text:
First cannabis retail store in Marquette is opening Monday
MARQUETTE, Mich. (WLUC) - Marquette’s first provisioning center is having a grand opening Monday.
The grand opening of The Fire Station will be at 3 p.m. and guests can come enjoy some live music, food and shop around.
The store is located at 351 W. Washington Street in Downtown Marquette. They have a second location in Negaunee but owners, Stosh Wasik and Logan Stauber, wanted to expand and create a store more “accessible” for the guests.
The Fire Station in Marquette will be open for pre-orders, in-store sales and curb-side pickup.
Customers must be at least 21 years of age in order to purchase.
Their selection includes flowers, edibles, pre-rolls, concentrates and accessories.
Wasik said he is looking forward to the big day.
“I’m so excited,” Wasik said. “I can’t wait to get these doors open. We’ve had overwhelming, positive responses from the community and we’re really excited to be able to do this.”
The owners are also working on opening their third location in Houghton.
Copyright 2020 WLUC. All rights reserved.


text:
Brewdog teams up with confectionery brand Swizzels for Parma Violets IPA
Independent Scottish drinks firm BrewDog has joined forces with classic confectionery brand Swizzels, producers of the iconic Parma Violets, to brew a Hazy New England IPA inspired by the nostalgic purple sweet, reports Neill Barston.
As the company noted, the beverage’s robust malt profile featuring tropical and citrus Citra and Simcoe hops, have been paired with the floral perfumed notes of the much loved retro sweet.
Described as ‘playful and punchy’ the brew has an ABV of 5.5% in a 440ml can, and is being made available exclusively this month from Tesco stores in the UK.
In addition, for every purchase on the webstore, BrewDog is rewarding its customers with gifts and discounts – such as free beer, exclusive tasting guides and complimentary shipping – as part of the new Planet BrewDog digital loyalty programme. Customers can earn rewards from their very first order online. Furthermore, the company has also just launched its 2021 Advent Calendar featuring 24 different craft beers.
The confectionery connection follows swiftly on the heels of another link with the sector – with Brewdog creating a limited edition ‘Tony’s Hopolonely’ brew is inspired by Tony’s white chocolate raspberry and popping candy bar which comes in a bright pink wrapper, creating a white chocolate and raspberry milkshake IPA 5.7%.

domain: news


text:
The world of gaming has evolved more over the past decade, particularly when it comes to online purchases and transactions. During the first two decades of its existence, publishers primarily relied on an item assigned to as “pay-to-play,” that essentially entailed a gamer paying the full price for a video game (CD-ROM/cartridge) to enjoy uninterrupted access to the title. However, over the past 10-15 years, owners have started to use a new approach which essentially decreases the game into small parts, with the price of each item being charged separately through a digital transition medium called “virtual currency.”
The report says that thirty percent (30%) of the total people on the earth which makes for about two billion (2.2B) are active gamers. One billion (1B) of these gamers spend money while playing. The estimated amount for the gaming industry thus adds one hundred and eight billion ($108.9B) dollars. The creation of a virtual economy- allowing players to get a better performing gear which helps them get out of the grind cycle and rise up to the top players with relative ease.
Blockchain Solves Fraud in the Virtual Asset Market
The centralized marketplace user often suffers from the receipt of incomplete virtual assets or delivery issues on the part of the seller, these problems are solved by blockchain. In a centralized marketplace, intermediaries are needed to prevent and stop the fraud, which is fine but the amount to spent the transaction cost of sake is too high. Instead of that, decentralized marketplaces don't need any intermediaries to stop the fraud. They all developed by a smart contract, which will guarantee delivery of the asset.
Blockchain smart contracts have the power to omit a majority of transactional intermediaries and ensure that goods are delivered and which buyers and sellers follow through on their responsibilities without the need for third-party intervention which drives up the price of buying and selling up.
Blockchain impact in the video game industry
The rise of blockchain technology can generate multiple solutions for the gaming world, as it can offer gamers a more transparent and also decentralized way to engage with games and in-game assets. According to some main experts, blockchain technology will gonna change the face of the gaming industry in the near future.
Many game developers are already adopting blockchain technology with the launch of new dApps, or decentralized applications which use blockchain technology in gaming. Apart from the growth of dApps, the gaming community plan to managing their digital assets in a new way for their favourite video games.
In addition to that, the gaming industry has been revolutionized by various new technologies, including Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR), Artificial Intelligence (AI) all of which offer mesmerizing gaming experiences. Envision the massive things going to happen in these technologies games with the blockchain technologies.
Blockchain to secure gaming
Safe and Secure Storage
Introducing encrypted blockchain ledgers to the gaming world will go as long as the way to promising guarantee to secure storage of your game items. Until your information is in the blockchain you can say goodbye to hacker’s dream of accessing it. Blockchain also allows gamers to securely store in-game assets.
Saves money on payment processing
As you are already aware of the gaming industry which is very huge and it is possible to pay your expensive fee that comes with it. The blockchain will allow you to pay your fee without considering whether the amount is small or high, without involving the debit or credit card companies. finally, it is decentralized fees implemented here are small.
Proof of asset scarcity
As blockchain is open source the game developers can build rare virtual assets such as armours, swords and other in-game cosmetics to make them more valuable. One of the best examples which use this blockchain technology is the Crypto Kitties Game.
Finally, now you can get the idea of how blockchain will have a massive impact on all aspects of the gaming industry. Since the blockchain technology is spreading seriously, it will revolutionize the gaming sector further and we must admit now which it is becoming a prominent part of today as well as the future.
How to create a game in blockchain
Creating a game with blockchain is a big thing. You have many resources to build your own blockchain game. Reach a trustworthy blockchain dapp game development company like gamesdapp. We have a well trained experts to create innovative game. Ping us to know more about developing blockchain games with our experts.
Get A Demo
Let's Connect With Us


text:
In its third Melbourne deal in as many months, pan-Asian logistics developer Logos Property has acquired a Kmart distribution centre in the city’s Truganina suburb for A$119 million ($86 million).
Logos, which is headed by logistics veterans Trent Iliffe and John Marsh, purchased the 77,000 square metre GLA (829,000 square foot) distribution centre from US asset management giant Invesco, as regional and global logistics investors step up their deal activity down under.
The project acquisition comes just one month after Logos acquired a 27.5 hectare industrial site in the same community, after buying its first Melbourne project in June. Logos announced the transaction on 7 August in a statement.
Expanding in Shed Hotspot
All three of Logos’ Melbourne properties are in Truganina, about 28 kilometres from the city’s central business district and 23 kilometres from Port Melbourne, with expressway links to the facility via Princes Highway and the West Gate Freeway.
“Truganina is one of Australia’s core industrial locations with many large logistics operators,” said Darren Searle, Head of Australia and New Zealand for Logos. “The Kmart Distribution Centre is a strategic addition to our growing portfolio of core assets within key logistic markets secured by long term cashflow.”
The asset is located at 2-12 Banfield Court on a 14 hectare plot, and is fully leased to Kmart Australia, a subsidiary of ASX-listed Wesfarmers Limited. The property was put up for sale by Invesco, the US investment manager, via a global expression of interest handled by JLL and CBRE which closed on 24 May..
Invesco had purchased the property in 2014 for A$94.1 million in what was the largest transaction in the industrial market in the fourth quarter of that year, according to JLL.
The weighted average lease to expiry (WALE) at the location is 7.9 years, and the asset was generating income of $6.5 million net a year at the time of sale. The initial yield is 5.45 percent, according to a report in the AFR.
Third Deal in Three Months
This latest deal comes after Logos acquired a 27.5-hectare site at 285 Palmers Road, about 2.6 kilometres from 2-12 Banfield Court, in early June for a reported A$28 million. The company intends to develop a 160,000 square metre warehouse on that property, which was purchased from the Adrianakos family in a deal brokered by Cushman & Wakefield.
In July, Logos acquired a site at Infinity Drive, a few hundred metres from 285 Palmers Road.
The company, founded in 2010 and active throughout the Asia-Pacific region, has a total of A$4.2 billion of equity commitments in 15 investments. In February 2018, it established the Logos Australia Logistics Portfolio (LALP) with an initial investment capacity of A$500 million. The 2-12 Banfield Court purchase will add about five percent to the company’s total Australian space.
Searle joined Logos in January and was first employed as Australian Head of Development, before being announced as the company’s head of Australia and New Zealand operations at the same time that Logos unveiled its latest Truganina deal. Searle had previously worked at Toll Group, an Australian logistics company part of Japan Post since 2015, as general manager for property development.
Australia Logistics Competition
The Australian logistics sector is a growing area of focus for regional logiistics players with Logos’ rival ESR having purchased Charter Hall’s Commercial & Industrial Property (CIP) in July for A$102.5 million. The Warburg Pincus-backed logistics investment platform had already taken stakes in real estate investment firm Propertylink and fund manager Centuria Capital, both ASX listed prior to the CIP acquisition.
ESR has told the Australian press that it would form an Australian logistics fund seeded with assets acquired in the purchase of CIP. It has also been working with Centuria on a possible takeover of Propertylink, but as of this week the two were not able to agree on a way forward in that proposed transaction.
Other major players in Australian logistics include the home-grown Goodman Group and Blackstone.


text:
Cannabis Industry Outlook 2021
Comment are off
2021 is finally here, and it is expected to be a big year for the Cannabis industry. The panel will discuss the likelihood of federal legalization, state initiatives and developments in other countries, commercial banking, institutional participation, valuation and cost of capital. We will also address ongoing industry consolidation, recent transactions, the rise of the SPAC vehicle and the implications of further COVID restrictions, as well as take questions from the audience.
LEADING FIRMS SHARE KNOWLEDGE ON EXPERT WEBCAST


text:
Cable-Tec Expo: Cox Targets 35 Channels For Tablet TV App [Multichannel News]
The latest cable operator to announce an iPad app with full video streaming is Cox Communications, the nation's third largest cable provider. The app is due out next month, and Cox expects to have 35 channels ready for full streaming video at the time of launch with the hope of more programming being made available over time.
Like the other cable TV apps released by Time Warner Cable, Comcast and Cablevision, the Cox app will eventually have DVR and remote control functions as well as a fairly detailed programming guide (those functions are currently available in a separate "Mobile Connect" app from Cox, but will eventually be incorporated into the new "TV Connect" app). Also like the other apps, the video streaming will only be available within the customer's home.
Cox already offers an online authentication service called "Cox TV Online," that allows customers to watch programming from TBS, HBO, ABC, NBC and Epix on their computers.


