smartphones. Rumours that Xiaomi has been planning to launch a television set in India have been floating around for years, now the company has launched the Mi LED TV 4, which it plans to sell for Rs 39,999 on Flipkart, Mi.com and Mi Home stores from February 22.
The Mi LED TV 4 will be made available in a 55-inch screen size initially, the company said. Measuring up at just 4.9mm thick, the Mi LED TV 4 has been aesthetically designed television set with virtually no bezels. The LED TV is capable of offering a 4K resolution of 3,840 x 2,160 pixels with HDR (or High Dynamic Range) and Dolby+ DTS sound system.
The TV is powered by a quad-core 64-bit TV processor coupled with 2GB RAM and 8GB memory. As for connectivity, you get Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.2, three HDMI ports, two USB ports, AV in, Ethernet port, and S/PDIF audio output. You also get a basic remote control, although the voice input feature is missing at the moment.
Xiaomi promises its Mi LED TV 4 will be the smartest TV in the market. The TV uses a PatchWall UI on top of Android and uses artificial intelligence (AI) to curate content based on user’s viewing patterns over time. The user interface itself has been made for a large-screen TV that makes it easier to find the shows and channels which can be controlled everything from a simple remote. An option of universal search is also available. And the “smart” integration works with your regular set-up-box as well.
Although a dedicated app store is missing, Xiaomi has over 10 content partners that will provide both local and international content in over 15 regional languages. The list includes the likes of Alt Balaji, Voot, SunNxt, Hungama Play, and Hotstar, among others. The bigger focus has been on personalisation and curation. That would be a huge win for consumers.


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Sears, Delta, Best Buy, Kmart and likely more organizations have been the victims of a breach affecting payment card information that was obtained through online chat provider 7.ai. These attacks took place over the course of a few months in the latter part of 2017 but weren’t reported by the chat provider until April of 2018.
Thankfully, it seems as though the breach was relatively small in comparison to other high-profile breaches over the last few years, and the actual impact to consumers themselves relatively minor. According to Sears, 100,000 customer records were affected. Delta were vaguer but still claimed that the number of affected customers was small.
7.ai is a customer experience software and services company that deals with enterprise organizations in numerous sectors across the globe. A press release issued by the organization stated full co-operation with law enforcement and that they are “confident that the platform is secure.”
The problem with this breach, as highlighted by numerous security experts, is how it was handled by the chat provider. Despite knowing about the breach since September of 2017, many of the companies involved were not made aware until very recently. PCI DSS compliance states that breaches must be detected and breach notifications much be made to those involved “in the most expedient time possible and without undue delay.”
The reason that this is stated in some form in most compliance regulations dealing with breaches, is that the quicker the reaction time, the higher the chance of being able to mitigate the damages. The organizations involved all reacted far better upon being notified than 7.ai did, notifying the affected customers as quickly as they could.
At the moment of writing, little is known about why it took the payment company so long to notify the affected organizations, but the case should be taken as a warning of how important it is to be able to quickly identify and react to a breach in progress. Organizations need to ensure that they have a way of auditing all accesses made to payment data, users of that payment data and permissions in order to meet PCI DSS compliance and respond faster to breaches.
Lepide Data Security Platform enables you to audit activities concerning this data and generate alerts and reports in real time whenever a suspicious, unauthorized or unnecessary change takes place. Threshold-based alerts can also be used to make users aware of whenever a large number of changes take place over a small period of time, which could be indicative of an attack.
It is advised that your organization deploy a solution such as this one before you become a victim of the next targeted data breach.


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Last month at its annual symposium at MIT in Cambridge, Mass. the New England Motor Press (NEMPA) awarded the 2016 Mazda MX-5 Miata its annual Convertible Award in the Affordable class. NEMPA may end up being the last organization to honor the outgoing car that will soon be replaced by the 2016 model of the new generation (called ND). The NC generation ran from 2006.5 through the 2015 calendar year, making it the second longest-running generation after the first which ran from 1989 through 1999.
The 2016 Mazda MX-5 Miata will start to appear on dealer lots about late July or August. It is already for sale in Japan and some limited media test vehicles have been in use for about a month here in the U.S. The awards for the new ND, 2016 Miata have already started to pour in. Being smaller and lighter than the outgoing car it is being called a return to the Miata’s roots.
Wheels TV did a great job of creating this overview, likely one of the last for the NC. In the narration, Wheels notes that NEMPA says the “MX-5 Miata demonstrates a spirited mix of performance, handling and drop-top excitement that keeps sports car enthusiasts comin’ back for more.


