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Sometime back I had written about a jailbreak tool called HDR Camera Enabler that would enable HDR photography on an iPhone 3GS even though that feature is disabled by default on the iOS. Now if you are looking for a counter feature – the ability to disable HDR photography on iPhone 4, here’s this new tool.
Before you start wondering if anyone will need this, do remember that HDR photography capture can be a power guzzler and some people may think it fit to enable and disable such features at will. If you are one such user, you need to check out the new jailbreak app called myOS. myOS is an application that is available on Cydia that makes it possible for iPhone users to enable/disable not just HDR photography, but all the other iOS features as well. The app lets you manage the following
- Homescreen Wallpapers
- Unified iPod
- App Store
- HDR Photography
- Game Center
- Voice Control
myOS is available right now on the BigBoss repository and can be had at a price of $0.99. Check it out and let us know if you found it good.
The iPhone Dev Team have released an enhanced version of the Redsn0w software that was released last month that let users of iPhone 3G and iPod Touch 2G to jailbreak iOS 4.1 on their devices. The new Redsn0w 0.9.6b2 is capable of jailbreak all the iOS devices including iPhone 4, iPod Touch 4G and the iPad. The Dev team writes,
In the meantime, we’ve also incorporated the limera1n exploit into redsn0w. But we’ve added a few extras:
- custom bootlogos for iPhone3G/iPhone3GS/iPod2G users (with qualifying bootroms)
- an option that implements the “DFU” button in PwnageTool. This button (which you can use from Windows) lets you prepare your device for a custom DFU. Even if you’re purely a Windows user, you can get a trusted friend to run PwnageTool over your IPSW to create a custom IPSW. You can now install that custom IPSW on your own Windows box, after you run this redsn0w version.
The latest release is available for both the Windows and Mac platforms and makes use of the very same Limera1n exploit that was used by George Hotz as well as the Chronic Dev team in their jailbreak releases. You can hit this link to read more about the latest update as well as on other important instructions.
Apple has been pretty well expanding the retail presence of the iDevices in the past few weeks. After retailers like the Wal-Mart and Best Buy started to sell the iPhones on their retail shelves, it is now the turn of another popular American retailer, Target, to join them. Starting November 7, Target customers shall be able to purchase iPhone 4 and iPhone 3GS from 846 of the Target stores from across the United States.
This launch could be particularly a good deal if you also have old electronic items like MP3 players, cell phones and video games to dispose. Target is currently offering credits for such trade-ins that could be used to fund your iPhone purchase. The opening up of the Target shelves to iPhone is also significant in that the company is expanding focus on its mobile services offerings across all their retail stores which it expects to complete by mid-2011.
One thing that is commonplace when an iPhone (or for that matter any gadget) gets stolen or spied upon is that the thief attempts to unlock your device by trial and error with a series of passcodes. iGotYa is a new iPhone application that makes use of this common user behavior to help owners find culprits.
iGotYa is set up in such a way that the application will take a picture as well as tag the location of the iPhone every time a user inputs a wrong passcode. This is assuming the person uses the trial and error method to break into the phone. This picture is taken with the front camera of the iPhone 4 and the picture and location details are sent down to an already specified email address of the owner. The application also has other options like letting the thief in, but hiding sensitive details like messages, call history, mail,etc.
Now the sad part is that this application is not available for non-jailbroken iPhones. For those who have already jailbroken their device, you can check the app out on the ModMyi repository on Cydia and can purchase it for $4.99.
According to a fresh report on the BGR, Apple is presently in the final stages of testing the iPhone model 3,2 – that’s assumed to be the much anticipated CDMA iPhone. According to the sources, the new model of the iPhone has hit the “AP” testing phase which is said to be the final stage where the unit will feature the finalized versions of the hardware and software and is noted to be the last test stage before the unit is approved for a retail release.
If true, this is the first time that Apple has broken the yearly release cycle for the iPhone. The new phone that is expected to launch in early 2011 will also feature a revised antenna design that will solve the network reception issue that has plagued the current model of iPhone 4 for a long time. This new model might also house a SIM card for global roaming capabilities.
George Hotz, known as GeoHot to the jailbreaking community, has announced that a Mac compatible version of the iOS 4.1 jailbreak tool, the Limera1n is now available for download. With this, users of PC as well as Mac computers can now connect their iDevices to a computer to jailbreak the iOS platform.
The past one week has been extremely eventful for the iPhone jailbreakers. Posixninja, another popular jailbreak team was all set to bring their SHAtter exploit based jailbreaking solution to the iPhone before GeoHot one-upped them by launching his own version of jailbreaking software. This has forced the Dev Team to save the exploit for a later date and have modified their jailbreak solution to make use of GeoHot’s exploit. A Mac solution from Posixninja is still awaited.
Nevertheless, if you are a Mac user waiting to jailbreak your iPhone 4 immediately, hit this link to proceed to the Limera1n website. Jailbreaking is dangerous and you know it. So you proceed at your own risk.
Apple may have been selling their new iPhone 4 like hotcakes. But there is no denying the fact that the launch has brought about several challenges to Apple engineers. The death grip and proximity sensor issues definitely take the lead, but there are several other challenges too that have surfaced time and again.
It seems that these issues fail to die down. We are now hearing that a new issue is brewing up at Cupertino over the possibility of the rear glass pane of the iPhone 4 to crack due to third party cases licensed by Apple. The issue is not exactly with the free bumpers that Apple offered to their iPhone 4 customers, but with other slide-on cases that are popular among iPhone users. Gdgt writes,
“Apple has apparently found that non-bumper style cases — specifically those that slide onto the iPhone 4, which are occasionally prone to particulate matter getting caught between the rear of the phone and the case — can cause unexpected scratching that could quickly develop into full-on cracking or even much larger fracturing of the entire rear pane of glass. To put it another way: Apple is afraid you might buy a standard slide-on iPhone case, put it on your phone, and then discover the next time you take it off that the entire back of your device has been shattered by no fault of your own.”
The report notes that though this issue is yet to see any widespread prevalence, Apple is already working to ensure this issue does not affect future products. That could mean that the next generation iPhone may not be having a glass back.
By now, you should be really tired of hearing those Verizon iPhone rumors. As a matter of fact, Ivan Seidenberg; the CEO with Verizon Communications had recently indicated that a Verizon iPhone was not likely until the carrier moved to its new 4G network that will not be until later next year. However, that doesn’t seem to have dampened the rumor mongers as the Wall Street Journal has now reported that Apple is now working on a CDMA iPhone that will launch on Verizon early next year.
Citing people “familiar with the matter“, the WSJ has noted that “Apple plans to begin mass producing the new iPhone by the end of the year, and it would be released in the first quarter of 2011“. These new iPhones are expected to look pretty similar to the newly launched iPhone 4 though it would be based on the alternate wireless technology supported by Verizon.
Since such anonymous people familiar with the matter have been speculating a CDMA iPhone for years now, it is not a bad idea to stay skeptical for the moment. What do you think?
Angry Birds is definitely one of the most popular gaming applications on the iPhone and recently, the developers have also been taking the game to other popular mobile platforms. Now in a recent update to the iOS app itself, Rovio Mobile – the Finland based developers of the game – have included support for retina display.
This is not the only significant change though. The new Angry Birds update for the App Store is now integrated with Game Center; Apple’s new iOS based social gaming network that lets users challenge and play against other iOS users. Other changes in the recent update include additional 15 levels, new golden egg sound board, localization in Chinese, Japanese and a better optimized memory usage.
You can purchase the full version of Angry Birds from the App Store for $0.99 by clicking here.
By now, many of you may have already given up on your hope to lay hands on a white iPhone 4. After all the hype and hoopla during launch, the white iPhone today is more or less forgotten. While the device was earlier speculated to have been delayed just by a few weeks, Apple later confirmed that the phone will be available not until later this year.
We are just three months away from new year and so there are doubts over Apple’s launch plans. However, in a recent email exchange, Steve Jobs has purportedly indicated that the phone may be available by Christmas. While the authenticity of this email is questionable, this is what the Apple customer wrote in his email
“I want the white one but Apple said it won’t be available until later this year. I know you must be asked this question hundreds of times a day but do you think we can expect to get the white iphone for xmas?
I hope you can answer. Thank you Steve.”
And Steve is reported to have replied,
“Christmas is later this year.”
So there you go. Even though we are not sure if this is genuine, the launch of a white-colored model for the Christmas season does make sense and we hope it turns out to be true.


