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New Delhi : The euphoria over the scorching pace of e-commerce market in India will last about 18 months as things begin to settle down and... ...http://profit.ndtv.com/news/industries/article-e-commerce-euphoria-to-last-only-for-18-months-kishore-biyani-686726
Kishore Biyani Kishore Biyani, chief of India's second-largest retail group Future Group, said on Monday that there are some categories such as... ...http://techcircle.vccircle.com/2014/10/30/some-categories-will-do-well-online-but-e-com-euphoria-wont-last-long-biyani/
Gadgets and mobile phones are one of the biggest categories for online retailers. Photo: Indranil Bhoumik/Mint Mumbai: Flipkart 's Big Billion... ...http://www.livemint.com/Industry/RHgMBJlKHTiJDMNK5hjmLK/Surviving-the-online-retail-boom.html
On the Rediff conference call held last week, Rediff Chairman and CEO Ajit Balakrishnan twice told Rajeev Arora, an investor, that he's free to... ...http://www.medianama.com/2014/10/223-rediff-ceo-ajit-balakrishnan-conference-call/
Kishore Biyani, following the online discount fest that marked the season, has alternated between criticising an e-commerce portal (Flipkart) for... ...http://www.business-standard.com/article/management/biyani-s-brand-factory-unfazed-by-online-sales-114102701051_1.html
Eroshik is not mere transposition of...
A Writer, Poet, Painter,...
Print ISSN- 2347-4513, International...


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Dire Wolf Digital’s free-to-play CCG Eternal will be heading to Nintendo’s handheld Switch console “in the next month or two” if all goes well. That was the impromptu announcement coming from a livestream over the weekend from Dire Wolf’s Corey Burkhart, who said they were hoping to “have an announcement of ‘hey, it’s live already!'”
But when you’ve got a captive audience and beans to spill, why not go for it? While the Switch release was originally announced for the spring, Burkhart said that “things are in the works, it’s almost done,” so it’s likely we’ll get that full announcement, and more details, over the coming weeks.

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As one of the main 2016 Olympic sponsors and the official restaurant of the Games, McDonald’s is attempting to break away from its unhealthy image by offering a “STEP-it” fitness tracker as a Happy Meal toy.
The wrist-worn pedometers encourage physical activity by blinking slowly or quickly depending on a child’s activity. They will be available in Happy Meals for a four week period at locations in the U.S. and Canada.
“Step-it is in line with McDonald’s general philosophy for Happy Meal toys, which is to make toys that encourage either physical or imagination-based play,” McDonald’s Canada Senior Marketing Manager, Michelle McIImoyle, explains to CityNews.
See the tracker in action in the video below. [click to continue…]
Burger King’s “Whopperrito” experiment has proven successful and the chain has announced that it will be available nationwide as a limited time offering starting next week.
As previously reported, the Whopper / burrito hybrid takes the staple ingredients of the famous burger (flame-grilled beef, American cheese, tomatoes, lettuce, mayo, ketchup, pickles, and white onions) and wraps them in a tortilla – although the mayo is substituted with queso sauce.
The official Whopperrito launch date is set for August 15th, and it will remain on menus for approximately three to four months.
Inspired by the Rio Olympics (of which it is a global sponsor), McDonald’s has released a special line of athleisure wear that suggests that fast food, fitness and fashion can somehow live in harmony.
The limited edition tracksuits, dubbed “Legendswear” include a polyester zip-up hooded vest and track pants emblazoned with McMuffins, pancakes and hash browns hanging out among palm fronds and flowers.
The suits were only available in Australia and have reportedly sold out already, with all proceeds heading to Ronald McDonald House charities. Check out the promo video below. [click to continue…]
Taco Bell has announced that it will be testing Frito Pie-esque “Walking Nachos” at select locations in Charlotte, NC beginning later this month.
As you can see in these photos from Brand Eating, the walking nachos come in a foil pouch and appear to contain Doritos and toppings like guacamole, sour cream, ground beef, shredded and nacho cheese, and tomatoes or some type of salsa. Plans for a national debut are currently unknown, but you can check out an additional pic below. [click to continue…]
Cheese fanatics have no doubt already heard about, and possibly eaten, Burger King’s Mac ‘n’ Cheetos, which is essentially mac n’ cheese covered with Cheetos dust.
Now, HellthyJunkFood is offering their own twist on the concoction, combining hand-shredded sharp cheddar, Velveeta, mascarpone and macaroni with two flavors of Cheetos, which is then dropped in a deep fryer.
The result, dubbed “Deep Fried Mac & Cheddar Mascarpone Velveeta Extra Flaming Hot Cheetos” packs a bigger name and bigger calorie count, but no doubt bigger taste as well.
Watch the creative process in the video below. [click to continue…]
Overwatch cosplay is getting downright clever. This time Vanessa Wedge and Auzzie L. dressed up as D.Va and Soldier: 76, respectively. Soldier: 76’s dad outfit is spot on, and the shoot looks like it was a lot of fun to pull together.
If you’re wondering why D.Va is snacking on Doritos, here’s a bit of context. Per Overwatch‘s backstory, D.Va used to be a pro StarCraft 2 player. Fans sort of took that “pro gamer” idea and ran with it, and they started cranking out artwork and cosplay that features D.Va doing stereotypical gamer things, like, of course, snacking on Doritos and chugging Mountain Dew.
Check out more pics below. [click to continue…]
McDonald’s decision to offer all-day breakfast has helped it get out of a lengthy sales slump, so it’s no surprise that they are now expanding the number of items offered.
Previously, the menu was pretty limited. However, the new, improved all-day menu will include a host of items, such as:
Egg McMuffin, Sausage McMuffin with Egg, Sausage McMuffin, Bacon, Egg & Cheese Biscuit, Sausage Biscuit with Egg, Sausage Biscuit, Bacon, Egg & Cheese McGriddles, Sausage, Egg & Cheese McGriddles, Sausage McGriddles, Hotcakes, Hotcakes and Sausage, Sausage Burrito, Fruit & Maple Oatmeal, Fruit ‘N Yogurt Parfait, and Hashbrowns
The new all-day breakfast menu is slated to launch nationwide in September, which will be great news for anyone who loves fast food breakfast but hates mornings.
We’ve seen plenty of burgers with black buns, but the official Studio Ghibli burger finally went all black. [click to continue…]
I’ll bet it even tastes the same.
Check out more of Lego artist Bruce Howell’s work on his website.
(via The Brothers Brick)
There’s a new champion in the world of unholy fast food mashups, and you’ll be able to find it at Burger King. In select Southern California locations that is.
Don’t worry though—something tells me that Mac n’ Cheetos is too amazingly preposterous to die in the testing phase. It should launch nationwide soon enough.
With that in mind, you’ll be happy to know that 5-pieces will only set you back $2.49 and each order will include ranch dipping sauce (because mac n’ cheese covered in Cheetos dust just isn’t a long enough trip to flavor country).
Live vicariously through the YouTuber below as he taste tests these new treats. [click to continue…]


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Salvadoran producers to benefit from new Walmart
Walmart's new store in Mejicanos, El Salvador, will significantly boost the firm's purchases of goods to local producers.
In some cases, producers have forecast an increase of between 8 and 12 precent in their production volume to meet the new store's demand.
The new Mejicanos Walmart is scheduled to open next week.
Source (in Spanish): La Prensa Gráfica


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January 9, 2013
– Milo’s Kitchen today announced that it is voluntarily recalling its Chicken Jerky and Chicken Grillers home-style dog treats from retailer shelves nationally. No other Milo’s Kitchen products are affected.On Monday, New York State’s Department of Agriculture informed the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Company that trace amounts of residual antibiotics had been found in several lots of Milo’s Kitchen® Chicken Jerky. After consultation with the New York Department of Agriculture and FDA, the company decided to voluntarily recall Milo’s Kitchen® Chicken Jerky and Chicken Grillers, which are both sourced from the same chicken suppliers.Read the full announcement
or the release from the FDA
.PetCareRx does not currently sell these products.


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Five Things of Production
- Burning oil is one way of controlling a spill.
- There are vending machines that sell hot chips.
- The Dutch were the first international marketers of tobacco.
- India produced 981m kg of tea in 2009 - almost a quarter of the world's total tea output.
- Just five minutes of exercise in a "green space" such as a park can boost mental health, researchers claim, while storks can go blue.


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The Canal+ group strengthens a little more international. The subsidiary of Vivendi, has announced the buyout of the company M7, one of the leading independent operators of pay-tv in Europe for an amount slightly in excess of one billion euros. Held by the bottom of private equity Astorg, this aggregator and distributor of local and international channels, satellite platforms and OTT is present in Belgium, Austria, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania and the netherlands. "This is the most important acquisition of the Canal+ group from GST," says Maxime Saada, the chairman of the management board of Canal+ group. If GST was at the time a defensive operation on the French market, the manoeuvre this time is offensive. "It aims to deploy our model on the territories where Canal+ group was not present and is part of our strategy of accelerated development at the international," continues the officer. Grégoire Castaing, the deputy director general in charge of finance and strategy of Canal+, has negotiated the purchase of the company, which was particularly coveted by the american Comcast.
Established 20 years ago, M7 today counts 3 million subscribers. Once the operation is completed, Canal+ totaled almost 20 million subscribers around the world, including 12 in Europe. "Since the arrival of Vincent Bolloré in 2015, this is a near doubling of our global base of subscribers," says Maxime Saada. In addition, "this will allow Canal+ to operate in 40 countries spread around 3 centres of gravity in Europe, Africa and Asia", says Jacques du Puy, president of Canal+ International.
M7 distributes, under various brands, big free-to-air national and international labels, including Disney Channel, HBO, Eurosport, National Geographic, or Nickelodeon. Its turnover exceeds 400 million euros. "This transaction will be accretive for us," says Jacques Dupuy, without giving further details on the profitability of M7.to Achieve a critical mass to resist in the face of the platforms aggregated as Netflix and Amazon
in Addition to the geographical complementarity with the territories where Canal+ is already implemented, this buy-back offer another virtue. M7 is a distribution group is clean and does not produce any content and edit any tv channel, Canal+ is there a new opportunity to promote their original creations, his new movies, as well as its catalogue of 6,000 titles StudioCanal. "This allows us to absorb the 3 billion euros that we invest in content, for which 500 million of them in the cinema on a subscriber base larger. This is all the game platforms globalized as Netflix or Amazon. As we approach the 20 million subscribers, we reach a critical mass that allows us to play sustainably in the face of these actors", explains Maxime Saada.
This operation is not intended to be a substitute for the attempt to create a Netflix of Europe in the South. "We make the observation that it takes a little more time than expected. The determination of Vivendi on The Southern Europe remains the same", says Maxime Saada. This does not negate either our development capabilities on other territories, such as Ethiopia in Africa. We have the ambition to be a global giant of the european culture and one of the leaders of pay-tv," recalls the officer.
The project still needs to get the green light from Brussels.Updated Date: 28 May 2019, 00:00


