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Kourtney Reppert is famous for her racy Instagram snapshots, but she is also known for engaging her legions of followers through her captions, often posing questions that they can answer in the comments section. On Wednesday, the model did just that when she took to the popular social media platform to share a sizzling shot of herself in red lace lingerie while asking her fans to share what the temperature currently is where they live.
In the snapshot in question — taken by Los Angeles-based photographer Atreyu Key— the Instagram star is featured sitting on a bed while donning a scarlet one-piece lingerie number that puts her busty figure on full display. The piece features two pointy cups that attach to two thin straps which go over the 32-year-old’s shoulders, helping accentuate her internet-famous cleavage.
The Philadelphia native has her legs crossed in front of her, showing that she is wearing a pair of bright yellow socks. The model is leaning forward for the shot, accentuating her busty torso even further. Reppert is looking straight at the camera, smiling for the shot while wearing nude lipstick. She is wearing black eyeliner and makeup, which makes the blue of her eyes stand out. Bronzer and highlighter contour her face, a makeup look courtesy of Evelyn McCullough, as her tag shows. The model has her blonde hair in a slight side part, styled down in loose waves that fall over her shoulders and onto her chest.
The post, which she shared with her impressive 1.4 million Instagram followers, garnered more than 31,000 likes and more than 400 comments in less than a day of having been posted. Users of the social media platform took to the comments section to praise her famous curves, and to engage with her caption by sharing what the temperature is like.
“-18 below zero and You look so Hot,” one user wrote, pairing the comment with a fire emoji and a red heart emoji.
“4 degrees upstate ny, and your picture just made it hot! Beautiful!!,” another fan chimed in.
Reppert initially rose to fame as a model in her native city of Philadelphia, but has since moved to Los Angeles — where she has built a successful modeling career. In part thanks to her social media presence, Reppert has been able to branch out and start her own business, launching a company named Super Mommie. This company aims to build a community of like-minded mothers who support each other by providing simple and inexpensive products to use in their daily lives, as The Inquisitr previously noted.


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BioWare drops the Unreal Engine in favour of Frostbite 2 for the next Mass Effect game
EA appears to be fully investing its future into DICE's impressive Frostbite 2 game engine with the news that BioWare have adopted the tech for their upcoming titles.
The Frostbite 2 engine has already been adopted by Danger Close for Medal Of Honor and the Need For Speed series as well as next year's Army Of Two: The Devils Cartel. Now BioWare is the latest EA studio to pick up DICEs tech.
As well as developing the next Mass Effect title using Frostbite 2, BioWare has also been using the engine for Dragon Age III.
EA Games boss Patrick Soderlund said "We want to transfer resources between studios, and if they have the same knowledge on the tech base, it's going to be a hell of lot easier for us to do that efficiently, and for them to get help or for them to give help."
EA has also revealed that BioWare Montreal will be handling the development duties on the new Mass Effect game, taking over the series from their Edmonton studio.
On the new Mass Effect title BioWare Montreal head Yanick Roy stated, "While [the next Mass Effect] will be very respectful of the heritage built over the course of the first three games, with the original trilogy now concluded and the switch over to a new engine, we are exploring new directions, both on the gameplay and story fronts."
- Ken Levine's next game is a first-person sci-fi title
- Battlefield: Hardline beta coming to all platforms next week
- Transistor and Yakuza 4 among February's PS Plus Instant Game Collection pickings
- Third and final Life Is Strange development diary arrives ahead of tomorrow's launch of episode one
- Nintendo shows profits despite the Wii U continuing to underperform
- Goetia demo is now live
- There's a whole load of LEGO games coming this year including LEGO Jurassic World
- Resident Evil: Revelations 2 devs confident that Resident Evil 7 will be mind-blowing
- Steam content creators raise more than 50 million USD making hats for Team Fortress 2 and the like

domain: news


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Ubeeqo, Europcar Mobility Group’s car sharing brand, has added the Hyundai Ioniq plug-in hybrid to its London fleet.
Steps had been taken to ensure that there would be no repeat of the supply issues which have beset the Kona EV
Hyundai has announced pricing for the new Ioniq plug-in hybrid, starting from £24,995 for a Premium 1.6 GDi model.
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NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- U.S. stocks opened higher Wednesday amid gains for Hewlett-Packard and a consumer price report that eased inflation concerns. The Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA, +0.35% was up 22 points at 10,354. The Nasdaq Composite Index $compq rose 5 points to 2,009 while the S&P 500 Index SPX, +0.24% gained 2 points to 1,176.
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Realme 7i smartphone of Realme 7 series was launched in India with Android 10 last year and now a year later, the phone has started receiving Android 11 updates. Realme 7i has been introduced specifically for gamers with cloud sync as well. This phone has a pre-loaded photo editing app. After the new update, many other new features will be available for photo editing. Apart from this, a system cloner will also be available.
Android 11 update for Realme 7i is 801 MB in size and its version is RMX2103_11_C.05. The company has given information about this update through its blog. Apart from this, many users have also given information about this update on Twitter. This update is being released gradually for all smartphones.
Let us know that Realme 7i was launched in India last year. Like other smartphones of the Reality 7 series, this phone has four rear cameras and an octa-core processor. This phone will be available in a single RAM variant. The price of Realme 7i is Rs 11,999. This price is of the base variant i.e. 4 GB RAM and 64 GB storage, while the 128 GB storage variant with 4 GB RAM is priced at Rs 12,999. This phone will be available in Fusion Green and Fusion Blue color variants.
The phone has an Android 10 based Realme UI. Apart from this, it has a 6.5-inch HD + display with a resolution of 720x1600 pixels. The display has a refresh rate of 90Hz. The phone has Qualcomm's Snapdragon 662 processor. Reality 7i has 128 GB of storage with 4 GB of RAM.
Realme 7i has four rear cameras of which the main camera is 64 megapixels and its aperture is f / 1.8, while the second lens is 8 megapixels ultra-wide, the third lens is 2 megapixels monochrome and the fourth lens is 2 megapixels. The front has a 16-megapixel camera.
For connectivity, this phone has 4G LTE, dual-band Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 5.0, GPS / A-GPS, USB port, and a 3.5mm headphone jack. The phone also has a fingerprint sensor on the back panel and has a 5000mAh battery that supports 18 Watt fast charging.


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NBC recently reported on a credit card fraud ring that had been busted by the FBI. The indictment noted that they had used many methods of identity theft and credit card fraud, and they had cost Americans millions of dollars in the six years they had been running these scams.
The criminals used a wide variety of methods including setting up fake stores to process credit card payments and child identity theft. Apparently, the suspects created what are known as “synthetic identities,” which means that they invented Social Security numbers in order to create fake credit reports, so they could borrow large amounts of money, fake utility payment histories in order to trick credit bureaus, mint real and fake credit card processing accounts into depositing huge sums into their accounts, and setting themselves up as “authorized users” of victims’ identities.
Using the profits from these schemes, the group bought luxury cars, spa treatments, gold, and electronics. NBC also reported that the authorities found $68,000 in cash in the home of one suspect. According to the authorities, this group used thousands of fake identities and
The center of the fraud was a number of jewelry stores in Jersey City, N.J. The criminals were able to turn fake IDs and credit cards into cash by running them through the stores’ credit card processing accounts. Jewelry stores were the perfect place for this kind of fraud because they regularly process expensive transactions.
The indictment stated that the extent of this criminal ring was incredible. All together, the group had created 25,000 fake credit cards and 7,000 fake identities. Additionally, 1,800 fake mail boxes were used to fool credit bureaus and banks because they allowed the criminals to accept real mail, such as utility payments.
FBI estimates of the fraud are approximately 200 million dollars, but the FBI have also noted that the investigation is still ongoing and some of the members have not been arrested. Thus, that figure is expected to increase. The money did not stay in the United States either. It was sent all around the world to countries including China, Japan, India, Pakistan, and Canada. The FBI operation centered on New Jersey and New York, but the fraud actually affected 28 U.S. states.
The accused ringleader of this huge scam is Babar Qureshi who allegedly had a million dollars go through his accounts during these scams. The FBI say they identified about 169 bank accounts with 60 million dollars passing through the accounts, although a lot of it was withdrawn.
The main technique used by the criminals is actually quite a common one that is known as “bust out.” With this kind of scam, criminals get their hands on a real or fake identity. Instead of using it for fraud immediately though, they use it to build credit by paying bills. Thus, they wait until the potential creditors think they are legit and have let down their guard and then commit a big fraud.
Individuals who have been the victim of identity theft can learn from this. Often, criminals will wait before committing fraud, so just because a fraud has not been committed in a few months does not mean it will not happen.
Merchant accounts, which are accounts that businesses use for credit card transactions, are very useful to criminals. One of the biggest problems for those committing this type of fraud is converting the information into cash. It is difficult to use stolen credit cards. By using a merchant account though, the criminals can act as if they are doing legitimate transactions and then have the payments deposited into their checking accounts. Although this still leaves a paper trail, the government says this is why the criminals had an elaborate network of fake identities to hide behind. Jewelry stores were also excellent because it was not unusual to see large transactions made at this type of store.
Eighteen defendants were charged in the indictment and according to NBC five of them were still at large. Some of the suspects lived in New Jersey, one of them lived in Philadelphia, and others lived in New York City or the nearby suburbs.
This story is just another reason why people should be careful about protecting their identities. Although many members of the group have been apprehended, there are still a number at large. Thus, we will have to see whether the others are eventually caught and how the trial goes for those who have already been indicted. The suspects are charged with bank fraud, and number of counts they are charged with means that they could spend up to 30 years in prison and be fined a maximum of one million dollars.
You can read the original story at NBC here.
Image: robertmichaeltd @ Flickr


