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Eighteen teams are in a race to get to the moon, with a $30 million payoff. It's the Google Lunar XPrize, and we're giving you an inside look at how the teams are preparing for lift-off.
Cybercriminals are making their attacks personal, remotely locking your computers and smartphones until you pay a hefty ransom.
On January 21, Microsoft will stake out the future of Windows, giving us a glimpse of what its software will look like on mobile devices. A successor to Internet Explorer may also be in store.
Both carriers have similar programs that allow customers to carry unused data from one month to the next, but it's not as simple as it sounds. This is how these rollover data plans really work.
The ever-present "123456" takes the top spot, but it has some equally terrible company on the annual list of worst passwords people are still using.
President Obama gave the FCC his blessing this week to use its regulatory authority to pre-empt state laws prohibiting cities and towns from building broadband networks, but the agency will face opposition.
If Morgan Stanley's prediction of 69 million iPhone shipments is accurate, the figure would far surpass the 51 million iPhones that Apple actually moved during the final quarter of 2013.
Worldwide, Samsung's market share drops from 32.5 percent in 2013 to 28 percent in 2014, while competitors, like Apple, maintain or gain ground.
Though it still lags in overall number of subscribers, the carrier beat rivals last quarter in terms of gaining new customers and keeping old ones, according to a research firm.
That's $90.5 million more than the previous settlement offer in the case accusing four Silicon Valley giants of conspiring not to hire away each other's employees.
Facebook-sponsored study claims the company added $227 billion to the global economy last year.


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Apple Pay competitor CurrentC suffers its first data breach
This hasn’t been a great week for the Merchant Customer Exchange (MCX), a consortium of companies led by Walmart that hope to compete with Apple Pay with its own mobile payment system called CurrentC.
After admitting that members can leave the organization without facing a penalty, MCX has been forced to admit to its first data breach.
MCX has alerted CurrentC beta testers of unauthorized access to their email addresses, by stating:
Thank you for your interest in CurrentC. You are receiving this message because you are either a participant in our pilot program or requested information about CurrentC. Within the last 36 hours, we learned that unauthorized third parties obtained the e-mail addresses of some of you. Based on investigations conducted by MCX security personnel, only these e-mail addresses were involved and no other information.
No further information about the breach has been disclosed.
Earlier today, The New York Times confirmed that members of the MCX consortium are contractually obligated to reject mobile payment services other than the group’s upcoming CurrentC platform.
This is the reason companies such as CVS and Rite Aid have previously announced that they cannot accept customer payments from Apple Pay or Google Wallet, even though they have near field communication (NFC) terminals in stores.
In a note that followed, MCX opened the door for members to exit the organization without facing penalties:
MCX merchants make their own decisions about what solutions they want to bring to their customers; the choice is theirs. When merchants choose to work with MCX, they choose to do so exclusively and we’re proud of the long list of merchants who have partnered with us. Importantly, if a merchant decides to stop working with MCX, there are no fines.
For a full listing of companies that are currently a part of the consortium and contractually cannot support Apple Pay, click here.
See also: Tim Cook talks Apple Watch, Apple Pay and more at The Wall Street Journal’s WSJDLive, Apple wants to push NFC technology beyond Apple Pay, and CVS and Rite Aid are really dumb for rejecting Apple Pay, NFC.

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Until 1 July 2017, all Russian stores of various formats (online and offline), online stores, cafes, restaurants, hotels, pharmacies and other organizations that make settlements with customers of goods and services using cash registers, must necessarily implement online box office. This was reported to reporters at a large press conference in the Russia Today MIA, which was held in Moscow on Wednesday the night of September 7, with the participation of representatives of the Federal Tax Service of the Russian Federation, network and online retail, Internet commerce, and the business organization Delovaya Rossiya IT companies. Meanwhile, the vast majority of Russian entrepreneurs do not know anything about the ongoing trade reform.
According to the latest version of the Federal Law No. 54 “On the use of cash registers in cash payments and (or) payments using payment cards,” now business will transfer all sales to the tax service via a special cloud server (fiscal data operator ) in real time, and not once a year, as it was before.
The amendments to the 54-ФЗ entered into force in July of the 2016 of the year (adopted on the 14 of the June of the 2016 of the third reading), and for all changes - the modernization of the existing cash register equipment (CCP) or the acquisition of a new, already equipped with an online data transfer function, staff training, re-registration of new equipment in the tax authorities and other organizational issues related to the implementation of the new law, the retailer actually has 9,5 months left. However, 70% of Russia's business is very poorly aware of the mandatory introduction of online cash desks, and 40% do not know anything about the reform carried out by the Federal Tax Service of Russia and the new legislative requirements. This is evidenced by the results of a joint study of the Levada Center and the ATOL IT company specializing in the development and supply of equipment and software for automation of retail and services, for trade management. These data were announced at a press conference.
The new legislative requirements apply to all organizations that make settlements with the population on the territory of the Russian Federation: network and non-food food and non-food retail of various formats, online stores, cafes, restaurants, hotels, beauty salons, pharmacies, gas stations, car services, law firms and other organizations providing services to the population, and soon to payment terminals and vending machines.
From February 2017, the stage will begin when the registration or re-registration of cash registers will be possible only under the new rules. From July 1 to 2017, the old order ceases to apply to all who are required to apply the CCP (see above).
Retail representatives asked the fiscal authorities to introduce a six-month transition period after July 1, 2017, motivating the request by the fact that many market leaders, large retail (chains with up to 10 stores throughout the country), postponed the re-equipment of their cash register fleet "for later" and this can make it difficult to comply with the law on time. On the other hand, representatives of medium and small businesses do not know anything at all and have not heard about the new trading rules.
“The data of the All-Russian survey of entrepreneurs, which we conducted together with the analytical center of Yuri Levada, indicates that about 70% of the Russian business community is poorly aware of the amendments to the 54-FZ that require the mandatory introduction of online cash registers. At the same time, 40% of respondents from this number for the first time heard about the new requirements of the law, about 30% of the interviewed said a superficial acquaintance with the amendments, without understanding their essence and impact on the business, ”said Alexey Makarov, member of the General Council of“ Business Of Russia ”, President of ATOL.
Meanwhile, if a store, cafe or restaurant does not install new online technology, they cannot avoid sanctions from the fiscal authorities. “After July 1, 2017, such organizations will not be able to use KKT, since the old equipment will not be such. Formally, this is non-use of cash registers, a check issued by old cash registers will no longer be considered a fiscal document, ”explained Andrey Budarin, acting head of the Operational Control Department of the Federal Tax Service of Russia. For non-compliance with the law, the fine for legal entities will be 50 rubles plus the amount of unaccounted revenue.
According to Andrey Budarin, the buyer will be able to check any of his checks through the cloud and complain to the Federal Tax Service of Russia. “The system makes it possible to automate the identification of risks of violations and makes illegal manipulations with proceeds senseless,” he stressed.
Also at a press conference, media representatives were informed that Delovaya Rossiya and ATOL are launching the federal educational project 54-ФЗ: all about the main Re: form of trade rules, the aim of which is to train entrepreneurs across the country to correctly switch to online box office and transmitting sales data to the Federal Tax Service in real time.
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THE Daily Mash has confirmed it has bought the Financial Times for £1.2bn.
RETAIL staff have complained that contactless payment means they no longer get to stare intensely at customers while their card goes through.
THE Apple Watch is to be advertised purely as a timekeeping device, rather than a weird little computer.
THE black coven of warlocks at the heart of the Bank of England will raise interest rates by the new year, they have sworn.
TIZER has been named a fizzy drink of outstanding cultural importance by the UN.
A CITY accountancy firm has advertised for a trained specialist to deal with its demanding daily coffee round.
HEATHROW’S third runway will be discreetly hidden inside a cliff face with palm trees that fold down when planes launch.
FORMER RBS chief Fred Goodwin is enjoying another lovely day while you pay off his debts.


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The deal will mark the start of a new frontier which will “explore the intersection between fashion and entertainment in the metaverse,” the Italian luxury fashion house said.
The Holy Grail of Fashion
“We are excited to unveil this multifaceted partnership with Yuga Labs, a leader and creative pioneer in Web3,” Robert Triefus, Gucci’s head of metaverse projects said.
Gucci launched the Gucci Grail project with Yuga Labs last year. Gucci teamed up with “digital artisan” Wagmi-san to design accessories and clothing which can be used to personalize NFTs.
The partnership will also extend to Otherside, the Bored Ape-themes virtual world and game.
Gucci’s long term plan is to build Web3 communities which, it believes, will foster more customer loyalty and produce more revenue for the fashion giant.
“We look forward to showing how this partnership extends to endless opportunities among others,” said Michael Figge, chief creative officer of Yuga Labs.
Gucci is one of a number of fashion houses testing the Web3 waters. Brands are learning that they can grow their customer base by using NFTs to lure in young buyers.
The 10KTF collection accounted for 74% of trading volumes of NFT fashion items in the first quarter of this year. Yuga Labs acquired the 10KTF collection last November when it bought NFT creator WENEW. Michael Figge and NFT artiste Beeple, otherwise known as Mike Winkelman, founded the firm in 2021. Figge moved to Yuga Labs as part of the deal.
This year, investors have pumped $502 million into Web3 gaming and metaverse projects. While down from $7.6 billion, it is still significant given the recent souring of investor sentiment towards the crypto industry.
The metaverse presents fashion houses with a lower cost of goods and allows them to use existing designs.
Morgan Stanley says the digital fashion industry will be worth $50 billion by 2030.
BeInCrypto has reached out to company or individual involved in the story to get an official statement about the recent developments, but it has yet to hear back.


