text:
Stories Below come from our Media Partner 3BL Media - Click their logo or any of the stories for more information
News & Updates
Many of us recall a time when manufacturers built products to last and when home appliances, for example, had a lifespan spanning decades. This was particularly true as we had, then, a thriving repair industry, paired with a...
November 29, 2021 Time for better consumer safeguards in S'pore over 'greenwashing' products that are not sustainableSource: Today
At a recent Youth4Climate forum in Milan, a prelude to the COP26 climate summit, Swedish youth activist Greta Thunberg chastised world leaders for paying lip service to the grandiose plans that they have announced for the...
Global Witness, Greenpeace, and Earthworks filed a false advertising complaint against Chevron earlier this year with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), which enforces rules against deceptive ads.
November 23, 2021 Former Unilever CEO Paul Polman Says Aiming for Sustainability Isn’t Good Enough—The Goal Is Much HigherSource: Harvard Business Review
How can a company profit from solving the world’s problems, not from creating them? Is the world better off because your business is in it, or not? These are some of the fundamental questions that Paul Polman, former CEO of...
A new report titled “Cotton: A Case Study in Misinformation“ looks at debunking false claims present in the cotton industry, plus lays a roadmap for accurate data research and industry-wide data transparency. As the 2021 United...
October 12, 2021 SEC Chief to Wall Street: The Everything Crackdown Is ComingSource: Bloomberg/Yahoo
He’s laying out one of the most ambitious agendas in the SEC’s 87-year history -- some 49 proposals, many already drawing opposition from hedge funds, stock exchanges, online brokers and public companies. He’s been similarly...
October 6, 2021 Pathway to a sustainable economySource: The Guardian
True, uninhibited economic growth on a finite planet cannot continue, and politicians who offer us continued growth but along a “green pathway” are either being disingenuous – dangerously misleading – or simply lying. But “doing...
October 4, 2021 'Pandora Papers': Leaked records reveal financial secrets of world leaders, politiciansSource: USA Today
Hundreds of world leaders, powerful politicians, billionaires, celebrities, religious leaders and drug dealers have been hiding their investments in mansions, exclusive beachfront property, yachts and other assets for the past...
September 29, 2021 5 Lessons Evergrande Taught Us About The Chinese EconomySource: NPR
Last week, global markets shook after a Chinese company named Evergrande fell into what looks like a downward spiral into oblivion. Evergrande is — or was — the second-largest real estate company in China.
September 27, 2021 Changing the face of medicine: Why social accountability and Sustainable Development Goals are so important?Source: The European Sting
In 1995, the World Health Organization published a document proposing that medical schools should be obliged to prioritize health concerns of the community they have a mandate to serve. They established that improving community...
[What would you find useful here?]
Please send suggestions to:
|HOME | ABOUT THE SITE | SUBSCRIBE TO SUSTAINABILITY HIGHLIGHTS NEWSLETTER | VOICES: FEATURED COMMENTATORS AND BLOGGERS | SPECIAL SECTIONS|


text:
Despite the Reserve Bank of India’s restrictions on the use of cryptocurrency, Indians are increasingly becoming interested in learning more about the phenomenon, as well as the technology that goes into it.
- By Arvind Chandrasekar
Over the past decade, blockchain has become a foundational technology facilitating cutting edge innovation across industries in India. We have witnessed some truly revolutionary changes across the BFSI, telecom, healthcare, e-commerce and government sectors backed by blockchain. In fact, a recent report by PwC indicates that India will become a blockchain leader amongst the ranks of USA, China and Australia by 2023. Some of the key financial segments where blockchain has truly made an impact during the last year are in the banking, finance and digital payments areas.
In January last year, Institute for Development and Research in Banking Technology (IDRBT) division of Reserve Bank of India (RBI) came out with a blueprint of blockchain platform for the banking sector. This was a significant move because there were no regulatory guidelines in place for adoption of blockchain technology by banks and financial institutions in India.
Interestingly, a consortium of 11 of India’s largest banks including ICICI Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Standard Chartered Bank and Axis Bank, have launched the first ever blockchain-linked loan system in the nation. Leveraging the distributed ledger, this technology will not only ensure transparency in credit disbursement, but also remove communication hurdles among various banks. Blockchain also enhances customer experience by bringing down transaction time from hours to seconds.
Insurance firms are turning to blockchain and smart contracts to bring in more efficiency, transparency and security. By harnessing blockchain technology, insurance firms can ensure better policy management, underwriting and quicker claim processing. For instance, a portal driving travel insurance sale, allows customers to buy travel insurance and claim settlements in case of flight delays. Blockchain enables the application to notify a user about payout eligibility in case of flight delays and also helps customers to process claims with ease.
Fraud prevention is another critical part of blockchain.
Despite the Reserve Bank of India’s restrictions on the use of cryptocurrency, Indians are increasingly becoming interested in learning more about the phenomenon, as well as the technology that goes into it. Organisations are actively working towards examining the underlying technology enabling blockchain-based payment solutions. For instance, the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), an umbrella organisation for all retail payments in India, announced that it intends to develop a resilient, real time and highly scalable blockchain solution.
According to a report from NITI Aayog, the current cross-border payments model lacks an international clearing house and relies on correspondent banks, which causes inefficiency, slow speed, and high cost. As a result, banks and fintechs are also exploring blockchain technology for cross-border payments to provide faster, inexpensive, and efficient services.
A study by Assocham and PwC India indicates that the digital payments in India will more than double to $135.2 billion in 2023, from $64.8 billion in 2019. This growth is attributed to the innovations in the payments sector, largely driven by new technologies such as AI, blockchain and IoT. As BFSI organisations seek new ways to enhance customer experiences while ensuring operational efficiency, technologies such as blockchain will drive the next wave of IT innovation in the sector.
(The writer is director, Government Affairs & Regional Relations, AMD India)

domain: news


text:
Published 7 years ago.
About a 2 minute read.
The Sustainable Apparel Coalition (SAC) has launched a new version of its Higg Materials Sustainability Index (Higg MSI), a cradle-to-gate scoring tool that measures and communicates the environmental performance of thousands of materials used in creating apparel, footwear and home textile products.
The Higg MSI is one in a suite of SAC’s publicly available self-assessment tools known as the Higg Index, which aims to empower brands, retailers and manufacturers to measure their environmental, social and labor impacts at every stage of their products’ lifecycle and value chain. The brands then share those measurements through verification and industry transparency.
“The new materials database/MSI represents a leap forward in standardizing the way apparel companies profile materials, sustainable or otherwise,” said Barruch Ben-Zekry, VF Corporation’s Director of Sustainable Products and Materials. “This provides the type of certainty in interpretation that will help guide our industry toward better materials choices. At VF, we’ve already begun to integrate the MSI into our internal systems of product impact measurement and we will continue to advocate that others do the same.”
The original version of the Higg MSI was developed by Nike and later adopted by the SAC in 2012 and incorporated into the SAC’s Higg Index.
The updated Higg MSI provides:
“The updated Higg MSI paves the way for deeper material transparency and awareness of environmental impacts,” said SAC CEO Jason Kibbey. “It is a vital addition to the Higg Index, allowing us to do brand-, facility-, and product-level assessment.”
The new and improved Higg MSI adds to a growing arsenal of resources aimed at helping one of the world’s most polluting industries clean up its act – by eliminating waste, greatly reducing the impacts of textile manufacturing, and scaling availability of safe chemicals and materials.
Published Nov 8, 2016 2am EST / 11pm PST / 7am GMT / 8am CET


text:
California Pet Rescue and Adoption Act (AB 485) – What the Rescues Say
On Jan 1 2019, California officially became the first state to ban pet stores from selling dogs, cats, and rabbits that aren’t from pet rescues, adoption centers, and other similar organizations. The bill (AB-485) was introduced for the first time by assembly member Patrick O’Donnell on Feb 14 2017.
History of Pet Rescue & Adoption Act (AB-485)
AB-485 is co-authored by assembly member Patrick O’Donnell and Matt Dababneh. The bill was sponsored by the Social Compassion in Legislation (SCIL), a nonprofit organization dedicated to finding solutions for the welfare, protection, and rights of animals. The following chart provides a summary of AB-485’s history.
What the Pet Rescues have to say
We reached out to over 100 pet rescue and adoption organizations in California to get their thoughts on the new law. Of those who participated in the survey, 70% were the founders or presidents of their pet rescue organizations. The remaining 30% were volunteers. Here are the key takeaways.
Working with Pet Stores
We asked the survey participants if their pet rescue/adoption organization already had partnerships with local pet stores. Only 29% mentioned they already had existing partnerships.
Almost half of the respondents mentioned their organization had no existing partnerships with pet stores and didn’t plan to in the near future. When asked why, some mentioned that there wasn’t a specific need for such a relationship since they were running a small-scale operation (40% of respondents were part of rescue organizations that had a maximum capacity of 1 to 10 animals).
Unfamiliarity with the New Law
One of the first questions we asked survey participants was on their overall sentiment of the Pet Rescue and Adoption Act. Interestingly, 22% of respondents mentioned that they didn’t have an opinion yet as they were either 1) not familiar with what the new law covers or 2) this was the first time they heard of it.
For respondents that did have knowledge of AB-485, the sentiment was, to no surprise, very positive. 68% of respondents stated that they had a positive sentiment of the Pet Rescue and Adoption Act. There was, however, a lot of skepticism over how much effect this law would actually have on the pet industry.
Existing Pet Sale Legislation
One respondent noted that many cities in California already have local laws that are similar in scope to AB-485. Back in 2012, the Los Angeles City Council passed an ordinance that would prohibit the sale of mill-bred dogs, cats, and rabbits in pet stores. San Diego, Irvine, and Laguna City are other notable cities in California with similar legislation in place.
A Decade too late?
Some respondents mentioned that the new law may have come too late. Articles, such as from RetailDive, point to a growing shift to online commerce in the pet industry. In the past decade, pet sale and adoption at brick-and-mortar stores have dropped in favor of online transactions, which isn’t included in AB-485.
“Rescues” Set Up by Pet Stores
A few respondents mentioned they heard of pet stores that plan on or have already set up their own “rescues” in order to circumvent the new law.
Importance of Education & Publicity
Despite there being a lot of skepticism over how much impact the Pet Rescue & Adoption Act would have on commercial breeding practices, many were positive about the publicity and awareness the law raises.