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Yesterday, Google rolled out the November security update 2018 as scheduled. The security patch is the first update for Google Pixel 3 owners and a second one, after the release of Android Pie.
Sadly, it might be the last update for people owning Google Pixel C, and the Nexus series – Nexus 6P and Nexus 6X. In other words, the Nexus series has finally arrived at the end of its journey.
For those who are oblivious to the Google update policy — Google only guarantees two years of firmware updates and three years of security updates, from the day when the device first became available in the market (Google Store).
|Phone||No guaranteed Android
version updates after
|No guaranteed security
|Pixel 3 XL||October 2021||October 2021|
|Pixel 3||October 2021||October 2021|
|Pixel 2 XL||October 2020||October 2020|
|Pixel 2||October 2020||October 2020|
|Pixel XL||October 2018||October 2019|
|Pixel||October 2018||October 2019|
|Nexus 6P||September 2017||November 2018|
|Nexus 5X||September 2017||November 2018|
Google Pixel C, Nexus 5X and Nexus 6P are already out of the firmware update, i.e., they still run on Android 8.1 Oreo. And now they have officially run out of security updates as well.
Meanwhile, if you own one of these devices, you can still squeeze some juice out of it with the help of Custom ROMS. Most of the Custom ROM works fine, but they come with few bugs. And you will have to root your device which is a quite complicated task.
On the other hand, Google Pixel, Pixel 2 and Pixel 3 owners can take a sigh of relief because Google will continue to bring updates, at least for the next year. As for the new November security update, Google has fixed over 17 security vulnerabilities and many bug fixes.
Also, Google has added more notification stability in the Pixel 2 and Pixel 3 devices. You can read the whole changelog here.
Also Read:How To Get Google Pixel 3’s Call Screening Feature On Pixel & Pixel 2?


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GMG, which has a portfolio of leading international and home-grown brands across sport, food and health sectors, has entered the food retail sector with the acquisition of Géant operations in the UAE and exclusive rights to expand Géant operations in the Middle East.
Géant is a part of Groupe Casino, a French retailing giant with a turnover of over EUR35bn. GMG has acquired Géant’s current UAE retail footprint from Urban Foods by Dubai Holding. This will include a total of 18 hypermarket and supermarket locations across the UAE, with the new openings featuring some of Groupe Casino’s other brands such as Franprix and Monoprix. GMG will also have exclusive rights to expand these brands.
Mohammad A. Baker, deputy chairman and CEO of GMG, said:
“This acquisition is a milestone in our history as we venture into the food retail category. In doing so, we are able to cover the entire consumer journey from food manufacturing and distributing to retail. Moreover, the diverse portfolio of Groupe Casino’s supermarket brands will allow us to cater to all categories of consumers, from the price-conscious to those desiring more premium and specialty products.”
Last year, GMG announced the redesign of its business into four verticals: GMG Sports, GMG Food, GMG Health and GMG Consumer Goods. The latest acquisition falls under the GMG Consumer Goods vertical, bringing the total workforce to over 700 employees. GMG, which has introduced more than 120 brands into its markets, announced plans last year to double its global workforce by 2025.
GMG has also continued to grow its original food brands Farm Fresh and Klassic, as well as being a distributor for popular food brands such as McCain, Mama Sita’s and Shan.
“Our acquisition comes at a time when the Middle East’s food economy is undergoing a major transformation. Consumer preference has shifted to locally-sourced food items and sustainable food options, while governments are simultaneously exploring ways to enhance food safety and promote food security in line with their national development visions. In the coming years, our intention is to cover the entire food consumption chain from farm to fork,”
The Géant deal follows another high-profile GMG retail acquisition of Royal Sporting House in 2020. The company also acquired the rights to manage, distribute, and retail the Nike brand in Egypt and Iraq starting in the third quarter this year.
News Source: Gulf Business


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Frank Huang, World Semiconductor Council chairman, on Wednesday warned that the aggressive capacity cuts in the D-Ram memory chip sector over the past few months would likely result in a severe shortage by the end of the year that could disrupt shipments of computers and other electronics.
The global D-Ram sector faced its biggest crisis in its 16 years of existence last year as industry over-expansion coincided with a drop in demand for computers as a result of the global economic downturn.
But Mr Huang, who is also chairman of Powerchip, one of the biggest Taiwan D-Ram makers, said the industry would begin to recover by the second half of this year, and downstream producers of PCs and other electronic products will face “a shortage bigger than I have ever seen in the past 16 years ... this will affect global PC shipments.”
Last year's crisis, reflected in the price of D-Ram falling by more than half to below cost for most producers by the end of last year, led to a store of 1bn unsold D-Ram chips and nearly $10bn in total losses by the industry.
This prompted the biggest manufacturers, mainly in South Korea and Taiwan, to cut production aggressively. Others, such as Germany's Qimonda, fell into bankruptcy.
Nearly half of world production has been cut since the beginning of the year, Mr Huang said. This means that by June, the 1bn stockpiled chips will all be sold and by the end of the year there will be a global shortage of 2bn chips, equivalent to the D-Ram needed for 100m computers.
“It has been a difficult time but we can finally see spring coming,” said Mr Huang.
Part of the reason for the impending shortage, he said, was that most D-Ram companies are facing financial difficulties and would find it hard to revive production quickly. The other reason is that “wolf has been cried too many times [on a market recovery]. Everyone is too cautious,” he said. Powerchip and Rexchip, its joint venture with Japan's Elpida, would wait until prices rebounded before drastically increasing production and building up inventory, he said.
This expected change in the supply and demand equation would prompt the Taiwan government to re-assess its plans to restructure the fragmented domestic industry, Mr Huang said. Taipei earlier announced the establishment of Taiwan Memory Corporation, a partially state-owned company aimed at ensuring Taiwan had proprietary D-Ram technology so it could remain competitive in the future.
TMC is due to announce next week whether it will partner with Elpida or the US's Micron to achieve this goal.
Mr Huang on Wednesday played down the possibility of Elpida partnering with TMC, and said his companies would have nothing to do with the government entity.
“John Hsuan [TMC chairman] wants 40 per cent of Rexchip ... over my dead body,” he said. “I might have considered it two months ago if they came with cash but now, no way.”


