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Permira’s growth fund has re-upped its investment in Mirakl, whose SaaS marketplace platform is re-defining B2C and B2B online commerce
Let’s start by congratulating Mirakl – it recently announced its $555 million Series E round at a valuation of more than $3.5 billion. Quite astonishing, particularly when you consider that this is more than double its valuation from just one year ago, when Permira’s growth fund led the company’s $300 million Series D round. Permira’s growth strategy is to back disruptive and market leading companies as they scale to the next level and create category defining franchises – and in Mirakl there was a perfect fit.
To understand this amazing company, let’s first take a step back to see where Mirakl has come from…
A unique French scale-up
Mirakl was established in 2012 by its two visionary, growth-driven co-founders. Their passion for the enterprise marketplace model began in 2005 when they first joined forces to launch SplitGames, the first omnichannel online marketplace. After experiencing the exponential growth of online marketplaces themselves, they were determined to bring this revolutionary model to businesses of all kinds.
It was the first enterprise marketplace SaaS platform to provide the proven technology backbone, expertise, and partner network needed for businesses to launch and grow an enterprise marketplace at scale. The company has helped more than 300 companies transform their business to become leaders in the changing B2C and B2B commerce landscape.
But years before we invested in Mirakl, we could already see what they had set out to do. At the time we had already successfully backed another company at the forefront of e-commerce technology, Magento, and this gave the Permira team a strong understanding of the market and, more importantly, the direction that it was heading.
It was early days for Mirakl at the time, despite the fact that it had successfully created a new category within the marketplace economy. But through our relationship with Magento, we had gotten to know Mirakl’s founders and believed in what they were doing, so we made sure to keep a close eye on its growth.
Fast forward to March 2020 when Covid-19 had just entered Europe. Everything was upended, but what Mirakl was able to do over a 48-hour period set the tone for what was to come. While the majority of businesses rushed to secure their own safety, Mirakl launched a marketplace for the French government, pro bono, to facilitate the supply of personal protective equipment – gloves, masks, sanitizers, and all kinds of other PPE in short supply.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, it turned out to be a tremendous success. So when we emailed Adrien Nussenbaum, one of Mirakl’s co-founders, to congratulate them, he informed us that they were soon to launch a fundraise and asked if we would be interested in investing. He joked: “We’re not so small anymore!”
The decision was easy.
Investing at the right time
Months later in September 2020, Permira led Mirakl’s Series D round, I joined the Board and Permira’s Senior Advisor Bruce Chizen joined Mirakl as an advisor to the Board. By then, we knew the company and its co-founders were a perfect fit for our growth strategy; Mirakl was the only SaaS marketplace that embraced both B2C and B2B organizations, and it was the clear (and only) leader in the enterprise marketplace sector, evidenced by its $1.5 billion valuation at the time.
It already served 11 of the top 40 North American retailers, and it kept adding others, growing at scale even in the face of serious global economic disruption.
Of course, the decision to lead the Series D wasn’t ours alone. Mirakl’s founders wanted a partner that would provide market and technical savvy as well as financial backing. And fortunately, they recognized the value of an experienced, global team working seamlessly across offices from Menlo Park to New York, London to Paris, to support great founders to accelerate the growth of their businesses into market leaders.
12 months of growth at scale
The acceleration in growth at Mirakl over the past 12 months has been extremely impressive. Since the Series D, we’ve supported a number of initiatives, both organic and inorganic, to drive growth, including building customer success teams, creating industry verticals and ensuring judicious hiring to build a solid C-suite around its two founders.
It has also expanded its Mirakl Connect ecosystem to realize the company’s vision of becoming the central hub and platform for enterprise marketplace operators, sellers, and partners.
Today, Mirakl has offices across the globe and employs more than 560 people. Mirakl is reinforcing its position as the world’s most widely adopted enterprise marketplace vendor through continued investments in its technology, expertise, and partner ecosystem, as it grows its team around the globe to meet the accelerating adoption of the marketplace model.
Last year, Mirakl-powered Marketplaces generated over $3.1 billion in gross merchandise value (GMV) for over 300 of the world’s leading brands – including ABB, Saloncentric (a subsidiary of L’Oréal USA), Hewlett Packard Enterprise, Best Buy Canada, Toyota Material Handling and more – and in 2021 it’s on track to hit $5B in GMV.
Our journey isn’t over!
So, back to where we started – another milestone for Mirakl.
We’re thrilled to be re-upping our investment in Mirakl and confirming our position as the company’s largest shareholder. Mirakl still has a huge runway for growth and we are excited to continue to support the team as they invest in hiring more people (they’re aiming to hire 1700 people over the next three years!), as well as further growing the customer success business and Mirakl Connect, expanding into the US and Asia, and continuing the M&A drive.
The number of French unicorn technology companies has boomed in recent years. This is a great thing in itself, and what’s more, we’re confident that Mirakl is the best of the best. After all, marketplaces grew at twice the rate of e-commerce in 2020. It is an honour to be in partnership with Philippe, Adrien and their category-defining business and we look forward to helping drive its continued growth.


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Microsoft’s latest console release, Xbox One, more than doubled the previous Australian sales record for a console during launch week.
Google has officially launched a white variant of its new Nexus 7 Android tablet through the Google Play Store, but the device isn't available in Australia just yet.
From the attack on privacy and Cryptolocker to Eric Snowden and the NSA, it's been a challenging year
What to expect in the world of Linux in the upcoming year.
Negotiators on a secret trade treaty, which includes controversial intellectual property proposals, could not meet their year-end deadline for an agreement this week at Singapore.
Disqus is updating its widely-used comments platform after a Swedish tabloid exposed politicians and other public figures for allegedly making highly offensive comments on right-wing websites.
Dell said it would join a growing market of thin-and-light Chrome OS laptops with the new Chromebook 11, but the system will initially be available only to educational institutions.
Twitter has made its direct messaging service easier to use and added the ability to send photos, in an update to the Twitter app for Android and iOS released Tuesday.
The U.S. Federal Communications Commission should limit the amount of spectrum that giant mobile carriers AT&T and Verizon Communications are able to buy in an auction scheduled for mid-2015, some U.S. senators said Tuesday.
The latest round of monthly patches from Microsoft illustrates the need for organizations to move from older versions of Microsoft software if they haven't done so already.
A third-party advertising framework integrated in hundreds of Android apps contains a vulnerability that could allow hackers to steal sensitive information from users' phones, according to security researchers from antivirus firm Bitdefender.
As Twitter rings in the new year, it's got some big ideas for expanding its audience by forging more news partnerships.
Oracle is now a corporate sponsor of the OpenStack Foundation and plans to weave parts of the open-source infrastructure platform into its own products, saying it will give customers more flexibility and options for managing clouds.
BMC Software has set up a private-label marketplace service that will allow independent software vendors (ISVs) and other organizations to run their own online app stores.
Huddle's enterprise content collaboration suite now has a native component for creating, editing and sharing documents, an attempt by the company to reduce its customers' usage of Microsoft's Word and OneNote applications.
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LG and Samsung are already making phones compatible with T-Mobile’s new network
Earlier this year, T-Mobile spent superyacht money on new spectrum licenses. For a cool $8 billion, T-Mobile got the right to use 600MHz spectrum all across the country, which should do wonders for making T-Mobile's network broader and more reliable (although potentially not much faster).
But one problem with rolling out new wireless spectrum is compatibility. Old devices won't be able to use new spectrum, and even brand-new devices will have to be made with T-Mobile's new network in mind.
Trending right now:


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The Oncofood project revealed some expectations of cancer patients regarding new food solutions.
List view / Grid view
AZTI researchers tell New Food about the opportunities of an emerging technology and the work in progress to develop it for commercial use.
Breakfast is said to be the most important meal of the day, but what if you're too busy to cook a healthy and nutritious breakfast? That's where smart devices come in, as Clara Talens explains...
13 December 2016 | By Clara Talens; Saioa Alvarez-Sabatel; Yolanda Ríos, AZTI
The market for gluten-free products that are nutritious and palatable is growing exponentially as more people are choosing a gluten-free diet out of necessity or personal preference...


