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Hertzke: Winnebago Rolls on Despite Slowdown
Sales of recreational vehicles may be off again this year from a record high in 2004, but crowds were big and spirits were high at the annual gathering of owners of motorized recreational vehicles made by Forest City, Iowa-based Winnebago Industries Inc. under the brand names Winnebago and Itasca.
“They just want to have a good time,” said Bruce Hertzke, Winnebago chairman and CEO.
The Des Moines Register reported that the Winnebago-Itasca Travelers (WIT) Club Grand National Rally is a marketing tool and a way of building customer loyalty, according to Hertzke. This year’s July 15-20 rally was No. 38.
Hertzke said Winnebago executives had worried that high fuel prices would hurt rally attendance. The number of motorhomes, however, was up about 20 from a year ago to 1,450, and about equal to average attendance during the past five years, Hertzke said.
That loyalty has helped Winnebago to weather a slowdown in sales being felt across the motorhome industry during the past three years.
Hertzke said Winnebago has performed well, even though the market has cooled. Analysts and other industry watchers agreed.
Winnebago is “kind of toughing it through a pretty tough industry, but they’ve done a decent job,” said Kathryn Thompson, an analyst with Avondale Partners in Nashville, Tenn.
Of six publicly traded RV companies, only two, Winnebago and Ohio-based Thor Industries, have consistently turned profits in the market slowdown, she said.
Analysts credit lean operations, smart new products, a powerful industry brand name and sound management.
“The company has no debt and a pile of cash, nearly $157 million,” said Craig Kennison, an analyst with Robert W. Baird & Co. in Milwaukee.
Among Winnebago’s bright spots: New diesel-powered, Class C motor homes, the Winnebago View and the Itasca Navion, that get 17 to 19 miles per gallon, compared with eight to nine for many comparable vehicles, Hertzke said.
Introduced two years ago, the View and Navion appeal to fuel-conscious buyers and have the cachet of being powered by a Mercedes-Benz diesel engine.
“There’s no question that the Mercedes brand and the perception of Mercedes quality helped to sell the unit,” Kennison said.
Winnebago has 93 models of motorhomes, Hertzke said, adding that 10 years ago it had 45 or 50.
Hertzke said the RV industry is healthy, even though sales are down from the banner year of 2004. Sales are still strong compared with low points such as the early 1990s, he said.
Winnebago’s fiscal 2007, which ends in August, could still end up being among Winnebago’s top four or five years for revenues, Hertzke said.
Winnebago is the market share leader in combined sales of the Class A and Class C motorhomes, according to Michigan-based Statistical Surveys Inc. Its market share is 18.8%, said Tom Walworth, Statistical Surveys president. California-based Fleetwood Enterprises is second at 15.9% and Thor is third at 14.5%, he said.
Sales average around 10,000 vehicles a year, Hertzke said.
Baird’s Kennison is forecasting a 7% increase in Winnebago sales for fiscal 2008, depending on interest rates, consumer confidence, housing market trends and Winnebago growth in diesel market share.
The company’s total work force is now about 3,350 people, most in assembly plants in Forest City and Charles City. The company also has a factory in Hampton.
The employment high point was in 2004: 4,000 full-time workers, and another 200 temporary summer employees, Hertzke said.
The cuts have been made through attrition, a Winnebago spokesperson said. The company has had only one layoff in recent years, effecting about 170 employees in August 2005.
All have now been called back to work or offered a chance to return, she said.


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CEA released the 2013 Sustainability Report, highlighting industry progress and leadership on green initiatives
Custom Integrators Transform Homes into TechHomes During Home Improvement Month
Gary Shapiro Delivers Keynote at The Next Web Conference Europe
Tablet Ownership Rates Continue to Increase, According to CEA’s Quarterly Tablet Report
The Consumer Electronics Association (CEA)® applauds the House of Representatives and Committee on the Judiciary Chairman Lamar Smith on the approval of H.R. 1249, the America Invents Act. The following statement can be attributed to Michael Petricone, CEA senior vice president, government affairs: Full Release
Today Gary Shapiro, president and CEO of the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA)®, announced the launch of the Declaration of Innovation, an online pledge for Americans to sign in support of policies that ensure innovation remains the strategic advantage of the United States of America. Full Release
The Consumer Electronics Association (CEA)® today announced that CEA president and CEO Gary Shapiro will deliver a keynote address at the 2011 SINOCES, China’s largest tradeshow for consumer technology. Organized by the Qingdao Municipal People’s Government in conjunction with the China Chamber of Commerce for Import and Export of Machinery and Electronics Products (CCCME) and sponsored by CEA, the 2011 SINOCES is scheduled July 7-10 in Qingdao, China. Full Release
The Consumer Electronics Association (CEA)® commends the Obama Administration's smart grid policyÂ recommendation that consumers get better access to their own energy information. Last month, CEA released a whitepaper, "Unlocking the Potential of the Smart Grid - A Regulatory Framework for the Consumer Domain of Smart Grid," recommending a similar policy approach to improve the way Americans understand and manage energy consumption. Full Release
The Senate Commerce Committee today passed a major spectrum bill, the Public Safety Spectrum and Wireless Innovation Act, introduced by Chairman Rockefeller and Ranking Member Hutchison. The following statement can be attributed to Michael Petricone, senior vice president of government affairs at the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA)®: Full Release
A new survey from the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA)® found consumers are concerned about the cost of their energy use, yet lack awareness of emerging energy management systems. Full Release
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CEA's Digital Answer Man Jim Barry visits media outlets annually, educating consumers on new products and trends. CEA members can add their products to the tour at no charge!

domain: news


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A report by “ADC” confirmed today, Tuesday, that Samsung Electronics maintained its leadership in the smartphone market in the Gulf Cooperation Council region during the third quarter of this year.
A report from international data company “ADC” shows that Samsung mobile phone sales accounted for 45% of the smartphone market in the Gulf Cooperation Council countries in terms of units, in the period between July and September this year, after 40% of the market during the previous quarter.
The report shows that Samsung is maintaining its leading position, with a number of mid- and low-priced models, while acquiring a stake in the Gulf market, which is beaten by Chinese company Huawei.
The report shows that “Apple” is in second place with the same 15% market share in the third quarter of this year, down from 18% in the previous quarter, due to the delay in launching the iPhone 12.
The two Chinese brands “Huawei” and “Xiaomi” are in the third and fourth positions with 13% and 12% share in the GCC market, respectively.
On the other hand, Apple was ranked first in terms of value with a 46.3% share, followed by Samsung with a 30.8% share.
The company “ADC” revealed that the smartphone market in the Gulf Cooperation Council countries fell 0.9%, on a quarterly basis, reaching 4.16 million units, and the market decreased in value terms by 11.6%, on a quarterly basis, reaching $ 1 , 16 billion. The company currently estimates that the smartphone market in the Gulf Cooperation Council countries will grow by 6.5%, in the fourth quarter, compared to the previous quarter.
The company report stated that Saudi Arabia represented 52.6% of smartphone shipments in the Gulf Cooperation Council region in the third quarter, followed by the UAE with 24.1%.
The company also stated that brands, such as Apple and Samsung, will achieve strong performance in the coming quarters with the launch of modern models, noting that “Chinese companies focused on advancing in the region will continue their marketing investments in the short to medium term.”


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Kontron partners with NT Fiber, the first ISP in Texas to install Iskratel broadband solution for multi-gigabit fibre services to businesses and homes.
Kranj, Slovenia, and San Diego, CA, 21 December 2023 – Kontron announced a partnership with NT Fiber, an Internet Service Provider delivering ultra-high-speed fibre internet, TV, and voice services to businesses in Texas. NT Fiber is the first ISP in Texas to install Kontron’s Iskratel broadband solution to offer multi-gigabit fibre services to businesses and homes.
NT Fiber is committed to customer service and delivering symmetrical upload and download. With the recent installation of Kontron’s Iskratel Lumia OLTs for Combo PON (GPON and XGS-PON) fibre access, NT Fiber can support its subscribers with quality-based, high-speed Internet service. Combined with Kontron’s Iskratel Innbox ONTs and home gateways, NT Fiber delivers high-speed content and Wi-Fi connectivity to Texan residents and businesses.
Bedri Wilderom, President of NT Fiber is pleased with the results of Kontron’s solution. “Kontron’s broadband enables NT Fiber to deliver the highest speeds and quality of service in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex, maintaining our customer commitment to deliver on our promises. We’ve had excellent customer support from Kontron and plan to expand with their broadband solution in the future.”
Kontron’s Iskratel products are scalable, flexible, and future-focused supporting fibre, Ethernet and PON platforms, and can be deployed with existing platforms.
Kontron began offering its end-to-end FTTH solution to ISPs in the United States in 2023. “Kontron is pleased to provide Iskratel OLTs and ONTs as part of its fibre-based broadband solutions that will enable NT Fiber to deliver high-speed internet service to its customers in the greater North Texas region,” said Ted Christiansen, CEO of Kontron America. “We are excited to bring to the U.S. market our PON/XGS-PON fibre solutions which have been widely deployed throughout Europe with installations serving millions of subscribers. We look forward to growing with NT Fiber as they continue to expand and deliver internet services of exceptional quality.”


