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Marvell Technology Group Shares Rise Sharply on Q4 Results (MRVL)
2/22/2013 10:56:16 AM
Shares of Marvell Technology Group Ltd. (NASDAQ: MRVL) have risen sharply in pre-market trading today after the Santa Clara, California-based company reported its fourth-quarter financial results.
- Marvell’s fourth-quarter revenue rose 4% on a year-over-year basis
- The company’s fourth-quarter results beat consensus forecast
- Marvell Technology also provided upbeat outlook for the current quarter
Dr. Sehat Sutardja, Chairman and CEO of Marvell, said that fiscal year 2013 was a disappointing year for the company. Sutardja further said that industry hard disk drive unit shipments declined for the year offsetting share gains, the networking end market was relatively flat and the company endured a product transition in Mobile. The CEO added that despite the revenue decline, MRVL remained profitable and generated $626 million in free cash flow while simultaneously continuing investments in several key initiatives.
For the quarter ended February 2, 2013, Marvell Technology reported revenue of $775 million, up 4% on a year-over-year basis. The company’s revenue for the fiscal year ended February 2, 2013 was $3.17 billion, down 7% over fiscal year 2012.
GAAP net income for the fourth quarter was $50 million, or $0.09 per share, down from $81 million, or $0.13 per share reported for the same period in the previous year. On a non-GAAP basis, the company’s net income for the fourth quarter was $104 million, or $0.19 per share, compared to $127 million, or $0.21 per share reported for the same period in the previous year.
For the first quarter of fiscal 2014, Marvell Technology expects revenue to be between $700 million and $740 million.
Shares of Marvell Technology rose more than 5% in pre-market trading today.
About Marvell Technology Group Ltd.
Marvell Technology Group Ltd. is a fabless semiconductor company providing application-specific standard products.


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LONDON — Microsoft believes that technology can empower the next generation of creatives and is joining forces with the London College of Fashion to give students access to its latest innovations.
As part of the partnership, the two organizations have created a short-term program dubbed the “Future of Fashion Incubator” where students studying across the school’s media, design and business departments can work together to come up with creative solutions addressing current industry and consumer needs.
The program will take place over the course of a semester and will allow students to explore a range of Microsoft technologies, such as artificial intelligence and mixed reality, before choosing one area of study to concentrate on.
“It has been fantastic to see how the students are answering an industry or consumer need and ideating a solution which technology is part of — but they didn’t start the challenge with the tech in mind. This is key for us to ensure that the solutions we work on have longevity and a true purpose,” said Maruschka Loubser, senior global marketing manager at Microsoft, pointing to the wide range of topics students chose to address with their projects, including retail experiences, supply chain managements and the design process.
For Microsoft, it’s important to be connected with the new generation in order to allow them to utilize its technology to create a more sustainable fashion industry: “The fashion industry has driven some remarkable innovations in the last couple of years, but due to consumer, industry and environmental changes it is imperative to continue asking the difficult questions. We need to evolve the way we use resources so we can be more sustainable in the future, and innovate the creative process itself to be more cost-effective, time-efficient and collaborative,” added Loubser.
A series of experts, including designer Charli Cohen and consultant Sofia Barattieri, have been appointed as ambassadors of the new program and will consult with students to help them develop their ideas into prototypes.
London College of Fashion has been paving the way for the use of technology in the way fashion is taught at universities. Last year, it opened a Digital Learning Lab, which allows students and staff to experiment with equipment such as virtual reality headsets, depth cameras that can track a body’s movement, 3-D printing and scanning and also offers one-on-one consultations for students from all disciplines who want to learn how to incorporate technology into their work.
“We have a long-term view of inspiring a new generation in design and recognize that a multi-disciplinary skill-set will be crucial in shaping future fashion businesses,” said Matthew Drinkwater, head of fashion innovation agency at the London College of Fashion.

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Know Labs, an emerging leader in non-invasive medical diagnostics, introduced the KnowU™, a new portable medical-grade glucose monitoring device that utilizes Bio-RFID™, Know Labs’ non-invasive diagnostic technology.
The KnowU is a convenient, non-wearable, on-the-go alternative to fingersticks, which are used to check blood glucose levels, often multiple times per day, by more than 90% of the global population with diabetes. The KnowU joins the Know Labs UBand™ as an additional non-invasive glucose monitoring solution and an extension of the product portfolio, powered by Bio-RFID. UBand is a medical-grade wearable continuous glucose monitoring device. Both have the potential to revolutionize how 1.5 billion people manage their diabetes or pre-diabetes. The KnowU is expected to begin the FDA pre-approval process in 2022, reports BusinessWire.
The KnowU has two elements: a base that powers the device and displays blood glucose readings, and a pocket-sized battery-powered portable monitor that contains the Bio-RFID sensors, which can be carried by the user to check blood glucose levels on the go. Like the UBand, the KnowU will use Know Labs’ smartphone app to store and display readings.
“We know that not all people with diabetes are looking for a wearable continuous glucose monitoring device to manage their diabetes. Some simply want to replace the painful, inconvenient and expensive fingersticks they currently rely on,” said Phil Bosua, Know Labs CEO and Bio-RFID inventor. “The Bio-RFID sensor we currently use for our internal product testing fits in your pocket and is ready for final use, so we decided to create the KnowU as a portable, affordable and convenient alternative requiring no disposable items, such as test strips and lancets.”
“The addition of the KnowU to our product portfolio does not change our timeline for the UBand commercial launch, which is proceeding as planned,” said Ron Erickson, Know Labs Founder and Chairman. “The KnowU leverages the same science and technology created for the UBand and will be faster to build and commercialize therefore accelerating our time to launch. Our Bio-RFID technology is form-factor agnostic and the KnowU is a great example of how we can leverage it to increase Know Labs’ addressable market and guarantee we have multiple product solutions for every need.”
Know Labs is focused on launching what the company believes will be the world’s first non-invasive medical-grade glucose monitoring solution, via two devices.
Know Labs’ technology uses spectroscopy to direct electromagnetic energy through a substance or material to capture a unique molecular signature. The Company refers to its technology as Bio-RFID. The Bio-RFID technology can be integrated into a variety of wearable, mobile, or bench-top form factors. This patented and patent-pending technology makes it possible to effectively conduct analyses that could only previously be performed by invasive and/or expensive and time-consuming lab-based tests.


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(Bloomberg) — Shell Plc is launching a strategic review of its European domestic energy unit, a significant pivot after the business proved a weak spot for the oil major during the energy crisis.
Most Read from Bloomberg
The company had harbored ambitions to become a major household electricity supplier as part of the transition to cleaner energy, but has told employees it’s reviewing the business in the UK, Netherlands and Germany. European power and gas retailers have been under stress in the past year as prices soared following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The review is one of the first announcements under Shell’s new Chief Executive Officer Wael Sawan. The fact that he is considering withdrawing from the tumultuous and low-margin home energy business, at a time when the company is racking up record profits pumping oil and gas underscores the challenge he faces delivering on pledges to curb carbon emissions while maintaining payouts to shareholders.
Shell said in a statement that the review was in line with those plans to decarbonize. Its shares rose 0.4% to 2,341.5 pence in London.
Shell entered the UK and German home energy businesses when it announced the acquisition of First Utility in 2017. The move was meant to position Shell more centrally in the electricity market, forging a new connection to customers who will use an increasing amount of power in the coming decades as they plug in EVs at home instead of filling up the tank at one of Shell’s petrol stations.
Yet retail energy supply has become a tough business in Europe as surging wholesale prices upended hedging strategies and forced politicians to stump up billions of euros to shield customers. In Britain in particular, margins have shrunk to almost nothing with suppliers selling energy to households on regulator-capped tariffs.
Shell’s power and gas retail unit in the UK required £1.2 billion ($1.5 billion) of financial backing from its parent company last year to weather intense volatility in energy markets. The year before it lost £100 million, according to a filing.
“If Shell were to exit the UK retail electricity business it would be positive for shareholders,” said Biraj Borkhataria, an analyst at RBC Capital Markets. “This is a low margin business that is never likely to be scalable enough to be meaningful for Shell. Better to focus on strategic growth priorities like LNG.”
No decisions have yet been made and the review will take a number of months, a company spokesperson said in an emailed statement. Shell’s wholesale and business-focused energy supply activities won’t be affected, nor will its home retail units in the US and Australia, the company said.
(Updates with background in fifth paragraph)
Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek
©2023 Bloomberg L.P.


