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He’s also coming to Tempe on Friday, November 6, for the third annual Salvage This!, which figures to be among the biggest upcycling events of the year. Of course, a decade ago, having an evening centered around recycling and reusing old products would’ve seemed ridiculous, but Fritz believes the eco-friendly practice is popular these days for a number of reasons.
“Recycling and reusing is very popular now, and it seems like everybody is reusing things,” Fritz says. “Mid-19th century furniture is very popular because it was made in America. Now, we’re a disposable community, where we just get rid of things, but this trend is changing that, and some of it’s cool. I definitely see things get reused now because people get attached to them and they don’t want to see it end up in a landfill.”
You may know about the show, and you may understand the basic concepts of “picking” and reusing older items, but there’s one aspect of the event you may not be familiar with at all. There’s now a book out to help get you started in your picking journey.
“It’s called the American Pickers Guide to Picking, and it has some little tidbits about picking in there,” Fritz says. “It can’t be learned overnight, but with the Internet, it’s a lot more feasible to buy things that you’re interested in. The book will help direct you on some tips when buying things.”
Of all the tips in the book (and some not in the book), Fritz believes the most helpful one is something that he doesn’t always abide by, but knows he should: the idea that quality doesn’t change over time.
“I tell people all the time to buy good stuff whenever they can,” Fritz says. “Good stuff is always going to be good, and mediocre stuff will always be mediocre. Even if something mediocre is rare, it’s not always worth it. And now with the Internet, almost everything is less rare than it used to be.”
A lot of the time, knowing the quality of a product on first glance takes years of practice and knowledge building up, which is why Fritz believes the best way to go about picking is just to get out there and dive in.
“Educate yourself, then get out there and start looking around,” Fritz advises prospective pickers. “There’s a lot of older stuff that falls to the wayside because it was collected by older gentlemen. If the youth gets interested in it, there’s some really cool stuff out there.”
While picking may be a lifelong passion turned career for Fritz, that doesn’t mean life is always easy. Filming a TV show can mean some grueling days, and when the show happens to be centered around traveling all over the country, that certainly doesn’t make it any easier.
“What the viewer doesn’t see [when watching American Pickers] is the 16 to 18 hours a day we put in,” Fritz says. “They don’t see the crew that comes in at 3:30 or 4 in the morning to set everything up. It takes a long time to make a show, and it’s a travel show, so we’re in a different hotel in a different area every night. We’re shot on location all over the country.”
That said, Fritz and his co-star, Mike Wolfe, are just wrapping up the seventh season of American Pickers, so the lifestyle can’t be too bad. Although as the weather starts to settle deeper into fall, Fritz is certainly looking forward to his stop in the Valley to bring a little sunshine into his life.
“I live in Iowa, so I can’t wait to come out to Phoenix and get some warm weather,” Fritz says. “If anyone has any questions while I’m out there, don’t be afraid to ask.”
The meet-and-greet with Fritz begins at 5 p.m. on Friday, November 6, at the Yard in Tempe. Tickets cost $100 (or $50 for the event without the VIP meet-and-greet) and are available online.


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According to PlayStation President and CEO Jim Ryan (Jim Ryan), Sony’s “Play at Home” program is very popular among gamers.
and GI.biz, Ryan said that during the launch of the program, free games have been redeemed 60 million times by PlayStation players.
In order to help people cope with the Covid-19 blockade, Sony released free games in two waves, providing people with some good things in difficult times.
“When everyone was struggling for the first lockdown, it shocked us and we thought it would be a good thing,” Ryan said. “We were able to do this and we were very satisfied with the response.
“Then we spent Christmas, we started to lock down again, everyone…a bit miserable. We thought it would be a good thing to repeat it. So we did it again, this time in a period of several months , And now 60 million games have actually been redeemed as part of the event.”
Play At Home debuted in April 2020, users can download Uncharted: The Nathan Drake Collection and Journey – or Knack 2, if you are in Germany or China.
It was brought back in March this year and kicked off with the 2016 Ratchet & Clank. Ten additional titles have been added, including Abzu, Enter the Gungeon, Rez Infinite, Subnautica, The Witness and Moss.
The program ended in April with “Horizon: Zero Dawn.”
Ryan said that if the blockade occurs again, Sony may re-launch home-playing games.

domain: news


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Re-call of whirlpool washing machines
What is the new problem?
About 20% of the Hotpoint and Indesit washing machines sold since 2014 are affected by the fault. Up to 519,000 washing machines sold in the UK are involved.
Seventy-nine fires are thought to have been caused by the fault which develops over time, according to Whirlpool, which owns the brands.
"When the heating element in the washing machine is activated, in very rare cases a component in the door lock system can overheat, which, depending on product features, can pose a risk of fire," Whirlpool said.
The extra current that runs through the machine when the heating element is on can cause the door locking system to overheat.
The company said the issue had been identified by its safety team, but had led to fires, although none had been significant enough to cause more than minor damage or cause any serious injuries.
Engineer Colin O'Neill, who runs CJM Washer Services, said he was not surprised at the recall because he had seen failings connected to the door lock "for quite some time now".
He said: "When we go out, we remove the door lock and quite often find it has either failed or quite often we find that there's actually signs of burning to the door lock wiring harness.
"Sometimes I've even seen burn marks up the inside of the cabinet of the washing machine, so it looks like there has been a little mini fire there, but the customer hasn't known anything about it."
Steve Smithson from Romford, Essex was forced to call in an engineer when he had noticed a smell of burning and smoke coming out of his Hotpoint washing machine.
He said: "I immediately jumped up and turned the plug off, took the washing out - it really smelled - and checked the code. It said faulty door lock code."
What should I do if I think I own one?
Whirlpool has set up a model checker online, Owners of Hotpoint and Indesit washing machines bought since October 2014 will need to enter the model and serial number of their appliance - found inside the door or on the back - to see if it is one of those affected.
There is also a free helpline, open every day, available on 0800 316 1442.
If owners find their machine is affected, to eliminate any risk, the appliance should be unplugged and not used until it is repaired in their home by a trained engineer, Whirlpool said. As an alternative, those affected will also be offered a replacement with a safe model.
Owners can check and register for a repair or replacement now. Vulnerable customers will be prioritised, but for others it may be organised on a first come, first served basis.
When will affected machines be fixed or replaced?
The process will not begin until early January, at the earliest.
It could be months, not just during Christmas, that owners will have to cope without their washing machine. The company is refusing to offer refunds for affected machines to allow people to buy another appliance straight away, leaving it open to further criticism.
Instead, Whirlpool suggested owners could still use the machine but with a vastly reduced risk, by only using the cold wash cycle at 20C or less. This means the heating element would not be activated, avoiding the problem that had been identified.
Jeff Noel, vice president of Whirlpool, said: "We know this will cause some concern. We especially understand that the washing machine is so important to family life, and in Christmas holiday season it will be even more of an important matter and, for that, we apologise."
He added that the firm's customer service department was being built up, engineers hired, and delivery and collection capability stepped up for the January start.
The recall only affects UK and Ireland homes at the moment.


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Domestic buyout firm Odyssey Private Equity is set to take a big bite of an Australian fast food business with a Japanese bent.
Street Talk can reveal Odyssey has agreed terms to buy the country's biggest Japanese food business Sushi Sushi, in a deal understood to value the business at between $100 million and $150 million.
It would be Odyssey's fourth acquisition since the team transferred from CHAMP Ventures and raised their first fund under the new banner, Odyssey Fund 8, and its first in the food sector.
It is understood Odyssey agreed the deal after finishing first in an auction run by advisory firm KPMG on behalf of Sushi Sushi founder and owner Anna Kasman.
The deal will see Odyssey take control of Sushi Sushi's national footprint, which started with one sushi store in Box Hill and now includes 130 stores (some franchised and some company owned), four warehouses, distribution centres in Perth, Brisbane and Melbourne, and more than 1300 staff. The company also seeks to sell its products in schools, hospitals, service stations and with wholesale partners.
Odyssey was drawn to the wellness pitch – based around Australians' changing eating habits with a heightened focus on nutrition and fresh food, as well as affordability – and the company's management team.
"The growth in demand for sushi and Japanese inspired food more generally is being driven by consumers' demand for healthy and convenient meals," Odyssey partner Paul Readdy told Street Talk.
"While there's a retail component, there's also an emerging commercial and wholesale business that we really want to grow. And it's a vertically integrated business - the guys actually source all the products that go into this business; it's freshly prepared and then it goes out to the stores or commercial customers."
Founder Anna Kasman said: "I am very proud of what we have achieved, and I am very grateful to our dedicated and passionate team and franchise partners".
The management team, headed by CEO Scott Meneilly, will transition to the Odyssey-owned Sushi. Meneilly said the company's recently opened wholesale division had outperformed expectations, while its first New Zealand store was also set to open in May.
"Odyssey has a great understanding of our fresh food convenience model that is highly flexible but gives us the ability to go beyond what other QSR brands have gone to."
"We have the capabilities to pop up in smaller locations and move into the traditional shopping centre environments but there's also great opportunity for growth in high street locations, hospitals, petrol and convenience stores, airports, and sporting events."
It comes as private equity firms have snapped up food-based businesses across the market in recent years including Boost Juice, Rockpool Dining Group, Guzman y Gomez and Pizza Hut.
And KPMG's Luke Lawrentschuk, who oversaw the auction, reckons there is more to come.
"Private equity are very active in looking at food retail given the strong thematics around out-of-home eating, convenience and home delivery," he told Street Talk.
"Many of the target companies are quickly scalable which private equity like as part of a buy and build strategy. There are also very real synergies in grouping a number of food retail brands together especially in areas such as procurement, central kitchens, finance and HR. "
The company will slip into an Odyssey portfolio that includes outdoor and hardware branded products distributor Companion Brands, communications products company Minesite Technologies and tents and outdoor gear manufacturer OZtrail. Odyssey's team also has responsibilities for CHAMP Ventures' remaining investments including a stake in fitnesswear label Lorna Jane, Kiwi truck and trailer rental business TR Group and contract catering business Cater Care.
Street Talk revealed Sushi Sushi had hired KPMG to explore options to fund growth in February last year, while Maddocks did the legal work. Deloitte and Herbert Smith Freehills advised Odyssey.


