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The world of ad tech continues to evolve, with frequent advancements. This is no surprise. Nascent technologies go through numerous iterations as marketers seek more efficient and transparent ways of serving ads.
Programmatic marketing appears well established, but fraud, measurement, and transparency issues continue to plague the digital marketplaces, with remedies not yet able to fully counteract the maladies.
Blockchain technology is where ad tech may turn next to address many of these pesky problems.
Briefly, blockchain technology refers to a decentralized digital ledger that records transactions across various computers around the world, helping to prevents records from being altered after the fact without clear evidence in the blockchain itself.
“The opportunities blockchain proposes for marketers are absolutely astronomical, but it is often marred by how difficult the technology is to get your head around,” said Paul Armstrong, author of "Disruptive Technologies: Understand, Evaluate, Respond," as quoted by MarketingWeek.
One relatively unknown Danish ad-tech company, BitTeaser, touts itself as the “first such initiative to be built on blockchain technology -- allowing absolute and guaranteed fairness, a culture of openness, and full and accessible transparency.” An ad network, focused on placing “teaser” ads, BitTeaser claims that “all click-throughs [are] displayed on the blockchain in real-time and can easily be tracked by users.”
Blockchain can be used by firms throughout the media landscape, including TV networks.
“Ultimately, adoption could be near-universal, but this isn’t going to happen anytime soon, since most of the applications (e.g., automated contract execution, encryption) are still in the RFP [request for proposal] stage -- not even the early test stage,” Mark Lieberman, president and CEO of Viamedia, told RTBlog via email.
Scott Braley, general manager of advertising technology at Ooyala, suggests caution against the expected hype for anything new: “[Blockchain] does have serious limitations, especially when it comes to its current inability to scale/validate quickly enough to support verification of real-time trading.”
There's also the issue of opening up data troves for everyone to see. “For instance, certain cable networks may not want to adopt the cryptographic protocols needed to share historical unit rates and consumer purchasing behavior associated with these unit rates,” concluded Lieberman.
In the end, as is the case with most new technologies, the key to the success of blockchain will be adoption.
Many data aggregators can be expected to be hostile to the technology, since it decentralizes one of the most concrete value generators in marketing and advertising: consumer data.
Then again, the benefits of transparency and accountability may be too strong for companies to resist in the long term.


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Cleveland company says bulletproof backpack panel sales have more than doubled in year
Kristin Volk, newsnet5.com
4:55 PM, May 28, 2013
4:57 PM, May 28, 2013
CLEVELAND - Sales of bulletproof panels for backpacks have more than doubled in the past year, according to the local company that manufactures the product.
"The response has just been fantastic," said Rob Slattery, sales manager for Impact Armor Technologies located on Cleveland's east side.
The panels are custom built and designed by Impact Armor Technologies to fit into the back laptop pocket sleeve of a backpack. They're made of multiple layers of woven Kevlar and are meant to withstand bullets from a .44-caliber magnum, the most powerful handgun.
"We're of the thought that we hope you never need our product, but it's nice that it's there," Slattery said.
Depending on size, the panels cost about $95. They weigh less than two pounds.
"I think it's overkill," said Girish Kurtkoti, a Cleveland resident who has a 6-year-old son.
Kurtkoti said he would never buy a bulletproof panel for his son's backpack, but other parents had a different opinion.
"It's good they did think of something like this," said Naomi Franklin, a mother of a 6-year-old son. "It's great."
"I'd be all for whatever makes our kids safer," said David Neal, an Akron father of two children.
In addition to backpack panels, the company also makes bulletproof door and wall panels as well as bulletproof clipboards. The clipboards cost about $150..
Slattery admits that he'd love to be put out of business by a technology that would protect all children from gunfire, but he knows that today's reality is much different.
"You have to make yourself a harder target," he said. "These threats aren't going to go away."
Some parents not only worried about kids' perception of carrying a fortified backpack. They were also concerned about the amount of protection it could provide.
"I wouldn't be sure it would keep them safe if something tragic happened," Neal said.
"If you're in a classroom, hold it (the backpack) up in front of you," Slattery said. "If you're running down the hallway away from the threat, fleeing the danger, obviously you're going to throw it on your back and protect the trunk of your back."
Other parents said the focus shouldn't be on bulletproofing school products, but rather it should be about helping others.
"I'm going to do everything I can to make my community better so that my child doesn't need to go to school with a bulletproof backpack," Kurtkoti said.
For more information on Impact Armor Technologies products, visit their website at www.impactarmortech.com.

domain: news


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Xolo has today launched its new smartphone under Era series - Xolo Era 5X along with Xolo Era 4X.
Xolo Era 5X features a 5.7 HD+ IPS inCell display with 2.5D Corning Gorilla Glass 3 protection.
The smartphone is powered by Helio A22 2.0GHz quad core processor
It has 3GB RAM and 32GB internal storage.
Both the cameras feature LED flash.
It has 13-megapixel front camera.
The Xolo Era 5X is equipped with a single 13-megapixel rear camera
The device also features a face unlock which the company claims to unlock the phone in 0.6 seconds
It has a fingerprint sensor as well which is claimed to unlock the phone in 0.2 seconds.
Xolo Era 5X runs Android 8.1 Oreo out-of-the-box based Star OS 5.0 custom skin
It packs a 3,000mAh battery. It will feature an AI Studio Mode to enhance images.


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Stakeholders in the electricity industry have flayed the recent increase in electricity tariff, saying NERC remains a toothless bull that cannot regulate entities with 40 percent Federal Government equity.
They argued that since the privatization moratorium will expire this year, the government should not renew the privatization program in its original format.
Speaking to Daily Sun, the president of, the Electricity Consumer Protection Network, Kunle Olubiyo, said that NERC is a rubber stamp of the Federal Government. It only approves what is given to it by the government.
“We are of the opinion that tariff is restricted to band A. Fundamentally, we see the whole gamut of privatization as a shenanigan. It’s a misalignment. It’s the right step in the wrong direction. Looking at it on a broader scale, we feel that the moratorium for the power sector privatization will expire in November. Our own take is that the privatization itself is well-intended but wrongly implemented. So, moving forward, since the exercise of the power sector expires this year, the government should not renew it in its original format but should review the whole gamut of privatization without going into litigation. Without litigation, the DisCos franchise is broken. For example, the Benin DisCo and all the DisCos are biting more than they can chew. It has not in any form enhanced the competitive electricity market.
“NERC does what’s called copy and paste. The presidency designs programs. They take decisions and they just give NERC. Even with the takeover of DisCos they just give NERC and NERC signs hook, line, and sinker. It’s a toothless bull. NERC is helpless. We sympathize with NERC. NERC as a public sector financial institution cannot regulate entities that have 40 percent equity in the Federal Government.
For the Vice President, of Ashipa Electric, Folu Alabi, although the increase is long overdue, the ripple effect will be harsh at this time. It will bring hardship, increase in the cost of doing business and add to the cost of production.
“The tariff initially was very unrealistic. But if your tariff is not commensurate with your Return on Investment (ROI), at the end of the day, there’s no way you will scale up. This tariff increase is long overdue. However, there’s always a ripple effect on the consumer. It’s going to affect a lot of things. For example, commercial customers will increase the cost of their products so as to balance the commercial side of their business.
Eventually, the ripple effect is going to come to the common man because the cost of business will increase.”
Also speaking, the President, of South East Consumer Protection Network, Goodluck Ibem, agreed that the increase will affect the cost of business and end-users are going to pay for it.
According to him, it will increase the cost of food in the market.
It will affect the industries because if there’s a hike in tariff definitely the producers or the entrepreneurs will add the cost of production to the goods they are producing. Ultimately, the consumers pay for it. End-users are those that are at the receiving end of the increases in tariff. It’s really worrisome.
Commenting on the latest hike, the President of, the Electricity Consumers Advocacy Forum, Festus Adiele, said DisCos and NERC have connived to inflict further pains on Nigerians.
He said a situation where Discos secretly increase tariffs without informing consumers was unacceptable.
He lamented that NERC which was meant to be in between the consumer and Discos seems to have abdicated its responsibility, leaving the consumers in the cold.
For his part, the President of, the Consumer Rights Advancement Organisation (CRADO), Adeolu Ogunbanjo, said NERC is neither here nor there on development.
He said he has heard complaints in certain quarters, alleging the secret increase in electricity tariff, adding that the inability of NERC to confirm the story makes the whole claim difficult.
He said electricity consumers within the Ikeja Electric network under the Band B tariff class were still vending at the same rate of 20.2 units for N1,000 worth of electricity.
Meanwhile, the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) said the hike in electricity tariff will increase manufacturers’ enormous spending cost of self-generated electricity.
“This necessitated the association’s keen interest in all electricity-related discourse and development, particularly electricity supply and tariff.
“The manufacturing sector employs over five million workers, directly and indirectly with an 8.93 percent contribution to Gross Domestic Product.
The sector also dominates export trade in the West African region, generates foreign exchange, and contributes substantially to the revenue of the government and human capital development in Nigeria.
“It is, therefore, imperative that the performance of the sector is enhanced through a pro-manufacturing policy that will encourage scale and lower unit cost of production rather than throwing fiery darts that will worsen its performance.”
The electricity bill payable by consumers, including manufacturers, especially for the unmetered customers will increase, thereby leading to a significant increase in the energy cost to manufacturers as the usual hours of electricity outages will still prevail and manufacturers spend billions of naira on alternate energy to meet electricity requirements.
The hike will lead to a decrease in foreign exchange earnings from the sector as the high cost of production feeds into export commodity prices: reducing the government’s tax revenue occasioned by a drop in sales, as a lesser quantum of disposable income will be available to purchase manufactured goods and reduce capacity utilization, further decline in GDP, large scale unemployment across the 76 manufacturing sub-sectors and a possible increase in the crime rate;
“It will trigger a reverse-multiplier effect as the cost of production escalates and the headways already made in the sector are eroded. This is because most of MAN-member companies are classified in the ‘D’” categorization (D1, D2, and D3) where the tariff is the highest.
Efforts to speak with NERC General Manager, Corporate Affairs, Usman Arabi, proved abortive as he did not pick up his call nor returned any.