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Hon Hai Precision Industry Co’s (鴻海精密) new electric vehicle (EV) platform is expected to help launch vehicles later this year, chairman Young Liu (劉揚偉) said on Saturday, signifying major progress in the electronics giant’s push into the automotive industry.
Two light vehicles designed using the company’s MIH Open Platform would be unveiled in the fourth quarter, Liu told reporters at the company’s headquarters in New Taipei City’s Tucheng District (土城).
Hon Hai might at the same time also help launch an electric bus, he said.
Hon Hai has been seeking to expand its automotive capabilities at a time when technology companies including its customer Apple Inc are looking to expand into vehicles.
The company in October last year unveiled its first EV chassis and a software platform aimed at helping automakers bring models to market faster.
So far, 736 companies have joined the Hon Hai’s platform, Liu said.
He was optimistic about electric vehicle development worldwide, forecasting that 2024 would be a turning point, with several new electric models expected to be launched on the global market, Liu said.
Taiwan would face a critical moment in electric vehicle development over the next two to three years, he said.
Hon Hai last month set up a joint venture with Chinese automaker Zhejiang Geely Holding Group Co (浙江吉利).
Liu said that the venture is in talks with Chinese start-up Faraday Future (法拉第未來) and others on cooperation.
While Hon Hai forecasts that its revenue from automotive ventures would grow this year, Liu expects vehicle-related business to start making a meaningful contribution to the group’s overall sales only in 2023.
Separately, Liu said that an ongoing chip shortage has had only a limited impact on the company’s major customers and that it does not expect a trough this quarter, which is typically a low season.
Hon Hai would continue its efforts to acquire an 8-inch wafer facility, he said in response to Malaysian media reports that the company lost its bid for SilTerra Malaysia Sdn Bhd to another consortium.
Hon Hai still wants to secure a partnership with the Malaysian chipmaker, Liu said.
Meanwhile, Liu said that Hon Hai is likely to sign a new contract with the US state of Wisconsin by the end of June for the company’s investment in the state.
Talks between Hon Hai and the Wisconsin Economic Development Corp about a new contract have been proceeding smoothly, he said, without elaborating.
Additional reporting by CNA
SUPPLY HICCUPS: Poor manufacturing yields at Apple’s overseas suppliers have caused at least one maker of its new MiniLED displays to pause production, sources said The next-generation display destined to be a highlight of Apple Inc’s upcoming top-tier iPad Pro is facing production issues that could lead to short initial supplies of the new device, people familiar with the matter said. The Cupertino, California-based tech giant plans to showcase a new MiniLED display technology in the 12.9-inch iPad Pro set to be announced as early as the second half of this month. However, the firm’s overseas suppliers are dealing with poor manufacturing yields, the people who asked not to be named discussing sensitive matters said. At least one of the MiniLED makers has had to pause production as
END OF AN ERA: The Boeing 747-400 jumbo jets have served the airline well, but new-generation aircraft are more fuel-efficient, CAL chairman Hsieh Shih-chien said China Airlines Ltd (CAL, 華航) yesterday bid farewell to its last four Boeing 747-400 planes, ending the era of the “Queen of the Skies” at the airline. CAL has since 1975 operated a total of 29 747 series aircraft manufactured by Boeing Co. In 1990, it started receiving delivery of 19 747-400 jumbo jets, with the last one, the B-18215, delivered in 2005, it said. The B-18215 was the last of the passenger model produced by Boeing, making the 16-year-old aircraft the world’s youngest 747-400, CAL chairman Hsieh Shih-chien (謝世謙) told an event to bid farewell to the planes at Taiwan Taoyuan
Several hundred people have already booked their tickets and begun training for a spectacular voyage: a few minutes, or perhaps days, in the weightlessness of space. The mainly wealthy first-time space travelers are preparing to take part in one of several private missions which are preparing to launch. The era of space tourism is on the horizon 60 years after Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin became the first person in space. Two companies, Virgin Galactic and Blue Origin LLC, are building spacecraft capable of sending private clients on suborbital flights to the edge of space lasting several minutes. Glenn King is the director of
RETAIL BANKING EXIT: Clients are concerned whether their rights would be protected, while employees were caught by surprise as the bank had just upgraded its services Citibank Taiwan Ltd (花旗台灣) yesterday said that credit card clients could continue using their cards as operations would continue normally until it sells its consumer banking business. As of February, the bank had 2.86 million credit cards in circulation in Taiwan, of which 2.17 million had been used in the past six months, ranking it sixth among all banks, data from the Financial Supervisory Commission showed. Credit card spending by Citibank clients totaled NT$15.66 billion (US$552.6 million) in February, also ranking sixth among banks in Taiwan. Citibank was the only foreign bank that made it into the top six. Customers should not


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Asda has reported a “good performance” in the run-up to Christmas, despite Arctic weather conditions.
Asda said December 23 was its busiest day as a record 4m customers came through its doors. Over the fortnight to that date, 11 stores generated sales of more than £7m compared to nine last year
The Walmart-owned grocer and general merchandise giant said that shoppers had spread their main Christmas spending over a two-week period rather than leaving it until the last minute after learning lessons from bad weather last year.
And thanks to its ‘Operation Snowflake’ in readiness for bad weather, Asda’s shops were well prepared to cope with the bad weather.
Asda chief executive Andy Clarke said: “The combination of bad weather and people working hard to budget this year has meant the Christmas shop has been spread across a longer period of time, with shoppers making a couple of trips to stock up for the festive season.
“Our shoppers weren’t the only ones to learn the lessons of last year. We have worked incredibly hard this year to make sure our deliveries got through and customers could reach our stores, whatever the British weather threw at them.”
Asda also opened 105 of its stores on Boxing Day, when more than 500,000 customers visited the retailer.


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Local restaurants try to keep up with the fast pace of True/False
COLUMBIA — The True/False Film Festival brings thousands of people to mid-Missouri. With the festival growing larger every year, businesses are trying to keep up.
Some local restaurants have adapted to the fast-paced movement of the festival by trying to make their meals quicker and more efficient.
"We're going to make our food as fast and as simple as possible so people can get in and out and make sure they get to their next movie," Tellers bartender Tera Eckerle said.
Eckerle also said Tellers created specials specifically for the festival to try and draw people into the restaurant. All weekend it will have lunch, dinner and drink specials.
Tellers said it will keep the same hours during the festival.
Harold's Doughnuts is taking a different approach. Although it will still carry the regular stock of doughnuts, Harold's will also have specialty doughnuts for True/False and extended hours.
"We prepare for this. This is our busiest weekend," Pastry Chef Melissa Poelling said. "We thought it would be homecoming, but it turns out that it's True/False. So we begin preparing a week out just ordering additional supplies, boxes and paper goods so we can be ready."
Harold's is also using True/False as an opportunity to showcase other restaurants in the city with its "Best of CoMo Doughnut Bar."
"We're going to have a custom doughnut that was created by Barred Owl represented, one that was created by 44 Stone and Canteen represented, one from Cafe Berlin, one from Broadway Diner, one from Room 38, and then the Columbia Visitors Bureau has a custom doughnut that we'll be celebrating," Poelling said.


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For some organizations, such as those in the federally regulated banking and telecommunications sectors, the process of complying with the Personal Information Protection and Electronics Act (PIPEDA) began three years ago.
For most other businesses however, Jan. 1, 2004 is a date being circled on calendars across the country. That day is the final call for all companies to be PIPEDA-compliant.
With the privacy deadline less than six months away, ComputerWorld Canada gauged how far companies have come, and what challenges they have faced along the way.
The compliance process is still vivid in Drew McArthur’s mind. McArthur, vice-president and privacy officer at Telus Corp. in Burnaby, B.C., recalls going through the process in 2000. PIPEDA-compliance didn’t end for the telco once it had met the privacy standards in 2001. Ensuring customer privacy isn’t breached has turned into a full-time position for McArthur. Ultimately it took Telus nine months to comply and, he recalls, it was a road littered with challenges that began with assembling a legal team to help explain what the law actually meant.
“The law contains guidelines, but it isn’t specific and there are hundreds of situations that crop up every week that require a decision to be made on how you’ll handle personal information,” he said.
At the time, McArthur and Telus’ legal team met with the privacy commissioner office to clarify parts of the legislation. He said this was a valuable approach because it helped get some answers.
One question Mc


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(MENAFN Editorial) Canon Middle East, a leader in imaging solutions, has partnered with specialist distributor Adenar Ltd. to provide advanced video security products and solutions to customers in the United Arab Emirates.
Investment in new infrastructure and mandatory safety standards required by commercial establishments are driving further demand for innovative security solutions, particularly as the nation prepares to host World Expo 2020 in Dubai.
Adenar was set up to provide IP surveillance solutions to the CCTV installation industry and is strongly focussed on customer relations. The strategic alliance with Canon will allow Adenar to expand its range of offerings across aviation, oil & gas and large corporations
Anurag Agrawal, Managing Director of Canon Middle East, said: "The UAE's position as a global business and leisure hub is underlined by its reputation as a safe destination. The government invests significantly in upholding the highest security standards and has set clear guidelines for commercial establishments for ensuring adequate security provisions.
"Demand for security solutions will gain further traction over the next few years as Dubai prepares to host the World Expo 2020, which will witness investments of about US25 billion, progress in the aviation sector to meet tourism projections, doubling in the number of hotel rooms and more than 1 million sq m of commercial space to be added within the next two years.
He added: "While the UAE security solutions market is growing, one of the concerns faced by customers is in ensuring that the products are not only of thehighest quality but also reliable, flexible, and adaptable for sensitive monitoring requirements.
"As part of Canon's diversification into new business, a full range of Internet Protocol (IP) cameras were launched to meet security needs in the retail, education, commercial, and hospitality sectors. Our partnership with Adenar, a company that has a strong local presence and a proven track-record, positions us at the forefront in providing reliable, high quality and sensitive security products and solutions.
Canon's new range of Full-HD IP cameras includes the VB-H610D, VB-H41, VB-H71 and VB-H610 VE, offering incredible optical and digital zoom, and are capable of low-light shooting, smart shade control, and wide angle view. They also support the ONVIF communication protocol, thus assuring strong industry compliance standards. One of the recent introductions by Canon is the new, ultra-compact 'S' series, designed for indoor environments that require sensitive monitoring.
Mr Anand Subbiah, Director, Adenar Ltd added: "As a key distributor of Canon products, our partnership for providing security solutions will enable us to focus further on customer service by providing the most advanced solutions in the market today. The new IP security cameras from Canon offer governmental security initiatives and commercial establishments the true power of advanced technology, reliability and scalability."
In addition to hotels and serviced residences, the UAE law stipulates that banks, exchange houses, jewellery manufacturers, and fuel stations must follow strict guidelines relating to CCTV and alarm systems.


