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If you don’t read this news on my website, you will see it elsewhere:
September home prices fall faster than expected
This is a valid national story, but as always perspective is important.
The linked story reports that the Case-Shiller index of 20 major cities showed a decline of 0.8% from August to September, and that 18 of 20 cities experienced declines. Separately I will post and discuss more about the Case-Shiller index, but a single month-to-month change in average prices can be misleading. Not only does it ignore normal seasonal effects, but this year in particular it overlooks the “hangover” from two tax incentive programs that caused homebuyers to move sooner than they probably would have otherwise, creating an artificial “hole” in demand later in the year. I was surprised to see that impact Austin more in September than it did in July and August, just after the last tax credit program expired.
The average home sale price in Austin/Central Texas fell 4.7% from August to September — a substantially larger decline than the Case-Shiller index average. Then, the October average price was up 5.2%, more than making up for the decline in September. Moreover, the September 2010 sale price was UP 4.2% from September 2009, and October was UP almost 11% from a year ago. Considering the entire period from November 2009 through October 2010, average sale prices were UP in 9 of 12 months compared to the prior year.
The other important factor ignored by averages — those discussed above and those considered by the Case-Shiller index — is the mix of sales among various price ranges. While the Austin metro area has remained relatively strong throughout this recession, we have NOT seen an 11% increase in the value of an “average” home over the past year. What we have seen is a shift in buying activity toward higher priced homes. That is most noticeable in the July-October period, since the tax credit program that ended June 30 had the most effect on homes closer to the median range of $150,000 to $200,000. You’ll find a market price distribution chart at AustinMarketDashboard.com if you are interested in more details.
Always feel free to contact me if you have questions about the Austin/Central Texas real estate market or about comments you may read here or elsewhere.
Pingback: Home sales down? Yes … and no? « Bill Morris' Austin Real Estate Blog - December 6, 2010


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The Charity Retail Association is warning that the number of charity shops could be cut by a third if changes are made to the tax relief they get. Currently charity shops get an 80% discount on their business rates, but plans are being discussed to get them to pay more. Nicola Hendy reports.
More top news
The family of an elderly woman from Swansea have been trying to sell her house to pay for her care.
Welshman Nathan Cleverly will face Tony Bellew in Liverpool on the 22nd of November. It's three years since their last fight
It will become dry in the evening. Northern and central parts will become mostly clear and cold, with fog patches.

domain: news


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Speculation is mounting that RIM is about to launch a BlackBerry handset designed to compete more effectively with Apple's iPhone and the increasingly popular Android smartphones.
Information has already been leaked to the web regarding RIM's next device, identified as the BlackBerry 9800 or BlackBerry Torch, although these could be codenames rather than the name under which it will sell.
Sources including Reuters have indicated that the launch may come as early as next week.
The handset is expected to be the first to ship with BlackBerry OS 6, the latest update to RIM's software platform, which was demonstrated at the firm's WES 2010 event in April.
The update features multi-touch controls, better integration with social networks and a revamped browser.
The new device is said to feature a large touch screen for gesture inputs, as well as a slide-out Qwerty keyboard to support the BlackBerry's traditional market of corporate email users.
Photos claiming to be of the device show similar styling to current models, with a touchpad flanked by phone keys underneath the screen. The keyboard slides down from under the screen and looks almost identical to that of the BlackBerry 9700.
RIM declined to answer queries about future products, but indicated to V3.co.uk that an announcement of some kind is due in the near future.
In fear of future shortage - or in preparation for its own electric car project?
New Spectre microcode patches released by Intel to fix security flaws in Skylake, Kaby Lake and Coffee Lake CPUs
But if you're running anything older you'll have to wait
Powered by servers based on Qualcomm's scalable 48-core Centriq 2400 10nm CPUs
Malware has been in circulation for more than a year


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Springfield City Council passed three emergency bills in June to temporarily allow restaurant owners to use their outdoor parking, sidewalk or greenspace for dining.
But not many businesses have taken the city up on the opportunity.
Two restaurants were approved for the outdoor dining options by press time, said city staff, though officials had projected high demand.
“I thought there would be more of a response because it’s an option that’s available and there’s no fee associated with it,” said city planner Matt Schaefer. “It’s surprised me. Maybe there just isn’t the demand.”
Council passed the measures earlier this summer as a way to help restaurant operators increase sales while meeting social distancing requirements amid the coronavirus pandemic. According to survey results from the 2020 Economic Growth Survey by SBJ Publishing Inc. in April, the restaurant industry was believed to be the most impacted sector from COVID-19. A nationwide survey by the National Restaurant Association also found 4 in 10 restaurants closed amid COVID-19, while 2 out of 3 restaurant employees lost their jobs.
Steve Belden, general manager at Bricktown Brewery, said being able to utilize six of the restaurant’s parking spaces helped increase sales in June, though he declined to disclose revenues. When he registered to use the outdoor space, the city’s phased reopening had allowed 25% occupancy in restaurants. Through July 23, restaurants are now able to operate at 50% occupancy of square footage of indoor and outdoor seating areas, according to the city’s recovery plan. The occupancy formula divides the restaurant’s square footage by 30, which is then multiplied by 50%.
“Being able to add those spots immediately offered the opportunity for us to grow our revenue and get more people back to work,” Belden said.
Bricktown Brewery, at 2040 E. Independence St., closed for one month amid the shutdown and furloughed all 70 employees. But with carryout options and the outdoor seating ordinance, Belden said he has been able to recall 100% of the staff.
However, the use of the outdoor dining option was short-lived. Belden said he already has put away the tables that were set up in the six parking spaces.
“We aren’t using the spaces right now because of the summer heat. And once we went to 50% [occupancy], that offset a lot of the losses we were feeling,” he said. “Once we get towards a cooler temperature, we are going to utilize that again if we’re still running with restricted seating.
“I hope that we’ll be back to 100% by this fall, but certainly having that card in our back pocket is helpful.”
The ordinances are in effect until the first of three triggers: 100% occupancy of restaurants is permitted, the mayor’s proclamation of civil emergency has been lifted or Nov. 30.
Council members passed the first two bills that temporarily allowed restaurant owners to use private parking lots and sidewalk space on June 1. Then council recommended city staff draft a similar proposal for the use of greenspace, and that passed on June 15.
Restaurant owners must submit an application to the city with a site plan that includes the layout of the dining area with proof that it will be in compliance with social distancing requirements outlined by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, according to city documents. For those utilizing private parking spaces, restaurants also have to meet parking requirements outlined by the Americans with Disabilities Act and have clear paths for fire access, according to city documents.
Those creating temporary sidewalk cafes have a reduced public liability insurance requirement of $1 million and are not required to pay a fee for an encroachment license, said Dawne Gardner, the city’s transportation planner and ADA coordinator handling temporary sidewalk cafe requests.
Gardner said she’s received some inquiries about sidewalk cafes, though Mudhouse Coffee, at 323 South Ave. downtown, is the only restaurant to apply and be approved so far. Attempts to contact Mudhouse Coffee officials were unsuccessful by press time.
“We expected more, but I think businesses are just trying to get their ducks in a row right now,” said Gardner. “I anticipate there will be more applications from downtown businesses.”
Rusty Worley, executive director of the Downtown Springfield Association, said several downtown restaurant owners have expressed interest in applying for the temporary permits.
“It’s just a matter of them going through the process and getting the application submitted,” Worley said. “It’s just been such a crazy time for our businesses.”
Druff’s, The Coffee Ethic LLC and The Golden Girl Rum Club are among businesses he’s heard interest from, though officials from the restaurants did not return requests for comment by deadline.
A Facebook post by Druff’s on June 12 shows a photo of at least two extra tables placed outside the 331 Park Central East diner.
Similarly, a June 20 post on the Grad School restaurant Facebook page shows additional tables set up on parking spaces behind The J.O.B. Public House on 319 E. Walnut St. Officials did not return requests for comment but previously told SBJ that it was a temporary setup.
Gardner said any business that is serving outdoors and hasn’t applied with the city will be asked to complete an application, adding city staff is enforcing the ordinances on a complaint basis.
Even if businesses aren’t quick to move outdoors, Worley said he anticipates downtown restaurants will continue exploring the idea in the coming months. He also said he hopes council considers making these options permanent.
“We’ve seen how sidewalk cafes improve the vibrancy of center city. I think many of the businesses will look at it as something they’d like to explore beyond the need from limited capacity,” Worley said.
Evangel University senior Abby Voelker became a first-time business owner; a Springfield Public Schools venture got a new home; and Branson-based The Robbins Group moved.
Patrick Little, co-owner of 22 Sierra Coffee Company, says company logos are very important in building a brand. Little says they changed logos to differentiate their product from competitors and …
Independent consultants Mary Overbey, Damion Trout and Lucas Walker say with the fluidity of many economic factors, now is the time to evaluate and make strategic plans. Make big decisions when …
Katherine Trombetta, spokesperson for the Missouri Job Center, says unemployment levels are comparable to pre-pandemic levels. Trombetta attributes this to the diverse industry market in the …
Steve Kelly, senior vice president with Arvest Bank, says a friend told him not to let preconceived notions limit his accomplishments. Dream bigger than what you think is possible. Kelly is one of …
Technology business consultant Mackenzie Scherer says social media sites are making e-commerce easier. She says Facebook Shop and Instagram Shop give you the benefits of having an e-commerce site and …
Austin Fax, attorney at Lowther Johnson Attorneys at Law, LLC says he likes The Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis. Fax says he can reread the book and get something new each time. Duration: 0:51
Aaron Schekorra, public health information specialist with the Springfield-Greene County Health Department clears up misconceptions they’ve heard from the public during the pandemic. Duration: …
Cristian Rath, consultant with Abacus CPAs, LLC, says building a network is important. It isn’t about sales, but growing relationships in order to help clients. Rath is one of Springfield Business …
Curtis Marshall, CEO of Tie & Timber Beer Company, says he struggles to maintain a healthy work-life balance. Marshall says he sees life as a book, while one chapter might focus on work, the next is …
C.C. Guice, owner of A Wench in the Gear, says it took a leap of faith to quit her day job and pursue her passion. Guice says her significant other gave her the confidence she needed to go all …


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Food recalls are rarely laughing matter, but the latest alert about a supermarket product has us cracking up here at the office. Silver Lake brand Easter Egg Cookies were recalled last week because—wait for it—the cookies contain eggs.
Customers are being warned about the product because the company accidentally shipped the product but left "eggs" off of the ingredient list. People with egg allergies should not consume the cookies, which were distributed to grocery stores across the U.S. If you're not allergic to eggs, they're totally safe to consume—and also ridicule.


