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Innovation and the quest for a competitive industrial policy
By Sergio Ornelas, MEXICONOW's Editor
De-globalization, de-industrialization, innovation, re-shoring, regionalization, nanotechnology and additive production are the new buzz words in manufacturing.
The world is undergoing a new manufacturing order driven by economic, technological, market and geopolitical forces. During the past few years and into the near future, the changes in global manufacturing make its outlook for 2020 unimaginable back as recently as 2000.
Mexico is positioned to take advantage of the profound and structural transformations taking place in the global manufacturing landscape. But the journey is not rosy if Mexico continues to be its own worst enemy.
In this article, we will review the macro trends in global manufacturing and how they affect Mexico’s performance in the value chains of the auto, electronics and aerospace sectors.
The battered economies of the European Union (EU), where manufacturing accounts for approximately 16% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP), suffered a decline of 11% in manufacturing employment since the beginning of the financial and economic crisis.
Other than high-technology manufacturing such as the pharmaceuticals and scientific instruments sectors, the modest recovery in the EU has kept employment levels in manufacturing low. The prospects for recovery in medium-to-high, medium-to-low and low technology manufacturing remain rather weak.
In Japan, the ministry’s labor force recent survey showed that the number of people working in the manufacturing industry in December 2012 dipped below 10 million for the first time since June 1961. This represents a reduction of some 40 percent from the peak of 16.03 million in October 1992, and 15% since the start of the economic crisis in 2007.
A combination of factors is contributing to a greater burden on manufacturing companies in the land of the rising sun, including a stronger yen that inhibits exports, power shortages because of the suspension of nuclear power plant operations, tax measures to combat global warming and more strict labor laws.
The significant reductions in manufacturing in the EU and Japan represent a huge challenge for the affected countries’ domestic economies. Efforts to recover the pre-crisis levels of production, such as the Horizons 2020 in the EU and the attempt to stop deflation in Japan are underway, but they will unlikely make up the lost ground in the short or medium terms.
The decrease in manufacturing in these two important regions is not temporary, it is rather structural in nature and it opens up opportunities elsewhere for both developing and developed countries.
De-globalization and Regionalization
The strongest positive force currently favoring Mexico’s growth is the economic phenomenon of “Regionalization”.
Conceptually, regionalization is globalization taking a step backwards. Indeed, the world is “de-globalizing” and Mexico stands to be one of the largest beneficiaries of this process.
Let’s recall that globalization refers to the reduction and removal of barriers between national borders in order to facilitate the flow of goods, capital, services, labor and technology.
The process of globalization has many positive aspects, such as the emergence of worldwide production and financial markets; and broader, less expensive access to a range of foreign products and services for consumers and companies.
But the development of globalization had a major setback with 9/11, which triggered significant restrictions in the international flow of goods and individuals. And recently, the great recession helped to further reverse the process of globalization as developed nations activated domestic job protection and import restriction initiatives.
Since the price of crude oil started to spike, it became clear that globalization was receding and that world production value chains engaged in a process of restructuring their global footprints, leading the way to a new wave or order that we have labeled as “Regionalization”.
Regionalization is simply the trend of reordering production value chains to better serve regional markets. In this fashion, regional production and logistics supply chains are reshaping and restructuring in Asia, Europe and the American continents. So what we will have in the long-term is manufacturing and logistics platforms to serve the different regional markets.
This is not to say that the U.S. imports from China will stop altogether anytime soon, but rather that we are going to see, for example, more Toyota, Hyundai and BM W plants opening in the U.S. and Mexico to serve the North American regional markets.
Total cost of product ownership is evidently a big driver behind regionalization. Please see Exhibit #1
by Alexis Partners where they project that China’s total landed cost for goods will generally be about equal to the U.S. index by 2015. The graph shows that comparatively, Mexico and India will remain competitive.
China knows well that its booming years of attracting manufacturing and export capacity will soon be over. So, China has already started a “going-out” industrial policy by establishing value chain platforms outside of its mainland in other Asian regions and farther abroad.
Not surprisingly, China’s new global industrial strategy contemplates Mexico as an ideal logistics passage and manufacturing hub for reaching the North American regional market.
The savvy Taiwanese electronic goods contractors learned of the benefits of regionalization earlier. They started to significantly regionalize their operations in the NAFTA region ten years ago, by taking literally millions of square feet of light manufacturing space in Tijuana, Ciudad Juarez, Guadalajara and Reynosa primarily to serve the U.S. market.
“Time-to-market” has been a strong driver in regionalization. Consumers not only demand custom built products but also prompt deliveries. Taiwan’s Foxconn, Asus and other international electronics manufacturing contractors such as Flextronics and Sanmina learned some time ago that competitive manufacturing costs and adequate time-to-market logistics for the U.S. market were impossible to be attained from Asia, but were quite efficient from locations in Mexico, avoiding long lead times and immense investments in inventory.
The supply chains from Mexico to the U.S. and Canada are evidently shorter, less risky and have a lower “Landed Cost” than those from Asia and Eastern Europe. The cost of inventory alone has played an extremely important role in the regionalization of the countries of NAFTA as well as those of the European Union.
Extensive traveling and mid-night business phone calls have slowly broken the resilience of many managers and engineers of international firms. Staying closer to home and operating during normal business hours is a growing preference in the minds of many executive and technical U.S. and Canadian workers, and another reason in favor of regionalization.
Even the masters of round-the-clock work shifts are recognizing this fact: Indian outsourcers Tata Consulting Services Ltd. and Infosys Technologies Ltd. have established Information Technology services operations in Mexico, in line with the strategy of many Indian outsourcers to deliver services to customers from locales in nearby time zones to better serve their regional markets.
Currency exchange rates have also played a very important role in the wave of regionalization. This is one of the main reasons behind the remarkable growth of the aerospace industry in Mexico in the past few years, which has gone from about 50 companies in 2004 to over 300 in 2013 with over 35,000 workers.
France’s Safran and Zodiac and U.K.’s Triumph along with Spain’s Aernova and more recently, Brazil’s Embraer have substantial investments in Mexico.
As the Euro gains strength over the dollar, many European aeronautical supply firms that have dollar denominated contracts are ailing with higher manufacturing costs in Euros. These corporations know that relocating to Mexico, gives them the advantage of a low-cost manufacturing platform as well as the benefit of shifting their costs to a “dollarized” region.
Regionalization will continue to gradually shift manufacturing from off-shore to near-shore regions and new windows of opportunity will open for Mexico.
As manufacturing costs rise in China and elsewhere in the world, countries such as Mexico will continue to benefit. But as of recent, an unlikely player is poised to join the likes of the so called low-cost countries for manufacturing: The United States of America.
Indeed, U.S. exports have been increasing seven times faster than GDP since 2005 on the heels of significant world competitive electricity and natural gas costs. Even labor in the U.S., adjusted for productivity, is competing with China’s and it is well less expensive than its counterparts in Europe and Japan. Please see Exhibit #2
showing the average 2015 projected manufacturing cost structures of the major exporting nations relative to the U.S.
In a recent study by the Boston Consulting Group (“Behind the American Export Surge”), the think-tank organization says: “We project that the U.S., as a result of its increasing competitiveness in manufacturing, will capture US$70 billion to US$115 billion in annual exports from other nations by the end of the decade.”
The study explains: “About two thirds of these exports gains could come from production shifts to the U.S. from leading European nations and Japan. By 2020, higher U.S. exports, combined with production work that will likely be “re-shored” from China, could create 2.5 million to 5 million American factory and service jobs.”
The U.S. boasted 17 million manufacturing jobs in 2000 and is currently creeping back at a snail pace to 12 million. Because of automation, innovation and productivity, it is hard to imagine that the manufacturing jobs in the U.S. will be over 15 million by 2020, even at a decade high production capacity. But the boost from exports and re-shoring will be substantial.
The good news for Mexico is that any manufacturing jobs gains in the U.S. translate into new jobs in Mexico as well. Since the supply chains of both countries are highly interlinked, Mexico is poised to gain at least one manufacturing job for every 10 to 12 jobs created in the U.S. (The current level of manufacturing jobs in Mexico is 3.3 million).
As a result of these trends, the new geographical manufacturing order is already being reflected in the U.S. imports market share by country, as illustrated in Exhibit #3
which shows that the gap between China and Mexico is narrowing since 2009.
Additive Manufacturing and Nanotechnology
Two relatively new technologies are making their way into the Research & Development department and the manufacturing floor of companies. Additive manufacturing and nanotechnology represent a realm of opportunities for global engineering and manufacturing and Mexico should be in the hunt for these technologies.
Although three-dimensional (3D) printing technology has been available for a few years, it has not been until lately that manufacturers have intensified its use.
In a nutshell, 3D printing uses Computer Aided Design (CAD) files as a blueprint to build physical objects or parts by repeatedly applying thin layers of materials in a “build-up” or additive process. This is regarded as Additive Manufacturing (AM).
Thus, Subtractive Manufacturing (SM) represents the traditional production processes such as milling, drilling and grinding by which material is taken away from a larger piece to shape objects or parts.
Evidently, the advantages of AM are many, including: Elimination of material waste, fast development of prototypes, quick production cycle turnarounds, ability to create geometrically complicated parts, capability to change the density of the object’s body and others.
To date, the industries taking advantage of this technology include those in need of small, light parts, with low volume production levels such as the aerospace, electronics, auto and medical sectors. The most popular materials include plastics, ceramics, aluminum, steel and other alloys.
But still, the technology is in its early development stages. General Electric, for example, is the world’s largest user of additive technologies in metals with over three hundred 3D printers in use across the company. Additive fabrication helps GE file approximately 2,000 patents in the U.S. alone per year.
Christine Furstoss, Director for the GE Global Research Center explained: “3D printing is changing business models and represents the first paradigm transformation in the last 30 years in fabrication. AM brings democratization to the production process and it truly allows the industrial internet to meet manufacturing.”
“Currently, we are still in development with AM, we want to make sure that we have a complete understanding of the technology’s possibilities and limitations. We still need to invest to develop new types of materials such as ceramic matrix composites and silicon carbide.”
Furstoss added: “AM integrates design and manufacturing. With AM, hardware meets software, the capacity to innovate is much greater. Manufacturing is no longer after the design, manufacturing is now part of the design, and it’s a new ecosystem.”
There are many applications already in place for AM. The medical, fashion, auto and aerospace industries have myriad of products and uses.
There are many techniques in AM, for example, the sphere on our cover of this edition is a Freedom of Creation lamp design using Selective Laser Sintering (SLS), an AM process that uses a laser to sinter (heat and fuse) the material in powder.
Another modern technology, Nanotechnology or “molecular manufacturing” (MM), as it is sometimes called, is an engineering specialty that deals with the design and manufacture of extremely small objects, devises or surfaces at the molecular level of matter.
The name nanotechnology comes from the measure “nanometer” which equals one billionth of a meter. The subject is often discussed together with microelectromechanical systems or “MEMS”, such as the sensor devises used inside aircraft turbines to measure performance and prevent engine malfunctions.
Nanotechnology is already present in many daily used materials such as waterproof clothing, heavy duty resistant materials, and “Teflon” type coverings for any surface and others. But nanotechnology still worries environmentalists and its development is generally regarded to be longer term when compared to AM in production processes.
Although enough in never enough in cost-cutting in manufacturing, plenty of cost saving techniques are already applied through most industries and their effect on productivity is becoming less effective. Cost-cutting is a “diminishing returns” tool to increase productivity and profitability.
Now days, innovation in the manufacturing world is the key for higher productivity levels and their impact on the financial bottom line of corporations.
In Mexico, over 80% of manufacturers rely on Lean/ Six Sigma methodologies to improve their production processes. But many still have manual assembly and packaging as part of their critical processes resulting in idle time and loss of efficiency and productivity.
Mexico engineering teams are very good to innovate manufacturing processes and they continually strive to incorporate semi-automated and automated operations in their production and packaging lines.
With the new technologies, Mexican plants should gradually be able to move up the technology ladder and be involved in product innovation as well.
Mexico 2020 Manufacturing Outlook
The recent tax reform passed by Congress and which will be effective on January 1, 2014 certainly had an impact on most analysts’ forecasts.
There is no question that the increase in income tax rate for maquiladoras and other qualitative (redtape) restrictions will make a dent in Mexico’s total cost of product ownership competitiveness. The effect will vary depending on the capital, labor and other factors’ mix of each operation. But as a general rule of thumb, the effect will be an increase of about 5% to the fully loaded average semiskilled worker hourly cost.
Nevertheless, the maquiladoras and other foreign direct investors in manufacturing in Mexico will survive this bump, but not after experiencing a period of analysis and revision. The market should expect a slow-down of new projects and expansions in the pipeline in the first half of 2014.
The tax reform event is another call for Mexico to continue to move up the innovation food chain. Tin many instances, firms in the country have gone from a labor intensive focus to a capital intensive mode. They now need to move to an intense process and product innovation strategy, and embrace the new technologies.
AM and MM are extraordinary opportunities for Mexico’s type of competitive manufacturing. Please remember that highvolume, low-product mix and very labor intensive production belongs in China, Vietnam and Central America. Mexico is most competitive in lower-volume, custom made, high-product mix, high engineering changes types of goods, which is precisely the manufacturing ecosystem that AM and MM technologies offer.
Our brief 2020 volume forecast for three of the main manufacturing industries in Mexico follows.
The aerospace industry is the new and most exciting sector in Mexico. Still in its early stages of development, it is set to reach at least 70,000 manufacturing and engineering jobs by 2020 as shown in Exhibit #4
Mexico’s aerospace industry started in the safe niche of wire harnesses, but soon climbed to higher technologies such as turbine parts machining and composite fuselages. It also quickly embraced complex parts and subassemblies for small and mid size aircraft and has made important progress in design and engineering cores.
The electronics industry in Mexico is world class and it is a huge generator of technology and value added. In spite of the sector’s global product, market and technology eye blinking speed and volatility, it has managed to reach over US$72 billion in exports in 2012 and will likely reach the US$100 billion mark by 2020 or before as illustrated in Exhibit #5
Lastly, Mexico’s biggest and most important ever industrial story is the automotive industry. The forces and trends that we have talked about in this piece are heavily reflected in the development of Mexico’s auto industry.
Light vehicle exports are projected to double from 2 million units in 2007 to an extraordinary level of 4 million units or more by 2017 as shown inExhibit #6
The stars are well aligned for Mexico to succeed and grow in manufacturing, but this will only be possible if Mexico ceases to be its own worst enemy.
The country needs a sound industrial policy in a hurry. An industrial policy that facilitates business for both foreign and domestic manufacturers. An industrial policy with clear and permanent rules. An industrial policy that is globally competitive and friendly. An industrial policy with reasonable taxes but free of foolish red tape and bureaucracy. An industrial policy that is intelligent in nature and values the real impact manufacturing has on employment and the economic well being of Mexicans.
If Mexico does not develop a sound industrial policy congruent with innovation and global competitiveness, other countries will gladly take and eat Mexico’s lunch.


