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CAMBODIA’S first Pizza Hut is set to open this year along with five new branches of KFC, according to the chairman of QSR Brands Bhd. In an interview with the Malaysia Star newspaper, published Monday, Tan Sri Muhammed Ali Hasim announced his intention to invest RM4.8 million (US$1.32 million) in the new branches. QSR is the franchisee for both chains in the Kingdom. Ali explained that Pizza Hut restaurant would be built in Phnom Penh’s riverside area. Two of the new KFCs – which are operated by the Kampuchea Food Company – will be located in Battambang and Kampong Cham. Three more KFC restaurants will open in Phnom Penh, the report added.
Pizza Hut set for debut
- Negotiations on EBA being held
In an effort to defuse tensions, a senior government official said Cambodia is negotiating with the European Union (EU) on the Everything But Arms (EBA) trade deal, which allows the Kingdom to export goods to the 28-member bloc tariff-free. The EU notified Cambodia on October 5
- Ministers to tackle sea pollutants
Preah Sihanouk provincial authorities and members of local communities have collected 77 tonnes of water hyacinth at a Sihanoukville beach, Preah Sihanouk Provincial Hall spokesperson Or Saroeun said. He told The Post yesterday that the aquatic weeds had been floating along some of the province’s
- Chinese police escort deported scam suspects
Ninety-one Chinese nationals accused of extorting money from victims in a Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) scam were deported from Phnom Penh International Airport on Monday under the escort of 182 Chinese police personnel. General Department of Immigration head of investigations Ouk Hay Seila told reporters
- Sam Rainsy, government group set to clash at IPU Geneva meet?
Opposition figure Sam Rainsy has been invited to speak at the General Assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) in Geneva, according to a former Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP) lawmaker. A government delegation is also set to attend the meeting, a National Assembly press release


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- News tagged "notebooks"
Tuesday, 10 May 2016
Microsoft is rumored to launch the Surface Book 2 as early as next month with upgraded specs such as a 4K display and a USB Type-C port. Read on to find out more!
Saturday, 16 Apr 2016
DigiTimes claims that Apple will introduce a new generation of ultra-thin MacBooks with new metal-injection molded hinges in the second half of 2016.
Tuesday, 12 Apr 2016
According to the latest figures from IDC, Apple has continued to gain global PC market share even as sales of Macs have declined.
Tuesday, 24 Nov 2015
Reports have emerged that many Dell computers shipped after August have easily cloneable root certificates that could let hackers snoop on a machine's encrypted Internet traffic.
Tuesday, 17 Nov 2015
Apple CEO Tim Cook told Independent.IE that the company will not create a converged Mac and iPad as the product does not deliver the experience customers want. Read on to find out more!
Monday, 26 Oct 2015
Sporting a new color, the ASUS ZenBook UX305 Ultrabook also now features the latest 6th gen-Intel "Skylake" mobile CPUs. More details on its pricing and specifications after the jump!
Thursday, 1 Oct 2015
Security researchers have said that Apple's latest OS, OS X El Capitan, continues to be exposed to Gatekeeper's and Keychain's vulnerabilities.
Tuesday, 28 Jul 2015
Panasonic reduces customization and servicing times for Toughbooks with new configuration center in Malaysia
In order to better serve the needs of customers in the Southeast Asia, Panasonic has opened a new configuration center in Malaysia for its rugged Toughbooks.
Monday, 13 Jul 2015
ASUS has just announced that it has updated its ultra-thin UX305 Ultrabook with Intel's newest fifth generation Core processors.
Tuesday, 23 Jun 2015
Toshiba has updated its Satellite C, L and S lines of notebooks, and select models will even feature the new AMD Carrizo processors.

domain: news


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Vijayawada: In the last ten days, mango
production has got doubled in Nuzvid region. Exports to the northern part of the country and local markets have also gained pace. Demand for Nuzvid Rasalu
, and other varieties is huge and as a result, the traders are failing to supply the product in desired quantities.
However, in order to meet the ever-rising mango demand, the fruit traders across Vijayawada city have resorted to artificial ripening of mangoes
using calcium carbide
and ethylene powder, a toxic fruit ripening powder from China.
Moreover, the absence of proper monitoring from the food safety authorities, the traders have been rampant in artificial ripening chemicals.
“It almost takes ten days for natural ripening and buyers cannot wait for such a long time. Calcium carbide and fruit ripening powder are only options left open for us,” said K Saidulu, a local mango trader.
However, the mango traders are blaming the horticulture department for failing to provide fruit ripening chambers. “We are facing immense pressure from FSSAI authorities to use natural fruit ripening techniques. But horticulture wing has been failing to provide necessary chambers for us. We are ready to shift to natural ripening if the government shows necessary alternatives,” said K Narasimha Rao, a mango farmer from Nuzvid.
Food safety authorities said that they will act firm on chemical-based fruit ripening centres and destroy the stocks if found. “Artificial ripening of fruits is prohibited under Food Safety and Standards Act-2006. Artificial ripening of mangoes is not at all good for the health. Calcium carbide and other chemical based fruit ripening is hazardous we are collecting the samples from multiple locations and will initiate stringent action,” a food safety official said.
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Iconic vodka brand Absolut, part of Pernod Ricard, has partnered with Pedestrian and Initiative to spread the love of Mardi Gras to regional towns across the country.
For more than 40 years Absolut has been a proud supporter of the LGBTQIA+ community, and to mark this meaningful milestone they set out to create a pride rally like no other.
Because 84 per cent of LGBTIQA+ individuals in Australia believe there are still parts of the country where they feel unsafe, most of them in regional communities, Absolut decided to bring the celebration of diversity and equality to towns across the country.
In Initiative’s first major campaign for Absolut, a partnership with Pedestrian created the ‘Show All Your Colours Tour’ to encourage open self-expression and acceptance in the places that need it most.
Accompanied by a one-of-a-kind pride torch, Absolut is transporting the glitz and glamour of Sydney’s Mardi Gras to small unsuspecting towns and capturing the real stories of love, identity and acceptance of regional Australians.
Lauren Sutcliffe, senior brand manager at Absolut, says the tour is more than a series of parties.
“We are taking Mardi Gras to regional towns and communities to continue to spread the message of equality and love with our Show All your Colours Tour,” she said.
“Colour is such a great tool to allow expression and we are encouraging people to show all their colours in support of love and allyship of the LGBTQIA+ community.”
Olivia Warren, head of Initiative Studio, said: “this partnership enabled the Studio team to push the boundaries and produce events for regional Australian towns that are often left out of great campaigns like this.”
“Attending each event, you can easily see how the campaign resonates with each town and how proud they are to show their colours. As a member of the LGBTQIA+ community, I am extremely proud of the advocacy and change Absolut is pushing.”
The Show All Your Colours Tour continues, heading to Shepparton in Victoria and New Norfolk in Tasmania in the coming weeks.
Sustainable soap brand Single Use Ain’t Sexy has been greeted with a huge influx of support after raising over half a million dollars in funding via a crowdfunding campaign. The brand has launched itself into the ‘green economy’ by calling on the Australian public to financially back them and their mission to get Aussies to […]
Queer Artist Ryan James Caruthers has publically slammed software company Unfold after it asked to use the artist’s work for free as part of its Pride Month social media campaign. Caruthers took to Instagram to show screenshots of the conversation he had with Unfold after it asked the artist to share 12 of his images […]
After relaunching in September last year, TWOOBS has become a ‘kinda’ shoe brand by also focusing on making the world a ‘kinder’ place and creating more consumer-conscious shopping. The vegan shoe brand founded by sisters Jess and Stef Dadon changed its marketing approach last year and stopped using social media to push sales the old-fashioned […]
Highly experienced tourism marketer Kelly Ryan has been appointed to lead the marketing efforts at Visit Sunshine Coast (VSC). During the past 12 years, Ryan has supported Canberra’s tourism industry in senior marketing roles, including as director of strategy and insights as well as director of marketing at VisitCanberra. Most recently, Ryan has been working […]
GHO Sydney has developed a new educational platform for Family Planning NSW to help parents and carers of children with disabilities navigate the changes to their bodies, emotions and social interactions. The project, ‘Planet Puberty’, was made possible through funding from the federal government’s Department of Social Services, and was co-designed with people with disability […]
JCDecaux today announced conservation organisation, Bush Heritage Australia, as its major charity partner for 2021. The partnership is part of a series of ‘social impact’ initiatives the business is launching this year, under the banner of JCDecauxHEART. JCDecauxHEART focuses on three areas of social impact: health and mental health, environmental sustainability, and enriching urban communities. […]
Shameless Media’s Michelle Andrews and Zara McDonald’s latest podcast, The Books That Changed My Life, will launch exclusively on LiSTNR on Tuesday, 15 June. Throughout the series Michelle and Zara will talk with guests including Kevin Kwan, Laura Henshaw, Jock Zonfrillo, Susan Carland, Hamish Blake and Delta Goodrem about the books that have had a profound impact […]
In celebration of Pride Month, cult streetwear brand Champion has announced an Australia-and New Zealand-first Pride range, Champions of Pride, and ongoing partnership with the Queer Sporting Alliance. Championing a cause, celebrating community, and aiming to create real change, the capsule collection proudly heroes the Pride colours in a selection of signature Champion tees, iconic […]
Following the successful deployment of BankiFi’s technology platform at The Co-operative Bank in the UK, BankiFi has appointed Lloyd Parata to lead their expansion into the Australian Financial Services market. BankiFi’s technology platform ensures banks remain relevant by offering SMEs an innovative solution to operate their business, whilst avoiding common challenges like late payment. Parata, […]
Mars Wrigley 5 Gum has partnered with Twitch to launch Team CLUTCH, a team of Twitch streamers who will assemble on for three live squad streams tackling popular games like Fortnite while embodying the brand’s ethos of ‘life happens in 5’. This partnership builds on 5 Gum’s 2020 Twitch activation, and is set to create […]


