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Two consecutive blasts in Dhaka, one in the commercial building in New Market and another in Sitakunda in Chittagong, left nine people dead and more than 40 people injured. This is yet another tragic incident that has highlighted the unsafe and unregulated nature of industries and commercial spaces across Bangladesh. The loss of lives is not the only effect, as it has a negative impact on the country’s image on the global stage.
Effect on Bangladesh’s image
Repeated fire incidents in Bangladesh have caused the country’s image to deteriorate globally, causing a probable negative impact on exports. This is because international buyers assume that the products they are purchasing are non-compliant with fire and worker safety regulations. Faruque Hassan, the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) president, the apex trade body for readymade garment manufacturers, believes that there should be zero tolerance for workplace safety issues. He also stated that the BGMEA is working constantly to ensure that the number of fire incidents has decreased in the RMG factories. Dhaka North Mayor Atiqul Islam stated that the non-garment factories should learn a lesson from the RMG industry to improve their workplace, and BGMEA is prepared to share knowledge with other industries.
You Can Also Read: Death toll rises to 14; 100 plus injured in Gulistan blast
Impact on non-RMG sector
The Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD) conducted a study in January last year that showed a decline in safety standards in non-RMG industries due to weak factory infrastructures and inadequate monitoring by government agencies. The non-RMG sector has yet to follow the RMG sector’s footsteps to improve workplace safety issues. The BGMEA has stated that the government needs to be stricter with non-garment factories in terms of license, permissions, and auditing factories.
Investigation and accountability
To date, no one has been held accountable for any of the nine fire tragedies that have occurred in Bangladesh in the last 13 years. Moreover, most of these cases have not seen much progress in their investigations. For instance, the investigation for the 2021 Hashem Foods Factory fire and the 2022 BM Container Depot fire is still ongoing.
Is there a way-out?
Experts believe that the government needs to be stricter with non-garment factories in terms of license, permissions, and auditing factories. Factories must also ensure proper infrastructure and safety regulations. The non-RMG sector should follow the RMG sector’s footsteps to improve workplace safety issues. This would entail the government taking a stricter stance on licensing and auditing factories to ensure the safety of workers. The government should also hold people accountable for any fire accidents that occur in the future.
Moreover, experts agree that a collaborative effort from the government and private sector is required to improve fire safety issues in factories. Faruque Hassan, President of BGMEA, stated that the association needs to come forward, and the government needs to ensure compliance with fire safety regulations.
Sameer Sattar, President of Dhaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry, emphasized the importance of raising awareness and implementing rules and regulations to improve fire safety in the private sector. He also stressed the need for enhanced inspections of factories and identifying the root cause of recurring fire incidents.
To conclude, the consecutive blasts in Dhaka have once again highlighted the need for Bangladesh to address workplace safety issues across all sectors. It is essential to ensure that the workers’ safety and health are prioritized. With this in mind, the government should take appropriate action to prevent such tragedies from happening in the future.


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Reebok Be More Human Campaign
Reebok Be More Human campaign launched in the US in January and focuses on physical fitness, mental wellbeing and the social aspect of training – aiming to promote ultra fit consumers rather than celebrities. It hopes to boost sales by focusing on women, fitness and partnership and continuing to build partnerships like CrossFit One.
As part of the new campaign, the sportswear brand has created a photo moment in CrossFit gyms around London to encourage people to share their Workout of the Day photos on social media with #iWODfor to spread the word and build on the momentum of the campaign, which is already making waves in the US.
The campaign in CrossFit launched at the end of February and is set to run throughout March and April.

domain: news


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Shop 'with Israeli links' targeted
September 11, 2011
SUPPORTERS of the Max Brenner chocolate chain have rallied outside a Newtown store as activists protested against the business's links to the Israeli military.
Pro-Palestinian groups stood on the opposite side of the road, chanting and waving placards bearing slogans such as ''Max, Max, Murderer''.
But the store was defended by about 60 supporters, including members of the Australian Protectionist Party, a far-right nationalist group.
Advertisement: Story continues below
Brenner stores in Melbourne have been targeted recently as part of a global campaign called Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions.
Full story at "Sydney Morning Herald"


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A recent blog post from Amazon stated that the online giant will be “actively supporting The Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement Act of 2021 (MORE Act)”. It also stated that they are “no longer including marijuana in our comprehensive drug screening program for positions not regulated by the Department of Transportation.”
In the last eight years, over 40 states have passed legislation legalizing the adult use of medical and/or recreational marijuana. While other states have actively decriminalized possession for personal use.
It is a big deal when the giant of internet commerce with over a million employees world-wide adopts a pro-legalization stance.
Amazon’s Marijuana Announcement
Amazon’s senior vice president of Worldwide Operations published a blog post on Amazon titled Update on Our Vision to be Earth’s Best Employer and Earth’s Safest Place to Work.
“In the past, like many employers, we’ve disqualified people from working at Amazon if they tested positive for marijuana use. However, given where state laws are moving across the U.S., we have changed course.
We will no longer include marijuana in our comprehensive drug screening program for any positions not regulated by the Department of Transportation and will instead treat it the same as alcohol use. We will continue to do impairment checks on the job and will test for all drugs and alcohol after any incident.”
The post continues:
“Because we know that this issue is bigger than Amazon, our public policy team will be actively supporting The Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement Act of 2021 (MORE Act) – federal legislation that would legalize marijuana at the federal level, expunge criminal records, and invest in impacted communities.
We hope that other employers will join us, and that policymakers will act swiftly to pass this law.”
The announcement sent shockwaves across the news. But now, as the dust settles, many are left asking: What happens next?
Amazon and Legalization
An announcement by one of the world’s largest corporations undercuts the prohibitionist fable that people who enjoy weed on their own time cannot be healthy, happy, and productive workers.
This also raises the question of Amazon, post-legalization, eating the cannabis industry’s lunch. Amazon Prime drones dropping weed on America’s front porches scares not only old-time prohibitionists; it scares cannabis retailers, too.
Alcohol retailers had the same fears in 2017, when Amazon gained over 330 new liquor licenses across 41 states in its Whole Foods acquisition. However, as of today, Amazon has not monopolized the alcohol industry.
Since marijuana is also used medicinally, it may lead more to shopping on Amazon in the same way as purchasing other medications and supplements online.
Why would Amazon take what could be viewed as a highly controversial position?
One possibility might be labor demand.
As the second largest private employer in the US, Amazon is aggressively looking to increase hiring. In April, Amazon announced it was adding 75,000 workers across its warehouses and delivery stations. The company has already upped wages to $17 an hour and has doled out one-time perks such as $100 bonuses, as other big businesses like McDonald’s and Chipotle are also raising wages to attract workers amid a tight labor market.
That demand for labor may be encouraging Amazon to drop its barriers for prospective employees. Regardless of the timing or motivation, medical marijuana patients and cannabis advocates are hopeful that other employers will follow Amazon’s lead.
Aspen Cannabis Insurance is in Denver, CO, and services clients nationwide. We are a family run business working with multiple insurance carriers to offer our customers the coverage they need at the lowest possible cost. We offer a wide range of personal, commercial, and professional insurance to residential and commercial customers enabling the cheapest rates available. Call to speak to one of our insurance professionals and see how painless insurance shopping can be.


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Top City economists predict early rate cut
MOST City economists predict the Bank of England will cut interest rates next year to give the flagging economy a boost. Many believe the downward move could come as early as February.
Ten out of 15 top Square Mile analysts quizzed by the Evening Standard believe the Bank's monetary policy committee will have to take the knife to borrowing costs at least once more to make sure inflation does not undershoot its 2% target.
The other five believe rates have troughed and will either stay on hold throughout 2006 or start climbing again.
Of the dovish 10, seven say the first cut could come in just six weeks' time while the others believe it will not arrive until well into next year. The MPC left rates at 4.5% for a fourth month at its latest meeting, amid signs that consumer spending had grown in the run-up to Christmas.
Committee member Stephen Nickell, however, called for an immediate quarter-point reduction. The London School of Economics professor felt the Bank's forecasts for investment growth and net trade were too optimistic, and that pipeline inflation pressures were easing.
The Bank's chief economist, Charlie Bean, stoked talk of cuts after saying November's fall in inflation removed one uncertainty from the rate debate.
Alan Castle of Lehman Brothers, who sees the first cut in February and rates down to 3.5% by the end of next year, said: 'Worries about inflation, particularly the knockon effects of higher oil prices on wages, are going to go away. We also think some of the signs of faster growth the Bank has seized on will fade.'
If you have spent too much at Christmas, check out our Dealing with Debt section. This is Money also has selected partners who can secure you a better deal and cut the cost of repaying your debt:
Predicting two more rate cuts, James Knightley of ING said: 'The consumer outlook is still pretty poor. They face an ongoing struggle with rising unemployment, slower wage growth, higher household bills and flat house prices. Subdued activity and falling inflation will provide the scope for lower borrowing costs.'
Simon Rubinsohn at Gerrard is predicting one more cut but believes the MPC will have to wait until August to gather enough evidence to justify it. Robert Barrie at CSFB is one of two economists who believe the MPC will sit on its hands throughout 2006.
'Rates are roughly where they ought to be and it will take some kind of a shock to move them in either direction,' he said.
In the hawks' camp is David Hillier of Barclays Capital, who warns rates will rise to 4.75% in May. He argues that economic growth data for 2005 will be revised up, retail sales will continue to recover and wage settlements will climb.
'Taken together, these factors underpin our belief that at its May meeting the MPC will judge that the soft patch in activity is well and truly behind us, and that a reversal of August's 'insurance' cut is needed to keep inflation on target,' he said.
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Not even a full year has passed since Google Now premiered with Android’s latest offering, Jelly Bean. It is now a crucial tool for many users across the planet. For all the perplexed users who really can’t see the point behind Google Now, you need to use it for more than a few hours to […]
iOS, Android, Chrome, Gmail and G+ to get linked. There have been plenty of whispers about a unified, single messaging service from Google. Purportedly, this revolutionary service would only be available across Google’s own Chrome OS and Android platform. It is speculated that this service would be known as Google Babble and would look to […]
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The social giant Facebook is always looking for novel ways to engage more and more users. Although the much hyped about “Facebook smartphone” never really took off, Facebook is still persistent on grabbing more of the user mind space. A Facebook phone would have been highly redundant as every user is now happy with Facebook’s […]
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Fish City Grill and our CityLine location were proud to be featured in a recent piece by the Dallas Morning News and the Guardian, regarding the labor shortage in the hospitality industry.
“In the roughly two decades since Bill Bayne and a partner opened Half Shells — the seed of what would become a chain of 20 restaurants in Texas, Florida, Arkansas and Oklahoma — Bayne said that he and his wife, who now own the Fish City company, have made a point to remember the names of workers at every level.
He takes pride in his ability to retain workers in an industry that sees high turnover.
Still, as he prepared to open the chain’s outpost at CityLine, a $1.5 billion project anchored by an almost 10,000-worker State Farm campus, he encountered an unanticipated hurdle.
He couldn’t find workers.“


