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In early 2009, when Facebook was still nascent in its efforts to swallow as much of the web as possible, online video games were not yet the leviathan they would end up being.
Then, that June, came FarmVille. If you weren’t amongst the 10s of countless individuals tending an animation spot of arrive at Facebook every day, accumulating a limitless stream of cutesy antiques, you were still getting massive nags and pushes from your buddies requesting assistance. The video game either pulled Facebook users into a fixation or constantly advised them that they were losing out on one.
The Flash-based video game developed by Zynga, created to be played within Facebook, closed down on Thursday– yes, there were individuals still playing it– though its follows up that can be played through mobile apps will endure. (Flash, the software application that powered the video game, also shut down at the end of the year.)
However the initial FarmVille resides on in the habits it instilled in daily web users and the growth-hacking strategies it refined, now baked into practically every website, service and app contending for your attention.
At its peak, the video game had 32 million everyday active users and almost 85 million gamers over all. It assisted change Facebook from a location you went to sign in on updates– primarily in text kind– from family and friends into a time-eating location itself.
” We thought about it as this brand-new measurement in your social, not simply a method to get video games to individuals,” stated Mark Pincus, who was president of Zynga at the time and is now chairman of its board of directors. “I believed: ‘Individuals are simply hanging out on these socials media like Facebook, and I wish to provide something to do together.'”
That was achieved partially by drawing gamers into loops that were difficult to pull themselves from. If you didn’t sign in every day, your crops would wither and pass away; some gamers would set alarms so they would not forget. If you required assistance, you might invest genuine cash or send out demands to your Facebook buddies– a source of inconvenience for nonplayers who were besieged with alerts and updates in their news feeds.
Ian Bogost, a video game designer and teacher at Georgia Tech, stated the habits FarmVille stabilized had actually made it a rate cars and truck for the web economy of the 2010s.
He did not imply that as appreciation.
The video game motivated individuals to attract buddies as resources to both themselves and the service they were utilizing, Mr. Bogost stated. It gamified attention and urged interaction loops in a manner that is now being mimicked by whatever from Instagram to QAnon, he stated.
” The web itself is this fair of compulsive worlds where the objective is to bring you back to it in order to do the important things it uses, in order to get your attention and serve advertisements versus it or otherwise obtain worth from that activity,” he stated.
While other video games had actually attempted much of the exact same techniques– Mafia Wars was Zynga’s leading hit at the time– FarmVille was the very first to end up being a mainstream phenomenon. Mr. Pincus stated that he often utilized to have supper with Mark Zuckerberg, a co-founder of Facebook, which in early 2009 he had actually been informed that the platform would quickly permit video games to publish to a user’s news feed. He stated Mr. Zuckerberg informed him that Zynga must flood the zone with brand-new video games which Facebook would figure out the ones that resonated.
Though farming was far from a hot category of video games at the time, Mr. Pincus saw it as a relaxing activity that would attract a broad audience, particularly amongst grownups and ladies who had actually never ever invested numerous dollars on a console like the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 or Nintendo Wii. It would be a sneak peek of the soon-to-explode market for mobile video games, with casual players moving far from desktop as mobile phones took hold.
The video gaming market was always chilly to FarmVille, regardless of its success. A Zynga executive was booed as he accepted an award at the Video game Developers Conference in 2010, and Mr. Pincus stated he had actually had difficulty hiring designers, who believed their peers would not appreciate them for dealing with the video game.
In 2010, Time publication called FarmVille among “The 50 Worst Inventions,” acknowledging how tempting it was however calling it “hardly a video game.”
To numerous, the video game will be kept in mind more for its existence in individuals’s news feeds than for the video game itself. Facebook was aware of the grievances.
After speaking with nonplayers that the video game was spammy, Facebook limited just how much video games might publish to news feeds and send out alerts. Facebook now intends to send out less alerts just when they’re most likely to make an effect, stated Vivek Sharma, a Facebook vice president and head of video gaming.
He credited FarmVille for much of the increase of social video gaming and stated the “legend” over extreme alerts had actually taught Facebook some essential lessons.
” I believe individuals began to find out some much deeper behavioral things that required to be modified in order for those applications to be self-sufficient and healthy,” he stated. “And I believe part of that is this concept that really individuals do have a limitation, which limitation modifications with time.”
Even if individuals were frustrated by the alerts, there’s little doubt that they worked. Scott Koenigsberg, a director of item at Zynga, kept in mind that the demands had actually been sent out by gamers choosing in to send them.
” Everyone saw a ‘lonesome cow’ alert eventually or another, however those were all being shared by their buddies who were playing the video game,” he stated.
Mia Consalvo, a teacher in video game research studies and style at Concordia University in Canada, was amongst those who saw FarmVille continuously in front of her.
” When you log into Facebook, it resembles, ‘Oh, 12 of my buddies require assistance,'” she stated.
She questioned how social the video game really was, arguing that it didn’t produce deep or continual interactions.
” The video game itself isn’t promoting a discussion in between you and your buddies, or motivating you to hang out together within the video game area,” she stated. “It’s truly simply a mechanic of clicking a button.”
However those who returned every day stated it had actually kept them in touch with buddies and associates, providing something to speak about.
Maurie Sherman, 42, a radio manufacturer in Toronto, stated that he and a receptionist had actually played together which he had actually gone to her desk daily to talk about it. “She would inform me about the pink cow she got,” he stated.
He enjoyed it as an escape, a virtual tension ball and a relaxing activity that would let his mind roam. He stated he had actually invested more than $1,000– that’s genuine cash– throughout the years to enhance his farm or to conserve time.
And he was definitely guilty of sending out the alerts, he stated– however they constantly prospered in getting him the assistance he desired.
” There are individuals who would silence you or unfriend you even if they were tired of hearing that you required assist with your cows,” he stated.
Jaime Tracy, 59, of Lancaster, Pa., stated she had actually been “among those irritating individuals” who made regular demands for assistance till her buddies and family members had actually informed her to knock it off.
However she enjoyed the video game, which she viewed as a type of meditation, and bet more than 5 years. With her kids grown and out of the home, “I had absolutely nothing else to do,” she stated.
” You might simply turn your mind off and plant some carrots,” she stated.


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It is understood that BA is holding chemistry meetings with agencies but that no formal brief has yet been issued.
ZenithOptimedia, which has worked with BA on its global media since 1995, added the UK online planning and buying to its offline relationship in 2009. The airline’s UK outdoor buying is handled by WPP’s Kinetic.
BA’s UK billings for the year ended September 2012 were £28 million, according to Nielsen, and the airline spent close to £10 million activating its sponsorship of last year’s Olympic and Paralympic Games.
As part of BA’s London 2012 work, Bartle Bogle Hegarty created a spot, "home advantage", that showed a plane cruising along the capital’s streets before arriving at the Olympics site in Stratford to drop off its passengers.
Recent marketing activity from BA has included giving away tickets every 15 minutes at London’s Victoria station in what the brand called its "biggest-ever ticket giveaway from Gatwick Airport".
The pitch does not affect BA’s relationship with BBH, which has handled its advertising since 2005, and OgilvyOne, the airline’s lead digital agency.
It is thought that Kinetic will be involved in the process to defend its direct relationship and also as an outdoor partner to Group M agencies.
A spokesman for BA said: "It is standard practice at British Airways to regularly review suppliers to ensure we have the right level of support in place. If and when we have anything to say regarding our media buying agency, a formal announcement will be made."
A spokesman for ZenithOptimedia declined to comment.
BA is part of International Airlines Group and its marketing is led by Frank van der Post, the airline’s managing director, brand and customer experience.

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Face of a Food Champion: Leroy Zimmerman
Leroy Zimmerman, owner and operator of Log Cabin Produce, thinks farming is a great way to raise a family. He has four children, ranging from 4 to 14 years old. “It’s supporting the family, but it also teaches a good work ethic for the kids,” he says. “A lot of work has to be done every day. From a family standpoint, it’s an excellent way to make a living. It’s not just about making money, but about raising kids on the farm.”
|Zimmerman and his crew harvest and load pumpkins, sold the next day at the Cedar Valley Produce Auction. [Photo contributed by Arlene Enderton.]|
Zimmerman moved to Iowa from Pennsylvania nearly 10 years ago. He was attracted to Iowa because farmland was affordable, compared to land prices in Pennsylvania. He chose to grow vegetables because of the low start-up costs, even though he was a pork producer in Pennsylvania. “We are a young family,” Zimmerman says. “Our oldest was four years old at that time, so we weren’t looking to spend a lot of money. We bought a 40-acre farm.”
Today the farm, located near Orchard, has about ten crops—including strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, sweet corn, watermelon, cantaloupe and pumpkins—and has expanded to 54 acres with the addition of rented land.
Zimmerman sells most of his produce directly from the farm, allowing customers to pick their own or purchase pre-picked items. The rest is sold at the Cedar Valley Produce Auction near Elma. The auction is in its 11th season and is open every Monday, Wednesday and Friday from mid-April to the end of October. The auction sells a mix of produce and other farm products, such as flowers, bedding plants and pumpkins.
Zimmerman explains that the auction is geared toward wholesale buyers, but small buyers also can participate. “You can take as little as one or two boxes to as much as a semi-load, if there is enough product.”
The local food movement has grown in the ten years Zimmerman has been in Iowa. He recalls that when he first began, many of his customers were senior citizens. In the last few years, however, he is seeing more young families. “It’s exciting that the younger generation with small kids are coming out and picking their own or buying pre-packed items,” he says. “They’re asking how to make preserves or freeze strawberries.”
The produce auction also benefits from the demand for local products. “Even the local [food] movement has driven the auction,” Zimmerman says. “The wholesale end […] is growing. I personally think the growth has to do with the local [food] movement. Some buyers are distributors who see a demand for local produce.”
These days, Zimmerman sells his entire crop within a few miles of the farm, whereas in the past he traveled to farmers markets. “I go with the auction, because it allows me time to be home with the family and do the farming,” Zimmerman explains. “I like to be at home, farming with the kids.”
About this story
This story was produced to accompany a report documenting the impact of the local food industry on Iowa’s economy associated with the efforts of the Regional Food Systems Working Group. Consult the statewide report: 2013 Economic Impacts of Iowa’s Regional Food Systems Working Group. For more information on the local foods work occurring in the northern region, visit the Healthy Harvest of North Iowa website or contact Jan Libbey (email firstname.lastname@example.org or call 515-851-1690).


