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SANTA ROSA - TriAccess Technologies, the small telecom startup launched at the bottom of the telecom slump, was acquired by TriQuint Semiconductor Inc. (Nasdaq: TQNT) it was announced today.
TriAccess makes a video chip that uses radio frequency to amplify signals at the subscriber's premise, with customers in both the cable and telecom industries. Hillsboro, Ore.-based TriQuint supplies high-performance radio frequency modules, components and foundry services to the top five mobile phone manufacturers; to the makers of wireless handsets, laptops and base stations; and to the military. The company has manufacturing facilities in Oregon, Texas and Florida and a production plant in Costa Rica.
TriAccess will become a TriQuint design center, said TriAccess Vice President of Marketing and Sales Brian Bauer.
"They liked our cable TV and fiber-to-the-premises product portfolio, and they liked our strong footprint in the cable TV industry," he said.
Terms of the acquisition were not disclosed.
In a separate action, the TriQuint board of directors has approved issuance of 170,300 stock options to the ten former employees of TriAccess. TriQuint is currently trading at $7.50.
Twenty-three-hundred-employee TriQuint had been a supplier to TriAccess for the last four years.
"We ... believe that together we can accelerate our success in multiple CATV and fiber optic video markets worldwide," said TriAccess President, CTO and founder Chris Day. "We are anxious to further utilize TriQuint's process technology and assembly and test resources. TriQuint is well-known and highly respected by our customers, providing additional confidence that we are a dependable and stable source of supply."
According to Ralph Quinsey, president and CEO of TriQuint, the new Santa Rosa design center is expected to grow, although he declined to go into details.
"They've built a terrific product. They'll bring us new customers, and I anticipate greater sales of their line of products as a result of the acquisition," he said.


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A study for the Food and Drink Federation, carried out by Price Waterhouse, estimates that such a change could add pounds 10 to the average shopping bill for a family with two children. It adds that such an increase could dampen consumer confidence and slow the recovery.
The report warns that food manufacturers will have little scope to absorb any extra VAT in their margins, which have already been squeezed by the recession and pressure for lower prices from retailers. Its job-loss estimate is based on passing 40 per cent of the rise on to the consumer, with the retailer and manufacturer sharing the rest between them.
The change would, however, bring in an extra pounds 7.2bn in VAT, boosting the take from food to pounds 8.8bn, but would add 3.9 per cent to the inflation rate. That is just below the Government's target of a maximum inflation rate of 4 per cent.
The report reveals that Britain and Ireland are the only European Union countries not to charge VAT on basic foods.Reuse content

domain: news


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By Douglas Busvine
Apple dropped Epic Games after a dispute in which the ‘Fortnite‘ creator alleged that the iPhone maker’s in-app payment terms constitute a monopoly.
“This has most certainly attracted our interest,” said Andreas Mundt, head of the Federal Cartel Office. “We are at the beginning, but we are looking at this very closely.”
Apple, which did not immediately respond to a request for comment, ditched Epic after it implemented a feature to let iPhone users make in-app purchases directly, rather than with Apple’s system, which charges a 30% fee.
Mundt told an online briefing that Apple’s App Store and the Play Store that serves smartphones running on Google’s Android operating system represented an “interesting habitat because they are the only two worldwide”.
Although the Bonn-based authority does have the power to impose fines, it typically undertakes administrative probes into big technology firms to establish whether they are abusing their market dominance and then seeks a change in the way they work.
Competition regulation in the European Union is handled both by its Brussels-based Commission, which is examining a complaint brought by streaming service Spotify against Apple, and in parallel at national level.
A new investigation, sparked by complaints that Amazon had prioritised some shipments early in the coronavirus pandemic, should be completed “quite quickly”, Mundt said.
The main focus was now on whether Amazon is operating a system of price control and rates merchants based on pricing, he said. Amazon says merchants set their own prices and its systems are designed to act against price gouging.
(The story corrects Facebook context in 7th paragraph)
(Editing by Alexander Smith)


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- BREAKING: AGF takes over Sowore’s case from DSS
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- BREAKING: Buhari appoints Nami to replace Fowler as FIRS boss
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- Hope for cardiac patients: medical breakthrough of 3D-printed heart gets backed by investor James Richman
Man expresses disappointment after discovering mosquito net he bought at Lekki store was meant for IDP camps
A Nigerian man has expressed his disappointment and concerns for a better Nigeria on Twitter by raising alarm over his shocking discovery on the mosquito net he bought at a popular store in Lekki area of Lagos which was meant for Nigerians who are victims of Boko-Haram insurgency at IDP camps.
@ShedamsFitness in his tweet, revealed that he bought the mosquito net that was meant to be distributed for free to IDP camps for N3,750, even when it had the ‘Not For Sale’ tag on it. He tweeted;
“I think this should’ve ben distributed in IDP camps,not to be sold,bought this Permanet Mosquito net for N3,750 at a popular store in Lekki Phase 1! Which way Naija.
This was bought over a week ago, and it was while I was helping to unfold from baby’s cot we saw the ‘NOT FOR SALE’ label that wasn’t conspicuous on the pack itself!”


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Franklin-based Southern Land Co. has increased the scope of its plans for a mixed-use project in Green Hills, Nashville Post reports.
The project, announced in late 2012, calls for restaurant and retail space combined with an apartment tower. Southern Land announced Wednesday that the residential tower, once slated for 14 floors, will now include about 300 units on 22 floors.
The project, at the corner of Richard Jones Road and Hillsboro road, now calls for 15,000 square feet of restaurant and retail space and 50,000 square feet of Class A office space, according to the Post. Southern Land plans to relocate its headquarters to the development, on which construction is to begin in January.


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A supply chain crunch that was meant to be temporary now looks like it will last well into next year as the surging delta variant upends factory production in Asia and disrupts shipping, posing more shocks to the world economy.
Manufacturers reeling from shortages of key components and higher raw material and energy costs are being forced into bidding wars to get space on vessels, pushing freight rates to records and prompting some exporters to raise prices or simply cancel shipments altogether.
China’s determination to stamp out Covid has meant even a small number of cases can cause major disruptions to trade. This month the government temporarily closed part of the world’s third-busiest container port at Ningbo for two weeks after a single dockworker was found to have the delta variant. Earlier this year, wharves in Shenzhen were idled after the discovery of a handful of coronavirus cases.
The cost of sending a container from Asia to Europe is about 10 times higher than in May 2020, while the cost from Shanghai to Los Angeles has grown more than sixfold, according to the Drewry World Container Index. The global supply chain has become so fragile that a single, small accident “could easily have its effects compounded,” HSBC Holdings Plc. said in a note.
At the heart of the price pressures is the transportation bottleneck.
Big retailers tend to have long-term contracts with container lines, but Asian production relies on networks of tens of thousands of small and medium-sized producers who often arrange shipping through logistics firms and freight forwarders. They in turn have been struggling to secure space for clients as vessel owners sell to the highest bidders.
Some 60% to 70% of shipping deals on the Asia-America route are done through spot or short-term deals, according to Michael Wang, an analyst at President Capital Management Corp. He said auction-style pricing may continue until Chinese New Year in February 2022.
Buyers agree. In Germany, more than half of the 3,000 firms polled by the Association of German Chambers of Industry and Commerce expected widespread supply-chain problems to persist into next year.
For Asian factories outside China, the problem is even worse. Many Chinese companies are willing to pay above-market rates to load their cargo, said a spokesman at HMM Co., South Korea’s biggest container line. So when the ships call at ports outside China, they’re already almost full.
Chinese companies that spent decades shifting production of lower-value components to cheaper labor markets in South and Southeast Asia now face the headache of trying to get those parts to factories where they can be assembled into finished products.


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First State Comic Con lets fans unleash their 'inner nerds'
Batman, Deadpool and other comic characters come to life at First State Comic Con along Kirkwood Highway in Stanton Sunday
Myles Stiefvater has a comic collection that fills his basement.
Years ago, when he first spotted a old James Bond doll still in its collector packaging, his wife told him to get it and put up a shelf. Now, the shelves line the walls and are only a small part of the collectors edition items he houses.
"Oh, she definitely regrets it," Stiefvater said, laughing. "No, she's really great about it. When we retire, we're going to drive across the country and sell my collection."
The Newark man was one of many who filled the Mill Creek Fire Hall on Kirkwood Highway Sunday to watch Batman, Deadpool and other comic characters come to life at First State Comic Con. While Stiefvater happily explained the intricacies of one comic book from the other, many young people filled the aisles with cash in hand to add to their own collections. Some even came in cosplay – dressing up as a character from a comic book, movie or video game – to participate in the costume contest.
The event has nearly outgrown the fire hall, which has hosted the bi-annual event for the past few years, said Dave Windsor, one of the event organizers. The show is one of the few low-cost, family-friendly events in the area, drawing many who may not otherwise make the trek to Philadelphia for large events.
Attendees paid $3 for admission Sunday, with children five and under getting in free of charge. Comics and other items ranged in price to suit even the smallest buyer, especially those making their first appearance at a comic con.
"We want parents to be able to introduce (their kids) to the hobby," Windsor said. "We grew up coming to shows like this and we're trying to keep that."
Many stopped to stare as Blair Webb's fingers quickly sketched character after character on paper at his booth. Working alongside Buz Hasson, the two are part of The Living Corpse Crew, a trio best known for creating and illustrating the cult hit comic, The Living Corpse. They frequent local shows, especially those in Delaware, to help share their passion for creating characters and comic series.
Webb has been drawing since he was a young kid, looking to his grandfather who worked as a commercial artist for inspiration. When the Claymont native started drawing superheroes at 10 years old, his grandfather wasn't happy, Webb said, but he couldn't put down the pencils.
Now, nearly, 30 years later, Webb makes a living from his artistic abilities and has been drawing ever since. He's even created his own character, Ghostman, which he self-published in 2005.
"I love drawing," he said. "I don't do it for the money. I couldn't see myself doing anything else."
That's the special part about comic book conventions and similar events, Stiefvater said. People all come with their own stories and their own reasons for loving the inner pages of a comic book or the intricacies of a video game, he said.
"People are here buying back their youth," he said, gesturing toward one man who picked up a figurine still in its original packaging. It's those pieces of someone's childhood that often keeps them enthralled in the world of comics for years to come, he added.
For three 24-year-old women, Sunday meant as escape from the real world and a brief transition into the costumes and comics that filled thier childhood.
Haley Schanne and Alexandra Paquette, both of Milford, and Tara Bowden, of Lewes, made the drive early Sunday morning to spend the day in the fire hall dressed as their favorite characters. Schanne and Paquette had been to a larger comic con in Washington, D.C., but this one was Bowden's first. The trio walked around the convention, stopping for pictures with small kids and accepting compliments on their homemade get-ups.
"In your everyday life, you kind of have to be like low key about your nerd, but at comic cons, everyone is super high key about their nerd," Schanne said. "So you can just walk around in this giant helmet and everyone's like "Oh that's so cool' and like, I can't wear this helmet to work."
Paquette agreed, noting that her teaching career likely wouldn't support her wearing her Rae from Star Wars costume to class every day.
"It's one of the best things, where you can come here and you don't feel like an outcast," Paquette said. "You're definitely accepted by everyone else."
Contact Brittany Horn at (302) 324-2771 or firstname.lastname@example.org. Follow her on Twitter at @brittanyhorn.