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The Hellcat Jeep Trackhawk: Quickest, Fastest and Most Powerful SUV in the World
We have been talking about the possibility of a Jeep Grand Cherokee packing the Hellcat Hemi, but ahead of Wednesday’s Big Apple debut – the supercharged Trackhawk has made its online introduction.
Strongest, Quickest, Fastest in the World
The 2018 Jeep Grand Cherokee Trackhawk is everything that we had hoped, with the supercharged 6.2L Hemi delivering 707 horsepower and 645lb-ft of torque, making this Hellcat-powered beast the world’s most powerful gasoline-powered production SUV – beating every other SUV in the world by a massive margin.
That power is channeled through a high strength transmission and a high strength transfer case to all four wheels so efficiently that the Trackhawk Jeep is able to blast from a stop to 60 miles per hour in just 3.5 seconds while covering the quarter mile takes the newest Grand Cherokee just 11.6 seconds at 116mph. This is quicker than any gas-powered SUV in the world, and each of those measures are just a few clicks slower than the lighter Hellcat Dodge cars. Helping this SUV get off of the line and down the track so quickly are the Torque Reserve system and the intercooler chilling system from the new Dodge Demon. With this new technology coupled with the advanced all-wheel drive system, the supercharged Jeep is capable of launching much harder and much more quickly than the RWD Hellcat cars.
Also, in addition to making the Trackhawk crazy-quick from a stop, the Hellcat Hemi also makes this Jeep the fastest SUV in the world, with a top speed of 180 miles per hour.
For comparison, the next closest competitor for the 2018 Jeep Grand Cherokee Trackhawk is the 2017 Porsche Cayenne Turbo S, which uses a twin turbocharged V8 to produce 570 horsepower and 590lb-ft of torque to run from 0-60 in 3.8 seconds while reaching a top speed of 176 miles per hour.
We do not yet have any pricing for the 2018 Jeep Trackhawk, but the 2017 Porsche Cayenne Turbo S starts at $161,600 and with the current SRT Jeep starting around $66k – it is almost a surefire guarantee that the supercharged Jeep will be far less expensive than the Porsche which it will beat in pretty much any race.
Best of all, in addition to being the quickest, the fastest and the most powerful production SUV in the world, the 2018 Jeep Grand Cherokee Trackhawk will still tow 7,200lbs – so this SUV could tow a car to the drag strip and the odds are good that this tow vehicle will be quicker than many of the cars in the street class…maybe even with the trailer hooked up.
Suspension, Braking and Tire Tweaks
While the 2018 Jeep Grand Cherokee Trackhawk doesn’t look all that different from the SRT 392 models, this SUV is more than just a big engine in the big Jeep. The transmission, transfer case, driveshaft and axles shafts have all been strengthened to handle the combination of 707hp and 645lb-ft of torque, especially when launching hard with the Torque Reserve system.
Next, after making this Jeep incredibly quick and fast, the team turned to making sure that it could handle with the extra power and the extra weight (Trackhawk weighs 250+ pounds more than the current SRT 392 models) when it hits a turn. The adaptive suspension dampers have been retuned and the springs are stiffer all around (9% in the front, 15% in the rear), allowing the Trackhawk to hit 0.88g on the skidpad.
Finally, the lightweight wheels are one of the few unique exterior design cues of the Trackhawk, wrapped in 295-wide high performance tires which help the big SUV accelerate, corner and stop like a world class performance car. The Trackhawk has the biggest brakes of any production Jeep ever, with 15.75 inch rotors and 6-piston calipers up front and 13.75 inch rotors and 4-piston calipers out back – allowing the 5,300lb SUV to get stopped from 60mph in just 114 feet.
We don’t get any production numbers or prices with the online arrival of the vital information, but with the grand debut of the Trackhawk set for the New York International Auto Show on Wednesday, we could learn more about this incredible high performance Mopar SUV later this week.


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Nielsen, Charter sign deal for STB data
The Nielsen Co. and Charter Communications announced today that they have signed an agreement to commercialize the use of anonymous digital set-top box (STB) data for analytical and potential audience measurement purposes for television.
As part of the agreement, Charter is providing Nielsen with anonymous STB viewing data from almost 330,000 households in the Los Angeles area, which Nielsen will develop into commercially available analyses and reports of digital TV viewership.
The financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed, but it is noteworthy that a cable operator is willing to share the viewing habits of its subscribers.
To protect its customers' privacy and maintain the confidentiality of their viewing preferences, Charter will only provide data in an anonymous form to prevent Nielsen from identifying the personal information or identity of any individual Charter customer.
In the same vein, all Nielsen reports will contain only anonymous and aggregated data.
According to the two companies, this research will be the first time that census-level tuning data and panel-based people meter viewing data will be combined to produce expanded household and demographic reporting from a local TV market.
"Charter is committed to improving the precision of local market measurement," said Jim Heneghan, SVP of advertising sales for Charter. "By working with Nielsen, we are ensuring that our advertiser and agency clients get the most reliable data possible to evaluate their media buys."
The information gathered from Charter’s STBs will be available to Nielsen’s clients in the second quarter of this year.
More Broadband Direct:


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Starting today masks or face coverings are mandatory on the TTC
Starting today, masks or face coverings are mandatory for riders travelling on the TTC, with the exception of children under two years of age, people with underlying medical conditions, which prevent them from wearing a mask or those unable to place or remove a mask without assistance, as well as TTC employees and agents within an area designated for TTC personnel and not for public access.
The new measures aim to help curb the spread of COVID-19 as more people begin to ride public transit as Phase 2 of reopening continues.
Spokesperson Stuart Green tells our media partner CP24 that the TTC will not be strictly enforcing the new mask rule, "For the short term and medium term, we won’t be doing strict enforcement. Really we just want people to get that message...Nobody will be refused a ride. There are reasons why people can’t wear a face covering and we appreciate that," Green said.
And Green is urging people not to "police" those who cannot wear one: "We also ask people to respect the people who cannot wear face coverings. It's not really up to people to police others. They can police themselves, but please don't police others. There are probably reasons why people aren't wearing masks. For those that are entering stations without masks or on the bus network, we will be handing out masks. We've got a million masks to giveaway."
The TTC also resumes all-door boarding on buses today, as well as accepting cash, ticket and token payment options again.
Meantime, on Tuesday, Toronto City Council approved a bylaw that will make face coverings mandatory in all indoor public spaces, including shopping malls, grocery stores, retail stores, convenience stores, places of worship, indoor recreational facilities, among others.
That bylaw will take effect July 7th.


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The BlackBerry 2017 announcement has definitely taken everyone by surprise. The Canadian smartphone maker has decided to make a last ditch attempt to revive its erstwhile position. BlackBerry has announced a brand new Qwerty smartphone at the event.
The BlackBerry 2017 announcement at CES 2017 has surprised everyone who thought the company was dying a slow death. However, the company had earlier emphasized upon the fact that it would still exist. The manufacturing duties have only been transferred somewhere else as per its statement.
The BlackBerry 2017 announcement was made by TCL Communication Technology Holdings Limited. A touch and feel session took place for the brand new BlackBerry smartphone as per USA Today.
More on the new BlackBerry
The new BlackBerry looks really attractive in aluminum and comes with a physical Qwerty keyboard as well. The company is going back to the basics since this is what made it popular in the old days.
According to the organization General Manager & President for North America, Steve Cistulli, rumors flew all over the last few months. He added that “we just wanted to say, look that it’s real”. He talked of the entire phase being “part of a portfolio play” for moving forward.
TCL is the North American division of the Chinese behemoth which owns other brands including Alcatel. TCL is the 4th largest handset maker in the North American market. Most of the new BlackBerry’s specifications and even the price are still to be revealed.
When Will It Be Released?
The phone still has to be given an official name. It is currently codenamed Mercury and is expected to be launched around late February 2017. This launch should take place around the time of the Mobile World Congress.
The smartphone will support Android Nougat and will have a USB-C port and fingerprint sensor. There will be the BlackBerry Hub and the headphone jack as well. The launch of this new BlackBerry smartphone has also been confirmed by The Guardian.


