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Symbian Foundation Director Resigns
October 20, 2010 8:51 AM
Lee Williams, head of the Symbian Foundation, has resigned.
Nokia has now lost top-level execs for both of its OS's
The talent losses keep piling up for Nokia, as multiple sources today report Lee Williams, director of the Symbian Foundation, is stepping down for "personal reasons."
The Symbian Foundation is a non-profit company -- majority-owned by Nokia -- that develops the eponymous and still most widely used mobile operating system in the world. Williams was with the foundation for more than 10 years,
. He will be replaced by Tim Holbrow, the company's CFO until now.
While Williams wasn't directly employed by the Nokia Corporation, its majority ownership in Symbian and the fact that it employs the open-source OS in most of its mobile devices means that the shakeup will certainly affect the Finnish telecom company. It's starting to become tough to count on one hand how many top-level executives have left in just the last two months. Most recently, Ari Jaaksi, the VP in charge of Nokia's Meego Devices
resigned just two weeks ago
. Before that, Nokia's CEO was
replaced with a Microsoft executive
, prompting Nokia's
head of N-Series to quit
(for reportedly being snubbed to take the top spot).
Regardless, Symbian is still selling quite well internationally. A report in August put Symbian's worldwide daily sales figures at 300,000 -- 50% more than the 200,000 Google CEO Eric Schmidt claimed Android was selling. Still, Nokia and Symbian are losing in the U.S. market, to the likes of Apple, and, particularly Android. We'll see what moves Nokia makes to try to recapture the lucrative market now that much of the old guard has been replaced.
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This article is more than 1 year old
Apple suppliers: Child labor, bribery, suicides
Jobsian crusaders to the rescue
During 2010, Apple audited the facilities and management practices of 127 of its worldwide suppliers, and found instances of underage labor, unsafe working conditions, inadequate safety devices, lack of first-aid supplies, improper handling of hazardous chemicals, excessive recruitment fees, and more. Much more.
And if Apple's Supplier Responsibility: 2011 Progress Report, released Monday, is to believed, Cupertino's employee-welfare auditors are kicking some serious regulatory butt.
For example, the report asserts, Apple terminated business with one facility at which management "presented falsified payroll records and provided misleading interview answers to Apple's audit team," and with another at which a facility manager "offered cash to Apple's third-party auditors, asking them to reduce the number of audit findings."
Apple's team discovered 10 facilities that hired a total of 91 underage workers. (Although the report doesn't specify where the offending facilities were located, 16 is the legal working age in China). One of those offending facilities had hired a total of 42 child laborers. "We determined management had chosen to overlook the issue and was not committed to addressing the problem," the report says of that facility, adding: "Apple has terminated business with the facility."
In other cases, Apple declined to drop the axe, and instead gave the companies another chance. For example, at one "A facility manager assembled workers and told them to provide false wage payment information to Apple auditors." That company was merely required to produce the actual records and to better train its management staff – but Apple will "will return for a full reaudit in 2011."
The report devotes one section to the use of the dangerous chemical n-hexane, which can cause serious health problems if used in an unventilated workspace. "In 2010," the report reads, "we learned that 137 workers at the Suzhou facility of Wintek, one of Apple's suppliers, had suffered adverse health effects following exposure to n-hexane, a chemical in cleaning agents used in some manufacturing processes."
Apple reports that it instructed Wintek to stop using n-hexane, and to fix their insufficient ventilation system, which had contributed to the problem. "Since these changes," the report contends, "no new workers have suffered difficulties from chemical exposure."
A Reg report of last October about a logo factory that also sickened workers with n-hexane was confirmed by Apple's audit team: "We are aware of another reported incident involving n-hexane," the report reads. "Apple learned that a logo supplier and its subcontractor were using the chemical. When we investigated, we found that the subcontractor had been shut down by local officials."
Another section of the report delves into the spate of suicides and reports of maltreatment at Foxconn's giant assembly plant in Shenzhen, China. In June 2010, Apple COO and Steve Jobs–stand-in Tim Cook met with Foxconn CEO Terry Gou – a meeting the resulted in Apple commissioning a team of suicide-prevention experts to "conduct a deeper investigation into the suicides, evaluate Foxconn’s response, and recommend strategies for supporting workers' mental health in the future."
During July, that team independently surveyed 1,000 Foxconn employees, interviewed some workers "face to face", met with managers, and "evaluated working and living conditions firsthand." In August, the team "commended" Foxconn for such improvements as hiring psychological counselors, establishing a 24/7 care center, and "even attaching large nets to the factory buildings to prevent impulsive suicides." Foxconn's actions, the report concludes, "definitely saved lives."
Finally, the report details how Apple is working with the Global e-Sustainability Initiative (GESI) and the Electronic Industry Citizenship Coalition (EICC) to audit what they refer to as conflict-free sourcing of extractives, namely "The mining of columbite-tantalite, cassiterite, wolframite, and gold – which are refined into tantalum (Ta), tin (Sn), tungsten (W), and gold (Au), respectively – [that] is believed to fuel political strife in the Democratic Republic of Congo and neighboring regions."
GESI and EICC – which counts not only Apple and Foxconn among its members, but also Intel, IBM, Oracle, AMD, and many others – have launched an effort to validate what they identify as "conflict-free smelters" of these extractives. "As the EICC/GeSI Extractives Workgroup completes smelter audits," the report promises, "Apple will require our suppliers to source only from approved conflict-free smelters, and we will incorporate source validation into our regular audits."
The report, of course, paints Apple as a comprehensively proactive defender of workers' rights, and should be read as what it is: corporate self-promotion. However, the depth of detail in the 2011 Progress Report – and such nuggets as "Of the suppliers Apple audited in 2010, more than 40 percent stated that Apple was the first company ever to have audited their facility for social responsibility compliance" – gives even the hardened cynics here at Vulture Annex cause for pause.
From what we read in Apple's report, it's a jungle out there. And Cupertino is to be commended for hacking away at it, even if motivated by the desire to burnish their reputation. ®

domain: news


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Bolajo Fawehinmi steps down from operational role at FeW Models and appoints Peace Ibeh as successor
Bolajo Fawehinmi, the founder and director of one of Africa’s most renowned model research and management companies, Some modelsstepped down from his role in the day-to-day operations of the company.
A company statement said Bolajo’s exit from the company followed the decision to take a more passive role in the company.
The statement adds that during his tenure at FeW, Bolajo Fawehinmi led the company through significant milestones as evidenced by his partnership with one of the world’s largest agencies, IMG Models as the first African partner and the creation of a new generation of modeling stars. Eniola Abioro, Bola Edun, Olamide Ogundele, Dotain Yeshitela, Feyi May.
Bolajo Fawehinmi announced his resignation in an Instagram post on Friday July 29. In her exit note, Bolajo said she was confident in the future of the company and specifically in the leadership abilities of her protege, Peace Ibeh, to take the company and its talents to the next stage. next.
“After 7 years as founder and CEO of FeW, the time for change has come. As of the end of July 2022, I will step down as CEO. I believe FeW’s most innovative days are ahead of it and I look forward to watching, encouraging and contributing to its successes and goals in my capacity as Founder and President. It has been a tremendous privilege to share the past 7 years with such a great institution as FeW and teammates who are dedicated to the same journey as mine….. I believe I am leaving an organization well placed to meet the opportunities and challenges of become an industry leader. With that, I implore your kindness, your warm welcome and your continued support to my successor and longtime protege, Peace Ibeh @Peaceibeh_, who will continue as Director, overseeing the management and operations of the business”
In the statement, the company also confirmed that Bolajo Fawehinmi remains the founder and executive chairman of the company. The Board of Directors is working with Bolajo to ensure that Peace Ibeh receives all the support it needs to secure the company’s strongest future, which Bolajo calls their journey to become Africa’s premier agency for million-dollar model scouting and management in Africa, one that she says guarantees models and their careers, a memorable present and a sustainable future.
Joining the team in 2021 as Head of Model Development, Peace launched many modeling careers like Feyi May who made her Versace debut during Milan Fashion Week in February 2022.


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Ahead of Microsoft’s midnight Windows launch, people are lining up for the company’s new Times Square store in New York. But this is nothing like an Apple product launch.
For much of the day, few people sat or stood in front of a large sign that with the Microsoft logo and the words, “Line Starts Here.”
By 5 p.m., about five hours before Microsoft opens the Times Square store to sell its new Surface tablet and other Windows gadgets, there were about a dozen people in line, fortified by giveaways of jackets with Surface logos and Microsoft-branded blankets.
Jockeying for attention with the Naked Cowboy and people giving away comedy show tickets, hawkers were urging people to stick around for the store opening.
“Microsoft open tonight! Get in line for the giveaways,” one hawker said. One of the line waiters, who declined to give his name, said he came from Philadelphia to buy a Surface.
“It’s the first time I’ve waited in line for anything,” he said. A woman waiting in line next to him was reading a book — on a Kindle from Amazon.com.
The people in line were generally surprised to be interviewed, or didn’t seem especially eager to chat with a reporter, unlike with Apple line-waiters who expect it.
Not long ago, customers lined street corners in major cities hoping to get their hands on the latest Windows software. That passion changed over the years as consumers’ attention shifted to mobile devices, like Apple’s iPhone or a smartphone running Google Android software. Microsoft hopes to play catchup by reinventing Windows for a touch-screen generation, and with its new Surface.


