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California Cannabis at Six Months: Lessons to Learn from Colorado?
In November 2012, Colorado voters decided to legalize recreational cannabis. Legislation came into effect in 2014 with the first recreational retail shops opening on January 1st. The rest of the country watched the “great experiment” with baited breath as legislatures, entrepreneurs, and analysts wondered: Just how much money would recreational cannabis generate?
Since then, eight other states have made recreational cannabis legal for adult use, signaling a sea change in the minds of American consumers and their legislatures. California is now six months into its journey with legalized recreational cannabis, and although California has had a booming medical industry since Prop 215 passed in 1996, the passage of Prop 64 in 2016 has promised unparalleled economic growth, with financial experts expecting an excise tax revenue of $630 million by the end of 2018’s fiscal year next July.
For those interested in breaking into this growing, burgeoning industry, it’s helpful to know what challenges the California market is currently facing and what the future looks like in light of those challenges. Then, we’ll take a look at the state that experienced these challenges first – Colorado – and what they did to overcome them.
Financial Challenges in California
During the first two months of legalized recreational cannabis in California, consumers purchased approximately $339 million worth of cannabis products from retailers. A considerable number, yes, but it was still 13% less than analysts had projected.
As of May 2018, the actual first quarter excise tax revenue from the legal cannabis industry totaled $34 million. The states’ administration originally estimated the 2017-2018 cannabis excise tax revenue would total $175 million (the fiscal year that ends July 2018), but it looks like California is going to fall short of that estimate.
The “slow growth” in California could be due to a couple of reasons:
- State and local governments are still issuing licenses for cannabis retailers. Observers have described the rollout of recreational cannabis in California as clunky at best, wrought with confusion, delays, and a bottleneck at the municipal level (more on that below). But as more cannabis producers and retailers become licensed, experts predict sales and tax revenues will continue to grow – a trend which was also seen in Colorado.
- Much of California’s cannabis industry is still operating underground. Cultivation, processing, and selling of blackmarket cannabis has been a strong industry in the state for decades, and experts believe that 85-90 percent of the industry that existed last year is still not licensed.
What could be preventing black marketers from getting licensed?
One issue could be the high taxes levied at the local level. California’s 15% excise tax (in addition to its 8-10% sales tax) on recreational cannabis was clearly spelled out in the law, but the taxes put forth by local municipalities are more fluid, and can add an additional 5 -15% on top of the other taxes (Los Angeles’ is 10%, Oakland’s is 9.25%, San Francisco does not charge a local tax). These extra costs often end up getting passed onto the consumer, and while some are willing to pay, those who are not will typically turn to the black market.
That being said, it seems the biggest problem with California is the failure of local governments to issue licenses at all. According to Chris Beals, President of Weedmaps, not only are some local governments “slow to license,” more than two-thirds of cities in California ban any kind of cannabis business to operate within their borders – that’s approximately 338 cities out of 482 where recreational cannabis isn’t allowed.
When a large number of local governments ban recreational cannabis, it obviously prevents access to legal cannabis for a large swath of the community, driving consumers – and producers – to the black market. And what a black (and gray) market it is! In February of this year, over 6000 dispensaries and delivery services in California were listed on Weedmaps (a long-time resource for finding and rating dispensaries and cannabis products), but the state had only licensed 580.
With all these challenges facing California, budget makers and entrepreneurs have been worried about the state’s “slow start.” But they shouldn’t be – experts and analysts (including Greg Shoenfeld, Vice President of BDS Analytics of Boulder, Colorado) hasten to add that we often plan for best case scenarios, but implementation moves slower than that.
One only has to look to Colorado to understand this point. In 2014, Colorado also experienced a recreational cannabis rollout that wasn’t so smooth, but four years later, business has stabilized in an ultimately successful transition. California can benefit by observing the trials, tribulations, and solutions that Colorado experienced, some of which we’ll look at now.
Lessons from Colorado
During the first few months of legalized recreational cannabis, the state of Colorado received $11 million in tax revenue. This number fell below analysts’ expected projections which, as we noted above, was a trend also witnessed in California. Every year since then, as the market has stabilized, Colorado’s revenues have continually increased and eventually exceeded expectations.
By the time 2016 came to a close in Colorado, their cannabis sales had reached $1.3 billion in revenue, a 42% increase from 2015 ($996 million) and a 30% increase from their flagship year of 2014. And with all the generated income, Colorado has collected more that $150 million in taxes, with $50 million of that going directly to the funding of school construction projects.
Colorado Cities that Opt Out
Much like California’s Prop 64, Colorado’s Amendment 64 also gave local municipalities the option to ban (or opt out of) recreational cannabis, and some did. Vail – the famous ski resort town in Colorado – was one city that opted out. Vail’s Mayor, Dave Chapin, noted that they made the difficult decision in order to protect Vail’s brand as a worldwide ski vacation. Colorado Springs also opted out, citing the military’s presence in the town as a concern.
Mike Elliot, Executive Director of the Marijuana Industry Group, notes that the strategy works well for some symbiotic small-and-large tourist communities in Colorado (like Vail and Garden City or Colorado Springs and Manitou) but he also believes that the communities who ban cannabis businesses solely on moral grounds, or because they’re not ready to accept the wishes of voters have a “head-in-the-sand mentality” and he believes these communities end up losing more than they bargained for.
By opting out, these cities and counties allow the black market to thrive while also forfeiting sales tax revenues that could benefit the community. One only has to look to some of Colorado’s small communities that have flourished because they’ve opted in to recreational cannabis.
- Log Lane Village, a Colorado town with a population under 1,000, has two cannabis shops responsible for more than one quarter of the town’s sales tax revenues. Its 2015 budget of $264,00 increased to $400,000 in 2016.
- Manitou, a town 5 miles west of Colorado Springs, experienced a 62% increase (from $2.4 million to $3.8 million) in sales tax revenue from 2014 to 2015 thanks to recreational retail cannabis.
- Garden City, a small town near Vail, showed that 43% of their 2014 sales tax revenues came from retail cannabis.
These community benefits aren’t restricted to just sales tax revenue. A stimulated local economy can encourage other businesses to come to town, as seen in the growth of restaurants and weed-friendly accomodations in Colorado. In fact, after legalization in 2014, Business Insider found Colorado to have the fastest growing economy in the US while its unemployment rate fell to a six-year low.
Local communities in California who may be interested in reaping the economical benefits of recreational cannabis but fear their town being “taken over” or dominated by cannabis culture, should look to the solutions implemented by some Colorado cities. Manitou Springs, for example, who acknowledge their historic downtown is their city’s main draw for tourism. They wanted to protect this resource, so they made sure that two new cannabis retails stores were placed more than a mile from the downtown area.
The biggest lesson that California can learn from Colorado is that things take time. Attitudes on recreational cannabis are still changing, and many local municipalities are still figuring things out. Some may need to see a positive impact across the board before they decide to opt in, and others may just need to see the money that they’re missing out on.
Regardless, the implementation needs time to catch up with expectations. Patience is necessary. According to Troy Dayton, CEO of Arcview Group, “I suspect it’ll take about a year before things start to even out and you’ll start to have a really well-functioning market.”


