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Apr 04, 2013 Dave King
Experts believe that the global economy is rapidly moving toward a more cashless landscape, where cards, checks and mobile payments take up the entirety of the transaction processing market. Companies that have taken the most proactive approach to the electronic payments trend, such as through the implementation of ACH cards for payroll, are likely to be at a competitive advantage in the coming years.
However, enterprises must take progressive steps when it comes to electronically stored information security, as hackers have been targeting all types of businesses with vulnerabilities in their data storage and transfer processes. While adherence to Payment Card Industry Data Security Standards is key for any business that handles consumer, employee or corporate financial information, simple compliance is often not enough to maintain complete control.
Advanced security software, progressive information governance and retention strategies are crucial in the modern era, especially for companies that are just now beginning to launch electronic payments initiatives. By implementing the necessary support structures and maintaining strict oversight of all accounts payable and receivable activity, enterprises of all sizes can avoid the various risks and capitalize on the increasing popularity of digital commerce.
Payment card fraud on the rise
CFO recently reported that a new study from the Association for Financial Professionals revealed that while check fraud remains the most prevalent threat to corporate data, card fraud is a persistent issue. ACH card and wire transfer fraud can lead to a variety of serious issues for any business, including hurt reputations, incurred financial losses and crippling sanctions from regulators.
According to the news provider, the AFP's Payments Fraud and Control Survey revealed that more than 60 percent of organizations were either targeted for victimized by card data thieves last year. The bright side was that this represented a slight decline from the 66 percent recorded in the 2011 version of the same report.
The source explained that 63 percent of respondents had experienced some form of check fraud, which illustrates the importance of keeping a close eye on all accounts payable and receivable activity. The most damaging attacks on ACH card systems and other automated payments are those that go on for long periods of time undetected.
CFO noted that the overwhelming majority of respondents said that they increased electronic payments activity in 2012, and intend to continue moving away from paper-based transactions in 2013. More than 80 percent of the respondents to the AFP survey stated that this trend has intensified in their businesses.
Finally, the news provider added that ACH card debits, as well as corporate cards, were more often targeted by cyber criminals in 2011. Nearly 30 percent of the respondents to the survey said that they had experienced some form of attack on ACH debit accounts.
Costliness of negligence
The Financial Post recently reported that Human Resources and Skills Development Canada lost the financial data of more than 500,000 individuals in the North American nation following an event in 2012. According to the news provider, this led to serious issues, including a severely damaged reputation among current and prospective clients, as well as monumental financial losses.
The source explained that the firm's defenses might not have been adequate, which led to the attack, while one expert asserted that the use of simple firewalls and haphazard policies will not be enough to stop the modern cyber criminal. The Financial Post suggested that all enterprises train employees in the best practices of handling personal, financial and corporate data, as this will improve the efficacy of policies in place.
Additionally, the news provider noted that one-fifth of U.S. and Canadian businesses that manage financial information will likely experience one event that leads to loss annually.


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Despite huge ambition, Medal of Honor's VR adventure fails to go beyond the Call of Duty.
Bustin' makes me feel good.
Bigger and more feature-rich than last year's 4000 Series.
EBay has said it plans to overhaul its feedback system, and as a result it will prevent sellers from leaving negative feedback about their customers.
According to the Wall Street Journal, freebie VoIP specialists Skype face a possible multi-billion dollar take over from auction giant eBay.
December 11 2020 | 17:30
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domain: news


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Google began using BERT technology and other machine learning methods to group related news.
Algorithms generate grouped news in a carousel and show them in the “Top Stories” section of the search results.
The innovation will help users easily find the latest news on a topic, find out the context of a story, understand which story is interesting to him, and learn more about it.
For example, at the request of NASA News, the search engine can show results grouped by the subjects “NASA adds five companies to moon bid” and “NASA detects water vapor on Jupiter’s moon Europa”, as well as additional results in
the section “Also in the News”.
Before And After
Google explained that it uses new technology to identify related stories. To group news, the search engine uses various machine learning models, including BERT, which helps understand where
one story ends and another begins.
According to Google, the grouping will help people navigate the news search better and find more relevant content.
Due to the constant updates of Google algorithms, it is necessary to carry out regular and comprehensive work on your website SEO.
Starting December 11th, the update has been launched on mobile devices in the United States for requests in English. In the next few months, Google will roll out a new feature in other languages and countries.
Source: Search Engine Journal


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Updated on June 6, 2017 at 8:14 AM
Posted on June 6, 2017 at 8:13 AM
CAVA, a "fast casual restaurant" specializing in Mediterranean food, is opening two New Jersey locations this year. (Courtesy photo)
By Joseph Atmonavage
Within the next few months, New Jersey will have two new quick dining options as CAVA, a “fast casual restaurant” specializing in Mediterranean cuisine, is opening locations in Jersey City and Paramus.
“We’re thrilled to bring our craveable and balanced food style to northern New Jersey,” said Lindsey Cohen, a company spokeswoman. “Our growth along the East Coast has been humbling and exciting as we continue to bring CAVA to more diverse communities.”
The Jersey City location plans to open at 30 Montgomery St., a prime spot near the city’s quickly developing waterfront, during the summer. (An exact date has yet to be announced.)
The Paramus store will be at the The Outlets at Bergen Town Center and is scheduled to open at some point this fall.
The inaugural locations in New Jersey are part of CAVA’s expansion into the Greater New York City region, which includes six new restaurants in the area by the end of 2017. There is one location already open in Union Square. Nationwide, the company is on track to open more than 20 restaurants in 2017, bringing their total to over 40.
Customers have the option to customize their meals. The made-to-order restaurant allows patrons to pick a “base” (salad, grain bowl, pita, etc.), then add dips and spreads (tzatziki, hummus, eggplant and red pepper dip, etc.), pick a protein (falafel, spicy lamb meatballs, grilled chiken, etc.) and finally, cap it off with various toppings (cabbage slaw, kalamata olives, shredded romaine, etc.)
Even though CAVA is opening its first stores in New Jersey, residents may be familiar with their dips and spreads that are available at over 200 Whole Foods Markets and other specialty grocery stores nationwide.
Childhood friends Ted Xenohristos, Ike Grigoropoulos, and executive chef Dimitri Moshovitis, founded the chain in 2011 after having success with Cava Mezze, a full-service restaurant mini-chain with locations in Maryland and Washington D.C.


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The Tyler Perry media empire may soon expand to include the cable channels BET and VH1, if Perry himself gets his wish. As reported by The Wall Street Journal, Perry has "expressed interest" in purchasing a majority stake in the BET Media Group. The sale would include both the namesake cable channel, VH1 and production company BET Studios. The seller in the potential deal is current parent company Paramount Global.
Tyler Perry has a long relationship with both BET and Paramount, having an overall production deal through his company Tyler Perry Studios to create films and television shows for the network.
Paramount is seeking a sale of BET Media Group in order to devote more resources to its online streaming platforms Paramount+ and Pluto TV. And Variety reports that Perry currently has several projects broadcast on BET and streaming on BET+, including "House of Payne," "Sisters," "The Oval," "Ruthless," "Zatima," and "Assisted Living." Perry already holds a minority stake in BET+, the channel's own online streaming counterpart.
That minority stake makes it trickier for Paramount to fold BET and VH1 into its streaming platform the way it recently announced it was doing with Showtime and Paramount+, another reason the sale could make sense for both parties. According to a source said to be close to the negotiations, the business partnership between Paramount and BET would continue even after the latter's potential change of ownership.
According to one report, Paramount turned down an offer of $3 billion to sell Showtime outright, but instead opted to incorporate it into its streaming portfolio. It's all part of the company's overall strategy to get rid of assets that it can't fold into streaming, while bringing in some extra revenue at a time when it's spending a lot on new streaming content at the same time.
BET was founded by Robert L. Johnson back in 1980. The network was acquired by Viacom (now known as Paramount Global) in 2000, for $2.3 billion worth of stock, as well as $570 million in assumed corporate debt. The sale temporarily made Johnson a billionaire. He lost his billionaire status for two reasons:
1) On the day the deal was announced in October 2000, Viacom stock was trading at around $40 a share. Within a year as the economy collapsed after 9/11, Viacom's share price dropped nearly in half. By 2009, Viacom stock was trading below $8 a share.
2) In 2002, Robert and his wife of 33 years, Sheila Johnson, filed for divorce. Robert ultimately agreed to pay Sheila $400 million worth of cash and stock.
How much a deal to buy the brand from Paramount might cost Tyler Perry is unknown, but with a nearly billion-dollar net worth and tons of wealthy backers, he can probably afford a hefty asking price. Neither he nor Paramount has commented publicly on the matter yet.


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As technology advances, online lottery games are becoming increasingly popular. They provide consumers with lower initial investments and increased returns. Blockchain-based systems are decentralized and rely on a network of nodes made up of players. These technologies allow players to have a more immersive gaming experience while ensuring transparency. However, online lottery players still face some risks.
In the United States, there are only seven states that offer online lottery games. Federal legislation on online gaming is still in flux, and states are making their own decisions on the issue. While the technology has become more advanced, legal and social considerations remain. Some states may not allow online lottery games, while others may not allow them at all. However, online lotteries can be a great option for people who want to play lotto games without traveling to the lottery office.
One of the biggest advantages of playing online lottery games is the high odds. Players can win large cash prizes even if they only play a small number of numbers. Moreover, players can focus better on the game, as online lottery websites are optimized for desktop access. Some of these websites also have an online chat support center.
Internet usage has increased globally, which is good news for online lottery companies. Faster internet speeds and the increasing availability of smartphones have prompted more consumers to play online.


