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Kirkland's Totem Lake Malls sheds largest retailer - ShopSmart Bazaar out after dispute with mall owners
By MATT PHELPS
Kirkland Reporter Regional Assistant Editor
March 2, 2011 · Updated 2:27 PM
During the past month, Totem Lake Malls has thrived on the weekends. Finding parking has been more difficult than just driving to the front of the parking lot. The sounds of shoppers walking through the lower mall has replaced silence.
But that silence has returned.
Ken Grammer and Sig Rudowicz opened Shopsmart Bazaar on Jan. 15, but a dispute over the lease rate with mall owners has cost them thousands of dollars and forced them out of business.
“We have more than 60 vendors and we all have to be out by the end of the weekend,” said Rudowicz on Feb. 25. The upscale flea market’s last day of business was Sunday.
“Smartshop Bazaar’s temporary license agreement expired Jan. 31,” said Senior Director of Communications for DDR, Marty Richmond in an e-mail to the Reporter. “Developers Diversified granted the bazaar a one-month extension and at the end of February the agreement naturally expired.”
Rudowicz said when he and his partner started the business they contacted DDR/Coventry about leasing the 40,000-square-foot space that once housed the mall’s anchor tenant, Lamont’s. The two businesses agreed to a three-month lease of $2,000 a month, with the caveat that Rudowicz and Grammer would have to clean up the space.
“We spent $4,000 to clean the carpet, $1,000 to replace all the lighting and $4,000 for all the signs that are up around the mall,” said Rudowicz, who also spent thousands of dollars on advertising. “We also spent $300 for a Kirkland business license. They didn’t really want to negotiate a rent until we fixed the place up.”
It took Grammer and Rudowicz nearly two months to clean the space, which included new carpets, ceiling tiles and lighting that was ruined by multiple roof leaks.
DDR/Coventry came back to Grammer and Rudowicz wanting them to sign a long-term lease for the space. Initially, DDR/Coventry wanted the two men to sign a $5,000 per month, six-month lease with an option for six more months. The rate was the same amount that Halloween Express pays for three months during the fall. Rudowicz and Grammer told DDR/Coventry they would be able to build up to that after a few months.
In the meantime, the ShopSmart Bazaar began to build a customer base that the mall has not seen in a long time.
“We had people coming up to us saying that they didn’t even know the mall was here,” said Rudowicz. “We had all the other store’s managers coming up to us thanking us for moving in because they had their best weekend in years.”
Greg Olsen, salesperson for Sleep Country USA, said since ShopSmart Bazaar opened, business has been “excellent.”
“Business on the weekend has tripled,” said Olsen. “The bazaar has drawn quite a crowd.”
But after just three weeks of being in the space, DDR/Coventry came back to Rudowicz and Grammer asking for $10,000 a month in rent. DDR/Coventry extended the original contract a fourth month through the end of February.
“They said that they had a furniture auction place out of Utah that was willing to pay $10,000 a month and if we could not come up with that we were out,” said Rudowicz, noting two the malls already has two furniture stores, including Totem Lake Furniture and Eagle Furniture, which is going out of business.
“We are excited to welcome national furniture retailer, World of Décor, to Totem Lake Malls, which will take possession of the bazaar’s former space March 1, 2011, and open shortly thereafter,” said Richmond.
Grammer and Rudowicz said DDR/Coventry told them the lease price is not negotiable. But the businessmen cannot afford $10,000 a month.
“We have 60 vendors and you’re going to put them out on the street,” Rudowicz told the mall owners. “We asked last week, ‘can we please stay through March to recoup some of our losses?’ They called the next day and said ‘nope, can’t do it.’”
One of the most shocking things to Rudowicz was a $3,700 bill from DDR/Coventry for electricity and administrative fees.
“I could tell you where they can stick that,” said Rudowicz. “I have worked 55 straight days on this and I just don’t care anymore.”
Both men work in marketing during the week and were putting the ShopSmart Bazaar together in their free time.
Rudowicz said he is too exhausted to take the issue to court: “How can I go after them (the mall owners) with everyone else suing them? What do we have to do, get in line?”
Totem Lake Malls is currently part of a $500 million fraud lawsuit that Coventry filed against DDR in New York state in 2009.
Coventry accuses DDR of allowing the Totem Lake site and 11 other properties nationwide “to flounder and ultimately fail, while focusing on its real goal: to collect as much in fees as possible while making only the most cursory effort to perform its responsibilities.”
Whatever is to blame for the Totem Lake Malls’ failure, Rudowicz said it has to do with greed.
“The mall owners think the mall is all gold now,” he said. “So let’s see if they can get someone into this black cave and make it work.”
On Feb. 24, Grammer realized that one of the roof leaks that had caused the initial damage had returned, soaking the carpet and destroying some of the new ceiling tiles they had installed. He said they are just lucky no one was in that space when the tiles gave way.
As for relocating ShopSmart Bazaar, it’s probably not in the cards for now, says Rudowicz.
“I don’t know if we can find another place and we have so much money invested here,” he said. “I think it is typical for that place ... We made that place look nice. It looks like a market place in Italy.”
Rudowicz said they looked at a place in Factoria Mall in Bellevue but that it was “all gutted too,” and that he did not want to start over.
Rudowicz and Grammer had the task of telling their vendors on Saturday morning that the weekend was their last.
“I’m downright mad,” said Mona Rouse on Saturday as dozens of shoppers shuffled through the flea market looking for final bargains. “Even Boeing gives you two weeks to vacate.”
Owner of Mona’s Needful Things, Rouse sells magnetic jewelry and other hand-crafted items. Before coming to ShopSmart Bazaar, she sold her wares at City Marketplace, an indoor marketplace in Lynwood. She said she will go back to selling there, though her business was thriving in Kirkland.
“This is just more upscale,” said Rouse. “My business is climbing every week. I even have repeat customers.”
Many of the vendors were business owners that had merchandise in storage lockers after not being able to afford rent for their storefront.
Some vendors, like Khaleel Grant, were new to business and used the Kirkland flea market as a start-up opportunity. Grant, who owns Chance’s Used Furniture and Housewares, said his sales have “jumped by one-third each week. It’s a great start-up opportunity. There’s no other options like this in Kirkland.”
One of the vendors had sold everything in their storage space during the past month. Others are living in their cars and Rudowicz and Grammer took a chance on them by allowing them to sell before paying rent for the stall, which worked out for both parties. The Bazaar became a way for many of the vendors to get back on their feet.
“It just ripped my guts out that I had to tell them we’re out - we love these people,” said Rudowicz. “We want to see these 75 people make it. I have a conscience.”
Editor Carrie Wood contributed to this report.Contact Kirkland Reporter Regional Assistant Editor Matt Phelps at email@example.com or 425-822-9166 ext. 5052.


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Published on February 20th, 2013 | by Mac Agenda0
MacBook Air Retina Reportedly Planned for 3Q 2013 Launch
According to the report, the MacBook Air will not only be receiving internal upgrades to Intel’s new Haswell platform but also a “facelift” with new external features, including the possibility of a Retina display. The report also claims that suppliers will begin shipping components to Apple’s assembly partner Quanta during the second quarter of the year.
KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo had previously included an updated MacBook Air in his 2013 Apple product roadmap, predicting a late second quarter or early third quarter launch for the device. He did, however, indicate that the update would not include Retina displays, which would require substantially more battery power than the current displays and likely force a redesign to also accommodate a somewhat thicker display assembly.
Pricing remains another question for Apple, as the MacBook Air is the company’s entry-level notebook and Apple will likely be very hesitant to raise that floor. But while Apple’s Retina MacBook Pro models carry significantly higher pricing than their non-Retina counterparts, a significant amount of that cost is related to a shift to solid-state drives, which are already used in the MacBook Air.
Consequently, a shift to a Retina display for the MacBook Air may add a much smaller price premium to the lineup. Apple could also choose to separate the MacBook Air into Retina and non-Retina lines as it has for the MacBook Pro, or offer Retina displays as higher-end options on a unified lineup.

domain: news


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Chevy’s Aluminum AmbitionsAug 18, 2015
In a classic spin on “Follow the Leader,” we have received word that one leader in the automotive world is following closely on the aluminum heels of another.
Chevy is right behind Ford in its plans to rebuild its lineup, specifically the Chevrolet Silverado, out of aluminum materials. This, after Ford successfully risked re-crafting its 2015 F150 pickup truck.
Aluminum materials, in lieu of steel, result in lighter vehicles, with improved capabilities and enhanced fuel efficiency.
Who doesn’t want that?
Well it seems like just about everybody does as Ford has struggled to meet growing demands for their new aluminum pickup truck. If Ford’s experience is any indication, I bet your local Chevrolet Lexington KY will have a hard time keeping the future aluminum-based Silverado inventory stocked.
Time will tell, but for now let’s see why industry experts and consumers are increasingly in awe of aluminum…


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An article out of Bloomberg Japan reports that during a press conference held in Tokyo today, Capcom's Tsujimoto Kenjou spoke about Biohazard on the PS2, including first hints at a possible time frame for release of the hotly anticipated game.
After mentioning that the Biohazard series has sold over 12 million units shipped worldwide, Mr. Kenjou commented that similar titles, featuring "grotesque" themes will be one of the company's pillars in the future. Mr. Kenjou then proceeded to comment on PS2 Biohazard, stating that the game is scheduled to ship to Japan in the first three months of 2001. However, Capcom believes that Onimusha will be a hit, with 700,000 units projected for initial shipments in Japan. In order to prevent the two games from interfering with one another sales-wise, Biohazard on PS2 could be postponed until the next possible shipping period, which, according to the Bloomberg article, is March of 2002 (perhaps this is the start of the new financial year... or perhaps Capcom is a strong believer in tradition).
Capcom states that it will closely monitor pre-sales of Onimusha this December in order to determine its course of action.
Hey Japanese gamers - we here at IGNPS2 want Onimusha to be a success - we really do. But here's our suggestion for how to make sure we get a Biohazard on PS2 as soon as possible:
- 1. DON'T pre-order Onimusha this December.
- 2. On January 25th, EVERY PS2 OWNER in the country (that includes YOU, Colin Williamson) go out to Akihabara or wherever you live and buy your copy of the game.
- 3. Following the January 25th date, nobody else buy the game.
Bam! Onimusha sells unexpectedly well (we figure 2 million copies could go out the door... uhh, assuming Capcom actually ships that many seeing as how preorders for the title don't amount to a hill of Dreamcast games), but sales taper off quickly enough so that Capcom deems it worthwhile to release Biohazard as well.
Hey - it could work...