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Illegal self-employment in the regions
According to various estimates, 10-25% of the working population is involved in ‘shadow’ business activity in Belarus. Most affected is the service sector, and cross-border trade in the Western regions. Illegal employment abroad is common to all regions. Belarus’ economic problems have motivated the government to attempt to pick into illegal incomes, but the social consequences of such undertakings are unpredictable.
The services market is the ‘greyest’ area of Belarus’ economy. Official salaries in this sector are the lowest. Informal incomes are not declared to the tax authorities. The nature of the majority of ‘grey’ incomes indicates that the ‘shadow’ economy is provoked by the government itself. The government could benefit more and raise more in income taxes if it created a free environment for business development, however, such a policy would contradict the system’s logic.
In general, the landscape of ‘grey’ earnings (excluding Western regions) is characteristic of all regions. The following groups conceal their ‘grey’ incomes from tax authorities: car mechanics, who repair cars in their garages; construction workers, who repair apartments; event organizers; photographers and cameramen; purebred animal breeders; teachers; tutors, and others. In Gomel oblast alone, the illegal car service market is about 40%.
Illegal activity in the Western regions traditionally rests on cross-border trade with EU countries in fuel, cigarettes and alcohol. Nielsen company research demonstrates that the illegal market in Lithuania was dominated by Belarusian cigarette producers, which made about 22% of total sales. The number of people involved in the ‘shadow’ economy varies from 400,000 to 1 million. In Grodno Oblast alone, about 80 000 working age residents do not have an official place of work and are neither students, nor retired.
The ‘grey’ economy’s scale is due to the fact that shadow incomes release social tension, and, until recently, the government was ready to ignore the semi-legal business activity. Moreover, this practice has embraced ordinary citizens and civil servants. According to unofficial data, in recent years, most officials in the Eastern regions (from heads of departments to chairmen of district executive committees) have opened private businesses in Russia (Smolensk, Bryansk regions). As a rule, their businesses relate to retail trade (shops) and catering services. Russia was chosen for two major reasons: firstly, to legalize shadow incomes earned in Belarus, and secondly, to insure against seizure of property in Belarus.
The upcoming presidential campaign, as well as structural problems in the economy, has led to a revision of the ‘releasing tension in exchange for loyalty’ strategy. The closer the 2015 election campaign, the more the government will increase its attack on illegal incomes, and the number of anti-corruption cases will grow. It is likely that the anti-corruption campaign will affect big-city mayors and members of the government, those who have long and effectively been engaged in illegal business activity.

domain: news


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Smashwords has announced they’ve signed a distribution agreement with publisher Scribd. From the article:
Smashwords today announced a distribution agreement with Scribd, which operates one of the world’s largest publishing platforms and online reading communities. Scribd receives over 80 million monthly readers to their platform according to their website.
There are two distribution components to the Smashwords agreement with Scribd.
- Smashwords will supply books to Scribd’s new ebook subscription service, where for $8.99 per month subscribers can enjoy unlimited reading.
- Smashwords ebooks will also be available for individual sale to Scribd customers under our standard retailer terms.
Ever since Scribd launched in 2007, I’ve admired their publishing platform, their social reading technology and their commitment to content creators. Scribd has built a massive audience of millions of readers, and these readers are now accessible to the 70,000+ authors and publishers that distribute with Smashwords.
Scribd’s roots are in community publishing. They’ve been a pioneer in user generated content, and in making it possible for content creators to share their works with the world. Their platform makes it easy for people around the world to upload documents, presentations and books, and they’ve always done a great job of making the content discoverable, readable and sharable.
You can read the whole article HERE.


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Flurry of enquiries following recent launch of first cat
Following the recent launch of Solar Eclipse, the first model in the Aquanima 40 solar-powered range of catamarans built by Singapore-based Azura Marine, the company has received a flurry of enquiries…
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Ever wished you could roast a chicken from the comfort of your sofa? Well now you can. Samsung has announced the Zipel, an oven which you can control with an Android phone.
Culinary geeks can use an app to talk to the Samsung Zipel over WiFi. Pick the dish you want on the Android app and the Zipel will adjust cooking times and temperature to suit.
The Samsung Zipel uses a combination of infrared and ceramic plates to cook food in the most techie way imaginable. It can even tell you the number of calories in a dish and is controlled using a sleek touch-screen interface.
However, food aficionados looking to get their hands on the Samsung Zipel will have to be patient. Samsung has only announced the oven in the tech heaven that is Korea. But with cooking this futuristic, we can only hope that the Zipel is zipping over here with all haste.


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Philadelphia is set to use a slew of Salesforce.com technologies in order to create a next-generation version of its 311 system for public information and citizen reporting of nonemergency situations around the city.
Unisys is phasing out its decades-old mainframe processor, which lags behind in speed and scalability compared to newer chips.
The Belgian Ministry of Finance said Friday that IT services and technology firm Unisys has failed to deliver on a project to modernize the Belgian tax system.
As many as 5,000 workers at the U.S. Department of Energy's Idaho National Laboratory will be the latest government workers to start using Google Apps.
More people are bringing their own tablets and smartphones to work but IT departments have been slow to support them and may not even be aware of the trend, according to a report funded by Unisys and conducted by IDC.
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First impression on unpacking the Q702 test unit was the solid feel and clean, minimalist styling.


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Online shopping is nothing new to Taiwanese.
According to a market research report just released earlier on January 13, Taiwanese shop an average of 2.37 times online per month. The research also revealed that the top 5 favorite shopping websites in Taiwan are PChome Shopping (45%), Ruten (37%), Yahoo Bid (32%), Yahoo Buy (29%) as well as Momo Shop (17%).
Among the five on the list, Ruten is the bidding platform jointly founded by PChome and eBay, while Yahoo Bid, which part of the Yahoo family in Taiwan, is a competitor to Ruten. The parents companies of both, PChome and Yahoo are taking steps to build their own online payment platforms, after regulations concerning third-party payments were officially finalized in April last year.
PChome joins forces with Acer to improve its service
On the 8th of January,Taiwanese PC company, Acer Inc., also the world’s fourth largest PC maker in 2012, announced an investment of 70 million NTD (about 2.35 million USD) to focus on the development of PChome’s latest online payment platform, PChomePay. The investment was done in exchange for 15% equity of PChomePay .
(Source: Inside Taiwan)
As part of the cooperation, Acer would devote its cloud service experience called BYOC (Build Your Own Cloud) to assist PChomePay in the construction of payment gateway and security system.
After a significant loss in profit and as well as the loss of various senior executives the previous year, Acer has its original founder, Stan Shih, returned to the company. Stan now bears a huge responsibility to transform the company from hardware-only to hardware, software and services focused.
Could the Acer and PChomePay duo make a killer combo?
How PChomePay works
Currently, PChomePay serves as a third-party payment platform exclusively for Ruten. Both buyers and sellers are required to register first before they can make and receive payments via the platform. Once buyers place a successful bid, PChomePay would automatically generate a set of virtual account number for buyers to make online transfers, which will be delivered to seller accounts simultaneously.
Through PChomePay, sellers can receive their payments 7 days after the payments are made for ordinary transactions. For those who own over 500 positive credit reviews, payments can be done directly to the account the next day following the original payment date, as opposed to the 1 week delay. If buyers do not receive the agreed items, they can activate an option called “delay payment”, which would delay their payments to sellers, prompting sellers to provide proof of shipment until buyers get their bids.
This is similar to how China’s AliPay works.
The Late Payment Option offered by PChomePay. (Source: PChomePay)
The three forms of payments currently offered by PChomePay include: ATM transfer, balance payment and credit cards. The latter two are new to users in Taiwan: sellers can use their PChomePay account balance to make purchases, and users can now make credit cards payments on bidding platforms.
How feasible is the platform?
PChomePay, similar to other platforms such as PayPal and China’s AliPay, aims to increase efficiency and security of online transactions. But do users feel that things are made easier through their platform?
As mentioned earlier, sellers can only retrieve their funds a week after the initial payment was made by the buyer, a lock-up period that is considered too long by many.
On top of that, PChomePay currently only operates with one bank for its ATM transfers, meaning that users would have to pay transaction fees if they do not own any bank account from this specific bank – a significant setback for the new system compared to how it worked before – where users could choose whatever bank accounts to make payments and avoid fees as much as possible.
Third, if buyers do not pay the exact amount, for instance, in the case of negotiated discounts or repetitive payments, these transactions will either be cancelled or users would need to contact PChomepay’s client service for further assistance, which, as customers often imagine, could be too time consuming.
Yahoo Billing tries to acquire users; and China’s Alipay is gunning for market share too
Based on the market report, PChome’s Ruten outcompetes Yahoo Bid slightly by 5% in terms of Taiwan’s bidding market share.
Compared to PChomePay, Yahoo Bid has a similar platform called Yahoo Billing, which provides several similar features including payment gateways.
Unlike PChomePay, Yahoo Billing has 6 listed partner banks, which allows more customers to make free ATM transfers. It has been operating as an additional payment option for users, and it requires no registration process.
How Yahoo Billing works. (Source: Yahoo Billing)
However, starting from February 2014, every Yahoo Bid user will be required to use Yahoo Billing as the only payment gateway for their online transactions.
Is this a move aiming to acquire its users and lock them into its payment infrastructure, seeing that its main competitor – Alipay, which be entering the Taiwan this year? Alipay was founded in 2004, almost 10 years ahead of PChomePay and currently owns more than half of the market share in China’s e-commence market.
Alipay currently provides some exclusive features including value storage and credit card installments that PChomePay and Yahoo Billing do not offer. It also charges lesser fees and delivers payments faster.
We are definitely looking at an impending war among the three payments platform in Taiwan