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Computers are increasingly being used to run online games, from Candy Crush to Minecraft to League of Legends, according to a new report from the UK’s Computers Association.
In addition, the industry is becoming more mainstream, with more companies including Apple and Google releasing games for mobile devices.
But which computers are the best for online gaming?
This article uses an open source data set from the US Consumer Electronics Association’s (CEA) Consumer Electronics Trade Database (CEDT) to help identify which gaming laptops are the most popular in the UK.
The report covers desktop and mobile gaming laptops, tablets and smartphones, and does not include gaming PCs.
It also doesn’t include laptops with external graphics.
The top five gaming laptops in the worldAccording to the CEDT, the top five desktop and laptop gaming laptops according to the CEA are the Dell XPS 13 and HP Spectre x360, the Dell Inspiron 13 7000, the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon, the Asus Eee Pad Pro 3 and the Dell Latitude E6320.
They are followed by the Dell E550, Lenovo ThinkCentre X300 and the Lenovo IdeaPad T470.
The best gaming laptops for mobile The top five mobile gaming notebooks in the CEET database are the Asus XPS 15, the Huawei Mate 9 Pro and the LG G5.
All of these phones use Nvidia’s Tegra X1 chips, and all of them have an external graphics chip in the form of Nvidia’s GeForce GTX 1060 graphics.
The Mate 9 is one of the most successful gaming phones of all time, winning over 2.2 million units.
The Asus X1 is a much cheaper, slightly more compact alternative, with a 13.3-inch screen and 1,800 x 1,080 resolution.
The Asus X5 is another cheaper option, with an 8-inch display and 1.8GHz quad-core processor, but it has a 1,280 x 1.425 resolution screen.
The LG G3, which is not a smartphone, is the best laptop for gaming on the market today.
It is the first smartphone to have a Nvidia Tegra chip, but the Nvidia Tegrah series is now mostly being used for games consoles and PC gaming.
It’s also one of those laptops with an Nvidia GeForce GTX 1080 GPU.
The Lenovo IdeaCentre V3 has the second-best gaming laptop in the database, followed by Lenovo Thinkpad T470, the HP Spectre X360, and the HP Chromebook Pro 11.
It has an 11.6-inch 1080p display and has a 2,100mAh battery.
The next two laptops are also pretty similar to the IdeaCentres.
The Acer Aspire V10 and the Asus G10 are all very similar in appearance, but they are not laptops.
The last two laptops in our list are the Lenovo T420, Lenovo IdeaOne E1 and the ASUS Chromebook C. All three have a 13-inch 1566 x 768 display, and they all use Nvidia Tegras.
The CEETS data is only available for desktop gaming laptops.
So, we can’t tell you what gaming laptops the top-end of the gaming laptop market are like.
However, the CTEB data does show the gaming laptops with the most PC games played are the Razer Blade Stealth and the Razer Mamba 2.


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According to a new market research report on the"Display Panel
Market by Technology (LCD, OLED, and Others), by Size (Small & Medium and Large), by Farm Factor (Flat and Flexible), by Resolution (8K, 4K, WQHD, FHD, HD, and Others), by Application, and by Geography - Global forecast to 2020" , published by MarketsandMarkets, the market for Display Panels
was valued at USD 114.
This report expatiates upon the development and future outlook of Chinas LED application market, profoundly analyzes "hot" LED application markets including the display panel
market, the backlight market, the landscape illumination market, the interior decorative lights market and the most potentially prosperous interior illumination market and elaborately studies the market scale, product structure, market configuration, brand fabric and market characteristics of LED.
12, 2011 (CENS) -- Taiwan's top two display panel
manufacturers, namely AU Optronics Corp.
Pioneer did not disclose exactly when it will pull out of plasma display panel
production but the timing is widely believed to be in fiscal 2008 starting April.
manufacturers are also optimistic about market prospects of 3D TVs, predicting that the market penetration rate of 3D panels will reach 20% in the third quarter of 2012, when more low-priced models and 3D TVs along with related content and services will been launched.
6 million plasma display panel
TVs and 2 million liquid-crystal display panel
Matsushita Plasma Display Panel
Company Ltd (Japan)
Hit by the sagging market for LCD TVs, Taiwan's display panel
manufacturers have experienced a severe business downturn this year and have been forced to cut back on their expansion plans for 2012.
The company has now successfully completely avoided the use of lead oxide glass by developing new materials for the dielectric layer, electrodes and other parts and by optimizing heating conditions in every display panel
manufacturing process, enabling secured stable production yield and quality levels.
an affiliate of Hon Hai Group and one of Taiwan's top-two display panel
makers, plans to set up its first overseas production plant, according to company insiders.
6 billion was generated by the display panel
sector, for a 1.
have jointly developed a plasma display panel
whose power use is half that of current PDPs, the Nihon Keizai Shimbun reported Tuesday.


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Classic FM, the UK’s biggest commercial radio station, has signed Benecol, the cholesterol lowering brand, as the sponsor of Classic FM Live. It is part of a 12-month partnership between the two brands.
The deal will include on-air and online activity, and aims to build on Benecol’s existing sponsorship of Classic FM Requests.
It will also include the sponsorship of Classic FM Live, at the Royal Albert Hall, on April 16. The event will be Benecol co-branded and will include experiential activity including sampling the products during the event.
In line with Benecol’s Take Control of Your Cholesterol strapline, Classic FM listeners will be able to “take control” of the concert’s music content by voting for one of five pieces of music.
Benecol currently sponsors the station’s Weekday Requests Show, which is on air during weekdays between 1pm and 3pm, and Saturdays between 11am and 1pm.
Benecol marketing manager Esther Van Onselen says: “Classic FM and Benecol’s audiences are closely related, and the partnership will help consumers to keep Benecol and cholesterol at the front of their minds.”
Benecol, which is owned by Finnish company Raisio, has already used TV sponsorship to target its core audience of older consumers. In December 2007, it sponsored The Alan Titchmarsh Show, on ITV1, which included broadcast and online sponsorship, as well as mobile interactive bumpers. It is thought the deal with Classic FM is its first radio work.


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Oculus have already revealed plans to release a standalone headset to sit in-between the Samsung Gear VR and Oculus Rift. Now further information has emerged that Oculus are in fact planning to make various different options available for consumers who are interested in standalone virtual reality (VR) headsets.
Ars Technica has reported that Oculus is exploring various different options as what they describe as a ‘spectrum’ of devices. This includes further investment in headsets that allow for ‘six degrees of freedom’ full motion tracking. There are also indications that Oculus are pursuing a goal of implementing ‘inside-out tracking’ for the standalone devices, which allow for motion tracking without the need for additional external sensor bases stations. Some of this technology is an advancement on the wireless ‘Santa Cruz’ Oculus prototype that was demonstrated at Oculus Connect in 2016.
Reportedly, Oculus are not seeing the upcoming standalone devices as a replacement for an Oculus Rift, but an option parallel to the current hardware. The company also hopes that the removal of the requirements for a specific smartphone or powerful PC rig will encourage wider adoption of VR technology.
Oculus are aiming to overcome one of the current major barriers to mainstream VR adoption, which is the high cost of entry. Oculus is said to be wanting a price of $200 for its standalone VR device, which will bring it more in reach of many potential customers. The recent price drop for the Oculus Rift, along with the decision to bundle the Oculus Touch controllers with new headsets seems to confirm that this is part of the ongoing strategy.


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(WMC TV) - A viewer came up to me at the grocery store. He complained about smaller retailers charging a check-out fee -- or a "swipe" fee -- to use a credit card instead of cash.
He asked, "Is that legal?"
Yes, it is.
After a $7 billion class action settlement between merchants and the big credit card companies, merchants earned the right to charge their customers a swipe fee to cover the costs that Mastercard and Visa charge them to provide card services.
It's just the cost of doing business.
* The fee must equal the cost of the card service.
* The fee can be levied on credit cards only, not debit cards.
* The merchant must disclose the swipe fee, either with a sign at the point of sale, at the store's entrance/exit or on your receipt.
Merchants also have the option of "eating" that fee instead of passing it along to their customers -- or at least passing it along only when somebody tries to charge something like a pack of gum on their credit card.
You can report alleged swipe fee violations to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.
Copyright 2012 WMC-TV. All rights reserved.
Jurors heard opening statements and testimony Tuesday in the trial of prominent Memphis attorney Arthur “Art” Horne.More >>
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A Baptist employee was fired after a video was posted to social media shows the man yelling racial slurs at a woman at a local donut shop.More >>