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Kanz’s City Pizza and Burgerz is expanding.
The owners opened their first restaurant at 12804 Santa Fe Trail Drive, Lenexa, in January 2012. Now they are already adding an Olathe location, at 11180 S. Lone Elm Road, for a scheduled July 15 opening. Johnny Brusco’s New York Style Pizza formerly operated in the space.
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Kanz’s menu items include pizza and burgers along with appetizers like its Chezzy Balls (meatballs covered in cheese, breaded and fried) and its cheeseburger salad (lettuce topped with seasoned ground beef, bacon bits, mozzarella blend, tomatoes and special sauce).
Owners Kevin Travis and Bill Degar plan to have three to five of the neighborhood restaurants in the next three to five years.
“You can get drinks anywhere but I think people really like our fresh food. We make everything on site except for the veggie burger,” Travis said.


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The European Commission’s proposed pharmaceutical strategy leaves it to the countries to decide whether drugs’ package leaflet is in paper format electronic, or both. However, having only electronic leaflets might put patients’ safety at risk, Luxembourgish MEP Tilly Metz has warned.
The revamp of the bloc’s regulatory framework for pharmaceuticals, presented by the Commission on 26 April, aims to unlock timely and equitable access to safe and effective medicines for all EU citizens while at the same time boosting the attractiveness of the EU pharmaceutical industry.
The proposal for a new directive and regulation that replace the 20-year-old pharmaceutical legislation deals with competitiveness, innovation, availability, and accessibility of medicines. But it also touches on package leaflets that provide medication instructions, including dosage, storage or potential side effects.
Currently, information is provided on a standardised leaflet enclosed in each package of medicines but Article 63 in the directive says that “member states may decide that the package leaflet shall be made available in paper format or electronically, or both”.
As the proposed directive “has a general objective to guarantee a high level of public health by ensuring the quality, safety and efficacy of medicinal products for EU patients,” MEP Tilly Metz from the Greens, one of the six shadow rapporteurs for the new regulation, warned that having only electronic leaflets would put some patients at risk.
“There is a risk, a safety risk. It reduces the safety of medicine if we introduce that,” she told Euractiv in an interview, listing connection issues, digital access, and digital literacy as some of the reasons.
According to Eurostat, in 2021, only a bit more than 50% of people in the EU aged 16 to 74 had at least basic digital skills. The share of people with those skills was the highest in the Netherlands and Finland, nearly reaching 80% in both, while on the other side of the scale, in Romania it stood at under 30%, and around 31% in Bulgaria.
That lack of digital skills might make the information provided only electronically inaccessible for some, according to a survey conducted by consumer cluster Euroconsumers in Belgium, Italy, Portugal, and Spain.
The majority, nearly 80% of over 4,000 participants who responded to a paper questionnaire, disagreed with the suggestion of replacing paper leaflets inside drug packages with QR codes.
Respondents felt that having only electronic access to information would disadvantage older people (81%) and would make society too dependent on the Internet (70%).
Metz already voiced her concerns in a debate on 20 September in Parliament’s Public Health Committee (ENVI) on behalf of Danish Green MEP Margrete Auken, who is a shadow rapporteur for a new directive.
“We are not keen on the idea of digital leaflets, especially when it comes to antimicrobials. Here, all info should be written on the immediate packaging of the drug,” Metz told the meeting.
Asked by EURACTIV what is the optional solution, Metz said: “For us, it’s very clear that the digital leaflet should only be a complement and not a substitute.”
“As a complement – yes. But not to replace the paper leaflet.
Based on the proposal, she said, the countries can pick either or both formats for providing the information. “There should be a harmonised approach in the EU. […] It’s not really in the interest of the of the patient here,” Metz said.
Not buying the Commission’s proposed solution
The Commission’s proposal states that if the package leaflet is only made available electronically, “the patient’s right to a printed copy of the package leaflet should be guaranteed upon request and free of charge and it should be ensured that the information in digital format is easily accessible to all patients”.
This risks putting an additional burden on the pharmacists, which is why Metz called the solution “quite unrealistic”.
“We know that pharmacists have a high workload, often they are confronted with medicine shortages and have to find a substitute for that,” Metz said. Her comment touches on the drug shortages that hampered access to medicines across the EU last autumn.
Adding additional tasks to pharmacists would also affect customer satisfaction as it would “increase the people’s waiting [time] in the pharmacy”.
She added that this would also mean requiring pharmacies to invest in printers.
Another concern voiced by Metz is the possible misuse of digital leaflets for commercial purposes.
“We have to make safeguards that it is not used for commercial purposes so that it really only contains the needed information,” she stressed, adding that this could also confuse patients.
“First of all, you get some advertisement [online] and then they look at what you were looking at. And later on, you get an advertisement saying: ‘Oh, you have high blood pressure. We can suggest these vitamins,'” Metz gave a scenario, calling for this to be prevented.
Having the digital version of the leaflet is seen as useful by 35% of respondents to the Euroconsumers survey, going up to 43% in Italy and Spain.
One of the reasons for that is the environmental impact. Around 61% agree that QR codes are better for the environment than paper leaflets.
But Metz is not convinced as servers for storing information and smartphones for scanning QR codes would need energy. Additionally, pharmacies would still be using paper for printing information for those who request it on paper.
“It is a kind of greenwashing,” she said. “We have really to look at the whole picture.”
[Edited by Zoran Radosavljevic]


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Having a party? Really wish you could play those banging Last Oasis tunes at it? Nope, us neither. However, Donkey Crew have released the Last Oasis soundtrack. You can already buy it on Steam.
To celebrate, Donkey Crew have also put the game on sale starting now! The promotion will continue for the next 72 hours.


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Twitter has just pushed out version 5.0 of its Android app to those that are part of its Android beta program. With the new release comes a brand new design that introduces a new slide-out menu on the left hand side, while still keeping the familiar tabs along the top of app and adding a few new ones for Trending, Activity, Find people. You’ll notice other areas of the app have been streamlined as well, but there’s not yet an iPad optimized version of the beta. There’s also a few features missing from the previous versions– like the ability to mark all tweets as read– but we’d imagine they will return before the redesigned app comes out of beta.
If you’re interested in joining up for the Twitter beta tester program, you can learn how to do so here.
FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.


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SAN FRANCISCO (CBS.MW) -- This week, companies ranging from CNet and TheStreet.com to DoubleClick will report third-quarter results.
The recent surge in Net media names has pushed some valuation upwards of 100-plus times forward earnings estimates. This does beg the question: Will these companies deliver a performance that matches the recent enthusiasm?
Better yet, given that at least one - CNet -- trades at a premium valuation to Yahoo, will it prove that it, too, can drive core advertising by 20 percent?
That's the bar set for the online media group. If they fall short of it, then you'd have to ask yourself why they deserve the same multiples or higher as the leaders: Yahoo
If they don't top expectations and set the stage for growth in the fourth quarter and next year, they'll sell off.
It's a great franchise but in anticipation of results this week, investors have to ask whether the company is producing enough to support its market cap.
At current prices, CNet is trading at more than 900 times next year's earnings estimate of 1 penny. Even at one of the most optimistic of estimates -- which is 7 cents as projected by Smith Barney -- CNet trades at 131 times next year's earnings. That's even more than Yahoo's multiple of 81 times next year's projected earnings.
By comparison, Chinese portal Sina SINA, mobile carrier risks notwithstanding, looks more reasonable at $41, or about 40-plus times next year's earnings of $1.
To be fair, CNet has lowered its operating costs and is set to reap the rewards should tech advertising begin to revive. As noted by Smith Barney's analyst Lanny Baker, CNet has turned the corner from posting revenue declines to revenue gains. CNet already saw growth in its core online ad business in the second quarter.
The imminent question is, how much will it grow in the third quarter?
Yahoo saw its branded advertising sales grow 20 percent in the third quarter, nearly double from the second-quarter rate of 12 percent annually. That means investors are expecting CNet's branded advertising business, which accounts for about 72 percent of its sales, as estimated by Thomas Weisel Partners, to grow far more rapidly than it had in the second quarter.
Depending on which analyst you listen to, CNet's online advertising sales grew anywhere between 1 percent (Smith Barney forecast) to 4 percent (Thomas Weisel Partners) in the second quarter. CNet should at least grow its branded advertising business by 8 percent in the quarter to support its stock price.
But here's the rub: Tech companies are not advertising as much as they typically have done during past recoveries.
Keep in mind a recent survey published by Sanford Bernstein, which concluded that tech spending will be flat to slightly up in the third quarter, which is a bit below past recoveries.
Vadim Slotnikov, Bernstein's crack tech strategist, said it's not that advertising spending is decelerating, but rather that it's not buoyant. See Net Stocks: Q3 ad spending slowdown.
Additionally, should tech companies begin to commit to online advertising, it's likely they'll spend a good portion of that on paid search sites. And, it's unclear whether niche sites like CNet will be the leading place to do the branded technology advertising even though it would be one of the first places to consider should a tech company want to place ads on the Web and reach an audience interested in technology.
Given its debt burden, CNet doesn't have much leeway to up its costs next year.
TheStreet.com TSCM, which reports Thursday morning, hasn't had the same run-up as CNet. In fact, since posting its second-quarter results, TheStreet.com shares are down to just above $5, but well above the $4 and change they struck back in August.
So, it's not as vulnerable to the downside. Still, shares are at lofty levels for a company that's not expected to be profitable for another two quarters. The market valuation is nearly four times next year's projected sales forecast of $31.89 million.
To this end, it'll be worth noting whether financial institutions, like Ameritrade AMTD, are stepping up the advertising. Online advertising sales grew 19 percent in the second quarter. So, it should be positive news if online advertising numbers can maintain that growth level, or higher. It's probably more interesting, however, to see just how well the research out of TheStreet's research arm, called IRG, has been received. (According to one analyst, this division brought in $160,000 in sales in 30 days).
DoubleClick DCLK reports results on Thursday, after the close. DoubleClick is expected to grow quarterly sales by 1 percent to $75 million. But to gauge the health of online advertising, take a look at DoubleClick's TechSolutions business, which comprises ad-serving, e-mail management technology and campaign management, which is very tiny.
Of the $42 to $45 million in expected revenue from this division, advertising serving sales is expected to be $30 million to $33 million, down from $35 million last year. That's likely why the stock is trading at a relatively modest 46 times next year's analysts' estimate of 25 cents a share. But since this division accounts for 45 percent of the company's total sales, unless there is some upside in this number, it's hard to love it, since it's at a relative discount to "expensive" Net stocks.
Editor's note: CNet and TheStreet.com compete with MarketWatch.com, the publisher of this column, in the delivery of real-time financial information.
Around the corner
Here's one fast-growing online advertising company to watch, and possibly pick up.
Aquantive AQNT, at a price of $12.08, has a market cap that's half the market cap size of DoubleClick, but sales that are nearly 80 percent the size of DoubleClick's.
Aquantive also trades at 43 times at least one analysts' estimate of 28 cents a share. Aquantive is set to report next Wednesday.
Aquantive said its two businesses -- delivering ads on the Web and creating, planning and buying advertisement online for Fortune 1000 clients -- could grow as much as 66 percent to $57 million in sales in the third quarter. But Aquantive's agency business, which accounts for 85 percent of sales, will best reflect the health of the online advertising business. That'll be the number to watch for.
Others to keep in mind for next week and beyond include Ask Jeeves and Homestore.com. Ask Jeeves ASKJ posts quarterly results on Wednesday. Analysts expect Jeeves to report sales growth of 43 percent to $25.45 million. Keep in mind that Jeeves' revenue doesn't reflect the health in branded advertising, however. Jeeves makes the bulk of its money from Google, which has been giving Jeeves a fee to place its advertising network ads on Jeeves' site.
Homestore HOMS reports third-quarter results in the first or second week of November. Of its total sales, online advertising (or media services, which is Homestore's description) accounts for 66 percent of sales in the second quarter, and it was unchanged at $35 million and change in both the first quarter and second quarter. Homestore's deal with Overture, which was announced in August, isn't expected to be significant revenue driver in the third quarter. This paid-listings business will be part of Homestore's media services segment.
Last week, Viacom's cable channel Spike TV launched Spike TV's MarketWatch movers hosted by my colleague Trish Regan and me.
Viacom is a shareholder in MarketWatch, the publisher of this column.
Watch the daily segments on Spike TV at 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. on both coasts.
The new segments will also air at 5:25 a.m. and 5:55 a.m. daily on the WCBS morning show in Manhattan.
You can get free e-mail delivery of Bambi Francisco's Net Stocks daily and Net Sense weekly. Sign up here for Bambi Francisco's Net Stocks and Net Sense newsletters at MarketWatch.com. See previous Net Sense: Is Google worth as much as Yahoo? and The new age of spaghetti throwing.