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One of China’s earliest Bitcoin billionaires believes that cryptocurrency trading in the country would...
- China’s anti-cryptocurrency crackdown will almost certainly worsen, possibly leading to an outright prohibition on possessing the tokens
- This year, China has launched a new anti-cryptocurrency campaign
- Bitcoin has dropped to approximately half of its mid-April high of $65,000 as a result of these actions
According to Bobby Lee, one of China’s first Bitcoin millionaires, the country’s crackdown on cryptocurrencies would likely worsen, possibly leading to an outright ban on holding the tokens. Lee understands what it’s like to be on Beijing’s wrong side: Following a crackdown in 2017, he sold BTC China, the country’s first Bitcoin exchange and at one point the second-largest in the world. China has initiated a fresh anti-cryptocurrency campaign this year, targeting miners and imposing restrictions on crypto banking and trading. Bitcoin has dropped to approximately half of its mid-April high of $65,000 as a result of these actions.
The next step, the final straw, would be to outright ban cryptocurrency, Lee said in an interview at his WeWork office in downtown Shanghai, without going into detail about how such a ban would be enforced. It’s a 50-50 chance, in my opinion. Lee recently returned to China following a trip to the United States, where he published a book called The Promise of Bitcoin. Ballet Global Inc., which makes a hardware wallet for storing cryptocurrency, is now his primary focus. Lee remains bullish on Bitcoin, expecting that it would conclude the year at $250,000 and reach $1 million by 2025. He refused to reveal the value of his Bitcoin holdings.
What are your thoughts on China’s latest anti-miner crackdown?
The Chinese government realized that in order to establish financial stability, it didn’t want to see an uncontrolled, volatile financial product being traded, used, and invested by the Chinese people. China didn’t try to distinguish between Bitcoin mining facilities fueled by renewable energy and those fuelled by polluting coal. So, to me, that indicates that it wasn’t about the mining’s cleanliness, but rather a higher-level perspective on the country’s financial soundness. They could do a couple more things, in my opinion. China is aware that several businesses and exchanges continue to operate in the country. As a result, the government may expel them.
The ultimate straw would be the outright prohibition of bitcoin. Although we’ve heard throughout the years that China has outlawed Bitcoin, this is technically incorrect. Bitcoin is still legal to acquire as of July 2021. You are free to purchase it and sell it to friends or strangers. It’s simply that you can’t do it through a platform or company because all of those companies and platforms have shut down. When Bitcoin reaches $500,000 or $1 million, China may decide to outright outlaw it if people are no longer allowed to own it. At that point, there will be a lot of selling pressure on Bitcoin. I’d say the chances are 50/50.
What suggestions would you provide to miners?
They should sell any capital equipment they have because it will depreciate in value over time. I’m aware that a large number of people are exporting these devices. Because they have a lot of room, cheap electricity, and a lot of investors willing to put up their money for this gear, North America has a strong hunger for mining machines.
The Chinese market for Bitcoin has always been significant, but it will become increasingly so in the future. China, like many other Asian countries, has always had a population that is interested in risky investments. And it’s for this reason that Bitcoin has become so popular.
I believe that a few more announcements will be made in the coming months that will effectively halt all exchanges in China. So, once this year is out, trading cryptocurrency will be a thing of the past. In some respects, this is a wonderful thing for crypto, because I’ve always believed that Bitcoin’s success was independent of China. It isn’t dependent on any one country or group of people, just as it isn’t dependent on any one country or group of people.
What will be the next big thing in the crypto business in China?
There are two topics that are quite heated right now. Decentralized finance, or DeFi, began last year, and non-fungible tokens, or NFTs, are now a hot issue. Personally, I believe they are both overhyped. With the bull market approaching, I believe the enthusiasm will grow even more this year. I believe they will be laid to rest next year or the year. We support DeFi and NFTs, therefore I’m glad to be a part of both of those initiatives.
Back to the list


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Around a single in five Americans lists soaring selling prices as the nation’s largest economic dilemma. By distinction, major U.S. firms appear to be to be driving out the just fine.
While CEOs invested considerably of 2021 pointing to the impact of increasing wages, pricier uncooked elements and other ballooning expenditures on their companies’ functionality, facts released Wednesday by the Commerce Department exhibit they mainly passed these expenditures alongside, and far more, as corporate revenue spiked.
For all of 2021, pre-tax gains climbed 25% to about $2.8 trillion, a further record that far outpaces the 7% enhance in customer costs in excess of the identical time span. That burst powered non-economical U.S. firms to their most rewarding year considering that 1950, according to Bloomberg Information. In each and every quarter of 2021, the total revenue margin remained above 13%, an altitude hit in only one particular other quarter during the past seven decades.
Progress slowed sharply in the fourth quarter, with income edging upward just .7% from the prior 3-month period to an annualized fee of $2.94 trillion. Nevertheless, hefty corporate income very last 12 months support reveal why U.S. inventory marketplaces have mainly shrugged off concerns about roaring inflation and, a lot more just lately, Russia’s invasion of.
The S&P 500 is less than 5% off its record substantial set on January 3 the Dow Jones Industrial Average, which lists blue-chip shares, is also roughly 5% off its all-time high.
pandemic disruptions, inflation and sturdy client need for higher price ranges, with pork and beef up 14% and 20%, respectively, versus a yr ago. People prices, in turn, have typically fueled a jump in earnings. Tyson Meals, the nation’s most significant meat processor, posted more than $1 billion in revenue in the 1st quarter of 2022, up 48% from the 12 months-before period.
“We are not asking prospects or the consumer finally to shell out for our inefficiencies. We’re inquiring them to fork out for inflation,” the company’s CEO said in an earnings call in February.
Inflationary pressures are not expected to abate this yr, leaving the typical household with an extra $433 in monthly fees for the exact same goods and providers, Bloomberg economists Andrew Husby and Anna Wong estimate. Costlier food stuff and vitality, like gasoline and household heating, account for about , they reported.
Individuals personnel have also benefited from the economy’s swift rebound from the shows that average hourly earnings in 2021 rose 5.7%. More than the for a longer time expression, even so, wage gains have for a long time trailed improves in both productiveness and company gains.that followed the outbreak of COVID-19 in 2020. Labor information
“Real wages systematically undershot productiveness progress for most of the last two many years, and the labor share of earnings fell notably as a consequence. Company earnings margins were the prime beneficiaries of the slipping labor share,” Morgan Stanley analysts explained in a report on Thursday.


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DENMARK: Initiative seeks sustainable textile innovations
Game-changing innovations with the potential to transform the textile sector and a focus on sustainability are being sought as part of a new challenge backed by companies including Nike and Ikea.
Of particular interest are closed loop solutions and design for disassembly; cleaner manufacturing and green chemistry; sustainable investments and procurement; and innovations that engage the end-user.
The Launch Nordic Innovation Challenge 2014 is seeking ideas with potential to scale in two years, as well as game-changing early stage technologies and prototypes. They may be business models, financial instruments, technologies or programmes that accelerate research, education and capacity building.
Submissions will be reviewed by a panel of experts, and the top-ten innovators will be selected to participate in the Launch Nordic Forum, where they will present their ideas to industry stakeholders, materials experts, business and governmental leaders and investors.
Launch Nordic has been created in collaboration with Launch, a strategic collaboration between Nike NASA, the US Agency for International Development (USAID) and the US Department of State.
The core collaborators are Nordic-based companies Ikea, Novozymes, Kvadrat, as well as the Global Green Growth Forum, the Danish EPA, and the Fund for Green Business Development.
Click here to read more about the Launch Nordic Challenge or to submit an innovation for consideration.
Companies: Nike Inc
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2013 was marked by a strong investment by Nike in the Portuguese territory. Beyond the opening of important stores, Nike has been dedicated to increasing its penetration throughout a vigorous marketin...
Nike Poland has a strong position on the Polish apparel market and it is expected that its share will increase further in the forecast period. The company will continue to be positioned as a premium b...
Nike Turkiye AS endorses various sports, such as the Nike Run Istanbul and Nike Turkey Made by Movement campaigns in 2013. Nike used Nike Run Istanbul to get a non-running nation thinking and talking ...
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Oculus Rift CEO Palmer Lucky ventured out to E3 to discuss the new VR technology, and for those playing a Mac, you might not like what he has to say.
Although Lucky acknowledges that the Mac community is large, the GPUs are not coming close to the recommended specs for running the Oculus Rift. When Apple begins to prioritize performance for Macs, the Oculus Rift will begin venturing out into the cult.
For the time being, all development towards Mac support has been put on hold. Oculus Rift is headed for the market Q1 2016. More details are sure to come up about the system, but until then, we will just have to make due with watching others use the VR technology. Oculus Rift has also announced that the system will be compatible with Xbox One games.