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FREE litre of milk with your Harrogate Advertiser
Enjoy a fresh litre of local milk from Fodder knowing that the farmers have been paid fairly for it.
Sadly many of our dairy farmers are being forced to quit their farms.
Make sure you buy your milk from retailers who support our farmers.
Complete the coupon available in your Harrogate Advertiser, Knaresborough Post, Nidderdale Herald, Ripon Gazette or Wetherby News and claim your free litre from Fodder before Wednesday, April 1.


text:
Gamers were pleasantly surprised when Bethesda announced Fallout 4 early last month, then showed off some gameplay during E3. However, while the announcement and few details were exciting, the developer still has plenty to reveal about the game, and with only a few months left until release, it looks like Bethesda is eager to provide new details soon.
Those new Fallout 4 details will come in the form of a gameplay demo at this month’s QuakeCon event. Bethesda announced in an email that the studios’ Game Director, Todd Howard, will provide conference attendees an exclusive look at the game on Friday, July 24th at 1:00 pm Central.
Bethesda hasn’t yet revealed what the gameplay will include, but it’s likely the developer will show off a few of the game’s new features, including its base-building system. During this year’s E3, the developer gave gamers a taste of the award-winning game‘s base building, which will give players a chance to acquire materials, build their base, and upgrade as needed to protect against enemies. It’s also likely Bethesda will provide more details about the game’s story and characters, which have been central to previous Fallout games.
Some panels and presentation will be shared with the general public via the developer’s Twitch channel, though based on Bethesda’s announcement that the Fallout 4 demo will be for attendees only, it’s likely the developer will not air the demo during the presentation, but will instead opt to share it later. Still, it’s hard not to speculate about what may be featured in the upcoming showcase.
Unlike the other presentations and panels on the events list for the show, the Fallout 4 presentation has no end time. Hopefully this means attendees will have a chance to ask questions and gather additional information about the game, which they can share with the rest of the world. That will be even better if Bethesda does decide to live-stream the presentation, or at the very least share it later.
Besides Fallout 4, Bethesda and id Software will also be sharing information about Doom and The Elder Scrolls Online, as well as some tabletop games like Magic: The Gathering, Krosmaster, Pixel Tactics, and others. QuakeCon will be held in Dallas, Texas from July 23rd to the 26th.
What do you expect Bethesda to reveal about Fallout 4 at QuakeCon? Let us know your predictions in the comments.
Fallout 4 is set to release November 11, 2015 for PC, PS4, and Xbox One.


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As the brand celebrates its 30th anniversary, Polo Ralph Lauren hopes its classic men’s fragrance will attract a new generation of users with Polo Modern Reserve, a scent designed to give an alternative to existing consumers while grooming their sons.
“We wanted to celebrate the timelessness, heritage and legacy of the brand,” said Guillaume de Lesquen, president, worldwide, of the Ralph Lauren Fragrances Division of L’Oréal. “In the men’s area, there isn’t another brand as iconic as the Polo fragrance in terms of its packaging, juice and story.”
As one of the oldest designer fragrances in the market, the Polo Ralph Lauren men’s fragrance still ranks in the top 15 men’s fragrances in the U.S., said de Lesquen citing NPD sales figures.
“With the launch of Modern Reserve, our goal is to have it land in the top 15 fragrances,” said de Lesquen.
Although company executives wouldn’t comment, industry sources expect the new fragrance to bring in $20 million in first-year retail sales, with the Polo franchise worth about $300 million.
The company is hoping to target the existing Polo Ralph Lauren consumer, in addition to a younger Polo consumer in his mid-20s and 30s, said de Lesquen.
“We wanted our fragrance to bring back our loyal users as well as a new younger consumer — the sons of the Polo customer,” said de Lesquen.
Launching this month, Polo Modern Reserve will be available in 2,500 doors including Belk’s, Macy’s and Dillard’s. For the fragrance, the company looked to the original perfumer of Polo, Carlos Benaim of International Flavors and Fragrances to reinvent the classic men’s scent. The “woody and leather” fragrance is composed of top notes of cardamom, fresh-cut basil, pimento berry; middle notes of vetyver-leather, liquid jasmine, myrrh incense; and bottom notes of humidor wood, patchouli and sueded leather. New ingredients used in the fragrance includes cardamom spice in place of chamomile in the top notes and vetyver-leather instead of tobacco in the middle notes.
“It’s a reinterpretation of the classic for today’s market that is a little stronger and more masculine but still has the same heritage,” said Leslie Marino, general manager of L’Oréal Designer Fragrance Division. “We’re using some of the same ingredients but using some of the latest technologies and using purer raw materials.”
Polo Modern Reserve is staying close to its origins by capturing its equestrian tradition with the polo player on the signature green glass, inspired by a flask.
“We wanted to celebrate the iconic bottle of the classic Polo fragrance, and pay tribute to its timeless appeal in a modern, luxurious way,” says Leena Jain, director of marketing for Ralph Lauren Fragrances.
The fragrance will be available in two sizes — a 4-oz. eau de toilette for $62.50 and a deluxe limited edition 8-oz. bottle for $200, which uses 24-karat gold and comes in a limited numbered leather box.
Instead of doing a traditional television and print advertising campaign, the company will support the Modern Reserve launch with an aggressive in store sampling effort along with visuals at the counter.
“We wanted to bring our customers back to the world of Polo by getting their attention at our stores,” said Marino.
EXCLUSIVE: @tomford is opening its first-ever beauty store. The boutique, which opens November 20 in London’s Covent Gardens, was designed with the over-the-top glam Ford is known for. Read the full story on WWD.com, link in bio. #wwdbeauty #wwdnews (📷: Simon Wagner) #TomFordBeauty
New York-based DJ @harleyvnewton threw a party to celebrate the holiday collection of her dress and pajama line @hvn at the Ladurée Beverly Hills. It Girls @katebosworth, @rashidajones and more joined in on the fun, which included cocktails, croque monsieur sandwiches and a photo booth. #wwdfashion (📷: Owen Kolasinski/BFA.com)
For the holidays, @Burberry partnered with 20-year-old artist @blondeymccoy on a series of three outdoor murals in downtown Manhattan. The murals are McCoy’s interpretation of a Christmas eve party, the idea of charity and the spirit of family. His third mural, pictured here, is the most personal. The image depicts McCoy’s grandparents and father in London’s Trafalgar Square in the Seventies. “My work often features lots of sentimental objects.” #wwdeye
For spring 2018, designers applied bold colors and cartoonish motifs on everything from sneakers and belts to key chains. See all the top men’s accessories trends on WWD.com. #wwdtrends (📷: George Chinsee; Prop Styling by @rnasti; Market Editor: @luiscampuzano)
The @dior-sponsored @guggenheim international gala pre-party has a history of drawing cool-girl musical acts to serenade the crowd –– and last night was no exception. @haimtheband performed songs both new and old, and lured a star-studded audience with the likes of Rebecca Hall, Kate Mara, Mamoudou Athie and more. #wwdeye (📷: @lexieblacklock)
In a partnership between the @metopera and the @englishnationalopera, “Marnie” was born. The opera, with costumes sponsored by @mrporterlive, is an adaptation of the 1961 thriller by Winston Graham. Arianne Phillips, who created the costumes, is no rookie: She’s styled Madonna for her tours and created costumes for a myriad of films in the past. Read WWD’s interview with Phillips, where she talks about her inspiration for the opera’s costumes on WWD.com #wwdfashion
@barneysnyc took a different approach to their holiday windows this year. Instead of Christmas decor, Barneys tapped @thehaasbrothers to tell a story of positivity, gratitude and inclusivity via heartwarming silliness and humor. “It’s about kids and it’s about coming together and being family and loving each other,” said Simon Haas. #wwdfashion (📷: @joshuascottphoto)
Beauty influencer @kandeejohnson makes her foray into hair care with a collaboration with @ogx_beauty — making it the first time that OGX has teamed up for a product creation. The collab includes shampoos and conditioners in three scents. At 39 and a mom, Johnson is a different profile than the emerging social media stars, but is considered one of the pioneers of the digital beauty influencer world. Read WWD’s interview with her on wwd.com, including the strangest beauty product she’s ever tried #wwdbeauty


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For Tesla, everything is riding on the Model 3.
The electric car company’s newest vehicle was delivered to its first 30 customers, all Tesla employees, Friday evening. Its $35,000 starting price, half the cost of Tesla’s previous models, and range of up to 310 miles (498 km) could bring hundreds of thousands of customers into the automaker’s fold, taking it from a niche luxury brand to the mainstream. Around 500,000 people worldwide have reserved a Model 3.
Those higher sales could finally make Tesla profitable and accelerate its plans for future products like SUVs and pickups.
Or the Model 3 could dash Tesla’s dreams.
Much could go wrong
Potential customers could lose faith if Tesla doesn’t meet its aggressive production schedule, or if the cars have quality problems that strain Tesla’s small service network.
The compact Model 3 may not entice a global market that’s increasingly shifting to SUVs, including all-electric SUVs from Audi and others going on sale soon. And a fully loaded Model 3 with 310 miles of range costs a hefty $59,500; the base model goes 220 miles (322 km) on a charge.
Limits on the $7,500 U.S. tax credit for electric cars could also hurt demand. Once an automaker sells 200,000 electric cars in the U.S., the credit phases out. Tesla has sold more than 126,000 vehicles since 2008, according to estimates by WardsAuto, so not everyone who buys a Model 3 will be eligible.
“There are more reasons to think that it won’t be successful than it will,” says Karl Brauer, the executive publisher for Cox Automotive, which owns Autotrader and other car buying sites.
Always part of Tesla plans
The Model 3 has long been part of Palo Alto, California-based Tesla’s plans. In 2006, three years after the company was founded, CEO Elon Musk said Tesla would eventually build “affordably priced family cars” after establishing itself with high-end vehicles like the Model S, which starts at $69,500. This will be the first time many Tesla workers will be able to afford a Tesla.
“It was never our goal to make expensive cars. We wanted to make a car everyone could buy,” Musk said Friday. “If you’re trying to make a difference in the world, you also need to make cars people can afford.”
Tesla started taking reservations for the Model 3 in March 2016. Musk said more than 500,000 people have put down a $1,000 deposit for the car. People ordering a car now likely won’t get it until late 2018. Cars will go first to employees and customers on the West Coast; overseas deliveries start late next year, and right-hand drive versions come in 2019.
Challenges to deliver
But carmaking has proved a challenge to Musk. Both the Model S and the Model X SUV were delayed and then plagued with pesky problems, like doors that don’t work and blank screens in their high-tech dashboards.
Tesla’s luxury car owners might overlook those problems because they liked the thrill of being early adopters. But mainstream buyers will be less forgiving.
“This will be their primary vehicle, so they will have high expectations of quality and durability and expect everything to work every time,” said Sam Abuelsamid, a senior researcher with Navigant Research.
The Model 3 was designed to be much simpler and cheaper to make than Tesla’s previous vehicles. It has one dashboard screen, not two, and no fancy door handles. It’s made primarily of steel, not aluminum. It has no instrument panel; the speed limit and other information normally there can be found on the center screen. It doesn’t even have a key fob; drivers can open and lock the car with a smartphone or a credit cardlike key.
Still, Musk said he’s expecting “at least six months of manufacturing hell” as the Model 3 ramps up to full production. Musk wants to be making 20,000 Model 3s per month by December at the carmaker’s Fremont factory.
Musk aims to make 500,000 vehicles next year, a number that could help Tesla finally make money. The company has only had two profitable quarters since it went public in 2010. But even at that pace, Tesla will remain a small player. Toyota Motor Corp. made more than 10 million vehicles last year.
Abuelsamid said even if it doesn’t meet its ambitious targets, Tesla has done more than anyone to promote electric vehicles.
“A decade ago they were a little more than golf carts. Now all of a sudden, EVs are real, practical vehicles that can be used for anything,” he said.


