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The UK is now the worst-performing advanced economy in the world, with growth slumping to just 0.2 per cent in the first three months of the year.
It means Britain is bottom of the G7 group of advanced economies, while Canada has surged to the top, with an expansion of 0.9 per cent in the period.
After Canada became the last G7 nation to report figures on Wednesday, the UK’s position at the bottom of the list was confirmed.
Now Britain is languishing alongside Italy, whose economy also grew at 0.2 per cent in the first quarter of the year.
Behind Canada at the top is Germany with 0.6 per cent growth, followed by Japan with 0.5 per cent, France on 0.4 per cent and the US at 0.3 per cent.
The UK economy had initially held up better than expected in the months since last June’s Brexit vote, as consumer spending remained strong.
However, signs of a deterioration have been gathering as Theresa May readies herself to begin divorce talks with fellow EU leaders.
Price increases are now outpacing wages according to the latest Office for National Statistics data. As a result, shoppers may soon have to rein in the spending that has kept the economy afloat, experts say.
Earlier this month the Bank of England downgraded its growth forecast for 2017 to 1.9 per cent.
By contrast, Canada’s economy is on course to register a 3.7 per cent expansion, according to the country's national statistics agency.
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Land of opportunity – London tops UK for life opportunities as consumer optimism grows
While the recent economic climate has resulted in many reports of consumer pessimism on life opportunities, new research from Mintel reveals that in 2014, this may not necessarily be the case for many consumers. Indeed, encouragingly, Mintel’s flagship report British Lifestyles reveals that over eight in ten (83%) consumers believe they have had at least as many (56%) or more (27%) opportunities in life compared with the average Brit.
London tops the regions for sentiment about life opportunities – more than one in three (34%) Londoners believe they have had more opportunities than average. By contrast, those Brits living in the South West and Wales and East and West Midlands are feeling the least fortunate – less than a quarter (23%) of consumers living there believe they have had more opportunities in life than the average Brit. This compares to 30% in the North West, 27% in the North and Scotland and 26% for the South East and East Anglia and Yorkshire and Humberside respectively. And it seems thenation’s men are feeling slightly more fortunate when it comes to opportunities – some 30% of British men claiming that they have had more opportunities than the average Brit compared to a quarter (24%) of women.
By age, Brits aged 65 and over believe they are the most fortunate in terms of opportunities (38%) along with those aged 16 to 24 (35%), whilst 45 to 54 year olds believe they are the least fortunate – just 17% of these Brits claim they have had more opportunities than the average Brit.
Ina Mitskavets, Senior Lifestyles Analyst at Mintel, said: “While London tops the tables for consumer optimism, the other regions of the UK are not that far behind. After recent years of financial pressures, where the nation has focussed on their finances and debts, Brits have emerged on the other side of the downturn with a new outlook on life. Interestingly, despite the widely-held view that life is tougher for today’s younger consumers, they report thehighest satisfaction with their finances and standard of living, a view similar to the oldest consumers. However, owing to limited finances, both young and old have learned how to live within their means, which has a knock-on effect on their expectations.”
Further highlighting the positives of the recent year, over one in five (21%) Brits claim that their relationship with their family has changed for the better – and around the same number (19%) believe that their career has improved. What is more, one in five (18%) say that both their life satisfaction and their outlook for the future have changed for the better. Today, half (47%) of all Brits think their standard of living is better than their parents was at their age, three in ten (30%) believe it is the same, and just a quarter (23%) think it is worse. By region, those living in Yorkshire and the Humberside (51%) are feeling the most satisfied about their life in comparison to their parents, compared to just 42% of Londoners.
As the recovery continues to gain force, Mintel’s research also finds that pent-up demand for many discretionary areas of spend is being released during 2014. Brits are increasingly taking more care of their physical and emotional wellbeing and when asked about goals which would definitely be achieved in 2014, the top 5 priorities were – 1. Spending more time with the family (43%), 2. Getting household finances in order (38%) 3. A healthier diet (37%) 4. Exercising more (37%) and 5. A better work life balance (32%). Brits were also asked to list goals they would like to achieve but may not achieve – these priorities included 1. A healthier work life balance (44%), 2. Travelling to new places or going on more holidays (43%), 3. Exercising more (40%), 4. A Healthier diet (39%) and 5. Learning a new skill/getting a new hobby 39%.
“Post recession paints a new outlook on life with a new set of priorities as British consumers take care of themselves and their families. During the recession, many Brits lost touch with a variety of aspects of their life while they focussed on the economy, this year British consumers are re-prioritising their spend. Indeed, while getting finances in order remains a key priority, consumers are now starting to prioritise their physical and emotional wellbeing, which spans taking care of their nutrition, doing more exercise and nurturing close relationships.” Ina continues.
Finally, while the charitable intent of the young is often underestimated – British Lifestyles finds young adults have become more charitable, with two-thirds (66%) of 16-24-year-olds planning to donate to charities or volunteer in 2014, compared with just under half of the over-55s (47%). The increasing ease of making donations via social media and mobile apps has likely contributed to the rise in charitable instinct amongst Millennials. Overall, almost a quarter of Brits (22%) say they will definitely give to charity or volunteer in 2014.
Of the 16 markets covered by Mintel’s British Lifestyles report, highlights include:
Food: It’s a wrap for the bread sector
In-home food sales saw slight growth in 2013, with inflation continuing to drive the market and add value growth. Last year we spent £76.6 billion on in-home food. Bread rolls (up 6% between 2012 and 2013), wraps (up 15.5% between 2012 and 2013) and pittas (up 6.5% between 2012 and 2013) have experienced strong sales, largely at the expense of pre-packed bread (up just 2.1% between 2012 and 2013). Meanwhile, various continental and blue cheeses (up 14.1% between 2012 and 2013) are performing well, while sales of cheddar cheese have been static (up just 0.2% year on year), indicating that a preference for stronger flavours is driving mainstream interest in these still small cheese types.
Holidays: Brits set to go far and away
While staycations have been in vogue in recent years, now consumers are feeling more confident about their financial situation they are set to spread their wings further afield. Demand for holidays is robust in the consciousness of the UK consumer and even those who are less affluent or struggling financially are very likely to have taken a holiday in 2013. UK consumers spent £37.1 billion on holidays in both the UK and abroad in 2013, surpassing the pre-crash peak of £36.4 billion in 2008.Spending overseas grew 8.4% in 2013, while expenditure in the UK fell 2.4% signalling the end of the staycation boom years.
For more info visit www.mintel.com

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Apple held its annual iPhone event this past week and as a result Kevin and I spent most of MobileTechRoundup show #444 talking about the three new iPhones and the Apple Watch Series 4.
- Three new iPhone models: Who's upgrading and to what?
- And a new Apple Watch 4, which one of us pre-ordered. Find out why.
- Have you heard of the e Foundation project?
- Pixelbook 2 leaks in several ads
- Chrome OS tablets are getting a nifty desktop mode when docked
Running time: 81 minutes
Listen here (MP3, 82MB)


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UK meals model exporter sees worldwide gross sales enhance after authorities assist
An organization that exports British foods and drinks has grown into new worldwide markets and has seen its gross sales in america enhance by round 150% after authorities assist helped it climate the commerce disruptions brought on by the worldwide pandemic.
The web grocery store British Nook Store, which has a warehouse within the Stover Buying and selling Property in Yate, South Gloucestershire, ships UK manufacturers together with Ambrosia cream and Warburtons crumpets to suppliers in addition to expatriates unable to seek out British merchandise overseas.
Final 12 months, restrictions on Covid-19 have been put in place in lots of the firm’s export markets, together with the Center East, sub-Saharan Africa and the Caribbean.
Amid the uncertainty, the corporate secured important help from the federal government’s export credit score company, UK Export Finance (UKEF), which works with the Division of Worldwide Commerce to offer assist to exporters.
The corporate was capable of safe insurance coverage from UKEF that protected its relationships with current prospects, together with a contract with an Indian provider value £ 200,000, in addition to recommendation that helped it win new ones. transactions within the Philippines and South Africa.
The corporate’s export turnover to america reached £ 4million in 2020, a 146% enhance from 2019, whereas exports grew 112% in France, its second market.
Mark Callaghan, Managing Director of the British Nook Store, stated: “We exist to attach folks and companies throughout the nation and the world with beloved British manufacturers, however Covid has been an sudden hurdle in that regard.
“With out the assistance of UKEF and the Ministry of Worldwide Commerce, we’d not have secured the customized of some firms in key markets, and this might have set us again significantly.
“Now we have been capable of commerce with firms in India, South Africa and the Philippines, giving them the perfect of the British.”
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The corporate reported that Branston Pickle, Bisto Sauce and Heinz Baked Beans have been amongst its high 5 exported merchandise to the world in 2020.
Cadbury Flake and Nestlé Equipment Kat chocolate bars have been additionally the Walkers crisps which have been the highest three gadgets shipped to america.
Exports Minister Graham Stuart MP stated: ‘It’s implausible to see the rising world urge for food for prime quality UK merchandise, with the British Nook Store offering a helpful service for individuals who can’t simply entry UK manufacturers belief that all of us love a lot.
“I’m delighted that now we have been capable of assist the corporate meet its big demand and enhance its presence world wide, because of our award-winning credit score bureau, UKEF.
“Commerce is crucial to the UK’s exit from the pandemic and our new free commerce agreements will profit companies by decreasing tariffs and pink tape to allow them to commerce extra simply and current extra of what the Britain has to supply. ”
The US is likely one of the UK’s largest buying and selling companions with round 16% of complete UK exports to the US within the first quarter of final 12 months and round 15% within the second quarter, in accordance with the figures from the Workplace for Nationwide Statistics (ONS).
It comes as ONS figures confirmed UK merchandise exports to the EU fell virtually 41% to £ 5.6bn in January on the finish of the Brexit transition interval.
The British Meals Firm was initially based as a small mail order enterprise working out of its storage in 1999. The corporate now exports over 10,000 meals manufacturers worldwide.