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Dialing for Dollars
By Carlo Longino, Wed Jun 18 12:00:00 GMT 2003
The latest takes on mobile payments aim for users' credit cards, not their mobile bills.
We were all supposed to be paying for everything with our mobile phones by now. The first promise of m-commerce was that handsets would replace cash and plastic as most people's preferred method of payment, especially for small purchases, and lump them on the user's mobile bill leaving them one easy payment to make each month.
There were a number of ways this was supposed to happen, the most prevalent example being m-commerce-enabled vending machines. No longer would thirsty or hungry mobile users have to fumble for change; they could simply send an SMS or make a phone call to a number posted on the machine, which would then let the customer purchase the item of their choice and charge the amount to their phone bill. Then the Japanese said this was too difficult, and developed an infrared system where users pointed their device at the machine and hit a button. Other variants on this idea emerged, like paying for parking meters and car washes, and some are still in use today, and using the mobile bill to pay for mobile content like ringtones and graphics is standard practice in much of the world.
But for any number of reasons, the idea that a phone should act as a credit card has lost much of its traction. Early tests saw manufacturers looking to implement some sort of secure SIM card that could dial in via WAP for payments and authentication, these fell by the wayside when WAP fell out of fashion. Users didn't see a lot of benefit to be paying for everyday purchases with their phone, prepaid users generally couldn't take advantage of such features, and the technology needed to link up retail outlets more robust than vending machines or parking meters was cumbersome and expensive, and much less attractive as carriers cut back their capital spending.
The latest iteration of mobile payments still sees the mobile device replacing cash or checks or plastic - but cuts the carrier out of the picture and doesn't put purchases on a user's monthly mobile bill. It simply acts as a convenient payment method that's linked to an existing credit card or bank account. Perhaps carriers realized banking and payment processing wasn't one of their core strengths. Or perhaps the burden of holding the ball for their users' purchases wasn't too appealing. Whatever the matter, handset and component manufacturers and credit-card companies are moving forward.
Visa and Philips recently announced plans that they would collaborate on developing and marketing "contactless" payment chip technology. Philips is interested in the consumer-electronics angle - designing devices that can easily access and pay for content and services - while Visa is of course interested in the payment angle - the more payments they process, the more revenue they generate.
Transactions could occur just about anywhere via a connected device. Say you're browsing online MP3s on your PDA and find one you want to buy and download, you simply wave your Visa smart card within 4 inches of the PDA's radio chip, and it processes your payment information, charges you, and allows the download. Same would go for a mobile-phone ringtone or SMS subscription or mobile video sports highlights.
But the technology could have other applications too, and the companies say they're looking at areas like ticketing, gaming, music, home shopping, and public transit. One potential application could see a mobile phone with an embedded chip acting as a bus or metro ticket or a building entry pass, or another downloading an "electronic" movie ticket bought online to a smart credit card, which could then be used to enter the theater. The applications are almost limitless, and all point to what the companies call "universal commerce."
Payphones of the 21st Century
Mastercard and Nokia are following a similar path, last month starting a trial in Dallas of Nokia handsets with covers enabled with Mastercard's PayPass technology. Testers can use the handsets, which are linked to a user's MasterCard account, at a handful of retailers and restaurants around Nokia's US headquarters in lieu of cash or standard swipe cards. MasterCard has been running a test in Orlando, Florida, of swipe cards enhanced with the PayPass RF technology.
The idea (apart from ensuring that MasterCard gets to process the payment - and take a cut of it) is that especially for small transactions that are typically paid with cash, consumers will enjoy the convenience of simply holding their phone up to a reader rather than digging through a purse or wallet. It's a boon to retailers as well, again especially in cash-dominated businesses like fast-food restaurants or convenience stores, as using the contactless payment systems can quicken transactions, a key metric in any volume-based business.
Some retailers, particularly small ones, may resist these programs, as they require stores to purchase or rent the new equipment needed to receive and process RF-based payments. But Nokia is hoping to help retailers recoup some of those costs by building in a permission-based marketing system to the program. Retailers can utilize the system to send out SMS advertisements, coupons, or promotions to those users who opt to receive them - which for some businesses could be a great advantage.
A Nokia spokeswoman gives the example of one of the businesses involved in the trial, a seafood restaurant. Fresh fish has a very limited shelf life, and whatever the restaurant doesn't sell, it has to throw away at a loss. But say the manager realizes they didn't sell as much salmon over the weekend as they'd hoped, and if he can't sell it on Monday, it will have to be thrown out. He can then send an SMS advertising a salmon special or with a coupon directly to interested users, an immediate marketing message allowing for an immediate response.
Beam Me Your Money
These technologies offer convenience to the consumer, and advantages to the retailer. There's no doubt that the public is interested in RFID payment technologies. Toll-road systems around the world now use RF transponders attached to cars to let drivers pay tolls without slowing down. 6 million US customers have signed up since 1996 for the ExxonMobil Speedpass, a key fob with an RF transmitter that links back to a credit card that customers can use to make purchases at 8,000 of the company's gas stations and convenience stores across the US and about 400 Chicago-area McDonald's. The company is even embedding transponders in consumer electronics: get your Speedpass-enabled Timex watch before they sell out.
Carlo Longino is a freelance writer based in Austin, Texas. His previous experience includes work for The Wall Street Journal, Dow Jones Newswires, and Hoover's Online.

