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The first industrial robot was deployed more than 50 years ago: a 4,000-pound robotic arm meant for moving heavy materials, a task considered hazardous for human workers.
Over the years, robots have evolved significantly and their use proliferated in the manufacturing industry. Today, robots are more intelligent and can handle more sophisticated tasks. They can also accelerate automation and improve quality and safety.
An estimated 1.5 million robots are deployed in the assembly lines all over the world today, and this number is growing steadily.
Moreover, the use of robots is set to extend beyond the manufacturing sector and move into areas such as research and development, customer service, sales, and even healthcare delivery.
With such proliferation, the employment debate will intensify. Business leaders will have to check their readiness to adopt robots and improve business performance, while the society at large will have to examine its preparedness to live in a new world with fewer traditional jobs and more new opportunities.
Business leaders around the world are optimistic that the deployment of robots will improve the productivity of their businesses. Today, global markets are driven by a need to achieve high productivity.
Bangladeshi manufacturing companies that wish to remain competitive and continue to grow in the global market will face the need to adopt robot-driven productivity improvements sooner than other companies.
For example, apparel manufacturing companies in Bangladesh will have to adopt robots to transform their manufacturing processes and compete against their global peers.
The next group to adopt robots in Bangladesh will be manufacturers who rely on imported equipment made by the world's leading companies.
Most of these international manufacturers have started embedding robotics in their new line of products.
For example, steel plants in Bangladesh import furnaces for their plants. A good number of these foreign furnace makers have started making robots to automate the sampling process of steel bath analysis and other testing activities.
Steel manufacturers in Bangladesh will gradually adopt such equipment and smarter manufacturing processes and include robots in their processes.
While businesses continue to adopt robots, they will gain complete benefit only by innovating and creating new business models.
These new business models and process designs will have robots at the centre of each innovation and subsequent decision.
Business leaders worldwide believe that the true impact of robots will be felt only when new business models emerge and begin to transform businesses.
Thus, apparel manufacturing in Bangladesh may be revolutionised in the future.
Robot-driven transformation may lead to a situation where one-fifth of the workforce tasks include an element of robotics, according to a study of the PricewaterhouseCoopers.
In certain industries, human workers will be replaced by robots. In other cases, new tasks where production of the output entails collaboration between robot and human workers will emerge. The former case will spark a debate around employment, while the latter will encourage the hiring of workers with new skills.
Business leaders and governments need to be ready to address both types of situations in Bangladesh.
For example, apparel manufacturers may require fewer workers to produce the same quantity of garments after deploying robots in their factories.
At the same time, their newly acquired competitive advantage may help them to win more orders from different parts of the world, thereby growing their production.
Higher production will require more human workers but with different kinds of skills.
While the first part of this transformation will substitute human workers with robots, the second part of transformation-led growth will create more employment opportunities.
The workforce of the future should have the requisite skills to cohabit and collaborate with robots to deliver outputs as enhanced productivity will be the new normal for workers in Bangladesh.
The ministries, divisions and councils in Bangladesh responsible for skills development will need to introduce trainings on robotics in their curriculum to develop the workforce of the future.
Furthermore, business leaders of Bangladesh will need to prepare themselves for the challenge of mitigating accidents.
There have been instances of fatal accidents due to a lack of coordination between human workers and robots working on the same or adjacent production line.
Although the number of such accidents has been minuscule, almost all of them made international news.
Such accidents may trigger resentment within a society already grappling with the issue of workforce substitution and unemployment.
Businesses must prepare themselves to manage such risks and should also be ready to invest in robot substitution -- that is, replacing existing robots with more advanced ones.
Many stakeholders are still unable to fully grasp the transformative power of robots. This technology will soon become a part of our everyday life.
Robots will transform the workplace of future too. The success of the new workplace will depend on the success of human-robot collaboration.
The writer is an executive director at PwC. The views expressed here are personal.


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Ariel Castro has been sentenced to life in prison without possibility of parole.
Judge Michael Russo is still listing further sentences for all of the 937 charges, including rape and aggravated murder relating to the kidnap and imprisonment of women, which Castro is facing.
More top news
Greeks have voted to reject the terms of an international bailout, putting it on the brink of a eurozone exit.
Amazon has promised its paid subscription customers a global shopping day with 'more deals than Black Friday.'
The former footballer said 'unbelievable' paranoia during his drug addiction led him to believe his Rolex watch was "listening" to him.

domain: news


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Several players have confirmed that Libertadores players do not count as rares when using them as part of FIFA 22 Squad Building Challenges.
A number of players have used Libertadores players as the rare player in squads in the past, as not a huge amount of gamers use Libertadores as a base for their squads.
Although players were able to use Libertadores for this function in FIFA 21, it appears as though either a bug or deliberate choice from EA has caused a huge change for Ultimate Team players in the latest title.
A player on the r/FIFA subreddit confirmed the issue, claiming that this was ‘fraudulent’ from EA as the players are listed as rares when they’re revealed in pack openings.
They said: “IMO, this is fraudulent from EA because it renders the cards useless and takes away a rare spot in the pack. They need to fix this immediately as they counted as rares last year.”
Fans React To Libertadores Card Issues in SBCs
Other users on the subreddit would also confirm that they have had issues when trying to use Libertadores cards as rares in squad building challenges.
One would write: “Literally built my whole squad on the LMW SBC today with lib/sud split and had 3/4...was very confused so you're definitely right.”
Another player would note that this may have been a recent change by EA, indicating that it may be a bug of some sort rather than a deliberate change by the developers.
“Pretty sure they counted as rares this Fifa. I’ve thrown them into multiple SBC’s, that’s shady if they changed it.”
EA has not commented on the Libertadores card changes for SBCs and whether this is something that they implemented as a deliberate measure.
We’ve reached out to EA and as of writing have not had a response on the issue, we will update this page as and when the company confirms the latest on the SBC situation.
You can find all of the latest gaming news right here at GiveMeSportNews Now - Sport News


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COPPELL Texas CiCi’s Enterprises LP, parent of the 630-unit pizza buffet chain, has started the new year with a corporate restructuring under new chief executive Michael R. Shumsky. The restructuring “will position the company for success in 2010 and beyond,” said Shumsky, who joined CiCi’s in October. He replaced company veteran Craig Moore, who retired and kept an ownership position in the company. CiCi’s said in a ...
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Public perception vs. political agendas...
The PM40 closed 23 March 2012 at 2039.06.
The PM40 closed 23 March 2012 down 1.0% from the 24 March 2011 level.
In this issue we evaluate Sappi Limited and Wausau Paper Corporation.
Reported insider trading since the last issue of PaperMoney.
Pöyry is helping Tembec's cellulose manufacturing facility in Canada to reduce sulfur dioxide emissions.
Catalyst has reached new 5-year labor agreement with unions at its Canadian mills.
Stora Enso will build a world-class, EUR 1.6 billion consumer board and pulp mill in China.
Tembec announced today a CAD 190 million capital investment to upgrade its specialty cellulose manufacturing facility at Temiscaming.
UPM will begin a large construction project at its Pietarsaari pulp mill.
Canfor has completed its purchase of Tembec’s wood products assets in the interior of southern British Columbia.
St. Marys Paper will not restart paper machine.
Norske Skog is selling its Follum site to Viken Skog.
Norske Skog has agreed to sell Norske Skog Bio Bio in Chile to Group BO.
AbitibiBowater Inc., doing business as Resolute Forest Products, announced that the Québec Court of Appeal has reinstated the cease trade order on Fibrek Inc.
A new paper mill will be added to Double A's Prachinburi mill in Thailand.
RockTenn celebrates the opening of its new Marion, North Carolina, folding carton facility.
UPM will commence in-house recycling of paper-based release liners.
UPM Tervasaari mill’s paper machine 8 has been started-up after major renovation.
All major trade associations representing the forestry sector have launched a declaration outlining the eight practical steps to achieve verification of legal timber harvesting.


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US-based law firm Kershaw, Cuttiner and Ratinoff is rallying users affected by the iPhone antenna problem to bring a class-action lawsuit against the iPod maker. The law firm isclaiming that it is investigating the iPhone 4 reception problem, referred to in certain places online as the "iPhone Death Grip".
Online video streaming site Hulu has confirmed that it will launch its Hulu Plus premium service for computers, iPads, iPhones, games consoles and televisions. Hulu Plus is set to cost users $9.99 per month
Adobe Systems has released an emergency security update to fix 17 vulnerabilities in its Reader and Acrobat applications, including two critical bugs that are being exploited by hackers in the wild.
Apple's productivity software suite iWork will be soon available as an iPhone app, if rumours are to be believed. iWork has so far only been available to Mac and iPad users
The Open University has announced that it has become the first entity to reach 20 million downloads on Apple's online store, iTunes. The free educational tracks were available on the iTunes U section which brings together free audio and video resources from educational organisations worldwide.


