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A group of U.S. Senators are currently attempting to push a bipartisan bill through the Senate which aims to address a growing number of public concerns over easily hackable Internet of Things technologies. The Internet of Things, or IoT as it is commonly referred to, is a broad term that refers to all devices and applications possessing the ability to connect to the internet. Today, this includes a vast and rapidly growing array of devices ranging from smart watches and household appliances, to internet connected vehicles, medical devices, and even smart homes.
In May, Lima Charlie News reported on the introduction of a Senate bill aimed at promoting innovation and development of Internet of Things technologies in the United States. The bill, dubbed The Developing and Growing the Internet of Things, or DIGIT Act, followed a January report by the US Department of Commerce called, “Fostering the Advancement of the Internet of Things.”
While these measures sought to weaken government intervention in IoT development and foster innovation, the new bill proposed on August 1st, aims to regulate IoT devices sold and used within the US government in hopes of addressing prominent security concerns. This call for tougher security follows a major Denial of Services attack against internet infrastructure firm Dyn last October and the subsequent emergence of the Mirai botnet. While most large scale malicious online attacks have used home and laptop computer IP addresses when recruiting for a DdoS attack, the Dyn attack was conducted by tens of millions of IP addresses from seemingly benign IoT cameras, baby monitors, and other household devices and applications.
Since its inception, the Mirai botnet has weaponized IoT devices in a number of attacks including that of a prominent tech security journalist. These attacks, in addition to rising public paranoia following The Wikileaks Vault 7 data dump that exposed the CIA’s ability to hack smart TVs and manipulate webcams, has contributed to a fierce call for tougher security measures on rampantly insecure IoT devices.
The Internet of Things Cyber Security Improvement Act of 2017, co-sponsored by Senators Mark Warner (D-VA), Cory Gardner, (R-CO) Deb Fisher, (R-NE), Rob Wyden, (D-OR), and Steve Daines, (R-MT) looks to bolster government cyber defenses by demanding new security requirements for all devices. If implemented in full, the bill would require IoT device sellers to ensure that all products are patchable upon release, would prohibit hard set, have unchangeable passwords, and would demand devices be free of any presently known security vulnerabilities. Additionally, the bill would require all executive agencies to develop and maintain a publicly available database that lists all IoT devices in use and the names of their manufacturers. The bill also provides protection from criminal prosecution for “Good Faith” hackers who expose and report any potential device vulnerabilities.
Senator Mark Warner (D-VA) sought to reinforce the need for a bill that strengthens security measures without impeding innovation. In a statement, Warner said, “this legislation would establish thorough, yet flexible guidelines for Federal Government procurements of connected devices.”
— Mark Warner (@MarkWarner) August 1, 2017
Colorado Senator Cory Gardner, one of the bill’s republican signatories, commented on the Senate’s attempt to reach across the aisle for security measures. “This bipartisan, commonsense legislation will ensure the federal government leads by example and purchases devices that meet basic requirements to prevent hackers from penetrating our government systems,” said Gardner.
While the government has been wary of dipping its toe into IoT regulation, security analysts have been quietly sounding their alarm bells. In a Washington Post article, Harvard lecturer and outspoken internet security speaker Bruce Schneier, warned that without government intervention, the market will not take action until it is too late. “The sellers of those devices don’t care,” Schneier said. “There is no market solution because the insecurity primarily affects other people. It’s a form of invisible pollution.”
In an interview with Lima Charlie News, Clinton Metu, (27) a Cyber Security Engineer Consultant at Booz Allen Hamilton, said that while he thinks a portion of the media coverage surrounding IoT vulnerabilities are sensationalized, the public does indeed face a great threat. Much of the problem, he says, comes from a lack of knowledge on the part of the consumer. “The average consumer doesn’t have the luxury of worrying about these IoT devices, because they aren’t deploying them in a secure manner, nor should that be expected of them.” The brunt of the burden for security, said Metu, should lie with the manufacture and not the consumer.
And while the recent Mirai botnet has proven the brutal efficiency of IoT devices when used in DDoS attacks, they might just be scratching the surface. For Metu, the true threat with IoT devices lies with bad actors who decide to use these technologies as a way to gain persistence within a network. Through a vulnerable IoT device a malevolent actor can access one’s home network and wreak havoc. From this type of attack the hacker could steal sensitive data to sell on the black market or keep as blackmail. This criminal technique, Metu says, “poses a huge, glaring risk to the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of any system they [the consumers] have connected to the same network as their IoT device.”
— U.S. Commerce Dept. (@CommerceGov) January 12, 2017
The implications of an attack on a government agency network are far reaching and severe. Any regulation expanded to the public sector, however, may be met with stronger resistance. While the facts remain that IoT devices are largely undersecured, the sheer volume of emerging devices may present a challenging coordination issue. According to a January report released by the US department of Commerce, the number of IoT devices in the US alone are expected to double by 2020. This would amount to a sum of over 4.1 billion devices.
In lieu of additional government regulation, some argued that the path forward lies instead with additional technology and innovation. Currently there are a number of emerging IoT security technologies on the rise, including IoT authentication, IoT network security, IoT encryption, and IoT security analytics, to name a few.
Still, others may say that a more secure virtual network can best be accomplished through human education. While not foolproof, through proper updates and patches by users, many of the most accessible exploits can be easily guarded against.
Though the fate of the Internet of Things Cybersecurity Act is still unclear, Clinton Metu believes the measures being pursued by the US government may serve as a guiding example that the consumer market can follow; a market that he says currently resembles, “the wild west.”
Without any governing authority to enforce basic security measures, Metu believes IoT manufacturers are currently able to negligently release items onto the market with clear vulnerabilities. And though the individual is ultimately held accountable to some extent for all their choices and purchases, the IoT manufacturers currently have access to much greater information. While it is unlikely that the average consumer will have access to the type of knowledge necessary to properly secure their devices, Metu says, “it is very likely that the device manufacturer is going to have access to a security-minded developer who can lead the implementation of the security considerations.”
Whether through government regulation, technological advancement or consumer reeducation, a solution to securing future IoT devices is pressing and would affect a large swath of network connected peoples.
LIMA CHARLIE TECH, with Mack DeGeurin
For up-to-date tech news, please follow us on twitter at @LimaCharlieTech
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Neighbours star Alan Fletcher teases "fantastic" revival series
Neighbours star Alan Fletcher has given fans an idea of what to expect from the upcoming revival series, promising that the new storylines will be "fantastic".
Speaking to TV WEEK about the restarted show, Fletcher revealed that returning to set felt like a homecoming of sorts.
"Neighbours has always been a family," he said. "When people see it [Neighbours], it will be like coming back to a familiar friend. There are lot of things for fans to be excited about. Neighbours will pull out all the stops to surprise audiences."
Related: Neighbours confirms returnee in official picture
Fans around the world were surprised by the news of the iconic Australian soap's return last November, following the show's cancellation after 37 years on air. The show's final episode aired in July and saw stars such as Kylie Minogue and Jason Donovan return to say their goodbyes.
The show will be moving to a new home of Amazon Freevee in the UK and US and Prime Video in Australia, New Zealand and Canada. Previous episodes will also be available across the streaming platform.
Filming has already begun, with the soap returning to its Ramsay Street home at Pin Oak Court in Vermont South, Australia.
Related: Neighbours legend discusses future as Harold Bishop
Several stars have already been confirmed to be returning to the soap, with Jackie Woodburne, Stefan Dennis, Ryan Moloney amongst the actors reprising their roles. The OC and The Hills star Mischa Barton has also been confirmed to be joining the show.
Following the revival announcement, Lauren Anderson, head of AVOD original content and programming for Amazon Studios, revealed the site was looking forward to bringing the show to a new audience.
"Neighbours has captivated its audience for nearly 40 years," she said in a statement. "We look forward to immersing the audience in new Ramsay Street experiences when we relaunch the show [in 2023] for Amazon Freevee and Prime Video customers."
Neighbours returns in the second half of 2023 with new episodes streaming free on Amazon Freevee in the UK and US. Network 10 will retain first-run rights in Australia for the new series.
Read more Neighbours coverage on our dedicated homepage
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By ELENA BECATOROS, Related PressATHENS, Greece (AP) — Kits for self-administered coronavirus checks started arriving in Greek pharmacies Wednesday, with residents entitled to at least one every week freed from cost as a part of efforts to deal with a surge of coronavirus instances and hospitalizations.
Precedence for the house checks is initially being given to academics and highschool college students aged 16-18, as authorities introduced plans to reopen excessive faculties for college students within the remaining three grades beginning April 12.
College students and academics returning to highschool can be required to make use of the take a look at kits twice weekly.
Greece has been beneath lockdown-type restrictions since early November and faculties have been shut for more often than not since then, though they briefly reopened for a couple of weeks earlier this 12 months.
Solely particular training faculties have remained open all through.
Regardless of restrictions on motion and gatherings and the closures of bars, eating places and retail shops for months, coronavirus instances have been surging in Greece.
Hospitals are beneath pressure and lots of intensive care models are at capability.
The nation of 11 million individuals introduced a report variety of each day new infections Tuesday with 4,309, whereas the cumulative dying toll stood at 8,607 on Wednesday.
Regardless of the surge, retail shops in a lot of the nation reopened Monday on an appointment-only foundation.
Cafes, eating places and bars stay shut and are allowed to function on a takeout or supply foundation solely, whereas a 9 p.
to five a.
curfew stays in place and individuals are allowed to depart dwelling just for particular causes and after sending a textual content message to authorities or carrying a self-declaration kind.
Masks are obligatory in all public indoor and outside areas.
However after 5 months of restrictions, many are brazenly flouted and crowds exterior cafes and bars serving drinks in plastic cups have turn out to be frequent within the evenings.
Alternate Well being Minister Vassilis Kontozamanis mentioned distribution of the take a look at kits to the inhabitants would start on Thursday.
___ Derek Gatopoulos in Athens contributed.
Observe Becatoros at https://twitter.
com/ElenaBec ___Follow all of AP’s pandemic protection at:https://apnews.
com/UnderstandingtheOutbreakCopyright 2021 The Related Press.
All rights reserved.
This materials might not be printed, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.


