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Myntra (Image: Company website)
Fashion marketplace Myntra, on May 18, announced a slew of relief measures for its 2,000 brand partners, including a special COVID-19 insurance with a coverage of up to Rs 3 lakh. The Flipkart-owned company also plans to bear the vaccination costs of its brand partners and two of their family members.
“With safety, health and well-being taking precedence, Myntra is offering all its 2,000 marketplace brand partners a special COVID insurance, with a coverage of up to Rs 3 lakh. In addition to this, Myntra is also reimbursing COVID vaccination costs for the partners and two of their family members,” the company said in a press release.
Besides these, the company is also offering operational support to its partners by relaxing order fulfillment turnaround time from 24 hours to 48 hours and by waiving off all order cancellation charges for April and May.
The company said it could further extend the waiver depending on the situation on the ground.
Myntra has also extended the Seller Protection Fund (SPF), the window within which the sellers make claims against returned products, to 45 days from 14 days.
“At Myntra, we consider it our responsibility to work towards sustaining and strengthening the ecosystem for the benefit of all. The objective of rolling out these special initiatives is to extend support to our brand partners to continue to run their operations smoothly,” said Rajesh Narkar, Vice President, Marketplace, Omni and International Brands Business, Myntra.
The e-commerce marketplace is also vaccinating its frontline staff including the delivery workforce free of cost at its office premises, apart from its employees.
A host of companies such as ITC, Borosil, TVS Motor Company, Bajaj Auto, Sun Pharma have rolled out employee benefits programmes for their employees recently.


text: In case you hadn't heard, HTC's warming up for another phone launch, readying events in both New York and London. The UK arm has now offered up a countdown clock (six days to go!), but with an extra soupçon of tease -- some ever-so brief glimpses of its M7 device, rumored to land as the HTC One. Fortunately, someone's managed to track down all the teaser clips and stitch them together -- we've added it after the break. Alongside plenty of blinding light, we get a better peek at what seems to be a machined metallic edge around the device, as well as a single shot of the camera lens -- HTC does love its imaging tech. You can also glean that the device will arrive dressed white, just like its predecessor, the One X.

domain: news


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Prime Minister Julia Gillard toured the commercial headquarters and associated laboratory and engineering facilities of a “disruptive” solar energy technology in October.
Ms Gillard visited Dyesol in Queanbeyan, New South Wales, to learn more about dye solar cell (DSC) solar energy technology.
The Prime Minister met with director and joint founder Sylvia Tulloch and was greeted by Dyesol scientists, engineers and support staff to learn more about the solar cells.
DSC is a third-generation solar technology driving changes in the application of solar energy, particularly in building integrated photovoltaics (BIPV).
The cells employ nanotechnology to create electricity directly from light by mimicking the process of photosynthesis.
“By replacing conventional building facades or steel roofing sheets, with building materials that have Dyesol’s dye solar cell technology imbedded into their very fabric, without the need to fit conventional solar panels at additional cost, we see exciting opportunities for cost-savings and large-scale integration,” Mrs Tulloch said.
“Compared to conventional silicon-based photovoltaic technology, Dyesol’s technology has several advantages including lower cost and energy required for manufacture, plus it produces electricity in a range of light conditions from dawn to dusk and even under artificial light. It will produce energy at any angle or even in shade and can be directly incorporated into any part of a building, wall, floor or roof,” Mrs Tulloch explained.
The company is commercialising the technology worldwide by partnering with industrial companies such as Tata, one of the world’s largest manufacturers of steel-roofing materials, and Pilkington North America, in addition to key companies in the material supply chain crucial to the roll-out of this technology.


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APM Terminals second terminal in Morocco, MedPort Tangier was inaugurated this week. Part of the Tanger Med Port complex, it has an annual capacity of 5 million TEUs (twenty-foot equivalents).
Archives for July 2019
Common Structural Rules Software LLC, a joint venture company formed by ABS and LR has enhanced its Prescriptive Analysis and Finite Element Analysis software.
The CCGS Sir John Franklin is the first large vessel to be built and delivered to the Government of Canada under the National Shipbuilding Strategy
A key IMO initiative supporting ship decarbonisation – the Global Industry Alliance (GIA) – is set to be extended to 2023, in line with the timeframe of IMO’s Initial GHG Strategy.
“K” Line, Taipower, U-Ming and Kuang Ming have agreed to establish a new joint venture shipping company and jointly signed MOU in Taipei, Taiwan on July 1.
LNT Marine has successfully completed gas trials of its novel LNTA-BOX® containment system aboard Saga Dawn, a mid-size LNG carrier due for delivery from China Merchants Heavy Industry (Jiangsu) shipyard.
The global economy has been radically transformed in the centuries since European navigators first hit the seas in search of new trading opportunities
Mental health awareness should be made a core component of first aid seafarer training, according to Captain Rajesh Unni, CEO and Founder of leading shipmanager Synergy Group.
Learn how seafarers can grow their hard-earned money by investing smartly and letting the investment grow over a period of time. Chief Engineer Rajeeve Kaushik aptly explains the case of financial cauldron.


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New smartphone app may detect Zika, dengue in 30 minutes
Researchers including one of Indian origin have developed a new smartphone-controlled, battery-operated diagnostic device that costs just $100 and can detect Zika, dengue and chikungunya within 30 minutes.
Testing for these mosquito-borne viruses currently requires a laboratory and patients have to wait days for results.
The tests require instruments that are roughly the size of a microwave oven and can cost up to $20,000. This makes rapid testing unrealistic for limited-resource clinics in developing countries where the viruses are prevalent.
"In addition to creating an app that serves as a simple interface to operate the device, we were able to adapt smartphone camera sensors to replace traditional laboratory sample analysis tools, allowing for unprecedented mobility," said Aashish Priye from Sandia National Laboratories in the US.
The device is based on the loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) diagnostic method, which eliminates the need to process a biological sample, such as blood or urine, before testing.
Conventional viral testing involves transporting a sample to a laboratory, extracting DNA or RNA from it and then multiplying the genetic materials through a process called polymerase chain reaction (PCR).
Like PCR, LAMP copies viral DNA/RNA, but without the heating and cooling cycle, a heavy-duty power source is not needed.
The addition of a few carefully designed biochemical agents allows a LAMP box to test a sample that is heated only once to 65 degrees Celsius for half an hour.


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Resource Insights: 10/01/2019
This is the second of four parts in a string on Willits, California, one the first neighborhoods in america to react to peak oil. But precisely what is a local business? The neighborhood paper, The Willits News, has been supportive of the peak oil activists highly, often providing front-page coverage of their events and publishing letters to the editor and guest editorials on the activities and concerns.
But the newspapers is owned by a large media chain that also is the owner of 56 other papers across the country. So where will the newspapers fit exactly? Hardware stores are usually locally owned, but associated with nationwide organizations often. Ace Hardware Corp. and Do It Best Corp. Are these local suppliers local truly?
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If so, what about other string stores? While some chain stores are possessed by large companies, numerous others are franchises, possessed and run by people locally often. A franchise such as Subway or McDonald’s would fall into this category. Then, of course, there is the problem of sourcing one’s products locally.
True localization would mean getting whatever one is selling from manufacturers nearby. Clearly, Willits would grind to a halt if it needed to source all of its needs locally. But some restaurants, a local health grocery and a supermarket have all made strides by sourcing some of their food locally.
Craft items are sometimes also available close by. But the vast majority of items bought from Willits aren’t made in or around Willits and won’t be anytime soon. The manager of the supermarket mentioned above began to stock local produce at the urging of area activists. His store, however, is part of a little chain which owns about 70 stores in California and Oregon. Should this supermarket be awarded “local” status?
It is an indicator of our globalized world that the word “local business” should become so puzzled. Organizers of what has come to be known as the “Local First” campaign in Willits certainly didn’t want to exclude anyone who facilitates the thought of sourcing goods and services locally. But allowing everyone into the planned program who wished in could have defeated the complete reason for the advertising campaign.


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Tekken 8, the new game of the famous fighting game series Tekken, was announced with a stunning trailer this year. Developed by Bandai Namco and will be presented to us game lovers, this production will be released for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series and PC (Steam). The reports for the game, whose release date is not yet clear, point to the year 2023.
Some reports for Tekken 8 indicate that it will debut in 2023
For the fighting game Tekken 8, which fans are eagerly awaiting, Reddit user Awkward96 has revealed some reports. The resulting Bandai Namco reports make it clear that Tekken 8 could arrive in 2023. The report states: “In addition to the games scheduled for release in fiscal year 2022, we want to offer major productions to players in fiscal year 2023. We are also developing Tekken 8 with the aim of launching it in 2023 or later.”
Developed by Bandai Namco Studios, Tekken 8 expands the fighting genre and takes full advantage of the power of the latest generation of consoles by creating one of the most visually stunning and immersive games in the genre. Tekken 8 focuses on a new rivalry in which Jin Kazama stands against Kazuya Mishima’s quest for world domination, after the terrible battle that ended with the defeat of Heihachi Mishima.


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Anelich said it appears that the risk of surface to person transmission was initially overstated. “We’re now of the view that 90 to 95% of transmission is person-to-person.”
“Virus particles have been reported to survive for hours or days on surfaces,” said the ICMSF. “But the chance of transmission through inanimate surfaces appears to be very small.”
There is no justification for countries to restrict food imports, test imported food products or insist on statements verifying products as "Covid-19 free", said the body.
Last month the Chinese government reported that a sample of frozen chicken wings imported from Brazil had tested positive for the novel coronavirus in the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen - the latest in a series of reports of contaminated imported food products in China.
Chinese health authorities have repeatedly told the public to be cautious about buying imported meat and seafood.
This is despite the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention stating that the risk of infection by the virus from food products, food packaging or bags is "thought to be very low”.
For food businesses, the focus should be on protecting food workers, consumers and restaurant patrons from becoming infected by person-to-person SARS-CoV-2 spread, added the ICMSF.
• GET IN TOUCH: You can contact Wendy Knowler for advice with your consumer issues via e-mail: firstname.lastname@example.org or on Twitter: @wendyknowler.


