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Century Financial Brokers, is a leading financial broker in the UAE, offering a vast range of investment products like FOREX, Gold, Crude Oil, Silver,Futures and Commodities, International Stock Markets, Inter-Bank Money Markets, etc. CFB, commodities, futures, forex market, forex signal,gold price today,Gold Rates,Forex Signal,
Chicago Federal Reserve Bank President Charles Evans, one of the U.S. central bank's strongest advocates for further monetary policy easing, Top Federal Reserve officials differed on whether the U.S. central bank needs to be more aggressive in spurring economic growth, indicating another round of easing is far from certain.
Euro-area finance ministers set the stage for today’s gathering in Brussels of the European Union’s 27 chiefs, approving Cyprus’s bailout and detailing how they would aid Spanish banks. Consensus breaks down on safeguarding governments in Spain and Italy, with German Chancellor Angela Merkel rejecting calls to do more to cut their borrowing costs.
Merkel is increasingly isolated as French President Francois Hollande, Italian Prime Minister Mario Montiand Spanish Premier Mariano Rajoy unite to push for quicker action to ease the crisis that emerged in Greece in late 2009.
Asian stocksrose a second day and oil climbed after bigger-than-expected gains in Japanese retail sales and U.S. housing boosted confidence in global growth. The dollar fell before a European summit on the debt crisis.
China’s benchmark stock index slid for a seventh day, the longest stretch of losses in 13 months, as concern the nation’s economic slowdown is curbing earnings growth overshadowed an improving outlook for exports to the U.S.
Gold edged up on Thursday after the euro showed some resilience ahead of a European Union summit, which is unlikely to deliver new measures to tackle the region's debt crisis and may prompt investors to turn to the safety of the U.S. dollar
Brent crude advanced a fourth day in Londonas a strike by Norwegian energy workers over pensions halted 15 percent of the country’s oil output. Futures climbed as much as 0.6 percent after closing at the highest price in a week yesterday. U.S. home sales and durable- goods orders beat forecasts in May, as a European Union ban on Iranian oil takes effect, central banks act to protect growth and on speculation OPEC will curb some of its excess supply.
Rupee, euro crisis hits gold demand in India, Weaker local currencies are weighing on golddemand from India, the world's largest consumer of the precious metal, and Indonesia, another leading Asian buyer, as traders also favour cash on concerns over deterioration in the euro zone crisis.
Japan’s retail sales rose more than forecast in May, a sign that consumer spending will help sustain a rebound in the world’s third-largest economy.
Treasuries extended a monthly loss on concern yields that are within 20 basis points of the record low will curb demand when the U.S. sells $29 billion of seven- year notes today
India may spend 300 billion rupees ($5.3 billion) tripling the length of its expressway network to ease traffic jams that are slowing trade, wasting fuel and sapping economic growth.
Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh pledged to restore confidence in Asia’s third-largest economy as he resumed control of the finance ministry after growthslowed to the weakest in almost a decade and the rupee slumped.
Amazon.com Inc. (AMZN) will make it easier for developers to add social features to games for the Kindle Fire tablet, a person with knowledge of the matter said, working to narrow Apple (AAPL)Inc.’s lead in the market for tablets.
Apple Inc. (AAPL) plans an overhaul of iTunes that would mark one of the largest changes to the world’s biggest music store since its 2003 debut, according to people with direct knowledge of the matter.
Google Inc will sell its first tablet from mid-July for $199, hoping to replicate its Smartphone success in a hotly contested market now dominated by Amazon.com Inc's Kindle Fire and Apple Inc's iPad.
Google Inc expects to roll out a consumer version of its electronic eyewear that can live-stream images and audio and perform computing tasks in less than two years, though it stopped short of putting a price tag on the "smart" glasses.


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Starbucks' latest earnings report shows the coffee giant's true master plan, CNBC's Jim Cramer said Friday.
"They're Pinky and the Brain. They want to take over the world," Cramer said on "Squawk on the Street," referring to characters of the animated television series.
Cramer added that the company may very well be on its way to world domination as same-store sales in the Americas and China rose 8 percent and 11 percent, respectively.
"I know everybody's worried about China … but maybe when the stock market crashes you drink more coffee because the China acceleration is extraordinary," he said.
Starbucks posted fiscal third-quarter results that beat Wall Street expectations on both the top and bottom lines. The company posted earnings per share of 42 cents on revenue of $4.88 billion.
Analysts expected the company to post earnings per share of 41 cents a share on revenue of $4.86 billion.
Starbucks shares opened sharply higher.

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When you absolutely, positively need a limousine in five minutes
A company whose smartphone app allows users to summon a limousine within five minutes is officially launching its service in Philadelphia this week.
It’s called Uber Technologies Inc., at least in the United States, and one of its first funders was West Conshohocken-based First Round Capital, which put in $500,000 a year and a half ago.
San Francisco-based Uber has gone on to raise $50 million from such top-shelf venture-capital firms and angel investors as Benchmark Capital and Menlo Ventures, both of which are based in Menlo Park, Calif., and Jeff Bezos, the founder and CEO of Seattle-based Amazon.com.
Its Philadelphia launch and soon-to-follow San Diego launch will put it in 12 cities — the seven others in the United States are its home town, Seattle, Los Angeles, Chicago, Boston, New York and Washington, D.C. Uber is also in Vancouver, Toronto and Paris, and will launch in London in a few weeks, according to its CEO and founder, Travis Kalanick, who was in Philadelphia on Tuesday for events related to its launch in the city.
Kalanick, a serial entrepreneur who’s from Los Angeles but lives in San Francisco, said the difficulty of obtaining vehicular transportation in the city by the bay was what gave him the idea for Uber.
“I want to just push a button and get a ride,” he recalled saying to himself, “and I’d really like it to be a classy ride.”
Uber users sign up at the company’s website, where they input the number of the credit card they want to be charged for their rides.
From then on, they can summon limos by using the company’s app, visiting its website or sending it a text message. They don’t even have to worry about tipping their drivers; Uber includes tips in the amounts it bills to their cards.
Peter covers education, energy, labor, technology and venture capital.
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We're thrilled to announce the return of GamesBeat Next, hosted in San Francisco this October, where we will explore the theme of "Playing the Edge." Apply to speak here and learn more about sponsorship opportunities here. At the event, we will also announce 25 top game startups as the 2024 Game Changers. Apply or nominate today!
As part of its financial results today, Sony revealed that lifetime sales for PlayStation 4 have now passed 110.4 million consoles.
That number was at 108.9 million in February. The PS4 came out back in 2013. Today, the console is on its last legs, with the PlayStation 5 set to release later this year.
During the previous financial quarter, January to March, Sony sold 1.5 million PlayStation 4 consoles. That is down from the 2.6 million machines that Sony moved during the same period last year, showing how sales for PS4 are slowing as many hold out for the newer hardware (or already have a Sony console). But the PS4 isn’t done yet. Major exclusives, like The Last of Us Part II and Ghost of Tsushima are releasing this summer.
PlayStation 4 has been a big hit, becoming the No. 2 best-selling home console of all time. It is behind the PlayStation 2, which sold around 155 million machines. Sadly for the PS4, it looks unlikely to pass its older brother.
GamesBeat Next 2023
Join the GamesBeat community in San Francisco this October 24-25. You’ll hear from the brightest minds within the gaming industry on latest developments and their take on the future of gaming.
Maybe that’s a task for PS5. And while Sony admitted that the ongoing pandemic has “presented some challenges,” the new console is still set to launch this holiday season.
GamesBeat's creed when covering the game industry is "where passion meets business." What does this mean? We want to tell you how the news matters to you -- not just as a decision-maker at a game studio, but also as a fan of games. Whether you read our articles, listen to our podcasts, or watch our videos, GamesBeat will help you learn about the industry and enjoy engaging with it. Discover our Briefings.


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Commit to three months of Sling TV, and get a free Fire TV Stick or $50 off the Fire TV set-top box.
There's no need to wait for Microsoft's official TV tuner; this obscure $35 box does a fine job on its own.
A new Kickstarter campaign aims to take the shock out of energy bills by letting you choose how much you want to spend.
After fending off privacy concerns around voice recognition in its smart TVs, Samsung is facing new complaints about ads appearing in users' video streams.
Crafty users can still install an older version to get around Dish's arbitrary restrictions.
As Netflix's original content war with Amazon intensifies, it's tapping the director of Moulin Rouge! and The Great Gatsby for a new drama.
We've seen projector phones tablets and cameras before, but none of those creations seem quite as logical as the projector boombox.
Ever wish you could watch the Weird Al Show or Mystery Science Theater 3000 again? ShoutFactoryTV brings it to phones, set-top boxes, and more for free.
You might think of YouTube as merely a place for snack-sized videos, but these tips can turn it into a cord-cutting powerhouse.
Sonos is appealing to jazz aficionados with a limited-edition Blue Note speaker, though the window of opportunity to get one is slim.
Flush with $1 million in Kickstarter cash, Neeo wants to be the first smart home remote that won't scare the heck out of normal people.
Though it's hardly the first plant sensor on the market, Daisy aims to undercut its rivals on price.
Several studies show upwards of 10 percent average energy savings when using Nest, though actual savings depends on many factors.
Yet another network de-couples from cable, with a streaming service aimed at mobile devices.