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US activist investment fund Third Point LLC has placed a bet on Japan's Suzuki Motor Corp potentially worth almost $1 billion.
US activist investment fund Third Point LLC has placed a bet on Japan’s Suzuki Motor Corp potentially worth almost $1 bn citing the automaker’s dominance in India, sending its shares to a lifetime high.
Third Point, led by Daniel Loeb, on Friday said Suzuki stock was cheap considering majority-owned Maruti Suzuki India Ltd holds nearly 50 percent of a market where few own cars, and is valued higher than its parent.
“The company’s greatest asset is its low-cost manufacturing process for vehicles for the emerging market consumer,” Third Point said in a letter to clients.
A person familiar with the matter told Reuters Third Point had looked into Suzuki since March-April and bought a small stake. Japan regulation requires ownership of 5 percent or over to be declared. A stake of 4.99 percent, at the stock’s highest price since March 1, would be worth around 121.6 billion yen ($979 million).
Third Point declined to specify the size, price or timing of its stake purchase. Suzuki declined to comment on specific shareholders.
The investment would be Third Point’s latest in Japan after Sony Corp and Fanuc Corp. The fund pushed unsuccessfully for restructuring at Sony before selling out, while its criticism of Fanuc was followed by the factory robot maker raising dividends.
Its investment in the small car specialist coincides with management change. Last month, 85-year-old Chief Executive Osamu Suzuki named eldest son Toshihiro Suzuki as president. Suzuki’s shares fell 4 percent the following day.
In its Friday letter, Third Point did not make any demands of Suzuki but called its balance sheet “inefficient.” It also said a “paralysing” dispute over Volkswagen AG’s 20 percent stake in Suzuki was nearly over, after which Suzuki could make better use of its cash.
The Third Point news gave a bump to shares already on upward trend over the past three years as Maruti drives group earnings. In April-June, a jump in Maruti’s income helped Suzuki post its highest-ever first-quarter operating profit.
An India sales boost and strong rupee pushed up operating profit 8.3 percent to 55.16 billion yen, versus the 51.03 billion yen average estimate of eight analysts polled by Thomson Reuters. Net profit, which excludes Maruti, fell 15.5 percent.
“What this says is that our dependence on Maruti is very high,” said a Suzuki spokesman. “That in a way reflects our reality.”
Suzuki’s stock rose as much as 4.7 percent after the Third Point news. It ended the day up 3.4 percent ahead of earnings at its highest-ever close of 4,467.5 yen. The broader Tokyo market fell 0.1 percent. ($1 = 124.1500 yen)


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The 2020 report by Paris-based association Climate Chance has described the global textile and apparel industry’s efforts to deal with the challenges of sustainable development as both fragmentary and insufficient.
The Crown Estate aims to go ultra green. One of London's biggest retail landlords said it’s committed to eliminating its carbon footprint by 2030, including emissions generated by customers using its properties.
At first glance, November’s UK retail sales released Friday looked quite good. Despite the pandemic-induced lockdown, total like-for-like sales last month increased 3.3%, the strongest month of sales since January.
The BFC unveiled its newly-digital Fashion Awards on Thursday evening and instead of just replacing the usual live event with an online version, it changed the format to reflect the huge change happening in 2020.
The company that produces and distributes the labels owned by Renzo Rosso’s fashion group has appointed Francesco Tombolini, whose career in luxury spans nearly 40 years, as head of business development and licenses.
More than 400 lawmakers from 34 countries have signed a letter to Amazon backing a campaign that claims the tech giant has "dodged and dismissed … debts to workers, societies, and the planet," organisers said.


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Google TV wasn’t as great as we all expected when it debuted a few years ago, but Google is back with another television platform.
Officially announced at the Google I/O 2014 keynote today, Android TV will bring an entirely new home entertainment experience to your living room. The service will launch in the fall, but for now, check out our information on the platform here.
And be sure to check out the rest of our Google I/O 2014 coverage as well. Hit the break for our hands-on video with Android TV at Google I/O.
Is today the day that we finally see Samsung’s first Android Wear device? It’s expected that the beans will be spilled (officially) at Google I/O today, possibly at or right after the keynote.
In just a few hours, we might know the full details on the device, including specs and release date… Or maybe we’ll know right now.
If the waiting game isn’t your thing, here’s what we know about the device. (Rumors only, of course.)
Nest has announced a new stage in the development of their home automation platform, a new Nest API that can be used by third-party developers to connect not only apps with Nest hardware and products, but other hardware as well. As an example, Nest indicates LIFX bulbs can be connected to Nest Protect so that they will turn red when smoke or CO is detected. This gives users an additional visual cue to potential problems. The new Nest API is being rolled out as part of a “Works with Nest” certification for partner companies to help develop the ecosystem and in the words of Nest, “anticipate people’s needs and make their lives easier.”
You can certainly expect Android Wear to be seen everywhere at Google I/O next week in San Francisco— we’ll be there, naturally, and up-to-the-minute coverage can be found right on TalkAndroid.
To prepare for the event, Google has released a video on YouTube previewing the features of Android Wear, and provides a general idea how it all “works.”
In the video, you’ll hear about how Android Wear seeks to minimize the time/effort it takes to interact with mobile applications on your smartwatch, as well as the ease developers will have while creating apps for the new platform. We’ll get a good look at the first Android Wear device, the LG G Watch, next week as well. Hit the break for the video.
Samsung was reported to be working on a new virtual reality headset with the help of Oculus VR and while we know they want to get the device to market as quickly as possibly, there has been no information about a possible timeframe. A new application with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office suggests Samsung is moving quickly as they have filed for trademark protection on the term “SAMSUNG GEAR VR”. Considered in light of their Gear 2 and Gear Fit devices, it seems Samsung is ready to slap the “Gear” moniker on any wearable device they produce.
Some sources have speculated Samsung may have the device ready to launch in conjunction with the Galaxy Note 4 later this year. Thanks to the partnership between Samsung and Oculus VR, with Samsung handling hardware while Oculus VR takes care of the software, such a timeline may be feasible.
If you’re planning on plunking down a few hundred on either the newly announced Tab S 8.4 or Tab S 10.5 then you may want to consider looking for some accessories for the new tablets. Samsung has you covered too. Simply named Bluetooth Keyboard, Book Cover and Simple Cover you know exactly what you’ll be getting. Availability and pricing are unknown though.
Now that the Galaxy Tab S is officially outed, we’ll start to see an outpouring of accessories for the device.
First up is an offering from Logitech — it’s called the Logitech Type-S, specifically made for the Tab S. It’s Bluetooth enabled, has well-spaced keys, has Android shortcuts and versatile viewing positions. The battery is pretty impressive, as it can last up to 3 months on a single charge. It’s also water-repellant.
The keyboard will go on sale later this month in the U.S., Europe and select countries in Asia for a suggested retail price of $99.99. Hit the break for the presser.
Starbucks already offers WiFi access points for customers, but it looks like they’re going a step further and adding another technological convenience to their stores in the US: wireless charging mats. Duracell and Starbucks have made a joint announcement that they’ll be rolling out Duracell Powermat Spots that will be designated areas or tables where you can simply drop your (wireless charging-capable) device to juice up the battery while you wait for your coffee.
The rollout for the Powermats will start in Seattle and New York, and will gradually start hitting other stores over the year. Every store should have wireless charging stations implemented by 2015.
Pebble’s latest smartwatch, the Pebble Steel, will be going on sale in all Best Buys on June 15th. The watch features a waterproof design, a week-long battery life, and rich notifications, as well as continued updates and access to Pebble’s app store, so it’s definitely a worthy upgrade to the original Pebble Smartwatch.
The watch will be launching in two colors: Brushed Stainless and Matte Black. Both versions come with a leather watch strap, and Best Buy is going to offer matching Brushed Stainless and Matte Black straps later in the year. The Pebble Steel will run $229 when it releases.
Samsung is ready to unveil their new line of tablet devices tomorrow at an event in New York City’s Madison Square Garden. The Galaxy Tab S tablets will come equipped with 2560 x 1600 Super AMOLED displays which should really raise the bar for a tablet device. To help protect the fancy new screens, buyers may be interested in Samsung’s official flip covers for the new tablets. The new covers utilize some proprietary connectors embedded in the back panels of the new tablets. It appears that at least initially the covers will come in a choice of two colors, a shade of white and another dark gray in color. The design appears to carry over the dimpled, band-aid look of Samsung’s recent device covers although it is more subtle.
Hit the break and check out a gallery of some images of the new flip covers obtained by SamMobile.