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UKinbound has signed a partnership agreement with the European Tour Operators Association so its supplier members can attend Etoa’s British and Ireland Marketplace event.
The hybrid trade show will take place in-person on January 28, 2022, at InterContinental London – The O2, followed by an online day on February 1.
More than 350 delegates are expected to attend the two-day, business-focused event.
A B2B workshop will enable more than 10,000 meetings between key decision-makers from international tour operators, transport providers and travel organisers, who want to meet representatives from historical landmarks, tourist attractions, hotels and tourist boards.
This latest agreement is part of a wider collaboration between the two associations, which has included joint lobbying activity to support members facing unprecedented challenges due to Covid-19.
In September, Etoa chief executive Tom Jenkins attended UKinbound’s annual convention in Manchester.
Joss Croft, chief executive of UKinbound: said “Looking to 2022 and the revival of the UK’s tourism industry, collaboration will be the key to success, and I’m therefore delighted that through this partnership, UKinbound supplier members will have the opportunity to attend BIM, which will provide them with a range of both commercial and networking opportunities.”
Jenkins added: “The industry works in advance: for sales to take place in North American and Asia, they need a 12–18-month lead time. BIM 2022 will take place in the middle of planning for 2023.
“150 top product buyers who are members of Etoa and UKinbound will attend the in-person event. At the online event we will have a world-wide audience, with operators joining us from Seattle to Shanghai. With over £1 billion of spend on offer, BIM 2022 marks the start of the return to business.”


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New Hyundai i20 won’t make it to Oz before 2016
Hyundai has launched the new i20 five-door and revealed plans to produce a three-door i20 Coupe, but don’t expect either in Australia before 2016.
With its sights set firmly on the Ford Fiesta and the Volkwagen Polo, Hyundai hopes its new model will expose the brand to an even wider audience after its public debut at the 2014 Paris Motor Show, before going on-sale in Europe from November. But, don’t expect to see the new i20 in Australia before at least 2016, reports Australian website Motoring.
“The new i20 is available from India but that’s a different car,” Hyundai Motor Company Australia COO John Elsworth told Motoring. “The only car that would suit our market comes from Europe.”
The new i20 has been designed and developed in Europe at Hyundai Motor’s Design Centre in Rüsselsheim, Germany, with the design dominated by Hyundai’s Fluidic Sculpture design language and is 4035mm long, 1474mm high and 1734mm wide, which makes it 40mm longer, 16mm lower and 24mm wider than before. Key design elements at the front end are the hexagonal grille bi-function headlights with LED daytime running lights.
The dimensional change, courtesy of a new platform, has meant, says Hyundai, that there’s ample room inside for five adults and all their luggage with the boot growing by 31 litres over its predecessor to 326 litres. This grows to 1042 litres with the rear seats folded down. There’s also a double boot floor to conceal items and provide additional storage.


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Samsung phones could get Android 14 update sooner than ever
Samsung is testing the fledgling Android 14 operating system on its handsets at least a month earlier in the year than it has for previous updates.
That’s according to users who’ve found internal builds of Android 14 accompanied by OneUI 6 for the Galaxy S23 lurking on Samsung’s servers.
Meanwhile, SamMobile found Android 14/One UI 6.0 is being tested on the current flagship foldables – the Galaxy Z Fold 4 and Galaxy Z Flip 4.
Pre-order Tears of the Kingdom and save £10
Just days before the launch of the long-awaited sequel, ShopTo is offering a 17% discount on the pre-order of Nintendo’s newest title.
- Was £59.99
- Now £49.85
While it’s to be expected that Samsung would be on the ball in testing the forthcoming upgrade – which Google will officially showcase at Google I/O tomorrow – the timing of the internal tests may be significant.
Samsung getting a headstart on previous years could enable it to bring Android 14 to users of its flagship phones more promptly than in previous years.
While Google tends to release the update for Pixel phones in late summer, third-party manufacturers tend to spend a few months integrating the operating systems with their own custom user interfaces. In Samsung’s case, it’s One UI.
Samsung is certainly a front runner among said third-party manufacturers when furnishing users with that year’s update, but there’s still plenty of room for improvement.
Last year, Samsung released the Android 13 update for the 2022 Galaxy S22 in late-October. Perhaps S23 owners can expect it a little bit sooner this time around?
Android 14 is currently being tested by Google with Pixel device owners able to jump onto the beta. Tomorrow will likely be the first time Google has truly documented the key consumer facing features. Thus far it has been focused on how developers can optimise their applications.
We’ll be covering all of the key announcements from Google I/O 2023 as they happen and will stick around for all the reaction thereafter.


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Posts Tagged 'Verizon Data Breach Investigations Report'
Last time, I noted the prominence of cyber espionage, who and what is targeted, and the embarrassing time it takes to detect attacks. Here are three more observations to take away from this year’s Verizon Data Breach Investigations Report. The curse of human weaknesses Even with all the latest headlines, sadly the Verizon report found that […]
At Intel Security, we believe the Innovation Economy relies on security for organizations and individuals to innovate and execute through technology. The entrepreneur in his garage can’t bring new disruptive ideas to life without the ability to securely develop and protect his intellectual property. The bio tech researcher can’t bring her innovative new wonder drug […]
I just read though the 2014 Verizon Data Breach Investigations Report (DBIR) which was made available on Verizon’s Enterprise site this week. Wow, 1,367 confirmed data breaches! It’s good to know that there are tools available to help prevent these incidents. And it’s our job to help businesses deploy these tools in a cost-effective and […]
It’s that time again, where we look back at the year passed and assess how the threat landscape has changed—for better and for worse. The 2013 Verizon Data Breach Investigations Report (DBIR) reveals that last year was not only defined by the varied nature of cyberattacks, but also by the increased frequency of these incidents in general. […]
In recent years, the number and variety of new security threats seems be increasing exponentially. Online commerce has taken off and criminals are taking note, putting consumers and the businesses that they buy from at risk. The 2012 Verizon Data Breach Investigations Report (DBIR) presents some unsettling data regarding the state of web-based threats, with […]


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Not long after Samsung’s 2022 TV slate was launched at CES, Australians are about to see them in the physical stores they might be returning to, plus online, as well.
There’s little doubt the living room has changed over the past decade, but there’s a good chance you and your family still assembles around a big screen when it’s time to watch a movie or even a TV show.
Even though you can watch films and programs on anything — phones, tablets, computers, hell you could don a VR headset and do it that way — the TV is typically the place to be, thanks in part to its often large size and solid picture quality.
And this year, Samsung appears to be pushing for some of the best picture quality you can find, as the electronics giant unleashes its 2022 screens upon Australia and indeed the rest of the world.
Following its TV announcements at CES back in January, Samsung Australia is readying its next generation of TV technologies, which included the metal-coated colour-enhancing quantum dot crystals of QLED, plus its Quantum Mini-LED backlight component which uses lots of little backlit LEDs to improve the way light and colour come together on its screens.
In 2022, Samsung’s Neo QLED screens use that technology, as well as a new generation of its “Neo Quantum Processor” to analyse the shape of light, connecting it with algorithms to improve the image processing to deliver better depth and clarity than Samsung’s screens have had prior.
Samsung’s 2022 range of Neo QLED will arrive in both 4K and 8K Ultra HD versions — because some people may want one over the other — with more models in the 4K option, but also quite a few in the 8K world dependent on how much you want to spend.
In the world of 4K Neo QLED, it’ll start with a 55 inch QN85 series for $2699, stretching to 85 inches in that model for $6299, while the more premium QN90B will start at $1899 for 43 inches and push all the way to 85 inches at $6999. At the premium end of the Neo QLED 4K world, there’s the QN95B, which runs from $3299 for a 55 inch to $5499 for a 75 inch, offering little difference in design, frame, and picture quality improvements throughout each.
Moving up a level, Samsung will also offer the 8K variants from $4699 in the QN800B, stretching to $8499 for an 85 inch 8K Neo QLED, while the highest end 8K model will be the QN900B, starting at $5799 for 65 inches before hitting $7999 for 75 inches and $11,999 for the 85 inch 8K Neo QLED.
Those Neo QLED screens will also include support for Dolby Atmos and DTS:X spatial and 3D soundtracks, decoding and rendering the sound using Object Tracking Sound, essentially tracking sound across the space of a TV and turning that into a more dynamic soundtrack of sorts. That’ll work provided you use the TV as a sound system, though we suspect if you use a Samsung soundbar, the two will likely work together for an evolution of Samsung’s Q-Symphony, a technology that has helped the two work together in the past.
They won’t be the only options for Samsung, mind you, with a standard quantum-dot variant for sale in the QLED range, starting at $1499 for 55 inches, but able to reach $3999 for an 85 inch Q60B, $4499 for an 85 inch Q70B, or even 85 inches for $5599 in the Q80B, big 4K TVs without the special backlighting of the “Neo” models.
There will also be standard 4K TVs that skip over the quantum dots entirely, part of Samsung’s “Crystal UHD” line. Over the past few years, we’ve seen these as the RU or TU models, and this year, it’s the BU8000, with an 85 inch model costing $2999 at the highest point, before shedding the dollars through 75, 65, 55, 50, and 43 inch models.
And Samsung is even dabbling in more of its “lifestyle” TVs this year, offering various sizes for its art-inspired “The Frame” up to 85 inches in 2022, several options in the curiously framed “The Serif” TV, the rotating TV in one 43 inch size for “The Sero”, all of which now supporting an anti-glare matte finish. You can also find the pint-sized projector launched by Samsung at CES, the $1299 “The Freestyle”.
“The innovations Samsung brings to its range in 2022 allows Australians to have not just a TV, but a customisable and personalised screen that can be used to showcase and purchase art, experience content, work, play and connect with their favourite people,” said Jeremy Senior, Vice President of Consumer Electronics at Samsung in Australia.
Many of the new TVs will also come with Samsung’s new “Smart Hub” experience, which basically appears to be an update to its Smart TV interface on its 2022 TVs, while also supporting a variety of channels for free streaming with an internet connection on Samsung TV Plus, something pretty much everyone has these days.
There’s also something we’re keen to see in real life called “Smart Calibration”, which sounds a little like Apple’s colour calibrating technology found by using both the Apple TV and iPhone, but using what Samsung says is “a compatible smartphone camera”.
As to whether this means any phone, we’re not sure, but our guess is it’ll start with Samsung Galaxy phones, and then expand to others later.
Beyond this, folks keen on checking out the new screens can expect to quite shortly, with Samsung beating most of the other TV companies to a 2022 TV launch in Australia, with the range heading to stores online and in real life this week.