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An Israeli start-up has launched a 3D printed plant-based meat, making whole “cuts” of the vegan product available for the first time in restaurants in Europe and Israel.
Redefine Meat, which produced its first 3D printed plant-based steak in 2018, can “print” 10kg of plant based meat an hour. Its beef cuts aim for the fibrous texture of real meat and are made from soy and pea protein, chickpeas, beetroot, yeast and coconut fat.
The company, which raised $29m in early stage funding in February, has a partnership with food flavouring company Givaudan and claims to have cracked the secret of juiciness in meat.
Dishes made from its products, including beef and lamb flank cuts as well as minced beef and pork, will be available in restaurants such as Marco Pierre White’s steak houses and Indian restaurant Brigadiers in the UK, and Michelin starred restaurants Ron Gastrobar in the Netherlands and Facil in Germany.
The launch comes as the plant-based protein market becomes increasingly crowded and multinational food companies such as Nestlé get in on the act. Beyond Meat in the US paved the way with its plant-based burgers but until now, offerings from the plant-based meat industry have largely been alternatives to minced meat products such as beef patties and chicken nuggets.
The “holy grail” for the industry has been to produce “structured” meats that resemble cuts of beef or chicken both visually and in texture.
While plant-based alternatives simulating cuts of meat are available in supermarkets, they mostly lack the fibrous texture of the real thing. Food entrepreneurs and scientists trying to recreate the texture of meat are looking at the structure of mycelium, a network of fungal threads, and turning to 3D printing.
3D printing can also be used to recreate the marbling of steak or the defined areas of fat and muscle in bacon, according to research group IDTechEx. “Technology is progressing quickly in the plant-based meat industry and the next few years could be pivotal in deciding whether plant-based meat is able to disrupt the global meat industry,” it said.
Other start-ups working on 3D printed food include Spain’s Novameat, while Israel’s Aleph Farms has created a 3D printed rib-eye steak made from incubated cow cells.
Eshchar Ben-Shitrit, chief executive and co-founder of Redefine Meat, said global meat consumption needed to be reduced to help with environmental problems such as deforestation. “Most of the crops produced go to animal feed. We have a genuine solution that today, not in 2030, preserves all the culinary aspects of meat we know and love, but eliminates cattle as a means of production.”


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British Nintendo developers are adamant that the new glasses-free 3DS handheld, due for release early in 2011, is going to appeal to both hardcore and casual gamers alike.
So while debates in online gaming forums rage on about the relative 'hardcore' merits of new technologies such as Microsoft Kinect, Sony PlayStation Move and Nintendo 3DS, those that have played with the new Nintendo handheld and those that are making games for it seem sure that it will captivate "all sectors of the audience."
3DS developer poll
TechRadar recently polled all the publishers and developers working on 3DS games to find out their thoughts on the potential of Nintendo's new tech.
To be fair, most of the responses we got were along the lines of: "cannot really comment, under NDA [non-disclosure agreement]" but we did manage to squeeze a bit more information out of those that have seen the new tech.
Neil Long, Editor of Official Nintendo Magazine told us: "Nintendo have got form when it comes to industry-changing technology, but for me the 3DS has the potential to outstrip anything the company has achieved before.
"Picking up the handheld and looking into that 3D top screen is another 'wow' moment similar to playing Wii Sports for the first time – you get the very real sense that Nintendo have somehow nicked a time-travelling DeLorean and smuggled its new tech back from the far-flung future. Besides the headline-grabbing 3D screen, for me what's most interesting is how its other functionality will offer developers some really interesting toys to play with.
"The console's accelerometer and gyroscope open the door to tilt and motion-controlled games, and one augmented reality tech demo I saw offered up a genuinely jaw-dropping glimpse of what might be done in this space as well. Its ability to take (and, knowing Nintendo, play with) 3D photos is another feature that has been a little glossed-over."
First auto-stereoscopic 3D console
We also spoke with Blitz Games CTO and founder Andrew Oliver, who told TechRadar: "In addition to the Stereoscopic-3D-without-glasses capability and its upgraded processing power, the 3DS also already has some of the new technologies including a stereo camera, tilt sensors and a gyroscope.
"These will undoubtedly lead to some very interesting possibilities for future gameplay but are unlikely to be seen in the first wave of games."
"As far as the 3DS goes I think it will be welcomed by both core and casual gamers – not least because of the stellar line-up of games announced by Nintendo at E3.
"As the first 3D screen on the market which does not require glasses, and given the rapturous reaction from those people who have actually experienced 3DS gameplay, we expect a range of hugely exciting games to go down very well with all sectors of the audience."