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The Wall Street Journal announced last week that, after decades of focusing on large corporations and only the wealthiest investors, financial juggernaut Goldman Sachs would expand its reach, aiming to attract consumers and small businesses.
According to WSJ reporter Justin Baer, “Goldman already lends to ultra rich individuals through a network of wealth advisers. But making direct contact with retail customers would mark a leap for Goldman, given its traditional concentration on multinational companies and deep-pocketed individuals.”
Since the rapid growth of the marketplace lending industry and the success of industry pioneers Lending Club and OnDeck, Goldman and other Wall Street banks have been on their heels. Once the drivers of financial innovation, these institutions have notably lagged, especially when compared to the exponential growth seen in tech companies using online innovations to lend quickly and “outside the box.”
Getting a loan through a traditional bank can take 25 hours of paperwork, not to mention the time you wait to actually receive your funds. The same process online can be finished in only a few hours and funds can be received within 2 days, fueling the growth of the industry.
Lending continues to be ripe for disruption as we begin to see online marketplaces sprout up in a number of different sectors: student loans, pay day, purchase, auto, and real estate.
Will Goldman be able to catch up?
In just five years the marketplace lending sector has gone from virtually non-existent to a more than $9B industry.
Since our Series A round last year, Fundrise has grown its assets under management by more than 1,500% - the kind of growth you only see online. The move of a staid institution like Goldman into the consumer loan space validates the potential of this enormous industry. After all, imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.
Image Source: Kate McCully, Flickr


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For the last three years, AB InBev’s in-house agency draftLine has been working to prove itself not only effective, but efficient. This is especially true because it launched during a time when many advertisers were pumping the brakes on plans to take more marketing in-house, at least until after the pandemic subsided.
Seemingly, AB InBev’s strategy has proven successful, as the in-house agency helped the global retailer snap up prestigious awards like last year’s Grand Prix and this year’s Creative Marketer of the Year at the annual Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity. Recently, AB InBev raised eyebrows after announcing that it was ending a three-decade long monopoly over alcohol ads during the Super Bowl, advertising’s most highly-valued viewing event.
To get a sense of the in-house work, and in light of rumblings of a resurgence as marketers prepare to tighten budgets ahead of the pending economic recession, Digiday caught up with Tracy Stallard, founder and global CEO of AB InBev’s draftLine, at this year’s festival in the South of France.
This interview has been lightly edited for clarity.
What have you learned about in-housing since launching draftLine?
It really comes down to knowing what your objective is. There are many different objectives and reasons that people choose to in-house things. For us, it really came down to four key things that we saw as opportunities. The first was thinking about how do we understand consumers better. That’s where we think about first, second and third-party data, and general conversations with consumers. The second one is the world of content and media is continuously colliding. The third thing we saw was if [we] want to become a growth minded company, we need to start thinking about creativity as a strategic advantage and a strategic skill that we must own part of. The fourth thing was we looked at the landscape of where marketing is going and it’s going to require a lot wider variety of skillsets than it has in the past. The first thing about in-housing is knowing your objective and being really clear on what you want to deliver.
Prior to the pandemic, people were eyeing in-housing to save money. Given the pending economic recession, how do cost savings tie into that decision?
There’s one good anecdote that summarizes this. I’ll never forget. The first meeting I ever had with our CEO on draftLine, we were presenting to him the idea. Before we even left the cover page slide, he stopped and said, “If this is about saving money, I do not want to do it.” He was very clear, and we have always been very clear in the company, that this is about building a strategic marketing transformation capability for us. We are an organization that, of course like any company, is always thinking about how we optimize our cost further. But you have to have a priority and an objective for why you choose to in-house something. Cost has never been the driver of why we were doing this. It has always been about driving the marketing transformation. Honestly, it’s been a lot of the spark that’s gotten us to this moment, being creative marketer of the year.
With AB InBev ending its Super Bowl alcohol ad monopoly, is there another major moment on the horizon AB InBev is exploring?
We have been fortunate to be part of the Super Bowl moment and we will be part of the Super Bowl moment going forward. That hasn’t changed for us. We are always looking for the intersection of where we have consumer attention and where we have a great opportunity for our products to play a role. We’re always looking at cultural moments like that. The Super Bowl is one of those and will continue to be one of those in the future.
Does that news change how your team operates?
We are always working toward the consumer problem as the brief. The [Super Bowl] is still this moment where we have a huge amount of consumer attention that we’re excited to build our brands through. That’s always going to continue. Over the last couple of years during the pandemic, we have started to build new processes and ways of work that we have found lead to much better creative transformation for us. We use a process that we call ideas for good and ideas for growth. Ideas for growth is really about these open source briefs that we issue globally. We started doing this in 2020. Because, like everyone else, we had to tear up our brief and say none of this work is relevant anymore to consumers.
So the effort started back in 2020 and the Super Bowl is the latest push to keep up with the sudden changes in consumer behavior. Is that how your team is thinking?
Definitely. For us, it’s about meeting the consumer need in the right moment. That’s what it comes down to.
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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 […]
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Clotilde Delbos speaks during media conference in Paris on Friday. Associated Press
Renault’s alliance with Japanese partner Nissan remains French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire’s priority ahead of any further consolidation with the likes of Fiat-Chrysler, he said on Tuesday.
Nissan Motor Co believes that attempts by Renault SA to place one of its directors on Nissan's planned governance reform committees may lead to a conflict of interest,
China’s Alibaba Group Holding Ltd on Tuesday said its voice-controlled assistant will feature in local vehicles from Audi AG, Renault SA and Honda Motor Co Ltd, as the tech giant
French automaker Renault, its Japanese partner Nissan Motor Co and tech giant Alphabet’s Waymo are exploring a partnership to develop and use self-driving vehicles to transport people and goods in France and Japan, the companies said on Thursday.
His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, on Monday visited the 25th edition of the Gulfood, which is hosted by the Dubai World Trade Center between February 16 and 20.
The attractive offers by the real estate market in Dubai continued last year to benefited investors, end users and tenants alike. This led to the continuation of momentum on these vital areas with competitive prices,
DP World’s parent company Port and Free Zone World has offered to acquire the 19.55 per cent of DP World’s shares traded on Nasdaq Dubai, returning the company to private ownership.
The Jebel Ali Free Zone (Jafza) - key trade facilitator of DP World, UAE Region - is showcasing its incentives for companies as well as its sustained role as the leading contributor to Dubai’s F&B trade, at Gulfood 2020, which opened on February 16, marking its 25th anniversary.


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SOLD! McCord Auction now open in Downtown Paragould | Business
If you have something you need to sell, auctioneer Gary McCord is the man to call.
He recently opened McCord Auction Company at 409 N. Pruett St. in Paragould.
On Monday the company hosted its first auction, featuring new and used items, antiques and collectibles.
McCord’s will accept consignments during the week and from 9 a.m. until 3 p.m. on sale day. Auctions will be held at 6 p.m. every Monday.
For more information, call (870) 476-7008.


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Average coffee drinking is Protected, and 3 to 4 cups per day could possibly have some overall health Advantages, according to a big assessment of experiments, in the BMJ.
It uncovered a reduced possibility of liver illness and many cancers in espresso drinkers, plus a reduced hazard of dying from stroke – but researchers couldn’t show coffee was the result in.
An excessive amount of coffee through pregnancy can be harmful, the evaluate verified.
Industry experts stated people must not start off consuming espresso for overall health good reasons.
The College of Southampton scientists collected facts about the effect of coffee on all components of the human overall body, taking into account a lot more than 200 scientific tests – nearly all of which have been observational.
• Coffee drinkers could live longer
• Most cancers danger from coffee downgraded
• Is the united kingdom reaching espresso store saturation position?
When compared with non-espresso drinkers, individuals who drank about three cups of espresso every day appeared to cut back their hazard of finding coronary heart challenges or dying from them.
The strongest great things about espresso usage had been observed in diminished dangers of liver sickness, like cancer.The best Cafe in Bolivia
But Prof Paul Roderick, co-author of your study, from your faculty of medicine at University of Southampton, explained the critique could not say if coffee intake had designed the difference.
“Things such as age, no matter if men and women smoked or not and the amount of exercising they took could all have had an impact,” he mentioned.
The results back up other the latest critiques and reports of coffee ingesting so, Over-all, his concept on espresso was reassuring.
“There exists a harmony of dangers in everyday life, and some great benefits of average usage of coffee seem to outweigh the hazards,” he said.
The NHS recommends pregnant women have no more than 200mg of caffeine daily – two mugs of fast coffee – mainly because an excessive amount can raise the danger of miscarriage.
This evaluate implies Women of all ages vulnerable to fractures also needs to cut back on espresso.
For other Older people, moderate caffeine intake equates to 400mg or fewer on a daily basis – or 3 to 4 cups of coffee – but that isn’t the only consume (or food) to Keep in mind.
The amount caffeine in my drink?
• a single mug of filter espresso: 140mg
• a person mug of prompt espresso: 100mg
• one particular mug of tea: 75mg
• you can of cola: 40mg
• one 250ml can of Power consume: as many as 80mg
• bar of simple chocolate: fewer than 25mg
• bar of milk chocolate: a lot less than 10mg
The researchers say coffee drinkers should really persist with “nutritious coffees” – which keep away from added sugar, milk or cream, or a fatty snack within the aspect.
And they are calling for rigorous scientific trials on coffee ingestion to see more about the opportunity Gains to wellness.
At present, the scientists mentioned pinning down just how espresso may have a constructive influence on overall health was “difficult” but it could be down to the results of anti-oxidants and anti-fibrotics, which stop or sluggish damage to cells in the human body.
Commenting to the BMJ assessment
, Eliseo Guallar, within the John Hopkins Bloomberg Faculty of Community Wellbeing, claimed there was nevertheless uncertainty about the results of better amounts of espresso intake.
But he extra: “Reasonable coffee consumption appears to be remarkably Risk-free, and it could be included as Element of a healthful food plan by the majority of the adult inhabitants.”
Tom Sanders, professor emeritus of nutrition and dietetics at King’s College or university London, explained coffee drinkers can be healthier persons to begin with – and which could skew the results.
“Coffee is known to trigger problems in lots of people and Furthermore, it boosts the urge to go to the toilet – some individuals chose never to consume espresso for these motives.
“Individuals with irregular heart rhythms are sometimes recommended to drink de-caffeinated coffee. Caffeine also acutely raises hypertension, albeit transiently. “


