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TAAI Tourism Conclave with Gujarat Tourism
The Travel Agents Association of India (TAAI) recently held a tourism conclave from March 9-12, 2021, organized in collaboration with Gujarat Tourism.
- The event was organized to train members of the travel industry and promote Gujarat as a tourist destination for local and local tourists.
- This initiative aims to ensure members are familiar with the area in order to encourage and revitalize the promotion of tourism.
- TAAI members need to be ready with newer ideas and strategies to ensure that tourism to India is facilitated by them in a smooth manner.
At the TAAI Tourism Conclave, members from 20 regions and chapters across India attended the three-day, four-day event in Kevadia. The event was organized to train members of the travel industry and promote Gujarat as a tourist destination for local and local tourists, said TAAI President Jyoti Mayal. The members of the trade were going through challenging times due to the COVID-19 pandemic and this provided them with an opportunity to adapt to the transformation and the ability to explore, she explained.
Members’ delegates experienced the accommodations and facilities in Tent City 1 and Tent City 2 in Kevadia, as well as an evening dinner cruise along the Narmada River with dinner in 2 groups. The tallest statue in the world has been viewed at the Statue of Unity (SoU), the Jungle Safari, the Sardar Sarovar Dam Project, the Valley of Flowers and the Cactus & Butterfly Garden. The statue of unity depicting the Iron Man of India, Sardar Vallabh bhai Patel, is intended to inspire generations with Sardar Patel’s vision of unity, patriotism, inclusive growth and good governance. The delegates also visited the 5 gardens in Arogya Van (herb garden), which have a wide range of medicinal plants and health-related landscapes. Members also visited the cultural shopping arena at Ekta Mall in the SoU region.
This initiative by TAAI aims to ensure members are familiar with the area in order to promote Dekho Apna Desh and revitalize the promotion of domestic and inbound tourism through skill and personal experience, stated Vice President Jay Bhatia.
A half-day business meeting was organized on March 11, 2021, which was raised by the Hon. Indian Government Minister of Tourism, Shri Prahlad Singh Patel, via video message. He welcomed TAAI’s initiative, which has set a historic example of positivity as times change. He added that TAAI membership encompasses all aspects of tourism professional bodies and that in the coming future, responsibilities and challenges will increase when inbound tourists begin their visits to India. TAAI members need to be ready with newer ideas and strategies to ensure tourism to India is facilitated by them in a smooth manner, he said.
Mr. Jenu Devan, Commissioner for Tourism and MD-Gujarat Tourism, spoke on a live video call to the Conclave, highlighting the government’s initiatives to promote Gujarat to the world and thanking the TAAI Committee for contributing to its members SoU had brought in Gujarat and Gujarat also assured the full support and encouragement of members in promoting Gujarat as a healthy travel destination.
Hon. The Secretary General, Bettaiah Lokesh, outlined the business meetings, stating that the inaugural address was an eye opener and vision for President Jyoti Mayal’s domestic tourism members. In a panel discussion moderated by Vice President Jay Bhatia on Bharat ka Vikas – Strengthening Inland Tourism, panelists such as Dr. Achyut Singh Jt. General Manager – Indian Railways (IRCTC) who spoke about connecting tourists to the Mile List and how TAAI members could promote rail packages to travelers across India. Dr. Singh also gave a presentation where members could register and liaise with the IRCTC. Mr. Ajay Kumar Wadhawan, Sales Director at Air Asia India, attended the panel and cited views on newer airports and air connectivity also for smaller airports in India. Former TAAI President, Mr Balbir Mayal, spoke about the changing dynamics in travel and tourism over the past few decades and how TAAI’s joint initiatives on skills and education are to make India a top travel destination in the world with government tourism associations, airlines, railways, etc.
This was followed by a discussion on “Where Winners Play”, a panel moderated by Ashish Gupta, founder of Strategy Pluto and Consulting CEO of FAITH. A healthy debate with IATA and how it works was had with Mr. Rodney Dcruz, Asst. Director of IATA who presented the views, perceptions and the future of IATA. HSG, Bettaiah Lokesh represented TAAI and vocalized the core issues of membership in IATA and airlines. Mr. Sunil Kumar Rumalla, President of UFTAA, gave a global overview of the challenges agents around the world are facing with IATA and made suggestions to IATA to ensure the survival of the airlines and agents.
A discussion moderated by Mr. Amish Desai, Chair of the TAAI Karnataka Chapter, along with Ms. Parineeta Sethi, Editor-in-Chief and Editor-in-Chief of Pinnacle Connect, a leading wellness and luxury media company, with Ms. Vasdha Sondhi, MD Om Marketing. Ms. Jyoti Mayal, Chair of the Tourism and Hospitality Skill Council (THSC) also attended the panel that discussed customer satisfaction in tourism through technology, marketing and skills. With their expertise in sales, marketing, PR and social media, technology and skills development, the panelist suggested how today’s TAAI members need to evolve and be empowered with all skills but service delivery. She also briefed on the upcoming initiatives by WITT (Women in TAAI and Travel) where TAAI aims to give back to society and empower women to become entrepreneurs by qualifying and working towards making India a safe tourism destination.
In recognition of the efforts and initiative of the Gujarat Government and Gujarat Tourism to invite TAAI and its members to SoU, Hon. TAAI National Treasurer, Mr. Shreeram Patel, emphasized TAAI’s role in the growth and development of the Trade. He thanked the vision of the Hon. Tourism Minister Mr. Jawahar bhai Chavda, who together with the Chief Secretary for Tourism – Gujarat, Ms. Mamta Verma, Commissioner for Tourism and Managing Director of Gujarat Tourism, Mr. Jenu Devan and Mr. Nirav Munshi – Manager Commercial (Travel & Marketing ) along with other officials fully supported TAAI. He also thanks Indigo Airlines, the only airline that has secured delegates from all corners of India connected to Gujarat for this conclave.
More such conclaves across the country are to be organized in the near future in collaboration with government tourism associations to train, qualify and empower the TAAI trade members to promote incredible India, said Ms. Jyoti Mayal.


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Hello everyone. This week’s Week-in-Review Mango Juul Pods is where I provide a lot of analysis and/or rambling thoughts about one story, while also scouring the hundreds of TechCrunch stories this week to find my favorite stories for your reading pleasure.
Mango Juul Pods : How streaming networks are reducing their benefits and paving the way for a new era in piracy
The big story
Moral relativism is a driving force in the startup world. This system cannot work without a north star for wrongdoing.
This can be difficult to find, as many missteps at Uber or Facebook are often a result of misunderstandings and being plagued by multiple stakeholders.
Mango Juul Pods : Juul is, thankfully, a company whose website is dedicated to its values, so its real-world impact doesn’t need to be.
The startup’s CEO was forced to resign and was replaced by a Big Tobacco executive. This is a fitting change for a company that has always tried to keep a moral high ground, but which now faces the harsh realities of life. Juul is not in a good place at the moment.
However, this is not because Juul had a “come to Jesus” moment. It’s because the White House, FDA and FDA are pissed off and are threatening to ban flavored cartridges.
These are responsible for 80% of Juul’s sales
Why? Juul’s fruity flavors were destined for teenagers, as they were addictive and too tempting not to use. According to a CDC report, the CDC found that high school students used tobacco increased by 38% last year due to a 78% increase in e-cigarette usage.
This, along with a mysterious vaping disease that may have been caused by counterfeit THC cartridges has pushed Altria into a crisis of regulatory compliance and a crisis of identity.
Kevin Brown, Juul Labs’ chief executive, is leaving the company to make way for Atria, a long-standing tobacco executive, to take over the leadership role.
This comes as Juul is under intense scrutiny by U.S regulators for its marketing strategies and possible bans on certain
Altria purchased 35% of Juul in December last year for $12.8 billion. This deal valued Juul at $38 billion. Employees received massive bonuses and $2 billion in Altria cash to offset the bitter taste of the deal with Big Tobacco.
Kevin Burns, then-CEO, tried to diffuse the situation. “We understand and sympathize with the controversy and skepticism that come with an affiliation or partnership with the largest US tobacco company.
He said that he was skeptical too. “But over the past several months, we were convinced by actions and not words that this partnership could accelerate our success in switching adult smokers.”
Altria’s deal was a success and it now appears that the receiver-less zone is closing in on them. Altria’s share price has fallen 30 percent to a 5-year low in the last five months due to its redemption bet on Juul.
This has been largely because the regulatory environment has changed drastically. All of this led to Burns’ resignation as CEO, and he was replaced by K.C. Crosthwaite.
Juul’s mission was different from reality in the case
But it made for a great story
It allowed for executives, investors, recruiters, marketers, engineers, and interns to share their stories when ethics were questioned. However, eventually, the charade lifted and you see that your startup’s soul is not so shiny, sleek, and full of Silicon Valley ideals. It’s just another kind of tarblack.
Alt-title in gif form for this week’s newsletter https://t.co/jh0bGw9Jz7 pic.twitter.com/SA3hqlpDgY
Here’s the rest of this week’s news
Trends for the Week
These are some big news items from large companies. The green links will take you to the full context.
TechCrunch’s Galaxy Fold is damaged after one day
TechCrunch was able to escape a broken Galaxy Fold unit in the first attempt, although other reviewers’ problems led to a long delay and a product redesign.
However, when we reviewed our “new-and improved” Galaxy Fold unit, the screen suffered damage after only a day of use.
Although we were generous with our observations of possible causes, you don’t need to use your $2,000 smartphone in children’s gloves. Continue reading.
Amazon launches more Alexa devices
Amazon’s annual event, where they throw a bunch Alexa-enabled junk out into the wild, has arrived! Alexa glasses, Alexa rings and Alexa Echos are all available. You can see them all here.
Facebook has officially announced that it will be removing like counts from Australia.
Facebook is trying to change how people see content from other users. In Australia, a test was conducted to hide how many likes posts received. Continue reading.
What was the biggest tech company’s mistake this week? This section clearly requires its own section.
The world’s politicians get a free pass from Facebook
[Facebook promises to not stop politicians’ lies, hatred]
Apple allows keyboard apps to have a little too much access
Apple claims that a bug could allow ‘full-access’ to third party keyboards.
We’re excited to announce our biggest event of 2019 and invite some of the most influential figures in tech. Here are the people coming to Disrupt SF 2019
Y Combinator’s Michael Seibel and Ali Rowghani will reveal the new YC top100 list. They also talk about startups at Disrupt SF
Since its 2005 founding, Y Combinator has been its own economic entity. The seed-stage venture capital fund nurtured top startups from all industries and has helped them grow.
You’ll see many YC startups today providing services to larger companies. Then, they become larger businesses themselves. (Stripe & Gusto are just two examples).
You can also enjoy the amazing speakers and browse Startup Alley to see the over 1,000 companies showcasing technologies and products.
The Startup Battlefield competition, which launched Mint, Cloudflare, and Dropbox will be one of Disrupt SF’s most memorable highlights.

