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Startup news and updates: daily roundup (Dec 30, 2021)
YourStory presents daily funding and news roundups from the Indian startup ecosystem and beyond. Here's the roundup for Thursday, December 30, 2021.
Tango Eye raises $1M in pre-Series A round led by Lenskart
Tango Eye, an retail AI (artificial intelligence) firm, has raised $1 million in pre-Series A round led by, the Temasek-backed eyewear retailer.
In June 2021, Lenskart launched its Vision Fund with plans to invest about $20 million across eye care, omnichannel retail, and eyewear, among other sectors.
Founded by Surender Gounder in 2018, Tango Eye converts CCTV videos into actionable insights. The Chennai-based firm will use the funding to improve their product, and hire people in tech and business development, which will enable growth.
EsportsXO raises $1.1M from Mumbai Angel Network, We Founder Circle, others
, a tournament platform for gaming enthusiasts, has raised $1.1 million in seed round from Mumbai Angel Network and We Founder Circle.
Hyderabad-based SucSEED Indovation Fund, and FAAD Network, which is based in Gurugram, among other investors, also participated in the round.
Founded in 2020 by Vikas Goel, a serial entrepreneur and angel investor, EsportsXO is a tournament discovery platform for gamers and gaming enthusiasts. Consumers can use the platform to publish and launch custom tournaments, among other things.
EsportsXO will also build an esport metaverse of players and fans. It will also offer other services including content, social networking, merchandising, NFTs and e-learning.
News round up
ties up with Bajaj Finance Ltd. to offer financial services for used car buyers
Recent unicorn CARS24 has tied up with Bajaj Finance Ltd., which provide small loans, to attract potential used car buyers.
Through this collaboration, Bajaj Finance Ltd. will facilitate used-car financing, which it claims would be frictionless.
This move comes when demand for used cars has been skyrocketing. And to tap on this demand CARS24 raised $400 million from Alpha Wave Global (earlier known as Falcon Edge Capital), at a $3.3 billion valuation.
While the consumer demand for pre-owned vehicles is skyrocketing, the consumer financing penetration in the Indian used cars industry stands at only ~15 percent, CARS24 said in a release.
“This synergic partnership promotes the idea of finance for used cars to a larger audience. We believe, there is huge potential in the used car segment and the right financial solutions will only help customers make the right decision in exploring this option,” said Anup Saha, Dy. CEO, Bajaj Finance Ltd.
ITC collaborates with Invest India for single-use plastic substitutions, others
ITC Paperboards and Specialty Papers Division (PSPD), a manufacturer of paper, paperboards and specialty paper, has collaborated with Invest India to launch the ‘ITC Sustainability Innovation Challenge’. This collaboration would support startup ideas on sustainable packaging and smart waste management solutions.
ITC PSPD is inviting solutions for startups for smart technology-based solutions to substitute single use plastics and automate waste segregation process.
Startups selected for the ITC Sustainability Innovation Challenge will be offered incentives, including mentorship, paid pilot opportunities, and certifications, at different stages of the process.
Autobot India establishes academy for EV learning
Autobot India, which provides information about electric vehicles (EV), has established the Autobot Academy.
“We have brought in the best EV experts from all over the world to ensure delivery of an engaging learning experience integrated with top-end technologies. There are seamless learning modes with hands-on projects and well-structured courses that offer domain specialization to the learners,” Ashwini Tiwary, Co-Founder and chief executive officer (CEO), Autobot India, said in a statement.
Run by Autobot Engineers India Pvt. Ltd., Autobot India was founded by Ashwini Tiwary in 2017. The Pune-based firm offers services as a solution in training, battery management system, and product development and design, among other things.


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Organisers of the Matabeleland Fashion Week have launched awards to celebrate individuals that have contributed to the growth of Zimbabwe’s fashion industry.
The event, scheduled for the Heath Streak Academy in Zimbabwe, has been set for November 1.
It will feature 10 designers who will each showcase a collection of 15 looks.
“There will be some guest models, notable individuals from the City of Bulawayo,” Hunnar Management Agency said in a statement.
“Seeing that our city is celebrating 120 years, we would like to commemorate those individuals from different backgrounds who have contributed to the building of Bulawayo.
“On the ramp, you should look out for some of your favourite and respected personalities.
“We are not expecting them to strut it like Tholakele Dlamini, but they will walk reasonably and we will love them for that.
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“Super model, Tholakele Dlamini will grace the ramps. She has been doing very well and was recently at the Zimbabwe Fashion Week”.
The agency said the highlight of the launch would be a red carpet affair hosted by Mbo Mahocs and ZBC/TV’s Nyasha “Diva” Mtamangira.
“The red carpet is set to acknowledge individuals that will be dressed for the occasion, and the organisers of the Fashion Week hope that many people will come through dressed in 100% Zimbabwean designs seeing that the night is about celebrating our country’s fashion,” the statement added.
“The Outfit Band will perform during the event, with most of their pieces being performed at the beginning of the event and after the runway shows.”
Categories for the awards are, best female model, best male model, upcoming model, best male designer, best female designer, outstanding display designs, outstanding make-up artist, outstanding hair stylist/house, outstanding photographer and sponsor of the Fashion Week.
However, the biggest awards on the night would be the female style icon of the year, male style icon of the year and international fashion contributor categories.
The three awards would be given to individuals that have contributed to the growth of Zimbabwean fashion, particularly in Matabeleland.

domain: news


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For the fourth year running, Mexico was the world’s leading beer exporter in 2013, with beer exports reaching a record 2.2 billion dollars, a rise of 4.2% compared to 2012, and well ahead of both the Netherlands ($2.0 billion) and Belgium ($1.6 billion).
Mexico has become the leading supplier of beer to the USA and now accounts for almost 50% of that country’s beer imports. It is also the leading supplier to Australia, Chile, Guatemala, Argentina and New Zealand, as well as the third leading supplier to Canada and the fourth largest to China and Japan.
The two major beer producers in Mexico are Grupo Modelo and Cervecería Cuauhtémoc Moctezuma.
The leading export brand is Corona which reaches 180 countries around the world. Over the past decade, Mexico’s beer industry has grown at 2.5%/year and analysts expect this rate to quicken, predicting output will rise from 71 million hectoliters this year to 82 million in 2020.
In the USA, quite a few Mexican beers will be consumed this Thanksgiving Day… Happy Thanksgiving to all!
- Mexico’s beer industry loses its national identity (Aug 2012)
- The emergence of two major beer-makers in Mexico (Sep 2010)
- The geography of Mexico’s beer industry (Jan 2015)


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Windows XP sells with surreal ads
By Theresa Howard, USA TODAY
Though Microsoft launched its Windows XP operating system
with its biggest promotion to date backed with a $500 million war chest
consumers didn't really connect with the TV ads.
In Ad Track, USA TODAY'S exclusive weekly consumer poll,
12% like the ads "a lot," vs. the Ad Track average of 22%. The ads, which feature
Madonna's Ray of Light, scored strongest, but just average, with young
adults ages 18 to 24: 24% liked them "a lot."
The ads, by McCann-Erickson, San Francisco, show surreal
images of people soaring through blue skies and over rolling green hills. The
hills were shot in Hawaii, and the actors were filmed wearing harnesses that
were digitally removed from the final version. The words "mix, edit, e-mail,
share" appear on the screen as Madonna's song plays in the background.
Consumers' take on the ads hasn't stopped them from buying
the product. XP sold more than 17 million copies within its first two months
on the market.
Perhaps that's because even if viewers didn't love the
ads, they remembered the XP brand.
"Internally we were pleasantly surprised with our own ad-tracking
data," says Anne Groom, director of brand and advertising research. She says
the ads helped boost consumers' awareness of Windows XP by 30% from September
"This is the most successful launch we've had," says Stephanie
Ferguson, head of PC experience marketing. "We're especially pleased considering
the economic climate."
Despite a big ticket price (at $99 for the home version
and $199 for the office edition) for recession times, XP's first two months
of sales were 300% higher than sales of Windows 98 and 200% greater than sales
of Millennium Edition two months after their respective launch dates in 1998
Creating ads for Windows XP was a challenge. The selling
message needed to strike the right chord with both potential business and home
users. And ads had to communicate the benefits of a complicated product in just
Pitching XP's multiple system improvements in e-mail, digital
movies and photography, and networking capabilities in such a brief time is
"It's certainly a challenge to look out across our business
and home users and come up with something that speaks to both of them," Ferguson
The ads tackled both challenges with the creative imagery
that was meant to suggest that the product has limitless possibilities.
"We took a step back and said, 'What is XP?' " Ferguson
says. "And we found it's personal empowerment. That's what the campaign was
aimed at capturing."
|This week's results1
|Like the ads a lot
|Among key target groups
|Dislike the ads
|Think they are very effective


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iPhone Rumors Ever since the first iPhone came out in the summer of 2007, every summer thereafter rumors have run rampant about what Apple will produce in its next round of updates. This year Rumors have run rampant about a bigger iPhone, cheaper iPhone, plastic iPhone, iPhone in colors, iOS 7, iWatch, and more but now I’m hearing Apple could be experiencing production delays across the board on all these new products.
I’m just picking apart an interesting conversation I was having last night. I’m talking to quite a few people who are considering or have already switched to a “Samsung” phone. These same people are asking me how to customize their phones so they can be as easy to use as the iPhone. Really??? You buy a Samsung phone because you can customize to be like an iPhone? I know the phones are a little cheaper and are now flooding the market but come on now… What are you getting yourself into??


