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BENDIGO beauty salons have reopened after being closed for almost 10 weeks because of COVID-19.
Beauty and personal care services were among the many businesses that were allowed to reopen from 11.59pm on May 31.
Wax Gallery owner Rachel Mahon said all of her staff and clients were thrilled at the return.
"It has been really exciting," she said. "We have been preparing really well and we were very ready to reopen again."
KIN Skin Makeup Body owner Amy Drummond said the reopening was earlier than expected.
"It definitely caught me by surprise," she said. "The government only gave us a week to reopen and they only sent out the guidelines on the night before opening.
"The situation has been so fluid from the beginning. I can understand things are changing so quickly and that's why the regulations were last minute. But it doesn't make it easy."
The two Bendigo salons have introduced a range of additional measures on top of their already stringent hygiene protocols.
"Considering the service and treatments we provide, obviously social distancing can be challenging," Mrs Mahon said.
"But we are making sure there are no clients waiting in the reception area. Everyone either needs to be on time or wait in their cars.
"We have also be sanitising the salon and wearing face masks and gloves. We're doing everything we can and taking every precaution."
Mrs Drummond said her salon was also doing temperature checks as an added measure.
"For us, it's business as usual but with the regulations in place," she said. "We're trying to do most of the things behind the scenes because obviously we want it to feel normal for clients."
Mrs Mahon said the past few months have been challenging as a small business owner.
"It was hard," she said. "But I'm so grateful and blessed to have a wonderful community around us and to have a team that is so supportive. The business is still going because of them."
Have you signed up to the Bendigo Advertiser's daily newsletter and breaking news emails? You can register below and make sure you are up to date with everything that's happening in central Victoria.

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Canada, EU and Germany Signal Compliance With President Trump Trade Demands. They are bending the knee.
Germany bends the knee:
Germany, without consulting with Emmanuel from France, just unilaterally announced that the EU is willing to drop all trade tariffs against U.S. auto manufacturers as part of their strategy to fend-off steel, aluminum and crushing auto tariffs.
BERLIN—Germany’s leading auto makers have thrown their support behind the abolition of all import tariffs for cars between the European Union and the U.S. in an effort to find a peaceful solution to the brewing trade war.
The U.S. ambassador to Germany, Richard Grenell, brought the proposal for a broader industry trade pact to the Trump administration on Wednesday, according to people familiar with the situation.
That would mean scrapping the EU’s 10% tax on auto imports from the U.S. and other countries and the 2.5% duty on auto imports in the U.S. As a prerequisite, the Europeans want President Donald Trump’s threat of imposing a 25% border tax on European auto imports off the table.
[…] A French official said Paris was unaware of the proposal, and it wasn’t discussed during a recent summit between French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Angela Merkel in Meseberg, Germany. (Read more)
The EU bends the knee:
The European Union is ready to engage with the United States to solve a trade row triggered by Washington’s decision to impose metal impose tariffs, E.U. Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmstrom said on Thursday.
“We are always open to talk with the U.S. The whole EU is based on the idea that we talk,” she told a seminar. She described the tariffs as “illegal” as they contravened World Trade Organization (WTO) rules. She also said the WTO needs rules to address China’s subsidies and dumping of its goods in markets.
And savor this:
The EU is now leaving Canada naked to the trade monster that is the indefatigable Trump.
Thanks to Trudeau and Freeland, and their childish stunt after the G7, they have their country standing naked and alone, as the reality of national economic interests has their former anti-Trump trade allies headed for the exits to save their industries. Winning. I haven't had enough of this yet.


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TVs are now becoming the second screen where the primary first screen is the mobile phone in the consumer’s hand. This phenomenon was proved when Networks aired their season finales just last month.
Among the live ratings, all networks witnessed an average of 30% – 40% fall in viewership from last year as more people turned to their mobile devices in search of entertainment.
Only 6 out of 61 returning network shows saw an uptick in viewship of their finales compared to last year according to Nielsen numbers. Every where else it was a catastrophe.
The highest fall belonged to “NCIS”- which lost 43.6% of its audience compared to last year. Followed by “Quantico” which was ABC’s biggest loser, losing some 43.3% versus last year. At CBS, “Big Bang Theory” faced a fall of 19.2%, it wasn’t the network’s biggest loser though.
In a report out June 2, Barclays media analyst Kannan Venkateshwar noted that the average person watched 2.5 hours on a smartphone in the fourth quarter — up from 1.3 hours a year earlier. That compared with 4.9 hours on TV.
For viewers in the demo, the smartphone was more popular than TV, something it was even referred to as a “considerable shift” in consumption patterns.


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Electronics Production |
Foxconn workers threaten strike action in Brazil
About 2,500 workers at Foxconn Jundiaí, Brazil, may go on strike from May 3, according to a local news report.
Newspaper Jornal de Jundiai reports that workers at the plant will strike if issues surrounding severe water shortages, food, and transportation of employees are not resolved. Foxconn declined to comment on the report. In a statement the United Steelworkers of Jundiaí and Region said workers decided to give 10 days (from the Monday) for the company to resolve the issues raised in a meeting on Monday. According to the report by Jornal de Jundiai, a spokesman from the union said that lack of water as well as poor quality food was an issue for workers. As the number of employees at the plant grows, workers also complain that the infrastructure for transport has remained the same size, causing overcrowding in buses.


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The a2 Milk Company
Double-Digit Sales and Profit Growth
The a2 Milk Company Ltd (ASX:A2M) recently announced its half-year results, showcasing impressive double-digit sales and profit growth. As a result, the A2 Milk share price is expected to be closely monitored by investors.
The company, known for its high-quality infant formula, has experienced significant success in the market. With a focus on producing milk that contains only the A2 protein, the a2 Milk Company has captured the attention of health-conscious consumers.
Investors are eager to see how the company's performance will continue to evolve. With its commitment to providing premium products and a strong brand presence, the a2 Milk Company is well-positioned for future growth.


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Twitter is taking on new meaning as Black Friday becomes a perfect opportunity for businesses to unload inventory and feed the shoppers who have a craving to "make a deal".
Shopping combat is almost upon us. Don your gear if you are in business to sell products on Black Friday. Oddly enough, Black Friday for many retail stores will begin at midnight on Thanksgiving. The strategy is to catch the shoppers who are having a high on Tryptophan (from Turkey overload), with low or low sleep in order to feed their frenzy while in a weakened state. Lose the logic, enable the hoarding gene and open the doors in the middle of the night. Thanksgiving will become a race through dinner, a nap and preparation with shopping armor to survive the stampede.
There may not be a better time to reduce inventory than on Black Friday when the perception is "It has a red tag so buy it". Go into the attic or store room and dust off the boxes. Taking advantage of people who will stand in the cold lined up for hours to get that deal is expected.
Last year proved had Black Friday a profitable adventure for some. The keyword is "some". Here is an infographic which shows how much money was spent and the average per shopper.
The new twist includes Twitter. If you have a retail location, you may want to connect with @BlackFriday on Twitter. They are eager to share the deals on Twitter.
Don't forget @BlackFridayAds on Twitter.
If shopping on Black Friday is how you do your Christmas shopping and you decide to maximize Twitter, your eyes may be glued to the computer screen. A website that aggregates all the Twitter feeds onto one page is on the Washington Post. This is an example of how Twitter has moved beyond a communication tool and into a broadcast medium.
If you are a business owner and know there are Twitter feeds specifically focused on offering shoppers an opportunity to part with their money, will Twitter become more of a priority during the holiday season?
If you are a shopper, you are already salivating at the idea of using the Twitter tools to find the next best deal.


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Vole stopped providing copies of Windows 7 Professional and Windows 8.1 licences to OEMs which means that you should not be able to find one in the shops.
Two years ago, Microsoft stopped selling Windows 7 Home Basic, Windows 7 Home Premium, and Windows 7 Ultimate licenses to OEMs. With Windows 7 Professional and Windows 8.1 out of the picture Windows 10 is the only remaining option. Unless you want Linux.
The Windows Lifecycle chart for sales doesn’t have an end date for Windows 10, since that operating system doesn’t have a successor.
Mainstream Support for Windows 7 ended on January 13, 2015 while Mainstream Support for Windows 8.1 will end on January 9, 2018. In theory Windows 10 will still get it until October 13, 2020.
The Windows 10 Anniversary Update, released in August 2016 and a new version, the Windows 10 Creators Update, is slated to arrive in “early 2017”.