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NETFLIX'S Queer Eye star Tan France announced he and his husband Rob are expecting their first child together.
The fashion guru announced the news to his 3.8million followers on Instagram on April 13, 2021.
Who is Tan France?
British fashion designer France was born in Doncaster to Pakistani parents, but now lives in the US.
He’s now most famous for being the fashion expert for the Netflix series Queer Eye.
He loved fashion from a young age, and was inspired to pursue it as a career by the Disney clothing made in his grandparent’s factory.
France studied fashion at Doncaster College and later worked for Zara and Selfridges before being made company director at Shade Clothing.
In 2011, he launched women's clothing line, Kingdom & State, and he now lives in Utah in the United States after officially moving across the pond in 2015.
France has an avid Instagram following now, with 3.6million fans on his @tanfrance account.
How old is Tan France?
France was born on April 20, 1983, which currently makes him 37-years-old.
His parents gave him the name Tanweer Wasim Safdar but he later changed this to the catchy Tan France.
France's Netflix show sees five gay men give straight men a makeover.
The star is said to have had no idea that the reboot of the 2003 Bravo series, Queer Eye for the Straight Guy, would become a hit.
France said to Vogue: “People think we are lying when we say that, but there truly was no way of knowing just how massive this would become in a heartbeat.
“I thought it would be a niche programme that girls and gays would get behind. We couldn’t have been more wrong.”
Who is Tan France’s husband?
France met illustrator Rob in the US and quickly realised he was the one.
France was raised a Muslim in the UK and Rob was raised a Mormon in Wyoming, and the pair have fused their beliefs.
In an interview with the New York Post, France said: “We practice some of our religions’ practices. We don’t practice them all. We practice what works for us.”
Is Tan France pregnant?
The 37-year-old TV personality shared his pregnancy news with a shirtless photo of himself, with a sonogram held up in front of his stomach.
He wrote alongside the photo: “So happy to finally share that WE’RE HAVING A BABY!!
“No, I’m not pregnant, despite this VERY realistic pic.
More on Netflix
“With the greatest gift/help of the most wonderful surrogate, Rob and I are lucky enough to be on our way to being parents, this Summer.
“Something we’ve wanted for SOooo many years. Our hearts are so full right now. I cannot wait to hold this baby, and to show him so much love.”


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There is no end in sight for fashion's infatuation with the Reagan era. Fast-fashion chains are stocking Ray-Ban rip-offs, tapered jeans are seeping back into style and neon colors are all the rage, so naturally the cheapie plastic sports watch is once again a bona-fide accessory.
And is it ever a watch for our times. Most can be had for less than $100.
Swatch, the Swiss brand that sparked a worldwide craze for bold, cartoony watches 25 years ago, is still ticking.
Freestyle USA has reissued its Shark watch – the zany, multicolored watches were big with Southern California surfers in the early ‘80s.
Vans has a bubble-gum pink watch that scrolls the time across its screen in red digital numbers, ticker-tape style.
Think of these timepieces as colorful plumage, best revealed in unexpected ways — say, a black sheath dress with a chunky red sports watch,


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Monday, March 25, 2013
Just Say 'No' To Starbucks
So, now the CEO of Starbucks, has told a shareholder who supports traditional marriage that he should sell his shares and invest in another company. You can read about it here and get the full report from Forbes here.
The shareholder had complained to CEO Howard Schultz that the company had lost customers because of it's support for gay “marriage”. Last year, Starbucks announced it's support for the Washington State referendum backing gay “marriage”, and declared same sex “marriage” one of Starbucks' core values. As such, the National Organization for Marriage (NOM) launched a boycott of Starbucks, and you can go sign their petition here at Dump Starbucks.
Depending on which poll you read, the claim is made that anywhere from 54% to 58% of Americans now support same sex “marriage”. According to another poll that I read today, 56% of Catholics now support same sex “marriage”.
Well, this is one Catholic who does not support same sex “marriage”, and who still believes that God's Law and the teachings of the Church are still just as relative and applicable to today as they have always been. No matter how many laws or referendums are held that declare same sex “marriage” as valid, it will never, ever be valid in God's truth and Church teaching.
Now that all being said, you can still get good coffee....excellent coffee...the best coffee in fact...by buying your coffee from Mystic Monk Coffee as blended and sold by the Carmelite Monks of Wyoming. That way, you can have the satisfaction of not supporting a company that endorses unnatural “marriage”, while knowing that steaming hot cup of Mystic Monk Coffee you are enjoying supports the good Carmelite Monks of Wyoming and their monastery.
While you are at the Mystic Monk Coffee website, be sure to check out their religious gifts, drink-ware, and equipment, too.


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5G may be a extensive way from getting widely obtainable in the British isles, and in other places, but there are lots of 5G handsets out there for early adopters and those fascinated in long run-proofing. If you slide into possibly of these categories, you will never discover just about
TPG Telecom is preparing to ramp up its 5G rollout in excess of the upcoming 12 months, with additional than 85 per cent of the inhabitants in the country’s six largest cities predicted to be served by the stop of 2021.
The firm, which shaped in the merger of TPG
Samsung Galaxy S20 5G, Samsung Galaxy S20+ 5G, and Samsung Galaxy S20 Extremely 5G telephones have reportedly began getting the A single UI two.5 update. This update was introduced along with the recently released Samsung Galaxy Be aware 20 series, and Samsung is not losing much time to introduce the
Right up until lately, TCL was greatest regarded in the smartphone marketplace for building BlackBerry and Alcatel telephones under licence. But the Chinese company has now struck out under its possess manufacturer with the TCL ten series. Back in May well, my colleague Matthew Miller was incredibly impressed with the
The LG Velvet is a person of the most cost-effective 5G phones accessible right now and immediately after shelling out a couple of months with a person it is likely to be difficult for me to shell out twice as much for a flagship cell phone right now.
With the 5G-enabled LG Velvet, the South Korean phone-maker is trying something new. The Velvet doesn’t belong to any of the company’s established lines, like the G- and V- series. It looks different than most LG phones and at an expected price of $600 to $700 for the US, it’s
The Sony Xperia one II is Sony’s 2020 flagship handset, and the initially from Sony to assistance 5G (in Europe, but not in the US). As we’ve come to assume from Sony, it packs in the features, but it’s pricey even provided the top-conclude technical specs. Final year’s Xperia one
Singapore’s largest wi-fi community operators have chosen Nokia and Ericsson around Huawei to make the most important 5G networks in the city-state.
The assortment arrives amid pressure involving Singapore’s largest buying and selling associates, the United States and China, with the US encouraging allies to exclude China’s Huawei from their
The OnePlus eight Pro and the Mi ten 5G from Xiaomi are each great benefit flagship offerings, but if a person of them has to be your subsequent order, which a person ought to it be? I have witnessed this dilemma pop up quite a bit, so let’s settle this
New figures from Gartner have provided even more evidence that the coronavirus pandemic will end result in a important drop in smartphone income and delay the impact of 5G handsets this yr.
The analyst company is predicting the mobile phone sector will deal by 14.six for each cent this yr,


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Owen Cheung ’16
The new iPhone 5 was released last month and many people are probably wondering, is it any good?
With much excitement and anticipation, Apple announced the new iPhone 5 at an event early in September. The phone has many changes from its predecessors, in both design and software and it introduces some new features. These include a taller screen, a lighter weight, LTE, and an overall faster performance.
But is it actually as good as Apple made it seem?
In comparison to some phones, yes. Ella Komita-Moussa ‘16 upgraded from a more generic cellphone and she is very happy with her decision to get the new phone. “It’s a lot faster,” said Ella. The iPhone has a new A6 chip that brings much faster speeds, even when compared to the iPhone 4s. In addition, the design overall is “cool and sleek”. The weight of the iPhone 5 is noticeably lighter than the older iPhones. The weight can be both good and bad, but generally most want a lighter phone rather than a heavier one. The phone’s taller screen allows for more information and app space, which is a nice touch. And the LTE connection, which isn’t new to cellphones overall, is new to the iPhone, which makes it a very exciting upgrade.
And while there are some good qualities of the new iPhone, there certainly are some bad ones. Possibly the most prominent, the battery life. Compared to many phones, the iPhone does not last as long. Even when comparing to the earlier versions of the iPhone, the 5 just doesn’t have the same battery life. Most likely due to the LTE and the increased screen size, it definitely is noticeable and it definitely is annoying. A lesser issue, the phone “feels more fragile”. Even though Apple has improved its durability, the iPhone is still quite prone to the occasional chip, scratch, and even cracks to the screens and the frames on the side. There also is a new connector slot, which makes plugging in the phone easier. However, the new iPhone is no longer compatible with many speakers and stands.
So is the iPhone everything it was expected to be? The answer would be mostly. It certainly came with many new features that definitely benefited the phone and it also came with the expectable downfalls. And if you’re looking to upgrade, it all depends on what kind of phone you have now and what kind of phone you need. If you need to get a new phone, the iPhone is a good choice. But if you’re happy with your current cellphone, the iPhone 5 might not be worth all you are paying for it.