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Dubai kickstarts world's first live tech event amid pandemic with GITEX Tech Week
GITEX Technology Week serves as an umbrella for the region’s leading technology shows, including GITEX Future Stars, the region’s largest tech startup event; the Gulf Information Security Expo and Conference (GISEC), the region’s most renowned cybersecurity conference & exhibition; Future Blockchain Summit, the leading platform for ransformative technology; and the inaugural edition of Marketing Mania, the new platform for brand marketers.
Dubai, the futuristic business capital and global transport hub of the United Arab Emirates, welcomed more than 1,200 innovative tech enterprises, startups and government entities from more than 60 countries, including Israel, in the world’s first live tech event amid the pandemic, the 40th GITEX Technology Week.
Placing strict safety and health protocols, all visitors and participants wore masks while observing social distancing throughout the five-day event (6-10 December 2020) that drew more than 200 of the most active investors and VCs and over 350 speakers from 30 countries.
GITEX Technology Week serves as an umbrella for the region’s leading technology shows, including GITEX Future Stars, the region’s largest tech startup event; the Gulf Information Security Expo and Conference (GISEC), the region’s most renowned cybersecurity conference and exhibition; Future Blockchain Summit, the leading platform for transformative technology; and the inaugural edition of Marketing Mania, the new platform for brand marketers.
His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, said tech industry is crucial to the world’s successful transition to the future.
“Technology is an important tool to enhance people’s lives and enable them to overcome challenges and turn them into opportunities. As the region’s technology hub, we seek to create a highly conducive environment to promote greater investments in the sector and attract the world’s best talent to develop innovative solutions that can help us strengthen our progress towards sustainable development,” Sheikh Mohammed said in a Tweet.
Crown Prince of Dubai H.H. Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, who opened the event, said GITEX Tech Week is one of a series of initiatives Dubai is taking to inject confidence back into vital sectors, regionally and internationally, while reinforcing Dubai’s role as a global hub for innovation, entrepreneurship and collaboration in the tech industry.
“By hosting the world’s only live global technology event in 2020, Dubai and the UAE have demonstrated global leadership in accelerating economic recovery in line with the vision of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai,” Sheikh Hamdan said.
“With its strong management of the pandemic and comprehensive precautionary measures, the international technology community considers Dubai as one of the safest destinations to host global events of this magnitude. The positive response to the event also shows that the world’s tech industry looks to the emirate as a key player in revitalizing networking, partnership building and knowledge sharing in the sector,” he added.
GITEX brought under one roof tech driven nations like Japan, France, Israel, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, USA, UK, Belgium, Brazil, Italy, Hong Kong, Poland, Romania, India and Nigeria, which had pavilions of their own showcasing different companies.
In all, some 90 local and international government entities participated in the event.
Business France, the national agency supporting the international development of the French economy, launched at the event its first ever virtual showroom, the French Design Corner Middle East, exclusively dedicated to interior design professionals and architects in the Middle East to showcase their unique creations and designs such as furniture, decorative items, home accessories and more.
“While waiting for the much-awaited better days more conducive to in-person meetings, entrepreneurs, architects, decorators and interior design professionals can connect virtually through the French Design Corner Middle East, which aims to offers a space to explore exceptional French designers and know more about the French luxury industry, in a short moment of sharing knowledge and enriching experiences for all,” said Frederic Szabo, Managing Director, Business France Middle East, noting that “Made in France” has become synonymous with quality, style, and know-how.
Dubai Customs, a vital component of the emirate’s economy, showcased its latest smart blockchain and AI based innovations and services, setting the tone of future tech in the region and beyond
“We always aspire to introduce new things that dazzle the world and disrupt the trade and transport sectors in fulfilment of the national ambitious UAE Centennial 2071 Project, the National Artificial Intelligence Strategy 2031, and Dubai Paperless Strategy 2021,” said Ahmed Mahboob Musabih, Director General of Dubai Customs.
Global telecom giants Huawei, du, Etisalat, Nokia, others, also participated in the event, drawing curious crowds in various products and gadgets they have showcased.
Uber and Hyundai Motor Company’s Uber Air Taxi prototype, which was first unveiled in Las Vegas, was a hit at the event.
This electric-powered air taxi can accommodate several passengers in one lift. With speed of up to 180 miles/hour, it is designed to take off vertically, transition to wing-borne lift in cruise, and then transition back to vertical flight to land.
AI, Cloud, 5G, Digital Economy & Cybersecurity
With memorable moments of face-to-face business networking and discussions, forums, fascinating tech experiences and content, tons of live hacks and demos, GITEX Technology Week concluded with an interesting future where innovations will rule, setting the stage for five Smart Cities mega-trends of 2021—AI, cloud, 5G, digital economy, and cybersecurity.
Leading UAE-based IT infrastructure and information management consultancy and solutions provider, Condo Protego, said the UAE is leading innovation in the world’s SMART Cities market which is expected to reach US$546 billion by 2027.
Condo Protego said AI is already widely being used for facial recognition in airports, predicting utilities spikes, and preventing disease outbreaks. Organizations also now use AI with machine learning algorithms and real-time analytics to optimize their insights.
In digital transformation, data storage, data analytics, and hybrid cloud environments can combine to deliver the biggest business benefit.
As data storage drops in cost and increases in performance, organizations can adopt affordable, flexible, and scalable high-performance storage infrastructure. Data storage plus virtualization can enable remote and hybrid working and learning.
Ultra-fast 5G mobile broadband networks are the foundation for the Internet of Things, Internet 4.0, and the Fourth Industrial Revolution while 5G can enable autonomous vehicles that safely reduce traffic, smart factories, and mega-events, Condo noted.


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But now it finds itself under attack. This month Evolution was fined £500,000 by the Financial Services Authority for market abuse after its market-makers sold short the shares of Room Service, a company quoted on the Alternative Investment Market (AIM).
City traders have bet millions on Evolution’s share price falling. According to Data Explorers, it is one of the top five shorted stocks in the market — with investors selling 35m shares they do not own in the hope of buying them back cheaper at a later date.
Evolution has also found itself at the centre of market speculation, with questions being asked about the relationship between the company and its major shareholders.
And the firm has come under fire from fund managers who have…