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The Woodland Chamber of Commerce announced the return of its 56th annual Holiday Parade Saturday, Dec. 10 after a two-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“The parade will once again ride down Main Street on Dec. 10 this year, with the theme ‘Home for the Holiday Magic,’” the chamber’s website stated. “We want to thank everyone in our community for their patience as well as the city of Woodland for sponsoring this event.”
The chamber noted that the 3 to 9 p.m. parade will start in the afternoon this year instead of in the morning with the goal of having the best of both a daytime and nighttime parade.
“We hope that his change will enhance the overall experience for both the community and the businesses along the parade route, creating new opportunities for our local businesses and opening the possibility of pre- and post-parade festivities as we move forward,” the chamber added.
Earlier participants will kick off the parade in daylight while later divisions will close the parade into the early evening with brightly lit floats and other entries.
“Entrants will be able to select their desired placement as part of the application process and we will adjust the start time accordingly,” the chamber emphasized.
The chamber will be reviewing the overall experience following this year’s parade to determine the effects of these changes and to help it chart a path forward for the next year, according to the website.
“Again, we truly appreciate everyone’s patience over these last few years and we could not be happier to once again be hosting the Holiday Parade,” the chamber emphasized.
The chamber is accepting applications for the parade online until Monday, Nov. 21. If interested, visit members.woodlandchamber.org/chamber-events/details/woodland-chamber-holiday-parade-2022-767541.
. . .
Woodland is encouraging residents to visit local shops during Shop Small Business Saturday on Nov. 26.
“This Holiday Season let’s shop for gifts at our local small businesses,” Visit Woodland’s website stated. “When in Woodland, we encourage you to venture towards our lovely downtown! Find wonderful boutiques, antique shops, restaurants, coffee shops and bakeries.”
The website added that small businesses impact the city by creating a major positive economic impact, providing personable customer service, offering unique product diversity and connecting the community.
For suggestions on businesses to shop at next Saturday, visit visitwoodland.com/small-business-saturday.
. . .
The Yolo County Spay and Neuter Group will be hosting its third annual Santa Paws Fundraiser from noon to 4 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 4 at Blue Note Brewery in Woodland.
“Craig Isaacs, owner of Blue Goo Photography, will be taking professional pictures of Santa with your dog,” the event’s Facebook page explained. “You are welcome to join in the picture but only dogs are allowed to sit on Santa’s lap.”
Issacs will be available from noon to 2 p.m. with appointments starting at a $20 donation or more with 100% of donations going towards the nonprofit group.
“Your donation includes your photo shoot with Santa and the professional digital images sent to you via email,” the page added.
If interested, appointments can be made by emailing email@example.com.
. . .
The Woodland Toy-Anime-Comic Con is returning Saturday, Nov. 26 at the Woodland Fraternal Order of Eagles located at 37650 CA-16 in Woodland.
The 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. kid-friendly event will feature a costume contest at 2:30 p.m. and anyone interested will be able to enter at the admission table during the event.
Entrance is $7 if an ad or flyer is shown or $8 if not, according to the event’s website. Parking for the event is free.
For more information, visit allevents.in/woodland/woodland-toy-anime-comic-con/200023111159152.
. . .
West Sacramento’s Jackrabbit Brewing is inviting people to attend its Paint a Ukulele event with Creatively Carrie at 6 p.m. on Saturday at 1323 Terminal St.
“Come out to Jackrabbit Brewing in West Sacramento and make and paint your own ukulele,” the event’s website stated. “No experience necessary. You will be walked through the process of creating a great piece of art! All supplies are included.”
The event costs $40 per person and includes all supplies and a $5 bar credit. It is open for people ages 12 and up and attendees are encouraged to arrive at least 15 minutes prior to have time to place their orders with bartenders.
For more information, email firstname.lastname@example.org or visit eventbrite.com/e/paint-a-ukulele-at-jackrabbit-brewing-in-west-sac-wcreatively-carrie-tickets-418228732397.
For business tips, email email@example.com.


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West Bloomfield, MI (September 21, 2016) — Did you know that the Food industry directly supports 198,000 full and part-time jobs along with an additional 75,000 indirect jobs? The food industry also contributes a gross total of $24.8 billion to Michigan’s economy through its direct sales, indirect economic impact on other industries and employment. These are among the many reasons Governor Rick Snyder is declaring September 26th – 30th Food Retailers Week.
In the proclamation the Governor stated “…the food retailer industry is comprised of grocers, specialty food markets, convenience stores and pharmacies along with many other business providing access to food at retail in their communities; and, … business in the food retail industry contribute nearly $900 million in state and local taxes and local governments…”
MIRA (Midwest Independent Retailers Association) represents thousands of food retailers in Michigan, Illinois, Ohio and other Midwest states.
“Food retailers of all shapes and sizes contribute significantly to Michigan’s economic well-being and we are excited that Governor Snyder is recognizing that by declaring the last week of September Food Retailers Week”, said Auday Arabo, President and CEO of the MIRA. “Not only do our food retailers play a substantial economic role they also provide convenient access to an essential necessity: quality food and I think that is a pretty important point that gets easily taken for granted,” Arabo said.
Everyone in Michigan is invited to view the official proclamation at MIRAonline.org
“Whether they are your chain store, food specialty shop, local convenience store or gas station this proclamation is a sign of our State’s thanks for being a critical role in our communities and our economy,” Arabo concluded.
As the “Voice for the food, beverage and petroleum industry” since 1910, MIRA is a multi-state trade association representing thousands of retailers operating in Michigan, Ohio, Illinois and surrounding states. Our members include independent supermarkets, convenience stores, petroleum retailers, service stations, and specialty food markets. Our membership also includes wholesalers, distributors and manufacturers who support the retail industry.
Media Contacts: Interviews and photos, contact: Vanessa Denha-Garmo (248) 830-8605 or Kris Harris (248) 702-8687.


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The holidays are fast approaching, and there’s no better way to welcome the season than with everyone’s favourite pastime: online shopping.
Consumers have taken quickly taken to eCommerce in Southeast Asia, and for two reasons. Not only is it convenient, but the growing popularity of day-long or week-long sales (a.k.a. flash sales) has also turned eCommerce into an irresistible proposition for holiday shoppers.
Following the success of Alibaba’s Singles’ Day or 11.11, many eCommerce companies have followed suit and now offer huge discounts on specific days or weeks of the month. Most popular today are 9.9, 10.10, 11.11, and 12.12, which collectively make Q4 the new golden period for the top Southeast Asia eCommerce platforms.
The two biggest sales inspired by 11.11
Three of the largest Southeast Asia eCommerce platforms—Shopee, Lazada, and Zalora—went head-to-head in a bid to be crowned the champion of both the 9.9 and 10.10 sales events in 2018 and 2019.
Shopee kicked off the 2018 shopping festivities with its 9.9 Super Shopping Day event, which is ceremoniously launched across its platforms in Southeast Asia and Taiwan every September 9. It reported an all-time high in sales, reaching nearly 6 million orders within a single day, or thrice its usual daily transactions.
In 2019, Shopee smashed its 2018 record with thrice the number of orders, plus “more than 113 million deals” offered to buyers. It also achieved a peak sales volume of 187,606 items in just one minute.
Meanwhile, more than 10 million shoppers took part in Lazada’s 24-hour shopping event in 2018. It was a record-breaking number that would be beaten again the next year, during Lazada’s Big Discovery Sale in 2019—and within just 8 hours. That’s not surprising given the marketplace’s deep discounts of up to 90%, plus S$999 in vouchers.
Likewise hitting overwhelming numbers, Zalora welcomed a 5.59% online traffic increase during its seven-day sale. While its discount categories were different from those of Shopee and Lazada, all three Southeast Asia eCommerce platforms shared a common discount range of 50% to 59% that led to the highest sellout.
Bridging the gap between Singles’ Day and 9.9 is another flash sale held in October, otherwise known as 10.10. Despite arriving just a month after 9.9, consumer demand remains high. After all, the month of October’s usually when holiday marketing begins.
According to SaaS company Meltwater’s Ecommerce in SEA Industry Report 2018, “consumers start discussing their holiday shopping well in advance,” so this is also the time of the year when brands ramp up their targeted offerings and promos.
Analytics and software company Omnilytics has also found that 10.10 produces results similar to that of 9.9, at least for fashion brands and retailers on our three top Southeast Asia eCommerce platforms. But these two “earlier” sales events can also yield slight differences across platforms. For example, for 2018’s 9.9 and 10.10 sales, Zalora achieved a higher sellout for 10.10 compared to 9.9.
This might be the result of shortened sales periods—Lazada, for instance, only offered discounts between 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. that day. And as Omnilytics noted, these higher sellout rates can come “at the expense of high discounts.”
What can we expect on 11.11 and 12.12?
Special-date sales are set to get bigger and better across eCommerce Asia platforms.
Last year, the 12.12 sale was overwhelming for Shopee, which received over 12 million orders across SEA and Taiwan. Leading in Indonesia and Vietnam, its average visits increased by 74% in the last three months of the year. The majority of Shopee’s traffic is derived from mobile users, ranking them first in the mobile app arena.
Lazada has consistently topped its yearly sales target, even doubling its rate for 2018 compared to the previous year’s. It hit record sales in Malaysia, peaking at 3,000 transactions per minute. As of Q4 2018, Lazada holds the spot for the highest web traffic in the region, with 183.4 million visits in the quarter.
Zalora isn’t doing too shabby, either. The fashion marketplace was expected to increase its shopping base for its annual 12.12 Online Fever event by 32% in 2018. And the South China Morning Post’s January 2019 profile on the Zalora Group included this tidbit for 11.11:
Since Zalora started taking part in 11.11 in 2014, sales have doubled every year, [CEO Giulio] Xiloyannis says. This year, site traffic and the number of items ordered tripled compared to 2017.
For 2019, both Shopee and Lazada are banking on the concept of fun in online shopping. Shopee has long had games and interactive apps on its regional platforms. But for the Philippine market, it is also counting on emotional ties and seasonality to boost 11.11 sales figures. It rebranded the traditional Singles’ Day sale to “Big Christmas Sale,” ushering in the country’s ‘official’ holiday-shopping kickoff.
(Its other markets for eCommerce in Southeast Asia will continue to use “Big Sale” instead.)
In an October 2019 interview with ABS-CBN News, Lazada Group CEO Pierre Poignant states that the regional marketplace is offering 80 million deals (with free shipping for 25% of these deals) alongside 50 million shopping vouchers ready for use by November 1.
The CEO adds that Lazada’s 11.11 sale would be gamified for its 50 million annual users. The marketplace will entice its shoppers to “form groups of 11 to 22 users to complete missions in exchange for daily prizes and coins.” The group which gets the top spot will be given a prize on November 11.
Looking ahead to more sales events
Consumers’ hunger for shopping and discounts continues to feed big shopping sales. By 2025, a $240-million growth is expected to hit Southeast Asia’s digital economy, which is $40 billion more than previous predictions.
With the success of these one-day sales, it’s likely that we’ll get introduced to new shopping dates such as 4.4 and 5.5. In fact, Shopee has already added these dates to its regional sales schedule, and taken a per-country approach.
For example, Shopee Philippines used 4.4 to kick off the summer-sale season with its Summer Bazaar, and 5.5 as the last day of its one-week Double Double Sale. Shopee Singapore also designated 5.5 as its Brands Festival.
And with only 12 specific days in the year up for grabs, Lazada is exploring other options for its sales events. It nixed the standard matching month-and-day format for its 24-hour 2019 Mid-Year Festival, opting instead to hold it on July 12.
Regardless of the days of the month they fall on, flash sales will consistently report high numbers this year as new Southeast Asia eCommerce platforms emerge and crowd the online shopping calendar.
Send gifts straight to the doorstep
The holidays are well-anticipated by consumers and companies alike. You owe it to yourself to contact a shipping service that puts your best interests first.
Shop on Southeast Asia eCommerce platforms, and partner up with a reliable and cost-effective shipping company operating in the region. J&T Express calls Singapore home, along with five other significant eCommerce markets in Asia.
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Saudi International Petrochemical Co. (Sipchem), a producer of methanol and acetyls currently in talks to merge with Sahara Petrochemicals, will resume its talks to invest in a shale gas–based project in the United States at the end of the first quarter of 2019, Sipchem’s CEO Ahmad al-Ohali tells CW. He was speaking to CW on the sidelines of the GPCA Forum in Dubai.
“We are studying investment in the US based on shale gas…but we are giving it a bit of a low profile at the moment because we are concentrating on the merger with Sahara. The project continues to be on our radar, however. We have had discussions in the US already and they will continue in the first quarter of next year,” Ohali tells CW. The company will by then be advanced with the merger with Sahara and will be able to make a decision on the US project by the end of the first quarter. “We are looking into a methanol and ethylene cracker as a possible project in the US. This is under evaluation stage, a new geographic area for us as an investor.”
“By the end of the first quarter we should be one company with Sahara, so we would go as one company [with the US investment],” he says. Ohali explains that the fact that the Zamil Group is a shareholder in both Sipchem and Sahara is important as far as the potential merger is concerned but in addition, companies in the Middle East are going through consolidation to add scale. “Sipchem and Sahara already have a good relationship; we complement each other.” The merger, announced in October, would create a company with combined 2017 pro-forma sales of about $2 billion.
Sipchem would also like to expand in Saudi Arabia but has been unable to secure feedstock.
By Natasha Alperowicz
Source: Chemical Week
The US State of New York is introducing two new bills to combat over-packaging, poor recycling rates and litter issues, including an Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) program requiring companies such as McDonald’s and Amazon to pay for the cost of packaging disposal and recycling.
The new organization’s mission is to redesign the critical steps of the plastics sorting and recycling system for post-consumer lightweight packaging (LWP) to speed up circularity, born from a need to meet the rising market demand for high-quality recyclates for use in high-end plastic applications.
Starbucks and Hubbub have launched a £1 million (US$1.22 million) “Bring It Back Fund” to increase the uptake of reusable packaging in the F&B industry. The funding will go toward innovative ideas that make it easier for customers to use alternatives to single-use packaging by supporting pilot projects that help shift consumption habits.