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It's no wonder that hotels and airlines often feel like they're hitting their heads against a brick wall.
Trying as hard as they can to inform consumers that coming direct to a brand's website is the best way to get the best price, travellers still consider online travel agencies the channel of choice.
Global finance house HSBC released a report this month (called "Anatomy of the Consumer" - not available online) looking at the buying habits of travellers and those shopping in other industry verticals.
In the travel sector, it's study of 2,000 consumers found that 51.4% expected to get the best deals from OTAs, with 31.7% from hotels or airlines, and just 17% from offline travel agencies.
HSBC says airlines and hotel chains are "eager to develop a direct relationship with their clients, to own the relationship with them and secure loyalty", yet the report shows far hotels and airlines need to go in order to change the perception that OTAs will score a better price.
The research has been cited as background to a new campaign - "Better Book Direct" - by Best Western in the UK, in a bid to encourage more bookings on its own website, similar to the Marriott campaign in the US a few years ago.
Director of marketing, Sarah Fussey, says:
"What’s frustrating is that that we know this is isn’t the case and that’s a perception that our Better Book Direct campaign is looking to break.
"We want to reward our most loyal customers with giving them the lowest prices."
Slightly better news for hotels comes in the same study, with nearly two-thirds of respondents (62%) claiming they would not or hate not considered using Airbnb for their accommodation needs.
Interestingly, HSBC found that price was the determining factor for those who would choose an Airbnb property, rather than the facets that the company arguably tries to portray such as atmosphere, local viewpoint, unusual experience, etc.
[caption id="attachment_163119" align="aligncenter" width="550"]
airbnb online travel agencies[/caption]


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Coca-Cola has unveiled a radical marketing shake-up that will bring its four sub-brands under a single umbrella brand.
Campaigners angry at WHO’s schience behind recommendation for low sugar intake is considered “conditional” and not backed by strong evidence
Shares in Greggs (GRG) have soared once again today as the high street bakery chain posted record profits and the strongest like-for-like sales seen since 2007.
Twenty stickers, equivalent to a spend of £200, entitles shoppers to choose from a selection of 11 items from the premium Sambonet kitchenware range
Dispute centres around claim of “Everything for £1”, upheld after 3 complaints some items cost over £1
Eating and drinking less, rather than exercising more, is the key to tackling obesity, public health minister Jane Ellison has told MPs
Lottery company says a previous campaign with Poundland raised more than £300,000 for the Royal British Legion
Byron Grote will be joining the board as a non-executive director with effect from 1 May
Report also recommends all “display until” dates are removed from products and a standardised approach to period an item is deemed safe to eat is adopted
The commercial will focus on the brand’s traditional receipts from New York’s Greenwich Village bakeries
Lavazza is set to bring biodegradable and compostable coffee machine pods to market by the end of this year.
The number of top-rated premises in Wales has increased 11% since the mandatory display rules were introduced
Fresh food category reaches record low, first time ever index has reported two consecutive months of annual price deflation
High street bakery chain Greggs has puffed up like-for-like sales to the strongest levels since 2007 on the back of favourable market conditions
In a quiet morning for retail, a former Morrisons executive jailed for insider trading dominates the papers
Unilever has agreed to acquire a British skincare brand as it seeks to expand its range of personal care products.
A £10m investment in a poultry processing plant in Wales has been given the green light, paving the way for the creation of 150 jobs in Wrexham.
Scottish Salmon Company reels in record year Subscription
A hike in revenues in the fourth quarter helped the Scottish Salmon Company (SSC) to a record year in 2014.
Sir Malcolm Rifkind is to part ways with consumer goods giant Unilever following the MP’s departure from Parliament in a cash-for-access scandal.
Paul Coyle gets twelve months for illegal dealings with Ocado shares
Campaign follows a four-month research trial conducted by Loughborough University
Nutrifiz is set to launch what it claims is the world’s first effervescent wheatgrass-based food supplement for children.
TV chef and cookery writer Anjum Anand has added a range of naans to her Indian brand The Spice Tailor.
The very first collection service went live today at Sainsbury’s Water Lane store in Farnham, and the supermarket aims for 100 locations
Merey will join the Shropshire-based business on 4 May
Wright has spent more than two decades in senior management positions with Diageo and Boots
New report claims that fewer than one in ten incidents of shoplifting is reported to police
Dutch drinks bottle Refresco Gerber has announced its intention to float on the Amsterdam stock exchange, potentially dashing the hopes of a number of private equity suitors.
Mark Fairweather, chief executive of Kingsmill owner Allied Bakeries, is to leave the business.
Dishes will include tartare of Fassone beef with quail eggs and fresh truffle, and truffle martinis
Archaeologists have uncovered cans of Cirio tomatoes in Egypt that are almost 100 years old.
Shares in McColl’s Retail Group plunged almost 11% on opening this morning after the c-store chain warned that the market remained “challenging and competitive”
Media Bites 3 March: Morrisons, M&S, coffee Subscription
Morrisons new management team looks set to take an axe to the dividend in a bid to free up money to invest in the retailer’s turnaround.
Irish poultry producer Moy Park saw revenues increase by 3.4% for the 13 weeks ended 27 December 2014
What do you make of David Potts being named CEO of Morrisons?
Welcome to The Grocer’s 2015 Features List. Below you’ll find information on upcoming features. You can also download…
WHO admits evidence is shaky, but political hot topic shows no sign of dying down with SACN recommendations on the horizon too
Scandinavia shows ice cream growth is possible outside of sunny periods with product innovation
Wine and Champagne is in strong growth, with value and volumes up. Look no further than the astounding growth of Prosecco.
The suncare & holiday essentials has suffered a value and volume decline in the past year. How much of this is down to the weather?
The latest Lineker-heavy crisp ad had to be pulled due to complaints
Cadbury and Heinz fall in the widely-read survey, but their sales figures tell a different story
This month, I’d like to reflect on some work recently completed with the millennial generation…
The EU has been accused of being “asleep at the wheel” over the impact on Fairtrade farms of the beet production cap endin…
Mary Portas proves her point with Secret Shopper Subscription
Mary Portas was back with a bang on the eponymous Secret Shopper this week…
Food policy: goodwill won't drive system change Subscription
Ten, 20, 30 years ago, few food industry magnates admitted a role in non-communicable disease…
The food hygiene postcode lottery needs fixing Subscription
Once again, Which? research has uncovered a huge variation in hygiene standards nationally…
Food safety offence fines set to soar Subscription
On 18 February, consultation closed on the Sentencing Council’s ‘Health and safety offences and food safety guidelines’….
Tongue-tied by foreign trademarks? Subscription
Foreign languages are popular marketing tools to imply authenticity and evoke associations with exotic places…


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We try to get to know our customers so we can match them with the best device for their needs.
PORT ORANGE, Fla. (PRWEB) October 23, 2012
Cellular Sales, the nation’s largest Verizon premium wireless retailer, recently announced the grand opening of a new store at 1741 Dunlawton Ave. in Port Orange.
“We try to get to know our customers so we can match them with the best device for their needs,” said Chris Keen, regional director at Cellular Sales. “That means sitting down, talking and spending more time with each customer which leads to happier customers.”
Cellular Sales was founded in Knoxville, Tenn. 19 years ago and has, for the past five years, been named by Inc. Magazine one of the nation’s fastest growing privately-owned retailers, operating more than 540 stores with nearly 4,000 employees. The company currently operates 100 retail locations in Florida.
According to Nielsen reports, more than 46 percent of Americans now own smartphones. As mobile devices become more complex, educating each individual about different devices and capabilities becomes more important. This is the reason Cellular Sales has dedicated itself to providing one-on-one service for customers, so they can receive that one-on-one education.
“It doesn’t matter how successful your company is because if your staff isn’t knowledgeable, you can’t help your customers,” Keen said.
The Port Orange store is currently hiring eight new sales positions, which will be filled by local job seekers.
About Cellular Sales
Cellular Sales, based in Knoxville, Tenn., is the nation’s largest Verizon premium wireless retailer. For more information about the new Cellular Sales store located on 1741 Dunlawton Ave, call Chris Keen at321-246-6206. Job seekers may visit http://talent.joincellularsales.com/. For more information on the company, visit http://www.cellularsales.com.
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August 27, 2007
Another Chinese-made product marketed for children is being recalled because it contains lead paint.
Jo-Ann Stores of Hudson, Ohio, today recalled approximately 6,000 "Robbie Ducky" Kids Watering Cans.
The company learned the beaks of the watering cans contain lead paint, which violates federal laws.
The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) said lead is toxic if ingested by young children and can cause adverse health effects. The CPSC, however, has not received any reports of injuries linked to this product.
Jo-Ann Fabric and Craft stores nationwide sold the yellow watering cans from February-August 2007 for about $10. The recalled cans have orange beaks and are about 10 inches high by 6 inches wide. The words "Robbie Ducky Garden Collection Duck Watering Can" are printed on a sticker on the bottom of the cans.
The company said consumers should immediately take the cans away from children and return them to any Jo-Ann Fabric and Craft Store for a full refund.
For more information, consumers can contact Jo-Ann Stores Inc. at (888) 739-4120 ext. 7 between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. ET Monday through Friday, email the company at firstname.lastname@example.org, or visit its Web site at www.joann.com.
The recall is being conducted in cooperation with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC).
'Robbie Ducky' Kids Watering Cans...


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Amazon has announced the release of Kindle 2, the updated version of its popular e-book reader. Kindle 2 (picture right) has longer battery life, faster page turning, seven times the storage space, sharper images, and a new read-to-me feature. Kindle 2’s navigation has been made easier with a joystick. The new Kindle is also slimmer and lighter than the original Kindle. It is .36 of an inch thick and weighs about 10 ounces. Kindle 2’s battery allows 4-5 days of reading before recharging. Amazon brought out the big guns for Kindle 2’s New York launch event, in the form of novelist Stephen King. King’s novella “Ur” will be released exclusively on Kindle.
Amazon does not disclose its Kindle sales figures, but earlier this month, Citi estimated that Amazon had shipped 500,000 Kindles in 2008 before running out of stock in November, meaning that Kindle sales were 32 percent higher than the iPod in its first year.
“Our vision is every book ever printed, in any language, all available in less than 60 seconds,” said Amazon founder and CEO Jeff Bezos. There are currently 230,000 books available for Kindle, most selling for $9.99.
What has analysts most excited about Kindle 2 is that it allows synching between different readers. Amazon is working on synching Kindle with other mobile devices, as well. It’s rumored that Kindle apps are being designed for the iPhone and other smartphones.
Kindle 2 sell for the same price as the original reader, $359.
Right now, the Kindle is aimed at professionals who travel frequently. When Kindle’s price falls out of the luxury range, it will be a must-buy for any reader. Sadly, that time looks to be still a few years away.
The new Kindle will start shipping February 24th.


