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Business trip: Taner Sigirtmac for FACTORY Fanzine
Photographer Baldovino Barani reunites with model Taner Sigirtmac for the pages of FACTORY Fanzine. The duo tackles a vintage take on business style with a trip to Kowloon...
30 minutes ago - The Fashionisto
Meet Sports Illustrated Swimsuit's new rookie models
The 2018 Sports Illustrated Swimsuit issue just got hotter. On Wednesday, the mag announced that Olivia Culpo, Hunter McGrady and Ebonee Davis will be featured as rookie models...
1 hour ago - New York Post
A Closer Look at the Dr. Woo x Converse Chuck 70 Collection
Acclaimed tattoo artist Dr. Woo recently teamed up with Converse on two unique takes of the perennial Chuck Taylor All Star 1970 model. Both pairs arrive in distinct tonal...
2 hours ago - Hypebeast
Dries Van Noten Men's Fall 2018
Taking over a vast garage in Paris' Canal Saint-Martin district, with models tracing its edge on a raised podium before hitting the ground, Dries Van Noten pulled off one of...
3 hours ago - WWD - 3 articles
Miles Silvas Skates the adidas City Cup in New "One Stop" Video
On the heels of adidas Skateboarding's new City Cup silhouette , the Three Stripes drops a new video featuring the model on the feet of Pro Team skateboarder Miles Silvas...
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See what the models are wearing off duty in Paris - Updating
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A British Louis Vuitton model was busted Tuesday for killing a rival male catwalker with a single knife wound, according to reports. London-based model George Koh, 24, was hit...
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ONE restores service linking to ports in Tokyo, China; boon for exports
Japanese shipping giant Ocean Network Express (ONE) is restoring a key Asia-U.S., trade route at the Port of Oakland. The world’s sixth-largest container carrier brings its PS5 service back to Oakland Nov. 13, the Port said on Monday (Oct11). The service connects the U.S. West Coast with ports in Tokyo and China.
The Port said resumption of the weekly route aids U.S. meat exporters facing soaring demand in Japan. It should also help Chinese manufacturers exporting from the Ports of Shanghai and Ningbo, the Port said. Shippers on both sides of the Pacific have contended with critical vessel space shortages in 2021.
“This is an important service for our import and export customers,” said Port of Oakland Maritime Director Bryan Brandes. “And it’s a further sign of the importance that our industry partners place on Oakland.”
The PS5 is the latest in a series of 2021 Asia service acquisitions at the Port that include:
- CMA-CGM’s Golden Gate Bridge service;
- Wan Hai’s AA5 service;
- Matson’s CCX service; and
- MSC’s Sentosa service
Shipping lines have targeted Oakland for expansion in the wake of an unprecedented trade boom. New services are a response to demand spurred by Northern California’s growing economy, the Port said. What is more, the Port said ocean carriers increasingly turn to Oakland to avoid congested Southern California ports.

domain: news


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Huawei jumped from 4.3 percent to 6.9 percent over the same period, and while Lenovo didn’t perform quite so well, it still managed an increase to 5.4 percent from 4.7 percent. This has seen the two swap positions in IDC’s charts. Huawei now sits in third position ahead of Lenovo, and although Samsung and Apple lost ground, they still hold number one and number two in the charts, respectively. LG is the manufacturer in fifth position with 4.9 percent, down 0.1 percent over the past year.
A quick look at the smartphone shipment data also confirms Huawei’s improved performance, with the company sending out 20 million devices in the last three months, double what it managed in 2013. Lenovo also added another five million to its total over last year’s figures. Samsung fell by a few million, but Apple’s shipments were slightly up, despite the fall in market share.
IDC’s analysts put Lenovo and Huawei’s great performance down to several factors. The slowing interest in feature phones, primarily in developing markets, saw people flock to their low-cost smartphones, while 4G LTE’s growth in China and strong deals on the Ascend P7 also helped Huawei’s shipments. Lenovo’s push into international markets is going well, with 15 percent of its hardware registered outside of China this year, well up from the 5 percent in 2013.
We’re coming into an exciting season for mobile technology, when Samsung and Apple have a chance to regain any lost ground, thanks to the highly anticipated Galaxy Note 4 and the iPhone 6. However, Huawei and Lenovo’s growth comes from markets and price points which neither major brands concentrate on, so we could see even further improvements from both next time around too.
- Apple AR headset price just leaked, and it’s as expensive as you’d expect
- The latest iOS 16 beta just added back one of my favorite features
- I bought an iPhone 13 right before the iPhone 14 comes out, and you should too
- Razr 2022: everything we know about Motorola’s next foldable
- Samsung’s next foldable might be a ‘Galaxy Z Tab’ tablet


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Air travel restrictions to ease with ‘air bubble’ countries
As of now, the authorities only allowed a limited category of people with resident permits to travel between countries.
India has started to ease air travel restrictions to and from the countries with which it has an ‘air bubble’ arrangement as a positive sign towards resumption of regular international air travel.
According to a report published in CNBC TV18, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) and Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) have taken a decision to relax norms on any type of visa for travel to and from India.
The Civil Aviation Ministry has made it easy for foreign nationals of these countries to avail Indian visa for travel related to business, medical and employment purposes, the report said. Similarly, Indian nationals looking to travel to countries with which India has an ‘air bubble’ arrangement, will be able to do so under the new norms, CNBC TV18 reported.
The ministry in a statement said, “Restrictions on the entry into India of OCI cardholders from countries with which MoCA has ‘air bubble’ arrangements have been removed. They are welcome to enter India.
Before the relaxation, the authorities only allowed a limited category of people with resident permits to travel between countries, the report mentioned.
An ‘air bubble’ arrangement is an agreement between countries allowing only a limited number of flights for people traveling as per the norms laid by the parties. India has an ‘air bubble’ agreement with the US, the UK. France, Germany, Kuwait and the UAE and it is planning to extend it to Canada and other countries.
The passengers traveling on ‘air bubble’ agreement will have to comply with the mandatory quarantine norms.


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Hogwarts Legacy was comfortably Europe’s best-selling game in the first half of 2023.
Sales of Warner’s fantasy title, which was released in February, were 69% higher than those recorded by Elden Ring in the first six months of 2022, when it also released in February and was Europe’s biggest game.
That’s according to GSD data published on GamesIndustry.biz, which covers physical game sales from major European markets and digital sales from most leading publishers, excluding Nintendo and 505 Games.
Despite only being released in June, Diablo 4 was the second biggest game of the year. Activision Blizzard said on Wednesday that over 10 million players “experienced” Diablo 4 worldwide during its launch month, making it the World of Warcraft studio’s fastest-selling title to date.
Despite being released in May and the fact that data doesn’t include digital sales for Nintendo’s games, Switch exclusive The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom charted at No.4. GSD said it was the best-selling physical game during the first half of the year.
76.1 million console and PC games were sold in Europe during the six-month period, which was up slightly year-over-year.
Physical sales accounted for 38.2% of overall sales (down 9% year-over-year) and digital sales for 61.8% (up 7% year-over-year).
The UK was Europe’s biggest market for game sales (15.3 million), ahead of Germany (14 million), France (11.1 million), Spain (5.4 million) and Italy (4.9 million).


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The developers of the shooter Fortnite received $3 billion profit.
Game Fortnite has become the most popular in the world and has helped Epic Games to a record profit of $3 billion.
Fortnite, in which you can play for free, earn money by selling digital items.
As said a source in the industry, founded in 1991, Epic has not provided separate data on revenues for its main hit, but the rate of profit, in combination with other data, “gives an idea of the success.”
As a private company, Epic, is carefully monitored and does not advertise its financial performance. But in November, according to estimates from Sensor Tower, iOS users spent $1,23 million a day. This helped the Bank game Fortnite to exceed the figure of $37 million and brought its total revenue on Apple to more than $385 million.
It should be noted that Fortnite is a cross-platform game which is also available on PlayStation, Xbox, Switch, PC, Mac, Android. The audience of the game – hundreds of millions of people around the world.
It is also interesting that in July the profit from Fortnite beginning to decline slightly, but the game remains one of the most profitable in the industry. In July 2018 cost Epic $14 billion, now it grew some more.
The company’s profit could be higher thanks to China, however, emits a Fortnite in the country Tencent has been unable to obtain the income from the game. The reason for this was a nine-month delay in registration of titles, which also affected the possibility of obtaining company funds with microtransactions.
Although Fortnite is the most fruitful release, Epic also makes money on other games and recently launched an online games store that competes with Steam. The main difference between the Epic store is that it gives developers 88 percent of their income, unlike that Valve – the company behind Steam – which takes a 30 percent.
© 2019, z-news.link. All rights reserved.