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Search engine giant Google is preparing to release its brand new second generation Nexus 7 tablet in India in November 2013. The company will be launching its latest tablet in the country three months after the worldwide debut.
Sources familiar with the progress said that the tech giant is most likely going to release the tablet on its own, rather than via Asus, its partner in Taiwan. At the moment, the search engine is testing the tablet with Indian applications, as well as customized content. Asus manufactures the Nexus 7 tablet for Google and probably will not have anything to do with its sales in India.
Initially, the new device will be sold by the retail arm of Google through AndroidLand store in Noida and Bengaluru. The two AndroidLand stores are run together by Google and the smartphone maker Spice. Meanwhile, the search engine giant has already confirmed on its official webpage that it will soon be launching the Nexus 7 for the Indian market.
Moreover, Apple’s new iPhone 5S and 5C are all set to be launched in India on November 1, 2013. Until the new Nexus 7 arrives, online retailers have already started selling the current Nexus 7 version with huge discounts. One of the retailers is selling the 16 GB version for Rs. 9,999, compared to the official price of Rs. 15,999.
Photo Credits: PC Advisor


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This week, Keri Witman should be sailing to Brazil. It should be the first month of a three-year round-the-world cruise – an epic adventure for which she sold her four-bedroom house, gave away her possessions and paid a deposit of thousands. But there is no cruise; in fact, there isn’t even a ship.
Two boiled potatoes and a cocktail the colour of a Slush Puppy almost landed me in a West African jail. Admittedly, theft wasn’t on my mind when I’d huddled into a corner with the meagre pickings on offer at the (only) lounge in Gabon’s Léon-Mba International Airport in Libreville. Two lonely bottles of spirits behind the dusty bar weren’t even worth the extra weight in my luggage.
(Reuters) -Saudi Arabia's PIF sovereign wealth fund will buy a 49% stake in luxury hotel group Rocco Forte Hotels and help to support its expansion, the owner of Britain's Balmoral hotel said on Monday. Founders Rocco Forte and his sister Olga Polizzi will remain as executive chairman and deputy chair, respectively, it said, adding that the Forte family would retain majority ownership and control of the group, which currently has 14 hotels. A spokesperson for Rocco Forte Hotels declined to confirm the size of PIF's stake.
Few months spark a yearning for somewhere brighter and hotter than December. And with the UK in the midst of a wintry spell, it is once again time to start dreaming of swaying palm trees and whooshing waves to ring in the new year.


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The Khronos Group's WebGL technology is a cross-platform, a 3D graphics API for the web, supported by Chrome and Firefox browsers. Microsoft has analyzed the technology and concluded that it could be harmful and not safe.
Microsoft's MSRC Engineering team, which analyzes various technologies in order to understand how they can potentially affect Microsoft products, took a look at WebGL. Microsoft's analysis concluded that the company's products supporting WebGL would have difficulty passing Microsoft?s Security Development Lifecycle requirements.
Microsoft claims that browser support for WebGL directly exposes hardware functionality to the web in a way that it "overly permissive."
"The security of WebGL as a whole depends on lower levels of the system, including OEM drivers, upholding security guarantees they never really need to worry about before. Attacks that may have previously resulted only in local elevation of privilege may now result in remote compromise. While it may be possible to mitigate these risks to some extent, the large attack surface exposed by WebGL remains a concern. We expect to see bugs that exist only on certain platforms or with certain video cards, potentially facilitating targeted attacks," Microsoft said.
Any uncovered WebGL vulnerabilities will not always manifest in the WebGL API itself. The problems may exist in the various OEM and system components delivered by IHV's. "While it has been suggested that WebGL implementations may block the use of affected hardware configurations, this strategy does not seem to have been successfully put into use to address existing vulnerabilities," Microsoft added.
Microsoft also believes that as configurations are blocked, increasing levels of customer disruption may occur. "Without an efficient security servicing model for video card drivers, users may either choose to override the protection in order to use WebGL on their hardware, or remain insecure if a vulnerable configuration is not properly disabled," the company said.
"Users are not accustomed to ensuring they are up-to-date on the latest graphics card drivers, as would be required for them to have a secure web experience. In some cases where OEM graphics products are included with PCs, retail drivers are blocked from installing. OEMs often only update their drivers once per year, a reality that is just not compatible with the needs of a security update process."
Microsoft added that WebGL systems will be vulnerable to Denial-Of-Service (DoS) scenarios.
"Modern operating systems and graphics infrastructure were never designed to fully defend against attacker-supplied shaders and geometry. Although mitigatinos such as ARB_robustness and the forthcoming ARB_robustness_2 may help, they have not proven themselves capable of comprehensively addressing the DoS threat. While traditionally client-side DoS is not a high severity threat, if this problem is not addressed holistically it will be possible for any web site to freeze or reboot systems at will. This is an issue for some important usage scenarios such as in critical infrastructure," the company said.
The company concluded saying that "WebGL will likely become an ongoing source of hard-to-fix vulnerabilities. In its current form, WebGL is not a technology Microsoft can endorse from a security perspective."
WebGL, a technology which brings hardware-accelerated 3D graphics to the browser, has been supported by Google's Chrome and Mozilla's FireFox browsers. The technology allows users to experience 3D content right inside the browser with no need for additional software. Microsoft's Internet Explorer 9 does not support WebGL. The company supports its own, proprietary, Direct3D.


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RNLI shop in Weston reopening following four-month closure
- Credit: Archant
The RNLI shop at Anchor Head in Weston will reopen for business on Saturday since being closed at the start of lockdown.
Safety measures are in place and visitors will be asked to wear masks and follow the instructions of the volunteer staff.
Chairman of WsM Fundraising, Peter Elmont, said: “The shop at Weston has always been very successful and we are delighted that we can open again.
“It was closed in March to protect the volunteers who run them and the public visiting them.
“The shop will be run by our volunteers and we hope to raise much-needed funds for saving lives at sea. This has become even more important with the prospect that we may be going back to Birnbeck Island in the near future.”
You may also want to watch:
The shop, which opens from 11am-3pm, sells a variety of souvenirs, beach goods, Christmas cards and calendars, clothing, stationary, toys and gifts.
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Cuphead released last week after a lengthy development, with players surprised at the sheer difficulty of the platformer given its charming and deceiving art style. In a bid to make the game more accessible, developers StudioMDHR offer a ‘simple mode’ that controversially locks the last 10 percent of the game.
Modelled after 1930s cartoons, you’d be forgiven for thinking this was your average platformer with a unique design. In fact, Steam reviews sum it up rather well, in that the game is deceivingly Dark Souls-like in its difficulty. It’s no surprise that in light of this reputation, the developers included an easier difficulty dubbed ‘simple mode’ in a bid to open it up to more people.
This simple mode, however, changes the game in such a way that it is quite a different experience. Alongside the expected in that bosses are given much less health, attacks are altered which unfortunately results in entire stages of certain bosses being removed all together.
The last portion of the game is also gated behind the requirement that the player must defeat every game boss on the regular difficulty. This is controversial in that many argue that making the entire game accessible on either mode would detract from the sense of reward that players get over what is intended to be a difficult and challenging experience. On the other hand, others would debate that content that is out of reach in what should be their choice is wrong.
No matter what, Cuphead is still a charming deviation from the norm in modern platformers and is currently available on Xbox One and PC.
KitGuru Says: Personally, I feel that if the game is intended to be difficult, giving more to the players that achieve such success is well deserved. I understand that for the casual gamer, it is simply about playing the game in what little spare time you have but games, much like real life, should always be about challenging yourself to be better. How are you finding Cuphead?


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Brickmania is a Minneapolis based company that designs and sells custom model building kits using LEGO bricks, with a specialty in military vehicles and weapons, and they've landed at the DECC this weekend for the Arrowhead Home and Builders show with an incredible custom built WWII Pacific beach landing scene built from hundreds of thousands of individual LEGO bricks and figures.
LEGO toys have always made money when it comes to boys. Star Wars and other popular "boy" themed building blocks put the company on top. It was starting to lose face though and sales were dropping.
Although it's something we've never wondered ourselves, engineers at Open University in the UK recently discovered how high a LEGO tower can go before the bricks at the bottom are crushed under the weight. Here's a hint -- it's pretty darn high.