text:
Report: Marketing teams must be restructured
- 30 January, 2015 11:53
Marketing teams must undergo a restructure in the next five years to bring in the necessary operational, data and technology skills needed for future customer engagement.
According to a new survey of 478 senior marketers and CMOs globally conducted by The Economist Unit, and sponsored by Marketo, 81 per cent of marketers believe their organisation will need to change dramatically to cope with increased technical and consumer demand and support the business. Twenty-nine per cent believed the need for change is already urgent.
There is a way to go, however. Just over two-thirds of global marketers said their company views the marketing function as little more than a cost centre, a figure that rose to 70 per cent in Asia-Pacific. However, over the next 3-5 years, marketers expect four out of five companies will classify the marketing function as a revenue driver.
Owning customer experience will be catalyst for this transformation. While about a third of marketers are currently managing customer experience, 75 per cent expect to be responsible for the customer’s lifetime end-to-end experience over the next 3-5 years.
Technology was seen by respondents as the key facilitator for achieving this. Although less than half are using data to gain insights and engage customers today, 81 per cent anticipate they will be utilising data to make connections with customers in the next 3-5 years. Eighty per cent also expect to rely on technology to engage customers in a conversation to build advocacy and trust over the same timeframe.
The global report found core technology investments over the next 3-5 years are social marketing, mobile marketing and marketing analytics. In Asia-Pacific, advertising management, marketing resource management and content marketing were also ranked higher priorities than those in other regions.
In addition, 39 of global marketers said businesses need to develop stronger skillsets in digital engagement, and marketing operations and technology, followed by strategy and planning (38 per cent). Rounding off the top five wishlist is data analysis, and demand generation/customer acquisition.
Acquiring these appropriate skills was a top area of investment for 30 per cent of Asia-Pacific respondents over the next 12 months, double that of marketers in North American (15 per cent). The top two challenges noted by regional marketers are budget and customer acquisition.
When asked to define customer engagement, marketers overwhelmingly chose customer renewals, retention and repeat purchases (63 per cent), followed by brand awareness (22 per cent) and to a lesser extent, the impact on revenue.
“The transformation taking place in marketing is profound as marketers race to adopt technology and add skills that will allow them the entire relationship with the customer,” Marketo CMO, Sanjay Dholakia, said.
“Three out of every four marketers say that in three to five years, they will own the end-to-end customer engagement. That ownership puts marketing right at the centre of revenue generation and setting the company strategy.”


text:
Activision announces PSP launch titles
Spider-Man 2, Tony Hawk's Underground 2 to grace Sony's portable platform on the as-yet-undetermined day of its launch.
Early adopters of Sony's upcoming PSP will be swinging with Spider-Man and skating with Tony Hawk, Activision announced this week. The publisher confirmed in a press release that it does indeed intend to support the launch of the handheld system in the US with two games: Spider-Man 2, which is being developed by Vicarious Visions, and Tony Hawk's Underground 2, which is being developed by Shaba Games.
"[The PSP] is an exciting new platform that combines processing power with a sleek new look that will appeal to an older demographic," said Activision president Kathy Vrabeck. "By matching our top brands like Tony Hawk's Underground 2 and Spider-Man 2 with the new entertainment device, we are able to broaden our consumer base and leverage our franchises into new areas."
Although the two games are expected to launch alongside the hardware, SCEA has not yet nailed down a date when the PSP will hit American retail shelves. Activision will be present at the launch of the Nintendo DS on November 21 with a version of Spider-Man 2.
GameSpot may get a commission from retail offers.


text:
Starting a plant-based diet rich in grains, legumes and root veggies can boost an athlete's intake of healthy carbs. Endurance, both before athletic events and in the long term, is enhanced by higher carb intake.
LISA ESPOSITO: ‘Athletes who follow plant-based diets could see improvements in their heart health, performance and recovery, suggests a new review of studies published in the journal Nutrients. First, researchers looked at evidence of traditional dietary shortcomings and negative health effects in athletes. Next, they summarized potential benefits of plant-based diets on athletes’ heart health, recovery and performance. Vegan diets, which include no animal products whatsoever, were the main focus of the review, researchers noted. However, benefits also appeared from vegetarian diets, which allow dairy products such as milk and eggs.
Review authors included Dr. James Loomis, medical director for the Barnard Medical Center in the District of Columbia and a former team internist for the NFL’s St. Louis Rams (now the Los Angeles Rams) and the MLB’s St. Louis Cardinals. The review cited a 2017 study on coronary plaque buildup in older endurance cyclists and runners. Another study found that fewer than half of its Ironman triathlete participants were meeting the recommended carbohydrate intake for endurance athletes. Carbohydrate is the primary energy source during high- and moderate-intensity aerobic exercise, authors noted. Endurance, both right before athletic events and in the long term, is enhanced by higher carb intake, they added. Starting a plant-based diet rich in grains, legumes and root veggies can boost an athlete’s intake of healthy carbs.
Other studies in the review showed increased artery plaque or heart-muscle damage in U.S. men and German runners who competed in multiple marathons, compared to sedentary study participants. “Athletes are not immune to atherosclerosis or cardiac events,” authors wrote. “Surprisingly, endurance athletes may have more advanced sclerosis and [heart muscle] damage, compared with sedentary individuals, even as they age.” What the studies did not show, researchers continued, was whether these changes are consequences of the athletic activity itself, or the type of food, such as animal products, used to fuel it’. SOURCE…


text:
The Sunbelt Builders Show™ is pleased to announce Nate Holzapfel will serve as the 2017 General Session Speaker. Holzapfel will energize the crowd Thursday, Aug. 3 at 9:30 a.m.
The Sunbelt Builders Show™ has signed three-time Dallas Cowboys Super Bowl Champion Darren Woodson as the 2017 Opening Session Speaker. The three-time All-Pro and five-time Pro Bowl selection will welcome Sunbelt attendees to the Show on Wednesday, Aug. 2 at 9:30 a.m. inside the Hilton Anatole in Dallas, Texas.
Through its dedication to its membership, the Texas Association of Builders (TAB) has established a YouTube channel to keep members current on legislative issues and association business.
Granger MacDonald, a Kerrville, Texas-based builder and developer with 40 years of experience in the home building industry, was elected as the 2017 chairman of the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) during the association's International Builders' Show in Orlando, Fla.
The 2017 Star Awards is Texas’ elite statewide tribute to excellence in the home building industry. It showcases the outstanding work of builders, remodelers, architects, designers, sales and marketing professionals, and industry leaders in Texas in more than 100 categories.


text:
Rockstar has announced the details of in-game purchases for the online portion of its hugely popular GTA V.
EA's Humble Origin Bundle has become the "biggest bundle ever," raising over US$7 million for charity.
Saints Row IV is finally set for release downunder after being banned (and unbanned), and to celebrate publisher Deep Silver has released a free, stand-alone character creator.
Excellent article thx Alex -Pricing to enable bonuses to execs while hiding what they do to their 'essential workers' -[…]
Time for the US gov't to BAN these a***holes at Fecebook, Twatter, Instagrub and elsewhere. PUT THEM IN JAIL FOR[…]
Quite frankly passwords are a pain in the posterior.Why can't I have one secure password that I use on all[…]
Seems that the NBN Co is continuing to rip off consumers.The NBN was supposed to be available to all with[…]
Well u might be of self admitted low intelligence, which u've claimed many times, but u are a good writer[…]


text:
Fish tank shatters over shoppers in Shanghai
Sixteen people have been hurt after an aquarium burst at a shopping mall in Shanghai.
The 33-tonne tank shattered without warning at the city's Orient shopping centre on 18 December.
The tank was installed just two years ago but investigators say a combination of low temperatures and weak materials caused the collapse.
Three lemon sharks and dozens of turtles and small fish were killed in the incident.
Selga Berzins reports.
28 Dec 2012
- From the section Asia


text:
Year-to-date, nearly 19 percent of all sales in Forsyth County have been cash purchases, which is exactly what it was for the same period in 2012.
In North Fulton, cash deals come in at 17.5 percent, down 3 percentage points from last year, but still making up a large portion of all home sales.
This corresponds with a report from RealtyTrac that says cash sales in Atlanta made up 42 percent of all sales in June of this year.
Atlanta ranks tenth in the country for metro areas with a high percentage of cash purchases.
As you would assume, many of the cash deals are distressed sales, but comparing the same time-frames, the number of foreclosures and short sales being purchase has dropped significantly.
Distressed sales in both Forsyth County and North Fulton are half of what they were in 2012.
This year, 15 percent of all sales in Forsyth County were distressed, 11 percent of all sales in North Fulton.
Distressed sales haven’t disappeared though.
An important factor to note is this data comes from multiple listing services and does not include the large number of properties purchased by investors with cash on the courthouse steps each month.
Thousands of homes in metro Atlanta are purchased off the courthouse steps each month, never making it to the market for average home buyers.
One thing is clear; there is a lot of cash trying to get into the real-estate market here. That’s a good thing.


text:
Pa. raises age to buy tobacco, vaping products to 21 beginning in July
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — The legal age to buy cigarettes and other tobacco products in Pennsylvania is increasing to 21, although there’s an exception for veterans and service members who are at least 18.
Gov. Tom Wolf on Wednesday signed a pair of bills that make the age limit also apply to e-cigarettes and vaping products.
They’re banned on school grounds outside designated outdoor areas for nonstudents.
Pennsylvania joins 18 other states in making 21 the minimum age.
The new age takes effect July 1.


text: Merchandise trade across the Macau-mainland border in April was worth US$370 million (about MOP2.96 billion), 33.5 per cent more than a year earlier, the Ministry of Commerce says. The ministry’s figures show the value of the mainland’s exports to Macau grew by 39.5 per cent to US$360 million. The value of Macau’s exports to the mainland shrank by 43.7 per cent to US$10 million. The mainland authorities approved in April 34 investments in the mainland by Macau enterprises. The investments are together worth US$150 million, 87 per cent more than the value of such investments approved a year earlier.


