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MMR Research Worldwide has unveiled an immersive co-creation approach that brings consumers into the innovation research process to help create not just evaluate, using their input to shape outline ideas into fully fledged concepts or executions. Ordinarily this process might take weeks or even months, with different teams working on different aspects of the proposition. But MMR’s RetrEATs take place over just two days, allowing brand owners to take away actionable insights and clear parameters for development across the proposition in a matter of hours.
Consumers are invited to spend two days at a contextually relevant, but informal, environment where MMR’s expert Sensory-Qual moderators use design thinking principles and specialist qualitative techniques to draw out the ideal execution across names, sensory product delivery, branding, colourways, packaging, ergonomics and communications, with analysis taking place in collaboration with brand owners there and then.
The approach is the latest in a suite of agile ideas from MMR, designed to tackle the well-known NPD failure statistic by encouraging brand owners to switch their research emphasis from testing to co-creation – to develop and launch their products right first time. The ability to shape the proposition with consumers across multiple touchpoints at once brings focus to the whole process as well as complete alignment between positioning, product and packaging for a stronger proposition overall. Global CEO Mat Lintern is hugely optimistic about the approach;


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It appears that Apple might be gearing up to release a premium variant for their new and upcoming iPhone 7, dubbed in the rumor mill as the iPhone 7 Pro.
New reports are pointing out once again to the long rumored dual main rear camera setup for the device, as well as the alleged removal of the 3.5mm standard headphones jack, as well as a Smart Connector feature that willif these long running rumors will end up to be truebe the first time for such a feature to make it to any iPhone device yet.
According to new reports in the rumor mill, a Japanese tech magazine called “Mac Fan” reportedly published what was claimed to be a schematics plan for a new iPhone. At first glance, the iPhone seemed to look greatly similar to the design of the current iPhone 6s Plus, with only a few differences that denote an entirely different model. The device was called iPhone 7 Pro.
The device schematics published showed an iPhone device that sports a display measuring 5.5 inches. At the back panel of the device, there is the still protruding main rear camer. Only this time, it was tipped to have a dual camera setup. This feature, as of now, will reportedly be exclusive to the iPhone 7 Pro model. Also, there seems to be no more standard 3.5 mm headset jacksomething that had been rumored in the past not only for the “Pro” variant, but as well as for the standard iPhone 7 releases.
Another new feature that had been tipped by the schematics designand had been shown in leaks in the pastis the possible introduction of the Smart Connector feature. Smart Connector, on the iPad Pro, is used to wirelessly connect a Smart Keyboard to the device to transform the tablet into a hybrid device. However for the iPhone 7, it is expected that the new feature will be used for charging purposes.
The iPhone 7 is expected to be launched sometime this year.

domain: news


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Broad Ripple’s Naked Tchopstix is expanding its original location and adding another along 96th Street. A new bar is scheduled to open this week at the Broad Ripple sushi hotspot. And a new 5,600-square-foot Tchopstix is scheduled to open in March in a strip center behind the former Bahama Breeze, said Maggie Lee, who owns the restaurant with her husband, David.
Another popular restaurant has decided Greenwood is ready for prime-time. Italian joint Bravo, a chain based in Columbus, Ohio, is scheduled to open in October at Greenwood Park Mall, joining new additions Cheesecake Factory, Stir Crazy and Paradise.


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The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), on Friday, slashed the exchange rate for computing Customs duties at the nation’s seaports by 7.3 per cent.
The slash, analysts argued, was as a result of the naira that strengthened against the dollar at the official window on Thursday.
LEADERSHIP gathered that the Customs duty rate was reviewed downwards from N1, 605.82/$ to N1, 488.896/$ on Friday, February 23, 2024, according to information on the National Trade Hub, the official trade portal of the Nigeria Customs Service.
This represents a 7.3 per cent drop when compared to the old rate of N1, 605.82/$ used as of Thursday, February 22, 2024, and a reduction of N116.924 less on a dollar.
The reduction is the second time in 2024 that the Customs exchange rate is being adjusted on the downward trend, which is expected to bring some measure of relief to the importer who will save about N116.924/$ from the rate used on Thursday, February 22, 2024.
Meanwhile, an industry expert and a licensed Customs agent, Taiwo Mustapha, said, the port industry cannot afford the exchange rate to be floating, especially, when it has to do with Customs duty payment.
According to him, this has affected Customs Licensed agents and their importers such that the volume of cargo at the port has reduced drastically because people can no longer import at the rate they used to.
“If we continue like that, most of us will go out of business. Our staff are sitting idle at the offices and we are paying salaries because there is no job to be done. Take a look at the auto dealers on some of the streets, the number of vehicles on their stand has reduced dramatically,” he said.


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All articles by BRAIN Staff
WASHINGTON (BRAIN) — Two U.S. senators from states known for their outdoor recreational industry are introducing legislation that would require the Commerce Department's Bureau of Economic Analysis to specifically track jobs in that industry.
OGDEN, Utah (BRAIN) — Mavic is increasing its connection with Hincapie next year, by sponsoring the brand's development road team and its gran fondo.
NORTHFIELD, Vt. (BRAIN) — Sock maker Darn Tough Vermont says it has seen a 51 percent increase in sales in the first three quarters of 2015 and has added more knitting machines and more workers at its mill, including 100 new job positions there this year.
SAN FRANCISCO (BRAIN) — Strava's Premium members will now receive two consecutive free months of Zwift, the multiplayer online indoor cycling program. Strava, an online cycling activity tracker, offers free memberships and a Premium program for $6 per month.
BELLINGHAM, Wash. (BRAIN) — Canfield Brothers has released the EPO, the brand's first carbon fiber frame. It's a hardtail 29er engineered for aggressive all-mountain riding.
BRISBANE, Australia (BRAIN) — Recon Instruments' Recon Jet smart sunglasses will be distributed in Australia and New Zealand by FE Sports.
FE Sports will also showcase Recon Jet at the Noosa Triathlon Multi Sport Festival in Queensland, Australia, this weekend.
SAN MATEO, Calif. (BRAIN) — Shares of GoPro Inc. tumbled 17 percent in after-hours trading Wednesday after the action camera maker reported third-quarter earnings that fell short of analyst expectations due largely to weak sales of its compact, lightweight HERO4 Session camera, introduced during the second quarter.
MADISON, Wis. (BRAIN) — Next season, the Trek Factory Racing team will use training software from a Australian brand that is new to the U.S. market, called Today's Plan.
FREDERICKSBURG, Va. (BRAIN) — Spanish helmet brand Catlike has hired Sean Kneale as its North American brand manager, effective Nov. 1.
“With over 15 years of experience as an outside rep, Sean will use that knowledge to build the Catlike brand in North America,” the company said in a statement.
WASHINGTON (BRAIN) — Burley Design is working with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commision and Canadian authorities to voluntarily recall some bike child trailers where the tow bar can separate from its receiver on the trailer.


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COP 26 has catapulted sustainability to the fore for industry worldwide
As the world population grows and people flock to cities, we are experiencing a rapidly urbanising population, putting a lot of pressure on infrastructure, job creation, climate and the environment, affirms Dawood Al Rahbi, Global Head of Supply Chain, OQ* in this OpEd contribution.
Over the past decade, the packaging industry has enjoyed steady growth due to increase in demand, lower cost, and high performance.
The phenomenal and exponential demand for packaging products sparked discussions and movements concerning the impact of packaging on sustainability.
One of the most popularly supported campaigns is the ban on single use plastics sweeping the four corners of the world. Sustainable packaging solutions could mean many things ranging from the elimination of single use plastics to the promotion of reusable and recyclable plastic packaging or the reduction of packaging-related wastes.
Countries and governments are going to various lengths to pledge sustainability and reduce the impact on the environment by implementing regulations on decreasing single use plastic and improving waste management. For instance, the two biggest countries in Asia in terms of population, China and India, have pledged to ban single use plastic by 2022.
Eliminating single-use plastic
While eliminating single use plastics is a great move, we, as an industry, need to shift our focus on how plastic packaging can benefit the environment. Almost one-third of the global food produced goes to waste, which is responsible for 8-10% of the global greenhouse gases.
According to a report released by the UN’s Food and Agriculture organisation, the carbon footprint of food waste ranks third when compared to the carbon footprint of countries, after US and China. Across the entire farm-to-fork value chain including food production, handling and storage, processing, distribution and consumption, approximately 1.6bn tonnes of food is lost each year.
This lost food can be used to feed almost 900mn more people, thus eliminating hunger and starvation. All this lost food goes into landfills, emitting methane into the environment and contributing to global warming.
The use of plastics in packaging solutions offers a range of benefits, from increasing productivity to increasing shelf life and protection in transit. Handling and storage account for heavy food losses, especially in low-income countries.
Lack of infrastructure and amenities contributes to this food being lost before reaching the market. Smart packaging of food that protects it from damage in storage and transport can reduce waste and make more food available to direct consumers.
Polymers have excellent electrical, mechanical, insulating, optical, and chemical properties. They also boast a high strength-to-weight ratio, elasticity, and corrosion resistance. Light-weight packaging materials make it easier for bulk volume transport by protecting the goods from environmental factors, thus reducing waste. From rigid, flexible, and durable packaging to wraps and films, each have their distinct role in making the farm-to-fork value chain more sustainable.
At OQ, we manufacture a range of food packaging solutions to mitigate the food loss and waste across the value chain. Our versatile solutions are designed to meet an array of industry applications in order to minimize loss and increase shelf life.
They exhibit durability from a balance of flexibility and strength with high tenacity in addition to high heat and chemical resistance. The enhanced barrier protection, high puncture resistance and improved sealing properties of our food packaging solutions extend product shelf life and ensure package integrity, so that they are safe for our consumers.
With the evolving needs of the growing population and impact on the environment, focus on sustainability in packaging is a global necessity.