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Mahindra Bolero Colours
- Mist Silver
- Fiery Black
- Rocky Beige
- Diamond White
- Toreador Red
- Java Brown
₹ 7.68 Lakh - 10.65 Lakh Bolero vs Vitara Brezza
Mahindra Bolero News
Mahindra’s incredibly successful utility vehicle, the Bolero has been on sale for nearly two decades now. And believe it or not, it is now BS6 compliant and even meets frontal, frontal offset and....
The Bolero is the highest selling offering for Mahindra and it now gets BS-VI certification from the International Centre for Automotive Technology (ICAT). Expect it to go on sale in early....
This feat brings the Mahindra Bolero in the list of top 10 best-selling passenger cars in the country. The end of the financial year has brought Mahindra a reason to rejoice. Their popular SUV, the....
Mahindra launched the Bolero Maxi Truck Plus pickup today in Mumbai and this LCV comes with a load full of improvements. Mahindra is taking the....


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SWEDEN: Volvo Group makes EUR400m provision for EU antitrust probe
Volvo Group says it has decided to make a provision of EUR400m in respect of an on-going antitrust investigation by the European Commission into heavy truck pricing and the possibility of collusion between a number of European heavy truck makers.
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Trader Joe’s will begin accepting applications Tuesday to fill job openings for its second San Antonio store, in the Stone Oak area.
The Monrovia, California-based company announced in a news release sent Monday that prospective candidates must apply in-person at a hiring trailer located outside of the store, at 403 N Loop 1604 West inside the Sonterra Village shopping center. Trader Joe’s will provide applications on-site and online here before its grand opening on Oct. 15.
The niche grocer will accept applications every day from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. until Sept. 21, the release reads. A spokeswoman said Trader Joe’s does not disclose the number of employees it hires for each location.
The San Antonio Express-News first reported last September that Trader Joe’s received a sales tax permit from the state comptroller’s office to operate the new store, and the company later confirmed its plans to open its Stone Oak location sometime in late 2014.
Trader Joe’s said its second Alamo City store will be about 12,500 square feet, slightly larger than its first store here, now open in the Quarry Village.
About two years ago, Trader Joe’s opened to long lines of customers eager to shop at the 350 E. Basse Road location in an 11,000-square-foot space formerly occupied by the west elm furniture store.


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AMD has officially confirmed the launch of their upcoming GPUs, based on the Vega architecture. AMD has been really quiet about the RX Vega since the release of the RX Vega Frontier workstation GPU. Yesterday, AMD announced a new conference, called SIGGRAPH, but they didn’t talk about RX Vega, again.
Well, the wait is almost over. AMD has officially announced that they will launch RX Vega at SIGGRAPH, through a Tweet from the official @RadeonRX Twitter account.
— Radeon RX (@Radeon) July 1, 2017
The SIGGRAPH conference will start on 30th July and it will end on the 3rd of August. CAPSAICIN is a part of SIGGRAPH conference, so yeah, maybe AMD will launch the RX Vega at CAPSAICIN. However, that is not confirmed yet, because the tweet only mentions SIGGRAPH.
AMD fans have waited 2 years for the RX Vega to arrive. Right now, Nvidia has dominated the high-end GPU market. With RX Vega, that may change. Personally, I’m expecting a high-end gaming GPU from AMD, which will bring some competition to the table.
More information about the RX Vega will be revealed at SIGGRAPH, in 29 days. Keep it set on GeeksULTD for more.


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MWW Group Named "Midsize Firm of the Year" at PR News 2011 Platinum PR Awards
MWW Scores a "Hat-Trick" Third "Agency of the Year" Award in Six Months
Sep 20, 2011, 09:00 ET
NEW YORK, Sept. 20, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- MWW Group (www.mww.com), one of the top ten global independent public relations firms, has been named "Midsize Firm of the Year" at the PR News 2011 Platinum PR Awards, held on September 14th at the Grand Hyatt hotel in Manhattan. The coveted Platinum PR Awards recognizes excellence across all areas of public relations and celebrates the industry's best work and top PR campaigns and initiatives of the year.
This prestigious accolade is the latest in a series of honors for MWW Group including being named as 2011 "Midsize Agency of the Year" by the Holmes Report and "PR Agency of the Year" by the Stevie Awards' International Business Awards. In addition to MWW's recent award wins, the firm has recently been named agency of record for a number of clients including several iconic brands such as Subaru of America, Inc., Zumba Fitness, Discovery Bay Games and Vimeo.
"This award from PR News is particularly meaningful as we celebrate MWW's 25th anniversary this month," said Michael W. Kempner, president and CEO of MWW Group. "What started on an old typewriter in a one-room office has grown into a leading mid-size agency with more than 200 employees and a client list of the most iconic brands in the nation. This honor is a reflection of how far we've come, driven by our philosophy to aim high and deliver for clients and ourselves."
As part of its selection process, PR News examined the agency's client growth and retention rate over the past year, highlighting the company's innovation, creative agency and client culture.
About MWW Group
MWW Group is one of the nation's top mid-sized public relations firms and one of the ten largest independent global agencies. The company is industry-recognized for its work in consumer lifestyle marketing, digital marketing and social media, corporate communications, public affairs and government relations, consumer technology, healthcare and visual branding.
Through its "Network PR" approach, MWW Group helps its clients re-architect the conversation surrounding their brands to increase trust and relevance and drive action among key stakeholders. Among its numerous awards for client work, the agency has been recognized as 2011 "Midsize Agency of the Year" and 2010 "Strategic PR Agency of the Year" by the Holmes Report and has received accolades from PR News for "Team of the Year," "Digital Firm of the Year" and "Top Places to Work in PR."
To learn more about MWW Group, visit www.mww.com, Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.
SOURCE MWW Group
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Scottish drone service – Eye in the Sky (Glasgow) Ltd launch their brand new website!
Our website is a great source to find out more about our services, safety ethos, equipment and latest news about Glasgow’s premier drone company. Keep posted to our blog for the latest news, stories, pictures, videos and drone information across Scotland and beyond!
“I’m proud to be at the heart of this exciting drone technology revolution – bringing the best and safest drone services to the people of Glasgow”
John S B Crawford, Director and Founder, Eye in the Sky (Glasgow) Ltd.


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FACEBOOK Has highlighted a fresh ethical advertising dilemma as a result of its unorthodox means of targeting consumers: the need to regulate targeting and how to execute it.
In an increasingly digitalised advertising world omni-platform, businesses and ad space providers are continuously striving to provide more cost-effective, adjustable, real-time solutions to assist with the implementation, automation and KPI achievement within advertising.
While the recent furore around the cross-selling of data obtained through set-top-boxes or other third party means, has been stymied by the threats of commercial fines and desire from consumers to have transparency regarding where their personal data is transmitted.
As a result with the ethics around intrusion and privacy unequivocal, given the deontological, golden rule and mean schools of thought are deployed to assure consumers that their data is merely used in the context of making advertising more relevant to them, the ability to manipulate and exploit consumers through more transient means is now brazenly explored.
After an expose´by Australian, which revealed systematic targeting and filtration of users based on their emotions, reactions and moods, Facebook has been condemned as being unethical in its practises.
While this itself is not the transferring or embezzling of personal data surreptitiously akin to the Vizio case of earlier this year, it does pose another issue as to whether users will have to informed of when such monitoring is being undertaken.
Such principles provide the legal disclaimer to ads deploying traditional targeting online, based on search habits for instance, however the lack of opt-out is exonerated by the fact that data is not transferred per se.
With Facebook however with your data essentially being in the public domain, your conversations are privy to those who seek to view them, if of course you have a public account.
What differs though to the presence of cookies within websites or even social media sites like Facebook itself, is the fact that cognitive behaviour is being exploited for commercial gain.
Ethically this is unprecedented in a real-time sense, while Facebook’s already ambivalent stance on the matter is causing heightened concern regarding the integrity and transparency of the operation.
An initial statement condemned the actions of those colluding with businesses regarding the manipulation of moods to curate complimentary content, however a corresponding one backtracked on the assertion of disciplinary action and employed a stoic stance, rebuking the newspapers credence.
This fundamentally illustrates either a lack of awareness of the undertakings of those within Facebook, or a fear of facing commercial hits.
Ethics is a pre-requisite of any commercial entity, notwithstanding the integrity of any individual in themselves, therefore when the issue of discipline is being mooted the suspicion of foul play would implicate Facebook and online advertising further.
Having only started to recover as a credible, accountable vessel for advertising amid the extremist content scandal, such ethical concerns rearing their head will ultimately serve TV as a singularly entity.
Although beneficial seemingly to production companies like Space City, it ultimately inhibits the work of TV, with the interest generated compromised by the diminished concurrent presence online.
In order to maximise the scale, credibility and ability to entertain TV has, online has to provide a credible, ethical solution that is transparent and accountable.
Ultimately ethics and commerce are intrinsically linked, to the contention of some who decree it has been compromised by the striving for greater commercial gain.
Having produced a thesis while at university linking ethics and the pursuit of commerce in journalism, it was concluded that in order for commerce to spawn, ethical concordance had to be adhered to: to amplify and reaffirm the moral compass of those who are being written to.
Conversely with advertising the need to match these principles is even more the imperative, with the PR element of where and how businesses like yours are associated underpinning decision making and the ultimate success of ads.
For instance ads that focus on social issues and seek to purvey the moral compass, mobilise their brands and increase sales by as much as 70% more than those who do not.
Furthermore given the stringent regulation that exists to protect your business’ reputation on TV and beyond, ads are twice as effective as the remainder of advertising mediums, underlining ethics will provide commerce.
Facebook only succeeded through its anonymity, with knowledge of its error, the surreptitiousness is manifest in the denial and ambivalence in their accounts, damning the existing practise’s ethical flaws.
In order to ensure the trust of both businesses and consumers alike, a diligent switch to placing the power back to consumers will ultimately serve Facebook as it has Google and TV in providing successful advertising solutions.
Space City has been providing TV, online and radio adverts for 25 years underpinning its work with the experience of producing more ads than any other company in the 21st century.
Contact the team now and you could grow your business credibly and quickly by up to 600%.