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New York Fashion Week is about to kick off this Thursday, and the rumour mill is already in full swing. What does Jeremy Scott have planned with Miley Cyrus for his namesake show? Will Spike Jonze restage Superbad with Jonah Hill for Opening Ceremony? And what will Gareth Pugh have in store for his "immersive live performance"?
With all the excitement and gossip leading up to SS15, it's pretty easy to forget what goes on behind the scenes. Which is, apparently, a whole lot of money. Bob Bland, the CEO of fashion incubator Manufacture NY, staged a series of shows for the initiative's emerging designers in January. According to Bland, it's pretty much impossible to stage a runway show unless you're already rich or a celebrity.
"It's pretty fair to say that virtually every fashion designer who is starting their own company is probably not getting the support they need," Bland told Racked. "The production costs are extremely high. At the Lincoln Center shows, the lighting racks alone cost $40,000. Our lights cost at least $25,000, and I think that was a deal."
Once other expenses including models, hair and makeup, production and in-house photography were factored in, the total bill came up to $100,000. Assuming that most fashion shows are 15 minutes, that works out to $6,667 a minute. Which most fashion editors in the front row were watching through the record function on their iPhone anyway.
But Manufacture NY may have gotten off easy compared to other brands. According to Fashionista, $200,000 is a "reasonable" expense for an entry-level fashion show. Even something as basic as invitations can cost upwards of $5,000. All other bells and whistles – like a A-list populated front row or over-the-top staging – cost extra. Marc Jacob's 2011 sci-fi runway spectacle cost something like $1 million – or, as the New York Times broke it down, $1,750 per second.
With mounting costs, is it any wonder that some brands are looking for alternative ways to creatively show off their collections? Band of Outsiders' Scott Sternberg cancelled his SS15 show to focus on the opening of his first New York flagship store, while Rag & Bone opted for a photography presentation for their menswear collection.
As Sternberg points out, the benefits of a more intimate and low-key approach are their own reward. "I’ll actually be able to take a lot of press appointments and do what we do with the pre-collections, which is talk people through the pieces," he told Style. "But ultimately, the collection’s really strong. It stands on its own, even on a rack."
Follow Zing Tsjeng on Twitter here @misszing
Have some news? Let us know on firstname.lastname@example.org


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- FashionUnited |
Marks & Spencer is aiming to cut 1000 head office jobs. The 58,000 store staff jobs are said to not be affected, the cuts will be focussed at four UK locations over the next two years, saving GBP25m a year of costs in the process.
The job losses stem from a review of M&S's head office and financial services operations, which aims to put the focus on customers. The UK high street retailer has been criticised for being top-heavy with bureaucracy.


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Despite the plethora of articles and warnings about the dangers of fast fashion in terms of overconsumption, pollution and sheer waste, most people find it too hard to resist the allure of more affordable clothing and accessories.
It was recent, and extremely depressing New York Times article dealing with Art the stunning success of Chinese fast fashion brand Sheinwhose sales revenue in 2020 was $10 billion.
Shein’s prices are rock bottom, well below other fast fashion brands like H&M, and the price tags are shockingly low – $3 for a bucket hat, $16.50 for faux suede boots, or $15.25 for a wedding dress . – naturally leads consumers to buy more things and more often.
One customer boasted that they had 79 items in their cart for $796. It is unclear what the actual quality of these 79 items is, not to mention other potential issues such as wages and working conditions, copyright infringement, etc.
Having never purchased the product, I would hazard a guess that they are all completely synthetic.
Newly released information from The Woolmark Company reports that an Olympic pool of crude oil is used every 25 minutes to produce synthetic clothing, which equates to a staggering 350 million barrels per year.
To highlight these dire statistics and educate consumers about the dangers of synthetic fibers to the environment, Woolmark has created a global environmental brand campaign called Wear Wool, Not Fossil Fuel.
The company shows a very impressive video of people trying
avoiding an oil-filled pool by taking off your clothes to reveal clothes made from natural merino wool fibers that are much more environmentally friendly and, frankly, much, much nicer to wear.
John Roberts, CEO of Woolmark, says: “It is predicted that in just ten years’ time, 73 per cent of the entire clothing market will be made from synthetic fibers derived directly from fossil fuels.
Buy less, buy better
“The impact these garments have during use and end of life cannot be underestimated.
“In fact, it’s been said that the equivalent of 50 billion microfibre plastic bottles end up in waste water every year just from washing. Science shows that wool does not contribute to microplastic pollution.
“Research also shows that wool clothing is one of the oldest in wardrobes, with high levels of reuse and donation, along with high levels of recycling and commercially viable end-of-life pathways.”
If we want to be responsible consumers, the key is to buy less and buy better, which means paying a higher price from the start. A quality wool jumper or wool coat that will last literally years is something that should end up in thrift stores, not a $17 synthetic skirt.
I have a few coats in my wardrobe that are expensive at the time (one of those purchases where you have to drink a cup of coffee and think about it before you pull out your credit card). I still pull them out
and wear them again and again.
The price for one of our wears, they were much cheaper than cheap clothes.