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Under an agreement signed last July, Google, Mountain View, Calif., is providing its search-engine technology to enable users in greater China to search English and Chinese content on China.com. With the expanded agreement, Google will advertise on China.com and explore new opportunities with the Beijing company.
Under the expanded agreement with China Mobile, the Chinese mobile operator will place video ads on China.com to promote its products and services to business professionals, its core user base.
"Our goal is to achieve a robust rate of growth in advertising that will equal or exceed industry projections for overall growth of 30% to 35% in online advertising this year in China," China.com said Monday.
In premarket activity, CDC Corp.'s shares were trading at $8.44, up 4.8% from Friday's close of $8.05.


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- Luxury goods retailer, Cettire has reported 127% surge in its sales revenue to AU$209.0 million.
- Statutory gross margin in FY2022, rose to AU$37.4 million; gross margin percentage declined to 17.8%.
- The group has ended the period with a cash balance of AU$22.7 million and zero debt.
Global online retailer, Cettire Limited (ASX:CTT), on Tuesday (30 August 2022), shared its full-year results for the year ended 30 June 2022 (FY22). ASX-listed retailer has also shared its outlook for FY23.
At 10:30 AM AEST, the share price of Cettire was quoted 5.714% up at AU$0.925 apiece. With this, in last five trading sessions, it has gained 20.78%, and in last one month, it has gained 66.07%. However, the year-to-date fall is 74.66%.
Key highlights from FY22 financial update
- In the financial year 2022, the company reported gross revenue of AU$287.8 million, up 131% on the previous year.
- Sales revenue grew 127% to AU$209.9 million.
- Active customers increased by 127% to 260k.
- 50% of the gross revenue was generated from repeat customers.
- Adjusted EBITDA in FY22 was negative to AU$21.5 million. It was driven by investment to scale the platform.
- Statutory net loss after tax during the year increased from AU$251,000 in FY21 to AU$19.1 million in FY22.
- Operating cash flow during the 12 months was negative AU$14.7 million.
- The company entered the FY23 with the cash balance of AU$22.7 million and zero financial debt.
What else happened during the financial year 2022?
The company achieved substantial growth in the global supply chain, and inventory value has surpassed the AU$1 billion mark. The company has added extra direct luxury brand supply relationships to offer a platform to all supply chain members. Dean Mintz, CEO and founder, Cettire, highlighted that in FY22, Cettire reported significant advancements to its technology platform. Now, the company owns a technology stack across its customer’s journey. This offers considerable global growth opportunities.
Another milestone that Cettire achieved is the launch of its mobile application that enhanced user experience and increased the opportunities to retail and engage its customers.
Outlook for FY23
In the coming year, the company would focus on maximising its profitable growth revenue, said Cettire in a statement. Also, the company intends to be EBITDA positive in the next year.
Near-term investment priorities are investment in technology, customer acquisition and building organisational capability.
The company has provided an early look into FY23. The trading momentum was positive during the first half of FY23 as sales revenue in July surged by 67% on prior corresponding period. Also, in August, the sales revenue increased by 67%. In July, the company reported adjusted EBITDA of more than AU$2 million.
Commenting on the FY23 outlook, Mintz said:


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For a few years in the 1930s and 1940s, California farmers spread nitrate-rich fertilizer from Chile on their fields, little knowing they were sowing the seeds for litigation that would test the limits of whether companies can be liable for risks they could neither anticipate nor control.
The fertilizer from a company now known as SQM North America contained tiny amounts of perchlorate, a toxic chemical also used in rocket fuel that can leach into groundwater. In 1997, California regulators developed technology capable of sensing previously undetectable levels of perchlorate as low as four parts per billion and ordered cities to upgrade their water-treatment facilities to deal with the risk.
Thirteen years later, the City of Pomona sued SQM, seeking to stick the Chilean fertilizer company with the $8 million bill for its upgrade. SQM won the first rounds of the lawsuit, but the case is currently on appeal before the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, which well may reverse a lower court and hold SQM liable for a product that was completely legal and believed to be risk-free when it was sold.
Monsanto faces a similar lawsuit by the City of San Diego, which blames the manufacturer for selling PCBs that local companies dumped into the municipal sewer system decades ago. Brushing aside the fact that Monsanto stopped making PCBs in 1977 or traditional notions that companies can’t be liable for a “nuisance” they had no control over, a federal judge allowed the case to proceed. A trial is set for February 2020.
And in one of the scariest applications of liability-by-hindsight, a California court delivered a $400 million verdict against Sherwin-Williams and ConAgra for selling lead paint and pigment more than 70 years ago that California cities now say must be removed as a public safety hazard. Nevermind that the product was legal and the risks of lead have been widely known since the days of the Roman empire. The judge found that based on a few snippets of advertising and some communications with an industry trade group in the 1930s, the companies were guilty of a conspiracy to inflict a deadly product on the public.
What’s going on here? Is it just crazy California courts up to their old tricks again? To some extent, yes. The Golden State has always been hospitable to trial lawyers seeking to expand the boundaries of tort law. In the case of decades-old products, they want courts to apply backward-looking concepts of risk and utility, under which companies can be held accountable for injuries that were either unknowable at the time or considered well worth risking in exchange for the usefulness of a product. (The federal government specified lead paint for healthcare facilities, for example, because it was easier to clean.)
“The theory is you made it, you have to clean it up,” says Phil Goldberg, a partner with Shook, Hardy & Bacon who defends toxic-tort cases. “That’s not traditional liability theory.”
Goldberg likens it to making manufacturers insurers of long-tailed risks—retroactively and without the benefit of ever having collected a premium. There’s a certain rough justice to it all, since somebody will have to pay to clean up Pomona’s drinking water and San Diego Bay. But if courts can assign liability to anybody who ever sold a product that turns out to be dangerous in some way, we’re in trouble. Imagine how much a six-pack of beer would cost if Anheuser-Busch had to pay for every drunk-driving accident and case of domestic abuse attributed to its products.
“Liability law is about incentivizing the right behavior,” Goldberg says. “If somebody cannot avoid liability, then they shouldn’t be liable.”


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Asus Seeking to More than Double its Share of India's Tablet Market
Published on: 15th Apr 2014
Note -- this news article is more than a year old.
Taiwan's Asus has set itself a target of increasing its market share of India's tablet sales to 10 percent by the end of the year.
It will seek to achieve this by launching new products and expanding its retail footprint, the company's regional head told the Press Trust of India.
The company sells its own brand of tablets under the FonePad brandname, as well as being a supplier for the Google Nexus tablets.
"Currently, we have single digit market share between 3-5 per cent. The Indian tablet market is estimated to be about 50 lakh units. We want to grow our share to 10 per cent this year," Asus regional head South Asia and India manager system business group Peter Chang said.
The company expects to release 3-5 new tablets, targeted at the Indian market this year, and double its retail presence to 200 stores.


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Apple launched iOS 10 to the public today, and while every iPhone user must be psyched that they can lastly erase the “Stocks” app, the download process briefly turned some individuals’s phones into shiny, worthless bricks.
A quick search on social networks, like the one site did, reveals that dozens and dozens of iPhone and iPad users were afflicted. When these users tried to set up the over-the-air update of the latest os on Tuesday early morning, their devices uselessly secured.
Impacted users were advised to link their devices to iTunes to restore the software and finish the upgrade.
” Wow. iPad pro update stopped working,” a single person tweeted. “I do not even know if I have iTunes or a totally free USB port!”
Apple confirmed that there had been a concern in a declaration to Recode:
” We experienced a short problem with the software upgrade procedure, affecting a small number of users during the first hour of schedule,” the business discussed. “The issue was quickly dealt with and we ask forgiveness to those customers. Anybody who was impacted should connect to iTunes to complete the upgrade or get in touch with AppleCare for help.”


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USPS Price Increase Still Likely ... Just Later and (Hopefully) Less
In early October, the Postal Regulatory Commission (PRC) was applauded by the mailing industry when it denied the USPS its exigent price increase, which would have taken effect in January 2011 for an average increase of 5.6 percent, with specific products receiving higher or lower increases (catalogs were expected to see increases ranging from 4 percent to 10 percent).
In a landmark decision, the PRC ruled that while the unprecedented volume decline resulting from the recession would meet the tests of an exigent price increase request, the USPS failed to show that the requested revenue from higher postal rates would solve its financial problems.
Technically, the USPS has three options now that the PRC has denied its request:
- it could re-file the request with different/enhanced arguments;
- it could take the PRC to court and fight its decision; or
- it could file for a consumer price index (CPI)-based increase of around 2 percent to 3 percent. The exact amount for the CPI cap will not be known until the end of 2010 and the USPS also has a small percentage available in unused rate authority from previous price increases.
May 2011 Price Increase Likely
It's unlikely that the USPS will challenge the PRC’s decision in court or re-file its exigent request, which leaves it with the third option as the most viable to improve its financial condition. The USPS is expected to prepare a request to file to the PRC for a CPI-based increase that would take effect in May 2011.
Although the overall average increase proposed by the USPS would be 2 percent to 3 percent, as limited by the CPI, catalogers and other mailers need to remember that the average increase seldom applies to every product category. It's likely that catalogs would still see a higher than average increase.