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Increase commercial investment in web technologies is a key driver for the success of internet service providers, which should give the Direxion Daily Dow Jones Internet Bull 3X Shares (WEBL) an added boost.
“Increased investment from the commercial sector in computing technologies has most recently taken the form of increasing the amount of information collected from discrete sources,” noted IBISWorld, a data research company. “This industry serves to connect those sources. Private investment in computers and software is expected to increase in 2021, representing a potential opportunity for the industry.”
WEBL seeks daily investment results, before fees and expenses, of 300% of the daily performance of the Dow Jones Internet Composite Index. The fund, under normal circumstances, invests at least 80% of its net assets (plus borrowing for investment purposes) in financial instruments that track the index and other financial instruments that provide daily leveraged exposure to the index or to ETFs that track the index.
The internet has seen unprecedented growth during the last five years. That was especially the case during the pandemic as more users were forced to rely on web technology amid social distancing measures.
“The Internet Service Providers industry is characterized by rapid technological change and robust competition, and industry revenue has grown an annualized 0.2% to $117.9 billion over the five years to 2021,” IBISWorld said. “The industry has posted strong and consistent gains during most of the period, with the exception of a slight decline in 2017 as the rate of consumers switching to wireless connections outpaced new wired connections subscriptions and a slight decline in 2020 due to the conflicting effects of the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic on this industry.”
“A rise in the number of broadband connections and expanding internet traffic volume have been the two most significant drivers of revenue growth over the past five years,” added IBISWorld.
Some other things to note about the growth of internet service providers in 2021, as compiled by IBIS World:
- The market size, measured by revenue, of the Internet Service Providers industry is $117.9bn in 2021.
- The market size of the Internet Service Providers industry is expected to increase 0.5% in 2021.
- The market size of the Internet Service Providers industry in the US has grown 0.2% per year on average between 2016 and 2021.
For more news and information, visit the Leveraged & Inverse Channel.


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Pumpkin beer might seem a bit odd to many but the punters at the Illawarra Brewery just love it.
For the past five years the Illawarra Brewing Company has made a pumpkin beer, with brewers Ashur Hall and Shaun Blissett in charge for the last three.
This year's brew - called Smashing Rumpkin because it's been aged in 20-year-old rum barrels - is due on tap later this week. Mr Hall said their pumpkin beers had proved to be quite a hit with drinkers.
"It's a bit of a surprise because in my mind I would think people might be a bit shocked by the idea of throwing pumpkin in a beer," he said.
"But it's turned out to be a bit of a novelty and people are willing to give it a go.
"When they taste it they realise it's not like eating roast pumpkin, it's more like the sweet and spicy flavours you get out of a pumpkin pie."
The idea of pumpkin beer comes from the United States, which tends to get a bit pumpkin-happy around this time of year, thanks to Halloween.
Mr Hall had a US connection that helped him and Mr Blissett develop the beer - his mother is an American who would make pumpkin pie each year and throw in a selection of spices.
"We originally rang up mum and asked 'what do you use? What sort of quantities?' and we basically scaled it up from there to a scale of 1200 litres," Mr Hall said.
"Over the last few years we've stepped up that spice and that pumpkin addition, so every year we're trying to make it bigger than the previous year."
The main ingredient is, of course, pumpkin - 40 kilograms of Jap pumpkin in fact. And it was the kitchen staff at the brewery who had to cut all that up and roast it.
"We rang up the kitchen in the bar the day before we were making it and said, 'Can you get 40kg of pumpkin for us?' " Mr Hall said. They said yes.
"So we had all the kitchen hands chopping pumpkin all afternoon and roasting it."


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Pittsburgh International Airport’s cargo infrastructure got a boost last week when federal officials announced a grant to help lengthen a key taxiway used by cargo planes at the airport.
The July 26 announcement is the latest win for the region in increasing PIT’s capacity to handle cargo from around the world.
The FAA awarded the $3.26 million grant to extend Taxiway A, which will be used to access the new Cargo 4 facility, expected to open in 2024. The grant covers 75 percent of the expected cost, projected at $4.3 million.
“Cargo continues to be a key initiative for Pittsburgh International Airport and we look forward to expanding our cargo facilities to meet the growing demand. PIT is an ideal international gateway, offering an uncongested, speedy alternative to major air hubs,” said Vince Gastgeb, Senior Vice President, Corporate and Government Relations.
“I’d like to thank our federal partners for recognizing the importance of a global logistical hub and supporting this strategic project.”
Work on the taxiway will start within the next two months and will not affect airport operations. Currently, work is underway for site preparation.
Expansion of cargo facilities
Renderings of PIT’s new Cargo 4 facility show a 77,000-square-foot facility with warehouse and office space, 17 loading docks and an ability to handle freight from any aircraft operating today, significantly increasing PIT’s cargo capacity.
Airport officials said current freight capacity at the airport’s existing cargo facilities—Cargo 1, 2, 3 and A—is expected to top out in the near future, citing the need for Cargo 4. (Photo by Beth Hollerich)
Cargo 4 will allow PIT to accept freight from abroad and distribute it throughout the eastern United States, making the Western Pennsylvania region more competitive in a growing industry and positioning the airport as a leading gateway for international logistics.
“Pittsburgh International Airport is a major hub that connects Southwestern Pennsylvania to the rest of the world,” said U.S. Sen. Bob Casey, who announced the grant. “This funding will allow PIT to make a much-needed extension to a taxiway so passengers and goods can keep moving through our airport.”
Airport officials said current freight capacity at the airport’s existing cargo facilities—Cargo 1, 2, 3 and A—is expected to top out in the near future. In addition to providing much-needed space for future expansion, Cargo 4 will also bring new technology and handling capabilities to PIT.
The facility includes warehouse space and office space across two floors. The loading docks will come with dock levelers while others will be used specifically for Unit Loading Devices (ULDs). Flatbed trucks will be able to access the interior of the warehouse, which is advantageous in poor weather.
Dedicated areas in the facility will be able to segregate goods deemed valuable, vulnerable or hazardous. It will also have the expansion capabilities to hold more equipment for special cargo and accommodate temperature-controlled goods, products that are time or temperature-sensitive and require expedited transportation to their final destination.
The building’s design includes additional space for security screening; international cargo must undergo an extensive screening process and be cleared before it can be loaded onto trucks.


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Just days after his position as front runner was thrown into doubt, John Allan has been named as the new chairman of Tesco (BBC). Allan, deputy chairman of Dixons Carphone and chairman of housebuilder Barratt Developments, will join the retailer on 1 March.
The appointment has been reported across all the newspapers. The Guardian said it completed a “sweeping overhaul” at the top of Britain’s biggest retailer. The Times (£) noted Tesco had been “anxious to restore stability” to its boardroom and has now ended a four-month search for Sir Richard Broadbent’s successor by appointing a “veteran retail boss”.
The appointment could be central to turning around the troubled grocer, according to The Daily Mail. However, The Financial Times (£) added the move “surprised” the City and came despite some big shareholders pushing for the role to go to veteran retailer, and architect of Asda’s 1990s turnaround, Archie Norman. The role was thought to have been left wide open for Allan after Sir Ian Cheshire, the former chief executive of Kingfisher, pulled out of the race, only for Norman to be come out of the woodwork as a new surprise favourite this week.
However, The Telegraph said it had been a “straight fight” between Allan and Norman, who is thought to have turned the job down because of his other commitments. Royal Mail announced that Allan would step down as a non-executive director following his appointment as chairman of Tesco (FT £).
The Guardian carries a story about another big hitter in grocery, Allan Leighton. The former Asda executive, who is lined up to take the role as Co-op chairman, is to get a £3.4m payoff from jewellery brand Pandora. The outgoing chief executive has accepted a cash and shares compensation payment, according to the company’s annual report. It is equivalent to more than three times his annual salary in 2014. Leighton was CEO of the brand for less than two years and will remain on the Danish company’s board as co-deputy chairman when he steps down next month.
Carlsberg has also been busy making changes at the top as it announces Cees ‘t Hart, currently the chief executive of Dutch dairy company Royal FrieslandCampina, as its new boss. It came as the drinks firm said currency devaluation in Russia and Ukraine would put “significant pressure” on the company’s performance this year (The Telegraph).
Nestle is planning to remove all artificial flavours and colours from its chocolate products in the US in a bid to please consumers. The Swiss food giant’s US unit promised to get rid of artificial flavours and government-certified colours in more than 250 chocolates by the end of this year. The BBC said the move was prompted by Nestle market research, which showed that US consumers wanted the additives gone.


