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With our journeys restricted to essential travel, most of us are sticking to our 5km radius during Level 5 lockdown.
As a result, we've had little need for transport services like buses, trains and taxis.
There is no denying that our transport habits have changed dramatically over the past year, but are our new habits likely to stick long-term?
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The WFH lifestyle
The work from home lifestyle has upended our daily routine, with the usual commute to the office a thing of the past for the over 700,000 people working remotely.
One such worker, Stephen Harte from Raheny in Dublin, has been working from home for almost a year now.
"I’ve been into Dublin city once to collect some work equipment to set myself up at home, so I’m certainly not using public transport, which I would have before the pandemic, to commute into work," he said.
Until recently the family had two cars, but Mr Harte said they couldn’t justify the expense.
"Realistically we were only using the second car every once in a while and when you take into account the running costs such as petrol, insurance, tax and the NCT - the math just didn’t add up to keep both cars on the road."
Mr Harte’s situation is replicated right across the country – and the world.
As we adjust to our new lifestyles, we are all looking at transport differently.
For Mr Harte and his family, car sharing was the answer.
Is car sharing the way forward?
When the pandemic first hit back in March, there was a decrease in the number of people renting cars and using shared car services such as 'GoCar’.
However, as travel restrictions eased last summer, demand for the service soared, according to Colm Brady, Managing Director of Europcar Mobility Group in Ireland, which looks after GoCar.
"I think people have realised that owning a car is not necessary for a lot of people," said Mr Brady.
He said this is reflected in the increased numbers singing up for the car sharing service throughout the pandemic.
"40,000 new users signed up in 2020, while just under 8,000 new users have signed up so far this year.
"Once we come out of lockdown, I think travelling in Ireland in 2021 will be very different," he added.
Mr Brady said he believes many of their new customers are people like Mr Harte, who have decided to sell their second car and use the car sharing service to rent cars for short trips.
"For many people working from home, their cars have been sitting outside their houses for months and that isn’t going to change for a while," he said.
According to Mr Brady, the boost in users is also partly down to demand from businesses for the service.
Karl Purdy, Owner of the Coffee Angel chain had to close his bricks and mortar cafes in Dublin due to the Covid-19 restrictions, but he has kept the business going by delivering coffee and accessories to customers across the Dublin area.
While the business owns one delivery van, Mr Purdy said at times delivery volumes require an extra vehicle on the road.
"We didn't want to commit to a massive investment of financing a new vehicle at the moment.
"Car sharing allows us to be nimble, agile and flexible but at the same time continue to push the service end of what we do at coffeeangel.com, so it has been an immense help," said Mr Purdy.
Access over ownership
In addition to shared cars, shared micro-mobility devices are likely to be rolled out in our towns and cities in the near future.
Just last month, the Government confirmed that it is moving forward with plans to legislate for electric scooters.
Free Now, which is known for its taxi service, has partnered with micro-mobility operator TIER, and is just one of many companies hoping to roll out an e-scooter rental service here.
Niall Carson, General Manager of Free Now Ireland, said he believes these devices will offer travel solutions for the people of Ireland, as we start moving beyond our 5km once again.
"It will just be one part of the puzzle, but it will be an important piece because it will put us right up there with our European counterparts, offering the solution that people have long been looking for.
"Micro-mobility services are crucial to creating a modern, better connected and multi modal transport ecosystem and we want that to work with the day-to-day living."
Mr Carson said he believes people are starting to choose access over ownership when it comes to transport.
"E-scooters, car sharing and ride hailing give people the option to move away from private car ownership and we have seen that in a number of cities in Germany, where car sales and the level of private car ownership are dropping."
Mr Carson said that the average privately owned car is used less than 6% of the time.
"With car sharing, ride sharing and scooters, you get much more journeys out of the vehicle than if they were privately owned, because it is part of the shared economy and I think that is what we are seeing.
"People are moving away from that private car ownership and it does in turn lead to much more usage of the smarter travel network, which also includes public transport," said Mr Carson.
Are we moving away from private car ownership?
New figures from the Central Statistics Office figures show that while the number of cars on the road increased in February, traffic volumes were still down over 48% in regional locations and 46% in Dublin compared to the same week in February last year.
While this has had a positive impact on the environment with Co2 emissions reducing, it has had a detrimental impact on the motor industry.
New car sales have been plummeting for the last five years, and the pandemic has heightened that decline even further.
While new car registrations for February were up 5.3% to 13,834 compared to the same time last year, figures from the Society for Irish Motor Industry show that registrations year to date are down 11% on the same time last year.
However, while many people are holding off on buying a new car, they are still very much depending on their private vehicles during the pandemic.
"We are still going to have a strong demand for cars, particularly used cars," said Tom Cullen, Deputy Director General of the Society for Irish Motor Industry.
Mr Cullen said there are people who have managed to save money during the pandemic, and he expects they will upgrade their cars after lockdown.
"We saw that happen after the lockdowns last year, people are upgrading to newer cars."
However, Mr Cullen said it will take time for the new car market to recover, and that is all going to be down to the economy.
In 2016, 146,000 new vehicles were sold. Last year, that number dropped to just 85,000.
"We had hoped to sell 100,000 new vehicles this year, but that was before we started this lockdown," said Mr Cullen.
While some people have trialed out new modes of transport during the pandemic, Mr Cullen said he was confident that most people will continue to opt for private car ownership, well into the future.
"I think the way that our transport infrastructure is developed it would be very hard for most people to get rid of their car altogether.
"There will be people who will cycle to work and there will be other transport options but we don't have a evolved public transport system in our bigger urban areas and outside of those urban areas we have very little quality public transport - so the car is with us for some time," he said.
Will people return to public transport?
The pandemic quickly put an end to overcrowding on public transport, but that is unlikely to last forever.
The Government introduced a 25% capacity limit for all services to allow for adequate social distancing, which remains in place.
While the National Transport Authority has said it does not expect services to get back to 100% capacity until the vaccine roll-out is widespread, it is hoping to see the capacity limit increase to 50% before the summer.
Understandably, many people are reluctant to use public transport at the moment.
However, Anne Graham, CEO of the NTA, said she believes people will return to trains and buses when capacity restrictions are lifted.
"I don’t think they will necessarily return in the numbers that we saw in 2019, we are expecting an overall reduction of about 10%.
"However, a 10% loss could actually be regained in another year if the economy grows the way we hope it will post pandemic," she added.
The Government has had to provide additional funding to the National Transport Authority to offset the loss in fare revenue.
Ms Graham said it received a "significant amount" of funding last year and this year in order to operate services, however she said this is not sustainable for a long period.
"We do hope that with the return of passengers to our public transport we would be less reliant on that level of Government intervention, to the extent that funding is then available for us to improve our transport services and extend our public transport services throughout the country," she said.
Are we improving our cycling and walking infrastructure?
With the virus less likely to spread in open spaces, many people are walking and cycling more than ever before.
The National Transport Authority said it has been carrying out works to improve the infrastructure across the country, to cater for this changing lifestyle.
Just recently, it announced a total of €240m to support sustainable transport projects.
This year’s allocations have increased by just over €130m compared to last year and will support 233 new projects in 2021.
Among the major projects scheduled for construction this year are the Clontarf to City Centre route in Dublin, the Mahon to Marina Greenway in Cork, the Castletroy Greenway in Limerick, Parkmore Improvement Works in Galway and the Bilberry to City Centre route in Waterford.


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On August 22, 2019, NORPAC Foods filed for bankruptcy protection and entered into an Asset Purchase Agreement with Oregon Potato Company. As a part of that arrangement, OPC would purchase NORPAC’s facilities. OPC withdrew its bid to purchase those facilities on October 18, 2019. NORPAC has continued discussions with various companies regarding the purchase of NORPAC’s assets but the company has not found a buyer.
NORPAC has unsuccessfully attempted to secure additional financing. As a result, the company has warned Oregon officials that it will be closing two Oregon facilities. The Brooks plant is located at 4755 Brooklake Road NE in Salem, Oregon. It is expected that employment will be terminated on January 12, 2020 or within the 14-day period after that date. Seasonal employees will be terminated once the processing season has concluded on November 15, 2019.
It is anticipated that 466 workers could be laid off at the Brooks plant. The WARN notice can be found here.
The company may also be forced to permanent close its Salem repack facility. That facility is located at 3305 25th Street SE. The closure of that facility would result in 458 workers being laid off. The layoffs would occur on January 12, 2020 or within 14 days thereafter. That WARN notice can be found here.
Since the company is actively seeking additional financing and engaging in discussions with other companies about purchasing these facilities, there is no guarantee that the closures and layoffs will happen.

domain: news


text: Can wait to move in, said Kaylyn Bondy, Williston State College registrar and director for effectiveness, in the press release. Done a lot of traveling and this is the kind of living arrangement you usually see in bigger cities housing on top, businesses on bottom. It really makes for a fun living and working atmosphere.. The titanium cup Romney camp has been pounding Gingrichs call for a colony on the moon. Gingrich returned to the idea in Ohio on Tuesday. In Dayton, Gingrich said, This is the difference between the Republican establishment, which is the Wholesale Football Jerseys cheap version of the Democratic establishment. Two years ago, Jennifer and Glen Leblonc decided they were done with city living. From a practical standpoint, their family had outgrown their 1,200 square foot condo in downtown Montreal. And the space, already overrun with their two year old son’s toys and gear, was only going to get more crowded with a cheap jerseys second child on the way. This usually happens during a wedding when there is a cheap jerseys great need for jewelry. Many online jewelers would cheap nfl jerseys from china have various beautiful and stylish ornaments on sale at affordable prices. These variety include rings made of 14k yellow gold, white gold, zircon encrusted rings, tungsten rings, platinum rings and many others. Exactly one year before the Ottawa Senators qualified for their first Eastern Conference final in a decade, general manager Pierre Dorion introduced Guy Boucher as the new head coach and made a surprise declaration along the way.”One day I hope to write a book: Keys to winning in the NHL,” said Dorion on May 9, 2016. “Talent is one. Two is very good goaltending. Suger at 25 Alfred Street is an adorable shop featuring hundreds of local products including jewelry, accessories and lots of gifty things. Store owner Roxi works in the back designing clothes she sells on site. To get there, take Mile Stretch Road out to Biddeford Pool, a quiet part of town (at least it is in spring) with a Cape Cod feel.. With faculty and staff, the university involves 55,000 people, more than half the city’s population. Yet it could be on another planet for many in day to day Berkeley. Most spend the day working elsewhere, and are early to bed. “People need to look at what they’re buying and think about it for the long term,” said Thomas. Just think about what a piece of outdoor furniture has to go through from season to season, especially if it stays out there year round, which is often the case in our mild climate. The sun beats down on it.