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CCP Games, creator of popular PC game “Eve Online,” has raised $30 million to continue developing virtual reality games.
“We believe VR will revolutionize not just video games, but the wider technology and media industry as a whole,” CCP CEO Hilmar Veigar Pétursson said. “We were there at the beginning, and this investment will give us strength to maintain our leading development efforts.”
The company, based in Reykjavik, Iceland, jumped on VR early and already has two games developing. “Eve Valkyrie” is expected to launch with the Oculus Rift in 2016 and also be on PlayStation VR while “Gunjack” is schedule for release on Samsung’s Gear VR which launched Nov. 20.
The $30 million funding was led by New Enterprise Associates with participation from Novator Partners, a private equity firm. The number all but confirms what many had been thinking from the drop: developing for VR will be a pricey business.
Throwing that much on the table for VR is a multi-tiered gamble. For one, aside from the 12-year-old “Eve Online,” CCP Games hasn’t had the greatest track record in releasing new games that click with a wide audience.
Second, although excitement for VR appears higher than other attempts, many gamers historically haven’t taken to playing games in a way that deviates from the controller. Yes, Nintendo’s Wii found great success with its motion controls, but even that has all but gone the way of the buffalo at this point with PlayStation having long abandoned the PlayStation Move and Microsoft allowing Xbox One’s to function without a mandatory Kinect plugged in.
General partner at NEA Harry Weller doesn’t share this concern.
“We’ve been admirers of CCP for quite some time,” Weller said in a statement. “Their legacy with “EVE Online” and early investments in VR have put them in a leadership position, and we want to partner with them to further build on the great platform they have already established.”


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The second annual IT Infrastructure Africa Summit will be taking place in Cape Town.
Hosted by international business-to-business conferencing company, Kinetic Events, the summit will focus on IT infrastructure challenges facing the African IT industry preventing enterprises within the continent from reaching international standards of first world nations.
Effective IT infrastructure is fast becoming more strategic to an enterprise to completely understand and successfully establish proficient business processes. Rising operational costs along with increasingly complex infrastructure models prevent enterprises from realising the true potential from their IT investments.
Reducing IT operational costs is a primary goal as current economic conditions make those cost savings even more important. Comprehensive configuration management can be time-consuming and a costly process as this becomes crucial with the need for asset visibility.
The strategic event will feature internationally renowned guest speakers, industry topics and discussion points appropriate to Africa’s IT industry, and prompt debate among fellow industry peers through innovative and interactive workshops, best practise case studies and expert-led keynote sessions and presentations.
With the recent launch of MxPix, a new photo sharing app on Mxit, viral photo sharing and filtering is exploding on the popular South African social network.
In its first two weeks MxPix, developed by Motribe, has attracted more than 200 000 users who have uploaded just over 70 000 photos. Users have also shown their appreciation for the photos uploaded by dishing out more than 130 000 likes.
In the first few days after the service launched Mark Griffioen, the Motribe COO, saw the need arise for a new way to share the photos. Griffieoen said that “After seeing the quality of images that users on MxPix were uploading and sharing, we decided to add the ‘share to Facebook’ feature to MxPix. MxPix users can now share their amazing photos with friends and family on Facebook.”
Facebook presented itself as an important part of sharing photos and giving users as much chance as possible to gain exposure for their photography.
Motribe then set out to allow users of the MxPix application on Mxit to share their photos on the Facebook Open Graph. To achieve this Motribe integrated the ability to link an existing Mxit account via Facebook Connect.
Working in the South African online group buying industry shows one that companies come and go in the digital world. And in a sense, that is fine: “Try out new things, see what works” is what Jim Collins tells us in his book Good to Great. However, with that culture of innovation comes a responsibility to clients, customers and the like.
Recently on www.groupbuying.co.za, it was announced that a group buying site called 247deals had closed, and “done a runner” – they had shut shop and were not paying out anything to anyone. Customers sit with worthless coupons, while small businesses have failed advertising campaigns and angry consumers at their doors. It has happened before – Dealio closed its doors in 2011 and were never seen again. Possibly some of the smaller group buying sites did the same thing to a lesser degree.
The site ITWeb reports in more detail on the event, having contacted some of the employees of 247deals.co.za personally. They blame conmen hitting on the site with fake deals and clearly, did not vet their deals well.
The 247deals site seemed good, with a proper layout, payment systems, lots of deals, mobile site and much more. Someone mentioned they even had an app. Someone else mentioned they had investment. Perhaps they spent too much money too quickly like Naspers’ Dealify. Perhaps they simply didn’t sell enough through all their channels. Whatever the case, things were not working out, and in that event, one has to close down.
Facebook has agreed to pay $10 million to settle a lawsuit filed by Facebook users over ‘sponsored stories’, that began last year.
The five users who brought the case against Facebook, felt that the social network was violating their rights to remain in control of their photographs, likes and names used as part of Facebook’s ‘sponsored stories’ that launched at the beginning of 2011.
The sponsored stories allows brands to use the photographs of users who ‘Liked’ their brand pages as part of their advertising campaigns on the site.
According to court documents the users accused the site of violating users’ rights to control the use of their own names, photos and likenesses and did not give users the ability to opt out of such involvement.
At the time that the suit was filed, a Facebook spokesman said that “We are reviewing the decision and continue to believe that the case is without merit.”
Well, a U.S. District Judge felt otherwise. Judge Lucy Koh said the plaintiffs had shown economic injury could occur through Facebook’s use of their names, photographs and likenesses leading to the settlement of $10 million last month that went public over the weekend.
Take a look at this infographic created by Modea, a digital media agency based in Virginia, USA.
The company took findings from a February comScore report and illustrated what the users of Pinterest are well, pinning and sharing, that includes mobile phones, alcohol consumption, holiday destinations, TV channels and car brands among others.
The infographic also gives some insight into who these users are. So, without any further ado, these are a few of Pinterest users’ favourite things.
You can view the infographic after the jump…
Finding an app for AppMonday relevant to South Africa is a nightmare. Yes, of course there’s FNB’s banking app, bidorbuy’s iPhone app and many other well-known apps due to the advertising done around them.
But many of the “apps” on the Android store are simply links to a mobi site. Ratings are often poor and downloads (especially for paid apps) rarely go above 100! In fact, some of them are 89MB in size and others have never been downloaded. Even so, I went off to find out how to navigate Cape Town. And got lost.
Of all the map apps for Cape Town on your cellphone, perhaps something like Google Maps is still the best. Most of the apps have barely been used and cost a few Rands to download. Some of them offer a simple map with points of interest (POI) on them, others give directions, but without a voice behind them, and if you want a voice you need to pay to download that.
The best basic app I could find was one by Liu Zhihong (from ViewTravel.com), who has seemingly written an app solution for city maps and white-labelled it to almost every major city globally. With GPS on, I could find places and navigate just as well, if not better, than other standard web-based solutions. It works well offline as well, and you can save your routes to recall the next morning when you make the trip.
Now that the dust has settled since the WWDC keynote, you might be hankering to get the latest Apple Macbook Air or Pro machine. How about the Macbook Pro with Retina display? Good news – Digicape has announced their pricing for the latest Macbooks. Here is a quick rundown of the new range, as well as a few things you should look out for. Our recommendations are in bold. Obviously power users will want to choose the biggest and best they can afford. If your job relies on the speed of rendering things, obviously you can ignore our recommendation. We are merely pointing out the models we feel are better value.
Let’s start with the Macbook Air with Ivy Bridge processor, still available in 11 and 13 inch sizes. Even though it might look the same as before, it now has the latest low voltage Intel processors, USB 3 support, an upgraded camera, and a better Thunderbolt chipset, which should theoretically allow you to connect more Thunderbolt devices. There is also a newer “MagSagfe 2″ plug. For the first time you can now also configure the Macbook Air with 8GB RAM, but that is a special order which will take a few weeks to reach SA. Standard config prices are as follows: (more…)
FOSS Patents has reported that a patent infringement case between Apple and Motorola has been recently revived by US judge Richard Posner who had previously dismissed the case last week.
The case was dismissed on a tentative bases based on both parties’ failure to provide a successful argument that supported the rewarding of damages or could prove injury. Judge Posner also said at the time an injunction, against either company would have been “contrary to the public interest”.
Posner has now agreed to hear the case of Apple Inc. against Motorola Mobility, allowing their attorneys to plead their case on an injunction before he makes a final decision although he has not yet made it clear as to why he changed his original decision to throw out the case.