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Once Washington voters legalized recreational marijuana sales two years ago, some pot advocates thought that everything would be smooth sailing from that point on. Unfortunately, the process has had more than its share of hiccups since then, with retailers slow to be approved for licenses and supply shortages hindering the industry's growth.
One byproduct of these problems has been a trend toward purchasing pot from medical marijuana dispensaries - even though buyers are consuming it recreationally. That's because medical marijuana cards are easy to obtain, there's a steady supply of product, and there's already plenty of dispensaries open across the state.
Naturally, some lawmakers want to fix this problem by imposing tighter regulations on either medical marijuana dispensaries or pot sales in general. But one publication has a novel solution to this entire dilemma: legalizing home-grown marijuana.
As outlined in the Seattle Post-Intellgiencer's "Pot Blog," here are some of the concepts being floated in draft legislation being spearheaded by state senator Jeanne Kohl-Welles of Seattle:
Any Washington resident over 21 years of age would be allowed to grow up to six plants of marijuana in his or her home for personal use. No medical marijuana licensing would be necessary.
This home-grown pot could not be sold; although up to an ounce could be shared with another person who is of age.
People who need medical marijuana but don't wish to grow it themselves can obtain it tax-free from licensed retailers. These people would have to have their physician contact the Washington Department of Health in order to obtain a medical marijuana ID that makes them eligible for this tax break.
Proponents say that this law is bound to be more enforceable and easier to follow than some new byzantine government bureaucracy that oversees medical marijuana only. Plus, it would allow recreational and medical pot retailers to operate under a single set of regulations, while consumers could buy their marijuana at any licensed retailer (with the only difference being that medical marijuana patients would pay not tax on their purchases).
Kohl-Welles says she plans on introducing a formal bill in less than a month's time. What do you think about this approach to solving Washington's medical (and recreational) marijuana problems?


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Tesla faces Wall Street doubt as cash problems mount
As Elon Musk's Tesla plans big moves to acquire SolarCity and launch the affordable Model 3 sedan, not everyone is so high on the company's prospects.
In a note to investors Thursday, a Cowen & Co. analyst said the company's stock could fall 20% in the next 12 months as the company juggles the acquisition of Solar City, continues work on its Gigafactory battery center in Nevada, and launches its Model 3 car, set to be released next year. The battery center is facing potentially higher operating costs than initially expected. As for the Model 3, the company received about 400,000 pre-orders for the $35,000 sedan.
Tesla (TSLA) shares fell 2.16% to close at $197.36 on Thursday.
"We see Tesla as a great company led by a true visionary," analyst Jeffrey Osborne. wrote in a note to investors. "Simply, we see a lot more that can go wrong than can go right as the company transitions into Mr. Musk’s greater vision."
In August Tesla announced it would buy SolarCity, a company also chaired by Musk, for $2.6 billion.
But the biggest issue for Tesla seems to be cash, or a lack thereof. On Wednesday the company said it would borrow up to $300 million from Deutsche Bank to help finance the company's vehicle leasing program.
The "integration of SolarCity likely will take some time and soak up badly needed cash," warns Osborne, whose "underperform" investment rating assumes the stock will fall at least 10% in the next year.
"The company, while fundamentally well positioned for the long term, has a material amount of execution risk over the next 12 to 18 months."
Follow Eli Blumenthal on Twitter @eliblumenthal


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Newry-founded global domestic appliance group Glen Dimplex is closing its manufacturing base in Portadown, with around 200 jobs expected to go in Northern Ireland over the next two years.
In a major restructuring announcement on Thursday, the company said it will invest €25 million in its Newry site, which will be repurposed into a centre of excellence for the manufacture of zero carbon, renewable heating solutions including heat pumps.
But the reorganisation will see panel and storage heating manufacturing transferring from the group’s sites in Newry and Portadown to a manufacturing site in Lithuania.
Glen Dimplex said that under the proposal, the Portadown site will close, most likely in 2025, with some staff redeploying to Newry, where it said “operations will evolve significantly”.
Around 200 people are employed at the Lurgan Road site in Portadown, which specialises in heating and ventilation products.
Staff at the Co Armagh factory were informed of the proposal on Thursday morning.
Glen Dimplex is one of the world’s largest electric heating manufacturers, employing 8,000 people across 20 countries, including 800 on the island of Ireland.
The company said while the restructuring plan will see around €40m invested within its island-wide operation, many jobs will go in the short-term.
In a statement, the Glen Dimplex said: “Subject to the outcome of a staff consultation process, up to 300 net redundancies are expected between late 2024 and 2026.
“Approximately two thirds of these losses will be in Northern Ireland and one third in Republic of Ireland and similarly, the new roles created will reflect the same spilt. “
“Redundancies are not expected for at least six months.
“Glen Dimplex will now start a consultation process with staff regarding its proposals.”
The company said it anticipates that the repurposing of its operations will eventually create around 200 new roles by 2029, with around 100 expected to be created north of the border.
Set up in Newry during 1973 by Dundalk-born by Martin Naughton, Glen Dimplex’s vast appliance business ranges from radio maker Roberts to Walker televisions and Belling cookers.
In 2022 the company sold its home appliance brand Morphy Richards a stock market-listed company in China for around €185m.
The company said its new restructuring plan, which is expected to involve €50m being invested across its European operation, follows a strategic review of the business.
The plans will also see Glen Dimplex relocate its sales and distribution arm from Cloghran in Co Dublin to Dunleer in Co Louth.
Group chief executive, Fergal Leamy, said: “Our transition will bring significant change and challenge in the near term but also phenomenal opportunities for the next generation and beyond.
“One thing is clear; the status quo is not an option as consumer demand and public policy chart course for zero carbon future.”
The new chief executive of Invest NI, Kieran Donoghue said the move will be “deeply upsetting” for staff in Portadown.
“We will work with the company and those affected to identify alternative employment opportunities and to pursue reskilling opportunities as appropriate,” said the new CEO.
“We will also work closely with the Department for the Economy and the Department for Communities to support the employees impacted by this decision.
“The company has been clear that the decision to consolidate its operations in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland is for commercial reasons.
“This restructuring will support its ultimate growth plans and potentially see the firm expand its business in Northern Ireland out of its second site in Newry.”


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Spied: New Bajaj Avenger spotted at a dealership in India
After reports of Bajaj Auto launching the new Avenger in India within a week's time, some photographs of the motorcycle are doing the rounds of the Interweb. The new Bajaj Avenger has been spotted at a dealership in Goa and was also seen testing on the road. Note that both the motorcycles are different, confirming the fact that there will be at least three new Bajaj Avenger variants on offer.
Rajiv Bajaj in an interview with Moneycontrol last week said that there are three Avenger variants to be expected and they should be launched within this week. The new Bajaj Avenger variant spotted in the dealership looks similar to err... the Harley-Davidson Street 750. A badging on the side panel indicates that Bajaj too are using the 'Street' label. At this point, though, it's not clear if the term will be included in the official moniker. The motorcycle in the spy shots has an all-black theme. Features include suspension forks, black alloy wheels (a first for a Bajaj cruiser), low handle bar, pillion backrest, exhaust as well as other cycle parts. The new Bajaj Avenger 'Street' will borrow its powerplant from the Pulsar AS 200/NS 200. The gear ratios will obviously be altered to suit the sportster style.
The other new Bajaj Avenger variant spotted was in its cruiser avatar. This one looks very similar to the current model on sale. There are a few changes though - these include the wind deflector, raised handle bars, exhaust can and more branched out mirrors. From the looks of it, this variant retains the old 220cc twin spark engine from the Pulsar 220.
Expect the new Bajaj Avenger trims to cost more than the current motorcycle.
Starts Rs 93,466
Starts Rs 5,17,000
Team OD | 19 Feb 2018
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Citi announced Monday, April 12, that its API (Application Programming Interface) connectivity platform has processed more than a billion API calls since its launch in 2017.
CitiConnect API marked 60% increase in message volume and transaction value during pandemic as businesses had to adapt quickly to a remote digital business environment, Citi said in a press release emailed to PYMNTS. The increase can also be attributed to several other transformations in the current business environment, such as new e-commerce models, instant payments, real-time processing and direct flows to consumers.
“Whether it’s recharging mobile wallets in India, disbursing micro-loans in Argentina or paying instantly in the United States, Citi’s digital channel solutions play a central role in helping clients of Citi Treasury and Trade Solutions (TTS ) achieve their goals and navigate. an industry in transformation, ”said the press release.
Of these and more use cases, this digital switchover is evident and will not go away, according to the most recent from PYMNTS Multichannel commerce mastery guide, produced in collaboration with Citi. Digital and mobile wallets, for example, are predicted to be used to pay for over 52% of e-commerce transactions in 2023 – and businesses continue to seek out new digitization solutions as they evolve.
Customers can integrate Citi TTS directly into their workstations and Enterprise Resource Platforms (ERP) to access cash management and trade finance solutions. CitiConnect offers more than 83 APIs – such as payment status reports, account balance requests, and exchange rate requests – to help customers deliver real-time, frictionless banking experiences, including data-driven transactions and services.
Transaction solutions include payments, instant payments, WorldLink transfers and request for payment. Data solutions include account services, self-service reporting, and real-time foreign exchange (FX) information.
“Partnering with Citi through an API-based integration has made it easy for us to deliver on our commitment to our customers by instantly sending payments to Citi and getting real-time feedback on the status of those payments,” Emily watsonFlywire’s senior director of global payments and banking services said in the press release. “Thanks to our agile process, this gives us maximum flexibility and savings in operational costs.”