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It’s 7am as six rotor blades begin to whir on top of an agricultural drone the size of a dinner table. The machine hovers, spraying arms crouched around the central body like the legs of a spider, issuing a fine mist.
But this isn’t some lush pastoral setting, and the target of this spray isn’t a blanket of budding crops – this is downtown Sydney and the spray is a weaponised biological agent targeting morning commuters as they get off the train.
This is the horrorscape chief executive Oleg Vornik and the team at DroneShield are fighting to avoid.
First launched back in 2014, DroneShield was a pioneer in the anti-drone market. Where so many consumers saw a drone as a Christmas present for their tech-obsessed dad, Mr Vornik saw a technology that would evolve into a major criminal and terrorist threat.
DroneShield is a finalist for the InnovationAus Awards for Excellence 2021 in the Defence category, sponsored by Microsoft Australia.
“As drones continue to become more and more part of our society, along with all the positive uses like real estate agents taking movies of properties or people flying around beaches, come darker uses,” Mr Vornik said.
Terrorist organisations strapping grenades or chemical or biological weapons to them; ISIS conducting surveillance on the battlefield; criminals delivering drugs and cell phones and escape kits into prisons; drug cartels delivering drugs over the border.
These are, unfortunately, all very real and current criminal applications for commercially available drones like the one you might buy on Amazon for around A$2000.
Drone technology today has come a long way in a short period of time. “It’s unbelievable,” says Mr Vornik. “You can drive a drone wearing first person VR goggles like Oculus.”
“You feel like you’re inside the drone. They’re very easy to fly and the flight times have extended to hours at a time and distances that can often easily exceed 10km.
“[We also worry about] people flying drones around airports. Sometimes without any nefarious intent, but plane engines are built to withstand bird strikes, not metal objects with lithium-ion batteries. Those do blow up engines.”
The DroneShield suite of products vary in size and appearance from a 1kg device that can be worn on the body, to the DroneGun (which can be pointed in the general direction of a drone or fleet to disable an incoming threat), to permanent infrastructure installed on site.
The devices are highly specialised and sensitive to detect drones within a specified radius. They can distinguish a drone from, say, a bird or the fan on a roof-mounted cooling tower, and then disrupt the signal between the drone and its operator, which forces the drone to land. The drone can then be retrieved and forensically examined. DroneShield can also trace the location of the original operator.
DroneShield can detect and defeat any number of drones at once, meaning it is effective against fleets of drones: a style of attack that is of growing concern.
“In fact, the drones themselves would start getting confused before our equipment would,” Mr Vornik says.
In addition to locating 100 per cent of their research and development operations in Australia, Mr Vornik says that mum-and-dad investors are really the financial lifeblood of the company.
DroneShield IPO’d on the ASX in 2016 and to this day the stock is predominantly held by around 8000 private shareholders.
“When we started the counter-drone market did not really exist,” says Mr Vornik. “It was really tough: like flying a plane and fixing it at the same time.”
“The technology was brand new innovation, the technology itself was developing really rapidly, you’re building the team at the same time, you’re raising money at the same time, you’re kind of doing everything in parallel.
“We were fortunate that we managed to list on the ASX quite early on in [the company’s] life cycle. Without that public listing it would have been very hard for us.”
At this time, most of DroneShield’s customers are government agencies, although there is a growing market for drone-disabling products in commercial spaces like sports arenas.
Do you know more? Contact James Riley via Email.


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Why Potential Homebuyers Are Holding Off Many current prospective homebuyers want and need to purchase a home, but are delaying action to make it happen. Consumers continue to express concerns about recent weakening economic conditions and high home prices, according to Fannie Mae's …Read more. Most Renters Experience Financial Squeeze Surprisingly, people who rent their residence are most likely to be encountering financial problems, according to a recent study. More than one in four renters spends at least half of their household income on housing and utility costs, according to …Read more. Most Housing Markets Improving More than 60 percent of the top housing markets in the U.S. are now on a solid path of improvement, according to a national survey. Freddie Mac recently released its updated Multi-Indicator Market Index (MiMi). It showed the U.S. housing market …Read more. Home Staging: A Marketing Edge First impressions are the key to successfully marketing a home. More homeowners are recognizing this fact and taking action to maximize their home's first-impression appeal. Home staging is becoming an essential part of a marketing program for …Read more.more articles
Online Users Are More Skeptical
Recent studies have shown that most people start their search for a new home by accessing sites on the Internet, in addition to handling many financial affairs online. However, a growing proportion of online users have become very skeptical about privacy issues related to their online use.
More than one-fifth of adults — or 21 percent — say they've had an email or social media account hijacked, according to a new survey by the Pew Research Center. What's more, 11 percent say they've had important information stolen, such as a social security number, bank account number or credit card.
Most adults — nearly 60 percent — don't believe it's possible to be completely anonymous online, according to the survey of more than 1,000 adults. As such, many people say they take at least some steps to protect their privacy online.
In fact, 86 percent of Internet users say they've taken steps to remove or mask their digital footprint, via actions such as clearing cookies, encrypting email or using virtual networks to mask their Internet protocol address.
Fifty-five percent of the adults admit they've also taken steps to "avoid observation" by specific people, organizations or the government, according to the survey.
What you do online can also affect your reputation, as some of the adults surveyed learned. Six percent of adults say they've had their reputation damaged because of something that happened online, according to an article published by the National Association of Realtors.
Q: Why are residential rentals so active these days?
A: Single-family rentals appear poised to become a significant class of long-term investment asset, according to a new report by financial services firm Keefe, Bruyette and Woods.
The general increase in the rental market brought on by the recession, coupled with elements of recovery such as low inventory and strong re-sales suggest that broad institutional investment in single-family rental properties could emerge as an appealing market, attracting more players in the process.
To find out more about Jim Woodard and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.
COPYRIGHT 2013 CREATORS.COM


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Today Roku and the NBA announced a new partnership to launch a free NBA channel on the Roku Channel called NBA Zone.
This new free 24/7 channel will offer highlights of recent games, re-airings of NBA games, and other NBA programs on The Roku Channel.
“Roku offers the kind of sports streaming experience that no other platform has—everything is tailored to the fan, whether they’re a die-hard fanatic or just getting into the local team,” said Joe Franzetta, Head of Sports, Roku. “This strategic league partnership brings us a giant step further in our mission to make sports programming both easy to find and engaging to watch. We’re giving our users floor seats to an always-on experience, and we’re proud to be doing it in close collaboration with the NBA.”
“We’re thrilled to expand our partnership with Roku with the NBA’s first FAST Channel and other NBA content and functionality that will serve as an enticement and on-ramp to live NBA games,” said Greg Beaton, NBA Senior Vice President of Content Partnerships. “This partnership supports our goal of reaching NBA fans with our content in innovative ways.”
With this deal, Roku will also exclusively distribute over 40 live NBA 5 League games during the 2024–2025 NBA G League season.
“Bringing the NBA and the #1 TV streaming platform in the U.S. together in one package is not only good for the fans—it’s also great for advertisers looking to tap into the power of marketing in sports,” said Kristina Shepard, VP, Global Advertising Sales and Partnerships at Roku.“We’re excited to give brands the opportunity to reach our expanding, highly engaged audience, with some of the biggest moments of the basketball season yet to come.”
This partnership is a big win for Roku as it tries to bring in more exclusive sports rights.


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IBM stock falls on signs of slowdown in demand
(AP)—IBM's stock fell more than 5 percent Wednesday, after the company reported disappointing third-quarter revenue and suggested that demand in key markets may be slowing.
Shares ended the trading session down $10.69, or 5.1 percent, at $200.31. The earnings report was released after the market closed on Tuesday.
The Armonk, New York, company blamed global economic deterioration and a drop in the value of the euro for the 5 percent drop in its revenue in the July-September period. It came to $24.7 billion, $700 million less than analysts expected.
Revenue in its region that includes Europe declined 9 percent, more than any other part of the world. The weaker euro contributed to the erosion. That's because sales made in Europe are converting into fewer U.S. dollars than a year ago.
IBM management also raised the specter of slowing demand for the company's technology-consulting services and business-software products, as corporate customers become more cautious and debt-laden government agencies deal with budget cuts.
Janney analyst Joseph Foresi cut his rating for the company to "Neutral" from "Buy." He said the 40 percent gain in IBM's stock since the end of 2010, to an all-time high of $211.79 earlier this month, made it too expensive given tough economic conditions. He also said that the company has "execution issues" in its global technology services division, which makes up 40 percent of revenue. He has a price target of $209 on the shares.
Despite worries about IT demand, IBM Corp. stood behind its earnings forecast for the year, saying it will get a boost in the fourth quarter from completing several business software deals that didn't get done during the summer.
Citi analyst Jim Suva backed his "Buy" rating for IBM, saying it was "impressive" that the company maintained its profit guidance. He has a $250 price target on the stock.
Sterne Agee analyst Shaw Wu said the problems "appear short-term in nature where a few larger software deals closed after quarter end and likely pause ahead of new hardware refreshes."
Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.


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In Telangana, People Level Up Their Passion For Gardening As Rooftop Urban Gardens Become A Hit
A few entrepreneurs in Telangana have set up a new concept - rooftop gardening which has helped them to earn the name and won hearts too.
Kota Elizabeth says that COVID lockdown for months has developed her interest in gardening.
Now, she has a terrace spread over around 1200 square feet and a plentiful garden of leafy vegetables, brinjal, okra, and bottle gourd, and fruits ranging from guava, mulberry, fig, passion fruit, miracle fruit, lemon, orange, pineapple, grapes, and even five different varieties of mangoes.
Eli’s World with 6,200 subscribers
The 47-year-old woman has started a YouTube channel too a year ago with the name- Eli’s World. With about 6,200 subscribers now and constant engagement with her viewers, she believes people’s interest in rooftop gardens is on the rise.
“With a zero budget, you can grow anything on your terrace. Through my channel, I share my knowledge and experience in growing vegetables and fruits. Since I am passionate about cooking, I do videos on a variety of dishes that can be cooked post the harvest,” a B. Com graduate who lives with her family on the outskirts of Secunderabad told The Indian Express.
A Latha is another successful YouTuber, whose terrace garden is spread over 1800 sq. ft.
‘Latha’s terrace garden’
She has eight varieties of mangoes, six types of custard apples, 14 types of guava, egg fruit, miracle fruit, strawberry, pineapple, and several others including five varieties of bananas. ‘Latha’s terrace garden’, a YouTube channel has over 11,000 subscribers today.
“Now that one’s focus is on wellness and immunity, people understand the importance of chemical-free fruits and vegetables in their diet. And many people like me have demonstrated how to grow on a terrace even fruits that are not suitable for our climate,” she said.
‘Manikonda Hanumatha Rao Terrace Garden’
M Hanumantha Rao, an ex-serviceman from Kushaiguda said that he has a passion for growing vegetables and fruits—which took a giant leap for him in 2019 when he started his YouTube channel ‘Manikonda Hanumatha Rao Terrace Garden’. The channel is Rao’s medium to communicate with his 34,000 subscribers as he responds to their queries and even sends them his home-grown seeds by post, free of cost.
“Earlier, too, people were interested in knowing but now they are interested and also follow up with action. Once a person sees his/her plants grow, they will be hooked on to them for life,” said 62-year-old, who has been promoting kitchen compost as a key component for terrace gardening.
‘Noorjahan terrace garden’
Shaik Noorjahan, 52, “It takes only 20 days to prepare compost from kitchen waste. With some soil and dung, healthy plants can be grown anywhere. Especially post-Covid, I am getting a lot of inquiries from smaller towns where people prefer naturally grown vegetables over what’s available in the market.”
She started a YouTube channel ‘Noorjahan terrace garden’ in 2019 and has 700 videos and over 53,000 subscribers to date.
For more on news, sports, and current affairs from around the world, please visit Indiatimes News.