text:
The Las Vegas taco joint Frijoles and Frescas is trying to find two men who broke into their store last week, while also using the incident as a form of viral marketing for their tacos.
In the video, two thieves smash the front door with a rock (it takes multiple attempts) and then run through the place, apparently searching for food before settling for the cash register.
“Please help us find these guys,” the video pleads. “So we can get them the tacos they rightfully deserve.”
As of today, the video has collected more than 1.17 million views in less than a week. “The idea was to provide something that the public could help us with to find the thieves, but at the same time, try to see the lighter side of what happened,” manager Greg Carlson told Eater.
When will online shaming stop? Where’s Jon Ronson when you need him?


text:
India has transformed into a mobile-first economy. The ease of accessibility and cheaper data make these a primary source of entertainment. Given the transition to remote working, people are well accustomed to new technologies and are discovering different ways to stay connected. Recent incidents have shown the vulnerabilities individuals and business owners can witness if one is not cautious to protect their data and identity in the digital world.
In an email interaction with Augustin Kurian, Assistant Editor of CISO MAG, Ritesh Chopra, Director Sales and Field Marketing, India & SAARC Countries, NortonLifeLock, discuss the increasing cyberthreats given the current social apps scams making consumers vulnerable.
Chopra is responsible for developing and implementing strategies to drive the adoption of NortonLifelock products among consumers in the sub-continent. He champions NortonLifelock’s partner strategy in India and manages OEM/ISP and online channel relationships. Chopra also held the position of Country Manager until June 2018 before being promoted and has been with the company since 2012. With over 20 years of extensive experience in the technology sector, he is a sales and marketing strategist in India and Asia-Pacific regions. He has been recognized with Six Sigma qualification and has successfully conceptualized and implemented multi-tier channel loyalty programs in his previous role with Seagate, Singapore.
In the interview, Chopra has also provided insights on the growing usage of the dark web as well as key findings from the NortonLifeLock Digital Wellness Report.
Email addresses were the most common piece of PII shared with apps and were shared with 48% of the iOS apps and 44% of the Android apps analyzed. With the rise of the dark web, do you think better nationwide cybersecurity regulation can bring in a lot of difference?
Personally, Identifiable Information (PII) such as medical records, bank details, passwords, phone numbers, and email IDs are most targeted by cybercriminals. Cybersecurity regulations will certainly help in making a difference in how data is handled on the dark web. But consumers also need to be aware of the kind of data that is shared through apps. Certain apps can enable attackers to mine information from the device in the background, even without the user’s knowledge. Unlike desktop users, smartphone users cannot see the entire URL of the site they are visiting, which makes them vulnerable to phishing attacks. Such threats can be avoided, to an extent, by using strong passwords, avoiding using public WiFi, watching out for phishing emails, regularly backing up important data, and keeping all apps and operating systems up-to-date. Amidst the evolving cybersecurity landscape, it is imperative for individuals to invest in robust anti-theft device security to ensure digital safety.
COVID-19 changed the cybersecurity landscape. It is now even more important for companies to support the security of their workforce – regardless of geo-location or platform. With myriad compliance and regulations norms varying from country to country, how should a company ensure that best practices are in place across their offices globally?
The COVID-19 pandemic has changed the way we work; the concept of “remote working” is gaining popularity. While people seek opportunities that allow remote work, they must also equip themselves with cyber safety and data protection tools. There are some basic measures you can adopt to avoid falling prey to cyberattacks:
- Speak to your employer to understand the policies that help keep you, your co-workers, and the business safe.
- Always use the company’s tech toolbox, as it likely includes firewall and antivirus protection and security features like VPN and two-factor authentication.
- Beware of coronavirus-themed phishing emails used by cybercriminals. Immediately report such phishing attempts to your employer.
- Keep your VPN turned on, as it provides a secure link between employees and businesses by encrypting data. A VPN helps keep information secure from cybercriminals and competitors.
- While working remotely, it is important to understand that online safety is a shared responsibility that begins at the individual level.
As far as PCs are concerned, people are increasingly using paid software. They are even adopting security products for ‘Mac’ machines. But the mobile side continues to present a challenge. We are seeing people adopt VPN and mobile security products; however, it still appears to be a bit further away from what we would want it to be.
India witnessed several state-sponsored attacks during vaccine development. Even the vaccine makers are being targeted in nation-state attacks. What can the country and its cybersecurity divisions do to combat these threat vectors?
Scammers and cybercriminals have been exploiting the COVID-19 pandemic and, more recently, the ongoing vaccination drive, to create new hooks to lure victims. Although the authorities have been warning people to watch out for scams on such themes, there has been a huge increase in the number of phishing scams since the pandemic began. Cybercriminals are sending emails that appear to be sent by government agencies, employers, and other global health organizations, inviting users to click on what, in reality, are malicious links.
Consumers can adopt some basic measures to falling prey to cyberattacks:
- Beware of online requests for personal information. A coronavirus-themed email that seeks your personal data is likely to be a phishing scam. Legitimate government agencies will not ask for such information. Do not respond to such emails.
- Check the email address or link. You can inspect a link by hovering the cursor over the URL to see where it leads. Sometimes, it is obvious the web address is not legitimate. Even otherwise, be careful, because phishers can create malicious links that closely resemble legitimate addresses.
- Phishing emails are unlikely to address you by your name. Greetings like “Dear Sir or Madam” is an indication that email might not be legitimate.
- Avoid emails that urge you to take immediate action. Phishing emails often try to create a false sense of urgency. The goal is to get the user to click on a link and divulge personal information. If you receive a suspicious-looking email of this type, delete it.
Millennials top the charts in online transactions as compared to women and Gen X who are most complacent about security, yet trends indicate Gen X to be more susceptible to cyberattacks than millennials. Do you think it is completely around digital literacy, or there is more to this trend?
The lines between the virtual and the real world have blurred today. Individuals, irrespective of their age or generation, are vulnerable to cyberattacks when they use public or private networks if they do not have any cyber safety solutions installed on their systems. Individuals often neglect to log out of their social media accounts and apps. This habit needs to change. We must bring some good practices from the real world into the virtual one. Just like how we lock the main door before going to sleep, we should log out of emails and social media accounts, and online banking sessions, once we are done using them.
We often download free apps and, often, without thinking, permit them to access different features and data on our device. If something like a weather app asks us to grant access to our contact list, it should give us pause for thought. We need to read the terms and conditions a careful read too, rather than accepting them blindly. It is advisable to install an application scanner to check for security vulnerabilities and a VPN to mask our identity.
Data from our Digital Wellness Report reveals some interesting facts:
- 81% of the respondents in the survey were using parental control mechanisms on their devices, while 70% knew that connecting with strangers while playing online games could lead to problems like cyberbullying.
- The report found that female respondents (84%) were more aware than men (74%) about security threats and that they had security software installed on their smartphones.
- 71% of female respondents (versus 63% of male respondents) concerned themselves with app privacy and permissions on their phones.
- Gen Z users (95%) were found to be more proactive than millennials (94%) and Gen X users (90%) in adjusting the privacy permissions on their phones.
According to our 2019 NortonLifelock Cyber Insight Report:
- 40% of millennials reported having experienced cybercrime in the past year.
- Nearly 3 in 10 people said they cannot detect a phishing attack. Another 13% said they have to guess between a real message and a phishing email. Thus, 4 in every 10 people were vulnerable to phishing.
- 86% of respondents said they may have experienced a phishing incident.
- 7 in 10 respondents wished they could make their home Wi-Fi network more secure.
- 27% of respondents believed it was likely their home Wi-Fi network could be compromised.
At present, fintech is one of the most regulated industries in the world. But the key challenge is the presence of too many governing bodies but no universal standards – a singular regulatory policy or framework for the industry is lacking. Do you feel there is a need for a standard set of compliance and regulation for fintech and cryptocurrency?
You’ve probably heard of Bitcoin. But what about Ethereum? Or Tether and Polkadot? What are these? They’re all examples of cryptocurrency – a digital currency that you can buy with real money and then spend in online transactions. It’s true that you probably can’t buy a meal at your favorite restaurant with Bitcoin or rely on Ethereum to fill your car’s gas tank. But cryptocurrency is becoming increasingly more popular and valuable. Coindesk.com, which covers cryptocurrency, reported that, as of January 2021, the total value of all cryptocurrencies topped $1 trillion for the first time.
New cryptocurrencies emerge frequently. Coinmarketcap.com listed more than 4,100 types of them in an early 2021 price index published on its site. But what do these digital currencies mean to you? Do you need to learn how to purchase them and spend them? Probably not. But while digital money isn’t a necessity, it does have its uses. Users of cryptocurrency say that digital transactions closed with cryptocurrency are more secure than those using credit cards.
As cryptocurrencies become more popular, so do the scams associated with them. Some scammers set up fake cryptocurrency exchanges. You might send real money to buy Bitcoins that don’t exist. Once you send your funds, they are gone, and your crypto wallet remains empty. To avoid such scams, only buy cryptocurrency from reputed exchanges. Don’t do business with exchanges that seemingly pop up out of nowhere.
What kinds of changes should be made during vendor sourcing and onboarding processes? And how much of the responsibility must fall on the CISO?
Data beaches have a direct negative impact on at least three very important aspects of a brand: presence, affinity, and trust. In the age of social media, negative news can affect not only people’s perceptions about the company but also the company’s financial prospects. Customers might stop engaging with the brand completely or engage at a significantly lower level than before.
Data security has, for long, been viewed as a “hygiene” factor by many businesses and consumers. However, in today’s interconnected world, where data is more valuable than ever and a company’s reputation is based on its ability to protect customer data and establish digital trust, cyber safety and data security are no longer a mere hygiene exercise, but a business differentiator.
There are no set rules for building a security framework, and no system can guarantee 100% protection against all threats. However, imbibing a culture of security within the organization and ensuring the independence and empowerment of the CISO indicates that the organization is serious about cyber safety and data security. It also ensures that critical security-related changes within the organization can be effectively taken care of by the CISO.
About the Interviewer
Augustin Kurian the Assistant Editor of CISO MAG. He writes interviews and features.