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CORPUS CHRISTI - When people think about Corpus Christi, they remember the bayfront, the skyline and the Harbor Bridge.
Downtown is the soul of the city that links those landmarks. It's one reason why Corpus Christi should build upon the momentum to revitalize its downtown.
Business owners on Thursday cited that message as reasons to keep momentum going, during the Downtown Management District's first luncheon at the Bayfront Omni Hotel.
It was echoed by keynote speaker Charlie Betts, executive director of the Downtown Austin Alliance for the past 16 years, who helped transform Austin into a bustling city that has seen the downtown residential market skyrocket along with traffic and congestion.
About 300 people attended the event called "Building Momentum," which honored vested downtown business owners and recapped the downtown revitalization effort's progress during the past year.
Betts said he sees great things ahead for downtown Corpus Christi. Many of the same things the city is struggling with now — vacant buildings, urban sprawl and providing more downtown residential living — Austin did too. There is an upside during the city's transitional period, he said.
"Enjoy getting to go anywhere you need to go in 10 minutes while you can," he said. "It's a great quality of life thing."
There have been recent glimpses downtown is poised for a comeback. Later this month construction is expected to begin for a two-block redevelopment of Chaparral Street, between William and Schatzell streets. Voters in 2008 approved the project, which will return a section of the road to a two-way street, widen the sidewalks, add lighting and landscaping. The intent is to reconnect Chaparral to the arts and entertainment district across Interstate 37.
Betts said he believes the Chaparral project will have similar results to Congress Street in Austin where the city widened the sidewalk and added brick pavers and trees. It's one of the busiest retail and dining corridors in downtown Austin. People began dining outdoors and the retail returned, he said.
More retail and residential is on its way to Chaparral Street. An Austin-based developer is moving forward with plans to tear down the old Lichtenstein's Department Store on Chaparral Street and replace it with The Cosmopolitan — a $28 million, five-story retail and residential apartment complex. Last month the City Council approved a tax incentive for the mixed-use project.
DMD Executive Director John Vidaurri said sales tax receipts in the downtown have increased. This past year brought in about $752,000 compared with about $600,000 the previous year. Art Walk, Bridge Walk and Marina Market Days, three downtown events coordinated the by the district on first weekend of the month, continues to attract visitors, averaging about 7,000 for the event each month.
Also, a recent program called Go Local launched to encourage people to shop at local businesses is gaining traction, Vidaurri said.
"We see some positive movement in the downtown area from the indicators we look at," he said.
A realignment of Shoreline Boulevard, scheduled begin in the summer, is expected to unlock 32 acres of public park space currently split by the road. Downtown leaders said once the project is complete, they expect more events and activities on the park land, which is part of a master park plan being promoted by a group of business leaders known as Destination Bayfront. The $72.5 million plan calls for a pier, dog park, children's play area, shops, restaurants and festival space along the bayfront.


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Lulu Guinness AW18: Zoe Irwin X ghd
The iconic British brands ghd and Lulu Guinness joined forces to create an 80s inspired hair look for the Lulu Guinness AW18 London Fashion Week presentation. It’s the brand’s first LFW showcase in it’s 28 year history.
Lead by ghd UK ambassador, Zoe Irwin, the hair look was inspired by iconic 80’s film ‘Desperately Seeking Susan’.
“80s hair is having a real revival at the moment, so we have created a twisted, disco look that feels free and bouncy, with great height and volume. The hair looks and feeling glossy and healthy, as opposed to the original crispy curls of the era.” – Zoe Irwin
Find out more about ghd products at ghd hair here.


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You'll never ever see something like this happen in PNG!
reporter Posted Jun 2, 2012 12:49 PM
Neither will our government ever subsidize the price of diesel, kero and petrol that comes from oil FROM OUR OWN GROUND but also you will never see us rise up against the government about anything.
Indians in nationwide strike over fuel prices hike
By: AFP | June 01, 2012 |
NEW DELHI - A nation-wide strike against rising petrol prices in India closed shops and disrupted public transport on Thursday, with the under-fire government facing new dissent over its economic management.
Opposition political parties and trade unions enforced a shutdown in many cities, with anti-government marches held in New Delhi and commercial hub Mumbai. “Our protest is successful,” claimed Prakash Javdekar, spokesman of the main opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). “Millions of angry Indians are protesting against the petrol price rise. “The government will have to change their decision now,” he told AFP. In New Delhi, most shops were closed and traffic was extremely light, with many workers deciding to stay home because of the lack of public transport. In Mumbai, the Shiv Sena party, a BJP ally with a history of violent protests, instructed residents that they “should not venture out of their houses” and there were reports of buses being stoned and offices attacked.
Last week, Indian state-run oil firms announced the sharpest jump in petrol prices in nearly a decade to offset growing losses caused by subsidised rates.
Once taxes are included, the price increase of 6.28 rupees (11 US cents) per litre will result in a 7.5-rupee hike for consumers in cities such as Delhi.
The government faces pressure from the street to help the poor with the rising cost of living in India — annual inflation is running at 7.0 percent — but analysts say subsidies must be contained due to a gaping public deficit.
“The price rise is killing us and the government is sleeping but today will wake them up,” said Ravikant Sahai, a grocery shop owner in New Delhi.
Sahai, 43, said he would not open his shop and hoped many other traders would join the strike.
“Petrol price rises hurt everyone. Our business suffers. Why is this government determined to hurt us?” he said.
R.K. Singh, the chairman of Bharat Petroleum Company Limited, a state-run fuel retailer, told India’s CNBC-TV18 channel that retail petrol prices might be cut by up to two rupees a litre due to falling crude prices.
In 2010 the government deregulated petrol prices in a reform aimed at reducing the massive subsidies it pays to state-run fuel refiners which rely on imported energy.
A series of smaller petrol price increases last year caused a major headache for the government with the second-largest party in the ruling coalition threatening to pull out.


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YouTube is officially rolling out its new design to all of its users following a testing period earlier this year. The new design features a tweaked logo and new features to enhance browsing and the overall user experience.
Cleaner, simpler design
Since it was launched 12 years ago, the Google-owned video sharing website, YouTube has socially revolutionised how we watch, share, upload and comment video content online. Now, for the first time since its creation, the updated website dons a new and improved logo which shifts the emphasis away from the “tube” and onto the familiar play button. Head of YouTube’s art department, Christopher Bettig, said “we have the word tube in a tube. This is weird. No one knows what this is. It’s an evolution, not a revolution.”
No longer a single brand existing only for desktop internet users, the company has faced the challenge of tying together a number of different elements to fit each screen and video format for users on phones, tablets, game consoles and even television sets. And so, alongside the logo launch, the Material Design aesthetic has been released which means there are fewer shadows, boxes and shapes on each page allowing for a more comfortable and readable user experience.
The new design is supposedly cleaner and simpler and additionally comes with a dark mode. For a more eye-friendly experience during nighttime viewing, users can choose to swap out the usual white background of the website for a darkened black version giving for a cinematic experience. The new features also include the ability to jump between previous and next videos by swiping; speeding up and slowing down videos; seamlessly switching the video to match vertical and an enhanced ability to browse and discover whilst watching.
You can check out the new features in the video below.


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The Alexandria site is the first of 120 new electric charging sites across Australia for the fuel brand
Ampol has plugged in its first electric vehicle charging station in Australia, a site in the inner south-eastern Sydney suburb of Alexandria.
It’s the first of 120 new sites that will be installed at Ampol petrol stations across the country, a roll-out scheduled to be completed by December 2023.
The Alexandria installation is one of five ‘pilot sites’ service stations that will include Carseldine in Queensland, Northmead in NSW, Altona North in Victoria and Belmont in Western Australia.
Each site will be capable of delivering 150kW fast charging and will be able to charge two electric cars at once.
Ampcharge is the new electric subsidiary brand of Ampol, one of the largest petroleum companies in Australia. The corporation has a network of approximately 1900 service locations across the country.
That’s a fair slice of a market that contains an estimated 6500 service stations across Australia.
Ampol is the first to add electric vehicle chargers to its existing petrol stations, a smart decision not only to add business to the company but to also extend charging locations for EV owners.
While owners wait to charge their cars, they can go inside and get something to eat or drink – a smart move by Ampol to bring in a new kind of business to their service station locations.
According to Australian researcher Savvy, there are just over 3000 public electric car chargers in Australia. Some 2531 of those are AC powered, with the remaining 470 chargers being of the fast-charging DC type.
The most chargers are located in New South Wales, with the fewest quantity available in the Northern Territory for obvious reasons.
While the groundswell of interest in EVs is quickly expanding, just 0.78 percent of the new car market is made up of electric vehicles, while in comparison, Norway is 75 percent.
In 2020, the global average of new electric car sales was 4.2 percent, so Australia still has some catching up to do.
Car news today: Next Tesla Model 3 Performance info leaked ahead of reveal, Mazda debuts CX-80 luxury SUV, and more – 19 April 2024
Car news, 18 Apr ’24: Audi teases facelifted RS E-tron GT Performance flagship, updated Mercedes-Benz EQA and EQB go on sale
Car news, 17 Apr ’24: Near-production BYD ute shown without any camouflage, Nissan Qashqai gets a brand-new look, and more
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EMC can now virtualise its competitors' arrays courtesy of an Atmos front end running as a virtual machine. Atmos is EMC's cloud storage array, designed to combine nodes in massively scalable storage pools that can be worldwide in scope and present data locally. At EMC World in May the company announced Atmos Virtual Edition ( …
Engineering without decent productisation?
Perhaps EMC want to be the next Sun.
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Over a time period, the one-horned rhinoceros population across the arena has decreased to simply 2,000. These animals are brownish-gray in color and have no hair on their physical bodies. Skins of these animals are thick, and also they look using armor. They have a solitary horn that rests on their snout. The governments of Nepal, as well as India, have actually made great initiatives to save the one-horned rhinoceros population. World Wildlife Federation (WWF) as well as different Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) has offered their aid to the Indian and also Nepalese federal governments for this purpose.
A solitary horn can fetch $100,000 in Eastern countries such as China and also Vietnam, where there is intense demand from purchasers who mistakenly believe it could cure illness of hangovers to cancer, or utilize it as a lifestyle medicine. The worldwide market is worth around $500 million, and also growing rapidly. California biotech startup Ambient has developed synthetic rhino horns. The figures are daunting for preservationists. However, a California biotech startup thinks it has a solution. Ambient is making synthetic rhino horns to supply consumers a moral alternative. After an extensive development period, the completed product will be on sale within months.
The process involves in making a protein and the group says that the keratin was discovered in rhino horns. That healthy protein is created as a powder which is then shaped and also produced with innovative 3D printing techniques until it is indistinguishable from the real point. Markus is motivated by the success of marijuana after legalization in the USA, and also believes the artificial horns will certainly have a prepared particular niche of customers that want a legit resource. Nevertheless, conservationists are skeptical that synthetic horns can reduce the need for the real point, which has a better reputation.
Should Ambient succeed regarding their horns, they will certainly be adhered to by synthetic Pangolin scales, elephant tusks as well as tiger bone. This would urge an establishing area looking forward to removing animal-based products. Although the recognition for Rhinoceros Poaching goes to an all time high, regarding many organizations and also game reserves releasing significant campaigns to motivate assistance for their anti-poaching programs it seems the demand for rhino horns stays high, as well as the poachers, seem undeterred. With this said we make certain that with the ongoing support of the government, regional reserves as well as worldwide advocates this native could be halted at last. So the question really is how could you, as an individual, get entailed with pet preservation job and also help with this terrible problem.