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If TikTok is banned in the US, Meta is likely to be the biggest winner, alongside YouTube and Snap, according to research and brokerage firm Bernstein.
Ahead of TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew’s appearance before Congress on Thursday, the research firm said in a note to customers that if the ByteDance app is banned from the United States, Meta could quickly attract many users and minutes to the app. .
Chew is set to testify before Congress after multiple calls to ban the short video app in the country and pressure the Biden administration’s ByteDance to sell TikTok US or it will be banned.
“Users go where they already are. It’s probably Instagram’s Reels, which users are already looking at most short videos outside of TikTok, and Snap’s Spotlight, which offers the highest demographic overlap with TikTok, those should be the big winners,” the note said.
Meta, Google and Snap could see an increase in revenue due to TikTok’s absence, which could likely benefit their stocks as well, Bernstein’s note said. TikTok’s projected revenue in the US was expected to be in the range of $7 billion to $8 billion, the note said.
“Advertisement dollars go where advertisers feel most comfortable with the highest ROI. Meta again seems like the most likely winner with best-in-class ad products, including SFV, while YouTube bids the largest overlap of branded campaign objectives. YouTube was also probably the biggest share TikTok ad donor and be able to watch ad dollars come home,” the note said.
Users go where they already are. It’s probably Instagram Reels and Snap Spotlight that should be the biggest winners. Bernstein
Earlier this week, Chew said Tikok has more than 150 million users in the US. Bernstein estimates that these users collectively spend more than 2.8 trillion minutes per year on the app, putting TikTok second for minutes spent per day per user (52 minutes), just behind Netflix.
In 2020, India banned TikTok due to its Chinese ownership and concerns about the app threatening “the country’s national security and defence”. Soon local apps like ShareChat’s Moj, Times Internet’s MX Takatak (now acquired by ShareChat) and Google-backed VerSe Innovation’s Josh quickly gained a number of TikTok users, international players like Instagram, YouTube and Snap also jumped at the opportunity with short-format videos.
Bernstein noted that it doesn’t see a similar scenario of local TikTok clones emerging in the US
Given recent gestures from the White House, legislators and federal law enforcement agencies, Chew faces a potentially hard turn under the glare of the government’s big, bright lights.
Ahead of his congressional testimony, Chew shared a prepared statement saying that the belief that TikTok is “beholden” to the Chinese government is false.
“…I understand that there are concerns arising from the imprecise belief that TikTok’s corporate structure is beholden to the Chinese government or that it shares information about US users with the Chinese government,” Chew said.
“This is emphatically not true. Let me say this unequivocally: ByteDance is not an agent of China or any other country.”
TikTok has spent more than $1.5 billion on Project Texas, which aims to appease US authorities regarding the security and transparency of the app’s US operations.
The company has also highlighted how the app contributes to the economy, saying that more than 5 million businesses use TikTok. In addition, the app employs more than 7,000 people in the country. A number of creators, along with some Democratic representatives, are siding with TikTok and protesting the potential ban in Washington DC.


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Racked is no longer publishing. Thank you to everyone who read our work over the years. The archives will remain available here; for new stories, head over to Vox.com, where our staff is covering consumer culture for The Goods by Vox. You can also see what we’re up to by signing up here.
The giants of luxury retail are still trying to figure out the internet, and the chairman of Richemont Johann Rupert's big idea is to band them all together to compete against Amazon. Reuters quotes Rupert as saying at a conference in Monaco on Monday: "I was speaking to (LVMH CEO) Arnault, I was speaking to Kering ... We need a platform that is big enough for the luxury goods industry."
That platform would be Yoox Net-A-Porter, the company formed when Richemont sold Net-A-Porter to Yoox in March in an all-share deal. "I want to create a platform that is open to everyone, it is up to them (LVMH and Kering) now. ... I think it is a too big a game for any company to dominate," Rupert said. Richemont hopes that other luxury brands like Chanel, Valentino, and Dolce & Gabbana could invest in the new platform and commit to sell their goods online.
Rupert said last month that online retail is a "big boys' game ... not for the faint-hearted," and that merging Yoox and Net-A-Porter was necessary to compete in the market. Richemont will own 50% of Yoox Net-A-Porter Group, although its voting rights will be capped at 25%.


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Domestic experts suggested allocating government orders, grants and subsidies to Kazakh authors
Domestic experts of the book industry discussed the difficulties faced by Kazakh authors when publishing books, and measures to support them. On December 10, a series of expert discussions started under the “Creative Industries” of the Nursultan Nazarbayev Foundation managers’ team for managing industry changes’.
Opening the site, Darmen Sadvakasov, managing partner of Dasco Consulting group, noted the importance of developing the sphere: “If you look at international experience, creative industries can contribute to economic growth. However, we have barriers to the development of publishing and literature in Kazakhstan.”
He said that a team of industry managers analyzed the dynamics of the development of the domestic creative industry. The results showed that the publication of printed materials in Kazakhstan for 10 years has grown by only 10-15%. This is the lowest growth among all segments.
The speakers spoke about the reasons for the poor development of the book industry during an online conference.
Vadim Golenko, General Director of “Meloman” Marwin, noted the growing interest of the Kazakh reader in domestic literature – in 2018, 315 books were published, and in 2019 – 578. At the same time, the speaker voiced specific problems, one of which is the high cost of publishing books.
“To let in a small edition of the book you need 5 million tenge. Where does a potential writer get that kind of money? This is an unaffordable amount for many people,” Vadim Golenko said.
Writer, journalist, winner of the International Prizes in the field of fantastic literature, Azamat Baigaliyev, noted that another problem is the absence of the literature industry in Kazakhstan, the system of translating fiction, in particular.
In order to increase public interest in reading books by Kazakh authors, it is necessary to identify the best writers and poets in the country, create conditions for self-realization and support the release of their works. These conclusions were reached by experts following the discussion.
To solve these problems, experts have proposed a number of measures. In particular, Orazkhan Zhakup , the head of Khan Comics, director of animated films, screenwriter expressed an idea to create a monthly collection of comics and short stories by aspiring writers.
“Readers could vote for specific works. Then it would be possible to sum up the results and support the best with state grants, help them publish. This is a good incentive for the development of their creativity,” explained Zhakup.
Supporting the idea of state support, Darmen Sadvakasov spoke about the experience of Great Britain, where the authors of creative works are paid subsidies when they reach a certain level of sales.
At the same time, the speakers took the initiative to create a support Center for writers in Kazakhstan to select the best authors. The selected books are offered to be translated into foreign languages in order to promote them for export.
The collected ideas and suggestions will be taken into account in the development concept of the creative Kazakh industry. The cycle of discussions on the development of the industry will be held until December 28.


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Apple on Tuesday named John Browett, CEO of British consumer electronics chain Dixons, as its senior vice president of retail.
Browett will begin his job in April and report to Apple CEO Tim Cook, according to an Apple press release. Browett, who held various executive positions at Tesco before joining Dixons in 2007, replaces Ron Johnson, who left Apple last June to become CEO of J.C. Penney.
Johnson joined Apple in 2000 and was on hand to launch the company's first Apple Stores. As he recalled in a recent Harvard Business Review column, many of the fixtures of the Apple Stores, including the Genius Bars, didn't take off right away.
"No one came to the Genius Bar during the first years,” Johnson wrote. “We even had Evian water in refrigerators for customers to try to get them to sit down and spend time at the bar.” Johnson went on to say that Apple stuck with the Genius Bars anyway because “we knew that face-to-face support was the very best way to help customers.” Within three years, Genius Bars were so popular that Apple had to set up a reservation system.
Though Johnson was a big part of the creation of Apple Stores, as Walter Isaacson's Steve Jobs bio noted, the company's late founder obsessed on all kinds of details related to the Stores, including the type of stone used for the flooring. (Jobs chose a gray-blue Pietera Serena sandstone from Il Casone, a family-owned quarry in Firenzoula, Italy, just outside of Florence.)
According to The Guardian, Browett is likely to be a good fit at Apple since he doesn't wear a suit and tie and abhors the boardroom approach to business. Though Dixons suffered a decline in sales over the holidays, The Guradian notes that, "most of the City's retail watchers agreed Browett had done a terrific job of turning around the high street electronics chain. Since he joined Dixons from Tesco in 2007 he's made a good stab at repairing the chain's reputation for shoddy customer service, and improving its financial position."