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Indians love to show their affection towards their favourite brands on social networking sites.
In fact, when it comes to engaging fans on social networking sites such as Facebook, Indian brands have done better than their global peers -- in terms of growth rate and in some cases, even in the absolute number of fans.
According to a study on social media engagement by Ketchum Sampark, Fastrack, the Indian fashion accessories brand, is the biggest in the category worldwide.
It has more than 4.2 million fan followers on Facebook.
Most of the social media users do add themselves on the fan pages, but most of them do not visit the page again, says Ajay Sharma, managing partner, Ketchum Sampark.
"In the study, we considered fans who visit these pages at least once a month," he added.
Fastrack's closest competitor is Pandora (1.45 million fans), followed by Ice-Watch (1.44 million), Bulgari (1.08 million) and JewelMint (1.02 million).
The study analysed 100 Indian brands and their global peers in 10 categories in terms of growth in number of fans and their engagement levels on Facebook between January 1 and August 30 this year.
On engagement levels, leading Indian brands in eight of the 10 categories studied performed better than the global peers.
But the engagement level of brands in most of the sectors has declined, except health and beauty, food and beverages, travel and tourism, the study revealed.
In sectors such as banking, health and beauty, automobiles, food and beverages, fashion accessories and apparel, global brands have more fans in terms of absolute number, compared to the Indian ones.
On the other hand, leading Indian education brands have three times more Facebook fans compared to their global peers.
Telecom brands in India also rule over the global counterparts with at least 1.76
Interestingly, in terms of engagement level, the scene is just the opposite for education brands.
Here, global brands perform much better than the Indian ones.
With better internet penetration in the tier-II and tier-III cities, usage of social media, especially Facebook, has been increasing rapidly.
"More than the growth in fan bases, the ability to drive engagement will become the most relevant," Sharma says.
Coca-Cola, which is the largest brand worldwide in terms of total number of fans, has 4,94,91,881 Facebook fans. But, its engagement level is as low as 2 per cent, the study said.
Coca-Cola follows a different strategy from its counterparts. Coca-Cola has just one fan page globally, while Pepsi has different fan pages for each region/country.
According to the study, Pepsi has 32,41,294 Facebook fans, much higher than its counterparts.
Social engagement level of Indian health and beauty brands grew most at 83.76 per cent, followed by food and beverages at 49.83 per cent and travel and tourism at 38.89 per cent.
The study also found that Tata Docomo is the top brand on Facebook in India across categories, with 8.7 million fans.
ICICI Bank was identified as the fifth largest banking and financial services brand on Facebook globally.
During the period under consideration, Tata Nano added the most number of fans among automobile brands in India.
But, its engagement level dropped to 6.6 per cent in August from 14.2 per cent in January.
Interestingly, BMW India tops the list in automobile.
It's not just the quality of education that drives fan following. While Amity University has 5,70,000 fans on Facebook, IIM Ahmedabad has just 22,831.
But, how much do these brands monetise from their branding activities on social media?
There is no concrete answer from anyone on that.


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HTC Mozart WP7 Rom for T-Mobile Leaked
As we get closer to the official launch of WP7 devices leaks, hands on experiences are becoming more frequent. This time, XDA member Football brings us a new gift. The dev has found and shared a copy of what seems to be the T-Mobile rom for the HTC Mozart. Very little is known about the device at the moment, and needless to say, the rom is still intact as it was just posted on XDA.
Devs on this site have been carefully playing with WP7 roms and emulator images since day 1, but this is the first rom we have seen for a T-Mobile device. The only other carrier specific leak for a WP7 device was the one released by Football for Vodafone UK for the HTC Spark, so needless to say if you were still thinking that WP7 was still a far away dream, it is closer than you think.
You can find the leak in the original thread.
Want something on the XDA Portal? Send us a tip!
The Note 4 never had the fastest Recents Menu, and despite its 3GB of RAM, its app-holding capabilities only got worse on Lollipop. The infamous RAM bug that plagued the S6 is indeed an annoyance on the Note 4's 5.0.X ROMs. Rumors of an update to fix all of this were confirmed with the first reports of the 5.1.1 update for the Russian Note 4, which seemingly improved the Recents Menu and RAM management. But it'll be a long time...
Apps are at the front and center of any smartphone experience, and with over a million apps on the Google Play Store and new apps being submitted to our forums every day, staying up to date on the latest apps and games can be a hassle. At XDA we don’t discriminate apps - if it’s interesting, innovative, original or useful, we mention them. The XDA Portal Team loves apps too, and here are our top picks for this week. ...
Editor’s note: This week's feature has been written by forum member RowHanSolo and takes a look at the exciting prospect of launching satellites fitted with little more than an Android phone as an onboard computer. From a university to NASA, multiple projects like this have launched! Technology is an ever-growing industry, regardless of which corner you look at. However, each area of technology has its limitations on what it can do and how far it can expand. For satellite technology,...


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Cox is doing it. So is Comcast. In fact, prices are rising all over the telecom industry as stock prices plummet and subscribers prove fickle (as AT&T found out with a loss of 3.9M landline customers so far this year). Many of them are also ramping up higher-speed tiers and premium services to pad the bottom line.
Unfortunately, prices are likely to continue to rise in our current anti-competitive telecommunications market. Byzantine phone regulations are used to block new voice carriers, the programming cartel consistently flexes its muscle to increase wholesale television rates and data providers continue to increase markup even as the wholesale rate of bandwidth drops to new lows. DSLReports lambasts the lack of competition in a scatching editorial that details why telecom has the lowest consumer satisfaction ratings of any industry in the nation. As we continue to support duopolies and exclusive providers via HOAs, the problem is only going to get worse.


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Tesco was forced to close a number of its stores after a "routine IT upgrade" stopped tills from working at 100 shops ans supermarkets.
The technical glitch brought down checkouts just as Tesco launched a major loyalty scheme promotion in national newspapers to its millions of Clubcard holders.
Tills began to malfunction as they opened at 8 o'clock this morning, and stopped cashiers from being able to take customers' payments, a Tesco spokesperson said.
A number of the stores had to be closed. However others relied on self-service checkouts which still functioned but caused lengthy queues.
Tesco began to fix the problem around midday but some stores are still affected.
Stores were unable to take payments in central London, Birmingham, Liverpool, Kent, Shropshire, Hertfordshire, Cumbria, Worcestershire, Buckinghamshire, North Wales, and Northern Ireland, according to the Press Association.
Tesco, which has more than 2,000 stores in the UK, declined to comment on what technology was affected, but said it had to resort to asking store managers to reboot tills.
"A number of stores were affected by a routine IT upgrade this morning at various locations in the country," said a Tesco spokesperson.
"Our experts are fixing the problem as we speak ... we are very sorry for the delay and thank customers for their patience."
Return to internet news headlines
View Internet News Archive