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Published 8 November 2019
The London EDITION has announced its annual Christmas tree is this year being designed in collaboration with British artist and designer Luke Edward Hall. To be revealed on 19 November in The London EDITION’s lobby, renowned florist designer Mark Colle has created a six-metre-structure covered with fresh pine greens, to provide a blank canvas for Hall’s design.
This year’s tree, named ‘A Christmas Dream’, will be an alternative and more playful version of a traditional tree. Hundreds of colourful lights, vintage baubles and oversized decorations will cover the tree, along with bows, tinsel and Hall’s own cut-out illustration.
Hall will dress the tree himself on 18 November for passers-by to witness. The highlight will be the golden galleon, an object which Hall intends to be representative of the notion of drifting into a dream. Standing at almost twenty feet, the tree is sure to impress guests.
Speaking about the collaboration, Hall said ‘my Christmas tree for The London EDITION is a riot of colour and theatrical ornament which I hope will invoke the joy of Christmas in all its glittery, shimmering wonder.’
Hall follows an illustrious line of previous Christmas tree collaborations at The London EDITION, such as Zoe Bradley last year, who designed a snowflake tree decorated with 160 hand-sculpted paper snowflakes, taking over 100 hours to create.
Upon being unveiled on 19 November, the tree will be on display until the New Year.
To have the latest industry news delivered to your inbox, subscribe to the Bulletin here


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Bethesda’s E3 2019 press conference brought us a few new games, a lot of dragon love, and most importantly, a good long look at the upcoming Doom Eternal. In addition, a release date for the title was also announced.
November 22, 2019 is the date that we can expect the follow up to ID Software’s excellent Doom reboot. Hugo Martin (Creative Director) and Marty Stratton (Executive Producer) got on stage to reveal the date alongside a new story trailer and the announcement of a new multiplayer mode, titled Battlemode.
Battlemode appears to be an asynchronous multiplayer mode, where two player-controlled demons take on another who controls a Doom person. The demons will have different abilities and playstyles, and more information will be revealed at Quakecon. Bethesda also revealed the collector’s edition of Doom Eternal, which comes with a wearable Doom helmet. Because, of course.
from GameSpot – Game News https://www.gamespot.com/articles/bethesda-e3-2019-doom-eternal-release-date-announc/1100-6467582/


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A week after the Call of Duty: Mobile faced strong criticism associated with some gambling-like microtransactions from the community, the video game developers responded to the accusations and suggested what measures could be taken so that the situation is improved.
Lately, the popularity of Call of Duty: Mobile has been on the rise, with considerable seasonal updates providing players with new gameplay opportunities on a monthly basis. The new additions to the game have included various updates, including new maps, game modes and new content.
The popular video game could be constantly evolving, but it has fuelled some controversy and faced some criticism for the outdated microtransaction model that is being used by it. For the time being, plates are given the chance to purchase some items directly, although a large number of features are associated with randomized loot boxes.
At first, loot boxes and microtransactions provisions were not a huge deal. However, they soon became an issue, as players made a comparison between the prices in the Call of Duty: Mobile store to the ones offered in Modern Warfare. After an increasing number of players reported that they have been spending hundreds of dollars and barely get any rare or special item to make progress in the game, the video game developers were forced to respond to the accusations.
CoD Game Developers Say on Reddit They Will Continue Reading Customer Feedback
As CasinoGamesPro reported at the time, the existing microtransaction system in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare disappointed many players, as the guaranteed purchases disproportionately surpassed the ones offered by the game’s mobile version.
The last few years saw considerable changes to be brought to the video games monetization system, with the microtransactions available in the Call of Duty being no exception. The Community Update held on September 25th saw the developers touched on all kinds of upcoming challenges and new content, but they also took their time to address the controversy.
As a response, they reminded that in April 2020 they hosted a test involving all Call of Duty: Modern Warfare on a global scale to check the bundles’ popularity in comparison to loot crates distributed by a random number generator (RNG). Now, CoD developers revealed that based on the layer behavior and the feedback they received from the community, they arrived at an approach that provided users with maximum choice. However, they have not unveiled a prioritized singular method for Call of Duty: Mobile. Instead, the video game developers shared that all types of features would be available, including a credit store, draws, bundles, crates, etc.
All of the aforementioned methods are available to every CoD player as part of the developers’ efforts to offer maximum choice to their customers. They have also highlighted the fact that many options are available, no matter if players pay for a bundle outright or purchase an unlock through points.
In a post on Reddit, the Call of Duty developers explained that they would continue taking their customers’ feedback into account and discussing new ways to add further improvements that would enhance the customer experience.


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London’s Low Emission Zone (LEZ) is set to become more stringent. A wider scope of commercial vehicles will be covered by the rules of the LEZ, with the SMMT suggesting that 30% of vans on UK roads could be affected.
Businesses already struggling to manage spiralling transportation costs could be hit by the new charges, starting at £100 a day when driving within the M25, if their commercial vehicles are more than 10 years old. Europcar, the leader in car hire services in Europe, is therefore urging businesses to think about van hire as a cost-effective alternative, rather than using their own older vehicles when coming into the LEZ. With van hire from Europcar starting at just £19 a day for a broad choice of van types and the flexibility to hire by the hour, it could provide a crucial lifeline.
“The new tighter emissions standards coming into force on 3rd January 2012 mean that every business operating within Greater London needs to reassess their fleet to ensure they fall within the LEZ guidelines”, explained Ken McCall, Managing Director, Europcar Group UK. “And this could have a very real impact on businesses, at a time when they are already juggling costs. “Not many businesses will want – or necessarily be able to afford - to replace older vehicles in their fleet. That’s why we believe, faced with a charge of £100 per day, or more, if their vehicles don’t comply, van hire is a real alternative. With Europcar van hire starting at £19 a day and just £29 for overnight bookings, we are playing a vital role in helping small businesses keep moving and keep costs down when they drive into London’s LEZ.
“We also offer immense flexibility and choice. With one way hire on vans, a business that needs to make a delivery into London can do so cost-effectively without having to worry about getting the vehicle back to where they picked it up. They can simply drop it off at the nearest convenient Europcar location to their delivery destination. The fact that we offer van hire by the hour is a further advantage for businesses and the choice of vans on our fleet, including Car-derived vans (CDV), Short-Wheel Base (SWB), Long-Wheel Base (LWB), Box and Luton vans as well as minibuses, means we can cater for most business needs.” The LEZ operates 24 hours a day, every day of the year, including weekends and public and Bank Holidays and aims to encourage those driving the most polluting diesel vehicles driving in London, to become cleaner. To avoid the daily charge, vehicle owners need to ensure they meet strict emission standards, which could mean fitting a filter or replacing older vehicles – a solution that many businesses may not be able to afford. Businesses who want to find out more about the LEZ should visit the Tfl website.


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Founded by Jasper Cuppaidge, the brewery started full production in 2010. It now has a team of 95 people, selling 12m pints in 2015, with beer available in more than 1,000 pubs. Distribution includes bars, restaurants and retailers in the UK, as well as Sweden, Australia and Japan.
Cuppaidge said the offer from AB InBev was a rare opportunity, that will allow Camden to go from ‘an outstanding London brewer to a world famous one’.
Camden Town Brewery raised £2.7m ($4m) through crowd funding earlier this year as it launched plans for a second brewery in London.
It says the partnership with ABInBev will support the new facility, which will employ 30 more people. It will also enable the brewer to ‘brew more of its own distinctive beers and continue to innovate, while maintaining its focus on quality.’
The second brewery will also allow it to move all of its production back to London (while canned and bottled beer is produced in Camden, some of its kegged beer is currently made in Belgium).
‘Hey - We’re only doing what’s best for our business’
Camden Town Brewery took to Twitter as the announcement was made yesterday, as investors and craft beer fans quizzed its strategy.
It says that the deal with AB InBev will give it the security it needs to continue with the new brewery.
Financial details of the deal have not been disclosed, and the deal is expected to close by January 7.


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Pepsi also benefits from an unfiltered conduit to consumers. "It's nice to be able to have that direct conversation with them, and not have to rely on a specific media channel to push this, or buy TV constantly to push that message," he says.
While Pepsi has made considerable strides, Solis cautions that all brands are in the early stage of learning how to interact through this dynamic medium. Companies "still have a lot of learning to do" over what they—and consumers—expect from social media, he says. "Somewhere in the middle is where the future of this is."


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DC Comics has announced it is bringing new DC Super Hero Girls our way in October from comics writer Amy Wolfram.
“I’m very excited to be working on DC Super Hero Girls,” stated Wolfram. “Not only do we get to see these iconic superheroes in action as they protect Metropolis, we also get to peek behind the masks and capes to see their secret identities as they deal with an even greater challenge–being a teenager in high school!”
The first book in the series will be DC Super Hero Girls: At Metropolis High, and will feature Batgirl, Wonder Woman, Supergirl, Green Lantern, Bumblebee and Zatanna as they try to balance their superhero lives with the school’s extracurricular activities.
DC SUPER HERO GIRLS: AT METROPOLIS HIGH
A new era of DC Super Hero Girls begins in the upcoming original graphic novel DC SUPER HERO GIRLS: AT METROPOLIS HIGH! When Batgirl, Wonder Woman, Supergirl, Green Lantern, Bumblebee and Zatanna are continually late to class because of their crime-fighting, they are told to find an after-school club for a whole week or else be suspended. But finding a club is not as easy as it looks, and when the girls keep finding themselves kicked out of the clubs, they must think outside of the box and go out of their comfort zones to avoid suspension. Just when they thought balancing school with secret identities and super-heroing had enough challenges.
DC Super Hero Girls: At Metropolis High arrives on October 9, 2019, with a cover price of $9.99.


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According to the developer, the third map is scheduled to launch in the first half of 2018 so the end of June at the latest. If nothing’s changed, this will be the previously detailed map set on an island in the Adriatic Sea, which will span 8 square kilometers and include forests in the north, coastal beaches in the south, and a snowy mountain range cutting across the center.
The developers explained that the promised developer roadmap will arrive next month, when “the team will reveal what you can expect from us in the first half of 2018 in terms of our development and new content plans which, by the way, include a new map.” Hopefully Xbox One players will also get an idea of when they can expect the game’s second map, the desert-set Miramar, to come to their console, which already has 4 million players.
Brendan “PlayerUnknown” Greene previously stated that the development team’s main goal for 2018 is making PUBG “crash-free,” but it sounds like the insane amount of cheaters and the team’s efforts to deal with them are really taking a toll on the development process.
The rest of the post focused on the team’s efforts to introduce ping-based matchmaking, as well as several fixes in the works for the next update.
PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds is available on PC and Xbox One.


