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A Los Angeles Mall Gets Snarled in Charged Debate Over Local Ownership
The once-grand Baldwin Hills Crenshaw Plaza mall in Los Angeles seemed like a prime target for investors. That was before it got caught up in a combustible debate over local ownership, race and economic development.
The surrounding neighborhoods offered a potential redevelopment gold mine, including one of the nation’s largest concentrations of affluent and middle-class Black households. In late April, private-equity company CIM Group agreed to pay around $130 million for the property, which fronts on West Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard.
A month later, the killing of George Floyd sparked demonstrations across the U.S. and energized opponents of the sale. Local activists claimed the deal would displace the mall’s Black-owned stores and lead to higher rents in lower-income neighborhoods nearby. Within weeks, the $29 billion private-equity company backed out of the deal, a swift and surprising victory for opponents.
That was only the start of the story. Homeowners, renters and business owners—including a pair of dueling local groups who hoped to buy the mall—are now divided over what should come next.
In the economic recovery, the demographics near the mall began turning more affluent and more white, said Paul Ong, CNK Director. “I think the big fear was around Crenshaw Plaza accelerating that,” he said.
Read the full article here >>> A Los Angeles Mall Gets Snarled in Charged Debate Over Local Ownership
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Legendary Entertainment has struck a multi-year worldwide theatrical distribution deal with Sony Pictures as the parties affirmed their commitment to theatrical as a driver of downstream value on major releases.
The pact excludes China, where Legendary East will handle all marketing and distribution activities. Sony Pictures will also handle home entertainment and TV distribution for the titles it releases, and Legendary retains the option to produce and distribute features for streamers.
Legendary will continue to remain in business with its previous worldwide distribution partner Warner Bros on select existing titles including the upcoming Dune: Part Two, which is currently in production and scheduled for release on November 3, 2023.
“It’s a rare opportunity to partner in this mutually beneficial way with true pros, who are completely aligned in our theatrical commitment and vision for this business,” said Josh Greenstein and Sanford Panitch, presidents of Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group. “The creative brilliance and power of Legendary is huge and we look forward to bringing their work to theaters across the world.”
Legendary CEO Joshua Grode said, “Sony’s commitment to theatrical distribution aligns with our vision of how to best derive the most value for Legendary’s movies. The incredible slate of movies that Mary Parent has amassed are built for the theatrical experience and we are excited about our partnership with Sony for this next phase of Legendary’s growth.”
Grode added, “We are also grateful to Warner Bros. Pictures who has been a valuable partner to Legendary over many years, and we look forward to continuing our work with the talented executives at Warner/Discovery.”
Legendary’s film group highlights include Dune, Godzilla Vs. Kong, Pokemon Detective Pikachu, Enola Holmes and Enola Holmes 2, currently on Netflix.

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After Netflix whiffed on Q2 earnings, there was a sour taste in the mouths of FAA(N)G fans: was Netflix' weakness indicative of what to expect from the other tech mega caps?
The answer, at least according to Google parent Alphabet which just reported Q2 earnings, is a resounding no, because the company not only beat, but smashed resulted as follows:
- Q2 revenue$32.66BN, Exp. $32.17BN
- Q2 revenue ex-TAC $26.24BN, Exp. $25.55BN, and above the highest estimate.
- Q2 Adj EPS (ex the $5BN fine the company was slapped with by the EU) $11.75, Exp. $9.66
Putting Google's total Q2 revenue in context, courtesy of @JonErlichman:
- Q2 2018: $32.7 billion
- Q2 2017: $26.0 billion
- Q2 2016: $21.5 billion
- Q2 2015: $17.7 billion
- Q2 2014: $15.9 billion
- Q2 2013: $13.1 billion
- Q2 2012: $11.8 billion
- Q2 2011: $9.0 billion
- Q2 2010: $6.8 billion
- Q2 2009: $5.5 billion
Q2 2008: $5.3 billion
Also notable: Traffic Acquisition Costs as a percentage of revenue declined modestly, from 24% last quarter, to 23%.
Some other details:
- Q2 Google advertising revenue $28.09BN
- Q2 operating income $2.81BN
- Q2 free cash flow $4.66BN
- Q2 CapEx $5.48BN
While Google suffered a 22% decline in ad pricing, this was more than offset by a 58% growth in paid clicks and according to BBG Intelligence, this "highlights how strong mobile ad demand is... These results are robust on both the top and bottom lines, and should spur optimism in upcoming earnings for other internet names."
Traffic acquisition costs rose 12% from last year, significantly lower than the 29 percent estimate from analysts at B. Riley. According to Bloomberg, this may be GOOGL's largest EPS surprise in the recent years if one excludes the impact of the EU fine. More importantly, traffic acquisition cost increases seem to be moderating.
Commenting on the result, Alphabet CFO Ruth Porat said "we delivered another quarter of very strong performance, with revenues of $32.7 billion, up 26% versus the second quarter of 2017 and 23% on a constant currency basis. Our investments are driving great experiences for users, strong results for advertisers, and new business opportunities for Google and Alphabet."
While it took the market a few minutes to react to the adjusted numbers, it is clearly happy with what it sees, and GOOGL shares are now 5.5% higher in the aftermarket.
Google's stellar quarter is also pushing the rest of the FAANGs higher:
Meanwhile, the Nasdaq has completely forgotten the Netflix disappointment:


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Food price inflation plunges 6.94 million more Pakistanis to poverty trap; Pushes additional 64 million people in Asia into extreme poverty: ADB
Soaring food prices have plunged 6.94 million more people in Pakistan into the poverty trap, based on the $1.25 a day poverty line, as food inflation reached double digits in the bracket of 10-20% food prices hike, with 13.1% increase in price of rice and 10% in wheat during current fiscal year.
A report ‘Global Food Price Inflation and Developing Asia’ published on Wednesday by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) says global food prices, which posted record increases in the first two months of 2011, are again threatening to push millions of people in developing Asia into extreme poverty.
Looking at impacts of food price hike on poverty, the report calculates that with 10% food price hike, 2.2% of more Pakistanis (3.47 million in number) plunged into poverty trap while with 20% food price increase, this number rose to 4.5% (6.94 million). India and Bangladesh are having even more impact of food price increase on their poverty numbers with India 2.9% rise and Bangladesh 2.5% rise with 10% food price inflation. Nepal and Sri Lanka stand better with 2% and 1.2% increase in number of poor people respectively with 10% food price hike.
While going through the report, INFN finds that since food carries large weight in consumer price index (CPI), food price inflation is stirring up general inflation and thus effecting prices of almost all consumer items. Bangladesh, India, and Sri Lanka are facing this situation. The share of food weight in CPI in Pakistan is 40.34% while it is 58.84% in Bangladesh, 46.19% in India and 45.50% in Sri Lanka.
UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) in its previous report released in 2010 has already warned that Pakistan is among those countries that will face severe localized food insecurity due to social and political unrest and lingering effects of floods.
The present report says that fast and persistent increases in the cost of many Asian food staples since the middle of last year, coupled with crude oil reaching a 31-month high in March, are a serious setback for the region which has rebounded strongly from the global economic crisis.
Domestic food inflation in many regional economies in Asia has averaged 10% in early 2011. The ADB study finds that a 10% rise in domestic food prices in developing Asia, home to 3.3 billion people, could push an additional 64 million people into extreme poverty based on the $1.25 a day poverty line.
"For poor families in developing Asia, who already spend more than 60% of their income on food, higher food prices further reduce their ability to pay for medical care and their children's education," said ADB Chief Economist Changyong Rhee. "Left unchecked, the food crisis will badly undermine recent gains in poverty reduction made in Asia."
The report adds that if the global food and oil price hikes seen in early 2011 persist for the remainder of the year, economic growth in the region could be reduced by up to 1.5 percentage points.
The report notes that production shortfalls caused by bad weather along with the weak US dollar, high oil prices and subsequent export bans by several key food producing countries have caused much of the upward global price pressure since last June, with double digit increases seen in the price of wheat, corn, sugar, edible oils, dairy products and meat. Rice prices are likely to continue their uptrend as the effects of La Niña persist, prompting consumers to seek less costly and less nutritious substitutes.
"To avert this looming crisis it is important for countries to refrain from imposing export bans on food items, while strengthening social safety nets," said Dr. Rhee. "Efforts to stabilize food production should take center stage, with greater investments in agricultural infrastructure to increase crop production and expand storage facilities, to better ensure grain produce is not wasted."
The report says there is also a need to calm speculative activities in food markets. It recommends enhanced market integration, and the elimination of policy distortions that create hurdles in transferring food from surplus to deficit regions.


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The Consumer Price Inflation (CPI) for July 2016, declined sharply to 16. 7 percent from the 18.4 percent in June 2016.
The monthly change rate was 0.9 percent in July 2016 compared to 1.3 percent recorded in June this year.
According to the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS), food inflation was 8.6% in July same as what was recorded in June 2016.
[contextly_sidebar id=”PHNSIODAYkbciFBuSgWg7RgEiwBBDdLv”]The year on year non-food inflation rate however declined to 21. 2percent from 24.1 percent between the one month period.
The consumer price index measures the change over time in the general price levels of goods and services that households require for the purpose of consumption.
Government Statistician; at the Ghana Statistical Service Dr. Philomena Nyarko explained to Citi Business News that a base drift effect, cedi stability and seasonality effect on food pricing accounted for the sharp decline in inflation this time.
Meanwhile, the inflation rate for imported items decreased to 15.2 percent in July 2016, from the 17.3 percent recorded in July 2016 while inflation for locally produced items was however 2.1 percent higher than the imported items in July.
The main price drivers for the non food inflation rate were education (35.4%) Recreation and culture (28.3%), transport (25.4%) housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels (25.4%) clothing and foot wear (24.3%) and furnishing households equipment and routine maintenance (23.0%).
The Figures released by the GSS today also showed that two regions Greater Accra and Ashanti region recorded the highest inflation rate higher than the national average of 16.7%.
Ghana’ capital region Greater Accra recorded the highest inflation of 21.3% followed by Ashanti region with 18.0% while the Upper East region recorded the lowest inflation rate of 10.0% for July this year.
By: Norvan Acquah- Hayford/citibusinessnews.com/Ghana