text:
By Cara Sulieman
EDINBURGH faces a nightmare before Christmas – the threat of overrunning tram works ruining its planned festive party.
Council chiefs have unveiled a glitzy four day extravaganza for the city centre next month to feature giant snow globes, elves and musical fountains to boost trade hit by disruption.
But even before the fake snow settled at yesterday’s launch, sources revealed that time will be so tight, any last minute hitches with the tram works could pose huge problems.
With some small work continuing into the first day of Edinburgh Sparkles, it will be a tight squeeze for the contractors who have to be clear from the site before the party can begin.
It was revealed that even as the first festive revellers start to descend on the party, workmen are likely to still be putting up bus stops and painting white lines back onto the tarmac.
Senior events officer Paul Philip from Events Edinburgh admitted: “There will still be bits and pieces getting tied up on November 26.
“Bus stops need to be replaced and the white and yellow lines painted on so that the road is ready for the buses on November 29.”
But tie Limited – the council owned company formed to work on the tram project – insisted that the work will run to schedule.
Round the clock
Mandy Haeburn-Little, Director of Communications for Edinburgh Trams, assured: “Work is coming along well on Princes Street with round the clock working to ensure that we will be in a position to hand back Princes Street to the city in time for the planned festive activities.
“Supporting these initiatives helps create a very special experience in the city centre and allows us to say thank you to the retailers, traders and people of Edinburgh.”
Organisers are using the scheduled break between the road works finishing and traffic returning to the iconic Princes Street to put on a spectacular four day festival.
A range of small events will be taking place along the street including musical fountains, giant snowglobes and an animatronic polar bear.
Running from November 26 to 28, it aims to give the shops and businesses a much-needed boost after months of disruption.
And events company She’s Gott It, who are organising Edinburgh’s Christmas celebrations, say they are also confident the festivities will bring the life back into Princes Street.
Nickie Gott, Managing Director, said it was the best part of the festivities for her this year.
She said: “I’m really looking forward to the animation of Princes Street, that’s going to be really lovely – the celebrations will extend all the way down and brings Christmas to the whole of the city centre.
“It will be a great chance to celebrate the return of Princes Street and to see it being used again.”
The economic benefit to the city was the emphasis at the launch of the programme yesterday (Weds), with events designed to bring shoppers into the city centre during the recession.
MD Gott added: “This year there has been a emphasis on what the traders need – we’ve been out and spoken to them and tried to accommodate what they need whilst bringing a great Christmas shopping experience to people.”
Edinburgh City Council are gearing up for a merry Christmas season.
The Lord Provost, George Grubb, said: “Edinburgh’s Christmas is a true highlight in our calendar and one which brings real economic benefit to Edinburgh in terms of retail and tourism.
“We look forward to welcoming people as they enjoy the extended programme of festivities within our unique and stunning surroundings.”


text:
References in periodicals archive ?
Commenting on RS Components' success, Graham Johnson UK marketing manager, RS Components said: "Winning this ECMOD award is a tremendous achievement against some excellent competitors.
The annual awards ceremony was held alongside the ECMOD Direct Commerce Show last week, at the Business Design Centre, London.
The ECMOD Awards recognise the very best of the UK's specialist suppliers to the direct commerce sector, acknowledging the outstanding contribution these companies make to the multi-channel retail market.
ECMOD is very well recognised in our industry and its no mean feat to have been chosen.
The ECMOD brand has been renowned for supplying high level education, networking, information sharing, and supplier sourcing for businesses ever since it was founded back in 1990.
Among the array of suppliers at the ECMOD 2010 show are SEO Junkies, who have been to the show for the past couple of years as well.
Acronyms browser ?
Full browser ?
- ECMO virus
- ECMOP Modular System
- ECMWF Hamburg


text:
Sure, there’s entertainment, new sights to see at Epcot Festivals. But we’d all be lying if we didn’t try some of the food that’s offered during the event. Disney just released the menus for...
Like Us On Facebook
- VIDEO – Frozen 2 First Teaser Trailer
- Pop-Up Disney! A Mickey Celebration to open soon in Downtown Disney
- 2019 Epcot International Flower and Garden Festival – Quick Start Guide
- Mardi Gras 2019 at Universal Orlando Resort – Quick Start Guide
- Kevin From Disney/Pixar’s “UP” coming to Disney’s Animal Kingdom


text:
The EU is concerned that the European automotive industry and its 13 million employees will be overtaken in the race to implement mass production of electric cars due to dependency on batteries from Asia. Now, the EU wants to allow state subsidies to go to battery research as well as offering billions of euros in co-financing to companies willing to build large battery factories, reports Financial Times.
"We know very clearly that the future is electric and we simply have to catch up with this (battery) technology. You cannot develop new models or high-quality cars if you do not master the skills, the innovation, and research link with batteries," says European Commission Energy Vice-President Maros Sefcovic to Financial Times.
Already a subscriber? Log in.
Read the whole article
No credit card is needed, and you will not be automatically signed up for a paid subscription after the free trial.
- Access all locked articles
- Receive our daily newsletters
- Access our app
Get full access for you and your coworkers.Start a free company trial today
Your trial for EnergyWatch has now started
With your free trial you get:
Full access to all locked articles on EnergyWatch.
Daily newsletter and ongoing top-newsletters. You can unsubscribe and subscribe to our newsletters anytime.
When your trial period expires
You will not be transferred to a paid subscription.
You will continue to receive our newsletters after the trial period expires. You can unsubscribe at the bottom of each newsletter.


text:
To fully understand what's happening, first, here's a little context.
Jio urged Ookla to revoke the reward given to Airtel on October 6 that it is the fastest network in India.
Reliance Jio didn't respond to Mashable's request for comment.
In the meanwhile, Airtel and Ookla have stood by their previous claims.
Jio also said that Airtel, as a dominant player in the Indian telecom market for the last 22 years, can not plead ignorance of the implication of undue advantage it would gain by the use of such a word.
In a recent letter to advertising watchdog Advertising Standards Council of India, Reliance Jio has said Airtel's claim and the related advertisement that its the fastest telecom network in India is misleading and incorrect.
Jio also alleged that Ookla, the owner of Speedtest app, charges money for giving such awards and the company has also approached Jio for the same for the very quarter it issued certificate of fastest mobile network to Bharti Airtel.
A statement from Airtel followed. "We believe that this is a deliberate attempt to malign our brand and misguide customers through a campaign of misinformation, which is something we now come across on a regular basis, in particular, on social media platforms".
Also Read: Airtel fastest network in India? They have used test results by Ookla, a third party network speed testing app o rate their network and have called it the fastest network in the country. However, Ookla would "charge substantial sums of money for this objective and especially for publicly using the award and test results". For instance, let's assume you have a Vodafone, Airtel or Idea SIM card in the SIM 1 slot for calls and text messages, and a Reliance Jio SIM in the second slot for mobile data.
Dual-sim capable smartphones are extremely popular in India.
However, there is a big debate here, and the accuracy of Ookla's speed test results have been questioned.
We, personally ran the tests a couple of times in various scenarios as well as smartphones and found the allegations to be completely true. "The carrier displayed by the Speedtest mobile application is based on the "Active Carrier" value returned by the Android API". Which Jio could subsequently use, leveraging Ookla's brand. We confirmed the bug after using Speedtest app in a number of scenarios. "The results include all mobile tests, regardless of connection technology", said an Airtel spokesperson. It remains to be seen how soon Ookla fixes the bugs.


text:
Fire-Boltt Talk Ultra smartwatch was launched in India on Wednesday. The latest smartwatch from the Indian wearable manufacturer sports a 1.39-inch (240×240 pixels) LCD display, and supports Bluetooth calling. The Fire-Boltt Talk Ultra smartwatch comes with support for over 120 sports modes and features heart rate and blood oxygen level sensors. The new smartwatch from Fire-Boltt comes with an IP68 rating for water and dust resistance.
Fire-Boltt Talk Ultra smartwatch price in India
The Fire-Boltt Talk Ultra smartwatch comes in six different colour variants — Black, Blue, Red, Grey, Pink, and Teal.
Fire-Boltt Talk Ultra smartwatch specifications
The Fire-Boltt Talk Ultra smartwatch features a 1.39-inch (240×240 pixels) LCD display. The smartwatch comes with a Bluetooth calling feature letting users make and receive phone calls directly from the watch display. The smartwatch also features support for AI voice assistants like Google Assistant and Siri, according to Fire-Boltt
Additionally, the smartwatch also comes with 123 sports modes including running, cycling, and swimming. It also offers SpO2 monitoring, dynamic heart rate tracking, and sleep monitoring, among others. It also offers support for notification mirroring from a connected device. The Fire-Boltt Talk Ultra also has an IP68 rating for dust and water resistance.
The Fire-Boltt Talk Ultra also comes with built-in games. The Flipkart listing for the product claims it can last up to seven days on a single charge. It takes around 120 minutes for a full charge. The wearable has a smart UI Interface with over 100+ cloud watch faces. It also has smart controls that can track the weather, play games, get periodic reminders, along with controls for camera and music playback. The smartwatch measures 46.6×50.6×0.4 mm and weighs 80 grams, according to the company.
Featured video of the day
How Apps are Enabling Truckers and Shippers


text:
The activities of the Chinese giant Huawei Technologies in the automotive market have so far been limited to cooperation with partners. For example, together with the American-Chinese brand Seres, Huawei is developing hybrid cars with a proprietary operating system HarmonyOS. At the same time, Huawei expects to develop a top-of-the-line autopilot system by the middle of the decade. Rumor has it that Volkswagen is already interested in the Chinese giant’s core assets.
In any case, the intentions of the second largest carmaker in the world to buy Huawei’s division for the development of autopilot systems are reported Reuters with reference to the publication manager shop. According to the source, negotiations between Huawei and Volkswagen have been going on for several months and the deal could be worth billions of euros.
The German car giant is very interested in partnerships with specialized companies – for example, with a supplier of car components Bosch. The companies intend to collaborate on the development of software for automated transportation control systems. The potential of the German automaker’s Huawei profile division could be interesting in the context of the development of specialized processors. The carmaker’s structure already has a Cariad division that will focus on the development of control software. Volkswagen can strengthen this with experienced component developers from Huawei. It is already known that Volkswagen is collaborating with Samsung Electronics in this area at the same time.
It is difficult for a Chinese company to realize its full potential in the face of tightening US sanctions, as it does not have access to advanced lithography, the use of which is justified in the manufacture of complex processors for robotic systems. It cannot be ruled out that the deal with Volkswagen will also serve the interests of Huawei Technologies from this point of view. Previously, representatives of Volkswagen did not rule out developing their own component base for autopilot systems.