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Hoping to get people into the shopping district in Schuylkill Haven while raising money for a worthy cause paired the dynamic duo of Schuylkill Haven businesswomen Lori Michael and Amanda Weiss.
Lori Michael, owner of Lori’s Angels and Main Street Moonshine, has a heart bigger than a Valentine’s Day box of chocolates. She joined with with Amanda Weiss, owner of Queen Bee Boutique, who recently relocated her shop to Schuylkill Haven, to create a fundraiser that not only helps an individual but most of the businesses in Schuylkill Haven as well.
The Winter Wine and Shine Walk, scheduled for Saturday, Feb. 27, from 5 to 8 p.m., was created to help local business owner Tracy Rayburn of the Crossroads Inn. She lost her husband, chef and business partner, Tom Rayburn, 64, on Christmas night.
After months of closures and limited capacity requirements, The Crossroads was already in distress. Coupled with the unexpected loss of Tom, Rayburn was faced with insurmountable bills and has put the restaurant up for sale.
“I decided to participate and assist in the organization of the event because it was an opportunity to help another small-business owner during these difficult times,” Weiss said. “I enjoy being involved in such an active business community like Schuylkill Haven.”
The event features local vendors and business owners. As patrons visit the many stores participating in the walk, they are invited to sample products from King Cole Winery, Fieldwood Winery, Moss Winery, Stone Keep Meadery and Winery, Firehouse Winery, J&P Winery, Bouchette Vineyards and of course, Main Street Moonshine. Beer will be available from Willow Creek Brewing. Beer, wine and moonshine will also be available to purchase.
In addition to libations, Heavenly Macarons, CanDee’s Made to Order, Franks Fine Swine and Beef, The Big Cheese, Cake Pros, Unique Pretzels, Covell’s Maple Syrup, MJK Sweet Delights, Damn Yankee Catering and Trish’s Treats will be set up in the various businesses in Schuylkill Haven.
Besides Main Street Moonshine and Queen Bee Boutique, the following businesses will open their doors to join in the festivities…Suglia’s Pizza, The She Shed by Tedda, The Bridal Shop, Brush Strokes, The Uptown Tavern, Alchemist’s Cove, The White Pear, The Downtown Tavern, Beer Haven and the Walk in Art Center.
There will also be a chili cook-off. Competitors are encouraged to enter by contacting either Queen Bee or Main Street Moonshine. Anyone wanting to judge will be charged $5.
While shopping, wining or dining, guests can enjoy music by local performers Bill Yaz, The Boys Upstairs, Jon Stefon, and Sterling Koch.
Various ice sculptures will be on display throughout the town, and there will be a live performance by Ice Sculpting Philly. Parking is free at the municipal lot.
“Helping local businesses be successful is our goal,” Michael said. “We’re trying to create foot traffic in the town — we want people to see what Schuylkill Haven has,” Michael said.
Gift baskets for White Pear
During the planning phase of the event, Michael found another local business struggling due to the pandemic. The White Pear, a formal consignment boutique selling dresses for weddings, proms, and formal events, recently moved from Pottsville to Main Street in Schuylkill Haven. The same month the business relocated, the pandemic hit. Weddings and proms were cancelled, special events postponed. Although the business expanded to non-formal wear, it is still struggling.
Michael put together five special gift baskets for a raffle to raise money for the shop. The baskets will be in various businesses throughout town. Tickets can be purchased for a donation. The baskets are valued about $100 each, and the proceeds will be donated to the White Pear. The drawing will be held March 1.
“We feel the services of the White Pear are essential to our town,” Michael said. “We need to help one another.”
COVID-19 precautions will be followed throughout the Feb. 27 Wine and Shine event. Michael doesn’t see social distancing as an issue since the event stretches out over a 10-block area. Attendance is limited to 576 and social distancing and mask wearing are mandatory.
Tickets can be purchased for $25 though Eventbrite or by contacting Main Street Moonshine at firstname.lastname@example.org or Queen Bee Boutique for more information. The event is open to anyone 21 years and older.


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There are many family businesses within the SMB alliance.
In a special As the Gears Turn edition of B2B Tech Talk, we’re looking into the journey of one of them.
Patrick Cash interviews Devaughn Bittle and Jim Bittle, Devaughn’s father and the owner of CommPutercations, about:
- How technology has changed over the years
- Whether he originally envisioned the company becoming a family business
- The dynamics of running a family business
How technology has changed
While Jim Bittle was in the Navy, he specialized in computer communications. As part of his training, they sent him to several schools, one of them being IBM, to learn about the technology that went into it.
Release of the PC
In 1986, after he left the Navy, he opened CommPutercations. At the time, they were selling 9600 baud terminals for $2,500. Then, the PC was released.
It had a profound impact on the direction of the business.
“We realized that in order for these PCs to be really worthwhile, they had to be networked,” Jim says. “So, we got into the networking business.”
In those early days, they were selling boxes and giving service away.
Managed services shift
Eventually, the industry shifted over to managed services. On Devaughn’s recommendation, CommPutercations made the transition back in 2005, and they’ve been following that path ever since.
Their journey is best represented in how the tagline of the company has changed.
“Our original tagline was the convergence of communications and computing,” Devaughn says. “It’s not relevant today because everything has converged.”
Today, the big shift is towards cloud.
“If you’re not doing it, you need to start doing it quickly,” Devaughn says.
A family business
Jim didn’t originally envision CommPutercations becoming a family business. After all, he was preoccupied with simply paying the bills in those early years.
However, he admits that maybe in the back of his mind he was hoping that Devaughn would be interested in it.
Devaughn’s first stop, though, was tourism management. With time, his path began to converge with technology. He got a job with MCI, a large telecommunications company, and then eventually, he went to work for his father’s company.
Though COVID caused a lot of challenges for both the company and the industry as a whole, the two credit it with making the leadership transition smoother.
Because of COVID, Jim wasn’t able to easily access the office. He jokingly says that it was great for their business relationship. It really allowed Devaughn to have full autonomy in taking control of the company without his father around asking questions and second-guessing his decisions.
“The dynamic is totally different than other businesses that don’t have family involved,” Devaughn says. “COVID was good. It allowed him to step back and it’s been good for both of us.”
To join the discussion, follow us on Twitter @IngramTechSol #B2BTechTalk
Listen to this episode and more like it by subscribing to B2B Tech Talk on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or Stitcher. Or, tune in on our website.


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Microsoft started rolling out the highly anticipated Windows 10 October 2018 Update yesterday but for some unknown reason, the update was making people’s files randomly disappear. This is a serious issue because some Windows 10 users lost important files such as work spreadsheets for example and Microsoft was forced to pull back the update. Luckily, Microsoft fixed the update and it started rolling it out again today.
Windows 10 October 2018 Update
As we previously mentioned, the October update for Windows 10 contained a bug that made people’s files randomly disappear. Fortunately, Microsoft was paying close attention to all the feedback that it was receiving from Windows 10 users and it stopped rolling out the update in order to fix it.
The update has been patched and Windows 10 users will receive it today. With that being said, let’s check out what are the new features and software tweaks that this new Windows 10 brings so that people know what they are getting.
- Dark Mode for Native Apps
Every popular app has started introducing a Dark Mode for users who like using the app during night time and hate that the brightness hurts their eyes. Microsoft noticed the success of Dark Mode and it announced that Windows 10 will now feature a Dark Mode for native apps such as File Explorer, Settings and App Store. This feature can be enabled by following the next steps Settings – Personalization – Colors and then select “Dark”.
- Swift Keyboard
The Swift Keyboard is a cool app that makes it possible for touchscreen users to write faster than usual. Fans of the app should be pleased to know that Microsoft has decided to introduce it in this latest Windows 10 October update and everyone who owns a touchscreen Windows 10 powered device can use it.
- Clipboard History
One of the best features that are being introduced in this latest Windows 10 update makes it possible for Microsoft to supercharge the clipboard. People who enjoy using shortcuts such as “ctrl-x”, “ctrl-c” and “ctrl-v” will also need to implement the “Windows key + V” key because the clipboard will be able to save more items than just the recently edited files. Not just that, but Windows 10 users will also be able to synchronize the clipboard across multiple Windows powered devices.
- Font Size Slider
Windows 10 is a great operating system when it comes to writing text, creating icons and apps that can be read in high-resolution displays. The reason behind this is because Windows 10 offers a powerful font size slider. Moreover, Microsoft wants to make the font size slider even more powerful and it will launch it as a separate app in this latest update. The separate font size slider will give Windows 10 users access to a lot more features such as the ability to increase the size of elements that are displayed while the scaling can stay at the same native resolution.
- No More Update Restarts
One of the most annoying things about getting Windows 10 updates is the fact that they restart your PC/laptop. This can be quite annoying because updates can restart the laptop in the middle of a gaming or work session and Windows 10 users are known to get really frustrated about this. Fortunately, Microsoft has introduced a new feature in the new October update that helps the operating system realize when the user has left the laptop/PC for an hour or two or when the user has gone to sleep so that the operating system knows when to shut down and update without causing any problems.


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Inside Secure has officially confirmed that it is the NFC technology supplier for Nokia’s first Windows Phone with NFC, the Lumia 610. The Windows Phone 7.5 device is using Inside Secure’s Open NFC protocol stack and Inside’s MicroRead v3.4 NFC controller, says the company.
- Apple Pay arriving in Germany?
- Chicago mobile ticket app hits 1m downloads
- Dubai bus passengers to get hands-free smart ticketing
- Visa works on blockchain B2B payment system
- Pizza Hut offers NFC tattoos that let customers order favourite takeaway


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Retail sales in Canada climbed 7.3 per cent to $49 billion in June compared to the same month last year. The month-over-month increase was 0.1 per cent, marking the fourth consecutive month of gains. After removing the effects of price changes, retail sales were up 0.5 per cent by volume. This strong performance supports further upward movement in the Bank of Canada target interest rate as broadening strength in Canadian economy signals an expectation of rising inflation.
BC retail sales posted a phenomenal 12.4 per cent increase year-over-year in June to $7.2 billion. Compared to May, BC retail sales rose 1.9 per cent. This surge in consumer spending is being underpinned by above trend economic growth, rising employment and increased migration.
Copyright British Columbia Real Estate Association. Reprinted with permission.