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In today’s world, ecosystems are won and lost by the number of apps that are present on it. So it’s no surprise that Microsoft is trying to lure iOS developers into making apps for both Windows 8 and Windows Phone 8. Microsoft has a lot of catching up to do – Google and Apple have around 700,000 apps present on Android and iOS, while the Redmond company only has around 100,000 present on their Windows store. So that’s probably why they invited a select number of iOS developers out to company’s headquarters to talk about making Windows apps. According to MIT’s Technology Review, the app developers liked Microsoft’s bold attempt but voiced concerns about their decision to use one operating software for PCs, phones, and tablets, mainly because making apps to run on all three is a nightmare.
Source: MIT Technology Review

domain: news


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AMD's next-gen Bobcat APU could win big in notebooks and tablets - if it launches on time
AMD's Kabini looks like it'll be the company's frontrunner in 2013. It's shaping up to be an impressive processor, and a promising alternative to ARM or Clover Trail.
AMD hires bankers to 'explore options,' keeps APU delays mum for now
AMD has reportedly brought in a bank to help it evaluate its options, including patent sales, further layoffs, or even an outright sale of the company. That last remains unlikely -- but for how long?
AMD's Trinity analyzed: A surprisingly good, inexpensive gaming solution
AMD's new Trinity makes a surprisingly good case for itself if you make use of the system's "Combined graphics" mode. It you want a cheap gaming box, it may be a better option than Intel's equivalent processors.
AMD starts cutting jobs, but without a viable roadmap it has no chance of survival
AMD has begun to lay off workers and the cuts, combined with a slumping x86 market, underline how badly the company needs to communicate the details of its new strategy. If Read continues to rely on vague details, there may not be an AMD left for much longer.
AMD throws 15% of its workforce off the sinking ship
AMD reported a third quarter net loss of $157 million on revenue of $1.27 billion, representing a 10 percent sequential decrease and a 25 percent year-over-year decline. The chip designer also plans to reduce its global workforce by around 15 percent.
By Paul Lilly
Project Sumatra improves Java performance with OpenCL graphics card acceleration
Java is a programming language that allows developers to write once and deploy everywhere -– from high-end gaming desktops to smartphones. Its OS-agnostic and widespread nature is one of its strongest selling points, but one area where it falls flat is in performance. However, thanks to Project Sumatra that performance gap may soon become less of an issue.
Once more unto the breach: AMD's Trinity takes on Intel's Ivy Bridge
Today marks the official launch of AMD's Trinity APU on the desktop, and hopefully heralds the beginning of a brighter future for the company's products.
AMD CPU bonanza: Trinity desktop prices, Intel's counter, and the Piledriver FX-8350's performance
Multiple leaks and announcements broke over the weekend. We round them up and tell you what's what.
AMD details Steamroller CPU architecture: A refined Piledriver with a dynamic L2 cache
AMD is continuing to push heterogeneous computing, and is readying a new "Steamroller" CPU design that incorporates several efficiency improvements versus its existing Bulldozer and PIledriver architectures.
The future of AMD's Fusion APUs: Kaveri will fully share memory between CPU and GPU
AMD is hosting its Fusion Developer Summit this week, and the overarching theme is heterogeneous computing and the convergence of the CPU and GPU. Is shared memory and true heterogeneous computing the future of computers?


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Next Policy Package to Improve Port Dwelling Time: Chief Economic Minister
Jakarta. The Indonesian government is set to roll out another policy package later this month that will reduce dwelling time duration at ports as part of the government's efforts to improve logistics, attract much-needed investment which, in turn, will propel the economy.
"This month we will prepare and release the 15th policy package which will be about logistics and the practice of single data and information submission through the Indonesia National Single Window portal [known as INSW]," Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Darmin Nasution said on Wednesday (04/01).
According to Darmin, the INSW is part of the government's efforts to reduce dwelling time at Tanjung Priok Port to two days, from 2.9 days currently.
Previously, the Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs Luhut Binsar Panjaitan sent a team to evaluate the dwelling time at ports. He concluded that the ports need to use an additional crane, have a better operation system and create dry ports – or an inland intermodal terminal that connects directly to a seaport by road or rail.
"If the [state-owned port operator] Pelindo is struggling with it then ask a private party to be more transparent," Luhut said. "We can't afford to be late because dwelling time is is expensive, and we need to [cut costs]."
Meanwhile, a Ministry of Transportation director for sea transport traffic Bay M Hasani said the government has already issued a ministerial regulation in 2015 on the maximum time to store goods, allowing for goods to be stored for up to a maximum of three days at Tanjung Priok Port.
The regulation, however, does not cover other big ports such as Belawan Port in Medan, North Sumatra; Tanjung Perak Port in Surabaya, East Java; and Makassar Port in South Sulawesi.
The new policy package will be part of the government's string of policy packages released since September 2015. Darmin has said that the policy packages will attract domestic and international investment.Tags:


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Toyota, whose investments in Mexico have drawn criticism from U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, said it plans to invest $10 billion in the U.S. over the next five years, maintaining the pace of spending it established during the last half decade.
Jim Lentz, Toyota's chief executive officer for North America, outlined the company's intentions during an interview with Bloomberg Television at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit. The Japanese corporation's president, Akio Toyoda, also made careful mention of its American investments and employment as he introduced the eighth generation of the Camry, the best-selling U.S. car for 15 years running.
Trump last week criticized an announcement Toyota made 20 months earlier that it would build a Mexico factory to assemble Corolla compacts beginning from 2019, saying in a tweet that the company should build the plant in the U.S. or pay a "big border tax." The Toyota City, Japan-based automaker already makes Corollas at a plant in Mississippi.
Toyota broke ground last month on the plant in Apaseo el Grande, Guanajuato, which will add capacity for the model without leading to decreased production or employment in the U.S.


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Updated on 25 July 2014
Sales forecast for the pharma giant looks dismal
Singapore: GSK lacerated its growth forecasts as its CEO, Sir Andrew Witty expressed concern over falling sales. Sir Witty said that bribery allegations were haunting the firm's performance in China, even as sales in the country have reduced by 20 percent. While releasing the companies second quater results, he declared that sales for the entire group had declined by 4 percent due to falling sales of its key lung drugs in the US.
The pharma gaint, which has been embroiled in scandals, has been charged with bribery by Chinese officials and was also hit by a sex tape featuring its former head of Pharma division in China, Mark Reilly. Increased competition from generic drugs and the China crackdown resulted in an average 10 percent fall in sales for the firm.
Sales of its best-selling asthma treatment Advair fell by 12 percent in the second quarter, having fallen by 15 percent in the first. Sir Witty said that GSK had taken serious action against offenders and would not tolerate unethical behavior. Thirty staff had been sacked in China amid allegations that doctors were bribed to use GSK's products.
He further said that GSK was committed to China and added that the firm expected growth in sales in the country in the next quarter. Meanwhile, GSK is betting high on its new products launched in to the market.
The firm is also applying for regulatory approval for the world's first vaccine against malaria, designed for use in children in Africa.
The company spokesperson said that the maiden vaccine for use, alongside other precautionary measures such as bed nets and anti-malarial medicines would represent an advance in malaria control.


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Latvia's consumer price inflation increased in August, preliminary data from the statistical office showed on Wednesday.
The consumer price index rose 3.7 percent year-on-year in August, following a 2.8 percent increase in July.
In August, inflation was mainly influenced by the rise in prices of goods and services related to housing, goods and services related to transport, prices of food and non-alcoholic beverages, prices of clothing and footwear, alcoholic beverages and tobacco products, and health care.
Transport cost increased 8.8 percent and health cost rose 2.5 percent. Prices in the food and non-alcoholic beverages group increased 2.2 percent and those of clothing and footwear prices rose 4.7 percent.
On a monthly basis, prices increased 0.4 percent in August, after a 0.5 percent decline in the previous month.


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Bella JaisinghaniSpecial Correspondent | TOI
Maharashtra: Restaurants, theatres and malls have to shut by 10 pm
“We don’t want to shut down livelihoods but to curtail crowds. We do not want to impose a lockdown and close down everything,” said chief minister Uddhav Thackeray in a statement. “But no restrictions will be effective unless we all adhere to Covid protocols,” he added.
Maharashtra: Traders, cinema workers warn that another lockdown will sound death knell for livelihoods
On a parallel note, multiplex owners point out that no important film has released in the past one year. The state's ever tightening restrictions on malls and multiplexes adds to the complexity, as new films cannot be released until cinema halls resume functioning to capacity.
Mumbai: Shops & eateries welcome longer hours, trains for all
Sachin Dhanawade, chief operating officer (retail and real estate) of the firm which operates Growel’s 101 Mall in Kandivli, said, “Overall, footfalls had improved by 70% in December 2020 and now we are hopeful that recovery will be faster.”
Hotels, restaurants in Mumbai to ring in the new year at 10.30pm
In pre-Covid times, the closing hour for Christmas and New Year parties would be extended till 5am, a three-and-half hour extension from the then normal closing time of 1.30am.
Maharashtra: Malls, shops unsure about footfalls at night, patrons air safety worries
When asked about details of the meeting, Aaditya messaged saying it was about “just some reviews and plans of the manifesto and implementation”.
Maharashtra: Milk pouch buyback not feasible, say suppliers
A day after environment minister Ramdas Kadam gave milk producers in the state 15 days to introduce a buyback mechanism and set up recycling plants for empty milk pouches, dairies reiterated that the plan was not feasible
Plastic ban a ruse to favour large corporates: Traders
The overriding sentiment was that the ban is selective for employing double standards against retailers and common citizens while favouring corporates.
Mumbai: Vegetable, milk prices unaffected by farmers' strike
Most vegetables are selling for Rs 60-80 per kg in retail markets of Khar, Andheri, Chembur, Bhandup, Malad and Borivli
Vast gap between wholesale and retail rate of eggs is cause for worry
However, consumer Shahid Afzal from Jogeshwari said, "Retailers are charging Rs 80 per dozen as compared to the wholesale price of Rs 68. Do they incur additional costs of Rs 12-13?"
Traders anxious about plastic egg rumours as FDA dispels doubts
Egg traders are anxious as sales have dropped in Thane, Kalyan and Vasai-Virar region amid the weak Shravan season. Fake videos featuring 'Chinese plastic eggs' had surfaced in West Bengal in April and have spread nationwide since.
Gokul raises price of cow milk by Rs 2 after govt forces higher procurement rate
The rate of cow's milk has risen from Rs 43 to Rs 45 per litre, standard milk from Rs 42 to Rs 44 and toned milk from Rs 40 to Rs 42.
Legal metrology department goes after bigwigs who overcharge on MRP
"In the past year my department has filed cases against Flipkart, Amazon, Pepsi, Coke, Monginis and LPG dealers,"Amitabh Gupta, additional DG and controller of legal metrology said.
Railways to offer mouthwatering Malwani cuisine shortly
IRCTC, the catering wing of the Indian Railways, has tied up with NABARD for this project. The food will be cooked by 30 women from various self help groups.
Mobile app to take complaints against offensive advertisements
Consumers have complained against ads from multiple sectors like education, FMCG, healthcare, telecom, e-commerce, durables, automotive, food and beverage across all media.
Citizens connect through Whatsapp for fair milk prices
The battle against overcharging by milk retailers has found strong support from common Mumbaikars. Scores have signed up for a WhatsApp group on the issue and roped in the department of weights and measures as well, leading to a winning partnership.
Shopkeepers may stop stocking milk pouches from next week
You may not find five leading brands of milk at your neighbourhood shop next week
Retail prices of tomato stay high in Mumbai
Prices of tomato may have dropped to Rs 5-6 per kg in mandis like Navi Mumbai and Nashik, but consumers in Mumbai are yet to get relief. Retail prices remain around Rs 25-30 per kg in several localities, an average of Rs 10 higher than normal.
Eggs in Mumbai at all-time high of Rs 60 a dozen, bread scarce
Distributors blamed the shutdown on labour unrest, but Hindustan Unilever, owner of Modern brand, said the shutdown was for a safety upgrade after an accident.
Rising prices tarnish Modi govt’s first month report card
The BJP government at the Centre completed a month in office on Thursday, amid clear signs that the euphoria that accompanied Narendra Modi’s inauguration has evaporated as he and his ministers seek to deliver “bitter pills” to revive the economy. Many are wondering what happened to his key promise of curbing prices.
Food prices soar on speculation over delayed rains
Repeated speculation over a delayed monsoon may be causing food prices to rise already. Over the past fortnight, the retail price of onion and potato have risen by Rs 5-6 from Rs 18-20 to Rs 24-26 per kg. Experts say the loss caused by the recent hailstorm is marginal, and need not drive prices inordinately high.
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Nora Apothecary Announces Recall
Nora Apothecary is announcing a voluntary multi-state recall.
The recall covers all sterile drug products compounded by the Indianapolis pharmacy on or before Friday, April 19th. The pharmacy has not gotten any reports of illnesses or injuries associated with the products. However, it states the recall is due to possible concerns about the sterility of products following an FDA inspection. The recall includes 95 dosage units or products the pharmacy supplied to 12 licensed medical professionals across the state in addition to 400 various prescriptions filled for patients in Indiana, Illinois, Ohio, Florida and Tennessee.
Butler University's Dr. Amy Peak says the recall is small compared to those of large pharmacy chains. Peak says it's a good precautionary move aimed at preventing adverse reactions in the event that quality control proves to be an issue.


