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Titanfall Beta sign-up is now open. Jot your name down for a chance to test out the game later this month.
The devs at Dennaton have revealed an official Q3 2014 release window for their gore-tastic, havoc-inducing indie sequel Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number.
Zenimax Online's Matt Firor answers PS4-specific questions on the upcoming ESO MMO, including button mapping for the DualShock 4, dedicated servers for PS4 players, and more.
Monolith's new RPG in the Lord of the Rings universe blends a myriad of mechanics, but some of them are stunningly similar to a certain Ubisoft-owned historical series focused on stealthy assassins.
Merging is as crucial of a term now as it is in the past, but for Apple that term does not apply to iOS and OSX.
Three new screenshots for Ubisoft's upcoming post-apocalytpic online-multiplayer hybrid highlight the game's impressive next-gen visuals.
A batch of new screenshots for Creative Assembly's anticipated horror-survival Alien game surface, showing off some fresh looks at xenomorphs, in-game environments, and more.
Telltale Games gives a brief look at Clementine's struggles in the highly anticipated sequel to their celebrated episodic series, giving gamers a glimpse at what's to come in Episode One: All That Remains.
ZeniMax Online has revealed when their ambitious new open-world MMORPG, The Elder Scrolls Online, will launch onto PC and next-gen consoles.
The second season of acclaimed adventure game The Walking Dead will be launching before Christmas, according to a FAQ on the developer’s website.
The Playstation 4 and Xbox One are in the spotlight right now, but Valve’s upcoming Steam Box may be a larger threat to traditional consoles than most people realize.
Steam has fast risen to become the preeminent digital distribution service for PC gaming with 65 million registered users.
One of the most eagerly awaited Microsoft-exclusive titles will be launching on March 11.
Ubisoft has announced that its upcoming open-world stealth game Watch Dogs has been delayed until spring next year.
Valve has released a new trailer that shows the Steam Controller being used to play games like Portal 2 and Civ 5, demonstrating the device's trackpads and overall flexibility with real-time gaming.
Irrational Games has released a brand new gameplay trailer for BioShock: Infinite's upcoming Burial at Sea DLC, which takes players back to the submerged city of Rapture for a whole new iconic journey.
A Reddit user has recently made unverified claims to have beta access to the much-awaited PC version of Grand Theft Auto V, complete with screenshot "evidence". The online petition for GTA V on PC has also amassed over half a million signatures, and continues to grow everyday.
The definitive South Park RPG adventure has been pushed back and delayed over and over, but Ubisoft has finally delivered a concrete release date that's right in time for the holiday season.
EA has announced that Battlefield 4 will enter public beta on October 1st and will be available on the PC, Xbox 360 and PS3. The publisher has also mentioned that the game, along with two other launch titles, will be available for the Xbox One starting November 19th and November 12th for PlayStation 4.
It's official: Gearbox has confirmed that Borderlands 2 will get the Game of the Year treatment, and will be filled to the brim with content for a multi-platform release this October.


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While the open-source Android operating system dominates the mobile device market--holding an 80 percent share--Apple's (NASDAQ: AAPL) iOS is far and away the preferred device for online video streaming. According to data provided by Verizon Digital Media Services (VDMS), 64 percent of mobile viewers use iOS to stream video.
Why? The answer is simple, Verizon (NYSE: VZ) says in detailing its findings, compiled from various sources including its VDMS live-streaming data early in 2015: device fragmentation. Online video providers only have to encode video for 24 distinct iOS devices in today's marketplace. But they have to figure out a much bigger puzzle when faced with more than 18,000 Android-based devices that were on the market in 2014.
Detail from a VDMS infographic illustrates the device fragmentation issue. (Source: Verizon Digital Media Services)
Of course, VDMS is using the information to tout its encoding services, driven by its UpLynk solution, at the Mobile World Congress 2015 trade show in Barcelona, Spain, this week.
But the implication for the online video industry as a whole is perhaps more concerning. Streaming providers have yet to settle on a single encoding standard--though HTML5 seems to be gaining more steam at this point with Netflix's adoption. Also, there are three adaptive bitrate formats to choose from: Apple's HTTP live streaming, Adobe's Dynamic streaming, or Microsoft's Smooth streaming format. And Verizon isn't wrong when it says the cost of encoding a video stream can quickly spiral upwards to as high as $2.5 million for every 50,000 hours of video streams.
Verizon is likely planning a more direct demonstration of its single-point encoding solution later this year, when it launches an as-yet-unnamed OTT service. CFO Fran Shammo hinted at what the service would entail on Monday at the Morgan Stanley Technology, Media & Telecom Conference 2015.
The "mobile first" OTT service will include multicast technology that Verizon has been trialing for several months now, Shammo noted, saying that its LTE Multicast component is an efficient way to deliver live video to millions of viewers at the same time, such as the Super Bowl.
VDMS is a central player in Verizon's over-the-top strategy. It made some key acquisitions in late 2013, including EdgeCast, which gave it a strong CDN component, and UpLynk, an adaptive streaming startup, to drive its end-to-end online video strategy. The unit handles more than 5 percent of all Internet traffic worldwide and connects to over 2,000 Internet service providers.
- see this Verizon infographic (PDF)
Show coverage: MWC Live 2015
Verizon's Shammo: Internet of Things, OTT video will drive future growth
As networks strain, pay-TV operators begin embracing OTT distribution
Wi-Fi Multicast: Ericsson, Cisco see new tech as complementary to LTE Multicast
Mike Dano contributed to this article.

domain: news


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Event Recap: A Look Inside Tokyo's sacai x Nike Collaboration Launch
Tokyo’s movers and shakers hit up the sacai flagship store in Aoyama to launch the label’s latest collaboration with Nike. The excitement surrounding Chitose Abe’s latest designs was undeniable, with the designer’s latest co-branded apparel, and the new LDV Waffle colourways on display for all to see.
The space was given a special fit-out for the launch, including a stunning projection display featuring the face of the campaign: tennis star Naomi Osaka.
The night swiftly gathered momentum, with the room packing out in quick time. Renowned artist KAWS also managed to make an appearance, adding some star power to the launch. The people certainly love ‘Brian’!
Huge thanks to sacai for letting us attend the event! Check out the galleries ahead of the latest sacai x Nike LDV Waffle release.


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the Unreal SDK free to all users, it got Crytek to thinking -- specifically, thinking about doing the same thing. Speaking to Develop, Crytek CEO Cevat Yerli said that his company is looking to offer a free platform for budding game developers "that will be up to speed" with CryEngine 3.
It's nothing new to Crytek, which offered free versions of its previous platforms to the modding community, but this new venture is something different -- a "standalone free platform that people can run independent of CryEngine that will also be up to speed with the latest engine," Yerli hopes. While he's quick to point out it's not the same thing as what Epic and Unity are doing -- another popular game development tool that offers a bit of variety in free and premium toolsets -- we're hard-pressed to find much of a difference between the two.
Crytek curently has no timetable for release of the new platform, nor has it commented on potential tech and licensing agreements stemming from the new venture.


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The fully flexible smartphone which Samsung is rumoured to be developing at the moment may be a year or two from hitting the market, but industry insiders quoted by The Investor suggest that the South Korean manufacturer may have a foldable device in the works, which takes a slightly more traditional approach to this problem.
Rather than fashioning the entire handset from flexible components, Samsung is apparently going to put together a pair of OLED displays and attach them to one another with a hinge in the centre, mirroring the kind of design seen on the Motorola RAZR over a decade ago.
Observers have pointed out that this flip phone-like quality could make the handset more of a retro revival; a throwback to earlier designs which also hints at the possibilities for fully foldable handsets in the future.
Making the leap into true flexibility will require that the entire display is able to be folded and twisted, which means using glass to cover it could ultimately be out of the question. But the promise of a model which will bridge the gap may be enough to keep consumers content until Samsung’s next big breakthrough is made.