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21:07:46 local time CHINA
* Yaks for haute couture:
She is a social entrepreneur who wanted to do something to improve the lot of her father’s people. The answer was always right under the noses of the nomadic Tibetans, as she tells Lin Qi.
For generations, the villagers of Zorge Ritoma on the eastern edge of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau had depended on raising yaks as their major source of income. Overgrazing, however, had gradually desiccated their livelihood as nomads.
Many of the able-bodied among them are abandoning the harsh realities of herding for a more tempting urban life. The village, filled with old people unwilling to leave and their grandchildren, seem doomed to face a bleak future.
* Yaks for haute couture (2):
“We want to make sure that people who collect fibers and turn them into luxury products are local Tibetans,” Yeshi says, “and that the profit would go solely to the villagers — a big challenge for the workshop, but that’s also what sets us apart from other producers.”
Born to a Tibetan father and an American mother, Yeshi majored in Asian studies and film at Connecticut College. Upon graduation, she decided to make a documentary about the land her father came from, with a “very romantic idea” of filming Tibetan lifestyles against a scenic background and promoting Tibetan culture to the world.
* Yaks for haute couture (3):
Kim Yeshi had studied anthropology and Buddhism at university and spent 30 years in Asia researching local culture, with particular interests in textiles and handicrafts.
“People always talk about the cashmere as the precious wool, and camel wool. Although the yak also has wool, it had never been tested,” the mother says.
“I thought it would be compelling to turn the yak wool into a new vision of life for the nomads.”
20:07:46 local time VIET NAM
* Ms. Luu maintains garment workshop in village:
Luu has not only concerned about seeking employment for the laborers but also paid much attention to helping them work in favorable conditions.
The export garment workshop of Hai Duong Affection Garment Co., Ltd. (Dun hamlet, Nam Hong commune, Nam Sach) whose director is Nguyen Thi Luu came into operation in July 2011.
Initially, the factory faced many difficulties due to lack of orders. Many enterprises refused cooperation because they did not believe in a small workshop with unsecured capability of meeting technical requirements of exports. Thus, she had to personally come to garment enterprises to introduce and sign contracts to process goods.
Thanks to her activity and dynamism, Luu entered into a processing contract with Garment I JSC. The workshop at first had five workers, but the order only helped them have work in a few months. Therefore, Luu continued to come to other enterprises to ask for processing orders.
20:07:46 local time THAILAND
* Forum urged tax and policy revamp for sustainable growth:
At yesterday’s Seventh ThaiPublica Forum under the topic “The Thai Economy and a Long Sustainable Growth
Somchai Jitsuchon from the Thailand Development Research Institute, told the forum that tax and policy reform is the key to sustainable growth and blamed the Finance Ministry for failing to reduce economic inequality.
The ministry’s tax policy has contributed to the increase in economic inequality and its distribution system largely ignores poor people who really need help. The Gini coefficient score of Thailand has gone up in recent years and is a clear indication that the ministry has failed to reduce and has even contributed to the increase in income inequality in this country, he said.
“The government is giving away too much of its budget to the people who don’t really need it,” he said. There are three groups that truly need financial help but are largely ignored by the government – mothers in poor communities, minimum wage workers and seniors.
The government has to help mothers in lower opportunity communities because the first five years of her child’s life is the most important period of youth development. The government should provide funds to support child education and healthcare while building more and better quality public child centres, which would allow stay-at-home moms to go out and look for extra income to help support their households while knowing that their children are well taken care of by a trained carer.
Minimum wage and low-income workers should receive extra benefits from the government to reduce their financial burden. The elderly and retirees should also receive further financial help from the government through exceptions in public services because of the higher cost of living. Ekniti Nitithanprapas, deputy director-general of the Finance Ministry’s Fiscal Policy Office, said there are four policies that should be implemented to achieve equally distributed and sustainable economic growth.
20:07:46 local time CAMBODIA
* Government to Meet Over January Minimum Wage Increase:
The current government-mandated minimum wage of $80 a month for garment factory workers will be increased in January 2014, though the amount it will be raised by has not been determined, a Labor Ministry official said Monday.
Prak Chanthoeun, director-general of the Labor Ministry’s labor conflict committee, said Monday that there will be a meeting on Wednesday between the government, factory owners, and unions to discuss the imminent wage increase.
“Even though we cannot say how much the wage would be raised, the government policy is that they will raise the wage in January 2014,” Mr. Chanthoeun said. “We need to discuss thoroughly, because we are afraid when we raise the wage for the workers the raised wage will affect the market prices.”
Garment exports in the first 10 months of 2013 have soared to more than $4.7 billion, a 23 percent year-on-year increase. But the sector is experiencing more frequent strikes than ever before, with the Garment Manufacturers’ Association in Cambodia (GMAC) recording 83 strikes during the first seven months of this year, most of which have involved demands for higher wages and more benefits.
The government raised the monthly minimum wage to $80 a month in May in the midst of a heated national election campaign in which the opposition CNRP pledged to raise the wage to $150 if they won the July 28 poll. After the ruling CPP suffered major losses in the election, the government promised in September to revisit the issue of garment sector wages.
* Labor Ministry says brands hold key to wages:
* Cambodian Unions Call for Doubling of Minimum Wage for Factory Workers:
Four trade unions on Tuesday demanded that Cambodia’s garment and footwear manufacturers raise the minimum wage of their workers and provide them with additional benefits, threatening a nationwide strike and demonstrations if they do not comply.
In a joint letter to the Van Sou Ieng, president of the Garment Manufacturers Association in Cambodia (GMAC), an employers’ organization, the unions called for nearly double the U.S. $80 per month minimum wage announced by the government in March, and which took effect two months later.
“We are demanding an increase in the minimum wage to U.S. $154 [per month], as well as six additional workers’ benefits,” said the letter, which was signed by the unions, including the National Independent Federation Textile Union of Cambodia (NIFTUC).
The government has indicated that it would allow an increase in the minimum wage, but didn’t say by how much.
“Even though we cannot say how much the wage would be raised, the government policy is that they will raise the wage in January 2014,” the Cambodia Daily quoted Prak Chanthoeun, director-general of the Labor Ministry’s labor conflict committee, as saying.
* H&M pledges living wage pay for Cambodia and Bangladesh workers:
Swedish clothing company H&M has pledged to pay a living wage to its garment workers in Cambodia and Bangladesh, according to the Wall Street Journal.
They will work with factory owners and adopt the fair living wage program next year at one factory in Cambodia and two in Bangladesh, and then will expand to cover the other 750 factories that supply its clothes by 2018.
* No consensus on next move in SL drama:
After the management of an embattled garment factory this week refused to follow a government order to reinstate 19 dismissed union leaders and activists, unionists and observers are at a divergence of opinion over how the state should respond.
“It’s fairly unprecedented,” Dave Welsh, country director for labour rights group Solidarity Center, said. “The government has sort of gone out on a limb.”
Three days after a deadly November 12 garment worker riot in the capital, during which a bystander was killed by a police bullet, the Ministry of Labour sent an order to SL Garment Processing (Cambodia) Ltd dictating that it rehire the workers within 15 days.
But in labour disputes, court proceedings have often proved a futile effort for unions, as judges disproportionately favour management, Moeun Tola, head of the labour program at the Community Legal Education Center, said.
If the Labour Ministry is serious about ending the strike, Tola said, it should suspend SL’s exporting licence, a move that would cripple the company – which supplies to Sweden-based H&M and US-based Gap Inc – possibly forcing it to submit to the ministry’s order.
Kong Athit, vice president of the Coalition of Cambodian Apparel Workers’ Democratic Union (C.CAWDU), which represents a large majority of SL employees – including the 19 in question – agrees that suspending SL’s exporting licence would prove counterproductive. But in his experience, Cambodian courts are ill-equipped in handling labour disputes.
In previous labour cases, courts have taken years to come to a decision, and even when it ruled in the union’s favour, did not enforce the verdict, Athit said.
“I think if they bring it to court it will be a big disaster; this case is very complicated, and the court in Cambodia is not specialised in labour.”
* Impunity of trade unions ought to be mentioned more often :
* Court Refuses to Investigate Complaint Over Police Shooting:
A student who filed a complaint to the Phnom Penh Municipal Court against the city’s municipal and military police chiefs over the fatal police shooting at the SL Garment Factory protest on November 12 said Tuesday that the court has refused to investigate his complaint.
Neang Sokhun, a 25-year-old law student, said a court official had told him that his complaint, which concerns the shooting death by police of 49-year-old street food vendor Eng Sokhom, had been sent instead to the National Police for investigation.
“The court seemed to ignore my case and not take it seriously. They said they sent the case to the National Police and that they will wait for the police to investigate first,” said Mr. Sokhun, who is also a member of the opposition CNRP’s youth organization.
* IndustriALL remembers comrades killed at work:
On this 25 November, the International Day to Combat Violence against Women, IndustriALL pays tribute to those women who have been killed and harassed at work in South Africa, Zimbabwe, Ethiopia, Morocco, Cambodia and Bangladesh. The women killed protesting for their rights in Cambodia stand for the many others who were sacrificed for their rights.
On 12 November 2013 protesters clashed with police in Phnom Penh as hundreds of workers from the Singaporean owned SL Garment Processing Factory marched toward the home of the Prime Minister to demand better working conditions.
SL Garment supplies brands such as Gap and H&M. This was the latest in a series of outbreaks of worker unrest at factories that produce for European and North American brands. The union, the Coalition of Cambodia Apparel Workers’ Democratic Union, organized the march and said that violence broke out when police tried to stop over a thousand workers from protesting.
Hundreds of riot police were armed with batons and shields and roamed the streets which were littered with rocks and tear gas canisters after the protesters were dispersed. Police rounded up more than a dozen people, including several monks. Officers beat protesters up and left several bleeding.
SL workers have been demonstrating for weeks in a dispute with employers that includes claims of intimidation over the use of military police in factory inspections. Two women have died in two months in violent protests in Cambodia.
* BetterFactories Media updates 23-27 November 2013, Labor Ministry says brands hold key to wages:
* To read in the printed edition of the Phnom Penh Post:
2013-11-26 Food price hike hits workers
2013-11-26 Garment factory rejects order to rehire 19 workers
2013-11-26 Proof of origin no longer required
2013-11-27 No consensus on next move in SL drama
* To read in the printed edition of the Cambodia Daily:
2013-11-25 Bangladesh makes exceptional health progress despite poverty
2013-11-25 Garment worker truck crash kills 1, injures 15
2013-11-26 Commerce minister announces new system for exports
2013-11-26 Government to meet over January minimum wage increase
2013-11-26 H&M aims to pay all textile workers’ living wage’ by 2018
2013-11-26 SL factory refuses to reinstate fired union representatives
2013-11-27 Impunity of trade unions ought to be mentioned more often
2013-11-27 Labor Ministry says brands hold key to wages
* To read in the printed edition of the Koh Santepheap Daily (Khmer):
2013-11-27 Unions demand US$150, Ministry meeting to talk about minimum wage
* To read in the printed edition of the Rasmei Kampuchea Daily (Khmer):
2013-11-27 Workers stop working due to factory building’s shake
BetterFactories Media Updates overview here.
21:07:46 local time MALAYSIA
* Labour Market Reform A Must, Says MIER:
Labour market reform is a must, said the Malaysian Institute of Economic Research (MIER), which sees the implementation of minimum wage as a driver to reduce household debt.
Its Executive Director Dr Zakariah Abdul Rashid said households contribute a substantial share of domestic demand.
“They were asked to work hard and they have been contributing quite well, but they are saddled with debts. For us, labour market reform is a must when moving towards a salary level linked to productivity.
21:07:46 local time INDONESIA
* Workers to rally again on Thursday:
Workers will hold another two-day rally – set to take place from Thursday to Friday – to demand a raise in the provincial minimum wage (UMP).
“The rally will be conducted because we think the current minimum wage does not make sense,” Indonesian Workers Union Confederation (KSPI) secretary general Muhammad Rusdi said as quoted by kontan.co.id on Monday.
Rusdi said the UMP, which had been set at Rp 2.2 million (US$187.6) per month for Jakarta, remained one of the lowest in Southeast Asia.
Workers in Thailand received at least Rp 2.8 million per month while in the Philippines, workers received Rp 3.2 million, he said, citing examples.
19:07:46 local time BANGLADESH
* As wages rise, so do rents:
As soon as the minimum wage of garment workers was increased, the house owners had raised rents to an amount more than the increased allowance.
As per the new wage structure, Shahena Parveen’s house rent allowance would increase by less than Tk500, but her house owner has already announced to increase rent by Tk1,000.
Shahena Parveen is a worker at an apparel factory of IDS Group in Dhaka. Like her, the country’s around four millions of garment workers was just aspiring to live a better life after the wage hike. But their hopes did not last long as the house lords had appeared to ask them pay more from January.
“Now, I have no other way but to leave the house,” said Shahena Parveen living in a Mirpur tin-shed room with her ailing mother and school-going younger brother.
When interviewed a good number of workers in Gazipur, Savar, Mirpur and Farmgate areas, they told the Dhaka Tribune that the new rent hike has put them in an uneasy situation again.
The workers urged the authorities including BGMEA to take steps so that the house owners do not raise rents.
* Garments training solve unemployment stressed:
Speakers in a function here on Monday stressed the need for conducting training on garments among the unemployed youths to solve their unemployment problems to help build a poverty and hunger free country.
“In this context, the educated and half educated youths including young women of the society should come forward with the mentality to receive the trainings cordially and successfully to engage in income generating activities to change their lots economically and living standard socially “, they said.
They made the comments while addressing a certificate distribution ceremony for the trainees who received 22-day training on oven machine operating at the training centre of a non-government organisation Gana Unnayan Kendra (GUK) at
Nashratpur under Sadar upazila in the district.
read more. & read more. & read more.
* RMG workers unrest in Gazipur:
Angry readymade garments worker protested and ransacked the factories at Kashimpur and Nayapara area in Gazipur and set fire to two vehicles of a factory on Tuesday.
Inspector Nasrul Islam of Gazipur industrial police, said the workers of Multifabs Limited in the area started demonstration demanding uniformity in the wages of operators and helpers with the wages in other factories and also demanded increased wages. At one stage they came out from the factory.
Later the workers of adjacent Mitali Fashions, Moontex Limited and Alim Knitwear Limited joined them in the demonstration.
* Fallout of unrest over RMG minimum wage:
Recent incidents like fire in the Tazreen Fashions, the Rana Plaza collapse and suspension of GSP facilities in the US market have rendered exports of apparel from Bangladesh more challenging than before.
After all these events, several market analysts foresaw that growth of our RMG exports might suffer. But recent data have belied the forecast and indicated that the RMG export growth actually picked up.
After the unpleasant incidents, garments workers’ demonstrations for realising demand for wage hike have received a new pace. The Bangladesh Garment Manufac-
turers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) and the Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA) along with the Wage Board tried to re-fix the minimum wage of the workers.
* RMG awaits setback in summer orders:
Buyers unwilling to visit Dhaka to close deals due to ongoing political unrest
The readymade garment industry is exposed to risks of losing orders as the buyers are staying away from visiting the country due to the ongoing political unrest, including frequent hartals, vandalism and arson.
The orders particularly for the summer season, one of the major seasons for the apparel exporters, would face a setback as apprehended by the manufacturers and exporters.
“It’s the high time for placing orders,” Salim Osman, president of Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA) told Dhaka tribune. “If we fail to grab orders now for lack of security for the buyers, we would lose orders for the next season.”
read more. & read more.
* RMG loses 100 crore taka every day due to gas crisis:
The serious gas crisis in Chittagong is causing the RMG sector to lose Tk 100 crore everyday with the disruption in production leading to higher costs.
Businesses are losing foreign contracts, and highly expensive capital machinery are sitting idle while owners are almost going bankrupt trying to pay the interest on loans.
The scarcity in gas supply has resulted from the lack of necessary initiatives despite gas supply in the port city not even increasing by 1mmcf in the past few years.
