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Gefen AV over IP (new Gen 2.0) now shipping
Posted on April 15, 2018 by KVMGalore | 0 comments
New (Gen 2.0) Gefen AV over IP line of products are now available on KVMGalore
KVMGalore today announced that it is now shipping the new (Gen 2.0) Gefen AV over IP product line ...read more.
Categories: A/V Distribution, KVM over IP, New Products, Video over IP
Tags: audio-video, DisplayPort, DVI, Gefen, HDMI, hdmi matrix, VGA, video over IP, video-extender, video-wall
Display interface off: HDMI vs DVI vs DisplayPort
Posted on January 14, 2017 by Travis Morgan | 0 comments
Whether it's digital signage or a home theater, you're constantly dealing with a display interface. But how well do you understand each output? Here's a quick rundown on the three most common standards: DVI, HDMI, and DisplayPort ...read more.
ATEN's new VS1912 3-in-1 video splitter, media player, and video wall solution includes advanced video wall features and support for asymmetric layouts and advanced scheduling
KVMGalore today announces the availability of the new ATEN VS1912 12-Port DisplayPort video wall media player ...read more.
AdderView DDX30 for color and flexibility
Posted on November 12, 2015 by KVMGalore | 0 comments
AdderView DDX30, Adder’s latest innovation in high performance KVM is now shipping
AdderView DDX30 matrix is compact, has a choice of DVI and DisplayPort dongles, and provides up to 1920×1200 resolutions at 60 fps without loss. With extension distances of up to 200 feet over a single standard CATx cable, AdderView DDX30 also features transparent ...read more.
New VP−732 4K/Ultra HD presentation switcher
Posted on October 12, 2015 by Kramer AV | 0 comments
Kramer releases VP−732: a 4K/Ultra HD ProScale™ presentation switcher/scaler
KVMGalore is pleased to announce the release of the new Kramer VP−732 ProScale presentation switcher/scaler, designed for classrooms and boardrooms.
With support for digital and analog video, analog stereo and embedded audio signals, the 10-input presentation switcher/scaler up- or down-scales to independent program and preview ...read more.


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The first expansion pack for Project Cars 2 has been announced, and it’s coming soon this winter. Called The Fun Pack, it will bring new cars and a new course.
The Circuit De Barcelona-Catalunya Rallycross is the new course added to the game, a sundried track with extremely fast opening corners on tarmac, and plenty of flat-out sections.
There’s a selection of dangerous new cars thrown into the mix as well: three of “the most brutal, violent, and dangerous cars in motorsport history.”
Featuring Matthias Ekstrom’s Audi S1 EKS RX Quattro; Vaughn Gittin Jr.’s 1969 Ford Bronco, Ford Mustang RTR Spec, and his Ford Mustang ’66 RTR; and Petter Solberg’s Citroen DS3 RX Supercar.
Along with the new cars and track, there are new liveries available to customise your cars, taken from “major eSports racing teams.” You’ll have a chance to show these off in the four new Invitational Events that will be added as well.
Players with the Project Cars 2 season pass will have access to the expansion, along with the three other expansions that are set to release later on down the line.
The Fun Pack is scheduled to release this winter for PS4, Xbox One, and PC.

domain: news


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The laptop is "one of the most affordable notebooks available in developed countries", Mandriva claimed in a statement. Gaël Duval, the co-founder of Mandriva, said on Monday that he hopes the laptop will be available in other countries at a later date.
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Samsung is months away from unveiling its first flagship phone for 2020, the Galaxy S11, but we already have an idea of some of the features that we could see inside. Qualcomm unveiled the Snapdragon 865 chipset for premium phones earlier this week. This chip is likely to be next year’s brains and heart of the high-end Samsung phones. With the new Qualcomm chip, the company has a long history of shipping, which offers its superphones the ability to woo customers with a long list of camera upgrades, battery life and gaming.
As the world’s largest mobile chipmaker, Qualcomm’s top-tier processors power many of the world’s most advanced devices. Many of the headlining features of a device come from within the chip directly, rather than from the manufacturer itself. The premium devices using Snapdragon 865 will have access to all the new features, but as always, it’s up to the phone manufacturer when, and even if, a smartphone will use all the capabilities of the chipset.
As soon as the first quarter of 2020, we will see top phones using Snapdragon 865. Qualcomm also released two more mobile phone processors, the midtier Snapdragon 765 and 765 G, a gaming phone-specific chip.


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By Lisa Johnston
New products on display at the American International Toy Fair, held in N
Dallas — AT&T’s Blackberry Z10 presale begins tomorrow, preceding the official launch date of March 22, at a price of $199.
The presale will include a two-year agreement. The smartphone will be generally available for all customers, including corporate customers or those receiving a corporate discount, through all AT&T channels on March 22, the carrier said.
The BlackBerry Z10 is the first smartphone to launch with the redesigned, re-engineered and re-invented BlackBerry 10 platform.
The smartphone features an all-touch keyboard and provides a modern and easy typing experience, AT&T said. The BlackBerry Z10 also has a high-resolution 4.2-inch display and an 8-megapixel camera that records 1080p HD video.
“AT&T customers were the first to experience BlackBerry smartphones and services in the U.S., and we are thrilled to bring the next evolution, the BlackBerry Z10, to the nation’s fastest 4G LTE network,” said Jeff Bradley, devices and developer services senior VP at AT&T Mobility.
The BlackBerry Z10 will be the first BlackBerry smartphone to run on AT&T 4G LTE, the carrier said. AT&T said it has the nation’s largest 4G network, covering 288 million people.
This TWICE webinar, hosted by senior editor Alan Wolf, will take a look at what may be the hottest CE products at retail that will be sold during the all-important fourth quarter. Top technologies, market strategies and industry trends will be discussed with industry analysts and executives.


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SLIM NASCO Awards 2020, Sri Lanka’s premier national sales awards ceremony held in recognition of the outstanding performances of sales professionals gets underway for the 20th time. The organizers of the SLIM NASCO, the most anticipated corporate event in Sri Lanka’s sales calendar have announced the 22nd October deadline for submission of entries. The coveted awards ceremony is scheduled to be held in December 2020.
The National Sales Congress (NASCO) established with the vision to recognize sales excellence by rewarding and motivating sales personnel, also celebrates its 20th year in 2020. NASCO Awards organized by SLIM is the only awards ceremony in Sri Lanka dedicated to recognize the outstanding performances of sales professionals.
Following the Easter Sunday attacks in 2019, there was a series of challenges that hindered the progress of the country’s economy. The unstable political situation of the country and then the pandemic further triggered an economic collapse. The sales personnel had to cope with continuous challenges and they deserved to be recognized this year in a more fitting manner. It is commendable to see how sales personnel have managed to survive in the face of challenges and strived to achieve their set targets. Sri Lanka having successfully combated the pandemic and with businesses gaining gradual momentum, the sales personnel are expected to thrive in the coming years.
Themed “Warriors of the new wave”, this year’s awards ceremony honors the sales professionals who have conquered the steepest mountains and reached the pinnacle of success.
Commenting on the awards ceremony, Roshan Fernando, SLIM President said: “SLIM NASCO is an annual sales award ceremony, focused on recognizing sales professionals and driving them to the next levels. 2020 is a path-breaking year for SLIM, as the distinguished institution celebrates its 50th successful year. SLIM has been contributing to the betterment of sales and marketing in Sri Lanka in a multitude of ways. As a responsible corporate, SLIM engages in a number of initiatives that recognize the outstanding performances of sales personnel and elevate them to higher levels.
SLIM NASCO Awards 2019 was a roaring success as the gala event rewarded sales professionals across the island with milestone achievements in many categories. The 2020 Awards will be judged on the performance for the financial year starting 1st January 2019 or 1st April 2019 until financial year ending 31st December 2019 or 31st March 2020. An eminent judging panel consisting of business leaders will evaluate applications across 22 sectors with each category comprising of Gold, Silver and Bronze awards. The awards ceremony consists of six categories such as, the National Sales Managers category, Regional Managers category, Front Liners category and Other Sales Staff category. In addition to six categories, The National Sales Congress (NASCO) will also feature four special individual awards – Best Front liner, Best Sales Executive, Best Territory Manager and the Best Female Salesperson of the year.
Thilanka Abeywardena, SLIM Vice President – Events, said: “The pandemic drastically changed the way that the sales are conducted from its physical dominance to a vastly developing online arena. Today’s sales situation is not the same as pre-Covid 19 and supporting sales personnel who are part of the wave of economic revolution is vital. As part of its economic inclusion initiatives, SLIM recently launched the Restart Sri Lanka program, a national initiative to re-engineer and re-energize businesses and uplift SMEs. SLIM continues such initiatives with the realization that to regain economic positivity, we need to transform the derailed consumer sales engagement.”
“NASCO Awards ceremony has been a soaring success over the years and was instrumental in uplifting Sri Lanka’s sales fraternity. This year too, we are expecting a huge number of entries and the selection process will be conducted with utmost transparency as usual. This national level awards ceremony has gained wide recognition among local as well as international sales personnel- proof that we were able to contribute to the betterment of the sales sector that comprises of territory managers, sales executives, sales supervisors and front liners.” said Chinthaka Perera, Project Chairperson of NASCO.
The Sri Lanka Institute of Marketing (SLIM) is the apex body for Sri Lankan Marketers, which was founded in 1970 and subsequently incorporated by an act of Parliament in 1980, recognizing it as the National Body for Marketing and a ‘not-for-profit’ organization. SLIM has been promoting marketing excellence and elevating the status of marketing in Sri Lanka since its inception in 1970.
The NASCO 2020 entry kit can now be downloaded via www.nasco.lk. All entries are expected to be submitted by 5.00 pm on October 22nd. Applicants can call Tharushi 0701922623 or Dimithra 0703463171 for further details.
SLIM President Roshan Fernando, SLIM Vice President – Events Thilanka Abeywardena, NASCO Project Chairperson Chinthaka Perera


