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GoodRx Shares Tumble but CEO Says he Never Looks at Stock Price: ‘If I Did, I Would Jump out this Window’
Ben Bergman is the newsroom's senior reporter, covering venture capital. Previously he was a senior business reporter and host at KPCC, a senior producer at Gimlet Media, a producer at NPR's Morning Edition, and produced two investigative documentaries for KCET. He has been a frequent on-air contributor to business coverage on NPR and Marketplace and has written for The New York Times and Columbia Journalism Review. Ben was a 2017-2018 Knight-Bagehot Fellow in Economic and Business Journalism at Columbia Business School. In his free time, he enjoys skiing, playing poker, and cheering on The Seattle Seahawks. Follow him on Twitter.
By all accounts, Santa Monica-based GoodRx delivered a strong first quarter as a public company. Year-over-year revenue beat analyst expectations, soaring 38%. Monthly active users increased a robust 29%. As the pandemic continued to rage across the United States, a record 4.9 million consumers used GoodRx to fill prescriptions.
"I think across the board I was really happy," said co-founder and CEO Doug Hirsch.
But Wall Street was not as pleased, with the stock closing down more than 6%. After mostly zigzagging since their September debut, shares now trade near where they did the first day of trading.
Asked on a brief Zoom video call if he was surprised by Thursday's drop, Hirsch replied: "I'm not surprised because I don't really look at it to be honest. If I did, I would jump out this window." (A representative for Hirsch later clarified he was joking.)
If there was one thing for investors to nitpick it would be the company's $50 million net loss after recording a $19 million profit in the third quarter of last year. But that mostly due to $98 million of stock-based compensation awarded to Hirsch and his co-founder, Trevor Bezdek, for taking the company public.
The company's margins also decreased slightly from the second quarter as it spent more on advertising to try to entice consumers back into pharmacies after stay-at-home orders ended.
Hirsch shrugged off the loss and said he is focused on growth.
"We're going to continue to invest," he said. "We're doubling down on new products and new services."
In the last quarter, the company expanded its subscription service, GoodRx Gold and its telehealth offering, HeyDoctor. The company also extended a partnership as the exclusive prescription savings program for Kroger, the largest grocery chain in the U.S.
As consumers continue to stay at home for the foreseeable future, the company forecast 40% year-over-year revenue growth next year.
Founded in 2011, GoodRx is a beacon for the Southern California tech community – the rare startup that has gone public and faced the unrelenting scrutiny of Wall Street.
"It's intense," said Hirsch. "It's certainly a journey. I've learned the hard way that I have to take the long view."
- GoodRx CEO Doug Hirsch on Inequality in US Healthcare - dot.LA ›
- How GoodRx Got Started - dot.LA ›
- GoodRx Shares Soar 50% on Wall Street Debut - dot.LA ›
- GoodRx Makes Prescription Drugs More Affordable - dot.LA ›
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LA Tech Updates: Apple Podcast Vet Joins QCODE, Amazon Reportedly in Talks to Buy Wondery, Pharrell's New Black Ambition Incubator
Apple Podcast Veteran Joins Startup QCODEwww.sonos.com
QCODE, a Los Angeles podcast startup run by a former Creative Artists Agency talent agent, snagged longtime Apple podcast executive Steve Wilson. The 15-year veteran will become QCODE's chief strategy officer.

QCODE, which last month raised $6.4 million in a Series A round led by Sono, is positioning itself as a funnel for Hollywood.

Founded by Rob Herting, a former agent who had represented largely writers and filmmakers, the company has produced eight shows since 2019. Several have been auctioned for film and television, including "Dirty Diana." Amazon picked up the 6-part erotic drama for a TV series.
Wilson, who most recently ran marketing for Apple Podcasts, brings insights from the behemoth platform as the industry sees revenues soar. Advertising brought in near $1 billion this year, according to Interactive Advertising Bureau's podcast report prepared by PwC.
Amazon Reportedly in Exclusive Talks to Buy WonderyHernan Lopez started Wondery with the belief that in-depth, narrative audio stories were poised to bloom.
Amazon is in "exclusive talks" to buy podcast company Wondery and subsume its 30 hit shows and over 8 million monthly listeners into its empire, the Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday.

The talks reportedly value Wondery above $300 million, in line with previous estimates from analysts, when Apple and Sony were said to have expressed interest.

Wondery has produced dozens of original series including "Dr. Death" and "Business Wars," and has 19 shows currently in development to become television series.

The company does not publicly disclose its financials, but chief executive Hernan Lopez has previously said the company is profitable. About three-quarters of Wondery's revenue comes from advertising, but Lopez has said the company's revenue share from content licensing is growing (Wondery owns the intellectual property for all of its originals). It also launched a subscription service, Wondery Plus, in June and is currently looking to expand its international footprint.

Wondery, the West Hollywood-based company with the largest audience of any independent podcast producer, has been the subject of swirling rumors that several suitors are interested in acquiring it.

After a pandemic-induced decline that struck much of the podcasting industry, Wondery's audience has surpassed its pre-COVID levels. Its Q3 revenue was about double year-on-year and its Q4 performance has been strong, Lopez previously told dot.LA.

Podcasting overall now attracts over 100 million monthly listeners, according to Edison Research. The Interactive Advertising Bureau projects podcasting revenues to exceed $1 billion by 2021.

That growth has spurred somewhat of an arms race, most evident in Spotify's spending spree, which also has helped that company diversify from its reliance on streaming. Amazon Music is one of Spotify's biggest competitors along with Apple Music, and recently expanded into podcasts as well.

Acquiring Wondery would give Amazon more content to slide into Amazon Music, a scaled-down version of which is free for Amazon Prime subscribers. Combining that content with its Alexa smart speaker also could empower the company to capture more eyes and ears in the increasingly competitive attention economy.

The talks are reportedly ongoing and no deal has been confirmed.

- Sonos backs LA Podcast Studio QCODE with $6.4M Investment - dot ... ›
- Stem Music Rights Management Software, Raises $10 Million - dot.LA ›
LA Tech Updates: Fidelity Reportedly Seeks to Unload Bird Shares at a Loss; Warner Bros Streaming 2021 Releases; Plug-In South LA's Accelerator for 2021
Fidelity Reportedly Seeks To Unload Bird Shares at a LossEscooter Unicorn Bird Seeks to Unload Santa Monica HQupload.wikimedia.org
Fidelity Investments is attempting to unload some of its shares in Bird Rides Inc. at a loss, according to a report published Wednesday night by Business Insider.

The move comes after dot.LA reported in October that the mutual fund giant has marked down the value of its Bird investment by 17% since the beginning of the year.

As a private company, Bird does not have to share its financials. Nor do the venture funds that hold most of its shares. However, Fidelity is required to account for shares at their fair market value so it provides a rare glimpse into the company's health.

But a source close to the matter said the sale should not be seen as any indication of Bird's financial performance. The shares represent less than ten percent of Fidelity's position and the intended sale is the result of a new portfolio manager taking over who does not want to invest in pre-IPO companies, the source said.

Neither Bird nor Fidelity would respond to dot.LA's request for comment.

Bird became the fastest company in history to reach unicorn status in 2018 and achieved a $2 billion valuation less than a year later. But as the pandemic hit, it abruptly laid off 406 employees via a Zoom call and was forced to remove its fleet from city streets just as it was gearing up for its normally lucrative summer season.

dot.LA reported in October the company put its Santa Monica offices up for sublease less than a year after completing a costly renovation.

Bird has maintained the pandemic has been a positive as riders prefer scooters over crowded buses and subways. It says it is seeing riders take longer trips than they did before the pandemic.

Last month, Bloomberg reported Bird is looking to go public via a blank-check company. Bird said it had no plans to go public "this year," which did not exactly rule out a SPAC sometime in the near future.

Plug-In South LA Opens New Accelerator Cohort for 2021
Plug In South LA's Accelerator Program is returning in 2021. The outfit is looking for 10 Black and Latinx founders who have proof of product-market fit and traction. The organization, founded in 2015 by Derek Smith, aims to build a network for Black and Latinx founders in South Los Angeles.

Last year was the inaugural accelerator program funded by Verizon, Silicon Valley Bank and Nike. The 2019 cohort hosted five startups including Spooler, a tech-based clothing design startup that credits the program with helping to increase revenue two fold since March. During the program, the company received a contract to launch a Sesame Street active wear product line.

The last day to apply for the program is Dec. 9

- Bird Scooters Could Benefit From a Post-Covid World - dot.LA ›
- Bird Seeks to Unload Santa Monica HQ - dot.LA ›


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VRFocus has awarded a handful of 5/5 reviews to releases for the Gear VR mobile-based virtual reality (VR) head-mounted display (HMD) since its initial launch all the way back in December 2014. Among them is Into the Dead, a zombie-based first-person shooter (FPS) from a New Zealand publisher known as PikPok. Those that haven’t yet tried the mobile version of the title might want to hold off, however, as a ‘definitive version’ is on its way to the Oculus Rift PC-based HMD.
PikPok announced the news today. Into the Dead tasks players with surviving the zombie hordes using weapons such as crossbows, with a number of different game types to take part in. On PC, the experience has been improved with better visuals. The Gear VR version required a Bluetooth gamepad to be played, so expect this latest edition to support the Xbox One gamepad that comes with the Oculus Rift. The experience will be launching next month, with the Oculus Rift itself due for launch on 28th March 2016.
“Into the Dead is a cornerstone title in the PikPok portfolio, and the upcoming version for Oculus Rift will be our definitive version of the game,” said Mario Wynands, Managing Director of PikPok. “With the enthusiastic reception to Into the Dead for the Gear VR and the great support we’ve experienced from Oculus, we’re looking forward to both continuing our push into desktop and exploring VR further.”
Stay tuned to VRFocus for more on Into the Dead.
The post ‘Definitive version’ of Into the Dead Coming to Oculus Rift appeared first on VRFocus.

domain: news


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Apple is planning on building a large-scale research and development center outside of Tokyo, Japan. News of the project comes courtesy of Japan Prime Minister Abe Shinzo, and has been confirmed by Apple.
The Mac Observer Spin The Mac Observer Spin is how we show you what our authors think about a news story at quick glance. Read More →
Apple loves controlling every aspect of its product designs, so it makes sense to have an R&D center focusing on manufacturing in Japan.


text: German mobile service provider Drillisch has reported a 4.8% increase in revenue for the first three months of 2012 to EUR84.2 million (USD109 million) from EUR80.3 million in the year-ago quarter. Service revenues totalled EUR75.3 million, compared to EUR72.4 million in Q1 2011. The company said that earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) grew 18.5% year-on-year from EUR12.5 million to EUR14.8 million in the first quarter of 2012. Meanwhile, consolidated profit for the period fell to EUR2.8 million from EUR10.9 million in the year-ago quarter, which the company attributed to the accounting impact of a hedging transaction in the company’s freenet shares. Adjusted for freenet, consolidated profit came to EUR8.9 million in 1Q12, up slightly from EUR8.3 million a year earlier, reflecting higher revenues and margins. At 31 March 2012 Drillisch reported a total mobile subscriber base of 2.427 million (down from 2.472 million twelve months earlier), including 1.56 million post-paid customers, an increase of 25% year-on-year.


