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Posted by Dale Buss on February 25, 2015 09:20 AM
Pebble sets record for Kickstarter with latest smartwatch.
Barclays becomes first UK bank to allow payments by Twitter and expands brand publishing.
Buick and Lexus top Consumer Reports annual car brand ranking.
Mondelez sells Mobile Futures-developed Betabox agency to Gary Vaynerchuk's Vayner Media.
Starwood taps Uber for preferred guest loyalty rewards program.Continue reading...
Posted by Dale Buss on February 17, 2015 09:15 AM
Nissan "With Dad" commercial wins YouTube Super Bowl Ad Blitz (more in our Q&A with SVP Fred Diaz).
Lance Armstrong is ordered to pay $10 million to promoter who helped expose his doping fraud.
New York Fashion Week sees social marketing go mainstream as Tommy Hilfiger shows NFL fever on brand's 30th anniversary.
JetBlue's new CEO struggles to appease Wall Street and passengers while Starwood Hotels CEO resigns in "mutual" agreement.
Apple creates auto industry nightmare with EV plan as Apple Watch not seen as ready for full health tracking, despite ordering more than 5 million watches for initial run.Continue reading...
Posted by Mark J. Miller on February 16, 2015 01:15 PM
The sunglasses and athletic crossover marketplace is crowded, with Ray-Ban, Chanel, Prada and plenty of others doing battle in the space.
Oakley is aiming to differentiate itself with a new branding campaign that aims to use its pack of sporty ambassadors and social media touchpoints to expand its brand awareness and market share in the US and abroad, reaching 22 countries.
Entitled “One Obsession,” the campaign highights pros and non-pros who are focused on their passions, whether it's a professional sport or exploring "a remote mountain peak, backyard trail, secret surf spot or suburban garage."Continue reading...
Posted by Shirley Brady on February 16, 2015 09:31 AM
Apple improves iMessage and FaceTime security following hack as electric car news trickles out, Jony Ive is profiled in The New Yorker and Apple Pay earns the White House seal of approval.
LG releases luxury smartwatch (the Urbane, above) with Android ahead of Mobile World Congress as brand takes Samsung spat to YouTube.
Amazon drone air delivery plan faces setback with FAA move to regulate space.
Hershey faces backlash for move to ban UK-made Cadbury chocolates in the US.
adidas gets endorsement from Pharrell Williams in midst of Kanye West New York Fashion Week hype.Continue reading...
Posted by Nicole Briggs on February 13, 2015 03:54 PM
No Crying Over Spilled Sriracha: With no trademark protection, the name “Sriracha” is hot right now. Tribe just released a Sriracha-flavored hummus, while Heinz is launching a Sriracha-flavored ketchup and Tabasco has its own version. Yet David Tran, the man who created the sauce, doesn’t see the lack of a trademark as a missed opportunity. Rather, he sees it as free advertising for Huy Fong Foods, which has never had a marketing budget.
MLB Challenges WalletHub over “W”: With 1,000+ trademarks on file for the letter “W,” who can say it belongs to just one company? Major League Basebll feels the WalletHub logo too closely resembles the “W's” held by the Washington Nationals and Chicago Cubs. Attorney S. Lloyd Smith, who represents WalletHub's owners, feels the MLB is “plainly overreaching in this case.” However, the league asserts that the logo’s resemblance is likely “to cause confusion, to cause mistake, and to deceive the trade and public.” How likely are you to confuse WalletHub’s personal finance site with a sports team logo?Continue reading...
Posted by Mark J. Miller on July 22, 2014 10:31 AM
Oakley kicked off its first global campaign under the banner "Disruptive by Design" in March, and it appears to be having a positive reception as brand enthusiasts have been posting images of the company’s new “design bunker” at its corporate HQ across social media.
Oakley is also getting some nice face time thanks to this summer's Tour de France, as cyclists grind through one of the most grueling and difficult competitions in the world. The Tour has been a centerpiece for Oakley since way back when Greg LeMond was riding in it.
Oakley challenged itself back in 2008 when two custom pairs of shades were designed and built from scratch in the two weeks before the race got started, according to VeloNews. They served as the prototype for a new line.Continue reading...
Posted by Abe Sauer on May 23, 2014 02:10 PM
Someday, everything will be narrated by Kevin Spacey: The Oscar winner's voiceover can be heard on Oakley's "A Story of Disruption" short documentary exploring the brand's philosophy and 40 years of product design. "Disruption" comes complete with a fancy-pants microsite, too.
Ford's Lincoln Theatrical Aspirations: Not only is it the signature sponsor of the Tribeca Film Festival, Lincoln Motors is producing its own film. The noir short Alethea follows actress Elsa Carette as she is transported through New York City in a Lincoln MKZ:Continue reading...
Posted by Sheila Shayon on May 1, 2014 10:45 AM
The world's biggest e-tailer is now in the wearable tech business. That's right: Amazon, that bellwether of all things retail/e-tail, just opened a Wearable Technology store this week, devoted exclusively to selling smartwatches, activity trackers, healthcare devices, wearable cameras—even trackers for your pet.
From top brands like Samsung, Jawbone, LeapFrog (yes, there are kid wearables) and GoPro, to brands-to-watch like Basis and Misfit, "Wearable technology is an exciting category with rapid innovation and our customers are increasingly coming to Amazon to shop and learn about these devices," says John Nemeth, Amazon's director of Wireless and Mobile Electronics.
Facebook just paid a staggering two billion dollars to acquire Oculus VR, the virtual reality startup whose Oculus Rift gaming headset resembles a scuba mask with a metal plate on the front, while Intel acquired smartwatch-maker Basis Science for $100 million and insiders say that Apple will bring its highly anticipated iWatch to market this year.
As the New Yorker observes, “Companies love the idea of wearable technology because that constant data stream would be a bonanza for marketers, measuring what people are doing every second, even while they’re asleep.” Consumers, however, are not flocking to bulky, strap-on devices as proven by hundreds of Samsung's Galaxy Gear smartwatches that popped up on eBay a mere six months after launch.Continue reading...


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Six Flags CEO sees the future through virtual reality glasses
By the end of the year, at least nine Six Flags theme parks will have rollercoasters equipped with virtual reality headsets that let riders pretend they're flying with Superman or fighting aliens. Six Flags Entertainment CEO John Duffey thinks the potential is huge for virtual reality technology to enhance experiences without spending great sums of money. During an earnings call with analysts, Duffey said he expects eventually to use virtual reality during the company's holiday events such as Fright Fest during Halloween and Holiday in the Park around Christmas.
7701 Las Colinas Blvd., Ste. 800, Irving, TX 75063

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Ever since internet use became a notable part of political media in the late 1990s, there have been intense debates about the impact of the internet on politics. For the first time in our post-election surveys, we asked some questions to test public attitudes about the role of the internet in American political culture. The answers showed how conflicted people are about the internet: Many expressed positive views about the effect of digital technology on their personal engagement with politics, but also noted concerns about the ways in which the internet might be influencing the broader culture and tone of politics.
How the internet influences the ability to connect with others politically
When asked whether the internet has made it easier to connect with others who share their own political views, 54% of online Americans agree that it has—44% say that the internet has made this a lot easier, and an additional 10% say that it has made it a little easier. Two in five (42%) feel that the internet has not had much impact in this regard.
Demographically, Latino internet users are particularly likely to say that the internet has helped them connect with others who share their views—56% of Latino internet users say that the internet has made it “a lot easier” to do this, compared with 41% of white internet users. Those under the age of 50 are also relatively likely to view the internet as having a positive impact in this regard. Roughly half of online 18-29 year olds (54%) and 30-49 year olds (48%) say that the internet has made it a lot easier to connect with others, compared with 36% of 50-64 year olds and 23% of internet users ages 65 and up.
The one in five online adults who used social networking sites during the 2010 campaign for political purposes are especially likely to say that the internet helps them connect with others who share their views—fully 64% of these users say that the internet has made this a lot easier, compared with 21% of these users who say that the internet has had no impact in this regard.
How the internet influences the prevalence of extreme views
Even as a majority of Americans feel that the internet has generally helped them connect with others, a similar number also believe that the internet has increased the influence of extreme views in the political debate. Just over half (55%) of internet users agree with the statement that “the internet increases the influence of those with extreme political views,” while 30% said they agree with the statement that “the internet reduces the influence of those with extreme views by giving ordinary citizens a chance to be heard.” One in ten online adults (12%) are not sure which of these statements best describes their own views.
Interestingly, there are relatively few differences on this question based on demographic characteristics or one’s level of online political engagement. Those who feel that the internet has made it easier to meet up with others who share their views, are no less likely than those who downplay the internet’s role in connecting with others to see the internet encouraging extremism. Additionally, the 21% of online adults who are active politically on social networking sites are just as likely as other internet users to say that the internet increases the influences of extreme political views.
Politically, Democrats and those who disagree with the Tea Party movement are a bit more likely to agree with the statement that the internet increases the influence of those with extreme views compared with Republican voters and Tea Party supporters.
How the internet influences exposure to a diverse range of views
Six in ten online adults (61%) feel that the internet exposes people to a wider range of political views than they can get in the traditional news media, while one-third (32%) feel that the political information available online is the same as the information available elsewhere.
As with the impact of the internet on meeting new people, adults under the age of 50 are significantly more likely than older internet users to say that the internet exposes people to a wider range of political views than they can get elsewhere—among internet users 67% of 18-29 year olds and 68% of 30-49 year olds say this, compared with 55% of those ages 50-64 and 38% of those 65 and older. College graduates (71% of whom say that the internet exposes people to a wider range of political views) also tend to have relatively strong views on this subject.
Those online adults who utilize the internet for political information and engagement are significantly more likely than other internet users to feel that they are being exposed to a wider range of material thanks to the internet. This is especially true for the one in five online adults who use social networking sites for political purposes—fully 74% of these “political social networkers” feel that the internet exposes people to a wider range of political views than they can find elsewhere.
Difficulties in determining truth from fiction in the online world
Americans are similarly split in their assessments of the difficulty of separating truth from falsehoods when it comes to online political information. One-third of online adults (33%) say that it is usually easy for them to tell what it true from what is false when it comes to the political information they find online, while 56% say that it is usually difficult for them to determine this. There are few demographic differences when it comes to assessing the veracity of online political information, although young adults (ages 18-29) are slightly more likely than those ages 65 and older to say that it is usually easy for them to tell what it true online from what is false.
The group we refer to as “online political users” is twice as likely as internet users who do not engage in political activities online to say that it’s usually easy to tell true from false political information (39% vs. 20%). Still, it is notable that even among this relatively tech-savvy group, more than half (55%) indicate that they have trouble telling true from false political information online.
How the internet influences voting behavior
One in five online political users (22%) say that the news and information they found online in 2010 encouraged them to vote in the 2010 elections, compared with just 4% who said that this online content actually discouraged them to vote (73% said it had no impact one way or the other). These figures are nearly identical to the findings we got the last time we asked this question, in 2004 (at that point 23% of online political users said that they were encouraged to vote by the material they found online).
A slightly larger number of respondents said that the political information they saw or read online made them decide to vote for or against a particular candidate—35% of internet users who voted in 2010 said this. There are relatively few demographic differences on this question, although voters with strong views towards the Tea Party movement were particularly likely to say that online information helped them decide who to vote for. Fully 39% of internet-using voters who support the Tea Party movement and 38% of such voters who disagree with the movement said this, compared with 30% of those with no opinion of the movement one way or another, and 20% of voters who had not heard of the group.