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Running an Old Version of Windows 10? Update by Oct. 10... Or Else
Users with old versions of Windows 10 should update their devices as soon as possible, as Microsoft has said it will no longer provide them with security and quality updates after tomorrow.
Released in July 2015, Windows 10 was billed as the "last" version of Microsoft's operating system because the new OS was designed to update on an ongoing basis via the cloud. However, users of enterprise-focused versions of Windows 10 can disable automatic updates if they believe those processes might interfere with their business operations.
Meanwhile, researchers with Google's Project Zero have warned that users of Windows 7 and 8 face potential hacking risks because they receive software updates less frequently than do Windows 10 users. The problem stems from "patch diffing," in which hackers noting security fixes for Windows 10 have time to exploit those vulnerabilities on older versions of the OS that have not yet been updated.
In other Windows news, Microsoft executive Joe Belfiore revealed in a series of tweets yesterday that the company is effectively ending its efforts to develop the Windows 10 Mobile platform. While it will continue to provide support and updates for the mobile OS, Microsoft will instead focus on improving how its systems work on the Android and iOS mobile platforms.
Avoid Becoming 'More Vulnerable'
According to a Microsoft support note, users running version 1511 or earlier versions of Windows 10 will stop receiving security and quality updates after tomorrow.
"Since version 1511 was released in November 2015, Microsoft has released additional feature updates that build upon each other, delivering the newest features and more comprehensive security," the note stated. "Windows 10 was designed as a service, whereby feature updates are required a couple times a year. For most consumers, both quality and feature updates are delivered automatically according to their Windows Update settings."
After tomorrow, devices on which those automatic updates have been disabled will still keep working. However, they could become "more vulnerable to security risks and viruses," Microsoft added.
Microsoft said users of Windows 10 Home, Pro, Education, and Enterprise should check to see what version their devices are running. If they're running version 1511 or earlier, they should manually update their devices to the current version, which is the Windows 10 Creators Update rolled out earlier this year. The Fall Creators Update is set to arrive on Oct. 17.
'False Sense of Security'
On Thursday, Google researcher Mateusz Jurczyk published an analysis on the Project Zero blog describing how Microsoft's handling of Windows updates leaves users of some versions more vulnerable to security risks.
"Patch diffing is a common technique of comparing two binary builds of the same code -- a known-vulnerable one and one containing a security fix," Jurczyk said. The same approach can be used to exploit differences between different versions of the same software product, he added.
"One example of such software is the Windows operating system, which currently has three versions under active support -- Windows 7, 8 and 10," he said. "While Windows 7 still has a nearly 50% share on the desktop market at the time of this writing, Microsoft is known for introducing a number of structural security improvements and sometimes even ordinary bugfixes only to the most recent Windows platform. This creates a false sense of security for users of the older systems, and leaves them vulnerable to software flaws which can be detected merely by spotting subtle changes in the corresponding code in different versions of Windows."
Recent attacks on systems running older operating systems that hadn't been updated have also underscored the importance of keeping software up to date. For example, the widespread WannaCry ransomware attack earlier this year largely affected systems running older versions of Windows that are no longer supported with updates from Microsoft.
Going forward, Microsoft will also stop putting its focus on building new features and hardware for its Windows 10 Mobile operating system, according to Belfiore, a corporate vice president in the company's Operating Systems Group.
"We have tried very hard to incent app devs," Belfiore said in one tweet yesterday. "Paid money... wrote apps 4 them... but volume of users is too low for most companies to invest."
Windows 10 Mobile accounts for only 0.03 percent of the world's mobile OS market, according to the latest figures from the analyst firm IDC. Both Belfiore and Microsoft founder Bill Gates recently revealed they have switched to Android devices, and HP last week announced it plans to stop production of its Elite X3 Windows 10 phone.
Image credit: Product shots by Microsoft; iStock Artist's concept.


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Garena Free Fire, an app that permits users to fire weapons without any consequences, was met with legal action from Krafton Foods on October 26th. The company filed a lawsuit against Garena for copyright and trademark infringement. Krafton is demanding that Garena cease all use of their intellectual property and pay damages.
Introduction: The Legal Battle Between Krafton and Garena Free Fire
In late September 2021, Krafton filed a lawsuit against Garena Free Fire in the Delhi High Court alleging copyright infringement. The lawsuit focuses on similarities between Free Fire’s characters and those in Krafton’s popular game, PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds (PUBG). According to the lawsuit, Free Fire has copied elements of PUBG such as character design, clothing, and even some gameplay features.
This is not the first time that Krafton has taken legal action against companies for copying its intellectual property. In 2018, it filed a similar lawsuit against NetEase over its game Rules of Survival. The case was eventually settled out of court with NetEase agreeing to pay an undisclosed sum to Krafton.
The outcome of this legal battle between Krafton and Garena Free Fire remains uncertain. However, it raises important questions about intellectual property rights in the gaming industry and how far companies can go when creating games inspired by others. It also highlights the importance of ensuring that any new creations are original works rather than copies or derivatives of existing games.
Who Are Krafton and Garena Free Fire?
Krafton and Garena Free Fire are two well-known names in the gaming industry. Krafton, formerly known as Bluehole Inc., is a South Korean video game developer that gained worldwide recognition with their massively popular battle royale game PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds (PUBG). On the other hand, Garena Free Fire is a Singaporean mobile battle royale game developed by 111 Dots Studio and published by Garena for Android and iOS platforms.
Recently, Krafton took legal action against Garena Free Fire over alleged copyright infringement. The dispute centers around similarities between PUBG’s characters and those in Garena Free Fire. Krafton claims that these characters were copied without permission from their original creations, leading to an unfair advantage for Garena in the mobile gaming market.
However, it is worth noting that this is not the first time such allegations have been made against Garena Free Fire. The company has faced similar accusations from other developers in the past, but none of them have yet resulted in legal action.
Why Has Krafton Filed a Lawsuit Against Garena Free Fire?
Krafton, the South Korean video game developer behind the popular game PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds (PUBG), has filed a lawsuit against Garena Free Fire for copyright infringement. In the lawsuit, Krafton accuses Garena Free Fire of copying various elements from PUBG and using them in its own game without permission. The alleged infringements include weapons, vehicles, maps, modes and user interface.
Krafton claims that Garena Free Fire’s success is built on a foundation of directly copying PUBG content. While both games fall under the battle royale genre, Krafton argues that Garena Free Fire has gone too far with its use of copied content. The company is seeking compensation for damages caused by lost sales and profits as well as demanding that Garena stop using any copied materials from PUBG in their game.
The lawsuit comes at a time when both games have achieved great success globally. However, with this legal action looming over Garena Free Fire, it remains to be seen whether they will continue to use any copied materials from PUBG or how this will impact their future growth and popularity within the gaming industry.
The Allegations Made by Krafton Against Garena Free Fire
Krafton has recently taken legal action against Garena Free Fire, alleging that the popular battle royale game has infringed on its intellectual property rights. Specifically, Krafton claims that Free Fire’s characters and weapons bear significant resemblance to those found in its own game, PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds (PUBG). As a result of these alleged similarities, Krafton is seeking damages from Garena Free Fire.
In response to these allegations, Garena Free Fire has denied any wrongdoing and stated that it respects the intellectual property rights of other companies. The company maintains that any similarities between their game and PUBG are purely coincidental and not intentional. Nevertheless, this legal battle highlights the ongoing issue of intellectual property disputes in the gaming industry.
It remains to be seen how this legal action will play out for both Krafton and Garena Free Fire. However, it serves as a reminder to developers and publishers alike of the importance of protecting their intellectual property rights in an increasingly competitive marketplace.
Garena Free Fire’s Response to the Lawsuit
Garena Free Fire, a popular battle royale game, has been hit with a lawsuit by South Korean gaming company Krafton. The lawsuit alleges that Garena Free Fire has infringed on the intellectual property rights of Krafton’s game PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds (PUBG), which is also a battle royale game. Krafton claims that Garena Free Fire copied several elements from PUBG, such as the interface and gameplay mechanics.
In response to the lawsuit, Garena Free Fire issued a statement denying the allegations and stating that they have developed their own unique game from scratch. They added that they respect intellectual property rights and do not condone any form of infringement. Garena Free Fire also stated that they will cooperate fully with legal proceedings in order to ensure a fair trial.
The lawsuit between these two gaming giants raises important questions about intellectual property rights in the gaming industry. It remains to be seen how this case will play out in court and what impact it will have on future developments within the industry.
Impact on the Gaming Industry and Players
Krafton, the developer behind popular games like PUBG and PUBG Mobile, has recently taken legal action against Garena Free Fire for copyright infringement. The lawsuit claims that Garena Free Fire borrowed heavily from PUBG’s gameplay mechanics, aesthetics, and intellectual property without permission. This development has sparked a conversation about the impact of such legal battles on the gaming industry and players alike.
On one hand, lawsuits like this can be seen as necessary to protect intellectual property rights and ensure fair competition in the market. However, they can also stifle creativity and innovation if developers become hesitant to experiment with new ideas for fear of potential legal repercussions. Additionally, players may feel frustrated if their favorite games are pulled from stores or face major changes due to copyright disputes.
Ultimately, it remains to be seen how this specific case will play out in court and what long-term effects it may have on both Krafton and Garena Free Fire. Nevertheless, it serves as a reminder of the complex legal landscape that exists within the gaming industry and its potential impact on all stakeholders involved.
Similar Lawsuits and Legal Battles in the Gaming Industry
In the gaming industry, lawsuits and legal battles are not uncommon. Recently, Krafton, the parent company of popular game PUBG, took legal action against Garena Free Fire for copyright infringement. The lawsuit alleges that Free Fire copied elements from PUBG, such as similar characters and weapons. This is not the first time PUBG has faced this issue – they previously filed a lawsuit against Epic Games’ Fortnite for similar reasons.
Another ongoing legal battle in the gaming industry involves Apple and Epic Games. Epic Games filed a lawsuit against Apple after their popular game Fortnite was removed from the App Store for violating Apple’s payment policies. Epic Games alleges that Apple holds a monopoly over app distribution on iOS devices and charges excessive fees to developers. The outcome of this case could have significant implications for both companies as well as other app developers.
These lawsuits highlight the importance of intellectual property protection in the gaming industry and serve as a reminder that companies must be vigilant in protecting their creations while also respecting others’ intellectual property rights.
Potential Outcomes and Implications of the Lawsuit
The legal action taken by Krafton against Garena Free Fire could have potential outcomes and implications for both companies. If the lawsuit is successful, it could result in a significant financial loss for Garena Free Fire, potentially leading to a decrease in popularity among its user base. On the other hand, if the lawsuit is unsuccessful, it could set a precedent for future cases involving intellectual property disputes within the gaming industry.
Furthermore, this lawsuit may have wider implications beyond just these two companies. It could set important legal precedents related to copyright and intellectual property rights in video games that could impact how game developers approach creating content based on existing intellectual properties. Additionally, this case may also lead to changes in how licensing agreements between game developers are structured in order to avoid similar disputes from arising in the future. Ultimately, only time will tell what impacts this lawsuit will have on both Krafton and Garena Free Fire as well as the wider gaming industry at large.
Expert Opinions and Analysis on the Legal Battle
Krafton, the South Korean video game company behind PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds (PUBG), has filed a lawsuit against Garena Free Fire developer Sea Limited. The suit alleges that Free Fire copied various elements of PUBG and infringed on its copyright. Experts in the field have been analyzing the situation and offering their opinions.
Some legal experts believe that Krafton has a strong case against Sea Limited. They argue that the similarities between the two games are clear, citing examples such as similar character designs and gameplay mechanics. However, others argue that it may be difficult to prove copyright infringement in this case, as many of the alleged similarities are common tropes in battle royale games.
Regardless of how the case turns out, it is clear that intellectual property disputes are becoming increasingly common in the gaming industry. As video games continue to grow more complex and diverse, developers must be careful to ensure they are not infringing on copyrighted material owned by other companies.
Conclusion: The Future of the Legal Battle Between Krafton and Garena Free Fire
In conclusion, the legal battle between Krafton and Garena Free Fire is far from over. Both companies have a lot at stake, with millions of dollars in revenue generated by their respective games. It remains to be seen how the courts will rule on the patent infringement claims made by Krafton.
However, regardless of the outcome, it is clear that this case has highlighted the importance of protecting intellectual property rights in the gaming industry. As mobile gaming continues to grow in popularity and profitability, developers must take steps to safeguard their innovations and prevent others from profiting off their ideas.
Overall, while it may take some time for a final verdict to be reached in this case, it serves as a reminder that legal disputes are an inherent risk in any industry – especially one as competitive as mobile gaming.
Q: What is the legal action that Krafton has taken against Garena Free Fire?
A: Krafton, the developer of popular game PUBG, has filed a lawsuit in South Korea against Garena Free Fire for copyright infringement. The lawsuit alleges that Garena Free Fire copied PUBG’s user interface and gameplay features without permission. Krafton is seeking damages of 10 billion won (approximately $9 million) and wants to prevent Garena from distributing the game in South Korea.
Q: How has Garena responded to the legal action?
A: In response to the lawsuit, Garena issued a statement denying any wrongdoing and stating that they have not received any formal documents related to the case. They also claimed that their game was developed independently with its own unique features and innovations.
Q: What does this mean for players of both games?
A: For players of PUBG, this legal action reinforces the importance of intellectual property rights in gaming. For players of Garena Free Fire, it remains to be seen how this will affect gameplay and distribution in South Korea if Krafton’s request is granted. However, it serves as a reminder for all gamers to be mindful of copyrighted material when creating games or content.