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Tirana, 17 September 2015/ Independent Balkan News Agency
Last year, an average Albanian household spent around 69 thousand and 442 thousand ALL a month on consumption. This is the conclusion of the latest survey of INSTAT (Institute of Statistics) on household budgets.
Anisa Omuri, specialists of household budgets at INSTAT, declared: “Based on the survey for 2014, average expenses have been estimated to be 69 thousand ALL for a family of 3,8 members. 31 thousand ALL go for food expenses, while 38 thousand ALL go for non food expenses”.
Most of the budget of household expenses continues to be spent on food, but compared to five years ago, the part that goes for food has fallen, while Albanians are spending more and more on education.
INSTAT general director, Gjergj Filipi explains: “Expenses for food have fallen and expenses for education and health have risen”.
The increase of expenses for education is a very important indicator. The survey shows that more educated people have better living standards.
In terms of districts, Tirana has the best living standards, where a family of 3,8 members spends on average 81 thousand and 650 ALL a month, while Elbasan is last with 53 thousand ALL a month or 35% less. /ibna/


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Senate Farm Bill ‘Mixed Bag’ For Pork Industry
December 14, 2007
Contact: Dave Warner 202-347-3600
Washington, D.C., December 14, 2007 -There are a number of positive provisions for pork producers in the Farm Bill approved today by the Senate, but the measure also includes some that could have a negative impact on the competitiveness and profitability of the U.S. pork industry, said the National Pork Producers Council.
The bill includes fixes to the Mandatory Country-of-Origin Labeling law, funds for pseudorabies and swine genome research and authorization for a national trichinae certification program, all of which NPPC supports and all of which it will urge be included in a final Farm Bill. NPPC also will recommend that a final bill include increases in investments in renewable energy, nutrition and conservation programs, which along with changes to the MCOOL law, were included in the House Farm Bill.
Members of the Senate and House agriculture committees are expected to meet in mid-January to reconcile differences in their chambers’ respective Farm Bills.
Among the detrimental provisions included in the Senate Farm Bill are ones that would ban packer ownership of hogs, restrict marketing contracts and establish an Office of Special Counsel to investigate and prosecute livestock competition issues.
“The Senate Farm Bill is kind of a mixed bag for the U.S. pork industry,” said NPPC President Jill Appell, a pork producer from Altona, Ill. “When Senate and House lawmakers meet to craft a final Farm Bill, NPPC will work for a measure that doesn’t include restrictions on producers and that protects the pork industry’s competitiveness.”
NPPC kept out of the Senate bill amendments that would have:
· Created an Agriculture Competition Task Force with powers to investigate agricultural competition issues and to develop guidelines governing competition.
· Required the Department of Justice – under guidelines developed by the competition task force – to challenge livestock mergers and acquisitions under a standard much more restrictive than antitrust reviews conducted of transactions involving any other industry.
· Allowed a plaintiff to file a lawsuit alleging “unfair” competition without offering evidence that he or she suffered a competitive injury.
· Prohibited packers from paying premiums for value-added livestock, such as “antibiotic-free,” by eliminating “business justification” as a defense against lawsuits alleging unfair competition.
The amendment was defeated on a 40-55 vote.
# # #
NPPC is the global voice for the U.S. pork industry, protecting the livelihoods of America’s 67,000 pork producers, who abide by ethical principles in caring for their animals, in protecting the environment and public health and in providing safe, wholesome, nutritious pork products to consumers worldwide. For more information, visit www.nppc.org.


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Animal Welfare's Unexpected Allies
By DAVID BARBOZA
Published: June 25, 2003
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind.— The cameras are rolling here at Purdue University's animal research center, tracking a half-dozen pigs, each with an ink streak slathered across its back for identification.
The pigs have a choice to make. They can use their snouts either to let them into a pen where they can socialize with other pigs, or they can stay put with their food.
''We want to get the animal's perspective, to see what they prefer,'' explains Edmond A. Pajor, assistant professor of animal behavior and welfare at Purdue. ''We want to know: How important is social contact and space? What do they like and need?''
A decade ago, big food companies would have dismissed such research as silly, a deviation from the advances in industrial farming that have allowed them to reduce the cost of hamburgers and chicken nuggets. But today, those companies are not just taking the research seriously; they are financing it.
McDonald's, Burger King, KFC and Wendy's have all underwritten research and recently hired what are called animal welfare specialists to help them devise new standards aimed at ensuring more humane treatment of the animals destined for their kitchens. Industry trade groups are promoting the new rules and conducting audits of livestock producers to assure they are being followed, though some groups express concern about higher costs and other complications.
Experts say that the food industry is responding to growing health concerns and criticism of the nation's factory farms, which raise over eight billion animals (mostly chickens) a year in giant production and slaughtering operations. Looming regulations -- most immediately in Europe, but also in the United States -- are adding to the pressure.
As a result, after decades of crowding more and more animals into smaller and smaller stalls and pens, livestock producers and processors are being asked to create more space for animals, to reduce their reliance on growth-promoting drugs, and to transport and slaughter animals in more humane ways.
Soon, cages might be eliminated from some factory farms, and animals that not long ago were clubbed before being killed -- and are now knocked unconscious by electric stun guns -- could be first put to sleep gently, with gas.
''The whole drumbeat in the U.S. for the last century has been to reduce the cost of food,'' said Todd J. Duvick, a food analyst at Banc of America Securities. ''Now people are paying attention to things like how food is produced and how animals are treated.''
The changes are being applauded even by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, or PETA, an organization best known for guerrilla attacks on the fur industry and fast-food outlets, and for publicizing photographs of what they say are cruel acts being performed on animals.
''McDonald's, Burger King and Wendy's have done some pretty good stuff, but they had to be prodded into it,''' said Dan Shannon, a spokesman for PETA. ''These animals are not living in luxury suites being hand-fed grapes, but this is an improvement.''
Last week, the McDonald's Corporation said it would begin insisting that its suppliers cut their use of antibiotics in sick animals and eliminate the use of certain growth-promoting antibiotics that are fed to healthy animals, particularly chickens. For several years, health professionals in the United States and Europe have worried that the overuse of antibiotics in farm animals might eventually reduce the medicines' effectiveness in humans.
Health officials applauded McDonald's announcement, but some producers criticized the company for bowing to public pressure and barring the use of some antibiotics that are still deemed safe by regulators.
''The pork industry wants to make sure sound science is driving the industry and not emotion,'' said Cynthia Cunningham, a spokeswoman for the National Pork Board. ''McDonald's is trying to be laudable, but their position was based on marketing.''
Whether motivated by marketing concerns or social conscience, McDonald's has stepped to the forefront of the animal welfare movement, at least among corporations.
McDonald's has pressed the egg industry, for instance, to increase by half the amount of space it allocates to egg-laying hens in factory hen houses. The company -- which buys two billion eggs a year -- has also told its egg suppliers to stop the practice of temporarily withholding food and water to induce hens to lay larger eggs.
Similarly, McDonald's now presses beef suppliers to reduce their use of electrical prods and encourages chicken producers to use automated equipment to gently gather chickens, in place of unskilled laborers who grab birds and stuff them into cages. At slaughterhouses, it insists on boxes that make livestock more comfortable as they are stunned into unconsciousness before being killed.
Having established a detailed set of guidelines for the treatment of animals, McDonald's has begun enforcing the standards with random audits of its suppliers. KFC and Burger King are doing the same.
''Essentially, it's the right thing to do,'' said Chet England, the chief food safety officer at Burger King.
But it is McDonald's, as the world's largest restaurant chain and one of the biggest purchasers of animal products, whose evolving stance is driving change throughout the food industry.


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JP Morgan strategist Josh Younger has penned a piece warning that central bank digital currencies (CBDC) need to be designed to avoid disintermediating commercial banks, Bloomberg reports. The topic is one of the key challenges in a retail CBDC design and is widely recognized as a risk.
YoYounger put a figure on the risk saying it could lead to the loss of 20%-30% of the funding base of commercial banks. And that shift could be rapid in a crisis, another issue that central banks acknowledge.
Much depends on whether the CBDC holdings will be limited. For example, if a key purpose of the CBDC is financial inclusion and the target is mainly low-income households who typically have less than $1,000 in their accounts, the impact would not be material.
“Hard caps of $2,500 would likely meet the needs of the vast majority of lower income households while not having any discernable effect on the funding mix of large commercial banks,” wrote Younger.
Younger was focused on a U.S. digital dollar. Over in Europe, the European Central Bank floated the idea of a €3,000 cap to dissuade citizens from using a digital euro as a store of value. Earlier this year Morgan Stanley estimated this could attract €873 billion ($1 trillion), or 8% of European commercial bank deposits.
It’s worth noting that a cap is just one design tool to encourage the use of digital currency only for payments and not for storage. People keep limited amounts of physical cash because they’re worried about losing it and it’s risky. A similar digital design could also prove effective.
Others have suggested expiration dates and charges for renewing the digital currency, which could act in a similar way to negative interest rates.