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MEDICAL nutrition startup SilverConnect on Monday said it has closed a seed funding round led by Heritas Capital Management.
Seeds Capital, the investment arm of Enterprise Singapore, also participated in the round.
SilverConnect creates specialised food solutions for people who have difficulty in swallowing, or dysphagia. Under the brand of GentleFoods, the firm modifies local Singapore food into softer, smoother or pureed versions suitable for people with dysphagia.
Dysphagia is a condition which becomes more prevalent with age, affecting up to one in five older adults, and up to 40 per cent in institutionalised settings such as nursing homes.
Undiagnosed or poorly managed dysphagia increases the risk of choking, dehydration and malnutrition, said SilverConnect.
The texture of the meals from GentleFoods are in line with the framework set out by the International Dysphagia Diet Standardisation Initiative (IDDSI), which helps to ensure that meals are safely prepared to the right consistency, and suitable for those who have difficulty swallowing.
GentleFoods currently offers ready-to-eat frozen meals that are suitable for patients requiring IDDSI level four food consistency - or pureed meals - that taste like familiar local dishes such as sweet and sour fish, chicken rice and rendang fish. The frozen meals have been moulded into different food shapes, can be easily reheated, and are made from natural ingredients, said SilverConnect.
Jeannie Ong, co-founder and director of operations at SilverConnect added: “All of our menu items have been carefully co-developed with a passionate team of speech therapists, dieticians and food technologists to ensure that the food has the appropriate consistency and uniform texture even after reheating.”
Fresh funds from the seed round will be used to “fast-track the commercialisation and rollout of GentleFoods to both consumers and elderly care institutions,” the company said in a statement.
Shen Yiru, founder and chief executive of SilverConnect said: “We hope that elderly and other patients with swallowing difficulties will now be able to enjoy a wide variety of safe and tasty meals with their loved ones, while reducing the amount of time their caregivers currently spend on preparing such meals.”
GentleFoods aims to create familiar, safe and nutritious meals that stimulate the appetite, in hopes of bringing the joy of food back into the lives of people with swallowing difficulties, the company said.
“My world changed when I saw my demented grandma rejecting all pureed foods because it was all so unfamiliar to her. The emotional impact inspired me to begin a journey to find out how other people with such challenges cope,” said Dr Shen.
Chik Wai Chiew, chief executive and executive director of Heritas Capital Management, said: “We believe SilverConnect’s creative and impactful offering will enhance patients’ appetite and joy of consuming local favourites, leading to better nutrition, health and immunity which are especially important during the Covid-19 pandemic.”
Ted Tan, chairman of Seeds Capital and deputy chief executive of Enterprise Singapore, agreed, adding: “SilverConnect’s focus to address an unmet local and global need in the elderly and dysphagic population exemplifies the spirit of innovation. It aligns with the Food for Elders initiative under FoodInnovate, a multi-agency initiative led by Enterprise Singapore to drive innovation and position Singapore as a leading food and nutrition hub in Asia. We hope that Seeds Capital’s investment will help SilverConnect scale up its operations more quickly and connect them to strategic partners in the region.”
Over the last two years, Enterprise Singapore provided grant support to SilverConnect for the co-development of three popular local snacks with Khoo Teck Puat Hospital under the Food for Elders initiative, as well as a corporate branding project to help them develop a global brand strategy and establish presence in key overseas markets.


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News Byte: RadiumOne Hires Westly as IPO Looms
RadiumOne today announced that ex-controller of the state of California Steve Westly would be joining its board of directors. An original executive at eBay and a former director at Netcom, Westly is an influential player in tech industry circles whose arrival at the online ad company signals its rumored IPO may be close at hand.
“Steve is one of the biggest power players in the valley,” says RadiumOne founder and CEO Gurbaskh Chahal. “He can get us in front of the who's who of Silicon Valley.”
The company, which provides marketers with analytics tools that generate data for targeting ads, is said to have shown a profit in the neighborhood of $100 million this year, making it unusual among recent tech startups that go public while mired in red ink. Chahal wouldn't confirm the number, but did say the company, founded in 2009, showed a profit in Q3.
“I think too many tech companies go for too much funding and then it's hard for them to reach profitability,” says Chahal. “The average funding is in the $75-$100 million range. We raised only $33.5 million.”


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This CEO Wants to Make Pizza the New Bitcoin
San Fransisco pizza startup Pythagoras Pizza is hoping to change the way business is done by baking a Bitcoin-style cryptocurrency into the mix. Lead by startup veteran and CEO Evan Kuo, the venture-backed company wants to give employees a bigger slice of the company pie by tying their earnings directly to company growth.
The plan, as told to Business Insider and laid out in a proposal entitled "The American Dream Is Back," is to use the same blockchain technology behind Bitcoin, the popular and controversial digital currency, to create "fragments." Each time an employee makes or delivers a pizza, they'll get more fragments, each of which functions like a stock. The fragments' monetary value will rise and fall with Pythagoras' business performance, making those who hold them more directly invested in the company as a whole.
The process, which the company calls "tokenization," will also involve customers, who can receive fragments in exchange for referring friends to the pizza chain. The hope, says Kuo, is that workers can share in the value they create for the company in a way more comparable to how stock options are awarded in Silicon Valley.
However, unlike true equity, the fragments wouldn't give holders any ownership of the company, or control over corporate decisions—though the process is still in its theoretical stages. More immediate, it seems, is the need to separate Pythagoras' currency from the rash of Bitcoin imitators that have sprung up over the last few years.
Since blockchain technology allows anyone to create their own currency, the difficulty is giving it actual value. Kuo plans to use Silicon Valley funding to give the coins an initial boost, but whatever happens, it won't the first food chain-based Bitcoin alternative around. Last month, Burger King announced the WhopperCoin, which uses the same technology to drive a customer rewards program. Unlike the "American Dream" Pythagoras cites, BK's only available in Russia.


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The Montagues and the Capulets will be loving, fighting and dying in pub gardens in August and September as Fullers' joins forces with the Permanently Bard group of travelling actors to stage Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. Good food and the Chiswick brewery's full range of beer will be available to help prove that "the play's the thing".
Added: Friday, June 19th 2015
While traditional pubs are closing at an alarming rate, a new type of outlet for beer drinkers has achieved nationwide success. Pop-up pubs are small, utilitarian and based in premises designed for other purposes. Martyn Hiller (pictured) opened the first pop-up pub, the Butchers Arms, in Herne, Kent, 10 years ago and its success should see some 200 small pubs operating by the end of the year.
Added: Thursday, June 18th 2015
The Sailor Boy pub in Hitchin, Herts, has been gutted by fire. The former Enterprise Inns pub had stood empty for several months following a ruling by the local council that it could be turned into a convenience store. Campaigners say the Walsworth area of Hitchin now has no pubs and people will have to travel in to the town centre for a drink
Added: Friday, June 5th 2015
A Good Beer Guide-listed community local, the Prince of Wales in Moseley, Birmingham, has seen Keith and Diane Marsden (Keith pictured left) named Licensees of the Year by the British Institute of Innkeeping. The pub serves a wide range of cask ales, two ciders -- and also has a vast collection of Cuban cigars
Added: Tuesday, June 2nd 2015
The Antwerp Arms -- "the Annie" -- in Tottenham, North London, has been saved by its locals. When Enterprise Inns wanted to sell the pub to a property developer, an action group was set up and got the local council to declare the Annie an Asset of Community Value. A co-operative was formed and shareholders raised the cash to buy the pub, which re-opened in April
Added: Thursday, May 21st 2015
Christo Tofalli has turned beer sales round at Ye Olde Fighting Cocks in St Albans -- officially Britain's oldest pub -- and now serves more cask beer than keg and lager. He specialises in beers from smaller independent breweries but his landlord, giant pubco Mitchells & Butlers, wants him to concentrate on such brands as Doom Bar and London Pride. Who will come out on top?
Added: Wednesday, April 22nd 2015
The "beers from the wood" quiet revolution is spreading. It started in the Junction pub in Castleford, West Yorkshire, where owners Neil Midgley and Maureen Shaw have now bought the neighbouring pub to spread the woody word. They plan to install a micro-brewery -- with vessels made of oak. In Leeds, Andy Yuill at the Duck & Drake offers beers served in both oak and metal. Pictured, Neil Midgley (right) with cooper Alastair Simms
Added: Friday, April 10th 2015
Scouse wits say you can get half cut in Gallaghers' pub in Birkenhead without touching a drop of booze. Frank and Sue Gallagher (pictured) are professional hairdressers who fancied running a pub. When they took over the derelict Dispensary pub they not only restored it and changed the name but added a barber's shop as well. Now you can enjoy local cask ales and have a short back and sides.
Added: Wednesday, March 25th 2015
Launching Community Pubs Week, CAMRA, the Campaign for Real Ale, reports that 600 pubs have now been listed as ACVs -- Assets of Community Value. They include a brewpub, the Bohemia, in Finchley, North London (pictured). This success is underscored by the third successive beer duty cut in the Budget that will boost pub sales and save jobs
Added: Monday, March 23rd 2015
The Catford Bridge Tavern, South London, destroyed in a major fire on 1 March, was due to become a bar with residential flats. The pub was previously owned by Punch and Spirit pub groups. The ground floor had been leased to Tesco by a subsequent pubco but the supermarket group failed to get permission to turn it into a store. Now, following the fire, there are doubts it will ever be a pub again
Added: Saturday, March 7th 2015