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Arizona’s growing tech industry, our border with Mexico, and proximity to West Coast ports make international trade a vitally important part of our state’s economy. In fact, Arizona exported $19.4 billion worth of goods in 2013, constituting more than 7 percent of Arizona’s GDP.
While this is great news for our state, there is much more we can do to capitalize on untapped economic potential and promote free trade. By removing trade barriers and increasing exports, we can create new businesses, develop better, high-paying jobs, and keep costs low for Arizona families.
One way to achieve this is to support international trade agreements, which have undoubtedly had a profound impact on the growth of Arizona’s economy. Since the North American Free Trade Agreement went into effect in 1994, Arizona’s exports to Canada and Mexico have increased by $5.7 billion or 236 percent. International trade supports more than one-in-five jobs in Arizona, which pay roughly 18 percent higher salaries. Imports to the state have also lowered the cost of raw materials, allowing Arizona companies to remain competitive and reducing costs for Arizona consumers. Simply put – free trade is good for Arizona, and it is good for America.
But despite concerted efforts by state and local officials to promote greater economic exchange with Mexico, Arizona has lagged behind the rest of the nation in embracing foreign trade. Last year, Arizona had the fourth-slowest growth rate among the top five exporting states to Mexico, and its growth rate is even lower when compared to states trading in other parts of the world.
Arizona cannot afford to neglect the vast opportunities that exist in opening trade with other countries that lie far from across the border.
That is why it is so important that Congress pass the Trade Promotion Authority (TPA), which would give U.S. trade negotiators fast-track negotiating authority to make trade agreements that create U.S. jobs, eliminate trade barriers, and set rules to level the playing field for U.S. companies.
For example, the TPA would help the United States to quickly advance the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TTP) and the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP), which would provide Arizona with an opportunity to open new markets for its goods and services in 11 Pacific countries and benefit Arizona workers, manufacturers, small businesses, farmers, and ranchers.
Further, fast-track negotiating authority would enable the United States to complete the world’s largest regional trade deal, the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), in just two months. This deal would enable Arizona small businesses to trade with some of the most dynamic and fastest growing economies in the world.
While Arizona already has good trade ties with several of these countries, our state’s producers continue to pay steep tariffs as high as 70 percent and face other barriers on certain exports to most of the region. The TPP will remove these barriers, which in turn will increase Arizona exports and expand the number of Arizona producers who benefit from trade with these countries. The TPP will also generate over 17,000 new jobs in Arizona and significantly expand foreign direct investment in the state.
In today’s era of globalization, we limit our potential by trying to wall ourselves off to foreign competition. Competition makes us stronger and we must continue to compete or we will be left behind. A renewed commitment to free trade will help Arizona’s economy continue to grow and put Arizonans back to work.
– John McCain is the senior U.S. senator from Arizona.


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As we all know, Fitness First merged with Celebrity Fitness Across Asia .This news announced on the 23rd of February 2017 .
source from fitnessfirst.com.sg
Do you know what happen to Fitness First last year 2016 ? I bet YOU do not know .
Fitness First is actually looking for buyers for their branches across Australia and also Asian .
“Its American owners , Oaktree Capital Management and Marathon Asset Management, have hired HSBC to find buyers for the Asian and Australian sites. “
“Virgin Active has outlined plans for a buying spree in Asia following its takeover last year by Brait Capital, controlled by South African billionaire Christo Wiese. The chain, which still counts Sir Richard Branson’s Virgin as an investor, wants to spend £150m in the region.”
So , since that Fitness First is selling off , then why is the merge of celebrity fitness across Asia ?
So much of brotherhood going on here. Good luck guys .


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Charged is Diamone Yulonda Ruth Bowens, 22, of Brooklyn.
Palmer Township police on March 30 received information from the Evesham Township Police Department in New Jersey about possible identity theft and credit card fraud that needed to be referred to Pennsylvania police departments for prosecution. Bowens allegedly rang up $3,117 in purchases on three stolen credit cards.
The timeline of the Lehigh Valley incidents, according to police, included:
- On Feb. 13, the Evesham Police Department received a report from Susan Thorton of New Jersey, claiming purchases were made at Kohl's in Lower Nazareth Township and Dick's Sporting Goods in Bethlehem Township she never made. Bowens gained a Kohl's credit account using Thorton's maiden name and made purchases with it on Feb. 7.
- An additional account using Thorton's name was then opened by Bowens at Home Depot in Palmer Township on Feb. 13 for purchases totaling $950.
- A township detective later gained a description of Bowens through store surveillance photos at the Home Depot. The officer learned Bowens was arrested by Pennsylvania State Police on Feb. 7 for opening a fraudulent Kohl's account in Lower Macungie Township. In that arrest, Bowens had a fraudulent New Jersey driver's license in her possession.
- A warrant was obtained on March 15 for Bowens' arrest. Bernards Township police in New Jersey on March 21 arrested Bowens on the Evesham Township police warrant.
- Police on April 5 obtained additional Home Depot store surveillance footage of Bowers at 1:07 p.m. Feb. 7 buying $950 worth of tools and opening the credit card account with a New Jersey driver's license.
- Police obtained from Thorton a statement for $1,410 worth of clothing purchases made at Dick's Sporting Goods on Feb. 7, as well as $955 worth of items, including two watches, from Kohl's on the same day. The identification used to open credit cards at those retailers was the same New Jersey license used at Home Depot.
Bowens is charged with forgery (three counts); access device fraud (three counts), theft (three counts), receiving stolen property and possession an instrument of crime (three counts). She was arraigned Wednesday before District Judge Jacqueline Taschner, who set bail at $75,000.
In lieu of bail, Bowens was sent to Northampton County Prison.


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SANTA ANA, California – An Orange County man who was convicted at trial of defrauding a local businessman through a fraudulent investment scheme was sentenced this morning by United States District Judge David O. Carter to 41 months in federal prison.
Aiman Alexander Ataba, 52, of Irvine, was found guilty on March 20, 2018, of eight counts of mail fraud and three counts of money laundering. The jury's verdicts followed a two-day trial in the United States District Court in Orange County.
The jury found that Ataba defrauded a Riverside County man out of $648,070 by convincing him to invest in Ataba's Fountain Valley business, Innovation Validation and Design Technologies. Ataba falsely claimed that the investments would be used to manufacture and sell a device that would be used in hospitals for stem cell research.
Ataba claimed that his company was on the verge of being acquired, and he told the investor that stock in the company could be obtained at a discounted price if he invested quickly. Based on Ataba's false representations, the victim invested $648,070 in Ataba's company over the course of 4½ years.
According to court records, after receiving the victim's money, Ataba immediately spent the money on personal expenses. The money was not invested in any company for the development of a device involving stem cell research. Instead, Ataba simply misappropriated and converted all of the victim's money to his own personal uses, using the money to pay for rent, living expenses, dining out, and gambling, as well as overseas wire transfers.
Ataba diverted funds from his business account to his personal account and made approximately $350,000 in cash withdrawals. Many of the withdrawals were made at casinos in Las Vegas and on local Indian reservations. Some of the victim's money was spent to purchase a new Toyota vehicle, which was seized in 2016 by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
In addition to imposition of the prison term, Judge Carter today ordered Ataba to pay restitution to the victim in the amount of $648,070.
The investigation into Ataba was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Robert J. Keenan and Gina J. Kong of the Santa Ana Branch Office.
Component(s): USAO – California, Central
Contact: Thom Mrozek Spokesperson/Public Affairs Officer United States Attorney's Office Central District of California (Los Angeles) 213-894-6947
Press Release Number: 18-111 Updated July 16, 2018
Central District of California DOJ / 18-111 / July 16, 2018


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40 total views
HDFC Bank to hire 2,500 people in six months; intend to double rural reach to 2 lakh villages
It will double its presence in the next 18-24 months through a combination of branch network , business correspondents, business facilitators, CSC (common service centres) partners, virtual relationship management and digital outreach platforms
India’s largest private sector bank, HDFC Bank, said on Sunday that it aims to double its rural reach to 2 lakh villages. To this end, the lender will hire 2,500 people in the next six months.
It will double its presence in the next 18-24 months through a combination of branch network , business correspondents, business facilitators, CSC (common service centres) partners, virtual relationship management and digital outreach platforms.
The bank aims to reach a third of the villages in the country after the expansion.
“India’s rural and semi-urban markets are underserved in credit extension. They present sustainable long-term growth opportunities for the Indian banking system,” its group head (Commercial and Rural Banking) Rahul Shukla said.
Shukla said that HDFC Bank aims to make its services available in every pincode of the country. So far, the bank offers its products and services to small businesses in over 550 districts.
This coincidentally comes on a day when Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said that several districts across the country lack banking presence despite the high level of economic activity happening in those areas. Addressing the 74th Annual General Meeting of the banking industry lobby grouping Indian Banks’ Association, FM Sitharaman said, “We need to scale up banking. The need is for at least four-five more SBI sized banks”. Sitharaman added that there is a pressing need to ramp up banking to meet the growing needs of the industry and also to ensure that all economic centres of the country are secured with at least one physical or digital banking presence.


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Hosted, for more than two decades, by the Cycling & Health Tech Industry R&D Center (CHC) with the purpose of encouraging the bicycle industry to innovate, IBDC has already collected 14,417 entries from 87 countries.
This year, the competition's theme is “Intelligence. Sustainability. Cool Lifestyle”. With these three values, entries are expected to be designed using intelligent technologies, sustainable considerations, and ideas that show personal new lifestyles.
Benefits of participation includes winning NT$200,000 (Gold Award), cooperating with bicycle companies, exposing at Taipei International Cycle Show, and more.
The application and more information about the competition can be accessed on IBDC’s official website: http://ibdc.tbnet.org.tw. The application period is 2023/06/01~2023/11/15.


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Bitcoin Price Reach 10000
It’s not Christmas yet but it seems Santa Clause already gave gifts to bitcoin investors and bitcoin holders. Bitcoin is unstoppable this month of November. It reach height no one could predict. Now bitcoin price reach 10000 and still going up non stop.
Bitcoin has repeatedly broken through $1,000 milestones throughout the year of 2017. It also hit the $10,000 mark this Tuesday. Starting from 6 cents from its advent Bitcoin has reached $1,000 early this 2017 and is now worth $10,943 as of November 29, 2017 4:44 AM (PT). Due to its users continuous support, Bitcoin has continued to topple all negative expectations against it.
Even bitcoin miners are happy because now they can see profit even when mining is much harder now. The price of bitcoin would still rise, because a lot of investors are buying bitcoin and holding on to it. One factor that affects bitcoin climb, is that many companies now accepts bitcoin as a man of payment option for goods and services.
Renowned trader Masterluc also predicts that bitcoin will reach $15,000 til the end of the year, he also stated that if bitcoin continues its current bull run it could reach a price anywhere between $40,000 to $110,000 til 2019.
While other keep saying that bitcoin is a scam and it will eventually be worthless. I think we should not bother listening to these people with hidden agendas. We should read and learn what really bitcoin is about and decide for ourselves. After ten years and bitcoin price goes up even more, you will repent why you even listen to dinosaurs.
November is over two days from now. What changes can we expect in bitcoin price this coming December. Will still goes up or will the bubble pop? If Satoshi Nakamoto would dump his bitcoins, then that’s the only way the price will go down.


