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Birmingham-based Golden Flake purchased by PA chip manufacturer
Utz Quality Foods produces Zapp's chips, other products
The Birmingham-based manufacturer of Golden Enterprises is being purchased by a Pennsylvania chip manufacturer.
Golden Enterprises entered into a definitive merger agreement Monday with Utz Quality Foods, which is based in Hanover, Pennsylvania.
"After conducting a review of strategic alternatives by a special committee consisting of independent members of the company's Board of Directors, we believe that this is an excellent transaction for our stockholders, our customers and our employees," said Mark McCutcheon, chief executive officer of the Golden Industries. "This merger will allow the Golden Flake brand to continue to grow in our core southeastern markets, while expanding the product selections for our consumers. Utz is a very community oriented company and we look forward to the future that Utz and Golden Flake will create together."
Utz produces popular Zapp's chips, among other food products.


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Lenovo and Qualcomm announced a new joint 5G PC effort at Computex called Project Limitless. Project Limitless will be an Always-Connected PC that relies on a Snapdragon 8cx ARM-based processor and Snapdragon X55 5G modem.
The post Lenovo and Qualcomm show off Project Limitless, the first Snapdragon 8cx PC appeared first on Digital Trends.
Microsoft could be developing one of the first 5G PCs to hit the market if a report that the company is prototyping a Surface Pro with Qualcomm's Snapdragon processor — instead of Intel's chipset — proves to be accurate.
The post Microsoft’s rumored Always Connected Surface Pro could emerge as a 5G PC appeared first on Digital Trends.
Six years after Microsoft’s failed foray into ARM computing with Windows RT, its second effort with Always-Connected PC is now showing early signs of success. Microsoft partner Qualcomm told us how the Snapdragon 8cx might revolutionize your PC.
The post An inside look at Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8cx, a revolutionary laptop processor appeared first on Digital Trends.
Microsoft announced that developers can start creating 64-bit apps for Always-Connected PCs powered by Snapdragon processors. The Windows Store will also begin to accept 64-bit app submissions for Microsoft's Windows on ARM.
The post Microsoft’s Always-Connected PCs gets more powerful with 64-bit app support appeared first on Digital Trends.
Qualcomm and Microsoft teamed up to roll out its "Always Connected PC" platform at CES 2018, built around always-on LTE connectivity. Now, Sprint is cooking up a free data deal to lure Always Connected PC owners to its service.
The post Sprint hopes to lure Always Connected PC owners with free LTE appeared first on Digital Trends.
Qualcomm has announced Snapdragon-powered PCs that boast 20 hours of battery life and built-in LTE. These new features aren't just nice additions. They could fundamentally change how we use laptops.
The post Qualcomm’s LTE PCs could be the biggest revolution since laptops got Wi-Fi appeared first on Digital Trends.

domain: news


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Interviews with current and former employees of the company indicated that by 2012 (before the tremendous growth of bitcoin to over $1,000 per unit in late 2013), they became worried that the company might be spending customer funds to cover operational costs which were rising with bitcoin’s increased popularity.
The report also indicates that Mt. Gox spent customer money on renting office space in the same tower that houses Google and Hulu offices, a robot, a 3-D printer, and a tricked-out Honda Civic that was imported from the United Kingdom for the company’s CEO, Mark Karpeles.
These employees reportedly requested to meet with Karpeles in 2012 to inquire as to whether or not the funds were being used appropriately. In that meeting, they asked Karpeles if Mt. Gox was spending more money than it was bringing in.
In that hour-long meeting, Karpeles denied that expenses were coming from the account used for customer deposits, but refrained from explaining how operating costs were being covered.


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An aerial view shows an illegal mine in the jungle in the south of Venezuela.
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Synthetic diamond production is still small: annual output of gem-quality rough synthetic diamonds is less than 350,000 carats, a fraction of the 125 million carats of natural gem-quality rough, according to India's Natural Diamond Monitoring Committee.Synthetic diamonds are increasingly used for industrial purposes, and higher quality lab-produced diamonds are used in jewelry. Tiffany says it is confident it is not at risk of inadvertently selling synthetic diamonds.The diamond industry is stepping up action and technology to protect against the mixing of synthetics and natural diamonds in the market.Depending on who you ask, synthetic diamonds trade at 20 to 50 percent less to the natural stones.Rapaport, however, cites a case in China when someone obtained an authentic GIA grading report of an existing diamond and created a synthetic diamond to match it exactly.One case that caused a stir was in 2012 when the lab of the International Gemological Institute – a certifier of diamonds, like the GIA – in Antwerp uncovered in a parcel of about 1,000 small diamonds believed to be natural, but more than 600 of which were man-made.De Beers itself is involved in synthetic diamond production, strictly for industrial use.The diamond industry is increasingly aware of the risks associated with rising production of synthetic products.
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free io game, fun io game, best io game
It “has a strong chance of being true”
Ubisoft+ might be the latest subscription service to be absorbed in Microsoft’s Game Pass, according to Windows Central editor Jez Corden.
The rumour had been muted by a few insiders since early December, but has not been confirmed or even commented on by anybody from Microsoft themselves. But now Corden, commenting on the rumour Ubisoft’s service will align with Game Pass in late 2021, says it “has a strong chance of being true based on stuff [they’d] heard”.
Ubisoft’s subscription service is called Ubisoft+, and is similar to Game Pass in that it offers players access to a library of downloadable games in exchange for a subscription fee. EA runs a similar service, EA Play, and this was also recently added to Game Pass.
Both Ubisoft+ and EA Play only give access to games developed or published directly by Ubisoft or EA, and don’t typically add the biggest releases until months after release.
Game Pass on the other hand offers first party Microsoft games alongside many third party titles too, giving it a much bigger library even without EA Play games. Game Pass also frequently includes games on the day of release too.
Meanwhile, EA Play’s rollout for Game Pass on PC was supposed to arrive in December, but has instead been delayed for early this year. December was more successful for the console version of Game Pass, with close to 20 big titles being added to the service.