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- Articles tagged "12-inch"
Dell has launched two notebooks under its specialized Rugged Extreme series - a 12-inch tablet/notebook convertible and a larger 14-inch notebook. Designed to withstand extreme temperatures, strong impact, sustained vibration and other demanding conditions, we witnessed their toughness at a recent launch event.
The Galaxy Note Pro 12.2 is Samsung's flagship product in its new pro tablet lineup, but is it just a tablet with a giant screen? To dispel the misconception, Samsung collaborated with HardwareZone to bring our members a special hands-on event - so check out what took place!
- MSI becomes first motherboard brand to be Windows 10 certified
- Samsung unveils Galaxy S6 Edge Iron Man Limited Edition
- Here is the memo Tim Cook sent to the company on Jony Ive's promotion
- Local company Secretlab launches Throne, racing-inspired gaming chair to take on DXRacer (Updated)
- Biostar Intel 100-series chipset motherboards to debut at Computex 2015
- Panasonic announces launch of the Lumix DMC-CM1, the world’s slimmest communication camera.
- Upgrade your iPhone 6/6 Plus with an easy access back button
- Amped Wireless' new RE1750A Wi-Fi range extender provides up to 12,000 sq ft of Wi-Fi coverage


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GUELPH, Ontario, Jan. 8, 2015 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- LifeLearn Inc., a company devoted to mobilizing knowledge in the animal health industry, announced today that its LifeLearn Sofie application has received two Everyday Health Awards for Innovation at the Digital Health Summit during the 2015 International Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, NV, in the Pet Health and Audience Choice categories.
The Everyday Health Awards for Innovation recognize companies and individuals tackling some of the world's most pressing problems in extraordinary ways. Announced each year at CES, one of the highest profile conferences in the world, this award plays a significant role in helping to usher digital health forward, facilitate discussions, and honor the achievements in health and wellness technology.
The Pet Health category awards products designed for the veterinary/animal health industry, and the Audience Choice award is given to the product that rated highest through online voting, which took place from November, 2014 through early January, 2015.
"Winning these awards is a testament to LifeLearn's team of veterinarians and developers that have been working day and night to create the first cognitive computing application for animal health," said Dr. Mark Stephenson, chief veterinarian, LifeLearn. "We are proud to be pushing the boundaries of innovation to help veterinary teams efficiently access information in real time, ultimately improving healthcare outcomes for pets."
Developed in partnership with IBM Watson, the LifeLearn Sofie intelligent support tool processes language naturally rather than requiring certain keywords. Veterinarians simply type a question for Sofie and, in mere seconds, she uses the cognitive computing capabilities of IBM Watson to scan through hundreds of thousands of pages of medical resources to return relevant, objective, and evidence-based treatment options. Sofie seamlessly incorporates the cumulative wealth of veterinary literature into everyday practice, which will ultimately assist in providing better patient outcomes.
LifeLearn is planning to launch Sofie early in 2015. For more information, visit sofie.lifelearn.com.
Founded in 1994, LifeLearn offers knowledge mobilization solutions for the animal health industry, empowering veterinary practices and animal health organizations to reach beyond traditional boundaries to turn knowledge into action.
Driven by a highly specialized team of biomedical communicators, veterinarians, programmers, and designers, LifeLearn delivers written and visual content that inspires. LifeLearn creates content with insight, accuracy, and the latest technology, and activates it through LifeLearn websites, client education tools, and interactive digital applications that enhance use. With over 20 years in the animal health industry, LifeLearn also offers information and advice, with a specialty around emerging technologies and innovation.
For more information about LifeLearn, visit lifelearn.com.
CONTACT: MEDIA CONTACT: Terrah Warner Content & Communications Manager, LifeLearn 800-375-7994 x. 252 email@example.com


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Currently in pilot mode, the service is available across all 500 cities where Droom has presence. Droom claims the orange book value service contributes almost 30% of its traffic generating over 10 million from its overall traffic of 31.2 million visitors.
For the mobile phone segment, the service will be moetised through a licensing model as also on the basis of lead generation. “We intend to license our technology to large horizontal ecommerce players who can then offer it to their buyers and sellers and also mobile OEMs and other resellers. Besides, we have a lead generation where large resellers can use ‘OBV for Mobile’ for leads and pay us on a per-lead basis,” said Sandeep Aggarwal, Founder and CEO of Droom.
While Droom did not share details of the new service’s contribution to volumes or revenues, Aggarwal expects that the mobile segment will contribute upto 5% of the company’s revenues over the next 1 year.
Droom claims to have an annualized gross merchandise value of Rs 3,756 crore with an annual growth rate of 225%. Droom is targeting net profitability by 2018 end.
ETPrime stories of the day
13 mins read
8 mins read
7 mins read


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POP MART, the global culture and entertainment company best known for art toys and collectible toys, announces the opening of its first U.S. location, in Costa Mesa, on June 15.
Their new store is located at South Coast Plaza, in a 2,148-square-foot location. The store offers a range of POP MART‘s art toy blind boxes series, popular art toy figurines, as well as high-end MEGA COLLECTION collectible toys series. Local consumers can play with POP MART’s iconic IP character figurines such as Molly, Dimoo, SKULLPANDA, and The Monsters.
Besides a full lineup of POP MART products, the store also features an interactive area and a MEGA COLLECTION exhibition area, bringing an immersive and fun experience for local shoppers of all ages.
They are offering an exclusive product that will be made be available on June 18th. Only 300 pieces will be available, first come first served.
The company launched two Roboshops (toy vending machines) and a pop-up store in Australia last year, which proved a hit with local art toy fans. The first European store in London opened this January to the delight of local consumers.
The Beijing-based art toy brand has already expanded into 23 countries and regions, including the US, the UK, Canada, Singapore, South Korea, and Japan.
Through its unlimited charm and unique art toy culture, POP MART has reinvigorated the collectibles scene, captivating global consumers and winning countless fans.


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Founded in roughly 1994 as a casing collection company which focused on imports, Radburg is now one of the leading retreaders in Europe and certainly the biggest car tyre retreader in Eastern Europe and Romania. What’s different about Radburg compared with most of the other retreaders across the continent, is that the majority of Radburg’s annual retreaded tyre output (70 per cent) is made up of passenger car products.
Kingpin Tyres, one of the last remaining passenger car tyre retreaders in the UK, has sold its Kingpin brand name and retread production line to Romanian retreader SC Radburg Center Srl. The transaction took place during the summer of 2020 following several months of negotiations, representatives of new owners Radburg told Tyres & Accessories during a recent interview.
Autodata has launched a version of its e-commerce website in the Romanian language. Autodata is an e-commerce technical solution for body shops around the world. In addition to the platform, it is also available as an API, and provides comprehensive Original Equipment (OE) sourced technical information for the service, maintenance, diagnostics, and repair of 90 per cent of vehicles on the road in Romania.
Carlos Bernabé has returned to Continental’s tyre factory in Timișoara, Romania to take on the role of plant manager. The four-decade Continental veteran officially began in this position on 1 February after managing the company’s tyre plant in Alor Setar Malaysia for three years; prior to his sojourn in Malaysia, he worked at the Timișoara plant as production manager.
Global retreading supplier Vipal Rubber’s VT110 tread has been approved in Romania following trials conducted by fleet operator Senidav Trans SRL. The Eastern European fleet company carried out performance tests using retreaded tyres with the VT110, recording favourable results against a competitor brand. Measurements were recorded by Vipal’s Moldovan partner, Tehno Profil, after 260,000km on Romanian roads, which present adverse track conditions, with mountains, slopes, snow, and other problems.
Pirelli has commissioned Belgian industrial property developer WDP to construct a new 62,000 square metre warehouse alongside the tyre manufacturer’s existing Slatina, Romania manufacturing operation. According to WDP, the news comes as part of “an expansion of the tyre manufacturer’s existing production facility”. WDP predicts that the project will cost around 40 million euros.
With the purchase of 32 hectares of land in the Romanian city of Timişoara, Continental aims to expand its storage capacity and optimise the overall cost of its logistics. The land was purchased from the UMT and Prompt groups for an undisclosed sum and is located close to the Continental tyre factory within the city.
Four million euros are being invested to reduce olfactory emissions at the Continental tyre factory in Timişoara, Romania. The investment will facilitate an expansion of the plant’s regenerative thermal oxidiser system in order to stop odours arising from tyre production wafting beyond the factory site.
A new chief executive officer has been appointed at Pirelli tyres Romania. Wolfgang Meier has taken on this role, replacing Giuliano Menassi, who become R&D senior vice-president within the Pirelli Group. Meier retains his role of head of human resources for Pirelli’s business in Germany.
An investment of 33 million euros is planned for the Michelin factory in Zalău, Romania in order to equip it to produce commercial vehicle tyres for the intermediate segment of the market, including Tigar brand products. In a press release, Michelin shared that the investment will lead to 100 new jobs at the plant by 2021, increasing the facility’s workforce to more than 1,200. This latest investment follows Michelin’s decision to invest 60 million euros in its tyre cord facility in Zalău.
According to local media source Mediafax, Continental intends to hire an additional 1,500 workers in Romania during 2017. The company, which operates plants and R&D centres at six sites within the country, including a tyre factory in Timișoara, is primarily looking to employ software specialists. According to Christian von Albrichsfeld, general manager of Continental’s Romanian operation, the company is seeking experts who can bring added value to vehicle systems.
Pirelli has now made tyres in Romania for a decade, and during a ceremony marking the tenth anniversary of the start of production in Slatina, the company announced plans to further invest in the site. Around €200 million will be invested in the Slatina plant through to 2021; as a result, annual production capacity will reach 15 million tyres, 5 million more than the current level. Some 500 new jobs will be created through the investment.
The team at Tyrepress.com can testify that tyre manufacture is an ‘aromatic’ process, therefore we are pleased to learn that Continental AG has completed €10.5 million worth of investments to reduce the odours resulting from production in its Timisoara plant in Romania.