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The myriad data security systems put forth make it possible to create not only a safe building, but a smarter and more energy-efficient one.
ASSA ABLOY Group brands door hardware secure over 1,500 doors and openings at U.S. Bank Stadium, home of the Minnesota Vikings.
Distributor Almo Professional A/V enhances its dealer reseller Almo CONNECT broadband service by adding video surveillance from Comcast Business SmartOffice Solutions and new wireless options.
Study finds increased consumer interest in biometric payment and other “futuristic” technologies, with less enthusiasm for paper-based systems.
Galaxy and ASSA ABLOY say integration of IP-enabled locks, wireless connection reduce upfront investment and time and material costs.
The best way to prevent damage from an electrical surge, internally- or externally-caused, is to install surge protectors in security installations.
Boston Red Sox using Apple watches to steal signs from New York Yankees another example of disastrous history between MLB and technology.
Disney theme park researchers reveal a new software that can follow the same subject across a network of surveillance cameras.
I’ve resisted the shift to mobile tickets for the sake of souvenirs. Now privacy advocates and those who see through the scheme are on my side, too.
Cybersecurity forced to counter hacking threat on 465,000 recalled pacemakers. What does anyone get out of doing this to other people?
Learn how to facilitate better project planning and management across the entire project lifecycle to control costs and maintain positive relationships with clients.
Since the turn of the millennium the projection market has evolved from CRT, to more installation-friendly LCD, LCoS and DLP technologies. The next wave to hit the channel addresses brightness and efficiency.


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A hearing healthcare provider is posting out free replacement batteries for hearing aids to anyone who needs them.
Hidden Hearing say that anyone can get free batteries posted, whether or not they are customers of the Irish company.
The company says local clinics currently remain open for urgent customer appointments and enquiries, but it is aware that some more vulnerable clients might not want to visit clinics in person.
Dolores Madden, Marketing Director at Hidden Hearing Ireland says that people have enough stress right now without having to worry about hearing aids batteries running down.
“Our audiologists are now supporting many customers’ online and via telephone enquiries, so issuing free replacement batteries for hearing devices to anyone in need makes sense.
“A lot of hearing aid companies have already closed their doors and are not available to provide any form of service to their patients, so Hidden Hearing is here to help anyone in need!”
Families are being asked to check that relatives’ hearing aids are in good order at this challenging time when TVs, radios and telephone calls are a lifeline for many.
Anyone needing hearing aid batteries, whether customers, nursing home or hospital residents, or the general public can contact Hidden Hearing on 1800 370000, text ‘Hear’ to 50015, or email email@example.com to have free replacement batteries posted free of charge.
“The wellbeing of staff and customers is paramount. We continue to follow HSE guidance in terms of handwashing, respiratory hygiene, distancing, and sanitising touchpoints, to ensure we can continue to provide an important service,” added Dolores Madden.


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There is a lot going on in the digital publishing industry at the moment, some of it inspiring, some of it shameful. While on the positive side, GoodEReader reported today from BookExpo on a school that went entirely to digital textbooks and cloud-based instructional materials, all in the space of one school year; on the negative side, attendees were urgently cautioned that there was to be no discussion of the Department of Justice investigation against several publishers or anti-trust lawsuits. During one hapless speaker’s presentation this morning, a heckler yelled out, “Insider trading!” to a stunned room when the speaker listed Apple as an example of a company that has become a financial success in the digital publishing industry.
But one notable bizarre turn has been the outright bashing and near-slandering of Amazon at this year’s event. While the online retail giant’s name is often met with eye rolls or voiced opinions from individuals in the industry, this is the first event in recent memory where the snide remarks and finger pointing have even happened from the presentation stage.
One attendee got up and left a session on social media today because the speaker strayed so far from the topic in order to level remarks at the ebook retailer. In another presentation on self-publishing, the expert strongly cautioned attendees not to sign exclusively with one distribution platform.
In the Special Events hall of today’s IDPF Digital Book event, a last minute guest speaker, Paul Aiken from the Author’s Guild, gave a ten-minute one-sided explanation of the DoJ investigation against Apple and five publishers but he somehow managed to insert the phrase, “Amazon’s predatory pricing model,” three times, despite the fact that Amazon is not named in the investigation or lawsuits. This was after the entire assembly had been told not to bring even it up throughout this year’s event.
While GoodEReader aims to remain neutral in terms of showing support for one platform or retailer over another, is anyone going to speak up for Amazon? And doesn’t it seem like everyone enjoys these jabs and innuendoes, yet their sales figures clearly demonstrate that not everyone despises Amazon as much as some people pretend to?