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Apple Using OpenStreetMap Data in iPhoto for iOS
Following the launch of Apple’s iPhoto for iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch application, several reports noted that the mapping integration into the software was not Google-based. With Apple working on an in-house iOS maps product for the last couple of years, Daring Fireball's John Gruber later clarified that maps for Photo Journals and slideshows were coming directly from Apple.
The OpenStreetMap Foundation has now issued a blog post revealing that Apple is using at least some of its mapping data for these features, although it does note that Apple is using outdated mapping data and is not crediting appropriately for its usage.
The new iPhoto for iOS, however, uses Apple’s own map tiles – made from OpenStreetMap data (outside the US). [...]
The OSM data that Apple is using is rather old (start of April 2010) so don’t expect to see your latest and greatest updates on there. It’s also missing the necessary credit to OpenStreetMap’s contributors; we look forward to working with Apple to get that on there.
The tiles are coming from Apple’s servers but they aren’t Apple’s own in-house data. Apple has relied on Google Maps on its iOS devices since the launch of the original iPhone in 2007, but has expressed interest in moving away from Google. Toward that end, Apple acquired a 3D Mapping company called C3 Technologies and several small companies including Placebase, Poly9.
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China has suspended dragon fruit imports from Vietnamese fruit manufacturers via a border gate in northern Quang Ninh Province, after the coronavirus was found on the packaging of a shipment, according to a notice by the Chinese side.
The suspension, applied to dragon fruit imports through a pontoon bridge that is dedicated to trading activities at Quang Ninh's Mong Cai border gate (Dongxing border gate on China's side), will last from Wednesday to September 21.
In the notice, authorities in China's Dongxing City said that they had discovered the coronavirus on both the cover of each item and the cardboard boxes as the outermost layer of the shipment.
The imports will be automatically resumed from 11:00 pm on September 21, according to the notice.
However, the suspension can be extended for another week if the coronavirus is detected on the packaging of imported dragon fruits again or any other goods, and for four weeks if the products contain the virus for a third time.
The Vietnamese Ministry of Health suggested Vietnamese dragon fruit exporters work with their Chinese partners to find another channel for the exporation of the tropical fruit during the suspension.
The Quang Ninh Department of Industry and Trade has advised local firms to regularly update information regarding import and export activities at border gates in order to work out a plan that helps prevent goods congestion.
This is not the first time that Vietnamese farm produce exports to China through Vietnam's northern border gates have been affected by Chinese authorities' COVID-19 prevention and control regulations.
Previously, the Chinese side temporarily stopped receiving Vietnamese trucks via a number of border gates in northern Lang Son Province between July and August to curb the spread of COVID-19.
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Recently, a French company, Netatmo has announced that it is going to add one more way to control smart objects in your house. Using a chatbot in messenger, users can now talk and control all their connected devices. Currently, the feature is available in English and more languages coming later this year.
The idea of Smart Home Bot has evolved from Netatmo’s new “with Netatmo” program. Currently, Netatmo devices are compatible with various virtual assistants including Alexa, Siri, and Google Assistant. At CES, Netatmo is now unveiling few of the newest “with Netatmo” devices including smart lights, blinds, and radiators those are yet to debut in 2018.
Netatmo’s own products or any of the “with Netatmo” devices can be controlled through the Smart Home Bot via Messenger. It is using artificial intelligence algorithms and natural language processing to decipher text commands sent by users to different smart home devices.
Users can just type queries, such as “turn on the lights in the living room” or “adjust the temperature in the bedroom to 72 degree”. But, Netatmo has designed the chatbot to handle more complex queries, such as “who’s at home right now” and “what’s the weather like right now”.
The company is all set to come up with connected radiators with Groupe Muller, Intuiv with Netatmo. This device is a smart heating device that automatically adjusts the temperature based on user habits. Netatmo has developed a connected module compatible with many different Groupe Muller radiators.


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Precise Biometrics has aligned itself with the right partners to navigate an increasingly competitive mobile biometrics market, according to the company’s latest corporate update.
The Q2 report indicates that Precise Biometrics saw net sales of SEK 20.2 million for the quarter, up from SEK 18.9 in Q2 of 2016, and producing an after-tax operating profit of SEK 0.2 million. The numbers pertain to Precise Biometrics’ “remaining operation,” as the company put it in its report, after selling off its Mobile Smart Card Solutions business to IDENTOS in June. The divestment was highlighted in comments by CEO Håkan Persson, who called it “a strategic decision” to rid the company of a “loss-making” business area.
Persson also highlighted Precise Biometrics’ partnership with China-based IC specialist Silead, which “has resulted in substantial royalty revenues” as Precise Biometrics’ flagship mobile fingerprint algorithm software “has been launched in a number of phone models from one of the world’s biggest manufacturers.”
And while Persson also cautioned about the difficulties arising from an increasingly competitive market landscape with respect to capacitive sensors for mobile devices – echoing concerns previously brought up by longtime hardware partners Fingerprint Cards – he noted that the emerging trend toward optical and ultrasonic sensors that can be integrated into phone displays presents an opportunity. “Many of our customers are offering ultrasound or optical sensors, which means that we are well positioned for the upcoming technology shift,” he said.
The company indicated that it maintains its expectation of full-year net sales comparable with those of 2016, together with an operating profit.
August 16, 2017 – by Alex Perala


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Hulu is phasing in a significant rate hike for its skinny-bundle live TV service, to $44.99 a month from $39.99, but at the same time will lower the price of its signature SVOD offering to $5.99 from $7.99.
The ad-free version of Hulu’s SVOD service will remain $11.99 a month.
The new pricing scheme will go into effect February 26 for new subscribers, while current subscribers will pay the new rates starting in the first billing cycle after February 26.
Earlier this month, Hulu announced it has surpassed the 25 million mark in total subscribers to its live TV service and the SVOD plan, a 48% year-over-year gain. The company is starting to place more emphasis on live TV, with competitors like YouTube TV, DirecTV Now, PlayStation Vue and Sling all jockeying for position as more subscribers leave the traditional pay-TV bundle.
Hulu last fall confirmed it has passed 1 million live-TV subscribers. While it still trails DirecTV Now and Sling, it has grown steadily since launching in May 2017. YouTube is approaching 1 million, while PlayStation Vue and FuboTV are farther back in the pack.
The pricing changes are a bet that the live TV package — which also includes access to the on-demand service and its originals and 85,000 on-demand TV episodes — is a robust enough experience to merit the higher price point. Hulu has also previously run tests and targeted promotions with its basic service at $5.99 and those customers have been less likely to drop their service.
In the world of skinny bundles, churn is a very real concern given the lack of two-year contracts and equipment that are the hallmarks of the traditional pay-TV universe. As viewers hop in and out of services at the tap of an app, companies are looking for ways to make their offerings stickier.
The streaming outlet is currently a joint venture in which NBCUniversal, Disney and Fox have 30% stakes (and WarnerMedia the remaining 10%). After the closing of the Disney-Fox deal, Disney will control 60% of Hulu.
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Solidor, the pioneering composite door manufacturer, have just launched a 'Made in Great Britain' campaign that is designed to encourage the trade and consumers to support British manufacturing.
The history of British manufacturing dates back to the Industrial Revolution in the 1780’s to 1830’s, which also spurned the birth of the modern capitalist economy. More recently the British Motorcycle industry has come and gone, along with the car industry, with the iconic Mini brand now owed by the German BMW Group.
The British economy is now awash with imports from the Far East, yet Solidor firmly believe that consumers should look more towards products that are designed and engineered in the UK. Underpinning this new campaign is the fact that it is designed to support British manufacturing, helps minimize the impact on the environment and creates jobs. Like Solidor, there are many other companies in the UK manufacturing sector with a thirst for innovation.
Solidor’s unique solid core composite door has been designed and engineered in the UK and is manufactured in their new extended premises in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire. As the company has grown, so too has their position as a major employer in the city with the company nominated in no fewer than three categories in the 2012 North Staffordshire Business Awards.
Gareth Mobley, managing director of Solidor Group comments: ‘As a manufacturer, we’d like to see the Great put back into Great Britain. As a nation we’ve developed some notable products over the years from the first jet engine, to the Mini and now’s the time to support British manufactured products in the home improvement sector.’
To see Solidor’s Great British products, see them at the main entrance of Hall 1, stand 01-100 of the FIT Show, April 16-18, 2013. For other information call 01782 847300, log on to their new website at www.soldor.co.uk or follow them on twitter @solidorltd.


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Calling all bibliophiles in need of some new literary inspiration, we have just what you need. In celebration of Black History Month, we compiled ten of the (arguably) best fiction and nonfiction books by contemporary Black authors. The list includes...
With indoor dining off the table in most provinces, Valentine’s Day might look a little different. But, there’s no reason you can’t enjoy the day with some delicious food in the comfort of your own home! Everybody wins when you order takeout: you get a night off cooking and your local restaurants get the support they need to make it through the lockdown.
OTARDA is a Toronto-made luxury clothing brand. Every piece in the collection makes a statement, with 25 per cent of the proceeds aimed at a foundation that aligns with its values. For founder Stephen Smith, OTARDA is about more than just shifting away from fast fashion. It’s about giving people a way to say what they believe in without saying anything at all.
Some of the world’s biggest brands are sitting out this year. Budweiser, Coke, Pepsi, Audi, and Avocados from Mexico have all decided not to air commercials during Super Bowl LV (no, Louis Vuitton did not sponsor this year’s game), which kicks off on February 8th. The decision basically comes down to: it’s a sensitive time, moods are down, maybe pushing products isn’t in great taste. It is the first time that Budweiser has not aired a commercial during America’s most-watched annual television event.