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The Federal Communications Commission is now involved in the Netflix, Verizon and Comcast dispute as consumers begin complaining.
US regulators will now review agreements between Netflix, Verizon and Comcast to find out why consumers have been complaining about reduced speeds.
Netflix, Verizon and Comcast have long been battling it out as both sides accuse each other of slowing down internet speeds.
Netflix, which is a large content provider has been inundated with fees from cable companies that protest that their content slows down their internet service. Netflix on the other hand, states that they pay additional fees and should not be throttled due to consumer popularity.
The FCC is now looking into the contracts between Netflix and the cable companies to determine how best to handle this ongoing battle.
In fact, it was this battle that bought public attention to need for open internet.
While talks on open internet have not really been favorable, the FCC is now leading investigations to protect consumers from being ripped off.
“Consumers need to understand what is occurring when the Internet service they’ve paid for does not adequately deliver the content they desire, especially content they’ve also paid for,” said FCC chairman, Tom Wheeler.
“What we are doing right now is collecting information, not regulating. We are looking under the hood. Consumers want transparency. They want answers. And so do I,” he concluded.


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Landlines yield to mobiles in India
Mobile phone users have outstripped traditional landline connections in India, according to the industry, marking a major lifestyle and communications milestone for the rapidly changing country.
A survey conducted by India's leading telecoms magazine, Voice and Data, found 45 million people possess mobile phones in India compared to 44 million who have landlines.
"It took landline phone subscriptions 50 years to get to the 40-million-mark while mobile phones have touched it in nine years and four months. Mobile phones have created a complete culture change in communication," said the magazine's senior assistant editor, Pravin Prashant.
"Furthermore, it does not appear that the mobile phone juggernaut will slow down in the coming years."
Growing markets like India and China - the two countries with billion-plus populations - are providing rich pickings for an industry looking outside mobile-saturated Europe.
The survey has predicted that at least 110 million new mobile phone subscribers will be added in India during the next three years.
According to US-based investment bank Morgan Stanley, India's mobile market is expected to grow at a compound average rate of 40 percent until 2007.
India has also emerged as the second-largest market after China for cellphone handsets. Mobile phonemakers such as Nokia, Siemens, Sony Ericsson, Korea's LG and Philips have launched new models in the market to keep pace with the demand.
The country's emergence as one of the fastest growing mobile phone markets in the world comes despite the fact that a large number of India's billion-plus population remain out of range of a cellular network.
Industry players, who say the mobile phone boom was beyond their most optmistic predictions, attribute the surge in sales to the fact that the country lags far behind the rest of the world in conventional, fixed-line telephony.
Introducing cellphone networks, they say, is cheaper and faster than stringing up telephone wires.
With the proliferation of mobile phones, the teledensity in India has shot up to eight phones per 100 people compared to less than three five years ago. But that is still well below the global average of around 15.
"One can get a mobile phone up and running in minutes whereas it can take anything from two days to a week to get a landline phone," said Viraj Chouhan, senior manager for India's largest private telecoms group, Bharti.
"In rural India it may take even longer to get landline connections working," he added.
India's cellphone market is adding nearly 1.8 million customers every month while in China the number of new subscribers is rising by four to five million a month.
Ericcson chief executive Carl-Henric Svanberg said subscriber numbers may be topping out in Western Europe but emerging markets would continue to drive "fantastic growth".
The world now has 1.5 billion mobile phone subscribers.
"We can see that we are rapidly closing in on two billion mobile phone subscribers by 2006," Svanberg said.
"At least 50 percent of our growth will come from the emerging markets. We have so much still to cover in China, India and the techno-savvy Asia-Pacific region," he added.
Industry experts say lower tariffs have also spurred the rapid growth in a country where the average Indian earns $US1.6 a day.
"After the National Telecom Policy came into force in 1999 call charges dropped from 16 rupees (34 US cents) per minute to less than a rupee in 2004," said Prashant from Voice and Data.
"India is one of the lowest cellphone tariff countries in the world and this gels perfectly with the socio-economic conditions here and has helped register the high growth rates."


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Sunday was the last day of the Hearth, Home and Away Show and vendors were more enthused than ever.
Owner of All Decked Out, David Thomas, was one of dozens of vendors at the annual home-improvement show. Thomas says he’s been coming to the home show for the past six years. His favorite part of the three day event is interacting with customers and helping them create their dream designs.
"Well we are a full service builder so obviously we will do everything from a deck to a full house and every where in-between. We just recently became a preferred installer for Owens Corning so we are doing roofing more and more all the time, " said Thomas.
Thomas says a majority of people who stopped by the All Decked Out booth say come springtime, they plan on making additions to their homes


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Mon 26 Oct 2015, 10:14
MultiChoice Kenya cuts DStv decoder price by 50 percent to usher in the festive season.
Leading pay media provider MultiChoice Kenya has reduced the price of its DStv High Definition decoders by 50 percent, from Ksh11 000 to Ksh5 500, as part of its festive season campaign. The new unbeatable price is inclusive of the decoder, satellite dish, cabling and installation fee.
The promotion dubbed Drop the Rest, Get the Best will give Kenyans a chance to enjoy quality DStv content with over 120 international and local channels over the festive season at an affordable rate.
The price special will be applicable while stocks last. Hurry now, get your DStv HD online by filling in the form below:
“We have developed and heavily invested in quality content for our customers and the price cut offers an opportunity for new customers to sample our wide array of family content. Customers can get the full kit HD decoder plus installation at Ksh5 500 and choose a monthly bouquet of their preference,” said MultiChoice Kenya General Manager Chiruyi Walingo.
“Customers can opt for a DStv Access package at a cost of Ksh6 550, which includes the price of the decoder and a one month subscription or Ksh7 650 for the DStv Family package. One month of DStv Premium package subscription, which allows access to content such as English Premier League plus the high definition decoder will retail at Sh14 900. The DStv Compact bouquet will go for Ksh9 250 while DStv Compact Plus package will retail at Ksh11 900,” said Chiruyi.
Existing DStv customers are also encouraged to take advantage of this offer to upgrade to the HD decoder during the promotion period. The offer is also part of MultiChoice Kenya’s 20th anniversary celebrations.
As Multichoice Kenya launched its 20th anniversary celebrations last month, the company released a report detailing its contribution to the Kenyan economy. MultiChoice through its DStv and GOtv brands provides a combined 9 300 hours broadcast for local content contributing to the visibility of Kenyan and East African culture on-air through investing in prominent local shows and local channels.
“We will continue to promote the growth of the entertainment industry as more Kenyans gain access to the content on DStv which in turn will help build local content producers,” added Chiruyi.
MultiChoice Kenya accounts for over 40% of the money paid to production houses and the firm has been hailed for paying 50-100 percent more per episode for commissioned shows and films.