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On July 10th the FCC released a package of declaratory rulings to provide clarity on how the commission interprets TCPA, close loops and strengthen consumer protections. Download Neustar’s new FAQ: New TCPA Rules: Key Insights You Should Be Thinking About to get answers to common questions about the new ruling, such as:
- What the new special exemptions are
- What the new ruling says about reassigned numbers
- How the FCC is currently interpreting the "one call" allowance
- The FAQ also includes a valuable section on industry best practices with recommendations on determining phone type, verifying that a number has not been reassigned, selective use of the one call exemption, and more.


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INDIA: Tyson JV: We need more than "Brand India" meat plan
India's plan to create a brand to promote domestically-produced meat and meat products could fail if the links between livestock producers and processors are not strengthened, Tyson Foods' local venture has warned.
"Unless there is backward integration in the industry and cost control, we cannot compete in the international market. We are reaching there in poultry integration but in cattle rearing we still have a long way to go," Sushil Sawant, assistant vice president for Godrej Tyson Foods told just-food today (22 June).
India's ministry of food processing industries (MoFPI) plans to invest INR2.4bn (US$40.3m) in modernising abattoirs and improving meat and livestock transport to boost exports. According to the MoFPI, India has 11% of the world's livestock population but its share of exports is only 3%.
Only 33 integrated meat processing plants have been approved by India's Agriculture and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA).
Liyaqat Ali, director, Al Hind Exports, a Meerut-based leading meat exporter, added better government efficiency could also play a part.
"Merchant exporters are keen on upgrading their facilities but the necessary permissions for infrastructure development can take a long time to come. Why just export? Even the meat sold domestically should be hygienic."
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The Department of Industry and Trade in Ho Chi Minh City has announced that about 22 businesses will take part in the price subsidized program during the next Tet holiday season in Ho Chi Minh City.
|Cau Tre Food Processing Factory will provide hundreds of tons of processed food during Tet holidays. (Photo: Sggp)|
Accordingly, all the participating enterprises will store the required commodities, estimated to cost more than VND5, 500 billion (US$260 million).
Businesses from various fields such as rice, sugar, cooking oil, poultry, processed food, vegetables and aqua products will sell their products at 10 percent lower price than market retail prices during the Tet season.
The price subsidized program will run through three months before and after the Tet Lunar New Year 2012.
The city has increased the number of retailers offering products at subsidized rates to 2,527, up by 359 retail stores since last Tet season.


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As director general of the Philippine Economic Zone Authority, Brigadier Gen. Charito “Ching” B. Plaza is, in effect, trying to reinvent the wheel, or to put it mildly in today’s lingua franca, disrupting a successful business model.
PEZA has been proven to be a sure-fire formula to attract huge chunks of foreign investments and to boost the Philippine manufacturing sector and in the process, create massive employment and export earnings: Hugely liberal tax and other perks, no red tape, one-stop shop, and best of all, no graft, especially now under President Duterte’s no-nonsense no corruption policy.
DG Ching Plaza thinks there is still a room for improvement. Enormous improvement. And she is right.
More economic zones needed
You think 379 operating industrial estates or economic zones are one too many? Think again. DG Plaza believes they are not enough. That there should be many more. In fact, she wants the entire country to be declared an economic zone. Which to me, is a brilliant idea.
Because the entire ASEAN territory has been declared a single free market of 600 million anyway. So why distinguish one location from another, one Philippine island from another.
The Philippines has 300,000 square kms of land or 30 million hectares. And the biggest landowner is—the government. Most of those lands are idle or unproductive. So why not develop some of them as manufacturing hubs?
Within the government itself, among the biggest landowners are the state colleges and universities. And a number of government agencies. The Department of Finance has a Property Management Office that manages foreclosed or acquired assets.
The University of the Philippines in Diliman alone has 493 hectares. The land includes 21.55 hectares for the core campus, 137 hectares for academic or support units, 95 hectares for staff housing, 44 hectares for parks and open spaces, 18 hectares, and 113 hectares appropriated for the Ayala Group as a science and technology park.
In other words, easily three-fourths of UP’s Diliman properties could be put to better use – like manufacturing or business process outsourcing, or innovation hubs. DG Plaza thinks that is what should be done with UP’s suburban Quezon City lands.
UP System a big landowner
Additionally, UP Los Baños has 5,445 hectares of lands. It has land grants in Laguna (3,336 hectares, according to Wikipeida), Negros Occidental (704 hectares) and Quezon province (5,719 hectares) totalling nearly 10,000 hectares. UP Diliman itself is said to have a mammoth land grant of 80,000 hectares in Quezon province. Those lands are largely idle.
DG Plaza thinks that large tracts of lands such as UP’s could be developed to produce local raw materials that can feed industries. This will intensify the processing of agricultural produce, boost small and medium businesses, and create employment in the rural areas.
PEZA has entered or is entering into memoranda of understanding with governnent landowners such as UP, DOF’s PMO, and the Department of the Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) for joint development of their idle lands into ecozones.
DENR lands for wood industry
The cooperative undertaking with DENR, Plaza believes, “could help restore our wood industry.” “When we had the wood industry in private hands, government was actually losing. Only 2% of the wood cut was the share of the government. And there was a lot of technical smuggling and underreporting of actual trees cut. Corruption was rampant.”
With the agro-forestry economic zones, Plaza explains, “government is assured of the right share of the income because it is PEZA that will provide the permits to export or import. All the transactions will be properly recorded by PEZA.”
Not for export zones alone
Normally, explains DG Plaza, “economic zones are for export-oriented manufacturing enterprises. But these enterprises use mostly imported raw materials.”
“Why not,” she asks, “discourage these importations and motivate our local SMEs to produce the local raw materials? We can develop the supply chain for ecozone manufacturers.” That way, she elaborates, “our SMEs will become indirector exporters when they are located in domestic economic zones as part of the link in a supply chain. Hopefully, we can reduce drain our dollar reserves and stop dependency on imported raw materials.”
Plaza is not bent on tapping government land holdings alone for factory sites.
Private landowners welcome too
The PEZA chief reckons easily one million hectares of government and private lands could be harnessed for production of raw materials for industries and the development of industrial cities.
Developing big manufacturing zones could guzzle up large tracts of land.
A BPO IT park should have a minimum area of one hectare, a tourism economic zone five hectares, and an agro-industrial, agro forestry, aquamarine economic zones, and other bigger economic zones easily need 25 hectares, often more.
Industrial zones into smart cities
“Our concept of economic zones is that we start it as an industrial zone, then we make them into townships, and they grow bigger, they level up as smart cities.”
General Plaza’s other major initiative is the focus on green and the environment. “We would like to change the old mindset that when you industrialize, you destroy the environment.”
“We will now be promoting a green ecozone and a green industry program,” she declares. How will that be done? Plant trees, of course. Hundreds, if not thousands of them inside the ecozones.
More importantly, perhaps, PEZA will be pursuing the use of environment-friendly technology such as LED lights, recycled water, and less polluting technology, machinery, and equipment. PEZA, Plaza points out, has prepared a handbook on what is a green ecozone and a green industry. “We are requiring all our locators to comply with the standards to protect the environment,” she declares.