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On Friday, Palm released webOS 1.1 as a free update to all existing Palm Pre owners. This is the third major enhancement since launching on June 6. Palm?s older Treo owners are looking on in shock because they were lucky to see two updates in three years.
Over at the Palm blog John Traynor, VP Business Products, added the ‘take that Apple’ with: "Oh, and one more thing: Palm webOS 1.1 re-enables Palm media sync. That?s right – you once again can have seamless access to your music, photos and videos from the current version of iTunes (8.2.1)."
Among the Pre’s latest enhancements are UI [user interface] improvements in nearly every nook and cranny. There is a new feature that ties your reminders back to the caller. There is a new application from Sprint that allows you to watch or listen to live NFL games on the Pre. Precentral has a complete listing of all the features, both documented and those nifty undocumented ones.
Palm’s ex iPod and ex-iPhone engineers are clearly having a lot of fun playing one-upmanship with Apple. This keeps the Palm Pre on the media?s radar screen as competition for the iPhone. CNET says the Palm Pre is really a direct competitor. Apple’s iPhone 3GS, with its third generation device and operating system, only managed a .06 winning margin over the version 1.0 Palm Pre and webOS in CNET’s prizefight.
Precentral has an in-depth article about how Palm again made iTunes work on the Pre.
Palm added a new wrinkle to the controversy with their complaint to the USB Implementers Forum over what it sees as "improper use of the Vendor ID number" by Apple. Palm claims that when an ID is applied for, a form is signed that states: "Unauthorized use of assigned or unassigned USB Vendor ID Numbers and associated Product ID Numbers are strictly prohibited." Palm is implying that Apple is violating the agreement by disallowing certain Vendor IDs – namely, Palm – from using iTunes.
Some bloggers have raised questions as to whether Palm has crossed a legal line and will get sued by Apple. Computerworld chose to turn to an engineer rather than an attorney for an opinion. Ivan Zatkovich is an engineer who provides consulting help to attorneys involved in intellectual property disputes. He said that if Apple doesn’t take more steps to protect iTunes sync through its intellectual property rights, then "Palm is perfectly within its rights to provide the [iTunes sync] functionality as well."
In January, Palm?s spokesperson, Lynn Fox, said they were not worried about Apple suing over the Pre?s design and functionality. Fox told Digital Daily?s John Paczkowski: "Palm has a long history of innovation that is reflected in our products and robust patent portfolio [31 pages of patents in Google Patent Search, op.a], and we have long been recognized for our fundamental patents in the mobile space."
The folks over at the iPhone blog raised several interesting items about the WebOS update. They didn’t have a lot to say about the new features. What really got their attention was Palm using OTA [over the air] updating on Sprint’s mobile network. They mumbled about the AT&T mobile network not having the capability to do OTA. They even acknowledged that Google’s Android OS can do OTA updates on T-mobile’s network. When Palm Pre arrives in Europe, advanced european networks should have no issues in supporting OTA, unlike the american counterparts.
BSN* turned to someone who has been deeply involved in the digital music world and handled threats by large companies over his innovative ideas. Michael Robertson, the founder and former CEO of MP3.com which quickly became one of the most popular Internet music sites, said: "Classic arms race. Apple has the upper hand, but will eventually tire of the process and let Palm be."
In the mean time, Palm versus Apple is more fun than watching professional wrestling on cable TV.


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Opel have unveiled the new Corsa ahead of its public début at the Paris Motor Show .
Opel have confirmed that a 221kW Astra OPC will début at the Geneva Motor Show. Titled the ‘Astra OPC EXTREME, its the most powerful Astra ever.
General Motors have announced that they will withdraw Chevrolet products from European markets mainstream sales at the end of 2015.
The Chevrolet Cruze is the North American brands best-selling nameplate and the platform underpins a number of other models including the Captiva and Orlando and Opel Astra. The range has now been updated with a few minor detail updates and the inclusion of a 1,4T engine.
General Motors South Africa have announced the imminent arrival of the Opel Astra sedan. The sedan expands the Astra range which currently consists of the hatchback as well as the sporty coupé GTC and OPC variants.
The Astra sedan will be launched in October in 1,6 Essentia, 1,4 Turbo Essentia, 1,4 Turbo Essential Automatic and 1,6 Turbo Cosmo specification with pricing made available at launch.
With the current Corsa model entering the twilight stages of its life-cycle. As a swan-song of the model, Opel will be offering a limited number of the Corsa OPC Nürburgring Edition hitting our shores.


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June Ann Blocker 52, arrested for DUI, after driving her car into a Kroger store, injuring two people in Hardin County.
It was a wild scene Wednesday afternoon in Elizabethtown after police said a woman rammed her car right into the front entrance of a busy Kroger store, injuring two people, and has quite a history with grocery stores and crashes.
Wednesday evening the clean-up was still going on at the Kroger store on Dolphin Drive after police said 52-year-old June Ann Blocker drove her car into a checkout lane. The two people who were hurt escaped without serious injuries. Officers said Blocker bought a 2006 four-door Lincoln earlier in the day for the sole purpose of crashing it into the store.
A family friend rushed to the store after hearing the news. "I don't know why this happened, but I was concerned to see that June was not hurt or that anyone else was injured."
Police said Blocker was charged more than a decade ago with doing the exact same thing at another Elizabethtown Kroger.
Following Wednesday's incident she is facing charges of DUI, assault, criminal mischief and wanton endangerment charges has a lengthy criminal history. Friends of Blocker said the two Kroger drive-thru store attacks go back to a long running vendetta she has with the company as a former employee.
A friend said, "I knew of the incidents, but that did not change my feelings about June, she's a wonderful person and I wish the very best for her."
Kroger officials said they are working with Elizabethtown police on the investigation and right now they're just concerned about their employees and their customers.
Kroger isn't the only chain where Blocker has been blocked from entry. A court order demanded she stay away from all Hardin County Walmart stores and take her medication. Friends said that happened after Blocker attempted to hit an employee with a baseball bat.
More reports from our archive:
A total of 26 people were injured after a driver crashed her pickup into a grocery store.
Witnesses said a man who was visibly upset deliberately drove his car into the front entrance of a southwest Atlanta Kroger Wednesday evening.
The Kroger, located at 590 Cascade Ave., was closed for the night after the crash, but reopened at 6 a.m. Thursday.
A car crashed through the front doors of a Rite-Aid drugstore in New Jersey Wednesday, hitting a customer inside.
The 71-year-old driver somehow lost control of her car and crashed through the store on Park Avenue in Rutherford at about 1 p.m., police say.
An 18-year-old woman was hit but she refused medical treatment at the scene. The driver sustained minor injuries.
A woman and her small daughter died Tuesday when their SUV smashed into the back of a grocery store delivery truck on north Interstate 5 south of the Orange County line.
Many drivers who witnessed the crash or saw the wreckage right after were distraught, one woman posted on Twitter.
An Oklahoma man died Saturday after he was run over while trying to load groceries into his car in a store parking lot, police said.
Raymond Carson, 54 of Ames, was at Walmart, 5505 W Owen K. Garriott Road, loading groceries into the back of his SUV when his 9-year-old grandson started the vehicle, Enid police said.
Police are investigating if weather played a role in a deadly crash in Chicago.
According to authorities, the 64-year-old driver hit a tree and then crashed into a store front in the 6200-block of North Pulaski at approximately 1 a.m.
Paramedics say the man died at the scene.
UPDATE: Jose Vidal has been identified as the victim in this accident. 12/15/13
Authorities said a woman was killed following a police chase that ended with gunfire in Anderson on Friday.
Anderson City Police said officers responded to a call about a shoplifter at the Kohl’s on Clemson Boulevard.