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Retro gaming meets South Dakota pride in Sioux Falls' newest T-shirt company
Jeff Hayward's new apparel business was born from video games.
He was having fun with the Nintendo NES Classic – a gift from his wife – when he realized he was getting swept up in the nostalgia of 8-bit games.
Hayward hopes to capitalize on it this week when he and his wife, Kristin Hayward, open Sodak Supply Co., an online apparel company based in Sioux Falls.
“I think people have a pride in our state and the region but also kind of remember growing up in the '80s and '90s,” Hayward said.
Apparel: Sioux Falls T-shirt design company opening store within a store
The Haywards, both native South Dakotans, envision their business as an homage to their home state and to retro gaming.
The couple first went into business together last year with Modern Sioux Falls, a courier-type company that basically brought Ikea products to South Dakota at a cheaper rate than the department store's online shipping costs.
But after Ikea changed its shipping rates, the Haywards started looking for a new idea. They liked what other apparel companies in South Dakota were doing in terms of making state-centered merchandise, but they also needed to find their own niche, Hayward said.
"We kind of caught that bug, that entrepreneurial spirit," Hayward said. "We've been trying to keep our eyes on doing something.”
That niche is where the Hayward's pixel art design comes into play.
The company’s products will include baby clothes, children’s T-shirts and clothing for both men and women. Inventory will also include merchandise such as mugs and posters — all printed with Sodak Supply’s unique designs.
The company’s aesthetic, especially early on, will use 8-bit graphics similar to retro games, Hayward said.
He expects Sodak Supply to start selling merchandise this week from the company’s website, https://sodaksupply.com, starting with three initial designs.
MORE:Dollar General takes on rural South Dakota as part of national growth


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- The Aave-Balancer Asset Manager will replenish cash amounts of tokens on Balancer by redeeming them from Aave.
- This will enable liquidity providers to earn additional yield without swap costs.
- The development is the result of a new partnership between the Swedish-based crypto exchange and payments platform Klarna.
- By connecting to Klarna's network of 5,000 European banks, more than 180,000 users are now able to purchase crypto directly from their bank accounts.
- Wirex is set to launch in the U.S. in April.
- The company will utilize the infrastructure provided by Zero Hash to bring digital payments to 300 million Americans.
- By providing institutional investors with yet another onramp service, Diginex is hoping to boost the adoption of digital assets.
- By using Diginex Access, institutional investors will be able to trade both crypto and crypto derivatives, alongside their equities positions from one platform.
- UAE-based LuLu Exchange and Indian Federal Bank will establish a remittance corridor between the two countries.
- The corridor will use RippleNet Cloud to make cross-border payments faster, cheaper, and more reliable.
- Visa will be testing out a new suite of crypto APIs to expand its offering.
- Digital neobank First Boulevard will be the first one to test out the APIs, with custody services provided by Anchorage.
- Quorum will be made available in about 80 different cities through BSN’s public city nodes in mainland China.
- ConsenSys will also cooperate with the BSN to provide a training program for Quorum in China


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Bon-Ton Stores Inc. led fashion stocks higher today, jumping 12.8 percent to $10.21 despite posting net losses for the second quarter.
The beleaguered department store chain, however, saw comparable-store sales rise 1.6 percent for the three months and outgoing president and chief executive officer Brendan Hoffman said the company was well positioned for fall. The company is now looking for diluted earnings per share of 25 cents to 55 cents for the full year, ahead of the 17 cents analysts had penciled in.
Bon-Ton was far and away the strongest issue in the 100-stock WWD Global Stock Tracker, which gained 0.4 percent to 100.33. The measure of stock performance launched at 100 on July 8.
The weakest stock in the tracker was Sears Holding Corp., which fell 6.8 percent to $33.50. The company’s second-quarter loss widened to $573 million, marking its ninth-consecutive quarter with red ink.
CEO Edward S. Lampert is trying to reinvent the troubled chain with a member-centric model focued on the Shop Your Way program.
Global stocks were mostly moving higher today. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.4 percent to 17,039.49 in New York, while the FTSE MIB rose 2.1 percent to 20,010.51 in Milan and the Nikkei 225 increased 0.9 percent to 15,586.20 in Tokyo.
In his new book “Hollywood Royale,” Andy Warhol’s Protégé Matthew Rolston celebrates the Eighties revival of Hollywood glamour. Featuring more than 100 portraits taken by Rolston from 1977 to 1993, the book contains photos of icons like Michael Jackson, Cyndi Lauper, and @drewbarrymore, pictured here in 1991. “Hollywood Royale,” out today, will be accompanied by an exhibition opening at Los Angeles’ Fahey/Klein Gallery on March 1. #wwdeye
"Nowadays when life is not so happy with everything going on in the world, I think people come to me for a little bit of whimsy and color and fun." - Designer Rebecca De Ravenel on her cult-favorite jewelry line. (📸 : @vsteves) #wwd40
“Everyone is talking about how the retail industry is struggling, but I think it’s an incredible time because brands who are doing something different and innovative are setting themselves up for the future,” said @adamgoldston, who founded the luxury athletic brand @apl with his brother @ryangoldsten. The Goldston’s are part of WWD’s 40 under 40: a group of industry notables. See the rest of the list on WWD.com. (📷: @vsteves) #wwd40
@eyeswoon blogger Athena Calderone debuted her first-ever cookbook, “Cook Beautiful,” which is heavily centered on the presentation and visual expression of food. Pictured here are her miso glazed carrots from the book. Get the recipe on WWD.com. (📷: @johnny_miller_) #wwdeye
“It’s passion that helps get anybody to a certain point and it’s what’s propelled me,” said Kith founder @ronniefieg, one of WWD’s 40 under 40: a group of industry notables who are changing the face of retail, fashion and beauty. Fieg, who opened a Manhattan flagship on October 7, began his career at age 13 as a stock boy and salesman for footwear chain David Z. “I think staying true to [my] beliefs, hard work and passion have gotten me to where [Kith] is today.” See the rest of the 40 at WWD.com. (📷: @vsteves) #wwd40
25-year-old @samweaving is about to break out this fall, starring in Netflix’s horror film “The Babysitter,” fittingly out today on Friday the 13th. That’s not the only place you’ll be seeing her, though — Weaving’s got a role Showtime’s “SMILF” and another alongside Frances McDormand and Woody Harrelson in “Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri.” Though she’s got a full plate at the moment, there’s one role she’s got her eye on: Marilyn Monroe. “I’m a little too young at the moment, but it’s on my bucket list,” the actress told WWD (📷: @dandoperalski) #wwdeye
BFF's Poppy Jamie and Suki Waterhouse celebrated the launch of their bag line Pop x Suki at Nordstrom last night. "The line is really about our friendship, and how we are so different but complement each other," said Waterhouse. 👯 (📷: Katie Jones) #wwdeye
After designing the new @louisvuitton and @bulgariofficial flagships and a @chanelofficial boutique opening in Japan, @petermarinoarchitect has another project on his plate: The Lobster Club. Located in the Seagram Building, it’s the famed architect’s first restaurant project in New York, serving up modern Japanese brasserie-style cuisine. Bronze hues, bespoke material detailing, blush and chartreuse tones and a heavy emphasis on Picasso can be seen throughout. Mark your calendars for Nov. 1 for the much-anticipated opening. (📷: @clint_spaulding) #wwdeye
Did you know: @carlychaikin of "Mr. Robot" has been painting for about a decade? The actress, who plays Darlene on the show, is a self-taught artist who lists Salvador Dalí and Chuck Close as some of her idols. Chaikin told WWD that painting is a form of meditation for her — A much-needed one given the intensity of "Mr. Robot." See a piece Chaikin is working on at WWD.com (📷: @jilliansollazzo) #wwdeye


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MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - First it was toilet paper, then a coin shortage. The COVID-19 pandemic has created a lot of unexpected shortages. The latest one? Canning supplies.
“I think the supply is way outreaching the demand and I don’t think anyone was ready for it,” said Jimmy Layer, the general manager at Wise Acre Eatery.
At the south Minneapolis restaurant, workers not only serve produce from their own farm - they sell it, which means a lot of jars and lids.
“I’m hoping to do 1,000 to 1,500 cans of different things,” said Layer.
Layer is also the canning supply buyer at Wise Acre. He says this year has been a challenge.
“Yes, I’m not just doing a couple cases, so I’ve bought out I think six different stores at times here, so I’m also causing some of the problems, but I think we’re going to give a lot back with what we’re making,” said Layer.
To get the supply of jars and especially the lids, which in many ways are a tougher commodity in a normal year and normal time, Layer says he would just walk down to the Ace Hardware on the corner. When he did that this spring, he realized there was an issue.
“We’re out and we’re probably not going to have anything for at least a month,” said Diamond Lake Ace Hardware Owner Dave Svobodny.
At Diamond Lake Ace Hardware, the shelves have been bare of most canning jars and lids for a while. Svobodny says other stores and their warehouses are the same.
“The demand is so high, our supplier, Ace Hardware, doesn’t have anything in stock in their 14 warehouses,” said Svobodny.
He says he knew it might be a problem when this spring during stay-home orders, seed sales went through the roof.
“We sold probably a three-year supply of garden seeds,” said Svobodny.
So, he ordered three times the amount of their yearly canning stock and sold it in a week.
The maker of Ball jars says demand skyrocketed because of the pandemic, as far more people started growing gardens. They’re now upping production.
In the meantime, buyers are facing huge mark-ups online and potential rip-offs. One viewer told FOX 9 she ordered $200 worth of lids only to discover she’d been scammed.
“Call around, pay for it over the phone, and go get it immediately, whoever’s got it, drive and go get it,” said Svobodny.
For now, it’s a lot of hunting. At Wise Acre, Layer doesn’t want to spill where he’s found a supply, but he does offer this advice.
“Talk to the manager of the place you’re at, find out when they come in,” said Layer.


