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Crepes a la Carte is consulting with designers and manufacturers to build the first biodegradable crepe cone for Australia. A Carrotmob in June raised over half the money needed to develop the crepe cone prototype. Co-owners Liz and Ben hope to have the crepe cone in use by the end of the year. We’re sure there will be plenty of volunteers to test out that particular prototype.
Just two hours of mobsters has raised over half the money needed for Crepes a la Carte to develop Australia’s first biodegradable crepe cone.
Co-owner Liz Brumby said the Carrotmob had been a great success and even seemed to have increased takings for the rest of the week “in every possible way it’s as perfect as it could be, even the weather (was perfect).”
The Carrotmob was held last Tuesday after marketing and society lecturer Ben Neville contacted the Melbourne Carrotmob about holding a mob at Melbourne Uni.
Carrotmob volunteer and Melbourne Uni student Ashlee Brady approached a range of businesses at the uni to get involved. Three businesses made commitments and the marketing and society class voted for Crepes a la Carte to win the mob.
Some happy customers from Crepes a la Carte with the carrot.
Crepes a la Carte is run by students Liz Brumby and Ben Vaughan. The pair tasted plenty of crepes in their travels around Europe and Japan so a crepe van was a natural choice when they decided they wanted to run their own business. However, it was important to them that the business was about more than just making a quick buck. “We think it’s always important, in particular as students ourselves, to demonstrate that a small business can be both sustainable and profitable,” Liz said. “We’re a simple small business trying to sell and make money but we’re commited to the environment at the same time.”
Liz and Ben had already investigated making a biodegradable crepe cone so when they were approached by Ashlee about getting involved in Carrotmob they knew exactly what they wanted to do. The pair have talked to a biodegradable coffee cup manufacturer about trialling the crepe cone using similar materials. “Our crepe cones are recyclable but we can’t control what happens to them after they leave the store and they don’t degrade naturally,” said Liz.
160 crepes were sold and a total of $893.40 was raised.
As really observant followers of this blog may have noticed, University of Melbourne lecturer Dr. Ben Neville posted a comment on the blog just before Easter about running a Carrotmob at Melbourne Uni.
“I’ve just come across Carrotmob and I love it. I lecture a third year subject called Marketing and Society at Melbourne Uni. I featured the liquor store video in class yesterday and have just put your info on my class blog. But I have a proposal for you…how about creating a competition for businesses on campus here or nearby (Lygon St?) with my students as the main mobsters (I get about 60 turning up). They could vote, then we could mob the winning business after a class (we finish at 4.15 on Tuesdays). We’ve got 4 weeks left excluding next week’s holiday, so we’d have to get cracking. Let me know. Ben”
And in a superhuman effort, we will be running what is possibly the world’s fastest Carrotmob next week!
Who was in the running?
Three businesses were interested in having a Carrotmob show up at their business. The class voted on:
- Streat: a social enterprise selling food and coffee on campus who promised to use all of the potential mob revenue to contribute to existing sustainability initiatives
- Kere Kere: a unique coffee vendor that lets its customers decide where the profits from their purchases go promised to commit $2 of every coffee sold to the creation of frisbees made out of used milk bottles
- Crepes a la carte: pledged 100% of generated revenue to the creation of Australia’s first biodegradable takeaway crepe cone.
100% of proceeds are going into developing Australia's first biodegradable crepe cone
Crepes a la Carte was the clear winner with 28 votes out of a total of 37!
The third year Marketing and Society class will be showing up for the mob but we’d love to see you there too.
When and where is the mob?
Where – Crepes a la Carte, a student-owned and operated French Creperie at the University of Melbourne Parkville Campus
When – Tuesday 24th May, 12pm-2pm


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The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare is aiming to clamp down on misleading advertisements on topics like skin fairness, diabetes, increase in height, obesity, etc in a big way. It has suggested amendments to the Drugs and Magic Remedies (Objectionable Advertisement) Act, 1954. One of the stringent clauses is an increase in the fine imposed on misleading advertisers to Rs 50 lakh and a jail term of five years.
On February 3, 2020, the ministry made public a draft Bill titled 'Drugs and Magic Remedies (Objectionable Advertisements) (Amendment) Act, 2020' that covered the proposed amendments. It also invited the public and stakeholders to come forward with their suggestions and objections towards the said draft within 45 days from the date of its issue.
The reason behind these amendments was the rising number of complaints against the present Act, concerning its implementation and effectiveness and to stay in touch with changing times and technology.
A major proposed change in the draft Bill is the expanded definition of the word 'advertisement' that shall now cover the electronic media, internet, and websites. Also, the ministry has increased the number of diseases, disorders, and conditions on which advertisements are prohibited - from 54 to 78.
The draft Bill also suggests an increase in the punishment doled out to offenders. For first time offenders, it has proposed two years imprisonment and a fine of Rs 10 lakh, up from the present six months and an unspecified fine amount. And for those committing the offence for the second time, five years imprisonment and a fine of Rs 50 lakh has been proposed, up from the existing one year imprisonment and fine of Rs 10 lakh.
We spoke to Shweta Purandare, the Secretary-General of The Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) to better understand this draft Bill. ASCI is the self-regulatory body of the advertising industry in the country.
While considering how the healthcare category has always faced the most scrutiny concerning misleading aids, she says, "Healthcare products and services is one of the top sectors with a high number of misleading ads but there are others too, like the education sector. The notification about the draft covers drugs or medicines only and doesn't cover cosmetics. Earlier, some of the subjects mentioned in the list were covered under Schedule J of the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940 which has now been brought under the Drugs and Magic Remedies (Objectionable Advertisements) (Amendment) Act, 2020."
About the proposed changes, Purandare says, "It is a welcome move to expand the definition of the word advertisement because earlier, the definition was very narrow. Now, they've broadened the scope of what one means by advertisement. Keeping in mind the growth of digital media, they've also included websites of companies as well."
Speaking about how increased punishments will act as a deterrent, she adds, "The change will help in a big way. In 2017, ASCI had entered into an MoU with the Ministry of Ayush and was suo moto monitoring the print and TV media. We looked into almost 20 per cent of the ads. We looked into almost 2,500 ads, and more than 500 ads were found violating the Act. A high number of ads were misleading in nature. Advertisers at that time could perhaps get away by paying a small fine. The implementation of the regulation wasn't very effective. However, with the new steep fines and jail terms, I think the advertisers will have to be careful."
Purandare also told us about the time it will take for advertisers to stop such practices. She says, "Over the past three years, we've seen a dramatic decrease in the violations of the Drugs and Magic Remedies Act because of increased awareness of the action taken by the Ministry of Ayush either at the Centre or the state level. With this draft that is open to suggestions, I am sure it is going to be a much-needed change. We hope to see a cleaner healthcare sector that is free of misleading advertisements."
"More importantly, it will protect consumers because many advertisements promise to cure diabetes, cancer or paralysis and vulnerable and gullible consumers fall victim to it. We have to look at what kind of medicines are being pushed out and whether they are authentic drugs or not. With this draft, consumers are going to benefit in a big way."
This is not the first time the government has decided to clamp down on misleading ads and protect consumers. In 2019, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB) directed TV broadcasters to carry the ASCI scroll for any grievances against objectionable advertisements.
Also in 2019, the government decided to set up a committee through the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) that would scrutinise product-related claims made in advertisements across digital, TV and print.

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Energy-rich Qatar's exports plunged more than 40 percent in value in the year up until July 2015, on the back of a slump in petrol and hydrocarbon sales, official figures showed Sunday.
State news agency QNA, citing figures from the development planning and statistics ministry, said exports for July totalled 23.5 billion Qatari riyals ($6.5 billion, 5.8 billion euros).
The figure represented a drop of around one percent on June, but a massive 41.7 percent fall compared to July 2014, QNA said.
Petrol and hydrocarbon exports slumped by 40.5 percent to 15.6 billion riyals.
The figures also showed that imports had risen by 13 percent month-on-month, and Qatar's biggest imports were helicopters, planes and cars.
Japan was the top exporter to Qatar, with 4.3 billion riyals worth of products.


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Businesses across the UK have benefited from billions of pounds in government-backed loans, according to new figures.
More than 1.4 million loans have supported businesses and protected job across all sectors of business.
Retail and construction sectors have benefitted the most from the loans, which include the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS) and Bounce Back Loan Scheme (BBLS).
The CBILS scheme allows eligible businesses to obtain funding up to £250,000 without any personal guarantees and with interest payments for the first 12 months paid for by the government.
Other packages include the BBLS – where businesses can loan from £2,000 up to 25% of their turnover (to a maximum of £50,000) – and a number of top-up grants.
The support loans are in addition to the Furlough Scheme, the self-employment income and business grants, all making up the government’s £280 billion support package to protect jobs during the pandemic.
If your business needs help with a CBILS application, funding or the purchase of assets, we can help.