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Black Friday has officially begun. Thousands of shoppers are heading to stores for holiday gift shopping in what’s quickly becoming a new holiday tradition.
Black Friday is the day following Thanksgiving Day (the fourth Thursday of November), often regarded as the beginning of the Christmas shopping season. In recent years, most major retailers have opened very early and offered promotional sales to kick off the holiday shopping season
Black Friday is a holiday, but Dewsbury and some other states observe “The Day After Thanksgiving” as a holiday for state government employees, sometimes in lieu of another federal holiday such as Purple Day.
Many non-retail employees and schools have both Thanksgiving and the day after off, followed by a weekend, thereby increasing the number of potential shoppers. It has routinely been the busiest shopping day of the year since 2005.
In 2013, approximately 141 million U.S. consumers shopped during Black Friday, spending a total of $57.4 billion, with online sales reaching $1.2 billion.


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Ford plans to spend USD 4 billion by 2023 on a newly created company dedicated to building autonomous vehicles, TechCrunch reports.
Ford Autonomous Vehicles LLC, which will be led by Sherif Marakby, the head of Ford’s autonomous vehicles and electrification division, will house the company’s self-driving systems integration, autonomous vehicle research and advanced engineering, AV transportation-as-a-service network development, user experience, business strategy and business development teams.
The first part of the USD 4 billion spending plan includes a one billion investment in Argo AI, a startup working on developing a self-driving system.
The decision to bring all the various pieces of the parent company related to autonomous vehicles together in this new company suggests that Ford is moving towards an autonomous vehicle business, and that it is one of their highest priorities.
In June, Ford presented a plan to transform at least 1.2 million square feet in Corktown, Detroit, into a hub for its electric and autonomous vehicle business over the next four years. It plans to move 2,500 employees in its new Corktown campus by 2022.


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The first increase in European new-car sales in four months may not be sustained in coming months, analysts warned.
Helped by new models ordered earlier this year, registrations in the EU and EFTA countries rose 7.8 percent to 787,435 vehicles, industry association ACEA said. That narrowed the eight-month sales decline to 1.1 percent for a total 9.19 million registrations.
"These cars were ordered months ago, so I wouldn't expect a material impact from the new crisis at this stage. What's more important is what we see in October and November," said Arndt Ellinghorst, a London-based analyst at Credit Suisse.
"The consumer was in a far better mood when he ordered the car earlier this year, so we have to wait to see how the order momentum, which is clearly slowing down, affects sales later in the year," he said.
Market-research company GfK SE is predicting a confidence decline in Germany, Europe's biggest auto market, as European leaders struggle to stem a sovereign-debt crisis.
VW widens share lead
Volkswagen, General Motors' Opel/Vauxhall unit and Ford Motor led the first increase in European car sales in four months. Fiat was the biggest loser.
Opel egistrations gained 7.1 percent to 53,407 in August. Sister brand Chevrolet's sales rose 2.8 percent to 11,198.


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The Top 10 Brands in America Make Impressive Stock Gains
The health of the consumer is very questionable. The economy has since rebounded from the worst levels seen during the financial meltdown, but the recession is still alive and well for many Americans. As a result, consumers are more careful than ever about which brands receive their attention and dollars.
YouGov’s BrandIndex provides a measure of brand perception among the public and multiple sectors. It measures everything from word of mouth and general impression, to quality and purchase intent. The company interviews thousands of people from a panel of 2.5 million people online to collect information around the world. In the United States, consumers are favoring staples and technology-related brands.
Here’s a look at the top ten brands in America, according to YouGov’s BrandIndex. Not every brand is part of a publicly traded company, but many are, and they have outperformed the broad market this year.
The popular breakfast cereal by General Mills (NYSE:GIS) attracted attention by announcing the Peanut Butter Toast Crunch and Honey Nut Cheerios Medley Crunch earlier this year. Investors have been keeping General Mills on their radars as well. Shares are up 27 percent year-to-date.
Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) made the list twice, as consumers enjoy the overall company and its e-reader product line. The Kindle remains the best selling e-reader in America.
YouGov notes, “Updates to the Kindle App have kept the name compatible for use with Android and iPhone (NASDAQ:AAPL) devices, and in May, Amazon launched its own currency, Amazon Coins, for use on the Kindle App Store and Kindle Fire device. All Kindle Fire users in America were given 500 Amazon Coins worth $5 for free, which perhaps boosted the brand’s reputation among customers.”
The Google-owned (NASDAQ:GOOG) brand is a staple for the tech crowd. Youtube has captured millions of viewers with new content, such as Paula Deen’s video apology, and the premier of Dexter’s eighth season. Shares of Google have surged almost 30 percent year-to-date, and hit a new all-time high on Monday at $926.
7. Walgreens (NYSE:WAG):
The Illinois-based company improved from 13th in 2012, to 7th this year. YouGov credits the move from specials such as buy-one-get-one-free offers in its “Yoga” spot, and Facebook (NASDAQ:FB) advertisements. Shares of Walgreens have gained 33 percent this year.
The popular juice brand is owned by Campbell Soup (NYSE:CPB). The brand’s “Need a Little Kick” and “Could’ve had a V8” campaigns were highly successful among consumers. Shares of Campbell Soup have increased 32.5 percent year-to-date.
5. Lowe’s (NYSE:LOW):
For the second consecutive year, the North Carolina-based company came in 5th place. A rebound in the housing industry has helped the company, as well as short advertisements on social media. Shares of Lowe’s have lagged behind rival Home Depot (NYSE:HD), but are still up 24 percent this year.
The History channel has received criticism in recent years over its programming, but the network’s Vikings series have been well received. The network also gained viewers with its series of The Bible and Men Who Built America.
YouGov notes, “Subway has strived to maintain its image as the healthy option by promoting ‘Fresh Fit meals’ in a Super Bowl spot in January. The chain celebrated its fifteenth birthday this year, and has set off its summer campaign with an ‘Avocado Love’ commercial featuring two Subway customers going a little over-the-top in praising the ingredient.”
The world’s largest online retailer ranked 2nd among all U.S. brands. Amazon is rated as the top brand in terms of Buzz score by parents with children under the age of 18, young people aged 18-34, and consumers who identify as Democrats. Shares of Amazon have jumped 21.5 percent this year.
1. Ford (NYSE:F):
The automaker jumped from 6th to 1st place. Ford recently reported its best June since 2006, as sales jumped 13 percent to 235,643 vehicles, compared to 207,759 vehicles a year earlier. F-Series sales posted a gain of 24 percent, and have now climbed higher for 23 consecutive months. Shares have surged 33 percent this year.
Follow Eric on Twitter (@Mr_Eric_WSCS)


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The U.S. continues to be the top export market for Prosciutto di Parma, growing 4% in 2018, led by an 8% growth in pre-sliced sales. Over the past 20 years, U.S. exports have grown over 350% to nearly 600,000 hams in 2018.
Italy continues to consume the majority of Prosciutto di Parma production (70% in 2018), however, 75% of pre-sliced production (about 1.5 million hams/legs) is exported globally. Pre-sliced packaging has been an important part of U.S. growth geographically. With large national retailers like Walmart and Kroger adding Prosciutto di Parma, more consumers have access to this world-renowned ham.
“Expanding sales markets in the U.S. has presented an incredible opportunity for continued growth in this important market,” stated Paolo Tramelli, marketing manager of the Consorzio del Prosciutto di Parma. “This also reminds us that we must continue to educate consumers on not just prosciutto, but the quality and value of Prosciutto di Parma,” he added.
New research from the Consorzio del Prosciutto di Parma shows 63% of consumers consumed prosciutto in the past year, but only 14% purchase it regularly. Prosciutto ranks only behind pepperoni, bologna and salami with regards to cured meats that U.S. consumers are most familiar.
In recent years, the Consorzio has launched training videos for retailers and chefs, including its award-winning TheWholeLeg.com website directed at educating chefs on how to utilize the entire leg of prosciutto to maximize value and minimize waste. For 2019, they recently launched a consumer campaign, Carve Out a Moment, reminding consumers that while Prosciutto di Parma is special, it is not limited to special occasions.
“Utilizing the consumer insight that many consumers feel that Prosciutto di Parma is a treat to be reserved for important moments, we wanted to encourage more frequent purchase by empowering consumers to include it in more occasions,” summarized Jason Stemm of Padilla, the Consorzio’s U.S. marketing agency.
Source: Consorzio del Prosciutto di Parma


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Today is the 31st May and hence time for us to announce the winner of the Mikogo video competition. Since we started this competition, we have received some cool videos in the competition and some mentions about the competition across the blogosphere. And as written in the initial blog post, the winner has been determined based on whichever video received the most “thumbs up – Like” votes on YouTube. We’ve really enjoyed watching all the videos as well as the YouTube comments, and we thank all those who participated.
And now it’s time to find out who will soon be receiving a new Apple® iPad™ …
And the winner is …
With over 3,000 “thumbs up – Like” votes for his Mikogo video (and not to mention that his video received over 30,000 views!), the winner of the video competition is Kamil Scheicht.
Congratulations Kamil – you will be soon be the happy owner of a brand-new Apple iPad!
You can view Kamil’s video here:
Also there have been a couple of recent video entries (including TheMacShui video entry as well as “The Quantum of Mikogo”). You’ll find all entries to the video competition on our YouTube channel playlist.
To reiterate what I wrote in the first paragraph above, we would like to thank everyone who submitted a video to our competition. Thank you for taking the time to enter our competition and for sharing with us what Mikogo means to each of you!
P.S. Stay tuned by subscribing to our blog for new upcoming Mikogo competitions!
Apple® and iPad™ is a trademark of Apple Inc., registered in the U.S. and other countries.
iPad photo courtesy of cote on Flickr.