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Toyota would launch the much-anticipated next-generation Innova MPV in India in 2016. But before coming to India, the next-generation Toyota Innova would have its world premiere in coming one or months. Going by the various spy-shots, the new Innova seems to have grown up a bit and looks bigger. We have managed to gather some vital information regarding the Innova, which we are delighted to share with you all.
It is being learnt that sales of the new Innova would be limited to personal buyers, alebit for a year only. The production of the ongoing model is going to end after three months, thus making way for the new-generation Innova. Significantly, the pricing of new Innova is expected to be a bit higher than the current one as the on-road price of range-topping variant of new Toyota Innova is expected to be around INR 20 lakhs mark. Commercial buyers need not to worry as the Japanese automajor would continue the production of current Innova’s popular GX variant for a year. Apparently, the new-generation MPV would have a fresh interior cabin with a new infotainment system borrowed from the Toyota Hilux Revo.
Just so you know, the new Toyota Innova MPV would be based on an all-new ladder-frame platform, which also does duties to the recently unveiled Hilux Revo and the upcoming next-generation Fortuner. The MPV would be better than before in every aspect, especially the safety features would be exquisite as the MPV would get seven-airbags, ABS with EBD and Brake Assist. Mechanically, it would be powered by Toyota’s new GD range of diesel engines that include a 2.4-litre and a 2.8-litre. They would be manufactured locally at new engine plant in Karnataka. These engines would be linked to six-speed manual as well as automatic transmissions. Toyota Innova is challenged by the likes of Renault Lodgy, Honda Mobilio and Maruti Ertiga.


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Not In Town | @notintownlive | 12 Jul 2017
The move can cause a drop in their tourism, media reports quoted South Korean officials as saying.
With the ban in place, the Korean Tourism Organisation (KTO) has predicted a drop of 27 percent in tourist footfalls, compared to last year, the reports said.
Korea is expected to lose around 4.7 million foreign tourists due to the embargo.
The Chinese travelers alone makes up Korea's 46.8 percent tourist population, which when taken out of the equation, is expected to cause a serious damage to the tourism industry.
"With the current trend, South Korea's tourism industry could enter a long-term depression," a KTO officer told the local Yonhap news agency.
The embargo started after South Korea allowed US to implement the defence system.
The Chinese complained that though the US have implemented the defence system in order to avert threat from North Korea, its powerful radar can penetrate Beijing and meddle with China's security.
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Mumbai, July 29 (NITN): Jet Airways, an airline, on Saturday announced special fares for its services to Amsterdam and Paris for guests travelling to Europe from across its domestic network.
Gurgaon, June 28 (NITN): Airline major Spice Jet on Wednesday announced the Mega Monsoon Sale with one way all inclusive starting fares as low as Rs 699.
New Delhi, June 12 (NITN): Keeping the arrival of Monsoon in India in mind, travel major Cox & Kings has introduced a series of discounted packages in the domestic market.


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‘Just Eat Effect’ has Brits buying more meals online than ever before
The popularity of online food delivery services such as ‘Just Eat’ has Brits turning off their ovens and turning on their internet browsers in record numbers.
According to Worldpay, takeaway only businesses have also seen online sales leap by 22% in the past year, as ordering online becomes the default option for hungry Brits.
The restaurant sector as a whole has added 14% to online sale payments in the past year, with the proliferation of online delivery apps and services making owners add delivery to their dining options. This is not just reserved to the local takeaway either, with industry giants, such as Burger King, going online to take advantage of the ‘Just Eat Effect’.
Dave Hobday, UK Managing Director of Worldpay, said:
“This kind of thing is what the internet was invented for. By making the ordering process, simple, convenient and mobile, online delivery services have had an absolutely transformational effect on the takeaway market.
“Gone are the days of ringing the local takeaway, praying they’ve written down your order, and then scrabbling around for money to pay the delivery driver. Moving ordering and payment online has taken the pain away from ordering food, while making it relatively simple for a restaurant start a delivery service. It’s a win on all sides.”
For more information please contact:
Emily Lahey, Senior Communications Manager, Worldpay. T +44 (0) 203 664 5663
Tom Parker, Golin. T +44 (0) 207 067 0288
About the data
Figures quoted are according to Worldpay transactional data during February 2014 to February 2015. In 2014, Worldpay processed 44% of all UK card transactions (based on market data provided by the UK Payments Administration).
Worldpay is one of the world’s leading independent payment processing companies, with three operating divisions: ecommerce, US and UK.
As the leading payment processor in the UK and Europe, Worldpay helps businesses of all sizes sell more to their customers by accepting credit and debit card payments in-store, online, via mail or telephone, and on the move.
In 2014 we handled 44% of all card payments made in Britain, and processed over 10.7 billion transactions across the world. Our online payment options cater for over 200 payment types in over 120 currencies. www.worldpay.com/uk


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Favorite Recliner Chairs Could Have Health Smarts Too
AI and sensor technologies are powering a growing number of “smart” devices, from voice-enabled speakers and refrigerators with interior cameras to check if low on milk while at the store. In the future, smart beds and chairs may be embedded with sensors that measure biometrics such as weight, blood pressure and heart rate. If in the future, sensor technologies in everyday furniture could automatically conduct health tests simply by using them, how interested would you be in having a smart chair in your home?
Millennial Parents Said
Universally, Millennial parents would be very interested (U.S.: 63%; U.K.: 66%; Brazil: 86%; China: 92%; India: 94%) in having a smart chair in their home that automatically conducts health tests by using it.
Read more about this IEEE Impact Creator
“In 5-10 years, I can envision a future of smart devices that can test an individual’s kidney function or test stool for the presence of blood. It may provide more proactive monitoring and require less visits to labs and hospitals. This would translate into earlier detection of illnesses that could offer life-saving, and cost-effective alternatives.”


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FDA clears Oridion’s pulmonary monitor
- Mass High Tech staff
Oridion Systems Ltd., a Needham medical device firm, has announced that the company’s Capnostream 20 monitor with Integrated Pulmonary Index has received U.S. Food and Drug Administration 510(k) clearance. The system offers a quick assesment of patients’ ventilation and condition monitoring.
The Integrated Pulmonary Index uses an algorithm to pull together real-time data and combine it with four parameters that ultimately rate a patient’s level of pulmonary status.
Researchers noted that the Integrated Pulmonary Index will help “non-expert personnel monitoring patients.”
Oridion specializes in developing the Microstream capnography system to measure breathing quality and reliability in patients. The system can be used in emergency care, home care, operating room, procedural sedation and intensive care units. Suitable patients for Oridion include neonates, pediatric and adults, and intubated and non-intubated patients, according to Oridion’s website.
Oridion works through subsidiaries in the U.S., Europe and Israel.
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BBC journalist Padraig Belton tweeted his surprise Tuesday that he could not buy a computer cord for his laptop at Walmart but could buy “a rifle and ammunition.”
He attached a photo of the “rifle and ammunition” that showed the images of a Red Ryder BB gun and BBs.
There were other air guns in the photo as well, some of which appear to take pellets:
Hi from America. Where Walmart doesn’t have a plug adapter for my UK laptop. But on the other hand, I can buy a rifle and ammunition. pic.twitter.com/5AOl232CZE
— Pádraig Belton (@PadraigBelton) April 26, 2022
Amazon advertises the Red Ryder as a BB gun that shoots BBs at 350 feet per second.
Walmart notes that the Daisy 880, one of the other air rifles in Belton’s photo, shoots a pellet at 800 feet per second.
Sportsmans Warehouse notes that an actual rifle, like the wildly popular .223, shoots at over 3,000 feet per second.
AWR Hawkins is an award-winning Second Amendment columnist for Breitbart News and the writer/curator of Down Range with AWR Hawkins, a weekly newsletter focused on all things Second Amendment, also for Breitbart News. He is the political analyst for Armed American Radio and a Turning Point USA Ambassador. Follow him on Instagram: @awr_hawkins. Reach him at firstname.lastname@example.org. You can sign up to get Down Range at breitbart.com/downrange.