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Do you love an industry buzzword? Well, time to add “corpsumer” to your list judging by a new study out of the US.
A “corpsumer” is a consumer who’s just as concerned about a company’s morals and ethics as it is the stuff it makes and sells, according to the people who termed it, US public relations firm MWWPR.
According to MWWPR, more than a third of US consumers are brand activists – or “corpsumers” – and rage in age from 18-80. And what’s better, they’re happy to pay more for brands they believe in and they’re far more loyal to the brand too. Check out MWWPR’s recent “corpsumer” findings in the infographic below:
Freedom Foods and 72andSunny Sydney have launched the first advertising campaign for Australia’s Own range of plant-based beverages. The campaign introduces a new visual world and identity for the brand and captures the healthy, positive feeling you get when spending time in nature and when consuming Australia’s Own certified-organic, plant-based beverages. As well as featuring […]
Nine creatives from APAC are among the 94 finalists from 27 countries in The One Club for Creativity’s prestigious Young Guns 19 competition, celebrating international creative professionals age 30 or younger. The finalists from APAC are: Hiu Ching Kung, graphic designer, Hong Kong Lam Ieong Kun, graphic designer, illustrator, indego design, Macau Raxenne Maniquiz, graphic designer, illustrator, Santa Maria (Philippines) Kiyotaka […]
OOH transit company Adflow has announced the success of the first phase of its regional expansion program. Adflow’s regional footprint has increased by 60 per cent to now include 65 regional locations. With 9.1 million people living regionally in Australia (growth of 1.1 per cent experienced in the 19/20 Financial year) and most regional centres […]
Freshworks, a leading software company, has started trading on the Nasdaq Global Select Market, marking an important milestone for the company. The company priced its IPO at US$36 per share (AU$49.76), raising about US$1 billion (AU$1.4B), resulting in a total market capitalisation of AU$13.7 billion (US$10B). Freshworks, which was founded in India, has strong roots […]
Black Friday Cyber Monday (BFCM) is the biggest player in the holiday shopping game and Google’s most recent research suggests consumer interest for the peak sales season starts much earlier than retailers may realise. The pandemic has fundamentally changed buyer behaviour over peak sales season, with Google suggesting that global consumer interest in Black Friday […]


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Lack of U.S. supply chain for EV battery materials is often made up as a story of geographic inconvenience. In many ways, this is true. There is cobalt from Congo. Indonesian nickel. Lithium in Latin America. But that’s not the case for one key material: graphite. The material is the heaviest component of the battery and is not a rare metal. It’s an arrangement of six carbon atoms that can be dug up basically anywhere in the world, including from large deposits in the US and Canada. Where it cannot be found naturally, it can be manufactured synthetically, often from discarded petroleum products. For long-lasting EV batteries, this approach is generally considered the best.
However, of all the critical materials used in batteries, including those geo-restricted metals, the U.S. may be least capable of producing its own EV-grade graphite. In fact, it’s all made in China. Last year, when the federal government considered letting tariff exemptions on Chinese graphite products expire, domestic automakers, including Tesla, protested. There is no other place to get it – not because the US cannot source its own materials, but because it simply has not invested in doing so.
So far, it is no surprise that China is leading the way in electric vehicles. China dominates not only in terms of sales – accounting for half of all Chinese sales last year – but crucially in terms of production. Backed by aggressive government policies, Chinese investors have spent the past decade increasing the ability to extract raw materials, refine them and assemble them into the massive batteries that power electric vehicles. They will profit: According to a recent report by research firm Bloomberg New Energy Finance, the electric vehicle market is expected to bring in $9 trillion between now and 2030, and will only grow from there.
Now US policymakers want to act. The Reducing Inflation Act, which passed Congress last week and could reach President Joe Biden’s desk in the coming days, includes new subsidies for American drivers who want to buy electric vehicles. It scrapped an old program that capped tax credits at 200,000 per automaker. But there are also new conditions. Earning full points depends on the details of the car. Eligible vehicles must be manufactured in North America and consist at least in part of raw materials extracted and processed in the U.S. or a country with which the U.S. has a friendly relationship, and then refined and assembled into batteries in a trade relationship. (In other words: not in China.) The bill amounts to a full-blown attempt to build a U.S.-led next-generation automotive supply chain.
It’s going to be tough. The details of the legislation could still change before it’s signed, and the IRS will finalize which vehicles (and their supply chains) are eligible for the credit. But the Alliance for Automotive Innovation, a trade group representing most of the global automakers in Washington, said the current strict rules would disqualify 70 percent of electric vehicles currently on the U.S. market. A Congressional Budget Office analysis of the bill suggests that only 11,000 vehicles will be fully loaned by 2023.
Some people think that’s not a bad thing. In an environment where supplies are tight and many EV buyers face daunting waiting lists, supporters of the restrictions say the country no longer needs tools such as tax credits to persuade people to buy EVs. Instead, subsidies are ambitious efforts to change the way automakers make things. Combined with Biden’s invocation of the Defense Production Act, last year’s infrastructure bill and last month’s bill to stimulate the domestic semiconductor industry to invest in producers of critical materials, some hope that policy aggressive enough will allow supply chains to reach auto manufacturing Manufacturers and other battery end-users are willing to manufacture all their products in the US or at least a US-friendly country. The U.S. is developing industrial policy that largely matches what China did a few years ago.


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Powell’s Books has laid off 31 employees. The employees worked in four different locations at Portland, Oregon-based bookseller.
According to Portland Mercury Blogtown, no managers were targeted for layoffs. The company will institute a pay freeze in July and stop making 401(k)s contributions on February 21st. Both of these conditions will be in effect for a minimum of one year.
Powell’s Books president Emily Powell had this statement, in the release: “I feel it is critical to make some very difficult adjustments at this time, to address our current reality and to prepare the company for success in the future, a future that looks very different than our business today.”
According to the release, Powell’s Books saw sales decrease last year, and the cuts will help cope with a new marketplace: “We see this as a clear indication that we are losing sales to electronic books and reading devices,” the company explained in the release.
Editor’s Note: This post was updated for clarity.


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Our premiere leadership event of the year, LEAD 2017, will be held next weekend, February 10–12, in Las Vegas! Hear from Jeunesse Chief Visionary Officer Scott Lewis on what this event means for your business, including an all-new product category coming to the Youth Enhancement System.
- A new product and entirely new product category in the Jeunesse Youth Enhancement System will launch at LEAD on Friday, Feb. 10 at 5 p.m. PT.
- 3,000 Jeunesse leaders expected to attend from around the world, including 60 Diamond Directors.
- Keynote speaker John C. Maxwell, legendary leadership expert and author of The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership.
- Unveiling of a new, 10-minute marketing video to promote your business. Entertainment that only the city of Las Vegas can offer!
Follow us at facebook.com/JeunesseHQ for Facebook Live video feed throughout LEAD 2017!
Also text LEAD17 to 76000 for the latest updates on your smartphone.


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Oriental Weavers reported a 12.85% sales decline in the first quarter (1Q) of 2020, to record total revenues of EGP 2,268m, due to the ongoing coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
The company founder Mohamed Farid Khamis said the decline comes on the back of the worldwide economic slowdown that started in February. As a result, Khamis noted, the company was forced to face difficult choices due to their geographical exposure.
He added that the company anticipates a further decline in sales in 2Q 2020, but is making plans to maximise 3Q results.
“We will continue to enhance our online portals in the local market,” Khamis said.
Naeem Research said that as expected, the results were pressured by the onset of the coronavirus pandemic.
Revenues came in at EGP 2.27bn, in-line with their estimate, but short of the consensus, reflecting an 11% decline quarter-on-quarter (q-o-q) and 13% year-on-year (y-o-y).
Oriental Weaver’s net profits (after minority interest) amounted to EGP 174m during the quarter, in line with Naeem Research’s estimate but exceeding consensus, reflecting a decline of 27% q-o-q and 14% y-o-y.
Local sales, which accounted for 38% of total sales, amounted to EGP 854.2m, down 8% q-o-q and 13% y-o-y. Sales volumes stood at 10,526 ksqm, reflecting a flat figure q-o-q and down 10% y-o-y. Average prices amounted to EGP 81.15/sqm, down 13% q-o-q and 12% y-o-y.
Meanwhile, export sales, which account for 62% of total sales, amounted to EGP 1.41bn, down 13% q-o-q and 12% y-o-y. This also takes into account the impact of the 8% appreciation in the Egyptian pound.
Sales volumes of 18,581 ksqm, were down 7% q-o-q and up 5% y-o-y. The average price stood at EGP 76.10/sqm, down 6% q-o-q and 17% y-o-y.
The gross profit margin (GPM) came in at 12.4%, up 90bps q-o-q and 3.4pps y-o-y. The improvement in the GPM was attributed to lower prices of raw materials, especially polypropylene.
During 1Q 2020, the company received EGP 54.2m of export rebates, which were paid to MAC, Oriental Weaver’s tufted carpet segment, as part of a protocol that was signed in early 2020.
While Oriental Weaver’s results for 1Q 2020 still showcases a sturdy performance, Naeem Research still expects a sizable drop in earnings in 2Q 2020. This will be driven by the expected decline in export orders, which started at the end of March and are likely to have lasted until mid-May.