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The president of BALFIN Group, Samir Mane, held a meeting with students and lecturers of the European University of Tirana, to share his personal example of setting up a successful business. The central auditorium of the university, with dozens of participating students, became the scene of an inspiring conversation about the opportunities given to young people at different times and their willingness to try.
The interest of the students was natural on the beginnings of business and the opportunities that they themselves can have nowadays. “Today’s enterprise, which has around 5,000 employees in nine countries, all started in Vienna in 1993. The necessary conditions to start a business presented themselves at the right age and I did not hesitate,” Samir Mane revealed to the audience, encouraging them to implement ventures they may have planned. “It started with electronic devices and today we have the largest network of electronic products, operating in retail and wholesale throughout the region and countries of the European Union. The retail sector occupies an indisputable financial place in BALFIN Group, but also an emotional place for me personally.”
Asked by students about what motivates him most, he replied that “Building businesses that benefit as many people as possible is the strongest motivation.”
Prof. Dr. Selami Xhepa, President of the European University of Tirana, described Samir Mane during the meeting as one of the personalities who wrote the history of capitalism in Albania. “Our country is creating the history of a new economic system and BALFIN Group is among the founders of important industries in the country. Everything that is created thanks to the talent and courage of the entrepreneur turns into national wealth and deserves appreciation from the members of the society,” he concluded.
Visits to universities and meetings with students have already become a tradition for Samir Mane, to whom he shows the experience of the gradual business growth and what is more important, the opportunities that BALFIN Group creates for them through professional practices, supporting their entrepreneurial ideas, and employment in the relevant profiles.


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China's domestic yarn production registered 2.43 million tons in June; a growth of 4.47 percent from the previous month and fabric output reached 5.81 billion meters, up 7.23 percent from the previous month, according to the National Bureau of Statistics.
From January to June, cumulative amount of domestic yarn production reached 12.96 million tons, an increase of 16.96 percent year on year. Of which, production of pure cotton yarn came to 9.71 million tons, up 15.84 percent year on year.
Production of cotton blended yarn fetched 1.2415 million tons, up 13.71 percent year on year and output of chemical fiber yarn recorded 1.7363 million tons, up 26.45 percent year on year, in the period January to June.
From January to June, total domestic production of fabrics completed 29.764 billion meters, an increase of 16.40 percent year on year. Of which, cumulative production of dyed fabrics scored 1.28 billion meters, up 24.17 percent year on year.
Output of cotton fabrics touched 17.57 billion meters, up 19.60 percent year on year; that of cotton blended fabrics represented 4.68 billion meters, up 14.83 percent year on year and that of fabrics made from man-made fibres reached 7.51 billion meters, an increase of 10.43 percent.
From January to June, domestic production of printed and dyed cloth reached 27.27 billion meters, up 14.85 percent year on year, accounting for 91.64 percent of domestic fabric production.
Fibre2fashion News Desk - China


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After some sideways trading, lower lows could be in store for Bitcoin, warns Vinny Lingham
In our latest roundup of crypto chatter, tensions run high as Peter Schiff accuses Brian Kelly of dumping bitcoin on retail investors. The accusation surfaced after Kelly recently revealed that he is net short on BTC. Also, Vinny Lingham gives great advice to the crypto community on building for the future. Also read: Bitcoin Skeptic […]
The post Chatter Report: Schiff Accuses Kelly of Pump and Dump, Lingham Calls for ‘Real Adoption’ appeared first on Bitcoin News.
Blockchain startup Civic has appointed Apple veteran Phillip Shoemaker as executive director of Identity.com, its Ethereum blockchain-based, decentralized identity platform


