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Google Assistant is finally arriving to more mobile devices, including phones and tablets to several different markets around the world…
Google isn’t well-known for delivering its software and app updates in a quick, widespread manner. Many mobile device owners run different versions of Android, unable to upgrade to the latest iteration.
Google Assistant now Rolling Out to More Android Devices and Phone Running Lollipop and Up
But, the search giant has put a lot of effort behind Google Assistant recently. And, it’s making the digital service more widely available. Just in the past few weeks, Google Assistant added more local home services and the ability to identify songs. Now, the smart feature will also go out to Android tablets running 6.0 Marshmallow and 7.0 Nougat. Additionally, Google Assistant will likewise become available to phones running 5.0 Lollipop.
Over the coming weeks, Google Assistant will hit tablets in the U.S. with English set to their primary language. It’s already rolling out to English language-set 5.0 devices in the U.K., Australia, Canada, Singapore, and India. Additionally, Spanish language-set devices in the U.S., Mexico, and Spain will get the assistant. Moreover, Google will roll it out to Italy, Japan, Germany, Brazil, and Korea.
Google Assistant is a virtual personal assistant which can perform a number of functions. For instance, it can engage in two-way conversations, calculate measurement conversions, answer questions, and plenty more. Google Assistant can also perform web searches, schedule events, set alarms, launch mobile apps, and adjust hardware settings. It can furthermore show information from a connected user’s Google account.


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“We're thrilled to welcome LaserShip, Pitney Bowes, Hearn Industrial services and DHL to the Ecorse Commons Industrial Park and we look forward to continuing to see the positive impact these new businesses have already had on our community's local economy and workforce,” said Burcroff. “We strive to be a business-friendly community because we know developments such as the ones announced today will not only have a tremendous impact on Romulus' economy, but on the region and state's economy as well.”
The four new businesses are the first companies to open in the Ecorse Commons Industrial Park, which is located at 37350 Ecorse Road and comprise two buildings totaling 654,887 square feet of industrial space. Located on 68 acres of land adjacent to the General Motors Powertrain Plant and 10 minutes from Ford Wayne Assembly, Ecorse Commons was developed in partnership between Northpoint Development and the city.
“Romulus has the vision to know that capital access, jobs and development are a good thing for their community,” Miles said. “I can stand here today and say that we are proud to partner with the City of Romulus on the development and announcement of Ecorse Commons. Romulus is an up-and-coming community, and Northpoint is pleased to be the jet fuel.”
The grand openings of LaserShip, Pitney Bowes, Hearn Industrial and DHL further demonstrate the rapid growth taking place across Romulus, with nearly 30 new businesses having launched in the city over the past 18 months as a result of FAST TRACK, an economic initiative implemented by the city to streamline the review and planning process, officials said. The 850,000-square-foot Amazon development is one that utilized the FAST TRACK program, as well as the 135,000-square-foot Kroger fulfillment center.
'When we think about what's happening here today in Romulus, it's about more than a $45 million dollar investment,” Rahal said. “This is an old Brownfield site that's going to create jobs and increase investments, creating revenue for the city, the county, the region and local schools. This is a phenomenal development for this community, and I'm thrilled to be here to celebrate its success.”

domain: news


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Disney has continued to attract controversy and refuse to back down from its woke positions on social issues despite widespread outrage from conservatives and facing stiff penalties in the state of Florida, where it has billions of dollars in property for its resorts which include its golden goose, Walt Disney World.
While some namesake companies such as Target and Bud Light have backed off of left-wing marketing and policies due to conservative boycotts, Disney has continued to push left-wing social teachings in its products and recent movies.
This week, Disney once again came under fire after a video of a male employee at one of their dress stores who was wearing a dress and talking to children emerged.
The man, who went by ‘Nick’ and said he was a ‘fairy godmother apprentice’, offered to show young girls around the store and ‘make their selections for the day’.
The video quickly sparked outrage on Twitter, with Dave Rubin saying that women across the country would have worked for Disney at a dress store, but instead, a man was chosen.
He also quipped that the man would be a good candidate to run Biden’s nuke program after a high-ranking official at the Department of Energy who was transgender was recently arrested for stealing women’s clothes at airports.
This fella will be hired by the Biden to run out nuke program by the end of the day… https://t.co/S3ker9wvOI
— Dave Rubin (@RubinReport) May 30, 2023
Disney has not responded to requests for comment.
FOX News Reports–
Disney has a man in a dress working in the dress store for little girls at Disneyland. This is who Disney wants girls to see when they first walk in to pick out a dress. pic.twitter.com/Ta2dwyAaSa
— Jason Jones (@jonesville) May 30, 2023
A video of a male Disney employee dressed as a “Fairy Godmother apprentice” while ushering children into a dress store is causing a stir on social media.
“So, my name is Nick, I am one of the fairy godmother’s apprentices,” the employee says to the children in the video while wearing a blue dress with heavy blue eyeshadow. “I’m here to shop you around and make all your selections for the day.”
The video was posted to TikTok by Kourtni Faber, a mother of three, who was documenting her trip to Disneyland in Anaheim, California. It has gained nearly 7 million views on TikTok alone.
Cast members at Disney’s Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique were previously called “Fairy Godmothers in Training” before the theme park updated the title.


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Profits at three-time Oscar-nominated Cartoon Saloon animation studios almost doubled to €537,805 last year. This week it was confirmed that Netflix has commissioned the Kilkenny-based studio to produce a new feature entitled ‘My Father’s Dragon’.
In September Apple bought a new animated film it is making called ‘Wolfwalkers’.
Cartoon Saloon Ltd received a boost last year with sales of €3.4m to a connected firm, Blue CAT Productions Ltd that relates to its deal with Amazon studios for the production of the ‘Pete the Cat’ series.
The Amazon work contributed to profits at Cartoon Saloon Ltd increasing by 97pc to €537,805.
Numbers employed by the cartoon firm increased to over 80 during 2017.
Source: Read Full Article


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Iowa Papa John's franchise accused of wage violations
A former Iowa pizza delivery driver has joined a chorus of workers accusing Papa John's franchises of regularly violating minimum wage laws.
A group of Iowa and Missouri attorneys filed a class action lawsuit in federal court in October alleging that a local Papa John's franchise paid drivers unreasonably small reimbursements for vehicle expenses and forced them to pay for work uniforms.
The lawsuit also claims the franchise paid drivers a "tipped employees" wage of $5.50 per hour, even though they were regularly doing non-tipped duties like answering calls, preparing ingredients and orders, folding boxes and cleaning. The drivers don't fit in any of the categories that would exempt them from the federal and state minimum wage of $7.25 per hour for work that isn't tipped, according to the lawsuit.
"(Drivers) are treated as very expendable," said Mark Potashnick, a St. Louis attorney who is handling the case. "The turnover rate is incredible in that industry and a lot of it occurs when the drivers realize that the reimbursements they're getting aren't paying for the costs of the car and their minimum wages are going toward car repairs."
The plaintiff, Brandon Tegtmeier, worked as a delivery driver at a Papa John's in Davenport for approximately 10 months in 2014. The store gave him a $5 vehicle reimbursement per shift, which calculated to $.083 per mile, according to the lawsuit. The Internal Revenue Service business mileage reimbursement rate at the time was $0.56 per mile.
Tegtmeier referred a reporter to Potashnick when contacted by a reporter.
The complaints in the lawsuit mirror similar concerns raised about other Papa John's franchises nationwide. In March, a New York judge ordered a franchise to pay $2 million to delivery drivers for back wages and expenses that weren't reimbursed, according to the Huffington Post.
The lawsuit seeks to represent any delivery drivers who've worked for the PJ Iowa, L.C. franchise that owns 26 stores in Iowa, Illinois and South Dakota. Ronald Mountsier, an attorney for the franchise, said he had no comment on the lawsuit.


