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Games business focus to save Sony
Sony has outlined its plans to turn their business around after projecting a record 6.4 billion USD loss for the 2011 financial year.
With Kaz Hirai taking over as CEO from Howard Stringer Sony is shifting their focus onto the entertainment facets of the business with a new strategy that relies heavily on the success of the PS3, PS Vita alongside Sony Entertainment Network across all devices and providing richer experiences for Sony tablet and VAIO devices.
This new initiative dubbed 'One Sony' will also mean that Sony will focus on improving their online services, boosting the number of downloadable Vita and PS3 titles available on PlayStation Store and improving the effectiveness of subscription services on SEN.
Sadly, as part of their streamlining processes in response to the record losses Sony is believed to be preparing to shed 10,000 jobs world wide.
- Harmonix announces A City Sleeps, their new music-driven shooter
- Shadow Of Mordor trailer introduces the unique orc character, Ratbag
- Saints Row IV coming to next-gen consoles
- Saints Row: Gat Out Of Hell is a new standalone expansion
- First details of Telltale's Game Of Thrones series arrive
- SEGA unveils the new definitive Total War: Rome II – Emperor Edition
- Prison Architect alpha build 24 arrives
- Bayonetta 2 gets a final release date
- Deep Down now delayed until 2015


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Jamshedpur: When Mr Lalu Prasad, as Union Minister for Railways introduced the earthen teacup or kulhar or chooka on Rajdhani trains, several people scoffed. Now, you may soon be drinking tea out of chookas in your college canteen!
Acting on an advisory of the Union ministry of environment, forest and climate change, the University Grants Commission (UGC) has directed all universities and higher education institutions across the country to ban the use of disposable plastic containers on campuses.
The initiative has been inspired by the theme of this year’s World Environment Day, ‘Beat Plastic Pollution’.
College authorities have been requested not to encourage the use of items like plastic cups, lunch packets, straws, bottles and plastic bags.”Ban takeaway coffee cups, lunch wrapped in disposable plastic packaging, plastic bags, disposable food service cups, plates, containers made of polystyrene foam and plastic straws. Restrict single-use plastic water bottle and encourage the use of reusable bottles instead,” the UGC said in a letter to vice-chancellors.
Colleges and universities have been directed to organise marathons, mass awareness sessions and cleanliness drives to spread the message.
Kolhan University pro vice-chancellor Ranjeet Kumar Singh said they had started promoting the use of leaf plates on the Chaibasa campus.
“This is a welcome step. We have already started using either ceramic or leaf plates and bowls. I learnt about the UGC circular and now we will ask other colleges to take similar steps,” said Singh
Vice-chancellor of Nilamber Pitamber University Satyendra Narayan Singh said he would meet with college principals to initiate green activities on campuses.
“Plastic cups for tea and coffee are a menace in college canteens and so we are thinking of introducing clay cups ( kulhar),” said Singh.
Karim City College in Sakchi initiated a no plastic campaign in February. “Our college campus is a no plastic zone. Students have put up posters across the campus to spread awareness on the subject,” said faculty member Yahiya Ibrahim.