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IKEA, the innovative Swedish furniture-store chain known for its assemble-it-yourself wood products, has its eye on metro Denver for one of its big, bright blue and yellow stores.
Company spokesman Joseph Roth confirmed this week that the Denver area is among several U.S. markets IKEA is considering for expansion.
"We certainly recognize the potential customer base in the Denver market ... We're evaluating all major metropolitan areas around the country to see if an IKEA store is appropriate," Roth said.
IKEA has hired local real estate broker Allen Ginsborg of Fort Collins to help it handle inquiries from land owners. Ginsborg declined comment this week.
But area retail sources understand IKEA also is scouting local sites, particularly along major highways such as Interstates 25 and 70. Areas near Park Meadows Town Center mall in Littleton as well as I-25 and Lincoln Street in Denver offer logical locations.
"They're seriously looking here. ... They're looking at every major artery," one Denver retail expert said.
A Denver-area store makes sense for IKEA because of this market's demographics, according to local retail experts.
"We've got the critical mass of urban dwellers for them, with all the new building and conversions we've had. ... But with their popularity, their trading ring would be 60 or 70 miles, which would include Boulder and Colorado Springs," said retail consultant Larry Black of Black Ink Results in Evergreen.
So far, IKEA has no time frame for when it might come to metro Denver, according to Roth. Its new U.S. stores have been set through 2007, and Denver isn't on that list.
A Denver store would be built under the auspices of the IKEA Group, IKEA's largest franchisee. Owned by the Stichting INGKA Foundation of Holland, the IKEA Group reported $12.2 billion in sales for 2003.
IKEA has announced plans to build five North American stores a year in the next 10 years or so -- roughly 50 stores by 2013.
New U.S. store locations already announced include ones in Davie, Fla.; Bloomington, Minn; Dublin, Calif.; New Haven, Conn.; and Frisco, Texas. IKEA's existing Houston store will be relocated.
But the company will continue to grow judiciously in this country, Roth said.
The Swedish furniture-store chain has only 18 U.S. stores, opening its first one in Plymouth Meeting, Pa., near Philadelphia in 1985. Plymouth Meeting remains the company's North American headquarters.
It took IKEA 40 years to finally expand to the United States.
IKEA specializes in simple Scandi-navian-style, low-priced furniture for home and work -- from a $7.99 plastic foot stool for the bathroom to a $229 swivel chair for the office. In between, the company sells cookware, children's furniture, Swedish food and items "for the pets." Though much of the chain's furniture is made of wood, it also uses materials such as plastic and metal.
The company is credited with creating, in the 1950s, furniture that requires some assembly and comes in flat packaging. Such packaging is cheaper because it requires less storage space and labor cost, and those savings are passed along to IKEA customers in relatively affordable prices.
IKEA also sets itself apart from competitors by setting furniture trends, rather than following them as other retail chains such as Pier 1 and Great Indoors do, according to retail experts.
"They're a well-known retailer of urban chic furniture and accessories, and that lifestyle," Black said.
In this country, IKEA often builds free-standing stores of roughly 350,000 square feet on 15 to 25 acres with room for 1,200 to 1,600 parking spaces, but has been known to take over vacant existing space. The company also likes to be near existing retail properties such as the Mall of America megamall near Minneapolis, Columbus Commons retail district in Philadelphia and midtown Atlanta's Atlantic Station mixed-use project.
IKEA is getting closer to Colorado with the Minnesota store, slated to open this summer, and its first Southwestern store in Tempe, Ariz., near Phoenix.
In February, the Arizona IKEA store broke ground as part of that city's Emerald Center mixed-use development. It will include 342,000 square feet of space on 23 acres along Interstate 10, with 1,200 parking spaces. The store, which will be IKEA's 22nd U.S. store, will employ about 400 people. It's scheduled to open in November.
Most markets like IKEA stores because they can generate strong customer traffic not only for themselves, but also for neighboring stores. IKEA locations attract families, which translates into "sales productivity," Robert Michaels, president and COO at Chicago-based mall owner General Growth Properties Inc., told the Shopping Center News trade publication last year.
The International Council of Shopping Centers, this country's major shopping-center trade group, produces the publication.
Another IKEA merchandising strategy that boosts sales involves showing customers how to design a room using its furniture, so that a store often sells more than one piece at a time.
"People see a presentation of products put together to see how they look. ... Then they buy it all," Black said.
IKEA was founded in 1943 by Ingvar Kamprad of Agunnaryd, Sweden, when he was 17. The business' name is a combination of Kamprad's initials, I.K., and the first letters of his family farm, Elmtaryd, and the village of Agunnaryd.
After selling furniture designed by others for several years, IKEA started designing its own pieces in the mid-1950s. That change led to the company's innovative, trademark unassembled furniture packaged in flat containers.
The furniture retailer opened its first store outside Sweden near Oslo, Norway, in 1963, and in the next few decades, moved into other Scandinavian countries, Europe and North America. By the 1990s, IKEA had ventured into the United Arab Emirates and China, and in 2000, the company launched its first Russian store in Moscow.
The franchisee's 18 existing U.S. stores range from Baltimore to Los Angeles.


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Mullingar's businesses have been asked to put a bowl of water out for the town's dogs while the current heat wave lasts.
With Met Eireann predicting that the high temperatures that have engulfed the nation for the best part of a month will continue for the next two weeks at least, Bridget D'Arcy from Lloyd's Pharmacy in Mullingar Shopping Centre wants her fellow retailers and other members of the business community to think about their four-legged friends.
Every morning for the last three weeks Ms D'Arcy has put a bowl of water outside the Lloyd's unit in the shopping centre. She says that there has been a great response from the many local dog owners who bring their pets with them when they are out and about.
“I think it's fundamentally important that all the businesses don't just look after their customers but that they are also looking after their four-legged friends as well. It would be nice if they would pop out a bowl of water with a little note saying: 'Water Station for Dogs'.
“...So many of us have them [dogs and cats]. It's just so simple and free. So just pop it out there,” she said.


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The US isolates China from the rest of the semiconductor world in terms of modern chip manufacturing. The short-term damage is enormous.
The US Department of Commerce has imposed the toughest sanctions to date on the Chinese semiconductor industry. They largely prevent US and US-related companies from working with Chinese manufacturers and lead to the migration of many engineers. What happened to Huawei in 2020 could just flourish for the entire Chinese semiconductor industry.
The US Department of Commerce announced the new export controls on October 7, 2022, and fully implemented them by October 12. They primarily apply to US companies – but since the semiconductor industry is globally networked and practically everything uses a bit of US technology, companies such as ASML from the Netherlands and TSMC from Taiwan also adhere to the restrictions. Especially in times of Chinese aggression, Taiwan tries to win the sympathy of the USA, which promises military support in return.
Massive restrictions lead to isolation
With the new trade restrictions, the USA is restricting the sale of high-performance chips and other components to Chinese companies on the one hand and their production on the other. Since these points are roughly formulated, the world market leader TSMC is said to no longer tape out for Chinese companies for the time being. This means that companies can no longer send chip designs to TSMC to have them manufactured there.
In addition, cooperation with Chinese manufacturers such as the chip contract manufacturer SMIC and the memory manufacturer Yangtze Memory Technologies (YMTC) is practically completely prevented. According to this, US companies and those who use US technology are no longer allowed to work with Chinese chip manufacturers if their semiconductor plants produce one of the following chip categories:
- Logic chips (e.g. processors) with 3D transistors (like FinFETs or GAAFETs) and a structure width of 16 nanometers or finer
- DRAM chips with a structure width of 18 nanometers or finer
- NAND flash memory with 128 layers or more
SMIC is mass-producing with 14/12 nm technology and already has a running 7 nm process for small chips. YMTC is China’s largest memory manufacturer with 128-layer NAND flash devices. Both companies rely on equipment and design tools from US companies Applied Materials and Lam Research, as well as ASML, among others. Even before that, ASML was not allowed to sell lithography systems with extreme ultraviolet (EUV) exposure technology to Chinese companies – there were rumors in the summer about an upcoming expansion to all lithography systems.
The US cites risks to national security and foreign policy interests as justification. In particular, the construction of supercomputers for the Chinese military should be prevented. Exception licenses are said to be difficult to obtain.
Undersecretary of Commerce for Industry and Security said, “As I told Congress in July, my number one goal at the Bureau of Industry and Security is to ensure that we are doing everything we can to protect our national security and… prevent sensitive technology with military applications from being acquired by the military, intelligence and security services of the People’s Republic of China.”
US citizenship is at stake
In addition to the restrictions on chip contract manufacturing, a new regulation meets China’s efforts to advance domestic semiconductor production: US nationals are no longer allowed to support the development or production of chips at certain semiconductor plants located in China. U.S. citizenship may be revoked for violations.
At the moment there are no known exceptions, which is why all connections are cut first. According to the South China Morning Post, engineers have therefore left China in large numbers – whether they were employed by companies like SMIC themselves or were on site on behalf of US companies like Applied Materials. ASML has sent out an internal memo at its US offices, urging all employees to stop all direct and indirect contact with Chinese companies.


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The Asia team is one of TransferWise’s largest regional tribes. We look after 15 currencies and focus on making sending money to and from Asia as cheap, fast, and convenient as possible.
We’ve been working on a number of projects this quarter to deliver on our mission of money without borders for all our customers in Asia and we wanted to share with you a few updates about what we’ve been up to.
Our Singapore office has been open just over a year and there’s now more than 80 people - with plans to be over 100 by next year! We’re always looking for more people to help us so if you’re interested to join our revolution, check out our open roles in Singapore.
In October, we launched an integration with the Singapore Government’s MyInfo program, which lets us instantly verify local customers. MyInfo is a service that reduces the need for citizens and residents to provide verifying documentation during online transactions.
The majority of customers in Singapore can now enjoy the seamless onboarding experience with secure verification. It will also help us improve authentication accuracy, security and efficiency, and - in the long run - help reduce fees due to decreased on-boarding costs.
We’ve made big improvements in verification since we started our office in Singapore over a year ago. From the need for mandatory face-to-face verification when we first launched, to the introduction of selfie and document uploads earlier this year, and now to instant verification that can be made with the MyInfo integration today, we have successfully cut down the required lengthy verification wait time in the span of a year.
Earlier this year, we became the first non-bank company to directly access the UK’s Faster Payments Scheme. This direct link has meant significantly faster transfers for our UK customers and lower fees.
We are now working to deliver the same improvements in Asia so that our customers can get their transfers faster and cheaper.
In Hong Kong, we have made transfers much faster after connecting to Hong Kong’s instant payments infrastructure - Faster Payments System (FPS) - through our local partner.
As a result, customers should already be seeing significant speed improvements. Previously it used to take a day or more to send money to or from Hong Kong; with this integration, transfers are now within a few minutes.
Long-term, we’re also working to connect directly to Hong Kong’s instant payments infrastructure - Faster Payments System (FPS) - to speed up the remaining transfers that aren’t already instant.
Earlier this year, we launched TransferWise for Business in Japan. This allows businesses in Japan to send and receive money much cheaper and faster than previously possible through their banks.
We rolled this out to full availability at the start of the quarter, and since then we’ve seen a big uptake amongst businesses in Japan using TransferWise to pay invoices, process batch payments, and more.
Customers in Japan have been asking us for some time to help them send money to China. We heard you and we’ve opened this route! For customers sending money from Japan to China the cost is ¥160, plus a 1.5% fee.
Diwali marks the celebration of light over darkness and we wanted to help our Indian customers celebrate the holiday.
For our customers sending money to friends and family in India, we made sure to share some well wishes every time money arrived instantly during the festival.
Our hope was that these fun new animations made our customers’ holidays a little bit brighter when they sent money home.
We’re excited about the future for our customers sending money to and from Asia and we’re working hard to make transfers instant, convenient, transparent, and eventually free.
We’re always looking for help - if you want to join our revolution, check out our jobs page.
The TransferWise Asia Team
This article summarizes some of the results from the report that experts at TÜV Süd wrote about TransferWise.
Announcing the partnership of Xero and TransferWise, which gives SMBs in the UK an easy bill payment solution through Xero
We’ve just finished Q3. It’s time for an update on how much closer we’ve got to making our mission of Money Without Borders a reality.
Our mission has become irreversible, the company financially independent, and adoption continues to accelerate. Thank you - TransferWise customers - for...
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We’ve just finished Q2. So it’s time to update you on how our teams have made progress on the TransferWise mission over the last three months.