text:
Oct 15 (Reuters) - Drugstore chain Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc WBA.O said on Thursday its quarterly profit slumped 44.9%, as COVID-19 hampered sales at its retail stores in the United States and at its Boots UK unit.
However, the company said it expected single-digit growth in its 2021 adjusted earnings per share.
Net income attributable to Walgreens fell to $373 million or 43 cents per share, in the fourth quarter ended Aug. 31, from $677 million, or 75 cents per share, a year earlier.
(Reporting By Manas Mishra and Mrinalika Roy in Bengaluru; Editing by Vinay Dwivedi)
((firstname.lastname@example.org; within U.S. +1 646 223 8780, outside U.S. +91 806749 8325;))
In This StoryWBA
Latest Markets Videos
- White House says Walmart, FedEx, UPS to work 24/7 to ease supply bottlenecks for holiday season
- Chinese online brokers Futu and UP Fintech face regulatory risks - People's Daily website
- September, Third Quarter 2021 Review and Outlook
- PRECIOUS-Gold eases as inflation data fans policy tightening bets


text:
Major East Staffordshire employer JCB has recorded an increased turnover of £4.1 billion.
Bosses at the company, which is headquartered from Rocester, say the success of 2018 was due to strong growth in the construction market and growing demand for agricultural machinery.
They have however sent a warning for the next 12 months after seeing growth stall in some of its key overseas markets, including India, which was JCB's largest market in 2018.
This announcement comes after the company laid off 130 agency workers from its factories this summer.
Chief executive Graeme Macdonald told Stoke-on-Trent Live: "2018 was a very strong year for JCB during which the global construction equipment market grew by 18 per cent to an all-time high of one million machines.
"JCB outpaced this growth by increasing its sales revenue by 22 per cent last year, which was a very significant achievement.
"However, this growth has now stalled, with many markets softening this year, particularly the Middle East, Turkey, Latin America and India.
"We continue to make strategic investments in new product development and new manufacturing capacity to ensure JCB is ready to capitalise on future long-term growth opportunities."
The latests results announcement from JCB show that the firm's turnover rose by 22 per cent in 2018 to £4.1 billion, which is up from £3.35 billion in 2017.
Machine sales increased from 75,693 to 96,246.
Earnings also rose by 31 per cent to £447 million, compared to £341 million from the previous year.
JCB has 22 factories on its books across the globe, including 11 in the UK.
Currently, £65 million is being invested into a new factory in Gujarat, India, which should open in 2020.
A further £50 million is being spent on a new factory to manufacture cabs for its machines, which is being built next to the A50 Uttoxeter and is due to open in Autumn.
Chairman of JCB, Lord Anthony Bamford said: "The continued growth in global markets during 2018 has seen JCB production reach new peaks.
"As we approach our 75th anniversary next year, the pace of innovation remains relentless.
"Recent product launches, especially JCB’s electric mini excavator , puts the company in a strong position to tap into a growing demand for zero-emissions or ultra-low emissions equipment in the construction industry, particularly on urban job sites."


text:
Hyundai under fire for delaying defect reportProsecutors began an investigation into Hyundai Motor on Monday after the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport accused the automaker of concealing knowledge of defective air bags installed in its Santa Fe sports utility vehicles.
According to the prosecutors, the automaker belatedly reported possible defects in air bags on the front passenger seats of 2,360 Santa Fe cars manufactured between June 2 and 3 last year, in violation of the Automobile Management Act.
While 2,294 units were fixed before going on sale last year, the rest of the 66 units were sold to customers without properly notifying them or the government.
Hyundai Motor then belatedly submitted a document containing its corrective measures on Sept. 29, about a year and three months after the incident first broke, which led the country’s minister of land, infrastructure and transport, Kang Ho-in, to sue the automaker last week for violating the law.
A Hyundai Motor spokesman said the person in charge of communicating the defect to the ministry made an “administrative error” and that the company was regretful of the incident.
The spokesman added that the company had notified car owners on its own after the defect was first discovered last year and replaced the defective parts, saying they were not trying to conceal it from consumers.
Shares of Hyundai Motor, the country’s top-performing automaker, fell 2.2 percent on Monday to 133,500 won ($120.38).
BY JIN EUN-SOO, KIM JEE-HEE [email@example.com]


text:
Jan. 5, 2010
Just in time for the Super Bowl, now there's a way to make pizzas more festive for consumers.
It's a pizza decorating system yielding lifelife detail, akin to the kind put on cakes for special occasions. In fact, Lucks Food Decorating Co., a manufacturer of edible food decorations (especially for cakes), helped develop the creation.
The product is Pizza Fest, the newest, Parmesan-flavored invention from the Roma Foods division of Performance Food Group. And while your sports teams' logos might not be available for decoration just yet, the company already has licensing agreements with iCarly, Dora the Explorer, SpongeBob Square Pants characters and several universities, including Virginia Tech, Iowa and Michigan State.
Licensing opportunities with additional collegiate, professional sports teams are being explored for possible future rollout.
The strategy isn't a shot in the dark.
"Approximately 250 million fresh cakes are sold each year, 25 percent of which are decorated with either licensed or non-licensed designs," said Rob Bailey, Pizza Fest spokesperson. "Compare this to the 3 billion fresh pizza pies sold each year, and you can immediately see the bottom line impact Pizza Fest will have on the pizza industry. Because of their success in the baked goods arena, Lucks saw an obvious opportunity in the pizza category and are expecting a replication of similar results."
In a recent, informal survey, Bailey said pizzeria owners expressed an interested in the product for a variety of reasons: In order of preference, birthday designs (85 percent), kids licenses (55 percent), sports licenses, (31 percent), collegiate licenses (20 percent) and generic sports designs (17 percent).
There are already dozens of pre-made "Edible Image" designs to satisfy those categories, including generic holiday, birthday and anniversary decorations. When it's widely available later this year, pizzerias will be able to apply the completely edible colorful designs as a single topping that meld directly into the cheese on the pizza. The result is a pizza that "looks as good as it tastes." Customization will be allowed in the future and is expected to sell well.
No word yet on whether operators will be able to turn their photos or customers' drawings into pizza decorations with the product, which will be formally introduced in March.


text:
Here’s what’s top of mind for us this morning.
We were asked yesterday whether it’s too late to go long DKS. After all, the stock has been a monster – up 44% for the year-to-date, and 16% since Sports Authority filed on March 2nd. In addition, the name has become a hedge fund hotel and no longer looks cheap at face value. But still, we feel good about being involved on this one and even adding here. Would we rather add more on dips? Absolutely. But we’re not sure we’ll get ‘em.
First off, yes, the stock is up 44% ytd, but it’s flat versus a year ago – about in line with the market. That’s no reason to buy a stock, but it is an important consideration.
Our key thoughts are focused around the Sports Authority bankruptcy. No, that’s not exactly a proprietary idea. It explains away virtually all of the stock move from $34 to $50. But what we think is a unique thought is the dominoes that were set in motion by TSA’s demise, how vendors (esp Nike) will certainly respond, and most importantly, the duration over which this will benefit DKS. If you’re looking for a 2-3 quarter payback from TSA, and the stock, you probably got it. But the reality is that this benefit is likely to last 3-5 years, and should allow DKS to out-comp every peer except the internet, and retest a peak 9% margin level – which is 2 full points above the consensus. That translates to about $6 in earnings, versus the Street at $4.25. As lofty as this may sound, we’re likely looking at a 20x+ multiple on that number, or $120. Yes, that would make this a 3-year double.
We’re still doing the research to gain conviction in that number, but think that it’s more likely it gets there than where the Street is today.
The Nike Dynamic
People often forget the following facts. And they ARE facts.
1) First off, this is a generational shift in product distribution. There are not many ‘generational events’ to invest in out there.
2) Yes, DKS has been waiting for this to happen, but mark my words, it also helped cause it to happen (a la BBBY/Linens, and Best Buy/Circuit). We’ve been critical in the past about DKS’ business model, but never about Stack and his management team. Yes, it blew up its golf business. But as it relates to the core sporting goods business, there’s really no one better.
3) Nike made a tangible decision to invest in e-commerce as far back as 2005. That’s when its capex for DCs, warehousing and e-comm infrastructure started to grow, and when we started to see accelerated SG&A in e-comm headcount.
4) At that time – whether Nike outwardly admits it or not (or even realizes it) the company started to stuff the US wholesale channel to pay for its e-comm investments.
5) In the ensuing decade, its sales penetration inside Foot Locker, for example, went from 50% to 73%. Yes, 73% of FL’s inventory purchases were/are Nikes. There’s only one way for that number to go – and it’s down.
6) Sporadically over the same time period we saw the Sporting Goods channel begin to evaporate (‘08/09, and this year). Make no mistake, Nike absolutely positively NEEDS this channel for its US business to grow.
7) People are all jazzed up about the first round of Nike shoe walls that will be in place at DKS by end of year. They should be. But what they should be more excited about is the comp growth it will bring to DKS in the form of higher ASPs for the better part of 3-5 years. There’s a huge impact there on both sales and margins, as FL showed us in this economic recovery.
Keep in mind that this is a zero sum game. In other words, TSA had roughly $3bn in revenue. Half of that will evaporate, and at best we’re looking at about $500mm-$750mm in revenue directly from TSA. But the bigger kicker that people won’t count on is a similar contribution from better Nike product across the portfolio – and it should come at a higher margin via ASP and better traffic.
In the end, Foot Locker loses. Finish Line loses. Hibbett Sports loses. All will have 2 Nike-issues. 1) no longer seeing an increase in Nike (which is a negative) and 2) likely seeing a decline – especially FL.
Nike wins as it secures a better US distribution partner, though much of this will be robbing Peter to pay Paul.
DKS is the biggest winner, as quantified above.
One of our key points on Nike is that the company will hit $11bn in e-comm/DTC revenue versus guidance/The Street at $7bn. THE KEY to Nike accelerating its progress will take the shape of some form of US channel conflict. We started to see that with FL on its last conference call. It should get meaning fully worse, which will cause Nike to slingshot the part of its business that actually should be growing – and that’s not brick and mortar. The point here is that the anecdotal comments from retailers are likely to be increasingly anti-Nike. We’re fine with that. In fact, we want to see it. But it causes us to have a ‘buy on dips’ positioning as it relates to Nike.