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Telkom Kenya is switching out its Orange Money service for a new platform in order to better compete with Kenya’s mobile money market leader, m-Pesa.
The operator’s CEO Aldo Mareuse said that the new service would be more cost-efficient and offer better functionality than the Orange Money offering, which he noted compared unfavourably to m-Pesa in terms of certain core products. He noted that this was a factor in Telkom Kenya opting out of a government initiative to sell bonds via mobile money platforms.
The new mobile money platform looks set to be a key part of Telkom Kenya’s broader shift away from the Orange brand, following Orange’s 2016 sale of its 70% stake in the operator to Helios Investment Partners. The agreement reportedly stipulated that Telkom Kenya would be able to use the Orange brand for a further 18 months.
The most recent available data (October to December 2016) from the Communication Authority of Kenya positions Orange Money squarely behind its main rivals by all key measures. Over this quarter, Orange Money had 194,322 active subscribers – lagging far behind m-Pesa’s 21.6 million and Airtel Money’s 6.7 million.
Even smaller services such as Equitel Money, Mobikash and Tangaza Pesa were registering more subscribers than Orange Money. The service was only accepted by 800 agents, compared to m-Pesa’s 124,084.


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UK government criticized for ‘hammerhead’ approach to corporate governance reform
Updates on UK business and economy
Sign up for myFT Daily Digest to be the first to know about UK business and business news.
The architect of UK governance standards for private companies has criticized the government’s plans to extend some of the more stringent regulations for large listed companies to their unlisted counterparts, saying the changes would have a “significant negative impact”.
Sir James Wates, chairman of the Wates Group, one of the UK’s largest family-owned construction companies, said proposals to broaden the definition of ‘public interest entities’ (PIEs) to include large companies private sector would increase costs and discourage growth and innovation.
The proposed reforms follow a public backlash against corporate bankruptcies at subcontractor Carillion, coffee chain Patisserie Valerie and private retailer BHS.
Wates, who also chairs the Institute for Family Business, said the proposals amounted to a “hammer” and questioned the need to expand the PIE regime, which currently only applies to large listed companies and to financial groups.
“A small number of high-profile cases of bad governance – the examples of Patisserie Valerie and BHS are frequently cited, although it is overstating that they reflect a trend – encourage ministers to be seen as’ doing anything. thing “to” clean up big business, “he told the Financial Times.
The proposed changes would mean that private businesses or those with an Aim List, like Patisserie Valerie until it collapsed over suspected fraud in 2019, would fall under the PIE definition for the first time. if their turnover or number of employees exceeds certain thresholds.
Options for a broader definition, which could more than double the number of PIE firms to around 4,000, were included in a government white paper released in March. A public consultation on the plans, which would also hold directors accountable for the accuracy of the company’s accounts, closed earlier this month.
The changes would be a burden on private companies, Wates said. “The additional audit and reporting requirements would entail considerable costs and, perhaps more worryingly, create disincentives to innovate and grow for many family businesses, a sector that employs 14 million people and represents around one third of UK GDP. “
Expanding the PIE regime “would subject private companies to regulations designed for listed companies,” although they are usually structured in a completely different way, he said.
Instead of imposing more rules on private groups, Wates called on the government to assess the impact of new business reporting regulations introduced in 2019 and to work with private companies to close any gaps in the disclosed information.
He said ministers should allow time “for good practices to spread” after his work to create the Wates principles. This is a voluntary set of corporate governance guidelines for large private companies published in 2018 with the support of the Financial Reporting Council.
Supporters of the proposal believe the changes would increase protection for stakeholders such as employees, pension plan members and supply chains. But some companies, investors and accountants have raised concerns that the overhaul could stifle business growth and increase costs.
Separately, the Charity Commission opposed a proposal to expand the definition of PIE to include large nonprofits and said it was not aware of comparable failures in the charitable sector. to those in the business world.
The government said in a statement: “The largest private companies are of great economic importance – often much greater than some listed companies – so designating them as public interest entities allows for appropriate oversight to mitigate the risk of corporate failures. avoidable businesses and protect UK jobs. “


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Rejoice, craft beer fans.
Mad Elf season is upon us once again.
Tröegs Independent Brewing said on Thursday it is releasing a variety of festive beers for the holidays, including the incredibly popular Mad Elf, a cheerful, ruby red brew with hints of ripened cherries, raw honey, and cocoa.
"Over the years, this 11% ABV Belgian-style strong ale brewed with 25,000 lbs. of Pennsylvania honey has become an icon in its own right," the company said in a press release.
Rounding out this year's lineup is Blizzard of Hops, a winter IPA featuring a storm of citrus and pine notes; Mad Elf Grand Cru, a “director’s cut” of Mad Elf featuring tart Balaton cherries; and Double Blizzard, a semi-hazy Double IPA dry-hopped with 4 pounds per barrel of Chinook and Galaxy.
You can try all of the new varieties by picking up a Most Wonderful Beer of the Year sampler 12-pack, which ties together this winter beer collection with a nice bow on top, according to Tröegs.
Featuring year-round favorites and winter staples, this year’s pack also includes a sneak peek of a brand new chocolate stout called Grand Cacao, available exclusively in this variety pack, the brewing company said.
“For many beer drinkers, the holidays don’t truly start until they’ve had their first Mad Elf,” said Tröegs founding brother and brewmaster John Trogner. “We think Tröegs has a place on every holiday table.”