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- December 6, 2019 / 8 min readThe company has launched Spike in Mumbai, Pune, Bengaluru, Goa and Delhi in bottle and can formats.
White Owl Brewery, which sells the eponymous beer brand, has introduced a strong craft beer called Spike. This is a first in the craft beer segment in India.
The company has launched Spike in Mumbai, Pune, Bengaluru, Goa, and Delhi in the bottle and can formats.
Javed Murad, Founder of White Owl Brewery, said, “Spike is a much-needed addition to our local beer space where strong beer holds 85% market share with no craft beer participant, until now. This variant brings together craft beer and strong beer into the same bottle.”
Spike: A strong craft beer
Spike is a handcrafted German Weizenbock (strong wheat beer) with banana and clove flavor. It has a higher ABV (alcoholic by volume) of 7.9% as against the mild 5% in traditional craft beer.
“The new variant will contribute to White Owl’s distribution network expansion three-fold in the coming 6-10 months,” Murad added.
The strong craft beer is a common phenomenon in developed craft beer markets across Western Europe and North America. A 500 ml will cost about Rs 170.
In October, White Owl Brewery has secured Rs 40 crore in its second round of funding led by existing investors IIFL India Private Equity Fund. The funds have been raised to expand the geographic footprint to cash in on the rising popularity of craft beer.
The Mumbai-based brewer had announced that the fresh capital will be utilized to widen its product portfolio and newer formats, including the launch of a strong craft beer under the brand name Spike.
So far, the company has raised Rs 70 crore and the latest equity financing round was believed to have valued the firm at a little more than Rs 200 crore.
As part of its expansion plans, White Owl Brewery is eyeing to foray into five new markets across North and South India as well as two global markets by the end of FY 20. The brewery will also be adding Spike’s kegs to its existing offering of bottles and cans in order to cater to the increasing demand for craft beer on tap.
India still favors strong beer with over 80% share. Beer giants like United Breweries, Anheuser-Busch Inbev and Carlsberg have been producing stronger variants of their flagship beer brands, a segment where White Owl had no presence at all until now.
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One in five U.S. adults has read an e-book, survey says
E-books are catching on quickly, with more than one in five U.S. adults having read an electronic book in the last year.
The rise of electronic reading devices like Amazon.com Inc.'s Kindle, Barnes & Noble’s Nook and Apple’s iPad has opened the e-book floodgates, and many more readers are supplementing their print reading with electronic books.
According to a new survey from the Pew Research Center, four times more people said they read an electronic book the day before than in 2010. Moreover, many people who read electronically say they spend more time reading than they used to, potentially a side-effect of the convenience of the devices, and the lower cost of digital books.
Pew also asked readers what they preferred about digital books to print ones. Many said they liked being able to buy books quickly, to have access to a wide selection of electronic titles, and to be able to travel with many books. But print books won when it came to reading books to kids and sharing them with friends or family.
“When asked about reading books in bed, the verdict was split: 45% prefer reading e-books in bed, while 43% prefer print,” the study said.
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SIOUX CITY -- Siouxland has a food culture and it has a wine culture. But does it have a coffee culture?
Ryan Martinez thinks so, and it all starts with some quality Joe.
"Many of us can't start our day without coffee," he said, sipping from a cup of freshly brewed caffeine. "I wanted to create an event for coffee lovers by coffee lovers."
Featuring more than 20 different vendors, the Siouxland Coffee Festival will be taking place from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday at the Sioux City Convention Center, 801 Fourth St.
The tri-state region's only coffee festival, the event will offer samplings, coffee trivia, live entertainment as well as showcasing latte art from some of Siouxland's best baristas.
Proceeds for the Siouxland Coffee Festival will benefit VolunteerSiouxland.org, a Sioux City-based nonprofit organization, headed by Martinez, that connects volunteers to other nonprofit organizations that need their help.
Partnering with the coffee festival as one of its corporate sponsors is Caturra Roasting Company, which supplies coffee to businesses across the Midwest.
"Over the past decade or so, we've seen coffee go from what you'd grab at a gas station to something you'd actually want to drink," explained Caturra Coffee's Nick Topf. "People's perception of coffee is expanding and so are their palates."
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Which is why he's excited about educating festival attendees to the differing tastes of beans from other regions. In addition, brewing also affects taste.
"The history of coffee is just as complex as the history of wine," Topf said. "I enjoy making the complicated into something that can also be accessible.'
After all, what is more ubiquitous than a daily jolt of java, right?
"When I started in this business, Sioux City had a handful of places offering quality lattes, espresso and cappuccino," Topf said. "Nowadays, there are several outlets offering top-quality coffees."
Martinez nodded his head in agreement.
"We want the Siouxland Coffee Festival to bring friends, neighbors and coffee lovers together," he said. "We want people to leave the event with new insight on all things coffee."
Martinez also wants to inform people on the importance of volunteerism in Siouxland.
"There are plenty of excellent nonprofit organizations out there as well as volunteers willing to help," he said.


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If the Postal Service is to recover from its current financial problems, it needs revenue. In addition to identifying additional sources of revenue, it must protect the revenue it is already due whether it comes in from the post office window, meters, online postage accounts, or from Permit accounts for business mailers. Ensuring that the Postal Service collects all of its revenue will help secure the agency’s position as a trusted service provider for years to come.
The global pandemic of COVID-19 has impacted our country in ways that were unimaginable months ago. It is changing how people across the U.S. and around the world are working, shopping, even interacting with one another. States have ordered many stores and businesses to close. Businesses that...Read More


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WISO warns of life-threatening slimming and weight loss supplements
The ZDF consumer magazine “WISO” has found dangerous, sometimes life-threatening ingredients in slimming products and supplements from the Internet. Some of them are banned substances, as the magazine reports on Monday evening.
At least questionable to sometimes life-threatening The ZDF consumer magazine "WISO" was able to demonstrate dangerous ingredients in slimming and body-building products ordered from the Internet. A total of twelve different products were examined. The testers found substances in seven substances which were classified in the range from “at least questionable” to “possibly hazardous to health” to “life-threatening”. These ingredients should not be marketed on the Internet, but only through pharmacies with medical supervision.
Criminal complaint and authority warning In one case, a criminal complaint was filed based on the "WISO" search and in another case the State Center for Health of North Rhine-Westphalia (LZG. NRW), based in Münster, issued a warning that went beyond the German state borders Attracted attention. The magazine had the ordered products in the LZG. Have NRW examined.
Not the first warning During the investigations, high-dose dinitrophenol (DNP) was discovered in a slimming product, which can be fatal even at low doses. The fat burner reaches the limits as "pure caffeine". The North Rhine-Westphalian Ministry of Health had warned of the substance a few months earlier. "The substance DNP is toxic and is suspected of causing cancer. It is particularly dangerous that the substance accumulates in the body (accumulation) and thus even small doses can have serious and life-threatening effects, such as a drop in blood pressure, cardiac arrhythmias, rapid overheating of the body, shortness of breath, multi-organ failure and much more, ”wrote the ministry.
Male breast growth and female body hair In other samples, the no longer approved active ingredient sibutramine was detected. The substance can cause serious side effects such as high blood pressure or irregular heartbeat. It was found in the slimming products Ultra Effect and Leisure 18. In two of the investigational supplements for athletes (M1D and Dianabol), the scientists found DHEA, a hormone that is considered to be the precursor of testosterone. It causes breast growth in men and male body hair in women. Rimonabant, a previously approved weight loss drug, was discovered in another agent. Since it triggers an increased risk of suicide among users, it is now prohibited.
Purely vegetable may mean traces of plants. Another problem that has been identified in the products tested is that the declaration often does not match the ingredients. In addition Dr. Matthias Heuermann from the LZG. NRW: “Products are often sold as purely vegetable, to increase performance, increase potency, as hair restorer, as a means of losing weight. "Purely vegetable" means nothing in this case, except that there may be traces of plants. "So everyone who uses such resources from the Internet exposes themselves to a great risk.
Imprisonment of up to five years Even though German customs seized 2.5 million tablets last year alone, the total amount of illegal funds that are smuggled into Germany remains unknown. If private individuals order such funds online, they are punishable by law. In the best case, the fine remains, and in the worst case, there is a prison sentence of up to five years. The “WISO” feature will be broadcast on ZDF on Monday, July 1st at 7:25 pm.
Image: Gisela Peter / pixelio.de


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MeMD was recently featured in Counselor Magazine as a “trend to Watch”
Read an excerpt from the article below…
By Betsy Cummings
Want to know the industry’s hottest business trends for 2015? They may surprise you. Get ready for crowd-funding projects and dialing up doctors. Here, we highlight some of the biggest challenges distributors are facing and the solutions they’re dreaming up to remain top players within the marketplace.
Curing Health-Care Ills
“Outside of payroll, health care is the highest expense I have as a business owner,” says Dan Crandall, owner of Fine Print Commercial Printers Inc. (asi/194109), based in Meadville, PA. The Affordable Care Act (ACA) has been promising relief for Crandall and others struggling to foot their firm’s health-care bill. But “the jury is still very much out on whether anything in the legislation has had a positive effect on the downward pressure on pricing,” says Jim O’Connor, president of CBIZ, a business services firm in Manasquan, NJ.
Starting this January, the government’s Small Business Health Options Program (SHOP), which helps companies with 50 or fewer employees shop for coverage, says shopping and comparing plans will be easier for businesses and their employees. Essentially, SHOP takes the idea of insurance exchanges, in which consumers can shop for various insurance options in one place, to the business-to-business market, says Mark Greutman, a financial expert and blogger based in Syracuse, NY.
But O’Connor and others insist that even after the ACA launch, SHOP and the benefit of health-care exchanges, the only way to reduce company health-care expenses is to raise co-pays and deductibles and ask employees to carry a larger share of health-care costs. Not that it helps, says Crandall, who adds that his insurance renewal rates have climbed as much as 40% year over year, an increase that seems unconscionable when compared to other markets. “If I went to the grocery store and bread or milk went up 40% I’d be flipping out,” Crandall says.
Those kinds of price increases have sent small-business owners scrambling for other strategies to reduce health-care costs, often with little success. One option, says O’Connor, is for executives to lean on services such as medical hotlines where, for a nominal fee, doctors and nurses are available 24/7 to diagnose employee ailments and prescribe medicines so that staffers don’t have to waste time and money in urgent care or a doctor’s office.
One service, MeMD, charges businesses less than $35 per month per employee to provide around-the-clock access to medical professionals, says John Shufeldt, founder and CEO of Scottsdale-based MeMD. The company, he says, has been growing more than 300% a year since it was founded in 2010. The idea is one that many companies are embracing – save money on health-care expenses and lost productivity by having employee medical concerns answered in the office. That can save employers as much as $700 per emergency room visit or 90 minutes lost in a doctor’s office, Shufeldt says.