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Capcom has said that it may release more games carrying a $70 price tag after Dragon’s Dogma 2.
Search Results for Capcom
Insider Dusk Golem has claimed that several Resident Evil games were greenlit by Capcom in the last year.
Jeff Grubb has heard that a Dino Crisis project is happening at Capcom, though this was before Exoprimal came about. However, it could still happen.
Capcom is asking fans in a survey if they want to see classic franchises revived with remakes or a new entry.
The Ace Attorney series will never end, Capcom’s Kenichi Hashimoto has said in a new interview with 4Gamer.
New info on Monster Hunter Wilds will drop in Summer 2024, Capcom has said.
Capcom has revealed Monster Hunter Wilds, the next mainline entry in the franchise during The Game Awards 2023, arriving sometime in 2025.
Capcom confirms it intends to continue remaking Resident Evil games, but won’t say what title is due an overhaul next.
Capcom’s Dragon’s Dogma 2 is the first game from the studio to cost $70.
Dragon’s Dogma 2 will officially launch this coming March 2024, Capcom has announced in today’s showcase, check out the details here.


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New app that lets you spin to choose restaurants debuting in Lynchburg
LYNCHBURG, Va. (WSET) - A new app, called Spotluck, is debuting in Lynchburg and developers hopes it will bring dynamic pricing to the restaurant industry with a "gamified spin."
The app pioneers real-time discounts that fluctuate based on day, time, weather and other factors that impact restaurant occupancy.
Their software yields higher discounts on rainy Mondays and lower discounts on sunny weekends.
Spotluck Lynchburg Partner, Randy Sass, has spent most of his life involved with the local business scene. Now that downtown has seen a revitalization, Sass knew the timing was right for technology that highlights great local restaurants.
“I grew up in the Lynchburg restaurant where my mom worked,” Sass said. “I spent my summers there helping her and I have a lot of great memories. I’m excited to promote eating locally and contribute to a community that means a lot to me.”
Participating restaurants in the area are the following:
- Charley’s Restaurant
- Kegney Brothers
- The White Hart
- Market at Main
- The Yellow Sub
- Lola’s Mexican Cuisine & Cantina
- Big Lick Tropical
- Grill, Fifth & Federal Station,
- Main St. Eatery
- Bulls Steakhouse
- The Crown Sterling
- El Camino
The launch party will start at 7 p.m. and scheduled to take place at Kegney Brothers.
For more information of the event click here.


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PlayStation has recently confirmed a PC port for Ghost of Tsushima. Both Horizon Forbidden West and Sucker Punch Productions’ latest release are headed to the platform within two months, marking a new wave of PC ports at a rapid pace.
However, the announcement has resulted in an outcry from the more vocal PlayStation community. Many fans believe Sony has betrayed them and are now calling for a boycott of Ghost of Tsushima.
Why it matters: PlayStation’s push toward PC gaming will only get bigger and more ambitious moving forward.
Over on Steam Forums, a user has recently created a thread titled ‘Don’t Buy This.’
Asking PC gamers to refrain from supporting the port, the Steam user hopes Sony will take a loss on this release and end up discouraged from porting more titles to the platform.
While this is highly unlikely to be effective, such posts highlight the general sentiment around this announcement. Similar comments can be found on the PlayStation Blog‘s announcement.
User BofaDN777 wrote that PC is receiving more first-party support from PlayStation in 2024 than the console itself. Others believe Sony is harming PlayStation’s identity and worsening its brand value.
The more extreme posts on the subject have pointed fingers at PC players. User Neko blames this community for the increasing number of PlayStation games on Steam, even going as far as to say that this practice ruined his life.
Such posts can also be considered attempts at trolling, so it is difficult to judge whether this particular user is serious.
All in all, reactions from enthusiast PlayStation fans have not been pleasant. However, PC gamers are delighted, expressing joy at the fact that Ghost of Tsushima is finally arriving on the platform.
Horizon Forbidden West and Ghost of Tsushima are also expected to set a new precedent, accelerating the arrival of PC ports. This is just one more reason for PC gamers to celebrate, though a few hardcore PlayStation fans have claimed that this move would force them to shift to PC.
Ghost of Tsushima will be available on the platform on May 16.
This PC port is shaping up to be the full package, offering DLSS3, FSR3, and Intel XeSS support. It will also come with all the enhancements of the Director’s Cut, including the Iki Island DLC.
Avinash is currently pursuing a Business degree in Australia. For more than three years, he has been working as a gaming journalist, utilizing his writing skills and love for gaming to report on the latest updates in the industry. Avinash loves to play action games like Devil May Cry and has also been mentioned on highly regarded websites, such as IGN, GamesRadar, GameRant, Dualshockers, CBR, and Gamespot.


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Morning Markets: Continuing our coverage of the impact of startups on incumbents, let’s dig into what GrubHub had to say yesterday about its market, and competition.
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Yesterday as part of its third-quarter earnings report, GrubHub’s shareholder letter described how the online food delivery giant views its market. And its competition.
The letter provides interesting context for the on-demand players, especially those working with food delivery. It’s a space that has attracted oceans of capital (DoorDash, Postmates, etc.) and investment from other sorts of on-demand companies, like Uber. The scale of the bets placed in the space by venture investors, the Vision Fund, and companies that venture capitalists previously funded is huge. It’s in the tens of billions by now.
And so, when GrubHub warns that growth in its market could be set to slow dramatically, it’s worth paying attention to. Let’s explore.
GrubHub is being challenged by private companies who can lose lots of money in the short-term as they have raised ample capital from investors more interested in growth than profits. GrubHub, in contrast, is profitable and has to report its earnings each quarter.
The public company has noticed the entrant of high-growth on-demand companies, as we’d expect. That said, how it describes the entrance of, we presume, DoorDash is interesting (Bolding: Crunchbase News):
Over the last few years, two significant changes on the restaurant supply side temporarily accelerated overall industry growth. First, a new entrant leveraging a national, scaled third-party transportation network brought delivery capabilities to tens of thousands of independently owned and enterprise restaurants that couldn’t or didn’t choose to provide their own delivery services. Second, listing restaurants on platforms without any partnership allowed other players to expand restaurant inventory rapidly. Both of these changes opened up new and unique pockets of restaurant supply and resulted in significant growth in both orders and new diners as previously untapped geographies and additional restaurants in all geographies were now immediately accessible online.
Regarding its own new user growth, GrubHub said that “retention of these newer diners was good” but that their “ordering frequency” wasn’t developing over time to be as strong as seen in “earlier cohorts.” The company then got into the weeds, explaining how it saw the market changing in the wake of the new competition and a changed competitive landscape (Bolding: Crunchbase News):
We spent a fair amount of time digging into the causes of these dynamics. What we concluded is that the supply innovations in online takeout have been played out and annual growth is slowing and returning to a more normal longer-term state which we believe will settle in the low double digits, except that there are multiple players all competing for the same new diners and order growth.
GrubHub next described why some diners weren’t performing as expected. The company wrote that ” online diners are becoming more promiscuous,” using a number of platforms for delivery instead of just one, for example. “Easy wins in the market are disappearing a little more quickly than we thought,” GrubHub continued.
The warnings didn’t stop there, however. GrubHub also took shots at companies looking to find efficiency in delivery scale, writing that (Bolding: Crunchbase News):
A common fallacy in this business is that an avalanche of volume, food or otherwise, will drive logistics costs down materially. Bottom line is that you need to pay someone enough money to drive to the restaurant, pick up food and drive it to a diner. That takes time and drivers need to be appropriately paid for their time or they will find another opportunity. At some point, delivery drones and robots may reduce the cost of fulfillment, but it will be a long time before the capital costs and ongoing operating expenses are less than the cost of paying someone for 30-45 minutes of their time. Delivery/logistics is valuable to us because it increases potential restaurant inventory and order volume, not because it improves per order economics.
Firey stuff, frankly.
Now, GrubHub has a biased view of the market, its place in it, and the dynamics of the space in which it competes. That much is clear. But the company is also trying to explain its worldview to its shareholders, so we’re not just reading some useless hype; this is how the company describes itself to its owners.
Let’s bring this back to startups.
DoorDash and other prime GrubHub competitors are valued on revenue growth instead of profit. This means that they don’t have to make money in the short-term, but also means that if their growth rate slows, their value can quickly fall. If overall market growth slows, it could crimp DoorDash’s ability to continue the sort of growth that its backers covet.
The news doesn’t really get better from there. GrubHub’s notes concerning easy wins becoming scarce on the ground implies rising customer acquisition costs (CAC); harder wins cost more. This abuts the fact that diners’ budgets aren’t infinite. GrubHub noted in its letter that “the average diner in the United States will not consistently pay over $25 in total cost for a quick service restaurant cheeseburger meal.” So, rising CAC could cut into margins if order size can’t scale further. (SaaS fans can think of the situation as something akin to falling LTV compared to CAC.)
Summing, we could see what makes some on-demand companies attractive become less attractive over time. GrubHub is right in that most customers won’t use the service if they repeatedly have to pay high costs for a regular-quality meal. Also, none of this takes into account a possibly failing macro-climate. Add that in and things become worrisome.
Investors agree. Shares of GrubHub were off 37 percent this morning.
Illustration: Dom Guzman.
Stay up to date with recent funding rounds, acquisitions, and more with the Crunchbase Daily.