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National Grid will update the market with a trading statement on Monday.
Nick Raynor, investment adviser at retail stockbroker The Share Centre, rates the stock as a buy.
He said: "There have been concerns over National Grid's debt levels recently, however plenty of funds have been raised in the bond market."
Building materials firm Wolseley will be expected to show some signs of recovery following a major overhaul of the entire business. If not, shareholders may have to endure further tough times with the owner of Plumb Center and Build Center.
On Tuesday, mining company Vedanta Resources will announce its quarter one figures while gold discovery firm Randgold Resources and BP will reveal quarter two figures.
Another mining business, Xstrata, will also report its interim results. Raynor said: "Commodities will be the main focus onTuesday, gold, oil and minerals will all be covered.
"With the price of oil stabilising, we will be hoping for further confirmation BP's dividend policy will remain unchanged."
Wednesday sees British Gas, sweet maker Cadburys and Shire Pharamceuticals publishing interims' results. On the same day consumer goods maker Reckitt Benckiser, which owns brands such asVanish, Gaviscon, Nurofen and Clearasil, will update on quarter two figures. Accounting software giant Sage is also due to unveil its third quarter results.
British Telecom will report first quarter figures on Thursday, Shell quarter two and BskyB preliminary results.
AstraZeneca, British American Tobacco, BAE Systems, Centrica, Reed Elsevier, Rexam, Rolls Royce and Smith & Nephew all have interim results due as well.


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Owners of unused vehicles can donate them for tax breaks while also benefiting American Legion programs. Proceeds from each auction sale via Charitable Auto Rides Service, Inc. (CARS) will go toward Legion charities and programs.
What we are expected to wear to work is ingrained in us at a very young age. We’re taught that firefighters wear brimmed helmets, doctors wear white coats and businesspeople wear suits.
BASE Camp Hospital Lunch Delivery At APH to be held December 4
XL Soccer League to be held December 5
A Washington monument to honor Medal of Honor recipients was proposed Tuesday in legislation introduced by two Texas congressmen.
If you’re thinking of putting your job search off until after the holidays, think again. Although conventional wisdom holds that looking for a job during this time is a futile exercise, evidence suggests the contrary.
With the fourth annual Utility Scam Awareness Week starting Nov. 17, Duke Energy is expanding its campaign to protect its nearly 8 million customers from utility-impostor scammers.
Record cold temperatures washed over parts of the country this week. And although it may have altered some Veterans Day plans, it didn’t stop American Legion posts and districts from commemorating the sacred holiday in some way, shape or form.
American Legion National Commander Bill Oxford thanked President Trump for signing a bipartisan act which will require certain prominent federal properties to display the POW/MIA Flag every day with the U.S. Flag.
Buddy Up Tennis - Lake Nona to be held November 2
Plant-based bomb-dropping is officially an epidemic as 4 Rivers Smokehouse has announced the addition of “Beyond Burnt Ends” — an entirely vegan option — to its menu.
CECO's Youngster Program to be held November 1
Trunk or Treat to be held October 25
SBA: Federal Certification Information Session to be held October 24
2019 Future of Florida Forum to be held October 28
Pumpkin Patch Meet Up to be held October 12
Utmost, the maker of an app to manage nonemployee workers, announced a funding round. Separately, AI bot maker Talenya raised $6.5 million, and staffing firm Recruit Co. Ltd. invested in a company operating in the blockchain space.
Synapse Orlando to be held October 18
Baby Basics to be held October 3
Sodexo, a food services and facilities management company committed to improving Quality of Life, announced today that it has been selected as one of the Top 50 Companies of the Year by LATINA Style, Inc. The full list of companies has been published in the August issue of LATINA Style Magazine.


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Open Kitchen spicing up life in the capital
This season, the popular event, taking place in Pogačar Square, will be held not only every Friday, as was the case in the past, but twice a week, also on Thursdays.
Visitors will be able to indulge in barbecue meat, Mediterranean cuisine, vegan burgers and sweets as well as various beverages.
Alma and Lior Kochavy, Open Kitchen co-founders, are glad that the event will once again serve as a platform for numerous restaurants to showcase their delicacies and a way to revive the city centre, particularly in the light of the social and economic ramifications of the coronavirus epidemic.
The preventive measures include reduced capacity of tables and seats and increased distance between individual stalls. Surfaces will be regularly disinfected and hand sanitizers provided. Self-service is no longer an option and cashless payments are encouraged.


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Bellevue-based Ignition Partners announced today that it has created a new company by merging three wireless broadband companies that provide service to businesses.
The new company will be called Sparkplug and is a combination of Sparkplug in Chicago, Prairie iNet in Des Moines and Telespectra in Phoenix. It will be led by Ignition Partners’ Bill Malloy, who will be CEO, and Steve Hooper, as chairman.
Sparkplug, using technology from Motorola, will offer wireless business broadband services in the Midwest and the Southwest.
“Our business customers are moving more data than ever. They demand scaleable high-speed connections that are affordable, reliable and quick to provision, plus come with responsive customer service,” Malloy said. “All three companies deliver on this today, and that’s why businesses are choosing us. Through the merger we are announcing today, the new company is well-positioned to meet these needs for more businesses in existing or new markets.”
In June, Ignition gathered an additional $80 million to support acquisitions. That makes its current venture fund about $400 million.


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Poultry farmers in Kenya are saving up to Sh12,000 on feed costs monthly and increasing the maturity rate of their birds by two and a half weeks.
In addition, they are taming the spread of aflatoxins from chicken to humans thanks to a low cost organic supplement that has now caught the attention of Uganda and academic scholars.
Dubbed MolaPlus Poultry Microbes, the solution, which is a form of supplement, is the first of its kind in Kenya. It is organic ensuring that the birds and their products are free from chemicals.
It has been developed by animal feed manufacturer MolaPlus Limited and comes in the wake of increasing cost of chicken feed and diseases that are taking a toll on poultry farming in the country even as the sector struggles to stoke growing competition from Uganda.
Feeds account for 30 per cent of poultry farmers’ expenses with the cost of preventing and curing diseases taking another 30 per cent. But the unprecedented spike in feed prices in recent years, occasioned by the scarcity of raw materials and competition for grains by poultry and humans, is eating into the farmers’ profits. Farmers are also grappling with diseases as changing weather and poor feeding take a toll on the health and immunity of the birds.
“With the increasing cost of feeds, poultry farmers need a feeding formula that ensures right rations with a good nutritional mix while keeping the birds free from diseases. This is no mean feat,” said Henry Ambwere the CEO of MolaPlus Limited.
The MolaPlus Poultry Microbes, a set of beneficial living microorganisms, and which come in the form of liquid, ensure that chicken are able to utilise the feeds faster while consuming less. This increases the bird’s growth rate and weight faster than a chicken relying on feeds alone.
The microbes attach themselves to the gut of the bird, additionally creating a protective environment that inhibits attacks from disease causing organisms.
They are mixed with water, at the ratio of five millilitres for every litre of water, once every day.
A farmer is able to save a bag of 70kg feed every week by using the supplement for every 1,000 birds. With a 70kg kilo of layers mash feed going for Sh3,000 a farmer is able to save Sh12,000 every month.
The microbes also assist chicken reach maturity two and a half weeks earlier than they ordinarily would which reduces the cost of feeding.
“This has got to do with a host of other beneficial aspects that the microbes produce in the body including Vitamins to boost the bird’s immunity,” Ambwere said.
A study by the Animal Science department of Egerton University on the MolaPlus Poultry Microbes also found out that the microbes increased bird weight by half a kilo under three weeks. They also assist in strengthening of the egg shell, the yellowing of the yolk and increasing the egg weight.
And at a time when the country is grappling with the aflatoxin menace, microbes are offering a cheaper and more organic solution. Kenya has been classed by the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), as one of the world’s hotspots for aflatoxins.
The growing demand for the company’s microbes has been rising in the country which has seen it increase its outlet network to 1,500 stores.


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Puppy Mill Awareness of SE Michigan reviewed paperwork from puppy buyers who purchased ill puppies from The Barking Boutique (2939 Wilson Ave. SW, Grandville, MI). The puppies were diagnosed with a wide range of illnesses shortly after purchase including: giardia, kennel cough, pneumonia, hypoglycemia, and an ear infection.
The families have turned to a local law firm to seek damages. One puppy buyer, Kate Mead, also turned to social media to warn families:
“I bought him from the Barking Boutique in Grandville on October 19th. ..... I had no idea how horrible this place was until he started vomiting two days later and couldn’t stand on his own. He needed to be hospitalized for four days after they diagnosed pneumonia. He was only 2 lbs and had to also fight an infection causing him to be anemic! The store won’t cover any anything! “
“Grandville is a buyer beware city as the state dropped the Pet Shop Program ten years ago and the county does not license or inspect pet stores as a safety net.” stated Pam Sordyl, founder of Puppy Mill Awareness. “The only regulatory oversight the state provides is to ensure animals are properly vaccinated during importation into the state, yet the store continues to import animals without proper vaccinations even after an official warning letter was sent by the state last year.”
Since the warning letter from the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (MDARD), 22 more importation health certificates were rejected by the state (affecting 46 puppies). Two of these puppies were reported to be sold will serious illnesses.
On November 27, 2018 the MDARD denied records including importation certificates related to The Barking Boutique stating that their release would interfere with an investigation. The records request was submitted by Puppy Mill Awareness after six families reported buying sick puppies from the store between February – October 2018.
The results of these complaints and investigations have brought to light a serious and persistent problem with The Barking Boutique: there is a lack of veterinary oversight.
“Veterinarians are often seen as accomplices in puppy mill investigations because they are neglecting their due diligence to vaccinate these animals yet they are signing off on their health.” Sordyl.
“Veterinarians have an obligation to promote the health and well-being of the animals under their care, and unfortunately, some of them choose to turn a blind eye to the conditions faced by puppy mill puppies. If lawsuits continue to turn up cases of veterinary neglect, veterinarians will be held just as accountable as pet stores, breeders, and brokers in the economy of neglect that results from puppy mills.” Sordyl.
Within it the first fifteen months of operation The Barking Boutique imported over 580 puppies from Iowa, Missouri, Minnesota and Indiana using multiple brokers, transporters and 82 different breeders making them high volume puppy store. Many of the store’s breeders had violations to the Animal Welfare Act. https://thebarkingboutique.blogspot.com/2017/12/usda-breeder-violations-photos.html [thebarkingboutique.blogspot.com]
Local animal advocates are urging city officials to end the retail sale of puppies and protect families from irresponsible puppy brokers. “Cities should promote humane business models and encourage families to adopt from their local shelter or Michigan Certified foster-based animal rescue organization - many of whom specialize in specific breeds.” Sordyl
Learn more about Puppy Mill Awareness
Links to related stories:
The Barking Boutique Breeder Information - USDA Breeder Violations & Photos https://thebarkingboutique.blogspot.com/2017/12/usda-breeder-violations-photos.html [thebarkingboutique.blogspot.com]
Warning Letter sent to The Barking Boutique
Bissell Pet Foundation secretly buys puppies from closed pet store