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Last week marked the first annual Judgment of Kingston Tasting, a blind wine tasting that pitted the chardonnays of Prince Edward County against those of California. The event was based on the 1976 Judgment of Paris tasting organized by British wine merchant and critic Steven Spurrier which put the best of Burgundy chardonnays and Bordelaise cabernets up against top California examples. In each instance of this blind tasting, a Californian wine was surprisingly awarded best in its category. This year marks the 40th anniversary of definitive tasting that put the Californian wine industry on the map. It has thus prompted many such copycat tastings around the globe but this is the only one featuring the wines of Prince Edward County.
Admittedly the comparison of the elegant and more delicate PEC
chardonnays against the bolder California styles seems like comparing
apples to oranges but the outcome was less black and white than
expected. Along local wine critics and colleagues, seven wines were
blind tasted with a group of 150 consumers in the historic Kingston
City Hall. Of the four Prince Edward County wines, two surfaced as the
top wines of the evening:
Rosehall Run's 2013 "JCR" Chardonnay
Closson Chase's 2014 "South Clos" Chardonnay.
The third place award went to the cooler climate Clos du Val Carneros
Estate 2013 Chardonnay. The tasting illustrated the finesse of the
leaner more Burgundian style Prince Edward County chardonnays which
were favored by this group of engaged consumers. Part Two of the
Judgement of Kingston will feature County pinot noirs against their
Burgundian counterparts. More information can be found at:


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KIEV, May 6 – Ukraine’s consumer prices rose sharply in April, breaching the 30% threshold when measured over the past 12 months and pushing inflation to the highest level over the past 10 years, released data show.
The prices rose 30.2% in April from April 2007, bordering on the definition of hyperinflation, in a clear indication the government of Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko has been losing control over the situation.
The prices rose 3.1% in April from March, pushing cumulative inflation to 13.1% during the four months of January through April, according to the State Statistics Committee report posted Tuesday.
The figures, which were apparently spurred by massive social payments initiated by Tymoshenko since January, far exceeded the government’s original forecast of 9.6% inflation for the entire year of 2008.
The figures put mounting pressure on the National Bank of Ukraine to take strong action, from hiking key interest rates to letting the hryvnia appreciate rapidly against the U.S. dollar.
“We are standing at the threshold behind which the NBU would let the hryvnia half free float within the [currency trading] band,” Iryna Kryuchkova, a deputy economy minister, said in an interview with Kontrakty newspaper. “There is no other way out. Everyone understands that.”
The NBU met on April 24 to consider the idea of letting the hryvnia appreciate against the dollar, but had decided to postpone the matter indefinitely.
In comments earlier this week, the NBU blamed the government for the high inflation, specifically mentioning the massive social spending initiative that had aggravated rising costs of fuel and food.
The worsening inflation outlook may also resume calls within the office of President Viktor Yushchenko to remove those ministers that have been responsible for drafting and handling the government’s economic policy.
Yushchenko’s office already called for the dismissal of such ministers in March, but Tymoshenko had flatly rejected the idea.
Tymoshenko admitted last month the government had been failing to curb price increases, but said it needed three more months to get the situation under control. April data show little sign of improvement in tackling the problem, analysts said.
The Tymoshenko government has recently come under fire from the Yushchenko office for failing to keep consumer prices in check, but some government officials say the criticism has been making the situation worse.
“It’s important for politicians not to speculate over the issue of inflation because this has been artificially strengthening inflationary expectations,” Kryuchkova said. (tl/ez)


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The experience of getting bit by an animal is often a traumatic and terrifying event. Along with the emotional and physical pain, victims are often burdened with monetary damages that may include medical bills and lost wages. Victims who are bitten in California may have a basis for filing a personal injury suit in order to recoup the losses they sustained.
Product manufacturers are held to strict safety standards in order to protect the safety and well-being of consumers. However, gun manufacturers are permitted to voluntarily submit products for testing as there is no federal agency charged with ensuring the safety of firearms. Recently, one former police officer filed a personal injury lawsuit over a firearm that is sanctioned by some police departments in California for off-duty officers.
Cities throughout California and across the nation are trying to ease congestion and reduce pollution. Several ride-sharing companies have responded by introducing e-scooters for short-term rentals. While most cites have drafted new regulations concerning the safe use of these vehicles, there have been several personal injury lawsuits filed over serious injuries that riders have suffered.
Nearly 70 percent of the goods in this country are transported by commercial vehicles. It comes as no surprise then that the risks posed by a tired trucker to California travelers are incalculable. Due to the sheer size of these tractor-trailers, victims who are involved in a crash with one of them often suffer life-changing injuries. Those who are harmed may have a basis for filing a personal injury claim.
In one moment, you could go from competing in California marathons to finding yourself exhausted just trying to navigate the stairs in your home after you have been involved in a serious accident. Sadly, your physical pain may only be the beginning once your ability to earn your paycheck has been taken away. Even though your physical abilities have been reduced, there may be help in restoring your financial security through a personal injury lawsuit.


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Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) need not count David Mitchell as one of their biggest fans; or much of a fan at all for that matter, unless railing on them for their “monopolistic, cynical and frankly life-crushing way” they do business is considered a sign of fandom. The British author, actor, and comedian appeared at a Bookseller’s Association conference yesterday where we let the online retailer have it, as reported by The Guardian, for which he is a frequent contributor.
Some of those columns from his contributing are being collated into an upcoming book, which will be sold on Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) no doubt, as Mitchell admitted that he makes use of Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN)’s online marketplace to sell his own books, saying he would be “crazy not to”.
Mitchell was reportedly met with vociferous applause upon arrival at the conference, partly on the strength of some of the shots he’s already taken at Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) through some of those columns in The Guardian as well as The Observer, some of which included “praising” Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) for their deft avoidance of British tax obligations, which created a stir in the country last year.
Regardless of his proclivity for selling books on Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN), Mitchell laid into them at length, declaring them greedy for their dissatisfaction with anything but a near-monopoly, and that their business model is cheating British consumers, authors, and booksellers. He also made the claim that “most people” would like to buy books the traditional way, in physical form, from a bookshop.
The last point could be seen as contentious, yet appears to be bearing out. Despite a vastly increasing number of e-books available, including millions of self-published titles, e-books’ market share appears to be plateauing in the U.K and isn’t expected to exceed 35% near-term according to a report by Rüdiger Wischenbart. That’s a far cry from the calls of doom that were saddled on the traditional book industry some years back, when it was prophesied that paper books would go the way of the Dodo, and there’d be a Kindle in every pocket.
As Mitchell said, there are rays of hope in the book industry, and like radio and theater, which were also expected to keel over and succumb to modern day entertainment options, the book industry may yet survive e-books and those monopolistic practices of Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN).
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Archive for the ‘Mazda RX-8’ tag
The cars that were aboard the Cougar Ace, pictured here after it listed onto its port side during a ballast shifting accident on July 23, will all be crushed, Mazda reported recently
There will be no Cougar Ace Editions of Mazda’s RX-8 and Miata after all. The company has announced that all of the 4,703 cars that were aboard the cargo ship Cougar Ace last summer when it listed 60 degrees onto its port side will be scrapped.
Mazda had initially considered selling the cars with full warranties and disclosures about their past, but concluded that it could not be sure about how much damage the cars might have suffered.
The company had said that it did not know how many of the vehicles were damaged in the July 23 accident, caused as the Cougar Ace was transferring ballast in rough water in the North Pacific, south of Alaska’s Aleutian Islands. To make up for the lost cars, Mazda has increased production in Japan and redistributed cars to the U.S. from other parts of the world.
Bloomberg News has reported that some parts of the affected cars will be salvaged and sent to dealers in the U.S. and Canada as replacement parts. According to Mazda, most of the affected cars were Mazda 3 or CX-7 models, with a smaller number of RX-8 and MX-5 Miata cars on board as well.
(This post originally appeared in the December 21, 2006, issue of the Hemmings eWeekly Newsletter.)
Mazda plans to have 10 dual-fuel gasoline/hydrogen-fueled cars like this RX-8 in service by the end of next year.
Mazda this week delivered dual-fuel RX-8 Hydrogen RE cars to the city of Hiroshima and Hiroshima Prefecture, bringing its fleet of hydrogen-gasoline vehicles in service to four. The RX-8 Hydrogen RE features a dual-fuel system that lets the driver choose between gasoline and hydrogen at the flick of a switch.
Idemitsu Kosan Company and Iwatani International Corporation became Mazda’s first corporate customers to receive the dual-fuel cars in March. The company plans to have a total of 10 cars in service with other fleet customers, including governmental agencies and energy companies, by the end of the year. The cars are to take part in the Japan Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Demonstration Project (JHFC), designed to see how well these alternative-fuel technologies will work in the real world.
“We are very pleased that the City of Hiroshima and Hiroshima Prefecture endorsed Mazda’s concept of hydrogen vehicles by becoming our fleet customers so quickly after vehicle leasing started,” said Kazuhide Watanabe, the chairman of Mazda’s board of directors. “We’re proud to be based in Hiroshima, and Mazda will continue with its initiatives to help achieve a cleaner hydrogen society in the future.”
The cars carry both a 16-gallon gasoline tank and a 30-gallon high-pressure hydrogen tank. Mazda says the cars will go about 60 miles between hydrogen fill-ups, or 350 miles on a tank of gasoline.
Is Mazda’s dual-fuel car a serious experiment, a dog-and-pony show or something in between? With gasoline hovering around $3 per gallon, it hardly matters. It’s encouraging to see a manufacturer getting a new technology out of the lab and onto the road.
(This post originally appeared in the April 27, 2006, issue of the Hemmings eWeekly Newsletter.)