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Harvey Norman still doing it tough
UPDATE 1.35pm: Harvey Norman's first-half profit has dropped by 36 per cent because of weaker sales and falling property values.
The retailer made a net profit of $81.9 million in the six months to December 31, down from $128.95 million in the previous corresponding period.
Total sales in the six months to December fell by 7.3 per cent from the previous corresponding period, to $2.88 billion.
The value of the company's properties dropped by $31.5 million in the six months to December, mainly because of losses on the value of three recent developments.
Chairman Gerry Harvey said retail conditions were still tough, but offered some optimism for the future.
"The aggressive discounting experienced in the second half of 2012 has stabilised and pleasingly we are seeing an uptick in sales," he said in a statement.
"Interest rates are at historical lows which should start moving the consumer back into the buying cycle from the savings cycle.
"The company closed nine stores and opened six new stores in the six months to December.
Excluding the impact of new stores and store closures, Harvey Norman's sales in the period dropped by 5.3 per cent from the previous corresponding period.
Like-for-like sales in Australia were down by 6.3 per cent, but were up three per cent in New Zealand.
Harvey Norman declared a fully-franked interim dividend of 4.5 cents per share, down from five cents for the same period in the previous year.
Harvey Norman shares closed up 21 cents, or 9.21 per cent, at $2.49.
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The South Korean economy is expected to grow 2.9 percent next year, slowing down from this year's estimate of a 3.1 percent expansion, as export growth and domestic consumption recovers, while facility investment declines.
"Our economy's export growth will be maintained and domestic consumption should recover, but a growth of facility investment and construction will slow down," the KDI said in its latest outlook report.
The KDI's latest growth estimate for next year is higher than its earlier forecast of 2.5 percent in April. The institute's 2017 growth forecast is also revised up from its earlier estimate of 2.6 percent.
It predicted that exports, the country's main economic driver, will climb 3.8 percent next year on the back of a continued recovery of global trade, accelerating from this year's estimated 2.4 percent gain.
Growth of private consumption will increase 3 percent next year from an estimated 2.7 percent this year.
Total fixed investment, however, is likely to grow 1.7 percent next year, sharply down from this year's 8.5 percent gain, as facility investment and the construction-related investment suffered a sharp drop.
Facility investment is expected to increase 3 percent next year, decelerating from this year's 8.5 percent gain, while construction investment will rise 0.4 percent in 2018, down from a 7.2 percent jump estimated for 2017.
The country's current account surplus is estimated at US$78.5 billion for next year, similar to this year's $79 billion.
The unemployment rate will stay at some 3.7 percent, slightly down from this year's estimated 3.8 percent.
The think tank, moreover, noted that economic growth will face downside pressures due to rising uncertainties at home and abroad.
"A potential drop in chip prices and a deterioration in terms of trade could force the economy to hover below its growth path," the report said.
"On the domestic side, the economy could be affected by a possible drop in asset prices caused by increased market interest rates and a worsened household debt problem."
The country's central bank is expected to carry out another rate raise next year in light of its guarded stance and the country's mild inflation.
In a monthly policy meeting last week, the Bank of Korea (BOK) hiked the base rate by a quarter percentage point to 1.5 percent amid clear signs of an economic recovery, snapping the 16-month run of its wait-and-see stance.
To cushion the external and internal risks and uncertainties, the monetary and fiscal authorities may have to take a fiscal expansionary and monetary easing stance next year.
"Given the current inflation and economic situation, the country's easing monetary policy needs to be maintained for the time being, and the expansionary fiscal policy should be kept," it said. (Yonhap)


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Our biggest stories of the week are ...
If we were creating a bank today, how would we create it? This is a question that comes up regularly and I haven’t tried to answer it for a while, but thought I’d give it a go this week, as...
Interesting reaction to yesterday’s kick-off about a new bank with some asking: where’s the customer focus? The customer focus is clear, but the first thing is to clearly define the customer. My customer is not a demographic. They are not old or young ...
So how are we going to make money in this brand new bank? This is the toughest question as it’s quite easy to make money in finance by focusing upon rate churn. Just offer lower interest rates on loans and...
In the last of my explorations of building a new bank, here's why the new bank will win. One of the biggest things that constrains existing banks is their past. They were created over a century ago to manage retail...
I find it funny to think about the lengthy discussions of mobile that takes place these days at all the banking and payments conferences I go to. The more this goes on, the more I find myself sceptical of the banks approach and more supportive of the opportunity for the non-banks.
The major general news stories of the week include ...
Visa Unveils Digital Wallet Strategy - Payments News
Visa has announced the "next generation of payments solutions that will replicate the ease, reliability and security of Visa point-of-sale payments within traditional and digital eCommerce, mobile commerce and burgeoning social networking commerce environments. New offerings are expected to include a secure cross-channel digital wallet and a range of customized
HSBC wants to save up to £2bn by cutting the scale of its wealth management and retail divisions.
EU’s Rehn Warns of ‘Devastating’ Impact of Greek Restructuring - Business Week
The European Union stepped up warnings against a restructuring of Greece’s sovereign debt, saying such a move would have “devastating implications” for the country and the euro area as a whole.
European banks face tough new stress tests - The Telegraph
Europe's largest banks will undertake a new round of stress tests next year that will be tougher than any they have yet faced, according to a senior official with the European Commission.
Telephone torture - BBC
One man's story of being hounded for his debts
Cavalier finance industry has killed the incentive to save - The Telegraph
The causes of Britain's poor savings rate are doubtless many and varied, but right up there at the top of the list has to be an age old problem - why would anyone want to save with a financial services industry whose modus operandi seems to be to feast on
PPI: Why it's time for change at the British Bankers Association - The Telegraph
Finally the British Bankers Association (BBA) has done something right, but it may be the last thing that Angela Knight does as the trade body's chief executive.
Why the banks must follow Lloyds and fold on the PPI scandal - The Telegraph
There is a story, possibly apocryphal, that when Eric Daniels made his first trip to Brussels to discuss what Lloyds Banking Group would be forced to sell as part of the bail-out deal he planned to take with him an army of lawyers.
Former Barclays banker Roger Jenkins has been named Britain's richest high street banker - with a fortune worth an estimated £150m.
Basel III to hit money fund sector - Financial Times
The $4,400bn global money market fund industry could end up becoming one of the biggest losers from the post-crisis regulatory clampdown on the banking sector.
If you like the Finanser, check out the books of the blog: the new Complete Banker Series
The Financial Services Club is sponsored by:
For details of sponsorship email us.
Chris M Skinner
Chris Skinner is best known as an independent commentator on the financial markets through his blog, TheFinanser.com, as author of the bestselling book Digital Bank, and Chair of the European networking forum the Financial Services Club. He has been voted one of the most influential people in banking by The Financial Brand (as well as one of the best blogs), a FinTech Titan (Next Bank), one of the Fintech Leaders you need to follow (City AM, Deluxe and Jax Finance), as well as one of the Top 40 most influential people in financial technology by the Wall Street Journal's Financial News. To learn more click here...


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Apple’s mobile gaming subscription service, the Apple Arcade, was a bit of a surprise when it first launched. In the days since, it’s gathered many high-profile games under its umbrella, from Sayonara Wild Hearts to smaller indie gems like Grindstone and the recently launched Guildlings.
This new service is, according to longtime mobile devs, fixing a long-standing problem in the mobile space. Asher Vollmer, the developer of breakout indie hit Threes who’s currently working on Guildlings, told USgamer in a recent interview that it’s “healing a wound that has shown up over the course of time” in mobile gaming.
“The mobile game space has been in a strange place for the past few years, because free-to-play games have sort of been turning off this core audience that would be more interested in traditional games,” Vollmer told USG over Discord. “And so it ended up in this feedback loop where developers would not create premium mobile games because the audience had left, and then if anyone showed up there, there would be no games for them.”
Vollmer credits Apple’s work towards making a library of premium games that are up-front, rather than a scattered collection of free-to-play games with “unclear motives.” Fellow Guildlings developer Jamie Antonisse echoed the sentiment.
“I think it allows for a more positive, honest relationship between the developers and the players,” Antonisse says.
Apple’s subscription service raised a lot of questions about the price of games and how those models might evolve in the future. With other options like Xbox Game Pass and PlayStation Now also coming forward, it seems like subscription services are quickly becoming as popular in gaming as they are in other media.
But for mobile specifically, the model allows premium games to avoid microtransactions and models that can make the space look excessively greedy. The idea of longer, narrative experiences or even just a discrete, transaction-less game on your phone can become the norm when a subscription can bear the overhead costs.
We’ll have more about Guildlings’ Apple Arcade debut next week. In the meantime, check out our thoughts on another Arcade gem, Sayonara Wild Hearts.


