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By Huw Jones
LONDON (Reuters) – U.S. regulatory inspections of audits of US-listed Chinese companies have begun and conclusions could take months, said Bob Moritz, chairman of PwC Global.
A China-U.S. deal in August allows U.S. regulators for the first time to inspect China-based accounting firms that audit New York-listed companies to resolve a dispute that threatened to take more than 200 Chinese companies off U.S. exchanges. keep out.
“We are in the middle of the inspection process. We are in the very early stages of that,” Moritz told Reuters.
PwC’s Chinese customers include e-commerce giant Alibaba Group.
“We still have several months to go before the conclusions are reached. We will continue to share the information that is allowed,” Moritz said.
He confirmed record global revenue for PwC of $50.3 billion for the year ended June 30, up 13.4% from the prior period.
During the last fiscal year, the “Big Four” accountant withdrew from Russia after the invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24, while the global workforce rose by more than 32,000 to 328,000, as a four-year $12 billion program to raise 100,000. people to take got to work.
Moritz expects “significant” hiring in the current fiscal year to continue as the company recovers from the COVID-19 pandemic.
PwC has not yet set a mandatory minimum number of days to work in the office, although hybrid work was here to stay, he said.
“What we expect is that when they come in, there’s a purpose to get in. It makes sure the other people are there too,” Moritz said.
Rival EY asks partners if they want to split audit and consulting into two companies.
“We’ve been very clear that our current construction and organizational model is right for the stakeholders we serve … and we see no need for change,” Moritz said.
(Reporting by Huw Jones; editing by Paul Simao)


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Tag "dell streak 10"
Earlier his year, Dell officially launched the Streak 7 on T-Mobile. Unfortunately, it wasn’t as successful as they would’ve liked, mostly since it appeared to many as just another poor Froyo tablet.
Word today is that Dell is set to follow their Dell Streak 7 with a 10-inch version due in June. According to sources familiar with the matter, Dell’s next tablet

domain: news


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A Japanese professor has created a lickable TV screen, which will let you taste the food from all around the world,
Reuter reported that the prototype machine uses a mixture of 10 flavors, including salty, sweet and spicy, then the machine mixes them in different ratios to create the flavor of the desired food. The flavor mixture is then spread over the TV screen for viewers to lick. The lickable device is being called Taste The TV.
If you are wondering about the hygiene, don’t worry, because there is a protective hygienic layer over the TV screen which can be replaced after 1 use.
The device is made by Homei Miyashita., who is a professor in Meiji University. His goal is to make it possible for people to taste food from any other part of the world, or a fancy restaurant while staying at home.
Taste the TV device is expected to launch commercially at $850 US, however, there is no release date in the near future.
One of the professor’s students demonstrated the machine in front of Journalist by ordering a chocolate. After a few tries, Taste the TV sprinkled a sample on the hygienic sheet, which tasted like the milk chocolate.
The possibilities of this invention are endless, maybe one day we will be able to taste anime food as well. However, some social media users have criticized this invention as it could affect the public hygiene. What are your thoughts on this invention? Please let us know in the comment section.


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RollerCoaster Tycoon 3: Complete Edition is coming into a new era as well as new platforms.
Coming to PC and Nintendo Switch, RollerCoaster Tycoon 3: Complete Edition will feature upgraded visuals, all previously released expansions and more.
After a legal kerfuffle with Atari in 2017, Rollercoaster Tycoon 3 was forced to be removed from Steam. Now, the game will be published by Frontier Foundry, Frontier’s “label for third-party publishing.”
Check out the trailer:
RollerCoaster Tycoon 3: Complete Edition will launch on Nintendo Switch and PC through both Steam and the Epic Games Store on September 24th. Despite its close release date, Frontier hasn’t realeased any pricing information yet.
For more coasters and the like, check out our review of the last RollerCoaster Tycoon game that released on Nintendo Switch.


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TomTom says police used reports to set speed traps
AMSTERDAM — TomTom NV, Europe’s largest navigation device maker, went into damage control mode yesterday after it emerged that Dutch police have been using data collected from drivers who use the company’s products to set speed traps.
Earlier, TomTom had reported weak first quarter earnings in which it cut 2011 sales forecasts and said it was seeking to compensate for a decline in demand for personal navigation devices by growing service revenues — including selling traffic data to governments.
National newspaper Algemeen Dagblad reported that police had obtained the information from the government and used it to set targeted speed traps, prompting angry reactions from TomTom users.
In an e-mailed apology, chief executive Harold Goddijn said the company sold the anonymous data believing it would be used to improve safety or relieve traffic bottlenecks.
“We never foresaw this kind of use and many of our clients are not happy about it,’’ he wrote.
He promised licensing agreements would “prevent this type of use in the future.’’
TomTom reported first quarter net profit of $16 million, up from $4.3 million in the same period a year earlier.
Around half of its revenues now come from automakers who incorporate TomTom products into their cars and from services paying for map and traffic information.