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TechSpot means tech analysis and advice you can trust.
Why it matters: The Public Interest Research Group (PIRG) is a federation of US-Canadian non-profit organizations working to promote consumer protection, public health and transportation. The group is now asking the largest software company in the world to defer the end of official support for Windows 10.
The PIRG network recently opened a petition to Microsoft's CEO Satya Nadella, asking his corporation to not "junk millions of computers" which are still using Windows 10. The operating system will continue to receive official, mainstream support and security updates until October 14, 2025, while the newer Windows 11 OS will be supported for the foreseeable future.
Microsoft's decision to end support for Windows 10 in 2025, ten years after the system's original release to manufacturing and retail channels, could cause the "single biggest jump in junked computers ever" PIRG's petition says. Microsoft would miss their self-imposed sustainability goals, the petition continues, and Windows 11's stringent hardware requirements could result in 40% of PCs still in use being left behind.
For the first time in Windows history, Windows 11 introduced unprecedented system requirements (like a functioning TPM chip) that forced many Windows users to avoid the (mostly free) upgrade. Even if they wanted to, they couldn't jump to the latest and greatest Windows version, which was released in 2021.
Windows 10 remains the most widely used operating system in the PC ecosystem, powering 71% of all Windows computers, whereas Windows 11 holds just 23% of the market share. Perfectly functioning, Windows 10-powered PCs are present in hospitals, businesses, and homes, PIRG's petition states, and Microsoft's decision to stop supporting them is a "raw deal" for customers who expect their expensive technology to last.
All software eventually reaches the end of its support period, PIRG concedes, but the Windows 10 situation is different. Hundreds of millions of PCs could potentially turn into "junk," the non-profit organization says, and the consequences to our environment are so grave that we "shouldn't accept it" yet.
Microsoft is planning to extend its exclusive, paid support for Windows 10 until January 13, 2032, at max. But the company would, of course, very much prefer customers purchase newer PCs to run Windows 11. The company was already forced to lengthen official support for extremely popular Windows editions (XP, 7) in the past, and market conditions could suggest a similar fate for Windows 10 as well.


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Last week, Duluth Pack was ecstatic to announce that they have launched two new canvas hue to their line – purple and grey canvas.
For over the last year, Duluth Pack’s customers have been mentioning how they want a new assortment of hues in the Duluth Pack line and very specific on both a deep purple color and a neutral grey tone. They asked for it and now their handcrafting it!
For the first few days, the two tones are available in the brand’s top selling products. Within the upcoming week, all items will be available in both selections.
Want to see the collection? Visit our retail store in Canal Park, Duluth, MN (365 Canal Park Drive) or hop online and go to our site at www.duluthpack.com.
From your friends at Duluth Pack


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Pokemon X & Y came out only 10 days ago, could Game Freak be developing yet another game in the insanely popular series? Well, that is the hunch but let’s go over the speculations that are being made, the supposed leaks there have been and the apparent hints from representatives if any.
So here goes, according to VGLeaks, based on a NeoGAF posting, has revealed that Tsunekazu Ishihara the president of the Pokémon Company will be participating in an interview on Japans NHK channel to make an announcement regarding the next Pokemon game on October 28.
The post also reads that the upcoming announcement is going be about an “unprecedented” Pokemon game as hinted by Ishihara in a preview to the interview that surfaced recently.
You can check out the preview clip of the interview here.
As of now, if there is any truthfulness in the news, the “unprecedented” aspect in the game could be a major change to Pikachu. Apparently, the company is even worried how the fans will react to the change and if it will have a positive or a negative impact on Pikachu’s popularity.
Also, if you remember a mysterious Pokemon teaser clip was also apparently let loose at August’s Pokemon Game Show in Japan. The short clip showed Lucario and Blaziken only for a moment. Could that image have something to do with this unannounced project?
Among the speculations that are currently in the air, one is suggesting that the main character of the game could be Mega Pikachu i.e. the Mega Evolution of Pikachu. Others propose that the new game could be compatible with Pokemon X & Y in a way that the new Pikachu would be playable on both the games.
Do you have any guesses of your own? Let us know.


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For now, no more daily gun deals on Groupon
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2012 was not a great year for the daily deal business. Groupon’s stock took a 30 percent nose dive after the company’s November earnings report. And a recent study by Reuters called the Groupon business model “fundamentally flawed.”
The industry may be down, but it’s not out. You can still get discounts on everything from burgers to bamboo bathrobes. But as of last night, there is at least one thing you can’t get a Groupon for anymore: anything related to guns.
James Moncherry first started using the daily deal site LivingSocial in October 2011 to offer deals on the firearm conceal-and-carry classes his company, Active Defense Awareness Training, offers. “And we had some excellent success with them,” he says.
So he launched a campaign with Groupon and was also a success. But one month after the Newtown elementary school shooting sparked a debate over gun control, Groupon said it received a number of complaints about its gun-related deals so it pulled all of them, including Moncherry’s. “For me, my logical question is: How many people complained?” he says.
He says that Groupon could not give him an exact number. The company only issued a statement saying that based on performance and customer feedback, firearm-related deals are not a right fit right now.
Moncherry is now looking for other daily deal sites that will accept his business. He has a promising lead at one called DealChicken.com. But he is also spending more on ads in gun magazines.
“To be quite frank,” says Moncherry, “we’re starting to look at the fact that maybe we don’t need the deal sights anymore.”
Rakesh Agarwal is an analyst at Redesign Mobile. He says the loss of revenue from gun-related deals is pretty immaterial. “It’s more about what the social media impact will be.”
Several pro-gun groups have announced that they are boycotting Groupon. But because daily deal sights do most of their business in urban areas that tend to favor gun-control laws, Agarwal says, overall the risk of losing business is pretty low for daily deal companies.
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- Microsoft has a multi-billion acquisition deal with Activision
- Activision is behind the hit ‘Call of Duty’ series
- Sony and Google are against the said acquisition deal
Tech giants Sony and Google are reportedly united against a deal to buy Microsoft’s Activision, with both companies reportedly raising concerns with EU regulators about the multibillion-dollar business.
The latest report from capital markets firm Dealreporter claimed that Sony Interactive Entertainment CEO Jim Ryan visited the EU headquarters on September 8 to express his concerns about Microsoft’s proposed $68.7 billion takeover deal. The executive’s concern is likely over arrangements for future and upcoming titles, specifically, the “Call of Duty” series, which in the past has brought lucrative revenue to Sony’s PlayStation.
If Microsoft signs the acquisition deal with Activision, there is a possibility that the game publisher’s game will be released exclusively on the Xbox game console. Recently, the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority announced that it intended to conduct a second investigation into the takeover deal.
Sony stated its support for the investigation and noted, “by giving Microsoft control over Activision games like Call of Duty, this deal would have significant negative implications for gamers and the future of the gaming industry.” The Japanese gaming giant also said, “we want to guarantee that PlayStation players continue to have the highest quality gaming experience, and we appreciate the CMA’s focus on protecting players.”
Sony and Activision have a deal for the “Call of Duty” series, and it’s believed to cover the publisher’s latest games “Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II,” “Call of Duty: Warzone 2” and a new game reportedly in development at gaming studio Treyarch, which could arrive sometime in 2024. It is unknown what will happen if Microsoft acquires Activision.
Last month, the CMA noted that Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision could harm competition in cloud gaming, game consoles and subscription services if Microsoft refuses to allow its competitors access to games with the biggest Activision sales.
Search engine giant Google, on the other hand, has reportedly spoken to EU regulators about the acquisition in question. The company is also believed to have raised the matter with CADE, a Brazilian antitrust body.
Unfortunately, Google’s concern about the acquisition is unknown, as its competition with Microsoft has always been in terms of innovation and information technology.


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Arrest after Crawley shop worker stabbed in robbery
A man has been arrested after a shop worker was stabbed during a robbery at a newsagents in West Sussex.
The robber, wearing a scarf over his face, went into the shop in Southgate Parade, Crawley, on Tuesday at 15:00 BST, and demanded money at knife-point.
The staff member handed over some cash but was stabbed in the hand and bottom as he tried to make the robber leave.
A man, 48, from Crawley, is being questioned on suspicion of robbery and causing grievous bodily harm.


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There is much hype surrounding the IoT recently, and it’s no wonder with an estimated 20 billion devices connected to the Internet infrastructure by 2020.
In line with this growth, 2018 has seen the creation of an increasing number of startups that are harnessing the power of the various IoT applications.
One way startups have been embracing the IoT is by optimizing the consumer experience in the home. Den for example, is a start-up that was established in 2014 in order to control home appliances such as light switches remotely with a smart-phone app to control the devices. OpenTRV is another start-up that has taken it a step further, developing a device that saves energy by not heating rooms that you are not in.
The use of IoT applications has greater implications beyond the consumer. In the UK alone for example, there are many companies that are developing data and system monitoring control tools for the agricultural industry. Pycno for example, was founded in 2014 and has developed sensors to enable farmers to gather data on rainfall, wind speed, cloud cover and so on, giving them the opportunity to make more informed decisions.
IoT technology is also revolutionizing the B2B market, as can be illustrated by Concirrus, whose cloud based platform allows customers to gather and analyze IoT data in order to improve their business processes.