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The IPO parade which continued into 2021 is not a purely domestic affair. Other countries are falling into the unicorn’s liquidity frenzy.
This week, India-based unicorn Zomato filed for an IPO for food delivery. As reported by Biomedarticles, the company intends to “list on the Indian NSE and BSE” exchanges.
Zomato’s IPO is incredibly important. Like our own Manish Singh reported a “successful listing” when the company’s numbers were released [could be] ready to encourage nearly a dozen other Indian unicorn startups to accelerate their public market entry efforts. “So Zomato’s debut is notable not only because its upcoming listing gives us a glimpse into the economy, but also because if the IPO goes well, it could lead to a surge in liquidity in the country.
The exchange examines startups, markets and money. Read it every morning at Extra Crunch or get the Exchange newsletter every Saturday.
At this point we will pause and see that India is currently experiencing a COVID-19 surge that may be unprecedented. This is where you can provide help. May the pandemic subside quickly and with as little pain as possible.
Back to Zomato: The company’s IPO filing paints the picture of a fast-growing company derailed from the pandemic. However, the unicorn has rallied rapidly in recent quarters, and its economy is maturing to the point where it can begin to find a path to long-term profitability. This morning let’s examine the numbers and find out why the company is now going public and how investors can check out recent performance.
Zomato was last valued at around $ 5.4 billion in a round in February 2021, in which $ 250 million was invested. The unicorn has raised more than $ 2 billion to date, according to Crunchbase data.
In business terms, Zomato offers more than just grocery delivery. According to the IPO filing, the company’s grocery store will be enhanced with the Eat Out feature that makes in-person dining easier, a commodities store called Hyperpure, and Zomato Pro, a consumer offering that offers grocery discounts on 1.4, adding to millions of subscribers.
So we can’t just compare the company one-to-one with Uber Eats, whose India business Zomato bought back at the time.
What we can track, however, is the company’s overall financial performance through the end of 2020. The Zomato filing does not appear to contain any information about the calendar’s Q1 2021 calendar performance. For reference, this period is the fourth quarter of the company’s fiscal year 2021.
Let’s start from a very high level:
- Fiscal year ended March 31, 2019: total revenues of $ 187.4 million and a loss before special items of $ 296.3 million.
- Fiscal year ended March 31, 2020: total revenues of $ 367.8 million and a loss before special items of $ 303.5 million
- Nine months ended December 31, 2020: total revenues of $ 183.4 million and a loss before special items of $ 47.8 million


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Intel that officially launched its latest Pentium 4 chip in Sri Lanka says, a new innovation in the chip will increase PC performance.
The chip uses software, which Intel calls Hyper Threading.
online pharmacy buy diflucan with best prices today in the USA
rnHyper threading allows the chip to run 2 programs at the same time, by making the 3.06-giga hertz chip behave like two separate processors.
buy chloroquine online https://qpharmacorp.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/png/chloroquine.html no prescription pharmacy


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Apple's Activation Lock Website Played Key Role in Hack, Perhaps Explaining its Removal
Apple recently removed the Activation Lock status checker from its website, giving no explanation as to why a seemingly useful tool was eliminated. The Activation Lock website was designed to make sure a used device being purchased wasn't locked with Activation Lock, rendering it unusable.
As it turns out, the Activation Lock website was a vital part of a bypass hack used to unlock devices bricked by Activation Lock, perhaps hinting at why Apple shelved it.
The process is demonstrated in the video below. By changing one or two characters of an invalid serial number, hackers are able to generate a valid serial number, using the Activation Lock tool for verification purposes to make sure it's functional. That valid number, which belongs to a legitimate device owner, can then be used to unlock a previously non-functional iPhone or iPad.
The Activation Lock scheme that steals valid serial numbers from existing iOS users potentially explains a mysterious Apple ID bug that's been plaguing iPhone owners for months.
When attempting to activate a new or recently restored device, some iPhone owners have found their devices inexplicably locked to another Apple ID account - one with an unknown name and password. The problem has been affecting iPhone 6s, 6s Plus, 7, and 7 Plus models since September and can only be fixed by Apple.
Apple has not confirmed that the hack shown in the video is related to the Apple ID Activation Lock bug, but as the hack uses valid serial numbers from existing owners, it's a plausible theory. If the two are linked, it explains why the Activation Lock website was shut down so suddenly, and it should put an end to the Apple ID issue.
Introduced alongside iOS 7, Activation Lock has proven to be a successful theft deterrent. It effectively locks an iOS device to a user's Apple ID account and even when wiped, the device will continue to require an original Apple ID and password. Activation Lock is extremely difficult to bypass and has led to complicated hacks like the one in the video above to attempt to get around it.
It's not clear if Apple will provide a new Activation Lock website for customers who used it legitimately, but unless the company comes up with a method to prevent it from being misused, it seems unlikely.
Top Rated Comments
The black market for iDevices is insane. Working at Apple, we saw many resellers every day. Same guy would come in every day with 2 phones that don't turn on, are registered to someone on the other side of the country, and they don't care about the data on the device. Usually they tell some ridiculous story (in very broken english) about how it's their sister's phone and she can't be here, and it got hot and doesn't turn on, yada yada yada...They come in looking to get them swapped for new phones. Somewhere down the line I am convinced that organized crime is involved.
Phones are stolen by petty thieves on the street and out of cars...The thieves sell the phones cheap to people involved in organized crime. The phones are activation locked of course, so they can't just be resold. So they tamper with them and either switch the serial number (shown in this video) or make them unable to power on (usually by damaging certain logic board components.) Bring them to Apple, get them swapped for good new phones, and then re-sell...or better yet, illegally smuggle them back into China without paying taxes and sell them for massive profit. basically iPhone laundering
and yea, the video was not meant to be something the average user can do. But the devices could pay for themselves if say, a wealthy criminal made the initial investment and could easily re-coup with the hundreds of stolen devices he launders


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Last Updated on February 3, 2020 6:10 pm
Earth Fare announced on Monday that they will begin inventory liquidation sales at all of its stores.
“Earth Fare has been proud to serve the natural and organic grocery market, and the decision to begin the process of closing our stores was not entered into lightly. We'd like to thank our Team Members for their commitment and dedication to serving our customers, and our vendors and suppliers for their partnership,”, the company said in a statement.
Over the course of the past few years, the Company has implemented numerous strategic initiatives aimed at growth and expansion and enhancing the customer experience, the Asheville based company also said.
Pursuant to the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act (WARN), all employees have been notified of the impending closure of the company's stores and corporate office. During this time, the Company will continue to pursue a sale of assets, in whole or in parts.
According to SuperMarket News, Earth Fare has about 3,000 employees and operates 50 stores in 10 states, including Alabama (two), Florida (14), Georgia (three), Indiana (one), Michigan (one), North Carolina (13), Ohio (three), South Carolina (six), Tennessee (five) and Virginia (two).
“While many of these initiatives improved the business, continued challenges in the retail industry impeded the company's progress as well as its ability to refinance its debt. As a result, Earth Fare is not in a financial position to continue to operate on a go-forward basis. As such, we have made the difficult, but necessary decision to commence inventory liquidation sales while we continue to engage in a process to find potential suitors for our stores,” the company also said in the statement.
The company added that the inventory liquidation sales will feature a truly outstanding assortment of merchandise at very significant price reductions. We encourage shoppers to visit their nearby location now and take advantage of these savings before it's too late. Store fixtures are also available for sale as part of this process.


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(Signifyd Blog) February 21 - Not all processors are the same. So, how to choose? We turned to the experts to come up with some general guidelines for those wading into the processor search.
(BOSTON) December 20, 2017 - The good news is it probably won't be active for another couple of hundred million years.
(BOSTON) December 6, 2017 - MIT engineers have devised a 3-D printing technique that uses a new kind of ink made from genetically programmed living cells.
(SIGNIFYD BLOG) October 25, 2017 - Online retailer Dr. Dabber is so good at curtailing chargebacks that their payment processor reduced their rate by $3,000 a month.
(BOSTON) September 18 - Professor Ji has developed a computer model that can be used to measure the impact of blow during a game of football.
(SIGNIFYD BLOG) August 17, 2017 - Retailers make 20 percent of their revenue during the holiday season, the National Retail Federation says.
(BOSTON) August 10 - By eliminating a protein the company has brought the dream of decades one step closer.
(SIGNIFYD BLOG) August 3, 2017 - The online sales platform at Jerome’s Furniture was supposed to enhance customers’ buying experience. Instead, it inadvertently drove them away.
(SIGNIFYD BLOG) An organized fraud attack last holiday season was the last straw, says Travis Garrett, a co-founder of Cap That.