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Tag Archives: beckys affiliated
- Becky’s Affiliated: Top tips on how to film the best Skype video interview
May 10, 2018
With video content blowing up these days, knowing how to produce the best quality Skype video interview is essential.
- Becky’s Affiliated: iGaming companies can benefit from being a BCH early mover
May 3, 2018
Becky Liggero walks down the memory lane as she look back on her London Bitcoin Conference 2013 coverage and what it is now.
- Becky’s Affiliated: Oron Barber on Bitcoin Cash and moving the industry forward
April 26, 2018
A Bitcoin Cash adopter, CoinPoint believes in the currency for direct applications to the iGaming industry and far beyond.
- Becky’s Affiliated: How iGaming operators can make the most of GDPR with Andy Masters
April 19, 2018
The XCM executive explains how UK operators can cope with new regulations, especially with EU’s General Data Protection Regulation.
- Becky’s Affiliated: Catching up with BitPay, BCH solves pain points for their merchants & customers
April 12, 2018
BitPay’s mission statement has always been to solve payment pain points for their merchants and customers.
- Becky’s Affiliated: How True Flip is pushing the blockchain iGaming platform envelope
April 5, 2018
In this week's Becky's Affiliated, True Flip's co-founder and CMO Konstantin Katsev talks about reinventing the idea of slots with the use of blockchain.
Virtue Poker’s Ryan Gittleson teaching blockchain to a bonehead
September 13, 2017
FlowPlay & DragonChain bring blockchain tech to social gaming
December 4, 2017


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A press release said the company was opening up its early-stage reseller program by inviting select Value Added Resellers (VARs) to work with the cloud computing provider. So, who can avail of the referral programme? According to ProfitBricks, it was aimed at developers, IT consultants, system integrators, independent software vendors and even well-connected technology influencers looking for recurring revenue streams from a next-generation cloud provider.
"We are seeing high growth in services related to the cloud while knowledge and labor pools remain tight,” said John Bostick, President of dbaDIRECT, a select referral partner of ProfitBricks.”
Qualified referral partners can earn as much as 25 per cent of ProfitBricks' net revenue on customers when they refer a sales lead that signs up by March 31, 2013. For customers who sign between April 1 and June 30, the referral bonus, though will be 20 per cent of net revenue. In all cases, compensation will continue for the length of the customer contract up to three years.
"We believe the ProfitBricks Referral Program offers referral partners the most lucrative option for selling cloud services,” said VP of Business Development at ProfitBricks Scott Brazina. “We want a chance to prove ourselves to the channel, ISVs, Telecoms, startups and other organizations with IaaS needs. This kind of program demonstrates our commitment to the channel.”
Founded in 2010 by the previous co-founders of 1&1 AG, ProfitBricks, which has its headquarters in Berlin, Germany, and Massachusetts, USA, claims to have built the world's first, true virtual datacentre, enabling users custom defined instances with live vertical scaling and class-leading double redundant cloud storage
Highlighting the positives of its services, the company claimed in the press release that an independent test conducted by Cloud Spectator had shown that ProfitBricks had outperformed both Amazon EC2 with 227 per cent greater UnixBench score and the Rackspace Cloud with 194 percent faster I/O.
Among many new technology firsts, ProfitBricks introduced an InfiniBand backed network to cloud computing, the same technology used in high performance computing environments (HPC). This provides the ProfitBricks cloud architecture with up to 80 Gbit/s private network speed, more than eight times the available speed from any other cloud provider.
[Image Credits: ProfitBricks]


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Google has officially announced the Android Oreo, and it’s time for the smartphone brands now. It slowly push the new operating (OS) to their lineup of the Android smartphones. The first to receive the Andriod Oreo update is Google Pixel smartphone.
The end of 2017, the other smartphones brands expects to start to roll out the Andriod Oreo update. The Nokia has promised to be one of the among of first to deliver the Android Oreo update. The other brands of mobiles are yet to comment officially.
Android Oreo Update expected for 13 Xiaomi smartphones:
The tech giant said its own devices were concerned the latest Android software. It will be available for the Nexus 6P, Nexus 5X, Nexus Player, Google Pixel, Google Pixel XL and Google Pixel C.
Google said, “They are pushing the sources to the AOSP (Android Open Source) for everyone to use today. The Nexus 5X phone, Nexus 6P phone and Google Pixel have entered the carrier testing. They expect to start the out in phase soon, alongside the Nexus Player and Pixel C.
Still have not received the new software update, head over the Android Developer websites to manually and download the system images.
The upcoming pixel Phone aka Pixel XL 2 and Pixel 2 is said to release with the Andriod 8 Oreo. They are working with several companies to bring the Andriod Oreo to some other devices.
Android Oreo Companies list:
The companies are General Mobile, Essential, Huawei, HTC, HMD Global Home of Nokia Phones, Kyocera, Motorola, LG, Samsung, Sony, and Sharp. The list doesn’t include Xiaomi, some user name Moin Khan took the Quora that the dozens of the smartphones by the Chinese smartphone maker. They will get an update to Android Oreo.
Next year, the Chinese smartphone brand Xiaomi expects to roll out the Android Oreo update. Only the Xiaomi Company is already known to slow with its update circle. The tentative lists of the Android Oreo Compatible device are out.
The 13 Xiaomi smartphones that are expected to receive the Android Oreo update:
Xiaomi Redmi Note 3
Xiaomi Redmi Note 4
Xiaomi Mi 5S
Mi 5S Plus
Xiaomi Redmi 3S
Xiaomi Redmi 3S Prime
Xiaomi Redmi 4X
Redmi Note 4X
Xiaomi Redmi 4
Xiaomi Mi Mix
The Version 8 or Android O is not the significantly major update. Now Google is mainly focusing on the better the notifications experience, fixing battery life and introduce the Bluetooth wireless audio through Sony’s LDAC technology.
The other interesting feature is along with the picture-in-picture mode. It will improve the multitasking apart from the redesigned adaptive icons, new emojis, etc.


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Wii U rumors: Limiting chipset for controller, developer issues, release date talk
August 23rd, 2011 Posted in Posted by Valay, Rumors, Wii U
01Net published an article yesterday regarding information they’ve received about the 3DS. Today, they’ve followed up with some Wii U rumors.
The first topic of discussion focuses on the controller’s main chipset. There is apparently some concern that it is limiting. 01Net’s source goes as far as to say that it might be “a tad too cheap”. The site also claims that wireless capabilities aren’t functioning just yet and a fourth prototype will be made available before month’s end.
“So far, the Wii U controller’s main chipset – that manages the device’s essential functions, including streaming and wireless – seems inadequate. This chip, described by our source as maybe a tad too cheap, has been the sources of many headaches in recent weeks. So far, the wireless functions simply do not work – at all. There have been so far three different prototypes, and a fourth iteration is expected by select developers at the end of the month.”
01Net goes on to discuss the controller, which “is fitted with a small black box”. The kits supposedly don’t work as they should and developers are allegedly having issues with Wii U.
01Net’s comments in full on the situation:
“So far, developers are working with a tethered controller: each one is fitted with a small black box with a tethered connection to the main unit. And even then, it still doesn’t work properly. Many developers are feeling lost, their progress impeded by a distinct lack of visibility, their working days paced by the quasi-daily software updates. In those conditions, many feel unable to properly exploit the system’s most innovative and promising features, those very features they haven’t been able to test properly so far.”
You have to wonder how much of this is true. So far, third-parties have been very positive about creating games for Wii U. Vigil, for instance, even said that “it’s definitely a lot easier [to develop for] than say the PS3 was.”
Lastly, 01Net talks about when Wii U may launch. Although “developers are still expecting a June 2012 release”, it could be delayed to September. That’s assuming any of this is even true, of course.
“Ten months before the tentative release date – developers are still expecting a June 2012 release – the fact that Nintendo engineers are still struggling to make this supposedly final architecture function properly is worrisome at best. Could Nintendo have to make radical last-minute changes, and if so, what would be the cost? This unexpected development runs contrary to Nintendo’s reputation for carefully weighing all tech options long before any announcement. Inside the company, there have been talks of a delayed release, with September as a new tentative date. Being three months off-schedule doesn’t seem such a big issue, when compared to a home console’s life cycle. But this is not 2006 anymore. The industry is undergoing a radical mutation, and there is a growing amount of rumors positioning Microsoft’s next system to be unveiled during the 2012 E3 conference, and a relase in short order. If that was to happen, the Wii U would only enjoy a few months of ‘optimal run’ alongside the Xbox 360, which would essentially moot the much-touted ease with which developers can port 360 code for the Wii U. To succeed in its incredibly audacious endeavour, Nintendo will have to walk a very tight rope.”
Like yesterday’s report, you should take 01Net’s article with a grain of salt…


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Samsung Galaxy S10 series will be unveiled during the Galaxy Unpacked event on February 20 and as we move closer to the official launch date of the Samsung Galaxy S10 lineup, leaks related to the upcoming series from Samsung have also caught up some pace. In a recent leak, Samsung Galaxy S10 and Samsung Galaxy S10e images have been leaked which reportedly reveal the final design of the two smartphones.
In a recent tweet, Evan Blass shared the images of reportedly the final design of the Samsung Galaxy S10 and Samsung Galaxy S10e which show that while the Galaxy S10 will come with a triple tear camera setup positioned horizontally at the center, the Galaxy S10e will come with a dual rear camera set up along with an LED flash. On the other hand, there will also be the Infinity-O display with punch hole design housing the front camera sensor.
Also, the Samsung Galaxy S10 display seems to be curved from the edges for a better edge-to-edge and full display front design while the Samsung Galaxy S10e, which is going to be the most affordable offering in the lineup, can be seen with noticeable bezels on both the sides.
Samsung Galaxy S10e (Credit: Evan Blass)
Meanwhile, a different report has hinted that the limited edition Samsung Galaxy S10+ with 1TB storage and 12GB RAM will be made available globally starting from March 15, 2019. On the other hand, the Samsung Galaxy S10+ is also expected to sport the same triple rear camera setup as that of the Galaxy S10, however. At the front, there will be dual cameras housed inside the Infinity-O display.
Coming to the specifications, the whole Samsung Galaxy S10 series will be powered by the Exynos 9820 chipset. For the US versions, the Samsung Galaxy S10, Galaxy S10 Plus and Galaxy S10e will be powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 SoC. There will also be an in-display fingerprint scanner in the Samsung Galaxy S10 and Galaxy S10+ while the affordable Galaxy S10e is expected to come with a side-mounted fingerprint scanner embedded inside the power button.