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16 February 2012
South African mobile services company Oltio has been nominated in the “best mobile money innovation” category at the annual GSMA Global Mobile Awards for its payD platform, which turns a user’s mobile phone into a remote point-of-sale device.
Oltio is a joint venture company between pan-African mobile network operator MTN and Standard Bank.
Through the payD platform, launched in August, consumers can purchase products and services online and use their debit cards to pay for the purchase while making use of their mobile phones to enter their PINs.
The technology is also used by Oltio parent company MTN for its Eazi Recharge pre-paid airtime top-up service, which already has over 110 000 users.
“Just being nominated is an honour for us,” Oltio head of new business development Dave Parratt said in a statement this week. “It is recognition that our commitment to innovation and in particular, making e-commerce accessible to more South Africans, is paying off.”
He added that the company believed that payD had the ability to fundamentally change how consumers conduct online transactions, with more than 170 merchants who make use of the platform.
Increasing access to online payments
Standard Bank banking products director Sugendhree Reddy said that while credit cards had become ubiquitous with online purchases, the convenience and safety of online shopping was restricted to higher income customers with access to online payment facilities.
This has left many consumers out of the online transacting and purchasing loop – students, vendors and casual workers, for instance, have the financial means and tools to make online purchases but have been excluded from this fast growing technology as they do not have access to a credit card.
“As a result of the innovative technology offered by payD, more Standard Bank customers across the country are now able to transact online,” said Reddy. “Those with debit cards are now included by making use of payD.
“They are able to transact by simply entering their PIN securely on their handset.”
The GSMA Global Mobile Awards are the most sought after in the global communications industry. More than 170 independent analysts, journalists, academics and subject matter experts throughout the world participated in the judging of the 2012 awards.
According to GSMA chief marketing officer Michael O’Hara, there were a record 600 entries and an exceptionally high-quality field of contenders for this year’s awards, reflecting the intensity of competition and innovation across the mobile ecosystem.
“It is a significant achievement to have made the shortlist, and our warmest congratulations go to all the nominees announced today,” O’Hara said. “We look forward to the unveiling of the winners at the Mobile World Congress next month.”
Would you like to use this article in your publication or on your website? See: Using SAinfo material


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Update on International Car Shipping if West Coast Ports Strike
What to Expect if West Coast Port Workers Strike
West Coast Shipping (WCS) is continuing to report on the status of the labor dispute threatening to effect port traffic and international car shipping from the US Pacific coastline. Since the original six year contract expired on July 1, 2014, we have been monitoring the port labor negotiations and adjusting our international car shipments accordingly. Here is our summary of the most recent events surrounding the management/labor contract negotiations and what we can expect if port workers strike.
Learn more about other regions around the globe for international car shipping
Since the original six year contract expired on July 1st, the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) and the Pacific Maritime Association (PMA) agreed to a three day break from the negotiating table in order to attend to other matters. During this hiatus however, West Coast ports experienced related protests from port truckers in the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach. With the backing of the Teamsters Union, they demanded that Green Fleet Systems, Total Transportation Services, Inc., and Pacific 9 Transportation recognize them as employees rather than as independent contractors.
A coalition of port truckers and Teamsters had been successful in picketing up until July 12th when Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti stepped in and brokered a "cool-down" agreement. It was agreed that a fair and thorough investigation of the truck worker's concerns, including issues of worker safety, poor working conditions and unfair labor practices, will be conducted. The situation nearly intensified when numerous ILWU members attempted to join the port truckers in the strike. After only two hours they were sent back to work by an arbitrator who determined that their contract does not allow participation in sympathy strikes.
Possible Impact of West Coast Port Strike
The events so far have caused no major disruptions to the West Coast ports. International car shipping companies have only seen chassis shortages due to the increasing number of shipments trying to clear the ports. Specifically in the car industry, we have seen an uptick in customers buying and shipping cars overseas to get ahead of any delays in the future.
With Friday's expiration of a three-day contract extension, the ILWU and the PMA are back at the negotiating table. The unions and the employers now know they must reach a resolution through either a new contract or a contract extension. With no present arbitration procedures in place, the ILWU still has the choice of striking and bringing West Coast ports to a standstill.
Customers looking to ship cars overseas are being guided to expedite shipments with instant rate quotes. WCS will continue to monitor the shipping environment surrounding potential West Coast port strikes and will provide updates via our Blog, Facebook and Twitter page.
See our previous update on the west coast port strike to see what we are doing to stay ahead.


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As a FreightWaves story opined in May, it’s time the logistics industry took notice of Gopuff. Well, it has, and so have investors.
According to a securities filing in Delaware first flagged by Prime Unicorn Index, the instant delivery company backed by SoftBank, Fidelity Management and Research Co. and Blackstone Group has raised $1.5 billion in what’s being called a series X raise, which could push its valuation as high as $40 billion, Axios reported. Multiple reports suggest the raise is happening in anticipation of a Gopuff IPO as early as mid-2022.
The funding round, which has yet to close, will take the form of a convertible note issued by Guggenheim Partners. That would mean that if Gopuff’s market cap surpasses $40 billion at IPO, then Guggenheim and other investors could liquidate their shares at the $40 billion price instead, in exchange for taking on debt.
Obtaining funding through a convertible note is a popular path for startups looking to go public because it allows them to issue debt in exchange for financing, which can boost the valuation at IPO. Airbnb (NASDAQ: ABNB) employed this same strategy in the months leading up to its 2020 IPO.
Watch: More providers offering robots as a service
Gopuff’s move toward going public shouldn’t come as too large of a surprise considering the meteoric rise it has experienced this year. It began in earnest back in March, when the Philly-based instant delivery company more than doubled its valuation after securing a $1.15 billion raise.
But that was only the beginning. In May, Gopuff locked down an exclusive deal with Uber for delivery of everyday essentials and acquired U.K. delivery provider Fancy. And just a month after that, it nabbed another $1 billion in funding in a series H raise that pushed the startup’s valuation to a staggering $15 billion.
Gopuff acquired a second U.K. delivery platform, Dija, later in the year, and last month the startup officially launched in the country with an eye toward a Europewide expansion. It’s also been reported that Gopuff made an offer to acquire German instant delivery platform Flink, which is a member of the unicorn club itself and is backed by DoorDash (NYSE: DASH), but a deal has yet to come to fruition.
The burgeoning platform just this week came across even more funding from an unlikely source: singer and actress Selena Gomez, who has invested an undisclosed amount in the company and will sign on as a “strategic partner,” according to Fortune.
Now with another $1.5 billion in tow from the series X round, Gopuff is gearing up to liquidate its assets and go public, and if it does, its failure or success could serve as a litmus test for other instant delivery companies.
More and more startups are beginning to deploy the instant delivery model, and they’re garnering the interest of investors. One of these is New York City-based Jokr, which earlier this month became a unicorn company within a year of being founded, but other startups like Gorillas and Getir are also growing rapidly and shaking up the space.
Even established delivery companies are getting in on the action now. Recent reports have revealed that both Instacart and DoorDash have plans to deliver groceries in 15 minutes or less, with DoorDash having already rolled out an initial pilot in New York City.
But unlike those companies, instant delivery is Gopuff’s entire model, which makes it unique among food and grocery delivery platforms that are public or plan on going public. By going public, Gopuff might just prove — or disprove — that instant delivery can be successful, all on its own.
As of publication, Gopuff had not responded to Modern Shipper’s request for comment.