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With Uber’s long-awaited IPO, Facebook’s mounting controversies, and ongoing debates over drug pricing and safety issues, come a great responsibility. A big story in the innovation community now is about the... Read more »
Google. Amazon. Genentech. Those are some of the companies you’ll hear from at this year’s Napa Summit, the Xconomy Retreat on Technology, Jobs, and Growth.
This is our most special... Read more »
2018 was a year of ups and downs for the business and technology community. It was a year of big exits—both IPOs and acquisitions—for tech and life sciences companies. Venture funding... Read more »
On November 4-6, Xconomy organized a meeting of the minds—an elite gathering of leaders in technology, business, healthcare, education, and energy—to discuss and demonstrate the key trends in their fields, heading... Read more »
Bob Brennan has some pretty interesting lessons from his time working with Veracode and CloudHealth Technologies. Those are two of the bigger Boston tech exits in the past few years—the... Read more »
Two weeks from today will mark a most special occasion. Xconomy is convening top business and tech leaders from Boston and beyond for a multi-day conference to tackle the most pressing... Read more »
[Updated, 10/3/18, 1:35pm, to clarify the customer relationship] Elemental Machines is a startup making progress in a challenging field. That field would be sensors and systems that monitor and... Read more »
There’s something special brewing in Boston.
On November 4, 5, and 6, we are convening business leaders across tech, life science, and other innovation fields to showcase the big trends that... Read more »
With fall officially here, it’s time to ask some big questions about the coming year—and decade.
What will be the most transformative technology areas for society and business? What should students... Read more »
Tech giant Adobe announced Thursday it is buying marketing-software firm Marketo for $4.75 billion. The move may have a ripple effect on the realm of enterprise sales and marketing.
Marketo, based... Read more »
While the weather’s on the cool side, get ready for November.
We at Xconomy are cooking up a special treat in Boston this fall: a three-day conference on technology and transformation... Read more »
Aerospace giant Boeing has agreed to lease 100,000 square feet in an MIT-owned space in the heart of Kendall Square. The Boeing Aerospace & Autonomy Center, at 314 Main Street in... Read more »
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That’s... Read more »
It’s Amazon, not Walmart, that’s buying online pharmacy PillPack. The companies announced the deal Thursday morning but didn’t disclose any financial terms. The acquisition is expected to close in the second... Read more »
Boston-based ezCater, which runs an online food-ordering service for businesses, said today it has $100 million in new money. The Series D financing round was led by Wellington Management Company,... Read more »
Earlier this month, we held our annual “Meet the Xconomists” reception in Boston. This event is where we invite a mix of business leaders across tech, life sciences, and other sectors... Read more »
Iora Health has become of the bigger players in digital healthcare and non-traditional health systems. The Boston company just announced a $100 million Series E funding round from investors including .406... Read more »
Here’s an update on a quintessential Boston tech startup. InsightSquared, which got started in 2011, said Wednesday it has pulled in $23 million in Series D funding.
The round was... Read more »
Venture investment in logistics robot companies keeps coming. Today, Cambridge, MA-based Soft Robotics said it has raised $20 million in a new funding round led by Hyperplane Venture Capital.
The deal... Read more »
Here’s what Jeremy Hitchcock is doing for an encore: trying to secure all your home and office devices and networks. Sounds like a nightmare.
But if there’s anyone who should try,... Read more »


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|Home page Technology|
Vatsap will provide users with a once-in-a-lifetime photo and video feature.
Axar.az reports that the "View once" function is intended to help reduce the memory space on phones and conversations.
Vatsap will mark everything sent using the new feature with a "one-time" sign.
Note that the function will be launched this week.
2021.08.05 / 15:09


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Last night an event on blockchain technology was held in the heart of New York City. The event was celebrating the new and innovative book by BlockchainDriven's Blockchain Solution Architect. The event has sold out days in advance with over 150 people in attendance and took place at eBay’s NYC office, showcasing financial blockchain analyst and author of “Blockchain Applications in Finance”, Peter Borovykh, alongside several experts, all of whom discussed blockchain’s current state and its future possibilities.
Attendees networked over wine, cold beer, snacks, and all received a free copy of the book itself. But the event was more than just a book release event and networking opportunity.
Peter Borovykh has recently been featured recently in Business Insider, Inside Bitcoins, MSN, Yahoo Finance, Gizmodo, Broker .org, Smart Trends, Futurism, BTC manager and many others. Over the past few years, he has established himself as one of the premier voices of blockchain and cryptocurrency in the United States, and the release of his book solidifies him as a go-to source for information on blockchain’s developments as they happen, as well as expert predictions of its future.
He was joined by Elaine Yi, Founding Partner at Zonvon Ventures, and Gregory Rocco, Editor-in-Chief of investFeed, the first decentralized social media platform.
Elaine Li is a Founding Partner at Zonvon Ventures. Her background in Blockchain and cryptocurrencies started from her highly cited presentations of Crowdfunding in Chinese. Her contribution as chapter editor-in-chief of the Wisdom Crowdfunding book, which was oversubscribed in the crowdfunding stage, and ZonvonVentures’ investments in blockchain startups has made Elaine a noted voice in the community, particularly for businesses looking to adopt and incorporate blockchain technology.
Gregory Rocco is Editor in Chief at investFeed, a post-ICO startup that puts social media on the Blockchain. During their ICO, investFeed raised over five million dollars, helping them on their way to becoming the central source of the Blockchain community. Gregory has a history of many years in the media and has recently shifted gears, becoming a big player in the Blockchain space.
Peter discussed in depth about the contents of his new book, giving attendees a sneak preview. According to Borovykh, “The book contains high level use cases of how blockchain will impact the financial industry, good and bad. Spoiler alert: I think it’s almost entirely for good. The disintermediary quality of blockchain makes it a particularly viable option to disrupt the financial industry.”
During the event, Peter met with and answered the questions of both blockchain experts and business leaders from all industries, all of whom were excited to read the book and learn more about how blockchain will disrupt the financial industry. The room was buzzing with excitement and all attendees had great opportunities to network with the East Coast’s blockchain community and the new members that the presence of BlockchainDriven had brought into the fold. You can grab a copy of his book here.


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Hero MotoCorp Claims Rs. 1000 Crore False Expenses
Hero MotoCorp is one of the most prominent two-wheeler motorbike manufacturers in the nation. In 1984, the Honda Motor Company of Japan and the Hero Group formed a joint venture, namely Hero Honda Motors Limited. The joint venture involving India’s Hero Group and Japan’s Honda Motor Firm has developed not just the world’s largest two-wheeler corporation but also among the world’s most profitable joint ventures.
Hero Honda was the first manufacturer in India to offer four-stroke bikes, setting new benchmarks for fuel efficiency, pollution reduction, and durability. It has a well-developed distribution and service network that stretches across the nation.
During the 1980s, Hero Honda was the first firm in India to demonstrate that driving a car without polluting the roads was possible. The business debuted new bikes that set industry standards for energy efficiency and low emissions. Commuters throughout India were captivated by Hero Honda’s renowned ‘Fill it – Shut it – Forget it’ campaign, and the company sold millions of motorcycles solely on the promise of greater mileage.
Their motorcycles are now being produced in three internationally benchmarked factories. Two of these are located in Haryana, in Dharuhera and Gurgaon, respectively. At the same time, the third state-of-the-art production plant in Haridwar, Uttrakhand, was opened in April of this year. These factories have a combined capacity of 4.4 million units per year.
Today, India’s roadways are home to almost 20 million Hero Honda two-wheelers. This is nearly as numerous as the populations of Finland, Ireland, and Sweden combined. Since its start, Hero Honda has continually risen by double digits, and now, every second motorbike sold in India is a Hero Honda. Someone in India buys Hero Honda’s best-selling motorbike, the Splendor, every 30 seconds. The business sold half a million two-wheelers in a single month during the holiday season, a record in the worldwide automobile industry.
Hero Honda is always seeking to solidify its impregnable pole position in the Indian two-wheeler sector. According to the corporation, India’s shifting demographic composition increased urbanization, and rural empowerment would bring millions of new families into the economy. This would offer the necessary growth fuel to keep Hero Honda afloat for the foreseeable future. We pioneered India’s motorcycle sector, and we now should take it to the next level, says Brijmohan Lall Munjal, Chairman of Hero Honda Motors. We’ll take whatever steps are necessary to get there.
Hero MotoCorp Claims Rs. 1000 Crore False Expenses
On March 29, shares of automaker Hero Motocorp fell by more than 7% as the market responded negatively to allegations that the Income Tax Department had discovered bogus charges of Rs 1,000 crore made by the business. According to the sources, the claims connected to the fake costs were discovered during an I-T search on Hero Motocorp’s premises from March 23 to March 26. While a formal declaration is pending, it has been learned that “incriminating evidence” was discovered in physical copies and digital data.
The company stated that the suspicions were unfounded, in response to the claims. They flatly refuted the speculative news stories, claiming that the false expenditure charges are unsupported by any document served on us or our internal documentation. Shortly after the reports were released, Hero Motocorp’s shares saw a massive decline in price. At 3:15 p.m. on the BSE, the shares traded at Rs 2,206 apiece, were down 7.18 per cent from the previous day’s closing. The stock subsequently fell by 7.08 per cent to Rs 2,208.35.
Pawan Munjal is the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Hero MotoCorp, the largest motorbike and scooter manufacturer in the world. Munjal’s father, Brijmohan Lall Munjal, was the company’s founder. According to Forbes, Pawan Munjal and his family have a “real-time net worth” of $3.2 billion. Honda and Hero had parted ways in 2011. Munjal then oversaw Hero MotoCorp’s global expansion. Hero MotoCorp, which is led by Munjal, distributes its goods in more than 40 countries throughout Asia, Africa, Central and South America, and the Middle East. The corporation owns eight world-class manufacturing sites. Six of the seven are in India, while one each is in Colombia and Bangladesh.
According to Forbes, the corporation has a research unit in Jaipur and a research centre in Germany. Munjal is a member of the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) (SIAM). Munjal is also a board member at Munjal Acme Packaging Systems Private Limited, Pan Mining Private Limited, Bahadur Chand Investments Private Limited, Hero Investcorp Private Limited, Indian School of Business, Hero Future Energies Global Limited, and Rockman Industries Limited.
According to the I-T Department, Pawan Munjal purchased a farmhouse in Chhattarpur, on the outskirts of Delhi, for more than Rs 100 crore. According to the news agency, which cited sources, the current value of the farmhouse was changed to avoid tax, and a sum of over Rs 100 crore was paid in cash for this reason. Money control was unable to verify the report’s assertions independently. As per the specified clause of the Income Tax Act, if the seller accepts a sum of Rs. 20,000 or more in cash from the buyer when transacting Immovable Property, a 100 per cent penalty is assessed.
On the other side, Hero MotoCorp, the world’s largest two-wheeler manufacturer, stated on Tuesday that it would increase the ex-showroom pricing of its bikes and scooters starting April 5. The upward increase was necessary, according to the corporation, to substantially offset the impact of rising commodity costs. The business said in a statement that the price rise would be up to Rs 2,000, with the precise amount depending on the model and the market.
They inform all of their stakeholders that commerce as normal will continue. Hero MotoCorp is a law-abiding and ethical corporation that upholds the highest levels of corporate governance. According to the company’s official news release, they are giving full assistance to the authorities in keeping with this principle.
Edited by Prakriti Arora