text:
Channel 4 launches video ad sales house to rival tech giants
British broadcaster Channel 4 wants to make it easier for advertisers to buy digital video inventory during live broadcasts outside of its own properties, while boosting its own bottom line, and BT Sport is the first broadcaster on its books.
BT Sport holds the rights to the UEFA Champions League — comprising over 40 Premier League football games — as well as Premiership Rugby and European Rugby. Now, Channel 4 will programmatically serve ads to viewers of these matches during the ad breaks of the streams on BT Sport’s mobile and tablet apps and sites. To do so, Channel 4 will use technology it has developed for the last six months in partnership with video ad company FreeWheel.
Channel 4, home to popular British TV shows like “The Great British Bake Off” and “Gogglebox,” already sells BT Sport’s linear TV advertising, along with other non-Channel 4 broadcasters like UKTV and ESPN. Adding the digital rights is the next logical step, which the broadcaster hopes will help it compete against the dominance of the Google-Facebook duopoly.
“There’s an opportunity for a premium publisher video-on-demand sales house, a one-stop shop for agencies to buy premium inventory programmatically that can directly compete with the digital giants,” said Jonathan Lewis, Channel 4’s head of digital and partnership innovation.
The deal marks the second strategic play Channel 4 has made in the last six months to increase its scale, making it a more attractive proposition for agencies and advertisers that might otherwise be seduced by the duopoly’s reach. The first was joining the European Broadcaster Exchange, a Pan-European broadcaster programmatic video alliance, last November. “This [VOD sales house] is the response to how we tackle things on a local level,” said Lewis.
In the coming months, Channel 4 will be able to target the BT Sport ads based on its own first-party data, like viewer age, gender, location, interests and behavior, gathered from the 16 million registered users of All 4, Channel 4’s on-demand service.
Against the backdrop of heightened safety concerns due to brand ads appearing next to inappropriate user-generated content, the time is right for the broadcaster to play to the strengths of its premium environment. According to Lewis, some of Channel 4’s clients shifted their spend from YouTube to the broadcaster’s video on-demand service last November and December, though he wouldn’t reveal which ones or how many.
Google and Facebook tend to dominate short-form video revenues. Channel 4’s move to increase its audience and inventory for VOD also defends itself against the likes of Amazon Prime and other longer-form video content providers, said Dino Myers-Lamptey, managing director of MullenLowe Mediahub.
“Channel 4, as with all traditional broadcasters, needs to open up to the long tail of advertisers, which is the model that has made Google and Facebook so successful,” he said. “Simplifying access to buying inventory and providing more flexibility in the buy is what more businesses need.”
The goal is for Channel 4 to boost the number of publishers it sells digital ads for, increase its scale and, in turn, boost its own revenue. “It would be hard to speculate how successful Channel 4 will be, but it’s in a strong position,” said Tom Harrington, media analyst at Enders Analysis. “Online broadcaster video is of a quality that is unmatched amongst other ad-supported digital video and advertisers appreciate this, so it will be an increasingly lucrative battleground.”
The increasing threat of the duopoly to TV ad dollars has spurred broadcasters to put rivalries aside and join forces before video ad CPMs are squeezed to the same extent as display’s. Premium video demand from advertisers still outstrips supply, but broadcasters are wary of facing the same fate as publishers. Last summer, rival media companies Sky and Virgin Media teamed up to boost the scale of the addressable audience advertisers can reach to over 30 million viewers.
Member ExclusiveFuture of TV Briefing: How the TV, streaming and digital video industry spent its summer
The Future of TV Briefing this week recaps what happened over the summer, including the return of mega-merger mania, the sped-up upfront cycle, the flattening streaming landscape and TV's measurement melee.
Cheat Sheet: TV networks, video platforms and publishers pitch advertisers at the IAB’s Fall Marketplace
Held on Sept. 14, the inaugural Fall Marketplace featured TV, streaming and digital video sellers pitching their wares and industry executives discussing a range of topics.
Why Canadian TV company Blue Ant Media has taken a niche, FAST-first approach to building up its U.S. business
The U.S. version of Blue Ant Media’s HauntTV has attracted 600,000 unique viewers on Roku’s The Roku Channel since soft-launching in mid-August.
SponsoredHow retailers can be ready for holiday shoppers this year
Suchi Sastri, managing director and partner, Boston Consulting Group As the holiday season approaches and the pandemic continues to evolve, retailers want to know what to expect. Will e-commerce continue to grow at the rate it did last year? How big of a role will in-store shopping play in holiday shopping? While it’s still early, […]
Member ExclusiveFuture of TV Briefing: How TikTok has influenced media companies’ videos on platforms like Snapchat and YouTube
The Future of TV Briefing this week looks at how TikTok has been subsumed into video makers’ approaches to other platforms, including Instagram, Snapchat and even YouTube.
Women of Color Unite’s Cheryl L. Bedford is fighting ‘exclusion by familiarity’ in entertainment
The nonprofit organization has compiled a database of 4,500 women of color working in entertainment and runs a program connecting women of color with established industry members.


text:
- Jun 14, 2011
Any chance of getting a overdue update to Aperture with the long overdue update of the mac pro at WWDC 2013?
Thanks for your comments, wwdc cant come soon enoughI'm hoping the huge gap since the last significant iPhoto / iMovie update means they're doing a major (read: post-ipad) overhaul of these two. And, since they added a bunch of Aperture like brush features to iPhoto on iPad, i expect the next iPhoto to be an amalgam of iPhoto and Aperture.
That'd be fun. But I don't buy it, WWDC is for developers (and it's the hottest developer event in the world right now). Those 5000 developers are not going there to hear about Aperture or iLife. They're straining at the bit to hear about iOS7 (and to a lesser extent OSX 10.9).Aperture isn't dead. Apple has been hiring software engineers for the iLife/iWork/Aperture units on an ongoing basis. Personally, I believe we'll see announcements at WWDC about updates to all three.


text:
There’s certainly a difficult moment for the new production by Raven Software and Infinity Ward, the new Battle Royale Call of Duty Warzone 2.0. The debut day already arrived in a short time on all the major platforms, but the first reports of problems for the PC are being submitted.
Among the various bad feedbacks that reach the net is that of The streamer Forsen, the content creator of the famous digital entertainment site Twitch. The creator faced numerous issues with Warzone 2.0 on PC, which certainly isn’t free of defects since it came on the market in November 2022. Between impossibilitys of any kind, such as that you cannot access your online games with your friends and multiple types of bugs, a new title published under the banner of Activision continues to receive a lot of feedback from the users, but a development team largely runs for cover with new updates.
In fact, the new patch has been released on November 22 that solves a lot of problems affecting Warzone 2.0, although the new claims of Duty haven’t been completely fixed yet. In fact, there’s talk of a patch that will improve the interface and the gulag of Warzone 2. In this regard, during a live stream on its official Twitch channel, Forsen crashed his PC suddenly due to Call of Duty Warzone 2.0. The clip called Warzone 2, is loaded with a C4 charge hidden in Forsens PC and promptly posted on Reddit by the user Gorgonpistol, and the player wanted to parachut into the fray at a certain point. The streamer showed the fateful blue screen of the glass screen, and the moment the video showed the streamer an image of the window.
Warzone helped me out. Before I shut up, OBS crashed and then blue screened. The streamers computer isn’t big deal, though all this echoes all the complaints about the players’ similar issues in recent days. In response, NVIDIA released a new game ready driver, which will allow the user to improve their performance and get better on the road. Warzone 2.0 and Modern Warfare 2 continue to win the hearts of fans of the Call of Duty brand, even though Microsoft have recently announced that CoD players don’t have anything special.