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Realme VP Mr. Madhav Sheth in an exclusive interview last October mentioned that Realme’s 125W UltraDart charging technology, announced in July 2020, will be commercially available this year. That has not happened yet, but yesterday Realme announced that it will unveil the “world’s fastest smartphone charging tech” on February 28, 2022 at MWC at Barcelona. While there is no word from Realme regarding how fast this tech will be, a leaked image suggests it could go up to 200W.
We are looking at an image of an unreleased Realme charger with 200W charging support (20V/10A), which has model code VCK8HACH and supports Power Delivery protocol, but only till 45W.
Current Realme smartphones max out at 65W, so switching to 200W would be a huge leap forward for the young brand. However, there are also rumors surrounding Realme working on 80W and 150W charging phones, and it will use Oppo’s 160W power adapters to charge its smartphone at 150W.
That’s no surprise since the 65W adapters Realme phones use are apparently rebadged Oppo SuperVOOC chargers, and the 200W Realme adapter we are looking at could be using Oppo’s charging tech.
Realme’s 200W charging tech won’t be the fastest since Xiaomi already demonstrated its 200W HyperCharge tech last year, which filled a 4,000mAh battery on a customized Mi 11 Pro from flat to 100% in 15 minutes.
However, Xiaomi’s 200W charging tech is also yet to be commercially available and is rumored to enter mass production in June this year, so it remains to be seen who brings the smartphone with 200W charging support first to the market, because announcing something first and selling it first are two different things.
- Release date of the Ubisoft’s open-world pirate game, Skull and Bones
- Get ready, the pre-orders for the Apple M2 MacBook Air start on July 8
- Motorola X30 Pro’s triple camera setup to have unusual focal lengths
- TENAA database lists out the specs of the iQOO 10 Pro
- Realme VP teased the GT Neo 3 150W Marvel Edition inspired by Thor Love and Thunder


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Newspaper Ad Swap
New Century Network and Real Media have signed an agreement that calls for NCN’s 140 local news sites to use Real Media’s ad management software, Open Ad Stream. In return, NCN will sell banner space on Real Media’s sites. Real Media will focus on selling more elaborate content sponsorship packages.
Web’s Top Sites
Relevant Knowledge today releases its November report of online audience traffic. According to the study, the top sites visited by persons age 12 and older are, in order, the sites of Yahoo, Netscape, Microsoft, Excite, America Online, GeoCities, Infoseek, Lycos, Microsoft Network and CNET.
Then There Was One?
According to a published report, the list of suitors for New York-based new media shop Avalanche Systems has been shortened to one: Razorfish. Though neither shop would confirm it, sources said Razorfish has sent a letter of intent to Avalanche.
Jumping Through Hoops
Organic Online, San Francisco, has been named interactive agency of record by Feld Entertainment to build the first-ever Web site for Ringling Bros., Feld’s flagship property. The assignment also includes Feld properties Disney on Ice, Starlight Express, Sigfried & Roy and musical show Madhattan.
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Today's highs and lows of creativity


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SEAT and Cosmopolitan Magazine have teamed-up to create a limited edition Mii.
The new Mii by COSMOPOLITAN is being co-created by SEAT designers with Cosmopolitan editors and readers.
The collaboration began in early 2015, when Cosmo joined SEAT to develop a car that connects with modern women. Over the course of 18 months, Cosmopolitan's global creative team, regional editors and readers from across Europe have provided input and feedback to shape the design of the Mii by COSMOPOLITAN, including specific accessories.
SEAT global Marketing director Susanne Franz said: "The Mii by COSMOPOLITAN is being designed to meet women's needs in terms of daily usage. This new car will go beyond aesthetics, it is a functional vehicle where the design has a purpose. Cosmopolitan contributed to transforming the role of women in society and the Mii by COSMOPOLITAN aims to establish a fresh perspective on cars. The agreement struck with the world's largest magazine brand for women gives us the opportunity to launch our most feminine car. The Mii by COSMOPOLITAN is a tribute to the modern woman".
The limited edition Mii 'fully connects' with the values of both brands and SEAT says will appeal to 'young and young-spirited women who are interested in fashion and beauty, who strive for success, have active, fulfilling lives and know who they are and what they want'. This special limited edition picks up where the Mii by MANGO, launched in 2014, left off.
The new car will be revealed on 15 September in London at Cosmopolitan's #FashFest - a five-day consumer-focused festival of fashion.