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Representatives from Apple and Google were among the witnesses today at a hearing called "Protecting Mobile Privacy: Your Smartphones, Tablets, Cell Phones and Your Privacy" before the Senate Committee on the Judiciary, Subcommittee on Privacy, Technology and the Law, chaired by Sen. Al Franken, D-Minn. The hearing is scheduled to begin at 10 a.m. ET.
Below is our live blog of the hearing.
We'll have complete news, analysis and reaction on USA TODAY.com and in our newspaper tomorrow.
12:39 p.m. ET: Sen. Franken in closing said that "I think people have the right to know who is getting their information and how information is shared and used. I still have serious doubts those rights are being respected in law or in practice."
12:35 p.m. ET: In response to Sen. Blumenthal's request for what needs to be done to improve consumer privacy, Brookman said that the FCC needs the capacity to bring more cases. And companies should be required to get rid of data they no longer need. "In both the Sony and Epsilon cases, they were holding data they didn't need anymore."
12:25 p.m. ET: Sen. Franken asked Apple's Tribble how many apps the company has removed from the App Store because the app shared information with third parties without consent?
He said that all of the apps to date have fixed their apps rather than be removed.
Franken: "So the answer is ... zero?
12:20 p.m. ET: Apple's Tribble says that some of the data in the apps come directly from police departments. "If the app intends to help the user to break the law we take them down."
Schumer responded that "the intent of these apps is to encourage people to break the law."
Tribble said that it would let Schumer know about its decision on the apps.
12:18 p.m. ET: Google's Davidson said that the company takes the issue seriously but it doesn't technically violate policy. "Would you allow an app that tells you how to cook methamphetamine?" Schumer asked.
Davidson replied that apps involving unlawful activity are taken down. He did say that Google is talking about what to do about the apps. "We agree that it is a bad thing and I agree that it is a bad thing."
12:13 p.m. PT: Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., asks about mobile apps like Buzz and Buzz Alert to avoid drunken driving checkpoints. "There's only one purpose and you know what that is."
When notified about the apps, RIM (Blackberry) "pulled the app down and I was disappointed that Apple and Google did not do the same," he said.
12:10 p.m. ET: Sen. Whitehouse says that he is not sure the hearing has revealed a "perspective that is ideal ... to make the Internet safer and consumers less vulnerable to abuse" and to assure that "you are getting what you paid for to load up."
11:59 a.m. ET: Google's Davidson says the company requires app developers to let consumers know "specifically what types of information, not just location information, are coming from the phone."
11:57 a.m. ET: Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., asked Apple and Google representatives how they know that app developers "are keeping their word" in regards to privacy and security?
Apple's Tribble said that in addition to examining apps "once (they are) in the App store, we do random audits ... and things like examining the network traffic" created by the app.
11:50 -- Sen. Blumenthal asks Google about charges that it had been illegally collecting wireless data while building its Street View feature and whether it planned to actually use the data for other services.
Google's Davidson replied that "We have said publicly that it was a mistake." Google was actually collecting Wi-Fi hot spot locations. "We do not intend to ever use this data and" are doing whatever regulators require in regards to destroying the data.
Blumenthal: "If it was not illegal don't you think it should be?"
Davidson: "It raises questions about the use of data in the clear."
Davidson says that he "will take that back to our leadership. I think it's a very good question."
11:40 a.m. ET: Franken asked Tribble about the confusing nature of the Apple location data database. "Does this data indicate anything about your location or doesn't it?"
Tribble's response was that the data stored is the location of as many Wi-Fi hot spots and cellphone towers as it can. That data does not actually contain any consumer information, he says. When the database is downloaded to your phone, it knows which cell towers it can receive. "The combination ... is how the phone figures out where it is without the GPS."
11:35 a.m. ET: ACT's Zuck says that while much of the focus on mobile technology is focused in California, 70% of mobile app developers are outside of California. "This is a national phenomenon" that is helping small businesses grow.
11:29 a.m. ET: Google's Davidson says that when a user gets an Android phone they are asked in clear language whether they want to turn on location services. "If they opt in, all data is anonymized."
11:26 a.m. ET: Tribble says that information caches on iPhones are used to reliably place a user's location for services. Information originally was not encrypted, but was not accessible by other apps, he says. The next major software update will add encryption, he says.
11:23 a.m. ET: Apple's Tribble says the company does "not share personally identifiable information with third parties for marketing purposes without consent ... (and) we do not track users' locations. Apple has never done so and has no plans to ever do so."
1:19 a.m. ET: CDT's Brookman says that current law does not "map well" to mobile devices and apps. A comprehensive privacy law is needed, he says.
11:13 a.m. ET: Ashkan Soltani, who assisted the FTC in an investigation last year on Net technology and consumer privacy, says software developers need to provide consumers with "effective opt-outs" for collected data about location.
11:09 a.m. ET: Sen. Franken introduces the second panel after it takes its seats. They include:
-- Justin Brookman, director, project on consumer privacy, Center for Democracy and Technology
-- Alan Davidson, director of public policy for the Americas at Google
-- Ashkan Soltani, independent researcher and consultant
-- Guy L. "Bud" Tribble, vice president of software technology, Apple
-- Jonathan Zuck, president, Association for Competitive Technology
11:03 a.m. ET: Franken holds up a several-page printout of Apple's iPhone user agreement and says that until about a week ago opting out of location data collection did not turn off the location data collection. "Is that a deceptive trade practice?"
Rich says, "I can't comment on a specific company's practice" but says that if it is a misleading statement, "it's a deceptive practice."
10:57 a.m. ET: Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., asks Rich and Weinstein how well informed is the average American about the hazards "that lurk out there on the Internet?"
Rich responds that "consumers really have no idea about the layers of sharing that go on behind the scenes. They may like to use location services but they don't realize the location data may be going to ... all sorts of other parties in the chain."
When certain high-profile breaches happen, she says, "that is why people are shocked, because they had no idea their data was there."
10:51 a.m. ET: Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., calls the current situation with data privacy "a Wild West" and asks whether current laws don't provide enough protection for children 13 and under from marketing and privacy.
The FTC is currently reviewing the Children's Online Protection Act, which covers those 12 and under, Rich says, to see if it was keeping up with technology."
10:48 a.m. ET: Leany says that he plans to resubmit his proposal for national standards for handling of data breaches and handling of consumer data. "You mentioned Epsilon and Sony," he says to Weinstein. "As I read more and more about it, it is more and more frightening."
10:42 a.m. ET: In response to questions from Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., Weinstein says that Congress could update current cyberstalking law, as it requires that perpetrators and victims be in different states. They can be on the same street, he says. Also, he notes that there is no federal law requiring companies to report data breaches to law enforcement.
10:36 a.m. ET: Sen. Franken asks DOJ's Weinstein "What is to prevent (companies like Apple and Google) from getting hacked?" Weinstein says that he is not aware of any legal requirement that company (with your data)" must secure your data safely. Congress could require companies to retain and protect data securely, he says.
10:35 a.m. ET: Sen. Franken says that it is his understanding that in a variety of cases under current federal law, companies can share location data without customer consent. Weinstein says that is correct.
10:30 a.m. ET: In response to a question from Sen. Franken, Rich says that information about children, financial information, location data and medical or health information can be misused. "If it falls in the wrong hands it can be used for stalking."
10:26 a.m. ET: Jason Weinstein, Deputy Assistant Attorney General in the U.S. Department of Justice, the second witness tells the committee that as the use of mobile devices increases, they are increasing becoming targets" of cybercriminals.
10:22 a.m. ET: The first witness Jessica Rich, deputy director of Federal Trade Commission's Bureau of Consumer Protection, says that the rapid growth of mobile devices "raises serious privacy concerns" because they are always on and can track device holders of all ages at all times.
10:16 a.m. ET: Franken says that when he first contacted Apple about its logging of users' locations, the Minnesota Coalition for Battered Women offered help to Franken because they say "we see case after case where a stalker or an abusive spouse has used the technology on mobile phones to stalk or harass their victims."
10:14 a.m. ET: Continuing his opening statement, Franken says, " Reports suggest that the information on our mobile devices is not being protected in the way it should be."
10:11 a.m. ET: Franken says, "Don't get me wrong. I love that I can use Google Maps, for free, no less and the same for the app on my iPad that tells me the weather."
10:10 a.m. ET: Franken days that privacy concerns used to be focused on government misuse of personal data. "We still do have to protect ourselves from government abuses and that's a big part of the digital privacy debate. But now we also have relationships with large corporations that are obtaining and storing increasingly large amounts of our information."
10:05: Sen. Judiciary Chairman Pat Leahy, D-Conn., commends subcommittee chairman Franken and says that "The digital age can do some wonderful things for all of us. ... At the same time consumers face threats to privacy like at no time before."
Technology Live covers computers, electronics, and the Internet, with a focus on cutting-edge technology that has a real impact on your life. Our reporters and editors -- based in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Seattle, New York, and Washington – offer news and tips to help you make the most of your digital domain. More about the team
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Hero MotoCorp’s stock has fallen 8% in the past six months, while its peers including Bajaj Auto and TVS Motor Company have gained up to 17% in the same period.
Bajaj Auto sold a total of 407,150 units in January 2020.
The two-wheeler major sold 488,069 of two-wheelers in the domestic market in January 2020.
Bajaj Auto's sales were in line with the overall domestic motorcycle industry performance that recorded dip of 14 per cent in the December quarter.
Bajaj’s CT, which was not there in the list of December 2018, made it in the top 10 with sales of 30,758 units this year.
Total two-wheeler sales during the month stood at 215,619 units as against 258,709 units in December 2018, down 16.65 per cent.
Cumulatively, Royal Enfield has sold 533,089 units during April-December last year, down 15 per cent from 629,936 units recorded in the same period of last fiscal.
Hero MotoCorp's entry-level bike witnessed a marginal YoY decline of 1% at 223,289 units.
A substantial increase of 160% was seen in models with engine capacity exceeding 350cc to 7,707 units as compared to 2,967 units last month.
According to the company, SMIPL clocked its highest-ever monthly domestic sales.
Total motorcycle sales for the company was recorded at 398,913 units witnessing a dip of 8 per cent .
Domestic two-wheeler sales witnessed a decline of 32.6 per cent to 243,163 units with motorcycle sales to 23,921 units and scooter sales to 118,687 units.
The sales stood at 343,217 units in August 2018.
The sales stood at 69,377 units in August 2018, the company said in a statement.
New car registrations in the European Union fell 3.1% in the first half of 2019, according to the European Automobile Manufacturers Association, while motorbike sales jumped 9.1% in the period, the European Association of Motorcycle Manufacturers reports.
“Tractor and motorcycle sales – indicators of rural demand – continued to contract," the central bank said.
The company's total exports grew by 6 per cent from 65,971 units registered in the month of June 2018 to 69,900 units in June 2019.
Two-wheeler maker pins hopes on favourable monsoons & improved liquidity in the market.
DOUBLE-DIGIT growth in 2018 helps bikes reclaim lost market share
During the same period of previous fiscal, Hero had sold 11,98,674 units as compared with 10,62,113 units of HMSI, a gap of over 1.36 lakh units.


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Creating its Own Space
French personal care company L’Oréal has partnered with Meta and the French business school HEC Paris to launch a startup accelerator focused on the Metaverse. The initiative — L’Oréal’s intent of creating its own space in the Metaverse and building its presence in the Web3 universe — will help startups in such verticals as avatar creation, augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR), mixed reality (MR), and portability in user experience.
L’Oréal has also made it clear the startups do not have to be specifically related to the beauty industry.
The accelerator’s headquarters will be in the Meta space within Station F, in the 13th arrondissement of Paris, which sees itself as the world’s biggest startup campus. Applications open until 20 November, with a jury composed of Meta, L’Oréal and HEC members, as well as entrepreneurs and investors. Selections will be made in December. Once the startups have been chosen, the programme will run from January to June 2023. Successful applicants will be offered mentorship and access to experts and investors.
“Bringing Young Talent Together”
“It brings a lot of young talents together. They’re the future. Imagine the massive creative energy that it generates,” said L’Oréal Chief Digital and Marketing Officer Asmita Dubey. “The benefit for us is that we can use that creativity for our DMI [international marketing direction] and brands. So, of course, we will leverage that.”
While Meta Vice President for southern Europe, Laurent Solly, said: “We are proud to associate ourselves with L’Oréal thanks to this ambitious project, which aims to support the French startup ecosystem that will have a key role in the building of a shared, creative and inclusive metaverse.”
Although there are plenty of cynics who believe Web3 is just a passing fad, the Clichy, Hauts-de-Seine-based company founded in 1909 by Eugène Schueller remains committed to its Web3 mission, with several brands in L’Oréal’s stable, including YSL Beauty, Lancôme, Mugler, Armani Beauty and Nyx Professional Makeup have introduced a flurry of Web3 initiatives. “If you look at Web2, live streaming, image recognition, voice, cloud — all of that is very vibrant,” added Dubey. “It’s a very charged digital space. Social commerce is booming for us. There is a strong base for Web2 deployment. And we are very excited about Web3 and the metaverse. We are moving from O+O (online + offline), to O+O+O (online + offline + on chain).”
One indicator L’Oréal is treating the Metaverse as a serious business opportunity was its appointment of Camille Kroely to the newly created role of Chief Metaverse and Web3 Officer this summer.
“It’s our role as the number one in beauty to make sure that we stay true to our commitments and core values,” said Kroely, noting for example that Nyx chose the Ethereum blockchain because it uses less energy than some alternatives.
Other actions that prove the French beauty conglomerate believes the future is Web3 was its 2018 acquisition of AR beauty company Modiface. Three years later, L’Oréal and Meta (then Facebook) announced a platform integration that used Modiface to bring AR-powered makeup try-ons to Instagram. “We are convinced that the acquisition of Modiface is a competitive advantage when we enter Web3 and the metaverse,” said Kroely.
“AR beauty and makeup is growing every day. More and more consumers are using it,” added Dubey.
Keep up with the latest metaverse news here!