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Android P, which Google released to developers today, also revamps your phone's notifications and offers some privacy enhancements.
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The wireless carrier's CTO explained his 5G band plan and teased when we'll see phones for the new network.
Distance and air quality measurements make the rugged Cat S61 a significant improvement over the S60, but those features don't come cheap.
Broadcom is playing hard ball, lowering its bid, accusing Qualcomm of 'engagement theater,' and making a play to install a friendly board of directors.
The LG K10 is a good-looking midrange phone that will probably find a home in the US. We could do without the K8.
The Doro 7050 is a simple flip phone that runs KaiOS, which can download Google or Facebook apps. In the US, it's coming to Consumer Cellular, which runs on AT&T's network.
You read that right. OnePlus has a fix that (finally) enables HD streaming on the OnePlus 5 and OnePlus 5T, but owners of either smartphone will have to send their devices back to OnePlus to get it.
Alcatel unleashed a fleet of new devices at Mobile World Congress, from the flagship Alcatel 5 to new Linkzone hotspots. We got a chance to check them all out.
Android Go phones aside, HMD Global, which owns Nokia, will get Google's "seal of approval" for every Android phone it makes.


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Temple & Webster is Australia’s number 1 online retailer of furniture and homewares.
We teamed up with this amazing team after identifying opportunities to produce brand video assets to run a concurrent TVC campaign and an extensive online campaign via Youtube and broader social channels.
The campaign coincides with a 300%+ increase in unprompted advertising recall, with the TVC the major driver of the increase.
- More than half of those who recalled recent T&W advertising described the TVC in a clearly recognisable way.
- Of the small number who mentioned a TVC but gave no description almost all recognised the TVC when shown it.


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Apple recently dished out a new clock app for iPad in its iOS 6 update. As soon as the update was out, it was discovered that the design of the analog clock used by the new iPad clock app is identical to the design of clocks used on the stations of Swiss Federal Railways (SBB).
Soon SBB released a statement citing that it held the rights to the design of the clock and that Apple had made use of the design without first seeking permission from it. It also cited that the design was originally created as far back as 1944 and has since been used across multiple railway stations in Switzerland.
Now, a spokeswoman for SBB has revealed that Apple is set to meet up SBB officials in the next few days. The meeting has been scheduled to discuss the issue and had been requested by SBB lawyers. Another interesting twist to the whole story is that SBB has also stated that it isn’t seeking any money from Apple as damages for having used the design.
In fact, SBB says that it is “rather proud that a brand as important as Apple is using our design.” In that case, we do wonder what exactly are SBB’s legal actions aimed at.
Filed in ios 6.. Read more about


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But that has changed just as the role of mobile technology in business has changed.
MWC is now about enterprise technology and enabling the security to allow business to make the most of mobile phones, tablets and other devices.
It is about making enterprise applications work everywhere on the network.
Increasingly it is not even about mobile phones any more.
There are so many other devices connecting via mobile networks like Internet of Things devices for running logistics systems, car sensors and location-based services that phones are taking a back seat.
Aside from the news-grabbing announcements the show is a great example of the other change in enterprise technology in recent years.
It is one of the world’s biggest networking event and chance for companies to make contacts. The future of enterprise infrastructure is hybrid which means partnerships, collaborations, interoperability and working together. These platforms are defined by software not by hardware.
In place of the traditional mega-handset announcements we heard about several new partnerships with combinations of companies promising to create enterprise tools and services to make it easier to make business truly mobile. HPE’s agreement with Tata to jointly develop its LoRa network was just one example of this.
Part of the reason for this change is the changing view of consumer and enterprise technology. Today’s workforce expects to bring and use its own devices on the corporate network.
There is no longer a division between mobile devices for work or for home – we expect our devices to do both.
We also expect enterprise applications to work just as well on our laptop or even tablet as it does on our office workstation.
The new look MWC reflects this change – mobile is not just a part of enterprise technology, in many cases it is the entirety of enterprise technology.


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Woodbridge by Robert Mondavi is out with a new ad campaign titled “From One For All” that highlights Woodbridge founder Robert Mondavi’s role in growing California’s reputation for wine making.
The campaign, developed with the brand's AOR Cavalry, marks a shift in strategy from a focus on wine and food pairings to the brand’s heritage.
Mondavi narrates his history in Woodbridge’s first-ever 60-second TV commercial, as well as 15- and 30-second TV spots.
In a brand first, Woodbridge will air these new ads during live sports on ESPN and NFL Network.
"We know consumers are seeking a deeper connection to the brands they choose and this new strategy celebrates Woodbridge’s 40-year commitment to our consumers by reliving the history that got us here,” explains Jaymie Schoenberg, vice president of marketing, Woodbridge by Robert Mondavi Wines.
Schoenberg says the investment is the biggest yet by the brand in a campaign. The company declined to disclose the budget.
The campaign targets men and women equally with a focus on connecting with those unfamiliar with the brand.
The brand’s digital creative features messages such as: “Born From A Legend. Enjoyed By All” and a quote from Robert Mondavi: “Whatever You Choose To Do, Pour Yourself Into it With Your Heart and Soul.”
In addition to sports networks, ads will run on TBS, HGTV, Food Network, Bravo and FX, among others. Broadcast, digital marketing and social-media ads are rolling out across Facebook and Instagram and will appear through fall 2019.


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Childhood hunger is becoming more and more common in north Florida, as statistics say one out of four children do not know where their next meal will come from on a daily basis. The Jacksonville Jaguars and Winn-Dixie Stores, Inc. have teamed up to fight this growing trend. The Winn-Dixie Hunger Relief program has been set up in all Winn-Dixie stores during this holiday season. The program kicked off on Nov. 7 and will continue through Dec. 25.
Customers are being asked to donate and make a difference in one or two ways. They can generously donate any amount they choose at checkout or customers can use easy-to-use tear pads/scan sheets found at the register to make their donation. Purchasing specially-marked Winn-Dixie brand products (water, coffee, diapers and condiments) whose manufacturers have graciously donated to the program will also help combat child hunger in north Florida.
All dollars raised through the tear pads/scan sheets go directly to local Feeding America-affiliated food banks, like Second Harvest North Florida. These programs will use the monetary donations to provide nutritious, fresh foods to those struggling with hunger. For every dollar donated, Winn-Dixie customers will help neighbors in need.
“On behalf of the Jaguars, we are proud to team with Winn-Dixie to ensure the needs for children in our community are met,” said Jacksonville Jaguars owner Shad Khan. “I encourage all our fans to donate at your local Winn-Dixie store to help those who need it most. We’d love to see children in our communities receive the nutrition they need to start each day with a smile.”
The Jacksonville Jaguars will partner with Winn-Dixie and Second Harvest North Florida for an annual can food drive. This year’s can food drive will be held during the Jaguars game against the Tennessee Titans on Nov. 25. Fans are being asked to bring non-perishable food items before the game and place the items in the collection barrels outside of EverBank Field. More than 15 regional food banks will benefit from the community donations.
“Second Harvest is projected to distribute more than 24 million pounds of food this year, as we continue working to meet the increased needs in our community,” said Bruce Ganger, executive director of Second Harvest North Florida. “Through this program, Winn-Dixie and its customers can have a profound effect on this critical issue, providing children the basic nutrition they need to face each day successfully.
Customers and fans can help the cause by spreading the word through social media. Twitter users are encouraged to follow @WinnDixie and use the hash tag #Tweet2Eat when donating in stores or share the cause with others. You can also follow Winn-Dixie on Facebook and Twitter for the latest news and updates on donation efforts.
We hope you enjoy our positive, uplifting sports news and content. We would love for you to follow us on Twitter and “like” us on Facebook, as we highlight athletes, coaches and teams being role models in our communities!