* H&M to support RMG factories to improve work condition:
Hennes & Mauritz, the world’s second largest clothing retailer, laid out a plan on Monday to pay a fair “living wage” to some 850,000 textile workers by 2018, saying governments were acting too slowly.
“We believe that the wage development, driven by for example governments in some countries, is taking too long, so we want to take further action and encourage the whole industry to follow,”
read more. & read more.
* Ticfa to help improve workers’ safety, rights: USTR:
The Ticfa agreement between the United States and Bangladesh would help finding solutions to improve Bangladeshi workers’ safety and their rights, US Trade Representative Michael Froman hoped.
“With this agreement, the US and Bangladesh will more regularly work together to address issues of concern in our trade and investment relationship,” Froman, who presided over the signing of the US-Bangladesh Trade and Investment Cooperation Forum Agreement (Ticfa), said.
“Importantly, we’ll also be able to track and discuss Bangladeshi efforts to improve worker safety and worker rights. This is an important priority for the United States as Bangladesh seeks to prevent more tragedies in its ready-made garment sector,” he said after signing of the treaty in Washington.
read more. & read more. & read more. & read more.
* Ticfa simple, harmless deal: GM Quader:
The Trade and Investment Cooperation Forum Agreement (Ticfa), signed between Dhaka and Washington, is a very simple, innocent and harmless deal, said Commerce Minister GM Quader here on Tuesday.
“I haven’t found anything negative in the deal. It has been signed protecting country’s interest but not considering political interest. It’s a very simple, innocent and harmless deal,” he told reporters at a press conference at the Secretariat.
read more. & read more.
* Ticfa has no relation with GSP: GM Quader:
Commerce Minister G M Quader today said that Ticfa signing has no relationship with regaining the GSP status to the US market, although from now Bangladesh will be able to raise the issue in the forum meeting.
“In fact we have already raised the GSP regaining issue to the forum while signing the agreement and it will be broadly discussed in the first forum meeting in Dhaka in next January,” the minister added.
* Minister defends TICFA signing:
Commerce Minister GM Quader Tuesday backed the signing of the Trade and Investment Cooperation Forum Agreement (TICFA) with the USA, and ruled out any possibility of US domination of Bangladesh’s trade.
He said the main purpose of the deal was to further expand Bangladesh’s trade and investment.
“There is no scope that the US will control our business, because of signing of the deal. We are not that much unequipped,” the minister said addressing a press conference at the ministry’s conference room Tuesday, a day after signing of the bilateral trade agreement in Washington DC.
* TICFA signing should benefit Bangladesh:
In Bangladesh, we have found most of our policy-planners or decision-makers downplaying issues like SOFA (Status of Forces Agreement), HANA (Humanitarian Assistance Need Assessment), TIFA (Trade and Investment Frame work Agreement) or the latest “TICFA” (Trade and Investment Cooperation Framework Agreement) whenever those came under discussion.
We have always seen our political seniors pretending to be “not sure” or “not prepared” or saying in public: “we need to explore or study more” on those issues. Hence, while the TICFA was signed between the USA and Bangladesh on November 25, one would have reasons to assume that proper due diligence has been done by Bangladesh. The USA was anyway pushing for this since long.
* The significance of TICFA for BD:
At 10 in the morning USA Eastern Standard Time Monday Bangladesh and the USA executed the Trade and Investment Cooperation Forum Agreement (TICFA) after nearly 12 years of wrangling.
In the intervening period and even after the signing of the agreement we have expert after expert writing columns in newspapers or preaching on television talk-shows on how harmful or how wonderful it will be for Bangladesh!
So what is all the fuss about? The title of the agreement is a dead give-away. It clearly states that it is an agreement for a cooperation forum on trade and investment — nothing more, nothing less. The USA has similar forums with 92 other countries and/or regional trade organizations according to a report in the Financial Express yesterday. It basically means that Bangladesh now has an open invitation from the largest economy in the world and the second largest importer of goods from Bangladesh at the trade negotiation table at least once a year.
That is certainly a welcome provision, especially since Bangladesh lacks economic and organizational muscle to force trade issues through the WTO forums. However, we must keep in mind that this invitation is available to 92 other countries and regional trade bodies as well. If we are to make anything of this arrangement then we must develop our capacity to negotiate trade issues effectively.
* TICFA at long last:
The much talked-about Trade and Investment Cooperation Framework Agreement (TICFA) between Bangladesh and the United States has finally been signed.
Despite the cabinet’s nod in June this year for a go-ahead to ink the deal, there were snags that critics thought might halt the process on account of disquieting developments on the country’s political front. Now that the deal is done with, it broadly reflects two things: US’s interest to deepen its engagement with Bangladesh under a structured framework, and Bangladesh’s intent to seek a regular annual forum to discuss bilateral trade and economic issues with the US, the country’s single largest export destination.
* BGMEA expects US to restore GSP status:
BGMEA expects GSP restoration. The optimism follows their meeting with US Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs Nisha Desai Biswal.
The Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) President Atiqul Islam said in Dhaka on Monday: “We’ve had a good meeting with her. We’re hopeful of getting good news about the GSP.”
He said Biswal had welcomed the hike in minimum wage of ready-made garment factory workers. Atiqul said both sides agreed to work together for Bangladesh’s development.
* Leather sector stares into uncertain future:
The country’s leather sector has no credible reason to remain at ease because of the concerns it has been causing to those who hold the major stakes for its survival – the government included.
Hazardous working conditions in the RMG factories have already taken their toll. Things are quite unsettled as the sector is going through what may be called a phase of transition, and until the prevailing snags are removed and working conditions including workers’ rights are visibly improved, prospects may not be rosy at all.
Given the scenario in the RMG sector, there are threats for the leather sector that might be more damaging, as export of leather and leather goods from Bangladesh is largely facilitated by the European Union (EU) GSP (Generalised System of Preferences) scheme.
* Sale of warm clothes on rise at makeshift shops:
Early Winter Grips N Districts
With the winter already set in, the northern districts see boost in the sale of warm clothes and blankets, especially at makeshift shops in different northern districts.
A good number of buyers, especially those belonging to low and fixed income groups, are crowding the makeshift shops in Thakurgaon and Panchagarh districts to buy warm clothes as this season sees early arrival of winter, reports our Thakurgaon correspondent.
Taking the advantage of huge demand of second-hand winter clothes including woollen sweaters, jackets, cardigans, trousers, mufflers and gloves and kids wear, makeshift shop owners and roadside vendors are charging high prices, buyers alleged.
Depending on size, quality and attractiveness, the prices of a single blanket (made of cut pieces of garment factories) vary from Tk 150 to 300, that of a second hand sweater between Tk 150 and 300, and a jacket between Tk 300 to Tk 1200.
Usually the winter comes late November or early December but from last year these northern districts witness cold weather from the first week of November.
“I have come to buy a woollen sweater or a jacket for my daughter but the shopkeepers are demanding high prices,” rickshaw puller Fazlu said during this correspondent’s visit to a makeshift warm-cloth’s market on Thakurgaon Government Boys High School ground on Thursday.
“As the winter arrived early I have come here to buy some second-hand warm clothes for my family members,” said Shafiqul Islam, a forth class employee of Abdur Rashid Degree College at Farabari village under Thakurgaon Sadar upazila.
ASHULIA TAZREEN GARMENT FACTORY FIRE
* One-year anniversary – injured workers and family members of dead workers of Tazreen form human chain:
Marking the anniversary of the tragic Tazreen fire, the IndustriALL Global Union Bangladesh Council (IBC) organized a human chain and a workers’ rally to voice urgent demands for compensation and a safe workplace.
On 23 November, IndustriALL Bangladesh Council (IBC) organized a human chain and a workers rally to mark the anniversary of the Tazreen Tragedy.
Four organizations of the IBC (TG) group took part with their members in the Human Chain in front of the National Press Club.
The Bangladesh Textile & Garment Workers League (BTGWL), led by Brother Kamrul Anam, the United Federation of Garment Workers (UFGW), led by Brother Roy Ramesh, the National Federation of Garment Workers (NGWF), led by Brother. Amirul Haque Amin, and the Bangladesh Garments, Textile and Leather Workers Federation (BGTLWF) led by Brother. Kutub Uddin, participated.
The human chain and workers rally was presided over by the General Secretary of the IBC, Roy Ramesh Chandra, who, along with Brother. Anam, Brother. Amin, Brother Kutub Uddin, Brother. Nurul Islam, spoke of the outrage that victims are still waiting for compensation. Twelve months after the fire, brands have yet to take responsibility for the plight of survivors and families of the deceased.
The IBC demands that:
THE RANA PLAZA BUILDING COLLAPSE
* Rana Plaza Compensation amount proposed to be slashed – ignorance and delay continue:
Garment factory owners are trying hard to slash the compensation money for the families of the Rana Plaza victims far below the amount proposed by a high-powered committee appointed by the High Court just after the disaster that left at least 1135 dead and thousands more critically wounded, some of whom are permanently disabled.
This committee later formed two sub-committees to fix the compensation rates and categories of the injured.
The Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) representatives, on 07 November 2013, proposed BDT0.7 million for each of the dead victims families to be fixed while the committee recommended BDT1.95 million.
On 21 November 2013, the members of the committee sat again when the BGMEA placed its proposal to slash down the the compensation amount to BDT0.7 million for family of each deceased and BDT0.1 million for each injured worker. The BGMEA in its proposal said compensation should be fixed according to the labor law and owners capability and reality of the situation must also be brought into consideration.
“It would be impossible for many of the owners to give such a huge amount and it will discourage the entrepreneurs,” said the representatives of the BGMEA in an effort to justify their proposal.
According to sections of 19 and 151 of the labor law 2006 (amendment 2013), the owner will give Tk 0.1 million as compensation to each of the deceased families, TK 0.125 million for the permanently disabled worker or each of the workers who lost one limb. All this, if the owner of Rana Plaza is responsible for the collapse for violating the construction law and using low quality construction materials.
18:37:46 local time INDIA
* CITU gears up for series of stirs:
The Centre of Indian Trade Unions(CITU) will hold a series of stirs from December 2 to 18 to press for a fair deal for workers both in the organised and unorganised sectors.
CITU city committee president D.Srinvasulu and secretary B.Venkat Rao told reporters that workers both in the organised and unorganised sectors were suffering because of the ‘anti-labour policies’ of the Union and State governments. The Labour department was turning a blind eye to violation of labour laws by private units, they charged.
“We will hold a survey to bring together the working class for a massive stir to press for hike in pay and social security benefits, including prompt transfer of PF cuttings”, they added.
* Windfall for Nalgonda labourers:
Cotton ryots forced to pay them higher wages owing to rain
With the monsoon in full swing in the past one month in Nalgonda district owing to three cyclonic storms, coupled with the existing labour shortage in agriculture sector, the labourers in the villages are almost minting money by attending to work in cotton fields for picking cotton.
The farmers are paying more than 50 per cent of their income on each quintal of cotton production to labourers; as a result, the latter are earning about Rs.1,000 per day.
Since October 20, the district experienced incessant rains in October and November because of the cyclone Phailin and cyclone Helen. As the sky remained cloudy with rain almost everyday, the worried cotton farmers were forced to seek assistance of labourers to save their crop.
Earlier, they used to pay Rs.8 on picking of a kg of cotton and the labourer used to pick, on an average, 70 kg everyday. But now, the cost on labour on each kg has risen to Rs.14 and thus the daily income of the labourer who picks more than 70 kg has spiralled to Rs.1,000.
18:37:46 local time SRI LANKA
* IndustriAll Sri Lanka Council demands immediate reinstatement and withdraw of charges:
As the strike at Ansell continues, IndustriALL Sri Lanka Council shows support and demands that management immediately take action to stop the strike.
On 25 November, representatives of IndustriALL Global Union’s Sri Lanka affiliates, along with IndustriALL’s Regional Secretary Sudhershan Rao Sarde and project coordinator, Shahnaz Rafique, addressed the striking workers of Ansell Lanka, near the gate of Ansell Lanka, Biyagama EPZ.
Anton Marcus, president of the FTZ&GSEU and member of IndustriALL’s Executive Committee, reiterated the demands of the union to immediately reinstate eleven branch union office bearers and the withdrawal of all fabricated charges against them.
18:07:46 local time PAKISTAN
* Load-shedding: Industry laments three-month gas curtailment plan:
The textile industry is up in arms over the upcoming three-month gas supply cut that will force some factories – without power generation capacity – to close down.
Industrialists have been concerned over the power cuts at the advent of the holiday season, which usually sees a spike in export orders.
Severe shortage of gas would plunge the textile exports into disaster, said Mahmood, adding that it is likely to impact over 450 industrial units and millions of workers to result in ‘industrial unrest’.
He called on the government to ensure adequate gas supply for the textile industry, arguing that a textile mill can only function viably if it remains operational round the clock throughout the year.
* Three-month gas supply disruption: textile industry sounds alarm bell of massive closure:
Textile industry have sounded alarm bell of massive closure of industries in Faisalabad as a result of upcoming disruption of gas supply for three months.
The act is termed as a deliberate attempt to close down the industries in the country. Industry will not only suffer but also the government would be the loser on many counts.
* APTMA assured of maximum gas supply in winter:
Governor Punjab Chaudhry Muhammad Sarwar has assured the APTMA leadership of maximum gas supply to the textile industry in Punjab during winter.
“Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has also shown concern and I am very much hopeful that gas supply to the textile industry during December will remain intact,” he said.
* APTMA asks India to remove NTBs:
India should withdraw the non-tariff barriers (NTBs) imposed on Pakistan in order to excel the rate of regional trade between the two countries, said All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (APTMA) Chairman Yasin Siddik.
Speaking while welcoming the 15-member delegation of Indian journalists led by Mumbai Press Club President Gurbir Singh, Siddik said that Pakistan’s business community has welcomed the most-favoured nation (MFN) status to be granted to India and highlighted that the non-tariff barriers created by Delhi will hinder the smooth flow of trade between the two countries.
read more. & read more.
* International textile and clothing conference:
Punjab government and Punjab Board of Investment and Trade (PBIT) is organising an International Textile and Clothing Conference (ITC) Pakistan with the theme ‘Pakistan’s Industry – Integrated and Collaborating for Today and Tomorrow’.
The conference will be addressed by prominent speakers from around the world and Pakistan. The ITC would be a unique initiative for promoting and empowering textile and clothing sector of Pakistan. It aims at establishing universally recognised performance benchmarks in the Pakistani textile sector as well as providing a networking forum for various stakeholders in the industry. ITC 2013 will provide a unique opportunity to investors, suppliers and students to benefit from the expertise of the best minds in the industry. The conference would be held on December 9 in Lahore.
* GSP Plus-will other sectors please stand up?:
By now, everyone and their great grand aunt have an opinion about how the conferral of the GSP Plus status will impact the countrys textile industry.
But, very little attention is being paid to the step children-the export categories relegated to the backburner because they aren shiny enough to attract the attention of the magpies.
Admittedly, it has been the textile exporters who have been making the most noise.
And make no mistake; this is the sector that earns Pakistan the most number of dollars, and will reap the biggest bounty once the act is passed in December.
But, some of our non-traditional export categories have also been slowly gaining traction and will find a world of opportunity once the trade agreement is worked out.
18:07:46 local time UZBEKISTAN
* China to invest $80 million in textile industry of Andijan region:
Chinese Henan Sine in 2014-2016 will invest $80 million in the textile industry of Andijan region, the company acquired part of the assets of bankrupt Bobur JSC, representative of the State Joint Stock Company Uzbeklegprom said.
In the first phase (2014) the investor will create capacity for production of cotton yarn in the amount of 10,000 tons per year, the second phase (2015-2016) – production of 36 million meters of cotton fabric annually.
About 80% of production will be exported, the company said.
JSC Bobur was commissioned in 1982 and is one of the largest textile companies in Fergana region. Design capacity – 10,000 tons of cotton yarn and 50 million meters of cotton fabric annually. In 2007 the company was declared bankrupt and put up for sale in October.
In 2009, Turkish Mimatas Tekstil acquired assets of Bobur with the stated investment of $75 million. However, in early 2011 the company was declared bankrupt again.


