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British chef Jamie Oliver, known for 'The Naked Chef' TV series, is facing a lawsuit from a nonprofit group — the Gluten Intolerance Group of North America (GIG) — for "federal certification mark infringement, counterfeiting, and unfair competition under federal statutes, with pendent claims for trademark infringement, and unfair competition." The nonprofit claims that Oliver's gluten-free symbol that is used on his website recipes is similar to the group's signature gluten-free certification label (the letters "GF" in a circle with the phrase "Certified Gluten Free").
Oliver's website features thousands of gluten-free recipes, which are marked with a "GF" in a circle to indicate they don't contain gluten ingredients. His recipes use a range of similar abbreviations, including a "V" in a small circle on vegetarian recipes and "DF" for dairy-free recipes. The GIG claims that Oliver's GF mark is "identical or substantially similar" to its own marks and his use of the mark "is intended to falsely certify that Oliver's recipes are gluten-free."
Check out the two symbols below — the GIG logo is on the left, while Oliver's is on the right:
Are you wondering whether Oliver's recipes really are gluten-free? Well, as Today notes, it's not really a question of whether Oliver's recipes are or aren't gluten-free, this lawsuit is all about the GIG protecting its trademark.
Products that are approved to use the GIG's certified gluten-free label must go through a process to prove they meet the group's standards, with activities like plant audits and quarterly testing. It turns out that recipes are not certified by the GIG, so Oliver doesn't have the option of using the group's mark.
Fast Casual points out that many restaurants currently use the letters "GF" to denote gluten-free items on menus, so the restaurant industry will be watching this lawsuit with great interest.


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Microsoft is buying the professional networking website LinkedIn for $US26 billion in cash, the biggest ever acquisition by the software giant.
Microsoft chief executive Satya Nadella said he had been tracking LinkedIn for some time and the deal was about improving connectivity and productivity.
"It's about riding the next wave of technology, it's about AI (artifical intelligence), it's about social, mobile and cloud and bringing those things together," he told the BBC.
He said the merger played to the software giant's strengths and core business.
"When you think Microsoft you think about knowledge, work and productivity and there's no better way to realise that mission than connecting the world's professionals making them more successful and productive."
Mr Nadella said LinkedIn's distinct culture and brand would be preserved.
The chairman of LinkedIn, Reid Hoffman, said the deal was a re-founding moment for the professional network that has more than 430 million users around the world.
"I see incredible opportunity for our members and customers and look forward to supporting this new and combined business."
Mr Nadella said Microsoft had a history of buying businesses and integrating them into the group, ranging from Power Point to the Minecraft game, and Skype.
However, Microsoft also bought the mobile phone maker Nokia in 2013, which it has since written off.
An analyst said the deal would offer Microsoft a ready made market for its products.
The acquisition makes sense in respect of Microsoft's link with enterprise in its cloud platform and portfolio of enterprise business services, it will help Microsoft build out its enterprise services capabilities," said Mark Skilton of the Warwick Business School.
He said LinkedIn has been struggling with slow user growth and falling net income.
LinkedIn's shareprice has fallen around 40 percent so far this year, and Microsoft's offer is nearly 50 percent above LinkedIn's closing price on Friday. It closed up 47 percent today while Microsoft was down 2.6 percent.

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Auto Industry Recession: Ashok Leyland’s Crisis Increased! Production will remain stagnant for 15 days this month: In the midst of the festive season, Ashok Leyland, an auto sector veteran, has taken a big decision. Actually, in October, the company will stop production work in different parts of the country for 15 days. A statement issued by Ashok Leyland of Hinduja Group said, “There will be no production work in the plant of different locations of the company for 2-15 days in the month of October.”
However, the company has not mentioned the plants where the production will be closed. This is the second consecutive month when Ashok Leyland has decided to keep his plants closed. Earlier in September, the company announced to shut down the plants for 5 to 18 days.
However, this decision has been taken by Ashok Leyland in the festive season. This season is considered to be the ‘golden period’ for the auto sector. The government is also believing that the festivity of the auto sector will be removed in the festive season.
The company has offered VRS
Earlier, Ashok Leyland had also announced plans to step down from the company for executive level employees. Under this, the company has issued voluntary retirement scheme (VRS) and employee separation scheme (ESS) by issuing notice to employees. The company introduced this scheme at a time when its employees were on strike to increase the bonus.
How about the sale in September?
Please tell that Ashok Leyland’s total sales of commercial vehicles fell 55 percent to 8,780 vehicles in September. The company sold 19,374 vehicles in the same month a year ago. According to the company, its total commercial vehicle sales in the domestic market fell by 56.57 per cent to 7,851 vehicles as against 18,078 units in September 2018. During this period, the company’s medium and heavy commercial vehicle sales fell 69 per cent to 4,035 vehicles. The figure was 13,056 units in the same month a year ago. At the same time, sales of light commercial vehicles in the domestic market fell 24 per cent to 3,816 units from 5,022 units in September 2018.


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It seems like only yesterday that Instagram introduced its full-blown ad business, but already the photo and video sharing app has announced another change to the service that will allow marketers to utilise 30-second clips as part of their ad campaigns.
Lifting the 15-second limit that consumers face when posting video content, the new video ads follow hot on the heels of the platform’s recent formatting update, and will be able to be posted in landscape mode. Commenting on the update, Instagram said that lifting the 15-second limit will “give ads a more cinematic feel.”
The move to introduce longer advertisements is thought have been made order to compete with other video-sharing networks such as YouTube. The overhaul will also allow brands to target specific groups of consumers with their clips, like they can on parent company, Facebook.


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The Huntington County Youth for Christ will host a benefit auction on Saturday, March 15.
Auction items include scholarships to area colleges, golf packages, seed corn and beans, tools, bikes, a hot air balloon ride, a barbecue grill, meat packages, sports memorabilia and other items.
The silent auction will begin at 8 a.m. and the live auction will begin at 9:30 a.m.
The auction will be held at the Huntington PAL, located at 2101 Riverside Drive, Huntington.
More information can be found at the "Huntington YFC Auction" Facebook page, or by contacting Roger Vezeau at 224-2988 or email@example.com .


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Welcome to Shutter Island.
The main drag of Roosevelt Island, a 14,000-resident bedroom community in the middle of the East River, is like death row, with nine of 35 storefronts already vacant and its two main commercial tenants teetering on the edge of extinction.
The solitary post office on the 147-acre enclave is slated for shutdown, according to the US Postal Service. And the sole supermarket is in jeopardy after billionaire John Catsimatidis threatened last week to close his chain of Gristedes stores over a wage dispute.
If the two tenants of Main Street go belly up, they would join the shuttered ranks of the flower shop, fish market, Montauk Credit Union, bakery, wine store, pizzeria and sports bar.
Last April, the isle even lost its sole beat cop when NYPD Officer Evilio Fernandez was reassigned to Jamaica, Queens.
“I have to buy my meat in Queens,” said Maria Rodriguez, who runs the island’s only clothing shop, a thrift store.
Because of the dearth of eateries, many residents order takeout from Jackson Heights.
“Everyone is dying on this island,” said Kaie Razaghi, owner of Trellis Diner. “I’m the living room and the dining room of the island.”
But there is hope.
On Aug. 1, the state authority that oversees the island, the Roosevelt Island Operating Corp., signed a 30-year lease with the Hudson and Related Cos. to take over the depressed retail corridor.
The developers said they would like to start bringing in new tenants by January. Profits would be shared with the state authority.
“This retail stretch has been allowed to devolve into a point of despair,” said David Kramer, a principal at Hudson. “There are too many vacancies. Our view is that it needn’t be.”
Currently, residents spend 85 cents of every dollar off the island, said Kramer, who oversaw the opening of the island’s first Duane Reade and Starbucks and six other retail stores.
But residents worry that the remaining stores will be pushed out and nothing will replace them.
Even Razaghi fears his lease won’t be renewed in April.
“I’m not going anywhere,” he said. “If I have to fight, I will.”
Across the street, the island’s only hardware store has set up a petition for a state bailout. The owners haven’t paid rent to the RIOC in seven months and said they are worried for their future under a new landlord.
“Trellis is a stalwart in the community,” said longtime resident Richard Lutz, who runs a community newspaper on the island. “At the same time, we’re excited about the possibility of better shopping in general on Main Street. At the hardware store, their stock is old and dusty, but the question is, if they go, who comes?”


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Neobank Xijna has secured its full banking licence and is rolling out transaction accounts to its early customers.
The Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) said today it has granted Xinja its licence to operate as an authorised deposit-taking institution (ADI), officially joining the ranks of Australia’s new banks.
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86 400 secured its unrestricted banking licence in July, after Volt Bank collected its banking licence in January, followed by Judo Bank in April. There’s also Up, which was first in the market because it operates under Bendigo and Adelaide Bank’s licence.
Xinja was previously granted a restricted banking licence in December 2018 and has worked with regulators to meet more stringent requirements to obtain its full licence.
“It’s enormously exciting that Australians have a new, independent bank,” said Chief Executive and Founder, Eric Wilson. “It’s time Australia’s very old banking model was disrupted.”
“We are 100 per cent digital, and we want people to have a real alternative to the incumbent banks. We want to give customers a real choice to be able to be with a bank that looks after them.”
Xinja Bank has launched transaction accounts today – which are accessed solely via the new Xinja app and come with a Xinja Debit Mastercard – and will soon launch a savings accounts. It plans to add lending products in the first quarter of 2020, “as well as some other fun, ‘unbanky’ surprises,” Wilson said.
- Read more: Australia’s Neobanks have Cleared Key Regulatory Hurdles, But Will Customers Embrace Them?
In February 2018 Xinja launched an app and prepaid travel card. Today Xinja has more than 12,000 prepaid card customers and a further 16,000 consumers have signed up to gain access to Xinja’s products, including its bank accounts, meaning the start-up already has a potential customer base of 28,000.
Existing prepaid card customers and those already on the waitlist will be the first to get access to Xinja’s new bank accounts from today.
Xinja has raised more than $5 million in two equity crowdfunding campaigns in January 2018 and January 2019, as well as a further $45 million from private and institutional investors around the globe.
The Xinja team has grown to around 65 permanent staff, guided by a board that includes advisor Jason Bates, co-founder of UK neobanks Monzo and Starling; Thomas Vikstrom, a former leader of Tesla’s engineering team, and Brett King, who is a former advisor to the US Obama White House on the future of banking.