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(NewsNation Now) — Bravo Packing, Inc. is recalling some of its dog food products, due to potential salmonella and listeria moncocytogenes contamination, according to the U.S. Food & Drug Administration.
The Carneys Point, New Jersey company is recalling all Ground Beef and Performance Dog, a frozen raw pet food. Both products come in 2 lb. and 5 lb. plastic sleeves, and were shipping to brick-and-mortar retail stores or consumers directly nationwide, according to the recall.
The FDA said pets with salmonella infections may be “lethargic and have diarrhea or bloody diarrhea, fever, and vomiting.” Symptoms also include decreased appetite, fever, and abdominal pain. Pets exposed to contaminated food can be infected without showing symptoms, the recall said.
If your pet has consumed the recalled product and experiences these symptoms, the FDA advises consumers to contact a veterinarian.
No human or animal illnesses have been reported to date, the FDA said.
Consumers who purchased Ground Beef or Performance Dog are advised to throw it away. If you have questions, contact Bravo Packing, Inc. at 856-299-1044.


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Toronto, Ontario — Kia and Hyundai will begin sell anti-theft kits to prospective customers starting this Saturday, in response to five months of rising theft reports, YouTube carjacking tutorials and five class-action lawsuits in as many American states.
Kia and Hyundai will begin selling the Compustar Firstech glass-break sensor security kit at dealerships and Compustar locations this weekend, which Forbes says should run for approximately $230 (US$170) before installation fees. This follows months of the “Kia Boyz” social media challenge, where thieves actively teach car theft and challenge viewers to try their hand at committing a felony themselves.
While the viral impact of the trend is undeniable, an IIHS investigation highlights that this trend is ultimately enabled by how easy it is to steal these vehicles, with an IIHS senior v-p saying “Hyundai and Kia have lagged behind other automakers in making (electronic immobilizers) standard equipment.”
Several videos from self-proclaimed “Kia Boyz” indicate that these thefts can be carried out with minimal training and easily accessible devices, both of which are not reproduced here for legal reasons.
“Our earlier studies show that vehicle theft losses plunged after immobilizers were introduced,” said Matt Moore, senior v-p of the IIHS’s research wing, the Highway Loss Data Institute (HLDI).
At the time of publication, Compustar and Hyundai, have not responded to a query by Collision Repair Magazine if these customer-funded offerings will be made available to Canadian outlets.
For more information, check out Collision Repair Magazine’s story on the impact of the “Kia Boyz” trend.


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October 21, 2020
Penguin Ventures, part of Penguin Random House Children’s U.K., together with their North American licensing agent, Licensing Works!, are celebrating an increased presence for Spot in North America following a series of new activations.
Penguin Ventures is exhibiting at Festival of Licensing, a month-long large-scale digital gathering that unites the global licensing industry to connect, learn, strike deals and do business on an international stage. The event takes place Oct. 6-29. Register for free now!
2020 marks the 40th anniversary of “Where’s Spot?” the original lift-the-flap picture book by Eric Hill.
“There is great momentum on the Spot brand, with ‘Spot’ book sales increasing year-on-year in 2020, making this the perfect time to bring to market a wonderful new assortment of Spot products that help children discover and explore the world around them with Spot, their trusted friend,” says Leslie Levine, owner and founder, Licensing Works!
Licensing Works! has appointed a range of new Spot licensees for North America this year, including plush from Commonwealth, which launched in August, followed by Smiffy’s Spot Dress-up costumes, which launched in September. Commonwealth will be expanding their range in 2021 to add a wider range of plush and a full range of wooden toys and puzzles. Crown Jewlz, the newest licensee, will launch with coloring and activity workbooks and flash cards in 2021.
Licensing Works! and Penguin Ventures have also launched a partnership with Read Alliance to support the growing presence of Spot in North America. This New York-based tutoring organization works to help underprivileged students learn to read. With Spot celebrating his 40th Anniversary and Read Alliance celebrating its 20th, the organizations are working together on a series of co-branded social media and on-line communications, which launched in September and will continue through the end of the year.
Spot’s 40th Anniversary will also be celebrated in North America with a dedicated “Snuggle Up with Spot” influencer campaign later this year. Spot fans will be asked to share photographs of their favorite moments with Spot on social media.
“We are so proud of the incredible success Licensing Works! have achieved to introduce best in class licensees to the Spot family,” says Lindsay Pearl, head, international licensing, Penguin Ventures. “We are now able to offer our North American fans the chance to cuddle up to Spot with this fantastic new range of merchandise. 2021 will present some more brilliant opportunities for Spot and we can’t wait to see how fans respond to these activities.”
License Global is the leading news source for the brand licensing industry, delivering award-winning editorial content including news, trends, analysis, and special reports about the global consumer product and retail marketplace.
Through its print edition, website, daily e-newsletter and event publications, License Global reaches more than 150,000 executives and professionals in all major markets. The magazine also serves as the official publication for the sector’s trade events, which include Licensing Expo, Brand Licensing Europe, Licensing Expo Japan, Licensing Expo Shanghai and the Licensing Leadership Summit.
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Podcasts & RSS Feeds
Most Active Stories
- An MSU physicist believes he has solved the "black hole information paradox"
- What you can do to help Michigan's bats
- "A sad day" for Michigan bats: White-nose syndrome found in 3 counties
- This is doing more damage to Detroit than a hundred drug murders could have
- Biologists expect the worst for Michigan's bat population
Wed April 27, 2011
Michigan retailers feeling pain from soaring gasoline prices
Michigan retailers say 4 dollar a gallon gasoline is taking a bite out of their business. The latest survey by the Michigan Retailers Association says state businesses saw a marked decline in sales in March, as gasoline prices started to soar. Michigan retail sales slumped to their lowest level since last July.
Tom Scott is with the association.
“Definitely disappointing. No doubt about that, because we were on a real nice upswing and getting some momentum going in positive territory. And then for March to come along…that is a little bit of a setback.”
Rising gasoline prices may affect summer hiring. Tom Scott says Michigan retailers will be very cautious about hiring decisions as long as gasoline stays above 4 dollars a gallon.


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September 1, 2011 – PRNewswire — Reportlinker.com released The Future of Mobile Display by ROA Holdings, which finds that larger panels are increasing mobile device usage, and AMOLED is replacing LCD as the mainstream display technology. Mobile device companies, rather than display makers, are leading the drive for new technologies.
Active organic light emitting diode (AMOLED) is ousting LCD for displays because of better performance and capacity of realizing flexible display. Electronic paper display (EPD), quantum dot (QD) and micro electro mechanical systems (MEMS) are emerging along with new applications for these display technologies. New displays, including 3D and flexible displays, are being aggressively pursued. From 2008, mobile display prices declined as technological differentiation became trivial. Recently, however, technologies are how mobile device manufacturers differentiate themselves. Larger and better-resolution display panels neccesitate lower power consumption and superior readability in sunlight.
Mobile Display is emerging as one of the key hardware groups among mobile handset manufacturers. Mobile display panels have been developed with technological characteristics different from IT devices and televisions. Also, its development speed has been faster than other applications. While size and technology are hardly standardized in mobile displays, ROA Holdings defines mobile display as a 10" or smaller display customized to the mobile environment.
Initially, Japanese companies dominated mobile displays with competitive technologies. Soon, Taiwanese companies arrived with cheap price and large supply. Now, mobile device companies like Apple are leading technology development. Apple and Samsung are investing in improved hardware and related technologies.
In 2010, mobile display surpassed laptop display market with achieving a total shipment of 3 billion and sales of USD24 billion. The market is expected to maintain an annual growth rate of 5%.
Each mobile application is expected to develop in its own market direction:
Mobile handsets are growing touchscreen usage. More smartphones are being equipped with a 3.5-inch display or larger panel at 250ppi. Technological fortitude is neccessary to compete in the smartphone display market.
Digital imaging standards have improved from conventional DSC standards to mobile handset standards, with bigger and better-resolution screens. Prices are falling faster compared to previous years.
Portable media players, like iPods, are changing the media player landscape, making it more high-end. As the iPod goes, so to will the rest of the PMP market.
Automotive applications, like factory-integrated navigation and portable navigation, are seeing a price decline as the market becomes saturated.
Amusement is a closed market dominated by two manufacturers and two display suppliers. The market is active in adopting new technologies.
The report provides quantitative prediction and qualitative analysis on the possibilities and values of technologies, including AMOLED, EPD, Quantum Dot and MEMS in a way to verify their effectiveness. Order Wireless Technology Industry: The Future of Mobile Display at http://www.reportlinker.com/p0609414/The-Future-of-Mobile-Display.html#utm_source=prnewswire&utm_medium=pr&utm_campaign=Wireless_Technology


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The Prime Minister's trip to Indonesia is to secure a free trade agreement with a vastly under-rated economic partner, says UNSW Business School's Tim Harcourt.
The mere possibility of increased online competition is restraining prices offline.
The share market jumped after Scott Morrison won the leadership, and for once the jump seems to mean something.
Professor Harald van Heerde, one of the world’s leading experts in marketing, is joining the UNSW Business School.
UNSW Scientia Professor Ross Buckley will be the inaugural Chair in Disruptive Innovation and Law, focusing on the effect of technological change in key sectors globally.
Immigration and light rail are both worthy topics of discussion, but it's time to discuss a new monetary policy framework.
The vast majority of managers said they wanted "the best person for the job". They had less idea of just who that might be, or how to ensure appointments on merit and equity targets co-exist.
Instead of matching long-term pension liabilities to long-term investments, investment markets fixate on short-term liquidity. Is a new approach now needed?
The system to rank financial advisers would help consumers avoid the high cost of bad advice, says UNSW Business School Professor Jerry Parwada.
Contagious populist ideology more than financial contagion should possibly scare us right now.