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|By Marketwired .||
|December 13, 2012 12:34 PM EST||
MOUNTAIN VIEW, CA -- (Marketwire) -- 12/13/12 -- Today Appcelerator®, a leading mobile development platform provider, and industry-leading analyst firm International Data Corporation (IDC) announced results of a joint survey of nearly 3,000 mobile developers. The survey findings demonstrate that developers expect mobile to continue to be pervasive both in enterprise investments and consumers' lives. In addition to the expansion of mobile connected devices, developers predict consumers will dramatically change their shopping behaviors through the availability of mobile commerce sites and mobile payment options.
"I am blown away by this quarter's survey results related to retail," said Appcelerator CEO Jeff Haynie. "We've known that more and more consumers are augmenting their brick-and-mortar shopping with mobile buying experiences, but this quarter over 90 percent of developers anticipate most retail companies will offer a mobile commerce experience in 2013. These findings stress the ubiquity of mobile and the need for the best user experiences that are available to consumers who want to shop and pay anywhere, anytime, on any device."
"This quarter's survey findings are very consistent with last quarter's findings: iOS and Android remain the top targets for developers. While this isn't terribly surprising, it underscores the challenges competitors face as they try to establish their own platforms in the market," said John Jackson, Research Vice President, Mobile & Connected Platforms at IDC. "It will be most interesting to see how retailers drive the mobile transformation predicted by developers in 2013."
See the full report:
Key Findings and Predictions
Interest in iOS and Android Platforms Remains Strong & Stable
Despite the introduction of new products in Q4 and the massive success of devices like the iPad mini, Amazon Kindle, Samsung Galaxy S III, and iPhone 5, developer interest in the most popular platforms (i.e. iOS, Android) remains high, but relatively unchanged since Q3 2012. Though interest in individual platforms remains unchanged, development across multiple environments is expected to increase. Nearly 88 percent of developers predict they will be developing for two or more operating systems over the next year, a significant increase from the 69 percent figure reported in Q3 2012. Developers specifically expect to be working on multiple operating systems as it relates to mobile applications, with 49 percent reporting they plan to build mobile apps for two operating systems and 39 percent reporting they plan to build mobile apps for three or more operating systems.
Amazon Kindle Struggles
Despite Amazon's sizeable investment in its signature Kindle tablet, developers doubt that the device provides significant application revenue opportunities. Less than 22 percent of mobile developers are "very interested" in building mobile apps for the Amazon Kindle. This indicates that the Kindle's install base and revenue potential are too small to entice developers to build for the platform.
Google Nexus Starts Strong
An unprecedented number of respondents express strong interest in developing mobile apps for the Nexus platform. More than 53 percent of developers report being very interested in building apps for the device, nearing interest levels expressed for Android tablets overall. Two-thirds of developers feel positive about Google's entrance into the tablet market with the introduction of the Nexus. Many developers believe Google is providing leadership for the Android tablet market and is taking a more direct role in Android development, a move that may help the company curtail much of the fragmentation issues that have frustrated developers in the past.
Microsoft Surface Insufficient
Microsoft's Surface tablet has yet to excite the developer community. Of those surveyed, 45 percent are unimpressed by the hardware and 35 percent think Microsoft needs to do more to be successful. Even though the hardware is now available, developer interest in building applications for the platform is consistent with the results of the past two surveys, remaining relatively low at 36 percent.
Mobile Will Forever Change Retail
An astounding 93 percent of mobile developers anticipate that it is "likely to very likely" that most retail companies will have enabled mobile commerce in 2013. Consumer behavior continues to underscore this transformation. Developers predict that 86 percent of shoppers will look up a retailer's site on their device while shopping in a physical retail store in 2013. Nearly two-thirds of developers also believe that consumers will make more purchases via their mobile phone than their credit card in 2013, which is reinforced by the fact that 71 percent of developers predict the mobile wallet will permeate the consumer experience in 2013.
To download a copy of the Appcelerator/IDC Q4 2012 Mobile Developer Report, visit https://pages.appcelerator.com/12.12.12Q42012DeveloperSurvey.html
International Data Corporation (IDC) is the premier global provider of market intelligence, advisory services, and events for the information technology, telecommunications, and consumer technology markets. IDC helps IT professionals, business executives, and the investment community to make fact-based decisions on technology purchases and business strategy. More than 1,000 IDC analysts provide global, regional, and local expertise on technology and industry opportunities and trends in over 110 countries. For more than 46 years, IDC has provided strategic insights to help our clients achieve their key business objectives. IDC is a subsidiary of IDG, the world's leading technology media, research, and events company. You can learn more about IDC by visiting www.idc.com.
Appcelerator is the leading mobile development platform of choice for thousands of enterprises including eBay, Merck, Mitsubishi Electric, NBC, PayPal and Ray-Ban, as they become mobile-first organizations. With more than 50,000 mobile applications deployed on 90 million devices, Appcelerator's award-winning open source development platform (Titanium) and Appcelerator Cloud Services are used to create native apps across multiple devices including iOS, Android, Windows and BlackBerry, as well as hybrid and HTML5 mobile web. Customers who standardize on Appcelerator's solutions get to market 70 percent faster and achieve a significant competitive advantage. Appcelerator's worldwide ecosystem includes 400,000 mobile developers and hundreds of ISVs and strategic partners including SAP and Cognizant. For more information visit www.appcelerator.com
Appcelerator is a registered trademark of Appcelerator Inc. Appcelerator Titanium is a trademark of Appcelerator Inc. All other trademarks and copyrights are the property of their respective owners.
Director of Public Relations
SYS-CON Events announced today that Interoute, owner-operator of one of Europe's largest networks and a global cloud services platform, has been named “Bronze Sponsor” of SYS-CON's 18th Cloud Expo, which will take place on June 7-9, 2015 at the Javits Center in New York, New York. Interoute is the owner-operator of one of Europe's largest networks and a global cloud services platform which encompasses 12 data centers, 14 virtual data centers and 31 colocation centers, with connections to 195 ad...
Feb. 6, 2016 05:00 AM EST Reads: 312
Most people haven’t heard the word, “gamification,” even though they probably, and perhaps unwittingly, participate in it every day. Gamification is “the process of adding games or game-like elements to something (as a task) so as to encourage participation.” Further, gamification is about bringing game mechanics – rules, constructs, processes, and methods – into the real world in an effort to engage people. In his session at @ThingsExpo, Robert Endo, owner and engagement manager of Intrepid D...
Feb. 5, 2016 09:00 PM EST Reads: 753
With an estimated 50 billion devices connected to the Internet by 2020, several industries will begin to expand their capabilities for retaining end point data at the edge to better utilize the range of data types and sheer volume of M2M data generated by the Internet of Things. In his session at @ThingsExpo, Don DeLoach, CEO and President of Infobright, will discuss the infrastructures businesses will need to implement to handle this explosion of data by providing specific use cases for filte...
Feb. 5, 2016 03:00 PM EST
SYS-CON Events announced today that Fusion, a leading provider of cloud services, will exhibit at SYS-CON's 18th International Cloud Expo®, which will take place on June 7-9, 2016, at the Javits Center in New York City, NY. Fusion, a leading provider of integrated cloud solutions to small, medium and large businesses, is the industry's single source for the cloud. Fusion's advanced, proprietary cloud service platform enables the integration of leading edge solutions in the cloud, including clou...
Feb. 5, 2016 02:30 PM EST Reads: 695
SYS-CON Events announced today that Commvault, a global leader in enterprise data protection and information management, has been named “Bronze Sponsor” of SYS-CON's 18th International Cloud Expo, which will take place on June 7–9, 2016, at the Javits Center in New York City, NY, and the 19th International Cloud Expo, which will take place on November 1–3, 2016, at the Santa Clara Convention Center in Santa Clara, CA. Commvault is a leading provider of data protection and information management...
Feb. 5, 2016 01:30 PM EST Reads: 329
SYS-CON Events announced today that Alert Logic, Inc., the leading provider of Security-as-a-Service solutions for the cloud, will exhibit at SYS-CON's 18th International Cloud Expo®, which will take place on June 7-9, 2016, at the Javits Center in New York City, NY. Alert Logic, Inc., provides Security-as-a-Service for on-premises, cloud, and hybrid infrastructures, delivering deep security insight and continuous protection for customers at a lower cost than traditional security solutions. Ful...
Feb. 5, 2016 01:15 PM EST Reads: 321
SYS-CON Events announced today that VAI, a leading ERP software provider, will exhibit at SYS-CON's 18th International Cloud Expo®, which will take place on June 7-9, 2016, at the Javits Center in New York City, NY. VAI (Vormittag Associates, Inc.) is a leading independent mid-market ERP software developer renowned for its flexible solutions and ability to automate critical business functions for the distribution, manufacturing, specialty retail and service sectors. An IBM Premier Business Part...
Feb. 5, 2016 12:00 PM EST Reads: 519
The cloud promises new levels of agility and cost-savings for Big Data, data warehousing and analytics. But it’s challenging to understand all the options – from IaaS and PaaS to newer services like HaaS (Hadoop as a Service) and BDaaS (Big Data as a Service). In her session at @BigDataExpo at @ThingsExpo, Hannah Smalltree, a director at Cazena, will provide an educational overview of emerging “as-a-service” options for Big Data in the cloud. This is critical background for IT and data profes...
Feb. 5, 2016 12:00 PM EST
Fortunately, meaningful and tangible business cases for IoT are plentiful in a broad array of industries and vertical markets. These range from simple warranty cost reduction for capital intensive assets, to minimizing downtime for vital business tools, to creating feedback loops improving product design, to improving and enhancing enterprise customer experiences. All of these business cases, which will be briefly explored in this session, hinge on cost effectively extracting relevant data from ...
Feb. 5, 2016 10:15 AM EST
As enterprises work to take advantage of Big Data technologies, they frequently become distracted by product-level decisions. In most new Big Data builds this approach is completely counter-productive: it presupposes tools that may not be a fit for development teams, forces IT to take on the burden of evaluating and maintaining unfamiliar technology, and represents a major up-front expense. In his session at @BigDataExpo at @ThingsExpo, Andrew Warfield, CTO and Co-Founder of Coho Data, will dis...
Feb. 5, 2016 10:00 AM EST
With the Apple Watch making its way onto wrists all over the world, it’s only a matter of time before it becomes a staple in the workplace. In fact, Forrester reported that 68 percent of technology and business decision-makers characterize wearables as a top priority for 2015. Recognizing their business value early on, FinancialForce.com was the first to bring ERP to wearables, helping streamline communication across front and back office functions. In his session at @ThingsExpo, Kevin Roberts...
Feb. 5, 2016 09:30 AM EST Reads: 305
Eighty percent of a data scientist’s time is spent gathering and cleaning up data, and 80% of all data is unstructured and almost never analyzed. Cognitive computing, in combination with Big Data, is changing the equation by creating data reservoirs and using natural language processing to enable analysis of unstructured data sources. This is impacting every aspect of the analytics profession from how data is mined (and by whom) to how it is delivered. This is not some futuristic vision: it's ha...
Feb. 2, 2016 02:00 PM EST Reads: 394
WebRTC has had a real tough three or four years, and so have those working with it. Only a few short years ago, the development world were excited about WebRTC and proclaiming how awesome it was. You might have played with the technology a couple of years ago, only to find the extra infrastructure requirements were painful to implement and poorly documented. This probably left a bitter taste in your mouth, especially when things went wrong.
Feb. 2, 2016 04:30 AM EST Reads: 822
Learn how IoT, cloud, social networks and last but not least, humans, can be integrated into a seamless integration of cooperative organisms both cybernetic and biological. This has been enabled by recent advances in IoT device capabilities, messaging frameworks, presence and collaboration services, where devices can share information and make independent and human assisted decisions based upon social status from other entities. In his session at @ThingsExpo, Michael Heydt, founder of Seamless...
Feb. 1, 2016 05:00 AM EST Reads: 909
The IoT's basic concept of collecting data from as many sources possible to drive better decision making, create process innovation and realize additional revenue has been in use at large enterprises with deep pockets for decades. So what has changed? In his session at @ThingsExpo, Prasanna Sivaramakrishnan, Solutions Architect at Red Hat, discussed the impact commodity hardware, ubiquitous connectivity, and innovations in open source software are having on the connected universe of people, thi...
Jan. 31, 2016 09:00 PM EST Reads: 705
WebRTC: together these advances have created a perfect storm of technologies that are disrupting and transforming classic communications models and ecosystems. In his session at WebRTC Summit, Cary Bran, VP of Innovation and New Ventures at Plantronics and PLT Labs, provided an overview of this technological shift, including associated business and consumer communications impacts, and opportunities it may enable, complement or entirely transform.
Jan. 31, 2016 07:15 PM EST Reads: 1,125
There are so many tools and techniques for data analytics that even for a data scientist the choices, possible systems, and even the types of data can be daunting. In his session at @ThingsExpo, Chris Harrold, Global CTO for Big Data Solutions for EMC Corporation, showed how to perform a simple, but meaningful analysis of social sentiment data using freely available tools that take only minutes to download and install. Participants received the download information, scripts, and complete end-t...
Jan. 31, 2016 10:00 AM EST Reads: 1,185
For manufacturers, the Internet of Things (IoT) represents a jumping-off point for innovation, jobs, and revenue creation. But to adequately seize the opportunity, manufacturers must design devices that are interconnected, can continually sense their environment and process huge amounts of data. As a first step, manufacturers must embrace a new product development ecosystem in order to support these products.
Jan. 31, 2016 10:00 AM EST Reads: 781
Manufacturing connected IoT versions of traditional products requires more than multiple deep technology skills. It also requires a shift in mindset, to realize that connected, sensor-enabled “things” act more like services than what we usually think of as products. In his session at @ThingsExpo, David Friedman, CEO and co-founder of Ayla Networks, discussed how when sensors start generating detailed real-world data about products and how they’re being used, smart manufacturers can use the dat...
Jan. 30, 2016 07:45 PM EST Reads: 743
When it comes to IoT in the enterprise, namely the commercial building and hospitality markets, a benefit not getting the attention it deserves is energy efficiency, and IoT’s direct impact on a cleaner, greener environment when installed in smart buildings. Until now clean technology was offered piecemeal and led with point solutions that require significant systems integration to orchestrate and deploy. There didn't exist a 'top down' approach that can manage and monitor the way a Smart Buildi...
Jan. 30, 2016 03:45 PM EST Reads: 1,246