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ETtech Morning Dispatch on Feb 26, 2021: India's new digital media rules
Here's a look at the top tech news to start your day.
Govt notifies new rules governing digital media
The move expected to significantly alter the way social media firms such as Google, Facebook and Twitter as well as streaming services Netflix and Amazon Prime operate in the country
ET Edit: News is different, treat it differently
It is strange that news, which is largely responsible and is already under regulation, gets ...
Knowledge, innovation to be pillars of India Inc's talent drive
The rapid pace of change in the technology environment has made learnability extremely important, while deep domain knowledge continues to be critical.
Infosys transformed digitally before doing it for clients, says Nandan Nilekani
Infosys’ existing infrastructure for remote working helped it turnaround faster during the pandemic, Chairman Nandan Nilekani says at the launch of a new book — ‘The Live Enterprise’.
Cryptocurrency: India cannot afford to ignore new technologies when the world is fast embracing them
Crypto asset traders, investors and entrepreneurs have been concerned ever since GoI announced that it would consider passing the Cryptocurrency and Regulation of Official Digital Currency Bill in Parliament.
Breaking free from the digital world: SupplyNote CEO follows a 30-mins 'no electronics' routine
During this time, Kushang Kumar avoids using phones, earphones or laptop.
Sunil Bharti Mittal looks to make digital unit a parallel company to Airtel
Bharti Airtel itself has pivoted into a technology company, he said, and has emerged stronger from a bloody tariff battle since the entry of Reliance Jio in September 2016, with a roughly 35% revenue market share, its highest ever.
Close to 90% firms will invest in tech in response to Covid-19: Report
The survey also said that 88% of organizations already have a formal digital transformation strategy in place, and 57% have a roadmap for the same.
ITC constitutes ‘Young Digital Innovators Lab’ to drive digital transformation
This will comprise digital specialists drawn from across ITC’s businesses to crowdsource transformative digital strategies.
ETILC: How leaders from the tech sector look at strategic technological change
ETILC sub-committee can successfully petition and work with the government to expedite permanent policies and regulatory notifications at all levels to enable WFH a universal reality.
Covid has accelerated digital transformation process: Satya Nadella
Digital technology has become a lot more pervasive across industries through the pandemic, Nadella said.
India to witness boom in digital reality as immersive technologies gain popularity: Deloitte
India likely to witness broad-based cloud adoption across the government and public sectors, large corporates, Small and Medium Businesses (SMBs) and start-ups.
Telecom and technology: The pathway to $5 trillion economy is no more a secret
While many of us await the February 1 annual budget announcements to spur revival, the Covid era has brought telecom to the centre stage. Digital aspirations are ripe and have a board mandate to transform.
IT companies to see double-digit growth on mega deal wins
Goldman Sachs estimates that the double-digit growth momentum driven by large-scale shifts (of applications) to the cloud, building applications for the cloud native world and collaboration between IT vendors and customers to build new solutions could usher in the “third wave of IT outsourcing”.


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The container shipping industry seldom makes the mainstream news, but when it does, the news is rarely good. Such was the case in 2021 when the industry hit the headlines twice: first because of the grounding of the container liner Ever Given in the Suez Canal, then because of port congestion on the U.S. West Coast and the resulting supply chain disruption around the world. Neither story generated positive coverage for the industry.
But if 2021 was an annus horribilis for the container shipping industry, most of its senior executives would happily accept a rerun in 2022. Container liners did more in 2021 than merely recover from their prepandemic slump—they posted results unprecedented in the history of the industry. The carriers in our study reported combined earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) of $82 billion—up 387 percent from 2020 and 16 times greater than the prepandemic year of 2019. Combined revenue topped $265 billion—up 46 percent from 2020 and 55 percent from 2019—thanks to surging cargo volumes and a 200 percent increase in rates to six times prepandemic levels, according to the Shanghai Containerized Freight Index Comprehensive Container Freight Rate Index as referenced by Clarksons Research.
The fundamentals that set the stage for 2021’s stellar performance include tight capacity brought about by five years of consolidation and the formation of three global alliances controlling more than 80 percent of capacity; ongoing demolition of older vessels; and dwindling orders for newbuilds. Carriers resumed ordering new tonnage in 2021 and the first new vessels will arrive in 2022-23, adding to the industry’s capacity just as trade volumes might be turning lower.
As they await delivery, carriers must address the industry’s abysmal service record. On-time reliability hit a historic low in the third quarter of 2021, falling to 34 percent from a recent high above 80 percent, according to Sea-Intelligence. Clogged ports, delayed deliveries and empty store shelves became staples of evening news broadcasts, prompting the White House to intervene to try to break the logjam at West Coast ports.
Carriers, nonetheless, are driving hard bargains in their contract negotiations with shippers, imposing record-high rates and stiff penalties for noncompliance with contract terms.
Although many factors driving port congestion in 2021 are outside carriers’ direct control, they will have to address certain structural elements, including:
- COVID-19 spikes that continue to constrain labor supplies at many container terminals, which have a backlog of vessels waiting to berth;
- low chassis availability within the U.S., with little expectation of immediate relief in 2022, according to the Journal of Commerce;
- limited labor availability at warehouses, road freight providers and drayage providers, among others; and
- rail congestion caused by surging demand after two years of low volume.
Putting the windfall to work
How do carriers intend to invest their record earnings? Evidence from the marketplace suggests most container lines are taking one of four pathways to growth and financial health:
Acquisitions and expansion. Carriers committed $21 billion to acquisitions and share buybacks in 2021. Logistics providers were the principal acquisition targets as carriers sought to integrate ocean freight services with landside services at the destination or point of origin. Air freight operators were the next-most-frequent targets, the Wall Street Journal reported.
Balance-sheet repair. The profit surge slashed the industry’s leverage ratio (calculated as earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA)/total debt) from 8.5x in 2019 to 0.8x at year-end 2021, while interest coverage rose to 19.8x in 2021 from 0.73x in 2019. But carriers have put only $10 billion toward reducing debt, preferring instead to borrow to fund fleet expansion. Nearly 6 million 20-foot equivalent units (TEUs) of capacity are being readied for delivery in the next few years. In the past, such profit-fueled buying sprees saddled carriers with excess capacity and onerous debt loads when the economic cycle turned.
Cash increases. The ocean carriers in our study increased their cash reserves by $43 billion in 2021—up 178 percent from 2019—to $67 billion. How they choose to deploy those funds largely will determine which carriers will be best prepared for the next turn in the cycle.
Stakeholder rewards. Approximately $4.6 billion of the windfall is on the way back to shareholders through either dividends or share repurchases. Some liners also are paying employee bonuses—equal to 40 months’ salary in some cases, as reported by Taiwan News.
Causes for concern
While container liners are making the most of their current prosperity, today’s supply-demand mismatch could flip, possibly beginning as soon as 2023. That’s why industry leaders are closely watching several trends and developments:
Expanded capacity. As previously noted, the 2021 order book for new vessels more than doubled from 2020’s record low level. Even if liners limit their appetites for new tonnage, the supply of vessels likely will increase 23 percent by 2025, exerting downward pressure on rates.
Materials costs. The prices of inputs such as steel, steel scrap and components have more than doubled from prepandemic levels and likely won’t ease in 2022, according to an article in The Maritime Executive. Newbuild prices themselves rose 26 percent to 28 percent in 2021, according to Clarksons 2021 Shipping Market Review, and prices of secondhand vessels rose 200 percent according to VesselsValue Ltd.Additionally, container prices are climbing.
Labor uncertainty. Collective bargaining with unions on the U.S. West Coast will launch in mid-2022, and negotiations could lead to labor slowdowns and port congestion.
The persisting pandemic also will affect labor availability and productivity. The omicron variant of the coronavirus that causes COVID-19 drove a sharp increase in infections in China, Germany, the U.S. and Vietnam in the fourth quarter of 2021 and further localized outbreaks could lead to port closures and reduced labor availability, Quartz reported.
Government action on supply chains. Governments around the world are working to relieve the supply chain crisis. In addition, shippers are pressing legal claims of price gouging by carriers in China and Europe, according to Freightwaves. Any remedial measures taken likely will have little direct effect on rates but eventually could reduce wait times at ports and improve reliability.
Regulatory pressure on emissions. The International Maritime Organization (IMO) is pressing carriers to reduce their carbon and sulfur emissions. The addition of larger, more efficient vessels to fleets plying key trade lanes will help reduce the industry’s carbon intensity per TEU. As for sulfur emissions, the industry already is moving away from high-sulfur bunker fuel, driven by the implementation in 2030 of much tighter IMO limits on sulfur emissions.
Liners will have to choose a dual-fuel option for their newbuilds—most likely either liquid natural gas or methanol. The wrong bet will be hugely expensive and difficult to rectify. Carriers also will have to reserve capital to retrofit their existing fleets for dual-fuel consumption once the industry agrees on a common standard.
Demand trends also bear watching. Consider the following contingencies:
Falling corporate profits. If earnings go into reverse, higher shipping rates could deter some shippers from manufacturing or importing some lower value goods. And earnings might already be on the downswing. For the first time since the second quarter of 2020, the number of companies offering negative quarterly earnings guidance now exceeds the number of companies offering positive guidance, according to analysis from FactSet.
Slowdown in consumer spending and demand. Consumer outlays dropped for six consecutive months in the second half of 2021, according to the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, as durable-goods demand eased. Spending on durables might have peaked already for the cycle.
Consumer income erosion. The phaseout of government payments to consumers in the U.S. and the EU could lead to a falloff in discretionary spending. In addition, recent wage increases in the U.S. and Europe trail the inflation rate, which could further depress demand. Finally, the U.S. and U.K. central banks have committed to several interest rate hikes in 2022, which already has restricted the availability of capital.
Regionalization of supply chains. The supply chain stresses of 2020 and 2021 are driving business to bring key links in goods supply chains closer to home. The relocation is underway in the EU and the U.S., with much of the shift in U.S. supply chains toward Mexico. The relocation of supply chains also is increasing volumes shipped along second- and third-tier lanes to secondary ports.
The rate environment itself is in flux. In previous years, one-year contracts were the norm and big importers routinely won concessions on accessorial fees. Contract enforcement was lax, and most carriers were willing to serve inland points. But liners in 2022 are looking for two- to three-year contracts and are reluctant to waive accessorial fees and grant extra concessions. They want to penalize importers for failing to meet contract obligations and are much less willing to move containers inland.
Although the bulk of the industry’s earnings are flowing to container ship owners, freight forwarders and logistics companies likely will prosper as well. Newly formed or enhanced relationships with carriers will improve their value propositions and secure volume as demand normalizes. Freight forwarders and logistics firms will accelerate automating their operations given labor scarcity and productivity challenges.
Shippers and importers still will have to contend with elevated shipping rates. In addition to passing their higher costs through to customers, shippers are optimizing container use and more aggressively managing the key drivers of transportation costs. More shippers will try to negotiate variable rates in their long-term shipping agreements.
Bracing for a downturn
After a decade of dismal returns, container liners are taking advantage of their pricing leverage while it lasts and deploying their massive cash hoards cautiously, as if bracing for another 10-year slump, and for good reason. When the economic cycle turns, hard-pressed shippers will have little inclination to offer carriers concessions or refrain from demanding rate relief. Container shipping executives might want to bear in mind that in their relationships with customers, just as in their investment allocations, the decisions they make today will reverberate for years to come. More money does indeed bring problems of its own.