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We all know that spam is huge, but this infographic by New Scientist offers a much closer look. Long story short: Preventing spam seems almost impossible, because the spammers are so nimble. They’re also getting smarter.
Here’s an economic breakdown of one single (albeit massive) spam operation. Out of 35 million span emails sent out in one month, only 28 actually turned into sales. (Are you reading this, guy who will no doubt drop spam below this very post, likely in the form of ASCII “bear” or “battleship” art?) But if you extrapolate that out to the whole network, that comes to $3.5 million in earnings. Which is obviously pretty massive, considering that creating an entire botnet like this one to send the emails would require just a couple diligent hackers.
Spam is evolving quickly, as people become more savvy to classic scams. We’ve more away from blatant get-rich-quick schemes–and into more subtle ones, like promises for financial services.
You’ve got to shiver at the possibility that one day, spammers will become super smart, using, for example, lessons borrowed from behavioral economics to tune the perfect pitch.


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These googly-eyed robots are coming to hundreds of grocery stores across the country (but not Colorado)
SEEKONK, Mass. -- A wheeled robot named Marty is rolling into nearly 500 grocery stores to alert employees if it encounters spilled granola, squashed tomatoes or a broken jar of mayonnaise. But there could be a human watching from behind its cartoonish googly eyes. Badger Technologies CEO Tim Rowland says its camera-equipped robots stop after detecting a potential spill. But to make sure, humans working in a control center in the Philippines review the imagery before triggering a cleanup message over the loudspeaker.
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Dig or Die v1.0 Trailer
Trailer released just prior to and announcing the July 10th 2018 release date of Dig or Die.
Dig or Die is a sandbox platform game similar to Terraria and Starbound but with more focus on replay and fresh starts, as well as base defense.
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'Childish' Ryanair attacked for booking fee
Ryanair has been accused of being 'puerile' and 'childish' and acting 'outside the spirit of the law' over parts of its charging policy.
Puerile: Ryanair is not acting within the spirit of the rules, the OFT chief said.
John Fingleton, chief executive of the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) attacked the company for fees that are added when customers pay online .
He singled out the practice of levying fees by adding charges to payments made with a Visa Electron Visa debt card.
Electron users now face the same £5 passenger transaction fee for each journey as those using conventional credit or debit cards.
Since the start of the year the only way to purchase a ticket without incurring the passenger transaction fee has been by using a prepaid MasterCard - which few Ryanair customers have.
From last month, payments made by the Electron card that had previously been free began to attract the fee. Ryanair changed its free 'option' to MasterCard pre-pay.
Mr Fingleton has accused the company of using 'very low frequency payment mechanism' to get round the rules.
He has also questioned the automatic addition of insurance to flights by airlines such as Ryanair, unless customers opted out.
Earlier this year, following OFT intervention, Ryanair promised to take steps to increase the clarity and transparency of its website and other advertising.
Mr Fingleton told the Independent: 'Ryanair has this funny game where they have found some very low frequency payment mechanism and say: 'You can pay with that,' he said.
'It's almost like taunting consumers and pointing out: "Oh well, we know this is completely outside the spirit of the law, but we think it's within the narrow letter of the law".'
He added: 'On some level it's quite puerile, it's almost childish.' He said that the practice of an automatic addition of insurance to flights by airlines including Ryanair, unless customers opted out, was a legal 'grey area'.
Ryanair Head of Communications Stephen McNamara said: 'Ryanair is not for the overpaid John Fingletons on this world but for the everyday Joe Bloggs who opt for Ryanair's guaranteed lowest fares because we give them the opportunity to fly across 26 European countries for free, £5 and £10.
'What the OFT must realise is that passengers prefer Ryanair's model as it allows them to avoid costs, such as baggage charges, which are still included in the high fares of high cost, fuel surcharging, strike-threatened airlines such as BA.'
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Before we usher in the new year, Grubhub is rewinding to see how consumers ate and drank their way through 2021: The Chicago-based online food delivery marketplace has released findings from its annual “Year in Food” report. Grubhub analyzed orders from more than 32 million diners to see what rose in popularity during January-November 2021, as compared with the same timeframe in 2020. It has also provided its predictions for the top foods of 2022.
With more time spent at home in 2021, Grubhub found it was more important for consumers to have all of their convenience and grocery essentials whenever they needed them. The following are the top trends in convenience.
Top Convenience Orders
Grubhub is making it even easier for consumers to grab all of their convenience and grocery essentials. The company partnered with Instacart for a limited time to offer existing Grubhub diners two months of Instacart Express free and $10 off their first Instacart order of more than $35. Annual Instacart Express members can also receive 12 months of Grubhub+ for free, including unlimited free delivery on Grubhub orders of more than $12 from 300,000-plus restaurants nationwide, exclusive perks and members-only deals, and donation matching when members donate their change to a charity at checkout.
For Top Orders of Year, the Impossible Cheeseburger nabbed the top spot. The complete list is as follows:
Grubhub also analyzed the top orders by mealtime:
When it comes to beverages, Grubhub saw diners settle into their new morning routines, which resulted in coffee orders rising 100% in popularity. Alcohol orders increased by 11%, and the margarita was the first alcohol order to crack the top orders of the year.
Similar to 2020, vegan- and vegetarian-friendly orders continued to steadily improve. According to Danone North America’s “At the Table: The Multicultural Plant-Based Food Perspective” report, plant-based eating is on the rise among multicultural consumers, particularly the younger Millennial and Gen Z demographics. In 2021, Grubhub found that vegan- and vegetarian-friendly orders grew by 16% and 13%, in comparison with 2020.
Most Vegan-Friendly States
Additionally, Grubhub analyzed hundreds of millions of orders over the past three years to provide its prediction on the top foods of 2022. In no particular ranking, here are the orders that it predicts will rise in popularity next year.


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This article is published in collaboration with Tata Consultancy Services.
It’s 2015, and digital transformation is no longer a topic of discussion, it’s a clear imperative for CxOs and organizational leadership. In fact, most companies today are already running digital transformation programs. Many of those programs, however, are internally focused on improving processes in silo’d channels like website updates, mobile, and social platforms.
Digital transformation is often looked at as a technology change rather than a business change. And therein lies the challenge – technology programs alone will not help organizations adapt to the sweeping changes being brought about by the emerging digital society.
As consumer adoption of the digital lifestyle has gained momentum, it has disrupted established businesses. Kodak, for example, invented the digital camera, but it was so close to its successful film business that the entire digital generation passed them by. Kodak’s top management did not grasp how quickly the world around them was changing. They did not see and understand how digital photography was changing the way their customers took pictures, who took them, why and when. Digital cameras came to be seen, not just as photographic equipment, but as electronic gadgets, and that caused an enormous shift. Newcomers like Sony were able to bypass Kodak’s distribution networks and go right into electronic retail outlets, forcing Kodak to play on Sony’s and other entrants turf rather than its own.
Digitization has lowered entry barriers and brought in new competition across many other industries too. Netflix created entire new ecosystems in the entertainment industry. Blockbuster ignored the big changes in the way people viewed home entertainment and ended up being sold in a bankruptcy auction to Dish Network. Netflix, on the other hand, has continued to innovate and evolve, shifting their focus from movies-by-mail to a streaming model and launching their own programming. Other tech giant’s like Hulu, Amazon, YouTube and Apple also play in this arena of personal entertainment that encompasses mobile computing, wireless communications, human-computer interaction, intelligent systems and whatever comes next.
Organizations that have focused their business models around their customer’s digital lifestyle have been able to generate tremendous value from the digital wave. And it need not be only for the new age digital businesses. The promise equally applies to traditional organizations. Disney’s incredibly resilient business model has allowed them to deliver relevant, timeless and unmatched experiences that span many generations. Disney has used technology to improve the customer experience, incorporating wearable technology, fast passes and wait time indicators and Magic Bands that allow guests to buy food, merchandise, and unlock their hotel rooms, all in one device.
Proctor & Gamble is very successfully using a digital-first approach to emotionally connect with and deliver more value to its customers as can be seen in their Always Like Girl campaign. With up to half the world’s viewing time spent on digital, P&G embraces emerging technologies to shape its business model, expand its creativity, and further enhance its brand.
B2B value chains are impacted as well, the prime example being how Salesforce has completely disrupted the CRM software market by putting the sales person at their center of their focus.
Digital adoption by the broader society has leapfrogged organizations; digitally savvy consumers are creating their own ecosystems to meet their specific needs. Organizations that are leveraging digital technologies to reinvent their business models and processes to establish closer customer connection and drive innovation will be the winners. Digital technologies enable businesses to engage more deeply with customers in the context of who they are, what they prefer and what they need. Companies can use these insights to implement enterprise-wide changes that enable them to quickly and cost-effectively deliver more useful, meaningful experiences.
How is your organization leveraging digital technologies to drive innovation and closer customer connection? Is your company willing to rethink and disrupt itself in order to deliver improved experiences across the customer journey? Are you ready to disrupt, rather than be disrupted?
Publication does not imply endorsement of views by the World Economic Forum.
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Author: Suman Mahalanabis is the Director, Product Management at TCS Digital Software & Solutions Group and is passionate in bringing science to the art of business decisions through analytics and new age data infrastructure.
Image: Internet LAN cables are pictured in this photo illustration. REUTERS/Tim Wimborne.