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What I do not want clarifies what I do want.
If you take 15 minutes daily, thinking of pleasant scenarios regarding your body, with the sole intent of enjoying your body and appreciating its strength and stamina and flexibility and beauty. When you visualize for the joy of visualizing rather than with the intention of correcting some deficiency, your thoughts are more pure and, therefore, more powerful. When you visualize to overcome something that is wrong, your thoughts are diluted with the “lackful” side of the equation. In time, your physical condition will acquiesce to your dominant thoughts. ~ Abraham
Every negative event contains within it the seed of an equal or greater benefit. ~ Napoleon Hill
To foster your optimism, this week we site examples of innovative positive things happening around the planet.
They are from the Optimist Daily’s online postings. www.theoptimist.com.
Walla Walla created an environment built on empathy and saw crime decrease
Showing empathy changes society. That’s the story of a small town in the state of Washington. It started at the local high school where the staff created an environment built on empathy acknowledging the presence of childhood trauma in addressing disciplinary issues. A year after the “trauma-informed care” project started the graduation rate increased by about 30 percent and suspensions decreased by almost 85 percent. Today, an electric utility provider, the police department, and other organizations in the town have all committed to raising awareness of traumatic childhood experiences and to providing internal resources to foster a safe and healthy community. Because the town understands that childhood trauma can cause adulthood struggles like lack of focus, alcoholism, drug abuse, depression, and suicide.
As more cities and states consider childhood trauma a public health issue, Walla Walla’s success has transcended this former trading town. It now serves as a model for resilience-building in the burgeoning trauma-informed care movement that is sweeping the nation.
German ministry goes vegetarian to set example for climate policy
Eating less meat is a major contribution to the fight against climate change. Governments should set the example. That’s why Germany’s Environment Minister Barbara Hendricks is only serving vegetarian food at official functions. The food served at official events should also be organic, seasonal, as much as possible local and fair trade. A recent study found that diets of limited meat consumption can cut emissions by a third while saving five million lives.
Post organic? The sustainability of vertical indoor farming
Bowery, a New Jersey farm is championing ‘post organic,’ grows plants indoors in vertical rows without pesticides.
Agriculture consumes 70 percent of available water globally, and over 700 million pounds of pesticides each year in the United States alone. And with a growing world population food production needs to increase in the decades ahead. That is why a New Jersey company advocates sustainable vertical indoor farming. The company currently grows more than 80 different crops and says that indoor farming is 100 times more productive on the same footprint of land than traditional farming.
This one-for-one peanut butter fights famine in South Sudan
The one-for-one business model has caught on in recent years, with Tom’s shoes being one of the more well-known social enterprises in the space. Other companies, including the eyewear company Warby Parker, have tinkered with one-for-one. But many have found other means to fund what they believe are worthy causes. Now another social enterprise, Good Spread, is trying to do its part to address the human catastrophe in South Sudan. For every product the company sells, a portion of the profits are donated to organizations that distribute nutrient packs — which are actually pretty similar to Good Spread peanut butter — across South Sudan. Think of this purchase as a jar purchased here equals a packet of nutrition sent abroad.
Liquid hydrogen may be a way forward for sustainable air travel
Transport makes up around 20 percent of our energy use around the world–and that figure is set to grow, according to the International Energy Agency. With sustainable solutions in mind, a new study published by eminent physicist Jo Hermans in MRS Energy and Sustainability–A Review Journal (MRS E&S) looks at the energy efficiency of current modes of transport–from bicycles to buses, from air transport to cruise ships– and concludes that liquid hydrogen seems to be to be a realistic option for what is probably the most problematic of transportation modes in terms of sustainability, future air travel.
UK startup connects small businesses to “100 Percent renewable British electricity”
Taking a page from the corporate renewable energy purchasing trend, Squeaky aims to help UK small businesses make the move from dirty electricity sources to ‘squeaky clean’ ones, at no additional cost. The UK startup Squeaky sees the business energy market as “broken” and is on a mission to fix it, and to do so in a way that will continue the trend of businesses moving to cleaner electricity, but without any price premiums.
That’s an audacious goal, especially when considering that the company’s focus isn’t big business, where high volumes may help corporations cut good deals, especially on long-term agreements. But the team believes it is well positioned to deliver on its promises, as the principals are experienced in corporate electricity purchasing, and are able to now bring that expertise to bear for “all businesses.”
The magic sauce, so to speak, of Squeaky is in cutting out the middleman, because although there are options for buying renewable energy through existing utility agreements, all too often that comes at a price premium. And for smaller businesses, choosing to make the switch to green electricity, but at a higher cost, is a bit of a hard sell, and one that doesn’t make a whole lot of financial sense. Switching to clean electricity can help UK businesses with their social responsibility goals and their environmental commitments, and perhaps help them in trying to communicate their sustainability efforts, but if it costs more and impacts their bottom line negatively, it’s also one of the first things to go in a financial crunch.
5 green business ideas for profit and the common good
Starting a conventional business today is pretty tough – on the one hand, competition is exorbitant, on the other hand, more and more people are sick of being mere consumers. They would rather like to make a long-term difference in their lives, not just purchase more stuff; and they want businesses to help them make that difference. As an entrepreneur, you’d be wise to cater to the ‘green’ sentiment as the target market continues to expand. Here’re some business ideas to meet the demand for eco-friendly living.
If you have ample funds, you can start up a recycling business. If it’s not yet the case, you still can employ recycling to communicate your commitment to ecology – and to street style.Big-time fashion brands and designers use recycled materials – why not follow their lead and make reusable fabric or PE grocery bags, or T-shirts (with catchy green slogans for good measure), backpacks and handbags? Just make sure to invest a bit in nifty designs – and customers will love your products, for wearing them will be both cool and environmentally responsible.
Highly dubious origin and quality of mass-produced meats, fruits and vegetables are rightly one of the top ecology and health concerns. Animal farms churn out enormous amounts of waste, to say nothing of all the unwholesome things the cattle are fed (and injected with); industrial-grown plants contain probably more poisonous chemicals than nutrients.
As a businessman offering an eco-friendly solution, you can, for instance, start your chicken farm (nowadays, you can get chicken coops of all configurations, some of which don’t even require much space to put up) and sell organic meat and eggs at local markets and to local restaurants. Alternatively, you can become the supplier of such solutions to people – for instance, sell greenhouses and corresponding supplies for home and garden use, as well as design and build rooftop gardens.
The Web is rife with tips about non-toxic, bio-degradable DIY detergents; yet many people who’d gladly ditch aggressive chemicals are too busy (or a bit too lazy) actually to concoct them. Why not jump at this business opportunity?
Make and sell green cleaning products – or, if you manage to gather a qualified enough team, provide a full range of cleaning services (including air duct maintenance, as these accumulate unholy amounts of dust and allergens).
Lush lawns and gardens are many a family’s pride and joy, yet these spots of nature often come under criticism for being too high maintenance regarding water and energy use. Therefore, it can be a viable idea to offer people consulting services on how to make their gardens more sustainable – as well as sell the necessary supplies or carry out actual reconfigurations.
The popularity of bikes and scooters shows no signs of fading away. With more and more people of all ages opting for these means of transport, a bike repair shop will always have clientele – so it’s a great way to start small. A bigger environment-conscious player may choose to provide delivery companies with alternative fuel technological solutions. Another way to contribute is producing and selling vehicle parts from recycled materials.
For quite a long time, technological progress has been causing our planet more harm than good, and booming production of consumer goods still contributes greatly to environmental pollution. Now, sufficient means of reducing the harm are at the disposal of both individuals and businesses – and for the latter, going green doesn’t mean being unprofitable anymore.
Go to www.theoptimist.com and read more of the wonderful things going on around the planet. Consider opting for the Emissary program to get daily updates to enhance your optimistic perspective.


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Everyone knows fruits and vegetables are good for you! So really, no matter how you look at it, adding them to your diet can only be a benefit! A common misconception is that frozen is not stacking up to its fresh counterpart in terms of nutrition. This very misconception is hindering many from potentially adding more produce to their diet in the most convenient of ways! Well then, what’s the ongoing debate about fresh and frozen? Just eat more produce already!!
Did you know frozen produce might actually be better for you? You don’t need to take our word for it, a countless number of researches have devoted hours of time to this question and essentially the answer. The quest to find the best is an ongoing one! But contrary to popular belief you too will be pleasantly surprised with the results from the June 2017 issue of the Journal of Food Composition and Analysis. Here’s what their experts had to say "Our research shows that frozen fruits and vegetables are nutritionally equal to — and, in some cases, better than — their fresh-stored counterparts," UGA* professor Dr. Ronald Pegg said in a news release. "In particular, Vitamin A was greater in frozen fruits and vegetables than select fresh-stored fruits and vegetables."
Be conscious of country of origin, and seasonality when shopping for your produce!
Not all produce is available all year long, which is why fresh fruits and veggies often cost more out of season, and the quality is variable. So, if you’re committed to fresh produce have you ever wondered how it can survive days on a truck without going bad, and still look fresh on the grocery store shelf for some time to follow? Well here’s how it’s done; fresh produce is often picked before it’s ripe (before acquiring its full nutrient potential) and is left to ripen along its way. But, once a produce is picked, it starts to lose nutrients.
When it comes to frozen, farmers have the luxury of leaving them to fully ripen and only picking them when they are ready and chock full of nutrients. These little gems are soon after flash frozen, freezing their nutritional goodness in time! So, when they sit in their ice box refrigerated truck, their nutrients are actually being preserved! This creates less waste from farm to table while keeping their pure goodness for you to enjoy!
*University of Georgia