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Yes, I agree.
I don't agree.
What's new – recent press releases
Eve Outdoor Cam
The first floodlight camera designed exclusively for HomeKit Secure Video goes on sale


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UBM announced its initial lineup of exhibitors for Licensing Expo, the world’s largest and most influential licensing industry event, taking place May 23-25, 2017, at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center in Las Vegas, NV.
Sponsored by the International Licensing Industry Merchandisers’ Association (LIMA), the 2017 event is on track to include many exciting new exhibitors and feature a dynamic show floor.
Jessica Blue, Senior Vice President, Licensing, UBM: “Each of these unique companies is coming to Licensing Expo to find new partners in the growing licensing marketplace. Licensing Expo features the who’s who of the $251.7* billion licensing industry, building relationships and creating opportunities. If you’re in the licensing industry, you’re in Las Vegas at Licensing Expo in May.”
More than 5,000 brands will be showcased at Licensing Expo 2017. New exhibitors include Atlantyca Entertainment, Ben Cooper Halloween Costumes, Bigfoot 4×4, Coca-Cola, FAO Schwarz, French Bull, Goddard Film Group, Hang Ten and Yale University. With many new exhibitors joining every week, these are just a few of the many hundreds of exciting exhibitors that will be represented at the event in May.
David Conn, Spokesperson, ThreeSixty Group: “FAO Schwarz, now owned by ThreeSixty Group, will be bigger and better than ever in 2017. With an estimated presence in more than 1000 top U.S. specialty and department stores, the coming holiday season looks bright. Attending Licensing Expo in May is a key part of the expansion strategy for the upcoming year as FAO Schwarz is evaluating select licensing partners in the marketplace.”
Thousands of brands will return to the 2017 lineup including: A+E Networks, AT&T, BBC Worldwide, BMW, Capcom, Crayola, Edge Americas Sports Inc., Energizer, Ford, Grumpy Cat, Kathy Ireland, National Wildlife Federation, and Starter, among many others.


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One of the things that needs to be listed in the legacy of the Obama Administration is the dividing of Americans into sub-groups. It seems as if we are no longer Americans–we are Hispanics, Blacks, feminists, etc. Occasionally this reaches a point where it is not only ridiculous, but harmful to innocent people.
The Daily Wire posted an article on its website yesterday that illustrates how silly we have become.
The following story is featured on a number of websites, this is from CSNBBS:
Just one week after Kooks Burritos in Portland, Ore., was featured in a profile for local publication Willamette Week, the pop-up Mexican food cart has closed down amid accusations that they ripped off their recipes.
Kali Wilgus and Liz “LC” Connelly, the two white women who started Kooks earlier this year, have been accused of stealing their techniques from the “tortilla ladies” of Puerto Nuevo, Mexico — because Connelly told Willamette Week that they gathered their recipes and tortilla-making processes during a holiday road-trip to the Baja California village.
“I picked the brains of every tortilla lady there in the worst broken Spanish ever, and they showed me a little of what they did,” she told the site. “They told us the basic ingredients, and we saw them moving and stretching the dough similar to how pizza makers do before rolling it out with rolling pins.”
Note that the tortilla ladies were in Puerto Nuevo, Mexico–they were not running competing restaurants in Portland, Oregon.
The Daily Wire explains what happened next:
Getting a whiff of Wilgus and Connelly’s process of creating tortilla recipes, leftist outlets like Mic.com and The Portland Mercury pounced: painting the female entrepreneurs contributing to society as racist, sticky-fingered villains.
“Because of Portland’s underlying racism, the people who rightly own these traditions and cultures that exist are already treated poorly. These appropriating businesses are erasing and exploiting their already marginalized identities for the purpose of profit and praise,” accused The Portland Mercury.
“People of color are nothing more than an afterthought when the white perpetrators of this tradition continue to do this on a regular basis. While Portland is supposedly a progressive place, super liberal white people usually only have other super white liberal people to answer to — which means this cycle of cultural appropriation will never end until people of color call attention to it,” the piece continued.
Soon after, the business was forced into closing its doors, and its online presence has all but disappeared. The Portland Mercury called the closure a “victory.”
That is so sad. It is also stupid. These people are proud because they took the livelihood away from the owners of the business because the owners of the business learned how to do something from someone the liberals regarded as underprivileged. So if I go to Italy and watch people make pizza and come home and open a pizza stand, should I be put out of business? Can only Chinese people own Chinese restaurants?
Our Founding Fathers, who believed in free enterprise and free markets, are turning over in their graves.


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It might feel like warmer weather is still months away, but in the world of fashion, Spring 2018 has officially arrived. We're tracking every single campaign from the season — keep up with us here.
In a classic New York City setting, Selena Gomez rests on a window ledge accompanied by the golden Manhattan skyline and a quilted leather bag for Coach's Spring 2018 ad, lensed by Steven Meisel. The singer and actress wears a beaded slip dress and brings an understated glamour to the campaign imagery with her casually pinned up hair, styled by Guido Palau, and her thick brows and subtle lips courtesy of Pat McGrath.
"The Coach girl is real — she's riding the subway or, this season, hanging out in her cool NYC apartment," said creative director Stuart Vevers in a release. "Steven Meisel's photography brings a layer of magic to those seemingly everyday situations. Whilst Selena has a warmth that's special — there is also an authenticity and realness to her that brings the campaign to life."
Ever since taking over as the creative lead at Coach in 2013, Stuart Vevers has assembled an all-star troupe of artists, stylists, photographers and designers that continually find ways to celebrate the brand's age-old roots in New York City — and this campaign is yet another love letter to its American past. "Creative Director Stuart Vevers makes New York feel like a town, a real community," said Gomez in a press statement. "It just feels like this is where the brand really lives."
See more images from Coach's Spring 2018 ad campaign in the gallery below.
The campaign also includes a short film featuring outtakes from the shoot, set to the tune of Gomez's newest single, "Wolves," which you can watch below.


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Microsoft is often changing its framework of Windows 10, and adjusting how it handles payments within the operating system. Recent updates have shown that Microsoft Wallet is a thing of the past.
In the most recent Windows 10 builds, more and more people are starting to see Microsoft Pay pop up in the ecosystem. This makes sense as Microsoft Wallet was somewhat unused.
What users will start to see with Windows 10, is the transition of Microsoft Wallet to Microsoft Pay. The rebranding of Microsoft Pay has been since the Creators Update, but users aren’t using it much.
Microsoft Pay is a new set of payments framework built within Windows 10, and Microsoft has setup a test site for developers to try out. It’s a fully setup site, and is meant to get Windows 10 users using it.
Windows Phone Payments No More
Microsoft had been using the Microsoft Wallet payment framework in its Windows Phone and previous Windows releases, so the new name might throw people for a change. But, Windows Phone didn’t have much traction, so thats a help.
Many other tech companies have been changing their payment names, like Apple and Google. By naming it Microsoft Pay, Microsoft might be able to get people paying for things over Windows 10 more often.
Microsoft Pay appears here to stay. It’s a new rebranding of Microsoft Wallet, so stay tuned for updates.