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The Indian markets witnessed a volatile final hour as alternate bouts of buying and selling led the indices to hover around the dotted line. However, the indices finally settled on a muted note, with the BSE-Sensex ending lower by around 11 points, while the NSE-Nifty closed higher by about 2 points. Today, buying activity was witnessed in stocks from the metal, healthcare and FMCG spaces. On the other hand, stocks from the capital goods and realty space failed to garner the markets participants’ interests. The midcaps ended higher by 0.5% while the small caps ended lower by about 0.2%. The overall decline to advance ratio stood at 1.4 to 1 on the BSE at the time of writing.
Asian markets ended the day on a mixed note today. The European indices are currently trading firm. Rupee was trading at 48.73 against the US dollar at the time of writing.
Steel stocks ended the day on a mixed note. While SAIL ended higher, JSW Steel ended on a weak note. As per a leading business daily, steel major, SAIL has cut prices of its long products primarily used in construction in the range Rs 1,500 to Rs 2,000 per tonne. As the monsoon season has started, the construction activity has slowed down. This has resulted in lower demand for the long steel products. However, the company’s management is not averse to further rate cuts if the markets situation demands so. It may be noted that prices of key raw materials like coking coal have declined as compared to levels of the earlier years. Further, the company has witnessed a fall in demand on account of 10.5% YoY decline in sales during 4QFY09. This move will help SAIL to fill some gap between demand and supply.
As per a leading business daily, Lupin, Matrix Labs and the UK subsidiary of Unichem Laboratories may face an antitrust investigation from the European Union’s antitrust regulator. The regulator believes that the delay in marketing of the generic version of hypertension drug might have led to an infringement of the antitrust law. The regulator also believes that these companies might have entered into an agreement to delay the introduction of the drug in order to avoid the competition. The European market size for the drug is expected to be around US$ 400 m. As such, the regulator is reviewing the probe as companies delay the introduction for variety of reasons. But if charges are proved, these companies may have to pay a fine of up to 10% revenues of their European operations. The stock of Matrix and Lupin ended in the red while Biocon and Cipla ended the day higher.
According to the official data released today, India’s annual rate of inflation has dropped for the fourth week in a row to negative of 1.55% for the week ended June 27. The wholesale price index (WPI) was at minus 1.3% during the previous week. The index has seen a sharp decline in the recent past on account of lower commodities and fuel prices. The negative highs reached in the last couple of weeks are mainly on the back of the high base effect as the rate of inflation was as high as 12.03% during this time last year. This week while the prices of fuel items remained unchanged, products like cast iron casting, steel ingots and other metal products along with some chemicals got cheaper. On the contrary, the prices of food items like pulses, fish, fruits, imported edible oils and vegetables kept surging raising the consumer price index. It is important not to be carried away by this low headline inflation as in reality, the recent hike in fuel prices and surging price of the important consumer goods are signaling high inflation if the high base effect is removed.
Despite some volatility, the BSE Sensex remained in the positive territory during the previous two hours of trade gaining 61 points. The NSE Nifty also traded in the green, up by 20 points. Currently, stocks from the metal, realty and oil & gas sectors are leading the pack of gainers, while select stocks from the auto, capital goods and consumer durables sectors are trading weak. The overall advance to decline ratio is poised at 0.8 to 1 on the BSE.
The BSE-Midcap and BSE-Smallcap indices are also trading firm, up by around 1.0% and 0.3% respectively. The Rupee is trading at 48.80 to the Dollar.
More trouble seems to be in store for Ranbaxy. Readers would do well to recall that the company has been in deep trouble with the US FDA for not complying with quality manufacturing standards. As a result, even those products for which Ranbaxy had managed to bag the 180-day exclusivity by settling patent suits may be launched with a considerable delay. This is all the more prominent in the case of GSK Plc’s ‘Valtrex’ which is scheduled to be launched by Ranbaxy by the end of 2009. These developments have prompted the Canadian generics firm Apotex to sue Ranbaxy whereby if the former wins the case, then Ranbaxy’s 180-day exclusivity window for ‘Valtrex’ will commence irrespective of whether the US FDA gives approval for the ANDA or not. Typically, the 180-day window commences from the date when the generic company launches the product in the US market. Thus, if Apotex wins its case against Ranbaxy it will be a big blow to the latter as the potential to earn higher revenues and profits from this drug will be impacted. However, Ranbaxy is trading in the green.
DLF, India’s largest real estate developer, has sold its stake in a 50-50 joint venture with Mumbai-based Ackruti City for developing a commercial project to a US-based real-estate fund for a sum of Rs 2 bn. The cash-strapped company exited the joint venture as a part of its asset sale programme to raise Rs 55 bn by the end of this fiscal. It must be noted that DLF has exited many big projects in the last couple of months and has already raised Rs 10 bn through asset sale.Such exits will affect the company’s strategy to expand its footprint in India. The stocks from realty sector are leading the pack of gainers on BSE today.
The Indian markets remained volatile during the previous two hours of trade on the back of alternate bouts of buying and selling activities. Currently, stocks from the metals, energy and FMCG sectors are leading the pack of gainers, while select realty and banking stocks are trading weak. The overall market breadth is negative, with losers outnumbering gainers in the ratio of 1.6 to 1 on the BSE.
While the BSE-Sensex is trading higher, up by around 10 points, the NSE-Nifty is trading flat. The BSE-Midcap index is trading higher by 3%, while the BSE-Smallcap index is trading weak, down by around 0.2%. The Rupee is trading at 48.92 to the Dollar.
As per a leading business daily, Indian software majors are likely to witness an overall hit in the revenues and margins from the export business during the June 2009 quarter. This is expected on account of lower volumes, downward pressure on billing rates and an appreciating rupee. However, the new contracts by the clients will give some cushion. Further, on account of change in the business outlook, IT firms are also likely to report more contracts. Though software industry's export business in the key geographical locations remains under pressure on account of lower volumes and volatile exchange rates, all eyes await the outlook and performance review by software major, Infosys in their June quarter earnings expected tomorrow. Software stocks are currently trading mixed.
Steel stocks are also trading mixed. While Tata Steel is marginally lower, SAIL is trading higher on the bourses currently. As per a leading business daily, Tata Steel plans to save around Rs 20 bn on account of cost cutting measures during the current fiscal in its Indian operations. This comes on the back of frugal manufacturing practices and falling prices of key raw materials mainly coking coal. The cost cutting move is as per Tata Steel's regular objective to enable efficiencyTata Steel's regular objective to enable efficiency in the manufacturing activities. As such, it had saved around Rs 8 bn during FY09 through focusing on performance improvement. The reduction amounted to US$ 47 per tonne and 20% higher than their targeted reduction. However, on a proportionate basis, the reductions were not in line with the topline and further aided by the higher raw material prices, the company's margins declined by 3.1% YoY during FY09.
The Indian markets have opened the day's proceedings on a positive note. IMF has revised the GDP growth of India upwards to 5.4% in 2009 from 4.5% projected in April this year. In 2010, the Indian economy is expected to grow at a much faster rate of 6.5%. While banking, pharma, auto and power stocks are trading firm, selling is being witnessed in engineering and software stocks. The overall advance to decline ratio is at 1.2:1 on the NSE. As regards global markets, the US markets ended flat yesterday as buying was witnessed at lower levels. The European markets ended lower, while the Asian markets are also trading down.
The BSE Sensex is trading higher by around 60 points. The NSE Nifty is up 20 points. The BSE Midcap and the BSE Smallcap indices are trading flat currently. The rupee is trading at 49.00 to the dollar.
FMCG stocks are trading firm. As per a Ficci-Technopak report, the FMCG sector is expected to touch US$ 47 bn by 2013 and US$ 95 bn by 2018 due to the implementation of the proposed Goods and Services Tax (GST) and opening of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI). The report suggests that the government needs to rapidly implement GST to replace the multiple indirect taxes currently levied on FMCG products. This would have several benefits, including uniform, simplified and single-point taxation and reduced prices.
Further, in order to reduce counterfeits, the enforcement of the Trade Mark and Copyright Laws is also needed. Counterfeit products account for almost 5% of the industry and poses serious challenges to its growth. FMCG companies had been demanding simplified tax structure since quite some time. The process for the smooth introduction of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) will come in effect from 1st April, 2010. Also, higher rural focus, lower penetration and rising consumerism would continue to aid the sector's growth.
As per a leading business daily, on account of rising delinquencies, the Indian banks have asked the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to relax provisioning norms for home loans and other assets. RBI norms stipulate that if a borrower defaults on any loan facility, all other facilities taken by this borrower should be treated as bad loans. Once a loan is classified as a bad account, the bank has to set aside 10% of the outstanding loan as a provision. This not only affects the net profits of the bank but also leads to higher NPA ratio. And the current economic slowdown has worsened the situation further. This will also impact the credit growth as money available for disbursement as capital is blocked. Growth in loans of Indian banks has slowed from around 27% in November to about 15% in June this year. Banking stocks are trading mixed.
S&P worried over India's rising deficit
The Finance Minister's 'no comments' in the recent budget on how he will be lowering India's fiscal deficit in the years to come has made rating agency S&P quite concerned over the country's outlook. As a matter of fact, as the FM disclosed during his budget speech, India's fiscal deficit (excess of government expenditure over its income) is likely to touch a level 6.8% of GDP by the end of FY10. Moreover, on including off-budget items such as fertiliser and oil bonds, the deficit figure will stand at about 12% of GDP.
"We continue to believe that such high levels of government deficits are unsustainable in the medium term, although we weren't surprised by the number itself," said S&P in a statement.
Currently, the agency has given a rating of BBB- which is one step away from the 'junk' status. Any downward revision on this rating could lower India's appeal with foreign investors (which we are anyways not complaining much about!). However, S&P has added that it expects its India outlook to stabilise at the current levels provided the country manages to reduce its deficit burden in the medium term. This is also keeping in mind that a faster than expected economic recovery would help India to achieve faster fiscal consolidation through higher revenue growth.
Auto numbers - India good, China fabulous
India's 14% YoY growth in total auto sales for the month of June 2009 paints a rosy picture when compared to the ailing auto markets of developed nations. As per the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM), the growth in vehicle sales has been on the back of new model launches, and cheaper and easier financing options. Passenger vehicle sales stood at 140,000 units during the said month, recording a growth of 8% YoY. On the other hand, two-wheeler sales stood at almost 707,000 units and witnessed a growth of 17% YoY.
While these numbers can be considered good, wait till you read the growth rates China is clocking in its auto industry. As per Bloomberg, China's passenger vehicle sales stood at almost 873,000 units in June, a whopping growth of 48% YoY. Total auto numbers for the month stood at 1.1 m units. This is believed to be the biggest jump in auto numbers in over three years. Reasons such as tax cuts and government subsidies have been attributed for the same. It may be noted that China is now the world's biggest auto market (a feat it achieved during the first half of 2009), surpassing the US's 63-year reign.