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A man from Tamil Nadu took to Twitter to outrage his anger as he got in touch with the Zomato consumer service because he found a food item missing.Yet one more controversy for the food delivery app Zomato, as it again faces strong criticism on Twitter. A consumer took to the microblogging site to claim the consumer service as the executive of Zomato told him that he ‘should know Hindi’, and this triggered the consumer a lot. Hence “Reject Zomato '' started to trend on Twitter, as soon as the post from that consumer went viral. On seeing this tweet the food delivery app responded and termed the incident as ‘unacceptable.
The name of the customer was Vikash who belonged from Tamil Nadu and took to Twitter and went on to post that he got in touch with the Zomato consumer service as he found that one food item was missing from his given order. After contacting the consumer service, Vikash said that the customer service executive told him that his money won’t be refunded as he didn’t know Hindi.
Vikash even shared the screenshot of the chat and through which the ‘Reject Zomato’ has spread like a wildfire on the trending page of Twitter. This incident was not well for Vikash who further went on to write that, "if Zomato is available in Tamil Nadu, they should have hired people who understand the language." Upon seeing this the executive went on to replay that “for your kind information, Hindi is our national language. So it is very common that everybody should know Hindi a little bit."
Again in the response, Vikash went on to tweet that, “Also take lessons that being an Indian I should know Hindi." and added, `Tagged me a liar as he didn't know Tamil." Looking into this firing incident Zomato thought to calm down the triggered situation, by commenting that this incident was ‘unacceptable 'and went on to sought Vikash’s contact details and address for the addressing of the issue. But even with all this Vikash didn’t seem to be happy and sought a ‘strong clarification’ and ‘public apology’, from the executive of the company who claimed him and accused him as a liar, and went on to ask him to learn Hindi for any baseless reasons.
The association of the Karnataka doctors on Sunday went on for a statewide strike from the 29th of November the reason for the strike being the three-...
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The Dangers of Buying Cosmetics from China: Lack of Regulations and Risk of Dangerous Ingredients
The cosmetics industry has come under scrutiny in recent years for the use of potentially harmful ingredients, and this is particularly true for cosmetics that are manufactured in China. With less regulation and oversight, Chinese factories are able to produce cosmetics at a lower cost, but this also means that the safety of these products cannot be guaranteed.
In China, the cosmetics industry is not as heavily regulated as it is in the United States and European Union. This means that many Chinese factories are able to use ingredients that are banned or restricted in other countries. For example, parabens, which are a type of preservative that has been linked to the development of breast cancer, are banned in the European Union but are still used in Chinese-made cosmetics.
Additionally, Chinese factories are not subject to the same level of oversight as those in the United States and European Union. This means that there is a higher risk of contamination and substandard manufacturing practices in Chinese-made cosmetics.
Another issue is that Chinese cosmetics are often counterfeit, this means that they are not made by the brand they claim to be and could contain ingredients that are not listed on the label and could be harmful.
In contrast, the United States and European Union have stricter regulations in place for the cosmetics industry. In the United States, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) oversees the cosmetics industry, and in the European Union, the European Commission has implemented the Cosmetic Products Regulation. These regulations ensure that cosmetics are safe for use and that manufacturers follow good manufacturing practices.
It's worth noting that not all Chinese cosmetics are dangerous or counterfeit, but consumers should be cautious and do their own research before purchasing cosmetics from China. Additionally, it's always a good idea to check the ingredients list and also look for certifications such as USDA Organic and Non-GMO Project Verified, which indicate that the product has been produced in compliance with strict standards.
In conclusion, while Chinese-made cosmetics may be cheaper, they come with a higher risk of containing dangerous ingredients and also may be counterfeit. Consumers should be aware of these risks and consider purchasing cosmetics that are manufactured in the United States and European Union, where regulations are stricter and oversight is more stringent.


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The positive trend in global sales in the semiconductor market has been slowing down for six consecutive months, which is seen as another sign of a slowdown in the world economy against the backdrop of rising interest rates and negative geopolitical factors.
Semiconductor sales grew by 13.3% in June 2022 compared to June last year, and May's annual growth was 18%, according to the Semi-Industry Association. This is the longest-growing decline since the US and PRC trade wars began in 2018. The three-month rolling average half-conductor sales correlates with the global economy in recent decades, and the last reason for optimism was the decision of the largest producers of Samsung Electronics to consider reducing investment plans.
Semiconductor market growth has been slowed by factors common to all sectors of the economy: the rise of key central bank rates to combat inflation, the Ukrainian events and the Chinese pandemic elbows, all of which have a depressing effect on international trade. For example, South Korea, the world ' s largest producer of memory components, showed a 2.1 per cent increase in chip exports in July and 10.7 per cent in June. Overall, growth has slowed for the fourth consecutive month, and in June, semi-conductor reserves have shown a record increase over the past six years; Taiwan is another major player in the world ' s semi-conductor industry. In June and July, both production and demand fell, with export orders showing the largest decline.
The negative dynamics of the major production sites are inextricably linked to the largest markets: China continues to have elbows; the U.S. GDP falls two quarters in a row, although the National Bureau of Economic Research has consistently not called it a recession; and Europe has been reducing production, clouding prospects both in its region and throughout the world, while the International Monetary Fund argues that the global economy is still showing positive momentum, and the slowdown in the semi-conductor sector is not sufficient evidence of an inevitable recession, although it points to economic problems, which are largely dependent on semi-conductor components in most areas.


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Samsung might have recently been demonstrating technology that allows smartphone makers to completely hide a camera and other sensors under the screen but it is widely expected that impending designs will instead feature physical screen cut-outs to allow for front facing cameras.
The South Korean electronics giant recently took the wraps off an upper mid-range device called the Galaxy A8s in China. As you can see in the pictures above and below, this new smartphone does away with an upper notch or bezel and instead employs a camera lens sized hole to the top left. This screen design is dubbed the 'Infinity-O' display by Samsung.
It is thought that the Galaxy A8s might help Samsung test the waters for upcoming flagship Galaxy S10 smartphones which will use the same screen technology but with the Infinity O holes positioned top right, like this. Will smartphone buyers welcome this screen hole and consider it a better solution than a notch or simply camera lenses in an upper bezel area? We shall have to wait and see.
The Samsung Galaxy A8s is a China only device, for now, and is due to become available there on 21st Dec, but it is still worth checking out its tech specs. I've listed the most important specs below:
- 6.4-inch LCD display, with Full HD+ (1,080 x 2,340-pixel) resolution
- Qualcomm Snapdragon 710 chip
- 6GB/8GB of RAM
- 128GB of storage+ microSD
- 24-megapixel front camera
- Triple rear camera with 24MP(main), 8MP(2x telephoto), and 5MP(depth sensing) components
- 3,400mAh battery
- Rear fingerprint sensor
- USB Type-C fast charging
Here's an OK hands-on video in the absence of anything official from Samsung.
Samsung isn't alone in developing the punch-hole screen notch alternative. Huawei just teased a rival phone with an upper left screen hole for its front facing camera (5mm hole, smaller than Samsung's 6.4mm). The Honor View 20, also known as the V20 was unveiled yesterday in Hong Kong and looks a lot like the Samsung Galaxy A8s. This device isn't just about the screen tech - as it headlines another feature - a rear camera with 48MP and an AI HDR mode. It also employs the 7nm Kirin 980 chip.
The Honor View 20 is expected to be welcomed with a full launch in Beijing on 26th Dec, with a European event to follow in January.


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Since 2015, Epson has been giving up-and-coming designers an opportunity to show clothes made with digital printers at New York Fashion Week. This year was no exception. With the Digital Couture Project, the company is trying to push its line of textile printers as an alternative to handmade and heat-based prints, two of the most traditional fabric-design methods. These SureColor machines, which range from €5.500,- to €20.000,- can print on garments made from cotton, linen, nylon, polyester, silk or wool, letting designers choose from a wide range of materials when working on a collection.
As Epson tells it, the main benefit of this direct-to-print technology is a faster production time. For example, a piece that would have taken weeks to create by hand, or with a heat press, can now be finished in a matter of days. Designers also have more freedom to experiment with their designs, since they’re able to see what a product may look like more quickly than the analogue process allows. That said, most of the 13 fashion design teams Epson brought to New York Fashion Week are just starting their careers, which means they don’t have the resources to have a SureColor printer in their own studio. Instead, they rely on third-party services to make their prints.
Sarah Richards, who designed a collection for the Digital Couture Project, said she has worked with digitally printed fabrics for the past five years. Richards said she prefers this method because of the “unlimited” aspect of it, noting that she can create a line with fewer materials and in less time. Although it may not be the norm across the fashion industry, Richards added that consumers often can’t tell the difference between techniques. If anything, she said, “Digital prints have the tendency to wow people.”
I, for one, was rather impressed by the garments on display at the event — mostly because it’s hard to believe these designs came from machines that look like giant paper printers. The collections all featured different materials and styles, as you’d expect, and there were pieces for both men and women. While some designers went for colourful ensembles made out of silk, others chose more-subtle, cotton-based looks. The fashion crowd in attendance seemed to enjoy what they saw, at least based on how many Instagram and Snapchat stories I saw being posted.
Epson America’s Group Manager of Marketing Strategy, Mark Radogna, said the idea is to give the industry another tool to experiment with. He compared it to 3D printing and laser-cutting, which are now being adopted by iconic designers such as Karl Lagerfeld. “We’ve convinced [photographers] to go away from chemicals in making photos and do it digitally,” Radogna said, “and we’re just starting to do that now in the fashion space.”