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- 16,182 Posts
Google said to be close to getting Android Wear watches to work with iPhones
Sure, the Apple Watch is just around the corner, but that's not going to stop Google from continuing work on getting Android Wear to work with iOS.
It's been rumored and reported for a while now that Google was working to get Android Wear to be properly compatible with the iPhone, and it appears that they're rapidly approaching the point of actually seeing a release.
Full story from the iMore Blog...
- By iMore Question in forum iPhone 6Replies: 9Last Post: 04-10-2015, 05:22 PM
- By metllicamilitia in forum Apple WatchReplies: 4Last Post: 04-09-2015, 01:26 PM
- By metllicamilitia in forum Apple WatchReplies: 4Last Post: 04-09-2015, 01:20 PM
- By iMore.com in forum iMore.com News DiscussionReplies: 0Last Post: 04-09-2015, 12:30 PM


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Epic's CEO sent Apple a 2 a.m. declaration of war over 'Fortnite': 'Epic will no longer adhere to Apple's payment processing restrictions' (AAPL)
- Last week, the wildly popular game “Fortnite” got an update on Apple and Android smartphones that allowed players to bypass the companies’ digital payment systems. Instead of going through Apple and Google, payments went directly to the “Fortnite” studio, Epic Games.
- In response, Apple and Google pulled “Fortnite” from their digital storefronts and cited the update as a terms-of-service violation — which caused Epic to sue both companies.
- In a new legal filing, Apple revealed that Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney sent a 2 a.m. declaration of war to Apple CEO Tim Cook and other execs. “I’m writing to tell you that Epic will no longer adhere to Apple’s payment processing restrictions,” Sweeney said. “We choose to follow this path in the firm belief that history and law are on our side.”
- Visit Business Insider’s homepage for more stories.
Apple and “Fortnite” maker Epic Games are in the opening stages of a heated legal battle, which started with “Fortnite” being pulled from Apple’s iPhone and iPad App Store last week.
In the latest legal filing, Apple revealed an email sent by Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney to Apple CEO Tim Cook and several other Apple executives. Sweeney sent the email at 2 a.m. PT, and in it laid out Epic’s plan to cut Apple out of payments in “Fortnite” on iPhone and iPad.
“I’m writing to tell you that Epic will no longer adhere to Apple’s payment processing restrictions,” Sweeney wrote. “Today, Epic is launching Epic direct payments in ‘Fortnite’ on iOS, offering customers the choice of paying in-app through Epic direct payments or through Apple payments, and passing on the savings of Epic direct payments to customers in the form of lower prices.”
The move to circumvent Apple’s App Store was a direct violation of the terms-of-service agreements Apple makes with app developers. Epic knew this, according to Sweeney’s letter, but proceeded regardless because of, “the firm belief that history and law are on our side.”
Following the update to “Fortnite” that included the ability to pay Epic directly, Apple removed the game from the store and nixed Epic’s developer contract. Instead of buying in-game virtual money (“V-bucks”) through Apple or Google, players could buy it directly from Epic — at a 30% discount, no less.
Apple and Google said the update was a terms-of-service violation for any developer with an app on the App Store or Google Play.
Future updates to the game aren’t allowed, and there is no way to download it unless you’ve previously downloaded it to your Apple account. When the game’s next major content update arrives on August 27, “Fortnite” players on iPhone and iPad will be left behind.
After Epic filed a lawsuit against Apple last week, the company followed up by filing for a temporary restraining order against Apple to keep the company from “removing, de-listing, refusing to list or otherwise making
unavailable the app ‘Fortnite,’ including any update thereof.”
For its part, Apple says the issue is Epic’s to fix.
“We very much want to keep the company as part of the Apple Developer Program and their apps on the Store,” a representative told Business Insider earlier this week. “The problem Epic has created for itself is one that can easily be remedied if they submit an update of their app that reverts it to comply with the guidelines they agreed to and which apply to all developers.”
Got a tip? Contact Business Insider senior correspondent Ben Gilbert via email (firstname.lastname@example.org), or Twitter DM (@realbengilbert). We can keep sources anonymous. Use a non-work device to reach out. PR pitches by email only, please.
Content courtesy of Business Insider published on , original article here.