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Indian lead producer and exporter Gravita has confirmed plans to expand its lead-acid battery scrap processing operations overseas with two new facilities in Africa.
Gravita said it has acquired land for a plant in Ghana and “construction activities are in process” with a view to starting operations by March 2019.
The Ghana operation “will result in saving of logistics cost on the battery scrap which is currently imported to India, processed and re-exported to various countries”, company secretary Nitin Gupta said in a filing to the National Stock Exchange of India.
“This will also help the company to reduce its working capital cycle,” Gupta said.
A scrap metal processing plant in Tanzania is expected to start up in March 2019, Gupta said. Construction work has already begun and some key equipment has been sent to the country.
Meanwhile, a scrap plant planned for construction in Mundra, India has been “put on hold”, because of “changed market scenarios”— although Gravita gave no details. However, the company will review the situation before the end of 2018, Gupta said.
Gravita currently has 11 recycling plants across the world.
During the half year ended 30 September 2018, Gravita said revenue increased by 40.25% compared to the corresponding period in 2017.
Managing director Rajat Agrawal said: “We have continuously added production capacity and improved operational efficiency at our existing facilities. This has helped in achieving topline growth despite adverse market conditions. We expect better growth trajectory in coming quarters by adding more recycling capacities across the globe coupled with enhanced product portfolio.”


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Ford’s 1,400HP Electric Monster
Ford has just unveiled its one-off prototype of an all-electric monster that jolts from a standstill to 170 MPH in just eight seconds. This is the Cobra Jet 1400, Ford’s first electric Mustang.
The prototype supports Ford’s long tradition of drag racing the Mustang. Instead of a roaring V8, for the first time, a quiet electric powerplant is spinning the wheels.
Mark Rushbrook, global director for Ford Performance Motorsports, had this to say: “This project was a challenge for all of us at Ford Performance, but a challenge we loved jumping into. We saw the Cobra Jet 1400 project as an opportunity to start developing electric powertrains in a race car package that we already had a lot of experience with, so we had performance benchmarks we wanted to match and beat right now. This has been a fantastic project to work on, and we hope the first of many coming from our team at Ford Performance Motorsports.”
This is a platform for Ford to develop electric-powered race cars in the future. The company will continue developing it before unveiling the production model later this year.
“Ford has always used motorsport to demonstrate innovation and electric powertrains have given us a completely new kind of performance as seen in the Mustang Cobra Jet 1400,” said Ford Icons Global Director, Dave Pericak, who is currently overseeing all of Ford’s iconic nameplates such as the Mustang and Bronco.
The original 1968 Ford Mustang 428 Cobra Jet outshone cars of that era from the likes of General Motors and Chrysler. In these modern times, Tesla and Porsche are pushing the electric boundaries to another level—could this be another era in which Ford cruises ahead of the pack?


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Despite the impressive milestone, Kayvon Beykpour the company’s CEO, said during a live stream last night (12 August), that Periscope is not focused on attracting more users or downloads, and is instead judging success on engagement.
Periscope measures that through “time watched”, with users now viewing more than 40 years of video every day just from its iOS and Android apps.
“Lots of people have never heard of this metric but its unique to the type of product we have. Time watched is most reflective of the value people are getting out of Periscope – it illustrates whether people like it and are engaged in using Periscope,” he said.
He went on to add that the metric measures whether the service is working for the two types of people that use Periscope – broadcasters and the audience.
“Broadcasters want to reach a wide audience so the more people are watching the more success. And the audience wants to have great Periscope broadcast content in their feed, stuff they like watching. There is harmony over how Periscopers get value and how we measure success,” he explained.
Periscope for brands
Many brands including EasyJet, Starbucks and M&S have already started using Periscope. For EasyJet it is a way to keep customers updated on flight delays, while Ministry of Sound is using it to stream live broadcasts of sets from its clubs and launch events.
Beykpour said Periscope is making use of its parent company Twitter’s “great relationships” with media companies and users with verified Twitter accounts. However there is currently no plan in place to start monetising Periscope, although he did say the company is looking at how it can share data on who is watching or following their accounts.
“Advertising is nowhere near on the top of our minds,” he said. “Its not even in the backburners of our minds.”
He also ruled out any big marketing campaigns for Periscope, unlike its owner Twitter which as promised an above-the-line campaign before the end of the year.
“As far as a traditional marketing campaign where we spend money on advertising, we are not focused on that. Investing in marketing doesn’t increase the metric we care most about – time watched. If we invest in marketing we’d get new downloads but all those people could create an account, watch a two second broadcast and then leave,” he said.
Instead the focus for Periscope remains on developing its product. Beykpour promised improvements to search as well as its maps feature, which shows where users are broadcasting from.
Facebook muscles in on video streaming
Periscope is not the only company in the live video streaming space. Rival Meerkat last updated numbers in May, when it had 2 million registered users, suggesting Periscope has prospered under the ownership of Twitter, with Beykpour saying it has thrown “tremendous support” at the service.
Facebook is also moving into the space having launched its own service a couple of months ago. Having initially only been available to celebrities, Facebook is now opening it up to anyone with a verified account, including journalists.


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Chinese panel makers could eye OLED supply to flagships if successful
BOE, CSOT and Samsung Display were all developing the OLED panel that Samsung Electronics plans to use on its Galaxy A73 smartphone launching next year, TheElec has learned.
The mobile business of Samsung Electronics will evaluate the OLED panels made by these three display panel makers and decide how many orders to give to each, people with direct knowledge of the matter told TheElec.
Galaxy A7 is of the higher-tier in Samsung Electronics’ mid-tier smartphone brands.
The series is right under Galaxy S and Note series in terms of price and specs.
Next year’s version will have a 108MP camera on its rear, the first for the series.
If BOE and CSOT succeed in winning the order from Samsung Electronics, the Chinese companies can eye supplying OLED panels for the South Korean company’s flagships afterward.
CSOT had supplied Samsung Electronics with its OLED panels this year, but it was for the low-tier Galaxy M brand, and a legacy model at that. The volume was also very small.
Sources said Samsung Electronics is having the Chinese companies develop its OLED panels as it is trying to use them as leverage to cut the unit prices of Samsung Display.
Samsung Display is the world’s largest mobile OLED panel producer and had supplied nearly all the OLED panels used by Samsung Electronics for the past ten years.
BOE had developed the OLED panel for Galaxy S21 but the deal was canceled. Samsung Electronics had sent a quotation to BOE __ sources said this was considered an action to keep Samsung Display in check.
CSOT had also attempted to develop the OLED panel that Samsung Electronics planned for Galaxy M41 that was supposed to launch last year, Galaxy M41 was scrapped, and its replacement model, Galaxy M51, used OLED panels from Samsung Display.


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Tag: S&P 500
A number of strategies to navigate this new chaotic terrain fall short, but others come out OK if you don’t want to beat the market.
A more united EU, an end to too-expensive FAANG expansion, and lower prices should boost the continent’s returns.
Private equity isn’t always a market beater and charges high fees. Besides, it’ll be confined to larger investment pools, like target-date funds, which limits its impact.
CFRA sage likens investors to an ‘irresponsible teenager’ borrowing against dubious future allowances.
Portent: Chinese consumers remain fearful about going out after lockdown lifted, ex-Morgan Stanley honcho Roach warns.
Designed to fly high during slumps, a bunch of them have disappointed, big time.
Investors will see that things aren’t getting much better, and that will reverse stocks’ recent surge, warns James Bianco.


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The Inevitability Of Change
Promotional products have been making headlines lately. Unfortunately, it's not in a way we want. First, "Jerry Brown bans official California trinkets." Then it got worse when "Obama spending cuts target federal agencies' travel, technology and swag."
This isn't the first time our industry has taken a hit. Look back to 2008 when the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA) went into effect. Go back even further to 2002 when the phRMA code put many industry firms on life support.
While these may seem like unrelated events, they all have one thing in common: Change. Each of the above examples represents a change in our market. With all this change going on, we should be very practiced on how to respond—or, even better, avoid—these types of outside threats to the survival of our industry. But, unfortunately, this isn't the case.
The most common sentiments seem to be how these events are "unfair" or that people just don't understand the value of promotional products. Since when has politics or business been about what is fair? Perhaps we should spend less time lamenting the "unfairness" of these efforts and spend more time embracing change.
Benjamin Disraeli (1804-1881), a 19th century British politician, said, "Change is inevitable. Change is constant." While he made these remarks more than 130 years ago, they remain true today. People have always resisted change, and they'll continue to do so. But there is real risk to our industry if we continue to fight rather than evolve to meet the challenges of these changes.
Don't believe me? Let's look at some other industries as a preview of what we can expect if we do not evolve. Movie rental and newspaper publishing are good examples. The wired telecom industry is another. But what really stands out to me is the music industry, as it did not respond quickly nor strongly enough to the change in their marketplace when online music providers hit the charts. When was the last time you went to the proverbial "record store" (even that term is terribly outdated) to make a music purchase? But I bet you've recently picked up an iTunes card at any of your local grocery or convenience stores.