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INSIGHT: Japan petrochemical 2023 industry outlook sombre on Asia overcapacity
SINGAPORE (ICIS)–Japan’s petrochemical industry has a tepid outlook for the rest of the year amid continued weakness in China’s demand and the global economic slowdown, which coincides with rapid capacity expansion in Asia.
- Cracker run rates hinge on China demand
- Olefins oversupply to continue near term
- 2022 petrochemical output falls
In the first half of 2023, Japanese crackers “are forced to run at low operating rates”, with expectations that a recovery in China’s demand will occur in the second half, according to a country report by the Japan Petrochemical Industry Association (JPCA) released on 5 June.
The report was prepared for the recently concluded 41st Asia Petrochemical Industry Conference (APIC) 2023 held on 18-19 May in New Delhi.
STRONG CHINA CAPACITY ADDITIONS WORRY
China’s rapid capacity growth in recent years amid poor demand has been shaking up Asian markets. The country is the world’s second-biggest economy and a major importer of petrochemicals.
Its aggressive push toward petrochemical self-sufficiency in recent years has turned it into a net exporter from a net importer of some products such as purified terephthalic acid (PTA) in Q4 2020 and polyvinyl chloride (PVC) in 2021.
With domestic demand in Asia’s biggest economy remaining weak, more of its fresh petrochemical supply will have to find export outlets, augmenting regional supply at a time of poor demand.
China demand for olefins is not expected to recover until the second half of the year on expectations of a wider economic rebound ,JPCA said.
In the week ended 1 June, the northeast Asian ethylene market was being weighed down by expectations of higher regional supplies in the third quarter, and concerns that China’s economic recovery is losing its momentum.
JAPAN PETROCHEMICAL OUTPUT CONTRACTS IN
Japanese crackers “are forced to run at low operating rates” H1 due to continued weakness in regional demand, it said.
In 2022, Japan’s ethylene output declined by 14.2% to a record low of 5.45m tonnes – lower than 2020 levels at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to JPCA’s report.
Twenty petrochemicals mentioned in the report showed output contractions last year compared with 2021, with ethylene glycol (EG) recording the steepest fall of 34%, followed by styrene monomer’s (SM) 21% and acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) resins’ 19% fall, according to industry and government data. Half of them had double-digit declines in output volumes.
At the recently concluded 41st Asia Petrochemical Industry Conference (APIC), JPCA president Keiichi Iwata, who is also the president of Sumitomo Chemical, had said in mid-May that Japanese petrochemical plants have been running at an average rate of about 80% due to weak demand.
In the country report on Japan’s petrochemical industry, JPCA said that two domestic crackers were running at below 90% of capacity since August 2022.
Full-year 2022 production of five major plastics- low density polyethylene (LDPE), high density PE (HDPE), polypropylene (PP), polystyrene (PS) and polyvinyl chloride (PVC) – declined by 10.2% to 6.34m tonnes.
“As global economic growth forecast is very severe and a lot of new crackers startups are being scheduled in the region, olefins oversupply situation will continue in the short term,” JPCA said, adding that cost-competitive ethane-based ethylene cargoes from the US also flow into Asia, forcing Japanese cracker to run at reduced rates.
For 2023, JPCA is projecting flat growth in domestic and export demand for benzene, toluene and xylenes (BTX) due to planned shutdown of major derivative facilities and capacity expansion in other countries.
Japan is a major exporter of aromatics but its overall 2022 BTX production declined by 5% to 9.44m tonnes.
For xylenes, “although global demand for polyester is growing, the situation of excess supply capacity for paraxylene (PX) continues, and the demand growth for the main application, isomerization, is expected to keep at the same level as the previous year”, it said.
For styrene monomer (SM), Japanese producers may adjust output as a global oversupply is expected to continue, while for vinyl chloride monomer (VCM), local output is projected to be unchanged but exports are projected to grow from 2022 due to increased global demand for downstream polyvinyl chloride (PVC).
Japan’s SM exports last year slumped by 44% to 305,000 tonnes, production down 21% at 1.54m tonnes due to delays in post-pandemic recovery and the downturn in key downstream automobile and home appliances sectors, according to JPCA.
Growth in the world’s third-biggest economy is projected to accelerate slightly to 1.3%, according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), after slowing down in 2022 to 1.0% – barely half the pace recorded in the previous year.
In the first three months of 2023, however, the Japanese economy posted a surprisingly strong growth of 2.7%, revised up from the initial estimate of 1.6%, official data showed on Thursday.
The outlook for the rest of the year, however, remains largely uncertain, with exports to take hits amid the global economic slowdown due to high inflation and interest rates.
Insight article by Pearl Bantillo
With contributions from Jonathan Chou and Samuel Wong
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Tourism Management expert, Mr Habila Kayit, has called for a review of tourism policies in line with global practices to enable the industry thrive.
Kayit, who is Tourism Officer, Abuja Film Village International, made the call in an interview with journalists on Thursday in Abuja.
He spoke on ways to promote the nation’s tourism potentials in line with government goals to diversify the economy.
According to the tourism expert, reviewing the existing policies will increase local and international investment, as well as enable the sector to thrive better in a conducive environment.
“For the tourism industry to function optimally, tourism policies need to be reviewed to be able to accommodate some of the global trends and development in the industry.
“The tourism master plan which was developed in 2006 could not address as well as give a clear direction for practitioners.
“ The government needs to boost investor’s confidence by enacting laws that will be investment friendly,’’ he said.
Kayit stressed the role the tourism industry played in job creation, business opportunities as well as diversifying the nation’s revenue source for both investors and the government.
“Tourism is acknowledged as one of the world’s largest and fastest growing industry today. It is also recognised as the major employer of labour worldwide.’’
He urged both private investors and the government to contribute towards promoting the industry as a catalyst for national development.
“The importance of tourism to the national development has been down-played over the years.
“The agencies saddled with the responsibility of marketing and promoting tourism activities should embark on creative marketing campaign.
“Documentaries on the country’s tourism potentials should be made and the main stream, social media, leaflets, pamphlets and other media should used to showcase the industry’s potential.
“These should be made available at strategic places such as airports, embassies, international events among other places.
“The government has to increase its budgetary provision for the tourism industry. Training of tourism practitioners is also a key in raising awareness of the industry.
“There is need for comparative analysis on how other countries’ economies are being sustained using tourism.
“Statistics on the activities of the tourism industry should be used to help take home the importance of the industry to the nation’s economy,’’ the tourism expert stressed.


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"The gaming industry's biggest growth opportunity comes from the cloud"
The remarks, made by Global X CEO Luis Berruga, were made at Calcalist and Google’s gaming conference
"We are in the middle of a transformation in the gaming industry, and we expect to see more people playing video games as well as spending more time playing in the coming years," said Luis Berruga, CEO of Global X, in a conversation with Meir Orbach at the Calcalist and Google gaming conference, ‘Changing the rules of the game: where the gaming industry is heading’.
Whereas people used to play video games at home, alone or with a handful of friends, today’s gaming possibilities are practically endless. Gamers can connect with millions of people wherever they are and play hours of entertainment online. "It creates a very strong incentive for players to connect with people who are very far away from them physically and make meaningful connections in terms of video games," he added.
For gaming today, it’s not just location, location, location. Berruga also stressed just how much choice young gamers have today, versus the limited options that millennials or even GenX had in the 1990s. "When I was a child, my dad would buy me a number of video games a year, and I would have to play the same games all year. Today thanks to streaming and gaming networks, people have access to updates and new real-time content they can purchase from the games, things that just didn't exist before," he said.
According to Berruga, the biggest growth potential in the gaming industry lies in the cloud. "Cloud gaming means that the games originate from a remote server and reach users' TVs, computers, and smartphones via high-speed internet connection. It will be very similar to what we saw happen with Netflix and how the company changed the distribution model of movies and TV shows around the world."
“We think the business model is going to evolve so that gamers will pay a monthly subscription fee and get access to a huge library of video games in the cloud,” he continued. “They will be able to do this and receive real-time updates, new content, and new features, allowing gaming companies more ways to reach out and connect with customers for much longer periods of time than before. You can see that the big technology players have already entered the field between them: Microsoft which launched Xcloud, or Google with Stadia. The companies are already positioning themselves for the new wave in the gaming and e-sports industry that will follow."
The coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic and various lockdown measures imposed in its wake have had, unsurprisingly, very positive effects on the gaming industry. "We have seen a significant increase in the number of people playing video games because they need to socialize with other people when they are in their homes. We see past players returning to play video games, along with people who are used to playing more video games and new players who have never played video games in the past. For example, Twitch, the largest video game streaming platform in the U.S., had about 1.3 million users before Covid-19, and that number has jumped to 2.5 million. Even in the context of reopening the economy, we still see this number stable around 2 million users. So it's pretty amazing how the industry has managed to retain a significant number of those customers who started using video games in the context of Covid-19. We are therefore optimistic that the growing trend of video games and e-sports will continue far beyond the pandemic,” he said.
Regarding the e-sport community generally, Berruga estimates that the number of gamers, which was 400 million last year, will increase to 600 million by 2022. "You can see how colleges in the United States for the first time in decades are offering scholarships to students who are active in the field of gaming and e-sports," he said.
You can watch the entire exchange in the video above.