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A n estimated 40 million people in the United States have smartwatches or fitness trackers that can monitor their heartbeats. But some people of color may be at risk of getting inaccurate readings.
Nearly all of the largest manufacturers of wearable heart rate trackers rely on technology that could be less reliable for consumers who have darker skin, according to researchers, engineers, and other experts who spoke with STAT. Fitbit uses the potentially problematic technology in every heart rate tracker it offers, and it’s also in many Garmin and Samsung devices. Other popular trackers, like the Apple Watch, use it, too – but simultaneously track heart rates with another method.
The phenomenon has received almost no media attention, even as the market for smartwatches and fitness trackers has grown exponentially in recent years – and as both consumers and scientists have raised broader concerns about the trackers’ accuracy. There are a number of online complaints from consumers who suggest the devices can’t get a reading on darker skin. But the companies that make the devices don’t disclose the fact that they could be less accurate for some consumers.
The potential inaccuracies have broad implications for the growing body of scientific research that relies on these wearables – as well as for the increasing number of people whose employers offer financial incentives or other benefits for using Fitbits and other trackers.
Concerns about the devices also come amid a broader reckoning over whether new technologies are as objective as they appear – and whether implicit prejudices are shaping their development.
“It really is about the existing bias in medicine that we have already,” said Kadija Ferryman, a cultural anthropologist who studies the social, cultural, and ethical implications of health information technologies at the Data & Society Research Institute. “No matter what [the] technology is, there is evidence that … inserting another tool, no matter how advanced it is, will likely continue on and continue to uphold the existing biases or exacerbate them.”
Nearly all consumer devices that track heart rate rely on optical sensors that continuously monitor the volume of your blood. In between beats, there is less blood volume at your wrist, and therefore more light that is reflected back to the sensor. But not all devices rely on the same kind of light.
Fitbits, Samsung watches, and several other brands rely on only green lights. These lights are simpler and cheaper to use than the infrared lights that power hospital-grade heart rate trackers – but, because green light has a shorter wavelength, it is more readily absorbed by melanin, a natural skin pigment that is more prevalent in people with darker skin.
In short: Skin with more melanin blocks green light, making it harder to get an accurate reading. The darker your skin is, the harder it gets.
“We could see that there [were] some differences in accuracy between, for example, different skin types and skin colors,” said Mikael Mattsson, a senior researcher at Sweden’s Karolinska Institutet and an author on one of the only papers to examine the link between heart rate tracker accuracy and race.
Fitbit spokespeople told STAT it boosted the current that powers its green light in an effort to address the issue. A spokesperson also said “Fitbit takes accuracy very seriously and our team continuously performs studies to rigorously test the accuracy of our products.” Apple, meanwhile, explained that while its devices rely on green light for continuous monitoring, the device also takes a reading with an infrared light roughly every five minutes. Garmin and Samsung didn’t return repeated requests for comment.
Researchers and scientists who spoke with STAT were careful to point out that there isn’t clear research that shows exactly how accurate consumer heart rate trackers are for people with darker skin – the issue has hardly been studied, in part because the technology changes so fast. But they also emphasized that the effect of melanin on green light absorption is well-documented – and that without more research or more public information from the manufacturers about accuracy, it is equally hard to prove there isn’t an impact.
V ernon Ross, 49, a podcasting consultant in St. Louis, used his Fitbit Charge HR to help monitor his heart rate after he was diagnosed with a mildly elevated blood pressure in 2017.
But soon, Ross, who is black, noticed that the heart rate tracker wasn’t as accurate as he expected. It would fluctuate a lot, and his tracked heart rate didn’t always match the readings he’d take when he measured the old-fashioned way, putting his fingers on his wrist.
“Depending on what I would do, my heart rate would jump way off the charts and then fall back down,” he said. “That kind of stuff can cause quite a bit of stress if you think that you’re having, you know, a possible ‘AFib’ incident. … That could be a dangerous situation.”
Ross, who wrote to Fitbit about the issue on its website, said he has heard similar experiences from friends and hopes in the future, companies will provide data that clearly show that the technology works for people of every skin tone.
“It goes to a bit of a deeper issue, when you start talking about who’s in the room when these devices are being tested, who’s in the room when these devices are being designed, and … are the companies taking the time to make sure that the entire population is represented when they’re developing this technology,” Ross said.
The absorption effect is well-documented in research. But there’s far less research about how and whether that effect has impacted the accuracy of consumer heart rate trackers.
Just one study, a 2017 paper published in the Journal of Personalized Medicine, teased out the error rates for a host of devices that were on the market at that time. It found that while the technologies were “within acceptable error range” in most settings, device error was higher for those with a darker skin tone. The error rates for Fitbit Surge, Samsung Gear, and Basis Peak (v. 2) devices were statistically significant. Those for Apple Watch, Microsoft Band (v.1), Mio, and PulseOn were not.
Mattsson, the Swedish researcher and author on that paper, said that their study made sure to recruit a diverse body of participants – which he said was not emphasized in “many of the [early] validations from the companies themselves.”
Several researchers said the way Fitbit and Apple said they had tried to account for the issue could help. Boosting the current of the green light, as Fitbit said it has done, might help. So might Apple’s algorithm, if it balanced different readings between its green and infrared light sensors.
“The darker the skin, the stronger the current must be for you to get a good reading,” Mattsson said.
“The signal is not the only thing that matters, the algorithms really matter as well, so if you have algorithms that can account for those differences, then even though your signal is noisier, it may still be okay,” said Jessilyn Dunn, an assistant professor of biomedical engineering at Duke University.
But Dunn and Massimiliano de Zambotti, a researcher at SRI International who leads validation studies of wearable technologies in the sleep space, emphasized that without public data sets about error rates or public information about the algorithms, it is hard to tell if the companies’ efforts fully address the problem.
“We don’t know, because the pace of the technology is extremely fast. The pace of research evaluating this technology is extremely slow,” de Zambotti said. “We need to understand if we can trust their outcome or not.”
There are good reasons to use green light. Most wrist-based heart trackers use green light because it is better than infrared light in situations where the user is moving, or where there are other light sources that could also impact the sensor, the scientists told STAT. Infrared light, however, is better at penetrating more deeply into the skin, especially when the user is still – which makes it attractive in medical settings, they said. In a statement shared with STAT after this article was published, Fitbit’s chief technology officer, Eric Friedman, cited the same benefits as an explanation for why Fitbit chose to use “green light at sufficient strength” to deliver “the optimum, most consistent performance for users of all skin tones.”
The rapid pace of technological advancement makes it hard to tell exactly what color light different manufacturers are using in their latest heart rate trackers. Few make the information public, and it’s not always apparent from looking at the device. Some are even moving beyond optical sensing; Apple Watch now includes an electrical ECG monitor; a report just this month suggested the next Samsung watch will, too.
Representatives from Fitbit and Apple explained their technology to STAT for this article. A support page on Garmin’s website describes the light sensors in its optical heart rate trackers as “green.” Industry websites and videos show Samsung’s Galaxy Watch uses green lights.
STAT also spoke with two executives whose companies sell heart rate trackers that use multiple colors of light to address some of the shortcomings of green light, and both suggested that most of the popular trackers relied exclusively on green light technology.
“If you do a scan of the marketplace for measuring heart rate, most of the devices in the marketplace use green as a key component to measuring heart rate,” said Steven LeBoeuf, the co-founder and president of Valencell, which develops biometric sensors, including some that use both green and amber light. “If you were to dip your hand into a random pile of sensors, you would see that 9 times out of 10, they would have green light, and in probably most cases, they’re only green light.”
Sameer Sontakey, whose company Biostrap develops health trackers that use red and infrared light to track heart rate, explained that green lights are simply cheaper.
“It’s a commodity,” he said. “It’s easy to buy a sensor that has [green light]. There’s a lot of people that have worked with it. The barrier to entry is really low.”
A ccuracy issues could also mean that an increasingly robust field of research into heart rates doesn’t accurately reflect the heart rate information for certain individuals. Although numerous companies do indicate on their websites that their devices are not medically accurate, Fitbits are currently used in almost 300 clinical trials. Stanford University researchers also recently concluded the widely publicized “Apple Heart Study” of more than 400,000 participants from which they reported that “wearable technology can safely identify heart rate irregularities.”
However, the vast majority of studies performed that look into the accuracy of wrist-worn wearable devices, do not take skin tone into account when they test their subjects – a fact that Benjamin Nelson, a doctoral candidate in clinical psychology at the University of Oregon, thinks needs to change before this technology can be used for medical purposes.
“In the past, science hasn’t particularly recruited as diverse of participants as they potentially should, to be able to create generalizable results that will not only generalize to white Caucasian individuals, but will also generalize to people of different ethnic and racial minority groups,” Nelson said.
“It’s really important for future research to really collect and then control for skin tone because that has been shown in a few preliminary studies to actually influence the accuracy of these devices,” he continued.
Nelson also noted that larger sample sizes across various different demographic groups “may be able to control for different individual characteristics that will allow these devices to become more accurate in the long run.”
The potential inaccuracies could have an even bigger impact on people of color whose employers incentivize employees’ use of fitness trackers with extra vacation days, gear, or even lower health insurance premiums.
Already, big-name companies like IBM and Target offer trackers as part of wellness programs, and there are signs that employers may be beginning to make wellness programs – many of which include these trackers – mandatory. At one point, the West Virginia school system wanted to require teachers to wear them. Yale, too, was sued just this month over a program that would have charged anyone who didn’t participate in its employee wellness program a $25 a month penalty.
Twenty-one percent of large employers who offer health insurance are already collecting information from their employees’ wearable devices, a Kaiser Family Foundation survey found.
Philip Gordon, a Denver-based attorney at the law firm Littler Mendelson who focuses on workplace privacy issues, said the potential accuracy issues were yet another reason that employers should tread carefully before implementing any major wellness programs.
“It’s a good example of a potential hidden side effect of technology,” he said. “And that’s why it’s so important for employers to really understand technology and the information it’s generating […] before rolling out wearables in the workplace.”
S ince he abandoned his Fitbit, Ross has switched to using an Apple Watch to track his heart rate. He thinks it’s more accurate – but he’s not sold on whether either is as good as just calculating his pulse with a timer.
“I do use it to monitor heart rate … But I also manually check my heart rate to make sure that I know exactly what my heart rate is,” he said. “It’s a good tool, it’s just not something you should depend on.”
Researchers echoed the same sentiment – that the tech is useful, but perhaps not as well-studied as it should be.
“These technologies are really being used so that we can collect heart rate out in real-world environments. Technologically, it’s one of the few ways that we can do it right now,” said Nelson, the postdoctoral candidate in Oregon. “So while there are a number of really important limitations that should be paid attention to by scientists, including things like skin tone, body mass index, and wrist circumference, it’s kind of the technology that we have right now.”
This story was updated after Apple clarified that it used infrared light in its devices for periodic heart rate monitoring, not to address the way melanin in skin absorbs green light, and to include statements from Fitbit officials.
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Thursday, November 03, 2011
Although the numbers are showing continued signs of leveling out, the main theme of the October edition of the Institute for Supply Management’s Manufacturing (ISM) Report on Business indicated that growth is still occurring.
Three mechanics have been killed, causing dockworkers to cease discharging the boxes until the risk can be identified
With a December 31 deadline looming for a short line railroad track maintenance credit looming, the top executive of the American Short Line & Regional Railroad Association (ASLRRA) pulled no punches in explaining why it needs to be extended.
According to port spokesmen, operations will not resume until “it is safe and secure to do so.”
BTS officials said this marks the second time that U.S.-NAFTA trade by land modes topped $80 billion in one month.
Tuesday, November 01, 2011
UPS Freight has begun freight pickup notifications for shippers in what the carrier says will provide shippers with an “an unprecedented level of pickup control” for the less-than-truckload (LTL) industry.
Diesel prices continued heading up this week, with a 6.7 cent hike to $3.892 per gallon, according to the Department of Energy’s Energy Information Administration (EIA).
Posted on 11/01 at 06:20 AM
Monday, October 31, 2011
TransCore officials said the top paying lane was for short-hauls from Philadelphia to Boston, with average round trip rates at $2.09 per mile, which was up 1 percent from the previous week
As noted in Part I of this series, supplier transparency is key to any reverse cycle.
Late last week, the Department of Transportation’s Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) said that its new Hours-of-Service (HOS) rule that was scheduled to be rolled out on Friday, October 28 has been pushed back.


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Worldwide rare book event on its way to West Linn
Head to WL Library Saturday for rare book show and appraisals
On Saturday April 23, rare booksellers in Oregon will take part in a special worldwide event.
For 24 hours, a worldwide chain of rare book events will occur.
Starting on the east coast of Australia, then running through Asia and Europe and ending on the west coast of the United States, rare booksellers in 15 countries and nearly 30 locations will hold quick and often quirky events that celebrate rare books, autographs and manuscripts, as well as maps and other rare paper items. Booksellers will show and talk about some of the most interesting items they own while raising funds for literacy.
Book lovers, librarians and anyone who cares about literacy are invited to come to the West Linn Public Library between noon and 5 p.m. Saturday for the event.
Funds raised will benefit the Forest Whitaker Initiative for Peace and Developments work in South Sudan, where 84 percent of women and 70 percent of men are illiterate.
For a small amount, attendees can purchase a symbolic book spine and help fill the symbolic Empty Bookcase.
$3 buys a book and $15 buys a set of 12 books specially written for the children of Sudan addressing issues they face in daily life. In 2015, Pop Up Rare Book Events organized by the International League of Antiquarian Booksellers (ILAB) raised enough to buy 1,930 books and 500 pens and paper.
Follow the worldwide events for 24 hours live in the Internet on ilabpopupbookfairs.blogspot.de.


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Registration takes less than 1 minute.
Container business was hampered by overcapacity caused by the delivery of ultra-large containerships, depreciation of the euro and an economic slump in Europe, according to ocean carrier NYK.
Stock in both Canadian Pacific Railway Ltd. and Norfolk Southern Corp. shot up yesterday amid rumors the second-largest Class I railroad in Canada is mulling a potential takeover of NS.
The new multipurpose terminal in Qingdao’s Dongjiakou Port, which will primarily handle grain and other general cargo, represents the global marine terminal operator’s first foray into a non-container handling facility in China.
Consumers continue to migrate to mobile devices to make purchases, with mobile devices accounting for 36 percent of Black Friday sales, according to Custora, a company that provides predictive analytics for e-commerce.
Net income at the Israeli ocean carrier improved vastly compared to loss of $63 million in the third quarter of 2014 despite a 12 percent year-over-year reduction in total revenues.
Rates from Shanghai to Northwest Europe and the Mediterranean skyrocketed, while rates to the United States inched up slightly from last week.