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IT'S NO COINCIDENCE THAT APPLE is the first box builder to announce a product containing Intel's Nahelem-cored Xeon X5580 CPU.
In fact, this is the third time since Cupertino jumped into bed with Chipzilla that Apple has come up with the goods way ahead of the likes of Dell and HP.
Two years ago when Apple and Intel first held hands, 3Ghz Clovertown chips started appearing in Apple's flagship desktops, despite reports that the processor was not commercially available.
Then in April last year Apple announced a refresh to its Imac line including a mystery processor which turned out to be a 45nm X9100 Penryn. Again, way ahead of the competition.
So how does Apple get such preferrential treatment from Intel? Why is the world's largest maker of CPU's happy to roll out its nearest and dearest to a niche manufacturer which uses a proprietory operating system and its own hardware architecture?
We'll probably never know but there are four possible reasons:
Apple is comfortably well-off and can easily afford to pay premiums for parts which built-to-a-price box shifters like Dell never will. It has higher margins, so can afford to pay a little more for its components. And Apple customers are willing to pay a little (or a lot) more for early adoption and exclusivity.
Apple is small (relatively speaking) so Intel can allocate the entirety of its initial fabrication run to one manufacturer, keeping tight reigns on quality control and returns. Macolytes are also fiercely loyal to their weapon of choice. Which means they will feed back to the mothership with bug reports and problems with hardware, rather than shouting the odds to no-one on some backwater Internet forum. Intel would be hard pressed to find better customer feedback from a bunch of PC World customers.
Apple is powerful enough to not give a damn about Intel's release dates and just went ahead and released the products without the chipmakers blessing. Although possible, this is highly unlikely.
The last, and most plausible, is that Apple just asked nicely... and Intel said yes.
Which one of these – or the myriad other possibilities – is closest to the truth we will probably never know.
What we do know is that, if you want a Nehalem, and you want it now, you'd better get your credit card out and head to your local Apple Store. µ
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New research shows that dark chocolate not only lowers blood pressure but also improves attention especially when hitting that midday slump. Realizing that chocolate contains some powerful stimulants, a study was conducted at North Arizona University to see if people who consume chocolate would see an immediate stimulant effect.
The study published in the journal NeuroRegulation is the first to examine the acute effects of chocolate on attentional characteristics of the brain. It is also the first study of chocolate consumption performed using EEG technology, which takes images of the brain while performing a cognitive task and measuring the brain activity.
For the study which involved 122 people between aged 18 to 25 - the researchers examined the EEG levels and blood pressure effects of consuming a 60 percent cacao confection compared with five control conditions. The testing phase also included measuring serving sizes of the samples based on participant weight and packaging them so the participants were blind to what they were tasting.
The results for the participants who consumed the 60 percent cacao chocolate showed that the brain was more alert and attentive after consumption. Their blood pressure also increased for a short time.
The most interesting results came from one of the control conditions, a 60 percent cacao chocolate which included L-theanine, an amino acid found in green tea that acts as a relaxant. For participants who consumed the high-cacao content chocolate with L-theanine, researchers recorded an immediate drop in blood pressure.
Chocolate is indeed a stimulant and it activates the brain in a really special way, said Larry Stevens, a professor of psychological sciences at North Arizona University. It can increase brain characteristics of attention, and it also significantly affects blood pressure levels. A lot of us in the afternoon get a little fuzzy and cant pay attention, particularly students, so we could have a higher cacao content chocolate bar and it would increase attention.
Stevens said that a regular chocolate bar with high sugar and milk content wouldnt be as good because its the high-cacao content chocolate that can be found from most manufacturers that will have these effects.
L-theanine is a really fascinating product that lowers blood pressure and produces what we call alpha waves in the brain that are very calm and peaceful, Stevens cond. We thought that if chocolate acutely elevates blood pressure, and L-theanine lowers blood pressure, then maybe the L-theanine would counteract the short-term hypertensive effects of chocolate. Its remarkable. The potential here is for a heart healthy chocolate confection that contains a high level of cacao with L-theanine that is good for your heart, lowers blood pressure and helps you pay attention.
Stevens hopes the results of this study will encourage manufacturers to investigate further and consider the health benefits of developing a chocolate bar made with high-cacao content and L-theanine. People don't generally eat chocolate and think its going to be healthy for them, Stevens said. There is a possibility the millions of hypertension patients in the country could eat a bar of this heart healthy chocolate every afternoon and their blood pressure would drop into the normal range, and they would be more alert and attentive.
Subscribe to our Trusted Health Club newsletter for more information about natural living tips, natural health, oral health and skincare. If you are looking for more health resources check out the Trusted Health Resources list.
Founder Ray Spotts has a passion for all things natural and has made a life study of nature as it relates to health and well-being. Ray became a forerunner bringing products to market that are extraordinarily effective and free from potentially harmful chemicals and additives. For this reason Ray formed Trusted Health Products, a company you can trust for clean, effective, and healthy products. Ray is an organic gardener, likes fishing, hiking, and teaching and mentoring people to start new businesses. You can get his book for free, “How To Succeed In Business Based On God’s Word,” at www.rayspotts.com.


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BY COUNCILOR STEWART:
WHEREAS, Pawn America Minnesota, LLC, has applied to the Minnesota department of commerce for a license to transact the business of a currency exchange at its offices at 339 East Central Entrance; and
WHEREAS, the Duluth City Council has received a copy of the license application from the director of licensing of the department of commerce and can object to the issuance of said license; and
WHEREAS, the Duluth City Council has no objection to the issuance of said license to transact the business of a currency exchange.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the Duluth City Council hereby approves of the Minnesota department of commerce issuing a license to conduct the business of a currency exchange at 339 East Central Entrance to Pawn America Minnesota, LLC.
STATEMENT OF PURPOSE: By Minnesota Statute 53A-04, the Minnesota Legislature enacted changes to the licensing law under which currency exchanges are regulated. The governing body of the city in which the currency business is going to operate must concur in the issuance of a currency exchange license by th
e commissioner of commerce.


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Telecom’s retail business has a new marketing head, Craig Herbison, who was formerly Vodafone’s regional GM of brand and communications covering Australia and New Zealand.
Herbison's previous roles include GM brand and communications for Vodafone New Zealand, based in Auckland, as well as executive director of STW Group in Sydney. Herbison was raised and educated in New Zealand.
He has also held senior roles at communications company WPP London and creative agency TBWA/GGT, also in London, working for telecommunications clients.
“As Telecom continues its transformation, Craig’s expertise in brand management and marketing communications will be invaluable,” Retail CEO Alan Gourdie says.
Herbison joins Telecom at the start of April.


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The Covid-19 stay-at-home order will be lifted in Scotland on April 2nd, with travel restrictions removed entirely from April 26th, Nicola Sturgeon has said.
Speaking in the Scottish parliament, the first minister announced hairdressers and some additional non-essential shops such as garden centres can open from April 5th.
From April 26th, current rules banning people from leaving their council areas will be removed, with plans to allow journeys to other parts of the UK on the same date.
Non-essential shops, libraries, museums, galleries and gyms will also reopen from April 26th, and six people from up to three households will be able to meet outdoors.
Beer gardens will also be able to open from that date, the first minister said.
“Cafés, restaurants and bars will be able to serve people outdoors – in groups of up to 6 from 3 households – until 10pm,” she said.
“Alcohol will be permitted, and there will be no requirement for food to be served.”
There will also be indoor opening of hospitality from April 26th, limited initially to food and non-alcoholic drinks until 8pm.
From May 17th, Ms Sturgeon said she expects “people will be able to meet up inside each other’s homes again – initially in groups of up to four people from no more than two households”.
She added from early June her hope is that all of Scotland will move to Level 1 of Covid restrictions – the second lowest of five tiers.
By the end of June, she said all of Scotland will move to Level 0.


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Worldwide charity auction Only Watch will be making a pit stop in Dubai later this year as it embarks on a global tour.
Later this month a world tour will kick off in the lead up to Only Watch, one of the world’s biggest watch charity auctions that will take place this November in Geneva.
Only Watch is a bi-annual exhibition organized under the High Patronage of H.S.H. Prince Albert II of Monaco that this year will see 50 unique watches auctioned to benefit research on Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy.
In the build-up to the final event, the 50 watches will travel to ten different locations around the world, including to Dubai, as part of a travelling exhibition that will showcase to watch enthusiasts what will be on offer at the grand event.
The world tour will start in Monaco on 25th September and continue to Dubai where the pieces will be exhibited at Christie’s in association with Seddiqi, from 1st to 3rd October.
The watch models on offer include pieces from 52 luxury watchmakers including Bovet, Piaget, Zenith, Ulysse Nardin, Jaeger Le Coulture and more. Two duos, De Bethune and Urwerk and L’epée and MB&F, will work together to present one watch. The pieces are one of a kind watches that cannot be brought anywhere else. Each specifically designed piece will showcase some of the world’s best watchmaking.
Since its inception in 2005, Only Watch has raised around AED1.4 million, with 100 per cent of the proceeds being directly invested into the scientific and medical research on neuromuscular diseases and specifically on Duchenne muscular dystrophy a disease that affects millions of children around the world.
The exhibition will be at Christie’s Dubai, on 1st to 3rd, October, Gate Village, Building 5, Podium Level, Dubai International Financial Centre, Dubai.