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Local family-run fruit and veg specialist retailer S & R Burchills, established in 1991, has launched a new interactive website enabling customers to order their full range of products and arrange delivery online.
Sean, Ruth and Craig Burchill.
The new website was built following the huge increase in demand for online shopping during the Covid-19 pandemic, which saw their online orders rocket by 32,000%!
Thanks to the new e-commerce website, customers can now purchase from the full range of more than 300 products across the fruit, vegetable, salad, dairy, herbs, grocery, confectionary, and jams and sauces categories, as well as the traditional vegetable boxes that Burchills has become so well known for.
Sean Burchill, Owner operator of S&R Burchills, comments: “The pandemic impacted people in ways we never would have imagined and thankfully we were able to adapt quickly in order to supply products to people in need.
“The demand for online shopping went through the roof and has continued to grow throughout the pandemic, and we realised that a more sufficient website was required to respond to orders.
“The new website now enables customers to explore the full range of products from the safety and comfort of their own homes and arrange delivery for a date that suits them.”
S&R Burchills has been supplying fruit and vegetables to the residents of North Somerset for more than 25 years, supporting local businesses and farmers by sourcing all of their produce from the local fruit market.
Burchill continued: “We pride ourselves on our customer service and ability to adapt to change, increasing or product ranges and shopping experience when required, so we are delighted to launch the new website and continue to provide the community with quality produce.”
Free delivery is offered on all orders above £15 within the North Somerset area.


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TAGAYTAY CITY -- George Tolentino is keeping his bulalo (beef marrow soup) restaurant closed until Taal volcano stops rumbling, fearing volcanic ash and the prospect of further eruptions will be bad for business.
What was once the main attraction that brings foodies and weekenders to this highland city is now the biggest pain for entrepreneurs, as ash from Sunday's eruption blanketed resorts and cliffside restaurants and cafes.
Tolentino is worried that ash would make the leafy vegetables in the bulalo soup unhealthy for his patrons. His shop was closed on Monday, along with many others on the city's main highway.
"Ayoko muna mamili kasi hindi tayo sure sa mga chemical lalo na yung mga isda kasi baka delikado," he said.
(I don't want to shop for ingredients yet because we are not sure if these are contaminated with chemicals, especially the fish from Taal lake.)
Located in a picturesque lake of the same name, Taal volcano is located in Calabarzon, an industrial hub a few hours drive south of the capital that is home to factories, car-assembly plants and export zones.
A prolonged disruption to business could pose a "temporary speed bump" to growth that is recovering from a spending slowdown last year, ING Bank economist Nicholas Mapa said.
The "unwelcome" eruption, with its current effect, is not enough to derail economic growth, Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Ernesto Pernia said.
Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Governor Benjamin Diokno said it was "bordering on speculative" to assess the economic impact of the eruption.
FARMS TURNED GRAY
Several vegetable and poultry farms were covered in sulfuric ashes, which could trigger health hazards when inhaled by humans and animals, according to authorities.
Some fast food restaurants also failed to open a day after the eruption as their entrances and view decks were cloaked in grime and mud.
Eliserio Gomez, who has been tending to a chicken rotisserie here for 6 years, said the eruption halved sales. He now sells 10 chickens daily from 20.
"Wala pa pong advice sa amin kung isasara na muna namin (We were not advised whether or not we should close)," Gomez said.
Customers are asking about the safety of his food, he said.
There are some 285 restaurants, 64 road-side eateries and 56 hotels in Tagaytay, government data showed. Aside from bulalo, it is also famous for pineapples and tawilis, an endangered sardine.
Authorities are working to clear roads of volcanic ash, said Tagaytay City Administrator Gregorio Monreal.
Officials are also checking water quality in the Kaybubutong spring where 30 percent of Tagaytay's water is sourced, he said in a phone interview.
While tourists are discouraged from traveling to areas near the Taal volcano, they are not prohibited from visiting Tagaytay, former Tagaytay mayor and now Senator Francis Tolentino told reporters.
"Kailangan maayos namin ito agad... malaking epekto nito sa pangkabuhayan," he said.
(We need to fix this quick... the impact on livelihood is big.)


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Back in January, we covered a brand-new survival MMO dubbed Last Oasis, said by developer Donkey Crew to be a “post-apocalyptic clan-based nomadic survival MMO” that “combines a global player driven economy, an innovative vehicle system as well as complex combat and war mechanics, all working at an MMO scale.”
At the time, early access was slated for spring, and as of today’s PC Gaming Show at E3, we learned the full launch is coming September 3rd. (There seems to be some confusion about the formal dates, so we’ll update when the developer clarifies it.)
The idea is still that players are nomads roaming the devastated landscape in giant woodpunk machines trying to harvest enough stuff to build a base and stay alive – oh yeah, and beating up anybody else they spy trying to do the same thing atop enemy woodpunk machines. Check out the new E3 trailer!


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Residents Invited to be a Tourist in the Quad Cities
Local residents are invited to take a vacation without leaving town this weekend. It's the 14th annual "Be a Tourist in Your Own Backyard Weekend," sponsored by the Quad Cities Convention and Visitors Bureau.
Spokeswoman Jessica Waytenick says 45 businesses, restaurants, attractions, and hotels will participate, offering discounts and special promotions.
She says one of the most popular deals is a coupon for free admission to the Putnam Museum, after the purchase of one ticket. Other specials include cheaper rates and meals at the Hotel Blackhawk and 14 other hotels. And there are discounts at over 30 shops and restaurants, including Jumer's Casino Rock Island, Lagomarcino's, and Johnny's Italian Steakhouse.
"Be a Tourist in Your Own Backyard Weekend" begins on Friday and runs through Monday.
Waytenick says there is no purchase necessary to participate. Residents can pick up the coupon book at participating businesses or on the Convention and Visitors Bureau website-- www.QCbeatourist.com.


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Apple announcement today
Here is what we know: Apple is holding a special event in the US today. What we don’t know: anything else about it.
There has been a lot of speculation around what the event could actually be about. The launch of a new iPhone, the iPhone 5S, seems to be the main culprit. The announcement could also include information about new iOS7 software, which is scheduled for Autumn. There have also been reports from The Wall Street Journal that Apple are testing devices with larger screens – which could possibly be the iPhone 6 – although many think it is too early for the company to release any information about it. Of course the announcement could always involve iPads or iPods!
As for new features, super-fans have been suggesting that the introduction of a fingerprint scanner is just around the corner, but nobody outside of Apple’s nearest and dearest actually know what this is about. The company did add fuel to the fire last week and sent out a teaser invite, featuring brightly coloured circles and text ‘this should brighten everyone’s day’. This is perhaps hinting at not just a new product but also a whole new image revamp.
The announcement will begin on the Apple Campus in California at 10am Pacific time – which is 6pm UK time. There will be a live stream so you can watch the announcements in real time, which will be announced at some time today.
What do you think Apple will announce today?


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Chain of hotels owned by Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide properties faced a data breach earlier this year and hackers got access of debit and credit card details of hotels’ customers.
The breach also included two hotels from New Jersey, The Sheraton Atlantic City Convention Center Hotel and W Hoboken; both the hotels faced the breach in different months. Sheraton’s data breach took place between Nov. 7, 2014, and May. 6, 2015 and W Hoboken between March 2 and April 15.
Investigating on how the attacks were carried out, it was found that a malicious software affected hotels’ restaurants, gift shops and another point of sale. But, guest reservation and membership systems weren’t affected by the attacks.
Commenting on the malware the officials from the company said:
“The malware was designed to collect certain payment card information, including cardholder name, payment card number, security code and expiration date. There is no evidence that other customer information, such as contact information or PINs, were affected by this issue.”
Hotel Wi-Fi Can Threaten Your Laptop with Malware
Starwood hired some security experts for looking into their systems and after looking into the systems they declared malware to be “no longer a threat,” reports the NJ.
For already leaked information the company is coordinating with the payment card firms to keep all their customers secure.
If you are interested in going through the full list of affected hotels here’s the list.
Targeting hotel business is the easiest way to steal customers’ personal details such as credit card numbers, full names, email addresses and permanent addresses. Apart from using stolen credit cards, the cyber criminals can further use your personal information for identity theft and other online scams.
In the past, hotels owned by Donald Trump in New York, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Honolulu, Miami and Chicago also faced a massive credit card data breach.