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Meet the modern-day Frank and Jesse James.
But rather than robbing stagecoaches, brothers Maksym and Denys Pashanin are allegedly preying on proponents of the feel-good “sharing economy.”
In a bizarre tale that is raising fresh questions about the risks of renting one’s own car or home, the Pashanin brothers are being blasted as “squatters” by their Palm Springs, Calif., Airbnb host — and as “scammers” by members of crowdsourcing site Kickstarter.
Their alleged antics, including raising tens of thousands of dollars on Kickstarter for projects they have yet to show progress on, have raised questions about the risks of platforms that increasingly make it easier for regular folks to sell things to strangers.
The trouble started in early July when Cory Tschogl, 39, was unable to collect fees due from the Airbnb renters who had asked to occupy her one-bedroom condo in a gated community in Palm Springs for 44 days, through July 8.
When Tschogl, a therapist, threatened to turn off the electricity for nonpayment, she was threatened with legal action — among the brothers’ allegations is that her tap water damaged their fancy espresso machine — she told the San Francisco Chronicle, which first reported on the Airbnb “nightmare.”
Under California laws, people who rent a home for 30 days are protected as tenants and have to be forcibly evicted, a process that could take months.
Meanwhile, the guests that won’t leave are being blasted by members of Kickstarter over more than $41,000 for two video games they have promised to develop through their gaming company, Kilobite Inc.
The [Pashanin brothers’] first game, “Confederate Express” failed to meet certain June delivery expectations despite raising close to $40,000 last year. The other game, “Knuckle Club,” continues to rack up the donations despite cries for Kickstarter to shutter the project.
The first game, “Confederate Express” failed to meet certain June delivery expectations despite raising close to $40,000 last year. The other game, “Knuckle Club,” continues to rack up the donations despite cries for Kickstarter to shutter the project.
“Knuckle Club,” which is seeking $25,000, saw donations rise to more than $900 on Wednesday, up from the $700-plus range earlier in the week, even as previous backers fill up the project’s comment pages with demands for their money back.
The experience has left an ardent Kickstarter supporter feeling dismayed about the Web site.
“This should be a loud and clear wake-up call to all current and new Kickstarter users,” the angry contributor to both Kilobite projects told The Post.
“Kickstarter’s fraud prevention at best seems to be completely random,” said this person, who asked not to be identified. “And that mind-set will ultimately kill Kickstarter’s reputation.”
Kickstarter declined to comment on its plans for the Kilobite fundraising projects. Airbnb has told Tschogl that it will reimburse her for the costs of evicting her tenants.
“I’m not at all surprised,” said fraud investigator and former prosecutor Rob Seiden. “Every time new channels of commerce open up, there is a lack of regulation, and fraudsters see it as an opportunity. It’s like the Wild West,” he said.


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Organisations that are looking to take back control of their brands and grow their online communities embrace the golden opportunity that non-fungible tokens (NFTs) represent, according to Ali Sajwani, Chief Executive Officer of D-Labs and General Manager – Operations at UAE-headquartered DAMAC Properties.
The unique tokens, which enable digital denizens to invest via the blockchain, often take the form of unique artworks, providing undisputable ownership for buyers.
“I’m seeing a trend where savvy brands are thinking outside the box and realising that NFTs can help create digital communities,” he explained. “These tokens are making it easier for companies of all types and sizes to build loyal fanbases, which are eager to interact with the organisations and invest in limited edition items, such as product images and collectibles.”
In 2021, NFT trading hit $17.6 billion, with sellers making $5.4 billion in profits – a year-on-year increase of approximately 21,000 percent, according to analysis conducted by Nonfungible.com.
Sajwani cited success stories such as the CryptoBear Watch Club, VeeFriends by Gary Vaynerchuk and Nike’s CryptoKicks, which the company launched in collaboration with RTFKT Studios. These companies, according to him, have made significant headways in leveraging NFTs.
“NFTs create investor excitement through rarity,” said Sajwani. “Linking the physical and digital realms is still seen as a cutting-edge move for a company, and those that have already embraced these digital tokens are succeeding in creating stronger brand loyalty among communities in the metaverse.
“But an NFT’s value doesn’t just lie in the asset itself; it also relates to the additional benefits that buyers gain through ownership of the tokens, such as exclusive access to products, events, forums and services. This is where companies are really starting to build brand loyalty, generating a sense of community and exclusivity all at once.”
On the home turf, Sajwani will lead DAMAC’s D-Labs, a $100 million investment that will place the Group in the world of metaverse. The move is part of the DAMAC’s organisation-wide digitisation ambitions through which it hopes to branch out its services to cater to the needs of the entire Group when it comes to digital assets – ranging from virtual homes, digital property, as well as digital wearables, and digital jewellery.
According to Sajwani, as Web3 continues to expand, it’s vital for brands to inculcate a presence online beyond a conventional static website. “We’ve seen forward-thinking companies do some amazing things on social media platforms, but it’s now time for them to step into the metaverse and interact with a new generation of consumers.
“In my opinion, NFTs represent an unprecedented opportunity for companies looking to develop loyalty, community and exclusivity. Brand culture will prove essential for business that wish to remain relevant over the longer term, and this is now intrinsically linked with life online,” he said.