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Apple’s future revenue will be significantly higher as its advertising and wearable businesses grow.
Going forward, we expect Apple’s future revenue to rise significantly as the advertising and wearable businesses grow.
In addition, AAPL is rumored to launch an AR/VR headset in 2023, and the company may seek to dominate the emerging gaming and Metaverse market. AAPL’s previous electronics products have beaten other competitors such as Sony’s Walkman, Nokia, Blackberry and Pebble.
With the rollout of a new privacy update, Apple (AAPL) sent a warning of war to Meta Platforms (FB), one of the leading online media companies besides Alphabet (GOOGL). In fiscal 2021, Meta reported $114.93B in ad revenue, while GOOG reported $209.4B in ad revenue for the same period.
On the other hand, without a formal breakdown, Bernstein estimates AAPL’s ad revenue to be around $3B in fiscal 2021.
Assuming AAPL catches up in the global advertising market, its TAM is huge. Meta reports that the U.S. and Canada regions have a similar revenue market share of 47.1%, with iPhone users having the largest share at 46.9%. Likewise, GOOG reports that 46% of its revenue in 2021 will come from the United States.
Given that the mobile advertising market is expected to grow to $782.1B in 2028 at a CAGR of 34.8%, we expect Meta to lose significant advertising revenue as AAPL aggressively expands its advertising business.
Assuming the rumors are true, AAPL will also enter the AR/VR market by 2023 at the latest.
In 2007, AAPL launched its first smartphone, the iPhone, breaking the dominance of Nokia and BlackBerry in the mobile phone industry. Additionally, the company released the Apple Watch in 2014, combining fitness tracking with call and text capabilities, making it the “explosion star of wearables.”
Assuming a similar impact, FB’s Metaverse strategy will encounter certain challenges moving forward.
As of December 2021, a whopping 46% of the 86% of iOS devices running the latest software update have opted out of App Tracking Transparency.
While other companies like Snap and Meta first developed their own technology to drive their advertising strategies within their own apps, the latest system privacy settings make ads less effective at reaching potential customers.
Instead of tracking individual users, the new restrictions appear to target groups with similar patterns/interests whose information is anonymized and aggregated for privacy reasons.
The new targeted ads have seen many marketers see their revenue drop by as much as 40%, and Meta reported on its FQ1’22 earnings call that it faces a $10 billion headwind in future ad revenue.
This resulted in a significant reduction in the value of Meta’s shares, from $323 on February 2, 2022 to $206.16 on February 18, 2022.
AAPL Service-Based Revenue
Although ostensibly ethical, consensus estimates there are clear economic motives behind AAPL’s latest privacy update: AAPL’s “advertising, AppleCare, cloud, digital content, payments, and other services” hidden in its services revenue segment.
While not breaking out the individual components in its financial results, Bernstein estimates that AAPL generated about $3 billion in ad revenue in fiscal 2021. This is a huge increase from the estimated $300 million in fiscal 2017.
“I think Apple has been able to take the moral high ground and claim they’re focused on user privacy,” said Brian Bowman, CEO of Consumer Acquisition. “But in reality, they do market their services to Facebook and Google. I see what they’re doing. It’s an attempt to take back control.”
AAPL relies on SKAdNetwork for targeted advertising, which is touted to be more private than the personalized ads used by many other apps.
Additionally, AAPL has Apple Search Ads, which allow app developers to pay to rank high in searches on the Apple App Store.
AAPL’s ads now account for 58% of all iPhone app downloads in fiscal 2021, more than triple the market share of 17% in fiscal 2020 after the most recent privacy update.
Shani Rosenfelder, head of content at AppsFlyer, said: “We’ve really seen a huge increase in Apple’s search ad market share. They’ve become the new No. 1 player, and they’ve surpassed Facebook, which used to dominate iOS.”
According to consensus estimates, AAPL could generate up to $5 billion in revenue from in-app advertising revenue in fiscal 2022, a 66% year-over-year increase, and up to $20 billion in 2024, a CAGR of 60.69%.
Additionally, the mobile advertising market is expected to grow from $96.4B in 2021 to $782.1B in 2028, a CAGR of 34.8%.Therefore, with future advertising revenue growth, AAPL will gain more market share at the expense of Meta’s growth.
02Record revenue, AAPL expands AR/VR field
According to rumors, AAPL plans to launch VR/AR headsets in late 2022 or 2023, with mass production planned for August 2022.
This is not surprising given that AAPL has aggressively acquired several AR/VR technologies over the past decade: Spaces and NextVR in 2020, for example.
AAPL has been silently building its library of related technologies while waiting for the right moment. With the launch of the Metaverse concept in September 2021 and the launch of multiple forms of VR equipment, Apple and game fans alike will be highly anticipating the groundbreaking release of AAPL.
Given that AAPL has successively launched several hit products with its disruptive technology over the years, we expect AAPL’s AR/VR equipment to be very popular, driving its revenue forward. The company’s past products have had a significant impact on related industries, such as:
The iPod eliminated Sony’s Discman and Walkman in 2001.
The iPhone in 2007 killed Nokia’s dominance in the mobile phone market.
The 2008 MacBook Air pioneered thinner, lighter laptops.
The 2010 iPad sold more than 19 million units in the first 12 months.
The Apple Watch in 2015 surpassed Rolex in unit sales by 2017 and the entire Swiss watch industry by 2018.
The 2021 iPhone 13 accounts for a large portion of AAPL’s $71.6B in Q1’22 revenue.
It is clear that AAPL is the market leader in smart technology products given its revolutionary software and design. With consumers’ persistent demand for its new product launches, it’s no surprise that its AR/VR headset product launches.
In turn, it will compete directly with Meta’s Oculus Quest 2 and the future Project Cambria, which is also due in 2022.Although representing a small fraction of Meta’s revenue stream in fiscal 2021, less than 3%, the ultimate success of its Metaverse project depends on the adoption rate of its VR hardware.
Therefore, given AAPL’s excellent track record, investors should focus on Meta’s future growth as it bets heavily on the Metaverse concept.
By the end of 2021, FB has sold about 10 million Oculus Quest 2 units and Sony has sold 6 million PlayStation VR units.
Despite being slower to use compared to other smart devices, we’ve noticed a rapid uptick in adoption of the technology during the pandemic as remote work becomes the norm.
The AR and VR headsets, software and services market reached $12 billion in 2020, a 50% increase from 2019 levels. In addition, the global AR/VR combined market is expected to grow to 200 billion by 2027, with a compound annual growth rate of 68.5%. Therefore, we expect AAPL to generate significant revenue from its wearables, home and accessories segment once AR/VR demand picks up.
Over the past five years, Apple’s revenue has grown significantly at a compound annual growth rate of 11.9%.
Its revenue grew to 365.81B in fiscal 2021, up 33.2% year over year and up 40.6% from fiscal 2019. In addition, the company’s net profit increased by 64.9% YoY and 71.3% YoY in FY2019.
Despite global supply chain issues and chip shortages, AAPL reported record FQ1’22 revenue of $123.94B, an impressive 48.6% sequential growth and 11.2% YoY growth.
Additionally, the company reported a 9% year-over-year increase in its active installed base of equipment, from 1.65B in FQ1’21 to 1.8B in FQ1’22.
AAPL Income and Net Income
AAPL Income Comparison by Category
Its iPhones accounted for the largest share of its revenue at $71.6B in 1QFY22 at 57.5%, mainly due to strong demand for the iPhone 13. Additionally, the company reported 18.4% and 67% quarter-over-quarter growth for its Macs, respectively.Wearables, home and accessories sales in Q1’22. On top of that, its services (including advertising) revenue was $19.5B, up 6.5% sequentially and up 23.4% year over year.
Although it previously lost $6 billion in sales in FQ4’21 due to global supply chain issues.
Other industries, such as Apple’s auto and medical device makers, are facing challenges meeting demand and are experiencing massive delays and losses.
So, despite the multiple headwinds the industry faces, we can get a clear picture of how its global business is doing. Going forward, we expect AAPL to continue its outperformance, which in turn will boost its stock’s long-term performance.
03 Apple and Google each punch, FB ushered in the challenge
Since 2016, Meta’s revenue has grown at a CAGR of 33.67%.
In fiscal 2021, the company reported revenue of $117.92B, an increase of 37.18% year over year and a 66.8% increase from fiscal 2019.
Notably, Meta’s $114.93B in ad revenue accounted for the largest share of its sales in fiscal 2021 at 97.4%.
With the company highlighting $10B worth of headwinds in fiscal 2022 due to policy changes on iOS, it’s no surprise that investors are troubled. Additionally, we also expect Meta’s earnings to suffer significantly going forward, given its fiscal 2021 gross margin of 80.8%.
Given that Android smartphone users account for 69.74% of global mobile phone users, its impact on Meta will be worse than on iOS.
Despite GOOG’s commitment to a more “long-term, collaborative approach to privacy-preserving personalized advertising” over the next two years, its headwinds for Meta have finally come, with Meta shares falling another 2% following the GOOG announcement.
In addition to the $10B headwind, Meta’s sequential growth in household daily active persons (DAP) is slowing from 1.8% in FQ3’21 to 0.3% in FQ4’21.
Additionally, the company has invested $10B in its Metaverse strategy, which is a staggering amount considering that both Meta’s top and bottom lines will decline in the future.
The CEO himself estimates that there are still five to ten years before the vision of the Metaverse is realized. As such, we might expect continued spending spree from Meta’s Reality Labs division, which could further negatively impact investor sentiment, as Metaverse has yet to generate significant revenue for the company in the years ahead.
Reality Labs generated just $2.2B in revenue in fiscal 2021, compared with $114.9B in advertising revenue. Combined with fierce competition from ByteDance’s TikTok, Meta may have to admit that its days as an advertising giant are over.
Until its Metaverse is ready and widely adopted, some describe it as a “dystopian world.”
04 Expected to both grow, waiting for a retracement
AAPL and Meta projected revenue
AAPL’s revenue is expected to grow at a CAGR of 5.39% over the next three years, while Meta will report a CAGR of 13.83% over the same period.
These numbers point to a marked slowdown in revenue growth for both companies going forward. Nonetheless, for fiscal 2022, consensus estimates AAPL and Meta will report revenue of $395.15B and $132.63B, representing year-over-year growth of 8% and 12.4%, respectively.
Therefore, both companies are still expected to report favorable growth going forward.
AAPL currently trades at 6.57x EV/NTM Revenue, higher than its 3-year average of 5.17x. Given its recent performance in FQ1’22, AAPL is now clearly overstated.
Nonetheless, we expect Apple to continue its strong business and stock performance, given the multiple tailwinds to the company’s growth.
Therefore, aggressive investors may still buy AAPL given its ability to overcome global supply chain issues and strong demand cycles. But we encourage other investors to wait and see if there is a pullback.
Meta, on the other hand, trades at 3.98x, below its 3-year average of 6.91x.
Despite the low valuation, we don’t think this is a good entry point for Meta. Given the recent GOOG announcement, we expect Meta to pull back further in the future.
There is no doubt that Meta is a solid stock, however, given the recent market reaction, we encourage interested investors to be patient before adding Meta to their portfolio.
Therefore, we currently only rate AAPL a Buy and Meta stock a Hold.
Posted by:CoinYuppie，Reprinted with attribution to:https://coinyuppie.com/apple-and-google-mixed-doubles-can-meta-all-in-metaverse-survive-jedi/ Coinyuppie is an open information publishing platform, all information provided is not related to the views and positions of coinyuppie, and does not constitute any investment and financial advice. Users are expected to carefully screen and prevent risks.