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The mobile industry is changing. Five years ago, it was all about ‘new’. The latest model release was marked with midnight queues outside stores, and owning the top model as soon as possible was the ultimate goal. But, in 2022, attitudes have shifted, says Matt Kennedy, Chief Commerce Officer at giffgaff.
New isn’t king anymore. In a recent study commissioned by giffgaff in March 2022 to find out the UK’s view on the cost of living, almost half (46%) of the UK say they will stop or reduce spending on upgrading their mobile phones in 2022.1 On top of this, our own data shows we’ve experienced double digit year-on-year growth in refurbished phone sales between the 2019/20 period, and 2020/21.
Let’s call double digit growth what it is – a booming market. Markets don’t boom in isolation, and it’s important we’re able to capitalise on these changing consumer trends, especially when they have an underlying social good. To do that, we need to understand the driving forces behind this move to more sustainable decisions.
A customer demand for better value
It seems like a given, but you have to listen to what is actually going on outside your company walls to understand what consumers really want. Back in 2020, research suggested up to 60% of the UK would buy a refurbished phone when their current one needed replacing. That’s more than half of the UK saying this, so you have to explore why people want the option between refurbished and new now.
As the research above suggests, price is a key factor for purchasing refurbished. If purchased from a reputable refurbished expert, you’re getting a high quality, fully checked product for a fraction of the price – it’s a no brainer really. But there are positive environmental impacts that come with purchasing refurbished. It would be incorrect to say that environmental issues are something that consumers have only recently started paying attention to in recent years, but there has been a growing awareness of the impact of e-waste on our resources.
A recent KPMG report concluded that e-waste was the second biggest factor contributing to the telco industry’s overall footprint – that includes phones. Outlined into key sections, the report makes three clear recommendations on how the industry can improve. Firstly, by looking at the supply chain, including sourcing sustainable materials and recycling mobile phones. Secondly, operational costs such as electronic bills and data storage, and finally, products and services, including device repair.
Consumers have shown a clear move towards refurbished devices, At giffgaff, Black Friday 2021 saw a 77% year-on-year increase in refurbished phone sales. The whole industry should take advantage of this to put forward the environmental case too. If we want the refurbished phone market to continue to grow and prosper, we should demonstrate both the cost and sustainability benefits.
Lessons from the leaders
As part of our commitment to people, planet and profit, giffgaff has focused on refurbished devices since 2016. However, there is now an increased focus in the wider industry from others to sell refurbished phones.
From a strictly business point of view, most telco companies make their money from contracts, not selling devices. As a result, selling refurbished phones wasn’t a significant priority a few years ago. But looking beyond the hard-headed business case has led to the market growth in this area, and huge opportunity to deliver products people love.
Sometimes you need to create the space for people to come to it, and a key thing in creating this space has been tackling perceptions of quality.
A few years back, ‘refurbished’ would have invoked a vision of scuffed edges, broken screens, dead batteries – an altogether lower standard product. Today, the quality of the product has come a long way, and so has the perception.
This journey wasn’t easy. Devices didn’t increase in quality overnight and public perception didn’t flip in a heartbeat. These changes are down to a commitment from those leading the sustainable telecom industry. Back in 2016, we came to the conclusion at giffgaff that we needed to care about refurbished phones, because our members cared. So, despite the often-deceptive quality of existing offerings in this space at the time, we set out to make ourselves a destination for quality, trustworthy refurbished devices.
This meant we needed to create growth in the market powered by four factors:
- Our reputation as a brand
- Our commitment to value
- The quality of the product
- And a high standard of performance – including a 12-month guarantee and minimum battery life
We needed to change perceptions outside of our member base, so the refurbished experience had to be as important to us as it is with new devices.
Changing these perceptions is half the battle. The other half is building the case for refurbished phones so they’re seen as a standard, viable option. We’ve laid the foundations for this through our marketing campaigns too. In previous years we’ve used Black Friday – typically associated with buying new – to develop creative campaigns to encourage people to choose refurbished over new and check their drawers for old devices to recycle, highlighting the benefits of recycling and refurbishing.
Through our commitment to providing a quality product, to investing in creative campaigns that play into the cultural relevance and environmental impact of choosing refurbished, we’ve been able to see a real tangible shift when it comes to members coming to buy a device from us. New will always be the preferred option for some, but we predict that this shift to refurbished will only get greater.
Increasing demand in the future
The refurbished phone market is booming, and for those who want to see a sustainable, environmentally conscious telco industry, we’re getting there.
Going forward, cleaning up the supply chain and maintaining demand for refurbished will take a few important steps. Firstly, ensuring tech accessed in the supply chain is as ethical and environmentally friendly as possible. Secondly, ensuring adequate recycling services are provided, and finally, industry-wide support for refurbished phone sales as a key focus.
These things need support from the telco industry. The case for refurbished phones is out there, but it needs determination and commitment from the industry to become a universal reality.
If we do these three things, we won’t just be following the demands of our customers for a more sustainable industry, but ensuring the market continues to boom.
1. Censuswide online survey commissioned by giffgaff conducted 11.03.2022 to 16.03.2022 among 5,002 UK general consumers. The research was conducted to find out the population’s views on the cost of living.


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44 week: Black Sea, Azov Sea; Coaster shipments
Last week, freight rates in the Azov Sea continued to rise. The price for 3k parcel of wheat from Azov to the Marmara Sea reached USD 47 per ton. A sufficient amount of cargo on the market allows Owners to make optimistic forecasts for the next few weeks. Export prices for wheat continue to grow; the cost of a ton of Russian wheat with 12.5 percent protein content and delivery date for the end of November increased to USD 326 within a week’s time. Along with price rise, freight rates are also growing. The export duty for the period from November 10 to 16 will increase from current USD 67 to USD 69.9 per ton. Even such a rise in the duty does not reduce the amount of cargo offer on the market. Open tonnage is still in short supply, so Charterers whose contractual obligations force them to make shipments in spot dates will overpay for freight. At the moment, many Charterers fix cargoes for the end of November in order to avoid problems with searching for tonnage in spot dates. Cargo offer does not reduce, there is still not much tonnage, so in the next few weeks there is expected no decrease in freight rates on the Azov Sea market.
Charterers prefer small Handy vessels and big coasters to standard ones in the Black Sea and Mediterranean Sea. Grain Charterers continue their pact of not giving cargoes to the market. They definitely expected to bring the same influence as Persian Gulf Charterers: Owners and brokers of the Persian Gulf area say that such method correlated around USD 10 to 15 pmt in favor of Charterers. Unfortunately for Charterers, Handy Owners do not see any possibility to correlate the prices despite the small amount of Handy parties at the Black Sea. Therefore, Charterers put their attention for big coasters of 15 to 20K dwt which attract with their hire rate of USD 21-23k daily against USD 30-35k daily for Handy. Big players advised that they are not going to hurry to end the silence, expecting a further rate drop.


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Sydney, AUSTRALIA – 9 March 2022 – Global fintech Sandstone Technology has launched an Innovation Hub to drive the development of new solutions for their customers.
Under the new model, resources will be ring-fenced for developing new capabilities, with emerging market opportunities and existing customers’ strategic strengths informing areas of focus.
Sandstone CEO Michael Phillipou said the new approach is designed to help Sandstone remain at the forefront of the rapidly changing landscape in banking technology.
“At Sandstone we pride ourselves on our longstanding strategic partnerships with our customers, where we look to solve business problems together, not just provide a service. As the banking landscape continues to evolve apace, we’re excited to start working alongside our customers to develop solutions that grasp tomorrow’s opportunities, as well as today’s.”
Initial investment is focused on exploring how Sandstone’s existing solutions can be enhanced to cater for small to medium business (SME) entities, as well as individual retail customers. Alongside an experienced development team, the Innovation Hub includes subject matter experts with hands-on experience in business banking operations who bring a strong user lens to the product development process.
Priyanka Nigam, who has been appointed Executive General Manager of the Innovation Hub, said:
“Building new solutions from the ground up, that solve customer problems, is my passion and the one thing that most excites me in my work. I’m looking forward to working alongside our customers to understand how our solutions can help them capture and delight new market segments, with an initial focus on serving the small businesses that are the true engine of our economy.”
With development already underway on a suite of enhanced functionality for SME customers, Sandstone Technology are expected to launch their new SME capability from mid-2022.
Media Contact: Jennifer Harris | e: firstname.lastname@example.org


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I’ve never been convinced that netbooks and other computers running traditional desktop operating systems such as Windows and OS really need App Store. It’s not like it’s difficult to find free and paid software for these computers, although I suppose a one-stop-shop could encourage users to download more apps because it’s even easier — which I suspect is exactly why companies including Apple and Intel are pushing app stores for desktop software.
Whether you think desktop app stores are a good idea or not, it’s notable that Rovio has launched a version of Angry Birds for the Intel AppUp Center, which is an app store for netbooks and other laptops. That’s because Angry Birds is one of the most downloaded, top grossing apps on both iOS and Android. While the game was designed for touchscreen input, there’s no reason the game shouldn’t be just as addictive on a computer with a mouse and a larger display.
The game is on sale for $4.99, although Rovio eventually plans to raise the price to $9.99. You get 195 levels at launch, and the developer plans to add make more levels available as free updates. There will also be “unique enhancements” that aren’t available in the mobile versions of Angry Birds, although it’s hard to say whether those enhancements justify the price tag. At $10, the new version of Angry Birds is ten times as expensive as the iPhone version.
You can find a video of the mouse-and-keyboard version of Angry Birds after the break.