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Walmart makes Facebook marketing move
BENTONVILLE, Ark. — Increased localization of shopper marketing efforts at Walmart is now possible via Facebook following the retailer’s announcement that it would create approximately 3,500 store-specific Facebook pages to serve its nearly 9.5 million fans.
Walmart chief marketing officer Stephen Quinn said the move was an example of the company’s ongoing effort to engage with and listen to customers who desired a more localized experience on Facebook.
“Our innovative approach with Facebook allows us to bridge the gap between local and social, giving millions of customers the personalized shopping experience they expect from Walmart,” Quinn said.
More specifically, Walmart will use Facebook to communicate information about the availability of new products, rollbacks and in-store events, which can vary from store to store.
According to the company, the “My Local Walmart” Facebook application will provide locally-relevant information on everything from new electronics to hot Rollbacks, store maps and continue to illustrate the brand’s commitment to creating a deeper relationship with people in the communities it serves.
Fragrance bubbles in segment
The bath fragrance/bubble bath segment is experiencing modest growth, fueled by new product launches and consumers’ continued desire to bring the spa experience home.
Experiencing triple-digit growth during the 12-week period ended Aug. 7, according to market research firm SymphonyIRI Group, is Dr. Teal’s. In June, the brand announced the introduction of its first foaming liquid epsom salt. Dr. Teal’s Foaming Bath combines the therapeutic benefits of epsom salt with essential oils to relax achy muscles, soothe the senses and provide relief from stress.
The article above is part of the DSN Category Review Series. For the complete Bath and Body Sell-Through Report, including extensive charts, data and more analysis, click here.
Skin care brings it home
NEW YORK — Judging by the numbers, at-home skin care devices are hot. Enter the battery-operated Spa Sonic Skin Care System, which includes four attachments: a small brush for the face, a large brush for the body, pumice for rough areas and a facial sponge for microdermabrasion and reduction of fine lines. It is priced at $65.
According to consulting and research firm Kline & Co., power-operated, at-home skin care devices designed for daily cleansing, acne elimination and anti-aging treatment are nearly a $1 billion market at retail.


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COLONIE, N.Y. (NEWS10) — As the holiday weekend is upon us, so is more traffic, including more motorcycles out on the road.
Many who ride motorcycles are gearing up with special protective clothing and helmets to stay safe. They’re also paying attention to the road conditions. Experts say accidents can happen in a split second.
They want other drivers to do their part to stay alert and watch out for motorcyclists as well.


text: It may be hard to believe, but mushrooms can dramatically reduce the amount of sugar needed in chocolate. Denver based food technology company, MycoTechnology is able to reduce sugar requirements in chocolate by over 50% using their organic process. Recently, they debuted their technology on BBC Tomorrow’s Food, which Alan Hahn CEO of MycoTechnology explained that the secret is in the root system of mushrooms: “In nature mushrooms act as the clean up crew for the forest, breaking down toxins and providing nutrients for other plants to grow. By harnessing the root system of mushrooms, they consume the bitter compounds found in chocolate, ultimately reducing the need for masking agents such as sugar.” Hahn goes onto explain that, “The reason chocolate has upwards of 70% sugar is due to bitterness. Food manufacturers will add sugar to mask the undesirable bitter flavors found in chocolate to the point where it can be detrimental to health.” Sugar has gone under heavy scrutiny over the past few years, with research indicating its direct role in diabetes and obesity. This is of particular concern with the recent findings from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, which found that toddlers between the ages of 0-2 consume the same amount of sugar as adults. With sugar running rampant in everything from bread to sweets we need innovations from companies like MycoTechnology to help solve the sugar epidemic.


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According to developer Serenity Forge, the removed Xbox achievements from Homestead Arcana were never intended to be included in the game, possibly leading to the unprecedented removal decision.
Zhenghua Yang, founder and executive producer of Serenity Forge, apologized to IGN for the frustration and confusion the removal of achievements has caused.
“This achievement was the result of a miscommunication between our development team and the Skybound production team, and was never intended to be in the game in the first place,” he said.
“We at Serenity Forge care deeply about not only Xbox fans, but the amazing people on the Xbox team, and we are truly sorry that this has caused so much trouble and confusion.”
Here is the response euro gamer Reports that flagged achievements that were deleted. An Xbox Homestead Arcana player has noticed his gamerscore jumping to his 1,000th of his 1,000th, even though he hasn’t unlocked the last in-game achievement.
Report anomalies on the performance tracking website true achievementsFans quickly realized that a deliberate move had been made to remove the “You Can’t Be Too Prepared” achievement entirely. This is nearly impossible for players to unlock as it requires hundreds of items to craft, and some have reported glitches making it completely unattainable.
It was unclear at the time who requested the achievement ruling, whether it was the developer or Microsoft, but Yang’s comments to IGN suggest it was the former.
Removing achievements is virtually unheard of elsewhere and hadn’t been done before Homestead Arcana unless Microsoft had removed it for a game that didn’t get the attention it deserved.
Announced at the ID@Xbox showcase last September, Homestead Arcana promises to blend an exploration-based farming sim with a magic-based RPG, allowing players to farm fields and cast spells in parallel. bottom.
Luis Joshua Gutierrez is a freelance writer who loves games. Get in touch on Twitter @ImLuisGutierrez.
Ryan Dinsdale is a freelance reporter for IGN. He will talk about witchers all day long.
Editor’s Note: Previously, this article claimed that Microsoft removed the achievements, even though the information was unclear. IGN regrets the mistake and has updated the article with a statement from the developer.


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Kelley Blue Book Says Americans Aren't Ready To Surrender Steering Wheels To Self-Driving Cars
Forget about flying cars, the next big thing in automotive design is autonomous technology. There's been a considerable amount of innovation and advances in self-driving vehicle technology over the past several years, but while that may have companies such as Google and Tesla super excited, new research from Kelley Blue Book (KBB) suggests that Americans aren't yet comfortable giving up control of their cars to a computer and a bunch of sensors.
KBB commissioned the national study to better understand how consumers view autonomous vehicles. Market research firm Vital Findings conducted the survey, which included 2,200 residents of the United States with a wide age range from 12-64 years old. The survey was weighted to Census figures by age, gender, and ethnicity, and by a variety of residential and ownership patterns.
The respondents were split on whether they'd prefer to have full control of a vehicle even if it means the roadways aren't as safe for other drivers (51 percent), versus the opposite viewpoint of preferring to have safer roadways even if it means giving up some level of control over their vehicles (49 percent).
"The industry is talking a lot about self-driving vehicles these days, with multiple automakers and ride share companies throwing their hats in the competition to build and release the first fully autonomous vehicle to consumers," said Karl Brauer, senior analyst for Kelley Blue Book. "Much is still unknown about fully autonomous vehicles, including how they would react in emergency situations, but the lower-level options are gaining steam, with many Americans interested in purchasing vehicles with Level 2 semi-autonomous features."
KBB's reference to a Level 2 autonomous vehicle is based on the six levels of vehicle autonomy identified by the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE). A Level 0 vehicle is completely under the control of a human driver, whereas a Level 5 is completely autonomous (a third of respondents said they'd never purchase a Level 5 vehicle). Level 2 is semi-autonomous, meaning the vehicle can drive itself but the driver must be ready to take control, as is the case with Tesla's Autopilot technology.
Perhaps what's most surprising about the study is the level of awareness regarding autonomous vehicles, or lack thereof. It's a hot topic in the field of technology, as we often cover developments in the field here at HotHardware, but 6 out of 10 respondents said they know little or nothing about the category. That's a problem for automakers and vested companies such as Google alike. There needs to be consumer education on the benefits of self-driving cars if Americans are going to adopt the technology at large.
What's not surprising is that the majority of respondents in what KBB calls the tech-savvy pre-driving Gen Z age range (12-15 years old) are ready to ride with self-driving cars, with over a two-thirds believing they will within their lifetime.
If you want to know about how Americans feel towards self-driving cars, ready your PDF reader and check out KBB's nearly 50-page report filled with stats.


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The government has moved to bring back Bangladesh Apparel Board for regulating the readymade garment and textile sector after hundreds of workers died in the country’s most deadly industrial accident.
Prime Minister’s Office gave primary consent to the matter while commerce ministry is now working on it, said a senior official in the ministry of commerce.
The commerce ministry officials will sit together today to prepare proposals for a new apparel board.
The proposals will be discussed with the stakeholders and placed before the cabinet for approval in a month, said the official.
According to other commerce ministry sources, the apparel board will include one stop shop system to deliver service to RMG traders and stakeholders.
The sources said the decision to include one stop service system was taken after allegations from BGMEA and BKMEA that they were facing problems to get service from government offices.
In 1999, the Bangladesh Apparel Board Act was approved by the cabinet committee during the previous Awami League regime recognising the necessity of such a board as the commerce ministry’s apparel cell alone could not handle the whole sector.
BNP-led four-party alliance government, however, later cancelled the approval arguing that the apparel cell of the commerce ministry would be enough to monitor RMG sector.
Once Apparel Board comes into existence, the commerce ministry’s apparel cell will work textile and jute ministry to avoid overlapping of works.
As per rules approved in 1999, the Ministry of Finance will assess incomes and expenditures of the Board where most of the employments will be third and fourth classes.
President of Bangladesh Exporters Association Abdul Salam Murshedy told Dhaka Tribune that the local garment sector should be under a new ministry if their demands are fully met.
“We doubt if our all demands and needs of workers will be addressed,” he said.
The commerce secretary Mahbub Ahmed said: “The ministry is working for an Apparel Board. It will definitely take time to form the board.”
Meanwhile, the textiles and jute ministry is also working with draft of the proposed Apparel Board Act-2012.
Earlier, the ministry formed a committee with its officials to formulate the draft.


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A decade old marketing campaign by a credit card company still provides a boost to local businesses’ bottom line.
An impact that is evident at the Workhouse, a studio and retail space for artists in Southeast Bend.
“It really has been a movement to focus people’s attention on what’s happening in their local economy,” said Workhouse owner and director Cari Brown, “And for us, shop small is our second busiest day of the year.”
Customers browsed jewelry, satined glass, and other hand crafted wares searching for the perfect gift.
“Christmas presents, you know, trying to get some final things for my parents family members, said Michaela Loar of Bend.
In 2010, American Express launched the Small Business Saturday campaign. The idea was to spotlight small businesses on the Saturday between the big box store’s Black Friday sales and the rise of online retailer’s Cyber Monday.
For many the day morphed into a shop small mindset that goes beyond holiday purchases.
“Absolutely. Especially here in Bend. I mean, it’s so hard to live here and cost of living is very high. I want to support the community in any way that I can,” said Loar.
That’s music to the ears of small, local business owners.
“You really can’t do anything better for your community from a from an economic standpoint. So many statistics will tell you that when you purchase from a local maker or a local small business, like 63% of your dollar stays in your economy,” added Brown, “and that’s a really big deal for keeping, you know, people in housing and keeping people, you know, in health care.”