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America’s largest retail bank will sell off its Canadian $8.5 billion credit card portfolio to TD Bank Group in a deal valued at $8.5 billion.
Bank of America® NA (NYSE: BAC) announced earlier this morning its plans to sell off MBNA Canada to TD Bank in a deal expected to add 1.8 million active accounts to TD Bank’s already robust base of roughly 4 million accounts. TD Bank will also acquire certain other assets and liabilities and will pay a “modest premium” on Bank of America®’s Canadian credit card portfolio.
“We are very pleased to be acquiring MBNA Canada’s credit card business. This acquisition will position TD as a top card issuer in Canada,” said Ed Clark, Group President and CEO, TD Bank Group. “We’ve consistently said that we will seize good opportunities that make strategic sense, fit within our risk profile and are financially attractive. This franchise brings new customers to TD, provides attractive additional options for our customers and is a great complement to our existing high-growth credit card business.”
The deal is expected to close in the fourth quarter of this year.
Bank of America® Divests Credit Card Businesses Domestically, Internationally:
MBNA Canada’s sale is just one of several transactions Bank of America® is targeting to help it exit the international credit card business. Bank of America® announced today its plans to exit both its credit card and loan businesses in the U.K. and Ireland, worth roughly $19 billion, and also signed an agreement to sell off its Spanish credit card business to private equity firm Apollo Capital Management Inc. earlier this month.
Bank of America® has also sold off portions of its credit card business within the United States both to Sovereign Bank and Regions Financial Corporation. In the latter case, Regions inked a deal to purchase the $1 billion credit card portfolio of FIAA Card Services, a former Bank of America® subsidiary.


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Ref. No. 51
||Nov. 15, 2001
||New Enterprise and Entrepreneurship Gateway to be launched at Memorial University
NOTE TO EDITORS:
The Faculty of Business Administration of Memorial University will announce
a new Enterprise and Entrepreneurship Gateway (Gateway) aimed at assisting
youth entrepreneurs develop their business ideas. The Gateway will be
officially launched at a ceremony on Tuesday, Nov. 20, at 10 a.m. in the
Royal Trust Atrium of the Business Administration Building.
This launch will be hosted by Dr. Bill Blake, dean, Faculty of Business
Administration. Other representatives from the university and the federal
government will be participating in the event, along with youth
entrepreneurs who are currently Gateway clients. Media agencies are
encouraged to send representatives.
For further information, please contact Aimee Sheppard, information officer
(business), 737-2616 or firstname.lastname@example.org; or Ivan Muzychka, manager of
Memorial's News Service, 737-8665.


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The proliferation of low-cost smartphones is helping China Unicom (NYSE:CHU) control subsidies and improve profitability as it taps the growing demand for 3G data services. Last quarter, the second largest wireless carrier in China saw its net profits rise by almost 90% year over year as 3G revenues grew strongly and subsidies were reigned in by lower dependence on expensive smartphones such as the iPhone.
While the overall 3G subsidy expense grew by almost 13% due to the sheer volume of handset sales, it decreased as a percentage of 3G service revenues from about 15.6% in Q1 2012 to 11.6% last quarter. Increasing competition in the smartphone industry has pushed prices down to the $150 levels, helping drive 3G adoption as well. The carrier managed to add over 11 million 3G subscribers during the quarter, about 29% ahead of the same period last year.
However, the 3G subscribers it has been adding using low-end smartphones have not been of the highest quality as evidenced by the declining 3G ARPUs. The carrier has also been losing cash due to a sustained high level of capital investment on its mobile network. Last year, China Unicom generated negative free cash flow of about RMB 30 billion, triple the negative RMB 10 billion it had in 2011. In the coming quarters, however, we expect capital expenditures to slow down as the carrier looks to conserve cash for a possible 4G expansion next year. The resuming of network spending once 4G licenses on the mainland are issued, possibly later this year, could put pressure on cash flows once again. Keeping the growing 3G business and heavy capex requirements required to support the data growth in view, we have a $18 price estimate for China Unicom, which is about 20% ahead of the current market price.
3G Has Been Good to China Unicom, but the Equation Could Change Soon
China Unicom's 250 million subscriber base may be the subject of envy for some of the larger U.S. carriers such as Verizon (NYSE:VZ) and AT&T (NYSE:T). But when it comes to China, the carrier is a distant second behind industry behemoth China Mobile (NYSE:CHL), which has nearly three times as many subscribers. The difference, however, is not nearly as wide in the 3G market. As of Q1 2013, China Unicom had around 88 million 3G subscribers, only about 23% behind the 114 million that subscribe to China Mobile's 3G network. While China Unicom's overall market share is only about 22%, it has close to 31% of the 260 million strong 3G market. A low but steadily growing 3G penetration of about 25% is giving smaller wireless carriers, such as China Unicom, ample opportunity to compete on an even ground with the otherwise dominant China Mobile.
What also helps China Unicom is that it currently runs its 3G network on a homegrown proprietary TD-SCDMA standard that is not compatible with many smartphones. However, that may soon end as Qualcomm's newly launched TD-SCDMA compatible chipsets see wider usage. It could also be possible that Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) launches a cheaper iPhone on China Mobile's network, making it tougher for the smaller carrier to compete. (See also "Qualcomm Paves The Way For An Apple-China Mobile iPhone Deal.") China Mobile's push into 4G with a TD-LTE network, which is currently being tested out in several cities, is likely to give it access to a much wider set of popular smartphones. This could make it tougher for China Unicom to gain high-end 3G/4G market share going forward.
ARPU Rises as 3G Penetration Grows
Either way, the carrier is benefiting from the growing adoption of 3G services since most of the growth is coming from data rather than voice, which has reached near-saturation. Adding 3G subscribers helps China Unicom increase its ARPU levels as 3G smartphone users consume huge amounts of data. For the full year 2012, China Unicom's 3G ARPU was RMB 86, almost two-and-a-half times as much as its 2G ARPU of RMB 34. The higher speed HSPA+ network, which the carrier recently upgraded to, will help increase its ARPU levels further as subscribers use more data-intensive applications on their phones. (See "China Unicom Speeds Ahead In Smartphone Race With HPSA+ Rollout.")
On the other hand, margins will continue to be impacted by the sale of subsidized 3G phones such as the iPhone, but China Unicom is betting on making its money back by locking in customers for the term of the contractual period. Moreover, the carrier has also been successful in pushing down prices in the Android market, with RMB 1,000 smartphones increasingly getting popular. Low smartphone prices decreases the subsidy China Unicom has to pay per phone and increases the demand for 3G handsets as well. However, the 3G subscribers it has been attracting with the low-end phones have not been of a very high quality, causing 3G ARPUs to fall as a result. The carrier's 3G service ARPU fell to about RMB 78 in the first quarter of 2013 from around RMB 94 a year ago. The overall ARPU should, however, continue to strengthen since the carrier's 3G ARPU is more than twice as high as 2G.
Disclosure: No positions.