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While no party pics emerged (we don’t even know if Bey was present!), Nicholas “$lick” Stewart, a dancer who appears in Beyoncé and Jay-Z‘s “Apeshit” video, posted an image on Instagram Stories after the event showing what appears to be a portion of a gold-colored basketball (or football?) bearing the Adidas and Ivy Park logos.
Adidas announced its “strategic” partnership with Beyoncé in early April 2019 with a graphic that included the same yellow gold color and thus it’s safe to assume that it speaks to a collection color story.
The color theme also matches up with the promo for Beyoncé ‘s upcoming “Homecoming” documentary detailing all that went into her iconic, HBIC-themed Coachella 2018 performance.
Given all the color coordinating, it’s possible the video will be used to provide a first-time look at the debut Adidas and Ivy Park collection. But in the event that doesn’t happen, given timing of the announcement it’s likely the debut collection will be available to purchase sometime within the next six months whether in time for the all important back-to-school buying season in June/July or for holiday in October or November.


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WATCH: Kelsey Merritt gets featured on Zac Efron’s YouTube channel
5/29/2019 6:46 PM
Kelsey Merritt is among the Victoria’s Secret models who were featured on Zac Efron’s latest workout video up on his YouTube channel on Tuesday, May 28.
Kelsey Merritt marks first anniversary with boyfriend Conor Dwyer
5/27/2019 3:28 PM
Kelsey Merritt took to social media to appreciate her boyfriend, Olympic swimmer Conor Dwyer, as they marked their first anniversary as a couple on Sunday, May 26.
Kelsey Merritt stuns in Sports Illustrated Swimsuit shoot
5/9/2019 3:59 PM
Kelsey: "Grateful that I get to be a part of a family that believes in body positivity and embraces diversity."
Kelsey Merritt and Olympian boyfriend Conor Dwyer enjoy the Philippines
4/2/2019 9:22 AM
Kelsey Merritt gets featured in ‘Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue’
2/17/2019 9:28 AM
Model Kelsey Merritt is Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue 2019’s Rookie.
Kelsey Merritt gets featured on Harper’s Bazaar
2/14/2019 12:08 PM
The Filipino-American Victoria’s Secret model spilled the details on her beauty secrets and nighttime skin care routine.
Kelsey Merritt, shocked to be followed by her favorite supermodel on Instagram
2/4/2019 2:13 PM
Filipino-American model Kelsey Merritt couldn’t believe that she earned a follow back from “a supermodel I look up to the most."
Kelsey Merritt on Manila Bay post-clean up: “Sana alagaan natin ang Pilipinas”
1/31/2019 12:22 PM
Filipino-American Victoria’s Secret model Kelsey Merritt is awed by the beauty of Manila Bay following a massive clean-up drive by volunteers and government officials last Sunday.
Kelsey Merritt teases new project as another feat for Filipinos
1/21/2019 2:01 PM
After conquering the Victoria's Secret stage, what's next for Fil-Am model Kelsey Merritt?
Meet Kelsey Merritt's Olympic gold medalist boyfriend Conor Dwyer
1/4/2019 11:08 AM


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Now that Michigan online casino and poker app PokerStars integrated with New Jersey's player pool the platform's traffic has more than doubled
Posted on: February 2, 2023 |
British online gambling operator Red Tiger launched its unique timed jackpot games with four platforms in the Michigan online casinos market.
Posted on: February 1, 2023 |
BetMGM Casino is by far the market leader when it comes to online casino revenue in Michigan. Has its retail presence played a role?
Posted on: January 26, 2023 |
Casinos in Detroit, Michigan raked in $1.28 billion in 2022. MGM Grand and the month of March generated the most revenue throughout the year.
Posted on: January 23, 2023 |
Northville Downs executives submitted a proposal to build a new harness horse racing track and gaming facility in Plymouth Township.
Posted on: January 19, 2023 |
NetGaming has revealed that it has been granted an iGaming supplier license by the Michigan Gaming Control Board (MGCB)
Posted on: January 10, 2023 |
An Ingham County Circuit Court judge ruled in favor of investors suing the Kewadin Casinos Gaming Authority over failed Michigan casino plans.
Posted on: January 6, 2023 |
Both Michigan ($145M) and Pennsylvania ($155M) posted another monthly record for online casino revenue in November 2022
Posted on: December 20, 2022 |
EveryMatrix received conditional approval from the Michigan Gaming Control Board to distribute online casino gaming content in the state
Posted on: December 16, 2022 |
Michigan online poker platform PokerStars will merge Michigan and New Jersey player pools and significantly boost the cash-game player totals
Posted on: December 14, 2022 |


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When the going gets tough, Brits buy 4K TVs and fancy food mixers.
Dixons Carphone, one of the retailers most exposed to the fall-out from Britain's vote to leave the European Union, reported first-quarter sales that beat analyst expectations, and said it had seen "no detectable impact" from the referendum result on U.K. consumers.
Britons it seems, have shrugged off the uncertainty and done what they typically do when things get a bit rocky: go shopping.
Dixons Carphone's same-store sales in the U.K. and Ireland rose 4 percent in the three months to the end of July. The number of customers visiting its shops remained steady, overcoming the uncertain political and economic environment.
It’s a message that's likely to be repeated over the next few days. Reports next week from a host of British store chains, including Next and John Lewis, could also add to the tone of resilience.
It might be tempting to think that when it comes to shopping, Brexit was just a blip.
That would be a mistake.
As Gadfly's Chris Bryant has argued, the economic adjustment from the referendum result hasn't been averted, it's simply been deferred.
While lower interest rates may be helping demand for household products, a substantial inflation pickup and any large-scale job cuts are yet to materialize.
If they do, that could dent demand for big-ticket electrical items, such as a 2,000 pound TV or a new washing machine.
Dixons Carphone was hit particularly hard after the Brexit vote, with shares dropping as much as 43 percent the day after the vote. That looked too severe.
While Next has recovered its post-Brexit losses and Marks & Spencer is only slightly down, Dixons Carphone is about 9 percent below its pre-referendum level. That looks about right.
There are a few things working in its favor. Although the company won't be immune from rising sourcing costs from the post-referendum slump in the pound, it says its significant buying power, together with the deflation that tends to be a feature of the electronics market, should help it keep prices in its stores competitive.
It also has substantial exposure to mobile phone sales, which is helpful since they're a bit less of a discretionary purchase than the latest juicer.
However, the chain's dependency on big-ticket items is a risk, as are the thin margins that are typical of electricals retailing. The shares are trading on a forward price earnings ratio of about 12 times. That's a bit below the broader U.K. non-food retail sector, which is about 13 times, according to analysts at UBS.
The slight discount looks deserved. While Brits are still spending at the moment, it's not yet clear, if life gets tougher still, whether they'll shop harder or just go home.
This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of Bloomberg LP and its owners.
To contact the author of this story:
Andrea Felsted in London at firstname.lastname@example.org
To contact the editor responsible for this story:
Jennifer Ryan at email@example.com