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Were you unable to attend Transform 2022? Check out all of the summit sessions in our on-demand library now! Watch here.
Software titan Microsoft beat Wall Street expectations with record second quarter revenues of $20.9 billion, a 5 percent increase from the same quarter last year.
“We delivered solid financial results, even as we prepare for a launch year that will accelerate many of our key products and services,” said Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer, in a statement. “Coming out of the Consumer Electronics Show, we’re seeing very positive reviews for our new phones and PCs, and a strong response to our new Metro style design that will unify consumer experiences across our phones, PCs, tablets, and television in 2012.”
For Q2 2012, Microsoft’s operating income was $7.99 billion compared to $8.17 billion in the year-before quarter. Net income was virtually unchanged at $6.62 billion versus $6.63 billion in the year-before quarter. Diluted earnings per share amounted to $.78 per share against $.77 per share a year ago.
MetaBeat will bring together thought leaders to give guidance on how metaverse technology will transform the way all industries communicate and do business on October 4 in San Francisco, CA.
The company barely beat Wall Street’s revenue estimates, as some analysts were expecting earnings of $.76 per share. Microsoft beat that by two pennies per share.
Microsoft’s Business Division had an especially strong quarter with $6.28 billion in revenue, a 3 percent increase from the prior-year period. The company was fueled by sales of Microsoft Office 2010 licences, of which it has sold about 200 million since its launch 18 month ago. Revenue generated from SharePoint and Exchange also grew by 10 percent (or more) versus the year-before quarter.
On top of that strong business-focused performance, Microsoft’s Server & Tools category posted $4.77 billion in second quarter revenue, an 11% increase from a year ago.
“We saw strong demand for our business products and services, despite the soft PC market and continuing economic uncertainty in key parts of the world,” said Peter Klein, chief financial officer at Microsoft, in a statement. “We delivered record earnings per share by continuing to manage our costs while investing for future growth.”
The company’s only major drop in revenues by division appeared in its Windows/Windows Live Division with revenue of $4.74 billion, a 6 percent decline from the year-before period. The Online Services Division reported revenue of $784 million, a 10 percent increase from the year before.
Finally, Microsoft’s Entertainment & Devices Division posted revenue of $4.24 billion, an increase of 15 percent from the year before. That highlights the success of its Xbox 360 game console and the motion-controlled Kinect sensor. Microsoft has sold 66 million Xbox 360 consoles and 18 million Kinect sensors to date. And the Xbox Live service now has 40 million members, a massive increase of 33 percent from the prior-year period.
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Shanghai – SAIC Motor Corp., Ltd. (SAIC) Chairman Hu Maoyuan and General Motors Co. (GM) Chairman and CEO Dan Akerson signed an agreement earlier this week in Shanghai for the co-development of a new electric vehicle architecture in China.
The Pan Asia Technical Automotive Center (PATAC) – SAIC and GM’s engineering and design joint venture in Shanghai – will serve as the development center for the architecture. Joint teams from the parent companies will also cooperate on the development of key components and vehicle structures.
The agreement will leverage SAIC’s market knowledge and local expertise along with GM’s expertise in electric vehicle development and global know-how. It will ensure local input in the development of electric vehicle technology and the delivery of products developed in China.
“The co-development of this new electric vehicle architecture demonstrates the broad range of benefits made possible by the strong partnership between SAIC and GM,” said Tim Lee, president of GM International Operations. “For almost 15 years, our two companies have forged some of the industry’s most successful joint ventures. This unprecedented level of cooperation is another demonstration of our companies’ commitment to work collaboratively.”
According to Chen Hong, president of SAIC Motor, “Our agreement will enable SAIC and GM to take advantage of economies of scale and get new technology to the market faster than by going it alone. It will help bring about our goal of leading the automotive industry in new energy vehicles and our vision of sustainable transportation, which we introduced at World Expo 2010 Shanghai.”
The electric vehicle architecture will be the first to be co-developed by the two companies. Their Shanghai GM joint venture introduced the Sail electric concept vehicle late last year. Establishing PATAC as the engineering lead for the electric vehicle architecture demonstrates not just the strength of the GM-SAIC partnership, but also the confidence and trust the companies have in one another to accomplish an aggressive and challenging project.
Under the agreement, teams of SAIC, GM and PATAC engineers will work together to develop key components, as well as vehicle structures and architectures. Vehicles resulting from the partnership will be sold in China under Shanghai GM and SAIC brands. SAIC and GM will also use the architecture to build electric vehicles around the globe for their own purposes. Product details and timing will be announced at a later date.
Accelerating the introduction of roadworthy technologies such as this future electric vehicle architecture is more important than ever, following the announcement of a number of more stringent emission and fuel consumption regulations around the world, including China.
Today’s agreement is a follow-up to the non-binding memorandum of understanding (MoU) on strategic cooperation signed by SAIC and GM on Nov. 3, 2010. The two automakers had pledged to reinforce their collaboration in certain core areas of their business, including the development of new energy vehicles and the creation of a stronger and more integrated role for PATAC to work on future vehicles and powertrains. GM and SAIC are making an equal investment in the project.
SAIC and GM are partners in 10 joint ventures in China, which are engaged in vehicle and powertrain manufacturing, sales and aftersales, automotive engineering and design, automotive finance and telematics, and the sale of used vehicles. The companies’ manufacturing joint ventures, Shanghai GM and SAIC-GM-Wuling, are market leaders in China. In addition, SAIC and GM operate a joint venture in India and SAIC is an investor in GM Korea Co.
About General Motors: General Motors, one of the world’s largest automakers, traces its roots back to 1908. With its global headquarters in Detroit, GM employs 208,000 people in every major region of the world and does business in more than 120 countries. GM and its strategic partners produce cars and trucks in 30 countries, and sell and service these vehicles through the following brands: Baojun, Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, GMC, Daewoo, Holden, Isuzu, Jiefang, Opel, Vauxhall and Wuling. GM’s largest national market is China, followed by the United States, Brazil, the United Kingdom, Germany, Canada and Italy. GM’s OnStar subsidiary is the industry leader in vehicle safety, security and information services. More information on the new General Motors can be found at www.gm.com.


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New Teva CEO Kare Schultz is getting down to business—and quickly.
Two of Roche's newest drugs—including the just-approved hemophilia therapy Hemlibra—racked up data that bolster their case for $1 billion-plus sales.
Three major regulatory bodies – FDA, EMA and Health Canada – changed their guidelines to drug naming. How could these changes impact drug launch timelines?
Facing a rash of lawsuits claiming aggressive opioid marketing led to a nationwide epidemic, Purdue Pharma is reportedly initiating settlement talks.
Bayer's consumer health ambitions have been frustrated by declining U.S. sales, and now it's shaking up management to get the unit back on track.
Cardinal Health has agreed to sell its China business to Shanghai Pharma for $557 million in cash.
If recent numbers—and a new doctor survey—are any indication, Tesaro's Zejula has the lead in ovarian cancer. But that could change.
The new digital Abilify is a breakthrough for Proteus Digital Health and its patient-tracking products, but not so much for Abilify's maker, Otsuka.
Pfizer bowed out of a troubled joint venture with China's Hisun Pharma, which sells branded generic drugs in China.
Pfizer now has a chief operating officer and, potentially, a successor to CEO Ian Read: Albert Bourla, who now heads its Innovative Health unit.
With cash flow under pressure, AstraZeneca could struggle to live up to CEO Pascal Soriot's commitment to pay a generous dividend "today, tomorrow,…


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Konami’s miserable presence in the gaming industry these last few years has been depressing to see for all the fans of its many beloved properties, but recent months have seen several leaks and rumours swirling around that have suggested that some of those properties might be on the verge of coming back. Many (if not most) of these are supposedly being made with external developers though, so what’s actually going on with Konami’s internal development teams?
Well, something is definitely going on. Interestingly enough, Ikuya Nakamura – a Konami veteran who’s been involved with pretty much every Metal Gear Solid title in a number of different roles – has mentioned in his Twitter bio that he’s currently working on a new, unannounced game (via Reddit). According to his bio, Nakamura is serving as the game’s writer and designer. Nakamura’s last game was Metal Gear Survive, so it should be interesting to see what he’s been working on since then.
Some leaks have suggested that a Metal Gear Solid revival is in the works, with Konami planning on licensing out some of its biggest IPs. Leaks have also strongly suggested that multiple new Silent Hill games are in the works, one of which might be being developed by The Medium and Layers of Fear developer Bloober Team.
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'Going to the Henty Field Days’: Wodonga TAFE students design for the Natural Fibre Fashion Awards
Tuesday, 18 September 2018
Students from the Fashion Design program at Wodonga TAFE are again putting their best garments forward for the “Natural Fibre Fashion Awards” at the Henty Machinery Field Days this week.
Students in the Certificate III in Clothing and Textile Production and the Certificate IV in Clothing Production courses have submitted their original creations into the ‘Best Garment Designed by a Student’ category of the awards at Henty, to be shown daily as part of the Country Lifestyle Schedule fashion parades.
Wodonga TAFE’s Fashion Design Teacher, Ms Deidre Liston, said the students were making the most of this opportunity to showcase their work at an event of national standard. “A student from Wodonga TAFE has taken out this award for the past four years, so this year’s students have been very keen to take part”, said Ms Liston. “The Natural Fibre Fashion Awards give the students an extra challenge in working to the specifications of the Award, along with showcasing their handiwork to a wider audience.”
The Certificate III students have created their pieces with a contemporary edge inspired from across the 20th century; from 1940’s sailor pants, 60’s shift dresses, the disco era of Studio 54, and the bold dressing of the 1990s, whereas the Certificate IV students have showcased an item from the collection that they have created as part of their course.
“Throughout their course, students completing the Certificate IV create a collection to outfit four people, so they have selected one of these recently-completed garments for their entry”, explained Ms Liston.
“Wodonga TAFE is the only TAFE outside the metropolitan areas to offer Clothing Production and Textile Production courses, so to have our regional students as regular winners in the Awards is great recognition of the quality of our courses and of our students’ skills”, said Ms Liston.
The Natural Fibre Fashion Awards parade runs at 1pm each day of the Field Days, with the judging and winners to be announced on Thursday 20 September 2018.
Click here to find out more about the Fashion Design courses at Wodonga TAFE. If you would like to make your start in this exciting industry, apply online now for 2019 via the 'Apply Now' links in the course information.