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Traditional craftsmanship is an art that is slowly disappearing within certain industries, but Alexander McQueen is bringing it back in a big way.
The British haute couture label’s S/S20 collection featured a fabric that had almost been lost to time: beetled linen. In a time-intensive and elaborate process, linen is processed to give it a sheen that makes it look like leather.
The luxury brand partnered with the oldest linen mill in Ireland, William Clarke, to create its one-of-a-kind garments for the latest collection. Techniques passed down through generations were used to bring to life whimsical puff-sleeved dresses and an ensemble of trousers with a jacket. The outfits were disassembled, starched and pounded with wooden blocks, before then being reassembled to achieve the elegant lustre that makes them unique.
The whole process takes under a week to complete and requires collective effort of the entire team. According to the brand, it is the first time in its 300 years of history that the mill has beetled a complete garment.
“The connection between the clothes was the time it took to make them… I love the idea of people having time to make things together, to meet and talk together, to reconnect with the world,” McQueen creative director Sarah Burton said.
Bazaar takes a closer look at the material and process behind creating beetled linen here.
Images supplied by Alexander McQueen


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Mazda is planning to construct an engine plant in the Chonburi Province of Thailand where SKYACTIV-D 1.5 clean diesel engine will be produced for the company’s flagship Mazda2.
The engine assembly plant is expected to have production capacity of 30,000 units per year, and it will be the fourth unit for the production of SKYACTIV engines after Mexico, Japan , and China.
The construction of the new plant follows Thai government’s Eco-Car program, which provides tax cuts to fuel-efficient and low-emission vehicles and the Mazda2 will be especially built for the Thai market.
Mazda director Yuji Nakamine said :”We are very excited to announce this development. Thailand is Mazda’s main production base in the ASEAN region, and establishing a comprehensive framework for the production of SKYACTIV models-covering engines, transmissions and vehicle bodies-will enable us to make an even greater contribution to the development of the Thai automotive industry.”
The plant is expected to commence operations by the fourth quarter of 2015.


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GBS WORLD NEWS | WEEK 4 | JULY 2022
Customer experience (CX) scores for Malaysian brands is fairly average, scoring 3.8 compared to the Asia Pacific’s (APAC) average of 3.9, according to the Infobip APAC study. Focusing on how people and automated engagement has evolved, the report also noted how neighboring countries such as Indonesia (4.1) and Thailand (4.2) had higher CX scores, while Singapore lagged slightly at 3.7. North America kicked off the week on a celebratory note, as Samsung Electronics America Customer Care was named the winner of the Best in Future of Customer Experience North America Awards by the International Data Corporation (IDC). Unum and Samson Inc. were named runners-up. These businesses demonstrated a keen understanding of the evolving nature of the connection between consumers and brands, as well as the role technology plays in supporting it. Meanwhile, in Canada, Hikvision a leader in Internet of Things (IoT) solutions and surveillance technology, announced the grand opening of their new CX Centre in Vancouver, British Columbia. The new location has a suite of offices, technologies and Hikvision products to support clients throughout Western Canada in a variety of customer encounters, meetings and training.In a move that will certainly disrupt the global on-demand, cloud platform CX market, Microsoft has announced its AI-powered Digital Contact Center service that looks to disrupt those provided by AWS and Google. The Contact Center-as-a-Service (CCaaS) solution includes features from Microsoft applications such as Dynamics 365, Teams, Power Platform and Nuance. Nigeria’s leading payment services bank, 9Payment Service Bank (9PSB), and SeerBit, a pan-African enterprise payment platform, have announced a strategic collaboration that will provide Nigerian individuals and businesses with access to financial services, while receiving optimal CX. The partnership aims to create a seamless payment and omnichannel banking environment for financial agents, merchants, end consumers and businesses. Although showing signs of slowing down due to rising economic concerns, Europe’s IT and business services market delivered strong year-on-year (YoY) growth in the second quarter, according to Information Services Group’s (ISG) EMEA ISG Index™. The report revealed that Europe’s annual contract value (ACV) for the combined market (both managed services and cloud-based XaaS) will reach US$7 billion for the third quarter in a row. The YoY growth rate was up 18%, but it decreased slightly from the first quarter (0.5%). In global news, 63% of consumers will still pay more for great customer service, despite rising inflation, according to a new report published by Invoca’s 2022 Buyer Experience Benchmark Report. The research looks at how customers’ expectations measure up to their brand experiences while making high-stakes purchases such as purchasing automobiles, undertaking home improvement projects and traveling.


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NEXT HOLDEN COMMODORE VF TO GET ALUMINIUM PANELS
VF Commodore series 2014 will be the first locally-produced automobile to incorporate mass produced aluminium panels in its construction. In addition, the new large car, which will also spawn a long-wheelbase Caprice model, will get improved aerodynamics and electric power steering in place of the current-gen’s hydraulic unit. thereby make it more fuel efficient in an effort to remain competitive with the likes of the locally-produced Toyota Camry Hybrid.
Fuel savings are expected to be around the 7% mark, bringing the 9.1lt /100 km (26 mpg) combined rating of the 3.0 L V6 SIDI down to a more politically-correct 8.4 lt/ 100 km (28 mpg). Similar savings will be experienced with the older 3.6 L Alloytec V6: 9.1 lt / 100 km (26 mpg) down from 9.8 lt / 100 km (24 mpg). The program is part-funded by the Australian federal government, which poured AU$39.8 million in from the now defunct Green Car Innovation Fund.
The entire VF project has been pegged at AU$189 million; significantly less than the rumoured one billion spent on its VEpredecessor. The aluminium-pressing alone is expected to generate some 250 engineering jobs at Holden’s Elizabeth Plant where the Cruzesmall car is built.
Aluminium is up to 50% lighter than steel, though its prohibitive cost has limited its use in Australian-built vehicles. Rumours of a hybrid model continue to circulate in the Australian motoring press, and in my opinion it’s only a matter of time before the Commodore jumps that particular bandwagon. For the time being at least, the big Aussie sedan’s future would seem assured.
2011 TOYOTA PRIUS 7-SEATER CONCEPT IS BEING SERIOUSLY STUDIED
The larger Prius won’t be based on the Japanese market Prius Alpha nor the European specification Prius+, both of which pack a retractable third row of seats into the Prius V’s cargo area. The all-new Prius V five-seater minivanisn’t due to arrive in U.S. showrooms until this fall, yet Toyota is already looking into the development of a larger model capable of seating seven passengers as well as carrying their luggage.
The company has not made a final decision yet, the concept of a true 7-seater Prius minivan for the North American market is “being seriously studied”. He added that the three-row Prius would have to be based on a dedicated platform and meet certain criteria such as feature an aerodynamic shape, be able to return at least 40mpg and have a strong value-price equation.
The corporate manager of product planning Ben Mitchell, confirmed that his team has put several proposals for new hybridvehicles in different segments on the table, including that of a larger7-seater Prius as well ashybrid versions of the Sienna minivan and Venzacrossover.


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South Korea’s Lotte Hotel & Resorts Plants Its Flag in Seattle
February 7, 2020By Bill Conroy
The Asian hospitality company in is now hiring for its new Lotte Hotel Seattle, which is set to open in June.
A South Korean hotel chain, Lotte Hotels & Resorts, plans to unveil its first hotel in Seattle ― and only its second in the United States ― and is now recruiting new employees in advance of the opening this June.
Lotte Hotel Seattle will feature 189 guest rooms spread over 16 floors and will be located in the 48-story F5 Tower at 801 5th Ave. in downtown Seattle. Tech company F5 Networks is leasing all 528,000 square feet of office space in the skyscraper, which earned a Skyline Award from Seattle Business magazine last year.
The South Korean hotel operator, founded in 1973, was the first private hotel brand in South Korea. It opened its first overseas hotel in Russia, Lotte Hotel Moscow, in 2010.
The hospitality company now operates some 30 hotels and resorts in major cities in seven countries, including in New York; Hanoi, Vietnam; and Yangon, Myanmar. Lott Hotels & Resorts is composed of several hotel brands, including SIGNIEL, the company’s premium hotel brand; L7, a lifestyle hotel; Lotte City Hotel, a hotel focused on business travelers; and the Lotte Resort for family travelers.
The Lotte Hotel Seattle is now hiring for all departments, including hotel operations, marketing and human resources, according to the company.