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Interested in a Fiat or Chrysler and currently driving around in a Volkswagen? The automaker is now offering a $1,000 rebate to current VW owners in America if they wish to buy a Fiat or Chrysler vehicle.
Though it might seem a tactic for Fiat-Chrysler to move some vehicles against Europe’s largest automaker, the jab is actually spearheaded by Sergio Marchionne, CEO of Fiat SpA, who has been in disagreement with Volkswagen over auto pricing in Europe.
Marchionne was recently chosen for a second one-year term as president of the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association where he has been calling for cooperation among the region’s carmakers to close factories as the European automotive industry continues to struggle. Volkswagen has been one of the German automakers that have been adamant against the strategy.
According to the Chrysler website, the U.S. rebate offer is available for current Volkswagen owners looking into buying a Fiat or Chrysler vehicle. Buyers don’t even have to sell or trade-in their Volkswagen to take advantage of the deal.
[Source: Detroit News]


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With the stricter emission norms, Maruti Suzuki may discontinue diesel variants instead of raising the price, likely to bring SHVS in Swift, Dzire & Baleno by 2020
With the stricter BS VI emission compliance norms setting in 2020, manufacturers are working round the clock to ensure that they are ready to roll out the updated, emission norm compliant vehicles in April 2020. Earlier, RC Bhargava, Maruti Suzuki India’s Chariman Mr. Bhargava earlier said that they are ready to roll out BS VI products in the Indian market by the end of 2019.
He said that they will stop manufacturing the BS-IV vehicles after the Maruti Suzuki plants close down for annual maintenance at the end of the year and only BS VI vehicles would be produced when the plants re-start their operations in January 2020. He also added that upgrading from BS IV to BS VI would increase the price of the vehicles substantially.
The price rise would be less impactful on the petrol powered vehicles but the diesel engine powered vehicles would see an extreme rise in the price. The price rise is expected to happen because of the amount of research and equipment needed to upgrade the diesel engines according to new emission norms.
The difference between the petrol and the diesel variants of the Maruti Suzuki vehicles can be around Rs. 2.5 lakh! Which is extremely high. However, diesel engines have a major advantage over the petrol ones. They are highly efficient and customers who drive long distances prefer the diesel engines over the petrol ones.
But with the price rise, people may stay away from the diesel vehicles altogether and the sales of such vehicles may come crashing down. To counter the problem, Maruti may not launch diesel-powered small cars like the Swift, Baleno and the Dzire after the stricter emission norms come into place.
To overcome the efficiency problem, Maruti may introduce the SHVS mild hybrid system in the vehicle like Swift, Baleno and the Dzire. Maruti introduced the SHVS mild hybrid system with the petrol engines earlier this year with the launch of the Ciaz. Later, the Maruti Suzuki Ertiga was also launched with the similar SHVS mild hybrid system.
The mild hybrid system is different from the full-hybrid system and uses a bigger battery to run the electricals in the vehicle. It also uses the start/stop feature to efficiently save fuel and increase the mileage considerably when compared to the regular, non-mild hybrid cars.


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A Chinese photographer has apologized after French luxury fashion brand Dior jettisoned a high-profile photo of an Asian model following complaints that the freckled, piercing-eyed woman is giving in to Western tastes and stereotypes.
“Dior, as always, respects the feelings of the Chinese people. … If errors occur, [Dior] should be open to receiving feedback and correcting it in a timely manner,” the fashion house wrote on its Weibo account on Wednesday, the BBC reported.
The company’s statement noted that famed Chinese photographer Chen Man’s image was a work of art displayed at a Lady Dior exhibition in Shanghai and was not intended for an advertisement. The photo was removed after the uproar and the exhibition closed on Wednesday.
Chen apologized this week for her work on her social media account without mentioning Dior.
“I blame myself for my immaturity and ignorance” in my previous works, Chen, 41, wrote on Weibo. “I think I should… formally apologize to everyone.”
Critics took to social media after the photo appeared in the exhibit early this month, saying the model – who appears in traditional dress with a black Dior handbag – did not have the light skin and larger eyes popular with the Chinese.
The Beijing Daily described the model as having a “gloomy face” and small, “ominous eyes.”
“For years, Asian women have always appeared with small eyes and freckles from a Western perspective,” the editorial reads. “The photographer is responding to the brands, or the aesthetic taste of the western world.”
China Women’s News said the image of the model with “swollen single eyelids” made people “uncomfortable”. Dior revealed his intention to “make Chinese women ugly,” it claimed.
But others stood up for the picture, pushing for wider acceptance of diverse Chinese beauty.
A Weibo user asked, “Why can’t a Chinese woman with small eyes be considered beautiful too? I see no problem with that.”
The uproar over the photo sparked renewed criticism of Chen’s previous work, including “Young Pioneers,” a series of photos in 2008 of a young model in various scenes, some with backdrops of important Chinese monuments.
The state magazine Global Times reported that social media critics had called the work “implicit child pornography” that insulted the Young Pioneers, the name of a Communist Party-affiliated youth organization.
A 2012 series of 12 magazine covers by Chen featuring Chinese women was criticized for “ghostly” makeup.
Chen noted in her apology: “I was born and raised in China. I love my country deeply. As an artist, I am fully aware of my responsibility to document Chinese culture and showcase Chinese beauty through my work.”
She added: “I will educate myself about Chinese history, attend more relevant events and improve my ideologies. … I will strive to tell the story of China through my work.”


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Trader Joe's confirms it's coming to Denver
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Trader Joe's officials confirmed Wednesday that the chain is coming to Denver, and that its first store in the city will open on the southeast corner of Colorado Boulevard and East Eighth Avenue.
The Denver Business Journal broke the news in May that the popular California-based grocery chain would be coming to the Colorado and Eighth site, citing several real estate sources, but the company has not confirmed that report until now.
Trader Joe's, based in Monrovia, Calif., has another location opening in Boulder — its first in Colorado — in 2013, and the Denver store could open about the same time, said company spokeswoman Alison Mochizuki.
The Boulder store will open at 1906 28th St. on the west end of the Twenty Ninth Street mall.
The Denver store will be a new structure on a site that's currently vacant.
It will feature a separate 3,740-square-foot space adjacent to the grocery for beer and wine sales.
While many Trader Joe's in other states have in-store liquor sales, the chain has locations in Kentucky and Manhattan with a similar set-up of separate, but adjacent, stores to handle wine, beer and liquor sales.
Colorado law requires grocers to have a pharmacy in order to obtain a liquor license — and then only one store of that chain can be so licensed.
Trader Joe's is known for stocking its own brands of trendy and affordable foods such as Thai lime-chili cashews, sea salt brownies and Belgium butter waffle cookies.
It's also known for the inexpensive Charles Shaw brand wine — or Two- or Three-Buck Chuck, as loyalists call it.
The City of Denver in May changed the zoning for the store site, clearing the way for the 14,000-square-foot store’s construction.
Dennis Huspeni covers real estate and retail for the Denver Business Journal and writes for the "Real Deals" blog. Phone: 303-803-9232.
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Three sets of paid costume DLC announced for Fuga: Melodies of Steel
CyberConnect2 has announced that three paid DLC costume packs are set to release for Fuga: Melodies of Steel.
The first DLC pack is set to release on January 20, offering a school-based costume for each of the eight characters. A 2nd and 3rd DLC will follow in March 2022 and May 2022 respectively. No pricing information has been detailed at this time.
A 'Back to School' costume pack intro video and details can be found below, via CyberConnect2.
Fuga: Melodies of Steel released in July 2021 for PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and PC (Steam). The game ranked in our top ten RPGs of 2021, and you can also check out our review.
Have even more fun with the Fuga kiddos with new costume packs, available in 3 different sets of paid DLC!
CyberConnect2 is pleased to announce the release of three paid DLC for their critically acclaimed RPG, Fuga: Melodies of Steel.
The first DLC is a School Costume Pack scheduled for release on January 20th, 2022. The 12 Taranis tykes are all suited up for school! Paid DLC #1 Release Date: January 20th, 2022.
Change them out of their usual attire and dress them up in special themed costumes. DLC 1, “School Costume Pack,” will be released on January 20th, 2022! Keep your eyes peeled for the DLC 2 and 3 release dates!


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The Google Watch is one of the most exciting releases of the year.
This long-awaited wearable is set to break boundaries and beat records. But, rumors are surfacing about this new device using old technology. Would Google really release a new watch with a 2018 chip?
Though there’s nothing wrong with the Samsun 2018 Exynos processor chip, it would leave the watch at a disadvantage. Especially when compared to the advanced tech being released by other brands.
Keep reading to find out what’s going on here.
What Do We Know About The Google Watch?
Announced in May, the Google Watch is a pleasant surprise for 2022. While smartwatch aficionados have been expecting this wearable for a while, it’s great to finally see its launch.
We expect this exciting wearable to offer health trackers, music streaming, and GPS maps. Google has also hinted at dedicated workouts and sports modes, ideal for anyone looking for a workout companion.
Find out the key features of the Google Pixel Watch here.
However, the anonymous information points towards older hardware in the smartwatch instead of new tech.
What Is The Exynos 9110?
If you stay up to date with breaking smartwatch information, you may have already noticed Google fans talking about the Pixel Watch’s potential chip.
It seems that the watch will be released with an old Exynos processor. Samsung released this chip in 2018, so there’s no surprise that this leaked information is turning heads. Since this wearable will be Google’s flagship product, we’re surprised they’re not opting for original designs.
The Exynos 9110 chip is a dual-core ARM processor. This uses a Mali T270 GPU and runs at 1.1GHz.
Though older, this chip does work well and allows the tech to run smoothly. But, devices (such as the Samsung Galaxy Watch 4) are already running on later models – such as the Exynos W920. This is a 5nm dual-core option that runs at 1.18GHz.
Why Would Google Use An Old Chip?
So, the question on everyone’s lips is, “Why can’t Google just use a newer chip?” This is a valid query, especially since competitors are running faster chips.
It’s important to remember that the Google Watch project started in late 2018. This wearable has been in the works for years, and back in 2018/2019, the Exynos 9110 was still new tech. If the brand wanted to update this hardware, they would likely have to re-design the whole model to accommodate a new piece. This would then delay the launch and cost more – so we’re not surprised Google is sticking with an older model.
The Bottom Line
Though this news may be disappointing for Google Watch fans, it’s not confirmed yet. These rumors are subject to change, so watch this space for updates! You never know when we’ll get a new piece of information about this unique watch.
Last Updated on May 17, 2022
Isobel is a freelance copy and content writer who regularly contributes to Superwatches. Well-versed in all the ins and outs of the smartwatch industry. Isobel specializes in Fashion and design and is a First Class fashion design graduate.
Currently lives in Bournemouth, United Kingdom.