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Influencers Will No Longer Be Allowed to Promote Vaping Products On Instagram
This move comes after months of innumerable reports about the potentially deadly effects of vaping.
Instagram is trying to make its platform a safer place for everyone. On Wednesday, the Facebook-owned social media channel announced that it will soon begin banning influencers from sharing any "branded content" that promotes vaping and tobacco products.
In case you're unfamiliar with the term, Instagram describes "branded content" as "a creator or publisher's content that features or is influenced by a business partner for an exchange of value". Translation: when someone is being paid by a business to share a certain piece of content (in this case, a post featuring vaping or tobacco products). These posts are hard to miss while scrolling through your feed. They'll usually say "Paid partnership with 'x company's name'" up top, underneath the user's Instagram handle.
This crackdown isn't exactly unprecedented. In fact, Instagram and Facebook both already ban the advertisement of vaping and tobacco products on their platforms. But until now, companies were still allowed to pay influencers to promote these products. "Our advertising policies have long prohibited the advertisement of these products, and we will begin enforcement on this in the coming weeks," the social media platform said in a statement. (Related: What Is Juul and Is It Any Better Than Smoking?)
Why is Instagram cracking down now?
Though Instagram didn't specify a reason for the new policies in its announcement, the platform's decision was likely influenced by the numerous reports that have labeled vaping as a nationwide health crisis. Just this week, a new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said that the number of vaping-related illnesses has risen to a nationwide total of over 2,500 cases and 54 confirmed deaths.
Doctors and health officials around the globe continue to warn people about just how dangerous these products can be. As Bruce Santiago, L.M.H.C., mental health counselor and clinical director of Niznik Behavioral Health, previously told us: "Vapes contain harmful substances such as diacetyl (a chemical linked to serious lung disease), cancer-causing chemicals, volatile organic compounds (VOCs), and heavy metals such as nickel, tin, and lead." (Even more worrisome: Some people don't even realize that their e-cig or vape contains nicotine.)
On top of that, vaping products have also been linked to increased risk of heart disease and stroke, stunted brain development, atrial fibrillation (an irregular heartbeat that can lead to heart-related complications), and addiction.
Teens, in particular, are the biggest population to be impacted by these products, with nearly half of high schoolers having reported vaping in the past year, according to the National Institutes of Health (NIH). (Related: Juul Launched a New Smart E-Cigarette—But It's Not a Solution to Teen Vaping)
Many anti-smoking advocates have blamed these skyrocketing rates of vaping among young people on the industry's advertising practices, especially on social media. Now, they're applauding Instagram for taking action and changing the rules.
"It is imperative that Facebook and Instagram not only swiftly enact these policy changes but also see that they are strictly enforced," Matthew Myers, president of the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, told Reuters. "Tobacco companies have spent decades targeting kids—social media companies must not be complicit in this strategy." (Related: How to Quit Juul, and Why It's So Damn Hard)
In addition to banning posts promoting vaping products, Instagram's new branded content policy will also implement "special restrictions" on the promotion of alcohol and diet supplements. "These policies will go into effect next year as we continue to improve our tools and detections," the platform shared in a statement. "For example, we are currently building specific tools to help creators comply with these new policies, including the ability to restrict who can see their content, based on age."
These new guidelines will complement Instagram's existing policy on the promotion of weight-loss products. In September, the platform announced that posts promoting the "use of certain weight-loss products or cosmetic procedures and those that have an incentive to buy or include a price," will only be shown to users over 18, according to CNN. Plus, any content that includes "miraculous" claims about certain diet or weight-loss products, and is linked to offers like discount codes, will no longer be allowed on the platform, per this policy.
Actress Jameela Jamil, who has consistently stood up against the promotion of these products, assisted in creating these rules along with several youth specialists and experts like Ysabel Gerrard, Ph.D., a lecturer in digital media and society at the University of Sheffield.
All of these policies have been a long time coming. It's no doubt refreshing to see Instagram do their part in protecting young, impressionable people from potentially harmful content. But in an interview with Elle UK about her work with Instagram to develop stricter policies on weight-loss product promotion, Jamil made an important point about the responsibility that lies with consumers to be wary of their own health and well-being when using social media: "Curate your space. Just like as in your personal life, you have to do that online," Jamil told the publication. "You have the power; we've become used to thinking we have to follow these people who lie to us, don't care about us or our physical or mental health, they just want our money."


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The reputable festival, Boiler Room is back this year and promises to be a wonderful experience.
The festival promises to feature international and South African headliners alongside local artists and DJs. Also, the movement has gotten more alcohol brands on board which will make it a bigger festival this year.
The event will take place on the 25th in Johannesburg and venue is still to be announced.
Early bird tickets on sale for R150 here: https://tickets.heroticket.co.za/thero/shops/60873cf


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Article content TOKYO — SoftBank Group Corp on Wednesday said it will book an estimated gain of 4.6 trillion yen ($34.08 billion) on settling prepaid forward contracts using shares in Alibaba Group Holding, reducing its stake to 14.6% from 23.7%. The estimated gain includes a 2.4 trillion yen gain from the revaluation of shares in the Chinese e-commerce giant and a derivative gain of 0.7 trillion yen, SoftBank said in a filing. The transaction “will be able to eliminate concerns about future cash outflows, and furthermore, reduce costs associated with these prepaid forward contracts,” SoftBank said. Article content “These will further strengthen our defense against the severe market environment,” SoftBank added. The Japanese conglomerate on Monday booked a record quarterly net loss due to sliding valuations at the Vision Fund investment arm, with Chief Executive Masayoshi Son pledging to further rein in investment activity and cut costs. The transaction is not expected to result in additional sales of Alibaba shares on the market as the shares were hedged at the time of the original monetisation, SoftBank said. ($1 = 134.9700 yen) (Reporting by Sam Nussey; editing by Andrew Heavens, Jason Neely and Louise Heavens)
Breadcrumb Trail Links PMN Business Hindalco Industries Ltd.’s quarterly profit jumped by almost half from a year earlier, underpinned by strong US sales and higher revenue that cushioned the impact of pricier raw materials. Author of the article: Bloomberg News Swansy Afonso Aluminum rolls at a foil mill. Photographer: Andrey Rudakov/Bloomberg Photo by Andrey Rudakov /Bloomberg Article content (Bloomberg) — Hindalco Industries Ltd.’s quarterly profit jumped by almost half from a year earlier, underpinned by strong US sales and higher revenue that cushioned the impact of pricier raw materials. Article content Group net income at the aluminum and copper producer rose to a record 41.2 billion rupees ($518 million) in the three months through June, up 48% from the same quarter last year. That beat analysts’ estimates for a profit of 28.5 billion rupees. Sales climbed 40% from a year earlier to 580.2 billion rupees. The performance of Hindalco, controlled by billionaire Kumar Mangalam Birla, was aided by aluminum prices that, while falling over the period, were higher than last year. Global supply chain problems persist, including lower output in Europe, where mills are grappling with soaring energy costs. Hindalco’s US unit Novelis Inc. reported a 32% year-on-year increase in sales and $307 million in net income from continuing operations, it reported last week. The company saw record shipments in North America on strong demand from can manufactures and the automotive sector, although the favorable pricing environment was partly offset by inflationary pressures. Article content Aluminum consumption in India rose 11% in April-June from a year earlier, led by improved demand from sectors like packaging, automotive, building & construction, consumer durables, and electrical, Hindalco said. Copper demand grew by about 47%, it said. The company’s net debt fell 19% from a year earlier to 421.93 billion rupees at the end of June, it said in the earnings presentation. Hindalco’s shares rose as much as 5.5% in Mumbai on Wednesday, and were set for the highest close in three months. There are 23 buy recommendations from analysts on the company, and only one sell, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
Article content South African business confidence rose slightly in July, helped by an increase in trade volumes and new vehicle sales, data showed on Wednesday. The South African Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SACCI) monthly business confidence index (BCI) edged up to 110.3 in July from 108.5 in June. “The July 2022 BCI number indicates the business climate is gradually returning to normality,” SACCI said in a statement, after Africa’s most industrialized nation was dealt a severe blow by the COVID-19 pandemic, riots in 2021 and damaging floods in April this year. Despite the pickup in the headline BCI number, SACCI cited price pressures, a volatile rand exchange rate and higher interest rates as weighing on the local business environment. SACCI said the reference point for the BCI had been adjusted to make 2020 the base year, reflecting changing trends in the economy and financial markets. (Reporting by Bhargav Acharya in Bengaluru Editing by Alexander Winning)


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Deutsche Lufthansa AG post better-than-expected Q2 earnings, in spite of the Germanwings crash and labor disputes.
The hunting and much-publicized death of Cecil the lion has cast a light on the controversial and lucrative business of game hunting in Africa.
A popular lion shot in Africa has reignited a debate about whether big game hunting helps conservation efforts.
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A theme park in Japan is opening a high-tech hotel that will be staffed by robots, according to the hotel's website.
As the U.S. draws closer to Cuba, here's what American travelers can expect to see in colorful Havana.
Marriott International's CEO says the US economic recovery has helped the travel industry, but antiterrorism measures could be a headwind.


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Apple Watch Clone Is $27 Sold On CES 2015
According to Mashable, one of its journalists stumbled upon Shenzhen-based Hyperdon displaying and selling fake Apple Watches in one of the smaller halls at the tech show.
Officially called "Smart Watch", the wearable looks like the Apple Watch with a crown at the side and a similar-looking interface. "The watch's screen only displays when it's turned on, and many of its icons are blatant ripoffs of Apple designs. The pairing process took a few tries, but once connected to my iPhone 6, I was able to make phone calls and play music through the watch. It even vibrates when I get a call," wrote the reporter.
Mashable also reported that the Smart Watch has features such as a pedometer, stopwatch, alarm, and an "Anti-lost" function that the reporter has yet to figure out. It is also able to receive notifications from WeChat and other third party apps. A Hyperdon staff reportedly told Mashable that the battery life of the Smart Watch is 180 hours.
The device was quoted a wholesale price of $27 and retail price of $30.


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Harley-Davidsons sales rose 8% in the third quarter, a key metric for the company’s stock, but the business is not as healthy as its chief executive, Peter Huang.
“There is a lot of uncertainty about what the outlook for Harley- Davidson’s business is going to be,” Huang said on CNBC.
“What I can tell you is that we’ve got a very strong business and we are growing, and that’s good news.
But we’re definitely going to make the best decision for our future. “
In terms of our business outlook, I think we’re a little bit behind where we should be.
In February, Huang said the company had about $6.5bn in debt and $4bn in assets and that it had been able to buy back $5bn of debt and buy back some $1bn of assets.”
We will continue to invest in our motorcycles and our motorcycles parts.”
In February, Huang said the company had about $6.5bn in debt and $4bn in assets and that it had been able to buy back $5bn of debt and buy back some $1bn of assets.
He added that the company was looking for $10bn to $15bn in funding.
The debt is owed to a number of investors, including investors in the company and the California government, as well as to creditors.