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Will price cuts at Tesco restore profits?
Apr. 16, 2014 | 2:30
Tesco is to slash millions of pounds off prices in an attempt to win back customers after a second year of falling profit. As Ciara Sutton reports the pressure is on chief executive Philip Clarke.
PlaylistUp Next in Reuters Business


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This is The Morning Shift, our one-stop daily roundup of all the auto news that's actually important — all in one place at 9:30 AM. Or, you could spend all day waiting for other sites to parse it out to you one story at a time. Isn't your time more important?
1st Gear: The Dodge Double-Up
Afraid to lease the 2014 model year of something knowing that you'll be stuck with it for a few years right as the new 2015 model comes out? Dodge has a solution.
As Automotive News reports, Dodge is going to show off the refreshed 2015 Challenger and 2015 Charger this week at the New York Auto Show, but they're not going to be in showrooms immediately. Details here.
If you're one of those people who has to have the newest car, or you just want to lock in a good rate, here's how it works:
When their 12-month lease is up these eligible customers who follow program rules are guaranteed the same lease payment on a 36-month lease, with no additional down payment, on select all-new 2015 Charger or Challenger models. Customers may lease any 2015 Charger (excluding Charger SE and Charger SRT) and any 2015 Challenger (excluding Challenger SRT). If customers choose to purchase the 2015 model, they will receive $1,000 bonus cash toward the purchase of the vehicle.
And what happens to all of those 2014 models? Enterprise has already agreed to purchase them for their three rental car brands.
2nd Gear: Can The Supplier Issue Be Traced To GM Being Dicks To Suppliers?
As everyone combs through the massive GM info dump, interesting stories are starting to come out to help explain how something so stupid could happen.
Bryce Hoffman's take is on how GM acted like dicks to Delphi, the supplier they sold a few years before the switch issue arose.
That sometimes resulted in suppliers bidding so low that they had to cut corners to meet the promised price. And that, says Henke, is one reason why GM ended up receiving parts that did not meet its own specifications, as the company now says happened with the ignition switches from Delphi. And he said GM was willing to accept those parts because the alternative — delaying production — was too costly.
That whole story is worth a read to see just how awful and contentious the industry was. It is, appropriately, very Greek. Sadly there was no Oracle to tell them this was coming.
3rd Gear: Opel May Not Be As Broke Soon
Karl-Thomas Neumann knows that, as head of GM's European arm, he's responsible for the company's biggest loser. For every dollar it makes in the U.S. and China, it loses a few cents keeping its European business in business.
It's so bad, that he's been bragging that the company would stop losing money in 2016. According to the WSJ that may be a pessimistic view.
Opel's sales stopped falling last year and in the first two months of this year European Union sales of the Opel and the British Vauxhall brands rose 3%. Mr. Neumann said he is sticking to his official target to return Opel to break-even in 2016. But analysts suggested that Opel could reach profitability as early as next year.
Credit cost-cutting, better new models, and hiring Claudia Schiffer.
4th Gear: Peugeot Can't Also Hire Claudia Schiffer
If you think Opel is in bad shape, just wait until you see the books over at Peugeot. Their road to recovery is going to be much longer even under the guidance of the cold and effective Carlos Tavares.
What's the plan? Bloomberg sums it up nicely here, but the bottom line is they're going to cut half of their lineup, spin the DS badge until a luxury division, and try to get margins up from losing money on each car to making as much as 2% on each model by 2018.
This is at a time when Ford is pushing over 8% and GM is trying to catch up with them. If you're not making at least 2%, you're not really making anything.
5th Gear: Ciao Massimo
If you're a bike lover, you're probably aware of the great work done by designer Massimo Tamburini, referred to by some as the "Michelangelo of motorcycling."
The Ducati 916 and MV Augusta F4? That's Tamburini. The NYT reports that he died of lung cancer at a hospital in San Marino. The whole story is worth a read for stories like this:
At the time, Japanese motorcycles were beginning to dominate the market. But while those bikes were fast and ferocious, they handled poorly, a point brought painfully home to Mr. Tamburini when he crashed his Honda, breaking three ribs.
What if, he wondered while convalescing, the powerful Japanese motors could be combined with nimble chassis? He began custom-fitting Japanese bikes with light frames, an enterprise that soon became Bimota's stock in trade. Before long, Bimota bikes were winning events on the international racing circuit.
Reverse: And Pontiac Was Saved!
On this day in 2005, the Pontiac Solstice Roadster, a new two-door sports car from General Motors retailing for approximately $20,000, is featured on the reality TV game show "The Apprentice," starring the famously bombastic businessman Donald Trump.
Neutral: Is This Lease A Good Deal?
What do you think of the one-year pre-model-change lease?
Photo Credit: Getty Images


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This is bound to get people talking.
According to the latest estimated sales results , Final Fantasy XIII has now surpassed its predecessor. FFXII sold approximately 5.7 million units worldwide and Square-Enix's most recent installment in the venerated franchise has hit 5.83 million, counting sales of both the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 versions. But of course, there are plenty of factors to consider. Firstly, there are more gamers know than there were in October of 2006; it may only be four years ago, but the industry continues to grow at a rapid pace. Secondly, we need to compare the accessibility of both titles: FFXIII was multiplatform, so one might assume it had a larger potential consumer base. …but did it really? In March of this year, there were about 50 million PS3s and Xbox 360s out there (or maybe 55 million, if we wanted to be generous). Now, the PS2 hadn't yet hit that vaunted 100 million mark in 2006 but it must've certainly been over 50 million by that time, yes…?
We could also note that FFXIII has yet to launch in Japan for the 360 – which it will, as a special edition – but the amount of additional sales…well, let's just say the overall number won't rocket into the stratosphere. Lastly, we should probably mention the difference in review scores for the two games in question…
Related Game(s): Final Fantasy XIII , Final Fantasy XII


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Daymon Expands Reach of In-Store Demonstration Programs in Latin AmericaFebruary 1, 2017
As Daymon launches new in-store demonstration programs in Latin America, it’s customizing the strategies used by its Sales Advisors to address the tendencies of local shoppers in Brazil. “Samples are still prepared on a cart, but instead of standing behind it and calling customers over, as is customary in the United States, our Sales Advisors interact with shoppers in front of the cart. We find this is a more effective approach to engaging with local shoppers, who would otherwise be less likely to come over to the cart,” says Alexandre Mendes, Daymon’s Senior Director for Latin America.
This customized approach was first tested through pilot programs developed for two Brazilian retailers in 2016. In the short time the pilot programs ran, the success of the approach was quickly proven, delivering an impressive 300 percent sales lift during demonstration events, and 40 percent sales increase seven weeks after the events.
Seeing these results, one of the retailers committed to launching an on-going program at the start of this year, and the other has also expressed interest in continuing the partnership. The new programs will expand upon the pilots, bringing in-store demonstrations to more than three dozen stores in Brazil. The events are staffed by Daymon Sales Advisors, who rotate between several stores each week. The in-store demonstrations focus on food items and run five days a week for eight hours each day—again to meet the needs of local shoppers.
“The typical shopper here goes to the store more than once a week, so by working in multiple stores and on multiple days, our Sales Advisors are able to maximize the number of customers they interact with, thereby maximizing the return on investment for our retailers and suppliers,” explains Mendes.
Between these recent successes in Brazil and a similar in-store demonstration program being executed for a retailer in Panama, the Daymon Latin America team hopes to capitalize on its growing experience and knowledge to further expand operations and business opportunities throughout the region.
To learn more about Daymon business opportunities in Latin American, contact Senior Director Alexandre Mendes at email@example.com.


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It’s not surprising for Apple to remove certain features from their devices or charge a ridiculous price for their products. But in late June, 2020, Apple leaks have confirmed the upcoming iPhone 12 will not ship with a charging adapter or EarPods.
This isn’t like the removal of the headphone jack from Apple devices in 2016--this is more controversial than that. Ultimately, this will provide a huge benefit for the environment, and there are reasons to support why this was the right decision.
Of course, coming from Apple, this decision was expected to happen sooner rather than later, as Apple have been striving to create a portless iPhone sometime in the future. This was just one step they needed to take in order to get closer to their goal, albeit controversial. The headphone jack wasn’t a big feature on their smartphones, so its removal from the iPhone 7 and all future iPhones became less of an issue when people were able to get an adapter to use their EarPods and/or get Apple’s AirPods for wireless Bluetooth connection.
This time, Apple is removing a necessary component of their smartphones. It is nearly impossible to consistently use and charge an iPhone with just a Lightning cable on a day-to-day basis (though USB-C is likely going to be on the iPhone 12), unless one has a USB wall outlet at home. That still doesn’t solve any problems, since those are a hassle to install manually.
So, the question is, why did Apple decide to remove a major accessory people are essentially required to use?
Currently, with no speculation from Apple, the answer to this question is not certain. (The information was leaked by Ming-Chi Kuo, one of the most reliable and accurate sources for information about Apple’s future plans.) Essentially, with less accessories being produced and sold alongside the upcoming iPhones, there will be much less e-waste. According to Arun Maini from the YouTube channel “Mrwhosetheboss”, Apple has about 66% of all profits with only 20% of people in the world using iPhones. So, if only a small percentage of the human population are going to buy one of the new 2020 iPhones, is the reduction in e-waste worth the annoyance of having to find an older charging adapter or buy one separately?
On paper, it doesn’t look like a worthy trade-off. However, one thing needs to be considered: In the tech industry, specifically smartphones, Android manufacturers see Apple as a role model, and usually implement Apple’s “odd” decisions into their own devices. There are several examples of this, most notably the headphone jack’s removal from nearly every Android flagship. So, Android smartphone manufacturers like Samsung, OnePlus, Oppo, etc. are likely to follow Apple’s footsteps and remove the charging adapter from their smartphone boxes sometime in the future, thus reducing even more e-waste.
On the other hand, people say the removal of these accessories from smartphone purchases will not have a worthy impact on the amount of e-waste, because most people don’t throw their chargers away in the first place. They also say Apple is being greedy and are only doing this to save money, as they likely will still charge full price for their upcoming iPhones even though it doesn’t have accessories. Tech reviewer Marques Brownlee released a YouTube video about the removal of these accessories and why Apple’s decisions were justified (and not an excuse for them to gain an even bigger profit). In the video, he said people who want/need the charger should be able to order the charger at a discount with their phone, since the charger Apple sells is a very basic 5 watt charger and people who already have a charger don’t need another, especially if it’s inferior to the one they already have. He also refers back to the CEO of Anker’s words by saying it will still save a significant amount of e-waste, at least enough that it will be a huge benefit for the environment. Brownlee’s ideas have a possibility of being implemented by Apple simply due to how beneficial it is for everyone buying a 2020 iPhone.
After reading all of this, you may be wondering: Why should I care? Why do I need to know about Apple’s decisions? Well, you need to understand this: Apple’s decisions are going to affect you. You will be affected by these decisions in the future because you are going to purchase a new smartphone. You may have to deal with the annoyance of using your old and worn out charging adapter, or simply not having any earbuds if you don’t already have a pair. But most importantly, you will understand how the decrease in e-waste throughout the world will be absolutely worth it.
Bohn, Dieter. “Apple Might Not Include a Charger with the iPhone 12. Good.” The Verge, The Verge, 30 June 2020, www.theverge.com/2020/6/30/21307463/apple-iphone-12-power-adapter-charger-rumor-usb-c.
Mayo, Benjamin. “Kuo: Apple Will Not Include Earbuds or Charger in iPhone 12 Box.” 9to5Mac, 29 June 2020, 9to5mac.com/2020/06/28/iphone-12-no-earbuds-power-adapter/.
“On the iPhone 12 With No Charger…” YouTube, uploaded by Marques Brownlee, 1 July 2020, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8IB7JcKJEeI
“The Apple Master Plan.” YouTube, uploaded by Mrwhosetheboss, 11 July 2020, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aYPaso1zHow