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Apple Music has been the most downloaded streaming music app in India, beating out Spotify and Rdio in the past two weeks, according to data from App Annie.
The music streaming service’s revenue grew 14 percent to $1.3 billion in the quarter ended March 31, up from $1 billion in 2014.
Apple Music now has 2.6 million active users, up nearly 5 percent from last year, according the company.
The service had 4.2 million active listeners as of March 31.
Apple has been working hard to improve its music app experience.
Earlier this year, it introduced the Music app for iPhone and iPad, which lets users stream their favorite music from a variety of services, including Spotify, Rdio and Tidal.
Apple is also adding additional artists and tracks to the app.
In an attempt to attract more people to the Apple Music app, Apple recently introduced a new feature for the app called “Show your friends.”
This feature allows users to see who is streaming music, and which artists and songs are currently playing on the service.
Users can also opt to have the app automatically play the songs they have listened to while streaming, if they don’t want their music played when they exit the app, or turn on the “skip songs” option in the app to avoid being streamed.
While Spotify and Tides have been able to draw more subscribers in India as they have gained in popularity, Apple Music is yet to gain a foothold in the country.
The company only had 4 million active subscribers as of last month.
Apple’s success in India is largely a function of its strong customer service.
The iOS app has been one of the most popular iOS apps in India and has more than 5 million downloads in the Indian market, compared to just 3.5 million in China.
Apple also has a significant presence in India with Apple Stores in the state of Tamil Nadu, Bengaluru and other cities in the nation.


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With 5G spectrum auctions coming to a close, telcos are now focused on accelerating the roll-out of 5G networks. The country has started witnessing widespread action in the 5G space as industry stakeholders accelerate their efforts to develop a robust ecosystem. The handset market, being one of these stakeholders, is stepping up its efforts to enable 5G to reach end consumers. As wide-scale 5G networks are on the cusp of being rolled out, smartphone brands are lining up to launch more 5G-enabled handsets.
Smartphones with advanced 5G processors are rapidly capturing consumer share, especially in the affordable and mid-range segments. In these segments, 5G processors have been coupled with features such as enhanced battery life, fast charging technologies and better camera quality. Another key trend has been the rise of telco-handset player partnerships to enable a swift transition to 5G.
According to a report by Cyber Media Research, 5G handset shipments grew 30 per cent year on year in the quarter ended September 2022. On the back of the recent 5G auctions, 5G smartphone shipments are continuing to gain momentum. Meanwhile, handset manufacturers are focused on launching more 5G handsets to cater to the increasing demand. Some vendors have already launched software through which handset users can migrate to 5G networks without replacing their smartphones.
Rising demand for 5G handsets
Demand for 5G handsets has registered monumental growth in India. Over the past few quarters, several brands, including Samsung, Oppo, Vivo, Realme, Motorola and Poco, among others, have launched 5G smartphones across various price ranges. 5G handset prices have gradually been falling since the launch of the technology, in a drive to capture the large chunk of population that is looking for low-priced smartphones. Intense competition among original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and the availability of cheaper 5G chipsets are expected to push down prices further, while the launch of more 5G handsets in the budget segment will further boost demand in the category.
The category of 5G smartphones in the Rs 10,000-Rs 15,000 price segment is expected to be the next big battlefield for handset brands. With the rise in consumer aspirations, the market has shown a fairly quick replacement rate. Moreover, higher internet adoption, propelled by the rise of fintech, e-health and e-learning, is expected to fuel demand for smartphones.
Telco-handset player partnerships
Smartphones with advanced 5G processors are rapidly capturing consumer mindshare, especially in the affordable and mid-range segments. To tap this opportunity and help shape the 5G handset ecosystem, telecom operators are actively inking pacts with handset brands.
For instance, Xiaomi India is collaborating with Airtel to offer support for the telco’s “5G Plus” network on all Xiaomi and Redmi smartphones. The users of Xiaomi 12 Pro, Mi 11 Ultra, Xiaomi 11T Pro, Xiaomi 11 Lite NE 5G, Xiaomi 11i HyperCharge, Xiaomi 11i, Mi 11X Pro, Mi 11X, Mi 10T Pro, Mi 10T and Mi 10 will get the benefits of Airtel 5G. Similarly, in the affordable segment, Redmi K50i, Redmi 11 Prime 5G, Redmi Note 11 Pro+ 5G, Redmi Note 11T 5G and Redmi Note 10T 5G will be able to stream 5G services.
Current users of Xiaomi and Redmi devices with 4G SIMs need not change their SIM cards. Customers can use Airtel 5G services, wherever available, on their existing 4G SIM cards, provided they have smartphones that support 5G networks. Meanwhile, Oppo has announced that all Airtel customers can experience seamless 5G connectivity on its 5G devices.
Further, Reliance Jio is collaborating with Google to develop an ultra-affordable 5G smartphone. According to reports, the phone will have a 6.5 inch HD+IPS LCD screen with a resolution of 1,600 x 720 pixels and a refresh rate of 60 Hz. The device is expected to have Qualcomm Snapdragon 480 5G CPU, 4 GB of RAM, 32 GB of user-expandable storage and an Adreno 619 GPU. The operator is also collaborating with Samsung for its 5G network roll-out in India. Meanwhile, Oppo has released software updates for the Oppo Reno 8 Pro, Oppo Reno 8, Oppo Reno 7, Oppo F21 Pro, Oppo F19 Pro+, Oppo K10 and Oppo A53s, and these devices are now ready for Jio’s stand-alone networks.
Meanwhile, Vodafone Idea Limited (Vi) has partnered with OnePlus to make 5G accessible to smartphone users in India. With this partnership, Vi and OnePlus will work together to drive the 5G ecosystem in the country. OnePlus’s flagship devices, such as the latest OnePlus 10T, OnePlus 10 Pro and OnePlus 10R, as well as the Nord 2T, Nord CE 2 Lite and Nord CE 2, have been tested on the 5G spectrum bands acquired by Vi in Delhi.
Meanwhile, the telco has announced that it will continue to partner with various OEM brands to enable its 4G customers to upgrade their handsets to 5G.
Vi has also partnered with Vivo to drive 5G device adoption in India. Vivo has successfully tested its recently launched smartphones Vivo V25 and T1 5G on the 5G spectrum bands acquired by Vi in New Delhi. Separately, Nokia has announced that Vi will use its dense wavelength division multiplexing (DWDM) solution in the access layer to upgrade its network to 5G in order to meet future service capacity and reliability needs. The new compact and scalable DWDM solution will allow Vi to optimise fibre resources while ensuring the future upgrade capability of its network to 200G and beyond.
Meanwhile, Realme, the first brand to launch a 5G-enabled smartphone in India in 2020, has partnered with Bharti Airtel, Reliance Jio and Vi to offer bundled 5G smartphones.
Further, Apple has rolled out a beta update for select iPhone users in India in order to collect early feedback about the network’s efficiency, ahead of a broader roll-out in December 2022. 5G services have been rolled out with the iOS 16.2 beta update on iPhone 14, iPhone 13, iPhone 12 and iPhone SE(3). Bharti Airtel and Reliance Jio customers using supported iPhones can soon experience 5G speeds before 5G becomes publicly available.
Motorola, a subsidiary of Lenovo, has started rolling out over-the-air updates to its devices to enable support for 5G non-stand-alone (NSA) and SA networks. According to Motorola, the 5G SA software update is being rolled out for Jio users, while the 5G NSA software update is being rolled out for Airtel and Vi users, simultaneously, thereby enabling consumers to experience seamless 5G across operators.
The way forward
Net, net, the handset ecosystem in India is ready to keep pace with the telcos’ aggressive plans for 5G roll-out. The government has also been playing a vital role in shaping the overall 5G landscape. It recently sought weekly or biweekly status updates from telecom operators and smartphone makers on their 5G network roll-outs and the number of devices on-boarding the network. Together, these stakeholders are actively involved in enabling the swift transition to 5G.
Anand Kumar Sah