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Family-owned New Zealand company Giesen Group is positioning itself to claim a share of the
world’s fastest growing liquor category with the launch of TINK - New Zealand’s first natural fruit
Made at Giesen’s Marlborough winery, creating TINK involves an innovative process of fermenting
wine and natural fruit juice together, creating a light, refreshing sparkling seltzer.
Giesen Group Marketing Manager Angela Flynn says TINK’s development began when looking at
overseas market trends.
“We kept a close eye on the growth of the seltzer category in the US and Australia and we had a
sense that 2020/2021 would be the ‘summer of seltzer’ in New Zealand. All the signs are there that it
Globally, seltzer’s popularity has exploded in the past year. The sector is now worth over $2.1 billion
and expected to grow to $20.4 billion by 2027.
TINK is Giesen’s first product outside of wine and beer. It is sold in 330ml cans in three flavours
(Tropical, Berry Rose and Lemon & Lime).
Angela Flynn says that while seltzer is new to New Zealand, its popularity will take off with
consumers increasingly focused on their health and wellbeing – even when it comes to alcohol.
“TINK is another example of Giesen spreading its wings and innovating to develop new products
that align with growing trends for more mindful and moderate consumption – a future cornerstone of
our business. TINK is low sugar, low carb, low calorie, gluten free with no added flavours – all
attributes we know will appeal to New Zealanders.”


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New Delhi: Indian Railways stands ahead with 3.82 million tonnes (MT) in freight loading services in August this year as compared to the same period of the previous year despite several challenges due to Coronavirus. In a press release, the Ministry of Railways said that as on August 19, 2020, the freight loading was 3.11 million tonnes which is higher than last year for the same date (2.97 million tonnes). On August 19, 2020, the Indian Railways has earned Rs 306.1 crore from freight loading which is Rs 5.28 crore higher than last year for the same date (300.82 crore).
In the Month of August 2020 till August 19, 2020, the total freight loading is 57.47 million tonnes which are higher than last year for the same period (53.65 million tonnes). In the Month of August 2020 till August 19 Indian Railways earned Rs 5461.21 crore from freight loading which is Rs 25.9 crore higher than last year for the same period (5435.31 crore).
Upon Prime Minister's call to improve logistics in the country, Indian Railways has been making huge strides in increasing the speed and volume of goods carried. Indian Railways is going to promote Railways' freight service, making traders, businesses and suppliers aware of the benefits associated with transportation through Indian Railways.
Some of the major novel freight initiatives of Indian Railways are as follows:
(PSU Watch– India's Business News centre that places the spotlight on PSUs, Bureaucracy, Defence and Public Policy is now on Telegram. Join PSU Watch Channel in your Telegram and stay updated)


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With Apple breezing past Wall Street estimates this week by reporting $15.7 billion in revenue for its third business quarter, the pressure was on Microsoft -- and the software giant delivered. Microsoft said Thursday it earned a record $16.04 billion in revenue during the second quarter, driven by the launch of Office 2010 and strong Windows 7 sales.
With 175 million licenses sold to date, Windows 7 is the fastest-selling operating system ever and now runs on more than 15 percent of all PCs worldwide, Microsoft CFO Peter Klein told financial analysts on a conference call.
"This quarter's record revenue reflects the breadth of our offerings and our continued product momentum," Klein said. In addition to Windows 7, Windows Server and the Xbox 360 video-game console also exhibited strong performance in the quarter even as the software giant's Bing search engine "achieved its 13th consecutive month of share gain," he added.
PC Growth Continues
According to a preliminary estimate from Gartner, worldwide PC shipments rose 20.7 percent year over year to 82.9 million in the second quarter -- slightly above the research firm's earlier outlook of 19.3 percent growth. However, Microsoft told analysts it estimates even higher PC market growth of 22 to 24 percent in the quarter, and with the consumer and business segments growing at roughly the same rate.
"From a geographic perspective, emerging markets remain a significant driver of the PC market with almost twice the growth of mature markets," said Bill Koefoed, general manager of investor relations at Microsoft.
Gartner's PC growth estimate may go up another one to two percentage points once all the numbers for the second quarter are in, noted Mikako Kitagawa, a principal analyst at the research firm. "So our final figure could be low side of their projection," she said. "But consumer growth will be stronger than professional in our projection."
Windows revenue grew more than $1 billion, or 32 percent, in the second quarter, Koefoed noted. "Total OEM license growth was 26 percent and outpaced the PC market for the third quarter in a row," Koefoed told financial analysts. He also observed that the business PC refresh cycle has accelerated, with Microsoft recording its second straight quarter of double-digit business license growth.
Additionally, Microsoft was able to capitalize on the recovery of the server hardware market, Klein said. "Windows Server 2008 R2 has enjoyed strong demand and increased Windows Server market share," Klein explained. "With the launches of Exchange 2010 -- and most recently, SharePoint 2010 and Office 2010 -- we delivered key innovations in our productivity portfolio."
A Business PC Resurgence
Gartner expects professional PC shipments will grow in the next two years due to a PC refresh cycle, especially in mature markets where aged PCs are still in use. "These aged PCs should have been replaced by now, but many organizations delayed replacement because of the unpopularity of Vista and economic uncertainties," Kitagawa said. "With Windows 7's release, these aged PCs are ready to be replaced."
Some analysts are concerned that Apple's iPad will cut into laptop and mini-notebook sales, which could hurt Microsoft. Asked about the potential impact of tablets on the PC market, Klein said Microsoft views this as an additive to the overall market opportunity.
"We think tablets are very interesting and remind us that there are always new scenarios and new opportunities, and we are constantly working with our partners" on multiple scenarios, form factors, and price points, Klein said.
Extrapolating from Apple's Mac sales, Kitagawa thinks Microsoft's share of standard computer shipments worldwide is more than 90 percent. "If you look at revenue share, it may go down a bit as Mac has a much higher system price, plus iPad shipments are not included," Kitagawa said.


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- News & Events
September 16, 2013
The Aite Group, an independent financial research and advisory firm, interviewed online merchants, credit card issuers and payment card associations which manage online payment transactions. Aite found that even though merchants improved how they secure account numbers under the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI-DSS), cybercrooks have improved their ability to steal credentials and match them with account numbers stored on web sites whose security was lax.
Julie Conroy, an Aite Group analyst said, “All interviewed merchants, (who) are seeing a higher fraud rate, report a big jump in account takeover activity.” In an internetretailer.com piece, Conroy observed that the cause appeared to be related to database breaches that have taken place over the last year-and-a-half.
Conroy pointed to LivingSocial, the daily-deal site as an example. When LivingSocial was breached, hackers were able to access user names and passwords and use them to compromise customer accounts on other e-commerce sites. Conroy noted that a breach, such as the one LivingSocial suffered, is often made worse by consumers who utilize the same user name and password for multiple financial accounts. And, once crooks have a user’s credentials, they order goods online, ship them to an address other than the legitimate cardholder’s and sell them. Considering the cyberthieves didn’t have to pay for the goods, they have a profit margin Donald Trump could envy.
ThreatMetrix is the fastest-growing provider of integrated web fraud and cybersecurity solutions. The TrustDefender™ Cybercrime Protection Platform helps companies prevent unauthorized access to web and mobile applications, protect sensitive data, and secure transactions against account takeover, payment fraud, identity spoofing, malware, and data breaches. ThreatMetrix protects more than 1,900 customers and 9,000 websites across a variety of industries, including financial services, enterprise, e-commerce, payments, social networks, government, and insurance. For more information, visit www.threatmetrix.com or call 1-408-200-5755.
To join in the cybersecurity conversation, follow us on Twitter @ThreatMetrix.
Posted by Dan Rampe
Tags: Account Takeover, Account Takeover Fraud, Bank Fraud, CNP fraud, Cookieless Device Identification, Cookies, Credit Card Fraud, Cyber attacks, Database Breach, Device Detection, Device Fingerprint, Device Fingerprinting, Device ID, Fraud Prevention, Hacking, Identity Spoofing, Identity theft, LivingSocial, Malware, Malware Protection, Man-in-the-Browser Detection, MitB, Mobile fraud, Online Fraud, Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI-DSS), PII, ThreatMetrix Cybercrime Index, ThreatMetrix Global Trust Intelligence Network, TrustDefender Cybercrime Protection Platform, Web Fraud


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Apple is helping to celebrate Black History Month during the month of February with its Apple Watch Unity Challenge.
This is the first year that Apple has conducted an Apple Watch Activity Challenge to celebrate Black History Month. Users that complete the challenge will be rewarded with an exclusive badge in the Activity app, as well as stickers for use in Messages and FaceTime.
The invitation pops up on the Apple Watch, and can also be seen by scrolling down on the Summary tab of the Fitness app on the iPhone.
Unity Challenge. Let’s celebrate Black history this month and keep the momentum going all year long. To start, earn this Unity award by closing your Move ring seven days in a row during February.
As noted by The History Channel, February is designated as Black History Month, honoring the triumphs and struggles of African Americans throughout U.S. history, including the civil rights movement and their artistic, cultural, and political achievements.
While the roots of Black History Month can be traced back to 1926, it didn’t become official until 1976. when then-President Gerald R. Ford officially designated the month of February to “honor the too-often neglected accomplishments of Black Americans in every area of endeavor throughout our history.”