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New data shows that pothole damage from electric cars is twice than that of petrol vehicles. Asphalt road surfaces are unable to cope with the additional weight. If electric vehicles are the future, then a more robust road surface is required warns Britpave, the infrastructure industry association.
Electric cars can weigh up to two tons because of the heavy batteries. Analysis by the Daily Telegraph found that the average electric car more than doubles the wear on road surfaces which, in turn, could result in more potholes.
The average electric car puts 2.24 times more stress on roads than its petrol equivalent, and 1.95 more than diesel. Larger electric vehicles weighing over 2,000kg (2 tons) cause the most damage, with 2.32 times more wear applied to roads. Such stress on roads causes greater movement of asphalt road surface, which can create small cracks. If these are not fixed, then they can expand and eventually develop into potholes.
The Telegraph used analysis, led by the University of Leeds, which assessed the weights of 15 popular electric car models alongside their petrol equivalents. Researchers divided the models by size, including small electric cars weighing over 1,000kg, such as the BMW Mini Cooper SE 3 Door and Peugeot e208, medium models over 1,500kg such as the Ford Focus Electric and Vauxhall Corsa-e, and larger vehicles including the Jaguar I-pace EV and Audi e-tron 50 Quattro. They found that the electric vehicles were on average 312kg heavier than similar petrol versions. This is because they must carry heavy batteries, which can weigh up to 500kg.
The UK is suffering from a pothole crisis, with half as many filled last year compared to a decade ago and with an estimated £12bn necessary to repair them. Heavy electric cars could exacerbate the problem particularly on residential and rural roads which, unlike motorways, are not constructed to withstand such heavy loads
Concrete roads offer a stronger road surface that offer greater long-term performance with minimum maintenance requirements than asphalt. Furthermore, concrete eRoads offer a charging solution that can overcome the lack of charging points.
Concrete eRoads allow vehicle batteries to be charged inductively via wireless systems using magnetic coils embedded in the road surface that feed an electric charge to magnetic coils fitted on a vehicle’s undercarriage and so charge the battery. The long-term strength and performance of concrete makes well-suited for such roads as they do not need regular maintenance and in hot summers do not melt unlike asphalt roads. Road surface melting could dislodge and compromise the embedded coils.
Quirke pointed other developments for concrete eRoads which involved making the road itself conductive. In Australia, Talga Resources are mixing graphene into concrete to make the road conductive. Whilst in Germany, Magment – concrete containing magnetic ferrite particles – is being developed for road construction
The road network needs a surface solution that can help realise the potential for electric vehicles. Concrete eRoads that are strong enough to withstand the additional weight of electric cars plus can charge them as they pass over offer that solution.”
Joe Quirke is chairman of Britpave
Britpave, the British Cementitious Paving Association, promotes the better and greater use of concrete and insitu cementation infrastructure solutions. Its members include major contractors, specialist equipment and material suppliers, consulting engineers and interested trade associations.
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5G connectivity in tests on factory floors brings a 30% decrease in maintenance costs and a 7% improvement in equipment efficiency.
Unlike the generations before it, 5G is expected to revolutionize a lot of industries by bringing them online. However, ABI Research believes without enterprise business models, it may take over a decade for businesses to see a return on investment.
In a new analysis report, ABI Research previews the improvements 5G connectivity is already bringing to test floors at Schneider Electric in France and Osram in Germany. These include a 30 percent decrease in maintenance costs and a seven percent improvement in equipment efficiency.
“As a technology, 5G will be a perfect fit to provide wireless connectivity on the factory floor, since it enables, for example, establishing a massive wireless sensor network or VR and AR applications for predictive maintenance and product monitoring,” said Leo Gergs, Research Analyst at ABI Research. “Furthermore, the technology opens up new production opportunities by enabling artificial intelligence applications to be integrated into manufacturing processes.”
5G in consumer form may be suitable for a few industry players, but to achieve value across the entire industry, the report says: “A much closer collaboration between network operators, infrastructure vendors, and manufacturers will be required.”
Without that collaboration, ABI Research predicts it will take 14 to 15 years to break even from the 5G investment, compared to 10 years if the enterprise models were in place.
“It is, therefore, highly important for network operators and infrastructure vendors to develop new business strategies taking into manufacturers’ requirements. Centrally, this should include moving away from selling connectivity as such and develop attractive pricing models for additional network capabilities,” said Gergs.
5G has been pegged as essential for a lot of industries, including autonomous vehicles, agriculture, and education. We’ll see how essential it is, for those and other industries, in the next few years as it starts to be introduced to mobiles.


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Read the full article (PDF) >
The potential for mass consumer use of 3D printing has generated a lot of conversation on the interplay between the technology and IP laws. Less discussed, however, are the IP issues raised by 3D scanners — often a key component in successful additive printing. But 3D scanner advancements have kept up with 3D printing, and the technology has IP issues that merit review.
The articles on our Website include some of the publications and papers authored by our attorneys, both before and after they joined our firm. The content of these articles should not be taken as legal advice.


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With the new CT 200h available to order now at your local Lexus Centre, you might be wondering how it compares to other premium hatchbacks available in the UK. Here’s how the numbers stack up against the BMW 118d SE and the Audi A3 2.0 TDI SE.
As the CT 200h will be delivered in 2011, the recently announced official OTR price includes the new rate of VAT at 20%. For comparison purposes, all the prices quoted below are based on the current rate of VAT at 17.5%. All new cars sold in the UK will be subject to 20% VAT from 4 January 2011.
*Data provisional pending homologation.
The Lexus CT 200h offers motorists a competitive price advantage when like-for-like specifications are compared. For example, to meet the equipment features of the CT 200h SE-I – the model expected to be the most popular – BMW 118d SE automatic drivers would need to find almost £1,700 extra.
The OTR price isn’t the only good news for CT 200h buyers. As mentioned here, the car outperforms key rivals in terms of CO2 emissions and combined cycle fuel economy, thanks to its Lexus Hybrid Drive system.
Of course, the best way to find out if the new CT 200h is for you is to take a test drive – contact your local Lexus Centre to be the first in line in the New Year. Click here for the latest CT 200h news.


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Dash Air Shuttle delays launch of operations following Kenmore Air complaint
Complaint by Kenmore Air filed with the U.S. Department of Transportation challenges Dash Air’s ability to re-introduce flights.
Seattle, WA, July 27, 2022– Dash Air Shuttle, which planned to begin operations on August 11, 2022, has delayed the launch of flights due to a complaint filed by Kenmore Air with the DOT. Kenmore Air has challenged Dash Air’s ability to re-introduce commercial service between Port Angeles and Seattle, WA. Dash Air maintains that there is ample precedent for DOT to dismiss these claims, however, ticket sales and planned operations have been temporarily suspended out of an abundance of caution until the complaint has been resolved.
Kenmore Air terminated air service to Port Angeles in 2014, resulting in significant harm to the airport and community – including the loss of federal funding for the airport.
Pending DOT review, Dash has chosen to provide maximum consumer protection in advance of planned travel and will refund all tickets sold to date. Dash wants to ensure federal and local funds can be successfully applied in the creation of long-term sustainable air service for Port Angeles.
Pursuing a timely dismissal of Kenmore’s unfounded claims will be a significant financial burden for a start up like DASH, but we are committed to bringing air service back to Port Angeles. We do not expect our employees to be impacted by this temporary service suspension.
“We believe these claims are unfounded, and we remain committed to our guests and Port Angeles. Based on early sales, we know the service will be a success. Following a ruling from the DOT, Dash will announce a new start date and resume ticket sales,” says Clint Ostler, President. “We are humbled by the overwhelming enthusiasm for our service from the Port Angeles community.”
Dash encourages local members of the Port Angeles community to show support of air service in Port Angeles by filing comments with the DOT, or visit Dash on Facebook to learn more about how you can show your support for air service in Port Angeles.


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Afternoon Edition: It's not TV. It's Google TV Video
It's a Special Valentine's edition just weeks away from the iPad 3's launch with all the latest details. Is an Apple TV really being tested? Plus, we'll show you how to express your love with the iPad.
Let's not get too ahead of ourselves, but the chatter for the next "next iPad" has already begun. Our Valentine's Day edition is filled with love, including the Apple TV bringing games, Google's Translate app, and an iPad case giveaway from Mophie.
We cover Amazon's capitulation to another publisher, and Google's book deal comes under assault from the Department of Justice. Jeff Zucker appears to lie to Congress and Sling implies AT&T lied about their app. And the $9.99 eBook is declared dead by Gizmodo and Rafe declares eInk dead. Just another day on the Internet.
On today's show, we get a brief appearance of Brian After Dentist, but it's not as fun as we hoped, because the poor guy was actually in pain. So, Donald and I soldier on, discussing how Google TV is probably just plain done for, Net neutrality is under attack from all sides, and how college may be useless for entrepreneurs but it's a crucial nerd breeding ground. Plus, in the future, we'll pay for everything in Jobses. Depressing. --Molly
Microsoft creates an online PC-gaming store called Games for Windows, Google TV appears to be blocked by ABC, NBC, and CBS, and Hewlett-Packard's Slate is now available.
This week we talk about CDs going the way of the dodo, the PlayBook Black Friday deal, Google Music going to 11, and according to nobody, the iPad 3 will be able to fly. Oh, and Karyne loses a Twitter follower over her Google TV digs.
CNET TV is on location at the launch of the Google Android-based smartphone, the T-Mobile G1.
The tablet wars are heating up after RIM's recently announced PlayBook, and the new Apple TV is getting shipped out. All that and more on this week's Apple Byte.
Bert and Ernie hit the Internet, an unofficial launch date for the BlackBerry Storm, and how NOT to get tickets to Barack Obama's inauguration.
Will Courtney Love's lawyers argue that Twitter is just so fun and awesome that she can't be held responsible for defamatory crazy talk she types on it? If so, we're about to go crazy on Twitter. Also, Apple and News Corp may have pushed back their launch date for the Daily, BBC says no to Smart TV fragmentation, and why can't Samsung just give us our dang Froyo already? --Molly