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The holidays are the perfect time for gifts that give back—it's the season of giving, after all! Enter a new book initiative from Penguin Random House and online retailer Zulily: From now until Dec. 10, for every book purchased at Zulily.com with the badge "Buy One, Give One," a donation will be made to First Book, a nonprofit that provides books to children in need.
This year, the money will help the nonprofit bring books to communities impacted by Hurricanes Harvey, Irma, and Maria, in order to restore learning in local classrooms. "Educators have shared heart-breaking stories of students, families and fellow teachers who have lost their homes and belongings, as well as entire school libraries now destroyed by flooding or mold," said Kyle Zimmer, president and CEO of First Book in a press release.
Here are just a few of the inspiring titles that will give back to those in need this holiday season:
BUY NOW: $13, zulily.com
A must-read for future leaders, Chelsea Clinton celebrates 13 American women who have persevered in the face of adversity.
BUY NOW: $6, zulily.com
You'll love this board book's sweet message as much as your little one does.


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A third of the honeybees in the United States were lost over the last year, part of a decade-long die-off experts said may threaten our food supply. USA Today reports: The annual survey of roughly 5,000 beekeepers showed the 33% dip from April 2016 to April 2017. The decrease is small compared to the survey's previous 10 years, when the decrease hovered at roughly 40%. From 2012 to 2013, nearly half of the nation's colonies died. The death of a colony doesn't necessarily mean a loss of bees, explains vanEngelsdorp, a project director at the Bee Informed Partnership. A beekeeper can salvage a dead colony, but doing so comes at labor and productivity costs. That causes beekeepers to charge farmers more for pollinating crops and creates a scarcity of bees available for pollination. It's a trend that threatens beekeepers trying to make a living and could lead to a drop-off in fruits and nuts reliant on pollination, vanEngelsdor said. So what's killing the honeybees? Parasites, diseases, poor nutrition, and pesticides among many others. The chief killer is the varroa mite, a "lethal parasite," which researchers said spreads among colonies.
An anonymous reader writes: "Following years of criticism and user requests, the FileZilla FTP client is finally adding support for a master password that will act as a key for storing FTP login credentials in an encrypted format," reports BleepingComputer. "This feature is scheduled to arrive in FileZilla 3.26.0, but you can use it now if you download the 3.26.0 (unstable) release candidate from here." By encrypting its saved FTP logins, FileZilla will finally thwart malware that scrapes the sitemanager.xml file and steals FTP credentials, which were previously stolen in plain text. The move is extremely surprising, at least for the FileZilla user base. Users have been requesting this feature for a decade, since 2007, and they have asked it many and many times since then. All their requests have fallen on deaf ears and met with refusal from FileZilla maintainer, Tim Kosse. In November 2016, a user frustrated with Koose's stance forked the FileZilla FTP client and added support for a master password via a spin-off app called FileZilla Secure.
An anonymous reader quotes a report from Ars Technica: Comcast's customer satisfaction score for subscription TV service fell 6 percent in a new survey, putting the company near the bottom of rankings published by the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI). Comcast's score fell from 62 to 58 on ACSI's 100-point scale, a drop of more than 6 percent between 2016 and 2017. The ACSI's 2017 report on telecommunications released this week attributed the decrease to "price hikes for Xfinity (Comcast) subscriptions." Satisfaction with pay-TV providers dropped industry-wide, tying the segment with Internet service (a product offered by the same companies) for last place in the ACSI's rankings. The ACSI summarized the trend as follows: "Customer satisfaction with subscription television service slips 1.5 percent to 64, tied with Internet service providers for last place among 43 industries tracked by the ACSI. Many of the same large companies offer service for Internet, television, and voice via bundling. The threat of competition from streaming services has done little to spur improvement for pay TV. Customer service remains poor, and cord-cutting continues to accelerate. More than half a million subscribers defected from cable and satellite TV providers during the first quarter of 2017 -- the largest loss in the history of the industry. Customers still prefer fiber optic and satellite to cable, putting FiOS (Verizon Communications) in first place with a 1 percent uptick to 71. AT&T takes the next two spots with its fiber optic and satellite services."
Napster co-founder Sean Parker has been working on his new service called Screening Room, which when becomes reality, could allow people to watch the latest Hollywood blockbusters in their living room as soon as they premiere at the box office. This week we get a glimpse at the kind of technologies Parker is using to ensure that the movies don't get distributed easily. From a report: Over the past several weeks, Screening Room Media, Inc. has submitted no less than eight patent applications related to its plans, all with some sort of anti-piracy angle. For example, a patent titled "Presenting Sonic Signals to Prevent Digital Content Misuse" describes a technology where acoustic signals are regularly sent to mobile devices, to confirm that the user is near the set-top box and is authorized to play the content. Similarly, the "Monitoring Nearby Mobile Computing Devices to Prevent Digital Content Misuse" patent, describes a system that detects the number of mobile devices near the client-side device, to make sure that too many people aren't tuning in. The general technology outlined in the patents also includes forensic watermarking and a "P2P polluter." The watermarking technology can be used to detect when pirated content spreads outside of the protected network onto the public Internet. "At this point, the member's movie accessing system will be shut off and quarantined. If the abuse or illicit activity is confirmed, the member and the household will be banned from the content distribution network," the patent reads. [...] Screening Room's system also comes with a wide range of other anti-piracy scans built in. Among other things, it regularly scans the Wi-Fi network to see which devices are connected, and Bluetooth is used to check what other devices are near.
NASA published the following media advisory moments ago: NASA will make an announcement about the agency's first mission to fly directly into our sun's atmosphere during an event at 11 a.m. EDT Wednesday, May 31, from the University of Chicago's William Eckhardt Research Center Auditorium. The event will air live on NASA Television and the agency's website. The mission, Solar Probe Plus, is scheduled to launch in the summer of 2018. Placed in orbit within four million miles of the sun's surface, and facing heat and radiation unlike any spacecraft in history, the spacecraft will explore the sun's outer atmosphere and make critical observations that will answer decades-old questions about the physics of how stars work. The resulting data will improve forecasts of major space weather events that impact life on Earth, as well as satellites and astronauts in space.
An anonymous reader shares an article: The music-streaming service Tidal is saying goodbye to yet another CEO. Jefffrey Toig, who became the company's CEO in December 2015, is leaving the company. This would make him the third CEO leaving Tidal after two years, following the departure of Andy Chen and Peter Tonstad. In a statement to CNET, Tidal said that it will announce a new CEO in the coming weeks. The Jay-Z-owned music service has relied heavily on star power and album exclusives, but its bet doesn't seem to be making any splashes. On top of that, the company was accused in January of lying about its 3-million subscriber-base. They were accused of creating fake accounts.
An anonymous reader writes: Millennials aren't buying homes in the same numbers as previous and older generations, but it's not because they don't want to. The vast majority of millennials do indeed aim to buy someday, or would even like to now if they could. Unfortunately, the numbers don't look good. New data from Apartment List shows that, although 80 percent of millennials would like to purchase real estate, very few are in a good position to buy, largely because they have nothing saved. According to the report, '68 percent of millennials said they have saved less than $1,000 for a down payment. Almost half, or 44 percent, of millennials said they have not saved anything for a down payment.'
The number of workers in the so-called gig economy will grow substantially in the coming years, according to a study by Intuit and Emergent Research. By 2021, the study finds, 9.2 million people are going to be working the frontline jobs at companies like Uber and Lyft. That number is projected to be 4.8 million this year. From a report: The rise in on-demand workers has been fueled largely by startups like Uber, TaskRabbit and Airbnb. It has also helped companies like Intuit, which makes tax software QuickBooks and TurboTax. The company's stock surged to an all-time high yesterday thanks to the gig economy. For context, there are currently more gig workers than people employed in the entire information sector (which includes publishing, telecommunication and data processing jobs) and IT services combined, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Also read: A recent piece on The New Yorker which talks about the lengths to which people are willing to go to survive in such jobs -- a horrifying culture that is often celebrated in those companies.
RadioShack, an almost 100-year-old American chain of wireless and electronics stores, had a hell of ride at retail. The cradle of building your own electronics at home, and an early participant in the PC revolution, is finally facing the end after a long, slow death at the hands of consumer disinterest, a dysfunctional marriage with Sprint. From a report: Tons of electronics stores have shuttered over the past decade, but few are as tragic as RadioShack, which filed for bankruptcy in 2015, appeared to be rescued by Sprint in agreement to co-share the stores, then got kicked to the curb and had to file for a second bankruptcy this past March. The new agreement means hundreds of RadioShack shops will officially close down and be replaced by Sprint stores, fizzling out dreams of the Maker movement. So while this is an end to another chapter of our American electronics retail culture, we do have to wonder: how are the folks at RadioShack doing? They have been selling the leftover stocks of electronics for a while, with only mostly store fixtures, ladders, and carpet tiles seemingly left on offer. This is what RadioShack posted earlier this month. The company has since been tweeting about the leftover stuff it has up on sale, though.