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The up-and-down ride for Twitter stock is continuing into the New Year. Shares of the social network are down more than 6% after Morgan Stanley cut the company's rating to "underweight." The plunge follows a surge last week after Evercore Partners analyst Ken Sena said the company was in a good position to capture money from video advertising.
Apple's smartphone sales have risen following the release of the iPhone 5S and 5C. But its rivals have chipped away at the company's longer-term market share, according to market researcher Kantar Worldpanel ComTech. During that stretch, the iPhone's market share fell by 9.9 percent in the US, by 6.5 percent in the European Union Five , and by 1.5 percent in China. Both Android and Windows Phone saw gains in market share across most regions during the year-long period.
It's been a little while since we've gotten any further numbers from the great console sales race of 2013, and now as CES kicks off, Microsoft has given us an update. In a blog post from Yusuf Mehdi, Corporate Vice President of Marketing, Strategy and Business, Xbox, the latest tallies have been revealed, "Over 3 million Xbox One consoles were sold to consumers in 13 countries before the end of 2013."
Chevrolet's new fleet of cars will soon be equipped with 4G LTE data transfer. 4G LTE is said to be seven times faster than existing connections, and allows access to a wider range of data and services. Just some of the benefits are an in-vehicle Wi-Fi hot spot, numerous infotainment options like streaming video entertainment and chat for multiple seats, real-time updates and faster running of apps and their downloads. For the U.S. and Canada, GM will rely on the AT&T network, while carrier and supplier relationships in other markets will be announced at a later date.


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FAIRBORN, Ohio (WDTN) — It’s that time of year when thousands of people will be heading to Foy’s and downtown Fairborn for the three-day Halloween festival happening Oct. 20-22.
“Friday night is the Halloween parade, been going on 75 years in Fairborn. Pretty big deal for me,” says Mike Foy, owner of Foy’s Halloween Stores.
Foy’s started as a variety store opening in 1929.
“My grandfather started the store five months before the stock market crashed,” says Foy.
Since then, it’s expanded to numerous stores and properties surrounding Main Street.
“If it was still a 5-and-10, it might not be here,” admits Foy. “We got into Halloween in the ’70s, and it just gets bigger every year.”
Inside the store where it all began, there are still trinkets, novelties, and old school candy.
Foy’s also sells a variety of costumes and masks and everything to celebrate Halloween.
People come back every year for the scares and the screams, with the annual three day festival conjuring up even more business.
“There’s booths. There’s food. There’s games. You just got to come down here,” urges Foy.


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It is very difficult to find a brand of vehicles that have not yet opted for successful SUV, but some still, but gradually they are entering the wheel.
Aston Martin is already preparing what will be his first SUV to compete in the luxury market. They have called Aston Martin DBX, and it is scheduled to be released at the end of 2019. It has left almost a year to the big day of the prototype that will be sold in series.
For development and tests, the chosen location could not be better. Wales and complicated stretches of mud that are used in the WRC. In addition to the British brand it comes to hair having factories close enough to the Welsh forests.
One of the most challenging landscapes to begin with tests, But will not be the one. Is underway route Aston Martin around the world to develop its new SUV. Targeted sites will be the most complicated in the world so that the result falls short of the best SUV market.
Do not look bad:
Adrián Osés, Locos Engine.


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There simply are not enough devices out there that pander to the tin-foil hat crowd. You know, the paranoid delusional folks who think that there’s always something bad around the bend and somebody is always lurking in the shadows. Well, the Hong Kong company Brando is looking to fix that. They have just produced the keychain spy video camera that looks like an ordinary key fob (BMW owners need not apply: it’s not pretty enough). This spy cam represents the ongoing trend of cameras changing how we live and how we think about privacy.
This little guy is capable of shooting color video at 29 frames per second, still images or just audio and easily transfers files to a computer using USB. It has 2 GB of memory and a rechargeable lithium ion battery. Since most of life is spent searching for the car, it is more than likely that the spy camera will always be in hand and ready to shoot. But is Big Brother really becoming so mainstream that everybody will own one of these?
Okay, maybe these key fob spy cameras won’t sell like Twilight books at a teen girl convention, but in the near future the trend is inevitable that virtually every person on the planet will be carrying one or more cameras in one form or another. Here on Singularity Hub, we have covered the privacy debate when it comes to small recording devices and this keychain continues the trend of dwindling personal privacy. As this technology becomes more accessible, more reliable and smaller, it can possibly be implemented in many more places. This debate applies not just the tin foil hat crowd that will purchase the spy camera keychain but to everybody, as this technology is already in many cellular phones and handheld devices.
Privacy debate aside, this is just another example of the mastery over the physical world that is coming to the mainstream market. For example, about 70 years ago, colored video images were just starting to break through into movie theatres of Hollywood, requiring large and costly camera equipment. Now, the same images could be captured (if one so happens to be spying on a 1930’s Hollywood set – see time travel) from this spy camera that fits in the hand, weighs only ounces and costs a mere 66 of your 2009-year dollars. It’s absolutely astounding.
If this cheap trinket can be mass-produced and sold to the masses now, what lies in store for the future of tiny gadgets? The next evolution of technology may not even have a need for handheld appliances. These tiny electronics may tap straight into the brain or be implanted within the body. Even now, a biomechanical implant is already being tested on Canadian documentary filmmaker Rob Spence, who lost one of his eyes and has now replaced it with a digital camera.
With advent of new technologies and manufacturing processes, the unthinkable is becoming a possibility. Yes, there certainly are many privacy and ethical issues inherent in these new products that may need to have the kinks worked out of them but here at Singularity Hub, we are excited by the new possibilities that are opened up by burgeoning technologies. The keychain spy camera (along with the rest of the miniaturized video camera market) could open up a raft of new applications and consumer experiences, making it a neat little gadget that is on our early holiday shopping list. Plus, if the aliens land while you are about to get in your car, you’ll finally be able to prove wrong all of the non-believers out there. Let us all hope that they come in peace or else you may return to your car in pieces.


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Local experience seen as a must for CXO positions
Many CXOs coming in from abroad found it difficult to adapt to the business environment in the country, experts said.
Most companies, including scaling up startups, now prefer to hire from a local talent pool that has built up enough tech expertise and experience with large-scale business, combined with the ability to work in a disorganised environment and form relationships with local stakeholders, leaders at executive search and leadership firms like Egon Zehnder, ABC Consultants, RGF-Executive Search, Executive Access and Accord India told ET. This is different from the situation in 2014 and 2015 when several startups, flush with funds, got a number of people in senior positions from large tech companies in Silicon Valley. Some headhunters call them “trophy hires”. Many of them returned in a year or two.
Experts attribute this change to the coming of age of the Indian startup ecosystem and increasing availability of experienced world-class talent with technology expertise within the country.
Cash-rich startups earlier brought in otherwise expensive talent from Silicon Valley because they had both tech expertise and experience in working with large-scale businesses, said Sandeep Murthy, partner at venture capital firm Lightbox. Talent from Indian FMCG (fast-moving consumer goods) companies would have had big-business experience, but no background in tech, he pointed out. But now, people in Indian startups have both tech expertise and experience in local, large-scale business, Murthy said.
Shiv Agrawal, managing director at ABC Consultants, said, “Earlier, those coming from abroad would bring in best practices.” But now, in the auto industry, for instance, it’s equally important for the heads of sales and marketing to know the Indian dealer and distribution network, he said.
Many CXOs coming in from abroad found it difficult to adapt to the business environment in the country, experts said. “Everything is more structured abroad; here it’s more disorganised,” says Ronesh Puri, managing director of Executive Access.


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Dick’s Sporting Goods is accelerating its strategy to expand its private brand portfolio and leverage its brands to better control its own destiny. The move is designed to help the retailer become less reliant on the ubiquitous national brands like Nike and Under Armour.
The retailer plans to expand its athleisure private brand Calia to 80 stores, and expand its private brand portfolio with the introduction of a yet-to-be-named outdoor apparel brand in the second half of 2019. Dick’s new private brand will replace a Reebok licensing deal that is scheduled to end. Dicks has set a sales target of $2 billion for its private brand portfolio and committed to investing the resources necessary to develop new products and promote their brands.
CEO Ed Stack addressed the strategic importance of private brand this past Tuesday, March 12, during the Dick’s Sporting Goods Inc Q4 2018 Earnings Conference Call.
“Our private brands will continue to be an integral part of this strategy to drive differentiation and exclusivity in our assortment. During 2018, our private brands remained strong growing double digits. As a percent of total net sales, our private brand sales increased to approximately 14% compared to 12% last year. In 2019, we expect a continued strength as our private brands will play an important role in our space allocation and assortment strategies.
We will expand CALIA’s footprint in approximately 80 stores, launch a new Athletic Apparel brand in time for back to school that will replace Reebok, and enhance the quality of our existing offerings with a focus on product innovation. To support this strategy, we will continue to invest in our product development team to help us reach our $2 billion sales goal in private brands.
In closing, 2019 is an important year in which we are making critical investments to fuel long-term growth and further solidify our leadership position. I’d like to thank all of our teammates for their hardworking commitment this past year and for their upcoming efforts in 2019.”