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What does 2018 hold for the world? That may be difficult to predict, but what 2018 holds for 3D printing is a bit easier to grasp since we’ve reached out to a number of experts in the industry to get their input on what 2018 looks like for 3D printing.
According to Michelle Bockman, global head of 3D printing commercial expansion and development for HP Inc., 3D printing for full-scale manufacturing will see increased adoption. This will take the following shape, according to Bockman: “Industrial 3D printing will expand to a host of new countries, making it a truly global transformation. Advances in technology will significantly increase the speed, reliability and capability of 3D production. The scale economics of 3D printing will continue to improve, making digital manufacturing more cost-effective for more types of companies in more places. More companies will enter the 3D materials marketplace, helping to drive innovation, lower costs and increase materials diversity. Commercial applications of 3D printing will become more defined across major industries—automotive, medical, aerospace, consumer goods, heavy industry—making the digital industrial revolution a growing part of our everyday lives.”
Scott Sevcik, VP of Manufacturing Solutions at Stratasys, echoed this point, with a specific emphasis on aerospace. “Looking into 2018, we’ll definitely see the acceleration of production part adoption in aerospace. Major OEMs have already industrialized FDM for interior applications – and this adoption is expanding both upstream and downstream,” Sevcik said. “This is seen as suppliers expand use of 3D printing for efficient, low volume and custom production – and as airlines and MROs leverage the technology for supply chain flexibility. You can already see that standards are currently being developed for industry-leading technologies and fused deposition modeling (FDM), while new simulation and analysis tools are coming online to aid designers in additive designs. As the year progresses, we’ll see low-volume automotive catching up to aerospace with more and more parts in vehicles as well as broad adoption for Rapid Tooling on the automotive factory floor.”
Greg Mark, CEO of Markforged, reinforced the practical application of 3D printing technology, emphasizing its shift away from prototyping and towards end-use parts. In other words, the hype associated with 3D printing over the past few years is now coming to fruition. Markforged is known both for its carbon fiber and metal 3D printing technology.
“Now, we’re finally living up to the promise and printing high-strength parts for real-world use cases,” Mark said. “With Markforged printers, companies are able to print carbon fiber–reinforced composites that are strong enough for the harshest applications, and metal 3D printing just got an order of magnitude more affordable,” he added. “Combined, these innovations dramatically expand the value proposition of 3D printing and are driving triple-digit growth fueled by rapid return on investment. Markforged customers typically see three-month return on investments for carbon fiber printers. The payback period is so fast that 31 percent of customers buy a second printer within the first year.”
Vice President of Advanced Application Development at 3D Systems Patrick Dunne also believes that 3D printing will see increased adoption. “In 2018, we will see businesses of all profiles across industries move toward deeper adoption of additive manufacturing (AM),” Dunne said. “The technology will drive small businesses in the sense that they can up-level their capabilities to those of a more established, mature business; this may introduce new levels of competition and new business models and market opportunity. Similarly, large companies will engage AM technologies earlier in the process, from the design phase, as capabilities to support the entire end-to-end workflow mature.”
3D printing won’t be isolated to niche applications, according to Dunne. Instead, it will become a standard tool for “many existing and novel production streams.”
Duann Scott, responsible for Business Development and Strategy for Additive Manufacturing at Autodesk, saw major trends in design occurring next year. “In 2018, we will start to see people really understand that design for additive manufacturing is key to it transforming from a very small part of manufacturing, to a substantial part of the economy,” Scott said. “Comparing an existing traditionally manufactured part to an AM replica is rarely going to be a financial win, but consolidating an entire assembly into a single AM part can massively reduce the manufacturing cost, completely compress the supply chain and improve the performance within a single design change. Once engineers (and their managers) start to realize this in the year ahead, we expect to see massive investment in design for AM.”
An important contribution to improvements in design for 3D printing may be entirely new design processes, such as generative design. This makes it possible to enter specific parameters for a part, such as reduced weight, and allow software to alter a part’s topology to meet those requirements automatically. “We can speed up this education process through Generative Design software, where we take a sub-assembly out of an existing design, define the constraints and engineering requirements, and let the Generative Design tool help the engineer explore potential solutions to replace the sub-assembly with a single part,” Scott said.
New and Improved Metal 3D Printing
As mentioned in the introduction, metal 3D printing is developing rapidly, both in terms of lowering costs and increased adoption. Bart Van der Schueren, chief technology officer of Materialise, a 3D printing service provider and software developer, echoed as much in a statement to ENGINEERING.com.
“Metal is booming. We know that metal 3D printing will never replace traditional manufacturing—but as a complimentary manufacturing technology, its position is becoming increasingly important,” Van der Schueren relayed.“Metal 3D printing will become more and more of a necessity when solving specific manufacturing challenges and creating customized, complex end-use products. To that end, we acquired AC Tech this year, a German manufacturing company specialized in highly complex metal prototype casting. With their expertise in metal and our knowledge of 3D printing, we are prepared to bring metal 3D printing to the next level.”
Metal 3D printing will see improvement both in terms of new technologies, as well as improvements to established ones. For instance, 3D Systems recently announced the expansion of its metal 3D printing line with a large, more automated system.
Dunne spoke to this development, saying, “A broader range of metals will be optimized for direct metal printing. The conversion of raw materials into finished production products will see significant growth in 2018. Hardware will evolve in parallel to become more capable from both a part-size perspective as well as process control, with solutions like 3D Systems’ recently announced DMP 8500. This machine can print a 500-mm XYZ, the largest “seamless” part capability in the industry. This class of development will solidify the position of the technology as mainstream in industries like healthcare and aerospace. In the latter, for example, design optimization of parts expressed by AM to create new geometries has the potential to save thousands of dollars in fuel consumption alone, just by improving the strength-to-weight ratios.”
Markforged, on the other hand, is one of the innovators that is introducing new metal 3D printing processes, having released a technology capable of producing metal, 3D-printed parts with greater ease of use at a lower cost than previously possible. The Metal X 3D printer prints rods of metal powder bound together with thermoplastic, creating parts in a method similar to fused deposition modeling. The binding material of the “green” part is then washed away before the subsequent “brown” part is placed into a sintering furnace to create a nearly fully dense metal part.
“Mechanical engineering is entering a renaissance. 2018 is the year metal printing becomes a viable option for mainstream designers and engineers,” Greg Mark, CEO of Markforged, told ENGINEERING.com. “Our new Metal X [3D printer] is 10 times lower cost than the current generation of metal printers. But that’s only half of the story. It’s also 10 times easier to use. The intersection of low cost and ease of use will drive a wave of adoption in the industry.”Mark added, “Mechanical engineers are going to become considerably more efficient. There are 2 million mechanical engineers who can design a part in hours, but have been waiting four to six weeks to get that part out of metal. They’re about to have next-day access, accelerating innovation.”
With its low-cost system, Markforged reintroduced the world to indirect metal 3D printing, already available with such processes as lost wax casting. Dunne, at 3D Systems, pointed to a growth in plastics and wax used for casting purposes. “In 2017, there was a widespread adoption of waxes in ultra-high-fidelity direct inkjet of wax in the jewelry industry,” Dunne said. “This will continue into the next year, while in parallel, we will see a marked expansion of the use of waxes within industrial investment casting workflows. We can expect that AM will become a standard pattern source for creating metal castings.”
While companies like Markforged are aiming to make metal 3D printing less expensive and more user-friendly through the development of new metal 3D printing processes, Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) is improving existing metal 3D printing techniques in a variety of ways. The lab is also aiming to blow up the process to even larger scales.
The lab’s Manufacturing Demonstration Facility (MDF) is a leader in early-stage research of new 3D printing technologies—most notably the large-scale Big Area Additive Manufacturing (BAAM) carbon fiber-polymer 3D printer—and it has already begun work on metal. The MDF’s representatives told ENGINEERING.com that, in 2018, the lab will focus on developing “large-scale metal manufacturing through modeling, simulation, characterization and residual stress” in 2018. “Research will increase process scale and deposition rates, making new tailored materials available and applying data-driven analysis for part qualification and certification,” the lab relayed.
In particular, the MDF will be improving the qualification and certification of additively manufactured metal parts through a new process “for automated, artificial intelligence–based analysis of images collected real time during the ongoing 3D printing process, creating the ability to detect and record defects,” according to representatives of ORNL. Such an approach may be key for the adoption of metal AM, which suffers from repeatability and quality control issues.
The MDF will also be developing large-scale metal AM, similar to its work with polymers seen with the BAAM. Bill Peter, MDF director, said of the project, “We are transferring the knowledge that we’ve gained from our large-scale polymer deposition system to metal systems of similar scale.”
ORNL is also researching new high-temperature and lightweight metals, aimed at improving energy efficiency. In particular, new high-temperature nickel alloys “will lead to higher-efficiency combustion applications for energy production” and new aluminum alloys “will increase the ability to use these materials in elevated temperature applications in vehicle engines.”
Binder jet metal 3D printing, in which metal powders are bound and then sintered and infiltrated with additional metal, is another focus of ORNL for 2018. The lab is exploring how the technology can be used for 3D printing injection molds and forging dies with “conformal cooling channels to reduce production cycle times.” Metal 3D printing is already used for such purposes by at least one company, PROTIQ.
“Binder jet technology will also be used to 3D print advanced materials such as lightweight metal matrix/carbide composites for automotive and mining applications,” Peter said. Along with these efforts, ORNL is developing new software “to simulate shrinkage and distortion during the sintering of powdered metal parts through binder jetting.” According to the lab, “These tools would be beneficial for multiple industries, including AM, powder metallurgy and metal injection molding.”
Duann Scott, from Autodesk, believes that, while metal AM will continue to mature, it will not be fully mature next year. “2017 was the year that metal AM started to grow from being a child with potential, to an awkward adolescent finding its place in the world, but 2018 will NOT be the year that AM becomes a fully functioning adult fending entirely for itself, there will still be considerable growing pains as AM matures,” Scott said.
Software, however, will help empower these metal technologies further, according to Scott. “I think we will see a continuation of bigger and faster on the 3D print hardware side, and a continued focus on Generative Design and Simulation on the software side in 2018. The promise of increased build size from GE’s Atlas System, Adira’s Tiled Laser Melting and a number of robot directed energy deposition (DED) cells coming onto the market sets us up for bigger parts. Examples of faster additive include Desktop Metal’s Production System which is claiming speeds 100x that of laser based metal systems and Spee3D Super Sonic Metal Cold Spray process is allowing fast production of near-net shaped parts Simulation is likely to become essential to the AM workflow for all metal systems, while Generative Design will help engineers understand how to design for the freedom and constraints inherent in each AM technology,” Scott said.
Polymers and Other 3D Printing Materials
While metals have been waiting for a much-needed boost in 3D printing, plastics are also evolving along with the technology. There are also new materials being developed, specifically ceramics.
David Sher, CEO and founder of 3D Printing Business Media and senior analyst at SmarTech Markets Publishing, emphasized the growth of materials in 3D printing. “For thermopolymer 3D printing, there will be a huge growth in the availability of PEEK 3D printing capabilities. Benchtop SLS will begin to offer viable solutions, with four to five different players,” Sher said.
Specifically at Smartech, Sher plans to focus on several new trends: aluminum alloys AM, growth in automotive AM for part production, precious metal AM, ceramics AM evolution and expansion of advanced thermopolymer (PEEK, PAEK, PEKK and PEI) 3D printing capabilities.
3D Systems is already matching Sher’s predictions. According to Dunne, the company will be introducing a series of novel industrial-grade SLS plastics, including flame-retardant Nylon 12. “Called DuraForm ProX FR1200, this material meets the flame retardancy thresholds required by the commercial aerospace industry for interior cabin parts, delivering FAR 25.853 compliance. In addition, the material meets AITM Smoke Density and Toxicity Requirements.”
ORNL will also be expanding the material capabilities of the BAAM 3D printer. The lab is now working with the machine’s manufacturer, Cincinnati Incorporated, to modify the BAAM to deposit multiple materials simultaneously. This enables improved functionality for tools, molds and dies, as well as other products.
ORNL is also developing closed-loop control for the BAAM and large-scale metal 3D printers, which could usher in an era of fully automated 3D printing. Other advances include printing with continuous fibers, such as carbon fiber, and multi-material 3D printing, such as the combination of foams with fully-dense base materials.Sher said he also believes “construction 3D printing will make a big jump in terms of adoption.” While we’ve seen a number of projects produce technology demonstrations, very few firms have 3D-printed usable structures. There are a couple of exceptions, in particular the Office of the Future in Dubai.
However, Sher’s prediction may be right. Among those pursuing construction 3D printing is ORNL’s MDF. The lab is going to be working on large-scale concrete 3D printing. Specifically, the lab is working on “the building of a large-scale flexible system that can be deployed in just a few hours for the fully automated construction of buildings, even on irregular terrain.”
Increased Speed and Productivity
AM has traditionally been slow and costly. However, new technologies are making the technology much faster, potentially reducing the cost per part by increasing the throughput of 3D printing.
Sher spoke to this point, saying, “All major (metal powder bed fusion, polymer powder bed fusion, photo polymerization and extrusion) technologies will grow an average of 10x in terms of overall process workflow speed, which means 10x growth in terms of number of parts 3D printed. This will occur both through higher 3D printing speeds and higher workflow (and post-processing) automation, and this will lead to much greater adoption in segments such as automotive and some consumer markets (as well as continued adoption in traditional markets such as medical, dental and aerospace of course).”
Carbon and 3D Systems have developed polymer processes for 3D printing plastic parts at a much faster rate. Both processes rely on a form of digital light processing (DLP) in which light is cast at a vat of resin that, due to the use of special membranes, makes it possible to create layer less, isotropic parts much more quickly than traditionally possible.
Dunne believes that the speed of 3D printing processes will increase throughout 2018. “From a hardware perspective, printers across the industry continue to get faster and faster; and the time to prototype and time to production will present new economic efficiencies and benefits for small businesses and enterprises alike,” Dunne said.
Also key to improved productivity are the automation technologies being developed in the industry. Van der Schueren, of Materialise, envisions executing this through software, telling ENGINEERING.com, “As 3D printing technologies are maturing, the focus will turn towards streamlining pre- and post production processes. The easiest way of doing this is by automating the most time-consuming parts of the process. One example of how we anticipate this trend is the newly launched Materialise e-Stage for Metal, a software module that allows the user to generate support structure for metal 3D printing completely automatically.”
Hardware will also be key for automation. Both 3D Systems and Carbon are developing methods for automating the aforementioned continuous-DLP approaches. 3D Systems, for instance, has demonstrated its Figure 4 system utilizing industrial robotic arms to move parts autonomously from each station in the printing process, removing completed parts from the print bed, loading them into a UV curing station for further strengthening and then placing them into a part washer. Finally, parts can then be automatically inspected in a final qualification station.
3D Systems is also working on developing an automated approach to its metal 3D printing technology, in which metal powder can be automatically loaded into a machine and parts can be automatically removed from the printer and post-processed. Other companies working on similar approaches are Concept Laser, a GE Additive subsidiary, and Additive Industries.
Stratasys, too, is continuing work on its factory-appropriate 3D printing processes, the 3D Demonstrators unveiled in 2016. Of the technologies growth in 2018, Scott Sevcik explained,
Visions of the Future
One vision of the future offered by 3D printing was that of mass customization, in which large runs of customer-specific products would be manufactured at once. Dunne believes that such a process is slowly coming to fruition.
Dunne reflected that, in 2018, 3D printing will continue down its trajectory of benefitting designers and engineers with optimized designs and consolidated products that meet stringent industrial requirements. In particular, he emphasized how the technology’s foundation in design verification and, later, low-volume production, patient- and customer-specific products and “mass-complex manufacturing” will influence how it is used in the future.
Van der Schueren, from Materialise, too, believe that mass customization is slowly becoming a reality. “After decades of uniform, mass-produced products, we are seeing a change in consumer patterns,” Van der Schueren relayed. “Customers want a product that is just as unique as they are, which is suited to their anatomy, lifestyle and tastes. And this also applies to industrial customers, as specialized products require custom-made machinery. The groundwork is there, and 3D printing is the perfect technology to make mass customization a reality. And it already has; at Materialise, we worked together with Hoya on Yuniku, a completely customized eyewear platform, and Tailored Fits, a startup that creates tailor-made, 3D-printed ski boots.”
From a holistic perspective, 2017 was a mixed bag. There were extremely negative things that took place. For instance, history’s first game-show host president took the reins of the most powerful nation in the world only to flaunt that status in some of the mostegregious ways possible. Another one of the hottest years on record occurred, exaggerating the effects of wildfires and hurricanes and leading scientists to warn that we have just 32 years left before irreversible damage is done to the climate. There are humanitarian crises occurring in Syria, Yemen, South Sudan, Myanmar, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Somalia, Nigeria and Palestine.
There were positive events, too: Australia legalized gay marriage; powerful men were finally held accountable for years of sexual assault and harassment; Chelsea Manning was able to take her first steps as a free woman after seven years of military imprisonment; and my wife and I had a baby.
From a 3D printing perspective, the developments may be construed as more positive. In particular, a slew of new metal 3D printing technologies were unveiled, including the Metal X 3D printer from Markforged, two new processes from Desktop Metal, a cheaper metal 3D printer from Xact Metal and a faster metal 3D printer from SPEE3D. Formlabs introduced a desktop selective laser sintering (SLS) system, while Carbon introduced a new 3D printer and part-washing package. 3D Systems’ new CEO began implementing his vision for the company, while HP saw its Multi Jet Fusion make its way into the marketplace. We also can’t forget the impact that GE Additive has had on the industry.
Whereas 2014 signaled the bursting of a hype bubble, specifically for consumer 3D printing, 2018 seems to point towards the realization of many of 3D printing’s promises. We may still be far off from the fully-automated construction of energy-efficient homes (we’ve only got 32 years left to pull that off), but the foundation for such a future is now actually visible and will become that much more visible in 2018.
The technological world may be evolving at a tremendous pace, but it does so in a world that is mired in other important developments, some extremely negative and some positive. In some ways, this evolution may even be contributing to both sides of this coin.
For instance, weapons manufacturing is clearly playing a role in the humanitarian crises mentioned above, and many of the largest technological innovators (think of all of the petroleum needed to make 3D printable plastics) also contribute to global warming. The Internet, on the other hand, is helping spread information at an increased rate, allowing humanity to understand its environment more thoroughly, more quickly.
If 3D printing follows the path laid out by our experts, we must also understand the path within the context of sociological, economic and political structures. This path may be good for advancing AM technology, but will it be good for the humans that it’s meant to serve? Will automation, for example, allow workers to increase productivity while working less, or will managers simply use automation as an excuse to increase their workload? Will increased productivity mean more waste and more fossil fuel energy expended at the expense of our ecosystem?
Good or bad, 2018 is a new year, one in which, if we are going to pursue technological development, we should use that technology for good.


