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© cumypah dreamstime.com Components | July 15, 2013
Wolfson Audio Hub adopted by Sharp
Wolfson Microelectronicsn’s WM5102 High Definition (HD) Audio Hub has been adopted by Sharp for its new range of AQUOS smartphone and tablet devices.
The WM5102 enables exceptional audio quality in the AQUOS PHONE ZETA SH-06E and AQUOS PHONE si SH-07E, as well as the upcoming AQUOS PAD SH-08E tablet, all from NTT DOCOMO. The WM5102 also features in the new AQUOS PHONE Xx SoftBank 206SH smartphone. The latest AQUOS PHONE range includes the world’s first 4G-enabled (LTE) devices to use a Wolfson Audio Hub alongside a Qualcomm application processor and LTE baseband modem. The WM5102 HD Audio Hub with low power, high performance audio digital signal processor (DSP) enables clearer, more natural-sounding voice calls, even in the noisiest environments. With integrated transmit-path (Tx) noise reduction, echo cancellation and receive-path (Rx) noise reduction, the WM5102 enables intelligible, natural-sounding conversation and reduces background noise transmitted via voice calls by up to 90%, regardless of whether the caller is travelling through a busy train station, socialising in a bar or relaxing at home. With 113dB signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), the WM5102 delivers an outstanding HD Audio experience with minimal power consumption, and can be used by original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) across all smartphone application processor platforms, delivering a truly platform agnostic experience. This announcement builds on Wolfson’s existing partnership with Sharp, having already designed Wolfson audio technology into its AQUOS PHONE st SH-07D smartphone last year. Takahisa Yamada, VP of Sales and General Manager of Wolfson Japan, said: “It is great news that Sharp has once again demonstrated its confidence in our unique audio technology by adopting our WM5102 HD Audio Hub for its latest smartphones. “Audio quality is fast becoming a key differentiating feature in mobile devices, and the WM5102 HD Audio Hub enables Sharp to deliver an outstanding consumer audio experience in its latest range of smartphone and tablet devices.”
SkyWater chosen for volume US manufacturing of temperature sensing chip Foundry partner, SkyWater Technology, has been chosen by investment firm, Asymmetric Return Capital (ARC) and Linear ASICs, a fabless analog and mixed-signal semiconductor company, to volume manufacture a microchip with temperature sensing capabilities used in a low-cost, smartphone-enabled wireless patch that assists in the remote detection of COVID-19.
Samsung expands with new NAND flash facility Samsung Electronics plans to expand its NAND flash production capacity in Pyeongtaek, Korea, in order to improve its ability to meet demands from emerging technologies.
ASML ships first-generation multibeam inspection system ‘eScan1000’ ASML Holding NV says that it has completed system integration and testing of its first-generation HMI multibeam inspection (MBI) system for 5 nm nodes and beyond.
Cognex takes measures to counter deteriorating market conditions Machine vision technology provider, Cognex Corporation, says it is taking significant steps to reducing expenses due to deteriorating market conditions and to position the company for growth when conditions improve.
Verkotan selects PWC technology from Rohde & Schwarz Test and measurement specialist Rohde & Schwarz has recently introduced the R&S PWC200, the first plane wave converter (PWC) on the market. Verkotan is the first independent test house to choose this technology to test 5G NR FR1 base stations over-the-air (OTA).
Kurt Sievers takes the helm at NXP At its annual general meeting of shareholders, the appointment of Kurt Sievers as the company’s next CEO was overwhelmingly approved.
Excelitas’ Qioptiq subsidiary expands with new plant Excelitas Technologies, a company delivering photonic solutions, sats that its Qioptiq subsidiary held a ground-breaking ceremony last week to mark the beginning of construction for a new factory in Göttingen, Germany.
Farnell adds Sorensen power supplies to its roster Distributor Farnell announces that it has added Sorensen, the premier DC programmable power supply brand from Ametek, to its range of power supplies.
Infineon raises EUR 1 billion following successful share placement Infineon informs that the company placed 55 million new shares, following an accelerated bookbuilding process with institutional investors, under the exclusion of subscription rights. The shares were placed at a price of EUR19.30 per share, meaning that the company managed to raise EUR 1.06 billion.
Skeleton Technologies strengthens management with new COO Skeleton Technologies has appointed Ants Vill, former Vice President of Product, as Chief Operating Officer.
SiPearl chooses Germany for its first international operational subsidiary SiPearl, a designer of the microprocessor for the European exascale supercomputer, is opening its first international subsidiary in Duisburg, in the Ruhr region, Germany, in order to build closer connections with its German partners and future clients.
DELO reports increased revenues despite current pandemic DELO closed the financial year that ended on March 31 with a turnover of EUR 163 million. This is an increase of almost 5% compared to the previous year (EUR 156 million).
China falls far short of its "Made-in-China 2025" goal IC production in China represented 15.7% of its $125 billion IC market in 2019, up only slightly from 15.1% five years earlier in 2014. IC Insights forecasts that this share will increase by 5.0 percentage points to 20.7% in 2024 (one percentage point per year on average).
COVID-19 highlights the gravity of the secondary market for SME Cha Jin-Seok, Chief Financial Officer of SK Hynix, said it best in the company’s Q1 earnings call, “Because of a never experienced pandemic, even basic business activities such as maintaining normal operations and predicting future demand have become challenging tasks.”
GlobalFoundries to implement ITAR at US manufacturing facility GlobalFoundries plans to implement export control security measures at its most advanced manufacturing facility, Fab 8, in Malta, New York.
Rebound Electronics expands in Asia The independent supplier of electronic components says it is investing to increase its market coverage in Asia with the opening of several new offices and setting up a customer service & telesales centre.
Samsung expands foundry capacity with new production line Samsung Electronics says that it plans to boost its foundry capacity at the company's new production line in Pyeongtaek, Korea, to meet growing global demand for extreme ultraviolet (EUV) solutions.
Super Dry Totech expands Long Term Storage Solutions offering The most recent development for Super Dry Totech, is the acquisition of a new building to expand on capacity & to minimise risk by assuring continuity should a disrupting incident occur in one of the facilities.Load more news
- COVID-19 highlights the gravity of the secondary market for SME
- China falls far short of its "Made-in-China 2025" goal
- Raspberry Pi audio HAT board with MERUS class D multilevel amplifier
- ASML ships first-generation multibeam inspection system ‘eScan1000’
- AMTE Power and Britishvolt sign MoU for GigaFactory


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This year marks the 100th anniversary of Danish designer Hans Wegner and Carl Hansen & Son, the world’s largest manufacturer of Wegner’s furniture, has every reason to celebrate.
This year marks the 100th anniversary of Danish designer Hans Wegner and Carl Hansen & Son, the world’s largest manufacturer of Wegner’s furniture, has every reason to celebrate. Danish furniture design has a longstanding tradition as admirable as it is influential. Names such as Arne Jacobsen, Verner Panton and Hans Wegner have distinguished its history with an aesthetic that is characteristically clean and uncomplicated. It sets a high benchmark for emerging designers, especially considering the number of Danish mid-century designs that are now universally recognised as iconic. One such classic is Wegner’s Wishbone chair, which he originally designed for Carl Hansen & Son in 1949 and was put into production in 1950. According to Morten Larsen, Carl Hansen & Son’s Sales Director for South Eeast Asia, Australia and New Zealand, it is the highest selling Wegner item they manufacture. The fact this year marks the 100th anniversary of the designer’s birth has further increased the chair’s popularity. “It’s also a significant milestone for us,” Larsen says. “Especially since Carl Hansen & Son is the world’s largest manufacturer of Wegner’s furniture and all of the manufacturing still takes place in Denmark.” To commemorate the 100th anniversary, the Danish manufacturer has launched Wegner’s CH88. It features powder-coated stainless steel legs; not a style usually associated with the Carl Hansen & Son brand, nonetheless, it is a fine addition to their existing portfolio. The family-owned company expanded its premises in 2001, replacing the original factory built in 1915 with a much larger one. From a business perspective the expansion has meant shorter lead times (which previously had been up to two years) and increased production. “So we’ve been able to take on many of Wegner’s other designs,” Larsen explains. “It’s said he created over 500 of them and our new factory now has the capacity to accommodate much more.” With a workforce that has grown from 15 to 250 employees, Carl Hansen & Son boasts some of the best craftspeople in the business. As Larsen reflects, “Our focus is always at the quality level; we actually refer to it as ‘passionate craftsmanship’, because we have skilled workers that are working every day on promoting Danish design and keeping it alive.” Carl Hansen & Son invests in joiner apprenticeships and many of these people stay with the company once they are certified. In fact, some of their best weavers (responsible for weaving the Wishbone chair’s seat) have been with the company for 19 years. While Hong Kong-based Larsen was in Australia recently to raise awareness of these two new products, he was also here to promote the company’s support of Wegner. During Melbourne Indesign he was a guest of Cult and when in Adelaide he was hosted by Aptos Cruz, both stockists of the Carl Hansen & Son brand, including Wegner’s designs. The Danish manufacturer’s most recent collaboration, however, has been with Japanese architect Tadao Ando, who designed the Dream chair. Released as a prototype in 2012, the final product launched at last year’s Milan Furniture Fair. “He made it as a tribute to Wegner,” Larsen explains. “So it doesn’t really get much better than that… Ando designing a ;tribute to Wegner.” aptoscruz.com carlhansen.com cultdesign.com.au

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Sneakerheads, gamers and basketball fans rejoice! The world’s most powerful console, Xbox One X, is joining forces with the legendary Jordan brand to create some very special and unique consoles. To celebrate the recent and upcoming Air Jordan III releases, Xbox is creating three one-of-a-kind Xbox One X consoles inspired by the three sneakers. The custom consoles will be based on the Air Jordan III Free Throw Line which dropped February 14, the Air Jordan III Black Cement available February 17 and the Air Jordan III Tinker, available on March 24.
Fans will have the chance to win one of the three consoles through the Xbox Twitter Page from Friday, February 16 at 2pm. GMT to Wednesday, February 22 at 6am GMT.