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Since 1999, Aveda has raised over $32 million to help support organizations that directly affect environmental change through the brand's Earth Month initiative. This year, actress Mary-Louise Parker showed her support for the Aveda Earth Month 2014 clean water efforts by visiting the Aveda Institute on Spring Street in New York City. She spent some time in the Institute looking at the Catwalk for Water "trashion" dresses - a collection of gowns created from recycled material by Aveda stylists around the world.
Thursday, April 3, 2014 - 10:47am
Trevor Attenborough, President and General Manager of KAO USA Salon, announced the upcoming opening of the new Goldwell KMS California Academy in the heart of New York’s fashionable Meatpacking District at 22 Little West 12th Street. Slated to open its doors in June 2014, this design forward 6500 square foot space will be the brand’s newest East Coast flagship academy, and will proudly serve as partner to the Goldwell KMS California Academy’s acclaimed, original Santa Monica location.
Thursday, April 3, 2014 - 10:37am
Macadamia Natural Oil recently announced the appointment of Scott Smith as Vice President of Business Development for Asia and Australia. Smith comes to Macadamia with over 20 years of beauty industry experience in multiple categories and channels with domestic and international markets. In this role, Smith will be responsible for customer development to include leadership and direction, market revenue, account management, analysis, forecasts, and coordinating and executing global and local initiatives.
Thursday, April 3, 2014 - 10:26am
Anyone who straightens their hair knows it takes both time and skill, and they wish they had more of both. Sam Villa, founding partner of the Sam Villa brand and education artistic director for Redken 5th Avenue advises to instruct guests to “slow down to speed up,” meaning slow down the pass with the flat iron so heat and compression can straighten hair faster. See more of Villa's tips below for achieving pin-straight hair in minutes:Fastest Way to Straighten Hair
Wednesday, April 2, 2014 - 4:22pm
Sometimes the right makeup can work wonders, not just in changing the way a person looks, but also the way he or she feels. In fact, over 60% of American say they have a skin concern that they would consider camouflaging with cosmetics. Dermablend Professional dares people to take off their makeup in a series of YouTube Camo Confessions. The idea is for people to show how they have used Dermablend cosmetics to "blend in" in order to "stand out" for who they are and not for their skin issues.
Wednesday, April 2, 2014 - 3:08pm
At a recent appearance on the Ellen Degeneres Show, actress Jennifer Love Hewitt revealed a dramatic new hair transformation. The new mom traded in her dark brunette locks for golden-blonde strands with contrasting caramel lowlights for a fun, fresh look.The star has been known to rock every shade from dark red to warm, highlighted chestnut and nearly every shade of brunette, but this is her first time rocking the blonde look in years. With grown out fringe and longer tresses, the look is fun and flirty![Image: Jon Kopaloff via Getty Images]
Wednesday, April 2, 2014 - 12:49pm
SHE by SO.CAP.USA Hair Extensions has extended the deadline for their extensionists’ talent contest to April 30th, 2014.
Wednesday, April 2, 2014 - 10:51am
The Professional Beauty Association (PBA) will host a new webinar titled "Average to Iconic - The 3 Secrets to Being a Great Speaker," that will help beauty industry professionals and business owners overcome their fear of public speaking. This web event will give tips on developing emotional connections with the primary audience while effectively working personal brands and services into the message.
Tuesday, April 1, 2014 - 12:15pm
For the past few years I have been showing my support to women with cancer by donating my hair to various charities that provide wigs to those in need.
Tuesday, April 1, 2014 - 10:48am
Old stuffy classrooms are a thing of the past. Uberliss recently offered an interactive online training session for select stylists. The class was presented through Google Hangouts using Google Glass. Attendees were able to view a live presentation of the Uberliss Smoothing System from the comfort of their own homes. The Uberliss Glass Class took place on Monday, February 24, at Glam Studio by Ben in Chicago, IL.
Tuesday, April 1, 2014 - 10:36am


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Indonesia Central Bank to Issue Digital CurrencyJuly 23, 2022
Indonesia’s central bank is getting set to introduce the digital Rupiah to the country’s economy. It will be the only permitted digital means of exchange in the country. The central bank is also working to make sure it can be exchanged between borders.
Digital Rupiah Due by Year’s End
The monetary authority in Indonesia is moving ahead with its plan of issuing the digital currency. The national fiat currency’s digital version is first targeted at settlement for wholesale deals.
The central bank’s governor said the digital Rupiah’s design will be released by year end. Governor Warjiyo Perry said the principle will be the same as the physical currency. He emphasized that it will be the sole legal tender for electronic transactions.
The central bank has been working on the possibility of launching its CBDC since 2021. Its primary plan is to be ahead of the wave of cryptocurrency adoption globally. This was stated in the bank’s report.
Monetary authorities of other countries in the same region are also considering the same move. They plan on integrating blockchain tech in improving settlements and transfers. This includes the central banks in Australia and the Philippines, considering digital currencies too.
Malaysia, Singapore, Australia, and South Africa announced their intentions to try cross-border settlements with CBDCs. Their central banks said the goal is to create a unified platform for international payments. The platform will be able to use different state digital currencies.
The CBDC Value Chain
The Bank of Indonesia is trying out technological options alongside counterpart banks. It is also working on building the cybersecurity offerings of the digital currency. The CBDC will be sent to payment centers and large banks when issued.
They will then sell the digital currency to smaller banks over various transactions. An economist, Wellian Wiranto, said the process will help avoid banks’ disintermediation. This is necessary in the event of crises.
It will also remove the possibility of users choosing to bank with the central bank directly. This happens when they avoid commercial banks for risks.
The concept of a CBDC extends beyond the Australia-Indonesia region. Other countries in Africa and South America are weighing the idea.
Other countries, on the other hand, are absolutely permitting other cryptocurrencies. Various states are working on implementing crypto policies to keep a track.


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Kal Penn goes to White Castle — this time to convince meat lovers to try its Impossible Burger
The esteemed film Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle debuted at the box office in July 2004. More than 14 years later, Kal Penn, who played Kumar, is returning to the burger joint, but this time for a very different reason.
On Wednesday, White Castle announced the addition of the Impossible Burger to its menu nationwide. After a successful pilot program in April, when 140 stores across New York, New Jersey and the Chicago metropolitan area sold the meatless burger, the brand has fully committed to its Impossible Slider, which retails for $1.99. For those unfamiliar, the Impossible Burger is the veggie patty darling of Silicon Valley: Made to “bleed” and resemble beef in both taste and texture, the plant-based burger is drastically better for the environment than conventional cow-based patties.
Penn, who’s partnered with Impossible and White Castle for the roll out, thinks the country needs more options for nonvegetarians who care about the planet. “A lot of vegetarian burgers are geared toward a vegetarian market,” he said by phone. “This one is for people who want a delicious burger and would prefer it didn’t come from environmentally destructive sources.” Penn said he tried the burger at a Bareburger and so truly didn’t believe it was vegetarian that he asked the waitress to exchange it for the meatless version. It’s that convincing. (When the author of this article, who’s been vegetarian for over a decade, tried the Impossible Burger, she had a similar moment of disbelief.)
“There are relatively limited choices for people who want to make better decisions,” Penn said. With White Castles located all around the country, more consumers will have access to plant-based alternatives at an accessible price point. As Penn put it, “The idea that a plant-based meat burger would be in all of these places is super exciting. I’m excited that consumers have that choice now.”
The actor/producer/former civil servant has been an on-again-off-again vegetarian since his high school years. One of these on-again periods coincided with the filming of Harold and Kumar — and this was before the chain had any vegetarian offerings. In order for Penn to eat onscreen, a prop person would fashion White Castle slider look-alikes out of soy patties, Penn said.
More recently, Penn redeclared vegetarianism in June 2017 when President Donald Trump announced he’d be withdrawing the United States from the Paris agreement. “I was one of many people tweeting nasty comments about it,” Penn said. It was a moment for him to commit to his beliefs.
“Everybody knows the way we produce and consume meat is one of the greatest causes of global warming. If I felt so strongly [about the Paris agreement] maybe I should make some decisions that actually make a difference,” he said of his decision to go off meat again.
A few months later, he invested in Impossible Burger. “I wanted to put my money where my mouth is,” Penn said. What he seems to be most passionate about, however, is the taste of Impossible. This is where he sees the most potential impact. “Culturally, here is finally a plant-based meat burger that conjures up the exact same memories we associate with burgers,” Penn said, citing moments like family barbecues and Fourth of July cookouts. “I don’t remember ever having that feeling eating veggie burgers. It’s kind of fun — that’s the intangible part of it.”


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Life360 is a family safety app that over 33 million customers around the world use. It has a single purpose — to track your children's location in real-time through their smartphones. A story at The Markup discovered that the company is doing more with that data than just keeping parents informed of where their children are (and have been). Apparently, it is selling this location data to about a dozen companies that broker data to "virtually anyone who wants to buy it."
This isn't anything new, and there is a good chance that your location data has been sold in a very similar way. We've seen carriers and ad networks do something very similar when it comes to the location data collected from us. So many different companies collect user data that it's tough to keep track of where it's going and who can access it. It doesn't matter if you buy one of the best Android phones, or one of the cheapest, or even an iPhone. Someone is still collecting your data. One thing remains true, though — once this data is passed on to a "data broker," just about anyone with enough money can buy it.
This is another chapter in the saga of data brokers and their seemingly unchecked business model. Companies like Life360 aren't selling user data directly and instead go through what amounts to data clearinghouses that specialize in buying user data in bulk then reselling it in individual batches. Bounty hunters can buy your location data. Bill collectors can buy your location data. I can buy your location data, or you can buy mine. Most concerning of all, though, government agencies and law enforcement can buy your location data without your consent or judicial oversight.
Life360 did implement a policy that prohibits the reselling of user data to government agencies last year, with Hulls telling The Markup, "From a philosophical standpoint, we do not believe it is appropriate for government agencies to attempt to obtain data in the commercial market as a way to bypass an individual's right to due process." This doesn't address the selling of any user data prior to 2020, which has been ongoing since 2016.
This is very profitable for every company involved. In 2020, Life360 made 20 percent of its revenue from selling location data for the sum of $16 million. Companies that broker your location data are making even more by selling it in small chunks to the highest bidder for as little as $300. A single person's location data can be bought for as little as $8.42 after it all changes hands.
The changing hands part is doubly important when it comes to government agencies or law enforcement in the U.S. While each country has its data protection laws, in the U.S., it is illegal to collect data to sell directly to the government or law enforcement, but not illegal for the government or law enforcement to buy it.
When a chain is created where the data is collected by one party, sold to another and another, and eventually ends up being sold to a government agency, no laws have been broken. Unfortunately, because of this shady data collection and distribution chain, we can't be sure exactly who bought data collected by Life360. Still, we do know the company sold data to brokers that list the Department of Defense and the CDC as customers.
Life360 isn't breaking any laws and says it is technically abiding by its privacy agreement. Most companies that collect and sell data do the same. This is because there is no need to break any laws or contracts, and an entire industry is dedicated to making money from our personal details. I've said it before, and I'll say it again: data is currency, and we're paying a lot more than we think.
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Mugen has unveiled its line up of parts for Honda’s CR-Z just before the its official release in Japan.
Honda’s American arm has released new concept photos of the popular USDM Odyssey.
Honda has just released the final spec sheet for their 2010 Super GT contender, the HSV-010 GT..
Bring on the Insight Sports Modulo Concept..
With the last race of this year’s Super GT already over and done with, fans of Honda have been left wondering what will replace the current NSX GT car for next season.
I’m not going to lie to you. The 2009 Tokyo Motor Show was a pretty big letdown punctuated by pockets of expectation and amazement.
Not to be out done by rumors of Toyota and Subaru’s ‘Toyobaru’, Honda Japan has just released news that it’s CR-Z will go on sale early next year here in Japan. Read more
This week we’re putting together information to make your trip to Japan all the more enjoyable… preferably based around cars of course! This time let’s look at a selection of car manufacturer’s museums. Read more
For those not familiar with Japfest, it’s touted as the “largest Japanese car show in Europe” and previous years saw the cream of the UK J-scene turn up. However, the 2009 edition didn’t seem to offer a real representation of where the UK scene is at the moment. Read more
The original Honda Beat (May 1991 – February 1996) was one of the few “Kei” (lightweight) cars to offer rear wheel drive and a mid-engined layout. It made 64PS with its naturally aspirated 3 cylinder engine and quickly became a cult car among Kei car enthusiasts. Well Best Car Japan once again has the news and this time a new Honda Beat is on its way but, mechanically at least, will differ quite a lot from its predecessor. Read more