domain: news


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As the magazine fraternity emerges from its collective hangover
this morning, it’s time for a closer look at the winners of the latest
Periodical Publishers Association awards, held at the Grosvenor House
While it’s impossible to prescribe a formula for success from the
victors - among them Men’s Health (best consumer magazine), Prima
(consumer editor of the year for Lindsay Nicholson), Building (business
magazine of the year) and room (contract magazine of the year for Ikea)
- intelligent editorial and high production values clearly stand
The fact that such continued quality comes at a time of real change for
the industry makes the achievements even more significant. A lot’s
happened in the world of magazine publishing since the last PPA
conference and awards a year ago (see page 8). So much so, in fact, that
it’s tempting to proclaim that the industry is cocked ready to spring
into the new millennium.
Tempting, perhaps, but premature. The glitzy PPA shindig provides a
forum for publishers to exorcise their business frustrations before the
ritual back-slapping awards. And the frustrations aired this year
suggest that, for all the talk of brand development and embracing new
technologies, the industry is still struggling with the opportunities of
today, let alone tomorrow.
Having heard so much about the potential to expand magazine brands into
TV, it’s sobering to find the reality comes with more caveats than the
masthead programming champions anticipated.
As for electronic media, while opportunities exist for taking familiar
magazine brands into internet publishing, the publishers themselves have
yet to master the online medium. For those who fail to embrace it, the
opportunity could become a threat.
Customer magazines, one of publishing’s most burgeoning sectors, are
dismissed by one consumer publisher as a worthless drain on readers’
leisure time, the magazine equivalent of junk food.
Meanwhile, one of the building blocks of the magazine industry, the
National Readership Surveys, which provides research for both newspapers
and magazines, is being torn by a split over its future between the two
sides of the industry.
But all of this public tussling is par for the course at industry
conferences and a sign of a mature business. The truth is that magazine
companies are actually getting better at working together on issues that
affect them all, such as the increasing pressure on consumer leisure
time from other media. Yes, there are conflicting interests to
accommodate but there are also real advantages to be had from
co-operation in areas of common concern.
And after the arguments have raged, the debates aired and work begun on
tackling the problems, there are the awards. They underline that,
despite it all, the UK publishing industry still produces some bloody
Stefano Hatfield is away.


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The Silicon Review is in and Everise emerged as one of the 50 Best Workplaces of the year 2019.
Established in 2016 by CEO Sudhir Agarwal, Everise remains as one of the leading customer experience company disrupting the BPO industry with its cutting-edge technology and data-led solutions. Everise acquired several companies C3, Trusourcelabs, and Hyperlab; and started a joint venture with a Korea BPO giant and formed Globee. With these four companies under one brand, Everise and it's over 12,000 talented CX professionals aim to be the leader in the customer experience landscape around the world.
With the recognition, Everise CEO Sudhir Agarwal expressed how proud and humbled he is to receive the award.
“I am truly proud and humbled to be receiving this award. After the acquisitions, each of the four companies went through some growing pains to become one under the Everise umbrella. But thanks to the “We Are Everise” strategy which integrated the company’s culture, policies, and people along with a shared purpose to elevate experiences, we are living our values of being people-first, celebrating diversity, and incubating innovation. This award is the proof in the pudding that our values are worth eating,” Agarwal said.
Also recognized by The Silicon Review. are Argo.ai, a self-driving technology firm and Snowflake, a cloud-first data warehouse.
Everise is a leading Singapore-based global experience company with a growing roster of CX and HR awards, delivering 50,000 customer experiences throughout its 13 locations including, US, Europe, Asia, and South America with it's over 12,000 technology-driven CX professionals.
The Silicon Review is a trusted online and print resource for business and technology professionals, with community members comprising CEOs, CIOs, CTOs, IT VPs and managers, and other professionals.
You may read The Silicon Review featuring Everise, here.


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Monthly Archives: May 2016
The boom in biometrics is here. Biometric authentication adoption is expected to accelerate by 103% by 2020, according to market research company Technavio. Analyzing biometrics across various authentication methodologies, the report breaks down and predicts . . .
Pepper, the humanoid robot from SoftCard and Aldebaran Robotics, is set to become the “face” of POS terminals, able to accept payments via Mastercard’s MasterPass digital wallet at Pizza Hut locations across several Asian markets . . .