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WILMINGTON, NC (WECT) – Wilmington Boat Show attendees don’t have to look too hard for proof that the boating lifestyle has become extremely popular during the pandemic, particularly in southeastern North Carolina.
More and more experienced boaters and first-time buyers are entering the market.
“With our presence in Hampstead – all the new neighborhoods are coming in – we’ve seen a lot of new boaters,” said a boat technician from Carolina Outboard, a Hampstead-based boat dealership attending the show. “We still have regular customers, but there are a lot of new boaters in the community. “
Demand for boats and marine products has exploded during the pandemic. Not only is high demand weighing on supply, but supply chain issues are causing delays for virtually everything.
“If you order an engine from me today, you might see it next Thanksgiving,” said Dave Ittner of Yamaha Motor Corporation, who is the title sponsor of the event. “We are sold. The boat companies are sold. They are building boats now and taking orders for 2023. “
Show founder Jacqui McGuinness, president of JBM & Associates, has been producing boat shows for 20 years and said interest and demand during the pandemic was unlike anything she had ever seen.
“People are going through the pandemic and during the pandemic what did they want to do? They wanted to connect with their family and friends and what better way to do that than on the water? McGuinness said. “So people were crying out loud to buy boats.”
For the past few years, the show has used the Port City Marina. However, with more people buying boats there are, of course, more people who need boat slips.
“Due to the incredible demand for boating – they’re full,” McGuinness said of the marina. “They’re so full they have a waiting list to get in, which is amazing because when we started with them they were empty and they had just opened.”
After what experts are calling an all-time sales year, the boat show is expected to attract newbies, veterans and enthusiasts.
Cory Morrison grew up in the area and is looking to buy his first boat soon.
“It’s definitely something that is in the works. We’re now looking at a few different boats, but it’s good to get a feel for everything and see what’s out there, ”he said as he walked through the boats on display at the show.
The boat show takes place all weekend inside and outside the Wilmington Convention Center with over 60 participating vendors. In addition, there will be fishing seminars, food trucks, live music and more.
The show will take place from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturday and from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sunday.
Tickets are available online.
Copyright 2021 WECT. All rights reserved.


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Humanoids has announced that Darick Robertson, Eric Peterson, and Joe Aubrey are teaming for Space Bastards, a different take on postal delivery in the future.
In Space Bastards, violence is everywhere. Corporations are exploiting the weak and disenfranchised. And while America has taken to the cosmos, scientific advancements and technology have outpaced civilization as we know it. Even getting mail between planets is damn near impossible. Enter the intergalactic postal service, a deadly organization with a brutal, mercenary business model. Whoever delivers the package gets the cash. And every delivery can be made by any means necessary.
“Humanoids publishes mind blowing sci-fi epics like The Incal, Metabarons and Barbarella,” said Humanoids Publisher Mark Waid in a press release. “Those works are like enjoying a fine wine at dinner. Space Bastards is like drinking moonshine on a week-long bender you’ll never forget, because one day you woke up with some weird tattoos, a scar from a fight you don’t even remember, and a new best friend who smells weird.”
In addition to the regular covers, Humanoids has tapped Dan Panoisan for a one-in-ten black light variant cover.
Space Bastards is 44-pages of story and will arrive in comic book stores of January 13, 2020.


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Placing Bets on DOCSIS 3.1
Which cable equipment vendors will win the DOCSIS 3.1 certification race?
With CableLabs now preparing to test and approve the first products under the new DOCSIS gigabit spec and such major MSOs as Comcast Corp. (Nasdaq: CMCSA, CMCSK) and Liberty Global Inc. (Nasdaq: LBTY) gearing up to roll out D3.1 en masse, that's still anybody's guess. But one fairly new entrant, Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd. , is bidding to join Arris Group Inc. (Nasdaq: ARRS), Cisco Systems Inc. (Nasdaq: CSCO), Casa Systems Inc. , Technicolor (Euronext Paris: TCH; NYSE: TCH) and the other usual suspects as major players in the swiftly emerging market for D3.1 products. (See Clock Starts on DOCSIS 3.1.)
Huawei has captured scant North American MSO business for its broadband products so far, mainly because of U.S. and Canadian government security concerns about the company. It is trying to remedy that situation by positioning itself as a CableLabs preferred vendor for the new DOCSIS spec. Indeed, even in the face of stiff competition, the big Chinese equipment supplier is hoping to become one of the main players in the upcoming D3.1 certification waves, which could start to unfold as early as later this month. (See CEO Chat With Eric Xu, Huawei .)
So far, Huawei has made its biggest push on the Converged Cable Access Platform (CCAP) front, a rapidly developing market now controlled by Arris, Casa and Cisco. CCAP is designed for two important functions. One is to support the greater bandwidth demands of the DOCSIS 3.1 spec. The other is to combine the separate broadband and video functions performed by CMTSs (cable modem termination systems) and QAMs (quadrature amplitude modulators) on a common (converged) platform that can handle data and video flexibly. This represents another, closely related opportunity for newer players to crack the cable equipment market, as Casa has already shown with its initial MSO CCAP contract gains.
Hoping to follow in Casa's footsteps, Huawei anchored two demos of its CCAP equipment and D3.1's vast potential at the DOCSIS 3.1 technology demonstrations that CableLabs staged at its Louisville, Colo., headquarters last month. The first showed off the use of orthogonal frequency-division multiple access (OFDMA) technology to deliver upstream data signals, while the second focused on the use of highly efficient 16K QAM technology for DOCSIS 3.1 signals. Both OFDMA and 16K QAM are components for making the D3.1 spec more spectrally efficient than its predecessors. (See DOCSIS 3.1 Is Right on Schedule.)
The DOCSIS 3.1 demonstration day came after the D3.1 "dry run" program that CableLabs quietly launched in June. In those dry runs, the cable industry R & D group enabled vendors to test D3.1 products informally and prepare them for submission to the more formal certification waves that will start later this fall. CableLabs has also conducted six equipment interops, or "plugfests," for its new DOCSIS spec over the past year, with one more interop wave still slated to come.
With the tech demonstrations largely behind them, Huawei officials hope to have their distributed CCAP (D-CCAP) platform play a big role in the testing of new DOCSIS 3.1 modems in the upcoming equipment certification waves. They also hope to gain early CableLabs certification of their own D3.1 cable modems, as well as qualification of their D-CCAP product, which shifts many of the traditional CMTS and edge QAM (EQAM) processing functions from the cable headend to the access network. But, of course, they are far from alone as dozens of other vendors are jousting for similar attention.
All of this vendor maneuvering comes as U.S. and Canadian cable operators gear up to enter the Gigabit Era and compete against the likes of Google Fiber Inc. , AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T), CenturyLink Inc. (NYSE: CTL) and the other major gigabit providers. So, with the big gigabit rollouts by MSOs like Comcast and Cox Communications Inc. already getting underway, it's no wonder that equipment suppliers are placing their bets on DOCSIS 3.1 right now.
— Alan Breznick, Cable/Video Practice Leader, Light Reading
This blog is sponsored by Huawei.


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Last month, the disposable vaping company sent letters to trading standards in major UK cities outlining the issue, following a number of raids.
Disposable vapes must have no more than 20mg of nicotine to be legally sold in the UK.
Geek Bar chief executive Allen Young said: “It’s easy to blame the manufacturer, but these products are finding their way into the UK through customs and being sold in retail outlets across the country.
“There needs to be more collaboration and enforcement involving all parties, including trading standards, the vaping industry, retailer trade associations and the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency.”
Read more illicit trade news and articles


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A 48-year-old Lithuanian man by the name of ‘Evaldas Rimasauskas’ was arrest last week by the U.S. Department of Justice for defrauding two renowned U.S. technology companies out of $100 million through sophisticated whaling attacks.
Whaling is a social engineering technique used by cyber criminals to trick finance controllers at large organizations into transferring money into a fraudulent bank account.
Acting U.S. Attorney Joon Kim explained:
“From half a world away, Evaldas Rimasauskas allegedly targeted multinational internet companies and tricked their agents and employees into wiring over $100 million to overseas bank accounts under his control. This case should serve as a wake-up call to all companies – even the most sophisticated – that they too can be victims of phishing attacks by cybercriminals."
Rimasauskas targeted the two companies in specific between 2013 and 2015, one being a ‘multi-national technology company’ and the other a ‘multi-national online social media company’.
The fraudulent bank accounts belonged to companies that Rimasauskas had set up with the same name as an unnamed ‘Asian-based computer hardware manufacturer’ that the duped companies were involved in legitimate business with.
Rimasauskas’s phishing emails looked to be sent from the real Asian hardware manufacturer, claiming that the victim company owed the manufacturer X amount of money for unpaid invoices. The funds that were paid by the victim companies were put into the accounts of the company he’d set up himself and were then transferred to various different banks across the world, including Hong Kong, Slovakia, Hungary, and more.
Phishing and Whaling remain increasingly popular attack methods amongst cyber criminals. These financially driven criminals are far more successful than many understand. That’s why it’s vitally important that organizations implement a two-pronged approach to security. First, get layered defenses in place. Then back it up with real-time host intrusion detection through File Integrity Monitoring. This ensures that if an attacker successfully breaches your systems, you will at least know about it in real-time and be able to respond immediately.
Read this article on The Register


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- Indonesia: textile workers' victory
- No Sweat discusses Iraq workers' solidarity
- Women's TUC fringe meeting
- No Sweat steering group
- Play Fair Olympics campaign
Indonesia: textile workers' victory
A significant breakthrough has been made by workers at PT Kahatex Sweaters in Bandung, Indonesia. 537 workers were illegally locked out in May 2003 for demanding they be paid the minimum wage. The company has agreed to re-employ all of the locked-out workers.
Two hundred and ten workers have said they wish to be re-employed and the company has agreed work will restart by 1 March. The remaining 287 locked-out workers have until the end of this month to say they also wish to return. Those who do will be employed no later than 19 April.
The workers will be returning with the status of full-time, permanent employees, a status becoming increasingly rare in Indonesia and around the world, as manufacturers shift to using short-term contract employees, who have few benefits and no job security. This is a great victory!
No Sweat discusses Iraq workers' solidarity
Polish-British activist Ewa Jasiewicz who has just returned to the UK after spending over nine months in Iraq working with Voices US and the Occupation Watch centre is speaking at a number of No Sweat meetings.
London: 7.30, Tuesday 9 March
at The Dogstar, Brixton (corner of Coldharbour Lane and Atlantic Road)
Brighton: 7.30, Thursday 18 March
at the Cowley Club, London Roa
Women's TUC fringe meeting
"A workers' response to globalisation". With Katrina Hoogensdam and Cathy Nugent.
5.30pm, Wednesday 10 March, at the Eastbourne conference centre.
No Sweat steering group
Meets at 12pm, Saturday 13 March, at ULU, Malet Street, Euston, London. All activists welcome.
Play Fair Olympics campaign
The TUC and Oxfam are launching the Play Fair campaign on 4 March.
Play Fair's focus is on the second rung of the sportswear brands (the smaller brands, behind the big three, Nike, Reebok and Adidas), like Puma and Ellesse, to highlight poor work conditions in the sportswear industry.
The campaign is being run across Europe in the run-up to the Greece Olympics. The TUC in Britain is targetting Puma, because it it the biggest selling of this group of brands in Britain.
They are lobbying Puma's management to sign an international framework agreement with international garment workers' unions.