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To hear it from AOL, content and brands are the keys to the company’s comeback strategy. But some in the industry wonder if the company’s new pick to lead ad sales muddies the message.
In a memo to staff Monday, AOL CEO Tim Armstrong announced that ad sales chief Jeff Levick would be transitioning out of the company in six weeks. Armstrong also said that Ned Brody, formerly president of AOL’s Advertising.com group, would be promoted to the new position of chief revenue officer and president of Advertising.com, responsible for all global O&O advertising, sales, and ad and publishing products.
As the company focuses on growth, Armstrong said the shift is intended to unify a premium strategy for advertisers and publishers and connect the company’s premium brand formats to its owned and operated properties and the network.
But some media buyers question what Brody’s pedigree in the data-heavy, targeting world of Advertising.com portends for AOL’s efforts at building out the crucial brand relationships.
“It’s curious,” said a digital media buying executive.
Pointing to onetime AOL CEO Randy Falco’s decision to move former Advertising.com head Lynda Clarizio to the company’s top ad position, she said pulling leadership from Advertising.com to lead AOL ad sales has not been successful for the company in the past.
While she viewed Levick as a believer in brand building, she said other former Advertising.com talent has not been effective in winning over buyers more interested in content and brand stories, not targeting and cheaper rates.
Acknowledging that she doesn’t know Brody personally, she said he could bridge the two sides, but added “it will be curious to see how it plays out.”
Michael Greene, an analyst with Forrester Research, said the pick is one more “mixed message” from a company in transition.
“For all the emphasis on building a brand-friendly AOL advertising business, promoting an executive with an Advertising.com lineage doesn’t necessarily mesh well with that desired image,” he said.
AOL is still working against its commodity-buy image from the “dreaded” Platform-A days, Greene said. As the company pushes through its turnaround, it will have to work hard to convince media buyers of their commitment to premium brands.
But AOL’s Armstrong told Adweek that the company’s dedication to premium brands is evident in its actions.
“First and foremost, we are probably the largest investor in premium content and formats,” he said.
He also emphasized that as CEO he has 20 years of experience in the premium space, from ESPN and ABC to newspapers, Google, and other digital content. Beyond the C-suite, the company has five of the strongest leaders in the field (who were also promoted this week), he said.
“We are laser focused on the $40 billion in brand ad dollars that we intend to move to the digital space,” he said.
But Forrester’s Greene said it’s all about execution and questions persist about how AOL is going to interact with the buyers.
Having leadership that understands the quantitative, analytical side of online advertising is clearly important to the company. But as the company tries to strike the right balance between relationships with the media buyers and introducing technologies, Greene said it has to think about the message it sends to the overall buying community.
“With whom are they supposed to interact? Where’s that person they’re supposed to reach out to at AOL when they want to build that high-level relationship? I think they’re still waiting,” he said.
The questions loom particularly large when comparing AOL to Yahoo, another turnaround tech company pushing a strategy based on content and premium brands.
“Yahoo’s Ross Levinsohn has very good relationships with the media buying community, historically,” Greene said. “He has a lot of content-oriented experience and the focus on telling the story that jives a bit better with the message Yahoo is trying to say, which is very similar to the message AOL is trying to put out there in the marketplace.”
But others are more bullish on AOL’s new executive lineup.
While many in the industry say Levick is very smart, they add he’s not the steak dinner salesman often needed to close deals. He might have been the right man to build the ad strategy, but not necessarily the one to carry it out.
“This was a defining moment for Tim,” said Robert Peck, a managing partner at Quasar Capital Advisors and an AOL investor.
After working with Levick at Google and then pulling him to AOL, letting him go must have been a tough “big boy” decision for Armstrong to make, he said. But it could also signal that he’s cutting ties with familiar Google ways of getting things done, and making sure the right people are in place to take AOL to the next level. Brody’s own experience as a founder of an ad company and the solid reputations of the people below him also bode well for the company, he said.
Chris Wexler, vp, group planning director for Compass Point Media, said Brody’s Advertising.com background is “encouraging.”
“If they can really harness their data well, I think that’s where the market wants them to be,” he said. “They’re sitting on a mountain of data and if he can properly monetize that for them, that puts them back in the game a little better.”


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Fort Boyard launch trailer
Posted on 5 months ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in Switch, Videos | 0 comments
Microids has readied a new launch trailer for the Switch party game Fort Boyard. Have a look at the latest video below.
Microids has posted the boxart for Fort Boyard, its recently-announced party game for Switch. Get a look at the packaging image above.
Fort Boyard will be available for Switch sometime in June.
Fort Boyard hitting Switch in June
Posted on 8 months ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in News, Switch | 0 comments
Closing out today’s announcements from Microids, the company has revealed that Fort Boyard is coming to Switch. The party title is slated for June.
We have first screenshots from Fort Boyard below.