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Japan’s Fast Retailing announced on 4th March it plans to reduce prices of items at its Uniqlo and GU location throughout Japan.
SEE ALSO : H&M collaborates with Chinese brand PRONOUNCE
The fashion and apparel conglomerate said prices at its masthead retailer Uniqlo and sister retailer, GU, will be slashed by 9 per cent in Japan, as local consumers continue to face “unprecedented difficulties because of the coronavirus pandemic.”
The company also said its price tags and displays will be fixed to be tax inclusive, to spare customers the bother of making calculations, meaning each shopper will just pay the amount indicated on the tag. The price changes will come into effect on 12th March.
“By keeping the prices of as many items as possible unchanged, and offering LifeWear at tax-inclusive, affordable prices, we hope to remain an integral part of the everyday lives of our customers. This is our mission, and the significance of our existence as an
apparel company,” said Tadashi Yanai, chairman, president and CEO of Fast Retailing.
In Fast Retailing’s most recent trading update last week, Unqilo’s February same-store sales including online sales increased by 0.4% year on year, while total sales including online sales increased by 1.3%.
Same-store sales rose year on year in February, “on the back of strong sales of products designed to satisfy stay-at-home demand and buoyant sales of Spring outerwear and items manufactured using our Cut and Sew process,” said the Tokyo-based company.
At the end of February, a total of five Uniqlo stores remained temporarily closed and 172 stores were operating shorter working hours due to Covid-19. During the month of February, three Uniqlo stores were launched and two were permanently closed, it said.
SEE ALSO : Japanese supermarket chain KINOKUNIYA opens pop-up store in Singapore
Japanese retail sales fell 2.4% in January from a year earlier, government data showed in late February. That compared with a median market forecast for a 2.6% decline, according to Reuters.


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Friday, November 29, 2013 10:04 IST
The hunt for KamaSutra Miss Maxim 2014 finally ended today in a star studded grand finale at Hilton Hotel in Mumbai. Swapnila Gupta was crowned KamaSutra Miss Maxim 2014 and has bagged a movie project along with a Car and will also be featured on the cover of men's lifestyle magazine Maxim. Chandrika Ravi was the first runner up and Kangna Sharma was the second runner ups.
The pageant was judged by esteemed jury members including famous designers Rocky S and Nishka Lulla along with actor Prachi Desai, film producer Bunty Walia, fashion photographer Subi Samuel, nutritionist Radhika Karle, model Priyanka Bose and Maxim's editor Vivek Pareek.
- Tuesday, June 27, 2017 Salman’s ‘Tubelight’ is second best opening of 2017!
|Salman Khan's much-awaited movie 'Tubelight' has released, and as expected, the movie has got a rave opening at the box office.|
- Tuesday, June 27, 2017 Here's the first look of 'Aksar 2', Have you seen the trap?
|After making quite a buzz in 2006, 'Aksar' is back with its sequel, starring Zareen Khan and Gautam Rode.|
- Tuesday, June 27, 2017 Guess what was Shraddha's first job?
|Knowing Shraddha Kapoor today, a popular name from the film industry, one would not be able to guess what the actress' first job was.|
- Tuesday, June 27, 2017 Aamir Khan's painful transformation for Thugs of Hindostan
|Aamir Khan who is well known to fall into the skin of his character has undergone some painful measures for his upcoming flick.|


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Poynter is reporting that Facebook is the most visited website, most searched term on the internet and valued at $50 billion. Experian Hitwise has all the stats on most popular websites and search terms for the past year.
Last year Facebook came in third behind Google and Yahoo Mail as most visited websites. Variations of Facebook account for four of the top 10 spots on the list most search terms on the internet. But I didn't need a press release to know Facebook's presence on the Internet was bigger than big. I realized it when I got a friend request from my 75-year-old grandfather this year.
Another fun fact: Kim Kardashian was the most searched personality in 2010.


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Shoppers at Tesco in Somerset will not face a reduction in the value of Clubcard vouchers until June, after a public backlash to proposed changes.
Tesco is delaying changes to its Clubcard rewards scheme after an outcry from customers who objected to a cut to the value of vouchers without warning.
The UK's largest retailer said it had listened to customer feedback and had decided to delay the introduction of the changes until June 10.
Tesco wrote to its millions of Clubcard customers earlier this week to say it had "simplified" the scheme with effect from January 15 to make it more straightforward to use by offering three times the value of their vouchers with more than 100 scheme partners as the standard offer.
It said it was ending those which offered twice the value and four times the value, including some of the most popular deals such as meals at Pizza Express, Prezzo and Zizzi.
The announcement was immediately met with criticism that customers would gain less from their points and were given no prior warning.
Tesco said any customers who had already redeemed vouchers at three times the value "will not lose out" and should contact its customer service centre.
Tesco has around 16 million active Clubcard customers, according to figures released at its half-year results announcement.
Customers reacted with anger to the original changes, with one writing on Twitter: "We had £89 saved up in vouchers - worth £356. Now they are worth £267.
"No advance warning, really really poor from @Tesco #tescoclubcard - been loyal Tesco customers for well over 10 years - because of clubcard. And what a load of BS about 'making it easier'."
Another wrote: "All clubcard boosts going to 3x. Everything we chose was 4x so this is a big reduction. But highlight was the inane corporate-speak lathered over the announcement...'this is not a reduction in boosts, oh no, this is TO MAKE IT EASIER FOR YOU TO UNDERSTAND' How dumb are we?"
Anika Newjoto, the editor of website shopperpoints.co.uk, said Tesco's original move devalued the scheme and did not give customers time to spend their saved vouchers at the old rates.
She said only a small number of Clubcard partners gave twice the face value of vouchers, including National Express, redspottedhanky and Megabus, which are all now going up to three times face value.
She said: "Loyalty schemes are meant to work two ways, not one way.
"If a shopper gives their business to a store based on the promise of certain rewards, it is totally unfair for those rewards to be taken away or reduced in value with absolutely no notice."
Email your thoughts to email@example.com if you have a view.
Want news straight to your phone?Somerset Live has launched a WhatsApp group to help you keep up to date with the latest news from across the county. If you'd like to receive breaking news alerts, text NEWS to 07834 893492. Then add the number to your phone contacts book as 'Somerset Live’. We will send you a maximum of four messages a day. Your phone number won't be shared with other members of the group or be used for any other purpose.


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Not all heroes they say wear capes and this right here is the story of one, who in the space of days, changed the fortune of a road side shawarma seller, Dolapo, who he patronized.
Twitter user, @badt_BOI_ who is the hero of the day has just giving a clear picture of what being an influencer really is.
Widely known by his over 40K followers as a portrait artist, @badt_BOI_ had visited Dolapo’s mini Shawarma stand which is located at Ojuelegba under bridge three days ago and was pretty satisfied with the quality of what he got at even a good price.
Being his kind of guy, @badt_BOI_ took some pictures of Dolapo’s stand and went on to notify his followers of the miracle of getting a quality Shawarma at just a price of #500.
From there on, Dolapo began gaining more customers than usual, all thanks to @badt_BOI_’s recommendation.
— ʀօօɮօʏ® (@only1rooboy) November 15, 2018
— Valar Dohaeris…..Valar Moghulis✌🇳🇬 (@Haleeboi) November 15, 2018
— Ayodamola Darmiielare (@darmiielare) November 15, 2018
— mayor of unilag (@akinsma36) November 15, 2018
Well, it didn’t end there, yesterday @badt_BOI_ suggested his followers help get Dolapo much larger stand and moreso, since he works under someone, he can as well become his own boss.
Surprisingly, it’s paying off and very soon, Dolapo might just be the owner of one of the biggest Shawarma outlet in Lagos.


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KRALENDIJK- The Public Entity Bonaire (OLB) gives what it describes as temporary permission for the increase in the prices of eggs produced on Bonaire.
This is a price increase of 75 cents per dozen eggs. A box will now cost 3 dollars and 53 cents. The producers on the island had previously announced a price increase due to increased production costs.
The OLB said in a press release on Monday that it considers it important that local producers can continue to produce cost-effectively. At the same time, it wishes to ensure that the price increases cited by the producers are not temporary.
The temporary permission for the price increase is valid for three months. After these three months, the Executive Council wants to reassess the situation.