You may remember Disney's boss revealing that hackers had threatened to leak one of the studio's new films unless it paid a ransom. Bob Iger didn't name the film, but it was thought to be "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales." But now Iger says: "To our knowledge we were not hacked." From a report: Disney chairman-CEO Bob Iger confirmed Thursday that a hacker claiming to have stolen an upcoming Disney movie and demanding a ransom didn't appear to have the goods. "To our knowledge we were not hacked," Iger told Yahoo Finance. "We had a threat of a hack of a movie being stolen. We decided to take it seriously but not react in the manner in which the person who was threatening us had required." Iger continued, "We don't believe that it was real and nothing has happened." On May 15, as first reported by The Hollywood Reporter, Iger told ABC employees at a town hall meeting in New York that someone claiming to have stolen an upcoming movie would release the film on the internet unless the company paid a ransom. Iger told staff that the studio wouldn't meet any such demands.
Dustin Volz, reporting for Reuters: Facebook, Amazon and more than two dozen other U.S. technology companies pressed Congress on Friday to make changes to a broad internet surveillance law, saying they were necessary to improve privacy protections and increase government transparency. The request marks the first significant public effort by Silicon Valley to wade into what is expected to be a contentious debate later the year over the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, parts of which will expire on Dec. 31 unless Congress reauthorizes them. Of particular concern to the technology industry and privacy advocates is Section 702, which allows U.S. intelligence agencies to vacuum up vast amounts of communications from foreigners but also incidentally collects some data belonging to Americans that can be searched by analysts without a warrant.
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has become the latest major tech figure to call for universal basic income as a solution for inequality, joining a growing chorus from Silicon Valley. From a report: "Every generation expands its definition of equality. Now it's time for our generation to define a new social contract," Zuckerberg said during his commencement speech at Harvard University. "We should have a society that measures progress not by economic metrics like GDP but by how many of us have a role we find meaningful. We should explore ideas like universal basic income to give everyone a cushion to try new things," he said. Zuckerberg told the class of 2017 that he was able to pursue his passion in Facebook because he knew he had a safety net to fall back on.
The messaging app Kik Interactive has decided to create its own digital currency. Kik's plans are for an "initial coin offering," a process by which it sells tokens that can be used to buy services on its platform. "The idea is that as more and more people use Kik, the value of those tokens, called 'Kin,' will rise in value," reports TechCrunch. From the report: Kik, which has raised about $120 million (in real money) from investors including Tencent Holdings Ltd., could serve to add a new layer of legitimacy to the process. "Kik will be the largest install base of cryptocurrency users in the world," Chief Executive Officer Ted Livingston said. "Kin, on day one will be the most-used cryptocurrency in the world." The move comes as Kik finally reveals how many people actually use its app regularly each month: 15 million. That's a far-cry from the 300 million total registered users number it was sharing around this time last year. Kik plans to gift a certain amount of Kin to each user. They'll be able use the new currency to buy games, live video streams and other digital products. The company's goal is to attract new merchants to sell on the platform, creating a snowball effect where Kin becomes more valuable and more sellers pile onto Kik, increasing its popularity.
New submitter Ben Sullivan writes: Researchers and engineers in Vienna have developed a way to burn natural gas without releasing CO2 into the air through a combustion method called chemical looping combustion (CLC). In this process, CO2 can be isolated during combustion without having to use any additional energy, which means it can then go on to be stored. The method had already been applied successfully in a test environment, and has now been upscaled to allow use in up to a 10 MW facility. ScienceBlog.com reports: "A granulate made of metal oxide circulates between the two chambers and is responsible for transporting oxygen from air to fuel: 'We pump air through one chamber, where the particles take up oxygen. They then move on to the second chamber, which has natural gas flowing through it. Here is where the oxygen is released, and then where flameless combustion takes place, producing CO2 and water vapor,' explains Stefan Penthor from the Institute of Chemical Engineering at TU Wien. The separation into two chambers means there are two separate flue gas streams to deal with too: air with a reduced concentration of oxygen is discharged from one chamber, water vapor and CO2 from the other. The water vapor can be separated quite easily, leaving almost pure CO2, which can be stored or used in other technical applications."
An anonymous reader quotes a report from Quartz: If you want to truly understand what's happening in the energy industry, the best thing to do is to travel deep into the heart of American coal country, to Carbon County, Wyoming (yes, that's a real place). The state produces most coal in the US, and Carbon County has long been known (and was named) for its extensive coal deposits. But the state's mines have been shuttering over the past few years, causing hundreds of people to lose their jobs in 2016 alone. Now, these coal miners are finding hope, offered from an unlikely place: a Chinese wind-turbine maker wants to retrain these American workers to become wind-farm technicians. It's the perfect metaphor for the massive shift happening in the global energy markets. The news comes from an energy conference in Wyoming, where the American arm of Goldwind, a Chinese wind-turbine manufacturer, announced the free training program. More than a century ago, Carbon County was home to the first coal mine in Wyoming. Soon, it will be the site of a new wind farm with hundreds of Goldwind-supplied turbines.
Virginia Senator Mark Warner has introduced a bill that will give basic benefits to gig workers. "Warner has just proposed the first-ever piece of national legislation aimed at helping on-demand and other non-traditional workers without traditional benefits, like paid sick days or a retirement plan, have some sort of a safety net," reports TechCrunch. "The bill asks the federal government to set aside $20 million in funding for organizations to use to look at the types of benefits programs individual workers could take with them from job to job." From the report: "[Portable benefits is] that emergency fund," Warner told BuzzFeed, which first reported news of the bill. "It might be a fund to take care of a disability if you get hurt. It might work with some existing retirement programs. Part of it would be, depending on what happens with Obamacare, an ability to help deal with health care expenses. I think there will be a variety of models." The funding wouldn't be enough to cover everyone, of course, but if it gets the green light a draft of the bill indicates it would earmark $5 million toward grants doled out by Labor Secretary Alexander Acosta for organizations already looking into portable benefits and $15 million for new programs.
A new study conducted by Fluent shows a majority of Americans are sharing passwords to their streaming video services. While millennials lead the pack, non-millennials are doing the same. Streaming Observer reports: Nearly 3 out of every 4 (72% exactly) Americans who have cable also have access to at least one streaming service and 8% of cable subscribers plan to eliminate their service in the next year. But that doesn't necessarily mean they're paying for their streaming service. New numbers from a study conducted by Fluent show that the majority of Americans are sharing passwords to their streaming video services. Well over half of millennials (aged 18-34) -- 60% -- are either using someone someone else's password or giving their password to someone else. And just under half -- 48% -- of non-millennials are doing the same. The study also revealed that the main factor in what drives consumers to sign up for streaming video services is price, with 34% of Americans saying that low cost was the primary factor. That number jumps to 38% among millennials. When you take in to account that some streaming TV services start with prices as low as $20, it makes sense that price is the biggest issue. Convenience was the next biggest factor, coming in at just below 25%.
An anonymous reader quotes a report from TechCrunch: One of the problems publishers face today in making their content more readable on mobile devices is that there are multiple, competing formats available for this purpose. Facebook has Instant Articles, Google is spearheading the AMP (Accelerated Mobile Pages) project, and the Apple News Format optimizes content for iOS devices. Facebook is today taking a crack at a solution to this problem by rolling out support for both AMP and soon Apple News as a part of its open source Instant Articles software development kit. The updated SDK will now include an extension that lets publishers build content that's publishable in all three formats, beginning with support for Google's AMP in addition to Facebook's own Instant Articles. In the weeks ahead it will also include support for publishing to Apple News, though the company didn't provide an exact launch date for when that feature would be added.
prisoninmate quotes a report from Softpedia: Announced for the first time back in November 2014, Devuan is a Debian fork that doesn't use systemd as init system. It took more than two and a half years for it to reach 1.0 milestone, but the wait is now over and Devuan 1.0.0 stable release is here. Based on the packages and software repositories of the Debian GNU/Linux 8 "Jessie" operating system, Devuan 1.0.0 "Jessie" is now considered the first stable version of the GNU/Linux distribution, which stays true to its vision of developing a free Debian OS without systemd. This release is recommended for production use. As Devuan 1.0.0 doesn't ship with systemd, several adjustments needed to be made. For example, the distro uses a systemd-free version of the NetworkManager network connection manager and includes several extra libsystemd0-free packages in its repository.