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Shares of Digital Insight
traded lower in after-hours trading Thursday after the company posted better-than-expected first-quarter results but noted that its second-quarter profit would be less than the current consensus estimate. The Internet-based financial services and products company posted pro forma earnings of $1.2 million, or 4 cents a share, a penny better than analysts expected.
Philip Watts of Royal Dutch/Shell Group
announced late Thursday that Shell Oil's Chairman and CEO Steve Miller will retire effective September 1. Miller's departure comes after 35 years of service. Watts will take over as chairman and Rob Routs will take the role of president.
Walt Disney Co.
reported a profit of $259 million, or 13 cents a share, for the second quarter Thursday, 3 cents above Thomson Financial/First Call consensus estimates of 10 cents. Last year the company lost $567 million in the quarter. The company said its revenue for the period was $5.9 billion, off 2 percent from last year's sales of $6 billion. See full story.
After the market closed Thursday, Microchip Technology
reported fourth-quarter earnings in line with the consensus estimate and provided estimates for its first and second quarters of 2003. On a post-split basis, the company expects first-quarter earnings of 14 cents a share and second-quarter earnings of about 16 cents a share. Currently, the estimates recorded by First Call have not been adjusted to include the split. On April 11, the company announced a 3-for-2 stock split, effective on May 8. Shares closed up 32 cents to $43.95 ahead of the news.
General Mills abruptly ended a rampant round of rumors late Thursday when it slashed by as much as 44 percent its profit projections for the fiscal fourth quarter. General Mills, which makes such consumer standards as Cheerios cereal and Betty Crocker baking products, also cautioned that next year's earnings forecast would fall by as much as 12 percent as the company sinks money into new products and marketing. The news came less than a month after General Mills reported third-quarter results that were nearly half as much as the year before. Shares ended the session off $3.77 to $45.30. In the after-hours, shares were lower yet, trading at $44.46. See full story.
Energy generator and trader Mirant reported first-quarter earnings ahead of analyst expectations late Thursday. Atlanta-based Mirant
earned $134 million, or 33 cents a share, from operations vs. $175 million, or 52 cents a share, a year ago. Analysts polled by Thomson Financial/First Call had expected average, per-share earnings of 30 cents in the most recent quarter. Revenue declined to $7.03 billion from $8.17 billion a year ago. Shares slumped by 83 cents to close at $12.40 ahead of the announcement.
PeopleSoft, maker of software that runs corporate human resources departments, reported earnings from recurring operations that rose to $46 million, or 14 cents a share, up 28 percent from $36 million, or 11 cents a share, in the same period last year. Total revenue declined to $483.2 million, compared with $514.2 million, in the year-ago quarter. Analysts had been expecting earnings of 14 cents a share, on sales of $481.5 million, on average, according to a survey of analysts conducted by Thomson Financial/First Call. Shares of PeopleSoft
lost 59 cents to close at $21.89 in regular trading on Thursday. See full story.
said second-quarter profits were 8 cents a share, or $32.1 million, including a one-time charge of $18 million to settle a previously announced lawsuit. Without the charge, the coffee seller earned 11 cents a share, a penny ahead of the consensus of analyst expectations at Thomson Financial/First Call. Consolidated net revenue jumped 24 percent to $783 million from $629 million in the year-ago period. Same-store sales rose 7 percent over last year. The company also said it plans to open 1,200 stores worldwide this year, and raised projections on comparable-store sales, full-year revenue and its earnings outlook to 53 cents or 54 cents a share for the year.
said late Thursday that it will reduce its staff by 10 percent. At the same time, the Internet security company said it lost $20.9 million, or 9 cents per share, in its first quarter. This compares to a loss of $1.38 billion, or $6.90 per share in the comparable period a year ago. Excluding amortization of intangible assets related to acquisitions and stock-based compensation charges related to acquisitions, VeriSign earned $47 million on a fully-taxed basis, or 20 cents per share vs. the consensus estimate of 20 cents. VeriSign grew sales 54 percent to $328 million. Analysts expected VeriSign to generate $342.6 million. VeriSign shares gained 1.3 percent to $18.24 in regular trading. See full story.
advanced almost 14 percent after the insurer reported first-quarter operating earnings, excluding items, of $64.9 million, or 44 cents a share, vs. a loss of $36.6 million, or 26 cents a share, in the year-ago quarter. Thomson Financial/First Call had expected earnings-per-share of 3 cents in the quarter. Revenue totaled $5.26 billion in the quarter.
gained almost 5 percent after the restaurant chain reported first-quarter earnings of $20.3 million, or 53 cents a share, beating the consensus estimate by 2 cents a share. In the year-ago period, Applebee's posted earnings of 45 cents a share. System-wide comparable sales increased to 3.5 percent for the first quarter. Sales totaled $199.8 million for the first quarter, up slightly compared with analysts' estimates of $198.2 million and 10 percent better than the year-ago period. The company added that it expects full-year earnings of $2.11 to $2.15, excluding items. That is in-line with the current consensus estimate of $2.11 a share.
gained more than 14 percent after the Rockville, Md., provider of biologics services reported first-quarter earnings of $2.1 million, or 24 cents a share, up from a year-ago profit of $400,000, or 5 cents a share. Revenue jumped 24 percent in the latest three months to $19 million from $15.3 million in the same period a year earlier. Looking ahead, the company lifted expectations for the second year by 10 percent, saying it expects earnings of 22 to 28 cents a share in the second quarter and $1 to $1.08 per share for fiscal 2002.
added almost 13 percent after the Philadelphia provider of technology services for the pharmaceutical and medical device industries posted a first-quarter profit of $709,000, or 10 cents a share, up from its year-ago loss of $5.4 million, or 78 cents a share. Results in the 2001 first quarter included a charge of $5 million, or 71 cents a share, related to investment asset impairment. Looking ahead, Eresearch forecast earnings of 10 to 13 cents a share in the second quarter, 12 to 15 cents a share in the third quarter, and 15 to 18 cents a share in the fourth quarter. Revenue is projected to increase by 30 percent or more for each quarter over the prior year.
Garden Fresh Restaurants
leapt nearly 10 percent after the San Diego restaurant operator reported second-quarter earnings of $2.4 million, or 42 cents a share, up from its year-ago profit of $1.4 million, or 25 cents a share, and a dime ahead of the average estimate of two analysts polled by Thomson Financial/First Call. Sales jumped 9 percent in the latest three months to $55.9 million from $51.3 million in the same period a year earlier. Same-store sales rose 2.3 percent in the period. Looking ahead, Garden Fresh forecast earnings of $2 million, or 33 cents a share, on sales of $56 million in the third quarter, and earnings of $5.3 million, or 90 cents a share, on sales of $213 million for fiscal 2002. Wall Street's current consensus for these periods is for profits of 33 cents, and 76 cents per share, respectively.
added more than 19 percent after the company said its Canadian subsidiary's first quarter sales have been tracking "well ahead of plan," boosted by strong sales from Spider-Man movie action figures and accessories. The company expects the trend to continue throughout the year. Earlier in the session, the stock was up as much as 15 percent at $3.80.
surged almost 6 percent after the Westlake Village, Calif., athletic footwear firm reported first-quarter earnings of $9.7 million, or 97 cents a share, 13 cents ahead of the average estimate of analysts polled by Thomson Financial/First Call. Total worldwide revenue surged 17.7 percent in the latest three months to $80.3 million from $68.2 million in the same period a year earlier. K-Swiss also raised its outlook to earnings of 39 to 49 cents a share for the second quarter, and earnings of $2.45 to $2.55 per share for the full year. Wall Street's current consensus estimate for these periods is for earnings of 13 cents and $2.37 per share, respectively. In addition, the company said that its board plans to declare a 2-for-1 stock split following its annual meeting on May 23. The stock hit a 52-week high of $47 earlier in the session.
gained almost 24 percent after the San Francisco Web publishing software firm reported a fourth-quarter pro forma loss of $6.1 million, or 10 cents a share, but 4 cents narrower than the average estimate of analysts polled by Thomson Financial/First Call. A year ago, it reported a profit of $8.4 million, or 15 cents a share. Macromedia reported a net loss of $80.5 million, or $1.37 per share, in the period, wider than its loss of $21.8 million, or 42 cents a share, in last year's quarter. Revenue slipped in the latest three months to $75.6 million from $89.1 million in the same period a year earlier. Looking ahead, Macromedia said it expects sequential revenue growth of up to 10 percent in the first quarter. It also confirmed that it anticipates a return to profitability on a pro forma basis in the June quarter.
soared more than 41 percent after Cadence Design Systems
agreed to buy the software maker in a stock deal valued at $300 million, or $18 per share. Under terms of the deal, Cadence will exchange between 0.924 or 0.756 of its common stock, depending on the price prior to closing, for each outstanding Simplex share. In addition, Simplex has issued Cadence an option to buy 19.9 percent of its outstanding shares for $18 each. Simplex had traded in a $40 to $7.38 range over the past 52 weeks. The companies anticipate the deal closing in the third quarter.
Tiffany & Co.
rocketed almost 9 percent higher after the company said that now it expects first-quarter earnings of 22 cents a share, well above the average estimate of analysts polled by Thomson Financial/First Call for a profit of 17 cents a share. The New York jewelry firm attributed the better than anticipated forecast to improving same-store sales trends, and an increase of 3 to 4 percent in first-quarter sales from its total of $336 million in the same period a year earlier. Tiffany also cited higher gross margins resulting from a favorable sales mix and a more modest increase in operating expenses for the strong forecast. However, in light of "current uncertainties and concerns regarding global external factors," the company believes it's prudent to maintain its outlook for a profit of $1.20 to $1.27 per share for the year. See full story.
rose nearly 10 percent after the company reported a fourth-quarter pro forma loss before items of $176,000, or breakeven on a per-share basis, down from its year-ago adjusted profit of $278,000, or a penny a share, but a nickel better than the average estimate of analysts polled by Thomson Financial/First Call. Including charges related to amortization of stock, warrants and goodwill, and equity investment impairment charges, the Fairfax, Va., integration software firm lost $15.7 million, or 31 cents a share, narrower than its year-ago equivalent loss of $13.9 million, or 28 cents a share. Revenue fell in the latest three months to $50.7 million from $61.8 million in the same period a year earlier.
fell more than 13 percent after the Redwood City, Calif., provider of Web portal applications reported a first-quarter pro forma loss that missed Wall Street's consensus estimate by a penny, and said that it plans to withdraw the listing of its shares on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange. The company reported a first-quarter pro forma loss of $19 million, or 7 cents a share, wider than its year-ago equivalent loss of $8 million, or 3 cents a share. Including items, BroadVision lost $36.1 million, or 13 cents a share, in the quarter. Revenue dropped in the latest three months to $30.5 million from $48.2 million in the same period a year earlier. The company also announced plans to eliminate 300 employees, roughly 30 percent of its 970-employee workforce. BroadVision attributed its decision to leave the Frankfurt exchange to its restructuring efforts, and said that it remains committed to the European market, and that this move would not affect its relationships with European customers or partners.
tumbled almost 12 percent after the New York-based provider of energy market software and strategic consulting services reported first-quarter pro forma earnings of $1.6 million, or 9 cents a share, up from its year-ago equivalent profit of $1.2 million, or 8 cents a share, and a penny ahead of the average estimate of analysts polled by First Call/Thomson Financial. On a net basis, Caminus lost $900,000, or 5 cents a share, in the latest quarter. However, the company said these results include a tax benefit of $1.4 million, or 8 cents a share, from a refund of taxes paid in the U.K. Revenue rose in the latest three months to $25.3 million from $16.4 million in the same period a year earlier.
slid more than 6 percent after the company posted a first-quarter loss Wednesday, reversing a year-earlier profit as revenue dipped. The biotech firm said it had a net loss of $18.9 million, or 10 cents per share. In the 2001 first quarter, Chiron had net income of $47.4 million, or 23 cents per share. Excluding items, Chiron said it had a first-quarter profit of $41 million, or 21 cents per share. Chiron had been expected to earn 22 cents per share, according to the average estimate of analysts polled by Thomson Financial/First Call. See full story.
lost almost 8 percent after the Fort Lauderdale, Fla., workplace software provider reported first-quarter earnings before items of $29.3 million, or 16 cents a share, a penny ahead of Wall Street's consensus estimate. But analysts reacted negatively to the results, citing disappointing commentary from management in the conference call. Credit Suisse First Boston went from "hold" to "strong buy" due to "further reductions in NT server unit growth numbers, which Citrix is a direct play on." The firm, which lowered its price target to $13 from $22, now sees NT server growth of flat to 5 percent, down from a prior view for growth of 10 to 15 percent. A.G. Edwards also cut its rating on the shares to "hold" saying that it was disturbed by the "general disconnect" between the sentiment for the year's prospects on Citrix's conference call Wednesday, and its upbeat thoughts during an analyst day in March. Earlier, the stock plumbed a 52-week low of $11.18.
dropped nearly 37 percent after the maker of medical diagnostic equipment reported first quarter results late Wednesday that met expectations, Analyst Wade King at Robertson Stephens downgraded the stock to "buy" from "strong buy," given the company's lowered future outlook. He also cut his price target to $30 from $34.
sank almost 33 percent after merger partner Cytyc
lowered its outlook for future results and announced that it's extending the expiration date of its offer to acquire Digene. The extension was made in response to a request from the Federal Trade Commission for additional information related to the deal. The offer was scheduled to expire on April 25.
dropped nearly 30 percent after the company scaled back earnings projections for the year and said that the Securities and Exchange Commission is investigating how it recorded one of its transactions. See full story.
lost almost 17 percent after the Sunnyvale, Calif., broadband networking equipment firm reported a first-quarter pro forma loss of $8.2 million, or 14 cents a share, narrower than its year-ago equivalent loss of $44.9 million, or 77 cents a share, but a penny wider than the average estimate of analysts polled by Thomson Financial/First Call. On a net basis, including charges related to the amortization of intangibles, Harmonic lost $14 million, or 24 cents a share, in the latest quarter. Sales rose in the latest three months to $54 million from $40.3 million in the same period a year earlier. In addition, the company said that the Securities and Exchange Commission has declared effective its shelf registration statement for the sale of up to $150 million worth of various securities.
fell nearly 13 percent. The Newark, Calif., bomb detection equipment firm issued a press release before the opening bell commenting on news from the Department of Transportation, or DOT, about how many of these systems it expects to deploy by the end of the year. The government said it would deploy up to 1,100 large bomb detection systems, according to Associated Press. Merrill Lynch, which lowered its rating on InVision shares to "neutral" from "buy," said it had assumed the government could purchase 2,000 units. InVision is saying that the volume estimate from the DOT is consistent with its internal outlook, and that its backlog and operating plans for the year are unaffected. InVision believes the estimate reflects the DOT's belief that its proposed third-party licensing structure to meet its own 2002 deadline of 100 percent checked baggage is "impractical" and that this structure will not contribute to the available supply of equipment in 2002.
sank more than 7 percent after the company reported a first-quarter net loss of $172 million, or 47 cents a share, on revenue of $413 million. During the same quarter last year, net loss was $250 million, or 68 cents a share, on revenue of $517 million. Excluding a $40.7 million excess inventory charge and $46 million for the amortization of acquisition related items, LSI's loss was $42.3 million, or 12 cents a share. Analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial/First Call expected a loss excluding items of 14 cents a share on revenue of $413 million, on average. LSI expects all of its businesses to grow during the second quarter. See full story.
plunged almost 21 percent after the company said it's conducting an investigation into "accounting inaccuracies" discovered in its 1999 and 2000 financial statements. The provider of network security software added that it was withdrawing its offer to acquire the outstanding common stock of McAfee.com
The offer had been scheduled to expire at midnight Thursday. McAffee.com shares lost more than 27 percent following the news. See full story.
lost almost 25 percent after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration requested more information regarding the chemistry manufacturing and controls section of its new drug application filing for Estrasorb, an estrogen replacement therapy. Analysts from Stephens Inc., CIBC World Markets and A.G. Edwards followed by downgrading the stock.
dropped almost 9 percent after analyst Tal Liani at Merrill Lynch downgraded its stock, citing the 44-percent quarterly decline in net digital subscriber additions reported by AOL Time Warner
late Wednesday. The intermediate-term rating was cut to "sell" from "neutral," and the long-term rating was sliced to "neutral" from "buy." Liani noted that Time Warner is a 50 percent customer of the set-top box maker.
fell 16 percent in afternoon action as investors reacted to the company's caution about its pricing environment in the second quarter. Thursday's drop comes despite a better than expected performance from the Santa Ana, Calif., memory technology firm in the first quarter, when it reported pro forma earnings of $1.8 million, or 5 cents a share, for the period, 4 cents better than the average estimate of analysts polled by Thomson Financial/First Call. Revenue jumped 43 percent in the latest three months to $51 million from $35.6 million in the same period a year earlier. Looking ahead, SimpleTech said it sees temporary softness in pricing for DRAM (dynamic random access memory) components in the second quarter. Revenue is projected between $45 million and $50 million for the period, yielding earnings of 1 to 3 cents a share. SimpleTech expects to benefit from stronger market conditions in the second half.
lost more than 30 percent after the Boston speech recognition technology firm reported a first-quarter pro forma loss of $8.3 million, or 25 cents a share, wider than its year-ago equivalent loss of $6.1 million, or 19 cents a share, and a penny beyond the average estimate of analysts polled by Thomson Financial/First Call. On a net basis, including charges, the company lost $11.6 million, or 36 cents a share, in the latest quarter. Revenue slipped in the latest three months to $9.5 million from $10.9 million in the same period a year earlier. SpeechWorks acknowledged that this performance was below its Jan. 30 outlook for revenue of $10.5 million to $12.5 million in the period. SpeechWorks attributed the shortfall to weak sales through its channel partners, and overall market conditions. CIBC lowered its rating on the stock in the wake of the results to "hold" from "buy."
plummeted almost 20 percent after the company said it was abandoning its plan to separate into four businesses, and warned that fiscal 2002 earnings would fall short of expectations. CEO Dennis Kozlowski said the idea, intended to create shareholder value, "was a mistake." The industrial conglomerate added that it plans to spin off 100 percent of its CIT financial unit in an IPO. Tyco also said it's taken a $3.3 billion charge for the March quarter for staff cuts and other things. For the quarter, the company posted a $1.91 billion, or 96 cents a share loss, before charges, versus a $1.1 billion, or 63 cents a share a year ago. Absent the charge operating earnings were 65 cents a share. Tyco expects to report fiscal 2002 earnings, before charges of $2.60 to $2.70 a share, below the average analyst forecast compiled by Thomson Financial/First Call of $3.14 a share. See full story.
fell more than 12 percent after the company reported a first-quarter loss of $22.1 million, or 29 cents a share, wider than the year-ago loss of $11 million, or 15 cents a share. Revenue totaled $40.7 million, up compared with the year-ago total of $35 million. Analysts polled by First Call were looking for a 28-cent loss, on average. Prior to the market close, the company announced that its experimental arthritis drug didn't show significant improvement compared with a placebo.