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Update: The OnePlus 12's now officially launched in China and we have the full specs below.
More OnePlus 12 specs have been teased over on OnePlus' official Weibo page, and one that's particularly attention-grabbing is the promise that the new phone will feature an IP65 dust/water resistance rating.
On the positive side, since the current OnePlus 11 has an IP64 rating, the new model is an improvement on this. The bad news is that this is not quite as good as the IP68 rating found on the current Galaxy S23 series, the iPhone 15 series, likely the incoming Galaxy S24 series and many of the best phones sold in the past several years.
|December 2023 (China)/ Early 2024 (global)
|6.82-inch 2K OLED
|50MP main, 48MP ultrawide, 64MP 3x telephoto
|Snapdragon 8 Gen 3
|100W wired, 50W wireless
|Green, white, black
OnePlus has long promised that its flagship phones are waterproof, but it's gone back and forth on getting this properly tested. The 2020 OnePlus 8 Pro was OnePlus' first phone to offer an IP68 rating, and the OnePlus 9 series that followed did too. However, that disappeared for the OnePlus 10 Pro, with the OnePlus 11 now offering an IP64 rating — officially tested but lower than previous models in the series.
It's not just the IP rating of its phones that OnePlus keeps changing its mind on, with wireless charging being another prominent example. After selling several phones with rapid wireless charging systems, the OnePlus 11 didn't even offer the common Qi charging standard. Wireless charging is set to return to the OnePlus 12, so hopefully OnePlus won't change its mind again.
The IP rating of its next phone isn't all OnePlus had to reveal. Further Weibo posts have confirmed that the phone will come with a chunky 5,400 mAh battery, larger than the vast majority of Android flagship phones' 5,000 mAh cells. This battery will apparently be powered up with 100W wired and 50W wireless charging, the same wired speed as the OnePlus 11, but with the wireless charging standard of the OnePlus 10 Pro and older models on top.
Per the IEC website, an IPx5-rated device like the OnePlus 12 is resistant to water sprayed from jets from all directions. An IPx8-rated device, however, can be submerged in water for an extended period without any ill effects.
The OnePlus 12 also looks to be futureproofing its connectivity offerings, with both the latest Bluetooth 5.4 standard, and USB 3.2 Gen1 wired data transfer speeds. OnePlus also mentioned the phone's watch-inspired "TIME Design" again, showing off the phone in its green, black and white colorways.
OnePlus is officially launched December 5, but only for the Chinese market. A global launch date will be announced on December 15, which will likely be in early 2024. That's when you can expect to see the phone finally go up for sale with your local retailers and mobile carriers.
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Richard is based in London, covering news, reviews and how-tos for phones, tablets, gaming, and whatever else people need advice on. Following on from his MA in Magazine Journalism at the University of Sheffield, he's also written for WIRED U.K., The Register and Creative Bloq. When not at work, he's likely thinking about how to brew the perfect cup of specialty coffee.


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A new LG smartphone, the LS860 Cayenne, is set to come with NFC, according to leaked details published by Brief Mobile. The high end device is expected to ship in the fourth quarter of 2012 with a 1.2GHz dual-core Snapdragon S4 processor and an integrated keyboard.
- Apple marks Earth Day with Apple Pay donations
- WeChat Pay and offline mobile payments see “incredibly high” uptake in China
- Visa EMV transactions pass 1bn in the US
- Singapore banks add in-store QR code payments to mobile apps
- US Bank ties credit card points to mobile payments


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Before Kanye West became a fashion aficionado, he was a rap superstar. But, before he shot to rap stardom, he was a producer under the Roc-A-Fella umbrella trying to prove his worth… and even further back, he was just a Chicago teen with a passion for hip-hop.
DJ Eclipse, the former manager of Fat Beats’ New York store, recently unearthed nearly two-decade-old footage of a 19-year-old ‘Ye, who freestyles at the opening of the Fat Beats 6th Avenue store back in August 1996.
In the throwback clip, a skinny Kanye — sporting an oversized Polo — flexes some lyrical skills.
“My style is too cold / Always forever like Luther / But it ain’t original because I stole it from the future,” he raps.


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The National Venture Capital Association (NVCA) retained Content First to produce a series of reports on the importance of the venture capital industry.
The National Venture Capital Industry Association (NVCA) released Venture Impact: The Economic Impact of Venture Capital Backed Companies to the U.S. Economy, in 2007. Global Insight compiled the data using a database of nearly 24,000 venture capital backed companies. Its findings included that the nation’s venture capital-backed companies employed about 10 million American workers, and that the total revenue of venture capital-finance firms made up 16.6 percent of the nation’s gross domestic product (GDP) and 9 percent of U.S. private sector employment. California, Texas, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, and Georgia ranked as the top national jobs creatures measured by venture capital-backed companies headquartered in their states.
Selected Facts from Venture Impact 2004
- Venture capital-backed companies employed more than 10 million American workers
- Venture capital-backed companies generated $1.8 trillion in sales
- Venture capital-backed firms outperformed the national economy in overall sales growth
- California, Texas, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, and Georgia were the top national job creators measured by venture capital-backed companies headquartered in their states
- Venture capital-backed companies employed almost 2.5 million people nationwide in 2003
NVCA released Venture Impact: The Economic Impact of the Venture Capital Industry on the U.S. Economy in 2003 to provide policymakers, the press, and the public with objective statistics on the importance of the venture capital industry to the U.S. economy and state economies. The data, based on a database compiled by DRI-WEFA, showed that venture-backed companies contributed more to the U.S. economy than average public companies when measured by sales, federal taxes, exports, and research and development expenditures.
Content First and the National Foundation for American Policy (NFAP) were commissioned by the National Venture Capital Association (NVCA) to develop a study on the economic impact of immigrants on the U.S. economy. Content First established a database of nearly 900 venture-backed companies that went public beginning in 1970. The founder(s) nativity for each company was examined to determine the number of foreign-born founders among these firms.
American-Made Key Findings
- Fully 25% of venture-backed public companies were started by one or more immigrant founders
- That figure rose to 40 percent In the tech sector, which included such well-known names as Google, Yahoo, Sun Microsystems, and eBay
- The combined market cap of these companies exceeded $500 billion, which standing alone would put it about 17th in world GDP
- More than 400,000 jobs were created worldwide by these companies
NVCA commissioned Content First to develop a study on the benefits of venture capital investment in the life sciences. Patient Capital: How Venture Capital Innovation Drives Revolutionary Medical Innovation was released in June 2007.
Patient Capital Key Findings
- The nation’s most innovative medical breakthroughs have been brought to market by billions of dollars of venture capital investment in life sciences companies
- Venture-backed life sciences companies include Boston Scientific, Amgen, Genentech, Genzyme, and Intuitive Surgical
- The impact of discoveries by venture capital-backed life sciences companies saves millions of lives, improves medical procedures, reduces health care costs, and provides overall economic benefits to the U.S. economy


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Today in the year 2013 weather conditions have become more warmer and unpredictable. It can be said that global warming, caused by humanity or just natural occurrences, has the potential to affect wine regions around the world in a huge way. It already has had significant effects in the recent past and looks to become the dominant issue in years to come.
There has been an average increase of two degrees Celsius in the last 50 years for the main wine regions of the world. But also following this increase in temperature is the increase in wine quality. It is also forecasted that 50 years from now there will be another two 2 degrees celsius increase in global temperature. This is going to dramatically change or even ruin hot climate wine regions such as Portugal and Spain. However this temperature increase will open up new opportunities to areas such as Skåne in Sweden and Southern England.
Hot regions will have their grapes over-ripe causing grapes to be lacking in flavour concentration. Other regions, which could be said to be cool/warm climate, will have to change what grape varietals they plant and make wine from. The increase in temperature could become critical in areas such as California, Rioja, Barolo, Chianti and parts of Australia especially in the Hunter Valley.
The future temperature increase could lead to harvest periods being brought forward, reduced water availability, and of course the increased pest management. If the future projections are correct, winemakers and viticulturists around the world could be in for hard times adapting their vineyards and wines to take into account these climate changes.
Below are a few links to websites which provide more information about what is to be expected in the future for the wine industry.


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‘Avatar: The Last Airbender’ and ‘Serenity’ receive their own adult coloring books
This is just the beginning of Dark Horse’s new line.
The growing world of adult coloring books is about to become even larger thanks to Dark Horse. The publisher recently announced the launch of a new adult coloring book program that would start this fall with books inspired by two beloved series.
Dark Horse’s first coloring books will feature original art for Serenity and Avatar: The Last Airbender. Each book contains black and white illustrations on 45 heavyweight 10 x 10-inch pages. Series creators Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko had a hand in creating The Last Airbender book, which has illustrations by artist Jed Henry. Thehe Serenity book will allow fans to “relive your favorite moments from the Firefly series—and more,” according to Dark Horse’s blog.
Both books will sell for $14.99 and be available in stores Oct. 5. They are also both currently available for preorder online. According to Dark Horse, more coloring books will be announced in the following months. We can only hope they’ll continue to give us new art inspired by more classic series for us to color.
Lisa Granshaw reports on pop culture and geek fashion and is the founder of GeekFold. You can find her work on Syfy, Boing Boing, and Geek and Sundry.