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U.S. retail sales rose in June, but a bit more slowly than in the prior month.
Economists watch retail sales closely because consumer demand drives most U.S. economic activity.
Monday's Commerce Department reports says retail sales rose four-tenths of a percent in June, helped by a surge in auto sales.
Officials at the U.S. central bank are watching this and other economic data as they decide how soon to cut back efforts to stimulate the economy.
Part of that program is purchasing $85 billion worth of securities each month, which is intended to push down long-term interest rates, making it easier for businesses and households to purchase equipment, automobiles and other items.
Federal Reserve officials have said they will reduce the stimulus when economic data make it clear it is no longer needed.
Some information for this report was provided by AP and Reuters.


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The Lucid Air’s September 9 launch date is quickly approaching, so it is time to gather and share all we know about what is expected to be a groundbreaking electric vehicle.
Three years in the making, the Lucid Air promises to break the mold for luxury performance electric vehicles.
In its latest release, the Saudi-backed Lucid Motors is claiming lead ranking for electric vehicle performance and efficiency – yet another in a string of revelations that serve to build up the hype as we approach the vehicle’s launch next week.
Now, the latest release from the company says that with 1,080 horsepower, the Lucid Air will also be 59 percent more powerful than its closest competitor (although it doesn’t state what that is), and that it can run a quarter mile in just 9.9 seconds.
“Our watchword has been ‘focus’ since day one at Lucid – a focus on sound engineering principles, a focus on creating efficiencies, and a focus on maximizing power to create a world-class EV,” said Peter Rawlinson, CEO and CTO, Lucid Motor of the latest claim in a statement to the media.
“When the Lucid Air comes to market next spring, the world will see that we have developed the best electric vehicle technology possible by a wide margin and effectively created a new benchmark for EVs. The result is nothing short of a technological tour de force in every facet upon which a luxury performance car is measured.”
Lucid Motors has already revealed that the premium all-electric vehicle will have the highest charging rate on the market at 300kW.
This will allow it to top up 480 km driving range in 20 minutes using 350kW chargers from companies such as Australia’s Tritium and Swiss electrification giant ABB.
The Lucid Air will also have the ability to charge from and discharge to the grid (referred to as “vehicle-to-grid” or V2G) using a proprietary “Wunderbox”, which essentially means it can serve as a “battery-on-wheels”.
Although not yet approved regulators and very much still in testing phase, this technology will have multitudes of applications in the future from assisting with smoothing grid demand or in the case of “vehicle-to-home” (V2H), acting as a back up power source for homes and businesses.
The Lucid Air will reportedly also outdo the driving range of the Tesla Model S, which currently sits as the longest range electric vehicle on planet with 647km based on the US EPA rating.
An independent test commissioned by the EV startup has also put its driving range at an incredible 832km from its 113kWh battery – very nearly enough to drive from Sydney to Melbourne without stopping (although we note when driving alone, it’s a very good idea to stop).
Additionally, the Lucid Air also beats Tesla on aerodynamics. With a drag coefficiency at 0.21, it is more aerodynamic than the Tesla Model 3’s 0.23.
It’s all very impressive, and only adds to the anticipation of next week’s launch event – although we are left wondering what else will be left to reveal of the sleek, souped up electric vehicle that will be launched in overseas markets in the northern hemisphere spring of 2021.
On top of specifications mentioned above, a fourth release has focussed on the Lucid Air’s spacious design.
Other notable specs include a 900+ volt architecture (the Porsche Taycan, which is currently limited to 270kW maximum charge rate) by comparison is a measly 800 volts).
Lucid Motors also says that the Air’s drivetrain units are 45% lighter than its closest competitor, and 2.5 times smaller by volume.
It will also feature a semi-autonomous driving system called “Dream Drive”, which it says will comprise the most comprehensive sensor suite on the market.
With such an extensive list of features already unveiled by the company perhaps next Wednesday’s unveiling will be more a case of “the whole is greater than the sum of the parts”.
Bridie Schmidt is associate editor for The Driven, sister site of Renew Economy. She has been writing about electric vehicles since 2018, and has a keen interest in the role that zero-emissions transport has to play in sustainability. She has participated in podcasts such as Download This Show with Marc Fennell and Shirtloads of Science with Karl Kruszelnicki and is co-organiser of the Northern Rivers Electric Vehicle Forum. Bridie also owns a Tesla Model 3 and has it available for hire on evee.com.au.


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Mexican regulatory agency COFEPRIS created the Procedure Digitalization Platform DIGIPRiS to help users carry out procedures related to personal consumption. A digital platform has been a long-time wish for the industry.
COFEPRIS had been trying to digitize some processes even before President Andrés Manuel López Obrador’s administration. Digitalization would be incredibly beneficial for the industry as it would greatly reduce approval times, said Josué Garza, Director of Business Development and Operations, Insumos para la Salud. “COFEPRIS had a digital platform that advertising third party reviewers could use to submit their advertising permit application. However, the current administration put pause to this effort.”
The digitalization of COFEPRIS “will make processes more efficient,” told MBN Américo García, Director General of Mexico and Latin America, Apotex. This change is being accompanied by the acceptance of documentation in English, which “is positive for foreign companies like Apotex because it saves time and money spent on translation,” said García.
In addition to those services, DIGIPRiS will overview the paperwork, allow users to monitor the progress of the procedure or service they request from admission to conclusion and integrate electronic files and databases. The online platform will also maintain a historical base for statistical purposes, which will help COFEPRIS meet and advance its mission to ensure the safety and effectiveness of products that are used by the Mexican population.
Foreign regulatory agencies, such as the EU’s EMA, are also actively using tech to improve processes. Currently, EMA uses AI to improve text analytics, process documents and analyze text and images. EMA also applies Natural Language Processing methodologies to extract content from documents, structure its information, extract entities, categorizes and clustering content to be analyzed afterwards.
The FDA is also an active user of tech. In 2020 the agency released its Technology Modernization Action Plan (TMAP), which has three components: modernization of the FDA’s technical infrastructure and operations; enhancement of the FDA’s capabilities to develop technology products; and communication and collaboration with external stakeholders to drive technological progress that is interoperable and delivers value to consumers and patients.


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Apple was the first company to bring the fingerprint scanning technology to a popular consumer device. Samsung is following suit but it has also opened up the biometric technology to others such as PayPal.
Fingerprint scanning on a smartphone can be used not only for the in-device security, but also for the security and verification of a whole lot of other services. So far, Apple hasn’t opened up the use of its fingerprint sensor to other developers.
But Samsung is making available such access from the get-go. While Galaxy S5 is due to hit the shelves today, PayPal is debuting its own integration along with it. Users can hit the fingerprint sensor on Galaxy S5 to log into their PayPal accounts and later verify their transactions.
PayPal is also rolling out its app for Gear 2 and Gear Fit wearable devices. In a video which gives us a glimpse of how this app works, one can see that it makes the entire process of keeping tabs on your PayPal accounts, availing discounts and making payments as easy as a flick on your wrist.
It remains to be seen whether other players in the online payments industry make a similar move by forging partnerships with Samsung. Or perhaps, most will sit back and see how the Gear 2 sales play out and only then make the decision. Plus, there’s also the possibility of Apple opening up its biometrics to companies like PayPal in the coming months.