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Consumer Products has announced photographer, entrepreneur and social activist, Misan Harriman, will serve as creative advisor for its growing Web3 business. As an advisor, Harriman will bring his expertise as an artist and a pioneer in the creation and collection of
s to consult on Paramount’s established partnerships in the Web3 space with plans to curate his own collections for the company in the future.
“As an NFT enthusiast and an avid supporter of emerging artists, Misan aligns with Paramount’s core values and how we want to approach Web3,” says
, president and chief executive officer, international markets, global consumer products and experiences, Paramount. “Misan’s wealth of experience and artistic eye are incredible resources to our team as we expand our Web3 offerings to serve our audience with differentiated products.”
Earlier this year, Harriman founded Culture3, a platform aiming to elevate diverse and eclectic voices to exhibit the creative vitality
From documenting historic moments including the Black Lives Matter movement in London, to photographing high-profile celebrities, Misan is a photographer of extraordinary range. In 2020, Harriman became the first Black man to shoot the cover of British Vogue’s September issue. In July 2021, he commenced his appointment as chair of the Southbank Centre, London. Misan is an outspoken activist supporting diversity and inclusion in the workplace. He is also a mental health campaigner with a keen interest in dyslexia and neurodiversity. He is currently exploring how Web3 can help democratize merit-based opportunity for disadvantaged artists on a global scale.
The announcement comes as production is underway on Harriman’s Protest & Progress docuseries. Set to premiere on Paramount+ in 2023, Harriman travels around the world to uncover the stories behind some of the most powerful images and art forms that have defined a moment and a movement.
“The Paramount family of brands have entertained the world for generations,” says Harriman. “I look forward to exploring how smart contract technology can help amplify and celebrate an extraordinary legacy of entertainment and storytelling.”
Related:Paramount Names New President and CEO, International Markets, Global Products and Experiences
Paramount is exhibiting at Brand Licensing Europe 2022. Find out more info
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Nathan Linder, a MIT student, turned a lamp, pico projector, webcam and computer into a full blown robotic personal assistant that will change the way you view your desk lamp. The LuminAR robotic lamp "sees" what you're doing through its webcam and augments your actions accordingly. It displays information, like web pages, videos and more, through its pico projector and can even read and recognise user gestures and input. The idea, according to Linder, is to "transform surfaces and objects into interactive spaces that blend digital media and information with the physical space".
Student Made Robotic Desk Lamp Is The First Step To Tony Stark's Computer
Trending Stories Right Now
There’s no shortage of data breaches these days, but this one should make you sit up and pay attention. The newly discovered “Collection #1" is the largest public data breach by volume, with 772,904,991 unique emails and 21,222,975 unique passwords exposed.
I don’t say this lightly: Jon Snow must die.


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The move is aimed at getting into products that are close to the Indian consumers from the perspective of both product and brand
L’Oréal has reportedly announced that the local arm of the French company is targeting acquisition of cosmetic firms to expand its reach in skin and make-up market in India.
The managing director of L’Oréal’s India business, Amit Jain, stated that the French firm is eyeing opportunities for acquiring companies with a variety of skin care and make-up products to fill up the gaps in its present portfolio. The global merger and acquisition team of the company has apparently been communicating with several beauty companies in India.
Jain mentioned that the company is looking for good and strong formulations for high-quality manufacturing and Indian consumers as well as. The company’s move is also aimed at getting into products that are close to the Indian consumers from the perspective of both product and brand value.
Sources with knowledge of the matter said that the interest shown by the French make-ups company, whose portfolio comprises of brands like Maybelline, L’Oréal Professional, Garnier, and NYX is coming at a time when the Indian cosmetic industry is growing at a very rapid pace.
According to data from Euromonitor, a research firm, in 2018, the beauty and personal care market of India stood at Rs 97,100 crore. Out of this the skincare cosmetics is estimated at Rs 12,500 crore while coloured cosmetics was estimated at Rs 8,000 crore.
The market for personal care and beauty products is anticipated to grow by 10% through the year 2022, sources commented. Apparently, in India L’Oréal had made its very first acquisition in 2013 with the purchase of Cheryl’s Cosmeceuticals, a Mumbai-based skin care brand.
L’Oréal had commenced its India business in 1994. The company portfolio consists of a range of products which include mass-market brands Garnier, L’Oréal Paris, premium beauty products under Vichy, Lancôme, La Roche-Posay, and Kiehl’s and professional hair products under the Kérastase and Matrix brands.


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125 West Bishop Street Bellefonte , PA 16823
By Ellen Matis
It might remind you of a different kind of time in Bellefonte, or a nostalgic place from your own childhood. That’s what Chuck Kormanski was banking on when he decided to open Pappy Chuck’s Candy Shoppe.
The shoppe, which opened officially on April 2 at 125 West Bishop Street in Bellefonte, is really geared towards kids, Kormanski said, but has found that adults are enjoying it just as much.
“They’re being transformed… taken back into their childhood days of having that old-fashioned candy,” he said.
And that has a lot to do with the lineup of vintage brands and unique candies Pappy Chuck’s is offering: Asher Chocolates, Jelly Belly jelly beans, Necco Wafers, coconut slices and root beer barrels - to name a few. And let’s not forget the nostalgic candy bars, like Zagnut, Clark Bars and Mallo Cups. Mallo Cups have been the number one seller since opening, he said.
“You can say that I’m selling candy, but I’m selling fun,” Kormanski said. That’s reinforced through the bright and cheery decor, that still uses an old-fashioned look to display the shoppe’s contents.
Pappy Chuck’s was an idea of Kormanski’s that came to life in a pretty short amount of time.
“Over the summer while walking on the waterfront, the idea just came that this would be something that could really fit well in Bellefonte,” he said. “It’s speciality items that just scream fun.”
Kormanski knew that his job at Mattress World in Bellefonte would be coming soon to a conclusion at that point, as the owners were of retirement age. Kormanski needed a next step, and this seemed like the perfect fit. In February of this year, he found the building that now houses Pappy Chuck’s, and within two months was up and running.
And there’s more coming.
In May, Pappy Chuck’s Candy Shoppe will live up to its awning out front, and offer soft-serve ice cream in the three favorite flavors: Chocolate, vanilla and twist by Ritchey’s Dairy, of Martinsburg, Pa.
So, “why Pappy Chuck’s?,” you might ask? For Kormanski, that’s a simple question. As a grandfather of seven, it made sense to bring the name the kids lovingly call him to his own business.
“As a child comes into the shoppe, I always remind them that at home there are certain rules that they have to follow… but you can get away with a lot of things at Pappy Chuck’s” -- kind of like you might have felt with your own grandparents during a trip to an old-fashioned candy store.
Right now, Pappy Chuck’s is open Monday through Thursday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Friday from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. and on Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Hours will expand in May, when the shoppe will be open until 8 p.m. on Tuesdays, and from 2 to 6 p.m. on Sundays.
You can stay up-to-date with announcements from Pappy Chuck on his Facebook page.
Modern people connecting with their ancestral past is both inspiring and beneficial.
What future do you envision for your community, for this town, for Bellefonte, Pennsylvania?
An art exhibit that never closes, never goes dark, and never turns it's proverbial back on even the loneliest midnight stroller.
Learn more and sign up for their 5 for $25 Bellefonte Sampler—on sale now through Dec 23.
Comic books, graphic novels, games, toys and other comics memorabilia. You won't find a better comic shop in Gotham. We mean, Bellefonte.
Buy some cool old stories for the people you love this year. Give them a piece of the past and watch them light up.
Each time you come through their door, you are a focal point of everything that is happening between their walls.
This town has lots of yesterdays for sale. But what about people who want to buy a piece of the future?
Experience More of Bellefonte in the Story Archive
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Bluebox releases free scanner for Android “master key” bug
Bluebox Security, the mobile security startup that’s “working to save the world from information thievery”, has made a name for itself by finding and revealing the existence of an vulnerability that put 99 percent of all Android users in danger of unknowingly downloading malware.
This so-called “master key” bug allows attackers to modify the code of any app without breaking its cryptographic signature and makes it easy for them to substitute malicious apps with legitimate ones. The magnitude of the risk is big, especially now that proof-of-concept code for its exploitation has been published.
Bluebox has now made available an app called Bluebox Security Scanner that allows users to see whether their device is vulnerable to the bug.
Available for download from Google Play, Amazon AppStore for Android and GetJar, the app scans the users’ device and tells them whether their Android installation has already been patched or still sports the vulnerability, whether their system settings allow non-Google Market application installs, and whether they have already installed one or more apps that take advantage of the flaw.
“The scanner will save you significant time and keep you from having to do the ‘leg work’ to figure out if your device has been safely patched,” explaines Jeff Forristal, Bluebox CTO. “If your device has not been patched, it will provide you with the information you need to ask your device manufacturer when a fix will be available.”
In the description of the app on Google Play the company has also warned users of Nexus devices that even though Google has given out the patch for the flaw to other vendors (Samsung, Sony, HTC, etc.), it has not yet issued updates for their own Nexus devices. “It is unknown why, but speculation is they don’t want to do a 4.2.x patch update if 4.3 is coming out very soon,” they said.


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Coffee chain Starbucks is expanding its Mobile Order & Pay service to 650 locations in the US states of Washington, Idaho, Oregon and Alaska following a trial which has been running in Portland since December 2014. “The ease of use for both customers and baristas is expected to increase speed of service, drive incremental transactions and increase throughput across Starbucks stores,” the company says. The service is planned to roll out across the US during 2015.
- Antelop to add Visa token support to white label NFC mobile wallet platform
- Japanese banks get go ahead for digital currency launch
- UK supermarket pilots self-checkout service that lets shoppers scan and pay by smartphone
- Contactless ‘beer wall’ lets students serve and pay for their own drinks
- UK consumers warm to face verification at the point of sale


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eBay courts high street in retail shopping partnership
Home Retail Group’s Argos has begun a trial partnership with online giant eBay at 150 of its UK stores that will allow shoppers to order goods online and collect them in an Argos store.
50 eBay merchants are involved in the six-month trial that converges online and brick and mortar shopping.
Dr Scott Dacko, an associate professor of marketing and strategic management at the Warwick Business School and author of The Advanced Dictionary of Marketing: Putting Theory to Use, says the eBay-Argos partnership could spark further relationships between online and high street shops.
“The new eBay-Argos partnership, where certain eBay purchases can be collected from Argos shops in the UK, is clearly being driven by the irreversible trend of increasing consumer demand for convergence in online and store-based retail shopping environments,” says Dacko.
Argos saw its first rise in annual sales for five years in May, with a 2.1% increase, largely associated to online sales and its ‘check and reserve’ service.
The financial arrangement between Argos and eBay is unknown, but Dacko believes both companies and the consumers will benefit.
“I am sure the arrangement will prompt a host of competitors to move more quickly into not only seamlessly integrating their online and brick-and-mortar operations but also looking into similar partnerships as well,” Dacko says.
“Argos could well get more people in their stores. Any concerns about cannibalisation in sales would depend on the uniqueness of the offerings and as we don’t know which eBay merchants will be involved, it could be ones who are not in direct competition with Argos. A partnership like this can be a low cost way of attracting more consumers.”