text:
KARACHI: National Bank of Pakistan (NBP) is pleased to announce the pilot launch of its digital account. The new service, once launched will enable account opening digitally for all customers.
People from across the country will be able to open an account with NBP, anytime, from anywhere, just by downloading the NBP Digital App and tapping on the “Open Account” to start the customer account opening journey conveniently.
This innovative platform is set to transform the banking experience for individual Pakistani customers.
NBP’s Digital Account Opening Services align with the Customers’ Digital Onboarding Framework (CDOF), and will offer a wide range of benefits to customers.
As part of our commitment to enhancing customer convenience, NBP plans to continually expand the range of services available through this digital platform.
At the occasion of the ceremony, NBP President & CEO Rehmat Ali Hasnie opened his Digital Account and commenting on this significant milestone, he stated, “At NBP, we are committed to providing innovative banking solutions that cater to the evolving needs of our customers.
The launch of the Digital Account service represents a major step in this direction, enabling customers to bank with ease, security, and convenience. We remain dedicated to delivering excellence in digital banking services, and this is just the beginning of our journey towards a more digitally inclusive future.”
Copyright Business Recorder, 2023


text:
The new president of Philips N.V. announced today that the Dutch electronics giant would take a $1.44 billion charge against earnings and eliminate about 10,000 jobs in Europe as part of an effort to revive its loss-ridden computer and electronic-components divisions.
Jan D. Timmer, who was elected president and chairman of the management board today at a special shareholders meeting, said the company would take a charge for the program this year of about 2.7 billion guilders, or $1.44 billion. As a result, he said the company expected to lose about 2 billion guilders, or $1.07 billion, in 1990 on sales of more than 56 billion guilders, or $29.95 billion.
Last year, normal business operations earned $414.7 million on sales of $29.96 billion. Including extraordinary items, 1989 net income was $717.3 million.
Some analysts were disappointed with the announcement by Mr. Timmer, contending his plan was too vague and the cuts were not deep enough. ''To reach the profitability of major competitors, cutting 50,000 jobs is what would be required,'' said Arjen Los of County NatWest Securities Ltd. in London. ''It looks like a very timid approach.''
Mr. Los also questioned whether Philips would retain its dividend payments this year. The current dividend is $1.07 a share.
He said he did not think the company's American operations would be dramatically affected. ''The main area where Philips is really unprofitable is in Europe,'' he said.
One of the company's two semiconductor operations is Signetics, which is based in Sunnyvale, Calif. A Philips spokesman declined to say how many people the division employed and how the unit might be affected by the plans announced today.
Philips, which is Europe's largest electronics company, is not suffering in all areas. Its consumer electronics business is up 34 percent so far this year, according to the Reuters news service, and sales in most other areas except lighting products are considered to be in line with expectations. But sales of business computers and electronic components have been extremely weak.
Mr. Timmer's predecessor, 65-year-old Cornelis J. van der Klugt, who had led the company since 1986, was forced to retire a year early after Philips shocked the financial community by announcing in May that first-quarter earnings had plunged to $3.1 million, from $121.2 million a year earlier.
The company said today that normal business operations lost about $2.1 million in the first five months of this year, indicating a loss of $5.3 million in April and May, according to Reuters.
Other Steps Urged
Dorian Foyil, an analyst at London-based UBS Phillips & Drew, said he liked Mr. Timmer's announcement, but that he considered it to be only a first step.
''I think in this phase they're looking at European operations, but certainly the United States will follow,'' he said, adding that Philips has about 50,000 employees in the United States, where its operations include the Magnavox consumer electronics and lighting products. ''Certainly all of Philips has to be looked at very closely,'' Mr. Foyil said.
In trading on the London International Stock Exchange today, Philips stock fell to 30.7 guilders, or $16.42 a share, from 33.2 guilders, or $17.76.
On June 14, Philips said it expected to make a profit, although a very low one, on normal business operations in 1990. But Mr. Timmer said today that the earlier forecast had assumed a restructuring charge of only $213.9 million, much lower than the $1.44 billion charge announced today.
A Revised Plan


text:
Facebook launches iPhone app exclusively for famous people - 0 Comments
Facebook, vying in a social-media popularity contest among celebrities with Twitter, has released an iPhone app with a velvet rope wrapped around it.
The new Facebook Mentions app is currently only available on Apple iPhones for celebs, athletes, politicians and other public figures with "verified" pages in the U.S. It's designed to encourage famous folk to post more content to Facebook -- and interact directly with their followers.
Welcome to our new commenting system
Welcome to our new Facebook commenting system. Our goal is to create a meaningful environment where it is simple to comment on our pages and, if you'd like, share that comment with your friends.
The views expressed in any comment section are not those of the Herald or endorsed in any way by the Herald; the Herald reserves the right to remove any comment which violates its Rules of Conduct; and the Herald is not liable for the consequences of any posted comment as provided in Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act and the Herald's terms of service.


text:
Misery on the high street as one in ten shops lie empty due to high inflation and low wage rises
High inflation, low wage rises and less job security for shoppers has led to more than one in ten vacant shops on British high streets.
The figures from the British Retail Consortium revealed that 11.2 per cent of high street and shopping outlets were vacant at the end of May.
Also in the figures, the number of people visiting shops, known as 'footfall', fell by 1 per cent in the three months to July.
There are more premises left empty on the High Street as shoppers keep their hands in their pockets.
The figures were recorded before this month's riots and come despite a one-month improvement in July in all three types of destination - high street, shopping centre and out of town - due to the start of the school holidays and early summer sales.
It paints a grim picture for Britain's shopkeepers. High price inflation - currently at 4.4 per cent versus a Bank of England target of 2 per cent - is reducing shoppers' spending power at a time when wages are rising by a lower amount, if at all.
Last week, Asda also said its customers were cutting back on trips to its stores due to high fuel prices. It estimates families have on average £9 less disposable income each week compared with this time last year, largely due to increased petrol costs.
While overall levels of employment have held up better-than-expected during the recession, the threat of job losses has led to households cutting their spending.
Closures: Zavvi on Kensington High Street, London, is one store that has ended up closing down
The BRC said that retailers had suffered more in areas where there is high-proportion of public sector workers, with Northern Ireland and Wales seeing the worst falls and also registering the highest level of shop vacancies.
Diane Wehrle, research director at Springboard, the report's co-author, added that retail parks and malls are now being affected as much as town centres.
She said: 'Traditionally retail parks and malls outperformed the high street due to ease of access and free parking. However, these areas are now experiencing similar challenges to town centres.'
Fewer motoring trips are giving a modest boost to the High Street, with footfall through town centres up in both June and July on a month-by-month basis, though compared to a year ago the High Street has still seen by far the largest fall in shopper numbers with a decline of 2.6 per cent.
The problems have seen a number of household names appoint administrators including Oddbins, Moben, Habitat and Jane Norman, with a number of others announcing high street store closures.
Most watched News videos
- Lurcher who faked limp after owner's injury runs around garden
- Vallance concerned that vaccines may not work on new Covid variants
- Capitol Officer Eugene Goodman escorts Kamala Harris to inauguration
- Bill Clinton appears to doze off at Biden's inauguration
- Vallance: We need to look carefully at fresh Pfizer vaccine data
- Joe Biden's inauguration is a 'fantastic thing for America,' says PM
- Owners of lurcher who faked limp tricked him with mobility scooter
- Large explosion destroys building in Madrid with casualties expected
- Piers and Susanna pay emotional tribute to 96-year-old Doris Hobday
- 'Nothing wrong with it!': Boris on President Biden being 'woke'
- Police pepper spray man in clash over alleged lockdown breach
- Police officer crashes head-on with car travelling wrong way on M1


text:
Prices at the Pump Drive October Inflation Increase
By Amara Omeokwe
WASHINGTON -- Gasoline costs pushed up prices for U.S. consumer
goods in October, while new tariffs on imports appeared to have
little effect on what Americans paid for clothing and household
The consumer-price index -- which measures the costs of everyday
goods and services from food to dental care -- a seasonally
adjusted 0.4% in October from the previous month, the Labor
Department said Wednesday. Core prices, excluding often volatile
food and energy categories, were up 0.2%.
The U.S. placed duties on a range of Chinese imports this fall
as part of the continuing trade war -- including clothing, tools,
electronics and other consumer goods. But a 1.8% drop in apparel
prices helped hold down overall core inflation in October.
Consumers generally aren't shouldering the costs of those
levies, said Josh Nye, senior economist at RBC. "Probably because
of competitive pressures or other factors, businesses haven't been
able to pass along much of the tariff price increases they're
seeing [to consumers]," he said.
The consumer-price index increased 1.8% in October from a year
earlier, higher than the 1.7% year-over-year increase seen in the
previous two months. Core prices were up 2.3% over the year.
"The broader story remains the same: Inflation pressures remain
mild, and it will be some time before inflation becomes a main
concern for the [Federal Reserve]," Richard Moody, chief economist
at Regions Financial Corp., said in a note to clients.
Fed Chairman Jerome Powell said in congressional testimony
Wednesday that inflation pressures remained muted, and he signaled
comfort with the central bank's current interest-rate stance, with
its benchmark interest rate at a range between 1.5% and 1.75%.
"Looking ahead, my colleagues and I see a sustained expansion of
economic activity, a strong labor market, and inflation near our
symmetric 2 percent objective as most likely," Mr. Powell told
The Fed's preferred inflation gauge -- called the
personal-consumption expenditures price index, a separate measure
from the Commerce Department's -- -has trended lower than the
consumer-price index and below the 2% rate the Fed targets. The PCE
index rose 1.3% in September from a year earlier.
Energy prices, which rose 2.7% in October from the previous
month, accounted for more than half the gains in the headline
consumer-price index, according to the Labor Department. Gas prices
increased 3.7%, helping drive the advance in the overall energy
Wednesday's consumer-price index report showed Americans also
paid more for items such as food, used cars and medical
A separate Labor Department report released Wednesday showed
U.S. inflation-adjusted wages declined in October, as increases in
consumer prices outpaced gains in earnings. Real average hourly
wages fell a seasonally adjusted 0.2% in October from September,
despite an unemployment rate that is hovering near a 50-year
Wage gains, subdued inflation and a solid labor market have
helped spur consumer spending this year, in turn helping to prop up
the broader economy.
Slower wage growth could drag on consumer strength and the wider
economy. Household spending, for instance, was a major contributor
to a 1.9% increase in gross domestic product in the third quarter
from the previous quarter, at a seasonally adjusted annual
Write to Amara Omeokwe at email@example.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
November 13, 2019 13:30 ET (18:30 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2019 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.