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Want to delete pre-installed apps without rooting your smartphone? Move to South Korea
posted by Florin T. / Jan 23, 2014, 9:58 AM
Come April, South Korean mobile users who buy new devices will be the first in the world to be able to delete apps pre-installed by carriers whenever they want. According to Yonhap News, South Korea’s Ministry of Science, ICT and Future Planning is enforcing new guidelines for carriers, these allowing users to conveniently remove bloatware from their smartphones. Only “four necessary apps” will remain non-deletable starting April - these are related to the app store, client center, Wi-Fi connections, and NFC.
Reportedly, SK Telecom, South Korea’s largest carrier, is a bloatware champ, pre-installing no less than 25 apps on smartphones like the Samsung Galaxy S4.
A Korean ministry official was quoted as saying that the new move will “normalize an abnormal practice that causes inconvenience to smartphone users and causes unfair competition among industry players." Abnormal it is - we all know it. So here’s hoping that authorities in North America and Europe will follow soon with similar regulations.
source: Yonhap News (registration required to view the full article)
Posts: 42; Member since: Nov 07, 2013
i got excited for a moment :D
posted on Jan 23, 2014, 10:05 AM 7
Posts: 154; Member since: Nov 08, 2011
I daydream for a time in my lifetime for that to happen in the US. Between Samsung and AT&T, I have 51 disabled programs on my GS4. Fiftystinkinone apps! To me this... would... be... AWESOME! Just waiting on an official Cyanogen "stable" rom for my particular build that will use its one click PC installer. HATE BLOAT! It's like you're already screwing me over with your prices, why force me to have your useless apps too?
posted on Jan 23, 2014, 10:28 AM 3
Posts: 1157; Member since: Jul 18, 2013
Quick reminder: Windows Phone have had this feature for a looooooooong time
posted on Jan 23, 2014, 10:16 PM 0
Posts: 1760; Member since: Dec 01, 2013
Yep. But I guess most people would rather stick with bloatware than switch.
posted on Jan 23, 2014, 11:35 PM 0
Posts: 603; Member since: Jul 11, 2012
This will make Android more Popular an more Secure without Losing your Warranty of your Phone,WHy?in the First Place do they put so many un-used Draining Applications on the Phones,Samsung have just changed with the 4.3 update,an with 4.4 Kit Kat hope it improves Android more
posted on Jan 24, 2014, 1:10 AM 1
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A new survey from American Automobile Association shows that 20 percent of Americans – 50 million – will likely buy an electric vehicle for their next vehicle purchase.
“While concern for the environment is still a major motivator, AAA found U.S. drivers are also attracted to the lower long-term costs and advanced technology features that many of these vehicles offer,” said Greg Brannon, AAA’s director of automotive engineering.
The main concerns are range anxiety and places to charge an EV, but those worries are starting to ease. Among those unsure or unwilling to choose an EV for their next car, 63 percent (down 9 percent from 2017) cited “not enough places to charge” as a reason not to buy, and 58 percent (down 15 percent from 2017) were worried about “running out of charge while driving.”
Here’s a caveat from the automaker side. Mitch Bainwol, CEO of the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers, said last week in testimony before a Senate panel that “significantly more people say they would buy an EV than actually do.”Download Bulletin PDF


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A Wal-Mart conundrum
“Whatever you do, please put one in Boston,’’ Lorraine Carrington said on Tuesday afternoon. “Wal-Mart is a beautiful thing. Can you put in a good word?’’
Carrington was standing with her daughter and grandson outside the Tropical Foods supermarket in Dudley Square, a Roxbury institution for 35 years. Of the 10 Tropical customers I spoke to that afternoon, nine said they would like - make that love - to see a Wal-Mart in Dudley.
“My money is small,’’ said a $10.50-an-hour food service worker, who didn’t want her name used in case her employer reads this. “I say 100 percent yes. Maybe I can get a part-time job there.’’
Some parts of this neighborhood - one of the city’s poorest - are in desperate need of resuscitation. Not Tropical Foods.
On Tuesday, customers wheeled carts down well-stocked aisles at the busy, yellow-walled store in search of Kix, bananas, cassava leaves, curry spices.
Co-owner Ronn Garry Jr. has heard the talk that Wal-Mart is eyeing this neighborhood. The company has been buttering up local community groups with donations. Still, Wal-Mart spokesman Steve Restivo says “we don’t have any announced projects,’’ in Roxbury.
Garry worries anyway.
“I don’t know if we could survive,’’ he said. A market study he commissioned found that a nearby Wal-Mart would chew up 30 percent of his business. And it’s a business that is connected to its community: Almost all of Tropical’s 73 workers live in Boston. Garry contributes to local causes and spends $2.5 million on goods from Boston-area suppliers each year.
Until now, he has been focused on expanding.
“Yeah, we’re funky and authentic, but we really need upgrades,’’ he said. The store is included in proposals for two vacant, city-owned parcels farther down Washington Street. They are part of what the city hopes will be a transformation in the area: At least seven parcels and buildings are slated to become new retail, housing, and office space.
Mayor Thomas M. Menino’s plan is to bring so many new consumers into the square that local businesses, which keep more of their profits in the local community, will boom.
It’s the opposite of the Wal-Mart approach. The Arkansas behemoth is no longer seen as the evil giant it was 10 years ago, having redeemed its image with high environmental and nutritional standards. But the key to its success remains the same: Dominating the market, squeezing suppliers, and driving down prices. Wal-Mart vehemently contests this, but there are plenty of studies showing that the chain drives down wages, too. All while sucking character out of communities.
Menino has invested too much political capital to let that happen here. He vows to protect Dudley merchants from Walmageddon.
I happen to think a Wal-Mart would be a disaster here in the long term. I also happen to have a job that means I can afford to shop elsewhere.
But in Dudley Square, there are many people who don’t have the luxury of considering the long term. Besides, they have seen many previous promises of a revival come to nothing. Wal-Mart, with its jobs and low prices, seems like a sure thing. Its apparent interest in Dudley is even viewed by some as a kind of affirmation.
“As a neighborhood, we’re stereotyped,’’ said Sondra Mayes, a 49-year-old Wal-Mart fan who gets by on disability and food stamps. “A lot of big businesses don’t want to come into our area.’’
Even Garry wrestles with this viewpoint.
“I’m a capitalist by nature,’’ he said. “People can open businesses wherever they want. But are [customers] willing to forgo a store that represents them, in favor of one that reflects anywhere in America - just to save a few cents?’’
He’s lucky he won’t find out anytime soon.
Yvonne Abraham is a Globe columnist. She can be reached at email@example.com.


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Britain's Food Standards Agency this week introduced its blueprint for a plan to rate manufactured foods by means of a 'health scorecard'. The proposal received a cool reception from the Food Advertising Unit - an offshoot of the UK Advertising Association.
Says FAU director Jeremy Preston: "We will be considering the FSA's proposals accordingly, but it is important that any restrictions based on this model are proportionate to ensure a balance between business needs and consumer protection."
Consumerist advocates, however, are of the opinion that "business needs" should take second place to protection of the public's health.
Says Michelle Smyth, principal public affairs officer, Which?: "The model will be useful when determining restrictions in advertising foods that are high in sugar, fat and salt to children on TV and radio. We would like to see it further developed for health claims and for signpost labelling.
"Moving forward, the FSA will need to trail it against a broader range of foods targeted to children to ensure that it doesn't present any conflicting health messages."
The new 'scorecard' system has been devised by the FSA at the request of media regulator Ofcom, which is currently mulling possible restrictions on the adverting and promoting of food products deemed unhealthy to children.
As part of its evaluation, Ofcom is expected to consult by the year end with the advertising and food industries over proposed changes to rules governing food advertising. Once agreed, these are likely to be implemented by the end of 2007.
Data sourced from Media Week (UK) and Which?; additional content by WARC staff


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The Minister of MSME and Road Transport and Highways has announced revised guidelines for MSMEs vide press release dated July 02, 2021. The guidelines have included Retail and Wholesale trades as MSMEs. The revised guidelines aim to benefit 2.5 Crore Retail and Wholesale Traders. Under the revised guidelines, the retail and wholesale trade will also get benefit of priority sector lending under RBI guidelines.
As a result, the Retail and wholesale trades will now be allowed to register on Udyam Registration Portal.
*Tanvi Singh, Editorial Assistant has put this story together.