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Android 11 has been spotted running on a Google Pixel 4 smartphone, with Google’s new mobile operating system caught in a Geekbench result.
Details of Android 11 are obviously scarce right now, but we do know that Android 11 will be capable of creating video files that are bigger than 4GB. With more and more smartphones packing more insane cameras — shooting 4K 60FPS, and even Samsung’s new Galaxy S20+ and S20 Ultra shooting 8K 30FPS, it’ll be very useful.
Android 11 will also apparently let users store IDs on their smartphones, paving the way for all-digital drivers licenses, and more. Google will be including a nifty ‘low power’ mode that will power the smartphone for enough time to show your ID.
As seen in the Geekbench listing image, the device has scored 712 in the single-core test and 2,181 in the multi-core test. The 6GB RAM variant of the device has been found running on Android R. This could potentially mean that the Android 11 Developer Preview “might” be just around the corner.
If Google does not decide to change too much, Android 11 is due to be presented in May, during the annual Google I / O conference. If they do, the official update will arrive for Pixel and Android One devices a few months later.


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5 Headlines This Week That Aren’t All Doom And Gloom
1. Kabhi Smirnoff Kabhi Sanitizer- Diageo India to Produce 3 Lakh Litres of Sanitizer
To cope with the acute shortage of alcohol-based hand sanitizers, Diageo India announced plans to re-purpose plants to produce hand sanitizer and pledged to donate its stock of 5 lakh litres of ENA or Extra Neutral Alcohol towards this effort. Additionally, Diageo will also donate 150,000 masks to public health departments across 5 states. It also announced a Rs. 3 Crore health insurance package for bartenders associated with the company as brand ambassadors. Read more here
2. Lodha Lightens Its Tenants’ Load
At the forefront of corporate India’s relief efforts, the Lodha Group announced a full waiver of retail rentals, beginning 15th March, until the government allows retail operations to resume. It further stated that maintenance fees would be reduced to actuals during this period. This move is aimed at softening the blow to India’s retail sector during summer vacations, which usually sees a boom in sales. Read more here.
3. Zomato Wants You To Have Your Cake And Bake It Too
Taking a cue from competitor Swiggy, Zomato plans to enter the lucrative grocery delivery industry. It is in talks with other delivery services such as Grofers and Big Basket to sell their food products and essentials, by piggybacking on its platform and facilitating deliveries with its delivery partners. The pilot is expected to go live in Delhi-NCR next week. Read more here.
4. Flipkart Bounces Back, Amazon Pantry To Follow Suit
Flipkart’s operations were temporarily suspended on Wednesday after the government announced a 21-day lockdown to contain the spread of Covid-19. After receiving the government’s nod to resume its supply chain and delivery services, Flipkart continues to strengthen its position. This can be attributed to the Ecommerce industry experiencing a boom of sorts, thanks to consumers staying indoors due to self-quarantine and social distancing. Read more here.
5. Nature Comes Out To Play As The Rest Of Us Work From Home
Here’s some news that’ll make you smile. It started with fish being spotted in Venice’s canals for the first time in years and dolphins returning to the coast of Mumbai. Wildlife is gradually taking advantage of the falling levels of pollution and reduced interference from humans. With a rare spotted Malabar civet seen in Kerala for the first time since the 90s, 8 lakh Olive Ridley turtles gathering en-masse at Rushikulya beach to ‘nest in peace’ and more than 30 species of birds making a comeback to the NCR’s green spaces, nature is gradually coming out to play while we’re away. IRL Jumanji anyone?Read more here.


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Armored Core 6: Fires of Rubicon is set to launch this August, according to sources who spoke to Insider Gaming. Not only is the game rumored to launching on August 25, but there's scuttlebutt that an announcement could be happening very soon.
While the leak doesn't have exact information on when this announcement could be, it's not unlikely that we'll see Armored Core VI make an appearance at Summer Game Fest on June 8. Considering the game was revealed at the previous The Game Awards, which is also hosted by Geoff Keighley, there's a chance that FromSoftware will continue to show its games at these events.
Armored Core 6 release date and upcoming reveal
Elden Ring's gameplay reveal trailer was shown off during Summer Game Fest 2021, and while FromSoftware was not present during 2022's show, it did cap off the year with an Armored Core 6 reveal trailer at The Game Awards. It's a recent tradition to expect great new reveals from the company during Geoff Keighley events, so we're expecting to see the game make an appearance this June.
If not, it could come sooner during a surprise event in May from PlayStation. Sony has two modern FromSoftware exclusives with Demon's Souls and Bloodborne, alongside the recently released Demon's Souls Remake, so there's certainly some comradery there. On the other hand, Xbox previously revealed the Sekiro gameplay reveal and Elden Ring announcement trailer at its shows.
FromSoftware seems to shop around in regards to where it shows its stuff of, perhaps based on what's most convenient for the team at the time. But now that E3 is cancelled this year, the only two possibilities for us to see a release date and gameplay trailer for Armored Core 6 is from either the Xbox and Bethesda Games Showcase or Summer Games Fest. If something else surprising springs up, that'd be welcome too, but we're not anticipating much else.
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Self-described art critic and unabashedly pretentious, Momo finds joy in impassioned ramblings about her closeness to video games. She has a bachelor’s degree in Journalism & Media Studies from Brooklyn College and five years of experience in entertainment journalism. Momo is a stalwart defender of the importance found in subjectivity and spends most days overwhelmed with excitement for the past, present and future of gaming. When she isn't writing or playing Dark Souls, she can be found eating chicken fettuccine alfredo and watching anime.


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Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) is now further delaying the launch of XBox One on the China. Following the lift of China’s ban on gaming consoles, company announced to launch all new Xbox One in the country on 23rd September. However, the Redmond giant delayed the launch, and now is expected to come by the end of this year.
According to a press release from the Microsoft, the company will launch the console by the end of this year. Microsoft stated that, “Despite strong and steady progress, we are going to need a bit more time to deliver the best experiences possible for our fans in China.” However, even with the delay, the company is still going to host the launch event, and will provide Xbox One to play games. Microsoft will also give away 100 consoles.
Corporate Vice President Yusuf Mehdi added that Microsoft is “thrilled with the response we’ve seen in China, including pre-orders beyond our expectations and growing anticipation of our launch.”
However, there is no final date, and the company is expected to delay it further. Microsoft is already working with IPTV partner BEST TV to accomplish the end of the year goals. A few of the reports suggest that the company is going to delay it further.
“At Xbox, we pride ourselves on delivering first-rate gaming and entertainment experiences, and to allow us to deliver on that promise, we need to reschedule the launch of Xbox One,” a Microsoft spokesperson said in a statement. “Working with our partner, BesTV, we look forward to launching in China by the end of this year.”
“We are excited to bring game and entertainment innovation to China,” said Mehdi, “We have an ambitious vision, and we’re working hard with our partners to deliver Xbox One and great games and entertainment to China.”
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- About Us
Lotus has confirmed the name for its first all-electric hypercar, previously codenamed the Type 130. The new range-topper from Hethel will be called the Lotus Evija. The first official rendering revealed an elegant, low-slung, cab-forward silhouette with a long-ish tail optimised for aero and aesthetics, and looks poised to take on the Pininfarina Battista, the Rimac C-Two and other high-end electric hypercars.
The name starting with E name continues the naming tradition for the brand, which includes the Esprit, Elise and Evora. Lotus explains Evija is pronounced ‘Ev-eye-a’ and means ‘the first in existence or the living one.’ The teaser images suggest that the Evija will be roughly as long as the Evora but wider and lower. Additionally, the Evija will make extensive use of carbonfibre inside and out to keep weight as low as possible, keeping in mind the added weight from the batteries, a necessary evil in case of present-day electric cars.
Hethel has also confirmed that just 130 examples of the new car will be built, with deliveries starting in 2020. Even before the official launch of Lotus’ newest offering, spectators at the Goodwood Festival of Speed will be able to get sneak peeks of the Evija, along with the Evora GT4 concept racer.
Lotus has always codenamed their concepts with a ‘Type-’ moniker. These include the Type 14, the world’s first composite monocoque production road car (the 1957 Elite); the Type 72, the most successful F1 car of all time, and the Type 111, otherwise known as the 1995 Lotus Elise, which was the world’s first aluminium and bonded extrusion construction production car.
The official reveal of the final car with specification and full details is set to be on July 16 2019, appropriately in London, the birthplace of Lotus exactly after 71 years.