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Police in Florida said a McDonald’s customer who ran short of cash tried to pay for his cheeseburgers with marijuana and prescription drugs.
Oh, and dude was in a car he’d just stolen, too.
Alexander Lemke, 20, of Palm Harbor, Fla., must have had a king-hell case of the munchies.
The Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office claims Lemke broke into a neighbor’s home at about 1:25 a.m. on Friday and left in their 2005 Toyota Solara, according to the St. Petersburg Times.
|Pinellas County Jail|
|Alexander M. Lemke stole a car to go to McDonald’s drive-through, where he tried to trade marijuana and pills for cheeseburgers. Nice plan, Alex.|
Then, he headed over to Mickey D’s drive-through window, where he tried to trade marijuana and prescription pills for the burgers, deputies claimed.
Police were quickly called, and Lemke was arrested at McDonald’s at 1:40 a.m.
Deputies claimed they found “a collection of drugs” in the center console of the car.
Lemke was charged with grand theft auto, driving with license suspended or revoked, and eight(!) drug-related charges.
He was being held in the Pinellas County Jail on Friday evening in lieu of $18,550 bail.


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pro-manchester launches second annual Trailblazing Technology Conference
4th October 2019, 2:17 pm
Technology is disrupting every single sector right now. In a world where Uber, Deliveroo and online banking have introduced apps to replace traditional conversations, what’s next for technology in business?
The region’s experts are delving deeper into exactly this at pro-manchester’s upcoming Trailblazing Technology Conference. Friday 20th March will see technology specialists descend onto The Lowry Hotel to see how businesses are shaking up our region and discuss our regions ever-growing talent pool.
With live demonstrations from key leaders in technology from across the country, the Trailblazing Technology Conference promises to be engaging, with something to learn for every sector.
With speakers in fintech, education and blockchain already lined up to share their learnings and advice, this is an event not to be missed.
pro-manchester is excited to already have the support from some of the region’s leaders in tech, including OpenMoney, Finch Insurance, Manchester Metropolitan University and more.
Of the event, pro-manchester’s COO, Nicola McCormick said: “We’re really looking forward to be taking the Trailblazing Tech Conference to the Lowry Hotel once again. Last year was a complete sell out and had great feedback – this year is set to be bigger and better, with some really exciting people lined up to speak and demonstrate their latest tech innovations.”
If you’re a business leader who wants to share the latest technology you’ve created or designed, the Trailblazing Technology Conference is the perfect place for you. pro-manchester will be running a competition to find the most innovate tech companies to demonstrate their products to the audience of 300+ professionals.
Join pro-manchester on Friday 20th March 2020 for a not-to-be-missed event at The Lowry Hotel.
Book before Friday 17th January and take advantage of an earlybird discount of £25 + VAT (£125 + VAT for pro-manchester members and £170 +VAT for non-members).
For more information: www.pro-manchestertechconference.com
Nearly two thirds of the nation’s developers set to invest more in the North of England by 2021
The North of England is set to become the hotspot of UK property development according to new research. In a […]


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Andreas Pavlidis owns a small ice cream and frozen yogurt store just off Nicosia's main shopping street. He only opened the store a year ago, but said he is earning enough to make a living.
"Sales have dropped somewhat over the last few months because of the uncertainty around the economy," he said. "People may not be going on holidays or buying clothes, but at least they are still buying food. Our products only cost one to three euros, and people still want a little treat now and then, so we are doing fine."
Andreas's store is an exception though. In the city center of Nicosia, many stores are closed or rundown and store windows are plastered with "for sale" signs.
Teenagers are sitting in cafes, pensioners are huddled together playing backgammon, known as "Tavli." A few tourists are snapping pictures of old churches.
But footfall is slow, and few people are buying. The only luxury they seem to enjoy is their afternoon coffee in Starbucks or the local coffee store.
Reacting to Tuesday's overwhelming vote against the controversial deposit tax, Andreas said: "It is good. We sent a clear sign to Europe"
(Read More: EU 'Blackmailed' Cyprus: Ex-Cypriot Central Banker)
During the short visit to Andreas's store, he echoed a sentiment I have heard a number of times over the past few days, stressing twice that: "Cypriots are not like Greeks. We are hardworking. I work 60 hours a week. We want to rebuild the economy ourselves. We do not want help from (German Chancellor Angela) Merkel."
He added: "We much prefer Russia to be involved than Germany's Merkel, who has been bluffing all along. The Germans will do whatever they want with us."
(Read More: Russia Talks 'Looking Beyond' Loan Extension: Cyprus)
George, a university dropout, disagrees: "If Russia makes a bigger investment in Cyprus, we will be like slaves." Once Cyprus strikes a deal with Russia for a loan in exchange for gas reserves, he said, the country will have to give in to Russia's demands for years.
Andreas, the ice cream store owner, added: "Going back to the Cypriot lira may just be what we need. It may be difficult in the first three to four years, but it will certainly be better in the long run."
Efi, a graphic designer student, who is six months away from graduation, complained that the job market is extremely tough: "It is so difficult to find a job, with so many young people from other countries coming here and accepting lower pay."
(Read More: How Russia Could Take Revenge Over Cyprus Deal)
She said the government isn't doing enough to help the labor market. "The government has other problems—getting money from abroad. They don't care about us. Not even the university cares."
For now though, Efi plans on staying in Cyprus. "Where else should I go? I hope the situation will get better soon," she said.


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Now that we’ve had a few hours to digest Intel’s fourth quarter 2006 earnings, here is what stands out. Overall, I’ll call it a major improvement for the chipmaker. A better end to a bad year. But there are still some trouble spots. Intel reported revenue of $9.7 billion, $1.5 billion in operating income and a net income of $1.5 billion, or profit, delivering earnings per share of 26 cents for the fourth quarter. This topped the Wall Street’s expectation for revenue of $9.44 billion and earnings per share of 25 cents.
The results represent strong sequential gains from the third quarter of 2006. That’s a good sign, given Intel’s less-than-spectacular results from the last four quarters. Thus it’s pretty clear that the company’s Core Microarchitecture products—the Core 2 Duo, Core Extreme, Xeon 5100 and Xeon 5300—are faring well, when the company can report record shipments. This is a positive sign for the company’s 2007 performance. However, when measuring its fourth quarter results on a year-over-year basis, Intel’s revenue, operating income and net income all showed significant declines. (Its fourth quarter 2005 revenue was $10.2 billion, with operating income of $3.3 billion and net income of $2.5 billion or 40 cents a share.) That means it still has work to do to please the financial crowd.
Overall, Intel’s results confirmed a lot of expectations, including showing that its its cost-cutting measures have been effective and that its inventory, which fell for the first time since 2005, is heading in the right direction. That meant the one thing that stood out the most from the results and the ensuing conference call, hosted by Intel CEO Paul Otellini and CFO Andy Bryant, was the competitive environment in the fourth quarter. AMD’s fourth quarter earnings warning, last week, signaled that pricing would be an issue for the two chipmakers’ fourth quarter financials. Alas, it was.
Despite reporting higher processor selling prices during the quarter, Intel’s gross margin missed forecasts and came in at less than 50 percent for the second consecutive quarter. Its fourth quarter gross margin was 49.6 percent, up from 49.1 percent during 3Q06, but well below the fourth quarter of 2005’s 61.8 percent. The year-to-year decline in the figure, which basically represents what’s left after the costs of manufacturing a product are accounted for, shows that Intel faced intense pricing competition from AMD. Otellini and Bryant indicated during their call that the competition in the desktop processor market was particularly intense. They said Intel’s desktop unit shipment growth actually came in below seasonal trends—which normally sees a unit shipment increase of around 10 percent—which probably made the situation more difficult. Intel make up the deficit by shipping what it says were record numbers of notebook and server processors in the quarter.
The executives said they don’t expect the competition to let up in the first quarter. Clearly, it will not as the chipmakers fight for market share. AMD wants to keep what it has earned over the last two years. Intel wants it back. This battle will put pressure on both companies as the profit on each ship they sell will be reduced. Intel, for example, forecast its 2007 average gross margin at about 50 percent. Historically, it’s been closer to 60 or 65 percent.
For consumers, the price competition will means good deals, whether on boxed processors or on finished PCs. There, it’s likely that PC makers will use lower processor prices to shoehorn higher-end processors into lower-priced desktops.
To help it become more competitive, Intel has cut costs considerably with its so-called efficiency program, which includes 10,500 job cuts and jettisoning non-essential businesses. The company’s SG&A—or selling, general and administrative expenses, the bulk of which is typically salaries—dropped to 14.8 percent of revenue in the fourth quarter, for example, and its down significantly from 19.9 percent in the second quarter of 2006. The program cost Intel a one-time restructuring charge of $457 million for the fourth quarter. But, going forward, the efficiency program appears on track to boost the company’s profitability.