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Bard Settlements Begin to Resolve Large Groups Vaginal Mesh Lawsuits
After fighting vaginal mesh lawsuits for the past five years, C.R. Bard appears to be resolving large groups of cases brought by women who have experienced complications after receiving their bladder sling and pelvic support products.
In a recent filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on July 24, C.R. Bard indicates that it reached settlements in about 1,300 vaginal mesh claims in June, and another 1,500 in July.
While terms of the deal have not been disclosed, Bloomberg News reports that the manufacturer will pay more than $200 million to resolve a group of at least 3,000.
Bard is one of several medical device manufacturers facing product liability lawsuits over transvaginal mesh and bladder sling products, with about 15,000 of the more than 70,000 complaints filed throughout the U.S. involving claims against Bard.
Other manufacturers involved in the litigation include Ethicon, Boston Scientific, American Medical Systems (AMS), Coloplast, Cook Medical, Neomedic and other companies.
All of the complaints involve similar allegations that women suffered complications from vaginal mesh used to repair pelvic organ prolapse or female stress urinary incontinence, where the mesh shifted, eroded through the vagina, caused infections or other problems. In many cases, women have required surgical removal of the device and been left with permanent injuries.
Several juries have returned multi-million dollar damage awards in individual cases that have gone to trial, often including punitive damages designed to punish the manufacturers for their actions surrounding the sale of the products. However, most of the manufacturers have failed to negotiate large settlements to resolve cases.
The only major manufacturer to resolve nearly all of the claims involving their products is AMS parent company Endo International, which announced in October 2014 that it has agreed to pay about $1.6 billion to resolve “substantially all” of the 20,000 mesh lawsuits involving AMS products.
Over the past year, the U.S. District Judge presiding over the federal litigation has been pressing the parties to reach settlements to resolve cases, indicating that large “waves” of trials will be scheduled in U.S. District Courts throughout the country if manufacturers fail to reach settlements.
In the recent SEC filing, Bard indicates that it has been ordered to prepare a large number of cases for trial in case a wider settlement agreement is not reached. While the manufacturer acknowledged that it is continuing to negotiate with groups of plaintiffs, it anticipates that two or more consolidated trials involving multiple claims will go to trial before the end of the year.
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Karlie Kloss' coding camp covers more cities and languages this year
This summer, Kode with Klossy will teach 1,000 girls how to code.
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In case the 800 fresh episodes of new and returning series doesn't do it.
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The group claims it will likely 'undermine children’s healthy development.'
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The company responds quickly to an open letter from two major shareholders.


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Apple is seemingly taking more ownership over criticism that its new mapping software in iOS 6 is less accurate than its predecessor.
"We own this; we manage the vendors. This is no one's issue but ours," an unnamed Apple executive tells The New York Times today, which adds that the company has promises to "pour as much time and manpower into repairing Maps as it takes."
In a column about the feature's accuracy, The Times adds that "well over 99 percent" of the feature's data set is accurate.
The admissions come on the heels of a statement the company put out last week thatthan an acknowledgment that there were flaws with the product:
Customers around the world are upgrading to iOS 6 with over 200 new features including Apple Maps, our first map service. We are excited to offer this service with innovative new features like Flyover and Siri integration, and free turn by turn navigation. We launched this new map service knowing that it is a major initiative and we are just getting started with it. We are continuously improving it, and as Maps is a cloud-based solution, the more people use it, the better it will get. We're also working with developers to integrate some of the amazing transit apps in the App Store into iOS Maps. We appreciate all of the customer feedback and are working hard to make the customer experience even better.
Apple debuted its own maps technology at its annual developers conference in June and shipped it to users as part of iOS 6 last week. While the on-stage demos were quite impressive, many users have found the newer version of the software, which uses various Apple and third-party mapping data, to be inaccurate when compared with offerings from other navigation providers, including Google, which is rumored to be.
In the meantime, The Times notes that Google intends to add its Street View feature to the browser-based version of its maps site in about two weeks, giving iPhone users a way to see street level imagery without downloading or paying for a third-party Street View app.
CNET has reached out to Apple for more information and will update this post when we know more.


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The US online retailer C Spire, today, has launched the new Samsung Galaxy S3 smartphone in the country on their personalized 4G LTE network.
While the Samsung’s latest behemoth is on a hot streak, the company is still trying to lure customers for its previous flagship — so called Galaxy S3 — with new color flavors and anticipated software.
Despite running a quad core Exynos processor under the hood, the Galaxy S3 also has some awesome features to woo the customers. That said; it sports Android ICS, 4.8-inch 720p Super AMOLED display accompanied by 1.9MP shooter on the front, while an 8MP snapper get placed on the classy back of the handset.
If this high-end device is your next pick, the C Spire Wireless will let you choose one from two colors models, including Marble White and Pebble Blue with 16GB of internal storage for $199.99 on contract. So, are you picking one up or waiting for next-gen monster?
Source – C Spire


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The iPhone 5 just refuses the stop grabbing the limelight in India, and as part of its latest feat, the device has teamed up with Reliance Communications to offer special 3G-based data plans aimed particularly at the product. Exclusive benefits, free usage of Facebook, WhatsApp and Twitter as well as other such perks have been brought forth by the Indian broadband and telecommunications company for the fifth generation Apple iPhone.
Interested parties can now go ahead and purchase the device through R World outlets to avail of the new plans, or they can even switch networks in order to take advantage of the schemes. Priced at Rs 304, Rs 504, Rs 804 and Rs 1,004, these plans proffer 2GB, 3GB, 6GB and 10GB data monthly, respectively. As far as the prices of the iPhone 5 being sold now by R World go, they remain the same as they were when it launched in India.
The 16GB model goes for Rs 45,500, while the 32GB and 64GB variants have been placed at Rs 52,500 and Rs 59,500. RCom is also offering premium numbers to those who’ll be purchasing the handset within the first three days of its availability. And apart from free access to Facebook, WhatsApp and Twitter for the first three months, iPhone 5 buyers will also receive some exclusive benefits from the company that haven’t been revealed as yet.
This Retina display-equipped Apple iPhone 5 comes fitted with a 4-inch touchscreen on its front surface, whereas its insides are highlighted by the A6 SoC which comprises of a 1.3GHz dual core processor, 1GB worth of RAM and a tri-core PowerVR SGX543MP4 GPU. An 8MP camera on its rear and a FaceTime HD snapper on its front make up some of its other important attributes.
The iPhone 5 version of the much popular handset is now being sold along with the above mentioned schemes via R World stores and other authorized dealers throughout India.