text:
Not so long ago, majestic steamboats often could be seen docked on the Baton Rouge riverfront, carrying hundreds of visitors embarking on a Mississippi River cruise.
Beginning in April, the riverboats will be back.
For years, Baton Rouge was a destination for three Mississippi River cruise ships making stops at riverside cities: the American Queen, Mississippi Queen and Delta Queen.
But by the end of 2008, Majestic America Line, the company operating the three vessels, went out of business, effectively ending the riverboat cruise business on the Mississippi River.
“It was a loss,” said Paul Arrigo, president of the Baton Rouge Area Convention and Visitors Bureau.
“It was very picturesque when the boats arrived. And obviously, the merchants remember lots of folks who used to get off the boats and walk around downtown and stop and purchase things,” he said.
Beginning next year, Baton Rouge will be a stop for three cruise companies: The Great American Steam Boat Co., which will have about 13 Baton Rouge stops; American Cruise Lines, nine stops; and Blount Small Ship Adventures, two stops.
The Great American Steam Boat Co. will be reintroducing the American Queen, which was originally built in 1995 and is “the largest and grandest” paddle wheel steamboat ever built, said Tim Rubacky, a senior vice president for the company.
The cruises will help showcase Baton Rouge to visitors, said Katie Guasco, senior sales manager for the city’s Convention and Visitors Bureau.
“The boaters have always been extremely excited to see our culture and history, and we’re excited to showcase that for them,” she said.
“There’s been a lot of changes since the boats came last time, and we want to make sure visitors see Baton Rouge for all of its beauty.”
In addition to Baton Rouge, the cruises are expected to make stops and enjoy some historically themed excursions in riverside cities including New Orleans, St. Francisville, Vicksburg, Miss., Memphis, Tenn., St. Louis, Minneapolis/St. Paul, Cincinnati and Pittsburgh.
Rubacky said riverboat cruises are a “totally different experience” from the regular ocean liner cruises people are generally more familiar with.
“This is not for shopping, or for Las Vegas shows, or water slides,” Rubacky said. “This is something focused on history and culture.”
The American Queen, which can carry 436 passengers, is a “floating Victorian mansion,” Rubacky said.
American Cruise Lines, the other main riverboat operator, is building a new sternwheeler boat with a capacity of 149 passengers called the Queen of the Mississippi.
The company will offer Civil War-theme cruises with tours of museums and historic battlefields.
“This reinforces our efforts to provide enriching cruises for our passengers — offering an elegant peek into American history through its waterways,” said Timothy Beebe, vice president of American Cruise Lines, in a statement.
The boats will dock at the Baton Rouge Port in the downtown riverfront for about eight hours per trip, Guasco said, and visitors will be able to explore the city’s downtown.
In addition to restaurants, boaters will be able to visit about 15 major downtown attractions, including the Louisiana State Museum, the Old State Capitol and the USS Kidd, said Davis Rhorer, director of the Downtown Development District.
“The visitors will get a personal experience with the towns they stop in on,” Rhorer said.


text:
Microsoft and its competitors are big on breaking down sales data in terms of number of units sold per day.
We've heard that Kinect sensors were selling at a rate of about 130,000 units a day. Last fall, the Redmondians claimed that they were selling 657,534 Windows 7 copies per day. There is a copy of Office 2010 sold every second somewhere around the globe, the Softies say.
It wasn't until today, however, that I had heard a comparable statistic about SharePoint.
Microsoft has been adding 20,000 SharePoint users per day, every day for the last five years, according to Jared Spataro, Director of SharePoint product management. That means 7.3 million new SharePoint users every year.
Microsoft hasn't gotten a lot more granular about SharePoint sales beyond that. We heard in 2009 that SharePoint was a $1.3 billion business for Microsoft and that there were more than 17,000 customers with a total of more than 100,000 million SharePoint users out there. The company isn't releasing updated user totals or numbers of SharePoint servers sold. (I asked.)
SharePoint turns 10 years old next week, by the way. The first of the product's four releases was in late March 2001.
SharePoint -- in case you aren't among its customers or partners who are deploying, maintaining and fixing it -- is the server sibling of Office. It is a collection of six different servers bundled into a single back-end that provide content management, enterprise social networking, intranet search, portal creation and management and collaboration.
This year will be a key one for the SharePoint product and team, as Microsoft will finally be introducing some of the new SharePoint functionality that it introduced with its SharePoint 2010 release (in mid-2010) into the cloud. Microsoft will be delivering some of those capabilities with Office 365, the Microsoft-hosted bundle of SharePoint Online, Exchange Online, Lync Online and (later) CRM Online, which Microsoft is expected to launch around the first week of June 2011, from what I've heard.
SharePoint 15 -- the next version of SharePoint that will hit around the time Office 15 does (estimated to be in 2013, at this point) -- is in the midst of development. I wouldn't be surprised if we got a sneak peek, if not a very early test build, of the next SharePoint in this calendar year, too.
Spataro said that Microsoft is seeing interest from customers in putting portal, collaboration, content management and social-networking functionality in the cloud. But customers who've built custom business applications or who are linking to existing business applications from SharePoint are still more likely to use SharePoint hosted internally.
More SharePoint posts:
SharePoint SKUs multiply like rabbits
SharePoint: What’s coming when with the 2010 release?
Meet the father of SharePoint: Jeff Teper
What makes Microsoft’s SharePoint tick?


text:
The Coca-Cola Company’s overall sustainability strategy includes a substantial focus on recycling, from providing curbside bins and carts on campuses, to educating and inspiring consumers. The Coca-Cola Company has expanded recycling awareness through key partnerships with three key nonprofit organizations. According to Sarah Dearman, sustainable packaging program director for Coca-Cola North America, the nonprofits help to drive Coke’s expanding recycling efforts. “Increasing recycling is important to us, but it’s challenging,” Dearman says. “We know that we have to work together, and what better way to do that than through nonprofit partnerships.”
The Closed Loop Fund
Did you know that cities spend $5 billion annually to transport waste to landfills?¹ Of that waste, $11 billion is material that could be used to make new packages and products.¹ The Closed Loop Fund has invested more than $100 million on the infrastructure of recycling products and packaging, from the machines used in materials recovery facilities to the trucks that haul there. The partnership between The Closed Loop Fund and The Coca-Cola Company is a natural fit, according to Dearman, and it fulfills a key objective. “We want to keep valuable packaging out of landfills,” Dearman says. “The goal is two-fold: we want our packaging back so we can reuse it, but we also want to keep it out of the landfill because it’s the right thing to do for the environment.”
The Recycling Partnership
The Recycling Partnership, a national recycling nonprofit formed in 2003, focuses on improving residential recycling. According to the organization’s website, recyclingpartnership.org, more than half of U.S. communities have access to recycling programs, yet participation averages at less than 50%.² “Recycling is one of the first things that people think of when they want to do their part to help the environment,” Dearman says. “What’s more, people expect Coca-Cola to help make sure our packages are recycled, so we know it’s important.” The Recycling Partnership has invested $21 million in recycling programs and has reached more than 2 million households by providing 285,000 recycling carts.
Keep America Beautiful
With a focus on ending litter and improving recycling efforts, Keep America Beautiful works to improve communities though initiatives like a bin grant program funded by The Coca-Cola Foundation that distributed 45,000 recycling bins throughout the United States from 2007-2015. The Coca-Cola Company also supports Keep America Beautiful’s RecycleMania Tournament, which was activated on 350 college and university campuses and resulted in the collection of 79.3 million pounds of recyclables in 2016.
According to Dearman, with these key partnerships in place, The Coca-Cola Company is in a position to further grow its recycling efforts in the years to come. “We would like to see even more companies and partners join these organizations so they have more resources and an even bigger reach to grow recycling.”
Consumer expectations, coupled with a growing awareness of the benefits of recycling, will continue to make sustainability an important factor for Coca-Cola customers in both foodservice and convenience retail.
To learn more about how you can partner with The Coca-Cola Company on recycling programs, contact your local representative today.


text:
Efforts by Facebook (FB) to boost revenue and profit will come into focus Tuesday when the social networking leader posts its third-quarter results after the market close.
Facebook has faced a withering 50% drop in share price since the day after its highly criticized initial public offering in May. Analysts worry that Facebook has not explained a solid game plan on how to make more money from its large and growing base of mobile users.
The social networking site now has more than 1 billion registered users, and it's grown into one of the world's largest online ad networks. According to some market trackers, it already is the largest, displaying more ads than any other online networks, including those run by Google (GOOG) and Yahoo (YHOO). The challenge is there is far less space to place ads on handsets. Moreover, the amount advertisers are willing to pay for mobile is less than what they pay for desktop platforms. Facebook has about 600 million mobile users.
Consensus estimates among analysts polled by Thomson Reuters is for earnings per share minus items of 11 cents. That's the same as Facebook reported for the year-earlier quarter and is the second quarter in a row of no growth. Analysts expect revenue of $1.2 billion, up 26% but the seventh quarter in a row of sales deceleration.
Analysts view Facebook as a work in progress. The company has unveiled several efforts to boost ad revenue on both mobile and desktop platforms. Among them is a closer tie-in to the Apple (AAPL) iPhone platform.
"The company continues to innovate and develop new advertising tools to improve long-term earnings power," wrote Brian Nowak, an analyst at Nomura Equity Research, in a report last week.
The near-term outlook on Facebook remains cloudy due to the mobile transition, wrote Sterne Agee analyst Arvind Bhatia in a recent report.
"Our sense going into the quarterly earnings release is that investor sentiment is decidedly negative," he wrote.
That feeling was amplified by Zynga (ZNGA), which cut its forecast early this month, as IBD reported. Last quarter Zynga accounted for 10% of Facebook revenue.
Also weighing on shares of Facebook are stock lockup expirations on Nov. 14, Bhatia wrote. Some 1.2 billion shares of Facebook held by insiders are slated to be unlocked on that date, by far the biggest amount in a series of lockup expirations that extend to next May.
Facebook shares were up more than 1% in early trading Monday, near 19.26. The IPO priced at $38 and started trading May 18.
RELATED: Facebook Hits 1 Billion-User Mark.