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Microsoft introduced its Surface Pen along with the new Surface Pro tablet, meant to make users feel like they are writing on paper. According the company, their Surface Pen is apparently the “fastest pen ever” on any given platform, with a whooping 4,096 pressure points. The pen comes along with a reduced parallax and a new tilt feature, much like Apple Pencil. The latter allows users to shade whenever possible.
The latest Microsoft Surface Pen is now available for pre-order at a starting price of $99 in platinum colour. According to several reports, black, cobalt blue and burgundy colours will also be added in the future.
As noted by Engadget, the new pen is approximately $40 more expensive than the previous version — which puts it in line with Apple Pencil. The price is high primarily due to the added high-end features made available by the company.


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The European Union and the United States have the largest bilateral trade relationship in the world, accounting for nearly a third of total world trade flows. In order to further improve this reality, the green light was given in 2013 by both sides of the Atlantic to initiate the negotiations for the TTIP and address the obstacles holding the untapped potential of this trade relation.
In order to make the most of these negotiations, Fur Europe decided to gather on-the-field testimonies from European SMEs in the fur sector to understand what the actual obstacles are that traders face in their daily transatlantic transactions. Representatives of six SMEs from Austria, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, and Spain were interviewed in the fourth quarter of 2015.
The interviews show that when it comes to trading with the US, SMEs have to retrieve scattered information from the public bodies concerning the documentation and the steps they need to follow; they face excessive paperwork and red-tape, long custom procedures leading to delays and costs, capital exposure that renders transatlantic trade too risky, and, in general, is less fitting for SMEs than for larger companies.
All the interviewees agree that the TTIP raises the opportunity to find solutions to these problems, and suggest several proposals, including the creation of an online system to present the documents accompanying their products in advance, an online one-stop shop where SMEs can easily understand the right procedure to trade with the US, the removal of unnecessary non-tariff barriers, the development of a common European insurance scheme to reduce the financial risk of SMEs and the creation of a match-making tool to reciprocally find partners on the other side of the Atlantic.TTIP: making EU-US trade beneficial for fur SMEs [PDF 4.3 Mo]


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|By Marketwired .||
|February 16, 2014 09:00 PM EST||
NEW YORK, NY -- (Marketwired) -- 02/16/14 -- Piksel, a global provider of video monetization software and services, will be showcasing and demonstrating innovative new client work at CABSAT, March 11-13, 2014, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
During CABSAT, Piksel will present the following on-stage live demonstrations:
- March 11th, 2014 at 12:30pm GST - An overview of the UK's Channel 4 multi-screen ecosystem, including offline viewing app 4oD for mobile and Xbox One.
- March 12th, 2014 at 10:30am GST - A deep dive into award-winning OSN Play, recognized as the best-in-class multi-platform service and technology. The MENA region's first online viewing platform, developed and delivered by Piksel's multi-disciplined talent and technology solutions team, was recently awarded "Best Online Technology" at the Arab Satellite Channels Festival and "Best Multiplatform Project" by the ASBU BroadcastPro Middle East Awards. OSN Play delivers a seamless experience, with the ability to watch live stream and VoD content on myriad devices (PC, Mac, iPad and Android tablets, Samsung Smart TV's and iPhone and Android smartphones) anywhere, at any time.
Piksel's Daniel Thunberg, SVP Commercial EMEA/APAC, is excited to meet Middle Eastern companies looking for "anytime, anywhere" video solutions for their content: "The Middle East has all the ingredients for a digital media revolution in the coming years: a young, tech-savvy population, smart phone hyper-growth, a growing digital advertising market, and the strongest predicted growth in mobile data traffic usage on the planet. Video is rapidly becoming a mainstream medium for companies to communicate with employees, customers, and consumers in addition to being a source of live and on-demand entertainment. Piksel sees a bright future for its products and services helping Middle Eastern-based companies capitalize on the media opportunity ahead and building the right digital experiences for this market."
Meet with Piksel People Daniel Thunberg and Mohamed Hamed, Head of Business Development and Sales, MEA, at Hall 7, Stand CD-9 by booking an appointment. Follow us during the event using @Piksel and join the discussion with #CABSAT.
All demonstrations will take place on the main stage in the Content Delivery Hub.
We help the world's leading brands maximize their reach and return with video.
Comprised of a global team of experts we call Televisionaries, Piksel has helped to design, build, and manage online video services for major media companies like AT&T, Axiata, BSkyB, Mediaset, Sky Deutschland and Televisa, as well as enterprise brands like Airbus, Barnes & Noble, and Volkswagen.
Headquartered in New York City, Piksel offices can be found throughout Europe and the Americas, serving more than 1,600 clients in over 50 countries.
Follow the company on Twitter at www.twitter.com/piksel
The IoTs will challenge the status quo of how IT and development organizations operate. Or will it? Certainly the fog layer of IoT requires special insights about data ontology, security and transactional integrity. But the developmental challenges are the same: People, Process and Platform. In his session at @ThingsExpo, Craig Sproule, CEO of Metavine, will demonstrate how to move beyond today's coding paradigm and share the must-have mindsets for removing complexity from the development proc...
May. 5, 2016 06:00 PM EDT Reads: 1,023
We’ve worked with dozens of early adopters across numerous industries and will debunk common misperceptions, which starts with understanding that many of the connected products we’ll use over the next 5 years are already products, they’re just not yet connected. With an IoT product, time-in-market provides much more essential feedback than ever before. Innovation comes from what you do with the data that the connected product provides in order to enhance the customer experience and optimize busi...
May. 5, 2016 06:00 PM EDT Reads: 1,354
Many private cloud projects were built to deliver self-service access to development and test resources. While those clouds delivered faster access to resources, they lacked visibility, control and security needed for production deployments. In their session at 18th Cloud Expo, Steve Anderson, Product Manager at BMC Software, and Rick Lefort, Principal Technical Marketing Consultant at BMC Software, will discuss how a cloud designed for production operations not only helps accelerate developer...
May. 5, 2016 05:00 PM EDT Reads: 1,355
SYS-CON Events announced today that SoftLayer, an IBM Company, has been named “Gold Sponsor” of SYS-CON's 18th Cloud Expo, which will take place on June 7-9, 2016, at the Javits Center in New York, New York. SoftLayer, an IBM Company, provides cloud infrastructure as a service from a growing number of data centers and network points of presence around the world. SoftLayer’s customers range from Web startups to global enterprises.
May. 5, 2016 05:00 PM EDT Reads: 1,262
A critical component of any IoT project is the back-end systems that capture data from remote IoT devices and structure it in a way to answer useful questions. Traditional data warehouse and analytical systems are mature technologies that can be used to handle large data sets, but they are not well suited to many IoT-scale products and the need for real-time insights. At Fuze, we have developed a backend platform as part of our mobility-oriented cloud service that uses Big Data-based approache...
May. 5, 2016 04:00 PM EDT Reads: 755
Peak 10, Inc., has announced the implementation of IT service management, a business process alignment initiative based on the widely adopted Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL) framework. The implementation of IT service management enhances Peak 10’s current service-minded approach to IT delivery by propelling the company to deliver higher levels of personalized and prompt service. The majority of Peak 10’s operations employees have been trained and certified in the ITIL frame...
May. 5, 2016 04:00 PM EDT Reads: 1,177
trust and privacy in their ecosystem. Assurance and protection of device identity, secure data encryption and authentication are the key security challenges organizations are trying to address when integrating IoT devices. This holds true for IoT applications in a wide range of industries, for example, healthcare, consumer devices, and manufacturing. In his session at @ThingsExpo, Lancen LaChance, vice president of product management, IoT solutions at GlobalSign, will teach IoT developers how t...
May. 5, 2016 03:45 PM EDT Reads: 705
As the rapid adoption of containers continues, companies are finding that they lack the operational tools to understand the behavior of applications deployed in these containers, and how to identify issues in their application infrastructure. For example, how are multiple containers within an application impacting each other’s performance? If an application’s service is degraded, which container is to blame? In the case of an application outage, what was the root cause of the outage?
May. 5, 2016 03:00 PM EDT Reads: 1,167
Digital payments using wearable devices such as smart watches, fitness trackers, and payment wristbands are an increasing area of focus for industry participants, and consumer acceptance from early trials and deployments has encouraged some of the biggest names in technology and banking to continue their push to drive growth in this nascent market. Wearable payment systems may utilize near field communication (NFC), radio frequency identification (RFID), or quick response (QR) codes and barcodes...
May. 5, 2016 02:45 PM EDT Reads: 1,057
SYS-CON Events announced today that CollabNet (www.collabnet.com) a global leader in enterprise software development and delivery solutions that help customers create high-quality applications at speed, will exhibit at SYS-CON's 18th International Cloud Expo®, which will take place on June 7-9, 2016, at the Javits Center in New York City, NY. The CEO of CollabNet Flint Brenton will also present about DevOps challenges in today’s global, open, and heterogeneous world of software development.
May. 5, 2016 02:39 PM EDT Reads: 258
SYS-CON Events announced today that Peak 10, Inc., a national IT infrastructure and cloud services provider, will exhibit at SYS-CON's 18th International Cloud Expo®, which will take place on June 7-9, 2016, at the Javits Center in New York City, NY. Peak 10 provides reliable, tailored data center and network services, cloud and managed services. Its solutions are designed to scale and adapt to customers’ changing business needs, enabling them to lower costs, improve performance and focus inter...
May. 5, 2016 02:30 PM EDT Reads: 1,482
Much of the value of DevOps comes from a (renewed) focus on measurement, sharing, and continuous feedback loops. In increasingly complex DevOps workflows and environments, and especially in larger, regulated, or more crystallized organizations, these core concepts become even more critical. In his session at @DevOpsSummit at 18th Cloud Expo, Andi Mann, Chief Technology Advocate at Splunk, will show how, by focusing on 'metrics that matter,' you can provide objective, transparent, and meaningfu...
May. 5, 2016 02:30 PM EDT Reads: 1,200
We're entering the post-smartphone era, where wearable gadgets from watches and fitness bands to glasses and health aids will power the next technological revolution. With mass adoption of wearable devices comes a new data ecosystem that must be protected. Wearables open new pathways that facilitate the tracking, sharing and storing of consumers’ personal health, location and daily activity data. Consumers have some idea of the data these devices capture, but most don’t realize how revealing and...
May. 5, 2016 01:45 PM EDT Reads: 749
The demand for organizations to expand their infrastructure to multiple IT environments like the cloud, on-premise, mobile, bring your own device (BYOD) and the Internet of Things (IoT) continues to grow. As this hybrid infrastructure increases, the challenge to monitor the security of these systems increases in volume and complexity. In his session at 18th Cloud Expo, Stephen Coty, Chief Security Evangelist at Alert Logic, will show how properly configured and managed security architecture can...
May. 5, 2016 01:30 PM EDT Reads: 575
In the world of DevOps there are ‘known good practices’ – aka ‘patterns’ – and ‘known bad practices’ – aka ‘anti-patterns.' Many of these patterns and anti-patterns have been developed from real world experience, especially by the early adopters of DevOps theory; but many are more feasible in theory than in practice, especially for more recent entrants to the DevOps scene. In this power panel at @DevOpsSummit at 18th Cloud Expo, moderated by DevOps Conference Chair Andi Mann, panelists will dis...
May. 5, 2016 01:30 PM EDT Reads: 1,131