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Valve’s ‘The International 2019’ (TI19 – the world championship for its game Dota 2) has officially raised the largest single-event prize pool in esports history.
Currently, the total prize pool amounts to $30.4m, thereby surpassing the previously highest single-event prize pool of $30m (provided by Epic Games for its Fortnite Word Cup).
The tournament will be held in China for the first time in 2019, hosted by the Mercedes-Benz Arena in Shanghai from August 15th-25th.
Analysis and Comments
This is a significant development for a number of reasons:
Dota’s ‘The International’ prize pool is almost entirely crowdfunded via an in-game sale of a so-called ‘Battle Pass’,
only 25% of the in-game sales actually go towards the prize pool,
there are still more than 30 days left before cowdfunding stops, and
since the inception of crowdfunding the TI prize pool, the event has consistently broken its own record every year.
In summary, this is an all-time high in prize pool money for any esports event, showcasing both strong and growing support from the gaming community as well as from developers themselves: Last year, Epic Games announced it would support its Fortnite esports scene by providing a total of $100m for the 2018-2019 season, with the game’s World Cup featuring a $30m prize pool. This is the most any publisher has ever committed.
Esports serve a number of purposes, the main being extending the lifeof a game by encouraging and supporting an active gaming community. This is more important now than ever, as developers/publishers are moving away from the one-time up-front payment model towards in-game monetisation via downloadable content (DLCs) over the life of the game.
Add your Scripsio!


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Bandai Namco has confirmed that the Nintendo Switch version of Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2 will be releasing this Fall. There will be some unique features exclusive to the Switch.
It’s likely they will give us a specific release date for the game soon. Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2 released last year on PC, PS4 and Xbox One to favorable reviews from both critics and fans.
The game is still getting updated as many new DLC packs are adding new fighters. Most of the new fighters come from the new Dragon Ball Super TV series. This includes the likes of Zamasu, Super Saiyan Rose Goku Black and more.


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The European Citizens’ Initiative (ECI) Fur Free Europe has closed earlier than its official deadline thanks to a record number of signatures collected. In less than ten months 1.6 million citizens signed to end this cruel practice, sending a strong message to the European Commission (EC).
Fur Free Europe was launched in May 2022 by Eurogroup for Animals and received the support of more than eighty organisations from all around Europe. The ECI calls for a ban on fur farming and on the placement of farmed fur products on the European market.
Successful from the outset, Fur Free Europe collected 50,000 signatures on its launch day and now, 2 and a half months before its official closing deadline, over 1.6 million signatures have been collected, offering a safe margin for the achievement of 1 million validated signatures. The decision to close the ECI earlier has been taken due to the potential impact that it could have on the upcoming revision of the EU animal welfare legislation, as part of the EC’s Farm to Fork Strategy. By the end of 2023, the EC will publish a proposal aimed at improving the EU’s animal welfare legislation to align it with the latest scientific evidence.
Science has clearly shown that this is not possible to improve welfare standards on fur farms. Consequently, a ban on fur farming should be included in the proposal. Moreover, since imports of animal products should follow EU standards, the ECI also calls for a ban on placing farmed fur products on the European market. Indeed, the organisers didn’t want to export cruelty to third countries but aimed to definitively end the suffering created by the fur industry in Europe.


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Yahoo! India intensifies role in video advertising
Yahoo! India is all set to venture into the online video advertising space and has announced its offerings to leading marketers
Yahoo! India is all set to venture into the online video advertising space. Claiming that movies, TV shows and sports are the fastest growing categories in the audio-video segment in India, and that over 30 million Internet users in India consume online video regularly, leading to over 1.8 billion video streams every month, the digital giant has announced its offerings to leading marketers to reach their target audiences through online video messaging.
Yahoo!’s venture comes in the wake of a significant surge in online advertising spends in India. As per a recent report by PWC; the size of online advertising industry registered a growth of 28.3% in 2010 and is bound to surge in 2011-2012. The medium is set to evolve in coming years as it offers immense possibilities for targeted communication. However, as per recent reports on digital expenditure, the medium continues to remain highly under-monetised.
In India, online advertising constitutes only 3.75 per cent of the total ad spend, which is to the tune of Rs 10 billion annually. Yahoo! India aims to target pie from the chunk of fast-growing ad spends of television platforms through audio-video ad formats online.
This platform offers a definite opportunity to advertisers and marketers providing them the potential for significant brand interaction and awareness building, by reaching the target audiences in an engaging environment. The true power of the video ad is that it is highly complementary to the brands investing in the television business.
A recent report released by the IAMAI-IMRB claimed that of 112 million claimed there are 90 million active Internet users in India – 70 million in the cities and 20 million in villages.
For the record, this development comes in less a month after Google India launched its latest ad format, Media Ads. The Google ad model had introduced new ways of video ads on Google Search. The format was designed to put video ads front and center. Before the launch of Media Ads, Google India had launched over a dozen of new ad formats. Interestingly, Media Ads are fully automated unlike usual keyword search on google.com or google.co.in.For more updates, be socially connected with us on
WhatsApp, Instagram, LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook & Youtube


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Our P5 Sustainability program has its greatest impact when we focus on the younger generation and encourage thinking about the future of our planet.
Milwaukee, WI (PRWEB) April 15, 2013
Proteus Packaging, an international supplier of paperboard packaging solutions, is partnering with Pine View Wildlife Rehabilitation and Education Center and Lincoln Elementary School in Cudahy, Wis. to educate local youth on the importance of sustainability. Scheduled for April 24, the event is a part of Proteus’ ongoing support of the Paperboard Packaging Council’s Trees Into Cartons, Cartons Into Trees (TICCIT) program.
In their second year of participation in the TICCIT program, Proteus has expanded their involvement to include events at five Milwaukee-area schools. The annual educational sessions teach students about the natural renewability of paperboard packaging and the benefits of recycling, while providing students with trees to support local sustainability.
Each student receives a tree planted in a paperboard carton, which can be planted directly into the ground. The biodegradable cartons support the trees’ growth by protecting the roots and funneling water.
“Our P5 Sustainability program has its greatest impact when we focus on the younger generation and encourage thinking about the future of our planet,” said Tim Wayman, executive vice president and chief operating officer of Proteus. “By engaging children in our local community, we can plant the seeds of sustainability practices early while giving them a way to make an immediate impact on their own environment.”
P5 Sustainability represents Proteus Packaging: People, Planet, Profits. “People” focuses on employing business practices that are beneficial to employees and the community. “Planet” seeks to utilize recycling and sustainability initiatives in the Proteus plant. “Profits” are emphasized in the traditional sense, as well as the “profits” of Proteus’ social outreach.
TICCIT is one way Proteus promotes the P5 Sustainability program in their community. The TICCIT event will be held on Wednesday, April 24, 2013 from 1:30 to 3:00 p.m. at Lincoln Elementary School, 4416 S. Packard Ave., Cudahy, WI 53110.
About Proteus Packaging
Proteus Packaging (http://www.proteuspackaging.com) is an ISO compliant and cGMP and AIB International-certified provider of packaging solutions for pharmaceutical, nutritional, health and beauty and automotive clients. A privately owned company based in southeast Wisconsin, Proteus Packaging has grown from a regional business to an international supplier with expertise meeting the complex needs of high-volume manufacturers.


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Cosi upbeat about growth potential despite loss
May 11, 2006
by Eric Schroeder
DEERFIELD, ILL. — Cosi, Inc. sustained a loss of $3,928,300 in the first quarter ended April 3, which compared with a loss of $2,795,600 in the same period last year.
Cosi said restaurant revenues for the first quarter totaled $29,457,700, compared with $27,205,100 in the first quarter of 2005.
Comparable restaurant sales in the first quarter of 2006, as measured for restaurants in operation for more than 15 months, increased approximately 5% over the first quarter of 2005. Cosi has achieved comparable restaurant sales growth for 18 consecutive quarters.
Cosi said its comparable restaurant sales performance benefited from strong response to its seasonally-based Limited Time Offer program, which features both hot and cold sandwiches as well as salads, and from initiatives to enhance the guest experience during the breakfast period.
In an effort to further build on the Cosi brand name, the company said it will later this year launch a line of hot melts and pizzas in all its restaurants. The company also has introduced "Dinners from the Hearth," a new line of hot dinner offerings for its full daypart locations.
During the first quarter, Cosi opened two company-owned restaurants, in Sacramento, Calif., and Greenwich, Conn., and completed construction on its Elkins Park, Pa., restaurant. Also during the quarter, Cosi closed four restaurants located inside Macy’s stores.
At the end of the first quarter Cosi operated 94 company-owned restaurants, compared to 92 company-owned restaurants at the end of the first quarter last year.