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Nintendo is reported to have removed many DSIWare titles from the Nintendo 3DS Shop without warning fans that the games will disappear.
Takedown was first spotted by a Twitter user comeoutpunching, Who reported that “all DSiWare games released before mid-May 2011 have been disabled.” Shanta in games that are no longer able to buy: Risky Change, Asphalt 4: Elite Racing, A Ra-aura Climber, Dr .. Mario Express, Mr. Driller: Drill Till You Drrop, and many more.
At the time of writing, takedown seems to be the most difficult for North America; Delisted Games Reports that most of the titles removed in that area are still available for purchase in Europe.
After viewing any affected games in Eshop, players are presented with a message that reads, “This software is not currently available.” Given that Nintendo has not yet issued a statement on the disappearing games, it is possible that this is a temporary error that will be resolved – we will make sure to update this story with more information and when we have.
In the meantime, downloading any DSiWare games from 3DS Eshop probably won’t hurt, while you still can. This digital age is a scary one!


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Designer Adriana Hoyos to host American Furniture Hall of Fame banquet
August 21, 2013-- Furniture Today,
HIGH POINT — Adriana Hoyos, an internationally known designer with a vast portfolio of projects, will host the 25th American Furniture Hall of Fame Induction Banquet on Oct. 20 during the High Point Market.
"Adriana is a natural-born designer who enriches the industry with her passion for timeless, sophisticated design. With a career that spans more than 25 years, seven furniture collections, retail stores and 500-plus interior design projects, it is fitting that she help celebrate our 25th anniversary," said George Cartledge, foundation president.
Known for a distinctive style that ignites warmth through natural woods, stunning textures and sleek lines, Hoyos has led projects in the United States, Mexico, the Caribbean, France and the United Kingdom.
"I'm truly honored and humbled to be a part of the foundation's 25th anniversary celebration," Hoyos said. "I'm sure countless others share my gratitude to these men and women whose innovative ideas, passionate commitment and hard work have built the home furnishings industry. Their leadership inspires me."
Industry Fellows who will be recognized for their exceptional leadership, accomplishments and contributions to the furniture industry are Aminy I. Audi, John D. Bassett III, Milo Ray Baughman Jr., A. Leon Capel Jr., Hassell H. Franklin and Eugene Rosenberg. Inductees into the Hall of Fame also will be announced at the banquet.
The new slate of Industry Fellows was selected based on their contributions to the growth and development of the furniture industry in America including these standards: enduring excellence, superior accomplishments, innovation and creativity, and philanthropic generosity.
The deadline for reservations is Oct. 4. Tickets are $125 and can be purchased online at http://furniturehalloffame.com/banquet_tickets.aspx. Reservations may also be made by sending an email to firstname.lastname@example.org or by contacting the foundation office at (336) 882-5900. Checks should be mailed to the American Furniture Hall of Fame Foundation, 202 Neal Place, High Point, NC. 27262.
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Officials Say IBM's 'Sale' Is A Good Deal For Vermont. Is It?
The deal between IBM and GlobalFoundries for IBM’s chip manufacturing and sales divisions doesn’t fit the traditional definition of the word “sale.” In a sale, the money goes to one party and some asset or commodity goes to the other.
In the deal between IBM and GlobalFoundries, the money and the goods are all going from IBM to GlobalFoundries. According to University of Vermont economics professor Art Woolf, a transfer of assets like this is one of two basic ways companies can improve their performance.
“One is becoming more profitable by selling more things that it’s selling and making a profit on them,” Woolf said. “The other way is to get rid of the parts of your company that are not doing well, that are dragging your profits down.”
IBM’s chip division, which includes a high-tech manufacturing facility that employs 4,000 people in Essex Junction, was the latter. The deal raises new questions about the plant’s future.
In the third quarter of 2014, IBM's overall chip division lost $100 million. Essentially, the tech giant is paying GlobalFoundries to save it from future losses.
In the third quarter of 2014, the division lost IBM $100 million. Essentially, the tech giant is paying GlobalFoundries to save IBM from future losses. But IBM will still need the microchips manufactured at the Essex Junction and East Fishkill, N.Y. plants it just transferred to GlobalFoundries. Part of the deal calls for GlobalFoundries to continue to sell the chips made at those facilities to IBM for at least 10 years.
That 10-year deal, along with GlobalFoundries executives’ assurances to Gov. Peter Shumlin that the plant will stay open, has some state leaders breathing a sigh of relief after a long period of uncertainty about its future.
Shumlin said Monday that GlobalFoundries – whose sole business is manufacturing computer chips – is an even better partner than IBM, which has a much wider mission. Economist Tom Kavet, who works for the state legislature on fiscal forecasts, isn’t so sure.
“I think it creates a great deal of uncertainty at this point in time. It’s hard to know exactly what the strategy of the new owner will be and how this fits into it,” Kavet said Monday. “We’ll be focusing on anything that they say about strategic direction, but it’s too early to know that.”
Shumlin played up the indications he'd received from GlobalFoundries executives that the jobs would stay on Monday. But UVM professor Art Woolf said those conversations aren't likely to drive the company's business decisions.
Shumlin played up the indications he’d received from GlobalFoundries executives that the jobs would stay on Monday. But UVM professor Art Woolf said those conversations aren’t likely to drive the company’s business decisions.
If it’s more profitable to move the work of the Essex Junction facility elsewhere, Woolf said, a profit-seeking company might go that route.
“When all costs are considered, renovating a plant, or redoing a plant in Fishkill or Albany, they’re going to probably look into that carefully,” he said. “And it may be expensive, but if it’s still cheaper than keeping the IBM Essex plant going, they’ll probably give it serious consideration.”
"Technology jobs are terrific, but it is an environment that changes very, very quickly, so something that's the hot product today can disappear pretty quickly and it requires constant innovation." - Economist Tom Kavet
After a meeting with GlobalFoundries CEO Sanjay Jha, Shumlin said that there is "far more demand than supply for the specialized chips made by this [plant], and GlobalFoundries is eager to use this strategic acquisition to grow its business with a tremendous workforce deeply rooted right here in Vermont.”
While the deal seems to have alleviated some earlier concerns that IBM might simply shutter the Essex Junction plant, the new ownership comes with new uncertainties, including those inherent in high-tech industry.
“Technology jobs are terrific,” Kavet said. "But it is an environment that changes very, very quickly, so something that’s the hot product today can disappear pretty quickly and it requires constant innovation.”


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"At the end of the day, they are mass market providers," says Jim Ryan, newly minted president and CEO of MobileCampus, which targets mobile data and marketing services to college environments. "I was seeing an incremental opportunity to serve more niche markets and target segments." For years, Ryan enjoyed a unique vantage point, since he ran the data strategy at Cingular/AT&T and was a fixture in the fledgling mobile content industry. He left AT&T just as the iPhone was about to launch, and according to reports was involved in making that deal with Apple. But in placing his bets with the small startup we covered last year in this column, Ryan is signaling that it is time for mobile to get targeted, and for the nascent ad model to follow.
Ryan says that the early stages of mobile marketing may be a bit misguided in following the carriers' lead into the mass market mentality. "Most of the existing players are large media companies used to the mass market and mass media advertising. They want large volumes of people. So they talk about millions of users and page impressions."
MobileCampus partners with universities to deliver free messaging services to students who opt in. The SMS system can range campuswide -- from the administration to ticklers and scheduling notes from individual sports teams or clubs. The school and its groups get the service free, with ads and offers from local vendors underwriting the cost.
Ryan believes that ad-supported systems like MobileCampus can change the mobile marketing equation. If you have tightly targeted users and you know their needs and habits well enough, then you don't need to carpet-bomb the platform or the user with ads. He expects students to receive one marketing message a day -- but a message that relates to their immediate environment and their likely needs. "It's about the value of the message, not the volume," he says. "Mass media is about volume -- millions of WAP pages -- and it uses the same model as already exists . Our model is very different. Our approach is 180 degree different."
Charging 20 cents a message, a campaign for a tech vendor like Dell might spend less than $1,000 reaching all of the tech enthusiasts on a large campus. "If we can get 30% to 40% to check it out, that translates into a lot of activity" for a small cost relative to papering the local media with ads, Ryan says. He believes that while MobileCampus is focused on the universities right now, the model is portable to a host of different demographics and niches and that this is a more appropriate way to use mobile. "I think there is a huge opportunity to evolve this market. There will be a real revenue opportunity for the company that leads that charge. To do that, you have to start with specific content."
As with all highly targeted marketing ideas, the challenge is less in the effectiveness of the promotion when it hits its target, but in the scalability. Is it worth it in the end for the sponsor/client to segment the creative, the deals, the partners into all of these niches? Yes, there is a lot of waste in mass media, but there are also efficiencies of scale. We are already a decade into the ad model online, and how many of the targeting methods available are really being used? The technologies and their proposed business and marketing models always seem to be well ahead of the ad industry infrastructure.
Ryan is right. Mobile seems to be the medium that is best positioned to lead the charge into a lot of marketing models that have been more on the periphery of digital media for years. If marketing and media are moving from mass to me, from corralling eyeballs to finding the right customer with the right message, then mobile offers a necessary challenge to the entire chain of production. But to make messages that are highly relevant to these segments, the marketers themselves have to segment their efforts and their infrastructures. How do you address so many possible niches -- and what new processes and structures within organizations are necessary to make a post-mass media world work? These are all questions that fragmented media are raising across the board, not just mobile. Everybody is back in kindergarten now.