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Earnings season moves on apace, but in addition to the conversations about the performance of truck sector component companies, there is increasing speculation about their ownership.
The creation of Fiat Industrial led to speculation that Fiat was looking to exit truck. Fiat Industrial saw most of its IP vested with Fiat Auto, and so one interpretation of the separation of Fiat’s car and commercial/con-ag businesses was that the latter were no longer of interest, and the former was where the action lay.
At last month’s AGM, Fiat Chief Executive Sergio Marchionne announced that the Iveco Daily would debut in North America in 2013. What he didn’t announce was the launch of any truck product.
Recent events have dampened such grand speculation, but have allowed for a more measured analysis. At last month’s AGM, Fiat Chief Executive Sergio Marchionne announced that the Iveco Daily would debut in North America in 2013. What he didn’t announce was the launch of any truck product. Fiat Industrial now sees Iveco as a split operation, producing Light and Heavy product. The cost of developing a US retail network for light commercial vehicles alone would be astronomical, and so Daily will presumably sell through Chrysler‘s Dodge network. Iveco’s value thus swings yet further away from Heavy and more towards Light and Medium. The Heavy business could appeal to an OEM with European, Latin American and, increasingly, Chinese aspirations.
AB Volvo is a trickier call to make. While the synergies between CE and truck are developing – witness the combined show of strength at last month’s Intermat Exhibition – Volvo is arguably far less diversified than Fiat Industrial, and so there doesn’t seem too much to trim from the core business, notwithstanding Volvo Aero. But Basel III may play a role here; the banking regulatory standard will impact a number of banks, one of which could be Handelsbanken, the major shareholder of Industrivärden, which, itself, lies second only to Renault SA in terms of ownership of AB Volvo. So the twin catalysts of Basel III and the recent French Presidential elections could both cause upheaval in Gothenburg.
Aabar’s likely exit from its role as anchor shareholder leaves Daimler with, once again, a large free float and, once again, a problem.
What about Stuttgart? Daimler has long consigned to the darkness anyone who would question the wisdom of the combined car and truck strategy, but there seems to be some concern in the air. Aabar’s likely exit from its role as anchor shareholder leaves Daimler with, once again, a large free float and, once again, a problem. According to Reuters, institutional investors held almost 67% and private investors another 20% of Daimler stock as of 6 February. Chief Financial Officer Bodo Uebber spent some of the most recent earnings call attempting to calm fears, but the reality is that Daimler’s combined car and truck strategy places it in a small minority, and one that would seem to offer some attractive potential for an activist financial investor minded to cleave the two asunder.
In 2008, the sky fell in. By 2012, the dust has settled, and we look out across a truck industry landscape that is populated by the same names facing the same issues. It’s no different this time, and this observation would seem to apply as much to ownership as it does to any other facet of the operation.
The opinions expressed here are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the positions of Automotive World Ltd.
Oliver Dixon is Editor, World Truck Analysis.
The AutomotiveWorld.com Expert Opinion column is open to automotive industry decision makers and influencers. If you would like to contribute an Expert Opinion piece, please contact firstname.lastname@example.org


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LONDON (MarketWatch) -- Finnish mobile phone maker Nokia Corp. fi:nok1v NOK, +0.00% said Monday that it doesn't expect the earthquake and tsunami in Japan to have any material impact on its first-quarter results. The company said a complete picture of the impact is not available, but it does expect some disruption to the ability of its devices and services unit to supply a number of products due to an expected industry-wide shortage of components. "First and foremost, our thoughts are with those affected by the earthquake in Japan," said Niklas Savander, executive vice president, markets. "We are in constant dialogue with our suppliers and with their extended supply chain in the region. Nokia's supply chain management system is designed to mitigate operational disruptions by using alternative sources for components and production processes," he added. Shares in Nokia were up 2% after the announcement.
Nokia sees earnings unaffected by Japan earthquake


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Following an earlier pronouncement last week, President Barack Obama in his Saturday radio address called on bailed-out banks to increase their lending to small businesses caught in a credit squeeze.
Calling small business the “engine” of the economy, the president said big banks need to “fulfill their responsibility” to broaden prosperity and widen recovery by helping small-business owners.
Meanwhile, the U.S. Small Business Administration is proposing increases in the size definitions for three broad commercial sectors. The proposed increases cover size standards for 71 different types of businesses, two-thirds of them in retail trade sectors. The rest are in accommodations and food services, and other services.
The changes, if adopted, will expand eligibility to small businesses and help them gain access to SBA’s financial assistance, contracting and other programs.
For more information about these proposed revisions to its small business size standards, visit the SBA Web site.


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The outlook for the NZ supply chain – less reliable, more expensive
The world remains at the mercy of an unprecedented global logistics crisis. Production and freight delays along with unprecedented inflation has plagued businesses at every stage of the supply chain. The security of raw material and product supply is a key priority for governments and businesses, across all industries, alike.
To blame all the disruption on COVID 19 is an over simplification. There’s no doubt that it has had a significant effect on the global and domestic production, manufacturing and distribution, but it has had some help. COVID has caused labour shortages as a result of workers self-isolating, skyrocketing ocean freight costs, domestic transport delays due to intense pressure on local providers, and trucks and forklifts being out of service as they wait for replacement parts.
The rising cost of fuel cannot be entirely blamed on the pandemic and is another key contributor to the increase in freight costs. We have also experienced significant labour disputes at key ports and manufacturers around the world. It’s fair to say that we are experiencing a perfect storm and the supply chain is taking a hammering.
“The pressures have been relentless, with logistics teams suffering sustained and systemic global supply chain disruption, record port congestion, cargo delays, chronic capacity shortages, breaches or near breaches of shipping contract commitments – and ocean freight rates surging to extreme levels.”
Phillip Damas, Managing Director, Drewry
The global pulp and paper industries, along with the print industry, are particularly vulnerable. The logistics challenges are obviously driving up costs and constraining production as the mills run out of raw materials to produce product and the warehousing space to store it. The industrial action at key mills in Europe has also played its part, and whilst these have now officially ended and mills are being restarted, it will still be many weeks before they can replenish their supply chains under current conditions.
As a result pulp prices increased across all regions and for all grades during April, nearing or breaching record highs (in normal terms). Suppliers have indicated further price increases will follow.
Sitting at the end of international freight routes we (New Zealand) have definitely felt the flow-on effects. There is an international shortage of containers and most available shipping capacity is in use. Shipping reliability is currently well below pre-pandemic levels as a result of congestion at major international ports. The cost of international shipping has increased by up to ten times when compared with 2019 levels.
New Zealand is a very small player in the global supply chain. Our freight and logistics sector has been significantly impacted by disrupted international shipping and reduced air travel, compounded by local COVID-19 impacts and domestic port operational issues.
“We are at the mercy of some very large, global shipping lines, we don’t have very much ability to influence a lot of the global issues because of the size of our country and position”
– Harriet Shelton, Manager, Supply Chain, Ministry of Transport
In the past year, there has been strong domestic demand for goods as well as ongoing demand for capacity from exporters. Unfortunately, capacity has been unable to keep pace, despite government subsidies, due to shipping delays, congestion and labour shortages to haul products around the country.
Supply is arguably the biggest challenge facing our industry currently and the effect of the bottleneck. Back in 2019 when the pandemic first hit the government made the decision to stop paper imports from Europe – which put massive pressure on the paper supply chain here in NZ.
This obviously had an immediate effect on paper supply and printing organisations across New Zealand The ongoing effects of this decision, the closure of the Kawerau Paper Mill and other continued disruptions has seen business closures like that of Ovato’s printing arm in Auckland, leaving nearly 150 people without a job.
“When a key player in Ovato’s supply chain – the Kawerau paper mill – closed, this left the company reliant on imported paper. Importing paper is not only expensive due to the huge increase in shipping costs, but there’s around a seven-month wait time to get paper from Europe.”
Ovato managing director Paul Gardiner
COVID is clearly not to blame for all the disruption but it has definitely shone a light on the vulnerability in both the global and domestic supply chains. This has been recognised by the government who have recently published a discussion paper as a starting point for the development of New Zealand’s freight and supply chain strategy for the next 30 years – NZ freight and supply chain issues paper
This strategy won’t resolve any challenges in the near future but it will have an ongoing impact on your business so it’s worth reviewing. Decarbonising our supply chain will be a key priority so building your own plans will help you minimise the future impact. I explore government policy and its longer term impacts on the supply chain in one of the other posts on my site.
So, what does the future hold? There is much debate over the outlook for the global supply chain and the ongoing disruptions. There are definitely signs of recessionary (deflationary) pressures but these have not yet materialised and could be equally challenging. The general consensus, with the pandemic unresolved, is that global logistics are likely to be disrupted for a further 12-24 months and the disruption will have flow-on effects that will take some time to remedy.
We have not yet felt the full effects of the Omicron outbreak or the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and the corresponding impact to energy costs, in New Zealand.
In the recently published Deloitte 2022 Ports and Freight Yearbook they suggest consumer behaviour will be a key driver of how quickly the supply chain normalises. But we have seen elevated shipping rates flow into long term contracts between shipping lines and their customers, suggesting the hangover could be felt for some time to come.
The above timeframes are all based on some varying push and pull factors.
- Easing consumer demand – there is some easing of demand expected as people remain optimistic about “returning to normal” and ease of stockpiling or over ordering in fear of not being able to get supply in the future.
- Risk of new Covid variants – Any new threatening variants have the possibility to lead to further supply chain disruptions as people are forced to isolate and recover.
- Geopolitical pressures – The potential cut off of Russian gas in Europe.
Regardless, there is a good chance that the post-pandemic supply chain will look very different to the current ‘Just-in-time’ approach. Businesses will be looking to build more resilience, risk mitigation and agility into their logistics operations. This may involve diversifying suppliers, holding additional inventory and an increased focus on digital technology. I share some of the strategies businesses are employing in one of the other posts on my site, as well as some of the work we at BJ Ball have been undertaking to minimise the impacts to our business and yours.
If you have any questions or feedback I’d welcome the opportunity.


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One of Bitcoin’s most popular gift card vendors is launching a Bitcoin-back program.
Stockholm-based Bitrefill just announced its Bitrefill Rewards Program, an initiative that will give Bitrefill users the option to receive Bitcoin back with every purchase they make on the platform.
This rollout, according to a press release, comes after vocal customer demand for a cash-back version of rewards for Bitcoin on the platform.
Founded in 2015, Bitrefill lets you purchase giftcards for such brands and services as Uber
Bitrefill wants to inspire its users to “live on crypto,” according to its company’s slogan. This rewards program is another step towards this goal to create a Bitcoin circular economy wherein Bitcoin is used to pay directly for goods and services instead of cashing out to fiat first.
“Our slogan is "Live on crypto" and a huge chunk of our customers are doing just that,” Bitrefill CEO and co-founder Sergej Kotliar, said in a release. “So if we can use our marketing spending to reward our best customers, and make their living on crypto even more lucrative, then that's a win-win.”
Bitrefill supports a number of altcoins (like Ethereum and Litecoin), but it’s also one of the few Bitcoin market-making companies that has integrated Bitcoin’s Lightning Network for instant, low-to-no fee payments. With this new rewards program, Bitrefill now joins a growing fold of companies that offer so-called “sats back” programs for its users.