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The number of U.S. dealerships rose slightly in 2022 after dropping two years in a row, though new-vehicle sales per franchise, or throughput, declined nearly 9 percent amid reduced new-vehicle availability, according to Automotive News’ annual dealership census.
Automotive News counted 18,271 franchised dealerships on Jan. 1, up 0.4 percent from a year earlier. The number of new-vehicle franchises fell 0.2 percent to 31,366 between Jan. 1, 2022, and Jan. 1, 2023.
Each franchise on average sold 425 new vehicles last year, an 8.8 percent decline, according to the census.
The census ranks 42 brands for throughput, a measure of dealership network health. This year’s census was the first to include Polestar, which had 29 franchises as of Jan. 1.
Ford Motor Co. shed 35 dealerships last year — a 1 percent decline. The Ford brand gained 19 exclusive stores but shed 31 franchises, to land at 2,967 franchises at the beginning of 2023. Lincoln, which lost 54 franchises, shed four exclusives last year. It had 637 franchises on Jan. 1.
Ford spokeswoman Cathleen O’Hare, in an email to Automotive News, said some Lincoln dealers voluntarily resigned “at multi-franchised dealerships to improve the customer experience and focus on one franchise,” which fueled the rise in Ford exclusives. She said Ford had no comment on the decrease in Ford franchises.
Across the industry, the number of exclusive dealerships rose 1.6 percent to 12,151. The number of import-badged exclusive dealerships jumped 2 percent last year.
Other brands seeing double-digit gains in standalone stores included Hyundai with an increase of 80, Mazda with 21 more, and Kia and Mitsubishi each adding more than 10. Jeep also grew its exclusive-store count by more than double from a year earlier.
Overall U.S. light-vehicle sales through dealerships fell 9.3 percent to 13.4 million vehicles, according to the Automotive News Research & Data Center. The tally excludes Tesla, Lucid, Rivian and Karma.
Throughput fell for 30 franchised brands and increased for 11, not counting Polestar which was new to the list.
Mitch Phillips, global director of data at Urban Science, a consulting firm thatalso tracks dealership counts, attributed the industry’s decline in throughput not only to inventory shortages, but also the economy and consumer perception of the economic conditions to come.
Toyota, which has long held the top spot for throughput, again was No. 1 with 1,494 vehicles sold per franchise, though also down 8.8 percent from a year ago, as its inventory was constrained.
Lexus again finished No. 2, with throughput of 1,060 vehicles, a 15 percent slide. Its dealers had record low inventory throughout most of 2022.
BMW’s throughput declined 1.6 percent to 947 vehicles but climbed one spot to third. Honda tumbled five spots to No. 8, with throughput of 826 vehicles, down 33 percent. Throughput at Acura fell 35 percent to 378 vehicles.
Honda and Acura spokesman Chris Naughton called the two brands “restrained only by limited inventory, due to industrywide supply chain challenges.” But Naughton said American Honda Motor started 2023 with more than double the inventory it had a year earlier.
Mercedes-Benz, the only brand in the top 10 to see throughput rise, jumped four spots to No. 4. Its throughput rose 6.4 percent to 916 vehicles. Kia rounded out the Top 5, rising from No. 6 despite a 2.2 percent decline in throughput to 892 vehicles. It swapped places with Subaru, which fell to No. 6. The rest of the Top 10 retained their positions: Hyundai at 7, Nissan at 9 and Audi at 10.
Cadillac dealers sold 240 new vehicles per franchise, up 45 percent for the industry’s largest percentage gain.Cadillac’s dealer network included 564 franchises Jan. 1, up two from the previous year. Cadillac shed 313 franchises in 2021 amid a buyout program for dealers ahead of the brand’s EV push.
“Our sales momentum is due to many factors — outstanding product, breakthrough advertising and exceptional customer experience via a leaner, fitter Cadillac dealer network,” Cadillac spokesman Michael Albano said in an email to Automotive News.


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CafePress (NASDAQ:PRSS) was upgraded by analysts at ValuEngine from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report released on Sunday.
CafePress (NASDAQ:PRSS) opened at $1.84 on Friday. CafePress has a fifty-two week low of $1.67 and a fifty-two week high of $3.72. The company has a market cap of $33.29, a price-to-earnings ratio of -4.28 and a beta of 0.62.
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CafePress Inc is an online retailer of personalized products offering various gifts and accessories, including t-shirts and apparel, mugs and drinkware, and home goods, such as custom shower curtains and bed coverings. The Company conducts its business on its primary United States-based domain, CafePress.com, and also operates CafePress branded Websites for the markets in the United Kingdom, Canada and Australia.
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Big business doesn't care about Fed tapering or Obamacare
Big businesses aren't worried about two of Washington, D.C.'s biggest stories: the Federal Reserve's tapering of its asset purchases and the rocky implementation of health care reform.
At least that's according to corporate economists surveyed by the National Association of Business Economics.
The survey found that 70 percent don't expect tapering to have any effect on their companies' profitability, and 94 percent said it won't have any effect on capital expenditures. The Fed's bond-buying frenzy propped up stock prices, but it didn't seem to have much effect on corporate America's decision-making. The Fed is expected to announce Wednesday that it will continue to dial back these asset purchases.
Obamacare also seems to be a non-event for most big businesses.
About 75 percent of the 64 corporate economists who responded to the NABE survey don't expect health care reform to have any material impact on business conditions. Plus, 85 percent said their companies have made no changes in hiring plans due to the Affordable Care Act.
It's a different story with small businesses, however. Smaller manufacturers are more frustrated with health care reform than larger manufacturers, noted Chad Moutray, chief economist for the National Association of Manufacturers. The rising cost of health insurance is their biggest concern, he said.
Plus, it's still unclear what impact health care reform will have on consumers. If they feel pinched by higher health insurance costs, they could cut back on discretionary spending, which could hurt some businesses.
Overall, however, most corporate economists report that sales and profits are up, and they're confident about business prospects for the year ahead.
But we're still stuck in a pattern of "boomless expansion," said Mike Englund, chief economist for Action Economics. Gross domestic product growth has remained in so-so territory -- between 2 percent and 3 percent -- ever since the economic recovery began in 2009. That's not likely to change any time soon. Nearly 70 percent of the corporate economists expect GDP growth in that range in 2014.
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Madge fan fury in Spain
• Fans are angry over the price of Madonna tickets
MADONNA fans are up in arms after being forced to stump up a staggering 106 euros a ticket for the only Spanish date on her world tour in June.
A number of disgruntled fans have posted complaints on forums after tickets for the Barcelona show went on sale.
One fan, Nek, wrote to forum All About Madonna.com saying: “I think these prices are too expensive for many people.”
Madonna, 53, will play the city’s Palau Sant Jordi stadium on June 20 – with the superstar said to be taking around 90 per cent of the ticket sale cost herself.
“The question is definitely whether ticket prices are too high,” said Gary Bongiovanni from ticket vending website Pollstar.
“Sales were brisk for the first few days and then they tapered off,” admitted a source close to the tour.
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Batman: Arkham Knight is set to the hit the PS4, Xbox One and PC later this year and fans are doing their best to unmask Arkham Knight, the villain who will double as villainous ring-leader. Now, there is a handful of screenshots enough to excite the fans out there waiting for the game.
The Rocksteady Studios hasn't precisely been ready with the new promotional media for Batman: Arkham Knight, but the most recent set of screenshots to hit in the game's official Twitter account present a peep at three of the villains fixed to come out in the Batman: Arkham Knight single-player campaign.
More than a month after Rocksteady completely publicised a non-watermarked edition of the Batman: Arkham Knight screenshots with Game Informer earlier in March, the studio has completely made known a new collection of promotional photos for its first PS4/Xbox One project. Unfortunately, it's a set that comprises less than six new Batman: Arkham Knight images, but the majority of fans will most likely get something they can at this time.
Last May 8, the up-to-date set of Batman: Arkham Knight pictures were out through the game's official Twitter account. The Rocksteady Studio took almost two weeks only to produce the five new images, it is not totally amusing that the newest set of Batman: Arkham Knight photos haven't been the top of the bill news.
The released photos of Batman: Arkham Knight last May didn't really show anything surprising. The released images do verify the look of the three Batman villains, including Two-Face and Harley Quinn, but we barely know anything about the Batman: Arkham Knight.
Here is just some of the information we can conclude from the last set of Batman: Arkham Knight images. The images released revealed that The Riddler will continue to be the one of the only characters to exist in all of the Arkham verse titles (in some capacity). In addition, it appears that Edward Nigma has taken to the sewers in Rocksteady's third trip to Gotham, and finishing his current set of challenges will actually oblige players to become professional Batmobile drivers.