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The cyber-attack that brought down sites like Twitter, Netflix, and CNN on October 21 is raising awareness of just how vulnerable today’s interconnected networks can be when subjected to the work of hackers. The problem was traced back to a malicious Mirai botnet that hit Dyn, a firm that controls much of the Internet’s domain name system (DNS) infrastructure.
According to Dyn’s Scott Hilton, the company came under attack by two large and complex Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks against its Managed DNS infrastructure. “These attacks were successfully mitigated by Dyn’s Engineering and Operations teams,” Hilton writes in Dyn Analysis Summary Of Friday October 21 Attack, “but not before significant impact was felt by our customers and their end users.”
With IoT expected to greatly impact the way all businesses, governments, and consumers interact with the physical world—and with DDoS and other attacks continuing to make headlines—the focus on IoT-related security is growing exponentially, and for good reason. In total, Business Insider forecasts that there will be 34 billion devices connected to the Internet by 2020, up from 10 billion in 2015.
IoT devices will account for 24 billion, while traditional computing devices (e.g., smartphones, tablets, smart watches, etc.) will comprise 10 billion. In total, nearly $6 trillion will be spent on IoT solutions over the next five years, Business Insider estimates.
The Avnet-designed Infineon TPM V1.2 Peripheral Module brings Trusted Platform Module (TPM) security capabilities for platform integrity, remote attestation, and cryptographic services often required by IIoT applications.
One distributor is stepping up to the plate and working to enhance its products’ security capabilities. In November, Avnet Inc. of Phoenix, Ariz., introduced an add-on module and reference design for its MicroZed Industrial IoT Kit. The Avnet-designed Infineon TPM V1.2 Peripheral Module brings Trusted Platform Module (TPM) security capabilities for platform integrity, remote attestation, and cryptographic services often required by IIoT applications.
In a press release, the global technology distributor stated that the Infineon TPM add-on module, along with the downloadable reference design, enables measured boot functionality for the Avnet MicroZed SOM. The system also supports additional use cases such as device identity, secure storage, secure communications, and secure firmware upgrade.
“In working with Xilinx and Infineon, Avnet has provided our design customers with an improved security capability for our solutions based on the Xilinx Zynq architecture,” says Ron Wright, technical marketing manager, Avnet Electronics Marketing. “With this low-cost Pmod, designers can easily explore a range of security options often required for factory automation, smart cities, smart grid, and healthcare applications.”
More to Come?
The nature of IoT solutions, how they are deployed, and the types of data they generate and consume are giving rise to new security and privacy implications that organizations must begin to address, according to Gartner. This is a rapidly escalating risk to the organization, bringing complexity unfamiliar to most IT and business leaders.
As IoT continues to mature and come to the forefront for both consumer and industrial applications, expect to see more companies taking the necessary steps to protect users from hackers and other threats. “The IoT has enormous potential to collect continuous data about our environment,” says Ted Friedman, vice president and analyst at Gartner. “The integrity of this data will be important in making personal and business decisions, from medical diagnoses to environmental protection, from commands to modify actions of machinery to identification and authorization of physical access.”


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- Starbucks added the Impossible Breakfast Sandwich, made with Impossible plant-based sausage, to its U.S menu on Tuesday to meet the growing customer interest in plant-based options.
- Impossible Foods CFO David Lee told CNBC that 9 out of 10 Impossible buyers are traditional meat eaters, bolstered by recent events like the meat shortages from the Covid-19 pandemic and a recent expansion into 1,000 grocery stores.
- Plant-based food and beverage sales were about $5 billion in 2019 and are expected to have double-digit growth through 2020, according to The Good Food Institute and the Plant-Based Foods Association.
Impossible Foods is known for its plant-based meat alternatives, but it's expanding its breadth of products, buoyed by a cultural movement, an unforeseen pandemic and — in true Silicon Valley fashion — science. On Tuesday it announced that its Impossible Breakfast Sandwich has been added to Starbucks' menus and most of its locations in the U.S.
With 22g of protein, the Impossible Breakfast Sandwich features savory Impossible sausage made from plants, which is combined with a cage-free fried egg and aged cheddar cheese and served on an artisanal ciabatta bread.
"Starbucks' commitment to add more plant-based ingredients to its menu is a new benchmark for large corporations," said Dr. Patrick O. Brown, founder and CEO of Impossible Foods.
Michael Kobori, chief sustainability officer at Starbucks, said this is part of the company's sustainability initiatives and an effort to meet increasing customer demand for plant-based options.
Impossible Foods, which ranks No. 49 on CNBC's 2020 Disruptor 50 list, makes meat, dairy and fish products from its patented plant-based ingredients that have been backed by celebrities like Katy Perry and Serena Williams, but Impossible Foods CFO David Lee told CNBC it's trying to position itself away from the plant-based movement so often associated with a niche food industry.
"We don't think of it as an alternative (meat) industry. We think we're making better meat consumed by the meat eater — competing on the level playing field with a better product," Lee said when asked about the association to a young plant-based market. "That's how we define our focus."
Lee said 9 out of 10 Impossible buyers are traditional meat eaters, bolstered by recent events like the meat shortages from the Covid-19 pandemic and a recent expansion into 1,000 grocery stores. It also boasted a fresh round of $500 million, making its valuation at approximately $1.3 billion.
The company's Impossible Whoppers are in 7,500 Burger Kings nationwide, but it declined to provide sales numbers. Burger King parent company Restaurant Brands provided an update on sales in May earnings. In the U.S., comparable sales growth at Burger King for the first quarter was negative 6.5%. During the precrisis period, in January, February and the first two weeks of March, it posted positive comparable sales growth in the U.S. in the low single digits, and it highlighted the sales being driven by "continued strong contribution from the Impossible Whopper and improved performance in the value layer of our menu."
Earlier in 2020, Burger King added the Impossible Whopper to its value menu to reach more diners earlier.
While the restaurant business has been hurt, it hasn't been as bad as the restaurant industry overall, Impossible Foods said. It also began a direct-to-consumer channel for direct shipment amid the pandemic.
As it increases its reach to retailers and consumers, it's aiming for a similar placement as it has with its restaurant partners.
"With Burger King we began to discuss the importance of making sure the Impossible brand was right next to their core brand — the Whopper," Lee said. "To be able to give meat eaters another great option for breakfast is an important milestone," he said about a recent new Impossible sausage option for a croissant sandwich on Burger King's menu.
Lee said the company has seen an increased grocery store footprint of 18 times since March and expects to see a rise to 50 times more by the end of 2020. And it's depending on that scale — particularly of converted meat eaters — before it can lower prices to be more comparable to traditional meat. "All we need is more and more meat eaters to love our product," Lee said.
A report by The Good Food Institute and the Plant Based Foods Association said that plant-based food and beverage sales were about $5 billion in 2019, which represented an 11% increase from 2018, with meat alternatives as the largest plant-based food growth. Analysts say they expect to see continued double-digit growth through 2020.
To this point, Impossible has been focusing on the food-service sector, and Beyond Meat has been focusing on consumers and the grocery sector, analysts told CNBC. But a new direct-to-service channel and new retail partnerships such as with Kroger are likely to boost its exposure to consumers — especially those in rural areas — according to food research analyst Cara Rasch. "A lot of people have tried to do online shopping during the pandemic, and some people are finding they like it and might not have tried it before," she said.
"The pandemic made it clear we needed to launch our direct-to-consumer offering much sooner than we thought," said Khosla Ventures founding partner and early Impossible Foods investor Samir Kaul. "It's only been a couple weeks, but I think that will be very meaningful."
Lee and Kaul said the company plans to compete with its science-based ingredients and R&D investment. Much of the recent funding will go toward R&D and supply chain, which larger food conglomerates have a leg up on. When asked about whether it can muscle larger companies with supply chain power, such as Nestle, which is bringing its Sweet Earth alternative-protein brand to the U.S., or Kellogg, which launched Incogmeato, Lee said it's betting on those meat-conversion stats. "We believe that if we bet on the core consumer — the meat eater — then our ability to grow with the supply chain will grow with that demand."
Kaul said such options by larger manufacturers are still validation. "They can't say, 'Oh, this plant-based stuff is niche' and then announce their own products," he said. "We're Silicon Valley tech investors taking on large industries. This is kind of where our bread and butter is," Kaul said. "I can guarantee you the top Ph.D. scientists are going to want to work at Impossible and not Nestle or Kraft."
Impossible wouldn't comment on whether an IPO is in store like it's competing brand Beyond Meat, which went public last year. Rising traditional beef prices have also positioned companies to capitalize.
But as the market matures, there's going to be consolidation, according to analysts.
More from Disruptor 50:
Meet the 2020 CNBC Disruptor 50 companies
Ginkgo Bioworks CEO on scaling up Covid-19 testing: 'If we try, we can win'
How GoodRx built a $2.8 billion business by helping consumers find drug discounts
"A lot of the larger food companies are not only trying to introduce their own brands but they're trying to acquire these smaller companies," Rasch said. "Some larger food companies might be interested in trying to purchase Impossible Foods."
Lee declined to comment on future funding expectations or potential acquisitions, only saying, "We are open to any partner that has our aligned mission, and are open to anyone who can help us achieve our mission and business needs as fast as possible."
While alternative meat is still considered a young market sector, speediness is a necessary ingredient, according to analysts.
There's pressure to get wider distribution and grow "as fast as a possible as quickly as possible," especially after Beyond Meat went public last year and has already moved into global opportunities, according Rob Dickerson, managing director of equity research for food producers at Jefferies. It's still too early to say whether the broader meat market will embrace the brands like Impossible, beyond trying it once or twice. "The key is to have consumers try it, like it and then buy more," he said.
TUNE IN: Find out more about Impossible Foods' partnership with Starbucks from Impossible Foods CEO Pat Brown on CNBC's "Mad Money," with host Jim Cramer, Tuesday, June 23 at 6pm ET.