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Chimi Dema | Tsirang
Without exporters coming to buy his mandarin orange, a farmer in Kilkhorthang in Tsirang, Sonam, sold his orange worth Nu 130,000 to a local vendor who supplies to Thimphu.
Owing to the global pandemic, the farmer who used to take orange to depots in Gelephu in the past couldn’t this time.
Sonam said that he had also bought fruits from his neighbours expecting buyers for export.
He said that although the price wasn’t as expected he had to sell the orange due to financial situations. “For the amount of orange which could fetch about Nu 50,000 in the past, I couldn’t get more than Nu 15,000 this time.”
Another farmer from the gewog said that it was difficult to sell his orange even within the dzongkhag with the weekend market closed due to the nationwide lockdown.
He said that owners of small orchard faced major market problems.
Local vendors are helping link farmers to local market.
Budhi Man Tamang, a vendor, supplied three truckloads of orange to Thimphu last week.
A vendor from Semjong, Deo Bdr. Jogi, has so far supplied more than 40 boxes of orange to Thimphu and Paro. A box of oranges (about 300 pieces) is sold at about Nu 1,300.
The vendors, however, said that it was difficult to sell orange without ready buyers.
“Moreover, we need to return to our station on the same day,” Budhi Man Tamang said.
Tsirang so far has supplied over 17 metric tonnes (MT) of mandarin orange to Thimphu and Paro.
Dzongkhag agriculture officials said that given the labour intensive task, exporters could not go to orchards to buy orange.
“Instead, farmers owning small orchards or from far-flung places were encouraged to take their produces to depots,” the official said.
In an effort to solve market problem facing orange growers, officials said that farmers were asked to explore different options. “They can take to either depots in the dzongkhag or in Gelephu or Phuentsholing.”
Officials also said that major orange growers were asked to contact the exporters and negotiate rates accordingly. “We have also requested gewog administrations to help with transportation should need arises.”
However, despite the second nationwide lockdown, mandarin export from Tsirang is going on smoothly these days.
Damphu-based exporter, Dina Nath Adhikari, has exported about 30MT of orange since the nationwide lockdown on December 23.
As of yesterday, he has supplied over three metric tonnes of mandarin to local market.
About 10MT of orange that did not meet export quality were bought by Bhutan Agro Industries Limited from the depot.


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Nov. 5 (Reuters) – In the first major overhaul of Elon Musk’s social media platform, Twitter updated the app on Apple’s App Store on Saturday, charging $8 for the popular blue check verification mark. started.
The change comes a week after Musk acquired the social media company in a $44 billion deal. The billionaire entrepreneur and his CEO of electric car maker Tesla (TSLA.O) has vowed to cut Twitter’s staff in half and charge users more.
In an update for Apple iOS devices, Twitter says that for $7.99 a month, if you “sign up now,” you’ll get a blue check mark next to your username “just like the celebrities, businesses, and politicians you already follow.” I said I could receive it.
Before Musk took over, a blue checkmark next to a username meant Twitter verified that the account belonged to the person or company claiming it. It wasn’t immediately clear if Twitter had other ways or plans to verify user identities other than charging a fee.
Other benefits of the update include “half ads,” the ability to post longer videos to Twitter, and priority ranking for quality content, according to the iOS notice.
Twitter and Musk did not immediately respond to requests for comment via Tesla.
Twitter’s new boss flagged the update earlier this week in a move to monetize the social media network and make it less reliant on advertising. Twitter is currently free for most users.
Twitter’s latest update says the verified new service will be available in the US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and the UK.
In a tweet on Saturday, Musk said, “We’ve made sure it’s working well in the first set of countries, and will roll it out globally once translation work is complete.”
Twitter Blue will be rolling out in India “hopefully within a month,” Musk tweeted in response to questions from his followers.
In a separate tweet, Musk added that “fixing search is a top priority” on Twitter.
“We can beat that,” he replied in another tweet when a user pointed out that YouTube gives creators 55% of their advertising revenue.
Musk tweeted, “Twitter will soon add the ability to attach long text to tweets, ending the absurdity of notepad screenshots, followed by creator monetization of all forms of content.” would,” he added.
As of Saturday, the update to Twitter Blue remained at its previous price of $4.99.
Shortly after the update rolled out to users, Twitter’s early-stage product executive Esther Crawford said the new service hadn’t rolled out yet.
“The new Blue isn’t out there yet. We’re still in the sprint to launch, but we’re testing and pushing changes in real time, so some people see us doing updates. maybe,” she said. Tweet.
Earlier this week, Crawford went viral after retweeting a photo of himself sleeping on the office floor of his San Francisco headquarters following the Musk takeover.
“When your team is on a 24/7 deadline, #SleepWhereYouWork may be necessary.”
Additional reporting by Megan Davies. Her Sneha Bhowmik from Bangalore.Editing by Daniel Wallis and Ken Lee
Our standards: Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.


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With seven 318 catamarans—each to be powered by twin Mercury Racing Verado 400R outboard engines—reportedly on order at Skater Powerboats in Douglas, Mich., Skater founder Peter Hledin and national sales manager Tony Cutsuries “couldn’t be happier” with the success of the 31-footer. The first of those seven 318 cats is scheduled for a mid-September delivery to a customer in Alabama.
“We’re going to take it up to Mercury Racing to dial in it first,” said Cutsuries. “I’m expecting it to be a lot faster than the first 318 with 400 Verados, which was a pretty heavy boat.”
Cutsuries credits Steve Lane, the owner of the first Verado 400-powered Skater 318 (shown above during its first sea-trials in late 2015 near Mercury Racing in Fond du Lac, Wis.), with fueling the popularity of the 31-footer. Photo courtesy/copyright Pete Boden/Shoot 2 Thrill Pix.
The next pair of 318 cats will be delivered to Performance Boat Center in Osage Beach, Mo., for customers in the Lake of the Ozarks area. Skater will mount the 400R outboards on jack plates prior to delivery to Performance Boat Center, which will handle the remainder of the rigging. The other four 318 models have been ordered by customers in Michigan and Wisconsin and will be delivered in 2017, according to Cutsuries.
“I don’t know exactly what’s driving the 318 craze, but it’s awesome,” he said. “I know that everybody loves the Verados—they’re proven. I do know it’s a great package, a turn-key boat with a very large cockpit that runs really, really well in rough water.
Cutsuries also credited Steve Lane, the owner of the first Verado-400R Skater 318, with helping showcase the cat.
“He has been 100 percent helpful,” said Cutsuries. “People see Steve running around in the boat. He’s taken so many people for demo rides it’s unbelievable.”


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The payment sector has recently experienced remarkable transformations owing to the increasing utilization of digital technologies and the growing need for secure, seamless, and convenient payment processes. Here are some global trends to look out for.
The first trend will be the growth of digital payments. With the growing use of smartphones and internet access, digital payments have seen a surge in popularity and usage. People are leaning towards using mobile wallets, contactless payments, and other digital payment methods for their transactions.
Fintechs are shaking up the traditional financial services sector by introducing innovative payment options, one of them being embedded payments, making inter-app payments a lot easier. They can easily switch from one app to another and make payments, leading to a better user experience.
The growth of e-wallets is going to be substantial. E-wallets offer accessibility, affordability, convenience, and improved security, making them appealing to unbanked populations. More businesses will use one-click and in-app payments to make transactions more convenient.
As the payment industry continues to evolve, security remains a top priority. Payment providers are investing in cutting-edge security technologies, and many companies use AI and machine learning technologies to use advanced verification steps.
These worldwide developments will most likely continue to influence the payment solutions industry in the coming years, but this year might bring some exciting opportunities, especially in the realm of the digital economy.


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Samsung Galaxy A8 Plus (2018) heading to India as Amazon exclusive
- Teaser listing reveals Samsung Galaxy A8 Plus will launch exclusively on Amazon in India
- Pricing and a release date for Samsung’s larger mid-range device have yet to be revealed
- Galaxy A8 Plus sports a 6-inch Full HD+ display and a dual front-facing camera with Live Focus
We’re less than a week away from CES 2018 where, among a flood of other major consumer tech announcements and reveals, Samsung will show off its new mid-range smartphones, the Galaxy A8 (2018) and Galaxy A8 Plus (2018).
We already know almost everything about the two devices – you can check out a full spec list here – but availability and pricing is still up in the air. While US pricing and a launch date should come at the Las Vegas show, an Amazon listing has now confirmed that the larger Galaxy A8 Plus will arrive in India as an Amazon exclusive.
At the moment, the listing is just a teaser page where consumers in the region can sign up for availability updates. As such, we don’t have any price details at time of writing.
The regular Galaxy A8 is currently up for pre-order in Samsung’s home country of South Korea for the equivalent of $564, so it seems likely that the Galaxy A8 Plus will push beyond the $600 mark in all regions, but somewhere below the $650 threshold.
With top-tier devices still something of a hard sell in India’s emerging market, the A-series represents a nice balance between the S-series flagships and Samsung’s popular J-series phones.
It also features a dual 16MP + 8MP front-facing camera with a Live Focus mode that lets you alter the background blur in selfies after taking a photo. The Galaxy A8 Plus is powered by an octa-core processor backed by 4GB of RAM, 32/64GB of storage, and a 3,500 mAh battery.
With Xiaomi making steady gains, could the Galaxy A8 Plus help swing momentum back to Samsung in the hotly contested Indian market? Let us know in the comments.