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Celeste Has Sold an Incredible Half a Million Copies Since Its January Release
Matt Makes Games has had an amazing year with his indie title Celeste having won the Best Independent Game and Games for Impact at The Game Awards 2018, and even received a nomination for GOTY. On top of that yesterday we told you that Celeste would be getting the highlight treatment and would be free for those with an Xbox Live Gold subscription for the Xbox One in January. Today however, the developer and creators of TowerFall, shared some incredible news about the indie title.
Based on a game jam Celeste expanded into a full game and was released on the PC, Mac, PS4, Xbox One, and Switch on January 25th of this year and has taken the industry by storm. Since it’s release almost precisely 11 months ago Matt Thorson, the developer, has officially announced that the game has sold over 500,000 copies! This platformer, known for both its difficulty and charm is also set to receive new content early next year. Yes, the challenge will continue with a new batch of levels in early 2019. You can check out Thorson’s announcement on Twitter below.
It seems that 2019 may also be a big year for Celeste as its set to get its very own physical version thanks to Limited Run Games next month. And if you’ve been living under a rock and haven’t heard a single thing about the renowned indie title, here’s a quick description from Steam, “Help Madeline survive her inner demons on her journey to the top of Celeste Mountain, in this super-tight platformer from the creators of TowerFall. Brave hundreds of hand-crafted challenges, uncover devious secrets, and piece together the mystery of the mountain.”
Have you played Celeste? Are you excited for some new content? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below and don’t forget to keep it locked for updates!


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Amazon Prime Day shows how important commerce revenue is getting for publishers
As Prime Day continues to expand — the shopping extravaganza will last 48 hours this year, up from 36 hours last year and 30 hours the year before that — publishers continue to devote more energy to it.
After driving 27 million of its readers to shop on Prime Day in 2018, Verizon Media Group is more than tripling the number of titles that will be distributing Prime Day content this year, after just two, AOL and HuffPost, participated in 2018. In 2019, TechCrunch, Yahoo Finance, Yahoo Lifestyle, Yahoo Sports and Engadget will be involved, partly by creating their own content and partly by syndicating content across their titles, a spokesperson said.
Staffers across the titles will be working around the clock to curate and distribute information about deals across the titles, a common tactic that is growing harder for all publishers as Prime Day gets longer. CBS Interactive’s CNET, for example, treats Prime Day as an all-hands-on-deck situation, with 50 people, a majority of the publisher’s global editorial operation, which includes bureaus in New York, California, Australia and England, updating Prime Day deal stories and publishing new ones continuously starting on Sunday night.
“If you work on the editorial side, you’re not, not touching Prime Day,” said Mark Larkin, gm of CNET.
Last year, CNET drove the third-highest share of desktop referral traffic that Amazon received from any publisher during Prime Day, according to SimilarWeb. It hopes to exceed that target this year, in part by sharing more content — CNET’s internal goal is to increase the total number of Prime Day stories it publishes by 30% in 2019, Larkin said — and in part by updating those stories more frequently. CNET plans every 15 minutes to ensure they have the most current information, and to make sure it wins as much search traffic as possible: Last year, CNET won more “prime day” search keywords than Amazon did, according to a SimilarWeb analysis.
Beyond the expected bonanza of affiliate commissions, publishers have gotten better at using Prime Day to advance other strategic endeavors. In many cases, that involves working closely with different parts of Amazon’s organization. For example, Hearst worked with Amazon to make “Keto for Carb Lovers,” a book created earlier this year by Hearst’s growing consumer products studio, a Prime Day deal that Hearst will be able to market directly to its audience.
New York’s commerce vertical, The Strategist, will offer its readers several Prime Day-exclusive deals for the first time, including one on a coat that New York’s editorial coverage helped popularize several months ago.
Well after the deals have disappeared, publishers are able to use the affiliate conversion data they get from Prime Day to inform their future coverage strategies, covering products more or less aggressively depending on what audiences bought the most.
That data isn’t necessarily confined to Amazon sales, either. For the first time, Verizon Media Group’s brands will be highlighting sales offered by non-Amazon retailers, who are trying harder to leverage the shopping fever that Amazon whips up: Non-Amazon retailers will see their Prime Day revenues rise over 70% in 2019, according to Adobe estimates.
Dentsu’s new Web3 readiness tool shines light on the tech’s potential to complement AI
Dentsu's Innovation Initiative is launching a web3 readiness index next month — at a time when the industry is obsessed with AI. Could the two technologies actually make a good pair?
Digiday+ Research deep dive: Publishers large and small put their resources into first-party data
Eighty-two percent of publishers overall say they're already using first-party data to prepare for the end of the third-party cookie, and nearly half are requiring users to register and integrating first-party data segments into DSPs – indicating that first-party data is the clear path forward for publishers heading into the post-cookie world.
Media Briefing: Why publishers hope chatbots will be the latest retention tool
Publishers hope the chatbots they are developing will be the latest retention tool to keep readers onsite and to get them to consume more content.
SponsoredHow enterprise-grade CDPs are enhancing data processes and improving customer experiences
Produced in partnership with Marketecture The following article highlights an interview between Martin Kihn, Salesforce’s senior vice president of Marketing Cloud, and Ari Paparo, founder and CEO of Marketecture Media. Register to watch more of the discussion and learn how brands are making the most of enterprise-grade CDP technologies. As brands expand across channels and […]
How programmatic advertising will evolve this year on the heels of audio growth and privacy changes
Comscore’s programmatic division Proximic released a State of Programmatic study highlighting the growth of audio and podcasting, other digital advertising channels and challenges around third-party data.
Why podcasters are selling subscriptions through third-party vendors
Many podcasters are turning to third party platforms like Supporting Cast and Supercast to launch or grow their subscription businesses beyond Spotify or Apple.