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It seems that DC Entertainment isn’t the only name in the streaming service game anymore, as Variety is reporting that Disney and Marvel Studios are developing two limited event series, focusing on Loki, and Scarlet Witch. Tom Hiddleston and Elizabeth Olsen are expected to reprise their respective roles, with large budgets to ensure the series are done right.
It’s speculated that the shows will be 6 episodes each, with Kevin Feige in charge of production, ensuring that they fall in line completely with the Marvel Cinematic Universe, unlike current television counterparts. Additionally, no creative teams have been attached as of yet, but expect to hear more, soon.
Josh, Theo, and Bovi are back for another slow news day! Covering the latest cool shit that pop culture has to offer!
Casting for Joker and Star Wars, a bevy of directors lining up for upcoming movies and series, and an adorable message in Black Panther on this week’s episode of Analog! Listen to this week’s episode, and follow us on Instagram – Instagram.com/AnalogCast! Check out the links below to listen, and please Rate & Review us on iTunes!
Warner Bros. Animation has announced that one of the most famous animated series of all time will be heading to Blu-Ray on October 16th. Batman: The Complete Animated Series will include the entire run of the series, as well as both animated films, Mask of the Phantasm, and SubZero.
The box set will cost $113, includes 10 Blu-Ray discs, as well as three exclusive three Funko mini-figurines of Batman, Harley Quinn and The Joker and seven lenticular art cards. Only 30,000 copies of the box set are being produced. You can hit the jump for a full look at all of the incredible special features included, as well.
Continue reading “Complete Batman: The Animated Series Heading to Blu-Ray”
Warner Bros. Animation and Cartoon Network have unveiled a first look at the upcoming DC Super Hero Girls animated series. The series boasts “fresh character designs” from Emmy Award-winning producer Lauren Faust, whose previous work includes the likes of My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic, and Super Best Friends Forever, from the old DC Nation block.
What started as a series of webisodes for DC Animation has grown to become a wildly successful toy franchise, and direct-to-DVD animated movie series, and now has the chance to grow beyond even that. Proving that there’s absolutely a market for superheroes with young girls. Hit the jump to read the full synopsis.
Continue reading “First Look at DC Super Hero Girls”
The second Sonic Mania Adventures episode has been released by Sega, picking up right where the first episode left off. Sonic Mania Adventures is from Tyson Hesse, creator of the Sonic Mania opening animation. Hesse wrote and directed this series.
Sonic Mania is available for the Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC. Sonic Mania Plus arrives on Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC in North America and Europe on July 17th, 2018 and in Japan on July 19th, 2018.
Amazon has debuted the first official trailer for its upcoming animated series, The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle. The new trailer shows off the series’ fancy new hand-drawn aesthetic, that is meant to evoke the original, iconic series.
The new series has Tara Strong (The Powerpuff Girls, Teen Titans Go!) doing the voice of Rocket J. Squirrel, and Brad Norman (America’s Most Haunted) as Bullwinkle J. Moose. It’s executive produced by Scott Fellows (The Fairly OddParents) and Tiffany Ward, daughter of original series creator Jay Ward. The series hits Amazon Prime on May 11th.
Warner Bros. Animation, and Warner Bros. Television have announced their WonderCon line-up and, as expected, it’s full of DCTV mainstays on The CW such as Arrow, Legends of Tomorrow, The Flash and Supergirl. Additionally, the Constantine animated series will debut on March 24th at the panel, at the same time it becomes available on CWSeed.com, with episodes clocking in at around 10 minutes.
Matt Ryan is back to voice the main protagonist in the webseries, which was written by comic book writer J. M. DeMatteis. The webseries has already been compared to darkness of the original Hellblazer comics from Vertigo.
Deadline is reporting that Fox 21 and Hulu are working together on a TV series based on the hit video game franchise, Hitman. Developed by IO Interactive, the series has enjoyed cult-classic success across several generations of game platforms. However, two failed films have never allowed to prosper in other media.
The pilot is being written by Derek Kolstad, creator of the John Wick franchise, and is set to be a cornerstone of Hulu programming in the future. The episodic nature of television could lend itself incredibly well to a Hitman series, so only time will tell.
The incredible Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles animated series is coming to an end, and with it, beginning in 2018, Nickelodeon plans to launch a new series. The Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles will star the band of brothers as they encounter new allies and villains and discover a mystical world they never knew existed beneath the streets of New York City.
The 2D-animated series will star the voice talents of Omar Miller (Ballers) as Raphael, Ben Schwartz (Parks and Recreation) as Leonardo, Josh Brener (Silicon Valley) as Donatello, Brandon Mychal Smith (You’re The Worst) as Michelangelo, and Kat Graham (The Vampire Diaries) as April O’Neil. The series is set to debut in 2018, on Nickelodeon.
At this weekend’s New York Comic-Con, Warner Bros. has announced that the legendary Batman: The Animated Series is headed to Blu-Ray in late 2018. There are currently no details on the set, but it’s expected to take on many of the same processes of the recent Mask of the Phantasm re-release.
The biggest question remaining will be whether or not the Blu-ray release will follow the strategy of coming out in a series of volumes, or as a complete series box-set.
Netflix has posted a cryptic new teaser for The Punisher spotlighting the shows focus on trade secrets and conspiracy theories that will factor heavily into the still-unknown plot of the upcoming series. Mention of Micro, and Operation Cerberus, as well as a good shot of the full logo.
In addition, we also have a batch of stills from the first episode which feature Jon Bernthal as the vigilante and some of his supporting cast, including Daredevil alum Deborah Ann Woll as Karen Page, Ben Barnes as Billy Russo/Jigsaw, and Ebon Moss-Bachrach as Micro. Hit the jump to check out the stills.
Continue reading “New Punisher Key Art and Stills”
It seems the Titans as we know it aren’t the only on-screen superheroes expected to join the live-action adaptation, as casting sheets for the roles of heroes, Hawk and Dove, as well as Detective Amy Rohrbach, have went out this morning reports The Hashtag Show.
Hawk and Dove are a pair of crime-fighting vigilantes that have gone through several different incarnations over the years that transform when in danger. The studio is currently looking at Alan Ritchson (Smallville, Ninja Turtles) and Rebecca Rittenhouse (The Mindy Project), respectively. Meanwhile, Rohrbach was one of the few clean cops working in Bludhaven and eventually became Nightwing’s trusted ally while Dick Grayson worked as a hero there, confirming the inclusion of Nightwing in the series.
Well, ignore that previous final trailer, because it totally wasn’t the real final trailer. With hours remaining until The Defenders hits Netflix, they’ve decided to drop one more trailer on us, with plenty more footage of the series. How they’ve been able to keep so many mysteries with all of this footage unveiled is beyond me.
The final trailer is a doozy showing not only teamwork between our heroes, but dissension, as well. Iron Fist going toe-to-toe with Daredevil would be a hell of a thing to watch, so needless to say, I’m pretty damn excited for this show to go live tomorrow!
DC Comics has unveiled a first look at the Dark Knights, the stars of their upcoming METAL series. From left to right: The Murder Machine, the Red Death, the Devastator, the Merciless, the Drowned, and the Dawnbreaker. Not pictured: The Batman Who Laughs.
The character design is very reminiscent of the Dark Judges, from Judge Dredd, which is absolutely a good thing. METAL hits stores next month, while each Dark Knight will have their own #1 title starting in September.
Fans of the Netflix phenomenon need not worry, as the series second season finally has a release date, and it looks like we’ll have something great to watch for this year’s Halloween. Stranger Things 2 is set to premiere on October 27th, with the kids returning to combat a new threat to Hawkins by the Upside-Down.
Hit the jump to check out the full poster, and a teaser trailer revealing the release date.
Continue reading “Stranger Things Season 2 Promo & Details Revealed”


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Ryan Smith, the Business Development Manager for the city’s Department of Economic and Urban Development detailed the strategy.
When we’re trying to attract different, new types of companies, they look at ‘what’s your workforce like,’ and getting these people to Vegas is extremely important for usRyan Smith
He said the City of Las Vegas has launched digital marketing ads to the Bay Area and Seattle. They’re also implementing a strategic LinkedIn outreach campaign to tech workers at specific companies.
We’re trying to take advantage of the opportunity for remote workers to work anywhere. We’re really targeting technology. Las Vegas lags the United States in the number of technology workers in the city. So, we’re trying to bridge that gap and get those people to move to Las Vegas. If we’re able to get technology workers, Las Vegas will have a better chance at landing some of the bigger or different technology companies as well.Ryan Smith
Smith said pre-pandemic, Las Vegas was already seeing a wave of new residents from the Golden State. He believes the pandemic has accelerated the appetite to move.
The homes that you can get in Las Vegas and other markets, compared to what you can get in California is astronomically different,” he said. “So from a quality of life perspective, I think Vegas has a competitive advantage.Ryan Smith
Smith also pointed to accessibility. He explained, a 50-minute flight separates Las Vegas from San Francisco.
I think a lot of the tech companies have said working post-pandemic is going to be different. Maybe it’s not completely remote work. Some companies haven’t announced permanent remote work, but I think that being able to fly back to San Fran or Silicon Valley, or Seattle easily from Vegas is also compelling.Ryan Smith
Read more via abc7news


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LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WHAS11) -- You wear them every day, but the Speed Art Museum hopes to make you look at your shoes a little differently.
The museum on UofL's campus opens its exhibition, Out of the Box: The Rise of Sneaker Culture, this Saturday.
The exhibit takes a look at the history and design evolution of the sneaker from the mid-1800s until today.
You can see everything from a 1860s spiked running shoe to the original Nike Air Force 1--even sneakers from the University of Louisville and University of Kentucky.
The exhibit will also give back to the community. If you bring in a pair of new or gently used sneakers, you'll get $1 off admission to the exhibit. Those shoes will then be donated to Water Step, which turns the donations into funding for drinking water projects in developing countries.
The Out of the Box exhibit will be at the museum from Saturday until November 27.