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As promised, Apple finally came out with more diverse emojis on Wednesday. As reported by Yahoo Tech, new emojis “with skin-tone variation” came with the iOS 8.3 update, following the premiere of its long-awaited Apple Watch.
The new emojis are all yellow and let you choose from five skin tones to change characters. The new Apple emojis also feature families with two moms and two dads. It should be noted that your friends won’t be able to see these new emoji unless they’ve updated their phones as well.
Not to be outdone, a company called Wemojis – started by two Howard University graduates, Trey Brown and Donovan Brown – also hit the scene recently, and they say they’ve been working on the product for two years, which would mean they did it before Apple.
Wemojis (photo above, below) claim to feature “long-awaited Black, Hispanic and culturally relevant emoticons for the Urban community.” Wemojis say that they go beyond just different skin colors, but embrace “cultural nuances” as well. With everything from hand signs for fraternities and sororities, to gold chains, prison bars, a Gucci (looking) bag, and du-rags, a few folks may be conflicted about what passes for authenticity, but hey, diversity can exist within groups.
Wemojis are available through the Apple App store, and a press release promises an Android app in a few weeks.
All good, right? Well, not so fast.
Then someone from Clorox tweeted something not so smart about emojis and bleach on Twitter yesterday, got dragged, deleted it, and had to promptly apologize, reports CNN.
The tweet, which Clorox (CLX) since deleted, showed a Clorox bottle made up of the new emojis released by Apple (AAPL, Tech30) as part of this week’s iOS 8.3 update. Clorox tweeted, “New emojis are alright but where’s the bleach.”
Yikes. Really Clorox?
After taking down the tweet, they followed up with an apology:
Wish we could bleach away our last tweet. Didn’t mean to offend – it was meant to be about all the 🚽🛁🍷emojis that could use a clean up.
— Clorox (@Clorox) April 9, 2015
The story is that Clorox has been pushing for a bleach emoticon for some time now, but they clearly shouldn’t have referred to bleach alongside the new people-of-color characters. Poor choice of words indeed.
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Tracee Ellis Ross is taking her vision for Pattern across the pond.
The actor and entrepreneur is launching product in the U.K. in an exclusive partnership with Boots, starting on Wednesday. For Ross, the move was a natural extension of her accessible vision for textured hair care.
“The original dream for the brand was to be a global brand because I believe that the curly and textured community is one that spans across the globe,” she told WWD. “I wanted to expand that mission so that everybody has access to their most beautiful and healthy hair.”
Boots made an ideal partner for the brand given its broad footprint. “85 percent of the U.K. population is within 10 minutes of a Boots store,” she added.
Although parent company Walgreens Boots Alliance is considering selling Boots as it refocuses its health care business in the U.S., WWD reported that sales in Boots grew double-digits due to increased foot traffic earlier this year.
For the Pattern’s future, Ross hasn’t ruled out any other geographies, especially given the brand’s success at Ulta Beauty and Sephora, she noted. “Africa is a place I’d like to expand to. I would like Pattern to be everywhere, because I believe that we are everywhere,” Ross said. “We will keep going from there.”
It all ladders up to Ross’ goal to bring innovation and information to Pattern’s consumers. “The brand was born out of my own personal hair care journey and my experiences brought me into a community of people that were like me, becoming their own best experts,” she said.
“Part of why I’m proud of how well Pattern is doing is that we’re going across the pond to bring that knowledge and information,” she continued.
Ross referenced a recent McKinsey & Co. survey she partnered with the firm on, called “Black representation in the beauty industry,” which quantifies those disparities. Black-owned brands are only 2.5 percent of total beauty revenue, per the survey, despite Black consumers accounting for 11.1 percent of beauty spending. Black consumers are also three times more likely to not find adequate skin care, hair care or makeup options.
That vision hasn’t come without its learnings, though. “I’m the CEO and founder, and I’m majority owner of the company with full creative control. My hands are on everything,” she said. “One thing I didn’t know before was how much goes into product: the marketing, the language on the packaging, sustainability, all of the regulations shifting.”
On the product side, Ross has been busy. “I’m in product mode,” she said. “We do our [product] drops in a very staggered way. They’re happening on a regular basis, and so there are a few very big launches that are going to happen.”
For more from WWD.com, see:


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Business Link and Birmingham Chamber of Commerce have joined forces with BT to stage two events this week which will show why broadband and the internet should be integral to any modern firm.
The two breakfast meetings will explain how trading online can boost a firm's competitive edge.
The first, which takes place tomorrowat the BT headquarters in Brindleyplace, is aimed at existing broadband users. The second, which takes place on Thursday at BT's offices at Trinity Park, Solihull, will guide those firms taking their first steps.
The Brindleyplace event, aimed at existing users, will help businesses find out more about the latest range of broadband solutions on offer to help support and grow their business.
It will be made up of a series of presentations covering topics such as remote access, wireless networking, security, and voice over IP, as well as providing delegates with a general overview.
The Trinity Park event, aimed at potential new adopters, will provide an overview of the power of broadband and give examples of how it can be used to increase a company's competitive edge.
Derek Lote, Business Link ICT service delivery manager at Birmingham Chamber, said: "These events are aimed at helping both new adopters and existing users of broadband to understand how they could be using it effectively, and to ensure that they are exploiting the potential of this technology to the full."
Frank Mills, BT West Midlands regional director, said: "Our local businesses need to be encouraged to take advantage of the ways in which broadband technology can help them to compete effectively and operate efficiently in a global marketplace."


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Viral online seller Daisy Lopez, popularly known as Madam Inutz, has already singed a management contact deal with Star Image on Friday, August 13, 2021.
Following her overnight online selling fame, Madam Inutz has sealed a contract deal with Star Image Management Artist.
However, thousands of her fans are shocked on her sudden decision to join the agency saying that “she made her career by herself” and “she can make it on her own.”
Even popular vlogger Madam Kilay shared her views about the issue advising Madam Inutz to “do it on her own” because she’s already at the peak level of popularity.
Meanwhile, not all fans are sad about her decision, many are still supporting and congratulating Daisy Lopez for what she have achieved for her career.
Here’s what the netizens have to say about the issue.
Madam Kilay to Madam Inutz video.
Daisy Lopez “Madam Inutz” skyrocketed to fame from selling ukay clothes on Facebook. Her witty presence, dancing skills and funny lines steals the heart and attentions of the netizens. Her most recent live selling have has reached 2 million views and her video clips are all over TikTok and Facebook.
What can you say with this issue? Share your thoughts and view on the comment section.
WRITE YOUR COMMENTS HERE!


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- 2 min read
From Louis Vuitton to McNuggets, what makes BTS attractive to brands?
The seven-strong boyband have been named brand ambassadors for Louis Vuitton, and collaborated with McDonald's to promote a meal...
After first agreeing with McDonald's to promote a new meal selling for just over $6, the seven-strong boyband have also been named brand ambassadors for Louis Vuitton, the purveyor of handbags that sell for well above $1,000.
The Grammy-nominated South Korean group, which now releases English-language songs too, has topped the album charts several times in the United States.
Louis Vuitton, the biggest sales driver at French luxury goods conglomerate LVMH, already works with a roster of celebrities to promote its wares, from actresses Emma Stone and Jennifer Connelly to actor and singer Jaden Smith.
Many brand ambassadors have starred in advertising campaigns but also popped up in the front row at fashion shows, helping drive buzz on social media, a marketing avenue top luxury brands have invested heavily in.
Asia - and especially China, where K-pop is also popular - provides major markets for luxury brands, and has fuelled sales bounces as COVID-19 restrictions ease.
Also Read: Advertising during a raging second wave of the pandemic
Louis Vuitton's menswear designer Virgil Abloh, known for his streetwear-style creations and who is friends with hip-hop star Kanye West, said the BTS partnership added "a modern chapter to the House, merging luxury and contemporary culture".
Luxury brands have not traditionally liked working with so-called influencers who represent other labels that do not fit with their high-end image, although the boundaries between sports and fashion for instance is starting to blur.
"As disparate as their businesses might seem, McDonald's and Louis Vuitton share a need to onboard new generations of consumers," Carol Spieckerman, president at retail consultancy Spieckerman Retail, said.
Louis Vuitton had no comment on Friday on BTS' McDonald's deal. Under that agreement, the band's meal will launch starting next month in nearly 50 countries, and will include chicken McNuggets, fries, and two dips.
Neither Vuitton nor McDonald's disclosed any financial details.
Watch BE+ | Way forward mantras for post COVID world | Leading marketing leaders like Deepa Krishnan, Anurita Chopra, Samir Singh to Santosh Iyer, across sectors in the special video series


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Dr Patrick Byrne is a researcher at Liverpool John Moores University, and Karen Hudson-Edwards is a scientist at the University of Exeter.
Nearly five billion people worldwide will use a smartphone by 2020. Each device is made up of numerous precious metals and many of the key technological features wouldn’t be possible without them.
Some, like gold, will be familiar. Others, such as terbium, are less well-known. Mining these metals is a vital activity that underpins the modern global economy.
But the environmental cost can be enormous and is probably far greater than you realise. Let’s walk through some of the key metals in smartphones, what they do, and the environmental cost of getting them out of the ground.
Catastrophic mine waste spills
Iron (20%), aluminium (14%) and copper (7%) are the three most common metals by weight in your average smartphone. Iron is used in speakers and microphones and in stainless steel frames.
Aluminium is used as a lightweight alternative to stainless steel and also in the manufacture of the strong glass used in smartphone screens. Copper is used in electric wiring. However, enormous volumes of solid and liquid waste (termed mine ‘tailings’) are produced when extracting these metals from the earth.


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Buying a replacement motor has some advantages and disadvantages for consumers and we've developed an easy system for evaluating prices.
Peoria, IL (PRWEB) May 24, 2014
One auto parts company is changing the way that American consumers receive prices for available components on the Internet. The Auto Pros USA company is now giving consumers a way to buy Ford Econoline van engines in used condition online through its parts website at http://autoprosusa.com.
A developed system to search the Ford Motor Company V6 and V8 engines available is now active. The 5.4 Triton series motors often found in the E-Series vans in the U.S. market can be located in one click when accessing this used auto parts finder.
"Buying a replacement motor has some advantages and disadvantages for consumers and we've developed an easy system for evaluating prices," a sales expert at the Auto Pros company said.
The used van engines for sale that are in the Econoline family at the Ford Motor Company are positioned alongside other engines that are in stock for shipments this year at the Auto Pros USA website. Astro motors for Chevy vans, Town and Country for Dodge and Honda Odyssey minivan engines can be explored for new prices.
"The used motors inventory that our company acquires and sells to consumers is discounted for sale although we still include a warranty policy," said the sales expert.
Reviews for different engines as well as retailer prices can be found through the homepage at the Auto Pros company website. Consumers who are not exploring sale prices using the finder on the homepage can still continue calling 1-888-230-1731.
The AutoProsUSA.com company supplies truck, van and sport utility vehicle motors for a discount price to average parts buyers in North America on the Internet. This company has a team dedicated to acquiring the best quality automotive components that are preowned and available for distribution. The AutoProsUSA.com website is one source consumers depend on for calculating prices and reviewing competitor prices for vehicle parts and accessories. Toll-free phone numbers are in place to provide assistance apart from the website services available.