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ANN ARBOR — The Pure Michigan campaign featuring Ann Arbor as a destination for business growth has launched.
The four-minute video, a result of a collaborative effort between Ann Arbor Spark, the Ann Arbor Area Convention and Visitors Bureau, the Michigan Economic Development Corp, and the Ypsilanti Area CVB, features Ann Arbor business leaders talking about the benefits of locating a company in the region. It is prominently displayed on the Pure Michigan Web site as well as the sites of its tourism and travel partners.READ MORE: Michigan Matters: Theaters & Politics
“The launch of this video propels Ann Arbor Spark’s efforts to market our region as a destination where innovative businesses thrive,” said Donna Doleman, Ann Arbor Spark’s vice president for marketing, communications and talent. “By showcasing global brands and startups alike, juxtaposed with scenes from downtown and our natural spaces, the Pure Michigan video tells a compelling story of ‘Why Ann Arbor.’ We are thrilled to have this marketing asset as a tool in attracting businesses to consider the Ann Arbor region as a destination for location and expansion.”
The promotion features Ann Arbor Spark president and CEO Paul Krutko, Patrick Doyle of Domino’s Pizza, Sean Heiney of Barracuda Networks, Michael Miller of Google, Rich Sheridan of Menlo Innovations, Jan Garfinkle of Arboretum Ventures, and Mark Sutter of Terumo Cardiovascular Systems. All of the CEOs featured cited access to qualified talent in the region as a key factor in the success of their business.READ MORE: CDC: New Listeria Outbreak Tied To 23 Illnesses, 1 Death
The Pure Michigan campaign is a $1 million collaboration designed to highlight “quality of place” throughout the Ann Arbor region. The pilot program is marketing Washtenaw County, nationally, by leveraging key tourism and economic development assets.
In addition to this business attraction video, the campaign includes national tourism television advertising, articles on the Pure Michigan Web site, and a press tour of the region for journalists from around the country.
Ann Arbor Spark, a non-profit organization, collaborates with business, academic, government, and community investor partners including the University of Michigan, Eastern Michigan University, Washtenaw Community College, Washtenaw County, Washtenaw County Michigan Works, the city of Ann Arbor, Bank of Ann Arbor and the Michigan Economic Development Corp.MORE NEWS: Red Wings Hire Lightning Assistant Derek Lalonde As Coach
For more information, call (734) 761-9317 or visit www.AnnArborUSA.org.


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FULDA, Germany—When Peter Uth and his brother-in-law Winfried Schutz founded Uth Machinery GmbH in Fulda in 1985, they never dreamed they'd become experts in providing solutions for fine-mesh straining and precise gear pump extrusion.
But that's where the company stands 36 years after its founding, providing machinery for "gentle and clean processing of rubber and silicone," as well as adding new capabilities that widen its appeal to potential customers.
Uth's offerings can be used for serial production, system solutions or custom-made machinery for its clients. Applications are in such sectors as tire manufacturing, automotive parts/other mechanical rubber goods, silicone compounding, threads for wire and cable goods, and adhesives and sealants.
"We are the one with the widest range and with the most successful installed solutions," said Peter Uth, now the firm's managing director and main shareholder (Schutz now owns rubber machinery maker Deguma-Schutz GmbH).
"There are other people in the market that may have one system. There are people in the market who offer a solution that is mostly from screw extruder makers.
"Over the last 25 years, there is a big list of people who have started and also have stopped offering something."
No rubber in sight
Back in 1985, that was hardly the case. Uth Machinery was a two-man operation, developing automation equipment. But there was a small German town not far from Fulda that was a bit like Ohio in its rubber heyday, according to Uth. A lot of tire makers had operations there, including Goodyear, Dunlop and Pirelli.
And the company got a project in the rubber industry to develop automation for mixing and molding equipment. "Until then, we didn't have much knowledge about the rubber industry," the firm's managing director said. "But after doing two or three projects, we got dubbed as 'experts.' "
Uth Machinery got more orders in the industry, and started rebuilding and refurbishing older equipment to have modern controls and systems. Then they branched out into specialized equipment that wasn't available in the open market.
Right from the early days, there often were issues with impurities contaminating rubber compounds. Uth said the firm's first contact with these issues was with Ford, which was strong on quality. The auto maker found that while rubber averaged roughly 7-8 percent of the weight of a car, the components (including tires) were responsible for more than half of quality issues.
That led to big discussions on how to improve quality in rubber processing. One variable was the process, where consistency and control were necessary.
Years later, Uth Machinery had a customer making automotive weatherstripping profiles that won orders for the new BMW series in 1994. But the weatherstrip producer had about 30 percent scrap because it couldn't meet new specifications for the surface of the rubber profile. Uth said the rubber compound needed to be filtered through a fine mesh screen, but that wasn't possible with the extruders available at the time.
"Because it was the final compound—and the final rubber compound is very temperature sensitive—there was no industrial equipment maker available to filter that rubber compound with such fine-mesh screens," he said.
Uth Machinery tried unsuccessfully to find a gear pump in the market to build up high pressure without building up high temperatures. "We were in a position to either stop the idea or look deeper and make a gear pump to process the final rubber compound," Uth said.
The firm decided to look into developing a gear pump that was suitable for rubber compounds. Uth said it took about a year to find a solution, and its first commercial gear pump and fine-mesh strainer for rubber was launched at the 1995 K-Show.
In the beginning, he said the biggest demand was for automotive weatherstripping. Other players tried to encroach on Uth Machinery's new discovery. One machinery firm with more than 100 years in the industry tried to develop a solution once it realized a gear pump could solve the problem. But between the idea stage and implementing it into a 24-hour industrial operation, the competitor couldn't make it work.
In trying to develop a solution, Uth said it "didn't invent the wheel," but it was able to industrialize its fine-mesh strainer. The first machines were small, with about 250 kilograms of throughput per hour, enough to put in an extrusion line to perform in-line straining for the rubber profile industry.
One major step forward was the implementation of a fine-mesh straining process into a high-volume mixing operation. Uth Machinery took on the challenge from an automotive parts supplier that wanted throughput of 3.5 metric tons an hour. After more than a year of development and engineering work, the firm installed the system in February 2003, and that machine still is running to this day, Uth said.


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Ben Butcher, chairman and CEO of STAG Industrial, Inc. (NYSE: STAG), participated in a video interview in conjunction with Nareit’s REITweek: 2021 Investor Conference.
Earlier this year, STAG celebrated 10 years as a public company. Butcher said the REIT’s strategy will continue to focus on pricing inefficiency in the industrial market and taking advantage of that inefficiency to buy accretively.
STAG expects to target $800 million to $1.2 billion in acquisitions this year, mostly made up of individual purchases across about 60 primary and secondary markets.
“This is as strong a demand market for industrial real estate as we’ve ever seen,” with multiple bidders, Butcher said. As a result, STAG expects its hit rate—the number of deals it buys compared with the number it underwrites—to be significantly lower this year.
Butcher also said he expects recent supply chain disruptions will make companies rethink just-in-time inventories and will be an additional demand driver.


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McDonald's Just Started Selling Wagyu Burgers in Australia
In the United States, McDonald’s has been undertaking a major shift from frozen to fresh beef— a change we happen to think has made the burgers significantly better. But in Australia, the world’s largest burger chain seems to have gone above and beyond: McDonald’s Australia today unveiled a new burger made with one of the world’s most coveted types of beef: wagyu.
Made with 100 percent, Australian-bred Wagyu beef, the new burger doesn’t come cheap: $10.75 in Australian dollars or about $8.30 in USD. (Just to clarify, though Wagyu beef originated in Japan, Wagyu cows can be raised anywhere; however, Wagyu beef shouldn’t be confused with its subcategories like Kobe beef that must come from a specific region.) At that price, nearly twice the A$5.70 of a Big Mac, customers get more than just beef with flashy pedigree: the new menu item also features a special sauce, crispy bacon strips, caramelized onion, tomato, lettuce and a slice of Coon Cheese, all served on a new gourmet bun. It's only available for a limited time, "while supplies last."
The burger brand says it’s the first time it’s ever offered Wagyu beef in any of its products. “The launch of this burger is further testament to our commitment to use local suppliers wherever possible,” Robert Sexton, director of supply chain at McDonald’s Australia, said according to news.com.au. “We estimate that while this burger is on our menu, we’ll purchase more than 280 metric tonnes of Wagyu beef from Queensland.”
However, judging by the initial response from its patrons, McDonald’s may want to rethink its strategy if the chain does it again. News.com.au pointed out how plenty of people turned to the fast food giant’s Facebook page to vent about the price.
“Go to a proper burger place or cafe in Melb and pay $15 with chips and salad,” one social media user suggested.
Meanwhile, those who did shell out for the fancy beef burger weren’t necessarily impressed. “Patty cooked to death sometime last week and presented with unmelted cheese, tomato, bacon, a crapton of wilted lettuce and a smear of nondescript sauce on a dry oversized bun,” a member of the Facebook group Fatties Burger Appreciation Society posted to the group. Well, sure, if you want to get specific about things.