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Magic Kingdom Closing Early on December 2nd for Annual Walt Disney World Service Celebration
In honor of the annual Walt Disney World Service Celebration, the Magic Kingdom will be closing early on December 2nd, which is also known as Walt Disney Day. (Walt Disney’s birthday is on December 5th.)
In order to prepare for the event, the Magic Kingdom will be closing at 4:30 PM this upcoming Monday, December 2nd. Park open will be taking place at 8:00 AM that morning, so you still have plenty of time to take in all the sights and experiences for the holiday season that day.
The celebration honors Cast Members as they celebrate milestones in their career with the company. Congrats to all of the Cast Members who’ve made magic for guests all these years!


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This is a guest post from HP Business Answers. Check out our website, blog and Twitter feed. You can also join the HP Business Answers LinkedIn group for conversation, advice and expert tips.
There's a fair weight on the shoulders of the UK's small business community. Frequently referred to as the 'backbone' of the economy, they now have the added onus of leading the recovery from recession. No pressure then.
But if there's a silver lining, it may come in the form of cloud computing. It's been heralded as a true opportunity for smaller organisations to bounce back.
In a report from last year, K2 advisory predicted cloud computing would even give small companies an advantage over [larger] enterprises.
Getting behind the cloud computing hype
And this year's Microsoft Cloud Adoption Study goes further, envisioning a more transformational future for cloud users. "I believe there is huge potential for cloud technology to accelerate both the business opportunities for the ICT industry as well as for SMEs in Europe," says Klaus Holse Andersen, area vice-president of Microsoft Western Europe.
There's still lots of hype around the cloud that makes it seem like a daunting prospect for small business bosses. However, reduced to its most simple form, it's just the way companies buy IT.
It can give you IT on demand, offering a pay-as-you-go solution that could have a profound impact on our work culture, not to mention small business growth. Cloud computing has generally lowered the barriers to entry for new businesses, so there's little wonder it's being heralded as the engine that will drive the recovery.
"One of the wonders of cloud computing is that, unusually, small businesses are among its early adopters," says Andy Burton, the chairman of the Cloud Industry Forum, an industry body promoting best practice.
So far, companies tend to be moving backup, storage and back-office functions into the cloud. A fortunate by-product of this is that many businesses have improved their haphazard disaster recovery plans too.
But the cloud is also proving popular for email, especially if the company has a mobile workforce. In fact, hosted business email - along with cloud-based video-conferencing and VOIP - can give smaller businesses access to the kind of integrated communications that have been the preserve of larger companies until now.
Cloud computing opportunities
And it's the collaboration opportunities that Burton believes hold the greatest value for small firms. While the cost benefits are important, an upcoming Cloud Industry Forum survey found financial savings tend to come second to collaboration benefits.
Small businesses are likely to push cloud computing into the mass-market, too. According to the Microsoft report, 39 per cent of over 3,200 small businesses surveyed expect to pay for one or more cloud service this year. The number of services small companies pay for will nearly double, with uptake accelerating as owner-managers upgrade their existing technology.
Barriers to cloud computing
And what about pitfalls? The 'click-through culture' and low cost of cloud computing can make you lazy about reading contracts. You can sign up for services in just a couple of minutes (if you have your credit card handy), but Burton urges buyers to consider thier requirements before buying.
There are also cultural and perceptual changes to overcome – according to Microsoft's research, most people are more comfortable with cloud services that are 'local'. "People are concerned particularly about where data resides. So it's important to understand your supplier's approach to data storage," says Burton.
Connectivity can pose a problem too. After all, you need an internet connection to use cloud computing, so it's important to understand if your connection is fast and reliable enough. Also, does your cloud computing provider offer a solid service level agreement? How will it behave regarding data transfer and security if you want to switch vendors?
The Cloud Industry Forum has codes of practice for providers, while cloud computing has even attracted the beady eye of the EU commissioner Neelie Kroes – a sure endorsement that it has arrived.
In all, the use of cloud computing is only likely to grow. Burton even sees a time when the workplace as a single entity dissolves. "The components are all there for something 'transformational', now it just has to come together."


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Four major technology trends are set to revolutionise the Australian retail market this year, according to Manhattan Associates. The key trends include advancements in Radio Frequency Identification (RFID), the convergence of generative AI and voice commerce, unified supply chains, and augmented reality. Each of these developments is set to enhance the retail landscape in different ways.
One of the foremost trends is the resurgence of RFID technology, particularly in bridging the inventory accuracy gap across Australian retail outlets. Despite being a stalwart tool within the industry for decades, RFID has been underutilised, but this is poised to change. A recent survey by Manhattan Associates highlighted a stark challenge - only 4% of Antipodean retailers are confident in the accuracy of their inventory.
As such, RFID technology, often limited to basic item tagging, will be harnessed this year to bring automation to tracking, replenishment, data analytics tracking customer behaviours, and to integrate online and in-store operations seamlessly.
The incipient fusion of generative AI and voice commerce is the second major prediction from Manhattan Associates. Leveraging advancements in Large Language Models (LLMs), this intersection will enable computers to engage in two-way human-like interactions.
Australian retailers are set to integrate voice-activated shopping this year, simplifying the buying process and opening new avenues for customer engagement. This partnership of voice commerce with AI-driven assistants like Siri, Google Assistant, and Alexa offers a hands-free, efficient shopping experience, conforming to modern customer demands.
Raghav Sibal, Managing Director, ANZ, at Manhattan Associates, suggests that “the synergy of Generative AI with voice commerce represents a trend towards more human-centric, versatile technology in retail. This shift is transforming customer interactions, making them more natural and integrated, much like RFID's impact on inventory management."
Thirdly, supply chains are targeted for major changes as greater unification begins, led by systems like Transport Management Systems (TMS) and Warehouse Management Systems (WMS). As a result of improved visibility and reduced costs, and supported by cloud technology, these new processes will create a better sense of control for customers and offer accurate real-time availability of products online.
As Sibal explains, “the shift towards a unified system underscores the evolving nature of supply chain management in an increasingly interconnected and digital world."
Lastly, the rise of Augmented Reality (AR) in the retail sector will transform customer interactions with products by merging the virtual and physical shopping experiences. This trend allows customers to virtually try on clothes or place furniture in their homes before purchasing, for example.
Sibal states that AR “significantly reduces the uncertainty around fit and style, which has been a major hurdle in online shopping”, providing better insights for retailers and a heightened level of engagement and personalisation for customers.
To sum up, these four technological trends - RFID advancements, AI integration with voice commerce, an end-to-end unified supply chain, and AR - are set to bring about radical changes in the Australian retail landscape in 2024, inevitably enhancing customer experiences whilst also providing immense benefits to retailers.


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Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3: The Black Order was announced during The Game Awards as a Nintendo Switch exclusive, with a 2019 release window.
The announcement was made with a teaser trailer that showed Marvel icons, such as Spider-Man, Wolverine, Guardians of the Galaxy and Thanos, with a comic book-style art design. Confirmed playable characters include Star Lord, Spider-Man, Wolverine, Captain America, Iron Man and the Hulk.
For the first time in 10 years, assemble your Super Hero dream team once again in MARVEL ULTIMATE ALLIANCE 3: The Black Order – coming exclusively to #NintendoSwitch in 2019! #MUA3 pic.twitter.com/f3W7sUpj3Y
— Marvel Games (@MarvelGames) December 7, 2018
The previous entries in the Marvel: Ultimate Alliance series were cross-platform titles, so the game being revealed as a Switch exclusive was a bit of a surprise.
The most recent game in the series was Marvel: Ultimate Alliance 2, which released back in 2009 for the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and PC. An HD remaster of the original Marvel: Ultimate Alliance and Marvel: Ultimate Alliance 2 was released in 2016 for the PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC.


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Miao Tingting (left), a partner of a Taobao shop helps local villagers to buy items online in Shengli village, Chaohu, Anhui province. (Xinhua/Guo Chen)
China’s rural areas, with 211 million recorded net users by the end of June 2018, have become a market from which e-commerce platforms compete to seize a larger share, Economic Daily reported on Dec. 4.
E-commerce platforms have already successfully infiltrated rural China. In the first half of this year, the sales volume in low-end markets increased by 30 percent, a much higher increase than in first- and second-tier cities, said an economics professor with Beijing Technology and Business University.
A recent report indicated that Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba now has 601 million active users, an increase of 25 million from last year, and most of these new customers come from less developed regions.
In August, e-commerce giant JD.com saw that 28 percent of new customers from its low-end marketplace were group buying.
“In the past three years, our users from third-tier cities and below have been growing. Users from five-tier regions or below account for 18 percent of our total subscribers and that percentage will keep rising,” said LinkSure Network, a Shanghai-based mobile internet company specializing in free internet access.
Rising web capabilities, fee reductions and convenience brought by the Internet are three significant reasons that users from low-end markets have become a new force online.
Wang Xiaoshu, rotating president of LinkSure Network, said young people from counties, towns, and villages are a strong force when it comes to online shopping because they have plenty of time and don’t have as much to spend as their peers in first-tier cities.
In 2017, the amount spent per person on Pinduoduo, an e-commerce platform allowing users to participate in group buying deals, was 567 yuan, while the average person using JD and Alibaba spent 3,107 yuan and 8,732 yuan, respectively.
E-commerce platforms are putting more efforts into studying the requirements of low-end markets.
The low-end market is not all about price. Brand, quality and after-sales service are also important factors that these consumers take into consideration, said Cao Lei, director of the China E-Commerce Research Center.
E-commerce platforms are looking for a balance between quality and price to meet the demands of the low-end market. For instance, JD plans to cooperate with 10,000 factories for direct supply, to develop competitive products and share the benefits with consumers in the most direct way.
Pinduoduo is eager to shake off its label of low price and low quality. In the third quarter of this year, the company’s spending on research and development increased to 332 million yuan, an eight-fold increase compared with the same period last year.