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In July, IDC said the smartphone market declined by 32% in the second quarter of 2016, but the firm also predicted an improvement in 2017 as next-generation smartwatches launch with cellular connections to LTE wireless, instead of via Bluetooth to a smartphone.
At Canalys, Matte said the release of the second-generation Apple Watch models Series 1 and 2 late in September made up the "vast majority" of the 2.8 million units Apple shipped in the third quarter. The Series 2 includes GPS and starts at $369.
With 2.8 million units shipped, Apple was easily the biggest smartphone maker in the third quarter, Canalys said, taking 45% of the market, well ahead of Samsung with 18%, Fitbit with 17%, Garmin with 3% and Pebble with 2%.
The Apple Watch Series 2 GPS with its focus on fitness apps puts it in direct competition with Fitbit, Matte said.
Even though IDC and Canalys differ substantially on third-quarter shipment numbers, the smartwatch market is still nascent. That means that any fluctuations in a single quarter will seem more drastic simply because they are compared to a small market one or two years earlier, analysts noted.
A bigger concern for smartwatches might be where the market will be in two to five years. Samsung executives have openly expressed disappointment in the market, while Apple has been publicly optimistic. Still, both companies seem to rally with new products and new capabilities.
"I'm still bullish in the long term for the smartwatch," Matte said. "How many million sell per year in two or five years nobody can predict."
Matte predicted smartwatch prices will come down in coming years as smartwatches replace the cheaper fitness bands.
"Absolutely, the smartwatch success has not been what most originally wanted, with lower numbers in the early years than anticipated," Matte said. Even Fibit's longtime success was tamped down in the third quarter, he noted.
"While I'm bullish on the smartwatch category, there's some truth to the idea that there's general technology fatigue by buyers," not just for smartwatches, Matte added. "That's more true in China than the U.S. But even with softness in the market, I personally think there's utility with a health device to run apps on the wrist."
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Their margherita pizza is some of the most famous pizza in Phoenix, with its wild mix of herbs and spices and vegetables, who knew that eating healthy pizza could taste so good. But the report lays bare the potential scale of the new approach with up to ??55 million needed for building costs and ??45m in revenue budgets to take on the extra 13,000 inpatients to NHS Lothian. Top HeadlinesCity, Arsenal, Man United all fight for Isco2006 World Cup probe due FridayLeicester announce ??26.
Read more University lifeUni coursesInternational studyPostgraduate studyStudent accommodation adviceStudent financial supportApprenticeships discussionStudent life Universities A Z Guides to unis in the UK and beyond. But we think the Adidas Hamburg trainers in black and redwood leather are definitely some of the best. It has resulted in crippling consequences for the country, with the Irish government having to receive an 85bn bailout from the EU and the International Monetary Fund in November 2010.
" where you contribute content (jokes, images, mobile games) and any money made from the content will be doubled and donated to Save The Children. 2 days ago by Adrian Kingsley Hughes in HardwareiPhone 7 to be the thinnest iPhone yet, claims latest rumorWant your iPhone to be thinner. Support for carers Family support what the NDIS will fund ParticipantsThe planning processGetting plan readyDeveloping your participant statement adult Developing your child'.


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When we look at an animated history of the Forbes list of the richest billionaires, we also see some economic history.
Using data from Atlas and United Van Lines, and the U.S. Census, we can look more closely at U.S. migration during 2021.
Alexander Hamilton gave us the economic independence that we also should have celebrated yesterday on July 4th.
Wondering which comes first, the cars or the charging capability, we might have a chicken egg problem for our EV charging stations.
To determine the impact of a temporary federal tax and maybe state tax holiday, we need to look at how state gasoline prices vary.
Decomposing development, researchers tell us that less road safety can constrain a middle income country’s economic growth.
Since 1928, based on the S&P 500, there have been 26 stock market declines that we call bear markets. But they were especially frequent during the 1930s: The bad news is that recessions tend to accompany bear markets. However, on…
Several months ago, Tesla agreed to recall 53,822 self-driving vehicles that were programmed to roll through a stop sign. The company decided that vehicles moving at less than 5.6 miles an hour need not stop if the car detected no…
Because of a huge wave and massive container ships, we wound up with a gargantuan number of Lego pieces becoming The Great Lego Spill.


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Virtual Reality has been the mightiest wave to hit the industry and it’s nothing short of impressive to see how it can affect an individual’s interest and bank account! HTC one of the leading brands to take on Virtual Reality is proliferating with its debut product in the market. HTC recently revealed that it sold more than 15000 VR headsets each running up to $800. That is well pretty amazing for as tender a technology as Virtual Reality which furthermore requires a $1000 PC to run.
HTC’s VIVE is a PC compatible peripheral VR kit which lets the user experience complete immersive environment inside the setting of a game. However, VIVE works in a special way to provide more realistic experience due to its extra added sensors that track players overall activity around the room in VR.
HTC Vive could possibly be the second biggest hit in VR this year after Oculus Rift which had started selling is the headset for $600 earlier in January this year. HTC competing with giants like Facebook, Google and Samsung entering in the field of Virtual Reality has driven quite a numbers of users to its side successfully.
Along with the success of major Companies in the industry, one can clearly interpret the life and persistence of VR in the coming years. VR hosting some wonderful games and live streaming content portal such as Netflix can definitely drive the customers to part with their money for the technology.


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In a trading statement, the company said its revenue in the year to end-June grew between 31% and 33%, below the 40% growth expected, due to a faster shift to its subscription model and the lower up-front revenue that entails.
The company said it expects revenue growth of at least 25% in the current financial year, but it retaining its longer-term guidance, including its expectation that it will achieve profitability in fiscal 2016.
The stock was down 19% at
It said its loss before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation will be between
"There were a small number of larger contracts that either have been or are being negotiated on a longer term subscription basis. They were previously expected to be signed before the year end with a large up-front licence component. Had this occurred,
Still, the company's metrics continues to improve.
The company said it has 30 million registered end-users on its Bank, Pay and Buy platforms in June, up from 28 million in February. Live transactions through its platforms hit 4 billion in June an an annualised basis, up from 2.4 billion a year earlier. Payments and transfers initiated via
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Jennifer Dornan: Murdered mum may have been stabbed before killer set fire to home and fled
Murdered Jennifer Dornan may have been stabbed and left in a bedroom before her home was set on fire by her killer. Read the full story.
Rats spotted in Belfast Caffe Nero coffee shop sparking urgent investigation
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The Odyssey Arena officially renamed as The SSE Arena today
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The latest and most famous case of Chinese architectural mimicry doesn't look much like its predecessors. On December 28, German news weekly Der Spiegel reported that the Wangjing Soho, Zaha Hadid's soaring new office and retail development under construction in Beijing, is being replicated, wall for wall and window for window, in Chongqing, a city in central China.
To most outside observers, this bold and quickly commissioned counterfeit represents a familiar form of piracy. In fashion, technology, and architecture, great ideas trickle down, often against the wishes of their progenitors. But in China, architectural copies don't usually ape the latest designs.


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Explore the top Snapchat agencies
Are you looking for the best Snapchat agencies?
Marketers and advertising types gathered in New York for the annual industry event known as Advertising Week, aiming to provide insights to an industry grappling with significant changes in technology, culture and consumer habits.
Every year, leading valuation and strategy consultancy Brand Finance values the brands of thousands of the world’s biggest companies. The company’s analysis bridges the gap between the marketing and financial worlds. Brands are looked at as business assets, which can
Stockholm, February 4, 2016.
Champs & Chimps, a sweden digital agency dedicated to creating the most remarkable products based on their clients’ needs. Its CEO Marc Andersson talked with TIA about digital marketing channels, the importance of digital brands, the
Prague, May 5, 2015
Jan’s young face is the only thing that betrays his 22 years old. But at the precise moment when he starts talking, perplexity invades you. When he was just 19 years old, he embarked on a


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Russia’s assault on Ukraine has increased scrutiny on DJI over fears that Beijing’s close geopolitical partnership with Moscow might hamper the company’s efforts to prevent its products from being used by the Russian army.
President Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine has put many Chinese companies in a bind. Beijing’s official position is to claim neutrality while maintaining rhetorical support for Russia and a normal economic relationship with its burgeoning geopolitical and trade partner — a potential lifeline for the Russian economy under the pressure of sanctions from the United States and its allies.
But for Chinese conglomerates with international reach, continuing to do business in Russia could mean losing access to far more important markets in Europe and North America if they end up being targeted by secondary sanctions from Western governments. Most Chinese companies with a presence in Russia have chosen to stay silent about their plans, while some have quietly adjusted operations to minimize exposure to the Russia market.
In March, Ukrainian Vice Prime Minister Mykhailo Fedorov published an open letter to DJI head Frank Wang, calling for him to stop doing business with Russia and alleging that the Russian army was using DJI products to guide its missiles.
Ukrainian officials have also raised concerns about apparent failures of DJI’s AeroScope system to reveal the location of nearby drones as well as their pilots. Some have alleged the system was being intentionally tampered with to allow Russian-flown drones to evade Ukrainian radar.
DJI has denied the accusations, saying that the Aeroscope function cannot be turned off and offered to set up geofencing to block all DJI drones from flying over Ukraine regardless of who is piloting them. Last week, the company released a statement saying that DJI does not market or sell products for military use and refuses to “customize or enable modifications that would enable our products for military use.”
Chinese companies seeking to lower their profile in Russia also face criticism domestically from Chinese nationalists who have strenuously pushed for boosting the Russian-Chinese alliance in the face of the West.
Early in the war, ride-hailing giant DiDi’s announcement that it was scrapping expansion plans in Russia was met with backlash from those who accused the company of abandoning China’s partner in a time of need. The company later reversed its decision.
Over a month later, DJI’s decision has been met with a more muted response, in part because commentators saw it as an evenhanded reflection of China’s official policy to not take sides. “Pretty good,” read one of the most-liked comments about the news on Chinese microblog Weibo, “this way, DJI announced it’s not helping either side, so if there are still traces of DJI on the battlefield, then it’s nothing to do with DJI.”
Even so, some nationalist commentators were unimpressed that DJI appeared to be acquiescing to international pressure. Asked why the statement was made in English first, DJI public relations director Xie Tiandi replied that the internal review was a “small thing” and “not worth mentioning” but he had been compelled to provide a Chinese statement after seeing inaccurate discussion on the platform. .
Lyric Li in Seoul and Vic Chiang in Taipei, Taiwan, contributed to this report.