text:
INNOVHEM is in the top 50 promising deep-tech start-ups!!!
We are very happy to announce that INNOVHEM has been selected as one of the top 50 promising deep-tech start-ups by the EU commission in the recent pilot call for the Women TechEU program. This program is designed to identify start-ups founded and led by women, and to provide mentoring and funding to help these companies succeed.
‘Deep tech accounts for over a quarter of Europe’s start-up ecosystem, however, women remain largely underrepresented across this industry.
Founded on innovation in engineering and advances in science, deep tech start-ups tend to have longer R&D cycles, and often take more time and capital to build than other start-ups. Women in deep tech often face the additional hurdle of gender bias and stereotypes, particularly prevalent in sectors like technology.’
We are proud to be one of four French companies selected in this top 50 list that was narrowed down from 391 applicants, and look forward to welcoming the growth and development we anticipate to see due to this opportunity.


text:
Pirelli to sponsor 'Tyre Retail Centre of the Year' award
ERJ staff report (TP)
Manchester, UK – Pirelli will sponsor the National Tyre Distributors Association (NTDA) ‘Tyre Retail Centre of the Year’ award.
The award will be handed out at the annual NTDA dinner and prize-giving ceremony, to be held in Manchester on 8 October in front of “leading representatives” from the UK tire industry. Formerly known as the TAFF Awards, the ceremony has now been re-branded as the ‘Tyre Industry Awards’.
This year, the dinner is being held for the 85th time and it recognises the achievements of some of the key stakeholders. The host of this year’s event will be former government minister Michael Portillo, now a well-known television presenter in the UK.
Pirelli itself has been a previous recipient of the prestigious ‘Tyre Manufacturer of the Year’ award, underlining its strong links with the NTDA.
This is an external link and should open in a new window. If the window does not appear, please check your pop-up blocking software. ERJ is not responsible for the content of external sites.
Press release from NTDA


text:
This is bitter for the cruise industry: Canada has passed a resolution stating that cruise ships with over 100 passengers will not be allowed to enter the waters of Canada until February 28, 2022.
Probably the toughest setback here is that Alaska is now also affected by this preliminary ruling. It is now to be expected that the shipping companies will evaluate the new regulations and then make various rejections again. In addition to Alaska and Canada, the Great Lakes and the Arctic are also affected by this ban.
A government press release announced that the cruise lines in Canadian waters would pose a health risk. In addition, the health system could take care of the progress of vaccinations through such bans.
Although the ban has now been decided, Canada is still keeping a back door open.If the situation improves noticeably, the government is free to adjust the temporary ban before February 28, 2022. Whether this will be done by the relevant ministry is rather unlikely, given the strict regulations that Canada has been following since the beginning of the pandemic.
As a result, numerous Alaska and New England cruise cancellations can be expected. This is another major setback, especially for the American market, because these destinations are particularly important for cruise operators in North America, along with the Caribbean.
European companies such as the Hamburg shipping company TUI Cruises will also have to react to the new ban. In the fall, Mein Schiff 1 should also make a few calls in Canada. These trips are likely to be subject to future adjustments.


text:
Lafarge Tarmac take home a top prize at the Marketing Excellence Awards hosted by the Chartered Institute for Marketing in London.
Its popular resealable tubs range, a hit with small builders, plumbers, electricians and DIY-ers, won Lafarge Tarmac the Excellence Award in the Construction/Engineering/Manufacturing category. Lafarge Tarmac triumphed by winning this award, beating shortlisted organisations including Caterpillar, NHBC, Crossrail and British Gas.
The prestigious Marketing Excellence Awards recognise excellence and outstanding marketing in various industry sectors. Bringing together businesses from across country, the awards present an opportunity for companies to showcase marketing excellence and their innovative and successful campaigns over the last year. Hundreds of client-side and agency-based marketers attended the awards dinner at Grosvenor House Hotel in central London on Wednesday.
Mike Lomax, Marketing Communication Manager, comments: “Winning such a prestigious award, which is recognised by our whole industry, is testimony to the great popularity we have seen with our innovative plastic tubs range. We are very proud to receive this recognition on behalf of the whole team behind the products and look forward to all the exciting innovations we have in store for 2014.”


text:
Most music videos shot in Africa are unable to catch the eyes of international awards, since they are shot with cameras which are of low quality for big screens.
Hollywood is of age due to incredible space of quality that the ‘Red’ camera brought to the industry in the United States.
But with the recent introduction of high resolution cameras, ‘Red Camera’ has broken the myth in movies, advertising and music video of low quality motion pictures for the creative industry in sub-Sahara African.
However, it can be said that the recently shot music video of Miz Gold, dubbed ‘Diva’, was shot with Red camera and promises to be a thrilling music motion picture with the best costume, ambiance and location, that music fans of Miz. Gold can’t wait to see.
The music video, which is a danceable one and has fashionable display of colours and African styles which are appealing to the eye of the young and bold to copy and incorporate into their daily fashion trends.
Speaking in an exclusive interview with Miz Gold, she expressed her immense satisfaction on the video, shot in Nigeria, in Festac, at Golden Tulip.
According to Temitope (Gold) Omolola, the video is set to pose a fashion trend in bringing diversity to the African society.
‘Shooting the music video on ‘Red’ means we are going to have good quality music video. I am setting a fashion trend in the music video industry to influence the young and bold.
Miz Gold, one of the promising divas in musical circles is more than poised in making her career known to the entire populace. She is known for dancehall and R&B music.
According to her, the choice of this genre seeks to inspire love and dynamism for the music industry.
Although the album ‘Diva’ is not yet complete, she currently has six tracks under her sleeves – namely, Diva ft. Guru, Kokonsa, Whisper, TinkaTinka, Take Care, and I love the way, are all on the track with beautiful tunes and beats.
The Director of Timing Entertainment, Mr. Temitope Ajenisuja said the concept was a simple story with precision and accuracy, with very appealing colours in making the video an international one.
‘The music video ‘Diva’, which feature Ghanaian artist Guru, is a well scripted concept with Miz Gold.


text:
It’s the end of the road for Gordita Chronicles, which finishes its HBO Max run after just ten warmly received episodes.
Want to watch Facebook videos offline? Here’s how to download videos from Facebook on desktop and mobile.
A retailer price listing shows a small increase for both the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4 and Galaxy Z Flip 4.
Marvel Phase 5 kicks off in February 2023 with Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, and finishes in July 2024 with Thunderbolts.
Images of the Fitbit Sense 2 and Versa 4 show that the capacitive button is no more — good riddance.
Series documenting the Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward’s relationship has wowed the critics over its six-episode run.
Apple Music Sessions will feature exclusive live performances for subscribers, starting with Carrie Underwood and Tenille Townes.
Missing out on the unique look of Nothing Phone (1)? Dbrand mimics the look with a set of cases and covers.
The first details of Samsung’s 2023 foldables emerge, but the company is apparently bracing itself for less demand than in 2022.
Tiny Pretty Things actor Brennan Clost shared the news on YouTube, and revealed a little bit about why Netflix is so quiet about cancelations in general.
Official-looking image of the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 4 emerges, showing small but real changes from the last generation.
After 18 months of GPU shortages and price spiking, suppliers now have the opposite problem — and it could impact the upcoming RTX 4000 series.
Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo believes that Samsung will abandon its own Exynos chipset for the Galaxy S23, going all in on Qualcomm.
Like the first-generation M1 chip, the M2 performance on MacBook Pro and Air appears indistinguishable.
Netflix has been no stranger to canceling projects this year, but the apparent abandonment of the Vince McMahon documentary comes with unique circumstances.
It’s a swing and a miss for the latest attempt to reimagine Jane Austen for modern times, as Netflix’s Persuasion takes a critical beating.
Upcoming AirPods Pro 2 likely won’t feature long rumored new fitness sensors, according to Mark Gurman.
The Apple Watch 8 is tipped to get the first new health sensor since the Series 6’s blood oxygen monitor.
Nvidia GeForce RTX 4090 could reach a massive 100 teraflops of power, but with that kind of speed comes big electricity demands.
Nintendo financial insights reveal a huge increase on raw material spend, generating speculation that a Switch 2 could be here sooner than previously thought.
Will Ferrell classic Old School just arrived on Netflix, and the 2003 movie has already hit number eight in the charts.


text:
Minority Report science adviser and inventor John Underkoffler demos g-speak — the real-life version of the film’s eye-popping, tai chi-meets-cyberspace computer interface. Is this how tomorrow’s computers will be controlled?
Eric Giler wants to untangle our wired lives with cable-free electric power. Here, he covers what this sci-fi tech offers, and demos MIT’s breakthrough version, WiTricity — a near-to-market invention that may soon recharge your cell phone, car, pacemaker.
As the CEO of MIT-inspired WiTricity, Eric Giler has a plan to beam electric power through the air to wirelessly power your laptop or recharge your car. You may never plug in again.
Pranav Mistry demos several tools that help the physical world interact with the world of data — including a deep look at his SixthSense device and a new, paradigm-shifting paper “laptop.” In an onstage Q&A, Mistry says he’ll open-source the software behind SixthSense, to open its possibilities to all.