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Nov 23, 2015
Conor Venture Partners and Finnish Industry Investment to Invest in Concilio Networks First Funding Round for Bringing Revolutionary Mobile VoIP Products to Market Espoo, Finland – October 3, 2006 – Concilio Networks, a stealth mode start-up company aiming to enable VoIP benefits to every mobile handset, today announced an agreement with Conor Venture Partners and Finnish Industry Investment for completion of €1.0 million investment. The proceeds of the Conor led round will be used to finalize and to bring to market Concilio’s revolutionary mobile VoIP product. “We are very excited to have this opportunity to significantly speed up our product development and business development efforts and eventually launch our product to its target market next Spring”, says Markku Rautiola, Founder and CEO of Concilio Networks. “Our investors’ very active and hands-on approach has already helped us in securing key personnel, board members as well as to open dialog with potential business partners and customers.” “Conor is very honored that Concilio chose us as the lead investor for their first funding round”, says Sami Ahvenniemi, Partner at Conor, “The innovation behind this company is certainly one of the most revolutionary that I’ve come across.” “Concilio’s solution is unique indeed and that is why it’s worth investing in”, says Heini Noronen-Juhola, Investment Manager at FII. Concilio Networks is a stealth mode start-up company aiming to enable VoIP benefits to every mobile handset. Conor Venture Partners is a leading early-stage technology VC investing in Finland, Sweden and the Baltics. Conor invests in disruptive technologies in ICT, embedded systems, electronics, new materials and optics. www.conor.vc Finnish Industry Investment (FII) is a government-owned investment company. The company invests the proceeds accrued from the privatisation of state-owned companies in promoting the growth and internationalisation of Finnish businesses. FII is Finland’s leading provider of seed financing. FII´s investments and investment commitments amount to some EUR 350 million. www.industryinvestment.com
Concilio Networks Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
What is Concilio Networks's latest funding round?
Concilio Networks's latest funding round is Seed VC.
Who are the investors of Concilio Networks?
Investors of Concilio Networks include Conor Venture Partners and Finnish Industry Investment.
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In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, John Carpenter reveals that Konami was almost sued due to similarities between Metal Gear Solid and Escape from New York.
These past few months have had no shortage of strange stories involving Hideo Kojima, Konami, and Metal Gear Solid. From Hideo Kojima reportedly being fired to Konami bizarrely claiming that the legendary developer is just on vacation, the Kojima/Konami situation has had some interesting developments, to say the least.
The latest strange story surrounding Kojima, Konami, and the Metal Gear Solid series isn’t about something that happened during the development of the ridiculously successful Metal Gear Solid 5, however. On the contrary, it’s just been revealed by celebrated filmmaker John Carpenter that he was once approached with the idea of suing Konami over the original Metal Gear Solid for copyright infringement.
Ultimately, Carpenter didn’t move forward with the lawsuit. He explained why in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter:
“[CanalPlus] wanted to also go after the video game Metal Gear Solid, which is kind of a rip-off of Escape From New York, too, but I told them not to do that. I know the director of those games, and he’s a nice guy, or at least he’s nice to me.”
It’s no secret that Hideo Kojima’s work has been heavily influenced by film, and he has outright admitted in the past that Solid Snake is meant to pay homage to Snake Plissken from Escape from New York. Even so, there are striking similarities between the characters that arguably cross the line of just being an “homage.”
Beyond their clear physical resemblance and the fact that they share a name, Snake Plissken and Solid Snake are both stealth operatives with smoking habits. Furthermore, Naked Snake and Snake Plissken share a fairly uncommon visual characteristic, with both men sporting eye patches at various points in their careers.
Luckily for Kojima, Konami, and fans of the Metal Gear Solid franchise, Carpenter didn’t move forward with the lawsuit, which could’ve been very damaging to the series. That being said, future legal trouble may be just around the corner for Konami, as a certain head transplant doctor has expressed plans to demand compensation from Konami for using his likeness in Metal Gear Solid 5 without his permission. We’ll have to wait and see how that plays out, but considering the uncanny resemblance between the real world doctor and the fictional one from the game, it seems like he has a pretty solid case.
Do you think Metal Gear Solid is too similar to Escape from New York? Do you feel that John Carpenter made the right call by not pursuing the lawsuit? Let’s discuss the potential copyright infringement lawsuit that was nearly levied against Metal Gear Solid in the comments.


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Consumer goods and services increased by 11.9 percent in January 2017 in comparison to the same period year-over-year, reports the Azerbaijani State Statistical Committee (SSC).
A 14.5 percent increase in food prices, a 12.3 percent in non-food prices and an 8 percent increase in paid services were also recorded in Azerbaijan’s economy.
In comparison to December of 2016, inflation was 2.3 higher in January of 2017.
Products affected by price hikes included grains, meat, fruits, sugar, oil, coffee, tea and vegetables.
Prices of non-food products, such as fabrics, clothing and footwear, also grew in the period between December 2016 – January 2017.
The reason for the consistent increase in food prices over the last 2 years can be attributed to the devaluation of the manat, experts say.
It is worth noting, however, that despite a recent rise in the worth of the manat against the dollar, prices have not reacted accordingly.
Economist Qubad Ibadoglu says that given the direct link between price increases and the devaluating manat, there should have been the opposite effect as well. However, this has not happened.
Ibadoglu says that the increase in prices is likely linked to the authoritarian and monopolist position of large Azerbaijani companies on the market:
“If state-controlled companies do not decrease petrol and gas prices following the devaluation of the manat, why should the private sector be expected to obey these laws of economics? Prices are not decreasing because no one believes in the long-term stability of the manat. Their expectation is that manat will continue to lose value. Because imported foods and household goods are a part of the monopoly or “oligopoly” of the companies importing and selling these products in Azerbaijan, they are able to keep their control over prices. Most of these companies belong to oligarchs and public officials, and they are benefiting even more from the exchange rate difference.
“All this shows that there is no competitive market in the country. Consumer prices will continue to go up. The only solution is to liberalize the market and turn completely to a free-market economy”, Ibadoglu says.


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In the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic, right between the health crisis winding down and the fear of a second wave kicking up again, we witnessed another corporate scandal with far reaching implications, not only for the company itself, but also its subsidiaries, investors, employees, regulators, auditors and, most importantly, its clients. While there has been, and will be, a lot more good dialogue, debate and analysis on what exactly went wrong with Wirecard, there is a far broader problem that warrants discussion.
As a result of the accounting fraud perpetrated by Wirecard, businesses that relied on its technology to process payments, including a number of UK firms, saw their payments frozen. These companies were unable to take any payments at a time when cashflow was already under severe pressure and new funds essential to their survival. The Financial Conduct Authority, based in the UK, froze e-money accounts and any payment transactions that were supported by Wirecard to safeguard its clients’ funds. While this action was taken to protect end clients, it also prevented merchants and small- and medium-sized enterprises from getting paid and consumers denied access to their funds.
And while Wirecard was down and companies unable to transact, there was no back up for them, there was no second vendor that companies had integrated with in case something like this happened. There was no plan B. And in most cases, there is never a plan B.
The Wirecard scandal has exposed again just how dangerous single-party solutions are, especially in key parts of your business. The old saying about eggs and baskets rings true: businesses need to tread carefully when only having one vendor solve for a key part of their business. Weather this is for payments, or other business critical areas. A lot of time is spent aligning service level agreements and making sure that vendor downtime is properly managed, with financial implications for when vendors are offline and interrupt their clients’ business.
However, seldomly is there a real solution to the unmanageable. What if your vendor suddenly stops trading all together? There should be an answer. And while companies understand this to be true, the problem that many are faced with is that their IT systems are old, complex or outdated, meaning that integrating vendors, across the business, becomes a complex, time consuming and expensive exercise. Because of this, even doing one integration can take an extortionate amount of time, leaving the chances of companies selecting multiple vendors in an effort to mitigate risk as pretty slim.
Companies are left with the unenviable trade-off between this risk mitigation on the one side, and effective resource utilisation on the other. They have multiple projects and problems that they are trying to solve for at the same time, often with the same resources and limited funds.
Countless companies are unfortunately being held hostage by the age or state of their IT systems and finance processes; ‘hostage’ meaning the sense that just daring to say the words “integration” or “work on the core system” is met with disdain, apprehension and anxiety within the companies. These issues are pervasive across almost all industries, including banking, travel, hospitality, utilities, services and insurance. The fallout from the Wirecard scandal should act as a wakeup call, that relying on single third-party providers for services as critical as payments could put them at significant risk of business disruptions and service outages in future.
Many in the broader industry are quick to dismiss that “everyone” has these payment risk problems, and that this is “par for the course”. That should scare us, because this scandal has shown us that no matter how big the vendor is, the risk remains and just gets more critical in nature. Companies, specifically insurers, banks, and large corporates, are expected to be immune to these types of problems, or at least have strategies to tackle them. When a payment provider goes down, for whatever reason, no customer will care why they cannot receive their claim in an emergency or have access to their funds, and regulators will have a dim view of any such developments. No customer will want to hear about integration difficulties or business trade-offs.
What has been laid bare is that many companies are simply not ready for this type of problem and have massive amounts of operational and regulatory risks that have not been acknowledged. It is important for organisations to better classify and understand what the crucial capabilities and services are in order to make their operations more flexible and resilient.
Regulation surrounding payments was traditionally contained within the walls of the traditional banking industry and known payment service providers. Technology development and deployment was also very focused on this smaller group of entities, meaning writing regulation and controlling technological capabilities was simpler.
The market has seen a surge in new payment providers in recent years, especially targeting online and alternative payments, making it extremely difficult for policymakers to keep up and maintain relevant and applicable regulations. Digital payments have many benefits to customers and businesses alike, and with Covid-19 accelerating the preference for and adoption of digital payment methods, even more payments are taking place in this ‘new’ domain. The problem is that this is now largely outside the regulated perimeter of financial services that regulators and market actors have been comfortable with so far.
Now, more than ever, regulators will look into what happened, and act decisively to safeguard customers’ best interest. What new rules and operating procedures the regulators across the UK and Europe are likely to adopt is still open for discussion, however, it is safe to assume that companies will need to respond quickly, regardless of their own operational shortcomings.
Companies will need to look outside of their own organisation and traditional solutions to find new, innovative ways that will allow them to work with, rather than against their own outdated legacy IT systems, deliver multiple projects simultaneously, and manage costs. Requiring and managing multiple banking partners and payment service provider connections is extremely costly and time consuming, and so traditionally only used by large companies. Within fintech, we see the rise of companies and emerging technologies that bring multi-acquiring capabilities that are easy to implement and easily scale.
KPMG states that by 2030, traditional boundaries within financial services will disappear with a move towards ‘platformication’. Banks will let customers choose services from a range of different providers to personalise and tailor offers and experiences to their needs. Consumers will experience a reduction in the number of interfaces and services they need to individually sign up to access the services or products. Coupled with the adoption of open banking, more advanced banking players and neobanks, with greater access to data to support their business models and new propositions, will look to offer significantly differentiated services and experiences that will be, or could be, vastly different to the current offers in the market. The role of the regulator, to safeguard consumers, while not stifling innovation, will be critical in the coming years and they will be getting more involved.
We have all seen first-hand the impact the Wirecard scandal has had on companies, their employees and their clients, and we cannot emphasise enough how critical it is to not be a hostage to your own processes and systems—especially when there are solutions in the market that can address this issue. The urgent question for now is, are you exposed to risks like these and how will you urgently solve them? Simply saying “we are not clients of Wirecard” is unfortunately not going to be enough.