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- A 2012 nutritional analysis of GMO versus non-GMO corn shows shocking differences in nutritional content. Non-GMO corn contains 437 times more calcium, 56 times more magnesium, and 7 times more manganese than GMO corn
- GMO corn was also found to contain 13 ppm of glyphosate, compared to zero in non-GMO corn. EPA “safe” level for glyphosate in American water supplies is 0.7 ppm, and organ damage in animals has occurred at levels as low as 0.1 ppm
- GMO corn contains extremely high levels of formaldehyde—about 200 times the amount found toxic to animals
- Research by a Texas teenager using fruit flies, which began when she was in middle school, shows that in virtually every health measure, including fertility, stress resistance and longevity, flies that fed on organic bananas and potatoes fared better than those who fed on conventionally raised produce. Her research was recently published in a respected science journal
I’ve warned you of the potential dangers of genetically engineered (GE) foods for many years now, pointing out that such crops might have wholly unforeseen consequences. In recent years, such suspicions have increasingly proven correct.
One of the latest pieces of evidence supporting the suspicion that GE crops are in no way, shape or form comparable to their natural counterparts is a nutritional analysis that shows just how different they really are.
Inherent differences are essentially implied by the fact that GE crop seeds can be patented in the first place. And in many ways, I believe Monsanto is slowly but surely inching its way toward patenting nature itself, in the same way others are fighting to maintain patent rights for human DNA.1
These companies are trying to patent “life,” and they likely will unless they’re stopped by the courts. But it’s quite clear that humans cannot outsmart nature.
The latest nutritional analysis of GE corn couldn’t be more relevant as the recently passed Agricultural Appropriations Bill (HR9332) included a hotly detested provision (Section 735) that places Monsanto above the law. As noted by the featured article:3
“With the recent passing of the Monsanto Protection Act, there is no question that mega corporations like Monsanto are able to wield enough power to even surpass that of the United States government.
The new legislation provides Monsanto with a legal safeguard against federal courts striking down any pending review of dangerous genetically modified crops. It is ironic to see the passing of such a bill in the face of continuous releases of GMO dangers.”
At present, the only way to avoid GMOs is to ditch processed foods from your grocery list, and revert back to whole foods grown according to organic standards.
Analysis Finds Monsanto’s GE Corn Nutritionally Inferior and High in Toxins
A report given to MomsAcrossAmerica4 by an employee of De Dell Seed Company (Canada’s only non-GMO corn seed company) offers a stunning picture of the nutritional differences between genetically engineered (GE) and non-GE corn. Clearly, the former is NOT equivalent to the latter, which is the very premise by which genetically engineered crops were approved in the first place.
Here’s a small sampling of the nutritional differences found in this 2012 nutritional analysis:
- Calcium: GMO corn = 14 ppm / Non-GMO corn = 6,130 ppm (437 times more)
- Magnesium: GMO corn = 2 ppm / Non-GMO corn = 113 ppm (56 times more)
- Manganese: GMO corn = 2 ppm / Non-GMO corn = 14 ppm (7 times more)
GMO corn was also found to contain 13 ppm of glyphosate, compared to zero in non-GMO corn. This is quite significant and well worth remembering.
The Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) “safe” level for glyphosate in American water supplies is 0.7 ppm. In Europe, the maximum allowable level in water is 0.2 ppm. Organ damage in animals has occurred at levels as low as 0.1 ppm… At 13 ppm, GMO corn contains more than 18 times the “safe” level of glyphosate set by the EPA.
This is truly disturbing when you consider the fact that in countries like Argentina, glyphosate is blamed for the dramatic increase in devastating birth defects as well as cancer. Sterility and miscarriages are also increasing. This may be due to its similarity to DDT, which is well-known to cause reproductive problems, among other things.
Another health hazard associated with glyphosate is its effect on gut bacteria. Not only does it promote the growth of more virulent pathogens, it also kills off beneficial bacteria that might keep such pathogens in check—both in the soil, and in the gut of animals or humans that ingest the contaminated crop.
It’s important to understand that the glyphosate actually becomes systemic throughout the plant, so it cannot be washed off. It’s inside the plant. And once you eat it, it ends up in your gut where it can wreak total havoc with your health, considering the fact that 80 percent of your immune system resides there and is dependent on a healthy ratio of good and bad bacteria.
An additional disturbing piece of information is that GMO corn contained extremely high levels of formaldehyde. According to Dr. Huber, at least one study found that 0.97 ppm of ingested formaldehyde was toxic to animals. GMO corn contains a staggering 200 times that amount! Perhaps it’s no wonder that animals, when given a choice, avoid genetically engineered feed.
Next Up: Genetically Engineered Apples, Using New GE Technique
Besides so-called Roundup Ready crops, genetically engineered to resist otherwise lethal doses of glyphosate, there are other types of GE food crops. Another equally troublesome one is Bt crops, engineered in such a way as to contain a toxic protein within the plant itself. These were created by inserting a foreign gene into the plant in question.
Now we’re looking at yet another type of genetic engineering technology: RNA interference (RNAi), also known as post transcriptional gene silencing (PTGS).
According to the Organic Consumers Association (OCA),5 apples modified using this technique are slated for approval by the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) sometime this year. The apple will not require approval by the FDA, which is responsible for human food and animal feed. It only needs approval by the USDA, which is responsible for protecting agriculture from pests and plant diseases.
The new GMO Arctic® Apple does not turn brown when sliced or bitten into. For the cosmetic “advantage” of these genetically engineered apples, you get to be a test subject for yet another untested genetic modification technology. How’s that for a bargain?
According to OCA, non-organic apples are already among the most pesticide-laden foods sold. In the Pesticide Action Network’s analysis of the most recent USDA data, apples tested positive for 42 different pesticides, including two endocrine disrupting pesticides (organophosphate and pyrethroid). The additional risk of untested tinkering with the RNA is not a step in the right direction if we want safer, healthier foods. The OCA writes:6
“[U]nlike the case with GMO corn or salmon, scientists aren’t injecting pesticides or genes from foreign plants or animals into the genes of apples to create the Frankenapple. While most existing genetically engineered plants are designed to make new proteins, the Arctic Apple is engineered to produce a form of genetic information called double-stranded RNA (dsRNA). The new dsRNA alters the way genes are expressed. The result, in the Arctic Apple’s case, is a new double strand of RNA that genetically ‘silences’ the apple’s ability to produce polyphenol oxidase, an enzyme that causes the apple to turn brown when it’s exposed to oxygen.
Harmless? The biotech industry, OSF and some scientists say yes. But others, including Professor Jack Heinemann (University of Canterbury, New Zealand), Sarah Agapito-Tenfen (from Santa Catarina University in Brazil) and Judy Carman (Flinders University in South Australia), say that dsRNA manipulation is untested, and therefore inherently risky.
Recent research has shown that dsRNAs can transfer from plants to humans and other animals through food. The biotech industry has always claimed that genetically engineered DNA or RNA is destroyed by human digestion, eliminating the danger of these mutant organisms damaging human genes or human health. But many biotech scientists say otherwise. They point to evidence that the manipulated RNA finds its way into our digestive systems and bloodstreams, potentially damaging or silencing vital human genes.”
OCA also points out the indirect health consequences. The chemical compound used in the RNA manipulation process is one that also combats plant pests. So what might conceivably happen when you compromise the fruit’s ability to fend off insects? As noted by OCA, most likely, growers will have to start using more pesticides—on a fruit that’s already among the most heavily sprayed. In the end, all those pesticides end up in your body and, certainly, avoiding toxic exposures is important if you want to protect your health.
Despite What You Are Told GE Crops Are NOT the ‘Most Tested’ Product in the World
It’s important to realize that genetically engineered (GE) foods have never been proven safe for human consumption over a lifetime, let alone over generations. Monsanto and its advocates claim genetically engineered crops are “the most-tested food product that the world has ever seen.” What they don’t tell you is that:
- Industry-funded research predictably affects the outcome of the trial. This has been verified by dozens of scientific reviews comparing funding with the findings of the study. When industry funds the research, it’s virtually guaranteed to be positive. Therefore, independent studies must be done to replicate and thus verify results
- The longest industry-funded animal feeding study was 90 days, which recent research has confirmed is FAR too short. In the world’s first independently funded lifetime feeding study, massive health problems set in during and after the 13th month, including organ damage and cancer
- Companies like Monsanto and Syngenta rarely if ever allow independent researchers access to their patented seeds, citing the legal protection these seeds have under patent laws. Hence, independent research is extremely difficult or nearly impossible to conduct. If these scientists get seeds from a farmer, they sue them into oblivion as one of their favorite tactics is to use the legal system to their advantage. Additionally, virtually all academic agricultural research is controlled by Monsanto as they are the primary supporters of these departments and none will risk losing their funding from them
- There is no safety monitoring. Meaning, once the GE item in question has been approved, not a single country on earth is actively monitoring and tracking reports of potential health effects
Middle School Student’s Brilliant Experiment
Speaking of research; while there’s no research to support the long-term safety of GMOs, studies do show that organic foods are safer than their conventional counterparts in terms of toxic exposure, and likely far more nutritious as well.
Three years ago, middle school student Ria Chhabra created a science fair project to help settle a debate between her parents, revolving around whether or not organic foods have merit. Now 16 and a sophomore at Clark High School in Plano, Texas, Ria’s continued research into the effect of organic food on fruit flies has earned her top honors in a national science competition, and her work was recently published in the respected scientific journal, PloS One.7 As reported by the New York Times:8
“The research, titled Organically Grown Food Provides Health Benefits to Drosophila Melanogaster, tracked the effects of organic and conventional diets on the health of fruit flies. By nearly every measure, including fertility, stress resistance and longevity, flies that fed on organic bananas and potatoes fared better than those who dined on conventionally raised produce.
While the results can’t be directly extrapolated to human health, the research nonetheless paves the way for additional studies on the relative health benefits of organic versus conventionally grown food…
The difference in outcomes among the flies fed different diets could be due to the effects of pesticide and fungicide residue from conventionally raised foods. Or it could be that the organic-fed flies thrived because of a higher level of nutrients in the organic produce. One intriguing idea raises the question of whether organically raised plants produce more natural compounds to ward off pests and fungi, and whether those compounds offer additional health benefits to flies, animals and humans who consume organic foods.”
While the scientific merit of organic food continues to be studied and debated among scientists and laypeople alike, the issue has been settled in the Chhabra household. According to Ria, all the fresh produce the family buys is now organic.
Keep Fighting for Labeling of Genetically Engineered Foods
While California Prop. 37 failed to pass last November, by a very narrow margin, the fight for GMO labeling is far from over. The field-of-play has now moved to the state of Washington, where the people’s initiative 522, “The People’s Right to Know Genetically Engineered Food Act,” will require food sold in retail outlets to be labeled if it contains genetically engineered ingredients. As stated on LabelitWA.org:
“Calorie and nutritional information were not always required on food labels. But since 1990 it has been required and most consumers use this information every day. Country-of-origin labeling wasn’t required until 2002. The trans fat content of foods didn’t have to be labeled until 2006. Now, all of these labeling requirements are accepted as important for consumers. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) also says we must know with labeling if our orange juice is from fresh oranges or frozen concentrate.
Doesn’t it make sense that genetically engineered foods containing experimental viral, bacterial, insect, plant or animal genes should be labeled, too? Genetically engineered foods do not have to be tested for safety before entering the market. No long-term human feeding studies have been done. The research we have is raising serious questions about the impact to human health and the environment.
I-522 provides the transparency people deserve. I-522 will not raise costs to consumers or food producers. It simply would add more information to food labels, which manufacturers change routinely anyway, all the time. I-522 does not impose any significant cost on our state. It does not require the state to conduct label surveillance, or to initiate or pursue enforcement. The state may choose to do so, as a policy choice, but I-522 was written to avoid raising costs to the state or consumers.”
Remember, as with CA Prop. 37, they need support of people like YOU to succeed. Prop. 37 failed with a very narrow margin simply because we didn’t have the funds to counter the massive ad campaigns created by the No on 37 camp, led by Monsanto and other major food companies. Let’s not allow Monsanto and its allies to confuse and mislead the people of Washington and Vermont as they did in California. So please, I urge you to get involved and help in any way you can, regardless of what state you live in.
- No matter where you live in the United States, please donate money to these labeling efforts through the Organic Consumers Fund.
- If you live in Washington State, please sign the I-522 petition. You can also volunteer to help gather signatures across the state.
- For timely updates on issues relating to these and other labeling initiatives, please join the Organic Consumers Association on Facebook, or follow them on Twitter.
- Talk to organic producers and stores and ask them to actively support the Washington initiative.
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Tucson has a new breakfast hot spot.
Nearly three months after it was supposed to open, the Tucson outpost of Colorado-born Snooze an A.M. Eatery opened on Wednesday.
It is one of several Tucson restaurants opening in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, which means the 4,000-square-foot restaurant will have seating for half its capacity in keeping with state-mandated social distancing requirements.
The midtown restaurant in the new Grant Modern complex at 2500 E. Grant Road, at North Tucson Boulevard, also has put in place safety and sanitizing protocols that include requiring employees to wear masks and gloves, requiring diners to wear masks while moving around the restaurant, and conducting wellness checks of employees before every shift. The restaurant also has installed touchless menus and ordering and designated an employee to clean and sanitize tables after every service, company officials said.
Food can also be ordered to go, including the house special pineapple upside-down pancakes, or the breakfast burrito stuffed with cage-free scrambled eggs, black beans and hash browns and topped with cheese, pico de gallo and red ranchero or green chile sauce.
This is Snooze’s first Tucson and Southern Arizona location, joining six other restaurants in the Phoenix area. Brothers Jon and Adam Schlegel opened their first location in Denver in 2006 and have grown the chain to more than 40 restaurants, most of them in Colorado and Texas.
Growth plans for 2020 include expanding into Georgia as well as adding several new restaurants to its stable. But the company’s bigger goals are to become more sustainable, from expanding its reliance on locally sourced food to reducing its carbon footprint in its building projects (using recycled materials) and waste generation by establishing zero landfill-waste kitchen operations.
Snooze is open 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. weekdays and 6:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. weekends. You can order online at snoozeeatery.com.
Contact reporter Cathalena E. Burch at firstname.lastname@example.org or 573-4642.