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‘Wheel of Fortune’ comes full circle with ‘HQ Trivia’
Developers of quiz show-based app face challenges posed by exponential growth
On average, ‘HQ Trivia’ attracts about 400,000 viewers in the afternoon and more than 600,000 during prime time in the US.
Rapid growing pains can make or break any start-up. The creators of the live-streamed trivia game show HQ Trivia were also behind the hugely popular, but now defunct, social-media app Vine – a venture that did not end well after creators Rus Yusupov and Colin Kroll sold it to Twitter for $30 million only to watch from the sidelines as it was shut down a few years later. Did they learn anything from the experience?
If nothing else they may have learned to keep on keeping on. HQ Trivia is one of the hottest tickets in tech right now, thanks to the duo’s appreciation of a tried-and-tested business model: taking something already proven to be popular by others, such as a game show, and repackaging it in such a way as to render it unique.
HQ Trivia is broadcast live in the United States twice a day for 15 minutes – at 3pm and 9pm eastern time. Its premise could not be simpler: the host asks a dozen multiple-choice questions, which get increasingly difficult with each round. Answering all 12 correctly earns each contestant a share of a cash prize pool, which has ranged from $2,000 to $18,000.
If you think that’s pretty meagre earnings, the victorious could be sharing that pool with any number of other players smart enough to get all 12 questions right too. So they could walk away with perhaps $50.
But cash prizes are not the motivation. The inherent genius of the game lies in the fact that any viewer can play, tapping their smartphone screen to choose an answer. The game’s developers have created of a truly universal interactive format, which allows for an unlimited number of contestants to play simultaneously for the pool of cash.
With millions of people in the US tuning in every week to play or just watch, the nation appears to be addicted to HQ Trivia like it was Flappy Birds, Game of Thrones and Call of Duty all rolled into one. And before you roll your eyes and think “Only in America”, HQ Trivia is coming to a smartphone near you with the launch of a UK version announced this month. And, believe me, it’s addictive.
The scale of interactivity is what has people so hooked. On average, the show attracts about 400,000 viewers in the afternoon and more than 600,000 during prime time. To provide some perspective, Amazon’s first online live Thursday NFL broadcast, last September, averaged an audience of 372,000.
The firm behind the game, Intermedia Labs, is not yet trying to turn a profit but is in the process of negotiating for more venture funding that could value it at as much as $100 million. However, it might not be the best strategy to try to get too big too quickly. Investors’ appetites for what is ostensibly a novelty product – regardless of how solid and innovative the tech underpinning it may be – is not what it used to be.
“Novelty really is the best word to describe the early currency of start-ups such as Intermedia Labs, often focused entirely on maximising market valuation,” says Andrew Escher, partner at MediaTech Ventures, a US-based community which fosters and supports companies and individuals in the media and tech space.
When a company gains significant notoriety early on for one niche product or service, the decision to channel all its efforts into the growth of that single, key offering, or diversify – thereby lowering risk – has frequently been the difference between putting a unicorn out to pasture early or using it to drive growth opportunities.
“The difficulty for an app-based start-up like this – which is already generating enough revenue [through advertising] to keep their 30-plus team going – is bringing it to to the point where it has developed enough to warrant major investment,” says Escher. “Are these guys going for unicorn status or are they looking to survive and make a decent return with some slow growth into adjacent sectors?”
The desire for unicorn status is not what it used to be. After the implosion of various start-ups with inflated valuations (Jawbone, Theranos, Zenefits), not to mention damaging allegations pertaining to sexual harassment and mismanagement beginning at Uber, some investors may be longing for other kinds of returns.
More broadly, various experts believe start-up success in the future will come through focusing less on the bottom line and more on the social consequences of what it is they are trying to achieve. A more socially-aware business model, says Monique Morrow – author, chief technology officer of new frontiers development and engineering at Cisco Systems and president and co-founder of non-profit Humanised Internet – will result in prosperity as well as positive outcomes for society.
“Start-ups that think about being purpose-driven, and benefit society, will certainly be successful,” she says. “Social good is the new currency, so to speak. So a start-up team needs to challenge one another with questions like: ‘Is what we are doing together going to serve a purpose? What are our own values and how are we going to live up against them?’”
Morrow points to recent comments made by Larry Fink, founder and chief executive of the world’s largest investment company, BlackRock, as evidence of the need for greater social awareness in business. (According to Bloomberg, one out of every three dollars investors send to fund companies in the US goes through BlackRock.)
Chief executives at several of the largest public companies in the world received an unexpected piece of correspondence last month. The letter contained some advice Fink felt compelled to share with the heads of every company in which his $6 trillion firm currently has interests.
He told them all to take into consideration the societal implications of their decisions and remain focused on the long term. “Indeed, the public expectations of your company have never been greater,” he reportedly wrote.
“Society is demanding that companies, both public and private, serve a social purpose. To prosper over time, every company must not only deliver financial performance, but also show how it makes a positive contribution to society. Companies must benefit all of their stakeholders, including shareholders, employees, customers and the communities in which they operate.”
It is doubtful social good was high on the agenda of the creators of HQ Trivia. While the game show isn’t necessarily a negative force in society, it does little to improve the well-being of anyone other than those who can correctly answer 12 multiple-choice questions in one sitting.


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The cannabis industry has gone from budding to booming in the past few years. Recreational cannabis sales are legal in 18 states to date (and Washington, D.C.) and in 2020, Americans spent over $18 billion on legal weed – a 71% increase from the year prior.
But if you’re considering jumping on the green bandwagon, keep in mind that cannabis isn’t like other industries (at least, not yet.) Because cannabis is not legal at the federal level, regulations on selling it vary wildly from state to state. So, if you’re a canna-entrepreneur wondering where to put down roots, it’s important to consider the regulations in each state where weed is legal.
One thing you’ll want to consider is taxes. Sales taxes on marijuana have been a huge motivator for states to legalize it (particularly as the economy recovers from COVID-19) and every state taxes the product differently depending on their goals.
According to a report released this year by Chamber of Commerce, a digital resource for small businesses, the two states with the lightest taxes levied on cannabis dispensaries are Michigan, with a sales tax of 10% and no additional taxes, and Massachusetts, with a sales tax of 10.75% and no additional taxes.
Olivia Thomson, a spokesperson for Chamber of Commerce, told GreenState the simple structure of cannabis taxation in these states can also make it easier for cannabis businesses to thrive.
“Due to their easy-to-follow tax structure and, in some cases, the higher cost to


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Zyllem @ Supply Chain and Logistics Innovation Playground (SCLIP)
Marco De Lorenzo, Co-Founder & CCO of Zyllem (left) having a brief discussion with Dr Robert Yap, Chairman of YCH Group (center) and Dr Koh Poh Koon, Senior Minister of State in the Ministry of Trade & Industry and the Ministry of National Development (right), during the launch of SCLIP in Singapore on 30 August 2017. Dr Koh is "looking forward to seeing Zyllem help drive innovation for SG companies".
Come and see us at the Supply Chain and Logistics Innovation Playground (SCLIP), and discover how Zyllem can transform and digitize your logistics processes!
Launched today, 30 August 2017, Singapore’s first SCLIP is an initiative of Supply Chain Asia with support from SPRING Singapore (SPRING) and Workforce Singapore (WSG). It is set up to incubate, pilot and deploy new and innovative solutions, such as warehouse technology, Autonomous Guided Vehicles (AGVs) and digital technology, for the logistics industry (SPRING Singapore, 2017).* Zyllem is happy to be one of the supporting partners of SCLIP and showcase its software platform over the next 18 months.
SCLIP is open to public and corporate visitors and is located at: Supply Chain City 8 Bulim Avenue, Singapore, 648166 To visit our booth, contact us at firstname.lastname@example.org or book a guided tour through SCA. See you there!
* SPRING Singapore 2017, Retrieved from: https://www.spring.gov.sg/NewsEvents/PR/Pages/Supply-Chain-Asia-unveils-Singapore-first-Supply-Chain-Logistics-Innovation-Playground-20170830.aspx


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Panasonic said Tuesday it remains on track for a fourth straight year of operating profit growth, vindicating a restructuring that has seen the electronics firm pivot toward new goods like auto parts and away from former glories like TVs.
Reporting that operating profit for the year ended March rose 25 percent, Panasonic said it expects operating profit to grow 15 percent to 430 billion yen ($3.6 billion) in the fiscal year that started in April, bolstered by high-tech auto parts.
The outlook was in line with a forecast it gave last month.
Operating profit for the 12 months ended March was 381.9 billion yen, beating Panasonic’s March forecast of 350 billion yen. The company cited strong demand for its automotive products, which include batteries and electronic components, as well as the positive impact of a weaker yen.
The Osaka-based firm’s upturn comes after years of losses on consumer electronics like TVs and smartphones, squeezed between cheaper Asia rivals and heavyweight tech firms like Apple and Samsung
Panasonic’s restructuring progress is in sharp contrast to Japanese peers like Sharp, which have struggled to reinvent themselves in the face of pricing pressure from Asian rivals. Sony, which reports earnings on April 30, is only now showing signs of pulling off a long-awaited turnaround.
Piloting the restructuring, Chief Executive Kazuhiro Tsuga has said Panasonic’s future strategy will mean seeking growth through spending around 200 billion yen on mergers and acquisitions in the current fiscal year alone.
He previously told Reuters that company was interested in M&A deals in the European white goods market, a sector where Panasonic has comparatively low brand recognition.
(Reporting by Ritsuko Ando; Editing by Kenneth Maxwell)
This article originally appeared on Recode.net.