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The deal gives AZ the exclusive benefits of lucrative products such as byetta that are already on the market, as well as upcoming developments such as dapagliflozin (which, conveniently, was endorsed by US medical experts just last week).
And all for a reasonable price, too. Last month analysts thought the sale could be worth $6bn, so AZ seems to have done well – even allowing for all the add-ons.
Big pharma is no longer a simple game, and firms require brave CEOs who can carve out niche areas. As these two go their separate ways, it may lead to more strategic break-ups.


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New report critical of commodity corporations
Petition begins to gather support
Ethical Consumer launch survey on clothing and fashion.
55,000 demand Amazon pays a ‘Living Wage’
New campaign launches today.
The UK floods and wallies in wellies.
Fair Tax Mark launches today.
PETA starts campaign to end practice
Tin, tungsten, tantalum, and gold all available from audited smelters
Common vegetable oil’s link to climate change
Survival exposes the 'hidden secrets of Botswana'
Vote goes against GMO transparency at company's annual meeting
Ethical news archive going back to July 2009.
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From the woman who brought your Harley Quinn and Tonya Harding ...
At EVS29, BMW announces a new home energy system that uses new or old i3 battery packs.
Zenn Motor Co. may have a name better associated with a sense of peace, but the company it has been connected to for years and has now agreed to buy does have a bit of uncertainty about it. Canada-based Zenn, which used to make and sell lead-acid battery-powered neighborhood-electric vehicles, has reached an agreement to buy a majority stake in energy-storage company and distribution partner EEStor.
Grid energy storage is becoming a tangible business opportunity for cleantech companies and automakers these days – it's all that's left of Coda, for example, and Toyota is open to the oppor
Coda Energy has been officially unveiled. As Coda Holdings, Inc., and its Coda Automotive electric carmaker subsidiary, has closed bankruptcy sale proceedings, the energy storage division is now ready for business.
Anyone who had Coda Automotive in your office pool for the next electric vehicle maker to declare bankruptcy, go on and collect your winnings. Coda announced today it will restructure as an energy storage business after voluntarily filing Chapter 11 bankruptcy in the District of Delaware. The automaker said it expects the sale process to last 45 days.
Electric vehicles camped in parking spaces will be an ideal vehicle-to-grid energy source for buildings equipped with energy management systems. A new report from Navigant Research forecasts that nearly 200,000
How's this for a "willing buyer"? Toyota is going to recycle nickel-metal hydride batteries from old hybrids into energy management systems and will then sell those systems to Toyota dealerships in Japan.
During its recent fourth quarter 2011 financial results Q&A conference call, CEO Elon Musk had, of course, lots to say about Tesla Motors and its various products. One statement though, concerning the falling cost of batteries, spoke to the broader electric vehicle (EV) market and bears repeating. The high price of e
Coda Holdings, parent company of the Los Angeles-based electric-vehicle maker Coda Automotive, is launching a division specializing in energy storage as the company looks to cash in on what many believe will be a rapidly growing market for secondary use of electric-vehicle batteries.
Electrovaya, a developer of lithium-ion battery systems, has announced the launch of a product line targeted at solving the energy storage challenges that utilities are faced with today. Electrovaya's Lithium-Ion Battery Energy Storage System (LIBESS), a smart grid-capable unit, stores excess el
In the coming decades, hybrids, and maybe even all-electric vehicles, may cruise without batteries. Instead, the energy in these vehicles of the future will be stored in a supercapacitor which could be recharged in minutes, possibly seconds. We've heard of the potential of supercaps (and ultracapacitors) before, but res


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80% of new posts will be in the UK
Ideagen is delighted to announce it is to create more than 50 new jobs in preparation of achieving its eighth year of consecutive growth.
The Nottingham-based company will create these posts across its UK operations with diverse roles ranging from senior management to graduates and apprenticeships.
The major recruitment drive includes 11 new employees for its UK-wide development department, nine customer support roles and 15 across sales and marketing.
Three more will oversee critical IT infrastructure while further posts have been created for HR and Quality Assurance.
The company has already launched a completely new demand department focusing on new business, comprising of five Demand Executives and Demand Manager.
Barnaby Kent (pictured right), Ideagen’s Chief Operating Officer, said the new roles were crucial in cementing the company’s position as one of the world’s leading software companies.
He said: “As Ideagen continues to develop as an organisation, evolving into a leading software company while securing more complex and technically challenging projects, it is crucial that we continue to invest in the business and in our people.
“These roles are absolutely vital as we continue in that development. By touching every key operational point across the business – from sales and marketing to development and technical services – these new roles will ensure we continue to be well equipped, both in workforce and skillset, to successfully meet the demands of our customers across the ever-changing industries we operate in.”
The new jobs – which will take Ideagen’s global staff numbers to above 400 – follows on from the company’s trading update in May. In that Pre-Closing Trading statement it revealed performance in the last fiscal year was expected to confirm its eighth consecutive period of revenue and adjusted EBITDA growth.
David Hornsby, Ideagen CEO, added: “For nearly a quarter of a century, we have provided software solutions to thousands of customers across the globe such as the NHS in the UK, Emirates, Heineken and Harvard University.
“As we continue to expand the company, we are delighted to be able to bring both new investment and new opportunities across our operations."
Mr Kent added: “We already have some of the best quality, safety, risk, performance and audit software products on the market but having a skilled workforce behind each product is the lifeblood of the company.
“That’s why I am delighted that Ideagen continues to be strong enough and successful enough to offer new and exciting jobs across our operations."


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23rd of February, 2023
PLANES OF FAME AIR MUSEUM PRESS RELEASE ⏐ February 23, 2023
Planes of Fame Air Museum will be closed to the general public and members on Saturday, March 18, 2023. A special-ticketed car show event has reserved the facility for the day. Admission will only be permitted to individuals who have purchased a ticket to the GearHeadSociety Car Show.
Several hundred cars of all makes and vintage are anticipated to be on display during this event. The Car Show will run from 11am until 6pm. For more information and to purchase tickets, please visit: GearHeadSociety Car Show
The Museum’s hangars will be open to attendees of the Car Show, giving attendees an opportunity to see hundreds of classic aircraft and cars.