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Nintendo just announced that they are doing an Indie World Showcase in just 24 hours.
Four months ago was our last Indie World Showcase, and we got a look at some pretty awesome games, some now available on the Nintendo Switch. Some of of my favorites from the last showcase were The Tourist, Best Friend Forever and Phogs. For some reason, cute little indie games just seem right at home on the Switch.
In a recent Tweet, Nintendo announced that they will be doing another Indie World Showcase tomorrow, starting at 10 a.m. PT. The presentation will last about twenty minutes, and will feature indie games that will be coming to the Nintendo Switch, sooner or later.
If you would like to view the presentation as soon as it airs, you can do so on the official Nintendo website. If you do happen to miss it, worry not. I intend to cover all the cute games that are revealed during the showcase. If you feel like checking out some awesome Indies right now, check out my coverage of the best cute indie games available now for Switch.


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Michigan marijuana prices are plummeting, striking fear into small growers who’ve invested nearly everything to join the state’s young and volatile market that some say is being consumed by big corporate business in a “race to the bottom.”
They cited the deep-pocket capabilities of large, multi-state corporate growers to drive down prices and push out small competitors, as well as the ever-present competition from illicit marijuana sneaking into the state from without and within.
The overwhelming majority of commenters at the Cannabis Regulatory Agency (CRA) public quarterly meeting held in Lansing Wednesday, Sept. 14, identified themselves as small players in the 3-year-old recreational market and asked regulators to stop issuing new grow licenses, at least temporarily. They also want to cap the number of plants any single business can grow to 10,000. Several requested better enforcement to keep out black-market marijuana.
Kristsa Beller, who operates Real Leaf Solutions, a 2,000-plant grow in Kalkaska, said a moratorium on new grow licenses would push back against the “capitalism gone wild” that has “ravaged other states” and protect communities from the “poverty and decay that is left in the wake of speculators.”
Over the last year, recreational marijuana flower prices have sunk 47% while recreational marijuana sales are up 126%, outgoing CRA Director Andrew Brisbo said, indicating increased market saturation.
Michigan has issued marijuana grow licenses capable of producing nearly 1.7 million plants at any given time, and the supply glut is crushing small business, many complained during the quarterly meeting.
The CRA created a controversial special excess grow licenses that allows businesses to exceed a 10,000-plant limit that some argue only benefits big business. Each license allows the grower 2,000 more plants, and 128 active excess grow licenses, capable of producing a total of 256,000 plants, are held by 25 businesses.
“It’s a race to the bottom,” said George Lynch, who identified himself as the owner of Simplicity farms, a “very small” locally owned family grow. “There’s no end to it that we can see. It looks like it’s just going to get cheaper and cheaper and more and more flower every day ... We are very much in support of a moratorium on new grow licenses and excess grow licenses.”
Robin Schneider, director of the Michigan Cannabis Industry Association, the state’s larges marijuana trade organization with over 400 members, said her membership overwhelmingly supports a moratorium grower licenses.
Schneider said she observed an uptick in calls from growers sharing market concerns about a year ago. One call “startled” her.
The small, family-owned grow was looking for someone to take some marijuana it had processed and stored in freezers. Due to the declining revenue, they couldn’t make the payment on those freezers, Schneider said. The freezers were being repossessed and they didn’t want the marijuana to go to waste.
“They had invested everything,” she said. “They had mortgaged their home, done everything they could to create just enough investment to get that operation up and running.”
Schneider, who helped write the legislation that voters passed in 2018 legalizing recreational marijuana and creating the framework for the commercial market, said this isn’t the sort of situation she or other crafters envisioned.
“And since that time, I’ve heard more and more stories,” she said.
The competing Michigan Cannabis Manufacturers Association (MCMA), that represents some of the largest growers in the state and is chaired by former Licensing and Regulatory Affairs Director Shelly Edgerton, said it is “open to discussion of a grow license moratorium,” but wants a focus on eliminating unlicensed marijuana in the system.
“Iillicit sales remain the main way Michiganders get their cannabis” and ”there is also a growing number of licensed cannabis operators providing illicit or untested product,” Edgerton said in a statement issued by the MCMA following Wednesday’s meeting. “We can help address these two pressing issues by cracking down on the illicit market and ramping-up enforcement statewide.
The MCMA has lobbied for greater enforcement of caregivers, who are allowed to grow medical marijuana for registered patients, and whom they point to as significant producers of unlicensed marijuana that competes with or infiltrates the commercial market.
Rick Thompson, representing the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML), a regular political foe of the MCMA, agreed with Edgerton on one point: there should be a focus on expanding the market to combat saturation.
Fewer than 120 of Michigan’s 1,773 cities, villages and townships have opted to allow recreational marijuana sales.
Thompson, a longtime supporter of the caregiver system, disagreed with the CRA upping its enforcement of unlicensed marijuana.
“That might favor the MCMA’s position but it’s It’s not under the authority of the CRA to engage in enforcement actions on people who are not licensed by the CRA,” he said. “That is a function of the Michigan state police and it’s a misdirection of resources.”
Many commenters at the quarterly meeting bid farewell to Director Brisbo, who is departing to become director of the state Bureau of Construction Codes. They praised his work creating the regulated market and providing open lines of communication to its members.
The full meeting will be posted for review on the CRA’s public meeting page.
More on MLive:
Marijuana businesses ‘shocked’ by plan to move director
Meet Michigan’s marijuana referee
How Michigan hopes to make small marijuana business more accessible


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Technologyreview.com has posted an interview with Julie Larson-Green, head of the Windows product development team at Microsoft.
France-based video game publisher Ubisoft elicited scorn from gamers and consumer rights advocates due to its widespread implementation of 'always on' DRM protection within the PC versions of countless titles. The measure was intended to cut-down on piracy, but found little favor within the gaming community. In January, the company relented and removed all DRM via an update. Ironically, Ubisoft is now being accused of including music torrents from file-sharing site Demonoid as a bonus in the PC release of hit game "Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood." Especially odd since the music in question is Ubisoft's own "Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood" soundtrack.
Anonymous often alleges it's "doing it for the lulz." This time, the joke may have been on them. The hacker collective hyped a real-life global Sony boycott over the weekend in retaliation to the company's treatment of George Hotz and Alexander Egorenkov (AKA graf_chokolo). Despite a Facebook event page and the group's own official news site spreading the word, a less-than-expected number of supporters ended up trekking to Sony stores on Saturday for the sit-in.
Online retailer HSN made a mistake, it has put Windows 8 PCs online too early. We have the details...
Real Networks hopes to enhance interactive gaming with the release of GameHouse for Facebook, which can be played directly into the leading social networking site.
Following the launch of a developers-only Windows 8 preview on Tuesday, Microsoft delved deeper into the future of its popular web browser. Internet Explorer 10's third platform preview was also included in the aforementioned build, allowing developers more hands-on time with its unique Metro-style layout. The ultimate goal for IE10, said Stephen Sinofsky, Windows Live president, is a "a truly chromeless browsing experience."
Are you on the lookout for a cloud hosting service for your business or simply for personal documents and data? In the modern world, everything has become wireless and online. This means the way we share data with others...
Best Buy is now publicly introducing its video game trade-in for customers interested in receiving a Best Buy gift card in exchange for finished games.
The Android Market. Apple's App Store. The Mozilla Marketplace? The Firefox browser creator is hoping to open up a one-stop shop for applications that can be used across all HTML5-enabled devices. To reach that lofty goal, Mozilla will give developers a crack at it during next week's annual Mobile World Congress expo in Barcelona.
CorelDraw is a vector graphics editor with an extensive toolset for creating and editing unique images. The company was first launched in the design community in 2004. CorelDRAW Graphics Suite 12 offers a brand new and innovative version for...
The Windows rumor mill has begun swirling in recent weeks about Microsoft’s next generation operating system, Windows 8, and the features we might see when the product finally hits the market sometime next year.
While Windows 8 isn't out for a week yet, malware makers are trying to ride the wave of publicity Microsoft's latest OS gets. Anti-virus company TrendMicro has posted two security threats on their blog that specifically target Windows 8.
Hewlett-Packard announced late last month that it acquired struggling smartphone maker Palm for a cool $1.2 billion, with analysts curious to hear what HP planned to do with the company.
It's been a strange past two days for Microsoft. Online security company Sophos criticized the Redmond software giant's recent Windows 8 developer preview on Friday for its lackluster anti-virus detection. A new security flub involving Internet Explorer rival Google Chrome, however, could easily be mistaken as overcompensation.
If you enjoy creating good looking and creative content for your social media platforms, whether you have a business or you’re just a regular user, Adobe Spark is your solution. According to recent studies, images and videos catch your...
If your one of the millions of Adobe Reader users all over the world and have an interest in learning to play golf, it’s time to pay more attention to the files you download. A nasty, new version of the Zero-Day exploit has once again begun targeting Adobe customers with an exploit code that has been disguised as an email with a PDF file of a golf lesson attached.