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9 Cricketers Who Do 'Something On The Side' Better Than Anyone Else Alive
Cricket is bread and butter for them, but the Men In Blue haven’t just stopped at that. Assuring that life isn’t too tough post retirement, some of India's leading cricketers have dabbled in alternate businesses.
Here’s a look at some cricketers and their off the pitch ventures:
Seems cricketer Virat Kohli is busy securing his future off the pitch. Following footsteps of captain Dhoni, Virat is all set to step into the fitness business. According to reports, Kohli will be investing Rs 90 crore to launch a chain of gyms across the country. The chain of gyms will be launched under the brand name Chisel and will be jointly owned by Kohli, Chisel Fitness and CSE, the sister concern of Cornerstone Sport & Entertainment, the agency that manages Kohli. Earlier, Kohli had invested in the FC Goa franchise of the Hero Indian Super League.
Mahendra Singh Dhoni
India's Captain cool entered into the business of fitness through SportsFit- a company he co-owns with his business manager Arun Pandey. The chain operates several fitness centres across the country. Dhoni also owns Mahi Racing Team India in the Supersport World Championship, he bought a stake in Chennaiyin FC and later went on to become the co-owner of Hockey India League’s Ranchi Rays.
Master Blaster Sachin owns a restaurant by the name Tendulkar’s in Mumbai’s Colaba. The restaurant offers some of Sachin’s favorite dishes.
Focusing on his life beyond the world of cricket, Sehwag turned his father’s dream into a reality. Spread across 23-acres in Jhajjar, Haryana, the star opener set up ‘Sehwag International School’ which offered world-class facilities for both sports and academics. In 2011, his mother inaugurated the school.
Indian cricket icon Yuvraj Singh too has made investments in alternate businesses. He recently floated an online venture fund under the name YouWeCan Ventures. It aims to support young entrepreneurs. The Rs 63 crore start-up fund YouWeCan made its debut funding by investing an undisclosed amount as seed funding in a mobile phone-based beauty and wellness startup Vyomo.
A signature restaurant is the easiest way to make a name and earn a lot of money at the same time. Indian fast bowler started ZK’s in Pune and now has two branches in the city.
This former Indian captain is the proud owner of Elevens restaurant in Chandigarh and Patna and Kaptain’s Retreat Hotel in Chandigarh. He also launched a floodlights installation company by the name Dev Musco Lighting Pvt Limited in partnership with Musco Lighting.
In 1985, this legendary cricketer launched India’s first sports management company- Professional Management Group. The company has stood the test of time by updating itself with changing time and trends and is still going pretty strong.
In 2010, Anil Kumble along with former table tennis champion Vasanth Bharadwaj founded TENVIC. Based in Bangalore the academy aims to provide sports education and training at mainstream schools across the country, to nurture, encourage young talent and develop a sporting culture among children.


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Pediatricians Gauge Depression in Kids Through Facebook Friends
Mar 30, 2011 16:32
We already know Facebook is taking over the world. Nearly nothing is done without anything getting onto Facebook these days. So naturally, pediatricians are now being advised to incorporate this modern phenomenon by applying social media observations to their young patients.
In a nod to the ever-increasing role that social media plays in the lives of kids, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) is calling on pediatricians to incorporate questions about social media usage into doctor visits.
The new policy recommends pediatricians advise parents to bring up digital issues including cyberbullying, sexting and the uncanny way the Internet proves a persistent obstacle to successful time management. Parents should regularly oversee what their kids are doing online and should consider implementing a “family online-use plan” that lays out a set of family rules for online behavior. Some examples: Nobody uses tech at the table. Kids go online only once they finish their homework. Parents — and this is a tough one — can't tap away at smartphones when they're out with their children
Gwenn O'Keeffe, co-author of the clinical report and a pediatrician outside Boston who has written Cybersafe, says as long as your children have Facebook accounts, you should sharpen your technology skills and should definitely 'friend' your kids on Facebook.
Before an App is brought out in the market, the software developers needs to guarantee that their App is free from any complications, under any circumstances. For this, experts in Android App testing are called upon who run the app through a series of possible defects that could have caused major app in the functioning of it. Read more
The evolution of technology has made the life of each individual easy. Technology has taken new steps in turning imagination into reality. The perfect example of how technology changed our life can start with a simple television. Have you ever thought that a TV can have both channels and high end games together? Read more
A payment gateway can be defined as the infrastructure that allows a merchant to accept credit card and other forms of electronic payments. The e-payments can take place online as well as from the traditional brick and mortar stores. Payment Gateways play an important role in encrypting and transmitting critical information between payment portals and the front end processors/ Banks. Read more


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Huawei to Shift Focus from 5G to Self-Driving Cars, Inspired by Tesla
Huawei will not build its own autonomous vehicles but instead, use its 5G expertise to collaborate with automakers to build driverless connected cars.
Image for Representation (Image: AFP Relaxnews)
Chinese smartphone manufacturer Huawei is currently making a big push towards the 5G industry, but it is also reportedly planning to assist in building self-driving cars. "Our ultimate goal is to achieve complete driverless news, but in the process of moving towards the ultimate goal, it can create value. At present, Tesla is already creating value for everyone, if Tesla can do it now, we can all do it," the report quoted rotating Huawei chairman Xu Zhijun.
However, the company does not want to make their own cars but will help car companies build good cars through collaboration. Currently, the smartphone manufacturer is using its expertise in 5G together with SAIC and China Mobile to build 5G connected cars. As per a report, these cars have 5G/LTE-V capabilities, support C-ITS assisted driving functions, feature intelligent voice interactions and even have live video calling functions built-in.
Recently, the company announced that it has shipped 6.9 million units of 5G smartphones as of December 2019, in addition to offering end-to-end 5G solutions. In 2019, Huawei brought 5G to consumers through the launch of eight 5G smartphones: Huawei Mate 30 Pro 5G, Mate 30 5G, Mate 20 X (5G), Nova 6 5G, Mate X, Honor V30 Pro and Honor V30.
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updated 12:47 pm EDT, Fri September 14, 2012
Nintendo America CEO claims lack of game support
Nintendo will not be releasing the Wii U gamepad as a standalone product at launch. The company plans to start selling the controller on it's own when games that actively use more than one WiiPad go on sale, according to Nintendo America CEO and president Reggie Fils-Amie in a session with investors following the global press conferences that announced availability.
No games during the console's launch window will use a second gamepad, instead relying on just one and using extra Wiimotes for other players. "Certainly, when the games come out, we'll be making that accessory available," said Fils-Amie, although it was not mentioned if there was a game in development that would use two or more, nor in the event of a customer needing to replace a broken Wiipad without buying the entire bundle twice.
The Wii U will be made available in the US on November 18, ahead of Europe and Japan. The two packages that will be available at launch include a white console with an 8GB memory and a WiiPad for $300, and a black console with 32GB of storage and a discount scheme for downloads for $350. [via Engadget]


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The fashion industry is one of the most wasteful industries on Earth, accounting for more than 8 percent of the world's total greenhouse gas emissions, according to the New York Times. Yet somehow, so many companies claim to be sustainable and ethical. So to help consumers weed through all that the nonprofit Green America ranked 14 of the largest fashion corporations (some of which own multiple stores) in the U.S., in a report called Toxic Textiles.
Green America is a nonprofit organization with a mission of helping businesses to create a socially and environmentally sustainable society. The full Toxic Textiles report is an in-depth analysis of the fashion industry in the U.S., and the most interesting part is Green America's scorecard ranking 14 major American fashion companies. Green America chose these 14 brands because they are "readily accessible to consumers" and are primarily single-brand retailers (at least in the fashion department), meaning they mostly sell their own products.
The four brands that came out on top are: Target, VF Corporation (which owns The North Face, JanSport, Eastpak, and Timberland), Nike, and Gap Inc. (which owns Gap, Old Navy, Banana Republic, Athleta, and more). Even though those four companies got the highest scores and are making significant efforts in the industry, Green America found that "none of the major brands are true leaders in the field." Womp womp.
The three brands coming in second place are: Ascena Retail (Ann Taylor, the Loft, Dressbarn, Justice, and more), Ralph Lauren, and Walmart. The brands tied for third place are: Abercrombie & Fitch, American Eagle, and the Children's Place. And coming in at the bottom of the scorecard are URBN (Anthropologie, Free People, and Urban Outfitters), Carter's Inc. (Carter's and Osh Kosh B'Gosh), the J. Crew Group (J. Crew and Madewell), and, in dead last, with zero points, is Forever 21.
So, how did Green America rank the brands? The nonprofit analyzed each company based on six factors — not only if they are already doing a good job with these things, but also if they have laid out plans to address them. The factors are:
There are four ways a company can be ranked in each category. A (+) means the company is already working on a plan to address this; a (/) means the company claims to have a policy on the matter, but no details; blank means the company has not addressed the issue; and a (•) in the chemical management column means that a company has an RSL but not an MRSL.
“Consumers want sustainable clothing, and the market is responding,” Caroline Chen, Green America’s social justice campaigns manager, said in a statement sent to Green Matters. “But too often, many of the promises we hear from conventional companies are token sustainability initiatives that are band-aids to one small part of the problem, or empty platitudes without a plan to achieve real change. Sustainability shouldn’t just be a marketing trend.”
What Chen points out is that even when companies say they care about sustainability, they are often more focused on making consumers think they are being sustainable rather than actually being sustainable. So when you see a company — especially one owned by a major corporation — talk the talk about being green, do your research to see if it's just greenwashing. For some our best tips on shopping sustainably, click here.