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Attend ESMA’s IJC conference in Dusseldorf on 29-30 October and you might find out, as Steve Knight, director of Digital Direct Technology and founder of TheIJC, explains.
There’s no denying it - selling has become more difficult. Suddenly the marketing term ABM (account based marketing) has replaced ‘content marketing’ as the most effective outreach. No doubt a new term will be coined over the next 18-24 months, but the principles will effectively remain the same. So here’s how to get the most out of it according to Charlotte Graham-Cumming, MD at marketing agency Ice Blue Sky.
In 2011 long-time graphic designer David Hyams founded Talking Print - a company that provides audio and video implanted print services. Image Reports interviewed him a couple of years later, excited about the dynamism his services could bring to print and how they could stimulate new opportunities. Over the years Talking Print has grown significantly, with David now employing another two staff and turning over £900,000. But he’s still to crack large-format print. Why?
By Lesley Simpson


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Bowling Green online boutique talks Cyber Monday
BOWLING GREEN, Ky. (WBKO) - One local online boutique took advantage of Cyber Monday.
Katie Hallum, owner of the online Hen House Boutique in Bowling Green says now more than ever it’s important to support your local businesses.
She says since her store is solely online when you decide to do your holiday shopping you won’t have to leave the comfort of your own home.
”We’re located here in Bowling Green, but we are exclusively online with the exception of doing a few pop-ups. But the cool thing about being here in Bowling Green is we offer free local delivery to anybody around here in the area. The thing about Cyber Monday is a lot of people think about Amazon and Walmart and you know, those big box brands but the small places, small boutiques, small stores, even around your local area, they still have online sales as well,” Hallum said.
Head to our Shop Local page to check out other small businesses you can support.
Copyright 2020 WBKO. All rights reserved.


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iPadOS 14.5 is a milestone upgrade for iPadOS 14 which means it will bring a mix of new features and under-the-hood improvements to Apple’s iPad lineup.
iPad users who don’t want to wait for the official iPadOS 14.5 release don’t have to. iPad users can download an early version of the software via Apple’s beta program.
With iPadOS 14.5 confirmed, we want to take you through everything there is to know about the next big upgrade to iPadOS 14 and iPad.
- iPadOS 14.5 Beta
- iPadOS 14.5 Release Date
- iPadOS 14.5 Release Time
- iPadOS 14.5 Features
- iPadOS 14.5 Jailbreak
In our guide to iPadOS 14.5 we’ll take you through the update’s known changes, what you can expect from the iPadOS 14.5 release date and release time, key information about the iPadOS 14.5 beta, and more.
iPadOS 14.5 Beta
If you don’t want to wait for the official iPadOS 14.5 release you don’t have to.
Apple’s pushed the iPadOS 14.5 beta to developers and those enrolled in the Beta Software Program. The Beta Software Program is free to anyone with a working Apple ID.
Before you download the iPadOS 14.5 beta on your tablet remember that pre-release software is always plagued with bugs and performance issues.
These issues could impact the performance of your core apps, your device’s battery life, and its overall speed which makes the software less than ideal for a daily driver.
You should be able to fix some of these problems on your own, but some bugs and performance problems will probably require a fix from Apple in a future beta or in the official release.
If you can’t stand the beta’s performance you can downgrade back to older software though Apple is only signing on iPadOS 14.4.2. The downgrade path to older iPadOS updates is closed.
Apple is currently on iPadOS 14.5 beta RC (Release Candidate).
iPadOS 14.5 Release Date
Apple hasn’t confirmed an official iPadOS 14.5 release date for iPad, but it’s close.
In its AirTag press release, Apple says iPadOS 14.5 will be available starting next week. That means it will arrive on April 26th, April 27th, April 28th, or April 29th.
iPadOS 14.5 Release Time
We don’t have an official iPadOS 14.5 release date, but we know exactly when Apple will roll the software out on release day.
The official version of iPadOS 14.5 will probably arrive in and around 10AM Pacific. It sometimes takes a few minutes for software updates to show up so don’t be surprised if your update appears after the clock strikes 10AM.
Apple will also release iPadOS 14.5 beta updates in and around 10AM Pacific. The company typically releases new beta updates every 1-2 weeks.
Here’s what you can expect from the iPadOS 14.5 release time in other U.S. timezones:
- Eastern – 1 PM
- Central – 12 PM
- Mountain – 11AM
Keep these times in mind if you plan to install the official version of iPadOS 14.5 right away.
iPadOS 14.5 Update: What’s New
Apple’s x.x updates almost always bring a mix of features, security patches, and under-the-hood improvements and that’s what you can expect from iPadOS 14.5.
We know that iPadOS 14.5 includes Apple’s App Tracking Transparency feature. Developers digging through the iPadOS 14.5 beta have found a number of other changes as well. iPadOS 14.5 looks like it will be the biggest upgrade to iPadOS since iPadOS 14’s release last year.
Here are the notable changes on board iPadOS 14.5:
- 200+ new Emoji.
- AirPlay 2 support for Fitness+.
- Support for joint Apple Card accounts.
- Support for PS5 DualSense and Xbox Series X Controllers.
- Emoji search.
- Landscape boot screen.
- Waze-like improvements to Apple Maps. You can report hazards, speed traps, and accidents.
- Real-time crowd data for Points of Interest in Apple Maps.
- The ability to “Follow” new content in the Podcasts app instead of “Subscribe.”
- The built-in microphone now mutes when the Smart Folio is closed.
- Multiple improvements to Shortcuts.
- The ability to share lyrics from Apple Music.
- AirPlay support for Fitness+.
- Apple Pencil Scribble support for French, German, Italian, Portuguese, and Spanish.
Apple has confirmed another notable change to TechCrunch. With the release of iOS 14.5 and iPadOS 14.5, Siri will no longer default to a female voice. The company has also added two new voices for English speakers.
iOS 14.5 and iPadOS 14.5 beta testers have also discovered that Picture-in-Picture also works on YouTube’s website. It works in Safari and third-party browsers like Google Chrome. YouTube killed the feature last year so it’s unclear if this is a permanent change.
In the latest iOS 14.5 beta, Picture in Picture mode is working again on YouTube’s website, in not just Safari, but in every browser I have on my iPhone. ¯_(ツ)_/¯ pic.twitter.com/pP8cRsO3xU
— Tim Hardwick (@waxeditorial) February 10, 2021
9to5Mac has unearthed a hidden change to iOS 14/iPadOS 14’s internal code. The references imply Apple is working to deliver standalone iOS security updates to iPhone and iPad users.
In addition, Motherboard says iPadOS 14.5 will make zero-click attacks on iPads far more difficult. The change has been confirmed by Apple which means it’ll be included in the final version of the software.
Apple could add, or subtract, from the iPadOS 14.5 change log as the beta progresses so keep an eye out for changes as the software makes progress behind the scenes.
iPadOS 14.5 Jailbreak
We don’t expect developers to release a tool that’s compatible with the iPadOS 14.5 beta. And given that Apple patched up the exploits used by jailbreak developers, we may not see a jailbreak for the official version of iPadOS 14.5 right away.
Install iPadOS 14.4.2 for Better Security
If security is important to you, and it should be, think about installing iPadOS 14.4.2 right now.
iPadOS 14.4.2 has an important security patch on board and you can read more about the change over on Apple's website.
If you missed iPadOS 14.4.1, you'll get its security patch on board your update. You can read more about the patch on Apple's security site.
If you skipped iPadOS 14.4.1 and iPadOS 14.4, you get iPadOS 14.4's patches with your upgrade. You can learn more about iPadOS 14.4's security patches right here.
If you skipped iPadOS 14.4.1, iPadOS 14.4, and iPadOS 14.3, you'll get iPadOS 14.3's patches with your upgrade. iPadOS 14.3 also included a new privacy information section on App Store pages that includes a developer-reported summary of the app’s privacy practices.
If you skipped iPadOS 14.4.1, iPadOS 14.4, iPadOS 14.3, and iPadOS 14.2, you'll get iPadOS 14.2's 24 security patches with your upgrade. You can learn more about those patches on Apple's security website.
If you're still running iPadOS 13, iPadOS 14.4.2 will also include iPadOS 14.0's security updates.
iPadOS 14.0 brought 11 new security patches to iPad models. If you're interested in the exact nature of these improvements, you can read about them over on Apple's website.
If you skipped iPadOS 13.7 or any older versions of iPadOS 13, you'll get the security patches from those updates with your upgrade. They're baked in.
In addition to those patches, iPadOS 14 comes with some security and privacy upgrades including improvements to Home/HomeKit and Safari.
For instance in Safari, you can now tap the Privacy Report button to better understand how websites handle your privacy.
With iPadOS 14 on board you can now get information on the App Store that will help you understand the privacy practices of apps before you download them.
There is also a new recording indicator that will appear at the top of your screen whenever an app is using your microphone or camera. You can see if an app has used them recently in Control Center.
Researchers also discovered that Apple brought a new "BlastDoor" sandbox security system to iOS 14 and iPadOS 14. The system is meant to prevent attacks from occurring via the Messages app.
You can read more about "BlastDoor" right here.
This article may contain affiliate links. Click here for more details.


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Lincoln Castle is to be adorned with sea of beautiful poppies from the end of this month with the iconic sculpture set to increase visitor numbers by 5,000 a day.
Staff at Lincoln’s Visitor Information Centre (VIC) are counting down the days to the arrival of a star attraction, which opens to the public on Saturday, May 28, through to Sunday, September 4.
The sculpture Poppies: Wave is already on its way to the castle and VIC Manager Michele Sims and her colleagues are getting in the mood to welcome scores of new visitors to the city by sporting brightly coloured poppy scarves.
There are also a variety of commemorative souvenirs available in the shop on Castle Hill.
Michele and her team are also looking forward to raffling a piece of needlework to raise money for the International Bomber Command Centre, which is needing funds for the centre to be built on Canwick Hill.
And Lincoln BIG, which manages the VIC, is also preparing to put floral displays outside the information centre.
Poppies: Wave is one of two sculptures (Wave and Weeping Willow) which formed the installation “Blood Swept Lands and Seas of Red.” The poppies and original concept were by artist Paul Cummins and the work was designed by Tom Piper.
The complete sculpture, featuring 888,246 poppies was originally on show at HM Tower of London in 2014.
The theme of this artwork is remembrance. Each location which hosts the sculpture has its links to history, The Great War and people taking time to remember the losses in their community – whether in the past or more recently.
This year marks the 100th anniversary of the Battle of the Somme, where seven Lincolnshire battalions fought.
VIC Manager Michele Sims said: “We are thrilled that Poppies: Wave is coming to Lincoln. We are expecting it to attract thousands of extra visitors and we are waiting with a warm welcome.
“The VIC will be selling poppy-themed goods, including the very popular poppy fashion scarves. We are producing our own bespoke range of souvenirs, which will also include a pack of commemorative field poppy seeds and postcard set, utilising artwork commissioned by Visit Lincoln. The design has been inspired by the 1916 Tank, which was designed and made in Lincoln.
“10% of the money raised through sales of these, and other gifts such as fridge magnets, will be donated to the International Bomber Command Centre fundraising appeal.
“In addition, there is a chance for someone to win a fabulous, beautiful handmade quilt made by local craft business Bee-spoke Quilts. The lucky winner will also be given a private tour of the International Bomber Command Centre site. Additional prizes will be for drawn for the chance to join the private tour.”
Tickets cost £2 each, and the raffle will be drawn on Monday, September 5.
The VIC has also announced that it is extending its opening hours from May 28 right through until September 4.
On Sundays and on Bank Holiday it will be open from 10am to 5pm (current Sunday Bank Holiday hours are 10.30am to 4pm).
“During July and August our opening hours will be increased by one hour, from 10am to 6pm on Mondays to Saturdays,” added Michele.
Lincoln Castle is looking for volunteers to join its existing team in the run up to the anticipated surge in visitors.
The castle is holding open days for prospective volunteers on Saturday 7 and Sunday 8 May, from 11am to 3pm. Alternatively, contact Paul Mason by emailing [email protected] or 01522 550955 for more information and an application form.