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After years of fumbling over how to regulate labels on clothing and other non-food consumer products, the European Union is stepping toward a more harmonized system. On Feb. 13, the European Commission,...
February 22, 2013
The European Union's Labeling Quandary
The European Commission, Europe’s executive branch, proposed a package of new rules aimed at improving market transparency.
Ads by Google


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Windows 8 "Hybrid" Boot Promises Drastically Faster "Cold" Boots
September 9, 2011 4:40 PM
Windows 7 metrics show most power transitions are cold boots (green) with power-consuming sleeps (blue) in second place. A few people use hibernate (fuschia) as an alternative to sleep, but this uses a great deal of storage.
Boot Times on Windows 8 (dark blue) are across the board faster than boot times in Windows 7 (light blue), with the difference esp. noticeable in Windows 7 "worst case" scenarios.
Emily Wilson, program manager of the Windows 8 Kernel Group shows fast-booting Windows 8.
New tech caches the kernel and device drivers only, allowing much faster boots w/out much storage
Microsoft Corp. (
) has come up with a pretty slick solution for
, its upcoming operating system, which is set to
launch in late 2012
. The company realized that many Windows 7 customers (45 percent on the laptop, 57 percent on the desktop) prefer to do a full shutdown between each use. But wakeup times from full shutdown in Windows have traditional slow.
A small percentage of people hibernate their machines, which promises faster startup speeds, but requires storage space equivalent to the footprint in memory of your running applications (often 4 GB).
So what Microsoft devised was a hybrid method faster startups -- this time only storing information from the system kernel and the device drivers. The result is a much faster boot that still provides the power savings of cold boots and hibernation, but without the large amount of storage (often 4 GB or more) needed to store a complete image of all running programs. Microsoft estimates the average cold boot will be 30 to 70 percent faster using the technology.
Microsoft describes the steps to the shutdown side of this process in a
The user initiates a shutdown by selecting “shut down” from the Start menu, or by pressing the power button; or an application initiates shutdown by calling an API such as ExitWindowsEx() or InitiateShutdown().
Windows broadcasts messages to running applications, giving them a chance to save data and settings. Applications can also request a little extra time to finish what they’re doing.
Windows closes the user sessions for each logged on user.
Windows sends messages to services notifying them that a shutdown has begun, and subsequently shuts them down. It shuts down ordered services that have a dependency serially, and the rest in parallel. If a service doesn’t respond, it is shut down forcefully.
Windows broadcasts messages to devices, signaling them to shut down.
Windows closes the system session (also known as “session 0”).
Windows flushes any pending data to the system drive to ensure it is saved completely.
Windows sends a signal via the ACPI interface to the system to power down the PC.
The hybrid boot system pairs with
the Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI)
-- Microsoft's new replacement to the aged BIOS system -- for ultra-fast boot times, even from near-full sleeps.
Don't like the hybrid boot and want to do a traditional cold boot? Microsoft has made this easy enough for power users. They can do a traditional cold boot by typing "shutdown /full" from the command line. This allows drivers installers and other programs that require a complete cold boot to still work properly.
Microsoft has a video of the tech in action
. The company promises demos at its upcoming
in Anaheim, Calif., which begins on Sept. 13 and runs parallel to Intel Corp.'s (
Intel Developer Forum
(IDF) in San Francisco, Calif.
Last month Microsoft showed off
improved file management
in a similar video. Earlier shots off
the new ribbon-based Windows Explorer
leaked via iconic Windows bloggers Paul Thurrott and Rafael Rivera
"This is about the Internet. Everything on the Internet is encrypted. This is not a BlackBerry-only issue. If they can't deal with the Internet, they should shut it off." -- RIM co-CEO Michael Lazaridis
Microsoft Makes File Management Less Painful in Windows 8
August 25, 2011, 7:12 PM
Ballmer: Windows 8 Will Land in 2012, Pop up in Tablets
May 24, 2011, 2:49 PM
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April 5, 2011, 12:03 PM
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CHICAGO (MarketWatch) – Among the stocks that could see active trade in the Monday session are Alcoa, PriceSmart and WD-40.
is slated to report second-quarter earnings after the close and is expected to earn 5 cents a share on revenue of $5.83 billion according to the average estimate of analysts polled by FactSet.
And analysts have pegged WD-40’s
fiscal third quarter profit at 61 cents a share with sales of $91.6 million.
is also up and should earn 60 cents a share on sales of $510.7 million if Wall Street’s best guess is on the mark. Same-store sales are seen rising 13.7%.
Late Friday, FTI Consulting
said that it would lay off 3% of its employees and consolidate office space, leading to a $28 million pretax charge in the second quarter.
Also after the Friday close, Yahoo
announced that they have entered into pacts that will “launch a new advertising partnership, extend and expand distribution arrangements, and settle all pending patent claims between the companies. “
Electronics retailer Best Buy
late Friday said it was cutting 2,400 jobs as part of a cost-cutting plan announced in the spring as it seeks to compete more strongly against online foes. Six hundred of the layoffs will come from the company’s Geek Squad technicians.


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Michigan State Football Coach Mel Tucker becomes the first major conference football coach to be featured in a NFT campaign.
The new series of limited edition NFTs (non-fungible tokens) enable fans to buy physical and virtual assets as well as gated access for experiences. The products are offered through a partnership between coach Tucker, NFT marketing agency Lambert Global, and fan and loyalty platform TiiCKER.
The new series, labeled “NFTuck” is now available. The NFTs are available in limited quantities on the Rarible NFT exchange.
In addition to the NFTs themselves, NFTuck collectors will get exclusive perks such as access to Coach Tucker (@Coach_mtucker) in-season via private video/chat channels exclusive only to NFT holders and on-field access to practice during the 2022 season. One hundred percent of the profits from sales of NFTuck will be donated to the Boys and Girls Club of Southeastern Michigan for their Tackle Football and Cheer leagues.
In a released statement from Lambert, Coach Tucker says “We’re training our student athletes to see the next play before it happens, on the field and in life, and winning in the virtual world is what’s next.”
Coach Tucker joined the Spartans as head coach in 2020. Last year he led the team to a Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl victory and top-10 ranking nationally. He was also named the Big Ten Coach of the Year by both the coaches and media, and the AFCA Region 3 Coach of the Year.


text: HomeBlockchainJPM Coin debut marks start of blockchain’s value-driven adoption cycle JPM Coin debut marks start of blockchain’s value-driven adoption cycle By Crypto News Pipe October 30, 2020 Blockchain 0 Comments Despite its centralized design, JPM Coin’s real life utilization represents a step toward the mainstream adoption of blockchain technology. Source: JPM Coin debut marks start of blockchain’s value-driven adoption cycle Tags:Blockchain Related Posts Russian crypto lobby group appeals to finance ministry to soften legislation Former China Central Bank Exec Pushes for Digital Currencies Antigua's Crypto Regulation Bill Passes Lower Parliament About Author Crypto News Pipe Crypto News Pipe is a cryptocurrency news aggregator service. It presents a continuous flow of articles organized from thousands of publishers and magazines. Add a Comment Cancel replyYour email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *Comment:*Name:* Email Address:* Website: Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.


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Google is working on a new version of its Chromecast HDMI video streaming dongle. According to rumors, posted by the usually reliable 9to5Google, the tech giant is working on adding streaming audio to speakers with the device. The current Chromecast is a small, relative cheap HDMI dongle that makes it easy to stream video and audio to TVs.
The new Chromecast allegedly not only works with a TV but also directly with speakers. This means the Chromecast becomes competitive to similar devices like Apple’s Airport Express.
Chromecast Audio should be able to stream to multiple rooms, mirror sound from Chrome or an Android device and should provide high quality output. The new dongle should also work together with streaming audio service Spotify.
The Chromecast dongle should also become available in a new form factor and in three different colors. Google also upgraded the Wifi speed of the device, if the report is correct.
It’s expected that the device will be officially revealed on a Google event on the 29th of September, together with a new Nexus 5 and 6.