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Grupo Modelo will deliver 600,000 bottles of drinking water due to Covid-19 pandemic
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STATE OF MEXICO — Grupo Modelo, in collaboration with the government of the State of Mexico, delivered 100,000 bottles of purified water to vulnerable groups in support of the health contingency resulting from Covid-19.
"The Corona beer production line used the glass containers of its emblematic bottle that are normally used to package the beers in its portfolio to distribute water, which met the same quality standards as those implemented in its usual production processes, " the company said in a statement.
The previous initiative corresponds to the 600,000 drinking water bottles that the company will deliver to the governments of Mexico City, Hidalgo, State of Mexico and Conagua, said Fernando Morales, director of external communication and internal reputation of Grupo Modelo. "This water is bottled in our Corona presentation, which would normally be full of beer, now we are going to fill it with drinking water for people who need it," he said.
Grupo Modelo launched more than 10 initiatives divided into three pillars: support for the authorities; business and operation allies; and for the general public.
In late March, the brewing company announced the donation of 300,000 bottles of antibacterial gel, extracted from its Zero Crown production process. Fernando Morales specified that, so far, the IMSS Foundation delivered just over 209,000 bottles.
"Another initiative that began to be carried out was the delivery of 210,000 liters of water weekly through the government of Mexico City and in particular the Mexico City Water Service (Sacmex)," mentioned Morales.
The manager pointed out that this water is not drinkable, but is used for everyday use at home such as: washing dishes, washing clothes, bathing, washing hands, among others.
On the other hand, through the "Help a restaurant" initiative by Stella Artois, Grupo Modelo activated a digital platform where consumers can buy a gift card and the brewer will double the value of the aid.
"This aid is deposited to the restaurants to keep a little of their payroll, to pay the expenses they have so we can help them stay alive in some way in the circumstances; when the pandemic ends, they will be able to use the amount of the gift card and the one added by the company, " said Fernando Morales.
Source: El Economista


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Document productivity company Nitro, originally founded in Melbourne, Australia, will beef up its San Francisco headquarters after raising $15M from Bay Area venture capitalists (VCs) in a bid to go after the big fish of document management, including Adobe and Citrix.
Nitro's products, including Nitro Pro and Nitro Cloud, enable document sharing in the enterprise. This includes the ability to sign and share documents and exchange them on mobile devices.
The company, founded by current CEO Sam Chandler in 2005, now has more than 160 employees and has raised more than $21.6 million. The company claims more than 490,000 active customers in nearly 200 countries. Chandler said in an email interview that it's now time for the company to scale up, and San Francisco was the right place to do it.
The company moved its headquarters from Australia to San Francisco about six years ago, mostly for strategic reasons.
"We’ve had a San Francisco office for nearly six years, yet we hadn’t, until now, made the decision to raise money from US VCs," Chandler wrote. "We’re profitable, and so raising money is about accelerating our growth plans, investing in our roadmap, and scaling to support all our customers around the world."
The Nitro product is built around the idea of providing a more flexible rival to Adobe's Acrobat by enabling digital sharing and signing, to improve digital workflow and eliminate paper and faxing. Nitro also markets a cloud-based software to help employees and customers share, sign, approve, track and collaborate on documents.
Chandler says the company's chief rival is Adobe, but he doesn't believe Nitro competes with Google Docs. That's because the company is focused on collaboration and workflow, rather than sharing.
Focused on Freemium
Chandler said the business model is "really simple. It’s classic freemium. We have free options for both Nitro Pro and Nitro Cloud, but when you need more features or functionality or enterprise support, we have premium options that cost money."
Nitro customers include AdRoll and KISSmetrics, and the company claims that 50 percent of Fortune 500 companies use the product. Key customers say the product can help streamline workflow by improving productivity through actions such as document sharing and signing, including employee job offer letters and new hires.
Alan Pelz-Sharpe, social business research director with 451 Research, thinks Nitro has done a good job differentiating itself by focusing on secure documents.
"There is a sub-set of the enterprise file sync and share market that is focused on secure documents," said Pelz-Sharpe. Nitro has "done a good job bundling together readable documents, in a common and trusted format, with embedded e-signatures."
Michael Brown, general partner at Battery Ventures, led the Nitro investment and will be joining Nitro's board. He believes that digital document collaboration is a growing market.
According to Australian publication Business Review Weekly (BRW), Chandler considered an IPO on the Australian stock market (ASX) before moving the company to San Francisco.


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Cigarette manufacturers operating in Singapore will be required to sell their products in standardized packaging starting July 1, reports The Straits Times.
The new rule, which also mandates enlarged graphic health warnings, will apply to all tobacco products, including cigarettes, cigarillos, cigars, bidis and roll-your-own tobacco products, according to the Ministry of Health (MOH).
Announced on Oct 31, 2018, the measures are intended to encourage smokers to quit and discourage nonsmokers from picking up the habit.
As part of the new regulations, tobacco companies will have to remove from their product packaging all logos, colors, images and promotional information.
The graphic health warnings must cover at least 75 percent of surfaces, up from the current 50 percent.
Non-compliance is punishable with a fine of up to SGD10,000 ($7,171), jail of up to six months, or both, for first-time offenders.
Those with a prior qualifying conviction will face heavier penalties.
The government of Singapore had given tobacco manufacturers, importers, wholesalers and retailers a year to prepare for the new measures.
The Health Sciences Authority also sent letters and e-mails to remind tobacco licensees of the new packaging regulations.