text:
Want to see a trick? OnePlus has created a phone with a new kind of vanishing camera | CES 2020
Forget notches, punch holes and under-display cameras. OnePlus is upping the style stakes by introducing a phone with a disappearing camera at CES 2020. Meet the OnePlus Concept One.
The company just dropped a 10 second teaser vid of the new design:
This doesn’t give us a lot of info, but we do see the camera flash up on the rear of the phone then disappear completely. It looks like it’s made up of three sensors, which are placed smack bang in the middle-rear of the handset.
Related: Read our review of the OnePlus 7 Pro
OnePlus says that the vanishing act is all down to “colour-shifting glass technology”. This makes it sound like the company’s just whacked a tinted window on the rear of the phone, but it’s actually a bit more complicated than that.
The glass is electrochromic, which means that you can control the level of tint electronically. When the tint is active, the cameras are completely hidden behind the strip of glass. Activate the camera app and the tint level drops, revealing the outline of those triple sensors.
In OnePlus’ own words, the Concept One handset uses “electrochromic glass, an electronically tintable glass, to cloak the rear camera lenses behind a clean glass body and reveal them only when they’re in use”.
The phone maker has previously teamed up with McLaren to create special-edition models, and OnePlus says that this electrochromic glass technology is currently used in the aviation and high-end automobile industries to greatly reduce glare, such as on the windows of the Boeing 787s and the McLaren 720s.
Related: CES 2020 − everything you need to know
This is, however, a concept, so it’s not yet ready for the market. Though OnePlus will no doubt be trying to gauge the reaction to it when the Concept One is shown off at CES.


text:
The UK economy is bouncing back faster than expected as businesses report the strongest growth in activity in more than 20 years and “hordes” of shoppers splash their cash in reopened storesThe coronavirus was first detected in late 2019. Wuhan became known a.
The interim composite purchasing managers’ index rose to 62 in May, up from 60.7 in April, marking its highest reading since records began in January 1998. At the same time, the volume of retail sales in Britain rose 9.2 per cent in April against the previous monthOntario asks for COVID help — but here, the Office for National Statistics reported, more than double the 4.5 per cent expansion forecast by economists polled by ReutersThe Ontario health-care system.
Chris WilliamsonIndoor gatherings, chief business economist at IHS Markitother provinces are watching on with a mix of exhaustion and dread., which published the PMI, said the UK was “enjoying an unprecedented growth spurt”The provision of more doses o. He added that “the output and order book growth seen in May, and record level of business optimism, are consistent with GDP rising sharply in the second quarter”.
Paul Dales, chief UK economist at consultancy Capital Economics, said the data supported his view that “the recovery would be fast and full” and the economy could return to its pre-Covid peak earlier than expected.


text:
It’s no secret that the pandemic has driven a surge in gaming. Research firm NPD Group recently reported that Q3 2020 marked the highest total spend on gaming in US history, to the tune of US$11.2 billion—a 24% increase compared to the same time period last year. Not only are more people playing games, they’re also playing longer and on more devices than ever before, according to NPD.
In a bid to grab a slice of this pie and chase global success, kidcos such as ZAG, Pocket.watch and GoNoodle are bringing gaming development in house—despite the high cost and time associated with developing gaming properties—as it provides them greater control over the content, not to mention direct access to consumer insights.
But launching a division isn’t easy, says Dmitri Williams, associate professor at USC Annenberg School for Communication. The resources (financial, staff and tech) a production company needs to expand into making video games can vary significantly based on the platform they’re targeting, he says. The high cost and intense competition in the gaming market has led to fewer big-budget (also known as triple A or AAA) titles being released each year, while the market for mobile games has come to dwarf consoles and PC gaming, says Williams. Yet for those looking to break into the gaming category with an in-house offering, she suggests the crowded mobile space may be the best place to test the waters.
GoNoodle gets games moving
The cost of creating smaller mobile titles can range from US$10,000 to US$100,000, and the process requires only a handful of people. In comparison, big-budget games for consoles often require teams of 300 people and can cost upwards of hundreds of millions of dollars.
Prodcos expanding into video games usually have dedicated small teams of 10 to 30 people who will design the game, working with an external game development studio for execution, adds Williams.
This is the case for Nashville-based dance and movement video producer GoNoodle, which launched its own in-house gaming division with a small team of developers in March. To kick things off, it partnered with Dubit to leverage the market research/app development company’s tech capabilities and kid insights.
Through that partnership, GoNoodle launched its free iOS and Android app GoNoodle Games, which features movement-responsive games that require kids to jump and dance around to complete challenges. The app has been downloaded around 800,000 times since its launch, says GoNoodle CEO KC Estenson.
With kids spending more time playing games on mobile devices, a gap has emerged for content that gets them moving, says Estenson.
GoNoodle’s business model is to create both sponsored games and in-app purchases. And going forward Estenson sees opportunity in creating new content, as well as expanding to consoles in the new year. But the challenge will always be making sure it’s a safe experience for kids no matter where it’s available, he adds.
“When you develop your own games, you can assure maximum safety for kids,” says Estenson. “We’re able to build in the privacy safeguards and make sure it’s compliant. Even if platforms like Apple change their rules, our development team is close to the code and can quickly make changes.”
ZAG gets in the game
While mobile games offer a lower barrier to entry for most small prodcos, and video games often require a much larger investment, the category may be too big to ignore. Sales of video game content—including titles and accessories—is up to US$10.04 billion, a 24% increase when compared to last year, which makes this market a tempting place to be.
Following broadcast and licensing success for its various IPs, French animation studio ZAG tapped former CrazyLabs (Jumanji: Epic Run) exec Elinor Schops to launch an in-house gaming division in the fall. Schops joined the company as VP of gaming experience, with a focus of rolling out gaming titles across PC, console, mobile, VR and AR.
Wanting greater control of the content as it was expanded into video games for the first time led ZAG to launch its own gaming division, says Julian Zag, EVP of global operations. The studio also plans on partnering with game developers to create titles for all of its brands, with an initial focus on Miraculous and Power Players. But having talent in house to manage those relationships means the studio can maintain a strong guiding hand across all of the touchpoints.
Launching a gaming division also puts Zag in a better position to innovate new products more quickly, because it will have the in-house expertise and knowledge to design more unique experiences that align with the brands.
“We’re looking for crazy ideas about how to engage audiences to stand out from all the games that are coming out,” says Zag. “And with video games, we can create what we have in our minds for these brands, but couldn’t do in CP and content because of price points and limitations. Through video games, we can challenge ourselves to fulfill the demand for our content in new ways.”
Pocket.watch plays around
To fulfill its mission of being everywhere that kids are, Pocket.watch knew it needed to get into games in a significant way, says Greg Hayes, VP of games and publishing. The digital media company launched its gaming division p.w Games in February 2019, with the goal of producing mobile and console games featuring its major YouTube brands.
Launching its own gaming division, instead of licensing the rights to some of its creator partners, gave the studio more control over titles and the ability to tailor updates to align with new CP and content. With the launch of mobile games like Tag with Ryan (pictured), Pocket.watch was able to look ahead to what new Ryan’s World products would be hitting retail, and create in-game content (like outfits) that would push consumers back to the shelves and keep them engaged. That level of planning and alignment isn’t possible if you’re just handing over a license, says Hayes.
The pandemic has driven some major growth for Pocket-watch’s titles, and 2021 is expected to be another strong year for the company’s gaming business in particular as it gears up several new launches. Next up on the slate is a mobile dress-up game based on the Love, Diana franchise. Players will be able to make an avatar and dress her up, leaning into the brand’s focus on pretend play. The app will help kids create their own persona that could better connect them with Diana, says Hayes.


text:
Visteon Corp., a Van Buren-based global innovator in the automotive cockpit segment, has released its next-generation Phoenix Infotainment platform at the 2017 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.
As infotainment becomes the hub of the connected vehicle industry, the Phoenix enables third party developers to easily create apps, while delivering built-in cybersecurity and over-the-air updates.
“Visteon is reimagining infotainment from the perspective of both app developers and the end-user,” says Sachin Lawande, president and CEO of Visteon. “Through this latest advancement, Phoenix will break down the traditional barrier for embedded automotive app development that has restricted the availability of apps for infotainment systems.”
Visteon’s unique SDK incorporates libraries of code, documents, and a simulator to support app development by third parties. The SDK makes app development easier than the conventional approach, which traditionally requires custom software and hardware normally exceeding the budgets of third party developers.
With Phoenix, the developer will be able to log on to a Visteon microsite and create and test apps with an SDK and a simulator. Apps will then be validated by a respective automaker or Visteon, and then published to an app store for driver purchase and use.


text:
It's been almost a year since EA and Respawn shocked gamers by following up the Titanfall games with a new free-to-play battle royale shooter. Now, the team has revealed that for its first anniversary Apex Legends will add a new hero, Forge, and launch season four of gameplay and content add-ons. For existing players, there are some special "year one" login gifts, plus people who play between February 4th and 11th can nab 10k XP for their first match of the day, every day.
The new hero Forge appears to add some melee abilities to the mix, with "Shatter Gauntlets" that he can use to beat up opponents. According to his backstory, the character is a "five time hyperfighting federation champion" who joins the game with some corporate sponsorship attached. According to people who've poked around for leaks, some of the abilities they're anticipating make him seem a lot like Doomfist, the similarly-augmented hero-with-a-big-arm from Overwatch.
Update: Scratch that. It appears the "Forge" hero was a fake-out, who was unceremoniously dispatched by the real new hero for season four in a "Stories from the Outlands" video released today. Leaks indicate that the new character is Revenant, and all we know for sure is that they're very deadly.