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KT Corp. Chairman Lee Suk-chae declared his company’s new vision of becoming a global media distributor selling virtual goods.
Lee unveiled the vision for the second phase of KT’s “olleh” management, named after a company brand, at a news conference on March 19. He was recently given the green light for his second three-year term.
Reflecting on the outcomes of his first term as chairman at Olleh Square in the presence of the CEOs of KT’s subsidiaries, Lee said KT will get a jumpstart in the “Smart-Life” sector in which the whole world is unified and always connected by consummating the ongoing Business & Information System Transformation (BIT) within his tenure. BIT, launched in 2010, is designed to upgrade in-house systems, processes, and corporate culture to the world’s top rated ones, while the accumulated expertise will be made available to create business models and commercialize IT consulting services.
BIT involves companywide innovations of management information for swift and consistent decision-making as well as the way work is done. For customers, it shifts the service paradigm to a customer-oriented one by unifying marketing/business/service infrastructures. For a representative example, once the operation of contents, being offered individually according to services, are unified, ‘N-screen’ services will be made available by using the same contents regardless of devices used.
In order to attain the goal of becoming a global media distribution group, KT unveiled five tasks: a focus on nurturing IT media; expanding convergence businesses; becoming an innovative telecommunications leader; transforming itself into a global business leader; and creating social value.
As the first of KT’s action plans, he said, KT will take the lead in the ecosystem of distributing virtual goods. KT plan to distribute Korean moving image contents and channels on foreign markets through its subsidiary, Ustream. The Korean telecom giant will strengthen its presence in the application market via One Asia Super Inter-Store (OASIS) and Wholesale Applications Community (WAC).
KT plans to secure a viewership of 15 million paid broadcasting viewers by strengthening TV platforms. The company plans to improve clients’ convenience by providing N screen services using cloud computing and the development of customer-specific products based on olleh tv and SkyLife, as well as the development of TV-specific application services so that customers can use diverse contents via TV.
KT is adopting strategies to differentiate its content services from its rivals. For instance, Enswers, acquired by KT last year, will be utilized for offering differentiated content series through moving image search software programs with a competitive edge. In particular, KT will enable the execution of global media projects catering to Korean expatriates and overseas hallyu (Korean Wave) enthusiasts. KT plans to explore global distribution markets for selling virtual goods through collaboration with global players and the establishment of joint ventures.
In order to ensure the seamless distribution of virtual products, KT plans to maximize the efficiency of world-class cabled and wireless communications networks involving the inclusion of the Long Term Evolution (LTE) network to the existing 3Ws °™ WiFi, WCDMA and WiBro.


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The new announced Tamron 17-28mm f/2.8 Di III RXD Lens for Sony E-mount is scheduled to be released on July 25th, 2019. You can now pre-order at B&H Photo Video/Adorama/Amazon/Focus Camera. Here are more reviews and sample images of this lens.
Update: Seems Sony hasn’t announced the new RX camera today, maybe tomorrow ? Stay tuned.
We are now confirmed that Sony will have a new product announcement today, usually at 10am ET, New York time. Sony will announce a new RX compact camera today, currently still no info which RX series will be refreshed, according to previous rumors, the most likely camera to be announced today is Sony RX10 V. Stay tuned for more info.
Read More »
Sony Semiconductor has developed 5 new full frame CMOS sensors. Here are leaked specs sheet of these 5 new sensors: IMX311, IMX313, IMX409, IMX521, IMX554.
In a recently interview with Sony manager by ImagingResource at Sony a7R IV (B&H Photo Video/Adorama/Amazon) launch event, Sony manager said a7RIV doesn’t do 4:2:2 10-bit internally because of the sensor and type of camera, but it can do 4:2:2 with an external recorder. Sony manager also confirmed again that Sony is currently working on internal 10bit 4:2:2 and 4K 60p to next Sony cameras (Most likely the long awaited Sony a7S III).


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ACCC opposes Woolworths’ store buy and Heinz baby food acquisition
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has announced it will oppose the proposed acquisition by Australia’s major supermarket group Woolworths Limited (Woolworths) of a supermarket site in Glenmore Park located off Sydney’s M4 Western Motorway by the Nepean River.
At the same time, the ACCC has announced it is opposing the acquisition by major baby food producer Heinz acquisition of its major competitor, Rafferty’s Garden.
No second Woolworths at Glenmore Park
The ACCC said that the proposed acquisition by Woolworths of the supermarket site at Glenmore Ridge in the suburb of Glenmore Park would be likely to result in a substantial lessening of local supermarket competition, despite Woolworths’ competitor Aldi being due to open a store in the area in 2014.
“Woolworths already operates the only supermarket in the suburb of Glenmore Park, and it has the next closest supermarket located in the nearby suburb of South Penrith,” said Rod Sims, ACCC Chairman. “The Glenmore Ridge site represents the only opportunity for a competing supermarket to enter Glenmore Park in the forseeable future, other than an Aldi that is due to open in 2014,” he said.
“In effect, the choice is between Glenmore Park residents having two Woolworths and one Aldi supermarket, or having three different supermarkets in their area,” Mr Sims said.
The ACCC said it believed that an alternative supermarket at the Glenmore Ridge site “would stimulate local competition and provide greater choice to residents of the area”.
The suburb of Glenmore Park is bound by the M4 Motorway and non-residential areas, which the ACCC said emphasises the importance of access to supermarket shopping in the Glenmore Park area.
A public review of the Glenmore Park site matter began on 20 June 2012 and the ACCC said it had completed its review by October 2012, but had suspended the timeline at the request of Woolworths to allow the supermarket group to provide addition information.
ACCC opposes Heinz Rafferty’s Garden buy
Meanwhile, the ACCC has also announced that it will oppose the proposed buy up of baby food manufacturer Rafferty’s Garden by competitor Heinz.
Heinz and Rafferty’s Garden are the two largest suppliers of wet and dry infant food in Australia. The ACCC said a merged Heinz/Rafferty’s Garden would have accounted for about 80 per cent of the share of sales in the wet infant food market and about 70 per cent in infant cereals and infant snacks.
“The ACCC concluded that the propose acquisition is likely to result in a substantial lessening of competition through the removal of Rafferty’s Garden, which has around 40 per cent market share in wet infant food and is a close and effective competitor of Heinz, which also has around a 40 per cent market share in wet infant food,” Mr Sims said.
“The proposed acquisition would combine the two largest suppliers of wet and dry infant food in Australia, resulting in highly concentrated markets where barriers to entry and expansion are high, particularly because of brand recognition and preference,” Mr Sims said. “This is likely to reduce the frequency and depth of promotional activity, increase prices and reduce innovation in the wet and dry infant food markets,” he said.
Supermarkets are key market for baby food in Australia
In reaching its decision, the ACCC said it “carefully considered” the dependence of both Heinz and Rafferty’s Garden on the major supermarket chains for stocking their products.
“We are not satisfied that the power possessed by the major supermarket chains will necessarily constrain prices for consumers or drive innovation. Fierce inter-brand competition is more likely to achieve this,” Mr Sims said.
Baby food market in Australia
According to data collected by market research organisation Nielsen, published in ‘Retail World Grocery Guide 2012’, the baby food sector was worth $315.7 million in 2012. Wet baby food was worth $117.7 million, and dry baby food $36 million.
Other players in the wet and dry baby food sector in 2012 included Only Organic (7.4 per cent value share, 7.9 per cent volume share in the wet food sector) and Farex (11.8 per cent value share and 21.4 per cent volume share in the dry food sector).
Heinz produces a range of wet infant food in cans, glass jars and pouch/pouch-and-spout packaging. Rafferty’s Garden supplies wet infant food in pouch/pouch-and-spout packaging only. Both companies supply dry infant products, including cereals, snacks and teething rusks.
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Mechanics got the part midday Wednesday and began fixing a few walk-in customers immediately.
Mechanics say it takes about 30 minutes to make the fix.
The part it is a little piece of metal the size of a nickel that is wedged to the accelerator mechanism. Mechanics say it's meant to reduce the tension of the peddle.
The Steven's Creek dealership expects to make hundreds or fixes in the next couple of days. They recommend people make appointment and not just show up.
Toyota said that would solve the problem -- which it said was extremely rare -- of cars unaccountably accelerating.


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Product packaging’s sole purpose originally was to protect the product inside. Over the years, packaging has also doubled as a marketing tool — packaging design now plays a vital role in consumers buying decisions.
The term “recyclable” has long been a buzzword in the food packaging industry. But now consumers and other stakeholders are demanding more than the iconic three-arrow triangle stamped on their hamburger box.
Whenever I see toys packaged in blind box packaging, it reminds me of collecting trading cards as a kid and that feeling of wanting the entire set, but knowing the likelihood of that happening was directly tied to how much allowance money I was willing to invest.
In May 2019, the Council of the European Union adopted the Single-Use Plastics (SUP) directive proposed by the Juncker Commission as an essential element of its Circular Economy Action Plan to reduce marine plastic litter.
Since 1939 the packaging described the product as a cure for “periodic pain.” Although the name was familiar with young women, the brand lacked relevance with Gen Z and was losing market share due to the increase of new female-focused start-ups.
People around the world are learning the hard way how completely dependent we all are upon reliable supply chains to keep our economy — and our lifestyles — running. In the shadow of quarantines and social distancing guidelines, consumers have had to rely more than ever on ecommerce to deliver necessities.
Sustainability impacts the conversation around packaging as consumers become progressively more aware of the impact brands have on the environment. Sustainability is especially important among younger consumers.
Challenger brands, which set themselves apart with an intent to bring change to an industry, are driving massive change across the fast-moving consumer goods industry. At the same time, in order to grow their sales these brands are bridging the gap between selling exclusively online and building an in-store presence.
Diadeis is launching the first conference about packaging artwork. It will be an intimate and interactive event, a one-day track devoted to understanding and sharing strategies and insights with a focus on improving the packaging value chain.
We ring in the new year with features in the January issue including our Top Packaging Innovations in 2020, customizable e-commerce kits, automating coding changeovers to drive efficiency, motion control advances, tape solutions and beauty care while wearing masks.