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Starting today, the city is introducing six Nissan Leaf electric cars into its fleet of taxis to test whether the high-efficiency vehicles make suitable cabs. These aren’t the Taxis of Tomorrow, mind you–that program is set to debut later this year–but what Michael Bloomberg calls “the taxi of the day after tomorrow,” as the mayor hopes for all electric cabs by 2020.
The electric cars are will be run by volunteers, who will be afforded certain privileges for their guinea pig service. Namely, they’ll be able to refuse you a ride if they deem your destination too far away, for fear the car may lose charge on the road. Though some cabbies express worry about the time it will take to charge the cars, at least one driver is looking forward to a few necessary breaks. “You take a break sometimes longer than that,” Yahyia Gassem told the New York Times. “It’s for the environment.”


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Sept. 29, 2010 – After climbing steeply, according to research from Network Solutions and the Center for Excellence in Service at the University of Maryland�s Robert H. Smith School of Business, small-business adoption of social media marketing has plateaued at 24%.
The study of US small business found that those that do market via social media primarily use Facebook (82%), and that the most common activities are maintaining a company page on a social network and posting status updates or links to interesting content. About half of businesses that used social media also monitored brand chatter on social networks.
As small businesses have gained experience with social media, some have realized their expectations for the channel did not line up with the reality of the social web. As the wider marketing world begins to look at social as more of a loyalty channel than one for acquisition, small businesses are also finding that their hopes for spreading brand awareness and attracting new customers have not been fully met. By contrast, somewhat fewer small businesses had expected to use social media as an engagement channel, but nearly two-thirds have had success in that area.
The most common business objectives small businesses have achieved through social media marketing tell a similar story: Customers are connecting with companies through sites like Facebook and LinkedIn, but relatively few sales leads have been received through the sites.
Small businesses have found other frustrations as well. Many say their efforts take up more time than they had expected, although that percentage dropped from 50% to 43% between December 2009 and June 2010, suggesting companies are being more realistic about what�s involved in social campaigns. At the same time, however, the percentage saying their business had been criticized online nearly doubled, reaching 29%. Still, just a tiny 1% of small businesses said their image was hurt more than it was helped by social media�a number that�s also down, from 6% in December.
By gathering the latest research and news from over 1,000 sources, eMarketer has established itself as the world’s leading provider of internet and e-business statistics. eMarketer’s Web site is at www.emarketer.com.


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More micromobilty charging hubs are coming - and why that matters
In many ways, electric scooters and e-bikes have come full circle. While NACTO data shows that dockless e-scooters trumped shared docked bicycles nearly a year ago in the U.S., cities and micromobility companies alike have since been cracking down on the dockless system by implementing designated parking zones and incentives for bringing vehicles to docked charging stations.
Washington, D.C., for example, just recently announced its plans to install 100 off-sidewalk dockless scooter and bike parking corrals over the next few months. These corrals will be located on streets, predominately in residential areas where sidewalks are more narrow and/or commonly cluttered with improperly parked dockless vehicles. And Washington isn’t alone. In Toronto, government officials are calling for designated parking areas for the city’s soon-to-be-announced electric scooter program.
Municipalities across the globe are figuring out ways to minimize the impact of dockless scooter and bike rentals—as are micromobility companies behind the vehicles themselves. Case in point: just this week, Lyft revealed the company’s plans to implement a $2 locking fee for e-bike riders who refuse to park their vehicles in designated docking stations.
Be prepared to see many more monetary incentives for riders to return their scooters or bikes to charging hubs. Peter Deppe, founder and CEO of Michigan-based KUHMUTE, thinks the future of the micromobility industry rests in a dual-mode approach (which his company refers to as “flexible docking hubs”) where riders have the option to return their dockless vehicles to nearby charging stations, at which point they are given some sort of reward, or they can still leave their vehicles in a dockless manner.
“Micromobility operators have to ask themselves if they want to choose swappable batteries or charging stations for their fleets. But I think a combination of the two provides the best overall sustainable model…both environmentally and financially speaking,” Deppe says. “Having accessible charging hubs means there are fewer resources needed to run around and find vehicles and recharge them. So operators should encourage riders to come back automatically at the end of their ride to a charging station. But you can’t put a docking station everywhere, and riders don’t want to be confined. It ruins the user experience. So a flexible model means you can bring it back to a hub to receive an incentive, or you can keep things dockless (responsibly, of course).”
In the case of KUHMUTE’s Joyride-integrated charging hubs—which are expected to quadruple in number across the U.S. this year—riders are able to access their stations in the Joyride rider app and then unlock vehicles by scanning a QR code. Charging hubs like KUHMUTE’s aren’t just for electric scooters and bikes. There’s plenty of room for delivery robots, skateboards and all other chargeable vehicles smaller than a car.
How did we get here?
When the micromobility movement really took off in 2016, bike-share companies just dropped bikes all over China, and the dockless scooter model replicated that. In fact, Joyride software was initially developed in 2015 as a mode for keeping track of fleets and our operating system has since evolved with the industry to accommodate all dockless, docked and hybrid models. And we’re increasingly integrating with a number of charging stations that offer. (See which ones in Joyride’s new 2020 Micromobility Hardware Brochure).
How will the micromobilty industry adapt to a shift back to docked?
We’re seeing more universal docking stations popping up, and with creative revenue models built into their infrastructure. For example, Swiftmile will roll out integrated digital displays within its charging stations that offer public transit info, traffic alerts and advertisements. By the end of this year, approximately 1,000 Swiftmile stations will have digital screens that feature nearby transit schedules (courtesy of Transit Screen) and rotating ad campaigns (generating about $80 million/year in ad revenue), according to TechCrunch.
Innovative repositioning companies like Tortoise, meanwhile, are also helping to bring order to the industry. Using autonomous/teleoperated repositioning, it is Tortoise’s mission to have scooters brought back to designated parking areas and stations. (See how Joyride tech is helping Tortoise along the way.)
Let’s be sure of one thing: the dockless scooter and bike-share model isn’t going anywhere at the moment. It’s an easy way to launch a program and it’s user-friendly. People want convenience, and dockless provides that in an instant. But as the industry continues to grow and cities continue to welcome micromobility onto its streets, expect to see more regulatory orders and tech-powered measures to take charge.


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A report compiled by Action Fraud, which is run by the City of London Police, reveals the scale of reported crime and exposes the common tactics used by fraudsters.
The average amount lost per person was over £1,500, an increase of 25% year on year. These individual losses are substantial, but this form of fraud also has other severe effects with almost half (2,245) of victims saying that it also had a significant impact on their health or financial wellbeing. Most worryingly of all, 575 people said the impact on them was so severe that they had to receive medical treatment or were at risk of bankruptcy.
The most common types of fraud relate to the sale of airline tickets (47%) and accommodation booking (38%).
4,700 people told Action Fraud that they had been the victim of a travel related fraud in 2017. The three campaign partners believe that the actual figure is much higher, with many victims not realising that they should always report the fraud to Action Fraud.
In common with previous years, the numbers of people reporting travel fraud jumps in the summer and in December. This is a very clear indication that fraudsters are targeting the peak holiday periods and people who are going home to visit friends and family. Fraudsters know that demand will be high and availability low, so good value bookings will be harder to find with customers on the lookout for reasonable prices.
The visiting friends and family market is particularly attractive to fraudsters offering fake flight tickets and package arrangements. Fraudsters may also be targeting individuals travelling home to visit family in time for public or religious holidays. Where destinations were reported by victims, 54% said they had been intending to travel to Africa and 24% to Asia.
Director of Action Fraud, Pauline Smith, said:
“Holidays are the perfect chance to relax and unwind, however as this year’s statistics show, they are also an opportunity for fraudsters to trick you out of your hard-earned money. The startling emotional impact of falling victim to holiday fraud is highlighted in the latest figures, as 575 people reported that the harm to them was so severe, they had to receive medical treatment or were at risk of bankruptcy. This is why we are raising awareness so that people feel better able to protect themselves from being a victim of fraud. We know that fraudsters are increasingly using more sophisticated ways to trick their victims, which is why it is important that you do your research when making travel arrangements. If you think you have been a victim of fraud, contact Action Fraud.”
Chief Executive of ABTA, Mark Tanzer, said:
“ABTA sees first-hand the damage caused by travel fraudsters with many devastated customers who contact us for advice after they find out their much anticipated holiday or trip to visit loved ones may not actually exist. The cost to them is not just financial; this crime causes very real disappointment and emotional distress. However this does not need to happen. Check and follow the tips and advice on abta.com and you will not fall victim to these unscrupulous individuals. But if you are unlucky enough to do so, always report it to Action Fraud so that they can put these crooks out of business.”
Tony Neate of Get Safe Online, said:
“Holidays and trips abroad are one of the biggest purchases we’ll make each year so keep an eye out for tell-tale signs something isn’t quite as it seems. It can be quite tempting to get lured in by the offer of a cut price flight or a deal on accommodation when you are caught up in the excitement of booking a holiday. Small steps can stop you getting caught out by a holiday scam through such as researching the company you are booking through, especially ones that aren’t mainstream operators. Check well known review sites too so you can see what previous customers’ experiences have been and, where possible, pay by credit card to get extra protection in case anything does go wrong.”
Used in accordance with Open Gov. licence.