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Bottom Line Up Front
The West Coast maritime supply chain is currently facing significant challenges, as evidenced by the vessel buildup and labor unrest. These issues have far-reaching consequences for businesses and consumers alike, causing disruptions and delays. The demands of dockworkers for higher pay and better working conditions add complexity to an already fragile system. A quick resolution here would have a minimal impact to the healthcare supply chain, however, a drawn-out negotiation could cause severe disruption. Ultimately, a resilient and reliable supply chain is vital for the stability of the economy and the well-being of businesses and consumers.
The West Coast maritime supply chain is currently facing significant challenges, with labor unrest and a vessel buildup highlighting the fragility of the system. These issues have led to disruptions and delays, impacting businesses and consumers alike.
There are ongoing labor disputes plaguing West Coast ports, particularly at the Port of Los Angeles and the Port of Long Beach. Dockworkers have been engaged in sparring over pay, resulting in reduced productivity and further exacerbating the supply chain challenges. The conflict stems from the growing demands of the dockworkers for higher wages, better working conditions, and increased benefits. West Coast dockworkers are currently earning an average of $200,000 per year. Their demands for higher pay have raised concerns among businesses and industry experts. While the dockworkers argue that their demands are justified due to the demanding nature of their work, critics worry that excessive wage increases could have long-term consequences for the industry's competitiveness and pricing.
There is a visible buildup of vessels off the West Coast that is signaling a breaking point in the maritime supply chain. This buildup is due to a combination of factors, including the aforementioned labor unrest, increased demand, and a shortage of truck drivers. The backlog of ships waiting to unload their cargo is leading to significant delays and adding strain to an already stretched supply chain.
The ongoing labor unrest and vessel buildup have far-reaching consequences for businesses and consumers. Companies are grappling with delayed shipments, increased costs, and uncertain supply chains, which can disrupt production schedules and impact their bottom line. Consumers may experience product shortages, delayed deliveries, and higher prices as a result of these disruptions. The situation also highlights the need for diversification and resilience in global supply chains to minimize the impact of localized disruptions.


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PRECISION PLAYER: Canadian actress Taylor Russell, who opened Loewe’s spring 2023 fashion show in Paris last month wearing a short black velvet dress with panniers, has been named a global ambassador for the Madrid-based fashion house.
Russell’s first assignment for the LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton-owned brand is starring in its upcoming campaign for the spring 2023 pre-collection, lensed by Juergen Teller.
Speaking to reporters backstage after the spring 2023 Loewe show, he related: “When I was thinking of this collection, I had been thinking about Taylor Russell opening this show.…I just thought there was something about this precision in someone who is ultimately about the future of acting, or the future of performance.”
Russell becomes Loewe’s first global ambassador based in North America.
“Jonathan has been at the forefront of creativity in fashion, with such a distinct vision and voice,” Russell commented. “I am excited for our imaginations to reach new heights as we explore and collaborate in this incredibly special partnership.”
Russell stars in Guadagnino’s teen cannibal romance “Bones and All” opposite Timothée Chalamet and Mark Rylance, which premiered at the 2022 Venice International Film Festival and will hit theatres on Nov. 23.
The actress caught attention for her recurring role in the Netflix series “Lost in Space” and the Trey Edward Shults film “Waves,” released in 2019 and for which Russell won a Gotham Award as best breakthrough actor.
According to Loewe, Russell is also a producer and she codirected the short documentary, “The Heart Still Hums,” which chronicles five women as they fight for their children through the cycle of drug addiction, homelessness and the trauma of neglect from their own parents.
Loewe’s other global brand ambassadors are Josh O’Connor, Tang Wei and South Korean girl group Nmixx.


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Alibaba is China’s biggest online commerce company that offers consumer-to-consumer, business-to-consumer and business-to-business sales.
Alibaba set to open fulfilment centre in France
Alibaba continues its European expansion with news that its looking to open a dedicated fulfilment centre in France in the not too distant future. Alibaba will apparently soon open a logistics centre in France and also increase the sale of French products on its online trading platforms. The company is currently looking for a site and fulfilment partners.
The possibility emerged after a conversation between founder and CEO Jack Ma at a meeting with between the president of France Emmanuel Macron and the Chinese president Xi Jinping in Beijing last week. The meeting centred on building trade and business links between the two countries.
Alibaba chief Jack Ma says that he will be formalising the deal shortly. He commented: “I will go to France very soon to sign a memorandum of understanding for a Alibaba partnership, including logistics, payment solutions and ecommerce.”
The move comes at a time when Alibaba is doing well in France with French merchants enjoying success on the platform. Ma said that 1,700 French brands have joined Alibaba and their average growth has been 53% in the past year. Needless today, the French republic is a significant ecommerce territory and a rich country that Alibaba wants to further exploit and this move is a fine example of how there is more growth to come.
Alibaba will fail in Europe as they will have to overcome Amazon and EBay which will be impossible as Amazon has Prime benefits along with free shipping. All Alibaba can do is to fill its fulfilment cente r with cheap Chinese goods.


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When Adobe Systems summer intern Laurel Warrell got the assignment to figure out how using virtual reality goggles would change reading a static PDF file, even she thought the concept was “boring.”
But what she and a small team of senior Adobe researchers have come up with could, in the future, transform PDFs into another way to share an interactive experience.
Adobe this week showed off a prototype of a virtual reality version of the PDF, the portable document format that has become ubiquitous for storing and sharing pages of text, photos and graphics in their original form. The San Jose company says there are about 3 billion PDFs out in the world. If anything, that number seems low.
In an exclusive demonstration for The Chronicle, principal scientist Walter Chang showed how a PDF report on the abandoned Cold War-era Teufelsberg spy station in Berlin could be turned into a tour that makes you feel like you’re standing in the decrepit, graffiti-filled buildings.
The experience starts with a giant wall of three standard-looking PDFs. However, the virtual visitor can tap the photo on one PDF and be virtually transported into the old building.
The photo captured a 360-degree view, with icons to tap using the VR interface. Those icons reveal pertinent historical notes and social media comments about various points within the building. There are also virtual doors that let the tourist jump to other 360-degree photos inside the old spy center.
Last summer, Adobe asked Warrell, in her second year of a master’s degree program in human computer interaction at Georgia Tech, to look at how virtual reality could change the standard PDF experience. She worked with Chang and Adobe senior scientists Byungmoon Kim and Antoine Amanieux.
“The biggest question was what would it be like to go in there to read a PDF,” Warrell said. “I thought it would be kind of boring to go into a VR headset just to read. I said, ‘Why don’t we flip the concept around?’”
That meant coming up with a way to experience the subject matter covered by the PDF in an interactive form, instead of just reading text.
Adobe, which makes its money with software like Photoshop and cloud business-marketing services, created the PDF in the early 1990s. It has since become a standard document format, although the company acknowledges it’s also been derided, as former CEO Bruce Chizen once said, “as the roach motel of data formats — you could get data in, but you couldn’t get it out.”
But a virtual reality PDF can unlock layers of information, Chang said.
The spy station experience, for example, provides a better sense of how big the facility was than simple text or photos could convey, Chang said. “And you weren’t forced to read it in any particular order. You were reading the annotations as you discovered them, and in that sense every experience is unique to the way that person is exploring the environment.”
He believes that one day, people can capture family birthday parties in photos and text and share them as virtual PDFs. “Instead of having just photos, you have a snapshot of the whole moment that you can drop a person into,” he said. “And if you have annotations, your relatives could start looking around and say, ‘Oh, that’s Uncle Fred,’ or ‘That’s the dog, Rex.’”
And students might use the PDFs instead of textbooks.
Warrell, who has returned to school with plans to graduate this year, believes it could be used in a variety of ways, such as for tourists to research a potential destination.
“We’ll have to figure out what’s the best way for users to experience that,” she said. “We know that VR is the next big thing.”
Adobe, however, isn’t ready to release the new format and hasn’t shown it to anyone else outside the company. Chang said the company has yet to figure out potential commercial uses for the technology and is still working on many details.
Indeed, the virtual reality industry itself is in its early stages and is still trying to figure out how to get average consumers to buy the expensive headsets.
Gartner research analyst Brian Blau, a longtime VR industry observer, was somewhat skeptical.
“PDF documents are known for being static, not interactive, so adding a feature to support 360-degree photos is a nice addition and one that can tie into the burgeoning content type,” Blau said in an email. “I don’t see this as any big leap, though, but one that helps keep PDF more current than not.”
Benny Evangelista is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: firstname.lastname@example.org Twitter: @ChronicleBenny


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What you need to know
- Gmail for iOS has finally been furnished with privacy information as required by Apple.
- The change was made server-side, and the app is still two months without an update.
Google has finally added information to Gmail to comply with Apple's new iOS App Store privacy labels.
As noted by MacRumors:
Gmail has gone for weeks without an update ever since Apple introduced new measures to its App Store which show users how much data an app collects on them whilst they use it.
Google, which normally updates its iOS apps on a weekly basis, stopped updating its apps in early December, before promising in January that its apps on the App Store would be updated in January. From that report:
As MR now notes, Gmail does now have privacy information as required by Apple, but the app itself hasn't yet been updated for over two months.
Master your iPhone in minutes
iMore offers spot-on advice and guidance from our team of experts, with decades of Apple device experience to lean on. Learn more with iMore!
Stephen Warwick has written about Apple for five years at iMore and previously elsewhere. He covers all of iMore's latest breaking news regarding all of Apple's products and services, both hardware and software. Stephen has interviewed industry experts in a range of fields including finance, litigation, security, and more. He also specializes in curating and reviewing audio hardware and has experience beyond journalism in sound engineering, production, and design.
Before becoming a writer Stephen studied Ancient History at University and also worked at Apple for more than two years. Stephen is also a host on the iMore show, a weekly podcast recorded live that discusses the latest in breaking Apple news, as well as featuring fun trivia about all things Apple. Follow him on Twitter @stephenwarwick9