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The great battle between Intel and its triad of competitors is on, with the three makers of clone processors set to form a united front against the giant.
A senior AMD executive, responding to a distributors? complaints, said this week that Cyrix, his company and fellow clonemaker Centaur-IDT are well down the line towards a common front on their microprocessors, expected to be announced in January next year and based on the Socket Seven interface - which Intel had planned to kill off.
Sukh Rayat, a director of UK chip distributor Flashpoint, said that his customers - all dealers - did not want to run two lines of motherboards and microprocessors. He said that the situation reminded him of when Nexgen, since acquired by AMD, sold an advanced chip and motherboard which was, however, non standard. Despite its speed and undoubted technical performance, said Rayat, the difference between it and the Intel self-professed standard, meant that dealers were reluctant to install it in machines they sold.
Rayat called for all three of the clone chip manufacturers to get together and to offer a common front against the giant of chip technology.
David Frink, vice president of corporate communications at AMD US, said: "We?re very well down the path to working with both Cyrix and Centaur-IDT on a standard specification for Socket Seven. That is likely to arrive early in 1998."
He claimed that the large OEMs AMD was talking to were encouraged by the persistence of Socket Seven and despite Rayat?s doubts, that meant a good future for the K6 and the other alternatives to the Intel flavours.
He said: "There?s going to be a market for 100 million units (CPUS) in 1998 and even Intel can?t hope to pump that amount out."
That will lead, he suggested, to the Intel alternatives gaining a market share that would satisfy the companies? shareholders.
Nor, said Frink, was AMD phased by the price cuts that Intel has heralded for the end of this month and the end of January.
He said: "We do expect some lower pricing to be announced on 1 February."
He maintained that AMD is sticking by its policy of consistently undercutting Intel by 10 per cent, whenever it made its quarterly price cuts, and said that its business plans showed that it could do that, while if Intel attempted to undercut it, its business plan would go awry.
Joe D?Elia, senior semiconductor analyst at Dataquest UK, confirmed that the next few months would be the crunch time for the battle over Socket Seven.
He said:"The first four months of next year will make or break Socket Seven. The key to Socket Seven is whether AMD, Cyrix and IDT can keep it alive and work towards a common goal. AMD is extending the performance of Socket Seven and all of the others have to sign up to that. They?ve all been talking but it appears no one has yet made the final commitment."
He said the three companies needed to commit to one common Socket Seven standard and agreed that dealers wanted one product, never mind three or four.
Said D?Elia: "Whichever way AMD and Cyrix decide to go, there will be some bruised egos. Maybe they?ll have to do some backing down and [all three] have to produce a standard that work together."
Although National Semiconductor, which took over Cyrix earlier this year, had a cross-licensing deal with Intel, D?Elia discounted that that could apply to the mechanical Slot One architecture which Intel has pushed in the Pentium II.
He said: "National has some type of cross-licensing deal which involves very old Intel technologies. Both Cyrix and National pooh-poohed such an idea when the merger took place. If they had it, and it was visibile, they?d be shouting ?up yours? at AMD because it would have a Pentium compatible device."
He added: "Cyrix is focusing on high integration stuff. "
And in AMD?s case, said D?Elia, it had to start producing K6s and in volume to last through 1998. He said: "The biggest issue with AMD is they haven?t been able to deliver the product. It?s a good thing they haven?t had a Compaq up until now, because they would have had to serve them alone."
Yet Rayat thought that there was another situation on the cards. He said that speculation was mounting that IBM was readying itself to buy the CPU part of AMD, so leaving the organisation to concentrate on its core business.
Understandably, neither IBM nor AMD was prepared to comment on that rumour.
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AP got a look at Stanford's collection of Apple-related material, which the university has stored in its Silicon Valley Archives.
The collection, the largest assembly of Apple historical materials, can help historians, entrepreneurs and policymakers understand how a startup launched in a Silicon Valley garage became a global technology giant.
“Through this one collection you can trace out the evolution of the personal computer,” said Stanford historian Leslie Berlin. “These sorts of documents are as close as you get to the unmediated story of what really happened.”
The collection is stored in hundreds of boxes taking up more than 600 feet of shelf space at the Stanford’s off-campus storage facility. The Associated Press visited the climate-controlled warehouse on the outskirts of the San Francisco Bay area, but agreed not to disclose its location.


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In what might go down as the most cold-blooded instance of fast-food chains trolling their customers, Arby’s will be offering a one-day only vegetarian menu this Monday on Leap Day, February 29th. The sandwich chain will sell all of their standard menu sandwiches, but without meat, for the same price as their carnivorous counterparts.
That means that when you step into Arby’s on Monday, you could order a Reuben and receive two pieces of marbled rye bread, some 1000 Island sauce and sauerkraut. Or you could opt for the veggie version of Arby’s classic roast beef sandwich, which consists of a toasted sesame seed bun and…well…that’s about it.
At a time when franchises are introducing kale salads, egg whites, and plenty of vegetarian options to desperately win over new patrons, Arby’s is taking a hard stance in favor of meat. In a press release, the company’s Brand President is quoted about the bogus vegetarian delicacies;
“At Arby’s, we’re proud of our meats, but we also understand that meat isn’t for everyone,” said Rob Lynch. “So we’ve decided to give vegetarians a reason to visit Arby’s on Leap Day by offering a one-day menu designed specifically for them. If it goes well, we’ll likely bring back the vegetarian menu on Feb. 29 each year.”
This isn’t the first time Arby’s has given vegetarians a hard time either. Last summer, the company launched a ‘vegetarian support hotline‘ as well as an ad campaign aimed at tempting vegetarians to eat their Brown Sugar Bacon. The phone line ‘1-855-MEAT-HLP’ is still in operation. If you feel conflicted about their special menu, you might want to give it a ring.


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Brazil's regulator for telecommunications said Spain's Telefonica SA may begin as soon as Monday to offer international and national long-distance services, a move expected to boost the operator's revenue.
Telefonica's Telecomunicacoes de Sao Paulo SA was granted a concession to expand outside Sao Paulo state, Brazil's richest and most populous, regulator Anatel said. The government's authorization will be published on Monday in the country's official gazette.
The Caribbean region is expected to lose 365,000 jobs on a 13.5 percent drop in tourism for the 2001-2002 season as a result of the Sept. 11 attacks on the United States, a leading tourism official said.
But the region will see a significant recovery in 2003, with demand surging 7.1 percent, Jean-Claude Baumgarten, president of the World Travel and Tourism Council, said Wednesday at the sixth annual Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Investment Conference.
International Business Machines Corp. and Air Canada will jointly market a portable wireless computer that lets roving agents check in passengers as they wait in line for boarding passes.
The computer is the first product to emerge from a seven- year, $908 million services and development contract announced last year, IBM said. The collaboration could yield other products including online-booking enhancements and speech-recognition tools to automate call centers, the companies have said.