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Rising consumer appetite and confidence in Asia will grow the toy industry by 4 to 6 percent this year, and the Philippines will benefit from this opportunity in global business.
"Our expectation is that Asia will be a driving force in the global toy industry in the next five to 10 years," Ernst Kick, president of Nürnberg, Germany-based Spielwarenmesse eG, told reporters in a briefing in Makati City on Thursday.
Kick said the Asian toy industry is expected to grow by 4 to 6 percent, citing industry observations that the region is growing rapidly on the consumer side from year to year.
Asia accounts for 16 to 17 percent market share of the toy industry, which is dominated by the US with 25 percent, followed by Europe with 22 percent, Spielwarenmesse data showed.
With the overall growth in the region, Kick said the Philippine toy industry is expected to grow at the same levels as more consumers are spending, not only on necessities but also on wants which include toys.
"There's a social change... more consumers are spending. The more educational programs are successful, the more people are going on a higher social level," he said.
"The Philippines also has a lot of young people eager to move forward and the right structure of generation, not over-aged like in China and Germany," he noted.
Kick said more toymakers are capable of expanding even globally as the Philippines is an English-speaking country and has a growing pool of educated people.
At least four local toy makers - JS Global, Hansa Toys, Tatiri Fashion and Cremm Toys - are joining Spielwarenmesse Toy Fair 2014 to be held in Nürnberg Jan. 29 to Feb. 3, 2014.
Spielwarenmesse is a leading international fair for toys, hobbies and leisure organized by fair and marketing services provider Spielwarenmesse eG.
"I am optimistic… because the Philippines is in an excellent position, with well-educated people who are speaking in English, unlike other Asian countries, making it easier to enter the world market," Kick said.
"We hope to attract more Philippine exhibitors next year," he added. – VS, GMA News


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AMD Rewards players await Starfield keys as early access looms. Despite promises, AMD has yet to distribute keys for pre-loading.
Bethesda’s Starfield title screen ignites a debate with former WoW director Mark Kern, leading to a defense from Bethesda’s Pete Hines.
Imagine being the architect of your own interstellar adventure, voyaging across the cosmos in the grandest of Bethesda Game Studios’…
Prepare for an interstellar odyssey with Starfield, Bethesda’s latest IP. Explore 1000+ planets from Sept 6, 2023. The stars await


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A Woman Of Color Is The Newest Addition To The C-Suites: Kim Kardashian’s Skims Hires Former Jordan Brand’s Andy Muir As CFO
KIM KARDASHIAN’S SKIMS JUST HIRED A WOMAN OF COLOR AS ITS NEW CFO.
UNITED STATES — The innerwear and swimwear brand cofounded by Kim Kardashian and Los Angeles-based fashion entrepreneur Jens Grede has hired Jordan brand veteran Andy Muir to serve as its new chief financial officer.
“I am thrilled that Andy has joined Skims,” Grede told WWD exclusively. “Not only does she bring a wealth of experience with her from Jordan and Nike, but she has been a champion for diversity and inclusion initiatives throughout her career. Andy truly represents the core values of Skims.”
Those core values are part of why Muir decided to join the brand. “Skims truly is for everyone,” she said. “It has the power to connect with women of all ages, sizes and backgrounds. It’s inspiring to be a part of a brand where inclusivity and accessibility are the heart of the business.”
In addition to inclusivity efforts, the seasoned retail executive — who most recently served as vice president and chief financial officer of the Jordan Brand, which is part of Nike Inc. — has been tasked with leading the company’s growth and financial plans as it attempts to expand internationally. During Muir’s time at Nike she also served on Nike’s enterprise DEI task force and was a charter member of Nike’s finance DEI steering committee. Muir’s résumé includes senior leadership positions at PepsiCo’s Frito-Lay division, and as a systems engineer at Motorola and Scientific Atlanta (the company that is now Cisco Systems).
Muir’s arrival to the Skims team comes as the brand sets out to scale in new markets around the world. In January, Skims revealed that it had raised $240 million in a series B funding round, led by Lone Pine Capital, bringing the firm’s valuation to $3.2 billion.
Grede later told WWD that the additional capital would be used to innovate in new categories, open brick-and-mortar Skims stores and expand abroad. Outside of the U.S. market, Skims is available in Selfridges in the U.K. and parts of Europe, as well as select wholesale partners internationally.
Earlier this month, Skims launched its first bilingual campaign, which included English- and Spanish-language advertisements, featuring Spanish singer-songwriter Rosalía, and said it was hoping to reach audiences outside of the English-speaking world.
“As Skims expands globally, it’s important to me that we partner with people who resonate with international audiences,” Kardashian told WWD. “As a young brand that’s still growing, we are focused on aligning ourselves with those who represent our brand mission and ethos, while having global influence.”
Photos Credit: COURTESY PHOTO PAUL CARTER


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Nat Bellocchi served as chairman of the American Institute in Taiwan from 1990 through 1995. The views expressed in this article are his own.
Fri, Feb 01, 2013 - Page 8 News List
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City Offers Street Space to Downtown Restaurants and Retailers
Soon, Corvallis restaurants may have more outdoor dining space thanks to a new program the City of Corvallis is rolling out – and retailers can also participate.
Approved restaurants and retailers will temporarily expand into adjacent on-street parking spaces to provide more outdoor dining, seating, or shopping spaces. The temporary business right-of-way use runs from application approval until September 30, 2020. Businesses may apply for the permit free of charge through the Public Works Department website. Restaurants that serve alcohol also need to coordinate with the Oregon Liquor Control Commission.
Joint Effort Made This Happen
“This is huge news for our Downtown Corvallis businesses and restaurants!” according to Downtown Corvallis Association Executive Director Jennifer Moreland.
“Many restaurants had to reduce the number of tables inside of their restaurants due to phase two guidelines. These new permits from the city allow restaurants the ability to make up for lost seats with the outdoor dining options.”
Moreland regularly networks with other downtown associations across the state and was inspired by another community that closed one street to allow restaurants to expand their outdoor seating. She wanted to see whether Corvallis could do something and reached out to Jerry Sorte, the Corvallis-Benton County Economic Development Supervisor.
Sorte and Moreland’s agencies teamed up and advocated for this use exception and worked with the City of Corvallis to make it happen.
“Our businesses need flexibility so they can reopen and maintain safe physical distancing,” said Sorte. “This gives them the opportunity to expand their operations outdoors and take full advantage of the beautiful summer season in Corvallis.”
“Also, during Crazy Days July 9-12, many retail businesses will take advantage of the extra shopping area to allow for physical distancing during the outdoor sidewalk sales,” Moreland added.
As restaurants and other small businesses struggle to recover some of the money lost due to COVID-19, this program provides a needed boost.
Castor and TacoVino Look Forward
“It is essential for our business to stay open,” said TacoVino co-owner John Sobolewski.
With Phase One and Two physical distancing guidelines, restaurants can only seat a limited number of patrons compared to their usual capacity.
Sobolewski said TacoVino can serve around 50-60 percent of their capacity. Expanding seating into some of the parking spaces may allow them to fit as many as five or six more tables which dramatically improves their very slim margins.
Evan Deffenbacher, one of Castor’s partners in the business, agrees. Castor currently isn’t able to offer patio seating. Inside, they can seat diners at just 12 out of their usual 30 tables while maintaining appropriate physical distancing. The ability to seat diners outside in some of the parking spaces would provide space for another six to eight tables.
“It’s Christmas come early!” said Deffenbacher. “That’s another job we can bring back for somebody”
Deffenbacher said they surveyed subscribers to Castor’s email list for input on reopening. Most expressed a preference for outdoor seating.
“We are really really grateful for the opportunity to use that space,”said Deffenbacher. “It might double our potential revenue every day.”
Both Sobolewski and Deffenbacher said they appreciated the work that Moreland, Sorte and the city did to make this a possibility. They also believe that the extra outdoor seating will add to the ambiance downtown.
“I think it will create a bit of a European feel downtown and will also help people we are open,” said Sobolewski.
Deffenbacher. said he thinks it will “bring visibility to restaurants and make Corvallis downtown feel a little more progressive, fun and hip.”
Both recognized that it isn’t a complete solution for all restaurant owners. For example, the program doesn’t apply to State Highways (including 3rd and 4th Streets) and not all restaurants or retailers have access to eligible on-street parking spaces. Also, downtown will temporarily lose some of the on-street parking spots.
Deffenbacher said Castor will reopen for dining and takeout by the second week in July.


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WASHINGTON, D.C. — People fed up with unwanted telemarketing can sign up in July for a national do-not-call list that will block many sales calls, the Federal Trade Commission said Tuesday.
The FTC will launch a Web site July 1 so consumers can register online for the free service, the agency said. It also will begin an eight-week rollout of a toll-free phone number where people can register for the list. The URL and phone number will be announced in June. Beginning in September, telemarketers will have to check the list every three months to determine who does not want to be called. Those who call listed people could be fined up to $11,000 for each violation.


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Watch Dogs: Legion is releasing very soon, and to promote the game, Ubisoft has updated some the company’s previous big games with “hacked” box art.
The new box art for back catalog games like Assassin’s Creed Odyssey, The Division 2, Far Cry 5, and Ghost Recon Wildlands shows characters from those games wearing the pig mask from Legion. It’s a very clever piece of marketing, and you can see a selection of the new box arts in the Twitter post below.
Ubisoft is promoting the launch of Watch Dogs Legion this month by changing the box arts of their back catalogue titles to reflect the game.
Pretty clever pic.twitter.com/vYK5kfAAOW
— Daniel Ahmad (@ZhugeEX) October 22, 2020
Watch Dogs Legion releases on October 29 for PS4, Xbox One, and PC. It’s also coming to PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S when those systems release in November. The game will be the first to take advantage of Ubisoft’s new cross-progression platform, Ubisoft Connect.
For more on Watch Dogs Legion, check out GameSpot’s recent preview, “Watch Dogs: Legion Is More Horrifying Than Expected.”
GameSpot may get a commission from retail offers.
Disclaimer: This story is auto-aggregated by a computer program and has not been created or edited by Clicknow. Source:Game Spot