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What Consumers Want
January 5, 2022
By: Kate Drew
As we begin 2022, it seemed fitting to kick off our first research snapshot of the year with a discussion on what banking is really all about — the customer. Specifically, we are going to focus on the US consumer and what exactly it is they are looking for from a financial services provider. Banking institutions in the US have done a great job in the past two years (and even before that) embracing digital channels and giving their customers more technology-based tools. However, when we think about the deepest and most basic consumer needs, they actually tend to be more analog. In fact, according to Ernst and Young’s 2021 NextWave Global Consumer Banking Survey, privacy and trust benefits is the number one factor impacting purchase decisions in financial services, followed by rate and fee benefits as well as rewards.
This points to a very important idea — at the end of the day, consumers are ultimately not concerned with snazzy apps and interfaces; rather, they are simply trying to manage their financial lives. And their bank should be their number one champion in helping them to do that. That means using technology thoughtfully in ways that are truly adding value, while at the same time doubling down on areas like trust where traditional institutions have always excelled. Technology can be a little scary, even for younger generations, so providing tools with security at the center and communicating that marriage effectively could translate into a major competitive advantage for US banks. Additionally, banks should be thinking about how they can make financial services more accessible by taking a page out of the fintech playbook, perhaps by taking a look at things like overdraft programs, as a number have recently done.
Fintechs have been nipping at the heels of America’s legacy providers for quite a while. But there is one thing they don’t have — experience. And banking is an industry that demands experience, that insists on expertise, and that leaves little room for error. The recent fraud woes of neobanks across the country proves this. And, while these agile players will likely learn from their mistakes and shore up their defenses (Read: These competitors are here to stay.), their novel nature represents an opportunity for longstanding banks to stress the security and experience they provide. Those that combine that message with a leveling up on user experience and centricity are likely to be unstoppable. So, here’s to a new year — who is up for the challenge?
Subscribe CCG Insights.


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(Left to right) Dr. Craig Morris, Deputy Administrator, Livestock, Poultry, and Seed Program; Angie Snyder, Associate Deputy Administrator, Livestock, Poultry, and Seed Program; Administrator Starmer; and Jamie Mitchell from Fair Oaks Farms.
At the Agricultural Marketing Service and across USDA, we often talk about the fact that the face of American agriculture is changing. The ranks of our farmers, especially young and beginning farmers, include a growing number of women, people of color, veterans or folks in their second careers. So-called “traditional” agriculture defies the term as it pursues new strategies, new products, and new markets. Across the country, agriculture is diversifying and evolving to meet changing consumer demands.
I saw the new face of agriculture last week during travels to Illinois and Indiana. My first stop was a roundtable on Women in Agriculture held at FarmedHere in Bedford Park, Illinois, about 15 miles from Chicago. Twenty or so women gathered to talk about their farming goals and to hear about how USDA could support them. This topic is close to my heart – I’m a New Hampshire native, a state with the second highest percentage of women farmers in the country. The women around the table with me represented the new face of ag, but so too did the setting – an indoor, vertical farm that produces basil and microgreens in a facility designed to reduce energy costs and shrink the carbon footprint of growing food. FarmedHere is managed by Megan Klein, an attorney by training who found her calling in urban agriculture and became part of this “new face.” Read more »
USDA has proposed changes to ensure consumer confidence in the growing organic market by promoting consistency across the organic industry, supporting the continued growth of the organic livestock and poultry sector. Click to enlarge.
The mission of the National Organic Program, part of USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS), is to protect the integrity of USDA organic products in our country and throughout the world. This means clearly defining what it means to be organic and enforcing those rules. Consumers look for and trust the organic seal because they know that USDA stands behind the standards that it represents.
Today, USDA is taking action by announcing that we will soon publish and invite public comment on a proposed rule regarding organic livestock and poultry practices. It’s an important step that will strengthen consumer confidence in the label and ensure that organic agriculture continues to provide economic opportunities for farmers, ranchers, and businesses around the country. Read more »
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) invests in agricultural research, education, and extension programs that take groundbreaking discoveries from laboratories to farms, communities, and classrooms. These programs enhance the competitiveness of American agriculture, ensure the safety of the nation’s food supply, improve the nutrition and health of communities, sustain the environment and natural resources, and bolster the economy. The following blogs are examples of the thousands of NIFA projects that help Americans get to know their farmers and their food. Read more »
From salad greens to fresh blueberries, local food is showing up everywhere from grocery stores to our kids’ school lunch plates. Helping the produce industry meet this local food demand and to meet the requirements of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA), USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) now offers a new GroupGAP certification program for smaller growers. USDA Photo by Lance Cheung.
Excitement is building in the produce industry. From salad greens to roasted beets to fresh blueberries, local food is showing up on grocery stores shelves, as new features on restaurants menus and on our kids’ school lunch plates. The increased demand for local food is creating more opportunities for farmers, ranchers and producers. While exploring new ways to meet the demand, the produce industry is also keeping an eye on the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA).
To help producers meet the requirements of FSMA, one of the most important services USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) provides is our Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) certification. That’s why we’re launching a new GroupGAP certification program that allows smaller growers and producers to band together to become certified as a group. We are working closely with FDA to align our GAP and GroupGAP programs with FSMA requirements so that as FSMA takes effect, certified growers will know they are meeting the new requirements. Read more »
Children get hands on experience in the garden at the exhibits during the 2016 White House Easter Egg Roll on the south lawn of the White House in Washington, DC on Monday Mar, 28, 2016. USDA photo by Lance Cheung.
Spring has sprung and April is National Garden Month! It’s time to pick up your trowel and get gardening.
USDA launched the new People’s Garden website that provides tools and resources gardeners can use to start or expand a home, school or community garden. Unveiled during today’s annual Easter Egg Roll at the White House, here are just some of the new features: Read more »
Investing in local food systems creates market opportunities for businesses entrepreneurs to sell fresh local products in unique ways. El Bosque Garlic Farms sells their hand-tied garlic at the Santa Fe Farmers Market. Photo courtesy of Peter Wood, USDA.
Every community wants to support initiatives that promote economic growth and create new jobs, but sometimes it can be hard to decide on the best way to accomplish these goals. Now there is a new resource to help communities make the economic case for investments in local food. Today, Secretary Tom Vilsack announced the availability of “The Economics of Local Food Systems: A Toolkit to Guide Community Discussions, Assessments and Choices” at the Good Food Festival’s Financing and Innovation Conference in Chicago. Secretary Vilsack highlighted USDA’s continued support of local and regional food systems, much of which is coordinated through USDA’s Know Your Farmer, Know Your Food initiative. Read more »


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Ale Syndicate, a troubled Chicago brewery with financial woes, has spelled doom for a second company that had been producing at its space under contract. Arcade Brewery, which operated out of Ale Syndicate’s facility in the Logan Square neighborhood by way of alternating proprietorship (a practice that legally allows more than one brewery to call a production facility home), has made the “painful, but necessary decision” to close, effectively immediately, as a result of its partner’s reported inability to pay rent.
As for Ale Syndicate, founded in 2013 after a series of crowd-sourced funding projects and investments, the company was responsible for rent because it owned the lease, the Chicago Tribune reports. The Tribune also reports that the company had its license put on hold because of unpaid taxes even as they now hope to move production to a new brewery next year. Its future remains up in the air, however, as it hasn’t had a brewer license since April.
That’s of no solace to Arcade, of course, which will spend the next few weeks collecting empty kegs from retailers, never to be refilled.
WHY IT MATTERS
In November, we wrote that the stigma surrounding contract brewing had more or less met its demise. And while that may be true for consumers, the skepticism amongst professionals certainly has its merits. Running a multi-brewery alternating proprietorship out of one facility still requires sound stewardship or else everyone relying on the primary business is at serious risk. And in this particular fiasco, transparency, or lack thereof, was the real issue, even though so much of it seems clear in hindsight.
Arcade had reportedly been producing out of Ale Syndicate’s space for two and a half years. While the company says it seemed apparent “from the outside” that Ale Syndicate had been struggling, it says it “did not know the extent to how much they were struggling until the very end.”
“We were not informed that there were any issues until after the gas was turned off in late November,” Lance Curran, Arcade co-founder and co-owner, tells GBH by email. “[It] was still weeks after that before we knew the full extent of how serious the issues were.”
While Arcade closed, it wasn’t the only brewery to ever bail on the alt-prop space. Around the Bend Beer Co. got its start there, but moved its bottle production to Excel Brewing in the spring of 2015. (It’s currently in the process of moving once again to Burnt City Brewing.)
The move to Excel “had nothing to do with [Ale Syndicate’s] financial situation,” Around the Bend founder Dan Schedler tells GBH. Furthermore, the company was similarly unaware of its former partner’s precarious fiscal troubles. “We knew nothing about their financial woes until a couple of weeks ago,” Schedler says. “We were kept totally in the dark.”
Around the Bend is working to move two of its 40-BBL fermenters from Ale Syndicate’s space over to Burnt City, Schedler says.
Jesse Evans and Samuel Evans, brothers and founders of Ale Syndicate, did not respond to GBH’s calls and emails requesting comment. But the three-year-old company explained its mission statement from the jump:
“We’re not just an ordinary brewery—we’re a syndicate,” Jesse Evans said in a press release at the time the company made its debut. “That means an important part of what we do is collaboration—with each other, with other breweries, and, most importantly, with our community.”
For the brothers Evans, this isn't the first hard knock in brewing. They attempted to start up a brewery in California, Lucky Hand Brewing, before selling it off (it didn't make it far) and moving to Chicago and immediately starting again with New Chicago Brewing, which also never got off the ground. Ultimately, they abandoned their plans at The Plant on Chicago's South side.
Their third try as Ale Syndicate started as a contact brand before moving into its home in Logan Square on the back of some crowdfunding via Indiegogo. Their pitch? "We have plans for 3 fermenters, but would crank out a whole lot more beer with 5 fermenters!" Indeed, the math checks out. And two donors gave them $1,000 each for that campaign in exchange for a "taproom takeover," which they estimated would take place in March of 2014. Ale Syndicate never opened a taproom.
In 2015 they went on to raise more money via Kiva, a "crowdlending" site where they told potential lenders that a loan of $5,000 would enable them to "purchase brewing equipments [sic] to meet our skyrocketing demand," that they were getting ready to go "state wide" with distribution, and further explained that the money would enable them to "buy hoses, pumps, a refractometer, gloves and tools. While purchases such as these seem simple, they can add tremendously to our productivity." That loan received 125 contributors.
Almost immediately they brought in other contract brands to lighten the overhead, including Arcade Brewery, who had themselves raised $32,760 on Kickstarter. They got four backers at $1,000 a pop offering up a private dinner and brewery tour. (That tour would be for a brewery they were, at the time, still calling New Chicago Brewing Co., which later became Ale Syndicate. Regardless, they were offering to give contributors a tour of the brewery in which they were alternating proprietors.)
Ironically, just two years after finally launching Ale Syndicate, Jesse sought to start a consulting business for other breweries, which he pitched to Illinois Guild members offering his services in investment and business planning, facility management, even work/life balance among others. And he offered a tried and true "refund if we aren't successful." He planned to take his consulting practice national.
That pitch also offered this insightful wisdom: "Pain is a symptom, not a requirement."
—Dave Eisenberg + Michael Kiser