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Imagine asking today how the Internet affects business. It’s an absurd question, like asking how electricity changed business. Asking the same about sustainability, it turns out, is equally absurd. Like the Internet, sustainability spurs innovation in everything, from how you see your business model to whether you see your employees (why not let them work at home more?). Here are our favorite ways companies today are greening up–and saving money and making better widgets in the process:-
- At $100 a ton, feeding a landfill is pricey. But in the past two years, General Mills has turned its solid waste into profits. Take its oat hulls, a Cheerios by-product. The company used to pay to have them hauled off, but realized they could be burned as fuel. Now customers compete to buy the stuff. In 2006, General Mills recycled 86% of its solid waste, earning more from that than it spent on disposal.
- Trains were already the cleanest way to move massive amounts of freight long distances, but General Electric raised the game with its Evolution locomotives, diesel engines launched in 2005 that cut fuel consumption by 5% and emissions by 40% compared to locomotives built just a year earlier. Up next, a triumph of sheer coolness: a GE hybrid diesel-electric locomotive that, just like your Prius, captures energy from braking and will improve mileage another 10%. According to GE, the energy dissipated in braking a 207-ton locomotive during the course of a year is enough to power 160 homes for the same period.
- First we counted calories, then carbs. Now it’s carbon, as retailers introduce product labels that encourage customers to weigh their eco-sins. The most ambitious: British grocery giant Tesco, which has a program to label all 70,000 of its products with carbon breakdowns.
- Taking the packaging revolution a step further, the liquid-laundry-detergent industry, goaded by Wal-Mart, has cut the size of its bottles by 50% or more by concentrating the liquid to two and sometimes three degrees of magnitude. Unilever’s triple-concentrated All Small & Mighty detergent has saved 1.3 million gallons of diesel fuel, 10 million pounds of plastic resin, and 80 million square feet of cardboard since 2005. This fall, Procter & Gamble is converting its entire collection of liquids to double concentration.
- Timberland awards its employees who buy hybrids not only with a primo parking spot but also with $3,000 toward the car’s purchase. Bank of America has a similar program. Google is one-upping both with a $5,000 incentive.
- The corporate restroom isn’t fully green without Dyson’s new Airblade hand dryer, which does its job in half the time (12 seconds) and with half the energy (1,400 watts) of conventional dryers. It costs four times as much up front, but the energy savings can pay you back in three years. AMC Theatres is testing the units now.
- Unlike most big-box retailers that are debuting discrete green product lines, Staples has eco-modified a whopping 3,000 of its mainstream private-label products to include at least 30% post-consumer waste. From sticky notes to shipping boxes, nearly all of the new offerings do not have a nonrecycled alternative in the product line. The end goal: to pressure the entire industry to follow suit.
- Another kind of network is sprouting in an old lamp factory in Chicago as Baum Development unveils the Green Exchange, a 250,000-square-foot retail and office space reserved exclusively for green companies. Billed as the country’s first “green business community,” the development’s concept is that proximity will foster the exchange of ideas. Set to open in Fall 2008, the building is already 40% leased, with tenants including an electric-car dealer, energy consultants, and even a green pet-supply store.
- On the subject of hiring: Companies everywhere are suddenly clamoring to snag a vice president of sustainability. Or a director of environmental affairs. Someone whose job is to understand the environmental impact of the company and look for ways to turn it inside out. (Why aren’t you using your empty roof to generate solar power, anyway?) Ten years ago, the job essentially didn’t exist. But in the last two years, it has become common across a startling variety of industries. Starbucks has one. Ford too. Also Airbus, Albertson’s, Alcoa, Alaska Airlines, and Anheuser-Busch. Dow Chemical and DuPont have even given the position C-level heft–chief sustainability officer.
- At its Manhattan headquarters, JPMorgan Chase is starting renovations at the top–on the roof, 53 stories up, where the bank is building what is essentially a giant pan to collect rainwater. The water will be funneled into a 55,000-gallon tank in the basement, filtered, and then piped up for toilet flushing. Coupled with new low-flush urinals and toilets, this system will cut the building’s water use–and cost–by 30%.
Of these we would like to add one: Ban styrofoam from fabrication altogether!


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FOX Business combed through 2019 financial statements from five publicly traded social media companies to find out how much each has made in revenue and how they compare to one another financially.
2019 Total Revenue: $1,142,761,000
Pinterest crossed the billion-dollar milestone in 2019 and made more than $1.14 billion that year, according to its full-year 2019 results. The company aims to grow its annual revenue to $1.52 billion for 2020, which Pinterest noted in its report.
2019 Total Revenue: $1,715,534,000 (unaudited)
Snapchat made more than $1.7 billion in revenue during 2019, according to its unaudited 2019 results. The company noted that it increased its daily active users by 17 percent year-over-year to a reported 218 million.
2019 Total Net Revenue: $1,770,000,000 (unaudited)
2019 Total Revenue: $3,460,000,000
Twitter made $3.46 billion in revenue during 2019, which was a 14 percent increase year-over-year, according to its 2019 results. On a constant currency basis, the social media site noted that its revenue grew 15 percent year-over-year.
2019 Total Revenue: $70,697,000,000
Facebook made more than $70.69 billion in revenue during 2019, which includes the money the social media site made from advertising and “other” business operations, according to the company’s 2019 results. It is the richest social media site in the world.
|FB||META PLATFORMS INC.||300.15||-8.56||-2.77%|


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Reebok's final year with NFL could be brand's best
With the NFL lockout slowing sales over the spring and summer, Reebok was looking at its 10th and final year as the NFL’s exclusive on-field jersey and cap rights holder with little enthusiasm.
The last year of any licensing deal is mixed at best, and with the likelihood of the NFL missing games increasing as the lockout dragged on, it looked like the last year with the NFL would be Reebok’s worst. Now, like so many NFL partners, licensing executives at the Adidas subsidiary have a whole new take. Their sign-off with the NFL before Nike and New Era take over for the next five years could be one of the company’s best.
Those involved when Reebok signed its current deal recall that Nike was so convinced it was the sole bidder it was insisting on any number of branding imperatives, including replacing the league’s venerable Wilson pigskin with a swoosh-i-fied football.
“It took a lot of convincing on the part of Paul Fireman,” recalled former NFL licensing head Mark Holtzman, now executive director of non-baseball marketing for the New York Yankees. “In the end, we convinced him we were changing the model and Reebok would be the beneficiary — and they were. Their guarantee turned out to be 25 percent of their NFL business.”
When Reebok took over the jersey and cap exclusive, the entire industry was over-licensed. Product was oversaturated at retail, and many large licensees were — or were about to be — bankrupt or sold. Accordingly, price points and product innovations were suffering.
“Every league was operating on a ‘Some is good, so more is better’ philosophy,” said Tom Shine, Reebok senior vice president, who sold the remnants of his bankrupt Logo Athletic licensed brand to form the start of Reebok’s NFL licensed business. “We came in as one of four or five licensees with jersey rights, so our mission was to clean things up, and we did.’’
Holtzman, himself a former Reebok executive, added, “They segmented well and the exclusive rights enabled them to spend marketing dollars against it.’’
Over its decade as the NFL’s largest apparel licensee, Reebok gets kudos for cleaning up distribution, restoring price integrity and making an NFL jersey at various price points a must-have for an even wider range of NFL fans.
“If you look at photos of NFL stadiums 10 years ago and now, you can see that together we got a lot more fans to feel like wearing a jersey to a game was part of bringing home a victory,’’ said NFL consumer products chief Leo Kane.
Reebok increased jersey sales every year of the deal, according to Baxter, while lessening the overall dependence on jerseys. Kenny Gamble, vice president and general manager of the sports licensed division at Reebok, said the ratio of jersey sales to other Reebok NFL apparel went from 70/30 at the beginning of the deal to its current 55/45. “We worked hard to add consistency, even while adding jerseys at different price point and things like pink jerseys for women,’’ he said.
Accordingly, during Reebok’s tenure, sales of NFL licensed apparel reached new highs. All that growth occurred while the outerwear business, the big jackets and heavy parkas that had buoyed licensed sales and carried higher price points, vanished from licensed sports retailers. “It’s all about layering now,” Baxter said. “Quilted outerwear is pretty much extinct.’’
Reebok’s product legacy includes the Belichick hoodie, as well as the Sharktooth and the Paintbrush sideline caps.
On the product side, those involved recalled smash sales hits like Bill Belichick’s hoodie, with the Patriots coach choosing to wear the unconventional oversized Reebok sweatshirt and cut off the sleeves. While he was often mocked for the less-than-polished fashion look, because of the team’s on-field success and Belichick’s consistent TV appearances during the Reebok decade, the hoodie turned into a pop-culture discussion piece.
Another hit was a name-number T-shirt, but that may have cannibalized jersey sales.
An endless variety of caps, including caps released around the NFL draft, capitalized on the widespread appeal of rookies to
One of Reebok’s highlights was meeting heavy fan demand for Brett Favre’s New York Jets jersey in 2008.
“The coaching business changed, and we transformed from the Marv Levys to guys like Jon Gruden,’’ said Eddie White, vice president of team properties at Reebok and Adidas for 19 years. “We had cooler guys wearing cooler stuff. They were better runway models.”
A highlight for Baxter was the unprecedented demand created when Brett Favre was traded to the New York Jets during the summer of 2008, creating an all-time demand for hundreds of thousands of jerseys.
With the NFL as a cornerstone of a licensing business of $500 million, the question of what’s next for Adidas/Reebok licensing is an intriguing one, especially with the NBA, Adidas’ most important American license, experiencing it own labor pains.
Baxter is looking for eventual growth from the NBA, along with the NHL, MLS and the collegiate business, as well as institutional team business for high schools.
“We won’t offset volume by any means in year one or two post-NFL, but there’s still a significant business here, with a nice growth trajectory,” Baxter said. “All things being equal, I don’t know anyone who doesn’t want the NFL as a business partner, but we still have a very positive outlook here.”