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More jobs will be created as a result of Zynga’s NFT Gaming initiatives, such as creative director. The company intends to increase the size of its blockchain gaming team from 15 to 100 workers.
Zynga Inc (NASDAQ: ZNGA), a game producer, has announced plans to invest in blockchain gaming and create its first non-fungible token (NFT) games. To make its NFT games idea a reality, the corporation will buy some blockchain companies and collaborate with others. With its cooperation with blockchain infrastructure business Zynga, Zynga began its blockchain gaming push last year. By the end of the second quarter, Zynga aims to release its first NFT games.
In addition, the product will provide more collaboration and acquisition options while maintaining Zynga’s status as a frequent acquirer of game firms. Appointing new CEOs is one of the moves Zynga has taken in relation to its blockchain game. Matt Wolf, who joined the company as vice president of blockchain gaming in November, is an example. Zynga is “completely suited up to undertake acquisitions on the Web 3 game publisher side,” he added in an interview. Notably, the corporation has a history of acquisition-based expansion.
Farmville, a famous Facebook game that Zynga started in 2009, surpassed 10 million active users in just six months. Zynga appears to be ready to enter into blockchain gaming after thirteen years of active engagement in the gaming market. The change, according to Wolf, provides “future proofing” for the gaming company. Zynga NFT games will be inspired by current intellectual property, but they will not be based on existing games.
Zynga Increases Team Size for Upcoming NFC Games
In addition, Zynga’s NFT Gaming initiatives will produce more job opportunities, such as creative director. The company intends to increase the size of its blockchain gaming team from 15 to 100 workers.
Wolf went on to say, “In addition,
“We recognize that in order to be fast and accountable to our company and customers, we must surround ourselves with capability, which we can swiftly acquire through alliances and partnerships.” We need to be extremely cautious and actively listen in order to fully comprehend who the cohort is that is currently consuming blockchain games and accumulating NFTs.”
The company’s primary goal is to create a community of team members and actively involved gamers.
Despite the fact that NFT games ostensibly allow users to earn money by playing, a larger proportion of gamers have misgivings. Because gamers have varied feelings about blockchain gaming, Zynga hasn’t announced any NFT games yet. In light of the protests against Ubisoft, the business promised that its NFT games would use blockchain technology with low environmental harm tendencies. Zynga’s first blockchain games will appeal to fans of the genre who aren’t looking for long-lasting footage.
Wolf also intends to bring together executives of gaming companies to form a blockchain gaming council to solve difficulties with non-traditional games.


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China Government holds a $300 million loan to a Cambodian rice project, aimed to develop storage and warehousing facilities in the country in view of Cambodia government has not been able to meet the criteria set by the Chinese authorities as quoted by officials associated with the project.
According to a report, in December last year, Cambodia’s Ministry of Economy and Finance sent a draft MoU to the Chinese government seeking a loan of about $300 million to build and develop about 10 rice warehouses in their country, which can store a total of 1.2 million tons of paddy/rice, in the country to ensure smooth supplies of rice to millers as well as to the exporters.
According to the Supreme National Economic Council (SNEC) which is taking care of the project informed that the loan has been put on hold as Cambodia has not responded to the Chinese requirements on the loan. There are some technical problems and now both the parties are negotiating and looking at their own benefits.
In this issue, the Cambodian Rice Federation (CRF) have been stressing the need for the development of rice storage and warehousing facilities in the country in order to boost their exports. It is also emphasizing to the government to provide adequate financing facilities to the millers and exporters to buy rice during the harvest season.
Further, it has been observed by the SNEC Senior Adviser that a that major quantity of Cambodian paddy/rice is exported to Vietnam and Thailand through unofficial channels during the harvest season as there is lack of proper storage facilities in the country. Thus, millers and exporters are facing severe shortages of paddy for milling during lean months of April and May.
According to a report, Cambodia has exported around 283,825 tons of milled rice in the first six months of 2015, up about 60% from around 177,928 tons exported during the same period last year, while the country exported around 387,000 tons in 2014. However, USDA estimates Cambodia to export 1.1 million tons of rice including exports to Vietnam and Thailand in 2015, up about 10% from an estimated 1 million tons in 2014.


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We had a blast at the “Science Saturday – A Fundraiser for Science Friday Live!” out at the WSU Experiential Engineering Building on June 25th. We hosted a VR station with a couple Oculus systems in the CybertronPC Lab where guests had fun riding virtual roller coasters. Best of all though was the custom KMUW Science Friday CLX Ra desktop we designed just for the silent auction. This machine was gorgeous with a beautiful space background and KMUW logo. Sorry, there was only one of these bad boys and some lucky person already took it home. We think this may be the ultimate fan gear ever.Read More
Check this walk through of our CLX Ra system! HotHardware said “The CLX Ra is Cybertron’s biggest and baddest (in a good way) Egyptian-themed, CLX full tower gaming system.”Read More
CybertronPC donates $2.5 million to Wichita State
The local computer maker on Tuesday donated to the university’s school of engineering hundreds of computers and five years of tech support. firstname.lastname@example.org
WSU President John Bardo described the gift as “phenomenal” and said it gives the school’s engineering students “the best computing capacity anywhere in the United States.”
CybertronPC needs a steady stream of trained IT talent, and making the investment in computer equipment will aid that, as well as the greater community, Marcos said.
And aiding the community was always in their minds, Aziz, the CEO, told the audience.
Dan Voorhis: 316-268-6577, @danvoorhis
Read more here: http://www.kansas.com/news/business/article55460735.html
Photos credit: http://kmuw.org
By: Dan Ackerman
While not as well-known among deep-pocketed PC gaming enthusiasts as brands such as Alienware or Origin PC, CybertronPC has been knocking out highly customizable gaming PCs for years, and was best known as a place to get a real a la carte gaming desktop built from exactly the case and components you wanted for a reasonable price.
While keeping the sci-fi-inspired name (Cybertron is the home planet of the Autobots, after all), the company now has a high-end line of carefully tuned gaming systems, with premium looks and premium prices. The new CLX line tops out with the CLX Ra — yes, named for the Egyptian deity — which goes head to head with the highest-end gaming desktops we’ve tested in our Nvidia 1080 system roundup.
CybertronPC has around since 1997, but its CLX line of custom luxury gaming beast machines are a recent development. Today we look at the line’s small-but-powerful desktop, the Scarab.
Before we begin, let me establish that the Kansas-based computer company has no connection whatsoever to Hasbro’s popular line of transforming robots, who happen to hail from the planet Cybertron. CybertronPC is not allowed to reference the Autobots, Decepticons, Maximals or Predacons in their marketing material. I, on the other hand, can reference them all I want, so I will.
The CLX is a new dedicated luxury gaming line of systems, with names inspired not by the millions of years of conflict between warring factions of transforming robots, but rather by Egyptian mythology. There are three desktops—the small Scarab, the medium Horus and the towering Ra, as well as a pair of laptops, the Anubis and Osiris. Would they have worked better as the Bumblebee, Lazerbeak, Optimus Prime, Ravage and Megatron (tank version)? It hardly matters, as CybertronPC is not affiliated with the Transformers in any way. Also, yes.
The Scarab is the Bumblebee of the lot. It’s small and stylish while still packing a lot of power. Configurations start at $999, which is a price you don’t see very often for a boutique PC. Mind you the $999 is for a system that’s not nearly as pretty as the one I reviewed.
The hardware is tucked neatly away inside CybertronPC’s version of the In Win 901 mini ITX tower case, which is one of the coolest little cases I’ve come across. It’s an aluminum frame with tempered glass side panels that I’d seriously consider picking up for myself if I had a smaller motherboard handy. There are a few odd things about the case, but I’ll cover those once we get a little deeper in.
Combined with the custom paint job from CybertronPC’s in-house team using House of Kolor paint, you wind up with quite an attractive little system.Read More
We are proud to announce that CybertronPC is a finalist in the running for Wichita Metro Chamber of Commerce Small Business of the Year!
To see the other finalist, check out the Wichita Eagle article here: http://www.kansas.com/2013/03/06/2704568/finalists-named-for-small-business.htmlRead More
Plugging high-end gaming desktop hardware into a laptop may seem like a crazy idea, but CybertronPC has pulled it off.
It’s hard to believe the CLX Osiris 17 and 17x PCs from CybertronPC are actually laptops when when you read the basic specifications. Don’t expect much battery life from these desktop-replacement laptops, which have 17-inch screens.
The Osiris 17 can be configured with Intel’s “Skylake” Core i7-6700K, a high-end desktop chip that can be overclocked to crank up gaming performance. The Osiris 17x model can also be configured with up to two Nvidia GeForce GTX 980 graphics processors, which are commonly found in SLI (scalable link interface) configurations in desktops.
Osiris 17 and 17x can support up to 64GB of DDR4 memory, which is better than gaming laptops available today. The laptops have 1080p displays, which is poor quality, but the goal is for users to attach external peripherals like speakers, keyboards, mice and monitors. The laptops have two Ethernet ports, display ports and more USB ports than average laptops.
Packing such high-end components into a laptop requires re-engineering a motherboard, but can also be dangerous. The high temperature and heat generated could affect functionality or melt components. But the thick laptop has a giant vent at the back to dispose of the heat.
Questions remain as to how far CybertronPC recommends pushing the performance of CPUs and GPUs, which generate the most heat. Desktops have power supplies and fans to dissipate heat, but there must be a limit on the amount of heat these laptops can generate and dissipate.
CybertronPC announced the new machines Friday, but details were sparse, and the company didn’t immediately respond to questions about pricing, availability and full specifications of the Osiris 17 and 17x.
For those who want a true mobile gaming, CybertronPC has also introduced the lightweight CLX Anubis gaming PC. The laptop can be configured with Intel’s latest quad-core Core i7 6700HQ processors, which started shipping this week. The CPU can be paired with an Nvidia GeForce GTX 970M mobile GPU.Read More
Marco Chiappetta , Forbes Contributor
I am the longtime Managing Editor at HotHardware.com. I am also a freelance writer whose work has been published worldwide, in a number of PC and tech-related print publications. I have been a computing and technology buff since my early childhood. Even before being exposed to the Commodore P.E.T. and later the C64 some 30 years ago, I was interested in electricity and electronics, and still have the modified AFX cars and shop-worn soldering irons to prove it. Once I got my hands on my first Commodore 64, however, computing became my passion. Throughout my academic and professional lives, I have explored virtually every major platform from the TRS-80 and Amiga, to today’s high-end, multi-core servers. Over the years, I have worked in many fields related to technology and computing, including system design, assembly and sales, quality assurance testing, and technical writing.
Longtime Kansas-based system builder, CybertronPC, just announced that it is launching a new line of custom PCs under the brand CLX. The CLX moniker stands for “CybertronPC Luxury Experience”, and new line-up us systems featuring the brand will consist of custom desktop systems and laptops targeted to savvy PC enthusiasts and hardcore gamers.
“The launch of the CLX line takes CybertronPC to a whole new level; customization, quality, impeccable performance, designed specifically for each and every user”, said Ahmed Aziz CEO and Founder of CybertronPC. “No longer will an avid gamer or performance user have to settle for a PC that is not exactly how they want it, they can have an aggressive price to performance machine that is customized, personalized, and backed by CybertronPC’s quality and expertise.”
CybertronPC has been building, selling, and supporting systems in the U.S. for nearly two decades. The launch of its new CLX brand, however, marks a shift in the company’s product lines that’s closely aligned with the enthusiast and gamer segments, which despite the overall lagging PC market, have grown in the last few years.
Cybertron International Inc. of Wichita on Tuesday announced it will buy another local technology firm, The Bill Guy Technology Solutions.
The deal will be completed in February. A purchase price was not released.
And Cybertron may not be done with its purchases, either.
Company CFO Shadi Marcos says in a news release that “we will be looking at other viable managed IT service providers in the area to extend our new growth strategy in the near future.”
The Bill Guy will become part of the company’s managed services division, CybertronIT.
Bill Ramsey, owner of The Bill Guy, will now serve as chief technology officer at CybertronIT.Read More