text:
Region: Russian River, Azov / Black Sea, Caspian
Trade: Coaster shipments
The Kerch strait was closed from 27-30/08, which caused a severe congestion of tonnage on both sides. As a consequence, some of the vessels going to Turkey were late for Kurban Bayrami when they finally arrived at their ports of discharge. Now this fleet will be waiting for berthing until 5/09, which will lead to an accumulation of vessels at Turkish ports, resulting in a spot tonnage deficit during weeks 36-37. As for the opposite direction, it is very likely that a wave of cancellations will occur soon, as most of the vessels missed their laycans due to the prolonged passage time at the Kerch strait, and now the Charterers are able to cancel their voyages in order to avoid surcharges for the vessels’ idling.
According to the information received from grain Traders, however paradoxical it might seem, the removal of some additional participants in the chain “Producer-Exporter” has raised wheat prices, since some Exporters reportedly include VAT in their export goods prices.
Due to the Turkish holidays, the market in the Azov region has grown slack. As a matter of fact, major Turkish Importers have closed for the holidays already at the end of week 34, new deals are not being made, and the demand for tonnage is not growing. Only the Kerch’s factor prevents shipping rates from a global decline. The situation with market activity dynamics after Kurban Bayrami is not clear yet.
Scrap and coal prices on the Turkish market are growing, which contributes to the increase in freight rates for these goods. Whereas coal is usually shipped USD 2-4 pmt lower than grain rates, at the moment quoting for these two types of cargo has almost reached parity. Rates for scrap are now USD 6-8 pmt higher than for wheat, as opposed to the usual USD 3-4 pmt difference with grains.
River elevators in the Volga-Caspian region are more actively exploiting the river fleet to relocate their grain volumes to Astrakhan, intending to forward them to NIP via non-Russian flagged vessels. Therefore river shipping rates from Samara to Astrakhan has already begun approaching the level of the Samara -Saint-Petersburg route. River ships’ Owners also prefer to keep their fleets in the south region and to work short voyages to Astrakhan, notwithstanding the necessity of ballast voyages to the load ports.
Region: Baltic / ARAG
Trade: Coaster shipments, Handy-size
Grain harvesting in Baltic and Northern Europe regions is picking up pace. But we are yet to see extensive cargo turnover, since most ship parcels are still being formed. According to Traiders’ forecasts, the beginning of full-scale freight flow is to be expected approximately on week 37.
As a result, a sharp surge in the supply of spot/prompt tonnage has occurred in the region. However, Ship Owners quite reluctantly fix at the current rates, anticipating the soonest rise. Therefore, cargo orders with mid-September laycan dates are being quoted dramatically higher than the current workable freight level.
Traders in non-grain segments of the market are trying to take advantage of the situation and fix available tonnage of coal, scrap, fertilizers and other cargoes on a spot basis. Despite many Ship Owners are keeping their fleet partly in the spot market, waiting for the rates hike, eventually they are bound to fix at the current rates in order to avoid financial losses.


text:
At any age, who wouldn’t want a fairy-tale godmother? That dream came true over the last two days via Theresa Johnston and her team from Never Alone Again, a Teaneck nonprofit, who turned the second floor of the SUB into a fashion atelier Tuesday and Wednesday.
With glamorous gowns, spiky heels, jewelry and other items to make the Thursday, April 27 SGA Gala an enchanting event, students could browse racks of sparkly new dresses and add accessories for a gala look at no charge. Tuxedo jackets were on hand for gents, too. If back-to-school shopping and packing lists didn’t include formal evening wear, you now are covered.
The Equinox spoke with Johnston and got a tour of the beautifully arrayed items Wednesday afternoon. The founder and CEO of the organization and the mother of an FDU alumnus, Johnston says her team is delighted to help students find fine frocks to dance the night away in style at the posh Graycliff Banquet Hall in Moonachie.


text:
Going off the news of the Barbadian songstress becoming the face of Balmain, Rihanna has recorded yet another fashion feat!
The songstress was seen in New York spotting a track pant she picked from a grocery store and within minutes, Riri's fans jumped on the affordable fashion inspiration and the pants were sold out!
Trust the fashion forward song bird to dress up the joggers; she paired it with a green fur vest over a long coat with a chunky piece of jewelry over casual sneakers!
A visit to the site to shop the look reveals the £7 pair of pants from F&F (the clothing brand to UK's Chain-Tesco) is sold out with the text "Oh No! Rihanna's joggers have jogged off"!
All hail the fashionista that is Rihanna.


text:
A Tale of Michigan Blueberries
Oh, the Places We’ll Go: How Michigan Blueberries Move Through Our Food System.
The food and agriculture industry is a major driver of Michigan's economy, contributing $94 billion annually. This figure jumped 50 percent from 2004 to 2010 with the majority of growth coming from farming.
To understand the story behind this number, we decided to track how and where Michigan produce moves through the food system from field to fork, creating this growth.
We decided to focus on a belle of Michigan's 200 commodity crops: the mighty blueberry. To hone in even further, we decided to focus on blueberries from one source, Farmers on the Move, the only cooperative of Hispanic farmers in Michigan. Farmers on the Move aggregates a handful of fruit and vegetable varieties from 13 members on 12 different farms. So just where do their blueberries land?
Farmers on the Move currently sells its goods at eight farmers markets across southern Michigan including Saturdays at Detroit Eastern Market. SNAP beneficiaries in Michigan can use their Double Up Food Bucks to support this unique cooperative which is helping Hispanic farmers in the state transition from low-paid farm workers to independent business owners.
Farmers on the Move blueberries
Hello, year-round blueberries!
Miss the blueberry season? Now you can find Farmers on the Move blueberries in the dead of winter thanks to Michigan Fresh Frozen, a pilot program of Detroit’s Eastern Market and Forgotten Harvest supported by Fair Food Network.
Here’s how it works: Farmers on the Move blueberries are selected at the height of the season and brought to a facility in Oak Park, where Forgotten Harvest staff washes, flash freezes, and packages them under the Michigan Fresh Frozen label. Look for the berries this winter at Eastern Market as well as Detroit’s Peaches & Greens store and mobile market
From Assisted Living Facilities to City Hall and the Hospital
Farmers on the Move blueberries and other produce are distributed across the Battle Creek community in innovative ways by local nonprofit Sprout Urban Farms. Sprout buys its berries on Wednesday and prominently features them at its stand at the Battle Creek farmers market. On Thursdays, the berries find their way into Sprout’s Fresh on Wheels mobile market, which was recently certified to accept SNAP benefits as well as Double Up Food Bucks. More than three-quarters of the mobile market’s stops are at assisted living facilities supporting the town’s senior community with fresh, healthy food.
Sprout Urban Farms Fresh off Wheels mobile market
Looking ahead, you may find the blueberries at Sprout’s newest endeavor: Friday food trucks. Sprout currently sells veggies and prepared salads in two parking lots at either end of the city, including next to city hall and a major defense center in town. You could see more food trucks in the streets of Battle Creek soon thanks to a recently passed city mobile vending ordinance. Finally, you can find the blueberries at the Bronson Battle Creek Hospital, which purchases 100 pounds of blueberries a month to include in the menus of its employee cafeteria.
Salsa & Other Value Added Products
Farmers on the Move is adding new value added products including salsas, which have a subtle sweetness thanks to the addition of blueberries. You can buy these directly from Farmers on the Move now. Stay tuned for larger distribution as they refine the labeling and packaging with support from Michigan State University Product Center.
From Detroit to Chicago
While farmers markets and local distribution are important, it is the regional wholesalers and distributors that make up the majority of Farmers on the Move sales. Wholesalers include MBG Marketing, the largest marketer of fresh and processed cultivated blueberries in the world, headquartered in Grand Junction, Michigan, and conveniently found at blueberries.com. Such wholesalers process, package, and distribute Farmers on the Move blueberries under their own labels at major grocery store chains across the region – look for the Naturipe label.
This means that we may all have eaten a Farmers on the Move blueberry without even realizing it – a delicious win for families, a pioneering group of Latino farmers, and our state's economy.


text:
Joining Best Buy and select other retailers is Amazon with its own early Black Friday sales. The company has posted its deals on its website, where customers can get Echo, Kindle, and other Amazon devices at big discounts. As well, Amazon’s device sale includes bundles with IoT gear, including connected lightbulbs and cameras.
Amazon’s early Black Friday deals include multi-device discounts, such as $100 off when the customer purchases two Echo Shows, $30 off the purchase of two 2nd-gen Echo devices, a free Echo Dot with the purchase of a Fire TV Stick, a free Echo Input with the purchase of a Bose SoundLink Revolve Black, $20 off two 3rd-gen Echo Dots, and more.
The company is also offering Amazon Cloud Cam discounts: customers who purchase two of the cameras will save $40, and those who purchase three cameras will save $70. Buyers who want to get started with their own smart home also have an Alexa Smart Lighting Starter Kit option, including a 2nd-gen Echo Dot with a Sengled two-bulb kit for $49.99 USD versus the regular $79.98 USD price.
Buyers looking for free items have other options. Amazon is offering a free 3rd-gen Echo Dot with the purchase of a 2nd-generation Echo, for example. The company is also offering free Echo Input devices with the purchase an Anker SoundCore Sport XL, iHome AV2 speaker, Marshall Woburn II Black, and B&O Beoplay A1 Natural.
Home owners have additional security options, such as the Amazon Cloud Cam and Schlage Connect Smart Deadbolt Century bundle for $269 USD. Other early Black Friday deals include $50 off an NVIDIA SHIELD + Echo Dot bundle, $40 off an Echo Spot + Amazon Cloud Cam bundle, and $40 off the purchase of two Echo Spot devices.
The full list of early Black Friday deals can be found here.