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ALCOHOL drinkers and smokers will be forced to dig deeper into their pockets after Finance Minister Thabo Sophonea proposed to finally implement the sin tax which will see alcohol and tobacco levies increased by 15 and 30 percent respectively.
Presenting his budget speech in parliament yesterday, Mr Sophonea said “during 2021/22 fiscal year, the government intends to introduce…an alcohol and tobacco levy at 15 and 30 percent, respectively”.
He said the government hoped to realise an additional M286, 6 million in revenue annually from the levies.
The levies have been on the cards since 2019 when former Finance Minister and current Prime Minister Moeketsi Majoro announced that the government intended to increase the levies during the 2019/2020 financial year.
The levies were not implemented due to the absence of enabling legislation. In March 2020, Dr Majoro tabled the Tobacco and Alcohol Products Levy Bill 2020 in parliament to give the government the legal basis to implement the levies.
However, the increases may finally be effected during the 2021/2022 financial year provided the Tobacco and Alcohol Products Levy Bill is approved by parliament this year.
Last year, parliament’s economic and development cluster portfolio committee expressed reservations on passing the bill after hearing presentations from stakeholders who opposed it.
At the time, the Lesotho Liquor and Restaurant Owners’ Association (LLROA) said implementing the levy would kill the industry as increasing prices would reduce consumption of alcohol leading to job losses in the retail sector. Maluti Mountain Brewery (MMB) said the levy would result in the alcohol industry declining by 27 percent.
British American Tobacco (BAT), the distributor different brands of cigarettes, said implementing the levies would cost Lesotho “big time”.
The BAT also said the levy would be in contravention of the Southern African Customs Union (SACU) agreement since it was tantamount to a unilateral sin tax imposition by a member state.
“It is also our respectful view that the imposition of a levy would contravene the SACU Agreement, more particularly in that the levy in reality constitutes a unilateral ‘sin tax’ by a member state, which operates outside the revenue sharing and collection arrangement,” Nelson Jeque, BAT’s Legal and external affairs manager said in a statement at the time.
He said the sale and distribution of tobacco products sustains at least 1 500 jobs in Lesotho while also generating over M12 billion revenue for the SACU revenue pool.
“This amount is shared among the SACU member states, including Lesotho. Historically, this high rate of taxation has opened up the SACU markets, including Lesotho to smuggled tobacco products from other non-SACU markets, thereby significantly impacting the excise revenues for SACU.”
Mr Jeque said it was clear that the levies would “undoubtedly rapidly fuel the growth of the illicit market in Lesotho, translating to further revenue losses for government and the demise of the legal market together with the value chain it supports”.
He said the levy would be passed on to consumers by the legal industry thereby resulting in a further gap between the cigarette prices charged by the legal players compared to the prices of illicit cigarettes on the market.
“Accordingly, there will be a remarkable upsurge in illicit tobacco products on the market, leading to further erosion of government revenues from the industry.”
He said the implementation of the levy would leave a pack of 20 cigarettes costing M13 more in Lesotho than in South Africa and M18 and M23 more expensive than in Mozambique and Zambia respectively.
He said the levy would enable massive lucrative opportunities for smugglers while punishing taxpaying enterprises.
After hearing the industry players’ submissions, the parliamentary committee advised that it would be better for the government to come up with control measures against alcohol and tobacco abuse instead of imposing a levy.
But after Mr Sophonea’s budget speech yesterday, it appears the government is hellbent on introducing the levies.
LLROA president Motseki Nkeane yesterday expressed dismay at the government’s insistence on introducing the levy.
He said instead of bringing in the expected M286, 6 million revenue annually, the levies will only push operators out of business.
“Introducing the alcohol levy now will only serve to push the remaining businesses over the edge as they are already on the brink as a result of Covid-19 impact.
“I do not know how the government hopes to raise that kind of money in this kind of economic climate. This may have been possible a few years ago when the government first broached the idea of introducing an alcohol levy but now things are different.
“Also, we have previously indicated that the government did not consult with us before developing the bill and we will expect that to happen before implementation,” Mr Nkeane told the Lesotho Times.
Consumer Protection Association (CPA) executive director, Nkareng Letsie, said increasing alcohol prices was likely to leave consumers worse off because they were bound to continue buying liquor despite the high prices. This would therefore, reduce their buying power for other essentials, he said.
Private Sector Foundation of Lesotho chief executive officer, Thabo Qhesi, said he was surprised by the government’s insistence on implementing the levies which had been rejected by stakeholders.
“I was one of those invited by parliament along with other stakeholders to make representations on the proposed levies last year.
“The stakeholders opposed the levies arguing they were likely to fuel the illegal trade of both alcohol and tobacco products. I am therefore surprised that the government still wants to forge ahead,” Mr Qhesi said.


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Rapper Dok2 gave an update on his recent activities.
News1 reported on February 21 that Dok2 recently signed an exclusive contract with 143 Entertainment, led by singer/ record producer DM. He also announced the release of a new song, revealing that he will be making a surprise comeback in South Korea.
It is reported that the new song released by Dok2 will contain the rapper's honest feelings about the recent issues he has faced, such as parting ways with the now-defunct Illionaire Records and the lawsuit for unpaid jewelry.
Earlier, Yonhap News reported that Illionaire Records purchased fine jewelry worth 206,000 USD from a jewelry company, A. In 2018, the label paid the jewelry company 35,000 USD but did not pay the remaining balance. Therefore, the jewelry company filed a lawsuit against the rapper.
Meanwhile, Dok2 released his new song 'No MAYBES' on the 19th of this month.


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Sun shines on Honda, Ford, Merc
Apr 01 2014 , Pune
But it turned out to be a mixed bag. Maruti Suzuki, India’s largest carmaker by sales, Korean carmaker Hyundai, second biggest in the country by sales, M&M, India’s largest utility vehicles maker, Tata Motors, the biggest automaker by volumes, and Toyota Kirloskar Motor continued to report drop in sales with buyers shying away from new purchases despite an excise tax cut of 4 to 6 per cent in mid-February.
Sales at Mercedes-Benz soared 27 per cent to 2,554 premium cars in the first quarter of 2014 from 2,009 units sold in the same period last year.
“Our success and robust growth of 27 per cent in the first quarter of 2014 amidst challenging market dynamics is a clear indicator that demand for the new S-Class, ML-Class and GL-Class is growing and they are all currently wait-listed, even after producing them locally,” Eberhard Kern, managing director and CEO at Mercedes-Benz India, said.
Mercedes-Benz sold 9,003 cars in 2013, a growth of 32 per cent over the previous year. Its German archrivals Audi and BMW did not release sales data on Tuesday.
Honda Cars India reported 83.4 per cent growth in domestic sales at 18,426 units in March compared with 10,044 units sold in the same month last year.
The Japanese auto major’s sales were driven primarily by the new version of its premium City sedan. The 2014 City diesel variant has been one of the best performing models for Honda.
During March, the company sold 1,456 units of its small car Brio, 7,374 units of sedan Amaze and 9,518 units of City. Besides, the company sold 78 units of sports utility vehicle CRV. The firm exported 587 units during the month.
Honda also posted highest-ever annual sales of 1,34,339 units for 2013–14, recording 83 per cent growth over last financial year. It had sold 73,483 units during FY13.
“We received overwhelming response for Amaze and the all new City during the last financial year. The year also saw our entry into the diesel segment with i-DTEC diesel engine technology, which has received overwhelming response,” Jnaneswar Sen, senior vice-president for marketing and sales at Honda Cars India, said.
He said two new models — the stylish mid-sized MPV Honda Mobilio and the all-new Honda Jazz — are due for launch this financial year. “We look forward to another year of growth,” Sen said.
At Ford India sales grew 57 per cent to 11,805 units in combined domestic sales and exports in March from 7,499 units in the year-ago period. The American firm’s domestic sales rose 21 per cent to 6,356 units in March, up from 5,271 units in the corresponding period last year.
“The excise duty reduction has definitely been a positive step. As India gets set to vote, we look forward to industry-friendly initiatives being sustained to support the important automotive sector,” Vinay Piparsania, executive director of marketing, sales and service at Ford India, said.
Ford India’s sales for FY14 rose 9.40 per cent to 84,469 units from 77,225 units last year. Domestic sales and exports for the FY14 rose 24 per cent to 132,540 vehicles from 106,541.
Maruti Suzuki reported a 5.5 per cent drop in total sales in March at 1,13,350 units against 1,19,937 units in the same month last year. Exports fell 8 per cent to 11,081 units in March from 12,047 units in the same month last year.
The company said domestic sales declined by 5.2 per cent during the month to 1,02,269 units from 1,07,890 units a year ago. Maruti’s total sales for FY14 rose by 3.4 per cent to 8,90,455 units from 8,61,337 units.
Cumulative domestic and export sales at Hyundai Motor India declined 8.4 per cent to 51,708 cars in March from 56,437 units last year. Domestic sales increased marginally at 3.4 per cent to 35,003 units from 33,885 units in the same period last year.
“Post the excise duty reduction and a strong performance in the compact segment, Hyundai registered March sales of 35,003 units with 3.4 per cent a growth over the corresponding month indicating a positive momentum,” Rakesh Srivastava, senior vice-president for sales and marketing at Hyundai Motor India, said.
At Mahindra and Mahindra, sales of passenger vehicles fell 9 per cent to 23,433 units in March, from 25,847 units in the year-ago month. The firm ended FY14 with 18 per cent drop in sales at 2,29,155 units from 2,79,270 sold last year.
“After the reduction in excise duty across segments, the auto industry has seen the level of inquiries go up, but has not witnessed any major surge in sales,” Pravin Shah, chief executive for automotive division at Mahindra & Mahindra, said.
He expects sentiments to improve after the national elections, leading to an increase in demand. “We continue to be optimistic for the future and expect a growth momentum during FY15,” Shah said.
Tata Motors’ total sales, including exports, in the month under review fell by 29.60 per cent to 51,184 units from 72,712 units in the year-ago month. Domestic sales of commercial and passenger vehicles too declined. The offtake fell by 33.49 per cent to 45,996 units from 69,160 units in March 2013.
For year ended March 31, the company's sales fell by 30.04 per cent to 566,695 units from 810,086 shipped out in the same month of 2013.
Sales at Toyota Kirloskar Motor, which had declared a lockout at its two manufacturing facilities near Bangalore and suffered heavy production losses, fell 58 per cent to 8,206 units in March from 19,452 units. The company exported 954 units of the Etios series last month.
“We started limited operations from March 18, with the help of our non-unionised team members, majority of whom are supervisors,” N Raja, senior vice–president, sales and marketing at Toyota Kirloskar Motor, said.
“Growth in passenger vehicle (PV) sales continued to remain sluggish last month despite heavy discounts, which are higher by around 20 to 30 per cent compared with that in March 2013,” Subrata Ray, senior auto analyst at Icra, told Financial Chronicle.
He said even the excise duty cut implemented in mid-February that brought down car prices by 3.5-5 per cent (over and above discounts) failed to enthuse car buyers.
Volume data released by select PV OEMs showed wide variation, with Honda recording strong double-digit volume growth and Toyota experiencing a sharp decline in March 2014 (on a YoY basis).
“Still, we expect demand to see an uptick in the next few months given that (a) the excise duty sop is applicable only till June 30, which could lead to sales advancement to some degree; (b) around 40 per cent of the industry’s sales are attributable to replacement demand, a segment of buyers that may choose to avoid postponement of their purchase decisions further to capitalise on the currently available window of reduced PV prices,” Ray said.
Among the two-wheeler makers TVS Motor closed March with a 17 per cent increase in sales over the corresponding period last year. It sold 196,826 units last month, up from 167,583 units sold in March 2013. Hero MotoCorp’s March sales grew by 11.9 per cent to 524,028 units. For the year ended March 31, the company’s sales grew three per cent to 6,245,895 units from 6,075,583 units sold in 2012-13.