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Consumers' fears about the dangers of talking on mobile phones while driving are pushing the industry to step up efforts to provide safer products and services, government and business officials say.
The industry has responded so well that a Bucks County state legislator might soften his proposed law that would limit drivers' use of wireless phones.
State Sen. Joe Conti's announcement Thursday came hours after a Philadelphia councilman proposed to restrict the use of hand-held cell phones while driving, and days after the first citation was issued in Hilltown Township for driving while talking on a wireless phone.
Awareness of customers' concerns about safety and wireless phone use is not new to the industry, said Lisa Ihde, a spokeswoman for the Cellular Telecommunications Industry Association.
But recent developments show "these companies to be leaders in the industry, and show they are listening to their customers," Ihde said.
Among the developments are dramatically reduced prices for equipment that converts typical wireless phones into hands-free devices, and Bell Atlantic Mobile's demand that manufacturers produce a "universal jack" to make hands-free devices more affordable.
"We've always been proponents of safety and safe driving," said Nancy Stark, a spokeswoman for Bell Atlantic Mobile, the largest wireless network in the eastern United States with 7.7 million customers.
Bell Atlantic Mobile started a program Feb. 1 that includes a commitment to sell only wireless phones that are adaptable to `hands-free capabilities." The company has reduced the price of many of those hands-free accessories prices now start at $14.99 instead of $30 to $50 and offers a voice-activated dialing option that requires pressing just two buttons to call.
"We introduced this program to make the new technology more available and affordable, and to raise the level of awareness among our customers," Stark said.
In addition, Bell Atlantic Mobile told manufacturers that future phones it sells must have a universal jack, which would allow hands-free devices to work with any Bell Atlantic Mobile phone.
The company said it will require manufacturers of its hands-free devices to produce wireless phones with voice-activated dialing within two years so that users can make calls without pressing any buttons.
AT&T Wireless has implemented a similar plan, cutting the starting price of hands-free devices to $19.99 and agreeing to sell only wireless phones that are adaptable to hands-free capabilities.
"We did this in response to our customers," said Kathleen Dominick, director of public affairs for AT&T Wireless Services. "They were looking for greater convenience, and they also felt safer with the hands-free devices. The demand was so high, we felt it appropriate to make it more affordable to everyone."
Studies do not show that drivers are safer with hands-free devices.
"We're not saying to consumers that this is safer if they use a hands-free device, " said Ihde. "`But you may feel more comfortable using that, and if you are, it creates a better environment."
Mark Burris, a research associate with the University of South Florida's Center for Urban Transportation Research, agreed.
"We have done a study here focusing on whether talking on a cell phone while driving increases your risk of having an accident, and the findings are that it does," said Burris. "The study also showed very little safety advantage to using the hands-free device.
"It's a concentration issue. You have your two hands on the wheel, but your mind is still on the phone conversation and not on the driving."
Burris also said drivers should use common sense. That includes not rushing to answer an incoming call -- which he said is the most dangerous time to use a cell phone, because the call is unexpected -- and pulling over or waiting until a red light to make a call.
"If people are thinking more before they make their phone calls, I think that would go a long way to reducing the number of accidents," Burris said.
Local legislators believe limiting the use of handheld cell phones is a good start. It has been the goal of proposals in Hilltown, Conshohocken, Philadelphia and Harrisburg.
Hilltown became the second municipality in the country to adopt a law limiting mobile phone use. The ordinance was proposed in the weeks after 2-year-old Morgan Lee Pena of Perkasie was killed Nov. 2 when a motorist dialing a cell phone ran a stop sign. The township adopted the new mobile phone ordinance in December.
The Penas could not be reached for comment Thursday.
Hilltown Police Chief Kerry Trauger said an officer issued the township's first cell phone citation Feb. 10 after Dan Young, 42, of Fleetwood was pulled over on Route 309 for speeding and suspected drunken driving.
"When the officer approached the car, he realized (Young ) was not drinking but was on his cell phone," Trauger said. "Apparently the guy stayed on the cell phone even as he was being pulled over."


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There’s another piece to the jigsaw that, broadly coinciding with the pandemic, has proven very timely for the explosion of interest in retail media. And that’s the privacy challenge to the way digital advertising networks have hitherto collected and used consumer data for targeting and personalisation.
Compared to traditional offline advertising, the fact that digital advertising can be targeted at web users based on their online behaviour is of enormous value to brands. It significantly raises click-throughs and conversion rates, making ad spend much more efficient.
But the way user behaviour is tracked for such purposes has come under severe scrutiny in recent years. In the wake of far-reaching digital privacy regulations like the GDPR in Europe, major internet players have taken the decision to clamp down on the collection of personal data. In particular, so-called ‘third-party’ tracking cookies - the type used by ad networks - will no longer be supported by major browsers such as Chrome and Safari.
This has far-reaching implications for the digital advertising industry. But it is by no means the end of personalised, targeted advertising, nor is it the end of behaviour tracking and cookies.
Consumers are not against their digital behaviour being tracked per se. In fact, as far as getting personalised experiences goes, they appreciate the benefits. When shopping online, receiving personalised product selections and offers etc based on previous purchases, or picking up on products you were browsing last time as soon as you land on a site, contributes to higher customer satisfaction. People are generally happy to share data with the sites they visit in exchange for these kinds of benefits.
What they don’t like is the idea of hidden entities - such as external advertising networks - also collecting their data and using it for purposes that are not entirely clear to them.
This all adds a whole new level of value to personal data that businesses collect directly, with informed user consent. Third-party data is out, but first-party data - i.e. that collected by the sites users visit - is in. And retailers are awash with this kind of data.
Arguably more so than high margins, more than the pandemic-inspired dash to digital, this shift explains the meteoric rise we’re witnessing in retail media. It explains why demand from brands to buy advertising on retailer-owned networks is rocketing - retailers now control the consumer data that will allow them to continue targeting their campaigns.
There are other benefits to brands in advertising directly on the channels where they also sell. Running sales and marketing on the same platform shortens the journey from promotion through to conversion. Consumers favour short, simple shopping journeys like this. But from a brand’s perspective, it also makes it easier to attribute sales to specific ads. The more accurately you know which ads are driving conversions and which are not, the better you can optimise your campaigns and your ad spend.
Access to consumer data in the privacy-first age, continued personalisation and better analytics give brands a reason to take the retail media offer seriously. As a result, according to Forrester, between 70% and 90% of brands believe retail media will play a significant role in their future growth.


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Belkin is a company known for its wireless chargers. Devialet is known for its high-end, ultra loud speakers. And at CES 2020, the two companies announced that they’ll be partnering on a new product, the $299 Soundform Elite Hi-Fi Smart Speaker + Wireless Charger, which combines a Google Assistant-powered smart speaker with a wireless charging pad.
The Soundform Elite isn’t the first Devialet partnership on a smart speaker — Huawei announced its Xiaoyi voice assistant-powered Sound X speaker last year, which also relies on technology from the French speaker company. But Belkin’s speaker (unlike Huawei’s) will be available outside of China, marking the first widely available smart speaker based on Devialet’s hardware.tech, The Verge, The Verge - All Posts


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This week, Governor Jim Justice (R-W. Va.) proposed the Just Cut Taxes and Win (JCTAW) Act, a bill that would reduce the business tangible property tax imposed on many businesses in the state of West Virginia. Over six years, the bill would reduce taxes by about $420 million, specifically on manufacturing businesses. Bill proponents argue that the JCTAW is designed to bring manufacturing jobs back to West Virginia and make the state more competitive for manufacturing.
The JCTAW Act would start by phasing out the $140 million business tangible personal property (TPP) tax on industrial machinery, equipment and inventory over a period of six years, with the tax permanently eliminated in Fiscal Year 2026. The current tax rate is between 2% – 3% (depending on the county the business is in) on 60% of the market value of the business property.
West Virginia is one of only fourteen states that taxes industrial business inventory and has the fifth highest TPP tax among those states. The tax is especially harmful to attracting businesses that offer high paying, middle class manufacturing jobs because it makes equipment ownership unnecessarily expensive. In fact, a Tax Foundation policy report found that the TPP tax causes business investment to “flow out of jurisdictions with high tax rates into jurisdictions with lower tax rates.” This puts West Virginia at a major disadvantage compared to non-TPP tax states like Ohio, Wisconsin, and Pennsylvania when it comes to attracting manufacturing jobs from states with less than friendly business climates across the United States.
The JCTAW Act is especially timely given the long-term trend of states such as Ohio, Florida, and Arizona moving to reduce or eliminate their TPP taxes. As this trend continues, and unless West Virginia acts, the state will fall further behind other states in attracting business investment if it fails to eliminate the TPP tax sooner rather than later.
ATR strongly supports Governor Justice’s and the legislature’s effort to deliver a win to West Virginia businesses and workers through the Just Cut Taxes and Win Act.


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Congratulations to 104 West’s Patrick Ward, who was named as one of Business Insider’s “Top 50 PR People in the Tech Industry.”
104 West has added FlixMaster and SDL as clients. FlixMaster is the developer of an enterprise online video platform and SDL Campaign Management & Analytics works with global brands to predict what customers want and engage with them to improve customer experiences.
Congratulations to 104 West, which is celebrating its 10th Anniversary this month.
104 West Partners has opened a Media Relations Bureau in San Francisco to offer increased contact for its national clients with the major tech press corps based in Silicon Valley and the Bay Area. Alissa Bushnell, a 20-year tech PR veteran, has joined 104 West and will lead the firm’s presence in San Francisco.
104 West has added four clients: HomeSnap, SpotRight, willbeHired and Agencyport.