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By Morgan Adderley
Tribune Staff Reporter
POTTER’S Cay Dock vendors are concerned about the potential impact cases of conch poisoning could have on their businesses.
On Wednesday, Health Minister Dr Duane Sands announced there have been four confirmed cases of conch poisoning and possibly six unconfirmed cases in recent days.
Dr Sands said a “number of patients” would have eaten at Potter’s Cay. However, he added no advisories had been given out for the area and noted Department of Environmental Health teams would be deployed “throughout New Providence” to speak with vendors about the issue.
Bahamas Docks and Allied Venues Association (BDAVA) President Dwain Bastian was among the many who expressed concern yesterday about the impact of the reported illnesses on business.
“Yes, I’m concerned about it because…it could cost you, because people would not come to your business until they get the truth about the situation with the conch,” Mr Bastian said.
Many vendors also called for the specific stalls the afflicted persons ate from to be revealed, so business at the other stalls would not be impacted.
When asked if the conchs at Potter’s Cay would have to be tested, Dr Sands explained the issue is not with the meat itself.
“(Vibrio parahaemolyticus) is not an issue of the meat itself,” Dr Sands said on Wednesday.
“Vibrio is bacteria that ordinarily lives in seawater and is a part of the surface of the conch. The conch meat itself is not infected with vibrio parahaemolyticus…. We have learned historically that you can eliminate this problem by washing conch in fresh water.
“If you’re washing the conch with vibrio containing water, you’re not going to solve the problem. Even though the conch itself may appear clean on the surface. The way to get rid of the vibrio is to use fresh water.”
While a majority of vendors advocated for washing conch meat with fresh water, a minority of vendors said salt water is the only efficient away to clean them.
Aretha Bastian, BDAVA trustee, told The Tribune: “Anybody who is serving conch should always properly wash their hands and wash their conch in the fresh water.”
Arthur Johnson, a visiting vendor from Adelaide, explained: “You should wash them in fresh water. You supposed to keep them in salt water, and then when you serving it, wash it fresh water.”
However, one vendor, who wished to remain anonymous, adamantly stated that salt water is the only type of water that can properly clean conchs.
“Yes, it is. You can’t use fresh water, because fresh water can’t take slime off conch. It can’t. That’s why they need salt water. The best way to clean conch is with salt water.”
There also appeared to be a lack of awareness among the vendors about the exact cause of the recent illness.
Another vendor who wished to remain anonymous said: “Conch don’t poison people… You should have ask them what they eat earlier before they come here.”
Meanwhile, Mr Bastian criticised the effects of dredging works near Montagu beach on the quality of conchs at nearby Potter’s Cay Dock.
“What is happening right now, here in Nassau… the government allowing people to do some dredging,” he said.
“And what is happening, about three, four days ago, we had a lot mud (come) down through Potter’s Cay Dock, coming from the eastern side of Nassau, from round Montagu side. I know they’re doing some dredging down there.”
Mr Bastian said this has caused many conchs to be filled with “muck and mud”.
While he was clear he cleans his conch with fresh water, salt and lime, he pointed out that other people solely use salt water.
“And people who making conch salad or who doing conch handling (and) don’t have proper running water to wash the conch (are) using sea water, cleaning the conchs with (dirty) sea water.
“When the people cook the conch or eat the conch, they will be…consuming some of that same liquid from the conch juice.”
On May 2, a Montagu Beach fish ramp vendor, Donna Rolle, expressed a similar concern.
“We can’t put our conch in the water, because automatically it will be conch poisoning to people…because of the situation in the water,” she said.


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Deserted roads, empty malls, lower attendance in offices marked the India-Australia cricket semi-finals at the ICC World Cup. But, buzzing were restaurants and social media.
Restaurants and pubs were busy cashing on the frenzy by opening early and running special promotions around food and drinks. Though the results were not what Indian cricket buffs would have wanted.
“The result today will bear no impact on the finals. The ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 has not only scored high in terms of viewership but also recorded the highest number of advertisers for any sporting event in India,” a Star Sports spokesperson said.
The broadcaster said with India reaching the knockout stages, a number of brands such as Amazon, Snapdeal, Dell, Panasonic, Toyota, OLX and Voltas came on board for the semi-finals and finals.
Media planners said the official broadcaster Star India may not see any significant impact in term of ad sale revenues for the final as it would have been left with little inventory. However, the final match may see a drop in interest back home.
Vinit Karnik- National Director, GroupM ESP, said the official broadcaster is likely to maintain its semi-finals rates for the final. However, it may not see an incremental increase in revenues that it would have seen had India reached the finals.
Rohan Jetley, promoter Bistro Hospitality, which runs TGI Fridays across the country, said: “We opened up early and saw nearly 120 per cent increase in footfalls. Occupancy levels on a Thursday morning were as high as what we usually see on a Friday or Saturday night.”
Added Riyaaz Amlani, CEO & MD, Impresario Entertainment & Hospitality, which runs several restaurants like Smoke House Deli and Stone Water Grill, said: “We saw nearly 100 per cent increase in footfalls on Thursday. Though the second half was the dampener, people stayed till the last ball.”
A spokesperson for Select City Walk mall, a premium mall in Delhi, said: “The food court, which had a live screen, and even the casual dining restaurants, were all full. There were over 35,000 footfalls today. There was also a screening arranged just for mall employees.”
Tour operators who have sold ICC World Cup travel packages said bookings for the semi-final and final were high. Cancellations are unlikely though India has been knocked out, as these are high cost packages booked much in advance and have several non-refundable components.
Dimple Gandhi, Director, Cutting Edge Events, said: “We saw a surge in enquiries for travel packages post the quarter-finals and nearly 60 per cent of the booking for the travel packages was done bye corporates. We don’t anticipate much of last minute cancellations as these bookings are made much in advance and are high cost packages.”


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Heartland Express and its subsidiaries employ 5,220 individuals and operate a fleet of approximately 2,400 trucks. The primary industries Heartland serves are retail, manufacturing, automotive, food, paper and plastic, and consumer goods.
22 Aug 2022
The largest truckload acquisition to date this year would put Heartland at about 11th on the Top 25 Truckload Carrier rankings prepared for JOC.com.
08 Jun 2022
Acquisitions are a tool with which profitable large carriers such as Schneider National and Heartland Express are expanding their footprints and their portfolio of services, despite market headwinds.
01 Jun 2022
The acquisition of Smith Transport by Heartland Express points to continued strong freight demand as the shipping market seeks a new balance between contract and spot freight.
21 Apr 2022
US shippers’ need for truck capacity guarantees in a volatile market is pushing more freight away from the spot market to contract carriers, especially the largest fleets such as Knight-Swift.
15 Apr 2022
Trucking revenue broke records in 2021, riding on a wave of mergers and acquisitions as well as swelling rates and unrelenting demand, and analysts forecast that 2022 will continue the positive trend.
07 Mar 2022
Fifteen of the top 25 US truckload carriers grew their revenue by double-digit percentages in 2021, with their expansion fueled by acquisitions and new services.
21 Apr 2021
February’s winter storms in the southern and central United States had a large and lingering impact on transportation and supply chains, though freight demand is now in full flow, consuming this spring’s truckload capacity.
19 Jan 2021
US truckload carrier Heartland Express improved revenue and profit in the most recent quarter and is raising driver pay, investing in new equipment, and focusing on improved utilization in 2021.
26 Aug 2019
Heartland Express has acquired truckload carrier Millis Transfer and the Millis driving school for $150 million, the second major acquisition the Iowa carrier has made in two years.
19 Jul 2018
Acquisitions boost revenue, profit for Iowa-based Heartland Express as US freight demand pushes the limits of ‘transportation infrastructure.’
06 Jul 2017
The $113 million acquisition of Interstate Distributor will give Heartland greater "depth" in important truck lanes and a roster of experienced drivers.
21 Apr 2017
Werner Enterprises and Heartland Express follow J.B. Hunt in reporting a rise in freight demand as the second quarter gets under way.
21 Mar 2017
Shippers spent more on dedicated trucking and last-mile deliveries last year, benefiting top tier carriers. Will industrial and consumer freight follow in 2017?
20 Oct 2016
Even when volumes rise, lower revenue shows impact of reduced rates and fuel surcharges at publicly owned carriers.
29 Jul 2016
Despite an uptick in volume in July, trucking executives see a long road ahead before truckload rates rise.
26 Jan 2016
Heartland Express saw profit and revenue drop in the fourth quarter and 2015, but the company remains highly profitable, and is banking on the road ahead by adding new trucks, raising driver pay.
28 Oct 2015
Long-time truckload profit leader Heartland Express lost some traction as lower shipping demand met higher truck capacity in the third quarter.
29 Jul 2015
The lingering effects of a 2013 acquisition also pulled down second-quarter profits at truckload carrier Heartland Express, still the most profitable publicly owned truckload carrier.
24 Apr 2015
Large, diversified truckload carriers found detours around the "soft patch" in the U.S. economy during the first quarter, with most increasing revenue and profit. A lack of drivers may have held back some companies.
18 Feb 2015
Shippers could see truck pricing 'skyrocket' as they scramble to move containers inland once the labor situation at U.S. West Coast ports is resolved, BB&T Capital Markets said.
13 Nov 2014
The third quarter was good to practically all the publicly owned U.S. trucking companies: none reported losses, and their combined revenue rose 10.7 percent to more than $10 billion, supported by a second quarter of stronger freight demand and economic growth.
28 Oct 2014
Heartland benefited from its acquisition last year of Gordon Trucking, which coupled with strong freight demand helped boost third-quarter revenue 66 percent.
28 Oct 2014
Knight Transportation is using sustainable profit to finance sustainable growth, both through acquisition and organic growth, raising driver pay and adding trucks in a tight market.
01 Oct 2014
Strategic acquisitions in the U.S. trucking field continue as truckload carrier Knight Transportation grabs Barr-Nunn for $112.4 million.
01 Sep 2014
A review of publicly owned trucking company earnings in the second quarter shows the strength of freight demand building up as the U.S. economy expanded, supporting growing expectations of a busier than typical peak shipping season in North America this fall.
24 Jul 2014
The U.S. economic recovery may be slow, but the freight recovery is moving faster, thanks to growth in manufacturing, energy and construction.
22 Jul 2014
What a difference a year — and a $300 million acquisition — can make. The acquisition of Gordon Trucking last November is powering significant growth at Heartland Express...
16 May 2014
The first quarter was warmer for trucking than you might think — at least financially.
24 Apr 2014
Heartland Express passed the first major mile marker on its route to becoming a billion-dollar truckload operator this year, increasing first-quarter revenue 67.2 percent from a year ago to $224.5 million. Much of that additional cash comes from freshly acquired Gordon Trucking.
25 Mar 2014
When it came to expansion, the 25 largest truckload carriers idled their engines last year, increasing their combined revenue by just 0.6 percent to $25.6 billion. The growth they did enjoy came largely from acquisitions, a trend expected to continue in 2014 as truckload demand rises.
12 Nov 2013
Heartland Express, one of the most profitable truckload carriers in the nation, acquired fast-growing Gordon Trucking for $300 million in cash, assets and debt.
01 Nov 2013
Trucking’s early third quarter earnings reports looked better than might be expected in a sluggish and inconsistent economy. That’s largely because the first publicly owned motor carriers past the quarterly post took advantage of opportunities to move more freight by intermodal rail, diversified their over-the-road services and, most important, protected profit margins in the quarter.
22 Jul 2013
Heartland Express reported net income in the second quarter of 2013 was $19.1 million, increasing 5.0 percent or $0.9 million from $18.2 million in the same period last year.
17 Apr 2013
Heartland Express reported a $19.7 million profit for the first quarter of 2013, up 19 percent from the $16.6 million reported for the first quarter 2012.
24 Jan 2013
Trucking company Heartland Express reported its profit in the fourth quarter of 2012 was $14.3 million, dropping 16.5 percent from $17.1 million in the fourth quarter of 2011.