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There's a battle brewing in the car industry these days, and it seems consumers could ultimately win the war.
Automakers are realizing the benefits of moving home audio and video systems into vehicles--systems that include CD and flip-screen DVD players, video games, surround-sound speakers and more. Carmakers across the quality spectrum are now offering sound systems developed in conjunction with electronics companies including Alpine, Eclipse, Bang & Olufsen, Bose and Pioneer--a maneuver clearly aimed at taking market share from the aftermarket companies.
And according to sales data conducted by the Consumer Electronics Association, this joint-product development strategy appears to be having an effect. The association says that aftermarket shipments of CD head units are down this year by 10 percent, with a total volume of 8.8 million units.
Steve Koenig, senior manager of industry analysis for the association, believes that the aftermarket for car audio is under considerable pressure from the original equipment, or carmaker, side of the business.
"Simply put, the industry is facing a `design out' scenario--where the dash design of most new vehicles does not support aftermarket replacement of the car stereo without extremely invasive installation procedures," Koenig said. "The addressable market for aftermarket car stereos gets smaller every year."
Mark Extrom, owner of Marksound Mobile Audio & Video in Schaumburg, said the trend to challenge aftermarket installation began a couple of years ago and has really asserted itself in the past 12 months.
"We've noticed that the audio control system installed in the dash, or `head units,' have become particularly hard to work with, and people are always being frightened by dealers who tell them not to make changes or it will void their warranty," Extrom said. "The funny thing is, though, we still have contracts with dealers to do aftermarket work for them."
Customizing a car used to be somewhat crude. Back in 1987, Extrom said a typical job involved adding a subwoofer enclosed in a plywood box built with nails. Today, popular options include remote starting devices, video and navigation systems, surround-sound speakers, Bluetooth hands-free kits, and back-up sensors.
But while aftermarket companies assist carmakers in designing systems specifically tailored for a particular vehicle, Keith Lehmann, senior vice president of the consumer electronics division for Kenwood, warned that these new OEM systems aren't exactly cutting-edge.
"The truth is that some of the speakers you get inside a car only cost a couple of dollars each, but because of digital sound processing, you can compensate for a lot of anomalies and make the sound in a car better than it is," Lehmann said. "The electronic companies working with auto manufacturers are only making money because of volume. The products offered meet the needs of customers, but aren't developed to exceed them."
Lehmann believes the catalyst of all these upgrades began about 25 years ago with the introduction of the compact disc.
"Once the source material became better, the electronics had to begin to catch up," Lehmann said. "You could argue that the CD has been the biggest technological breakthrough in terms of both home and car systems."
A recent change is the advent of navigational information systems as another desirable electronics component, in addition to audio and video entertainment in cars.
"People are commuting longer to work these days, and their lives are more hectic," Lehmann said. "This has raised the expectations for equipment in cars."
Car Audio and Electronics Magazine editor Ben Oh believes digital amplifiers and digital signal processing represent the greatest technological breakthroughs, which together have improved power sources as well as enhanced sound reproduction. And the technology is now much more cost effective.
"The digital technology is a lot more efficient in terms of amps not running as hot and getting more sound from less power," Oh said. "Overall, I see the car audio and video market as somewhat of a cultural question. People seem to talk to each other less these days and just want to tune in to their music or movie and tune out other things."
To some, it appears that the Federal Trade Commission Improvement Act of 1975--the so-called Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act--is being challenged more and more by OEM manufacturers. Among its various provisions, the act protects consumers against auto dealers who attempt to deny warranty coverage solely because the consumer has installed aftermarket parts.
But car manufacturers have realized it pays to give consumers what they want. Fred Steinhaus, who works as a manager for Woodfield Lexus' Internet sales, said over 50 percent of the car buyers he represents, which include Toyota and Mercedes sales, look for premium sound systems in their cars. As a result, the carmakers provide them.


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admin 1 month ago 2 min read
Some residents of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) have resorted to taking tap water following an increase in the cost of sachet water, a survey has revealed.
The unit price of sachet, popularly known as “pure water” was recently hiked by 100 per cent from N10 to N20
The residents in separate interviews said they used to buy the sachet water with the erroneous belief that it was cleaner and healthier than taking tap water.
They however said that with the recent price hike in the packaged essential commodity, they realised the possibility of some of the sachet water producers may just be packaging tap water and selling to unsuspecting consumers.
Mrs. Adams Yinka, said that life had not been easy for the family since the increase in the price of pure water’ adding, “we no longer buy sachet water since there are other ways to get clean and healthy water.”
“Some of these sachet water are not even clean, anyone can buy a sealing machine and just pour anything in it and sell.”
“Although bottled water is more expensive with the realisation that tap water can possibly be sold as pure water, some of us have to switch to the bottled water,” Yinka explained.
Another respondent, Mr Hamza Jimoh, a resident of Kubwa, said “since water is a major necessity, buying sachet water is unavoidable despite the price increase.
“I still buy sachet water, considering the fact that at N20, it is still very affordable and though bottled water is healthier, t is too expensive,” he said.
He said boiling of water would have been a better option but the price of gas had also increased, thereby making it as a waste of resources.
“Boiling water, especially from the tap is also a means of getting clean and safe water, but it is even more expensive than getting bottled water, if one considers the cost of gas,” he said.
Miss Yinika Olowokere, a resident of Dutse said she was no longer buying pure water but had upgraded to using bottled water.
“I no longer buy pure water, since the increase in price I have switched to taking bottle water.
“Boiling water is not an option either considering the current price of cooking gas,” she observed.
Mrs Gbemisola Richard, a resident of Apo area said she no longer bothered to buy sachet water since the increase in price.
“I just buy one bottled water and keep the bottle as container for tap water, which I drink directly from.
“It is easy for me to carry my water everywhere I go,” she said.
Richard said that she used to buy sachet water because it was very accessible, adding that the nylon itself could be harmful.
“We don’t know how they handle and treat the such nylon before selling it to us to consume the content as such there is need for the authorities concerned to look into this too,” she urged. (NAN)


text: Circle CEO Speculates That Crypto Will Be Used By Hundreds Of Millions ByAli RazaPRO INVESTOR Updated: 09 December 2020 Jeremy Allaire stands as the CEO of Circle, and gave some comments about when and how cryptocurrencies will start to go mainstream. He gave these comments at the Singapore Fintech Festival, claiming that hundreds of millions, if not billions, of users, will see themselves use cryptocurrency in the third generation of blockchain technology. A Massive Jump Expected Allaire stated this while featuring in a panel alongside Stuart Levey, the Diem Association CEO, which is Facebook’s Libra association, just rebranded. Other big names in the panel were Makoto Takemiya, the CEO of Soramitsu, and Sorojit Chatterjee, the CPO of Coinbase. This panel made a discussion about whether or not cryptocurrencies would see the next generation in world-class payment systems. According to Allaire, digital currencies as a whole are still very early in their stages of development. However, Allaire claimed the entire space stands at the brink of a technological leap, one comparable to that of the jump from dial-up internet to broadband internet, which changed the world irreversibly. Major prioritization In Consumer Convenience The CEO of Soramitsu argued against this, partly anyway. According to Takemiya, the main barrier for widespread adoption of crypto comes from the user experience currently available. He explained that it just isn’t convenient enough for the average consumer, even if the technology itself already stands ready for day-to-day usage. The counter-argument from Allair was that a good deal of the current innovation within the sector primarily focuses on consumer experience. As such, the Circle CEO predicted that ordinary people would be hooked to the advantages of crypto as the user experiences improve. Chatterjee from Coinbase chimed in on this, stating that a so-called “TikTok moment” is needed for mainstream adoption. Meaning, the user experience needs to be so easy that anyone would like to try it. Diem Playing Nice With Governments Another hot topic in the panel was the discussions of mainstream regulation, and how that would impact widespread crypto adoption in the future. Diem’s Levey chimed in on this, citing his experience working directly with the regulators. He explained that governments hold significant concerns over crypto-fueled illegal activity, thus feel the need to regulate it through this. This isn’t mentioning the potential of bypassing sanctions, as seen by attempts from Venezuela in doing so with its Petro coin. Furthermore, Levey stated that central bank digital currencies, or CBDCs, pose no threat to crypto projects as a whole. Instead, he advocated for private organizations to harmonize with government initiatives. From there, the man very aptly claimed that Libra, or Diem as it’s now called, will gladly incorporate any new CBDC once it’s launched.