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MANDY. Vigilante noted last month that Simon Jenkins, the powerful Guardian columnist, suggested that Ministers did not support the small business community because they did not know the people who run smaller concerns.
Jenkins, a former editor of The Times no less, asked: “What friend of the Secretary of State for Features > Business, Lord Mandelson, ever owned a corner shop?” Regrettably this prince of the media was on very shaky ground.
Take the reference to ‘corner shop’ to mean an independent retailer and here is the answer. Leo Gillen, Today’s retailer in Hartlepool and sector activist, remains in contact with Lord Mandelson who was once the town’s MP.
“Peter has always kept in touch. I was able to get the sector’s message to him on the tobacco display ban which resulted in a two-year extension for local shops,” Leo tells this (more accurate) columnist.
TINKERING. Few people know this – but the trial set up by Booker to sell daily newspapers in cash and carry was not the first time the idea had surfaced.
When Nurdin Peacock began to look at office equipment and supplies and other new sources of revenue in the later 1980s, the management tinkered with the idea of including newspapers in its offer to all their customers, newsagents or not.
But N P did not go ahead. With its culture of microscopic probing of costs, the company looked at the disruption to branch operations if it opened at 4am to receive bulk news supplies – there could be a few tired, bad-tempered depot managers around at the end of the long N P day.
TRICKY. Not many people know this either – but the aforementioned Nurdin Peacock, the Marks Spencer of the wholesale industry as it was known, would take the revenue hit if customers’ interests were jeopardised.
As the leader in the alcohol market, the cash and carry was the first call for brewers’ sales directors. But one top sales chief was not happy to be called to N P’s HQ at Raynes Park to explain why his company had decided to sell direct to the consumer on home delivery – leapfrogging the retailer.
Big numbers were at stake. The supplier was told the brand would be removed from depots forthwith. But the ace salesman was able to blame marketing “experts” back at the ranch whose barmy idea was quickly kicked into touch.
FAR-FETCHED? Can this be true? A neighbour was asked why she was stocking up with an excellent South African Pinotage – a bottle full to the brim of full-blown blatant fruit and that mysterious old-style lingering French claret mouth experience.
She replied that at pound;2.99 a bottle she may never see the likes of it again once the Government imposed its threatened minimum pricing legislation on alcohol.
No wonder our Lidl car park is packed. Shoppers are beginning to believe that Nanny will soon deprive us of one of the last remaining pleasures of an uncertain life.
LEAK. A Vigilante mole reports an oddity. In a committee meeting a bright spark came up with a proposal that as the check-out queues at his local M S, Tesco, Sainsbury, Lidl and the rest were growing ever-longer, this should be a subject for independents to point up.
Why queue for 20 minutes at a superstore when you can obtain quick, cheerful service by a member of your local community in your local shop?
And why not ask your local shoppers to take part in a poll to identify the giant retailer where the queues were longest – and what’s more, get the local paper to print the results of the poll.
Great idea. But the committee turned it down.
VALUE. It’s time for independents to start reading their copy of the Financial Times or perhaps The Sun to get a handle on the economic meltdown. Too many local shop windows do not scream a ‘value’ message to shoppers.
We memorise the impact of store windows as we drive through suburbs. A good glance at every small store we pass is in our DNA. This reveals too many shop windows that are not used for ‘value’ signals to the community.
From memory, only the following are in the Champions League knock-out stage for shop windows which are full of value impact with their posters shouting about bargains: Spar, Costcutter and Bargain Booze.
Is a sponsor available for a Gold Medal competition for the best ‘value’ independent shop window in the UK?
ADMIRABLE. The Federation of Small Businesses is winning hearts and minds with its deft touch and effective campaign on behalf of independent family concerns.
It had the confidence to finance a big campaign in national newspapers taking full page ads to remind the Government – spraying our cash around like confetti – of the value of small enterprises which required urgent loan facilities from lethargic banks.
And its media performances are excellent. On February 20 on Radio 4’s Today programme, the Barclays chap faltered and stuttered while the Federation’s argument was put forward with force. Excellent.
DODGY. The Federation of Wholesale Distributors has continued to work on the issue of criminals avoiding duty on alcohol, resulting in cheap beer being made available despite Government attempts to stop it.
But what about independents who buy big brands at low prices from white van man?
A trade paper reports that when questioned about buying cheap booze from dodgy sources, a small shop owner said he did not do so because it was not worth the risk of being banged up.
But there should be more than this. The retailer should have reported the incident to the police and to his wholesaler who is trading legitimately but whose business is probably losing substantial beer sales.
It’s not too late for the various retailer trade associations to get this item on to their conference programmes as a major and scandalous issue.
FUELLED. One of the biggest sellers in the Tesco toy department this year will be a six-inch model of a Tesco petrol tanker with the slogan ‘Why pay more?’ in very bold lettering along the side.
The same line in six different languages will be sold world-wide. As a motor model freak, Vigilante wants one of these which will become a collectors’ must-have. They are solid and expertly made. But, emotionally, he will refrain from purchase to gaze instead at his model of the 30s delivery van as used by The Times.
But probably two million plus children will get the ‘Every little helps’ message which the Tesco model carries.
Catch ’em young?


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JMK Saab is a standalone store built “with the promise of hope,” general manager Cathi Maier says.
Like other Saab dealerships, JMK kept that hope going until the end. But the need to have a Plan B was in the back of the employees’ minds.
General Motors Co. put that plan into action today when it said its proposed sale of Saab to Dutch niche automaker Spyker Cars NV had fallen through, and the brand and its 218 U.S. dealers would wind down.
“We felt it coming,” Maier said. “We were pretty much hoping it would go to another direction, but you can’t get yourself all over-excited and then a couple days later get your feet knocked out from under you.”
Despite the preparation, Maier said she’s still a little numb. Her store, in Springfield, N.J., topped GM’s Northeast region in Saab sales for the last 11 years, she said. And while the dealership hasn’t been profitable in a while --she wouldn't say how long -- she says she still believed in Saab’s product.
Now, JMK is focusing on selling its 32 new Saabs. Its management is considering switching to used-car sales as well as bringing in a new franchise, Maier said. The owners also have a BMW dealership 1,000 feet away.
JMK has had a Saab franchise since the late 1970s, well before GM’s 1989 announcement that it would take its initial stake in Saab. Under GM, the brand has never matched its U.S. sales high of 48,181 units, reached in 1986. Its 7,812 sales this year through November were down 61 percent from 2008 levels.
“The automotive business is about new product and marketing and pricing,” Maier said. “In order to stay competitive, you need that.”


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Shunned by banks, legal weed retailers are turning to Bitcoin
Bitcoin and pot have had a long, beautiful friendship. You’ve heard of Silk Road, right?
But now, in the midst of a wave of marijuana legalization across the United States, you can finally use bitcoin to legally buy weed.
Kouchlock Productions, a medical marijuana dispensary in Spokane, Wash., that opened earlier this week, is already selling the drug using bitcoins, reports Coindesk.
Medical marijuana has been legal in Washington since 1998, but buyers have been limited primarily to cash purchases due to credit card companies and banks reluctance to process payments for drugs that are still illegal under federal law. That’s where Bitcoin, which suffers little or no legal oversight, shines.
To clear up the discrepancy, U.S. Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. said legal marijuana businesses should be able to use the American banking system. He said the government would soon push rules to help improve the situation. But, Don Childears, the president of the Colorado Bankers Association, which has lobbied to be able to accept marijuana-related payments, is skeptical.
“It’s a murky area,” Childears told Politico. “It literally will take an act of Congress.”
In addition to giving buyers a non-cash payment option, non-medical dispensaries in Colorado have turned to bitcoin to avoid legal issues with banks and credit cards.
Kouckluch is reportedly aiming to convert to a licensed, non-medical marijuana retailer to serve all adults as licenses become available in Washington.
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PT Chandra Asri Petrochemical Tbk (CAP), Indonesia’s largest petrochemical producer, has selected Univation Technologies’ UNIPOLTM PE Process for its new 400 000 tpy polyethylene plant that will be built in Cilegon, Indonesia, at CAP’s naphtha cracker complex. This will be the second UNIPOL PE Process line for CAP. CAP has also licensed Univation’s XCATTM metallocene polyethylene technology, developed specifically for the UNIPOL PE Process, which delivers advanced metallocene resin for high performance polyethylene film structures.
The new facility will provide a highly flexible manufacturing platform that can produce a broad range of polyethylene resin products, including high-density polyethylene (HDPE), linear low-density polyethylene (LLDPE) and metallocene LLDPE. These products are used in an array of consumer and industrial applications, including agricultural films, industrial shipping container applications, and houseware food storage containers.
“We are pleased that CAP has selected Univation Technologies as their polyethylene technology licensor for their new PE plant, and we believe that decision reflects CAP’s positive experience with their existing UNIPOL PE Process line,” said Steven Stanley, President of Univation Technologies. “We’re excited to continue working with CAP to help them capture new polyethylene market opportunities in Indonesia as they bring their new, world scale UNIPOL PE Process plant into production.”
According to CAP President Director, Erwin Ciputra, the UNIPOL PE Process will play a strategic role for CAP as part of their integrated Naphtha Cracker complex at Cilegon, Banten. “This commitment is a major milestone in CAP’s plan to build a new PE plant, and to ultimately meet our customer’s growing demand for high quality polyethylene products in Indonesia,” said Ciputra.
Read the article online at: https://www.hydrocarbonengineering.com/petrochemicals/01022017/chandra-asri-petrochemical-selects-univation/


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Yahoo has launched a new advertising campaign around the world to try and reestablish the brand. But the Chinese government’s harsh treatment of Google and other internet groups during the past six months has deterred Yahoo from attempting to conquer this market.
In theory, China would have been a natural target for Yahoo. The company has experimented there for years and Carol Bartz, who took over as chief executive in January, has made international expansion a high priority, especially in countries where internet penetration still has a long way to go.
But the experience of Google appears to have chilled Yahoo’s ambition.
After struggling for years with having its global website blocked in China, Google established a local business in 2006. Since then, its market share has risen to more than 20% but remains behind Baidu, the local online search leader that holds more than 60%.
This year, the Chinese government began a crackdown on Google. The site was blocked for a period and YouTube, Google’s video-sharing website, has been unavailable in China since March. A senior executive at Yahoo, said, "This shows us that things are not getting better in China for foreign internet companies and that there is no level playing field emerging, not even for Google."
In her first month as chief executive, Carol Bartz committed to investing money in countries where internet growth is expected to rise, even though it is trimming costs in other markets.
A Yahoo executive said: "Carol felt strongly that Yahoo is much better off not to directly operate in China."
Financial Times reports that the only continued connection with China for Yahoo will be its ties with Alibaba. Google will be left to fight it out on its own.
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While we appreciate all four seasons here in New Jersey and Pennsylvania, we're a bit of a summer at AVE. Our resort pools are open, our BBQ stations are bustling and our landscapes are in full bloom.
This summer, our residents enjoyed the warmer weather to the fullest with a host of new programs and amenities, many focused on health and wellness.
In April, we launched our new Bike Share amenity. All AVE residents can now borrow folding, hybrid Citizen Bikes for fitness or leisure from Memorial Day through October.
Also new this year, AVE Somerset started offering complimentary tennis instruction on Saturday mornings at its court. AVE Union kicked off two new complimentary summer fitness offerings, both with its glistening pool as a backdrop: an hour-long fitness boot camp led by Tim Foster of Fostering Fitness on Wednesdays and Saturdays, and an hour-long mixed-level yoga class led at yoga instructor Tara Bogota. Clifton also had new wellness offerings, a 1-hour yoga class on Thursday evenings and hour-long fitness classes on Wednesdays and Saturdays.
There’s no doubt our resort pools are the center of all activity in the summer. We kicked off the season on Memorial Day Weekend with beach-themed Resident Receptions at all communities. Malvern residents enjoyed boardwalk treats like funnel cake and cotton candy while Somerset residents were serenated by a live steel drum band.
This year, Union launched a poolside delivery amenity, so residents could enjoy a curated summer lunch menu courtesy of Suspenders Restaurant & Pubwithout leaving the sundeck. In June, Clifton residents received a live fashion show and light fare poolside with summer styles courtesy of partner Femmebot Clothing with hair and makeup by partner Moxie Blow Dry and Beauty Bar.
Back by popular demand was our movie series under the stars series where residents view a new summer release on the big screen that we did on our pool with assorted movie refreshments.