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New Delhi, January 19
India’s exports are likely to fall by 2.9% in 2022-23 and further by 4.1% in 2023-24 to $416.6 billion. The exports had grown by 45.1% in 2021-22 mainly due to a sharp rise in commodity prices.
“Fears of an impending recession in the US and other developed economies led to a correction in commodity prices in the September 2022 quarter in addition to slowing demand. According to the World Economic Outlook (WEO), increase in commodity prices is likely to have decelerated to 7.3% during 2022. Slowing economic growth in China also hit demand for India’s exports,” said an analysis by the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy.
International prices of metals including steel, copper, aluminium, zinc, lead and tin dropped to a 2-year low by November 2022. Yet, they remain above the pre-Covid levels. Cotton prices have also seen a similar trend. Petroleum product prices have also eased to six-month low in November, driven by a sustained easing of crude oil prices, said the report written by Janaki Samant.
Government policy has also hit exports. In May 2022, the government imposed export duty on pig iron, steel and iron pellets and sharply hiked tax on export of iron ores and concentrates in order to increase domestic availability. Consequently, exports of these commodities dropped sharply.
Slowing growth in China to hit demand
- n ears of an impending recession in the US and other developed economies led to a correction in commodity prices in the September 2022 quarter besides slowing demand
- According to the World Economic Outlook, increase in commodity prices is likely to have decelerated to 7.3% during 2022
- Slowing growth in China also hit demand for India’s exports
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Taking full advantage of the law of supply and demand, the Coca-Cola Company has quietly begun testing a vending machine that can automatically raise prices for its drinks in hot weather.
''This technology is something the Coca-Cola Company has been looking at for more than a year,'' said Rob Baskin, a company spokesman, adding that it had not yet been placed in any consumer market.
The potential was heralded, though, by the company's chairman and chief executive in an interview earlier this month with a Brazilian newsmagazine. M. Douglas Ivester, the chairman, described how desire for a cold drink can increase during a sports championship final held in the summer heat. ''So, it is fair that it should be more expensive,'' Mr. Ivester was quoted as saying in the magazine, Veja. ''The machine will simply make this process automatic.''
The process appears to be done simply through a temperature sensor and a computer chip, not any breakthrough technology, though Coca-Cola refused to provide any details yesterday.
While the concept might seem unfair to a thirsty person, it essentially extends to another industry what has become the practice for airlines and other companies that sell products and services to consumers. The falling price of computer chips and the increasing ease of connecting to the Internet has made it practical for companies to pair daily and hourly fluctuations in demand with fluctuations in price -- even if the product is a can of soda that sells for just 75 cents.
The potential for other types of innovations is great. Other modifications under discussion at Coca-Cola, Mr. Baskin said, include adjusting prices based on demand at a specific machine. ''What could you do to boost sales at off-hours?'' he asked. ''You might be able to lower the price. It might be discounted at a vending machine in a building during the evening or when there's less traffic.''
Vending machines have become an increasingly important source of profits for Coca-Cola and its archrival, Pepsico. Over the last three years, the soft-drink giants have watched their earnings erode as they waged a price war in supermarkets. Vending machines have reamined largely untouched by the discounting. Now, Coca-Cola aims to tweak what has been a golden goose to extract even more profits.
''There are a number of initiatives under way in Japan, the United States and in other parts of the world where the technology in vending is rapidly improving, not only from a temperature-scanning capability but also to understand when a machine is out of stock,'' said Andrew J. Conway, a beverage analyst for Morgan Stanley. ''The increase in the rate of technology breakthrough in vending is pretty dramatic.''
Bill Hurley, a spokesman for the National Automatic Merchandising Association in Washington, added: ''You are only limited by your creativity, since electronic components are becoming more and more versatile.''
Machines are already in place that can accept credit cards and debit cards for payment. In Australia and in North Carolina, Coke bottlers use machines to relay, via wireless signal or telephone, information about which drinks are selling and at what rates in a particular location. The technology is known as intelligent vending, Mr. Baskin said, and the information gathered and relayed by Internet helps salespeople to figure out which drinks will sell best in which locations.
''It all feeds into their strategy of micro-marketing and understanding the local consumer,'' Mr. Conway said. ''If you can understand brand preferences by geography, that has implications for other places with similar geography.''
Coca-Cola and its bottlers have invested heavily in vending machines, refrigerated display cases, coolers and other equipment to sell their drinks cold. Over the last five years, Coca-Cola Enterprises, Coke's biggest bottler, has spent more than $1.8 billion on such equipment. In support, Coca-Cola has spent millions more on employees who monitor and service the equipment. In 1998 alone, it spent $324 million on such support to its biggest bottler.
And last week, Coke's chief marketing officer unveiled the company's plan to pump more sales of its flagship soft drink, Coca-Cola Classic. The program includes an emphasis on Coke served cold.
Sales of soft drinks from vending machines have risen steadily over the last few years, though most sales still take place in supermarkets. Last year, about 11.9 percent of soft-drink sales worldwide came from vending machines, said John D. Sicher, the editor of Beverage Digest, an industry newsletter. In the United States, about 1.2 billion cases of soft drinks were sold through vending machines.
In Japan, some vending machines already adjust their prices based on the temperature outside, using wireless modems, said Gad Elmoznino, director of the Trisignal division of Eicon Technology, a Montreal-based modem maker. ''They are going to be using more and more communications in these machines to do interactive price setting,'' he said.
Industry reactions to the heat-sensitive Coke machine ranged from enthusiastic to sanctimonious. ''It's another reason to move to Sweden,'' one beverage industry executive sniffed. ''What's next? A machine that X-rays people's pockets to find out how much change they have and raises the price accordingly?''
Bill Pecoriello, a stock analyst with Sanford C. Bernstein, applauded the move to increase profits in the vending-machine business. ''This is already the most profitable channel for the beverage companies, so any effort to get higher profits when demand is higher obviously can enhance the profitability of the system further,'' he said.
He pointed to a possible downside as well. ''You don't want to have a price war in this channel, where you have discounting over a holiday weekend, for example,'' he said. ''Once the capability is out there to vary the pricing, you can take the price down.''
A Pepsi spokesman said no similar innovation was being tested at the company, No. 2 in soft drinks. ''We believe that machines that raise prices in hot weather exploit consumers who live in warm climates,'' declared the spokesman, Jeff Brown. ''At Pepsi, we are focused on innovations that make it easier for consumers to buy a soft drink, not harder.''


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Just a month after Apple's latest iterations of its smartphone hit stores and landed in many an excited tech fans' hands, people are already talking about the next model.
The Microsoft Office Suite will now be offered free to all mobile users, the company announced Thursday.
"WireLurker" has reportedly ushered a new era of malware for Apple's iOS and OS X but its infections are confined only to China at the moment. A research paper gives tips on how to prevent it from invading Apple's mobile devices.
The Chinese government has allegedly orchestrated a massive cyber attack into the iCloud accounts of its citizens. It seems that China has declared a war with Apple on privacy as the hacking coincided with the launching of the new iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus in the country last week.
A Reuters report published on Tuesday confirmed that Apple's online storage service iCloud has been hacked.
Apple saw its fourth-quarter net profit surged by more than 13 percent to $8.47 billion after the company sold over 39 million iPhones, beating its 33.8 million iPhone sales in the same period last year and predictions from analysts, the New York Times reported.
Apple has officially released Apple Pay on Monday, expecting to revolutionize the $4 trillion U.S. payment market. But with what happened to its predecessors, it looks like Apple Pay is in for a tough hurdle up ahead.
Apple's mobile operating payment system will officially roll out on October 20. More than a month before its official launch, hundreds of financial institutions have already signed up with the new system, bares Apple CEO Tim Cook during the company's October 16 event.
Nine days after its official release on console platforms, "NBA 2K15" has been made available for Android and iOS on October 16. Gamers can now play the game anytime, anywhere, even if they're on-the-go because it's now available on handheld devices.
Fresh off the hands of tech reviewers, Samsung Galaxy Note 4 has so far received a fair number of thumbs up, with some gadget pundits even saying that the South Korean tech company's latest release could teach Apple a thing or two about phablets.
The long wait may finally be over. Just a few hours from now and we will finally witness Apple's most-awaited October event. With less than a month after it released its new iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus, Apple is again expected to showcase new products.
Downloading the apps for your new iPhone 6 or for your iPad? Here are some of the most downloaded apps on App Store this week you definitely need to check:
Having problems with your iPhone's battery? Many users may attest that iPhone's battery life is among the major flaws of one of the world's famous phones. While users continue to expect a lot from Apple and consider the battery life one of the most important features a smartphone must possess, the company has continuously left the issue hanging.
Apple's iOS 8 is fast becoming the toast of today's mobile phone users given its splendid performance and usability. It also has features that are not easy to find. Here are the top 5 in terms of usability and user preference.
The word is out on the world's thinnest smartphone, and Guinness World Record confirms it. It's the Gionee Elife 5.1, the number apparently referring to its 5.1 mm thickness.