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Popular UK supermarket shares its plant-based boom in January.
ALDI produced some top-rated vegan items over January 2022. Consequently, it has seen a 500% rise in plant-based sales.
Last year, the supermarket saw half that figure with a 250% increase in sales from 2020 – 2021. However, ALDI doesn’t stand alone with their increased sales as other supermarkets also had a mass interest in the meat-free sections in veganuary.
Approximately 610,000 people took part in Veganuary 2022, urging supermarkets and eateries to produce more inclusive plant-based options.
But will ALDI continue with the expansive vegan range?
Julie Ashfield, Managing Director of Buying at Aldi, said, ‘Veganuary is getting bigger and bigger each year as the UK’s appetite and interest in plant-based food grows.’
‘In response to that demand, we’re continuing to expand our vegan offering, giving our shoppers plenty of choice and all at great value. But it’s also a trend that we’re witnessing year-round and, as more and more people adopt this diet, we expect these products to remain popular throughout the year.’
Which supermarket did you use the most this veganuary?


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No big surprise here: the number of support tickets increased again last year, following the same trend it has for nearly a decade. More than 57% of organizations reported an increase in ticket volume in 2018, according to the latest HDI Technical Support Practices & Salary Report. The question is, ..
Enterprises recognize that all of the new technologies they want to deploy – IoT, edge computing, serverless, containers, hybrid cloud, and AI – require a robust, flexible, secure, self-healing, software-driven network. And the industry has responded with fresh new approaches such as software-defin..
Global server shipments are not expected to return to growth momentum until the third quarter or even the fourth quarter of 2019, according to Taiwan-based tech news site DigiTimes, which cited unnamed server supply chain sources. The one bright spot remains cloud providers like Amazon, Google, and ..
Red Hat Summit 2019 is off to an exciting start. The conference, running from today until Thursday in Boston, is already tickling attendees’ fancies by announcing some very exciting developments. The first is Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) 8 — available now for everything from bare-metal servers an..
A new survey has found that a growing number of IT professionals have too many data sources to even count, and they are spending more and more time just wrestling that data into usable condition. Ivanti, an IT asset management firm, surveyed 400 IT professionals on their data situation and found IT ..
Frank O. Miller, Chief Technology Officer, Europe, Middle East and Africa, CienaBig bang OSS transformation projects are slow, expensive, and disruptive. Why not consider taking a ‘brick-by-brick’ approach that delivers value faster and sets you up for future success? asks Frank Miller, CTO, Ciena E..
The Internet of Things (IoT) is everywhere and its use is growing fast. IoT is used by local governments to build smart cities. It’s used to build smart businesses. And, consumers are benefitting as it’s built into smart homes and smart cars. Industry analyst first estimates that over 20 billion IoT..
Cisco is looking to give traditional or legacy wide-area network users another reason to move to the software-defined WAN world. The company has rolled out an integrated hardware/software package called SD-WAN Cloud onRamp for CoLocation that lets customers tie distributed multicloud applications ba..
The latest news from Dell Technologies World is a high-end machine learning server for the data center that has four, eight, or even 10 Nvidia Tesla V100 GPUs for processing power. The Dell EMC DSS 8440 is a two-socket server with two of the new Xeon Scalable processors and is specifically designed ..
The IT team at Perkins+Will used to support a sprawling SAN environment for its complex commercial-building renderings. When the Chicago-based architecture firm – which has 2,500 employees in 30 locations around the world – outgrew its SAN environment, Perkins+Will chose to migrate away from on-prem..


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Shortly after Verizon announced it 2.2 million iPhone sales, AT&T rushed out with its sales numbers – 3.6 million iPhones in the first three months of 2011, which is a 33% increase from a year prior. Although the iPhone activation seems unaffected by Verizon entering into the picture, tablet activations were much lower, at just 322,000.
iPhone activation increased by a million in Q1 of 2011, with 23% of new subscribers going to AT&T. This might lead many back to the Verizon launch and say that the CMDA iPhone launch was not as successful as expected, but the 2.2 million iPhone activations is a very friendly number achieved in just six weeks
However, there are other aspects such as the slower 3G network compared with AT&T’s. Verizon has a larger 3G network footprint and its customers experience fewer dropped calls though. Another important aspect consumers keep in mind when they choose their carrier is whether they want simultaneous voice and data connections – AT&T allows it, while Verizon does not.
AT&T added 62,000 new consumers, which is somewhat surprising as Wall Street analysts expected AT&T to lose 83,000 customers following the Verizon iPhone launch. However the Verizon launch clearly affected AT&T as new activations were significantly reduced from 400,000 in the previous quarter.
Randall Stephenson, AT&T chairman and chief executive officer, said:
We delivered another robust mobile broadband growth quarter for a very solid start to the year, We posted double-digit wireless revenue growth, and we set new first-quarter records in total net adds, connected device net adds and smart-phone sales. Growth in tablets and other branded computing subscribers also continues to be strong.


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Digital circulation and advertising revenues from new devices like the iPad will make up roughly one-third of Conde Nast's total publishing revenues 15 years from now, according to Nicholas Coleridge, the managing director of Conde Nast U.K.
"I would expect 70% of our sales to come from print and 30%, or even 40%, to come from products such as the iPad," Coleridge was quoted as saying. He made the prediction as Conde Nast prepares to launch its first apps for the U.K. market, for the British editions of Wired and Vogue, at a price of £3.99 ($6.23) per issue, about the same as the cover price for the print issue of each magazine.
According to Coleridge, 18% of the U.K. readership for Wired already owns an iPad. With a circ of 50,000, that comes to about 9,000 readers.
It's not clear whether Coleridge, who was quoted in the Guardian speaking at a conference on digital strategies, was speaking about the U.K. market in particular or Conde Nast's global operations. But given that the company has introduced more mobile apps in the U.S. than the U.K., it seems safe to assume that Coleridge intended this as a global forecast. He said the company has launched 36 iPad apps globally.
In the U.S. market, the Next Issue Media consortium, of which Conde Nast is a member, projects online subscription revenues for newspapers and magazines will rise to $3 billion by 2014 -- with perhaps half going to magazine publishers.


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Forever 21 gets called out again for copying, this time by an indie designer
On the heels of accusations that Forever 21 ripped off “The Life of Pablo” collection by Kanye West and Puma filing for copyright infringement, the discount retailer is now being accused of allegedly copying the work of an indie designer.
Los-Angeles-based brand Valfré—founded by Ilse Valfré—is known on Instagram for its whimsical posts, including photos of products such as its best-selling rainbow smartphone case. According to the brand, Forever 21 produced a case that was a “blatant copy” of their prized product, which prompted the company to hire a lawyer and issue a cease-and-desist letter. The discovery was made by loyal fans of the Valfré brand. When comparing the two cases, it appears that the only changes to the Forever 21 rainbow case are the color scheme and the elimination of a logo in the bottom left corner—where an identical cloud is showcased.
This is not the first time Forever 21 and sister brand Rue 21 have been accused of ripping off Valfré’s products (no mention of what these items were), but the smartphone case was too shocking to avoid taking action. The brand has yet to hear back from Forever 21, despite the request to cooperate in the proceedings and offer a reasonable compensation for the alleged knock-off.
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Less than two weeks after officially shutting down its last cloud platform, Canon is launching another. So say goodbye to Irista, and hello to image.canon: a new “camera cloud platform” that’s less about storage and more about keeping your camera in sync with PCs, smartphones, and other Web services.
The launch of image.canon was buried in the landslide of Canon news from last night—a new lens, a new DSLR, a portable photo printer, and the DA for the highly anticipated EOS R5—so you could say it flew under the radar.
image.canon is being billed as a “hub for users’ content” that will “allow the transfer of image files from connected compatible PCs, smartphones and external web services.” Essentially, it’s a Canon-branded syncing platform that can be used by professionals, enthusiasts, and amateurs alike to access their photos from anywhere.
Canon outlines three main features for the new platform:
- Automatic Image Uploading – Beginning with the EOS R5, future Canon cameras will be able to automatically upload full-quality stills and videos to the platform when connected to WiFi. Full res files will be saved for 30 days, after which you’ll still be able to access a 2048px thumbnail.
- 10GB of Long Term Storage – You can select up to 10GB of photos and videos to store longer than 30 days.
- Social Media Connectivity – You’ll be able to easily post photos from the image.canon mobile app to “select” social networks and YouTube.
The platform is due to launch in April, and Canon already seems to have big plans to its expansion by partnering with both Google (for storage) and Adobe (for post-processing).
“Starting from June, image.canon will expand both of its partnerships with Google to include original quality backup with Google PhotosTM via Google One TM, a membership plan for expanded storage, as well as Adobe® Creative Cloud® (membership plan),” writes Canon. “In addition to the automatic transfer of images and the ability to edit images in their original quality on partnered services and applications, image.canon will make it easier for users to store and share their images.”
In all honesty, this seems like a solid idea with solid backing from some very big players. We’ll just have to wait and see if it reaches critical mass in terms of usage, because image.canon will go the way of Irista if only a few hundred photographers actually use it. To learn more about the upcoming platform and read a full breakdown of its features, visit the new image.canon website.
Image credits: Header photo by Eriks Abzinovs, CC0