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Just as BMW is getting around to launching the all-new, second-generation 8-Series Coupe while teasing the four-door Gran Coupe variant, Munich’s finest officially released photos teasing the droptop variant as well. So while the Mercedes-Benz S-Class Coupe had its work cut out for it, it appears the S-Class Cabriolet will as well.
The latest press release comes from Death Valley in Nevada, during a heat test run that included drives to Las Vegas. With temperatures exceeding 50 degrees Celsius, or 122 degrees Fahrenheit, along with extremely dusty conditions, the extreme climate is perfect for automakers from around the world to research, develop, and test the heat tolerances of their newly engineered vehicles.
Specifically, the focus is on how the engine manages in ambient hot conditions, as heat is one of its biggest enemies. Without efficient and durable cooling capabilities, an internal-combustion engine won’t perform well and will also consume more fuel. It also tests the wear and durability of internal engine components under sustained loads and in consistently hot running conditions.
Engineers also use the differences in the air quality to tweak the engine’s control unit so that its brain can know how to adjust its air-to-fuel ratio since hot air is less dense than cold air.
Hot weather testing isn’t the only form of rigorous experimentation the 8-Series Convertible will be undergoing. The car’s electrical engineers also want to take a detailed drive around the Hoover Dam to study exactly how the stronger electromagnetic fields produced by massive industrial powerplants interfere with the 8-Series’ computers and wireless connectivity features.
The company also announced that its next stage of testing goes from extreme hot to extreme cold, in Arjeplog, Sweden. There, the 8-Series Convertible will go through its paces in extreme cold conditions. The succeeding research and development stages also include extensive driving tests in Southern France and on the grueling Nürburgring racetrack.
Sales for the 8-Series hardtop coupe begin later this year, with the initial launch model being the M850i xDrive. It will feature a twin-turbocharged V8 engine with 523 horsepower and 553 pound-feet of torque, an eight-speed automatic transmission, and all-wheel drive.
- BMW scraps its unpopular approach to heated seats
- Apple Watch Series 8 could come in three sizes instead of two
- TCL TVs at CES 2021: 6-Series goes 8K, 85-inch XL line debuts
- This supercar-beating EV test mule wants you to think it’s a normal BMW 5 Series
- Horsepower, tech, or cubic feet? Have all three in the BMW 8 Series Gran Coupe


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Thomas Cadillac Of Hartford, Parsons Chevrolet Of Farmington Shut Down
ERIC GERSHON and KENNETH R. GOSSELIN
February 25, 2009
Connecticut auto dealerships continue to disappear amid the meltdown of the U.S. automobile industry.
In Hartford, Thomas Cadillac on Weston Street, a dealership that has operated in the city since 1929, closed last Friday. The closing follows the shutdown in December of Tony March Buick- Pontiac- GMC and Saturn of Hartford, also in the North Meadows area of Hartford.
Parsons Chevrolet of Farmington also shut down Friday. It was founded in 1916 by Robert E. Parsons and had been run by his grandson, Richard Parsons.
Both family-owned dealerships are among the oldest and best-known to close since the start of the year.At Parsons on Scott Swamp Road, cars have already been moved off the lot and will be sold by Southern Auto Auction of East Windsor, Richard Parsons said.
"It just came to the point where I had to pull the plug," Parsons said. "I delayed it as long as I possibly could."
About 50 Connecticut auto dealerships have closed or consolidated in the last 14 months, about 20 of them since the start of 2009, according to the Connecticut Automotive Retailers Association.
Falling sales combined with a scarcity of credit for financing inventory and operational expenses forced Parsons to close, he said. About 25 of the company's 30 employees have been laid off. The rest remain to help close up the business, a process he expects to take 30 to 60 days.
In the last year, Parsons' sales of new cars fell 7 percent, he said.
In Hartford, the Thomas family bought what became the Thomas dealership in 1978, and in 1995 they moved it to the North Meadows from its original location on Albany Avenue.
In late January, the Thomas family had sold its Jaguar dealership to Jaguar Hartford for an undisclosed price.
Douglas M. Thomas, the dealership's vice president and general manager, said the Thomas family tried to sell the Cadillac franchise but couldn't get approval quickly enough from the manufacturer.
Business had slowed to such a point "that it didn't seem prudent to stay open," Thomas said.
The dealership had 35 employees. Six transferred to the new Jaguar dealership but the rest have or will lose their jobs.
Reprinted with permission of the Hartford Courant.
To view other stories on this topic, search the Hartford Courant Archives at


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Home Bargains will close all their UK stores on Boxing Day and New Year's Day, it has been confirmed.
The store typically shuts around 8pm during the week and on Saturdays, while Sunday hours are usually until 4pm - but opening times will change during this festive season.
The discounter has also confirmed it will be shutting shops at the earlier time of 5pm on Christmas Eve.
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The company said it wants to give workers more time to spend with family and friends over the Christmas season this year.
It isn't the first time Home Bargains has kept its doors shut on Boxing Day, having also given staff the day off in 2019 and 2020, The Mirror reports.
KentLive spoke to other major stores to see if they are planning to close on Boxing Day and this is what we found.
Marks and Spencer
Marks and Spencer announced it will not be opening its stores on Boxing Day.
The retail giant said this is to thank its 70,000 colleagues for their hard work during the pandemic and will give workers more time to spend with their loved ones.
This comes after M&S closed its stores on Boxing Day last year and was "well-received by colleagues", according to M&S.
The closure will apply to all owned M&S stores in the UK, the Republic of Ireland, its Donington Distribution Centre and all of its support centres – including its Customer Contact Centre.
Steve Rowe, CEO of M&S, said: "Up and down the country, our colleagues have been there for our customers in the most challenging of circumstances.
"As a small thank you for their incredible hard work, we’ve taken the decision to close our operations on Boxing Day once again this year, to enable our colleagues to spend more time with their family and loved ones."
This Christmas, M&S will be extending the opening hours of more stores in the week leading up to the big day.
The majority of stores will open from 6am until midnight across Monday (December 20) to Thursday (December 23).
A selected number of stores will be open until 8pm on Christmas Eve and selected stores will be open on New Year’s Day.
Morrisons will be closed on Boxing Day in a bid to thank its 110,000-strong workforce for their "incredibly hard work over the last 18 months".
A spokesperson for Morrisons said: "Everyone at Morrisons has worked incredibly hard over the last 18 months as we’ve responded to the unprecedented challenges of a global pandemic, serving our customers and local communities.
"So this year we’re taking the exceptional step of closing all our supermarkets on Boxing Day, so as many colleagues as possible can enjoy a two day weekend break with family and friends."
John Lewis and Waitrose
Nearly all of the businesses shops will be closed on Boxing Day, with a spokesperson stressing "this is not new for us".
Referencing Waitrose, they said: "Most of our shops will be closed on Boxing Day, with the exception of our Welcome Break motorway service stations and Shell forecourts.
"This is in line with what we've done in previous years."
They added: "John Lewis shops will be closed as usual on Boxing Day, with the exception of JL Trafford."
Asda has not yet released their plans for Christmas yet.
A spokesperson said: "It is September and we normally make these decisions later in the year.
"We made the announcement last year in November."
They added: "When a decision is made we will let our colleagues know first."
Aldi simply said that it will continue to close its stores on Boxing Day as it has done for many years.
Sainsbury's said it has not released their hours "just yet", but will keep its colleagues and customers updated.
Tesco has not responded to the request.


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‘Business 2 Digital’ launches today for first time in Kuwait
An exhibition for Ooredoo’s partners to showcase their latest products and services
KUWAIT: Under the patronage and attendance of Minister of Commerce and Industry Khaled Al-Roudan, Ooredoo launches “Business 2 Digital” forum today for the first time in Kuwait witnessing the attendance of the country’s most prominent guests and attendees from the leading IoT/ICT companies. The event will take place at the Four Seasons Hotel and will be a one day event with two sessions, morning and evening. This event comes in tandem with the Ooredoo’s strategy of being a leader in the market in terms of Digital Transformation.
This event is being held under the supervision of the Ooredoo Business department and aims at shedding the light on the major milestones and achievements for the company and also announcements will be made on the future plans for Ooredoo Business. The forum will also feature multiple presentations from leading IoT/ICT companies and will focus on the challenges and changes that have taken place in this sector whether it was technical related or vital issues such as Cyber Security.
The forum will include participations from leading companies in IoT/ICT like Cisco, Fortinet, Honeywell, HP Aruba, Sap and Ericsson. Issues will be raised about the future of the corporate sector, and the key objectives of the next phase of digital transformation. As well as discussing the benefits of cloud services and data centers. The forum will also feature


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Google is currently selling its smallest smart speaker, the Google Home Mini, for just £29
Google is currently selling its smallest smart speaker, the Google Home Mini, for just £29. That's £20 cheaper than you've previously been able to buy the speaker.
The diminutive smart speaker may have been succeeded by the Google Nest Mini, but it’s still an incredibly capable connected home device.
Here are Google’s Home Mini deals:
• Google Home Mini, Chalk - £29 (was £49) GET THE DEAL HERE
• Google Home Mini, Charcoal - £29 (was £49) GET THE DEAL HERE
• Google Home Mini, Coral - £29 (was £49) GET THE DEAL HERE
• Google Home Mini, Aqua - £29 (was £49) GET THE DEAL HERE
As the name implies, the Google Home Mini is the smallest member of the Google Home family. The device delivers capable sound and, of course, has the American firm’s signature Assistant built-in.
That means you can bark commands and questions at the obedient device as long as you’re nearby.
The Google Home Mini can do even more though. It can even entertain family or friends with a host of different games, too.
If you’re worried about buying a last-generation product, you should know the differences between the Google Home Mini and the newer Nest Mini are minimal. Google’s newer speaker comes with improved audio, a built-in wall mount… and that’s about it.
And really, who can argue with a price tag of £29?
This article contains affiliate links, which means we may receive a commission on any sales of products or services we write about.
This article was written completely independently, see more details here.