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ACO Tech Sdn Bhd, a local company focused on revolutionising the driving experience via digital connectivity, today launched the ACO Tech Local Automotive Services (Atlas), a car infotainment operating system.
This is in partnership with UOB Bank, Fass Payment Solutions Sdn Bhd, Five Petroleum Malaysia and Huawei Technologies (M) Sdn Bhd.
The partnership provides end-to-end in-vehicle connected services, further extending the ecosystem of partners into ACO Tech’s proprietary technology.
The launch was witnessed by Transport Minister Datuk Seri Dr Wee Ka Siong who said this initiative is a very important step for the local automotive sector, which is undergoing a rapid digital transformation, in making technology accessible to all.
According to him, it is in line with the Transport Ministry’s efficiency and sustainability goals while supporting a competitive economy as the digital infrastructure created by this venture also has great potential of supporting the government, the public transportation sector, and the local economy.
“Atlas escalated the local automotive sector to a whole new level which will benefit us all. This smart technology has the potential to increase our efficiency and productivity.
“It is very encouraging for me to see homegrown Malaysian companies from different sectors coming together to share their expertise and develop and incorporate technology to improve the quality of life for Malaysian motorists,” he said.
The Atlas operating system will also feature Atlas Pay, which is powered by Fasspay and enables users to make transactions securely without leaving their vehicles.
Wee added that the country can create more jobs and attract more talent and foreign investment by being among the pioneers in the Asean region to push for more products and services in the smart mobility sector.
Meanwhile, ACO Tech CEO Li Pu said as auto manufacturers strive to deliver a connected and personalised driving experience to the consumers, Atlas must be agile, scalable, and ever-evolving.
He said building relationships with industry partners continue to be a priority for ACO Tech to provide innovative in-car experiences while ensuring their technology capabilities are optimised to rapidly fulfil demands.
“We are excited to collaborate with our partners’ strengths. Their robust resources have enabled us to further broaden Atlas’ competencies to ensure we always stay relevant and our offerings are accessible everywhere.
“Essentially, our vision is to enrich and complement every part of our users’ lives in the best way possible,” he said.
Among Atlas services are refuelling, car infotainment and communications while the e-wallet function would be available by the fourth quarter of this year.
There are currently more than 10,000 automobiles on the road equipped with Atlas.
At the same event, ACO Tech signed a memorandum of understanding to expand its partnership with Huawei Technologies to continuously develop cloud-based automotive solutions on Huawei Cloud for the regional markets.


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Today's launch of the new Xeon 3500 and Xeon 5500 processors was Intel's worst-kept secret -- due largely to Apple's debut of new versions of its Mac Pro workstations using the chips almost a month ago.
The 17 new Xeon chips that make up the Nehalem EP family are now available in systems, including workstations and blade servers, and Intel has high hopes for them, despite a general slowdown in IT spending and Intel's own lack of visibility into market demand.
"We expect this to be one of the broadest roll outs of new technologies and a new platform, and hopefully a nice kick for the economy for people who have been waiting to buy new servers," said Shannon Poulin, Xeon platform director in Intel's Server Products Group, during an interview.
Poulin said Intel shipped "hundreds of thousands" of Nehalem EP chips to server makers in advance of the launch.
Intel is pitching the new chips as the most significant revamp of its workstation and server chip line since the 1995 release of the Pentium Pro.
The Xeon 5500 and Xeon 3500 are the first workstation versions of Intel's Nehalem chip family and include technical enhancements that greatly increase their performance relative to previous generations of the Xeon. Most importantly, the processors have an on-chip memory controller and use Intel's QuickPath Interconnect technology instead of a front-side bus to triple the memory bandwidth available to the processors.
The new chips also have a feature, called Turbo Boost, that can overclock one or more cores on the chip to deal with a heavier processing load. The server versions of the chips are rated to run at speeds up to 2.93GHz, but Turbo Boost can temporarily raise this to 3.3GHz under certain conditions. The workstation chips get a similar boost from 3.2GHz to 3.46GHz. This isn't much use for creative applications -- most of which are multi-threaded -- but CAD tools and games will see a performance boost.
Intel is counting on the higher performance and low power consumption to spur corporate sales, but executives admit the company has little insight into future market demand.
Looking ahead, future versions of the Nehalem EP chip called Westmere are due next year. These chips will be made with Intel's upcoming 32-nanometer manufacturing process and will be socket-compatible with the Nehalem EP, reducing the cost for system makers to design servers that use the chip and allowing end users to easily upgrade.


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Vanity Fair has released its 2019 Best-Dressed List, and a few names out of the ever-trendy art world have made the cut. On the list are artist Kehinde Wiley, Salon 94 founder Jeanne Greenberg Rohatyn, and ARTnews Top 200 collector Pamela J. Joyner, alongside fashion staples such as Marc Jacobs, Chloë Sevigny, and Solange Knowles. (Not featured: “art guy” Cooke Maroney—though, maybe next year).
Possibly to account for the influx of art-heads on the list is that Kimberly Drew, the writer, curator, and former social media manager for the Metropolitan Museum of Art, who was a member of the selection committee.
As part of the questionnaire published with the list, Wiley told the team that the item he overuses are a pair of white Converse, as they “go with everything,” and said he was the happiest when wearing a “chalk-line-print custom suit” he had made for the unveiling of his portrait of Barack Obama. Joyner divulged that a trend she despises is “casual that devolves to sloppy,” and described her style motto as “classic with a curated edge.” Joyner, along with her husband Alfred J. Giuffrida, has appeared on ARTnews’s Top 200 Collectors list since 2016, and she was recently named the chair of the Tate Americas Foundation.