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The Wyndham Grand Phuket Kalim Bay is scheduled to open just north of Patong Beach in November. Club Wyndham Asia, a part of the Wyndham Vacation Ownership business, has also signed an agreement subject to specified requirements which once complete, will give Club Wyndham Asia members access to apartments at the resort.
Each of the resort’s 214 guestrooms provide sea views over Patong Bay, with the 48-square-metre standard rooms offering guests a full suite of in-room amenities.
Each of the resort’s 152 pool villas, more than any other resort in the Kalim-Patong area, will feature a private outdoor sundeck and a six- or nine-metre infinity pool overlooking the ocean.
The resort will become hotel giant Wyndham’s second resort in Phuket. The Wyndham Sea Pearl Resort Phuket, located in adjacent Patong, was launched to much fanfare in June last year with an official opening ceremony graced by Tourism and Sports Minister Kobkarn Wattanavrangkul, Information and Communication Technology Minister Pornchai Rujiprapa and Finance Minister Sommai Phasee. (See story here.)
“Wyndham Grand hotels are located in some of the world’s most sought after destinations, including Shanghai, Istanbul, Chicago and now Phuket,” said Barry Robinson, President and Managing Director of Wyndham Hotel Group South East Asia and Pacific Rim.
“The brand’s premium offerings and distinctive experiences create a perfect platform to deliver our unique mixed-use model to travellers looking for an approachable take on luxurious travel in Thailand.
“This mixed-use development model is unique to Wyndham Hotel Group and our vacation ownership business arm. We are committed to growing our vacation ownership portfolio in Asia and I am sure our Club Wyndham Asia members will appreciate this new luxurious option for their future travels,” Mr Robinson added.
Sumit Soontornnont, Co-owner of Parisorn Company Ltd, said, “Wyndham Grand Phuket Kalim Bay will be ideal for both business and leisure travellers looking for a stylish stay in Phuket. Our luxurious pool villas with private infinity pools will be well suited to the growing luxury travel market.”
To this, Sitikorn Soontornnont, Managing Director of Parisorn Co Ltd, added, “We are extremely proud of what we have been able to accomplish with our latest project, Wyndham Grand Phuket Kalim Bay. Not only does the property boast the largest number of pool villas in the Kalim-Patong area, the views are stunning and the overall property is spectacular. I could not be more grateful to work with Wyndham, the world’s largest and best hospitality company.”
Prasit Chinprasert, Co-owner of Parisorn Co Ltd, said, “It is an honour to be working with Wyndham, their expertise in the area of both hotel management and vacation ownership gives them a unique edge which is well positioned with our long-term strategy for the hotel. We are confident that under their management, Wyndham Grand Phuket Kalim Bay will be a leading resort for holiday-makers and business travellers in the country.”
Wyndham Hotel Group is actively expanding its diverse footprint of offerings in the region, having just recently announced the signing of a new Wyndham hotel in Danang, Vietnam. The company currently has nearly 8,000 properties worldwide with over 1,200 hotels open and operating across the Asia-Pacific Region under its Ramada, Wyndham Hotels and Resorts, Days Inn, TRYP by Wyndham and Microtel Inn & Suites by Wyndham® Super 8 brands.


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Retailers facing an "uphill battle" as staff shortages continue to increase
The number of vacancies has nearly tripled in a year, with the number of job seekers reduced by 50%.
Retail employers are facing an "uphill battle" to find staff, as job postings continue to rise without the demand to fill them.
Job postings have more than doubled in the past year, with 4,258 postings advertised in February 2022, compared to 1,578 in February 2021.
Recruitment specialists are now warning that the retail sector could face a serious staffing crisis.
“The industry data paints a stark picture – between 2019 and 2021, the number of retail job seekers per retail job vacancy had been increasing year on year," said Aislinn Lea, Director of Fashion and Non-Food at Excel Recruitment.
"However, since then it has dipped significantly and in February 2022 there were 39 job seekers per job, down from 78 job seekers per job in February 2021.
"What’s more, the number of employers with active retail job vacancies has now nearly tripled in the 12 months to February 2022 when it stood at 1,360 employers - up from 488 employers in February 2021.
"Over the course of the pandemic, many people were out of work and/or on reduced hours – they had more time on their hands to really look at their careers, their lives, and what they want from both.
"As a result, we’ve seen thousands of workers change careers, upskill in their current industry, and/or just make the decision to strive for a better work-life balance.
"That dynamic, combined with the fact that the industry has also missed out on approximately two years of new candidate intakes - due to workers either leaving the sector during Covid because of lockdowns and working restrictions, or indeed leaving the country - has left supply as a major issue, which continues to deteriorate.”
Lea recommended that employers start bringing in measures to attract talent to their businesses, by boosting salaries and providing benefits to employees.
Potential areas of improvement include more flexible working hours, offering more than 20 days annual leave, and providing pension schemes to employees.
“In addition, we are finding that incentives and benefits that focus on employee wellbeing, such as Employee Assistance Programmes are increasingly attractive - where staff are supported with free counselling services for work-related or personal problems," Lea said.
"Bonus schemes have become a benefit that not many managers take seriously.
"To work well, management needs to ensure bonuses are based on performance and sales but it is also extremely important to be more specific in outlining bonus details and conditions."
Examples of potential incentives include referral schemes for new staff, loyalty bonuses, brand perks and discounts, uniform allowances, implementing the Bike to Work scheme, taking birthdays off, gym memberships, and providing lunch allowances.
“Creating these incentives is one element, but the next important step is to include these benefits and perks in any company vacancies or job advertisements so that potential employees can consider them alongside the job role," Lea added.
"Candidates are looking for more, but it’s not just about money – the focus is increasingly about enjoying one’s career while having time to enjoy your life outside of work too.”


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Kohler Co., a global leader in kitchen and bath design, technology and water efficiency, will once again serve as a sponsor the Charmin® Restrooms in New York City’s Times Square, by providing water-conserving toilets and touchless faucets in the 15 public bathrooms.
This serves as the 4th consecutive year Kohler has participated in the Charmin Restrooms, which have moved to a new location in Times Square at 142 West 42nd Street between 6th and 7th avenues, and will be open for patrons from Nov. 22 through Dec. 31.
“We are excited to partner with Procter & Gamble once again to demonstrate KOHLER plumbing products, which are specifically designed to save water while remaining true to a singular level of quality for performance and design,” said Rob Zimmerman, manager-engineering, water conservation & sustainability for Kohler. “Kohler seeks to offer the most choices in water-saving plumbing products for both residential and commercial bathrooms, and the Charmin Restrooms provide a high-traffic destination for us to advance our industry leadership in the area of water conservation.”
The 15 public restrooms feature the two-piece, pressure-assisted KOHLER Barrington Pressure Lite™ 1.1 gallons-per-flush (gpf) toilet, which utilizes one-half gallon less water than a standard toilet. The KOHLER Barrington toilet carries the WaterSense label, a product labeling program of the Environmental Protection Agency, assuring customers that the toilet saves at least 20 percent over standard toilets, while still meeting strict flushing guidelines.
Contributing to added hygiene, the Charmin restrooms will also include Kohler’s water-conserving Geometric Touchless faucets, which are equipped with low-flow aerators, taking the amount of water delivered from 2.2 gallons-per-minute to 0.5 gpm – more than a 75 percent savings over conventional bathroom faucets. This sleek-designed “hands-free” faucet features Kohler’s exclusive Hybrid energy system – a power solution that has been tested to last at least 30 years. The water savings and 30-year operating life are just the beginning of this system’s environmental advantage. The Hybrid power solution is completely mercury-free, and is built with no other chemicals or additives that are harmful to humans or the environment. In addition, when it’s time to upgrade or remodel the bathroom space, Kohler Co. will accept any used cells and properly recycle 100 percent of the contents.
The Geometric Touchless faucets will be paired with the KOHLER Parigi™ pedestal and wall-mount sinks, an ideal solution for smaller-sized bathrooms. Additionally, Kohler is providing decorative bathroom accessories, including garment hooks and mirrors.
“The Kohler mission statement is to contribute to a higher level of gracious living for those who are touched by our products and services, and the Charmin Restrooms provide us with a rare opportunity to reach thousands of festive individuals during the holiday shopping season in Times Square and bring awareness to the serious cause of saving water,” added Zimmerman.
More than 420,000 people from 100 countries and all 50 states visited the Charmin Restrooms during the 2009 holiday season. The 2010 facilities feature 15 restrooms, offering the convenience of easily accessible, family-friendly facilities at the crossroads of the world. Attendants are on staff to service and clean stalls after every use. Two of the restrooms are ADA accessible.