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The owners of Bank Square Books in Mystic, Connecticut, are on track to open a second store in late summer in nearby Westerly, Rhode Island.
Annie Philbrick and Patience Banister will open the Savoy Bookshop & Café under an agreement with area developers Chuck Royce and Dan King of 10 Canal, LLC, which owns the historic hotel where the new store will be located. After the town’s only independent bookstore, Other Tiger, closed in April 2014, Royce and King offered to build another bookshop and to cover start-up costs for the business if Bank Square agreed to run it.
“Chuck Royce said, when he first talked to me about this, ‘I just can’t imagine a town without a bookstore or a library,’” Philbrick said.
“I really feel strongly that the vibe of the Mystic store be part of the new store as well,” she added. “It will be a different store, but I just want the feeling and the friendliness of Bank Square Books to be translated over to Westerly.”
Although the previously projected opening date for the Savoy Bookshop & Café was this spring, Philbrick said, plans have shifted to late August or September, since the store’s shelving and cabinetry is still being built at two woodshops offsite.
Along with wooden décor and custom shelving, the former home of Westerly’s Savoy Hotel will also feature wooden floors and open brick walls. Once completed, the new 2,500-square-foot, two-level store will have a 14-foot bar offering coffee and baked goods, which will be leased to a local couple who run the café at the Westerly YMCA.
“The architect [for the project] is really, really cognizant of maintaining the historical aspect of the building, so in that sense, it will almost feel like the old hotel,” Philbrick said. During construction, workers even discovered some small hexagonal tiles in the old vestibule, which will be reproduced and used in the store’s interior.
Interesting architectural features will also be incorporated into the first-floor children’s section, including whimsical “fairy houses” or miniature rooms, built into the baseboards so kids can peek into them, and a secret room built with half-height walls and featuring a custom mural.
Philbrick and Banister are equal partners in Mystic Books Inc., which owns Bank Square Books and Savoy Bookshop & Café; although Banister retired last week from bookstore work, she will maintain her ownership in both stores.
Of the agreement with Royce and King for the Savoy Bookshop, Philbrick said, “Basically it will be our business with no expense to us in the start up. Rent will be minimal. They just really believe that a town needs a bookstore.”
Westerly has a slightly different demographic from Mystic, in that people who summer there tend to stay for the entire season, whereas downtown Mystic has more tourists who come to town on weekends to stroll, shop, and visit the seaport.
“I think because we have known some of the customers who are coming into the Westerly store, we already have an idea of what they buy and what they want,” Philbrick said. “They’ve been coming to the Mystic store because Other Tiger hasn’t been in business, so it seems people have really been looking for this. They miss having a bookstore.”
Philbrick said she has already worked out some ideas to engage the Westerly community, which is just six miles away from Mystic. These include a number of local partnerships: with the Westerly Public Library, which will host weekend author events, this month featuring Nelson DeMille; Royce and King’s Ocean House Hotel in Watch Hill; and the Westerly YMCA, which boasts a 10,000-person e-mail list.
“We’ll also probably do some kind of promotion when we get close to opening, maybe some raffles and some soft launches and an opening party,” Philbrick said, adding that local news outlets, like the New London Day and the Westerly Sun, have expressed interest in giving the store future coverage. Philbrick also recently hired the Westerly Sun’s Sun Graphics to adapt Bank Square’s website so that it accommodates both stores.
In terms of staffing the Savoy, Philbrick said she has accumulated about a dozen resumes, including several from booksellers and librarians, and has already made some hires, including a new event director, Elissa Englund, who will work at both stores and replace outgoing events director John Francisconi.
“The excitement is building,” Philbrick said. “It’s just really fun to hear that excitement from people about opening up a physical independent bookstore. We’re extremely lucky to have the financial backing, but I think if [booksellers] have the passion in their heart and soul in it, [opening a store] is a great thing to do.”


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Related: AutoBeat Group
Ford Motor Co. reported net earnings of $1.6 billion in the first quarter of 2013 compared with $1.4 billion a year earlier. Record North American profits were tempered by losses in Europe and South America.
Revenue rose 10% year over year to $35.8 billion as wholesale volume climbed 10% to 1.5 million vehicles.
Ford’s North American auto operations boosted first-quarter pretax income 14% to a record $2.4 billion. The unit’s revenue jumped 20% to $22.3 billion. Sales increased 17% to 761,000 vehicles.
Ford of Europe’s pretax loss deepened to $462 million in the January-March period from $149 million a year earlier. Revenue in the region dropped 7% to $6.7 billion on an 8% decline in sales to 341,000 vehicles.
In South America, the company swung to a $218 million loss from a $54 million profit in the first quarter of 2012. Revenue shrank 4% to $2.3 billion. Sales contracted 4% to 113,000 vehicles.
Ford’s Asia Pacific and Africa unit swung to a $6 million profit from a $95 million loss. Revenue rose 13% to $2.6 billion. Sales jumped 30% to 282,000 vehicles


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WINNIPEG (Reuters) — U.S. President Donald Trump’s criticism of the protected Canadian dairy system has emboldened American farm groups to tackle other longstanding agriculture irritants as the countries move toward rewriting trade rules.
U.S. poultry and egg exporters are expected to seek greater access to Canada’s tightly controlled market in renegotiations of the North American Free Trade Agreement.
The United States, which is the world’s second-biggest chicken exporter, will demand market access gains at least equal to those they would have realized under the failed Trans-Pacific Partnership deal, industry groups and experts say.
U.S. farmers also want changes to Canadian grain laws that automatically assign the lowest price for their wheat.
“Anybody who has an issue with Canada, this is the time to bring it up now,” said Dan Ujczo, an international trade lawyer with the U.S.-based law firm Dickinson Wright.
“The dairy issue certainly signalled that.”
Trump last month took a swipe at Canada’s dairy system, which prevents large-scale imports through steep tariffs, and moved to impose tariffs on Canadian lumber.
U.S. farm groups with grievances took note.
“It’s unfair for the dairy industry but it’s unfair for poultry and eggs as well,” said Jim Sumner, president of the U.S. Poultry & Egg Export Council who plans to make that point with the U.S. administration.
Canada allows tariff-free egg imports amounting to 2.98 percent of Canadian production and chicken imports worth 7.5 percent. Imports would have doubled for eggs and jumped by more than one-quarter for chicken under TPP.
“I’d be surprised if (the U.S.) starting point was anything less,” said Ontario egg producer Roger Pelissero, chair of Egg Farmers of Canada.
Meanwhile, in the northern U.S. Plains, farmers aim to use NAFTA renegotiations to open wheat sales opportunities.
Under Canadian legislation, U.S. wheat sellers who have not negotiated a price based on their wheat’s specifications automatically receive the lowest quality grade and price in Canada, while Canadian wheat commands the price accorded to its quality in the U.S..
The result is that U.S. farms near the border have no reason to truck grain to Canadian companies that may be closer, while plenty of Canadian wheat flows south to American delivery points, said Alan Merrill, president of the Montana Farmers Union.
“It’s just solid (lineups of) Canadian trucks, coming down with grain,” said Merrill.
The Western Canadian Wheat Growers Association has urged Ottawa to change the law to make cross-border wheat trade more fair and avoid a trade dispute.