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NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- New York Knicks legend Walt "Clyde" Frazier likes to use big words such as "tantalizing" and "percolating" when broadcasting Knicks games. Tantalizing -- or teasingly out of reach -- seems like the perfect word to describe Knicks tickets today.
According to ticket search engine
the average ticket price for the first round of the playoffs between the New York Knicks and the Boston Celtics at
Madison Square Garden
is $645. Last year, when the Knicks went up against the Miami Heat in the opening round series, the average ticket price was $378.
Limited playoff tickets were sold through
( TKTM), beginning April 11, but most tickets for Knicks home games are now available only through resellers. Game one of the Knicks' playoff series with the Celtics is expected to start at Madison Square Garden on Saturday, with the cheapest ticket being sold at $187.
"With the Knicks doing so well this season, getting tickets at face value is not an option for most," says Jesse Lawrence, founder and CEO of TiqIQ. Resellers include both fans looking to make extra money as well as brokers.
Lawrence says renovations at Madison Square Garden have contributed to the increase in primary playoff ticket prices. Still, the most important factor in Knicks ticket pricing today is the team's overall performance.
For the first time since 1994, the Knicks are Atlantic Division champions and they have locked in the No. 2 playoff seed in the NBA's Eastern Conference. Carmelo Anthony is the top scorer in the league, and he's also having his best season as a Knick.
Leading up to the playoffs, Knicks tickets have been steadily increasing in the secondary market. The average ticket price rose about 30% from $330 in December to $428 in April. In the 2011-12 season, the average ticket price for a Knicks game was $282. Based on TiqIQ's most recent data, the New York Knicks now sell the most expensive tickets in the NBA.
As the Knicks win, ticket prices will just continue to go up. If the team advances to the semi-final round, fans could expect to pay $1,100 on average per ticket. Should the Knicks go all the way to the NBA finals, the average ticket price is $2,900.
Whether or not the Knicks reach the NBA finals, ticket prices for their games next season are going to spike.
Madison Square Garden
has announced that
season ticket prices
will increase by an average of 6.4% for the 2013-14 season.
With ticket prices soaring, what's a Knicks fan to do? Alison Salcedo, a spokeswoman at ticket reseller
company, says do what other fans have done in the past -- see the Knicks outside of
Madison Square Garden.
"Occasionally we will see buyers purchase tickets out-of-state if, for instance, they make a weekend trip out of it and get a good deal." Salcedo says she has seen fans do this during the playoffs when it's relatively easy and affordable to make road trips to games.
According to TiqIQ data, the cheapest ticket price for the first playoff game between the Knicks and the Celtics at
in Boston is $69. That is 170% cheaper than the get-in price in New York.
If traveling to away games is not an option, Salcedo says it's a good idea sometimes to wait to the very last minute before buying tickets. Individual sellers who are suddenly unable to make it to Madison Square Garden may decide to list their tickets for sale at a very low price or at a loss.
"If a fan is looking to buy one or just a pair of tickets, generally, prices drop as the event day/time gets closer," Salcedo says. "So as long as they watch the prices, they could potentially get a great deal. For larger groups, tickets in multiples are harder to find closer to game time."
, fans have three options to buy tickets: Fixed Price, Auctions and Make an Offer deals. If the seller is willing to negotiate, a "make an offer" button will be clickable on the page. All other deals have a "buy" button.
Ticket prices will also largely depend on how the series plays out. Although fans would most certainly love to see the Knicks sweep their opponents, Lawrence at TiqIQ says, they should consider buying tickets now for contingent games.
"Clinching games at home tend to rise once they become necessary," Lawrence says. TiqIQ and StubHub guarantee full refunds for playoff games that do not take place.
-- Written by Marilen Cawad in New York.
Disclosure: TheStreet's editorial policy prohibits staff editors and reporters from holding positions in any individual stocks.


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Georgia is waiving vehicle emissions checks because a cyberware attack has halted all emission testing across Georgia and seven other states. Slashdot reader McGruber shares a report from WSB-TV, an ABC-affiliated television station licensed to Atlanta: The CEO of Applus Technologies, whose software runs the system, apologized during the emergency meeting Monday. The outages are delivering a huge blow to small business owners. “All of the sudden, we were doing emissions testing just like normal and the system just kind of shut down,” said James Baxter, who owns BP Car Care Tire Pros. “We haven’t been able to do emissions since.” Baxter said before the cyberattack, his full service automobile shop conducted more than 100 vehicle emissions tests per day. “Emissions is $25. You can imagine the revenue loss. We have employees that are out of work because of this,” he said. Last week, Georgia’s Department of Revenue issued a press release that omitted mention of the attack.
The Georgia Department of Revenue said its automated systems have been offline since March 31. According to the report, officials aren’t sure when the system will go back online. It’s also unclear if the hackers were able to access any personal information.


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Can Narendra Modi's honest attempts spell 'achhe din' for Indian startups? The Indian government's stance towards startups has been admirably supportive since beginning.
Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.
You're reading Entrepreneur India, an international franchise of Entrepreneur Media.
The environment for startups could have not been more positive than this, under the present circumstances. Prime Minister Narendra Modi's unwavering efforts to accelerate India's startup story reached a crescendo during his recently-concluded visit to the United States.
The joining of the chorus by global Corporate biggies from Google, to Qualcomm to Microsoft is a testament to the seething potential India holds and how encouragingly world views it. The resounding support Modi received from the CEOs of top-notch Technology companies has made it crystal clear that India is the mecca for innovation, invention and disruption.
Backing is the backbone!
The Indian government's stance towards startups has been admirably supportive since beginning. Modi gave the slogan of "Startup India, Standup India' on Independence Day, urging Corporates to join forces with the government in fuelling the growth of startups in the country. The rhetoric found tremendous support on the Indian soil and now taking the vision on to a world platform underscores the government's persistence in creating an environment that is supportive of startups.
Modi's cohesive and coherent approach speaks volumes about how startups can play an integral and key part in India's economic upsurge. He has appropriately taken a leaf out of the story scripted by the United States, which allowed the ecosystem of startups to flourish and has today set a precedent for others to follow. Having a government at the Centre that sees value in what immense contribution entrepreneurial ventures can make can't get any better for all the startups in India.
At a time, when the ecosystem is so conducive, it is this backing from the government that can make all the difference. Without the government's definite vision and agenda, no sector or industry could have reached a stage where they are right now, be it telecom, defense, healthcare or agriculture. But for the government's planned policies and plans, these industries could not have acquired the sheer size they have today. Rightly Modi noted during his speech at Startup Konnect 2015 that "the mega corporations of today were startups of yesterday."
The same philosophy is applicable to today's startups, and Modi understands it in letter and spirit. His dedicated efforts of involving the global Corporate power houses will perk up sentiments across the globe and send out a clear message that the Indian government is serious in its business relating to startups and is doing everything possible to set the ball rolling for future.
The commitment shown by Tech giants in various forms will push the government to step up its efforts in showing "it means what it says". The coming together of Corporate titans and the government creates positive environment for Indian entrepreneurs, the very requirement for any new business to grow. This is undoubtedly a remarkable time for Indian startups!
What support from corporate tech honchos means?
It means a great deal. While there is no denying the fact that Indian telecom and technology companies are equally capable of doing what the US-based tech giants have agreed to, any initiative from global arena should not be viewed with skepticism as that would mean undermining the process of development rather than expediting it.
Here again, the Indian technology companies can look for partnership opportunities with the US-based firms, and share with them the local knowledge and expertise that the latter lacks and gain from the operational excellence the former has. The Indian government must encourage such partnerships, as such collaborative endeavors would be ideal and appropriate.
The pressing need of the hour is to form an atmosphere which helps startups grow. So either an Indian company or a global company does it, in isolation, or does so together is not important. What is important is that atmosphere is created. Why?
For reasons very simple. Taking for instance what Microsoft has committed. Microsoft announced partnering with the Indian government to provide low-cost broadband connectivity in 5,000 villages. How much will it benefit all the e-commerce, hyperlocal and app-based companies? Immensely!
Right now, a lot of their business is limited to big towns and cities due to restricted broadband connectivity. The penetration of internet connection to villages will change the picture drastically for startups, and would in truer sense sow the seed for "Digital India's' future.
A boon for healthcare
When relating it particularly to the healthcare segment, the situation begins to look so bright. In our case, Lybrate's vision is to make healthcare accessible to the billion plus population of India. We want everyone in the country to be able to communicate with doctors for their health-related concerns. However, the limited broadband connectivity makes us handicapped. The availability of low-cost broadband connectivity in villages will help us provide quality healthcare to people even there.
Google's announcement of making possible from next month the option of typing of text in 10 native Indian languages is a welcome step towards digital literacy. This will make Indian startup companies, including healthcare platforms, follow suit in due course of time.
It is already on Lybrate "to do' list. The measure coupled with low-cost internet connectivity will propel Lybrate's vision of making healthcare available to all in the country and solve a fundamental problem that the country has been facing for years now. Online healthcare platforms unarguably will benefit from it and so would the people of India.
While these may look like just baby steps, they have certainly set the path for startups to traverse.