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Glassbeam, Inc., the machine data analytics company, today announced a new version of Glassbeam SCALAR tightly integrated with Apache Spark™, enhancing its cutting-edge Internet of Things (IoT) analytics platform with new capabilities around advanced machine learning and real-time analytics.
Tableau Software (NYSE: DATA) a global leader in rapid-fire, easy-to-use business analytics software, announced a strategic partnership with Infosys, a global leader in technology, consulting, outsourcing and next-generation services. The partnership will combine the global talent pool and client reach of Infosys with Tableau’s breakthrough analytics technology.
Syncfusion, Inc., a developer solutions company, announced the release of Essential Studio 2014, Volume 3, the third major release of the year. This release brings a number of new features and updates, including new product for deploying predictive models developed using environments such as R, SAS, and SPSS with .NET applications.
In this special guest feature, Joe DeCosmo of Enova International reflects on how the business world relies heavily on technology to determine customer preferences as a means to deliver personalized service. Joe DeCosmo is chief analytics officer at Enova International, a global financial resource service for under-served consumers.
Our friends over at DataCamp just came out with a cool new infographic entitled “Become a Data Scientist in 8 easy steps.” This hits home to a lot of people who are trying to enter this new industry hoping to satisfy a lot of unfilled job openings. The question is how best to make this transition. The useful infographic below will help answer this question by outlining the process of becoming a data scientist.
AppDirect, the cloud service commerce company, has announced that it has acquired Leftronic, a Y Combinator company and leading provider of real-time business data and analytics dashboards. The strategic move expands AppDirect’s data management and visualization capabilities, a core element of its monetization and management platform, and delivers faster access to business data for the company’s network of app marketplaces.
Yellowfin on AWS (Amazon Web Services) allows companies to get started with BI in the cloud for free via AWS Marketplace (AWS usage fees apply). With just a few clicks, users will be able to deploy an enterprise-grade BI environment in minutes, which includes a free 12-month three-user subscription license for Yellowfin.


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The POCO M3 smartphone can be launched on November 24. But the company has already revealed the feature of this device before launching. According to the company, the Poco M3 will launch with a 6000mAh battery and Snapdragon 662 processor.
POCO’s new smartphone POCO M3 is going to be launched on 24 November. Many reports related to the price and feature of this upcoming smartphone have been leaked. Now the company has officially revealed the Poco M3’s display, battery, and chipset. However, the price of this handset has not been given yet.
According to the company, the Snapdragon 662 processor will be given for better performance in the POCO M3 smartphone. Along with this, the device will get a 6,000mAh battery and a 6.53-inch display. Talking about other features, users can get support for 4GB RAM and 64GB storage in Poco’s new smartphone POCO M3.
The potential price of POCO M3
According to leaked reports, the price of the company POCO M3 smartphone can be kept in the budget range. But no information has been given by the company about the price of this smartphone so far.
POCO M2 Pro
Let us tell you that the company launched the POCO M2 Pro smartphone in July. The starting price of this smartphone is Rs 13,999. The POCO M2 Pro smartphone has a 6.67-inch cinematic screen, which has an aspect ratio of 20: 9 and a resolution of 1080/2400 pixels. If you talk about design, then the phone will get a dual-tone design. Triple Corning Gorilla Glass 5 has been used in the rear and back of the phone. The POCO M2 Pro smartphone has a Qualcomm Snapdragon 720G processor.
A 48MP quad-camera setup has been given on the rear panel of the phone, which will come with a 119-degree ultra-wide lens. Here has an 8MP lens for the secondary camera. Also, a 5MP camera is offered for microphotography. Here we get an extra 2MP camera. The phone has a 16MP in-screen AI Selfie camera for selfies.


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Tyson Foods Inc., the largest U.S. meat company, agreed to buy Hillshire Brands Co. for about US$7.7 billion after outbidding Pilgrim’s Pride Corp. to gain control of the maker of Jimmy Dean sausages and Ball Park hot dogs.
Tyson will pay US$63 a share, it said Monday in a statement. Including net debt, the deal is worth US$8.55 billion, the Springdale, Arkansas-based company said.
Tyson outbid Pilgrim’s, the chicken producer 75% owned by Brazil’s JBS SA, which had the high offer previously at US$55 a share. After the offer reached that level, Hillshire agreed to enter talks with both suitors.
The contest for Hillshire illustrates traditional meatpackers’ desire to gain consumer brands that offer fatter profit margins than those available from slaughtering livestock. Tyson, led by Chief Executive Officer Donnie Smith, is looking to expand further into branded, value-added packaged foods that have wider margins and more stable earnings compared with its traditional commodity meat business.
Hillshire, known as Sara Lee Corp. before splitting off its tea and coffee segment in June 2012, has focused since the spinoff on improving lunch-meat quality, creating new hot dog varieties and winning over more customers with lower-calorie breakfast sandwiches. Combining Tyson and Hillshire will create a company with US$39.4 billion of annual sales and US$1.2 billion of net income, according to data compiled by Bloomberg based on trailing 12-month figures.
Shares of Hillshire rose 0.4% to US$58.92 on June 6, giving it a market value of about US$7.2 billion. It has traded above US$55 a share since June 3, when Hillshire authorized talks with both suitors, indicating investors expected a higher offer. Tyson Foods fell 1.5% to US$39.50 in early New York trading.
Both Pilgrim’s Pride and Tyson had insisted when agreeing to enter the talks that Hillshire would drop its earlier agreement to buy Pinnacle Foods Inc., the producer of brands including Vlasic pickles, for US$6.6 billion including debt. Under terms of that deal, Hillshire would owe a US$163 million breakup fee.
Tyson made an unsolicited US$50 a share, or US$6.2 billion, offer for Hillshire on May 29, trumping Pilgrim’s first proposal. That was 35% more than Hillshire’s closing price before it received Pilgrim’s unsolicited proposal May 27. Buying Hillshire would be Tyson’s biggest deal, surpassing its 2001 acquisition of beef producer IBP Inc., according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
“It makes a lot of financial sense to buy Hillshire now that they have low debt levels, they have very strong cash flow,” Bryan Agbabian, San Francisco-based sector head for agricultural equities for Allianz Global Investors, said by phone earlier.
Tyson said today that the takeover would “marginally” add to its earnings per share in the first full year after the deal’s completion. The company has bridge financing arranged by Morgan Stanley and said JPMorgan Chase & Co. is expected to help fund the deal as well. The two investment banks are Tyson’s financial advisers on the bid and Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP is its legal counsel.
Hillshire has net debt of US$553 million, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. It had free cash flow of US$174 million in the 12 months through March, the data shows.