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NEW YORK — Comme des GarCons in the late Nineties pioneered the trend of fashion companies moving their offices and showrooms to the far West Side of Manhattan. Hugo Boss and Club Monaco soon followed. Now, Marithé & François Girbaud, Tommy Hilfiger and even staid Tiffany & Co. are making the leap.
Moving their operations closer to New Jersey and farther from Seventh Avenue and other parts of the city seems an unlikely step for a fashion firm, but increasingly, designers are pushing past the traditional boundaries of the Manhattan business district to establish themselves along the Hudson River. Even mainstream companies are seeking the space, light and edge offered by properties like the Starrett-Lehigh building, making the former West Side no man’s land one of the hottest fashion neighborhoods.
“People have obviously chosen Starrett-Lehigh more for its aesthetics than for its location,” said Jarid Tollin, executive vice president at Newmark Retail. “It’s not convenient. But it’s extremely cool. It’s a hip building to be in.”
There’s no lack of space within it. The structure at 501 West 26th Street is 2.3 million square feet, covers an entire city block and has its own zip code. Along with 475 Tenth Avenue and 111 Eighth Avenue, it forms a trifecta of funky former industrial buildings commanding the attention of fashion companies.
Besides Comme des Garçons, Hugo Boss and Club Monaco, Starrett-Lehigh is home to Tommy Hilfiger, Tracy Feith and Carolina Herrera, in addition to dozens of fashion-related firms such as photographers Richard Phibbs and Monica Stevensen and visual merchandising companies Look Inc. and Joint LLC. Girbaud and Tiffany have settled in 475 Tenth Avenue, while Armani A|X and Nike have leased space at 111 Eighth Avenue.
Although 111 Eighth doesn’t seem quite so far off the beaten path, it is an atypical office and showroom building for Manhattan and even bigger than Starrett-Lehigh, at 2.8 million square feet. Both buildings have operational truck elevators, remnants from their industrial days, going up to the commercial floors. Some tenants use the truck elevators for their intended purpose, loading goods or supplies, and others revamp the truck pits entirely.“One of the reasons Armani fell in love with 111 Eighth was that there’s this big truck pit in the middle of their space,” said Danielle Zimbaro, a director at Cushman & Wakefield Inc. and Armani’s broker. “They’re renovating the pit into a mock store, so all of the new lines and merchandising can be set up right outside their offices. It has amazing value.”
The unconventional environment “helps employees come up with bright new ideas,” she said. “The space is fresh and cutting-edge, which reflects in their fashion.”
“It’s a throwback to another era,” said Paul Pariser, a principal in Taconic Investment Partners, which owns 111 Eighth. “You can do incredible things in here.”
The huge, column-free floorplates in these former warehouses also allow big companies to group all of their design, merchandising, production and corporate teams together with offices and showrooms.
“Starrett-Lehigh was one of the few buildings in the city that has a large enough footprint to house all of our people together,” said Caren Bell, spokeswoman for Tommy Hilfiger, which is to move into the building this spring. “Right now everything is disconnected, and the building will really provide a synergy for us.”
The company, which is taking two floors, will also have a fitness center, two auditoriums and a cafeteria for its employees. The building offers all of its tenants the use of a Pilates studio, juice bar and cafeteria, which it plans to revamp this year. Mark Karasick, a partner in the investment group that owns Starrett-Lehigh, said the owners and tenants have invested almost $200 million in improvements in the building since the late Nineties.
Synergy and amenities supplemented with wraparound floor-to-ceiling windows, views of the Hudson and neighbors like Hugo Boss — which has several flat-screen TVs, a grand piano and seasonally changing decor in its lobby — have also drawn smaller upscale lifestyle companies to the far West Side. W Hotels has taken up residence in Starrett-Lehigh, with its trademark green grass displays in the lobby, as have Veuve Clicquot, the School of the Visual Arts and French publisher Assouline.
“The cool factor of the neighborhood certainly has an appeal for a lot of people,” said Laura Pomerantz, principal at PBS Realty Advisors. “A lot of these companies, like the galleries that are over there, are destination companies, so their customers and clients will visit them wherever they are.”The buildings are still a steal. The average asking rate per square foot in west Chelsea is in the low $20s, half that of Midtown, though some leases are being signed as high as $48 a square foot in Starrett-Lehigh, a sure sign that these warehouses have made the leap from dilapidated to chic.
Fashion companies hoping to join the fun on the far West Side, though, better move fast.
“Everybody wants to be a part of it before it becomes passé,” said Zimbaro. “Or too expensive.”
People: Paint-spattered twentysomethings with paper coffee cups.
Art: The James Cohan, White Box, Capsule and Walter Randel galleries, the Chelsea Art Museum.
Food and Drink: The Red Cat, The Half King, O Mai, Botito.
Clothes: The Meatpacking District.
Transportation: A/C/E train on Eighth Avenue (15-minute walk to 11th Avenue).
Future Plans: The 2012 Olympics, new stadium, extension of No. 7 train.
The annual Veuve Clicquot Polo Classic in Pacific Palisades this weekend drew Kate Hudson, Tracee Ellis Ross, Laura Dern and more. See pictures of the star-studded event on WWD.com. (📷: @chelsealaurenla) #wwdeye
In his new book “Hollywood Royale,” Andy Warhol’s Protégé Matthew Rolston celebrates the Eighties revival of Hollywood glamour. Featuring more than 100 portraits taken by Rolston from 1977 to 1993, the book contains photos of icons like Michael Jackson, Cyndi Lauper, and @drewbarrymore, pictured here in 1991. “Hollywood Royale,” out today, will be accompanied by an exhibition opening at Los Angeles’ Fahey/Klein Gallery on March 1. #wwdeye
"Nowadays when life is not so happy with everything going on in the world, I think people come to me for a little bit of whimsy and color and fun." - Designer Rebecca De Ravenel on her cult-favorite jewelry line. (📸 : @vsteves) #wwd40
“Everyone is talking about how the retail industry is struggling, but I think it’s an incredible time because brands who are doing something different and innovative are setting themselves up for the future,” said @adamgoldston, who founded the luxury athletic brand @apl with his brother @ryangoldsten. The Goldston’s are part of WWD’s 40 under 40: a group of industry notables. See the rest of the list on WWD.com. (📷: @vsteves) #wwd40
@eyeswoon blogger Athena Calderone debuted her first-ever cookbook, “Cook Beautiful,” which is heavily centered on the presentation and visual expression of food. Pictured here are her miso glazed carrots from the book. Get the recipe on WWD.com. (📷: @johnny_miller_) #wwdeye
“It’s passion that helps get anybody to a certain point and it’s what’s propelled me,” said Kith founder @ronniefieg, one of WWD’s 40 under 40: a group of industry notables who are changing the face of retail, fashion and beauty. Fieg, who opened a Manhattan flagship on October 7, began his career at age 13 as a stock boy and salesman for footwear chain David Z. “I think staying true to [my] beliefs, hard work and passion have gotten me to where [Kith] is today.” See the rest of the 40 at WWD.com. (📷: @vsteves) #wwd40
25-year-old @samweaving is about to break out this fall, starring in Netflix’s horror film “The Babysitter,” fittingly out today on Friday the 13th. That’s not the only place you’ll be seeing her, though — Weaving’s got a role Showtime’s “SMILF” and another alongside Frances McDormand and Woody Harrelson in “Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri.” Though she’s got a full plate at the moment, there’s one role she’s got her eye on: Marilyn Monroe. “I’m a little too young at the moment, but it’s on my bucket list,” the actress told WWD (📷: @dandoperalski) #wwdeye
BFF's Poppy Jamie and Suki Waterhouse celebrated the launch of their bag line Pop x Suki at Nordstrom last night. "The line is really about our friendship, and how we are so different but complement each other," said Waterhouse. 👯 (📷: Katie Jones) #wwdeye
After designing the new @louisvuitton and @bulgariofficial flagships and a @chanelofficial boutique opening in Japan, @petermarinoarchitect has another project on his plate: The Lobster Club. Located in the Seagram Building, it’s the famed architect’s first restaurant project in New York, serving up modern Japanese brasserie-style cuisine. Bronze hues, bespoke material detailing, blush and chartreuse tones and a heavy emphasis on Picasso can be seen throughout. Mark your calendars for Nov. 1 for the much-anticipated opening. (📷: @clint_spaulding) #wwdeye


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Experts gathered here to define the identity and expectations of the budding e-generation that is poised to embrace booming Internet commerce. After much soul searching, they discovered the major players are from ... the old Baby Boomer generation?
More than the celebrated GenX cohort that defines itself in part through new media and technology, it's the old Boomers, now aged 40 to 55 years old, who will dominate e-commerce. Because of their large numbers and fat wallets, they will play a major role in the Internet economy. This was the opinion voiced by some speakers at a conference here entitled "E-Commerce for the E-Generation: Strategies for Taking E-Commerce to the Next Level."
"The baby boomers are going online and they are taking their assets with them," Dawn Lepore, chief information officer at Charles Schwab, said. "GenX will be important, but the Baby Boomers have assets to invest."
E-commerce will radically alter the level of service offered to all users of the Internet, Lepore said. "What does the e-generation want?" she asked. "They have very high expectations of service, performance and value."
But because the Internet economy is still developing, the identity of the e-generation is not yet completely formed, said Regis McKenna, chairman of technology consulting firm The McKenna Group.
"We are all trying to discover who and what this new generation is all about," McKenna said. Speed and the variety of choices offered by Internet commerce are changing the expectations of the new users, he added.
The e-generation wants choice more than brands, bargaining more than set prices, newness rather than habit, self service rather than dependence, and mobility of service rather than brick-and-mortar sales institutions, he said.
No discussion of generations would be complete without mention of a "generation gap," supplied by Bill Coleman, founder, chairman and chief executive officer of middleware software vendor BEA Systems, a sponsor of the conference.
"The e-generation gap is the difference between e-generation customer expectations and what e-business is able to deliver," Coleman said. More than 60 per cent of online shopping carts are abandoned by users before completion, a sign that online services are not serving customers well, he added.
"If they don't get what they want, one click and they (the e-generation) are gone forever," Coleman said.


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SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Solazyme, Inc. (NASDAQ: SZYM), a renewable oil and bioproducts company, announced today the election of James R. Craigie to the company's Board of Directors. Since 2007, Mr. Craigie has held the position of Chairman and CEO of Church & Dwight Co., Inc., and has been CEO since 2004. Church & Dwight Co. is a leading developer, manufacturer and marketer of consumer and specialty products, including well-known brands such as Arm & Hammer, OxiClean and Orajel.
Mr. Craigie joins other board members, Ian Clark, CEO of Genentech; Ann Mather former CFO of Pixar and current board member of Google, MGM Holdings Inc., and Netflix; Peter Kovacs, former President and CEO of NutraSweet Kelco; Michael Arbige, EVP Technology of DuPont Genencor Science; and Chairman Jerry Fiddler, former CEO and founder of Wind River Systems; and Jonathan Wolfson, Solazyme CEO.
In addition, Solazyme announced today that Harrison Dillon, President of Solazyme, and William Lese, Managing Director of Braemar Energy Ventures, have stepped down from the Board of Directors.
“Solazyme is rapidly advancing into our next phase of commercialization. I am excited that we are now adding Jim, with his wealth of experience and expertise, to the Board. We are extremely grateful to our President and co-founder, Harrison Dillon, for his creativity, tireless work and dedication, which have been key factors in the growth of Solazyme from an idea to where we are today. We look forward to his continued work with us as a strategic advisor. We are also grateful to Bill Lese who has been with us for more than five years as a major venture investor and Board member. He has provided valuable wisdom, guidance and support over the years,” said Jerry Fiddler, Chairman, Solazyme.
“We welcome a new era in this next phase for our company with the election of Jim Craigie who adds additional strategic expertise to our Board,” said Jonathan Wolfson, CEO, Solazyme. “In particular, Jim’s deep consumer products and brand building experience adds an important perspective to our Board, as Solazyme’s tailored oils are commercialized broadly into numerous consumer markets.”
Mr. Craigie brings decades of consumer product experience, particularly in the food, household and personal care markets. Most recently, he has helped Church & Dwight achieve record sales and earnings growth. Prior to his work at Church & Dwight, Mr. Craigie served as the CEO at Spalding Sports Worldwide, and previously, Mr. Craigie spent 15 years with Kraft Foods/General Foods in various positions including as President of Kraft’s Beverage and Desserts Division.
Mr. Craigie currently serves on the boards of Church and Dwight; Meredith Corporation, a media and marketing company; and the Gettysburg Foundation, a non-profit foundation involved with restoring the Gettysburg battlefields.
About Solazyme, Inc.
Solazyme, Inc. (SZYM) is a renewable oil and bioproducts company that transforms a range of low-cost plant-based sugars into high-value oils and food ingredients. Headquartered in South San Francisco, Solazyme's renewable products can replace or enhance oils derived from the world's three existing sources — petroleum, plants and animal fats. Initially, Solazyme is focused on commercializing its products into three target markets: (1) chemicals and fuels, (2) nutrition and (3) skin and personal care.
Solazyme®, the Solazyme logo and other trademarks or service names are trademarks of Solazyme, Inc.