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It’s about time that fashion did more for women.
As an industry that focuses heavily on women, fashion promises its loyal female followers the luxury of beauty and glamour. But as a refreshing change in the tides, one of the industry’s leading powerhouses , Gucci, has taken on the feat of giving women the utmost luxury: the privilege of education, health, and justice. With an already established seven-year partnership with UNICEF in support of girls’ education, Gucci is not new to supporting social good.
In 2013, Gucci raised the stakes even higher and released a social initiative called Chime for Change. With Beyonce Knowles-Carter, Salma Hayek, and Gucci Creative Director Frida Giannini at the helms of the movement, Chime for Change seeks to form coalitions with women’s organizations all over the world to fund initiatives and provide solutions. The campaign has already raised $4.4 million to benefit over 260 projects in 81 countries.
The latest Chime for Change event, CHIME HACK, took place in December 2013 in San Francisco. In partnership with Twitter and Women Who Code, CHIME HACK was a three-day conference that invited women in the tech world to help build technology-based solutions (mobile apps, etc.) in support of women and girls. As a rapidly growing (but heavily male- dominated) field, much talk has been circulating around the quest for gender equity balance in the tech industry. Just in time for TED Women, CHIME HACK not only celebrates tech savvy women, but the power of women’s voices across the globe.
I am deeply inspired by Gucci’s emphatic push for women’s empowerment, and excited to see how the campaign will evolve in the coming years. I truly hope this is a prelude to the future of fashion, and that the campaign will retain its integrity and dedication to its mission. After all, while there is an obvious beauty to designing dresses, there is nothing more beautiful than designing change for the world.
By: Ruby Veridiano


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Long-serving Stevenage FC goalie gets his mitts on the switch at town's Christmas lights launch
PUBLISHED: 16:37 02 November 2017 | UPDATED: 16:41 02 November 2017
Danny Loo Photography 2017
Stevenage Borough Council's Christmas lights switch on show should be in safe hands this year when Stevenage FC goalkeeper Chris Day pushes the button in the town centre on Thursday, November 30.
A packed programme of music is lined up with appearances from Herts soul singer Decosta Boyce and Adele tribute act, J’Adele.
Christmas lovers will have the chance to meet Mr and Mrs Claus and husky dogs, as well as enjoy a giant snow globe, and fairground rides and stalls.
A firework finale brings the show to a close at 6.30pm after the lights have been switched on by the long-serving Stevenage FC stopper.
Following the fireworks display, Stevenage mayor Pam Stuart will be drawing the winner of a £150 Westgate shopping voucher for those people who have taken part in the council’s town centre events survey. To be in with a chance of winning, complete the survey here before Monday, November 27.
Late-night shopping is on offer at stores across the town centre and free car parking is available from 3pm at St George’s Way multi-storey, Westgate multi-storey, Marshgate, and The Forum.
Councillor Stuart said: “It’s great for me to announce that our Christmas lights switch on show is in safe hands with Stevenage FC goalkeeper Chris Day turning the lights on. Chris is well known in the town for all he has done for the football club so I’m thrilled he will be joined by a host of music talent and entertainment to get everyone into the Christmas spirit.”
Chris added: “Turning on the Christmas lights is a real honour and I am excited to have my finger on the button this year. It is an event I have attended many times over the years and, seeing as I am coming up to my 10th year at the club, I think the timing is perfect.”
For more about town council events visit www.stevenage.gov.uk.


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Discussion during the “Brainsnack” session leading off the 86th-Annual INMA World Congress in London turned to the subject of audience, with 7-minute presentations from the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Zero Hora, and and Star Media Group sharing successful case studies.
Laura Inman Nolan, senior director of audience engagement at the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, focused on using data to drive engagement strategy: “It’s really the foundation of our digital business.”
Engagement drives pricing power for AJC. Users are priced differently based on their amount of engagement. Although highly engaged users are charged higher prices, they receive a higher value.
“Obviously, engaged users retain better,” she said.
Today, AJC has 496,000 subscribers to print and digital. Of its subscribers, 56% are registered subscribers, 38% engaged subscribers and 13% loyal subscribers.
Marcelo Leite, newspaper commercial director at Zero Hora-RBS in Brazil, shared the story of how the company’s Zero Hora Tablet answered a key revenue problem.
Print products became more expensive for the company between printing and delivery costs, however, its audience was reluctant to switch from the newspaper to the Web.
The company’s end goal was to launch a product with a higher margin and appeal to a traditional print customer. Zero Hora catered to its local audience by creating the ZH tablet, a new subscription model where customers get an exclusive tablet.
The tablet was the solution to many problems: “The Zero Hora tablet has been a transition from print to digital.”
The tablet in particular helped more traditional customers in transitioning.
“Understanding customer behaviour is very very critical,” he said.
There’s an interesting behaviour factor in the way Zero Hora’s consumers like to consume its products: “They like to know that from the first and last page of the newspaper they are going to find certain things.”
The company now has a 3,000 subscriber base. Zeite believes the tablet is the key to win back former print subscribers and a transitional tool.
Wrapping up the audience engagement focus of Brainsnacks, Christopher Goodridge, chief operating officer/digital at Star Media Group in Canada, spoke about the implementation of the Star Touch tablet app.
The Toronto Star looked at the app created by its competitor, La Presse, before launching its own. La Presse’s app launched in 2013 after over two years of research and developing the app, and has 250,000 daily users. La Presse ceased publishing weekday newspapers January 1, 2016.
The Star Touch free free app launched September 15, 2015, and has more than 240,000 downloads. Some users struggle to comprehend the app is free based on the high quality, Goodridge said.
The Toronto Star used a multi-platform approach. Out of its 2.3 million print and digital readers, 642,000 are digital only. Although the company has a strong usage across desktop, mobile and tablet, its digital audience spends less time with its journalism.
The implementation of the app not only changed the way the Star’s customers consumed news, it also changed the company’s newsroom. Storytelling became more collaborative by using different ways to tell stories.
“If a video tells a story better, we use a video,” Goodridge said.


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Solvay eliminates the need for fluorosurfactants in its Tecnoflon® FKM portfolio
Solvay is leading the industry with the introduction of its breakthrough patented polymerization technology.
Solvay, a global market leader in fluorochemistry, is introducing to the market a new portfolio of high-performance Tecnoflon® peroxide curable fluoroelastomers (FKM) produced without the use of fluorosurfactants (a type of PFAS used as process aids).
The proprietary new technology, called NFS (non-fluorosurfactant), marks a breakthrough in FKM polymerization and aligns with the company’s sustainability roadmap Solvay One Planet as Solvay is setting the direction for the fluoropolymers industry to a more sustainable economy.
“Our peroxide curable FKM portfolio has always been the broadest in the industry making Tecnoflon® a premier brand with our customers” said Georges Houtappel, Executive Vice President Automotive Business, Solvay Materials. “This unique new non-fluorosurfactant polymerization process underscores our leadership in innovation, confirming our firm commitment to increase capacity and create a sustainable future”.
In July 2022 Solvay will start the mass sampling of the new Tecnoflon® Peroxide curable grades to allow the market to test and adopt the NFS technology before the global roll-out of the new portfolio. We aim to transition Tecnoflon® FKM to NFS by the first quarter of 2024.
Peroxide curable FKM rubbers are key to many critical performance applications in industries from automotive and aerospace, oil & gas, chemical processing, to electronics and healthcare. Typical components include seals, gaskets, O-rings and hoses.
More information on solvay.com
Tecnoflon® is a registered trademark of Solvay.
Solvay is a science company whose technologies bring benefits to many aspects of daily life. With more than 21,000 employees in 63 countries, Solvay bonds people, ideas and elements to reinvent progress. The Group seeks to create sustainable shared value for all, notably through its Solvay One Planet roadmap crafted around three pillars: protecting the climate, preserving resources and fostering a better life. The Group’s innovative solutions contribute to safer, cleaner, and more sustainable products found in homes, food and consumer goods, planes, cars, batteries, smart devices, health care applications, water and air purification systems. Founded in 1863, Solvay today ranks among the world’s top three companies for the vast majority of its activities and delivered net sales of €10.1 billion in 2021. Solvay is listed on Euronext Brussels and Paris (SOLB). Learn more at www.solvay.com.


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Launched two years ago at GDC, the non-profit group the PC Gaming Alliance has been trying to both study the PC gaming industry as well as suggest improvements to help expand. Today the organization announced the results of their 2009 Horizons report, a research study on PC gaming revenues. The press release that announced the results showed a 3 percent increase in worldwide PC gaming revenues in 2009 with a total of $13.1 billion.
That number doesn't just contain sales of games at brick-and-mortar stores. In fact those sales actually declined in 2009 and now cover less than 20 percent of all software-based revenues. Digital distribution of PC games made up the difference. Other sources of revenue for their numbers came from monthly subscriptions for online games, sales of virtual items and sales of ads for gaming web sites. While revenues in the US and Europe were down between 10 and 15 percent in 2009, the still growing Asian market made up for the difference.


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Hip-Hop mogul and former head of Phat Farm Russell Simmons will launch a new line of clothing in 350 Wal-Mart stores.
Simmons American Classic line will sell for between $9.99 and $29 with most of the line being priced at less than $15.
Wal-Mart will carry a number of items from the American Classics line, including knit and woven shirts, sweater vests, jeans, casual sports shoes and more.
Simmons also struck a deal to place flat screen TV’s in most of the stores carrying the line, that will feature the mogul describing his latest brand.
Simmons, who launched his Phat Farm line of clothing in 1992, sold the brand in 2004 to Kellwood Industries for $140 million in cash.
He stepped down from the CEO position of Phat Farm in 2007 but has continued in the fashion world with his brands Russell Simmons-Argyleculture and Atman.
The line debuted on Sunday (February 15) in a Chicago-area Wal-Mart.
The rest of the line will be rolled out nationwide in the coming weeks.