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On the evening of February 28, Smith Barney announced that it plans to withdraw 366 million yuan of asset impairment reserves for 2020, which will reduce the net profit attributable to the parent company in 2020 by 366 million yuan.
While assets are impaired, the performance of Smith Barney is not optimistic. The former leading companies are now in a state of wind and rain. Many netizens said that Metersbonwe is a youthful memory of many people.
Asset impairment exceeds 300 million yuan
The total market value has exceeded 35 billion
On the evening of the 28th, Smith Barney Apparel issued an announcement that after the company and its subsidiaries, the company and its subsidiaries have identified assets that may have signs of impairment at the end of 2020, including inventory, accounts receivable, other receivables, non-current assets due within one year, After a comprehensive inventory of long-term receivables, investment real estate, etc., and asset impairment tests, it is planned to withdraw 366 million yuan of asset impairment reserves for 2020.
Meibang Apparel stated that the scope of this provision for asset impairment is mainly accounts receivable, inventory and investment real estate. A total of RMB 365.52 million has been provided for impairment of various assets. After considering the impact of income tax, the net profit attributable to owners of the parent company in 2020 will be reduced by RMB 365.52 million, and the equity attributable to owners of the parent company at the end of 2020 will be reduced correspondingly by RMB 365.52 million.
The asset impairment this time is another big punch for Smith Barney.
According to data, Shanghai Metersbonwe Apparel Co., Ltd. was founded in 1995 and listed on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange in August 2008. The stock price of Smith Barney apparel reached a peak of RMB 14.83 per share in 2010, with a total market value of more than 35 billion yuan. Since then, it has continued to decline. As of the midday close on March 1, the stock price of Smith Barney apparel was reported at 1.34 yuan, and the latest total market value was 3.367 billion yuan.
The performance reached its peak in 2011. At that time, the total operating income of Smith Barney apparel reached 9.945 billion yuan, and the net profit attributable to the mother was as high as 1.206 billion yuan. As of the end of 2012, Smith Barney had a total of 5,220 directly-operated stores and franchised stores across the country.
Continuous losses in performance
Stores closed for years
In fact, the performance of Smith Barney Apparel is also not optimistic. According to the financial report of Smith Barney Apparel for the third quarter of 2020, as of September 30, 2020, the company has a net profit loss of 706 million yuan, a year-on-year decrease of 196.78%.
From 2015 to 2019, the company’s net profit was -432 million, 36 million, -305 million, 40 million and -825 million, respectively.
On the other hand, according to the Smith Barney apparel financial report, the number of stores in 2013 became nearly 5,000, dropped to more than 4,000 in 2014, and more than 3,700 in 2015. In the first half of 2020, Smith Barney closed 504 stores and opened 105 new stores at the same time.
It is worth mentioning that at the end of January 2021, Huafu Investment, the controlling shareholder of Smith Barney Apparel, transferred 2.16% of the company’s shares to Lai Xingyu through an agreement transfer in order to repay part of its pledged debts in Zhongtai Securities Co., Ltd. and reduce the risk of stock pledges. .
On the evening of February 4, Smith Barney made another announcement stating that Huafu Investment had released approximately 237 million shares of the company originally pledged to Zhongtai Securities Co., Ltd. from the pledge.
In the same February, Metersbonwe closed its largest store in Hangzhou and issued an announcement stating that due to the shift of the business district and considering the input-output ratio, the company took the market-oriented competitiveness strategy as the main line and made more positive efforts to some stores. Proactive adjustments will further accelerate the closure of all continuously loss-making stores to ensure a proactive strategy based on profitable business operations, and subsequent adjustments may be made to unprofitable stores.


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Discover more from Ashish Sinha on Startups, Tech and AI
PhonePe's App Store: 3+1 questions
Do we need 1 more?
PhonePe has announced the launch of its upcoming app store (Indus), which is the result of its earlier acquisition of IndusOS.
While this is an important milestone in Indian startup ecosystem journey - i.e. a company challenging the likes of Apple and Google, here are questions that I have for PhonePe team.
The PR so far has been about anti-Google stand.
Question: And then, what?
Fundamentally, if a product starts by taking an anti-incumbent stand and offers no solid value prop, it doesn’t go beyond the early adopters. Paytm too went all-in with an anti-Google stand and nothing really happened / the idea couldn’t spread.
PhonePe obviously has IndusOS which is ‘THE’ leverage, but it really needs to answer what’s in for consumers to even look at it - after all, beyond the jingoism of deshbhakti, nobody cares about new platforms.
Of course, IndusOS has (claims to) 100 million userbase, thanks to its partnership with OEMs, but beyond the existing value prop, what else is PhonePe launching? Or it's just an integration of brand with IndusOS?
Play store/App stores are all about Trust and Ease
Qn: What’s PhonePe offering to app developers?
Try uploading your app on third party app stores like Xiaomi, Amazon and you’d know the value play store/app store bring to the app developers :)
What about PhonePe? What does it offer? Why would app developers trust a private entity which is largely funded by global VCs?
Of course, large scale consumer brands will look at it as one-more distribution channel (+ a red-carpet welcome by PhonePe team), but for indie developers- everything boils down to..’why one more channel? how can it bring value’?
And India is largely comprised of the latter, i.e. the indie app #productgeeks.
Google’s commission? Is that really a problem?
Important to note that Google’s service fee is primarily for digital goods sold through the play store. Guess what’s the percentage of Indian app developers who sell digital products? Only 3% (source).
Plus, only 60 out of over 200,000 app developers earn more than $1mn annually to get into the 30% commission bracket.
ONLY 60! Imagine.
That is, beyond the top developers - things aren’t as bad as we hear it out from media.
The other way to read this is that the ‘regular’ app developers have their own shit to take care of.
Made in India is fine..but PhonePe is owned by…
As somebody who believed in the Indian startup ecosystem way before anybody else, I am all for made in India platforms.
But in case of PhonePe, it is owned by Walmart and the big question is this - what happens to such ambitious plays when it starts to hurt Google/Apple and Walmart has to decide which side to be on?
What’s your take on the PhonePe app store? What would you expect it to be?
As an entity which is launching an ambitious AI app, these are the questions I have for PhonePe team. Feel free to add yours in the comment section!


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C MAHENDRA EXPORTS LTD Q4 RESULTS
Nestle India Q4 results preview: Profit may jump 25-33%, double digit sales growth likely
Commentary on recovery in trade channels and rural demand will be keenly watched.
ICRA cuts diamond sector outlook to negative on coronavirus
The C&HK region, accounts for 14-15% of global demand for CPDs.
JLR China plant shut down extended till 17th Feb, Q4 earnings set to be hit
As per the guidelines of the local authorities following the coro...
Havells India expanding or maintaining margins in each biz segment: CMD
We are seeing a little bit of improvement in the last few weeks. In many categories, we may have gained market share. However, it is too early to say how Q4 pans out. Let us see how it works out. We are putting all our investments in brand and distribution. Hopefully things should turn out better in the coming quarters.
Delhi Election Results Highlights: AAP sweeps polls with 62 seats
Arvind Kejriwal led the Aam Aadmi Party almost replicated the AAP's fairy-tale victory of 2015 by riding on his government's development agenda, and in the process emerged as a key leader in the national political landscape.
I will wait 2-3 quarters before declaring any turnaround: Bharat Puri, Pidilite
Bharat Puri, MD, Pidilite Industries, says price hike is unlikely but the company will continue to monitor prices. If input costs remain benign, Pidilite will moderate prices in pursuit of volume growth. Also, urban demand rather than rural and small town demand has been hit.
Street gives thumbs up to L&T for standing by its FY20 guidance
Most brokerages maintained their ‘buy’ rating on the conglomerate citing cheaper valuations.
RIL posts record Rs 11,640 crore profit in December quarter
Analysts in an ET NOW poll had estimated Reliance's profit number at Rs 11,400 crore.
JSW Energy logs Rs 6 crore profit in Q4
In the year-ago period, the company registered a loss of Rs 480.05 crore.
Sobha Q4 profit jumps 73% to Rs 113.3 crore
Total income rose to Rs 1,421.6 crore in the fourth quarter of 2018-19 fiscal.
HFCL falls 12 per cent in Q4 net; record profit of Rs 232 crore in FY19
HFCL revenue jumped by over 46 per cent to Rs 4,785 crore.
TCS, Infosys show may put jittery investors at ease
Each of the companies showed a sustained momentum in earnings from digital solutions.
Exim Bank posts Rs 82 crore PAT in FY'19
The export finance institution also witnessed reduction in bad loans during the year.
Tribunal order unlikely to impact TCS, but other concerns remain
Client-specific concerns in the retail vertical may get resolved sooner.
Hindustan Copper profit jumps 83% to Rs 146 crore for FY19
During FY19, the company registered its highest ever copper ore production in last 21 years at 41.22 lakh tonne.
Copyright © 2020 Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd. All rights reserved. For reprint rights: Times Syndication Service


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Hi all — 👋
Ever wonder what it takes to start a new city or build a country?
Balaji Srinivasan, Formerly CTO of Coinbase and General Partner at a16z, recently released a new book called “The Network State.”
As Srinivasan highlights:
“Technology has enabled us to start new companies, new communities, and new currencies. But can we use it to start new cities, or even new countries? This book explains how to build the successor to the nation state, a concept we call the network state.”
You can read the book for free or buy it on Amazon.
>> Watch: Check out Balaji Srinivasan’s interview with Tim Ferriss.
Did you know that Reddit launched a series of collectible avatars? Reddit’s limited-edition avatars will have a “glow-like effect” in the comments section.
>> More: Read The Verge article about Reddit’s collective avatars.
I’ve recently discovered Social Tokens: The Economy of You, a must-read article by Mario Gabriele, the founder of The Generalist.
Here are some of my highlights:
>> Social tokens or creator tokens are assumed to be a fungible currency that relates to an individual. Think $RON coin for football player Ronaldinho.
>> As Mario Gabriele highlights, “Top creators often produce far more value for the platform on which they operate than they can capture.” Social tokens enable people or social media influencers to become full-fledged economies.
>> Creators may want to tokenize their identity / name to: Raise money:
Check out the article to learn how to build an economy around your personality / name.
A Short History of NFT Trash Art is another article that caught my attention. Here are some things I’ve learned about this concept:
Check out the article to learn more about the drama around Trash Art.
Finally, during one of our NFT conversations via Discord, Mauricio Palacio, the co-founder of Magic Works sent me this short video. We don’t discuss it enough, but web3 and blockchain technology will also impact our hardware. Check out the video in case you want to learn about building phones for web3.
That’s it from me today.
Talk to you next week and stay awesome,
🎁 P.S.: NFT.NYC just published most of the panel conversations. If you didn’t attend their latest event, check out the videos on YouTube.