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Millennium and Copthorne Hotels has warned investors that the hospitality industry faces ‘intensifying’ challenges in the near future in the form of staff shortages and competition from the growth of Airbnb and serviced apartments.
The company’s chairman Kwek Leng Beng made the comments as it revealed a drop in pre-tax profit for 2018 to £106 million – down 28 per cent on 2017 in constant currency. The fourth quarter was particularly hard, with profits falling 76 per cent to £7 million.
Kwek blamed “a range of geopolitical and global economic headwinds”, including US and China trade relations, Brexit and increasing minimum wage levels in several markets.
The company also saw revenue per available room fall 7.4 per cent in London, mostly driven by the closure of its Mayfair hotel for refurbishment. Excluding that property, revenue grew 3.3 per cent. The hotel is set to reopen as the Biltmore, Mayfair in the second quarter of this year (new bedroom pictured).
Millennium and Copthorne says a particular challenge in the UK is the effect of Brexit. It claims to be struggling to recruit EU workers, “which currently comprise more than half of the London workforce”. Minimum wage increases in the UK have also reportedly added to cost pressures for the group.
Looking ahead, Beng said: “The board’s priority is to evaluate and develop new and innovative strategic plans to meet the challenges facing our fast-changing operating environment. The shortage of talent – from rank and file to senior management – is intensifying with many new hotels being built around the world, not to mention the growth of Airbnb and serviced apartments. Any hospitality business that wants to progress will need to evolve and embrace these changes to stay relevant and profitable in the immediate and medium term. Restoring profitability in our New York hotels also remains at the top of the board’s objectives.
“Meanwhile, we continue to invest in and reposition our hotels. We look forward to our Mayfair hotel being rebranded and opened as the Biltmore, Mayfair in the second quarter of this year. This is the first opening under Hilton’s new LXR Hotels & Resorts collection in Europe. This also will mark the group’s debut in the London five-star deluxe market and it is our aim to fast-track our lost earnings growth at this hotel after it re-opens.
“2019 will be another challenging year for the group, with significant capital projects underway and several large hotels earmarked for major renovations. These investments will be carefully managed and phased to deliver the right returns to shareholder and underline the group’s intention to maintain strict control of costs throughout the business.”
Millennium and Copthorne Hotels operates the Leng’s Collection, M Social, Studio M, Millennium, Grand Millennium, M Hotel, Copthorne and Kingsgate brands.
In September 2018, the group’s CEO Jennifer Fox stepped down after just three months in the role.


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Key View: Australia and New Zealand boast some of the most developed and dynamic meat and poultry sectors in the world, and demand from consumers in these nations remains elevated. Over the medium-to-longer term, however, we highlight three risks that have the potential to damage the meat demand outlook among Australia and New Zealand’s consumers; 1) The steady growth of consumers adopting vegan, vegetarian and flexitarian diets and the increased availability of substitutes for conventional meat 2) plant-based alternatives and 3) the rise of lab-grown meat.
As noted in our analysis of the purchasing dynamics of meat in Australia and New Zealand, demand for meat and poultry among both nations’ consumers remains high and is a key purchase. We are, however, noting a shift in purchasing patterns with growth weakening/ declining in consumer’s volume consumption of meat, while spend on meat is increasing. This is evident of a premiumisation trend (consumers moving up price points, e.g. purchasing beef instead of chicken or buying more expensive cuts of meat) and is evident in most developed states as income levels increase. Alongside this trend are the emergence of triggers that have the potential to drive consumers to decrease their consumption of meat. These triggers are global, but some are more pertinent to Australia and New Zealand.
In Australia and New Zealand, these drivers are present, leading to a slowing and decline in meat consumption. Below, we highlight how these drivers are developing in both nations.
As noted in the above graphic, the WHO reported a link between a heightened risk of cancer and the high consumption of processed and red meat in 2015. Cancer Council Australia released research estimating more than 2,600 bowel cancers diagnosed nationally in 2010 were attributable to processed and red meat consumption. The National Health and Medical Research Council of Australia recommends people eat no more than 65 to 100 grams of cooked red meat, three to four times a week.
Studies have found that the meat sector is responsible for releasing greenhouse gases such as methane, CO2, and nitrous oxide. These gases contribute to climate change, such as global warming. New Zealand's Ministry of Health has encouraged residents to eat more vegan and vegetarian food in a bid to reduce the health sector's carbon footprint. The Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison has however, ruled out joining the Global Methane Pledge, opting for incentivised carbon sequestration projects and development of more efficient livestock supplementing.
While not unique to Australia and New Zealand, ethical concerns surrounding meat is one of the key drivers is changing consumer's consumption patterns. Some ethical issues include that the meat industry causes animal suffering, extensive antibiotic use poses serious health risks, contributes to species extinction and is a major cause of climate change.
Finally, while Australia and New Zealand are relatively food secure, the region is prone to a number of natural disasters that can threaten local food supply chains. Additionally, the globalised nature of supply chains, especially in fertilizer and animal feed, exposes the country to global political events. This came to the fore under previous US President Donald Trump and the US-China trade war, as well as the Australia-China trade war in 2020. Localising more of a country's food supply chain lowers the risks associated with these events.
We believe that consumers in Australia and New Zealand, especially the millennial and Gen Z cohort, are more likely to react to these drivers. The growing vegan, vegetarian and flexitarian communities are expanding due to this cohort’s move away from meat and they are also the consumer groups most open to trying new products, so experimenting with plant-based meats. They are also the demographic more likely to try lab grown meat, when it is made available in Australia and New Zealand.
We highlight the below three risks to the demand outlook for meat consumption in Australia and New Zealand:
1. Vegetarians, Vegan and Flexitarian Consumers On the Rise
News reports place the number of vegetarians and vegans in both Australia and New Zealand between 10% to 15% of their respective population. In Australia, this totals to between 2.6mn and 3.9mn people, while in New Zealand, this ranges between 500,000 and 730,000 people. This is a risk to meat producers, as these consumers do not consume any meat and/or poultry products. However, At Fitch Solutions, we believe that the main threat to meat consumption is the growth of Flexitarian diets, where consumers consciously cut down their consumption of meat and poultry products. While it is not possible to give a number to the size of this consumer base, new reports place it between 20% and 50% of the nations’ population.
2. Plant-Based Meat Offers An Alternative
Plant-based meat offers an alternative product for consumers to add to their meals, in order to substitute meat. While already widely embraced by vegans and vegetarians, it is increasingly becoming a viable option for flexitarians in order to decrease their consumption of meat. In Australia, for example, we forecast that consumer spending on plant-based meat alternatives will reach AUD333.3mn (USD250mn) over 2022, y-o-y growth of 29% on the AUD192.2mn (USD195mn) estimated over 2021. We project consumer spending on this segment will grow by an average of 21.3% a year over the next four years, reaching a total sales value AUD560mn (USD425mn) by 2025.
Consumer Spending On Alternative Proteins Projected To Hit Double Digit-Growth
Australia - Alternative Proteins, AUDmn (2017-2025)
|Plant-Based Meat Alternatives, Sales, AUDmn||101.7||129.5||141.2||192.2||259.0||333.3||412.8||477.8||558.0|
|Plant-Based Meat Alternatives, Sales, USDmn||77.9||96.7||98.1||132.3||194.7||252.5||317.5||367.6||422.7|
|Plant-Based Meat Alternatives, Sales, USD Per Household||7.4||8.9||8.9||11.8||17.1||21.9||27.1||30.9||35.1|
|Plant-Based Meat Alternatives, Sales, USD Per Capita||3.2||3.9||3.9||5.2||7.6||9.7||12.1||13.8||15.7|
The plant-based meat alternative market in Australia and New Zealand is already well established, having historically catered to a relatively large population of vegetarians and vegans. Demand for this segment has increased from flexitarians and the market has seen significant expansion over the past five years. Initially, this came through the food services channel, specifically fast-food (burgers etc.) as an option for consumers to sample different types of products. Increasingly, however, plant-based meat products are being made available through the mass grocery retail channel, for consumers to buy and incorporate into their home-cooking. Most products are still in the form of substitutes to processed meat products, such as patties, sausages and mince and are not alternatives to cuts of meat.
Recent examples of new entrants and products into the alternative protein plant-based sector include, in August 2021, v2food raising AUD72mn (USD50mn) in funding, while Harvest B raised AUD6.3mn (USD4.5mn) in July 2021. Additionally, several international plant-based brands, such as Veganz and Oumph!, have also launched in Australia over the past year. The US company Impossible Foods launched its plant-based Impossible Burger in New Zealand in November 2021, which comes with genetically engineered imitation blood. Similarly, traditional meat companies are also developing and selling their own alternative protein items. Silver Fern Farms, one of the largest meat companies in the region, is in the early stages of exploring meat-plant hybrids. The table below highlights some of the recent developments in the sector.
|Company||Country||Year Founded||Overview||Main Ingredient||Animal-Type Alternative|
|Eighth Day Foods||Australia||2020||Provides food companies with a ready-for-market technology to produce plant-based meat alternatives.||
|v2food||Australia||2019||Produces plant-based meat alternatives made from legumes and soy.||
|Fable Food Co||Australia||2019||Produces plant-based and fungus-based beef alternatives||
|The Craft Meat Co||New Zealand||2018||Produces plant-based mince||
|Unreal Co||Australia||2017||Producers dehydrated plant-based meats for home cooking as well as plant-based beef patties, chicken patties and pizza||
|Fenn Foods||Australia||2015||Produces plant-based meat alternatives for food service sector||
|Sunfed Meats||New Zealand||2015||Produces plant-based chicken chunks and bacon strips||
3. Lab-Grown Meat Rapidly Developing
Finally, we believe lab-grown meat and poultry, while still in the infancy stages of development, poses one of the greatest risks to our outlook for traditional meat and poultry consumption in the two countries. If the speed of development becomes exponential and products are able to get to market quicker than anticipated, we note that this segment has the potential to offer consumers, both flexitarians and traditional meat eaters a way to eat meat, while also addressing the drivers of traditional meat reduction, food scarcity, ethical and environmental concerns.
The development of lab grown meat is in its early stages, but in the past two years, both Singapore and Qatar have published regulation to allow for the retail and consumption of these products. The US Department of Agriculture is currently developing labelling rules for cell-cultured meat and poultry. We currently believe the first affordable retail products will be available to consumers by at least 2030, but rapid advancements in the technology may bring this timeline closer. Already, Australia is home to companies looking to further develop lab-grown meat technology. The table below highlight three companies working in the sector. As of writing (December 2021), there are no companies operating in New Zealand.
|Company||Country||Year Founded||Overview||Product Type||Technology Focus|
|Magic Valley||Australia||2021||Start-up working on growing lamb||Whole muscle meat, ground meat and other meat||
|VOW Food||Australia||2019||Start-up working on growing unconventional and exotic animal meats||Whole muscle meat||
|Heuros||Australia||2017||Working on producing material to supply cultivated meat companies and research institutions||Ground meat||
This report from Fitch Solutions Country Risk & Industry Research is a product of Fitch Solutions Group Ltd, UK Company registration number 08789939 ('FSG'). FSG is an affiliate of Fitch Ratings Inc. ('Fitch Ratings'). FSG is solely responsible for the content of this report, without any input from Fitch Ratings. Copyright © 2021 Fitch Solutions Group Limited. © Fitch Solutions Group Limited All rights reserved. 30 North Colonnade, London E14 5GN, UK.