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Top 50 Bitcoin Price Predictions: 2019, 2020-2024 Forecast List.
During the first week of September (on the 3rd to be exact) the Chinese government.
with the introduction of the lightning Network for processing speed, and Merkle trees.
Our annual cryptocurrency predictions are a must-read. In the 2020 edition of our cryptocurrency predictions we feature the grand (secular) crypto bull market to continue even though some consolidation may be in the cards as per our Bitcoin forecast for 2020.Institutional capital will continue to pour into crypto even though this process appears to be going slower than anticipated.
As the bitcoin halving approaches, independent traders like "Young Tilopa," "Luis J. Sarmiento" and "Brian" look for an edge.
If stocks were in a prolonged downtrend, being able to profit anyway, would be extremely valuable. Of course, it’s not the.
Bitcoin: The End Of Money As We Know It Stream Hd 4 days ago. Bitcoin: The End of Money As We Know It project video thumbnail. Play. Rui Rodrigues, Investment Manager, Tank Stream Ventures. company, 3D Content Hub, is specialized in stereoscopic 3D and Ultra HD (4k) films. Do I Have
In the case of Bitcoin, CNBC’s predictions have turned out to be 95% accurate.
as a counter trade indicator, according to a Tradingview post made by Jacob Canfield. This means that 95 percent of the time that CNBC makes a price call, taking the opposite trade will give investors positive returns.
31/03/2020 · Zhao Dong Bitcoin Price Prediction. Zhao Dong, one of the biggest Bitcoin OTC traders in China and an influencer recently predicted that Bitcoin might reach $50,000 by 2021. He reiterated that now is the best time to invest in BTC and said that you might get a yield of 100 to 200% over 3 years if you invest now. Anthony Pompliano Bitcoin Price Prediction. In a recent tweet, Anthony Pompliano.
Augur is often called a decentralized prediction market (DPM).
More broadly, DPMs not only allow for more accurate predictions but more accurate prices for.
In 3 weeks Bitcoin price prediction on Friday, May, 29: minimum price $13027, maximum $14987 and at the end of the day price 14007 dollars a coin. BTC to USD predictions on Monday, June, 1: minimum price $13553, maximum $15593 and at the end of the day price 14573 dollars a coin. Bitcoin price prediction on Tuesday, June, 2: minimum price $13579, maximum $15623 and at the end of the day price.
Our top 50 cryptocurrency blogs list is ranked algorithmically and updated daily,
it also provides facility to engage with the community on a Bitcoin Forum. 3.
A reliable source of fair, honest, and accurate, free of bias and influence BTC news,
the latest price analysis and prediction of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.
4 Entertaining Bitcoin Price Predictions for This Week » The Merkle Hash. Published. 13 julio, 2019. It is rather easy to see how the current cryptocurrency market trend is not necessarily heading in the direction traders and speculators want to see. Despite the Bitcoin price showing bullish signs these past few days, it now seems all of that positive momentum has disappeared once again. The.
Pantera Capital CEO, Dan Morehead, recently posted a very optimistic prediction for Bitcoin prices that he expects to peak in.
Bitcoin Cash () Cryptocurrency Market info Recommendations: Buy or sell Bitcoin Cash? Cryptocurrency Market & Coin Exchange report, prediction for the future: You’ll find the Bitcoin Cash Price prediction below. According to present data Bitcoin Cash (BCH) and potentially its market environment has been in bearish cycle last 12 months (if exists).
Bitcoin’s market dominance is trending downwards since September 2019.The crypto’s top rivals have posted better year-to-date returns after Coronavirus-induced sell-off in March 2020.Top analysts have called for an altcoin season to begin this Q2.The Bitcoin Dominance Rate, a ticker that tracks bitcoin’s market share against rivaling crypto tokens, has fallen from 73.02 percent to 64.66.
04/07/2017 · 1. /r/Bitcoin – 254,076 Subscribers. This is the most popular cryptocurrency subreddit and for good reason. It is a place where many bitcoin enthusiasts, miners, traders, and newcomers all come together and discuss Bitcoin related matters. Often you find it features articles about popular Bitcoin news and technical discussion regarding the.
16 Nov 2019.
Price prediction is not an accurate science by any means, but it can certainly lead to interesting discussions. The Bitcoin Price Action isn't Too.
Read the latest Bitcoin News on CCN with exclusive interviews and insights. We cover all.
May 3, 2020.
And the Best-Performing Asset of 2020 Is.
Even Meghan Markle Fans Aren't Dumb Enough to Fall for This Hilarious Scam.
Bitcoin Price Soars as Jerome Powell Confirms Crypto's Threat To U.S. Dollar.
When it comes to playing casino online games, players are open to various forms of currency. Cryptocurrency is among the different types of currencies, getting a lot of attention from online casinos. The initial cryptocurrency, Bitcoin, was invented in 2009 by an unknown developer known as Satoshi Nakamoto. With bitcoin, people can make transactions amongst.
Do I Have To Wait For Hours To Start Using Bitcoin? Pressure has been further increased on Boris Johnson after it emerged that a number of nurseries have kept their doors open. Get to grips with the basics of how to trade bitcoin with our step-by-step guide. You can start trading
Uncertainty over where Bitcoin will go after its $9,400 rally, a well-known BTC educator criticizes Chainalysis, and nerves.


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Sekiro Has Sold 3.8 Million Copies as of June
Activision and FromSoftware’s Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice has seen a fair amount of success, selling 3.8 million copies in just a few short months.
Kadokawa, FromSoftware’s parent company Kadokawa confirmed that this title has sold 3.8 million copies as of June 30.
Set in 16th century Sengoku period Japan, Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice has players taking control of Wolf. He packs the Shinobi Prosthetic, which is an artificial arm that has the ability to wield a number of different gadgets and weaponry.
The title is now available for the PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC. You can read our review here.
As gamers get ready to dive into the Xbox Series S/X on November 10, Microsoft has released a full demo walkthrough of the platform’s experience
After winning numerous awards last year (including one from us), Activision and FromSoftware’s Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice – Game of the Year Edition will launch on October 28, 2020
The heroic exploits of Prince Marth will make their way to the Nintendo Switch with the localized release of Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon & the Blade of Light on December 4, 2020


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Former McDonald's marketer Jo Feeney launches first ad campaign with Michael Hill
A new ad campaign from Michael Hill – the first with former McDonald's marketer Jo Feeney at the helm – has gone live, aiming to “make their Christmas” as NSW and Victoria emerge from lockdowns.
What you need to know:
- Former McDonald's marketer Jo Feeney has launched her first campaign in her new role as CMO of Michael Hill.
- The campaign, by CHE Proximity, runs on all channels, in Australia, New Zealand and Canada.
Former McDonald's marketing director Jo Feeney has launched her first campaign as Chief Marketing Officer of Michael Hill.
The jeweller has gone early for Christmas in a bid to tap huge latent demand and high household savings as NSW and Victoria emerge from lockdowns.
The campaign, from CHE Proximity, follows a young boy, Archie, as he creates Christmas gifts for people in his life.
It launched across all channels in Australia, New Zealand and Canada on October 14.
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Australia’s grocery buyers have changed how they buy, and they expect brands to find them at every touchpoint: Here’s what every FMCG marketer needs to know.
Australians and Kiwis are world leaders in cyber weekend shopping. Not even the birthplace of Black Friday and Cyber Monday reached the heights of bargain hunting we did this year. Salesforce's Jo Gaines shares her top lessons from a weekend which either set retailers for a great end of year or have them chasing consumers into Christmas.
Imagine if Australian broadcasters and publishers knowingly on-sold people’s data, played a role in genocide or fuelled body image issues in teenagers. Brands would be boycotting them in droves and insisting they be held to account. Yet that’s exactly what other media platforms are doing with impunity. ThinkPremiumDigital’s Venessa Hunt asks why.