text:
Highly funded marketing software start-up Simple has replaced its two co-founders and will look to change its board, after raising capital and appointing a new chief executive to focus on delivering faster growth.
The company sells a cloud-based platform that lets marketing teams execute their campaigns, while measuring their effectiveness, and previously raised $10 million, but its latest round is understood to be smaller than the last.
Following completion of the latest funding round, which was once again led by Perle Ventures, co-founders James Charlesworth and Russell Lister - who were chief executive and chief commercial officer respectively - will leave the business. Simple's chief revenue officer Aden Forrest has been promoted to become CEO.
Before joining Simple, Mr Forrest had been Australia and New Zealand managing director at Nasdaq-listed marketing automation software company Marketo. He told The Australian Financial Review that while Mr Charlesworth and Mr Lister had built a great "minimum viable product", new leadership was needed to execute on the opportunity and accelerate growth.
"I see great potential in building this up and about 12 weeks ago it became a case of looking where the business was at, talking to the board and with James, and it became apparent that what was needed was an operational chief executive to take the reigns, look at execution and how to ramp up the opportunity we have," he said.
"We're ensuring, from a sound fiscal management perspective, that we are calculated with where we spend our money and time, and that we ensure the team we bring on is the right cultural fit."
When asked if the fresh capital raised was aimed at addressing a shortage of cash at the company, Mr Forrest claimed cashflow was fine, but that he would be adopting a greater focus on getting the business to be cashflow positive.
'The fastest way possible'
"From the perspective of being a start-up, you're always looking at how to get to being cashflow positive in the fastest way possible," he said.
"We're a small business that wants to be a large business and the fastest way to get there is to be cashflow positive."
Simple co-founder and former CEO Mr Charlesworth said he had known Mr Forrest for five years and after he joined as chief revenue officer it became apparent he was the right person for the top job.
"We've been planning this for a little while. For me it comes after quite a long period at the company. first stage in building a startup and a market is about validation of the problem, market and product. From there it becomes a lot more about repeatability at scale and then you require some really strong hands on experience with scaling," he said.
"There was no pressure to leave, we have a very supportive board and investors, it was more about timing and the next stage for the company."
While Mr Charlesworth and Mr Lister are stepping back, they will stay on as directors. Simple is undergoing a complete board refresh, which will likely result in former Xero chief marketing officer and Simple chairman Andy Lark being replaced.
It will also shift its headquarters from Brisbane to Sydney and will later reduce the number of staff in its Brisbane office.
As part of its new leadership team, former head of mergers and acquisitions for Google, Bob Mohan, has been appointed chief financial officer.
The company's platform is now used by 2000 marketers and agencies representing brands such as Commonwealth Bank, Westpac and Tabcorp.
Mr Forrest said he intended to make the platform suitable for mid-sized and small companies within the next 36 months.
"To date, technology has been used in a piecemeal way to fine-tune subsets of marketing, often focusing mainly on digital channels," Mr Forrest said.
"But marketing is already the second largest expenditure item for most companies - and growing."
Fetching latest articles


text:
Welcome to the White Hell
Sophia Epstein Wired.co.uk
This is White Hell: the northernmost car tire testing centre in the world. Spread over 700 hectares of Finnish Lapland, the facility boasts more than 20 testing sites, from snow-covered tracks to iced-over lakes – and more are added every year. The latest addition is an ice-filled indoor testing track over 600 metres long and 50 metres wide.
"We can start testing earlier in the year now, compared to when we just had the normal ice courses," says Matti Morri, technical customer service manager for the centre. "We'd have to wait until the lakes had 10cm-thick ice before we could drive on them."
Known formally as the Ivalo Testing Centre, it is mostly used by Finnish tire-maker Nokian to test out its creations, between November and May.
"When we start to develop a tire, we have from four to six kinds of pattern, tread compounds and structures," says Morri. As the testing goes on, the weaker designs are cut, and the best features are kept. This means working six days a week with skilled drivers, he says. "Last season, we tested over 20,000 experimental tires."
Each tire design can take up to five years to be assessed, a process involving both summer and winter testing. The Arctic conditions are extreme, and temperatures can fluctuate up to 40˚C throughout the day, but this is essential. "You have to test and develop tires in the same sorts of conditions that people use them," says Morri. Although computer simulations have greatly improved, they are not enough. "This kind of outdoor testing is the only way of building these types of tires."


text:
Return to State PIRG Consumer Page:
ARCHIVE OF 2003 -- 2004 Credit Reporting and Identity Theft Documents
from PIRG and the Consumer/Privacy Coalition: These links include all major testimony, analyses and press statements from PIRG and other consumer groups actiive in a coalition during Congressional consideration of legislation signed on 4 December 2003 to significantly amend the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) and prevent identity theft and credit reportinge errors. While the new law includes several consumer gains, the gains come at the unacceptable price of sweeping permanent limits on state authority to enact stronger laws.
2 May 2004 Over 2,000 U.S. PIRG activists (many activist comments are also posted separately at FTC site) joined leading consumer groups in filing comments to the Federal Trade Commission urging it to implement Congressionally mandated free credit reports more quickly and with greater privacy protections. U.S. PIRG, in addition to preparing comments with a large coalition of consumer groups and collecting email letters from over 2000 citizens, also joined comments by the National Council of La Raza and Consumers Union urging that the FTC require credit bureaus to establish an English and Spanish shared "central source" website and English and Spanish shared telephone number for consumers to obtain their reports. The requirement that credit bureaus provide credit reports for free was one of the few bright spots in the 2003 enactment of major legislation, the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act which permanently restricted state authority to enact many credit reporting and financial privacy laws. The law's free report requirement requires the Big 3 national bureaus to set up a central system (website and phone and mail) for consumers to request each of their free reports. Following a lot of whining by the credit bureaus, Congress allowed the FTC to consider slowing the implementation of the law to prevent overloads. Consequently, as proposed, the FTC rule would provide free reports in 4 "staggered" quarterly rollouts, first to to the West Coast on 1 December 2004, but not to the East Coast until 1 September 2005. We also argued that the credit bureaus, unless prevented from doing so, would collect too much confidential information and also would attempt to use deceptive advertising to upsell consumers seeking to take advantage of their federally-mandated right to free reports. The bureaus would try to coerce them into purchasing over-priced credit monitoring and identity theft services. The FTC must issue the rule by 4 June 2004.
7 Jan 04 Consumer group summary of new FCRA amendments prepared by U.S. PIRG, Consumers Union and Consumer Federation of America.
4 Dec 03 PIRG statement on President's signing of identity theft law. Excerpt: "Large parts of our long-sought platform to protect identity theft victims and improve credit report accuracy are in this law and we commend those members who worked to enact them. We are disappointed that we could not support the final bill because the permanent extension and expansion of unfair limits on the longstanding right of the states to pass stronger laws means that if the job Congress did isn't good enough, it's doubtful Congress will ever come back to help victims again. While the President often says he is for state's rights, his Administration's record--on privacy, on predatory lending and on environmental protection-- more and more shows a disdain for state authority and a favoritism toward industry-backed usurpation of the right of the states to protect consumers and the environment." Recent op-edit at Tompaine.com by PIRG executive director Gene Karpinski, "The States' Rights Principle."
4 Dec 03 Conference report HR 2622. This is official House Report # 108-396 The new law, Public Law # 108-159. These are almost identical. The report includes a very brief manager's explanation at the very end.
21 Nov 03 Release on conference and expected Congressional passage of credit reporting bill. Both the House and Senate have now passed the conference report and the bill awaits only the President's signature to become a law. Compliance will be required no later than one year following enactment, although earlier dates could be set by regulators.
18 Nov 03 Letter to conferees (14 Nov) from leading consumer groups urging conferees to support strongest protections, reject preemption.
4 November 2003 Letter from PIRG, Consumers Union and Consumer Federation of America urging support of Feinstein-Boxer "Do Not Share" Senate floor amendment to S. 1753, the credit reporting bill, and in favor of other strengthening amendments. The Feinstein-Boxer amendment was tabled (defeated) 70-24. Here is a link to the Senate vote (NAY is pro-consumer, pro-privacy vote.) While this amendment was defeated, other improvements were made to the Senate bill. PIRG release on passage. S 1753 will now be conferenced with the House-passed bill, HR 2622.
4 November 2003 Threatened by the looming Durbin (IL) amendment to S 1753 and a growing national disdain for its shocking new policy of failing to report positive student loan payment information to all credit bureaus, the massive student lender Sallie Mae sent an 11th hour letter to Senate Banking Committee Chairman Shelby and ranking member Sarbanes announcing they were going to report fully again to all national bureaus. Stories by two Washington Post reporters, both syndicated nationally, had documented how the non-reporting had hurt young borrowers by increasing their cost of credit. Letters from State PIRG Higher Education Project and a 10-group financial aid coalition supporting Durbin amendment. Press release from State PIRG Higher Education Project. Durbin withdrew amendment following letter, but will seek to amend the Higher Education Act.
30 Sept 03 PIRG news release at DC press briefing with California State Senator Liz Figueroa, (her web site) author of numerous privacy laws, who was in DC opposing preemption of stronger state identity theft laws.
23 Sept 03 Letter from civil rights groups (including NAACP and National Council of La Raza) and consumer groups, urging support for important amendments to Senate Banking Committee FCRA bill, including Corzine amendment to ensure study of credit scoring is aadequate to measure potential racial disparity in credit scoring models and also Stabenow amendment to improve reporting of utility bills and smaller loans.
19 Sept 03 Letter from leading consumer and privacy groups to Senate Banking Committee Chairman Shelby and Ranking Member Sarbanes urging enactment of strongest possible credit reporting/identity theft reform bill that does not preempt stronger state privacy and id theft laws.
9 Sept 03: Letter from 28 consumer, civil rights and privacy groups urging opposition to HR 2622 unless it is amended to preserve stronger state financial privacy and identity theft laws. Also see letter from 42 state Attorneys General opposing state preemption.
3 Sept 03 Take Action: Urge Congress To Protect State Identity Theft and Financial Privacy Laws. Find out more.
Aug 03 Multi-state attorney general letter of August 2003 urging Congressional opposition to preemption signed by 42 state AGs and several territorial AGs.
31 July 03 Testimony of Ed Mierzwinski, USPIRG, on behalf of 11 leading consumer/privacy/community groups opposing extension of Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) preemption of state authority and instead calling for solutions to problems identity theft and credit report errors victims face clearing their names. US Senate Banking Committee (link to hearing).
28 July 03 Statement of Ed Mierzwinski, USPIRG at news conference to release new Consumer Federation of America (CFA) poll on consumer financial literacy and the need for FCRA reform. CFA release (link to CFA site).
22 July 03 Letter from 9 leading consumer/privacy groups to full House Financial Institutions Committee opposing HR 2622, to amend the Fair Credit Reporting Act, unless state preemption is removed and strengthening amendments are added. Committee is scheduled to vote 23 July 03.
15 July 03 Letter from U.S. PIRG and Consumer Federation of America to House Financial Services Committee opposing HR 2622 which would amend the Fair Credit Reporting Act to extend permanently the preemption of state consumer laws.
July 03 Coalition analysis of HR 2622: (26 page detailed legislative analysis, with 3 page summary).
July 03 Privacy Rights Clearinghouse page on recent identity theft surveys:
July 03 Congressional Research Service memo confirming preemptive effect of HR 2622 on California laws. A faxable update is available from Ed Mierzwinski at U.S. PIRG, confirming that HR 2622 would preempt SB 1, the financial privacy law.
9 July 03 Consumer Federation of America Director Stephen Brobeck testifies on behalf of CFA, U.S. PIRG and other groups in opposition to HR 2622, a bill to permanently preempt most state Fair Credit Reporting Act-related laws, before the House Financial Services Committee. Testimony lists PIRG's reform platform in detail.
26 June 03 PIRG testimony and link to full hearing of Senate Banking Committee on the affiliate sharing loophole in the Fair Credit Reporting Act.
4 June 03 PIRG House testimony against rolling back states' rights to enact stronger credit reporting and identity theft laws. Link to PIRG testimony. Link to full hearing in House Subcommittee on Financial Institutions. For more information, PIRG's ID Theft/credit reporting pages.
1 May 2003 Policing Privacy: new report based on survey by CALPIRG of police officer views on needed ID theft reforms.
10 April 03 Detailed new fact sheet on federal credit reporting/identity theft/SSN bills PIRG supports or opposes. More
13 March Statement of U.S. PIRG at DC news conference with leading privacy champion, California State Senator Jackie Speier, opposing industry efforts to preempt stronger state privacy and consumer laws. Speier is author of SB 1, proposed opt-in/optout bill to strengthen financial privacy which has passed State Senate and is before Assembly. On 12 March, CALPIRG and other groups filed papers launching campaign to put privacy initiative before voters in March 2004. SB 1 and initiative would strengthen weak federal Gramm-Leach-Bliley law (Fact Sheet).
04 Feb 03 State Attorneys General adopt strong pro-consumer resolution urging Congress not to extend the Fair Credit Reporting Act's (FCRA) temporary preemption of state rights to pass stronger laws. More info at PIRG's credit report pages.
Consumers Union pages on new financial privacy law
Consumers Union's Financial Privacy Now Web site:
EPIC Preemption and Privacy
PIRG's credit report and id theft pages