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Microsoft's Ballmer warns that growth in work force will be 'much slower'
Microsoft Chief Executive Steve Ballmer said Wednesday that the company would have "much, much slower growth" in the size of its work force this fiscal year and probably the year after.
The comments -- made during Microsoft's annual shareholders meeting -- follow an October statement by the company that its hiring plans were under review due to economic conditions.
During its earnings call last month, the company also said it would cut as much as $500 million from its budget, in part by reducing growth in the ranks of its employees.
"We are looking at every aspect of our business for opportunities to reduce costs, to utilize resources more efficiently, and specifically that points to much, much slower growth particularly in headcount for the remainder of this financial year and I suspect into next financial year," Ballmer said during Wednesday's meeting.
A Microsoft spokeswoman later said the company would not disclose its hiring forecasts.
"The company is still reviewing what, if any, adjustments need to be made," she said.
Still, Ballmer's comment indicates that Microsoft will put a halt to the rapid hiring that has provided a cushion to the Puget Sound region even as doubts have grown over the state of the economy. Microsoft employs almost 40,000 here.
Last year, it increased the size of its work force worldwide by 18 percent, the biggest jump since 1999.
Nevertheless, Ballmer reiterated at the meeting that he believed Microsoft was better positioned to weather the economic slowdown than other technology companies, many of which have resorted to mass layoffs.
He cited, for instance, the 9 percent growth in revenue the company reported last quarter, which he described as "solid numbers," given the economic environment.
"Our strong financial position allows us to reinforce our competitive advantage by continuing to invest in (research and development) to continue to make carefully targeted acquisitions and to continue to take a long-term view of the investments required for future growth," he said.
But Ballmer also said that the company was no longer interested in purchasing Yahoo. In February, Microsoft offered to buy the Internet giant for $44.6 billion.
"We are done with all acquisition discussions with Yahoo," Ballmer said. "I've said that a bunch of times. Somehow some people have gotten confused nonetheless," he said in response to a question from a shareholder.
One person in the hall at Bellevue's Meydenbauer Center then applauded.
Ballmer continued: "We did our best. We thought we had something that made sense. It didn't make sense to them. We've moved on."
At the same time, Ballmer said, Microsoft would still be open to a "search collaboration" with Yahoo.
This summer, after Yahoo spurned Microsoft's offer, Microsoft proposed a search partnership with Yahoo under which it would have invested $8 billion in Yahoo and also bought its search assets for $1 billion.
Yahoo rejected that offer in favor of an ad pact with Google, which fell apart two weeks ago. Earlier this week, Yahoo CEO Jerry Yang announced he would step down.
Ballmer's comments, the first since that development, sent Yahoo's shares tumbling more than 20 percent on the Nasdaq Stock Market. There had been speculation that Microsoft might be more interested in acquiring Yahoo without Yang at the helm.
Microsoft's own stock is at a 10-year low, and some frustration was evident among shareholders.
She then switched into shareholder mode.
"I love Microsoft. I believe in the company," she said. "It is my only individual stock still left in my portfolio. I'm still hanging on to Microsoft and the dream."
"I remember I sat in this very same room several years ago and I believe it was Mr. Steve Ballmer who said the best is yet to come. So, Mr. Ballmer, what year do you predict the best is yet to come?"
Those in the audience applauded.
Ballmer responded: "For Microsoft, every year is better than the last one. If we can get this economic thing headed the other direction. I'm not going to pretend that we have much control over that."


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HP revives an 11-inch favorite with the Pavilion TouchSmart 11z, but there are better performance-for-money deals to be had.
This Core i3 system is a little low on RAM, but it's still an impressive deal on a compact, lightweight laptop.
Dell's got a new low-spec, but highly affordable little 11-inch laptop in its store today -- the Inspiron 11z -- and Dell says it's the thinnest, lightest Inspiron ever
For $399, the Dell Inspiron 11z is instantly one of the cheaper thin-and-lights out there.
We're giving away the movies this time! Okay, not really, but close, with this Sony Vaio VGN-FZ11Z, the cinematic Blu-ray laptop with X-Black styling
Attention cheapskates: Sony's flogging a range of laptops starting at around £550 -- and they're actually pretty good
HP Pavilion TouchSmart 11z has sharp looks, long battery life, and a touch screen for under $500.


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Chrysler Dealerships are closing as a part of a plan to save the company. As a part of the plan Chrysler says it will close 789 dealerships. Here is the complete list of closings as Chrysler dealerships will be cut by 25% says the automaker. Chrysler as many other automakers where hit hard by the economy. GM is set to release a list of closings in the next few days.
For the complete list of Chrysler Dealership closings (in PDF format), click HERE.


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Toll Collect commissions Computop with payment processing for German truck tolls
The international payment service provider Computop will take over the payment processing of Toll Collect customers' truck tolls in future. The company, headquartered in Bamberg, Germany, has won the Europe-wide tender for "Technical Services in Electronic Payment" of the operating company Toll Collect GmbH.
Toll Collect has transferred more than 85 billion euros to the German Treasury since the start of the truck toll in 2005. Around 85 per cent of revenue is currently collected via card payments. This area of business will be fully migrated to Computop by 2024. Customers can log on via the automatic method using the On-Board Unit, the customer portal www.toll-collect.de or the Toll Collect app. The payment process is exclusively digital.
26 fleet cards make up the bulk
Computop has already been involved in the payment processing of the truck toll since 2016 and is linking a further 16 European fleet cards to the 10 existing ones for the implementation of the new contract. This portfolio covers around 95 per cent of the total fleet card market. Payment will also be possible using most credit cards. Toll Collect anticipates a total volume of around 240 million transactions per year.
The new contract with Computop will initially run for four years and includes an option to extend. In addition, Computop is Toll Collect's prospective partner for the future integration of further e-commerce payment methods.
Ingo Knütter, Payment Project Manager at Toll Collect: "By commissioning Computop to process payments, we are creating modern processes for our customers – around 225,000 transport and logistics companies from more than 40 countries, with around 1.2 million trucks. Based on the good experience we have had working with Computop for over five years, we look forward to developing frictionless payments together."
Stephan Kück, CEO of Computop, adds: "Through the intensified cooperation with Toll Collect, we will significantly expand our offering in the area of tolls, fleet cards and mobility. The transaction volume represents an encouraging growth for our payment platform Computop Paygate. With the announced extension of the truck toll to vehicles weighing 3.5 tonnes or more, we expect the volume to increase further."
The following fleet cards are planned to be integrated into the Computop Paygate payment platform by the end of 2024:
- American Express Eurowag Ressa
- Aral / BP FDE RMC ServiceCard
- AS24 / Total Energies Global Star Statoil
- DKV Hoyer Card Europe SVG
- E100 LogPay TND
- ENI / Agip Mercedes Service Card Trasposervizi
- Esso Multiservice UTA
- Euroshell OMV Vialtis
- Eurotoll SAS Plose
About Computop – The Payment People
Computop Paygate enables seamlessly integrated payment processes in e-commerce, at the POS and on mobile devices. Across all countries of the world, merchants and service providers can freely choose from 350 local and international payment methods. Technologies such as biometric authentication and self-learning algorithms improve security and convenience for merchants and end users alike.
A global player with headquarters in Germany and locations in China, England and the USA, Computop has been serving numerous international companies from the services, retail, mobility, gaming and travel sectors for over 25 years. These include globally active brands such as C&A, Fossil, the entire Otto Group, Sixt, Swarovski and Wargaming. In addition, Computop makes its payment system available to banks and financial service providers as a white label solution. In total, the certified climate-neutral company processes transactions worth 36 billion US dollars in 127 currencies every year. With its customised and secure solutions, Computop is playing a decisive role in shaping the future of international payment transactions.
About Toll Collect
Toll Collect is an efficient technology service provider for toll collection and enforcement. Since 1 January 2005, it has been operating one of the largest toll systems in the world. Toll Collect has been a federal enterprise since 2018, with the Federal Republic of Germany as its sole shareholder. Its main task is to collect the truck toll in Germany according to the legal requirements and to transfer it to the German Treasury.
In addition, the company is developing into a service platform of the federal government for infrastructure and digital services. It provides technical and advisory services in connection with the enforcement services of the Federal Logistics and Mobility Office, the European Electronic Toll Service (EETS) as well as data evaluations for statistical purposes and traffic management. Toll Collect also supports the expansion of mobile communications in Germany through its subsidiary Mobilfunkinfrastrukturgesellschaft [Mobile Communications Infrastructure Company].
Henning Brandt, Head of Communication
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Antje Schätzel, Press Spokesperson
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Maja Pawinska Sims 09 Mar 2018 // 11:39AM GMT
LONDON — US integrated travel and hospitality marketing firm MMGY Global has made its first acquisition in Europe, buying travel and tourism PR agency Hills Balfour for an undisclosed sum.
Hills Balfour, which has 90 people in its London office and 10 in Dubai, was founded 20 years ago by CEO Amanda Hills. Its clients include tourist boards, airlines, tour operators, hotels and travel tech providers, with divisions encompassing PR, sales, trade and consumer marketing including digital, social media, events, luxury and business events.
The brand will be retained and its London and Dubai offices will add the new MMGY London and MMGY Dubai brands. The two firms will begin integrating operations this year.
Hills becomes president of both brands in London and Dubai and will continue to oversee London and Dubai’s operations and work with the senior management team to grow the two brands’ European footprint.
Hills Balfour London MD Jonathan Sloan and Dubai MD Anthony Dalton remain in position and there will be no redundancies.
Hills Balfour is the fourth deal by MMGY Global since private equity firm Peninsula Capital Partners and Fine Equity Partners made a significant equity investment into MMGY Global in February 2016.
Over the past two years MMGY Global has acquired DK Shifflet & Associates, Nancy J. Friedman Public Relations, Myriad Marketing and Spring O’Brien. Hills Balfour is MMGY Global’s first major step into Europe and its first acquisition outside of the US. The deal brings the company’s total number of employees to more than 400 and overseas offices to four: Madrid, Taipei, London and Dubai.
Clayton Reid, CEO of MMGY Global, said: “We feel a great synergy with Hills Balfour, and this integration is our next step in building a world-class global travel and hospitality marketing company. Hills Balfour is the right step into Europe for us, and we see our foothold in the UK market as an excellent base to expand across the key European and Middle East tourism markets. Their reputation in-market, along with an exceptional senior management team and a loyal and long-standing client base, made our merger of operations an easy one.”
Amanda Hills told the Holmes Report: that the two firms were a natural fit: “We’d been very active in the Travel Consul network with MMGY so as associates we’ve been working on it culturally for the past five years. Six months ago we started thinking about whether there was a more permanent, bigger and better opportunity to offer global solutions to clients who had been asking for them. There are no client conflicts as we are very Europe and MMGY are very US, so it’s been really neat.”