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A vegan charity has launched a major anti-milk campaign across Los Angeles - putting up 60 billboards across the city in a bid to educate people about the cruelty of the dairy industry.
In Defense of Animals teamed up with vegan YouTuber Erin Janus, who is best known for her viral video 'Dairy is Scary' for the initiative.
According to the charity: "In both English and Spanish, the billboards invite onlookers to watch Erin's video exposing common dairy industry practices of forcibly impregnating cows, stealing their babies, and turning them into veal and hamburgers long before their 25-year natural lifespan."
Erin Janus' video 'Dairy is Scary'
June is National Dairy Month across the US - an industry initiative aimed at promoting cow's milk-based products. In Defense of Animals said: "Since 1937, the dairy industry has...used [the scheme] as a marketing tool to promote the consumption of dairy products. But consumers are getting wiser, and thanks to recent studies by the Harvard School of Public Health and many others, we now know that dairy is not necessary or even beneficial to our health."
The billboards want to battle this pro-milk message by sharing Erin Janus' video, which calls on viewers to take a 21-day dairy-free challenge and try some of the plant-based milks available.
"In our fight for animal welfare, the environment, and our own personal health; making the decision to go dairy-free is one of the most impactful steps that we as individuals can take," says the charity.
Speaking about the video, Erin Janus told Plant Based News: "Most people still have no idea that modern dairy farming is full of cruelty, and is at large - scary. The suffering that millions of dairy cows endure at the hands of the profit-driven corporations and businesses that breed and exploit them is not okay.
"I created this video quite simply because the public absolutely has to know. We have all seen dairy advertisements which depict happy, healthy cows alongside doting guardian-like farmers, but that is not the reality of the industry. When an animal’s bodily function, fluid and reproductive system is the direct supply of a product in demand… that is an ethical recipe for disaster.
"For a society that claims to love animals, the commonplace practices of the dairy industry—are just that—scary."
Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are prepared in the author's capacity and do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of Plant Based News itself.Reuse this content
Maria is the Editor of Plant Based News. A former magazine editor, newspaper reporter, and features writer, her work has been published by The Guardian, The Huffington Post, and various regional newspapers. She was previously the editor of Vegan Life magazine and Vegan Trade Journal. She has interviewed a huge range of people, from Prime Ministers to authors, activists, pop stars and actors, and enjoys the varied range of topics writing for PBN allows her to tackle. You can follow her on Twitter @MariaChiorando and Instagram @mariachiorando.
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Plant Based News is a FREE service that receives millions of views each week. This takes a lot of our personal time, money and hard work. But we do it because we KNOW it makes a difference. If those following our reporting helped by contributing, we could do even more. Please consider supporting us so we can create further awareness about animal rights, environmentalism, ethical consumerism and the plant-based lifestyle. Not a false narrative - but information that empowers people to make better choices.


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News - General News - People
PR moves at Porsche
Truscott to lead Porsche PR in Aus as Jordan becomes Middle East and Africa PR boss
2 Aug 2022
By NEIL DOWLING
PORSCHE AG has appointed its Australian head of public relations and member of the executive committee, Chris Jordan, as its new head of public relations for Porsche Middle East and Africa, effective September 1.
He will be succeeded by Alexis Truscott, who has been confirmed as new head of public relations for Porsche Cars Australia.
Mr Jordan joined PCA in October 2017 after returning to Australia from Hong Kong, where he was global product and brand communications manager for Infiniti. He was previously corporate communications manager for Nissan Australia.
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“RED is a result of a legislative decision between the council and parliament. We’re advancing sustainability in palm oil especially biofuel but it is not restricted to palm oil only.
“We’re not supporting NGOs for doing that (attacking the palm oil industry) but we’re also not restricting them. Of course, they try to influence what is happening in the European Parliament but they are entitled to do so on their own behalf,” he said.
He was speaking in an interview with the Business Times during his two-day stopover in a visit to Malaysia, Australia, New Zealand and Papua New Guinea last week.
He was asked to comment on recent allegations and comments by government officials and think tanks and claims that the EU has been running afoul of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) guidelines.
Many felt that Western edible oil producers were resorting to environmental NGOs since they cannot use trade protectionist measures.
He said he was not aware of a proposed joint action by both the Malaysian and Indonesian authorities to the WTO against the 27-member EU for the way it has formulated the RED as well as reports of it funding up to 70 per cent of the operating budgets of environmental NGOs.
The palm oil industries of both major producers, worth over US$50 billion (RM152 billion) annually, and commanding a 60 per cent market share of the world’s 17 oils and fats market, are finding themselves hapless against this European strategy.
De Gucht did not want to respond to British Member of European Parliament Roger Helmer’s allegation, saying it was the position and view of an individual MEP out of a total of 750. (Helmer claimed in Kuala Lumpur last month that the European Commission alone had provided more than euro60 million [RM356.8 million] to these pressure groups through a programme called LIFE+). Such funding implicates the EU for creating barriers to trade for agricultural products from developing countries.
“We’re not putting restrictions on the exports of palm oil to the European market – we’re simply giving advantage to palm oil that is produced in a sustainable manner.
“RED applies to biofuel and not other applications for palm oil in the food industry or cosmetics,” he argued, adding that recent market trends showed that less palm oil was finding its way to biofuel.
For 2010, Malaysia and the EU conducted trade totalling RM122.8 billion, of which palm oil came in a far second to the exports after electrical and electronics (E&E), commanding a 7.6 per cent share of exports, totalling RM5.25 billion.
On the ongoing bilateral free trade agreement (FTA) talks between Malaysia and the EU, de Gucht said there will be a sustainability chapter which will address the import of palm oil into the region.
The part on labour will be done with reference to the International Labour Organisation while the aspect on environment will be based on the environment conventions of the United Nations, he explained.
“The way it is implemented may vary from one FTA with another, and so it will be a subject of discussion between both countries.”
Malaysia is also engaged with the EU on the FLEGT ( Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade) Voluntary Partnership Agreement for trade in timber products.
“We’re negotiating with Malaysia and we are confident that it will come into play in a short notice. The delay is on the Malaysian side, and we hope the government will be able to work it out.”
Would environment play a stumbling block in furthering exports to the EU?
“We expect countries to respect our requirements. Malaysian companies are doing so. For example, fish exporters adopted a self-imposed ban to ensure that their long term reputation on the EU market remained intact.”
In the long run, trade between both the EU and Malaysia will be served by high environment standards, he added.
Source : Business Times


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Avenue to celebrate a century of style
More than 50 Worth Avenue businesses slated to participate in the 100 Years of Fashion event.
The Worth Avenue Association, with The Fashion Doctors Media Group, has organized a Nov. 16 event along the three-block-long commercial stretch to usher in the winter season.
The aim of the four-hour 100 Years of Fashion event, 3 to 7 p.m. that Saturday, is to inspire residents, visitors and people from all over Palm Beach County to come to Worth Avenue for shopping and dining, said Gregg Beletsky, president of the merchant organization.
“We were so pleased with the results of last year’s Fashion’s Night Out, which was held in September and drew about 3,000 people to the Avenue,” he said. “Unfortunately, the Fashion’s Night Out concept has been put on hiatus, so we decided to create a similar style of event to replace it, determining that a mid-November date will allow more town residents and the regular clients of the various businesses on the Avenue to be able to participate.”
Marianna Dubois, whose Fashion Doctors firm produced last year’s Fashion’s Night Out event, was asked by the association, in her firm’s capacity as the Worth Avenue Association’s special events and publicity agency, to orchestrate the 100 Years of Fashion event.
The event commemorates a century of Worth Avenue style. In 1913, the thoroughfare, eventually named for the Seminole Indian War hero William Jenkins Worth, was completed.
“We’ve designed the event to include something for everyone to enjoy,” Dubois said, noting that 52 Worth Avenue businesses are participating in the 100 Years of Fashion event.
Classic and contemporary Lamborghini automobiles will sit along the north side of Worth Avenue’s 200 block, while models will stroll the Avenue and vias wearing designs created by students from the Art Institute of Fort Lauderdale to reflect the past 10 decades of women’s fashions. The fashion designers will compete for two $1,000 scholarships, voted on by judges and by the public during the event.
Michaela Paige, a recent competitor on television talent show The Voice, will perform at the 150 Worth shopping center.
Entries in a “Cupcake Couture” competition among local bakers also will be on display at 150 Worth. “The public will determine by ballot who will win the prize for the best cupcake,” Dubois said.
A fashion show of the Bosha.b resort collection is planned for Hibiscus Plaza, while the Via Amore Courtyard will be transformed in a “Luxe Lounge” with complimentary perfume-blending sessions available as well.
Food and beverages will be served at various locations along the Avenue, provided by Bice, Gigi’s Tap & Table and other area restaurants.
Those attending the event also can register to enter a drawing for a $1,000 wristwatch from Tourneau.