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The world’s largest sporting-goods provider stuck mainly to the 92-year-old NFL’s traditional look as it begins a five-year licensing deal that may add $500 million in annual revenue, according to Chris Svezia, an analyst for Susquehanna Financial Group in New York.
Nike took over the NFL clothing license on April 1 after Adidas AG (ADS)’s Reebok unit had it for more than a decade. The switch to Nike has generated more interest in NFL apparel from fans, and has retailers raising sales expectations as the maker of Air Jordan basketball shoes puts more marketing behind the license than Reebok, Svezia said yesterday in an interview.
“The bottom line is it’s a freshening of the uniforms that’s going to drive interest,” he said. While the NFL license won’t have a major effect for a company of Nike’s size, it gives the brand more exposure to a large and passionate group of consumers, he said. Nike generated $23.4 billion in sales in the 12 months through February.
The Super Bowl-champion New York Giants’ mostly red, white and blue uniforms were unchanged as Nike showed its apparel for the NFL’s 32 teams at a studio in Brooklyn made to look like a football field. The New York Jets’ green and white uniforms also will stay the same.
The Seattle Seahawks, owned by Microsoft Corp. co-founder Paul Allen, were the only team that asked for a redesign, according to Erin Patterson, a Nike spokeswoman. The team will wear deep blue, and have silver numbers and wide silver shoulder stripes, both with lime-green piping. The pants also will have a stripe of stylized wings down the side of the leg.
The Denver Broncos will switch to an orange jersey from navy. Nike expects more teams to revamp their uniforms in the coming years, said Charlie Denson, president of the Nike brand.
The addition of the NFL license will add to sales in North America, where Nike increased revenue 17 percent in its largest market to $2.15 billion in the quarter ended Feb. 29. The company doesn’t break out sales of football products. Orders for NFL apparel have exceeded the company’s expectations, Denson said.
The uniforms are lighter and have more stretch that will improve a player’s mobility, according to the company.
“The difference is in the feel, and it’s lighter,” said Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Michael Vick, one of 32 players on hand to represent each team and wearing his new uniform for the first time. “I don’t know if it will make me faster, but I hope so.”
Nike was more unconventional with its college uniforms, putting a feather print on the shoulders of University of Oregon’s Ducks and a lizard-skin print on the pants of Texas Christian University’s Horned Frogs.
Nike’s popularity in the college game should immediately translate into NFL sales, according to Brian Swallow, senior vice president of strategy and business development for Fanatics LLC. Fanatics, a Jacksonville, Florida-based company that is the largest retailer of licensed team sports merchandise in the U.S., runs the official online store of the NFL.
“A lot of fans, at least in the college side of our business, have passion for Nike,” Swallow said. “They say they’ll only buy Nike, so the brand itself already commands a large following.”
Reebok had to adjust its buying strategy last year to reflect the final year of its NFL deal, company spokesman Dan Sarro said last week in an e-mailed statement. Swallow said that Reebok’s conservative approach to 2011, the new tailored fit of the Nike jerseys, and their higher prices — Reebok’s base replica cost $85; the Nike equivalent will be $100 — may result in jersey sales doubling this season as opposed to 2011.
“A lot of fans have been holding off on buying a brand that was going to be on the outs, so we’re going to see a very frenetic pace in Nike sales as soon as we roll them out,” he said. “When you blend all the Nike products together, I think we would be disappointed with anything less than a 30 to 40 percent increase in overall sales.”
Nike rose less than 1 percent to $109.87 at the close of New York trading.


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Maximising small business profitability at Christmas
December 11, 2017
The Christmas season marks not only the peak sales period for the retail industry each year, but plays a significant role in shaping the 12 months that follow. The latest Xero Small Business Insights show just how prepared businesses are. The number of retailers who are cashflow positive – a key measure of profitability and potential for survival – has been rising in recent years, while the number of late payments to all businesses continued to fall during 2017.
Over the past several years, the number of smaller retailers with positive cashflow has ticked upwards as businesses bring in more cash than they spend. A total of 61.1 percent of retailers were in the black as of Christmas 2016, far above the 54.6 percent of all Australian small businesses, a sign of retailers’ relative financial health compared to the rest of the economy.
Here is our advice for small-businesses retailers to help them maximise their profitability this Christmas:
Use your data – Many retailers collect a lot of data in their day-to-day operations but don’t fully use it. Look back at previous years’ operations to see what sold well (and what didn’t), your stock and hiring levels, and profit margins across the business, in order to make more informed business decisions.
Know the full cost of hiring more staff – Hiring Christmas casuals can be significantly more complicated than just employing hired hands. With more staff comes significantly more admin. Make sure you consider the full costs of hiring staff, including penalty rates and additional payroll admin, to ensure your business can cope.
Beware of discounts – Unsold stock often leads to heavy discounting following Christmas. Boxing Day sales can seem like a great idea to clear stock but it’s not always a wise move. Make sure any discounting is based on a sound pricing strategy and doesn’t trade profit margins for a quick buck.


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The movie version of wildly popular video game “Assassin’s Creed” has officially been put on the schedule for release next year. Michael Fassbender is signed to play the lead role but other roles have yet to be determined. “Assassin’s Creed” is currently scheduled to be released on December 21, 2016.
PC gaming just got more interesting with Emtec revealing their new home video system for PC gamers called the Play Cube Steam Box. The tiny, hand-sized box eliminates the need for a gaming-only PC by transforming your current PC into a gaming machine due to their partnership with Gigabyte’s motherboard and graphics card technologies. The […]


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In the latest installment of "money can't buy you happiness," Minecraft founder Markus Persson says he's "never felt more isolated" despite becoming a billionaire after selling his company to Microsoft last year. The Swedish creator of the massively ...
Among the several games unearthed, the most popular was the game based on the movie, "E.T." which as big a failure as the movie was a success.
No guarantees that it gives you an edge over the competition in first-person shooters. Doubly so if you're a lefty.
The fourth and final add-on for Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare introduces a new Exo Zombies map that pits four players against a zombified John Malkovich and his undead hordes.
After 15 years, video gaming hardware from foreign interests like Microsoft, Nintendo and Sony will be allowed into the country, to be manufactured and sold anywhere.
What could the two be cooking up? Is it even a video game? Statements from del Toro suggest it might not be.


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If you really want to put a spook into people this Halloween, maybe dress up like the Free Market. That's a vision that scares a lot of folks these days – especially those who grow the sugar in our favorite holiday candies.
Here in America, where the free-enterprise system should be celebrated, the government artificially props up prices by mandating how much sugar farmers can produce, restricting competition with high tariffs and buying up sugar with taxpayer money when there’s a surplus.
That means in the U.S. we’re paying more for sugar and the many products that use sugar than we should be. Yet amazingly, Uncle Sam is far from the worst market manipulator.
The Mexican government actually owns and operates one-fifth of its sugar industry and coddles the rest with subsidies, preferential loans, debt forgiveness and tariffs. They also keep domestic prices high by requiring their industry to export subsidized sugar to America and other countries.
But even Mexico is not the world’s worst sugar subsidy offender. Neither is China, which recently announced policy changes that would replace giant piles of government-stockpiled sugar with giant piles of government money to its industry.
No, the gold, silver and bronze awards for distorting the cost of Halloween candy the most go to Brazil, India and Thailand – nations that can largely subsidize without limit and without pressure to reform under international trade laws.
And the Brazilian, Indian and Thai sugar regimes have taken full advantage of their license to subsidize by greatly growing government intervention over the past year. A recent paper by Americans for Limited Government (ALG) chronicled some of the most recent offenses.
Known as the OPEC of sugar, Brazil controls 25 percent of global sugar production and 50 percent of all exports. It essentially sets the world price, and in an attempt to grow this dominance, Brazil recently doled out $2 billion in loans for growers, mills and sugar ethanol facilities, ALG noted.
“On top of that, Brazil currently provides $2.5 billion in sugar subsidies, as well as another billion dollars in various special bailouts and direct subsidies to keep the politically powerful industry well oiled,” the group wrote.
Perhaps out of jealousy of Brazil’s control, or maybe just to stay afloat in a grossly distorted market, India made a conscious decision this year to double down on its subsidies. According to ALG, India offered its growers new zero-interest loans and cash subsidies to increase exports and take market share from Brazil.
That is on top of India’s everyday sugar subsidies such as government-set prices, supply regulations, export mandates and blocked imports.
Thailand has similar policies in place to maintain tight control of its sugar market too. In addition, its new military regime is making sugar expansion a point of emphasis as a way to shift production away from rice and rubber after the Thai government wrecked those markets with failed policies.
With so much subsidization here and abroad, it’s easy for free market conservatives to get frustrated. So what can be done about it?
The answer is found in a proposal by Representative Ted Yoho (R-FL), which would eliminate U.S. sugar subsidies in exchange for other major sugar producers around the world doing the same.
This solution is preferred to often-tried unilateral disarmament of U.S. policy, ALG explains, because it doesn’t jeopardize the U.S. sugar industry and therefore has a much better chance of passing Congress.
“Ultimately, conservatives face a simple choice,” the group concluded. “We can continue on the current failed path, spitting out red meat sound bites that get people excited, but ultimately fail, or we can embrace Representative Yoho’s plan that gives a future free market oriented American administration the horsepower to help build an international free sugar market.”
Sounds like a pretty clear choice. After decades of being tricked by greedy governments, a real free market sure would be a treat for sugar consumers around the globe.