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- The organization is presently rolling out crypto usefulness to U.S. clients, after which it will dispatch the administration globally and on the Venmo stage
- Payments goliath Paypal has uncovered more subtleties of its new digital money administration
- The CEO stressed that his organization is “Working inseparably with controllers at all times so significant in what they anticipate from us so as to be a market chief in the digital currency space”
Paypal’s CEO Reveals Crypto Plans
Paypal CEO Dan Schulman gave new nuances of the association’s new digital money organization during the Q3 2020 benefit approach Monday. Paypal as of late reported that its clients will have the option to purchase, hold, and sell cryptocurrencies forms of money, including bitcoin, straightforwardly from their Paypal accounts. Digital forms of money in Paypal records can likewise be utilized to pay for buys at 28 million stores around the world.
Paypal has uncovered more subtleties of its cryptocurrency administration. The organization is at present turning out crypto usefulness to U.S. clients, after which it will dispatch the administration globally and on the Venmo stage.
He asserts that Paypal, with its advanced wallets and the scale it at present has, “can help shape the utility of those monetary forms.
He added that dependent on his discussions with national banks and individuals in the crypto business, “certainly that best in class money related guidelines will be rising unimportance, growing the value and extending undeniable quality.” The CEO additionally accepts that national bank computerized monetary forms (CBDCs) “involve when and how they are done, not if.”
The U.S. in the accompanying large portion of a month that is rolling out 100% in the U.S. At that point, we will grow globally and we will venture into Venmo in the principal half of one year from now,” he proceeded.
The CEO said that Paypal is now “seeing individuals who have just purchased crypto” on its foundation, “We are starting to as of now observe some corona impacts that go on with that.”
He clarified that no extra reconciliation is required at the 28 million vendors and digital currency exchanges are “promptly subsided into fiat,” adding that this strategy is “a cheaper subsidizing instrument” for Paypal.
The CEO underscored that his organization is “Working connected at the hip with controllers at all times so significant in what they anticipate from us so as to be a market chief in the advanced cash space.”
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CoffeeNetwork (New York) - The record coffee production recorded in 2018 had an impact on private inventories of coffee this year. According to a survey conducted by Companhia Nacional de Abastecimento (Conab), released today, the amount of coffee stored until March 31 reached 12.8 million bags, an increase of 31.2% when compared with the volume recorded in the previous survey, which was 9.8 million bags.
The Arabica variety accounts for 92% of the total, with about 11.8 million bags. The conilon type represents 8% of the stored volume, reaching approximately 1 million bags.
The leader in the national production with the three largest producing states of the country, the Southeast Region accounts for 94.77% of the coffee stocks. In Minas Gerais, for example, there are records of storage of 9.2 million bags of arabica and 13,700 bags of conilon, an increase of 24.2% from last year. Espírito Santo also saw increases, going from 542,2000 bags of conilon coffee to 769,900 bags, an increase of 42%. In São Paulo, the increase was 44.1% year on year, with the 1.9 million bag of coffee stored, between arabica and conilon.
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Although many semiconductor stocks have rallied substantially in 2021, with the way these companies are delivering such strong earnings they could end up looking like bargains at current price levels by the end of the year. Consider the fact that widespread shortages could last well into the next year and help companies in the industry achieve new levels of success. There’s also plenty of demand coming from automotive, industrial, and consumer electronics end markets that should drive profits higher for the top names in the sector this year and beyond.
We’ve already seen a few impressive earnings reports from names like AMD and Lam Research Corporation (NASDAQ:), and it could only be a matter of time before the entire sector takes off to the upside. That’s why we’ve put together a brief overview of 3 semiconductor stocks that are set to soar so you can gain some valuable insight into some of the best names to add right now. Keep reading below to learn more.
1. Applied Materials
With a global semiconductor shortage going on right now, it makes a lot of sense to own the companies that enable the manufacturing of these complex chips. That’s a big reason why Applied Materials (NASDAQ:) is a name worth looking at. It’s the world’s largest manufacturer of wafer fabrication equipment for the semiconductor industry and is growing faster than the overall sector at this time. The company will report its Q3 earnings on Aug. 19 and is poised to rally into the report given the relative strength we are seeing in semis at this time. A move over the stock’s previous all-time high of $146 could ignite a strong rally higher.
With secular growth in things like cloud computing and artificial intelligence, it’s fair to assume that the equipment that Applied Materials produces will facilitate strong top-line growth and margin expansion for the company. It’s also worth mentioning that Applied Materials should see strong demand for its display fabrication equipment that is used to produce OLED and large-screen televisions, particularly since OLEDs are seeing wide adoption in smartphones. The company delivered on its earnings, with record quarterly revenue of $5.58 billion, up 41% year-over-year, and Quarterly GAAP EPS of $1.43, up 74% year-over-year. It wouldn’t be surprising to see another fantastic quarter from this company later this month, and it’s certainly one of the top-tier semi stocks to consider owning over the long term.
2. ON Semiconductor
Here we have another semiconductor stock that is set to soar on the back of strong earnings. The stock gapped up and reached an all-time intra-day high after the company delivered stellar earnings and could be heading for higher prices in the coming sessions. ON Semiconductor (NASDAQ:) is a global supplier of power and data management semiconductors that are used by producers of electronic products, appliances, and automobiles. If you are bullish on the future of the automotive industry, this is the semi-stock for you, as the company provides lidar, image, radar, and ultrasonic sensors.
It’s also worth noting that ON Semiconductor has a strong position in the Chinese EV market, which could end up being a nice growth driver for the company going forward. ON Semiconductor reported record revenue of $1.7 billion, up 38% year-over-year, and a record free cash flow of $383.2 million in Q2. The company has a few investor events planned this month that could provide the stock with additional momentum, starting with the ON Semiconductor Financial Analyst Day on August 5th, so it definitely makes sense to keep an eye on the stock going forward.
Finally, Qualcomm (NASDAQ:) is a great pick for a semiconductor stock with upside at this time thanks to the company’s strong position in the 5G network space. The company develops and licenses wireless technology and also designs chips for smartphones including the infamous Apple (NASDAQ:) iPhone. 5G network technology is expected to grow dramatically over the next few years, and Qualcomm’s products will certainly play a big role in its widespread adoption. The stock also pays a solid dividend yield of 1.82%, which is another positive for investors to consider.
Keep in mind that the company earns royalty income on most of the 3G, 4G, and 5G handsets that are sold today since it has patents on the technology that these networks rely on, which is certainly an attractive quality. That means as the smartphone market grows, Qualcomm’s revenue grows as well. The company had a strong that saw revenue grow by 65% year-over-year to reach $8 billion and Net Income increase 140% year-over-year to $2 billion. Given that the stock has been an underperformer this year in the semiconductor sector, it could be in for significant upside after the recent earnings beat.


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In three decades, the world’s oceans will contain more discarded plastic than fish when measured by weight, researchers say.
The shocking finding was revealed in a newly released Ellen MacArthur Foundation report that investigates the inefficiency of the world’s plastic economy.
While researchers acknowledge that plastic is integral to everyday life, they underscore the urgent need to reduce plastic waste. Most plastic packaging products are used only once before they are thrown away, resulting in annual economic losses of up to $120 billion.
Furthermore, plastic production is notoriously resource-intensive, and could consume 20% of all oil produced by 2050.
The plastic economy currently employs a largely linear flow, with disposable plastics having a definitive lifecycle that oftentimes ends in the world’s oceans and landfills, where they degrade slowly and harm wildlife.
According to nonprofit conservation organization Keep America Beautiful, Americans produced 30 million tons of plastic products in 2009, only 2 million tons of which was recovered.
SEE ALSO: Video: What's an ocean garbage patch?
The Ellen MacArthur Foundation has long supported the notion of circular economy, an economic system that produces no waste, instead reducing resource consumption and finding innovative ways to reuse and recycle materials such as plastic.
This report demonstrates the importance of triggering a revolution in the plastics industrial ecosystem and is a first step to showing how to transform the way plastics move through our economy,” Dominic Waughray, of the World Economic Forum, says in a news release.
“To move from insight to large scale action, it is clear that no one actor can work on this alone; the public, private sector and civil society all need to mobilize in order to capture the opportunity of the new circular plastics economy.”
This article originally published at Discovery News here


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NAD reviews energy drink claims
This article was originally published in The Tan Sheet
Review of comparison claims involving Living Essentials' 5-Hour Energy dietary supplement shows that "apples-to-oranges" comparisons are supported as long as advertising clearly discloses the point of comparison and "all material differences between the products," the National Advertising Division says. Brought to the Council of Better Business Bureaus unit's attention Aug. 6 by competitor Hansen Beverage Co., the case involved Living Essentials' TV, print and Internet ads that compare the amount of sugar in its one serving-size shot of product to two competitors' energy drinks, including Corona, Calif.-based Hansen's Monster Energy drink, which is a two-serving size, 16-oz. can. The ad claimed that 5-Hour Energy had zero sugar and 4 calories while Monster had 12 teaspoons of sugar and 200 calories. NAD concluded that the comparison for the purposes of showing the relative amounts of sugar in the products "was consumer-relevant as evidence indicated that both products were likely to be consumed as a single serving." However, NAD suggested the advertiser point out that its product comparison is against competitors' two-serving, 16 oz. cans. According to the inquiry report, Farmington Hills, Mich.-based Living Essentials supports NAD's decision and will follow the recommendations
You may also be interested in...
A lack of regulatory harmonization for dietary supplements in Asia is a big challenge facing companies operating in the region, according to experts from the Asia Regulatory Professionals Association. The ARPA is looking to start a conversation on the issue which the association hopes will lead to regulatory change.
The Chinese Society of Clinical Oncology (CSCO) annual meeting, against the background of the global pandemic, has one clear message that local researchers and players are pressing ahead to take a leadership role in cutting-edge cancer research globally.
Company is confident that data readout from pivotal trial could be ready before the end of 2020.