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Alibaba Cloud has announced the release of PAI 2.0, an updated version of a platform designed to facilitate the deployment of “large-scale data mining and modeling,” with a specific focus on artificial intelligence and machine learning. Alibaba Cloud’s PAI 2.0 represents China’s first publicly available machine learning platform that encompasses use cases for its “ET Industrial Brain” related to manufacturing, optimized device and sensor configuration, energy utilization management and analytics related to the industrial internet of things, more generally. Separately, Alibaba has announced details of an “ET Medical Brain” that specializes in use cases related to drug discovery, patient management, hospital and clinical facility management as well as the deployment of virtual medical assistants to help patients interact with clinical protocols and tests. PAI 2.0 features over 100 pre-configured machine learning algorithms that can be adapted for different use cases and scenarios. The announcement of PAI 2.0 underscores the intersection between cloud platforms and machine learning technologies as cloud infrastructures increasingly seek to differentiate their platforms with value-driven analytic, coding and data management capabilities. PAI 2.0 allows Alibaba Cloud to claim parity with the likes of AWS, Azure, Google Cloud and IBM SoftLayer with respect to advanced machine learning functionality although the sophistication and ease of use of its algorithms and deep learning technologies remains in the process of discovery and realization by its customers.
NVIDIA Tesla GPUs Adopted by Tencent Cloud for Artificial Intelligence Computing
Tencent Cloud, the rapidly growing Chinese public cloud and gaming platform, has announced that it will adopt the NVIDIA Tesla GPU accelerators within its public cloud platform. Tencent’s adoption of NVIDIA Tesla GPU accelerators expands its artificial intelligence and machine learning capabilities for its customer-base and subsequently strengthens its ability to support the growing contemporary proliferation of artificial intelligence, machine learning and neural network-based applications. Specifically, the Tencent Cloud will support the availability of NVIDIA Tesla GPU accelerators including the Tesla P100 and P40 GPU accelerators that feature NVIDIA’s Pascal-based architecture and NVIDIA’s NVLINK technology for connecting several GPUs with NVIDIA deep learning software. Tencent Cloud’s ability to support Tesla’s P100 and P40 GPU accelerators means that customers now have access to some of NVIDIA’s most powerful hardware for artificial intelligence and deep learning use cases that can empower data scientists to reduce the learning time required for artificially intelligent algorithms and support data intensive workloads.
In December, the Tencent Cloud launched cloud servers based on Tesla M40 GPUs. As of this week’s announcement, customers can expect the availability of cloud servers that support Tesla P100, P40 and M40 GPU accelerators to serve the artificial intelligence needs of customers that include cloud service providers, startups, research organizations and enterprises. Tencent’s announcement of its expanded support for NVIDIA GPU accelerators means that NVIDIA GPUs are now used on a roster of cloud platforms that include Google, Amazon, Microsoft and IBM Softlayer. Importantly, Tencent’s support for NVIDIA bolsters the latter’s positioning in the microprocessor space in the face of increased competition from AMD and its recently released line of Ryzen chips that have been instrumental to the meteoric rise of AMD’s share price. As a result, NVIDIA continues to strengthen its leadership space in the landscape of hardware dedicated to artificial intelligence by demonstrating continued success in seeding cloud platforms with its artificial intelligence and deep learning technology. NVIDIA’s collaboration with Tencent is particularly notable because it expands NVIDIA’s access to customers in China and East Asia, more generally, thereby giving it an invaluable leadership position in the rapidly growing market for artificial intelligence computing in China and the Asian Pacific Rim.
Avere Systems Raises $14M in Series E Funding for Storage Solutions for Hybrid Clouds
Avere Systems recently announced the finalization of $14M in Series E funding. The Series E funding raise features a new investor, namely, Google Inc., and existing investors Menlo Ventures, Norwest Venture Partners, Lightspeed Venture Partners, Tenaya Capital and Western Digital Capital. Avere Systems specializes in storage products and solutions that optimize the performance of storage infrastructures for hybrid cloud environments by empowering customers to access stored files, whether they are stored in the cloud or on premise, without sacrifices to file availability or performance. In recognition of the need to manage, scale and optimize storage solutions for on-premise storage as well as cloud-based storage, Avere Systems delivers a portfolio of products and services that help ease enterprise adoption of cloud computing, with a specialization in the intersection of storage and hybrid cloud deployments. Based in Pittsburgh, PA, the company has raised a total of $97M to date.
The Series E funding raise is notable because of Google’s addition to Avere’s roster of investors as well as the continued support of Western Digital Capital, the venture capital firm associated with Western Digital. The ability of Avere Systems to garner high profile investors with deep investments in enterprise storage such as Google and Western Digital speaks to its success in gaining traction in the rapidly growing hybrid cloud space. That Avere Systems has been able to carve out a niche with respect to facilitating high performance access to data for computational and long-term storage purposes underscores the success of its strategy to serve the storage needs of organizations that leverage a plurality of on-premise and cloud-based infrastructures. The funding will be used to support product development and innovation for Avere System’s customers with a specific focus on expanding its portfolio of products for the hybrid cloud.
Jamf Announces Readiness To Deliver Zero Day Support for Spring 2017 Apple OS Releases, Including Apple TV
Apple device management leader Jamf today announced support for the latest releases of Apple iOS, macOS and tvOS. Jamf’s support for upcoming releases of iOS 10.3, macOS 10.12.4, and tvOS 10.2 continues its long-standing history of delivering zero day support for Apple technologies in relation to new releases and operating system upgrades. Jamf’s support for Apple TV empowers organizations such as hotels and schools that have massive installations of Apple TV to customize settings and landing screens to ensure consistency of user experience. Moreover, Jamf gives customers the ability to integrate deployments of Apple devices such as phones, iPads and TVs in ways that give customers enhanced control over the synchronization across devices and a corresponding seamless interconnection between them.
Jamf Pro, a solution for professional Apple administrators, extends Jamf’s support for version management to Apple device security settings, configuration management as well as the ability to create Apple classrooms and enriched device management functionality for Apple TV. Today’s announcement from Jamf consolidates its leadership in the Apple device management space and particularly underscores the maturation of its platform as exemplified by its ability to offer enhanced capabilities for Apple TV management. As Apple TV adoption proliferates, expect Jamf to continue expanding its market share in the Apple device management space via its ability to cater not only to Apple TV but also to the inter-relationship between all Apple devices, both at the level of version upgrades and customization of user experience, settings and configuration management. The graphic below encapsulates Jamf’s commitment to simplicity with respect to both device management and user experience:
Pyze Expands Support for App Development Platforms for its Mobile App Business Intelligence Platform
Pyze, leader in business intelligence for mobile apps, recently announced the addition of support for popular app development platforms such as CMS (WordPress, SquareSpace, Wix), Xamarin, React Native, Apple tvOS and watchOS. Pyze’s expansion of support for developer platforms builds upon its existing support for platforms that include “iOS, iMessage Apps, Android, Web and SaaS (React.js, Angular.js, Vue.js), and Unity” as noted in a press release. By facilitating the integration of its platform with a broader range of mobile apps, Pyze strengthens its ability to expand market share in the landscape of business intelligence for mobile app developers. Pyze aims to empower mobile app developers to increase customer engagement and revenue by means of segmentation analytics that deliver actionable insights regarding the behavior of millions of app users. Pyze’s Growth Intelligence platform was recently recognized by Tech Trailblazers as a winner in the Mobile Trailblazers category.
Google Announces Always Free Tier and $300 Credit for Google Cloud Platform to Lure New Customers
Last week, Google announced details of Always Free, a free tier of Google Cloud Platform services that allow users to obtain familiarity with the Google Cloud Platform’s suite of offerings. The free tier of services allows users to take advantage of 15 Google Cloud Platform services that include Google Compute Engine, Google App Engine, Google Cloud Datastore, Google Cloud Functions, Google Stackdriver, Google BigQuery Public Datasets and Google Container Engine. In the case of Google Compute Engine, users have access to one 1 f1-micro instance each month, with the additional constraint that they can run a maximum of 8 cores of virtual CPUs concurrently as noted below, by the Google Cloud Platform:
You can have no more than 8 cores (or Virtual CPUs) running at the same time. For example, you can launch eight n1-standard-1 machines, or two n1-standard-4 machines, but you can’t launch a n1-standard-16machine. For more information about the types of virtual machines available and the number of cores they use, see Machine type pricing.
The availability of Google Cloud Platform is limited to U.S. regions and a 30 GB-months HDD and a 5 GB-months snapshot. As part of its Always Free tier, Google also elaborated details of a $300 credit that customers can apply to the usage of Google Cloud Platform products to further augment their ability to experiment with the capabilities of GCP services. The $300 credit applies to all Google Cloud Platform products and spans a duration of 12 months.
Announced by Sam Ramji, VP of Product Development at Google Cloud at the Google Cloud Next conference on Friday March 10, the Always Free Tier and the $300 credit represent an important sales and marketing initiative designed to lure new customers intro trying the features and functionality of the Google Cloud Platform. As enterprises increasingly leverage a multi-cloud strategy characterized by the use of multiple public clouds in an effort to minimize threats posed by vendor lock-in and the effects of cloud outages, Google Cloud Platform’s Always Free tier promises to increase its market share in a field dominated by Amazon Web Services but that additionally includes Microsoft Azure, Oracle and IBM. Meanwhile, Google’s ability to onboard new customers via its Always Free tier raises the obvious question around its ability to retain those customers in collaboration with an aggressive sales and customer satisfaction team capable of eliciting and responding to the needs of its growing customer base.
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An extremely rare Harry Potter item has been stolen, and when we say rare, we’re talking about a 800 word prequel, hand scrawled by the series author J.K. Rowling herself onto a postcard. The hand-scripted card tells to the backstory of Harry Potter’s dad, James, and his best friend, Sirius Black, as teenagers.
Rowling has taken to social media, asking her 10 million followers not to buy this stolen piece of Harry Potter lore, whose estimated worth sits around $40,000, the New York Times reports.
The theft occurred last month in Birmingham, England when the home of the person who purchased the manuscript at a 2008 charity auction was burgled. The thieves also took jewels.


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It is time to move past diagnosis of why African countries do not trade nearly enough with each other or to the degree that they should or could, Pascal Lamy, Director-General, World Trade Organization (WTO), Geneva, told participants at the World Economic Forum on Africa.
“[The issue] of boosting intra-African trade is not so much the diagnosis on what needs to be done, but on how to do it,” he said. “We know that the necessary initiatives have to happen at the regional level. Regional organizations have to address these problems one by one. The key to removing these bottlenecks lies in the political energy of regional leaders to do it.”
Myriad bottlenecks include inadequate or non-existent infrastructure, lengthy complex procedures, inefficient border administrations, regulatory discrepancies that hamper trade and economies of scale, and more recently the tightening up of trade finance. “Trade finance is the oil of trade and there is a potential problem given new financial regulations that have been developed worldwide since the financial crisis,” Lamy added.
Africa’s trade landscape is characterized by a patchwork of trade rules and regulations that make cross-border trade cumbersome and, at times, impossible. The regulatory environment across the continent must be harmonized if Africa is to realize its potential as a global trade powerhouse. However, African companies cannot become global players until they capture regional markets, warned Jaidev R. Shroff, Chief Executive Officer, United Phosphorus (UPL), India. “There is a lot of talk about Africa becoming a global supplier of food, energy, minerals, etc., but until governments make the business environment more competitive, it is going to be very difficult to achieve. And, unless you capture regional markets, you cannot be a global player,” he said.
For Mekonnen Manyazewal, Minister of Industry of Ethiopia, infrastructure and the capacity to manage and facilitate trade is “a basic”, but the need to reduce costs and diversify countries’ economic base are paramount. “The issue of increasing our productive capacity and diversifying our products are key for trading. [Countries] also need to diversify their economic bases,” he said. “It is time to look for quick wins by analysing the value chains from production to the markets and find the constraints that can be overcome through better coordination, better administration and efficiency.”
Manyazewal called on the private sector to invest in Africa’s productive capacity. Both Lamy and Jean-Louis Ekra, President and Chairman of the Board of Directors, African Export-Import Bank, Egypt, called on the private sector to engage and mobilize and create bottom-up pressure on politicians to address the issues of trade openness and competitiveness.
“A few African entrepreneurs understand trade issues. It is important that they build capacity on these issues so they can put pressure on the government to negotiate in their favour,” said Ekra. In the wake of the financial crisis, many national banks are cautious, which is why one of the roles of the African Export-Import Bank is to allow banks to feel more secure about instrument issued by other banks. The private sector needs to engage in this issue. “Once the African private sector talks to itself and speaks with one voice, there are grounds to improve and increase the level of transactions among them,” he said.
Mahmoud Eisa, Minister of Industry and Foreign Trade of Egypt, pointed out that Africa should have a target to increase its percentage of global trade from 4% and should set a target for intra-African trade.
But trade without infrastructure “will always be an intention rather than an accomplishment”. Transport and communications are critical, but so is infrastructure such as laboratories, regulation and trade policies. Eisa pointed to the European Union, where trade regulations are harmonized, as a model. He also called for stronger standardization in the light of a “weak” African Regional Organization for Standardization.
All panellists agreed that for Africa to realize its potential and create economic benefits for its people, there must be a transformation by adding value to the continent’s natural resources. Lamy pointed out that once national governments “get their priorities” clear, there is funding available.
“African countries and regions need to set up a list of priorities of what needs to be done and do it. It is not a problem of resources – we have the resources,” he said. “The Aid for Trade lesson is that once countries have their priorities clear, money is not a problem.”


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The Arizona-based “megastore” chain known for mass-merchandising lube and nipple clamps still hasn’t confirmed our report but the sign doesn’t lie. Broadway’s Castle sex store is leaving Capitol Hill’s main drag for a new berth on E Pike in a former tattoo shop.
Sandwiched between the Wildrose and Bimbos, the buildout is in the early stages of the new 2,000 square-foot store. In November, the new Out of the Closet thrift store and the new home AHF Pharmacy joined Lifelong in a new retail, health, and office facility across the street from where Castle is readying its new home. Around the corner, longtime Pike/Pine purveyor of kink The Crypt still lurks. Down E Pike, Babeland celebrated its 20th anniversary on the Hill in 2013. Meanwhile, Doghouse Leathers is expanding on upper E Pike.
Castle joins a thriving and sometimes tumultuous Pike/Pine nightlife economy still coming to grips with the Woo! Girl and what feels like an influx of not always sensitive new visitors.
CHS reported on the planned move in December after the retailer’s management had toyed with an on again, off again move from its longtime Broadway home citing public safety issues on Broadway and the poor maintenance of Castle’s building.
Broadway, meanwhile, will need to deal with another gaping retail hole after the OfficeMax chain confirmed it is closing its Capitol Hill location after only one year of business.