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Lamborghini announced today that it has delivered the first U.S. spec Gallardo LP560-4 to Benny Caiola, Jr. a well-known Italian car enthusiast in New York City. Caiola won his Gallardo LP560-4 with a generous bid at the East Side House Settlement charity auction at this year’s 2008 New York Auto Show.
Not all of us are as wealthy as Caiola. So for those of us who will walk into a Lamborghini showroom to purchase the new Gallardo LP560-4, will have to wait until later this summer. Lamborghini says that as of today, interested buyers will have to wait six months for the new bull.
The new 2009 Lamborghini Gallardo LP560-4 is powered by a 5.2L V10 engine that produces 552 horsepower. 0-62 in just 3.7 seconds with a top speed of 201mph.
Click through for more images and the press release .
Lamborghini Gallardo LP560-4 :
Press Release :
Lamborghini Delivers the Nation’s First Gallardo LP560-4 to Celebrated Italian Car Collector ~ Benny Caiola Adds New, Critically Acclaimed Lamborghini in Private Collection
NEW YORK, July 17, 2008 – Automobili Lamborghini America, LLC delivered the first Gallardo LP560-4 to Benny Caiola, Jr., noted Italian car enthusiast and collector, this week at his home outside of New York City. The all-new 560 horsepower LP560-4, which replaces the previous Gallardo model, features a powerful new engine, permanent four-wheel drive system and an 18 percent reduction in fuel consumption and C02 emissions.
Mr. Caiola secured the right to the first LP560-4 through a generous bid at the East Side House Settlement charity auction during the 2008 New York International Auto Show. Caiola’s impressive garage, boasting dozens of exotic and collector cars, has housed many of Lamborghini’s iconic and timeless models including the Countach, Diablo, Espada, Jalpa and the legendary Miura.
"Lamborghini was the first to garner my passion for automobiles," Caiola explained. "I’ve loved Lamborghinis my entire life and have owned nearly every model."
The Gallardo LP560-4 arrives at all 31 United States showrooms in late summer of 2008. The Gallardo, with more than 7,100 units sold worldwide, is Lamborghini’s most successful model of all time. As of today, there is a six month waiting list for the new Gallardo LP560-4 signaling that the success of the Gallardo model will continue for years to come.


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ALL PRODUCTS | BRANDS | eSYSCO
NCL Update: 2019-nCoV (Novel CoronaVirus)
Hooters Opens Again in Nassau, Bahamas
Coronavirus: What You Need to Know About Disinfecting
Sysco Bahamas delivers a full line of food products and a wide variety of non-food products to both independent and chain restaurant customers and other “away-from-home” locations such as healthcare and educational facilities. Locally focused, our broadline company is able to provide the hands-on customer service that sets us apart.
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Storm Alert: Cold storm to hit California and Arizona February 18, 2013
Produce Industry News reports today that the coldest storm of the season is expected to roll through California and much of the Southwest during the middle of the week. Growers are anticipating possible freezing conditions in the storms wake Thursday and Friday. Reports suggest that there will be widespread lettuce ice on Thursday and Friday with warming possible on Saturday.
The storm is expecting to make travel difficult along the Grapevine, other passes and the high deserts. It is expected to hit Northern California tonight and Southern California Tuesday. A cold front will cross the Central Coast Tuesday morning moving from Monterey Bay to Santa Barbara in the afternoon. Rain totals are expected to be .5 inch to .7 inch with the heaviest rain falling in the Santa Maria region.
According to Western Weather Expert Ken Clark, “snow will mix in as low as 2,000 feet in Northern California and to 2,500 feet in Southern California with several inches of snow as low as 3,000 feet.” Temperatures are expected to drop from 20-30 degrees from this weekend in many areas of the Southern western U.S. according to Accuweather. During the week the storm is expected to affect a large swath of the country causing conditions ranging from snow and ice to rain and severe thunderstorms.
We will keep you posted of any produce damage that may occur from these conditions.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is closely monitoring an outbreak of respiratory illness caused by a novel (new) coronavirus first identified in
BFS stocks the widest selection of shrimp in the country, in many size from tiny to huge, pack sizes from 2 lb to large cases,
A new Hooters location opened in the former Lukka Kairi location, on the waterfront side of downtown Nassau.
Cases of the new coronavirus have been confirmed in China, the US, Canada and Brazil. The best way to prevent the spread is use the
Order wholesale grocery items, foodservice products, cleaning supplies, equipment and smallware, bottled water and beverages, coffee service and more at BFS.


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Microsoft's Surface Book 2-in-1 is arguably one of the most innovative personal computers of the last few decades. Combining the lapability of a clamshell notebook with the flexibility of a pen- and touch-enabled tablet, the Surface Book utilizes a number of new technologies and concepts in offering a unique form factor for Windows 10.
Of course, such an innovative machine doesn't emerge from a design team's collective brain as a finished product, but rather goes through numerous iterations before a final design is solidified. Today, Microsoft head of hardware design Ralf Groene published an image on Instagram (via Windows Central) showing some of the prototypes that sacrificed themselves for the Surface Book's eventual design.
We're not surprised by the number of parts and pieces that were tried out before the design was finalized. Now, we're just looking forward to seeing how Microsoft follows up the first generation of Surface Book sometime (hopefully) early in 2017.


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Home Tags Apple
SoftBank reportedly plans to lend employees as much as $20 billion to invest in its VC fund ..
Kobalt, Apple and smartwatches, Hadoop, customer support, and social work and AI D..
How a Swedish saxophonist built Kobalt, the world’s next music unicorn The Kobalt EC-1, Part I: F..
Apple rolls out Apple Card Preview to select users Matthew Panzarino @..
Daily Crunch: Apple responds to Siri privacy concerns Anthony Ha @anth..
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SoftBank announces AI-focused second $108 billion Vision Fund with LPs including Microsoft, Apple an..
Tile finds another $45M to expand its item-tracking devices and platform Ingrid Lu..
As tech giants face Congressional investigation, states must step up regulatory oversight too ..
Apple’s latest Tesla hire specializes in car interiors Kirsten Korosec ..
UnitedMasters releases iPhone app for DIY cross-service music distribution Darrell..
Google finance head joins Postmates board ahead of anticipated IPO Kirsten Korosec..
Apple is reportedly moving Mac Pro assembly to China Brian Heater @bhe..
iOS 13 brings many much needed quality-of-life improvements Romain Dillet ..
Week-in-Review: YouTube’s awful comments and Google’s $1B tech-free investment Luc..
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On this episode we’re talking about the cruise experience. Now with two months’ of sailings under their belts, cruise lines are refining procedures and policies. With vaccine mandates, testing and, sometimes, mask requirements, what is today’s cruise experience really like?
To discuss, we’ve invited Vicki Freed, the senior vice president of sales, marketing and trade support and services for Royal Caribbean International; Penny Rushing, the owner of Four Points Travel, an Avoya agency; and Gene Sloan, the cruise editor at The Points Guy. These experts talked with news editor Johanna Jainchill and host Rebecca Tobin about today’s cruising and what cruise lines and travel advisors have learned over the past couple of months.
This episode was recorded on Thursday, Sept. 2, and has been edited for length and clarity.
Want more on cruise? Stay tuned for the second part of this discussion, where Freed, Rushing and Sloan dive deep into the onboard cruise experience – and what’s in it for solo travelers – and what a “bubble tour” is and why the experience in port is so different in the Covid era.
This episode’s sponsor:
This episode of the Folo is sponsored by Hurtigruten Expeditions. Learn more about its once-in-a-lifetime Galapagos cruises at its website or agent portal.
Travel Weekly’s complete cruise coverage
Cruise lines navigate new vaccine mandates
From the Points Guy: “I almost canceled a cruise because of Covid worries. I’m glad I didn’t.”
Focus on cruise: The road to restart
Cruising on the Celebrity Edge in June: On the first big U.S. cruise since 2020, life feels normal
Four Points Travel
Royal Caribbean International
Source: Read Full Article