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Electric vehicle manufacturer Lordstown Motors (NASDAQ:RIDE) – which specializes in light-duty vehicles aimed at the commercial fleet market — reported its first quarterly profit, according to Reuters. Further, management provided a business update, including production expectations. Though RIDE stock jumped over 20% in the morning hours, the gains faded to about 8% up in the afternoon session, possibly reflecting significant industry-specific challenges.
Interestingly, Lordstown has yet to sell a vehicle. Per the company’s press release for its second quarter of 2022 earnings report, the EV manufacturer generated “an operating profit of $61.3 million, including $120.1 million from the sale of the Lordstown facility, consisting of a $101.7 million gain on sale and $18.4 million in operating expense reimbursement.”
Just as importantly if not more so, Lordstown disclosed that it continued to make progress with “testing, validation and certification activities” to prepare its Endurance crew-cab style pickup truck for “Q3 commercial release production and Q4 customer deliveries.”
As well, management stated that its ending cash balance of $236 million was above internal expectations and extends its runway, “due in part to disciplined expense controls and rigorous program management.”
While the above results were certainly positive for RIDE stock, the double-digit intraday gain transitioning to a more modest bump higher may reflect Wall Street’s measured optimism. Over the trailing year, shares are still down about 48%, emblematic of the troubles facing upstart EV enterprises.
RIDE Stock Still Faces Significant Pressures
Although Lordstown Motors’ Q2 disclosure provided some positives for investors to chew on, it was in some ways a mixed bag. For instance, while the company’s Q3 production goals may be on track, the fact that it only expects to produce about 500 vehicles through early 2023 is an “extremely slow production ramp-up by industry standards,” according to CNBC.
Further, Lordstown CFO Adam Kroll stated that the company “will need to raise less capital in 2022 than previously forecasted” thanks largely to disciplined cost controls and the better-than-planned cash position extending its fiscal runway. At the same time, Kroll acknowledged that “our success and ability to execute our plan remains dependent upon our ability to raise additional capital.”
The additional capital raise is necessary to achieve Lordstown’s 500-unit production goal, which again is already a low barometer for the industry.
In addition, many investors are skeptical about RIDE stock, in part because the underlying business has burnt so many early believers. Per CNBC, “Lordstown was initially expected to be among the first, if not the first, company to release an electric pickup truck, with initial estimates as early as 2020.”
Why It Matters
To be fair, few EV companies or legacy automakers transitioning to electrification are doing well. Over the trailing year, GM is down 31% while RIVN has hemorrhaged a staggering 64%. By this comparison, RIDE stock slots somewhere in the middle of mediocrity. However, Lordstown arguably faces the greatest credibility challenge.
Its woes have been heavily documented. The New York Times provided some of the most alarming coverage of RIDE stock, including testing gone dangerously awry as well as a Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) investigation. Coupled with the resignation of Lordstown founder and former CEO Steve Burns, the EV maker clearly has work to do to regain the trust of the investment community.
On the date of publication, Josh Enomoto did not have (either directly or indirectly) any positions in the securities mentioned in this article. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer, subject to the InvestorPlace.com Publishing Guidelines.


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Antares Pharma, Inc. (ATRS)Reports Fourth Quarter And Full Year 2013 Operating And Financial Results
3/13/2014 6:48:25 AM
Antares Pharma, Inc. (NASDAQ: ATRS) today reported operating and financial results for the fourth quarter and full year ended December 31, 2013.
•Received approval of OTREXUP (methotrexate) injection by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). OTREXUP is the first FDA approved subcutaneous methotrexate for once weekly self-administration with an easy-to-use, single dose, disposable auto injector. OTREXUP was launched to rheumatologists in January 2014.
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WSJ says Microsoft testing homemade handsets, will most likely not see release
- November 2nd, 2012
It seems times are a changing. Microsoft isn’t commonly known for handling hardware production. Save with the exceptional Zune and a few other products, Microsoft’s venture into hardware has always been dismal until just recently. With the release of the Surface, that has all changed. This could possibly pave a new road for Microsoft to take a bit more creative control in its own hands. According to the Wall Street Journal Microsoft has been testing its own brew of handsets with a variety of different carriers. Sources claim they have seen one device in particular that spans 4 to 5 inches and is no bigger than the Samsung Galaxy S II nor smaller than the iPhone 5. Before you get all excited, don’t forget that these devices are unlikely to ever see day light. We’re sure Microsoft won’t be shedding light on the subject anytime soon! I guess you will just have to play the waiting game on this one.
Featured Cell Phone News
Latest Cell Phone News


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New Delhi: The World Bank’s Board of Executive Directors today approved a loan of US$400 million for the China Food Safety Improvement Project to help China improve food safety management at both the national and targeted subnational levels, and reduce food safety risks in selected value chains.
China bears a considerable share of the global health and economic burden of consuming unsafe food. The cost of foodborne diseases in terms of human capital productivity loss in China is estimated at over US$30 billion per year, almost 50 percent of the total economic burden of foodborne diseases in Asia.
The COVID-19 pandemic has further exacerbated food safety challenges, notably in processing, packaging, and transporting agricultural products. In addition, improvements in food safety standards are important for China’s trading partners and its agricultural export competitiveness. Improving food safety in China would also reduce food loss and waste and generate large climate co-benefits.
“By taking an integrated and risk-based approach, consistent with global good practices, this project can help China mitigate the public health risks and reduce the economic and environmental costs associated with unsafe food production, processing and trading practices,” said Martin Raiser, World Bank Country Director for China. “Because China is a major food exporter and a hotspot for the emergence of food-borne diseases, the project carries important global benefits.”
The project will strengthen food safety regulations, enforcement, and compliance along selected value chains – including those for seafood, pork, fruit and vegetables – consistent with global practices. It will promote scientific and evidence-based enforcement of food safety regulations at the provincial and municipal levels using risk-based approaches.
The project will assist farms and food enterprises to improve compliance with food safety regulations and achieve food safety certification standards by (i) promoting good agriculture practices, including in relation to safety, climate smartness and environmental sustainability; (ii) encouraging use of biodegradable plastic mulch, eco-friendly food packaging, and plastics recycling; (iii) upgrading public infrastructure for improved water quality and waste management, point source pollution control, and reduced biohazards in agriculture markets; and (iv) ensuring risk-based preventive controls for maintaining safe food environment from ‘farm to plate’.
The project will also help farms and food enterprises to access finance for food safety technologies, an area where credit has been limited. Risk communication campaigns will be organized to promote food safety and advocate for healthier lifestyles, complementing regulatory improvements and strengthened enforcement with measures to support the demand for healthy food and encourage better compliance. Besides contributing to food safety, the project will also reduce food loss and waste and generate large climate co-benefits.
The project will be implemented by the State Administration of Market Regulation (SAMR) and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Areas (MARA) at the national level and provincial levels. Food safety enforcement and supervision will be supported in Guangdong and Shandong provinces by integrating local standards and regulations covering ‘farm to plate’ in specific value chains in selected municipalities and aligning them with national regulations.
About 7,500 family farms, cooperatives, SMEs, and large enterprises in the agriculture and food sector will be supported by the project to better manage food safety risks and run sustainable businesses. It will also directly benefit about 600,000 consumer households in the project areas in Foshan, Guangzhou, Huizhou, Jiangmen and Zhaoqing municipalities in Guangdong province and Yantai municipality in Shandong province. About 3 million residents in these municipalities are expected to be reached through the food safety risks communication campaigns.


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TYLER, TX (KLTV) - It will burn up to 700 calories without you lifting a finger. Doctors say that sitting in a FAR infrared sauna will increase your metabolism and burn fat without exercise or dieting. And, losing weight is just the tip of the ice-berg of the possible health benefits.
Lani Fitzgerald, 31, says that twice a week, for about 30 minutes at a time, you'll find her relaxing in the FAR infrared sauna.
"It really improves circulation, helps to detox my body, makes me feel really good [and] makes my skin glow and shine," said Fitzgerald.
"It helps with inflammation [and] lowers cholesterol," said Becky McCarty, the assistant manager of Shapes Fitness for Women. "There are just many great benefits that it has to offer."
The FAR infrared sauna emits dry heat, producing radiant energy, which is the same kind of heat produced by the sun without the potentially harmful ultraviolet rays.
"It's the part of the spectrum, the electromagnetic spectrum, that can penetrate through the skin into the deeper tissues, causing a release of toxicity in those tissue," said Dr. Pieter de Wet, with the Quantum Healing Institute.
Meaning, all of the toxins we take in from the food we eat or the air we breathe are pulled out of our deep tissue, helping to lower blood pressure, burn calories and heel certain ailments.
"By accelerating detoxing, you have a much better chance at major impact at treating these diseases like chronic arthritis, obesity, and neurological diseases more successfully," said Dr. De Wet.
"And, it also helps with fine lines," said McCarty. "And, what woman doesn't want that? Haha."
The traditional sauna operates at higher temperatures and it usually produces steam. Doctors say that steam makes it more difficult for the skin to sweat. That's why the FAR infrared might be a healthier option.


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Manually picking up your phone is so last year. That’s if the Google Pixel 4 has anything to do with it, anyway.
In a blog post outlining the phone’s new features, Google confirmed its next high-end phone it will have a “motion sensing radar” called Soil that lets you reject phone calls, change your music and control your phone with motion gestures.
The company compares the system to traditional radar technology – the kind that detects planes or other objects. “We’ve developed a miniature version,” Google says. “It senses small motions around the phone, combining unique software algorithms with the advanced hardware sensor, so it can recognize gestures and detect when you’re nearby.”
This could mean that face unlock will get a whole lot easier – instead of just using the infrared camera, as other phones do, the motion sensors should detect when you’re about to unlock your phone, making it faster than ever before.
The post also notes that the feature will only be available in “select” countries. As Engadget points out, this could be to do with regulations around use of radar technology.
We still don’t know when the Pixel is due to be released, and Google has remained tight-lipped on that. We keep our eyes peeled.
- Need a new phone? Check our list of the best camera phones on the market now.


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Focus on recycling, new productsManaging director of Duratile Inc. Stuart Maloney (right) explaining the process.
Mon, June 25, 2012 - 12:00 AM
COMPANIES within the PRECONCO Limited group (PcL) are holding their own despite a “soft” market, says managing director of three of the companies, Stuart Maloney.
Speaking to BARBADOS BUSINESS AUTHORITY prior to the launch of three new products at Lears Quarry, St Michael last Wednesday, Maloney said they were focused on retaining staff and coming up innovative products to maintain their place in the market.
Maloney manages Creative Paving Solutions Inc., CemTile and Duratile Inc. The group of companies manufactures several paving, roofing and flooring products.
“We have a good market share at present,” he said. “We are the leaders in the paving market right now. The economy is soft, but we are maintaining our market share and continuing to export throughout some of the Caribbean islands. The innovation is the retaining wall system. It is the most innovative product we have right now.”
Read the full story in today's BUSINESS AUTHORITY.
- Editor's Choice


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Endo settled off-label charges for $192 million, resolving civil "whistleblower" suits filed by two sales reps and a physician.
The FDA commissioner said the agency is doing its job, not picking a fight, when it inspects drug-making facilities, and that India must take an active role for a harmonious supply chain.
The drugmaker revealed efficacy data that analysts say could prompt the health agencies to emphasize adult vaccination.
Gaming does not trivialize the patient's experience of a chronic disease
Success cures fear, and success is born out of focus and hard work
FDA's Warning Letter to Aegerion is a bureaucratic thumb in the eye to the US Court of Appeals
Consumers are as worried about online privacy as they are about terrorism, but marketers tracking their surfing habits or mining their emails for insights is the least of their worries, according to a survey by McCann Truth Central.