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If current growth figures and industry estimates are anything to go by, almost every Indian will own a mobile phone by the year 2022, and more than half of them will use a smartphone by 2025 – not just in metro cities, but also in Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities. The mobile phone is becoming the primary screen for multiple purposes – gaming, news, entertainment, shopping, navigation, banking – for an increasing number of users.
Indians, on an average, use as many as 24 apps on their phones daily , far higher than the global average. Social media apps are the most popular category, followed by mobile gaming, OTT entertainment, e-commerce, wearable tech, and on-demand apps. India’s app economy is maturing fast and should be on the radar for every app developer and content creator. It is essential for them to gauge the depths and dynamics of consumers and tap into them.
Millennials comprise a large percentage of India’s consumer base. At a strength of 440 million, they are the largest demographic group in the country. A recent study suggested that millennials are the chief wage-earners in India, with a 47% share in the working age population. Like elsewhere in the world, they are digitally connected individuals, who are driving the growth of many consumer-facing business segments, including mobile technologies and apps. And they are better placed than anyone else to understand the needs, expectations and behaviors of their fellow millennial consumers.
The current and future batches of content creators and app developers would do well to make a note of some observed and foreseeable trends, for these could drive the evolution of mobile technology and content in the years ahead.
- Gaming apps are growing strongly, especially in non-urban markets.
Presently, there are more than 250 million mobile gamers in India – a majority of who are from non-metro areas – and the number is expected to exceed 368 million by 2022. More than half the audience for gaming apps is above the age of 24 years. It has also been observed that gaming is highly popular amongst women; they engage more with gaming apps than any other app category.
- With the success of OTT apps, smartphone is now the preferred screen for video-viewing.
The number of people who consume video content on their smartphone is expected to grow from 103.5 million in the year 2018 to 225 million in 2022. Expectedly, it’s the millennials and the centennials who are driving this growth. A recent survey suggested that 89 percent of the total number of over-the-top (OTT) video content platform users in India are under 35 years of age.
- Smartphones will drive the continued growth of e-commerce.
India’s e-commerce market is growing at an annual rate of 51 percent, the fastest in the world. It is estimated that by the year 2021, almost two-thirds of India’s population will be internet users and one in every three purchases will be made using a mobile phone. Rural consumers will use the mobile phone as much as, or even more than, their urban counterparts to make purchases.
- The next wave of mobile internet users will come from Tier-2 and Tier-3 markets, with great demand for regional language interfaces and content.
The next 100-200 million users who come online will be very different from current users. Most of them will from smaller cities and towns and from across socio-economic strata – consumers who are slowly realizing that a smartphone can enable them to as good as carry the world in their pocket, but who might not be well-versed enough in English to make the most of the opportunities that mobile technologies offer. Over the next five years, nine out of every ten new internet users in India are likely to prefer regional languages to access the Internet. It only makes sense to have local language support and the Indic keyboard in smartphones to serve this audience.
- Mobile phones will increasingly meld into the world of IoT.
The Internet of Things (IoT) is finding application in a large and increasing number of industrial and home applications. The smart cities, the smart industries and the smart lifestyles that are being envisioned for the future will be based, to large extent on IoT. We are more likely to access IoT apps on the smartphone than any other device, for the sheer convenience it affords. IoT on smartphones will be an area of endless possibilities for technology providers and app developers.
- Machine Learning, AI, Cloud, and chatbots will be closely integrated with mobile app development.
Used together, artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) enable an extremely wide range of services and device functions such as data analysis, language and voice translation, geolocation, traffic prediction, online product recommendations, fraud detection, and many more.
Cloud integration in mobile apps enables low-cost hosting, quick loading, and improved business operations. It also solves many security-related concerns.
Chatbots are becoming integral to mobile app experiences. By seamlessly working with augmented reality and virtual reality, chatbots are helping businesses and brands improve customer relationships. Chatbots will continue to gain relevance among banks, online stores, travel portals, and government institutes for providing great customer service.
- Apps are helping people access necessary basic services and facilities
Governments and public services are introducing apps that enable the public to access region-specific or essential services on their phone. Almost every state, for instance, has its own electricity bill payment app. Education apps are gaining in popularity, with an increasing number of people using them for upskilling. Apps that enable users to get small loans without approaching banks, or apps that help them get instant loan approvals are also doing very well. There are large number of underserved or unbanked people in India; apps such as the above help in bringing them into the economic fold.
In a country as geographically and culturally diverse as ours, people have widely varying needs and expectations. It’s important to keep the demographics and the psychographics of the intended audience in mind when designing apps for them. Apps targeted at India’s millennials, for instance, must satisfy their need to be heard, for theirs is a generation that’s acutely sensitive to social changes, influences, and moods. They are also the fountain of new ideas and paradigms that will shape the future. Most of them are driven by, or seek, a sense of purpose in their life. Apps or content that aid them in this journey of self-discovery and fulfilment become an integral part of their life. App developers and content creators must find ways to this possible in a manner that’s informative and entertaining. The challenges of Indian society and industry are as indigenous as its people, and Digital India offers ample opportunities to its millennials to address these with indigenous content and apps that are as personalized as the smartphone you own and the language you speak!The author is Cofounder & CEO at Indus OS.


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Minecraft: Story Mode announced
Today telltale games announced Minecraft: Story Mode. Minecraft: Story Mode is in development at telltale games in close collaboration with Mojang - founder of Minecraft. It will be an episodical game full of choices that will change the stories outcome, the developer promised. Minecraft: Story Mode is scheduled for release in 2016 for all con..
Extended Uncharted 4: A Thief's End gameplay video released
Written by Emanuel Berger Wed, 01/07/2015 21:56 GMT
Naughty Dog released the full gameplay video 'Sam Pursuit Gameplay' of their Uncharted 4: A Thief's End behind-closed-door E3 2015 showcasing two weeks ago. This time - available for the public - it includes the second part of the original vehicle chase gameplay video earlier.
Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 5 debut gameplay trailer released
Written by Emanuel Berger Wed, 01/07/2015 21:55 GMT
Activision, one of the developers behind the widely recognized and loved Tony Hawk's videogame franchise, has recently released the debut gameplay trailer for the next installment in the franchise called Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 5.
A new update is now available for DiRT Rally. The update 'Tarmac Terrors' adds twelve new rally stages based at Baumholder in Germany, new cars and more (read the full list of updates below). DiRT Rally is currently in early access phase on Steam, only available for the PC at this moment. The game will constantly be updated throughout the summ..
TV commercial for F1 2015 showcases new gameplay footage
Written by Emanuel Berger Sat, 27/06/2015 15:39 GMT
A new TV commercial for the upcoming, official licensed F1 2015 video game from Codemasters, has recently launched. It shows various gameplay scenes as well as celebration moments afterwards, which are new to the franchise for this years rendition. F1 2015 releases July 10th for the PC, the PlayStation 4 and the Xbox One console.
The developers Giant Squid just released a eight-minute video showing some first gameplay footage of their debut title called ABZU. The game is scheduled for release sometime in 2016 and will be available for the PC as well as the PlayStation 4 console.
No Man's Sky gets simultaneous release for PC and PlayStation 4
Written by Emanuel Berger Mon, 22/06/2015 18:30 GMT
Hello Games, the developers behind the very ambitious game No Man's Sky just recently announced that the game will - unlike previous information - release for both the PC platform and the PlayStation 4 console at the same time.
This week developer Naughty Dog released new gameplay material for the next and final chapter in the Uncharted series, Uncharted 4: A Thief's End. This all-new vehicle chase gameplay introduces the player to all new gameplay mechanics, like actual drivable vehicles, for a first time in the Uncharted franchise' history. The game is scheduled fo..
Originally announced at E3 2009 for the PlayStation 3, The Last Guardian has gone through 'development hell' - as stated by its independent creator Fumito Ueda as well as head of Sony's game development Shuhei Yoshida. This week the long awaited re-announcement, this time for the PlayStation 4 console, finally happened, showing new gameplay fo..
Horizon Zero Dawn, Guerrilla Games new IP announced
Written by Emanuel Berger Sat, 20/06/2015 17:11 GMT
Earlier this week Guerrilla Games - well known for the widely popular Killzone franchise - announced their new IP, Horizon Zero Dawn. According to the developer the game has been in development for 4 and a half years and is set for release sometime in 2016, exclusively for the PlayStation 4.


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Access creates new website for Clear Channel Direct UK
The aim is to promote the service to potential customers in the regions. One of the new features is a poster search and mapping function, which enables visitors to find advertising sites in their location and then see them on Google Street View.
“The site needs to quickly and effectively communicate the power of out-of-home advertising and the range of opportunities available to businesses and organisations in their local areas,” explained ,” said Mark Hope, digital director for Access.
“The focus is on lead generation and Clear Channel UK is already using the site as an effective sales tool that will provide a long-term platform for growth.”
The website has been integrated with the company’s customer relationship management software, Salesforce, and includes a live chat facility and tracking tools to measure engagement and trace sales.
“Access demonstrated a clear understanding of our sector, backed up with a commercially driven approach. The new website provides the ideal touchstone for new and existing customers and will be especially welcomed at the local level where we find our customers are eager to take advantage of our experience and expertise. Access have certainly delivered for us and we look forward to an exciting year,” added Simon Edwards, director of direct sales for Clear Channel UK.