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Hole in One
Alma Vidaurre Arias | Economy | El Nuevo Diario
Nicaragua still does not count the number of tourists who are attracted because of golf.
Nicaragua, with barely four golf courses, has a big potential in becoming a destination for executives interested in this sport and who represent the strategic key in the tourism of this country, stated sources close to the subject.
On a golf course is where you can sign big contracts, stated Gustavo Montiel, General Managaer in Nejapa Golf & Country Club, one of the golf courses in Nicaragua.
It is not counted the number of tourist attracted because of golf in this country, but Montiel argues that the offer of various golf resorts on the Pacific coast is attracting the attention of foreign executives.
"The popularization of golf sport in the world is undeniable, the legions of golfers in the world are counted in tens of millions, and in Nicaragua the number is increasing every day (...) Nicaragua as a tourist destination has much potential golf growth, " stated Montiel.
Claudia Silva, Director of Marketing and Public Relations of Hotel Mukul Resort Hotel in Guacalito de la Isla, explained that in golf games people get to know the preferences of potential partners, facilitating the signing of business contracts.
“In a match of 3 or 4 hours you get to know better other golfers, you get to establish business and personal conversations, something that others sports won’t give”, stated Silva.
Golfers are a class of tourists "important for the country", as they are usually businessmen and high purchasing power professionals, explained the General Manager of Gran Pacifica Resort, Adiak Barahona.
Los golfistas son una clase de turistas “importantes para el país”, ya que por lo general son empresarios o profesionales de alto poder adquisitivo, explicó el gerente general de Gran Pacífica Resort, Adiak Barahona.
High Purchasing Power
In Nicaragua a golfer spends around US$145 to US$900 plus taxes, stated sources who promote the sport.
Among the round of golf, food and beverages in the field, using a caddy (golfer assistant), golf clubs rental and purchases of balls, gloves, hats and shirts with the club logo in the store, the average consumption per visit may reach U.S. $ 220 in the Nejapa Golf & Country Club.
In Guacalito de la Isla, on the other hand, the tourist can invest up to $ 600 to qualify for three rounds of games, stated Silva.
In the case of Gran Pacifica, golf creates a multiplier effect that benefits the economies of Masaya, Granada, Leon and San Juan del Sur, as tourists who practice the sport, also request tours to these destinations, said Barahona.
In this resort, a golfer and its partner can spent around US$900 plus tax for each day of stay.
"As the sport demand increases in our country, as it has increased tourism, the sport will prosper in Nicaragua," said Barahona.
In countries like Costa Rica the promotion of the sport allows around 34,000 people annually to practice golf, according to various reports.
Every year, activities related with golf (stays and sport items purchases) generate US$ 87.6 million in revenue to Costa Rica.
In the United States there are approximately 29 million golfers, with annual purchasing power of US $ 95,000 each, on average, Barahona said.
“Golf is an expensive sport and I don’t think that will ever chant. It’s a tourist that, at least, plays and go on vacations to different golf courses, at least three times a year” stated Silva.
Building more Golf Courses
Nicaragua, according to Gran Pacifica’s general manager, needs at least 10 more professional golf courses, to become in an international destination to executives and lovers of this sport.
“We are going in the right direction, but this will take at least another decade (…) Golf is an attractive partner for tourism, real estate and corporate social responsibility activities”, added Barahona.
90% of golfer tourists visiting Gran Pacifica are from United States and Canada, the remaining are Nicaraguan lot owners within the resort.
Meanwhile, in Hacienda Iguana Golf and Beach Club, tourists who visit the place do it for the beautiful beaches of Tola, Rivas, but 15% of the visitors "do for golf," said Luis Sanchez, administrator of the place.
This sport generates, on average, an income of between US$4,000 and US$5,000 to the premises Sanchez emphasized.
Generally, Hacienda Iguana Golf and Beach Club welcome American tourists, though occasionally also come Asians.
The promotion of golf, according to Silva, can be a key to the Nicaraguan tourism, but it requires more fields.
"Golfers around the world are like surfers; where the fields are they go just to have the experience. If Nicaragua becomes known among golfers, it will be because we have at least two or three very famous fields", said Silva.
Nicaragua is the country in Central America that generates less revenue from tourism. This year aims to reach US$480 million and receive 1.3 million of visitors.
With the promotion of golf, the industry aims to capture part of one of the segments of tourism with the higher purchasing power.