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Thunes integrate with PayPal’s Xoom service for transfers to mobile wallets
By Joy Dumasia
Thunes announced a collaboration with Xoom, PayPal’s digital remittance service, that will enable Xoom customers in the United States, Canada, the U.K. and Europe to send remittances directly to mobile wallet users around the world.
Despite the global adoption of digital payments, local payment preferences are fragmented, and global payments interoperability continues to be a challenge. In emerging markets, consumers increasingly choose to pay with mobile or digital wallets. However, the absence of connectivity to global payments infrastructure limits the ability of local mobile wallet users to receive inbound transfers from other countries.
Through this collaboration, Thunes allows Xoom to expand its existing reach, using Thunes’ global network and payment capabilities to offer quick, affordable and reliable payments for new corridors. This strategic collaboration builds on the success of Thunes’ long-standing relationship with PayPal that began with an initiative in 2018, which enabled Kenyans to move money between M-Pesa and PayPal, a service exclusively powered by Thunes.
Tamer El-Emary, COO of Thunes, said: “We’ve always believed that people should be able to pay each other without hassle and stress, irrespective of their location. And since the beginning of the pandemic, the significance of sending money internationally quickly and affordably has increased dramatically. This collaboration is a great example of two companies harnessing the power of technology and innovation to provide access to financial services to people that need it the most, connecting them to their loved ones and creating new opportunities for global entrepreneurs.”
Recently, IBS Intelligence reported that Thunes FinTech company and a leader in global cross-border payments, announced a partnership with Bank Alfalah, one of Pakistan’s largest banks, to enable real-time affordable cross-border payments to consumers in Pakistan.
IBSi Daily News Analysis
December 01, 2023
Cross Border Payments
UAE consumers turn to banks for advice on sustainable financeRead More
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- Most trusted FinTech journal since 1991
- Digital monthly issue
- 60+ pages of research, analysis, interviews, opinions, and rankings
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December 01, 2023


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Achieving a Circular Economy: How the Private Sector is Reimagining the Future of Business
The circular economy represents a new industrial model that is regenerative by design. Products no longer reach end-of-life but rather become inputs for future use and new services arise to mitigate the impacts of a throwaway culture. According to a report by the World Economic Forum, a shift towards the circular economy by 2025 could generate an estimated $1 trillion annually in economic value globally, create more than 100,000 new jobs, and prevent 100 million tons of waste within the next five years. It would also restore the natural capital and ecosystem services that are the foundation of healthy societies and economies globally.
In this hour-long webcast, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation Corporate Citizenship Center will highlight findings from a soon-to-be released report that presents a collection of best practices for how companies are leveraging the environmental, economic and social opportunities the circular economy provides. During this webcast, you’ll learn:
- How the circular economy is being defined and the economic opportunity for the U.S. market
- Barriers and opportunities to mainstreaming the circular economy in the U.S., and your company’s potential involvement
- Real world examples from companies such as HP, TetraPak, and others showcasing the value of the circular economy, and how those approaches can be replicated and scaled