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Posted November 22, 2011, 2:00 PM by Shawn Knight | Filed in Gaming, Microsoft
Larry Hyrb, otherwise known as Xbox Live’s Major Nelson, has confirmed that the Xbox 360 Dashboard update will arrive in time for the holidays. Some users have already been using the new Dashboard through the Xbox Live Preview Program but…
A video has been posted online which shows off the upcoming Xbox 360 dashboard update. The footage is courtesy of a recently leaked software development kit for the 360 that includes the new dashboard, says TG Daily.
Posted September 29, 2011, 2:00 PM by Shawn Knight | Filed in Gaming
An internal email sent to PayPal employees reveals that Microsoft is planning to launch the new Xbox dashboard on November 15. The date marks the 10-year anniversary of the original Xbox launch in 2001.


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Santa Cruz company hopes to replace Styrofoam with climate friendly option
A Santa Cruz County company has come up with a plan to fight pollution and climate change.
A lot of what we buy is packed in Styrofoam. It's hard to recycle and it's not biodegradable but a Santa Cruz County firm is looking to replace Styrofoam with a biodegradable packing made from shrimp.
"We're looking at replacing plastic packaging, specifically expanded polystyrene Styrofoam with our nobble technology using Chiton, which is the second most abundant biopolymer on the planet. And essentially we want to get rid of the enormous amount of plastic trash that's going into our ocean every year,” Cruz Farms CEO and co-founder John Felts said.
Chitin is the main ingredient in shrimp shells, and Cruz Foam has been using it to make biodegradable plastics.
Felts says he got the idea while surfing.
"We identified the kind of ridiculous situation where you have surfers in the ocean a lot of times really eco-conscious environmental people riding around on trash. And when you think about it, that trash is plastic foam,” Felts said.
Cruz Foam hopes to make an immediate impact in the fight against climate change with their new foam.
“Just our first customers alone have on the order of nearly fifty thousand two hundred thousand metric tons of EPS that they use every year. And if we ever replace that, that would be an enormous impact,” Felts said.


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The terraces of the Carlos Lopes Pavilion opened the doors on June 30 and July 1st to Adegga Wine & Food Festival 2018, a summer celebration with the best producers, wines and gastronomy of Portugal.
The event had two LCD 43" which were strategically placed on a terrace so that the guests could watch the matches of the World Cup. The organization also had five Surface Pro 4 for the guests reception,
On April 11, 12 and 13, Futurdata participated in what was the first edition of Iberia Retail Show.
The IABSE 2019 Conference 'Towards a Resilient Built Environment - Risk and Asset Management' was held on 27, 28 and 29 March 2019 in Guimarães.
On March 20, 2019, Tivoli Theater BBVA opened doors to the Happy Conference, with a program that aims to strengthen relationships in organizations, foster the commitment, corporate ambition and talent of each one.
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Of all the upcoming iPhone and iPod touch games, one of the most eagerly anticipated has been Metal Gear Solid Touch. Now video of the actual gameplay has prompted some to wonder whether the UI is entirely satisfactory, given that much of the time the player’s thumbs are covering up the action.
Announced last December, even the news that it was a simple shooter rather than the stealth title many were hoping for didn’t dissuade too many from MGS:Touch. However earlier pre-release footage neglected to show the gamer’s actual thumb movements in controlling the movement and sniper action, movements which we can now see are pretty intrusive into the gameplay.
Perhaps this is the stealth tactics part that some gamers wanted: predicting when an opponent will leap up behind your right thumb and shoot you before you’ve even realized he’s there. MGS:Touch is available now, priced at $10 from the App Store.


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Timberfest celebrates athletes who 'tri hard and play hard'
|Brothers Andre and Uziah Bright pass the soccer ball to one another, with a little help. Lauren Tiner. (click for larger version)|
August 27, 2009A weekend drenched with sweat and filled with hot, humid air kicked off this year's Timberfest, the annual Timberman Triathlon Festival held at Gunstock in celebration of the international triathlon in Ellacoya, its athletes, and their dedication to running, biking, and swimming through lakes such as Winnipesaukee in preparation for the Ironman.
The ninth annual Timberman, which consisted of 14,000 athletes and is one of the five biggest triathlons in the world, gave Gilford residents and guests a reason to celebrate with carbo-loading dinners, a Timber party, and the sports and fitness expo that displayed more than 10 sports-based companies last weekend as part of Timberfest.
In collaboration with the Make a Wish Foundation, Timberfest welcomed companies that sell running shoes, fitness, and training techniques that novice triathlon runners and pros alike could benefit from in preparation for race day.
The expo displayed typical and advanced sports equipment from sandals, to high tech devices, and some of the first weight training gear ever seen installed in unsuspected items such as shorts, thanks to European sports companies.
Jennifer Dumas, a New England Keen footwear rep, came to promote her Portland, Ore., based company at the expo.
"We are not here to sell products; we are just here to promote Keen. We have a local store and I am looking to expand our events. We focus on outdoor activities and do running and biking shoes, but we are known for our sandals. We are here to support the athletes," said Dumas.
Keen came out with a line of new sports bags and socks as well which they hope to make as popular as their sandals, said Dumas. Keen also sells outdoor game sets including "disc golf," which was popular among the kids at the festival.
Tri-hard, a national endurance sports coaching company, has graced Timberfest for six years and helped 12 of its own clients prepare for this year's triathlon. Co-directors Jason Gootman and Will Karousis have both coached triathlon contestants in Massachusetts, the U.S., and even nationally.
"We have 12 people racing tomorrow. We usually train the athletes from three to 12 months. We help them with all aspects of training. We have both coached for over 10 years," said Gootman, who explained that it is essential for athletes to train specifically for tri-events if they wish to be competitive.
Dave Nerro and Brian Hughes, Massachusetts residents and owners of the multi-sports store Fast Splits, welcomed triathlon athletes who crowded their tent during the expo.
"Our multi-sports store is the biggest in New England. We sponsor races and Endorphin Sport retail events, and this is one of the best. It is a great venue and a great place to be. The race producer does an awesome job," said Nerro.
Fast Splits caters to triathlon competitors and many athletes have already stopped by, said Nerro, considering his company sells just about any sports gear, sports equipment or food item on the market for running, biking, and swimming.
"Out most popular items seem to be the things athletes forgot, like sunglasses, sun block, and bike pumps. About 80 percent of the participants have flipped through here," said Nerro.
Although some companies had just about everything at the expo, well-known companies such as Saucony focused solely on colorful, lightweight, and aerodynamic running shoes. Saucony sponsors the triathlon community and his six or seven upcoming events.
Professional triathlon athletes and Ironman Champions Michael Lovato, Kate Major, Dede Griesbauer, and Karen Smyers all attended the Saucony tent to sign pictures and running shoes.
Kids even got to be a part of the race themselves during the Timberkid mini-triathlon at Ellacoya, held simultaneously with the adult's race this year.
Other than merchandise, this year's weekend long festival at Gunstock consisted of a pancake breakfast, a pro athlete Q&A panel, and a seminar for first time competitors. Timberparty was held for the athletes and included a lobster-clambake, steak, live music, some s'mores around the campfire, and fireworks. Inspirational speakers and race tactic seminars were also avaliable for athletes who wished to attend for extra motivation.


text: H&T Group Plc's (LON:HAT) new CEO Chris Gillespie talks to Proactive London about his plans for the UK pawnbroker and financial services firm in 2021. Gillespie is thrilled to be at the helm of a company that 'does something that really matters'. He says H&T Group has already got itself into a 'fantastic position, it's been the consolidator within its market, it does what it does really really well'. Gillespie goes on to say his taking over of the reigns (from John Nichols) is about 'evolution not revolution'. In its latest update in November, H&T added that Retail sales had been strong, with good demand for high-quality jewellery and watches while the price of gold had boosted profits both in pawnbroking and gold purchasing.