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Google is adding security for remote workers to its Google Apps set of office tools. Google Web Security for Enterprise, the result of last year's purchase of Postini, includes real-time malware protection and URL filtering with policy enforcement and reporting.
"An additional feature extends the same protections to users working remotely on laptops in hotels, cafes, and even guest networks," Google stated.
Google also took advantage of the Postini buy last October when it gave users access to new e-mail security and compliance features at no extra charge. "Google Web Security allows companies to secure their networks from Web-based malware; enforce Internet use policies at the user, workgroup or company level; and receive comprehensive reporting on all web activities," said the company.
Like the hosted Google Apps software, the security features are delivered over the web as a service, so the optional security features for remote workers can be accessed without employees having to sign on to their company's network. In addition to enforcing policies, administrators can audit and review web activity reports on individual users, departments or the whole company.
Google released the enterprise version of Google Apps more than a year ago to compete against the ubiquitous Microsoft Office suite of work tools. Google Apps includes email, shared calendaring, instant messaging, VoIP, web page creation and online document hosting and collaboration.


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Columbia Sportswear shares nearing peak
- Erik Siemers
- Business Journal staff writer
Columbia Sportswear Co. executives appeared pleased with themselves Thursday after reporting strong first quarter results and even stronger order numbers for the outdoor brand’s fall lineup.
Investors on Friday shared the sentiment.
Shares of Washington County-based Columbia (NASDAQ: COLM) reached a new 52-week high in mid-day trading Friday, hitting $69.85 before closing at $67.99 — a nearly 6 percent increase from Thursday’s closing price.
That put Columbia shares within reach of its all-time high of $70.93, a point it reached during trading on June 1, 2007, before closing that day at $70.38.
The news comes one day after Columbia said it increased its first quarter profit by 38 percent, generated earnings of $12.8 million, or 37 cents per share, on $331.1 million in sales.
Meanwhile, orders from retailers for Fall 2011 products reached a record $860.8 million at the end of March, an increase of 19 percent or $135.5 million from the same period a year ago.
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The subdued textile and textile products industry is not impressed by the government policy to offer “jumbo” tax deductions as the industry considers that the safeguard policy will be more helpful to protect the industry from the storm of imported products.
Indonesian Association of Synthetic Fiber Producers (APSYFI) secretary-general Redma Gita Wirawasta said on Wednesday that what was needed by the textile industry was for the domestic market to absorb the products it had manufactured.
He said APSYFI members planned to reduce the production target in the second half by 15 to 20 percent because of the declining demand from the textile industry.
“The most important thing for us is that we can sell [our products] rather than getting incentives but not being able to do business,” Redma said as quoted by kontan.co.id during an event to evaluate the performance of the synthetic fiber industry in the first half of 2019.
The government issued Government Regulation (PP) No. 45/2019 on June 25 to regulate a tax deduction of up to 300 percent, which aimed at boosting investment, research and development (R&D) as well as the participation of businesses in improving Indonesia’s human resources.
Redma stressed that without any fiscal incentives, the business would grow if the government could help boost the market demand by controlling imports.
He explained that in the period between 2007 and 2018, imports of textiles and textile products grew 12.3 percent, while exports only grew 3.1 percent.
He said the storm of imports had seriously affected the industry.
He revealed that in 2018, the factory utility of fabric was at 61.5 percent of its installed capacity, fiber at 67.7 percent, yarn at 76.5 percent and garments at 86.9 percent, while in 2017, the factory utility of fabric was at 56 percent, fiber at 67.7 percent, yarn at 75.8 percent and garments at 80.1 percent. (bbn)
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Traceability helps consumers trace the lifecycle of a product starting


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Automate internal factory logistics with funding up to €250k equity-free funding
L4MS (Logistics for Manufacturing SMEs), the pan-European acceleration program aims to help small and medium-sized manufacturing companies to adapt new technologies in factory logistics. L4MS second Open Call
ICT Proposers' Day 2019 starting next week in Helsinki.
ICT Proposers’ Day is almost here.
New TETRAMAX open calls
Today’s European industries are challenged by the fast developing digitalization era, making it increasingly difficult for small and medium-size enterprises (SMEs) to keep track with, and benefit from, modern ICT for their business and production cycles.


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Christmas Tree Donations
Lots of times we think of donating toys and food but how often do we think of donating Christmas trees? Part of the fun of Christmas is decorating a Christmas tree. This year Madeleine and her family are going to donate Christmas trees to people who can't afford them. “I think that it's important that people have a tree for Christmas” said Madeleine Heidebrecht. “It's important because part of the magic of Christmas is decorating and looking at the Christmas tree” said Madeleine.
Madeleine got the idea to start donating trees last year when her dad bought a Christmas tree but her mom didn't like it so, they decided to give it away. This sparked Madeleine’s imagination.This year Madeleine asked her mom if they could buy more trees to donate. “I'm planning to start small but eventually set up a charity” said Madeleine. Madeleine reached out to Nancy McPhee of Stephens backpacks for advice.
Nancy McPhee mother of Stephen McPhee, a Calgary boy who started Stephen’s backpacks charity said “a way you can identify people in need is partner with a charity. For example, the charity CUPS Calgary could really use the support”. “Our first year of donating backpacks, we wrote letters asking for donations”. “In the letters we explained what we were looking for, who we were helping, and how we could use their help” said Nancy McPhee.
How can we help.
Nancy suggested fundraising initiatives such as bake sales, going door to door asking for donations, or maybe even selling popcorn.
Fawcett News Network
A collection of news articles written by students of 6.1 and 6.2


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MIAMI: Royal Caribbean recently embarked on a global interactive effort to promote the launch of Oasis of the Seas, its largest cruise ship to date. The company partnered with USA Today to create a contest inviting citizen journalists to contribute news to the outlet's Cruise Log beginning November 19 when the Oasis takes is inaugural three-day trip.
The company will choose a winner for the "Reporter at Sea" campaign from the US, Canada, Germany, Mexico, and the UK to report from the trip. The "special field correspondents" will have access to the ship's files and interaction with USA Today cruise editor, Gene Sloan.
Royal Caribbean asked participants to audition by posting a a video that showcases their reporting skills on a newly created microsite, reporteratsea.usatoday.com.
“We recently increased activity in the social world and wanted to find something to create buzz and excitement in the space,” said Tracy Quan, director of brand communications at Royal Caribbean. “We hope to create a viral effect.”
She said that most of the launch is focused on PR and social media efforts with "minimal advertising.”
Quan explained that on a daily basis, the team is putting new information on oasisoftheseas.com, Twitter, and Facebook. Royal Caribbean Chairman and CEO Richard Fain is also promoting the efforts on his blog.
The cruise line is aided by its AOR for more than 10 years, Weber Shandwick.
“Now people are taking word-of-mouth into huge account when thinking about where consumers are making their travel decisions,” said Erin Burden, VP at WS.
The team announced plans to launch the ship last April by releasing two-minute webisodes on the making of the ship.


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The newly released racer is going to get an update shortly that will, as GT5 designer Kazunori Yamauchi tells Eurogamer, "refine the usability of the game to make it a better experience".
The update will hit on November 27 and, as Yamauchi points out, include more regulations for online play like max power and weight restrictions. About Gran Turismo 5, Yamauchi said, "It's like a living creature, dynamically growing as we speak."
Earlier this week, "extreme online traffic congestion" pounded Gran Turismo 5's online, affecting the singleplayer. Sony offered a temp solution: unplug your PS3. Yamauchi says the traffic onslaught put the game's online service in "kind of a critical state". The reason for this is that GT5's data center was configured to deal with 500,000. "But the number of connections we received greatly exceeded that amount and there was a high chance of experiencing problems as a result," Yamauchi adds.