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sfcrazy (1542989) writes "Patent troll Microsoft is fast becoming the most hated company ever. Microsoft Corp has demanded that Samsung Electronics Co Ltd pay $15 for each smartphone handset it makes based on Google Inc's Android operating system as the U.S. software giant has a wide range of patents used in the mobile platform, local media reported on Wednesday." Link to Original Source
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Non-Domestic Rating (Lists) (No. 2) Bill, 30.09.20
This week I joined colleagues in calling for greater flexibility in the way that business rates are deployed. I am fortunate enough to represent a constituency that has a great diversity of businesses and very vibrant high streets, where we have seen banks become coffee shops and sports clubs become children’s soft play areas. The challenge of online versus bricks and mortar retailing, the changing nature of the high streets and our ability to keep it vibrant on behalf of our communities demonstrates the importance of this flexibility.
David Simmonds CBE MP:
The reform of business rates and revaluation has been in a holding pattern for many years, and those of us who have spent time in local government will be conscious that the expected impact of that reform on local authority finance has been hotly debated. I think that we are still of the view that business rates in their current form are the worst possible solution to financing local government, with the exception of all other available choices. My hon. Friend the Member for Thirsk and Malton (Kevin Hollinrake) made that point strongly in describing the hard choices we need to make in identifying alternative sources of finance. It seems clear that, in the Treasury, the business rates billions remain a key building block of our national budget. As a consequence, there has been a long-held reluctance to tinker with them, for fear of the wider impact on the bigger fiscal picture.
Business rates have been in existence for a long time. For many of our citizens, they used to walk in lockstep with residential rates, long abolished. Even today, the variation in business rates income at local authority level is reflected in the grant funding—the traditional revenue support grant that was the basis of most local authority funding—and in things such as school funding. When schools were first set up as a local authority responsibility, local authorities funded them according to their incomes from business rates and domestic rates, and that differential has been carried forward into the funding rates of our schools today. That long-standing impact and the fiscal picture across government of linking day-to-day expenditure on these services to the income we can rely upon coming through business rates remain in place. That goes to the heart of the point that a number of colleagues have made about the need for reform, but we need to address it as part of that complex formula.
I would like to add my voice to the request from many colleagues for greater flexibility in the way that business rates are deployed. I am fortunate to represent a constituency that has a great diversity of local businesses and very vibrant high streets. Many of those new businesses have grown up to take the place of more traditional activities, some of which have seen their departure mourned by local residents, and others perhaps less so. For example, a sports club has closed and been replaced by a children’s soft play area, because the baby boom means that there is now a much greater market for that kind of activity. The bank that I used to be responsible for is now a bookshop and coffee shop on Pinner High Street, reflecting the fact that our high streets can remain vibrant.
This is not about saying that the Government or the local authority need to pick the businesses that they think should be winners on the high street. It is about reflecting the fact that the challenge of online versus bricks and mortar retailing, the changing nature of the high street and our ability to keep it vibrant on behalf of our communities means that we need flexibility.
Kevin Hollinrake MP:
My hon. Friend makes a good point. He alluded to the point I made earlier. If we had a business rates system that purely provided discounts for retail premises, what would we do with premises that were not retail and became retail or were retail and became another business category?
David Simmonds CBE MP:
My hon. Friend reinforces the point robustly. I declare an interest, as a father of young children. The development on our high streets of more community-focused business opportunities, due to there now being many more young children in my part of the world looking to access soft play, clothing retail and other things, is a reflection of the fact that our communities change—they are vibrant. That is what their nature should be, and those market forces are a welcome part of responding to the changes in our communities.
When we see challenges that come along, whether they reflect the national economic position or indeed wider issues on a local level, we need to be able to respond effectively. A really good illustration of that is the impact on the local authority that serves most of my residents and Heathrow airport—the London Borough of Hillingdon. Heathrow is the largest single payer of business rates within the Greater London area, but the challenge for the local authority that collects those business rates is that the revenue it collects and the proportion retained locally is far less than the cost to the local authority of dealing with the consequences of having the airport in its local area.
That brings me on to my final plea to Ministers as we begin to look to what the future of business rates may be beyond this revaluation. Too often, there is little or no upside for local authorities in supporting the development and growth of businesses, because so much of the money goes into the central pool and the community sees the disbenefits such as congestion and pollution—sometimes, in the case of airports, in the form of air pollution—and needing to provide services to people such as refugees and those who find themselves stranded at the airport. All those are direct costs to local taxpayers as part of the statutory frameworks; they simply are not met by the share of the income that lands locally.
We need to have a much broader discussion about how we ensure that local authorities that see these opportunities to develop local businesses, jobs and a vibrant local economic strategy can see the benefit of doing that coming directly into their local community. In the United States, for example, it is a very common part of considerations of any infrastructure development that local politicians can say to the local community, “Yes, you will have to put up with a downside, but you will see this enormous benefit as a consequence of this development or this project going ahead.”
We need to see this as part of a much broader and more strategic review of the way in which we fund public services in this country. The hon. Member for Blackburn (Kate Hollern) pointed to the impact on local authorities of a reduction in revenue support grant. That is part of this complex picture, but over the same period, we have seen significant growth in levels of business rate income that have been retained by local authorities. When the Ministry makes its calculation of spending power, the reduction in spending power does not simply reflect a reduction in the revenue support grant: it then needs adding back into it the additional revenue that is coming from other sources.
As my hon. Friend the Member for Thirsk and Malton explained so clearly, this is not simply a matter of being able to offer everyone out there who would like to see a reduction in their business rates such a reduction, because if we do that, we need to decide which other taxes will go up to pay for it. We must make sure that we consider that decision fully in this House before it is made, because we have a responsibility to local authorities and residents to make sure that the services we commit to provide for them are financially sustainable.


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SEARCHED FOR:ANAND GROUP
Automotive safety components maker Joysons to merge its two JVs in India
Under the terms of the agreement, the shareholding structure of JAASS will be: JSS 65%, Anand Group 30% and Abhishek Group 5%, Anand Group said in a release.
Anand Group acts to emerge unscathed
India’s leading component maker is re-adjusting its business plan to up revenue contribution from export...
Auto parts company Anand Group and its rare business model of JVs
Anand Group is a study in a rare business model: lots and lots of JVs. The ...
The Woman of Many Parts, Anjali Singh's a Confident Driver
A mother of two, artist, author and now Chairperson of the board at Gabriel India Ltd. Taking the helm of the flagship company of the Anand Group, Anjali Anand Singh is confident of establishing herself in the Indian automotive component manufacturing industry, a domain that’s traditionally been the bastion of men.
Having learnt from the slowdown, the auto industry is now on a rebound
“A slowdown is a good time to review the business, and try to reduce cost and improve efficiency,” says RC Bhargava, chairman of Maruti Suzuki.
Auto parts industry sees good days ahead
After a lull of two years, positive sentiment has returned to the automotive component industry, and companies are considering investment in capacity building as they expect demand to return.
Pawan Goenka is Anand Mahindra's go-to man in Mahindra & Mahindra
As Anand Mahindra progressively retreats from operations, Goenka is being entrusted with more as the implicit number two.
DLF raises Rs 2,400 crore from SBI through lease rental discounting
In the backdrop of general concerns over liquidity for real estate and rental assets, the deal assumes significance as the funding carries an interest rate of 7.35 per cent for tenure of 15 years with a structured repayment schedule. The rate will be linked to SBI’s marginal cost of funds-based lending rate (MCLR).
SAT gives 4 weeks to NSE officials to file replies in co-location case
NSE and the people punished, challenged the order at the SAT on May 21.
Hyundai Motor takes the lead in car exports in April-August period
South Korea’s Hyundai Motor exports cars and SUVs to 88 countries across Africa, the Middle East, Latin America, Australia and the Asia Pacific from India.
India has 150 million drivers, but only 8,000 of them want electric cars
The segment still isn’t making meaningful strides more than 4 years after the govt started promoting e-cars.
Anjali Anand takes over as Gabriel Chairperson
Anand Group owned Shock Absorbers manufacturer Gabriel India announced the induction of Anjali Anand Singh as new Chairperson of its Board of Directors.
India’s auto-parts makers ready for Bharat Stage VI emission norms
India’s auto-parts makers are ready for the shift to Bharat Stage VI emission norms. Most of them showcased their technological preparedness.
We have no plans of any M&A now: Nitin Menon, Menon Bearings
"At the moment, we are operating at around 70-75% of capacity. Our order book position is full"
Ansysco Anand ties up with Seiken Chemical for Indian market
This collaboration will ease the entry of Ansysco Anand into Japanese OEMs that contribute nearly 60 per cent in the Indian automotive market, it added.