text:
New research links mutation rates and lifespan. We visualize the data supporting this new framework for understanding cancer.
Poor clinical trial recruitment can cause losses up to $8 million each day. How can health and pharma companies get better at finding the right patients?
Cannabis in North America will be worth $95 billion by 2026. Find out what's needed for a high quality product, and where organic practices come into...
Drug overdoses are the leading cause of death for Americans under the age of 50. A hard look at the numbers behind this unparalleled public health...
The healthcare industry is being transformed, unlocking a completely new patient experience that some are calling the 'Amazonification' of healthcare.
The North American cannabis industry is expected to be worth $47B by 2027. Here are the basics around the anatomy of a cannabis plant, and how...
With 39 million people and the world's 5th largest economy, the California cannabis market has immense potential - that is, if companies can navigate it.
Technology has changed how consumers access health information - and if health companies don't pivot to a better content strategy, they will get left behind.
As the legal cannabis industry emerges and evolves, we will demystify the business of cannabis including the plant itself, market segments, and industry trends.
Data is driving the future of healthcare, and companies that are not prepared for this transformation are at risk of being left behind.
Disruptive technologies are advancing healthcare at an extraordinary pace. Here are six forces that healthcare companies must consider as they navigate it all.


text:
Electronics devices and consumer appliances equipped with Artificial intelligence (AI) led the reality of smart living after CES 2018. As a main platform, the importance of smart home keeps increasing and the function of voice recognition system and AI account for one of core value in smart home thus consumer’s preference could be collected by these technologies for providing customized service. After CES2019, mutual interaction between smart devices enhanced by 5G technology, it can help consumers to have various experience and smart life. Large scale, high definition and connectivity with many devices are expected to expand the TV function as a pillar for leading smart living.
Smart Home – More types of recognition systems are coming!
The controlling system for smart devices developed from smart phone to voice recognition in CES 2018, new physical recognition system includes more consumers and increases benefits to them in CES 2019. Google has established solid partnership with car manufacturers, appliances manufacturers, electronics manufacturers and diverse manufacturers with google assistant, their technologies made strong connection between products and consumer’s life. Understanding the context of consumer’s life through voice controlling system has been developed, how smart home shaping the reality of consumer’s life by smart devices proved one of core news in CES 2019. The representative place in home such as kitchen, living room, bed room and bathroom, smart devices will learn the consumers’ living style pattern through Voice controlling system and AI, it will show advanced technology for offering customized and detailed service to satisfy personalized needs.
Entering into 5G era
The introduction of 5G technology means that massive data maintains a constant pace between devices and various devices enhancing the connectivity. To build up 5G technology infrastructure and business models, manufacturers and telecommunication companies would make stronger cooperation, consumers may use smart device more conveniently. Smart device, which connects smart living and smart home, work consistently without no break data connection by 5G, it will progress the quality of consumer’s life. For instance, uprising of E-sports and VR device and related with other devices, fastest data connection will provide new experience to consumers and increase their satisfaction.
TV Innovation - Sound is the next stop
TV technology focused on size and definition in CES 2018, this reappeared as innovation factors in CES 2019. The voice recognizing function is considering the core value of smart device to establish smart home system, the role of TV sound bar would be next essential system for driving TV technology. More than 90 inches TV screen and various technology elevating the high definition of TV displayed on CES 2019 also the importance of sound bar was placed in the center as the high definition TV is getting thinner. Expanding the traditional TV function, it will be not only empowering the connectivity with smart phone and tablet as smart devices but also presenting the working performance of all smart home devices on the TV as hub devices.
The technology development, for example AI and voice recognition, leads consumers’ life to be smart thus it will increase their satisfaction based on their various interests, preference and needs for efficient time consumption. CES 2018 showed direct controlling the devices by consumer needs as Smart living 1.0 then CES 2019 introduced smart devices which recognize consumers’ request in advance, it is working by itself. Thus it is expected to see smart living 2.0 that is quite closed to our near future.


text:
The Port of New York and New Jersey has been witnessing congestion owing to a surge in the number of port workers in quarantine for Covid-19.
“We have seen a spike in the number of labor going out into quarantine,” stated Port of New York and New Jersey Authority Director Sam Ruda, in an interview.
The average waiting time for containerships at the port had boosted to 4.75 days in the last week of 2021 compared 1.6 days as an average for the year, according to the port authority’s website. The number of longshoremen not available for work was noted to be running at nearly 350 per day.
As of 7 January the port authority announced that 11 containerships were presently at anchor waiting to call its terminals. Two of the vessels had been waiting since 1st January.
The port has a witnessed a noticable growth in volumes over the pre-pandemic year of 2019 with in handling 8.12 million TEU by the end of November 2021, in contrast to 7.47 million TEU for the whole of 2019.
In contrast to US west coast gateway ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, which have been witnessing congestions throughout 2021 and into 2022, the east coast port has remained greatly unmoved by congestion and delays last year.
On top of it, the port also witnessed disruption to operations from heavy snow storms.


text:
The language assistant Alexa von Amazon brings the Scientific Service of the Bundestag risks for minors and uninvolved visitors. Children could disclose personal information or use their voice to retrieve content that is not suitable for minors, according to a report. In addition, the question arises as to what happens to visitors who do not know that the software is recording – even though the recording usually took only a few seconds.
The Scientific Service noted that Amazon is well served by its obligation to provide information when collecting data from users. “How uninvolved third parties and minors can be excluded from the data collection” remains open.
In addition, it is unclear, “what other purposes Amazon could use his data in the future,” it says in the report on. Even data theft from the Amazon cloud can not be excluded. Due to the mass of information stored there, “this could be particularly sensitive to Alexa’s users,” warns the Scientific Service.
The Federal Ministry of the Interior does not feel responsible in the matter. “The use of language assistants involves data processing by non-public bodies,” a spokesperson said. Since the EU data protection regulation leaves the national legislature virtually no regulatory latitude.
Identification of individual users technically not possible.
Digital voice assistant as Amazon’s Echo speakers with the software Alexa or Siri from Apple can answer questions, play some music, order food and perform other tasks. According to a recent study, they are particularly often used in families. The Amazon software only sends voice data when the user pronounces an activation word. You can choose from the terms Alexa, Computer, Echo or Amazon.
Amazon recently introduced Alexa’s users to the ability to set up a personal voice profile with the “Alexa, Learn My Voice” command. However, the voice profiles are only used, according to an Amazon spokesman, “to improve the individual user experience”. For example, the Computer, Play Music command will play different tracks for different profiles.
Locking the device for children or housemates do not allow new voice recognition. “An unequivocal biometric identification, which would be a prerequisite for blocking individual profiles, or deactivating the voice recording of individual users, does not take place via voice profiles,” the spokesman said.


text:
Telstra Corp and SkyNetGlobal Limited today announced two agreements that
will see the startup sell its network of wireless hotspots, while beginning a
relationship that will allow them to sell services on top of Telstra’s newly
For the cash-strapped SkyNetGlobal it buys the firm more time. A few weeks
ago, the company raised around $370,000 through a rights issue, which was in
addition to the $469,000 it held in cash at the end of the quarter. The asset
sale was forced by virtue of the company’s operating cash flow, which saw it use
$534,000 last quarter and $1.3 million in the first three months of this
No such problems for Telstra, whose annual profit last year was north of $4
billion. It dips its foot into the burgeoning wireless LAN market at a
“This strategic investment demonstrates Telstra’s leadership and commitment
to providing Australians with improved access to the online environment,
convenience and improved productivity,” David Thodey, Telstra mobile group
managing director said in a statement to the stock exchange.
Perhaps more importantly, it flags the incumbent’s interest in the
Jonathan Soon, CEO of SkyNetGlobal, said the agreement would have no effect
on customers using the service. Indeed, if anything they can be even more
The deal is subject to the approval of SkyNetGlobal shareholders, but is a
sign the market for 802.11 hotspots is gaining credibility amongst large telcos.
In recent times BT in the UK has announced plans to deploy 4,000 hotspots, and
Softbank has announced that it will rollout 4,000 more next to Big Macs in
McDonalds restaurants around Japan.
Reprinted from australia.Internet.com.