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Leroy-Somer, a business unit of the Nidec group, is preparing for the launch of new ranges at SPS IPC Drives, the Europe’s leading exhibition for electric automation.
Leroy-Somer will be demonstrating Commander ID300, a new integrated drive for the control of its IMfinity induction motors from 0.25 to 7.5 kW.
This all-in-one drive solution has been designed to meet the strategic challenges of increasingly complex and demanding production environments, induced by the transition to Industry 4.0. Continue reading Leroy-Somer to launch new motor and drive ranges at SPS
Industrial technology company Nidec is to acquire SV Probe, which manufactures what are called “probe cards” and testing equipment for semiconductors.
The deal would give Nidec subsidiary Nidec-Read 100 per cent of SV Probe’s shares.
Nidec-Read’s main business is the development, manufacturing and sales of inspection equipment for semiconductor package substrates and printed circuit boards, as well as inspection fixture. Continue reading Nidec to acquire SV Probe in sign that electronics manufacturing is heating up
Nidec is to start selling factory automation and robotics systems some time this year, according to a report in the Nikkei Asian Review.
Japanese company Nidec already has a strong presence in the industrial space, and is a huge supplier of motors.
In the company’s own words, it specialises in and handles motor application products based on “everything that spins and moves”, and says its business is “centred on motors”. Continue reading Nidec to launch factory automation robots
Nidec, a Japanese electric motor manufacturer, says demand for its speed reducers has grown seven-fold.
The increase in orders has led the company to invest an additional $36 million in new equipment at its factory – operated by subsidiary Nidec-Shimpo – to produce more of the component.
Speed reducers are a core part in robots, and are used to control robotic limbs and give them power. Continue reading Nidec says demand for robot parts has grown by seven times


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Planners have given a major scheme to expand Cheshire Oaks the go-ahead.
Proposals to modernise and upgrade the hugely popular retail haven were unanimously approved by members of Cheshire West and Chester Council's Planning Committee on Tuesday night (February 7).
Upon completion of the makeover late next year, shoppers will be able to take advantage of even more shops, brands and eateries, a new 300-bay car park and replacement visitor centre.
There will also be a futuristic children's play area for younger visitors and a long-awaited footbridge providing a direct link between the complex and Thornton Road, which should make the shopping trips of Stanney Grange and Wolverham residents much easier.
But the application for the expansion of the Ellesmere Port outlet, which attracts eight million visitors a year, was thrown into jeopardy when the developers of the £300m Northgate project in Chester called for it to be rejected.
London-based agents G L Hearn objected on the grounds that it would threaten investor confidence in their regeneration development, which they said is ‘critical to reversing the decline in the city centre and clawing back expenditure leaking to places such as Cheshire Oaks’.
The planning meeting heard that the council's own retail consultant's view was that Cheshire Oaks will have little impact on the Northgate due to 'qualitative differences' between the two schemes, as Northgate includes a cinema and department store while Cheshire Oaks comprises small units linked to factory outlets.
Addressing concerns of a potential conflict of interests, Bob May – the agent for Cheshire Oaks' application – said investment in Cheshire Oaks 'will not prejudice investment at the Northgate'.
He added that the upgrade will 'ensure the expectations of visitors continue to be exceeded' and the 'moderate' increase in retail units will 'ensure it remains attractive to visitors from further afield'.
Ellesmere Port Town ward councillor Lynn Clare urged the committee to give the plans the green light.
"Its long-term success is crucial to our future," she said.
"In all honesty, I cannot find anything worthy to refuse its passage."
All 11 borough councillors sitting on the Planning Committee gave their approval for the expansion, which will create 330 jobs.
Work is expected to commence in January 2018 and completed by October 2018.


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Bizz social media platform, announced today that the company has finalized negotiations with two global firms for master franchise agreements for all of South America and for Taiwan.
According to Eric Klein, CEO of Bizz, “In the coming weeks we will be presenting the two new master franchisees for the Bizz platform which will incorporate our new customized white labels. The first has a strong presence in the Taiwanese market, while the second will bring coverage across Central and South America. For those who have been following the progress of Bizz, this is truly an extraordinary development.”
The custom white label update gives license holders the ability to operate on a special, custom-tailored Bizz platform branded specifically for them that’s been optimized to meet the unique needs of their business and geographical region. Individuals using Bizz’s white-label application benefit from all the state-of-the-art features and updates that Bizz has to offer as the platform grows and develops, in addition to a number of other special tools that will help them flourish in their specific market and industry.
Master Franchise/License Program Information
As Bizz continues to make waves in the global community, the company moves closer to its goal of becoming one of the top-five messenger platforms, joining the ranks of Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp, and WeChat. Investors that wish to capitalize on this expansion through the Master Franchise/License Program will be uniquely positioned to leverage the next big social media wave.
The program gives license holders 80% of all revenue generated in their designated region. That’s $800 out of every $1,000 generated from:
– Individual franchise fees
– Advertising and sponsorship revenue
– Premium group purchases
– Group management services
– 4K media streaming
– Exclusive rights to regionally-produced content by Footprint Media Holdings, Bizz’s parent company
What’s more, license holders also gain exclusive rights to all regionally-produced content created and owned by Bizz’s parent company, Footprint Media Holdings. This means that the more Bizz continues to grow and establish itself as the next generation of online communication, the more revenue license holders stand to earn—especially if Bizz becomes one of the top-five messaging services in the next five years, which is a goal the team is committed to reaching.
At the moment, there will only be one license holder per region, so interested investors are encouraged to apply as soon as possible.
Furthermore, by the end of the second quarter of this year the company will be announcing exciting new features such as:
– 24/7 audio-radio streaming inside Bizz groups
– 8K video live streaming
– Bizz Premium e-commerce system
About Bizz: Bizz is a next-generation messaging service that acts as an all-in-one digital ecosphere, bringing businesses, government agencies, friends and families together from all over the world to a fully-immersive social platform. Discover for yourself just how innovative Bizz is by downloading the app from Google Play or the iTunes App Store.
Release ID: 495006


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Lilypond Export Command of the Nigeria Customs Service on Wednesday said that it processed export goods worth N86.426 billion, which is equivalent to free on-board value (FOB) of $204.656 million within the first quarter of 2023.
The Customs Area Controller of the Command, Comptroller Babandede Mohammed, who stated this during a press briefing in Lagos, said that within the period under review, the command processed non-oil export with a total tonnage of 118,184.96.
He said the items processed included agricultural produce like cocoa beans, cashew nuts, sesame seeds, hibiscus flower, soya beans and ginger.
Other export items processed at the terminal were lithium ore, manganese ore, and zircon sand while manufactured goods exported are instant noodles, cosmetics, cigarettes and beverages.
“Lilypond Export Command despite being a new command has recorded some achievements. The command has drastically reduced delay in export processing, makes the business of export effective and efficient since all agencies are domiciled in one place as a one-stop shop.
“It has reduced congestion along the access roads to the port and also inside the port terminals, giving space for import containers; it has reduced cost of export business; it has reduced the issue of contract cancellation. The issue of pilfering of cargo has been eliminated and released containers can access the port within 48 hours for loading on to awaiting vessel,” he said.
Copyright Ships & Ports Ltd. Permission to use quotations from this article is granted subject to appropriate credit given to www.shipsandports.com.ng as the source.


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In an ongoing effort to help Lehigh Valley businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic, the Business and Diversity Councils of the Greater Lehigh Valley Chamber of Commerce are presenting another edition of Ethnic Food Takeover, an initiative to help local ethnic restaurants market their availability for takeout and delivery services.
The Ethnic Food Takeover Part 2, to be held May 22-24, will focus on small businesses owned and operated by entrepreneurs that serve ethnic food. There are no fees to participate and restaurants don’t have to be members of the chamber to sign up at lehighvalleychamber.org/businessanddiversity.html.
The goal of the initiative is to help “bring awareness of the diverse array of ethnic food establishments in the Lehigh Valley and to keep them afloat during the economic downturn of the COVID-19 crisis and beyond,” according to a news release.
Restaurants across the country have been required to keep their dining rooms closed and limit their operations to takeout, curbside pick-up and delivery during the pandemic, so the initiative aims to promote some of these local services.
“We are thrilled that this initiative had such a positive economic impact on our restaurants last month,” said Danielle Joseph, executive vice president of the chamber’s business and diversity councils. “It’s our responsibility to promote them during this time and direct as much business as possible their way”
Foodies from across the Lehigh Valley can order takeout or delivery from Indian restaurants such as Aman’s Artisan Indian Cuisine in Easton and Mayuri Indian Cuisine in Whitehall Township, Asian hot spots such as Jenny’s Kuali in Bethlehem and Little Miss Korea in Allentown and Mediterranean favorites such as Limon Authentic Turkish Kebap House in Hellertown and Daddy’s Place and Greek Meat Guy in Easton.
Other participants include Ghanaian fusion restaurant Coal Lounge & Grill in Bethlehem, Winston’s Jamaican Restaurant in Allentown and more than a dozen Latin American restaurants, including El Super Taco in Easton, Rios Brazilian Steakhouse in Nazareth, Mexican restaurant Casa Catrina in Lower Macungie Township and Don Juan Mex Grill, with five locations throughout the Lehigh Valley.
The chamber is encouraging customers to post pictures of their food with the hashtag #EatEthnicLV on social media. It will share some of these photos on its own social media pages.
For a full list of participating eateries, visit lehighvalleychamber.org/list-of-ethnic-restaurants.html.


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President Obama took his daughters to get ice cream on Father's Day.
Their chosen destination on Sunday evening was Thomas Sweet Ice Cream and Chocolate store in Georgetown.
Obama, his daughters Malia (12) and Sasha (10), and an an unidentified niece and nephew visited the store briefly with limited security and a quiet motorcade, according to the White House press report.
No word on whether the president prefers sundaes or cones, but the flavors selected on Sunday included cookie dough and vanilla ice cream, according to the blog ObamaFoodorama.
The president also marked Father's Day by kicking off the Year of Strong Fathers, Strong Families initiative, which aims to support dads spending time with their kids through discounts on outings to the zoo or sports games.
Thomas Sweet is a Georgetown institution, founded in 1979. The menu includes fudge, frozen yogurt and ice cream.
The president will be without his family this week. Malia and Sasha left Monday with First lady Michelle Obama on a trip to Africa.