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Top NFT developer Yuga Labs will reduce its workforce and focus on its core initiatives. The move comes amid the record market downturn currently battling the broad NFT space.
In an Oct. 6 mail, CEO Daniel Alegre explained why the company needed to restructure in light of the prevailing market conditions.
Yuga Labs’ Restructuring Plan
The CEO pointed out that the team had spread too thin by working on numerous projects, particularly those outside its expertise.
“I realized very quickly that there were a number of projects that, while well-intentioned, either spread the team too thin or required execution expertise beyond our core competencies.”
“The restructure today impacts US team members, and we are actively reviewing the impact on our international teams,” Alegre said.
Read More: 9 Best Crypto Demo Accounts For Trading
The exact number of affected employees was undisclosed. Furthermore, the company intends to provide comprehensive support to affected employees, including severance packages and recommendations.
Meanwhile, The CEO emphasized a strategic shift towards prioritizing partnerships and advancing key projects like Bored Apes. These endeavors will center around community development, particularly the Otherside project and various Web3 initiatives powered by Yuga Labs.
Alegre outlined plans to commemorate the crypto art legacy through educational resources and integrate Meebits and 10KTF into the upcoming 2024 gaming venture, Otherside.
Yuga Labs co-founder Greg Solano, speaking on the development, stated that the company moved to ensure its “long-term success.” Solano said the company maintains a workforce of over 120 employees, all of whom are now concentrating on specific priorities.
NFT Volume At Record Lows
Yuga Labs’ recent actions align with a significant decline in NFT trading activity. According to DappRadar, trading volume has dropped to its lowest point since the first quarter of last year.
The sector recorded $1.39 billion in volume across 11.5 million transactions, a sharp contrast to the $12.6 billion and 44.9 million trades in Q1 2022. Per DappRadar, this decline reflects an ongoing trend throughout this year.
Also, DappRadar’s analysis suggests a shift in consumer preferences from high-value collectibles and profile picture NFTs to those with practical utility.
The data indicates a rising interest in NFTs serving practical purposes like membership passes, etc.
“Consumers are gravitating towards NFTs that offer genuine value like membership passes or other functional benefits.”


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ASSINIBOIA - Curling fans can start buying tickets for the Viterra Scotties Ladies Provincial Championships, which will be held at the Assiniboia Curling Club from January 5 to 9, 2022. A kickoff night for ticket sales was held on October 19.
“It was a good start to ticket sales, we had about 25 to 30 tickets sold,” said Rob Greensides, Scotties Committee Chair. He said quite a few chairs were sold up front, right by the windows of the rink and by the lounge. About half the tables available were also sold.
There are a few different options available for tickets: a week pass for $80, a day pass for $20 and the last draw of the day pass for $10. “The best bang for the buck will be the week pass,” said Greensides.
Tickets are available for purchase at Nelson GM, at their reception desk, and these are cash-only sales. Residents can also call 306-642-5115.
Once the Assiniboia Curling Rink is open, tickets will also be available for sale at that location. Flooding of the rink is scheduled to occur this week, with house circles, rink lines and logos being embedded this upcoming weekend.
In accordance to health guidelines set by Curl Saskatchewan and Curl Canada, proof of double vaccination for COVID-19 is required to purchase Scotties tickets.
They will not be able to accept rapid negative tests.
The Scotties Committee also started a volunteer list on their kickoff night.
“We had a pretty good turnout of volunteers, but we will take all that we can,” said Greenside. He encouraged any interested residents who want to be a volunteer to contact Bill Lothian, manager of the Assiniboia Curling Club, to register their name. Volunteers also have to provide proof of double vaccination for COVID-19.


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Oct 30, 2020Growing Pains: CBD Use by Athletes Slow Despite Mainstream Popularity
Recovery and pain management is a high profile concern for athletes at every level of their game. After a contest or hard workout, they need a way to bounce back from what ails them. Aside from the oft-taken paths pharmaceutical companies offer, there are less-traveled routes of natural remedies that are being looked at.
The use of CBD, or the non-psychoactive compound derived from the cannabis plant, has exploded in popularity over the past decade. Many athletes from around the sports world, especially professional athletes, have been singing the praises of CBD for the past few years, claiming it is a safe and natural alternative to opioid-based pain relief.
While the mainstream is certainly becoming more and more receptive and tolerant of hemp-based products, both psychoactive and not, there is still a cloud of gray area that athletes have to navigate. Knowing that CBD isn’t going anywhere any time soon, researchers are actively seeking to better understand the ways CBD can positively impact those who use it.
Though banned by nearly every governing athletic body in the country, marijuana is now fully legal in 11 states across the country and has been decriminalized in 29 others. Just eight states in the United States still consider marijuana completely illegal.
For a lot of athletes, one of the biggest hurdles to clear is the stigma associated with the use of cannabinoids. The association with marijuana, which is also harvested from the hemp plant, can scare athletes away from trying the non-psychoactive benefits of the plant. Also, there is little rock-solid evidence that supports the benefits of CBD products.
The positive effects have ranged from inflammatory relief, soothing digestive discomfort, reducing stress, and increased quality of sleep — all of which could be big benefits to athletes in the recovery process, particularly those partaking in collision and high-contact sports. Anecdotal evidence abounds in support of their benefits, but the powers that be in the pharmaceutical world have not taken a stand in favor of their use.
Athletic governing bodies have begun to come around on the use of CBD, though. Starting in January of 2018, the World Anti-Doping Agency added CBD to the list of substances that are no longer banned, in or out of competition. THC, the psychoactive component of marijuana, is still prohibited, and so are synthetic cannabinoids.
The selling and marketing of CBD products also became legal in the United States in 2018. A revision to the United States Farm Bill that year allowed for the production and sale of industrial hemp products throughout the United States, including hemp-derived CBD products.
The Food and Drug Administration monitors and regulates CBD products that make therapeutic claims. It released a statement in late 2019 that said it “recognizes the significant public interest in cannabis and cannabis-derived compounds, particularly CBD. However, there are many unanswered questions about the science, safety, and quality of products containing CBD.”
The NCAA does not specifically ban CBD use in its 2020-21 guidelines by name but does outlaw marijuana and synthetic versions. Todd Wetmore, the Sports Information Director for Liberty University, said that the athletic training staff at the Division 1 school oversees the supplement intake of its athletes.
“Our athletes know that they need to check with the training staff about anything that they take,” Wetmore said.
In the pros, the legality of both CBD and marijuana varies but is trending more and more towards tolerance of both. The National Hockey League has long been the most progressive in the area, without penalties in place for use of either CBD or marijuana. Major League Baseball became the second major North American sports league to legalize the use of both by its players, with penalties in place for those that are impaired on the job or are caught breaking the law in their communities.
The National Football League is undergoing fact-finding tasks as it prepares for an upcoming collective bargaining agreement in which it is expected that CBD, and perhaps marijuana, use will be cleared as forms of pain management for players. The NBA randomly drug tests players four times per year. Suspensions do not occur until a third positive test in a calendar year, but the NBA Players Union is fighting to legalize use for its players.
As for high school athletics, the regulations regarding the use of CBD products vary from state. While nearly all states clearly ban the use of marijuana for their high school athletic competitors, the legality of CBD products is rarely specifically mentioned. Athletes should consult their individual athletic departments, and or state governing bodies, to determine whether or not they can legally use such supplements.
» ALSO SEE: Strength Coach Roundtable Discussion
The monitoring of the use of CBD-based products at the high school level is difficult for governing bodies as most high school athletes across the United States are not required to submit drug tests for participation. However, there may be monitoring done by the high school or individual program, depending on the school and state.
Athletes at every level may be able to benefit from the use of CBD as they strive to become more healthy, in a more natural way. Making sure that this avenue is legal inside their sport seems to be a case by case basis, and something that must be monitored to avoid breaking rules.


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SPRINGFIELD, Mo. (KY3) – Wheeler’s Furniture store in south Springfield is now selling out its entire stock over the next couple of months as the family who owns the long-time fixture in the community has decided to go out of business.
The current store has been around since 2002, but the original location in downtown Springfield was on the southwest corner of Walnut and South Avenue in what is now a coffee shop and apartment lofts. That furniture store location, under different names, dates back to around 1929.
But in 1986, Richard and Glenda Bennett bought the historic three-story building and enlisted their three children (Gregg, Becky, and Kim) to help them run a successful faith-based, family-focused business.
“My father used to be a pastor,” Gregg Bennett pointed out. “And they ran their business according to biblical principles.”
Over the years, the siblings even took over management roles in the store and an additional furniture outlet they opened separately, but the children paid their dues along the way.
“They put us to work early,” Kim said. “As soon as I could (around eight years old), I was alphabetizing the delivery tickets in the office. We vacuumed, dusted, and cleaned the glass tables.”
“Learning how much polish to put on the cloth and the right amount of spray for the glass tables,” Becky added with a laugh. “And one of my favorite memories is getting to run the elevator. It was a really wonderful way to grow up.”
But as time moved on, so did the siblings. Kim Robilotto moved to North Carolina. Gregg Bennett is a minister in California. And Becky Lindell lives in Ozark, where she’s married to a minister at James River Church.
After their dad passed in 2014, their mom became the owner and CEO of Wheeler’s Furniture. But after Glenda passed away ten months ago, the siblings had some hard decisions.
“Each of us, now that we’re in different parts of the country, have things that we’re navigating in our own careers and families,” Gregg explained. “We didn’t want to make a rushed decision by any means. But we knew that none of us were in a position to carry the business forward into the next season. So after a lot of thought and prayer, we decided to have this event and hopefully end it well.”
For anyone who’s lost parents, you know it’s especially hard to decide what to do with their belongings. And for the Bennett siblings, choosing to let go of their family’s legacy has been an added burden.
“It kind of feels like you’re processing the loss all over again,” said a tearful Kim. “But I think this store has been such an extension of our home and family that it feels like it’s bundled into one.”
“I think since our parents had such a passion for it, that makes it harder to let go of it,” Becky added.
And some of the customers are having a hard time too.
“This morning, we got a visit from a long-time customer,” Gregg recalled. “She and her husband have bought several houses worth of furniture from us over the years, and she said, ‘Gregg, I need a hug!’ So I gave her a hug, and almost immediately, she wanted to apologize because her husband, years-and-years ago, had given us some grief about some cushions on an item of furniture. I told her it was O.K.”
“We want to thank our customers for their years and years of support,” Becky added. “It’s been fun, and we’re extremely thankful for you.”
And while the family is leaving the profession, they say they’re not opposed to selling the business to someone else.
“We’re absolutely open to that,” Gregg said. “And it’s not out of the ordinary for a potential buyer to emerge or inquire in an event like this that will be running for a minimum of 60 days.”
To report a correction or typo, please email [email protected]
Copyright 2023 KY3. All rights reserved.