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As the Russian-Ukraine war is delayed by a month, the supply crisis in global automobile production is also expanding. Turkish brands are beginning to lower their sales targets, while global car production is expected to lose 5 million units. Skoda, one of the most affected brands of the war, has cut its year-end sales target by nearly 50%. Expectations for the market as a whole have also fallen.
According to Aysel Yücel news from the Dünya newspaper; Skoda Turkey’s general manager Zafar Bashar said many parts were unavailable in car production due to the war between Ukraine and Russia following the chip crisis associated with the pandemic. , Says: We are supplying wire harnesses and there have been major changes to our vehicle production plans. In the past, customer, economic, or political cohesion was protected when making market forecasts. However, technical issues from the factory did not serve as a basis for forecasting the market. Previously, we planned to have enough vehicles to come and sell. However, the information is provided by the factory and we act accordingly. “
“This year’s target was actually to sell 50,000 units. Our product range also made this possible,” Bashar said, saying that the production turmoil has lowered the year-end sales target. Our goal is to exceed 25,000 units. Under normal conditions, we planned to sell at least 6000 new Fabia products on the market, but we will sell 10% of total sales during this period to Fabia. I’m aiming to do it. ” Due to increasing vehicle availability issues in the automotive market, total sales forecasts for the end of the year are also low. At the beginning of 2022, industry representatives predicted that the market would exceed last year. The market for automobiles and light commercial vehicles was at the level of 737,000 units in 2021. The goal for this year’s sector was to exceed 780,000 units. However, both supply problems and soaring vehicle prices make it almost impossible to reach this goal.
ODD: The whole equation has changed
Hayri Erce, General Coordinator of the Automotive Distributors Association (ODD), said the war changed the entire equation for 2022. It will decrease a little more quarterly and will be fully resolved by the end of the year. In 2022, we believed that the market determinant was the exchange rate. However, the Russian-Ukraine war has entered the equation as a new parameter. 2022 will be difficult due to the fact that the war will cause many raw material supply crises and slow economic growth. “
“Demand will shrink”
“It’s a huge success if we capture domestic market sales at the end of last year,” Hayri Erce said, pointing out that there are domestic markets where demand will be tight. Els said: The demand side is still alive. People want to somehow protect their money because the exchange rate has an upside risk. The car is considered an investment vehicle. Meanwhile, fleet sales activities continue. However, if the war continues, it will have a negative impact on both domestic markets and exports. Experience the domestic market, where demand is becoming more and more demanding. There was a supply problem last year due to strong demand. Now this supply problem will continue, we will see a break in demand, “he said.
“Availability is back in the foreground”
Alp Gulan, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Gulan Automotive, points out that supply problems in the domestic market are becoming more serious. We are looking for alternative solutions, but in general, it will be a year of increasing chip and cable supply problems and a record rise in raw material prices forcing the industry. “
Car hiking waves started at 5%
The Russian-Ukraine War caused record price increases for some raw materials such as palladium, nickel and steel. Logistics costs have also increased. Automakers have begun to reflect rising production costs in their prices. Tofas and Renault are one of the brands that raised prices in March, according to information received from dealers. According to data from car data analysis firm Cardata, car prices in the A, B and C segments rose by an average of 5% between February 25 and March 25. Industry representatives say car prices will continue to rise gradually.
In the second-hand market, supply is declining and prices are rising
Melih Mutlu, General Manager of Otoshops, focused on rising prices and supply issues in the second-hand market and summarized the latest market developments. “Demand for second-hand goods has increased compared to January and February. We are in a time when there are consumers. Especially with the growing demand for used hybrid cars, the availability of new cars is still very high. It is at a low level and we believe that the supply problem due to the war will continue to grow .. New car prices continue to rise regularly. As a result, used car prices are rising in direct proportion. The average of the period from January to March is 8%. “It can be said that there was an increase. The market is expected to become active in April, but the supply of used cars is decreasing due to the low sales of new cars.” Told.
Car brands have an up-to-date price list on their website for those who buy a new car. According to the recently announced price list, models with less than 500,000 TL have been announced one by one. According to the list price, the cheapest models of brands sold in Turkey are:
Citroen C31.2 PureTech Manual 335,000 Lira
Dacia Sandero Stepway 1.0 Turbo 368,000 900 Lira
Fiat Egia 1.4 Fire Easy 265,000 900 Lira
Honda City 1.5L VTEC Automatic 382,200 Lira
Hyundai i10 1.2MPI Manual 285,000 Lira
KIA Picanto 1.0L Manual 299000900 Lira
Mitsubishi Space Star Automatic 303,250 Lira
Nissan Micra 1.0 Manual 388,000 800 Lira
Opel Corsa 1.2 Manual 379000 900 Lira
Peugeot 208 1.2 Manual 362,000 500 Lira
Renault Clio 1.0 Sce Manual 311 Thousand Lira
Seat Ibiza 1.0 Evo Manual 320,000 Lira
Skoda Fabia 1.0 Manual 379000 900 Lira
Volkswagen Polo 1.0 Manual 371,000 300 Lira


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Apple is on Insta now: The Cupertino-based computer maker officially unveiled its Instagram account Monday, uploading a series of slideshows that celebrate the iPhone’s camera.
Apple has appointed Isabel Ge Mahe as its first vice president and managing director of its business in Greater China. China-born Ge Mahe is tasked with
Spotify and Apple Music may soon find a new challenger in the music streaming service industry from an unlikely source: electric vehicle
closing year, protection researchers observed Lenovo changed into shipping laptops with the worst protection flaw because the notorious Sony rootkit debacle of


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The new Strategy Analytics report, “WiMAX MVNOs: Just Crazy Enough to Work?” depicts scenarios that show that the WiMAX environment may actually prove to be more receptive to the mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) business model than the cellular world.
Earlier this year, Synterra, one of the largest Russian providers of telecommunications infrastructure and Internet access, invited regional telecoms to partner on an MVNO basis to offer WiMAX services, using Synterra’s spectrum and backbone infrastructure. “This sort of risk- and investment-sharing makes sense for WiMAX operators,” notes Tom Elliott, Vice President at Strategy Analytics and author of the report. “If Sprint winds up staying in WiMAX, they may duplicate their wholesale business model from the CDMA space to WiMAX.”
According to the report, the WiMAX community’s history of open architecture and a broad supplier ecosystem may help WiMAX MVNO’s in the key area of consumer devices. “Cellular MVNOs, especially in the US, tend to have very limited handset portfolios,” says Ben Piper, Director of the Strategy Analytics Broadband Network Strategies service. “A WiMAX MVNO could, in principle, let their customers use any WiMAX-certified device they wanted to.”
Traditional cellular MVNOs have had a decidedly mixed record. In addition to examining the traditional MVNO play and the factors influencing their success or failure, this report identifies specific reasons why the WiMax world might be more conducive to MVNOs.


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Larian has been on a roll ever since the breakout success of Divinity: Original Sin 2 – and I don’t just mean the dice rolling in the background of its RPG games. The studio picked up the rights to D&D and launched a new entry in one of the most iconic RPG series ever with Baldur’s Gate 3, and now the company is making some major expansions.
Larian has just announced that it’s acquired developer BlitWorks, which will be rebranded as Larian Barcelona. BlitWorks will continue to exist independently as a publisher, but the development team will now be dedicated to internal Larian projects. If you want a job there, you can head over to the official site to check out the listings.
BlitWorks had already partnered with Larian on previous games, including the Switch port of Divinity: Original Sin 2 and the Stadia version of Baldur’s Gate 3. The studio has previously worked primarily as a port house, with credits on various versions of everything from Sonic CD to Spelunky 2.
This is Larian’s seventh studio, and the second new acquisition this year – the company also acquired Turblulenz and converted it to Larian Guildford back in February.
Hola amigos! We're thrilled to finally announce our 7th global location: Larian Barcelona! If you're also in pursuit of creating best-in-class RPGs, say hello over here: https://t.co/BfBW7iGBwg pic.twitter.com/nHQpGMUYFv
— Larian Studios, nuanced dungeon master (@larianstudios) June 2, 2021
Now, uh… when’s that next Baldur’s Gate 3 update coming? No pressure or anything.


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A plant-based chicken company has partnered a major food distributor to launch its product across the US.
Daring Foods, founded by two vegans, has announced a strategic partnership with family-run butcher and top foodservice supplier, Rastelli Foods Group. The group will be an exclusive partner, bringing the product to restaurants and retailers throughout the country. It will also support Daring’s push into direct-to-consumer product delivery in February 2020 via online retail.
Rastelli has committed $10 million to Daring Foods, in the form of cash, and support with sales, distribution, and infrastructure.
‘Not a novelty item’
“We founded Daring because we found that the current generation of plant-based meats left something to be desired. There was a taste gap and an ingredients gap, in that many alternatives were acting more like an unhealthy replacement, rather than the real thing,” Daring Foods co-founder and CEO Ross Mackay told Plant Based News.
“I am vegan, but I don’t want to push anybody to change their diet with Daring. As someone with experience living on a plant-based diet, though, I often found that I was missing out on the emotional aspect of meals – the link that arises from breaking bread – simply because restaurants or groceries couldn’t meet my dietary needs in the middle with a solution that was actually worth eating.
“We aren’t aiming to be a novelty item on a menu – we’re just trying to make sticking or swapping to a plant-based diet as easy as ordering anything else so that people can get down to the real heart of any meal: the connections that happen across the table.”
‘Protein, not meat’
The alternative meat space is expected to grow to by $85 billion USD by 2030, and Rastelli Foods Group strongly believes its partnership with Daring Foods will help contribute to a large portion of that growth.
“Rastelli is a protein company, not just a meat company. We’re here to fill the center of your plate with the best and most delicious foods – no matter if they come from an animal or a plant,” said Ray Rastelli Jr., President of Rastelli Foods Group.
“The moment I tasted Daring chicken, I immediately knew this was something unique. Daring fulfills all our requirements for clean, responsibly sourced products. They epitomize what customers have wanted all along, a clean label product that is not a novelty but meant to be eaten every day and easy to cook by almost anyone.”