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Major disruptions will continue to challenge SBI 100 companies in 2016 and for years to come. Businesses that want the future to look much like the recent past must step out
of their comfort zone. If not, sales forces will suffer from an outdated worldview.
The macro trends that affected the world’s largest sales forces last year included six major areas: Employment, finance, geography, industry, service versus product, and productivity. This article reviews the major trends impacting enterprise sales forces.
It’s difficult to grow revenue faster than your industry’s growth rate and faster than your competitors. Leverage the How to Make Your Number in 2018 to access a revenue growth methodology to hit your number quarter after quarter, and year after year.
The most represented industries on the SBI 100 list of the world’s largest sales forces are pharmaceutical manufacturing (11 companies, average sales force numbering 8,900); software (9 companies, average sales force numbering 8,500); and medical equipment (7 companies, average sales force numbering 4,800).
When it comes to profits, business services lead at 29 percent, followed by semiconductor manufacturing at 27 percent, pharmaceutical manufacturing at 23 percent, and software at 21 percent. In revenue growth, commercial real estate leads at 26 percent, followed by drug wholesalers at 21 percent, commercial health insurance at 17 percent, and scientific and technical instruments at 16 percent. The industries lagging in revenue growth are diversified industrial, at –16 percent; chemical manufacturing, at –8 percent; and oil and gas exploration and production, at –7 percent.
The highest sales productivity is enjoyed in oil and gas exploration and production, at $89 million revenue per sales head; drug wholesalers, at $43 million per sales head; commercial health insurance, at $19 million per sales head; diversified electronics, at $18 million per sales head; and semiconductor manufacturing, at $15 million per sales head.
The drivers of revenue growth vary. In industries, such as business services, software, and telecommunications, the driver is sales head count. Productivity per sales employee drives growth in industries such as semiconductor manufacturing and diversified electronics. Commercial real estate and oil and gas exploration and production exemplify another type of industry, driven mostly by market prices.
Service versus Product
Among the world’s largest sales forces, 30 SBI 100 companies offer services only, 49 offer products only, and 21 offer both products and services. In 2015, the 30 services-only companies averaged $30 billion in revenues. They grew at 5.3 percent, with 5,800 salespeople, $5.6 million revenue per sales employee, and 13 percent profit margin.
In 2015, the 49 products-only companies averaged $62 billion in revenues. They grew at 1.6 percent, with 5,700 salespeople, $14.6 million revenue per sales employee, and 14 percent profit margin. In 2015, the 21 hybrid companies offering both products and services averaged $57 billion in revenues. They grew at 0.3 percent, with 11,300 salespeople, $9.8 million revenue per sales employee, and 13 percent profit margin.
When it comes to growth, the services only companies excelled last year— more than doubling the 2.5 percent growth rate of the full SBI 100 list. These services-only firms tend to be smaller and generate lower average productivity per sales employee than other SBI 100 companies. Services are harder to sell and harder to scale. Yet services-only companies maintained comparable profit margins to the rest of the SBI 100. Product-only companies lead the pack in productivity because their R&D investments to build winning products enable greater revenue per sales employee.
Hybrid companies struggle to grow. While they offer overall solutions, the lack of a clear identity makes it difficult to go to market. Should they go to market like a services company, a products company, or something in between? A comparison proves the point: The average hybrid company has 11,000 salespeople and 0.3 percent revenue growth compared to an average of 5,750 salespeople and 3.5 percent revenue growth across product/service-only companies.
In the last three years, productivity declined for the world’s largest sales forces. Only 41 SBI 100 companies increased productivity per employee. This is surprising as companies optimized cost structures over the last seven years following the 2008 recession. In 2012, productivity per employee averaged $731,000 compared to $684,000 in 2015. This is an average productivity decline of 2.5 percent over three years, or a growth rate of –0.8 percent. Considering their average growth is expected to lag GDP again in 2016, SBI 100 companies appear to have the opportunity to drive much greater employee productivity.
When it comes to sales productivity, the whole group averages $10.9 million in revenue per sales employee, with the median sitting at $4.3 million. The average is skewed by five companies exceeding $50 million per salesperson, primarily in the oil and gas exploration and production industry: ExxonMobil (No. 78, $147.4 million); BP (No. 46, $78.3 million); Chevron (No. 77, $73.2 million); Royal Dutch Shell (No. 30, $58.5 million); and McKesson (No. 61, $51.9 million).
On the low end, eight companies fell at or below $1.5 million in revenue per sales employee: Paychex (No. 60, $751,000); Salesforce.com (No. 38, $1.0 million); Cintas (No. 48, $1.0 million); Automatic Data Processing (No. 8, $1.1 million); Oracle (No. 4, $1.3 million); iHeart Media (No. 43, $1.3 million); Citrix Systems (No. 95, $1.5 million); and Pitney Bowes (No. 85, $1.5 million).
In last week’s article we reviewed the first three macro trends of employment, finance, and geography. Together these six macro trends represent the major forces impacting the largest sales forces.


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Once retailers have resolved their liquidity challenges, overcoming these barriers will need to be top of mind to succeed in the new normal.
Beyond: As consumer behaviors shift, technology will take on new significance. Will all retailers take advantage?
As retailers prepare for a post-pandemic world, their technology vision will assume new significance, particularly in the context of accelerated changes in customer behavior. For example, we have seen grocery retailers adapt at rapid pace to keep society fed. Having proved their ability to adapt, they now need to continue to tap into this energy.
Retailers also need to remember that technology is significant beyond digitization. Retailer respondents in the EY Global Capital Confidence Barometer cited sustainability as a key challenge. The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic has only served to increase expectations around the sustainability agenda. In the EY Future Consumer Index, 40% of respondents view sustainability as more important when shopping compared with their views a month ago. Furthermore, 75% believe that company behavior is as important as what it sells. Technology will be a key enabler for retailers to respond to the sustainability challenge and to drive consumer engagement and create long-term value.
Across the sector there are significant opportunities for organizations with the funds and ability to take advantage. Although slightly more than half of retailer respondents have already embedded or have made good progress against their transformation plans, more than one-third have only taken initial steps or are only considering how to transform. Given how fast consumer behaviors are changing (accelerated by COVID-19), those further behind in their transformation initiative are running out of time, let alone to take advantage of these opportunities. They need to pick up the pace, or risk being left behind.


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FINO Showroom will be hosting an Open Weekend between Saturday 9th and Sunday 10th April from 9.00am till 7.00pm
A number of promotions will be offered throughout this weekend event. One of these offers will be that of a free mattress with every bedroom ordered as well as special promotions on pillows.
Over the years, FINO gained respect through its manufacturing arm and also through its representation of some of the finest furniture and home furnishing brands in Europe. Its business operations have expanded beyond the Maltese shores and today, the company is also active in other countries.
“Besides an opportunity for our customers to enjoy the high level of quality and craftsmanship in the products we sell and the brands we represent, we also consider Open Weekends as an opportunity for us to meet our customers and get to know them better. Knowing our customers’ expectations is very important for any company and this is what has garnered a lot of respect towards the FINO Brand,” said a spokesperson for FINO.
Wine will be served to all visiting guests so that they can feel at home as they view FINO’s extensive collections on display at what is now considered the largest showroom in Malta.