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[Daily News | December 14, 2016 |Inside US Trade]
President-elect Donald Trump told tech company leaders at a summit in New York on Wednesday that his administration would make “trade across borders” much easier.
The summit was attended by the heads of major tech companies like Amazon, Apple, Google, Facebook and Tesla.
Trump, according to a press pool report, praised his Commerce secretary pick, Wilbur Ross, and promised “fair trade deals. We’re going to make it a lot easier for you to trade across borders.”


text: Yoga guru, Baba Ramdev's Patanjali Yogpeeth and Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) jointly issued BSNL SIM cards to the employees of Patanjali on Sunday. Patanjali workers with be able to avail benefits through indigenous prosperity cards. Ramdev was joined by BSNL's Chief General Manager at the launch event. Yoga Guru Baba Ramdev said, "A 10% discount will be available for purchasing with the prosperity card. Patanjali Yogpeeth is already making products available at cheap prices." On the other hand, health insurance worth five lakh will also be provided. The yoga guru talked about the benefits of the country's indigenous BSNL company in the interest of the country, at the event. He said Patanjali and BSNL will work together to strengthen Swadeshi network in the country.


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The latest in e-commerce: Instagram's shoppable posts
from Business 2 Community
The e-commerce landscape is taking on an entirely new look this year. Many social media platforms have tried to implement shopping tactics to simplify purchase processes and increase referral sales. However, this has proven to be more challenging than expected. So when Instagram recently announced that it will be testing "shoppable" posts, it caused quite a stir. Could this latest technology crack the code to on-platform sales?
7701 Las Colinas Blvd., Ste. 800, Irving, TX 75063


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Bitcoin and Ethereum Price Forecast – Prices Crash LowerCurrency futures quotes. and a seller to either buy or sell a specific currency at a predetermined future date and price. Bitcoin CME Futures: 8185.00: 6.30%.
Bitcoin Cash Price Prediction For 2018, 2019, 2020 AndIt takes years to build out a protocol, which is what bitcoin is.
Best 2018 Bitcoin Price predictions: BTC/USD projections
Could the Price of Bitcoin Go to $1 Million? - The Motley FoolLast Friday, Intercontinental Exchange Inc. (NYSE: ICE), owner of the New York Stock Exchange, announced a plan to launch a cryptocurrency platform and a.
Bitcoin’s Price Has Soared. What Comes Next? - The NewSelect from thousands of tickers using a comprehensive list of stocks, currencies, futures and other asset classes.
The CoinDesk Bitcoin Price Index provides the latest and most accurate bitcoin price. says it plans to launch a digital assets platform and bitcoin futures.The Uncertain Future of Bitcoin. window into the U.S. Dollar price of one bitcoin as of 4:00 p.m. London. in handy email form, right in your.Quote Attribution; Market Statistics. Cboe Futures Exchange Daily Volume and Open Interest. Price and Volume Detail By Product.
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The price of Bitcoin was around 1,000 dollars in January of.
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Bitcoin Gold Price Prediction: down to $0.000001? - BTGThe comparison most often drawn is that if bitcoin is an application, such as email,.
By submitting your email address you will receive a free subscription to VQScore and.Bitcoin Rival Litecoin Has Rocketed 120% Since Bitcoin Futures Started Trading. While bitcoin trades at a price roughly 56 times the price of litecoin,.It is still unclear how the arrival of Bitcoin futures will influence the.But with the fluctuating price of Bitcoin,. will shed some light on the real problems and the likely future of Bitcoin,.
John McAfee Now Predicts a Bitcoin Price of $1M by LateBitcoin price predictions from pro-Bitcoiners and Bitcoin evangelists on what they think the future bitcoin value will be in 2020, 2022, 2027, 2030.Rising demand for this cryptocurrency promises more upside in bitcoin prices, thus pointing to an optimistic bitcoin price prediction 2018.
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Activision Blizzard will release all its franchises on the mobile platform
Activision Blizzard is planning on extending its boundaries over the mobile gaming platform. The video game company will increase its contribution to the platform in the upcoming years. According to Daniel Alegre, Activision Blizzard president, over the time, all franchises will have a mobile version.
The news comes from the latest investor call. At the moment, the company seems to be more focused on the console and PC platform. There is no secret that those two platforms are the most popular for now. However, soon, they will expand to the mobile gaming platform. Although they are currently considering the move more seriously, it seems like it will happen eventually, even if it is going to be a slow process.
“We need to make sure that we’re enabling our franchises on the billions of mobile devices that are available right now,” says Alegre. “That’s by far our biggest opportunity, and we’re investing meaningfully to capitalize on this and to take all our franchises to mobile over time. That’s really, really important for us.”
Which one of the company’s franchises will we see more in the mobile gaming world? There are many out there already, such as Overwatch, Spyro, Tony Hawk, World of Warcraft, StarCraft, Crash Bandicoot, Call of Duty, and Diablo. We are curious to find out more of the company’s plans regarding mobile platform integration.
Taking into consideration the success of the Call of Duty: Mobile, Activision Blizzard is on the right path with the new opportunity. The spinoff mobile adaptation of the game was released in 2019, and it already has 300 million downloads. The game is popular worldwide, and it arrived in China last month, which means the number of downloads will grow significantly. On top of that, the company owns King, the creator of the Candy Crush series. Therefore, things look bright for the upcoming mobile games.
Activision Blizzard’s next franchises adaptations
The Crash Bandicoot adaptation is set to launch next year. The series is called Crash: On The Run. Diablo is another title that will arrive on the mobile platform at some point in the near future. Which franchise would you like to see on the mobile platform next?