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Monday, November 03, 2008
Casa Noble Founding Partners David Ravandi and Jose Hermosillo participated in the Chefs For A Day French cookery class at the TFWA World Exhibition of 2008 in Cannes, France. This new addition to the leisure activities at the global forum for the duty free and travel retail industry proved to be a success in popularity, drawing attendees from over 15 different countries, and kicked off the week of high profile business and networking to a great start.
The cookery school students whipped up various yummy treats at the Les apprentis Gourmets, preparing mouth-watering dishes such as red mullet with lemon and ravioli with crab and herbs.
Celebrating a job well done, a feast of the fruits of their labors was enjoyed by all in the dinning room above the kitchen.


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Double-glazing windows and doors firm Safestyle sees its share price slashed 20% after profit warning
Double-glazing windows and doors firm Safestyle has warned profits and revenues for 2018 are likely to come in significantly below estimates and has cancelled its final dividend as a result, sending its shares down by a fifth.
The Bradford-based company said trading had been difficult due to a mix of declining consumer confidence and tough competition from an 'aggressive new market entrant'.
'The board now expects group revenues and underlying profit before tax for the year ending 31 December 2018 to be significantly below current market expectations with profits for the year expected to be heavily weighted to the second half,' the firm said in a trading update.
Profit warning: The Bradford-based company said trading had been difficult
It added that orders in the year so far had been weak and that it was cancelling the recommended final dividend of 7.5 pence per share to preserve cash.
Shares in Safestyle fell by 19.4 per cent, or 15.53p, to 64.47p in morning trading.
The firm also announced the immediate departure of its chairman, Steve Halbert, who has been replaced by Peter Richardson, an existing non-executive director at Safestyle.
Richardson said: 'I am now looking forward to working with the board and the executive team during what is a challenging period for the group as it undertakes a number of actions to emerge as a stronger, fitter, more agile business.'
Last year, the company cited figures from repair, maintenance and improvement industry body Fensa, which showed overall market installations had dropped 18% throughout June and July compared with 2016.
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Moscow, 18 July 1997 (RFE/RL) -- Against a backdrop of growing friction between Russia and the European Union over trade, Prime Minister Viktor Chernomyrdin is in Brussels today for talks with European leaders that are expected to focus on efforts to boost commercial ties.
The trip reflects Moscow's desire to deepen trade and political links with Brussels as the EU expands eastwards. However, the visit comes as Russian leaders have become increasingly vocal in their criticism of EU trade policies.
President Boris Yeltsin took aim two days ago at EU anti-dumping measures in place against Russian imports and instructed Chernomyrdin to raise the issue during his visit to Brussels.
The EU is Russia's largest trading partner, accounting for more than 40 percent of mutual trade turnover. But the EU currently has 14 anti-dumping measures against Russian goods, making Brussels the leader in such actions against Russia.
Ottokar Khan, the European Commission's top diplomat in Moscow, told a news conference yesterday before leaving for Brussels to attend the talks that the EU is far from happy about these anti-dumping cases. But he said they were in response to unfair competition from Russian enterprises which he said are selling goods in the European markets at unfairly low prices.
Echoing other EU officials, Hahn said the cases affect only 1 percent of Russia's trade with the EU, or about $250 million worth of exports.
In contrast, Russia's Trade Ministry has estimated that the measures block at least $1billion worth of trade.
Signaling that Russia is prepared to take a tough stance on the issue, First Deputy Prime Minister Boris Nemtsov last month refused to meet with the visiting European Commission Vice President, Sir Leon Brittan, in protest over recently imposed anti-dumping duties.
Countering Russian objections, EU officials complain that Moscow is throwing up its own barriers with excessively high tariffs on European goods.
However, Russia's grievances go beyond anti-dumping cases. A new agreement on liberalizing the textile trade between the EU and Russia has been bogged down in negotiations for almost two years because of disputes over quotas. According to one former Trade Ministry official, there has been what he called " a permanent Cold War in the textile trade with the EU" ever since the negotiations began.
Brittan, during his recent visit to Moscow, expressed confidence that an agreement could be reached in time for Chernomyrdin's visit. A Russian negotiating team led by Deputy Foreign Trade Minister Georgy Gabounia was in Brussels this week ahead of the visit to try to agree on a last-minute deal.
The EU hopes to model the agreement on a recently concluded steel accord, which envisages gradually lifting quotas on Russian imports over four years. The Russian side, which wants to do away with quotas altogether, says the European textile industry has the upper hand. According to trade officials, EU textile exports to Russia are five times greater than Russia's exports to western Europe.
In an article in yesterday's Financial Izvestia, European Commission chairman Jacques Santer wrote that the textile agreement, if finalized, would actually give Russia better terms than the EU's other trading partners.
But obstacles remain. Santer, who is due to meet with Chernomyrdin today, said EU countries are concerned that a flood of textile countries will be channeled through Russia once the quotas are lifted.
Russian officials hope to improve trade relations when a long-delayed partnership and cooperation agreement with the EU comes into force later this year. The agreement, first signed in 1994, calls for talks to begin next year on creating a free trade zone between the EU and Russia. In the long term, Russia believes membership in the World Trade Organization, which the EU strongly backs, will help ward off what it views as unfair trade practices.


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Tablet cameras are getting better and better, and more and more people are using their tablets as everyday snapshot cameras. So it only makes sense that tablets would eventually follow the smartphone into the world of selfie sticks as well.
That has now happened. You can now buy a selfie stick that has a special attachment specifically for mounting your tablet as a camera.
The quirky new device is being offered by the online store AccessoryGeeks and comes with a attachment head that wraps around your tablet and connects to the selfie stick via a standard tripod mount.
“Durable adjustable selfie stick is built strong, so your tablet or phone will be safe and secured in the air when you are taking a selfie,” the description reads.
The tablet-capable selfie stick costs $19 with free shipping.
Extendable Selfie Stick Self-Portrait Monopod Stick [AccessoryGeeks via Ubergizmo]


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75 Million Ammo Rounds Seized in Santa Clara
In one of the biggest seizures of ammunition in U.S. history, federal agents yesterday raided a South Bay warehouse and confiscated 74.5 million large-caliber bullets, the Customs Service said.
The 7.62-caliber ammunition, enough to fill at least 10 tractor trailers, is used in illegal assault rifles such as the AK-47 or legal semiautomatic weapons. It was imported by Eagle Exim Inc. of Santa Clara, allegedly with false documents, said customs agent Michael Donofrio.
The ammunition's import documents say it came from Russia at a time when the firm had a federal permit to import Russian ammunition, but investigators believe that it came secretly from a manufacturer in China.
"That is absolutely ridiculous," the firm's president, Donald St. Pierre Jr., said in a telephone interview from Washington, D.C., last night. "All you have to do is look at the documents and look at the product to realize that this is a Russian product. They don't make this in China."
St. Pierre said the firm once imported ammunition from China, but only before a ban on such imports was imposed last year.
"We know who caused this problem," said St. Pierre's father, Donald St. Pierre Sr., a part owner in the firm. "It was a competitor," he said in an interview from Beijing last night. He declined to name the competitor or give further details.
The company is a federally licensed ammunition importer and sells most of its ammunition to arms distributors, who resell it to retailers, the St. Pierres said. The ultimate customers, the father said, are primarily "people who use it for target practice, who go to rifle ranges."
He said the ammunition is used in the Chinese-made SKS semiautomatic weapon, which he described as widely available in the United States.
No arrests were made, but U.S. Attorney Michael Yamaguchi said arrests are certain to follow the investigation.
"There are a multitude of charges that these people could face," he said, including conspiracy to smuggle, smuggling goods, entry by false statement and receiving unlawful firearms.
Donofrio put the value of the haul at $24.5 million, but St. Pierre Jr. said it was worth no more than $7 million.
Moving that much ammunition from the Eagle Exim warehouse at 3021 Kenneth Street is a major undertaking, Yamaguchi said. "The agents have told me it would take between 10 and 11 tractor trailers to haul this ammunition away.
"It's frightening to have this much ammunition that can be used in assault weapons destined for the streets of our country," he said.
The St. Pierres acknowledged that the size of the ammunition stash is "unusual." They said the firm stockpiled ammunition because their permit to import Russian ammunition was due to expire. The 74.5 million rounds, they said, represents about a year's worth of sales.
The Kenneth Street facility, unlike other warehouses in the neighborhood, has no sign identifying the business. Yesterday's 9:05 a.m. raid was conducted by agents from the U.S. Customs Service, the FBI, ATF, California Highway Patrol and Southern Pacific Railroad. A railroad inspector first alerted federal officials to the ammunition, which had been shipped by rail to Oakland from its port of entry at Charleston, S.C.
An investigation, which relied in part on a confidential informant, revealed discrepancies in the permits and shipping documents, and investigators began to suspect the type of smuggling operation that tranships from a banned exporting country to a legal one before importing into the United States.
"It appears there has been a significant increase in this type of activity," Yamaguchi said -- referring to illegal imports since an executive order barring the importing of weapons from China was issued by President Clinton on May 28, 1994.
"Typically what happens in these instances is the product actually does get shipped through that country," said Yamaguchi. "They will physically ship it into the (former) Soviet Union, Germany, Czechoslovakia, Russia, then obtain paperwork that will identify the item as the product of that particular country then ship it onto the country of destination.
"The illegal scheme is to disguise the country of origin, essentially laundering the product in order to disguise the country of origin," Yamaguchi said.
If the investigation of seized records shows that the ammunition was imported after October 1994 ban on assault weapons, Yamaguchi said, the importers also could be charged with violating the federal assault-weapons ban passed by Congress last year.