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Chinese online game company Giant Interactive, developer of major MMO series ZT Online
, has posted financial results for the second fiscal quarter ended June 30, noting a significant drop in profits year-on-year.
The company noted that the decrease was down to a one-time accrued withholding tax, associated with a special dividend that will be paid out to company shareholders during the third quarter of the current fiscal year.
During the quarter, the company saw revenue increase by 35.6 percent to RMB436.2 million ($67.5 million) year-on-year.
However, profits were down a significant 94.5 percent compared to the same quarter last year, at RMB10.2 million ($1.6 million).
Active accounts in Giant's online games were down 5 percent to 2 million, compared to the same quarter last fiscal year. In comparison, average revenue per user was RMB212 ($32.97), down 5.0 percent year-on-year.
Over all of Giant's online titles, the company saw an average of 654,000 concurrent users, down 2.4 percent year-on-year, while its peak concurrent user rate was 2.1 million, an increase of 28.1 percent compared to the same quarter last year.
Giant said that anticipation for its upcoming ZT Online 2
will lead to top-line growth in the next quarter.
The original ZT Online
is notorious for its aggressive monetization strategies
Yuzhu Shi, Giant's Chairman and CEO commented, "Our segmentation strategy, coupled with ongoing investment on the development and marketing fronts enabled us to expand our customer base and once again deliver sequential top-line growth this quarter."