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Tim Shank can guarantee you that he’ll never leave home without his keys. Why is that? Well, his house keys are located inside his body.
Shank, the president of the Minneapolis futurist group TwinCities+, has a chip installed in his hand that can communicate electronically with his front door and tell it to unlock itself. His wife has one, too.
“You have mental checklists as you’re coming and going out of your home,” Shank says. “One of those things is my wallet, keys, all those things I have with me. Once you start to eliminate all those things, you start to see all the mind space it actually clears not to have to worry about them.”
In fact, Shank has several chips in his hand, including a near field communication (NFC) chip like the ones used in Apple Pay and similar systems, which stores a virtual business card with contact information for TwinCities+. “[For] people with Android phones, I can just tap their phone with my hand, right over the chip, and it will send that information to their phone,” he says. In the past, he’s also used a chip to store a bitcoin wallet.
Shank is one of a growing number of “biohackers” who implant hardware ranging from microchips to magnets inside their bodies.
Some biohackers use their implants in experimental art projects. Others who have disabilities or medical conditions use them to improve their quality of life, while still others use the chips to extend the limits of human perception. Shank, for instance, has experimented with a portable distance sensor that vibrates a magnet in his hand; it’s like a sonar system that lets him sense how far away obstacles are. He also considered installing a chip that would track his body temperature. But not every use case is so ambitious—for some, the chips are merely convenient ways to store data and unlock doors.
Experts sometimes caution that the long-term health risks of the practice are still unknown. But many biohackers claim that, if done right, implants can be no more dangerous than getting a piercing or tattoo. In fact, professional body piercers are frequently the ones tasked with installing these implants, given that they possess the training and sterilization equipment necessary to break people’s skin safely.
“When you talk about things like risk, things like putting it in your body, the reality is the risk of having one of these installed is extremely low—it’s even lower than an ear piercing,” claims Amal Graafstra, the founder of Dangerous Things, a biohacking supply company.
Graafstra, who is also the author of the book RFID Toys, says he first had an RFID chip installed in his hand in 2005, which allowed him to unlock doors without a key. When the maker movement took off a few years later, and as more hackers began to explore what they could put inside their bodies, he founded Dangerous Things with the aim of ensuring these procedures were done safely.
“I decided maybe it’s time to wrap a business model around this and make sure that the things people are trying to put in their bodies are safe,” he says. The company works with a network of trained body piercers and offers online manuals and videos for piercers looking to get up to speed on the biohacking movement.
At present, these chips are capable of verifying users’ identities and opening doors. And according to Graafstra, a next-generation chip will have enough on-board cryptographic power to potentially work with credit card terminals securely.
“The technology is there—we can definitely talk to payment terminals with it—but we don’t have the agreements in place with banks [and companies like] MasterCard to make that happen,” he says.
Paying for goods with an implantable chip might sound unusual for consumers and risky for banks, but Graafstra thinks the practice will one day become commonplace. He points to a survey released by Visa last year that found that 25% of Australians are “at least slightly interested” in paying for purchases through a chip implanted in their bodies.
“It’s on the minds of people,” he says. “It just needs to be brought to fruition.”
Other implantable technology has more of an aesthetic focus: Pittsburgh biohacking company Grindhouse Wetware offers a below-the-skin, star-shaped array of LED lights called Northstar. While the product was inspired by the on-board lamps of a device called Circadia that Grindhouse founder Tim Cannon implanted to send his body temperature to a smartphone, the commercially available Northstar features only the lights and is designed to resemble natural bioluminescence.
“This particular device is mainly aesthetic,” says Grindhouse spokesman Ryan O’Shea. “It can backlight tattoos or be used in any kind of interpretive dance, or artists can use it in various ways.”
The lights activate in the presence of a magnetic field—one that is often provided by magnets already implanted in the same user’s fingertips. Which brings up another increasingly common piece of bio-hardware: magnetic finger implants. Hackers say these small magnets allow users to sense the presence ofelectromagnetic fields, to diagnose electrical problems like faulty wiring, and even to pull small metal objects like paper clips and bottle caps toward you, making you into something of a low-rent Magneto. Despite the power of these implants, they’re fortunately not strong enough to trip metal detectors, wipe hard drives, or interfere with MRI scans.
“Most [Northstar clients] already have the magnets,” says Zack Watson, a piercer who installs implants for Grindhouse. “The magnets are kind of like a baby step into the heavy mod community. It’s not so much visible as it is modifying the body to get that magnetic vision, and then the byproduct is that you’re able to activate the implant.”
According to O’Shea, a second-generation Northstar will include a Bluetooth transmitter and gesture-recognition sensors, which will let it communicate with a smartphone to control Internet of Things-type technology. That’s not the only reason many early adopters may eventually choose to upgrade their implants. Another has to do with the limited battery life.
“[The device] will die, much like a pacemaker will die,” he says. “When a pacemaker does die, it is removed in a procedure and is completely replaced with a new unit. That is similar to what will happen with Northstar.”
Luckily for users, the Northstar can be inserted or replaced in about 15 minutes by a skilled piercer, says O’Shea.
“It’s just a small incision, usually in the side of the hand,” he adds. “The skin is separated from the hand there, and the device is just inserted, and the skin is stitched up.”
As long as they’re inserted properly, the implants leave minimal scarring, says Watson. He has magnets in his hand that let him do “little parlor tricks” and pick up needles while he works. “My kids are convinced I have a magic finger,” he says. Meanwhile, an RFID chip in his hand lets him unlock his phone and automatically load his Instagram portfolio for potential customers to see.
“My phone has a reader in it, and you’re able to use that reader to scan my hand,” Watson says. “It’s a cool way to show off your work.”
Grindhouse is also working on an enhanced version of the Circadia device that tracks founder Cannon’s body temperature. Cannon says that in the future, Circadia could potentially track other vital signs like blood oxygen, heart rate, and blood glucose. That, however, could pose tricky regulatory challenges for the company, he acknowledges, potentially bringing the device closer to medical sensors regulated by the Food and Drug Administration.
The line between medical devices and personal electronics has already begun to grow fuzzier. In recent months, the FDA has tentatively said it doesn’t want to impose the same red tape on “low-risk devices” like fitness trackers that it would impose on medical equipment. Even the White House has weighed in, saying it’sexploring options to bridge the gap between expensive, regulated hearing aids and cheaper amplification or tracking tools technically not certified for medical use.
Grindhouse’s foray into blood sugar tracking would follow projects like the Open Artificial Pancreas System, which lets diabetes patients build their own automatic blood sugar regulation tools using a Raspberry Pi computer to talk to an insulin pump and a glucose monitor. Some in the biohacking community have already used custom-built tools to overcome other disabilities or limitations. Artist Neil Harbisson, for instance, who was born color blind, used an implanted antenna totranslate colors into audible sounds.
O’Shea says Grindhouse isn’t at all opposed to regulation: The company already does extensive testing to make sure its products are safe and won’t break down in the body—not even after physical trauma—and would welcome regulations that ensure people don’t unwittingly put something toxic or otherwise dangerous into their bodies.
“With Northstar right now, if there’s something that you encounter that’s going to destroy the Northstar in your body, you’re probably already dead at that point,” he asserts.
What the company doesn’t want to see, O’Shea says, is the same full-on regulation of medical devices brought to bear on implantable products like the Circadia, which could make them impractical for startups and hackers to develop and prohibitively expensive for many potential users.
“The issue with FDA regulations is not only does it take an expensive amount of time and money that many bootstrapped companies do not have access to, but it also limits the people who can do these procedures,” O’Shea says. “We want these augmentative devices to be open to as many people as possible for as cheap as possible, so there aren’t people who can’t have access to this technology.”
In the meantime, with implants essentially flying under the regulatory radar, hackers are exploring how they can use the devices to manipulate and receive input from the world around them without a great deal of scrutiny from government bodies.
One of these hackers is artist, dancer, and self-proclaimed cyborg Moon Ribas, who has an Internet-connected implant in her arm that vibrates to alert her to earthquakes around the world—information she can incorporate into her choreographed routines.
She hopes to add additional, more precise implants that would communicate the continent where the earthquake took place, and perhaps another that reports quakes on the moon.
“This would allow me to be here and be in space in the same time,” she says.
Ribas is also working on a commercial implant that would let users feel a vibration when they face due north, potentially training them to develop a directional sense similar to some animals. That’s a far cry from Tim Shank’s comparatively unambitious door-unlocking implant.
“I like things that are related to nature, space, or animals,” she says. “Everyone has his own interests—it’s just that it doesn’t fulfill me as much to think about having an implant to open a door.”