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Blake Lively wears a butterfly print dress while stepping out in New York City on Wednesday afternoon (May 7).
The 26-year-old actress’ hubby Ryan Reynolds was also seen out and about that day wearing glasses and a leather jacket.
Blake recently revealed this week what she did after the Met Ball on Monday night!
“I went to Serendipity… had frozen hot chocolate with extra peanut butter sauce on the side. Closed that place down! That’s how I do an after party!” Blake told Extra.
15+ pictures inside of Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds out separately…


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Droid 2 Dropped, Didn't Explode: Motorola
Here's what GearLog (PCMag) said:
We got word this morning from a Motorola employee involved with Droid development that the phone may not have exploded at all. The Droid 2 in question "was a phone that got dropped," the employee told PCMag. "[T]he guy didn't notice the glass had cracked [...]so when he put it to his ear, he cut himself."That makes sense, and explains Aron Embry's injury. It doesn't explain the popping noise he said he heard, but it's unclear that the popping sound actually occurred.
The only things that could explode in a phone would have resulted in a phone that did not work, yet this phone worked. And there was no explosive damage to the device (things inside blown outward, etc).Despite this report, Motorola has not made a public statement in the matter.


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Budget priced brands versus EDLP basics
It may be back to basics in Walmart’s apparel department, but shoppers still crave discounted brands and fashion as evidenced by continued strength at some familiar retailers.
TJX and Ross Stores both posted same-store sales increases of 7% during June, and both companies used the occasion of the better-than-expected results to elevate their profits forecasts. TJX said June sales increase 9% to $2.3 billion, while Ross said its June sales increased 12% to $886 million.
“We are very pleased our strong trends continued in June,” said TJX CEO Carol Meyrowitz. “Our 7% consolidated comparable store sales increase significantly exceeded our expectations and was achieved over 5% growth last year. It is great to see such consistent, strong performance across the company, with all of our businesses in the United States, Canada and Europe continuing to deliver excellent results.”
Customer traffic during the month increased substantially at every division which Meyrowitz said speaks to the tremendous appeal of the retailer’s values, brands and fashions.
Meanwhile, rival fashion discounter Ross Stores vice chairman and CEO Michael Balmuth said, “Our ongoing ability to deliver terrific name brand bargains to today’s value-focused shoppers drove broad-based merchandise and geographic sales gains during the month.”
Both companies raise their profits forecasts as a result of strong showing in June. TJX now expects its second quarter earnings per share to be in the range of 52 cents to 53 cents and full year earnings in the range of $2.31 to $2.39. Ross increased its second quarter earnings forecast to a range of 77 cents to 78 cents from its previous guidance of 72 cents to 75 cents, but did not comment on full year expectations.
Both companies appeal to a shoppers segment of price sensitive brand aspirants who fit with Walmart’s core shopper demographic. The TJX Companies operates 1,006 T.J. Maxx, 892 Marshalls and 393 HomeGoods stores in the United States. In addition, the company operates 220 Winners, 87 HomeSense and 12 Marshalls stores in Canada and 337 T.K. Maxx and 24 HomeSense stores in Europe.
Ross operates 1,051 stores in the United States.


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Remote communities in the Northern Territory as facing major food price increases with $74 coffee
The Australian city where a pot of coffee costs $74 because of rising fuel and freight costs
- Ramingining, 558 km east of Darwin, residents pay $74 for instant coffee
- Remote cities struggle to afford food amid rising fuel and freight costs
- Another store in the NT said they had to raise prices for the first time in ten years
A pot of coffee is priced at a whopping $74 in a remote Northern Territory town, while fuel and freight prices skyrocket.
Residents of Ramingining, a small town 558km east of Darwin, have been stunned by the prices at the local Arnhem Land Progress Aboriginal Corporation store.
A kilo of Nescafe instant coffee cost $74.25, while small jars of cream cost nearly $8 and powdered milk is $10.25.
The Arnhem Land Progress Aboriginal Corporation store in Ramingining, NT, has been forced to charge $74 for a kilo of instant coffee (above) amid rising fuel and transportation costs
A sign at the store stated that “significant cost increases” in fuel and freight were the cause of the price increases.
“Over the past two years we have done our best to absorb these increases in an effort to keep prices down … but this is no longer sustainable,” it said.
An ALAC spokeswoman said the company is facing not only dramatically increased fuel and transportation costs, but also labor costs as a result of Fairwork’s recent increase in the minimum wage.
“Fairwork Australia’s decision, while understandable and fair, will add more than $1,000,000 to our labor costs across all of our operations and businesses,” she said. ABC†
Urapunga’s convenience store said it barely sells meat (above) because residents can’t keep up with the high prices
The organization pays an additional $250,000 per quarter in freight charges, compared to the same period last year.
She said the company has seen customers “have to remove products from their shopping carts to stretch their dollars” and is doing its best to limit costs passed on to customers.
High prices have also been seen in Wadeye’s Murrinhpatha Nimmipa Store – the only store open in a 400km radius.
Corned beef costs $15, but the store’s manager, Jake Clarke, said fruits and vegetables were sold more cheaply to ensure residents had access to healthy food.
He added that it was the first time in ten years that he had to increase the margin on food products.
The weather, lack of supplies, rising fuel and energy costs were all to blame, he said.
“We’re getting to the point where we’re just covering our costs. It’s not because I want to, it’s because I have to,” he told the publication.
Greg Pattison, CEO of the South Australia and Central Australia Food Bank, said the residents of Alice Springs are also turning to charity amid the mounting food cost crisis.
Remote communities in the Northern Territory face a growing food crisis with transportation costs driving up the cost of basic groceries (photo, Urapunga)
“We’re starting to see people come in who aren’t necessarily people you would think need assistance. They are people for whom the cost of living has left them unable to feed their families,” he said.
He said the charity’s operating expenses have increased by about $50,000 a month.
In Urapunga, 613 km southeast of Darwin, shop assistant Mandy Jeffs said residents don’t buy much meat because “it’s gotten too expensive.”
She said she noticed the “incredible” price increases after coming back from a two-week break.


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The head of the largest freight brokerage in North America told American Shipper this week that capital fueling acquisitions and new technology will push his company and industry as a whole.
The supply chain software company told American Shipper this focus allows it to connect new innovations to its core platform as it would tools from a third-party technology provider.
The commission said it has “reasonable grounds” to suspect the carriers engaged in collusive practices to fix incremental cargo rates from Asia to South Africa.
Registration takes less than 1 minute.
A hearing will be held Tuesday in a U.S. bankruptcy court in Newark, N.J. to consider the South Korean ocean carrier’s request to have its rehabilitation proceeding in bankruptcy court in Korea recognized under Chapter 15 of the U.S. bankruptcy code.
The San Francisco-based freight forwarder, which has now raised a total of $94 million to fund global expansion, said it is constructing a new operating system for global trade that will unite the world in a seamless web of commerce.
Japanese container carrier Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha could be targeted by Singapore-based hedge fund Effissimo, the firm’s largest shareholder as of early August, according to recent media reports.


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There’s no denying that today’s retailers need to be tech savvy to maintain and grow customer traffic. Technology-based tools, such as personalized deals based on a statistical understanding of past purchases and mobile apps that offer shopping lists and quick scan payment systems, are among the most effective tools at a retailer’s disposal.
According to a recent news report report by Piper Jaffray analyst Sean Naughton, Target has launched a new loyalty program called REDperks. Target and Whole Foods, two of the best-regarded U.S. retailers, have now embarked upon new loyalty initiatives. With the press on Albertson’s public decision to discontinue their loyalty program and a number of highly successful grocery retailers choosing not to use a traditional loyalty program, many retailers have been left wondering if loyalty programs are right for their industry.