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Although developed countries are better prepared to tackle statewide cybersecurity challenges and have better IT education, that has little impact on cyber threats on an individual level. Their residents are more attractive targets for cybercriminals because of higher income and more time spent online. Such findings were revealed in a new global Cyber Risk Index, which covered 50 countries, comprising 70% of the world population.
“Cybercriminals don’t look for victims, they look for opportunities — much like pickpockets in crowded places. The more time you spend on the web, the more services you use there, the more money you spend online, the higher the possibility you’ll run into a cybercriminal,” says Daniel Markuson, a digital privacy expert at NordVPN.
According to Markuson, cybercriminals rarely target individual people. More often, they spin a vast web of traps and hope to catch oblivious victims. That’s why they often focus on citizens of developed countries as the gain can be higher.
According to the Cyber Risk Index, if you live in one of these countries – you are a more attractive target for cybercriminals:
- United Arab Emirates
- The United States
- New Zealand
- The United Kingdom
Northern Europe is the most dangerous region when it comes to individual cyber risks, while North America is a close second. In both regions, more than 9 out of 10 people use the internet, 8 out of 10 shop online, and 7 out of 10 use Facebook. This leads to increased exposure to cyber threats.
It is predicted that the internet will gain more than a billion new users in the next five years. This growth will mostly come from low-risk countries, like India, China, Indonesia, Thailand, Ukraine, South Africa, Mexico, Philippines, and others, where internet penetration is still low. According to Markuson, this means that cybercriminals will have the luxury to choose from a much larger pool of easy targets.


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Apple's rivals aren't rushing to emulate the company's decision to open suppliers to the Fair Labor Association. Microsoft, Dell, Hewlett-Packard and Samsung rely on their own supplier audits. Apple's membership probably won't eliminate all infractions from its supply chain, but joining has set a new mark by which its competitors are judged.
The FLA has found "tons of issues" at Apple facilities and also seen "dramatic" improvements, Chief Executive Officer Auret van Heerden said last month.
An employee works the assembly line at the Foxconn plant in Shenzhen.
Read more energy & sustainability news.


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Will Obama's 'Big Bird' Ad Ever Actually Run on TV?
Oct. 9 (Bloomberg) -- Julianna Goldman reports on the campaign attack ads targeting Romney's aim at Sesame Street. She speaks on Bloomberg Television's "Street Smart." (Source: Bloomberg)
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09:44 - Businesses of all stripes are doing their best to integrate big data, artificial intelligence and machine learning into their workflows. Optix Solutions is trying to take the stress out of the transition. Globalive Chairman Anthony Lacavera asks Spencer Fung, founder and CEO of Optix Solutions, about the objective behind the company. (Source: Bloomberg)


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Glance around a busy high street and you’ll see people walking along glued to their phones’ screens, oblivious to the people around them and imminent accidents.
Designers Chase Kimball, Ingmar Larsen and Whitney Keller have come up with a tongue-in-cheek solution. Urban Periscope is a smartphone case with an integrated periscope that gives a 90-degree view of the road ahead so you can type, text or browse without having to lift your head or worry about bumping into someone.
“The Urban Periscope is a completely analog phone case that uses the principles of the periscope to redirect your vision so you can look at your phone and interact with the world around you at the exact same time,” reads the group’s website.
Check out the video below to find out more.
Ingmar Larsen, one of the designers of the case, was also behind the NoPhone Zero, a device that sardonically addresses the issue of smartphone addiction.
The NoPhone (below) looks like a phone, but is actually a technology-free plastic rectangle, the idea being that you can grip it for comfort instead of a mobile device
According to Larson it “acts as a surrogate to any smart mobile device, enabling you to always have a rectangle of smooth, cold plastic to clutch without forgoing any potential engagement with your direct environment”.
The product earned £13,018 ($18,316) on Kickstarter and over 3,200 ‘phones’ have been shipped.
Urban Periscope also fits into the ‘joke’ product category, and its website has ‘quotes’ from people such as US Vice President Joe Biden, who writes: “I would’ve never seen that oncoming bus if I hadn’t been using my Urban Periscope.”
But it does raise valid issues about the number of people who wander around staring at their phones instead of enjoying the real world – just like this photograph of film fans waiting at a premiere.
Designed for the iPhone 6, we don’t know yet if Urban Periscope will be coming to market, the team told us it depends how much interest there is. Register your interest at Urban Periscope.
Photo and video credit: Chase Kimball, Ingmar Larsen, Whitney Keller
What do you think of Urban Periscope and the NoPhone – are they a humorous take on our smartphone addiction? Let us know in the Comments section below.


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ABB has sold its metering business to Ruhrgas Industries of Essen, Germany, for $244 million on a cash and debt free basis.
‘Water and electricity metering is no longer a core business for ABB, and its divestment is part of our strategy to focus on power and automation technology products for our utilities and industry customers,’ said JÃ¼rgen Dormann, ABB’s chairman and CEO.
ABB said the proceeds from the sale would be used to further reduce its net debt.
ABB’s global water and electricity meter business is headquartered in Luton, UK, and employs about 3,800 people in more than 30 countries.
The business, part of the Automation Technology Products division, reported revenues of about $450 million in 2001.
The divestment is subject to customary regulatory approvals.


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EXTREME sports protection gear brand Ruroc is looking to raise £200,000 in debt finance through Crowd2Fund to support its expansion plans.
This will be the third time that Ruroc has used the peer-to-peer lending platform to obtain funding. It raised £150,000 of debt finance in 2014, followed by a £400,000 equity fundraising in 2015.
The firm said it has returned to Crowd2Fund again because of its ability to understand high-growth businesses, and to offer financial products relevant to Ruroc’s direct-to-consumer model.
“We have developed massively and our growth rate has accelerated far quicker than we forecast from when we first used the platform,” said managing director Dan Rees. “This has enabled us to successfully repay one of our Crowd2Fund loans 12 months ahead of the original planned repayment schedule.”
Ruroc, which designs and manufactures protection helmets used in skiing, snowboarding and motor sports, will use the new funding to grow its product range and expand into Asia.
This current campaign already has over 150 investors and offers investor incentives including discounts and limited-edition helmets.
Ruroc has more than doubled its revenue between 2016 and 2018 from £1.5m to £3.5m.
Read more: Crowd2Fund’s secondary market activity soars
Read more: Crowd2Fund launches “venture debt” product


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Impact Proximity gets one to one
One to one marketing is nice in theory, but does it work and could it take off in the Middle East? A new agency, Impact Proximity, argues that it will
A new advertising & marketing agency has been brought into the world, following Impact Traffic’s recent transformation into Impact Proximity. Proximity will market itself as an agency focused on what is known as one to one marketing, or customer relationship management (CRM) — essentially, the art of knowing your customers better.
Douglas Palau, managing director at Impact Proximity, says the appearance of the new agency is a result of the growing sophistication of customers. “The consumer, particularly in the Middle East, is changing very quickly,” says Palau. “More than ever, you have to understand consumers on an individual basis.”
Impact Proximity will continue what Impact Traffic started, offering Web site design and online campaigns. What will be new about Proximity is a direct presence in Jeddah and the recruitment of a CRM (customer relationship management) specialist being hired out of Europe. The Jeddah team will specialise in offline database building activities, such as street promotions and in-store campaigns, whilst Dubai will remain focused on online.
Underpinning Proximity’s work will be the notion that companies must get closer to increasingly discerning consumers in order to continue to keep them happy. Proximity’s goal will be to come up with innovative programmes that encourage consumers to voluntarily disclose personal information about themselves. This data can then be used to develop products and marketing programmes that are more appealing to individuals.
However, whilst one to one marketing might be a nice idea in theory, it has aroused antagonism in the West because it is seen as intrusive and has contributed to the problem of e-mail ‘spam.’ Simon Bond, business development director at Impact Proximity, says that previous experience reinforces the necessity for agencies like his to come up with programmes that are relevant to consumers.
“Permission marketing puts pressure on the agency to add value,” he says. Consumers, he argues, will not be resistant to offers and programmes that appeal to them personally.
To support his argument, Bond cites campaigns that have proven successful. A programme that Impact Traffic managed for Adidas enabled the sportswear maker to generate information on around 60,000 young people’s sporting preferences. Now, if a new piece of David Beckham merchandise comes out, the people that like football get to know about it.
Another campaign saw Emirates join forces with Porsche to offer a holiday of a lifetime as a competition prize. According to Bond, 24,000 responses were received from high value individuals who were willing to hand over personal information. Emirates now has those names on file for use in future campaigns.
Because Impact Proximity and Impact Traffic before it make such large use of the Web, fighting the region’s scepticism about online marketing has been a large part of the agency’s job. Bond admits that the going was difficult at times last year, with clients reluctant to dip a toe in the waters of the Web.
Now, he is hopeful that the corner may have been turned. “Money is now being allocated to online, sometimes up to 10-12% of budgets,” says Bond.