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Tech 18 October 2018Dan Taylor
Rwanda eyes blockchain to track conflict minerals supply chain
Rwanda is examining how blockchain technology could improve the supply chain for tantalum, amid international efforts to resolve issues around so-called conflict minerals.
The metal, which is used in several types of consumer electronics, is a significant export in Rwanda, with concentrates from the country accounting for as much as 50% of total global supply according to some measures. However, there is concern internationally around conflict extractions—mining in areas of conflict, with proceeds which often feed into funding and perpetuating fighting between warring armies and factions.
In a statement, Rwandan minister Francis Gatare, CEO of the country’s Mining, Petroleum and Gas Board, said a new blockchain platform has already been implemented by one of Rwanda’s major exporters.
Mineral markets have become increasingly reluctant to do business with Rwandan companies trading in tantalum and other minerals, amid ongoing conflict in the country. Thus a blockchain platform which can accurately check the supply chain from origin to market could be a significant benefit to the tantalum industry there.
In delivering the blockchain platform, the government of Rwanda has drafted in the help of Circulor, a London-based blockchain startup pioneering a supply chain blockchain built on the Hyperledger consortium’s Fabric platform.
The platform is already being used by mining firm PRG Resources, which took part in initial trials of the platform, and then migrated to using the technology in its production. The plan now will see the platform rolled out across the wider mining sector in Rwanda. CEO of Circulor Douglas Johnson-Poensgen said the platform will add significant value to miners in Rwanda.
“Circulor will not only assist miners in Rwanda to adhere to strict guidelines laid out in international agreements to remove conflict minerals from the supply chain but will also record all the production stages before a smartphone or computer reaches the consumer,” he explained.
Blockchain technology has become increasingly relevant to extraction industries in recent months, with mining companies in particular turning to blockchain technology for tracking provenance.
Back in May, diamond firm De Beers conducted blockchain trials through the diamond supply chain, while China-based ZhongAn Technology released a similar model for tracking gems from origin to market.
Note: Tokens on the Bitcoin Core (SegWit) chain are referenced as BTC coins; tokens on the Bitcoin Cash ABC chain are referenced as BCH, BCH-ABC or BAB coins.
Bitcoin Satoshi Vision (BSV) is today the only Bitcoin project that follows the original Satoshi Nakamoto whitepaper, and that follows the original Satoshi protocol and design. BSV is the only public blockchain that maintains the original vision for Bitcoin and will massively scale to become the world’s new money and enterprise blockchain.
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Apple Inc announced yesterday it would spend part of its cash hoard to pay its first dividend to shareholders since 1995 and buy back US$10 billion in shares.
Apple said it would pay a quarterly dividend of US$2.65 per share from its huge cash balance, estimated to be at least US$97 billion, from sales of its hugely successful gadgets like the iPad and iPhone.
The dividend payment would start with the company’s fiscal fourth quarter this year, which begins on July 1, Apple said in a statement.
The US$10 billion share buyback will begin in the next fiscal year, which begins on Sept. 30.
Apple said it expected that the repurchase program would be executed over three years in an effort to neutralize the impact of dilution from future employee equity grants and employee stock purchase programs.
“We have used some of our cash to make great investments in our business through increased research and development, acquisitions, new retail store openings, strategic prepayments and capital expenditures in our supply chain, and building out our infrastructure. You’ll see more of all of these in the future,” Tim Cook, Apple’s chief executive, said in the statement.
“Even with these investments, we can maintain a war chest for strategic opportunities and have plenty of cash to run our business,” he said.
Wall Street had increasingly bet that Apple would this year return cash to shareholders, taking a cue from Cook’s comments about “active discussions” at the top levels about the matter.
Cook recently said he had been “thinking very deeply” about investors’ demands that Apple return some of the cash to shareholders via a dividend.
Apple last paid a dividend in 1995, Thomson Reuters data shows. In 1996, Apple posted a net loss of US$816 million.
Meanwhile, Apple appears to be making less of a profit from each new iPad than it did when it launched the previous model a year ago, according to a research firm’s analysis.
IHS iSuppli took apart a new iPad on Friday, the day the device went on sale in the US and nine other countries, and found that the components are more expensive than those of the iPad 2.
The third iPad comes in several versions starting at US$499, the same price as the iPad 2 at launch.
ISuppli said a new iPad with 32 gigabytes of RAM and a cellular modem, which costs US$729 in stores, costs US$364.35 to manufacture. That’s 9 percent more than the US$335 it cost to make the corresponding iPad 2 a year ago, when it came out. The corresponding version of the first iPad cost about US$276 to make in 2010, according to iSuppli’s estimate.
The higher-resolution display and the larger battery needed to support it are the main reasons the new iPad is more expensive than the iPad 2. It has four times as many pixels as the iPad 2’s screen. ISuppli estimates the display costs Apple US$87, plus US$40 for the touch-sensitive layer.
The new iPad battery has 70 percent more capacity, but the new display consumes all that additional power, so the battery life is the same as for the old model. Also contributing to the cost increase is the new cellular modem in some models. It can use faster “4G LTE” networks in the US and Canada.
Samsung Electronics Co remains the largest single supplier of iPad components. It made the display in the unit iSuppli examined and it supplies all iPad processors.


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LG Display has announced that the world's second OLED TV panel factory is now running "full-scale mass production", almost doubling the production capacity of OLED TVs.
Second OLED TV factory
Coronavirus and other factors have delayed mass production at LG Display's new factory in Guangzhou, China. The company started small-scale production of 48-inch panels this summer and at ceremony today the company announced "the beginning of mass production in earnest".
With the world's only second OLED TV panel factory up and running capacity has almost doubled from 70,000 to 130,000 8.5G sheets per month. Each sheet can be cut into smaller panels. The new factory is using a MMG (multi-model glass) method to enable production of 48-inch OLED panels for the first time.
LG Display says that consumers can expect 48- to 77-inch OLED TVs including more affordable "extra-large" OLED TVs.
- "LG Display’s Guangzhou OLED panel plant will focus on manufacturing large-size high-resolution OLED products including 48-inch, 55-inch, 65-inch, and 77-inch panels, as it boasts high efficiency and productivity, which makes it more advantageous for the production of extra-large and high value-added OLED panels," the company said.
LG Display opening ceremony in Guangzhou China. Photo: LGD
19 OLED TV brands
A total of 19 TV brands are now using LG Display's OLED panel; LG Electronics, Sony, Panasonic, Philips, Bang & Olufsen, Toshiba, Sharp, Vizio, Huawei, Xiaomi, Grundig, Hisense, Skyworth, and others.
- "The production capacity will be expanded to 90,000 sheets per month down the road from the current capacity of 60,000 sheets depending on market demand," it added.
LG Display has said that it will end LCD TV panel production in South Korea by the end of 2020 while Samsung has announced that it will terminate all LCD production as it invests billions of dollars in QD-based TV panels – not the LCD-type currently used in the company's "QLED" LCD TVs.
LG Display has on the other hand postponed plans to build a more advanced 10.5G factory for "super-sized OLED TVs" in Paju, South Korea, according to Korean media.
Omdia is forecasting 4.4 million OLED TVs sold worldwide this year and 12 million annually by 2025. LG Display noted that it now has the capability to produce 10 million panels annually based on the 55-inch panel.
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One woman thought she purchased a new vacuum cleaner but was shocked to find out that the box really contained towels, a can of chili and rocks in the box. But then she had an even harder time returning it!
Target released a statement:"At Target, we want our guests to feel welcome and respected whenever they shop in our stores. We regret the experience that Ms. Banerjee had in our Houston Galleria store on Sunday and have reached out to her to apologize. We will be refunding Ms. Banerjee's money and providing her a new Dyson vacuum at Target's expense. We've also addressed the situation with the team members who were involved and will use this as a learning opportunity for our team."


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3 Oct 2016
Smart staff for a smart sale
The smart home has arrived, the Internet of Things is gradually making its way into everything from kitchen appliances to thermostats, and you’ll soon be able to control most things in your house from your phone.
The global market for smart-home appliances is expected to be worth $38.35 billion (£28.9bn) by 2020, and is only expected to grow further as our homes become more and more ‘connected’.
In the UK, sales of smart-home technology have increased by 81 per cent year on year, according to John Lewis. Although 66 per cent of UK consumers agree that the smart home is an appealing concept, many retailers are experiencing problems when trying to train their staff to sell this category, which presents some major challenges.
Despite technologically aware customers showing interest, there is still a lower level of demand for smart-home products over conventional ones, meaning that sales staff have limited opportunities to talk ‘smart home’. In some cases, this leads to apathy when it comes to investing time into training. This is not helped by the fact that many staff still believe that this type of technology is the future rather than the present.
It is critical that sales staff understand that they need to educate themselves and develop an interest in this emerging category.


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Siyata Mobile (TSX.V: SIM) (OTCQX: SYATF), a developer and provider of cellular communications solutions for enterprise workers and first responders, today announced its partnership with Tango Tango, a FirstNet Certified(TM) Push-to-Talk application and communications service provider, to offer the Uniden(R) UV350 dedicated in-vehicle device to its first responder customers in the United States. According to the update, Tango Tango uses advanced networking, mobile and cloud technologies to leverage LTE and WiFi networks and expand the radio coverage and capabilities of public safety agencies. With the Tango Tango application, smart devices can integrate with any existing radio system, creating seamless interoperability across agencies, regardless of carrier. “Tango Tango and Siyata are aligned when it comes to providing a safer, more seamless way for commercial vehicle drivers and public safety professionals to communicate,” Siyata Mobile CEO Marc Seelenfreund said in the news release. “Adding this sales channel is extremely exciting for us, as we are partnering with a company that has already seen dramatic success with police forces, first responders and commercial vehicle drivers across the U.S.”
To view the full press release, visit http://nnw.fm/EE0mg
A TSX Venture Top 50 Company, Siyata Mobile Inc. is a leading global developer and provider of cellular communications systems for enterprise customers, specializing in connected vehicle products for professional fleets, marketed under the Uniden(R) Cellular brand. Siyata has been a pioneer in the industry, launching the world’s first LTE all-in-one fleet communications device in 2017. Incorporating voice, push-to-talk over cellular, data, and fleet management solutions into a single device, the company aims to become the connected vehicle communications device of choice for commercial vehicles and fleets around the world. Siyata also offers rugged phones for industrial users and signal boosters for homes, buildings, and fleets with poor cell coverage. Siyata’s customers include cellular operators, commercial vehicle technology distributors, and fleets of all sizes in Canada, the U.S., Europe, Australia, and the Middle East. Visit www.SiyataMobile.com and www.UnidenCellular.com to learn more.
NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to SYATF are available in the company’s newsroom at http://nnw.fm/SYATF
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NEW YORK — Gildo Zegna is a firm believer in the synergies between fashion and art.
This story first appeared in the May 3, 2012 issue of WWD. Subscribe Today.
“The link between fashion and art, especially contemporary art, is incredible,” said the chief executive officer of the Ermenegildo Zegna Group. “The customer today is much more interested in the visual part of art, and it can have a strong effect on the inspiration of a fashion brand.”
Zegna was in Manhattan to host a “multisensory experience” at the company’s flagship Wednesday night, celebrating the history and varied uses of silk yarn. As part of the exhibition, the Italian luxury brand commissioned American artist Emil Lukas to create five original thread paintings using Zegna silk yarn. The pieces were created under the auspices of the company’s ZegnArt project, which collaborates with artists, curators and cultural institutions to promote visual arts.
“We met Emil when we were walking Art Basel and fell in love with his idea of art,” Zegna said. “Instead of paint, he uses yarns in hundreds of different colors. It’s minimalistic but inspirational.”
For the pieces created for Zegna, Lukas visited Lanificio Ermenegildo Zegna, the company’s textile mill in Trivero, Italy, and selected 52 colors of yarn to use in the artwork.
This focus on silk, which includes an installation of raw materials and a video detailing the journey the fiber takes from its origins in China to the factory in Europe, is designed to highlight the company’s summer men’s collection. In late 2009, Zegna acquired the Tessitura di Novara silk mill, which has become a subsidiary of Lanificio Ermenegildo Zegna.
“It’s fascinating to add a new dimension to summer clothing for men,” Zegna said. “We want to make silk the cashmere of summer.”
The summer collection incorporates silk and silk blends in a variety of categories, including suits, shirts, sweaters, jackets, ties and outerwear. Among the pieces are seersucker blazers, wrinkled shirts and pants, raincoats and scarves.
“This is a new way to support the brand and keep giving it a new dimension,” Zegna said. “We’re always looking for something new, and we’re more demanding and interested in innovation. But at the end, the formula is simple, it’s the execution that’s the hard part.”
It’s Zegna’s unwavering commitment to quality that helped the company last week post a 91.5 percent jump in net profits to 115.1 million euros, or $149.6 million, on record sales of 1.13 billion euros, or $1.47 billion, in 2011.
Zegna singled out the company’s profitability of 10 percent and earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization of 21 percent as “key numbers,” and said he is expecting “another decent year this year. We have an ambitious plan, but we continue to strive for innovation within the quality world of Zegna. We came out of the crisis in ’08 and ’09 by staying the course and investing in quality until we saw the light — and that light came quickly.”
He said the company’s growth in Asia was the catalyst for driving that recovery. Asia already accounts for 50 percent of exports.
“We look at the world in a very global way,” he said. Zegna was among the first companies to enter the Chinese market, and he said the next frontiers include Africa, which is “waking up” to fashion. Zegna will open stores this year in Nigeria and Morocco as well as Angola, a move that he said is proof of the company’s “pioneering spirit.” Also on the list is Vietnam, with stores in Hanoi and Saigon, as well as Malaysia and Indonesia.
He admitted that India, where Zegna has six stores, “is slower than we expected, but we have a solid presence there” and he expects the business to eventually come around.
“Overall, things are very exciting. Let’s hope it continues,” he concluded.
Wednesday’s event, which featured the artworks “Zegna Liquid Touch,” “Zegna Silk Hum,” “Liquid Silk Heavy,” “Falling Droplet” and “Lung Hum,” benefited the Asia Society. Lukas’ works will be exhibited at the store until May 9.