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Crypto traders discovered trigger for celebration on July 14 because the market good a optimistic buying and marketing session simply one of these days after the Client Worth Index (CPI) posted a June print of 9.1%, its highest stage since 1981.
The transfer increased out there wasn’t totally unexpected for seasoned merchants who’ve turn dead set be acquainted a one to two-day bounce in plus costs following the latest CPI prints. These merchants additionally know there’s nothing to get too evangelical about because the bounces have sometimes been adopted by extra draw back as soon as folk understand that the excessive inflation print is a unfavourable growth.
However, the new out there is a welcome sight after the tough begin to 2022.
In keeping with knowledge from Cointelegraph Markets Professional and TradingView, the largest gainers over the previous 24-hours had been Uniswap (UNI), Polygon (MATIC) and Aave (AAVE).
Robinhood lists UNI
Uniswap, the highest decentralised alternate by amount, detected its token worth head increased on July 13 after striking a low of $5.23. The token has since climbed 36% to hit a every day excessive of $7.11 on July 14 amid a 104% spike in its 24-hour buying and marketing amount to $449 million.
The sharp turnaround in UNI worth and buying and marketing amount comes as the favored brokerage agency Robinhood introduced that the UNI token is now accessible to commerce on the platform, exposing the plus to a big cohort of recent consumers who don’t have accounts on different cryptocurrency exchanges.
Disney information gives a lift for MATIC
Polygon is likely one of the prime layer-two grading options for the Ethereum community that gives a quicker, lower-fee dealings expertise for customers and communications protocols.
Information from Cointelegraph Markets Professional and TradingView exhibits that after shortly dipping to a low of $0.52 on July 13, the worth of MATIC spiked 36% to hit a every day excessive at $0.707 on July 14 on the again of a 120% spike in its 24-hour buying and marketing amount.
MATIC’s worth improve follows an announcement that the communications protocol was the one blockchain chosen by Disney to be a part of its 2022 Accelerator Program.
Interrupting the #GreenBlockchainSummit for some breakage information!
We’re excited to be the one blockchain chosen to be part of the Disney Accelerator program. https://t.co/LaGU4bhidi
— Polygon – MATIC (@0xPolygon) July 13, 2022
Aave rallies on stablecoin developments
Aave, a populardecentralised finance platform, is a lending and adoption communications protocol that at the moment holds $5.63 billion in whole worth bolted (TVL), making it the second-ranked DeFi platform by TVL behind MakerDAO.
Information from Cointelegraph Markets Professional and TradingView exhibits that over the previous 24-hours, the worth of AAVE has rallied 38.5% from a low of $67.10 to hit a every day excessive of $93 inside the afternoon hours on July 14.
Aave sparked pleasure inside its neighborhood on July 7 when it discovered plans to launch its personal GHO stablecoin, which will likely be a collateral-backed stablecoin that’s native to the AAVE ecosystem.
1/ Calling all GHOsts
We’ve created an ARC for a brand new decentralised, collateral-backed stablecoin, native to the Aave ecosystem, referred to as GHO.
Learn extra below and talk about your ideas for the shot (coming quickly)!https://t.co/P7tHl9LbBe
— Aave (@AaveAave) July 7, 2022
The general cryptocurrency market cap now stands at $927 billion and Bitcoin’s dominance fee is 42.6%.
The views and opinions expressed listed below are entirely these of the author and don’t basically mirror the views of Cointelegraph.com. Each funding and buying and marketing transfer includes threat, you need to conduct your personal analysis when making a call.


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DistroTV, one of the largest independent, free, ad-supported streaming TV (FAST) app, today announced that it is expanding its content offerings to Cloud TV. Now millions of Cloud TV users can stream DistroTV’s impressive and diverse content line-up with 270 Channels globally and 180 channels in India for free, anytime on the Cloud TV platform.
DistroTV features more than 270 Channels globally and 180 channels in India and growing, with everything from news, sports, movies, music & entertainment, and lifestyle content. This includes original content and new channel offerings that cater to Hindi, Tamil, Bengali, Marathi, English, Punjabi and adding more languages and channels.
“We are thrilled to partner with Cloud TV as we expand our presence in India. We are extremely excited to bring Free streaming content to users across all genres and languages. We will continue to provide audiences with the entertainment they crave including the best of Indian and global content to our distribution partners in India.” said Navdeep Saini, co-founder and CEO of DistroScale, parent company of DistroTV.
“We want to empower the content owners and broadcast partners by expanding their reach and building new streams of revenue in the wake of the growing CTV and mobile ecosystem. This partnership also enables Cloud TV users to get free premium content on their smart TVs.” said Vikas Khanchandani CEO DistroScale, India, SEA and MENA.
Commenting on the association, Abhijeet Rajpurohit, COO at CloudWalker Streaming Technologies said “We are extremely excited to introduce Free Live TV streaming for to Cloud TV users. TV channels are an integral part of India’s TV viewing habit and our partnership with Distro TV empowers our users to watch Live TV channels without the need of a DTH box or stick. Distro’s impressive and diverse library enables users to enjoy a wide range of Global and Regional content directly on the TV homepage.”


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According to a recent study by the Pew Research Center, Foursquare and other location based applications are the least popular apps among smartphone users.
The survey asked 2,277 adults about their preferences when using their phones and more than half said they access social networks, send photos and view email, while only 12% of smartphone owners say checkin services are a regular part of their daily routine.
The study also found that checkin users are even less likely to share their location to Facebook and Twitter with just 9% of internet users and 14% of experience social media users posting their locations to social networks.
Here’s a look at how Smartphone users are utilizing their devices programs:
While checkin numbers are still fairly shallow numbers are up from another Pew Research survey in November 2010 which found only a 4% market penetration among smartphone users, while only 1% of users are believed to use those services on any give day.
Market penetration for any company is important, howevergeo-location based services don’t necessarily need the same type of mass adoption to generate high-end advertising dollars since they are able to hyper-target users based on exact locations at any given time.With that being said, the more users who use a service, the better chance that service has of becoming integrated into everyday lives, something Foursquare, Gowalla and other location based services have not yet been able to achieve.


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America’s Working Families Need Jobs as Casualties of Currency Policies
Today’s U.S. House 348-79 vote approval of the Currency Reform for Fair Trade Act (H.R. 2378) was given a big nod by Leo W. Gerard, International President of the United Steelworkers (USW) with the following statement. He testified Sept. 10 before the Ways and Means Committee and has mobilized workers’ calls on the issue in union halls and Washington forums.
“Our USW members and working families across America will be gratified with news of today’s strong vote by the U.S. House that approved the Currency Reform for Fair Trade Act as the way forward to stop the egregious behavior of China and other nations that put our manufactured goods at an unfair disadvantage with deliberate currency undervaluation ... more


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British Wool Marketing Board
We are using Facebook and Instagram to promote ourselves
In 10 years' time, everything will have the responsible factor integrated
Colorjet India Limited
We would like to venture more companies into the Indian market
Reforce, a start-up based in Gurgaon, aims to revolutionise the fitness...
FESPA Global Print Expo 2019, to be held in Munich from May 14-17, is...
Oswal Prints Private Limited has been manufacturing and exporting ethnic...
Investkonsult Sweden AB
Investkonsult Sweden AB are consultants in the nonwoven and absorbent...
The Association of the Nonwoven Fabrics Industry (INDA) has created a new...
About one in every 20 patients picks up an infection while hospitalised....


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11 November 2021
Your latest instalment of articles and opinions from across the hospitality sector.
Will the travel industry, and its symbiotic partner the hotel sector, return to pre-COVID levels of occupancy and use? If not, how different will this new reality look from "normal"? These are the questions keeping many hoteliers awake at night.
The CEO of Expedia, Peter Kern, has likened the pandemic to 9/11. The terror attacks were at the time described as the greatest ever crisis for the travel industry with many commentating that no one would get on a plane again. Two years later, the airline industry was reporting the largest numbers ever seen as we were jet setting all over the world. An alternate view is that extreme events always cause long term changes to behaviour. Take the London Tube strikes of 2014 as an example which forced commuters to find better routes. Over 18 months later, 1 in 20 people had permanently changed their journey.
We are by nature creatures of habit but in our view the enforced change the lockdown brought will have an impact. We are just not sure what this will be. The pandemic caused people to look at destinations much closer to home, to holiday in a different way – and perhaps to realise the benefits of staying in their home country. Business travel stopped with many a CEO reporting a material improvement to their profits as a result – will they suddenly unleash the horses again? Indeed, today many are still choosing to have business meetings via Zoom (although many COP26 attendees seemed to have jumped on private jets to Glasgow…).
Why should we just assume we go back to travelling and staying in hotels in exactly the same way? The drive for net zero is surely also going to have an impact as well. We are not sure how, but it will be different.
The Tokyu Hotels Group runs a hotel completely on renewable energy.
Hostmore admitted to London Stock Exchange


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FACEBOOK SHUTS DOWN UNLICENSED NORWEGIAN GAMBLING PAGES
Facebook has removed 36 pages belonging to online gaming operators who are accused of targeting Norwegian consumers without a local license.
The company removed the pages after being notified by Norwegian gambling regulator Lotteritilsynet that the pages promoted unlicensed gambling, in breach of Norwegian law and Facebook’s own regulations, which require advertisers to hold an appropriate license.
The posts were used to promote websites belonging to Coolbet, ComeOn, Guts, Norgesautomaten, Vera&John and Pokio.
“This marketing violates the Norwegian regulations and Facebook’s own guidelines. It is also true that many Norwegians are on Facebook, and the gaming companies can potentially reach many there with illegal advertising,” said Monica Alisøy Kjelsnes, senior adviser and lawyer at Lotteritilsynet.
“The Lottery Authority is very positive that Facebook is removing pages and posts with advertisements for gambling that do not have a license in Norway, and looks at the dialogue with Facebook as an effective tool to reduce access to illegal gambling.”
The gambling regulator added that it will increase its enforcement action against unlicensed advertisers next year using new powers under the country’s amended broadcasting act, which comes into force on January 1, 2021.
Comments are closed.