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When Beijing’s first boutique hotel opens in July, guests of the 99-room Opposite House may not even notice the lack of a traditional lobby or the absence of a clichéd, imposing, officious front desk. They won’t be in the hotel’s public area long enough to see what’s missing.
“An assistant will take you directly from the hotel car to your room and check you in with a handheld computer” explains Brian Williams, managing director of Swire Hotels, the parent company. “There’s no need for a formal reception center because everything will be paperless and we’ll have the guest’s information before they arrive.”
The disappearing lobby isn’t unique to Opposite House, the first hotel-management venture of the Swire Group, the Anglo-Sino behemoth with interests in everything from airlines to sugar. Hotels around the world at every price point and luxury level are rushing to refashion their sterile, stereotypical arrival halls into convivial lounges, alluring restaurants, hip cafés, mini-museums, and even comfortable, casual work centers and socializing areas. They’re pumping in music and designer scents and ripping out all of the visual cues and furnishings that once defined a hotel lobby.
Hoteliers speak persuasively about the societal and technological shifts driving them to reinvent their public areas. And you’ll hear the lobby being rapturously described as the hotel’s living room—or the lodging equivalent of the local coffee bar.
But the bottom line is, well, the bottom line: Hotels need to make money from their lobbies. “A vast lobby that generates no revenue just isn’t practical anymore,” says Welf Ebeling, executive vice president and chief operating officer of Leading Hotels, a worldwide marketing alliance of luxury hotels.
One logical way to turn lobbies into cash cows is with food-and-beverage outlets. The Wyndham Hotels chain, for example, is installing E.R.L. Cafés (for Eat, Refresh, Live) in the lobbies of its full-service hotels and resorts. The deluxe Montage Laguna Beach resort in California has a public area that emphasizes the property’s stunning vistas of the Pacific Ocean. But there’s also what managing director James Bermingham calls “a great room in an elegant home.” It’s decked out with Arts and Crafts-inspired decor, wooden floors, indoor and outdoor seating—and it peddles cocktails from just after breakfast until well past midnight.
At the Opposite House in Beijing, the traditional lobby space will largely be replaced by contemporary Chinese art, water features, and other architectural flourishes. But there will also be a total of five bars, restaurants, and nightclubs. “This category of hotel, a small and luxurious lifestyle property, doesn’t exist yet in Beijing,” Williams says. “It will be confusing to some people, but we’re aiming for unique—a one-off experience.”
Unique and one-off has no place at Courtyard by Marriott. The 700-hotel chain is “rooted in research, not intuition,” says Brian King, the vice president and global brand manager. But he says the chain’s research confirms other hoteliers’ intuition: The traditional lobby and its stiff transactional ambience is toast.
“It’s what I call the Starbucks phenomenon,” King explains. “Travelers want a place where they can plug in their laptop, use their iPod, mingle with other people, hang out, have a snack. And they want it some place that isn’t their guest room. For a hotel, that place has to be the lobby. But it has to be the right kind of lobby.”
So Marriott and an outside design firm have reengineered the entry area of Courtyard. Out with the big check-in desks; in with several smaller areas called welcome podiums. Flexible guest-seating areas, such as a communal table at the center of the lobby and private “media booth” workstations were installed. Sectional sofas replaced traditional lobby furniture. A 52-inch L.C.D. touchscreen called the GoBoard dispenses news and conciergelike information. There’s free WiFi, lots of easy-to-find power outlets, a library, and printer stations. The furnishings are all “laptop friendly,” says King.
And, naturally, there are revenue-generating opportunities galore. A 24/7 market dispenses snacks, beverages, and sundries. The breakfast buffet has been jettisoned and replaced with all-day dining, snacking, and grazing options. There’s even evening cocktails and custom coffee drinks. And everything is coffeehouse mellow: communal yet convivial and private; casual with a veneer of style; and designed with an eye toward multitasking on a laptop or a palmtop.
“About 30 to 35 percent of our customers were literally walking out the door because they didn’t want a buffet and they thought our lobbies weren’t interesting enough,” King says. “That’s revenue that we were giving away.”
Ebeling finds all these lobby changes a matter of back-to-the-future thinking. “The old European hotels always used to have a wonderful lounge in the lobby where people could sit down, have a coffee, and read the paper,” he says. “The lounge was always the soul and heart of a great hotel. It’s where guests went to mingle, to socialize.”
The Fine Print…
The first new Courtyard lobby opened recently in a Virginia property, and the rest of the chain will be renovated by 2010. King says the changes will cost hotel owners $650,000 to $750,000 for lobby space that averages about 5,700 square feet. And in keeping with the new age, new-wave approach to public space, Marriott has built a special promotional website. Besides starring in YouTube videos flogging the lobby transformation, King writes a blog too.
Joe Brancatelli writes the weekly business travel column Seat 2B for the Business Journals. He's also the owner of JoeSentMe, a membership site of news and resources for road warriors.


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Fernando Lonergan on the need to get your event planning right. ...
WTM VISION CONFERENCE EXAMINES CHINESE TOURIST RULES OF ATTRACTION posted on: 11/5/2012 10:23:54
WORLD - At the WTM Vision Conference Shanghai, 10 May, delegates were told that in order to attract Chinese tourists a hassle-free visa application needs to be considered. A quick, easy and accessible visa application process is vital for Chinese travellers when deciding their next overseas destination, the conference heard.
Due to high spending habits of the Chinese tourists, destinations are desperate to increase the number of Chinese visitors. Euromonitor International China Travel and Tourism Analyst Ray Li predicted that Chinese tourists will spend an estimated US $36bn on shopping when overseas in 2016, double the amount spent in 2011.
According to CEO of TUI Travel China, Marcel Schneider, destinations wanting to attract this growng market "need to be willing to invest money, HR and time to develop the destination in order to meet the Chinese market's expectations".
Reed Travel Exhibitions Director for WTM, Simon Press, who opened WTM Conference Vision, said: "WTM Vision Conference Shanghai offered a fascinating insight to the Chinese tourism industry. Chinese tourists are in high demand due to their high spending patterns, and delegates heard the secrets to attracting a high number of visitors from China."
The final event in the WTM Vision Conference series takes place on 18 May in Florence.
EUROPE - Izmir Convention & Visitors Bureau in Turkey has launched a social media marketing campaign, which it hopes will help attract more international conferences, incentives and events to the city.
EUROPE - With the Ryder Cup at Gleneagles grabbing headlines recently, HVS London says hotel investors are rediscovering the appeal of European golf resorts evidenced by £322m worth of single asset transactions in golf resorts.
AFRICA - Marriott International, Africa's largest hotel company following its acquisition of Protea Hotel Group, has scheduled 30 property openings across the continent by 2020. Nine of these hotels will open by the end of 2015.
WORLD - Specialist global events business ITE Group has announced a pre-close trading update for the year ending 30 September 2014, which hailed 'better than expected trading performance in Q4 and good cost control'.


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Great news for Konami and bad news for gamers. Super Bomberman R for the Nintendo Switch is sold out on Amazon. This is the third Switch game is be sold out on the website. The other games are 1-2-Switch (Amazon UK) and The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild.
It is unknown when these games will be back in stock. Nintendo Switch releases worldwide on March 3.


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Recent surveys show that Latinos — and other minorities — struggle to receive Coronavirus relief money to keep their businesses alive amid the pandemic. We spent a day at a mostly Latino-owned shops street mall. This is what we saw.
Photos and Text by Keyvan Antonio Heydari for The Americano.
Miami — According to a study conducted by NBCNews amongst 500 Latino business owners, only 10% received coronavirus relief loans “while the rest never heard back after applying.”
We spent a day at a strip shopping mall in the South of Miami, where a dozen stores tell the story of commercial survival during the Covid-19 pandemic. Florida governor De Santis’ announcement of a partial reopening of stores on May 5th — with new standards for restaurants — doesn’t guarantee a rebound for retailers.
As the bigger malls closed down, shuttering all stores, some shops in smaller strip malls have tried to remain open and apply for federal help for essential businesses to survive this economic crisis. “If [a publicly listed] company like Ruth’s Chris is getting federal money, I don’t feel they’re taking into account small businesses like myself,” Katya Llerena told The Americano. She owns and operates a fashion boutique opened in 2018, and poured about $50,000 in savings to operate. Her YusimiBoutique is now selling exclusively online.
RELATED: Latino and Black Business Owners Are Being Left Behind By the Government’s Small Business Bailout
The strip mall — about a mile from Dadeland, a popular mall with large stores — is anchored by a hardware store run by Venezuelan brothers and is jammed with customers looking for masks, disinfectants, cleaners, and more. A few doors down, a computer and cell phone repair shop is busier than ever, as many people break screens and need to come for replacements.
However, other businesses operate at different levels. A shoe store and a tattoo shop are out of action. Nicaraguan and Cuban cafeterias are closed for the moment. A locksmith is reopening slowly but depends on general business activity to sell services. A pharmacy that specializes in sending medicine and supplies to Venezuela now also supplies toilet paper, alcohol, and sanitary wipes when bigger chains don’t stock the now essential items is finding new converts.
This strip shopping center is a salad of immigrant retailers with no chain stores. They came to the U.S. from somewhere else, and with optimism and sacrifice, levantaron su negocio. Cubans, Nicas, Venezuelans, Peruvian, Chileans, Puerto Ricans, all share one same dream: to own a business in America.
Yusimi Boutique is too small to get federal aid. Katya Llerena and her mother (Yusimi) fixed and remodeled the space and shop, outfitted with special items not available online. To survive, they had to start selling online.
“I don’t feel they’re taking into account small businesses like myself. That was all my savings. People are jobless.” She has dealt with many uncertainties during her life. She and her mother left Cuba in a raft, and as ‘balseros’ they are experienced in perilous journeys. After opening the store about 18 months ago, they are using bridge loans to navigate through the pandemic.
“I’m afraid for myself. And my family. What kind of [fiscal] accountability is there? I think RuthsChris [a company listed on the stock exchange which received federal PPP relief] still is laying off people.”
Born in Cuba, Alex Piqueras grew up in Lima, Peru. There, he studied and met his wife, Myriam.
They have been together for 41 years in the U.S. and they have run the Mars Cleaner, for the last 38 years. They have three employees and three kids, and some good savings.
“Afortunadamente, puede estar abierto. Tengo que ser optimista. Este país da oportunidades….” [Fortunately I can be open, I have to be optimistic, this country gives opportunities].
Jorge Mazuela and Henry Meijides own the Alfa Locksmith.
Mazuela came from Chile in 1969, after the leftist government of Salvador Allende took power. “We have not gotten anything [from the government] Expenses is non-stop. I find it bad that big companies are getting all [the money.”]
Mazuela and Meijides had to lay off their only employee, a bookkeeper. Mazuela has two children; one born in Chile, one in the U.S. His youngest is a veteran, who served in Iraq. Henry is Cuban, and he is not aware of the specific politics and procedure of the CARES act and bailout. But their shop has seen a 50%-65 drop in business. This prompted them to request a loan from the Small Business Administration (SBA) for $3000. It has been approved but they have not received the money yet. His family has had to cut back to one meal a day, only to buy the most necessary.
Locatel Pharmacy has three locations in South Florida. This one has 10 employees.
Normally, Venezuelans can send their prescription to the Caracas Locatel, and it can be fulfilled/paid in Florida. And picked up in Venezuela. But now, Locatel has also become a local recourse.
Marilyn Sánchez (Manager) says “people have understood the rhythm, they have kept gloves and alcohol. Walmart, Walgreens, and CVS don’t have them [available], but we do.”
As local retail competes with online behemoths, they have a common denominator: they are small businesses owned by immigrants to the United States, the ones that in many cases are essential workers, and the livelihood of the economy in a state where the majority of the population is Latino.
For more information on how to apply for Small Business Coronavirus Relief Loans, read here.


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Commerce Minister Anand Sharma says India and the US should seriously consider going in for a comprehensive economic co-operation agreement on lines of ASEAN.
In Mumbai, his first stop, Obama would address a meeting of top Indian and American business executives, besides having a separate meeting with American CEOs.
The collbaration that will increase food security for Indians will take place during President Barack Obama's visit to India.
India's ambassador to the US Meera Shankar says Obama's visit will open new opportunities for American companies to invest in the country.
- Coronavirus in Maharashtra: BMC marks 144 places with positive cases as contaminated areas
- Odisha govt puts fourth Nizamuddin Markaz returnee under isolation
- Tablighi Jamaat: Unaware about whereabouts of many returnees, says Tamil Nadu CM
- Coronavirus outbreak: Narayana Murthy, family donate Rs 10 crore for relief work
- Coronavirus: China reveals 1,541 asymptomatic cases amid concerns of second wave of infections
- OnePlus Bullets Wireless Z earphones to come later this year, could offer wireless charging
- Huawei announces EMUI 10.1: Here are the most interesting features
- OnePlus 8 series 5G phones will cost less than $1,000, says OnePlus CEO
- UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson accidentally reveals Zoom ID for Cabinet meeting on Twitter, sparks security concerns
- Vodafone Idea to give free talktime of Rs 10 to its prepaid users, to extend validity till April 17


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Visa will invest $1B to create financial inclusion in Africa by 2027, AfroTech reports.
Chairman and CEO Alfred F. Kelly, Jr. recently said in a press release that Visa will start operations in Africa “to scale operations, deploy new innovative technologies and deepen collaboration with partners.” With this pledge, the corporation will work closely with governments, financial institutions, mobile network operators, merchants, and small businesses to expand digital payments and bring financial equity to Africa.
“Every day, Visa supports digital commerce and money movement in every country across the continent, and Africa remains central to Visa’s long-term growth plans. We look forward to continuing to work closely with our partners to advance the financial ecosystem, accelerate digitization and to build resilient, innovative, and inclusive economies that will create shared opportunity and further spur Africa’s digital economy,” Kelly said.
For years, the corporation has been present in Nigeria, South Africa and Kenya yet 500 million people in Africa don’t have access to financial services and some 40 million merchants don’t accept digital payments. They plan to improve and expand services to other countries like the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia and Sudan.
We’ll make sure to keep you posted on what opportunities this expansion will bring!
Photo: Sofie Delauw/Getty Images/ VisaNews


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Pinny tech class gets boost from Best Buy
PINCONNING — A class that teaches students how to use gadgets such as camcorders, editing equipment and DVD burners could create a huge expense for a school district.
But in Pinconning Area Middle School (PAMS), where the Communication Technology course has exposed students to cutting edge technology since the late 90’s, a $2,000 grant awarded from Best Buy Co., Inc. will remove some of that financial burden.
PAMS was one of 1,300 schools nationwide to receive the $2,000 Best Buy Teach Award and is now in the running for one of eight $100,000 Best Buy grants that will be awarded in May. Another 50 schools throughout the country received grants of $10,000.
Tina Bauer, the District Coordinator for Pinconning Area Schools, said that the grant would assist the district in keeping up with the nonstop changes in the technological field.
“Schools don’t really keep current in with technology because of funding,” Bauer said. “Everything gets outdated.”
Bauer said that the $2,000, which was awarded in the form of a Best Buy gift card, was used to purchase new camcorders, portable hard drive and a DVD burner, plus one piece of equipment that will be sure to spice up the Communication Technology classroom.
“We bought a 47-inch flat screen LCD (liquid crystal display) TV,” Bauer said, adding that the television is used to display class instructions and tasks. “Before, students had to gather around the teacher’s computer (for instructions).”
But the other new items will also be used quite regularly, Bauer said, as the class stays busy experimenting with new electronics.
“They (students in the class) make commercials for things going on in the school. … They do newscasts,” Bauer said, adding that the students also put together DVD yearbooks. “It (DVD yearbook) is just like making a movie.”
Bauer also said that the grant application from Best Buy was made available to all schools at the beginning of the school year but that it takes a special program to get one the Best Buy awards.
“A lot of schools don’t offer classes like this,” Bauer said.
The Best Buy Teach Award Program has been in operation since 2003. Since its inception, nearly 5,000 schools nationwide have received $14 million in grant funds.


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(Sept. 28, 2011) On August 3, 2011, the Knesset (Israel's parliament) passed an amendment to the Tobacco Products for Smoking (Restriction on Advertising) Law, 5743-1983, as amended. The Law prohibits the advertising and sale of tobacco products to minors. It also authorizes sellers of such products to require customers to show identification for age verification. In 2001, the Knesset had passed an amendment to the Law in an effort to address the lack of enforcement of the ID verification requirement in connection with tobacco products vending machines. The 2001 amendment authorized the Minister of Health to designate places where machines that distribute tobacco products could not be placed. To date no such places have been designated.
According to explanatory notes on the amendment bill, the objective of the 2011 amendment is to extend the 2001 prohibition to all locations, not only those that can be easily accessed by minors. According to this amendment, the sale of tobacco products via vending machines will be completely prohibited, as of January 1, 2014. Until that day, the placement of such machines will only be prohibited near schools and other educational institutions in accordance with a directive to be issued by the Minister of Health. (Tobacco Products for Smoking (Restriction on Advertising) (Amendment No. 6) Law & bill, 5771-2011 [both in Hebrew], the Knesset website (both last visited Sept. 19, 2011); Tobacco Products for Smoking (Restriction on Advertising) Law, 5743-1983, 37 LAWS OF THE STATE OF ISRAEL 39 (5743-1982/83), as amended [in Hebrew].)


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A tomato is a tomato, right?
Well, yes, but also definitely no says a Leamington area greenhouse grower.
Dean Tiessen of Pyramid Farms introduced a group of budding chefs to the breadth and depth of tomatoes on a recent tour of his farm by St. Clair College culinary students.
Pyramid Farms grows a variety of crops, including peppers, cucumbers and even miscanthus, a specialty grass that Tiessens use to heat their greenhouses.
But the star attraction is the tomato – specifically, the 26 varieties of heirloom tomatoes grown at Pyramid Farms.
Although the focus for tomato growers for decades was to boost production, a change has happened over the last couple years, one that introduced specialty crops and varieties like heirlooms into Ontario’s greenhouses.
Heirlooms are varieties that, until recently, were no longer grown on a large scale.
But increased consumer interest in food flavours, characteristics and that elusive search for “something different” has led to a resurgence of long forgotten varieties.
The students were surprised yet fascinated to discover that tomatoes come in all different shapes, sizes and colours – one even with zebra stripes!
They were also introduced to concepts like integrated pest management, farmers’ environmental efforts, the importance of economics in food production and the fact that despite the negative media attention tomatoes garnered earlier this year with a food safety scare in the US, most of Ontario’s tomatoes are grown right here at home.
The tour was part of an ongoing program that AGCare and the Ontario Farm Animal Council offer to various culinary schools as a way of introducing the next generation of chefs to the bounty of Ontario food, where it comes from and how it is produced.
Funding for the project is provided through Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada’s CanAdvance program, which is administered by the Agricultural Adaptation Council in Ontario.


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Commercial Spams Take Advantage Of US Fourth of July Celebrations
Independence Day for the United States of America is here, or more commonly known as the Fourth of July. It's the day when the United States declared their independence from the Kingdom of Great Britain. Often celebrated by fireworks, parades, carnivals, and concerts, it's a time-honored tradition for American citizens to take a break during this day while taking pride in their home country.
Of course, cybercriminals do not know the concept of a holiday being used to take a break. Rather, they'll be leveraging this event (and the others that follow it) for their own malicious purposes. This is proven by us receiving a handful of spammed mail samples, most of which use the Fourth of July celebrations as a reason for their sales promos and discounts. Peddling everything from printer ink to cars, the mails invite users to call numbers or click on links, and while none of them seem to be malicious or tied to any malicious activity, there's a good chance the sales and discounts are actually nonexistent, only lures to draw potential victims in.
Users are reminded to never read, open or click anything from unsolicited e-mails such as these. It's not worth the supposed 'savings' and 'convenience'.
The security offerings of Trend Micro protects its customers from these spammed mails.


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Earlier this year, Lenovo launched the Lenovo Z5 smartphone in China. Comes with a wonderful display and graduated finish. The company recently released a comparison with the new iPhone XR on Weibo, stated that the Z5 is the best device. Now, we have seen a loophole in the phone of the Lenovo Z5 Pro. Before launching the Lenovo Z5, the company also used a full screen without borders to enjoy it.
Compared to many other smart phones with gap display function, the Lenovo Z5 is already equipped with relatively thick borders in all four aspects. You do not even see the border in the official list of devices. From the recently leaked images, the Lenovo Z5 Pro is expected to be equipped with a sliding camera and a completely borderless screen. Although we have seen Vivo and OPPO do the same with smart phones Vivo NEX and OPPO Find X.