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NEW YORK — NaturaBrasil has set up shop in the U.S.The São Paulo-based Brazilian direct-sell beauty giant last week opened its first U.S. brick-and-mortar store at 240 Elizabeth Street here.The 960-square-foot space houses 85 stockkeeping units across the bath, body and hair categories, all of which feature hero ingredients indigenous to the Amazon, including cacao, maracuja, acai and castanha. Prices range from $10 for a bar soap to $50 for a body splash.The targeted assortment was plucked from Natura’s wide array of products, which include skin care, fragrance and baby, and the sku count is expected to increase to 120 in the next two years. An e-commerce site is set to launch in May.Natura’s U.S. expansion and the opening of a brick-and-mortar store are part of a larger strategy to increase multichannel sales over the next five years, as WWD reported in December. The company is set to open five stores in 2017.While Natura is one of the leading players in Brazil — the parent, Natura Cosméticos, tracked sales of $2.3 billion last year — it has reached a peak of sorts there in terms of its growth, hence the international expansion.“In Brazil, Natura is so big — it’s like Shiseido in Japan,” said Roger Schmid, innovation adviser and manager of Natura’s The Hub think tank, what the company calls its office here. “They know they can’t grow much more in Brazil, so they’re doing the rest of Latin America, and now is the right time to go into the U.S.”Schmid also noted that he believes the company’s commitment to sustainability — Natura works with local communities around Brazil to grow and harvest ingredients with minimal damage to the environment — will appeal to the U.S. consumer.“We’re part of the big core — Patagonia, Eileen Fisher, Ben & Jerry’s — that are doing good,” said Schmid.There are no confirmed plans, but Schmid said a second brick-and-mortar store in a high-traffic U.S. mall is potentially in Natura's future.
"In order for Shudu to wear garments, she needs to be able to put them on, just like you would in the real world. You have to digitize the outfits," said Cameron-James Wilson on dressing 3-D model @shudu.gram for her WWD photoshoot. #wwdfashion ( 📸: @cjw.photo )
“Shudu is a digital supermodel, a very glamour and amazing woman. But she’s 3-D,” says Cameron-James Wilson, a fashion photographer and the creature of @shudu.gram. Here, Shudu wears @cushnieetochs for her debut fashion editorial. #wwdfashion (📷: @cjw.photo)
“It is the fierce female performances that came before me that made be able to clearly identify for myself what it was that I wanted to do, what kind of artist I wanted to be, what kind of films I wanted to make,” said @brielarson at the Women in Film Crystal + Lucy Awards. See more pictures from the event on WWD.com. #wwdeye (📷: Matt Baron)
“On a personal level, it’s my vision to create a really different idea with their look to be at the epitome of women’s fashion in South Korea – to create a new milestone,” said stylist @chochowon on dressing K-pop’s most fashionable girl group, @blackpinkofficial. WWD’s @mistywhitesidell sat down with Won ahead of the group’s new album release, “Square Up,” which is out today. Read the full interview on WWD.com. #wwdfashion #blackpink_squareup #blackpink
For @ralphlauren, 2018 is a reason to celebrate: It marks the brand’s 50th year in business. Last year’s chauffeured show in Bedford, NY featuring his vintage car collection may have seemed like the big celebration to show-goers, but they were wrong. The official celebration will be held on September 7 during #NYFW. Get all the details on WWD.com. #wwdfashion (📷: @giovanni_giannoni_photo)


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Apple's iPhone 4 Tracks Where It's Been
MARY LOUISE KELLY, Host:
Two computer researchers are making waves with their announcement that Apple's new iPhone quietly keeps track of every place you take it, even if you turn off the GPS function.
NPR's Martin Kaste reports.
MARTIN KASTE: Alasdair Allan says the iPhone 4 is constantly recording its location relative to nearby cell phone towers and Wi-Fi signals. He found the data when he was looking at the files created when you sync your phone with your computer.
ALASDAIR ALLAN: I stumbled across a directory that's actually named Location D, and I thought well, that looks interesting - which was full of latitudes and longitudes and time stamps.
KASTE: In other words, all the information needed for a detailed map of everywhere the phone's owner has been. In fact, Allan's colleague, Pete Warden, has released a simple program that lets users create maps of all the data saved by their phones so far.
Allan and Warden say the iPhone tracking was already a known piece of inside knowledge among hacker-types, but they wanted to make sure everybody was aware of it. Warden says there's no evidence the location information is being sent to anybody else.
PETE WARDEN: So don't panic, but we do want to know more about what's happening with this data.
KASTE: Privacy experts say a person's location history could be seized for a lawsuit or a criminal investigation, or maybe swiped by a computer virus.
iPhone maker Apple has not responded to repeated requests for comment.
Martin Kaste, NPR News.
NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by Verb8tm, Inc., an NPR contractor, and produced using a proprietary transcription process developed with NPR. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.


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The spike in membership due to COVID-19 continues to boost Netflix’s bottom line. In a letter to shareholders last week, Netflix announced the company saw double-digit growth in total revenue and in new members (paid net additions) during the second quarter of 2020. Netflix reported total revenue of $6.1 billion, a 24.9% increase over the second quarter of 2019. The company added a record 10.09 million new members, compared to 2.7 million paid net adds for the same period last year.
“We live in uncertain times with restrictions on what we can do socially and many people are turning to entertainment for relaxation, connection, comfort and stimulation. In Q1 and Q2, we saw significant pull-forward of our underlying adoption leading to huge growth in the first half of this year (26 million paid net adds vs. prior year of 12 million),” said Netflix in their July 16 letter.
“As a result, we expect less growth for the second half of 2020 compared to the prior year. As we navigate these turbulent circumstances, we’re focused on our members to continuing to improve the quality of our service and bringing new films and shows to people’s screens,” the company added.
Financial and Operational Highlights
Other highlights from the second quarter earnings report include:
- Operating income was $1.36 billion, compared to $706 million in Q2 2019.
- Operating margin was 22.1%, compared to 14.3% in Q2 2019.
- Net cash from operations was $1 billion, and free cash flow was positive for the second quarter in a row.
- The company had net income of $720 million, or $1.59 per share, compared to $271 million, or $0.60 per share, in Q2 2019.
- Ted Sarandos was appointed co-CEO and elected to Netflix’s board of directors. He will co-lead Netflix with Reed Hastings. Sarandos will continue in his role as chief content officer.
- Greg Peters, who is currently chief product officer, will also become chief operating officer.
- The company allocated approximately 2% of their cash holdings, up to $100 million, into financial institutions and organizations that directly support Black communities.
Netflix shared some impressive membership highlights as well. For example, Netflix now has 192.95 million total members worldwide, representing 27.3% growth. This includes 10.09 streaming paid net additions. In the first half of 2020, the company has added 26 million paid memberships, compared to 28 million new paid members for all of 2019. In addition, average streaming paid memberships increased 25% year-over-year, and streaming ARPU increased 0.4% year-over-year. The company estimates they will have 2.5 million paid net adds for the third quarter, compared to 6.8 million in the third quarter of 2019.
“Growth is slowing as consumers get through the initial shock of COVID and social restrictions. Our paid net additions for the month of June also included the subscriptions we cancelled for the small percentage of members who had not used the service recently,” said Netflix. “We continue to view the quarter-to-quarter fluctuations in paid net adds as not that meaningful in the context of the long run adoption of internet entertainment which we believe provides us with many years of strong growth ahead.”
As the world starts reopening, Netflix has been able to resume some content production in certain regions including Asia Pacific, Germany, France, Spain, Poland, Italy and the United Kingdom. It has been more difficult to resume production in the United States, India and Latin American where COVID infection rates are on the rise again. These production slowdowns will not significantly impact Netflix’s 2020 slate of releases, however, says the company, because their production schedule includes long lead times. It will likely impact the company’s 2021 line-up with more content being made available in the second half of the year versus the first.
Content highlights from the second quarter include:
- Never Have I Ever had 40 million households view the program in the first four weeks.
- Space Force also had 40 million viewers also.
- Netflix is estimated that Love is Blind, Too Hot to Handle and Floor is Lava will be viewed by 51 million people, or 37 million households in the first four weeks.
- 27 million viewers watched Spike Lee’s Da 5 Bloods.
- Extraction had 99 million households viewing, and The Wrong Missy was viewed by 59 million households.
- The Willoughbys attracted 38 million households in the first four weeks.
- Though Netflix didn’t share numbers, they reported that older titles about racial injustice and the Black experience in America (e.g., 13th, American Son and Dear White People) had increased viewing too.
During the third quarter, Netflix has already released The Old Guard and will launch the second season of The Umbrella Academy, The Kissing Boot 2, Project Power and Enola Holmes.
Netflix continues to test different pricing options for membership in other countries, using a lower-priced, mobile-only plan, as well as well as bundles with MVPDs and ISPs. The company doesn’t make as much, but the goal is to improve growth and retention for long-term value. Netflix also hopes this will increase word of mouth promotion in the countries where they are testing pricing and products, and they hope they’ll develop a better understanding of the types of content people in those countries want.
Closing Unused Accounts
During the second quarter, Netflix took the proactive stance of closing inactive member accounts. Netflix acknowledged that this did impact their revenue slightly, but they felt it was the right thing to do and that the long-term benefits outweigh the short-term hit.
With WarnerMedia pushing HBO Max, Disney pushing Disney+ and NBCUniversal promoting Peacock, there is a lot of new competition on the block, but Netflix does not seem concerned that it will negatively impact membership.
“Instead of worrying about all these competitors, we continue to stick to or strategy of trying to improve our service and content every quarter faster than our peers. Our continued strong growth is a testament to this approach and the size of the entertainment market,” said Netflix.
It is interesting to see how COVID has impacted Netflix’s business into the second quarter, allowing the company to post record numbers. With millions of people stuck at home, Netflix is able to attract new subscribers and, with a broad catalog of content, they are able to hang onto those subscribers for the short-term. The true test will be what type of churn Netflix, and other SVOD services, will see as the country slowly reopens. Slowed growth is expected, but long-term retention is more elusive.