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When you think of "mobile" or "connected" devices, you probably picture that new smartphone you just bought, and maybe your Apple Inc. (Nasdaq: AAPL) iPad2.
Well, I'm here to tell you that you're thinking too small.
Way too small.
By 2020, there will be 50 billion connected devices in use worldwide.
That's not a typo. And it's not a "hyped" estimate that we came up with internally. In fact, the estimate was made by Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (Nasdaq ADR: ERIC), one of the largest telecommunications companies on the planet, in the research report "More Than 50 Billion Connected Devices."
That creates a lot of significant risks.
But for savvy investors, it creates one hellacious profit opportunity. And - as you'll have the opportunity to see in a free investment briefing on Monday, there's one company in particular that's poised to profit.
Still need to know more?
Well, consider a "connected future" in which:
- The "connected" shoes of the elderly, or patients with health problems, can be monitored to make sure those folks are getting proper exercise.
- Connected vehicles can be remotely controlled to maximize fuel efficiency and to minimize traffic jams.
- You can use your phone to cool off your house via your connected air conditioner - as you drive home from work.
- A connected vending machine can signal when it needs to be replenished, saving the vendor from unnecessary visits.
- Your mobile device can be turned into a virtual wallet, or even a bank.
- And connected trees can signal a lumber mill, which monitors them to nurture a better crop, and a more-timely harvest.
Business, consumer electronics, healthcare, government ... they'll all be affected, and in a huge way.
And the 50 billion estimate could actually be low, Ericsson says. By 2020, for instance, there will be:
- 3 billion subscribers with the means to buy information on a round-the-clock basis - either for a lifestyle improvement, or for personal security. In "mature" markets, these subscribers will typically have between five and 10 connected devices each.
- 1.5 billion vehicles in existence worldwide, many of them connected. And that doesn't include buses or railroad trains.
- 3 billion utility meters (water, natural gas and electricity).
- And a cumulative 100 billion processors shipped - each capable of being connected.
So, as a now-intrigued investor, how do you play this?
Well, there are several possible paths to pursue.
You could, for instance, invest in the component makers. Or you could invest in the companies that make the actual devices.
But the hottest opportunity is going to be security.
As we've reported in both Money Morning and Private Briefing, cybersecurity is one of the biggest growth areas for business in the years to come.
And with 50 billion connected devices, that opportunity is going to explode. Just think: How do you protect the networks, the devices themselves, and the bank accounts and credit cards that supposedly sit behind those billions of gadgets - which you know present a "target-rich" environment for scammers, hackers and those friendly letter writers from Nigeria.
Yes, for investors like you, security is where the action figures to be.
And while much of this growth is still down the road and in the future, there are actually several companies that are already very well positioned to benefit.
And one company in particular is a "must add" portfolio play.
And that overall profit opportunity is just what Money Morning Chief Investment Strategist Keith Fitz-Gerald is going to address in the free briefing "The Biggest Technological Breakthrough of Our Lifetime." That briefing is scheduled for 4 p.m. EST on Monday (Nov. 21).
To find out more, or to sign up, please click here.
News and Related Story Links:
- Ericsson Whitepaper:
More Than 50 Billion Connected Devices.
- Money Morning Briefing:
"The Biggest Technological Breakthrough Of Our Lifetime."
- Money Morning Special Report:
Five Ways to Profit from Cybersecurity Stocks.
About the Author
Before he moved into the investment-research business in 2005, William (Bill) Patalon III spent 22 years as an award-winning financial reporter, columnist, and editor. Today he is the Executive Editor and Senior Research Analyst for Money Morning at Money Map Press. With his latest project, Private Briefing, Bill takes you "behind the scenes" of his established investment news website for a closer look at the action. Members get all the expert analysis and exclusive scoops he can't publish... and some of the most valuable picks that turn up in Bill's closed-door sessions with editors and experts.


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How to launch and operate them under the new regulatory regime.
A quick overview of how Digital Assets are to be regulated and taxed in Thailand.
This animation explores how the blockchain could improve today’s payments systems, and what the hurdles are central banks need to clear first.
More than half the respondents to the poll said regulation would be positive for ICOs, compared to only 15% that fretted it would undermine returns.
Infographic comparing the implications of decentralized digital currencies to centralized digital currencies on developed market economies.


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The luxury accessories brand Montblanc has seen sales in smaller Indian towns grow through its joint venture with the Indian watch brand Titan and has named India as its fastest growing global market.
The General Pants Company-owned women's fashion and innerwear retailer declared bankruptcy late last week, forecasting the closure of all 12 retail stores, as well as its Myer concessions and online store.
The German retailer said on Tuesday it hopes to stabilise its shrinking Russian business in the coming months after overhauling management and introducing bulk discounts to attract more independent traders.
U.S. retail sales increased marginally in April as rising gasoline prices cut into discretionary spending, but consumer spending appeared on track to accelerate after slowing sharply in the first quarter.
Amazon.com Inc is bringing its grocery store without checkout lines to Chicago and San Francisco, the company said in a statement this week, confirming reports it will expand the concept beyond its pilot in Seattle.
Southern Tide has launched an exclusive seven-piece men's capsule made from recycled fishing nets and bottles found in the ocean, aiming to raise awareness about the company's goal of supporting marine conservation.


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(Las Vegas, NV) — Expect big crowds and lots of cowboy boots around town through the weekend for Helldorado Days.
The charity event dates back to the 1934 and features rides, attractions and a rodeo. It’s sponored by local Elks Club #1468.
Plans include the extremely popular beard and mustache competition known as “Whiskerino.” There’s also a Helldorado parade through downtown on Saturday afternoon.
Full details are available at the Helldorado Days website.


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By Jacob Harvey-
Amazon is taking its shot at the tablet market with its release in October.
With the iPad shutting down all other competitors attempts at the tablet market now, Amazon is stepping up trying to put its foot in the door for the tablet market. Amazon is seen as the last competitor to knock Apple off its high horse of owning the tablet marketplace, but do they have what it takes?
With the famous App Store and the iTunes store, Amazon just doesn’t seem to match up to what the iPad can produce.
However, the big price cut might sway peoples minds into buying Amazon’s tablet. According to a Tech Crunch Review by MG Siegler, the tablet that Amazon is producing is pretty much a kindle e-reader with a 7 inch screen.
“It looks a lot like a Black Berry Playbook and has no physical buttons and a two finger multi-touch screen with a back light for the screen,” according to a Tech Crunch Review.
The Amazon tablet is supposed to be extremely user-friendly, and it’s going to be run on Android.
Amazon’s Kindle store and Cloud Player are both deeply integrated into the device’s software, but there was no link to the Google Android Marketplace. The device is supposed to be Wifi only, but Amazon did add a link to its Instant Video Player, so users should be able to stream video onto the tablet.


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Outdoors, the first issue of Lincoln County Magazine for 2019, will hit newsstands later this month in local copies of The Lincoln County News.
The magazine, now in its second season after a successful creative revamp, will feature insiders’ look at recreational activities in the area. The cover features a photo from “Wind in My Sails,” a firsthand account of learning to sail the Sheepscot River written by LCN contributor Jessica Picard.
The issue also includes reoccurring sponsored features, such as the popular “50 Years Ago in Lincoln County” column, “On the Trail in Lincoln County,” and a featured recipe.
Christine LaPado-Breglia, the newspaper’s arts and lifestyle editor, serves as the magazine’s editor. Megan Hyson, graphic designer for The Lincoln County News, oversees the layout and look for Lincoln County Magazine.
The free magazine arrives as an insert in local copies of The Lincoln County News and is available at many area businesses and visitor centers.
Five issues of the magazine will be published from May through September, and each edition has its own theme: Outdoors, Live from Lincoln County, Farm and Table, Made in Lincoln County, and Live Well.
For more information or to advertise in Lincoln County Magazine, call Marketing and Engagement Coordinator Maia Zewert at 563-3171 or email firstname.lastname@example.org.


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TV sensation Carol Vorderman has revealed her process for staying fit and healthy.
The former Countdown star, 62, is often branded the "sexiest woman in the world" by her fans, who also tell her that she "hasn't aged a day" – and Carol has a strict routine to keep that accurate.
READ MORE: Carol Vorderman almost had completely different career before landing Countdown
Speaking exclusively to Daily Star to support the Alexa Young Innovator Challenge, Carol opened up about her passion for health and fitness and the "perks" it brings.
Carol, who recognised that her adoring fans love commenting on her cheeky snaps, said that she thinks people will forget about her in 30 years – so she wants to enjoy it while she can.
She said: "I want to enjoy things, and health and fitness has always been a thing of mine. I brought out my first detox book which was slammed at the time, but almost 100% of everything I recommended is now categoric.
"I have followed my own advice. Now there's an awful lot of technology to do with health and when you concentrate on health you get other benefits too, like people saying 'oooh don't you look good'.
The beauty explained that aside from eating healthy and working out, she also takes supplements and collagen powder alongside items for hair growth and lash growth.
She added: "You only have to look at movies in the 80s and 90s when this tech wasn't available, people looked different. But I enjoy it. Fundamentally, it's about being healthy."
Carol's first health book came out in 2009 where she discussed a 28 day detox diet after dropping two dress sizes.
In the years since the TV star has also made her passion for health very clear after sharing videos of her living an active lifestyle – particularly when the summer rolls around and she can get back on top of her favourite activities.
The beauty has regularly talked about her love for Paddleboarding after taking up the hobby in summer 2021, and she also shares videos from her own fitness schedule online too.
For more of the latest showbiz news from Daily Star, make sure you sign up to one of our newsletters here.
- John Bishop slammed for 'awful' jokes after cheeky Carol Vorderman sex life gag
- Carol Vorderman wears skintight top as fans certain she's filming 'celeb Love Island'
- Carol Vorderman writhes in figure-hugging gym top and pants during trip to retreat
Source: Read Full Article