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Berlin is a hotbed of notable tech startups across industries such as fintech, blockchain, mobility and more. The city is a breeding ground for entrepreneurial skills and capital that makes it a thriving ecosystem for next-generation tech companies. Even during the COVID-19 pandemic crisis, these German businesses were thriving quite well and have opted for Kurzarbeit (short-time work) instead of job loss.
Top deals in Berlin in Q2 2020
Some of these fast-growing startups have also raised further investment to help them grow and further develop their business and products. Having said that, here is a list of Berlin-based tech startups that have bagged maximum funding from VC investors in Q2 2020 as reported by PitchBook.
Founder/s: Valentin Stalf, Maximilian Tayenthal
Founded year: 2013
Total funding: €711 million
Germany-based digital banking startup N26 works with the intention to change the future of banking and make it fast, digital, and easy to use for people all over the world. With its widespread success in Europe having over 5 million customers in 25 markets, N26 is focused on overseas expansion with the US being its priority.
The banking app secured nearly €92 million as an extension to the Series D funding back in July last year in May 2020 from its existing investors. With this investment, its valuation goes to €3.2 billion and it becomes one of the highest valued fintech companies across the world. Also, the investment during COVID-19 pandemic crisis marks the shift in digital banking adoption.
Founder/s: Lawrence Leuschner, Julian Blessin, Matthias Laug
Founded year: 2018
Total funding: €138 million
The Berlin-based micro-mobility startup Tier Mobility is a hot startup from Germany that specialises in e-scooter rentals and operates in 55 cities across 11 countries. Recently, the startup unveiled the most advanced e-scooter with user swappable batteries, indicator lights, and an inbuilt helmet. This best-in-class e-scooter lets users can earn free rides by swapping the batteries at the various charging stations set up across the UK.
Back in June this year, TIER Mobility secured €20 million from Northzone, White Star Capital, Goodwater Capital and RTP Global as an extension to its Series B funding round. The ride-sharing and e-mobility startup prepares for its UK expansion with this investment.
Founder/s: Sascha Konietzke, Paolo Negri
Founded year: 2013
Total funding: €143 million
Berlin-based Contentful works with the mission to help leading global brands manage content across digital channels and products. It offers a content platform for enterprises and lets them unify the same on a single hub. This lets large enterprises distribute content to their customers and provides JAMstack website template for all global companies.
The leading headless CMS startup completed its Series E funding round by securing nearly €71 million in a round led by Sapphire Ventures along with participation from Salesforce Ventures, General Catalyst, and other new and existing investors. This investment will be used to accelerate the expansion process and meet the requirements and momentum for the omnichannel platform.
Founder/s: Christian Hecker, Thomas Pischke, Marco Cancellieri
Founded year: 2015
Total funding: €79 million
Trade Republic is a mobile-only, commission-free broker, which lets everyone to invest easily in stocks, derivatives, and ETFs. The company works as a broker to enable a more intuitive, more mobile, and permanently commission-free process. As of 2019, over 150,000 customers have opened a Trade Republic account, which makes it a leading Neo Broker in Europe.
In April this year, Trade Republic raised €62 million Series B funding round led by Founders Fund and Accel. This is one of the largest Series B funding round in the fintech industry in Europe. And, the company announced that the same will be used for the development of an European platform for mobile investing and trading.
Founder/s: Andreas Bittner, Marko Wenthin
Founded year: 2016
Total funding: €155 million
solarisBank, which possesses a German banking licence has built an API-accessible banking platform to meet the requirements of the digital economy. This platform lets digital businesses create custom solutions as per their unique financial requirements. Its vision is to boost the growth of the digital economy with its banking services, payment services and add-on services.
In June 2020, solarisBank bagged €60 million Series C funding taking its valuation to €320 million. This investment round was led by HV Holtzbrinck Ventures, existing investor yabeo, BBVA, ABN AMRO Ventures, SBI Group, Hegus, Global Brain and Lakestar, and new investors Storm Ventures, Samsung Catalyst Fund, and Vulcan Capital.
Founder/s: Lino Teuteberg, Mathis Büchi
Founded year: 2016
Total funding: €100 million
Berlin-based Taxfix is a mobile tax app, which automates the tax filing process. It asks users a set of 70 simple questions from around 3,000 questions customised to the users’ circumstances to maximise their tax refunds. It lets users submit the filing to the respective tax office and get up to €1000 tax return on an average.
Recently, Taxfix secured around €60 million Series C funding from Index Ventures along with existing investors. This funding round was led by Index Ventures, Creandum, Valar Ventures, and Redalpine. The German mobile tax app will use the investment to grow its teams in Madrid and Berlin and expand into new countries.
Founder/s: Dmitri Uvarovski, Steffen Wicker
Founded year: 2015
Total funding: €60 million
Homeday is one of the largest platforms in Germany to find the best local agents and sell properties. The proptech startup operates with the mission to revolutionise the real estate market all over the world by building the global destination for property owners who want to sell their properties. It provides real estate sellers a full brokerage service sans any commission.
In June this year, Homeday secured €40 million funding from Axel Springer SE and Purplebricks. Besides this investment, the Berlin-based startup is backed by Project A, a leading VC firm in Europe with offices in London, Munich and Berlin. Homeday will use the investment for the development of its hybrid brokerage solutions.
Founder/s: Jan Deepen, Kobi Eldar, Stefan Jeschonnek
Founded year: 2015
Total funding: €51.2 million
The Zeitgold app lets users scan receipts and invoices and its software matches these documents automatically with bank account transactions. All the data and documents will be transferred to the tax advisor automatically. Even the tax advisors can use the customised version of the software that was launched last year.
The intelligent software platform for small business accounting automation secured €27 million Series B funding in a round led by Vintage Investment Partners in May. The round involves funding from existing investors such as Battery Ventures, HV Holtzbrinck Ventures, Saban Ventures, and btov Partners, as well as insurance company AXA Germany and Deutsche Bank. The investment will be used to develop its proprietary AI-powered software and continue focusing on the growth of the business to become the leading accounting automation platform in Europe.
Founder/s: Daniel Heer, Projjol Banerjea, Stephan Schwebe
Founded year: 2014
Total funding: €57.2 million
Zeotap provides SaaS-based customer intelligence platform (CIP), which lets companies to connect and transform the first-party data into actionable intelligence. Also, these companies will be able to predict and understand their customers’ behaviours and invest in more meaningful experiences. Its newly launched ID+ project empowers the marketing ecosystem of publishers, brands, and vendors alike with a privacy-compliant mechanism so that they can overcome identity resolution challenges.
In July this year, Zeotap bagged nearly €35 million in a Series C funding round from Neue Capital, coparion, Caroline Rupert’s family office, Kathaka, MathCapital and TTCER Partners and existing investors including New Science Ventures, Iris Capital, Capnamic Ventures, HERE, Innov8 (Singtel), and IONIQ and business angels. It intends to use the investment for the development of its customer intelligence platform.
Founder/s: Lukas Brosseder, Peter Baumgart
Founded year: 2017
Total funding: €32 million
PlusDental, a Berlin-based digital dentistry platform specialises in digital dentistry and aesthetic orthodontic treatments with clear aligners. Initially, it was selling sets of transparent splints for teeth straightening and offered customers to make their teeth imprint at the comfort of their home and receive a customised set of splints. Last year, it partnered with dental practices to scan the oral cavity.
This dentistry platform has secured €32 million Series C funding from international investors in May. The investment was led by Hong Kong-based Ping An Global Voyager Fund, Christian Wegner, the founder of the Re-commerce platform Momox, Lakestar, and HV Holtzbrinck. PlusDental will use this fresh Investment to develop its proprietary digital dentistry platform and continue the expansion of business in Germany and Europe.