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Britain's top rowers will be finding out shortly whether they've made the grade for London 2012.
The British Olympic Association is holding a press conference at 2pm, at which it will reveal which athletes have been chosen for Team GB.
Mark Hunter, shown below, is one of those hoping to be named for the squad.
He won a gold medal at the 2008 Beijing Olympics in the lightweight men's double scull with his partner Zac Purchase.
More top news
A "predatory" paedophile who kept a "sickening" and detailed account of his abuse admitted a string of offences including 10 counts of rape.
Plans for a two-and-half-year closure of a Finsbury Park station entrance where there was serious overcrowding have been postponed.
The London chip shop owner laments his youth hostelling holiday to his customers with a hand-written note on the shop door.


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Border checks might still be required to maintain regulatory standards even if the UK and the EU reach a Brexit agreement for Ireland on customs and tariffs, Minister for Agriculture Michael Creed has said.
The Minister was speaking at a conference on Brexit in Dublin organised by Minister for Business Heather Humphreys to discuss the Copenhagen Economics report that has estimated that a "hard Brexit" could dampen Irish economic growth by 7 per cent, starving the economy of €18 billion by 2030.
Mr Creed was stressing the importance of “regulatory alignment” – maintaining common rules and procedures north and south of the Border – in the final agreement covering the UK’s withdrawal from the EU in March 2019 given that Brexit would hurt the Irish agri-food industry most of all.
The Minister said that even concluding a customs agreement without a deal that “nails down the issue of regulatory alignment”, the Government would need border checks to maintain sanitary and phytosanitary standards (SPS), a key part of any trade deal that permits the importing of products without delays.
"Apart from wanting the closest possible alignment to the status quo, we are equally anxious that the UK's capacity to do trade deals with other countries would be somewhat constrained in the sense that they would have to stick by the standards that currently apply in the European Union, " said Mr Creed.
The Minister, speaking to reporters afterwards, warned about the risk of creating "a backdoor" through Northern Ireland allowing products into the EU that do not meet regulations covering Irish producers.
Martin Thelle, managing director of Copenhagen Economics, said "the biggest area of economic risk to Ireland is the risk of future regulatory divergence" with cattle farmers, food processors and the dairy industry taking the brunt of a hard Brexit, potentially losing about a fifth of their business.
Ms Humphreys, who commissioned the Copenhagen report, and Minister for Finance Paschal Donohoe both said that the December backstop guaranteeing regulatory alignment and an open border would be part of the final withdrawal agreement.
The Copenhagen report estimated that by 2020 a "soft Brexit" where existing EU-UK trading arrangements continue for a transition period the Irish economy would shrink by 0.5 per cent, while a "hard Brexit" with higher World Trade Organization tariffs would have a 2.1 per cent hit on Irish GDP.
By 2030, the report estimated that the economic hit would amount to 2.8 per cent of GDP if the UK agreed a Norway-type model where they would have a “pay-to-play-with-no-say” arrangement with the EU with London agreeing to pay to participate in the EU single market but having no influence on it is run.
Curb economic growth
A customs union or EU-UK free trade agreement would curb economic growth by 4.3 per cent.
Mr Thelle told The Irish Times that a bespoke EU-UK agreement was the most likely scenario. Brexit would be most keenly felt in rural areas, he said, but could not provide a breakdown on the regional economic effect.
During a question-and-answer session, Sean O'Driscoll, president of electrical appliance maker Glen Dimplex, said Brexit could have a positive outcome for Dublin but in other areas the impact could be significantly worse than the worst-case scenario painted by Copenhagen.
“That figure of minus 7 in the extreme case would be minus 12 or minus 14 in rural Ireland,” he said afterwards. He suggested the Government commission a more in-depth report on the impact on the regions.
Under a worst-case scenario, Mr Thelle suggested that the impact of 20,000 job losses, including 12,400 agri-food jobs, would be lessened by shifting employment to service sectors such as financial services.
"I am not going to turn into a financial whizz kid in the morning," said Lorcan McCabe from Bailieborough, Co Cavan.
“I am a dairy farmer. We need to keep the whole social structure of rural Ireland.”
Business owner Micheal Quinn, whose Co Galway company makes refrigerated trucks and exports 80 per cent of his product to the UK, told the conference during the Q&A session that the Welsh trade board had encouraged him to relocate his business to the UK because so much of his business was located there.


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The South Korean company's first ever developers conference was all about how it doesn't just make phones and tablets and how much potential developers have in putting their apps on the big screen.
Mobility is the name of the game these days, be it for work, or even play. Logitech has embraced this ongoing trend by introducing a range of new and improved products to help you stay connected and take your favourite entertainment sources with you wherever you go.
Facebook Inc CEO Mark Zuckerberg on Wednesday said revelations about US government surveillance hurt users' trust in Internet companies and that knowing more about the programmes would help relieve some of the public concerns.
J.K. Shin, head of Samsung's mobile division, predicts the Galaxy Gear will become "a new fashion icon through the world".


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Anthem’s latest update is live and corrects some of the smaller problems players have been having with loot. Players will no longer get loot for Javelins different from the one they’re using and Elysian Cache items now immediately appear in players’ inventories. The newsfeed, which had been blank, is also fixed.
Fallout 76's patch 5 goes live today bringing a ton of much needed balance changes. In addition to reducing the damage bonuses for explosive and two shot mods by more than half, players are now limited to carrying no more than 1,500 pounds over their weight limit and Bobblehead effects no longer stack.
Dota 2's massive 7.20 update recently went live, completely changing the game yet again. The map has been reworked with new paths, there’s a dedicated item spot for Town Portal Scrolls, and a ton of heroes have had abilities reworked or changed altogether. Meanwhile, the Dota 2 card game Artifact releases next week.


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Coca-Cola has introduced an alcohol brand in the east, while CBD and non-alcoholic alcohol rise in the west. Nathalie John and Edward Carstairs of Gill Jennings and Every explain how companies must protect themselves as the food and drink sector sees an influx of change and innovation.
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The Rainforest Action Network's assessment reportedly found that the actions taken by the major snack food brands are not enough compared to what is actually needed to address the impacts of their ever-growing consumption of Conflict Palm Oil.
The report, from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, has recommended strategies and a framework that regulatory agencies worldwide can adopt to support the availability of good quality, safe food and medicines globally, and identifies areas of greatest risk.
Sharp-PS becomes key cognitive ingredient for the food products industry in Australia and New Zealand.
The consent decree prohibits the defendants from receiving, preparing, processing, packing, holding, labelling and/or distributing foods at or from their facility, or any other facility, until certain requirements are met.
The US government said in December 2019 that it may implement duties of up to 100 percent on $2.4 billion in imports from France of Champagne, handbags, cheese and other products over the digital services tax, which it concluded would harm US tech companies.
The Center for Food Safety (CFS) and Food & Water Watch (FWW) have filed a lawsuit against the USDA in a bid to protect consumers from potentially unsafe pork products.
Food and beverage products are recalled due to reasons ranging from contamination to incorrect labelling, and here is New Food’s roundup of the most recent cases.
Rabbits are said to be the second most farmed species in the EU, and although there are rules stipulating standards for the protection of farmed animals, including rabbits, there is no species-specific legislation protecting the welfare of farmed rabbits in the EU.
The survey reportedly found that 86 percent of the tested bacon products contained salt levels equal to or greater than levels found in seawater.
The Guardian reported that Environment Secretary, Theresa Villiers, said that for a country such as the UK to insist on being able to maintain its own high standards on environmental protections would be legal under WTO rules.
Bristol Crown Court reportedly heard a customer suffered a severe allergic reaction to sesame in a curried chickpea and mango sandwich on 26 November 2017.
The ISO 16140 standard set the benchmark for method validation in food microbiology, but alternative methods and situations in which they are used present issues that are not suitably covered in its current published scope. Following their article in issue 5, Daniele Sohier and colleagues outline how the standard has…
Jordi Casamitjana is an ‘ethical vegan’ who claimed that he was sacked by the League Against Cruel Sports because of his views on animal products.