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Merge Games and Red Blue Games have released a new gameplay trailer for Sparklite, a roguelite brawler-adventure coming to Nintendo Switch.
Battling enemies from a top-down perspective, you will come to rely on an arsenal of gadgets, guns, and gear in your fight against the Baron.
As the lifeforce of the planet, Sparklite ties everything in the world together. The planet’s inhabitants have learned how to harness it for their own purposes, but it can be consumed for a surge of power with grave consequences.
However, the Baron has started to mine Sparklite to fuel his powerful war machines, with the resulting pollution corrupting the world.
Animals have started to turn into violent monsters, the environment is rotting away, and it falls to Ada to shut down the Baron’s dig site before he can obtain the Sparklite core.
Sparklite will release on the Nintendo eShop for Nintendo Switch worldwide in Fall 2019.


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Entries in 'release date' (457)
Forget smartphones, the economy or stock shortages – the biggest threat to the next generation of consoles could be Grand Theft Auto V.
Apple will tonight reveal the next iteration of the market-changing iPhone.
Launch platforms have at last been confirmed for Ubisoft’s intriguing RPG Child of Light.
A new-look, cut-down version of the PlayStation Vita has been confirmed by Sony Japan.
Sony has surprised gamers from its homeland with news of a significant wait for the console to be released in Japan.
It’s been easy to forget amongst the launch excitement that PS4 has yet to be dated in Japan.
The Xbox One has, at long last, got a confirmed global release date.
Microsoft will announce its worldwide release plans for the Xbox One later today.
Simultaneous digital and physical launches on Xbox 360 are almost a reality.
Players will be able to get their hands on Peter Molyneux’s Godus from next week.
The small print of a Mountain Dew and Doritos competition has pointed to a late November release date for Microsoft’s Xbox One.
Games-focused Android tablet Wikipad has finally got itself a confirmed price and release date in the UK.
Xbox 360 is getting another free-to-play war title – Crytek’s Warface.
Nintendo clearly wants consumers to buy a digital version of The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker HD.
An apparent leak from an employee at US retailer Walmart suggests Xbox One will beat PS4 to market.
Digital curiosity Rain has been dated for PS3.
Patience, Team Ico fans – Sony hasn’t yet abandoned plans to release much-delayed PS3 title The Last Guardian.
Konami has nailed down a UK release date for the PS3, Xbox 360 and PC versions of PES 2014.
The wait for Square Enix’s new Thief title will not be as long as expected.
The recently leaked Capcom Essentials bundle has been confirmed – but it won’t be being released in the UK.
One man close to Valve has delivered a crushing blow to the millions of gamers patiently waiting on Half-Life 3.
JB HiFi could potentially become a digital competitor in the future, while AFL Live 2 gets a release date and Fruit Ninja comes to Vita.
The latest release from cult developer Suda 51 has failed to make an impact on the Japanese market.
Apple looks set to officially unveil its new iPhone line-up next month.