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EDMONTON, AB – Alley Kat Brewery has announced details of the next release in the Back Alley Brews series of limited edition one-off beers.
Westminster Tabby (5.1% abv) is described as follows:
Our soon-to-show-up Back Alley Brew is an Extra Special Bitter, which is an English-style pale ale known to be stronger and more balanced than ordinary bitters. We’ve sourced premium ingredients from across the pond, including British pale and crystal malts, East Kent Goldings hops, and we replicated the minerally water from Burton upon Trent, an area famous for its pale ales, to ensure this brew is tickety-boo!
Westminster Tabby will be released on Thursday November 7th, and will be available in 650 ml bottles at the brewery, select retail stores, restaurants, and bars in Alberta while supplies last.
Source & Photo: Alley Kat Brewery mailing list


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No, you are not dreaming, Dead Rising 4 could very well be making its gory way to PS4 and Steam as early as 2017.
Dead Rising 4 was met with a winning roar when announced at E3 this year. The classic zombie stomper series is known worldwide for being one of the most creative and fun open world horror games around.
The Dead Rising series has long been an Xbox exclusive and Dead Rising 4 was no different. Capcom revealed earlier this week that Dead Rising 4 will launch exclusive to Xbox One on December 6 of this year.
The new game is set to feature the return of series legend Frank West and aims to be kookier than ever. From Candy Cane crossbows to Gingerbread man claymores Dead Rising 4 will be as bonkers as ever.
It seems now however that it will not only be the Xbox fans that will get to enjoy this new edition. According to a recent statement from Microsoft it seems that for the first time ever things are about to change
Microsoft has said that Dead Rising 4 could very well be making its way to both PlayStation and Steam networks. Specifically it is said that plans are for Dead Rising 4 to make its way to Steam after just 90 days of Xbox exclusivity and to PlayStation 4 after one year of console exclusivity.
"'Dead Rising 4' on Xbox One is developed by Capcom and will be published in partnership with Microsoft. Fans will be able to play 'Dead Rising 4' first on Xbox One and Windows 10 PC this December. It will remain a Windows 10 exclusive for the first 90 days and console exclusive on Xbox One for one year. We’ve had a close and longstanding relationship with Capcom including the launch of Dead Rising as an Xbox 360 exclusive and Dead Rising 3 as an Xbox One exclusive. We’re thrilled to partner with Capcom once again to help bring their ambitious vision for Dead Rising 4 to life."
This doesn’t come as too much of a surprise, we saw similar with the latest Tomb Raider game. Tomb Raider: Rise of the Tomb Raider launched as an Xbox exclusive, it then later launched on PC and is now due for PS4 release this holiday.
Dead Rising on PS4! Brilliant news for all action/horror adventure gamers out there. Dead Rising provides gamers with a totally unique approach to zombie horror and this news is guaranteed to go down well with PlayStation fans.
Are you happy to see Dead Rising 4 come to PlayStation 4?


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Good News: Bike Around Bingo in Reno on Saturday
Bike Around Bingo will kick off the Truckee Meadows Bicycle Alliance’s Bike Week on Saturday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., with cyclists taking over Midtown Reno in an effort to be the first to complete their bingo card with marks acquired from participating businesses.
RBP will host a secure, free bicycle valet — similar to a coat check — outside Recycled Records on South Virginia Street and provide additional racking at the nearby Statewide Lighting parking lot for participants to safely leave their bikes while visiting businesses and booths.
Bike Week will continue with events hosted by Reno Bike Project, including a public after-hours bike maintenance and repair workshop for women on Tuesday from 6 to 8 p.m., and a bike repair and beer tasting social — in partnership with Mellow Fellow — on Wednesday from 5 to 7 p.m.
May 20 from 6 to 10 a.m., the RBP team will serve up pancakes, bacon and coffee to anyone cycling into their downtown shop during their 10th annual Pancake Feed.
For information, visit www.RenoBikeProject.org


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In the past two weeks, researchers have found two huge adware campaigns–one affecting PCs and the other Android devices. In fact, the PC adware campaign, called Fireball, may have become the most prolific malware ever, having allegedly infected 250 million victims. Since adware falls onto a grey line of maliciousness, it’s not always as easy to prevent as typical bots, trojans, and worms. Watch the Security Byte below to learn more about these two big adware campaigns, and what you might do to keep adware off your devices.
Episode Runtime: 5:15
Direct YouTube Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zreaS_XU3BQ
- Researcher post on prolific Chinese Fireball adware – Checkpoint
- Judy adware attached to 41 apps on Google Play –Checkpoint
- Fireball malware affects 250 million computers – The Register
- Google removes Judy apps from Google Play – Security Week


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New Asda store seeks Milton Keynes-based charity to help celebrate its Oakridge Park opening
The soon to launch new Asda store at Oakridge Park, Milton Keynes, is searching for a worthy local cause to support in conjunction with its opening on Monday, October 10.
As part of its opening day celebrations, the store wants to help a local charity or project via a £250 donation. The winning group will also be invited to officially open the store, alongside the city’s mayor and the store colleagues.
“We want our store and its colleagues to be at the heart of the community, so we’re keen to help local projects from our very first day,” said Matthew Hayes, store manager at Asda Oakridge Park.
“Any project or charity, big or small, is welcome to apply for the support and we can’t wait to welcome them to Asda Oakridge Park on its opening day.”
Asda Oakridge Park will have a number of popular departments to offer Stantonbury shoppers including fresh produce, express pizza and rotisserie, bakery and a selection of world foods.
Shoppers heading to the store’s opening day can expect treats aplenty to sample, as well as well as an instore game with exciting prizes to be won.
Any local project can apply for the support by emailing their contact details and what they would do with the funding to [email protected]
The deadline for submitting entries is 30th September 2016. The winning project must be available between 9am and 10:30am on Monday 10th October.
For more information about Asda Oakridge Park visit www.asda.com/oakridgepark


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Changes to the way UBC buys and pays for goods and services
Wednesday, January 31, 2018
Effective January 31, 2018
As part of the Procurement Modernization project, Financial Operations has collaborated with Faculty and Administrative Unit representatives from across the University to design and implement changes to improve procurement processes, guidelines...
Switch to online T4s and enter to win an iPad Pro!
Monday, January 15, 2018
As part of a sustainability initiative, UBC Payroll is giving away an iPad Pro to encourage UBC employees who currently receive paper copies of their T4s to make the switch online. What better way to start 2018 than with a new iPad Pro?
Competitive bid threshold raised from $50,000 to $75,000
Thursday, December 07, 2017
As part of the Procurement Modernization project, effective immediately Financial Operations is raising the threshold for Purchase Orders from $50,000 to $75,000, eliminating the requirement for a competitive tender process (e.g. RFP) within...


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Even today, older BlackBerry 7 devices are still outselling the company’s newer BlackBerry 10 smartphones by a large margin. The company has recognized this, and is returning to its roots. It will soon offer the BlackBerry Bold again, and is also releasing its new Q20 smartphone under the “BlackBerry Classic” moniker. In an interview with USA Today, BlackBerry CEO John Chen said we can expect the new device to launch in November.
The BlackBerry Classic was introduced as the BlackBerry Q20 during Mobile World Congress back in February, though at the time BlackBerry didn’t provide any pictures or many specs, instead only noting that the phone has a 3.5-inch display and a full QWERTY keyboard. BlackBerry may be making some changes to the original design now, however, especially considering that the launch date is still 7 months away from now. The device, while hopefully attractive to consumers, will probably be marketed toward the enterprise. Chen has long said that he wants to bring BlackBerry back to its roots there, and reiterated those statements to USA Today.
“That’s not to say I gave up on the consumer market, but at this point in the recovery, we’re going to focus on the enterprise side of the handset business, make that profitable, and then we’re going to grow from there,” Chen explained. “Then go into other parts of the market, including the consumer side of the equation.”
Chen did not discuss any new features on the phone, only noting that it will back a touchscreen display and a full QWERTY keyboard, which we already knew.


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Throughout the Sony conference at the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) there has been a major concentration on what is in store for North America and the Western world, but it has now been announced that the Eastern country known for being the centre of all tech, Japan, will also be receiving the PlayStation VR virtual reality (VR) head-mounted display (HMD) at the same time, and the price has also been shared.
The news of the Japanese release was kept somewhat quiet the announcements came via just online posts, which in comparison with how Sony Interactive Entertainment Worldwide Studios (SIE WWS) dealt with the reveal during E3 this evening is a world apart. Not only has the date been revealed, but also the price of the stand-alone VR HMD, as well as a bundle.
VRFocus recently reported the release date of the much anticipated VR instalment of the virtual 16-year-old pop star Hatsune Miku VR: Future Live, made as an extention from Hatsune Miku Project DIVA X HD title, which advertised it as 13th October, the same as the US, therefore implying that the Japanese release would come out on the same day. In the end it seems as though that was the case.
The PlayStation VR will be released in Japan on 13th October 2016. The two choices consumers have to pick one of it if they would either like just the VR HMD that they can add to their PlayStation 4 for ¥44,980 JPY, or there is the PlayStation VR Camera Bundle which includes the HMD, PlayStation Camera, and all the additional wires and connectors that would usually come with it for ¥49,980.
There is more to come from the Japanese release of the PlayStation VR, so make sure to stay with VRFocus for the latest developments, as well as all news and updates from E3 and the world of VR.