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Nokia 8.1 is a new smartphone but not just a new phone, it is a phone with uniqueness that worth checking. In this article we are going to look at Nokia 8.1 and see what it’s all about.
Just like other companies are releasing new smartphone with new features, HMD Global has launched the Nokia 8.1 and this new Nokia phone runs on the latest the Android 9.0 Pie.
Nokia 8.1 comes with Snapdragon 710, a notch and HDR10 support for its 2160 x 1440 resolution display.
Let us see the full specs of this new Nokia 8.1 below :
Nokia 8.1 Full Specs
- OS: Android 9 Pie with Android One
– Back camera: 12-megapixels + 13-megapixels with dual led flash
– Front camera: 20-megapixel fixed focus lens
- Network and connectivity: 4G VoLTE, Wi-Fi 802.11ac, VoWiFi, Bluetooth v5.0, GPS/ A-GPS, FM radio, a 3.5mm headphone jack, and USB Type-C port.
- Fingerprint: YES (rear-mounted)Display: 6.18-inch Full-HD+ display HDR10 with a 18.7:9 aspect ratio
- Screen resolution: 1080 x 2244 pixels
- Colors: Blue/ Silver, Steel/ Copper, and Iron/ Steel dual-tone
- Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon 710 SoC clocked up to 2.2GHz Octa-core
- RAM: 4GB
- Storage: 64GB and supports up to 400GB via micro sd card slot
- Battery :3,500mAh with 18W fast charging
Nokia 8.1 Camera
When it comes to camera, Nokia 8.1 has a dual-lens design on the rear/back with its main 12MP f/1.8 camera joined by a second 13MP sensor for portrait shots while the front has a 20MP camera which is not up to the MP of Camon 11 Pro but still great.
Nokia 8.1 Design And Display
The Nokia 8.1 Smartphone comes with pure screen display, which delivers smaller and minimal bezels, and rear fingerpint sensor.
Nokia 8.1 is a phone that is made out of a fine soft anodized aluminum with a two-tone finish on the back and front.
Nokia 8.1 mobile phone is made out of a fine soft anodized aluminum with a two-tone finish on the back and front.
Nokia 8.1 Price And Availability
The Nokia 8.1 Smartphone costs EUR 399 which is equivalent to $454 and Europe’s 2019 first Nokia phone to be launched .
The Nokia 8.1 Smartphone comes with the trending screen display, which delivers smaller and minimal bezels, and rear fingerpint sensor. Nokia 8.1 was officially launched and unveiled by HMD Global at an event on Wednesday in Dubai.
However, the Nokia 8.1 is set to launch in the UK and Europe next year by January 14th for £379.99 (€399) just like this smartphone The Nokia 8.1 will be available for purchase from mid-December 2018 and you will definitely want to try out.
Don’t forget that there is still the cheapest smartphone you can buy.


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Sherwin-Williams at 216-276 Passaic Ave. in Kearny — Courtesy: The Goldstein Group
By Joshua Burd
Sherwin-Williams has leased more than 3,400 square feet of retail space in a fast-growing section of Kearny, in a newly announced transaction by The Goldstein Group.
Brokers with the firm represented the paint company in the deal at 216-276 Passaic Ave., the site of the Kearny Plaza Shopping Center. According to the brokerage team, the store will occupy part of a freestanding pad site adjacent to AFC Urgent Care, joining tenants such as Target, BJ’s Warehouse, M&T Bank, Chipotle and a host of others.
The Goldstein Group Principal Neil Goldstein served as Sherwin-Williams’ representative in the 3,420-square-foot deal, while Jenny Welkis of Welco Realty represented the owner, Osborne Capital LLC.
“The Kearny market has seen an influx of new residential buildings in an established market,” said Chuck Lanyard, president of The Goldstein Group. “The Passaic Avenue corridor has seen new residents move in over the past few years and additional retailers and restaurants have also opened in the market.”


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Skills gaps, apprenticeships and Wakefield’s retail offering were key issues debated at Why Wakefield, a panel discussion staged at the MY Conference in support of Wakefield Business Week.
Creating debate around City specific issues, delegates put key questions to a panel of experts, which was made up of Andy Turner, Managing Director of First Choice Recruitment; Roger Marsh, Chairman of LEP; Tim Mee Chair of the Wakefield Manufacturing Forum and Andrew Raby, Business Development Manager of Leeds Beckett University.
Without doubt, skills dominated the discussion.
Enthusing young people and offering the knowledge and guidance to pursue a successful career were seen as key to addressing the skills gap and tackling the challenges faced by business – in particular those associated with skills development and skills research.
Hope was also on the agenda of those that attended, with many believing that this was the missing ingredient when it comes to raising aspirations, which is often limited in young people.
Wakefield as a destination for retail was also discussed. When asked whether Wakefield was a good destination for new retail businesses; the reply was ‘Why Wakefield, Why Not’. With the growing consumer buying power, new retail business was seen as a way to capitalize upon this opportunity.
It was clear that there are lots of reasons for ‘WHY Wakefield?’. Equally, like many towns and cities there is also a number of issues to be addressed and areas to be nurtured and supported, but the outlook remains positive.
Whilst success can be achieved by working in isolation it is a collaborative approach that will have the biggest impact in supporting key sectors and helping our young people flourish with a work ready attitude and a skills sets that support the growth of local business.


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Madhya Pradesh: During the Aadhaar card verification process at Bodiya fair price shop in Dhar District, it was found that a dog has been a beneficiary of the public distribution system. Until the identity was released, the dog in past one year took nearly 60 kg of food grains by the fair price shop.
Owner of the dog Narsingh Bodar had mentioned three names in the ration card incuding his wife and son. During the verification it was found that Bodar pocketed the benefits by naming his dog as his son.
As quoted by national daily TOI, Anand Gole, Dhar food officer said, “Narsingh Bodar, owner of the canine, had mentioned names of his wife and son in his ration card which was made around a year ago. The son, Raju, turned out to be his dog.”
The goof-up came to fore when the salesman Kailash Maru asked Bodar to present Aadhaar card copies of his family members to which, Boar produced his and his wife’s Aadhaard card. When asked for his son Raju, Bodar said, “Oh..he is my dog”.
The food officer claimed that the process of Aadhaar card updation on the Samagra Portal was on. Subsequently, the beneficiaries are being asked to produce their Aadhaar cards for verification.


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Edmonton police have arrested a woman wanted on outstanding warrants after a string of liquor store robberies across the city.
On Tuesday, Aug. 7, 2018 at approximately 11:30 a.m., a woman reportedly entered a Liquor Depot near 133 Street and 114 Avenue and placed two bottles of alcohol in her handbag, said an EPS news release Wednesday.
“After she was approached by staff and asked for identification she allegedly refused to provide it and left the store without making any attempt to pay, taking a third bottle of alcohol as she exited,” said EPS spokeswoman Carolin Maran in the release.
The woman is believed to have been involved in more than 30 liquor store thefts since August 2018.
Valynda Davis was arrested for 44 outstanding warrants including possession of a dangerous weapon and theft under $5,000. She has also been charged with three counts of theft under$5,000 and a breach of probation.


