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State spends $215M on lottery terminals
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The lottery will divide the cost of the new machines over the next two budget cycles.
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Government will import 5 lakh huge amounts of maize to check value rise and accumulating in the wake of fall in residential creation of the product.
To check costs and avoid storing, Commerce and Industry Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has affirmed importing 5,00,000 MT of maize under Tariff Rate Quota by a state exchanging undertaking, her service said in a tweet.
Under Tariff Rate Quota Scheme, government permits imports of four items, including maize (corn), at concessional rates of traditions obligation.
At present, maize draws in 50 for every penny import obligation. In any case, under the Tariff Rate Quota Scheme, the import obligation is zero.
Qualified elements for designation of share under the plan if there should be an occurrence of corn incorporate STC, MMTCBSE 0.11 % and PEC.
In June, state-possessed exchanging firm PEC had welcomed offers for import of 50,000 tons of maize (non-hereditarily changed) to support residential supplies in perspective of fall underway.
According to Agriculture Ministry’s third propel gauge, maize generation in the nation is assessed to have declined to 21.02 million tons in 2015-16 from 23.67 million tons in the earlier year.
India has been generally a noteworthy corn exporter to southeast Asia yet dry spell and rising residential interest has cut fare supplies.
Poultry area and starch makers are the real shopper of maize.
The legislature is likewise importing heartbeats to support domesti ..

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Instagram unveiled a raft of new features on Tuesday that it said will make its site safer for teenagers.
Among the measures, the popular photo-sharing service will be implementing tools to help users take breaks, or view new topics if they’ve been dwelling on one thing for too long, said Instagram head Adam Mosseri in a blog post.
The platform, owned by Meta Platforms Inc., FB 1.55% formerly known as Facebook Inc., will also block users from tagging or mentioning teens who don’t follow them. It will give parents more control over how long their children use the app. And in January, it will allow all users to bulk-delete their own content, including photos, videos, likes and comments.
The rollout comes the day before Mr. Mosseri is slated to testify before Congress for the first time. Mr. Mosseri, who has overseen Instagram for three years, will appear before the Senate’s consumer protection subcommittee on Wednesday to respond to questions about the app’s impact on younger users.
An article published in The Wall Street Journal’s Facebook Files series in September showed that internal research found Instagram is harmful for a sizable percentage of young users, particularly teenage girls with body-image concerns. Its parent company disputed the characterization of the findings.
Mr. Mosseri said in the blog post that the steps unveiled Tuesday should “keep young people even safer.”
However, many features are “opt-in”—meaning they are off until users turn them on. This “puts the onus on the teen users and potentially their parents to engage in this form of self-regulation,” said Brooke Erin Duffy, an associate professor in the department of communication at Cornell University. “It deflects responsibility from the platform.”
Taking a break
The Take a Break feature, which alerts users when they’ve been on Instagram for a predetermined amount of time, became available Tuesday in the U.S., U.K., Australia, Canada, Ireland and New Zealand. It is available to all users but was designed with teens in mind. Currently, teens will have to turn it on. And when they do get the warning, they can close it and go back to scrolling if they choose.
Instagram will send notifications to teens after they’ve been using the app for 20 minutes to suggest they activate Take a Break reminders, Instagram spokeswoman Liza Crenshaw said. Users can then set the reminders for 10, 20 or 30 minutes. Early test results showed that once teens set the reminders, more than 90% keep them on, Mr. Mosseri said in the blog post.
Instagram’s parental controls, designed to let parents monitor how long their kids use the app and set time limits, would also be opt-in when available this March. Teen users will have to give access to their parents, Ms. Crenshaw said, adding that this would maintain teens’ autonomy and ensure their safety.
In July, Instagram introduced a sensitive-content control—effectively a knob that determines how much sensitive content, such as “sexually suggestive” posts, users see in the Explore tab. The choices are “Allow,” “Limit” or “Limit Even More.”
Mr. Mosseri said Instagram is exploring whether to expand the option to search, hashtags, reels and suggested accounts. This would “make it more difficult for teens to come across potentially harmful or sensitive content,” he said in the blog post.
Teens, by default, have the sensitive-content control set to “Limit.” Instagram is currently deciding whether “Limit Even More” would one day be the default, Ms. Crenshaw said. Older users can also set their own control preferences.
“We are exploring generally more strict defaults for teens in the new year,” she said. Some of the new teen protections announced Tuesday—such as not letting unfollowed accounts mention them—will be automatically turned on for young users, and be available as an option for older users, too.
Instagram is developing another feature that would “nudge people towards other topics if they’ve been dwelling on one topic for a while,” according to Mr. Mosseri’s blog post. Ms. Crenshaw said the company hadn’t yet decided how long “a while” would be, and Instagram doesn’t know when it will launch the feature.
In September, the company said it would suspend plans for a version of its Instagram app tailored to children, a move that came after lawmakers and others voiced concerns about the photo-sharing platform’s effects on young people’s mental health. Tuesday’s blog post didn’t address the status of the kids’ app.
The product build-out disclosed Tuesday is unlikely to alleviate much of the pressure facing Mr. Mosseri on Wednesday.
“Meta is attempting to shift attention from their mistakes by rolling out parental guides, use timers and content-control features that consumers should have had all along,” said Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R., Tenn.), a member of the Senate consumer protection subcommittee. “This is a hollow ‘product announcement’ in the dead of night that will do little to substantively make their products safer for kids and teens.”
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Japanese retailers walk fine privacy line to gather customer data with facial recognition
The Parco_ya shopping center in Tokyo’s Ueno district is using 90 cameras and facial recognition technology from AI startup Abeja Inc. to estimate the ages of visitors and track their movements, The Asahi Shimbun reports. Data collected by the system is shared with the mall’s 60 stores to help them improve their marketing and product arrangement.
The system also collects visitor gender information, and has found that 80 percent of visitors to the shopping center are women, and most are between about 30 and 60 years old. An official for Parco-ya’s operator said that information on the system is available to consumers through its website, and that facial images are deleted promptly after analysis.
Japanese law allows businesses to collect and analyze facial images, as long as they dispose of them.
Abeja says that it stores the images for up to six months, and the company has recently introduced a service for tracking repeat customers. It has a total of 100 companies using its service at 520 stores.
The Personal Information Protection Commission, which is an independent administrative committee set up by the government in response to concerns about privacy violations related to Japan’s national ID system, regulates the use of customer data by businesses. Commission councillor Kuniko Ogawa noted at a symposium this summer at the University of Tokyo that images which can be used to identify individuals are considered personal information, but anonymized data such as an age or gender estimations are not. Ogawa urged symposium attendees to prioritize “giving careful consideration to the privacy issue and winning users’ trust.”
The limitations are not robust enough to protect against becoming a surveillance society, however, lawyer Masahiro Kobayashi warns.
“As improved camera image analyzing and other technologies lead to more frequent use of data for marketing and other purposes, it is essential to develop proper rules,” he says. “People must be notified when they are being shot with cameras.”
FaceFirst CEO Peter Trepp recently told BuzzFeed that almost half of the top retailers in the U.S. have at least looked into the use of facial recognition technology in their stores.


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The list of the world’s ultimate 1 percent has grown: Forbes magazine said its tally of billionaires around the globe climbed 16 percent from last year.
Topping the list is Carlos Slim, a telecommunications mogul from Mexico with a reported net worth of $73 billion. Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates came in second place, again, with a net worth of $67 billion.
Also making the list were fellow Seattle-area billionaires Jeff Bezos, founder and CEO of Amazon.com (19); Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer (51) and Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen (52).
Other notables saw their places drop as their bank accounts were squeezed in the last year. Facebook Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg fell 31 spots as his net worth dropped by $4.2 billion.
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Warren Buffett, known as the Oracle of Omaha, dropped to the No. 4 slot after more than a decade in the top 3; his spot was taken over by Amancio Ortega, a Spaniard who holds a huge stake in the retail conglomerate that owns fast fashion brand Zara.
All told, 1,426 uber-wealthy individuals made Forbes’ 2013 list, a record-setting number. And their bank accounts fattened too — average net worth jumped to $3.8 billion, a 3 percent increase from the year before.
Liliane Bettencourt, whose family owns more than 30 percent of cosmetics giant L’Oreal — is the world’s wealthiest woman at $30 billion. The total number of women grew to 138, up from 104 the year before.
More than 30 percent of the billionaires — or 442 to be exact, call the United States home, the most of any nation in the world.


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Galaxy’s loyalty beats iPhone’s
A survey of 3,763 smartphone users aged 13 to 69 by Digieco, an economic and management research institute run by mobile carrier KT, showed that 34.6 percent of iPhone users would switch to Galaxy phones next time.
Only 16.3 percent of Galaxy smartphone users said they would opt for an iPhone when they buy a new smartphone.
When asked whether they intended to continue using the same brand, 46.9 percent of iPhone users said yes compared with 65.4 percent of Galaxy users.
The survey by Korea’s second-largest mobile service operator goes against the perception that users of Apple products are deeply loyal to the brand because of its designs and the way its products work together.
Digieco warned the survey result does not necessarily mean Samsung would see its market share advance. Since Galaxy users enormously outnumber those of Apple in Korea, more customers are actually planning to switch to Apple even though the percentage is lower.
“The survey shows Apple has room for an inflow of customers from Samsung,” said the institute in a report. “It’s true Galaxy has gained users at a rapid pace but the speed of losing customers is fast too.”
Digieco also came up with a demographic analysis of both Apple and Samsung phones. Users of iPhones are mostly in their 20s and 30s in the Seoul Metropolitan area and larger cities but Galaxy users are evenly dispersed across the country regardless of age group. The income level between the two groups was not significantly different. The average monthly salary for the household that iPhone users belong to is 3.93 million won ($3,436), against 3.87 million won for Galaxy.
When asked to name the reasons for purchasing the brand, Apple users answered design, brand and operating system in order of importance, while Samsung users cited product features, brand and price.
Meanwhile, iPhones accounted for 32.9 percent of the U.S. smartphone market to rank top in the March-May period, up 0.3 percentage point from the previous three months, according to U.S. market researcher comScore on June 30. Samsung’s share advanced 1.7 percentage points to 23 percent. Combined, Apple and Samsung take up 62 percent of the world’s second-largest smartphone market next to China.
BY SEO JI-EUN [firstname.lastname@example.org]