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For more than a year, under the stewardship of Intel CEO Brian Krzanich and new chief marketing officer Steve Fund, Intel has been transforming its brand image. Rather than just focusing on the invisible ingredients it puts inside tech products, the company is implementing a new marketing blitz to focus on the amazing products and services that Intel enables.
Intel will still keep its decades-old Intel Inside campaign, but will add a new cool factor. You can think of it as the same brand with a new tagline, “Amazing Experiences Outside.” An ad debuting today will show some truly amazing visuals, from a dress with artificial butterflies flying around it to a prosthetic limb that enables a man to walk. It has taken a couple of major keynote speeches and more than a year of planning to fully articulate this strategy shift, but it looks like the company is ready to share its new identity with the world.
The commercial is set to Beethoven’s “Symphony in Blue” and features a performance by musician Kawehi. Most of the digital experiences in the ad are enabled by Intel’s newest core ingredient, the Curie module, a chip and complete computing system for wearable devices and Internet of Things devices (everyday objects that are smart and connected). Curie is moving into volume production, and it will be sold for under $10, Krzanich announced during his keynote speech at the 2016 International CES, the big tech trade show that recently took place in Las Vegas.
“It’s noteworthy to say that the brand strategy of ‘Intel makes amazing experiences possible’ has become the company’s business strategy,” said Penny Baldwin, vice president and general manager of Intel’s global brand management, in an interview with VentureBeat. “We believe Intel’s longstanding history of being ruthlessly focused on Intel Inside has effectively rendered the brand invisible. We have been trapped inside the box, distanced from the consumer, with no clear role or relationship with the consumer.”
Baldwin added, “Instead of focusing on where we are with Intel Inside, we have elected to focus on why we are. The why lays a direct claim to the amazing experiences we enable outside. We are not abandoning our Inside heritage. We are simply bridging from the inside to the out, and making a direct connection between the role our breakthrough technology plays and the experiences that technology enables.”
Intel is going to emphasize the difference it makes in areas such as gaming, sports, and entertainment through its sponsorship of esports events, as well as through other types of engagement.
“Part of our strategy is to see this new brand promise at a 30,000-foot level, which is the Amazing Experience campaign, and to pay off that brand promise with experiential activations that clearly highlight the role our technology plays,” Baldwin said.
Intel has already announced that it will use the Intel Curie chip at the X Games Aspen 2016 event (from Jan. 28 to Jan. 31). I asked Baldwin if Intel has considered Super Bowl 50, partly because Intel is already quite visible in Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif., where Intel is based. But Baldwin said that Intel wasn’t quite ready to ramp up the campaign to the Super Bowl level just yet.
“The ability to incorporate the technology will take a longer time, but it is on the radar,” she said.
In fact, Intel is in active talks with just about every major sports league about using its technology to transform the experience at sports venues. For instance, Intel is embedding BMX stunt bikes with sensors that can capture the motion of the bikes and report real-time analytics on the height or movement of a trick. Intel can analyze the data and give the athlete exactly what they need to know in order to improve performance. Coaches can use that data for more precise coaching. Fans can also see the results in real time, and experience what the athlete sees or feels through special kiosks at sports venues. And Intel wants to implement this kind of technology in every sport, Baldwin said.
Intel also plans to get involved in many other types of events as part of this brand-awareness campaign. The company isn’t saying how much money it will spend on the campaign yet, but Baldwin said, “If you do a major brand relaunch on digital platforms worldwide, the financial commitment is large.”
One of the coolest visuals in the new ad campaign is of a model wearing an evening dress with blue butterflies pinned to it. It was created by two fashion designers from Turkey — Ezra and Tuba Cetin. The butterflies are actually electronic devices that are powered by Intel’s Edison module for the Internet of Things. As the model walks, the dress responds to touch, body heat, and movement. The butterflies fly off the dress and flutter around the model. The Cetin sisters say they’re excited to be working with Intel on the “intelligent butterfly dress,” as the future of fashion is about to change.
In a part of the ad dubbed Wow, Intel teamed with creative artist Nobumichi Asai to use computer technology to project an amazing array of colors onto Asai’s face, which becomes the canvas for real-time projection art. Another piece of the commercial focuses on dancer Piage Fraser, who performs in front of a projection that captures her movements and turns them into a psychedelic animation. Fraser’s motion is captured by Intel’s RealSense 3D camera technology and Mirada Studios.
This focus on “cool” things reflects the transformation of the brand image, but is also in line with Intel’s deeper strategy. Krzanich has talked before about using Intel chips to create Intel-branded products that are sold on the market by Intel or its direct partners. That’s a far cry from simply supplying chips to other companies. Intel’s chip customers may not have the warmest reaction to this shift in strategy, but it’s not so different from how Apple behaves as a vertically integrated company. Intel isn’t going as far in this direction as Apple does, but it is doing a lot more work on the end product than it used to do.
“We have transformed every aspect of marketing under Steve’s leadership,” Baldwin said. “We have changed how we think about Intel Inside, retail, and business to business.”
Intel created the new campaign with the help of ad agency McGarryBowen. But Intel also did a lot of the work itself.
Intel will still keep the traditional Intel Inside marketing program, and continue working with its original equipment manufacturer (OEM) partners, Baldwin said.
“That’s a component part and we would never walk away from that,” she stressed.
Fund, former top marketer at Staples, joined Intel in May 2014. And Intel hired Baldwin about a year ago. Their work debuts today.
“We have been quietly developing this brand relaunch for a while, elevating the quality and caliber of our communications,” Baldwin said. “But this campaign is starting now.”
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Our esteemed colleague Martin Bryant thought the SXSW-location-hubbub was overblown, and he is correct in pointing out that numbers-wise, users of location-specific apps are still very low, and in some places, and with some demographics of users, usage is almost non-existent. But today does not equal tomorrow. While the thousands of “geeks” at SXSWi are certainly not a pure representative slice of humanity, they generally do know a good Internet thing when they see it, and that thing right now is location.
Martin points out one of the loudest arguments that we hear about location: that it will just be a feature among many other features of larger services. However, it will be the other way around – all other services will be features of location, just as video and photo sharing are features of social media today.
As Joe Stump (co-founder of SimpleGeo, so yeah, he’s biased) mentioned in one of his panels at SXSW (funny how we keep going back there…), the reason that all of these startups are “at war” is because location today is what social media was in 2001. It’s a gold rush and someone is going to make billions on it. Not everyone gets it right now, some people are even downright afraid of it, but regardless, it is where the web is going, and the companies – big or small – that realize this are going to be the most important companies on the Internet in 5-10 years. In our interview with Steve Lee of Google (yes, also at SXSW), he said it flat out, “we’re going to put location into everything we do“. He didn’t say “social media”, he didn’t say “microblogging”, he said “location”.
Foursquare and Gowalla, and Brightkite and Loopt before them, and all the other location-focused services out there right now, are just the beginning. Check-ins are useful and gaming elements are fun, but both are features of location, not the endgame that location will be. We can’t see that endgame right now, mainly because everyone doesn’t have a smartphone and a data plan yet. Only when smartphones are ubiquitous (as laptops are now) will that endgame become clear to everyone.
When everything online in the not-too-distant-future is a feature of location – just as it’s nearly impossible to say that any service today is not a feature of social media – pundits will look back at the first half of 2010 and think, “Wow, those early Foursquare users really knew what was coming. But now what’s the next web?” Until then, rest assured, the next web is location.