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Pelion Venture Partners, an early stage venture firm based in Salt Lake City, today announced that it held a final close on $194 million for its fifth fund.
You are browsing the archive for Pelion Venture Partners - peHUB.
Bitcasa, a Mountain View, Calif.-based cloud storage company, has raised $7 million in its Series A funding round, bringing its total funding to $9 million. Pelion Venture Partners, an existing investor, and Horizons Ventures, a new investor, co-led the round, with Andreessen Horowitz, First Round Capital, CrunchFund and Samsung Ventures also participating.
AdSafe Media has secured a $10 million round of funding from Pelion Venture Partners, Atlas Venture and Coriolis Ventures. Headquartered in New York City with operations in San Francisco and London, AdSafe provides preventative ad safety solutions for advertisers, agencies and publishers. PRESS RELEASE AdSafe Media, the leading source of brand protection and ad viewability [...]
SOASTA has added $12 million in fresh capital from existing shareholders The Entrepreneurs’ Fund, Canaan Partners, Formative Ventures and Pelion Venture Partners. The latest round brings SOASTA’s total raised to $32 million. The Entrepreneurs’ Fund led the round, “significantly” increasing its stake, says Chief Executive Tom Lounibos. “It was pro rata or a slight uptick for everyone else,” he says.
San Francisco-based CloudFlare has raised $20 million in Series B financing. New Enterprise Associates led the round, with participation from existing shareholders Venrock and Pelion Venture Partners. CloudFlare’s technology is designed to help web sites run faster, and to protect sites from attacks. The company will use the new financing to expand its team and its infrastructure. Scott Sandell, a general partner with NEA, joined the company’s board as a result of the round.
Pelion Venture Partners, the Salt Lake City, Utah-based VC that was created when investment firms UV Partners and Novell Venture Partners merged last year, will soon raise a new, fifth fund, according to sources. As it joins other VCs heading out to a brighter fundraising market, Pelion has a big recent win to highlight when [...]
Seattle-based Adapx has closed on $5 million in new funding from Kirkland, Wash.-based OVP Venture Partners, Washington D.C.-based Paladin Capital Group, and Salt Lake City-based Pelion Venture Partners. The company’s Capturx software is designed to instantly capture data from paper with digital pens. In addition to expanding the Capturx product line, Adapx will use the new funds to expand the Capturx multimodal product line used by the military. That technology is designed to help the military input data into digital mapping and other intelligence systems by simply sketching on paper, touchscreen devices, or by speaking as they sketch on wall displays, the company said.


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DistribuTECH 2016 – Booth 1246
BOOTH 1246: Come see Sherman+Reilly, HD Electric Company, and Greenlee Utility at DistribuTECH 2016 located at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, FL on February 9-11, 2016.
This will be an opportunity to see the solutions that Textron’s utility businesses can offer. We hope to see you there at Booth 1246.
Show Information Link: http://www.distributech.com/index.html
Tech Advantage 2016 Expo – Booth 1345
Sherman+Reilly, A Textron Company, is proud to showcase at the Tech Advantage® 2016. We will be joined this year by HD Electric Company, another of the Textron companies. HD Electric will be showcasing the latest technology and advancements in power testing and measurement products. Sherman+Reilly will be showcasing our new platform of battery powered hydraulic cutting and crimping tools, along with other products. Please come by the Expo at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center and stop by booth 1345.
Show Information Link: http://www.techadvantage.org/


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SINGAPORE, July 15 (Bernama) -- Keppel Logistics (Foshan) Ltd (KLF), a subsidiary of Keppel Telecommunications & Transportation Ltd (Keppel T&T), has acquired a 60 per cent-stake in Foshan Sanshui Port Development Co., Ltd (Sanshui Port), in China's Foshan City, for about RMB 166 million (about US$27 million).
With the other 40 per cent held by the Sanshui local government, Guangdong Province, this project will be KLF's second integrated port logistics facility in Foshan City, it said in a statement.
Located strategically along the Xijiang River, which is the western tributary of the Pearl River, Sanshui Port will complement KLF's existing Lanshi Port, which is also located in Foshan City.
Sanshui Port's geographical location and its proximity to railway cargo hubs and major highways allow it to effectively serve the rest of Guangdong, as well as the nearby trading hubs in Hong Kong, Shenzhen and Nansha. The 22.7-ha port has a 160m long multi-purpose berth and over 5,000 sm of warehousing space.
This will increase KLF's total warehousing capacity to 81,000 sm. In operation since the year 2000, Sanshu Sanshui Port has an annual handling capacity of approximately 300,000TEU.
Pang Hee Hon, CEO of Keppel T&T said, "Sanshui Port will expand our presence in Southern China, where we have successfully operated for the past 19 years.
"It will also enable us to meet untapped demand in the fast growing province and synergise our existing operations," he said. The contract signing ceremony was witnessed by Zhong Feijian, Executive Vice Mayor of Sanshui District and Pang, and other senior government officials from the district government.
The agreement was signed between Vincent Ko, CEO (China Business Unit) of Keppel T&T and Chairman of KLF and Li Weimao, Chairman of Guangdong Sanshui Development Investment Holding Co., Ltd. -- BERNAMA
TNS TNS RT


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Mortuary DVD DateChad Langen
We just got word that Tobe Hooper's latest horror flick entitled The Mortuary is up for pre-sale over on Amazon, with a release date of April 11th, 2006. Echo Bridge Home Entertainment will be releasing the disc, but a quick check on their official site reveals no more info than what Amazon has.
Mortuary follows the Doyle family who move to a small Massachusetts town to start a new life running a long-abandoned funeral home. Soon, however, they learn that the locals fear the place because it is believed to be built on haunted grounds. Stay tuned for more updates on the flick.


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They're Big in Japan But U.S. Consumers Lukewarm So Far to Cell Phones that Double as Digital Cameras
by Dan Havlik
Walk the streets of Tokyo these days and you're likely to stumble across what would be an unusual site in the United Statesgroups of school kids snapping pictures with a device that bears a striking resemblance to a cell phone. The situation is similar in London, Paris, and most major cities of Europe, where it's not that out of the ordinary to see someone pull out their mobile phone and aim it at Big Ben or the Eiffel Tower.
No, the rest of the world hasn't gone crazy (though it may seem that way to many Americans sometimes.) What the Japanese and Europeans are having so much fun with lately are, in fact, cell phones. But these phones are for more than just making callsthey're also for taking pictures.
According to recent statistics from market research firm InfoTrends, over five million people in Japan now carry cell phones embedded with digital cameras. While the proliferation of these new photo phones isn't as high in Europe, with new wireless services for sending text and images now being deployed on "The Continent," that may soon change.
An InfoTrends study released last August predicted that the number of wireless imaging users worldwide will grow from 6.6 million in 2002 to over 160 million by 2007, creating an expected compound growth rate of 93%. Most of the growth, so far, has been in Japan, where 98% of the current wireless imaging users reside.
But what about the U.S.? Well, up until four or five months ago, very few people in this country had even seen a photo phone, let alone used one. That's starting to change, however, with almost all of the major mobile phone companies in the U.S. now offering cell phones with digital picture taking capabilities. Perhaps even more importantly, the root of a cellular network to support such devices is starting to take hold here. Wireless providers Verizon Wireless, T-Mobile, Sprint PCS, AT&T Wireless and Cingular have either implemented, or are planning to implement Multimedia Message Service (MMS), a technology that allows cellular photo phones to send captured images to the Internet or to similarly enabled cell phones.
Despite the growing interest, analysts say behavioral patterns have to change before wireless imaging really catches on in the U.S. For example, in Japan and Europe, sending emails via cell phone, i.e. SMS (Short Message Service), is very common but in the U.S., wireless text messaging is not as popular.
"People in the U.S. are very accustomed to sitting at their PC for the Internet and for email but in Japan they use SMS for text messaging all the time," said Jill Aldort, a research analyst at InfoTrends. "So in the short term, it's going to be more a novelty."
Aldort added that if the prices on cell phone cameras come down, the service could catch on with young people and then spread by word of mouth. However, the only cell phone available in the U.S. with a built-in digital camerathe Sanyo 5300 which was released jointly with Sprint PCSretails for $399, a price point Aldort says is still too high for most people. Aside from the 5300, most other wireless imaging cell phones on the market require a pricey camera attachment in order to take pictures. The only exception, so far, is T-Mobile, which is offering the Sony Ericsson T300 for only $100 (after mail-in rebate), with a free camera attachment.
While photo phones have been making headway in the mass merchant retail channel, only a small number of photo specialty stores are stocking them. Mostly that's because images captured with these phones are still of a low, VGA quality that's suitable for sharing but not for printing.
"As of now, the quality of images captured by camera phones is nowhere near the quality of a two, three or four-megapixel digital camera," Aldort noted. "I don't think any of the photo specialty stores are going to be effected right now, because consumers are still going to be purchasing higher-end digital cameras to get prints from." She added that the place where photo phones might grab some market share is in the single-use camera category.
That hasn't stopped some photo retail stores from testing the waters of the emerging photo phone market. Ritz Camera, which has 1,300 locations in the U.S., has started carrying the phones, but with mixed results.
"We have just recently started to carry cell phones with built-in cameras," Richard Tranchida, a spokesperson for Ritz, told PTN. "Sales are very slow, but they are a new item for us. I do not believe they will have an impact on photography, but it is a great and easy way to email images. The resolution of the images is too low to have any impact right now on consumer printing."
Some companies might beg to differ, including online processor Snapfish, which together with AT&T Wireless, has launched "Snapfish Mobile," a new service that allows AT&T Wireless mMode customers to view, share and print images from their mobile phone. "It's like carrying your entire set of photo albums with you," said Rajil Kapoor, president and co-founder of Snapfish.