text:
Overhead cooking videos might be the easiest way to game the Facebook algorithm to capture tons of views, but upstart food pages like Cooking Panda are recognizing the need to differentiate.
Cooking Panda is relatively new to the Facebook food video scene. When it was acquired by Render Media at the end of 2015, the site had 700,000 Facebook fans and was primarily used for links to cooking recipes on other websites. Today, it has 5.3 million fans and did nearly 81.2 million video views in July, according to Tubular Labs. It’s a far cry from Facebook food giants like BuzzFeed’s Tasty and Tastemade, which did 1.8 billion and 683 million views in the same month, but the growth is still impressive, considering the time frame.
More than 80 percent of Cooking Panda videos today are clips of recipes shot from above, the same format that’s been adopted across other food video publishers on Facebook. It has helped the page grow and spawn other related pages such as Food Panda, Baking Panda and Tipsy Panda. But Render Media, a 5-year-old media startup with 35 employees, is aware that its brands need to do more to stand out from the pack.
“We do realize that it’s all similar,” said Eytan Elbaz, co-founder and chairman of Render Media (and better known as the co-founder of Google’s AdSense). “You look at a lot of these food videos and you might not know where it’s coming from.”
To that end, Render Media is starting to experiment with new content formats. So Cooking Panda is piloting two series, a cartoon called “Adventures of Cooking Panda” and a travel/lifestyle show, “Wanderlust.”
Such videos have yet to reach the popularity of overhead recipe videos, though. For instance, whereas the typical Cooking Panda Facebook video gets 1.3 million views, the first episode of “Adventures of Cooking Panda” has only had 91,000 views in over a week.
Other food publishers agree with the need to differentiate on Facebook. Twisted, a London-based Facebook food page, is attempting to stand out by doing unusual recipes. Tastemade is doing travel and lifestyle series and has gone all-in on Facebook Live.
“If you check in with us a year from now, overall for both us and the industry, there will be less overhead recipe videos,” said Elbaz.
One thing favoring Cooking Panda, according to Elbaz, is the page’s high engagement rate. Cooking Panda Facebook videos see 16 percent more likes, comments and shares than Tasty and 40 percent more than Tastemade, per Tubular. Two-thirds of its views also run longer than 10 seconds, which suggests people are actually watching (Facebook counts a public view after three seconds).
Beyond differentiating Cooking Panda’s videos, Render Media is pushing it out on other platforms. Cooking Panda has 144,000 followers on Instagram and another 121,000 on Vine, and did 98,000 and 8.9 million views on those platforms in July, according to Tubular. It’s also experimenting on Snapchat.
“The five main social media outlets — Facebook, YouTube, Snapchat, Vine and Instagram — are all providing strong growth opportunities for us,” said Elbaz. “Facebook has a strong lead, but we certainly want to do more on all social platforms.”
Render Media has an 11-person video team and a four-person social team that oversees content and social strategy for Cooking Panda. Even with that nimble setup, Cooking Panda isn’t profitable yet. That’s partly because Render Media is prioritizing growth.
Cooking Panda is making money, though. Render Media has done half a dozen branded content deals with smaller advertisers ranging from BumbleBee Tuna to Star Fine Foods, nearly all of which have renewed, Elbaz said.
“For now, the only way we have to generate revenue on social is through branded content,” said Elbaz. “More brands are going to get into branded content on social over the next couple of years, and we will see big returns.”
With Roku leading the pack, study says 94% of households are reachable through CTV
Connected TV remains on the rise in programmatic advertising, fueled by the popularity of Roku, Samsung and Amazon devices.
Digital investors take time out as British Pound plummets
Don’t expect an M&A frenzy, despite Sterling’s historic low, as volatility cools investors’ appetites.
The New York Times looks to gaming product to grow subscriptions
The Times' use of games as a subscriber funnel is part of a renewed focus on gaming sparked by the company's acquisition of Wordle in January.
SponsoredHow FAST channels are redefining primetime opportunities for advertisers
Sponsored by Vevo With the competition from content providers continuing to build, the traditional primetime TV slots are no longer guaranteeing the mass audiences they once did. Television viewership is evolving, and the primetime window of 8–11 p.m. is less broadly reflective of younger audiences’ content consumption habits. In 2022, attracting TV viewers is a […]
Member ExclusiveMedia Briefing: The pros, cons of three pricing models for publisher, sportbook content deals
Publishers and sportsbooks are looking for new payout models beyond the standard cost-per-acquisition structure, which is priced on average between $200-500 per new customer.
Inside the NFL’s youth-focused social strategy
As part of the NFL Content Creator Network, the league is engaging with fans in new, innovative ways via gaming or just through creative social media activations.


text:
The best of EcoWatch, right in your inbox. Sign up for our email newsletter!
Renewable energy is having another stellar year. Solar is now the fastest growing source of renewable energy after a decade of record growth, according to the Solar Energy Industries Association. Wind and solar continue to flourish, and nascent technologies such as offshore wind and algae-based biofuel are also gaining momentum.
The International Energy Agency recently announced two exciting goals for clean energy: by 2020, 26 percent of the world’s energy will be generated by renewable sources and renewables will overtake coal as the world's largest power source in the 2030s.
While many countries continue to drag their feet on reducing emissions, individual cities are taking the lead and setting ambitious renewable energy targets. Some have already made the transition to 100 percent renewable energy.
Here are the four U.S. cities that have gone 100 percent renewable:
YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE
EcoWatch Daily Newsletter
By Elizabeth Pratt
- Hormel, Kellogg's, and Kroger are among the large companies now planning to offer "fake meat" products at grocery stores.
- Experts say the trend toward plant-based meats coincides with consumers' desires to eat less meat.
- However, experts urge consumers to closely check package labels as a product isn't necessarily healthy just because it's described as plant-based.
In grocery stores and fast-food outlets around the U.S., a revolution is taking place.
Many of us think of the Amazon as an untouched wilderness, but people have been thriving in these diverse environments for millennia. Due to this long history, the knowledge that Indigenous and forest communities pass between generations about plants, animals and forest ecology is incredibly rich and detailed and easily dwarfs that of any expert.
By Wesley Rahn
Plastic byproducts were found in 97 percent of blood and urine samples from 2,500 children tested between 2014 and 2017, according to a study by the German Environment Ministry and the Robert Koch Institute.
Medically reviewed by Daniel Bubnis, MS, NASM-CPT, NASE Level II-CSS
Hot yoga has become a popular exercise in recent years. It offers many of the same benefits as traditional yoga, such as stress reduction, improved strength, and flexibility.


text:
With the growing number of people owning smartphones – now up to 44% in the United States, according to Nielsen – it’s not surprising that many exhibitors at this year’s Consumer Electronics Show (CES) are showing off ways to upgrade mobile devices.
Yesterday, for instance, I covered two innovations that help keep smartphone batteries charged on the go.
Today, let’s look at two new innovations at CES that can safeguard the phone itself.
Stronger Touchscreen Displays
As CNN says, “When it comes to innovation in electronic gadgets, a new kind of glass is not especially sexy.”
True. But as more consumers get their hands on glass-covered touchscreen devices, it’s important to have a display that can hold up to heavy use.
And Corning’s (NYSE: GLW) Gorilla Glass is one of the most resilient displays on the market today. Which is why hundreds of devices – including Apple’s (Nasdaq: AAPL) iPhone and iPad – use it to protect their touchscreen interfaces.
At CES this week, Corning debuted an upgraded version of the material, Gorilla Glass 2.
It’s 20% thinner, which comes out to only about 0.2mm – but every millimeter counts. The thinner display makes touch inputs more responsive, since your finger comes into closer contact with the interface.
It doesn’t sacrifice strength for a thinner physique, either, since it can withstand as much pressure as the original glass.
The new glass also lets more light pass through, which should result in a brighter display.
The company expects to mass produce the new glass soon, and we should see products shipping with it built-in sometime this year.
Use Your Smartphone Underwater
There’s a reason Motorola (NYSE: MMI) made such a big deal about the splash resistance of its Droid Razr smartphone: Water can be a gadget-lover’s worst nightmare.
Well, thanks to Liquipel’s technology, you might not have to worry about water damage anymore.
The company has developed a patent-pending technique to coat your smartphone in a hydrophobic (i.e. – water repellent) substance.
Do NOT Deposit Another Dollar in Your Bank Account Until You Read THIS
A CIA insider has launched an urgent mission to expose the government’s secret money lockdown plan…
Once you see what could happen next time you go to an ATM, you’ll understand why he’s sending a FREE copy of his new book to any American who answers right here.
Better yet, Liquipel treats the device in a vacuum chamber that extends the effects of the coating all the way through the inside of the device, making sure the internal components are protected, too. So you could literally dunk your phone in a bucket of water if you wanted, and it would still work.
Check out how a Liquipel-treated iPhone 4 can keep running underwater like a champ.
If this technology sounds familiar to you, that’s probably because I wrote in November about a similar product called NeverWet, which also has patents pending.
I contacted the company behind NeverWet, Ross Technology, to get its opinion about the similarities between the products.
A representative told me that the technologies differ “in many ways. They utilize a vacuum chamber to incorporate their waterproofing technology… Our technology is applied by spraying, like a paint. Additionally, our technology provides superhydrophobic water repellency.”
As you’d expect, superhydrophobic coatings repel water to the extreme. In fact, NeverWet’s spray can even make other objects – including fabric and metals – resistant to oils, too. This would allow your phone to repel messier substances like chocolate.
So which one should you go with?
Well, if you’re just concerned about your iPhone getting dunked in the pool, Liquipel might be your best bet. Select phones can be treated right now if you have $59 to spare – and the courage and patience to send your phone to the company.
If you want to make your clothes and shoes waterproof, as well as your phone – and you have the tendency to drop your mobile devices in chocolate fountains – hold off a few months for NeverWet. It should be available to consumers by mid-year.