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If you’re a Bruce Springsteen fan, Aug. 30 might be your lucky day. That’s when tickets go on sale for The Boss’ solo residency on Broadway, at the 975-seat Walter Kerr Theatre. But you can’t just get online and buy them. You’ve got to pre-register days in advance, then enter a lottery to maybe receive a special code to enter an online “room” where you can maybe get a ticket — if you’re fast enough.
So why is the process so difficult? In a word: scalpers.
“These are big businesses,” said David Marcus, executive vice president and head of music at Ticketmaster North America. “We are not talking about the fan who buys four and sells two. We’re talking about high-volume traders.”
Marcus said that for scalpers today, concert tickets are a high-margin, liquid investment, and that the traditional online ticketing system is easily exploited. Specifically, Marcus said, first-come, first-served ticket sales gave rise to the scourge of ticket bots.
For a popular concert, Marcus said online robots can snap up anywhere from 30 percent to 50 percent of the available tickets within moments of the sale opening. That leads to concerts selling out in 10 minutes, and massively inflated resale prices. But according to economist Mark Perry of the American Enterprise Institute, the bots are just a symptom. The real problem is that concert tickets are underpriced.
|A new and faster way of buying concert tickets
|Justin Timberlake concert sold out? Blame ticket bots
“The artists are sensitive to trying to appeal to their fans and act as if they are making their tickets affordable,” Perry said. “So they are not seen as the price gougers.”
Perry said cheap tickets give fans the illusion of attainability. But they also give scalpers plenty of room to hike prices on the secondary market before pricing themselves out.
The irony isn’t lost on Ticketmaster’s David Marcus.
“A decision to price below market frequently doesn’t land on the fan, because the scalper gets in the middle,” Marcus said.
Christian Hassold has been writing about scalpers for more than a decade on his blog, Ticket Economist. “If you had asked me five years ago, I would have said that Ticketmaster is totally accountable for the significant amount of arbitrage,” Hassold said. “I would have said they know who’s buying, they know the names and the addresses and the credit cards, and they’re not using the data that’s sitting right in front of them.”
But Ticketmaster is using that data now, in a new process called Verified Fan. Marcus said that by running pattern recognition algorithms on its vast data, Ticketmaster can anticipate whether pre-registered buyers will go to the show, or are just looking to resell their ticket. Those identified as scalpers get locked out of the ticket buying process.
Marcus said Ticketmaster has been testing Verified Fan for 10 months, and has cut scalping more than 75 percent in trials. Scalpers tend to figure out a way around every new barrier — but for now, the company seems to be winning the latest skirmish in the ticket wars.
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On the 2ND of April 2020, Nike sharply closed its largest distribution center in Frayser, Tennesse after an employee tested positive for Coronavirus. The 2.8 million-square-foot facility is where most of the brand’s sneakers are shipped out of and is now implemented with a scrupulous disinfection process.
In an official statement to MLK50, Nike remarked the following: “The health and safety of our team is always our first priority. We have temporarily closed one of our Memphis, TN, distribution facilities. During this period, we will be conducting a comprehensive disinfection process. We are targeting to reopen at 6 a.m. Sunday, April 5.”
According to the report, employees were informed that one of them had tested positive for the virus, leaving such case with a decision to shut down facilities after a Meeting of that same day. Workers were informed that they would continue to be paid during the temporary closure and were handed a hotline number to seek for further assistance.
The North American Logistic Campus in Frayser is Nike’s largest in the world and one of the most crucial locations of the brand’s online commerce operations. It remains to be seen how this temporary closure will affect Nike’s distribution worldwide.
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Bellevue-based Nintex last week announced at its annual customer and partner conference, InspireX, that it would be extending and enhancing partnerships with six industry-leading cloud platform and digital transformation companies: Microsoft, Salesforce, DocuSign, Dropbox, Adobe, and Box.
The extended and enhanced partnerships follow the general release of Nintex Workflow Cloud, a workflow and content automation platform designed to automate various business tasks ranging from simple to more sophisticated.
“With the launch of the Nintex Workflow Cloud, customers and systems integrators can easily and intelligently connect the applications they use today to automate their business processes,” said Nintex CEO John Burton in a press release. “Nintex is pleased to recognize our expanded partnerships with Adobe, Box, DocuSign, Dropbox, Microsoft, and Salesforce — all technology innovators driving digital transformation.”
The company’s partners also are enthusiastic about the expanded partnerships. “For 10 years, Nintex has enabled customers to automate business processes with SharePoint and OneDrive,” said Microsoft corporate vice president Jeff Teper in a statement. “Today, enterprises drive their digital transformation not only with Office 365 but also with Microsoft Azure and Dynamics CRM. Nintex Workflow Cloud elevates our partnership so customers can transform business processes with the largest and most secure suite of cloud productivity services.”
Through these expanded partnerships and the support of its customers, Nintex looks forward to continuing to innovate workflow automation software and boost productivity in the workplace.
“Our partners and customers are bringing the power of Nintex Workflow Cloud to life,” said Nintex vice president of product Ryan Duguid, “and we’re committed to continuously innovating to deliver on the Nintex promise of making people more productive by freeing up time for them to work on things that matter most.”


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Apple today released the first public beta of iOS 11.2.5 to its public beta testing group, one day after seeding the first beta to developers and also one day after releasing iOS 11.2.1, an update that addressed a HomeKit vulnerability.
Beta testers who are members of Apple’s beta testing program will receive the iOS 11.2.5 beta update over-the-air after installing the proper certificate on an iOS device.
Those who want to join the beta testing program can sign up on Apple’s beta testing website, which gives users access to iOS, macOS, and tvOS betas. iOS betas are not always stable and should not be installed on a primary device.
No new [...]
Alongside the iOS 11.2.5 beta that was seeded to developers this afternoon, Apple released new firmware for the HomePod.
The new firmware is not available through the Developer portal like a standard beta software update, but it will be downloadable by testers who have a HomePod. The update is also listed on third-party software sites, making it available for download by the public.
HomePod devices are currently in the hands of Apple employees who are testing the smart speaker to iron out bugs before it becomes available for purchase in early 2018.
Apple previously released publicly available HomePod firmware in July, unwittingly leaking many secrets [...]
Apple today released a new update for tvOS 11, the operating system designed to run on the fourth and fifth-generation Apple TVs. tvOS 11.2.1 comes a little over one week after the release of the tvOS 11.2 update.
tvOS 11.2.1 can be downloaded over the air through the Settings app on the Apple TV by going to System –> Software Update. Apple TV owners who have automatic software updates turned on will be upgraded to the tvOS 11.2.1 automatically.
As a minor 11.x.x update tvOS 11.2.1 focuses on performance improvements and bug fixes to address issues that were discovered following the release of tvOS 11.2. The update, released alongside iOS 11.2.1, likely [...]
Apple today released new firmware updates for its Wi-Fi base stations, including the AirPort Express, AirPort Extreme, and AirPort Time Capsule. The 7.7.9 update is available for 802.11ac base stations, while the 7.6.9 update is available for 802.11n base stations.
Release notes for the update were not provided by Apple, but it is likely that this firmware update fixes the KRACK Wi-Fi vulnerabilities that affected many modern Wi-Fi networks and devices.
The KRACK vulnerability had the potential to allow attackers to exploit weaknesses in the WPA2 protocol to decrypt network traffic to sniff out credit card numbers, usernames, passwords, photos, and other sensitive [...]


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AC Motors to unveil at least 6 models as it turns 30 this year
MANILA: AC Motors organized a four-night virtual appreciation event for the members of the media from January 12 to 15, and the leadership of the Ayala-controlled auto group took the opportunity give a foretaste of its plans for 2021.
“As a show of our confidence and commitment to the industry, our distributor brands are working on at launching at least six models (in 2021). We are also planning to open six company-owned showrooms across our five auto brands in addition to franchised appointments,” said AC Motors President Antonio “Toti” Zara III (in photo).
“Despite the setbacks suffered by the automotive industry in 2020, we continue to work towards achieving at least a 10% combined market share by 2025 for all our 5 brands,” he added. “We acknowledge that the local market still needs to recover from the devastating effects of an ongoing pandemic. But history has shown the resilience of our automotive market, time and again, through all manner of crises – and we are confident that this time will be no different.”
To adapt with the new normal, AC Motors developed innovative solutions to maintain their brands’ connection to the customers. Last year, the group introduced its digital “one-stop-shop” on the official AC Motors website.
Zara concluded, “Through all these times, whether facing challenges or opportunities, we at AC Motors have always placed our customers—the Filipino motorists—at the front and center of our plans. Our unwavering commitment to serve our customers and provide them the products best suited for their needs have kept us moving, adapting, growing, and innovating.”
AC Motors conducted the assembly to express its gratitude to the media for their contributions in the previous year. The event also served as the initial celebration of the automotive group’s 30th anniversary. AC Motors prepared a presentation which showcased its 2021-2025 objectives.
Photo from AC Motors