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The Biden administration took a big step toward an eventual Central Bank Digital Currency last week with the President’s Executive Order on Cryptos.
The directive mandates a comprehensive analysis of the CBDC's potential advantages and dangers for consumers, investors, and the larger financial system in the United States, with an assessment timetable of six months.
The Treasury Department will head the assessment, but other agencies including Commerce and Homeland Security have been tapped to take a role.
Biden’s order noted that over a hundred countries are at some stage of exploring CBDCs.
Many Americans have deep reservations that a government CBDC will effectively be a financial surveillance coin, that gives unprecedented new powers to the government to cut off the medium of exchange and common store of value for the labor of average citizens.
Canada recently demonstrated dismaying authoritarian control over financial accounts of the Truckers Convoy protest leaders, participants and even donors.
And the U.S. government exercised similar measures, including rifling through bank accounts of suspected January 6, 2020 election protestors.
The Russia Ukraine conflict has seen a whole new level of financial sanctions taken by the international banking citizen not onl against the Russian government, but citizens of that country.
It portends that government CBDCs are about more than simply making financial transactions more efficient.
Nonetheless, with crypto assets offering an alternative store of value and means of transaction to debased overprinted currencies and corrupt banking and political policies, more countries around the world are moving quickly toward CBDCs.
Nations Powering Up Digital “Money”
Among nations with active CBDC projects are several that have chafed under the so-called Petro-Dollar and the dollar led international SWIFT payments settlement system.
India, one of the world’s major economies, announced that it would implement a digital rupee by 2023, according to Investopedia.
Brazil expects to launch a “beta” digital real this year, with a final version planned by 2024.
Unsurprisingly, Russia is also working on a CBDC, which was first announced back in 2017.
Brazil, Russia, India and China, the world leader in government digital currency creation, via the digital yuan, are part of BRICS, an economic block that launched an initiative to give those countries and others an alternative to the SWIFT international payments settlement system.
At least some crypto analysts believe the U.S. plans for a CBDC will not ultimately undermine crypto industry innovations. Others are not so sure.
According to Yahoo News, the U.S. will seek private-public partnership with crypto and blockchain experts in development.
“The work to build private-public partnership for digital asset experimentation takes time,” Digital Dollar Project Executive Director Jennifer Lassiter commented to crypto news outlet CoinDesk.
The Trends Journal has been covering issues surrounding CBDCs in articles such as:
- “DIGGING INTO THE FED’S LONG AWAITED REPORT ON A U.S. CBDC” (25 Jan 2022)
- “U.S. CBDC TAKING ITS TIME RISING WITH PROJECT NEW DAWN?” (21 Sep 2021)
- “A PERVERSION OF CRYPTOCURRENCY” (12 Oct 2021)
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20th Century Fox has partnered with Penta Sports in a deal that will bring movies such as X-Men, Deadpool and Predator to the forefront of esports fan attention. PENTA will promote movies in their media production as well as transform the PENTA Sports Performance Center Arena into a 20th Century Fox themed environment. What that means exactly we’ll have to see. Perhaps they’ll theme the arena for new movies as they debut. Deadpool’s bar? A Predator’s ship? The possibilities are very cool.
PENTA’s press release hints at a deeper relationship between the two companies so this is a big deal that will potentially get even bigger. Check out the official info below. We’ll follow this one closely.
Press Release: PENTA Sports is the new partner of 20th Century Fox in esports. First major engagement of the media giant in esports with German esports-brand
Berlin, 09/18/2018 – PENTA Sports is excited to announce a new partnership. The German powerhouse will from now on cooperate with the US American film studio 20th Century Fox. This unique partnership in electronic sports has been officially confirmed by both companies today.
The partnership will unite gamers and movie enthusiasts. Therefore, PENTA Sports will support 20th Century Fox and promote movies such as Alita Battle Angel or X-Men within the esports and gaming community – a natural fit of interest. Additionally from now on world-class entertainment will be featured prominently in the PENTA Sports Performance Center in Berlin, Germany. A 450sqm area will be transformed into a movie-themed space where esports and Fox movies will melt together.
Hendrik Goetzendorff, Managing Director at PENTA Sports, states: „Today marks a huge step forward and we are glad to announce a new and unique milestone in the history of PENTA Sports and esports in general. We are proud to welcome 20th Century Fox, one of the biggest media companies worldwide, to our family. Together we will explore new avenues in the esports world and unleash the power of content for our fans and partners. I want to thank Markus Schneider, Volker Lauster and of course Vincent De La Tour for the trust they have in esports and especially in PENTA Sports, which is not to be taken for granted. With that said ‘let the curtain rise and action!”
For 20th Century Fox this partnership marks an important step to reach the esports community. The traditional company partners with the strong German brand PENTA Sports due to its close relationship to its fans, as Volker Lauster, Marketing Director at 20th Century Fox of Germany, explains: “Esports is an important touch point for us and we are delighted that we will from now on cooperate with a partner like PENTA Sports. In our industry, storytelling is essential and we will bring that storytelling to esports in the time to come. For us, it was very important to find a trustworthy partner, who has a close relationship with its fans. We are looking forward to a bright future around 20th Century Fox and PENTA Sports in the world of esports.”
Link (German/English): https://penta-sports.com/…/penta-sports-ist-der-neue-partn…/


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British fashion label Teatum Jones have been asked by The Dorchester to create a beautiful printed scarf inspired by the luxury London Hotel.
Launching alongside an exclusive tea party during London Fashion Week for SS13, the beautiful scarf will be sold exclusively at Liberty from Tuesday 18 September 2012, priced at £245. Mark it in your diaries now.
The Teatum Jones tea party will take place on The Promenade at The Dorchester Hotel at 2.15pm on 18 September, and tickets are priced at £52 per adult including a glass of champagne. Make your reservation now by emailing restaurants.TDL@dorchestercollection.com.


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Rising consumer confidence benefits consumer stocks like KSS and WU
A positive US (SPY)(IVV) consumer confidence report boosted the stocks of consumer firms on March 31. Kohl’s (KSS) gained 2.13%, while Western Union (WU) was up 2.01%. According to the results of the Conference Board’s consumer survey for March, consumer confidence jumped to 101.3 index points in March against a 98.8 reading in February, shattering market expectations of 95.5.
The surge was mainly driven by a rise in the index’s expectations component for the next six months, which was up by 6 points to 96. The March reading was the highest reading for this component in over four years. Improving personal incomes and labor market conditions (salaries and wages) were the key drivers for improving US consumer expectations. The current situations component lost 3 points, falling to 109.1.
The S&P Case-Shiller home price index offers hope in the face of headwinds
Real estate firm CBRE Group (CBG) gained 6.32%, while homebuilder D.R. Horton (DHI) gained 1.68% on March 31 on positive home price news in the US. The S&P/Case-Shiller home price index for January saw home prices firming in the US, recording a 0.9% rise in January following a 0.9% rise in December and a 0.8% rise in November. The SPDR S&P Homebuilders ETF (XHB) was up 0.03%.
The S&P/Case-Shiller home price index serves as a leading measure of US residential real estate prices, tracking monthly changes in the value of residential real estate in 20 metropolitan regions across the US. The index is tied to a base value of 100 in January 2000.
Looking at the trend, we can see that the rise in home prices has been slower than last year, a welcome trend for affordability. However, the housing market still faces major headwinds in stagnant wages and high mortgage rates. According to David M. Blitzer, chairman of the index committee for the S&P Dow Jones Indices, “Home prices are rising roughly twice as fast as wages.” Moreover, with the Fed determined to hike interest rates anytime this year, mortgage rates can only be expected to rise further.
While US stocks rose on positive consumer readings, the stocks of British companies such as Kingfisher (KGFHY) and Carnival (CUK) gained on positive growth readings. Let’s take a closer look in the next part of this series.


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All Czech Republic articles
The Prague boat show, which was to have been held from March 19-20, has been cancelled because of concerns about the restrictions being imposed by the Czech government on the holding of exhibitions during the current pandemic. The show organisers ABF Trade Fairs are hoping to rearrange the exhibition for ...
Crocus Expo, the organisers of the 14th Moscow Boat Show, today confirmed that this year’s show should take place in the Crocus Centre from 4-7 March as planned. The show regularly attracts over 300 exhibitors and 25,000 visitors. Meanwhile, the ABF exhibition company in Prague is waiting to ...


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The stock of Campbell Soup has moved in step with the market this year.
An investor who bought the SPDR S&P 500 (ARCA:SPY), an ETF that tracks the S&P 500, would be up 5.9% vs. 5.5% for Campbell Soup (NYSE:CPB). Add Campbell's 2.7% annualized dividend yield vs. 1.8% for SPY, and the difference narrows even more.
Given the even stock performance, you wouldn't think there would be much talk surrounding the company. Yet there is.
The media have a lot of theories about Campbell, none of which are good news. Small rivals are eating into Campbell's market share. Big competitors such as General Mills are a threat. Condensed soup is passe. The millennial generation (born 1982-2002) doesn't go for mainstream soup in a can.
Yet Campbell's in-step stock-price performance seems to suggest that the Street isn't quite so negative.
At the Consumer Analyst Group conference in February, Barclays Capital analyst Andrew Lazar noted that three Campbell acquisitions and a major divestiture in less than two years constituted "more activity than in the previous 10 years combined."
Campbell completed the acquisition in August 2012 of Bolthouse Farms, known for carrots, juices and dressings. In June 2013, the company bought Plum Organics, a provider of organic baby foods. In August, Campbell wrapped up the buy of Denmark-based Kelsen Group, a maker of baked snacks.
The divestiture involved selling Campbell's European simple-meals unit in October.
Campbell Soup's earnings grew 7% in fiscal 2013, which ended in July. The Street expects 2% growth for fiscal 2014 and 2015.
CEO Denise Morrison said on a May conference call that Campbell faces an "exceptionally challenging consumer environment."
Still, Campbell's dividend payout has nearly doubled since 2004. The long-term dividend growth rate is 10%, according to the IBD database gauge.