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Image courtesy: BEAMSTART
Notable investors such as Reid Hoffman, Gwyneth Paltrow, and Cozomo de Medici participated in the seed funding round.
Digital art platform Wildxyz has raised $7 million in seed funding to expand its residency program and community surrounding non-fungible token (NFT) art, the company said Thursday.
The round was led by venture capital firm Matrix Partners, with participation from notable investors including LinkedIn founder Reid Hoffman; actress and Goop founder Gwyneth Paltrow; the co-founder of Twitch, Kevin Lin; and NFT investor Cozomo de Medici.
Wild plans to put the funding towards its hyper-curatorial residency program, which onboards artists in “seasons” to create art for its native marketplace. Douglass Kobs, CEO and founder of Wild, told CoinDesk that its goal is to help artists build bodies of Web3 work to collectively contribute to the “Wildverse,” the platform’s native metaverse.
“We deem the future to be much more immersive, much more experiential, driven by AR and VR innovation,” said Kobs, referring to augmented reality and virtual reality. “What we’re building at Wild is a collection of some of the most creative humans on planet earth who are building this new surface area of experiential art that we can all play with, interact with, engage with, and build community within.”
Wild kicked off Season 0 in November 2022, a 12-week program culminating in an NFT drop in January 2023 from participating artists including Hideo, Mitchel F. Chan, Aluna, Sasha Belitskaja, Auguste Wibo, and others.
“The Wild Residency is an incredible opportunity for artists to share creativity, ideas, and energy,” said Chan. “The program has created meaningful connections in my art practice that will continue to shape my career.”
While Wild holds weekly sales of its residency artists’ work, it also offers Wild Oasis, a founder’s pass that allows community members to bid daily on NFTs, starting at a price of 0.1 ETH or about $160.
“What we try to do is build this ecosystem in this community for all the artists to do their best work, and to learn from one another,” said Kobs. “The program is an effort to guide them to be successful in Web3.”
Since the start of 2023, several platforms have emerged that empower artists to explore digital creativity while executing the mint and sales of their work. In January, the former head of digital at Gagosian launched Tonic.xyz, a generative art platform, and gallery. This week, Solana-based digital art platform Exchange.art spun off to create Code Canvas, a generative art marketplace and artist community.


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- Michigan bans in-state insurers from covering abortion
- Nancy Pelosi tells Democrats to pass budget: ‘Embrace the suck’
- Key Obamacare official: Last two months much harder than anyone hoped
- Sen. Mike Lee: We must stop ‘the prez’ from acting like the queen
- George Bush consoles Alabama kicker Cade Foster: You will be stronger
- Megachurch pastor with ties to Obama commits suicide
- WaPo to readers: Send us your ‘gun violence’ stories for Sandy Hook anniversary
- U.S. threatens Ukraine with sanctions over dispatch of riot police
- Canada doing away with door-to-door mail delivery by 2018
- NSA chief defends phone spying: ‘There is no other way’
Ford Motor Company
Latest Ford Motor Company Items
A witness in the Anna Nicole Smith drug conspiracy trial recanted statements Friday that he saw defendant Howard K. Stern give the celebrity model excessive drugs.
Ford Motor Company is leveraging the Internet and wireless technology to accelerate testing and refinement of the advanced lithium-ion battery systems that will power its upcoming plug-in hybrid and electric vehicles.
Auto sales, once a bright spot in the economic recovery, stalled last month as the nation's largest car companies reported falling sales.
The New Yorker's Jane Mayer breathlessly profiles Charles and David Koch in an article headlined "Covert Operations: The Billionaire Brothers Who Are Waging a War Against Obama."
Why are Americans enraged? As this moribund economy limps through the third year of doldrums, Americans are sick of having their hard-earned money swiped by Washington's Democrat-dominated political class, which is clueless, condescending and invariably costly.
The award-winning MyFord Touch driver connect technology is just the start of an entire suite of class-exclusive convenience features and technologies available on the 2011 Ford Edge and not found on crossovers that cost twice the price.
President Obama says Islam has always been part of America, which raises the question, does the president know something about American history that we don't?
The 2011 Ford Harley-Davidson F-150 combines two rich traditions into an extraordinary package for customers who crave capability and long for the open road.
In an industry first, Ford Motor Company will make sure all 2011 Ford F-Series Super Duty pickup customers - past and future - receive the added power produced by the all-new 6.7-liter Power Stroke V8 turbocharged diesel.


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Posted on Tuesday, February 4th, 2014 by Germain Lussier
I have a recommendation for all you Star Wars fans out there. As you patiently wait for news of new movies, fill the time by looking at the awesome way Disney and Lucasfilm are promoting the upcoming cartoon series Star Wars Rebels. For the past few months, slivers of information have been continually released about the project, each giving fans just enough to enjoy and digest without spoiling anything big.
We know the identity of the villain, we know a new droid, we’ve seen concept art and much more. Now, six images promoting Imperial propaganda have been released, each showing ways the Empire is recruiting people to their cause between the events of Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith and Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope. Check them out below.
Here’s the info on these images courtesy of IGN:
This week, Lucasfilm is doing a special mailing to 2500 lucky individuals around the world, who will be receiving a special gift from the Empire. The contents include a set of six limited edition cards that represent the world of Star Wars Rebels – original illustrations from Amy Beth Christenson, a member of the Lucasfilm Animation art department working on Star Wars Rebels.
I think it’s pretty awesome how the rise of the Empire, and the resulting rebellion, are the center of this new show, which will debut on Disney XD in the Fall. It’s one of those important but under explored times in the Star Wars universe.
What do you think of the images?Cool Posts From Around the Web:


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Fashion brands branching out into home accessories, a new logo for Zara, a paywall for Condé Nast titles, and more news from the fashion trenches this month.
- Fashion giant ASOS is launching a homeware line on 4 February.
- The Guardian reports that more and more fashion brands are adding home accessories to their offerings.
- People have mixed feelings about Zara’s new logo.
- Condé Nast is planning to put all its titles, including publications like Vogue and Glamour, behind a digital paywall by the end of this year.
- Mickey Drexler has retired as chairman at J.Crew.
- J.Crew is partnering with non-profit organization Habitat for Humanity for its denim recycling programme.
- Under Armour will make the space suits for Virgin Galactic flights.
- The Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA) has released a report on inclusion and diversity in the American fashion industry.
Fun Fashion Fact
BEST DEAL UPDATE:


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This £16,000 BMW has been stolen from a car sales forecourt near Burnham-On-Sea in less than a minute by tech-savvy thieves who managed to bypass its security system.
Burnham-On-Sea Police are investigating the theft of the luxury car from Coopers Cars in East Brent on Wednesday evening (February 14th) at 8.50pm.
The thieves were caught on CCTV stealing the vehicle using an amplified signal hacking device which can remotely open the BMW’s doors. The devices are being increasingly used by thieves across the UK to steal high-end keyless cars.
Business owner Tony Cooper told Burnham-On-Sea.com says his CCTV footage shows the thieves pull up in a car then electronically open the BMW doors, before a person gets in and drives it off into the night.
Tony says: “The whole thing lasted less than a minute – it was very quick and they caused no damage to the vehicle whatsoever.”
“It was a very well planned theft in which they remotely unlocked the car and drove it off.”
“The car they took is a high-end BMW M6 V10. We’re a small family business so a theft like this hits us hard.”
“We would urge other car sales businesses and BMW owners in the area to be aware that this has happened.”
Burnham-On-Sea Police are asking for anyone with information about the incident to contact them on 101.
Police have recently warned that car criminals are becoming more tech-savvy than ever before.
They have seen increasing use of the signal amplifiers to unlock cars simply by approaching them with the high-tech device.
Police say that in some UK cities up to one in four stolen cars are now taken using the gadgets.