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Microsoft has begun forcing a Windows 10 PC running version 1903 to be upgraded with a fake 1909 upgrade of the same year. The former retirement deadline is just a few weeks ahead.
Windows 10 1903, an operating system update released by Microsoft in late May 2019, will be removed from the support list on December 8. On that day, Microsoft will publish the final set of 1903 security updates.
“To maintain protection and productivity, we will soon start updating devices running Windows 10 version 1903 to Windows 10 version 1909,” Microsoft said in a message on November 9 in the Windows Release Health Dashboard. I am. “This update is installed like a monthly update, which makes the update experience much faster.”
Microsoft’s behavior here goes against the particle size of previous practices.
After transferring control to users running Windows 10 Home and unmanaged Windows 10 Pro using the Download and Install Now option in 2019, Microsoft reserves the right to force a device upgrade. did. If the user refused the upgrade, Microsoft did the upgrade itself when the in-place version was nearing the end of support. Previously, Microsoft started such a forced upgrade about four months before the version was deprecated, performing the upgrade with the latest release, or the latest release that had been in the real world for at least a few months.
Microsoft deviates from standard and forces Windows 101 903 to upgrade with minor 1909 updates
Source link Microsoft deviates from standard and forces Windows 101 903 to upgrade with minor 1909 updates


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CHICAGO Bullish sentiment about Midwest aluminum spot premiums doesnt appear to have translated into higher prices yet.
Several market sources reported P1020 aluminum premiums in a range of 11.5 to 12 cents per pound, but most havent booked any business at that level this week. As a result, AMMs premiums remain in a range of 11.3 to 12 cents per pound despite some sources insisting that prices are on the rise.
One trader said that his company had booked business in a range of 11.5 to 12 cents per pound last week but not this week.
Another market source said he was aware of 250,000 to 300,000 pounds booked in the same range but hadnt transacted the business himself.
A producer source also said his company was turning away spot business unless the premium was at least 11.5 to 11.75 cents per pound. "Well make something happen at that price," he said.
The producer source wasnt aware of any spot deals being booked at 11.5 to 11.75 cents per pound, but said his company felt no compulsion to take lower-priced deals, given a comfortable load of contract business.
The trader said he was "mildly bullish," given limited availability thanks not so much to material going into warehouses but increased demand from the physical market, including a strong automotive sector and an uptick in building and construction activity.
Premiums were pointing up as activity improves heading into the spring and as traders short metal are bidding up premiums, according to one market observer, who hadnt conducted any transactions for metal. Also bolstering premiums is fear of a potential supply disruption resulting from power rate disagreements between Henderson, Ky.-based Big Rivers Electric Corp. and Rio Tinto Alcans Sebree, Ky., smelter and Century Aluminum Co.s Hawesville, Ky., facility (amm.com, Feb. 4), he said.
But while some sources said the market was inching upward, others said it was flat and spot activity was limited.
"Its pretty much the same" as last week, a second trader said. His company had conducted several smaller deals at premiums of 14 cents or more per pound, he said, but acknowledged that they might not be representative of the overall market, given their size, and because his company sometimes conducts business with customers who are more sensitive to just-in-time requirements than price.


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Smart loan provider LoanSnap has collected $30m in its Series B funding round, which was led by True Ventures True Select Fund IV.
Other contributions came from Baseline Ventures, Virgin Group, AVANTA Ventures, ThomVest Ventures, Liquid 2, WorkPlay Ventures and MANTIS, the investment group founded by the Grammy Award-winning pop duo, The Chainsmokers.
Also joining the round was LinkedIn co-founder and serial entrepreneur Reid Hoffman, among others.
Capital from the round will be used to expand into new loan types and across the US.
Through AI technology, the FinTech analyses a consumer’s finances to show them where they are losing money and help them get a loan recommendation. LoanSnap claims to have saved borrowers $35m in 2020 alone.
The company recently released its Snap Guarantee solution, which commits to closing a customer’s loan within 15 days or the customer receives $500. LoanSnap claims it the first of its kind in the industry.
True Ventures co-founder Phil Black said, “LoanSnap has continued to thrive during an economic climate where other businesses have not been as fortunate.
“Their focus on the needs of their customers and delivering an unparalleled industry experience continues to give us the confidence to lead this round. The world needs a company dedicated to helping customers improve their finances rather than taking advantage of them.”
In conjunction with the deal, LoanSnap named Olivia Man as its new CFO.
LoanSnap previously collected $10m in funding last year. The capital was co-led by True Ventures and MANTIS.
Copyright © 2021 FinTech Global


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It seems that until July 9, Jaguar decided to tease the living daylights out of us with details about their next generation XJ. This time it is is all about driving dynamics. The engine lineup for the new car consists of the new 5.0 Liter V8 as the main gasoline burning engine available, with the 503 HP supercharged version toping the lineup with the XJR. There will also be a 3.0 Liter twin-turbo diesel V6 making 237 HP while returning as much as 40 MPG, but that engine has not been confirmed for the North America market just yet. Check out the video to see what we are talking about.
Jaguar will unveil the new generation XJ luxury sedan on July 9. But before we’ll see the final product, the company keeps teasing us with one more video, this time talking about the sedan’s aluminum body shell.
Jaguar promised to unveil a totally redesigned model in 2009, taking design cues taken from the latest XF-C Concept and the current XF super sedan . Even if the next generation XJ sedan will keep the car’s aluminum platform, everything on the exterior will be changed. As the Indian automaker prepares for its upcoming launch less than a month away in July one thing is for certain. Wherever a future super car is testing, spy photographers are never too far behind!
The now Indian automaker, Jaguar has officially announced that the next generation Jaguar XJ will keep the current 510 HP supercharged V8 from the R models, when it is unveiled this September at the Frankfurt Motor Show. This is a relief for all the Jaguar fans who feared a greener future with a little less horse power from the classic well handling British luxury limousine.
Next to the high performance powerhouse, Jaguar will also offer a wide range of internal combustion engines; mostly borrowed from the current XF and XK models. The majority of the piston pumpers will be gasoline powered with the entry-level model only having six of them. Don’t fret alternatively fueled junkies; there will also be a diesel powered unit.
The top of the line XJ will get the same 5.0 Liter V8 engine found in the current XFR sport sedan and two door XKR . There hasn’t been an XJR since the Vanden Plas trim was added, so this boosted XJ will wear an SV8 badge. However, there is talk of bringing back a 550 HP R version, but not anytime soon.
The now Indian automaker, Jaguar, has just revealed a new teaser for their upcoming 2010 XJ luxury sedan. In this one Matt Jones explains the sound system. The new model will make its world debut in July ! Stay tuned!
The next generation Jaguar XJ luxury limousine will be a much more aggressive vehicle than its predecessor. The automaker will unveil their new XJ on July 9th of this year. Codenamed X351, the new sedan is a "fresh break for Jaguar," with headlamps inspired by the C-XF concept car, a full glass roof and a particularly interesting rear post treatment.
The future Jaguar XJ will use aluminum as its primary building material, with an aim at keeping the weight below 3,800 pounds. The engine lineup for the next XJ will include a 3.0 Liter V6 making 235 HP, a 5.0 Liter V8 pumping out 380 HP and a top of the line 5.0 Liter supercharged V8 making 503 HP. For alternatively fueled conscious individuals, Jaguar will offer a 3.0 Liter turbo diesel V6 making 237 HP and 271 lb-ft of torque.
So far, the Indian automaker hasn’t said anything about a high performance XJR version just yet. So for now, Mercedes Benz’s performance brand, AMG, can breath easy, but if Jaguar ever does decide to go all out on an XJ, you can bet that Top Speed will be in line for a test drive.
The man responsible for the appearance of the modern Aston Martin and Jaguar, Ian Callum is offering a short interview about the next Jaguar XJ luxury sedan . Among other things, Callum said that the new XJ is like nothing seen before, and that the design team “took 30 years of learning and put it into something that is very complete”. Have a look and judge for yourself.
Jaguar revealed the first teasers and some info today of the 2010 XJ at the Shangai Auto Show. The data from Jag was stuff the we pretty much already knew - the new 5.0-liter V8, including the 510 hp supercharged version , will be available as well as a carryover of the diesel V6 (but not likely in the U.S.) It will have a light aluminum body and even a panoramic roof.
But the big news are the new threads. The current XJ has been an evolution of a 40+ year-old design, and Jaguar has made no secret of its intentions to change the style for the 2010 car. Just look at the front end:
We shouldn’t have to wait too long for more information to start hitting the streets. Jaguar plans to have the official reveal of the next XJ in London on July 9th, and the cars should be on the streets by early 2010.