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Tech entrepreneur Elon Musk is showing off the first tests for his Boring Company, as his plans to create underground tunnels to ease traffic flow begin to take shape.
The CEO of electric car company Tesla and SpaceX took to Instagram to show off his car elevator.
The Boring Company is hoping to create a series of street-level elevators locking cars into trays, lowering them several stories beneath the road and slotting them onto tracks. The trays are whisked at up to 124 mph, according to the company.
Musk has been speaking to officials in Los Angeles about permits and regulations.
* Elon Musk boring into new modes of transportation
* Elon Musk gets ‘verbal approval’ for 350km Hyperloop tunnel
Musk has also supported efforts to build Hyperloop, a super-fast people and cargo transport through vacuum tubes. Early versions by several companies are expected to be tested this year.


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Tin Fish a small restaurant group with locations in California, Indiana and Florida has opened in the Sarasota Commons. The corner location next to LA Fitness if offering really good fish, especially their fish taco selections and a darn good bloody Mary. While I wish they added banquettes to the back wall to soften the space and make it less like a former pool hall, bottom line is that the food is really good.
The Tin Fish, 935 N. Beneva rd., tinfishsarasota.com
In the same plaza just a few doors down a new Chicago pizza restaurant opened. I will venturing over for a pie and a bowl of pasta so stay tuned.
Look for a new Mexican restaurant to take the place of Oceans Blue on Hillview. IF it is any good, that could be a fine spot for the neighborhoods that already offers Indian, Middle Eastern, Sushi, iconic brewed coffee and a few good burger bars.
Geckos is at it again. Now open just before Sam’s Club off Fruitville, the restaurant spot had been a loser for the past few places. With Geckos reputation though, this spot with a mini lake to enhance the view just may make it.
Confirmed rumors- Yes Andreas is working with the owner of the former Plaza restaurant on Longboat Key to reopen the renovated giant space. Look for Andrea’s talents to bring a new type of menu including pizzas and private functions, a chefs table in the kitchen and cooking classes.
Judi Gallagher & Associates


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The Thai electrical appliance industry is forecast to grow by 6% this year, lower than its 9% growth last year, as many negative factors are persuading people to delay their spending.
Jakkrit Keeratichokchaikun, senior vice-president and chief merchandising officer of Power Mall, said demand for electrical appliances has been slowing since early this year as many people have allocated their budgets to buy cars under the government's first-time car buyer scheme.
Moreover, the continuing popularity of smartphones has caused a huge drop in demand for personal computers.
Unclear details about the country's digital TV transition made some people delay TV purchases, with sales recording 20% negative growth in the first five months of this year.
The overall appliance sector is expected to grow by 6% in the first half, while whole-year sales growth will also be about 6%.
Last year's 9% growth reflected purchases to replace appliances damaged by the floods in late 2011.
"Sales at Power Mall in the first five months grew by 4-5%, due mainly to the delay in TV purchases," Mr Jakkrit said.
He believes poor stock market sentiment is making some investors suspend extra spending on appliances.
Power Mall expects to grow its sales by 6% to 10.2 billion baht by the end of this year. To achieve its goal, the company will work more closely with electrical suppliers to launch products to suit customer demand.
"The price war is very fierce so far, but speed and timing for product launches are important to spur consumer spending," Mr Jakkrit said.
The Power Mall Electronica Showcase is another marketing tool for Power Mall to boost its sales in the second half.
The company has allocated about 65 million baht to arrange the 12-day fair from tomorrow until July 7 at Royal Paragon Hall.
More than 200 brands of electrical appliances and information technology will be on display, while Sony, Panasonic and Samsung will showcase more than 40 TV models that can be used with digital TV.
Power Mall has also joined with banks to offer discounts of up to 36%, the highest it has offered in seven years, to spur demand at the event.
The company expects sales worth 370 million baht to be generated by the Bangkok fair.
About the author
- Writer: Pitsinee Jitpleecheep
Position: Business Reporter


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Hurtigruten has announced a special offer for all travel advisors to share with their clients.
Between September 10 and October 31, 2020, select 2021 Alaska itineraries and 2021 and 2022 Expedition Norway and Antarctica itineraries, will be offered at a buy one, get one at 50 percent dea; off using the code BOGOHO.
The featured promotion applies only to the cruise portion of the package, including taxes, feed, and port expenses.
“We’re constantly looking for ways to support and encourage our travel advisor community through exciting new offers for their clients,” said John Downey, president of Hurtigruten Americas. “This Buy One, Get One Half Off incentive applies to some of the most remote and desirable destinations travelers can experience in 2021 and 2022.”


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The Galaxy Z Fold 3 fixed several problems that affected the previous two generations. The 2021 handset is more durable than its predecessors, including the foldable screen. And it’s more affordable than Samsung’s previous Fold versions. But the Fold 3 still had some issues that customers complained about. One example is the camera, which Samsung might fix with the next-gen Galaxy Z Fold 4 phone.
The Galaxy Z Fold 3 is thicker and heavier than other phones. And it has an unusual aspect ratio when the phone is folded, compared to traditional devices. The new Fold 4 design aims to fix that. The phone will be significantly lighter than the Fold 3, according to reliable Samsung leaker Ice Universe. Moreover, the phone will be slightly shorter and slightly wider.
As a result, the handset will be easier to use when folded. But the phone will still be thicker than traditional devices. That’s a compromise we expect from all foldables that use this type of design.
The same leaker also has knowledge of the Fold 4’s camera system. Ice suggested on Twitter that Samsung is looking to improve the camera experience, although some compromises are also expected.
Galaxy Z Fold 4 camera specs
Some Galaxy Z Fold 3 buyers complained that the camera experience isn’t on par with the Galaxy S21 series, despite the flagship phones having launched in the same year
The leaker posted the camera specs for the new foldable phone on Twitter. If the information above is accurate, the Galaxy Z Fold 4 will feature a 50-megapixel wide camera, 12-megapixel ultra-wide camera, and a 12-megapixel telephoto camera capable of 3x zoom.
Increasing the pixel count alone does not guarantee a better camera experience. Nonetheless, Samsung used three 12-megapixel sensors on the Fold 3. The Z Fold 4 is in for a significant upgrade for the primary camera.
Ice also indicated that the zoom sensor might outperform the one on the Galaxy S22 Ultra.
But the leaker also warned that the Fold 4 camera upgrade might not satisfy all needs. He said the phone won’t offer “dramatic” camera hardware changes becasuse Samsung wants the handset to weigh less than 260 grams.
As a result, Samsung has to make some compromises when it comes to the overall Galaxy Z Fold 4 camera experience.
That means you won’t get the same zoom as a traditional phone. And the phone’s overall thickness might impact the camera module’s “bump.”
Galaxy phones don’t stay secret, but none of this will be confirmed until Samsung announces it. The Korean giant is expected to hold its Galaxy Z Fold 4 Unpacked press conference in August. This gives us about three months to learn more details about Samsung’s new foldables for 2022.


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engine - 6:02 pm on Mar 25, 2011 (gmt 0)
European Lawsuit May Have Ramifications For Trademark Keywords [nytimes.com]
A search under the word “Interflora” on Google’s search engine in Britain turns up sponsored advertisements for three different Web sites: Marks & Spencer’s, Asda’s and Interflora’s. Interflora argues that this misleads consumers.
The lawsuit is the latest in a series of cases in Europe in which the parameters of search engine advertising, which generates more than $20 billion a year for Google, are being defined.
In a landmark decision last year, the Court of Justice ruled that Google was not liable for trademark infringement in a case brought by LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton and other brand owners. LVMH argued that Google should block other advertisers from buying search keywords under LVMH trademarks like Louis Vuitton, saying these were often used to direct consumers to sites selling fake handbags and committing other trademark violations.
Rather than suing Google, Interflora went after a user of the service, Marks & Spencer. Nevertheless, if the court goes along with the advocate general’s opinion, something it generally does, the decision could have financial ramifications for Google if advertisers have less latitude to buy rivals’ brand names as keywords for so-called sponsored links, analysts said.