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T-Mobile CEO John Legere will get his Macklemore and Ryan Lewis fix after all.
T-Mobile said Thursday that it's sponsoring a special performance by the Grammy-nominated artists for 1,400 Los Angeles-area fans. The concert will be held on January 23, with tickets to go on sale on January 17.
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- Why Sprint's push for a T-Mobile merger will likely be in vain
Legere, of course, made headlines at the Consumer Electronics Show last week when he crashed a private party hosted by AT&T. The musical guest for the party: Macklemore and Ryan Lewis.
After Legere was spotted and outed by this reporter, security subsequently escorted Legere out of the hotel.
Legere insisted he just wanted to see Macklemore perform, and indeed got his invitation from the rapper's agent, but it's clear things turned out just rosy for him. His ejection from the party was the talk of the trade show, and he utilized the incident to great effect during the company's press conference, even making T-shirts saying he just wanted to see Macklemore.
"My appreciation for Macklemore and Ryan Lewis seems to be the worst-kept secret in the social hemisphere," Legere said in a statement.


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Slipways update v1.2 (b894) is now rolling out for PC (Steam) players. According to the official Slipways patch notes, the latest update added connection improvements.
Previously, a big update was released with new features and bug fixes. Unfortunately, many players are still experiencing several issues while playing the game.
Today’s Slipways patch 1.1 will fix a few of these issues. Check out more details below.
Slipways Patch Notes (January 1, 2022)
- Connection type switching: Fixed the cost/display glitches that occurred when you switched connection types while already over a destination. This should now work properly again. The issue was caused by a performance fix that aimed to not recalculate connection costs and other sometimes-expensive-to-calculate data when that wasn’t needed. Turns out, its definition of “isn’t needed” was a little lacking.
- Ruins vs Undo: We can’t call it a proper patch without some sort of undo fix. This time, a previous fix for ruins wrongly disabling undo introduced a situation where ruins would mistakenly leave undo enabled. Patched again! Hoping this doesn’t introduce a new corner-case-to-the-corner-case-to-the-corner-case.
Download free Slipways patch 1.2 is now available for download on PC.


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Here is a recap of what happened in the search forums today, through the eyes of the Search Engine Roundtable and other search forums on the web.
Search Engine Roundtable Stories:
- January 2011 Google Webmaster Report
It is that time of the month again, this is our monthly recap of what SEOs and Webmasters are talking about when it comes to ranking and SEO changes at Google. This is based off a WebmasterWorld thread where webmasters watch Google like a hawk.
- 2011 Search Ranking Signals
A WebmasterWorld thread has a discussion around what these SEOs feel will be the most important ranking factors in 2011. Guess what...
- Google's Twitter Directory
Have you ever wanted an easy way to find a specific official Google Twitter account/feed? In April of last year, Google released a Google Twitter directory which contains a browsable directory of all the official Google accounts.
- Google Webmaster Top Posters T-Shirt
Via Brian Ussery, Google sent out bionic posters TShirts to the Google Webmaster Help posters.
- Google Desktop Searches Differ About 86% From Mobile Searches
Bryson Meunier posted a study showing that search results on a desktop different from search results on a smart phone by about 86%...
Other Great Search Forum Threads:


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Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Latest News: Specs, Design, Price And Release Date
Samsung has confirmed that the phablet line will continue this year as there are already alleged leaked images of the upcoming Galaxy Note 8 rounding up on the internet. In a recent report, some snaps of the upcoming flagship phablet seem to channel the Galaxy S8. The leaked photo of the upcoming phablet that surfaced on Slashleaks shows a large phone running Bixby, Samsung's own AI assistant. It looks similar to the recently revealed Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8 Plus with a full-frontal screen and has no physical home button. Samsung's upcoming Galaxy Note 8 phablet could be the best phone the company has ever built when it unveils this year.
The Galaxy Note 8 is said to feature a 6.4-inch OLED display with QHD+ resolution, powered by a Snapdragon 835 processor depending on the region, and will come with a fingerprint sensor on the back. Interestingly, according to reports, the "Note 8's dual-camera is reported to be even better than that of Apple's iPhone 7 Plus, and likely will match that of OLED iPhone,"
As reported, an analyst claim that the camera will be the Galaxy Note 8's most significant upgrade, apart from the Infinity Display design. The camera will deliver 3x optical zoom, 12MP wide-angle CIS (correction image space), dual photodiode (2PD) support, 13MP telephoto CIS, dual 6P lenses and dual OIS optical image stabilization. The Galaxy Note 8 will more likely to feature USB-C instead of MicroUSB.
Samsung is known for adhering to a tight schedule when releasing flagship phones, which early reports claim that the Samsung Galaxy Note 8 will possibly arrive in the last quarter of 2017. As for the price, last year's Galaxy Note 7 came with a starting price of $850 and the price of Galaxy S8 Plus is at $825, so expect the price tag of Galaxy Note 8 to play with that cost.
Apple Set To Launch A Powerful 2017 iMac With High-End Specs To Beat Microsoft Surface Studio
Apple is readying its 2017 iMacs, set to unveil second half of the year, with even more powerful and upgraded specs and new features ready to compete with Microsoft's Surface Studio.
Microsoft Surface Pro 5 Latest Roundup: Specs, Price, Release Date And What You Should Know
Microsoft is widely expected to hold a press conference this spring where it's rumored to unveil the highly-anticipated Surface Pro 5.
iPhone 8 vs Galaxy S8: Which Is Worth To Upgrade?
Samsung Galaxy S8 and Apple iPhone 8 are two of the major flagship devices that consumers are highly anticipating to be released this year.
Samsung Galaxy Note 8: Looks Like Galaxy S8 But Just Bigger
The Galaxy Note 8 is expected to take the company's new Galaxy S8 design and improve upon it, even more, offering an even larger display, better features, powerful specs and most of all safer batteries.
These Are Best Work Laptop Brands Not Made in China [July 2020]
In search of your next work laptop as you shift to working from home? While you consider different specs that will be important to your needs, the current trade war between the United States and China has made some users are considering devices not made in the Middle Kingdom. Here are a few choices of the best so far.
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At-Risk Mental Health for Students: Developing Resilience Among Students amid the Coronavirus Pandemic
At-Risk Mental Health for Students to help students struggling with their mental health, especially now amid the pandemic. It focuses more on developing students' resilience.
Tech Leaders and Health Authorities Join Forces, Launch New Initiative to Help Fight Pandemic and Future Epidemics
Two contact tracing apps have been successfully launched recently in Canada and Ireland. The open-source code underlying these apps has been contributed to a newly launched initiative to help other countries and U.S. states in the fight against the pandemic.
Fairy Tail Game Releases a Season Pass, a Week After It Was Launched
The anime RPG Fairy Tail from Koei Tecmo has just released a season pass that will release additional characters and content into the game, just a week after it was launched.


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The Company sees some benefits from pricing and smokeless tobacco
In addition to announcing the upcoming retirement of CEO Michael Szymanczyk, Altria Group Inc. reported that fourth-quarter profit fell about 9% on lease and restructuring charges last week, despite gains from higher prices and smokeless tobacco products.
In cigarettes, Philip Morris USA’s volumes were up slightly for the quarter at 33.7 billion units (+.2%)— primarily attributed to the dynamics of stock trading and retail profit share of L & M, which is partially offset the loss of retail share in the Marlboro and other brands as well as one less shipping day. Szymanczyk said the company continues to focus on maximizing revenue from its cigarette business, while maintaining a modest fraction of the time Marlboro over time.
Segment net sales of cigarettes have increased by 2.9% in the fourth quarter, primarily due to higher prices list, and net income from excise taxes rose by 4.2%. For the entire 2011 segment net sales of cigarettes fell by 1.1% mainly due to lower volume, partially offset by higher prices list, and net income from excise taxes rose by 0.4%.
The smokeless products segment’s 2011 fourth-quarter and full-year net revenues and revenues net of excise taxes increased primarily due to higher volume and pricing. 2011 fourth-quarter and full-year net revenues increased 6.6% and 4.8%, respectively, and revenues net of excise taxes increased 6.8% for the fourth quarter and grew 5.0% for the full year of 2011.
The cigars segment’s 2011 second-half financial results were stronger compared to the first half of 2011 as Middleton made significant progress on improving its profitability and profits by introducing new products and brand initiatives, and soft black. As a result of these initiatives, and soft black high reached in 2011 fourth quarter and full year results of the retail stocks.
The cigars segment’s 2011 fourth-quarter net revenues increased 7.3% mainly due to lower advertising costs and higher prices list, partially offset by lower volume. 2011 full year net income rose by 1.3% mainly due to the high prices of the list. Revenues net of excise taxes increased by 26.8% in the fourth quarter and grew by 3.4% for the full year 2011.
The company also announced that the constant attention the development of products lower the risk associated with the agreement from the windows A / S, a branch Fertin Pharma A / S, the development of non-combustible nicotine-containing products to adult consumers of tobacco products. “Fertin is a world leader in the development and production of nicotine gum with additional features and other products and technologies,” said Szymanczyk.
As previously reported in CSP Daily News, Szymanczyk also said that he would resign as chairman and chief executive officer after the meeting of shareholders annually in May. Martin Barrington will enter into the role, and David Beran will serve as president of Altria and Chief Operating Officer Altria, directly or indirectly owns 100% of the shares of each of PM USA, USSTC, Middleton, and Ste. Michelle and closed. Altria has continuing economic and voting shares of SABMiller.