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50 Cent’s Acquires $1.5 Million “Jet Car”
50 Cent is one of hip-hop’s biggest automobile enthusiasts, giving a slew of magnificent and powerful vehicles to DJ Envy’s upcoming car show, which will compete fiercely with Rick Ross’ own event.
However, his most recent purported acquisition may surpass them all. Furthermore, SuperCarBlondie revealed that Fif paid a whopping $1.5 million for the White Lightning Jet Car, and the hefty price tag isn’t just for show. In reality, the Parker Brothers created the whip from scratch, drawing influence from Formula 1. According to claims, it can reach more than 400 horsepower and travel at speeds of up to 250 mph on the street.
Considering the G-Unit mogul’s insane portfolio, it’s crazy to think that this is just a hobby for him at this point, albeit a passionate one. Apparently, he actually brought things down a notch when it comes to his crazy purchases. “The stuff that they see that I’ve learned, it kinda kept me out of trouble at points,” 50 Cent told Ari Melber. “The stuff I was saying in the music in the very beginning, I was crazy to tell you the truth, Ari. I was absolutely crazy at that point.”
50 Cent’s New “Jet Car”
In addition to his musical ventures, entertainment empire, and social media presence, 50 Cent is also looking forward to his upcoming tour. However, during a recent Instagram Live session with fans, he suggested that “The Final Lap” might be a literal title for his tour after all. While it will commemorate the 20th anniversary of Get Rich Or Die Tryin’, it seems like it will be his farewell trek. Still, the Queens legend said he sold 500,000 tickets in seven days, so in any case, it’ll be a successful and fulfilling last ride.
“Because ticket sales are doing so well, they’re adding new markets,” he told fans. “So the U.K., North America and possibly Australia will be in there. I gotta get to Africa, I got a lot of spots I gotta hit before I be done, because this is the Final Lap Tour. I won’t be running around like this no more, I gotta do my film and television stuff. Got a lot of other things going on behind the scenes that I gotta work on, so I won’t be out touring as much as I’ve been touring. I’m having fun this time because it’s set up to enjoy myself, we not feeling pressure.”


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Pool Party Syndra skin was revealed as one of the new skins joining the summer themed line in League of Legends.
The League of Legends Pool Party skin line sees champions have fun in the sun and get outfitted for the warm weather. Champions like Ziggs, Renekton, Taric, Graves and more have become some of the most popular in the game, especially during the summer time. Syndra is one of five new champions getting a Pool Party skin.
Here's everything you need to know about Pool Party Syndra.
Pool Party Syndra Skin Splash Art
Pool Party Syndra's splash art wasn't included in the trailer that revealed the skin. Instead, the champion had her abilities detailed with new effects. Syndra's Pool Party skin features her orbs getting swapped out for volleyballs instead.
Riot Games has since revealed the splash art, which shows Syndra wearing a flowing purple skirt over her bathing suit. The tattoo on her leg is silver, and she wears a yellow visor.
Pool Party Syndra Skin Price
Pool Party Syndra will cost 1,350 RP.
Pool Party Syndra Release Date
How to Get Pool Party Syndra
Players can purchase Pool Party Syndra in the store once it's made available. Additionally, players have a chance to get it by re-rolling three skin shards in the loot tab. Players can also unlock it using Orange Essence if they acquire the skin shard.


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The sale of Jean-Michel Basquiat’s proclaimed masterpiece Warrior is promised to be a milestone for the Western art market in Asia. The sales history of Warrior allows us to gain insight into the growth and performance of the Basquiat marketplace as well as assess the value of trophy works in the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic.
There are a couple of pronouncements by Christie’s that need to be put into context.
First, the designation of Warrior as a milestone sale from a western artist in the Asian market, though factually accurate is not without precedent, as the 2017 sale of Basquiat’s Untitled, 1982 for $110,487,500 was purchased by an Asian buyer (Yusaku Maezawa) and it is widely known that Asian collectors are active in the Basquiat market. The fact that buyers may purchase significant works by Basquiat in Hong Kong doesn’t seem like a milestone event, but more of an acknowledgment by Christie’s and their consignor that the Asian art market is a strong and vibrant marketplace for Basquait.
Second, we have Christie’s proclamation that Warrior is a masterpiece and it’s sale is expected to rank in the top 10 of all time results. While there has been no formal announcement, it is expected that there will be a guarantee on this sale which would assure that Warrior will indeed be in the top 10 prices ever achieved at auction for the artist. If we look back at Warrior’s sale in 2012 it was the 14th highest price achieved for Basquiat at the time and if we adjust all past sales by Basquiat’s Compound Annual Return (CAR), currently ARTBnk is using the median of the bottom 80% of Basquiat’s return distribution to generate his CAR, 22 works are valued at more than $40 million in today’s market. A $30 million dollar sale, although an extraordinary achievement, does not place Warrior in the top 20 works based on current market value of Basquait’s works previously sold at auction.
VR Sunil Gohil


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The Weekly Authority: 💻 Chrome’s ad blocking’s safe, for now
⚡ Welcome to The Weekly Authority, the Android Authority newsletter that breaks down the top Android and tech news from the week. The 225th edition here, with an update on Chrome’s ad blocking, Oppo’s new foldables, Motorola’s crazily-priced flagship, our favorite geeky podcasts for the holidays, and more.
⛄Just as we thought it couldn’t get any colder here, it was -8°C when I left the house this morning. Then I watched a documentary about life in Yakutsk, the world’s coldest city, where temperatures regularly reach below -30°C. Eek!
Before we dive into this week’s scoop, we’d like to thank the sponsor of this email, Wondershare Filmora!
John Dye / Android Authority
Wondershare Filmora 12 is the latest edition of Wondershare’s video editing software. It’s designed to make video editing easier, faster, and seamless across mobile and desktop platforms. Whether you’re a one-person team or the editor in a team of influencers, there’s a good chance Filmora 12 has what you’re looking for.
Popular news this week
Edgar Cervantes / Android Authority
- Samsung Good Lock is finally available in more countries: If you’re in Europe, Latin America, and a couple of Asian countries, you can now find the apps in the Galaxy Store.
- Samsung reportedly ditches Samsung, will rely on Samsung for future Samsung chips: Samsung has apparently formed a chip development team within its mobile unit, with the purported goal of making custom phone chips. The company currently relies on a sister unit for its Exynos chips.
Oliver Cragg / Android Authority
Rita El Khoury / Android Authority
Hard to believe that this time next week, we’ll be winding down for a weekend of festivities and Christmas movies. But whether you’re celebrating with turkey, presents, and all the trimmings, or just taking a break from work to chill, we know you’re going to be keeping on top of all the tech news on the AA site, our Twitter, and over on YouTube too (you are, right?!)
For those days when screen time isn’t on the cards, we’ve put together a few of our favorite tech, science, and generally nerdy podcasts to help you get your geek on and stay on top of the latest news over the festive season. So here they are, our top picks — add one, two, or them all, to your podcast app of choice!
Best for an Android deep dive: Android Bytes
Mishaal Rahman and David Ruddock chat with Android experts and ask super-nerdy questions about all things Android, like “What are the hidden costs of building an Android phone?” If you need your Android fix over the holidays, this is a must-listen, with episodes ranging from 30 minutes to an hour — and there’s a huge back catalog to listen to, as well.
Best over breakfast: The Hustle Daily Show
The Hustle Daily Show remains one of my favorite podcasts for a quick catch-up of the day’s top stories. Hosts Zachary Crockett, Juliet Bennett Rylah, Jacob Cohen, and Rob Litterst provide a daily dose of offbeat and informative takes on all the latest business and tech news. Each episode’s around 10-15 minutes in length, making this a great way to get tech headlines over breakfast.
Best for smart home and IoT enthusiasts: Internet of Things
This weekly podcast is packed with news and analysis on smart home, industrial internet of things, enterprise internet of things, and more, from co-hosts Stacey Higginbottom and Kevin Tofel. Episodes run around an hour long, perfect for a lazy afternoon’s listening on the couch.
Best for behind-the-scenes stories: Business Wars
Not strictly a tech podcast but a riveting listen nonetheless, Business Wars dives deep into the cutthroat world of business as host David Brown shares the stories behind the world’s biggest business rivalries through clever sound design and reimagined conversations. New episodes land Wednesdays, and there are already over 450 for you to listen to.
Best for science nerds: Flash Forward
I’ve been a fan of Flash Forward since it began, looking at possible (and not so possible) future scenarios every week, answering questions like “How would diplomacy work if we couldn’t lie?” or “Could we all live underground?” Host and award-winning science journalist Rose Eveleth presents a combination of investigative journalism and audio drama that’s truly engaging. Sadly, the podcast itself ended in 2021, but its new immersive drama, Welcome to Vanguard Estates, has landed, and you can pick your own route through the story. It’s definitely worth a listen this holiday season.
Best for gamers: Kinda Funny Games Daily
When I can’t be bothered reading the games headlines from the week but want to stay abreast of what’s happening, Kinda Funny Games Daily is where I turn. This podcast’s vibe is very much a group of friends chatting about all things gaming, which I guess is why it’s the world’s most popular daily video game news podcast. Hosts Greg “GameOverGreggy” Miller, Tim Gettys, Blessing Adeoye, and Star Wars Rogue One writer Gary Whitta, the podcast covers the latest in PlayStation, Xbox, Nintendo, and other gaming news, with a cast of guests and games industry veterans.
- January 5-8, 2023: CES 2023 (Las Vegas)
- January 12: Motorola Moto G Play launches (US and Canada)
- February (date TBC): Samsung Unpacked (Galaxy S23?)
Tech Tweet of the Week
The comments here are comedy gold…
Paula Beaton, Copy Editor.