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TV18 Broadcast on Tuesday reported a 40% increase in its consolidated net profit at Rs 205.16 crore for the quarter ended December 31, 2019.
The company had posted a net profit of Rs 146.96 crore for the corresponding period of the previous fiscal, TV18 Broadcast said in a regulatory filing.
Consolidated operating Ebitda (Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization) stood at Rs 268 crore for the quarter under consideration, as against Rs 88 crore a year ago.
Consolidated revenue from operations of the company stood at Rs 1,425.37 crore for the quarter under consideration, as against Rs 1,474.70 crore a year ago.
"Monetisation of content through partnerships and continued subscription revenue growth coupled with cost optimisations across verticals boosted profitability," the company said.
"In line with the strategy of being platform agnostic, the group stitched multiple partnerships with notable digital platforms for serving their users a discerning selection of our content," it added.
Q3 operating revenue for News was near-flat YoY. The company blamed headwinds for BFSI sector, weak government spends, and limited international advertising compared with last year for dragging the growth.
Subscription revenue during the quarter increased 40% to Rs 458 crore YoY after implementation of the NTO (new tariff order) which has created a transparent and non-discriminatory B2C regime, the company said.
"Improved distribution tie-ups across cable and telcos have brought the consumer closer to our class-leading content bouquet at an affordable optimum price," TV18 said.
Advertising recovered around the festive season but continued to remain under pressure for the quarter.
"The prevalent weakness in macro-environment and sluggish spending appetite by advertisers continued to drag ad-revenue down YoY for both News and Entertainment. Shift of channels from DD Freedish to Pay ecosystem continues to impact Hindi GEC ad-revenues for all the top broadcasters," company said.
Government's initiatives to boost growth and a natural refresh-and-recalibration of ad-budgets should revive ad-growth as we head towards the new fiscal, it added.
"Our emphasis on delivering value to the consumer, expanding the partner ecosystem and raising profitability were the primary milestones during the past quarter," TV18 Chairman Adil Zainulbhai said.
Amidst a difficult ad-environment and continued regulatory flux, the rise in rankings for flagship channels is a positive indicator for the future, he added.
"We are constantly adjusting our programming and business model for the continual technology, consumer and regulatory changes in the business," Zainulbhai said.


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After being out for a shallow under three months, Microsoft has moved the Fall Creators Update to entirely availability, signaling that the company believes it to be ready for corporate deployments.
Microsoft echoes out the big Windows semi-annual updates on a staggered basis, making the update accessible to an ever larger range of users as the company builds a clearer incarnation of any hardware and software incompatibilities. Once it’s satisfied that any of these puckers have been ironed out, Microsoft offers the update to every engine that’s compatible. With the Fall Creators Update on 100 million machines, Microsoft has certain that the update is ready for its full deployment.
This development procedure has been refined over the last few years; the 2016 Anniversary Update assembled a number of problems, causing Microsoft to be more conservative subsequently. The untimely update, the Creators Update, took about four months to reach this word-for-word stage. The decision to make the Fall Creators Update, version 1709, universally available in less than three months shows that the partnership is more confident in this release and its wider deployment.
Microsoft has reassured corporate customers to use this wide deployment as the signal that the update is rapid for enterprise rollouts. On January 18, Windows 10 Pro and Enterprise ways that are configured to use Windows Update for their servicing will be put on the marketed version 1709 after January 18. Updated media for loudness license and other business customers will be published on January 22.


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Guess what fans of EXO? You now have an official name! You are now dubbed 'EXO-L'!
It's just been announced that the group's global official fanclub will be launching today at 12PM KST with the start of the homepage (https://exo-l.smtown.com/) as well as a mobile app to begin its recruitment process.
If you haven't already guessed, EXO-L stands for EXO-LOVE. L is also the letter in between K and M, so it also serves to signify fans who love EXO, a group made up of EXO-K and EXO-M, and also carries the meaning that EXO and the fans are one - like EXO's team slogan 'We Are One'.
The fanclub will also be run through a specialized mobile app to allow for more ease of use for fans around the world. Those who join the fanclub will be given a special barcode with their mobile membership card and this will grant them access to exclusive chatting events and various EXO contents and schedules.
To celebrate the launch of their official fanclub, there are also special events in store for the month of August - a chatting event once a week starting from August 6th, and a quiz event that will allow you to win prizes by answering quiz questions about EXO.
Those interested in officially becoming a part of EXO-L can download the mobile app or access the homepage on their computers.
So congrats to EXO fans who now have an official name to call themselves!
[Update] - The boys have released a greeting video to announce the news themselves and the launch of their fanclub page. Check it out below with English subs!


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FireEye has parted company with its EMEA president Richard Turner, multiple sources have told Channelnomics Europe sister publication CRN. The anti-malware vendor, which installed a new CEO in May,...
System integrator expands vPack offering, beginning with DACH countries
Added locations in Singapore to cater for financial sector
With its rivals locked in merger machinations, EMEA chiefs Nowak and Trolle tell us how Arrow can capitalise
Boss reveals planned shopping spree to fuel growth across region


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HCSS to exhibit at Intersec Expo 2011 in Dubai
HCSS is pleased to be exhibiting SecureGuard
advanced perimeter barrier at next year's Intersec Expo 2011
. Intersec is an international trade fair and conference for security, safety and protection and takes place on 16-18 January, 2011 at the Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Centre in the United Arab Emirates.
Visit HCSS at Stand 8-631P
to find out more about our SecureGuard
is approved to PAS 68:2007 (7500kg truck at 90 degree impact angle, at speeds of 20, 30 & 50 mph)
Back to News


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AppCarousel, which offers automakers a custom app store platform and content ecosystem, has joined the GENIVI Alliance.
The GENIVI Alliance is a non-profit industry association dedicated to driving the broad adoption of an In-Vehicle Infotainment (IVI) open source development platform.
“We are honored to be a part of the GENIVI Alliance,” said Terry Hughes, Managing Director, AppCarousel. “As more drivers look for apps to get the most out of their in-vehicle experience, we are able to serve as the conduit from app developer to the IVI platform to bring the best, most relevant services to the customer, in a tightly integrated way. We are committed to GENIVI’s success, and look forward to being a part of what the future of IVI brings for consumers around the world.”
The session begins at 11:30 a.m. on Thursday, January 9, 2014 in the Las Vegas Convention Center (North Hall N258).
The panel moderator is Paul Hansen, founder and publisher of the Hansen Report on Automotive Electronics. Panel members scheduled to participate include:
- Matt Jones, senior technical specialist, infotainment, Jaguar Land Rover; VP of the GENIVI Alliance
- Charles Koch, manager, new business development, Honda
- Graham Smethurst, general manager, infotainment and communications, BMW
The proof of concept has been created on openly available hardware with an Intel CPU, using the Tizen open source Linux distribution as a software platform with an HTML5 graphical user interface. The solution was revealed at the GENIVI conference in Barcelona and Tizen was chosen as a GENIVI-compliant reference.
The solution includes Arynga’s Software over the Air (SOTA) product, CarSync™, and Xchanging’s cloud- based Vehicle Management Systems applications and interfaces.
Accelerating web technology adoption
The GENIVI Alliance has joined the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) to bring its automotive expertise into W3C’s Automotive and Web Platform Business Group. BMW, PSA, Jaguar Land Rover, and Magneti Marelli will represent GENIVI.
APIs for HTML5
The Alliance wants to speed-up the process of defining APIs for HTML5 web applications to interface to the hardware of the car, vehicle bus interfaces, etc.
W3C’s Automotive and Web Platform Business Group, (www.w3.org/community/autowebplatform) launched in February, convenes developers, automotive manufacturers and suppliers, browser vendors, operators and others to discuss how to enhance driving, safety and passenger entertainment with the Open Web Platform.
The GENIVI Alliance has entered into a liaison agreement with JASPAR (Japan Automotive Software Platform and Architecture) to align networking software requirements for automotive Bluetooth and Ethernet, specific to in-vehicle infotainment (IVI) systems and related applications by year-end.
The agreement is expected to help drive the collaboration of defined standards for these two communications technologies as areas of mutual interest for open source requirements alignment.
“The collaboration between JASPAR and GENIVI is a prime example of another technical relationship event that will ease integration of wired and wireless communications for next generation infotainment systems,” said Matt Jones, vice president, GENIVI Alliance. GENIVI will continue to leverage open source development to further encourage universally accepted standards throughout the industry.
Symphony Teleca Corporation (STC), a global innovation and development services company, has been elected to the GENIVI Alliance Board of Directors. GENIVI is a non-profit industry alliance committed to driving the broad adoption of an In-Vehicle Infotainment (IVI) open source development platform.
By joining the Board, Symphony Teleca will aid the GENIVI Alliance in leveraging its expertise in IVI technologies – including Ethernet Audio Video Bridging and Firmware Update Over the Air – to support the alliance’s overall initiatives. The company will be seated for the first time at the GENIVI All Member Meeting in Barcelona on April 22, 2013 and will be an ongoing participant in the organization’s monthly board meeting.
PathPartner Technology has joined the GENIVI Alliance, a non-profit industry association whose mission is to drive the broad adoption of an In-Vehicle Infotainment (IVI) open source development platform.
“PathPartner Technology will soon address the product development challenges of companies looking at launch of GENIVI compliant products by offering design service and end-to-end solutions,” said Ramkishor Korada, the firm’s executive vice president and head of global sales and business development. “We are looking at nurturing our partnerships with automotive design and development ecosystem by offering industry ready product solutions and design services.”
The Livio Connect API is a solution for safely integrating smartphone apps into factory car audio and existing hardware systems. Livio founder and CEO Jake Sigal said the 2013 additions to the Livio Connect application network expand the in-vehicle infotainment offerings beyond music apps to include traffic, parking, weather, and navigation.
A GENIVI compliant platform provides the operating system, system infrastructure and middleware elements on which to build the differentiated applications and other software features in automaker’s next-generation in-vehicle infotainment (IVI) system.
“From PSA Peugeot Citroën’s perspective, GENIVI is most valuable in enabling many suppliers to compete on quality, while providing a consistent IVI software platform as defined by the Alliance across all industry requirements,” said Philippe Gicquel, general manager for Connectivity, Telematics, Infotainment Modules, PSA Peugeot Citroën. “This enables PSA to focus on the differentiation we need to compete in the infotainment market.”
The GENIVI Alliance, an industry association driving the development and adoption of an open In-vehicle Infotainment (IVI) reference platform, announced that its component development will move to all-new Alliance-sponsored public open-source community projects.
The first three projects are Layer Manager, Audio Manager and Automotive DLT (Diagnostic Log and Trace). Further technical information on these projects can be found at www.genivi.org.
Currently 95% of the software components needed for GENIVI compliance are adopted or adapted from existing open-source projects. Previously, when the Alliance was unable to find a home in the open-source community for some components, that software was developed “in-house,” i.e. by GENIVI Alliance member organizations. Such components will now be developed in the FOSS (Free and Open-Source Software) community, and all of the code specified for GENIVI compliance will come from open-source licensed components.