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The long-grained aromatic Basmati rice, grown in the foothills of the Himalayas and in the Indo-Gangetic belt and in some areas of Pakistan, finds the itself in the thick of a stormy tussle between the two neighbours over the right to protected geographical identification (PGI) trademark in the European Union.
“In 2018, India had filed for the registration of basmati PGI in EU. And as per the procedure the filing was placed in public domain inviting comments till 30.09.2020. The comments received are presently under evaluation,” says Vinod Kaul, executive director of All India Rice Exporters Association (AIREA).
India’s move, however, miffed Pakistan greatly. It was perceived to be a hammer blow to Pakistani traders in a critical export market.
The two countries are the only global exporters of basmati rice. About two-thirds of basmati imports to the EU are from India and the rest from Pakistan.
However, according to Kaul, at this stage, it is too premature to make any value judgement or impact on exports of any country.
The impasse began since September 2020, when the European Commission published the application for registration of the name ‘basmati’ from India as a proposed PGI indicator.
If granted, analysts believe India would have domination over basmati rice markets in Europe, as names of products registered as GIs are legally protected against imitation and misuse within the EU and in non-EU countries where a specific protection agreement has been signed.
Pakistan has been vehemently opposed to India’s move. It filed a counter-petition in late 2020. In February 2021, the Rice Exporters Association of Pakistan (REAP) submitted a notice of opposition to the EU over India’s claim on Basmati according to Pakistan’s leading daily, Dawn.
Earlier in the year, as the law requires, before registering any product in the international market it has to be GI protected in that country, Pakistan got the GI tag for its Basmati, which it previously did not have.
Historically speaking, Basmati rice has been cultivated on both sides of the border for centuries. It is a favoured staple in both countries’ cuisine.
India is the largest rice exporter in the world. According to the commerce ministry and All India Rice Exporters Association data, India exported $245.4 million worth of basmati rice to the EU in 2020-21 as against $207 million in 2019-20. In quantitative terms, it was 2.88 lakh tonnes compared to 2.11 lakh tonnes the previous year.
Similarly, Pakistan exports between 5-7 lakh tonnes of basmati rice to the world, of which 2-2.5 lakh tonnes is shipped to EU countries.
“This year India recorded a 3.96 percent increase in export of Basmati rice over 2019-20 touching a figure of 4.6 million tonnes,” says Kaul.
However, India’s export of basmati rice has been shrinking owing to a failure of its producers to meet increasingly strict EU standards on the use of pesticides. A major proportion of Indian basmati exports go to Iran, Saudi Arabia and other countries in the Middle East, as it is best suited to their food habits. That demand will continue to increase.
On the other hand, Pakistan’s export of basmati rice to the EU has more than doubled in the last three years, from 120,000 metric tons in 2017 to 300,000 metric tons in 2019, according to the European Commission.
Getting past the logjam
As the matter involves the livelihood of farmers on both sides of the border since it is a major source of revenue generation for both countries, an amicable resolution to the standoff would be the best outcome.
The EC would also favour that.
Industry watchers say that exporters of basmati rice in both countries would prefer a joint claim over the trademark, especially as it is a joint heritage. It is being mooted as a solution as Pakistan is also entitled to secure its basmati rice trade as much as India.
A spokesperson of Punjab Rice Millers Export Association also suggested that because India and Pakistan are the only two countries which produce basmati in the world, they should both jointly work together to save the heritage and protect the GI regime of the rice
Besides, analysts also claim that both countries have been exporting and competing in different markets for more than four decades and PGI is unlikely to change that. Also Pakistan securing the GI tag for its Basmati rice would in no way, dent India’s Basmati exports.
However, Kaul says: “There is no such move present for the joint claim”.
Till then it will have to wait and watch for the moment.


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High Point, NC -- The stock market can be tricky to understand. Now, students have a new way buy, sell and trade stocks, without spending a dime.
High Point University faculty and students developed a Wall Street iPad app.
Students negotiate on price. They then select what they're going to sell with a simple click and drag process. A trade goes through when students bump iPads.
Students can lose or make virtual money based on their trading decisions.
"We think that classroom computer labs are gonna become more scarce in universities and high schools and i-pads will become more available. and so we hope to extend this application to other economics professors and teachers," says Assistant Professor of Economics, Daniel Hall.
The learning experience goes beyond Wall Street. It was also a lesson in the growing world of app development.
"It was good, real world experience because we were able to work in a team," said High Point University Computer Science Major Christian Weigandt. "Working in the group environment really translated well to really working on an application."


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Our ADT integrated campaign site was awarded Gold last week at the MMA Smarties in the UK Mobile Website category and we’re chuffed to bits.
Our hard-hitting hyper-local second-screen experience for both mobile and tablet showed how burglary can affect your life.
We used locational data to serve an arresting infographic: your street, and its burglary stats via a visual mash-up of Google Street View and crime stats from data.police.uk. It was coupled with a statistic related to the psychological effects of burglary.
The results were massive for ADT, since launch in September 2013 it has led directly to a 7.5% increase in appointments for security consultants to residential addresses. The trend of dual screening has also led to a 42% increase in site visits while the ADT TV ads are screening. What’s more, sales conversions from the mobile site have increased by over 400%.
The judges at the Smarties were clearly impressed too and we’ve given our nice shiny award pride of place in the office.


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After separating from Huawei, Honor released its flagship Honor V40 smartphone in January (cover photo) for the Chinese market. It was assumed that soon the new product will be released outside of the Middle Kingdom, but it seems that this is not the case.
What is known?
Our colleagues from GSMArena got hold of the official Honor poster, according to which the manufacturer decided to skip the Honor 40 and is now preparing for the release of the Honor 50 smartphone line on the global market. The devices should be released next month.
In addition to the poster, GSMArena journalists also got hold of a sketch of one of the smartphones. According to the leak, it will get a large oval chamber with two rings. One module will be placed in the upper ring, and two in the lower ring.
An LED flash is visible between them. Unfortunately, the characteristics of the Honor 50 smartphones are not yet available. It is also unknown whether the devices outside of China will receive Google services.
By the way, in addition to the Honor 50, the new Honor Play smartphone is due to be released in May.


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Carolyn Butler-Madden (main photo) is the author of For Love & Money and founder of The Cause Effect. In this guest post, Butler-Madden says brands can no longer ignore their social purpose responsibilities and offers her five reasons why…
COVID-19 forced unimagined changes to our lifestyles and accelerated the adoption of new, more flexible ways of working. It also accelerated the movement of social purpose-led business; driven by a recognition that governments alone, cannot solve society’s most pressing challenges. While the pandemic hastened the pace of change, this movement was already underway pre-pandemic. To understand why business leaders cannot afford to ignore the demand for businesses to adopt a social purpose, we need to examine the drivers behind it. There are five key drivers inspiring the social purpose movement:
Driver #1: Society needs it
Society is facing enormous challenges, impacting people globally and exposing deep societal needs. We see the impact of climate change and COVID-19 continues to wreak havoc. The Russian attack on Ukraine has created a refugee crisis of enormous consequences, destabilising Europe and the wider world. Increasing levels of income inequality expose deep inequities not just between nations, but also within nations. These are large issues needing solutions, but there are many more. Businesses seeking to identify needs that they can serve don’t need to look far. A great source of reference to understand these issues is the Global Goals. These seventeen goals define society’s most critical challenges. The opportunity for business is to innovate to develop ways to serve them profitably.
Driver #2: Societal leadership is now a core expectation of business
With governments proving themselves incapable of moving us towards a path of sustainability and equity, people are now looking to business for leadership. The 2022 Edelman Trust Barometer reveals that business is the only trusted institution, while NGO’s, Government and Media fall into neutral Trust territory. Crucially, societal leadership is now seen as a core business function amongst all stakeholders – consumers, employees and investors.
Driver #3: Businesses need to build trust
The expanded mandate of business to make a stand on societal issues and to take the lead on change, provides businesses with an opportunity to build trust. Trust gains since the pandemic suggest that the public responded positively to the many positive stories of actions by business to roll their sleeves up to help. Businesses that adopt societal leadership as a strategic imperative will continue to build trust from employees, consumers and investors and secure the benefits that come with it.
Driver #4: Meaningful work benefits everyone
In Australia’s first Meaningful Work Survey, Leadership, Culture and Purpose ranked as the most important contributors to meaningful work. Unsurprisingly, these are all intrinsically interlinked. Now consider what happens when people are engaged in meaningful work, driven by the pride they feel in working for a company with true leadership, a positive culture and engaged in work delivering meaningful impact to society. Employees feel a sense of fulfilment and self-worth, becoming emotionally invested in their work. This creates a powerful ripple effect, reaching recipients of the social impact the business creates and beyond. A happy fulfilled employee impacts positively on the business itself, colleagues, family, friends and the wider community. This positive energy benefits everyone, not just the individual engaged in meaningful work.
Driver #5: It makes good business sense
There is a growing body of credible evidence that shows social purpose is a strong driver of business success. Purposeful businesses financially outperform their counterparts, because their people are more engaged, the organisations more agile and, because there are higher levels of trust and loyalty in purposeful companies, they are more resilient when the going gets tough.
Social purpose is not just a passing trend, it is now the expectation of every business.
Please login with linkedin to commentCarolyn Butler-Madden
The latest entry in EA and Maxis’ life simulation series, The Sims 4, has released a new update which allows players to customise their character’s pronouns. This new feature is available only in the English version of the game for the time being, with the developers saying that they will soon release it for other […]
Alexa continues to learn and lap up Australian culture, with Amazon today announcing the addition of new ‘Strayan slang to her vocabulary. From well-worn phrases like “Dog’s Eye” to emerging social-media slang like “Bachelor’s Handbag”, Alexa’s latest lessons are part of her ongoing Aussie education and make it even easier for her to understand her […]
Less than half the Australian population (44 percent) are familiar with the metaverse, while only 36 percent express positive feelings about engaging with extended reality in daily life, a new global survey conducted by Ipsos for the World Economic Forum finds. Globally, about half of adults across 29 countries say they are familiar with the […]
Asian marketing communications agency Bastion Asia has announced a strategic partnership with one of Shanghai’s leading PR agencies, Adventi, to drive greater digital and marketing innovation for Australian brands seeking to engage with Chinese audiences. Adventi, a marketing and communications agency specialising in luxury brands, is known for bringing some of Europe’s biggest luxury brands […]
Engine Creative has reinvented the missing person poster – re-thinking the standard design and introducing a high-impact live portrait – for UK charity Missing People to coincide with International Missing Children’s Day. The striking, high-tech digital posters show a ‘live’ image of the missing person appearing to move their eyes, smile and make facial expressions. […]
LinkedIn, the world’s largest professional network, has today launched the latest iteration of its #ConversationsForChange initiative with a new content series in partnership with Indigenous-led creative consultancy, Campfire X. The three-part series, titled ‘Change Starts With’, aims to highlight the often subtle, everyday moments that can impact Indigenous Australians in the workplace. The campaign encourages […]
Collective Campus, Australian innovation consultancy and start-up accelerator, is spinning off Metarise – a web3 venture fund and tokenized start-up accelerator focused on bringing web3 projects to life across Asia-Pacific. Having run numerous web2 accelerators in partnership with brands such as Microsoft, Village Roadshow, Charter Hall, and Mills Oakley, Metarise’s ANZ Launchpad will be run […]
The popular video sharing platform TikTok is showing agencies its unique potential as a place to share their products with its latest #TikTokMadeMeBuyIt campaign, which is becoming increasingly appealing with audiences and users. During the pandemic, TikTok became one of the breakout social media outlets, rapidly rising in account numbers as people all across the […]