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Smaller stock to watch
DATACASH GROUP, the AIM-listed provider of outsourced payment processing services, shed 4¼p at 78½p, despite reporting a maiden full-year profit of £735,000. The company, whose clients include Ladbrokes, Coral Eurobet and Paddy Power, said that it processed 250,000 transactions at Saturday’s Grand National, a 40 per cent increase on last year.
SPORTECH, owner of Littlewoods Pools and Zetters, rose ¼p to 15¼p as its finance director bought stock for £30,000. Gary Speakman purchased 200,000 shares at 15p, and now owns 700,000. At prelims last month, the group’s Bet Direct division reported increased losses — up from £2 million to £3.1 million — after a series of adverse horseracing results.
Bet of the day
LLOYDS TSB’s shares have staged something


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Siri will be able to perform an important new trick when Apple's next iPhones come out.
The virtual assistant will always have an ear open, listening for users to summon it, ever ready to answer questions or to assist with certain tasks.
To summon Siri, an iPhone users will need only say Hey Siri. Before now, iPhone users had to press a button on the phone to activate Siri (except when the iPhone was plugged in to a power outlet and charging, in which case Siri could be activated by voice).
Apple is basically making "passive listening" technology a standard feature for Siri and the iPhone. It's a feature that's been incorporated into a few other gadgets in recent years and something which could make Siri very handy.
But this always-on, passive-listening technology has also raised alarms among privacy watchdogs.
There are a lot of unanswered questions around these "always listening" devices, such as how they can use the data and who they can share it with.
"[The license agreements] have an extraordinarily wide latitude," Bruce Schneier, a fellow at the Berkman Center for Internet and Society at Harvard Law, said to Business Insider. "And that's a huge worry."
Siri is hardly the first to boast this capability — Amazon touts its Echo as a combination of a speaker and virtual assistant that you can speak to naturally when you have a question.
You would either press a button or say a "wake word" to tell the speaker that it's time to listen. Your requests are then beamed into the cloud to retrieve an answer. (You can see everything the Echo has recorded and delete commands, too.)
Motorola's Moto X smartphone also allows you to access Google Now by simply saying a phrase without pressing any buttons on the phone. Samsung was in hot water earlier this year over its smart TVs, which pick up your speech so that you can command your television.
On any of these products, you can turn voice-recognition capabilities off at any time. But, even if you do agree to their terms and conditions, there's still a reason to be concerned according to Marc Rotenberg, president and executive director of the Electronic Privacy Information Center, which filed a complaint to the Federal Trade Commissionregarding Samsung's smart TVs in February.
"We don't think it's enough to bury somewhere in the terms and conditions of the product what basically becomes a type of consent, where the consumer says, 'It's okay to do this I understand the risk,'" Rotenberg said to Business Insider. "Even if the owner of the device consents to it, it's likely the case that other people inside the home haven't."
These types of gadgets don't really start paying attention unless you say a trigger phrase. And, you can erase any of your queries from Google and Amazon at any time.
According to Schneier, however, that's still troubling because it means the gadgets are surveilling in order to detect those trigger phrases.
"It's impossible to know if you say the word unless it listens," he said. "What are they doing with the data they're hearing, and under what rules do they allow the government to listen in?"
Schneier and Rotenberg spoke to Business Insider before the new iPhone and Siri features were announced on Wednesday, and were discussing the general privacy issues around passive-listening technology.
Rotenberg believes that there should be legislation in place that defines what companies can do with the data obtained from these always-listening gadgets.
"We're not against the new technologies that provide different ways to get online," Rotenberg said. "What we're objecting to is this secretive monitoring of activity inside the home. And that's essentially the problem with always-on devices. It's a little too easy."
Schneier thinks that these types of privacy concerns will always exist as personal technology evolves, and our gadgets have wider access to what we're doing and saying.
"Surveillance is all about convenience," he said. "[Your phone] knows where you are, when you wake up, when you go to sleep ... it knows all of that stuff. And you're happy with that because it rings when someone calls you."


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Assistant Minister of Trade and Industry for Economic Affairs Ibrahim al-Sajini said the sealing of the first commercial deal between Egypt and Ghana under the umbrella of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) provides an ideal opportunity for reaching the goal of USD 100 billion in exports exchange.
This agreement will pave the way for Egyptian exports to get access to African markets without any obstacles, he added.
This is the first trade deal to be signed in light of the AfCFTA, which came into force on January 2021, Sajini said in statements to MENA on Friday.
AfCFTA launched today a Guided Trade Initiative at the 10th African Trade Ministerial Meeting in Ghana’s capital, Accra. The initiative includes Egypt, Cameroon, Ghana, Kenya and Rwanda.
Sajini explained this initiative will enable Egypt to export its food products to the African markets, with a view to achieving economic integration and self-sufficiency of the continent.
The initiative is meant to send a message to Africa and the rest of the world that it is now possible to trade using AfCFTA procedures.
It intends to achieve its goal by matchmaking businesses and products for export and import between interested State Parties in collaboration with their national AfCFTA implementation committees.
The initiative will also serve as a gateway to encourage continued trade under the AfCFTA, resulting in a multiplier effect and increased opportunities for SMEs, youth, and women in trade, and ultimately establishing sustainable and inclusive economic development.


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It was announced, it’s now official. The ecological bonus for the purchase of an electric vehicle will increase from 5,000 to 4,000 euros for the wealthiest French people, according to a decree published this Tuesday in the Official Journal and which will come into force on Wednesday. The text also ratifies “the suspension of the assistance system for leasing electric cars”, announced Monday by the Élysée.
At the end of December, the government indicated that it was considering lowering the ecological bonus for households "in deciles 6 to 10", but that this bonus would remain at 7,000 euros (5,000 euros and the increase already in force of 2,000 euros) for half with the lowest incomes. Tuesday, the decree published - which concerns "aid for the acquisition and rental of low-polluting vehicles" - indicates that "it reduces by 1000 euros the maximum amount of the ecological bonus applicable to the acquisition of private cars and new vans for households in the five highest income deciles.
For companies, the text also indicates “reduce by 1000 euros the maximum amount of the ecological bonus applicable to the acquisition of new vans” and “remove the ecological bonus applicable to the acquisition of new cars”. The ecological bonus for used passenger cars and vans is also “removed”. Furthermore, the decree “increases by 1,000 euros the amount of aid for electric car leasing for used private cars”.
The text also limits the allocation of the scrappage bonus to the purchase of electric vehicles. And the maximum amount of this conversion bonus, already reserved for the least well-off households, drops by 1000 euros to stand at 5000 euros. Until now, the bonus could also benefit the purchase of a low-polluting gasoline vehicle (with the Crit'Air 1 badge), for an amount of 4,000 euros.
Concerning “social leasing”, the system allowing the less well-off to access an electric car for 100 euros per month, the decree “provides for the suspension of the system of assistance for the leasing of electric cars”. The Élysée announced on Monday the end of this measure for 2024 after having “exceeded” its initial objectives, with more than 50,000 orders validated. “There will be a second wave at the end of the year or at the beginning of next year,” specifies the government. The decree published Tuesday also prohibits the subletting of vehicles benefiting from leasing assistance, and establishes a fine of 1,500 euros in the event of non-compliance by the beneficiaries with the conditions of conservation of the vehicle or the ban on subletting. -rental.
The adjustments to the conversion aid and the bonus were put in place in part to respond to the success of the leasing system which cost the State coffers more than initially expected. “The dual objective was to remain within the allocated envelope of 1.5 billion euros for aid for electric vehicles and to better target low-income households,” explains a government advisor.