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COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) – On the eve of voting beginning on a new contract proposal, one Kroger employee said that for him and those he works with, the ongoing labor negotiations aren’t about money.
The employee, who wished to remain anonymous, said he is frustrated about the negotiation process and feels like everyday workers are being left in the dark.
“Really, we’re wanting something that can’t be contracted,” the man said.
Starting Tuesday, Kroger workers represented by the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) International Union Local 1059 will have the opportunity to vote on the latest labor deal proposed by the grocery store chain.
If a majority of union members fail to accept the contract, a strike could be on the horizon.
“It seems like there’s three different factions right now and the workers are left completely out of it,” the employee said. “It’s just between the union and Kroger company at this point. The workers have no say at all.”
As thousands of union members prepare to vote this Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, the employee said he knows little about what he’ll actually be voting on.
“I know basically what I find out on the news,” he said.
The man has been a Kroger employee for seven years, stocking shelves at one of its central Ohio locations. He said employees have felt mistreated by the grocer since the COVID-19 pandemic began.
“We see those profits skyrocketing, and at the same time, Kroger continues to cut hours and make one worker do three workers’ worth of work,” he said.
Sometimes working 60 hours a week, he said he’s at the end of his rope and those fighting on the workers’ behalf need to pick up the slack.
“The common consensus is that they’re fighting for themselves, while we’re just sitting around waiting to hope we get a few drops from them,” he said of the union.
Eighty-two stores and more than 12,000 employees would fall under the newest proposal, which, if approved, would see 85% of employees receive a frontloaded $1 per hour raise starting Oct. 23. Department heads and full-time top associates would also receive a $2,500 bonus.
“We see that Kroger is just taking advantage and hoping that a quick dollar-an-hour patch will make everyone feel better about it,” the employee said.
If a majority of the 6,700 union members vote to ratify the contract, it would end any further motion to strike, but this employee urges his fellow workers to think again before giving in.
“We want to see them actually commit to changing the way they treat their employees,” he said. “That’s what we want to see.”
The employee said he didn’t vote during the last set of labor talks years ago and now realizes that was a mistake. He hopes members vote to strike down this latest offer as well.


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Mardi Gras bead dogs off the leash with lawsuit rulingReprints
Visitors to New Orleans can breathe a sigh of relief now that a legal dispute has been settled over depictions of Mardi Gras bead dog trinkets.
The popular novelty has a long history as an easy craft project for repurposing the ubiquitous strands of beads tossed to onlookers during the city’s world famous Mardi Gras parades, and numerous websites and online videos illustrate how to twist up the little beaded pooches once the party’s over.
The trouble started when two competing businesses started to cash in on their own bead dog versions and ended up in the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans in Nola Spice Designs L.L.C. vs. Haydel Enterprises Inc., doing business as Haydel’s Bakery.
Haydel’s started the dispute with a threatening August 2012 letter demanding Nola Spice stop sales and marketing of its bead dogs.
The letter lead to a flurry of suits and countersuits initiated by Nola Spice alleging trademark and copyright infringement filed in various courts since October 2012.
The appeals court on Wednesday confirmed Nola Spice’s non-infringement of Haydel’s trademarks and the dissolution of Haydel’s trademarks, thus allowing Mardis Gras bead dogs again to roam free in the marketplace.


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These top tweets were chosen from influencers as tracked by GlobalData’s Influencer Platform, which is based on a scientific process that works on pre-defined parameters. Influencers are selected after a deep analysis of the influencer’s relevance, network strength, engagement, and leading discussions on new and emerging trends.
Top tweets on cruise in February 2021
1. Royal Caribbean’s tweet on the unveiling of Odyssey of the Seas
Royal Caribbean Blog, the official blog of the Royal Caribbean International covering latest news on the largest global cruise line, shared an article on the unveiling of Royal Caribbean’s next cruise ship, Odyssey of the Seas.
The ship began its first journey from the Ems River in Germany towards Eemshaven, The Netherlands. Once there, the ship will start sea trials in the North Sea in order to test its functionality and systems.
— Royal Caribbean Blog (@theRCLblog) February 27, 2021
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Username: Royal Caribbean Blog
Twitter handle: @theRCLblog
2. Princess UK Media’s tweet on adding three new itineraries for Regal Princess
Princess UK Media, the official account of Princess Cruises UK and Ireland, tweeted about the cruise line introducing three new itineraries to its Regal Princess’ 2021 ex-UK season.
The new voyages include a 12-night Canary Islands cruise which is expected to depart on 18 September 2021, seven-night Spain and France cruise which will depart on 30 September 2021, and five-night Belgium and Netherlands Sampler which will depart on 7 October 2021.
Princess Cruises is adding three new itineraries to Regal Princess’ 2021 ex-UK season.
On sale March 2, the new voyages are:
-12-night Canary Islands cruise, departs Sep 18
-7-night Spain & France cruise, departs Sep 30
-5-night Belgium & Netherlands Sampler, departs Oct 7 pic.twitter.com/BgoRTwInm8
— Princess UK Media (@PrincessUKmedia) February 25, 2021
Username: Princess UK Media
Twitter handle: @PrincessUKmedia
3. Andrew McAlpine’s tweet on Norwegian Bliss’ arrival at Southampton Port
Andrew McAlpine, a maritime photographer and writer, tweeted on the Norwegian Bliss Cruise arriving at the port of Southampton on the morning of 13 February 2021.
The port is expected to the one of UK’s largest port for export handling almost two million cruise passengers and about 950,000 vehicles.
The Norwegian Bliss Cruise is in the port for stores and to transfer crew to the Norwegian Encore Cruise fleet also standing the Southampton Port.
Not quite the images I wanted as she turned off dock head, but here is @CruiseNorwegian #NorwegianBliss arriving in @ABPSouthampton this morning. She is in #Southampton for stores and to transfer crew to fleetmate #NorwegianEncore which is also in port. @NCL_UK @NCLdaily #cruise pic.twitter.com/rIQfXNzGEa
— Andrew McAlpine (@CruiseshipP) February 13, 2021
Username: Andrew McAlpine
Twitter handle: @CruiseshipP
4. Antonio Paradiso’s tweet on MSC Cruises becoming the world’s second biggest cruise line
Antonio Paradiso, managing director UK and Ireland at MSC Cruises, shared an article MSC Cruises surpassing Carnival Cruise line to become the world’s second biggest cruise line.
The Carnival was once the biggest cruise line in the world because of its passenger capacity of ships, followed by Royal Caribbean which now occupies the top spot after the cruise line has added more bigger ships to its fleet.
However, recent developments driven by pandemic-induced downsizing at Carnival, has caused it to slip to the third spot, after the MSC Cruises, which took delivery of a giant new vessel on this year.
Consequently, MSC Cruises is likely to surpass the fun ship line as the world’s second biggest cruise brand in the next three years.
— Antonio Paradiso (@AntonyParadiso) February 2, 2021
Username: Antonio Paradiso
Twitter handle: @AntonyParadiso
5. Doug Parker’s tweet on Royal Caribbean’s onboard air system being safe
Doug Parker, a producer and host of the Cruise Radio podcast, shared an article on Royal Caribbean’s onboard air system being safe for passengers. The University of Nebraska Medical Centre and Royal Caribbean Group, a US-based cruise holding company, collaborated to study the transmission of aerosol particles through a ship’s heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) system.
The independent study was conducted aboard Oasis of the Seas, a cruise owned by the Royal Caribbean Group. The findings suggested that the transmission happens through spaces and HVAC system. On surfaces and air, it was found to be undetectable.
— Doug Parker (@CruiseRadio) February 26, 2021
Username: Doug Parker
Twitter handle: @CruiseRadio


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These popular new crossovers are just the first of among 54 new cars to be tested by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, and both received a four-star overall crash rating, out of a possible five stars.
While a four-star rating is still pretty respectable, this announcement does come on the heels of three separate recalls that have been issued for the new Escape since its introduction this summer. The good news for Ford, at least, is that the new model received a five-star rating for side impact. That, with four stars for frontal crash and rollover protection, add up to the four-star overall rating. The all-new Mazda CUV duplicated those scores.
Despite not getting a perfect five stars, each of these vehicles are safer than their respective predecessors, the previous-generation Escape and the Mazda Tribute, which had three stars across all four categories.
Also in the list of crossovers getting a four-star rating is the updated 2013 Mitsubishi Outlander Sport although this is the same as the 2012 model year.


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Porsche is investigating why two of their limited edition cars have burst into flames and have stopped all deliveries of the £100,000 supercar. They’re offering to collect the vehicles that get up to 196 mph for testing, so as to not inconvenience the 100 British owners any further.
This issue with the 911 GT3 comes just weeks after Hammond took one for a test drive and said the sportscar was ‘so good, I had to buy one myself’. It seems that the 911 is not quite as dreamy as Hammond first thought.
A spokesman from Porsche have released a statement: ‘Porsche is informing the owners of the affected vehicles directly and recommending that they stop using their vehicles’.
It’s not the first time that manufacturers have experienced issues with their luxury cars. Similarly, in 2010 Ferrari had to recall around 1,250 of its 458 Italias due to issues with fire.
Let’s hope Hammond gets his Porsche back soon!


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Commercial partnerships between fintech players and banks, as well as being struck purely between fintechs, has in some quarters shifted slight attention from mergers and acquisitions.
Technology-enabled companies find that partnerships allow them to reach new customers faster and cheaper than M&A, without losing any of their autonomy, according to industry experts. Drill this down further specifically to the financial services space and partnerships among tech companies make further sense because they allow such players to access a broader base of clients, a sector banker said, adding that an acquisition cost per client is far less expensive when reached via partnerships compared to M&A.
Throughout 2018, technology M&A accounted for 15% of the USD 3.6tn worth of deals conducted globally, according to Mergermarket data. This has risen throughout the last decade as IT spans almost every facet and sector of business.
Technology has become an inescapable science, assisting how daily routines are undertaken and more specifically, how business is conducted.
And fintech has become a cornerstone of this latest tech boon. Yet those service providers that make up a significant element of the fintech sphere are often more inclined to find alternative paths to M&A as an avenue to expand.
Cost is not the only driver behind this thinking. Fintech players tend to specialize in niche products. Diversifying their offering and services through product partnerships has become more commonplace. New products help fintech companies reach new clients.
Read more here.