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Federal Judge: Yahoo Breach Victims Can SuePlaintiffs Claim Spam and Card Fraud Resulted From Breach of 3 Billion Accounts
A federal judge in California has largely rejected a motion by Verizon to dismiss a class-action lawsuit brought by victims of three Yahoo data breaches. The breaches appear to have compromised every Yahoo user's personal details at least once.
In the defendant's favor, however, Judge Lucy Koh in her Friday ruling also denied several claims by the plaintiffs that Verizon had challenged, including deceit by concealment, negligence and breach of contract.
Verizon closed its acquisition of Yahoo last June for $4.48 billion. Under the terms of the deal, Yahoo agreed to shoulder half of the costs related to government investigations and third-party litigation over its breaches. Yahoo also bears full liability for any shareholder lawsuits and faces a probe by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
The search giant reportedly did not carry cyber insurance.
Plaintiffs Allege Poor Security Practices
The class-action lawsuit contends that Yahoo failed to adequately protect user accounts and to disclose its inadequate information security practices. Plaintiffs have also accused the company of waiting too long to disclose the breaches to users, which prevented them from taking remedial action to prevent their personal information from being abused.
Some plaintiffs have also alleged that they suffered losses by having their personal information get exposed, resulting in fraudulent charges appearing on their credit cards and subjecting them to an increase in spam.
The class-action lawsuit was first filed on Dec. 7, 2016. In September of that year, Yahoo made its first breach disclosure, saying 500 million accounts were stolen in late 2014. In December 2016, it upped the estimated victims to 1 billion and said that attackers had also forged cookies, allowing them to access the accounts.
In August 2017, Koh rejected a motion by Verizon to dismiss the class-action complaint. Then Yahoo made yet another breach disclosure in October 2017, saying that nearly every one of its 3 billion users' details were exposed in the 2013 breach (see Yahoo: 3 Billion Accounts Breached in 2013).
After that disclosure, Koh granted the plaintiffs time to amend their complaint. That was followed by Verizon in February filing another motion to dismiss the case, which Koh addressed in her Friday ruling.
Among many contentions, Verizon sought to dismiss one plaintiff claim, which seeks punitive damages, on the grounds that the complaint does not allege that a specific officer or director committed "oppressive, fraudulent or malicious acts."
But the judge rejected the contention, writing that "plaintiffs satisfy that standard by focusing on particular conduct by the CISO."
In addition, "these circumstances make plausible plaintiffs' claim that high-ranking executives and managers at Yahoo, including its CISO, committed oppressive, fraudulent, or malicious conduct," Koh writes.
Verizon officials could not be immediately reached for comment on Koh's ruling.
Yahoo Blamed Nation-State Hackers
Former Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer told a Congressional committee last November that it was tough for any corporation to defend against nation-state attackers (see Former Yahoo CEO: Stronger Defense Couldn't Stop Breaches).
"Even robust defenses ... aren't sufficient to protect against the state-sponsored attack, especially when they're extremely sophisticated and persistent," Mayer testified.
In March 2017, the U.S. Department of Justice indicted two Russian FSB agents and two other freelance hackers for attacks against Google and Yahoo. One of the men, Karim Baratov, was extradited to the U.S. and pleaded guilty to hacking Gmail and Yandex accounts. Baratov, however, was not accused of any involvement in the Yahoo breaches.
The indictment alleges that one of the four men, Alexsey Belan, mined Yahoo email accounts for credit card and gift card numbers. Belan, who is now believed to be living in Russia, has also been accused of minting forged cookies that gave him access to 30 million Yahoo email accounts. Those accounts were then allegedly targeted with spam (see Russian Spies, Two Others, Indicted in Yahoo Hack).
Yahoo said in December 2016 that attackers reverse-engineered the company's cookies, the small data files that allow persistent access to account without re-entering a password. That allowed the attackers access to account without needing to know the passwords.
Yahoo's first breach disclosure surfaced while the company was in acquisition negotiations with Verizon. The worries over future breach-related costs impacted the price. While Verizon originally offered $4.83 billion for Yahoo, which is now part of its Oath subsidiary, the final price was $350 million lower, owing to a discount Verizon negotiated after Yahoo's massive breaches began to come to light.
Executive Editor Mathew Schwartz also contributed to this story.


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While you might think it’s wrong to associate a big pickup such as a Ford F-150 with a leather-skinned cattle rancher or a pink Volkswagen Beetle convertible with a bubble-headed blonde, such profiling actually is valid when it comes to automobiles and their owners. A recent Florida State University study confirms that an automobile’s physical characteristics can in fact convey specificpersonality traits. Cars with angular headlights and elongated hoods, for example, give off an angry, arrogant vibe. So what does your car say about you? We chose 10 rides and asked Walter McManus, an expert in the behavioral aspects of transportation and the head of the Automotive Analysis Group at the University of Michigan’s Transportation Research Institute, to weigh in.
More than any other automobile, the Hummer H1 makes a statement for its owner: “I am macho. Really, I am. Just look at my big rig.” Maybe that’s because when the H1 was first released, it was a favorite of actor-turned-politician and all-around he-man Arnold Schwarzenegger, who played an unstoppable homicidal cyborg in the movie “Terminator.” But these drivers are “Terminator wannabes, not Terminators,” McManus says. And because the Hummer is so oversized, it’s not practical for most drivers. “In fact, they are the least utilitarian sport-utility vehicle out there,” McManus says. Unless you are cruising through a combat zone or climbing a mountain, you look like you are compensating for something.
“These are what I call A to B people,” McManus says of Corolla owners. By this he means they are drivers who consider cars solely as a means of getting from point A to point B and never as a source of fun. “They’re the minimalists, and don’t want anything they think is ostentatious,” he adds, noting that his grandfather, who once refused to pay for a car unless the dealer removed the air-conditioning system — in Louisiana, no less — was one. “They’re also very frugal,” he says.
The first all-electric sports car to hit the road, the Tesla Roadster has a price tag of more than $100,000, which means buyers who can afford one are in a rarefied group. “It’s a thing for venture capitalists in Southern California who want to convey a certain look,” McManus says, comparing the Tesla to another unique sports car from a bygone era, the DeLorean. “DeLorean was obsessed with having the perfect car,” McManus says of John DeLorean, the car’s creator. Like the DeLorean, the Tesla is not a serious mass-market vehicle. “It’s aimed at a pretty narrow group of people who think they’re the lords of the universe,” McManus says.
If you’re cruising around in a Cube, chances are you’re young and social. “The younger generation seems to like boxes to drive around in,” McManus says. For instance, in the 1960s and ’70s, teenagers cruised in vans outfitted with booming stereos. The Cube serves the same purpose for today’s youth. “When I see them driving around, the earth is usually vibrating,” McManus says. “[The drivers] aren’t rappers, but they’re wannabes.”
Dodge Ram Pickup
These days, if you own a pickup truck, you’re likely using it for its intended purpose: hauling stuff. Those who choose trucks such as the Dodge Ram for their blue-collar image don’t hang on to them when gas prices double — if they buy them at all. “Pickup trucks can be $40,000, and for that kind of money one can get a lot more car,” McManus says. Loyalty is a hallmark of the pickup driver. “They’re the only vehicles where people have window stickers of Calvin [the cartoon character] peeing on the logo of the other truck brands,” McManus says. “You don’t see that with the Prius.”
Muscle cars such as the Ford Mustang had their heyday in the 1960s and ’70s, so it follows that lots of nostalgic baby boomers drive them today. And why not? Today’s muscle cars are powerful, more comfortable and more fun to drive than ever before. However, they’re not practical enough to be a baby boomer’s only ride, according to McManus. They are too small for a family, and don’t get stellar gas mileage.
“The Escalade was a rapper-created phenomenon,” McManus says. “People who selected it don’t worry about the price of fuel or the environment. It’s living large.” You could spend the same amount of money on a Mercedes and have better fuel economy and performance, he says. The Escalade, like other SUVs, exudes machismo, because the vehicle is extremely big without actually having significant utilitarian use for hauling large items. “It’s like you’re taking a living room with you,” he says. “Some even have a refrigerator, so it really is like you’re living in there.”
Honda Odyssey Minivan
In the 1980s, stricter fuel-economy standards pushed out old-model station wagons and ushered in minivans. But the station wagon had a certain cachet that didn’t cross over to its bulkier counterpart, McManus says. Driving-age teens were as likely to cruise in a wagon as their parents were. The minivan, however, lacks any cool factor. The slickest thing about a ride such as the Honda Odyssey is seats that fold flat to the floor. “If you’re going grocery shopping, being able to fold everything flat is good, but it’s not a sexy feature,” McManus says. The driver? A mom or dad who’s not concerned with image.
In an era when we define ourselves by the type of personal computer we use — we’re either a Mac or a PC — those who own a 3-Series are Macs. Like an Apple, the BMW has style, a cultlike following and stellar performance. “They make you feel like you’re smart and with it,” McManus says. “It’s a very well-executed vehicle.” By that reasoning, we’d have to consider the owner to be a smart, considerate, yet style-conscious individual.
When you’re spending this much money — $300,000 plus — it’s no longer about getting from point A to point B. Comfort, convenience and cachet are your main priorities; you won’t even test-drive this beauty in the usual way. “With the Mulsanne, you want to sit in the back seat,” McManus says. There you’ll find over-the-top amenities like wool carpeting. “It’s like a lamb back there,” he says. For people who work for a living, their car is a work tool; not so with Bentley owners. “If you’re being driven in a Bentley, you don’t have to work,” McManus says. “You’re rich.”
Read original by Claire Martin here.
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AFL 23, the latest AFL game, is set to be released on April 13 this year. The AFL teamed up with Big Ant Studios to develop the newest AFL video game. Big Ant previously developed the AFL Live game in 2011. You can pre-order AFL 23 on EB Games and there are screenshots revealed below.
SuperCoach 2023 POD Watch: Brennan Cox
SuperCoach 2023 POD Watch: Luke Davies-Uniacke
SuperCoach 2023: Which AFL Rookies Are Debuting In Round 1?


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The authors of a book of bush medicines are hoping it will encourage healthier lifestyles in Indigenous communities.
Since the publication of her book on traditional Kunjen medicine Uw Oykangand Oy berr, author Alma Luke has noticed more of the people in her community using bush medicine in place of western drugs.
"They are using the cattle bush more than any other medicine... they drink it too, for high blood pressure."
Ms Luke and co-author Bernadette Boscacci came up with the idea for the book 17 years ago, but it has been over the last four the project has really taken shape.
The traditional remedies are based on stories taught to Ms Luke by her parents.
Ms Boscacci says part of the reason they wanted to publish the book was to promote healthier lifestyles in the Kowanyama community as well as passing on traditional knowledge.
"To encourage and re-encourage the use of the medicines in the community because there is a lot of reliance on Panadol and things like that, and so it is about a re-education and a re-appreciation" she says.
Ms Luke is pleased that traditional Kunjen knowledge will be passed on to her grandchildren.
"I love the story that my parents told me, that's how I wrote it down instead of keeping it to myself. I want to give knowledge to my family too, they might come to know all those bush medicines."
The book has been published by Black Ink Press and will be launched on Sunday January 22 at Mary Who Bookshop in Townsville.