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Ford Ranger Wildtrak Prototype Spied Winter Testing!
Ford’s U.S. off-road Ranger lineup might not just consist of a Raptor and FX4, after all!
All eyes have been on the Ranger Raptor in recent days following the truck’s unveiling in Thailand. And while we await confirmation that the off-road mid-size pickup is on its way to America, we already know that a fortified FX4 is in the pipeline. But now it appears that Ford is going for the off-road trifecta after a Ranger Wildcat was spied doing some winter testing. This time, in the good old United States – northern Michigan, to be exact!
If you are currently wondering what the heck a Ranger Wildtrak is, we won’t blame you. The nameplate has previously served as the Ranger’s top-end model in global markets. But thanks to its unmistakable styling cues, there’s no denying that the truck in these spy shots is indeed a Ranger Wildtrak. Just look at those special buttresses aft of the C-pillar for visual confirmation. Or the higher bed sill extensions that run along the outer edges of the box.
And in case you think this is a tease and merely a global model testing in the U.S., think again. Take a look at the interior, which sports a proper right-hand-drive setup. You’ll also notice the Ranger Wildtrak’s unique orange stitching on the dash, arm rests, seats, and shift boot. If the typical Wildtrak logos are stitched into the truck’s buckets, we can’t see them, thanks to fabric camo seat covers.
In the bed, this particular prototype sports a 12-volt power outlet located on the driver’s side of the truck bed’s side wall. The truck sits noticeably higher than a normal Ranger, and even the FX4’s side exit exhaust has been moved up into the underbody. This not only increases ground clearance, but aids departure angle as well. Thanks to some pretty amazing shots of the underbody, we’ve got a pretty good idea as to what’s going on underneath the U.S.-spec Ranger Wildtrak, too.
By far the most interesting thing about this prototype, however, is what lies under the hood – a diesel. We know the Ranger Wildtrak carries an oil burner thanks to the sticker on the fuel filler door. Not to mention the black smoke it belched out of the exhaust after a subzero cold start. But does this confirm that we’ll get some sort of diesel option in the new Ranger. Or is it merely a test dummy?
We’d bet on the former, but only time will tell. At least for now, U.S. Ranger fans finally have a reason to get excited. The Ranger Wildtrak might not be (quite) the Ranger Raptor. But the more off-road offerings we have to choose from, the better!


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Three Tesla owners in California on Wednesday sued the automaker in a proposed class action that accuses the company of falsely advertising the estimated driving ranges of its electric vehicles.
The lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California cites a Reuters article published last week which reported Tesla had created a “Diversion Team” in Nevada to cancel as many range-related appointments as possible after becoming inundated with owner complaints.
Reuters also reported that about a decade ago Tesla had decided to write algorithms for its in-dash range meter that would show drivers “rosy” projections for the distance the car could travel on a full battery, according to a source.
The directive to present the optimistic range estimates came from Tesla CEO Elon Musk, this person said. Reuters could not determine whether Tesla still uses algorithms that boost range estimates.
Neither Tesla nor Musk responded to detailed questions from Reuters for last week’s article. They did not immediately respond to requests for comment about the lawsuit on Wednesday.
The lawsuit alleges Tesla breached vehicle warranties and engaged in fraud and unfair competition.
“Put simply, Tesla has a duty to deliver a product that performs as advertised,” Adam A. Edwards, an attorney at Milberg Coleman Bryson Phillips Grossman, the firm representing Tesla owners in the lawsuit, said in a statement.
The lawsuit’s three plaintiffs cite occasions when their Teslas didn’t achieve close to their advertised ranges and said they had complained to the company without success.


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Everyone is eagerly anticipating the product roadmap update from Tesla CEO Elon Musk at the upcoming earnings call scheduled for January 26, 2022.
One of the biggest updates expected from Musk is in regards to the final design of the Cybertruck and possibly its expected launch date.
However Global Equities Research Analyst Trip Chowdhry thinks we will have to wait a little longer to get more details.
After visiting the Fremont factory last month, Chowdhry believes Tesla will unveil the final design of the Cybertruck at a special event in March 2022.
Not only that, he believes Tesla will unveil two different version of the electric truck that will have “significant tweaks” compared to the original prototype.
One of the versions will also be about 15% to 20% smaller than the original design, Chowdhry says.
So far we have only seen drone footage of the latest Cybertruck design, and while it is certainly different than what we have seen previously, its design held largely true to the original.
We have also heard no news from any of our sources about two different versions of the Cybertruck, but Tesla could be keeping this information close to the chest until it is officially unveiled.
What do you think? Will Tesla release two versions of the Cybertruck? Let us know in the comments below.
Editor’s note: The original version of this article misspelled Trip Chowdhry. This has been corrected.
Tesla Cybertruck with new design features spotted on Fremont test track
h/t: Sawyer Merritt


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Air Products (NYSE: APD), Lehigh Valley, PA, reported sales for the fiscal third quarter ended June 30 of $2.4 billion, a 1.4 percent decrease year-over-year. Profit increased 8.8 percent to $346.8 million.
Third quarter industrial gases sales in the Americas were $832 million, a decrease of 7 percent year-over-year. In Europe, the Middle East and Africa sales decreased 6 percent to $427 million, while in Asia sales increased 7 percent to $448 million.
Materials technologies sales for the quarter were $520 million, a decrease of 4 percent compared to the prior year quarter.
For the first nine months of the fiscal year, sales were $7.1 billion, down 5.2 percent over the prior-year period. Profit decreased 74.6 percent to $237.1 million.


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Time to bag better insurance
WOMEN will be carrying more than £5.9bn in handbags and personal belongings alone during the Christmas sales - nearly half of which might not be insured against theft.
A report from the British Market Research Bureau shows an average of £256 will be carried in personal belongings. However, the study also found 52% of women questioned admit to not having their handbag insured, or knowing if they're covered under their home contents insurance policy when away from home. The figure drops to 43% for women older than 50.
The research found that typically a handbag holds spectacles worth £116, a mobile phone worth £94, makeup worth £23 and £40 in cash.
Financial services group Saga, which commissioned the research, urges shoppers to be wary. Saga director Janet Thompson said: 'There are ways women can make themselves less vulnerable to handbag crime. Ensure your bag has a clasp or zip or other shutting mechanism, as open top bags are easy prey for pickpockets. Rucksacks or bags carried on the back are also an easy target.'
You should also check your home contents insurance policy to ensure personal items stolen away from the home are also covered. You should also shop around for a cheaper deal at each renewal.
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Prior to Nokia World 2013, we heard rumors that apart from the Lumia 1520, Nokia might also announce the Lumia 929. The smartphone was said to have a 5 inch 1,920×1,080 display and it was said to be a Verizon exclusive. Nokia didn’t announce the device at the event though, it is still not known when the Lumia 929 is going to be made official. We’ve seen the device in leaked pictures and even a video since then, but now it has been leaked in all its glory, seeing as how the folks at WPCentral have got their hands on high quality photos of an actual unit.
It is not known when the Verizon Lumia 929 is going to be released, rumor has it that might be released either around Thanksgiving or early next year. Its specifications have also been leaked, basically most of what was rumored before has been reiterated. A Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 2.3GHz quadcore processor, 2GB RAM, 32GB onboard storage, 20 megapixel PureView rear camera, dual LED flash, Qi wireless charging and a number of Verizon exclusive apps. The Lumia 929 is said to come in glossy white and matte black. Dimensions are said to be 136.5mm x 71.4mm x 10.5mm and it weighs in at 166g. Nokia Lumia 929 will be compatible with Verizon’s 4G LTE network.


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New figures from CJ Affiliate reveal retailers have witnessed average revenue growth of 64% on Prime Day
Prime Day is not just for Amazon, new research has revealed. Brand new figures from across CJ Affiliate’s global network reveal that from 2016 to 2017, across the two days of Prime Day retailers globally saw an average year on year revenue growth of 64% and year on year sales grew by 38%. This is a huge increase compared with the average global year on year growth for a day in July of 22% and 15% for sales.
“We’ve seen the effects of Black Friday and Cyber Monday but now retailers and marketers should also be marking Prime Day in their calendars, preparing deals to take advantage of the Amazon-inspired shopping phenomenon. Throughout July, many brands will hold their summer sales, but these figures show that it’s on Prime Day that they’re seeing the biggest returns, and if 2018 follows the growth of 2016 and 2017, this is only set to increase” commented Jules Bazley, Regional Vice President, CJ Affiliate.
Pets pampered on Prime Day
Prime Day is not only affecting other retailers’ performance, it is also experiencing unexpected areas of growth. Despite Prime Day traditionally being associated with the buying of consumer electronics, revenue growth for these goods only saw an increase of 22% from 2016 to 2017.
Perhaps unsurprisingly for the summer months, Home & Garden wares are the most popular products, but many shoppers are clearly holding off until Prime Day to stock up on their garden furniture and start their home improvement. Sales increased year on year by an average of 197% and average revenue growth for Home & Garden purchases was 263%.
It is also pampered pets who will likely be reaping the benefits this Prime Day with pet ware the other category to see the largest year on year increase in revenue and sales. Revenue grew by 176% and sales by 200%.
For brands looking to cash in on the wider impact of Prime Day on consumers, they will need to be aware of regional differences, with the research revealing discrepancies between customer behaviour in the US and Europe.
In both the US and Europe, the first day of deals saw the greatest number of shoppers clicking on ads, witnessing an increase in ad clicks of 14% and 17% respectively. Europeans are quicker to jump on deals for lots of items, whilst US consumers like to mull over their purchases, buying fewer but higher priced items. In Europe, the greatest increase in revenue and sales was on the first day of Prime Day, with year on year revenue growing by 42% and year on year sales by 58%. For shoppers in the US on the other hand, sales were higher on the second day, increasing by 44% and achieving revenue growth of 77%.
“The clear diversity of retail sectors having their revenue and sales influenced by Prime Day is clear proof of how all retailers and marketers can seek to benefit from this mid-summer peak. Knowing the specific products and which day to target certain consumers means that marketers and retailers can better target shoppers and tailor their efforts to maximise this opportunity,” concluded Bazley.


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Device news at the CTIA Wireless 2011 trade show--in terms of smartphones, tablets and non-traditional devices--likely won't be all that interesting, according to analysts. However, after a lackluster showing at the Consumer Electronics Show in January, Sprint Nextel (NYSE:S) appears poised to steal the show when CTIA kicks off March 22.
Sprint is hosting a press conference March 22 from 1:30 p.m. to 4 p.m., and the blog Engadget reported the carrier will announce a new version of the Nexus S, called the Nexus S 4G, which will run on Clearwire's (NASDAQ:CLWR) mobile WiMAX network. The initial Nexus S, announced last year by Samsung, was the first smartphone to run version 2.3, or Gingerbread, of Google's (NASDAQ:GOOG) Android platform. In addition, the blog reported Sprint will launch two new products under its Evo brand, the Evo 3D, a 3D smartphone, and the Evo View, which may be a CDMA version of HTC's Flyer tablet, announced at Mobile World Congress.
Sprint CEO Dan Hesse all but guaranteed fireworks. "You can expect us to be launching more dual-mode devices at CTIA," Hesse said recently at the Deutsche Bank Media and Telecom Conference.
Aside from that, however, analysts expect handset news at the CTIA show largely to be confined to carrier partnership announcements rather than brand new gadget rollouts.
"I don't think there's going to be whole lot of surprises, considering what we saw at both CES as well as Mobile World Congress," Gartner analyst Michael Gartenberg said. "I think most of the devices have been outed."
So what is going to generate buzz beyond Sprint's expected announcements? It could be greater detail on machine-to-machine device and data plan strategies, especially from carriers such as Verizon Wireless (NYSE:VZ) and T-Mobile USA, said ABI Research analyst Kevin Burden.
"It is critical," he said. "It is an area of huge potential growth."
NDP Group analyst Ross Rubin said he is looking forward to seeing more information about tablet-specific applications, including applications for Google's Honeycomb tablets as well as for Research In Motion's (NASDAQ:RIMM) PlayBook.


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Broadcasting giant Time Warner has joined a chorus of disapproval over Apple’s decision to offer 99-cent TV rentals through the iTunes Store.
Speaking at the Royal Television Conference in London this week, Time Warner CEO Jeff Bewkes said: “How can you justify renting your first-run TV shows individually for 99 cents an episode and thereby jeopardize the sale of the same shows as a series to branded networks that pay hundreds of millions of dollars and make those shows available to loyal viewers for free?”
“These new entrants must meet a few criteria: They must provide consumers with a superior TV experience, and they must either support or improve the overall economics that funds and creates the programming in the first place.”
The comments follow similar negative responses to Apple’s price point from Warner Bros. Chief Executive Barry Meyer and departing NBC Universal Chief Executive Jeff Zucker.
“We just don’t think the value proposition is a good one for us,” Meyer told analyst Jessica Reif last month, insisting he’d rather license whole seasons of shows rather than “open up a rental business in television at a low price.”
Meanwhile, Jeff Zucker told a Goldman Sachs investor conference: “We do not think 99 cents is the right price point for our content. We thought it would devalue our content.” Zucker added NBC shows are already available for $1.99.
The $99 Apple TV, introduced at the start of September and shipping this week, lets customers rent favorite TV shows—including sitcoms, dramas, and reality series—commercial free and in HD. News Corp.’s Fox, Disney’ss ABC, ABC Family and Disney Channel, and BBC America have signed up to offer cheaper TV rentals in partnership with Apple.


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NEW YORK (AP) — BlackBerry is ending its U.S. licensing deal with T-Mobile, saying the companies no longer have complementary strategies.
The disconnect appears to be related to a T-Mobile promotion that BlackBerry took issue with last month.
In a blog post in February, BlackBerry CEO and Executive Chair John Chen said that T-Mobile had emailed an offer targeting BlackBerry users on its network asking them to switch their BlackBerry devices to a competitor's smartphone. Chen said that BlackBerry had not been told of T-Mobile's plans in advance and thanked its customers for expressing their displeasure. Chen told its customers that BlackBerry was upset about the offer and that T-Mobile hadn't spoken with the Canadian company before or after launching the promotion.
BlackBerry's existing licensing agreement with T-Mobile U.S. Inc. expires on April 25.
Once the deal ends, BlackBerry customers on the T-Mobile network shouldn't see any change in their service or support, Blackberry said.
BlackBerry Ltd., formerly known as Research In Motion, 2said that it will work with T-Mobile to help any BlackBerry customers remaining on the T-Mobile U.S. network or any customers buying devices from T-Mobile's existing inventory.
BlackBerry said it's also working with its other carrier partners to give its customers options should they want to switch to another carrier.
Chen said in a statement that the company hopes to work with T-Mobile again when their business strategies align.
The BlackBerry, pioneered in 1999, had been the dominant smartphone for on-the-go business people and other consumers before the iPhone debuted in 2007 and showed that phones can handle much more than email and phone calls. The BlackBerry has also been hurt by competition from Android-based rivals.
On Friday the company reported mixed fourth-quarter results as its adjusted loss was better than expected, but revenue — which dropped below $1 billion for the first time since late 2007 — fell short of analysts' expectations.
BlackBerry is transitioning its business from a smartphone company to a software business under Chen, who is deemphasizing the hardware business after last year's launch of the BlackBerry 10 failed to spark a turnaround.
Chen, who is credited with turning around Sybase, a data company that was sold to SAP in 2010, is putting more emphasis on BlackBerry's mobile device management business, a collection of software that allows IT departments to manage different devices connected to their corporate networks. He is also emphasizing BlackBerry's popular BlackBerry Messenger application that is now also available on Apple and Android devices. And he is trying to highlight Blackberry's embedded QNX software systems, which are used in-vehicle infotainment systems and industrial machines.
BlackBerry's stock dipped 2 cents to $8.08 in premarket trading Wednesday about three hours ahead of the market open.


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Google Brings Health Cards To India, Lists Over 400 Conditions For Easy Reference
A year after their launch in the US, Google has unveiled health cards in India which after able to load easily on slow bandwidth, owing to the fact that many Indians still use 2G speed internet. They are available on the Google app for both Android and IOS devices as well as on the desktop.
Google Now has been integrated with Google Search. It also offers cards that pulls information from your Gmail account, information for nearby events, weather, traffic information and more. Google has added health and disease information to its knowledge database. So when someone searches for a common heath condition or query, Google will show snippets of information from validated sources.
These cards will be available in both English and Hindi. Eventually Google plans to launch it in other Indian languages too. The search giant has collaborated with Apollo Hospitals, Columbia Asia Hospital to review and validate the results. The health cards have currently listed 431 known medical conditions, the ones that Indians typically search for. India is the third country to get health cards after USA and Brazil.


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2008 News Archive - Holidays - Brits abroad 'stash cash' on their person
06 02 2008
Britons enjoying overseas holidays are keeping their valuables on themselves rather than in a safe, it has been reported.
According to Nationwide, 36 per cent of UK travellers stash their cash in pockets and other places on their person as opposed to in a safety deposit box.
The research revealed that a further 12 per cent of Brits stored their spends in a suitcase while nine per cent decided to retain their valuables in a drawer. An additional two per cent believed the bedside table was the best place to display their pricey possessions.
"It is astounding that people are prepared to take such a gamble when travelling abroad. You never know what's around the corner and for that reason it is vital that you have adequate travel insurance in place," commented Nationwide's insurance director, Robin Bailey.
He noted that as 54 per cent of those surveyed admitted to travelling more than once a year it is "worth considering" annual travel insurance.
The Association of British Travel Agents recently predicted that 2008 would be a big year for travel.


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Coco Chanel is a part of fashion history and has been consecrated in the Olympus of fashion designers.
This year marks 50 years since the death of the woman that changed fashion forever, becoming one of the most important couturiers of 20th century, and creating a brand new style for women, still appreciated all over the world.
During the years, she introduced many important style innovations, changing women’s fashion as never before. Chanel, for example, popularized women’s trousers as a fashion garment, then she turned stripes into fashion, by creating the nautical look that became a hit among stylish women. Coco also introduced costume jewellery to her collections and made history by inventing the “little black dress,” look and the Chanel suit, which popularity continues through the years.
Chanel also created iconic accessories, like the famous 2.55 bag and iconic perfumes: who does not know the Marylin Monroe’ five drops of Chanel No. 5?
- 20 januari 2021
- Genomförandeorganet för Europeiska innovationsrådet samt för små och medelstora företag
- News Type
- Worth News


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The problem, according to BlackBerry, is that Typo's keyboard looks suspiciously much like BlackBerry's own design.
"This is a blatant infringement against BlackBerry’s iconic keyboard, and we will vigorously protect our intellectual property against any company that attempts to copy our unique design," said Steve Zipperstein, BlackBerry’s top lawyer, in a statement. "We are flattered by the desire to graft our keyboard onto other smartphones, but we will not tolerate such activity without fair compensation."
BlackBerry's suit comes days after the company parted ways with another high-profile figure, singer Alicia Keys. Keys had served for the past year as the company's creative director.
In fairness to BlackBerry, Typo's product does look rather similar. But stomping on a potential threat that happens to meet the needs of those who want a physical keyboard and a stylish, functional device in one package could end up backfiring.


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Universal Sportsbiz (USPL), the parent of Bangalore based Collectabillia, an online store which sells sports fan merchandise, has raised $7.5 million (Rs 46 crore) in a Series B round of funding from existing investor Accel Partners, reports VCCircle.
USPL will use the funds for expansion into new markets as well as increase its two fashion labels’ network presence from 30 stores to 75 for Imara (Shraddha Kapoor) and 38 to to 70 stores for Wrogn (Virat Kohli). Collectabillia claims that it will tie up with 10 celebs and public figures for expansion and add talent for developing and sourcing designs for its fashion accessories. It will also set up 4-5 standalone stores, some of which will be owned by Collectabillia and some through franchises.
An ET report claims that post this funding, the company is valued at Rs 225 crore. The company had previously raised Rs 17.25 crore in funding from Accel in 2012. Before this funding, cricketer Sachin Tendulkar had also picked up a ‘significant’ minority stake for an undisclosed sum.
The company is promoted by former badminton player Anjana Reddy. It was founded in 2011, and during the IPL season in 2012, it launched an auction platform in a partnership with Sachin Tendulkar, to auction his limited edition merchandise. The company offers autographed memorabilia and fan merchandise from cricketers, footballers, tennis players, politicians, actors and Indian and international sportspersons. The company ships internationally and offers tshirts, mugs, frames, accessories, sports goods, mobile cases, bags etc. It also, interestingly, has some Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge signed collectibles.
-There’s Funatic, a company which sells sports inspired clothing and accessories, but is not official fan merchandise.
-Amazon also runs an ICC Cricket Store on its platform selling clothing, mobile covers, bags, accessories, posters, books, video games and headphones.


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Udemy, a San Francisco, CA-based global marketplace for learning and teaching online, received a $60m strategic investment from Naspers.
Global internet and entertainment company Naspers (Johannesburg Stock Exchange: NPN.SJ and London Stock Exchange: NPSN) made the investment – a follow-on to a $65m Series D round of financing from June of 2015 – through its Naspers Ventures division. In conjunction with the funding, Larry Illg, CEO of Naspers Ventures, is joining Udemy’s Board of Directors.
The company intends to use the funds to continue its international growth including expanding its localized course content library and product offerings.
Founded in 2010 and currently led by Dennis Yang, CEO, Udemy is a global marketplace for learning and teaching online where more than 11 million students learn from an extensive library of 40,000 courses taught by expert instructors in 80 different languages. For companies, the company offfers eUdemy for Business, which provides subscription access to a collection of business-relevant courses as well as a platform to host and distribute content in one central place.
With the investment, Naspers Ventures joined existing backers Stripes Group, Norwest Venture Partners, Insight Venture Partners, and Lightbank.


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Investors on Wall Street received a dose of optimism as US stocks rallied on Tuesday, fueled by comments from Federal Reserve officials that hinted at a potential halt to the current rate hike cycle.
Throughout the day, the market was abuzz with reactions to statements from various Fed speakers. By the close of the session, the indexes had notched up gains, buoyed by these insights.
A significant boost to market sentiment came from prepared remarks delivered in Washington DC by Fed Governor Christopher Waller. Waller suggested that consumer prices might be aligning with the central bank’s targets, opening up the possibility of interest rate cuts sooner than many had anticipated.
“While we’ve seen some early signs of economic moderation in the fourth quarter, inflation remains uncomfortably high,” Waller cautioned. “However, I’m increasingly optimistic that our policies are aptly calibrated to slow economic growth and steer inflation back to our 2 percent goal.”
In addition to Waller’s comments, the market also reacted to fresh US consumer confidence data released on Tuesday. The report indicated a slight improvement in November compared to the previous month. Despite ongoing concerns about an impending recession, the Conference Board’s Index rose to 102, surpassing the revised October figure of 99.1.
This confluence of positive signals from the Federal Reserve and the uptick in consumer confidence has given investors reason to hope that the relentless cycle of rate hikes might be nearing its end. This sentiment has translated into a surge of bullish activity on Wall Street, as market participants adjust their strategies in anticipation of a potentially more accommodating monetary policy landscape.


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Click to edit...
The food industry briefing
The news and data you need to know about the industry
Covid-19 impact: China to ban breeding of 45 wild species
The Government of China is reportedly planning to ban the artificial breeding of 45 wild animal species in a bid to minimise the risk of zoonotic diseases after the Covid-19 outbreak. China banned the consumption of wild animals in the country soon after the pandemic started.
Mosa Meat to expand cultured meat production facility
Dutch food technology company Mosa Meat has raised $55m in a Series B funding round to expand its cultured meat production facility in Maastricht. The round was led by Luxembourg-based Blue Horizon Ventures and joined by investors such as Bell Food Group, M Ventures and other mission-based investors and advisers.
Nestlé USA commits to net-zero carbon emission by 2050
Nestlé USA has extended its support for the Net Zero Initiative, unveiled by the Innovation Center for US Dairy.
Net Zero Initiative aims to help US dairy farms implement new technologies and adopt economically viable practices to achieve carbon neutrality, optimised water usage and improved water quality by 2050.
Nestlé is the first company to join the Net Zero Initiative and also agreed to offer its expertise to help propel the entire industry’s progress toward a more sustainable future.
UK’s 2 Sisters Food Group has agreed to divest a portion of its Fox’s Biscuits business to a Ferrero-related firm for £246m. Part of the aquisition includes the manufacturing facilities in Batley and Kirkham that produce biscuits for Fox’s.
UK plant-based meat alternatives maker Meatless Farm has raised $31m in a new funding round to support global expansion. The brand will use the capital to expand its presence in existing and new markets in the UK, Europe, Asia and the US.
Global bioscience company Chr Hansen has finalised an agreement to divest Natural Colors, its food-colouring business, to EQT IX Fund in an €800m deal. Natural Colors is engaged in the production of natural colouring ingredients using all-natural fruit and vegetable concentrates such as sweet potatoes, grape skin, spirulina, carrots and beetroots, which are used by the food and beverages manufacturers.
Pressure increases for Chinese food manufacturers following Covid-19
A new report from Lloyd’s Register shows that 76% of consumers in China have changed their food shopping or consumption habits in the last 12 months, with 87% more concerned about food safety now compared to a year ago.
Source: Lloyd's Register


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Vahrenwalder Straße 9
30165 Hannover, de
+49 (511) 938-2615
Continental equips team and transfer buses for 2010 FIFA World CupTM with premium bus tires
Official sponsor guarantees safety for the world's best footballers and its guests
As at the 2006 FIFA World Cup, all Continental transfer buses will be fitted with the tried and tested HSR 1 bus tire. "We also want to use the 2010 FIFA World Cup to demonstrate the advantages of our tires to our guests on the road," adds Commercial Vehicle Tires spokesman Udo Brandes.
Holding a market share of over 20 percent, the tire manufacturer is also the market leader in South African car tire replacement business and supplies locally produced tires. Continental has a plant for car and truck tires in Port Elizabeth, South Africa, where a total of 1,600 employees produced around 2.4 million car tires and 100,000 truck tires in 2009. The tires are sold both in original equipment and replacement business. The demand for tires in sub-Saharan Africa - and thus also the demand in the host nation of the 2010 FIFA World CupTM - is mainly covered from Port Elizabeth.
The use of information published here for personal information and editorial processing is generally free of charge. Please clarify any copyright issues with the stated publisher before further use. In the event of publication, please send a specimen copy to firstname.lastname@example.org.


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In the last 12 months Georgia Geminder, 29, from Melbourne, Victoria has sold over 30,000 tooth whitening pens after launching her own natural oral health brand
A young entrepreneur has revealed how she went from working as a model to a Forbes rich lister in just two years after taking advantage of a gap in the beauty market.
In the last 12 months Georgia Geminder, 29, from Melbourne, Victoria has sold over 30,000 tooth whitening pens after launching her own natural oral health brand, GEM.
Speaking to FEMAIL Georgia revealed she was working as a model in LA when she noticed a radical shift to natural products within the beauty industry.
New brands flooded the market but one category – personal care – remained virtually untouched, especially when it came to alternative options for tooth paste.
‘The ‘natural’ options that existed on the market lacked efficacy, they didn’t foam up properly and they weren’t minty enough,’ she said.
But the traditional chemical-based products didn’t ‘do it’ for Georgia either.
‘We spend our lives avoiding chemicals to then come home and pour 20 or more of them into your mouth,’ she said.
The Forbes rich lister saw a gap in the market when the world began turning to more natural alternatives in the beauty space
She started by making a toothpaste without the ‘nasty nine’ now she has mouthwash, a whitening pen and breath spray
So she decided to change that with an aim to become a major agitator in the space.
‘I basically then went on this two-year quest to create the perfect natural toothpaste, that not only tasted minty and guaranteed fresh breath but also remineralised tooth enamel,’ she said.
Before explaining she wanted it to ‘look cute too’ after noticing the dental health sector was still considered daggy in a beauty industry which had had a major glow-up.
‘I thought it was time for a trendy, millennial focused brand to disrupt the category,’ she said.
‘I wanted to create something that not only looked good in our bathrooms, but also worked,’ she said.
While researching the chemicals in toothpaste she found ‘the nasty nine’ which includes SLS, a chemical compound used as a foaming agent in toothpaste that’s also used in industrial cleaners.
Georgia was working as a model in LA when she decided to start her company, GEM
She also found triclosan which has been banned in soap and body wash but is still used in toothpaste for its anti-bacterial properties and titanium dioxide which is commonly found in paint.
‘Needless to say, not a single one of the nasty nine has made its way into Gem,’ she said.
She also added a mouth-specific pro-biotic to the mix.
‘The idea here is that if you nuke your mouth with chemicals, any bacteria good or bad can flourish. But if you add in beneficial bacteria, like our oral probiotic, this really allows for a balanced environment in the mouth,’ she said.
‘Considering the mouth is the gateway to the gut – and overall health – it’s pretty important.’
The company was launched with a single toothpaste offering in 2020 – after the young woman managed to come up with a formula free of chemical compounds such as parabens and triclosan.
She now offers eight flavours of toothpaste, two mouthwashes, two whitening pens, and a breath spray with more coming soon.
The tooth whitening pen has been the most successful stand-alone product for GEM so far.
And it was something Georgia didn’t really expect.
‘Literally thousands of customers are seeing whiter teeth in just days, and it’s only $20. I’m really proud of this product,’ she said.
The pens are made using ‘a very low dose of food grade hydrogen peroxide, which acts as a safe, low sensitivity whitening agent’ she explained.
She wanted to develop a product that also included pro-biotics to help with gut health
‘The oxygen penetrates your tooth’s enamel and lightens surface stains. The level of Hydrogen Peroxide is safe for all, even those with sensitive teeth,’ she said.
‘Everyone wants a bright, sparkly smile – I think the pen has been so popular due to how easy it is to use and how affordable it is.’
Georgia launched Gem at the beginning of the Covid pandemic, so has come across some challenges.
‘Launching a business at the start of global pandemic wasn’t easy. However it allowed me to refine the brand, the packaging. Now since the world has started to open back up, we can look to global markets for further expansion,’ she said.
Likening having her own business to being on a wild rollercoaster ride.
But being named on the Forbes 30 under 30 list has made it all worth it.
She also wanted the packaging to look good after noticing the oral healthaisle was still filled with daggy products
‘It truly has been a dream come true,’ she said.
‘In two short years it feels incredible to have been acknowledged for our work in the oral care space. Anyone who knows me, knows that this has been a dream of mine since forever,’ she said.
The Forbes announcement came the same week Gerogia turned 29. Her company also released two new products at the same time making it a huge week.
Georgia owes her career in modeling to her insight into the beauty industry.
‘I spent most of my early career modelling in Australia, London and Los Angeles.’
‘I also spent some time working at Remedy Kombucha, where I learnt about the importance of forming healthy habits and the microbiome,’ she said, before admitting that is where she caught the start-up bug.
Georgia appeared on the 30 under 30 list alongside the founder of The Quick Flick and beauty fridge, Iris Smit.
Iris’ beauty empire is now worth over $15-million per year – and is shipped all across the world.


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New Delhi: Onion prices may not fall sharply this year even after fresh crops flood markets, as record exports and a decline in kharif (summer crop) output due to scanty rainfall in growing regions would reflect in demand-supply scenario.
“Prices may not slump this year even if fresh crops reach markets, as decline in kharif crops in Maharashtra by about 50% coupled with the depletion of storaged onion would impact supply,” National Horticulture Research and Development Foundation additional director Satish Bhonde said. The prices, which have already shot up, may continue to trouble consumers at least till the last week of this month.
Once the fresh crop reaches the markets, soaring demand and the need to create stocks may provide some support even though prices will fall from the present level, he said, adding that some moderation in prices could be expected towards the end of this month.
The sharp increase in exports seems to have also drained the stocks and impacted prices, as onions stocks have mostly been used for shipments this year due to delay in arrivals of kharif crops.
According to the latest data, the country has exported a whopping 1.21 million tonnes (mt) this fiscal till December against 6,90,644 tonnes in the same period the previous year, riding low maximum export price (MEP) for most part of the year as well as higher storage.
Onion stock remained higher by almost 5,00,000 tonnes at about 2.6mt. The current rise in prices can also be attributed to the delay in arrivals of kharif onion by almost three to four weeks in Maharashtra, as sowing was delayed due to late rains, a National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation official said.
Wholesale prices in Lasalgaon in Maharashtra, a major onion-producing state, have shot up to Rs1,325 a quintal from Rs251 per quintal in the same period last year. The wholesale prices in Azadpur mandi in Delhi are ruling even higher at Rs1,700 per quintal against Rs450 a year ago. In the retail markets here, onion prices are ruling at Rs21 a kg.
Onion is cultivated three times a year. Normally, acreage in the early kharif season has a 30% share in overall areas, whereas late-kharif accounts for 30% and rabi (winter crop) season for 40%.


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Forbes reports on new research concerning security questions on Amazon’s cloud computing servers (cloud services are where you upload, store and access your data at an online service owned or operated by others; here’s a previous post I wrote discussing privacy and security issues with cloud computing).
Researchers at France’s Eurecom technology institute, Northeastern University and the security firm SecludIT ran automated scanning tools on more than 5,000 of the virtual machines images published on Amazon’s catalog of virtual machines set up with preset software and configurations and ready to run on Amazon’s Elastic Compute Cloud (EC2) service. They looked for security and privacy issues like malware, software vulnerabilities, and leftover data and user accounts from the administrator who set up the server’s software.
The results, which the team plans to present a paper at the Symposium on Applied Computing next March, aren’t pretty: 22% of the machines were still set up to allow a login by whoever set up the virtual machine’s software–either Amazon or one of the many other third party companies like Turnkey and Jumpbox that sell preset machine images running on Amazon’s cloud.
Almost all of the machines ran outdated software with critical security vulnerabilities, and 98% contained data that the company or individual who set up the machine for users had intended to delete but could still be extracted from the machine. […]
The research team notified Amazon about the issues last summer, and the company responded by posting a notice to its customers and partners about the problem. “We have received no reports that these vulnerabilities have been actively exploited,” the company wrote at the time. “The purpose of this document is to remind users that it is extremely important to thoroughly search for and remove any important credentials from an [Amazon Machine Image (AMIs)] before making it publicly available.” […]
The Eurecom team’s research isn’t the first to point out security issues in Amazon’s cloud services. Just earlier this week, a team of German researchers revealed a collection of vulnerabilities in Amazon’s web interface that allowed potential data theft from the company’s cloud platform. Amazon has now patched those flaws.
Here’s the research paper, “A Security Analysis of Amazon’s Elastic Compute Cloud Service” (pdf).


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The LG G7, the company’s next flagship smartphone, will apparently come in two different models when it launches later this year according to Korean sources —one featuring an OLED screen and one with a more affordable MLCD+ display, a new technology designed to be brighter (800cd/m²) and more energy-efficient than conventional LCD panels. (which uses an RGBW pixel structure – Man. Ed.)
Other than the screen, the two models are reported to be identical. LG was recently said to be rethinking its mobile business after a difficult year. The company has also limited its output of OLED panels.


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These days, many U.S. workers can't help fearing the reaper. But for higher-ranking executives, parting ways with an employer may be markedly less traumatizing. Starbucks (Nasdaq: SBUX ) provided the latest example of how walking out the door can actually be very lucrative for corporations' top brass.
It's no news that Starbucks is cutting costs. Its plans include layoffs and some store closures. Somehow, I doubt that baristas will receive the kind of sweet deal former Starbucks Coffee International President James Alling is getting as part of his "separation agreement." Alling will receive a lump-sum payment equal to an entire year's salary; last year, his base salary was $600,000.
Alling will also take home the equivalent of the cost of health-care coverage for one year. Anybody who's ever been laid off knows that monthly COBRA payments can sap one's limited financial resources really quickly. How nice it must be to get reimbursed for all of that stuff.
It sounds like a familiar story, though, and I'd be naive to suspect that it's uncommon among departing executives. At the end of July, I ran across an 8-K filing revealing that Abercrombie & Fitch's (NYSE: ANF ) former CFO, who, significantly, was resigning from the retailer for a new job elsewhere, also received 12 months of base salary and some added perks to boot.
Executive "separations" of many types -- be they resignations, firings, retirements, or what have you -- seem to be running rampant these days. Recent examples include Charlotte Russe (Nasdaq: CHIC ) , Hot Topic (Nasdaq: HOTT ) , and American Eagle Outfitters (NYSE: AEO ) , all of which have lost major members of their top brass. I also just ran across word that Jamba Juice (Nasdaq: JMBA ) has lost both its CEO and its CFO, and the company's chairman is heading up the company on an interim basis.
In some cases, perhaps the companies in question will eventually do better with better cost efficiency or new blood in the top ranks. However, I can't say shareholders are particularly lucky when their companies experience executive flux and pay out lucrative packages. After all, many of these companies had already fallen on financial hard times.
Like controversy over runaway CEO compensation and pay-for-failure routines, I think policies like these deserve serious scrutiny, if not outright reform. In too many cases, rank-and-file workers and shareholders end up paying too high a price.


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05/02/2014, 08:05 am
The jurors deciding the outcome of the second Apple vs Samsung trial haven't yet returned a verdict, but their options are limited to a few possible outcomes, ranging from a fiery thermonuclear blast to a wintery new Dark Ages.
05/01/2014, 10:05 am
Though its total shipments fell year over year last quarter, Apple and its iPad still accounts for about a third of all tablets pushed to market last quarter, though research firm IDC has predicted overall tablet growth will be slow throughout 2014.
04/26/2014, 06:04 am
Last fall, Google's Motorola group unveiled its Moto X and Apple released its middle-tier iPhone 5c. Across the board, pundits and reporters portrayed the 5c as a grave mistake that got everything wrong while lavishing Google's Moto X with praise. Why were they so incredibly wrong?
04/25/2014, 01:04 pm
A U.S. appeals court ruled that Apple and Google's Motorola can sue each other over smartphone patents, overturning Judge Richard Posner's opinion from the summer of 2012. The court also sided with a claim construction that does not favor Apple, and may impact its case with Samsung.
04/22/2014, 11:04 pm
Even more startling than the news from today's trial that Google offered to indemnify Samsung for Android's infringement of Apple's iPhones patents is the fact that Samsung falsely stated in court filings that that it had not been "seeking indemnification from any third party."
04/21/2014, 04:04 am
According to a report from The Wall Street Journal on Sunday, Apple and Google are actively pursuing game developers with special incentives to make sure big name titles come to their respective platforms first.
04/16/2014, 03:04 am
Samsung executives discussed Steve Jobs' passing as "unfortunately" having an "unintended benefit for Apple," and at the same time, "our best opportunity to attack iPhone," in internal memos marked "highly confidential," presented in the Apple v. Samsung trial.
04/15/2014, 06:04 pm
New confidential internal memos presented in the Apple v. Samsung trial detail a "counter tsunami plan" Samsung hoped to set up in response to Apple's iPhone 5 launch, in order to distract from its own Galaxy product vulnerabilities it described as "plastic feeling" with "lack of key feature."
04/14/2014, 03:04 am
Before and after versions of Google's internal "software functional requirements" documents released in the Apple vs Samsung trial this week show that prior to Apple's 2007 iPhone debut, Google's vision for Android was a simple button phone running Sun's Java.
04/13/2014, 09:04 pm
A prominent patent law blogger has again raised the argument that Apple's patented features have very little value, while stopping short of saying that Samsung should just stop using the infringing technology.
04/11/2014, 04:04 pm
Samsung's success in selling the world's leading volumes of phones through intense, expensive marketing efforts appears to be supporting Android as a platform, but Samsung's internal documents show it has plotted for years to compete against Google with its own mobile OS.
04/11/2014, 03:04 am
Top secret sales data revealed during the Apple vs. Samsung trial this week shows that Samsung knew that the Galaxy Tab sales figures (and overall Android tablet sales) it and various market research groups had fed to the media were not even remotely true.
04/10/2014, 06:04 am
Apple's critics contend that it either doesn't have innovative inventions worthy of patents, or has grossly overestimated the commercial value of its patents. Apple Data Detectors is one example that proves both ideas are wrong.
04/09/2014, 03:04 pm
Facing significant declines in digital music sales, Apple is reportedly plotting a potential overhaul of its iTunes Music Store, in addition to considering new revenue opportunities through on-demand streaming and even allegedly an iTunes for Android.
04/08/2014, 12:04 pm
Attackers continue to target Android more than any other mobile operating system, according to a new report released Tuesday, as Google's platform played host to all but one of the new mobile malware families discovered last year.
04/07/2014, 05:04 pm
Apple has updated its App Store statistics for April, reporting that 87 percent of its users accessing the iTunes Store have now installed its latest iOS 7.
04/07/2014, 05:04 am
While the tech media has devoted lots of attention to Apple's concerned reaction to Samsung's 2012 marketing blitz, evidence likely to be presented during the Apple vs Samsung trial shows that it was Samsung that targeted its attention on "beating Apple" as its "#1 priority" for 2012.
04/05/2014, 05:04 pm
In the original Apple vs Samsung patent trial, Apple made the Galaxy a star witness by presenting a "copy cat" document that detailed every difference with Apple's iPhone paired with advice on how to more closely copy it. For the second trial, Apple has dug up several more Copy Cat docs detailing the evolution of Samsung's "slavish copying," particularly evident with Slide to Unlock.
03/31/2014, 02:03 am
Apple's second patent infringement trial against Samsung begins today, outlining a battle that the two sides are waging in very different ways. Apple will be expanding upon its legal strategy outlined in the first trial, while Samsung is starting over with an entirely new tactic aimed at devaluating Apple's inventions so it can continue using them for virtually nothing.
03/29/2014, 07:03 am
Earlier this month, Gartner reported worldwide tablet sales for 2013 that depicted Apple's iPad as slipping into obscurity with just 36 percent market share left. Why would Microsoft target Apple's minority tablet platform with its new mobile Office apps over Google's Android, which supposedly owns a 61.9 percent marketshare?


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IVD industry loses battle for 5-yr EU IVD Reg transition: where does Council position lie?
This article was originally published in Clinica
The IVD industry was dealt a disappointing blow by the European Parliament yesterday (22 October) when the top item on its wish list – to be given five years, instead of three, to transition to the new proposed IVD Regulation – was rejected during the plenary vote. This means that the IVD industry must ensure that each and every one of its products complies with the new regulations within three years following adoption of the IVD Regulation. In many cases this will also involve an audit – often for the first time for companies’ products – by a notified body to demonstrate compliance with EU regulatory requirements.


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The Lexus LS 500h has always been one of our top picks as far as luxury sedans are concerned. For the Indian market, Lexus has brought the Nishijin variant that has intricate details which add to its luxurious appeal.
There’s a new paint option called Gin-ei Luster which basically gives the car a silver metallic finish and it reacts to even slight amounts of surrounding light, giving it a smooth, mirror-like texture without the granular touch. Even the front bumper on it is slightly modified now.
Inside, the interiors create a ‘moonlight on the sea’ effect that complements its new paint finish well. And finally, the LS gets a 12.3-inch touchscreen infotainment system that supports the latest phone mirroring protocols like Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.
As far as technical specifications are concerned, the LS 500h from its 3.5 litre V6 hybrid engine is capable of producing a total of 354 bhp and 30.59 kgm of torque. That’s enough power to luxuriously accelerate from 0 to 100 kph in 5.4 seconds and claiming to deliver 15.4 kpl of fuel economy. For such a luxuriously efficient package, one will have to shell out Rs 2.22 crore, ex-showroom, New Delhi.


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The cryptocurrency sector is a flourishing industry with loads of potential. BitcoNEWS is a premier news and resource platform, working since September 2018 to bring quality news content, reviews, technical analysis and other unique insights to the ever-growing cryptocurrency community.
BitcoNEWS started with sole focus on educating its readers about Bitcoin and its potential impact on the traditional financial systems has grown with the cryptocurrency industry to cover various altcoins, blockchain projects, crowd sales, regulatory developments and the futuristic confluence of some of the leading technologies of time viz., blockchain, artificial intelligence, internet of things and more.
By the way of growing with the industry since its nascent days, the team behind BITCONEWS understands the information needs of the people — cryptocurrency community members, traders, researchers, students and the uninitiated who are in search of reliable information to understand and get involved in the crypto-revolution.
BitcoNEWS takes pride in claiming to have some of the best minds in the cryptocurrency industry onboard, who are instrumental in offering quality content to the masses under the BitcoNEWS Media Group banner.
We write about bitcoin news because we love bitcoin. Simple as that.


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Chinese second-hand car trading platform Hangzhou Dasouche Auto Service Co. announced today that it has secured a US$578 million in a new financing round led by Primavera Capital Group and Morningside Venture Capital.
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Steven Mettrick (Left), Tom Parker Bowles (Right)
J W Mettrick & Son brought home the Diamond award for
Best Pork Sausage 2017 at the Q Guild Smithfield Awards 2017.
After entering a number of products which went through rigorous judging back in October they were delighted to win gold awards for their Pork Sausage, Black eyed smoked bacon, Smokey brisket burger, Piri Piri pork sausage & the legendary large pork pie!
They went on to the finals at Ironmongers Hall in London hoping they were in with a chance to bring home an elite ‘Diamond Award’.
Steven Mettrick (Managing director) and Caroline Houghton (Office manager) had the honour of attending an excellent day hosted by the Q Guild & Chief Guest Tom Parker Bowles presenting Steven with the award .
‘After recently re-joining the q guild it is important for us to benchmark our products against other butchers to help us maintain our high standards and develop new innovative products. Butchers from all across the country compete and it was an absolute honour to be coming home with a trophy’ said John Mettrick
Our pork sausage is a family favourite and has been our best seller for decades. A traditional recipe made with free-range Packington pork, processed on site through our co located abattoir, and sold through our retail outlets.
We couldn’t have done it without Gareth Zielinski who produced the award winning sausages for the competition (on his day off)!


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2019 Stereonet Australian HI-FI Show Dates Announced
The Melbourne Hi-Fi Show (Australia) organised by StereoNET is emerging as a must-see event on the global Hi-Fi Show calendar and 2019 will be no exception.
Australia's most well-attended exhibition of hi-fi, home cinema and headphones, will take place in Melbourne, October 18th - 20th, 2019.
Returning for its fourth year in 2019 after an (Australian) record-breaking attendance of over 3,000 visitors in 2018, the show continues to evolve and expand.
Some shows change city annually, however as Melbourne has proven to be the natural home of the StereoNET Hi-Fi Show, the event will remain in Melbourne for the foreseeable future.
Dates have been confirmed through to 2021:
2019 | October Friday 18th - Sunday 20th - Melbourne
2020 | October Friday 9th - Sunday 11th - Melbourne
2021 | October Friday 15th – Sunday 17th - Melbourne
Backed once again by organisers and media partner, StereoNET, the Melbourne Hi-Fi Show is becoming a must-attend exhibition on the global show circuit, attracting overseas press and representatives from global manufacturers.
The StereoNET organisation has expanded into new regions with independent publications in Asia, the United Kingdom, and the United States, in addition to its already successful websites in Australia and New Zealand. The 2019 StereoNET Melbourne Hi-FI Show will be promoted across all of StereoNET's global publications providing additional exposure to Australia and New Zealand's successful local Hi-Fi manufacturing industry.
Planning is now well underway for the 2019 event at the regular Pullman Mercure Hotel venue which is centrally located in Melbourne overlooking Albert Park, the home of Australian Formula 1 motor racing and just minutes from Melbourne's CBD. Building on the success of previous shows, the 2019 Show will again be promoted through major regional and national media publications, Tourism Victoria, Billboards and Posters across the city, as well as extensive digital and social media campaigns.
Tickets are on sale now at www.hifishow.com.au
For the die-hards, celebrating the show announcement, there’s a special offer on now with the first 250 3-Day Passes available for just $35 (a saving of $15). Students will be welcomed once again with $15 discounted tickets, along with free entry for all children under 18 (accompanied by an adult ticket holder).
So bring your eyes and ears to Melbourne and plan a holiday for the annual exhibition of home entertainment, where you can listen and see everything that is new in one place while getting a heads-up on current technology.
For more information visit www.hifishow.com.au
StereoNET’s Founder and Publisher, born in UK and raised on British Hi-Fi before moving to Australia where he worked as an Engineer in both the audio and mechanical fields.
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One of the most anticipated seasons for coastal areas is about to begin in Costa Rica: Cruise Ships are coming!
Cruises in Quepos 2022-2023 is excellent news for Costa Rica, and particularly for all of us, living in the port, as tourism brings in money and jobs for the local communities.
On this post you can read about:
The Costa Rican Tourism Institute (ICT) wants to increase the number of large ships that come to the country and promote it as a great place for luxury cruise ships and expeditions.
The Costa Rica Objective Regarding Cruises
The objective of Costa Rica is to increase the number of luxury and expedition cruise ships that visit the country.According to Gustavo Alvarado, director of Tourism Management and Consultancy at the ICT,
“Costa Rica’s goal is to advance the attraction of expedition and luxury cruise ships that come to Costa Rica. These are ships with a smaller number of people, between 200 and 300 people, who stay more days in the country and spend more,”
Certificates of vaccination and strict sanitary measures due to Covid-19 were absent.It is anticipated that more people will decide to take cruises and that the number of visitors will rise as sanitary regulations are relaxed.
The deterioration of road infrastructure, which is currently affecting national roads in the Caribbean and the Pacific, is one of the country’s greatest challenges.This would make it harder for tourists to get around the country and get around by bus.
We can’t ignore the fact that there are numerous significant obstacles: In terms of road infrastructure, we are in a delicate situation due to the road construction in Limón and the events on Route 1 and Route 27.
However, the director of Tourism Management and Consultancy at the ICT stated,
“All tourism operators are properly prepared to offer tours closer to the areas where the ships arrive.”
150 cruise ships visited the nation this cruise season:72 docked in Limón’s port, while 78 docked in Puntarenas, Golfito, and Quepos.
“Cruise ships fill a significant need, particularly in coastal and some of the surrounding areas.Alvarado added, “Passengers get off the boat and take tours of the nearby areas or buy local goods.”
More than 10,000 new jobs were created in the country’s coastal communities thanks to the cruise industry, which contributed more than $29.2 million to the economy in 2019.
When are cruises coming to Quepos?
The following are the dates when cruises are coming to Manuel Antonio, and consider this when you plan your vacation in the region.
|December, 2022||08, 09, 11, 18, 22, 25, 30|
|January, 2023||01, 05, 06, 08, 13, 15, 18, 19, 22, 27,28,29|
|February, 2023||02, 05, 08, 10, 12, 16, 19, 24, 26,|
|March, 2023||02, 05, 10, 12, 16, 20,|
What cruises in Quepos mean for visitors in Quepos and Manuel Antonio?
The first and foremost impact in the area whenever there is a cruiseship in the port is crowds. People and more people.
What we would suggest is to use that day to relax at your hotel swimming pool and grounds, as the towns are quite small and groups over one hundred people impact the national park, the tours, transportation and restaurants.
However if you want to enjoy an activity, our recco would be to go out from the region where the cruise is by going on our tour to Corcovado from Manuel Antonio,
Ileana Fernandez. “Costa Rica Cruise Season Starts.” The Tico Times | Costa Rica News | Travel | Real Estate. 1 Oct. 2022. Web. 3 Oct. 2022. <https://ticotimes.net/2022/10/01/costa-rica-cruise-season-starts>


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In early April at the NAB Show, Adriana Waterston, Horowitz’s SVP of Insights and Strategy, moderated a panel on “The Transformative Power of AI on the Video Content Business.” The panel included Paul Johnson, Chief Executive Officer for MPP Global, Ohad Jassin, Media AI Group Manager for Microsoft, Abderrahim Ait Ben Moh, the founder and CEO of ZOOM Media, and Emily Hopson, VP of Service for Ooyala, who shared how their various platforms and solutions use artificial intelligence and machine learning to improve the video supply chain from content production all the way to monetization. Here are a few of the takeaways from the session.
Artificial intelligence helps you dig deeper into your data than ever before.
Artificial intelligence greatly increases the amount and kinds of data that video content businesses can store, access, analyze, and leverage. For example, artificial intelligence is already being used to index and categorize huge volumes of audiovisual content as well as organize the content within a searchable database. Abderrahim Ait Ben Moh, founder and CEO of Zoom Media, noted that machine learning also allows users to uncover “dark data,” the vast amounts of data that are collected but rarely used. For example, Bon Moh explained, just like artificial intelligence can be used to analyze social media, it can analyze “dark data” such as social media posts & comments and support logs to help interpret consumer sentiment.
AI can streamline the content creation process and cut down on costs.
AI and machine learning makes content creation a more affordable, robust, and efficient process. Ohad Jassin, Media AI Group Manager for Microsoft, noted that artificial intelligence will create massive databases of categorized content, allowing researchers and journalists working on stories to quickly and efficiently search for archived content segments from multiple data sources to supplement their reporting. On the video production side, Emily Hopson, VP of Service for Ooyala commented that already, cameras with advanced detection and facial recognition could be used to film sporting or news events without the help of a production team. If needed, machine learning can automatically apply subtitles to audio in numerous languages without the help of a translator. This might not be appropriate for the Super Bowl or other major sporting events, at least for the time being– but it could address budget concerns that prevent media companies from sending production teams to cover more niche sports with smaller audiences.
AI can close the video content distribution window.
Hopson explained that, “The idea is to use machine learning to get the content you have to someone who wants to see it. Artificial intelligence will accomplish this by analyzing social media trends, creating content based on the trends, and pushing the content to interested consumers without the help of a live person. This automatic distribution of content will increase the number of subscribers and views of the content company by showing people what they want to see, when they want to see it, therefore, opening up the possibility to generate huge amounts of revenue by increasing subscriptions and increasing the demand for ad space. Hopson added, however, that not all consumers are ready to allow companies the type of access they would need for this type of content distribution, and companies may be hesitant to fully embrace automation of their content production and distribution mechanisms without editorial approval from a live person.
AI can reduce churn by using behavior learning to create bundles that sell content based on user activity.
If you’ve ever used Netflix or Hulu’s recommendations you know AI is already being used to serve up new content based on prior viewer behavior. Paul Johnson, Chief Executive Officer of MPP Global, said that by using AI to analyze viewing behaviors, their solution takes video monetization to the next level. Johnson explained that they can predict with about 90% accuracy whether a customer is about to churn based on how much and what they had consumed on a platform in the prior month. At that point, marketing efforts can be deployed to help retain that customer and reduce churn, instead of the more expensive proposition of trying to win back a lost customer. Moreover, Johnson noted, they can use these predictive technologies to offer different consumers customized bundles of content based on the type and amount of content they consume. This could revolutionize the way both traditional multichannel providers and new OTT players package and price their services. Using MPP Global’s solution, providers can “propose a package or a price point that is optimal for that [consumer] behavior or profile, which we believe will then increase conversion to paying customers.
The way companies such as Microsoft, Ooyala, MPP, and Zoom Media are using artificial intelligence within the video supply chain will most certainly change the way content is produced, distributed, packaged, and monetized. As amazing as all of this sounds, the possibilities for the video supply chain posed by AI are still in their infancy. At Horowitz, we will continue to provide the human intelligence needed to help understand consumer attitudes towards AI and track the impact of AI on consumption, satisfaction, and perceived value of traditional and new media content and services.


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Marketing In Asia brings to you a curated round-up of important digital marketing updates this week. (March 4 – March 11)
Digital Media Roundup (March 4 – March 11)
Twitter launches beta experiment of Shop
Merchants will be enabled to showcase a collection of up to 50 products to shoppers through Twitter Shops, a feature free to use for users.
Users can view products from the profiles of desired brands, discover products on the timeline, and browse them on Twitter Shops. Read more
Google May Surface More Short-Form Video In Search Results
Google is working on ways to show more short-form video in search results, saying it’s a clear and concise format for satisfying certain queries.
This was stated in latest Search Off The Record podcast episode by Google Product Manager Danielle Marshak, who oversees videos in search results. Read more
New Microsoft Advertising Professional Service Ads For Bing Search
Microsoft Advertising announced yet another set of vertical ad formats for Bing Search – professional service ads for insurance services, real estate services and tax services. “Professional Service Ads aim to do just that for anyone that’s looking to get connected with a certain agent, advisor, consultant, or any sort of professional,” Microsoft wrote. Read more
Pinterest Unveils a Range of Shopping and Advertising Updates at its Annual ‘Pinterest Presents’ Event
Pinterest has announced a range of new updates and additions as part of its second annual ‘Pinterest Presents’ global advertiser summit, including in-stream shopping enhancements, promoted Idea Pins, improvements to its Pinterest Trends tool. Read more
Also read: Previous week’s digital media roundup
Twitter launches a tool to manage online harassment
Twitter has launched a new tool in collaboration with Jigsaw for users who face targeted online harassment, to enable them to manage or report such unsolicited activities.
Research shows 70% of female journalists receive threats and harassment online, and more than 40% of them stopped reporting a story as a result. Read more
Instagram Launches New Creator Lab to Help Creators Maximize their On-Platform Performance
Instagram’s looking to help creators get a better understanding of key posting best practices and processes via a new Creator Lab initiative, which hosts videos and insights from a range of successful creators on key elements. Read more
LinkedIn Adds New ‘Future of Skills’ Data Tool to Highlight Key Industry Trends
LinkedIn has launched a new ‘Future of Skills’ interactive tool, which enables you to dig into the latest skills trends for any job role, in order to glean more insight into what employers are looking for, and what people are listing on their LinkedIn profiles for each position. Read more
Meta launches digital security course for journalists
Meta has announced a new, online digital security and safety training course for journalists and human rights defenders; the program is created and managed by the International Center for Journalists in partnership with the Border Center for Journalists and Bloggers. Read more


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Following the launch of a new business model, Savills Australia has appointed a new national head of retail investment to oversee growth.
Ben Parkinson has stepped into the newly created role after nine years of experience with Coles Property where he was head of investment management.
Savills Australia & New Zealand CEO Paul Craig said that Mr Parkinson’s background would give the company a competitive edge.
“Working for one of Australia’s leading retailers has provided Ben with in-depth market knowledge of Australia’s retail landscape and allowed him to establish long-term relationships with pivotal players in the industry,” Mr Craig said.
In addition to leading the retail business, Mr Parkinson has also joined the newly established Australian board.
Mr Parkinson said that he was very excited to help develop and grow Savills’ existing team.
“With more than 20 years’ experience in commercial property spanning retail, hotel, development and capital transactions, I feel that my extensive client-side knowledge will give the market a unique alternative to the current retail agency models on offer,” the appointee said.
Mr Parkinson said that trends constantly change, and the restructure of Savills Australia would allow them to operate efficiently and respond better to clients’ needs.
“With the official launch of our new business model underway, we are focused on ensuring this approach strengthens our national product lines and provides greater opportunity for our people,” Mr Parkinson said.
Mr Parkinson added that it was a very exciting time for the company and the new structure would help them flourish.
“We’re looking forward to watching our people flourish under this new structure and are confident it will help us attract and retain the highest-level talent going forward,” the new head of investment management said.


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Galotti Leaves as Vanity Fair Publisher, Succeeded by Bernard Leser
NEW YORK (AP) _ Ronald Galotti is out as publisher of Vanity Fair magazine and is being replaced by the founding publisher of two-year-old Allure magazine, Conde Nast Publications Inc. announced Monday.
Galotti’s departure after three years as publisher of Vanity Fair was unexpected. He had been viewed in magazine publishing circles as one of Conde Nast’s rising stars.
Conde Nast President Bernard Leser said Galotti had ″resigned ... to pursue other interests.″
Messages were left Monday for both Galotti and Leser, but the calls were not returned.
The magazine has run into turbulence since editor Tina Brown moved last fall to the top editorial post at the New Yorker, another magazine owned by Conde Nast Chairman S.I. Newhouse Jr.
Vanity Fair’s advertising pages were off 15 percent to 229 in the first three months of the year even as major consumer magazines tracked by Publishers Information Bureau were up 5.7 percent.
″There has been lots of talk in the industry that the magazine is not as exciting, that it is not perceived as being hot,″ said magazine consultant Martin Walker. ″But there may be something more to it than meets the eye.″
Ms. Brown released a statement Monday calling Galotti ″the most dynamic publisher in the Conde Nast building. His innovation and flair helped take Vanity Fair to the top. He will be a big loss to Vanity Fair and to the company.″
Galotti was publisher of Mademoiselle from 1985-1987 and Conde Nast Traveler from 1987-1990. He became publisher of Vanity Fair in 1990.
The new Vanity Fair publisher is Kathy Neisloss Leventhal, 37, who has been publisher at Allure, a two-year-old women’s beauty magazine. She got that job in March 1990, a year before Allure’s launch.
She joined Conde Nast in 1983 as a sales staffer at Vanity Fair as it was being revived after 47 years of suspended publication. She became ad director of the magazine two years later.
Before joining Conde Nast, she worked as associate manager of the New York office of Playboy magazine and was marketing director for Games magazine.
Allure’s ad pages were up 72 percent to 184.7 for the first three months of the year from a year ago, according to Publishers Information Bureau figures.
In addition to Vanity Fair and Allure, Conde Nast publishes Vogue, Glamour, Gourmet, Mademoiselle, Bride’s, Self, GQ and Details.
The company recently completed its purchase of Architectural Digest and Bon Apetit magazines fro Knapp Communications Corp. of Los Angeles.
But at the same time, Conde Nast annouced it was closing 92-year-old HG, formerly known as House & Garden, after the July issue.
When the deal was first announced, Conde Nast said it felt HG and Architectural Digest could coexist, but said in announcing the planned closing of HG that ″considerable redundancy″ would be involved in continuing publishing both magazines.


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Gozero Mobility to invest £ 17M in India, Britain
British performance electric bicycle and activewear maker, Gozero Mobility announced on Wednesday that it will be investing 17 million pounds (around Rs 175 crore) in India and Britain for increasing manufacturing operations and retail presence along with improving research and development.
The Birmingham-headquartered company is looking to sell about 2.3 lakh units of its electric bicycles in both countries in the next five years.
Speaking about the company’s plans, company Chief Executive Officer Ankit Kumar stated, ‘Gozero Mobility isis looking to invest GBP 7 million in the UK market to increase research and development activities, strengthen the retail footprint and establish local assembly units.’ Through this, the company strives to generate 100 unique jobs in the next five years in the UK market essentially in the new product development space, he added.
For sales, Kumar said GoZero is targeting to sell more than 80,000 units in the same period in the UK market.
For the Indian market, GoZero Mobility said it ‘intends to invest GBP 10 Million’ to grow manufacturing and retail presence. It will also increase exports to markets such as Bangladesh, Dubai, Sri Lanka, and Nepal.
In India, the company strives to generate 250 jobs in the next five years, it said adding it is targeting to sell more than 150,000 units during the period.
The planned investment will help the company in strengthening its footprint in both countries and generate more jobs for jobseekers.Shishir Gupta, Founder and CEO, StartupLanes
If you are an emerging startup and are looking for investors to raise funds, StartupLanes has its own angel network and investment banking services and is connected to angel investors and VCs in 15 countries that ensure that our member startups have easy access to external funds to scale up constantly.
You can subscribe to our news posts by entering your email in the box on the right side of this page.
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Samsung reports that it has shipped 5m Galaxy Note II “phablets” over the last 60 days. The NFC enabled device is essentially a larger version of the Korean phone maker’s hugely successful Galaxy S III which, the company revealed earlier this month, has shipped more than 30m units since its launch in May.
- SimplyTapp compares Apple Pay and Android HCE
- Macy’s unveils mobile payments and customer marketing plans
- Subway to accept mobile payments in 26,000 US locations
- Apple Pay to get 0.15% transaction fee
- No Apple Pay for Walmart, Best Buy


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Fresh start: Monroe, the latest piece in Asbury Park’s regeneration plans
Developer iStar has completed on more step in their exciting plans for the revitalisation of New Jersey’s Asbury Park with the announcement of the sales launch of Monroe Condominiums, the newest addition to the area’s luxury residential scene.
Designed by Miami-based, New Jersey-born architect Chad Oppenheim, the property is an important piece in the Asbury House scheme, following the recent launch of the nearby Asbury Hotel – and our October issue’s full report on the area’s planned transformation. (See W*211)
This is Oppenheim’s very first architecture venture in his home state. The Monroe sits just blocks from the sea and spans 34 units and the architect drew on the area’s character and style for his design – also tapping into his valuable personal knowledge of New Jersey in order to fulfill the needs of its future users to perfection.
’Chad – who was raised in the area and understands the town’s unique potential – is renowned for creating stunning architecture that focuses on blending indoor and outdoor living, which made him the perfect person to design Monroe,’ said Creative Director and Design Lead of the redevelopment Anda Andrei.
Now, the architecture features timber and stone, as well as rich amenities such as a ‘furnished, private outdoor terrace with freestanding KitchenAid grills and Raw Urth Designs Napa fireplaces,’ explain the developers. Services will be offered in partnership with the Asbury Hotel, giving residents priority access to areas such as the swimming pool. Interiors include Corian kitchen countertops to Molteni cabinetry and KitchenAid appliances.
A soft, pre-sale launch revealed increased interest in the area, with 40 per cent of the units now already snapped up; a fitting continuation to Asbury Park’s ongoing tale of rebirth.
Construction is scheduled to complete later this year.


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–Watch out, SpaceX: Chanel capped off their futuristic Paris Fashion Week show by launching a Chanel rocket into the air. Via Quartz.
–Soylent’s new AI spokeswoman, a silver box named Trish, will debut next week at SXSW, writes the Verge.
–Nike released its first “performance hijab,” designed for female Muslim athletes. Via the New York Times.
–Why can’t Google Home and Alexa distinguish between voices? Fast Company investigates.
–”Women are more likely to seek a ‘how-to’ video than a beauty video,” and more insights from Google on International Women’s Day.
–The future has finally arrived: MIT researchers created a robot controlled with your mind. Via Recode.
–Facebook 360, the platform’s first VR app, is a dedicated hub for 360 videos and photos. Via TechCrunch.
–Call it the Hollywood effect: Following the smash success of Hidden Figures, a new fellowship launches to mentor young women in aerospace. Via Ars Technica.
–A new studio captures air pollution and transforms it into carbon-rich ink. Via Dezeen.
–London’s Centre for Fashion Enterprise announced a new class of fashion technology startups, including Emel+Aris, OKAUTUMN and more. Via Fashion and Mash.
–In the US, the private sector saw a job bump in February, adding about 60,000 more jobs than expected. Via the Wall Street Journal.
–A temporary art installation in London in honor of the women’s strike was sponsored by none other than Tinder. Via Dazed.
–Dick’s Sporting Goods plans to drop a fifth of the brands it carries in favor of its own private labels, according to the Wall Street Journal.


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An Overwatch discount applies this week as part of Blizzard's Black Friday sale.
The Black Friday sale at Blizzard for its games began Friday, according to its announcement. Overwatch is $14.99 and an upgrade to the legendary edition is $5 for the sale.
Overwatch is heavily discounted for Blizzard's Black Friday sale. Its announcement revealed all titles available for the Battle.net launcher are heavily discounted, with the highest discount being 66 percent. A standard edition of Overwatch is on sale for $14.99, instead of $39.99.
Those who already own the standard edition can upgrade to the legendary edition for $5. The legendary edition comes with five epic and legendary skins, like Okami Hanzo and Valkyrie Mercy. Legendary hero skins, like Slipstream Tracer, Overgrown Bastion, and Blackwatch Reyes (Reaper), which cannot be purchased in-game any other way, are also included.
Players who do not have the standard edition but would like the legendary edition can purchase the legendary version for $19.99, regularly priced at $59.99. The deals end Monday.
Cover photo courtesy of Blizzard