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Jim Cramer said on Tuesday that retail investors on Reddit are “spreading their wings,” pointing to a discussion about r/WallStreetBet. That caused the case of fast food chains. Wendy’s Co. (NASDAQ:WEN) CNBC reports.
What happened: The television personality singled out a Reddit post by user Chillznday, which explains why Wendy’s is the perfect stock for “their favorites.” WallStreetBets or WSB subreddit
Chillznday talks about the new summer salad. Wendy’s social media involvement involving meme and “chicken tendon” are some of the factors that make stock a good fit for WSB.
The Reddit post also discussed the technical side of Wendy̵7;s stock and mentioned a low $17 million float, 4-10% being short. “A very predictable stock.”
Wendy’s shares jumped 25.85 percent in regular trading on Tuesday. and an additional 4.78% in after-hours trading to $30.25.
SEE ALSO: Is Jim Cramer Mocking the Beef Short Squeeze? Understand his confusing tweets.
Why is it important: Cramer noticed that Wendy’s share price was strengthened by Chillznday and other anonymous posts.
“I want you to forget the analyst now. Wendy’s in charge is Reddit user Chillznda,” Cramer said, according to CNBC.
The analyst also pointed out that the WSB group “spreads its wings, even favoring institutions like Wendy’s, with very low short positions”.
SEE ALSO: Is Wendy’s The Next Reddit Rally Stock?
Wendy’s move, according to Cramer, is an exit from the short-term squeeze, the focus of the WSB, leading to stocks such as GameStop Corporation (NYSE: GME), BlackBerry Ltd (NYSE:BB), and AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc. (NYSE: AMC) Soared
Cramer said the way stocks are valued by new investors is important.
“If enough people with enough money start valuation in a different way. Their new metrics are also important. Even if you think it is ridiculous,” said the former hedge fund manager.
WSB investors are expanding their horizons. Another stock that has become the new darling of Reddit investors this week is Clover Health Investments Corp. (NASDAQ: CLOV)
Continue reading: Wall Street still bets on AMC shares but looks like selling short: report
© 2021 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.


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With the launch of the updated Dots, all players will have a new mode called “Moves,” an unlimited round that requires players to score points with only a limited number of lines to connect the Dots. The gameplay has similarities to one of Dots’ biggest blockbuster competitors, Candy Crush Saga, and capitalizes on gamers’ desire for perfectionism to feed the addiction. According to BetaWorks, more modes will be released concurrently on all platforms in the future.
Dots has made a big splash this year, and while it has fallen out of the top 100 free app downloads in the U.S., an appearance on Google Play will likely boost the longevity of the game. The life expectancy window of mobile games is short, but a few new modes and more accessibility will bring Betaworks’ addictive little game to a new audience that has yet to feel the burnout.
So it’s a good chance that people still won’t get enough of matching those little dots this fall, leaving the window wide open for the incubator to produce its next app hit.


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RISMEDIA, June 27, 2008-Fifty-five percent of consumers want an ongoing dialogue with brands, according to a recent survey conducted by ExpoTV, exploring how direct consumer engagement creates brand advocacy. The survey also revealed that positive brand experiences can generate word-of-mouth buzz: more than 60% of those polled said they tell 10 or more people about the products they like while a third tell 20 or more people.
This survey, administered to the consumers which make up the ExpoTV community, explored the growing desire consumers have to talk to brands. The willingness of a company to engage with consumers directly impacts loyalty and can even lead to increased purchase intent. In fact, 89% of respondents would feel more loyal to brands which invited them to participate in a feedback group, and 92% of those who have a positive experience communicating with a brand will recommend purchasing a product from that brand to someone they know. This data suggests that the key to empowering loyal consumers is through direct engagement and ongoing dialogue.
“We found that not only are consumers ready and willing to communicate with brands that they are familiar with, but they also want to communicate with brands that are new or unfamiliar to them,” said Dave Rubinstein, ExpoTV’s vice president of brand engagement. “This is especially encouraging for smaller brands which are just starting out, or for those that are expanding into product categories for which they are lesser known.”
While consumers are interested in engaging in a dialogue with brands around customer support and pricing, the survey showed that they are most interested in discussing product design. Nearly 50% stated that they would be interested in knowing what new products are coming out and expressed a desire to share their ideas on new products and services. Survey respondents were also interested in communicating about brands’ efforts to improve existing products and share positive experiences.
“What we’re finding across the board is that consumers are very eager to engage with brands and to share their opinions and experience in a constructive way,” said Rubinstein. “These are the individuals that marketers should be targeting because of their knowledge, enthusiasm and influence. Embracing them is the key to harnessing the power of word-of-mouth marketing and ultimately driving brand loyalty.”
Topping the list of consumer electronics brands consumers want to talk to are Sony, Apple and Microsoft and for consumer packaged goods participants list Coca-Cola, Procter & Gamble and Pepsi as the top brands they are interested in communicating with. These same consumers are open to engaging with competitive brands if their first choice is not interested in hearing what they have to say. In fact, 93% of consumers surveyed would be interested or very interested in communicating with competitive brands that expressed interest in their feedback.
For more information, visit www.expotv.com.


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August 15, 2017
Heinz College Students Add Links To Blockchain Knowledge
By Scott BarsottiMedia Inquiries
- Heniz College of Information and Public Policy
Students at Carnegie Mellon University's Heinz College of Information Systems and Public Policy have partnered with international corporations to learn more about blockchains and how they can aid businesses.
Blockchains are distributed digital databases that contain a chronological record of transactions. The records are spread across multiple computers so there is no single point of vulnerability for hackers to attack. For a new transaction to be added, the transaction must be verified by a majority of the computers. Once the verified transaction has been added to other similar transactions, they are bundled together. While the records can be amended and expanded, the process makes it highly unlikely for the information to be changed and is considered virtually tamper-proof.
What is a blockchain?
Blockchains are transaction databases spread across computers that will verify and bundle.
One of the uses of blockchain technology is called a "smart contract," which automatically executes transactions that remit and accept payments when an agreement's terms are fulfilled. Eventually, smart contracts could lead to businesses "staffed" by algorithms, allowing for fully automated operations that transact with other algorithms and also consumers.
Ongoing adoption of the technology by the financial services industry is expected to eventually cut costs, regulate transactions and make global markets more inclusive.
As part of a graduate capstone project in the Heinz Master of Information Systems Management program, students considered possible impacts, viability and security implications of blockchain in healthcare, finance, retail operations, energy, farming, transportation and document management.
The students explored how blockchains are being used, mapped out use cases and failures, and created a risk framework for each sector. The team's dataset initially included 228 potential blockchain use cases, but after review of source code and business models related to the information, they ended up with 21 cases where blockchain technology was used.
"What we found was that, even though a number of companies are touting innovative uses of 'blockchain technology,' it all too often remains little more than a marketing buzzword, and the products offered actually do not have much to do with distributed ledgers. We did find, however, a number of legitimate, interesting uses," said Nicolas Christin, who was the project's faculty adviser.
"Though blockchain adoption is still in its infancy, the students were able to demystify it for the client. Their thoroughness and determination had a definite impact. By creating a repeatable methodology for risk assessment, they provided a valuable tool for the client moving forward," Christin said.
Global news and information firm Thomson Reuters, who has sponsored Heinz College projects in the past, also offered students an opportunity to research applications for blockchain in the burgeoning Internet of Things.
"We see tremendous crossover between the Internet of Things and the Identity of Things," said Robert Schukai, global head of Design, Digital Identity at Thomson Reuters. "It isn't enough to just have information from sensors and other devices; it is also important to know what those sensors are and that the sensor content itself is secure and accurate. Corrupted content can have tremendous impact on commodity prices and markets. Blockchain technology can potentially solve both of these challenges."
The student team focused on agriculture where connected devices are widely used. Farmers use Internet-enabled devices to monitor crops and conditions to improve yield. If those sensors could be identified and authenticated in an efficient, standardized way, it would not only have direct benefits to farmers assessing networks, it also would help U.S. Department of Agriculture auditors, who could use the data to ensure food safety during packing, handling and storing.
The students created a prototype system that securely managed the identity of connected sensors on a fictional farm.
"We are thrilled with the project results and are continually impressed at the caliber of the work, the passion of the students, and the excitement that comes with working on cutting-edge technology," Schukai said.


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Driving in bumper-to-bumper traffic isn't only frustrating, it also wastes a lot of gas. But a new American SUV hybrid has been designed to be more fuel-efficient -- especially in stop-and-go traffic.
The Ford Escape Hybrid is powered by both a gasoline engine and an electric motor. The designers say it saves fuel because its gasoline engine actually turns off when it comes to a stop, and its electric motor takes over. Ford says the SUV also will be environmentally friendly by producing cleaner exhaust.
"We like to call it the no-compromise vehicle," says Bill Ford, chairman and CEO of Ford Motor Company on The Early Show. "It really is, because you can do everything you can with your normal SUV. And yet, you've got great fuel economy and very low emissions."
A hybrid is a car that has both a gas engine and an electric motor. The car is able to switch between the two motors with the passenger barely noticing.
Mary Ann Wright, who is the chief engineer on the Escape Hybrid project, explains to co-anchor Harry Smith how it works: "There is a gas engine that's supplemented with the transmission. It's not a traditional transmission in that it doesn't have gears. What it's always doing is finding the optimum point so you get great fuel economy. What's inside is the electric motor that allows you to propel on electric power only. So if the system is right, you go on electric only," she says.
Bottom line. she says: it drives like any other car. "You get in, put your seat belt on, turn the ignition, put it in gear, drive away." The rest, the SUV figures it out.
As for the gas mileage in city driving, Wright says, "It will be between 35 and 40 miles per gallon in the city cycle. On the highway, you get about 30."
The Escape Hybrid doesn't need to be plugged in at night in order to recharge its electric battery. It harnesses energy while it brakes, and uses that energy to recharge the batteries.
The other big advantage of the Escape Hybrid is that it runs cleaner. Its exhaust emissions are supposed to be significantly less polluting than those of a normal car.
And the price? "It certainly costs us more because it is new technology," Ford says. "We haven't priced it yet to the customer. There will be a premium, but not a huge one. We're hoping to get Congress to give us some tax credits for the customer, because we think that any new technology like this needs some encouragement from the government so we can get a lot of them on the road and get them out there early."
Asked for a ballpark figure of the premium would be, Ford says, "A couple thousand, roughly. But you'll save a lot in fuel, obviously. And like any new technology, you know, it does take some time to roll it out. Having said that, we have two other hybrids coming back-to-back. We have the Mercury Mariner, which is coming in two years. And then we have a mid-sized sedan, which we're going to have as a hybrid."