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PETALING JAYA: Top-Line Furniture Corporation, a furniture importer and wholesale distributor based in Chicago, Illinois in the US, has expressed its intention to increase its imports from Malaysia to RM230 million annually over the next few years.
In a statement today, Top-Line said it has been sourcing home furniture from Malaysia since 2000, with total imports amounting to about RM840 million to date.
Top-Line has fostered strong partnerships with some of the industry’s biggest players, including Wayfair.com, Bed Bath and Beyond, Overstock.com, Walmart.com, Target.com and Home Depot. It currently operates three distribution locations across the US spanning multiple channels, including wholesalers, online retailers and direct-to-consumer platforms. The company is among major US importers that have been importing from Malaysia for many years.
Top-Line made the pledge during a one-to-one business meeting with Investment, Trade and Industry Minister Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Aziz and ministry officials arranged by Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation in New York City.
Imports from Malaysia will grow in tandem with Top-Line’s expansion plan. New product sourcing from Malaysia will create an opportunity for the company to import RM230 million yearly of Malaysian-made furniture in the next few years.
The increase in sourcing will not only benefit furniture manufacturers but also supply chain players among micro, small and medium enterprises such as suppliers of components and parts (bolts and nuts), which leads to an increase in employment too.
The US Furniture Market Report 2022 stated that the US furniture market is expected to reach a value of US$288.9 billion (RM1.35 trillion) by 2026, with a compound annual growth rate of 4.47% from 2022 to 2026.
Malaysia exported RM13.86 billion of furniture globally in 2022, with the US being its top export destination at RM7.24 billion or 52.2% of the nation’s total furniture exports last year. Malaysia was the US’ sixth largest source of imported furniture in 2022, accounting for 2.78% of its total furniture and bedding import value.


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If you’re a weekend treasure hunter, then you probably know all about the saga of the Central Flea Market in East Charlotte. If not, here’s the story:
The outdoor Central Flea Market had been operating on the Central Avenue site of the former Eastland Mall until the city shut it down in February to make way for redevelopment. In 2020, Charlotte City Council approved a plan to turn that 80-acre property into a mixed-use concept with housing units, retail businesses, and a park. The city bought the old mall site back in 2012.
So what about the flea market? According to the Charlotte Observer, vendors from the market say the city did not keep its promise to help them find a new location. However, on Wednesday (7/13), Charlotte Councilman Tariq Bokhari announced that he had helped secure a temporary site for the market in uptown Charlotte.
This Saturday (7/16) only, the flea market will be held on a couple of parking lots between 6th and 9th streets and between Brevard and Caldwell streets. Those lots are close to the Spectrum Center and First Ward Park. Bokhari said the space should be big enough for all 150 vendors who had been at the Central Avenue site. The flea market will be open from 9:00 AM to 2:00 PM.
The temporary flea market location will be free for vendors. Spaces will be open on a first-come, first-served basis starting at 7:00 AM. If you’d like to register for a vendor space, you can sign up HERE.
Councilman Bokhari thinks the city is just a few weeks away from securing a permanent location for the flea market. In the meantime, Bokhari and his partners will seek to find temporary locations every weekend until the permanent site is ready.


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Goodguys Car Show This Weekend!
From radical T-bucket roadsters to chopped-top customs, the Goodguys Southeastern Nationals Oct. 26-28 will fill the Charlotte Motor Speedway infield with a plethora of automotive masterpieces.
The 14th year of this popular fall tradition will see the California-based Goodguys organization bring more than 3,000 pre-1972 hot rods, street rods, customs, classics, muscle cars and trucks to the 1.5-mile superspeedway.
"The cars at the Goodguys show are works of art," said H.A. "Humpy"
Wheeler, president and general manager of Charlotte Motor Speedway and owner of a 1939 Ford hot rod. "Not only are the cars spectacular, but the other activities that take place during the three days make this one of the most entertaining car shows in the nation."
Also included in the weekend is a manufacturer's midway, swap meet, car corral area with vehicles for sale, hot rod seminars and a model and pedal car show. There will be a play area for children and a street challenge autocross is also scheduled.
On Friday evening, the Richard Petty Driving Experience will offer the opportunity to purchase rides around the 1.5-mile oval at 130-plus miles per hour in the passenger seat of a NASCAR NEXTEL Cup car. Saturday night will see the return of the popular Cruise Under the Lights, where hundreds of hot rods and customs take to the 1.5-mile race track for several laps and spectators are invited to watch the cruise from the speedway's frontstretch grandstand.
Tickets for the Oct. 26-28 Goodguys Southeastern Nationals are available at the gate or online at www.good-guys.com. Adult tickets are $15 per day with children ages 7 to 12 admitted for $6 while kids 6 and under are free. Parking for the event is $5.
Event hours are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Friday and Saturday and 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Sunday. For information, contact the Charlotte Motor Speedway events department at (704) 455-3205 or visit www.good-guys.com.


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Arun Malhotra, managing director, Nissan Motor India said the redi-GO has been received well especially by the younger generation in the domestic market.
“We have started deliveries of redi-GOs this month to customers across the country and are delighted by the way Datsun redi-GO is being embraced by the younger generation in the country”, informed Malhotra.
Read Also: Nissan sells 3,000 units of Datsun redi-GO since launch
A large portion of the bookings have come from metropolitan areas and Tier 2 cities.
Datsun redi-GO is available at 227 Nissan and Datsun sales touchpoints across India at a starting price of Rs. 2.39 Lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi).
The company claims Datsun redi-GO delivers fuel economy of 25.17 kmpl.


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Amazon launches Global Selling program for Indian manufacturers; takes Make in India to next level
Amazon India is extending two of its products – Selling on Amazon (SOA) and Fulfillment By Amazon (FBA) to Indian businesses of all sizes and scale from across the country to go Global. In this program sellers will be able to showcase their “Made in India” products, to millions of gloabl customers with listing on Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk.
Amazon is starting this program with few specific categories including apparel, home furnishing, books,jewelry, collectibles, sporting goods, handbags, shoes and health & beauty products categories. Sellers can export their products in global market under these categories. Good thing is that there is no product listing fees and no upfront costs of creating website or adding payment gateways. So, this is really a big opportunity for sellers in India. They have to store their products in Amazon warehouse. Amazon will be responsible for the delivery of the products.
Chad Goelzer, Director Global Sales for Amazon said, “Amazon today offers businesses unprecedented reach to customers around the globe. No longer are they bound by geography with access to Amazon’s over 270 million active customers worldwide. In fact, sellers on Amazon from more than 100 different countries around the world have fulfilled orders to customers in 185 countries utilizing our FBA service. Our Global Selling Program in India is designed to assist Indian manufacturers & businesses to grow their business by leveraging Amazon’s state-of-the-art technology, world class logistics infrastructure and customer service expertise.”
Amazon’s global selling team will also assist sellers in improving their visibility in International market. So, sellers will be able to understand the selling pattern in global market and improve the sale.


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LAS VEGAS. From new truck and trailer orders to aftermarket sales, 2019 is off to a strong start, picking up where last year left off.
However, for trucking industry executives attending the Heavy Duty Aftermarket Dialogue event earlier this week, there remains some trepidation, wondering when a slowdown will occur.
Ken Davis, founder of Greentree Advisors LLC, said original equipment manufacturers’ order boards and backlogs are currently so jam packed, they could conceivably produce even more units than they did during 2018.
However, Davis, previously president of Eaton Corp.’s vehicle group, said it is unlikely that could become a reality due to capacity issues. And while encouraging the industry to enjoy these “really robust times,” Davis hinted a pullback in the second half of 2019 is possible.
That sentiment was echoed by Roger Nielsen, president and CEO of Daimler Trucks North America (DTNA). Nielsen projected U.S. Classes 6-8 sales for the year will likely top 450,000 units, nearly the same as 2018.
He noted there was panic ordering during last summer’s crunch, including fleets placing similar orders with multiple dealers in an attempt make sure they were able to take delivery.
As a result, DTNA instituted additional steps to better vet these orders when initially placed as a way to avoid cancellations by fleets later on. As a result, about 58,000 were pre-emptively cancelled by DTNA because they were deemed “not credible.”
Looking ahead further into 2019, he projected “some moderation” at the end of the second quarter, followed by “a little bit of normalization in the second of the year.” But there is no sense there will be a significant pullback by fleets.
Dean Engelage, president of Great Dane Trailers, offered a similar assessment for 2019, following a record year of about 325,000 units produced industrywide in 2018.
While there are expectations of some softening in the coming quarters, certain trailer categories have “come on strong, if not stronger” than 2018, he said. Still, Engelage noted he too is eyeing any movement on order cancellations.
Meanwhile, sales of the aftermarket sector in the United States totaled an estimated $30.8 billion last year, up from $30.4 billion in 2017, according to data from MacKay & Co.
Growth is projected to continue the coming years, reaching $34.9 billion in 2022 as the total number of trucks in operation continues to climb. MacKay & Co. also projected aftermarket parts pricing to continue gaining about 1% per year.
These gains come as the United States remains on track to break the record for longest continuous economic expansion later this year, said William Strauss, senior economist and economic advisor for the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago.
He classified the strong growth during the past year a “sugar high” from the tax cut law and projected gross domestic product to be more in the range of 1.8% to 2% in the coming quarters.
Strauss downplayed the long-term effects from potential tariff disputes, noting they have been low for many years, and moving “more in line with other countries.”