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Susan Schiekofer, chief digital investment officer at GroupM, runs digital investments at the world’s largest media agency where her focus is purely on the brands. With a successful career that has spanned several decades, Schiekofer has learned that one of the most crucial parts of her job is making sure everyone understands where their content is going.
On this episode Schiekofer discussed how Instagram has gone on a huge growth trajectory this year, potentially overtaking Facebook when it comes to marketer dollars. We also discussed the the ins and outs of the pitch process and why clients still aren’t willing to pay for brand-safe content.
Below are excerpts from our conversation with Schiekofer, edited for clarity.
Sticking with Facebook
“I was speaking to somebody in the industry who had said that the other holding companies were paying attention and were reducing usage. We didn’t find that. We definitely have clients who have had great success with Facebook in terms of building audiences, generating leads, generating sales, and generating brand lift. I would say Instagram especially has been on a huge growth trajectory. I think the chatter around stock and potential users actually hurt Snap more in the past year.”
Keeping ads away from fake news
“Where a lot of the fraud exists is in the fake news. So unless you scrutinize that and make sure that you’re nowhere near it, unless you operate on a whitelist versus a blacklist, you’re going to find your way there. Our clients don’t want to monetize it, and that’s why it’s really important. A lot of the editorial that’s been damaging is because it’s fraud, it’s not true journalism, but clients don’t know they’re monetizing it.”
How the pitch process should work
“I think that at the very beginning there should be a conversation with the auditors, client, and agency together in the room to discuss the template, because we see many different types of templates. As much as in the pitch process the clients say they understand the differences, or the ubiquities of the world say they understand them, it’s not an apples to apples comparison.”
Understanding where impressions come from
“One thing that I think we as an industry need to do is to truly understand what the distribution of impressions is. Because sometimes when you do a buy, some clients think they’re only getting O&O’s, but if there is a certain size of a buy that the O&O can’t fulfill than many of the publishers will go off platform, and clients really need to see the reports for what that looks like.”
Brands need to account for ‘psychological pain’ shoppers feel this holiday season, Horizon Media says
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Is the collapse of big tech’s culture overblown? Some experts think so
Some workplace experts aren’t so sure that the cushy culture that has come to define tech is coming to an end anytime soon.
‘Fear of saying the wrong thing is eating us alive’: Confessions of an Iranian-American advertiser on the industry’s silence on Iranian women’s rights
As Iran's feminist movement builds, one Iranian-American advertising executive questions American advertiser's silence.
SponsoredWhy cookie deprecation is deflating performance and inflating costs for advertisers
With the full deprecation of third-party cookies on the horizon, advertisers and publishers are navigating a challenging and quickly evolving landscape. The sunset of the third-party cookie continues as usage and lifetimes fall. Their deprecation is preventing brands from effectively measuring the effectiveness of media campaigns in real-time at highly granular levels. As the industry […]
How a Minecraft influencer is bringing advertisers to the platform
TubNet's primary challenge in integrating its brand partners was to do so without breaking the end user license agreement (EULA) of Minecraft developer Mojang, whose strict guidelines restrict the presence of brand logos directly inside the game.
Member ExclusiveDigiday+ Research: TV will play an important part in brands’ holiday marketing
Of course, brands are ready to take to social media and digital channels to reach shoppers where they spend a good deal of their time, but Digiday+ Research found that there's another marketing channel that will play an important role in brands' holiday marketing: TV.


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On sale for $199 outright or $149 via Telstra Prepaid, Nokia has added 50% more processing power to its new Nokia 2.1 model, along with a 5.5-inch screen and stereo speakers.
A new power pack charger has launched on Indiegogo, promising not only a huge 20,000mAh capacity, but super fast charging iPhone, Android, Kindle and more.
After suffering a barrage of criticism and lawsuits that Android competitors who also "throttle" their phones haven't suffered, Apple has issued an apology and explanation.
Is it possible to use Arm cores in the new supercomputer? If a vendor could make a few hundred thousand[…]
So some truth about the availability of work is starting to emerge.16.7% unable to earn the income that they need.That[…]
NBN are so bad at what they do. Missed appointments are a given in nearly all installations, and just a[…]
Yes indeed, but that pre-supposes the existence of executives who a) actually understand a business model of revenue & profit[…]
I'm sure NBN will blame the customer's wiring,their router,their ISP,the weather,or perhaps cosmic rays because NOTHING IS EVER THEIR FAULT!!It's[…]


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TV networks rubbing their hands together in anticipation of a spectacular upfront may want to stop for just a few moments.
It's true, the recent market for "scatter" advertising, or ad inventory sold just prior to air time, has been as healthy as an Olympic skier. Typically, that means the upfront (the time of year when most TV networks try to sell about three-quarters of their ad inventory for the coming fall season) should go great guns, as more advertisers seek to lock in prices, fearing that ad costs will continue to increase as the economy works its way out of recessionary doldrums.
Last year, the five English-language broadcast networks collected an estimated $8.1 billion to $8.7 billion in ad commitments, according to estimates from Advertising Age, eking out a small gain over 2009's estimated $7.8 billion to $8.1 billion. This year could prove even more dynamic.
Every silver lining, however, has a cloud. Recent events could threaten to tamp down upfront activity, suggested Barcalys Capital analyst Anthony DiClemente in a research note issued today. The analyst sees trouble brewing among several important advertising categories.
Among auto advertisers, upheaval in Japan has put pressure not only on Japanese automakers, but also on auto companies that import parts from the country. Indeed, ad buyers and TV-network executives tell Advertising Age that Japanese and U.S. car companies have made requests to move some of their ad purchases into the third quarter from the second quarter. At local TV stations, some car advertisers have pressed to cancel or rework ad buys set to run more immediately, these executives said.
Other ripples mar the upfront waters. Mr. DiClemente suggested the recently announced merger of AT&T and T-Mobile could result in a consolidated ad budget, spelling a "reduction of a couple hundred million dollars in ad spend annually." We think the analyst is thinking long-term here, because most big mergers tend to result in a hot burst of ad spending as the two companies try to tout their new identity, capabilities and products not only to investors but to a fickle consumer base. Some of this spending can take place while corporations wait for regulators to weigh in on the deal, and a lot of it tends to happen in the months just after a pact closes.
In the long run, Mr. DiClemente will likely be correct. But TV networks will fight for the ad cash that's likely to spill in the early days of this combination. According to Barclays, AT&T and T-Mobile spent a combined $2.7 billion on advertising last year.
And then there's Big Food, where an entire industry must cope with a hike in the prices of basic commodities. To make economics work, the analyst theorized, "For the fiscal year, it appears that more food companies plan to cut advertising than to raise it."
Retail is also not immune. "Some retailers have indicated that advertising is a potential lever to help offset input cost inflation," the analyst wrote in his research note, suggesting that marketers off personal-care products and restaurant companies could dampen ad spend if inflationary pressures weigh too heavily.
No one thinks this year's upfront is going to be anything but healthy. If Mr. DiClemente's emerging ideas gather more traction, however, the TV marketplace might be in danger of catching the flu.
~ ~ ~
Tuning In is an ongoing series of commentaries by Ad Age TV Editor Brian Steinberg on the TV schedule, the ads it carries and changes within the industry. Follow him on Twitter.


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Verizon Wireless’ announcement earlier this month that the carrier would offer a new unlimited data plan for its customers generated a huge reaction from all the other big carriers (AT&T, Sprint and T-Mobile), as they launched or modifed their own unlimited plans to compete. Today, the nation’s fifth biggest wireless carrier, US Cellular, has joined the unlimited plan trend with its own deal for new and current customers.

See also:

<a class="overlay-link" [...]
SIM only deals are getting better and better all the time, with many offering incredible value compared to the high cost of a contract for a new phone.
Today's deal sees Carphone Warehouse's own iD network upgrade one of its most popular 4G deals just for TechRadar readers.
With this plan you can get a 30-day SIM only deal for just £5 a month on a rolling contract that includes 1.5GB of data, 250 minutes and 5000 texts.
iD's usual deal of 1GB for £5 a month on a 30-day deal is one of the most popular offers every week on our SIM only deals page, so the additional 500MB of data here shames the competition even more. This is the only [...]
On a similar note, Android Messages is simply a rebranding of the app previously called Messenger (for Android). Android Messages works with RCS messaging with carriers who use Jibe RCS cloud. The full list of brands that work [...]
Samsung has officially released its Secure Folder app for the Galaxy S7 today, following a leaked version of the app that showed up earlier this week (which also may have shown off the Galaxy S8).
Secure Folder serves as an encrypted location for users to store personal or sensitive notes, pictures, contacts, apps, or documents. The app uses Samsung’s Knox security features to lock the files within, only making them accessible through a passcode or biometric security. The feature originally launched on the Galaxy Note 7, and has since made its way to the international Galaxy A series, but today’s launch marks the return of Secure Folder’s availability [...]


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During a press conference with President Shimon Peres on Thursday, Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte unequivocally stated that products made over the 1967 Green Line, will continue to be labeled “Made in Israel” in the Netherlands, according to a report in JPost.com.
The Dutch position is unlike that of the Germans, who definitely plan to demarcate and label Jewish products differently.
The Germans plan to label product made over the Green Line, the Golan Heights and even parts of Jerusalem, as not made in Israel. The Germans have a lot of experience in separating and marking Jews and Jewish products differently.
It has been pointed out that while the EU is being a stickler on products from Israel, it is not demanding the same for products from other disputed areas around the world. Double standards like that meet the definition of Antisemitism.Jewish Press News Briefs
About the Author: JewishPress.com brings you the latest in Jewish news from around the world. Stay up to date by following up on Facebook and Twitter. Do you have something noteworthy to report? Submit your news story to us here.
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