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The decision by U.S. District Judge J. Frederick Motz had been expected after the judge on Dec. 23 that Sun stood a good chance of winning its antitrust lawsuit against Microsoft and told both sides to craft a preliminary injunction. Teams of lawyers from the companies worked through the weekend and handed the proposed order to Motz on Monday.
In the 11-page order, Motz gave Sun what it requested when filing the lawsuit: an injunction ordering Microsoft immediately to stop distributing incompatible versions of Sun's Java interpreter and to begin shipping authorized versions with Windows and Internet Explorer in four months. The injunction will remain in effect until a trial takes place or an appeals court lifts the requirements.
"This preliminary injunction is a huge victory for consumers who will soon have the best, latest Java technology on their PCs," Lee Patch, Sun's vice president for strategic litigation, said Tuesday. "It is also a victory for enterprises and for the worldwide Java community of developers and system vendors."
Microsoft said it would likely file its appeal to the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals this week and ask the higher court to place Motz's injunction on hold until the case can be heard. "We do not agree that Sun's entitled to its injunction, and we will appeal the injunction as indicated," said Microsoft spokesman Jim Desler.
The Java language lets programs run without alterations on a variety of computers. Because a Java program can run, for instance, on a mainframe from IBM, a Unix server from Sun and a Windows PC from Dell Computer, it represents a threat to Microsoft.
Part of Tuesday's order says that, effective immediately, Microsoft may no longer distribute "any product that includes any copy of Microsoft's Virtual Machine for Java other than" software licensed from Sun. In general, it also prevents Microsoft from distributing its own Java interpreter in future products except as necessary to fix "critical security vulnerabilities or critical customer defects." Shipments of Windows XP will not be affected.
However, because Microsoft has indicated it would appeal, Motz said that Tuesday's order would not actually take effect for 14 days.
Motz's order also gives Microsoft 120 days to include Sun's Java runtime environment in every copy of Windows and Internet Explorer it sells. For versions of Windows in languages other than English, Microsoft need not include Sun's software until it receives a localized version.
Microsoft must also "notify customers via any and all Microsoft update services" that the latest Java software is available and "refrain from disabling" Java, the order says. The software giant said it did not immediately know Windows XP users would be notified.
Sun has pinned much of its hopes on a June 2001in the antitrust case brought by the U.S. Justice Department and some state attorneys general. In that decision, a federal appeals court ruled that Microsoft had illegally tried to maintain its operating system monopoly in an attempt to eradicate competitive products such as Java and Netscape's Web browser.
In October, Motzthat he would allow Sun to use some of those earlier legal conclusions in the current lawsuit. No trial date has been set, and legal experts believe it might not happen until 2004.
Sun's case also builds on a previous legal assault on its rival, which began in October 1997 and alleged that Microsoft violated its license agreement by distributing incompatible versions of Java and deceptively promoted those versions as compatible. The two companies settled in January 2001, with Microsoft agreeing to pay Sun $20 million.
Much of Sun's current case relies on predictions, saying that if Microsoft had not wielded its market power so ruthlessly, Java would have been more successful. "But for Microsoft's unlawful fragmentation of the Java platform and its unlawful attack on the distribution of the Navigator and Java platforms, the installed base of these alternative platforms would have been far greater today," Sun said in court documents.
Sun argues that Microsoft is now trying to supplement--or even replace--its Windows monopoly by encouraging developers to write code for the .Net platform instead. In addition, Sun says, "Microsoft has refused to port Office to competing platforms in order to illegally maintain its monopoly" and to force consumers to purchase products such as Microsoft's Exchange Server, Internet Information Server and SQL Server.


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With the rapid adoption of digital payments over the last one year, payment companies have been generating huge volumes of data on consumer behaviour. Industry experts say that with the latest directive, there would be more transparency on how the data is stored and how it is used.
“All system providers shall ensure that the tire data relating to payment systems operated by them are stored in a system only in India. This data should include the full end-to-end transaction details / information collected / carried / processed as part of the message / payment instruction,” said the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in a notification issued last Friday.
This directive comes in the wake of the monetary policy statement last Thursday where the central bank highlighted this point.
ET spoke to multiple players in the fintech space and also reached out to security experts to understand what could be the potential impact of such a move. Experts highlighted with significant amount of data being stored outside Indian borders, security audit of the data and testing in case of disputes or frauds have been a perennial problem, which can be addressed by the new circular.
“In case of a payment fraud, the biggest challenge for forensic audit is to get hold of the data, especially if it is stored outside the country. Even if it takes a lot of time to get the data from a foreign jurisdiction causing loss of vital time in the investigation, this move from RBI should mitigate such issues,” said Nitin Bhatnagar, vice-president at SISA Information Security.
Bhatnagar said that in case of a fraud, forensic agencies need to mirror the data and replicate the situation where the fraud happened and for that the data is needed to be transported in a hard disk to the security company. “Forensic image of server with data is given to us in the form of a hard drive or in snowball appliance. If this data remains within India, it will be easier and faster for us to retrieve it and process it for testing,” he said.
While a large chunk of payment companies use global cloud service providers who could be storing data outside India, even American tech giants, who have entered into payments through Unified Payments Interface, could be affected by the move.
Though Google, which has launched Tez, and WhatsApp, which is in the process of going live with UPI payments, have not commented on the development yet, industry insiders feel it could directly affect their systems.
“Will WhatsApp, Visa, Mastercard need to set up data servers in India now? I believe it will have huge implications on the Indian payments scenario,” said Jitendra Gupta, MD of PayU India.
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Tata Consumer Products Ltd (TCPL) has emerged as the frontrunner to acquire Capital Foods Pvt Ltd, the maker of condiments, food products and ingredients under the Ching's Secret and Smith & Jones brands, ending weeks of protracted negotiations, said people with knowledge of the matter.Strained India-Canada Ties Take a Toll on Brands
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Michelin’s restaurant guide includes a congee (Chinese rice porridge) shop in Hong Kong as its first-ever restaurant of the kind in the latest “hall of fame” release made on Monday.
Veteran gourmet guide praises unusual, fish-stock-based approach to traditional rice-porridge dish when listing year's top picks
Announcing its “Bib Gourmand Selection” for this year, the world’s oldest restaurant reference guide added Wan Chai’s Trusty Congee King to the list. The new collection comprises 82 restaurants in Hong Kong and Macao, 17 of which are newly starred addresses in Hong Kong.
The gourmet inspectors’ review in the guide said the honor was handed to the new entrant partly because of its rare congee recipe – with a soup base primarily made from fish stock. Pork and chicken broths are normally used for cooking congee.
The list showed that five of the newly famed eateries are in Kowloon while 12 others are on Hong Kong Island.
A Bib Gourmand award has been given to eateries that offer a quality three-course set menu for a maximum of HK$400.
This year, Michelin inspectors “discovered more local gourmet offerings including Cantonese stir-fry, congee and noodle, dim sum at attractive prices”, commented Michael Ellis, international director of the Michelin Guide.
Asian cuisines are also represented in the list.
Go to guide.michelin.com.hk for the full list of this year’s Michelin selection.


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'20 per cent of output, exports hit by rains, hailstorm'
According toestimates by the State Government, up to 20 per cent of the output and export could be affected due to rains and hailstorm.
Hyderabad, March 22
Grape growers, especially those into export markets, are a worried lot in Andhra Pradesh. The recent hailstorm and unseasonal rains have dampened their spirits.
Grape gardens stretching to over 300 acres in the districts of Ranga Reddy, Medak and Mahboobnagar bore the brunt of the negative impact of the freak weather. Popular varieties such as Thompson seedless and Flame seedless, which are essentially table varieties, are exported.
According to estimates by the State Government, up to 20 per cent of the output and export could be affected due to rains and hailstorm. If, no further unseasonal rains occur, the overall output is expected to be 10 per cent higher than that of the last growing season.
The State exported about 1,400 tonnes in 100 containers, each having 14 tonnes of the popular grape varieties last year. The export destination was pre-dominantly the UK and some to Dubai and Europe. This year, just three containers have been exported and the pace is picking up, official sources said.
The State Government had estimated exports to go up to 2,000 tonnes. About 124 farmers had registered for exports this season. In view of the unfavourable developments, the exports could fall to 1,500 tonnes or even the same level as last year, the sources said. In terms of output, it was around 85,500 tonnes last year.
Mr B.V.V. Satyanarayana, a grape exporter of Devi Farms, said grapes from Chile have flooded the markets in the UK and are commanding good rates.
Another problem that exporters could face is the impact on appearance and quality during transport and preservation at low temperatures. Since March-April is the peak time for export, which ends by April 15, there was very little time left, he told


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(Bloomberg) — For more than one-third of tiny U.S. business owners, keeping their ventures alive during the coronavirus pandemic will be coming at a high personal cost.
As the American economy faces an unprecedented contraction along with Covid-19 deaths top 150,000, the debate over reopening states has hinged in some quarters on how to balance protecting lives along with livelihoods. Government loans through the Paycheck Protection Program have helped support some businesses, although the accumulating months of reduced revenue are forcing entrepreneurs to buoy their own businesses with their personal assets along with credit. Many have already succumbed.
“People have definitely put their livelihoods on the line here. I think they feel definitely responsible, too—in which they’ve already put in so much blood, sweat along with tears, along with they don’t want to see in which fail,” said CreditCards.com analyst Ted Rossman.
Seven in 10 tiny business owners say they’ve used some form of support for their business since March, according to a fresh CreditCards.com survey. The most common option was PPP loans, with 30% of respondents saying they received one, followed by 24% saying they turned to personal credit cards along with business savings accounts. In total, 35% of owners used either personal credit cards or savings accounts, with 10% using both, to support their business.
in which personal funding has further blurred the line between personal along with business finances. tiny businesses in which bring in less than $1 million annually typically need the owner to personally back the debt, meaning they’re responsible if the company can’t pay, Rossman said. in which leaves entrepreneurs on the hook for the risk, even if in which’s within the name of their business.
While in which has always been the case, the pandemic has intensified the personal financial risk to tiny entrepreneurs.
right now, tiny business owners are looking to customers to help them out: Some 32% of respondents said they need sales to enhance for them to stay afloat in which year. About one-in-5 said they would certainly need government assistance—a $669 billion federal relief program has doled out funds, along with more money will be being considered.
More than half of respondents say they won’t survive long past the fresh year without additional support.
Looking ahead, tiny businesses face high degrees of uncertainty as the rules for reopenings shift under their feet. Additionally, the economic brunt of the shutdown will be coming down disproportionately on African American-run businesses. On the big-business scale, more than 140 companies have declared bankruptcy.
“in which’s going to be hard to get more customers when people are worried about their own finances along with health,” Rossman said. “I tend to think in which in which one will be going to be a longer fix, not a shorter one, unfortunately.”
The survey, conducted July 14 to July 20 by YouGov for CreditCards.com, had about 500 responses coming from tiny business owners, which were weighted to be nationally representative.
For more articles like in which, please visit us at bloomberg.com
©2020 Bloomberg L.P.
, http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/DrudgeReportFeed/~3/oL1VDuMHPAI/ar-BB17q2Mg, 2 August 2020 | 5:19 am
Source : tiny Business Owners Are Leaning on Credit Cards to Survive