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Uber Will Now Sell You Snacks and More in Your Ride
This post contains references to products from one or more of our advertisers. We may receive compensation when you click on links to those products. Terms apply to the offers listed on this page. For an explanation of our Advertising Policy, visit this page.
A New York-based start-up that’s partnered with ride-hailing drivers to sell riders snacks and accessories has inked a deal with Uber. Cargo announced Thursday that it’s joining with the ride-hailing giant to offer its services to drivers in an official capacity.
Cargo, launched in 2017, has been a way for ride-sharing drivers to make a little more cash on the side. It gives drivers free boxes filled with items like chips, gum, granola bars, candy, phone chargers and more to sell to passengers. Drivers get to keep 25% percent of the sales and at least $1 per item.
For riders it can be a convenient way to grab a snack or breath mints before an important meeting — although some may view it as relentless marketing making its way into another realm of peoples’ lives.
Cargo does offer free items to riders and drivers still get paid for distributing those — a win-win for both sides. Cargo can do this because brands are willing to pay to get their products in front of a captive audience.
Riders currently pay for the items through the Cargo app, but Uber one day hopes to add that feature right into its own app.
Now, active Uber drivers who have are 4.7 rating or above can pock up a Cargo box from one of Uber’s driver support hubs in San Francisco or Los Angeles. TechCrunch reports that Cargo will continue to offer its services to ride-hailing drivers who work for other companies, too.
Cargo claims that drivers who install the system into their cars make on average an extra $1,200 a year, while the top 10% of earners boost their income by $3,600 a year.
You can also find Cargo boxes in New York, Boston, Minneapolis/Saint Paul, Washington, D.C., Baltimore, Atlanta, and Dallas/Fort Worth.
Featured image courtesy of Cargo.
This card from Bank of America gets really interesting if you have a BofA checking, savings or investment account. Depending on the value of your combined accounts you can potentially get as much as 3.5x points on travel/dining and 2.625x points on other purchases making it the richest consumer banking bonus out there.
- Receive 50,000 bonus points – a $500 value – after you make at least $3,000 in purchases in the first 90 days of account opening
- Earn unlimited 2 points for every $1 spent on travel and dining purchases and unlimited 1.5 points per $1 spent on all other purchases
- If you're a Bank of America Preferred Rewards member, you can earn 25%-75% more points on every purchase
- No limit to the points you can earn and your points don't expire
- Redeem for cash back as a statement credit, deposit into eligible Bank of America® accounts, credit to eligible Merrill accounts, or gift cards or purchases at the Bank of America Travel Center
- Get up to $200 in combined airline incidental and airport expedited screening statement credits + valuable travel insurance protections
- No Foreign Transaction Fees
- Low $95 annual fee


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L’Occitane’s shares gain 9.4% on news of potential Blackstone offer
- Blackstone conducting due diligence and considering teaming up with L’Occitane’s chairman
- L’Occitane previously considered going private last year
L’Occitane International, the skincare company known for its natural beauty products, saw a significant surge in its shares after reports emerged that private equity firm Blackstone is considering a bid. The news has sparked excitement among investors and industry experts, leading to a sharp increase in L’Occitane’s stock price. This development could potentially reshape the future of the renowned skincare brand and open new avenues for growth.
Potential Blackstone Offer
According to sources familiar with the matter, Blackstone has been conducting preliminary due diligence as it explores the possibility of acquiring L’Occitane. The private equity firm is carefully considering the potential benefits of a partnership with L’Occitane’s billionaire chairman, Reinold Geiger. This collaboration could lead to a joint effort in acquiring the company, allowing both parties to leverage their expertise and resources for the brand’s future success.
L’Occitane’s Previous Plans
This is not the first time L’Occitane has contemplated a change in ownership. Last year, Geiger expressed interest in taking the company private. However, the plans did not materialize, as the controlling shareholder decided against proceeding with the transaction. Now, with Blackstone’s potential bid on the table, L’Occitane has an opportunity to explore alternative paths for growth and expansion.
News of Blackstone’s interest in L’Occitane has had an immediate impact on the company’s stock price. L’Occitane’s shares surged 9.4% to 28.45 Hong Kong dollars in early Asian trade, marking its largest daily percentage gain since May of last year. Investors are optimistic about the potential partnership between Blackstone and L’Occitane, recognizing the value it could unlock for the skincare brand.
The possibility of Blackstone’s bid for L’Occitane has generated significant interest and excitement in the market. If the deal goes through, it could mark a new chapter for the skincare company, opening doors to fresh opportunities and growth. As the situation develops, it will be interesting to see how L’Occitane and Blackstone navigate the potential acquisition and what it means for the future of this renowned beauty brand.


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Report: Ram to Show 1500 Revolution EV Concept at CES
Early November isn't the only time the automotive world looks towards Las Vegas.
Sin City finds itself back in the spotlight every January for the Consumer Electronics Show. Automakers have long had a significant presence at CES, and now a report suggests Ram will be taking the wraps off of an EV concept there.
This is mildly surprising, given the LA Auto Show takes place in a little over two weeks. But not that surprising, given the history of automakers doing reveals at CES. Not to mention Ram can separate itself from the LA show news cycle.
The concept will bow 18 months or more before the production truck does. The production truck will use the STLA Frame electric platform. The battery pack is reported to be somewhere between 159 and 200+ kWh and the range is expected to be up to 500 miles.
We'll know more in January.
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As U.S. Postal Cuts Saturday Service, How Mail Gets Delivered In Other Countries (MAP)
AP, EL UNIVERSAL (Mexico), NEWS.COM.AU (Australia), INDEPENDENT.IE (Ireland)
The big news arrived in America's mailbox on Wednesday: the U.S. Postal Service will end Saturday delivery service starting this summer, responding to budget cuts and the growing use of the Internet for long-distance communication. AP has the news from Washington.
Not surprisingly, changes to postal service are happening elsewhere in the world for similar reasons. But the situation is hardly uniform. Here's how your local postman rings "round the world.
1. NEW ZEALAND
The small island nation of 4.4 million people announced last month plans to cut down mail delivery to as few as three days a week in the face of Internet competition for correspondences. Lucky for them, they've also got Kim Dotcom to figure out a way to upload it all for free.
Unlike its northern neighbor, Mexico has no plans to cut down from its six-days-a-week service, though locals will tell you not to necessarily count on everything arriving promptly on Saturday, or arriving promptly any day, or ... arriving. To spruce up its image for said inefficiency, then Mexican President Felipe Calderón changed both the name and symbol of the postal service in 2008. What used to be called “Servicio Postal Mexicano” (Mexican Postal Service) is now known as “Correos de México” (Mexico Courier). The old logo looks vaguely Yankee...the new one is kind of cute.
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Irish postman Michael Gallagher from County Donegal has been delivering the mail for 40 years -- he also happens to be the country's most trusted weatherman. Gallagher studies the behaviour of animals and plants to determine what the weather will be. He first came to national attention in 2007 when he predicted that the seemingly endless rain that summer would cease. There is massive interest from Irish media predictions. After he correctly predicted a “white Christmas” in 2009, Mr Gallagher forced betting agency Paddy Power to pay out more than €70,000 in winnings, says the Irish Independent.
While America cuts service to five days a week, the national postal service in the People's Republic of China holds steady with delivery... SEVEN days a week. With business booming and no shortage of available labor, some have suggested upping that to eight.
If you miss a home delivery in Japan, you can call up the post office and ask the mailman to swing back around. Right away. Almost as good as sushi express.
In ancient times, letters traveled across the deserts of the Middle East by camel. Now, Jordan's innovative postal service allows you to keep track of packages every step of the way with regular SMS messages. Of course, sooner or later, the package itself is likely to arrive through your telephone..
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There have been no new positive results on processed minced beef being contaminated, the British Retail Consortium said today.
Retailers said they have conducted 1889 tests between January 20 and February 28, with 361 negative tests carried out in the last week.
All tests on processed minced beef products have been completed.
The UK's major supermarkets, and a number of other BRC-member food businesses, have now tested all existing processed minced beef products.
The reassuring news is that another intensive week of testing has produced no new positive results. And, since this testing programme started in mid-January, just a third of one per cent of products have tested positive.
But our members won't accept anything less than 100 per cent compliance. We are working with the rest of the supply chain and with Government to prevent any incidents in the future.
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In this new digital series Paul Brand offers the hypothetical keys to Number 10 to each guest and asks them: What would you do now?
Under Karl Lagerfeld's leadership Chanel's fashion shows became as iconic and flamboyant as the clothes he designed.
The Chinese national, who is in her 60s, could spend up to 17 years in prison.