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Editor’s note: The Supply Side section of Talk Business & Politics focuses on the companies, organizations, issues and individuals engaged in providing products and services to retailers. The Supply Side is managed by Talk Business & Politics and sponsored by Propak Logistics.
There’s not a Walmart Store within an hour’s drive of Webster Springs, W.V., a one stoplight town nestled in the Appalachian Mountains. But that hasn’t stopped Angie and Dee Cowger from seeking national distribution with the retailer for their Custard Stand hot dog chili which is made there.
“We’ve been selling our family recipe hot dog chili to Walmart on a regional basis since 2004 and we’re in Sam’s Club, but we have not yet been able to crack the national distribution,” Angie Cowger said in a recent interview with Talk Business & Politics.
The couple recently appeared on Shark Tank seeking $400,000 and expertise to help expand their chili distribution outside the 15 states it now has distribution with in Walmart, Sam’s Club, Kroger and other grocery retailers. While the Cowgers didn’t attract a shark, nor any additional investment, Cowger said the company’s online chili sales have exploded 5,000% since the program aired on Feb. 21. The company is working with E Gourmet Solutions to handle its online fulfillment which is done solely from the Custard Stand’s website.
“We’d like to pursue business with Walmart.com but we’re not sure exactly where to begin. Now that we are finished with Shark Tank we will pursue those options,” she said.
Custard Stand hot dog chili is a family business that consists of a flagship restaurant and five franchise locations, a fully accredited manufacturing facility and a small logistics arm that delivers product when necessary.
The family opened its first opened Custard Stand eatery in March 1991 selling hot dogs and dairy treats in its hometown of Webster Springs (pop. 702). Angie is a classroom teacher and has been for the past 30 years. Now teaching part-time Angie and Dee have their hands full with the growing family enterprise.
“My mother-in-law and all three of our kids also work in the business. It’s always been a family venture,” she said. “We have a small production team to help.”
Over the years Cowger said folks in the community began to ask if they could buy a quart or pint of the hot dog sauce they ate in the restaurant. The demand for take out chili kept growing until finally the couple had to expand into a manufacturer.
“In 2003, we converted a three-bay car wash behind our restaurant into a USDA-approved production facility and opened a second business, Custard Stand Food Products,” she said. “We have since invested in additional cooking kettles, more freezers and cold storage room to be able to expand our distribution.”
Last year the food products company had roughly $1.6 million in sales. Angie said about 60% of the business is at retail, while 40% of sales come from their wholesale distributors for food service vendors.
SELLING TO WALMART
Angie said after their production facility was USDA certified, she began taking the product to food shows and she drove it one hour up the road to the nearest Walmart Store and had the store manager give a try.
“He told us about Walmart’s efforts to buy more local products and said that our timing couldn’t have been better. We filled out a two-page application and found 15 stores in our region that wanted to sell the product. Then a little while later we got into Sam’s Club because the Club manager was working the door one day when we came through,” she said.
Angie said they were buying their chili ingredients from Sam’s Club and the club manager who checked the receipt one day asked them what they were going to do with all that chili powder.
“We told her about our retail chili business and she agreed to try it. She got our product into Sam’s Club in our region several years ago,” she said.
Custard Stand now sells 1-pound containers of frozen hot dog chile to Walmart Stores and 3-pound containers at Sam’s Clubs. She said the stores often merchandise the products in the meat cases next to the hot dogs. The product has a 30-day lifecycle in the cooler or two years if it stays frozen.
“In the coming months we plan to self market our hot dog chili and a newer chili soup product that includes beans to Walmart.com and other retailers in hopes of getting a broader distribution network, now that we have the added production capacity,” Angie said.
OVERCOMING REGIONAL TASTES
One of the big reasons the couple didn’t get a bite from their Shark Tank proposal was because the venture capitalists said chili is a regional food preference that can vary across the country. Angie said their hot dog chili has a slightly sweeter taste than other brands. She said the bean and beef soup product which is not yet sold at Walmart has a spicier taste. She also said based on growing Internet sales from around the country she hopes to break down the regional barricades that some may erected in the past.
“One of my goals is to get my products back in front of the chili buyers at Wal-Mart and let them taste for themselves. Our product is made in the U.S., free of trans-fats, it’s gluten-free with no fillers or added preservatives. You’ll recognize, and be able to pronounce every single ingredient on the label,” Angie said.
While the couple said they were disappointed they didn’t attract a shark they took some solace from the kind words they received from billionaire venture capitalist Mark Cuban.
“You are everything that everyone watching this show (Shark Tank) wants to see. … Someone grinding it out and claiming their share of the American Dream,” Cuban told the couple.
Angie said the overall Shark Tank experience was exhilarating but the couple has already laid the groundwork on which to build.
“We are strong together and that strength will make us bigger and better,” she said.


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Google Glass has been gaining attention over the past year, especially recently, from the patent's publication early last month, to last week's TED (Technology, Entertainment, Design) conference. So far, we've seen some demonstrations, along with skydivers, supermodels and a subway riding Google Co-Founder, all adorned with these spectacles like it's the latest fashion.
Could it be the latest fashion?
We probably wouldn't be interested in a set of glasses that sold for $1,500 if they had a somewhat mundane frame, would we? Okay, maybe some might be, because at the forefront of the future of wearable technology, it would be a very unique method in dealing with your devices, attributed by focusing on enhanced human-to-computer interaction. It certainly wouldn't be enough to grab our entire attention though, and as it is, Google appears to realize the need to fill that gap.
In order to fill that gap, the Mountain View tech titan turned to Warby Parker for what can be described as their "retro" or "hipster" style frame and glass sets. In case you're unfamiliar with Warby Parker, they're an American company, based in New York, who sells prescription eye and sunglasses using a unique online shopping experience.
Extreme Virtual Assisting
During a video demonstration last week, Google's Vice President of Engineering for Search, Scott Huffman said,
"One thing that we're really excited about and working hard on is transforming the way that people interact with Google…"
"…From the stilted one-keyword-at-a-time conversation, to more of a natural conversation…like a human assistant."
He must be meaning an integration of Google Now into the latest eyewear, and that should already be a given, as it's Google's widely popular intelligent personal assistant. That could seemingly be one of the main characterizations for Google Glass, as it would mainly run off voice command and camera functions in order to fulfill your personal assisting needs.
That could include finding maps and directions, checking traffic, getting weather reports, taking notes, sending and receiving messages, taking photos or videos, and many other things that you would expect out of a personal assistant. Huffman moved on to mention how it would be an opposite experience to your smartphone, making a clear notation that our devices are too much in our way. Since the introduction of Android, Google's aim looks to be taking the form of making the multitude of the world's information more available at our fingertips, and have melded to getting that information to you faster and more free from distraction. Has it worked so far?
Looking inside the Glass
You may or may not remember a concept video published by Google in April of last year, if not you can find it on YouTube here. It was pretty early into its development, so there wasn't anything substantial that could be seen to reflect what it actually looked like, which might have allowed one to believe that the entire display will float pretty colors and visual effects to represent the function right before your very eyes. Although, as seen from the photos and the new video (also posted on YouTube), there is what appears to be a tiny display. It's small compared to what we see in smartphones or in watches, but up close, it amplifies the size so you could see the display clearly, and is offset in a position where it will cause minimal distraction as to your activities, or even where you're going.
Among the display is a camera that rests on the front, accented by a built-in microphone, a cleverly designed bone-conducting speaker, and is topped off with Bluetooth and WiFi capabilities for connectivity. Using the voice command feature, you can say a couple words such as, "Okay, Glass" to activate it, and then follow up by speaking your heart's desires.
Not just Nature; Human Nature
A lot of research has gone not only into the implementation of the way the Glass functions, but also how it interacts with who you are and the environment you're in. According to NBC News, a study was conducted by Jon Wiley, who is Google's Lead User Designer for Search, through a handful of select individuals who reign from "all walks of life."
The study conducted was to see just what these people did in regards to living their life with a search engine, and at certain points asked the individual the question, "What was the last bit of information you needed?" according to reports.
The responses were then recorded as well as the data the responses came with, such as where the subject was when they requested the information, what they were doing, and the time of day when they were conducting the search. That presumably led to the ability to get information without having to ask, such as looking out the window into the sky and getting an instant weather report.
What does the future hold?
We have heard about the projected release date for this technology, which happens to span from later towards the end of this year and stretch into early next year. No official word on the exact date, but they have already held a contest called #ifihadglass that you may be familiar with. If you're not familiar, then it consisted of writing a fifty word or less essay, describing what you would do if you had Glass.
As a popular contest among most enthusiasts and several consumers, the final date for submissions had already ended in late February, and no announcement of any winners have been made insofar, but telling from some of the submissions I've seen, there are many promising results to follow.
Maybe Glass is the future, or maybe it's just a step towards the future, but regardless of semantics, I think we can all agree that even though one may not like the idea now, something of this magnitude will be hard to ignore for too long, especially with all the work that Google had put into not only developing, but promoting it throughout its entire existence. It's yet another major win for Google. So with the in-depth details at your disposal, what would you think about owning a pair of Google's Glass?


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The secret second operating system that could make every mobile phone insecure
In just about every computer science textbook, a computer consists of just three blocks: the hardware, the operating system, and then all the (user-land) software that runs on the OS. In actual fact, unbeknownst to the user, almost every computer has multiple operating systems running at the same time, managing various different parts of the computer -- and worryingly, these OSes are usually proprietary, closed-source, bug-ridden, and have extensive, low-level access to your data.
Nexus 5: Excellent global coverage, perplexing LTE support
Last week, Google formally introduced the Nexus 5 by LG to the world, along with Android 4.4 KitKat. The Nexus 5 is a major refresh to the Nexus smartphone line, and offers great network capabilities for networks across the world for the price Google is selling it for.
T-Mobile launches Simple Global data, destroys roaming data bill
Yesterday, T-Mobile's newest Uncarrier initiative went live, expanding the effective coverage for T-Mobile customers to over 100 countries worldwide. In these countries, T-Mobile customers no longer have to worry about excessive roaming bills and can truly afford to communicate while traveling the world.
The 'underwater internet' could be an early warning system for natural disasters
Using a network of sensors, a team of researchers have unveiled plans to knit the world above and below the waves together to create an underwater internet. cCombining all the disparate networks of underwater acoustic sensors into one could improve data gathering and make important early warning systems more accessible and reliable.
By Ryan Whitwam
World's fastest wireless network hits 100 gigabits per second, can scale to terabits
German researchers have combined photonics and electronics to create a world-record-breaking wireless network that can send and receive data at a heady 100 gigabits per second (Gbps). This beats the same team's previous world record of 40Gbps. At 100Gbps, or a transfer rate of 12.5 gigabytes per second -- ten times faster than Google Fiber -- you could copy a complete Blu-ray disc in a couple of seconds.
PS4 and Xbox One won't support your expensive third-party headset - for now
If you've invested in a nice wireless headset for the next-gen launch, prepare for some bad news. Unfortunately, the majority of wireless headsets will not work with the PS4 at launch. While Sony does plan on releasing compatibility patches down the road, this news leaves a rancid taste in the mouths of many core gamers who have already invested in Sony's own hardware.
Verizon pleads incompetence, skirts illegality by refusing to activate Nexus 7 on its LTE network
The Nexus 7 is an inexpensive tablet with solid specs and an unlocked LTE radio that works on most carriers worldwide. Basically, this device is everything Verizon fears. So perhaps no one should be surprised that early adopters who have taken their Nexus 7 tablets into Verizon to be activated have been told the devices are incompatible.
By Ryan Whitwam
iPhone 5S and 5C: The best support for 3G and 4G LTE networks worldwide
Yesterday, the iPhone 5S and iPhone 5C were both announced at an event at Apple's headquarters. Apple makes a strong point throughout the unveiling that both the iPhone 5S and iPhone 5C support more ultra-fast networks than any other phone available on the market today.
Amazon testing licensed WiFi, could lead to cheap unified global WiFi for Kindles
Amazon is privately testing Wi-Fi technologies on licensed frequencies that belong to satellite service provider Globalstar. Called TLPS, it has the potential to become a uniform globally available terrestrial wireless network.
Body hacker uses subdermal RFID hand implant as wireless storage
In modern times, a portable storage device isn't far from our possession. Either we can use the storage on our phones or tablets, or we keep a small flash drive on a keychain. Accessing the data, however, may not be convenient in a given situation. Making the storage and access of data more convenient, artist Anthony Antonellis implanted an RFID chip into his hand that can store data which can be wirelessly accessed by a smartphone.
By James Plafke