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Omani speciality restaurant opens at Millennium Resort Salalah
Sky-Grill has a terrace with views of the city
Oman's Millennium Resort Salalah has launched Sky-Grill, a new Omani speciality restaurant.
Blending authentic Omani and Middle Eastern cuisine, the menu features the likes of madhbi, where a chicken or baby lamb is cooked on a madhbi grill, sister title Caterer Middle East reported.
Hesham Youssef, director of sales & marketing, Millennium Resort Salalah, said: “We are delighted to announce the launch of Sky-Grill restaurant, the latest addition to our dining range. We believe in offering our guests the best taste and feel experience and Sky-Grill will cater to food lovers with dishes that are purely succulent and authentic. We have created Sky-Grill’s dining experience considering all the aspects that display Omani’s culture and tradition; right from the menu to the music, interiors and staff uniforms. The team at the restaurant will make sure that our guests have a wonderful time and would want to come back again.”
Guests at Sky-Grill can choose to dine on the terrace and enjoy views overlooking Salalah city or sit indoors for more privacy.
The restaurant will serve dinner throughout the year, however during winter and autumn it will serve lunch as well.


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Did you know that Stryker is facing lawsuits alleging that their metal-on-metal hip implants are defective, prone to failure and can cause metal poisoning? There are over 500 lawsuits alleging that Stryker’s recalled Rejuvenate and ABG II modular-neck hip implant products are defective. In a legal procedure known as multidistrict litigation or “MDL”, the lawsuits have been transferred to one court before a single judge. This consolidation is intended to make it easier and more cost effective for the parties to resolve each lawsuit.
Lawsuits by people who have been implanted with Stryker’s Rejuvenate and ABG II modular-neck hip implant products are seeking compensation for losses such as medical expenses and physical pain caused by the hip implant problems. The plaintiffs’ claims focus on the failures of these hip implants, with a focus on their tendency to fret, corrode and fail prematurely.
These lawsuits make a number of allegations against Stryker, including the following:
1)That Stryker failed to properly test the device;
2)That Stryker marketed the device as a “perfect fit” for younger patients, leading doctors and patients to believe the product was superior to other hip implants on the market;
3)That the Stryker device can corrode, deteriorate and cause severe metal toxicity in patients;
4)That Stryker failed to properly warn doctors and patients about the dangers of the device, including heavy metal toxicity;
5)That the Stryker systems contain design and manufacturing defects and can cause serious and permanent damage to patients;
6)That the Stryker systems release heavy metals into patients’ bodies, leading to severe and permanent destruction of bone and tissue;
7)That Stryker knew or should have known that the product was inherently more dangerous than other available hip implants because of its risk of fretting and corrosion, premature failure rate and an increased need for additional surgeries; and
8)That Stryker aggressively marketed the product without informing consumers about the risks outlined above when safe alternatives were available.
If you’ve been injured by a Stryker hip implant, call or email Caldwell Law Group PLLC now to determine your rights.


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It doesn’t seem to matter if the iPhone is not officially sold in any given country, because the true Apple enthusiasts inevitably find ways to get their multi-touch thing going on. Before today’s announcement, Canadians were in much the same boat, but where else is the iPhone finding itself these days?
According to the Mobile Research Group in Moscow, there are approximately a half million iPhone users in Russia, a country where Apple is not officially selling its touchscreen mobile phone. This data comes by way of Russia’s cell phone operators. As you can imagine, the phones are being imported from the United States and then they get flipped for nearly double the American price. Today, you can buy an iPhone in Russia for $700. That’s still cheaper than the $1,800 asking price from last year.
Interestingly, some of Russia’s most prominent politicians have been spotted using an iPhone. In fact, Cupertino’s cell phone “has reportedly become commonplace at the Kremlin and in the corridors of Russia’s parliament.”


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The union seeking to represent more than 100 cosmetics staffers set to be cut from Saks Fifth Avenue’s New York flagship at the end of the month asked the National Labor Relations Board to halt the layoffs Tuesday and charged the employees had been targeted because they expressed interest in unionizing.
On Dec. 14, Saks told 115 beauty workers they would be terminated effective Jan. 31 to make way for its new system, in which vendors will staff their own counters. The non-vendor-employed workers make up about 30 percent of the more than 400 employees on the Manhattan unit’s beauty staff, according to the company.
In an unfair labor practices charge filed with the NLRB’s New York office, the Retail Wholesale and Department Store Union Local 1102 alleged the pending layoffs are a response to its Dec. 1 petition to represent the Saks-employed workers.
“Saks’ announcement was, in fact, a threat to employees at the store, which restrained, coerced, interfered and intimidated employees and intended to dissuade employees, including employees in other departments, from seeking union representation,” a union attorney wrote in a document related to the NLRB charge.
The federal agency will investigate to determine if the case merits a formal complaint.
Saks said Tuesday the new selling model and related staff cuts were business decisions unrelated to the union, that the charges were without merit and that the union had made misstatements.
“We provided ample documentation to the union’s counsel which clearly demonstrated that the decision to convert our New York City flagship store cosmetics and fragrance department to a fully vendor-staffed model was made months ago, and implementation of the decision was well under way long before Saks became aware of any union activity,” said Saks Inc. spokeswoman Julia Bentley.
The company said it told workers at the New York store in June 2009 it was evaluating the business model at the flagship as it made changes to its beauty departments in stores outside the city.
In its charge, the union called Saks’ vendor employment plan a “fiction” and said the company will “continue to control significant aspects” of beauty workers’ employment.
The union is seeking an injunction stopping the dismissal of the beauty workers pending the charge and an order requiring Saks to bargain with the union.


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Mists of Pandaria release date on September 25.By: Stan D posted at Jul 25, 2012 1:34 pm
The wait is finally over. Mists of Pandaria release date has been officialy announced by Blizzard.
September 25, is the date, when MoP is hitting the live servers. Pre-purchasing of the game has been enabled as well. You have two options.
You can pre-purchase the game already. For the first time ever, players are able to buy the digital collector's edition, along with the Quilen mount.
You can read everything regarding the purchase here.
The prices are $39.99 for the digital standard edition and $59.99 (49.99 EUR) for the Digital Deluxe Edition which features the Quilen Mount. Along with the mount and pet, you will get a Diablo III Sigil & Banner and unique Starcraft II portraits on the official forums.
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Award-winning photographer Sephi Bergerson lives in Goa and has been photographing weddings across India since arriving in the country in 2002. In November 2015, he shot a lavish three-day wedding in the Rajasthani city of Udaipur… completely on his iPhone 6s Plus.
Here are the astounding results:
One of the biggest challenges was finding a couple adventurous enough to let a photographer capture their Big Day this way. Sephi says: "This is the reason why I first wish to give a huge credit to Ayushi and Abhishek for the trust and support."
"The wedding was possibly the biggest I have ever photographed. The events took place in Udaipur over three incredible days at the end of November 2015," he says "I have covered many weddings in Udaipur before, but have never seen the place so beautifully decorated. It was such a pleasure taking pictures when everything, and everyone, looking so gorgeous."
So is this the end for traditional wedding photography? Sephi doesn't think so: "I love using the iPhone but, despite all it’s advantages, I don’t think it will take over and replace the ‘regular’ cameras. What the iPhone represents is a completely new breed of camera."
The final images were even edited on the iPhone using apps such as Facetune and Mextures before being exported to Instagram. Sephi says: "Under the innocent cover of your iPhone lies a powerful tool that is changing the way we work and think as photographers. For the first time we have a camera, a darkroom and and an online research directory in one small device."
Sephi released a seven year book project on Indian Weddings in August last year, find out more at wedding.sephi.com/wedding-book
All photo credits to Sephi Bergerson
Check out more of Sephi's work at wedding.sephi.com


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- Grey swans are potentially significant events which are considered unlikely to happen but still possible.
- U.S. capital controls could be one of them, an expert says, pointing to the forced unraveling of Grindr's Chinese takeover.
The U.S. introducing capital controls in the wake of its trade war with China is among the top 10 "grey swan" events for 2020, according to Bilal Hafeez, the CEO of financial strategy firm Macro Hive.
Grey swans are potentially significant events which are considered unlikely to happen but still possible, and Hafeez suggested that the U.S. focus on trade in goods and services with China renders the introduction of capital controls a "real possibility" to protect American business.
"The larger question is that the strongest asset the U.S. has is intellectual property and its corporate performance," Hafeez told CNBC's "Squawk Box Europe" on Thursday.
"What we have seen in recent years is that there has been significant Chinese investment in Silicon Valley, Chinese companies are buying U.S. companies, so the U.S. could say 'hang on, we're not going to accept that anymore'."
Hafeez pointed to the U.S. forcing a Chinese firm to sell gay dating app Grindr due to data sensitivity concerns in May.
"What we could see is a more extreme move in that direction, where the U.S. says almost all Chinese investment in the U.S. is going to have to stop, and this would be viewed in the context of a cold war between the U.S. and China," he added.
Another of the more likely scenarios among Macro Hive's 10 grey swans is Japan intervening in foreign exchange markets, since it appears to be running out of conventional monetary policy options in efforts to stimulate the economy.
"It doesn't really have many options on the monetary policy side, it's already buying bonds, it's buying equities. The one thing that has worked in the past for Japan is intervening in currency markets, so there could be scope for them to intervene," Hafeez said, adding that this would elicit a U.S. reaction given the Donald Trump administration's focus on currency rates.
Among other grey swan events listed by Macro Hive were a surge in euro zone inflation, Apple buying Disney, Tesla partnering with Hyundai, the U.S. Federal Reserve disintermediating banks through digital currency, and drone attacks on U.S. installations in the Middle East.