text:
Stay on Top of Enterprise Technology Trends
Get updates impacting your industry from our GigaOm Research Community
California regulators voted unanimously on Thursday that companies providing electric vehicle charging stations and services will not be regulated as public utilities in the state, which is expected to be one of the earliest and largest markets for plug-in vehicles and a model for other markets. This marks a victory for charging infrastructure ventures including Coulomb Technologies, ECOtality (s ETLY) and Better Place, which have been pushing for this decision for months.
The trio, which makes of the EV Service Provider Coalition, have argued that the strict regulations covering public utilities could stifle innovation, competition and investment if extended to charging service providers, effectively halting an emerging industry in its tracks. The CPUC notes in its decision that a broad array of entities may take on the role of charging service provider. Those providers could include owners of standalone charge points, residential and commercial landlords that provide charging as a service to tenants or tenants’ customers, condo associations or employers offering charging as a service to residents or employees.
Utilities including PG&E (s PCG) meanwhile, have weighed in throughout the CPUC rulemaking and argued that electric vehicle charging service providers should in fact be considered public utilities, but face flexible or light-handed regulations covering things like safety, interoperability, and reliability of equipment and services. According to the CPUC’s decision, PG&E said “no need exists for traditional cost-based regulation of pricing, as long as no market power is demonstrated.”
“The industry is poised to take off in California, but this will only happen if there is at least a measure of assurance that an EV service provider will not be treated like an electric utility,” the EV Service Provider Coalition wrote in a comment filed with the California Public Utilities Commission last month. The group has also pushed for the CPUC to avoid boxing EV charging providers into a definition as entities that resell electricity, rather than providing an electric vehicle service.
The CPUC seems to have taken that to heart. In a release about its decision this week, the CPUC summarizes its decision, “that the sale of electric vehicle charging services to the public does not make a corporation or person a public utility solely because of that sale, ownership, or operation.” Commissioner Nancy Ryan added a statement that the decision “provides needed regulatory clarity to encourage the state’s entrepreneurs and investors to develop charging solutions that will satisfy consumer needs and work harmoniously with the electric grid. ”
ECOtality President and CEO Jonathan Read welcomed the decision in a statement today, commenting that it will allow businesses to compete, which in turn will help lower prices and improve product quality. “While we believe electric vehicle infrastructure can be viable in diverse utility regulatory settings,” he said, “we value an open, innovative business environment, and are gratified to see California’s regulators are supportive of that position.”
Better Place’s VP of North America Jason Wolf told us in an interview earlier this year that one of the biggest reasons for a slower, more cautious electric vehicle infrastructure environment in California compared to some other markets has been a lack of clarity from the CPUC on this question of regulating charging service providers like utilities. Wolf said this uncertainty has made investors — the kind that put $350 million into Better Place in January for its efforts — less eager to move quickly to back a Bay Area network.
Getting today’s decision on the books will be a green light for these companies in some ways, but there’s still a long road for regulators to figure out how to handle this new industry. As ECOtality points out, the CPUC is specifically hanging onto the right to consider and possibly regulate other aspects of the electric vehicle and charging market, such as home installation, metering and rates.
Related content on GigaOM Pro (subscription required):


text:
Microsoft chief working officer Kevin Turner is the firm’s area basic, overseeing its worldwide gross sales, advertising and providers groups, and he usually says blunt issues about opponents that Microsoft’s CEO (beforehand Steve Ballmer and now Satya Nadella) would typically sofa in extra diplomatic phrases.
The chance that now we have going ahead is to proceed to leverage the unparalleled platform that now we have. If you consider Microsoft Azure and Home windows Server and the alternative now we have there the approach I like to consider this is you actually have about two-and-a-half corporations in all of know-how from a multi-national standpoint which have hyper-scale cloud. Google actually has a hyper-scale cloud. And I rely Amazon as a half. And the purpose I rely them as a half is they’re not utterly international at this level. They usually don’t have the performance and redundancy.
Amazon has the largest market share in public cloud computing, powering well-known providers reminiscent of Netflix, Flipboard, Airbnb and lots of others, and it has been steadily increasing past its legacy as an Infrastructure as a Service supplier to supply a number of higher-level cloud providers.
AWS has greater than a million enterprise and governmental prospects, AWS chief Andy Jassy said at a recent conference, displaying this chart.
An in depth public cloud report by Forrester analysis final 12 months mentioned Amazon “got here out the strongest of all distributors throughout three of our 4 developer segments.”
So what is Turner basing his feedback on? Throughout his speak at the Credit score Suisse convention, he went on to clarify his reasoning: “And when you consider these two opponents now we have 19 regional knowledge facilities throughout the world. That is six instances multiple of them and two instances greater than the different. And so the means for us to deliver market main cloud applied sciences to our prospects exists as a result of now we have hyper-scale cloud.”
Right here’s a chart from a presentation by Adrian Cockcroft, a know-how fellow at Battery Ventures, which helps to present what Turner is speaking about.
We contacted Amazon, and the firm declined to reply to Turner’s feedback.
Generally, nevertheless, Amazon focuses on what it calls “availability zones” — separate knowledge facilities in remoted areas, linked to one another by quick connections inside a particular area, to keep up excessive availability of providers. Amazon has 28 availability zones throughout its 11 areas, and it may very well be argued that these 28 availability zones are what must be in comparison with Microsoft Azure’s 19 areas.
As a part of his feedback, Turner additionally famous that Microsoft isn’t just approaching the market from its legacy Home windows enterprise. “We had 400 million folks utilizing Hotmail.com, which turned Outlook.com. We had 300 million folks utilizing Skype and should you have a look at our providers in the cloud it’s allowed us to take part in this commodity priced storage and compute setting and improve these prospects to our value-added providers.”
After all, Amazon Net Providers is an outgrowth of Amazon’s personal expertise operating Amazon.com globally.
Backside line: The cloud market is extremely aggressive, as demonstrated by Turner’s aggressive zeal. Some of Microsoft’s largest strategic strikes, such as open-sourcing .NET, are designed to enhance the aggressive place of Microsoft Azure. Nadella ran Azure previous to changing into Microsoft CEO.
“Now, finally, we predict there’s going to be three massive hyper-scale suppliers on the market in the world which might be going to have the ability to obtain any such scale footprint, principally us — Microsoft — Amazon and Google. Our plan is to distinguish from the different two by the stage of enterprise-grade help we offer you, in addition to the distinctive hybrid capabilities that allow you to ship built-in buyer options.”


text:
The all-new Superhawk 55 from Sunseeker By Paul Johnson on Mar 04, 2023 in Cruises & Boat Travel, Speciality Travel
Sunseeker has officially launched the all-new Superhawk 55. Two phenomenal launches in Europe and the USA captured the attention of yacht enthusiasts, thrill seekers and the world’s media.
This 55-foot performance yacht, with the spirit of Sunseeker’s original Superhawk, will steal the hearts of anyone who steps on board. Steeped in Sunseeker heritage but re-imagined for the owners of today, the 2023 Superhawk 55 is the ultimate day boat for day time cruising, long weekends and extended trips along the Mediterranean coastline or to untouched islands in the Bahamas.
There is no shortage of water toy storage on this yacht. The hydraulic bathing platform lowers until fully submerged, revealing steps leading directly into the water and the tender
Keep reading this article on A Luxury Travel Blog.


text:
GOOGLE Flights will now search alternative airports nearby to offer cheaper flights.
The search engine will also offer different dates which could save you money.
The new updates will allow users who have flexibility in their travel plans to find different routes and options for their next holiday.
Google Flights will push an alert if you can save money on either dates or airport.
We investigated for ourselves, and found a flight from London to Jacksonville from November 26 to November 27 costs £1,356.
An update advises us to change dates from November 23 to November 24 to travel for just £307.
Similarily, a pop up tells us to change airports from Jacksonville to Atlanta to save over £1,000.
It could also be useful for Brits who live between two airports – people living in Leicester could have the option of flights from either East Midlands Airport, around 20 miles away or Birmingham Airport, 35 miles away.
Google Flights will offer prices from all airports, showing which is cheapest.
The search engine will also allow you to look at prices across a whole month using a price grid.
By changing the dates of departure and return, it will show the cheapest in green – and the most expensive days to avoid in red.
The new updates could save you thousands of pounds on your next holiday, without having to do anything different.
Most read in travel
JAB AND GO
The countries you need a Covid booster jab to enter
JAB AND GO
Greece & Turkey snow travel warning as flights cancelled and roads blocked
Family holiday warning – kids who had Covid without PCR test face travel ban
Balearic and Canary Islands tighten Covid rules – with clubs at 25% capacity
Looking to save money on your Christmas holidays? Travelling just a few days after New Years Day could save you hundreds of pounds.
One study found London Heathrow to have the cheapest flights in the UK, along with Manchester and Birmingham.
We've rounded up the best apps which will help you find the cheapest flights.
Source: Read Full Article


text:
Global superstar ED SHEERAN has released his highly anticipated new album “÷” (pronounced divide) via Atlantic Records. The multi-GRAMMY winner’s third studio album is available now on all digital retailers and streaming partners (full track listing below). DOWNLOAD/STREAM HERE.
The initial response to “÷” has been overwhelming, with the album immediately going to #1 on iTunes in 96 countries around the world, including the US and UK. “÷” is highlighted by lead single “Shape Of You,” which debuted at #1 and has subsequently held the top spot for 5 weeks and counting on the Billboard Hot 100. With the album’s “Castle On The Hill” entering the Hot 100 at #6, the British singer-songwriter became the first artist ever in the chart’s 58 year history to have two singles simultaneously debut in the Top 10. “Shape Of You” and “Castle On The Hill” have since been certified 2x-Platinum and Gold respectively by the RIAA, becoming the first two songs released in 2017 to receive certifications this year. “Shape Of You” currently stands at #1 on both the Top 40 and Hot AC radio charts with over 200 million in total audience. Likewise, the hit single tops the iTunes “Overall Songs” chart, and both Spotify’s Global and U.S. Top 50 charts, where Sheeran is the most popular artist worldwide.
“Castle On The Hill”


text:
HarperCollins is launching an e-book subscription service called We Love Romance, providing unlimited access to thousands of Mills & Boon titles.
Available in the UK and Ireland and launching first on Apple before hitting Android and desktop, customers can have a free 14-day trial with the option of a £7.99 a month or £79.99 a year subscription.
We Love Romance offers access to a host of books from Mills & Boon, which publishes 60 new titles a month and already boasts a monthly UK readership of 1.3 million.
Charlie Redmayne, c.e.o of HarperCollins, said: “It is incredibly exciting to see this heritage brand at the forefront of innovation as it consistently seeks new ways to serve its existing fans and reach out to new audiences. Digital subscription models are a brilliant opportunity for us to help our authors reach even more readers and to extend backlist e-book sales; given the current increased demand for positive escapist entertainment, now is the perfect time to launch this new service.”
Lisa Milton, executive publisher of Mills & Boon, said: “We Love Romance will be full of escapist, uplifting romance e-books from our bestselling authors. We’ve hand picked a vast catalogue of titles across an array of romance genres, offering a story for every romance reader with a happy-ever-after ending guaranateed!”