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Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) has been ramping up its research and development spending in order to gain a competitive advantage against its rivals
In its quarter that ended in December, Apple’s spending on R&D surged 14.5% year-over-year to $3.902 billion. R&D as a percent of revenue reached 5.63%, up from 2.1% in 2012. The continuous growth of Apple’s R&D, in conjunction with its stagnant or declining revenue base, will hurt its operating margin in the near future.
Declining operating margin is another headwind for Apple stock. The company’s operating margin has declined for 12 out of the last 13 quarters. In the December quarter, its operating margin fell by 2.07 percentage points year-over-year.
The increases in Apple’s R&D spending are definitely positive for the long-term outlook of Apple stock. But AAPL needs to come out with some solid products and services which can meaningfully raise its top and bottom lines.
Another Quarter of R&D Expansion
There has been a substantial increase in R&D spending since Tim Cook became CEO of Apple. The company’s R&D as a percentage of its revenue has increased from 2.1% to 5.63% during Cook’s tenure. In the past few quarters, R&D expenses have been higher than the total dividends paid on Apple stock, even as AAPL has raised its dividend meaningfully. In 2018, the total dividends paid to the owners of Apple stock came to $13.94 billion, while R&D expenses totaled $14.7 billion.
It can be argued that AAPL is investing in its long-term performance, instead of focusing solely on returning more money to the owners of Apple stock. Although I have an “underperform “rating on Apple stock, the fact that it’s investing more in R&D is certainly positive. However, the other side of the coin also needs to be analyzed. In the past few years, several competitors have closed the gap between their products and those of Apple.
Headwinds in Europe And Other Overseas Markets
Apple’s competition from Chinese OEMs like Huawei, Oppo, and Xiaomi has been especially intense All these players have been able to launch smartphones with low bezel counts and many new features within a short time of the launch of Apple’s iPhone X.
These companies are a big reason why AAPL is having a hard time growing its market share in China and other emerging markets. All these companies are also aggressively trying to improve their market share in Europe.
Apple’s net sales in Europe declined from $21.05 billion in the quarter that ended in December 2017 to $20.36 in the quarter that ended in December 2018.
Huawei’s market share increased from 11.8% in December 2017 to 16.9% in December 2018. Xiaomi’s market share has increased from 1.8% to 4.5% during the same period. These companies are increasing their market share in Europe even though the region’s smartphone market has already been saturated. Apple’s European market share, by contrast, dropped from 29.3% to 28.3% during this period.
The European market share of Huawei and Xiaomi can rise rapidly as they launch their 5G devices this year while AAPL delays the launch of its 5G smartphones until 2020.
Europe is a very important market for Apple. It accounts for 24% of the company’s total revenue. The recent decline in Apple’s revenue from Europe shows that AAPL faces headwinds in this region also, along with the difficulties with which it’s contending in China and other emerging markets. Of course, Apple’s struggles in those regions don’t bode well for Apple stock.
Overall, the bias in prices is: Downwards.
Note: this chart shows extraordinary price action to the upside.
The projected upper bound is: 182.86.
The projected lower bound is: 157.12.
The projected closing price is: 169.99.
A black body occurred (because prices closed lower than they opened).
During the past 10 bars, there have been 5 white candles and 5 black candles. During the past 50 bars, there have been 23 white candles and 27 black candles for a net of 4 black candles.
Momentum is a general term used to describe the speed at which prices move over a given time period. Generally, changes in momentum tend to lead to changes in prices. This expert shows the current values of four popular momentum indicators.
One method of interpreting the Stochastic Oscillator is looking for overbought areas (above 80) and oversold areas (below 20). The Stochastic Oscillator is 26.4379. This is not an overbought or oversold reading. The last signal was a sell 3 period(s) ago.
Relative Strength Index (RSI)
The RSI shows overbought (above 70) and oversold (below 30) areas. The current value of the RSI is 59.17. This is not a topping or bottoming area. A buy or sell signal is generated when the RSI moves out of an overbought/oversold area. The last signal was a buy 27 period(s) ago.
Commodity Channel Index (CCI)
The CCI shows overbought (above 100) and oversold (below -100) areas. The current value of the CCI is 51. This is not a topping or bottoming area. The last signal was a sell 4 period(s) ago.
The Moving Average Convergence/Divergence indicator (MACD) gives signals when it crosses its 9 period signal line. The last signal was a buy 31 period(s) ago.
Rex Takasugi – TD Profile
APPLE INC closed down -0.710 at 170.180. Volume was 45% below average (neutral) and Bollinger Bands were 5% wider than normal.
Open High Low Close Volume___
171.390 172.480 169.920 170.180 22,490,232
Short Term: Neutral
Intermediate Term: Bullish
Long Term: Bearish
Moving Averages: 10-period 50-period 200-period
Close: 170.45 161.50 191.62
Volatility: 24 52 39
Volume: 29,057,340 40,327,632 33,460,414
Short-term traders should pay closer attention to buy/sell arrows while intermediate/long-term traders should place greater emphasis on the Bullish or Bearish trend reflected in the lower ribbon.
APPLE INC is currently 11.2% below its 200-period moving average and is in an upward trend. Volatility is low as compared to the average volatility over the last 10 periods. Our volume indicators reflect moderate flows of volume into AAPL.O (mildly bullish). Our trend forecasting oscillators are currently bullish on AAPL.O and have had this outlook for the last 13 periods.


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Buzz in the restaurant industry suggests veal may be a trendy product for menus in 2009, according to a dairy producer serving on the industry’s Veal Committee.
“Restaurant chefs and operators recognize what a high quality, versatile and cost-effective product veal can be for diners,” according to Randy Meabon, a dairy producer from Wattsburg, Pa., and a member of the beef checkoff-funded Veal Committee. “Though its image as a luxurious entree for white table cloth restaurants is secure, it’s also finding more mainstream and price-sensitive uses in other applications. In addition, it’s being promoted more aggressively in supermarkets, providing a strong link across marketing outlets.”
Meabon points to a survey by the National Restaurant Association that appeared in Nation’s Restaurant News in October 2008. The survey, conducted of 1,600 chefs of the American Culinary Federation, showed that new cuts of meat – including the Tuscan Bone-in Veal Chop – were ranked the fifth among 208 top trends for the new year, with 78 percent of chefs ranking it as a “hot trend.” The cut is being featured by Flemings Steakhouse and Wine Bar.
In addition, the Rocky Mountain News on Jan. 1 shared some dining trends of 2009, including one from Fruition Restaurant in Denver for veal breast. The cut, according to the restaurant’s executive chef, is full of flavor and very versatile and is the “up-and-coming” ingredient for 2009. Alex Seidel told the newspaper veal is often considered a luxury item that carries a high price tag, but veal breast’s lower price tag “means we can create an innovative, approachable and tasty appetizer using veal.”
To build on these restaurant trends, the Beef Checkoff-funded Veal Committee has created a new promotion opportunity for supermarkets. The program, with the support of veal packers, provides funding for qualified supermarkets willing to advertise veal through Jan. 30, 2009. Veal suppliers have access to funds to be used in this promotion, in combination with their own efforts to increase veal advertising during the veal retail ads program.
“Although veal promotions through the checkoff in the past have focused mostly on the restaurant trade, we think this effort will expand the opportunities veal has in all marketing channels,” says Meabon, who also serves on the Cattlemen’s Beef Board. “By broadening our scope, we’re creating a means for reaching the consumer in more locations and increasing overall demand for veal.”


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Apple's Latest iPhone 11 Range
Apple has been losing ground to competitors with cheaper and
feature-packed handsets in recent years.The recent queues at the Shanghai and
Beijing stores, which combined added up to few dozen customers, were in sharp
contrast to previous years, when hundreds used to wait for hours outside
Apple's shops to be the first to grab its latest offerings.
But much of the fanfare in China has moved online where the pre-sales for iPhone 11, priced between $699 (roughly Rs. 50,000) and $1,099 (roughly Rs. 78,000),started recently. Chinese e-commerce site JD.com said day one pre-sales for the iPhone 11 series were up 480 percent versus comparable sales for the iPhone XR last year.
Customers were concerned that the range was not enabled for fifth-generation networks, putting them behind 5G models already released by China's Huawei Technologies and smaller rival Vivo, and expressed hopes that Apple could make it happen for its next line-up.


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There’s an unlikely new player in the hybrid-car market: Ford.
For much of the past decade, innovation in using electricity to power vehicles has been powered either by foreign companies or by startups: Toyota has made the Prius a household name, and the three Prius models account for about 45 percent of hybrids sold every month. Nissan has invested huge sums to produce the Leaf, an all-electric vehicle made in Tennessee. Tesla Motors, the Silicon Valley startup, sold more pure electric vehicles in April than any other company—about 2,100, compared with 1,937 Nissan Leafs.
Aside from the Chevy Volt, a plug-in hybrid, the car companies formerly known as the Big Three—GM, Ford, and Chrysler—have largely been spectators in the hybrid and plug-in vehicle category. It’s not that they’ve been sitting still when it comes to gas mileage. In fact, they’ve been working aggressively to improve the mileage of their cars. Chrysler’s 2014 Jeep Grand Cherokee can get up to 30 miles per gallon, an increase of 45 percent from the period model year. Ford and GM, with their Ecoboost and E-assist systems, respectively, have introduced so-called light-hybrid technologies into existing car models, which provide significant incremental gains in mileage.
The sales figures reported by the automakers last week show the Big Three making strides. Hybridcars.com posts a helpful monthly sales dashboard that breaks down the market for hybrids, electric cars, and vehicles that run on diesel. The April report, released last Friday, reveals that the hybrid category, which accounts for a small but growing chunk of overall car sales, is still dominated by foreign automakers. In April, U.S. consumers purchased at least 1,000 units of 12 different hybrids. Of those, nine were produced by Japanese or Korean automakers (Toyota, Kia, and Hyundai).
But there was a new contender on the scene: Ford, which sold 3,625 Fusion hybrids in April—more than four times the number it sold in April 2012. And it sold 3,197 of the C-Max Hybrid, a crossover model that didn’t exist last year. In all, Ford accounted for 6,822 of 42,804 hybrids sold in April—about 16 percent of the total.
Ford also makes plug-in versions of its two hybrid models. And in the plug-in market (also generally referred to as the electric-car sector), Ford notched significant gains in April. Ford sold 411 C-Max Energi plug-in vehicles, 364 Fusion Energi plug-ins, and 147 Focus EVs—for a total of 922 cars, or about 13 percent of the 7,138 plug-ins sold in the month. None of those Ford models existed last April. (By contrast, Toyota sold just 599 units of its plug-in Prius in April.)
The hybrids and plug-ins accounted for about 3 percent of Ford’s April sales. So the numbers are small. But they’re significant for Ford because, in the parlance of Detroit, these are “conquesting” vehicles.
It’s one thing to get an existing Ford owner to trade in her five-year-old Escape for a new one. It’s quite another thing to attract a former Prius owner to choose a Fusion hybrid as her next car. And that’s what these new vehicles are doing. I drove the C-Max Energi hybrid in April—it’s got all the techno-wizardry that Prius owners will recognize—a dashboard laden with data and digital green leafs that grow as you drive in a fuel-efficient manner.
Ford has engineered a remarkable turnaround in the last several years. Alone among the U.S.-based carmakers, it avoided bankruptcy, restructured its business, and weathered the deep recession in comparatively good health. That wasn’t enough to make its products cool in lucrative markets like Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Washington, D.C. But the hybrids are.
In effect, the hybrids and plug-ins are allowing Ford to gain new customers in new geographic areas, and to take market share from competitors. Overall, sales of Ford brand vehicles were up 17.8 percent in April 2013 from April 2012. By contrast, Toyota’s sales in the U.S. fell 1.1 percent between April 2012 and April 2012. “We’re turning, conquesting and growing our sales the fastest in the largest hybrid markets in the country,” Ford spokesman Erich Merkle told Bloomberg News last week.