text:
NotePage SMS, Paging and Messaging Blogs
|02/26/2008 Unlimited Wireless
ATT Inc , the biggest U.S. mobile service, said on
Tuesday it would offer unlimited mobile phone calls
for a flat rate of $99.99 a month, hours after Verizon
Wireless announced a similar plan.
|02/25/2008 Cellular TV
Taking Off in Japan
Shipments of cell phones compatible with Japans mobile
digital TV service have surged to more than 20 million
units in fewer than two years since launch, according
to industry data released last Wednesday.
|02/20/2008 T-Mobile Favors
T-Mobile announced on last Tuesday that it will soon
begin using Yahoo as its preferred mobile search provider
in Europe, ending the operators existing relationship
with Google for mobile search.
|02/19/2008 RIM Reliability
Research In Motion, maker of the popular BlackBerry
smartphone, said last Tuesday it was trying to locate
the cause of a service disruption that left subscribers
with only intermittent access to e-mail and other
data services for three hours.
Service problems started about 3:30 p.m. EST on Monday,
and lasted until about 6:30 p.m. EST, RIM said in
an e-mailed statement. BlackBerry subscribers, most
of whom are business people, did not lose any messages
during the interruption, and voice communications
were not affected.
|02/18/2008 Portable Google
Finnish mobile phone giant Nokia said on Tuesday
it had reached an agreement with Google to incorporate
the Google search engine in its handsets.
|02/14/2008 Text a Message
There is no doubt that on Valentines Day the text
messages sent will contain anecdotal notes of affection.
We even had a customer inquiry about scheduling love
notes to be sent every hour on February 14th!
|02/13/2008 Mobile World
The most established names in telecoms, Internet
and media gathered in Barcelona Monday for the Mobile
World Congress, one of the worlds biggest events for
the mobile phone industry.
Attention at the trade show, which runs until Thursday,
is likely to focus on how to encourage users in developed
countries to use their phones for more than simply
|02/12/2008 Recycling Cell
We recycle our soda cans and our newspapers, so why
do not we recycle our cell phones?
U.S. consumers who bought new mobile phones recycled
the old ones in the fourth quarter of 2007 at double
the rate of the third quarter, a market research firm
said Tuesday. But the overall number of recyclers
remained low at less than one in 10.
|02/11/2008 Cell Phones
to Get Widgets
Widgets, or small Web applications that supply useful
information direct to the desktop, could soon be appearing
on your cell phone screen.
|02/04/2008 Automate Tasks
and Improve Productivity with Software
This is VERY cool software discounted 45% for only
24 hours. Macro Scheduler is windows automation
and scripting solutions that enhance productivity
and automate processes.
Create scripts and record macros to automate and control
your Windows applications, automate software processes
and assign tasks to schedules, desktop shortcuts or
hotkeys. Perform complex tasks with a single mouse
click, or schedule your computer to perform tasks
while you are away.
The powerful Macro Recorder makes it easy to create
macros even if you have no programming experience.
If you can do it, Macro Scheduler can automate it.
|02/03/2008 Motorola Considers
Bailing on Cell Phones
Last week, Motorola laid a bit of a bombshell on
the cell phone world. The company announced it was
considering a structural realignment to rejuvenate
its mobile device business. Though the company had
a huge hit with its ultrathin Razr V3 in late 2004,
Moto has been struggling to regain solid footing over
the last couple years.
|01/22/2008 Germans Upset
German anger over plans by Nokia to close a plant
escalated on Friday, with the finance minister accusing
the cellphone maker of caravan capitalism and
others vowing to replace their Nokia phones.
Nokia, the worlds top cellphone maker, said earlier
this week it would close the plant in the western
city of Bochum because it was not competitive and
move production to Romania.
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Mr Adam Burke serves as President & CEO of LA Tourism & Convention Board (Los Angeles Tourism), overseeing global brand marketing and sales strategies for one of the world’s most diverse and innovative destinations. He first joined the organization as Chief Operating Officer in 2016. Mr Burke is responsible for achieving the organization’s mission to “improve the quality of life for all Angelenos through the economic benefits of tourism.” Los Angeles Tourism is a Member-based, non-profit organization, proudly representing over 1,000 local businesses in the leisure and hospitality sector.
Mr Burke is here with Dope News to talk about the opening up of travel and the initiatives taken by LA tourism to attract more tourists.
What are the Global Tourism Initiatives that have been taken by LA Tourism?
When asked about the global initiatives that are in plan to increase the tourism rate in LA, Mr Burke had some great pointers to share. He said, “Los Angeles is one of the world’s most inclusive destinations with a long history of welcoming diverse visitors from around the world. It’s simply impossible to overstate how critical international visitation is to our City of Angels. In 2019 alone, we welcomed over 7.4 million international visitors who injected $11.6 billion in visitor spending to our local economy. And while this vital audience represents 1 in 4 overnight guests to Los Angeles, they generate 50% of all overnight visitor spending.”
“Demonstrating our long-term commitment to the international market, for over 20 years, we’ve been the only destination in the United States to have our own dedicated, full-time offices and team members overseas. As part of our future growth strategy, we were honoured to become the first U.S. DMO to open a full-time office in Mumbai, recognizing that India is well on the way to becoming one of the world’s top markets for both inbound and outbound travel over the next decade.” He added.
Speaking about the relationship shared with India for tourism dependency, he said, “Growing relationships with India’s travel trade has been of the utmost importance to us for many years, and never more so than during the pandemic, as we’ve worked hard to serve as a trusted source of up-to-date information regarding health & safety, and the status of L.A.’s tourism sector – which I’m thrilled to say has been fully open since June.”
Not only this, LA tourism is planning to launch a cinema campaign and Mr Burke shared some insights on the same when speaking to the Dope. He said, “Our new comeback campaign highlights the love of cinema that is such a shared passion between Hollywood and Bollywood. As the entertainment capital of the world, our passion for film runs so deep that you can say Los Angeles is a movie. And while our richly diverse cast of characters, iconic landscapes and cutting-edge fashions lend themselves to any genre, what we’re all celebrating today is a Comeback Story.”
What is the tourism industry in LA doing to support the SMMEs?
According to Mr Burke, LA tourism has been constantly working with SMMEs and is planning on to support them at any cost. Here is what he had to say about it, “We are exceedingly grateful for our collaboration with India’s SMMEs during this challenging time of disruption for our industry. The support of these highly valued partners has been – and will continue to be – critical to the recovery of travel to Los Angeles.”
“In India, our team has actively engaged local trade through a multitude of activities including the L.A. Insider online training program which provides the travel trade with everything they need to know to plan an L.A. vacation for their clients, including the most current information on our constantly evolving product offerings, including new state-of-the-art sports & entertainment venues, ground-breaking arts & cultural institutions, innovative, eclectic restaurants, and an assortment of new hotels. Our team also kept this audience informed with our regular travel trade e-news program and introduced a dedicated travel trade Facebook page to provide information tailored exclusively for the trade. We are looking forward to reconnecting with our key trade partners from India in person in 2022.”, he added.
What are the Global Travel industry trends that have helped the market recover and what are their implications for the traveller?
Discussing the industry trends and implementations on travel, Mr Burke touched some key points. He said, “As destinations drop their travel restrictions and welcome back international visitors, the recovery of tourism and safety go hand in hand. In L.A. we follow data closely and research indicates that visitors are much more likely to choose travel destinations where they are confident in the safety measures in place.”
“Throughout the pandemic, we are proud that L.A. has proved to be a community where the health of both residents and visitors has indeed been the top priority. California currently has the lowest COVID transmission rate of any state in the U.S., and we have proactive protocols in place. Here in L.A., masking is required indoors and since – beginning November 8th – fully vaccinated visitors from around the world will be able to visit the United States with a negative COVID test taken with 72 hours of arrival, we’re ready to roll out the red carpet for our valued Indian guests.”, he added.
LA tourism in the rush of opening up to travel has not neglected the safety protocols. Here is what he had to say about it. “Of particular importance to our travel trade partners, we’ve worked closely with our public health officials to ensure that safety protocols are not only highly effective but that they can be seamlessly delivered so that guests can comfortably enjoy all that our City of Angels has to offer.”
What are the focus areas for LA?
Mr Burke opened up to the Dope News talking about the future plans and areas of focus for LA in order to revive tourism. Excited about it, he says, “As our tourism industry makes its comeback, we know a balance of both leisure and business travel is of the utmost importance for our recovery. Professional meetings and events have officially started their comeback in Los Angeles. That’s absolutely critical since, in 2019 alone, this sector generated almost $24 billion in business sales to L.A.’s business community. And we celebrated a comeback milestone earlier this month, hosting our first City Wide convention since the start of the pandemic, welcoming more than 2,800 attendees for the American Academy of Otolaryngology at its Annual Meeting and Expo. Something that many people don’t know – but that should give meeting planners and event participants a great deal of confidence – it that the L.A. Convention Center is regularly used for film and television production, meaning that they’ve been continuously and safely operating for well over a year now, so we’re fully prepared for the return of professional meetings and events.”
How significant is the Indian market? Will there be a change in strategy for MICE marketing post-COVID-19?
Keeping India in a huge focus, LA will be working on growing the MICE business. Adding to this he said, “As I mentioned earlier, India represents one of the fastest-growing markets to Los Angeles. In 2019 alone, 135,000 Indian guests spent over $300 million in our local economy. Our optimism for the Indian market remains very high and we are fully committed to building long-term, mutually beneficial relationships with our partners in the Indian travel trade.”
“Based on feedback from event planners and participants, we know that L.A. is the perfect location for MICE business. With more than 300 days of sunshine per year and a plethora of world-class venues, there is ample space in our destination for both indoor and outdoor events.”, he added.
LA also is planning to remain committed to being the safest destination for the next events. On this, he said, “Current guidelines do not restrict capacities or require social distancing. Participants simply need to provide proof of full vaccination or a negative COVID test taken within 48 hours of the event for meetings with 1,000 or more attendees indoors or 10,000 or more outdoors. In addition, proof of full vaccination will be required for a variety of indoor venues including restaurants, bars, and nightclubs.”


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Airbnb says it is laying off 25% of its workforce as it confronts a steep decline in global travel due to the new coronavirus pandemic, the AP reports. It's a serious setback for the 12-year-old home-sharing company, which just a few months ago was valued at $31 billion and planning a hotly anticipated IPO. Airbnb lists around 7 million properties on its website. In a letter to employees, CEO Brian Chesky said the San Francisco-based company is letting 1,900 of its 7,500 workers go and cutting businesses that don’t directly support home-sharing. Those include its investments in hotels, air transportation, and movie production. “We are collectively living through the most harrowing crisis of our lifetime,” Chesky wrote. Chesky said Airbnb expects its revenue to drop by more than half this year.
The company is privately held, so it doesn’t release financial figures. But AirDNA, a company that monitors bookings and rental fees for Airbnb hosts and others, said new US bookings fell by 53% between Feb. 3 and April 13. Chesky said travel will eventually return, but will look different. Airbnb expects travelers will want options that are closer to home and more affordable, for example. The company is scaling back its investments in luxury properties as a result. “We need to make fundamental changes to Airbnb by reducing the size of our workforce around a more focused business strategy," Chesky said. Chesky said departing employees will receive at least 14 weeks of their base pay. US employees will continue to receive health care coverage for a year. (Doctors and nurses are moving into Airbnb rentals to keep their families safe.)