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PrimeSense, which developed the 3D sensing technology used in Microsoft's Kinect, is set to unveil a compact 3D sensor that can fit into a variety of consumer electronic devices.
Change in any industry involves conflict. Evolution and revolution in tech this year took place not only in the marketplace but also in the courtroom, the factory, and on the Web. Here are the top news stories of 2012 as selected by the editors of th...
A patent agreement between Apple and HTC forbids the Taiwanese company from making and selling mobile devices that copy what is described as the 'Distinctive Apple User Experience," according to a redacted version of the agreement filed in a Californ...
Apple's patent license agreement with HTC will not be put entirely under seal, except for the pricing and royalty terms, a court in California ordered in a patent infringement lawsuit between Samsung Electronics and Apple.
Samsung remained the most popular phone maker in the U.S. in the third quarter, but Apple is slowly closing in, the latest comScore MobiLens report finds.
Australian electronics vendor, Dick Smith, has announced that it will sell unlocked Apple iPhone 5 devices from today.
Vodafone has today announced pricing and release date details for the hotly anticipated Samsung Galaxy Note II, with the device set to officially go on sale through the carrier from Monday 5 December.
If you’re a savvy buyer, then you know that Christmas time is one of the best times in the calendar year to snag a bargain. The Christmas lead-up period, as well as Boxing Day sales, has proven in previous years to be fiercely competitive, and the bi...
Samsung Electronics announced new measures to keep its suppliers in China compliant with labor laws after it completed a round of audits that found problems relating to overtime and the way penalties were carried out.
Lenovo, already China's top PC seller, is expected to take the title for the country's top smartphone vendor in 2013, Gartner said.
A court in California has allowed Samsung Electronics to include Apple's iPhone 5 among the products alleged to have infringed its patents, while also allowing Apple to amend its infringement contentions to include the Jelly Bean operating system and...
Samsung will launch its hotly anticipated Galaxy Note II Android phone in Australia "next week" through Telstra, Optus and Vodafone, but no contract pricing or plan details have been revealed yet.
Samsung on Thursday announced a new 64GB memory chip for smartphones and tablets, which it says is 20 percent smaller and a third faster than current technology.
Apple dropped out of the top five list in China's smartphone market for the third quarter, as local handset vendors saw their shipments surge from the sales of low-priced smartphone models, according to research firm Canalys.
Samsung will unveil the Galaxy Note II Android smartphone in Australia in mid-November, following an invitation sent to the media today for a "highly anticipated launch".
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On October 21, VSAG offered Washington Business Journal editors initial details in reference to the next Founding Farmers location. The Journal published news of VSAG’s plans to open a sister Founding Farmers restaurant in Montgomery County, MD next Fall. As the … read more
Kudos to CarbonFund for the recent article in the Wall Street Journal highlighting the trend of making a positive move to reduce carbon footprints – the yearly amount of carbon dioxide we emit into the environment – for big corporate … read more
…and sharing the news and information with the industry is part of the VSAG mission, from inside the restaurants to beyond our clients’ doors to their guests and customers. Operating in an environmentally friendly way is inherent to successful restaurants … read more
Can the promise of a free cupcake or some cold hard cash work better than dire predictions of dying polar bears and rising sea levels at getting people to cut their carbon footprint? For diners at Farmers & Fishers and … read more
From Dan Simons, VSAG co-Founder, in Response to the December 7, 2009 article by Jane Black that appeared on the front page of The Washington Post:
We’re thankful to Jane Black for bringing such an important topic – sustainable agriculture and what it means to be a green restaurant committed to sustainable business practices – to the front page of The Washington Post. How much more important can this topic get for foodies and restaurateurs? Not much more, but we’re glad that there is focus on a successful business in Washington, DC, that is working to help American family farmers and pushing the envelope on a broad array of topics that go well beyond the superficial, easy topics…. read more
VSAG’s chefs are back at the pizza oven, this time with farmhouse pizzas.
The chefs are dedicated to serving true, American-farm ingredient pizzas that include selections like ‘New Haven Clam Pie’, the ‘Loaded Baked Potato’, ‘American Salami and Tender Meatballs’ and ‘Firefly Goat Cheese, Leek and Wild Mushroom’, just to name a few…. read more
VSAG is proud of how well our client Farmers Fishers Bakers did at the Arts on Foot event. They sold over 700 slices of carrot cake! Here’s the Farmers Fishers Bakers blog post:
Well, Farmers Fishers Bakers is certainly going to claim that title even if there wasn’t a true competition! This past Saturday they sold more than 700 slices of our scrumptious, homemade carrot cake roll with whipped cream cheese frosting, candied walnuts, and caramel drizzle at Arts on Foot…that’s a LOT of cake!… read more
VSAG Chief Mixologist and director of our bar and beverage programs Jon Arroyo was visited by mixology industry Pegu blogger Doug Winship on a recent visit to Washington, D.C. Check out his review of Farmers & Fishers‘ cocktail program, and … read more
On July 27, VSAG’s Chief Mixologist Jon Arroyo (as well as Founding Farmers‘ and Farmers & Fishers) participated in the DC Craft Bartenders’ Guild “Rickey” contest held at Bourbon. Here’s a snapshot of Jon’s entry… get the full story here.
Vucurevich Simons Advisory Group (VSAG) the restaurant team that conceptualized, manages and operates the bustling and award-winning Founding Farmers in downtown DC announces the opening of Farmers & Fishers, an evolution of the Farmers brand to the waterfront. After just over four months of extensive food menu design and creation, transformation of the bar program to highlight a Tiki Bar menu, and a refreshing of the interiors with new colors, fabrics and artwork, the new Farmers & Fishers is ready for guests. The new concept officially opens on Wednesday, June 24, though guests have been seeing the changes over the last couple of weeks.


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Last updated on August 16th, 2012 at 01:20 pm
Chiquita Brands helped celebrate what is believed to be the world’s largest banana display. More than 70,000 pounds of Chiquita® Bananas from 1,776 boxes and 37 pallets comprised the display at Firelake Discount Foods in Shawnee, Okla. The display eclipses what is believed to be a record set in 2009 of 66,000 pounds of bananas within a single store display.
“We were pleased to join with our retail partner Firelake and the Affiliated Foods Co. to create this fun and unique event,” said Chris Dugan, Chiquita’s VP-sales for North America. “Not only did consumers in the Shawnee area participate in making history today, but they also got a great deal on premium, fresh Chiquita bananas.”
To formally celebrate, Miss Chiquita, “the first lady of fruit,” was on hand to commemorate the event and provide fun giveaway items to customers. Customers also received a special deal during the promotion of 5 lbs. of Chiquita Bananas for $1.
“Chiquita has been a great partner in creating this event,” said Randy Arceneaux, president and CEO of Affiliated Foods, Amarillo, Texas.
“It was great to have Miss Chiquita participate in our record-setting event, and I have no doubt that our customers will be enjoying lots of nutritious Chiquita bananas. We at Affiliated Foods are excited and proud of our member Firelake supermarket for thinking outside the box to drive sales and continue to help differentiate the independent operator in the marketplace.”
In the photo from left, in front of the display: Affiliated Foods CEO Randy Arceneaux, Miss Chiquita Banana, Firelake Store Director Richard Driskell and Chiquita Regional Customer Manager Jim Warken.
Check out the Shelby Publishing Produce Display Contest!


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This article is more than 1 year old
Systemax: Shuttering our North America Tech Group may cost $55m
Exiting leases, closing exec ops, selling inventory
Systemax has gone public with the cost of dotting the Is and crossing the Ts in the closure of its remaining North America Technology Group (NATG), and it's going to be pricey. Very pricey.
The ailing reseller revealed last week that US dealer PCM has offered $14m to pick up certain assets, including the right to hire roughly 400 NATG B2B sales people, the biz customer list and certain contracts, some vendor agreements, trademarks, fixed assets and equipment, related websites and the TigerDirect brand.
The remaining part of the business, including three retail stores, management operations and the distribution centre are to be shuttered, and around 500 staff are to be laid off.
“The company anticipates that one time exit charges related to these actions will aggregate between $48m to $55m,” stated Systemax in a filing with the SEC last night.
Included in the eye watering one-time charges is between $4m to $5m of severance expenses, $20m to $23m in losses on inventory and receivables, $3m to $4m in transaction fees, $17m to $19m in lease costs and $4m for other charges that will largely be cash based.
The costs will hang around the firm's neck from the fourth quarter of 2015 right through to the end of 2017. Systemax expects its cash inflows, from accounts receivable and inventory sales along with the $14m from PCM, to be “more than sufficient to offset cash outflows”.
Under the terms of the deal, PCM will have the option to acquire the consumer customer list and related info for $500k.
The NATG has been the problem child for Systemax for a number of years, as the slowdown in consumer demand for traditional tech slowed. It started to consolidates retail operations some years back, closing down PC production and months ago exiting 31 stores.
In the nine months of calendar ’15 ended 30 September, NATG turned over $934m in sales, down 24.2 per cent year-on-year and reported operating losses of $68.2m, versus a loss of $15.4m.
The Tech Group in Europe, which trades as Misco, is challenged and a turnaround plan was put in place by new boss Simon Taylor after he was instated in the summer.
The Industrial Product Group across the pond is the one area of the corporation that is still growing well, but this covers products such as air-con units, office furniture, not tech. ®


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In November 2023, Amazon Marketplace turns 23. It’s a measure of just how much the ecommerce market has changed that a March 2001 press release, which heralds the early success of a then-new venture, refers to amazon.com modestly as a “leading online retailer”.
Fast forward to the present day and it’s not uncommon to see Amazon, the behemoth of global ecommerce, referred to primarily as a marketplace rather than as a retailer. This is a reflection of the extraordinary growth in the wider marketplace sector, especially over the past decade. In 2022, the world’s leading online marketplaces sold over $3.25 trillion in goods, with most sales coming from third-party sellers, according to an analysis by Digital Commerce 360.
Over these years, marketplaces have become crucial to all kinds of companies – not just to retailers and private sellers, but brands and manufacturers, and within different B2B sectors too. Put simply, businesses of all kinds must be present on marketplaces because that’s where their customers are to be found. And more than likely, that means being on Amazon, which pulls in an average of 5.3 billion visits from consumers every month.
What are the upsides of selling on Amazon Marketplace?
For manufacturing brands, in particular, this is certainly not bad news. Long gone are the days when brands sold to wholesalers and perhaps offered a few items via mail order. Today’s brands send their products to market on a multichannel hybrid basis. This will typically include selling via wholesale, via favored retailers, direct to consumer (D2C), and via marketplaces. It may also entail getting involved in newer forms of ecommerce, such as live-streaming and shoppable content.
Within this overall offering, marketplaces can offer a solid income stream, access to a certain amount of customer information, and a channel that can be calibrated for targeted purposes, for example, in clearing excess stock.
When it comes to Amazon specifically, there’s a huge opportunity because of its sheer size. In 2022, Amazon had 39.5% of online market share in the U.S. According to forecasts, the Seattle-based ecommerce giant will surpass Alibaba in estimated sales by 2027, when Amazon will generate over 1.2 trillion U.S dollars in online sales. Additionally, a recent study found that when it comes to online shopping, 61% of online shoppers begin their product hunt on Amazon.
What are the downsides of selling on Amazon Marketplace?
But some caution is also in order. In comparison to D2C, where a brand can be in complete control, Amazon Marketplace is mediated by Amazon. Inventory can appear alongside offerings from other companies. These competitors may discount the same items more aggressively, posing the risk of a race to the bottom. The consumer data is far less rich than that available via D2C.
The deeper lesson is that it is important for brands to think carefully about how best to approach selling via Amazon – and indeed via different marketplaces more generally – as part of an overall strategy.