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Coca-Cola has been a sponsor of the FIFA World Cup since 1978 and this year took the official trophy on a global tour, letting fans interact with the tournament in a new way. The theme of interaction with the sport and tournament is one that many companies—official sponsors or not—are using to leverage the 2010 World Cup in their marketing plans.
“We've been there for a long time and are part of those emotions,” says Gorki De Los Santos, communications manager for Coca-Cola. “We said, 'Let's take this property we have, the FIFA World Cup, and not only focus on the Hispanic consumers, which we know love soccer, but let's focus on everyone.'"
The company, in addition to its global tour, also has a video campaign, which encourages fans to submit a video showing how they would celebrate if they scored a goal for their favorite team. Other marketing elements include advertising, limited-edition packaging, and an international soccer camp for teens.
McDonald's, the official restaurant of the World Cup, is doing in-restaurant activations, digital outreach, and even a Player Escort program where kids get to go on the field with players at the games.
Bridget Coffing, VP of global communications for McDonald's, says this year's World Cup is "probably the most comprehensive activation" the company has done.
"As we looked at the sponsorship, it certainly spans cultures," she says. "We really do not have a singular target audience. It's just World Cup and soccer fans, which are so diverse." The company is using digital outreach, including a Fantasy Football (soccer) game and an online Ultimate FIFA World Cup Fan photo contest, to reach teens and young adults specifically.
But while Coca-Cola and McDonald's are official sponsors, other brands are using more local events or specific Hispanic programming to leverage their participation.
Time Warner Cable, for example, did both, hosting a local event in Los Angeles to promote its Spanish-language coverage of the World Cup, through Univision and a new Lo Mejor On Demand channel. The event included setups of living rooms showing the games, concerts, and areas where attendees could be tested on their soccer skills.
Marisol Martinez de Rodriguez, director of multicultural marketing for Time Warner, says the company is trying to bring the excitement of the tournament to life.
"We are trying to be more relevant to the Hispanic customers, to bring sports that they are passionate about," she says.
Edelman Multicultural worked with Time Warner on its Lo Mejor on Demand program, and SVP Audrey Ponzio said the key to World Cup marketing is to stand out in the crowd.
"The World Cup, for Latinos, is going to be one of the biggest television drivers, so it makes complete sense [for Time Warner] to go with this," she adds
Clay Smith, SVP at sports marketing agency Octagon, oversees all of the activation for the agency around the World Cup and says the increasing globalization of soccer helps brands get the most out of their participation.
"Like anything, it comes down to how you leverage it," he says. "The World Cup represents the scope and breadth; its reach is pretty much incomparable."
That reach is one reason why Tecate wanted to get involved somehow with the World Cup this year, says Michael Olguin, president of Formula PR, whose Formulatin division is AOR for the Mexican beer brand.
Tecate isn't an official sponsor of the World Cup, but "we looked at it upside down, celebrating the Mexican soccer fan," Olguin says.
The campaign encourages fans to call into the popular radio show Piolin por la Manana or go online to submit their stories of the craziest thing they have ever done to see a game or support their team, and how it shows their character.
"We are very oriented to our strategy, all about character," says Felix Palau, VP of marketing for Tecate and Tecate Light. "It allows us to go through many platforms." Additionally, Tecate is working with several current and former Mexican National players for appearances and limited-edition packaging.
Olguin summed up the goal for Tecate, and other brands turning to the World Cup in the next month, saying "our whole strategy was to really leverage the awareness that will exist with soccer."


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– Membersheep hits 3M USD in April’s sales in China a have monthly growth of 170 percent.
– Rapid growth in cross-border field on the strength of increased consumption in China
(2017.05.15) Membersheep(Jinseong Kim, the CEO, www.membersheep.net) which provides foreign brands B2B supplying services in China, said that the company hit 3M USD sales in April 2017, in the field of cross-border e-commerce in China and is growing at the rate of 170% monthly on May 15.
Membersheep supports stable sales of brands’ manufacturers and distributors in the U.S. and Europe in China by signing supply contracts with them and also supports merchandising companies in China in terms of letting them purchase foreign brand goods safely. Membersheep created a structure in which Chinese merchandising companies can purchase goods in the overseas market in relief by supporting payment processing, logistics, and even customs. Not only Alibaba(Alibaba.com), the country’s largest distributor, but also Netease(Netease.com), China’s fifth-largest IT company and Jumei(Jumei.com), the largest cosmetics company in China are all making purchases from Membersheep.
Jinseong Kim, the CEO of Membersheep, explained the driving force behind the company’s sustained growth, saying that “Our company has been able to extract full performance of its skills which it had honed in cross-border e-commerce market of China based on two years of preparatory period, credibility it built up through seeking out buyers in China, and knowledge and hands-on experiences acquired by proceeding foreign intermediate trade and distribution in China directly.”
Membersheep is providing its service with offices in China, Hong Kong, and Korea, surpassing three billion won in sales in April 2017 in the field of cross-border e-commerce in China and is growing at the rate of 170 percent monthly on May 15. Given that the cross-border e-commerce market in China has been less than two years, and that more and more Chinese consumers are seeking out foreign imported goods, showing higher expectations and standards, there is much attention towards potential achievements of Membersheep’s challenge.


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We’re already a quarter of the way through 2018, and search engine and social media giants are pushing boundaries in the name of improving user experience. From shoppable social media posts to drastically condensed search results, here’s the biggest marketing news from digital and SEO in March.
Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg announces security changes in light of Cambridge Analytica scandal
Facebook’s association with data mining company Cambridge Analytica has made global headlines this month, as it’s been suggested that data gathered through the platform may have been used to influence elections. The news has once again thrown into question just how secure our online data really is.
In light of the scandal, Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg this month announced plans to strengthen security and reduce the likelihood of third-party apps being able to access personal data. Key changes include a thorough investigation of both new and existing apps that use the platform, as well as further restrictions on the amount of data developers are able to access.
“We have a responsibility to protect your data, and if we can’t then we don’t deserve to serve you”, explained Zuckerberg in a statement posted on the platform this month. Despite this, many have continued to call for a boycott of the social networking site, with ‘#DeleteFacebook’ trending on Twitter throughout the latter half of March.
Google introduces mobile-first indexing to a growing number of sites
As promised, Google’s revised mobile-first algorithm was rolled out to more sites this month, with affected developers and site owners notified of the change via Search Console. Sites that “follow the best practices for mobile-first indexing” are the first to be switched, according to a blog post from Google Software Engineer Fan Zhang. The change follows a long period of testing, as the search engine prioritises mobile users, which currently contribute to the majority of traffic on the platform.
Sites that are affected will begin to see the mobile version of each web page being used for ranking and indexing. Even so, Google is keen to reiterate that mobile-friendliness is just one of a range of ranking factors. Sites that offer users a seamless mobile experience have long been favoured by search engines, yet desktop pages still have the capacity to rank well if they’re filled with useful, relevant information. Check out our guide to mobile optimisation for handy tips when preparing for the full roll-out.
Instagram rolls out shoppable organic posts
Facebook-owned social sharing app, Instagram, this month announced it was bringing its shoppable post feature to the UK. Shoppable posts have been available in the US since 2017 and were this month rolled out to Brazil, Canada, Italy and Spain, among others.
A blog post from Instagram’s Business Team describes the feature as “a visual shopfront [for users] to explore new products from businesses they follow”. The feature is expected to have a positive impact on businesses that use the app as part of their digital marketing strategy. “Tagging a product is as simple as tagging a person in a post. And for shoppers, a shopping post’s tags get rid of the guesswork and allow for easy access to a tagged product’s information”.
This focus on providing users with a seamless e-commerce experience is crucial to Instagram’s growth. US beauty retailer TYME have reported a 44% increase in traffic from the platform since implementing shoppable posts into their feed. And with an estimated 2 million Instagram accounts visiting one or more business profile every day, it’s likely that UK brands will be just as keen to get in on the action.
Google experiments with removing organic search results
Google ran a week-long test this month that saw zero search results being implemented for calculation, conversion and time-related queries. Instead, users were presented with a single answer and the option to ‘Show all results’, without those organic blue search result links we’ve become so accustomed to seeing on the site.
Following a rush of intrigue from users, Google’s Danny Sullivan confirmed the test on Twitter, posting “For calculator, unit converter & local time, we’re experimenting with a condensed view to further speed up load time. People who search for these tools rarely use full search results, but the results will remain available for those who want them via the ‘Show all results’ button”.
The experiment didn’t last long, however, with Google pulling the zero results pages a week after they were rolled out. Citing a need to develop the feature further before rolling it out in full, it’s expected that it won’t be the last we hear of Google dropping organic results from specific pages.
For more information on any of the stories discussed, or to discover how Ad-Rank can help your business to stay ahead of the latest trends in search and content, get in touch today.


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Olymel says it has “made the difficult decision” to reduce its hog operations in Western Canada due to continued financial losses and uncertainty in pork markets.
Approximately 80 employees at five sow facilities in Alberta (Smoky Sow/Dev, Pinnacle 1, Pinnacle 2, Dynacrest 1 and Dynacrest 2) and one farm in Saskatchewan (Kelsey) have been given layoff notices. The barns will be closed over the next few months, and remain shuttered until market conditions improve, the company says.
The decision will reduce the Quebec-based company’s sow herd in Western Canada from 57,000 to around 40,000 sows. As a result, the number of market hogs from company-owned farms headed to Olymel’s slaughter plant in Red Deer, Alta. is expected to decline by 200,000 starting in 2024.
“Over the past two years it is well documented that Olymel has experienced significant losses in the processing of fresh pork as a result of limited market access globally. Now coupled with stubbornly high feed costs resulting in unprecedented losses in the hog sector we have little choice but to retract and position ourselves for success in the future when conditions improve,” says Olymel CEO Yanick Gervais, in a May 26 statement. “I am confident that the changes being implemented in Olymel’s Western Canadian integrated hog sector will provide the foundation for ensuring that success.”
Olymel is also in the process of closing its pork processing plant in Vallée-Jonction, Quebec, which employed around 1,000 staff.
Pork sector faces harsh realities for 2023
Pork Council looking for solutions following Olymel closure
Canadian pork industry challenged with plant closures
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