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Microsoft has been making a pretty serious push into app-making for platforms other than Windows Phone, and has even launched its digital assistant, Cortana, on Android and iOS. Well, those Cortana apps for Android and iOS are now getting an update — and they’re finally launching in the U.K. The Android version is available in the U.K. now and the iOS version is coming soon.
The app is essentially aimed at bringing the Windows 10 digital assistant experience to most people’s mobile devices. The new update simplifies the look and feel of Cortana, making it both easier to use and a lot better-looking.
But why use Cortana over the likes of Google Assistant and Siri? The real advantage to Cortana is that it can sync between your phone and your computer. In other words, you can ask Cortana on your phone to set a reminder on your computer, or you can get alerts from your computer straight to your phone. It will even work with Cortana on your Xbox. Of course, it can also work as a replacement to Google Assistant and Siri, allowing you to ask it to search for things.
Similar to Cortana’s Android and iOS competition, the digital assistant can be awoken with a simple voice gesture. With Cortana, all you have to say is, “Hey, Cortana,” and the assistant will wake up and start listening.
Still, there is a downside to using a third-party digital assistant. Google Assistant and Siri are both deeply integrated into the phone’s operating system, and as such can do things like allow you to control both first-party and third-party apps — an important feature for many. users
You can check out what’s new with Cortana for yourself in the video below.
- These 7 apps make iOS 17’s StandBy mode even better
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- I’ve been using iOS 17 for months. These 4 new things are the best
- Can my iPhone get iOS 17? Here’s every supported model
- I abandoned my iPad for an Android tablet and didn’t hate it


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One of the Largest Pharmaceutical Holdings in the Middle East is Planning to Build a Plant In Kazakhstan
In Astana, a meeting took place between Deputy Chairman of the Management Board of JSC "NC "KAZAKH INVEST," Zhandos Temirgali, and a delegation from the Egyptian holding company ACDIMA, headed by Chairman of the Board of Directors, Olfat Ghorab. The purpose of the meeting was to discuss the project of constructing a pharmaceutical plant in Kazakhstan.
From the Egyptian side, the delegation included the Chairman of the Board of "EIPICO" company, Ahmed Kelani, Chairman of "MUP" company, Ahmed Lila, Chairman of "SEDICO Pharmaceuticals" company, Ali Ghamrawy, Chairman of "October Pharma" company, Hesham Abdel Aziz, and others.
During the meeting, the parties discussed Kazakhstan's investment potential, measures of state support, and prospective directions to expand bilateral cooperation in the pharmaceutical sector. The Egyptian side expressed interest in establishing a large-scale pharmaceutical production facility within the territory of Kazakhstan. Several regions in Kazakhstan are being considered as potential locations for the project implementation. Furthermore, Egyptian investors are currently in the process of selecting a local partner.
Chairman of the Board of ACDIMA, Olfat Ghorab, noted that the company chose Kazakhstan for the establishment of their enterprise due to the favorable investment climate, convenient location, and access to the large markets of the Eurasian region. She emphasized the company's awareness of the project's social significance and highlighted their willingness to transfer technology and provide training for local staff, including through foreign internships.
Deputy Chairman of the Board of KAZAKH INVEST, Zhandos Temirgali, proposed the idea of opening a regional hub for the Egyptian company in Kazakhstan with subsequent exports to neighboring countries. He also emphasized significant opportunities for import substitution, given that the domestic pharmaceutical market of Kazakhstan amounts to approximately $2 billion, of which only 16% is produced within the country. Zhandos Temirgali added that the Egyptian company's project holds special significance for strengthening bilateral economic relations between the countries, considering Kazakhstan's strategic plans for the development of the pharmaceutical industry.
ACDIMA is an Egyptian holding company founded in 1976, specializing in the production of pharmaceutical products and medical equipment. ACDIMA's annual production volume exceeds 600 million units, covering more than 40 pharmaceutical groups and approximately 1200 registered drug names. ACDIMA's products are represented in 80 countries worldwide.


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"Do not install on the following machines: MacBook Air, MacBook, Mac Mini, iMac (with Intel integrated graphics)," the company is reported to have told developers in a set of seed notes accompanying the release, though it doesn't say when Apple will resolve the temporary graphics glitch.
People familiar with the matter say the first seed arrived labeled as Mac OS X 10.5.5 build 9F5.
Developers evaluating the beta software were asked to focus their testing efforts on a dozen and a half core system components. Among them were AirPort, FileSync, the Finder, graphics drivers, iCal, iChat, Networking, Text Services, Time Machine, and ExpressCard & USB modems.
The release also addresses 82 bugs discovered or outstanding since the release of Mac OS X 10.5.4, those familiar with the software say. Â Among the significant issues mended in 9F5 seed are kernel crashes in Dashboard or with physical memory addresses larger than 4GB, multiple problems with iCal that include events, scripting, syncing, and several glitches with networking and printer sharing. Â Text handling has also allegedly been improved.
On Wednesday, AppleInsider reported that Apple was preparing the first pre-release builds of Mac OS X 10.5.5 — the latest of an ongoing string of maintenance and security update to its Leopard operating system — for distribution prior to the weekend.


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Mobile Data Traffic Volume Soars by Leaps and Bounds.
Recent studies have show Korea’s mobile telecom service providers are in need of embracing new trends among mobile subscribers to use more data while relying less on voice services.
According tot he Korea Information Society Development Institute during July 4th in a report called “The Impact of Increasing Mobile Data Traffic on Voice Traffic” by researchers Kim Jin-ho and Oh Ki-seok, the volume of mobile data traffic has been soaring since the introduction of smartphones while that for voice traffic decreased.
During the late 2009 when Apple’s iPhone was launched within Korea, the nation’s mobile data traffic we only 430 terabytes a month. Nearing the end of 2011, just months after commercialization of the long-term evolution (LTE) services, the traffic volume skyrockted to 21,186 a month. As of April this year, its gained over more than 90,172 terabytes.
In contrast, the volume of voice calls has increased at a snails pace, with the recent trend showing a decline in growth. during 2012, the total volume of voice calls was 105.7 billion minutes, down 2.6 percent from the previous year’s 108.5 billion minutes.
The same trend of quick soaring data traffic with the accompanying phenomenon of slower voice traffic growth was observed in other major markets such as the United States, Japan, and the United Kingdom.
The report stated that the reasons behind this als includes the increasing use of mobile messengers and mobile Internet phones, active user of social networking services such as Facebook and Twitter. and the relative decline in voice call time due to the increased attraction of multimedia contents for the mobile device.
The report said that the mobile telecom service market is moving toward data services. “In order to adapt to the new environment, mobile telecom operators must come up with new data rate plans and increase their profit centered around mobile contents.”


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With all the news about the H1N1 flu, Iowans are warned to be on guard for an outbreak of scammers who are capitalizing on people’s fears. Jim Hegarty, of the Better Business Bureau, says anytime there’s a situation like this, thieves come out of the woodwork. He says the latest crop of con artists offer miracle medications and prevention techniques.
"It doesn’t take long for the scammers to try to take advantage of a vulnerable situation," Hegarty says. "We’ve got a full alert posted on our website with information on how you can access the legitimate sites that gives you legitimate information about how to combat this." He says Iowans need to first consult the state’s Better Business Bureau website before buying any products being offered in association with the flu.
"What we find is that in many of these cases, these sites originate offshore," Hegarty says. "They’re kind of hit and miss and they’re really moving targets. I think historically, while there have been legitimate efforts to really defraud people, take advantage of people, I think most of these sites probably do offer a product, it’s just that it’s worthless."
One website offers shampoo, lotion, conditioners and soap that are laced with silver, which the site claims can help protect against the swine flu. The F-D-A says that’s simply untrue. Hegarty says legitimate medical advice on how to stave off this bug is free and abundant, yet the con artists are trying to sell you that same information.
"There’s a site where you can order a book on how to prevent the swine flu from affecting your family, a prevention guide for $19.95, so while they may not be breaking the law, certainly what they’re doing is extraordinarily unethical." He says Iowans should not believe online offers for vaccinations against swine flu, because a vaccine doesn’t exist.