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Every year we look forward to British department store John Lewis' Christmas ad campaign. These ad campaigns are centered around a beautifully-animated video that tells a heartwarming or tear-jerking Christmas story. This one is no exception.
Except it's not a John Lewis Christmas ad. This one was created in two weeks last spring for a class assignment by Nick Jablonka, a British teenager with a computer.
Viewed more 375,000 times on YouTube by Sunday evening, the advert was produced by Nick Jablonka, an A-level media student, who had studied the mini-movies for his coursework.
“It was a very rushed piece, I’ve left it till the last month to do it … Creating a short film is a lot of work especially when it’s CGI. I was responsible for things outside of my comfort zone like character animation and lighting,” he said.
The real John Lewis campaigns cost millions of pounds and take months to create. Yet thousands of people were convinced that this was their 2016 ad. Good job, Nick! He's got technical information about the project at the YouTube link. Oh yeah, the real John Lewis ad is expected to debut Thursday. -via Nag on the Lake


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Mattel Magic Ball 8
Blumhouse is no longer a producing partner on Mattel’s planned Magic 8 Ball movie.
On Friday, co-founder and producer Jason Blum told CNBC that the horror production powerhouse was no longer attached to the toymaker’s project.
“We developed it for a while, but we’re not tied down anymore,” he said. “I think they are developing it with someone else. I wish them luck.”
Blum did not go into specifics about why Blumhouse left the project. Representatives for Mattel did not immediately respond to CNBC’s request for comment.
The Magic 8 Ball movie was first announced in 2019 and is one of several projects in development under Mattel Films.
The company recently wrapped production on its Barbie movie with Warner Bros, and also has a Masters of the Universe movie planned with Netflix. There are a dozen other projects in development, including films based on Hot Wheels, Major Matt Mason, Rock ‘Em Sock ‘Em Robots, Uno and Barney.
Turning Magic 8 Ball into a horror story may have come as a surprise, but Mattel’s decision to partner with Blumhouse was not.
The studio has set a new standard for horror production in the 21st century that elevates the entire category. Blumhouse is best known for movies like “Paranormal Activity” and Oscar-winning “Get Out,” and its strategy of taking low-budget movies and turning them into huge box office hits.
For example, Blumhouse has partnered with Hasbro to create a movie based on the Ouija board. The film, released in 2014, cost just $5 million to make and grossed over $103 million at the worldwide box office. The sequel “Ouija: Origin of Evil,” released in 2016, cost $9 million to produce and grossed $81.7 million.
As Mattel seeks to control its margins and expand in theatrical entertainment, it will be essential to produce films at a lower cost that can achieve multimillion-dollar success. By working with third-party studios and distributors to bring its toys to life on the big and small screen, while minimizing financial risk.
Disclosure: Comcast is the parent company of NBCUniversal and CNBC. NBCUniversal distributed “Get Out”.


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Traders’ lobby Confederation of All-India Traders (CAIT) has asked actor Salman Khan to withdraw the name ‘Khan Market’ from his recently launched shopping portal — Khanmarketonline.com — to protect the brand name of the high-end market in the national capital.
“CAIT has shot a communication to actor Salman Khan today urging him to withdraw the name of Khan market from his portal khanmarketonline.com which he has announced on his birthday on 27 December 2015,” CAIT said in a statement.
Khan Market, located in the heart of New Delhi, was established in 1951 and is considered to be among the most expensive retail locations in the country.
The name of the actor’s portal may not only be construed as deceptive and misleading for traders but also affect consumers, CAIT said, demanding that the name of the website may be changed to assuage the rights and feelings of the traders of Khan market.
“A name by custom/practice/usage over a long period of time by a group of persons becomes an intellectual property right of that group of persons… accordingly, the first lien of using the name Khan market lies with traders of Khan market only,” CAIT said, stating that Khan Market is in itself a brand.
The CAIT said that goods sold on khanmarketonline.com would also be construed as sold by traders of Khan Market in New Delhi, leading to confusion and misunderstandings among consumers. “Sales discounts that Salman Khan may offer on products may lead to confusion among traders and consumers,” the CAIT statement said.


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According to machahid24.com website, the copies, known as Mus’haf al-Haziq al-Saqir have been printed by Ibn al-Hafasi Publications.
The ministry has revoked the publisher’s permission to print Quran copies and ordered measures be taken by related organizations to collect the copies already printed and distributed.
Quran teachers and prayer leaders in different parts of the North African country have reported tens of printing errors in the Mus’haf.
Last year, Algeria said it had stepped up efforts to make sure that the Quran copies printed or distributed in the country contain no typos or other kinds of errors.
The country’s Awqaf Ministry introduced new guidelines for printing and publishing copies of the Quran in 2017.
Based on the guidelines, all the Qurans printed in Algeria should be in Warsh narrated from Naafi style (one of the ten styles of Quran recitation).
Also, permission should be obtained from the ministry before printing Quran copies and religious books or importing them from abroad.
The ministry’s guidelines also reiterate that imported religious books should not contain any insult to Algerian society, religious figures, and culture.
A special committee was to be set up to examine and approve the content of imported books.


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The long-awaited launch of bitcoin spot ETFs in the USA this yr helped engender a wave of optimism that the worth of the well-known cryptocurrency would rapidly recognize. The logic was easy: With a straightforward, low-cost avenue now accessible for normal buyers to buy bitcoin, the supply-demand curve would shift and the worth of every bitcoin would rise.
However the response has been considerably blended. Whereas the worth of bitcoin has practically doubled prior to now yr to round $43,000 in the present day, it has largely traded sideways in latest weeks. Was the hype and ensuing response one other instance of the outdated Wall Road maxim, “Purchase the rumor, promote the information”?
To be sincere, we’re checking the flows into and out of spot bitcoin ETFs extra steadily than we wish to admit, however we nonetheless wished to study extra. So, we requested TechCrunch readers in the event that they supposed to purchase bitcoin by way of one of many new spot ETFs, whether or not they owned bitcoin elsewhere, and what influence they anticipated these new investing autos to have on its worth and on crypto.
A number of dozen replies from founders and operators later, we discovered some attention-grabbing tendencies. A couple of quarter of respondents to our little, unscientific survey reported that they don’t intend to purchase bitcoin by way of an ETF, and already personal bitcoin elsewhere. The place are of us holding their cash? All over the place, it seems: Self-custody, Coinbase, KuCoin, all kinds of areas. Moderately impressively, Dara Khan, the pinnacle of promoting at First rate DAO’s bitcoin, mentioned her pockets ended up on the “backside of the ocean, misplaced it in a boating accident :(.”