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According to a report by the World Gold Council, spending on gold jewelry increased by 60% during the first nine months of 2021, compared to the same period last year. Egypt registered about 2% of global spending on gold.
Egyptians spent about 19.2 billion Egyptian pounds ($1.22 billion) on about 21.1 tons of gold in 2021, compared to about 12 billion pounds ($763.1 million) on about 13.8 tons in 2020.
The uptick is due to rising demand for gold as a safe investment option in light of the Central Bank's interest rate cuts to 8.25% for savings and 9.25% for loans, as well as a stable exchange rate for the Egyptian pound against the US dollar.
There is an inverse relationship between gold and economic confidence levels. The more the economy improves, the lower the gold prices. Rafiq Abbasi, head of the gold industry division of the Federation of Egyptian Industries, told Al-Monitor, “In the coming period, with the emergence of infections with the omicron variant and some countries making lockdown decisions, the worldwide economy is expected to witness regression, which will lead to a rise in gold prices. Now is the time to buy gold, before prices rise.”
Abbasi explained that gold is a better investment option than others and that private citizens, banks and business "all seek to buy gold to preserve the value of their assets in case of economic regression." He said, "Egyptians have always had an appetite for gold" driven by the lack of public health insurance and unemployment support as well as fear of future price fluctuations.
He pointed out that Egyptians buy gold for both adornment and saving purposes. “Those who buy gold for the purpose of increasing their savings buy used jewelry, since it is not subject to the gold tax and is cheaper than new items. They sell their gold when the price soars,” he explained.
“Gold keeps its value,” Egyptian investor Manal Mahmoud told Al-Monitor. She noted that whenever she can afford to she buys gold, which she can sell in case of emergency. “I learned this from my mom,” she said.
Umm Ahmed, a housewife, told Al-Monitor that she always waits until the price of gold drops to make gold purchases, especially used jewelry because it has the lowest prices. “Investing in gold is the best way to save money," she said.
On Dec. 5, a gram of 24-karat gold sold for between 893 and 895 Egyptian pounds (about $57). The price of the gram of 21-karat gold ranged between 781 and 783 pounds (about $49) and a gram of 18-karat gold sold for between 670-671 pounds (about $42). The price of a pound in gold ranged between 6,248 and 6,264 pounds (about $398).
“Gold is a safe haven,” said Tariq Wafi, who owns a gold shop in Cairo's Al-Hussein district. He added in an interview with Al-Monitor that customers are increasingly likely to buy 24-karat gold bars and 21-karat gold coins than gold jewelry items because of their lower workmanship costs.
Another gold dealer on Al-Sagha Street, Ahmed Al-Jana, also told Al-Monitor that people prefer to buy used jewelry because it is not subject to Egypt's gold tax. “Used gold is old gold goods that only need polishing and cleaning. They are pieces bought from customers willing to sell and then sold again to other customers who are looking for this type of gold,” he said.
Egyptian investor Ahmed Youssef told Al-Monitor that years ago he went through financial hardships and his wife’s gold jewelry was their only salvation. “This is how I learned to buy gold as an investment whenever I can afford it. This is the only investment I have,” he noted.
In a phone call with Al-Monitor, Yemen al-Hamaki, a professor of economics at Ain Shams University, said that the Egyptians' growing desire to buy gold is justified. “This is due to the decline in interest rates in Egyptian banks and Egyptians’ constant uncertainty,” she said. “This has been a pattern followed by Egyptians during the past 20 years in the face of financial crises.”
Hamaki warned that the emergence of the omicron variant of the coronavirus will have a negative impact on the economy. She explained, “This will be reflected in the disruption of supply chains and the rise in prices, locally and globally. Those who have surplus money will keep buying gold, even more so in light of its current low price, and the economic inflation rate is likely to keep trending upward."


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Akola's flagship jewelry boutique is now open in Snider Plaza.
A beloved jewelry nonprofit — which just scored a major deal with Neiman Marcus — has relocated its Deep Ellum flagship to Snider Plaza, just a hop across the street from where the brand was first created at Southern Methodist University in Dallas.
Akola, which donates 100 percent of its profits to impoverished women in both Dallas and Uganda, offers its classic color, glass, and horn collections at the new store, plus a series of colorful zippered clutches, all handmade by the aforementioned women.
The boutique also offers its new fall contemporary collection, fashioned in Dallas with gold, gemstones, and silk-knotted beads.
SMU alum Brittany Underwood created Akola, which means “she works” in Uganda dialect, to empower women and transform the lives of children in poverty. So far, the company has built three training centers and drilled 23 water wells in Ugandan villages.
Akola ($10 to $200), 6827 Snider Plaza, 214.310.0965.


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With the release of the iPhone SE 2020, Apple has revived the market for small and compact smartphones. The phone performed well in terms of sales, and as a result, the Cupertino giant decided to launch the iPhone 12 Mini along with the iPhone 12 and 12 Pro. However, recent reports suggest that Apple may stop production of this small model of the iPhone 12 soon due to what is said to be a lack of acceptance from buyers.
According to Reuters, the results of research by the famous analytical company Counterpoint Research show that the demand for Apple’s flagship and the compact phone has been low in many global markets. In recent times, buyers have been increasingly looking for phones with larger screens to make it easier to watch movies and multimedia content, the report said. As a result, the demand for phones like the iPhone 12 Mini, the most important factor of which is its small size, has been very low.
According to previous reports, sales of the iPhone 12 Mini in the first half of January accounted for only 5% of total sales of Apple’s new handsets, which could be very disappointing for the company.
Therefore, analysts such as William Young of JP Morgan supply chain believe that due to very low demand for the iPhone 12 Mini and its poor sales even in the US domestic market, Apple may reduce the production of this model in the second quarter of 2021.
According to Young, as the production of the iPhone 12 Mini declines, Apple will focus more on the best-selling models, such as the iPhone 12 Pro, 12 Pro Max, and even the iPhone 11, which has been one of Apple’s best-selling phones in recent years.
Besides, Yang predicts that the American company plans to launch four new iPhone models this year. He also added that Apple is working on the third generation of iPhone SE phones, which is scheduled to be released in 2022. Of course, despite the declining demand for small handsets, the iPhone SE 3 looks a bit odd, and it remains to be seen what Apple plans to do with its marketing.