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The latest Samsung Galaxy S5 concept image packs some of the best rumored specs and features.
The new render from GalaxyS5Info heralds in a 2K curved screen display. The screen is 5.25 inches in size with 2K resolution. This coincides with the rumor that Samsung is already working on a qHD screen displays with 2,560 x 1,440 pixel resolution.
Samsung is one of the few companies that are in the process of developing the flexible screen display expected to come in the company's 2014 flagship phone. However, other reports said such feature may not be included in the spec sheet of the Galaxy S5.
Another amazing feature in the concept image is the 64-bit Exynos octa core processor. Although Samsung has confirmed that it will definitely bring in chip processors with 64-bit architecture, it is still unverified if it will pack an octa core chip.
Selfie lovers will probably take a liking to the 16 MP ISOCELL camera at the back of the handset and the 4 MP front-facing camera. Probably with the use of the front camera, the render packs the futuristic iris scanner. Although reports said Samsung is working on the feature, it is hard to believe that it will be one of the features that will make it to the Galaxy S5.
Some of the other features of the latest Galaxy S5 render are S Surround special acoustics system, two flashes and powerful microphones.
The device is enveloped in a metallic casing. Rumor said the Galaxy S5 will pack a metal built and will finally let go of the plastic body it has used in its predecessors. It is further fuelled by the reports saying that Samsung will be receiving 10 to 30 million units of metal cases from Catcher Technologies, its Taiwanese supplier. Moreover, Samsung introduced Galaxy J, which packed a metal body.
However, a new report from DigiTimes denied the previous rumors and claimed no metal chassis is on its way to production and that Samsung is still mulling whether to pack such feature in its next Galaxy S handset.
As for the Samsung Galaxy S5 release date, the device's ETA is either at the Consumer Electronics Show in January or at the Mobile World Congress in February.
To contact the editor, e-mail:
See all CES 2011 Coverage »


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For the past 39 years, generations of book lovers from near and far have spent hours at the Cranbury Bookworm foraging through book after book in search of a literary treasure.
In March, the Bookworm will move from its current location at 54 N. Main St. up the road to 79 N. Main St., and while owner Andrew Feldman is optimistic the move is a means to a greater end, he also laments leaving behind a space to which so many are sentimentally attached.
“People hate change,” Feldman said. “So as long as we demonstrate the pricing and the product and the experience is the same, we feel like we will persevere.”
Like many structures in historical Cranbury Township, the current Bookworm location has a varied history. Originally a Victorian-style home, the building went on to house tenants, township offices, and, in 1974, the Cranbury Bookworm.
Through the years, the bookstore’s original proprietor, Ralph Schremp, acquired the building room by room, eventually filling 4,000 square feet with books, antiques, art, furniture, and other miscellany.
After Ralph Schremp’s passing in 2002, his widow, Anne Schremp, retained the business and the building, leaving the Bookworm’s management to family friend Larry Feldman and his son Andrew Feldman.
Now, for the first time in almost 40 years, the property will change hands, as Schremp wishes to retire and sell the property. Schremp also recently transferred ownership of the LLC to Andrew Feldman.
According to Feldman, however, it is not financially possible to purchase the current property and restore it.
In the future, Feldman hopes to find a permanent home for the Bookworm within the 3,000-square-foot range, but for now, finances allow him to utilize a 1,000-square-foot, one-story space up the street.
To accommodate a drastically smaller space, Feldman estimates the store will have to reduce its current stock from more than 60,000 books to between 12,000 and 15,000 books. To accomplish this, Feldman said the Bookworm will hold a huge sale in the near future, comparable to a library sale, and many books will simply be given away.
Feldman said the plan is to retain the sections that people look for the most – history, art, children’s, sci-fi, mystery, and rare books.
“It’s either move or close, and closing is not an option,” he said.
Despite the downsizing, Feldman has high hopes for the future of the Cranbury Bookworm, as well as the second-hand movement in general.
Both cleaner and safer, with a new bathroom, heating, and handicapped access, the new building provides an opportunity to reassess and reorganize the Bookworm.
For example, Feldman said he looks forward to organizing a more efficient children’s section. He also plans to make the most of the new space by placing bookcases on wheels, which he would then be able to easily rearrange for events and book signings.
Feldman said many locals take a great deal of pride in the Cranbury Bookworm, and he does not doubt they will follow the business to its new location.
Among several driving forces behind customer loyalty, Feldman said there is an experience shoppers have at the Cranbury Bookworm that they wouldn’t get at big box stores or online.
“It’s a hunt, a mystery, and an adventure,” Feldman said.
Additionally, shopping second-hand is simply a great value, he said.
Apart from the staging and scripting, Feldman likens acquiring the business’s used books and miscellany to the recently popular reality TV shows about pickers, and he even attributes some of the Bookworm’s sales to the picking revival.
According to Feldman, the Bookworm have always actively pursued books and antiques, and they will generally make two or three house calls per week.
“We have the ability to buy the contents of an entire estate, a storage locker, an old barn,” he said. “We will dig, pick, get dirty – do whatever it takes to find a treasure.”
A major draw of the job for Feldman is getting to know his customers in the process, something he feels is highly rewarding.
“Like any other business, big or small, our goal is to make money,” Feldman said. “But if we can physically or emotionally help our clients and customers along the way, it’s a win-win.”
Despite the move to a smaller location, Feldman said there would be no shift in what is bought or sold, just the venue.
“We started with one room, and if we have to go back to one floor, so be it,” he said.
Those who would like to help with the move are encouraged to contact the Cranbury Bookworm via its Facebook page.


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In the Wana area of South Waziristan, a rare case of robbery has occurred in a warehouse of pine nuts (chilgoza), where the robbers have looted pine nuts of worth 20 millions rupees.
The owner of the warehouse at Rustam Bazaar, on Wana Bypass Road, says that about a dozen masked suspects jumped the wall and entered the warehouse and took hostages the security guard and other people there.
According to the warehouse owner, the robber escaped from his warehouse with 23 sacks of chalgoza’s worth Rs. 20 million.
District Police Officer Atiqullah said that investigation has been initiated against the unidentified accused.
It is to be noted that the price of chilgoza’s in Pakistan is very high at the moment, one kilogram of chilghoza is being sold at the rate of 80000 and the peeled ones at the rate of 14000 per kilogram.
According to the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Authority (SMEDA), Pakistan is the second largest country in the world in terms of production of chilgoza after China, while South Waziristan is particularly important with regard to chilgoza, where the largest production of chilgoza is produced in Pakistan. The share is earned and its sales generate billions of rupees annually.