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In an announcement yesterday, multinational bank HSBC declared a clearing of USD 250 billion of forex trading in 2018 through blockchain. The bank further acknowledged the usefulness of the technology within its banking processes – beyond the speculative utility of cryptocurrencies alone.
The bank said it had processed more than 3 million forex trades using the technology. While this represents a small fraction of its total currency business, it’s a plus for the industry seeing how a large mainstream financial entity could use the tech in simplifying a small fraction of forex trade processes.
The bank developed its own blockchain solution dubbed FX Everywhere which has been used to coordinate over 150,000 payments across HSBC’s internal balance sheets in the course of a year. The bank said that it has helped it “drastically increase the efficiency of these internal workflows” and cut down spending.
HSBC said that the technology has also enabled it to rely less on external technology providers. The distributed nature of the ledger offers real-time updates, therefore, executives within the organizations can view the changes made simultaneously as the transactions move from execution to settlement.
In May last year, the bank said it had performed the world’s first commercially-viable trade finance transaction using blockchain technology when it issued a letter of credit for US food and agriculture firm Cargill.
Now, the bank is making a move to offer the solution to clients handling treasury business and cross-border payments to lend a hand in their processes.
Blockchain has once again proven itself as a useful infrastructure within the financial system. While some may still be hesitant to adopt the technology, others have invested huge amounts of resources to explore relevant use case areas. The results for most may still look stingy, however, a few have been able to attest to the true potential of the technology.
Last year saw strides in the industry that included cross border payment solutions attempted by Kuwait Central Bank. In South Korea, Shinhan Bank has been considering blockchain to mitigate human error in banking.
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The U.S. Department of Justice said on June 7 local time that it has now recovered the equivalent of about $2.3 million in bitcoin ransom paid to the hacker group by the Coloniair Pipeline Transportation Company last month. U.S. Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco said investigators recovered 63.7 bitcoins paid by Colonyer Pipeline Transport, according to the Associated Press. However, the 63.7 bitcoins are now worth about $2.3 million (about $14.71 million), a 38.5 percent shrinkage due to falling prices.
The cryptocurrency market was thrown into a panic when the news came out. As the most important cryptocurrency in the cryptocurrency market, the market suspected that the Bitcoin encryption system had been breached, thus triggering a wave of plunges.
So has Bitcoin really been breached? Is Bitcoin still the same secure, anonymous payment system?
The Never-So-Secure Bitcoin
In fact, ever since Bitcoin became popular with the gray industry, became an important method of underground trading and came to the attention of government agencies, security and anonymity have not been its primary characteristics.
Although Bitcoin does not require real-world identity information to be associated with wallet addresses, and the originators of transactions seem impossible to trace, and Bitcoin is widely used in less visible areas such as money laundering, illegal transactions, and anonymous transactions, the reality is that Bitcoin is not so “safe”. Several reports in recent years have shown how bitcoin transaction analysis can be used to counter anonymize users. In more than 100 cases, they were able to link someone’s suspicious blockchain transactions to their public accounts, which has led directly to several dark web sites being dismantled by regulators in various countries since 2018.
According to sources close to the regulation, anti-anonymization technology for digital currencies such as Bitcoin and ethereum is not new to regulation, with China, the U.S., Japan and other major digital currency trading countries almost all having mastered the technology. The bitcoin anti-anonymization technology developed in China emerged back in early 2019 and was used to successfully solve the PlusToken wallet pyramid scheme case. As can be found in the public information about the case, the technology started to be developed in late 2018, led by the Ministry of Public Security, and five months later it successfully corresponded the bitcoin accounts used by the PlusToken wallet to the suspects.
In the Coronel case, according to court documents, the FBI’s newly formed Ransomware and Digital Extortion Task Force obtained the keys to the Bitcoin accounts that received the ransom money to recover the property, but did not disclose how they obtained the secret keys.
Specifically, the FBI used a blockchain browser to trace the flow of the ransom money and obtained the secret key of the wallet used at some point in the process to recover the ransom money. Thus, the key to recovering the ransom is how to obtain the secret key of a particular wallet.
A more reasonable guess is that the FBI matched the relevant wallet address with a specific identity and obtained the secret key through arrest, interrogation, etc., or through a crypto service provider such as an exchange or custodian associated with the address.
U.S. media outlet NPR believes that the FBI may have obtained the secret key with the help of someone associated with the hacker group DarkSide or by searching the ransommer’s computer.
The blackmailer used a full-node wallet located in North America, and the full wallet leaks the node’s IP when broadcasting transactions. from a security perspective, each address can only be used once, and a query through the blockchain browser shows that the blackmailer has used the address to transfer funds twice bc1qq2euq8pw950klpjcawuy4uj39ym43hs6cfsegq to send bitcoins, resulting in an IP leak through which the FBI locked the actual controller of the wallet and obtained the secret key from him.
Li Tianzhao, the CTO of Coinprint, believes that the second possibility is higher. The hackers stored the ransom-earned bitcoin on a bitcoin wallet using a cloud service from a U.S. company whose cloud server is located within the United States and was taken over directly by the FBI, thus getting the ransom money back without the private key.
The ever-secure Bitcoin
But no matter which way the secret key was obtained, the likelihood of the Bitcoin encryption system being breached by the FBI is slim to none. Specifically, the Bitcoin private key uses the elliptic curve algorithm, which essentially uses the discrete logarithm problem to encrypt the private key.
Certicom launched a challenge in 1998 to compute discrete logarithms on elliptic curves with bit lengths ranging from 109 to 359. to date, only curves with 109 bit lengths have been successfully cracked. The last success was in 2004, when a team of 2600 people took 17 months to crack it. If the same algorithm were used, it would take 50 billion months to crack the private key of a particular Bitcoin account.
Therefore, it is safe to say that based on currently known mathematical methods, it is temporarily impossible to crack the elliptic curve algorithm used by the Bitcoin system, and the FBI has never breached the Bitcoin encryption system.
Posted by:CoinYuppie，Reprinted with attribution to:https://coinyuppie.com/although-the-stolen-money-has-been-recovered-bitcoin-is-still-the-same-secure-bitcoin/
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CLEVELAND — The U.S. economy will likely skirt a serious downturn despite current risks from trade and a slowing global economy, Cleveland Federal Reserve President Loretta Mester said on Thursday, arguing that absent evidence of a “material change” in the outlook the central bank should not cut rates any more.
Mester said that she opposed the rate cut her colleagues approved in September along with the one in July but was now content to maintain those lower rates “for a while” to support firmer inflation.
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“You don’t relitigate those things,” she said. “What I am looking at is, is there evidence that the slow down in the business side is becoming broader and impacting the consumer side and labor markets?”
There has been growing concern at the Fed that a drop in business investment, considered to be fallout from the Trump administration’s trade war with China, would eventually lead to less hiring and a hit to household consumption.


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Retailers step up as snow storm hits Scotland
SCOTTISH supermarkets may have seen a few tussles in the bread aisle this month but, as the wind from Siberia turned the central belt into a Russian postcard, how did Scotland’s c-stores get on?
Not too badly it seems, with retailers across the country stepping up to keep doors open for as long as the elements would allow.
In Biggar, South Lanarkshire, Donna Morgan of Best-One @ Brownlie’s said her store performed well despite the challenges.
“We were very busy which is good,” said Donna.
“We bake our own bread and managed to keep baking bread.
“The roads were closed, but a couple of deliveries managed to get in. Warburtons got in, Walkers made it with their big truck, and the chap from Mortons Rolls was amazing, he was in every day.”
There may be have been gaps on the shelves at Brownlie’s, but not on the rota according to Donna who heaped praise on the effort put in by store staff throughout the adverse conditions.
“My staff were amazing, everyone was in. We stayed open regular hours, six until 10. One of my staff members was in at half past four in the morning to make sure the shop opened on time while I had kids to juggle with the schools closed,” she said.
From South Lanarkshire to the North East, wintery conditions weren’t so bad in Peterhead.
Speaking in the wake of the red weather warning that was issued across the Central Belt, forecourt retailer Gary Haig of Peterhead Motors explained: “It’s not really affected us. We had a dusting here but it wasn’t as thick.
“What it did was affect my supplies.
“Filshill couldn’t deliver to us because they’re stuck in the Central Belt and Nisa comes up from Livingston so they couldn’t deliver to me.”
Store supply lines weren’t the only ones knocked off by blizzards, as Gary revealed fuel was also a concern during the storm.
“I had fuel, but there’s a filling station at Mintlaw that ran out, Asda and Morrisons also ran out.
“Esso was supposed to come in on Tuesday but that delivery didn’t arrive until Saturday,” he said.
Veteran retailer David Sands also experienced delivery woes as the Beast from the East blasted Britain and he reckons some suppliers must do better in future.
“It was frantic. Customers rely on us to get daily supplies and we had to go ourselves,” said David.
“Nisa’s central distribution chain had not been good. The communication telling us when we were going to get deliveries was very poor.
“With milk we couldn’t tell customers when we were going to get it. It made us look pretty stupid. People rely on their local stores.
“I distinctly remember 2010 when the weather was probably worse, that you’ve just got to prioritise things.
“It didn’t help the Scottish Government telling lorries not to be on the road. Food stores should be a priority along with hospitals.”
While Nisa may not have come through, David Sands said his staff were excellent throughout.
“Yes we had difficulties but we worked around it, we had some people staying in hotels which is fine, we pay for that. I think all stores have a duty to be open in conditions like this,” he said.