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AT&T Is Trying To Buy DirecTV For $50 Billion (T, DTV)
Published 2:19 pm, Monday, May 12, 2014
AT&T is in late talks to buy DirecTV for $100 per share, the equivalent of about $50 billion, Bloomberg reports.
It's not the first time we've heard of this deal. The Wall Street Journal reported the same thing earlier this month, but at a smaller, $40 billion valuation.
DirecTV would be run as a separate unit under its CEO Mike White. But White reportedly has plans to retire in 2015.
DirecTV closed today at $87.16 per share. But the stock rose over 6% in after-hours trading following the report.
The deal comes at a time when we're seeing a lot of consolidation between telecoms and cable/satellite TV providers. Comcast is currently in talks to buy Time Warner Cable in a $45 billion deal. AT&T already offers cable TV in a few markets through its UVerse system, but a DirecTV acquisition would allow it to provide pay TV virtually anywhere via satellite.
AT&T declined to comment.
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Swedish music streamer Spotify will provide the soundtrack for Sony devices, the companies said Wednesday, spelling the end to the streaming music service from the Japanese tech giant that invented the Walkman.
New research has uncovered the earliest known practical piece of polyphonic music, an example of the principles that laid the foundations of European musical tradition.
A federal jury decided Tuesday that Apple didn't compete unfairly when it sold music players and songs with copy-protection software that was incompatible with rival devices and music from competing online stores.
Google is remixing the music on its YouTube video site with the addition of an ad-free subscription service and a new format designed to make it easier to find millions of songs that can still be played for free.
Internet retail titan Amazon on Thursday introduced a home virtual assistant always at the ready to answer questions, fetch news, play music or help with to-do lists.
Google's music-subscription service will try to anticipate its listeners' mood swings as it amplifies its competition with Pandora, Spotify and other popular services that play tunes over the Internet.
Life and death, surveillance and privacy, humans and robots: Keiichiro Shibuya likes to unsettle and push boundaries in music.


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NEC Posts $1.17 Billion 4Q Loss
Jan. 31, 2002
TOKYO (AP) _ Reeling from plunging global demand, NEC Corp. on Thursday became the latest Japanese electronics giant to post a huge loss for the latest quarter and warn of more losses for the full fiscal year.
NEC posted a group net loss of 155.07 billion yen ($1.17 billion) in the October-December period versus a profit of 8.31 billion yen a year ago. Sales sank 9.5 percent to 1.125 trillion yen ($8.47 billion).
Tokyo-based NEC said its electronics devices division recorded a group operating loss of 55.38 billion yen ($417 million) during the quarter _ reversing its profit of 11.42 billion yen last year.
It cited shrinking demand for mobile-phone handset displays, semiconductors and other electronics devices.
NEC follows rivals Fujitsu Ltd. and Toshiba Corp., which earlier this week announced losses of hundreds of millions of dollars in the latest quarter and widened their forecasts for full-year losses amid worsening demand in the United States, Europe and Asia.
NEC, the world's third-largest maker of semiconductors, on Thursday doubled its previous loss forecast for the full year ending in March to 300 billion yen ($2.26 billion).
Sales for the period are expected to total 5.07 trillion yen ($38.2 billion), down from the 5.3 trillion yen predicted earlier.
NEC also expects its first group operating loss for the full fiscal year. The company said it would lose 57 billion yen ($429.2 million) during the period versus a previous forecast for a profit of 30 billion yen.
NEC's shares fell 0.8 percent to close at 1,050 yen ($7.91) in Tokyo trading on Thursday.


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Beer market of Russia 2016: PET goes to draftThe beer market of Russia was warmed up by the hot summer, but the preparation for large volume PET prohibition has already impacted it negatively. The year was successful for Efes, MBC and regional producers; Carlsberg’s positions were virtually stable but AB InBev and Heineken lost a part of market share having focused on the sales profitability. The dynamics of big brands was determined by how much the companies were willing to keep the prices down or by their promotional activity. In this context the economy segment of the beer market and sales of inexpensive draft beer were increasing. The premium segment started shrinking due to license brands migrating to the mainstream segment.
Beer market of Vietnam: “Young tiger”Vietnam is one of the few big beer markets that continue to grow steadily. The beer popularity results from its low price, street consumption culture, and social motives. The outlooks of beer market as well as the Vietnamese economy inspire optimism, though the country is heavily dependent on export of goods. The state regulation can be called liberal, but the key risk for brewers is harbored in intensive rising of excise. Within TOP-4 there are two leaders, Sabeco and Heineken that grow at the fastest rates. The first company effectively employs its capacities, the second one focuses on marketing technologies. Almost 80% of the market belongs to century-old brands, yet the middle class and the youth are shifting their interest toward international premium that is growing taking share from the mainstream.
Analysis of beer market in China (on Russian)
Beer market of Ukraine: big three losing weightIn 2016, fast increase of excises and resulting price spike stood in the way of the beer market stabilization. Most of competition (as well as mass sorts) moved to the economy segment of the market. The biggest losses were incurred by the leading three, especially Obolon, which again experienced pressure after reallocation of Efes market share. However, one should already speak of TOP-4. Group Oasis CIS (PPB) became a strong player and competitor to transnational companies. Besides the net sales of many regional medium breweries look rather good and 16-fold cost reduction wholesale trade license for craft brewers opens up a possibility of rapid growth in 2017.
Thailand. Move to boost rural economies
Thapana's mission is to promote higher incomes and better living conditions for people in rural communities, he said
He said that the private sector would help farmers and small business entrepreneurs in rural areas through enhanced production and management, as well as marketing know-how and communication methods to build awareness.
"It makes the cogwheels roll and move on," he said.
"Meanwhile, the government will be responsible for granting and executing the policies that are set to promote better incomes and living conditions in the rural economy, as well as related stimulus measures."
Thapana, who leads one of the 12 public-private steering committees under the Pracha Rath project, said that his committee's mission was to increase the income of the rural communities throughout the Kingdom. As a result, people will be happier based on having better living conditions, he said.
"To achieve our mission, we will focus on enhancing the development of three strategic pillars, which are agriculture, product processing by small and medium-sized entrepreneurs, and community tourism," said Thapana, adding that the aim is to develop farmers and micro entrepreneurs to become SMEs.
Thapana said that the launch of the social enterprise endeavour would be the nucleus for mobilising cooperation between the government and private sectors to develop the rural economy.
He said that the social enterprises would work as legal business entities but not for the benefit of their shareholders, with all profits returned to the community.
He said that enterprises would be enhanced by good governance and would operate without government subsidies or donations from charities.
The first social enterprise, Pracharath Rak Samakkee Phuket, was launched last week with Bt5 million in primary investment capital, raised from a grant of 5,000 shares for Bt1,000 each.
ThaiBev has allocated Bt1 million as a seeding fund for the company and more than Bt1 million has been raised by local businesses.
Thapana said that the social enterprises would have executive boards made up of members of the government and private sector, and each would have a managing director who was a well-known person working in civil society in the respective provinces.
He said the enterprises would have advisory boards made up of representatives from relevant ministries and government agencies, including the Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives, the Ministry of Commerce, and the Prime Minister's Office.
"Phuket has a high level of readiness. The province is currently a world [tourism] destination and has strong potential for further development both in community and global levels," said Thapana.
He added that for Phuket four agricultural products would be promoted - pineapple, lobster, goat milk, and organic vegetables.
Batik would be focused on as a strategic value-added product, with branding done under the product-processing sector. For community tourism, the province would develop a year-round tourism calendar.
In addition to Phuket, he said the committee would set up social enterprises in four other provinces in the first phase, which would run until the end of this month. They are at Phetchaburi, Udon Thani, Chiang Mai and Buri Ram.
They will be the first strategic provinces and cover the different regions of the Kingdom. The selection of strategic provinces is based on the readiness of local business communities including their infrastructure.
Thapana said that all 18 strategic provinces, representing the 76 provinces of Thailand (excluding Bangkok), will be selected by the end of this year for the setting up of local social enterprises, with one holding company in charge of the transfer of overall policies and business visions.
"The success factor of rural economic development will be not only from the perfect combination between the government sector and major private companies, but also small and micro community enterprises," said Thapana.
"I myself cannot set any medium or long-term target for the social enterprises on what they will be in the future. Those social enterprises do not belong to me but to all small and micro enterprises in the community."
4 Apr. 2016


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Not only is the electric scooter rideshare a smart way to save money and reduce emissions from cars, they are fun to ride!
Just six months ago, Bird created an electric scooter sharing program in Los Angeles, California. It’s received a $100 million raise as investors believe it can become the biggest player in the industry. With the money, the last-mile service plans to launch in 50 new cities by the end of the year. New Series B funding took place less than a month after receiving $15 million in the middle of February. It’s grown incredibly popular over the past half-year in Los Angeles due to the ease of picking up and using the dockless e-scooters. Over in China, the scooter’s […]
Click here to view original web page at This Electric Scooter Is The Latest Eco-Friendly Rideshare


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The tests are to ensure the vehicle’s electric drivetrain, battery, power electronics and charging technology can continue to function in freezing temperatures.
Snow-covered roads and specially prepared areas on frozen lakes serve as perfect test tracks for engineers to tune the power development of the motor, control systems, cornering behaviour, suspension, steering and braking system.
“MINI is on a path of growth and heading towards a fully electric future,” said Stefanie Wurst, head of the MINI brand. “Our iconic MINI 3-Door Hatch maximises the experience for our customers through its electrified go-kart feeling combined with digitalised touchpoints – and a clear focus on sustainability with a minimal environmental footprint.”
The 3-Door Hatch will be MINI’s fifth generation vehicle and the first of a new MINI family. A new crossover in the small-car segment and next generation MINI Countryman will complete the future core electric portfolio.
Both the MINI 3-Door Hatch and MINI Countryman are set to be revealed in 2023 while the all-electric crossover is due to be unveiled this year.