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By Stephanie K. Mann, J.D.
Maureen K. Ohlhausen, Acting FTC Chairman, has strenuously advocated the need for reform in occupational licensing at two events this week. Speaking about the need to protect low- to middle-income workers from overburdensome restrictions, Ohlhausen addressed the efforts taken by the FTC to combat the problem.
Economic liberty. In remarks before the Fifth Joint Conference by the Concurrences Review and the George Washington University Law School yesterday, Ohlhausen addressed the topic of economic liberty. According to Ohlhausen, her first major initiative as Acting Chairman was to establish a task force to advance economic liberty, with a particular focus on occupational licensing reform. In the last 50 years, new barriers have been created for low- and middle-income Americans seeking new job opportunities due to the rise in occupational licensing. This is the result of government outreach or at the behest of incumbent market participants, said Ohlhausen.
To combat this problem, she formed the Economic Liberty Task Force to "shine a spotlight on the harms of unnecessary or overbroad occupational licensing and to partner with state leaders and other stakeholders to try to remove and reform these regulations." Ohlhausen then went on to describe the work that the task force has accomplished in the last seven months, including:
- a roundtable session to discuss ways to facilitate license portability;
- a roundtable session scheduled to discuss empirical evidence of the effects occupational licensing has on consumers and workers;
- the creation of a centralized resource for licensing reform efforts;
- drawn significant media attention to the problem and its harmful effects on middle- and low-income Americans and military families; and
- held dozens of informational meetings with outside parties to learn about the extent of the problem and potential solutions.
Congressional hearing. At a Subcommittee on Regulatory Reform, Commercial and Antitrust Law oversight hearing today to examine potential antitrust concerns with the expansion of state occupational licensing, Ohlhausen emphasized that while occupational licensing can serve important goals by protecting consumers from harm, excessive licensing can leave consumers and workers in a worse condition by impeding competition.
While some form of occupational licensing is warranted to protect consumers from actual health and safety risk, specific regulations can have significant adverse effects on competition and consumers. These regulations must be analyzed for their impact on competition and, when it seems likely that anticompetitive effects will outweigh any consumer benefits, said Ohlhausen, the proponents of any restrictions should bear the burden of justifying why they are needed. The FTC has also urged states to be cautious when delegating authority to enforce potentially anticompetitive regulations to self-interested boards whose members represent the very occupation to be regulated.
FTC actions. To combat these issues, Ohlhausen testified that the FTC and its staff in two ways. First, as part of the FTC’s competition advocacy program, it often respond to calls for public comment and invitations from legislators and regulators, who ask FTC staff to identify and analyze specific restrictions that may harm competition without offering countervailing consumer benefits. The FTC will then urge policymakers to integrate competition concerns into their decision-making process. Specifically, asking them to consider whether:
- any licensing regulations are likely to have a significant adverse effect on competition;
- those restrictions are targeted to address actual risks of consumer harm; and
- the restrictions are narrowly tailored to minimize burdens on competition, or whether less restrictive alternatives are available.
Second, the FTC has used its enforcement authority to challenge anticompetitive conduct by regulatory boards whose members are active market participants. These enforcement actions have included challenges to agreements among competitors that restrain truthful and nondeceptive advertising, price competition, and contracting or other commercial practices. Ohlhausen also noted that the FTC has also challenged direct efforts to prohibit competition from new rivals where there is no legitimate justification for doing so.
Further testimony. Additional witnesses for the hearing include: Robert E. Johnson, Esq., Attorney, Institute for Justice; Rebecca H. Allensworth, Esq., Professor of Law, Vanderbilt Law School; and Sarah O. Allen, Esq., Senior Assistant Attorney General of the Commonwealth of Virginia.
Allen spoke about the need to protect consumers from fraudulent or unsafe practices by unqualified practitioners of vital consumer services, such as medical, engineering or legal services. But under a system of federalism, discussions about reducing the number of licensed occupations, the desirability of periodic sunset reviews for boards, or the ability of states to monitor professionals through less restrictive means, such as certification or registration, are best left to individual states to determine how best to structure their governments and economies in order to best protect their citizens.
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The Workhorse Group, makers of the Workhorse W-15 Electric pickup, confirmed via tweet that their prototype mail truck had been spotted testing in Virginia. Furthermore, the group has recently released some images of their van in a tweet.
Our New Low Floor Electric Delivery Platform is the perfect application for any
Would you buy a Toyota Tacoma Hybrid? A recent report suggests that Toyota is still considering the electrified hybrid power plant options for the segment-leading Tacoma. Most of us love off-road trucks, but we also love lots of driving range and not breaking the bank when we fill up at the
This week, on one of our many trips to the Rocky Mountains in search of prototype vehicles, Nathan and Michael spotted a huge gaggle of GM pickups. Among these were a number of new 2019 Chevy Silverado 1500s. Although most of them were under covers, we did manage to catch
Ford announces a Ford Transit Custom plug-in hybrid electric van today at the Cenex Low Carbon Vehicle 2017 event in Millbrook, UK. The commercial van provides a glimpse at Ford's electrification technologies for the commercial van and truck market. Ford is expecting to put this van into production in 2019.
The van is
Will there be a 2020 Ford Expedition Hybrid and a Lincoln Navigator Hybrid? A recent report from Automotive News suggests that Ford will introduce a gas-electric hybrid version of their full-size SUVs during the 2019 calendar year. These large SUVs could be labeled as a late 2019 or an early 2020


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"If I can spend lakhs on bags, why can’t I spend thousands on beauty?” Neena Kapoor, a silent partner in a local business in Indore, Madhya Pradesh, considers skincare to be part of self-care and doesn’t mind spending ₹50,000-60,000 a month on beauty products. Her current routine—a mix of high-end, niche brands such as iS CLINICAL, Ranavat and Farsali—reflects her taste in beauty products. “I think both Estée Lauder’s ANC (Advanced Night Repair) and (Benefit’s) Benetint are overhyped. I find better results from a pharma skincare and better tints from Indian brands like Earth Rhythm and Daughter Earth.”
Beauty is no longer seen as an indulgence. It’s a necessity that goes beyond location, age and gender. And Kapoor, 49, represents the new Indian beauty customer: more aware of trends, with greater spending power, a keen interest in ingredients—and the inclination to look and feel better than ever before.
Looking for wellness
Beauty has always been important in India but the segment used to be focused on women and home remedies. The situation today is very different. The Connected Beauty Consumer Report by Google, WPP and Kantar shows the global market share of beauty and personal care products is slated to grow from ₹73,000 crore in 2017 to ₹11.1 trillion in 2024, making it one of the most profitable categories within consumer packaged goods.
“Customers talk to us about a range of brands, across affordable, premium, niche, natural and ingredient and science-based categories,” says Anchit Nayar, head of retail at Nykaa, an online beauty marketplace that is planning an IPO, or initial public offering, at a $3 billion valuation this year. Skincare, he says, has seen significant growth, with the share of the skin category on Nykaa now exceeding 30%.
Nayar attributes the growth to an increased interest in wellness, with solutions based on skin type, ingredient-led formulations and advanced skincare routines becoming popular. Last year, Nykaa started offering products by niche international brands to whet the growing appetite of the Indian consumer. Brands such as Murad, e.l.f. and Charlotte Tilbury have done “exceedingly well”, with many products being sold out soon after launch, says Nayar. It’s proof that the digital medium has armed the small-town customer with both knowledge and buying ability.
“Earlier, the market was limited to the metros but now we get individual orders from towns and smaller cities like Karnal, Panipat, Guwahati and Ludhiana,” says Delhi’s Bharat Sachdev, managing director (Southeast Asia) at Leader Healthcare, an importer of aesthetic equipment, injectables and skincare brands such as iS CLINICAL. “People buy in bulk, with a single order worth around ₹70,000-80,000 from towns in Gujarat.”
They don’t have access to brick and mortar outlets, he says, so they prefer to stock up on cosmetics. “There are also not many dermatologists in these cities so they like to invest in products that show results.” The Google report shows tier 1 cities have caught up with metros in terms of category engagement; at Nykaa, 50% of luxury and premium beauty sales come from tier 2 cities.
It’s indicative of how quickly the Indian beauty scene has transformed. Just 15 years ago, face wash was considered a novelty. Today Indians are well-versed in the basics of double cleansing and acid peels.
The change in tastes is a reflection of the worldwide trend, where legacy brands such as Dior, Chanel and Estée Lauder are being eschewed for digital-first labels such as Glossier and Huda Beauty. With more savvy online content, direct access to brand founders and transparency on active ingredients, the younger players are proving to be tough competition for the more established conglomerates.
The ‘me’ culture
It’s not surprising that a key finding of the Google report was that “it is all about me”. This “for me” goes beyond seasons, occasions, even gender. Raipur-based Abhishek Parasrampuria, director in a family-owned business, shatters the gender myth. “I want products that brighten, add glow and even out the skin tone,” he says. He spends up to ₹1 lakh on cosmetics a month—iS CLINICAL, Sesderma, Zein Obagi and Dior dominate his skincare regimen; for haircare, he chooses Davines, Kérastase and Moroccanoil.
“About 7-8% of our clientele is men, and the good thing is they don’t need much convincing, unlike women, who ask for details like ingredients and percentages,” says Sachdev. “Teenagers also make up 8-9% but they only go for a single, effective product instead of buying a full routine,” he says. “We have a lot of young people who are also buying for their parents,” says Pooja Shah Talera, founder, Kosá Wellness, Pune.
In a market that was already booming, 2020 worked as an accelerator. Talera says a big driving factor was that people wanted to look good in Zoom meetings without wearing a lot of foundation at home. The fact that people couldn’t visit the dermatologist for a lunchtime facial also played a part in the increased interest in cosmetics. “Before 2020, we were sending 10 shipments (of beauty products) a month. Now, it is 200-300 a month. I am also now doing 90% consultations outside Pune,” she says.
Self-learning is in
Dimapur-based Kavi Toli has a “less is more” philosophy. As someone with eczema, she was misdiagnosed several times by dermatologists. “They would keep giving me acne medication,” she says. Through self-study and online chat boards, she realised her eczema required her to use fewer, not more, products.
After her success at self-diagnosis, Toli studied cosmetology and opened her own KK Dental & Cosmetology Clinic in Dimapur. Though she likes to get her patients to follow her minimalist philosophy, she finds they are keen to spend ₹20,000-30,000 on pharmaceutical-grade skincare to get results. “People will tolerate physical pain but a small zit is unbearable,” she says.
As customers become aware of actives and percentages, they prefer spending on products that are based on a single skincare ingredient such as a vitamin C serum or a glycolic acid toner. “Most of our clients are hyper-educated about active ingredients and choose products based on ingredients that complement each other,” says Talera. “Conscious consumption is one of the driving factors in beauty, a sign of heightened awareness. The aim at the end of the day is good skin, even if it comes at a big cost.”
Vasudha Rai is a beauty journalist and author of Glow: Indian Foods, Recipes And Rituals For Beauty, Inside & Out.