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This report helps automotive suppliers inform their legal and operational decisions to help address challenges and opportunities.
- The Wall Street Journal quotes Foley & Lardner partner John Trentacosta in a recent overview of profitability constraints faced by auto suppliers resulting from the economic effects of the global chip shortage.
- U.S. new light-vehicle sales in November reached a SAAR of 12.8 million units to 12.9 million units, and full-year 2021 light-vehicle sales are forecast at 14.9 million units to 15 million units, according to estimates from LMC Automotive and NADA.
- U.S. fleet sales reached an estimated 1.5 million units for January – November, 42% lower than the 2.6 million units sold during the same period in 2019, and 1% lower compared to the same period in 2020.
- Mexico indicated that it could impose tariffs in response to proposed U.S. legislation that would offer consumer tax credits for electric vehicles that are union-made in the U.S.
- Ford will postpone its return-to-office hybrid work model for salaried employees to March 2022, instead of January, due to uncertainty about the state of COVID-19 developments.
- Electric vehicles and low emissions technology:
- Toyota will invest $1.3 billion to build a new electric vehicle battery plant in North Carolina that will employ 1,750 people and begin production in 2025.
- Bollinger Motors announced a strategic collaboration with EAVX, a business unit of JB Poindexter & Co, to develop electric work trucks. The companies will integrate EAVX's commercial work-truck bodies and accessories with Bollinger's electric vehicle platforms.
- Volkswagen estimates that it will need to invest up to 30 billion euros ($34 billion) in new battery cell manufacturing sites and raw materials. The automaker plans to seek partnerships to support its goal of opening six battery cell plants in Europe by 2030.
- Rystad Energy predicts steep increases in demand this decade for lithium, nickel and cobalt needed in EVs and energy-storage batteries.
- Toyota announced that its European new vehicle sales will be zero-emissions by 2035, with an interim goal of reaching 50% ZEV by 2030.
Market Trends and Regulatory
- Tin prices have roughly doubled in 2021 compared to one year ago, reflecting an upward trajectory that is the steepest annual increase in three decades.
- GM raised its full-year financial outlook to $14 billion, from a previous guidance of $11.5 billion to $13.5 billion in adjusted earnings before interest and taxes. The revision is due to improving supplies of semiconductors.
- In its first quarterly report since going public, Volvo Cars stated that semiconductor supplies have improved “month by month” since September, but that it expects shortages to “remain a restraining factor” industrywide.
- Marelli announced plans for its operations to become carbon neutral by 2030, by using higher-efficiency equipment, renewable energy, and carbon credits.
- Ford stated that it was the top-selling automaker in the U.S. in November, and that its 2021 F-Series pickup is the industry’s top-selling truck for the 45th consecutive year.
Connected/Autonomous Vehicles and Mobility Services
- Nuro and 7-Eleven will pilot a commercial delivery service using autonomous vehicles in Mountain View, California. The project will begin this month with Nuro’s self-driving Priuses, and eventually will use the company’s R2 delivery vehicles.
- Amazon Web Services launched a new cloud-based data service, AWS IoT FleetWise, that could help automakers remotely diagnose issues in their vehicles for the purpose of improving safety and preventing recalls.
Electric Vehicles and Low Emissions Technology
- Lucid Group received a subpoena from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission pertaining to an investigation of the SPAC deal that recently took the electric-vehicle company public.
- Chevrolet Bolt production downtime at GM’s Lake Orion Assembly plant was extended to the end of January as the automaker continues work on the vehicle’s battery-related recall.
- GM will form a joint venture in North America with South Korean company Posco Chemical to process cathode active material used in the automaker’s Ultium electric vehicle platform. Site selection is anticipated after the deal closes, which could occur by the first quarter of 2022.
- Massachusetts-based solid-state battery maker Factorial Inc. announced collaborations with Stellantis and Daimler’s Mercedes-Benz. The partnerships will focus on developing solid-state battery technology for electric vehicles. Solid-state batteries could reduce battery costs and increase range, but it is expected the technology will have difficulty achieving mass market adoption this decade.
- German automotive supplier TÜV SÜD plans to invest $44.1 million and create 40 jobs for an electric vehicle battery-testing facility in Auburn Hills, Michigan.
- Electric vehicle and charging company Phoenix Motorcars filed to go public on the Nasdaq stock exchange under the ticker symbol of PEV. The company was founded in 2003 and is based in Ontario, California.
- China is reported to be a significant source of revenue for Tesla, but the company is facing increasing challenges in the nation’s regulatory environment.
Prepared by Julie Dautermann, Competitive Intelligence Analyst


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Arrow Electronics’ CFO Inc.
turns to software to realize $ 130 million in annual savings on electronics distributor operations, an effort that could be expanded if the company’s outlook deteriorates due to trade tensions between the United States and the United States. China.
The Centennial, Colo.-Based company lowered its forecast in mid-July following lower sales. It posted a net loss of $ 549 million in the second quarter, compared to a profit of $ 170 million in the same quarter a year earlier. Arrow cited a drop in demand for all component products, all regions and most industries in a earnings release in early August.
“We don’t want a lasting impact on operating income and earnings per share,” CFO Chris Stansbury said in an interview on Tuesday. “Barring the moderating effects on demand from tariffs and trade wars, Arrow would have expected operating profit to increase year over year,” Stansbury said.
Arrow expects to collect $ 130 million in costs by the end of the year and its new enterprise resource planning system is expected to play a key role in achieving that goal, Mr Stansbury said.
The company’s ERP system links a range of business processes into a common data or network structure. ERP systems combine information on finance, inventory management, supply chain management and human resource management.
Arrow now operates three versions of the same ERP program in three business regions, the Americas, Europe and Asia. Integrating previously separate systems into the three they have now allows the CFO to have a more holistic view of the company’s operations, Mr Stansbury said.
The company is focusing on back office functions such as finance and human resources as well as warehousing and operations to reduce costs, Mr Stansbury said. It will also end its business of selling personal computers and mobility assets, a repair and recycling unit. Front-line engineering and sales staff will not experience cuts, Mr Stansbury said.
âERP has enabled us to achieve all of these cost reductions,â said Stansbury. “We couldn’t have done them without it.”
Analysts expect a large chunk of the savings to come from job cuts.
âTheir biggest cost is people,â said Shawn Harrison, vice president of Longbow Research LLC. âThe only area where they’re not cutting expenses are their engineering and design teams. “
The company employed around 20,100 people as of Dec.31, according to Arrow’s annual report.
The new ERP system will help the business during the current uncertain economic phase, Mr. Harrison said. Arrow gets better visibility of its accounts receivable and accounts payable through the software, he said.
The system could also increase efficiency across departments, reducing the potential need for further reductions in a year or two, said Steven Fox, managing director of Cross Research LLC.
âIf there are any side economic effects, we obviously have to start over,â Stansbury said. He added that current cost-saving measures would not be enough to fully compensate for the company’s lost profits.
Trade tensions between the United States and China have hurt Arrow customers, Mr Stansbury said. “I don’t think the tariffs are going to go away,” he said, adding that “it is a moving target”.
Arrow passes the cost of tariffs on to its customers in the form of higher prices, Mr Stansbury said. âTariff pain comes in the form of lower demand, resulting in lower sales, resulting in decreased ability to generate profit relative to our fixed expense base,â he said. .
The company has approximately 200,000 customers worldwide, many of which are small and medium-sized industrial enterprises. âWhat they see in their business is a direct reading of manufacturing trends on a global scale,â said Mr. Harrison of Longbow.
Activity at US factories contracted for the first time in three years in August. New factory orders, employment and production all declined last month from July, according to manufacturing figures released Tuesday by the Institute for Supply Management.
âMark Maurer contributed to this article.
Write to Nina Trentmann at [email protected]
Copyright Â© 2021 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All rights reserved. 87990cbe856818d5eddac44c7b1cdeb8


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Savant chief executive and co-founder Robert Madonna has presented the keynote address at the Savant Summit, in conjunction with the 2020 International Builders’ Show (IBS) in January.
In his address, Robert shared highlights of the upcoming year, a product roadmap as well as new strategic partnerships. Attendees were also treated to more than 20 live product demonstrations and breakout education seminars.
Following an impressive suite of products released in 2019, Savant, distributed by Avation in Australia, focused on innovation in new categories including lighting, energy automation and wireless high resolution digital audio, plus enhanced partnerships across the entire Smart Home marketplace.
New additions to Savant’s Partners in Excellence Program include an enhanced relationship with NETGEAR, Kohler’s Robern brand of premium vanities featuring tuneable LED lighting and full integration with Ring’s new X Line.
Ring’s founder and chief inventor Jamie Siminoff spoke to attendees at the Savant Summit, highlighting the first such relationship in the CI channel. The partnership, alongside the release of Ring’s X line hopes to deliver a unique experience to customers.
Savant will now deliver the Ring Doorbell experience within its smart home ecosystem and integrators can expect to see Ring features such as a live view of Ring video, notifications and two-way audio later in 2020.
With its NETGEAR partnership, Savant can now offer the full suite of networking solutions to integrators.
The objective of the alliance is to create networking solutions that are optomised for the Savant home ecosystem. This now allows Savant to streamline design, installation and service processes for integration professionals. Through this partnership, integrators will gain access to 24/7 system design and support services, increasing jobsite efficiency while ensuring client satisfaction.
Savant showcased an expansion of the Smart Audio product family with the AVB and WiSA-enabled products. This includes a new three-channel amplifier with onboard Savant control capability, the new high-performance free-standing bookshelf speaker designed by Cary Christie with capacitive touch controls on the top surface and an AVB to WiSA Bridge which creates limitless connectivity options for integrators.
Also announced is the acquisition of NOON Home, exciting residential lighting control innovations that create new opportunities for integrators. This acquisition will enable Racepoint Energy and sister-company Savant to deliver the NOON’s complete lighting control platform that can be discovered and controlled with a single app experience.
The post Savant unveils new product roadmap and strategic partnerships at the 2020 Integrator Summit appeared first on Connected Magazine.


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Click here for the top 10 rankings in the regionOctober 8, 2015 6:09
The World Wide Web
Twenty years after it was created, its inventors say that the web is not all done, and that the new changes will “rock the world.”
March 16, 2009 5:09 by Aarti Nagraj
Another main issue is that of privacy. For instance, Google recently launched a system to send advertisements to web users based on their online activities.
While not directly targeting Google, during the 20th anniversary ceremony Berners-Lee warned against systems that can automatically track a web user’s habits and create a detailed profile of the person.
“That sort of snooping is really important to avoid,” he said. “The fact that when information travels across the web it isn’t interfered with, snooped or molested, is very important.”
Several experts have condemned the social interactive sites like Facebook and MySpace for displaying personal information for making users vulnerable to crimes.
According to Berners-Lee, one of the biggest challenges of the web is to avoid privacy pitfalls, by ensuring that information available online is used for the specific purpose that its owner intended or consented to.
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