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Revealed: The $10 highlighter that's nearly identical to beauty products almost five times the price
- Pinterest released a list of the site's most pinned highlighters
- A $10 highlighter from E.L.F cosmetics took out their number one spot
- The cheap beauty buy can be found online or in Australian Kmart stores
- The highlighter comes in four different shades: blush, pearl, pink and apricot
- Many have cited that it is identical and as good as products five times the price
For many beauty lovers, highlighter is the icing on the cake in their make up regime.
Now, one that costs just $10 is taking the beauty world by storm.
In new data, visual scrapbooking site Pinterest has revealed a list of the site's most pinned highlighters.
Filling the number one place? A budget-friendly product from E.L.F Cosmetics, which can be found online or in Australian Kmart stores.
Pinterest has searched through their data to release a list of the site's most pinned highlighters and the budget friendly product from E.L.F Cosmetics took out the number one place
The cheap beauty buy is available in four different shades: Blush Gems, Moonlight Pearls, Pink Diamonds and Apricot Glow.
The formula is baked, and can be applied wet if you're after a vibrant effect or dry if you are after something sheer.
Many users online have claimed that to make this product work you need to scrape off the first layer of powder as there's a hard coating of product.
Some have claimed that the shades, Blush Gems and Pink Diamonds, are perfect dupes for Jeffree Star's Skin Frosts more expensive $43 highlighter.
Others have found that the Blush Gems shade is the perfect alternative to the $48 MAC Soft and Gentle highlighter.
This AUD $10 baked highlighter has taken the internet by storm, which can be found online or in Kmart
The E.L.F highlighters have been compared to a variety of high-end highlighters on the market
Moonlight Pearls is considered to be a perfect dupe for the Becca and Laura Mercier products.
Although the highlighter has been receiving rave reviews online there are also those who dislike the product, saying they don't like the initial surface of it and think it's hard to build up.
Some also claim that there isn't enough pigmentation but for $10 it is definitely a steal.
Although the highlighter has been receiving rave reviews online there are also those who dislike the product
The highlighter is designed to illuminate the face through subtle micro-shimmer and also add a soft amount of colour.
Each one has been infused with Vitamin E, Jojoba, Sunflower, Apricot and Grape seed oils - which aim to nourish and hydrate the skin.
Pinterest has proved again that they have become a go-to for those seeking the latest about beauty products and wanting to know the best the industry has to offer.
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By SouthFloridaReporter.com, Nov. 22, 2015 – Virgin America and Zappos, the leading online shoe and apparel retailer, have announced a unique partnership with the limited edition ‘Virgin America Pump in Concourse Red.‘ The Stuart Weitzman Virgin America Pump sells for $355.
“Travel can be stylish and fun – and this limited edition shoe was designed with an eye for both function and fashion. Created to be both comfortable and chic, it is the perfect travel accessory,” said Luanne Calvert, Chief Marketing Officer at Virgin America.
“Virgin America and Zappos are two brands known for elevating the customer experience – and we saw an opportunity to design a heel that was tailored for the demands of the airline’s in-flight teammates and that our customers would love too,” said Galen Hardy, Senior Director of Partnerships, of Zappos.
The concept for Virgin America teammates’ look – from uniform to hair and makeup – is “effortless travel chic.” The airline launched a new uniform in 2012, which included a red dress as a way for teammates to show support for the American Heart Association. The optional uniform option quickly became one of the most popular pieces for teammates and the following year, the red dress was officially made a permanent teammate uniform option. Virgin America teammates have also participated in the AHA Heart Walk every year since 2009 – and have raised nearly $70,000 for the organization to support awareness, research, education and community programs to benefit women.
*Virgin America will donate $10 from the sale of each pump from November 17, 2015 to December 18, 2015 to the American Heart Association, with a maximum donation of $35,000(cash and in-kind value).


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Apple stands out as America’s most intimate brand in the Brand Intimacy Report of 2018.
As the world changes dramatically and impacts how we buy and sell, new approaches have become a much sought-after currency for survival in today’s complex business environment.
While companies have tried various approaches, a strategy of building consumer loyalty has turned out to be one of the primary ingredients for success, turning brand intimacy into market advantage.
This new business environment has given MBLM—a self-proclaimed “brand intimacy agency” that ranks brands based on their numbers of users and the intensity of their customer relationships—the tools to study and determine this new paradigm in marketing, which is becoming key to branding success.
In their 2018 Brand Intimacy Report on the top-performing brands in the U.S., data shows that the Cupertino, California-headquartered Apple is the most “intimate” brand in the U.S., considerably ahead of all other brands, and also ranks #1 in the MBLM Mexico and UAE findings.
The company, founded by Steve Jobs, is strongly associated with lifestyle enhancement, making users feel smarter and more connected. Meanwhile, Amazon climbed to #2, improving its ranking from last year’s 3rd place; BMW is #3; Jeep seals #4 with a 42% intimate relationship with customers; Disney is #5 while Youtube, Target, Netflix, Whole Foods and Google complete the top-ten.
Intimate relationships by demographics
Brand relations with customers are also impacted by gender, age and income.
According to the index, both women and men in the U.S. feel most emotionally attached to Apple. Both genders also share the same industries among their top 5 brands: technology & telecommunications, retail, entertainment and automotive, although women favored the retail sector.
Apple, Amazon and Target build emotional bonds across all age groups (18-54), however, industries such as entertainment and retail appear to be popular among both young and older consumers.
As for income, only Apple and Amazon are intimate across all segments ($35-$150K).
Presenting a new paradigm in marketing
The study of these emotional connections we form with our brands and services has become a crucial tool for marketing executives.
On June 6th, 2018, Claude Salzberger, founder and President of MBLM, and Rodrigo Diez, Director of MBLM Mexico, presented the book “Brand Intimacy: A New Paradigm in Marketing”, by Mario Natarelli and Rina Plapler, which talks about the fast-paced, constantly-changing world of the modern marketplace and how brands must constantly reinvent themselves to remain relevant.
At the event, Claude, who has personally directed some of the most highly acclaimed branding programs over the last three decades, spoke on the challenge of branding and how companies can fashion a message of empathy that helps them reach their customers.
“Companies have to be creative. To form a strategy, they have to identify the characteristics their customers are looking for, hone them and deliver a clear and intended message.
The great obstacle is finding the right creative message for the company‘s image. All the elements have to be used, because at the end of the day, it‘s the competitive edge many brands rely on.”
Brands will remain important in forming consumer habits. Nevertheless, the market continues to be open to shifts and transformations that could place any company of any industry at the top of the world’s most intimate brands.


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Bitcoin Cash Community Embraces Zero Confirmation Transactions
Zero Confirmation Transactions and the Bitcoin Snack MachineZero confirmation transactions are transactions that are broadcast to the network but have not been etched into the blockchain. People like the idea of zero confirm acceptance because the method makes fast payments desirable for both the merchant and customer. However, the topic is also controversial at times because some individuals think the concept can be risky due to double spends and because there have been a few occasions of double spends within both the Bitcoin Core (BTC) and Bitcoin Cash (BCH) networks. Even with these statistics, individuals think the use of zero confirmation transactions is key to broader cryptocurrency acceptance and others have proposed solutions to the zero confirmation doubles spending. In a discussion called the “Bitcoin Snack Machine” on the website Bitcointalk.org, Satoshi Nakamoto talked about zero confirmation acceptance back in July 2010. “I believe it’ll be possible for a payment processing company to provide as a service the rapid distribution of transactions with good-enough checking in something like 10 seconds or less,” Nakamoto details. “The network nodes only accept the first version of a transaction they receive to incorporate into the block they’re trying to generate.”
When you broadcast a transaction, if someone else broadcasts a double-spend at the same time, it’s a race to propagate to the most nodes first. If one has a slight head start, it’ll geometrically spread through the network faster and get most of the nodes.
Double Spend RelayingLots of BCH accepting merchants have been accepting zero confirmations for quite some time, now including Cryptonize.it, Bitasia Exchange, Keys4coins, Bitpay, Satoshi Dice, Mini-POS, Lieferando, and more. Furthermore, Bitcoin developers have been discussing making zero confirmations even safer on the network by using different signaling methods for years. A while ago, back in 2015, the Bitcoin developer Mike Hearn discussed some solutions in a paper called, “Double spending in Bitcoin and how to make it harder.” In the paper, he discusses a relay method introduced into the Bitcoin Core (BTC) network that was later removed by Core developers. “That’s why Gavin Andresen and Tom Harding have implemented double spend relaying. This is a change to Bitcoin that makes nodes relay the first double spend of any given transaction that they see (but not others, in order to conserve bandwidth),” Hearn explains.
Because of endless arguments about the attempt to fight double spends, Bitcoin Core squashed the protocol but Hearn and Harding kept it in Bitcoin XT. Tom Harding, the Lead Developer of Bitcoin XT, has been discussing and heavily researching the topic with BCH and talked about a relay system in his presentation ‘Native Respend Resistance’ at the Satoshi Vision Conference in Tokyo.Both the Bitcoin Core wallet and the next release of the bitcoinj wallet know how to inform the user of conflicting unconfirmed transactions. BitcoinJ already tells you when an unconfirmed transaction is “killed” by a double spend getting confirmed, but informing the user as soon as the double spend is broadcast will go a lot further.
A Mechanism to Construct Special Transaction OutputsThere have been others who have researched other methods like the researchers at the Department of Information Engineering and Communications, at the Autonomous University of Barcelona. “In order to discourage double-spending attacks, we propose a mechanism to construct special transaction outputs,” details the research paper called ‘Double-spending Prevention for Bitcoin Zero-Confirmation Transactions.’ “Such outputs can be spent with a single signature but have the property that if two different signatures for the same output are disclosed (for instance, in two different transactions spending the same output as a double-spending attack), the private key used to sign the transaction is revealed.”
This allows any observer to generate a third transaction spending the same output and sending the amount to an address controlled by himself.
Two Bitcoin Cash Proposals Geared Towards Double Spend Alerts and ProofsLastly, there are two protocol development proposals that would also bolster the use of zero confirmation transactions on the BCH chain. The Openbazaar developer Chris Pacia has written a proposal called “Double Spend Alerts” which is a BCH network message that alerts nodes when a double spend occurs on an unconfirmed transaction. However, Pacia notes the detection does not prevent all types of double spends and states “further technical advances are needed.” The Bitcoin Unlimited team has a method under development called “Double Spend Proof Creation and Forwarding.” “By receiving double spend proofs sellers learn about attempts to defraud them faster and can take appropriate steps — This will make a 0-conf transaction on Bitcoin Cash more safe and will give it broader acceptance,” the proposal ‘BUIP088’ reads.
So far, many Bitcoin Cash supporters are supportive of these ideas and concepts that would prevent and alert network participants of future double spends. Moreover, a lot more merchants and businesses are accepting zero confirmation BCH transactions as well by trusting the network and the low probability of double spend risks. As Satoshi once stated in 2010, the risk of double spends towards zero confirmation transactions on the Bitcoin network, would be far less than the fraud that takes place with credit cards. But at the end of the day, its the merchants’ decision whether or not they want to accept instantaneous payments or wait for a confirmation on the blockchain. What do you think about zero confirmation transactions? Let us know your thoughts about the subject in the comment section below.The goal of the implementation is that any node that has access to both transactions can create the proof — And that any other node (even with none of those transactions in the mempool) can validate and forward it.
Images via Shutterstock, Pixabay, The Incredibles, and Wiki Commons.
Get our news feed on your site. Check our widget services. The post Bitcoin Cash Community Embraces Zero Confirmation Transactions appeared first on Bitcoin News.
BCH bitcoin cash Bitcoin Snack Machine Bitcoin Unlimited Bitcoin XT Blocks Chris Pacia double spend instant July 2010 Mike Hearn N-Technology nodes Satoshi Nakamoto speed Technology & Security Tom Harding transactions Verification zero confirmation