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As per the latest details available, the Jawa adventure motorcycle is expected to be launched in India next year. The much-anticipated addition to the highly recognised Jawa series, premiered by the Classic Legends, the motorcycle will fall under the adventure tourer sub-category.
The prototype of the 300cc Jawa adventure motorcycle is expected to be officially unveiled at the Auto Expo in February 2020. It would be competing with the likes of Hero xPulse 200 and the Royal Enfield Himalayan 410, with engine size falling right in the middle of both these adventure motorcycles.
Unveiling the roadster series with the introduction of Jawa 300 and Forty-Two, and the Bobber portfolio with Jawa Perak, the brand was highly secretive of the specifications of the adventure series at the official launch event of the former two.
The brand is highly likely to introduce the adventure motorcycle with the same 293cc liquid-cooled fuel-injected engine to keep in check the practicality as well as cost-effectiveness. The engine for the Jawa adventure motorcycle may get a different power delivery curve and it is also expected to offer better low as well as mid-range torque. The motorcycle will come equipped with a 6-speed gearbox.
Coming to the mechanical bits, the adventure motorcycle is expected to get USD telescopic forks at the front while the rear end of the motorcycle will get a monoshock. The braking duties will be handled by disc brakes at either end with a 2-channel ABS unit as standard. The adventure bike is expected to feature impressive front wheel travel while one can expect an iconic Jawa inspired round headlight and a tall windscreen for the tourer.
The re-entry of the iconic brand in the Indian market did bring out the nostalgia among the buyers which led to an overflow of bookings for the motorcycles online as well as across every Jawa dealership. The gigantic waiting time and the lag in deliveries made the brand receive some harsh criticism from the fans.
Though justifying the overwhelming response and the huge number of bookings, the Jawa officials are trying to keep the hopes up by increasing the production of the motorcycles by several-fold. The resurrected brand is also focusing on increasing the number of its dealerships across the country to reach a wider audience.
The Jawa adventure motorcycle is expected to get an ex-showroom price tag of around INR 1.90 lakh, while the exact price tag will be unveiled at the time of the official launch event. The deliveries for Jawa 300 and Jawa 42, priced at INR 1.64 lakh and INR 1.55 lakh respectively, commenced recently.
Rendered Image Source: Oberdan Bezzi


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Gaming company Zynga (NASDAQ:ZNGA) started the year on a high, but lost its momentum in March. Zynga shares are down close to 25% in the last month, similar to what mobile gaming company Glu Mobile (NASDAQ:GLUU) has lost. So, investors now have a pretty solid opportunity in front of them to buy these two gaming stocks on the dip. Let's see why.
Why Zynga looks well positioned
Early in February, Zynga's stock price surged after a UBS analyst increased his rating on the stock, following the company's decision to purchase NaturalMotion.
Moreover, after CEO Don Mattrick announced the launch of pilot programs for Zynga's real-money poker game across various parts of the world by the end of this year, shares received another boost. As Zynga makes investments to grow and sustain its franchises, the stock should see solid growth in the future.
Driven by the company's strategic investments, Words With Friends and its Casino franchise are yielding impressive results. For example, in the previous quarter, bookings for Words With Friends grew 33% sequentially, which was the biggest in the game's five-year history. On the other hand, the Casino franchise achieved sequential booking growth for the first time in the last 18 months, indicating the fact that Zynga is indeed making the right moves.
Zynga has also introduced a new mobile slots game, and the company will continue to push more games on the mobile platform. Management expects 2014 to be a landmark year for its mobile growth, with new additions such as FarmVille, which it plans to introduce in the second quarter. With a rich history of more than 400 million people having played FarmVille on Facebook, Zynga is eager to take this success onto the mobile platform.
Zynga is also very confident about the racing game genre on mobiles. NaturalMotion has pioneered the racing experience on mobile devices with games such as CSR Racing and Clumsy Ninja.
CSR is among the top racing games on mobile in more than 20 countries. On the other hand, Clumsy Ninja achieved 10 million downloads in the first week of its launch and became the number one free game in the Apple App store.
Hence, the acquisition of NaturalMotion will help Zynga accelerate its growth in mobile gaming. Acquiring NaturalMotion will benefit Zynga in three ways. First, it will help it expand its creative pipeline; second, it will boost its growth in mobile, and third, it will bring next-generation technology and tools to Zynga.
Consequently, around 75% of all the games under development at Zynga can also be played on mobile. It anticipates its mobile bookings to surpass its web bookings going forward, and account for more than 50% of its bookings base.
Glu continues to roll
Glu Mobile is a big name in the mobile segment and the company has a rich franchise of games under its belt. Glu already had big names such as Contract Killer, Frontline Commando, Eternity Warriors, and Deer Hunter under its belt, and now the company has added RoboCop and Motocross Meltdown to its portfolio. Going forward, Glu is slated to launch the next iterations of the Contract Killer and Frontline Commando franchises.
Glu is focusing more on action games this year. The Entertainment Software Association, using NPD Group data for 2012, states that nearly 45% of revenue on consoles was derived from action and shooter titles. So, Glu is making the right move in this area as the number on mobiles is around 20 times lower. Going forward, it believes that the number of players of shooter games on mobile and consoles will converge, eventually leading to growth on the mobile platform.
In addition, Glu is diversifying, both in terms of the markets it operates in and the games that it launches.
It appears that Glu is moving in the right direction and investors should definitely think of capitalizing on its weak share-price performance lately. The same can be said about Zynga, with the company deploying a sound strategy that could lead to strong growth in the future. All in all, both companies look like solid investments that investors should buy on the pullback.


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Last year MMK increased its sales of galvanized steel
MMK has published the CMI released the results of the activities for 2016. According to them, MMK has increased the level of utilization of galvanized steel. The figure was 9% — this data is outlined Vadim Dorofeev 12 International conference on trends in production and consumption of products in 2017. According to a senior group Manager, involved in sales of coated metals complex market environment did not affect the company’s operations. CMI reached a record volume of sales on the Russian market it was sold more than one million tonnes of galvanized rolled products.
In 2016, the volumes of rental with coating made up 322000 tons. The full capacity of galvanized rolled products on the Russian market last year reached 2.88 million tons. Indicator relative to the total rolled with a coating of polymers has reached 1.9 million tons. In accordance with the indicators of last year the implementation of galvanized steel, arrived on the Russian market amounted to 89% of the total. The remaining 11% went to the CIS countries and far abroad. The implementation of rental with coating of polymers on the Russian market has reached similar index of 89%. On the markets of the CIS countries received 11% of production.
However, MMK expects continued growth in volume sold. Today, the construction of another line of continuous hot — dip galvanizing. Its production capacity is 360,000 tons annually. The launch line-up is scheduled for the current year.CMI has provided a number of innovations in addition to increasing the volume. They should improve the quality of a product to the consumer. These include the introduction of uniform standards for products with coating. This approach will give protection against low-quality imported products.


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Recently, Trail’s End Restaurant at Disney’s Fort Wilderness reopened with a new family-style menu. After filling up on breakfast staples, we were ready to tackle dinner. Come along with us and see how it was!
And we’re so happy because we’re starting to see many of our favorite restaurants at Disney World reopen, including ‘Ohana at Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort, Citricos at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort and Spa, and Tusker House Restaurant at Disney’s Animal Kingdom!
Another week has passed in the Disney parks around the world and this week was a BIG one!
Fireworks have officially returned to Disney World, LOTS of restaurants have either reopened or are set to reopen soon, we got an update on the Disney Dining plan, and more!! Want to know all the biggest stories from this week? We’re breaking it down for you right here!
We’re seeing a TON of restaurants around Disney World getting reopening dates!
Just in the last couple of weeks, we’ve been to the reopening of Casey’s Corner, seen the new menu for a re-imagined Citricos at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa, and dined at the newly reopened Sebastian’s Bistro and Maya Grill! But that’s not all the Disney food news yet — a restaurant with a reopening date is accepting reservations NOW!
Guests waiting to hear about the reopening date for Trail’s End Restaurant at Disney’s Fort Wilderness Resort were in for a treat this afternoon! This fan-favorite dining location will officially reopen on July 17th!
While we are THRILLED to see another dining location reopen at Disney World, we have to sit down and talk about what the menu is going to look like when Trail’s End reopens — cuz it’s not exactly what you remember!
One of the restaurants that is set to reopen soon is Trail’s End Restaurant at The Campsites at Disney’s Fort Wilderness Resort. So far, Disney has shared a look at what this spot’s menu will feature when it reopens, but one particular thing on the menu has caught our eye — a GIANT ice cream sundae! 10-Gallon Challenge, is that YOU?!
You can probably guess based on our name, but here at DFB, we’re all about Disney food!
Over the years we’ve spent talking about Disney food, we’ve heard a lot of crazy things: some that were true, but quite a few that aren’t. People make all kinds of assumptions about the food at Walt Disney World, and we’re here to set the record straight. Today, we’re debunking some absolute lies about Disney World restaurants!
Even the most seasoned Disney World vacationers still make mistakes!
As magical as they are, Disney vacations definitely take a LOT of planning! So, no matter how many times you’ve been, you’re still bound to make some mistakes. And we’re no exception! Here are the biggest mistakes we’ve made in Disney World!
BUT many of our favorite restaurants are found at the over 20 Disney World resort hotels! Today, we’re going to tell you about the best meals you can get without ever leaving your resort.
What’s better than a home cooked holiday meal? A holiday meal at Walt Disney World!
Nearly every restaurant in Disney World features a turkey-based or holiday meal on Thanksgiving and Christmas days. But Disney features special holiday meals at select restaurants throughout Walt Disney World on these holidays every year as well. Disney just announced this year’s list of participating restaurants, so let’s take a look!