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The logic seems obvious. This country has too little space for housing, too much for retail, so why not convert the latter into the former? As the effects of the pandemic scythe through high street brands – Café Rouge, TM Lewin, Carluccio’s, Bella Italia – felling what were in many cases already wilting businesses, it makes sense, on paper, to hand over the spaces they vacate to people desperate for somewhere to live.
Let us therefore take the step, unusual in these pages, of agreeing with the prime minister. Shortly after he announced his “new deal” last week, he proposed that shops “be converted into residential housing more easily”. There would be the added benefit that any homes achieved in this way would, in theory, reduce the pressure on the nation’s green belts. They might also help to revive towns whose economic and social energy was flagging.
High streets will change and are changing in any case. Some things familiar and some loved will be lost. But it would hardly be a bad thing if more people lived in the centre of towns, with a 24-hour concern for the places near their home, and some money to spend on such local retail – hopefully, the more independent kind – as remains. It might make British towns more closely resemble admired continental examples, where homes and businesses more intimately co-exist.
The loss of jobs in retail and restaurant chains is devastating for those involved, but their tendency to homogenise towns is not something to be mourned. Much retail consists of malls, both out-of-town and in town centres, often land-hungry developments with huge car parks. It would not be a loss to the nation’s urban fabric if some of these became housing.
British housebuilders do not, have not and will not build homes of the numbers required, it is not in their interest
In the great sweep of history, the high street as we know it is not an eternal feature but largely an 18th- and 19th-century creation, replacing economies more dependent on both markets and individual households’ growing of produce for their own use. If town centres changed before, they can do so again.
The devil, though, is in the detail, a territory that Boris Johnson finds notoriously hard to navigate. “You’ve taken me into a sort of rabbit hole of detail,” he bemoaned, only last Friday, to LBC’s Johnson-friendly interviewer Nick Ferrari. And to change a shop into a home, or a mall into apartment blocks, is not something to be done with a snap of the fingers. They tend to be different shapes, with significantly different requirements for such things as daylight, privacy, views and open space.
There’s not much reason to think the government knows how to address these questions. The main tool in its box seems to be the relaxation of planning rules, so that property owners and developers can switch uses from shop to home without the usual processes of application and permission. This is something it has already tried, by extending what are called permitted development rights (PDR), such that offices can be made into flats.
The results have been atrocious, leading to the creation of entire flats no bigger than standard double bedrooms, often with no cross-ventilation and no outdoor space. The waiving of planning rules has produced horrors such as Terminus House in Harlow, Essex, a 14-storey “human warehouse” where London boroughs have been offloading people from their housing waiting lists. Here, families are crammed into studio flats, and drug gangs fight turf wars in corridors and lift lobbies. The main entrance to the block is through the bin store.
Some homes have been proposed without windows, which the government will now stop, but it is hardly a mark of a civilised country that such a thing should even have been a possibility. The conditions created by PDR would be intolerable in any circumstances, but Covid-19 has demonstrated more than ever the importance of adequate personal space.
It is easy to see how a similar approach would play out with shops – imagine what would happen if developers converted a butcher’s meat store into a home as cheaply as possible, or tried to make an old supermarket into as many residential units as possible. Some wit also needs to be applied to the collective as well as the individual implications: the loss of shops in the wrong place will accelerate the decline of high streets’ economy, not arrest it. Perfectly healthy retail businesses will be closed down, simply because a landlord can make more money by divvying up the premises into flats.
Related: Boris Johnson and the housing crisis
As for the larger scale, the government would be naive to think that an end to what Johnson called the “newt-counting delays” of the British planning system will alone cause developers to build thousands of beautiful homes on shopping malls. British housebuilders do not, have not and will not build homes of the numbers required, because it is not in their interests to do so. They are even less likely to create the affordable homes that millions need. It is a laissez-faire fantasy to think that commercial animal spirits, unbound by red tape, will achieve everything by themselves.
In announcing his undernourished new deal, Johnson noted that Germany and the Netherlands have higher rates of homebuilding than in Britain. What he failed to say was that those countries’ governments are considerably more proactive than ours, both in building social housing and acquiring land, and making the investments in planning, infrastructure and remediation that enable development to happen. The state, in other words, has to get involved.
As mayor of London, Johnson’s bright idea for increasing housing numbers was to make it easier for developers to build bigger and taller blocks of expensive units, much of it sold as investments rather than homes, most of it of little relevance to the city’s needs. The signs now are that he is planning another giveaway of development rights, one that will enrich landowners without achieving the transformation of housing that he promises. His proposed changes to high streets looks reasonable in theory but catastrophic in practice.
•Rowan Moore is the Observer’s architecture critic


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Félix “xQc” Lengyel was playing a competitive Overwatch match last night when suddenly, he was booted from the game and informed his account had been banned or suspended—an action that’s sparked discussion over false reporting.
Yesterday, a widely shared Facebook post claimed that BioWare had canceled Mass Effect: Andromeda’s downloadable content. The good news: that Facebook post was a hoax. The bad news: they guessed correctly. Mass Effect: Andromeda will indeed not be receiving any single-player DLC, three people familiar with BioWare’s…
As Sony and Microsoft battle over who has the most teraflops, Nintendo’s hardware makers may be taking a different approach. The next Nintendo console, code-named NX, is a portable system with detachable controllers and a docking station for TV gaming, according to a new report from Eurogamer.
According to respected Korean game site GameMeca, Nintendo’s South Korean branch is being hit hard with layoffs.
If Chinese media reports are to be believed, Sony's PlayStation 4 will cost less than the Xbox One when it launches in China, just like it did everywhere else in the world.
According to reports out of China, a mother and her son are presumed drowned after a fight over online game League of Legends.
One might wonder: how the hell do you turn a game as cinematic as The Last of Us into a movie? One will keep wondering. Sony's doing it, working alongside Naughty Dog and Screen Gems to make their PS3 hit into a film.
In South Korea, there's a show called Hello Counselor. On it, the celebrity panel talks with folks dealing with issues, which are often unusual. A segment on a recent episode introduced a couple dealing with game addiction.
In 2011, Sony released LittleBigPlanet 2 for the PlayStation 3. Two years later, Sacremento, California's News10 uncovers the startling truth behind its misleading "E for Everyone" rating.
People in Japan have argued that the console gaming market is dying. Whether that argument is valid or not, they now have another piece of ammunition to point to as proof.
Gameloft released the My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic game last Thursday. I started playing last Wednesday. One week later I am king of the ponies. It's undisputed. Mostly undisputed. Level 40 is king, right?
Many of the materials used to make electronic devices are helping fuel ongoing bloody wars in the Congo—and a new report accuses Nintendo of not doing enough to ensure that their game machines aren't part of that deadly conflict.
According to Japan's Semiconductor Industry News, Samsung is manufacturing the 45 nanometer processor that will power the PS Vita's central processing unit.
In the dark times, before the internet and video games, British children played outside. Now? They don't!
Microsoft has already taken action to block developer ThriXXX's adults-only girl-groping Kinect game from PC release, but that hasn't stopped the El Paso, Texas Fox affiliate from terrifying parents with the thought of their young children touching virtual breasts.
Every year, Blizzard holds a contest to see who can dance the most like one of the World of Warcraft races. This year's Undead male dancer learned that real life bones aren't quite as sturdy as video game bones.
A report from the Pew Research Center's Internet and American Life Project shows an increasing number of Americans using their mobile phones as personal computers, with substantial leaps in gaming, internet use, and other non-voice applications over the past year.
Remember that NPD study that defined extreme gamers as people who average 48.5 hours of play time a week? G4's Patrick Klepek got two of these gamers to explain themselves.
The average U.S. gamer is spending more time gaming than ever before, but only 4% of the gaming population is classified by the NPD Group as "Extreme Gamers." What kind of gamer are you?
After years of record-breaking holiday sales, GameStop reports its second-highest holiday sales ever, citing economic weakness, item shortages, and winter storms as reasons for the lack of upward momentum.


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KEY TAKEAWAY: According to Media Post “clearly broadcast TV advertising is still the best medium to drive awareness quickly to the widest possible audience demographic when marketing an Rx drug in the United States”. They could not be more wrong and the author is naive about why when it comes to choosing TV over online.
According to a 2016 STAT-Harvard poll,[inlinetweet prefix=”” tweeter=”” suffix=””] only 7% of consumer respondents were motivated to talk to their physician about a prescription drug they saw on TV, down from 21% in 2015. [/inlinetweet] The poll also indicated that [inlinetweet prefix=”” tweeter=”” suffix=””]57% of U.S. adults support ending Rx drug TV advertising.[/inlinetweet]
We know that consumers are tuning out Rx drug TV ads, are upset by escalating drug prices, and place very little trust in the pharmaceutical industry. So, one might be curious as to why pharma TV ad spending is increasing by 21% this year, according to Kantar Media. Did you know that “nine Rx drugs are on pace to break $100 million worth of TV ad time” in 2016, according to Stat News?
Because DTC marketers don’t know any better might be the best answer.
TV is easier to do than Internet marketing. With TV you develop a creative brief, film a spot, develop a media plan and then say “look what I did!”. Online marketing, especially today, requires more thought, development and dollars. DTC marketers are in love with TV; they always have been and always will be because that’s where fame and glory are.
Now don’t get me wrong, some Rx drugs can benefit from mass market TV, but clearly consumers are ignoring these ads and DTC marketers have all but forgotten how to “pull” someone into the brand via online. There are some interactive agencies who are breaking ground on new Rx digital initiatives such as “Greater Than One” but it takes too long to convince people that this is the right thing to do.
I continue to hear about clients who biggest part of the budget pie is TV. Some of the blame belongs to their agencies who direct them towards TV, but a lot of blame belongs to inexperienced DTC marketers who just don’t get it.