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New Delhi: Chinese business magnate, investor, politician, philanthropist and world's largest retailer and e-commerce company Alibaba founder Jack Ma is one of the most successful entrepreneurs in the world. In fact, Ma is seen as a global ambassador for Chinese business and as is frequently listed as one of the world's most powerful people.
Despite being the founder of e-commerce giant Alibaba, the billionaire recently said that he would never get a job in Alibaba today. At a Forbes conference in Singapore recently, Ma said. “People like me, today, if I tried to apply (for a) job in Alibaba, it’s almost impossible. People judge you by your diploma. They would think "hey, we’ve got a group of people from Harvard, we’ve got people from Stanford, and you are from no-where.”
Ma believes that if he and most of the other founders had to apply for a job today at the e-commerce giant, they would struggle to get past the initial screening.
At the World Economic Forum's Annual Meeting in Davos in 2016, Jack Ma revealed that he had been rejected from Harvard Business School 10 times. It may be noted that Ma stepped down as Alibaba's chairman on September 10, 2019, his 55th birthday. During an interaction at Davos earlier this year, he gave a hint into the type of employees Alibaba is looking for.
“When I hire people, I hire those who are smarter than I am. People who, four, five years later, could be my boss. I like people who are positive and who never give up. Personality is also a vital factor,” said Ma. He said that the secret to a good employee isn’t their past companies or positions but readiness to work hard and learn. “Don’t think, ‘Wow that guy used to work in Google or Alibaba or Facebook – he must be good’. Not necessarily…”
“None of us (the Alibaba founders) graduated from some great university,” said Ma. “Honestly, most of us could not find jobs in our early days. But the thing is, we are ready to learn. We believed in the future and if we learned and worked together, and...
Not many know that after finishing high school, Ma applied to go to college, but failed the entrance exam twice. He finally passed on the third try, going on to attend Hangzhou Teachers Institute. He graduated in 1988 and started applying to as many jobs as he could. However, he was rejected many times.
In fact, after college, Ma applied for 30 jobs in his home city of Hangzhou, China and he was rejected from each one. At KFC, 24 people applied for the job, and while 23 were hired — he wasn’t one of them, revealed Ma. The same thing happened when he tried to be a cop. This time four of five applicants were hired, all except Ma.
Once he lost the job to his own family member. “My cousin and I waited for two hours [in a] long queue to be the waiter at a four-star hotel in my city, on a very hot day,” he says. “My cousin’s score was much lower than mine, [but] he was accepted and I was rejected!”
It was in 1999 that he gathered 17 of his friends in his apartment and convinced them to invest in his vision of an online marketplace called 'Alibaba'. By October that same year, Alibaba has raised $5 million from Goldman Sachs and $20 million from SoftBank.
It is worth mentioning that Alibaba's 2014 IPO in New York set a record as the world's biggest public stock offering, raising $25 billion. It also made Ma the richest person in China. His net worth since then has grown to $38 billion, according to Forbes.


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Trick-or-treaters should take in a record haul this year, with the National Retail Federation estimating shoppers will spend $2.7 billion on Halloween candy alone in 2017.
So what are you most likely to find at Tri-State homes?
Blow Pops, Hot Tamales and Tootsie Pops, according to candystore.com.
The website crunched 10 years of sales data and double-checked with major candy manufacturers and distributors to find the top three candies for all 50 states.
For Ohio, it's Blow Pops first, M&M's second and then Starburst.
The Commonwealth prefers the mystery surrounding how many licks it takes to get to the center of a Tootsie Pop. Three Musketeers bars and Reese's Peanut Butter Cups finished in second and third place, respectively, in Kentucky.
The Hoosier State likes to keep things spicy with Hot Tamales winning, followed by Starburst and then Snickers bars.
Check out the interactive map of all 50 states at the website here.


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Stranger Things x Fortnite crossover skins leak out early
Stranger Things season three is finally here, and according to early impressions, it might just be the best one yet. It’s also going to mean big things for Fortnite Battle Royale fans.
The hit Netflix show has already started making its mark inside the game, with portals to the Upside Down recently appearing in Mega Mall. And now we’ve got our first glimpse at new Stranger Things skins.
Stranger Things is by far the most mature Fortnite crossover so far. The show itself is rated TV–14 in the U.S., but it can get pretty creepy at times — and Epic Games isn’t holding back.
One of the leaked skins on its way to Battle Royale is that of a terrifying Domogorgon.
Leaked Stranger Things skins en route to Fortnite
The monstrous creature comes complete with a gaping face full of sharp teeth, and huge hooves that would make buying shoes a nightmare. It’s pretty disgusting at first glance, but when you see it throwing shapes for Fortnite dances, it looks pretty hilarious.
— FireMonkey ? Fortnite Intel (@iFireMonkey) July 4, 2019
The other leaked Stranger Things skin is that of Chief Hopper. He looks exactly as you would expect in his trim police uniform, sporting a gold badge and shotgun shells strapped to his legs.
Chief Hopper skin! pic.twitter.com/0BfAQfG5dY
— FortTory ? – Fortnite Leaks & News (@FortTory) July 4, 2019
For now, these are the only two Stranger Things skins that have surfaced ahead of their official debut — but you can bet there will be more. If we have Chief Hopper, we will almost certainly get the rest of the gang. The more Epic offers, the more money it will rake in.
Stranger Things x Fortnite crossover still unclear
Despite it being launch day for Stranger Things season three, we still don’t know what exactly the Fortnite crossover has in store. Fans assumed we would get more details today, but it’s yet to happen.
In addition to the skins, we’re expecting new limited-time game modes. We’re also hoping we’ll get more from those portals in Mega Mall. They simply transport you to other parts of the mall for now, but if they don’t take us to a virtual Upside Down later, it will be a crying shame.


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India Lauds Partnering
October 2, 2006,
New York — The event at the Consulate General of India in New York was billed as an “extraordinary opportunity” for companies and investors to interact with the policymakers of the Indian textile industry. The recent gathering was led by D.P. Singh, Secretary of the Ministry of Textiles; and included presentations by Dr. V.S. Seshadri, Minister (Commercial) of the Embassy of India, Washington, D.C; and Ms. Neelan Deo, Consul General in New York. Secretary Singh agreed to speak with Home Textiles Today contributing editor Brent Felgner. Excerpts from the interview:
Singh: In terms of the natural strength in the textiles sector, which India enjoys, whether it is natural fibers or in synthetic fibers, I look at the next two to three years as a time when technology will drive the textile industry and which will be characterized by a tremendous cotton and synthetic fiber consumption. It will also be characterized by a highly valued and design-oriented apparel and garment sector.
HTT: What are the market pressures that India must deal with in order to achieve the most effective position it can in the worldwide economy?
Singh: I don't like to call it pressures but more opportunities and challenges. Somehow the global debate in the textiles sector has become an undercurrent of what is happening in China, or what is happening in India. The time has come when all the countries and participants in the global textile trade [should] go beyond their own boundaries and look in terms of opportunities, which can be best met by their most competitive production practices. The world is large enough to take care of everybody.
One doesn't have to be affected by what the other fellow is doing. If he is doing better, am I supposed to be doing badly? I suppose we are in a situation where both can be doing well, and together they can both be useful for the rest of the world.
HTT: Since trade barriers have been lifted, we've been struck by companies from various countries really talking about going to their core competencies and then joint venturing with others in the world — for example, Indian companies partnering more with Chinese firms, as well as U.S. companies, going forward. Is that something that holds greater opportunity?
Singh: I do see it. One part of the joint venture is the technology transfer; another is the modern, up-to-date machinery. Now every country in today's environment need not fund this research de novo. The time has come when every country can partner, and see which is the area they can benefit in the maximum, by taking from outside.
It is better to partner with such companies that can take care of the marketing; which can provide the market intelligence. And, at the same time, the machinery that the U.S. companies are not putting to full use can be [exploited] for relocation, which can be based on the strength of the Indian textile industry, in terms of efficient labor and design capabilities. And added to that the market intelligence and marketing experience of the U.S. companies, it provides a very useful meeting ground for both of them in capital sharing — the investment of capital, along with the investment in opportunities — both can gain from that.
HTT: Months and years before the removal of trade barriers, countries around the world, and in particular, companies in India, were very worried about the impact China would have on world textile markets. With the benefit of hindsight, have any of those fears been realized?
Singh: It's been much less. I was recently in China and in meetings with my counterparts and there was a great reckoning about each of us. But I'm happy to say that while [those concerns] may have been there at one point in time, I see a very healthy environment of cooperation and helping each other and selectively growing in world markets. So at the end of the day it's the consumer who gains.
HTT: What are you hoping to accomplish with presentations such as this one at the consulate?
Singh: The mission of our entire visit is to apprise our friends and colleagues of where our textile industry is — at what stage it is — and where it is aiming to go in the coming years, and how we could be good partners to each of them in this entire roadmap. I think the amount of interest and curiosity is very good. What lies ahead now is more concrete responses.
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