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Van Buren, N.Y. — Tessy Plastics Corp. is going forward with a $31 million expansion near Baldwinsville, thanks to $13.5 million in aid from the state.
Lt. Gov. Kathy Hochul announced Wednesday that the state will give Tessy a $10 million grant and $3.5 million in tax credits to expand its plant on State Fair Boulevard in Van Buren instead of building a new facility in South Carolina.
Hochul said South Carolina officials made the company a generous offer that included free land and help with building a new facility for the manufacture of underarm deodorant containers, a big part of Tessy's business.
"This day almost did not occur," she said, standing next to the 250,000-square-foot addition under construction at Tessy. "Tessy was heavily courted by South Carolina."
Earlier this year, Tessy, a manufacturer of plastic components for medical devices and consumer products, said it wanted to expand in Van Buren but needed state economic development incentives to offset the cost of shipping 3,000 truckloads of deodorant containers each year to the Carolinas, where its customers make the deodorant that goes into the containers.
Tessy President Roland Beck declined to provide specifics on the incentives offered to his company in South Carolina. However, he said they were even greater than those offered by New York. He said he decided to do the expansion in Van Buren because of the state's help, as well as a desire to maintain the company's long-term relationships with suppliers and contractors in New York.
Tessy employs about 1,000 people at its main manufacturing complex in Elbridge, its plant in Van Buren, and its headquarters and factory in Skaneateles. About 50 of them have been hired to staff the expansion, which should be completed in March, Beck said. An additional 50 people will be hired for the expansion, bringing the company's local employment to about 1,050, he said.
Attending the announcement Wednesday with Beck was his father, Henry, 81, who founded Tessy in 1973.
Contact Rick Moriarty anytime: Email | Twitter | Facebook | 315-470-3148


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SIXTH-FORMERS at Helsby High School raised money for Oxfam to celebrate the charity’s Frodsham shop’s 25th anniversary in the town.
Following months of preparation by staff, students and sixth- formers, the Chester Road school staged a charity fashion show on Thursday, November 25, using collections of clothes available from the Eddisbury Square store.
Student organisers Bethany Lloyd and Rebecca Jones said: “Designer Kim Foulder, founder of ‘Dizzy Dishes’, showed several collections of her individual vintage inspired clothing range.
“With make-up by Mac, the models strutted their stuff down the catwalk to music by Ben Tynegate, alongside the somewhat interesting running commentary by Iain Hawkes and Marcus Lightfoot, sixth-form students.
“All in all there was a fun and vibrant feeling not only in the audience but also backstage.
“We are delighted to say that we have raised about £450 for the charity with which we will buy an ‘Oxfam unwrapped’ gift from the school.
“We want to thank everyone involved for making the show such a successful event, not only for the contributions to the charity but to all the helpers.”


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Special Report: Tobacco on Fire
Finding rays of light behind the SCHIP/FET tax
Editor's Note: This is the first of a four-part CSP Daily News series on how retailers are reacting to the federal excise tax on tobacco that begins in April.
HENDERSON, Nev. -- Shortly before the new federal excise tax (FET) on tobacco kicks in, Ray Johnson is scanning up and down his shelves of cigarettes, snuff and cigars.
A profit machine for this Henderson, Nev., operator, tobacco is about to take a hit. On April 1, the largest FET hike on all tobacco takes hold. The levy is expected to cover a nearly $33 billion, 4-year reauthorization and expansion of [image-nocss] the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP).
For all retailers, the tax, which cuts into every established segment of tobacco including steep levies on roll-your-own and little cigars as well as a 62-cent increase on a pack of cigarettes, is bad news. For someone lacking a serious foodservice program or alternative in-store driver, it's even worse.
"When I look at our cigarette sales, you can't just look at total sales, you have to look at cartons. Carton [sales are] going to drop 5%-7%," Johnson, operations manager at Speedy Mart, a 21-store chain based in Las Vegas valley, told CSP Daily News. "What's going to happen, I assume, is that people are going to buy down to the lower brands as they adjust to the impact."
For Johnson, the tax threatens a category that pumps about 40% of his inside sales and more than 40% of store profit. If Johnson stands pat, Speedy Mart sales could collapse. So he is making a pre-emptive strike. Since there's little he can do about the tax, Johnson is attacking his plan-o-gram, altering the face of his tobacco set. He is also shrinking inventory to reduce the burdens of a one-time floor-stock tax that is expected to cost retailers between $2,000 and $3,000 per store.
"We'd already started with a SKU reduction program," he said. "The idea is to get rid of the slow sellers; we're going to mark them down and sell them now so we don't have to pay the floor tax on them. I've eliminated nearly 100 SKUs between cigarettes and cigars. I'd rather sell them below tax than pay the tax."
While the FET increase has captured great attention, it is the floor-stock tax, which requires collection and payment by Aug. 1, that has Johnson particularly irked.
"We're trying to put away funds for the amount that we know is coming. I don't know how they think you suddenly have this magic wand to pay for all this. We don't have the cash sitting there just to say, 'Oh, you can pay this on all your existing stock.' I understand the theory, 'When you're going to sell it, you're going to collect it.'
"[But] when I sell it, I only collect a little bit, and I'm still only making my 20% margin, I'm not making this huge profit. We are concerned on the cash flow. The biggest thing really was reducing the inventory, reducing SKUs, getting the dead merchandise out so we don't have to pay the tax on them."
What does Johnson expect his new set to look like?
First, expect all packs of cigarettes to go up 75 cents, much in line with what analysts predict. Also, while Marlboro will remain his featured brand, Johnson expects customers to sample with lower-tier products to save a dollar or two.
"Nearly 70% of my sales are Marlboro, so I am on the max level with them," he said. "And we take surveys every week on Marlboro prices, so that's where the competitiveness is. Beyond that is whatever is the cheapest brand. And that's another 10% more." The remaining brands make up 20%.
Johnson's cigarette breakdown could become more interesting in the ensuing months.
"When I look at our cigarette sales, you can't just look at total sales; you have to look at carton [sales]. What's going to happen, I assume, is that people are going to buy down to the lower brands as they adjust to the impact. A lot of cigarettes here are sold to California. Every weekend I-15 between here and California is packed; our state tax is cheaper.
"We suspect [carton traffic] will be the same, but instead of buying Marlboro, they'll be buying our lower ends. The high-end guys, I expect theirs to really start falling off. But carton movement, I don't think it'll drop more than 5%. I think our net-gain sales will be up a little, and margin is going to be down a little."
For other tobacco products, Johnson believes little cigars will be whacked.
"[The tax increase is] going to really impact the little cigars the most because right now they're going to be taxed the same as cigarettes," he said. "The original version, it was going to go up 25 cents every two years." The final version jumps little cigars from 4 cents a pack to more than $1.
Such news should perhaps cause anxiety. But Johnson is taking it in stride.
"I'm going to just let cigarettes fall where they may. It doesn't scare me, because it's going to happen to everyone," he said. "We're going to spend the last month doing nothing but educating consumers on what's to come."
For more about SCHIP and its impact on c-stores, see the April issue of CSP Magazine.


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POCO India conducted an online webinar of sorts yesterday amidst the tight lockdown and it resulted in a few interesting revelations with respect to the brand’s roadmap of the near future. Here are a few important takeaways from that. One of the more interesting reveals was that the company is working on POCO TWS earbuds. Moreover, the officials also said that the POCO F2 would not be just a rebranded Redmi K30 Pro.
So, POCO TWS headsets are indeed launching.
Feel free to retweet.
— Mukul Sharma (@stufflistings) March 30, 2020
Gizchina News of the week
Now, this is as far as we can go as far as official information is concerned, we can make a few presumptions regarding the product. POCO’s biggest competitor and arch-rival is Realme and the company just came up with its first-ever TWS earphones called Realme Buds Air. It’s not unreasonable to expect POCO will be aiming for the same category which is under Rs 4,999 in India. We also expect the POCO TWS earbuds to launch soon, possibly with the POCO F2, speaking of which, the brand hinted that it won’t just be a Redmi K30 Pro repackage. This means that the POCO F2 is indeed coming, and it’s only a question of when.
Thankfully, this means the product could very well be on its way to launch. India is serving a 21-day lockdown which ends on April 15th and that is when we expect brands to become more vocal about their future launches and plans. Moreover, the company said that it plans to continue POCO Launcher developments over MIUI and it will also continue to nurture its POCO community that remains at the centre of its user feedback system.