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American Restaurant Concepts signs agreement with Franchise Opportunities Network
- Staff Jacksonville Business Journal
American Restaurant Concepts Inc. has entered into an agreement with the Franchise Opportunities Network.
FON will recruit prospective new franchise unit owners for American Restaurant Concepts, the parent company of Dick’s Wings, according to a news release.
"We are excited to have entered into an agreement with the Franchise Opportunities Network," said Michael Rosenberger, CEO of American Restaurant Concepts, in the release. "The Franchise Opportunities Network is the largest franchise lead generation service in the country. It is one of the many tools that we are leveraging to expand the reach of our Dick’s Wings restaurants throughout the country."
The company recently announced plans to open a new restaurant in Nocatee.
News of the new restaurant comes on the heels of the announcement last month that a Louisiana-based business man will become the largest single shareholder in the company when he acquires 45.3 percent of the outstanding shares.
American Restaurant Concepts (OTCBB: ANPZ), based in Jacksonville, operates 16 full service Dick’s Wing’s restaurants and two Dick’s Wings Express restaurants.
Company executives expect to double the number of Dick’s Wings in the next 24 months by opening new restaurants and converting existing restaurants to the Dick’s Wings brand.
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tech2 News StaffJan 13, 2017 12:07:05 IST
The Nokia 6 announcement earlier this week by HMD Global created quite a buzz about the comeback of the beloved brand name. But a closer look at the specifications, put the Nokia 6 clearly in the mid-range segment. It looks like HMD Global wants to keep the best for the Mobile World Congress 2017 to take place in Barcelona next month.
But according to a report in the GSMArena, Qualcomm may have given hints of Nokia's upcoming flagship device, thanks to a leaked video. The video, which was meant to showcase the EIS 3.0 image stabilisation prowess of the Snapdragon 835 chipset, has now become a topic of speculation after this video was released.
The naming convention Nokia 8 is in line with Nokia's flagship camera phone models in the past - N8, N82, 808 PureView, Nokia 1080 and so on. The camera is expected to come with Carl Zeiss optics, which is similar to what was used in on the older Nokia flagship camera phones.
According to the report, the Nokia 8 is expected to come in two variants. The flagship one with Qualcomm Snapdraon 835 chipset, 6GB RAM, either 64GB or 128GB storage with the option to expand the storage using a microSD card slot. The second variant will house a Qualcomm Snapdragon 821 chipset with 4GB RAM.
Both the variants are expected to come with a 24MP OIS + EIS sporting rear camera and a 12MP front-facing camera.
The phone is expected to come with dual front speakers, no physical buttons on the front. There are no clear indications about the build quality materials, but looks like Nokia will stick with a unibody metal design. It is expected to come with a built in heart rate monitor as well.
The Nokia 6, which will be selling only in China, has already got more than 250,000 interested registered buyers on the Chinese seller site JD.com. So clearly, Nokia still has a lot of interest among consumers. Whether the Nokia 8 speculations are true? We will only be able to know for sure on 26 February.
Find our entire collection of stories, in-depth analysis, live updates, videos & more on Chandrayaan 2 Moon Mission on our dedicated #Chandrayaan2TheMoon domain.


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Latest UK news on the Apple iPhone, iPod, iTouch and iMac.
Until the iPhone 5 official release date is actually released, speculators just won’t stop starting new rumors. First, everyone assume that the iPhone 5 would released in June or July, but it seems more and more like a September release date is more realistic. Apple had some minor design flaws with the iPhone 4 that might be giving the electronic manufacturer pause. First, there was the faulty antenna that ended the promising career of a top level Apple executive. Then, the glass case was revealed to be susceptible to cracking.
While Apple had no problem paying for the repairs, it also cost the company a substantial amount of money. In addition, Apple wants to be associated with the most cutting edge devices, which means that major mechanical or structural problems cannot arise with the iPhone 5 after it is debuted. In order to do this, Apple has been spending a lot more time at work on the next generation iPhone. Contrary to prior reports, the September iPhone 5 release date may be nothing more than a rumor.
The companies that supply Apple with the components that they need to make the iPhone have been silently. No one is reporting a surge in orders, and retailers deny getting any inside information from Apple. Whether or not the iPhone 5 is coming in September, there will eventually be a next generation iPhone on the line. Unfortunately, fans may just have to wait a little longer than they first anticipated to get their hands on the device.
Compare the best iphone deals visit uswitch.com today, compare hundreds of different deals online at uswitch.
When major media outlets learned that they could rake in the profits simply by building iPhone apps, they were horrified when they saw the subscription fee restrictions that Apple imposed. Some decided to go ahead as planned, but Apple has continued to make the iPhone app industry a hostile environment for any company that it perceives to be a competitor. In other words, publishers can now charge consumers any price that they want.
Although Apple has not made any major announcements about its in-app fee structure, publishers are silently relishing in the news. Instead of having to match their subscription fees on their websites and for physical periodicals with their iPhone apps, publishers can now raise their fees. In-app publishing, which has only been in existence since February, has proven to be a wild success for Apple and publishers alike. While Apple collects a portion of the in-app fees, publishers had no choice but to receive the crumbs.
Because iPhone users actually do seem to want to read magazines and newspapers articles on their mobile devices, publishers have been looking to get into the iPhone app industry. After an app has been developed and accepted into the iTunes stores, users can make a choice. Free apps are still popular among users, but most are willing to pay a fee if they feel that the app is worth the investment. Now that publishers are free to charge whatever price they want for app subscriptions, there is a good chance that premiere newspapers such as the New York Times will start to charge more.
It has long been said by critics and reviewers alike Apple can only hold the top spot as king of the smart phone industry for so long. Eventually, many claim, a coveter of the throne will show up and take the crown. Nokia has its sights set on exactly that with the arrival of the all new Nokia n8. It is smart to bear in mind that prior to Apple’s arrival on the scene, Nokia was a Finnish poewr house of a company that had an iron tight grip on the mobile phone market - after this, their market share was slashed considerably. How will it compare with the new 4th generation Apple iPhone? There is only one way to tell.
Probably the best place to start is with a comparison of the memory which is a big part of what makes a smart phone useful to a wide range of users. The fact that the 32 GB of storage using a micro SD external card makes the Nokia n8 the bigger of the competitors is tempered by the fact that the iPhone 4 comes with that exact same amount of memory built onboard where as the Nokia n8 has only 16 GB built in. Still, the math favors Nokia’s smart phone when the card is added and the total can come to 48 GB which is considerably larger than the iPhone 4 is capable of.
This issue of storage space is even more important when one considers that the iPhone 4 has a 5 MP camera, the new sensation in the smart phone industry - or is it? With the Nokia n8 the user gets a 12 MP camera, hence the extra storage space is not just nice, but will be needed. The added quality may be worth it for some who love high quality photos but this is not guaranteed across the board for all users. Both devices can record HD video at 720p, as well.
When it comes to the smart phone market, the choices have been somewhat limited in recent years as the market begins to take a more defined shape and options widen across the board for those who want a greater level of utility in their phones. It is a definite step in the right direction that the Samsung Jet has to offer to those who want a phone which is far more than simply a communications device. Instead, the Jet offers a wide range of media rich features in an intelligent package that many consumers find perfect for the needs of both their viewing pleasure and their budget. With an 800mhz processor, the phone functions nearly to the level of a personal computer and offers video viewing on a large screen that is sure to please even the most skeptical in the new media market.
One of the strongest aspects of the Jet is that it grants a tremendous level of power for video processing while still having a touch screen interface which is rapidly becoming the standard for today’s smart phones. In the past, a company could have gotten away with a simple slide out keyboard interface, but Samsung has decided to push the envelope and develop a product which can directly compete with the seemingly all powerful iPhone that has dominated the smart phone market for so long. It is definitely a great idea to offer such strong video viewing capabilities as web 2.0 becomes the dominate force is browsing behavior and continues to hold sway over the masses.
Rampant innovation is certainly a crucial factor in today’s wildly competitive mobile phone market and consumers definitely stand to benefit in more ways than one from this blistering level of rapid development that we are seeing all across the mobile phone world. More than ever, consumers are demanding a host of great features such as the Nokia n900 delivers without missing a beat. Some analysts are saying that the phone is practically a mini laptop due to the massive levels of power it boasts and its incredibly easy to read screen that makes video look much better than prior standards of mobile phone screens could ever have offered. With a new microprocessor designed to minimize hogging of the battery, the phone is set to offer quite a lot of usage time without falling victim to the short spans associated with most resource heavy mobile units.
This level of design intelligence is really rocking the tech world and the gadget itself definitely appears that it is going to take the market by storm. With a 5 megapixel camera, consumers can take crystal clear shots, store them and even share them straight to a variety of web based applications such as Facebook or other social networking platforms they make frequent use of. Playing directly into the hands of consumers will definitely pay off for Nokia as the company has been known for brilliant tech in recent years, optimizing their products for every day use. More is expected to come, but the n900 looks to experts as if it genuinely raises the bar for these impressive phones.


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Yesterday Yuga Labs, the founding company behind the Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC) non-fungible token (NFT) collection, announced that it has raised $450 million in seed funding at a $4 billion valuation. The round was led by Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) with Animoca Brands, FTX Ventures, and others also participating.
Earlier this month, Yuga Labs expanded its NFT portfolio by acquiring the intellectual property (IP) rights to the CryptoPunks and Meebits NFT collections from Larva Labs. This fundraise likely points to the amount paid for the Larva Labs assets. Under Yuga Labs’ ownership, CryptoPunks and Meebits holders will be granted the same commercial rights as BAYC owners and will be able to commercialize their collectibles’ IP.
“Already, a new economy is possible with the IP of Apes, Punks, and Meebits, owned by the community,” said Nicole Muniz, CEO of Yuga Labs. “The possibilities for blockchain’s impact on culture are endless, and so we are building a beautiful, interoperable world for people to explore and play in. There’s a lot to come.”
Last week ApeCoin, a native token of the BAYC and Mutant Ape Yacht Club (MAYC) projects, was launched. The token is governed by the newly formed ApeCoin DAO consisting of token holders. 15% of the total ApeCoin token supply was allocated to Yuga Labs, which is currently worth approximately $1.8 billion. Another 8% was allocated to the company’s founding team. As well as governance, the token will be used for Yuga Labs’ new play-to-earn game that is being developed in partnership with Animoca Brands.
Several music labels have been using BAYC as a foothold into the NFT ecosystem, with Universal Music launching a metaverse music group consisting of BAYC characters and Timbaland unveiling an entertainment brand based around the NFTs.