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Mozilla says it's got 18 carriers signed up for its Firefox smartphones, boosting the credibility of its new OS.
Samsung's $250 ARM-powered Chromebook is famous for running multiple flavors of Linux, yet Google's flagship x86 Pixel is even more friendly to loading alternative operating systems than its predecessors.
Coby currently offer a number of Android-powered tablets for sale, including the 7-inch MID7065 which we discussed several months ago.
German computer scientists have come up with a glove that allows phone users to write texts in the air.
The US government will have to reconsider its decision to ban cellphone unlocking, after an online petition reached the necessary 100,000 signatures.
Google has introduced the Pixel, a high-end $1,300 touch-screen Chromebook powered by a 1.8 GHz Intel Core i5 processor.
Qualcomm has confirmed that its next-generation charger technology - dubbed Quick Charge 2.0 - will debut in devices powered by the company's Snapdragon 800 platform.
Wearable computing devices are expected to significantly increase in popularity over the next year. To be sure, with a wave of new devices set to hit the consumer market, wearable computing could soon become the norm for most people within five years.
Apple is reportedly preparing to launch a low-cost iPhone later this year.
Mountain View's Google-branded tablet may not be as popular as Apple's iPad or Amazon's Kindle Fire, but the company did manage to sell a very respectable 4.5-4.6 million Nexus 7 devices since launching last summer.
The YotaPhone can best be described as a handset that features two displays: one E-ink and the other a traditional LCD.
Like the idea of a tablet you can take with you on the road for accessing Windows apps but don't care for Microsoft's Surface Pro?
The British appear less than keen on 4G, with yesterday's spectrum auction raising much less cash than expected and takeup for the country's first 4G service sluggish.
Everyone's favorite Linux flavor is coming to tablets, with a pre-release version of the OS slated to go live on February 21 for the Google Nexus 7 and Nexus 10.
HTC has rolled out its new flagship "One" smartphone housed in a zero-gap aluminum unibody.
Nvidia has debuted the the Tegra 4i processor, which can best be described as a fully integrated 4G LTE mobile SoC.
China now has more active Android and iOS devices than any other country, knocking the US off the top spot.
The South Korean-based iRiver has debuted a 7-inch Android tablet powered by a 1.2 GHz Nvidia Tegra 3 quad-core processor.
The Linux-based Tizen operating system for mobile devices has officially hit version 2.0, with the relevant source code and SDK now available for devs.
LG has officially announced its latest smartphone in Korea, but the long-awaited device will be coming to the United States as well.


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Indian rupee gains momentum as primary currency in 18 countries
New Delhi (India), May 12: The trajectory of many of the ‘Global South’ countries has not been smooth or linear for the past hundred years. Breaking the shackles of colonization for many was only the job half done. The rest required careful hard work in the right sectors to survive and thrive. Countries like China and Singapore are excellent examples of the above, where the former has lifted millions out of poverty and the latter is a prime example of how much a country can achieve if governed properly. India has gone through a similar ‘Hero’s Journey’ since its independence. In less than 80 years since then, it has overcome major hurdles such as bankruptcy to now having the Indian Rupee used as the primary currency in over 18 countries around the world.
Now traders will be able to import goods from other countries by paying in rupees. The Reserve Bank Of India (RBI), has allowed 18 countries including Germany, Kenya, Sri Lanka, Singapore, and the UK amongst others to transact in the Indian Rupee. This move will be facilitated by the VOSTRO accounts which will be opened in Indian banks. These accounts will be used by foreign companies to invest in Indian companies and buy their goods and services. Financial expert, Mr. Kishore Subramanian from Shree Consultants notes that this will help in reducing complicated trade-related transaction costs, boost the overall trade in India and ultimately reduce the trade deficit as well.
One of the main drivers of the globalisation of the Indian rupee has been the growth of the Indian economy. India has emerged as one of the fastest-growing economies in the world, with a GDP growth rate that has consistently been above 5% for many years. This growth has attracted foreign investors who are looking for new opportunities in emerging markets.
Another factor that has contributed to the globalisation of the Indian rupee is the increasing use of digital technologies for financial transactions. India has been at the forefront of the digital revolution in finance, with the introduction of innovative payment systems such as Unified Payments Interface (UPI) and digital wallets like Paytm. These technologies have made it easier for people to transact in Indian rupees, even if they are not physically present in India.
It will further boost trade with South-Asian countries such as Nepal, Sri Lanka, and Bhutan. The BRICS countries have already tried to de-Dollarize the international market following the sanctions imposed on Russia by Western countries. This has given countries like China and India the opportunity to emerge as potential alternatives to the US and its currency.
For the Indian Rupee to become even more widely accepted and become more mainstream with respect to trade, it will have to cross uncharted territory. This will require a lot of patience and good bilateral relations and soft power relations with many countries around the world. As of the present moment, the future of the Indian Rupee looks bright and extremely promising.
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Firefox has started to roll out Total Cookie Protection, a browser feature that competes with Safari's privacy systems by restricting how cookies are used and cutting down cross-site tracking.
The tracking of users online is big business to marketers, with various trackers online used to keep tabs on a user's surfing sessions. As the data can be collected and mined for details, marketing companies can build sophisticated profiles of online users, in order to serve highly customized advertising.
As part of a continuing battle to prevent such tracking from taking place, Mozilla is rolling out a feature called Total Cookie Protection, which will be enabled by default for users of the browser on Mac and Windows.
Total Cookie Protection changes how cookies are stored by using so-called "cookie jars," namely separate stores for individual websites. The website and any third-party content embedded in it will deposit cookies to a cookie jar associated with just that site.
Once stored, no other websites are able to access the cookies in that particular cookie jar, except for the originating site. In effect, the cookies prevent trackers from being able to access cookies created for other sites, severely limiting their knowledge of the user's online habits.
Mozilla says in a blog post that the approach "strikes the balance between eliminating the worst privacy properties of third-party cookies - in particular the ability to track you - and allowing those cookies to fulfill their less invasive use cases."
Total Cookie Protection is a continuation of Mozilla's previous efforts to limit the effects of online trackers, including the introduction of Enhanced Tracking Protection in 2018 to block tracking activity.
Mozilla is not the only company who is improving privacy in its browser. Apple's Safari has undergone many changes over the years, with alterations to its Intelligent Tracking Prevention over time strengthening its own security for users.
These changes, which included elements to prevent collusion between trackers and severely limiting the data that could be collected, was found to be "stunningly effective," according to ad industry insiders in 2019. By March 2020, Apple updated ITP to include full third-party cookie blocking among other features.