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Microsoft testing Xbox AI chatbot for gamers
Microsoft is developing an AI chatbot to resolve queries for Xbox users, a new report has revealed.
Microsoft is no stranger to AI applications, thanks to its close partnership with ChatGPT creator OpenAI, and quick rollout of Microsoft Copilot AI in Windows 11. Now, the company has set its sights on its gaming division, according to a report from The Verge.
Microsoft’s Xbox AI chatbot is personified through an animated character, who will help users resolve issues connected to the Xbox platform, and its various services. The service can also assist in resolving customer queries such as refunds.
Microsoft confirmed the existence of the Xbox chatbot directly to the publication, and it aims to support inputs via both voice and text, General Manager of Gaming AI at Xbox, Haiyan Zhang commented in a statement to The Verge.
“We are testing an Xbox Support Virtual Agent, an internal prototype of an animated character that can query Xbox Support topics with voice or text,” she explained. “The prototype makes it easier and quicker for players to get help with support topics using natural language, taking information from existing Xbox Support pages.”
Using chatbots is nothing new for customer service applications, but integrating an LLM such as a ChatGPT-like solution could help Microsoft roll out AI across all manner of its products and services, and game development is no exception. It’s understood that Microsoft also plans to bring in AI tools for asset generation in its developer and platform toolkit, too.
So, while this Microsoft Xbox AI chatbot might soon help users resolve problems and errors, there might also be a future where Xbox uses AI asset generation in the next Halo, Gears of War or Forza title.
There’s no current release date for the Microsoft Xbox AI chatbot, but don’t be surprised if it makes its way onto your Xbox console soon. The company’s Copilot AI was announced in May 2023, and has since become mandatory for all new Windows 11 devices as of January 2024.


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Mahindra launches first e-rickshaw, e-Alfa Mini, priced at Rs1.12 lakh
Sep 08 2017 Shally Seth Mohile
Mahindra & Mahindra MD Pawan Goenka at the launch of the e-Alfa Mini. The
e-Alfa Mini goes on sale from 9 September, first in the National Capital
Region followed by Kolkata and Lucknow and subsequently in other parts of
Mahindra’s e-Alfa Mini, which goes on sale from 9 September, is powered by a
120Ah battery and on a full charge can travel for up to 85km at its top
speed of 25 kmph
New Delhi: Amid a regulatory push by the government and debate on whether
the time has come for electric vehicles in India, Mahindra and Mahindra Ltd
on Friday launched its first electric three-wheeler, e-Alfa Mini.
At the auto industry’s annual conference, road transport minister Nitin
Gadkari on Thursday prodded auto makers to switch to producing vehicles that
run on non-polluting alternative fuels or risk being overtaken by inevitable
policy change. Automakers have to move to vehicles that run on electricity,
biodiesel, ethanol and compressed natural gas “whether they like it or not”,
Priced at Rs1.12 lakh, e-Alfa Mini is the maiden offering in the last mile
connectivity segment by the Mumbai-based firm.
So far, Mahindra is the only manufacturer of electric vehicles in a country
that is looking to embrace the technology in a big way to reduce dependence
on import of fossil fuels and achieve zero emissions. India’s electric
mobility mission envisages putting 6 million electric vehicles on roads by
2020 and aims to make the country an all-electric vehicle market by 2030.
Driven by government regulations, among all the vehicle categories, three
wheelers will be the first to adopt the electric vehicle technology, Pawan
Goenka, managing director, Mahindra and Mahindra told reporters.
Powered by a 120Ah battery, the e-Alfa is aimed at intra-city movement and
on a full charge can travel for up to 85 kilometers at its top speed of 25
It goes on sale from 9 September, first in the National Capital Region
followed by Kolkata and Lucknow and subsequently in other parts of the
country. Mahindra has a capacity for making 1000 e-rickshaws per month.
Last month, state-owned Energy Efficiency Services Ltd invited global bids
for 10,000 electric sedans that will run up to 150 km on a single charge,
for use by government departments. Mahindra will be a key participant. It is
also going to participate in a tender for three wheelers and buses expected
soon, Goenka said.
[© 2017 HT Media]
Mahindra launches electric three-wheeler at Rs112,000
Sep 08, 2017 ... targeted at fleet taxi operators and existing three-wheeler
owners ... e-Alfa Mini is powered by a 120Ah battery, a powerful motor and
controller ... will be manufactured at M&M's Haridwar plant in a planned
1,000 units capacity a month operation ...
Mahindra Launches e-Alfa Mini Electric Rickshaw; Priced At ₹ 1.12 Lakh
Sep 08, 2017 The e-Alfa Mini comes with a seating capacity of 4+1 and is
designed specifically for Indian conditions. The eco-friendly vehicle is now
available on sale in Delhi-NCR at a price of Rs. 1.12 lakh (ex-showroom
The Mahindra e-Alfa Mini has a range of 85 km and top speed of 25 kmph
E Alpha Mini electric rickshaw launched by Mahindra & Mahindra ... 2:13
Sep 08, 2017 High Stock News India
today Mahindra and Mahindra launch his new electric rickshaw called Alpha
Mini which have 3 + 1 passenger ...
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Survey finds many feel overwhelmed as their children express interest in jobs they know nothing about
When Leon Martin asked for his parents’ advice on how to pursue his dream of becoming a UX designer, they were flummoxed. “I literally didn’t have the first idea what he was talking about,” said Anne, his mother. “I didn’t know whether he was talking about designing clothes, computer programmes or a fancy new brand of mountain bike.”
Even when 18-year-old Leon explained that the role was to do...
Read this story at The Guardian


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British car manufacturers could face higher export tariffs with or without a Brexit deal after the EU rejected an argument that components from Japan used on UK assembly lines should be considered British.
The car industry has maintained that parts for cars, vans and trucks that have been sourced in non-EU countries should be deemed British under the rules of origin system that will apply to all exports from 1 January when the transition period is over.
But according to a letter by the UK Brexit negotiator, David Frost, this idea, known as “cumulation” has been formally rejected in trade talks.
“The commission has made clear that it will not agree third-country cumulation in any circumstances, which we regret, but obviously cannot insist upon.
“I am sorry to say that so far they [EU negotiators] have neither been willing to discuss these nor share any proposed text with us,” Lord Frost said in a letter seen by the BBC.
Rules of origin go to the heart of the question as to whether the British car industry is manufacturing or assembly. Typically, to qualify as British after Brexit, products must have about 60% local parts or ingredients by value.
Even if a deal is struck between the EU and the UK allowing zero tariffs on exports from Britain, vehicles that do not have enough British components will typically attract a tariff of about 10%, making them less competitive than EU-sourced cars and lorries.
The British industry, which includes Jaguar Landrover, Ford, Vauxhall and Nissan, relies heavily on an EU supply chain but also on parts sourced in Japan and Turkey.
Frost has reportedly told the industry that the EU has also rejected the UK’s request for electric cars, batteries and bicycles to be treated leniently under the rules of origin system if the majority of components come from elsewhere.
The letter says: “I am sorry to say that so far they [EU negotiators] have neither been willing to discuss these nor share any proposed text with us.”
While the letter is a blow to the British car industry, which two weeks ago warned of “catastrophic” £100bn losses if a trade deal is not struck, it has been alert to the issues since the referendum in 2016.
The industry was one of the most vocal campaigners for a soft Brexit aligning Britain to EU rules and had some success with Theresa May’s version of the withdrawal agreement.
Two years ago it disclosed that the average content of cars built in the UK that was British was about 44%, which would automatically mean it would fall foul of the rules of origin system.
Over the past two years, the auto industry has consistently warned of the deep cost of no deal on the sector, which employs 14.6 million people across the EU and UK directly and indirectly in factories, component supplies, engineering, design and marketing and sales.
They hope this latest warning from the combined forces of leaders in the EU and the UK will help both sides see past their political differences and strike a trade deal.


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Investigations by Champion Infotel at the weekend, revealed that Starcomms fortnight ago increased the cost of Internet access to subscribers on its network without any announcement either through the media or on the network.
The hike, which cut across all Starcomms Internet access slots ranged between 25 and 45 per cent, according to our investigations.
It would be recalled that following the rise of competition in the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) sector, telecom operators in the country few years back began to offer Internet services as Value Added Services (VAS) to their subscribers with slash from what was obtained from the legacy Internet Service Providers (ISPs).
Starcomms in this aspect seems to be leading the pack of CDMA-deployed telcos offering this service.
However, before now, Starcomms Internet access slots range from Always On (24/7) and cost N10,000 per month, Business Time (9am – 9pm) which goes for N7,000 per month and Evening Time (9pm – 9am) for N5000 monthly.
Champion Infotel revealed that Always On has been increased by 45 per cent, that is, its now N10,450 per month, Business Time now goes for N7,315 while Evening Time costs N5,225 per month.
Efforts to get management of Starcomms to respond to the latest charges proved abortive as the telephone lines of the Public Relations Manager, Ms Laura Johnson was permanently engaged.
But company sources confirmed this and said that it was not unconnected to the cost of providing service to Starcomms subscribers.It was further gathered that Internet subscribers on Starcomms network were not excited with the increase as most of them who came to renew their access were taken unawares.