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Touch the Soil News #525
In this era of less-than-abundant natural resources, it is not unusual to see vacant lots and perfectly good buildings sitting idle and just going to waste. Unfortunately with the emergence of idle facilities also comes the demise of jobs and companies that were occupying those facilities.
As we have always said, the food chain is one of the more interesting places to gain economic insights about our lives and economics. Rather accidental, a handful of statistics about the restaurant sector has come into our hands that weigh in on the vacant buildings in cities.
In recent months, 10 companies overseeing 17 restaurant chains have filed for bankruptcy. Looking at the nation as a whole, there were 637,584 restaurant locations in early 2014. By early 2016, that number was down to 624,301.
Johnny Carino’s is just one of many restaurant chains that have had to dramatically cut underperforming locations. Carino’s has closed over 50 percent of its locations over the past two years.
However, in the midst of this closure trend, the nation has been opening about 10,000 new restaurant locations a year. Despite opening 20,000 new restaurants in the past two years, the overall number of restaurant locations still declined 13,283. This means over the past two years approximately 33,283 restaurant locations were closed nationwide.
The nation opens almost 850 new restaurants every month, while it shutters almost 1,400 locations every month.
In our competitive world, the numbers suggest that the dollars garnered by new restaurants are often not an addition to the economy, but a cannibalization of thousands of other restaurant locations. Restaurant locations around which people have built their lives, equity and reason for being. Notwithstanding the human factor and their need to translate work into dollars, there is the environmental matter of a wasteland of idle buildings, while stressing Earth for new resources.
Following is a video clip of the closure of a Toby Keith’s:


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Will Apple shares keep rising despite ‘weighty legal overhangs’?
US tech giant Apple Inc plans to skip a hearing on anti-competitive practices, and is separately set to go to trial against Epic Games.
- Apple Inc (Nasdaq: APPL) share price reached US$132.995 per share
- The iPhone maker is refusing to send a witness to an upcoming antitrust hearing
- Apple is also facing a legal tussle with Fortnite maker, Epic Games
- Analysts had an average target price of US$151.84 on APPL shares
- Buy and sell Apple shares with an IG account
Apple shares finish week on higher ground
Shares of Apple Inc climbed 2% day-on-day to end Friday (09 April 2021) at US$132.995, on a volume of 106.3 million shares traded.
Compared to a week ago, the tech giant’s stock price was up 8.1%. This was boosted by the jump in AAPL shares on Thursday, amid a tech rally when US yields had retreated.
Out of 46 analysts, 34 recommended ‘buy’ on AAPL, nine rated it ‘hold’ and three said to ‘sell’. Their average target price was US$151.84, according to Bloomberg data.
Morgan Stanley last week lowered its target on Apple’s stock to US$156, from US$164, given the tech giant’s peers’ lacklustre share prices, though the analysts maintained an ‘overweight/attractive’ call.
UBS recently upgraded APPL to ‘buy’ with a higher target of US$142, as the research team expects Apple to capture at least 5% market share in the global battery electric vehicle market.
‘Apple faces weighty legal overhangs in the US and EU, though we view the company’s position in the US as good, and neutral in the EU,’ Bloomberg Intelligence (BI) analysts wrote.
Apple wants to skip antitrust hearing
The California-based company is refusing to testify at an upcoming US Senate hearing about anti-competitive practices at online app stores.
The hearing, planned for late April 2021, will be conducted by the Senate Judiciary’s antitrust panel to look into allegations of anti-competitive treatment of outside app developers.
Apple ‘abruptly’ declined to provide a witness for the hearing, according to a letter from the panel leaders on Friday, addressed to Apple CEO Tim Cook.
Reuters noted that app makers have long claimed that Apple’s App Store as well as Google’s Play Store were engaging in anti-competitive behaviour by requiring certain revenue-sharing payments and setting strict inclusion rules.
In the letter, senators criticised Apple’s decision to not testify. They said it initially engaged with the panel to discuss sending a witness, before the ‘unacceptable’ and ‘sudden change in course’.
Why is Apple in a legal battle with Epic Games?
Meanwhile, Apple and game maker Epic Games are going to trial on 03 May 2021 on antitrust allegations. AFP reported last week that the two companies were duelling in legal filings.
Epic, which makes the popular ‘Fortnite’ game, argued that Apple has monopoly power over the market for software developers and accused the tech giant of collecting ‘outsized commission’.
In response, Apple said it did not have a monopoly on digital games, and that the lawsuit was Epic’s effort to portray ‘Apple as the ‘bad guy’ so that it can revive flagging interest in Fortnite’.
BI analysts said Apple ‘may have solid defences’ in monopolisation lawsuits by Epic, other app developers, and app buyers.
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WASHINGTON -- In an effort to further solidify its position as a one-stop specialty beauty retailer with a department store feel, Savage, Md.-based Cosmetic Center Inc. is counting on its fancy, black formica fragrance and cosmetics bars to make it...
WASHINGTON -- In an effort to further solidify its position as a one-stop specialty beauty retailer with a department store feel, Savage, Md.-based Cosmetic Center Inc. is counting on its fancy, black formica fragrance and cosmetics bars to make it happen."We're making changes according to what our customers want," said Allen Nehman, senior vice president of marketing at Cosmetic Center, which currently operates 51 stores in four states.Nehman was standing at the newly renovated store in Fairfax, Va., which features the revamped bar. The new design stocks 8,000 products, from Fendi to JouJou, and occupies the length of the 5,000-square-foot store, about 60 feet. It also features gold trim and is located smack in the middle of the selling space.The cosmetics bar prototype also features a more visible bath and body products area. It is now in eight stores and is receiving kudos from analysts."While Cosmetic Center has been improving the look of its stores, the bar is the crowning touch," said Michael Mead, a regional analyst at the Baltimore-based brokerage firm Legg Mason Wood Walker. "The image of the store has now moved to an elegant level. Before, customers could blow in and out of the store without noticing the prestige area. The new bar serves as a magnet to draw the customer in."Mead also added that the bar, which carries a line ranging from loofah scrubs to nail care kits, all discounted at 10 to 50 percent below manufacturers' suggested retail prices, has several long-term implications.In particular, he said, it will send a message to fence-sitting prestige manufacturers, who have acted a little skittish about selling directly to the off-price retailer. The new prototype will also make for a more user-friendly environment for those consumers who normally shop for cosmetics at department stores."Increasingly, the company is getting its prestige products directly from the manufacturers, and I think the new store prototype will push that process along," Mead said, noting that at least 80 percent of Cosmetic Center's prestige cosmetics and fragrances are now purchased directly, compared with only 40 percent in 1985.About half of its products are in prestige lines, a figure company officials say they would like to increase.They are counting on its aggressive expansion strategy, which includes opening 15 new stores this year, to push the retailer to become an even more powerful force in the marketplace.While Cosmetic Center plans to fill in the Chicago marketplace and the Washington, D.C.-Baltimore area for fiscal 1994, it is also planning to enter two new markets: Philadelphia, with three new stores, and Atlanta, with two stores. The retailer also plans to add more units in the Charlotte, N.C., area, which it entered last November.While company officials admit they are in competition with department stores, discount drug stores and specialty shops like Crabtree & Evelyn, which have overlapping categories, they believe that no other retailer competes entirely on the same level."We offer sophisticated customer service and prestige products at discounts in an attractive environment," said Nehman. "No one does what we do, and that's why we're so successful."For the fiscal year ending September 24, 1993, sales for the company, which went public in 1986, were $109.5 million. Net income has grown to $3.6 million, or 82 cents per share.The company's meat-and-potatoes business is fragrance and cosmetics, which, according to industry sources, garnered at least 55 percent of sales last year, or $60 million. Still, company officials, who wouldn't comment on the cosmetics sales figures, said the two biggest growth categories are hosiery and bath and body products.The company is aiming to further develop bath and body, which sources say generated around $10 million last year. The category is expected to grow at a 20 percent rate for the next couple of years. As part of the company's strategy, bath and body, featuring such lines as Kneipp and Caswell-Massey, now has its own wall in the newer stores.While the new display does not feature more products than before, it is merchandised more elegantly and puts an emphasis on prestige lines."We're constantly reviewing the category," said Nehman, adding that the store has edited out over a dozen lines since 1989.Nehman stressed that while there's been heavy emphasis on prestige lines, the retailer is not abandoning the mass market category. For example, in the cosmetics area, a big business is done with L'OrÄal and Maybelline."Our customers can come into a store, spending $40 on bath and body products, while paying just a few dollars for lipstick," he said. "We have to give the customer what they want and offer lines at all price points."
“I grew up in New York but I hadn’t really experienced the city in any type of touristy way…This was probably the first museum I really explored and took the time to see,” said @haileybaldwin of the @whitneymuseum. On Tuesday night, Baldwin was joined by Jemima Kirke and more at the annual Whitney Museum Gala and Studio Party, which honored Lorna Simpson, Joanne Leonhardt Cassullo and Beth Rudin DeWoody. See more photos on WWD.com. #wwdeye (📷: @lexieblacklock)
Displayed starting this week at the @fashiontextilemuseum: An exhibition on designer @orlakiely titled “Orla Kiely: A Life in Pattern,” which spans two decades and contains more than 150 pieces. “I want people to come away loving pattern and print. It’s something that makes you feel so good,” said the designer during a preview of the exhibit. Also on show are mood boards, samples, sketches and more. Head to WWD.com to see more photos. #wwdfashion
Exclusive: @dsquared2 signs fragrance licensing agreement with Euroitalia, with the first effort of the new partnership being unveiled in September. The brand will launch two scents – one for men and one for women – in Italy. Read our interview with designer Dean and Dan Caten on WWD.com. #wwdbeauty #wwdnews (📷: @zefashioninsider)
@louisvuitton has officially renewed Nicolas Ghesquière’s contract as artistic director of women's collections. "I am very pleased to open the next chapter of the story I started with Louis Vuitton almost 5 years ago," said Ghesquière, who first signed on to design the French luxury brand's women's line in 2013. Get all the details on WWD.com. #wwdnews #wwdfashion (📷: @giovanni_giannoni_photo)
“I learned then and there that I had to figure out a way in life to maintain and preserve my sense of pride when I felt good about what I did or what I represented or created,” said @saintrecords on how being bullied for wearing capri pants inspired her to be the artist she is today. Knowles was at the 70th Parsons Benefit last night where she outbid the room for a Dapper Dan customized @gucci experience. #wwdeye (📷: @lexieblacklock)
“There’s this amazing braintrust of people who know the whole universe so well. So we talked to them and they gave us more input,” said actor Alden Ehrenreich on playing the young Han Solo in “Solo: A Star Wars Story.” The cast was at NYC’s SVA Theatre last night for an advanced screening of the film, which hits theaters this week. #wwdeye #starwars #hansolo (📷: @aurorarosedecrosta)
@asaprocky spent nearly two hours in a Plexiglas box Sunday night at @sothebys putting himself through a series of “tests” to demonstrate the process of completing his new album called “Testing.” Get all the details and see all the pictures on WWD.com. #wwdeye
“I’ve struggled my whole life to find a bathing suit that fits me that doesn’t look like a maternity bra. I’m proud of the line because it’s an accurate representation of me rather than me putting on someone else’s clothes,” says @atlantabean of her swimwear collaboration with @piaarrobio, LPA X ATL. The two decided on a swimwear collab and increased the industry standard size for the pieces. Read more about the line — and our interview with de Cadenet Taylor and Arrobio — on WWD.com #wwdfashion (📷: Dan Doperalski)