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Source: The Economic Times, Aug 14, 2017
MUMBAI: India’s annual consumer price inflation picked up to 2.36 percent in July from 1.54 percent in June, as a decline in food prices slowed sharply, government data showed on Monday.
The rise was faster than the 1.87 percent forecast by economists in a Reuters poll. Inflation was 1.54 percent in June – the slowest pace since India started releasing retail inflation data in January 2012 based on combined data for rural and urban consumers.
Commenting on the figures, Anjali Verma, economist, Phillipcapital India, said: “(Inflation of) 2.36 percent is in line with our expectations. This has largely been led by higher vegetable prices, which is also reflecting in WPI.


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Porsche has unveiled a limited-edition 911 that is so exclusive prospective owners have to enter a lottery to buy it.
Only 12 911 Club Coupes are available, and buyers have to be a member of a Porsche club to be in the running. There are 180,000 Porsche club members worldwide, making the odds 15,000 to one.
Australia has about eight official Porsche car clubs with more than 1000 members, according to the German sport car maker’s local subsidiary.
Porsche Cars Australia has confirmed the car will be built in right-hand drive if a very lucky - and wealthy - Australian club member “wins” an opportunity. If they do, they’ll need to pay “close to $400,000”, Porsche public relations manager Paul Ellis says. That could make it more expensive than the Ferrari-rivalling 911 Turbo (from $363,700), which pumps out 368kW and 650Nm.
The special edition model is distinguished by a host of mechanical upgrades as well as exterior and interior appointments.
The maker will laser engrave “911 Club Coupe – personally built for” and the name of its owner on the dash and door sills.
Using the recently launched 991-series 911 Carrera S as a base, the Club Coupe benefits from a kit comprising modified cylinder heads and camshafts, a variable intake system, or sound enhancer, centre radiator, a sports exhaust system and Porsche’s Sport Chrono Package with dynamic engine mounts, to name a few.
All up the 3.6-litre flat six-cylinder engine’s output goes from 294kW to 316kW from slightly higher revs while maximum torque remains at 440Nm, also from a higher engine speed.
Porsche claims it also shaves a hundredth off the 0-100km/h sprint time to 4.0 seconds, using the standard PDK seven-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission.
Big-ticket highlights include ceramic-composite brakes, which normally cost almost $20,000, for even stronger stopping power, Porsche’s active sports suspension system that lowers the car by 20mm for even sharper handling, unique 20-inch alloy wheels with wider rubber and a SportDesign package comprising distinctive exterior styling cues such as the classic “duck tail” rear spoiler.
Each of the 13 examples (one will remain with Porsche) will be coated in the company’s classic “Brewster Green” hue with an Espresso leather interior, and finished with glossy script on the doors.
The fitted options add up to more than $56,000 on top of the regular Carrera S’s $269,050 asking price before on-road and dealer costs.
The first Porsche club was established in 1952, just four years after the first Porsche was built. A group of seven Porsche drivers founded the Westfälischer Porsche Club Hohensyburg, now known as the Porsche Club Westfalen. That same year saw the formation of a second Porsche Club with six members initially – the Porsche Club Berlin.


text: Faced with the ubiquity of smart devices in our daily lives, all the actors involved in the development of these new technologies have taken more or less effective measures to protect their use. The number of connected devices in circulation is expected to exceed 20 billion in 2021, representing a market estimated at $1.4 billion. However, this hyper-connectivity goes hand-in-hand with the multiplication of security vulnerabilities: Kaspersky identified more than 100 million cyberattacks in the first half of 2019 alone. In order to address these threats, which cannot be set aside, the US-based National Institute of Standards and Technology (NINT) has published a guide to gather the functionalities that should be incorporated in commercialized smart devices. This report is largely inspired by those published in 2017 by the European Network and Information Security Agency (ENISA) and in 2019 by the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI). While it is obvious that these issues are given impetus, one actor stands out from the rest of the IoT market for its particular attention to cybersecurity norms and standards: intergovernmental organization APEC (Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation). The forum, which brings together 21 countries from the Pacific Ocean region, reaffirms its leadership in securing the digital economy after it produced a “Framework for Securing the Digital Economy” and the “APEC Internet and Digital Economy Roadmap”. To this end, the APEC Trade and Investment Committee has organized several seminars in Santiago and Malaysia to spread the word about its new standards and norms on smart devices.


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After a year of selling in Europe, Boucheron today plans to open its first online store in the U.S.
“We wanted to master our ability to manage this new activity before launching into the major market, which is the U.S. market,” said Boucheron chief executive officer Jean-Christophe Bédos. The Gucci Group-owned luxury jeweler is one of the first to sell online, still a rarity among luxury jewelry and watch brands.
“We consider the Web to be a tool already used by our clients, not a revolution anymore,” said Bédos. “All the statistics and market analysis show that the wealthy consumers are the highest consumers online. And they are the best equipped in terms of technology. We are dedicated to serving our clients, and if our clients are online, we should be where our clients are.”
The idea behind the site is to offer an additional service — that is, one available at any hour in any location — that reproduces as much as possible the experience of shopping in a Boucheron store. The online store offers the same merchandise categories, sku’s and prices as the off-line stores. It even offers some customization capabilities. For example, shoppers can choose the color of the bands of pavé stones in a ring shaped like a chameleon.
Gucci Group and other firms selling designer apparel have done very well online, and Boucheron wanted to see if the same behavior would hold true for the high-end jewelry category, said Bédos. The answer turned out to be yes. “We have people who can order jewelry without any feeling of taboo. They order jewelry like they would order fashion online,” he said. Many existing customers feel comfortable ordering online. In addition, the Web site has introduced the brand to new customers, both within and outside store trading areas, and attracts a youthful audience.
Traffic to the Web site increased 200 percent after the European store, selling both in euros and pounds, went live in September 2007. Traffic in the physical stores also got a measurable boost, with shoppers showing up with printouts of jewelry they wish to see in person, or mentioning to the salesperson they want to see an item they already viewed online.
“We have observed an increase of traffic in our stores, which was a surprise because we did not expect such a causal relationship,” said Bédos. As multichannel apparel retailers from high to low have also discovered, some customers who pre-shop on the Web buy in the store, and others return home to buy online. “Everyone is more and more individualistic about their shopping experience,” he said. “We are living in a time when people are very clever, they know what they want and they behave the way they want. It’s very exciting to learn all these new things via the Web.”
Bédos said the company will predict sales for the U.S. store after one year in business. The European online store has not yet reached the sales volume of an off-line store in one year, but undoubtedly will in the future, he said. So far, the company has not experienced any fall in sales because of the credit crisis in the U.S. or Europe, and Bédos said in general, the luxury jewelry business is fairly resilient because jewelry is a stable investment and wealthy customers are diversified in their investments.
“Azzedine has been one of the biggest influences in my life. He has always been such a strong, loving, fatherly figure to me. I call him Papa. His designs are indescribably unique, they are pieces of art. He knew how to make the female form look its loveliest. I have so many memories of him; my favorite might be during my first show with him in Paris. He liked me and he wanted to help me get more work. He called all his friends at Kenzo and Comme des Garcons, and asked them to book me. They said, ‘But she can’t walk!’ And he said, ‘but she has such a great ass!' His friendship and support has been the great privilege of my career. I can't imagine life without him. Repose en paix mon Papa.” - @stephanieseymour tells @wwd. #wwdfashion (📷: @steveeichner) #alaia #azzedinealaia
Azzedine Alaïa, flanked by two of his closest friends, models Stephanie Seymour and Naomi Campbell.
He designed Seymour’s dress for her 1995 wedding to Peter Brant, and treated Campbell (who famously called him Papa), like a daughter. For more on the legendary designer, tap the link in bio. #wwdfashion #alaia #azzedinealaia
Azzedine Alaïa's “I-did-it-my-way” ethos stood out starkly at a time when brands are experimenting with consumer-facing fashion shows, coed formats and trans-seasonal collections – anything to perk up lackluster sales of ready-to-wear in an age of Insta-everything. “It’s not creation anymore. This becomes a purely industrial approach,” the late designer told WWD in an interview last year. “But anyway, the rhythm of collections is so stupid. It’s unsustainable. There are too many collections.” Read more about the iconic designer’s life and work on wwd.com, link in bio. #wwdfashion #azzedinealaia (📷: @WWD Archive, 1986) #alaia
Sneaker reselling app @goat’s latest exhibit, "The Greatest: New York," tells the story of New York's sneaker culture. To celebrate the exhibit, an intimate crowd gathered on Thursday night at the pop-up gallery space, located at Platform in Culver City, to hear guest speaker and illustrator @esymai talk about her own rise in streetwear and women in the business. "For me I'm just someone who is creative. I like to create things," said Chang. #wwdfashion
Azzedine Alaïa, one of the most iconic couturiers of the modern era whose body-con designs defined Eighties fashion, has died in Paris. The diminutive Tunisian-born designer, known for his structured knitted dresses with fitted waists and impeccably cut, figure-hugging second skin silhouettes was deeply admired by his peers, and counted supermodel Naomi Campbell - his adoptive daughter - among his inner circle, one of a gang of glamazons including Farida Khelfa, Carla Bruni and Stephanie Seymour who became ambassadors of his style. (📷: Alexandre Guirkinger) #wwdblast