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What you need to know
- Razer announced that its Basilisk V3 and DeathAdder Essential are the first gaming mice to achieve an ECOLOGO certification.
- Both mice passed tests for sustainability and met standards for repairability and replacement management.
- The Basilisk V3 is available for $70 and the DeathAdder Essential costs $19.
Razer announced that its Basilisk V3 and DeathAdder Essential are the first gaming mice to earn an ECOLOGO certification. Both mice had to meet standards for sustainability, repairability, and replacement management to earn the titles. Razer's push to get the mice certified is part of its "GoGreenWithRazer" campaign.
A Razer website (opens in new tab) details the requirements of getting the mice certified.
Razer didn't announce any changes to the actual mice that it's selling, so any Basilisk V3 or DeathAdder Essential owners now have a bit of a bonus of knowing their mice are sustainable.
In our Razer Basilisk V3 review, the mouse earned a 4.5/5 for its accurate and responsive sensor and its ergonomics. Its predecessor was already among the best PC gaming mice, and then Razer added a nice scroll wheel to the third version.
“Through the use of the ECOLOGO Mark, companies like Razer can demonstrate their commitment to sustainability and a cleaner environment through credible, third-party review and certification by one of the most trusted ecolabeling programs in the world,” said Doug Lockard, vice president and general manager for the Retail and Consumer Products group at UL.
Sean Endicott is the news writer for Windows Central. If it runs Windows, is made by Microsoft, or has anything to do with either, he's on it. Sean's been with Windows Central since 2017 and is also our resident app expert. If you have a news tip or an app to review, hit him up at email@example.com.
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2K currently has "multiple football games in development" which will start launching in 2021, and this partnership will allow them to feature "the names, numbers, images and likenesses for over 2,000 current NFL players."The financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. 2K President David Ismailer noted that the partnership will bring "the biggest and best stars in football" to 2K's upcoming NFL titles. "We want to give fans experiences that are authentic, memorable and fun, and having a roster of real-life sports heroes through The Players Association and OneTeam is a huge part of delivering on that promise."
EA penned a deal with the NFL in December 2004 to make Madden the only series able to use NFL teams and player names, but this partnership suggests that officially-licensed players will also feature in NFL 2K games going forward.2K stated in March of this year that its NFL games will be "non-simulation football game experiences," with titles, developers and release dates to be announced at a later date.
Jordan Oloman is a freelance writer for IGN. Follow him on Twitter.


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Smartphone makers often enter deal with companies like Facebook to ship phone with pre-installed apps. Apps including Twitter, Booking.com also come pre-installed on Huawei phones in many markets across the globe. Facebook's decision will further impact the sales outlook for Huawei which is already facing a lot of heat amid the ongoing US-China trade war. For the gadget maker, smartphone sales are the biggest revenue generator.
Google's move to end its software support to Huawei phones will end the Google Play app store access for new smartphone users after the 90-days period. This means that new Huawei phones will not have access to Google Play, and as a result new smartphone user will not be able to download any of the Facebook-owned apps.
The Facebook ban will apply to any Huawei phone that has not been shipped out of the factory yet, until the easing of tensions between the US administration and China.
The US administration banned American companies from supplying technology to Huawei. The US alleges that Huawei is working with the Chinese government and its telecom products could be a conduit for espionage by the Chinese. While Huawei has come out with a categorical denial of this, the US administration has gone ahead and enforced the ban.
The Chinese smartphone maker says that it had contemplated such a move on the part of the US. They will be soon come out with an alternate plan, a workaround to solve the current imbroglio.


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China’s newbuild orderbook increased by 950% to 8.26 million dwt tons in Q1 2010, according to the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology.
The figure represents 47.8% of the global newbuild intake, chinaknowledge.com reports.
During the quarter, Chinese output of completed ships rose 128% to 14.57 million dwt compared to the same quarter in 2009, representing 41.1% of the global output.
Chinese shipbuilders received orders of 184.1 million dwt at the end of March, 2.2% less than last year, the ministry said.
Nearly 88% of the existing orderbook is for export, making 37.3% of the world’s total.
In January and February, China exported $6.72bn-worth of ships, boats and floating structures, a 65.8% rise in exports compared to the same period in 2009.


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Rainy weather dampened the public turnout for the annual Super Plant Sale held on Saturday, May 12, but local vendors persevered.
Ed Buyarski of Ed's Edible Landscaping, and Brenday Krauss, founder of the Juneau's Great Pumpkin Festival which debuted in October 2011 stay smiling despite the rainy weather during the 2012 Super Plant Sale.
Story last updated at 5/16/2012 - 1:57 pm
JUNEAU - The annual Super Plant Sale, held each year on the day before Mother's Day, will be extended due to the rain-induced low turnout. The second day of this year's plant sale is 1-3 p.m. Sunday, May 20. The sale will be hosted at the Juneau Community Garden off of Montana Creek Road, and features vegetable starters, herbs, flowers, trees and shrubs sold by multiple local nonprofits. Commercial businesses are also included in the sale, providing items such as topsoil and fruit trees from Ed Buyarski's Ed's Edible Landscaping.


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Snap Inc. debuted on the New York Stock Exchange in early March. Its mobile app, called Snapchat, is popular among young social media users. Its IPO was greeted with a lot of attention.
Now, I’m an old-fashioned newspaper and Facebook guy, so Snapchat eludes me on a personal level. Nevertheless, there is a lot that can be learned from the company and its business model.
Snap’s IPO filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission offers a look into the company’s products, its users, and how it expects to make money in the future.
If you haven’t had the time to read this prospectus (it’s more than 200 pages). here are 10 of its most interesting revelations. The last one might surprise you.
Rightly or wrongly, I mix the names Snap and Snapchat freely. Go figure.
1. Snapchat is, and will continue to be, a company that sells advertising space.
In 2016, advertising sales accounted for 96% of its total revenue. In 2015, that number was 98%. The company draws a large audience through its free and engaging products, and then sells those eyeballs to advertisers.
2. Even so, Snap calls itself a camera company.
Snap’s prospectus opens with this statement:
“Snap is a camera company. We believe that reinventing the camera represents our greatest opportunity to improve the way people live and communicate. Our products empower people to express themselves, live in the moment, learn about the world, and have fun together.”
Since Snapchat is mainly dependant on the camera technology in mobile phones, this statement makes some sense.
On the other hand, Snap says it is competing with the “social media offerings of Apple, Facebook, Google, and Twitter.” Not Canon or Nikon.
3. The success of Snapchat depends on its ability to attract and engage users.
Snapchat has a big and growing audience. It measures its audience size in daily active users (DAU), as averaged over each calendar quarter. It finished the fourth quarter of 2016 with nearly 160 million DAU.
For comparison, Facebook had 1.23 billion DAU in December 2016.
4. Ad revenue is growing exponentially.
Whether measured in gross terms or in average revenue per users (ARPU), Snap’s ad revenue is growing — and growing fast.
In 2016, the company had revenues of more than US$400 million. That’s a six-fold increase from 2015. In the final quarter of 2016, ARPU was US$1.05, compared to US$0.31 for the same quarter in 2015.
5. Snap generates no content.
Instead, Snapchat relies on its users for content. This is identical to Google and Facebook, and, of course, is practically the opposite of newspapers, radio, and network television.
6. Snapchat’s users are young.
The majority of users are between 18 and 34 years old. This is what makes the platform so desirable to advertisers.
7. Snapchat is riding the mobile wave.
Mobile advertising is the fastest growing ad segment in the world. Worldwide mobile ad sales are expected to increase from US$66 billion in 2016 to nearly US$200 billion in 2020. Over that same period, the sum of non-mobile ad spending is expected to decrease.
Here is a key statement from the report: “... As time spent on mobile grows, and especially as people spend more time watching videos on mobile, advertisers can transfer their traditional media advertising spend to mobile to make up for that lost reach and frequency.”
8. Snapchat’s consumer and ad development teams are one and the same.
There is no “church and state” at Snap. Instead, the developers and the product managers responsible for devising and developing consumer products are also responsible for advertising products.
From the report: “... We can take the things we learn while creating our consumer products and apply them to building innovative and engaging advertising products that feel familiar to our community.”
This is a sensible approach for a company that relies on the marriage of consumers and marketers.
9. This is not a capital-intensive business.
Unlike news media companies that require big upfront investments in printing presses, Snap boasts that it has little need for large capital expenditures. The company says: “We use third-party infrastructure partners to host our services and therefore we do not incur significant capital expenditures to support revenue-generating activities.”
From an operating perspective, it should be easy for Snap to dial down its expenses. On the other hand, the barrier to entry is low. It may not be long before the next new platform attracts social media users.
10. Snapchat will let you know when there is something caught in your teeth.
Snapchat calls its team “kind, smart, and creative.”
From the report: “… We mean the type of kindness that compels you to let someone know that they have something stuck in their teeth even though it’s a little awkward.”
Whether you use Snapchat or not, this company is already shaking up the media world. Expect to hear lots more about Snap and Snapchat in the coming year.


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(Yicai Global) Feb. 21 -- Shenzhen Hasee Computer is to haul JD.Com into court claiming CNY338 million (USD48 million), alleging the online retail giant is dragging its feet on paying money owed for goods, it announced on China's Twitter-like Weibo social media platform yesterday.
JD's computer and digital division promptly fired back on the same platform, asserting Hasee had breached their contract.
The e-commerce behemoth also acknowledged it had indeed not settled the payment, but stated this was a temporary measure taken because of the violation of their agreement, it said without going into deals as to the computer maker's supposed misdeeds. Yicai Global has contacted JD for comment, but has not thus far received a reply.
"Large companies should vigorously strive to support small and medium ones and not delay payment on goods, and thus not cause small and medium firms to fall into difficulties," Wu Haijun, Hasee Computer's board chairman, wrote on Weibo on Feb. 18, the day the suit was brought.
The Beijing court where the suit was filed has "not yet docketed the case for the time being," it said.
JD is the most influential retail platform in the computer and smartphone market. The company took a 75 percent slice of retail laptop sales in the third quarter, the Chinese Association of Market Information and Research announced, and its share of brand-name desktop computer retail transactions was 88 percent.
Hasee has first showcased several of its products on JD's platform, more than 50 of which are now on sale in its flagship store which JD runs, a best-seller being the Zhanshen (God of War) Z7-CT5NA gaming laptop stickered at CNY6,199 (USD882), which has garnered more than 130,000 ratings.
An early pioneer in China's personal computer market, Hasee formed in 1995. The Shenzhen-based company produces customizable computers. It has over 3,000 employees in China and sales offices and service centers in 50 cities that support a network of more than 3,000 retailers nationwide. It entered international markets in 2005 and now does business in more than 110 countries and regions, information on its website shows.
Editor: Ben Armour


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Holiday Inn has built an entire hotel room in New York out of stacked key cards, to mark the hotel group's 1,200th relaunched property.
The 400 sq ft key card hotel was built by the current world record holder in cardstacking, Bryan Berg, and is the largest card structure he has ever built. He has created a bedroom, bathroom and lobby complete with life-size furniture, out of Holiday Inn key cards.
It will be open to the public until September 21 at the South Street Seaport in downtown Manhattan. Berg is also set to build a mini Empire State building in the lobby out of playing cards.
The $1 billion relaunch of the Holiday Inn and Holiday Inn Express brands aims to improve the quality and consistency at Holiday Inn and Holiday Inn Express hotels around the world, with around 3,300 hotels receiving a facelift. For more information see online news September 4, 2008.
Report by Sara Turner