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What you need to know
- Alphabet's Q4 earnings report shows a full-year revenue of $307 billion, a 9% increase from 2022
- YouTube’s ad revenue in Q4 was $9.2 billion, while Google Cloud’s revenue was $9.1 billion at the end of 2023.
- Despite positive figures analysts feel that this report is a big warning sign for ad-dependent companies
Google’s parent company, Alphabet, released its earnings report for Q4 and fiscal year 2023, which concluded at the end of December. The year-end call focused on Google’s investments in AI, including how it's helping search and subscriptions reach $15 billion in annual revenue since 2019.
"Last year brought new excitement around Gen AI," said CEO Sundar Pichai.
The company reported full-year revenue of $307 billion, up by 9% compared to 2022, which added 25 billion to revenues for the year.
Alphabet's President and Chief Investment Officer, Ruth Porat, said, "we ended with a strong fourth quarter with consolidated revenues."
The Q4 revenue was around $83.3 billion, which was slightly above what analysts had predicted, according to CNBC. The increase in revenue marks a 13% YoY (year-over-year) increase for the company.
Porat went through each aspect of the earnings report and said that Google Search remained the largest contributor to revenue growth.
Q4 earnings reported that subscriptions are growing strongly powered by YouTube Premium and music, YouTube TV, and Google one.
“YouTube is the key driver of our subscription revenues available in over 100 countries and regions YouTube music and premium have real momentum. They're engaging passionate users and driving great returns for the music industry and creators,” said CEO Sundar Pichai.
“We are pleased with the ongoing strength in Search and the growing contribution from YouTube and Cloud,” said Pichai.
YouTube’s ad revenue was $9.2 billion compared to 2022 (7.96 billion), while Google Cloud’s revenue was $9.1 billion at the end of 2023.
Even though Google advertising, search, and other revenues grew 13% yearly, senior analyst Thomas Monteiro at Investing.com felt these numbers were disappointing.
"Alphabet's ad revenue numbers suggest that corporations worldwide are still uncertain about the pace of interest rate cuts from global central banks, thus keeping some powder dry while waiting for more clues before opening their wallets,” Monteiro added.
The company’s subscriptions, platforms, and devices revenues, which were previously referred to as ‘other revenues’ were 10.8 billion, which was up by 23%, primarily reflecting growth in YouTube subscription revenues
Google has announced numerous layoffs in early 2023 and January 2024, impacting the augmented reality (AR) hardware, Google Assistant, and core engineering divisions.
On the earnings call, Porat hinted at more layoffs and a slower hiring pace in the near future as they continue to focus on “removing layers to simplify execution and drive velocity.”
Porat said the employee severance and related charges of $2.1 billion for the twelve months ended December 31, 2023.
“At this point in the quarter, we do estimate that severance-related expenses will be roughly 700 million in the first quarter as we've continued these efforts,” Porat added.
Google’s generative AI remained the focus of the Q4 earnings call with Pichai calling this year the ‘Gemini Era.’
“Gemini Ultra is coming soon.”
“The team is already working on the next versions and bringing it to our products that start with search.”
“We are already experimenting with Gemini in search, which is making our search and rate of experience faster for users,” Pichai added.
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Nandika Ravi is an Editor for Android Central. Based in Toronto, after rocking the news scene as a Multimedia Reporter and Editor at Rogers Sports and Media, she now brings her expertise into the Tech ecosystem. When not breaking tech news, you can catch her sipping coffee at cosy cafes, exploring new trails with her boxer dog or leveling up in the gaming universe.


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In reality, the Amnesty International researchers say they really had a better time discovering indicators of compromise and investigating Apple units focused with Pegasus malware than these working inventory Android.
“In Amnesty International’s experience there are significantly more forensic traces accessible to investigators on Apple iOS devices than on stock Android devices, therefore our methodology is focused on the former,” the group wrote in a lengthy technical analysis of its findings on Pegasus. “As a result, most recent cases of confirmed Pegasus infections have involved iPhones.”
Some focus on Apple also stems from the company’s own emphasis on privacy and security in its product design and marketing.
“Apple is trying, but the problem is they aren’t trying as hard as their reputation would imply,” says Johns Hopkins University cryptographer Matthew Green.
Even with its more open approach, though, Google faces similar criticisms about the visibility security researchers can get into its mobile operating system.
“Android and iOS have different types of logs. It’s really hard to compare them,” says Zuk Avraham, CEO of the analysis group ZecOps and a longtime advocate of access to mobile system information. “Each one has an advantage, but they are both equally not sufficient and enable threat actors to hide.”
Apple and Google both appear hesitant to reveal more of the digital forensic sausage-making, though. And while most independent security researchers advocate for the shift, some also acknowledge that increased access to system telemetry would aid bad actors as well.
“While we perceive that persistent logs can be extra useful for forensic makes use of reminiscent of those described by Amnesty International’s researchers, additionally they can be useful to attackers,” a Google spokesperson mentioned in a press release to WIRED. “We continually balance these different needs.”
Ivan Krstić, head of Apple safety engineering and structure, mentioned in a press release that, “Apple unequivocally condemns cyberattacks against journalists, human rights activists, and others seeking to make the world a better place. For over a decade, Apple has led the industry in security innovation and, as a result, security researchers agree iPhone is the safest, most secure consumer mobile device on the market. Attacks like the ones described are highly sophisticated, cost millions of dollars to develop, often have a short shelf life, and are used to target specific individuals. While that means they are not a threat to the overwhelming majority of our users, we continue to work tirelessly to defend all our customers, and we are constantly adding new protections for their devices and data.”
The trick is to strike the proper stability between providing extra system indicators with out inadvertently making attackers’ jobs an excessive amount of simpler. “There is a lot that Apple could be doing in a very safe way to allow observation and imaging of iOS devices in order to catch this type of bad behavior, yet that does not seem to be treated as a priority,” says iOS safety researcher Will Strafach. “I am sure they have fair policy reasons for this, but it’s something I don’t agree with and would love to see changes in this thinking.”
Thomas Reed, director of Mac and cellular platforms on the antivirus maker Malwarebytes, says he agrees that extra perception into iOS would profit consumer defenses. But he provides that permitting particular, trusted monitoring software program would include actual dangers. He factors out that there are already suspicious and doubtlessly undesirable applications on macOS that antivirus cannot absolutely take away as a result of the working system endows them with this particular sort of system belief, doubtlessly in error. The similar drawback of rogue system evaluation instruments would virtually inevitably crop up on iOS as effectively.


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The Montreal study, now in Phase 2, will try to determine if cannabis can be used as a less-dangerous substitute for opiate-based painkillers
By the time she decided to try cannabis pills, Joanne Fiorito was in dire straits. She’s struggled with multiple sclerosis for most of her life. Until recently, she thought the condition, which has forced her into an electric wheelchair, was going to own her.
“Last year, I felt like the wheelchair was pretty close to my ass if I may say so. I felt like, ‘Oh she’s really gaining on me, I’ll be stuck in that wheelchair for the rest of my life.'”
Now things have started to turn around for Fiorito. She has regained her mobility thanks to the “miracle” of medical marijuana.
Last winter her neurologist suggested she take a chance and participate in a clinical trial on medical cannabis.
“I had nothing to lose,” Fiorito said. “(The cannabis) was like a miracle. Within three days my legs were less stiff, they didn’t feel as heavy.
“At physiotherapy, they time me for six minutes to see how far I can walk. In October I did 89 meters. This week, it was 251 meters. I’m not joking when I say it’s like a miracle.”
Fiorito is one of 70 Montreal-area patients participating in a clinical trial for medicinal cannabis capsules. The study, which entered its second phase last April, will try to determine if cannabis can be used as a less-dangerous substitute for opiate-based painkillers.
If it’s successful — and the capsules are approved by Health Canada’s Office of Controlled Substances — cannabis could be sold in pharmacies and covered by provincial health insurance.
The trial is a joint project between Canadian cannabis heavyweights Tetra Pharma Bio and Montreal’s own medical marijuana clinic Santé Cannabis. The success of the trial has caught even the researchers off guard.
“I was surprised at how tolerable it was, at how safe it was,” recalled Dr. Antonio Vigano, who is heading up the study. “That’s the main concern, when you do these trials, is to make sure the product is safe.”Dr. Vigano says that in the pool of 70 participants only one had experienced any adverse effects.
Erin Prosk – Co-Founder of Santé Cannabis – says she hopes the favorable results of the trials will help improve Canada’s medical marijuana program and expand the list of available medications for patients.
“This is about giving people like Joanne (Fiorito) a chance to access medicine that is quality-controlled and affordable,” said Erin Prosk, the co-founder of Santé Cannabis. “The medical cannabis system we have now is not enough. It’s a Band-Aid, it’s a temporary solution.”
Canada’s medical cannabis system has existed under its current form for only four years. Each of the roughly 250,000 patients with prescriptions can order weed online from one of 115 producers licensed by the federal government.
But unlike with the vast majority of medicines, cannabis isn’t covered by health insurance. In fact, patients have to pay sales tax on it.
“The Cannabis Act is causing collateral damage in our world,” said Prosk. “Some people think that with legalization, patients can just go to the store and buy cannabis. But the people who use medical cannabis need a specific pharmaceutical-grade product to treat specific symptoms.”
In the study, patients are either given a placebo or capsules that contain a high concentration of two cannabinoids; tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) — which has a psychoactive and pain-numbing affect — and cannabidiol (CBD) — which can be used as an anti-inflammatory, a muscle relaxant and to treat epilepsy.
Gradually, the doctors increase patient doses until they reach a point where the medicine takes affect.
“Our theory was that starting low and increasing slowly is really important to increase that tolerability,” said Vigano, an associate professor of oncology at McGill University. “That’s what we’re seeing in practice. It’s encouraging.”
Prosk has been on the forefront of the fight to increase access to medical marijuana for years and says cannabis research is still in its infancy.
As her clinic’s study is underway, the University of British Columbia is leading a trial on the use of medicinal pot for people who struggle with post-traumatic stress disorder.
“Considering where we were four years ago — just getting the system to license cannabis producers off the ground — it’s unreal how far we’ve come,” said Prosk. “We’re global leaders in cannabis research and we’re getting interest from international companies. Countries like Germany and Australia are looking to Canada for leadership.
“There’s huge potential here and the right people are finally taking notice.”
Source – Montreal Gazette
Image – Pixabay