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Elon Musk’s Tesla donates 100,000 N95 surgical masks to UCLA Health & UW Medicine
University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA Health) received a batch of 50,000 N95 surgical masks donated by Tesla CEO Elon Musk and his team just days after Elon Musk said that the Tesla factory can be repurposed to make venitlators and the automaker will be helping with masks for healthcare professionals in the country.
Another batch of 50k N95 masks was also delivered to University of Washington (UW Medicine) by Tesla as reported by Seattle Times and Professor Dr. Waldorf announced it on Twitter quoting a naysayer that the announcements by Elon Musk were not more than a PR attempt.
Glad we can help! We’re sending masks and supplies to as many hospitals as we can.— Tesla (@Tesla) March 22, 2020
A quick photo of 50,000 N95 masks and uncountable PAPR helmets from @Tesla @elonmusk @omead_a for #COVID19 response in my garage before they were loaded into @UWMedicine trucks. GRATEFUL TO TESLA for this lightning fast donation. We are so in need right now. https://t.co/MZJ3jxZExk pic.twitter.com/OJwC5STvJ2— Dr. Adams Waldorf (@uwdrwaldorf) March 22, 2020
In the wake of the coronavirus outbreak in the United States, there has been an ever-increasing demand for the following items:
- Unused N95 respirators and surgical masks
- Disposable gloves
- Hand Sanitizer containers
- Disinfectants and disinfecting wipes
- Unused protective goggles
Elon Musk has promised that Tesla will deploy as many masks as possible to the hospitals and the health care professionals in probably one of the toughest times the 21st century has faced yet. My friend and co-author at CleanTechnica Johnna Crider also pointed Elon Musk to the need of masks and PAPR helmets in New Orleans, Louisiana to which the Tesla & SpaceX CEO replied:
We’ll try to get & deliver as many as possible. N95 masks are a pain to wear btw. Less onerous masks are better most of the time.
For the ventilators, Elon Musk said that he and his team are working on delivering around 1200 ventilators this week, but the real challenge according to him is getting them installed and operating. Till the last updates there have been 15,000 confirmed fatalities due to the COVID-19 pandemic and more than 350,000 confirmed cases of the highly contagious disease.
We expect to have over ~1200 to distribute this week. Getting them delivered, installed & operating is the harder part.— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 22, 2020


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People ‘actively engaged’ in sports, indoor exercise no longer need to wear masks in West Virginia
Order asks people to wear mask when resting
CHARLESTON, W.Va., (WSAZ) - You no longer have to wear a mask when working out in West Virginia.
That is according to the updated executive order updated by Gov. Jim Justice on Monday.
As part of Executive Order 12-21, signed on April 19, 2021, Gov. Justice announced an additional exemption to the Statewide Indoor Face Covering Requirement so that, if you are actively engaged in physical activity like indoor sports, you do not need to wear a face covering.
The order also says that a mask does not need to be worn when one is using an exercise machine in an indoor facility.
The order goes on to say that when a person is sitting on the bench or moving between pieces of equipment at a fitness center, face coverings should be worn.
Copyright 2021 WSAZ. All rights reserved.


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Source: Mashreq Bank
Dubai-based Mashreq bank joined the Startupbootcamp FinTech program in Dubai, a program designed to identify and nurture some of the best startups in the FinTech industry.
Over three years, Startupbootcamp FinTech Dubai will accelerate a total of forty startups recruited and selected among a panel of over a thousand of the most promising FinTech companies around the world. The program will nurture a new generation of companies delivering products and services that will solve customers and business problems in the FinTech space.
Startupbootcamp FinTech Dubai was launched in October 2018 and the acceleration program started in February 2019 welcoming ten teams from seven countries, out of which three startups were sourced from the UAE. The 2019’s cohort is developing new products in the space of digital payments, financial Inclusion, crowd-lending, risk analytics and financial education.
Startups joining Startupbootcamp FinTech Dubai have access to an unparalleled knowledge platform made of international mentors, advisors and industry experts from the Startupbootcamp network as well as from Mashreq, Visa, HSBC and DIFC. During the acceleration program, the ten startups selected in each cohort are taken on a journey to develop their products and explore the most effective ways to align their business strategy to the industry needs.
The Startupbootcamp program contributes to spark innovation within the corporate environment thanks to the continuous exchange and collaboration established with the program’s partners, such as Mashreq.
Subroto Som, Executive Vice President, Head of Retail Banking Group, said: “Innovation sits at the very heart of everything we do. We are in the midst of our own digital transformation journey and welcome the opportunity to invest in an initiative that has the potential to deliver untold benefits to our business and our customers. As the UAE’s oldest bank we look forward to working closely with Startupbootcamp to support the next generation of business leaders establish their own legacy.”
Todd OBrien, CEO of MENA, Startupbootcamp , commented: ”We are thrilled to welcome among our partners a leading financial institution in UAE like Mashreq. We believe the selected startups will greatly benefit from the mentorship provided by Mashreq’s leaders as they will provide remarkable insights about the unique challenges and opportunities offered by our market. Our FinTech Dubai program is a platform that enables a deeper connection between the corporate world and the best of breed startups with the goal of designing and introducing to the market innovative financial products that will make a difference in our lives.”
On April 30, 2019, Startupbootcamp will hold a Demo Day event showcasing the ten startups selected for the first cohort of the program. The event will offer investors a chance to learn more about the startups and identify potential investment opportunities.


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U.K.’s Moviehouse Entertainment is shopping the upcoming animated feature The...
Posts from category "Commercials"
The Simpsons team revealed at Comic-Con a couple of the popular titles that will be parodied in the upcoming video game as the show’s Emmy-winning writers and voice cast team up to bring gamers the ultimate interactive Simpsons experience. Created in partnership with Gracie Films, Twentieth Century Fox Television and [...]
Having brought Frank Miller’s graphic novel, 300, to the big screen, director Zack Snyder took some time to sell some spuds and brought vfx house Method along for the ride. For the new Miller Lite spot ‘Break From the Crowd,’ Method employed Massive software and shot motion-capture data at Vicon [...]
Proving again that animation can save lives, Educational Adventures has teamed with fire safety products manufacturer Kidde to launch a new national, multi-year sponsorship campaign designed to further fire safety awareness. A series of commercials and public service announcements will feature characters from Education Adventures’ popular children’s animated safety series [...]
Those who enjoy the Esurance TV ads animated by W!LDBRAIN will be able to catch the debut of the campaign’s first long-form commercial during the FX Network’s premiere of I,Robot on Monday, March 19, at 7:30 p.m. (ET/ PT). Titled ‘Carbon Copy,’ the ad features a cliff-hanger ending intended to [...]
Launching a new cable network can be a scary proposition, but that’s the whole point of NBC-Universal Cable Entertainment’s Chiller, new all-HD channel featuring 24-hour horror and thriller programming. To create on-air branding for the endeavor, the conglomerate turned to Hollywood’s S4 Studios, which used CG animation and effects to [...]
The latest Blockbuster commercial starring animated pet-store hamsters Carl and Ray led the pack of Super Bowl ads in a national study conducted by HCD Research. The group polled 600 viewers over the age of 18 on Sunday night and found that the majority picked the humorous spot from a [...]
J. J. Sedelmaier Prods., the animation studio best known for collaborating with comedian Robert Smigel on cartoons for Saturday Night Live a few years ago, has informed us of its latest television project, a series of spots for Outback Steakhouse. The company worked with New York ad agency Kaplan-Thaler Group [...]
Vfx house Animal Logic took the award for Digital Visual Effects and CGI at the 2006 Kodak Gongs Awards presentation and advertising industry party, held Friday, Sept. 8., at the Capitol Theatre in Sydney, Australia. The studio won for its work on ‘War of the Appliances,’ a commercial spot promoting [...]
Z Animation has created and produced the entire animation package for the third installment of Microsoft’s global ‘Realizing Potential’ corporate branding campaign. The live action/animated TV, print and Internet initiative was launched by ad agency McCann-Erickson/San Francisco in 2002, but this is the first time the campaign has been produced [...]
Venice, Calif.-based animation house Blur Studio has joined forces with Lapin Blanc, the animation unit of London commercials and film company Lucky Elliot to launch a new commercial production venture. “Blur’s ability to tell great stories and create memorable characters in CG is gaining more and more recognition,’ says Blur’s [...]


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Clint Eastwood Wins $6.1 Million CBD Lawsuit
The actor Clint Eastwood and Garrapata, the company that owns the rights to his likeness, were awarded $6.1 million on Friday in a lawsuit they had filed against a Lithuanian company that was accused of using Mr. Eastwood’s image and likeness to make it appear as though he was endorsing their products.
Last year, Mr. Eastwood filed two lawsuits in federal court in Los Angeles against three CBD manufacturers and marketers whose products were featured in an online article falsely claiming that he endorsed CBD products, as well as 10 online retailers who he accused of manipulating search results through meta tags. (CBD is cannabidiol, a nonintoxicating compound in the cannabis sativa plant.)
According to the first lawsuit, the online article contained a fake interview with an outlet meant to resemble the “Today” show. It included a photo of Mr. Eastwood from an actual appearance on “Today,” as well as links to buy the items.
“Mr. Eastwood has no connection of any kind whatsoever to any CBD products and never gave such an interview,” the court documents said.
The judge, R. Gary Klausner of United States District Court for the Central District of California, entered a default judgment after Mediatonas UAB, the company that published a fabricated interview with Mr. Eastwood, failed to respond to a summons in March. Mr. Eastwood and Garrapata were then awarded $6 million based on the company’s unauthorized use of his name and likeness, along with about $95,000 in attorneys’ fees and a permanent injunction that blocks future use of his name and likeness.
“In pursuing this case, and obtaining this judgment, Mr. Eastwood has again demonstrated a willingness to confront wrongdoing and hold accountable those who try to illegally profit off his name, likeness, and goodwill,” said Jordan Susman, a lawyer for Mr. Eastwood, in a statement.
Mediatonas UAB could not be reached for comment.
Mr. Eastwood, 91, who recently starred in and directed “Cry Macho,” has enjoyed a lengthy Hollywood career that has ranged from inhabiting tough-guy roles (“Dirty Harry”) to directing dramas like “Million Dollar Baby” (2004), which won best picture at the 2005 Academy Awards.
The original complaint, filed in July 2020, named as defendants the companies whose products were being advertised in the article. In February, Mr. Eastwood’s lawyers filed an amended complaint against Mediatonas UAB, the company that owns the websites where the false stories appear.
While the court agreed that Mr. Eastwood and Garrapata were entitled to damages for the unauthorized use of his name and likeness, it declined to grant their full request, which also accounted for defamation claims.
“It requires additional context to understand what CBD products are and why a person like Clint Eastwood would not endorse a marijuana-based product,” the judge wrote, adding that the language used “was not libelous on its face.”