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The nation’s largest drug-store chain said Thursday that it would sell the generic version of Impax Laboratories’ Adrenaclick treatment for $109.99 per two-pack before potential discounts, or about one-third the initial $300 list price of pharmaceutical giant Mylan’s new generic EpiPen.
The move comes amid public consternation over multiple price increases that left the brand-name allergic-reaction treatment EpiPen with a list price of more than $600, up from about $100 in 2009.
Trump attacked drugmakers on Wednesday for sharp hikes in drug prices. Outrage over steep increases and the corresponding profit boon for drugmakers is one of few bipartisan matters in Washington, although disagreements over how to address the matter have prevented action.
"They're getting away with murder," Trump said Wednesday of drug companies, whose stocks plunged afterward.
The CVS move also comes amid scrutiny over the role of pharmacy benefit managers, or PBMs, such as the CVS Caremark unit, in contributing to EpiPen increases. The National Community Pharmacists Association recently called for a Congressional hearing on how pharmacy benefit managers have contributed to the "absurdly high" price.
In addition, the development heightens tension between pharmacy benefits managers, such as CVS Caremark, and drug giants, which blame each other in part for skyhigh drug prices.
CVS Pharmacy President Helena Foulkes said the company responded after its pharmacists heard a steady stream of concerns from customers over EpiPen’s price increases.
The epinephrine injector treats allergic reactions in potentially life-threatening situations. Adrenaclick, approved by the Food and Drug Administration in 2003, also administers epinephrine but through a slightly different injection.
In a business often shrouded in uncertainty over pricing, the CVS decision to target Mylan reflects an unusually public attack by a pharmacy giant on an individual pharmaceutical company.
But the chain, which operates more than 9,600 pharmacies, may have financial incentives to make a play against EpiPen.
Beyond generating publicity for siding with aggrieved customers, the company's PBM negotiates pricing with drug companies and may be seeking to tip the balance of power in its favor. Caremark manages prescription drugs through more than 68,000 retail pharmacies, including its own, as well as mail-order operations.
CVS faces "competitive pressures" in the pharmacy benefits management sector that have prompted "a larger portion of rebates and/or discounts," the chain said in a public filing Nov. 8.
The company recentlly warned that it would lose more than 40 million retail prescriptions in 2017 for several reasons, including competitor Walgreens' new mail-order pharmacy tie-up with Prime Therapeutics.
Pharmacy benefits managers are also under the microscope for their own role in drug price increases. New restrictions on benefits coverage by CVS preclude coverage for what it calls "hyperinflation" drugs and generic alternatives to specialty medicines, called biosimilars, according to drug-coupon service GoodRx.
Caremark now excludes 130 prescriptions from insurance coverage, making it the “most restrictive provider going into 2017,” GoodRx said in August.
Asked whether the Impax deal reflects an attempt to bolster Caremark's bargaining position, Foulkes did not address the matter. She also declined to reveal financial details of the company’s deal with Impax or to say whether CVS is siding with Trump on drug prices.
“Our focus has always been on finding solutions for patients first and foremost,” she said. “The best thing that can happen to keep drug prices low is to have a lot of competition in the marketplace.”
Mylan, for its part, has repeatedly argued that most customers don’t pay the full price of EpiPen out of pocket, with many relying on insurance or special manufacturer’s coupons. Still, the company introduced a generic version of its own treatment in December amid swirling scrutiny over profit taking. The company also offers rebates for certain patients and has said that about 85% of EpiPen users pay less than $100 out of pocket.
Foulkes said “in most cases” customers will qualify for a manufacturer’s coupon for $100 off the Adrenaclick treatment, making it $9.99 for them. She said Medicaid and Medicare plan members won’t qualify for the coupon but that CVS pharmacists will work with customers to identify their cheapest route to acquiring the treatment.
“We really think it solves this pain point in a very specific way and brings the cost down dramatically,” she said.
The deal also reflects a sharp price cut compared to certain CVS competitors. For example, Adrenaclick could be found in Walmart and Sam’s Club stores in August for $142 with a GoodRx coupon, according to Consumer Reports.
Adrenaclick will be available at all CVS Pharmacy locations starting Thursday. Foulkes said CVS would continue to sell EpiPen to customers who want the assurance of the brand-name product, though Mylan itself has said the generic version is identical to the brand-name product.
|A pharmacist holds a package of EpiPen epinephrine auto-injectors in Sacramento, Calif., July 8, 2016. (Credit: AP)|
CVS cuts the price of a generic EpiPen competitor in half
CVS is now selling a rival, generic version of Mylan's life-saving allergy treatment EpiPen at about a sixth of EpiPen’s price, months after Mylan was eviscerated before Congress because of EpiPen’s soaring cost.
The drugstore chain says it will charge $109.99 for a two-pack of the authorized generic version of Adrenaclick, a lesser-known treatment compared to EpiPen, which can cost more than $600.
CVS Health Corp., the nation's second-largest drugstore chain, says it cut the price it charges for the generic version of Adrenaclick nearly in half. The lower-priced product is now available at all CVS stores. The chain runs about 9,600 retail pharmacies in the United States, including several locations inside Target stores.
These treatments are stocked by schools and parents of children with severe allergies. They are used in emergencies to stop anaphylaxis, potentially fatal allergic reactions to insect bites and stings and to foods such as nuts and eggs.
The syringes are filled with the hormone epinephrine, and they expire after a year. That often means patients must fill new prescriptions even if they never used the old one.
Mylan started taking heat late last summer for its EpiPen pricing, which has climbed more than 500% since 2007. A congressional panel grilled Chief Executive Heather Bresch in September about the soaring cost, which she has blamed in part on insurers, pharmacy benefits managers and others in the supply chain between the drugmaker and the customer.
Bresch is one of several pharmaceutical executives who have been called before Congress, where both Republicans and Democrats have demanded explanations for spiraling drug prices that can plunge patients into debt or force them to skip prescriptions.
President-elect Donald Trump said Wednesday during a news conference that he wants to create new bidding procedures on drugs to save money.
Shares of most drugmakers sank almost immediately after his comments and were still under pressure Thursday. Mylan’s stock fell 1.4% on Thursday to $36.77. Meanwhile, shares of Impax Laboratories Inc. — the Hayward, Calif., company that makes Adrenaclick — rose 2.8% to $12.75.
In the aftermath of the unwanted attention, Mylan has expanded the financial aid it offers customers and launched its own authorized generic in December, priced around $300 per two-pack. But patients with no health insurance or with high-deductible insurance plans are exposed to the full price of the drug if they aren't aware of that assistance or if they don't seek it.
CVS says the new price it is charging for the Adrenaclick generic applies both to insured patients and to those who pay cash without coverage. It's what customers will pay at the pharmacy counter.
Prescription drug prices vary widely because of negotiations between pharmacies, drugmakers and pharmacy benefit managers. The new price CVS announced Thursday is lower, in some cases by more than $100, than other prices listed on websites such as GoodRx that compare retailers.
Impax Laboratories also offers a coupon program for Adrenaclick that can provide additional price breaks if a patient qualifies.


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History has a habit of repeating itself, with good and bad consequences.
The new Bentley Mulsanne – unveiled with a fanfare in California recently – is inspired by company founder Walter Owen Bentley’s crowning glory.
The Mulsanne of 1930 was an eight-litre grand tourer, capable of more than 100mph, and designed to take the fight to Rolls Royce’s luxurious motors.
Unfortunately, it arrived just in time to smash right into the worst financial consequences of the Wall Street Crash.
The world’s moneyed tightened their belts and cash-strapped Bentley fell under the wing of Rolls Royce, which had been nervous to say the least about the Mulsanne encroaching into its territory.
It might be with untypical irony that the contemporary VW Group-owned Bentley has selected the name Mulsanne for the car which will replace the Arnage as the flagship product at its Crewe factory.
Again, it’s a car born within a recession. Again, it’s a car designed to provide competition for the Rolls Royce Phantom.
Ask Bentley directly, however, and they say it has more to do with the brand’s association with Le Mans and the famous circuit’s Mulsanne corner.
The intention is to let people know that this is a car built for people who like to drive seriously fast just as much as they like to be chauffeured around in serious luxury.
VW won’t say how much it has invested in the new production line for the Mulsanne, which has been designed entirely in Crewe and will, we are told, be a Bentley from wheel bottom to roof top, unlike the Arnage, which was a product of the era when Bentley and Rolls Royce were stable mates.
They do say that the problems of recent months – including short time and reduncancies – are now behind them.
They’re gearing up to serve emerging markets, including Russia and China, which haven’t been so badly hit by recession.
The Mulsanne goes on sale in the spring and will boast what the company insists is far more than an updated version of the tried and tested 6.75 litre V8 %engine from the Arnage.
They say that there will be 7,000 all-new parts within the exquisite model and that it will be the pinnacle of all things Bentley.
Bentley has yet to reveal the technical specs on the new Mulsanne but has already auctioned off chassis No.1 for $500,000.
Some people have all the luck… let’s hope it rubs off on a fantastic British company.


text: Polcie are investigating the theft of the Silver Lake Cemetery tomb doors.The doors are made of solid bronze, and police believe they were stolen on the night of July 3rd, but don’t have an official word yet. The ground near the tomb still showed scratch marks from the doors being dragged away. Police estimate the doors weigh hundreds of pounds and are worth about $7,000. Bucksport uses the tombs to store bodies when the ground in the cemetery isn’t reaady for burials. Thomas sweet is the president of the cemetery and says one coffin was in the tomb when the doors were stolen. “This is the only tomb in town that we store bodies in so now with it open like this we’re not going to be able to put any bodies for anybody in Bucksport until this is resolved and we can come up with a way to secure the tomb with some type of door that junkers and people that are stealing everything won’t take,” Sweet said. Bucksport Police are asking anyone who knows or may have seen anyting to call 469-7951. Callers will remain anonymous if they desire.


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Ways to beat the recession
Ways to beat the recession. On the economic front, discussion and implementation of measures to deal with it amidst the slowness is necessary. The government recently took steps towards merging some small banks to form large public banks so that their capacity can be increased. This is welcome, but there is a need to go beyond that. In the last two years, the government has planned to put 250 thousand crore rupees in these banks. In comparison, the total market potential of these banks today is only 230 thousand crore rupees. This means that the current level of capital is negative. Government has not been able to save the money given to these banks in two years. In such a situation, the government should privatize all public sector banks except State Bank of India. Then the government will be able to earn a huge amount of about 230 thousand crore rupees. This money can be used to increase exports of services. For example, centers to teach foreign languages should be made in every district. Teachers of India can be subsidized and sent to teach in institutions around the world, bets like making films in foreign languages can be tried in India. This will free the government from the headache of continuously infusing capital into banks and our service sector will grow.
The second solution is to borrow for investment. The NDA government has achieved great success in controlling the fiscal deficit in the last five years. The fiscal deficit of the government was 4.4 percent in the year 2013-14, which was 3.4 percent in 2018-19. Financial deficit is the amount spent by the government by borrowing from the market. Reduction in the fiscal deficit means that the government is controlling its spending and borrowing less. It is also necessary for the stability of the economy, otherwise inflation increases and investors are reluctant to invest, but more steps have to be taken. Of the fiscal deficit reduction that the government has achieved, three-fourth part is to cut capital expenditure and one-fourth to cut government consumption. The government kept its consumption stable and reduced capital investment — just as the shopkeeper kept the air conditioner at home and removed it from the store. The direction of government spending has a direct impact on the economy. Salary paid to personnel is the main consumption of government. If the government pays salaries to the workers exorbitantly, then most of its expenditure is spent in buying gold, investing abroad, in foreign tourism or buying foreign goods and this amount goes out of the country i.e. our economy balloons Air escapes. Therefore, the government should control government consumption and increase investment. It is not harmful to take a loan to invest, because the entrepreneur takes a loan and shops. The problem occurs when debt is consumed. Therefore, the government should do two things at this time. One, government consumption should freeze. Salaries of government employees should also be frozen. Second, investment should be increased by creating a special cell to invest. Import tax should be increased under the third measure.
On the economic front, discussion and implementation
Ways to beat the recession. The government has taken several steps to provide loans to small industries. Filing returns in GST has also been simplified. These steps are welcome, but only this will not make it happen. The problem of small industries is that they are unable to stand in front of the goods coming from China. China has the flexibility to hire and evacuate workers, which makes workers work harder and produce twice as much as Indian workers. That’s why Chinese goods are cheaper than us. To save small industries, it is necessary to increase the import tax on goods imported from China, which are mainly made by small industries. This will give big support to small industries. These will employ more workers and market demand will increase and the recession will break.
A fourth measure could be that small industries are exempted from GST. One of the problems of these industries is that the compounding scheme does not provide refund of GST paid by them on their inputs. Because of this it is beneficial for big industry to buy goods from other big industry and not from other small industry. If a big industry buys goods from another big industry, then the big industry gets the setoff of GST given on its input by the big industry that sells, but if the same big industry buys the same goods from a small industry then the seller The big industry does not get the setoff of GST paid on its inputs by the small industry. Therefore, there has been a tendency of big industries to buy goods from other big industries only. The solution to this problem is to give them a cash refund of GST paid on inputs by small industries. Only then will they benefit under the composition scheme.
The fifth measure can be taken as privatization of government education. The government has appointed honest persons to the top positions in higher education and research institutions. This is welcome, but it has not made any difference in the trend of general teacher or scientist in these institutions. Ways to beat the recession General teachers are sure to get paid, whether they teach or not. There is coaching support here. This system will not only improve with the appointment of honest persons at the top. For this, it is necessary that the government should privatize the entire government education system and distribute free vouchers to all the youth of the country with the unspent amount and the amount spent every year, so that they can get their desired educational institution.