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Over the past decade, technology has advanced exceptionally. Every business function in the retail industry that was being managed manually has a technological counterpart available in the market today. In spite of that, many… read more
The point-of-sale is undoubtedly the most important component in any retail business. It is the touchpoint where customers make their purchases and complete transactions. It is very important for retailers to ensure they invest… read more
In an effort to keep enhancing the customer experience, Ginesys has released a new update in the Web Reports module.
When vouchers are redeemed, denominations of the MOP are now… read more
A new update has been released in the Ginesys Web Reports of the Delivery Challan module.
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Ginesys constantly attempts at assisting retail businesses in scaling up their business. Customer experience is one crucial factor that helps any retail business flourish. Ginesys has recently released a new update that would… read more
The Ginesys R&D team is on a mission on closing all gaps and making it easier for retailers to run their business. That is why they have released a new feature in EasemyGST module.
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FrieslandCampina and Agrifirm join forces on local oats and soy cultivation
FrieslandCampina and Agrifirm have joined forces to launch a trial aimed at cultivating oats and soy on 200 hectares and 50 hectares respectively. The initiative involves thirty member dairy farms of FrieslandCampina, who will use the crops as raw materials for plant-based food production. The collaboration responds to growing consumer demand for product diversity, including an attractive earning model for farmers.
"We participated in a small-scale trial of growing oats last year and have now signed up again," commented dairy farmer, Peter Aalberts, one of the participants in the trial. "It also fits well with our business operations.
His partner Jeanet Brandsma added, "We see it as an opportunity in the market. And surely it's nice that in addition to the dairy, the plant-based products also come from our own member dairy farms."
"FrieslandCampina has already successfully launched several plant-based products," explained Thomas Gribnau, Marketing Director FrieslandCampina Nederland. "The next step is to explore whether member dairy farmers can start producing the raw materials for the plant-based products locally. That's why we are launching this trial. It's mainly about learning and gaining experience together, with the aim of realising an attractive earning model for the farmer."
"The interest has exceeded expectations. Participants receive a predetermined price and a purchase guarantee for the oats and soy they grow," concluded Rens Kuijten, Concept Manager Protein Plants Agrifirm. "Seed, cultivation supplies and guidance are provided by Agrifirm. It is therefore a great opportunity for Agrifirm and affiliated chain parties to gain more experience in growing, processing and marketing plant-based protein for the food industry."
If you have any questions or would like to get in touch with us, please email firstname.lastname@example.org


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Congratulations To The Official DJ of the Brooklyn Nets! DJ Enuff!! [Audio]
The Nets are gearing up for a brand new season in their new home of Brooklyn, with new players, and now a brand new DJ.
After rocking at the Barclay's Center twice during Jay-Z's eight concerts to open up the arena, DJ Enuff announced on The Angie Martinez Show today that he will be spinning at all of the Nets home games for the season
Listen to the full audio of the announcement:


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Welcome to the latest addition to the next flybridge generation from Riva. Boasting impressive new thinking interior space new cockpit layout and double master cabin creations. The new Riva 90’ Argo is aiming to create a legendary status within the range, led by its smart innovation and clever design elements. The 90 Argo combines and enhances strengths from its two Riva predecessors, the 100’ Corsaro and 110’ Dolcevita. The WSB team take a closer look at the Argo arrival.
The Numarine 78 HTS world debut at the 2019 Palm Beach International Boat Show gave a much-deserved spotlight to the newest member of Numarine’s stable. The debut yacht named “Adonis” is equipped with the ultimate smart technology and assisted by virtual concierge “Angel.” Numarine developed the 78 HTS yacht in collaboration with Furrion Numarine at the Turkish boat building shipyard which continues its impressive expansion.
The Azimut S10, the new S Collection flagship, is the result of collaboration with designer Alberto Mancini, working for the first time with the Avigliana-based shipyard. A unique yacht, it is sporty but has impeccable class, skilfully bringing together in 28 metres of length the elegance of a sports yacht, the architecture of a modern villa on the sea and, not least, the charismatic personality of automotive design. The WSB team take the chance to get up and personal with the S10 Flagship.
Never one to rest on their laurels and following several years of speculation, Sunseeker announces the forthcoming launch of a brand-new high-performance day boat – the Hawk 38. Sunseeker has returned to its performance roots to deliver an exciting and dynamic stepped hull in conjunction with Fabio Buzzi Design, winner of 43 World Speed Records and 55 World Championships!
2019 saw the arrival of the all-new Sunseeker 74 Sport Yacht, premiered at Boot Dusseldorf. Sporty and sleek, the 74 Sport Yacht, with 38-knot capability, boasts the latest Sunseeker design cues and sporting prowess as the recently launched Predator 74. However, while maintaining her dynamic look, the in-house design team at Sunseeker has created the 74 Sport Yacht with an exceptional flybridge – almost unperceivable within her profile lines.
The Ferretti 670 is the first gift from the shipyard to itself in celebration of it’s golden 50th anniversary. Officially presented at boot Düsseldorf, the fantastic flybridge has taken the style, comfort and performance that have always been part of the brand’s DNA to an even higher level. The WSB Team take a closer look at this golden age arrival.
The R35 is the world’s first Princess performance sports yacht and delivers a revolution in dynamics, efficiency and accessibility through Formula 1 and America’s Cup racing technology from the unique partnership with Ben Ainslie Racing Technologies. The Princess R35 mixes traditional Princess attributes of craftmanship and quality with functional elegance and beauty delivered by the Princess Design Studio collaboration with the world-famous Pininfarina styling house. The WSB team take a closer look at this new revolution from Princess yachts.
Benetti was established in 1873, making it the oldest Italian builder of motor yachts and an icon of timeless Italian styling and construction excellence. The Italian yacht builder celebrated the delivery of “Spectre”, a unique in the world 69-meter full custom mega-yacht to repeat clients.


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The company turned its Advisor personalisation engine product offering into a successful company which it claims went from zero to $16 million in two years, with a 133% sales growth over the past year and 50 new customers in the last two quarters.
"The business rules you embed in our personalization engine are your corporate personality-the embodiment of how a company does business," said President and CEO Tom Kelly. "They reflect the fast-changing practices, polices, and procedures that govern every interaction with your customers, employees, suppliers and partners. By enabling companies to change these rules on the fly, we help organizations keep up with the dynamic business environment while offering the kind of expertise your best people bring to their jobs."
Blaze Softwares corporate clients include Bank of America, Prudential, Norwest, Travelers, and Proctor & Gamble


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There hasn’t been much good news for vacation stocks. While many travel and entertainment companies were able to open their doors for the summer season, it remains to be seen how well business is going to bounce back amid the continued spread of COVID-19…
Disney (NYSE:DIS) and SeaWorld Entertainment (NYSE:SEAS) both operate theme parks that were closed for more than two months during the pandemic but have since reopened. Both companies released earnings this month detailing how they’ve been faring as parks reopen, and investors are waiting cautiously to see how much improvement they can expect going forward.
Bringing magic back to the kingdom
The king of entertainment has had a rough few months. One of its main revenue drivers, the parks and experiences business, came to a screeching halt as vacation-goers stayed home. However, Disney operates a diverse assortment of services that helped cushion the blow from this segment.
Fiscal third-quarter earnings came out on Aug. 4, and the company suffered quite a bit as compared to the second quarter, which included just the first two weeks of U.S. lockdowns. At that time, the park closures were not as big of a headwind as total revenue increased 21% year over year. However, revenue in the parks, experiences, and products segment declined 10% in a sign of things to come.
In the latest period, total revenue plummeted 42%, while the parks segment decreased 85%. The quarter ended June 27, and Disney World in Orlando had only just begun to welcome guests, while other Disney experiences had more time to build momentum, including its Asia theme parks and Disney Springs food and shopping venue in Florida, which reopened in May. Ultimately, the closures in that business resulted in a $3.5 billion hit to operating income for the company.
Disney ended the quarter with $23.1 billion in cash and equivalents, so liquidity is not an issue. But so far, the theme park recovery is slow. Disney World is operating at “positive net contribution,” according to CFO Christine McCarthy, but the uncertainty surrounding COVID-19 in Florida has meant that attendance at Disney World is less than what management expected. That said, bookings indicate that guests are ready to come back as consumer confidence increases (and new COVID-19 cases decline).
Florida is in the thick of the uncertainty with a new record for deaths from COVID-19 in a single day reported recently. Meanwhile, Disneyland in California is still closed, although a dining and entertainment portion has partially reopened. The late summer months will be important for investors to track — updates regarding coronavirus cases or progress in developing a vaccine will affect park attendance and the company’s top line in its fiscal fourth quarter.
Vacation by the sea
SeaWorld’s theme parks are in a similar situation, but unlike Disney, the company doesn’t have a broad range of services or products that it can lean on in the meantime. That means when parks were closed, revenue was completely on hold as well.
SeaWorld reported second-quarter earnings on Aug. 10, and not surprisingly, there was a 96% decrease in revenue year over year. Although all of its parks were closed for several months beginning March 16, a phased reopening began June 6, and as of the report date, nine of its 12 parks are currently open. Attendance during the quarter…
Continue reading at THE MOTLEY FOOL


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Uber has confirmed that Emil Michael, one the company’s top executives, has left the company.
Earlier today Michael sent an internal email to staff that he would be leaving the ride-hailing company, according to a report from Recode.
Michael, who served as the company’s senior vice president of business, has long been a controversial figure outside of the company (he was the executive who suggested that Uber could and should perform opposition research on journalists).
His departure was reported to be one of the recommendations that was set before Uber’s board of directors in an all day meeting at the offices of the company’s law firm in Los Angeles over the weekend.
The Uber board unanimously agreed to adopt all of the recommendations contained in the report, which was the culmination of an internal investigation into alleged misconduct supervised by former U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder and his legal partner Tammy Albarrán.
The company had no further comment.