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Press Coverage of Our Work
A Milan Fashion Week Showcase Celebrates the Work of Five BIPOC Designers
By Tiziana Cardini in Vogue
Vogue interviews Afro Fashion Association founder Michelle Ngonmo about her work, the experiences that led her to found Afro Fashion Week Milan, and the designers featured at our 2020 hybrid fashion showcase. Read the full article
2020 marked an important year for Afro Fashion Week, as one of our events was included on the Milan Fashion Week official calendar for the first time and renewed attention to the Black Lives Matter movement put our work in the spotlight with over 50 dedicated articles and countless more local syndications across the world. Check out more of the press coverage specifically of our fifth edition on our dedicated AFWM 2020 Presspage.
Afro Fashion: la piattaforma per valorizzare i talenti africani


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KUALA LUMPUR, July 19 (Bernama) -- Wesports Malaysia, which is aware that the rising living cost is likely to affect morale and productivity, has announced improved benefits for its workers to increase their take-home pay and ease their burden.
In a statement, Wesports said it was fully aware of the increases in fuel price, toll, utilities cost and general food expenditure.
"These will affect employees purchasing power. The port is also keen to see its employees continuously improve productivity," it said.
Executive chairman, Tan Sri G. Gnanalingam, said on June 8, following the fuel price increase and the Tenaga Nasional Bhd's revised tariff rates, the company has improved the incentive scheme, introduced higher allowance to help employees cushion the effects of all round price increases.
Among the measures are:
Staff income has been increased by RM50 each in the form of shift allowance or salary increase;
A new incentive scheme for all operational staff has been implemented;
For terminal equipment operators, the incentive payout was increased for attainment of better moves per hour;
The incentive scheme for mechanical and repair technicians, measured by breakdown hours/equipment, ranged from RM150 to RM450;
Employees are encouraged to switch their cars from petrol to gas by giving them a RM4,000 loan at four percent interest deductible over 24 months;
A full grocery store has been set up at its business centre for employees; and,
Employees will be permitted to buy goods with their e-purse only, which will also be increased from the current RM200 to RM300 per month which took effect from Aug 1.


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First Kobelco Generation 10 excavator delivered in Netherlands
By Steve Ducker23 September 2015
Kobelco Construction Machinery Europe has announced the first customer delivery of its new range of Generation 10 excavators.
Kok Lexmond, based in the Netherlands,was the first to place an order for the latest specification SK210LC-10, which was supplied authorised Kobelco dealer, Kemp Groep.
As a specialist builder of road and waterways, groundworks and recycling, civil engineering company Kok Lexmond achieves national coverage that requires excavators to complete a variety of site tasks.
It had already purchased a Kobelco SK350LC-9 in July and the two machines will work in conjunction.
Henk Kok, workshop manager of Kok Lexmond said the main reasons the company had bought from Kobelco were low fuel consumption, clean running and the company’s previous experience of reliability with exceptional back up service from Kemp Groep.


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Apple plans an iPhone model with a screen larger than 4½ inches measured diagonally, and a second version with a display bigger than 5 inches. Until now, Apple's largest phone has been the 4-inch display on the iPhone 5.
Both new models are expected to feature metal casings similar to what is used on the current iPhone 5S, with Apple expected to scrap the plastic exterior used in the iPhone 5C, these people said.
The WSJ says the phones are expected in the second half of 2014 and won't feature a curved display. While plans aren't final and the company could change course, the smaller model is reportedly further along in development and being prepared for mass production. The larger version is still in preliminary development, according to their source.
A recent report from China claimed that Apple has plans to launch both a 4.7-inch screen and a 5.7-inch screen iPhone. Another report from yesterday said Apple has selected a 4.8-inch display size for its new smartphone.
Back in November, Bloomberg said Apple was planning to release a 4.7-inch and 5.5-inch iPhones with displays that curve downward at their edges.
Please follow iClarified on Twitter, Facebook, Google+, or RSS for updates as more information becomes available.


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New Zealand's dominant telco will voluntarily separate its wholesale and retail operations in a move seen as attempting to stave off further government intervention in the country's telecommunications industry. The move comes some eight weeks after the New Zealand government unveiled a significant package of reforms designed to promote competition and boost the uptake of broadband services.
New Zealand's dominant telco will
voluntarily separate its wholesale and retail operations in a
move seen as attempting to stave off further government
intervention in the country's telecommunications industry.
It also comes as the Australian government last week approved
Telstra's plans for mandatory separation of its own wholesale and
Announcing the plans in a statement sent to the Australian
Stock Exchange this afternoon, incoming Telecom chairman Wayne
Boyd said the move would centre on "transparent,
non-discriminatory arrangements" for regulated services to all
In recent years, incumbent telcos have come under criticism for
providing more favourable terms to their own retail arms than
external customers of their wholesale services.
Boyd said Telecom had looked at similar efforts
internationally, including examples from the UK's British Telecom
"The planned separation structurally reinforces the wholesale
charter which we've been working through with wholesale customers
for the past few months," he said.
"On that path we've also suggested industry user groups to
work on the specifications and implementation plans of the new
Boyd emphasised when the separation was complete, an
"independent wholesale unit" operating according to a number of
firm working principles would exist.
Key principles would include equivalent service delivery
processes and levels for all customers, transparent external
reporting of information and oversight by an independent
monitoring group which would include industry and stakeholder
In the statement, Telecom CEO Theresa Gattung said the changed
regulatory environment had stimulated her company to work on many
fronts to meet new government expectations.
"Today we are talking about wholesale but across Telecom there
is massive work going on to introduce our new business model,"
"We are working on smoothly converged services across fixed
and mobile, and a suite of Internet Protocol services that will
enable the delivery of more content, services and features such
as IP-based voice services."
Gattung said Telecom would update the market on its strategy
during its full year results on 4 August.


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News has just surfaced stating that the PS3 has passed FCC approval tests and that the final clock speed of the Cell processor is 3.2GHz. The FCC is the regulatory body in the United States which regulates communication through radio, television, wire, cable and satellite.
The clock speed of the PlayStation 3's Cell processor has been the subject of debate for some time, after certain internet news sites reported that it had been downgraded since the PlayStation 3 was first unveiled last year.
Sony has yet to comment on this news or release any press material, however we can verify that the report is legitimate as it is currently on the official FCC site.
The PlayStation 3 will launch on November 11th in Japan and on November 17th in North America. Launch dates for other regions have not been confirmed and have been estimated at March 2007.


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Nyaribari Chache MP Zaheer Jhanda revealed that he would be table a bill to increase tax on makeup and beauty products.
“I am going to introduce a bill next week that will increase tax on women’s products like make up ,human hair and other beauty skin care products.
Zaheer said that the move would help the government to raise revenue. This is to ensure the government raises enough revenue for our country to move forward.”
Netizens have expressed mixed reactions at the move. Most of them feel like Zaheer is out to punish women because of his ex-lover Amber Ray. The two were married for close to two years before breaking up in 2018.
What are your thoughts on the same?


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Hundreds queue for Apple's iPhone 7 despite limited supply
Fans eagerly queued at the Mall of Emirates for Apple's iPhone 7 and Watch Series 2, however walk-in customers left empty handed
Apple's iPhone 7 and Watch Series 2 arrived on Saturday at Dubai's Mall of Emirates, with hundreds of UAE residents queuing through the night to purchase the devices.
Despite Apple's recent unveiling, reports have poured in with criticism over limited supplies around the world of the latest iPhones, and in particular the "jet black" model, which has already sold out. Apple said in a statement: "We sincerely appreciate our customers' patience as we work hard to get the new iPhone into the hands of everyone who wants one as quickly as possible."
Apple further advised customers to order it online or use third-party retailers who have the devices. Furthermore, UAE telecom operators, Etisalat and du, have already released upgrade packages for their customers.
For the first time, the UAE had the same launch date as the rest of the world, however this was delayed by one day to avoid launching on Friday. The day of the launch saw Ahmed Al Hajri from Saudi Arabia, queue outside the Mall of Emirates Apple store the night before, despite ordering the iPhone 7 online and confirming with Apple employees about his order the day before.
Whilst Al Hajri received his order, the number of devices stocked did not meet customer demand, meaning after a few hours walk-in customers were unable to purchase the smartphone.
It appears Apple was already prepared for the shortage, as the iPhone giant said in statement, cautioning investors, it would not be releasing pre-order sales as it typically would. Apple said: "These initial sales will be governed by supply, not demand, and we have decided that is no longer a representative metric for customers and investors."
Reports have also suggested that Apple has scaled back its production on the iPhone 7, due to overproducing the iPhone 6S. Since the release of the iPhone 7, the device has received a divided opinion, in particular with the removal of the headphone jack and wireless AirPods, as this could be the deciding factor of whether Apple fans will want to purchase or upgrade to the newer model.