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ROANOKE, Va. (WFXR) — A Buchanan woman accused of using three individuals’ credit card accounts at a Roanoke store was sentenced Tuesday to 24 months in federal prison after pleading guilty in February to multiple credit card fraud charges, officials say.
According to court documents, on three different occasions, 61-year-old Patricia Moseley used credit card accounts opened by three individuals — CS, RC, and PJ — to obtain a total of $5,475 in merchandise from Best Buy on Valley View Boulevard in Roanoke without the permission or knowledge of the card holders.
More specifically, officials say that Moseley bought $1,368 in merchandise from Best Buy on June 30, 2016 using PJ’s credit card account without their knowledge or consent. Then, on July 6, 2016, Moseley purchased $2,737 in merchandise using the credit card account of CS without their permission or knowledge.
Moseley pleaded guilty in February to three counts of access device fraud, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Virginia said in a statement on Tuesday, Aug. 31.
The case — which was investigated by the United States Secret Service and Virginia State Police — is reportedly being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Charlene R. Day.
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The ‘as a service’ model is changing the way business works. And now payments specialist Ingenico has taken the concept to the next level. We spoke to Boris Ferlet, VP Sales & Marketing, for Terminals, Solutions and Services, about how the model is changing the payments ecosystem.
At the beginning of 2020, Japanese car manufacturer Toyota announced the launch of a new brand. But although the name, Kinto, sounded reassuringly Japanese this wasn’t some sleek new car. Instead, it offered “mobility services to users across Europe”. At launch, these services included car sharing, leasing and subscriptions. But in time Toyota expects to include a range of other services, including payment services made available through mobile apps.
Like every other major automotive manufacturer, Toyota is increasingly embracing a future in which it moves beyond making and selling cars, to being a provider of transportation-related services, some of which it provides itself, some through third parties. So, what has become known as Mobility-as-a-Service could one day mean Toyota offering its customers the ability to book a ride in a Toyota built autonomous vehicle, watch a movie while travelling on an in-car streaming service provided by Sony and pay for it all using Alipay’s WeChat.
Sounds fantastical? It’s not that far into the future. All the technology exists, it’s just a question of putting it together into a seamless customer experience. And that’s not as easy as it sounds.
Every cloud has a new subscription model
Subscribing to cloud-based services rather than purchasing products or licences is already part of our everyday lives in the digital age. Rather than buy music, we subscribe to streaming services such as Spotify; instead of a one-off fee for an office software package, now we pay monthly to use a cloud-based version that’s regularly updated.
Tech companies in the B2B space have become enthusiastic followers of the as-a-service model. According to a recent report by Gartner, software as a service is by far the biggest component of a growing public cloud services market that is currently valued at more than $250 billion globally. The benefits for customers are obvious. Instead of a one-off capital outlay with an annual maintenance fee, total costs are spread over time as an operating expense and subscription pricing lowers initial costs. For service providers, recurring billing brings more predictable revenue streams.
In the payments sector, subscription is already well established. The term Payments-as-a-Service is beginning to be used, even if it means different things to different people. Most of the developments have been around online commerce, allowing merchants to offer the latest payment methods, boosting their sales by seamlessly widening their acceptance options.
In 2021, online accounted for about 20 percent of all retail sales worldwide1, a number that is expected to rise and eventually plateau in the years ahead. But what about the other 80 percent? That’s where Ingenico is shaking up the payments world with a radical new model: Payment Platform as a Service (PPaaS).
The building blocks of a new payment ecosystem
PPaaS is a suite of payment and other services from which customers can pick and choose what they need and then easily integrate their choices using APIs. It’s cloud-based and device agnostic, meaning it will work with any payment terminal and consumer-facing endpoint.
Second, you’re not subscribing to an end-to-end bundled service, but to a catalogue of features that you activate to build your own package.
Just like when you set up your new mobile phone, you want to be able to customise it to how you live your life, so too for a merchant – or for the bank or ISV that serves them – when it comes to payments and the checkout experience they offer their customers. But with today’s technology that’s easier said than done and PPaaS sets out to change that.
With PPaaS, the building blocks include not just the expected standard payment services, but also so-called Alternative Payment Methods (APMs), commerce services such as loyalty programs, cashback or Buy-Now-Pay-Later (BNPL) and a range of management services that help payment players and their merchants run their business efficiently and at scale.
Expanding the world of payment for businesses everywhere
Ferlet says PPaaS will allow the traditional players in the payments space to deliver more services and compete with more agile competitors in an omnichannel environment without the cost of updating expensive legacy systems. Essentially, they can maintain full control over the merchant experience while tapping into a rich pool of resources that allows them to build new services and journeys quickly with little or no extra coding involved.
At the same time, for an increasing number of hardware and software players in the retail space, payments are becoming an important part of their proposition to merchants. But these players often don’t have the expertise or scale to leverage what the market has to offer in this fast-moving and complex area.
For them, PPaaS makes integrating payments easy – including accessing a portfolio of payment acquirers that are part of the PPaaS ecosystem. But it also gives access to new services that can help them boost their business (buy-now-pay-later, cashback, loyalty), protect their revenues (fraud prevention, identity checks), or generate new income streams (direct currency conversion, gift card activation…). And it’s a win-win proposition all round, with the companies providing those services gaining access to many more potential customers.
 Source: Statista


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“Apple Has A Spectacular Year”
Never before has this venerable company, which at age 34 is a grizzled veteran by Silicon Valley standards, stood so firmly atop the high-tech industry. Earlier this year, Apple’s market capitalization surpassed that of Microsoft, making it the most valuable property in the tech universe. And during its just-completed fiscal year, it broke four consecutive quarterly revenue and profit records. Amid the worst recession in decades, Apple hired thousands while others cut jobs.
The key point:


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Professional business network will be supporting Enterprise Zone at The Royal County of Berkshire Show
The Newbury & District Agricultural Society are proud to announce that Enterprise Nation is sponsoring the Enterprise Zone at the Royal County of Berkshire Show 2019.
The Enterprise Zone was first launched at the Show in 2018, with a number of small businesses taking advantage of the 60,000-strong visitors to showcase their product to. Now returning this September, bigger and better, we now welcome Enterprise Nation as 2019 sponsor.
Enterprise Nation is a small business support network and business support provider. Its aim is to help people turn their good ideas into great businesses – through expert advice, events, acceleration, diagnostics and networking.
Enterprise Nation was founded in 2005 by Emma Jones MBE, also co-founder of national enterprise campaign StartUp Britain. She is author of best-selling business books including Spare Room Startup, Working 5 to 9, Go Global, Start a Business for £99 and the StartUp Kit, Going for Growth. In 2017 the Institute of Chartered Accountants England and Wales (ICAEW) announced it was to collaborate with Enterprise Nation to start building a world-leading adviser platform. In 2018, Richard Harpin, the entrepreneur behind global home emergency repair firm HomeServe, invested in the company as part of a drive to create a ‘more entrepreneurial Britain.’
Emma Jones, founder small business support network, Enterprise Nation, said: "We're delighted to be able to support all the entrepreneurs exhibiting in the Enterprise Zone at the Royal County of Berkshire Show.
"The number of people starting a business in the UK are at record levels. It's events like these that help to showcase the fabulous businesses being started, particularly in the food and drink and farming sectors, but also point those businesses towards the kind of support that can take them to the next level."
The Enterprise Zone is open to businesses that have been trading for less than 2 years, be a new business and located within the county of Berkshire, Thames Valley, Wiltshire, Hampshire, Oxfordshire and Surrey.
Jim Chetwode, Sales & Business Development for the Royal County of Berkshire Show comments, “This is a great opportunity for start-up businesses in the local area to showcase their wares. Partnering with Enterprise Nation means we can get this out to a far wider audience of entrepreneurs who may now use the Show as their first step to growth.”
This year, we are offering six businesses the chance to have a free stand at the Show. But don’t worry if you’re not a lucky winner, businesses can still book a stand at a reduced rate.


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As the t's are crossed and i's are dotted on the deal to take Saturn off Government Motors' red-ink stained hands, GM Canada has confirmed that the new Saturn owners, U.S.-based Penske Automotive Group, aren't interested in selling the brand in Canada.
GM Canada told The Crank, "it is expected that GM Canada’s Saturn retailers will cease operations on or before December 31, 2009."
Apparently, customer service, parts and warranty needs will transition to local GM dealerships.
Penske says it can't make the numbers work on continuing to shill Saturns here. Under GM, only 18,729 Saturns were sold in Canada in 2008.
Under the Penske deal, the new Saturn will sell several GM-produced models through 2011. After that, it has to find new manufacturing partners.
So, another GM brand may be outta here. Do you care?
Are their any current Saturns that you will miss?
And as most of the Saab dealers are tied to Saturn shops, how do you think this will this affect Saab's status in Canada? Is it the next GM brand to disappear from the Great White North?
Or will Hummer — all but sold to a Chinese heavy equipment maker — be the next to vanish?
[Source: GM Canada]