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As the hours tick off before the return of the Playstation Store, the full fiscal ramifications for the breach that took it offline are finally becoming known. As part of a revision to their outlook for 2011 fiscal year, Sony has laid out its predicted bottom line in light of both the PSN hack and […]
[Initial reporting done by Eli English] The games industry has proven itself phenomenally charitable in the wake of the Japan tsunami and earthquake, and Valve continues the trend with special in-game items for Team Fortress 2. The hats are; the Humanitarian’s Hachimaki for $7, the Benefactor’s Kanmuri for $20, and the Magnanimous Monarch for $100. […]
Bad news for racing fans, Sony has announced that it has delayed Motorstorm: Apocalypse indefinitely in North America, following Japan’s devastating tsunami and earthquake. Originally set for release on April 12th, the title (set in an earthquake-ravaged city) had also been postponed earlier in both Japan and the UK.


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Apple: iPods built to last 'for years,' not 'four years'A spokeswoman for Apple Computer on Friday said she was recently misquoted in a comment on the life-span of the company's iPod digital music players.
Earlier this week, Chicago Tribune quoted Apple spokeswoman Natalie Kerris as saying iPods have a relatively low failure rate and that they are designed to last "four years."
However, Kerris in a statement to the iLounge on Friday said she was misquoted. The Apple spokeswoman said she told the reporter that the iPod was designed to last "for years," not "four years."
Apple maintains that iPods have a failure rate of less than 5 percent, which it says is "fairly low" compared with other consumer electronics.
On Topic: General
- Apple hyping this week's opening of first-ever Brooklyn retail store
- This week on AI: 'Apple Car' delayed, new iOS 10 & macOS betas, 'iPhone 7' leaks & more
- Hacker who targeted celebrity Apple and Google accounts sentenced six months in prison
- US appeals court vacates Apple win in Unwired Planet patent suit
- Apple retakes top spot in FutureBrand 'perception strength' rankings


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Europe opens door to more South African products
The sale of wine free of taxes will double from South Africa to Europe and it will promote the access to new markets for sugar and ethanol, reported to the media the Minister of Trade and Industry, Rob Davies.
The Agreement of Economic Association (AEA) between the European Union and the South African Customs Union (SACU), will equally facilitate trade between regions and the industrialization in the African continent.
For example, with the recent agreement will rise from 50 million to 110 million liters of bottled wine that will enter the EU tax-free, while 150 thousand tons of sugar will be tax exempted.
South Africa, Botswana, Lesotho, Mozambique, Namibia and Swaziland, signed the agreement on June 10.
For Pretoria, the present pact substitutes the bilateral trade chapter between the EU and South Africa, of Trade, Development and Cooperation (ATDC) of the year 2000.
With the ATDC only 65 percent of the local agricultural products was covered and as for the EU, 80 percent. ■


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Get involved: send your pictures, video, news and views by texting WO to 80360, or email us
South Oxhey meat thief jailed
A South Oxhey man has been jailed for three months after stealing meat from various supermarkets in the area.
Stephen Hardwick, 45, of Otley Way, took meat from four stores in Abbots Langley, Carpenders Park, South Oxhey and Rickmansworth between May and September 2012 and two candles worth £15.98 from a Watford store.
Hardwick also pleaded guilty to two counts of failing to surrender to appear at court cases while on bail.
At St Albans Magistrates Court on Monday, he was jailed for 12 weeks.


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Armored Core 6 Fires of Rubicon: Trailers, gameplay, release date & more
After Armored Core 6 got announced at the Game Awards, fans of the series speculated how long they’d have to wait until they could get their hands on it. Now, we’ve got a release date. Here’s everything we know about the upcoming title.
After months of speculation and leaks, FromSoftware has finally announced Armored Core 6 Fires of Rubicon. This long-awaited announcement was made at this year’s Game Awards, where a number of exciting details were revealed about the new game.
The Armored Core series is a third-person shooter that involves monolithic mechs blasting and bashing each other into oblivion. The series has a very loyal fanbase and with the recent success of Elden Ring, players will have high expectations of the upcoming FromSoftware mech title.
So, here’s everything we currently know about Armored 6 including the latest gameplay, release window, trailer, and more.
- Armored Core 6 release date
- Armored Core 6 platforms
- Armored Core 6 trailer
- Armored Core 6 gameplay details
Armored Core 6 release date
Armored Core 6 will release on August 25, 2023. It’s already a stacked year when it comes to new game releases, but fans of the series looking to hop in for the first time in several years are more than willing to carve out some time for the much-anticipated title.
Armored Core 6 platforms
According to the Armored Core 6 official website, the game will release on PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, and PC. Whether the game will support crossplay and cross-progression between the above platforms remains to be seen.
Armored Core 6 trailers
Armored Core 6’s initial reveal trailer was shown off at the Game Awards, blowing fans of the series away with its new visuals and the fact that a follow-up game to the long series dormant is coming at all.
A trailer released on April 27, 2023, gave people a bit more detail as to what moment-to-moment gameplay will look like, along with the release date.
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"Augmented human C4-621 has awakened."
ARMORED CORE VI FIRES OF RUBICON makes planetfall August 25, 2023. pic.twitter.com/7kBnxEq9zR
— ARMORED CORE (@armoredcore) April 27, 2023
FromSoftware’s work on the Souls games and other titles in their recent library have surely contributed to the evolution of the Armored Core games, with fans already in awe of the massive bossfights that were shown off in the trailer.
Armored Core 6 gameplay details
Armored Core 6 gameplay will see players move through massive environments with an emphasis on “rapid maneuverability” and “visceral vehicular combat.”
The official press release states that Armored Core 6 will feature signature gameplay that will “feature challenging and memorable battles along with a fulfilling progression system and deep gameplay, all of it now powered by assembling mechs and going into combat with massive bosses.”
If that didn’t sound exciting enough, mecha pilots can also customize and assemble their very own AC. Following on from the huge success of Elden Ring, fans of the Armored Core series could be in for a real treat when the game releases later this year.
We’ll update this guide with more Armored Core 6 information as it arrives, but in the meantime, why not check out our pages for some of 2023’s biggest releases:
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom | Hogwarts Legacy | Forspoken | Assassin’s Creed Infinity | Hollow Knight Silksong | Avatar Frontiers of Pandora | DokeV | KOTR Remake


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While Microsoft has yet to offer any official information on how many Windows 8.1 PCs are out there running in the world, the company is definitely determined to get its latest operating system to as many users as possible. This week, Microsoft announced that Windows 8.1 is now available for non-profit organizations, as well as public libraries, to download and install.
In a post on its Corporate Citizenship blog, the company said that those groups can now apply to get their Windows 8.1 copy via their software donation program. Non-profits and libraries that already have Windows 8 installed on their PCs can update to 8.1 by contacting the Volume Licensing Service Center. In addition, the company will hold a special webinar on Nov. 14 especially for non-profit groups to learn more about Windows 8.1. Microsoft has already offered non-profits a way to access Office 365 for free.
Microsoft has so far been pretty quiet about the adoption of Windows 8.1 since it launched a few weeks ago. The company may offer more information on that topic later this month as Microsoft's annual shareholders meeting is scheduled to be held in Redmond, Wash., on Nov. 17.


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Stop what you're doing and make sure your toothpaste isn't causing cancer
Here's one place you may not expect to find triclosan: toothpaste.
The antibacterial and antifungal agent commonly is found in antibacterial soaps and some say it is harmful.
According to Colgate-Palmolive, its Total toothpaste is safe and it was put through a stringent Food and Drug Administration approval process in 1997. Closer investigation showed that some of the findings used to prove triclosan's safety were not available to the public until this year.
Colgate’s Total application contained 35 pages of studies on triclosan that the FDA released this year after a Freedom of Information Act request, but now a few scientists working with Bloomberg News say the toothpaste should be put under evaluation again because new research is showing that the chemical can be harmful. Some studies have found it to disrupt the endocrine system and cause cancer, though some people say the concentration used in common products is too minute to cause a significant problem.
Colgate said it documented more than 80 clinical studies involving 19,000 people to find that Total is safe. Thomas DiPiazza, a spokesperson for the toothpaste company, said it submits yearly reports to the FDA covering new science and safety findings.
"In the nearly 18 years that Colgate Total has been on the market in the U.S., there has been no sign of a safety issue from adverse-event reports," DiPiazza told Bloomberg. More recently, a review conducted last year by the Cochrane Oral Health Group found the product to be completely safe.
Thomas Zoeller, a biology professor at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, said about 800 to 1,000 chemicals can disturb endocrine function and triclosan is one of about 10 that people are exposed to on a regular basis.
Worried about your Crest, Aquafresh or Sensodyne? Procter & Gamble, which makes Crest, said none of its products have contained triclosan for many years, and GlaxoSmithKline said they reformulated all toothpastes that previously contained it, but a spokesperson could not say if versions containing triclosan were sold in America.


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Brentwood wins Google eCity Award
Brentwood has joined the ranks of America’s leading cities by winning the 2014 Google eCity Award for Tennessee.
Each year, a city is chosen from each state to which the businesses within the community embrace the Web to find new customers, connect with existing clients and fuel their local economies.
“Local entrepreneurs and seasoned corporate business partners in our city recognize the power of delivering their message to current and potential customers,” Brentwood Mayor Betsy Crossley said. “Many of our local businesses have chosen to augment traditional direct contacts by additionally harnessing access to the global economy. Through digital innovation, they have facilitated the continuation of the robust competitive economy we enjoy in Brentwood.”
Google weighed a variety of factors to determine the leading cities and towns across the U.S., including the likelihood of small businesses to have a website, use a blog, promote themselves on a social network, sell goods directly from their Web pages and whether they had a mobile-friendly website.
“Google is proud to recognize Brentwood’s accomplishment and the role it plays in creating Tennessee jobs,” said Emma Ogiemwanye, a Google representative.