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Discounts and benefits worth up to a maximum of Rs. 27,000 are available on Toyota cars in the Indian market this January
Toyota Kirloskar Motor is offering a few interesting deals on select cars in its range. Due to the rising costs of production and transportation, a lot of carmakers in India had to hike the prices of their cars, and Toyota was also among them. Thanks to these discounts, new car buyers have some reason to rejoice.
Toyota Glanza, the Japanese carmaker’s most affordable model in the Indian market, comes with a cash discount of Rs. 10,000 this month. An exchange bonus of Rs. 10,000 and a corporate discount of Rs. 7,500 are being offered as well on the hatchback.
On Toyota Urban Cruiser, there are no cash discounts or corporate discounts available right now. However, an exchange bonus of Rs. 15,000 can be had on the SUV. All other Toyota cars on sale in the Indian market – Innova Crysta, Fortuner, Camry, and Vellfire – have no official deals on offer.
Toyota Glanza is set to receive a facelift soon, as the car it’s based on – Maruti Baleno – will be facelifted in a few months. Following that, the Urban Cruiser will undergo a generation change this year, as the same is set to happen to Maruti Vitara Brezza. Toyota is planning to expand its lineup in the Indian market, and a few more rebadged Maruti cars are in the pipeline.
These include Rumion (rebadged Maruti Ertiga) and Belta (rebadged Maruti Ciaz). The former will be the new entry-level MPV in the brand’s range, positioned below the Innova Crysta, while the latter will be introduced as a replacement for the now-discontinued Yaris sedan.
|Toyota Discounts – January 2022|
|Model||Cash discount||Exchange bonus + corporate discount|
|Toyota Glanza||Rs. 10,000||Rs. 10,000 + Rs. 7,000|
|Toyota Urban Cruiser||0||Rs. 15,000 + 0|
|Toyota Innova Crysta||0||0|
Toyota and Maruti are jointly developing a new midsize SUV for the Indian market, which will be a rival to Hyundai Creta, Kia Seltos, etc. This forthcoming SUV is speculated to be underpinned by Daihatsu New Global Architecture (DNGA), and it will be powered by an electrified 1.5-litre petrol powerplant.


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I recently spoke at Cooler Screens’ inaugural Summit along with several CPG leaders and luminaries. The consistent theme among all the speakers was speed.
It sounds simple: make the customer experience great! If only it were that easy…
It’s clear that consumers across the board have a growing interest in plant-based foods, including plant-based protein.
As the cost of healthcare continues to rise, many consumers are taking their health and wellness into their own hands through an array of self-care activities.
Loyalty card data (aka frequent shopper program data) is a key to success.
Despite increased investment in trade promotion by CPG manufacturers in recent years, IRI data demonstrates that companies are generally earning less for it.
The lack of online grocery adoption creates a huge opportunity for CPG manufacturers and retailers to leverage the latest e-commerce insights to identify and act on significant growth pockets.
Dairy has been seeing some particular challenges in recent years, including with the rise of dairy alternatives and plant-based proteins, as well as other challenges.
As retailers and manufacturers struggle to understand the purchase dynamics of each category, consumers are roaming the aisles to find products that satisfy their individual needs.
Low fat, no fat, less fat, whole fat. It sounds like the beginning of a Dr. Seuss rhyme but it’s actually the evolution of Americans’ discussions around diet, nutrition and, yes, fat.
IRI was the Presenting Sponsor for the Children’s Advocacy Center (CAC) of Benton County’s annual Cherishing Children dinner and award presentation attended by more than 900 people.
Although digital is currently influencing the vast majority of all retail sales and offers numerous opportunities for brand awareness and growth, OTC medicine manufacturers are in a unique situation.
Tips on engaging boomers and their younger counterparts, as well as what’s on consumers’ minds across all generations.
Grow your brand across channels with the right online content.
While the U.S. OTC market has struggled to find growth in recent years, digestive health brands are seeing rapid growth, by double digits year over year in the recent past. Even marketers of more traditional OTC brands need to understand the impact of these products on their b...
When was the last time you had a positive grocery shopping experience that really stood out to you? What made it stand out?
Advertisers have started talking with their dollars, as some of the world’s largest CPG brands have reduced or reallocated ad spending.
Holiday sweet treats are still clearly a tradition; in 2017, more than $1.7 billion was spent on candy just for Valentine’s Day, according to the Nation...
Read about key ways to make your innovation more effective.
The importance of eating local food and supporting local businesses is growing, especially among younger consumers.
95% of CPG, retail, and health and beauty companies in the Fortune 100 work with us
Copyright 2022 IRI. All Rights Reserved.


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Investing.com - The dollar was broadly lower against the other major currencies on Friday, as Thursday's downbeat U.S. economic growth data continued to weigh on demand for the greenback, while markets eyed upcoming U.S. data due later in the day.
The dollar was steady against the euro, with EUR/USD inching up 0.05% to 1.3609.
The dollar remained under presssure after the Bureau of Economic Analysis on Thursday said U.S. gross domestic product contracted 1.0% in the first quarter, after the preliminary estimate showed growth of 0.1%.
Market expectations had been for a 0.5% contraction. It was the first decline in U.S. GDP since the first quarter of 2011.
Losses were limited however as the Department of Labor said in a separate report that the number of people who filed for unemployment assistance in the U.S. last week fell by 27,000 to 300,000, compared to expectations for a decline of 9,000.
In the euro zone, official data earlier showed that German retail sales fell 0.9% last month, confounding expectations for a 0.4% rise, after a 0.1% uptick in April, whose figure was revised from a previously estimated 0.7% fall.
The pound was higher against the dollar, with GBP/USD adding 0.10% to 1.6733.
The dollar was lower against the yen and the Swiss franc, with USD/JPY slipping 0.14% to 101.65 and with USD/CHF edging down 0.09% to 0.8972.
In Japan, official data showed that household spending fell by an annualized rate of 4.6% in April, compared to expectations for a 3.2% decline, after a 7.2% increase the previous month.
Data also showed that Japan's core consumer price inflation, which excludes fresh food, rose at an annual rate of 3.2% this month, more than the expected 3.1% gain, after a 1.3% increase in April.
Separately, in a preliminary report, government data showed that industrial production in Japan dropped 2.5% last month, more than the expected 2% decline, after a 0.7% slip in March.
Meanwhile, Switzerland's KOF economic barometer slipped to 99.80 this month, from a reading of 101.80 in April, whose figure was revised down from a previously estimated 102.00. Analysts had expected the barometer to slip to 101.70 in May.
The greenback was steady to lower against the Australian, New Zealand and Canadian dollars, with AUD/USD easing up 0.08% to 0.9315, NZD/USD up 0.06% to 0.8491 and USD/CAD dipping 0.06% to 1.0830.
Earlier Friday, official data showed that building consents in New Zealand rose 1.5% in April, confounding expectations for a 3.5% drop, after an upwardly revised 9.2% increase in March.
The US Dollar Index, which tracks the performance of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, was down 0.03% to 80.50.
Later in the day, the U.S. was to release a report on personal income and expenditure, as well as revised data from the University of Michigan on consumer sentiment.
Investing.com offers an extensive set of professional tools for the financial markets.
Read more News on Investing.com and download the new Investing.com Stocks & Forex App for Android!
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.


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American Petrolog, which specializes in bulk transportation logistics, recently promoted Bailey Bobbitt to national account executive.
The Louisiana native, who briefly enjoyed a professional boxing career, entered the logistics world in 2009, American Petrolog said. He spent nearly five years with Dupre’ Logistics before joining American Petrolog in 2016. Along the way, he has demonstrated an ability to handle challenges and developed expertise in designing customized logistics solutions.
The company said Bobbitt’s abilities and dedication have allowed him to grow rapidly within the organization, and he continually embraces his increasing responsibilities.
“In his new role, Bailey brings extensive operational knowledge to the sales team and will be a key contributor to our success in obtaining our growth goals in our transloading, logistics and intermodal businesses,” said Esau Washington, director of sales and marketing at American Petrolog.


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Although the retail sector is expecting a "solid" performance this Christmas, Barry Matheson admitted concerns over the opening months of 2011 when sales are expected to be hit hard. He said the combination of public sector spending cuts and the VAT hike "are undoubtedly going to make any retailer cautious about what certainly the early part of the year is going to bring".
Matheson said sales north of the Border have been hit harder this year as Scotland and the north of England have been slower to emerge from the trough of the recession.
There are concerns about how the snow will impact high street sales in the run-up to Christmas but Matheson argued that the weather has so far only served to catapult internet sales.
"Dotcom sales in our catchment areas are running at 60 per cent up on last year, which is quite exceptional," Matheson said. John Lewis expects this year's bestsellers to include iPads, iPods and, unusually, cashmere jumpers.
UK retail figures out on Tuesday are expected to reveal that the positive sales trend of recent months continued in November and that a "solid" Christmas for the high street is in prospect.
John Stevenson, a broker at KBC Peel Hunt, said: "Retailers are better prepared for Christmas this year, certainly compared with two years ago when they were caught out in the recession.
"There may not be a lot of consumer money knocking around, but we are far from a high street disaster scenario as people have been living with the austerity cloud for some time. Retailers are also in a much better stock position."