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Supply chain analytics has been around for a decade, but a growing chorus of experts believes the technology is finally on the verge of taking off, propelled by the demands of globalization and enabled by the convergence of mobile and cloud computing.
Supply chain analytics is "any sort of prepackaged analysis that provides decision support and insight," said Robert Kugel, senior vice president of research at Ventana Research Inc., a benchmarking and advisory firm based in Pleasanton, Calif.
When applied to supply chains, business intelligence (BI) can provide the basic reporting and querying tools for accessing demand data, such as retail sales, and supply-side data on incoming raw materials, for example. It is often reactive in nature, whereas more advanced BI tools add supply chain analytics into the mix, according to several experts. Predictive analytics, for example, can anticipate changes in buying patterns or recognize when a key supplier is at risk of failing. BI dashboards are best used for monitoring supply chains and detecting problems via alerts, while analytics helps drill down to find root causes and identify solutions.
Predictive analytics allows manufacturers to formulate intelligent responses to the reality shown in the BI data. It can include optimization algorithms, pattern recognition and what-if analysis, and could soon verge into artificial intelligence that can evaluate multiple if-then decisions and make recommendations.
Meanwhile, the type and volume of supply chain data is growing exponentially, from point-of-sale (POS) data on purchases, to real-time inventory tracking provided by global transportation carriers. Now, instead of applying BI and analytics tools to more limited sets of older data, Kugel said, manufacturers can put them to work on "big data," much of it real time, that is now streaming in from service providers and the smartphones carried by truckers and salespeople. Armed with this timelier, more accurate information, companies can be better at anticipating supply and demand and respond more intelligently.
"People are looking for easier and better ways to use the data that they're collecting, and they're collecting a much wider set of data than was available years ago," Kugel said.
Mobile analytics could play important role
The data will only expand as the predicted convergence of cloud computing, mobility, social networking and location-based services becomes a reality, according to Rich Sherman, North America director for the Supply Chain Council, a benchmarking and best-practices organization based in Cypress, Texas.
"I can be tracking material in motion, globally, anywhere," Sherman said.
At the same time, cloud computing is making sophisticated, "best of breed" analytics more accessible and affordable. "It changes the whole nature of [supply chain analytics] deployment," he said. "It gives you the capability to access more expertise in a shorter period of time."
Sherman said the mobile-cloud convergence has led to "data as a service" providers who collect information from shoppers' GPS-equipped smartphones. The services are effectively analytics platforms that retailers such as Best Buy are already using to separate serious buyers from tire-kickers. For example, when a customer is in the store, the retailer can transmit price-matching guarantees and other offers to avoid losing business to a nearby competitor recommended by the customer's smartphone app. Manufacturers could use the data to plan more effective promotions.
Cloud-based mobile analytics is not only affecting the demand side. "It's everybody,"Sherman said. "You take a look at truck drivers. Today, the most sophisticated carriers have onboard computer systems, but the older owner-operators can't afford that. But what every owner-operator has is a smartphone."
Improved use of analytics can also boost the effectiveness of the alerting systems that many supply chain managers use, Sherman said. Without analytics to filter alerts, the number of alerts can exceed 300 per day. With analytics, manufacturers can deploy algorithms that make decisions on the alerts or offer recommendations on how to respond to them.
Manufacturers can also use supply chain analytics to compare the performance of their supply chains against industry benchmarks. Sherman said many companies use the Supply Chain Council's Supply Chain Operations Reference (SCOR) framework to set up performance metrics and analyze them against a database of other companies' metrics. Some use Lean Six Sigma techniques to measure supply chain efficiency. Consulting firms and other organizations also offer benchmarks for supply chain analytics.
Analytics for supply chain best practices
Supply chain analytics can improve the quality and speed of decisions, according to Kugel, who cited the supply chain disruption caused by the devastating March earthquake in Japan as a prime example of a crisis demanding a quick, effective response.
Kugel said supply chain analytics can be especially effective for manufacturers that use integrated business planning methods such as sales and operations planning (S&OP) and collaborative planning, forecasting and replenishment (CPFR) to enlist suppliers and customers in managing their supply chains. Effective analytics can go way beyond the standard inventory optimization task of minimizing stockouts by helping to determine the true cost of certain types of stockouts, he said. Planners can then use this deeper analysis to make more profitable trade-offs between inventory cost and availability.
Analytics can also be used for dynamic rebalancing of fulfillment. For example, a manufacturer might use an analysis of customers to decide which should be given 100% fulfillment guarantees and which can receive lesser service levels without negatively impacting the bottom line.
Analytics can also lead to more efficient shop floors, as production managers receive more accurate forecasts and find more cost-effective ways to meet customer requirements.
Despite the huge potential of supply chain analytics, Kugel said, few manufacturers even know what is happening in their supply chains, let alone apply complex analytics to them. But a few technology and consumer-goods manufacturers are effective users of supply chain analytics, including General Electric Co., Cisco, Intel Corp., and Procter & Gamble. "FedEx is an IT shop that flies airplanes, and they do some good analytics, too," he said.
For his part, Sherman would add to that list DuPont, Kraft Foods Inc., Johnson & Johnson Services Inc., and the diversified health care products manufacturer, Baxter International Inc. He said the companies on the AMR Research (now Gartner) list of the top 25 supply chains tend to be big users of analytics.
Sherman said early adopters of supply chain analytics have roughly a 50% advantage over competitors when it comes to supply chain expenses as a percent of revenues. "The leaders are several years if not a decade or more advanced than the average company," he said.
How retailers can improve logistics and supply chain processes


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As New York City continues to make adjustments due to Covid-19, the Department of Transportation has added an additional parking app option in an effort to reduce the spread of germs by touching parking meters. ParkMobile, which is actually the creator of New York’s ParkNYC, has added New York to its list of over 400 cities across the country! They key highlights of the ParkMobile app include:
-No minimum required. Users can pay for their meter zone on the spot for a .15 fee, and be alerted when time is running out so that they can add more funds.
-With 400 cities across the country using ParkMobile, it’s so great to be able to use one app for all your street parking needs. And easy for visitors to pay for parking who already have the app.
-In addition to metered parking, ParkMobile also offers the ability to reserve parking spaces in garages across the city!
So while we might not be back to normal yet, it’s nice to know that we can still stay safe when we do head out to support a local restaurant, go food shopping, or head to the park to get some fresh air. It’s also perfect for essential workers who have to be out each day and for visitors who already have the app on their phone.
An exciting feature on ParkMobile is their pro version- which is 99 cents a month. ParkMobile Pro allows you to search for available parking spaces in real time, in addition to several other perks such as discounted rates on services like car washes, roadside assistance, and more. Click here to learn about Parkmobile Pro.
Even as things begin to open back up, social distancing and other precautions will still be a part of our world for quite some time. Things that before weren’t given a second thought- like adding time on a parking meter- are now something to be conscientious about.
To download the ParkMobile app, head to https://parkmobile.app.link/bmdownloadappsocial.
This post is in partnership with ParkMobile. As always, all opinions expressed are our own.