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Panasonic’s Eluga line may not be well known to most, and it certainly doesn’t roll off the tongue compared to other product monikers. Their devices have always been affordable though, and a new one has finally arrived in India with the Panasonic Eluga L 4G release.
Roughly a year ago Panasonic launched their first smartphone outside Japan since 2005, but has now decided to pull out of the smartphone market in Europe, although Panasonic will still continue their phone business in Japan, but will halt handset sales in Europe by March this year, so it is goodbye to the Android Eluga […]
Back at Mobile World Congress 2012, Panasonic introduced the Panasonic Eluga Power to the mobile space, and now that 5-inch Android Ice Cream Sandwich smartphone has made its way through the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and gained approval for the USA. According to the guys over at Engadget, originally the Panasonic Eluga Power smartphones was […]
Just ahead of Mobile World Congress 2012 in Barcelona, which kicks off today the 27th of February, Panasonic has unveiled a new Android smartphone for the European market called the Panasonic ELUGA power, a handset that delivers impressive specification along with being waterproof and dustproof. The Panasonic ELUGA power phone delivers lightweight portability along with […]


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For years, UAV operators have deployed a single drone to perform a dedicated mission in a specific niche – for example, retail delivery or infrastructure inspection – usually on behalf of a single client in a geographically limited area and within the drone operator’s visual line of sight.
Until now, a combination of regulatory and technological and safety concerns have tended to mandate these flight restrictions, even though they leave drone fliers without the scalability needed to reduce their costs and achieve a significant rate of return.
But times are changing.
Increasingly, UAV companies are looking to expand the number and scope of their drone operations to serve multiple clients in a more diverse array of niches. This expansion requires a shift from a single drone model to a drone-fleet model, with a single remote pilot managing multiple drones from a central command center, operating with beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) authority and coordinating drone operations over longer distances.
The shift also requires the development of networks of drone stations – “vertiports” – where drones can land, recharge and complete new missions without having to return to their original launching point. The drone fleet model is costly on the front end, but with vastly expanded operations, there’s a much higher long-term return.
For those that can afford it, and are willing to take the risk, it’s an investment well worth making.
Israel-based Airobotics is a recognized pioneer in the development of these new more scalable drone-fleet operations that offer important economic and operational efficiency benefits to UAV companies and their consumers alike. The nine-year old company is the first in the world to receive FAA type certification for its Optimus drones, which are currently engaged in fleet operations in the law enforcement niche in partnership with four local governments in the Dubai region in the United Arab Emirates.
Last month, the company received a fresh order of $2.6 million to enlarge its fleet system to support first-responder operations across multiple jurisdictions in Dubai, with plans to expand it still further to encompass more jurisdictions as well as commercial niches beyond the public safety sphere.
“We are proud to receive an additional order for Optimus Systems from our customer in Dubai,” said Meir Kliner, Airobotics’ CEO and President of the Ondas Autonomous Systems business unit. “We are working to grow our Optimus deployments in Dubai and fulfill the vision of a fully automated urban drone infrastructure for Public Safety and Emergency Response,” he added.
The launch of the Optimus system in Dubai makes sense because the government is already on the cutting edge of “green” technology design worldwide. Dubai has announced ambitious plans to transform the entire country into a “smart” hub based on a mix of sustainable battery-powered air and road vehicles, in addition to “green” building construction and solar and wind power. The country also views itself as a major drone provider for the entire Middle East and Near East region, which includes the Balkans, Turkey and parts of the Mediterranean.
In addition to aiding in search-and-rescue and other traditional law enforcement operations, Airobotics also plans to assist the Dubai police with state-of-the-art counter-drone security operations. Airobotics’s “Iron Drone” technology system allows users to identify and intercept hostile drone systems in order to protect valuable government and industrial assets from unwarranted attacks and surveillance intrusions. Iron Drone can eliminate small UAVs without recourse to GPS or radio-frequency jamming. Intercepting drones fly autonomously towards identified invaders based on initial radar guidance and then “lock on” to them using advanced machine vision.
Airobotics’s reputation for innovative drone solutions was forged back in 2018 when the company began servicing mining, construction and public infrastructure companies with its cutting-edge inspection technology. The company has grown its team to over 250 employees and has expanded the number of countries where it works to the United States, New Caledonia, Chile and Singapore. Senior Google and Facebook Executive Richard Wooldridge joined Airobotics in 2018 which allowed the company to raise its visibility and to vastly expand its investment support.
In June 2022, American Robotics, a subsidiary of Ondas Holdings, acquired Airobotics, which set the stage for the company’s application to the FAA for type certification of its Optimus drone system.


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Milwaukee Downtown is celebrating its tenth year of Downtown
Dining Week this summer. The dining event will run from June 4
through June 11, with 47 new and familiar restaurants and locales
prepping three-course options for lunch and dinner.
Summary: Reefs2Go offers several live food options for your
fishy friends to enjoy, offering various sizes and bulk purchasing
options of Ghost Feeder Shrimp, buy one get one free offers on
Amphipods and ...
At the other end of the spectrum comes South Korea, where
respondents averaged less than four hours (3.7) a week cooking for
themselves. Interestingly, France -- considered a bastion of food
and gastronomy -- also placed fifth from the bottom, preferring to
leave the cooking to their corner bistros, Michelin-starred chefs
and microwaves: Frozen, pre-prepared food brand Picard enjoys
San Francisco, California -- Global food emulsifiers market
is expected to reach USD 3.18 billion by 2020, according to a new
study by Grand View Research, Inc. Increasing demand for bakery
products coupled ...
We don’t need to feel guilty about buying ready made food –
but there are still reasons to love the stove A reader once wrote
to me complaining that her husband had retired, but still expected
her to cook at least two meals a day. This was ages ago and she
felt there wasn’t much she could do about it, but luckily times
have changed. So now if a wife has found a more fruitful or amusing
way to ...
India and Ukraine top the chart for hours per week people
spend cooking. NUREMBERG, Germany, March 30, 2015 /CNW/ - GfK asked
more than 27,000 people aged 15 or older across 22 countries about
how many hours per week they spend cooking - and how knowledgeable,
experienced and passionate they are about food and cooking.
Thora Pabst is part of DIning for Women, which works to help
women around the world improve their lives. The Greeley chapter of
Dining for Women meets once per month at a participant’s home for a
potluck dinner, presentation and discussion.
With its artisanal coffee shops, numerous dining spots and
lively atmosphere, Holland Village, which was once a kampung filled
with plantations and nurseries, has developed to become one of
Singapores hottest lifestyle destinations. When one thinks of
Holland Village, the images that usually come to mind are: cool
bars, amazing restaurants, hipster cafs, art galleries and
handicraft stores ...
Clutching a bag of pasta, canned pears and beef, David Kirk
leaves a food bank in one of Britain's poorest corners -- his sixth
visit in a few weeks. "It's certainly a big help," the tattooed
54-year-old said as he loaded the free supplies into his car in the
town of Camborne in Cornwall in the southwest of England. The
growing numbers of Britons turning to food banks run by charities
to get by ...
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — A "food source" sickened nearly 100
restaurant patrons in Philadelphia last month, but city and state
health officials say Pennsylvania law bars them from disclosing
what the food was or how it was contaminated.
On the corner of 5th and Spring streets in downtown L.A.,
across from the Last Bookstore, is Buzz Wine Beer Shop, the go-to
store for craft beer aficionados, but also for wine fanatics intent
on picking up a bottle of something unusual.
The cruise ship industry is all about one-upmanship, and its
new big thing is outdoor dining. Most ships have had options for
this in the past — often a dining terrace outside the casual buffet
room and a grill and possibly a pizza bar by the pool.
A health inspection of the dining hall at Memorial University
of Newfoundland on Wednesday found a food safety issue that
had to be resolved immediately. The university and catering company
Aramark requested the inspection following student complaints about
An Arkansas lawmaker said Wednesday that the state should ban
California wine as retribution for the West Coast state's law
requiring egg-laying hens to be able to stand up, turn around and
fully extend ...
Plans have been unveiled for a new up-market central Auckland
single-site dining precinct to rival the likes of the trendy
Ponsonby Central, Viaduct, and Britomart precincts. The 1,700
square metre eatery conglomeration - named Queen’s Rise - is to be
housed within the newly-redeveloped building at 125 Queen Street,
and will be split over two floors. Some 13 tenancies are being
offered - ranging ...