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Despite posting a widened operating loss, Spotify on Thursday said it added 8 million paid subscribers during its second quarter to get to 83 million premium users.
With 180 million ad-supported active monthly users in its stable, Spotify is now larger than rival Apple Music. The Swedish music streaming service said its uptick in paid subscribers came via its Family Plan program, which does better at reducing churn, or customer defections, than with individual users.
Spotify said growth among European subscribers, who account for 37 percent of its active monthly user base, against 31 percent in North America, slowed during the second quarter due to the introduction of new GDPR privacy rules in Europe. Latin America remained a growth market for the company though.
Continued subscriber growth, key to eventual profitability at Spotify, sent total revenue at the streamer up 26 percent to €1.27 billion ($1.49 billion) during the second quarter. That came as the Swedish streaming giant posted an operating loss of €90 million ($105.4 million), compared with an operating loss of €79 million ($92.5 million) in the second quarter of 2017.
Spotify said it was working to identify and remove “fake” users from its reported metrics and aims to grow its advertising and video revenues. “From a product perspective, video is our fastest growing source of revenue, while audio remains our largest source of revenue and continues to experience solid growth,” the company said in its financial results release.
Veteran entertainment executive Dawn Ostroff recently joined Spotify as its new chief content officer to drive new content partnerships for the streamer across music, audio and video. The Stockholm, Sweden-based streaming service, which is run by founder and CEO Daniel Ek, recently went public on the New York Stock Exchange.


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But Apple seems determined to keep desktops in its portfolio. The new iMacs featured the company's first deployment of "Fusion Drive," an option that combines flash storage with a standard hard drive to boost startup, application launches and file copying chores. And the company redesigned the case to make it thinner, a move that left the smaller 21.5.-in. iMac practically impossible to upgrade after purchase.
Analysts have maintained that desktops, Apple's included, still have a market, primarily as the shared computer in homes where each family member has a more mobile device, like a notebook or tablet.
Windows PC sales bear that out. According to the NPD Group, between 20% and 30% of early Windows 8 systems have been of all-in-one machines, many of them very similar in appearance to the iMac.
Steven Baker, of NPD, noted that in the Windows market, "desktops have done better all year" in terms of sales gains, or if they've slipped, they've done so by lower margins than PC notebooks.
Baker was optimistic about Windows desktops' chances, in part because OEMs are starting to equip them with touch-sensitive screens, something Apple has refused to do on any of its Macs. "All-in-one [desktops] make great touch devices," Baker argued in an interview two weeks ago.
That's not what Apple's former CEO, Steve Jobs, thought. In October 2010, Jobs dismissed touch on desktops.
"Touch surfaces don't want to be vertical," Jobs said then. "It gives great demo but after a short period of time, you start to fatigue and after an extended period of time, your arm wants to fall off. It doesn't work.... It's ergonomically terrible."
Gregg Keizer covers Microsoft, security issues, Apple, Web browsers and general technology breaking news for Computerworld. Follow Gregg on Twitter at @gkeizer, on Google+ or subscribe to Gregg's RSS feed. His email address is firstname.lastname@example.org.


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MFS Africa to acquire US company GTP for $34 million
Africa’s largest fintech interoperability hub, MFS Africa, will acquire US-based payments software company Global Technology Partners (GTP) in a $34 million deal.
We often hear about African companies acquiring other African companies, or foreign companies acquiring African companies. However, we rarely hear of African companies acquiring foreign companies.
Well, just like Egypt-born Swvl’s acquisition of Volt Lines and Zeelo, another African company is crossing continental borders for acquisition.
What MFS achieves with this agreement
MFS Africa is the largest fintech interoperability hub in Africa. With over 320 million customers, it connects banks, telcos and money transfer operators in over 35 countries through a single integration point.
GTP, on the other hand, is a prepaid and mobile payment platform that integrates multiple prepaid cards with a single bank account and allows users to make purchases online. More than 500,000 users in 30 countries use the GTP platform.
The acquisition of GTP by MFS Africa will offer 2 things to MFS Africa: the fintech will be able to offer its users prepaid cards, and the agreement will see the fintech expand into the United States.
According to MFS Africa CEO, Dare Okoudjou, “It’s mainly for international e-commerce platforms, which are not able or willing to create the user experience that will accept mobile.”
MFS Africa’s acquisition strategy
The secret to MFS Africa’s growth and expansion lies in its acquisition strategy.
Although this is the fintech’s first off-continent acquisition, it has acquired 3 other African startups as part of its bid to expand its digital payments network. In 2016, MFS Africa acquired Sochitel – a company specializing in international airtime transfers to Africa – and the acquisition, according to MFS Africa, has helped create the largest transfer payment network that focuses on Africa. In 2020, the company acquired Beyonic, a Ugandan fintech providing payment management solutions to SMEs. Last year, it acquired Baxi in what has been called “Nigeria’s second largest fintech acquisition”.
All of these acquisitions have helped bring MFS Africa closer to its vision of being present in all 54 African countries and serving 500 million people and millions of MSMEs.
Its latest acquisition will help it reach millions more, according to CEO Okoudjou.
The company also announced that it has reached an agreement with Spotify that will see the music platform accept mobile money as a payment option in Kenya, Uganda and South Africa.


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DEPT® expands Nordic presence with acquisition of Sorthvid
Copenhagen-based strategic design agency Sorthvid has joined DEPT®, Europe’s leading digital agency. Best-known for its work for Danish and global e-commerce clients – such as Pandora, Royal Copenhagen, Copenhagen Airports, BoConcept and Magasin – the Sorthvid team joins forces with DEPT® Copenhagen. This new 100-strong team of digital experts will move to a new shared location this year.
“We have been collaborating with DEPT® for years now, and ever since we shared our first client, we have had a strong feeling of shared values and quality awareness in our work,” explains Sorthvid founder Peter Risborg. “The needs of our clients are becoming increasingly more complex. Joining DEPT®, and being able to offer a much wider range of services like data, media and Amazon marketing, is a perfect answer to this.”
DEPT® acquires 100% of the shares in Sorthvid. In return, owners Peter Risborg and Jonas Roland Therkildsen take a stake in DEPT® and maintain key roles within management.
Founded in Amsterdam in 2015, Dept is today represented in 13 countries and employs over 1,500 people – and it continues to grow. With a purely digital DNA, DEPT® brings together creativity, technology and data experts in integrated teams for clients like JYSK, Ganni, Mizuno, Rituals and KLM.
Dimi Albers, CEO Dept: “As DEPT®, we set ground in Denmark in 2018 with high-quality digital marketing services. For us, adding design and tech experts to the mix strengthens both our digital competences and geographic opportunities. Sorthvid is a leading Danish agency when it comes to digital design and UX. Uniting forces with our data and digital marketing experts brings our Danish service portfolio to the next level.”
Lasse Rasmussen, Managing Director Digital Marketing: “We’ve been working together with the Sorthvid team for a while now and recognize the quality and value they bring to our shared projects. Peter and Jonas have built a team of great UX and tech experts that bring the energy and entrepreneurship we are looking for on a local level. The next step is working together in truly integrated teams – we can’t wait!”
Sorthvid is a Strategic Design Agency located in Copenhagen, Denmark, specialising in strategy, user experience design and development for complex digital solutions such as global e-commerce platforms, applications and large information sites. Sorthvid currently employs around 30 senior-level digital thinkers and doers. sorthvid.dk
Hi, we are DEPT® – an international digital agency with over 1,500 experienced thinkers and makers in 13 countries across Europe and the Americas. One agency uniting creativity, technology, and data. Helping our clients reinvent and accelerate their digital reality by creating experiences that people want and businesses need. deptagency.com
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As you were already informed in previous issues of our Newsletter, an automatic exchange of information about cross-border transactions used for aggressive tax planning has been introduced with effect from 1 July 2020 (implementation of DAC 6). To ensure this automatic exchange of information, the notification obligation has been imposed on the so-called liable persons (intermediary or respective taxpayer, i.e. user), while the deadline for its fulfilment as for transactions (measures) carried out from 25 June 2018 to 30 June 2020 was no later than 31 August 2020.
Given the current situation regarding the spread of the dangerous contagious human disease COVID-19, the European Commission decided, at the end of June 2020, to postpone the original deadlines for EU Member States by adopting Council Directive (EU) 2020/876. For this reason, amendment to Act No. 442/2012 Coll., which moves the original deadline for the notification of cross-border transactions carried out between 25 June 2018 and 30 June 2020 from 31 August 2020 to 28 February 2021, was approved and published in the Collection of Laws of the Slovak Republic under no. 198/2020 Coll. on 21 July 2020.
At the same time, a new deadline for the notification of measures resulting from cross-border transactions carried out between 1 July 2020 and 31 December 2020 is set for the period from 1 January 2021 to 31 January 2021.


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Brazil's consumer price inflation rate rose to 4.31 percent year-on-year in November 2020, the highest since December last year and above market expectations of 4.2 percent, mainly boosted by a 15.94 percent increase in food & beverages prices, the steepest since October 2003. Additional upward pressure came from transport (1.21 percent), housing (1.47 percent), health care (1.53 percent), personal expenses (1.30 percent), education (0.84 percent), and communication (3.70 percent). Clothing costs, however, declined 1.70 percent. On a monthly basis, consumer prices rose 0.89 percent, the biggest increase for a November month since 2015. source: Instituto Brasileiro de Geografia e Estatística (IBGE)
Inflation Rate in Brazil averaged 332.22 percent from 1980 until 2020, reaching an all time high of 6821.31 percent in April of 1990 and a record low of 1.65 percent in December of 1998. This page provides - Brazil Inflation Rate - actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news. Brazil Inflation Rate - data, historical chart, forecasts and calendar of releases - was last updated on December of 2020.
Inflation Rate in Brazil is expected to be 3.50 percent by the end of this quarter, according to Trading Economics global macro models and analysts expectations. Looking forward, we estimate Inflation Rate in Brazil to stand at 3.00 in 12 months time. In the long-term, the Brazil Inflation Rate is projected to trend around 3.00 percent in 2021 and 3.50 percent in 2022, according to our econometric models.