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ISLAMABAD: The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) has issued illegal exemption certificates to the dignitaries of the ruling family of Qatar for importing luxury vehicles, it was learnt.
Sources told Pakistan Today that customs intelligence high-ups have written a letter to the chief collector (appraisement) South, Customs House, Karachi, stating that since 2012, as many as 330 luxury vehicles imported for the Qatar embassy have been unlawfully cleared by various customs outfit falling under the chief collector’s administrative control.
According to the letter, the initial investigation found out that illegal exemption certificates have been issued by the MoFA.
Rawalpindi customs intelligence has also sought the complete import record of 280 used luxury vehicles unlawfully imported in the names of members of ruling family of Qatar from the chief collector.
Earlier, the customs DG wrote a letter to the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) chairman alleging that the MoFA had issued unlawful exemption certificates to 330 vehicles. However, it was actually the customs officials in Karachi who allowed unlawful clearance of impugned luxury vehicles under PCT heading 9902.
The ministry of foreign affairs issued an incomplete exemption certificate in all the cases and details of the diplomatic mission were intentionally left blank.
According to sources, 30 dignitaries of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Qatar and Bahrain can import household articles and personal belongings including vehicles and goods for donation to projects established in Pakistan, subject to the conditions that a complete list of all vehicles showing name of the owner, details of imports and present custodian shall be provided by the concerned embassies’ ambassadors.
Moreover, the rulers of UAE, Qatar and Bahrain must make and disclose alternate arrangements for the maintenance of their fleet by their employees and not by any Pakistani posing as their agents or authorised representatives. They should also undertake that no Pakistani will be allowed the use of their duty free vehicles and that they will abide by this concession available to them.
Sources said that in order to avail the duty concession, an exemption certificate to this effect shall be issued by the MoFA. On the recommendations of ministry, the FBR may issue an exemption certificate to any dignitary, not listed above under this PCT code.
The Qatari embassy claimed that the vehicles were imported by Sheikh Hamid bin Jasim bin Jabber Al-Thani and these vehicles were parked in former senator Saifur Rehman’s properties in Karachi, Lahore and Islamabad.
Moreover, sources said that this is a procedural issue whether the Qatari embassy provided the list to MoFA or not.
As per record, out of the 330 vehicles, only 50 were exported out of Pakistan while the remaining 280 vehicles are still in the country.
It is pertinent to mention here that customs intelligence has so far seized 23 such used luxury vehicles while the remaining 257 such vehicles were still kept in hiding in Pakistan. Out of the 23, 21 vehicles were confiscated from the property known as Redco Textiles owned by ex-senator Saifur Rehman, according to documents.
Moreover, a customs court on Friday sent the manager of Redco Textiles to jail. The customs intelligence officials had, however, demanded the remand of the accused.
Pakistan Today tried to contact the MoFA spokesperson but no response was received.


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The National Association of Cannabis Businesses, a self-regulatory organization, is proposing marijuana industry standards for packaging and labeling.
According to a news release, the standards are designed to “help NACB members protect consumers and demonstrate to regulators, financial institutions and the public that NACB members operate at the highest levels of ethics and responsibility.”
The proposed standards include:
- Labeling that indicates the marijuana product’s origin, cultivator and processor.
- Methods for listing all ingredients present in the product.
- Warning statements about the health risks associated with cannabis consumption.
- Inclusion of major food allergen warnings and information about marijuana edibles based on U.S. Food & Drug Administration specifications.
- Addressing health and medical claims for cannabis products.
- Child-resistant packaging.
- Avoiding packaging and labeling that appeal to minors.
The standards are available for public review and comment on the NACB website until Feb. 21.
Compliance with NACB standards is required of the organization’s members.
NACB – a division of First American Holdings, a technology and business services company – is a for-profit company.
The organization is led by Andrew Kline, a former assistant U.S. Attorney and senior adviser to former Vice President Joseph Biden when he was a senator.


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Samsung Galaxy S5 on the rocks, anyone?
Eager to get in on August's biggest social media craze and to show off its waterproof properties, Samsung Mobile UK has rolled out a video of the S5 taking the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge. The phone makes it through with flying colors.
A Samsung UK rep says the company has donated to The Motor Neurone Disease Association as part of the effort. The MNDA is the UK equivalent to the ALS Association, though they aren't affiliated. "They are one of the charities associated with the Ice Bucket Challenge here in the UK," the rep says.


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Disney and Lucasfilm will release J.J. Abrams’ “Star Wars: Episode VII” on December 18, 2015.
With pre-production in full-swing, shooting is scheduled to begin this coming spring at Pinewood Studios.
“We’re very excited to share the official 2015 release date for ‘Star Wars: Episode VII,’ where it will not only anchor the popular holiday filmgoing season but also ensure our extraordinary filmmaking team has the time needed to deliver a sensational picture,” said Alan Horn, chairman of The Walt Disney Studios.
Abrams will direct “Star Wars: Episode VII” from a script he’s writing with Lawrence Kasdan, who penned “The Empire Strikes Back” and “The Return of the Jedi.”
Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy is producing with Bad Robot’s Abrams and Bryan Burk, while Tommy Harper (“Star Trek Into Darkness”) and Jason McGatlin (“War of the Worlds”) will serve as executive producers. John Williams is returning to score “Star Wars: Episode VII.”XX
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A collection of news and information related to Vitamin C published by this site and its partners.
Displaying items 1-12 of 199 » View southbendtribune.com items only1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11-17 Next >
ReutersNEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Daily vitamin C supplements don't lower uric acid as much as drugs used to treat high levels of the acid that's responsible for gout, says a new study from New Zealand. "It's not that the vitamin C didn't reduce the uric...
ReutersNEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Adults who drink at least one sugar-sweetened drink a day are slightly more likely to develop kidney stones than people who rarely imbibe them, according to a new study. While the recommendation for kidney stone prevention has...
Tags: Wines, Dietary Supplements, Calcium, Obesity, Coffee
Flu season is upon us, and it's been a rough one. If you haven't had the flu this winter, chances are you know someone who has. So, what should we do to keep ourselves from getting it? Some folks are packing their own "flu survival kits," while others are...
Q. Are "whole food" supplements better than regular supplements? A. There's little argument that a healthy, well-rounded diet is superior to a poor diet with dietary supplements filling in the gaps. Regardless, the supplement industry is booming,...
Pocono Record, Stroudsburg, Pa.More than half of U.S. adults pop antioxidant vitamins and supplements -- $27 billion worth in 2011, according to a recent Consumer Reports study. Grocery and health food stores are filled with products promising better health by eliminating free...
ReutersNEW YORK (Reuters Health) - People who eat more raw fruits or drink juice do not necessarily have lower blood pressure, according to a new study that goes against previous evidence. Larger, more rigorous studies have found that eating more fruits and...
It seems every time you turn on the news there's a new superfood quinoa, pomegranate, acai berry and more. Walk down every grocery aisle and packages use words like "healthy" and "nutritious" to catch a shopper's attention. But can eating...
Content Courtesy of Allentown Morning CallThanks to subtle biological and lifestyle shifts, 30 is a pivotal age for preserving the health of your skin and hair. Here are tips from Women's Health: 1. GET RID OF CELLULITE There is no magic cure for cellulite, but you can increase the...
Nutritionists from the University of Maryland Medical Center regularly contribute a guest post. The latest post is from Catherine Schroeder, dietetic intern. Spring showers inspire the growth of a colorful array of fruits and vegetables to decorate your...
email@example.comEditor's note: This is part of an occasional series of stories on getting children (and other picky eaters) to try vegetables. The series explores ways to highlight vegetables' flavor and appearance as a way to work around the resistance some kids have to...
Asparagus belongs to the lily family together with onions, leeks and garlic. The vegetable exists in three colors: green, white and purple. The green and most common type is slightly sweet in flavor with a tender and crisp texture. Asparagus is rich...
Tags: Dietary Supplements, Dietary Fiber, Calcium, Vitamin A, Recipes
Parsley, that little green garnish on every plate, is an often overlooked super food. Teaming with enormous benefits, here are just 5 reasons to use this leafy green as more than culinary décor. UNIQUE FLAVONOIDS: Parsley contains the powerful...
May 22, 2013 |Story| Reuters
May 22, 2013 |Story| Reuters
Jan 23, 2013 |Story| Chicago Tribune
May 21, 2013 |Story| South Florida Sun-Sentinel
May 14, 2013 |Story| McClatchy-Tribune
Apr 11, 2013 |Story| Reuters
May 9, 2013 |Story| Chicago Tribune
Mar 15, 2010 |Story| Allentown Morning Call
May 7, 2013 |Story| Baltimore Sun
May 7, 2013 |Story| Herald Mail
May 7, 2013 |Column| Herald Mail
Apr 8, 2013 |Story| Allentown Morning Call
Original site for Vitamin C topic gallery.


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Fresh Upholstery Cleaning Now Expands Its Business To Adelaide Canberra And Perth | Latest News RSS feed
Fresh Upholstery Cleaning Now Expands Its Business To Adelaide Canberra And Perth - Latest News
Fresh Upholstery Cleaning Now Expands Its Business To Adelaide, Canberra And Perth
Fresh upholstery cleaning is a leading company is Melbourne which has been in the business for quite a long time. The company has been doing exceptionally well since its inception. Moreover, with the ... read more
VDL Farms: Fresh milk exports from Tasmania to China 'a game changer', company director says
Fresh ... expand markets using Tasmania's brand. The VAN Milk venture will open Tasmania's first regular international air freight route to Asia. Moon Lake said milk would initially be available in 1 ... read more
NSW Government says entire state in drought, new DPI figures reveal full extent of big dry
Until now, some parts of the NSW north coast ... "We've seen the area of drought just expand slightly, we've seen the area of intense drought expand and slightly change its focus," DPI agricultural cl... read more
Looking for another news?
Charged With a Crime? Better Check Your Facebook Pictures
Earlier this year, the realms of law and new media collided when Lori Drew was hit with federal charges for creating a fake MySpace page and harassing a neighboring teenager, who then committed suicid... read more
Who are you? The 2012 edition.
It’s the for that yearly Not Exactly Rocket Science tradition: the Who Are You thread. Four years ago, I started a thread asking readers to identify themselves, say something about their background, a... read more