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Nipsey Hussle's The Marathon Clothing Store Reportedly Vandalized After Video Surfaces
The late rapper established The Marathon store in 2017.
November 18, 2020 at 3:10 am
The Marathon clothing store, a retail shop once owned by the late rapper Nipsey Hussle was vandalized. Video of the clothing store surfaced online on Tuesday showing the damage.
According to HOT 97 radio station, the video, shared by hip-hop platform My Mixtapez, showed damage to other businesses in the shopping complex where The Marathon store is located.
It's unclear when the vandalism took place, but the glass doors and windows of nearby businesses and Hussle's clothing store were shattered. The video also showed graffiti sprayed on the parking lot.
"Whoever did this s**t" the man filming the video said. "If a crip n***a ever find out who did this, it's ugly for them cuz."
Nipsey Hussle’s Marathon Clothing store has reportedly been vandalized.
— My Mixtapez (@mymixtapez) November 17, 2020
Although police have yet to confirm any suspects in the incident, the Los Angeles Times reported that crime in the area has increased since the death of the rapper on March 31, 2019. Tourists and fans have come to the shopping center, where the rapper once sold mixtapes out of a car trunk, to honor Hussle's memory only to be mugged and robbed.
City officials have been at odds with the rapper's business partner, David Gross, over the violence plaguing the area. But locals attribute the violence to historical gang presence, not Hussle's store.
Gross said that any criminal activity in the area is an effect of the government's negligence in communities of color.
“This is 50 years of poor social, economic and police policies,” he said. “Don’t make it about The Marathon store and Nipsey. It hurts Nip’s legacy.”
According to the Los Angeles Times, the next evolution of the property will be a mixed-use property called “Nipsey Hussle Tower” that will feature a museum.
The late rapper was shot and killed in front of The Marathon store last year at 33 years old. The case relating to his death remains open, and Eric Holder, the man charged in Hussle's death, is awaiting trial in jail, according to HotNewHipHop.com.


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Homegrown smartphone maker Karbonn Mobiles on Tuesday launched a new smartphone in India, the Karbonn K9 Kavach. The Karbonn K9 Kavach 4G is launched at Rs 5,290, and comes with entry-level hardware specifications. It will be available only in over thousand retail stores around the country from this week onwards.
The key highlight of the newly launched smartphone is its UPI integration, which is basically a pre-loaded BHIM app, which can be used to authenticate payments using fingerprint sensor. Karbonn has become the first brand to partner with NPCI for integrating BHIM app in its devices.
Commenting on the partnership, Pardeep Jain, Managing Director, Karbonn Mobiles said, "Through this partnership, our aim is to promote a cashless economy empowering and educating more and more people in tier 2, 3 cities and rural areas about digital transactions and benefits of the same."
The dual-SIM smartphone runs on Android 7.0 Nougat with a little visual tweaking on top. It has a 5-inch HD (720x1280 pixels) IPS display. It has a 1.25GHz quad-core processor coupled with 1GB of RAM and 8GB of in-built storage (expandable up to 32GB).
Optics include a 5MP rear snapper with autofocus and LED flash, along with a 5MP front camera for video calls and selfies.
It has a 2300mAh battery to power up the device. Connectivity options on the K9 Kavach include 4G VoLTE, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth, Micro-USB, FM radio, and a 3.5mm audio jack.


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"Look for yourself. Do you see any burger, fries or bread here?" asks a beaming Kanageswari Suppiah, 50, co-owner of Kuala Lumpur's McCurry, a typical Indian restaurant in the bustling center of the Malaysian capital. Suppiah points to an array of authentic Indian dishes under the restaurant's glass counter curried chicken, goat's intestine in chili paste, fish head in hot spicy curry, and mee goring, a fried noodle dish beloved by locals. Just hours earlier on Sept. 8, 2009, she had won a landmark court case against American fast-food giant McDonald's, earning the right to keep the Mc prefix in her restaurant's name.
Kanageswari spreads her arms over the trays of food. "Can you see anything McDonald's here?" About a dozen friends and loyal patrons who had turned up to celebrate her hard-won victory applaud in agreement. Her husband P. Suppiah, 55, a local businessman dressed in a coat and tie, stands by her, nodding in agreement. "They thought we would cut our losses and run ... but we fought back and have toppled a giant," he says.
Suppiah was referring to the eight-year-long court battle waged against his family's restaurant by McDonald's a classic David-and-Goliath scenario that ended this week in defeat for the U.S. corporation. Malaysia's highest court ruled on Tuesday that McDonald's proprietary claim over the prefix Mc did not apply to McCurry because it sells only Indian food that has no connection with the American-style fast food that McDonald's sells in its 137 outlets throughout the country. For the past eight years, the Suppiahs have maintained that their restaurant's Mc prefix is an abbreviation for "Malaysian Chicken Curry" a typical Malaysian dish that has been on the menu since the eatery opened.
The case, initiated in 2002, a year after McCurry opened for business, was first won by McDonald's in Malaysia's High Court but was subsequently overturned by the Court of Appeal in McCurry's favor. On Sept. 8, Chief Judge Arifin Zakaria, speaking for a three-member panel of judges in Malaysia's Federal Court, said the court's decision to refuse leave to appeal against the Court of Appeal's decision was unanimous. "We found no merit in the McDonald's appeal to continue with the suit," Arifin said. Counsel S.F. Wong for McDonald's, which has been operating in Malaysia since 1982, said the company would comply with the decision. McDonald Malaysia, contacted by TIME after the verdict, said only that it respected the court's judgment and that it would comply.
McCurry, sandwiched between a beauty salon and a car-parts shop at the edge of the city center in Jalan Ipoh, is fairly ordinary-looking, considering its worldwide fame. The McCurry yellow logo may have a whiff of the Golden Arches, but it doesn't bear any other real resemblance to the U.S. chain. The Suppiahs had invested their life savings of $85,000 in the venture in 2001, hoping to strike it big as a franchise. "At that time, there was no Indian food franchise in the country. We hoped to be the first," says Kanageswari Suppiah. "We were doing fairly O.K. until the first legal letter arrived from McDonald's. We almost had a heart attack," she adds. "They wanted us to take off the Mc or face a lawsuit."
After they refused, McDonald's took the Suppiahs to court, winning the first legal battle, in which the court ordered them to take down the Mc prefix from their signboard. The couple complied, but urged by friends and patrons, they appealed to the Court of Appeal, which decided in their favor in April this year. That court ruled that McDonald's claim on the Mc prefix had no merit and that since McCurry exclusively sells Indian food, the corporation did not suffer any loss of business from the smaller eatery. McDonald's then applied for leave to appeal to the Federal Court, Malaysia's highest court, but after the application for leave was refused on Tuesday, the company was ordered to pay $2,857 in legal fees to McCurry. "It is expensive business to go all the way to the highest court," says Mr. Suppiah, who will not disclose how much he and his family have spent on the case. "Now that we have won, we want to put the nightmare behind us and focus on developing a McCurry franchise."
The restaurant has gradually gained a loyal clientele even as the suit weaved its way through the slow-moving judiciary. The publicity brought them additional patrons, including curious American tourists, Bollywood film crews and plenty of locals. "[Customers] usually attacked McDonald's as they tucked into our Indian dishes," says Mr. Suppiah. "We did gain from the publicity, but because of the lawsuit, we could not franchise our outlet." Adissayam Xavier, a regular customer at McCurry, agrees with its owners that the McDonald's suit has been unfair. "It is cold-hearted to try to put someone out of business simply because there is a resemblance in the name," Adissayam says. "I love this place ... it is clean, the tea is great, and I love the tosai [a pancake-like dish of ground rice] too."
Other entrepreneurs around the world have also won against McDonald's claim to its famous prefix in recent years. In 2001 McDonald's lost a nine-year legal battle against McChina Wok Away, a Chinese takeaway in London, and in 2004, McDonald's lost a trademark-infringement suit against a Singaporean firm that had used names like MacNoodles, MacTea and MacChocolate. "It opens the way for them and other [Malaysians] to use the Mc prefix without fear," says Sri Dev Nair, the Suppiahs' lawyer.
Perhaps. But McDonald's has also had some big victories in its war against perceived interlopers. And in 2007, the U.S. fast-food giant won a battle against a local fast-food chain in the Philippines for borrowing from Ronald's good vibes: MacJoy was ordered to find a new name.