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Here’s why cord-cutters should be worried about the Dish-HBO dispute
On Thursday, HBO and Cinemax went dark for some Dish customers across the country as a feud between the carrier and the pay channel’s parent company escalated. And now that feud could have a huge impact on cord-cutting customers who depend on over-the-top (OTT) services like Sling.
For the first time in the channel’s history, HBO is now blacked out for certain viewers, affecting around 2.5 million of Dish’s 13 million customers — including subscribers to the Dish-owned Sling streaming service. And both sides are blaming the other.
In a statement to USA Today, Dish claims that HBO’s parent-company, AT&T, yanked the channel because it wants “a guaranteed number of subscribers, regardless of how many consumers actually want to subscribe to HBO.” Read more…


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OnePlus is about to launch a new product on March 3. It will not be a smartphone or any commercial product. This product was tweeted from the Twitter handle of OnePlus UK last week. Now the teaser video of this product has also been tweeted from the Twitter handle of OnePlus India. The OnePlus UK has also tweeted some pictures of this product and has asked users to name the product. What this OnePlus product will be is not yet clear. After watching this video carefully it shows that it is a mechanical product. The video appears to have an engine and its silencer can be seen. In another tweet, the company teased it as a special product.
In March itself, the company can launch its OnePlus 8 series. This company’s smartphone series can be launched in the second week of this month. Under this smartphone series, three smartphones OnePlus 8, OnePlus 8 Pro, OnePlus 8 Lite can be launched. These smartphones can be launched with 5G support. According to the leaked features recently, Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 SoC processor can be used in it. Apart from this, this smartphone can be launched with a display with a 120Hz refresh rate.
OnePlus 8 5G has also been spotted on the Chinese microblogging website Weibo. Side punch-hole display and in-display fingerprint sensor can be seen in its front panel in the leaked retail box of the phone. A 64MP camera setup can be given in the back of the phone. MediaTek’s processor can be used in the light variants of the phone and it can be launched in the price range of Rs 25,000. It can be given a display with a 90Hz refresh rate.


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Harvey Norman shares bounce on analyst upgrade
JPMorgan analysts noted that Harvey Norman shares have fallen by more than 20 per cent since the start of the year, and upgraded their rating from underweight to neutral.
But the recommendation does not mean a bullish outlook for a company that has been hit by a disappointing first-half result, a reduced interim dividend and millions of dollars of writedowns.
“There is an absence of positive catalysts and earnings risk is skewed to the downside, but we believe valuation support is now emerging at this share price, such that our previous underweight rating cannot be justified,” JP Morgan analyst Shaun Cousins said.
Harvey Norman’s shares hit a session high of $3.59 early on Wednesday.
By 1455 AEST, Harvey Norman had given back some of those gains but was still 8.5 cents, or 2.5 per cent, higher at $3.435.
What happens when an ex-Aesop employee decides to start her own nail salon business? You get Buff, a modern-looking… https://t.co/VgAWMiA8S52 hours ago
Underpayments in the retail and hospitality sectors was a top priority for the workplace watchdog until Covid-19. H… https://t.co/rQstqL1tz04 hours ago


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New Delhi, Apr 17 (PTI) State-owned National Fertilisers Ltd will set up a plant to produce di-nitrogen tetroxide (N2O4) in Madhya Pradesh at a cost of Rs 350 crore.
The company will supply product (N2O4) exclusively to the Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota, (SDSC-SHAR) under a long-term agreement for 25 years period.
"NFL has received Letter of Intent (LOI) from SDSC-SHAR for establishing di-nitrogen tetroxide (N2O4) production plant (NPP) on build, own, operate & supply model," NFL said in a filing to the BSE.
The project will be set up at NFL Vijaipur, Guna, Madhya Pradesh.
"Plant capacity shall be around 1095 MT N2O4 per annum. Project activities (zero date) shall start around July 2017 with a gestation period of 18 months. Estimated capex requirement shall be around Rs 350 crore," NFL said. PTI MJH MR


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Lumenco Inc., a diversified tech company specializing in micro-optics and anti-counterfeiting systems, has launched an equity crowdfunding campaign. Founded in 2012, Lumenco began as a banknote anti-counterfeiting company. It possesses over 40 patents in lens-based and micro mirror-based platforms and has become a valued technology provider for the industry worldwide.
Englewood, Colorado. 29th July 2022 – Lumenco Inc., a diversified tech company specializing in micro-optics and anti-counterfeiting systems, has launched an equity crowdfunding campaign. Founded in 2012, Lumenco began as a banknote anti-counterfeiting company. It possesses over 40 patents in lens-based and micro mirror-based platforms and has become a valued technology provider for the industry worldwide.
For years, countries have relied on holography as the standard defense against currency counterfeiting. Unfortunately, now that Euro holograms have become easier to acquire, the vulnerability of holography has signaled its eventual obsolescence. Micro-optics, which are far more difficult to counterfeit, have arrived as the technology of the future, and Lumenco is one of just two or three legitimate sources for this technology.
"The demise of printed currency has never happened, and it's not likely to happen any time soon," said Mark Raymond, co-founder and CEO of Lumenco. "The current valuation of $40 million with a proposed preferred stock offering makes this a great investment opportunity."
There is a huge market for all of Lumenco's proprietary technologies, including its ground-breaking, multicolor micro-optic anti-counterfeit feature, the first of its kind ever made. Due to rising inflation and other systemic economic problems, governments worldwide are printing more currency than ever. Counterfeiting is also on the rise, and these governments are painfully aware of the need to secure their currencies.
Lumenco has worked hard not only to build creative and superior technology, but also to establish unique connections and license agreements with the largest companies in the currency space. Lumenco projects its profits to reach $10 million annually over the next four years; over the longer term, Lumenco plans to move into significant royalty revenue, with estimates of $50-$100 million over the next 10 years in currency alone. Lumenco also anticipates an exit for investors in the next three to four years, either as an acquisition target or by initial public offering.
"Lumenco has a sense of urgency to move toward an exit strategy," said Lumenco co-founder and Vice President for Research and Development Hector Porras. "Lumenco is mitigating risk as an established company and offering a high potential reward."
For more information about Lumenco and its equity crowdfunding campaign, visit its crowdfunding page.
About Lumenco: Lumenco Inc. is a development-stage, diversified tech company specializing in micro-optics and has over 40 patents in 30 countries in industries from currency, lighting, brand protection, to solar technologies and electromagnetic shielding. Our micro-optic technologies represent a platform that has applications across a wide array of diverse markets and industries. Lumenco™ is poised for significant growth and is prepared with ready-to-market technologies that demonstrate a significant technological and competitive advantage over competitors in our industry.
Company Name: Lumenco
Contact Person: Tyler Jerome Kapus
Phone: +1 320 360 9608
Address: Englewood, Colorado
City: Englewood, Colorado
Country: United States


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More than 20 million households in America have cut the cord and are going wireless for their home phone service, according to a Nielsen Mobile report released Wednesday.
Roughly 17 percent of households in the U.S. are getting rid of their old wireline phones and using their cell phones instead. That's a huge leap from just a few years ago when, in 2004, only 4.2 percent of households in the U.S. were wireless. The trend will likely continue as one in five U.S. households is expected to be wireless-only by the end of 2008, according to Nielsen.
What's driving the trend? Nielsen says its economics. As more Americans feel the squeeze from the weakening economy, consumers are looking for ways to cut costs. Many see traditional phone service, which averages about $40 a month, as a household expense that can be cut, especially since more than 85 percent of the U.S. population also own a cell phone.
So who are these cord cutters? Nielsen says that many of them are likely to be on budgets, with about 59 percent of them earning incomes less than $40,000 a year. They also tend to live in smaller households with only one or two residents at home. And many of these cord cutters get rid of their traditional phone lines after changing jobs or moving. In fact, 31 percent of those who canceled their home service did so after moving.
Based on the numbers, it looks like cord cutters are saving money, too. According to Nielsen, people who have cut the cord use their cell phones 45 percent more than those who have a regular phone at home. But on average they save about $33 per month in a household of one subscriber. That figure is reduced by $6.69 for each additional wireless resident.
Wireless operators have also been, which they hope will meet the needs of wireless-only users.
"As wireless network quality improves and unlimited calling becomes increasingly pervasive, we expect the trend toward wireless substitution to continue," Alison LeBreton, vice president of client services for Nielsen Mobile, said in a statement. "In a tightening economy every dollar counts, and consumers are more and more comfortable with the idea of ditching their landline connection."
Wireless substitution may only be the beginning for some folks, LeBreton said. Some users may even be tempted to cut the broadband cord, too. While this may be the case for some users, I doubt it will become a widespread phenomenon for a long time.
Right now 3G network speeds using wireless data cards from a carrier are only as fast as a slow DSL connection. And with carriers offering DSL at cheap prices, I'm not sure people will pay a premium for mobility. But as speeds improve and new 4G services like WiMax come on the scene, it might change the story.
Still, going totally wireless isn't for everyone. About 10 percent of customers who have cut the cord have come back to a landline service, according to Nielsen. The study also suggests that most people keep their landlines to get other services, such as satellite TV, DSL service, pay-per-view, or a security system. And about 11 percent of respondents said that they found it cheaper to buy a bundled package that included TV and Internet. While 10 percent said they wanted a landline for safety reasons.


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Publicly available records indicate that a class action lawsuit has been filed on behalf of investors in Vista Outdoor (NYSE: VSTO) in connection to alleged violations of securities laws by VSTO and certain of its officers. Fitapelli Kurta is interested in hearing from investors who have complaints regarding investments made in Vista Outdoor between August 11, 2016 and January 13, 2017.
The lawsuit specifically alleges that Vista Outdoor made false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose material information concerning its business, prospects or operations, including: that it was undergoing an increasing softening of its retail environment and its own promotional operations; that its revenue and gross margins were declining; that it would have to commence its impairment assessment for reporting units of its Outdoor Products segment in 2017’s third quarter, as opposed to preparing its fiscal year 2017 financial statements; that thus it would see an impairment charge as low as $400 million and as high as $450 million; and that thus its statements about VSTO’s business, prospects and operations were false and/or misleading.
According to the company’s website, Vista Outdoor “is a leading global designer, manufacturer and marketer of consumer products in the growing outdoor sports and recreation markets.” The company’s description continues: “We serve these markets through our diverse portfolio of well-recognized brands that provide consumers with a range of performance-driven, high-quality and innovative products, including sporting ammunition and firearms, outdoor products, outdoor cooking solutions, outdoor sports optics, hydration systems, golf rangefinders, performance eyewear, action sports helmets and goggles, footwear and a variety of cycling accessories, stand up paddle boards and accessories. We serve a broad range of end consumers, including outdoor enthusiasts, hunters and recreational shooters, professional athletes, as well as law enforcement and military professionals. Vista Outdoor’s headquarters are in Farmington, Utah and we employ more than 7,000 skilled workers worldwide.”