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Bitcoin Press Release: So far in 2018, the cryptocurrency bears have the upper hand. Major digital currencies like bitcoin have failed to impress investors like they did last year, and the December 2017 highs seem like a pipedream. In fact, some have gone so far as to say that the bitcoin bubble has burst. This brings up a very important question–what’s in store for the future of cryptocurrencies?
One ongoing industry trend is the threat of regulation. In Asia, for example, China has continued its regulatory crackdown. Bloomberg recently reported that China is “targeting platforms that allow the nation’s investors to trade digital assets on overseas exchanges, people familiar with the matter said.” This comes on the heels of other regulatory measures, and represents the Chinese government’s desire to “to cut off one of the few remaining avenues for Chinese citizens to buy digital assets.”
South Korea, another country known for its tougher stance on cryptocurrencies, is still largely undecided on how to implement its goal of “foster[ing] transparency in cryptocurrency trading, with regulators monitoring any illegal activity.” In some ways, however, the future doesn’t look too bright, as many South Korean millennials have been hurt badly by cryptocurrency trading. It is causing depression among some according to Garrick Hileman at the University of Cambridge, while other South Koreans are “losing motivation to go to work.” This is because “they are watching their peers make 10 times what they’re making in their day jobs just by speculating on cryptocurrencies.”
At the same time, though, the deflating of the bitcoin bubble might not be all bad. In South Korea, for example, citizens will be able to pay using cryptocurrencies in over 6,000 stores. On the other side of the Pacific Ocean, San Francisco based Coinbase recently released a service that lets merchants take Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Ethereum, and Litecoin payments. Ironically enough, the decrease in cryptocurrency speculation and increase in regulation is driving the industry more towards the original purpose of bitcoin–a means of making anonymous, decentralized peer-to-peer payments. In this ever changing environment, it appears as if the payment method route is the way to go.
The Need for Speed and Trust in Asia
In the Asian blockchain market in particular, there is a need for both increased speed and greater trust. Speed is essential because it’s what keeps Asian businesses interested in crypto payments. If a business owner can use an existing method that is faster than a blockchain based payment system, why use the blockchain at all? Additionally, existing crypto payment alternatives suffer from a lack of trust. The lack of transparency and traceability are two of the main reasons why Asian regulators have cracked down on cryptocurrencies and blockchain companies so severely. Blockchain startups need to focus on providing quick transaction times without compromising trust compliance.
One blockchain company, COTI, is developing a decentralized currency of the internet, with the goal of streamlining the world’s ecommerce network. The platform facilitates peer-to-peer B2B, B2C, and C2C payments while at the same time addressing two major blockchain issues–network speed and a lack of trust.
The platform will be able to process up to 10,000 transactions per second, keeping it competitive with traditional payment platforms like PayPal or Visa while at the same time outclassing its blockchain competitors. To address the trust issue, COTI utilizes an internal Trust Scoring Engine that uses both quantitative and qualitative data to assign each party an objective “trust score”. Thus platform users will be able to gauge the overall trustworthiness of the counterparty and still maintain a level of security and anonymity. The Trust Scoring


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Natural Gas Rises as Power Demand Gains: Commodities at Close
The UBS Bloomberg CMCI gauge of 26 prices advanced 0.5 percent to 1,620.32.
Natural gas gained for the third time in four sessions on speculation that increased demand from electricity generators because of fuel switching will help reduce a supply glut.
Power plants have consumed 27.3 billion cubic feet of gas a day this month, up 21 percent from a year ago, data from LCI Energy Insight in El Paso, Texas, show. A surplus has been cut as electricity generators burned more gas instead of coal.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, gas futures for October delivery increased 3.1 percent to $2.924 per million British thermal units.
U.K. gas for next-day delivery advanced as Gassco AS said supply from its Kollsnes processing plant in Norway will be cut by 40 million cubic meters a day.
The price rose 0.9 percent to 61 pence a therm at 4:53 p.m. London time. Month-ahead gas climbed 1 percent to 59.53 pence a therm. That’s equivalent to $9.66 per million Btu. A therm is 100,000 Btu.
Copper gained for the second time in three sessions as signs of stabilization in China’s economy and further recovery in U.S. housing brightened prospects for metal demand.
On the Comex in New York, copper futures for December delivery climbed 0.7 percent to $3.7585 a pound.
On the London Metal Exchange, copper for delivery in three months rose 1.1 percent to $8,275 a metric ton ($3.75 a pound). Aluminum, tin, nickel, zinc and lead also gained.
On ICE Futures U.S. in New York, raw sugar for March delivery climbed 2.2 percent to 20.72 cents a pound, the biggest gain for a most-active contract since Sept. 7.
Cocoa futures for December delivery rose 1.5 percent to $2,483 a metric ton.
Arabica-coffee futures for December delivery increased 0.8 percent to $1.7365 a pound.
Orange juice for November delivery declined 3.3 percent to $1.1445 a pound.
Cotton futures for December delivery fell 0.2 percent to 72.33 cents a pound.
Gasoline advanced as U.S. home prices rose more than expected in July and consumer confidence jumped to a seven-month high in September.
On the Nymex, gasoline futures for October delivery rose 1.7 percent to $2.9671 a gallon.
Heating-oil futures for October delivery gained 0.3 percent to $3.1086 a gallon.
Gold futures rose on speculation that moves by central banks to bolster their economies will spur demand for the metal as a store of value.
On the Comex, gold futures for December delivery climbed 0.1 percent to $1,766.40 an ounce.
Silver futures for December delivery fell 0.1 percent to $33.948 an ounce.
On the Nymex, platinum futures for January delivery rose 0.6 percent to $1,636 an ounce. Palladium futures for December delivery dropped 0.7 percent to $640.85 an ounce.
Cattle futures tumbled the most in five months on signs of slowing demand from U.S. meatpackers as beef prices drop.
On the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, cattle futures for December delivery fell 2 percent to $1.258 a pound, the biggest drop since April 24.
Feeder-cattle futures for November settlement declined 1.5 percent to $1.46525 a pound, the biggest drop since July 25.
Hog futures for December settlement slid 0.9 percent to 74.65 cents a pound.
Crude oil fell to a seven-week low as Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia President Charles Plosser said a new stimulus program probably won’t boost the economy.
On the Nymex, oil futures for November delivery dropped 0.6 percent to $91.37 a barrel, the lowest since Aug. 2.
Brent oil for November settlement rose 0.6 percent to $110.45 a barrel on the London-based ICE Futures exchange.
Royal Dutch Shell Plc sold North Sea Forties crude at a bigger discount to Dated Brent than yesterday. Vitol Group failed to sell Russian Urals blend after raising the offer in northwest Europe and lowering the price for the Mediterranean.
Wheat futures fell the most in a week on signs that Russia, the third-biggest exporter, won’t restrict shipments after a drought curbed production.
On the Chicago Board of Trade, wheat futures for December delivery declined 0.6 percent to $8.865 a bushel, the biggest drop since Sept. 18.
Corn futures for December delivery slid 0.1 percent to $7.4375 a bushel in Chicago.
Soybean futures for November delivery gained 0.1 percent to $16.115 a bushel.
To contact the reporter on this story: Thomas Galatola in New York at email@example.com
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Steve Stroth at firstname.lastname@example.org


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Time to put a lid on it
Although alcohol can bring people together, it can also leave a fair number of people on the outskirts of social settings.
Magdalen College sparks controversy with Eid dinner on St George’s Day
Magdalen College’s announcement of an Eid dinner on April 23 has sparked controversy, with multiple news outlets, including The Telegraph, claiming that the college...
Oxford Covered Market’s Ben’s Cookies continues full service despite price rise
A regular cookie from Ben’s Cookies, the cookie chain founded in the Covered Market in 1984, now costs £2.20 after a price rise from...


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Australian Event Organiser Fined Over Cancelled Exhibition
An Australian event organiser on the Gold Coast in Australia has recently been fined $5,000 AUD by the Office of Fair trading (OFT).
Howard Kodra and his company Live and Local Expo were receiving payments for an exhibition to promote local business in Queensland. Each booking was promised an exhibition stall and promotional activities. After payment was received the event was rescheduled due to supposed issues with weather and then simply cancelled citing lack of exhibitors.
Sharon Simmers from the OFT stated that “Accepting payments for services and keeping that money despite delivering no service is a breach of the ACL and the OFT will vigorously pursue offenders,” Simmers said. This type of offending erodes confidence in the marketplace and anyone who encounters it is encouraged to report it immediately.”