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The Federal Reserve has confirmed it expects growth of between 2.1 per cent and 2.3 per cent this year, down from its projection in March of 2.8 per cent to 3 per cent growth.
It also made a further reduction in the pace of its asset purchase program by $10bn to $35bn a month.
In a statement, the Federal Reserve said: “Information received since the Federal Open Market Committee met in April indicates that growth in economic activity has rebounded in recent months. Labor market indicators generally showed further improvement. The unemployment rate, though lower, remains elevated.”
The committee warned that fiscal policy is “restraining” economic growth, although it acknowledged the extent of that restraint is diminishing.
It called the risks to the outlook for the economy and labour market as “nearly balanced”.
The statement added: “The committee recognizes that inflation persistently below its 2 per cent objective could pose risks to economic performance, and it is monitoring inflation developments carefully for evidence that inflation will move back toward its objective over the medium term.”


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Market insider Bloomberg Intelligence has released a comprehensive report on global electric vehicle (EV) trends and take-ups, with a headline claiming that Volkswagen AG will overtake current leader Tesla in 2024, with China’s BYD in third place.
The report actually claims that various global carmakers will challenge Clubhouse leader Tesla through the impending wave of competing models, although profit incentives are said to be throttle due to rising battery costs and persistent lack of scale.
In short, the report found that Tesla’s insane appraisal and battery-electric car sales crown has not yet been challenged by current automakers, whose mix of “disappointing” EV sales has led to real dilemmas amid rising costs and shocks to protect batteries. .
Scenario analysis suggests that 15 percent of the global battery-powered electric-vehicle market share in 2025, compared to 6.0 percent in 2021, adding that China is the second largest region in Europe to maintain its dominance. United States and hybrid-heavy Japan trail.
“Tesla [is] With the help of a new EU plant, it is ready to hold its global sales crown for at least another year, “the report said, citing its new plant in Berlin.
“However, Volkswagen is ready to overtake the US company in 2024 and has already taken the lead in Europe. Tesla will be executed for consolidating its 50 750 billion market capitalization, “he added.
The report states that Tesla’s medium-term volume growth will depend on its “suspicious” cybertruck rollout, while VW Group will launch 16 new models by 2024, such as the Audi Q6, A4 E-Tron and A6 E-Tron; Volkswagen ID.5, ID.6, and ID.Buzz; And Porsche McCann EV.
All Volkswagen Group aims to have 25 percent BEV blends from 2025-26, equivalent to about 2.5 million units per year.
Volkswagen is investing € 30 billion in the EV supply chain, including six new battery plants in Europe this decade. The group also benefits from the economy of scale from the high-volume MEB modular BEV platform, it added.
The report warns that legacy brands trying to close the market valuation gap with Tesla will fight unless they move their EV-related assets to a separate float, which is again something on the VW agenda.
Volkswagen AG is set to launch an IPO of the Porsche brand later this year, valued at € 85 billion, with a potential 30 percent BEV sales mix in 2023 and more than 45 percent “significantly ahead of peers” in 2025.
“German automakers – who are still seen as the leaders in the legacy transition – explain their low multiplier in 1Q alone, despite a record margin of only 5 percent of the BEV sales mix on average. This is in addition to the risk of recession, rising rates, supply chain constraints and inflation, “the report said.
Perhaps surprising to those who do not follow the automotive world closely, China’s Warren Buffett-backed BYD is set to become the third largest BEV player in 2022 and could exceed one million units annually by 2024, the report said. Its own big plan.
At the same time it has been rather harshly critical of Mercedes-Benz.
“Despite being considered one of the major legacy BEV brands, Mercedes’ ambitious plans to exceed 50 percent of electric vehicle sales by 2025 – including the majority of BEVs – surpass its insufficient 4 percent mix by 2021,” the report said.
Another respectable reference went to Ford, which Bloomberg said was a sell-out success for the F-150 Lightning.
“Ford is ready to turn the tide of electric vehicles away from Tesla, jumping into the F-150 Lightning competition for almost a year and making Ford the first automaker to increase production of a full-size battery-only pickup truck. “It simply came to our notice then.
“Ordinary Motors and Tesla will not be competing in space before 2023, and the small scale of the Rivian makes it threat-free.”
It says the basics of production and distribution of Revian and (partner startup) Lucid have come under further scrutiny as markets set their prices for small-sized car makers who have not navigated the macroeconomic shocks in their supply chain.
“Both companies have reduced their initial production and delivery estimates because increased equipment availability and cost increases the profit dynamics of drivetrain technology, while higher inflation and lower inventory disturb consumer demand,” it added.
The full report talks about other regional trends in BEV space and can be found here.


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“I’m thrilled that Plint is now part of my story and to join a team helping people share their stories around the globe”, says Roberts.
Plint has appointed Thomas Roberts as new Chief Executive Officer, replacing Örjan Serner who has been acting CEO since March 2019. Most recently Roberts was Head of Development at Luxbright and before that he served as SVP for the EMEA region at Icomera – a global leader in mobile internet connectivity for public transport. At Icomera, he has held several VP roles with responsibilities including sales tactics, R&D, global marketing, and product strategy.
Thomas Roberts has vast experience in leading digital development and growth within international organisations. In 2003, Roberts co-founded mobile text answering service Texperts. The offering was the first of its kind and was based on a platform that intelligently managed work-flows with home-based agents who did the research for customers. After the sale of Texperts to New York-based kgb he took on responsibility for the global portfolio of Mobile and Digital products for the parent company.
“We are very happy about Thomas joining Plint, and we believe he will bring a lot of useful experience to the company which will help foster sustainable growth. Coming from an entrepreneurial background, Thomas has a good understanding of the scale-up phase that Plint is currently in. In terms of leadership, we share many of the core values that have been vital parts of our success so far. I’m confident that Thomas will be a very good fit for us.” says Örjan Serner, partner and acting CEO who will continue his engagement as a member of the board.
The onboarding of a new CEO is one of the strategic steps in the continuous expansion of the company that has been doing well despite the Corona crisis. One of the reasons for this is an increasing interest in the unique, cloud-based localisation and project orchestration system Plint Core, with licensees like Viacom/CBS and the European Union. Plint is set to scale up and enhance their digital offerings and will launch a brand new product later this year, as well as broaden their portfolio of subtitling and dubbing services.
“It’s so exciting to be joining Plint and inspire the team to reach new heights; no easy feat given the huge growth we have seen in recent years. I believe that Plint is a key part in the entertainment chain that brings so much joy to millions of people around the world – especially in these tough times. Plint’s values speak to me – a deep-seated care for our clients and the work we deliver to them, for our linguists and for our team. I’m honoured to have the opportunity to continue to nurture this spirit as Plint’s own story flourishes.” says Thomas Roberts.
For more information, please contact:
Örjan Serner, CEO
Frida Abrahamsson, Communications


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The Wisconsin Economic Development Corp, recently released a study that looks at the drivers of the state's economy. The pulp and paper industry is shown to still be a major driver of our economy and a closer look at the study shows it is poised to be an economic leader for years to come.
Exports by manufacturers is discussed at length by the author. In Chapter 6 it states that in the paper manufacturing subsector, the U.S. has increased exports to the world by 24.3 percent from 2009-2011.
Wisconsin accounts for 3.7 percent of U.S. total exports in this subsector and experienced the fastest growth rate, 43.7 percent since 2009 among our eight competitor states. Many Wisconsin paper manufacturers have been expanding their markets to include exports opportunities, including selling our products in China.
Another finding in the study shows that pulp and paper along with the converting industry have seen substantial output growth from 2008-2011. Output from converting manufacturing has increased 24.3 percent; pulp, paper, and paperboard mill have grown by 17.9 percent. Both numbers indicated that these sectors are able to compete in the global marketplace.
For more than 50 years Wisconsin has been the No. 1 paper-producing state in the U.S. and that distinction will not be threatened anytime soon. With a combined economic output of $5.2 billion, the pulp and paper plus converting industries clearly are a powerful engine in our economy. More than 30,000 people are employed in the paper industry and earn on average $56,000 plus benefits.
Add in the suppliers that support the paper industry directly and the countless restaurants, grocery stores, and other service industries that operate due to the mill being present and you have an industry that anchors communities across our state.
Yes, the paper industry is a mature industry dating back to 1848. Just because it has been here for 165 years doesn't mean it is going to disappear from our economy. In fact, you can make a strong case that Wisconsin is positioned very well to be an economic driver in Wisconsin in the future.
It is true there have been challenges for the paper industry in the past decade. Demand for printing and writing paper has ebbed. Coated paper which is used in magazines and advertising circulars have also seen their markets contract. But these grades of paper make up a small segment of our paper production.
Indeed, more than 83 percent of the paper made in Wisconsin is for tissue, packaging, and specialty grades. All of these segments are growing and not declining. A recent sign of this was the announcement that Thilmany and the remaining Wausau Paper mills were combining to create a new Wisconsin-based company, Expera, which will be the largest specialty paper producer in North America.
To that end we must acknowledge what the statistics and findings from the study show; the paper industry isn't destined for the history book. Policy makers in Madison and Washington must recognize the paper industry can continue to be an economic driver in Wisconsin for centuries to come.
This means not piling on environmental regulations that have significant cost but no benefit, encouraging workforce development initiatives that recognize and promote manufacturing, and aggressively working with paper companies to capture capital investment that is being made in paper machines and mills around the world.
Everyone needs to recognize that the paper industry isn't simply 8½-by-11-inch copy paper. Think medical supplies. Microwave popcorn bags. Food packaging. Receipts at gas pumps and restaurants. Lottery tickets. Beer and wine labels. Toilet tissue, paper towels, and napkins. Cardboard boxes. Gift wrapping paper. These are some of the paper products of Wisconsin. No computer, iPad, tablet, smartphone or other technology can take their place. And rest assured that the paper industry in Wisconsin will be here to make them.
- Jeff Landin is president of the Grand Chute-based Wisconsin Paper Council. He can be reached at 920-574-3752 or email@example.com. On Twitter @JeffreyLandin.