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Outsourcer and Failed Hewlett-Packard CEO Responsible for Laying Off Hundreds of Granite State Workers, Carly Fiorina, Stumps for Fellow Failed CEO, Walt Havenstein, and Scott Brown, Who Profited Off Outsourcing Company
Manchester, NH – Just two days after campaigning with economic disaster Governor Chris Christie, failed CEO Walt Havenstein, whose record at SAIC included shedding thousands of jobs, and Scott Brown, who made over a quarter million dollars off a company that outsourced jobs, Republicans are welcoming the support of job-killing CEO Carly Fiorina.
“Walt Havenstein and Scott Brown don't do themselves any favors when they welcome job-killing CEO Carly Fiorina, who Granite Staters remember for handing pink slips to hundreds of New Hampshire workers, sending thousands of American jobs overseas and overseeing the company's stock value take a nose-dive, while at the same time tripling her own salary,” said New Hampshire Democratic Party Deputy Communications Director Bryan Lesswing. “The similarities between Fiorina and the NHGOP's candidates are clear. Just like Fiorina's disastrous economic record, Havenstein's mismanagement at SAIC ran the company into a ditch as SAIC shed 5,000 jobs and the company's stock value plummeted 32 percent, all while he made $20 million for himself. And while Fiorina oversaw the outsourcing of American jobs to low-wage countries to increase her company's bottom line, Brown endorsed an outsourcing business strategy to increase the bottom line of a company that was paying him more than a quarter million dollars.”
Havenstein's disastrous economic record as CEO of SAIC mirrors that of Fiorina. Under Fiorina's watch as CEO at Hewlett-Packard, the company sent thousands of jobs overseas, including laying off hundreds of Granite State workers and it's stock value took a nose-dive, while at the same time Fiorina tripled her salary. As CEO, Havenstein implemented a failed strategy, SAIC lost millions of dollars in revenue, shed 5,000 jobs, and the company's stock plummeted 32 percent, all while he made $20 million for himself.
Scott Brown seems to have taken cues from Fiorina's outsourcing business strategy. He cashed in to the tune of $270,000 by serving on the Board of Directors of a Massachusetts-based company that had shipped jobs U.S. overseas. Then, he signed official legal documents endorsing a strategy that included using low-wage countries like China and Mexico to pad the company's bottom line.
“As Havenstein and Brown elevate figures like job-killing CEO Carly Fiorina with disastrous economic records, they only makes it more clear to Granite Staters that they put their interests first, and they can't be trusted to look out for the priorities of middle-class families,” continued Lesswing.
Fiorina Laid Off 180 NH Workers In 2004.
“HP’s last wave of layoffs at the site came in 2004, when 180 employees got pink slips.” [Nashua Telegraph, 12/12/2007]
Fiorina Laid Off 50 NH Workers In 2003.
Just as business in the high-tech industry appears to be picking up, Hewlett-Packard Co. said it will cashier 50 workers in Massachusetts and 50 in New Hampshire by the end of this month. And there could be additional layoffs in both states over the next year, the company said. [Boston Globe, 10/12/2003]
Fiorina Tripled Her Own Salary & Shipped Jobs Overseas While Firing American Workers.
“And Fiorina has not been shy about acknowledging that many jobs were outsourced overseas. In January 2004, Fiorina provocatively told Congress, ‘There is no job that is America’s God-given right anymore.'” [Politifact, 9/15/2010]
Carly Fiorina Was HP CEO And Chairwoman From 1999 to 2005.
[Market Watch, 2/9/2005]


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Thanks to the fine French-speaking folks at Eurogamer France, Eurogamer has a more thorough translation of Michel Ancel's interview regarding his upcoming game for Ubisoft, Beyond Good & Evil 2. According to their translation, Ancel reveals inspiration in "the theme of September 11 - the CNN ...
Posted on Jan 27th 2015 8:15AM
Posted on Jan 26th 2015 11:00AM
Posted on Jan 26th 2015 10:00AM


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Ever wish you could understand what your pet is saying, or even thinking? Science suggests that we may be able to sooner than you may think.
Most pet owners have probably thought to themselves, "I wonder what she's trying to say" at the sound of a repetitive bark or whine from a four-legged friend, and according to tech giant Amazon, we may be able to decipher such codes in the not-so-distant future.
Consumer futurist William Higham has reportedly been commissioned by the company in connection with their Shop the Future feature, and his work will hopefully lead to technology that can make pet translation devices a real possibility.
Using research conducted by professor emeritus of biology at the University of Arizona and director of the Animal Language Institute, Con Slobodchikoff, the study of prairie dog vocalizations revealed various "words" used by the species, to differentiate everything from types of predators to the color of a person's shirt.
Slobodchikoff believes that the method of communication used among dogs can be studied in a similar capacity.
While we may never be able to hold a conversation with our furry friends in the same ways we do with our fellow humans, the possibility of understanding what he or she might be saying may help with certain behavioral issues, not to mention allow us to understand what our particular pet may or may not prefer.
Bingham feels that, with the relationship between pet and owner growing closer every year, and with more and more money being spend on our furry friends, the time to invest in such technology is certainly now.
In addition to translating animal sounds, Bingham also supposes that the devices may be of use to small children, who often misread signals given by dogs, which can sometimes result in a dangerous scenario, as well as for those generally lacking intuition when attempting to interpret a situation involving an animal.
What do you think of Amazon's new project? Tell us in the comments below.
WATCH NOW: Pets Lead to Good Health


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23 January 2023
(NewsNation) — Spotify has joined the ranks of tech companies laying off workers as 2023 begins.
Spotify will cut roughly 6% of its workforce, which amounts to about 600 people. In a memo, CEO Daniel Elk took the blame for being overly ambitious, and the company has faced a post-pandemic slowdown.
Stockholm-based Spotify had benefited from pandemic lockdowns because more people had sought out entertainment when they were stuck at home. Ek indicated that the company’s business model, which had long focused on growth, had to evolve.
The company’s operating costs last year grew at double its revenue growth, a gap that would be “unsustainable long-term” in any economic climate, but even more difficult to close with “a challenging macro environment,” he said.
Spotify made a “considerable effort” to rein in the costs over the past few months, “but it simply hasn’t been enough,” he said.
Elk’s memo included a promise that employees would receive five months of severance pay along with health care and immigration support for those who have visas tied to their job.
Spotify is just the latest tech company to announce layoffs after a hiring spree during the pandemic, during which more people were using technology to do remote work and provide entertainment at home.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.