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9Round, the 30 minute kickboxing fitness franchise, hit a milestone this week, opening its 600th location in Edmonton, Alberta in Canada.
2017 was a record year for 9Round with a total of 150 clubs opening plus an expansion into four new countries: Jordan, Lebanon, Turkey and Costa Rica.
Founded nine years ago by Shannon Hudson (former IKF Light Middleweight Kickboxing Champion of the World) and his wife Heather, 9Round are hoping to open a record number of locations in 2018 and expand into more countries to grow and evolve the 9Round brand.
Shannon added, “We also want to continue to give entrepreneurs that are passionate about fitness the opportunity to open their own businesses without incurring a huge amount of debt.”
With a presence now in 13 countries, 2017 has proved to be a knockout year for 9Round:-
- Coming in at No. 915 on the annual Inc. 5000 list of America’s fastest-growing private companies
- Ranked No. 121 on Entrepreneur magazine’s Annual Franchise 500 list (fifth consecutive year on the list and second time in the Top 200)
- Ranked No. 22 by Entrepreneur as one of the Fastest-Growing Franchises
- No. 103 Top Global Franchises
- No. 115 Top Franchise Brands
- Ranked in the Top 50 Franchises for Women by the Franchise Business Review
9Round workouts consist of nine, three-minute stations of activities that include cardio, weight training, core exercises and kicks and punches on 100-pound, double-end, upper cut and speed bags. A real boxing bell rings to begin the workout, another to warn the station is ending and a third to signal the end. Members have a 30-second active break between rounds.
With personal trainers to assist and expert nutritional guidance, 9Round promise to delivers a full-body workout that’s fast, effective and fun.
“Consumers are looking for fitness options that are convenient and effective, and that’s exactly what 9Round delivers” said Heather Hudson, COO of 9Round. “Each 9Round workout is just 30 minutes, and there are no set class times – you can come exercise on your own schedule.”
9Rounds opened it’s first Australian location in Forest Lake, Queensland in March 2015. Since then, the 9Round franchise has grown to eight clubs with an ambitious target of 100 set to roll out across Australia in the coming years.
[box type=”info” align=”aligncenter” class=”” width=””]QLD – Forest Lake, Morningside, Ashgrove (open soon), Miami (open soon), Robina (open soon)
VIC – Warrnambool, Elsternwick, Fitroy, Brunswick, Point Cook, Pakenham
WA – North Perth (open soon)[/box]
For more information on 9Round and for details on owning a franchise enquire below.


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No-Dig Conferences and Exhibitions
No-Dig Live is the UK's only specialised event showcasing equipment and services used for the installation and refurbishment of underground utilities, with minimum disruption to the surface.
Westrade Group has announced that Norman Baker MP, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Transport will open No-Dig Live 2010 at Stoneleigh Park, near Coventry on Tuesday 5 October.
The No-Dig Road Show 2009/2010 programme for trenchless technology came to a successful close with the final two events held in Dublin and Belfast.
Following the success this major fabricator and installer Trade Show last year, the Glass and Glazing Federation (GGF) will be exhibiting at FIT Show 2014, alongside its wholly owned subsidiaries FENSA, GGFi and BFRC. The GGF will again be contributing to seminars and FENSA will be sponsors of the Master Fitter Competition.
Visit TOOLBOX TALKS, a new feature at Timber Expo 2013 that offers details behind many of the processes, technologies and solutions on display from our wide range of exhibitors, plus a free to attend CPD seminars and workshops dedicated to timber technology.


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Jean-François Laudouze will support Veramaris to assure ist position in the European pet food market. The company could already enter the global market by sales in the US and Canada. Ladouze and a team of experts shall focus on developing the business.
Ladouze, formerly EMEA Sales Director at Diana Pet Food, will work as Global Business Development Manager for Veramaris.
Commenting on his appointment, Jean-Francois Laudouze said: “It’s a pivotal time for Veramaris and its Pets business. I believe there is huge long term potential for Veramaris to grow within the European pet food industry. I am delighted to be joining a team with very ambitious plans.”
Veramaris’ CEO Karim Kurmaly stated:
“Pet ownership has increased significantly since the pandemic which has led to a huge demand for pet food. Europe is a key growth market and Jean-Francois will play an important role in communicating the benefits of an algae-based source of Omega-3 to responsible pet food brands.”
Jeff Alix, Veramaris’ Head of Global Business Development, Companion Animals said: “We are delighted to add Jean-Francois Laudouze to our global pet team. He brings a broad range of knowledge and experience regarding the dynamic pet food value chain, especially in Europe. A very welcome team member.”


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ROCKAWAY, N.J., Sept. 25, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Advantage Business Marketing, the marketing content leader for more than one million innovators at science, design engineering, and manufacturing companies, announced today the initial results from their pilot Mobius Platform campaign.
Industrial Distribution held its first-ever Big 50 Conference Awards & Luncheon on September 25, 2018 at the Hilton O’Hare in Chicago in cooperation with the National Association of Wholesaler-Distributors’ 2018 Large Company CEO/COO Roundtable.
While we may not be dealing in lists the way we used to, the fact is that audience matters more than ever in the demand generation game. No, we may not be talking about impressions or views as often as we once did, but that doesn’t mean we aren’t all still concerned with the breadth and depth of an audience list. The difference is that our parameters for those audiences is shifting from quantity to quality.
Advantage recently threw their first Advantage After Hours bash after a long day at IMTS 2018. Advantage staff, including CEO Bruce Cummings, enjoyed an intimate cocktail hour with manufacturing professionals and editors from Manufacturing.net. Cummings also announced the latest from Advantage's new Mobius Platform, which promises a massive ROI for marketers. Click below to see highlights from the event.
For decades, marketing was essentially a crapshoot. Marketers would throw out a series of ad campaigns on TV, in publications, on billboards and buses, or wherever they thought their ideal audience would see it. And that’s the thing—a lot of marketing has been historically based on feelings that marketers have had. Which is risky as hell, and hasn’t always worked out for the team or agency responsible for the campaign.
Data is at the heart of success in any field on the planet. Whether you’re a farmer or an astronaut, data can improve your day-to-day processes and directly affect the outcome of your efforts. But not just any data will do; success requires clean, credible, up-to-date information.
Personalization is already a part of your personal life, whether you’ve realized it or not. When you turn on your Smart TV and log into Netflix, Amazon, or Hulu, the first thing you see is a series of recommendations for you based on what you’ve previously watched. When you sign up for a podcast service, your account setup includes a series of questions about your interests. Half of the ads you see on social media are specifically targeted at you, based on actions you’ve taken, purchases you’ve made, and content you’ve consumed online.
ROCKAWAY, N.J., Aug. 14, 2018 -- Advantage Business Marketing, a leader in data-driven content marketing for innovation and manufacturing professionals, announced the latest development in their digital transformation and commitment to bring more meaningful best practices to the market. Media channels under the Advantage brand are merging into five distinct business "pillars," covering the entire manufacturing cycle. Advantage clients will now have access to data-rich channels that reach audiences in every stage of the...
Is your leadership consistently concerned about your marketing spend, and regularly asking for metrics and information?


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October 20, 2011
Missouri reports a second death related to Listeriosis infection
CDC Notifies Missouri of Additional Confirmed Case of Listeriosis from Contaminated Cantaloupe
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. - The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention today notified the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS) of one additional confirmed case of Listeriosis in Missouri associated with the national recall of cantaloupe produced by Jensen Farms, of Holly, Colo.
A total of six Listeriosis cases in Missouri have been confirmed by the CDC as linked to the recalled cantaloupe. The latest case is the second to occur in the Southwest District. The individual, age 84, has died. According local medical officials, the immediate cause of death was sepsis with Listeriosis as a contributing factor. The other cases include three in the Northwest District, one in the Eastern and two in the Southwest District. All six cases were hospitalized. On September 21, DHSS reported one individual, age 94, died. According to local medical officials, the immediate cause of death was not the Listeriosis infection.
The whole cantaloupe in question were shipped nationwide between July 29 and Sept. 10, 2011. The whole cantaloupe have a green and white sticker that reads: Product of USA- Frontera Produce-Colorado Fresh-Rocky Ford-Cantaloupe, or a gray, yellow, and green sticker that reads: Jensen Farms-Sweet Rocky Fords. If the whole cantaloupe is unlabeled, please contact your retail store for sourcing information. Consumers who may have one of these cantaloupe should throw it away.
State and local health officials across Missouri continue to search for additional contaminated cantaloupe still for sale, but at this point have not found any of the contaminated product still on the shelves.
To read the original recall notice, please visit health.mo.gov.