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GLOBAL: Asia-Pacific boosts flavoured, functional waters volumes
The global functional and flavoured waters market is performing strongly
Surging sales in Asia-Pacific and Latin American drove global volumes of flavoured and functional waters up by 7.4% to 11bn litres last year, with Europe the only region seeing a fall, according to latest figures.
A new report by consultancy Zenith Interenational revealed that volume sales in the flavoured segment rose by 7.1% in 2012, while functional waters' sales increased by 7.9%. The sector's global market is now estimated to be worth US$17bn.
Asia-Pacific saw volumes growth of 26% and value growth of 20%, the report found. The region's market for the sub-sector is now estimated to be worth around $5bn.
Latin American saw volumes gains of 12% in the period.
Zenith International chairman Richard Hall said: “With greater global awareness of the need for healthier diets and consumer choices, companies are increasingly presenting flavoured and functional waters as a welcome middle ground between soft drinks and water - offering products with fewer calories than some carbonated beverages and which may add extra interest to plain bottled water."
The report also noted that China is becoming a “key global force” in flavoured and functional waters with 40% average volume growth since 2010.
Meanwhile, North America saw the market return to growth for the first time since 2008.
Europe was the only region to experience a drop in market value last year.
Zenith predicts all regions will see growth this year, while the global market value is expected to reach $29bn in 2017.
The category has come under the spotlight for some brands' claims, with the Coca-Cola Co's Vitaminwater currently the subject of another lawsuit. The company argues that accusations it has made "deceptive and unsubstantiated" claims about the brand are without merit.
We're just over two months away from the start of the biggest sporting event on earth: The FIFA World Cup kicks off on 12 June, when host country Brazil take on Croatia in the first match of the month...
The Coca-Cola Co (TCCC) is the leading player in both soft drinks and in HW soft drinks. The company’s strength is based on its diversity of category presence from HW carbonates to RTD tea and bottled...
Consumption of fruit/vegetable juice declined in 2012 in both the off-trade and on-trade channels. Off-trade volume sales of fruit/vegetable juice fell by 5% in 2012; a third consecutive year of decli...
TechNavio's analysts forecast the Global Bottled Water market to grow at a CAGR of 5.4 percent over the period 2012-2016. The population is increasing in many countries and this is one of the key fact...
Cía Servicios de Bebidas Refrescantes, the local bottler of The Coca-Cola Co, has overcome difficulties derived from the economic recession to resist the constant pressure from private label, in most ...
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Linden Lab, makers of the virtual world software Second Life, on Monday announced the acquisition of graphics technology from Windward Mark Interactive. The technology will work across both PC and Mac platforms, according to a statement from Linden Lab.
The technology includes WindLight’s eponymous atmospheric rendering technology and Nimble, a realistic 3D cloud simulator. Both technologies with be open sourced by Linden Lab, and will be integrated into the Second Life Viewer software in order to provide Second Life users with more realistic environmental and atmospheric conditions.
The technology makes it possible to imitate the way that atmospheric conditions such as dust and moisture affect light and the way physics affects the composition, movement and shape of clouds.
Windward Mark Interactive is continuing to develop an online game called Alliance; this news doesn’t affect that development.


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Ricoh WG-30w Review Posted
By PF Staff in Review Announcements on Dec 22, 2014
Several threads on our forum have mentioned The Camera Store's recent Youtube video, which lists the Pentax K-S1 as the worst camera of 2014. We are currently in the process of reviewing the K-S1, and while we might agree that it's the most pointless camera of 2014, it's certainly not the worst.
Why? Because Ricoh has outdone itself with the latest compact, the WG-30w. To sum it up, the WG-30w is a sandbox: a rebadged Pentax Optio WG-2 from early 2012, but with half the LCD resolution, launched to showcase a singular new feature. That feature is built-in Wi-Fi, which ironically works better than the O-FC1 FluCard in a Pentax DSLR.
How could things have gone so wrong? Read on!
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Paul Thurrott, who is a very reliable source when it comes to anything, related to Microsoft, has confirmed that the Nokia Ace will arrive with LTE onboard with HTC Radiant and Samsung Mandel that we saw earlier today.
He said that all the three devices will arrive on AT&T before the middle of 2012.
Thurrott also went on to reveal the date of the launch of the Nokia Ace. According to him, the Ace will be available from March 18 2012. All the three devices are expected to be unveiled at the CES in January 2012 and might be available by the middle of 2012. So this makes Nokia Ace the first amongst the three devices to be available for users.
He also said that the Nokia Lumia 710 will arrive on Verizon’s network but minus the LTE onboard. The 710 may be available in April next year.


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Speaker Alan Peter Cayetano on Monday said two House committees would study measures that would help cushion the impact of the novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) on the tourism and travel industry.
Cayetano directed the House committees on tourism and economic affairs to start working with the Department of Tourism (DOT) to assess the short- and medium-term effects of the 2019-nCoV to ensure that tourism growth will not be derailed in the next few months.
We acknowledge the necessity of the decision of some airlines to cancel flights and the government's imposition of a temporary travel ban from Hubei, China and other provinces of China that are seriously affected by the dreaded 2019-nCoV, but we still have to prepare a plan to lessen its impact, Cayetano said.
Cayetano stressed the need for the country to be ready in case the outbreak is prolonged.
It should not be a just a wait-and-see attitude because we don't want our tourism industry to suffer, he said.
DOT records show that 1.63 million of the total 7.4 million international tourist arrivals from January to November of 2019 were Chinese.
The Chinese are also considered the second biggest tourist spenders in the Philippines next to the South Koreans, with the DOT noting that Chinese tourists spent $979.4 million or around PHP51 billion in the country in the first half of 2019.
Cayetano also called on the various government agencies to work together to come up with a comprehensive contingency plan to cushion the impact of the 2019-nCoV, not just on the tourism industry, but all other sectors in the Philippines.
The government must pool its resources to prevent this public health issue from becoming an economic crisis, he said.
Albay Rep. Joey Salceda said tourism accounts for around 2.5 percent of the country's gross domestic product (GDP), noting that the virus' effect on the industry will depend largely on how long the 2019-nCoV crisis will last.
The SARS crisis lasted for around 9 months. If it takes the same amount of time before the nCoV crisis abates, the tourism industry may decline to around 2.0 to 2.2 percent of GDP, depending on whether we can effectively come up with a catch-up strategy, Salceda said.
Chinese tourists account for around 20 percent of tourist arrivals in the country, so we can more or less write those arrivals off given the travel ban, Salceda said.
Salceda said the government must ensure that the extent of the 2019-nCoV infection in the country is not exaggerated among foreign markets, as well as ensure that tourist providers are guided on the 2019-nCoV infection prevention and mitigation measures.
As for its overall impact, Salceda said the 2019-nCoV could lower the country's growth potential by 0.1 to 0.4 percent from baseline, depending on how protracted the situation becomes.
The economist-lawmaker noted that this can be easily mitigated by the prompt delivery of government programs and projects.
Comparatively nCoV is less fatal, and the transmission can be prevented by generally accepted and common health and hygiene practices. Economically, this is a situation where the only thing we have to fear is fear itself, Salceda said.
The impact of the situation will depend squarely on how the government maintains public confidence, he added.
Source: Philippines News Agency


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Google Home has received Italian language support today and while the speaker still hasn't launched in Italy, with native support for the language of the country a proper launch within it can't be too far off, at least that's what it seems. It should also be noted that Google Home Mini speakers received the support as well which means that both speakers could end up launching in Italy soon, giving consumers in the region more choice on which smart speaker to pick up, if they're looking for one in the first place.
This is a great step forward for Google Home and for users who speak Italian that may have wanted to use one of the products with Italian, but there are some caveats for the moment. While Google Home now speaks and understands Italian, not all functions are supported in Italian. Routines for example, which just officially launched in the U.S., do not work, and it's not possible to utilize home automation control. These are two big features that are missing, but users in the region should expect to see them at some point as it will only be a matter of time.
If you have Italian set up for your Google Home, the interesting thing is that some smart home control such as adjusting the lighting can be activated if the user speaks the command in English, and then Google Home will follow up the command with a response in Italian before carrying out the task it was given. This should signify that Google is perhaps still working on getting everything fully ready for complete compatibility with the Italian language, and although there is no indication of how long that may take, it could be right around the corner. If you're wanting to try Google Home in Italian finding it is easy enough. Just go into the settings menu of the Google Home app, then tap on the speaker, and then tap on Assistant language and Italian should be there.


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Husqvarna Group’s Husqvarna Forest & Garden division is joining the Power for All Alliance with selected products. The alliance, founded by Bosch and Husqvarna Group through its Gardena division in 2020, is one of the world’s largest cross-brand battery alliances, enabling consumers to use the same battery for multiple devices in and around their home and garden.
The Power for all Alliance is based on a common 18V battery system (produced by Bosch) for all brands affiliated with the alliance, enabling consumers to use the same battery and charger for multiple devices, regardless of manufacturer. The Alliance now includes 10 manufacturers of battery-driven products for use in the home and garden. There are an installed base of around 25 million of these batteries on the market.
Power for all Alliance members include:
In its press release, Husqvarna states: “Electrification is changing society and is essential to the transition to a low-carbon economy. Husqvarna Group aims to be a leader in this transition … To continue to drive the consumer adoption of battery-powered products, the Group is using the Power for All 18V battery platform for more cost optimized consumer solutions. We are now expanding this collaboration by adding selected products from the Husqvarna brand to our Gardena and Flymo brands that already were part of this alliance. With a focus on consumer smart, cost-efficient battery solutions, Husqvarna is looking to launch a whole new range for garden owners within the coming year, which will be compatible with the Power for All battery system.”


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We are officially in Mar. 2021, which Nintendo has declared will be the final month for all characters whose names start with M-A-R. At the end of this month, Super Mario 3D All-Stars, a Switch collection of Super Mario 64, Super Mario Sunshine, and Super Mario Galaxy will stop being sold both physically and on the Switch eShop. It is unclear if Nintendo plans to go to store shelves and destroy copies of the game in front of children, but it did not put out a press release saying it won’t do that.
Additionally, Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon & the Blade of Light, a classic Fire Emblem title translated into English for the first time will also be taken off the eShop, making it the first video game whose title takes longer to say out loud than the length of time it was available to buy.
Finally, outside the realm of “These are just old games who cares?” we have Super Mario 35, the battle royale version of Super Mario Bros. which got its first — and final! — appearance at Awesome Games Done Quick this past January. This game will go offline, and thus be completely unplayable for old and new players alike, at the end of March.
Just a heads up for those looking for any of these products. Nintendo argues that these are anniversary titles and they do not expect to time-limit every product, as if that somehow makes time-limiting at all a logical thing to do. Considering the sales of Super Mario 3D All-Stars, however, I doubt this is the last time we see the platform holder employ this particular strategy.