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At the top analysts’ round table today, Wall Street’s best performing financial experts are giving assertive votes in favor of tech stocks Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMD) and Palo Alto Networks Inc (NYSE:PANW). Let’s dive in to see why Canaccord continues to be confident on AMD’s long-term success, even while acknowledging reasonable reason to be hesitant, and why Palo Alto’s shares are on rapid rise, which has Oppenheimer cheering that the coast is clear of any more execution fumbles:
AMD Has This Top Analyst Bullish, Despite the Naysayers
AMD has its once Naples and now dubbed EPYC server and Vega GPU processors out globally by the end of the month, confirmed at the Computex conference in Taipei by the chip giant’s management team. Moreover, CEO Lisa Su divvied intel behind partnerships with worldwide PC OEM leaders of the likes of Acer, Asus, Dell, Lenovo, and HP, who will utilize Ryzen CPU-based designs by the close of the second quarter.
Jim Anderson of AMD’s C&G group also disclosed information behind the holiday notebooks launch of Ryzen Mobile, which will be an APU product line of portable Ryzen-meets-Vega units. Lastly, Anderson spoke of a Ryzen 9 Threadripper chip that the giant hopes to make the gamers much happier this time around than the last Ryzen. It will be a higher-end product complete with 16 cores and 32 threads.
Top analyst Matt Ramsay at Canaccord goes against the grain, charging cynics who are not ready to hop on the AMD train just yet with optimism for upside in the giant’s future- even despite intense competition in the foreground. Modeling for healthy long-term growth, the analyst reiterates a Buy rating on shares of AMD with a $17 price target, which represents a 56% increase from where the stock is currently trading.
For EPYC revenue, the analyst projects the giant will bring in close to $100 million, however, he adds, “[…] we believe the more important ramp will materialize in 2018 as OEM systems begin shipment and believe a $1B+ server business is achievable by 2020.”
Likewise, part of Ramsay’s bullish case rests upon AMD’s compelling partnerships with top PC OEMs, noting, “We believe these partnerships and channel strength further solidifies our conviction in the Zen core lineup as we look towards 2H’17 to deliver strong sales growth and margin expansion.”
“We believe the Ryzen Mobile adds strategic flexibility to the rapidly growing notebook gaming segment for AMD, but will face tougher competition versus Intel’s 10nm designs in 2H/18,” continues the analyst.
Ramsay concludes with expectations for AMD to beat long-term targets within three years, asserting, “Overall, while some investors remain skeptical, we believe sustained n-node execution across this roadmap can deliver the higher gross margin targets and upside to the $0.75 EPS target for 2020 outlined in the long-term financial model during the recent analyst day. While we recognize roadmap execution and competitive risks remain, we believe risk/reward is still tilted toward the upside and our long-term bullish target of $1.00+ in EPS remains attainable by 2020”
Matt Ramsay has a very good TipRanks score with a 70% success rate and a high ranking of #37 out of 4,567 analysts. Ramsay garners 26.0% in his annual returns. When recommending AMD, Ramsay realizes 36.2% in average profits on the stock.
TipRanks analytics exhibit AMD as a Hold. Out of 18 analysts polled by TipRanks in the last 3 months, 6 are bullish on AMD stock, 9 remain sidelined, and 3 are bearish on the stock. With a return potential of 7%, the stock’s consensus target price stands at $11.70.
Palo Alto Shareholders Can Simmer Down and Relax After Stellar FQ3 Earnings
Palo Alto shares are shooting 16% after the security software giant gave investors a big “sigh of relief” with a robust fiscal third quarterly print that outclassed all expectations. For top analyst Shaul Eyal this is especially encouraging following a slew of challenges with execution over the past several quarters. In reaction, the analyst joins the bullish parade, reiterating an Outperform rating on PANW with a price target of $173, which represents a 26% increase from current levels.
For the third fiscal quarter, Palo Alto’s product revenue hit a 1.3% year-over-year rise reaching $164.2 million, a nice beat compared to consensus expectations calling for $146.8 million, which the analyst attributes to “solid traction across new hardware products (PA-5200, PA-800, and PA-220).”
Eyal opines, “Although the sales force reorganization is still in its early innings, we believe F3Q’s improved product execution indicates progress is tracking better than expected. SaaS subscription growth continued its hike upward, growing 55% YoY in F3Q17 representing 33% of total revenues vs. 27% in F3Q16. We believe the quick turnaround from issues arising in F2Q lifts investor confidence and could continue unlock more value in shares as 2017 unfolds (after-hours valued at only 12.3x EV/ FY18E FCF)”
Ultimately, “PANW’s sales reorganization process still has ways to go; however, we believe F3Q results indicate the initiative is progressing better than expected. In addition, discounting efforts decreased sequentially. We believe these are signals suggesting the company is quickly steering the boat in the right direction—which we view positively,” contends the analyst, who predicts not only can investors take a relaxing breath of fresh air, but the company’s rising valuation “could have more value to unlock.”
As usual, we like to include the analyst’s track record when reporting on new analyst notes to give a perspective on the effect it has on stock performance. According to TipRanks, top five-star analyst Shaul Eyal has achieved a high ranking of #69 out of 4,567 analysts. Eyal upholds a 67% success rate and yields 12.5% in his yearly returns. When recommending PANW, Eyal collects 11.3% in average profits on the stock.
TipRanks analytics demonstrate PANW as a Buy. Based on 15 analysts polled by TipRanks in the last 3 months, 9 rate a Buy on Palo Alto stock while 6 maintain a Hold. The 12-month average price target stands at $158.18, marking a nearly 14% upside from where the stock is currently trading.


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- Coty to roll-out a touch-less fragrance tester to retailers globally within the next 12 months
- The smart-device offers retailers access to usage data to optimize product positioning and customer experience
- Developed together with Êverie, a start-up that specializes in smart devices, micro-dosing and diffusion technologies
- New fragrance testing ritual to reduce the amount of fragrance waste and increase lifespan of tester bottles
NEW YORK – Coty Inc. (NYSE: COTY), one of the world’s largest beauty companies and the global leader in fragrances, today announced the introduction of a digitally-enabled touch-less fragrance testing device intended for use at beauty retailers within the next 12 months. Real world testing of the units at brick & mortar retail stores begins this month in key European markets, followed by a planned trial in Asia later this year.
Coty’s touch-less fragrance tester is a digital innovation that gives customers the ultimate control over fragrance discovery in store. While spray testers oversaturate the air, overwhelming the senses and surrounding environment, this device delivers a single droplet of liquid directly to an arm or a blotter, offering customers a less invasive testing experience. It also uses data to allow Coty, in partnership with retailers, to optimize the placement of the testers and the customer experience by ensuring beauty advisors are on the spot when needed.
Coty is partnering with Êverie, a French start-up specializing in smart devices, micro-dosing and diffusion technologies, to bring Coty’s touch-less fragrance tester to life. A multidisciplinary group from Coty have worked alongside Êverie over the past year to develop a connected easy-to-maintain and sustainable device. This touch-less fragrance tester is able to work for weeks without a battery recharge and reduces perfume loss compared to traditional testers. It will be compatible with all Coty’s fragrance testers and can be uniquely personalized to each of Coty’s brands.
Claire Catherine-Mercier, Vice President Retail Experience, said:
“Coty’s touch-less fragrance tester is a breakthrough innovation developed in partnership with Êverie. With the return of in-person shopping, the health and safety of our consumers are always at the forefront of our minds. Deploying a single drop of liquid to the skin with the same restitution as traditional testers, this new technology eliminates unnecessary waste and offers a safe, contact-free alternative for testing.”
Today’s announcement comes as stores are re-opening around the world -and as hygiene and safety have become an integral part of the experience at brick & mortar retailers. The creation of a new touchless luxury ritual for testing will support those consumers that need to try perfume before buying, and ultimately will drive sales at stores.


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The unofficial Cannabis Academy Awards are coming in January
Recognized internationally as the “Cannabis Academy Awards,” The Emerald Cup has become a prestigious event to reward many of those efforts that are reflected throughout the growing industry. Organizers recently announced the window for the 18th Emerald Cup Competition and Awards.
The window opens on Monday, January 3, and closes Friday, January 28. This iconic cannabis competition will once again celebrate excellence in the cannabis world by showcasing the best in class in its community.
For next year’s edition, the Emerald Cup will consist of more than 40 judged categories, a full spectrum of cannabis including concentrates, flowers, edibles, topicals, and more, with nine new classifications for the upcoming awards and a wider variety of prizes that aim to reward each and every effort in the industry.
The Emerald Cup Competition & Awards are recognized for offering a totally reliable and transparent opportunity for California’s most recognized extractors, growers, shakers, promoters, and fresh product manufacturers to put their best skills in front of all participants. The best part is that as the competitions progress from year to year, the competition and prestige becomes more and more intense and honorable.
“The Harvest Ball was the official start of the Emerald Cup competition,” reveals founder and executive producer Tim Blake. “Over the next 6 weeks, contestants can submit their entries. I feel like a kid at Christmas waiting to see all the latest flowers and products from the best of the best our community has to offer up. I’m never disappointed. Our Emerald Cup Awards ceremony will be a stellar moment for all the contestants. We’ll broadcast the ceremony across the United States and to a global audience and rock LA with the finest cannabis flowers and products in the world.”