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in a New YouTube video Looking back on its Zen architecture for more than five years, company representatives also discussed future products, including the next generation (AM5) platform and 3D-VCache CPU, both of which are scheduled to land next year, when they will compete for our position. The best gaming CPU List.
The video starring AMD’s Chief Marketing Officer John Taylor and Technical Marketing Director Robert Hallock also explored in depth how AMD’s original “Zen philosophy” will continue to promote the company’s innovation and help it compete with Intel’s upcoming Alder Lake platform and beyond.
Hallock described AMD’s strategy as the four pillars required for success: core architecture, process technology (such as TSMC’s 7nm), CPU frequency, and platform (AM4, AM5).
The two said that in order to maintain future competitiveness, AMD will not chase Intel’s current hybrid core strategy, which Hallock said may be “more difficult to solve in software.” Instead, AMD will return to its roots and build a CPU around the Zen philosophy that achieves this.
Hallock believes that AMD can build a smaller core, combined with excellent packaging and good firmware, which will be faster than the current Ryzen CPU, especially more energy-efficient.
Future AMD products
Hallock also confirmed that the long-life AM4 socket is approaching its useful life. In 2022, AMD will replace AM4 with a “new platform” (AM5 is not directly named), which will integrate DDR5 support and heat sink compatibility with existing AM4 devices. The first Ryzen architecture to support AM5 will be Zen 4, which will be launched next year.
Hallock also confirmed that the next platform will support PCIe Gen 5.0. Of course, the statement that the platform will support the technology does not necessarily mean that all CPUs on the platform will have a faster next-generation pipeline.Please note that the company’s current GPU-equipped APUs (such as Ryzen 5 5600G) Up to PCIe 3.0, although the Zen 3 architecture is based on fully supporting 4.0 bandwidth.
3D V-Cache technology has also been updated. Hallock confirmed that Ryzen CPUs with integrated V-Cache will be launched early next year—before Zen 4. 3D V-Cache is a new technology announced by AMD a few months ago to increase the performance of Ryzen in gaming workloads by up to 15%.
The incredible performance enhancement of 3D V-Cache comes from doubling the number of L3 caches that Ryzen CPUs can access. For the top Ryzen 9 5950X, this is equivalent to 192MB of L3 cache. This is done by stacking multiple layers of L3 cache 3D on top of each other and connecting these layers to the CPU through high-quality interconnection. The pipeline of 3D V-Cache has been completed on the current Zen 3 chip. All AMD has to do is to install an additional L3 cache layer when it is ready, and nothing more.For more information about AMD 3D packaging and V-Cache, please check Our narrator on Hot Chips in August.
We currently don’t have an official name for the initial V-Cache product line, but the CPU will effectively update Zen 3, which has much more L3 cache than the current Ryzen 5000 processor and resides on the AM4 socket. This will be the last CPU lineup to run on AM4 before AM5 (or anything officially marked) replaces it with Zen 4 later in 2022.


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On Dec. 10 Facebook Inc. (FB) gained 3 percent in early trading on news that video advertisements would be more prominent in users feeds. At the same time, rival social media upstart slipped Twitter Inc. ($TWTR) popped nearly 6 percent by midday (representing a 16-percent uptick over the last two trading days) after unveiling a new advertising product called Tailored Audiences.
With social media investors, any news of more thoroughly integrated advertising supposedly translates into higher revenues. After all, the more successful and well-targeted an ad is, the more Twitter or Facebook can charge for them. When advertising volume is increased as well, so will the revenue.
But at some point the rubber hits the road, and excessive advertising has to turn off users. Or will it?
Targeted Advertising: Bend ‘Em But Don’t Break ‘Em
According to a 2012 report by YouGov and Upstream Systems, one on five Americans claim they would quit a social media service cold turkey if subjected to too much advertising. For Twitter and Facebook, it would seem to be a simple balance sheet problem. If increased revenue from better-targeted and more intrusive advertising offsets the loss in usage, then the ramped-up advertising is a go. However, if the alienation of one in five customers’ does not make up the difference, scale back.
Twitter claims 218 million active users and Facebook 1.2 billion. While Twitter has yet to report earnings, and thus their user-derived revenue it is a little more difficult to parse. But Facebook has been public for a year and a half. Their earnings reports reveal the company is notching a steadily increasing amount of money per set of eyeballs.
Last quarter, Facebook generated approximately $4.19 per American/Canadian user in revenue, a 14 percent uptick from the previous quarter (while overseas markets, are less profitable, the increases in revenue are similar.) That percentage increase is no small change, and a necessity for Facebook to continue growing. Facebook has reached near total saturation as far as acquiring new users go – at 1.2 billion, there’s simply not much more of the population to get onto Facebook for the first time.
Facebook has worked instead to increase revenue per-user, doing so via three methods: one, get existing users to use the service more; two, increase mobile advertising share; and three, better target the ads. The last two involve an increase in the presence of advertising that has so far proven effective in increasing revenue.
The Established Social Media Company Playbook: When You Can't Grow Anymore, Milk the Users You Have
This method works, until too many users have enough and leave the service. Of course, what people say they will do and what people actually do are often diametrically opposed. And that seems to be the case: neither Twitter nor Facebook attributes any sizable dropoff form the increasingly prevalent advertising. Curiously enough, most people actually seem to enjoy it: the same Upstream study that claimed 20 percent of users would flee a site for excessive advertising reveal 69 percent of users enjoy ads, and enjoy them most when they're well-targeted.
Make no mistake, undisputed social media king Facebook is slowing. Facebook’s growth with young users is dissipating, the admission of which caused a sharp drop-off after an otherwise triumphant Q3 earnings report. Facebook has attempted to shore up their loss of youth appeal by acquiring Instagram, and this should work for awhile.
But what will keep Facebook chugging along, and help Twitter sustain their march to all-time highs is not to pare back advertising at all, and to simply better target ads. Which is what both are doing, with Twitter (and its multiple revenue streams) looking especially cutting edge in this regard.
While other smaller social media companies like Snapchat are ratcheting up the user growth to increase valuation, already-established behemoths Twitter and Facebook are taking a different track, and doing what they need to do: not increase the user base, or play into concerns advertising will alienate users. Rather, their goal is to get as much money as possible from the users they have. And for now, it's resonating with investors.
For the time being, the strategy is proving incredibly successful, and there is little reason to do otherwise. Facebook hit $50.41 a share on Dec. 10, continuing a week-long uptick. On the same day Twitter touched its all-time high, hitting $52.10 a share, or double its IPO price.
DISCLOSURE: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the authors, and do not represent the views of equities.com. Readers should not consider statements made by the author as formal recommendations and should consult their financial advisor before making any investment decisions. To read our full disclosure, please go to: http://www.equities.com/disclaimer


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A smart move to stay on the bestseller lists
Cars become popular when their designers think about everybody, particularly when they elevate the idea of “family sedan” to the rank of automotive primacy.
Thus, we have bestsellers such as the Toyota Camry, Honda Accord and Chevrolet Cruze — and the subject of this week’s column, the 2017 Ford Fusion V-6 Sport.
The midsize, all-wheel-drive V-6 Sport, mostly new for the new model year, is Ford’s effort to keep the Fusion in the “best-selling” class. It is a task as tricky as politics. Consumers, like voters, are fickle.
They were hot for the Fusion in 2013, its introductory year, largely smitten by Ford’s usurpation of the Aston-Martin grille. It wasn’t an outright theft by Ford, which once owned the British company and felt that it had the right to use the grille as part of the price of former ownership.
Anyway, it worked. The early Fusion — hmm, “Fusion,” Ford-Aston-Martin — was one of the snazziest midsize sedans in the U.S. car market. People loved it, and they were especially grateful in 2013 that it came with a fuel-efficient, reasonably powerful 2.0-liter gasoline, four-cylinder engine (160 horsepower, 146 pound-feet of torque). That car, with its fourcylinder engine and six-speed automatic transmission, got 27 miles per gallon in the city and 39 miles per gallon on the highway — pretty good for an automobile that looked and felt European but had a selling price and operating cost many Americans could afford.
The standard 2.0-liter, and now a 2.5-liter, four-cylinder gasoline engine, are still available for the many people who want them. Ford also offers the Fusion hybrid (the Fusion Energi) and the 1.5-liter EcoBoost engine with auto start-stop.
But times change. U.S. gasoline prices have dropped significantly since 2013. People still want fuel economy. But they now want more oomph behind their Aston-Martin grilles. Enter the 2017 Fusion V-6 Sport with even sleeker all-around exterior styling and a lot more power from its twin-turbocharged, 2.7-liter gasoline V-6 (325 horsepower, 380 pound-feet of torque).
Fuel efficiency has dropped a bit (17 miles per gallon city, 26 miles per gallon highway). But that isn’t bad considering that the V-6 Sport comes standard with all-wheel-drive, which is especially useful and confidenceinspiring in inclement weather.
I like this car — drove it everywhere in all kinds of weather. I also like the additional oomph provided by the turbocharged (forced air) V-6.
Despite its slightly weightier, more powerful engine, the V-6 Sport still feels light, tight and easy to manage on the road; overall it is enjoyable to drive. I stayed on the highway in this one and am convinced that Ford’s development and introduction of this model was a smart plan to keep the words “best-selling” in the Fusion’s description.
Nice car, Ford. Nice move.
The V-6 Sport feels light, tight and easy to manage on the road.