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“Apple Wants to Own the Record Business”
Um, aren’t there antitrust laws that might prevent this? From Billboard:
[A] source familiar with the talks says the tech giant, which reported first-quarter revenue of $74.6 billion on Jan. 27, has its sights set on more than just streaming. Apple’s presence in the music business, says the insider, “is to be the music business; it’s not to compete with Spotify.” The proof is in the 800 million credit cards it already has on file — comparably, Spotify has 15 million subscriptions and 60 million monthly users, although the service is growing, headed to an initial public offering.
In fact, integration has begun. Apple TV features a Beats logo, an update to Apple’s iOS will include streaming and creative is in the works for new ads starring artists recruited by Iovine. But that may be the extent of Beats’ involvement as Kondrk takes the lead on music. Like the Apple-centric design of its offices, the look and feel of Beats is likely to mirror Apple’s aesthetic, not the other way around.
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As US long-term unemployment reportedly rose to a “dangerous level” and US politicians said the virus-hit economy has stalled, calls are mounting for the Biden administration to review the arbitrary trade and tech war against China and its damage to the US economy.
The US January jobs report on Friday showed that although 49,000 jobs were added in the month, the country’s long-term unemployment is approaching a historical peak, marking an “especially dangerous period of unemployment.”
The unemployment rate fell to 6.3 percent, the first decrease in two months, but almost 40 percent of jobless workers in the month were long-term unemployed, according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics’ January jobs report.
The share has surged to the record set in April 2010, in the aftermath of the Great Recession, during which nearly 46 percent of the unemployed were out of work for at least six months, CNBC reported, adding that it’s an especially “dangerous period” of unemployment, citing labor economists.
The severe challenge to the COVID-19-hit US economy was amplified by the stalling of hiring, with Heather Boushey, a member of the White House’s Council of Economic Advisers, saying that the jobs numbers are showing “an economy that has been stalling,” Reuters reported.
US President Joe Biden on Friday cited the weak employment data in support of the $1.9 trillion stimulus plan, which is reported likely to break into smaller packages to help businesses and individuals to counter pandemic impacts.
While the third round of stimulus checks might be able to temporarily bail out the underclass in the US who bore the brunt of the coronavirus impact, it’s high time for the Biden administration to face the wrong course of the US’ China containment strategy and its damage to the US economy, if Biden wants to pull the US economy out of the current predicament, Chinese experts said.
Although there are still discussions about whether the current US economic predicament is more due to the trade war or the pandemic, there is no doubt that the Trump administration’s arbitrary trade war and suppression on Chinese technology companies has damaged the US economy.
The Biden administration can no longer shun this issue, said Gao Lingyun, an expert at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences in Beijing.
Despite fighting for more than two years, the US’ reckless trade war and tech decoupling strategies against China have failed to meet almost all of its set goals while incurring significant losses to the US, and there is no shortage of proof in sectors including chipsets, finance and agriculture.
The overall US trade deficit surged to a 12-year high of $678.7 billion in 2020, US Commerce Department data showed on Friday, and the brunt of additional tariffs the Trump administration imposed on Chinese companies are mostly paid by its own companies and consumers, whose fallout is exacerbated amid the pandemic as a growing number of US firms went bankrupt and families saw less income.
The tariffs led to an income loss for US consumers of about $16.8 billion in 2018, Bloomberg reported, citing a report released by the US National Bureau of Economic Research in May 2019.
Impeded by Trump’s ban on chip supplies to leading Chinese technology companies, US chipmaker Qualcomm on Wednesday reported its earnings that slightly missed expectations of $8.27 billion for the quarter ending December.
“Before Trump’s chip supply ban, about 65 percent of global chipsets were sold to Chinese companies every year, a large part of which was bought from US producers,” Cao Heping, a professor at the School of Economics of Peking University, told the Global Times on Saturday.
The superposition of tech decoupling and tariffs against Chinese goods is a blunder rather than a small mistake in the US strategy against China, which has caused substantial losses to the US economy, Cao added.
According to a recent business report of the US-China Business Council, the trade war with China has caused a peak loss of 245,000 US jobs, but a gradual scaling back of tariffs on both sides would boost growth and lead to an additional 145,000 jobs by 2025, Reuters reported.
After the White House last week announced that the Biden administration will review the China-US phase one trade deal signed in January 2020, a series of Western media outlets said that China missed the set purchase goal last year.
The US exported $28.75 billion in agricultural goods and related products to China in 2020, data from the US Department of Agriculture showed on Friday, missing the $36.5 billion target under the phase one trade deal, Reuters said.
Chinese experts pointed out that China has shown great sincerity and won recognition from US agricultural producers in 2020 amid great difficulty caused by the global COVID-19 crisis, and blaming China is groundless.
“It would be more appropriate to say that it’s the US agricultural production capacity and logistics that have problems fulfilling the delivery in 2020 amid the pandemic,” Gao noted.
In Western media outlets, US farmers said that China’s concrete efforts in purchasing agricultural products have benefited them and helped them endure the challenging year.
The China-US phase one trade deal led to a record pace of Chinese purchases in many sectors, boosting agricultural commodity prices, said the US Department of Agriculture in its 2020 accomplishments.
The real problem with the US economic predicament is a domestic recession and the pandemic. The contain China strategy has proven to be wrong, and just by injecting cash into the economy is not an efficient way to promote economic recovery, said Cao, adding that the margin effect of the relief package is also weakening.
The US urgently needs to reverse its strategy of putting all resources into hegemony, and adjust its policy focus as soon as possible to repair the damage of the trade war, promote the recovery of the global economy, and advance technological progress, Cao said.


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Fonts are font-astic! Listen in as Erik Spikermann talks about why typeface is so cool and important for a brand. Taken from our recent Roadmap conference.
Noted designer Erik Spiekermann has called Apple’s typeface choice a “youthful folly.” Speaking at Gigaom’s Roadmap, he explained what he meant and offered other insights into how he sees the world of design.
Design legend Erik Spiekermann, who will be speaking at our experience design conference in November in San Francisco, has spent decades creating and redesigning typefaces, which can influence culture both subtly and powerfully.


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July 13, 2017
As millennials grow into the dominant consumer base in the global market, their proclivity for digital platforms is changing the way luxury brands market to their demographic.
According to data from the Shullman Research Center, digital platforms are the most preferred ad channels for luxury buyers, and they are significantly more popular among the affluent than the wealthy.The Shullman Research Center attributes this to the presence of millennials in the affluent market segment.
"Digital platforms are becoming more important to luxury brands as the years go by," said Bob Shullman, founder and CEO of the Shullman Research Center, Greenwich, CT.
"Millennials who are the 'digital' natives and live with their smartphones are currently more predisposed to use digital platforms, even for consumption of TV programming, and are now becoming more important to luxury brands as they are currently tending to buy more 'affordable' luxuries," he said.
"As [millennials] mature and their disposable incomes grow, they will become even more important to luxury brands as the boomers who currently buy fewer luxuries grow older and continue to decrease in numbers and eventually no longer are buying much of anything."
Affluents and wealthy
Even among the wealthiest consumers there exist divisions. For this report from the Shullman Research Center, affluents are defined as those with an income of more than $100,000 per year whereas wealthy are those with an income of more than $1 million.
Among affluents, who tend to be younger and therefore have accrued less wealth, digital platforms are dominant in a way that they are not for the wealthy, which tends to have more older members.
As millennials have grown up with Facebook and digital life, they are more comfortable with those platforms as vehicles for engaging with luxury brands.
For example, 48 percent of affluents said they had engaged with a luxury brand’s Web site in the past 30 days, while only 28 percent of wealthy consumers did the same.
Top 15 channels among the affluent and wealthy. Image credit: Shullman Research Center
One of the most notable statistics of the report has to do with the average price of purchases between wealthy and affluent consumers.
Wealthy and affluent buyers tend to spend similar amounts on things, with an understandable preference for more affordable purchases from affluents and more expensive purchases from the wealthy.
But in the middle is where there is the most disparity, with only 25 percent of affluents buying something between $1,000 and $5,000 in the last 30 days and 47 percent of the wealthy doing the same. For comparison, all other price ranges have the two groups within a few percentage points of each other.
This can be attributed to the wealthy’s comfort with regularly making moderately expensive purchases in addition to large ones, while the affluent tend to either buy affordable or go all out and buy something ultra expensive, and saving money in the middle.
"The wealthy consumers with have at least $1 million or more in liquid assets are notably less 'cash' constrained than the affluent consumers," Mr. Shullman said.
"As such, they are conceptually able to buy and do buy more of the luxury categories that tend to be more expensive such as luxury cruises/vacations, fine watches or jewelry, designer clothing and accessories, home furnishings and luxury automobiles," he said.
"Plus when the wealthy actually buy luxuries, they can and do spend more on the actual luxury product or service they buy than the affluents typically do."
The difference between the two groups is also cultural as well as economic.
For example, between average consumers and affluent consumers, activities such as going to the movies, reading books, attending sports games and cooking for fun are all quite popular. These more mundane tasks still hold their appeal for affluents.
However, moving up to wealthy consumers, many of these familiar activities fall off. While an average 44 million affluent consumers regularly go to the movies, only 25 million wealthy customers do (see story).
Engagement rates by platform. Image credit: Shullman Research Center
Other disparities exist in behavior, such as preferences for American products, following business-related news and most notably, whether consumers buy the same brands their parents bought, which the wealthy overwhelmingly do.
"A good number of the current wealthy grew up in wealthy families and have been consuming the brands the parents bought for their entire lives," Mr. Shullman said. "For many of them buying what their parents bought clearly is a 'good' habit."