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Henry Schein unveils collaboration with ReDent Nova
12 July 2012 15:52 in Dental Supplier News
Henry Schein has announced it will collaborate with Tel Aviv-based dental company ReDent Nova in several markets.
The global agreement will see the two companies cooperate on servicing customers who have previously purchased ReDent Nova products from Henry Schein, a leading provider of healthcare services to office-based dental, medical and animal health practitioners across the world.
Under the deal, Henry Schein will also serve as the exclusive distributor of ReDent Nova products in Germany and The Netherlands.
Jim Breslawksi, president and chief operating officer at Henry Schein, hailed ReDent's Self Adjusting File as a "unique product" in the 'minimally invasive endodontic' category.
"We are delighted to add it to our broad and growing offering of products within this market segment," he said.
Last month, the company celebrated the 15th anniversary of the formation of Sullivan-Schein Dental, a merger between Sullivan Dental and Henry Schein that went on to become Henry Schein Dental.
Other news stories from 12/07/2012
Read more in the Zenopa News Archive
How this news is generated
Story collated for Zenopa by the Adfero News Agency


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Many travel businesses continue to be “excluded” from government support despite not trading for almost a year, according to an industry trade body.
The Association of British Travel Agents says tour operators, online travel companies and home-based workers are not eligible for government grants.
It wants sector-specific funding while uncertainty over testing regimes and quarantine continues to hit bookings.
Aviation firms and unions have also issued fresh calls for state aid.
ABTA is calling on the government to make support available for all travel businesses that have been forced to shut due to the pandemic.
“The chancellor said there are extra grants for struggling businesses, yet many travel companies remain excluded from this critical support, despite not being able to generate income over the last 12 months,” the association said.
“By focusing grants on retail outlets, businesses including tour operators, online travel companies and home-based workers remain shut out of this much-needed support.
“It is also worth remembering that with overseas travel still closed, in the short to medium term, the income retail travel agents can generate will still be limited.”
A number of travel firms have fallen into administration in the last year.
STA Travel, which specialised in long-haul trips for young people, stopped trading last year. In August, the UK’s biggest travel agency chain, Hays Travel, cut almost 900 jobs.
In the last week’s Budget, the government extended the furlough scheme, business rates relief and VAT reductions. It also extended grants for struggling retail businesses.
“We urge the government to… make grants available to all travel businesses, not just those with retail premises, recognising that the reopening of overseas travel will come later than the other sectors and will likely be gradual,” ABTA said.
Travel firms are hoping international travel will be able to resume from 17 May.
The Association of Independent Tour Operators said the government’s roadmap “gave a real boost to bookings”, but added that many questions remain over hotel quarantine and testing which were dampening demand.
Aviation unions, along with Heathrow and ground handler Swissport, issued fresh calls on Monday for government funding.
They want a Covid testing framework to be rolled out to enable quarantine requirements to be lifted for overseas arrivals into the UK.
Thousands of jobs in the sector have already been lost and around 124,000 continue to be at risk, they say.


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Don Sull, an Associate Professor at the London Businesses School and author of a book on the economic rise of China, talks to Times Online about the CNOOCs offer for Unocal and the growing purchasing power of Chinese businesses. Interview by Andrew Ellson
Why is CNOOC making a bid for Unocal?
This offer is part of a broader trend of Chinese companies building beachheads in foreign markets after establishing themselves in their fast-growing domestic market. These companies are cash-rich and global capital markets are willing to back them.
Given the pace that China is getting though oil, it is no surprise that it would be more comfortable with access to larger reserves.
Why are Chinese companies increasingly looking to purchase internationally?
At a certain scale, companies have to think about competing globally, particularly in industries such as oil and technology where there are


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Looks can be deceiving they say. It proves to be true in the case of this machine right here “TWIZY RENAULT SPORT F1”. With looks of a golf cart-like car, this electric concept car got some serious mechanism under its hood. This ‘Twizy’ is meant to be speeding on the F1 tracks!
With the standard electric motor comes the F1-style Kinetic Energy Recovery System (KERS), eating up the rear seat space, which is capable of boosting the Twizy’s 17 horsepower to 97 horsepower but only for 13 seconds at a time.
The KERS system, recovering and storing energy from braking, takes the 53mph Twizy to 68mph, still keeping the scope for improvement for the French automakers to meet the F1 standard. To create F1-derived technology that was road relevant and making a few people smile while also making a serious point is what Michel Jalinier, President and Managing Director of Renault Sport F1 feels.
Even though Renault’s productions plans for “Twizy Renault Sport F1” seem uncertain, this concept car hints about the company’s use of KERS technology in its future road cars.


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The FTC wants the former owner of CafePress to cough up $500,000 after the customizable merch bazaar not only tried to cover up a major computer security breach involving millions of netizens, it failed to safeguard customers’ personal information.
In a complaint [PDF] filed against CafePress former owner Residual Pumpkin Entity and PlanetArt, which bought the platform in 2020, the FTC alleges multiple instances of shoddy security practices at the online biz. In a settlement proposed by the US watchdog, Residual Pumpkin will pay up the half-million dollars.
The complaint highlighted that in February 2019 criminals stole, and then sold on the dark web, a treasure trove of personal information they found relatively easily on CafePress systems. This data included: more than 20 million unencrypted email addresses and encrypted passwords; millions of unencrypted names, physical addresses, and security questions and answers; more than 180,000 unencrypted Social Security numbers; and the last four digits of for tens of thousands of credit cards.
A month later, after being tipped off to the intrusion and that a vulnerability had been exploited, Residual Pumpkin updated its systems — but it didn’t notify customers about the break-in nor alert them that their data had been stolen, the FTC alleged. Instead, CafePress told them to change their passwords as part of an updated policy on login credentials.
Meanwhile, posts about stolen customer data and rumors of a privacy breach began appearing on Twitter, Reddit, and Facebook as customers received notifications from monitoring services that their details were unexpectedly in circulation. According to the FTC, CafePress received multiple warnings, including one from a foreign government, that its customer data has been lifted, yet kept quiet.
It wasn’t until September 2019 that Residual Pumpkin admitted to government agencies and affected customers that its security had been breached, the complaint states. At the time, the biz told netizens and law enforcement agencies that the password reset back in April would block any further unauthorized use. But according to the FTC, this wasn’t true.
Residual Pumpkin continued to allow password resets from the CafePress website by answering security questions associated with the customer’s email address — in other words, allowing miscreants to change people’s passwords using information stolen in the breach.
“Thus, until November 2019, anyone with access to the breached data could take over another user’s account,” the FTC noted.
According to FTC senior attorney Lesley Fair, CafePress also failed to protect against SQL injection attacks, didn’t require strong passwords be set by users, didn’t have any decent network intrusion detection systems in place, and committed other screw ups.
In proposed settlements with Residual Pumpkin [PDF] and PlanetArt [PDF], the FTC tasked both companies with setting up a “comprehensive information security program” that protects customers’ privacy and personal information. This includes, among other things, using multi-factor authentication, encrypting Social Security numbers, and not collecting or maintaining as much customer data.
The FTC also wants third-party groups to assess these new security programs and report back with an assessment of them.
Plus, the proposed settlement requires Residual Pumpkin to pay $500,000 to victims of the leak. It also requires PlanetArt to notify folks whose personal information was stolen and provide them with information about consumer protection. These settlement packages must go through a public comment period of 30 days before they are finalized by the regulator’s commissioners.
Biden signed cyberattack reporting bill
The FTC action comes as President Joe Biden signed into law a cyberattack reporting requirement for critical infrastructure owners and operators. The legislation requires these entities to report a major cybersecurity incident to Uncle Sam’s cybersecurity body CISA within 72 hours and within 24 hours of making a ransomware payment.
Additionally, a new rule proposed by the US Securities and Exchange Commission would force public companies to publicly disclose cyberattacks within four days, and would start mandating periodic reports about corporation’s cyber-risk management plans.
As the threat of cyberattacks from Russia in response to Western sanctions looms, supporters of these types of reporting requirements say they will make the US more cyber resilient.
In an email to The Register, Illumio CEO Andrew Rubin said it’s a “step in the right direction.”
“Although it may take time for us to reach national resilience, it’s important to remember that decisive action is a win and any action beats entropy,” Rubin said, noting that the attackers never stop.
“Right now, the best way to bolster national cyber resilience is to act,” he opined. “Federal agencies should shore up their mission-critical assets accordingly: back up data, practice incident response plans, and segment networks.” ®


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Top executives from Google, Microsoft, IBM, Oracle and Qualcomm gathered Thursday at the White House amid strained ties between President Donald Trump's administration and the tech industry and an ongoing trade war with China.
The White House described the Thursday meeting as a listening session to field ideas for securing American dominance in artificial intelligence, quantum computing, advanced manufacturing and faster wireless technology known as 5G.
Trump stopped by, but it was his daughter and adviser, Ivanka Trump, who took a more active role in coordinating the gathering. Attendees included Google CEO Sundar Pichai, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, IBM CEO Ginni Rometty, Oracle co-CEO Safra Catz and Qualcomm CEO Steven Mollenkopf.
Some of Trump's policies on trade and immigration have antagonized the tech industry.
The Trump administration's trade war with China has threatened to make products like iPhones more expensive. The Commerce Department is exploring new export restrictions that would target industries where China is hoping to get ahead, such as artificial intelligence and robotics.
And a recent U.S.-Chinese cease-fire over the tariff dispute was at risk of unraveling this week as Canadian authorities arrested an executive for Chinese phone-maker Huawei Technologies for possible extradition to the United States.
U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and chief economic adviser Larry Kudlow were expected at the Thursday summit, in part a reflection of the heightened concerns about trade.
But several attendees described the meeting as more focused on getting government and U.S. businesses working more closely on accelerating emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence. Shared concerns were also voiced about promoting ethical uses of AI.
Pichai said in a statement that it was a "productive and engaging" discussion.
The meeting also included former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, who has recently expressed interest in AI, and presidents of top engineering universities such as Carnegie Mellon and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
The meeting was the first of two high-profile Washington visits this month for Google's chief executive. Pichai is also scheduled to testify Tuesday at a congressional hearing on the company's business practices, just three months after aides put up an empty chair to symbolize his refusal to appear.
Republican lawmakers are expected to grill him on whether Google rigs its influential search engine to stifle conservative voices. Trump has asserted that Google's search engine favors media sources that, he claims, distribute "fake news."
Notably absent from Thursday's White House attendee list was Amazon CEO and Washington Post owner Jeff Bezos, a frequent Trump target. Also missing were Apple CEO Tim Cook and Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg.
White House senior officials downplayed those leaders' absence Thursday. They said the meeting is part of what will be an ongoing series of private sessions to gather expert input that will later be elevated to the president's attention.