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SAP and Google Cloud are working together on a new open data initiative that will allow enterprise clients to pool information from different platforms. The move comes ahead of anticipated announcements about SAP’s plans to integrate generative AI into its products.
The companies say the new offering will enable customers to “build an end-to-end data cloud that brings data from across the enterprise landscape” using the SAP Datasphere data storage and analysis solution together with Google’s data cloud.
It will allow customers to view their entire data estates in real-time and maximize value from their Google Cloud and SAP software investments, a statement released today said.
SAP and Google Cloud launch open data partnership
The partnership will see greater integration between SAP’s Datasphere and Google Cloud’s BigQuery. The businesses say this will eliminate “common data silos from sources that span marketing, sales, finance and supply chain”. For example, “customers with wholesale business distribution models can now have full visibility into their products as they go through the sales pipeline and reach customers.”
Clients will be able to use Google Cloud’s artificial intelligence and machine learning services to train AI models using data from SAP and non-SAP systems, and utilise the analytics capabilities of the SAP Analytics Cloud solution in Google Cloud to assess financial and business outcomes while improving the accuracy of models.
The two companies have also pledged to explore “ways to combine SAP Datasphere with broader ESG data sets and insights powered by Google Cloud to accelerate sustainability journeys with actionable insights,” though further details of this have yet to be revealed.
“SAP and Google Cloud now offer an incredibly comprehensive and open data cloud, providing a foundation for the future of enterprise AI,” said Thomas Kurian, CEO at Google Cloud. “Few resources are as important to digital transformation as data. By deeply integrating SAP data and systems with our data cloud, customers will be able to utilise our analytics capabilities, as well as advanced AI tools and large language models to find new insights from their data.”
SAP prepares to integrate ChatGPT
SAP, Europe’s largest software company, is traditionally a vendor of on-premises IT solutions, but is in the midst of convincing its many customers to move to the cloud. It will hope partnerships with established cloud providers like Google, the third biggest player in the public cloud market, will help it forge a more compelling offering.
Moves towards opening up more data sources across multiple platforms come as SAP prepares to unveil how it will integrate OpenAI’s all-conquering ChatGPT chatbot into its systems. CEO Christian Klein told investors on the company’s earnings call last month that it will announce more details of its ChatGPT-driven applications at its Sapphire Conference, which begins in Orlando, Florida, on Tuesday.
On today’s announcement, Klein said: “SAP and Google Cloud share a commitment to open data and our extended partnership will help break down barriers between data stored in disparate systems, databases, and environments. Our customers not only benefit from the business AI already built into our systems, but also from a unified data foundation.”


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People popping into a Photo-Me booth for a passport picture or a snog will soon be able get internet access and multimedia services. Photo-Me International has teamed up with BT to provide the services...
Chancellor Philip Hammond unveils Fintech Sector Strategy
Compromise of MikroTik routers attributed to US Joint Special Operations Command
Arup claims to have saved £4m on licensing by weeding out unused software
Ocado wrote most of its own software and intends to sell it to other retailers - but the original monolithic architecture had to be torn down first


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The serial entrepreneur's new beauty brand is based around the lifestyle and artisans of Provence.
The debut collection for fall 2017 retailing will be produced and distributed by CWF.
The technology merges the physical and virtual worlds on mobile devices through the new Isaacmizrahinewyork app.
The documentary follows young model hopefuls — including Nadya Vall, a shy, lanky blonde — as they try to break into the industry.
The Baltimore-based activewear brand’s first multimedia marketing campaign aimed at women has the tag line “No Matter What, Sweat Every Day.”
Both fashion labels will show their spring collections at 8 p.m. on Sunday.


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Kenya: The Man On a Mission to Shine Light On Fake Goods
From fake phones to illicit alcoholic drinks, the Kenyan market has been raided by unscrupulous traders who are turning counterfeiting into a multi-billion shillings business. For Mr Haron Kiriba to succeed in his business of importing special light bulbs that can stay on for about six hours after a power blackout, he knew that he had to surmount the potential influx of fakes. “The light bulb can tell the difference between lights off and lights out. And if after an outage you want to switch the lights off, you simply flick the socket and it detects that to mean lights off,” he said, adding that the bulb goes for Sh1,500. Mr Kiriba, who is the chief executive of OrigiCheck, said he had to first get it right in terms of assuring his customers of the legitimacy of the bulb before it hit the market.
How eBay, Amazon and Alibaba Fuel the World’s Top Illegal Industry — the Counterfeit Products Market
Over the last year, Craig Crosby has bought more than 250 items on eBay. The...


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The Mile High State leans into hybrid varieties in response to extreme climate challenges.
By Kathleen Willcox
Colorado has been producing locally grown and bottled wine since 1890, but it’s just now reaching that adolescent stage of development, in which it establishes who, precisely, it is — and how it relates to the rest of the world.
Unlike other regions, where one grape dominates the conversation (Pinot Noir in the Willamette Valley or Riesling in the Finger Lakes, for example), there are several grape varieties vying for attention. Increasingly, cold hardy hybrid grapes are coming into focus as both the climate and the reception for these grapes change.
Climate Demands Change
For decades in Colorado, producers focused exclusively on vitis vinifera. But following several years of extreme freezes in the spring and fall, that focus has shifted for many. In October 2020, a frost wiped out almost all of the vitis vinifera in the state, prompting Governor Jared Polis and Colorado Commissioner of Agriculture Kate Greensberg to declare a federal disaster in much of the affected areas. That declaration let growers apply for emergency funding to cover their losses, but it hardly provided a roadmap for the future.
“Colorado’s wine country has a very unique terroir,” says Jenne Baldwin-Eaton, winemaker-turned-program lead of the viticulture and enology program at Colorado Mesa University in Grand Junction, Colo. “While most wineries initially only wanted to work with vitis vinifera, back-to-back devastating freezes changed things. If they chose to work with Colorado grapes in certain years, they had to be cold hardy cultivars, because they’re the only grapes that survived the sudden freezes.”
The grape-growing region, at first glance, seems extraordinary for vitis vinifera. Colorado has some of the highest elevation vineyards in the world, ranging up to 7,000 feet above sea level. (Only Argentina has Colorado beat in terms of elevation). There are more than 300 days of sunshine every year. Two AVAs produce 90 percent of the grapes grown there: the 76,000-acre Grand Valley, which hugs the Colorado River between Palisade and Grand Junction; and the 48,000-acre West Elks, along the North Fork of the Gunnison River between Paonia and Hotchkiss. The soils are alkaline, the climate is dry and disease pressure is low.
Commercial winegrowing began in earnest when Warren Winiarski was lured over from Robert Mondavi Winery to Denver’s Ivancie Cellars in 1968. Still, the growth was initially slow. In 1990, there were just five wineries in the state. That rate of growth has increased significantly: now there are 170, and the average annual rate of growth is 10 percent — much higher than the industry average, according to the Colorado Wine Industry Development Board.
The New Normal
These days, the challenge for Colorado is the extremes, including triple digit heat in the summer, bookended by screaming cold snaps in the fall and spring.
“The prolonged warmth is what makes those extreme frosts such a problem,” says Kevin Webber, CEO of Carboy Winery (Littleton, Colo.), which has 30 acres under vine and works with three growers to produce around 25,000 cases annually. “In October 2020, it was 80 degrees, and then it suddenly plunged to 31, which caught the vines off-guard, killed the grapes and, in many cases, split the vines too. Then in April 2021, we got hit with frost right after bud break.”
Webb and his team used the disaster as an opportunity for “R&D of hybrids,” he says. “We experimented with different harvest times, yeasts, fermentation and aging techniques on all kinds of cold hardy grapes.”
Evolving Winemaking Practices
But here’s the thing: Cold hardy grapes were developed at the University of Minnesota and Cornell University for consistently colder climates. They were primarily intended for use in Vermont, Upstate New York, Michigan and Canada, none of which have the prolonged hot and dry growing season of Colorado’s high desert. This is, many say, both an opportunity and a challenge.
“I grew up in Missouri, where we use a lot of French American hybrids, so I was open to hybrids before a lot of other producers here were,” says Garrett Carlson, winemaker and co-owner of Carlson Vineyards (Palisade, Colo.). “We produce about 14,000 cases per year, and about half of that comes from hybrid grapes. They can take the heat of the summer and withstand the cold, which makes them reliable here. One of my favorite ways to use them is in blends, because vinifera loses acid in the extreme heat of the summer. I love our Riesling-Gewürtraminer blend with Vidal Blanc. That Vidal Blanc provides the bright acidic backbone the wine needs.”
Baldwin-Easton has been toiling away with students and winemakers on small-scale research projects at Colorado Mesa.
“We have to figure out how the salty, high pH soil and triple digits in the summer affect different cold hardy grapes,” she says. “We’re experimenting with how prolonged or shortened skin contact, cold fermentations, carbonic macerations and other techniques affect the flavor, texture and aroma of grapes.”
While Baldwin-Easton doesn’t see Colorado vintners pulling out all of the vinifera for hybrids, she predicts that they will become an increasingly important component in single varietal expressions and blends with vinifera in the coming years.
Like Webber and Baldwin-Easton, Patric Matysiewski, winemaker at Sauvage Spectrum (Palisade, Colo.), has been knee-deep in experiments on hybrids in recent years.
“It’s been a tough learning curve,” Matysiewski admits. “We had a breakthrough in 2019 after I learned about natural winemaking techniques in the South of France, and we decided to try what they were doing there here.
“With reds, I’ve had quite a bit of success going carbonic on certain varieties and then even blending them back with other varieties treated as standard open red ferments. White skin contact can also produce beautifully weird but great wines.”
There are several varieties currently generating excitement in Colorado.
“We’re most excited by Traminette, which is a cross between Gewürtraminer and Joannes Seyve,” Webber says. “It can withstand the extreme frost and heat, and it actually becomes extraordinarily aromatic from the heat here. La Crescent and Vignolles make fantastic sparkling wine, and Petite Pearl and Frontenac are great in rosé. For reds, we’re putting in Marquette and Chambourcin.”
Webber and others are now investing in hybrids. Of their 30 acres under vine, about half is devoted to eight different hybrids. He sees it as the future, and not just because of climate change.
“There’s a changing of the guard happening among consumers right now,” Webber notes. “Millennials and other younger consumers don’t demand Cabernet Sauvignon like their parents did. They also want eco-friendly wine, and they’re open to different styles and varieties. Growing Cabernet here is expensive and requires inputs that cold hardy grapes don’t.”
Overall, about 19 percent of Colorado’s wine grape acreage is devoted to non-vinifera grapes, much higher than the global average of less than 5 percent.
“Long term, Colorado should plan on hanging its hat on terroir-driven hybrids,” says Carlson. “We are in a weird spot, as far as climate — a little too harsh for vitis vinifera, but warmer than hybrids are used to — but that warmth brings out new ripeness levels in hybrids, the kind they’d never see in Missouri. And the acid is still there. Those cold hardy grapes develop flavor and complexity that lets them stand toe-to-toe with vitis vinifera in a way that I haven’t seen in other places.”
No major wine-growing region has been able to use hybrids as a route to the world stage. And while the vast majority of Colorado wine sales are DTC, the wines are popping up in select restaurants and shops outside of the state. Most producers would like to see that trend continue. Time, terroir and climate change will tell.
Kathleen Willcox writes about wine, food and culture from her home in Saratoga Springs, N.Y. She is keenly interested in sustainability issues, and the business of making ethical drinks and food. Her work appears regularly in Wine Searcher, Wine Enthusiast, Liquor.com and many other publications. Kathleen also co-authored a book called Hudson Valley Wine: A History of Taste & Terroir, which was published in 2017. Follow her wine explorations on Instagram at @kathleenwillcox