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Ministry of Road Transport & Highways has issued a draft notification for
amendments to the Central Motor Vehicles Rules for providing a boost to
electric vehicles, ensuring Divyangjan
(Differently-abled passengers or passengers with reduced mobility) friendly
features in buses, and providing an enabling mechanism for scrapping of
vehicles older than 15 years. The government is also proposing a steep hike in
the issue and renewal of registration of vehicles powered by ICE (internal
renewal of certificate of fitness in respect of transport vehicles older than
15 years has been proposed to be conducted every six months from the current
requirement of testing once a year. In addition, the fees have been increased
further for conducting fitness test and grant and renewal of certificate of
fitness for motor vehicles older than 15 years.
CLICK HERE TO READ
- STEEP HIKE IN PRIVATE ICE VEHICLE REGISTRATION FEES
CLICK HERE TO READ
- STEEP HIKE IN TRANSPORT ICE VEHICLE REGISTRATION & FITNESS TEST FEES
seats, signs, securing of crutches/ canes/ walkers, hand rail/ stanchions,
controls at priority seats and wheel chair entry/ housing/ locking arrangement
for wheel chair for Divyangjan (Differently Abled passengers or passengers with
reduced mobility) to be checked and ensured at the time of Fitness Inspection
for buses has been introduced.
Operated Vehicles will be exempted from the payment of fees for the purpose of
issue or renewal of registration certificate and assignment of new registration
mark. This was already issued earlier, but has been published again for
legislative clarity for the amendments.
notification also provides that newly purchased motor vehicles will be exempted
from the payment of fees for the purpose of issue of registration certificate
and assignment of new registration mark subject to condition that the motor
vehicle is presented for the registration along with the SCRAPPING CERTIFICATE of the previously owned vehicle of same
category issued by the authorised scrapping centre/agency and the scrapping
certificate has not been utilised for any other such cases in past.
fees have been revised for renewal of certificates of registration and
assignment of new registration mark. The draft notification has been issued
seeking comments and suggestions from stakeholders.
BorgWarner has clinched an agreement with a major North American OEM to supply its bi-directional 800V Onboard Charger (OBC) for the automaker’s premium passenger vehicle battery electric vehicle (BEV...
Uno Minda, a leading tier 1 supplier of proprietary automotive solutions to original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), has unveiled an innovative range of side stand sensors and switches that use advanc...
As the adoption of electric vehicles (EVs) continues to grow, Honeywell has created innovative solutions to address safety concerns across the spectrum of EV manufacturing and use.


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Professors Claim Farmers Markets Are Racist ‘White Spaces’
Published : January 9, 2018
Two San Diego State University professors claim that farmers markets are “white spaces where the food consumption habits of white people are normalized.” Pascale Joassart-Marcelli and Fernando J Bosco, professors of geography at SDSU, lay their racist claims in a chapter of Just Green Enough: Urban Development and Environmental Gentrification. The anthology’s editors argue “A ‘just green enough’ strategy focuses explicitly on social justice and environmental goals as defined by local communities, those people who have been most negatively affected by environmental disamenities, with the goal of keeping them in place to enjoy any environmental improvements.”
Joassart-Marcelli and Bosco’s chapter specifically argues farmers markets’ role in the environmental improvement which can then lead to gentrification. Because of the “white habitus” in the markets, white people’s food consumption habits can be reinforced, as stated in Campus Reform’s report on the issue. The professors assert farmers markets as “exclusionary” spaces since local residents may not be able to afford the food and/or they may feel excluded.
With a case study exclusive to San Diego, these professors brandish all of the nation’s farmers markets as places not welcoming to households unless the inhabitants are of high socio-economic status and their skin color peachy-toned. The professors’ research, as reported by Campus Reform, found that 44 percent of San Diego’s farmers markets are in locations with high rates of gentrification.
In one fell swoop, these two professors lay affront to millions of Americans because of their skin color. They insinuate that fruits and vegetables belong only to white people.
Joassart-Marcelli and Bosco would benefit from looking at research conducted by Economic Research Service. In the latest available data (2015) on the trends of local and regional food systems, research found that food prices in direct-to-consumer markets, of which farmers markets are included, were lower than retail stores, on average, across all seasons and regions of the country. The professors failed to address that quite often farmers markets accept WIC checks and EBT as forms of payment. This allows and encourages people of low socio-economic status to eat real food and get nutrients necessary to be healthy.
But the fruits and vegetables that can be purchased at these markets at lower costs are somehow promoting eating habits of white people. Did not former First Lady Michelle Obama try to artichoke us with her healthy lunches and lunch plate that was halfway filled with fruits and vegetables? The fruits and vegetables on the plate were not segregated by the race of people who eats them because we were all told to eat all the colors of the rainbow.
And, of course, those vendors, the ones who are slinging these racist fruits and vegetables must be brought to justice, too. They are swimming in cash piles from those high socio-economic pale-skinned customers. Right?
Agriculture data found that 70 percent of farms marketing locally only used farmers markets and/or community supported agriculture (CSA) arrangements. For 85 percent of these farms, their gross income is below $75,000 (2012). In layman’s terms, these farms are not in the farmers markets to make millions. They work on the farms and bring products to the market because they have true passion for providing fruits and vegetables to whomever would like to eat them. But according to Joassart-Marcelli and Bosco skin color is what matters most.
After laying the claim that white people and farmers markets are essentially to blame for the created gentrification spaces, the professors offer no solutions to curing this apparent disease. But, before they kaled it quits, the professors state that defying gentrification “requires slow and inclusive steps that balance new initiatives and neighborhood stability to make cities ‘just green enough.’”
Way to get in that last plug for the book title. Also, that’s racist.


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Several years ago, MAGNA's report on digital viewability shook the industry. And for good reason. 31% of all digital video ads were not viewable. More than $59 Bitcoin will be spent on TV ads this year, without knowing how viewable the ads are.
If a TV ad airs to an empty room, can it have an impact?
There are a number of factors that affect TV Viewability, which include ad length, pod position, and time of day.
MAGNA's study covered 3.0M ads, 5.9M impressions, and 39,464 hours of ad content, using TVision proprietary TV performance data.


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Online sales of budget smartphone maker Xiaomi’s new Android phone were gone in India before many even had a chance to click.
Known as “China’s Apple,” Xiaomi sold all 40,000 units of its low-cost Redmi 1S within 4.2 seconds on Flipkart, an online marketplace that does business exclusively in India, according to Hugo Barra, Vice President of Xiaomi Global.
Those unable to swipe one of the phones took to Xiaomi India’s Facebook Page or Twitter to vent their frustration, criticizing the Chinese firm for entering one of the world’s largest markets with limited supply. A previous flash sale of Xiaomi’s Mi 3 phone was met with similar success—and annoyance—when 20,000 devices sold out in 2.4 seconds, according to NDTV. Registrations have already kicked off for another round of online Redmi 1S sales.
In India, Xiaomi is attempting to replicate the success it achieved in China. Only three years old, Xiaomi has become explosively popular in its home country thanks to its affordable pricing and personalized design, recently outnumbering shipments of phones compared to its biggest competitor, Samsung. While Samsung claims the largest market share in India’s smartphone market, Xiaomi is attempting to stake a place with its low-priced smartphones: the Redmi 1S, priced at Rs 5,999 ($100), remains equally affordable as, if not moreso than, Samsung devices like the popular Galaxy smartphones, which tend to retail well over Rs 5,999 in India.
But Xiaomi has a long road ahead if it wants India to be its next China. Only less than 1% of Xiaomi’s global smartphone units were shipped outside China during Q2 2014, according to tech intelligence firm Canalys. And a formidable competitor is approaching, too: Google has set a Sept. 15 event in India, which many expect will mark the Indian launch of a cheap Android One, according to NDTV.
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Microsoft brings Xbox PC games to NVIDIA’s GeForce Now cloud gaming service. Speaking at a press conference in Brussels today, Microsoft President Brad Smith announced the news while trying to persuade EU regulators to approve Activision Blizzard’s proposed acquisition, The Verge reported.
“Microsoft will bring its Xbox PC games to Nvidia’s GeForce Now cloud gaming service,” said Smith at The Verge’s conference of attendees. “We will also be bringing all of Activision Blizzard’s titles to GeForce Now, including Call of Duty.”
You still have to buy games individually before you can play them in GeForce Now; Streaming rights agreement 10 year agreement only. Microsoft is committed to making its games available for streaming whether you purchase them from the Windows Store, Steam or the Epic Games Store, the press release said. Microsoft’s own rival Xbox cloud gaming service or the larger Xbox Game Pass, which includes access to Xbox PC games, was not mentioned.
Microsoft also offered a similar 10-year deal to Sony regarding new Call of Duty games. But the PlayStation maker has yet to agree to this, possibly as it opposes the Activision Blizzard purchase and any Call of Duty deal would help Strengthen Microsoft’s position.
The deal comes just hours after Microsoft revealed it had signed a binding 10-year deal with Nintendo to bring Call of Duty to Nintendo platforms. Smith announced the deal earlier today and Microsoft also offered Sony a 10-year deal on the new Call of Duty game. The PlayStation manufacturer has yet to sign a deal due to Microsoft’s opposition to the Activision acquisition and any Call of Duty deal likely to help strengthen Microsoft’s position.
Both Microsoft and Sony have been hiding some studios ever since, many of which are still publishing across all platforms so you haven’t noticed. Sony has also tried to buy Square Enix – maybe even more. But you may notice that their games are still available on other platforms, with a few, mostly seasonal exceptions. Source : Microsoft President Brad Smith


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Canadian court weighs bail for jailed CFO of China's Huawei
The judge wants to hear will take responsibility for Meng's actions if she is released.
Google CEO defends 'integrity' of products ahead of testimony
CEO Sundar Pichai said he led the company 'without political bias'.
Australian watchdog wants a regulator for Google, Facebook
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission recommends a new regulatory body to check the dominance of Facebook and Google in the online advertising and news markets.
Huawei CFO seeks bail on high blood pressure concerns
Meng Wanzhou wants to be released on bail, citing her longstanding ties to Canada and fears for her health while incarcerated.