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Online video consumption has seen tremendous growth in recent years, with a surge in users being fueled by longer stay-at-home periods during the pandemic. According to a report by Bain & Company, India’s vast base of about 640 million internet users, of which about 550 million are smartphone users, is growing rapidly and spending more time online. Currently the market is occupied by a mix of global social media/video giants like Instagram Reels, Facebook Reels, YouTube Shorts, to domestic companies like Moj, Josh, MX TakaTak, Roposo and others.
Indians are increasingly following short videos and apps. According to recent reports, the reach of short videos among all smartphone users in India is projected to increase from 46% to 80% by 2030. Industry experts believe that the reason for the increase in consumption of short videos is viewers’ desire for relevant and engaging content. “People have started paying more attention to shorter formats for three reasons. One is that over the past three decades, consumers’ attention spans have shrunk and shorter formats have become more prevalent. The second critical factor is the constant desire for fresh and engaging content. Third, with better access to the internet, there is an emergence of new creators across India, which has brought the diversity of India to the public eye,” Ajit Varghese, Chief Commercial Officer, ShareChat and Moj, told BrandWagon Online.
The short video segment experienced a resurgence following the ban of Chinese app TikTok in 2020. Back then, TikTok had over 200 million users in India and the app’s sudden absence created a vacuum that allowed other players to scale. For example, existing short-form video apps alongside TikTok saw an average 1.37x growth in monthly active users (MAUs) through the end of 2021 after the ban, according to RedSeer.
The game of monetization
Last month, YouTube announced that it had seen encouraging results from its early monetization efforts for its product called YouTube Shorts, bringing talk of monetization for creators on a short-form app in a new format. Industry representatives see this as a sign that the creator economy is maturing. “Ultimately, platforms must constantly evolve to remain relevant to developers. For YouTubers, this will increase their incentive to be more active on YouTube. This could also be a game to reassure their stakeholders in the face of declining growth, which they had transformed during the pandemic,” opined Rishabh Shekhar, co-founder of Pepper Content.
However, the biggest challenge in this segment is the introduction of new monetization models. Currently, monetization of a short-form app takes place in two formats – brand sponsorship and advertising. Brand sponsorship is when brands partner with content creators and influencers to run paid advertising campaigns or videos to gain greater reach from the influencer community. However, industry experts are hoping that the rise of social e-commerce could change that. Experts claim that social selling could be a new form of monetization that may emerge. “While the short format is entertaining, it also offers a greater opportunity for social commerce as the developers have a very engaged follower base and their recommendations have the potential to drive sales,” said Ashit Chakravarty, executive vice president, Dentsu Webchutney .
Backing up this claim is a report by RedSeer stating that four key factors that will drive the growth of short-form video apps in India are video commerce to help non-tech savvy shoppers; growth of D2C brands; close ties to micro/nano-influencers; and local sourcing and low average order value of the product.
Some players have already experimented with social selling. Last year, Moj partnered with Flipkart to launch video trading on the platform. According to the company, which is still in the pilot phase, it has seen acceptance among its users and is confident that social commerce will experience rapid growth over the next two years. Moj has also experimented with newer monetization models for their creators. “Moj offers creatives multiple revenue-generating options through influencer marketing, virtual gifting, and live and video commerce. Virtual gifting on ShareChat has already surpassed $50 million in ARR since launching in January last year,” added Varghese.
According to a report by RedSeer Consulting, short video apps will create a monetization opportunity of up to $19 billion by 2030. Currently, short video apps account for only 1% of total digital advertising spend. Going forward, however, the sector may account for 10-20% of the total digital advertising pie, which the consultancy has estimated will be worth nearly $6 billion by 2030. As the industry moves at breakneck speed, are the players? Only time can tell.
Also Read: Media Technology Soars As Sector Sees Funding Boost 212.9% To $2.1 Billion In 2021
Also Read: How Voot Achieved 58% Revenue Growth; it’s volume versus value
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President Donald Trump speaks with Satya Nadella, Chief Government Officer of Microsoft, and Jeff Bezos, Chief Government Officer of Amazon throughout an American Expertise Council roundtable within the State Dinning Room on the White Home in Washington on June 19, 2017.
Jabin Botsford | The Washington Submit | Getty Pictures
Microsoft has filed a protest with the Authorities Accountability Workplace in opposition to the Nationwide Safety Company, difficult its award of a cloud computing contract.
The NSA contract to Amazon comes on the heels of the Pentagon’s resolution to cancel its $10 billion cloud contract, referred to as JEDI, or Joint Enterprise Protection Infrastructure. The JEDI deal, embroiled in a prolonged authorized battle between tech giants Amazon and Microsoft, has turn into probably the most tangled contracts for the Pentagon.
The NSA contract, additionally value as much as $10 billion, is codenamed “WildandStormy” and supposed to modernize the company’s categorized knowledge storage, Nextgov reported.
In a press release to CNBC, a spokesman for the NSA stated that the company “just lately awarded a contract for cloud computing companies,” declining to elaborate additional on the matter.
“The unsuccessful offeror has filed a protest with the Authorities Accountability Workplace. The Company will reply to the protest in accordance with applicable federal laws,” the spokesman added.
A Microsoft spokesperson advised CNBC in a press release: “Primarily based on the choice we’re submitting an administrative protest by way of the Authorities Accountability Workplace. We’re exercising our authorized rights and can accomplish that rigorously and responsibly.”
AWS referred inquiries to the NSA.
The profitable JEDI cloud contract was supposed to modernize the Pentagon’s IT operations for companies rendered over as many as 10 years. Microsoft was awarded the cloud computing contract in 2019, beating out market chief Amazon Internet Companies.
A month later, Amazon’s cloud computing unit, AWS, filed a lawsuit within the U.S. Court docket of Federal Claims protesting the JEDI resolution.
The corporate argued President Donald Trump’s bias in opposition to Amazon and its then-CEO, Jeff Bezos, influenced the Pentagon to offer the contract to Microsoft.
Final 12 months, the Pentagon’s inspector normal launched a report saying the award did not look like influenced by the White Home.
Nonetheless, the inspector normal famous within the 313-page report revealed in April 2020 that it had restricted cooperation from White Home officers all through its overview and, because of this, it couldn’t full its evaluation of allegations of moral misconduct.
A Pentagon official stated on a name with reporters the litigation itself was not essentially the primary purpose for the shifted method. However given how a lot the panorama modified through the interim, the company decided its wants had additionally shifted.
— CNBC’s Jordan Novet and Lauren Feiner contributed reporting to this text.


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With fabrics derived from wood pulp like rayon, viscose, modal and lyocell estimated to double global production in the next decade, its urgent that consumers only buy trademarked fabrics that show their transparent lineage in order to stem deforestation.
"I see a lot of "deforestation viscose" being sold by designers and fabric wholesalers, even some saying it's "Tencel" fabric when in fact its fake, and they're illegally using the trademark name of Austrian company LENZING™ whose TENCEL™ viscose is one of the top eco-textiles in the world", says Alison Jose, of STSC. Sustainable Textile Supply Chain.
These cellulosic fabrics start their journey as trees, however environmental not-for-profit Canopy, shows research that both ancient and endangered forests are increasingly making their way into clothing.
Canopy works with the forest industry’s biggest customers and their suppliers to develop business solutions that protect endangered forests, and Lenzing received forestry accreditation from Canopy.
"Depending on the region, 35 to 60 percent of the world’s forests continue to be felled to manufacture the products we consume, from tee shirts to toilet paper. The loss of these critical forests puts species, communities and our climate at risk."
Canopy's latest Hot Button Report in December 2019 shows three major producers, Lenzing, Birla Cellulose, and filament yarn producer ENKA, representing 28% of global viscose supply, attained the top ‘light green shirt’ rankings.
In an effort to both educate and support fashion designers to gain access to true sustainable textiles, STSC works closely with Lenzing and associated Mills to offer small fabric MOQs (min order quantity) opportunities. This is especially important for emerging designers as most Mills usually only produce MOQs of 1,000 metres which is both expensive but also causing material waste.
STSC are one of the first wholesalers to focus particularly on LENZING™ ECOVERO™ - the latest branded viscose, and one of the most sustainable produced viscose fibers in the world. Derived from sustainable wood and pulp, coming from Europe's highest certification forest sources, it also sets the benchmark to achieve 99.8% closed loop capture when making the yarn.
"I think this new step-up in sustainable production is definitely evident as its got an earthier feel than all other viscose fabrics and designers are telling me how it has a really gorgeous drape so its a win-win," says Alison.
More eco than even organic cotton as it requires drastically less water when grown because generally a cotton plant requires the same amount of water whether it's organic or not. Good news however is that "80% of organic cotton is rain-fed, which reduces pressure on local water sources. The absence of chemicals also means that water is cleaner and safer.
Cotton is often grown in water-scarce areas using irrigation and it takes 2,700 liters of water to make a conventional cotton t-shirt," writes aboutorganiccotton.org
In an effort to help stop the use of regular viscose that causes mass deforestation and the release of toxic chemicals, plus educate both designers and customers, STSC ensures that designers receive trademarked swing tags with the fabric, so designers can show material transparency and help with their marketing.
STSC has a current Batch order of low MOQ EcoVero fabric available to purchase online at https://www.sustainabletextiles.club/blog/ecovero