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Intel builds 'world's smallest' 3G modem
Intel has unveiled a 3G modem not much bigger than a small coin with the aim of embedding it in connected devices around the home.
The company says the XMM 6255, with an area of about 300 sq mm, is the world’s smallest modem.
The standalone chip could be used in wearable tech, as well as security devices such as “smart” smoke alarms.
It is built to protect against overheating, and withstand tough conditions.
The modem also features an embedded power supply.
Sergis Mushell, a research director at analytic company ‘Gartner’, said the product signaled Intel’s intent to gain a foothold in the mobile connectivity market.
“It’s not just about the size of it,” he told the BBC. “What Intel is really doing is going after a significant stake in the Internet of Things market, where connectivity is most important.
“Getting connectivity right is essential for their entire product portfolio,” he added, referring to Intel’s traditional business of making processors.
He added that “anything with a screen will need to have connectivity” and processors will have to be combined with secure, low-power, connectivity technologies.


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On December 3, 1994, the original PlayStation console hit stores in Japan, bringing video games to the mainstream and going on to become the most successful games system of the decade. 24 years later to the day, Sony is releasing the PlayStation Classic, a pint-sized recreation of its world-conquering system packed with 20 of the best games of the era - and it’s having a party to celebrate!
Thanks to our friends at PlayStation Australia, we have 30 double-passes to giveaway to the PlayStation Classic launch celebration in central Sydney. There’ll be food and drink, a banging ‘90s-inspired set from DJ Hot Dub Time Machine, and more. It’s going to be a big one!


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On March 22, 2021, Metro Group announced that from May 1, Cai Tianle (Tino Zeiske) will succeed Claude Sarrailh as the president of Metro China, take responsibility for promoting the development of the company’s business, and fully promote the digital transformation of Metro China. Prior to this, Cai Tianle served as CEO of Metro Ukraine. Claude has led Metro China to achieve outstanding growth in the past three years. He will return to Europe to serve as the Chief Procurement Officer of Metro Group and a member of the Board of Directors Expansion Committee.
It is understood that Claude joined Metro China as president in April 2018. In 2020, Metro Group and Wumart Group achieved strategic cooperation. Claude led the Metro management team and accelerated the implementation of Metro China’s effective digital transformation with technical partners Dmall.
From Dmall information, all Metro stores in China have launched Dmall self-service checkout. Currently, 26 stores have launched O2O services. It is expected that the remaining 71 stores nationwide will be launched in April.
The O2O business strongly contributes to Metro’s customer sales performance. By the end of February 2021, Metro China’s monthly orders have increased by nearly 64 times compared with June last year, and the number of e-members has increased by 54 times. By March, the proportion of APP orders accounted for 40%.
Mr. Rafael Gasset, Co-CEO of Metro Group, said that we also look forward to Mr. Claude. His insights into Europe, Asia, and many other markets, and his successful experience of Metro China’s digital transformation could be brought back to Europe, so as to better lay out the Group’s commodity strategy and create new opportunities.
Some insiders of the retail industry analyzed that since the end of 2019, Dmall has made internationalization one of its important strategies. Claude’s return to Europe may provide an opportunity for Dmall to increase its awareness in Europe. At the same time, the successful experience of cooperation between Metro China and Dmall may also play a demonstrative effect on the European retail market.
Founded in 2015, Dmall is an Omni-channel Retail Digital Platform to achieving retailers’ comprehensive digital transformation and providing them with joint cloud services based on Dmall OS and MiniOS systems. With 15 major systems and 800 sub-systems, Dmall OS is developed to offer complete digital solutions that could digitally upgrade all aspects of retail industry chains; MiniOS is custom-built for convenience stores. With integrated retail and cloud-optimized store-to-home Omni-channel service, Dmall contributes to high efficiency for enterprises and a better experience for consumers.


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Morning weather forecast: 11/28/22
Justin Logan's forecast: Gloomy start to the week
Saturday was Small Business Saturday, a day to ditch the big box stores and shop local. The day was created by American Express back in 2010 to aim awareness about the impact shoppers have on small businesses when they shop local. This year, consumers plan to spend 40% of their holiday budget at small businesses. Two local businesses in Lexington said the day was a success.
The holiday season calls for lights, inflatables, and giving back. Zachary Neilson, a 16-year-old took hundreds of lights, extension cords, a giant guitar, and a vision to create a wild lights show that central Kentuckians can enjoy this holiday season.


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BRUSSELS (Reuters) – Internet companies such as Facebook and Google may have to get more permission to use information if European Union lawmakers give users more control over their personal data.
EU lawmakers want to limit companies’ ability to use and sell data, such as internet browsing habits, to advertising companies, especially when people are unaware their data is being used in such a way.
“Users must be informed about what happens with their data,” said Jan Philipp Albrecht, a German Member of the European Parliament who is driving the reform. “And they must be able to consciously agree to data processing – or reject it.”
Facebook and Google, who were among the first to profit from users’ data, have been lobbying against the curbs. Other data-reliant sectors such as health services, rail and smart-meter makers have also voiced concerns.
Albrecht, a Green politician, plans to announce on Wednesday a plan to make sure users of search engines and social networks can control how much of their data is sold to advertisers.
A report he produced, which was seen by Reuters, builds on a proposal announced by the European Commission last January for tougher data protection.
The European Parliament, the Commission and the bloc’s 27 countries will seek an agreement on the rules in coming months.
Internet companies worry it will have a chilling effect on a thriving business.
“We are concerned that some aspects of the report do not support a flourishing European digital single market and the reality of innovation on the internet,” Erika Mann, head of EU policy for Facebook, said.
The digital market was inescapably global in nature, and included important partners in the United States, she said.
The amount of online data collected and sold has grown rapidly. Currently, over 60 hours of YouTube content is uploaded every minute.
U.S. privacy advocates estimate a Facebook user can make $10 a year for the company by clicking on ads. At last count, the company said it had over 1 billion users.
Albrecht also said national authorities might be allowed to levy fines ranging from 0.5-2.0 percent of annual turnover for compromising customer data – which could mean losing or divulging the data.
However, high-ranking politicians in the European parliament are lobbying for the maximum fine to be no more than 1 percent of turnover, saying anything higher could push big data offshore. Albrecht’s final report will voted on in April.
The push to regulate use of customer data comes as consumers appear to be turning against the practice. In December, image-editing and hosting application Instagram dropped an idea to sell users’ photos to advertisers after it lost almost a quarter of its users within a week of announcing the plan.
Privacy lobbyists say companies do not take sufficient consideration of users’ privacy concerns.
“They may do so if they feel that their reasons for doing so are more compelling than the individual’s right to privacy,” said Joe McNamee, a privacy advocate in Brussels.
Albrecht said there would be exceptions in his proposed curbs. For example, a company would still be able to send junk mail to a user based on data it had gathered itself.
(Editing By Sebastian Moffett.)


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Amazon has the potential to upend a booming investment business, and it's keeping industry insiders up at nightGet the Full StoryDrew Angerer Getty Images
Amazon is said to be in early talks with banks to launch a checking-account product.
That's breathing new life into the idea that the company could take on other areas of finance.
Amazon brings a few things to mind for most users. Today's deals. Gift cards. But could that soon include investments?
Amazon has shaken up industry after industry from bookselling to cloud computing to groceries. It's now reportedly in early talks with banks to launch a checking-account product. And that, as well as the threat of platform companies to big finance more generally, has some wondering whether the tech giant could go head-to-head with Wall Street.See the rest of the story at Business InsiderNOW WATCH: How the super-wealthy hide billions using tax havens and shell companiesSee Also:Amazon has the potential to upend a booming investment business, and it's keeping industry insiders up at nightGoldman Sachs is recruiting at least 6 people for the UK launch of its online lender MarcusHot investing startup Pagaya has landed a 20-year BlackRock veteran as chief investment officerSEE ALSO: 8 'Amazon-proof' businesses that are defying the retail apocalypse


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Real skaters know that Spitfire is the big boss when it comes to wheels, trucks and all your essential skateboard accessories. That’s why it’s basically a match made in ollie heaven that the brand is partnering up with Supreme for a new capsule to close out the Spring 2018 season properly.
The collaborative collection features clothes and accessories alike, including the standout Coaches Jacket, cool-for-summer Cargo Shorts and a Hooded Sweatshirt to prep for those breezier than normal nights. Rounding out the set are two T-shirt options and two skateboarding necessities in the form of 56mm 80du Conical Cruiser Wheels and a Skate Tool.
The Supreme x Spitfire Spring 2018 capsule collection arrives online and in-store at the Manhattan, Brooklyn, LA, London and Paris locations this Thursday (June 21) — right on time for the first day of summer. Japan will see the drop on Saturday (June 23).
Get a look at the full range below: