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Apple has integrated a ton of features into its mobile devices such as the iPad and iPhones. So much so, that people often don't realise they have these features for years. One such feature is the hidden trackpad that all iOS and iPadOS devices come with.
Apple is expected to announce new versions of iOS, iPadOS, macOS, watchOS, tvOS, new MacBook Pro models and Mac mini MX1 at the event.
Apple WWDC 2021 to kick off today at 10.30 pm IST: iOS 15, iPadOS 15, macOS 12, new MacBook Pro, more expected
The company will announce upcoming versions of iOS, iPadOS, macOS, watchOS, and tvOS on day 1 of the event.
Apple's privacy website now has a new 'Labels' section, which details how every in-house Apple application gathers user data.
Lightroom Classic, Photoshop and Adobe Camera Raw have all been tested and certified as working well with Apple Rosetta emulation.
The new OS will now display a mouse pointer and will support the Magic Keyboard accessory with built-in trackpad.
Apple is considering to let users choose third-party web browsers, music and mail applications as their default options.
Apple also says that 33 percent of all iPads now run the new iPads OS.
In comparison though Apple said iOS 12 took 23 days to hit 50 percent user base.
iOS 13.1.2 introduces bug fixes for several issues, including problems with the camera, iCloud backup, flashlight, and more
The new update fixes third-party keyboard issue by giving them full access to send data to the internet.
Apple’s iPadOS is a shift from iOS to introduce powerful multitasking features on the iPad
The highly anticipated iPadOS update brings big changes to Apple’s iPad lineup of tablets
It's also likely that Apple will hold a smaller event for new iPads in October.
When Dark Mode support is added, apps will automatically switch between normal and Dark modes as needed.
iPhone 11, iPhone 11 Pro, iPhone 11 Max Pro, iPad Pro 11, iPad Pro 12.9, iPad 10.5, etc.
Both iPad models were spotted running iPadOS, suggesting a launch by fall this year.
There are more under-the-hood fixes here, making iOS 13 Public Beta 2 more stable.
The process should be familiar to anyone who has signed in to the App Store or iTunes Store in the past.
These updates come after Apple released the third round of updates for all its software platforms.


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Brand-building takes a backseat to sales for marketers in 2024, says Lottie London CMO
Despite the latest IPA Bellwether report painting an optimistic picture for marketing budgets in 2024, tough retail conditions won’t make this a reality for most brands, says Nora Zukauskaite, a judge of this year’s The Drum Marketing Awards.
Gen Z cosmetics brand Lottie London / Lottie London
Nora Zukauskaite, the global marketing director at cosmetic group Brand Agency London, owner of Gen Z favorites Lottie London and I Am Proud, says advertisers are increasingly prioritizing sales tactics over long-term brand-building in order to survive the ongoing economic downturn.
“Marketers are constantly in this hot seat of sales, sales, sales, fast, fast, fast...” she says. “When it comes to brand-building, awareness and the long-term, however, nobody cares – especially when times are so uncertain.”
Zukauskaite’s comments are at odds with the latest IPA Bellwether report, which claims that over a quarter of marketers saw their budgets revised upwards in the final quarter of 2023. “I have seen the predictions that marketers are going to have bigger budgets and spend more, but I haven’t seen this at all because the retail environment is getting more complicated.”
Securing a deal with a retailer is a hard enough task, she explains, and then meeting their high targets is another. “There are very tough conversations when you are in the retail environment among the big brands... Retailers are shortening the time they let you perform and demand a lot very quickly. So you need to sell more and when you need to sell more, performance gets the biggest chunk of money.”
The knock-on impact for marketers then, she says, is that they are expected to switch to short-term sales tactics.
TikTok as the answer to driving sales
Brand Agency London was founded in 2009, first with Ciaté, followed By Lottie London in 2015 and I Am Proud in 2020. Over that time, each of its brands has used Instagram and Facebook to grow awareness, but Zukauskaite says TikTok is a different game altogether.
“TikTok is the only social media platform where you can see the impact of viral content and in-store or online sales – that has never happened before.”
The cosmetic group’s TikTok journey started just like everyone else’s, says Zukauskaite: “We thought, ‘Oh, it’s a singing and dancing app for teens, but no one has money on there they don’t even own a bank card.’ But by Covid, we were like, ‘Oh my god, we need to be on that app... Can anyone sing and dance?’”
@iamproud its giving… SHINE⚡⚡ this hair proud hero is for our besties in need of some glazed donut locks ⚡ #hairproudhero #hairproud #cvs #fyp ♬ loki.4yah -
Then, the next stage was seeing viral moments translate into sales and Zukauskaite remembers a call from Walmart telling her that a blusher had sold out after an influencer mentioned it. “That was the realization that this was working and that people were buying our stuff after seeing that video.”
Even though TikTok’s commerce platform has only been live in the UK since September, Brand Agency London is already seeing big gains, she says. “We are on the next stage of our TikTok journey, which is through social commerce. That is becoming a really big revenue driver and revenue stream for us and in some months can be 30% of DTC revenue in the UK.”
Zukauskaite, who is a judge at The Drum Awards for Marketing 2024, adds that she has observed the “explosion” of brands developed purely for social commerce, with TikTok Shop leading the way. “Within beauty, we will see more and more brands being created this way versus traditional long-term brand building purpose-led style.”
The brand-building tactics are completely different from the traditional strategies the big multinational companies have been employing for decades, Zukauskaite explains. There is a big unknown, however, over how these brands will fare in the long term.
What content works?
Zukauskaite counts herself lucky to be a marketing director at a privately owned brand and not answerable to shareholders. “We can be quite brave in the type of content we put out there,” she says, which is needed for a platform where ideas need to be “attention-grabbing and thumb-stopping.”
She is also considering how to use regular TikTokers who aren’t influencers, having observed how the algorithm favors this content over celebrities. “That type of content is having much more impact on the consideration or purchase itself, which is very interesting as that hadn’t happened before. Previously, it was very much the more followers you have or the more famous you are, the more influential you are.”
She says Gen Z trusts their peers more than influencers as they understand the creator economy; the demographic knows it as essentially a “media buy” and they know influencers are being paid for it.
Showing behind-the-scenes at a brand is another tactic that resonates with this “curious” Gen Z demographic and Brand Agency London publishes content that shows everything from product development and creation to office culture.
“They want to know what you stand for, what you represent and what your ethos is, so it’s helpful letting your community come inside and see the other side of the brand, not just the perfect Instagram picture.”
Zukauskaite was recently joined at The Drum Predictions by Skyscanner’s digital marketing lead, Aoife O’Toole, and Kantar’s head of media insights, Hannah Walley. Find out what they see as the biggest priorities for brand marketers in 2024.

domain: news


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Multinational chemical company BASF and Contemporary Amperex Technology Co., Limited (CATL) have formed a strategic partnership focusing on battery materials solutions, including cathode active materials (CAM) and battery recycling. Their stated aim is to develop a sustainable battery value chain in an effort to achieve both partners’ global carbon neutrality goals.
CATL recently launched a project to build its first European factory in Germany to localize lithium-ion battery production to markets where they will be used. With this, it is accelerating the development of a local supply chain for European customers and consumers. Similarly, BASF is set to establish CAM production in Europe, and is seeking to reduce its carbon footprint through the use of advanced process technology, a secured local raw materials supply chain, a favorable energy mix for production, as well as a short supply chain.
The strategic partnership with CATL will, says BASF, enable it to work closely with a globally leading battery producer on CAM and battery recycling. CATL, meanwhile, hopes to improve its European service capabilities by developing a localized battery recycling network and a secure raw material supply chain in the region.
“The transformation towards electromobility requires strong partnerships along the value chain,” said Markus Kamieth, member of BASF’s board of executive directors. “Pairing BASF’s strong position as a leading supplier for cathode active materials with CATL’s expertise in lithium-ion batteries will speed up innovation and the formation of a sustainable battery value chain worldwide.”


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Media coverage of two major global trade agreements, the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) and the Transatlantic Trade Investment Partnership (TTIP), has largely centered on the effects the pacts might have on multinational corporations and national economies. International trade is also a pillar of support for many small businesses in the U.S., however. How might these new agreements affect U.S. entrepreneurs who export products and services? The TPP, which is awaiting Congressional ratification, and the TTIP, which is still under negotiation, will assuredly change how American businesses interact with Europe and Asia. Business News Daily spoke with some experts to find out just how these trade agreements might impact American businesses.
The TPP agreement was reached on Oct. 5, 2015, between a dozen countries that comprise roughly 40 percent of the global economy: the U.S., Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore and Vietnam. The overall aim of the agreement is to lower or eliminate barriers to trade, such as tariffs and export subsidies. All told, the TPP is expected to eliminate or reduce around 18,000 various tariffs.
The TTIP, still under negotiation, is an anticipated free-trade agreement between the U.S. and the 28 member nations of the European Union. While the final agreement may look different from the current text, the objectives are to gain better access to European markets for American businesses, while also solidifying the bond between the U.S. and the European Union.
As happens with any big shift in the global market, there are bound to be winners and losers; while the agreements should make it easier for the U.S. to export products and services to growing economies abroad, it also means that U.S. exporters will have to compete harder with foreign companies that engage in international trade — companies that sometimes do so at significantly lower costs.
Major potential for U.S. exporters
Tomas Hult, a professor at Michigan State University and Byington Endowed Chair in international business in the Eli Broad College of Business, said he anticipates new opportunities in the U.S. automobile, agricultural, pharmaceutical and technology sectors as a result of the TPP.
"Currently, the U.S. faces up to 70 percent tariffs on automobiles in some of the TPP markets, [like] Vietnam, which would be eliminated," Hult told Business News Daily. "U.S. farmers face up to a 40 percent tariff reduction. … And, perhaps, the most important [aspect,] top tech companies such as Google will find it even easier to operate internationally.
"Any agreement that the U.S. enters into will have consequences for these smaller firms," Hult said. "In fact, the TPP agreement has established a specific section … that deals with the advantages and operating issues for small businesses. This is a first for a U.S. trade agreement."
According to Hult, the TPP makes up for lost ground in American trade policy. While he noted that the particular structure of a trade agreement determines whether it would help or hurt small business, he said that the U.S. shouldn't continue to lag behind other countries, which are quickly establishing large networks of trade agreements.
"Since [1985,] the U.S. has signed only 14 regional trade agreements involving some 20 countries – 18 more are currently being deliberated," he said. "During the same 30-year period, the world has seen 256 new trade agreements, as registered with the World Trade Organization, with 132 of them implemented in just the last decade."
"Trade across country borders is following largely the same pattern as the establishment of new trade agreements, and the U.S. is losing out on opening up markets for its small, medium and large companies by not engaging in more and better trade agreements at the rate of that of the rest of the world," he said.
Increased demand for U.S. agricultural exports
Researchers at UC Davis Agricultural Issues Center (AIC) examined the potential impact of the TPP on California's agriculture industry and found that, over a decade of TPP implementation, California's farmers could expect increased exports to Vietnam, Malaysia and especially Japan. Some of the products in high demand in those countries include dairy, wine, citrus fruit and deciduous fruits, as well as beef, poultry, hay and vegetables.
In a paper co-authored for the Giannini Foundation of Agricultural Economics, Daniel A. Sumner, director of the AIC, Hyunok Lee, an assistant professor of agricultural and resource economics at UC Davis, and William A. Matthews, a researcher at the AIC, wrote:
"[T]he big prize is Japan, but the economies of Vietnam and Malaysia also hold potential, especially as their markets develop."
Sumner, Lee and Matthews identified four major benefits that California's farmers could expect if the agreement is ratified.
1. Reduced barriers to exporting goods
2. Better access to imports
3. More economic growth and expanding markets at home and abroad
4. More political and economic stability
However, they offered a cautious view of how significant the TPP's impact would actually be within other member nations, and gave two reasons. First, the researchers noted the conspicuous absence of some of Asia's largest economies, including China. In addition, many of the TPP's anticipated signatories are already parties to other free-trade agreements with one another, and many of the provisions outlined in the new agreement simply serve to solidify previously established trading conventions.
"Indeed, many TPP members have [free-trade agreements] with other members, so the amount of effective market opening is less than might first appear," the researchers wrote.
The agreement might also bolster California farmers against their Australian competitors in the region, they wrote. Australia already has standing agreements with Japan and Malaysia. The U.S does not currently maintain such an agreement with either nation, putting American producers at a competitive disadvantage.
However, the researchers cautioned that the effects of the TPP on the American economy would be "moderate at best," and that the most significant aspect of the deal is likely "that China and other large Asian economies may want to join [later]." Access to those economies, the researchers posit, would significantly increase the magnitude of the agreement's impact.


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Nasdaq-listed Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) major Freshworks said on Thursday that it has laid off around 2 per cent or 90 of its total workforce, to fuel business growth. Out of this, around 60 affected employees are from India.
“To fuel our business growth, we made organisational changes to create better alignment across the company. We shifted some existing roles in product, marketing and sales to support more critical initiatives and reduced the need for a small number of others – less than 2 per cent of our workforce. Freshworks did not do a company-wide layoff,” the company said in a statement on Thursday. The company has a total staff strength of 5,200 people.


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Courtesy Pink Lady America LLCPink Lady apples began harvesting a little late, says Alan Taylor, marketing director for Pink Lady America LLC. Washington growers harvested apples later and in smaller numbers than last year, but shipments set a break-neck pace early in the season.
Opinions vary on how long it can be sustained.
It’s still an enormous crop: 104.3 million boxes will pack and ship, according to a Dec. 1 estimate by the Yakima Valley Growers-Shippers Association and Wenatchee Valley Traffic Association. That would make it the third-largest crop ever from the state, but still about 5 million cases lighter than last year’s record.
“We’ve got plenty of promotable volumes on all varieties right now and for some months,” Loren Queen, marketing and communications manager for Domex Superfresh Growers, Yakima, Wash., said in mid-December.
“Last week the state shipped 3.2 million 42-pound boxes of apples, the biggest week we’ve ever had. We’re shipping like crazy. Demand is up but volumes are there to meet that demand.”
“As we got into September,” said Roger Pepperl, marketing director at Wenatchee, Wash.-based Stemilt Growers, “the apple crop was about 10 days late. The crop from last year sold tremendously fast. Usually there’s a bit of carryover as you start to pack the fresh crop. There wasn’t this year, and that gap created such a huge demand that it’s never let up.”
Washington accounts for the majority of U.S. production.
“Things change. We’ll see what kind of crop we have left,” Pepperl said. “With a down crop this year, you could see movement and demand outstripping supply as we go forward in the spring. I think there will be opportunities in the spring for smaller apples. You could see retailers promoting bags or tote bags, pricing at 3 pounds for $4 on bulk fruit, that sort of thing.”
David Nelley, apple and pear category director at Vancouver, British Columbia-based The Oppenheimer Group, sees an opportunity coming for imports.
“We anticipate the switch from domestic to imported apples in the spring to be fairly dramatic given the issues the Washington fruit may face as it stores,” Nelley said. “Washington’s harvest was late, and it took place on the heels of a cold snap. We see good opportunities for fruit from Chile and New Zealand in 2012.”
“Nationwide, we had a good crop,” said Nancy Foster, president of the U.S. Apple Association, Vienna, Va. “Some areas were hurt by frost and Washington was late, but everyone did get their crop picked.”


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Operas! Symphonies!! RAGE!!!
On September 14th, the world-famous Sydney Opera House will host ‘An Evening with id Software: A Look At The Past, Present and Future of Gaming’, starring RAGE’s creative director Tim Willits. Tim, the only id employee to attend every single QuakeCon, will talk candidly about id history and where he thinks the game industry is going.
In the coming days and weeks, we’ll share information on how lucky gamers will have a chance to attend this event alongside members of the game industry from Australia and New Zealand.
Read the release after the break for more details…
To celebrate the forthcoming release of RAGE™, the highly anticipated first-person shooter from legendary developer id Software, Bethesda Softworks® is pleased to announce An Evening With id Software: A Look At The Past, Present and Future of Gaming. This special event, to be held at the iconic Sydney Opera House on Sept. 14, 2011, will feature RAGE creative director,Tim Willits, talking candidly about the history of id, RAGE, and his thoughts on the future of the industry.
Inventors of the FPS genre, id Software are celebrated for developing blockbuster franchises including DOOM®, QUAKE® and Wolfenstein®. Formed in 1991 in Richardson, Texas, id has a long-standing reputation as the godfathers of the first person shooter, not only defining the genre in the early nineties but refining it over the last two decades. For one night only, The Sydney Opera House will be home to the art of video games and Tim Willits.
A number of lucky fans will have the opportunity to attend this exclusive event alongside a number of the Australian and New Zealand video games industry. They can win their chance to attend via a series of competitions hosted over the coming weeks — more details to come.
RAGE will be released in Australia and New Zealand on October 6th, 2011, and will be available on Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, PlayStation®3 computer entertainment system, and PC. The game won numerous awards at E3, including ‘Best Overall Game of Show’ from IGN and three ‘Best of E3’ Game Critics Awards including ‘Best Console Game’. RAGE features intense first-person shooter action, breakneck vehicle combat, an expansive world to explore and jaw-dropping graphics powered by id’s revolutionary id Tech 5 technology.


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Iowa lawmakers voted last week to outlaw credit card deposits at the state’s still-nascent casino sportsbooks.
The decision, not unique on its face but distinct in its approach, resides at the center of a debate over cashless wagers in the sports gambling industry.
You can read the bill here, which still must be signed by Gov. Kim Reynolds to become law. Both chambers of the legislature voted overwhelmingly for the bill.
Regulators had not approved the use of credit cards for wagering, but the bill would make that decision permanent.
‘This body has spoken’
Prohibiting credit cards was touted by state officials as something that will limit problem gambling.
“If you want (to) lose your paycheck, that’s fine. I don’t know how long you get away with that from your family, but with a credit card, you can run a debt that can’t possibly be paid and so I thank the body for clarifying that,” Iowa State Sen. Tony Bisignano told local media.
“We never did legalize it, but it got to be interpreted by fantasy sports that they have been using credit cards and this body has spoken.”
Even if the aversion to credit is not new, the legislature’s decision to ban credit cards for sports wagering is odd, considering most states typically leave the decision up to regulators or others in the gaming industry.
The ban would apply both to physical sportsbooks and online sports betting in Iowa.
While credit remains on the outs, cashless grows in Vegas
The nation’s sports gambling capital could soon turn the tide on cashless gaming, if not immediately, its approach to credit cards.
It’s a trend that in the coming years may affect states like Iowa.
The Nevada Gaming Commission, less than a month after reopening Las Vegas casinos, will on June 25 hold a public hearing to consider allowing “electronic transfers of money to a game or gaming device,” according to Gaming Today.
While the meeting’s agenda is vague, experts anticipate the move would allow electronic transfers for mobile wagering and debit cards or digital wallets when placing wagers at physical sportsbooks.
The use of credit cards would remain prohibited.
Nonetheless, signs of cashless expansion have drawn preemptive strikes from opponents who say using credit cards at casinos can cause problems.
“We feel cashless is not cut and dried,” Brianne Doura-Schawohl, legislative director of the National Council on Problem Gambling, told Gaming Today.
“The UK just recently banned the use of credit cards predicated on problem gambling. Some 22% of them who used credit cards met the criteria for gambling addiction, so we have reservations. We love to see more data and research in the US.”
Opponents of credit, like Doura-Schawohl, often speak out against cashless gaming, specifically credit. They say the option can exacerbate gaming addictions if protections like time and money limits are not in place.
Others say cashless deposits are a more realistic approach to sports gambling in 2020, especially following the creation of digital programs already equipped with pre-set spending limits.
In pandemic age, could cashless forms thrive?
The decision to prohibit credit was not a surprise to Iowa’s casino industry.
“I can tell you that I don’t believe that any of the operators are anticipating allowing credit at this point in time,” Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission administrator Brian Ohorilko told the The Gazette, Cedar Rapids’ leading daily paper, in 2019.
Adding a new layer of complication, however, is the COVID-19 pandemic.
Many believe there is no sense in hand-to-hand cash transactions when, just feet away, casino workers are rushing to disinfect each surface touched by visitors.
Advocates of cashless gaming say credit cards, debit cards and digital wallets would comfort gamblers already nervous about contracting the coronavirus. The approach, which is proven to be compatible with safeguards in other industries, could soon generate momentum to OK safe credit options alongside debit allowances.


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Unprepared officials blindsided by sophisticated virus call experience ‘an education’
Massachusetts police have admitted to paying a bitcoin ransom after being infected by the Cryptolocker ransomware.
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The Canadian Food Inspection Agency has expanded its recall of Neilson brand 1% chocolate milk.
Over the weekend an initial recall targeted the 4 litre bags because of possible listeria contamination. Now, the recall includes all sizes of cartons and in particular, milk produced at the Saputo plant in Georgetown. That facility is identified by the registration number 1590 which can be found on the packaging.
If you think you may have gotten sick because of contaminated milk, contact your health care professional. And if you have the items in your fridge, toss them, or take them back to where you bought them.
For more information about the recall, link to the Health Canada website HERE


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TULARE, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) – The first annual California Special Train, & Model Kit Show will be making its way to the south valley.
The show will take place at the International Agri-Center at 4500 S. Laspina St. in Tulare on November 12 and 13 from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
It will feature 250 tables of all scales and sizes of trains, 45 dealers and collectors from across the country, operating model railroads, and model kits and toys.
General admission tickets for the show are $10 and can be purchased online. Admission for kids under 12 is free. Parking for the event is also free.
For more information and to buy tickets online, visit their website.


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Tesla vehicles will get an all-new navigation system soon that will hopefully stop the dumb route suggestions.
For the longest time, Tesla drivers have reported that the navigation system found in the Model S and 3 cars were, shall we say, less than satisfactory. Telling the driver to hop on the highway for 600 feet only to then get off, take a few side roads, and then get back on the highway when there’s no traffic congestion can get on a person’s nerves.
Apparently that won’t be a problem on the new version. Last December, Tesla CEO Elon Musk tweeted that a completely overhauled navigation system will be coming in early 2018 and that it will be “light-years” ahead of the current nav system.
Major navigation overhaul coming in early 2018. Will be light-years ahead of current system, but we are testing it rigorously before rolling out.— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 21, 2017
“Major navigation overhaul coming in early 2018,” Musk wrote. “Will be light-years ahead of current system, but we are testing it rigorously before rolling out."
RELATED: HOW ELON MUSK'S PAY WITH TESLA WORKS
Then yesterday Musk gave us a release date for the new system: this weekend. Although he cautioned his eager audience with news that this new nav system should be considered a “mature beta” and won’t be perfect, but should still be much better than the previous system.
New nav starts rolling out this weekend. Should be considered a mature beta at first, so won’t be perfect, but will improve rapidly. With the old system, we were stuck with legacy 3rd party black box code and stale data. No way to improve.— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 26, 2018
"New nav starts rolling out this weekend,” said the eccentric billionaire carmaker. “Should be considered a mature beta at first, so won’t be perfect, but will improve rapidly. With the old system, we were stuck with legacy 3rd party black box code and stale data. No way to improve."
With the help of a white hat hacker, electric car enthusiast site Electrek got their hands on a preview of the new system. The new nav features elements from MapBox and Valhalla, two open-source map-making programs (although Valhalla has since ceased operations). According to the site, the new system should be both smoother and faster than the original, while also providing a more detailed level of zoom functionality.
There’s no word on what the routing function will look like as that wasn’t included in the files the hacker managed to unlock. But worst comes to worst, you can always use Waze or Google Maps to get around like everyone else.


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The recent months have changed the UK in a fundamental and lasting way, including the need for mobility. With its new SIXT+ service, SIXT, the international mobility provider, now offers a modern and flexible form of car rental.
The newest SIXT product, SIXT+, is the perfect solution for people who like to drive their own car, but at the same time do not want to commit to years of finance plans or loans.
SIXT+ allows the customer to get their own car with a no strings attached contract that can be cancelled monthly by returning the vehicle. All subscribers can enjoy the latest car models on a permanent basis, with cars available within a few days at SIXT stations.
The new all-inclusive subscription includes auto-liability, theft protection, routine maintenance and a free mileage package.
Managing Director UK, Tim Vetters, commented: “SIXT is emerging from the Coronavirus crisis thoughtfully, but also with vitality and determination. Our new SIXT+ offer is a logical response to society’s changing mobility needs. With SIXT+, we are optimally expanding our portfolio of flexible rental offers and the service via our app.”
SIXT offers absolute user-friendliness, maximum flexibility and full transparency. With SIXT+, the company is heralding a new era of mobility and once again proving its aspiration to be the industry’s pacesetter.


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THIS is how a 50 Shades of Grey cover should look!
They look so hot together! Eeeeeek! Hello, Jamie's biceps!
[Image via Glamour Magazine.]
Are they cleaning house or what?
According to the latest rumor, Schwab peaced out after Halston told him they wouldn't be renewing his soon-to-be-expired contract.
Without a designer, Halston has no plans to produce a S/S 2012 collection and the A/W 2011 might not be delivered to the department stores who already ordered it.
What a mess!
[Image via WENN.]


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Samsung is focusing on new technologies at CES 2020 and one of them is a rolling personal care robot called Ballie.
H.S. Kim, President and CEO of Consumer Electronics Division, Samsung Electronics, said that the company sees robots as ‘life companions’, and introduced Ballie, a small, rolling robot that “understands you, supports you, and reacts to your needs to be actively helpful around the house.”
It functions as a smart home device that can help you control your other smart devices. Based on Samsung’s promotional video, it can function as a security cam, can activate robot vacuums, control other IoT devices, and pet-friendly, too.
Samsung didn’t reveal though when Ballie will be released and how much it might cost. For now, it’s a demonstration of how the company imagines personal robots in the future.
Meet #Ballie, Samsung’s human-centric vision of robots that takes personalized care to the next level. The small rolling robot, “understands you, supports you, and reacts to your needs.” #CES2020 #SamsungCES2020 pic.twitter.com/YzwgZN1Lgw
— Samsung US Newsroom (@SamsungNewsUS) January 7, 2020


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Public Relations is a huge part of the current business model. It is the cornerstone of how businesses communicate with their target audiences through mass media. Today we will take a look at some of the biggest PR mistakes made in 2017 and 2018.
Probably the most well-known mistake last year was United Airlines’ forceful removal of a passenger that was videod and took the internet by storm, resulting in the company’s stock plummeting. A video had emerged of a passenger being violently dragged off of an overbooked plane because he refused to give up his seat. The video quickly went viral and resulted in huge disproval from the public. United Airlines initially failed to issue a sincere apology; they stood by the decision to remove the passenger. While an apology was eventually issued, it was clearly insincere. It was not until after a great deal of consumer backlash that the company responded appropriately. As a result, their consumer perception dropped to a 10-year low due not only to the incident but also United Airlines’ failure to properly address the media and handle the situation.
Other examples include Pepsi’s failure to admit its advertisement featuring Kendall Jenner trivialized Black Lives Matter protests, rather than portraying a “global message of unity” and Cosmopolitan’s article that essentially gave credit to cancer for the dramatic weight-loss a woman experienced without any exercise.
In all three of these examples the companies ultimately failed to properly apologize for their mistakes and those that did, did not do so till it was already too late. I think it is safe to say that 2017 taught us the importance of careful planning as well as apologizing when your mistakes are clear.
Making PR gaffe headlines this year was Tide laundry pods, which teens and twenty-somethings decided were something they should eat because they look like candy. The problem became that many of those who ate the pods videoed themselves, got sick and shared the videos. Another viral video trend with a giant corporate impact. Though it was not a crisis of P & G’s making, they did need to respond to it and mitigate the damage this fad caused. Sheesh!
And we all know what happened at Starbucks in Philadelphia last month. The incident caused protests around the country and resulted in a day where Starbucks will close all of its stores to educate their employees about racial bias. It also spurred Starbucks’ top brass to change their restroom policy so that now anyone can sit in their stores and/or use their restrooms without making a purchase. Though the “event” should never have escalated to the point of calling the police, I give credit to Starbucks for sending their CEO to Philadelphia to meet the individuals who were taken into police custody, and for taking further measures to change their policies and educate their employees better and ultimately set everyone up for success – their staff and their customers.
The moral of the story is…have a crisis plan in place. Have a trained, articulate spokesperson who can convey the company’s message to its stakeholders during a crisis. And people, be sure to be contrite. Don’t wait for an angry public to tell you that an apology is in order. Be prepared to offer one immediately.


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Yahoo took its quest for online video-sharing popularity to Europe, launching local Yahoo Video Web sites in France, Spain, Germany and Italy, an AFP report said.
The AFP report said each Web site was customized to the individual country's language, culture and trends, said Yahoo manager of social media Jason Zajac.
'You always want a social product to be relevant to the community using it,' Zajac told AFP. 'You want people to be able to chat online and read instructions in the local language.'
The English-language version of Yahoo Video was launched May 31 and more than half the users were from outside the US, particularly Britain, Australia and New Zealand, the AFP report said.
'The ultimate goal is to provide it to as much of the market as possible,' Yahoo spokesman Stephen Davis was quoted as saying when asked about plans to localize Yahoo Video for Asia and other places.
Yahoo's tailoring of a social networking video-sharing service complete with editing tools for creating clips came in the wake of Google's purchase of video Web site YouTube for $1.65 billion in stock, the AFP report said.
At the time of the YouTube purchase, Google's founders and chief executive predicted video sharing and streaming would be driving forces in the evolution of the Internet, the report further said.


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All iPhone 15 Models to Come With a Dual-Cutout Display Next Year
Apple is gearing up to launch the iPhone 14 Pro models with a dual-cutout display later this year. The pill-shaped cutout will house all the essential Face ID components while the hole punch will carry the front-facing camera. However, the standard variants of the iPhone 14 lineup will stick to the smaller notch as the current models. According to a prominent display analyst, all models of the iPhone 15 lineup will feature a dual-cutout display. Scroll down to read more details on the subject.
Display Analyst Claims All iPhone 15 Models Will Rock the Dual-Cutout Display Next Year
In a tweet, display analyst Ross Young shared that all models of the iPhone 15 series will feature a dual-cutout display. This means that the standard iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Pro models will come with a pill-shaped and hole-punch cutout. In contrast, Apple is only expected to launch the iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max with a dual-cutout design. The standard iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Max will feature a notch.
Based on the technical challenges remaining for under panel cameras to meet discerning brands quality requirements as well as panel manufacturers' cost requirements, I still believe this roadmap makes sense for the iPhone. pic.twitter.com/3ck5X3sVcL
— Ross Young (@DSCCRoss) May 10, 2022
Apple will potentially use the new dual-cutout design before it finally makes a switch to in-display technology. Moreover, the company will stick to the new display layout for at least two years before incorporating in-display sensors for Face ID and front-facing cameras. Young believes that Apple will use in-display Face ID with iPhone 16 Pro models in 2024 while in-display Face ID and the front-facing camera will arrive in 2026 with iPhone 18 Pro models.
It was recently discovered that the iPhone 14 Pro models will have a slightly larger display size to accommodate the new pill-shaped and hole-punch sensors. Apple will launch the iPhone 14 Pro models with the new layout in September of this year if there are no shortages in terms of supply. Take note that news related to the iPhone 15 and the dual-cutout display is still young and the company could alter its course as it sees fit, so be sure to take the news with a pinch of salt.
This is all there is to it, folks. Are you looking forward to the dual-cutout layout on the iPhone 15 models? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.


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The brand and ad agency’s winning campaign was selected among nearly 90 entries.
Maltesers will be given £1 million in free media by Channel 4, including an exclusive launch spot during coverage of this year’s Paralympic Games opening ceremony in Rio de Janeiro on 7 September.
Channel 4 launched the Superhumans Wanted competition for advertisers as part of the broadcaster’s Year of Disability.
Justin Tomlinson, the minister for disabled people, congratulated the winners and said: "We want to change attitudes towards disabled people for good and to do that we need everyone to get involved: Channel 4 should be commended for recognising the crucial role of the media in creating a more inclusive society."
The other seven brands which made the final shortlist (and their ad agencies) were: Amazon (Lucky Generals); Barclays (Bartle Bogle Hegarty London); Dove (Ogilvy & Mather); H&M (Adam & Eve/DDB); Lloyds Bank (Adam & Eve/DDB); Lynx (TMW Unlimited); and Purdey’s (Iris Worldwide).
The judging panel, chaired by Jonathan Allan, the sales director at Channel 4, included: Tim Lefroy, chief executive, Advertising Association; Claire Beale, global editor-in-chief, Campaign; Tom Knox, president, IPA; Mike Hughes, director general, ISBA; Chris Bovill and John Allison, heads of 4Creative; and Dan Brooke, the chief marketing and communications Officer, Channel 4.
Allan said the "massive response" and quality of entries surpassed the broadcaster’s expectations. He added: "Having seen some absolutely brilliant scripts as part of this competition, we would like to work with all the shortlisted brands who want to make their ads to help get as many of these rich ideas onto TV as possible to improve disability representation in commercial airtime."


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MONTGOMERY – There will be more vehicles on the auction block than ever before at the Alabama Department of Transportation’s Absolute Public Auction Friday, Oct. 26. People in the market for high quality, used vehicles at a low price should not miss the chance to scoop up great deals during the semi-annual auction. The auction, located at 537 Traffic Operations Drive in Montgomery, begins at 9 a.m.
|Get the ingredients you need to cook with Rach all week long.|
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Classic Pacman, Frogger, Asteroids and more.
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Major websites, including those of the UK government and news outlets such as Financial Times, New York Times and Bloomberg, are down.
According to Al Jazeera, CNN and France’s Le Monde started showing error messages that appeared on the websites around 10:00 GMT.
The news outlet said it was also affected by the outage. The cause of the disruption is yet to be known.
Separately, Amazon.com Inc’s retail website, also seemed to face an outage.
Britain’s Guardian newspaper said its website and app were being affected.
Sites of some other British news media were also not immediately loading.


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Making a video game is not easy. Even if development goes smoothly, a team can spend months of work just getting the game up and running, much less finished - and, more often than not, things don't go smoothly.
As video games get bigger and bigger, delays are becoming more and more prevalent. The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild is a perfect example of this: originally announced back in 2013 as the Wii U's first Zelda game, Breath of the Wild has been delayed so many times that it's basically missed the entire console life cycle.
Not only that, but Breath of the Wild is hardly the first Zelda game to miss its original release date: Ocarina of Time, The Wind Waker and Twilight Princess were all delayed at one point or another.
How is it possible that, with a company as big as Nintendo, a game like The Legend of Zelda could be delayed? According to the series' creators, it's not because of bugs or glitches - rather, Nintendo seems to bite off a bit more than it can chew on a regular basis.
In an interview with Kotaku, Zelda creator Shigeru Miyamoto and series producer Eiji Aonuma explained why the series has a tendency to miss its release dates.
"When we think about the release period for any Zelda game, we really want to get it out as soon as possible so that everybody can play and experience it, but every time we make a Zelda, we want to make something new. It's hard to gauge how long that's going to take. And it's also hard to gauge at what point whatever we consider to be new is done," Aonuma said.
Delays can be tough to swallow, especially when a game that's as highly anticipated as Zelda misses yet another release date. Then again, with said delays, some of the best games in the series probably wouldn't be so fondly remembered today.
So, why bother even giving a release date in the first place? Well, if Miyamoto had his way, Nintendo wouldn't even bother with giving Zelda games a launch window before they knew the game was ready.
"First of all, it would be great if I didn't have to put a release date out at all ... but I have to," said Miyamoto.
It's easy to forget that video games are a business, and investors need to be assured that their money is well-spent. A firm release date is one way that a developer can reassure investors (as well as eager fans) that a project is moving along, but then the team runs the risk of missing said release date, and that's when delays start popping up.
That goes doubly for a game as ambitious as Breath of the Wild. Previously delayed Zelda games typically have the luxury of following a format similar to the games that came before them, but Breath of the Wild looks to be the first truly open-world game in the series since the original game - and that means a lot of extra work for the team.
Aonuma explained that, when it came to nailing down Breath of the Wild's mechanics, things simply took longer than the team thought they would.
"A lot of times what we try to tackle takes a lot longer than anticipated. So that's why many times [in] the development struggle there is a delay. The people around us keep telling us: 'This is the last one. You really need to shape up,'" he said.
"In terms of Breath of the Wild, we implemented many things like the physics engine and the AI and the type of graphics that we use. We had to make sure that design has enough time to create that. It just dawned on us that we're not able to do that in this schedule. That's what we realized about two years ago," Aonuma added. "In this instance, we never really experienced this, so that's why we had to delay it."
Thankfully, there are signs that preemptive release dates won't be around for too much longer. At E3 2015, Bethesda confirmed that Fallout 4 would be releasing just three months after it was first announced, and many of the games shown at Sony's E3 2016 press conference were never given any sort of release window.
Who knows - maybe someday, Nintendo won't be forced to give itself impossible deadlines.
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild is scheduled to launch alongside Nintendo's new NX console sometime early next year.


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We already know that Nissan plans to unveil its next-generation Titan pickup truck at the Detroit Auto Show next month, but we’re still pretty light on details. The Titan made big waves when it was first introduced into the half-ton truck market by Nissan back in 2004.
Believe it or not, tomorrow you can buy a full-blown, totally-legit Army-issued Humvee. According to a story on Yahoo, the Army Times notes that the Department of Defense will start auctioning off Humvees to the public, starting tomorrow with a small batch of vehicles but that number could be as high as 4,000 eventually. The first batch of auctions takes place tomorrow, December 17th, with each vehicle starting at a price of $10,000 (and increasing in increments of $500).
DETROIT – Chevrolet today released a holiday message that Facebook and Twitter users can share to brighten their friends’ days while giving back to their communities through United Way. Chevrolet will contribute $1 to United Way for each share and retweet of Chevrolet’s Facebook post and Tweet of the video up to a total of $500,000.
Long Beach, Calif., Dec. 8, 2014 – An expanded product offering of performance lift kits, shock absorbers, off-road protective products and more are highlighted in the new Rancho Master Catalog (RAN-0814). The new catalog – which includes several of Rancho’s new six-inch, U.S. Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 126 (FMVSS-126) certified kits – also features a new Rancho suspension lookup guide that allows for easier inventory management.
“The new master catalog represents some of the latest, most exciting product innovations and developments in the Rancho product line,” said Chris Gauss, director, performance products, Tenneco. “From reaching new heights with six-inch lift kits, FMVSS-126 certified systems, an expanded performance shock, stabilizer and strut offering and more, this catalog serves as the one-stop spot for anything you need from Rancho.”
Long Beach, Calif., Nov. 24, 2014 – The Rancho brand has released a new larger RS5000X™ shock series that helps deliver precisely controlled off-road performance to lifted trucks and sport utility vehicles found around the globe. The new RS5000X shock series includes Cross-Tuned Technology, a new, unique valve design that allows for increased control and consistent ride profile with a larger shock body.
After reviewing more than 2,000 products at this year’s SEMA Show, journalist Mikhail Lastochkin of The Russian Federation’s Polny Privod 4×4 Magazine and journalist Perry Mack of Canada’s 4WDrive Magazine selected the Baja MTZP3 for these unique awards.
“The Baja MTZP3 is an incredible mud-terrain tire, and we were so pleased that it was selected by industry journalists to receive these special awards,” stated Ken Warner, Vice President of Marketing for Mickey Thompson. “This tire delivers rugged style, reliable performance in a variety of terrains, longer tread life and responsive handling on the street.
LOS ANGELES – Chevrolet today introduced the Colorado ZR2 concept – a vision of how Chevrolet could take the all-new midsize truck’s off-road capability to the next level. It also showcases the new 2.8L Duramax diesel engine that will arrive in the Colorado lineup later next year.
The Ram 2500 Outdoorsman concept truck shows just how capable, and functional, a 2500 can be for off-roaders and hunters when outfitted with Mopar and aftermarket parts. Ram says this truck was inspired by its relationship with outdoors outfitter Mossy Oak who helped created the truck’s unique color that’s aptly called “Swamp Thing Green,” which features a blend of camouflage details incorporated into the hood, roof and lower body of the truck.
Line-X has already enjoyed tremendous success as a franchiser of high-performance spray-on bedliners, but this week at the SEMA Show, the company announced that is expanding its Truck Gear line of aftermarket parts in a unique fashion that stays true to the company’s roots.
The SEMA Show covers more than 1.1 million square feet of space inside and outside of the Las Vegas Convention Center. Years ago the off-road market only occupied a small portion of the SEMA floor, but the last few years have seen a big surge.


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SHANGHAI — China’s top cyber authority said on Monday it would carry out a “rectification” of Chinese mobile internet browsers to address what it called social concerns over the “chaos” of information being published online.
China has tightened already strict internet censorship rules in recent years. In the latest crackdown, the Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC) gave browsers two weeks to conduct a self-examination focusing on problems including the spreading of rumors, use of sensationalist headlines and publishing of content that violates the core values of socialism.
tap here to see other videos from our team.
The campaign will initially focus on eight of the most influential mobile browsers in China such as ones operated by Huawei Technologies Co Ltd, Alibaba Group Holding and Xiaomi Corp, the CAC said in a statement.
Others include the QQ platform owned by Tencent, Qihoo-owned 360, Oppo and Sogou.
“For some time, mobile browsers have grown in an uncivilized way … and have become a gathering place and amplifier for dissemination of chaos by ‘self-media’,” the CAC said, echoing words it had used in a 2018 crackdown on social media accounts of independent news providers. [https://tinyurl.com/y4mj65jt]


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China ban bitcoin 2013
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February 15, 2018
People at Sourcing at MAGIC could see an automated apparel factory.
Stories this photo appears in:
Feel the MAGIC
An air of optimism blew through the various trade shows held Feb. 10–14 in Las Vegas as many retailers were encountering empty shelves in their warehouses from a robust holiday season, which set up a willingness to place orders and stock up for the upcoming seasons.


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Munchkin Launches Mini Portable UV Sanitizer
Posted on April 22, 2020
Munchkin has launched a mini UV sanitizer designed to sterilize pacifiers and bottle nipples. The sanitizer is called the 59S Mini Sterilizer Portable UV Sanitizer.
Munchkin says it kills 99% off bacteria and viruses in 59 seconds using UV-C light. The light shuts off automatically when the lid of the sanitizer is opened. It has a strap that can be attached to a purse or diaper bag.
Where to Buy: Amazon
Baskin-Robbins Launches Brrr The Snowman - posted November 16, 2021
Buddy the Elf is a Fisher-Price Little People Figure - posted October 26, 2021
Covid-19 Plush Toy and Plush Vaccine - posted August 9, 2021
Mattel Unveils Matchbox Tesla Roadster - posted August 2, 2021
Hope is Breyer Horse of the Year - posted May 17, 2021


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Welsh companies to attend world’s largest food and drink trade event in Dubai in a bid to secure new international trade links
Gulfood is recognised as one of the world’s largest food trade events that Wales has a long association with, which has helped to bring an array of Welsh produce to the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region.
The latest industry figures reveal a record-breaking turnover of £7.473 billion in 2019, surpassing the ambitious target set in 2014 to achieve 30% growth and reach £7billion of sales by 2020. In 2018, 73% of all Welsh food & drink exports went to the European Union.
Leaders in the Welsh food and drink industry are urging small businesses to prepare for the impact of Brexit following the result of the UK General Election.


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SoftBank lost more than $600 million of its investment in Uber as ride-hailing giant stock hits an all-time low
SoftBank is known for investing in technology startups. As every investor knows, you win some and you lose some. For now, SoftBank’s investment in Uber doesn’t seem to be paying off. As Uber stock hits an all-time low, SoftBank, which invested about $7.6 billion into Uber in early 2018 after the ride-hailing company, has seen investment going down the drain.
On Tuesday, Uber fell to a record low, closing at $30.70 a share, and leaving SoftBank deeper in the red. To make matter worse, the review by the U.S. Treasury Department makes it impossible for SoftBank to have a seat at Uber Board.
Uber went public on May 10, 2019 at the opening price of $45 per share. Ever since, its stock has been in free fall. The stock is now under $30.70, where Uber closed on Tuesday. The current price is below the lowest point at which the Japanese conglomerate invested. SoftBank spent about $6.6 billion to buy just over 200 million shares from existing investors, including former CEO Travis Kalanick, at around $32.87 a piece. It invested another $1.05 billion in fresh capital to Uber, buying 21.45 million shares at about $48.77 each.
Uber was founded in March 2009. Ten years later, Uber is estimated to have 110 million worldwide users, a 69.0% market share in the United States for passenger transport, and a 25% market share for food delivery. The ride-hailing giant is yet to be profitable.


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Price of petrol in the national capital has increased by Rs 1.67 to Rs 71.26 per litre and diesel by Rs 7.10 to Rs 69.29 per litre, compared to May 4.
This after the Delhi government increased value-added tax (VAT) on the auto fuels to 30 percent each. Up from 27 percent to 30 percent for petrol, and up from 16.75 percent to 30 percent for diesel.
For diesel fuel, the increase is almost double the previous VAT.
Follow our LIVE Updates on the coronavirus pandemic here
The move comes close on the heels of the state government imposing a 70 percent 'Special Corona Fee' on sale of liquor in the city. The fee has been imposed on the maximum retail price (MRP) of liquor bottles. The new rate will be applicable from May 5.
Both the developments are expected to boost state revenue, which has taken massive hits due to the extended COVID-19 lockdown.
The lockdown, which began from March 24 midnight, and now extended till May 17, eroded India's fuel consumption by almost 70 per cent in April, PTI reported.
Industry data however, shows improvement in demand in the last 10 days of April as some restrictions were eased. The demand is expected to further pick up as more areas were opened up on May 4.Follow our full COVID-19 coverage here


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We’re living in stressful times, so we could all use a laugh. One couple from Kansas City is helping by sharing a funny moment that’s sure to put a smile on your face.
Sasha Marcotte recently shared a video of the moment she told her husband, Jordan, that she’s pregnant with their first child.
In the video, the couple is shopping at a Nordstrom Rack when Sasha walks over with baby shoes and asks if they can get them. When Jordan asks why, Sasha tells him about her pregnancy.
Judging by his reaction, he didn’t see the announcement coming, at least not while shopping at the department store.
“You wanted to tell me at Nordstrom Rack?” said Jordan.
The video then cuts to him holding Sasha's pregnancy test with a surprised look on his face.
“Alright! Yeah... this is not the place to tell me this crap,” he said while laughing.
Sasha told Good Morning America that she took the test while Jordan was asleep on their vacation to California. She says she wanted to find the perfect time to tell her husband, but then passed the tiny shoes and couldn’t keep the secret any longer.
The Marcottes shared the video online and it’s racked up thousands of views.
The couple told GMA that their baby is due in April.


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‘Great alternative’: eBay aim to solve ‘vital’ car part delays after Brexit supply issues
James Martin discusses his passion for cars
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Around 65 percent of car dealers experienced part supply issues, which has caused some car parts to take weeks to be delivered rather than the usual few days. Motorists have been hit by delays for new car parts because of Brexit delays resulting in months-long issues.
Despite this, drivers may soon be able to get recycled car parts – known as ‘green parts’ – quicker and easier from a new initiative launched by eBay.
The online marketplace is working with Aviva and LV, as they aim to cut down waiting times to as little as two to three days.
This is being done to promote green parts, with many drivers already turning to them to get back on the road at a faster rate.
Since Brexit, eBay has seen the proportion of new car part imports decrease by approximately two percent every year over the last two years.
Sales of green parts meanwhile have risen by 24 percent year-on-year in the first seven months of 2021.
The use of green parts is increasing within the industry as motorists are becoming more aware of the benefits of using sustainable options, as well as being more affordable for drivers.
The average cost of a new part is £245, while green parts can deliver savings of up to 70 percent versus original equipment manufacturer (OEM) recommended retail price.
Laura Richards, Senior Automotive Business Manager at eBay UK, praised the move, citing massive benefits for drivers.
E10 fuel: Car makes where all models are compatible with new petrol [INSIGHT]
Catalytic converter thefts: How drivers can protect themselves [WARNING]
E10 fuel: Drivers criticise ‘frustrating’ fuel economy as prices fall [IMPORTANT]
She said: “Many drivers are unaware of the huge benefits that green parts can have when looking to get their cars repaired.
“The number one priority when your car breaks down is getting back on the road as quickly as possible and green parts can play a vital role in this, especially when Brexit is slowing the importing process.
“The environmental benefit of green parts is huge, and at eBay we’re doing all we can to offer these options to our customers and partners.”
Research estimates that if all insurance demand had been filled by green parts in 2019, nearly 47,000 tonnes of carbon emissions could have been saved.
Save 10% on your MOT
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Source: Read Full Article


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Fri, Oct 25 2019 - Sun, Oct 27 2019
The 28th annual Colorado Ski & Snowboard Expo dates are set for Oct. 25-27. Deep discounts on outdoor winter gear for kids and adults, and Colorado resorts selling passes and getaway packages. Live entertainment, kid’s activities, and giveaways provide high energy shopping and fun.
Friday, October 25: 12pm to 10pm
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North-Bound Speer Directions. Driving via North-bound Speer Boulevard, pass Stout Street and make your first right before Champa Street. The Convention Center Parking Garage has its own designated Right Turn lane leading into the parking garage. The Parking Garage is designated by the Downtown Denver Parking.
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The fears about the tech companies go far wider than the media industry. As Unilever’s chief marketing and communications officer, Keith Weed, told the US IAB last month, the march of technology without proper checks and balances has become an issue for society as a whole.
Never before have so much power and data been concentrated in the hands of such a small number of very wealthy, private companies. They talk about organising the world’s information and building communities yet they resist regulation in the name of progress and avoid paying tax outside the US.
However, the winds are turning and may even be blowing in the opposite direction to a year ago, as Vittorio Colao, global chief executive of Vodafone, put it at the recent Mobile World Congress. There is a realisation that democracy is at risk when bad actors are able to use global, online platforms to spread hatred, distort news, tamper with elections and defraud businesses.
Marketers and agency chiefs feel more responsibility than most business leaders because they know they have helped to feed the monsters through digital advertising, which has fuelled the growth of Google and Facebook, if not Apple, Amazon and Netflix.
When big advertisers speak out, particularly as a collective, they can exert some pressure on the tech giants but it’s limited – not least because Google and Facebook get a lot of their revenue from millions of small advertisers.
Weed conceded as much by saying Unilever believes engagement, not a boycott, is the best way to encourage tech companies to change.
Select committees in the House of Commons and US Congress have been turning up the heat on the tech giants and, as Lorna Tilbian, London’s top media banker who has just quit after nearly 35 years in the City, points out: "There’s always the regulator and the taxman – you can’t live outside the rules forever."
But some in media don’t see anything that can halt the FAANGs or the FANGs – as Facebook, Apple, Amazon, Netflix and Google have been dubbed, depending on your preferred acronym and whether Apple is included.
Rupert Murdoch’s decision to sell his Fox TV and film assets is an admission that he thinks he doesn’t have the scale to win this fight.
The paradox is that the pace of change in technology is in hiatus – albeit perhaps only for a short time. Smartphone sales have peaked, falling year on year in the last quarter of 2017 for the first time since before the iPhone launched more than a decade ago.
At MWC and other technology fairs, the talk has been about forthcoming innovation in areas such as augmented reality, virtual shopping, autonomous vehicles and Blockchain, rather than a breakthrough happening now.
Even in digital advertising, there is talk of a temporary slowdown as advertisers have been spooked by brand safety, effectiveness, fraud and new GDPR rules on data.
It has become fashionable for some media leaders and industry commentators to deride digital advertising and rejoice in its woes. The danger is that this morphs into a more general hostility towards new technology, which would be a serious mistake.
The pressure for businesses to transform themselves digitally is relentless and the lesson of the past two decades is that too many in legacy media have been too slow to respond.
We need to turn the "techlash" into a force for change and growth that can rebuild trust in media.
Gideon Spanier is head of media at Campaign


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PINNING THEM DOWN: Rhode Island-based Linchpin has made a name for itself working with companies both locally and across the country. Pictured above are Linchpin employees, clockwise, starting at bottom: Company principals Michael Chevalier, Jason Narciso and Aaron Ware; Senior Project Coordinator Jennifer Kusiak; senior WordPress engineer Jonathan Desrosiers; and senior designer Mary Beth Murphy.
A company built by three Rhode Island natives is bound to be committed to growing in the Ocean State, although that growth comes from clients all over the U.S.
“We’re based in Rhode Island, but we have clients in Massachusetts, New York, Michigan and California,” said Aaron Ware of Coventry, one of Linchpin’s three owners.
“The Web is so big, we like to say we work everywhere,” said Ware. “We don’t have a sales team. Our clients are mostly by word of mouth.”
Some of Linchpin’s projects do start out locally, often with the Providence startup-accelerator Betaspring.
“We started working with Autobike on their website and arranging photography for them,” said Michael J. Chevalier of Providence, one of the Linchpin partners.
Autobike, an automatic-shifting bicycle founded on the goal “evolve the bike,” was created by two men from Detroit. The bikes are now selling across the country.
“They went back to Detroit and we still work with them,” said Chevalier. “We’ve worked with some other startups on brand development, marketing strategies and e-commerce. It’s fun to work with companies like that. They’re enthusiastic about their projects and we can see them grow.”
Linchpin has done work for Smithfield-based FGX International, one of the world’s leading designers and marketers of many brands of sunglasses, including Foster Grant.
Linchpin also works with East Greenwich-based Civil, a skate, shoe and clothing shop that’s expanded to a second store in Providence.
Focusing on its range of talent, skills and creative ideas, Linchpin does collaborate with other creative professionals to complete the range of needed skills for client needs.
The name Linchpin symbolizes a network of services and clients, held together by a strong and simple device.
“A linchpin is a very simple piece of metal that holds together a complex machine, like an axle in a car,” said Ware. “We offer our clients a lot of services, like website creation, branding, application development, e-commerce, social media campaigns, iPhone apps,” said Ware.


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After a string of funding problems that have delayed the release of its first car, Faraday Future announced Tuesday that production would start by July 2022 at an assembly plant in Central California.
Irvine-based architecture firm Ware Malcomb is set to finalize the building's design and engineering for an automobile plant in Hanford, California. Faraday says the 1.1-million square-foot building can produce 10,000 vehicles per year when it's up and running.
Faraday Future, which announced a $3.4 billion SPAC merger in January with Property Solutions Acquisition Corp (PSAC), said last March a $100 million debt financing would allow it to begin production on the FF91 electric vehicle in Hanford. Until now, it hasn't delivered on its production promises for the consistently delayed luxury EV.
"FF has already completed significant investment at our Hanford manufacturing facility, and with the additional funding from our merger with PSAC, we anticipate that the plant will be up and running in the near future," CEO Carsten Breitfeld said in the announcement.
Faraday Future's Facility in Hanford, California
The luxury FF91 SUV is set to compete with vehicles like the Tesla Model X. Faraday promised the FF91 would go from 0-60 mph in 2.4 seconds, while it featured a tech-heavy interior. Customers were asked to put down $5,000 for a refundable deposit for the car that most recently was supposed to begin production at the end of 2020.
The Gardena-based startup will also work with Tesla manufacturing partner Myoung Shin to make more vehicles in South Korea, including models other than its 1,050-horsepower debut electric car. Faraday said it secured a former General Motors plant there for additional production capacity, although it didn't specify on production capacity.
The company was founded in 2014 and showed a high-performance electric supercar at the 2016 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. But the following year, it unveiled the more mainstream FF91.
It leased the Hanford facility in 2017 after canceling plans to build a $1 billion plant near Las Vegas, even though construction had already started. But money problems had beset Faraday Future since 2016 and continued to delay the start of production for the FF91 and other models were dropped from its plans. The company furloughed hundreds of workers in 2018 and sold its Gardena headquarters in 2019 to raise cash.
Its co-founder and former CEO, Jia Yueting, was also caught in a financial scandal. His assets in China were frozen and he moved to California permanently, where he spent millions on homes and other purchases. Jia filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy in the United States in 2019.
The controversy with Jia also resulted in then-chief technology officer Ulrich Kranz and chief financial officer Stefan Krause to leave the company. Kranz and Krause later founded Torrance-based Canoo Inc. (Kranz recently left Canoo for Apple).
Faraday Future didn't elaborate on how many additional vehicles it hopes to produce in South Korea or how many additional markets it plans to enter, but the company said it's brought on key people to ramp-up assembly. In March, the company hired a former Jaguar Land Rover executive to establish operations in China.
- Faraday Future Looks to Grow in China - dot.LA ›
- Faraday Future Strikes Deal with China's Top Auto Group - dot.LA ›
Los Angeles provides one of the best models for creating incentives to encourage people to buy electric cars — even if those various programs and qualifications can be confusing to navigate.
Nationally, the electric vehicle (EV) sector is growing at a rapid clip. President Biden continues his efforts to add electric vehicle chargers across the country and speed up EV adoption, and a number of new electric vehicles are coming to market in the near future, with established automakers like General Motors, Honda and Volvo setting deadlines to go all-electric. Meanwhile, startups like Fisker, Lucid and Rivian are slated to start delivering vehicles to reservation holders over the next year, and Tesla continues to report sales gains every quarter.
The push for EV is especially strong in California, where Governor Gavin Newsom signed an executive order last year banning the sale of new cars with internal combustion engines by 2035.
Among the most significant barriers to EV is price; even Elon Musk admits the vehicles have to come down in price before they'll see widespread adoption. Yet while electric cars have considerably higher price tags than comparable gasoline-powered models, a slew of manufacturer incentives and government subsidies have helped offset the cost.
"Some states have a more welcoming approach, while others only complicate the matter and make it harder for consumers to make the switch," said Robby DeGraff, an auto industry analyst for automotive marketing research firm AutoPacific. "There's a lot of work that needs to be done by the Biden administration and thankfully there's ambition for change to happen."
Southern California residents — especially those living in L.A. — are best positioned to take advantage of existing rebates and incentives. In addition to the maximum $1,500 California Clean Fuel Reward and $7,500 maximum federal EV tax credit, L.A. residents can get a $500 rebate toward the purchase of a Level 2 EV home charger through the the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP), which replenishes a battery pack far more quickly than a standard 120-volt household outlet. LADWP also kicks in an additional $250 if EV owners install a separate meter for the vehicle charger — an offer that takes advantage of a discounted electricity rate of 2.5 cents per kilowatt hour on base period charging. That period runs on weekends and between 8 PM and 10 AM on weekdays.
"There are a number of barriers to adopting electric vehicle technology, including affordability," said Kianiwai Jones, LADWP's assistant supervisor of electric transportation programs. "More incentives at every level will be key to adoption."
As far as Jones can see, people seem to be latching onto the incentive programs. She says she fields fewer questions from customers concerned about the cost of a home charger than in years past.
But the learning curve around charging still exists, Jones says, particularly when it comes to managing power usage during peak hours. "You charge based on what you need, and not as fast and as quick as possible," Jones said. "If you're going to charge overnight and you have 8 to 10 hours, it's going to impact your bill differently. If you increase your electric usage, you're going to increase your bill. But that's offset by the fact that you're not using gasoline."
LADWP offers a $1,500 rebate towards the purchase of an EV between 2 and 8 years old. (Some used EVs can be a bargain on their own: A five-year-old Nissan Leaf, for example, can cost under $10,000.) Applicants don't have to have utility bills in their name, but must prove they live in the utility's coverage area and use the service.
"We're very focused on equity, not only to increase (EV) adoption in general, but so that low-income and disadvantaged residents have access," Jones said. "The used EV market is the more affordable market and we want to promote that further."
LADWP customers have taken notice of the used EV rebate program, with 1,106 participants in 2020 versus just 634 in 2019.
Used EVs have some limitations, the first of which being that these older EVs were originally designed to go around 100 miles on a full charge, not the 200-plus that's rapidly becoming the perceived minimum. And the batteries aren't new, either.
"Battery degradation has been and will continue to be somewhat of a concern for used EVs, but then again not everyone needs 200-300 miles of range, especially if you have a home charger," DeGraff said. Electric cars have historically counted for barely 1% of all vehicles in the U.S., so the pool of used examples is vastly smaller than that of conventionally powered cars.
But there's a potential downside to EV buyers' wide range of subsidy options: With all of the different agencies offering different programs, customers may find themselves in a maze of qualifications.
Electric cars from General Motors and Tesla no longer qualify for the $7,500 federal tax credit because those automakers have reached the 200,000-unit cap for that incentive. Nissan, which will add the electric-only Ariya SUV to its lineup next year, is likely to hit that ceiling next.
The GREEN Act, introduced in Congress in February by California Rep. Mike Thompson (D-St. Helena) would lower the tax credit to a $7,000 maximum but raise the cap to 600,000 cars. But there hasn't been movement on the bill since it was introduced. President Biden also wants to give direct rebates to EV customers, but that's also stuck as part of his $2.25 trillion infrastructure plan.
In California, the incentive of up to $2,000 under the Clean Vehicle Rebate Project has been exhausted as of April 23 and a waitlist has opened up until the state Legislature decides what to do with it. It's effectively been replaced by the California Clean Fuel Reward, with a rebate of up to $1,500 for any new plug-in vehicle. (The California Clean Fuel Reward grants a rebate at the point of purchase and allows the buyer to apply the rebate upfront, rather than issuing the rebate weeks later—as most programs do.)
The LADWP home charger program was set to expire this month and the used EV incentive next year, but Jones says both programs are expected to be renewed. LADWP's board of water and power commissioners has given the go-ahead to the agency to fund the programs until 2028 or until they're no longer deemed necessary.
The utility company programs are also funded with assistance from the California Air Resources Board and its low-carbon fuel standard and cap-and-trade programs. CARB currently runs the Clean Cars 4 All program that offers low-to-middle income residents in various counties including Los Angeles County up to $9,500 to scrap their qualifying gasoline vehicle and replace it with an EV. The Clean Vehicle Assistance Program offers those customers grants of as much as $5,000 and lower finance rates towards the purchase of a plug-in vehicle. But CARB anticipates those programs will run out of funding by July without indication they will be renewed.
Jones says LADWP has worked with Plug In America, a nonprofit group advocating electric vehicles, to help consumers and dealers navigate the qualifications for the various incentives before any sale of a vehicle is completed. Dealers around LADWP's service area can become certified as EV experts to better inform customers looking to purchase a plug-in vehicle.
"Understanding your specific situation and your behavior is going to be important," Jones said. "We do have people who are ready and willing to help the customers. It's just a smart way to reduce the impact."
Lead illustratio by Ian Hurley.
- LA Has Become a Magnet for EV Charging Station Startups. - dot.LA ›
- Fisker's Losses Mount as Ocean EV Production Looms - dot.LA ›
- EVgo Will Work with GM on Its Nationwide EV Charging Network ... ›
The electric car company Canoo made a weak Wall Street debut on Tuesday after completing a reverse merger with Hennessy Capital Acquisition.
The Torrance-based startup, trading on the Nasdaq under the ticker symbol GOEV, closed the session down 3.1%, falling from $22.75 a share.
The company offers a subscription electric car that is slated for release in 2022 and has touted its "skateboard platform" design. Last week, Canoo unveiled its second vehicle, a delivery van that starts at $33,000.
The startup inked a deal earlier this year with Hyundai Motor Group to build its futuristic modular minivan that consumers can rent through a subscription service.
Canoo's move is the latest in a string of electric vehicles going public via a SPAC. In October, Fisker went public following a similar merger that valued the company at around $3 billion.
The EV market is red hot. Shares for Tesla were down after its first day in the S&P 500 Monday, but its stock soared this year, making Elon Musk the second richest person in the world.
Hennessy shareholders approved the deal with Canoo on Monday. In a statement released then, Canoo CEO Tony Aquila said that "the next chapter is a very important one" as the company gears up for 2023 production.
- Canoo Unveils Electric Delivery Van a Week Before IPO - dot.LA ›
- Canoo Is Set to Go Public - dot.LA ›
- Canoo to Go Public After Shareholders Approve Merger - dot.LA ›
- LA's Xos Electric Truck-Maker Will Go Public Through SPAC - dot.LA ›
- Canoo Introduces Its New Electric Truck - dot.LA ›
- Canoo Opens Reservations for Electric Vehicles - dot.LA ›
- Canoo Will Build Its Electric Vehicles At Two New Plants In 2022 - dot.LA ›


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5 Jan 2018
While the 500X might look like a steroid-enhanced version of the Fiat 500 city car, the two have far less in common than you might think.
15 Aug 2017
The Fiat Tipo 1.6 MultiJet Lounge proves that the old adage ‘Fix It Again Tomorrow’ no longer applies.
26 Jan 2015
A new compact sports utility model is expected to pave the way to significant fresh fleet market opportunities for Fiat.
25 Jun 2018
Fiat has teamed up with traffic jam avoidance app Waze to produce the Panda Waze.
19 Jun 2018
Almost 700 customers and potential customers took the opportunity to drive a choice of 31 vehicles from FCA's five brands during the Company Car in Action event last week.
4 Jun 2018
Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) is bringing a full range of vehicles to Company Car In Action (CCIA), this year.
With a raft of difficult challenges approaching, Fleet Live gives decision-makers from fleets of all sizes the chance to speak to experts and peers about how they are preparing for the future of fleet.
Fleet News offers a range of reports, whitepapers, in-depth features and manufacturer brochures to enhance fleet decision-makers' understanding of key issues and products.
20/08/2018, £25000 - £30000/annum
Fleet News is published every fortnight, in print and digital formats.
Register now to see if you qualify for a free subscription.


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WAGs up fashion game at Allan Border Medal
Cricket's wives and girlfriends smashed it out of the park on the Allan Border Medal blue carpet, racking up the runs against their AFL counterparts
Sequins, tulle and thigh-high splits were popular, but there wasn't a shock frock in sight at cricket's night of nights on Monday.
Dani Willis, fiancee of Australian captain and Allan Border Medal winner Steve Smith, was styled by Lana Wilkinson in a tulle, baby blue gown by Oglia-Loro which featured a thigh-high split and an embellished choker.
"It's my sixth Allan Border Medal and every other year, I've worn a fitted silhouette, so I just wanted to have a bit of fun and try something different this year," she told AAP.
Belinda Clark Award winner Ellyse Perry was among the last to hit the blue carpet in a navy Rebecca Vallance gown.
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When most people think of charitable donations, they think food and money, not blazers and vests. But for a man in need, a suit can turn a life around, according to Moores’ suit drive.
The cross-country campaign is looking for donations of gently used suits and professional wear to help disadvantaged men get back in the workforce.
This year, Rick Campanelli, co-host of ET Canada, has partnered with Moores Clothing for Men to help promote the campaign.
“It’s a great help to these guys transitioning into the workplace who may not be able to afford a suit. Suits are pretty expensive these days,” said Campanelli, who was better known as “Rick the Temp” during his time at Much Music.
“For a guy who’s fallen on some hard times and looking to bounce back in a strong way, putting a suit on them, that’s a huge way that it will help in getting a job.”
Campanelli deeply believes in the confidence a suit can give a man.
“I never used to wear a suit. I used to work at Much Music and I used to wear shorts, jeans, hoodies, hats. But ever since I started working at ET Canada I was basically forced to wear a suit, because that’s the uniform of the job,” he said.
“It’s pretty indescribable. When you put a suit on, you just feel like you can accomplish anything. I can’t speak for other guys, but a nice suit, a nice tie, nice shoes and I kind of feel invincible. It’s like Superman putting his cape on.”
Moores’ hopes to receive 50,000 suits nationwide. The suits will go to 60 local organizations across Canada, one of which is the Single Parents Association of Newfoundland (SPAN).
SPAN has been a beneficiary of the program for the last several years; it usually receives around 100 to 125 suits each drive. Projects co-ordinator Elaine Balsom says that while professional attire is expensive, it is vital for single parents trying to make it in the workforce.
“If they’re going out into agencies and different businesses then they need to be appropriately dressed,” she said.
“Clothing is expensive, and not everyone has the ability to go out and purchase a wardrobe or business attire. If you have professional clothing and you want to donate it, you’re actually going to enable someone to use that and perhaps secure employment. It allows them to move on in their life and start a new path.”
However, Balsom stressed that formal clothing is not just necessary for the workforce.
“We’ve had people come in and need a suit for a wedding or a funeral,” she said.
“By providing these suits and other business wear, we’re removing some of the barriers that are stopping them from doing things that a lot of us take for granted.”
SPAN runs a clothing bank every two weeks, and Balsom says the number of people who take advantage of it is “unreal”— around 200-300 people per month.
The organization also offers an employment readiness program aimed at giving single parents the skills and knowledge they need to get back in the workforce.
“It enhances their self-esteem. It enhances their confidence. We have people who went through our program, and some of them are now executives of various companies throughout the city. We have crane operators. We have one lady who’s working with the town of Paradise, snowclearing. The success rate is so high and we’re so pleased.”
Donations of suits, shirts, jackets, pants, ties, belts, shoes, as well as women’s professional clothing can be dropped off at Moores’
St, John’s location, 41 Kelsey Drive, until July 31. After donating, customers receive 50 per cent off their next Moores’ purchase.
“Any gently used clothing that you’re not using anymore or (is) just sitting under your bed, we’ll take anything.” said Campanelli.
“Belts, ties, shoes, pocket squares. Any little thing that you see around your home that you’re not using and you think could be put towards helping someone out in life.
“I don’t think people realize how important the deed is that they’re doing. It could be very little. This is going to go to someone who could really use this article of clothing, so it’s an amazing thing.”


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Like many Americans across the country, Wenqiong Xue has been fanatically making face masks for two weeks, using ripped bedsheets and a sewing machine that she dusted off from a closet in her Boston area house.
But the homemaker in Medfield, Massachusetts, is more than just a mask maker — she has become a mask advocate, long before President Donald Trump’s coronavirus task force is expected to recommend that Americans begin wearing face coverings in public.
A Beijing native who has lived in the US since 1985, Xue said many Chinese Americans like her realized early on the importance of wearing masks in stopping the spread of the deadly virus, thanks to a steady stream of news reports and expert opinions from China, the original epicenter of the global pandemic.
“We all read so much about what was happening in Wuhan on WeChat,” she said, referring to the popular social media platform that has become a major information source for the Chinese diaspora. “We knew how serious the outbreak was and started being careful much earlier than other Americans.”
Xue and other members of a local WeChat group sewed more than 1,300 masks within a week, delivering them to several local hospitals. But even when the medical institutions advised them not to send in any more handmade masks, Xue didn’t stop — shifting her focus to the general public.
Trying to convince most Americans about the usefulness of wearing masks hasn’t been easy, though, due to long-held cultural beliefs. Xue said even her adult children, born and raised in the US, have been resistant to the idea.
“To me, wearing a mask feels natural,” she said. “But they think it’s weird — they think I’m overreacting.”
Xue remains undaunted, determined to shine a spotlight on the topic as she believes Americans are lagged behind in self-protection due to lack of accurate information.
Feeling heartened by the sight of a growing number of people wearing masks outdoors — observed during her occasional grocery shopping trips — Xue thinks new US government guidance on the issue would not only prompt more Americans to cover their faces in public but also spur the demand for DIY masks.
“When I see my non-Chinese friends here, I tell them to wear a mask outside,” she said, adding that she just ordered more bedsheets online. “I say to them, I’ll make you one if you don’t have it.”


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The 8 million iPhones that Apple sold in China last quarter are a lot like exotic pets: They're cute and they make great gifts for rich young men to give to their girlfriends. But outside of their native ecosystem, their survival prospects don't look very good.
The unexpected sales boom in China (8 million is my rough estimate) went a long way toward offsetting the company's less-than-robust performance in the U.S. market and helps explain Apple's record-breaking profits. Analysts and investors are excited by Apple's performance in China, but predictions of the company's sustained growth there are premature.
In its native U.S. ecosystem, the iPhone functions beautifully. But take it to China and the device just isn't very happy. To start with, more than half of the 30 million iPhone users in China have unlocked their phones (a hint that something isn't right) and are using them on an unauthorized network (China Mobile) that until recently limited them to 2G data speeds. Try accessing Youku (China's version of YouTube) on a 2G network. Probably not going to happen.
And then there's the problem of input. Apple's U.S.-centric R&D efforts have failed to produce a Chinese-friendly input system. This is a serious problem, because texting is an integral part of Chinese life. Rather than use the laborious system that Apple designed (reminiscent of early Chinese input systems), many Chinese iPhone owners jailbreak their phones and install third-party software that drastically simplifies the process.
Jailbreaking is wildly popular for other reasons too. It allows Chinese users to download any of the App Store applications for free and facilitates access to third-party applications, which is important because applications designed specifically for China are few and far between in the App Store. Music and movies also can be downloaded for free and shared with others on iPhone user forums.
Siri — the most attractive new feature driving iPhone 4S sales — does not work in Chinese and even struggles in English if you have a strong Chinese accent. Finally, warranties are invalidated by the unlocking and jailbreaking, which is a good thing since 30 million iPhone owners would quickly overwhelm the six official Apple stores in China.
So Chinese users are cobbling together an iPhone experience from a variety of sources, and the overall experience is not very good. The comment Tim Cook made to analysts recently suggesting that Apple is focused on delivering a phone with "off-the-charts user experience that customers want to use every day of their lives" sounds like pure hyperbole from the Chinese perspective.
A lot (if not most) of the new iPhone users in China are women, and many women I spoke to said they had acquired their phones as gifts from husbands or rich boyfriends.The iPhone may very well be the best smart phone on the planet when it's living in its own ecosystem, but its functionality and user experience quickly dissipate when it leaves its natural environment. And then there's the price — $700 in a country where managers typically make $1,000 a month.