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PM Phuc arrives in Canberra, starting official visit to Australia (Thursday, March 15,2018)
Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc and his entourage arrived in Canberra at 2 pm (local time) on March 14, to begin an official visit to Australia and attend the ASEAN-Australia Special Summit at the invitation of Australian Prime Minister Malcom Turnbull.
African nations sign largest free trade agreement since WTO (Thursday, March 15,2018)
African leaders on Wednesday signed what is being called the largest free trade agreement since the creation of the World Trade Organization.
Trump says he might drop tariffs for Mexico and Canada - if they do what he wants on NAFTA (Thursday, March 15,2018)
Trump tweeted he might exempt Canada and Mexico from steel and aluminum tariffs if they agree to a “fair” NAFTA.
Singapore calls on ASEAN to enhance economic integration (Thursday, March 15,2018)
Singapore's Minister for Trade and Industry (Trade) Lim Hng Kiang said on Thursday all ASEAN members must keep pursuing deeper economic integration and liberalization so that citizens can enjoy the benefits of their collective community efforts.
The New CPTPP Trade Pact is Much Like the Old TPP (Thursday, March 15,2018)
The new agreement that eleven countries are signing on 8 March in Chile in place of the Trans Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP) is like old wine in a new bottle - without the United States but retaining most of its controversial elements.
10th WTO-WIPO advanced course on intellectual property for policymakers opens in Geneva (Thursday, March 15,2018)
A two-week Advanced Course on Intellectual Property for Government Officials, jointly organized by the WTO and the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), opened in Geneva on 12 March 2018. The training aims to enhance the capacity of developing country governments to develop and implement national expertise in intellectual property (IP) matters. The course is the tenth in an annual series of WTO-WIPO courses and will run over until 23 March. Thirty officials from developing countries are participating in the course.
DG Azevêdo in Brazil: Global Cooperation is essential to overcome economic challenges (Thursday, March 15,2018)
Director-General Roberto Azevêdo wrapped up his visit to Brazil on March 15 at the World Economic Forum Latin America Summit in São Paulo, where he praised the sustained recovery of the Brazilian economy and discussed how trade and global cooperation can help countries overcome economic challenges and promote growth, development and job creation. During the summit, the Director-General took part in a key-note panel discussion entitled ‘A New Deal on Globalization’ and in a session entitled ‘E-commerce: expanding Trade Horizons’.
ASEAN’s mega infrastructure future to fuel economic growth (Thursday, March 15,2018)
A global law firm partner has identified mega projects and infrastructure needs as the key drivers of economic growth in ASEAN countries over the next five years.
Why Canada must move quickly on the new Asian trade pact (Thursday, March 15,2018)
Now that International Trade Minister François-Philippe Champagne has put Canada's signature on the Comprehensive and Progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) agreement, the doors to the Asia-Pacific are about to crack open for Canadian businesses. But first, the federal government must get the agreement to Parliament for ratification – and, for Canadian business to get the most out of the deal, it needs to do so immediately.
DOC receives petitions for anti dumping investigation on Vietnam’s plastic bags (Wednesday, March 14,2018)
The US Department of Commerce (DOC) has received petitions on an anti-dumping investigation into polyethylene retail carrier bags (plastic bags) from Vietnam, reported the Department of Trade Defence under the Ministry of Industry and Trade of Vietnam.
Vietnamese, Lao provinces seek to boost cross-border trade (Wednesday, March 14,2018)
Optimal measures to facilitate cross-border trading of agricultural products and materials through Lao Bao-Densavan international border gate between Vietnam’s central Quang Tri province and Savannakhet province of Laos were discussed at a workshop held in Dong Ha city of Quang Tri on March 13.
Vietnam encourages Japanese investment in manufacturing, hi-tech agriculture (Tuesday, March 13,2018)
Vietnam always encourages and creates all possible conditions for Japanese firms to invest in the country, especially in manufacturing industry and high-tech agriculture, Vice President Dang Thi Ngoc Thinh has said.
PM attends Vietnam-New Zealand Business Forum (Tuesday, March 13,2018)
Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc advocated boosting cooperation between Vietnam and New Zealand in fields of mutual interest such as education-training, organic agriculture, smart agriculture, and infrastructure while addressing the Vietnam-New Zealand Business Forum in Auckland on March 13.
PM visits Auckland University of Technology, meets OVs in New Zealand (Tuesday, March 13,2018)
Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc, his wife and delegation on March 12 visited the Auckland University of Technology (AUT) where he also met with representatives of Vietnamese people in New Zealand as part of his official visit to New Zealand from March 11-14.
PM Nguyen Xuan Phuc leaves for visits to New Zealand, Australia (Monday, March 12,2018)
Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc and his spouse and a high-level delegation left Hanoi on March 11 for an official visit to New Zealand from March 11 -14 at the invitation of New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern.
Vietnam urged to encourage ASEAN nations to join OECD (Friday, March 9,2018)
Vietnam should encourage other ASEAN members to join the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), a senior official from the Japanese Foreign Ministry said at the Ministerial Conference of the OECD in Tokyo on March 8.
PM orders meticulous preparation for GMS, CLV summits (Thursday, March 8,2018)
Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc urged the organising board of the 6th Greater Mekong Sub-region (GMS-6) Summit and the 10th Cambodia-Laos-Vietnam (CLV-10) Development Triangle Summit to forge ahead with thorough preparations for the events which are scheduled in Hanoi from March 29-31.
Transport – a highlight of GMS Economic Cooperation Programme (Thursday, March 8,2018)
With financial aid from the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and other sponsors, the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) Economic Cooperation Programme has supported the region to carry out a number of priority projects with notable outcomes recorded in the field of transport.
Vietnam backs direct air route to Bangladesh (Wednesday, March 7,2018)
Vietnam supports the opening of a direct air route to Bangladesh in the near future, President Tran Dai Quang said at a reception for the President of the Bangladesh Business Council on March 6.
Vietnam attends Foodex Japan 2018 (Wednesday, March 7,2018)
Twenty Vietnamese businesses attended Japan’s largest international food and beverage exhibition, Foodex Japan 2018 at the Makuhari Messe convention centre in Chiba on March 6.
Vietnam resolves to make EU lift ‘yellow card’ on seafood (Tuesday, March 6,2018)
The Vietnamese agency assigned to the oversight of the food industry has been implementing various stringent measures in an effort to have the ‘yellow card’ by the European Commission (EC) rescinded.
“Meet The USA 2018” conference- good opportunity for development links (Tuesday, March 6,2018)
The Vietnam Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Da Nang People’s Committee, the US Embassy and the American Chamber of Commerce in Vietnam (AmCham) jointly held "Meet The USA 2018” conference in the central city of Da Nang on March 5.
Vietnam- Bangladesh joint statement stresses cooperation expansion (Tuesday, March 6,2018)
Vietnam and Bangladesh have issued a joint statement, agreeing to work out ways and means to further expand and strengthen meaningful bilateral cooperation in all areas of mutual benefit.
President Quang arrives in Dhaka for State visit to Bangladesh (Monday, March 5,2018)
President Tran Dai Quang,his wife and delegation arrived in Dhaka on March 4 afternoon (local time), beginning a three-day State visit to Bangladesh at the invitation of President Mohammad Abdul Hamid.
MoIT urges US to carefully consider restrictions to steel imports (Monday, March 5,2018)
The Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) has requested the US to carefully consider alternative means to restrict the import of steel and aluminum products from Vietnam.
Vietnam-Bangladesh trade expected to soar after President’s visit (Monday, March 5,2018)
President Tran Dai Quang’s State visit to Bangladesh from March 4-6 is expected to blow a breath of air, bringing two-way trade to the higher level in the near future.
ASEAN economic ministers meet in Singapore (Friday, March 2,2018)
Economic chiefs of the 10 ASEAN countries gathered in Singapore on March 1 for the 24th ASEAN Economic Ministers’ Retreat (AEM Retreat).
President Tran Dai Quang leaves for India (Friday, March 2,2018)
President Tran Dai Quang, his wife, and a high-level delegation left Hanoi on March 2 morning to pay a three-day State visit to India.
Vietnam priotizes joint efforts to boost ASEM cooperation (Friday, March 2,2018)
Vietnam always places importance and high priority on contributing to concerted efforts to enhance the role of the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) cooperation.
President affirms encouraging more Indian investments in Vietnam (Thursday, March 1,2018)
President Tran Dai Quang has said that Vietnam encourages more investments from India so that the latter will become one of the top investors in Vietnam.


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The arrival of a new stock exchange for Silicon Valley tech companies raises the profile of the tech industry’s best and brightest (and perhaps notorious) even more – as if that were possible.
It also is a significant reminder of what – or whom – is not represented in the public markets: the printed circuit sector.
Has it really been 20 years since the investment banks surrounded our industry, sniffing out hot new buys and running up hearty banking fees – along with tremendous amounts of debt – while encouraging players to buy or sell? Scale and exit strategies were the name of the game then. It made multimillionaires out of folks who only years earlier were pumping gas on the graveyard shifts.
Reality was bound to re-clutch those out-of-body experiences, and it did.
In the years since the Tech Crash of 2001, however, something approximating sanity has returned. If anything, perhaps the pendulum has swung too far the other direction. The number of publicly traded PCB-related companies has been trending down for years. Often, this has been due to merger activity. Valor was acquired by Mentor, which in turn was consumed by Siemens, which previously nabbed UGS Tecnomatix. Amphenol digested Teradyne’s PCB operations. TTM now owns the formerly public DDI, Coretec, Merix and Viasystems. Circuit World disappeared as part of a reverse merger with Firan Technology Group.
The ranks of the formerly standalone public firms also includes Park Electrochemical (now part of Asahi), Orbotech (KLA Tencor), Hadco, ESI and MFlex. MacDermid was public, went private, filed for IPO, withdrew it, was acquired, and is now merged with Alpha and Enthone under Element Solutions. On the assembly side, Adeptron, ACT Manufacturing, API Technologies, Chase EMS, Cirtran, CTS, Elecsys, EPIQ, Fittec, IPTE, LaBarge, MSL, Northstar, Pacific Insight, PartnerTech, Pemstar, SCI, Simclar, Solectron, Sparton, Suntron, and Winland were acquired. BTU was absorbed by Amtech. Beyonics went private. Kyzen basically did the same. Elcoteq and Texas Prototypes went bankrupt. Raven Industries and Probe Manufacturing changed their focus. The hands-down most dramatic exit belongs to Nam Tai, which went from $600 million to $1.15 billion in revenue in one year, only to bail from EMS to real estate less than 12 months later. (Seriously.)
On the plus side of the ledger, the pickings are slim. Foxconn spun out Zhen Ding back in 2011. Publicly traded Compass Holdings acquired Advanced Circuits. Ventec went public in Taiwan this year. Trackwise Designs did likewise in the UK. Shennan Circuits and Yowee Technologies are public on the Shenzhen Exchange, and OK Industries is now traded in Japan. And Dixon Technologies debuted on the India Exchange.
And in the mid-2000s, as Dover began selling off its electronics holdings, other conglomerates emerged to fill the void. Speedline (and its brands) and Kester were acquired by already public ITW. Nordson is doing the same with a host of brands, including Dage, YesTech, Dima and ACE.
This is not a comprehensive list. Instead, it’s designed to show how much the landscape has changed over the past 20 years.
We’ve argued in this space that being public has its disadvantages, and those arguments still hold. It’s expensive, especially in the US. It exposes all your warts to competitors. It adds pressures and a loss of control over one’s own destiny. (How many times did Mentor have to face down so-called activist investors?)
Yet the dearth of public companies has its downsides too. Being out of the public eye undermines our ability to ensure the home countries value how irreplaceable a dedicated, healthy electronics supply chain is to its security and well-being. It makes it more likely the supply chain is mischaracterized as manufacturers and distributors of commodities, instead of a unique group of suppliers building and selling products that are anything but drop-ins. It complicates understanding of the health of the sector.
I’m not suggesting the electronics supply chain rush to go public on the LTSE, the handle for the new Long-Term Stock Exchange. And as shown in our annual CIRCUITS ASSEMBLY Top 50, which starts on pg. 35, and the NTI-100, the largest EMS and PCB firms are almost all public. But it wouldn’t be a bad thing if a few more were as well.
P.S. Those interested in the technical side of the industry will want to take a long look at the program for this year’s PCB West trade show. We received a record 88 abstracts, representing the cutting edge of advanced component packages, flex design, noise control, and very high-speed design. And we welcome back leading speakers Rick Hartley, Eric Bogatin and Lee Ritchey. We’ve even added a fourth day to the conference to accommodate all the sessions. Visit pcbwest.com for details.


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Freightliner Trucks today presented USA Truck with its 5,000th Freightliner tractor. The delivery was celebrated during a special ceremony at the company’s headquarters in Van Buren, Ark.
USA Truck’s 5,000th Freightliner truck is a Cascadia 125-inch sleeper equipped with a Detroit DD15 TC engine. The truck features decals on the driver’s door that not only mark the milestone, but also commemorates the long-term relationship between the two companies with the words, “Strong Relationships Last a Lifetime.”
“Freightliner Trucks has a reputation for building a quality product that is reliable and performs well for both drivers and the technicians servicing the equipment,” said Burton Weis, Vice President, Human Resources for USA Truck. “Our relationship with Freightliner spans more than 25 years and is a testament to our business’ understanding of each other’s needs.”
USA Truck, a dry van truckload carrier celebrating its 30th year in business, first partnered with Freightliner Trucks in 1988, when it purchased its first Freightliner model. Since then, USA Truck has added more than 5,000 Freightliner trucks to its fleet.
“Our 5,000th truck is one of several hundred vehicles that we will take possession of as we continue to modernize to maintain a young and efficient fleet,” said Weis.
Added Chris Lampert, North Central region general manager for Freightliner Trucks: “We are proud of our history with USA Truck, and look forward to continuing to provide them with leading-edge solutions. The 5,000th Freightliner is an important milestone for both companies, and we are pleased to celebrate this achievement.”
The 5,000th truck will be driven by longtime USA Truck driver Eddie Wilson. Wilson, a 28-year USA Truck employee, is a Gold Member of the company’s President’s Million Mile Club with more than 3 million safe driving miles.
“Mr. Wilson is an advocate for our company as well as our industry, and we are proud to honor him at this event,” said Weis.