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Today, Cloudflare’s network currently covers 78 cities in the EMEA region, including three cities in France. Cloudflare first invested in France when expanding its network to Paris in 2011, just eight months after launching the company. Now with data centers spanning over 200 cities in over 100 countries around the world, the company continues to expand its presence to be even closer to Internet-connected users around the world.
With over 3.2 million customers worldwide, Cloudflare’s customers in the EMEA region are of different industries and sizes. French clients include companies such as L’Oréal, Solocal, Criteo, Allianz France and Webedia, logistics companies like DPDgroup (Le Groupe La Poste), educational institutions like INSEAD and iconic startups like Back Market , Happn, Wildmoka, and Sendinblue. Cloudflare is also partnering with a number of companies including Alter Way, Hardis Group, Smile, SoftwareONE, etc. to enable joint customers in the country.
“In addition to securing our application with Cloudflare, Happn uses Cloudflare Workers to deliver our content in the right format depending on the user’s device,” said Guillaume Durand, chief operations engineer, Happn. has made it possible to simplify and optimize the costs of our storage. ”
Cloudflare also protects non-profit organizations such as La Chaîne du Droit and Phaune Radio through its Galileo Project, an initiative that provides free cybersecurity protection to public interest groups of cultural, artistic or humanitarian importance.
“As a Paris-based non-profit radio, Phaune Radio needed a way to protect against daily cyber attacks and accommodate a dramatic increase in the number of listeners looking for a listening experience. invigorating during the pandemic, ”said Stéphane Jourdan, co-founder of Phaune Radio. “Thanks to Cloudflare’s Galileo project, we’ve been able to scale 10X without worrying about security threats and focus on what we do best: delivering audio programming and podcasts to listeners across France and around the world. ”
Cloudflare’s senior France manager, Boris Lecoeur, will oversee and lead the company’s sales and overall team in the region. “Organizations are relying on the Internet more than ever to serve and optimally secure their customers, partners and employees, and Cloudflare is leading this transition,” said Boris Lecoeur, Head of Cloudflare France. “I was impressed with what Cloudflare has built in EMEA, and more specifically in France. I’m excited to help provide the security, performance and reliability that customers count to win in the online economy. ”
Over the past year, Cloudflare has grown its EMEA team by over 55%. Today, Cloudflare has approximately 400 employees in the region. Priority initial functions for the Paris office include engineering, sales and partnerships, customer success and marketing. Cloudflare’s Paris site will join its other global offices in San Francisco, CA, Austin, TX, Champaign, IL, Seattle, WA, New York, NY, San Jose, CA, Washington, DC, Lisbon, London, Munich, Beijing , Singapore, Sydney and Tokyo.
To learn more about Cloudflare, please see the resources below:
Cloudflare, Inc. (www.cloudflare.com / @cloudflare) is on a mission to help build a better Internet. The Cloudflare platform protects and accelerates any online internet application without adding hardware, installing software, or changing a line of code. Cloudflare powered internet properties have all web traffic routed through its intelligent global network, which gets smarter with every request. As a result, they see a significant improvement in performance and a decrease in spam and other attacks. Cloudflare was named in Entrepreneur Magazine’s 2018 Best Corporate Cultures list and ranked as one of the World’s Most Innovative Companies by Fast Company in 2019. Based in San Francisco, Calif., Cloudflare has offices in Austin, TX, Champaign , IL, Seattle, WA, New York, NY, San Jose, California, Washington, DC, Lisbon, London, Munich, Paris, Beijing, Singapore, Sydney and Tokyo.


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Ross Controls now in Canada
January 22, 2016 | By MRO Staff
Troy, Mich. – Ross Controls is pleased to announce the opening of Ross Canada. Located in Barrie, Ont., Ross Canada will support the growing customer base from coast to coast and will bring a stronger presence to the Canadian market.
Established and headquartered in Michigan since 1921, Ross Controls is an international designer and ISO-certified manufacturer of pneumatic valves and controls systems.
ROSS has subsidiaries in Germany, Japan, the United Kingdom, India, Brazil, France, and China plus 145 worldwide stocking distributors.
For more information, visit www.rosscontrols.com.


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Gujarat’s agrochemical sector going full throttle, raining new projects
AHMEDABAD: If environment clearances (EC) granted to companies for their projects are anything to go by, Gujarat will witness a flurry of fresh investments in the chemicals sector, especially agrochemicals and their intermediates.
As many as 20 chemical companies have received a green signal from Union ministry of environment, forest and climate change (MoEFCC) for their projects in Gujarat over the past three months alone. The estimated cost of these projects is upwards of Rs 3,000 crore.
Companies to have received a go-ahead for their projects include names like Bharat Rasayan Ltd, Cheminova India Ltd, Tagros Chemical India, Neogen Chemicals Ltd, Meghmani Organics Ltd and Insecticides India Ltd to name a few.
Denmark’s Cheminova was granted EC early this month for expanding its pesticides and pesticide specific intermediate manufacturing capacity at its plant located in Panoli,Ankleshwar
. According to MoEFCC notification, the cost of project is around Rs 790 crore. Neogen Chemicals Ltd’s Rs 150 crore project for setting up fine chemicals and agro intermediates unit at Vagra in Bharuch also got the go-ahead.
Bharat Rasayan Limited (BRL), the flagship company of agrochemicals major Bharat group, plans to set up a new manufacturing facility for agrochemicals and their intermediates at Sayakha GIDC industrial estate at Vagra inBharuch district
. The project cost is Rs 310 crore.
The expansion and new projects receiving clearances in recent months are for agrochemicals, pesticides, dyes and intermediates and other chemicals. Majority of fresh investment is for expanding existing capacity of pesticides and adding new pesticide products.
“Agrochemicals is one business where there is a lot of supply coming from China to the rest of the world. In the last year or so, more and more European and American companies have begun looking towards India, for active ingredients which go into making insecticides, weedicides, herbicides. The world is now looking a little more on India than depending on China alone,” said Deepak Mehta, chairman, National Chemicals Committee, FICCI.
Industry players opine that the exports of pesticides from India has seen a strong growth over the last few years. Domesticdemand
too is growing. The gap between demand and availability of agrochemical, pesticide, insecticide, intermediate and formulation is likely to increase over the years. This calls for such projects which can help in bridging the gap.
“Apart from domestic market, there is a sizeable demand for agrochemicals in the international market, which is prompting companies to diversify into this sector,” added Mehta.
“Several companies are ramping up manufacturing capacities for basic chemicals such as sulphuric acid and caustic alkalies. There is a good demand for such products in both domestic and international market,”Shailesh
Patwari, past president, Gujarat Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI).


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CANADA: Magna ups Q1 sales 7% to $7.7bn, books assembly fall of 11%
Magna has posted first quarter sales of US$7.7bn - an increase of 7% from the same period of 2011 - but has also unveiled complete assembly sales down 11% to almost US$600m.
The supplier says its results were achieved against a backdrop when vehicle production increased 17% in North America and decreased 7% in Western Europe, each relative to the first quarter of 2011.
North American, European and Rest of World production sales all increased in the first quarter of 2012 relative to the comparable quarter in 2011.
Complete vehicle assembly sales decreased 11% to US$599m for the first quarter of 2012 compared to US$674m for the first quarter of 2011, while complete vehicle assembly volumes fell 10% to around 30,000 units.
During the first quarter of 2012, income from operations before income taxes was US$439m, while net income attributable to Magna International was US$343m.
Magna is predicting light vehicle production of 14.4m units for North America and 12.7m vehicles for Western Europe.
It is also estimating total sales for 2012 of between US$29bn and US$30.bn.
For the full press release, please click here.
Companies: Magna International
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Magna International unit Magna Exteriors and Interiors (MEI) has officially opened its new operation in the Ford plant at Craiova, Romania....
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Amy Easterly said this fall is her second season of hunting deer with a rifle, and her first with a bow.
"I've definitely seen and heard of more women out there hunting. Some of my friends are," said the 24-year-old Cazenovia resident who hunts with a .243 caliber Savage Arms rifle. She got into it because of her boyfriend and father, who both hunt. She has yet to get a deer, but is undaunted.
"Hopefully, I'll get one soon," she said.
Easterly's observation that more women are picking up firearms and taking to Central New York's woods and fields in search of game is reflected in state and national statistics.
The trend is also reflected in the retail market, where clothing lines for female hunters and firearms tailored to attract female buyers are showing up with more frequency in sporting goods stores. Specially cut, fitting jackets and shorter pants are being offered now under brands such as She (the Bass Pro Shops brand), Cabela's, RedHead, Mossy Oak, Under Armour and Scent-Lok. Many sport pink-colored aspects in the camouflage pattern or pink labels.
Easterly, who stands 5 foot, 3 inches, has seen the new clothing lines, but notes, "One thing they need to work on is the undergarments you wear under your hunting clothes. Most of it (that I've seen) is tailored to a man's body."
The numbers of female hunters in New York have grown steadily the past three years. During the 2010/2011 season, women held 38,655 of the state's 479,906 licenses issued, according to the state Department of Environmental Conservation.
This past 2012/2013 season, that number rose to 42,666 licenses held by women - an increase of 4,011 female hunters or a 9 percent increase. During that time, women reported taking 15 bear, 2,418 deer and 163 turkeys, the DEC said.
Mark Duda is executive director of Responsive Management, a Virginia-based firm that specializes in crunching numbers and at looking trends associated with nature resource use and outdoor recreational issues for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services and state fish and game agencies. He said nationwide, female hunters make up 8 percent of the hunting population.
Duda said female participation in hunting saw a marked increase in the early 1980s and mid-1990s. "You saw an increase in programs targeting women and the outdoors and at the same time that women were becoming more independent in regard to their careers. They started exploring and doing different things," he said.
The numbers of women going into hunting leveled off in the late 1990s and early 2000s, but picked up after the 2008 recession, Duda said. "You had more people out hunting for meat and women became a part of it," he said.
Ken Shupe, sports supervisor at the Herb Phillipson's store at the Western Lights Shopping Center in Syracuse, said he began seeing more females in the store looking at firearms following the election of President Obama, with the wide-spread speculation and apprehension about increased gun laws and how they might affect the availability of guns.
He said the market today for female hunting clothes and firearms is an "untapped" market that many companies are trying to capture. He said he's seeing more hunting couples portrayed on the outdoor hunting shows, with many of the women pushing their brands of female hunting gear on the commercials.
Bernadette VanValkenburg, 63, of Sherrill, (shown in picture) said she tried hunting with her husband after she first got married, but got out of it when the kids came. She said part of the difficulty for many female hunters, or any new hunters for that matter, is having a mentor to help get them started.
"When the last child left home about 8 years ago, I went out because I wanted to share something with him," she said. "I now hunt pheasant, turkey, deer and geese. This will be my fifth year hunting deer."
She hunts with a 20-gauge, Remington 11-87, 20-gauge shotgun. It's a youth model with a short stock.
"I've been wearing an old pair of wool, German military surplus pants that my husband got me years ago," she said. "This year, I bought a pair of camo bib pants, which are youth- sized and fit fine. I also bought a 'She' hunting jacket. It's expensive, but it fits."
Jen Reeher, 34, of Parish, said she started hunting five years ago when her former boyfriend brought home his first deer after several years of trying.
"Suddenly, our freezer was filled with meat," she said. "It was pretty cool."
Reeher, who stands 5 feet, 8 inches, has been hunting ever since. She's aware of the new line of female hunting clothes, but wears a "hand-me-down" men's hunting jacket and pants. She hunts with a .30-.30 Marlin rifle, which was made in 1936 and originally owned by her husband's grandfather. "It's short-barreled and light," she said.
Last weekend, Reeher shot a massive, 8-point buck from her tree stand that weighed 226 pounds after getting field dressed. It was her first buck. She proudly added that she processed the entire deer herself, "a chore that took all weekend."
"None of my female friends hunt," Reeher said. "But some have gotten interested. Some on Facebook have seen my deer and say they want to go hunting with me."