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Not only has this simple initiative saved 1.4 lakh CO2 emissions, it has also increased the income of rag pickers by 25 per cent - a win-win for the planet as well as its people!
Almost a hundred years ago, billiards, a game played with a cue stick, was so popular in the United States that it increased the demand for natural ivory used to make the balls. To prevent the slaughter of animals, a New York Billiards company issued a public reward of $10,000 for inventing a viable replacement for the ivory.
An amateur inventor named John Wesley Hyatt came up with an alternative that would revolutionise consumption habits around the world. He invented celluloid, a polymer made from cellulose or in other words plastic. Later, when the world discovered that plastic was a cheaper and more durable alternative to natural materials, humanity welcomed it in their homes with open arms.
'Maka Naka Plastic': One Man's Mission to Make Goa Plastic Free
India's favourite getaway Goa is battling a severe plastic waste problem. This alarming situation led Sanjiv Khandelwal to start 'Maka Naka Plastic', a campaign to combat plastic pollution with cloth bags made from pre-loved fabric.Read more >
Ironically, though the invention of plastic took place to protect animals, its unchecked consumption would go on to become a threat for the entire planet and spell doom for all species.
World’s annual consumption of plastics stands at 300 million tonnes, and India contributes around 16.5 million tonnes according to a 2018 report in Down to Earth that cites PlastIndia Foundation. With tonnes of plastic consumed annually, the world is likely to drown in the non-biodegradable material considering that it takes thousands of years to decompose.
In a gloomy situation like this, repurposing plastics may not be a permanent solution, but it can bring relief to the environment and the marine species.
Alarmed by the mounting plastic crisis, two Delhiites came together and started a scrap management company that aims to promote the collection and recycling of plastics.
Founded by Dinesh Parikh and Sachin Sharma, GEM Enviro Management Pvt Ltd is one of the few Producer Responsibility Organisations (PRO) registered with the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB).
A PRO is a company that ensures that the Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) targets of all Plastic producers, Importers and Brand Owners (PIBO) are met. The PROs collect and process waste on behalf of PIBO.
The duo came in contact when they were working with Ganesha Ecosphere Limited, one of India’s largest PET recycling companies. While working there, they learnt about the country’s unorganised sector of waste management. They saw how companies that discarded polyethene terephthalate (PET) items had very little knowledge about their disposal.
Speaking to The Better India (TBI), Sachin, an alumnus of IIM-Calcutta says,
India discards tonnes of recyclable plastic every day, and yet we have not been able to figure out the process to scientifically manage waste. On the one hand, experts are worried about overflowing landfills, and on the other hand, the recycling units require PET items. Our company aims to eliminate both problems.
In 2013, Dinesh and Sachin launched the company with their funds.
Chennai Scuba Diver & His 9-YO Daughter Have Collected 1000 Kg Plastic From The Ocean
Nine-year-old Thaaragai and her father Aravind Tharunsri are on a mission to make the ocean a better place for marine life. They regularly conduct beach and ocean clean-ups and marine conservation awareness sessions.Read more >
After researching for months, we had our comprehensive plan of collecting both pre-consumer and post-consumer packaging scrap. All we needed was an equally passionate team who could do justice to the work, says Dinesh.
One of the biggest hurdles the duo faced was in the hiring process. Many applicants were reluctant to work in direct collaboration with the waste pickers and even about handling waste daily. So, the company looped in experts, NGOs, and other informal waste pickers not working with the Municipal Corporations.
After several meetings with Coca-Cola for almost a year, the giant soft drink manufacturer became their first client. Bisleri, PepsiCo, Google and others also got on board. Through their client companies, GEM prevents close to 500 tonnes from entering the landfill per month by processing it.
GEM’s services are-pan India. The company not only collects the plastic items but also recycles them into consumer products like bags, t-shirts, furniture, soft-toys, etc. With a staff strength of about 100, GEM has tied up with Ganesha Ecosphere for PET recycling and marketing and branding of the recycled yarn.
Ganesha Ecosphere cuts down the plastic and recycles it into a certain fibre.
GEM uses this fibre to make sustainable products that are sold under their ‘Being Responsible’ campaign, “All our materials are made from recycled, sustainable or ethically sourced materials. We believe that every corporate house must take green steps no matter how small. Every little step will help to save the environment in the long run,” says Sachin.
After bringing in giant companies for the responsible disposal of waste, GEM launched the ‘Reverse Vending Machine’ project in 2013 to rope in the people.
A total of 50 collection centres have been installed in 15 states, “The RVMs are installed in residential societies, malls and other public areas to spread awareness among people. Often, people want to contribute towards the environment but don’t know how to and here’s where our machines come in. It will also prevent littering and illegal recycling of bottles,” says Sachin.
The machines, which are only for deposition of PET bottles can collect around 500 PET bottles per day and one machine costs up to 5 lakhs. People can discard their bottles in the vending machine and earn one rupee or other freebies and discounts.
In terms of impact, the company has so far processed one lakh tonnes of plastic waste and saved 1.40 lakh carbon dioxide emissions by transforming plastic waste.
Besides the environmental impact, GEM has also been instrumental in improving the lives of rag pickers. The channelised format of collecting plastic waste that GEM follows has increased the income of rag pickers by 25 per cent, says Sachin. In addition to that, the rag pickers are also given healthcare benefits. So far, around 3,000 rag pickers have been associated with the waste management company.
If big brands like PepsiCo and Coca-Cola are waging war against plastic by being responsible for waste disposal methods, then managing waste by other Indian companies should not be impossible. Companies like GEM have even made it easy for corporate houses by sharing a significant degree of responsibility for the environmental impacts of their products.
If you wish to get in touch with GEM, you can contact them here.
(Edited by Saiqua Sultan)
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How Do Brands Manage Plastic Waste? Entrepreneur's Credits System Cuts 45000 KG From Landfills
Mumbai-based Bhagyashree Bhansali started The Disposal Company to help brands neutralise their plastic waste by recycling an equal amount. It works with rag pickers and waste segregators in Delhi who retrieve plastic waste from Ghazipur landfills.Read more >


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Cirencester, 5 June 2018 – Optical transceiver specialist, ProLabs, is pleased to announce the appointment of Matt McCormick to CEO of Halo Technology, a group recently formed after the forces of ProLabs and AddOn came together in mid-2017.
Joining AddOn in 2005 as a sales associate, McCormick gained invaluable expert knowledge in the generation and development of products and education in the market and proved to be a major asset to the AddOn team. Moving up the ranks to VP of Sales in 2011, his knowledge of the industry, products and impact the business had on the continued interest and development of optical transceivers was unparalleled. As VP of Sales, McCormick was responsible for the continued promotion and development of the company’s high-quality solution portfolio, ensuring it was at the forefront of technology trends and developments and overseeing global sales.
Striving to create a goal-oriented team environment, McCormick pioneered the optical transceiver business for AddOn, which directly lead to the reshaping of the business from re-seller of other network accessories to the current business model. He also developed the white label service offering and continues to drive the initiative.
Now the biggest provider of optical transceivers in the market today, Halo hopes to change the current mindset of customers when they are looking for connectivity solutions as well as challenging OEM (Original equipment manufacturer) dominance in the market.
“Our goal and aspirations for ProLabs is to make our mark on the optical connectivity industry by challenging the mindset of customers when it comes to the compatibles market. In doing this, we aim to bridge the current gap between OEM and mid-tier retailers and to continue to provide our loyal customers with world-class connectivity solutions,” McCormick said. “Through our technical intelligence, sector specialists and expertise, we are on our way to being the recognised provider of compatible products that surpass quality and speed standards of the market.”
Not only specialising in compatible transceivers, ProLabs are working hard to provide future-proof complete solutions from 100mb to 100G and offer a number of network interconnect and active network solutions.
“ProLabs is an ambitious industry challenger and I am looking forward to spearheading our global compatible connectivity mission. Ultimately, our products are tried, tested and ahead of the curve thanks to our on site, state-of-the-art facilities. Compatibility is our middle name but it’s not our end-game, and with the support of the Halo group, our presence is only set to expand,” added McCormick.


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Price comparison website Comparethemarket.com is in talks with the cinema industry to launch a 2-for-1 ticket promotion for its customers next year, following the news yesterday that EE will end its decade-long Orange Wednesdays offer.
Thursday 11 December 2014 8:44 pmTags: EE
Comparethemarket in talks to launch 2-for-1 cinema offer as EE's Orange Wednesday deal expires
EE said it would stop Orange Wednesdays at the end of February after it failed to agree new commercial terms with Cinema First, the marketing agency for the film distributor and cinema industry, and in the face of declining customers using the promotion.
Orange Wednesday was launched in 2004, but its uptake by customers had peaked by 2010 as viewing habits shifted towards smartphones, on-demand programming and online streaming services such as Netflix.
Mark Batey, who sits on Cinema First’s board, told City A.M. that talks were currently underway with a number of parties and Cinema First hoped the Wednesday promotion would continue with a different sponsor.
Comparethemarket confirmed the talks in a statement: “We can confirm that we are currently exploring a mutually beneficial partnership with the cinema industry.”


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Aditya Birla Group-owned Idea Cellular has announced the beginning of operations of Idea Payments Bank in India. Idea Cellular was one of the 11 applicants who were issued approval to open a payments bank back in August 2015.
“Aditya Birla Nuvo Limited, Mumbai was one of the 11 applicants which were issued in-principle approval for setting up a payments bank, on August 19, 2015,” RBI said. The RBI has issued the license to Idea Cellular Payments Bank under Section 22 (1) of the Banking Regulation Act of 1949.
Idea Cellular has joined the bandwagon of payments banks in India that already has players like Bharti Airtel, India Post, and Paytm. Airtel Payments Bank was the first payments bank to start operations back in January 2017 followed by India Post. Currently, apart from these, Paytm and Fino Payments Bank have also launched their operations.
What’s a payments bank?
A Payments Bank is similar to other bank and it offers services such as current accounts, savings accounts, and demand deposits up to Rs 1 lakh. This category of banks can also issue debit cards. However, these payments banks are not allowed to offer loans and credit cards to customers.
While the Idea Payments Bank has been incorporated, there is no information available on interest rates and services offered by Idea. So, we cannot say at this point when you will get a physical debit card or cheque book issued for a nominal price. However, it will offer some generic services such as savings accounts and interest on them.
Paytm announced its Paytm Payments Bank back in May last years and it currently offers an interest rate of 4 percent on savings accounts and also a physical RuPay debit card. Bharti Airtel was the first telecom operator that entered into banking arena with the Airtel Payments Bank. Airtel currently offers 7.25 percent interest rate on savings accounts.
If we talk about other telecom operators, Vodafone is also among the 11 applicants which have received the license and Vodafone India will soon be merging with Idea Cellular so it is not yet clear what will happen to the Vodafone payments bank license after the merger. Reliance Jio is also planning to launch its Payments Bank very soon.


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Sprint Corporation (NYSE:S) is offering a wireless plan just for $12 which will let its users only connect to Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB)’s social media platform. This wireless plan is offered under the company’s Virgin Mobile brand of prepaid service. The plan is perceived as yet another effort to let the customers enjoy social media platforms in less cost. An article on USA Today discussed the Sprint Corporation (NYSE:S)’s latest plans and shed some light on net neutrality concerns expressed by experts.
The minimum package of this wireless plan starts at $6.98 per month and includes 20 text messages, 20 minutes of calls and no data. In $35, the customers can buy an unlimited plan in which they can talk and text as much as they want. There are different packages for social media services, for example, if anyone wants to use Twitter Inc (NYSE:TWTR)’ microblogging website, apart from Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB)’ platform, he can use it by paying an extra $5. There is also an option to buy the plan that facilitates the use of all social media services.
While this budget plan has been welcomed by the customers, there have been some concerns raised by Net Neutrality experts. Such a service is a threat for equality and neutrality of services according to many experts. When a user buys such a plan, there is a scarce chance that he will try any other service which is not part of this plan.
According to the article, these plans will also facilitate the parents to be in full control of the data used by their children. They can cut any service and control anything according to their own choice in these plans. Jayne Wallace, Sprint Corporation (NYSE:S)’s director of corporate communications, has touted that these plans are just to facilitate the users to enjoy the services in less cost.
“We’re building this as we go. This is what we’re starting with. We started with the four (social-media offers) that we felt were the most popular,” Wallace was quoted as saying.
The acceptance level of Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB) only plans can only be evaluated by the feedback from users. If these plans succeed, there is a high chance that different social media services will strive to get themselves in these selective services plans.