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Original article by Roy Morgan Research
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 21-Oct-15
A Roy Morgan Single Source survey, which was carried out in the year to June 2015, has found that 12.8 million Australians aged 14+ are their household’s main grocery-buyer, yet only three per cent (389,000 people) do their supermarket shopping online in an average four weeks. However, this is a substantial increase on 2011, when 169,000 grocery buyers were making their supermarket purchases online. The survey also shows that 3.8 per cent of women and 1.8 per cent of men do their supermarket shopping online. Meanwhile, the proportion of Australian grocery-buyers who purchase alcohol online in any given four weeks has risen from 1.6 per cent (or 196,000 people) in 2011 to 3.1 per cent (398,000 people).
ROY MORGAN RESEARCH LIMITED


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First Albany raises estimates on Apple ComputerAccording to analyst firm First Albanys research note published this morning, iPod sales are expected to regain momentum by the September quarter.
The analysts mention that the company is poised for robust near term unit growth in its iPod Mini and iTunes products in the European market. Moreover, First Albany expects Apple Computer to benefit considerably from its summer launch of the HPod (Hewlett Packard iPod) product in the forthcoming quarters.
First Albany also expects the company to resolve its issues with iPod supply constraints by the September quarter (the end of Apple's fiscal year).
While First Albany renewed its "neutral" rating on Apple Computer, EPS (earnings per share) estimates for FY04 and FY05 have been raised from $0.61 to $0.65 and from $0.72 to $0.88, respectively. The P/E (price/earnings) estimates for FY04 and FY05 are 50.6x and 37.4x, respectively.
On Topic: General
- Standalone HBO Now subscriptions at 800,000, says network's CEO
- Apple's in-house CDN efforts spell trouble for Akamai as infrastructure biz warns of losses
- Apple's biggest Florida store coming to Brickell City Centre in Miami
- Belkin's ScreenCare+ Application System for iPhone launches at US Apple Stores
- Hackers trying to bribe Apple workers into handing over login information, report says


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Last year, approximately 47% of small businesses were victims of cyberattacks. Reports have predicted that cybersecurity incidents will cost businesses more than $5 trillion over the next five years, and it is not only going to impact small businesses that lack the resources to fight network security breaches. The cybersecurity threat has already reached conglomerate levels, with large-cap companies like Ubisoft Entertainment recently announcing a cyber security incident that temporarily disrupted its games, services, and systems. This incident marked the third high-profile hack at the start of March, with hackers targeting Nvidia and Samsung a few days before.
This new wave of cyber security attacks is concerning for a couple of reasons. Not only do hackers come in all shapes and sizes, with different objectives, knowledge, and skill sets, but the technological landscape is becoming more advanced every day. That means companies need to protect their business from cyber threats in several ways.
It is times like these where it would be easier if we had our very own vigilante, much like Batman, who is always there when threat levels rise. Batman also knows how to defeat different types of villains, especially those in disguises, such as Penguin and the Riddler. That’s what companies need, even more so when you consider how malicious code and software tend to be disguised as legitimate programs. In fact, one of the most common types is called the Trojan horse. The term refers to a code or software that downloads onto a computer disguised as a real program, and the name is based on ancient Greek mythology.
Become Your Own Batman
Even though businesses do not have Bruce Wayne to protect them from cybersecurity attacks, there are different ways to reduce the possibility of network security breaches. That includes using privacy and security tools like a VPN service, which we can think of as turning on the Bat signal. When a business uses a VPN service to protect their communications against attacks, they know — much like Gotham knows when the signal is turned on — that help is there when needed.
Businesses can take other preventative measures, such as backing up data. Doing so will allow organizations to recover any stolen information during a cyber attack. Backing up data is something companies should do regardless, considering computers experience problems all the time, and no business is exempt from these issues. However, it is important to note that it is not enough to back up data. Companies also need to regularly check that they can restore their data.
Using passphrases for security instead of passwords is a great way to protect access to devices that hold important information and data. Unlike traditional passwords, passphrases comprise a phrase or different words. That makes them harder to hack than conventional letter and number passwords.
Hackers are becoming smarter, which means businesses have to match their intelligence by implementing several security measures, including using VPNs and backing up their data. The rise of cybersecurity attacks was always going to happen in a world that operates largely through computers, but that does not mean businesses have to accept defeat. Like most areas in the corporate world, preparation is key to success.


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In China, youths constitute a huge consumer group in light of both its population size and vast consumption demands.
According to estimates by the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, the country's population aged 18 to 44 settled at 548 million as of end-2017, constituting about 39 percent of the country's total.
Winning the hearts of young people equals winning the future. Amid cutthroat market competition, whoever seizes this consumer demographic may grab the upper hand.
Consumption keywords: E-commerce, excessive consumption and sense of gain
A report conducted by CBNData showed that online shopping now constitutes a salient feature of the behavior of youth consumers, with the post-80s being the nucleus and the post-90s catching up in being the primary drivers of this transition.
During last year's Singles Day shopping bonanza on November 11, Chinese e-commerce tycoon Alibaba secured 213.5 billion yuan (31.9 billion U.S. dollars) worth of sales across all of its platforms, surging 27 percent compared with that of the previous year.
The assorted shopping channels from the likes of e-commerce platforms have in turn beefed up young consumers' willingness to consume, while the presence of new payment methods possible due to online lending platforms and credit payments (such as WeBank and Ant Credit Pay) have allayed their concerns about prices as they can afford more pricey products by taking small loans.
Since 2012, the average growth rate of online financial transactions has exceeded 200 percent annually.
Data from Ant Financial, Alibaba's financial affiliate, showcased that 45 million out of China's 170 million post-90s had opened Ant Credit Pay services as of the end of 2017, which means that one in four post-90s were credit consumers.
Also stressed in the CBNData report are the role of young consumers' interests and sense of gain in determining their shopping behavior, which to a large extent sets the consumption trend in China.
They feel no compunction about paying for knowledge and content appealing to them, ranging from music and videos to language courses and answers to questions.
Wages up, savings down
In China, mounting per capita income serves as one of the most potent contributing factors in youth consumption behavior, which has also led to dwindling national savings rates in the past few years.
Official data showed the country's national savings rate settled at 38.86 percent in 2002 and maintained its upward momentum before peaking at 51.84 percent in 2018, after which the reading had been trending down continuously to 44.91 percent in 2018 and was even projected by IMF to fall further to settle at 42.38 percent in 2022.
During the first three decades since the introduction of the reform and opening-up policy, driven by enduring poverty and favorable demographic dividend, China boasted ample young labor force at low demand for consumption and accustomed to setting aside money for the future.
But that's not the case anymore on account of a drastic gain in GDP and a robust social security system. Chinese consumers, the youth in particular, have become regular fixtures of e-commerce platforms and brick-and-mortar stores.
According to China's National Bureau of Statistics, the per capita consumption expenditure of rural and urban residents came at 4,065 yuan and 14,061 yuan in 2008, but with a mere gap of nine years, the figures shot up to 11,691 yuan and 31,098 yuan, respectively.
In the second largest economy, one person in every six is of the post-90s generation. When millennials jump forcefully onto the consumption wagon, it is unquestionable that the young generation will become the mainstay of China's vast consumer market, who generally have a higher propensity to consume.