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Ford Motor Company (F 1.71%) delivered positive sales results to investors Tuesday when it bucked a three-month sales slide thanks to a recovery in the Houston market, as well as unusually strong sales of Ford's F-Series throughout September. Let's take a look at the sales figures as well as some key highlights from the September data.
What management had to say
In a press release, Mark LaNeve, Ford vice president of U.S. marketing, sales, and service, said:
Our September sales were strong across the board – including retail, commercial and government. We're pleased to say recovery in Houston and Florida is moving quickly, with all of our dealers in the area now back up. We couldn't be happier with the tireless effort from our dealers, employees and the countless first responders who are moving so quickly.
Strong across the board, indeed, as Ford posted an 8.7% gain in total vehicle sales to 222,248 during September. While that was driven in part by a 25.1% increase in fleet sales, the total increase was also driven in part by a a 4.4% gain in retail sales. The real MVP was Ford's truck segment, which has seen increased demand in recent years and continues to power total sales higher. Ford's truck segment posted a 19.9% sales gain last month compared to SUVs, which had a modest 1.8% gain, and passenger cars, which recorded a 1.3% decline.
A spectacular month
Speaking of Ford's strong truck segment results, the F-Series posted a hugely successful September. Sales of the F-Series jumped more than 21% to 82,302 units last month. Keep in mind that any month the F-Series sells more than 50,000 units is considered a good month, and Ford has only recorded two other Septembers with better sales figures. Not only was it a strong September, but as you can see below it was one of the strongest months in recent years.
The fleet story
At first glance, investors could be forgiven for assuming Ford's jump in sales was solely due to its 25.1% increase in fleet sales compared to the prior year's September. While fleet sales did contribute, they made up less than a quarter of Ford's total monthly sales, which is better than the nearly 30% year-to-date percentage. Further, during September, Ford's fleet rental sales, generally a less desirable fleet channel, generated only 5.5% of total sales compared to 11.5% year to date. That points to a healthier sales mix for Ford.
Lincoln drives higher
Lincoln's MKC turned in its best September sales result since its launch with a 17.7% gain compared to the prior year. The MKC, MKX, and Navigator all posted sales gains for the month and carried Lincoln's SUV segment up 10.6% compared to the prior year. Lincoln's Continental, which is having its first full year of sales in the U.S. market, will provide sales support to a weaker car segment, while Lincoln's SUVs can ride increased demand for larger vehicles. The two segments have so far combined to push Lincoln sales nearly 3% higher for the full year, and if the brand can hold on to those gains during the final two months of 2017 it'll be the fourth straight annual gain for Ford's rebounding luxury brand.
Ford posted a welcome jump in sales last month, so with the economy continuing to hum along, recovery demand in Houston, an improving fleet sales mix, and continued strength in its bread-and-butter F-Series, investors should feel optimistic about Ford finishing 2017 on a strong note.


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- Special Sections
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A “for rent” banner atop the building occupied by Fastenal in Shelbyville has driven speculation that the store is closing, but that’s not the case, its district manager said.
Mike Miller, who oversees 10 stores in the region, said that the company has asked the landlord of its store at 251 Alpine Drive to review its 5-year lease that has 14 months remaining.
Fastenal signed its agreement with landlord Lewis Brashear during a boom time and Miller feels that the monthly rate is higher now than it should be.
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ATLANTA, GA (BRAIN) — Wahoo Fitness is now shipping its RFLKT computer, which displays data from the user's iPhone fitness apps.
LAGUNA, CA (BRAIN) — Crankbrothers is launching a new pedal designed specifically for downhill racing. Prototype Mallet DH/Race pedals were used by several pros during the 2012 season and were used by Greg Minnaar to win a world champioship last year.
KENT, WA (BRAIN) — Raleigh designed the Misceo Trail i11 hybrid bike for tackling trails, commuting to work or setting off for the local watering hole.
HAUPPAUGE, NY (BRAIN) — Finish Line Technologies Inc.’s new rust-busting product, Chill Zone, is designed to free bike parts that are rusted stiff and would normally need to be replaced.
BOULDER, CO (BRAIN) — CycleTEK is a new brand introducing its Momentum1 indoor cycling trainer.
PORTLAND, OR (BRAIN) — Chris King developed the InSet 8 headset to accommodate tapered 1-1/8 inch to 1-1/4 inch steerer tubes used on road and cyclocross bikes.
EUGENE, OR (BRAIN) — Rolf Prima has begun shipping the company’s Ralos mountain bike wheels with the new XD driver that is SRAM 1x11 XX1 compatible.
SALT LAKE CITY, UT (BRAIN) — Showers Pass introduced its new line of wet weather cycling gloves at the Outdoor Retailer Winter Market here this week.
LAGUNA, CA (BRAIN) — KORE is offering two new hub designs designed to work with SRAM's XX1 drivetrain.
SPEARFISH, SD (BRAIN) — Quarq is releasing two new power-measuring crank designs with refined designs, lighter weight and more crank lengths than its previous offerings.
The SRAM-owned company's new cranks are called the ELSA 10 and RIKEN 10.
SCOTTS VALLEY, CA (BRAIN) — Giro's Petra shoe model is part of the brand's new women's series. The Petra is intended as a multi-purpose shoe, comfortable on and off the bike.
POSSOLEONE, Italy (BRAIN) — Fizik is offering retailers a new slatwall-compatible point-of-sale display that helps consumers choose among its many bar tape options.
DENVER, CO (BRAIN) — Rudy Project has added a new line of casual, sports-inspired sunglasses, the Deewhy line.
The line is named for an Australian beach and the company says the line "gives an unmistakable and stylish sport style to those carefree moments."
CHICAGO, IL (BRAIN) — SRAM's new Carry-on Roller Bag allows the brand's supporters to fly the colors while rolling through airports.
WHITE RIVER JUNCTION, VT (BRAIN) — Ibex's Shak City Roller was designed as a do-it-all riding jacket.
PHILADELPHIA, PA (BRAIN) — For 2013 Breezer has brought back the Storm line of hardtails, which includes three models with 29er wheels and one model with 26-inch wheels.
MILL VALLEY, CA (BRAIN) — Easton says its EA90 XD Disc CX wheelset is not a re-purposed road or 29er wheel, but instead designed from the start for cyclocross.


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Barack Obama has made his TikTok debut and launched a new trend to promote his new memoir, “A Promised Land.”
On Friday, Obama made a special appearance in a TikTok post from publishing imprint Penguin Teen to promote “A Promised Land,” kicking off the “pass the book” challenge. The first book of his two-part presidential memoir hit shelves Tuesday.
“This book expresses the incredible hope I have in you. Take this and pass it on,” Obama says in the clip, holding the book before “passing it on” to the next person.
Fans can duet the sound and “grab” the book from Obama.
TikTok users were happy to see Obama on the platform, flooding the post with supportive comments.
“Oh my gosh, this is awesome,” one commented. “Obama needs a TikTok account,” another wrote.
“YALL REALLY GOT OBAMA TO DO THIS OMG,” a third TikTok user wrote.
Some said they have already bought the memoir, while others shared that they purchased the audiobook. “I’m listening to the audiobook! He narrated himself,” one wrote.
“Done, Sir! Bought hard copy from Amazon on Wednesday,” another posted.
“Already got my copy great book would recommend it to anyone,” a third TikTok user commented.
Some TikTok users accepted Obama’s challenge, with Penguin Teen sharing a clip of one woman looking excited as she “received” the book from the former president.
TikToker Jennaslitpicks also shared her duet with Obama’s video. In the clip, she reads Michelle Obama’s memoir, “Becoming,” before showing a copy of Obama’s “A Promised Land.”
In his memoir, Obama got candid about how his presidency affected his marriage with Michelle. He wrote that despite his wife’s success and popularity, many treated her role as secondary in importance when they were in the White House.
Obama also confessed to feeling that Michelle was happier in their marriage before he became president.
“[L]ying next to Michelle in the dark, I’d think about those days when everything between us felt lighter, when her smile was more constant and our love less encumbered, and my heart would suddenly tighten at the thought that those days might not return,” he wrote.
Obama dedicated his book to his wife and their daughters Malia and Sasha. The former president said the three women in his life have “multiple bada– qualities.”
Obama complimented the “force” in Michelle’s powerful kicks. He also praised Sasha’s confidence and Malia’s buoyancy.
Barack Obama Makes TikTok Debut By ‘Passing’ Memoir Over To Fans In New Trend [Watch] The British Journal Editors and Wire Services/ International Business Times.


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Hook’s 15-year Cheddar
First published in Madison Magazine, Nov 2014
Americans are hooked on cheddar—it was the most popular type of cheese sold in the U.S. up until a few years ago. Though most producers age their cheddars only a few years, Tony and Julie Hook, the husband-and-wife team behind Hook’s Cheese Company, have displayed a penchant for mature fromage. Their two-, three- and five-year cheddars are the most popular, but it’s their fifteen-year version, released every November since 2009, that’s truly unique—they’re the only North American cheese producer to offer such a product.
Since opening Hook’s Cheese in 1976, the quality of the product has always been the top priority. “At least ninety percent of the quality of the cheese is dependent on the quality of milk,” says Tony. “We know the farmers, they know us. That is a big help. If you start with crappy milk, there’s no way you can make good cheese.”
That dedication to quality and consistency has paid off. The walls of their Mineral Point shop are lined with awards they have accumulated.
And although they’ve been in the business for years—Tony got his start at the Barneveld Cheese Company right out of high school, then both he and Julie worked with the cooperative Buck Grove before becoming the owners of Hook’s—they never expected to offer fifteen-year cheddar. “We thought we’d sell ten-year. Then we ended up with a batch of twelve-year and thought, why not? Let’s see where this goes. It just got better and better.”
Their first batch of 1,800 pounds sold out in eight days. Now the Hooks produce about 2,200–2,400 pounds of the stuff per year, enough for most distributors to offer through the holiday season.
Not everyone is sold on fifteen-year-old cheese. “Some people think that after three or five years, the cheese will be more acidic,” Tony says. “But that’s not true. Once it gets to five years and beyond it starts smoothing out. It has more flavor, but it doesn’t have that acid bite.” To enjoy it, pair it “with a good wine and some hearty bread,” Tony says. “Or eat it just by itself.”
Maybe we can learn what the Hooks already know: Aging isn’t so bad, now, is it?