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Researchers call for ear print biometrics to be built into smartphone apps for smart home securityMarie Donlon | May 18, 2020
Researchers from the University de Tunis El Manar in Tunisia are calling for incorporating ear recognition biometric technology into smartphone apps for the purpose of securing smart homes.
Like commonly used biometrics such as fingerprints, facial recognition and iris scans used to secure internet of things (IoT) devices, the structure of the human ear is unique from person to person. As such, researchers believe that “ear prints” could potentially be used to secure connected smart home devices via smartphone.
Ear prints have distinctive parts and features — including the helix, concha, antihelix, crux of helix, intertragic notch, tragus and antitragus — that largely go unchanged over time, according to researchers. This is in contrast to other biometrics, which can change over time such as a person’s face.
Additionally, the researchers suggest that the size of an ear, which is smaller than a face, would be more efficiently captured than a face by recognition technology. Likewise, ear prints are so-called passive biometrics because they are not compromised by facial hair or facial expressions. Meanwhile, when measured against iris scans, the color distribution of an ear is more even than with a retina or an iris.
The research team believes that if more smart phone apps incorporate ear print biometric information, it will pave the way for a real-world ear print biometric system.
The research appears in the Journal of Electronic Imaging.


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As Datamation editor James Maguire put it, “AI is now the biggest big thing.”
Like everything in technology, AI touches on so many other trends, like self-driving cars and automation, and Big Data and the Internet of Things (IoT) are certainly part of it too. And concerns about the future of work in an increasingly automated world are very much at the heart of the issue.
Eileen Feretic, editorial director of our ZDE network of sites, which includes eWeek, CIO Insight, Baseline and Channel Insider, said AI was a big theme at a recent Gartner conference, with voice-first systems, smart agents that could replace mobile apps and behavioral algorithms among the emerging technologies. Self-learning apps could become like a personal assistant, she said, but noted they could lead to job loss too.
eWeek Editor in Chief John Pallatto said “there’s no question AI will have an impact,” but he cautioned that in some cases it may be marketing hype for what is simply a refresh of an old product.
Jeff Burt, an eWeek senior editor who covers networking and other data center technologies, noted that machine learning could “really accelerate the development of AI” as programs and machines begin to learn on their own.
But as artificial intelligence is increasingly built into everything from personal devices, homes and cars to airplanes, security issues will become critical even as comprehensive security solutions remain elusive. “To be really technical about it, it creeps me out,” said Lauren Simonds, editor of Small Business Computing.
Other trends: New mobile competitors, Blockchain and hyperconvergence
Todd Weiss, an eWeek senior writer who covers mobile issues, said the smartphone market could be reshaped and new players emerge, thanks to interesting products like the HP Elite x3 and the Kodak Ektra and the rise of Chinese smartphone makers.
Weiss said Apple could get a boost in enterprises, thanks to reports that IBM has more than 100,000 Apple devices under management and claims that Macs save hundreds of dollars over a PC over the life of the device.
Blockchain is another technology thatâ€™s generating a lot of buzz. eWeek senior editor Chris Preimesberger said the secure transaction tracking technology could really take off if it expands from the financial services industry to cover all transactions.
Hyperconvergence is an area experiencing real growth, noted Burt, with some analysts predicting that the market will double annually for the foreseeable future.
Security will once again be an important issue, QuinStreet Enterprise editors predict, but for the wrong reasons. Pallatto wondered if DDoS attacks could render the “internet unusable,” with “daily weather reports of outages like weather reports.”
The long-running trend of media mergers and concentration may move to the forefront, as companies seek to control both pipes and content, with the AT&T-Time Warner deal the catalyst for debate.
And the Dell-EMC merger also generated discussion here, with a focus on storage. Will EMC adopt a softer sales strategy like Dell, or will the storage business drive the rest of the company? Stay tuned. 2017 promises to be an interesting year.
Paul Shread is editorial director of the IT Business Edge network of sites, which includes IT Business Edge, Webopedia, Datamation and other tech journalism sites.
This article was originally published on November 02, 2016


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MOSCOW (Reuters) - O’Key (OKEYq.L) hopes its Russian discounters can mirror the rise in Europe of German-owned chains Lidl and Aldi as Russian consumers count their pennies, its chief executive said.
Russia’s economy has returned to growth after two consecutive years of recession sparked by a drop in oil prices and sanctions, but shoppers are watching prices closely.
“Price starts to be more important, but this is part of education and development of clients, not because they have less money,” Miodrag Borojevic told Reuters in a recent interview.
O’Key launched its discounter business in 2015 while taking a cautious stance on expanding hypermarkets, its core business. Last year it sold its supermarkets to market leader X5 (PJPq.L).
The company plans to open 30 discounters Da! (which stands for Yes!) this year, accelerating expansion in 2019 and beyond. It had 67 Da! stores as of the end of the first quarter.
“In one moment in which Da! starts to be profitable, it’s possible maybe to go with an IPO of Da! and make an escalation of investments and expansion,” Borojevic said.
The company may also consider attracting private investment as an alternative to the public offering.
“We will see which variant is for us better but definitely we will not stop ... with the expansion of Da! We are close to breakeven with discounters and expect to bring this format in profitable numbers in the next 12-18 months,” Borojevic added.
O’Key expects that the discounters’ sales contribution will be as significant as that of its hypermarket business in the next 5-10 years, Borojevic said. However, hypermarkets currently account for a dominant 94 percent of total sales.
Borojevic said the lower cost of running a discounter business would help it to keep prices competitive vis-a-vis Russia’s popular price-cutting supermarkets.
Discounters have a much tighter assortment of products and many items are displayed in crates and boxes, allowing saving on sales area and staff.
Besides, a large share of a discounter’s range are private label products on which it makes a much bigger margin compared with branded goods.
“Our process will give us (a) possibility to be more aggressive than our competition,” Borojevic said.
Discount supermarkets including Lidl and Aldi have been the driving force of the European retail market in past two decades, winning customers over from traditional chains thanks to their low prices and own brand products.
The format is still largely untapped in Russia where X5’s Pyaterochka and Magnit (MGNT.MM) have fought a fierce battle for shoppers by dotting vast territories with thousands of well-stocked supermarkets embroiled in price wars.
The strategy has proved profit-diluting. X5 said this month it needed a fresh look at Pyaterochka business as the unit’s head quit due to disagreements over strategy.
Borojevic said he saw a huge potential for discounters in Russia but added that some consumers were still reluctant to use low-cost stores.
“Can you imagine a Russian client who uses Maybach or Mercedes to go to Pyaterochka? Go to Germany and you will see Porsche or Maybach or S class Mercedes on a Lidl parking and Aldi parking (lot), it’s a normal thing, it’s a usual behavior of clients.”
“This will come in Russia, too. People will start thinking more pragmatically.”
Reporting by Maria Kiselyova and Olga Sichkar; Editing by Keith Weir


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The SA unit of cigarette maker Philip Morris International opened its first flagship store in Johannesburg on Thursday, as it tries to grow demand in Africa for its alternative heated tobacco product IQOS. The store in Sandton gives Philip Morris access to tourists and business people from Africa who frequent Africa’s richest square mile, allowing it to use its retail footprint as a springboard to expand in the rest of the continent.
With health officials worried that teen vaping is an “epidemic of addiction”, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration is turning to TV ads featuring a magician to educate young people about vaping’s dangers. But experts say the magic misses the mark. In fact, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) first TV anti-vaping ad campaign will be “completely ineffective,” Michael Siegel, a professor and American tobacco control expert at the Boston University School of Public Health, told MarketWatch.
Last week, acting FDA Commissioner Norman E. "Ned" Sharpless, MD., released a statement on how the agency is tackling the alleged “epidemic of youth vaping”, mentioning the agency's position on the recent court ruling, pertaining PMTAs submission deadlines. Earlier this month, a court case which had been brought about by anti-tobacco and health groups, after the FDA had announced the premarket tobacco product application (PMTA) delay, has resulted in a ruling requiring e-cig manufacturers to submit their PMTAs by May 2020.
As the so-called epidemic of teen vaping continues to garner sensational headlines—“Why vaping is so dangerous for teens”; “The scary truth about teen vaping”— tactics from the War on Drugs playbook are increasingly used to punish teens who vape. Drug testing of adults and teenagers is an insidious aspect of the drug war dragnet. It seeks to control individual behavior and penalize personal choices. It starts with the humiliation of peeing in a cup, often while another person watches. Adults can be fired from jobs or denied welfare, methadone or liberty if they fail a drug test. Teens can lose access to important extracurricular activities, or be suspended or expelled from school.
Lawmakers blasted Juul for its alleged role in fueling a teen vaping “epidemic,” calling the company’s tactics “right out of the tobacco playbook” and eager to understand what makes Juul’s e-cigarettes “so attractive to teenagers.”
A federal survey found nearly 21% — or 3 million — U.S. high school students vaped last year. Some, including former Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Scott Gottlieb, blame the surge in teen e-cigarette use on Juul, which makes the market-leading product.
The hearings will build on the Subcommittee’s investigation into JUUL’s role in the youth nicotine addiction epidemic, marketing to youth, misleading health claims, and new partnerships with traditional tobacco companies.


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With a market cap of almost $780 billion, Bitcoin is currently worth half of all the silver that has ever been mined. According to data from Infinite Market Cap, Bitcoin has also surpassed tech giants Facebook, Tencent, and Alibaba in terms of market cap, as well as Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway.Facebook, Tencent, Alibaba dethroned by rallying BitcoinBitcoin’s latest rally has pushed its price past $40,000, helping it reach its all-time-high. However, with most of the world now focused on rising prices, Bitcoin’s increasing market cap has mostly gone unnoticed.With a market capitalization of $779.85 billion, Bitcoin is the ninth-largest asset in the world. The world’s largest cryptocurrency has surpassed Facebook, whose $755 billion market cap makes it the tenth-largest asset and the sixth-largest tech company in the world.
#Bitcoin has surpassed Facebook $FB in market cap. Makes sense that a money network would be more valuable than a social network. pic.twitter.com/XofI9W0Mce
— Cameron Winklevoss (@cameron) January 8, 2021
Chinese tech company Tencent also ranks below Bitcoin with a market cap of just over $706 billion, while the global e-commerce giant Alibaba is ranked 12th with a market cap of $629.33 billion.Bitcoin has also outperformed Berkshire Hathaway, the world’s largest holding and investment company founded by billionaire investor Warren Buffett. According to data from Infinite Market Cap, Berkshire Hathaway is the world’s thirteen-largest asset with a market capitalization of $547 billion.