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Over the past few years, Ford’s vehicle lineup has undergone a total transformation. The Blue Oval no longer offers it compact or passenger car models, opting to focus on the high-profit SUV and truck segments. While this shift has brought us models like the Ford Ranger and the upcoming Bronco lineup, Ford appears to finally be inserting another small vehicle into its lineup. Don’t rejoice just yet hatchback fans, as we are talking about the upcoming 2022 Ford Courier small pickup truck.
The Courier was sold internationally as a car-based unibody pickup truck that clearly shows its roots in its design. It ceased to be in 2013, when Ford replaced it with the T6 Ranger in the Brazilian market. Domestically, the Ford Courier nameplate hasn’t been seen here in the United States since the 1970s, when Ford sold rebadged Mazda B-series trucks under that name. It is possible that the compact truck could reach the U.S. with a different name, such as Ranchero, according to Motor Trend.
A smart move, seeing as few people seem to use the word ‘Courier’, and seeing as it doesn’t exactly spark images of a small pickup truck for American buyers. We here at MC&T like to think that, if it won’t be the Ranchero, it could possibly be one of the many names recently trademarked that were assumed to be trim levels for the Ford Bronco. Names like ‘Badlands’, ‘Wildtrack’, and ‘Adrenaline’ come to mind. Internationally, Ford also had sold small trucks like the Bantam (South Africa), Falcon Ute (Australia) and the Pampa (South America).
FCA could also bring a small truck to the American market in the same time frame. The popular theory is that it will launch the new Fiat Strada – also a unibody pickup for Brazil – in the US and Canada as the Ram 700. Both trucks would fill the white space left behind by the midsize pickup segment as trucks in that space ballooned in size and price, having to fill in the space left behind by the half-ton full size truck segment, which experienced the same phenomenon.
Based on the same front-wheel drive compact car platform that will underpin the Bronco Sport and Ford Escape, the tentatively-named 2022 Ford Courier pickup will slot in as a smaller alternative to the Ranger mid-size pickup. Because of its shared underpinnings, it is likely that the Courier will be offered with the same 1.5-liter three-cylinder and 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder EcoBoost engines as the Bronco Sport. According to leaked Ford documents, the engines will produce 180 horsepower and 250 horsepower in the Bronco Sport.
Expect this new truck to share some of the Baby Bronco’s looks as well. Motor Trend says the Courier should debut with styling that makes it undeniably a truck, not quite like the cute Courier sold abroad. The upcoming Bronco lineup features a boxy and rugged design language, which could certainly be applied to this compact-truck as well.
We haven’t gotten many foreign-built trucks on American dealer lots, thanks in no small part to the “chicken tax” that has kept them from being profitable. The Ford Courier should be able to skirt this problem, as it will reportedly be produced alongside the Bronco Sport in Mexico.


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Coronation Street to get a Co-op and Costa in product placement deal
The Co-op supermarket and Costa Coffee will open branches on Coronation Street in a groundbreaking product placement deal.
The shops will be added in an expansion of the ITV soap's set this spring.
However they won't be full stores and characters won't be filmed inside.
An ITV spokeswoman said they wouldn't threaten Weatherfield's existing Roy's Rolls cafe, The Kabin or Dev's shops, saying: "There's no change to the shops we've currently got."
The broadcaster wouldn't comment on how much the deal will be worth, but it's their biggest product placement agreement to date.
It's also the first time full shopfronts have appeared on an ITV show as product placement.
As well as the shop fronts, ITV said other items including posters, bags and cups would be "integrated across the iconic soap".
Product placement was first allowed on British commercial television seven years ago, but until now the deals have involved individual items rather than entire shops.
The move comes amid falling revenues from conventional advertising. In November, ITV said it expected its net advertising revenue would be down 5% across last year.
TV analyst Gill Hind of Enders Analysis said: "This is opening up new revenue streams so they're taking advantage of product placement in their highest-demand property.
"It's a great opportunity for them but they'll have to be mindful that it's not intrusive and doesn't detract from the strength of the programme."
ITV's sales director Mark Trinder said said the expansion of the Salford Quays set was "a great opportunity to feature branded shop facades".
He added: "Incorporating product placement on this scale is something we have wanted to do for some time and we're delighted with this exciting opportunity.
"We've worked really closely with the Coronation Street team to make sure we've got a great brand fit for Co-op and Costa Coffee with the nation's favourite soap while still ensuring editorial integrity."


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The future of sports cars
Sports cars have raised the bar and set new standards when it comes to the automobile technology trends. Dual-clutch transmissions and forced induction engines were introduced with the purpose of bringing sports cars excitement and danger.
There was a time when sports cars were considered to be like drugs and it seems like one day they will be outlawed. That’s because sports cars are fast, and therefore, dangerous. Today, sports cars have a much more responsible attitude towards the automotive world, where sports cars are now better for the environment, more practical than ever before and safer to drive.
What is the future of sports’ with so many self-driving cars available? The march towards more technology will move away from humans controlling cars, to self-driving cars instead. Most of people buy sports cars for social status, but there will remain those who value the traditional ones. In the future, sports cars might become a small niche in a world filled with self-driven cars.
According to analysts, in the future will be achieved a balance between safer vehicles and the sensation of high speed and performance. The top-end manufacturers have to adapt to the most advanced technologies and come up with new things, in order to keep attracting buyers.
Supposedly, self-driving vehicles will be safer, leading to a decrease number of accidents, caused by regular driving issues. The first self-driven cars are reported to powerful hit the market in 2017, raising the question of who would then be responsible for car accidents?
Here are three sports cars of the future (near future, to be exact, since the manufacturers always need to adapt):
Cadillac ELR is a plug-in sports car that shows that in order to be more environmentally responsible doesn’t mean they have to have a compromised appearance. It is not considered a luxury sports car, but an affordable and good looking one.
Porche 918 Spyder it is a fuel-friendly supercar, with an expectation for fuel economy of around 78 mpg. The 918 has an output of around 718 horsepower, and all the power goes the all four wheels ad comes from three electric motors.
BMW i8 is a plug-in hybrid sports car, but that’s not all. The i8 has a three-cylinder gas engine that powers the rear-wheels, a top speed that’s electronically governed at 150mph, and engine that can work along with the electric motor, can go to a 0-60 time of under 5 seconds, and so on.
We can’t help but mention one of the best Italian drivers in the world Mario Andretti saying: “If everything seems under control, you're not going fast enough.”


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Frenetic trading that usually heralds the end of the year celebrations, especially Christmas, seems to be missing this year as Nigerians are already lamenting the unending skyrocketing prices of food stuff and other household necessities.
Encomium.ng’s check revealed that, Nigerians are yet to prepare for Christmas as purchasing power seems low.
Speaking about this development, Mrs. Helen told encomium.ng that she is far from being prepared as she has not gotten her three children Christmas wears. “That feeling of Christmas is not there this year. We are just managing. I got my children’s clothes by October last year. I don’t even know where to get the money for clothes this year. We are just in the Hands of God.
Mrs. Adebayo, on the other hand, cannot feed her children not to talk of preparing for Christmas. “I don’t know what the children will eat tonight, not to talk of preparing for Christmas”
Speaking also to us, Mr. Oni lamented: “This year seems to be an exception. My family is not traveling home this year. We will have a low key celebration here in Lagos. I can’t even afford to send anything to my parents this year. Things are too expensive.” Atunrase’s story was not different, he said,
“I am not thinking about Christmas celebration at all. I still have backlog of fees to pay for this term. To make things worse, prices of goods are too expensive. We can’t even afford to feed.”
Corroborating what we were told, market women also lamented the rate at which prices are skyrocketing. ” The rate at which things are going, I don’t even understand. I sold a bottle of vegetable oil for N500 last week, by the time I went to buy more, the price has increased. It is now N550. I couldn’t buy much of it. Just to have something to present to customers when they request for it. At times, we just sit down all day without making one single sale, there is no sign that Christmas is fast approaching at all.”
Emeka, the popular rice seller also spoke with us: ” Things are still the same. No market, things are expensive. Help us appeal to the Government to come to our aid”.
– Shade Wesley Metibogun


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Coinbase’s announcement comes at a time when both the cryptomote and IPO markets are on the rise.
The largest Bitcoin brokerage house in the United States has finally entered the process to go public with the company. The company said on Thursday it filed a confidential case for an IPO with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
„Coinbase Global, Inc. today confidentially filed a draft registration statement on Form S-1 with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The Form S-1 is expected to become effective after the SEC concludes its review process, subject to market and other conditions.
The cryptomaniac giant was created in 2012 for the simple purpose of users to purchase Bitcoin.
It is not clear how long the review process will take, but Coinbase will likely become a publicly traded company next year.
The company has already been valued at $8 billion, this could probably be the largest Initial Public Offering in the cryptomotic market.
Coinbase’s announcement comes at a time when both the cryptomote and IPO markets are on the rise. The digital currency has surpassed $20,000 for the first time in history and is now traded in the $23,500 range.
In recent weeks, the rental company Airbnb has gone public and skyrocketed on its first day of trading, generating new interest in technology related companies.
Since November Bitcoin is rapidly increasing in value, surpassing a series of records. So, for market enthusiasts, the Coinbase IPO is another important milestone in the market.
It is not clear, however, whether the SEC will approve the request. If the agency refuses, Coinbase’s alternative would be to seek a direct listing in which it will sell shares directly to the public, the same model used by Spotify and Slack.