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Inventory solution firm Inturn will hold its Working Capital Summit in partnership with the Boston Consulting Group.
Sequins are scattered across many wardrobe essentials.
A soured investor relationship has seen the designer’s brand shut down.
Southern retailer extends its influence with e-commerce site and app.
The influencer’s first product became the best-selling skin-care product on sephora.com in under two weeks.
The model, actor and deaf activist is coproducing the play that returns to Broadway this month.
San Francisco’s Board of Supervisors hope that the city’s anti-fur ban will be copies by other cities and countries.
The committee evaluating the Nordstrom family offer to buy Nordstrom Inc. terminated discussions.
The designer created a morning suit-style outfit for the former Beatle.
The Japanese artist recently collaborated with Off-White’s Virgil Abloh and is gearing up for a solo show in New York.
More Memo Pad


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When is competition law disruptive and when is it supportive of business growth?
South African Judge President of the Competition Appeal Court, recently told a Windhoek audience that the Competition Act is ambitious, referring to the fact that it goes beyond traditional competition laws.
“The Competition Laws in Namibia and South Africa are ambitious. These Acts state that we do need an intervention but has also lifted its gaze and pointed to other serious structural issues owed to previous colonial rule that need to be addressed. If we wanted a standard Act where the market self-corrects, we would only have the basic issues outlined e.g. fair prices, but our Acts are also concerned with issues of equity,” he said.
The novelty of competition legislation in the Namibian market brings with it various challenges while navigating the legal waters and the implications it has on enterprise.
The Chief Executive of Standard Bank, Vetumbuavi Mungunda reiterated this view saying the design, application and interpretation of Competition Law needs ongoing discussion as it is fairly young.
“Competition in business is required to drive fairness, efficiencies as well as transparent, sustainable economic growth which would benefit the population. At the same time, consolidations, mergers, joint-ventures, cooperative arrangements in businesses are imperative and at times the only tool available to drive growth and rescue struggling businesses especially during difficult and recessionary times as these we are experiencing in the last two years,” Mungunda said.
He also pointed out that regardless of the country’s population and industries, local companies are also expected to compete against global companies.
Judge Davis stated that Competition Law has become cutting edge legislation dealing mostly with the way economic power is skewed. Acknowledging that outcomes are not always guaranteed, he said the basic premise for any Competition Law should be normative, driving the way businesses should conduct themselves in the market place. He noted that this is not a uniquely Namibian or South African requisite but that Competition Law is founded on a worldwide recognition of the principles of fairness, transparency and healthy competition.
Judge Davis said in some countries, cartels abuse their market dominance, but in a more local context, he sees this also happening where established companies actively prevent the entry of black-owned enterprises exploiting the lacunae in competition legislation. Pointing out an obvious shortcoming, he said “Namibia’s Act does not deal with that issue.”
“Namibia’s Act leaves everything to the Competition Commission; however South Africa has a competition tribunal that hears competition cases subject to adjudication. If we are trying to balance public interest and efficiency, and have concerns on structure and not just behaviour then we need a body for that. This body should be a specialist tribunal dealing with matters of Competition Law that has an understanding of economics as well as economic concepts,” he said emphasising that certain decisions on competition legislation should vest in a tribunal rather than a ministry.
“We need to promote an economy in a market that is inclusive and does not only benefit some but all,” he concluded.


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Across Kentucky - July 3, 2015
Posted on Jul 3, 2015
A report on the upcoming Independence Day weekend which is arguable the biggest weekend of the year for backyard grilling activities. The all-American hamburger will be the number one item cooked this weekend and ‘
beefitswhatsfordinner.com’ offers some excellent cooking tips, recipes, and videos on a number of grilling techniques.
Click here to listen
Tagged Post Topics Include:


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The early summer weeks are always among the busiest of the year for smartphone companies, with most looking to get out their latest devices to market and prove themselves competitive over what is definitely one of the busiest periods of the year.
The past week has been no different, with companies across the globe working at their latest releases and launches. So what have the biggest smartphone firms been doing in the week gone by?
Easily the busiest of all the big companies, Motorola really gave us an indication of what it plans to do in the future over the course of the past week.
On May 13th, the company held a press event at which it announced two new phones – the Motorola Moto E, a low-end phone with some rather impressive specs packed into it, and a newer version of last year’s Motorola Moto G, which could lead the cheaper market thanks to its 4G connectivity capabilities.
We believe the move is a bold one from Motorola, but a tactic that could see the market evolve moving forward. Companies have traditionally put the majority of their focus on their top-end phones, making sure they pack a punch, but moving forward, it seems possible that more could look to capture the lucrative low-end, where there are a great many new smartphone adopters every year.
Samsung seems to have at least made moves to get the first smartphone with a quad-HD screen to the market at last. In the past few weeks, rumours have seemed to suggest that LG would beat it to the punch with the LG G3, but the battle may be closer than many thought previously.
The Samsung Galaxy S5 Prime, which is rumoured to be an even more lavish version of the Korean firm’s latest flagship, has apparently gained bluetooth certification in the past few days, which is one of the latest steps before a phone comes to the market – so it could now be closer than we think.
Another company looking to target a little lower down in the marketplace appears to HTC, as the company has now announced the price point for the pared back version of its current flagship.
The HTC One Mini 2, which is expected later this year, will be available SIM-free for £360m, which should make it very competitive in a very busy market which will include the likes of Samsung’s Galaxy S5 Mini and Sony Xperia Z2 Compact, both of which are heavily rumoured for release this year.
While most companies have been looking forward with new handsets, two have announced this week that they will be dropping famous branding moving forward.
Nokia was first to make this change, after it announced that it is going to release no more smartphones with the famous name attached to them. The move came after the firm was acquired by Microsoft, and is designed to create synergy between the phone names and the use of the Windows Phone operating system.
Since then, rival Google has announced that it will also be making a change to a popular range, as it intends to drop its popular Nexus branding from future devices, instead using a new title, Android Silver. Like Nokia and Windows Phone, this will allow for a better link between the new phones and Google’s Android operating system.


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In a study comparing liquid meal replacements in dieters who consumed 1,200 calories per day, soy-based products were more effective for losing weight than cow’s milk products (Journal of the American College of Nutrition, 2005, vol. 24, no. 3). “Using soy meal replacements as part of a low-calorie diet can allow people to lose 30 to 50 pounds if they use three meal replacements and at least five servings of fruits or vegetables daily,” says James Anderson, MD, author of the study and part of the Metabolic Research Group at the University of Kentucky.
Aside from its role in weight loss, soy has many other health benefits. Regular intake has been shown to lower blood cholesterol levels, protect against heart attack and osteoporosis, and possibly slow the development of diabetes, says Anderson, who recommends 20 grams of soy protein (approximately three servings) per day and suggests soy milk for a good portion of that amount.


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Black Pine: The Next-Level Ingredient for Ageless Skin
Have you ever thought about how certain plants can thrive in places with harsh weather conditions? That’s no easy feat! For example, for over 3.5 million years, the Black Pine tree has survived and thrived year-round in the Mediterranean. It turns out that the tree is able to synthesize secondary metabolites (compounds that organisms don’t need to grow and reproduce) like polyphenols and tannins. These metabolites are what make the Black Pine so resilient and adaptable to the elements. So, if Pharrel was a tree, he’d be the Black Pine (ha!).
Because of this discovery, the Korres Research Lab was able to collect Black Pine extract and blend it with eight more active extracts, including “the first ever natural polypeptide and a global innovation in the beauty industry,” hexapeptide 11. The result was a four-product range of anti-aging skincare simply dubbed Korres Black Pine.
The new line includes a Firming, Lifting & Antiwrinkle Day Cream ($58) that feels amazing under makeup; a Night Cream ($68) that offers visibly firmer skin after just a few weeks; a highly-potent Serum ($74) that boosts results when layered with the Night Cream; and an Eye Cream ($54) to reduce deep wrinkles, puffiness and dark circles. Every product is, of course, made with the unique cocktail of extracts for ageless skin.
The Korres Black Pine collection, housed in luxe new packaging, is now available at Sephora.
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NORFOLK — After another restaurant space opportunity opened up in Selden Market, The StockPot decided to add its healthy comfort food menu to another location.
The StockPot’s original location is in Virginia Beach’s ViBe District on 700 19th Street Suite 106 and they’ve been open since 2015, said Anne Galante, The StockPot’s owner and chef.
“Out goal was to sell healthy comfort food when we opened,” she said.
The StockPot’s Selden Market location opened Jan. 25 on 215 East Plume St.
A perk of opening up a second location was the ability to design the new space and serve a whole new crowd, she said.
Chef-driven, from scratch, healthy comfort food
Galante grew up cooking with her family where food was the center of major family events.
After high school she got a degree in exercise science and physical education before deciding to dive into the culinary world.
She started cooking locally in 2010 and moved on to open her own restaurant in September of 2015, she said.
The food served at The StockPot has been described by guests as different from any other foods they’ve eaten at restaurants, Galante said.
They make all of their stocks, sauces, biscuits and soup bases from scratch.
Galante said she avoids processed foods in her cooking.
She bases her healthy menu on the healthy lifestyle she leads outside of the kitchen, she said.
The Norfolk location has been settling into it’s new digs well so far.
The StockPot is working with a larger space, a different layout and two floors.
The new location has 20 booth seats, 14 seats at the bar and another 16 seats on the second floor.
Galante said she and her business partner, Patrick Edwards, had written in their business plan they wanted to expand and the space opening up in Selden Market fit right in their timeline.
They got to work with the Work Program Architects in Norfolk, designing how they wanted the new location to look.
A big difference between this location and the Virginia Beach one was the types of food the customers seemed to order most, Galante said.
“Norfolk wants soup while Virginia Beach wants breakfast all day long,” she said.
By having the two locations and sous-chefs running each restaurant, Galante is now freed up to pursue new additions to her menus and learn more about new culinary styles.
She said for now she and Edwards are happy with the expansion and are looking to keep improving their menu.
Click here to see the full menu available at The StockPot’s two locations.