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Portland, OR – Snow Peak, a Japanese camping brand with over 60 years of history, is pleased to announce a partnership with FUTURE LIFE FACTORY by Panasonic creative studio, exploring the theme of Naosobi, or “playing with nature” as it develops new products intended to deepen our society’s connection to nature.
Noasobi literally translates to “playing in the field,” but it illustrates a broader picture of the joy experienced in nature. Noasobi is the peaceful feeling of waking up with the sunshine on your face. It’s sharing a beer with friends as you swap stories. It’s a child’s excitement at seeing their first shooting star.
FUTURE LIFE FACTORY by Panasonic is a studio in Panasonic’s Design Center specializing in cutting-edge development, rethinking what it means to live well in the future. The studio explores new types of businesses, taking a creative approach based on human values and social issues.
Inspired by a fireside discussion, FUTURE LIFE FACTORY by Panasonic and Snow Peak USA began a collaborative partnership in 2022. Over the past year, the teams have hosted numerous listening and innovation sessions at Snow Peak HQ in Japan, in Portland and soon in New York City. The brands believe that deepening our connection to nature inspires the world’s environmental issues, and seek creative ways to solve them. The end goal of the partnership is to bring new technologies to consumers as a way to remind us that we are a part of nature.
“I first connected with the Panasonic team around a bonfire in 2021, when wildfires in North America were causing significant damage. Our discussion about the future began when we shared our sense of crisis and loss, which ran deeper than just a piece of news from a camper’s perspective,” said Snow Peak Chief Brand Officer Yui Uchida. “We believe our future lives will be richer if we all take the viewpoint of playing in and learning from nature, and hope this will offer people a new perspective on environmental issues.”
“As a design group that thinks about future lifestyles, we feel the need to think not only about life in the home, but also to expand the sphere of our lives. The opportunity to think about this with Snow Peak, an expert in the field, was important inspiration,” said Tomoaki Ino, Lead Designer at Panasonic FUTURE LIFE FACTORY “Additionally, when considering major social issues such as environmental problems, I feel it’s essential to move beyond a limited vision conceptualized by one department of one company, and instead take a synergistic approach through collaboration with companies from different industries.”
FUTURE LIFE FACTORY by Panasonic and Snow Peak are inviting the public to test experience tools through a workshop taking place March 17-19th at Snow Peak Brooklyn. Individuals will have the opportunity to take part in immersive experiences melding the digital and natural worlds. Additional event details below:
Snow Peak USA × FUTURE LIFE FACTORY by Panasonic “Noasobi × Kurashi Exhibition
Friday, March 17th – Sunday, March 19th, 2023, 11:00 am – 6:00 pm
Snow Peak Brooklyn, 76 N 6th St, Brooklyn, NY 11249
RSVP via the event website: https://www.snowpeak.com/blogs/explore/future-life-factory
About Snow Peak
Founded in Japan in 1958, Snow Peak is a camping brand serving customers in the USA for more than 20 years, with a mission to unite people and alleviate the stresses of modern life through time gathering outside. Its Japanese-designed, lifetime-guaranteed camping equipment serves as a catalyst for restorative experiences in nature. Focused on bringing people together, Snow Peak operates immersive retail locations in Portland and New York City, as well as a Portland restaurant, Takibi, a PNW izakaya that brings to life the brand’s belief that time spent sharing food and drink by the fire is the best way to connect with one another. snowpeak.com
About FUTURE LIFE FACTORY by Panasonic
FUTURE LIFE FACTORY is Panasonic’s design studio that seeks to answer the question, “What does a fulfilling future look like?” Through creative and out-of-the-box thinking, it continues to present the world with ideas that envision a richer future for all.


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Russia’s food ban could gouge Canada’s food industry
By Dan IlikaBusiness Operations Exporting & Importing Dairy Fruit & Vegetables Meat &Poultry Exports
Standing up to Moscow could have impacts that go well beyond agriculture
By Dan Ilika
Toronto, Ont. – Another week, another rattling of the economic sabres between Russia and the West, this time with Moscow barring imports of meat and fish, milk and milk products, and fruit and vegetables from Canada and its compatriots that were bold enough to stand up to President Vladimir Putin.
Russia’s retaliatory one-year ban on food from Canada may not seem like enough to handcuff the national industry—Canada is the world’s fifth-largest exporter of agriculture and agri-foods—but it could cause some serious residual damage moving forward.
The country’s food exports to Russia, according to Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada data, were worth $563 million in 2012.
While the national industry had export sales in excess of $43.6 billion that year, the loss of Russia as a customer is no small potatoes for any country recovering from a recent economic downturn.
Ottawa, for its part, has decided to stand tall in the face of the ban, with federal Industry Minister James Moore promising the government “will not be intimidated” by Putin’s power play.
Moore and his cabinet mates may not be scared of the economic fallout that could be looming in the wake of the ban on Canadian food exports to Russia, but it’s hard to take it all in stride.
While economists and politicians focus on the direct impact the latest Russian sanctions could have on the Canadian economy, the residual economic impact could be bigger than just sales to one of Canada’s largest customers.
As if staring down the barrel of steep discounts—or worse—just to get Canadian agricultural products to market wasn’t bad enough, the Russian ban could cost the country jobs in the medium-term.
In an ominous press release issued in the days after Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev announced the sanctions, Canadian pork producer Olymel l.p. said it is “unable to assess the consequences” the ban may have on its operations.
Russia has been Olymel’s second-largest customer so far in 2014, with pork products for that market manufactured at plants in Red Deer, Alta., and Vallee-Jonction, Que., which employ a combined 2,650 workers.
What’s more, according to company spokesperson Richard Vigneault, Olymel currently has millions of pounds of pork products currently in transit heading to Russia, and it is not known what fate that shipment will meet when it hits Russian shores.
While Olymel said it will make “every effort” to find alternate markets for its products that were destined for Russia in a bid to mitigate the impact of the ban, it’s hard to imagine a scenario where it will be able to maintain production at current levels.
Worse still, Olymel likely isn’t alone.
Farms and fisheries across the country that count on the Russian market to unload their stock are surely facing the same unknowns as Olymel, not to mention the manufacturers that process and package food for export.
Moore has been valiant in his efforts to keep morale high, even going so far as to point to the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) with Europe as the gateway to opportunities that will “more than offset” any losses from Moscow’s ban.
That is some bold and long-term thinking from the industry minister, who perhaps needs reminding that the food ban takes effect immediately and is good for at least a year, while the trade deal between Canada and the European Union (EU) hasn’t yet been ratified, let alone given an implementation date.
By most accounts, CETA is still two years away from launch.
Taking it a step further, as Derek Lothian of the Saskatchewan Manufacturing Council did in an interview with The Canadian Press, the “ripple effect on related industries” could even extend to sectors like agricultural equipment manufacturing.
Booming agriculture means booming equipment sales, and a potential $500-million shortfall in crop and livestock revenue means buying new gear falls to the wayside.
The decision by Canada, as well as the United States, the EU, Australia and Norway, to stand up to Putin, as Vladimir Isachenkov of The Associated Press writes, could “cost Western farmers billions of dollars.”
No good deed goes unpunished, I guess.
Just how harsh that punishment will be remains to be seen.
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Ubisoft officially confirms the recent strong indications that Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag is the title of the next installment in the stealth/action series. They have released package images for the game on various platforms, including a PC SKU, and say we can expect details on the game on Monday. Meanwhile, the box art confirms the game's seafaring setting, showing our hooded protagonist buckling a few swashes on a sailing ship sporting what looks like an AC-style pirate flag. The shot of the
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