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Gamestop – Kohl’s quarterly sales beat estimates
Aug 19 (Reuters) – Kohl’s Corp (KSS.N) beat quarterly sales estimates on Thursday as the department store chain, like rival Macy’s Inc (M.N)
, benefited from Americans returning to brick-and-mortar stores, following the roll out of COVID-19 vaccines.
Net sales rose to $4.22 billion from $3.21 billion in the second quarter ended July 31, compared with analysts’ estimates of $4.02 billion, according to IBES data from Refinitiv.
Reporting by Uday Sampath in Bengaluru; Editing by Maju Samuel
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.


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China, India and Singapore lead the world in adoption of alternative payment methods (APMs); US and Canada lag in comparison.
The global COVID-19 pandemic has changed not only the way we interact, but also the way money moves. According to Everest Group, the pandemic has accelerated the digitalization of payments and prompted consumers and businesses to rely on digital and contactless payment options when buying and selling goods and services.
Although cash and cards still dominate in many geographies, the pandemic has accelerated momentum for already growing traction for alternative payment methods (APMs) across the globe. Among the most popular APMs are Alipay, Apple Pay, Google Pay, PayPal and Stripe. With the rise of digital payments and increase in online shopping, retailers are partnering with banks and FinTechs to offer a Buy-Now-Pay-Later (BNPL) facility to customers at check-out. The pandemic gave a massive boost to BNPL adoption and is expected to come under more regulatory scrutiny going forward, but that isn’t going to slow down this trend.
- The Asia Pacific region, particularly China and India, has experienced higher adoption maturity, spurring the mobile payments revolution. APMs account for nearly 55-60% of total e-commerce spending across Asia. In China, the largest digital payments market in the geography, digital wallets account for nearly 45% of e-commerce transactions.
- Comparatively, the U.S. and Canada lag in adoption, in part due to reliance on payment cards; however, the North American region is seeing a rapid increase in adoption of contactless cards and mobile payments. APMs are expected to capture over 50% of the market by 2022. Digital wallets are leading the pack in the US and bank transfer in Canada.
Banks and Payments Service Providers (PSPs) have been investing in payment modernization initiatives to shift to an open API-based architecture and adhering to the ISO 20022 payments messaging standard, which allows them to capture rich and structured data. These initiatives will help improve the payment experience.
In addition, evolving regulations and customer demands for a seamless experience across multiple channels are pushing banks and payment services providers (PSPs) to invest heavily in modernizing their payments technology stack. Payments technology service providers are investing in next-generation digital technologies such as the cloud, API, and AI/ML to provide an integrated payment ecosystem with value-added services, while managing risk and reducing fraud. Usage of data, advanced analytics and AI is fueling the rapid growth in next-generation fraud management solutions and value-added services.
These findings and more are discussed in Everest Group’s recently published report, “Modernizing Data, Applications, and Infrastructure for the Next Phase of the Payments Revolution.” In this report, Everest Group examines the payments technology market trends across products, experiences, infrastructure, regulations, data and technology themes. The report also looks at how technology vendors and service providers are increasing their investments to cater to these demand trends.
- With the rise of APMs such as cryptocurrencies, digital wallets and Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs), regulators are amplifying their scrutiny of new players and offerings. It has become mandatory for banks to upgrade their risk and compliance management systems for better fit to regulatory requirements and emerging security risks as a result of adoption of new forms of payments processing.
- Cryptocurrency as a payment method will soon become mainstream, as regulatory uncertainties gradually settle down and the market sees more institutional investments.
- Digital fiat might not replace cash, but the hesitation toward CBDC adoption will not last long; emerging economies are leading the race for CBDC development.
- Real-Time Payments (RTP) platforms—which initiate and settle payments nearly instantaneously—are being embraced globally; however, RTP maturity varies across countries due to differences in legacy infrastructure, richness of overlay services and the FinTech ecosystem, and openness to alternative payment methods.
- Banks and technology vendors are taking a partnership-led approach to offer innovative payment solutions for merchants, corporate entities, and specific industry verticals. BigTech firms are also getting into the race, tapping into the changed consumer behavior for payments by launching new offerings to grab wallet share.
About Everest Group
Everest Group is a consulting and research firm focused on strategic IT, business services, engineering services, and sourcing. Our clients include leading global enterprises, service providers, and investors. Through our research-informed insights and deep experience, we guide clients in their journeys to achieve heightened operational and financial performance, accelerated value delivery, and high-impact business outcomes. Details and in-depth content are available at http://www.everestgrp.com/


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Multinational retail giant Walmart has been searching for ways, even prior to the pandemic, to get their products into your home faster and easier, and now it appears they have found their partners to make this happen. Walmart will start delivering your orders using robots.
Walmart is teaming up with the Ford company to launch robo-delivery service in three large cities across the United States. For this service, Walmart is using Ford’s autonomous test vehicles equipped with sensors and software that has been developed by the autonomous driving technology company, Argo AI.
What this means for Walmart customers who live within a specific geographic location in Miami, Florida, Austin, Texas, or Washington, DC could be eligible to have their items delivered to them by Ford and Argo autonomous vehicles. The plan surrounding the company’s robot delivery service calls for “integration testing” to begin this year (in those three cities), with geographic expansion expected over time and with positive testing outcomes.
With recent reports that online grocery shopping is expected to grow fivefold over the next ten years, a robot delivery service could be a lucrative venture for these companies. It is also expected that American consumers will be spending upwards of $100 billion by 2025 on food-at-home products.
Ford is no stranger to robot delivery. They have been experimenting with robot delivery for quite a few years now. Ford, along with Walmart and Postmates, announced a grocery delivery pilot in 2018. The automaking giant also teamed up with Domino’s to help deliver pizza using Ford’s autonomous vehicles.
To make this robot delivery service a reality, the companies have a lot of work to do and figure out. The autonomous vehicles will need humans to monitor them which will include both behind the wheel as well as from command centers situated throughout the selected cities. This means any potential savings expected as it concerns labor is something that would be years away.
While robot delivery sounds like a relief to many, customers may still be put out, though not as much as they would be if they had to go to venture out to grocery stores. Still, potential customers would have to grab their deliveries from the vehicles themselves. This could present big problems for the elderly or disabled customers who are not as mobile. It could also be a big issue for the many who live in apartment buildings and who are used to delivery drivers bringing their products or food right to their front door.
Ford is not the only company working with Walmart to make this attempt at reality. Cruise, which hails from General Motors, has a pilot program of its own with the retail giant in the fine state of Arizona. That wily retail monster is not sitting pat with either Ford or GM, though They are also putting together nonexclusive partnerships with a large range of autonomous vehicle operators which include Udelv, Waymo, and Nuro.
Ford’s desire to make autonomous vehicles more of the future norm isn’t revolving solely on food or product deliveries. The automaking giant recently announced their partnership with Lyft to use robo-taxis in those same three cities mentioned above, to start rolling before the end of the year.
The Ford and Argo partnership hasn’t only been relegated to Miami, Austin, and D.C., they have also been testing their fourth-generation vehicles in the cities Detroit and Pittsburgh as well as various cities in California.
Argo is also taking their show on the road, internationally speaking, as they are preparing to launch their robot delivery and transportation services in Germany as they are teaming up with Volkswagen. They will be using their fifth-generation autonomous technology and look to kick that off by 2025.
Of course, Walmart, Ford, Argo, and all the other companies involved are hoping for better results than what Amazon has received with its drone delivery program, which has yet to truly take off. In the UK, the program has been beset with numerous failures to include a high rate of senior staff turnover, employees drinking beer at their desks, “approve buttons” being pinned down regardless of if it was a hazardous situation or not.
Walmart and its many partners seem to be smartly taking their time in making sure they have crossed all the T’s and dotted all the I’s before they truly roll out their robot delivery service in full force. The future is coming fast.