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US: OESA names Julie Fream as new president and CEO
US Original Equipment Suppliers Association (OESA) says it has appointed Julie Fream as its new president and CEO with effect from 1 October this year, at which time she will also join the board of directors.
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A reduced price helped BlackBerry PlayBook salesDespite many low-cost media tablet launches in the second half of 2011, Apple’s iPad maintained its premier position in the Indian market with 51 percent market share in 2011.
Samsung grew it’s handset popularity, with its Galaxy Tab enabling Samsung to occupy the second spot with 24 percent market share. Indian consumers also showed a strong penchant for RIM’s BlackBerry PlayBook after prices were slashed significantly, giving it third position with a 10.4 percent market share.
“Although there is lot of buzz in the Indian market, media tablets are yet to demonstrate their value proposition to Indian consumers,” said ABI research analyst Aishwarya Singh. “While there are several media tablets being launched in the sub-$200 price range, simply lowering the average selling price of media tablets may not lead to the desired growth in the market.”
In India, total media tablet shipments in 2011 were estimated to be 0.39 million units, a very small fraction of the nearly 65 million shipped globally. However, the Indian media tablet market is estimated to grow with a CAGR of 71 percent and shipments are expected to grow to 9.66 million units in 2017.


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Bitcoin Value Surges To An All-Time High
Digital currency bitcoin hit a record high on Tuesday as demand for crypto-assets soared with the creation of new tokens to raise funding for start-ups using blockchain technology. Blockchain, the underlying technology behind bitcoin, is a financial ledger maintained by a network of computers that can track the movement of any asset wthout the need for a central regulator. So far this year, bitcoin has surged nearly 80 percent. Bitcoin's market capitalization on Tuesday soared to $52.5 billion, according to data from coinmarketcap.com. Aside from being an asset that can be traded on exchanges like stocks and bonds, bitcoin has become a mode of payment for some retailers, such as Overstock.com, and a way to transfer funds without the need for a third party.


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June 10, 2020, Ottawa, Ont. – Agriculture and Agri-food Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau has announced the launch of the second call for proposals under the Local Food Infrastructure Fund. This second call for proposals, valued at $43.4 million, aims to strengthen…
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The European Fee goals to safe an accelerated cope with EU lawmakers by the tip of March to curb the ability of tech giants like Apple, Amazon and Meta.
Margrethe Vestager, who was the primary to suggest the Digital Markets Act, stated good progress had been made within the negotiations and stated the Fee goals to achieve a “political deal” by the tip of March. Reuters has reported†
“If we are able to try this, it is going to be laws at virtually lightning velocity,” she stated at a European Parliament listening to.
The Digital Markets Act would finish shallowness by tech giants within the European Union. It was launched in 2020 together with the Digital Providers Act, which might sort out unlawful or dangerous content material by urging platforms to shortly average it.
Apple has spoken out in opposition to antitrust regulation. In 2022, Apple CEO Tim Cook dinner stated the proposals might pose a risk to the safety and privateness of Apple’s iPhone, amongst others.
Nonetheless, the EU continues with its competitors guidelines. EU lawmakers beforehand stated they might attain a deal on the laws by the tip of June 2022.


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Craft brewing may be an art, but it's also becoming big business.
In the last five years, craft beer sales have more than doubled, from $10.12 billion in 2011 to $23.5 billion in 2016, according to the Brewers Association, a trade group. The number of craft breweries has also ballooned, growing from 2,000 in 2011 to 5,200 in 2016.
With that success, of course, has come more competition, particularly as big beer conglomerates buy up smaller players in hopes of capitalizing on the trend. Meanwhile, even among smaller craft brewers, the market has begun to get crowded.
Here's a look at the trends we're seeing around the U.S. — from beer tourism to seasonal brews to a push to get more women in the industry.
Market is growing, but it's also getting crowded
- According to the Oregon Employment Department, the craft beer industry added around 1,340 jobs over the past two years, a growth of nearly 22 percent.
- Nationally, roughly one in eight breweries specializes in craft beer, according to the California Craft Brewers Association. In California, it’s one in four. But there are signs that the joyride is leveling off.
- “Those who distribute see that it’s getting tighter and harder to place your beer. And the quality has gone up so much that a lot of local brewers tend to fight for the same taps,” says Jon Lane, owner of Arizona's O.H.S.O. Brewery & Distillery.
- John Giannopoulos of Sly Fox Brewing Co. in Pottstown, Pa., believes the entry of big players in the business is going to grow more significant as they add to their offerings to appeal to craft beer fans.
Craft brews are a draw for tourists, not just locals
- Travel industry analysts say craft beer is a proven draw, and the Sunshine State is the fifth-fastest growing market in the nation, with 212 breweries.
- Nevada's craft brewers are getting help from a powerful force – tourists. "Travelers go to a bar or restaurant and ask what they have that's local,” says Wyndee Forrest of CraftHaus Brewery.
Industry growth goes hand in hand with regulations
- Four years ago, Texas lawmakers opened up the craft brewing market, allowing small brewers of no more than 10,000 barrels a year to sell their product in on-site tap rooms — and brewers like Jester King Brewery, outside of Austin, reaped the benefits.
- Earlier this year, the Texas Legislature approved a bill blocking a loophole that could let conglomerates skirt some of the state's strict regulations for large beer manufacturers — sending shockwaves through the state’s thriving craft beer industry.
- In Ontario, grocery stores couldn’t sell beer until 2015; this has been a game-changer for small brewers who were formerly squeezed out at the government-run stores as well as the stores operated by the major players under government oversight.
- Last year Night Shift Brewing launched its own distribution company, reacting to Massachusetts’ state’s so-called franchise law, which many brewers say handcuffs them to their distributors.
Brewers get creative — and consumers are on board
- Rather than give up the pint, best friends Doug Foster and Ryan Bove, who must adhere to gluten-free diets, decided to make their own beer.
- Those serving a formal holiday meal have traditionally opted to pair it with wine. But craft brewers in North Carolina are serving up ways to start a new tradition.
- Wellbeing Brewing Co. has been sampling its first nonalcoholic craft brew — a wheat beer called Heavenly Body — around St. Louis and is set to sell it in local bars and restaurants in January.
- The variety of beer at Denver's Beer Festivus is constantly evolving, reflecting the industry at large; this year, organizers say they're seeing fewer barrel-aged holiday beers and more straightforward stouts and porters.
- “People used to drink what their parents were drinking. Now it’s a little more that parents are getting exposed to what the younger generations drink,” observes Hilary Cocalis, vice president of marketing for Ballast Point in San Diego.
- “Seasonals only come around once a year at most, so it’s kind of like meeting up with an old friend,” says Rob MacLeod, brewmaster for Rock Bottom Restaurant and Brewery in Charlotte, N.C.
- Dating all the way back to 1981, Seattle's Redhook Brewlab is pioneering some of the most modern methods of making beer fast enough, and in batches small enough, to crank out 100 styles a single year.
Many brewers took the leap from another field
- Adam Cryer was a Rice University-trained engineer before he and his wife, Sara Pope, decided to launch Baileson Brewing Co. in Houston, joining a growing wave of small-batch brewers opening in Texas.
- Bailey Spaulding of Jackalope Brewing Company moved to Nashville to attend Vanderbilt Law School – but upon graduating, realized her true passion was beer.
- For Chris Burns, president of Old Ox Brewery in Ashburn, Va., the journey toward the craft brewing industry began in 2000 when he was working in the tech industry and a buddy suggested attending a happy hour at a local pub.
Pink Boots boosts women in brewing
- Just 4 percent of 1,700 breweries surveyed in 2014 had a female head brewer or brewmaster, according to a Stanford University study.


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GERMANY: Metro silent over Auchan talks for Real deal
The sale would reportedly include Real’s operations in Poland, Romania, Russia and Ukraine, while excluding those in Turkey and some real estate
A spokesperson for Metro said he would not comment on a Bloomberg report today (29 November) that it is near to closing a EUR1bn (US$1.3bn) deal for the operations with Auchan.
The sale would exclude Real's operations in Turkey, sources told the publication.
Earlier this week, Metro had declined to comment on reports this week that Auchan was a frontrunner for the operations.
In July, Metro said it had received some interest in the international business of Real but said there had been "no concrete negotiations" and that no decision to sell the stores had been made.
Reports in October had linked Auchan, along with Russian retailer O'Key as two of three bidders in the running for the Real stores in Russia.
The group is expected to reveal details of its plans for the future of Real on the release of its full-year results next year.
Auchan could not be reached for comment.
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