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The Italian film industry has condemned Paramount for offering concessions to the EU in an ongoing antitrust case. It joins the ranks of leaders in the European audiovisual industry who claim that the studio’s recent actions threaten their very existence.
Last summer in Brussels, the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Competition (COMP) filed an antitrust complaint against the big six studios — Paramount, Disney, NBCUniversal, Sony, 20th Century Fox and Warner Bros. — for illegal agreements with Sky U.K. which blocked EU consumers from accessing pay-TV content and services from outside the U.K. and Ireland.
Paramount is the first studio to offer the EU a deal, which would broaden the licensing access Sky U.K has with Paramount films, in exchange for dropping the probe into their European film licensing deals. It’s a step in the direction of creating a single digital market across the EU which ultimately would break down the country-by-country licensing rules that regulate the sale of pay-TV content.
But the European film industry is not happy with Paramount’s move.
“In Brussels, we made it very clear how we finance and produce our films,” said Lucky Red’s Andrea Occhipinti, president of ANICA Distributors. “We don’t understand Paramount’s decision. Probably for them, Europe is just another market for films that are already produced and financed elsewhere.”
According to Occhipinti, Paramount’s concessions may undercut the very existence upon which European film financing is based.
“For the European producers and distributors, pay-TV and free-TV investments are crucial to finance their films and series. In order to do so, pay-TV and free-TV geo-blocking and exclusivity are the mandatory conditions,” he added. “Without these premises, there will not be the European audiovisual industry and the cultural diversity our films expressed.”
Other industry figures seem even more suspicious of Paramount’s actions.
“As it is rumored that Viacom intends to sell Paramount. It is believed that Paramount’s offer to settle with the DG Comp is to avoid any potential liabilities that may interfere with such a sale. It is not understood to mark a change in the studio’s position on the matter at hand,” said Cattleya’s Marco Chimenz, president of European Producers Club.
While the European Commission has opened its case with the U.K., it has not ruled out extending the case to further pay-TV markets in France, Italy, Germany and Spain. According to the industry, this will upset the very core upon which current financing models exist and thrive.
“The proposed settlement definitely does not change the position of European producers: If geoblocking clauses are ruled unlawful, the European paradigm for financing films and television drama is in peril,” said Chimenz. “Ultimately, pay-television operators would drastically reduce their investment in local European productions, and this would likely decimate our business and competitiveness.”
He continued: “Indeed, this would not only dramatically affect our audiovisual industry (which employs more than seven million people) just when it has entered a period of solid economic and creative growth, but such a reduced volume of content would also deprive European consumers of the opportunity to view diversified European product and thereby to become more familiar with the culture and habits of their European neighbors.
“Such a result would seem to contradict the obligation of the European Union, to preserve culture diversity. We strongly encourage DG Comp to take the position of the European industry and the ultimate needs of European consumers into due consideration.”
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Regulator gives 'home-zone' services the go-ahead
Mobile calls at cheaper, fixed-line rates
Mobile customers could soon be able to take and make cheaper calls with ComReg giving the green light to operators to offer "home-zone" services.
As part of the new services, callers will be able to use their mobile phone handsets to make and receive calls in or near their homes at cheaper fixed-line rates. Standard mobile call rates are usually charged when the customer is out and about. In other words, the phone would act as a traditional fixed-line phone while the user is within a certain range, transferring to a mobile phone when the customer goes outside the dedicated range.
Geographic numbers, which were traditionally limited to fixed lines e.g. 01, 045 etc, will now be available to mobile operators, as long as they charge the cheaper, fixed-line prices. This means a mobile phone could have two associated numbers - the original mobile number as well as a geographic number like 01, for example.
The regulator is also supporting moves to make geographical numbers portable, allowing existing fixed-line customers to move their telephone numbers entirely to mobile operators for the home-zone service.
"ComReg has balanced its decisions with a clear indication that in the future fixed-line operators who wish to provide mobile numbers will be facilitated, so long as these numbers are used for genuinely mobile purposes. New services, based on a range of emerging technologies, could allow fixed-line operators to 'bolt-on' on mobile access services for their customers," the regulator said in a statement.
"This will benefit consumers by offering greater flexibility in available offerings and in lower priced calls in many cases."
The move towards fixed-mobile communications is nothing new in Europe. Already, several service providers in the UK offer the services to customers, including mobile operator Orange with its Unik product, and BT also offers its Fusion services to UK customers. The Fusion service allows customers to use Wi-Fi technology in their handsets to connect to the BT Home Hub or BT Openzone hotspots to make phone calls.
There are also moves to make this a reality in the Irish market. In April last year, Cork-based Trans Global Technologies announced it was planning to launch its hybrid phone, the Phoenix M1 unit, comprising a wireless base unit/recharger and mobile camera phone with MP3, FM radio, and internet capabilities, in early 2007.
Though good news for mobile operators, this could spell bad news for traditional fixed-line operators, who already find themselves under threat from voice over IP services, as many people are ditching landlines in favour of mobile phones.
Predictions made last year by researchers estimate that some 92 million people will have combined their fixed and mobile lines by 2011, while a survey from Strategy Analytics indicated that almost 20 per cent of consumers in Western Europe only have a mobile phone. The same survey said two-thirds of customers would use their mobile more at home if calls were charged at landline rates.
Copyright © 2007, ENN


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On Saturday, Intel and IBM separately announced a new type of transistor material that the companies say will lead to smaller chips, increased computing performance, and more energy-efficient computers. Both chip makers have plans to integrate the new material into the next manufacturing line of chips–known as the 45-nanometer generation–within a year. Ultimately, this advance should make computers better at playing video games, editing movies, and performing other processor-intense tasks.
Intel, known for its personal-computer chips, has also announced that the new chips will appear in its next generation of “dual core” and “quad core” computers and servers, which are expected to be in production at the end of this year. IBM, well-known for its servers and high-performance computing systems, expects that products featuring its new chips will ship by early 2008.
Historically, the performance of microprocessors has doubled every two years, following a trend known as Moore’s Law. Performance has increased thanks to chip fabrication technology that has let transistors shrink with each generation, either allowing more transistors to be packed on a chip or allowing the chips to be made smaller. Currently, most computer and server microprocessors are made using what is known as a 65-nanometer process. The next generation of transistors will be made smaller using a 45-nanometer process. However, the companies’ new materials will provide this generation of chip with a performance boost that wouldn’t be possible otherwise.
One of the material changes will be in an important transistor component called the gate dielectric. This component helps control the flow of electrons, which turn the transistor on or off. For decades, the gate dielectric has been made of an insulating material called silicon dioxide. However, as transistors have shrunk, the layer of silicon dioxide has needed to become thinner. This poses a problem, however, because a thin layer of silicon dioxide lets electrical current leak through it, producing excess heat and resulting in poor device performance.
IBM and Intel found that a material called high-k produces the same benefits of silicon dioxide, but it can do so in a thicker layer. The material is based on the element hafnium, and both companies claim that it significantly reduces the amount of current leakage.
In addition to having to replace the gate dielectric, both companies were forced to rethink the type of material to use for the gate itself–the transistor component that ultimately turns a transistor on and off. Traditionally, gates have been made of polysilicon, a less structured form of crystalline silicon, which is used in the transistor. But in order to make the gate compatible with the new gate dielectric, Intel and IBM replaced polysilicon with a metal whose name neither company will disclose at this time.


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All things Pocket Watches.
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As Health Apps Hop On The Apple Watch, Privacy Will Be Key
Health privacy and Apple's new watch -- do you really trust these app creators? "The U.S. Federal Trade Commission concluded in a recent study that developers of 12 mobile health and fitness apps were sharing user information with 76 different parties, such as advertisers.".


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Making Frugality a Habit
Weaving a financial safety net is not just about covering yourself in a crisis. “It’s also about being able to get ahead,” said Jennifer Wheary, a senior fellow at Demos, a nonpartisan public policy research group in New York. Ms. Wheary is the co-author of a report released in November: “From Middle to Shaky Ground: The Economic Decline of America’s Middle Class.”
Most people’s economic stability depends on a variety of factors. Right now, with so many people facing multiple sources of financial strain, “it’s even more important to have that cushion,” Ms. Wheary said.
When you are stretched thin, it can feel impossible to save — and yet that is when you need to make sure, somehow, that you do, she said. Among the families surveyed for the study, 75 percent “couldn’t survive for three months, if they had to do it on savings alone.”
My husband and I could easily be one of those families. Every time our emergency fund hits the one-month mark some crisis strolls along and gobbles up our funds. Then we start over. Now, I am determined to save the $15,000 that would cover our family’s most basic needs for at least three months.
A few tricks that might help. Start by finding a specific chunk you can save — perhaps cutting back cable, quitting smoking, renting out the garage or limiting spending on restaurant meals.
THEN do an end-run around your own inertia and use automatic transfers to deposit a set amount — $100, $200 or $300 — every month into an account not linked to your checking and definitely not accessible by PIN or with any piece of plastic. The first time I tried this, I saved $3,000 so fast it made my wallet spin.
Comment: Little steps: Automatic savings transfers, freeze a credit card (put it in a locked box), bagging lunch, dinning in a Friday night, driving less. All these help.


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Roughly a week ago, payments middleman Square (NYSE:SQ) launched a debit card designed specifically for merchants who are already using its platform. SQ stock jumped on the news, and understandably so. Backed by Mastercard (NYSE:MA), the card gives small businesses immediate access to funds that they might otherwise have to wait days to use.
The marketability of the card is clear. Even if it can only be used by Square’s current customers, certainly most of them will be interested in the offer; waiting for funds to clear can hurt small businesses over time.
But the new Square Card’s real strength lies in the fact that it’s a piece of a puzzle for SQ stock that’s not yet complete, but soon could be.
Square Card Will Be an Easy Sell
Square Card is another shot at Square’s rival, Paypal Holdings (NASDAQ:PYPL), which has taken similar — though not identical — initiatives. With Square Card, Square’s customers will be able to immediately access the payments made to them. without paying a fee. Prior to the launch of Square Card, merchants could immediately access payments made to them, but they had to pay a 1% fee to do so.
Moreover, Square merchants who use their Square Cards to buy goods and services from other Square merchants will receive a 2.75% rebate on those purchases.
In simplest terms, the payments company is developing its own ecosystem…. one that Nomura Instinet analyst Dan Dolev believes plugs the company into a total addressable market of $50 billion. Dolev, however, thinks that Square Card will only increase Square’s revenue by $2 million to $7 million within the next couple of years.
More than that, though, adding another feature to the list of benefits offered to merchants will certainly inspire more companies to consider using Square’s services. Over time, the card should help Square increase its customer base, ultimately raising Square’s bottom line and boosting SQ stock.
But that’s not the only reason that the current and would-be owners of Square stock should celebrate Square Card.
Another Piece of the Puzzle
Square Card is a debit card that effectively allows merchants to bypass traditional banks. But the debut of the new product may only be a stepping stone to SQ becoming a full-blown bank.
If the idea sounds familiar to longtime fans of SQ stock, there’s a reason for that. SQ filed paperwork to become a true bank, with insured deposits, in September 2017. Square was aiming to become a government-approved bank primarily because it wanted to provide loans and credit that small businesses generally aren’t able to get from their local banks.
If the application is approved — and there’s no clear reason it wouldn’t be — Square will become a one-stop solution for merchants, allowing Square’s customers to avoid dealing with conventional, local banks altogether.
The Bottom Line on SQ Stock
Although Square already facilitates loans, it only does so by referring customers to Utah-based Celtic Bank.
But facilitating loans is not a big business for Square. Securing its own bank charter would allow SQ itself to become a lender, which is a more profitable role. With more potential earnings on the table, Square would certainly more intensively market its loans. And, since two million merchants are already using Square to accept customer payments, SQ has two million potential customers to whom it can easily market its loans.
All of Square’s customers would likely understand the benefit of having real-time access to payments via a debit card.
The valuation of SQ stock certainly isn’t low, but there’s more than enough growth in store to keep the long-term rally of Square stock going.
As of this writing, James Brumley did not hold a position in any of the aforementioned securities. You can follow him on Twitter, at @jbrumley.
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The post New B2B Debit Card From Square Almost Completes the Puzzle appeared first on InvestorPlace.