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"Tentpole" events on television are all the rage for luxury automakers nowadays, because they attract huge audiences, and people mostly watch them live instead of storing them on a DVR and skipping the commercials. And at least for individual luxury brands, relationships with major pop-culture awards shows have become as significant as other automakers' associations with the Super Bowl.
Entering its fourth year in a row on Sunday, Lincoln's tentpole association with the Grammys telecast has been creeping up in the outside lane on Audi's relationship with the Emmys and Cadillac's deal with the Oscars.
Already in mid-revival after a few years of renewed attention by Ford Motor Co., Lincoln is taking its Grammys platform to a new level this year with a collaboration with blues singer and guitar virtuoso Gary Clark Jr.
Clark will star in a new 60-second "Cord" TV commercial that airs twice during the Grammys telecast on CBS on Sunday as well as once during the red-carpet pre-show, plugging his guitar into a one-of-a-kind amplifier whose design by Revel was inspired by the new 2017 Lincoln Continental. And Clark will make a new rendition of his song "The Healing" and "As the Train Pulls In" available for free download via Lincoln for the first 10,000 visitors.
The ad will focus on the results of Lincoln's partnership with Revel, the premium auto brand owned by Harman, which worked with the automaker to custom-build the amplifier outfitted with 12 Revel speakers and design cues from the new Continental flagship sedan, including the grille design and the back-lit LED Lincoln logo. The amplifier featured in the ad represents the fusing of Revel's state-of-the-art design technology and the inspiring form of the new Continental.
The Grammy association -- which isn't an official marketing partnership -- has become "critically important for our brand for a number of reasons," Andy Georgescu, Lincoln's head of brand communications, told me. "Music is a passion. And also the media type: live events in a world of video on demand and all kinds of playback.
"We are looking for a balance. That's not to say that we don't embrace other ways of consumers digesting content but this is one of the tentpole events that is live and that people will watch throughout, and we can launch exciting content that will be consumed in the moment. That feels like something that is in demand for customers."


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(VIANEWS) – OriginTrail (TRAC-USD) cryptocurrency is currently on bullish momentum by 30.59% in the last 6 hours. At 20:20 EST on Monday, 21 March, OriginTrail (TRAC-USD) is at $0.6050.
Today’s last reported volume for OriginTrail is 5782855, 18.16% below its average volume of 7066296.65.
All-Time High and Low
OriginTrail’s current value is at $0.6, 81.7% below its all-time high of $3.5 on Wednesday, 3 November.
OriginTrail’s current value is at $0.6, 16550.44% above its all time low of $3.5 on Friday, 13 March.
Market Cap and Supply
OriginTrail’s current market cap is 229767365.
OriginTrail (TRAC-USD) Range
Concerning OriginTrail’s daily highs and lows, it’s 31.51% up from its trailing 6 hours low of $0.4600 and 0.83% up from its trailing 6 hours high of $0.6000.
Currently, OriginTrail (TRAC-USD) has 43329 Twitter followers and 11805 Reddit subscribers.
As of now, on Github, there are 47 forks, 147 stars, and 34 subscribers.
OriginTrail’s last week, last month’s, and last quarter’s current intraday variation average was a positive 1.22%, a negative 0.42%, and a positive 5.33%, respectively.
OriginTrail’s highest amplitude of average volatility was 3.40% (last week), 3.90% (last month), and 5.33% (last quarter), respectively.
Crypto Price Classification
According to the stochastic oscillator, a useful indicator of overbought and oversold conditions, OriginTrail’s crypto is considered to be oversold (<=20).
News about Bitcoin
- This solar company's 5-year return makes Bitcoin, Tesla, disney, Apple, Microsoft, ford, and Alibaba look trifling. According to Benzinga on Sunday, 20 March, "Since March 2017, Enphase Energy stock’s 5-year return has outperformed several of the world’s most popular cryptocurrencies, along with EV, entertainment and tech stocks: Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC), Tesla Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA), Walt Disney Co (NYSE:DIS), Apple Inc (NASDAQ:AAPL), Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT), Ford Motor Company (NYSE:F) and Alibaba Group Holding Ltd - ADR (NYSE:BABA)."
- Bitcoin bulls point to supply at three-year low as malaise lingers. According to Bloomberg Quint on Monday, 21 March, "The supply of Bitcoin in private wallets across exchanges has reached a three-year low, according to data compiled by Glassnode. ", "Another is that as long as Bitcoin dawdles below $47,000 — a break-even point for many new investors — it will remain stuck within its tight range because short-term traders will sell at every rally."
- Bitcoin breaks the 42k barrier. According to Benzinga on Saturday, 19 March, "The chart below compares the price movement and volatility for Bitcoin over the past 24 hours (left) to its price movement over the past week (right). "
- Someone just sent $42m in Bitcoin onto gemini. According to Benzinga on Monday, 21 March, "What happened: An anonymous cryptocurrency wallet holding $42,235,802 of Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) just transferred their funds onto Gemini. ", "It’s likely that this Bitcoin whale is planning either on selling Bitcoin or trading it for other altcoins."
- Ether outperforms Bitcoin as excitement builds for software upgrade. According to Bloomberg Quint on Monday, 21 March, "Ether is outperforming its better-known-rival Bitcoin once again as optimism over a long-sought update that promises to reduce the carbon footprint of the world’s most-used blockchain appears to be getting closer to fruition."
More news about OriginTrail (TRAC-USD).


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The Sunset Advisory Commission agreed Tuesday night to recommend that the Texas Residential Construction Commission be reviewed again in four years, instead of the usual 12.
But it said the agency must resolve disputes more quickly and recommended that a recovery fund be established to help compensate homeowners when a builder goes out of business.
The Sunset Commission, a panel of 10 lawmakers and two public members, rejected a staff review that said the agency is ''fundamentally flawed'' and should be abolished. The staff report said the agency is doing more harm than good for homeowners, who must go through the agency's dispute resolution process before they can file lawsuits against builders.
The Legislature, in the session that begins in January, ultimately will decide the future of the agency it created in 2003 at the behest of homebuilders who wanted a process to resolve complaints against their members outside of the legal system.
Sen. Glenn Hegar, a Republican from Katy who is on the Sunset Commission, proposed the streamlined process as a way for homeowners to get to court more quickly.
The Sunset Commission rejected calls from consumer advocates to allow homeowners to bypass the TRCC and go directly to court.
Alex Winslow of the consumer group Texas Watch said compressing the time it takes for the agency to investigate claims is a ''step in the right direction.''
''However, it needs to be coupled with making the process voluntary, so consumers have choices," he said. "For us, that's the bottom line."


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Naomi Campbell Called Out Elle Germany Over an Offensive Article
Naomi Campbell has called out Elle Germany after the outlet published a feature about Black models titled "Black Is Back."
In a post on her Instagram on Tuesday, the supermodel shared images from the magazine and wrote an open letter to Sabine Nedelchev, Elle Germany's editor-in-chief, writing, "This makes me so sad to see this."
"I’ve said countless of times we are not a TREND," she wrote. "We are here to STAY. It’s ok to celebrate models of color but please do it in an ELEGANT and RESPECTFUL way."
The article began making the rounds when Instagram account @diet_prada shared it, stating that it came from the magazine's November 2019 issue. The piece features a roundup of Black supermodels, and aside from its offensive headline, mistook Naomi Chin Wing for Janaye Furman.
Campbell wrote that in her career, she's seen other Black models mistaken for her.
"Do you know what it feels like to do the job (@naomichinwing) and not even be given the right name credit?" she wrote. "Very disappointing to say the least. If you would like a conversation to know how to have a diverse mind we are here to sit and accommodate."
She concluded: "It’s very important for a publication to be culturally sensitive and give credit where it’s due. We all need to unite on this matter."
Elle Germany released a statement on Instagram on Wednesday, writing, "In our current issue we approach the colour black from different angles. One of our focuses was to feature strong black women who work as fashion models. In doing so, we were guilty of several errors for which we sincerely apologize."
"It was wrong to use the cover line 'Back to black' which could be misconstrued to mean that black individuals are some sort of fashion trend," the statement continued. "This obviously was not our intention and we regret not being more sensitive to the possible misinterpretations. Misidentifying the model Naomi Chin Wing as Janaye Furman is a further error for which we apologize. We are aware of how problematic this is. This has definitely been a learning experience for us and, again, we deeply regret any harm or hurt we have unwittingly caused."


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Twitter's big day: Revenue plan? Google deal? Oprah's touch?
Twitter co-founder Evan Williams sent out the cryptic tweet earlier today - and now, some tidbits of information have trickled out, giving us some things to ponder as it relates to this news.Of course, the big news would be a revenue model for the business.
Twitter co-founder Evan Williams sent out the cryptic tweet earlier today - and now, some tidbits of information have trickled out, giving us some things to ponder as it relates to this news.
Of course, the big news would be a revenue model for the business. Twitter has gone on the record to say that it will announce some sort of revenue plan in the first half of the year.
Maybe it's an ad deal with Google. On Google's earnings call this afternoon, Google CEO Eric Schmidt pointed to Twitter as an example that innovation is alive and well in Silicon Valley - and that he would be happy to talk to Twitter about ad revenue. Earlier in the day, The New York Times' Bits blog published a post that said Twitter is talking to companies about cutting distribution deals, not to search for a buyer.
But if I were a bettin' man, I'd put my money on news out of Chicago, specifically the studios of the Oprah Winfrey Show. The Bits blog reported late this afternoon that Friday's Oprah show would be about Twitter, possibly even welcoming Williams as a guest. Oprah, who has a reputation of having a Midas Touch, already has 30,000 followers on Twitter and has yet to write one tweet. Ashton Kutcher - who's on track to reach 1 million followers on Twitter - will be her guest.
Maybe Fred Wilson, the Union Square Ventures partner who was an early investor in Twitter and also a Twitter board member, was also being cryptic when he told the New York Times that "All the people you’ve heard of and more are coming to Twitter saying, ‘We want to do something with you.’"


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After dropping 3% today, Vipshop (NYSE: VIPS ) shot up more than 5% in after-market trading, due to extraordinary 2012 and fourth-quarter earnings. Vipshop attributed its growth to its continued efforts to optimize and expand its product offerings.
Net income for the fourth quarter came in at $6.3 million, or $0.12 per ADS, crushing estimates of $0.08 -- and far better than the $63.5 million loss in the prior year. Meanwhile, revenues increased by 185%, to $300 million. The growth came from a 177% increase in active customers, and a 191% increase in orders, now totaling 2.6 million and 8.8 million, respectively.
Fourth-quarter results were so phenomenal that they covered Vipshop's loss of $9.5 million, or $0.18 per ADS loss, for all of 2012. Analysts expected a loss of $0.12. However, net revenues did triple. Growing 205%, net revenues totaled $692 million. Active customers grew 176%, to 4.1 million, while orders grew 202%, to 21.9 million.
Looking forward, Vipshop believes it will continue to capitalize on China's growing population of online shoppers eager to buy branded products at bargain prices. In the next year, the company will remain focused on improving its offers and shopping experience for customers.
For Q1 2013 -- which includes forecast considerations associated with the Chinese New Year holiday -- Vipshop expects net revenues to range from US$265 million to US$270 million, representing a year-over-year growth rate of approximately 162% to 167%.