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Mahindra and Mahindra is planning to launch a facelift version of the KUV100 along with a new variant of TUV300 this month, according to a report in Autocar. It is expected that the company might launch an updated version of the KUV100 on 21st September 2017. The facelift version of KUV100 has been spied testing many times on Indian roads and it will get minor updates at exterior and in the interiors. The compact crossover will get updates at the front such as a reworked bumper with a new grille and redesigned headlamps. At the rear, it will get refreshed tail lamps and a redesigned bumper. The KUV100 is expected to get an updated infotainment system too with improved connectivity options. It is expected that the higher variants of KUV100 will get touch-screen infotainment system that will be compatible with Android Auto and Apple CarPlay. Under the hood, the KUV100 will use the same power train- a 1.2-litre petrol engine and 1.2-litre turbocharged diesel engine. Both engines will be mated to a 5-speed gearbox.
On the other hand, Mahindra will also add one more variant in the TUV300 line up. The new variant will be called the T10 and is expected to be introduced later this month. The T10 variant will be powered by a 1.5-litre diesel engine that will produce 100hp of power and 240 Nm of torque. It is expected that the T10 will get an AMT transmission. In addition, it will get a dual paint job and an updated infotainment system that will be compatible with an Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.
In other recent developments, Mahindra and Mahindra is planning to expand its electric car division by investing an amount of Rs 300 crore to Rs 400 crore in development of electric cars. It is expected that the company will roll out electric versions of XUV500 and Scorpio in order to improve the appeal of electric vehicles for the masses.


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In relation to its ambitious project Dedicated Freight Corridor (DFC) Corporation of India, the Indian Railways is now set to conduct the trial run of the double-decker goods train. This comes after the success of the trial run of the goods train that the commercial run is ready to be conducted.
One of the most important pointers about this development is that the length of the existing goods train will almost be doubled. Currently, the length of the goods train that runs through the existing corridor is about 650-700 meters. However, it will now be possible to run a 1500 meters long good train on the new DFC corridor, i.e. about double the amount of goods can now be transferred in just one train.
According to DFC MD AK Sachan, a 350 km portion of the track has already become part of the Western corridor and by the year 2021, 1500 km long corridor will also be prepared.
The DFC corridor, which is being prepared at a cost of 82 thousand crores, will run only freight trains. This project, once completed, will entirely change the picture of the railways’ network in India, according to experts. Work is being done on two corridors in the first phase.
The East Corridor is being built from Ludhiana to Kolkata and the second Western Corridor is being built from Dadri to JNPT port in Mumbai, says DFC GM (Operation) Ved Prakash. He added that the corridor, in many ways, will not only give a momentum to the transportation of industry across the country but would also indirectly benefit the passengers traveling on the train.
DFC Corridor will provide a boost to the Indian economy as well, it is said, since multi-transition parks are being built on several stretches along this corridor, where thousands of people will get employment.
DFC has just started a trial run in a stretch of 350 km in the first phase. By March 31, 2020, a portion of 650 kms will be ready and the entire 1500 km long corridor will be completed by December 2020.
Courtesy : DNA


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Pinterest builds search engine for 30 billion 'Pins'
Users of Pinterest, the hugely funded digital pinboarding service, have collected 30 billion image-centered items -- or “Pins” -- since the service launched to the public four years ago.
To help “Pinners” make use of all that data, the company Thursday night unveiled what it called new search technology designed to shepherd people -- primarily on mobile phones -- through countless photographs and other “objects.”
“Guided Seasrch will help you discover things where you didn’t know to ask the question in the first place,” said Ben Silbermann, co-founder and CEO of San Francisco-based Pinterest, at a party attended by reporters and about 100 of the company’s dedicated users.
Traditionally, digital search technology has been primarily focused on text queries that lead to text answers, Silbermann said.
Pinterest’s new capabilities provide descriptive guides to help users sift through ideas from other Pinners. Navigation is accomplished by scrolling and tapping, gesture based tools developed specifically with the mobile phone in mind, as 75 percent of Pinterest’s traffic now comes via mobile devices.
In addition, Silbermann said that Pinterest will now enable users to track their own custom categories of interest, instead of providing only pre-selected offerings.
That, needless to say, will only add complexity to Pinterest’s operations, which already involve managing trillions of data sets.
Incredibly, Silbermann said that the number of Pins contributed by users has grown 50 percent in the last six months.
“You are helping to build the world’s largest human-curated collection of things,” Silbermann said.
Founded in 2009, Pinterest has raised a total of $562.5 million, including an astounding $425 million in two rounds last year.
Patrick covers technology.
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Stocks won on Tuesday as, in large part, effective quarterly earnings reports endured to roll in. Both the Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 climbed modestly. But the rising tide failed to raise all boats. J.B. Hunt (NASDAQ: JBHT) dropped following a disappointing quarter, Bank of America (NYSE: BAC) lagged within the wake of its combined income document, and Boston Scientific (NYSE: BSX) slumped after being considered one of its merchandise raised the ire of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
Shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services dropped 4.Nine after the trucking organization announced underwhelming first-area 2019 effects. Quarterly sales climbed 7% year over year (or 8% except for gas surcharges) to $2.09 billion, translating right into a more or less 2% growth in earnings in keeping with proportion to $1.09.
During the subsequent conference name, CFO David Mee mainly blamed smooth volumes at the agency’s center intermodal section, wherein sales climbed simply 2% to $1.09 billion due to a combination of anticipated rail lane closures and a deceleration in the call for given weather-associated provider disruptions.
Intermodal section President Terrence Matthews added that the business enterprise’s business on the West Coast has become slower than predicted because of lower volumes of Chinese goods due to the hazard of capacity tariffs that were purported to be carried out on March 1, 2019.
The caveat to Bank of America’s solid earnings
Bank of America’s shares fell as much as 3% early in the consultation, then recovered overdue in the afternoon to shut essentially flat after the agency published sturdy quarterly earnings, however, lighter-than-predicted sales.
Revenue edged lower from the year in the past period to $23 billion, translating right into a 6% boom in net earnings to $7.Three billion, and 12.9% growth in net profits in keeping with a percentage to $zero.70. Most analysts had been looking for earnings of $zero—sixty-five according to share on higher revenue of $23.3 billion.


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The Bitcoin-specific fork that makes Bitcoin anonymous
The latest branch of Bitcoin is only a few weeks old, which is a bit different from the rest. Rather than simply modifying Segwit or resizing blocks, Bitcoin Private (BTCP) adds zk-Snarks. This privacy enhancement is known for Z-series coins like Zcash, zclassic and zencash. This is not surprising, as Rhett Creighton launched both Bitcoin and zclassic on February 28 to create BTCP, which is available to holders of both coins.
The Task of Making Bitcoin Private Again
Like all branches, Bitcoin privatization is not without controversy. Bitcoin's basic code hasn't changed much over the years, but the ability for law enforcement, the IRS and other busy bankers to scrutinize blockchain activity has. Bitcoin today is fraught with risk given that once Bitcoin can be used with reasonable assumptions of privacy in the deep web and elsewhere. The rise of privacy coins such as monero is a direct response to this gradual erosion of privacy.
On February 28, the zclassic and bitcoin blockchains will be tapped, and each cryptocurrency holder will be eligible for bitcoin private status to be distributed in a 1:1 ratio once the main BTCP network launches a few days later. Combined circulating supply of BTC and ZCL for a total of 20 million coins. When the branch was announced late last year, it caused zclassic's bonus to rise from about $4 on Dec. 22 to about $97 currently. For anyone interested in claiming their maximum allocation of bitcoin, it makes sense to load up zclassic, even if at $100 it is several orders of magnitude cheaper than bitcoin. The zclassic will probably rise further as the hardcore days get closer.
Smart thinking or cynical tactics?
Unlike most bitcoin forks, BTCP seems to have been well thought out. It has a proper development team and the code is undergoing extensive testing. One of the reasons why the delivery date was only recently announced was to allow the BTCP wallet to be thoroughly tested. It's too early to conclude that the fork was accident-free, and the signs look promising. In contrast, many recent bitcoin forks have occurred, with low utilization of both Github activity and buggy wallets. The BTCP team has been eager to avoid a repeat of fork issues like Bitcoin Gold.
The biggest question surrounding the privatization of Bitcoin is why? Why spend all that time implementing privacy techniques that already exist in zclassic and its family? The second question revolves around what happens to zclassic after the fork. Rhett Creighton has announced that the development of the ZCL will continue to be supported, but its presence seems to be of little use after the launch of the BTCP. It was widely expected that Zclassic would dump after the bifurcation. Finally, what exchanges will support BTCP.
Currently, Bittrex and Cryptopia are the only major exchanges on which zclassic can be traded. It is assumed that these platforms will distribute BTCP, but this has not been confirmed. The Coinomi wallet has at least confirmed that it will support the branch, while the BTCP team has applied to be listed on Binance. ZCL holders also have the option of storing their coins in an Electrum wallet before forking them. If nothing else, it will be interesting to see how many bitcoin holders are reluctant to ask for their BTCP. The results should show the extent to which bitcoiners value their privacy, no matter how inaccurate. Then, if BTCP reaches any market value, then many will claim that the free allocation is just to cash in.
Would you bother asking for your bitcoin privately? Please let us know in the comments section below.