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Sony turned heads when it announced that its newest handheld device, the PlayStation Vita, would work with the PlayStation 3, allowing players to switch games between their handhelds and consoles, without skipping a beat. This amazing new concept of remotely playing games was due to both devices using technology that the Digital Living Network Alliance, or DLNA, developed.
While Sony has had the press about it's DLNA capabilities, partly because the company has spearheaded the initiative, other devices make use of this remote technology as well. It's no surprise that Microsoft's Xbox 360 and even Windows Media Player can play nicely with DLNA. Apple lovers can also rest assured that iPhone DLNA games are a reality, too.
What is iPhone UPnP?
DLNA uses a technology known as Universal Plug and Play, or UPnP, to provide these remote gaming capabilities. Through UPnP, iPhones, Playstations and laptops are able to discover and connect with one another to share media. It's not just games that can utilize DLNA, either. Streaming music or media can make use of these advances, which leaves plenty of options for iOS developers.
DLNA App iPad Owners Will Love
Currently, iPhone and iPad users can download an app that allows them to remotely connect with their smart TVs, video game consoles or Blu-Ray players. With it, they can play iPhone DLNA games on their television, enabling them to appreciate high-definition graphics without sacrificing audio. Consumers can enjoy music or a movie in one room, by transmitting the source via UPnP from a device in another room. This type of app also provides the ability to control DNLA media players, like the Xbox 360, with a handheld device such as the iPhone. Perhaps iPhone UPnP will eventually mean the death of the traditional remote control.
The Pitfalls of the DLNA App iPad Uses
While DLNA and UPnP technologies are ground-breaking in many ways, they're still in their infancy. Many consumers are unaware of the potential, even if they own a compatible device. Additionally, the DLNA recommends a Network Attached Storage, or NAS, for storing media that it then transmits to iPhones or a DLNA-certified AV system, which many people don't have. While Sony, Canon and LG are among the companies that incorporate these capabilities into everything from laptops to refrigerators, its sustainability depends on companies advertising this very fact. Without support, iPad DLNA games might never get off the ground.
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TDE artists Zacari and Isaiah Rashad have linked up on a brand new single titled “Bliss”.
After dropping the song itself earlier this month, Blxst has now premiered the video for his new single “Sometimes” featuring Zacari.
Blxst has teamed up with Zacari on his brand new single titled “Sometimes”.
Kembe X has enlisted Jay Rock, Ab-Soul and Zacari for his brand new single titled “Raised A Fool”. The artist is currently working on a new project.


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SOLOMON To Exhibit AT Smart Factory Expo 2018
12/21/2017 SOLOMON To Exhibit AT Smart Factory Expo 2018
SOLOMON Technology Corporation is pleased to announce we will be showcasing our 3D bin picking solution at Smart Factory Expo 2018. From January 17th to 19th, 2018, and we would be located at Booth #W21-15 at Tokyo Big Sight in Tokyo, Japan.
Welcome to visit us and experience our exceptional products of blending advanced 3D vision and latest deep learning technologies.


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The idea of paying a monthly fee to have your phone limit what you're able to do seems a bit counter-intuitive, but that hasn't stopped Sprint from introducing its Sprint Drive First service.
If you've ever been on a road trip and need to book a hotel in the middle of nowhere to take a break, Expedia has just the thing you're looking for.
AT&T may be the first to launch a '4G' phone phone with 3D capabilities to the market, but Sprint says AT&T's network is really just 'faux G.'
Samsung has just announced a complete overhaul to its Galaxy Tab line of tablets, not only introducing two new models but also with an expansive shakeup to the software on the back end.
I finally got my hands on Sony Ericsson's upcoming "PlayStation Phone," the Xperia Play, and after a solid play session I am hooked.
Just in time for this week's CTIA conference in Orlando, AT&T has announced two brand new smartphones, one of which it promises will be the first "glasses-free 3D" phone to hit store shelves.
Sprint has struck gold with its 'Evo' brand of 4G smartphones, and it looks like it's about to throw glasses-free 3D technology into the mix.


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NEW YORK (AP) — The pandemic-delayed Met Gala and its fashion parade kicked off Monday night with a marching band and gymnast and early walkers in sultry, sparkly looks.
Keke Palmer wore a stunning, earth-tone body hugger with a train, while Ilana Glazer took her moment on the steps of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in feathery long sleeves and a creamy, high-neck gown.
Emma Chamberlain went for a gold mini with cutouts at the waist and chunky mirror and chain detail. Gala overseer Anna Wintour arrived early with a wave to the crowd accompanied by her pregnant daughter, Bea Schafer, in a floral design with ruffles at the neck.
The gala, which raises money for the museum’s Costume Institute, was pushed last year from its traditional May berth and morphed this year into a two-part affair. It coincides with the opening of “In America: A Lexicon of Fashion,” the first of a two-part exhibition at the Met’s Anna Wintour Costume Center.
This year, the gala is co-chaired by Timothée Chalamet, Billie Eilish, Amanda Gorman and Naomi Osaka. Honorary chairs are Tom Ford, sponsor Instagram’s Adam Mosseri and Vogue’s Wintour, the latter the doyenne of the Met Gala since 1995.
The two-parter marks the Costume Institute’s 75th anniversary. The Met Gala raises the bulk of the institute’s annual funding, including a larger gathering scheduled for May 2. That date reclaims the first Monday in May for the gala and will celebrate the exhibition’s second part, “In America: An Anthology of Fashion,” in the period rooms of the museum’s American Wing.
Considered fashion’s biggest night, A-list guests from music, film, TV, tech and beyond are encouraged to embrace the theme of the new exhibition each year as they slowly make their way up the museum’s red-carpeted stairs. Interpretation is everything when it comes to how they dress — and how they enter.
Billy Porter shut down the red carpet in 2019 when he arrived in sun god gold on a litter carried by six shirtless men in an ode to Ancient Egypt when the theme was high camp. It was the same year Lady Gaga stripped down to a bedazzled black bra and matching undies before the media throng after designer Brandon Maxwell helped her out of three clothing changes, including a huge pink outer layer that ballooned in the breeze.
The official dress code this year is “American Independence,” which leaves plenty of wiggle room for interpretation.
The Met Gala — short for the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute Gala — raised more than $13 million in 2019 for the Costume Institute, which is the Met’s fashion department. It’s the museum’s only curatorial department that has to fund itself and has an important friend in Wintour, who tends the guest list. She has raised so much money for the Costume Institute over the years (with estimates up to $200 million) that the wing now bears her name.
Tickets cost $30,000-plus, but that doesn’t mean the stars ante up. They’re often hosted by brands and companies that buy tables for thousands more and are accompanied by top designers who dress them.
Follow Leanne Italie on Twitter at http://twitter.com/litalie


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Modest pay rises and falling inflation could boost consumer confidence this year but the economy is set to be buffeted by new headwinds.
A special report by economic forecaster, the EY Item Club, said issues including weaker employment growth and rising interest rates are likely to impact on the economy in the coming months.
The study’s authors found consumer spending growth had halved to 1.4% in 2017 and there was likely to be a further small drop-off this year to 1.3%.
A marginal improvement in spending is expected in 2019 and 2020.
Mark Gregory, EY’s chief economist in the UK, said the road ahead was unlikely to be smooth. He said: “We are going to see stable but sluggish growth in consumer spending this year with little prospect of achieving the levels achieved in 2016. While the impact of higher inflation should slowly fade, the UK consumer will be hit by new issues which will impact their spending power.” The report comes a day after the CBI published the findings of its latest growth indicator survey.
The study found the UK’s private sector had picked up in the three months to February, with the composite headline measure for both the services and manufacturing sectors improving from 9% to 20%. The CBI said it expected growth to edge higher in the coming quarter, underpinned by improvements in the retail sector but warned that businesses were continuing to grapple with economic uncertainty and Brexit.


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Disgruntled Morrisons shoppers have slammed the supermarket for wiping off their loyalty points ahead of Christmas.
After a number of shoppers complained about their More loyalty card points vanishing, the supermarket chain blamed the problem on a surge in cards being targeted by fraudsters over the past few months.
Some More card customers found that their points were being spent in other parts of the country, leading them to believe that their accounts were hacked.
On twitter, one shopper wrote: "When are @Morrisons going to investigate all these points going missing? Clearly the more card accounts aren't very secure are they?"
Another said: "'I should boycott the place".
Morrisons' customer services team has bared the brunt of the complaints with customers slamming them for their lack of support.
One customer, Jim Ainsworth, told the Mail that he tried to redeem 5,000 Morrisons points for a £5 voucher but was told he didn't have enough points.
After trying to explain that he did in fact have the required amount, a staff member told him that there'd been hundreds of complaints about vanishing points over the past few weeks,
Mr Ainsworth was told to call the number on the back of his More card or let a member of staff do it for him.
"I have called the number myself twice and also got a lady at the store to do it twice," he explained.
"Each time, we got through to someone who takes the card details and then says: "I have reloaded your points, so next time you shop, when you hand over your card you should get your voucher"."
Despite the promise from Morrisons staff, the points were never reloaded.
"I actually fell for this three times, and spent about £30, when I should have been boycotting the place," he said.
A Morrisons spokesperson said: "Online hackers target people who use the same username and password across multiple sites.
"We regularly remind our customers about the importance of using a unique password.
"We take online security very seriously and our customer data has not been breached."
At the moment, Morrisons are telling customers to contact them by calling the number on the back of their More loyalty cards.
Sainsbury's customers have been experiencing similar problems with their Nectar cards getting blocked without warning.
After saving up for months to buy prizes for a charity raffle, one customer's card was cancelled with the supermarket telling her that there had been a fraud scare, leading many accounts to be blocked for precautionary measures.
A new Nectar system is in the works that will allow users to collect points digitally.
The current Morrisons More card gives customers five More points for every £1 spent in addition to five More points per litre when they buy fuel.
The supermarket gives customers a £5 More voucher when they collect 5,000 points - that's £5 off per £1,000.