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Here’s today’s AdExchanger.com news round-up… Want it by email? Sign-up here.
FTC Speaks, Online Ads Listen
Ad Age’s Edmund Lee interviews U.S. Federal Trade Commission chief Jon Leibovitz who says that browser and tech companies have improved in providing transparency around usage of a consumer’s data. But, he adds, “One area that we are concerned about is the information brokers that collect consumer information from a variety of sources, but don’t interact directly with the consumers whose information they possess.” Read more about what he means.
HubSpot Gets $32 Million
Online marketing software company HubSpot announced that its received a whopping $32 million in a fourth round of funding from Google Ventures among others according to PaidContent’s Joseph Tartikoff. What are they going to do with all that cash? Hubspot CEO Brian Halligan tells PaidContent that “much of the cash would go toward research and development.” Read more. San Jose Mercury News adds that “some of the money will be used to cash out existing investors.” Read it.
Gannett Sees Paywall
Bloomberg reports that media company Gannett is gearing up for paywall fun. Gannett CEO Craig Dubow said in an interview that they’re trying out the for-pay idea on “three newspaper websites, and are likely to experiment more before making a decision about the broad use of paywalls. Read about it. Meanwhile, the company also decided its time to spiff up the corporate brand with a new branding campaign. Read more on Dow Jones Newswires.
B2B ad technology company Bizo launched a new “Audience Marketing Platform” according to a release. The company’s new offering even has a retargeting feature called “Segment and Remind”: “If [visitors] do not become a qualified lead and leave the site they are later presented with personalized display advertising now tailored to the product or service they reviewed on the marketer’s or publisher’s web site. This brings them back into the marketing funnel, effectively lifting the performance of the marketer’s entire program mix.” Read more.
Display Ads Work!
In conjunction with Nielsen and Catalina Solutions, PointRoll has released results of a new study done by Supervalu and Pointroll ads. Among other findings, the study found that by using rich media display ad tech, “ad sales lift among exposed households was three times higher compared with a standard ad lift, even though the average frequency on the standard ads was 75 percent higher.” Read the release.
Making Online Ads Better Than TV
An opinion piece by Yahoo! vp of product Bobby Figueroa landed on The Business Insider yesterday as Figueroa discussed the finer points of “How Does Online Advertising Become Better Than Advertising On TV?” He identifies better measurement as key, “What we should be doing is measuring multiple points to tell an advertiser what works and what doesn’t.” Read more.
Beyond The Google Algo
Digiday Daily’s Brian Morrissey looks at Google’s acquisition of video content producer Next New Networks and thinks “It’s an admission by Google that its next act as a huge media company won’t be by computers alone. To be sure Google will continue to focus on building huge tech platforms, but the real money in media continues to be driven by humans rather than machines.” Here, here.
RTB Tips For Pubs
On the Association of Online Publishers site, Criteo biz dev chief Jonathan Wolf tells big online publishers in the UK what real-time bidding (RTB) means for them. It’s not necessarily all good.. – maybe neutral – as he says, “Yes, it is a step-change in the technology for adserving that can unlock significantly more revenue. But – it doesn’t remove the issues that premium publishers have been grappling with for the last decade.” Read more.
You’re Hired -Or Appointed!
OpenX announced that it has hired former Rubicon Project biz dev dude Raj Chauhan “General Manager of the company’s publisher business.” Read about it on OpenX.org Meanwhile, semantic ad technology provider Proximic announced the appointment of Jonathan Mandel as Chairman of the Board. Mandel also has a board seat at Citadel Broadcasting accorindg to the release.
From VC To Entrepreneur
After 4.5 years at Highland Capital, Matt Nichols (AdExchanger.com Q&A) has to try on the clothing of the entrepreneur and join jewelry e-commerce company Gemvara (www.gemvara.com). In an email, Nichols says he will be joining the company as “EVP Operations and will be on the Board of Directors.”
Looking at a March 2011 report from MediaMind creative matters when it comes to clickthrough rates. OK, there’s more to it than that as eMarketer writes, “rich media executions not only encourage interaction with brand messaging, but also increase clickthrough rates by 300% for financial services as compared with standard banners.”Read more and grab some nice looking graphics for your PPT prez.
Know Digital Canada
Curious what’s happening in online ads in the Great White North? Try comScore’s new 2010 year-in-review for the Canadian market. Among the Canadian data nuggets, “The number of total display ad impressions has grown 3% in 2010, with the majority of the ad impressions delivered in the final quarter of the year. In 2010, the top two advertisers online were Procter & Gamble, followed by GMAC/Ally. Together they accounted for nearly 17 billion display ad impressions throughout the year.” Read more and download (sign-up required).
RTB In China
Demand-side platform Simpli.fi is serving ads from their new Hong Kong data center and, according to a release, Simpli.fi CEO Frost Prioleau says, “We believe we are the first full-service DSP to enable real-time bidding in China, and we expect advertisers there to see the same benefits that they have seen in North America and Europe. In addition to China, we’ll be adding service to India, S.E. Asia and Australia in the coming weeks.” Read more.
New Study On Long Tail
Contextweb announced the release of a new whitepaper Sample data nugget: “The average click-through rate for long-tail advertising during the period was 24% higher than for short-tail advertising. All 20 advertiser verticals in the study experienced click-through rate gains, with the top category seeing a 50% increase.” Read the release. And, download the study (sign-up required).
IAB Ripple Dissolve
Mediaweek’s Mike Shields looks back at last week’s IAB event in Palm Springs, California and summarizes: “the mood was ebullient as 750-plus attendees basked in the industry’s double-digital growth rates and flood of tech venture capital-and welcomed back IAB CEO Randall Rothenberg. Yet despite the cheerful vibe, the event carried a dark undercurrent.” Sends chills through my spine. Find out about the undercurrent!
Quality Assurance: The Video
CPX Interactive has posted a video “evangelizing the newly released Quality Assurance Guidelines (QAG)” and shown at the recent IAB event. According to the CPX blog, in the video, “Featured speakers discuss why ad networks and exchanges should seek to become certified under the QAG, and why whether an company is certified should matter to both advertisers and publishers, alike.


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"Nobody has reported any adverse effects from irradiation," says TIME science writer Frederic Golden. And given the abandon with which America has embraced its microwave ovens, one could be forgiven for underestimating the public outcry that greeted the idea of irradiation several years ago. The meat industry, which will invest huge sums creating the infrastructure necessary for irradiation, is hoping Americans have gotten over their fear of treated meat. "Unlike the so-called Frankenfoods, which involve genetic alterations, irradiation is pretty standard stuff," says Golden. And, he adds, zapping meat is, ostensibly, a public health measure. Issues of safety aside, there is little information on the question gnawing at gastronomes everywhere: How does irradiated filet mignon taste?
Once upon a time, a trip to the grocery store was a simple, almost mind-numbing task. These days, shopping for dinner and translating myriad food labels begs a Ph.D. in biochemistry and a solid background in current affairs. And Tuesday, the U.S. Department of Agriculture decided to make things even more interesting, issuing its long-awaited approval of irradiation technology for meat. That's right in roughly 60 days, there will be a new label to inspect at your local market: The "radura" symbol will adorn meat that's been zapped by gamma rays much in the manner of microwave ovens, without actually cooking the meat. The process, scientists say, wipes out E. coli and other, potentially life-threatening bacteria. While the Food and Drug Administration approved irradiation for meat back in 1997, the meat industry still faces its toughest critics: the American public.


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As we deal with yet another outbreak involving romaine, calls to do more for food safety are coming from all fronts. No one is more frustrated than the producers of leafy greens that these types of outbreaks continue.
U.S. importers of European citrus will soon have to pay an additional 25% tariff after the World Trade Organization sided with the U.S. in its dispute with the European Union over illegal subsidies to Airbus.
Debt-to-asset ratios are on the rise, working capital is eroding and farmers’ sentiments are on the decline. Despite the negativity surrounding prices and outlooks, Famer Mac is providing a voice of optimism.
Already a big player in meat and poultry facilities, Packers Sanitation Services Inc. is seeking to expand its footprint in the fresh produce world with real-time data monitoring of its sanitation services.