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Rishi Sunak is under pressure from a broad alliance of UK business, legal, labor and environmental groups to drop controversial plans to automatically remove parts of EU-derived law from the UK statute book by the end of next year.
More than a dozen organizations including the Institute of Directors, the Trades Union Congress and the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development warned that the move would “cause significant confusion and disruption” for businesses, workers, consumers and conservationists.
The Retained EU Law Bill, which has been backed by leading Eurosceptics including former business secretary Jacob Rees-Mogg, is a talismanic piece of legislation for Brexiters, who believe the process will provide a “productivity boost” to the UK economy.
But in a letter sent to business secretary Grant Shapps on Wednesday, the groups warned that dumping EU laws would throw the business into fresh uncertainty at a time when it is battling skyrocketing energy bills and inflation.
The letter is the latest sign that business is taking a more robust approach to the continued disruption from Brexit. CBI chief Tony Danker this week urged ministers to put political motives aside to seek improvements to Britain’s existing trade deal with the EU.
The government did not respond to a request for comment on the letter.
Roger Barker, director of policy and governance at the IoD, said the bill created unnecessary uncertainty for UK businesses as they faced “more pressing issues” given the stalling economy.
“Addressing any changes to the regulations would impose a major new burden on business that it could do well without,” he said.
TUC general secretary Frances O’Grady described the legislation as “a recipe for chaos”, adding: “This bill has been rushed through without consultation and no real thought for the effects on workers, businesses, consumers and the environment.” She added that it “must be withdrawn before lasting damage is done”.
The letter comes just days after the government’s own Regulatory and Policy Committee (RPC) described the business department’s impact assessment for the bill as not “fit for purpose”.
Other signatories include Greener UK, Employment Lawyers Association, Civil Society Alliance, Wildlife and Countryside Link, Hope for Justice, Wales Council for Voluntary Action and Wales Civil Society Forum.
Other organisations, from the consumer goods group Which? to the NFU and the British Safety Council, have also asked that the bill be postponed or scrapped.
Up to 4,000 individual pieces of legislation that were introduced into UK law at the point of Brexit to preserve legal and regulatory continuity are potentially affected by the legislation.
Senior civil servants have warned that reviewing all the legislation in a short time frame would place an impossible burden on Whitehall.
Of particular concern is a “sunset clause” which would see any EU-derived law that has not been explicitly “reviewed or repealed” by the government before the end of 2023 automatically drop from the UK statute book.
The letter warns that this will overturn “decades of case law” and make “the interpretation of the law highly uncertain”, creating “a huge risk of bad or potentially harmful law entering the statute books” that would put vital workers, consumers and the environment in danger. protections.
These range from holiday pay, safe working hours and protection against discrimination to the labeling of meat and eggs and a ban on the slaughter of seals.
Dropping those laws could also put the UK “in breach” of the deal struck with the EU by former prime minister Boris Johnson, the letter added, “bringing with it the prospect of further tariffs hurting UK exporters and those who work for them”.
Other groups have expressed deep concerns about the scope and pace of the legislation.
Rocio Concha, policy director at Which? said the bill could modernize consumer laws, including those governing the safety of products ranging from car seats to food and technological equipment.
“This bill is too important to rush through — the 2023 deadline with an automatic sunset makes no sense to anyone,” she said.
Nick von Westenholz, director of trade at the NFU, said the farming industry supported a systematic review of EU-derived laws to improve the regulatory regime governing farming, but warned that the rush could worsen an already uncertain business environment.
“The unnecessarily tight deadlines resulting from the sunset clauses, and the sweeping legislative powers that will be given to ministers without proper parliamentary oversight, are deeply concerning,” he said.
Peter McGettrick, chairman of the British Safety Council, the health and safety industry body, said the bill risked “opening up a legal black hole, which will leave businesses in the dark and put people at greater risk.”


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Brookshire Grocery Improves Fuels Pricing Process with KSS Fuels
TYLER, Texas -- Brookshire's Food & Pharmacy, the Texas-based chain of grocery stores and gas stations, improved its fuels pricing execution company-wide at its more than 80 fuel centers using a suite of KSS Fuels pricing products, the company reports. It has used KSS Fuels' PriceNet, PriceNet Mobile and KSS Visualizer products for about two years.
"PriceNet has helped us improve our reaction to market changes by giving us better control of our margin and volume," Rachel Gee, director of fuel operations for Brookshire's said in a released statement. "With the extreme volatility of the retail fuel industry, it’s comforting to know that we have PriceNet to guide us in a direction of improved performance."
The KSS Fuels product suite improves and simplifies the fuel pricing process by gathering data that allows Brookeshire's pricing team to manage the pricing process more effectively and efficiently, the company said. Benefits include timely market updates, margin and volume control, and price documentation for all fuel sites.
"We are thrilled that Brookshire's is being a proactive player in today's volatile market," Bob Stein, president and CEO of KSS Fuels said in a released statement. "Being able to justify pricing decisions, having the confidence to make strategy changes and executing price changes rapidly are all part of a joint effort of PriceNet solutions and Brookshire’s pricing team."
PriceNet is a comprehensive pricing solution that supports the key tasks and stakeholders of retail fuels pricing, according to the company. It has high levels of automation and and 'exception-based' approach in order to ensure a rapid response to market conditions and competitors, which allows pricing analysts to leverage the power of pricing analytics. It also includes PriceNet Mobile, which uses handheld mobile devices to deliver real-time fuels pricing updates. KSS Visualizer, a Web-based data visualization tool, quickly draws attention to significant changes in key performance measures like volume, running rates, margins, competitor price position and more at any level of the business, from individual stores to the overall network, said the company.


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Kellogg Needs to Stop Marketing Sugary Cereals to Kids!
February 04, 2006
The Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) has threatened to sue cereal-maker Kellogg and media kingpin Viacom, owner of the Nickelodeon cable network, if neither stop marketing health-harming foods to children within 30 days.
Out of more than 50 TV ads for Kellogg products, 98 percent of them were for products whose ingredients included, by weight, more than 35 percent of extra sugars.
The lawsuit aims to prevent companies from marketing junk food when 15 percent or more of the audience is 8 years old or younger. It seeks to include not only television commercials, but also Web sites, toy giveaways, contests and other marketing aimed at children.
A lawsuit of this nature has not occurred since 1983, when General Foods company settled a case out of court.


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Interested in learning what's next for the gaming industry? Join gaming executives to discuss emerging parts of the industry this October at GamesBeat Summit Next. Register today.
OnLive promised that it would one day run Windows desktop computer apps on an Apple iPad, and today it is delivering on that promise. As an added benefit, it is also launching the world’s fastest web browser on the iPad.
The Palo Alto, Calif.-based OnLive Desktop Plus app is finally available for users to download today, after years of development. The app uses OnLive’s cloud service — which the company also uses to deliver high-end games to low-end computers — to stream desktop apps such as Microsoft Word to the iPad. The paid service is also packaged with an Internet Explorer web browser that can transfer data at 1 gigabit per second, and it can handle Adobe Flash applications, which normally don’t run on an iPad.
A 50-megabyte file from cloud storage can be downloaded in less than a second. I watched that happen today and witnessed Flash games running on the iPad. All of that is due to the technology enabled by OnLive’s breakthroughs in cloud streaming services. The browser connection had a download speed of 459 megabits per second and an upload speed of 204 megabits per second. The ping time (roundtrip time for an internet packet) was 4 milliseconds. That translates into instantaneous web browsing.
“Our whole concept of what we think is possible on the web is going to change,” Steve Perlman, chief executive of OnLive, told VentureBeat. “The important thing is we have a new direction in computing and there are a lot of different directions we can take it. One of the outcomes is a ridiculously fast web browser.”
If it works as billed and catches on (here’s our own review), the cloud service is potentially disruptive to a number of different parties in the documents and web-browsing ecosystem. OnLive has built a robust global cloud, or web-connected data centers, that can operate apps on your device as quickly and responsively as if the apps running in the data centers were actually running on your local device. The cloud computes the app in the cloud and sends video of the results through a broadband network to your machine. OnLive says the cloud works so fast that you won’t notice that the app isn’t running locally. OnLive’s servers can process web pages at speeds of 10 gigabits a second, and the company turns around and sends that to the user at 1 gigabit per second.
OnLive first built that cloud streaming service for video games and launched the network in 2010. Now it has expanded overseas, fielded a “micro console” to play OnLive games on a TV, launched game streaming on wireless devices, and now is adding non-game productivity apps that can run at high speeds on devices that normally don’t have the local processing power to run them. All of that represents a huge amount of engineering work. Mobile salespeople can now use Office apps on an iPad with simple WiFi connections.
OnLive will also deliver lightning fast web browsing, which can actually reduce your usage of data 10-fold or more. That’s because the OnLive version of Internet Explorer only sends the user what’s necessary.
For consumers, the free OnLive Desktop app comes with 2 gigabytes of secure cloud storage, and access to a desktop depends on whether the server computing power is available to deliver Windows 7 apps including Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. The OnLive Desktop Plus app, with the fast web-browsing, sells for $4.99 a month. The OnLive Desktop Plus app is available on the iPad now and will soon come to Android, PC, Mac, TVs, and monitors.
The new service will create yet another revenue stream, in addition to games.
Perlman said the streamed apps aren’t stripped-down Office apps or clones of Microsoft’s software. Rather, they are full-featured, media-rich Windows 7 applications, including Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint software. That means you can access the full functions of Microsoft Office, reading or creating documents, while on the run.
As we noted earlier, if it really takes off, OnLive Desktop is ultimately a threat to Intel’s consumer microprocessor business, since users will be able to access demanding applications with low-end hardware. They may have no reason to use a high-end PC to access a lot of heavy-duty applications. This phenomenon, envisioned many years ago by people such as Google Chairman Eric Schmidt when he worked for Sun Microsystems, is known as “hollowing out the PC.” It means that heavy-duty internet-connected servers, or the cloud, could reduce the need to have a lot of processing power in a PC. The more powerful the cloud, the less power you need in your PC.
Not only could this cloud streaming disrupt the PC, it could also help the standing of the Apple iPad. When the iPad came out in 2010, observers said it was a great device for reading documents, but not for creating them. Now, with OnLive Desktop, creating documents on an iPad is a breeze. You no longer need a PC to do that.
Of course, OnLive will have to outpace Microsoft itself, which is rumored to be working on a version of Office for the iPad.
Perlman started patenting the ideas for this kind of product as far back as 2002. The OnLive Desktop allows you to combine the touch gestures of a tablet with an on-screen Windows keyboard and handwriting recognition. That lets you conveniently view and edit complex documents on a tablet with the same efficiency as if you were editing them on a PC.
While OnLive Desktop and OnLive Desktop Plus target individuals, OnLive is offering another paid version for businesses or power users. OnLive Desktop Pro offers 50 gigabytes of cloud storage, priority access to apps at any time, full-featured accelerated web browsing (at a speed of 10 gigabits a second), and other features for $9.99 a month. OnLive will also have a version for large enterprises. Both services are coming soon, Perlman said.
Rivals for cloud storage or virtualization include Dropbox and Box, but OnLive isn’t offering a quick-restore backup service just yet. Rivals for desktop virtualization include Mokafive and Citrix.
“It’s been a long [road] to get here,” Perlman said. “It will be interesting to see how people use this technology. It’s a milestone in the industry where people will finally be able to get it. Instant-action cloud computing can do useful things for you, and its more efficient.”
[Photo credit: Dean Takahashi]
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