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Supermarket giant Aldi is known for its low prices and evolving product range.
It's been crowned the UK's cheapest supermarket on countless occasions, and has a loyal fan base because of it.
But one smart shopper has discovered there's a clever loophole to getting even cheaper groceries every week according to the Manchester Evening News.
Posting on the Aldi Shoppers UK Facebook page, she said: "I’m not sure how many people realise this, but each week Aldi publish a basket of shopping for its marketing campaign to compare with other stores.
"Find the ad and you can click on the terms and conditions and get the shopping list as a pdf.
"It is usually a week's meals for a family of four for around £45 and it makes the most of limited time offers and specialbuys.
"It also corresponds with their recipe list online."
She added: "Usually that weeks meals are at the top but if you want an alternative (this week I swapped out whole chicken for pork joint) you can just put ‘pork’ into search on website, select ‘recipes’ instead of the default, which I think is ‘in store’ and you can track down the recipes they use.
"So this week I used a list they published a few weeks ago, but I could still track down the menu by searching on ingredients - we are looking forward to chicken enchiladas, veg tart, seafood paella, cod, sweet potato fries and mango and just enjoyed excellent roast pork which will also do sandwiches for work. De nada!"


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- Gentlemen, start your drones: Judge’s ruling opens door for commercial use
- Soldier who hid, bragged about not saluting flag to be punished — in secret
- ‘Maverick’ of the seas: ‘Top Gun’ school for U.S. ship officers to launch
- Putin declares Sochi Paralympics open amid Ukrainian protest
- ‘In Jesus name, we pray’ sparks ire at Ohio council meeting
- Navy’s first laser weapon ready for prime time; drone killer to deploy this summer
- Billionaire backer: Rick Santorum ‘needs to be heard’ in 2016
- Obamacare fallout: 49 percent pessimistic; 45 percent ‘scared’
- DHS accused of holding U.S. citizen at airport, using emails to pry into her sex life
- Seattle socialist: Minimum-wage discussion skewed by ‘right-wing’ GAO analysis
NYC proposes ban on sale of oversize sodas
NEW YORK (AP) - Mayor Michael Bloomberg is proposing an unprecedented ban on the sale of large servings of soda and other sugary drinks in the city’s restaurants, delis and movie theaters in one of his most aggressive efforts yet to fight obesity.
The proposal marks the first time an American city has so directly attempted to limit sugary-drink portion sizes. City officials said they believe it will ultimately prove popular with New Yorkers and push governments around the U.S. to adopt similar rules.
The idea immediately sparked renewed accusations that the Bloomberg administration is sticking its nose into matters best left to individuals.
“New Yorkers expect and deserve better than this. They can make their own choices about the beverages they purchase,” Coca-Cola Co. said in a statement. “We hope New Yorkers loudly voice their disapproval about this arbitrary mandate.”
The administration’s proposal would impose a 16-ounce limit on sugary drinks sold at restaurants, movie theaters, sports venues and street carts. It would apply to bottled drinks _ many plastic soda bottles contains 20 ounces _ as well as fountain sodas.
Bloomberg said people who want to guzzle 32 ounces would still be free to order two drinks. But he said restricting sodas to 16 ounces could help curb consumption.
“You tend to eat all of the food in the container. If it’s bigger, you eat more. If somebody put a smaller glass or plate or bowl in front of you, you would eat less,” he said.
The ban, which could take effect as soon as March, would not extend to drinks sold in grocery or convenience stores that don’t primarily sell foods meant to be eaten right away. Businesses that violate the rules would face fines of $200 per failed inspection.
The ban would apply only to sweetened drinks that contain more than 25 calories per 8 ounces. (A 12-ounce can of Coke contains about 140 calories.) It would not affect diet soda, and any drink that is at least half milk or milk substitute would be exempt, too.
City officials said they believe some calorie-heavy beverages wouldn’t be affected. Starbucks Frappucinos, for example, would probably be exempted because of their dairy content, while the Slurpees at 7-Eleven wouldn’t be affected because the stores are regulated as groceries.
Officials cited research linking sugary drinks to rising rates of obesity, diabetes and heart disease.
“We have a crisis of obesity,” City Health Commissioner Thomas Farley said. “And people often go with the default choice, and if the default choice is something which is very unhealthy and is feeding into that health crisis, it’s appropriate for the government to say, `No, we think the default choice should be healthier.’”
Under the three-term mayor, the city has campaigned aggressively against obesity, outlawing trans-fats in french fries and other restaurant food and forcing chain restaurants to post calorie counts on menus. The mayor has also led efforts to ban smoking in the city’s bars, restaurants, parks and beaches.
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While perusing the internet earlier this morning, we came across this
pretty nifty tutorial for constructing your own iPad device from scratch
in Photoshop. Head over to hvdesigns
to follow along the step-by-step Apple iPad
If you’re a political activist or just a concerned citizen with something to get off their chest, you’ll be happy to know that there’s finally an app for the common man (and woman) to communicate with the U.S. government.
Perhaps one of the factors in Apple's recent financial successes is how it goes about selling its products to customers. A new customer service survey shows that Apple made a huge jump in rankings in that area.
In a followup to last week’s report on Apple removing Wobble iBoobs from the App Store, it now appears that more than 5,000 such apps have been removed since mid-last week -- and the number keeps climbing.
On the heels of last week’s patent application that featured a front-facing camera on an iPhone-like device, some further digging into the iPhone OS 3.2 SDK reveals that video chatting may well be on the way.
Love was in the air. As was the smell of flowers and candies and chocolate and that really warm funny smell that comes out the vents of your MacBook when you've been streaming videos for hours. Yes, love.
So instead of finishing off that Whitman's Sampler, give your waistline and your scale a break and sample some of this week's tasty treats from the Mac|Life crew. We promise: no coconut.


text: SPRINGFIELD, Vt. – Plans for the Springfield Regional Chamber of Commerce’s 38th Vermont Apple Festival are well underway and we’re looking forward to another wonderful event at Riverside Middle School in Springfield, Vt. This year’s fair will be held on Saturday, Oct. 8 from 9 a.m. – 4 p.m. We are currently accepting sponsorships – the deadline for Red Apple, Golden Apple, and Apple Barrel Level Sponsors to be listed on our red iconic reusable shopping bags, which we distribute to the first 300 families at the event, is Sept. 7. Green Apple and Apple Seed sponsorships will continue to be accepted through the end of September. Sponsoring is a great way to support this wonderful event, which is a longstanding tradition in the community, a fantastic opportunity to get your business name out there, and also a way to support the Chamber and the ongoing work we are doing to support area businesses and the revitalization of the Springfield area. For sponsorship information, please email firstname.lastname@example.org or visit our website, www.springfieldvt.com.


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The upcoming phones, thought to be called the Pixel 3a and Pixel 3a XL, have been leaking out for months, with the most recent leak being a confirmation of their names via the Google Store. Now, Google's online shop seems to be teasing their arrival. A new page on the Google Store suggests we can expect an announcement on 7 May -- and it's "something big coming to the Pixel universe".
Interestingly, this Google Store teaser simultaneously went live with a new Avengers: Endgame promotion. The promo includes a video that highlights key Pixel 3 features in the context of Avengers, and the page itself heavily features the colour purple. Remember, it's thought the new Pixel 3a lineup will feature a new purple-ish colour option at launch, so the page could be hinting at that.
We have to admit that using a commercial tie-in is an odd way to tease new phones are coming. However, it wouldn't be the first time Google has done something like this (think: Android KitKit and Android Oreo).
Anyway, Google I/O is set to kick off 7 May as well, so expect to hear more from Google during the opening keynote. For more about what we think Google will announce at the developer conference, see our guide. We also have this rumour round-up on the Pixel 3a, if you're interested.