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Avocado growers face difficulties getting their fruit to market as the export sector starts to gear up in the next few months.
Government help may be needed to facilitate air freight services so fruit can reach export markets in good condition and preserve New Zealand's reputation of quality produce, according to Chris Frost, supply manager for JP Exports and Fresh Direct.
Traditionally avocado exporters have used the cargo holds of passenger planes to get produce to long-distance Asian markets. The passengers helped subsidise freight costs to destinations such as Thailand and India, but freight-only flights cost three or four times more, said Frost.
Sending fruit by sea is another option, but shipping schedules remain unstable and delays at different ports make sea freight less attractive.
"Shipping from Tauranga is the fastest way to get Northland avocado to our markets. The sea freight journey can be anything from two to four weeks, which affects the quality of the fruit as it does start to deteriorate the longer the transit time to markets.
"We want our fruit to arrive as quickly as possible in great condition. Freight is something that needs looking into,'' he said.
Northland avocado shipments have been sent to Australia, Thailand, Malaysia, Taiwan, Korea, Singapore and India through JP Exports.
The next export season opens about mid next month.
Last season exporters had picked the crops to a specific size, leaving about the third of the crop because of a small fruit size profile and customer size profile preference.
Adam Canning: Clean river promises have been swept away
This left growers with an abnormally high volume of fruit left on trees, which would usually have been sold to the local market during autumn.
"The Covid-19 lockdown took away independent stores and food service outlets such as restaurants and cafes. The only avenue left was supermarkets but demand dropped there as well.
"Some growers have chosen to leave the last of the crop to drop off the trees, which will have an ongoing effect for next year's crop as it inhibits tree health and the ability to set new fruit.
"Much of what we do is to resource the trees to produce fruit each year, but leaving the fruit on makes it more likely they will revert to being alternate bearing,'' Frost said.
Food service outlets are starting to open again, but demand is still low.
Growers got hit by a perfect storm, Frost said.
The impact on growers is dramatically shown in a comparison with April 2019 when 4300 trays were packed for the New Zealand domestic market. In April 2020, 119,000 trays were packed.
"There is a massive glut of fruit in the market and fruit left on trees because it was no longer worth picking.
"Some of last season's fruit has been picked and is just sitting in coolstores hoping for a recovery in the market.
"Meanwhile there are large volumes of new season fruit coming into the market,'' Frost said.
This has completely negated the early season value premium that those fortunate enough to achieve early maturity have enjoyed.
Frost looks after about 80 orchards all over Northland to as far south as Tapora, near Wellsford.
He said despite the immediate challenges, new avocado orchards are still being planted and developed.
"There has been a huge investment in orchards in the Far North and around Tapora."
Northland is becoming one of the main avocado growing regions in New Zealand and global and local demand has ensured it remains a growing industry.
"According to NZ Avocado Ltd demand still outstrips supply in the world, and good growers have been able to realise a good income per hectare, which still makes it an attractive investment.''
Frost said the Northland drought had not had too much of an effect on avocado fruit size profile, as the trees have a natural organic mulch in the form of leaf litter, which helps to retain soil moisture.
"It has probably affected fruit size for some growers but even trees without irrigation seemed to do well especially if they were protected by full skirts of canopy to the ground,'' he said.


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Areas dedicated to Portugal, Ireland and Hong Kong to draw crowds.
International Jewellery London (IJL) is continuing to secure brands from around the world that will present their wares at the Olympia showcase in August 2014.
This year’s Design Gallery will feature Icelandic brand Aurum Jewellery, which plans to launch 12 collections at IJL in 2014. In addition, Pavillion spaces will be dedicated to Portugal, Ireland and Hong Kong, showcasing wares by distinctive and traditional designers from these varied cultural backgrounds.
The dedicated show-space for Portugal will include Gabriela Styliano Jewellery, Rainbow Jewellery, Mimata, Sara Maia Jewelry Craft and Joana Mota Capitão from the AORP group.
A spokesperson for the Group stated: "One of our goals at AORP is the international promotion of Portuguese jewellery and we see IJL as a great opportunity to develop partnerships and commercial relations between the Portuguese and British markets. The Portuguese Jewellery stand at IJL will showcase the touch of tradition that complements a modern show.”
Five designers from Ireland will be showcasing their collections in the Ireland Cork Pavilion, including Azure Jewellery and Hanna Tommola Jewellery.
Ireland Cork Pavilion manager Méabh Ring, explains: “Debuting at IJL 2014, The Ireland Cork Pavilion will celebrate the best in Irish jewellery design, innovation and skill. These five designers will showcase their collections to international buyers and meet with key UK jewellery buyers. Elegant pearls, structural silvers, fashion accessories and contemporary jewellery styles will be exhibited at this new Pavilion. As our closest neighbour and largest trading partner, IJL is a natural first port of call for Irish jewellery businesses.”
The Hong Kong Jewelry Manufacturers’ Association will showcase 19 fine jewellery companies at IJL 2014. The most popular product category is gem-set jewellery, particularly diamonds set in 14ct or 18ct yellow or white gold.
Mr. Wings Cheung, general manager of the Hong Kong Jewelry Manufacturers’ Association, commented: “With the continuous growth of GDP figures for the fifth consecutive period (0.8% by first quarter of 2014) we believe the strong buying momentum will lead to a fruitful year for IJL.”
IJL plans to revitalise its annual free seminar programme, with high profile speakers including Jo Fairley, the co-founder of Green & Black’s.
Alongside the first-ever late night shopping evening with a special charity auction in aid of Breast Cancer Care, the event will feature a red carpet catwalk show, a champagne bar, an English tea room and a specially-built restaurant on the ground floor.
Event director, Sam Willoughby, said: “The breadth of exhibitors at IJL across all categories this year promises to provide exceptional choice, making it the ‘must visit show’ in the jewellery calendar. Olympia Grand is an iconic building with fabulous natural lighting and a long history of hosting successful international shows – making it the perfect venue for our new look IJL to celebrate its 59th anniversary.”


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The Trafford Centre sale saga has taken a series of fresh twists.
Capital Shopping Centres has dismissed a move by American firm Simon Property Group to propose an alternative deal to the one already agreed with current owners Peel Group.
Peel has also spoken out, vowing to press ahead with the £1.6bn transaction, which is set to be put to CSC's shareholders next Monday.
Indianapolis-based Simon has already accused CSC of "substantially overpaying" for the mall and threatened to dump its five per cent stake in CSC if the deal was given the thumbs-up.
In previous correspondence, Simon urged CSC not to proceed, hinting it was weighing up a takeover bid of its own.
The company has written a new letter to CSC, in which it proposes an alternative to the existing arrangement. Under the terms of the existing proposal, Peel would get a 19.9 per cent holding in CSC in exchange for the Trafford Centre.
Simon chief executive and chairman David Simon says the current deal, in which CSC would issue 224.1m ordinary shares to Peel at an average blended price of 367p per share, did not represent value for money.
Instead, he has proposed a sale of 205.5m CSC shares at the premium rate of 400p each. CSC shareholders would be able to take up to 50 per cent of the shares in a mechanism known as a partial clawback.
Under the arrangement, Peel would end up with the same percentage shareholding in CSC but Simon would itself get a minimum stake of 18.4 per cent.
CSC immediately hit back, describing Simon's latest suggestion as "completely impracticable," while Peel issued a statement, in which it said it "remains committed to the agreed transaction with CSC."
Peel, which is also in the process of building MediaCityUK, at Salford Quays, said it could earn more by selling the Trafford Centre for cash but favoured the deal it had struck with CSC, as it was part of a wider strategy to "broaden its investment in property and infrastructure through partnerships with complementary businesses."
In his letter to CSC chairman Patrick Burgess, Mr Simon said: "We recognise that Trafford Centre may be a strategically important asset, although we continue to have concerns regarding the agreed purchase price.
"To a greater extent, we are concerned that the funding of the transaction in shares, on the agreed terms, results in CSC - and be extension its shareholders - overpaying for the Trafford Centre.
"As we have said on more than one occasion, CSC is contemplating transferring significant control to Peel, while failing to extract a premium for it, and is issuing securities to Peel at a discount to CSC's latest net asset value."
The agreement reached between CSC and Peel would see the latter invest an additional £75m, in exchange for its 19.9 percentage stake. Peel owner John Whittaker would become deputy chairman of CSC.
Simon has previously tried to derail the transaction on the basis it was prepared to launch a takeover bid for CSC, which it said offered better value for money for shareholders.
Its latest letter acknowledged for the first time the value the Trafford Centre would add to CSC's portfolio, which already includes Manchester's Arndale Centre, the Metro Centre, in Gateshead, and Lakeside, in Essex.
But, crucially, it would give Simon a stake to rival the one that would be given to Peel. CSC's new statement adds: "The CSC Board notes that what SPG proposes would provide SPG with a holding of between approximately 18.4 per cent and 26.9 per cent in CSC, together with a seat on CSC's board.
"It is not open to CSC unilaterally to alter the terms of its legally binding contract with Peel. Therefore, what SPG proposes does not provide a genuine alternative for CSC shareholders.
"The CSC board continues to believe it is in CSC shareholders’ best interests to proceed with the acquisition on the terms agreed with Peel which represents a compelling transaction of significant benefit to CSC shareholders."
The Peel statement said: "Peel has no intention of selling the Trafford Centre for cash and this has never been an aim of the group - in spite of the fact that Peel has been advised a cash sale would achieve a higher price – and nor does Peel intend entering into such a discussion. "Rather, Peel's stated objective is to increase and diversify its exposure to the UK shopping centre market via a long-term investment in CSC.
"The transaction will bring to CSC the value of John Whittaker's extensive experience in the retail and leisure property sectors and, through the addition of the Trafford Centre, will create an unrivalled portfolio of UK regional shopping centre assets."