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The last LaFerrari ever built has gained itself a second title, that of most valuable 21st century automobile ever sold at auction. Continue Reading...
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The final LaFerrari is headed to auction. Continue Reading...
Apparently, the Aperta is already sold out, which is hardly a surprise. Ferrari will cap production of the convertible at 209 units. Continue Reading...
The hybrid hypercar will be auctioned to benefit the people of central Italy affected by the earthquake. Continue Reading...
Just how fast is the world’s first all-electric hypercar? Continue Reading...
These two hypercars debuted on the same day! Continue Reading...
Ferrari drivers don’t have the best reputation. This guy makes all the rest look like saints. Continue Reading...
More than 800 Ferraris in the U.S. have been recalled for an air bag issue. Continue Reading...
The LaFerrari is affected by two separate recalls, with 85 units having to go back to the dealership for service Continue Reading...
The LaFerrari supercar is getting a peculiar upgrade. Continue Reading...
How does a Ferrari sporting over 1,000 hp sound to you? Continue Reading...
Exotic sports cars were at the center of this week’s most popular automotive news stories. Continue Reading...
Ferraris are expensive. New ones, old ones, broken ones and rolled ones, they all cost a dumpster-load of cash to acquire. And the brand’s latest flagship supercar underscores this rule with a big, fat permanent marker. Continue Reading...
Two more variants of the Ferrari LaFerrari are currently in the workshop at Maranello, both of which will arrive in 2015. Continue Reading...
Car fires almost seem inevitable, but a million-dollar exotic catching on fire isn’t the same thing. Continue Reading...
Ferrari is seeking to improve its performance while simultaneously reducing emissions by 2021. Continue Reading...
Ferrari is already hard at work on a hardcore, track-only version of its LaFerrari halo car. Continue Reading...
As it tends to do around this time, the year is steadily drawing to a close; 2013 is dwindling like a tiki torch running out of citronella-scented oil. The last flickers are smoldering, but she burned brightly for 12 months so the end is not in vain. Lots of important car news broke through the… Continue Reading...
Ferrari was spied at the Green Hell early this morning taking the Enzo-replacing LaFerrari for a jaunt on the vaunted circuit. Continue Reading...
Prior to heading to the Hungarian Grand Prix, Fernando Alonso strapped into Ferrari‘s latest and greatest creation, the LaFerrari. Continue Reading...
Originally making its debut at the 2013 Geneva Motor Show, the Ferrari LaFerrari has kept itself out of the spotlight for several months and now rumor has it the Italian automaker is still finalizing the production model. Continue Reading...
Rumors of a Maserati supercar based on the Ferrari LaFerrari have been debunked, as the brand’s CEO has denied reports that the Italian automaker is developing its own version of the LaFerrari. Continue Reading...
Timepiece manufacturer Hublot continues building on its relationship with Ferrari, releasing a LaFerrari-inspired MP-05 Tourbillon. Continue Reading...
Despite having a dumb name, the LaFerrari is nothing short of awe inspiring. Continue Reading...


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CBRE Research reveals a series of insights for the retail landscape in 2030.
CBRE’s Americas Head of Research Spencer Levy appeared on Fox Business Network to discuss our Tech-30 report and the impact of the tech industry on commercial real estate.
For the 5th consecutive year, CBRE achieves a perfect score on Human Rights Campaign Foundation’s 2018 Corporate Equality Index.
From investment sales and leasing transactions to outsourcing and advisory services, with CBRE, it's advantage delivered for every client we serve.
CBRE has launched its 2018 competition with the theme, “Cities of Connections.”
The company has won this award for six consecutive years.
CBRE’s Americas Head of Research Spencer Levy appeared on Bloomberg TV Daybreak to discuss the impact of recent U.S. hurricanes on the commercial real estate market.
The company has been included in the prestigious Fortune 500 since 2008.
Stories on the trends and ideas shaping our world, told through the lens of commercial real estate.
Our relaunched U.S. website now offers easier access to our local experts, property listings, research and services.
Discover how CBRE is powering superior client outcomes through industry-leading technologies.


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E-mail services provider Responsys will announce today the acquisition of the digital creative agency Smith-Harmon in what’s being characterized as an undisclosed cash-and-equity deal. The Smith-Harmon brand will remain alive — at least in the near term — as Responsys looks to leverage its newly gained team of designers and copywriters to pick up e-mail clients and other interactive advertising accounts.
“Their creative services are such a big positive that it’s sort of a halo effect for us,” said Dan Springer, CEO of the San Bruno, CA-based Responsys. “We like the idea of the combo branding… But I think over time, [the Smith-Harmon brand] will become less and less important and will probably fade away.”
Springer singled out Smith-Harmon’s embedded video-in-e-mail capability and social media know-how as two specifically key assets getting picked up by his firm. Also, he suggested that a wide range of campaign marketing issues like e-mail deliverability and landing page testing can now be more adeptly handled by his company.
And while Springer said that Responsys will continue working with clients’ established third-party agencies, the purchase allows it to target more share of the creative design market than before. “[Clients] won’t need to have a third-party agency or have any kind of project management or coordination between the two players,” he said.
There’s no question that Responsys looks to distance itself from an e-mail-channel-only reputation while becoming known as more of a cross-platform brand. With this in mind, Springer lauded the acquisition as a vehicle for his company to improve its strategically planned integrated marketing programs, including various online mediums, mobile, and direct mail.
Its upgraded cross-channel management assets will help power a new set of interactive marketing tools called “Interact Suite,” which will also be announced today. Springer said the Smith-Harmon deal is the company’s biggest acquisition since buying predictive analytics firm Loyalty Matrix two years ago.
“Smith-Harmon has more experience in deeper cross-channel work,” he said. “This was an opportunity to get [talent]…not only from a volume standpoint but also in terms of quality and experience.”
Springer said the deal will not affect the jobs of Smith-Harmon’s more than 20 employees — who will remain in their Seattle office. He predicted having a local presence in the Pacific Northwest will bring new accounts that Responsys’s Bay area location otherwise wouldn’t.
Meanwhile, the two brands were hardly strangers before today’s announcement. For instance, they co-released a series of e-mail marketing studies last spring. And they already shared clients, including Orbitz, SalesForce.com, and Walt Disney Co.
They're arguably the most annoying video ad formats in existence, but soon they'll be a thing of the past, at least on YouTube.
On Thursday, Twitter reported its earnings for Q4 2016, and the results have raised questions about the company's long-term future.
From its $1.5 billion air cargo hub to its growing network of contract last-mile delivery drivers, Amazon is increasingly looking like a logistics company; but shipping and logistics giant FedEx isn't sitting idly by.
Havas Group's Meaningful Brands report delivers sobering news for brands: consumers wouldn't care if 74% of the brands they use disappeared off the face of the earth.


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If you feel like those robocalls are blowing up your phone more than ever before, that’s because they might be. Complaints about robocalls jumped sharply last year.
The Federal Trade Commission says it received 4.5 million robocall complaints in 2017. That's more than 375,000 complaints per month.
In 2016, there were 3.4 million robocall complaints. Experts say robocalls are increasing because of cheap access to internet calling services and auto-dialing.


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As it is known, the crypto money market has been going through quite active days lately. The leading cryptocurrency Bitcoin (BTC) traded at $19,685, while the volume of Bitcoin (BTC) on cryptocurrency exchanges saw its lowest level since 2018.
Bitcoin Supply Decreases on Exchanges
At a time when the leading cryptocurrency Bitcoin is below $20,000, crypto exchanges are also experiencing a decrease in Bitcoin (BTC) supply. According to information obtained by Santiment, Bitcoin supply on cryptocurrency exchanges is around 1.74 million, the lowest level since November 2018.
Santiment made the following statement on the subject:
"Due to all the volatility experienced since the beginning of 2020, Bitcoin supply continues to withdraw from exchanges. During downtrends like 2022 of crypto, it is familiar to see long-term holders make up a larger percentage of the total supply held,"
To elaborate, it makes sense as crypto assets held on exchanges tend to fluctuate with changes in market sentiment. In other words, if more market participants want to buy rather than sell, stocks on exchanges decrease and higher demand often leads to a price increase.
$100 Million Bitcoin (BTC) Transferred to Kraken
A Bitcoin whale address created in 2013 sent 5,000 BTC ($100 million) to Kraken, according to data provided by blockchain explorer OKLink.
It was claimed that the most recent transaction by the address was made in May 2021. Over the past few weeks, a large number of whale purses have begun to awaken from hibernation. Addresses created almost a decade ago started moving crypto assets in bulk.
According to analysis shared by crypto research firm CryptoQuant, this could be a sign of increased selling pressure. After underperforming in August, Bitcoin (BTC) is struggling to recover in September. Bitcoin (BTC) continues to trade below $20,000.


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Cautious spending customers continue to worry boss of brewer and pubs firm Greene King despite record half-year sales
Greene King boss Rooney Anand warned today that customers remain cautious about spending on eating and drinking out as the brewer and pubs operator posted record half-year sales.
The maker of Old Speckled Hen saw its shares fall 0.50p to 760p despite pre-tax profit rising to £72million for the 24 weeks to 19 October, down from £65.6million a year earlier.
Total sales were up 5.3 per cent to £614.9million, with bookings for Christmas up 7.2 per cent, and the interim dividend was increased by 4.6 per cent to 7.60p a-share.
Calling time: Greene King chief executive Rooney Anand warned today that customers remain cautious about spending on eating and drinking
Chief executive Anand, said: ‘We have delivered record sales and strong returns against a challenging backdrop, reflecting the . . . strength of our business model.’
Greene King, founded in 1799, employs 23,000 people and operates 1,904 pubs, of which 864 are tenanted, leased and franchised. It owns the Hungry Horse, Old English Inns, Eating Inn and Loch Fyne Seafood & Grill brands.
The firm also brews Greene King IPA, Old Speckled Hen, Abbot Ale and Belhaven Best beers.
Commenting on the results, Richard Taylor, an analyst at Barclays, said: ‘Greene King have revealed that underlying sales are running at 0.8 per cent after 30 weeks.
‘However, they have commented that underlying sales growth in the last 12 weeks is running at 1.5 per cent, so it is clear that the first quarter was the weakest period for the company and trading has gradually improved since then.’
Greene King is still pushing ahead with its plan to merge with rival pubs operator Spirit despite a surprise vote from politicians last month ending the centuries old beer tie which changes the economics of the deal.
Anand said: ‘The transaction is strategically and financially compelling, accelerating the growth of our retail estate, strengthening our position in the eating out market and delivering value to our shareholders.
‘The combined entity would comprise an estate of over 3,100 pubs, restaurants and hotels including over 1,000 pubs in London and the south east.
‘A combined managed estate of over 1,800 pubs will create the UK’s leading managed pub operator.’
Overall the Spirit deal should bring cost savings of at least £30million annually. Spirit Pub shares were up 0.13p to 103.13p.
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