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As you may know, last night, CD Projekt RED came up with a major patch for Cyberpunk 2077. But according to some users, the game is now unplayable.
Cyberpunk 2077 patch 1.1 made the game worse for some players
Patch 1.1 of Cyberpunk 2077 fixes an issue in the mission “Down on the Street”. So, originally, Takemura needs to call you in this mission. But for some reason, he stops calling. This issue is no longer a problem with the recent patch. But now, he will call you but will not say any word. Some users say that reloading old saves or creating new save files doesn’t fix it either.
But everything has a fix in this technological era. Apparently, some users managed to find a workaround for this issue. We don’t know how they managed to find it out but they did. So if you have the patch 1.1 of Cyberpunk 2077, and cannot continue your progress on the game, you might want to try out the players around the internet found out.
In order to fix the issue that is coming up with the 1.1 patch of Cyberpunk 2077, first, you must call Judy before Takemura calls. Next, hang up the line and do a side-job. Then, wait one full day in the game. After this, you should see Takemura making that call smoothly with dialogue, as originally intended, letting you finally make progress in the mission.
This patch for Cyberpunk is just the beginning the developers say. Eventually, this update “lays the groundwork for the upcoming patches,”. So we will have to wait until February to see some big changes that will be available in the game. I am pretty sure that CD Projekt RED will manage to fix the major issues with the upcoming February update. We hope to see the title without any issues one day in the future.


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Why autocorrect makes so many mistakes, according to the former Apple engineer who helped create it
The iPhone has had autocorrect for over 10 years, why does it still make so many mistakes? We spoke with Ken Kocienda, who helped create autocorrect for Apple, to find out what's going on with autocorrect.
Eyewitness? Submit your stories now via social or:


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Mobile is the future of facility management. Business intelligence on-the-go will become central to the FM role. Here's why.
Macquarie University today launched the first phase of a university-wide reporting and analytics program, Datamart.
Business Intelligence (BI) expert and founder of Dresner Advisory Services, Howard Dresner, is set to co-host an exclusive live Webinar on Mobile BI with Glen Rabie, CEO of global BI vendor, Yellowfin.
Japanese technology manufacturer, Onkyo, has announced that it will preload its Android-based TA117 Tablet computer with Yellowfin’s Business Intelligence (BI) Android application.
International Business Intelligence (BI) software vendor, Yellowfin, has confirmed its place as a leader in Mobile BI, blitzing Howard Dresner’s latest Mobile Business Intelligence Market Study.
By Lachlan James
Melbourne based global Business Intelligence (BI) vendor, Yellowfin, has launched its new iPad application that allows full access to its easy-to-use BI solution on the move.


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In brief: It’s still going to be a while before we see fleets of flying autonomous Uber vehicles populating the skies, but the ride-hailing giant will reportedly start offering another air-based service as soon as next month: Uber Copter.
The New York Times reports that the helicopter service will start in New York City on July 9. Rides can be booked using the Uber app, but as this is a helicopter and not a car, customers will have to settle for a predetermined route: an eight-minute journey between Lower Manhattan and Kennedy International Airport. The service will only be available to the top-tier Platinum and Diamond Uber Rewards members.
Dynamic pricing means the cost will change depending on demand, but the average ride is expected to be between $200 and $225 per person. Eric Allison, head of Uber Elevate, said: “This is a trip that so many travelers make a day, and we see an opportunity to save them a huge amount of time on it.”
The helicopters hold up to five people and can be booked on demand or up to five days in advance. They will be operated by the Heliflite charter service.
Allison added that the company plans to roll out Uber Copter to other cities eventually.
Following the formation of Uber Elevate three years ago, the company unveiled its flying taxi prototype last year. Officials say the autonomous vehicles will fly at 1,000 to 2,000 feet above the ground and be quieter than helicopters. Uber plans to begin testing in 2020 ahead of a public roll-out in Dallas and Los Angeles by 2023.
Image credit: TierneyMJ via Shutterstock


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Biki struggles to keep up with bike demand, uptick in vandalism as tourism recovers
HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) - It’s no secret that Biki was struggling during the pandemic. But now that tourism is returning, the bikeshare company is dealing with a new set of problems.
Like many other organizations, Biki has been hit hard by the pandemic. Revenues were down about 50% during the first year of the pandemic. And even though demand for Biki bikes is coming back with tourism, it’s been difficult for Bikeshare Hawaii to keep up.
Executive Director Todd Boulanger said that during May 2021, rides are at 91% of what they were May 2019, compared to May 2020, when they were at 39%.
And while the company is trying to catch up, Boulanger said over 300 bikes have been vandalized during the pandemic.
Tires were slashed, bikes have been painted and frames have been bent.
Biki bikes have specialized parts that are hard to replace and even harder to get now because of the pandemic. Boulanger said that parts are up 300 to 400%.
“Luckily community members have stepped up and when they see something, they say something,” Boulanger said. “We’re actively working with HPD to identify and prosecute those individuals.”
The helpline for Biki is 888-340-2454 if someone finds a vandalized bike, or call HPD if a vandalism is in process.
Bikeshare Hawaii is also dealing with a reduced fleet. Because there is more demand for a smaller amount of bikes, bikes are working overtime.
According to Boulanger, during non-pandemic years, an average bike will see 3.2 rides a day. Now, Biki bikes are seeing over five rides per day.
“There’s also less rental cars available, so people are turning to these bikes more,” Boulanger said.
There are currently 900 bikes compared to the typical 1,100 or 1,200.
Boulanger said they are currently in active talks with the city to come up for a long-term solution for funding the bike share program.
Biki is currently looking to enroll ambassadors to connect the program to disadvantaged communities and provide them with affordable in-town transportation.
They will be taking names through the 27th. More information is available online..
Copyright 2021 Hawaii News Now. All rights reserved.


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NBA 2K18 will be adding face simulation technology on Switch after launch
One of the features NBA 2K18 has added in recent years is face simulation technology. By using a mobile app, players can bring their visual appearance into the game.
Switch owners will have access to the functionality… just not at launch. 2K wrote on its official forums that the feature will be patched in “through subsequent updates”. A specific date was not mentioned.


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Negotiations on a new agreement broke down in July after the EU and other countries blocked attempts, led by Malaysia, to include consumer electronics in the scope of tariff cuts.
WTO sources said Martin Harvey, the New Zealander chairing the negotiating committee, would decide next week whether to resume talks in an attempt to broker a deal acceptable to all sides after holding informal meetings with trade diplomats.
“There is a core group of countries that are very interested in going on, building on the preliminary results of the Information Technology Agreement (ITA). But there are others that fear that the economic crisis means they should reconsider their participation,” said one WTO official.
He added that it was still unclear to what extent countries such as Malaysia would hold out for a deal including consumer electronics.
An EU trade source said the Commission would not accept a package which included mainstream consumer products such as TVs and video recorders. “These talks are about IT equipment. We are not interested in moving in that direction,” he said. “We are looking for Malaysia to relax its demands. The problems come with the packages. If you do not have any consumer electronics, then Malaysia would block it.”He said the EU “might” accept a less ambitious deal which included “borderline products” to take the ITA forward, but stressed this would have to include cuts in tariffs on IT equipment.
The first ITA deal, signed by 39 countries and trade blocs including the EU in 1997, proposed phasing out customs duties on a wide range of IT products by the year 2000.


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Walmart is a popular pharmacy, but in recent years it has expanded its healthcare offerings. Walmart Health facilities opened in 2019 and 2020.
Since Walmart paused growth in 2021, it's added five more. All offer insured and uninsured medical, dental, and optometry treatments.
Walmart will soon provide several services for free or at a low price to attract more customers.
Chicken pox/shingles, whooping cough, Hepatitis A & B are affordable at 4,600 Walmart pharmacies across the country. These treatments might cost hundreds.
Walmart Wellness Day encourages families to become healthy and remain well by letting them know their statistics," the mega-retailer writes on its website.
Customers may learn about Walmart's health and wellness initiatives on Wellness Day.
This happens often. Walmart Wellness Days have helped consumers access free and reduced healthcare since 2014.
Since its founding, the firm has provided 4.7 million free health screenings that would otherwise need medical visits or expensive at-home tests.


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Trotec Laser celebrates a quarter of a century of company history. The high-tech company looks back with pride on an eventful 25 years and many successes and is, thanks to a clear vision, ideally positioned for the future.
25 years ago, Trotec was founded as a high-tech subsidiary of the renowned stamp manufacturer Trodat in Wels, Upper Austria. Under the leadership of Andreas Penz, the young company with start-up character quickly developed into the technology leader in laser machines for engraving, marking and cutting.
"Our goal is to make our customers' work easier, faster and more profitable. To achieve this, we do our best and continuously set new standards. Our customers should have a decisive advantage through our machines and solutions," explains Andreas Penz, managing director with the company since 1997.
Over the years, Trotec has developed a whole fleet of innovative and powerful laser systems: Stand-alone machines as well as integrated solutions for a wide variety of applications serve, among others, sign makers and engravers, architectural model makers, schools and universities, and large industrial companies with marking and cutting needs. With the introduction of the unique laser software Ruby® in 2021 Trotec revolutionized the laser industry once again.
But customers of the Upper Austrian company can rely on more than just its innovative edge. They have always been able to trust in the best advice and exceptional service. With 17 subsidiaries and 113 sales and service partners in 90 countries around the world, Trotec can live the company's focus on customer proximity with all its advantages.
More than 40,000 systems installed worldwide to date, backed by satisfied customers, prove that the Trotec brand delivers what it promises.
… "This is what drives us and is our commitment every day," explains Andreas Penz and looks confidently into the future. With good reason - the success curve is going steeply uphill. In 2021, the company achieved sales of 154 million euros and employed 741 people worldwide, around 200 of them in Austria.