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Boxfish acquires Belfast data firm Sophia
Artificial intelligence firm targets social media audience; Boxfish clients include Netflix, Fox, CBS and Amazon
Boxfish, the data science company founded by Eoin Dowling and Kevin Burkitt, has acquired Sophia, a Belfast firm that specialises in semantic data and content analytics.
Boxfish, which raised $5 million from Dublin-based venture capital firm Atlantic Bridge Partners and electronics giant Samsung in 2014, did not disclose the terms of the deal.
“Having worked with the Sophia team for the past two years, we already had developed a tight synergy between our two companies,” Dowling, chief...
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Out of Office: National Cyber Security Centre to get additional €2.5 funding and 20 new roles
The business news you might have missed, all in one place
Content is king – just ask Netflix as rivals attempt to steal its crown
A WarnerMedia-Discovery deal puts the spotlight on streaming wars as around 100 platforms vie for the attention of often fickle audiences
Tom Maguire: Tax changes we make now could help business for years
The way we did business a few months ago may never return – so the opportunity is to make changes that will both aid recovery and set us up well for our new futures


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Apple has just introduced several improvements to its 15-inch MacBook Pro and 27-inch iMac computers. The company’s marketing chief, Phil Schiller, has enthused that “we are thrilled to bring the new Force Touch trackpad, faster flash storage, and longer battery life to the 15-inch MacBook Pro with Retina display”, while the iMac now boasts an improved display and processor.
The MacBook Pro has long been a highly desirable notebook, and the new version, pictured above, comes with the trackpad that has been a key part of the 13-inch model since earlier this year. Purchasers of the new 15-inch version can also enjoy a speedier SSD drive, better graphics hardware and a battery life that, according to Apple, now clocks in at nine hours. The model with a 2.2 Ghz processor and 256GB of flash storage will be priced at $1,999, while the more advanced 2.5Ghz version with 512GB of storage will cost a minimum of $2,499.
Meanwhile, the new iMac desktop now has a 5K display, a 3.3Ghz Intel Core i5 processor, an AMD Radeon R9 M290 graphics chip and 8GB of RAM. This computer will cost $1,999 for the most basic model and at least $2,299 for the most high-end model, which has a 3.5Ghz chip.


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BMW is currently demonstrating the technology to local authorities in German cities which may be forced to ban heavily polluting diesel cars as a way to meet European Union clean air rules. A global clampdown on vehicle pollution in the wake of Volkswagen’s (VOWG_p.DE) 2015 diesel emissions cheating scandal has prompted cities including London, Paris and Stuttgart to consider bans of combustion engine vehicles. But customers have shied away from buying electric cars because of a lack of charging infrastructure, making hybrids a more attractive option for now cufflinks gold uk sale.
(Reuters) – Anglo-Dutch consumer goods company Unilever (ULVR.L) said its CEO Paul Polman was retiring and would be replaced by the head of its beauty unit Alan Jope, 54, from January 1. Below are the main points from Jope’s biography. -Born in Scotland. -Bachelor of Commerce with honors from Edinburgh University. -Joined Unilever as a graduate trainee in 1985. -Worked in North America for 14 years, Asia for 13 years. -1995-1998 VP, Personal Care for Unilever Thailand. -2001 Graduated from Harvard Business School’s General Management Programme cufflinks gold uk sale.
-2000-2009 President of Unilever’s Home & Personal Care business in North America, Global Category Leader for several of Unilever’s Foods & Refreshment divisions. -2009 Chairman of Unilever in Greater China cufflinks gold uk sale. -2011 President of Unilever’s businesses across North Asia and member of the Unilever Leadership Executive. -2013 President of Unilever Russia, Africa & Middle East. -2014 President of Unilever’s Personal Care business, that unit subsequently became Beauty and personal care division earlier this year..
AMSTERDAM/TOKYO (Reuters) – Renault (RENA.PA) and Nissan (7201.T) vowed to stick by their industrial alliance on Thursday but failed to name an interim boss to stand in for Chairman Carlos Ghosn, whose arrest has threatened the French carmaker’s control of the partnership cufflinks gold uk sale. The two companies and Nissan-controlled Mitsubishi Motors (7211.T) “emphatically reiterated” their commitment to the alliance, as executives met in Amsterdam for the first time since Ghosn’s Nov. 19 arrest over misconduct allegations..
But attempts by Renault to transfer Ghosn’s chairmanship of the Renault-Nissan board to his French deputy Thierry Bollore appeared to have foundered cufflinks gold uk sale. There are no plans to name an interim alliance leader, Mitsubishi boss Osamu Masuko said afterwards. Instead, he said, leadership will be shared among the three companies’ CEOs. The crisis unleashed by Ghosn’s arrest has deepened as Nissan CEO Hiroto Saikawa seeks to end 43.4 percent-owner Renault’s grip on their alliance. Ghosn was swiftly ousted as Nissan chairman but remains at the helm of Renault..


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Hoffman Estates, Ill. Sears Holdings said Tuesday it plans to launch in its Sears stores an exclusive apparel line by the rapper and film celebrity LL Cool J.
Irv Neger, senior VP, apparel, Sears Holdings Corp. said the move is part of “an ongoing commitment to increase our relevance in the apparel industry, and bring fashions to our customers that are both on-trend and affordable.”
The clothing collection will debut as part of the fall collection. The line will initially be carried in 450 stores with plans for increased distribution by holiday, according to Neger.
LL Cool J issued the following comment: “One of the happiest times I can remember was my grandfather taking me to Sears every weekend when I was a child. I am pleased to bring an authentic brand to Sears customers across the country who represent those people and family members who influenced the person I am today."


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TEL AVIV (Oct. 7)
A $2,000,000 Israel-Yugoslav trade agreement was signed in Belgrade yesterday, it was announced here today. Israel Minister to Belgrade Moshe Ishai initialled the agreement on behalf of the Jewish state while a Yugoslav Foreign Ministry representative signed the document on behalf of his government.
Under the agreement, Israel will import from Yugoslavia timber, corn, beans, potatoes, onions and other foodstuffs. Yugoslavia will also ship to the new state lead and various chemicals. In turn, Israel will export to Yugoslavia citrus fruits citrus by-products, woolen yarns, razor blades, oils, optical lenses, artificial teeth and sheet glass.
Israel will pay for the Yugoslav imports partly in hard currency and partly in export products. In addition to the agreement, Israel plans to purchase from Yugoslavia sufficient timber for the manufacture of 1,000,000 citrus crates. The commercial pact with Yugoslavia makes it the sixth such agreement reached between Israel and other countries in the past nine months. Others concluded to date have been with the Netherlands, Hungary, Poland, Finland and Uruguay.


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December 14, 2017
Six casinos in southern California are undergoing renovations and expansions that will cost an estimated $1 billion. Each has plans to help attract more guests and keep their regular visitors happy.
The latest way to attract more people has been lobster.
Beginning January 11, the Lobster & Seafood Extravaganza will be hosted at the Pechanga Resort & Casino. The buffet will offer whole Maine lobster for $44.99. It is estimated to have between 1,100 and 1,500 guests.
On December 22 the casino resort will be opening the new hotel tower. There will be 568 guest rooms. In March the new 4.5 acre pool area will open.
Casino visitors have other choices as well for their lobster meals.
On Tuesdays and Thursdays evenings the Pala Casino Spa & Resort offer all-you-can-compete lobster buffet.
All day on Friday the Viejas Casino & Resort also offers a lobster buffet.
Lobster Wednesday was recently released at Barona Resort & Casino. There are 11 dining venues that offer a lobster item from their menus.
Lastly there is also nightly Maine lobster buffets held at Valley View Casino & Hotel.
Return to California Casinos.
Most USA Players


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Exxon Mobil topped the annual Fortune 500 list of the nation's biggest public corporations by revenues for the 12th time in history, with 2008 revenues of more than $442 billion and profits of more than $45 billion.
Exxon passed Wal-Mart, which fell to No. 2 last year after holding the No. 1 spot for six of the previous seven years. The giant retailer had 2008 revenues of more than $405 billion and profits of $13.4 billion.
The annual list, compiled by Fortune magazine and released today, offers a glimpse at who is up and who is down among the nation's biggest corporations. The 2008 results are especially compelling because of the recession's impact and Wall Street's plummet that hit so hard last fall.
In Florida, 13 corporations based in the state made the Fortune 500 list, led by Lakeland's Publix Super Markets at No. 101, up from No. 107. Publix, with 2008 revenues of just over $24.1 billion, squeezed past Clearwater-based Tech Data Corp. by a mere $29 million as Florida's biggest corporation. Tech Data ranked No. 102, up from No. 105.
Other Florida companies and their ranks: World Fuel Services, Miami, at No. 137; International Assets Holding, Altamonte Springs, No. 140; FPL Group, Juno Beach, No. 154; AutoNation, Fort Lauderdale, down 44 spots in a rough year for selling autos to No. 182; Jabil Circuit, St. Petersburg, No. 212; CSX Corp., Jacksonville, No. 240; Winn-Dixie Stores, Jacksonville, No. 340; Darden Restaurants, Orlando, No. 374; WellCare Health Plans, Tampa, No. 381; Ryder System, Miami, No. 371, and Harris, Melbourne, No. 447.
Two of the companies, AutoNation and Wellcare, posted losses in 2008.
Florida boasted 12 Fortune 500 companies for 2007, including Miami homebuilder Lennar Corp., which failed to make the listing for 2008 because of the drastic shrinkage in home construction last year.
Robert Trigaux can be reached at firstname.lastname@example.org