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Intrigued, we gave the publisher of the previous game (Ubisoft) a quick phone call to see if the French powerhouse had plans to surprise the media with a new title at the show. "We're definitely not publishing a sequel to Lumines," commented the representative we spoke with. "We don't know where it would be coming from."
Still curious, we also gave Sony representatives a ring as well... but were met with the same exact luck. "We're not doing Lumines 2," said the Sony folk. "It may have mentioned been in that video, but we can't speak on who might be doing it -- it isn't us, though."
So the question remains: Who is publishing Lumines 2? Did the video hosts make a mistake? Is the title wrong? Have Ubisoft and Sony representatives been kept in the dark for now? Who knows what the answer is. But if we are to believe the proposed "sneak peek" at the game that Sony hinted at on its E3 website, an announcement may be coming soon.
Expect an update when and if there's one to give.
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Used imports falling away
There were 11,663 used imported cars registered in New Zealand for the first time last month – a decrease of 3.6 per cent, or 437 fewer units, than October 2018’s total of 12,100.
Last month’s result brought the year-to-date total to 117,288, a decrease of 8,132 units – or 6.5 per cent – compared to the same period in 2018.
The Honda Fit, pictured, was the top model in October 2019, swapping places with the previous month’s top-seller, the Mazda Axela. Suzuki’s Swift was third with Nissan’s Tiida and Toyota’s Aqua in fourth and fifth spot respectively. There were 619 Fits sold during October – up 14.8 per cent on the same month of last year.
However, the Mazda Axela prevails as this year’s best-selling model with 6,140 registrations so far for a 5.2 per cent share of the market. It’s followed by the Fit on 5,695 units and the Swift with 5,181.
The most popular marque over the past 10 months is Toyota with 25,834 sales for 22 per cent of the market. Nissan remains in second spot for the year with 22,920 units, a market share of 19.5 per cent. However, the marque’s sales last month of 2,231 was a fall of 11.7 per cent on the 2,526 units shifted in October 2018.
Mazda was third in the October figures on 1,842 registrations, which was a decrease of 7.7 per cent from the same period a year ago, for a market share of 15.8 per cent.
In the regions, Gisborne was one of the best performers last month compared with October 2018. It enjoyed a 32.1 per cent jump in trade – from 56 registrations in the same month of last year to 74 last month. Whangarei was also on the up over the same time frame by 15.4 per cent, with 293 sales last month compared to 254 in October 2018.
Timaru suffered one of the biggest drops – down 23.8 per cent from 122 registrations in October 2018 to 93 last month. Masterton also saw a decline with sales falling by 19.2 per cent from 78 to 63 units.


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3M has agreed to pay $10.3 billion to resolve legal challenges brought against the company by US public water systems over its discharges of polyfluoroalkyl substances...
DuPont and former group units Chemours and Corteva have agreed to pay more than $1 billion to settle out of court US claims that per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances...
US agrochemicals company Albaugh has acquired DuPont spinoff Corteva Agriscience’s straight-goods glyphosate business for an undisclosed sum. The deal is for intangible...
US agricultural chemicals and seeds group Corteva has agreed to buy Stoller Group, a compatriot producer of biostimulants and plant nutrition products, for $1.2 billion...
US agricultural company Corteva, which combines businesses formerly belonging to DuPont, Dow and Pioneer, has agreed to buy Symborg, an expert in microbiological...
DuPont, along with Chemours, its former fluourochemicals and plastics business, and Corteva, the combined agrochemicals businesses of DuPont and Dow, have buried the...
Activist investor Starboard Value is seeking to take control of agricultural giant Corteva and replace its CEO, Jim Collins. Its nominations are up for election at...
Corteva Agriscience has agreed to take over J.G. Bosell’s stake in their joint-venture company PhytoGen Seed Co. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
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Sony: Over one million PS4 pre-orders, 'way above' PS2 and PS3
Closing out yesterday's Sony Gamescom press conference, SCEI chief executive Andrew House announced the system's release dates. And in doing so, he also boasted that over one million pre-orders have already been placed for the PS4.
Following-up with that tease, Sony Computer Entertainment UK chief Fergal Gara revealed to VideoGamer.com that PS4 pre-orders are tracking "way over and above the [PS2 and PS3] pre-order number at launch day." Sony expects the PS4 will sell out at launch.
"We're not disclosing the exact number [of PS4 units] that we'll have on day one," Gara said. "Clearly we're working hard to satisfy a lot of countries. We mentioned 32 countries last night."
"The one comment I'll make about the pre-order number is first of all, it's greater than a million, and secondly, the UK represents a very healthy slug of that. We're undeniably seeing a sea change," he continued.
"I'm very very pleased with it, so we will be looking at sell outs in areas. We're doing everything we can to secure every last unit ... so we an do out very best to meet the demand as it stands for day one and clearly chasing there after."
Gara admitted the high demand was a problem, "but it's a good problem to have."
The PlayStation 4 is due out on November 15 in the United States and November 29 in Europe. It is retailing for $399.


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harmic writes: The Australian Federal High Court has denied Apple's appeal against the earlier decision that overturned the ban on sales of the Galaxy Tab. The Samsung Android based tablets should be in the shops in a matter of days.
It was pity stayed his hand.
"Pity I don't have any more bullets," thought Frito.
-- _Bored_of_the_Rings_, a Harvard Lampoon parody of Tolkein


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Tesla is making a beeline for Texas to fabricate its biggest auto get together plant, CEO Elon Musk reported during the electric vehicle organization’s Q2 income approach Wednesday. Musk said that work is as of now in progress on building the 2,100-section of land site.
The processing plant will be in Travis County, close to Austin, and will utilize at any rate 5,000 individuals with a lowest pay permitted by law of $15 every hour, as per the Associated Press. Tesla has said it will contribute $1.1 billion.
Musk depicted the new gigafactory as “an environmental heaven” on the Colorado River, complete with a promenade and a biking and climbing trail. He said the site will be available to general society.
The organization will utilize the site to manufacture its new Cybertruck pickup, just as the Model Y little SUV. Musk said that the organization will deliver “a great deal” of vehicles in the “long haul.” On its site, Tesla says Cybertruck creation will start in late 2021.


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International gaming provider, Nektan PLC, has extended its partnership with BetVictor and agreed to produce a collection of branded slot games.
The games will be exclusively available to BetVictor casino players and developed in collaboration with ReelFeel Gaming via Nektan's Open Remove Game Server.
The launch of bespoke slot titles follows BetVictor's integration onto Nektan's casino platform, E-Lite, in October 2018. A deal that gave BetVictor players access to HTML5-developed slots and table games from more than 24 providers.
Jane Ryan, Chief Operating Officer at Nektan, said: "Creating new slot games for BetVictor is an exciting project for us and further strengthens our close working relationship with one of the industry's leading operators."
"Our unique RGS technology will provide BetVictor with quick and easy access to exclusive content, which will allow it to maximise the potential of its respective sponsorship deals and differentiate its casino offering."
Turlough Lally, Director of eGaming at BetVictor, said: "As a leading operator, we are focused on delivering to our customers the best possible content to provide them with a safe and entertaining gambling experience, so we are looking forward to launching these games."
"The team at Nektan has done a fantastic job in catering to our needs and I am confident that these bespoke slot games will be a success with our growing customer base across the globe."
As a regular contributor to OnlineBingo UK, it's Amy's job to understand everything about online gaming and turn her knowledge into a digestible playing guide or exciting news story. She knows her 75-ball bingo from her 90-ball and the optimal strategy for every casino game you could think of.
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(BW) Parrot(TM) is Riding High on the Wireless Wave it's Helping Create
Published 2:05 pm, Saturday, January 6, 2007
LAS VEGAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--
Parrot is riding the wave thatâ€™s sweeping the consumer electronics market. And with 2 billion BluetoothÂ®-enabled products expected to be in consumersâ€™ hands by 2010, perhaps it could be better described as a tidal wave.
In the last two years, Parrot has introduced 12 new products â€“ one every other month -- and this pace is expected to accelerate in 2007, giving retailers and consumers alike a steady supply of exciting, innovative products to ride the Bluetooth wave.
Founded in 1994 by its visionary Chairman and CEO, Henri Seydoux, Parrot has rapidly established itself as a leading global player for wireless mobile telephone peripherals and continues to introduce new products while expanding its operations worldwide.
In addition to introducing a whole new portfolio of products in the last two years, the company has created subsidiaries in the U.S., Germany, Italy, the UK, Spain, and China and added major retailers in many countries.
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In recognition of its tremendous, profitable growth, Parrot went public in June 2006 and is listed on the Euronext (Paris), while jumping from 34th in 2004 to 5th place this year on the prestigious European Deloitte Technology Fast 50.
â€œWe are very proud of our dramatic progress and we expect to continue this pace in the coming years,â€� says Seydoux.
Early on, Seydoux foresaw the central role the cellphone â€“ and now the smartphone -- would play in consumersâ€™ everyday lives, and began developing the technology and a product roadmap to capitalize on the mobile phone phenomena.
â€œWith 80 percent of the worldâ€™s mobile phones expected to be Bluetooth-enabled by 2009, we see a rapidly expanding market for Parrot products that are designed to seamlessly connect all devices in the Bluetooth eco-system, says Ed Valdez, president and COO of Parrot, Inc., the companyâ€™s North American subsidiary.
Parrot defines this â€œeco-systemâ€� as all the popular technologies -- music, voice and photos â€“ that surround Bluetooth cellphones.
Top Car Kit Maker
Parrot was one of the very first companies to produce Bluetooth-based hands-free car kits, having identified the huge potential of this market as early as 1999. Parrot sold more than 1 million car kits in the first half of 2006 (both installed and plug- and-play units), and expects to sell over 2 million for the year as sales increase in the US.
Parrot continues to expand and deepen its presence in cars by adding next-generation voice recognition and noise cancellation technology â€“ as well as audio streaming capability.
Most recently, Parrot introduced the industryâ€™s first car kit with audio streaming â€“ the Parrot MK6000â„¢ -- that plays music through the vehicleâ€™s sound system, directly streamed from Bluetooth A2DP-enabled MP3 players or iPods. The Parrot MK6000 also features the first consumer application of Parrot â€œbeamformingâ€� technology which gives this car kit the best microphone sensitivity and background noise control available.
From Car Kits to Music and Photos
In 2006, Parrot introduced the Parrot PHOTO VIEWERâ„¢â€“ a line of elegantly framed 3.5 inch LCDs that accept up to 120 photos beamed wirelessly via Bluetooth from a cell phone, digital camera or laptop.
The company also introduced the new Parrot SOUND SYSTEMâ„¢â€“ a pair of high-range wireless, stereo bookshelf speakers that play audio streamed from a Bluetooth A2DP-enabled smartphone, laptop, MP3 device or iPod without compromising sound quality.
It also introduced the Parrot MINIKITâ„¢ plug and play speakerphone for both cars and homes, which also enables VoIP and Skype calls via laptops for the millions of self-employed working from home offices. In independent tests conducted in 2006 by a top German testing firm, the MINIKIT tested superior to the two leading competitors in three of the four categories most important to consumers.
At CES 2007, Parrot introduced its next- generation product for display of digital photos â€“ the Parrot PHOTO VIEWER 7â€�â„¢. The new frame holds up to 500 photos and has a number of exciting new features such as customizable slide shows, extra-fast download, and a simple user interface.
The company will also introduce its first product designed for corporate boardrooms and conference rooms -- the new Parrot CONFERENCEâ„¢â€“ a full-featured Bluetooth speakerphone that is wireless and battery powered so itâ€™s easy to move from meeting room to meeting room.
These will be followed by a host of similar products throughout 2007, maintaining the companyâ€™s rapid pace of introducing new products regularly.
Today, Parrot has a strong international focus, both in terms of its client base -- with nearly 90% of sales generated outside of France -- and in terms of production which it outsources to carefully selected partners to achieve the best possible level of quality, price and responsiveness.
In terms of technology, Parrot has nearly 150 engineers focused on developing and refining its proprietary digital signal processing technology and has key alliances with specialty telecom firms, chipmakers and companies engaged in voice recognition.
As a result, Parrot is ideally positioned to capitalize on the exploding wireless consumer products markets surrounding cellphones. It also has the reach and resources to stay several steps ahead of its nearest competitors with a broad portfolio of wireless products, all of which are designed to give the added convenience, security and enjoyment of wireless technology to consumers.
Founded in 1994, Parrot has rapidly established itself as a pivotal global player for wireless mobile telephone accessories. Drawing on its tried-and-tested expertise on voice recognition and signal processing technologies, Parrot was one of the very first companies to produce BluetoothÂ®-based wireless hands free car kits, having identified this standardâ€™s vast potential as early as 1999. In the first half of 2006,Â ParrotÂ sold more than 1 million units.
Determined to accompany the mobile telephoneâ€™s irresistible breakthrough into our day-to-day lives, Parrot has developed two new products in 2006: the Parrot PHOTO VIEWERâ„¢, an LCD photo frame designed to display photos transmitted from a mobile telephone via Bluetooth, and the Parrot SOUND SYSTEMâ„¢, a wireless hi-fi system with speakers linked up to one another using Bluetooth.
Today, ParrotÂ truly has a major international focus:Â 87% of its salesÂ areÂ generated outside of France,Â andÂ a large percentage of its production isÂ outsourced to carefully selected partners, enabling it to achieve the best possible level of quality and responsiveness. Parrot is now particularly well positioned to capitalize on the bright future opening up for mobile telephone devices. Parrot has achieved strong growth in its consolidated revenues, up from 80.9 million euros pro forma in 2005 to 116.4 million euros in the first 9 months of 2006.
www.parrotcorp.com Euronext Paris â€“ Eurolist, Compartiment BÂ : FR0004038263 â€“ PARRO
1994: Founding of Parrot by Henri Seydoux.
1995-1999: Development and refinement of signal processing algorithms, voice recognition, noise and echo cancellation and Bluetooth applications.
1995: Launch of the Parrot Voice Recognition Organizer, first handheld product in the world to offer accurate voice recognition.
1997: Introduction of the next generation Parrot+Voice Recognition Organizer, specifically intended for the visually-impaired.
1999: Introduction of the Parrot CK28 VoiceMateâ„¢, the first hands-free kit with voice recognition.
2001: Development of Parrot CK3000â„¢, the first Bluetooth hands-free kit with speech recognition.
2002:Â Launch of the Parrot CK4000â„¢ for automakers.
2003: Parrot DriveBlueâ„¢, the first plug-and-play Bluetooth hands-free kit.
2004:Â Parrot CK3100 LCDâ„¢ and Parrot CK3300â„¢ with GPS introductions.
2005: Parrot EASY-DRIVEâ„¢, Parrot CK3000 Evolutionâ„¢, Parrot 3200 LS-COLORâ„¢, Parrot 3400 LS-GPSâ„¢, Parrot RHYTHM Nâ€™BLUEâ„¢ stereo head unit with Bluetooth hands-free telephony; launch of Parrot CK5000â„¢ chipset (OEM).
2006:Â Parrot CK5050â„¢ chipset with steaming audio; Parrot DRIVER HEADSETâ„¢ and Parrot MINIKITâ„¢ Speakerphone; launch of the Parrot PHOTO VIEWERâ„¢, Parrot SOUND SYSTEMâ„¢, Parrot MK6000â„¢,Â the first Bluetooth solutions designed by Parrot to capitalize on digital photos and music on mobile phones and other devices.
2007- Jan: Parrot CONFERENCEâ„¢ speakerphone; Parrot PHOTO VIEWER 7â€�â„¢, with more products to come.
The BluetoothÂ®word mark and logos are owned by the Bluetooth SIG, Inc. and any use of such marks by Parrot S.A. is under license. Other trademarks and trade names are those of their respective owners.