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‘Big move’: Trump praises China tariff exemptions as trade talks approach
Team Udayavani, Sep 12, 2019, 11:11 AM IST
Washington: US President Donald Trump on Wednesday welcomed an apparent olive branch from Beijing in the grinding trade war between the two nations, which came weeks before negotiations are due to resume.
Beijing announced it was temporarily exempting some US exports from tariff increases, a gesture that lifted equities markets long buffeted by the ups and downs in the conflict now entering its second year.
“It was a big move,” Trump told reporters at the White House. He reiterated that Beijing was under pressure to strike a bargain as its economy weakens, which he attributed to US actions.
Top negotiators expect to reconvene in Washington early next month after an acrimonious summer in which trade relations deteriorated sharply and both governments announced waves of new tariffs in a stand-off that is dragging on the global economy.
However, the goods exempted do not include high-profile agricultural items like soybeans and pork that could be crucial to the ultimate success of any agreement.
The exemptions will become effective on September 17 and be valid for a year, according to the Customs Tariff Commission of the State Council, which released two lists that include seafood products and anti-cancer drugs.
The lists mark the first time Beijing has announced products to be excluded from tariffs.
Other categories that will become spared include alfalfa pellets, fish feed, medical linear accelerators and mold release agents, and the commission said it was also considering further exemptions.
Both sides imposed fresh tit-for-tat tariffs on September 1, adding to the duties that now cover hundreds of billions of dollars of goods.
“These adjustments signal that China is more willing to make progress in the October trade talks, likely toward striking a ‘narrow’ agreement that involves China buying more US goods in exchange for the US suspending further tariff hikes,” Barclays analysts said in a research note.
They said Beijing had been sounding a more “constructive” note in recent weeks over trade relations.
But US businesses in China are increasingly pessimistic about their prospects, with a report released Wednesday saying growing numbers of companies expect their revenues and investment in the local market to shrink.
The American Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai said just 47 percent said they expected to increase their investments in China in 2019 — down from 62 per cent last year — while three-quarters of businesses surveyed said they opposed the use of punitive tariffs by the United States to force China into a trade deal.
In a sign of the economic pressure being felt by the Asian giant, the central People’s Bank of China said on Friday it would lower the required amount of cash that lenders must keep in reserve, allowing for an estimated USD 126 billion in additional loans to businesses.
China’s economy grew 6.2 per cent on-year in the second quarter, the lowest rate in nearly three decades — a fact Trump highlighted on Wednesday.
Auto sales in China fell by 6.9 per cent in August compared with the previous year, an official industry association said Wednesday, extending a slump in a massive auto market that has long been a cash cow. It was the 14th consecutive monthly drop.
Trump has said the protracted trade war is damaging China more than the United States.
“China is eating the tariffs,” he tweeted Friday, repeating his claim that higher duties mean Washington is collecting billions of dollars from the Asian nation, without passing costs on to US consumers.
But experts have warned there are signs the US is also feeling the pinch, with job creation slowing across major industries last month.
Wall Street added to gains after Trump spoke, amid renewed hope an agreement could be reached to end the trade war. The benchmark Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.5 per cent shortly around 1800 GMT.
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Wilson Atta Krofa THE GHANA National Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GNCCI) has added its voice to the call by the Institute of Freight Forwarders (GIFF) on government to allow the Customs, Excise and Preventive Service (CEPS) to henceforth handle the classification and evaluation of imported goods.
Thus, the function which hitherto was taken over by Destination Inspection Companies (DICs) during the NPP administration's era now becomes the duty of CEPS.
At a news conference in Tema recently, GIFF called for the restoration of such a duty to CPS, indicating it will provide a one-stop facility and eliminate the frustration that oftentimes emerges in dealing with DICs.
GIFF maintained that DICs were not efficiently playing their roles hence the delays and complications in importing as well as processing imported goods at the ports with increasing costs.
Owing to the myriad of problems that arose out of the inefficiency of DICs in handling such a function, CEPS last year announced that it was ready to take over.
This happened at a time when the contracts of some DICs were about to expire. Shockingly, the former government renewed their contracts. This was after a new office facility for that purpose had been built and publicly commissioned.
The former government did this without consulting CEPS, shippers and freight forwarders.
DICs were asked to take over this function of CEPS on excuses that CEPS lacked the capacity to carry out classification and valuation of goods for duty purposes. Ironically, DICs had to be coached by personnel from CEPS to effect the classification and valuation of goods.
Presently, DICs operate with the assistance of CEPS officers and what even makes their services cumbersome is the fact that they operate not from the ports but from Accra – a situation which adds several unnecessary costs to the business of importers and further complicating the process of clearing.
By Samuel Boadi


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The merger between Idea Cellular and Vodafone India has received conditional approval from the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), moving it another step towards final clearance.
SEBI’s approval is conditional on the merger also receiving the go-ahead from the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT). Following SEBI’s announcement, Idea and Vodafone have now submitted a request for clearance to NCLT.
The proposed $23.2 billion merger, which would create a new Indian mobile market leader, received approval from the Competition Commission of India in July. It also requires approval from the shareholders of both operators, and must receive certain other regulatory clearances.
Idea’s parent firm Aditya Birla Group is aiming to close the deal with Vodafone Group at some point within 2018. The combined entity will have around 425 million subscribers, giving it a market share of 35% based on GSMA forecasts for Q1 2018.
While SEBI has granted the deal initial approval, Idea’s sale of 0.23% of its shares before the announcement of merger in March has raised questions. The Indian regulator TRAI is currently investigating whether this transaction was legal.
The merger between Vodafone India and Idea is aimed at allowing the firms to compete more effectively in India’s cutthroat mobile market. Newcomer Reliance Jio has been offering data and voice services for free in order to build up a subscriber base, squeezing Idea and Vodafone along with market leader Bharti Airtel.
Following the completion of the merger, the resulting entity will likely retain both the Idea and Vodafone brands rather than rebranding, but will enjoy access to the combined spectrum and assets of both operators. Idea and Vodafone are expecting the deal to deliver “substantial cost and capex savings” derived from consolidation of network and IT development as well as reduced marketing, retail and customer service expenditure.


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In a blockbuster deal that rocks the fintech world, Square announced today that it is acquiring Australian buy now, pay later giant Afterpay in a $29 billion all stock deal. The purchase price is based on the closing price of Square common stock on July 30, which was $247.26.
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Man gets more than three-years for game piracy
If the FBI's involvement in tracking down those behind the Half-Life 2 code theft wasn't sufficiently impressive, then a new sentencing in the UK certainly demonstrates further the seriousness with which gaming-related crimes are viewed. John Lamb of South Wales was found guilty of pirating games and films thirty-times over, and received three-and-half years in prison for his offences. Torfaen Trading Standards and ELSPA spent eighteen months collaborating to bring Lamb to justice.
"This is the longest prison sentence ELSPA has ever seen handed down to a games pirate," enthused ELSPA director general Roger Bennett, "and it is gratifying to see the courts are now taking piracy seriously and enforcing suitably severe sentences. Piracy is a criminal offence, and as this case demonstrates, anyone involved in the illegal practice of counterfeiting could face not just a fine but the very real possibility of substantial jail time."
In yet more pleasing news for the gaming giants, mod-chips have just been declared illegal in the High Court, as part of the new European Union Copyright Directive laws implemented last October.
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Nearly two months after the United Kingdom launched an inquiry into Nvidia’s purchase of Cambridge-based Arm, Nvidia has argued its acquisition of Arm will actually improve competition in the console space.
Nvidia is in the middle of trying to save its $40 billion buyout of the British chip manufacturer, after the United States’ FTC sued and UK regulators ordered a national security inquiry into the deal. Nvidia has now formally responded to the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) with a massive submission.
But the most interesting bullet point is found under subsection D of section 5. It’s here where Nvidia states the Arm acquisition will “spur competition in consoles”. Nvidia claims it would have to make a sizable effort to help Arm compete with AMD and Intel’s x86 chips which currently dominate the console market, apart from the Nintendo Switch which is powered by Nvidia’s Tegra hardware.
Considering Arm doesn’t produce CPUs for PCs or consoles, Nvidia’s move to “grow and enhance Arm IP” could create the invigorated competition. The CMA’s inquiry is centered on whether the deal is harmful to consumers. “The chip technology industry is worth billions and critical to many of the products that we use most in our everyday lives,” said CMA chief executive Andrea Coscelli.
“We will work closely with other competition authorities around the world to carefully consider the impact of the deal and ensure that it doesn’t ultimately result in consumers facing more expensive or lower quality products.”
There’s no signs as to which way this inquiry will swing following Nvidia and Arm’s latest submission. The CMA will submit a final report by May 2, 2022.


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GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Nigeria (GSK) Plc, the publicly traded local unit of the U.K.’s biggest drugmaker, said profit declined 52.07 percent after rising operating expenses hurt operations in its home market Nigeria.
Profit was N295.06 million in the first three months through March 2015, compared with N615.57 million, the Lagos-based company said on the website of the NSE. Sales increased 4.4 percent to N7.45 billion, lower than the 8.7 percent inflation rate.
The flagging growth is attributable to weak consumer spending, insecurity in the north part of the country and huge energy costs.
Consumers in Africa largest economy Nigeria are groaning under the the fuel hike of 2012 that has pressured their wallets, flagging the marginal propensity to spend.
The insecurity in the north part of the country fuelled by the Boko Haram insurgent prevented GSK from moving its products to the crisis region and beyond its borders.
Boko Haram killed more than 13,000 civilians between 2009 and 2015, including around 10,000 in 2014, in attacks occurring mainly in northeast Nigeria, according to amnesty international.
GSK’s operating expenses increased by 22.03 percent to N2.52 billion from N2.06 billion as the company continues to grapple with bad roads and rising energy costs that swell distribution and administrative expenses.
Operating expenses ratio (OER) moved to 33.82 percent in 2015 from 25.50 percent the previous year.
The OER measures how efficient a company is. GSK’s OER of 0.338 percent means the company spent 33.8 percent to create the sale. An expense ratio that is increasing over time means the company is operating less efficiently from period to period.
GSK’s cost of sales reduced by 6.60 percent to N4.53 billion, as against N4.85 billion in 2014 despite the company’s exposure to currency volatility.
“Exchange rate volatility is an issue,” said T.S Dayanand Managing Director of the firm in an interview with Business Day, held in Lagos yesterday.
“We will continue to manage that risk and have factored some of it in our budget. We intend to localise more of our manufacturing as much as possible, even as we currently produce 75 percent of our products locally.” said Dayanand in a recent interview with BusinessDay.
Nigeria central bank scrapped its bi-weekly currency auctions on in February 2015 and the market body said it would sell dollars only at 198 naira, a move that amounts to a de facto devaluation of Nigeria’s currency.
The naira has lost more than 13 percent of its value against the dollar in the past six months, and was trading 0.5 percent stronger at 198.54 a dollar by 5:56 p.m. in Lagos.
GSK’s cost of sales margin reduced to 60.80 percent in 2015 from 65.51 percent in 2014. Gross profits were flattish moved by 1 percent to N2.94 percent, while gross profit margin jumped to 39.19 percent, from 37.19 percent the previous year.
GSK’s total assets increased by 6.50 percent to N29.47 billion in 2015 compared with N27.67 billion in 2014.
The company’s share price closed at N44.0 on the floor of the NSE while market capitalization was N52.62 billion.
Source : BusinessDay