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Tyler's population breaks 100,000 barrier
POSTED: Monday, July 14, 2014 - 6:50pm
UPDATED: Monday, July 14, 2014 - 7:06pm
(KETK) - Tyler Tx — It's official. Tyler has grown.
The U.S. census says the population is more than 100,000. Local shop owners are excited to see the city grow.
Pam Gabriel has lived in Tyler her whole life. She remembers thinking about the size of her city at a young age.
"I remember as a child thinking, wow, will we ever get to 100,000?" Gabriel said.
Now, population means more to her than just a big number. Today, she is the owner of a shop called Sweet Gourmet.
"It was just something Tyler needed more of...a specialty store where you could get things that were hard to find...all these things in the big cities...People were driving to Dallas to get them, and there's no reason for that to happen," Gabriel said.
Tyler's population has gone up by almost 3.5% since 2010, and Gabriel watched it grow.
"I've watched when the mall came in...you know when the French Quarter was built..since it progressed out south." Gabriel said
It continues to progress. More people may mean more money for the city.
Some retailers will only open stores in cities witha population of more than 100,000 people. This means Tyler could see new businesses opening in the area.
"It will make us attractive to a variety of other companies and other projects that would not consider us unless we were over that
100,000 mark," said Tyler Chamber of Commerce President, Tom Mullins.
The downside to more people?
"Communities grow. That generates other problems to the area...traffic congestion or increased prices. There's a lot of investment in real estate, housing and that type of thing," said Mullins.
Gabriel said she wasn't concerned.
"Let them come...we've got plenty of room," said Gabriel.


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The Intel i9-12900K will be the flagship of the next generation Alder Lake-S. 16 cores and hybrid design (8 high-performance and 8 economical cores) It should provide deposits with huge capacity and at the same time high flexibility. The results of the tests that this system may have participated in have been published on Weibo. But it was definitely very hot, and the processor’s power consumption reached 250 watts.
Lenovo employee login. ?? Source: WCCFTech
The author of the entry is an employee of the Chinese branch of Lenovo. according to service WCCFTech It is a desktop layout manager and product for games. The RTX 3090 graphics card played a major role in their tests, but the processor caught the attention of Internet users. Judging from the screenshots, it has 16 centers / 24 threads (this is indicated by the number of HWinfo reads and the location of the task manager window), So it will most likely be a Core i9-12900K.
Test results screen posted by a Lenovo employee. ?? Source: Weibo
In tests for about an hour The system temperature has increased up to 93°C. The average power consumption was 248.8 W (according to Intel, in the case of TDP 125 W, the power consumption of the PL2 stage should not exceed 250 W). It must be admitted that it is a lot and it is difficult to imagine that it could be a different processor from the 12th generation processor. But before we start calling out the “stoves ???????????????????????? I should point out that a lot of data is not clear. Don’t know the hours?? Could the processor be overclocked? And we don’t know anything about cooling it, either.
So it is not worth prejudging anything. It will be possible to form an opinion about the Alder Lake-S generation systems after they go on sale (and the first reviews), and it will not be until the end of this year. Thread Director will benefit from the flexibility of new processors, but May require running Windows 11which will be distributed in computers at the same time.
We invite you to our YouTube channel. GRYOnline TechnologyIt is dedicated to issues related to new technologies. There you will find many tips on problems with computers, consoles, smartphones and player equipment.
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Blurred lines: The convergence of broadcast and digital inside the NFL
Changes in the way viewers are consuming sports will have a profound affect on how sports bodies deliver their matches, potentially bypassing broadcasters, according to Shannon Rutherford, the NFL’s Director of Digital Media Video Operations. “The market is changing, not only from a technology perspective, but also from an audience perspective,” he told the recent Streaming Forum in London. Today, viewers “are all using their own devices and are likely all watching different videos.”
The NFL has been reaching out to international markets, and played three games in London in 2015, one of which was only available over the top (via Yahoo! — in a deal reported to have been worth $20 million). It hopes to repeat that this year, and add a further game in Mexico.
Although the NFL’s broadcast rights (with Fox, CBS and NBC, said to be worth more than $3 billion per year) continue until 2021/2022, he believes that “digital rights will be crucial to our long-term success.”
In the US, the number of hours spent watching TV each day is gradually declining, as time spent viewing digital (mobile/online) video is increasing. Although digital video hours are still about a quarter of TV’s share, it is a noticeable trend. People are also now consuming almost half their media on some sort of mobile device or PC.
The US pay TV market has remained at about 119m households since 2010, while the number of online video viewers has grown by 30%, and is now more than 190m per month. Younger audiences, in particular, have gone digital. “That is going to have a lot of pressure, and effect, on the opportunity for ad revenue, making digital more and more attractive to reach key demographics,” said Rutherford.
NFL Now: Elemental encoders push feeds to CDN
To make the most of this opportunity, the NFL is already building a range of online programming, where rights allow it. These include: NFL Game Pass, NFL Mobile, NFL Now, original programming, and social media.
The NFL Game Pass app allows anyone to watch any game live, in the game window, internationally. It has a simple user interface, with all the plays and data. NFL Mobile is a similar app for the US domestic market.
To deliver these services, at scale, the NFL’s feed acquisition uses three encoding facilities across the US, giving it full redundancy, for almost 100% uptime. It uses Elemental encoders to push the feeds directly to the content delivery network, and uses token authentication to ensure that only its authorised apps can talk to the service, so if the link gets put on Reddit it will just appear as if it’s broken.
Although for online, it uses a lot of broadcast-style equipment and workflows, such as highlights editors cutting clips from the live stream. “The NFL is very similar to a news organisation, in that our highlights are perishable,” he explained. “People want to see what happened that day, so the faster we can get out those highlights, we maximise the opportunity for revenue” — which means dynamic ad insertion.
All the ads are mid-roll for its live video, “for fear that if you get a pre-roll, that a viewer lands in to part of a commercial break, instead of a live game,” which would be a poor user experience. The operators take their cue from the broadcast game director, and then take the ads from whichever broadcaster has the rights.
It uses Adobe’s Primetime player, “because when we looked at how to deliver ad insertion for mid rolls at scale, there’s really two ways. You can do it server side or client side,” and Primetime allows client side, which is important because the server side, middleware-based systems might not cope with the scale needed. “And we can never have the monetisation opportunity bringing down the fan experience.” This way, “there is no fear that if that middleware stack goes down, it’s going to bring the stream down with it. The player handles all of the stitching,” which has been very successful and simple for the operators to use.
He sees NFL Now as a first response to the question: “How do we deliver compelling content to a new audience, and where do those lines between broadcast and digital blur?” From a production perspective, it uses broadcast infrastructure, “but we’re producing an entirely different product. It is a lean-back television experience that you can also lean in to.” Delivering the content and making it more interactive is the challenge, requiring editors to rank content, to create playlists that the viewer chooses from, mixing live programming, advertising, and features.
Measuring success: time to first byte
The NFL digital offering is becoming a success, certainly by the measurements that Rutherford outlined it had to meet. Its first priority is 100% uptime during game windows, to meet its service level agreements and to ensure it doesn’t affect its brand reputation by delivering blank screens.
It also needs smooth delivery — under 1% buffering — and it needs to be fast. “Your users need to get your content quickly. They don’t want to wait. So, time to first byte should be less than one second,” he said.
“Success means money,” and if the NFL is to become a player in the digital space, “revenue has to start with a B [$1billion plus],” and all of its ad breaks need to be filled.
Rutherford also wants it to offer “a superior product to TV, offering 360º video, virtual reality, personalisation, original content, and integration with social media. This is an interactive medium, and as this technology advances I think there is going to be a wealth of opportunity” to create this superior product. Ultimately, “success is that our product will become a daily habit for our fans,” he added.
The services are available on a wide range of platforms, from iOS, Android and Xbox to PlayStation, Roku and Windows — “I think it’s on pretty much everything.” It is also doing an increasing amount of original programming, having doubled the number of regular shows it offers (from four to eight) between 2014 and 2015.