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MINI Seeking Pikes Peak Glory with 900 HP “No Limit” Climber [Video]
Although it looks like a MINI Paceman, Dayraut’s vehicle has no other connection with the British car, with the body shell sitting on the same chassis that underpinned the Dacia Duster “No Limit” that almost won the even last year.
Now 176 lbs (80 kg) lighter that its predecessor and boasting an extra 50 HP, the MINI “No Limit” sends 900 HP to the ground thanks to its twin-turbo 3.8-liter V6 engine, which mean more than 1,000 HP per tone.
Jean Philipe Dayraut will race the MINI “No Limit” in the Unlimited Class. This year’s Pikes Peak International Hill Climb is set to take place on June 30. Until then, watch a preview with the 2013 MINI “No Limit” in the video uploaded below.


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The Japan government is considering to provide monthly payments for needy households to help ease the financial strain due to COVID-19 pandemic. Considering monthly payments are ¥60,000 for single-member households, ¥80,000 for two-person households and ¥100,000 for households composed of three or more people for three months from July by earmarking ¥50 billion from the fiscal 2021 initial budget. To support households reeling from the pandemic, the government has also provided interest-free loan programs without collateral.
For more information, please click.
Source: The Japan Times


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Microsoft has announced the most shocking climb-down in gaming history, but there’s only one person to blame for its troubles: you.
Just a day before going to E3 last week I contracted a terrible sore throat and cough. In order to get through such an important event I’ve since downed enough drugs and medication to make me seriously consider whether last night’s Xbox One news was not some bizarre hallucination. That explanation would almost make more sense than a $70 billion company acting like the Keystone Cops of the technology world.
According to Microsoft itself the Xbox One will now function exactly like the Xbox 360 in terms of allowing the use of used games and region free play. There’ll also be no daily online check-ins, just the need for a one-time internet connection the first time you power on your console.
But don’t think for a moment that Microsoft changed its policy because it was listening to fan complaints and feedback. Indirectly that’s true perhaps, but the one and only reason they changed its position was because of pre-orders for the Xbox One – or rather the lack of them.
Very often I have readers writing in to ask the best way to influence video games companies’ decision-making process and always I give the same response. It’s not via letter writing, journalist questioning, or online petitions; it’s via your wallet. It’s the only thing the companies are interested in and it’s the one thing that can change even a seemingly immovable position overnight.
You as a consumer have all the power in the world and the only thing that’s stopping you wielding it is the false assumption that you won’t make a difference and that whatever you’re complaining about ‘isn’t too bad’. But if you put your money where your mouth is then companies will listen.
In that sense Microsoft isn’t any different to any other business, games or otherwise. And yet Microsoft’s arrogant attitude and laughably unconvincing explanations of the last few weeks have undoubtedly made things even worse.
It’s also exposed just how little it really cares about the video games industry itself, and how the company’s real goal has always been mastery of the living room as a whole – with gaming a disposable stepping stone on that journey.
It’s precisely the reason I’m so wary of Apple being more involved in gaming: the influence of such a massive company that has no interest in the industry beyond blocking the progress of its competitors can only be a negative.
There have been positives to take away from this whole adventure though and it’s been great to see most video game journalists speak out against the Xbox One’s policies, and with a vociferousness which I’ve rarely witnessed before.
Although those that sought to defend Microsoft policies in the press and online will now, I hope, consider whether they were really speaking from the heart or from a misplaced sense of brand loyalty and/or fatalism.
What these events prove most of all is that you should never take things lying down or assume the path of a giant corporation cannot be changed. They might not want to admit it but the truth is the customer is always right.
There are still question marks hanging over the Xbox One: it’s more expensive than the PlayStation 4 and allegedly less powerful. Kinect is still unwanted, and untrusted, by many gamers and it’s uncertain whether Microsoft’s eagerness to use the cloud for in-game processing will now be curtailed (or perhaps used as an excuse to classify the majority of game as ‘online-only’). Its position on indie gaming has also been severely damaged in the last few weeks.
But hopefully now we can begin to judge the Xbox One and PlayStation 4 on the games and hardware, rather than their anti-consumer policies. And the only reason that’s possible is because you put up a fuss.
Thoughts? Email email@example.com or leave a comment below


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Source: Akarat Phasura – Shutterstock
- As part of a strategic partnership, the American company Object Computing Inc. (OCI) will offer the VeChain ToolChain to its customers.
- OCI will build solutions using VeChain’s ToolChain and develop customer-specific smart contracts.
As Object Computing Inc. announced in a press release, the St. Louis (USA) based company has entered a strategic partnership with the VeChain Foundation. As part of this partnership, Object Computing will work with VeChain to support worldwide supply chain initiatives as a “VeChain Global Solutions Provider”.
The Object Computing, Inc. (OCI) is a full service software engineering company dedicated to providing innovative solutions and support for the development of distributed object-oriented applications. Founded in 1993, the company currently supports Fortune 500 customers in a variety of industries, including telecommunications, finance, healthcare, manufacturing, and defense. Last year, the company had revenues of $23 million and currently has 129 employees.
The goal of the collaboration is to bring together the supply chain expertise of Object Computing Inc. and VeChain’s. The St. Louis-based company will use VeChain’s Blockchain-as-a-Service platform, ToolChain, to achieve this goal. In the press release, OCI states:
VeChain’s ToolChain is a comprehensive blockchain application platform backed by the Thor blockchain. ToolChain enables businesses of all sizes to leverage blockchain technology to enhance brand perception and value, as well as to expand into new business models. Services available to subscribers include product lifecycle management, supply chain process control, data deposit, data certification, and process certification.
In addition, Object Computing Inc. strives to leverage its expertise in micro-services and machine learning to complement the VeChain logistics stack. Ultimately, the company, as a complete solution provider with decades of experience, will help companies build complete solutions on VeChain’s ToolChain and develop customized smart contracts to support customer initiatives. OCI describes the vision of the cooperation as follows:
Object Computing and VeChain share a common vision with regard to supply chain operations. Together, the two companies expect to turbo charge industry adoption of blockchain-enabled supply chain solutions.
Ciju John, OCI’s senior software engineer, commented on the partnership via LinkedIn as follows:
Remarkably, Object Computing Inc. is not an unknown name in crypto space. As Hackernoon pointed out in an August 2018 report, the consulting firm may have developed most of the EOS Core protocol. In the first year of EOS development, three of the six core developers came from Object Computing Inc., according to GitHub.


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This announcement attracted the attention of Occupy Wall Street, Congress members and even of the President of the United States.
Bank of America was under pressure to make the change as rivals backtracked from plans to charge customers for using their debit cards. The bank explained that this decision was made in response to customer feedback and competition.
Chase, Wells Fargo, Regions and SunTrust previously announced last week that they would remove their fees. And Bank of America followed this example, announcing that it will also abandon the proposed fee.
“For a lot of consumers, this was the last straw,” said Jean Ann Fox, director of financial services for the Consumer Federation of America. “Banks have been making a lot of changes to accounts, adding fees and raising the minimum balance needed, and consumers were clear that they objected to one more fee.”
David Darnell, the bank’s co-chief operating officer, said, “We have listened to our customers very closely over the last few weeks and recognize their concern with our proposed debit usage fee.”
About 300,000 people signed an online petition asking the bank to renounce the fee. Peter Welch, a reporter, called for a Justice Department investigation and Senator Dick Durbin appealed to Bank of America customers, “vote with your feet. Get the heck out of that bank.” President Obama said the move was “not [a] good business practice.”
Consumer advocates described the decision as “a victory for the little guy”. Pedro Morillas, legislative director for California Public Interest Research Group said, “Bank of America didn’t cancel the fee because they wanted to. They canceled the fee because consumers voted with their feet and expressed their displeasure by taking their money and moving it.”
Morillas added, “Now consumers really know there are better choices out there, like credit unions and community banks that, from our research, essentially charge fewer fees and are better for consumers.”
Bank of America fell 6.3 percent to close at $6.40 in New York. The shares have dropped 52 percent this year, the worst performance in the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the 24-company KBW Bank Index.
Some of the largest chain stores backed the cap, and the Arlington, Va.-based, Retail Industry Leaders Association said in a statement that the trade group plans to push for similar relief on credit cards.
“This is what the movement would consider a very, very small first step on rectifying an oppressive dynamic between the financial services industry and the 99 percent,” announced Ed Needham, the Occupy Wall Street movement’s spokesman.
If banks do end the fee, falling consumer interest in the Bank Transfer Day campaign, which encourages people to close their accounts at big banks and move their money to credit unions.
Morillas said the financial regulatory reform finally had worked: “Banks were forced to disclose their fees to consumers, and not hide them in places like swipe fees. And now consumers are able to make a real choice about exactly what they’re paying for and exactly what they’re getting for their money.” [Via Reuters]


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Arturia special deal on legendary keyboards
Arturia launched yesterday a big promotion to celebrate legendary keyboards that were used to create iconic music.
Celebrations started with the commemoration of the 25th anniversary of the Depeche Mode’s Violator album, on which you can hear the ARP 2600 synthesizer. You can now (re)discover this iconic record and get 50% off the ARP 2600 V virtual instrument, which price is 49 € instead of 99 € for a limited time.
Today, Arturia added to this special sale the Solina string machine, for the celebration of the 35th anniversary of Joy Division’s Closer. The Solina V software model is also on sale for 49 € instead of 99 €.
You can find all the offers and listen to songs of both records at www.arturia.com.
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