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Coinbase has published its first reports as a public company. During its April direct listing on the Nasdaq, the cryptocurrency exchange was valued at $ 85.5 billion. The company’s quarterly revenue jumped to $ 2 billion from $ 178 million a year earlier and $ 1.6 billion in the first three months of this year. Market consensus predicted an average revenue of $ 1.8 billion. The real surprise for the market was net profit, which increased 50 times to $ 1.6 billion from $ 32 million in the same period last year. Adjusted net earnings per share soared to $ 7.76 versus the market consensus of $ 2.48. In the past quarter, Coinbase saved $ 737 million in taxes, mainly through tax deductions for employee benefits in the form of stock options when it went through direct listing in April.
The number of authorized Coinbase users at the end of the second quarter was 68 million, up from 56 million at the end of the first quarter, and the number of monthly active users increased by 44% to 8.8 million. The Bitcoin exchange rate in April set a new record, rising above $ 64,000, and later fell sharply, its decline reached 45%. Ethereum rose to $ 4,200 in May and then dropped to $ 1,700. The high volatility of the crypto market correlates well with the company’s earnings. The quarterly trading turnover of the cryptocurrency exchange in the second quarter increased by 38% compared to the previous quarter and amounted to $ 462 billion, of which $ 145 billion (+ 21%) fell to the share of retail investors, and $ 317 billion (+ 47%) to the share of institutional investors.
Currently, there is an increased interest in the cryptocurrency market. For example, according to analysts’ estimates, the number of crypto investors in the US could double by the end of 2021. According to the Gemini study, it is noted that in 2021, American interest in digital assets has significantly increased. For example, 63% of survey participants who are not cryptocurrency holders said they want to learn more about digital assets and purchase them in the future. In addition, the appointment of financier Gary Gensler as head of the SEC, who spoke positively about blockchain, bitcoin and cryptocurrencies, may become a positive moment for the development of the crypto market in the United States. Speaking at a hearing on his candidacy before the Senate Banking Committee, Gensler called digital gold “a catalyst for change.” We doubt that crypto currencies will be recognized as a means of payment in developed countries, but we fully admit that they can be assigned the status of an alternative investment instrument, which will be a historically positive moment in the development of the crypto market.
Coinbase Global is a regulated cryptocurrency company that provides customers around the world with a platform for buying, selling, transferring, and storing digital assets. The Company offers a variety of products and services that enable individuals, businesses, and developers to participate in the cryptoeconomy.


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Netflix stock hammered as subscriptions fall
EARNINGS Subscriptions drop; stock hammered
Netflix posted a healthy profit gain Monday, but the company's already ailing stock price was massacred in after hours trading as investors reacted to a greater than expected exodus of subscribers and a forecast for red ink in 2012.
In total, Netflix lost 805,000 subscribers for the quarter, about 200,000 more than the company estimated last month, after executives fumbled a price increase and a branding change.
Within minutes of the quarterly earnings report's release, the company's stock price fell through the floor and dropped about 27 percent, from $118.84 to $85.75 per share in after-hours trading. Netflix had already lost nearly $9 billion in market value since the start of the third quarter in July, when its stock hit an all-time high of $304.79 per share.
Earnings for the quarter were actually up. The Los Gatos company posted third quarter net income of $62.5 million ($1.19 per share) compared with $37.9 million (73 cents) for the same quarter a year ago. Revenue was nearly $822 million for the quarter, about 49 percent more than the same quarter last year.
MBA BY THE BAY: See how an MBA could change your life with SFGATE's interactive directory of Bay Area programs.
Streaming in Britain
And earlier in the day the company delivered some encouraging news to investors by announcing plans to expand its Internet streaming service to the United Kingdom and Ireland in early 2012. Netflix now offers streaming of movies and TV shows to 43 countries, including Canada and countries in Latin America and the Caribbean.
But equity research analyst Michael Pachter of Wedbush Securities said the company's earnings report yielded another surprise change in strategy - Netflix is not going to be able to finance its international growth through its domestic profit as previously planned.
In fact, Netflix forecast more subscriber cancellations and said it will have to pause its international growth because the expansion of streaming into Britain and Ireland will push the company into unprofitability overall for "a few quarters," starting with the first quarter of 2012.
"A few quarters usually means three or more quarters," Pachter said. "Are they going to even make a profit next year? People like consistency and this company has gone from extraordinarily consistent to completely inconsistent and that's why the stock is down."
In a conference call with analysts and in a letter to shareholders, Chief Executive Officer Reed Hastings acknowledged that the last few months have "been an extremely challenging time to be a shareholder" as the company's reputation took a hit.
In July, the company announced a pricing structure change that meant some customers who paid for both the DVD-by-mail and Internet video streaming services would have to pay up to 60 percent more per month to keep both.
The announcement generated a tidal wave of subscriber cancellations that lasted through September and October "as people became more aware of the price increase," Hastings told analysts.
Hastings has apologized for not properly explaining the price changes, but last month opened a new Pandora's box by announcing Netflix was splitting the DVD service into a new unit, with a separate billing system and website under the new name Qwikster.
Three weeks later, the customer furor was so intense Hastings was forced to backtrack and kill the Qwikster idea.
In theory, the two brands made sense, but "in practice, Qwikster became the symbol of Netflix not listening," Hastings said. Netflix ended the quarter with 23.8 million U.S. subscribers, down from 24.6 million in June. The company originally forecast 25 million by the end of the quarter.
Most of the projected growth remains on the Internet streaming side. The company projects the number of DVD subscribers to plunge from 13.9 million to about 10 million by the end of this year.
In the letter to shareholders, Hastings and Chief Financial Officer David Wells said the company's "long-term streaming opportunity is as compelling as ever and we are moving forward as quickly as we can to repair our reputation and return to growth."
Netflix isn't planning to raise rates any further, but still isn't planning to offer a discount to lure back subscribers who may have canceled. The company believes DVD-by-mail customers will diminish over the next decade.
"In the U.S., we'll build back our brand the same way we built it in the first place: no grand gestures, just amazing service day-after-day, for an incredibly low price," Hastings wrote.
Still, the company's missteps will have investors questioning its strategy. Pachter believes the stock price will drop even further.
"I honestly think they kind of lost it for a few months," he said. "The price increase was not well thought out. Clearly, Qwikster was not well thought out."
E-mail Benny Evangelista at firstname.lastname@example.org.


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Man says Westar Energy undervalued itself in sale
TOPEKA — A class-action lawsuit has been filed claiming that Westar Energy executives undervalued the company when selling it to Great Plains Energy.
Westar’s board of directors agreed to sell the company for about $12.2 billion on May 29. According to the agreement, stockholders will receive $51 in cash and $9 in Great Plains stock.
Westar stockholder Troy Miller said that is unacceptable and filed the suit Wednesday.
Miller said Westar’s stock price increased 55 percent in the year before its sale, but the $60 stock price Great Plains paid is only a 13 percent increase in Westar’s stock price.
He said Great Plains will get an increasingly valuable company, but will pay much less than what it is worth.
“The proposed transaction is the product of a flawed process and deprives Westar’s public stockholders of fair consideration for their shares,” Thomas Hammond II, Miller’s attorney, wrote in the lawsuit.
Westar spokeswoman Gina Penzig says the company cannot comment on pending litigation.
The lawsuit asks Shawnee County District Judge Larry Hendricks to block the sale of Westar to Great Plains or, if it has already been completed, to rescind it.
No hearings have been scheduled.


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Comcast confirmed Tuesday that it is introducing new double- and triple-play packages in its Central Division that standardize on broadband service tiers that essentially double the speeds provided in its existing service bundles.
Under the new plan, Comcast will offer bundled customers the option to go with base packages that include a minimum of Comcast’s 50 Mbps (downstream) “Blast” high-speed Internet service, or its 105 Mbps “Extreme” service tier. Starting Tuesday (January 21), Comcast is promoting the updated, standardized speed options to new bundled customers in the Central Division, and expects to extend them to existing double- and triple-play customers in the division over the next several weeks, an MSO spokesman said.
The new packages will double the speeds offered with those bundled packages without boosting the price. Comcast historically has been selling double- and triple-play bundles in the Central Division with a minimum of the MSO’s “Performance” broadband tier (25 Mbps downstream) or its 50-Meg Blast service.
Comcast is presently limiting the new bundle packages to its Central Division, a region that operates in 15 states and covers markets such as Chicago; Detroit; Atlanta; Detroit; Miami; and Nashville, Tenn. Comcast has not announced when or if it will offer similar speed packages in its West and Northeast divisions.
Comcast’s Central Division, which has about 19 million combined video, broadband and voice customers, primarily competes with AT&T U-verse, which has been trying to make some noise with its new 45 Mbps “Power” tier. As part of AT&T’s Project Velocity IP (VIP), the company is also planning to offer top U-verse speeds of 100 Mbps. In Austin, Texas, where it competes with Time Warner Cable, AT&T is starting to deploy an all-fiber service called U-verse GigaPower that will start off with symmetrical speeds of 300 Mbps, and scale up to 1 Gbps by mid-2014, about the same time that Google Fiber is expected to begin connecting homes to its 1-Gig network there.
DSL Reports first reported Tuesday that Comcast was upgrading speeds for some bundled service customers. The report also said Comcast might upgrade customers on its 105 Mbps tier to a 305 Mbps service, but the MSO has not announced any such plans.
In its Northeast region, Comcast sells a high-speed Internet residential product called Extreme 505 that matches a 505 Mbps downstream with a 100 Mbps upstream. But rather than using the MSO’s DOCSIS architecture, Extreme 505 relies on a fiber-to-the-premises-based platform that Comcast uses to service business customers.
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