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Rep. McKeon tried to get the word criminals stricken from the record. He was a little too late.
George Miller (D-CA): It's a devastating picture when you meet your constituents who have lost their retirement, who have lost big chunks of their retirement and they come and talk to you at the shopping center, they talk to you in the grocery store, they talk to you in a town hall and they tell you what it means to their plans.
We were all stunned as a nation when pensioners got their plans wiped out and devastated by Enron. We called those people criminals. Here we call them legislators. Because people are getting -- people are going to get a devastating hit on their pensions, and we're going to say it's the law. There we said it was a crime. We said it was a crime.


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A woman who was loading purchases into the back of her vehicle was the target of a threatening thief Thursday afternoon at a Chesterfield Township store.
A male, described as black, 40-45 years of age, clean shaven and about 5 feet, 10 inches and 195 pounds, approached the woman from behind. He was wearing a black hooded jacket with the hood over his head.
The woman had been shopping at the Kohl’s store at Gratiot Avenue and 23 Mile Road.
“As she was putting her purchases into her vehicle, she was approached from behind by the suspect, who grabbed her arm and threatened to ‘kill’ her if she didn’t give him her purse and added that he would ‘shoot her if she screamed,'” Det. Sgt. Deron Myers reported Friday.
The woman complied, handing over her purse, and the suspect promptly fled westbound on foot toward the vacant Kmart store parking lot.
The woman’s purse was later returned to her by a man and woman who stated they found it and brought it back to the address listed on an identification card inside.
“Detectives would like to speak with these two good Samaritans as part of our ongoing investigation,” Myers said in a statement.
As of Oct. 3 the Chesterfield Township police had a suspect in custody; the case is expected to be presented to the Macomb County Prosecutor’s Office today.


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Anyone who has followed us for the past few years knows I’m a big critic of the Google Update that took place some time in April of 2011.
For those of you unfamiliar with the update, Google regularly releases algorithm updates that affect how and where websites appear on their listings.
In 2011, Google released an update that affected thousands of businesses negatively. The update punished businesses without warning for practices that were out of their control, such as creating backlinks to get listed on Google, these practices were commonly accepted at one point and then seemingly over night punished.
Businesses that were listed on the 1st page of Google lost thousands of customers because they could no longer be found.
Google was met with much criticism over these changes; business owners believed Google was helping big business (eBay, Amazon, and other conglomerates were now dominating 1st page listings instead of small to medium businesses).
Consequently, Google’s AdWords Pay Per Click Advertising program saw it’s revenues soar in the past 4 years, businesses who lost their rankings on Google needed to recoup their losses and spent more on AdWords advertising to ensure customers still saw them on the 1st page through Google Sponsored Ads.
So what happened recently?
Google confirmed back in April of 2016 that they were launching a new Google Penguin update, they would never need to re-update this algorithm and it would be self-updating by the second.
Here’s what happened as of a result:
- Many small businesses saw their rankings on Google come back, and their website traffic and sales increased
- Websites are now updating much faster. It used to take months to see your website shift from 3rd page to 2nd page to 1st page and so on, today, the ranking movement is happening by the second, and this is a huge positive for businesses who want to reap the benefits of getting listed on Google and paying a digital marketing company to market them.
- We saw our new clients get listed on Google for their services and products within 10-15 days of starting. In the past, it could take up to 3-6 months to see your website pop up on Google.
- The competitive landscape shifted back to support small to medium businesses, we tried simple searches such as ‘Wholesale Gift Boxes’ on Google.com (United States), this same keyword was dominated by eBay, Amazon, and other eCommerce giants in the past few years, today, it is all small to medium sized companies who actually specialize in selling this product.
In short, Google has gone back to the foundation that made it such a gigantic search engine in the first place. Supporting small and medium businesses and making it an equal playing field, while also returning the most relevant results for the searcher, this is a win-win system.


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With concerns of COVID-19 and escalating cases in Washington state many stores are making changes to their staff routines and providing special hours for the most vulnerable populations.
Most grocery stores in the area have chosen specific hours each week to provide to seniors, immuno-compromised, recently pregnant or other at-risk individuals.
"We have set aside dedicated shopping hours for senior citizens and other at-risk populations, such as pregnant women or those with compromised immune systems," said Tairsa Worman, public affairs manager for Safeway and Albertsons.
The vulnerable shopping hours for those stores is Tuesdays and Thursdays from 7 a.m. to 9 a.m. The pharmacy will open at 7 a.m. on those days as well.
For Target, the first hour of shopping every Tuesday and Wednesday will be for those 65 and older, pregnant women and those defined by the CDC as at-risk.
"During the dedicated hours, we’ll have team members outside of our stores before opening, reminding guests to practice social distancing both in line and when entering the store," said Jake Anderson, a communications staff member for Target. CVS pharmacies at Target will also be open at that time.
More hours for vulnerable populations are available at various stories. Those include Tuesdays at Walmart from 6 a.m. to 7 a.m., Tuesdays and Thursdays at Costco from 8 a.m. to 9 a.m., Tuesday and Thursdays at WinCo Foods from 6 a.m. to 7:30 a.m., Tuesdays and Thursdays at Haggen from 7 a.m. to 9 a.m., Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays at Fred Meyer from 7 a.m. to 8 a.m. and Monday through Friday at Dollar Tree from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. Be sure to double check those with stores to ensure you have the most current information.
Stores in the local area also taking increased precautions in cleaning for their customers and staff members.
"We have implemented several steps to ensure the safety of the people who shop in and work in our stores," said Worman.
She said Safeway and Albertsons plan to install Plexiglas in all checkout lanes in all stores over the next two weeks to provide a barrier between customers and cashiers.
"We’ve taken enhanced measures to clean and disinfect all departments, restrooms and other high-touch points of the store throughout the day, as well as a deep cleanse at the end of each business day," said Worman.
Anderson said Target is also implementing enhanced cleaning protocols.
"We’re taking guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), which recommends regular cleaning as one of the most important preventive measures," he said.
A staff member at each store is assigned to the entrance and checkout lanes are being cleaned after each customer.
Some stores have adjusted their hours to give time for staff members to restock shelves and clean.
"We have placed signage in the stores to remind our customers to practice social distancing and remain six feet — essentially two shopping carts — apart," said Worman.
The CDC is recommending six feet as that is the general distance droplets released from coughs can travel.
"The company is installing designated waiting points through floor markers positioned throughout the store, especially at check stands and stations where people most often congregate," said Worman.
With the COVID-19 shutdown in the news, many residents are purchasing a large amount of in-demand items.
"We’re also asking customers to continue to respect quantity limits of select, high-demand items like hand sanitizers, household cleaners, as well as toilet paper and paper towels," said Worman.
"We’re refilling high-demand products as quickly as we can through our robust and sophisticated supply chain. If the product you’re looking for isn’t in the store today, there’s a good chance it will be there the next day or the day after," she said.
Worman added that nearly all Safeway and Albertsons are hiring at the moment.
"We understand that this crisis has left many people suffering from layoffs or low hours and we have immediate openings," she said.
Finally, she wanted to thank the workers who are under increased burdens right now.
"We cannot express enough gratitude for our employees' dedication and commitment during this unprecedented time as they work to support their neighbors and provide essential service to communities here in Washington State and across the country," she said. "The ‘thank you’s’ they are receiving from customers mean so much."


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13 Jan Record-Play featured in The Telegraph
The Business pages in UK broadsheet newspaper The Telegraph has highlighted Record-Play as a company focusing on originality in music supervision.
R-P’s CEO, Daniel Cross, was interviewed by the paper, on how brands get the optimum potential from their use of music. The piece was published in the issue dated 17/01/2014 (but you can also read it online HERE).
“[the] company also plans to open new offices in Berlin, Russia and China, to create stronger local links with artists and brands. “It’s important to keep our finger on the pulse,” said Mr Cross.”


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UPDATE: It turns out that the courts agreed that no one would purchase Guess products thinking that "it's Gucci." An Italian court has dismissed Gucci's claim that Guess has infringed on its monogram and aesthetic. Claims Marciano of Guess, "The tactics of Gucci are nothing less than bullying. Because of their endless resources, Gucci has been forum shopping all over the world to try and stop Guess from expanding its successful accessories business. It’s fundamentally wrong and unconscionable." Lawsuits are still pending against Guess by Gucci in France and China. Gucci plans to appeal this decision.
Gucci and Guess finally went to court today to settle their dispute over Guess' alleged infringement on Gucci's signature G monogram, red and green stripes, and diamond motif (yep, that's Gucci's print you're seeing in the photo. Cookies for you!). Gucci claims that the "midmarket"-brand Guess (ouch!) has made over $200 million by knocking of Gucci's logos with the "clear intent" to persuade people to "think it's Gucci."
However, the Guess team points to their own use of plastic, ostentatious branding, and the cheapness of the product. Said Guess' attorney Daniel Petrocelli, "Guess doesn’t slap a house name on a product, Guess screams its name, it surrounds you," he said, adding later, "Gucci uses leather, Guess uses plastic, that’s why it costs 100 bucks. Gucci fabric, Gucci this, Gucci swatches. This is how they talk. That’s how they identify looks and feels and fabrics... This case is built on a house of cards. That you can create intent from whole clothing and run it back and collect $220 million."
The outcome of the intellectual property case could reveal plenty more about how design teams — both mass and luxury — create their product… But we think we've settled on the easy verdict. Let's just all recognize the logo is kinda cheesy, scrap it, and start over? Cookies for everyone! (WWD)
Photo: Via WWD