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Adap.tv put out their latest State of the Video Industry 2012 survey for Q4 and there’s some interesting things that have changed. Remember, just last year, when it was TV vs. Online Video for all the ad dollars? Well, that’s not the case any longer and now it’s all about integrating the two into a cohesive and successful campaign. There’s a lot more in the report and I’ll cover that in other articles.
As always I like to start with the methodology to show you how the data was collected.
Q4 2012 State of the Video Ad Industry: Methodology
A survey of 700 digital marketing and media professionals was conducted in October 2012 on current attitudes and practices regarding digital video advertising. Participants were contacted via email, and asked to take an online survey. Participants were first asked to identify their companies as brands, agencies, trading desks, publishers, ad networks or DSPs. They then answered a survey of roughly 20 questions regarding their perceptions and practices relating to the buying and selling of digital video advertising. Some of these cohorts were later combined in some cases in the subsequent analysis when they were asked the same question and we didn’t find revealing differences in their answers. In other cases, results were cross-tabbed, to identify differences in each constituents’ viewpoints and practices, as a way of identifying industry disconnects that could hold back the emerging digital video advertising market, or reveal opportunities to improve everyone’s overall satisfaction and ROI.
So it’s a small cross section of the industry but it can be used to glimpse the larger picture. 51% of respondents were at an agency while 19% were publishers, 11% were brands and another 11% were ad networks. 6% were DSP and 2% were trading desks.
TV and Online Video Complement Each Other
Whoa! Stop the presses! TV and online video ad campaigns are now being aligned with each other? Yep, that seems to be the case as the majority of respondents said that online video should be more aligned with TV than with display advertising. It seems that the industry is catching on to that whole “it’s actually video” thing. In fact, this year the largest budget hit to make room for online video advertising, was display which saw a 37% reduction in spending moved to video. Second on the hit list to pay for video? Print, followed by broadcast TV which saw a 27% reduction.
97% of respondents said that online video ad budgets increased and it averaged out to a 27% bump for it. They’re predicting that it could see another 20% increase for next year as well. Good news for content creators who are looking to monetize by showing ads against their library. Cable did hold out fairly well this year though with just a 13% drop and the old reliables of search and direct response maintained most of their budgets instead of handing it over to video.
So broadcast took a hit, cable didn’t really, but the major thing I think to take away, is the fact that 58% believe that they are going to be planning TV and online video ad campaigns together, a 10% rise from Q1. There’s definitely been a change in the winds it seems. In fact, 67% believe online video to be a direct complement to TV. It’s also predicted that 80% of all ad buyers will be planning TV and online video together.
What this all means is that there’s going to have to be drastic changes as some places in regards to planning because a whopping 54% believe that TV and online video are too “siloed.” The majority of that majority say the digital group does the digital video ad buying separate from the TV buying. Almost half of the publishers say they’ve been dealing with TV buyers directly, so things certainly are changing these days.
So it seems that a cease fire in the video ad war has been called and a truce signed. TV buyers are seeing the potential of doing more integrated buys with online video and that should mean more money flowing more freely into online video advertising on the whole. It should also mean that we might start seeing some super cool cross-platform video-based advertising campaigns. So dust off that content library and start shopping it around for ad placement because it seems the buyers are coming, the buyers are coming!!
You can also watch the debut of the report with commentary from Adap.tv’s president, Toby Gabriner:


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Is Bacon Bad for your Health?
By Dietitian, Juliette Kellow BSc RD
This month, red meat once again made headline news after a new study reported that eating cured meats such as bacon, sausages and luncheon meats, increased the risk of developing a lung condition called chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).
The research, published in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, set out to see whether frequently eating cured meats increased the risk of COPD and impaired lung function.
The study included more than 7,000 adults over the age of 45. The researchers divided the participants into groups depending on their consumption of cured meat.
There were five groups:
- Those who didn’t eat cured meats
- Those who ate 1-2 servings a month
- Those who ate 3-4 servings per month
- Those who ate 5-13 servings per month
- Those who ate more than 14 servings per month.
Compared to those subjects who ate no cured meats, those eating 14 or more servings a month were found to be almost twice as likely to develop COPD.
However, those people who ate the most cured meats were also more likely to smoke and to have lower intakes of fruit, veg, fish, vitamin and mineral supplements, vitamin C and beta-carotene.
The researchers suggest that nitrites added to cured meats as preservatives, antimicrobial agents or colour fixatives might be responsible for damaging the lungs.
This is an interesting study but it should be interpreted with caution.
It’s worth pointing out that COPD is typically a disease associated with smoking and this study found that those people who ate the most cured meats were also more likely to smoke. This makes it difficult to draw clear conclusions.
As is often the case in research, it’s incredibly difficult to isolate one particular aspect of a person’s diet and claim that it is responsible for causing a particular disease.
High consumers of cured meat were also more likely to have lower intakes of fruit and veg. This may also affect the conclusions as fruit and veg tend to help protect against COPD.
The British Nutrition Foundation sums up the findings of this study extremely well. It says,
“This large prospective study does seem to suggest an association between a very high cured meat consumption (more than 14 times per month) and an increase in the risk of COPD, but there is little previous research supporting this.
Most evidence suggests that high intakes of fruit and veg are protective. Despite attempts to control for other dietary differences, those consuming such high intakes of processed meat are likely to have many different dietary and lifestyle characteristics from those who don’t eat it at all. There is no evidence that a moderate consumption of cured meat is detrimental in relation to COPD and no evidence to suggest that red meat in general is a problem.”
Bottom line: small to moderate amounts of cured meat such as bacon as part of a balanced, healthy diet are unlikely to cause health problems.
When it comes to keeping your lungs healthy, avoiding smoking and eating five fruit and veg every day are two of the best things you can do.
For a healthy heart and to lose weight, remove any visible fat from any meat, including bacon, opt for lower-fat sausages and grill rather than fry products.
Using the dieting tools in WLR will help you learn how to follow a healthy diet and balance calories for weight loss or weight maintenance. You can keep an online food diary and access WLR's calorie and nutrition databases. Try it free for 24 hours.


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WTC, Pavilions sales among the tops in nation for 2008
- Paula Moore
Metro Denver had two of the country’s largest commercial real estate deals in 2008 — the sales of downtown Denver’s World Trade Center office buildings and the Denver Pavilions shopping mall.
LaSalle Investment Management Inc. of Chicago bought the 770,000-square-foot, two-building World Trade Center on Broadway from Transwestern Investment Co., also of Chicago, for $157.8 million in October. Transwestern acquired the buildings only two years earlier — in early 2006 — for $116 million from Brookfield Properties Corp. of New York, and had been trying to sell them since fall 2007.
Denver-based Gart Properties LLC and financial partner ING Clarion Partners LLC of New York bought the 350,000-square-foot, two-block Denver Pavilions for $94.5 million from its developer/owner, Entertainment Development Group Inc. of Agoura Hills, Calif., and EDG’s financial partners. The shopping center, located on the 16th Street Mall pedestrian mall, opened in 1998.
“The World Trade Center sale was in the top 20 largest office deals in the United States in 2008,” said Mike Winn, executive vice president and investment broker at Cushman & Wakefield of Colorado Inc. in Denver. “The Pavilions was one of the largest retail deals in the country.”
Sales of office properties in Denver’s central business district hit record per-square-foot values in ’08, said Tim Richey, C&W executive vice president and investment broker.
Dividend Capital Trust Inc., a Denver-based real estate investment trust (REIT), paid a record $356.55 a foot when it bought downtown Denver’s Millennium Financial Center office building for $47.6 million, according to brokers. Dividend Capital is one of the local Black Creek Group LLC’s companies.
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Vice Media to reduce workforce by 15% and consolidate digital brands as growth stalls
Vice Media will reduce its headcount by as much as 15% and the number of digital sites by at least half following disappointing revenue predictions for the year.
Vice Media has pivoted to slash its digital portfolio by half as growth stalls
According to The Wall Street Journal, Vice will slash its staff numbers through a combination of natural wastage and a hiring freeze.
Vice currently operates a sprawling online empire of over a dozen websites including music-related Noisy, food-themed Munchies and female-focused Broadly, but it's reported that these could be reduced to as little as three or five in the face of stalled traffic growth.
The former darling of the media industry has revealed disappointing revenue expectations of between $600 and $650m for the year – equivalent to the sums reached in the year prior and $100m below projections - following a period of rapid growth.
Chief executive Nancy Dubuc now plans to allocate dwindling resources towards the in-house advertising agency Virtue while simultaneously producing more TV shows and films for third party content providers.
Metrics logged by comScore show that the number of unique visitors to Vice’s family of websites was just 27 million in September, well down on the 36 million logged two years prior.
In 2017, Vice is reported to have lost $100m and is expected to lose a further $50m this year, despite boasting a valuation of $5.7bn, the highest of any new media business.
TV veteran Dubuc assumed the mantle of Vice CEO from Shane Smith in March.
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OYO sees pre-Covid year-end recovery
Hospitality chain OYO expects to recover 85 per cent of its pre-Covid level of supply of rooms in India by the end of 2020. The company has seen an improvement in occupancy and revenue after the lockdown and travel restrictions are being gradually eased.
“After the first unlock, many states had restrictions on travel and hotels till the end of August. Since August-end, occupancies have seen a sharp rebound and revenues have been growing 30 per cent month-on-month. Our occupancies have recovered to around 40 per cent of the pre-Covid level with room sales increasing 30 per cent month-on-month. Some of the brands such as OYO TownHouse is operating at 85 per cent of the pre-Covid occupancy levels,” said Rohit Kapoor, CEO, OYO India and South Asia.
Kapoor, who was in town, told The Telegraph that according to recent Diwali booking trends, the company has witnessed an intent to make bookings by consumers visiting the OYO platform at almost 100 per cent levels compared with pre-Covid times, while traffic is at over 50 per cent.
“Travel is coming back slowly and we see an uptick in leisure travel with Jaipur, Kochi, Visakhapatnam, Agra and Goa becoming the most frequently visited destination. Some cities such as Shimla, Manali, Munnar, Ooty and Gangtok are also showing a rise in bookings since September,” said Kapoor.
“In terms of revival of our India operations, I am cautiously optimistic about the market at the moment. Asset owners in India continue to choose OYO and we have opened 15,000 to 18,000 rooms per month between July and September and we are working towards achieving 85 per cent of pre-Covid levels of supply by the end of 2020,” Kapoor said.
The company has made a few changes in its leadership team. Harshit Vyas has been elevated to the position of COO, India and South Asia, franchise business; Ankit Gupta is the CEO of frontier business; and Abhinav Ankur has been appointed chief strategy and transformation officer. Anuj Bhatnagar is CFO, business; Abhishek Bansal is the chief revenue officer; and Yatish Jain is head of marketing and growth.