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European companies aren't using credit cards much for payments, which may give Wells Fargo a chance to establish a presence as a corporate issuer.
"Travel payments are the predominant usage of commercial credit cards in Europe; there hasn't been traction there yet for procurement or payables," says Mary Mazzochi, senior vice president and manager of the commerce card product suite at Wells Fargo, which launched a corporate credit card in Europe last week.
Wells Fargo plans to win corporate payments share in Europe by offering a single venue for a variety of categories such as travel, entertainment, and procurement. It allows users to add new categories and plans to add simplified tools for managing travel and entertainment expense.
"It's all defined by the merchant category code. We have the platform for the corporates to add new payment types when they are ready," Mazzochi says, adding that the bank is starting with travel because many companies already use cards to pay for that expense.
Corporate payment habits differ from one country to another, Mazzochi says. In the U.K., businesses mostly use checks or BACS, the U.K.'s version of ACH; while in Germany, non-travel corporate payments are largely electronic transfers, she says.
"The easiest way for us to lead with a company is to take about travel," she says. "We can build a relationship with them and get a sense of where the company is going, and we can add other payment types down the road."
Wells Fargo also plans to introduce single accounts to manage corporate travel payments. Payment companies in the U.S. are migrating from the lodge cardthe single credit card account used for all staff travel expensesto a system that uses a separate one-time-use account number for each payment. Wells Fargo works with MasterCard, which offers a single-account travel payments product designed to give companies improved visibility into travel expenses.
"European companies still mostly use lodge accounts, but we see an opportunity to bring a single account system to Europe," Mazzochi says, noting that lodge accounts can cause reconciliation challenges.
There is a market for corporate cards in Europe, but there are challenges for credit card issuers, according to Gareth Lodge, a senior analyst at Celent, who says the market doesn't have a lot of "low hanging fruit."
One challenge is overcoming the anti-debt culture, he says.
"[Credit] cards aren't as widespread in Europe as in the U.S.," Lodge says. "And in certain European countries, being in debt is culturally something that is frowned upon. As a result, debit card usage in some European countries outweighs credit cards 100 to one."
Very large companies with international operations will be a better target for credit cards, as well as companies in the U.K., Sweden, Spain and France, where debt is considered more acceptable, Lodge says.
The interbank payment systems in Europe are more sophisticated and more widely adopted than in the U.S. Ninety-eight percent of the U.K. population has been paid by direct deposit for the last 20 years for example, Lodge says. "Therefore, it's natural but also easier for corporates to make ACH payments, because they are already set up to generate those payment files."


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Their hardwon democracy for a president who can provide
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MANILA, Philippines - Could a content partnership between Globe Telecom and ABS-CBN Corp. be in the offing?
Globe Telecom Inc. president Ernest Cu said ABS-CBN could be a possible partner for its plan to offer content for its mobile customers.
Asked if ABS-CBN could be an investment for its plan to offer "new age content", Cu said: "All content owners are."
The investment could also be in the form of a partnership, he said.
The telco's plan comes amid rival Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co.'s intention to buy GMA Network Inc.
Asked if Globe would be making a similar move, Cu replied, "absolutely." However, no concrete plans have been made.
"We continue to explore but nothing concrete. We are open to it. Just like any other telco entity, we need to cover and make sure we have content relevant to the public," he said.
"What is attractive for us would be what the consuming public will use and they use mobile phones to browse a five-minute clip rather than watch a one-hour show using a handset."
Cu noted that "mobile surf snacking" is best viewed on mobile phones and tablets, which have smaller screens.
"We are into mobile kind of geared content. We are interested in that sort of thing. The new age content may be relevant versus the traditional Filipino content you see out there today. That's not our business. We are not here for the big screen," he added.
ABS-CBNnews.com is the news website of ABS-CBN Corp.


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London-based mining company Savannah Resources said on Monday it was in talks with several major European industrial groups, including carmakers, as it gears up to start commercial lithium production in northern Portugal in 2021.
Portugal is Europe’s biggest lithium producer, but its miners sell almost exclusively to the ceramics industry and are only now preparing to produce the higher-grade lithium that is used in electric cars and to power electronic appliances.
Savannah already mines feldspar, quartz and pegmatites in Barroso, a mountainous region in the north of Portugal.
In a statement sent to Reuters, Savannah said commercial production of lithium concentrate was scheduled to start in 2021, with the first full year of production in 2022 “to coincide with the anticipated increase in demand for lithium for European electric vehicle production”.
“Savannah is in offtake and investment discussions with a number of major European industrial groups including car manufacturers and with a series of other international groups,” the company said.
Interest in lithium mining has been spurred by expected growth in sales of electric vehicles, which are cheaper to run and more environmentally friendly than other cars.
But Portugal will face fierce global competition, and warnings of a bubble and oversupply have pushed down lithium prices.
The government is finalising plans for an international licensing tender for lithium exploration to start this year, despite objections from environmental groups.
Last month, hundreds of people protested in Lisbon against lithium mining. A petition signed by thousands said the Barroso project would cause irreversible damage, from soil pollution to destruction of the natural habitat of various endangered species.
Barroso was declared a world agricultural heritage region last year by the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization.
Portugal’s biggest environmental NGO, Quercus, opposes any large-scale lithium exploration, warning that it would jeopardise the country’s carbon-neutrality goals.
Mina do Barroso project in northern Portugal. (Image courtesy of Savannah Resources)
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The economic collapse pretty much wiped out retirement accounts, investment vehicles and savings accounts. When households accumulated too much, consumed too much stuff and lost their jobs and homes, millions of Americans had nothing to rely on except for more credit and perhaps even bankruptcies.
Since then, households are starting to improve their personal financial situation. However, one area that has yet to be improved upon is emergency savings, a rainy day fund that can be used for unforeseen events, job losses and medical emergencies.
A new survey from Bankrate.com discovered that more than one-quarter (26 percent) of Americans have zero emergency savings. Furthermore, 67 percent have less than the suggested six months’ worth of savings and 50 percent have saved less than three months’ in expenses.
Respondents also noted that they were more confident in their debt levels than in previous times. Nearly one-third (30 percent) of respondents who earned at least $75,000 per year were more comfortable in their debt now than a year ago, compared to 17 percent who earn less than $30,000 a year.
The national savings rate has been an important issue for quite some time, even prior to the recession because the figure barely reached double digits when the economy was high from cheap money and easy credit. However, this can be attributed to the Federal Reserve’s monetary policy of artificially low interest rates.
Financial experts also cite low wage growth, household expenses and student loan debt are other important factors. Of course, the consumers’ appetite for buying stuff they don’t need, such as lattes, iPads and expensive cable television subscription packages, can be considerable elements.
“Americans continue to show a stunning lack of process in accumulating sufficient emergency savings. Even among the highest-income households—those with annual income of $75,000 or above—fewer than half [46 percent] currently have a six-month savings cushion,” said said Greg McBride, Bankrate.com’s chief financial analyst, in a statement. “Many of those under age 30 have the benefit of lower expenses due to roommates, living with their parents or being students. Ages 30 through 49 are high-spending years when expenses often rise faster than emergency savings can keep up.”
Industry professionals often recommend to consumers that they should maintain at least six months worth of expenses in the event of a job loss, medical emergency or some other unforeseen event that could hinder a household’s income level.
“If you don’t have emergency savings, what do you do when you have an unplanned expense or the money runs out before the bills do?” McBride added. “You’re stuck. That means for some people (turning to) high-cost borrowing, check cashing, a payday lender.”
Here are some simple steps to take to start building your savings:
– Cut back on expenses (trips to a restaurant, smartphone data packages, gym membership)
– Establish a monthly personal budget to track your spending and income
– Launch an automatic savings plan and start off with $25 per month and then increase it each month
– Pay down your debt by selling stuff you don’t use, obtaining a second job or asking for a raise
– Start a 52-week plan: save $1 the first week, $2 the second week, $3 the third week, etc.


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One of the big logistical challenges that industries face is emissions. Leading up to the year 2050, companies like automotive manufacturers have a head start in reaching their net-zero goals, compared to the shipping industry. However, shipping goods is one of the most efficient methods of transporting goods internationally.
The shipping industry accounts for around 90% of global transportation, with man-made emissions as low as 3%. Nevertheless, that 3% will need to be managed for the industry to be declared carbon-neutral, and Statkraft’s next project goes a long way towards this. The company, along with its subsidiary, Skagerak Energi, has been awarded a contract with highly positive implications for global trade.
StatKraft Energy Solutions
StatKraft provides energy solutions in industries beyond shipping, including onshore renewable energy sources and smart electric EV charging systems. "Statkraft is Europe's largest producer of renewable power, and the production of renewable hydrogen and hydrogen-based fuels is in line with our strategic ambitions. This contract is an important milestone in our efforts to establish Statkraft as a leading hydrogen producer in Norway and Sweden and fits well with the series of other initiatives we have on hydrogen for sea and land transport," says Birgitte Ringstad Vartdal, Executive Vice President at Statkraft.
A New Form Of Cargo Ship
The project was contracted by the German cement company, Heidelberg Cement, and Felleskjøpet, an agricultural co-operative, through the Green Shipping Programme and involves the supply of an 88-Metre cargo vessel. The Norwegian state claims to be the “world’s first hydrogen-powered cargo ship.”
The vessel will be used for shipping grain and gravel across Norway. The vessel will depart from the east of the country with a shipment of grain to be delivered to the west, followed by a delivery of gravel on the return trip. Norwegian Ship Design is also involved in the project and believes the vessel will be in operation from 2024.
"This is fully in line with our new growth strategy and an important milestone for us. We are proud to be chosen as the supplier together with Statkraft," says Jens Bjørn, Staff Chief Executive Officer at Skagerak Energi.
A World’s First?
Although the term ‘world’s first’ may apply to the scale of this project - the length of the ship being 88-metres, the market for hydrogen ships has already received a lot of input. In April, a project called Flagships also received the go-ahead to implement a similar initiative, saying it would launch “the world’s first commercial cargo transport vessel operating on hydrogen.” This vessel is set to deploy for operation in France, carrying out operations along the River Seine. Other small hydrogen-powered vessels have been in operation for some time.
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The annual Industrial Design Excellence Awards is sponsored by BusinessWeek and juried by the Industrial Designers Society of America. The winners this year used design to push traditional brands into new markets, extend well-known brands into new products, and invent something totally new, cool, and useful.
With money tight, companies used design research to develop not only products but also their branding, packaging, and marketing. The impact of this approach goes far beyond the objects themselves.
Indeed, the biggest winners this year used design -- and top design firms -- to create powerful, emotional consumer experiences. "We have moved from designing iconic objects to designing iconic experiences," says Sohrab Vossoughi, founder of ZIBA Design Inc., which snagged six awards this year, second only to powerhouse IDEO's eight.