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Chennai, June 23 2014: Thailand’s nationwide curfew was lifted 10 days ago and demand from India is looking stronger than ever. Zooming into Chennai, travel agents say that they are relieved that the curfew has been lifted but also insist that their numbers have remained resilient right through. “Thailand is like a second home to most Indians hence small political problems do not represent a threat for them,” says Caroline Rozario, Manager – MICE, Ascon Holidays.
Shibani Phadkar, Senior Vice President – Products & Operations, Leisure Travel (Outbound), Thomas Cook (India) Ltd agreed with this: “Thailand has always been a favourite with our Chennai-based customers, being a convenient short haul for short breaks and leisurely laid back vacations, its diversity covers a range of price points to suit every wallet, be it the value-seeker or the luxury UHNI-HNI segment whom we cater to under our luxury brand, Indulgence,” she said.
That’s not to say that media reports created no apprehension amongst travellers. The Tourism Authority of Thailand’s (TAT) offices received daily inquiries about the truth of the situation as did travel agents. Importantly, most travellers were only looking for reassurance that they could go ahead with their plans. Once shown the real picture, people persisted with travel plans. Manish Kriplani, Managing Director, Baywatch Travels Pvt Ltd said, “Demand for Thailand was unwavering. People were certainly concerned because of news reports. However after we checked with our partners in Thailand, who gave us a much more realistic picture of the destination, we could reassure potential travellers and they went ahead and travelled. People returned more satisfied than ever because they received better deals than otherwise. I suppose it was also a breather for a region that is always crowded with tourists.
Rozario concurred that customers were calling in looking to be reassured: “The two groups for travel first week of June did approach us with questions about Thailand’s political situation. We forwarded the mail received from TAT and after a lot of briefing, we had the corporate convinced. The feed-back from the team that travelled was excellent. They said that future groups had nothing to fear,” she said.
Additional feedback from the travel trade indicated that many corporates decided that this was in fact an opportune moment to host a Thailand trip and bag an even better deal than otherwise. “All in all I think the situation was blown out of proportion. Vigilance was on a high on the first day of the curfew but following that, life went on as usual. Some of our corporate customers also thought it was a good opportunity to knock on hotels’ doors for better deals,” Kriplani continued.
“Our bookings remained steady with five groups totaling nearly 250 people, travelling between March and June,” Rozario added.
Diversions, if any, were to other parts of Thailand, testify tour operators. “Given the sensitivity/ media coverage, we did see a shift in demand from Chennai this year, moving beyond Bangkok, to destinations like Phuket, Chiang Mai, Koh Samui and Koh Samet,” Phadkar explained. However, this is also in line with TAT’s strategy to promote itineraries ‘beyond Bangkok’ among Indian travellers.
With the curfew being lifted across Thailand and thousands of travellers returning to share that all is (and was) well in Thailand, demand is on the upswing. Travel agents are showing optimism. “Thailand will continue to trend and features strongly as part of our Monsoon ‘Drizzlers’, ‘Festive Breaks’ for Dussehra-Diwali-Durga Puja, as also our honeymoon packages later this year,” Phadkar shares.
TAT’s Mumbai director Sethphan Buddhani is optimistic too. “We are targeting 1,070,000 travellers from India by the end of 2014. We are hosting journalists, bloggers and travel agents in the destination so that they can see and judge Thailand’s safety, normalcy and continued warm hospitality with their own eyes,” he says.


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Fraud is a risk for virtually every business. But some companies are better at deterring and preventing fraud than others. On average, businesses lose 5% of their annual revenues to fraud, according to the biennial Report to the Nations on Occupational Fraud and Abuse issued in 2014 by the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE). The median loss was $145,000 — but 22% of victim organizations in the study incurred losses of $1 million or more.
Clearly, fraud can devastate a closely held business. Although testing for and investigating fraud isn’t normally part of the valuation process, valuators do take fraud risks into account when appraising a private business interest.
Who’s most at risk for fraud?
The ACFE defines occupational fraud as “the use of one’s occupation for personal enrichment through the deliberate misuse or misapplication of the employing organization’s resources or assets.” Examples include corruption, asset misappropriation and financial misstatement.
Some businesses are more vulnerable to fraud than others. When assessing fraud risks valuators consider issues such as:
Size. High-profile fraud cases — such as Enron or WorldCom — make front-page news. But the ACFE reports that companies with fewer than 100 employees are “disproportionately victimized by fraud and notably under-protected by anti-fraud controls.” Because private businesses also typically possess fewer fiscal and human resources than their public counterparts, they often struggle to rebound from fraud losses.
Industry. Some industries tend to be more fraud-prone than others. The top five most represented sectors in the 2014 ACFE study include:
Industry research is a critical part of the appraisal process. Valuators need to understand which schemes the subject company may be prone to based on the industries in which it participates. For example, manufacturers are at high risk for billing scams and corruption, such as purchasing schemes, bid rigging and kickbacks, according to the ACFE.
Internal (or antifraud) controls. These are the policies and procedures companies use to protect assets, improve operating efficiency and ensure reliable financial statements. A strong system of internal controls, including fraud training programs and whistleblower hotlines, is a company’s first line of defense against fraud.
The 2014 ACFE study reports that the most effective controls at reducing fraud losses are:
Victim organizations that had these internal controls in place experienced losses that were at least 50% smaller than companies that didn’t.
How do fraud risks affect value?
High fraud risk equates with lower values. For example, when applying the income approach, valuators might increase their company-specific risk premiums, a component of the cost of equity, to account for significant fraud risks.
Similarly, under the market approach, fraud risk may come into play when choosing criteria for picking guideline companies — or when adjusting median (or average) pricing multiples for differences between the subject company and the comparables.
A subject company with significant fraud risk — or that has fallen victim to fraud in the past — might be less marketable to potential buyers or less desirable to potential minority interest owners. Accordingly, valuators might factor fraud risk into their valuation discounts.
Only part of the story
The ACFE study exposes only the tip of the iceberg. Fraud is a far more pervasive problem that often goes undetected or unreported. It also carries indirect costs, such as lost productivity, reputational damage and lost revenues — not to mention the costs of investigating fraud and pursuing fraud claims. Experienced valuators understand these potential costs and factor fraud risks into the valuation equation.
This publication is distributed with the understanding that the author, publisher and distributor are not rendering legal, accounting or other professional advice or opinions on specific facts or matters, and, accordingly, assume no liability whatsoever in connection with its use. In addition, any discounts are used for illustrative purposes and do not purport to be specific recommendations.


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58% of senior level marketers plan to increase the percentage of their budgets spent video content in the next 12 months. Almost a third of them want to increase it up to 50 percent, a new research by the Content Marketing Association (CMA) revealed.
The Content Marketing Association surveyed 100 senior level client-side marketers and media agencies. 71 percent of respondents feel that companies are not investing enough in video content. Currently, on average, 78 percent of content marketers spend up to a quarter of marketing budgets on video content. 58 percent of senior level marketers plan to increase the percentage of their budgets spent video content in the next 12 months.
More than 50 percent of surveyed marketers believe mobile to be their main channel for branded video content. A third of those surveyed stated that mobile is the biggest growth area for video, followed by social media (29%) and short form content (24%).
According to the research, a third of marketers also think that it is possible to accurately measure the ROI of their video content. The crucial metrics include: views (31%), lead to action (21%), length of engagement (19%), view completions (16%) and social sharing (14%).


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Report showcases Canada’s natural and functional food By Jana Manolakos Hit by Crohn’s Disease, Ted …Read More »
Who are we?We are the place to come for the latest on food and beverage science, consumer trends, industry news and food safety innovation.
We are informative. We are current. We are relevant. We are here.


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Financial results no longer enough: Unlock enterprise value by unlocking IR potential
Oct 12, 2018
The IRO’s role is now more complex – and exciting – than ever
The White House announces trade tariffs on steel and global stock markets go into a tailspin. Nike launches a controversial ad campaign and all eyes are on its share price.
These days, investors want to know the impact on a company of developments in Washington,


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The 2015 Mercedes C-Class is actually a great-looking car and it sounds like it finally has up-to-date engines to give its main rivals some competition. One thing, though, is really going to bother me every time I see the back of one: the chromed numbers after the C.
The Germans doing alphanumerics have always used some creative license when it came to. That’s how we ended up with stuff like 300E 2.6 or the C250 with a 1.8-liter turbo. But for the 2015 C-Class in the U.S., the two initial models will be the C300 4Matic, with a 2.0-liter turbo and the C400 4Matic with a 3.0-liter turbo. That’s a big stretch as far as the badge is concerned.
We let AMG slide for the most part when they stuck “6.3″ badges on an engine that was really a 6.2. BMW calling it a 335i when it’s a 3.0-liter turbo is a little less palatable. Audi sticking “TFSI” on its cars with a supercharged V6 was just weird.
Mercedes is trying to claim an extra liter in size with its new C designations, which is absolutely crazy. The excuse has been that the numbers represent “equivalent displacement,” so they’re claiming their 3.0-liter turbo acts like a naturally aspirated 4.0. But if Mercedes can get 329 horses out of a 3.0, imagine what they could do with another liter.
This just goes back to my wondering why Mercedes just doesn’t add a turbo badge on the back of a C200 and C300. It has escalated to the point where a C300 Turbo is much more honest and makes more sense than lying about the displacement so buyers don’t feel inadequate somehow.
Or better yet, just call it a C-Class on the back. One of these days, this displacement compensation is going to completely confuse everyone. Right now, it just makes good cars look like they have identity crises.
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