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CHICAGO (CBS.MW) -- Currency benefits and brisk business both here and abroad helped McDonald's push global sales up 9.5 percent in the fourth quarter -- and end 2004 with its best all-around same-store sales numbers in 17 years.
After the closing bell Tuesday, McDonald's
In Europe, meanwhile, the fast-food behemoth saw same-store figure grow 2.2 percent last month, 1.8 percent in the quarter and 2.4 percent for the full year.
On a constant currency basis, the company said total sales gained 4.9 percent in December and 5.1 percent for the quarter.
McDonald's served 48 million customers per day in 2004, said CEO Jim Skinner in the announcement, an increase of 1.6 million per day.
"Our ongoing dedication to operational excellence and leadership marketing generated positive global comparable sales during every month of 2004 - a feat not achieved since 1987," he said.
Separately, McDonald's said that it will join other companies that have announced intentions to modify their accounting treatment of leases and leasehold improvements.
"McDonald's has also decided to modify its accounting practice in this area," the company said. It believes the changes will "primarily result in an acceleration of the recognition of rent expense under certain leases that include fixed rent escalations."
They will not, however, "affect McDonald's historical or future cash flows or the timing of payments under the related leases" or be "significant to our annual net income" or balance sheet.
Shares of McDonald's rose about 1 percent to close at $31.60 Tuesday. A year ago, it was trading at $24 and change.


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Travis County Commissioners agreed to the key terms of a contract with Apple Tuesday.
The agreement allots Apple a 60 percent tax rebate, or discount on its property taxes over 10 years if it complies with the following:
• Build the facility in the time allotted in two phases, with the first being completed by Dec. 2015, the second by Dec. 2021.
• Create 3,600 new jobs.
• An additional 5 percent rebate will be added if 50 percent of the new job hires are of people within Travis County.
• Another 5 percent is added if the facility is LEED certified, or up to green building standards.
"We're talking $6.4 million of abatement over 15 years. That is worth it. We'll far more get that back. To me, it's worth it to have a positive working relationship with a company like Apple," Commissioner Karen Huber said. "The impact of a global company like Apple brings to the area, far-reaching positive impacts beyond just the number of jobs they're going to bring. There will be other businesses that will come and support Apple."
One item taken out of the agreement was an incentive to hire economically disadvantaged citizens, which is why Commissioner Sarah Eckhardt voted against it.
"These are the folks who could benefit the most from your jobs at Apple,” she said. “I heard today for the first time that Apple was no longer willing to consider this commitment and therefore I'm no longer willing to entertain relieving Apple of its tax responsibilities."
The City of Austin also approved incentives for Apple. The Tech giant is planning to expand its operations within the city.
A full contract will be brought back for the commissioners to approve. Apple plans to begin hiring for the new jobs in 2014.


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3G iPhone in Europe? Nix, Nicht, Nein, Non!
Only Apple would launch a 2.5G device in a country where 20% of mobile-phone users own 3G-enabled handsets and expect them to downgrade their wireless experience and pay a premium for doing so.
Apple CEO Steve Jobs confirmed yesterday that the company’s iPhone will go on sale in Britain Nov. 9 and be carried exclusively by Telefonica SA’s O2 division (which was apparently willing to give up a kidney as well as its first born to win the deal).
As in the states, U.K. iPhones will run on a 2.5G EDGE network. An odd choice, given the prevalence of 3G-enabled phones in the country and O2’s British EDGE penetration, which apparently hovers around a paltry 30%.
Speaking at London’s Regent Street Apple Store, Jobs defended Apple’s decision to support EDGE and not 3G, saying to do otherwise would compromise the iPhone’s battery life. “The 3G chipsets are real power hogs,” said Jobs. “Most phones now have battery lives of two to three hours, and that’s due to these very power-hungry 3G chipsets. Our phone has 8 hours of talk-time life. That’s really important when you start to use the Internet and want to use the phone to listen to music. We’ve got to see the battery lives for 3G get back up into the five-plus hour range. Hopefully we’ll see that late next year. Rather than cut the battery life, we’ve included Wi-Fi and sandwiched 3G between EDGE and a more efficient Wi-Fi.”
And that appears to be Apple’s party line as it continues its iPhone march across Europe. This morning, Apple announced T-Mobile–the only network operator in Germany to offer EDGE throughout its entire GSM network–as the exclusive German carrier of the iPhone. Presumably it will announce a similar deal with France Télécom SA’s Orange in the days ahead.
Correction: Because of an editing error, an earlier version of the first paragraph of this post incorrectly referred to a “2.5-gigabyte” device instead of 2.5G device (as in “generation”) as the author intended.


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The new Ukrainian chain of futuristic capsule hotels Monotel plans to open its first facility near Besarabska Square in August, and two more in Zoloti Vorota (Golden Gate) and near the Kyiv's bike track – by the end of 2019, the press service of the operator has told Interfax-Ukraine. "We are planning to open the first facility on Independence Day. It will be located at 9/28 Shevchenko Boulevard and will be designed for 28 people. It includes women's and men's bedrooms with 10 beds each and one bedroom for couples with four double capsules. read full article on https://open4business.com.ua
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Futuristic capsule hotel chain to open its doors in Kyiv, starting at $36 a night, online check-in and silent service
A chain of futuristic hotels with tech capsules instead of conventional rooms is to open its doors in Kyiv. The project is called Monotel, and according to its representatives, the first hotel is set to open its doors in Kyiv as soon as in August of this year. Ksenia Chigarkina, a co-founder of Monotel, shared the details of the hotel with AIN.UA. What is a capsule hotel The concept of the hotel appeals to the rational use of both space and resources. The tradition of sleep in capsular space came from Asia: such hotels began to appear in Tokyo back in the 70s – it is the cheapest way to get through the night there.


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Rochester Hills-based Prefix Corp. and Cincinnati’s Workhouse Group Inc. are joining forces to finalize the design, development, and production of Workhorse’s N-GEN series all-electric delivery van.
Teams from each company now are building an underlying platform to support 1,200-cubic-foot, 1,000-cubic-foot, and 650-cubic-foot capacity delivery vans. To streamline cost and increase production efficiency, all sizes will share a common cab and chassis configuration.
The new delivery vans will be built on a low-floor chassis platform developed by Workhorse while Prefix develops, builds, and supplies the 100-percent composite cab and body.
Plans call for production to begin at Workhorse’s Union City, Ind., plant in the third quarter of 2019 with deliveries beginning soon after.
“This strategic partnership provides Workhorse with a proven partner that will allow us to remain on schedule to fulfill existing orders we have from our key customers like UPS and DHL,” says Duane Hughes, CEO of Workhorse company CEO. “Through our previous partnerships with Prefix, we’ve already worked closely together and witnessed the quality of their work firsthand. With this new formal partnership in place, we’ll be able to expedite production, and completion, of the industry’s most innovative electric delivery van.”
Workhorse and Prefix have collaborated previously on real-world testing of several Workhorse prototypes, including previous N-GEN 450 delivery vehicles that were used in San Francisco, Calif., and Fairfield, Ohio. The proven-performance demonstrated by these test vehicles will inform the production of these new vehicles, incorporating features such as light-weighting the vehicle to improve mileage, performance, driver safety, and reducing the burden of infrastructure requirements.
“Our new collaboration with Workhorse has been a natural progression, given that we’ve already designed and built several prototype cabs and bodies on the Workhorse electric chassis,” says Eric Zeile, president of Prefix Corp.


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To celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Walt Disney Concert Hall, the Los Angeles Philharmonic is inviting the public to participate in an online experience featuring the architectural masterpiece and acoustic marvel, designed by architect Frank Gehry, which has changed the musical landscape of Los Angeles for the past decade.
Partnering with Hello Design, an LA-based digital creative agency, the Los Angeles Philharmonic has launched a digital destination highlighting the upcoming season and featuring the history of Walt Disney Concert Hall as a special landmark, and the aspirational performance stage for many artists from around the world. To give visitors an insider perspective, the new website features an interactive 360-degree panoramic video of a performance in Walt Disney Concert Hall, allowing visitors the rare immersive experience of being inside the orchestra and the opportunity to see the hall from many perspectives.
Additionally, the Los Angeles Philharmonic worked with Hello Design to create an easy-to-use concert selector tool called “Concert Master” as a fun starting point in a visitor’s journey to the hall. “Concert Master” takes visitors through a series of questions about their interests and makes tailored recommendations for which of this season’s concerts they might enjoy.
The Walt Disney Concert Hall digital destination combines rich content, video and social to celebrate the hall’s history and key features including:
· Highlights of major Los Angeles Philharmonic at Walt Disney Concert Hall milestones, including gala openings, premieres, guest artists and festivals
· Architectural content including an interview with Frank Gehry, the architect behind Walt Disney Concert Hall, sketches, behind-the-scenes photos, and virtual tour
· Walt Disney Concert Hall’s innovative acoustics story and concert organ features, photos and video
· Interviews with Gustavo Dudamel, Esa-Pekka Salonen and other artists and musicians who have played at Walt Disney Concert Hall
· A social stream highlighting favorite memories of Walt Disney Concert Hall, captured via Instagram posts that use the hashtag #wdch10
This new digital experience was built for discovery and access, giving viewers a taste of the Los Angeles Philharmonic experience and a multisensory introduction to the joy of classical music. The goal is to celebrate the Los Angeles Philharmonic and its iconic performance space, while bringing classical music to new audiences.
This new work from the Los Angeles Philharmonic and Hello Design follows the 2009 launch of an integrated campaign comprised of an iPhone app, online game and website to promote the arrival of music director Gustavo Dudamel. The app turns iPhones into a conductor's baton and the game allows users to conduct an orchestra with a Guitar Hero-inspired interface.view more - Creative