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It has been an age old practice in business to reward excellent employee performance with perks and incentives of differing forms. Sometimes it is an extra offering of a company’s stock, while at other times it is extra vacation days. In most cases, it is “just” a bonus. But all that pales away in comparison to what Mohit Aron of Cohesity planned for all his employees.
Cohesity is a storage startup that emerged from stealth just a year ago, founded by Mohit Aron, the cofounder and former CTO of Nutanix. Cohesity is growing so fast, Aron just sent the entire company and their families on a thank-you trip to Maui, Hawaii. The company has about 110 employees – so big that they had to break the thank-you holiday vacation trip into two parts. The 50-ish engineering employees plus their families are on the island now. The sales and marketing teams, consisting of about 60 employees plus families, are taking a separate trip in February.
Cohesity is developing a storage market called hyper converged storage. They essentially defragment data to increase storage space. Founded in 2013, the company has been selling its product for about a year. It has grown revenues by over 100% quarter over quarter for the past two quarters. In the third quarter, revenue jumped more than 150% from the previous quarter. It also doubled the total number of customers it has. And that’s what brought about the thank-you trip to Maui, the company tells.
Incentives are not exclusive to the employees of a company. Sometimes, the company as a whole requires an extra motivation to do well and this extra motivation is more often than not, in the form of hard cash. This is where angel investors and their extra cash come in. Recently, Vehico, a Bengaluru-based IoT solutions provider for the automobile industry, has raised an undisclosed angel investment from Calcutta Angel Network (CAN) and Appliyifi Investment Network, an online platform for startup investments. Reportedly, both the investors will together hold around 14.2% of the startup’s equity. The capital will be used for product expansion, team strengthening, and scaling up its technology. Read more on Calcutta Angel Network
CAN President Siddharth Pansari said, “This is CAN’s first investment in IoT. The market size of the automobile industry is one of the largest in the world and this will be a step forward in digitising it.” Earlier, in June 2016, four startups viz. Paintcollar, Meta IoT, Vahann, and One-Way-Cab raised funding through the Appliyify platform.
The Gujarati businessman who gave away cars, houses and jewelry to long serving employees is another example of how incentives are used to keep valuable employees from moving elsewhere. Whatever is the scenario, the prospect of getting an incentive to do a bit more will boost the productivity of the workforce. After all, isn’t bribing just another way of giving an incentive? But on a serious note, the amount of work that employees face nowadays is much more than what their predecessors faced. Logic dictates that the incentive they get for doing a better job than others must also be increased. Let us hope that companies and investors around the world get this message. This article was written by our content writer, Ravikiran Ramakrishnan. Read more on Startup News


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WATCHUNG — Police reported two incidents of shoplifting from Walmart on June 8.
Leidys Salina, 25, of Plainfield allegedly tried to leave the store without paying for merchandise in her cart. The Walmart Loss Prevention employee told police she had stopped Salina as she tried to leave the store without paying for decoration balloons that were concealed under a cover next to a child in the cart.
The balloons were worth about $53.73.
Police released Salina on her own recognizance pending a court date in Watchung Municipal Court.
In the second incident, police are investigating the theft of a Samsung Galaxy Boost Mobile Phone worth $119.88 from Walmart at about 11 a.m. on June 8.
The man suspected of taking the phone allegedly fled from the store afterward.
More Somerset County news: NJ.com/somerset


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In view of COVID pandemic, the Central Government has granted exemption from IGST on import of such goods received free of cost for free distribution for COVID relief.
As customs duty is already exempted on Remdesivir injection/ API and Beta Cyclodextrin (SBEBCD), Inflammatory diagnostic (markers) kits,Medical grade Oxygen, oxygen therapy related equipment such as oxygen concentrators, cryogenic transport tanks, etc, and COVID-19 vaccinesnow these imports will not attract any customs duty or IGST as well.
However, the exemptions shall be subject to certain conditions, shall be applicable till 30th June 2021.
Click here for official press release:
Major Relief under GST for March and April 2021


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PATA is pleased to announce the appointment of Mrs Punam Mohandas as its new Director – Communications, replacing Dale Lawrence who leaves PATA in mid June.
PATA is seeking early confirmation of reform to the widely-criticised UK Air Passenger Duty from the new British coalition government.
Members of the Pacific Asia Travel Association have again attacked planned rises in Air Passenger Duty in the United Kingdom. With increases set for November, PATA argues smaller Pacific nations, which rely on long-haul tourism for economic prosperity, will be adversely affected.
MasterCard Worldwide in affirming its commitment in supporting sustainable development of Asia Pacific travel and tourism, has signed an agreement to support PATA Foundation to earmark its 25th Anniversary.
The Tourism Authority of Thailand, in association with the Pacific Asia Travel Association, issued the following statement today (16 March):
The Pacific Asia Travel Association has continued its assault on proposed changes to the UK’s Air Passenger Duty. The association argues rises planned for November will have a detrimental impact on travel to many long-haul developing markets.
The Pacific Asia Travel Association’s (PATA) China Office and Digital Marketing Inner Circle (DMIC) are together staging a seminar ‘Leveraging Social Media for Engaging Consumers’.
There’s a role to play for every PATA member in the battle against climate change. That’s the view of PATA CEO Greg Duffell, who is asking all Association members to lobby their government representatives in advance of next week’s COP15 climate change summit in Copenhagen.
Some cause for industry hope in new PATA Tourism ForecastsThere’s some cause for cautious optimism in the tourism and travel industry across the Asia Pacific region, according to PATA’s Strategic Intelligence Director John Koldowski.