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By the first week of May, with daytime temperatures in the Fresno, Calif., area reaching well into the 90s, Kalem Barserian, CEO and general manager of the Raisin Bargaining Association, described development of the 2017 raisin crop as pretty close to normal.
“The vines are growing nicely and there’s plenty of water for irrigation,” he says. “Overall, things are looking good in the vineyards.”
Up until the end of April, however, temperatures since bud break had been a little cooler than usual, Barserian notes. “Heat units are what count. So, even if the vines are behind a few days at this stage, there’s plenty of time to pick up the heat units for the crop to be maturing at the normal rate by Sept. 1.”
In fact, this year’s lower-than-usual bunch counts – the second in a row – are likely to help accelerate sugar development and ripening of the grapes, since the vines will have less fruit to support.
Typically, Thompson-seedless and other raisin-type varieties produce somewhere around 40 clusters per vine. This year, two different industry surveys show bunch counts ranging from about 28 to 31. That compares to bunch counts of 43 in 2015 and 34 in 2016.
“At this point in the season, we’re expecting raisin grape yields of around 9 tons per acre,” he says.
California growers produced 9.5 tons of raisin grapes per acre last year and 10.8 tons per acre in 2015.
Lower yields and continued conversion of raisin grape ground this year to orchards of tree nuts or other more lucrative crops should contribute to an upswing in prices growers receive for their 2017 raisins, Barserian notes.
Last year’s raisin price was $1,100 per ton – 31 percent under the $1,600 per ton growers received for their 2015 crop.
Much of that drop in price reflected pressure from a seven-month supply of unsold raisins remaining in processors’ inventories at the start of the 2016 harvest, Barserian says. But, those stocks are dwindling and imports of raisins have slowed. As a result, he’s expecting the market for California raisins to start turning around this year.
So far this year, domestic shipments of raisins are up 4 percent and exports have risen 14 percent over last year. Also, the federal government has announced the purchase of 11,000 tons of raisins for school lunch and other food distribution programs to be shipped between May 15 and Nov. 30 of this year.
What’s more, imports of raisins began dropping last year as packers started selling inventory when raisin prices dropped below both grower and packer costs. In 2015, imports of raisins from Argentina, Chile and South Africa, among a few of the importing countries, totaled about 25,000 tons. That figure declined to 21,000 tons last year and continues to fall due to weather-related production shortfalls in Argentina and South Africa and attractive prices for table grapes in Chile that reduced the supply of green grapes available to make raisins.
“California packers are looking to reduce their inventories from 158,000 tons on Aug. 1, 2016, to less than 125,000 tons by Aug. 1 of this year, the start of the 2017-18 marketing year,” Barserian says. “So the industry is closing in on the much more manageable 100,000 tons of inventory we like to have on hand prior to harvesting a new crop.
“Also, we’re expecting total raisin production this year to be way below 300,000 tons. That should result in a better balance of supply and demand for the 2017 crop and a better price for growers.”
Since Aug. 1, 2016, growers have delivered 271,000 tons of raisins to packers. Production of raisin grapes was estimated at 288,000 tons for the 2016 fiscal year, which began Aug. 1. 2016.
Meanwhile, the production base of California’s raisin industry continues to shrink as growers respond to market prices and the increasing cost and decreasing availability of labor. From the year 2000 when acreage of bearing raisin-type grapes totaled 280,000, the number of bearing acres had dwindled to 165,000 by the end of 2016.
“Last year, alone, 14,000 acres of raisin vines were taken out of production,” Barserian says. “And a lot of additional acres have been pushed out and burned so far this year.”


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PLYMOUTH, Mass., Jan. 21, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Hollywood Public Relations, a boutique PR and communications firm specializing in consumer products and business services, today announces the expansion of its business clients portfolio with new clients NorthPage and BoardProspects.com. The agency is also adding education to its client roster with Harvard Business School's HBX.
NorthPage is a leading digital marketing intelligence company that empowers marketing executives and their teams to grow digital performance. The company delivers competitive and market benchmarks and actionable performance insights via a digital roadmap that defines exactly where and how to improve the customer journey, engagement and conversions across digital channels. The agency will lead a media relations campaign — business, marketing, trade and vertical media — and will support thought leadership through a speaking program.
BoardProspects.com is the board recruitment network offering board members, aspiring board members and corporations the latest in corporate governance news, education, best practices and board recruitment solutions. Members include executives of Fortune 100 companies, former members of U.S. Congress and experienced corporate directors from some of the world's most well-known corporations. The Hollywood PR team will focus on a core media relations program for the Quincy-based company.
HBX, a digital learning initiative from Harvard Business School, has retained the agency for managing its communications in 2016. The partnership will focus on developing a thought leadership platform and an integrated communications strategy to support the growth of HBX. The HBX portfolio includes CORe, a three course primer on business fundamentals, individual courses from leading HBS faculty including Disruptive Strategy with Clayton Christensen, and HBX Live, a virtual classroom where participants from around the world interact in real time with one another and a Harvard Business School faculty member.
About Hollywood Public Relations
Hollywood Public Relations is a boutique PR and communications agency servicing a consumer goods and business services clientele. Hollywood Public Relations fuses traditional PR programming with social networking to deliver communication campaigns that impact consumer perception with measurable results. For more information, visit www.hollywoodpr.net. We're also on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
CONTACT: Melissa Parrelli
Hollywood Public Relations
SOURCE Hollywood Public Relations


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Flux Marine will leverage the Series A funding to scale operations, manufacturing and distribution as it advances its award-winning zero-emission electric outboard motors to market.
“Our innovative ground-up design is an entirely new efficient electric propulsion system rather than a retrofit of electric vehicle components into a typical outboard casing. By reimagining the outboard motor, we’re delivering the performance boaters expect, while eliminating the pollution and minimizing the noise and maintenance owners have come to accept from traditional outboards,” said Ben Sorkin, CEO of Flux Marine.
Read the full press release here and TechCrunch article here.
Image credits: Flux Marine


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With more than 700 horsepower (522kW), the all-new Shelby GT500 fast-back coupe will be twice as powerful as the original 1967 model.
The first Shelby GT500, built in 1967, was based on the 1967 Mustang Fastback and had a 7.0-litre (428cu) V8, with only 2048 examples built in that year.
To reduce weight several body parts were made of fiberglass, including the side intakes, spoiler, and hood.
Embodying Ford Performance team’s motorsport expertise, the new Shelby GT500 is set to take the fight up to the likes of Chevrolet’s Corvette ZL1 and the Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat.
Ford says this new Mustang is engineered to stand apart on roadways and race tracks, thanks to its new innovative track technologies, performance hardware, plus aggressive and functional track-tuned styling.
Arriving in 2019, the all-new Mustang Shelby GT500 will become the pinnacle of Mustang performance.
Here’s a glimpse of what is to come. At this stage it’s all we have.


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WD Wednesday announced the second generation of its highly popular and environmentally friendly WD Caviar Green desktop hard drives, which feature the company’s GreenPower technology to significantly reduce power consumption, compared with standard hard drives. The new platform is based on WD’s 333 GB/platter technology with 32 MB cache, producing capacities ranging from 500 GB to 1 TB.
WD has ramped up its successful GreenPower technology-based hard drives to greater than 10 percent of its 3.5-inch hard drive shipments in the initial twelve months of production, making low-power technologies one of WD’s fastest growing segments and WD Caviar Green one of the most successful new products in the company’s recent history.
WD’s latest WD Caviar Green hard drives consume up to 20 percent less power and offer a 10 percent increase in performance over the previous version, while continuing to provide the market with hard drives enabling quieter and cooler-running desktop PCs and external storage devices.
The following technologies enable WD’s Caviar Green hard drives:
IntelliPower: A fine-tuned balance of spin speed, transfer rate and caching algorithms designed to deliver both significant power savings and solid performance. Additionally, GreenPower drives consume less current during startup allowing lower peak loads on systems as they are booted.
IntelliSeek: Calculates optimum seek speeds to lower power consumption, noise, and vibration.
No Touch ramp load technology: Designed to ensure the recording head never touches the disk media resulting in significantly less wear to the recording head and media, as well as better drive protection in transit.


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Executives at the major ETF issuers will be paying close attention to the latest launch to hit the European ETF market. After months of rumours, Invesco finally madeits long-awaited entranceinto the cryptocurrency exchange-traded product (ETP) space with the launch of the Invesco Physical Bitcoin ETP (BTIC).
Invesco is the second issuer with over $25bn ETF assets under management (AUM) in Europe after WisdomTree to make the big jump into the crypto space.
The similarities with the gold exchange-traded commodity (ETC) space are clear to see. WisdomTree – through its acquisition of ETF Securities in 2018 – runs the world's first gold ETC which launched in 2003 while Invesco currently manages Europe’s largest ETC, the Invesco Physical Gold ETC (SGLD), which houses $14.2bn AUM.
Meanwhile, comparisonsbetween the underlying assets – bitcoin and gold – have been constant amid the former’s meteoric rise over the past few years.
As a research note from Robeco said: "Just like gold, bitcoin is scarce and durable. In addition, bitcoin exhibits high portability, is easily transactable and programmable. What it lacks relative to gold, of course, is a long history of being perceived as a store of value.
"As digital gold, bitcoin has monetary value. In our view, the discussion about bitcoin’s lack of intrinsic value is mostly irrelevant. As with diamonds, art, stamps, gold and the US dollar, bitcoin does not provide cash flows. Yet, all these asset classes have monetary value, and most of them are considered to be a store of value."
Bitcoin ETPs have already started to make their mark in the European ETF market. The first bitcoin ETP, the 21Shares Bitcoin ETP (ABTC), was only launched in February 2019, however, Europe’s largest crypto ETP, the BTCetc Exchange Traded Cryptocurrency (BTCE), has already soared past the $1bn AUM barrier and now totals $1.4bn.
As regulatory headwinds – such as the UK’s ban on selling crypto ETNs to retail investors – lessen, assets are only set to increase.
This growth is what has caught the eye of Invesco’s head of EMEA ETFs Gary Buxton who revealed to ETF Stream the firm has been working on a crypto ETP since 2018.
Like Robeco, Buxton sees many similarities with the precious metal: “In the last two to three years, we have been trying to structure a product that looked, from an institutional point of view, as close as possible to a traditional ETF like our gold structure, and that has been the driver of BTIC’s timeline.
“Bitcoin is very close to gold in the sense that investors view it as a diversifier from their traditional investments, an alternative asset with defined and limited supply.”
Attention now turns to the other major players in Europe. State Street Global Advisors (SSGA) has been keeping a close eye on the market over the past year, however, no word is yet to come from the traditional European asset managers such as Amundi, DWS and UBS Asset Management.
As a result, these players – and others – risk losing out to the likes of Invesco if the crypto market continues its rapid expansion as many believe it will.