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Bangladesh’s overall exports to its neighbour India during the July-April period of the current fiscal (FY), 2018-19, increased by an astounding 53 per cent to touch US $ 1.07 billion. And a major contributor in this has been readymade apparels, as per media reports.
According to data from Export Promotion Bureau (EPB), Bangladesh earned US $ 701.56 million during the corresponding period of last FY.
The growing middle class in India is pushing up the demand for garment items there, cited the reason, Acting President of the Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA) Fazlee Shamim Ehsan, interacting with the media.
As per industry experts, Western retailers, having outlets in India, and Indian local brands sourcing their goods from Bangladesh, have also aided in this growth.
According to reports, among the non-traditional markets where exports during the period under review witnessed double-digit growth includes Japan (US $ 1.17 billion with 22.57 per cent growth) and China (US $ 709.06 million with 26.14 per cent growth).
It may be mentioned here that apart from garments, other major items exported to India are raw jute and jute products, fish and crustaceans, and plastic and leather items.


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Mexico’s government sees state-owned fintech as a means of financial inclusion and a way out of poverty for millions of Mexicans. Can it work?
A survey of trends and developments in the global market, highlighting major banks and hiring news.
Researchers from the U.S. search for answers to the gender equality problem in the financial sector, both at home and in Sweden.
The Swiss-based multinational bank, Julius Baer appointed a team head of intermediaries for Southeast Asia as it looks to win more business from external asset managers.
Two financial giants exemplify the confluence of emerging opportunities driving Asia towards dominance.
A new study finds that on the uneven terrain of emerging economies, more intense competition drives high performance.
Following what has been a long CEO succession race, the firm has named David Solomon as CEO, marking the start of a new era.
Home-grown African banks are stepping up expansion across the continent, powered by local knowledge and innovation.
Unwary travellers have long been bilked by bureaux de change, especially in airports, but fintech start-ups are on a path of disruption in retail banking.


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This year’s Sziget Festival ended with the highest number of visitors in its history. The event’s cashless payment system, Festipay also saw record transaction volumes.
This year’s Sziget Festival ended with the highest number of visitors in its history to date. The event’s cashless payment system, Festipay also saw record transaction volumes, according to a press release sent to the Budapest Business Journal by Cellum, the company providing the technical background.
Festipay launched new wristbands this year, which serve as a combined entry ticket and payment device. Furthermore, using Cellum’s solution, visitors could also for the first time top up their balances before they even arrived, so they didn’t have to waste time with this upon entry. The solution proved highly successful: about one third of all top-up transactions – worth over EUR 4 million – were carried out by users through the festival’s official smartphone app connected to Cellum’s mobile payment system.
Besides facilitating fast and secure payments, the app also allowed festivalgoers to track their purchases in real time. In addition, thanks to a new feature developed by Festipay and Cellum, visitors could have their remaining balances refunded to the card registered in the app once the festival was over.
Cellum CEO János Kóka said: “Festipay and Cellum were the first in Europe to come out with this solution, and we feel justified by the results. Patrons on other continents will hopefully also be able to use our solutions in the near future,” he added.


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Thinaire, a world leader in proximity engagement, announced the launch of a new plugin allowing PhoneGap and Cordova developers to easily add beacon, NFC, and geofencing to their applications.
Through its award-winning platform, Thinaire has been providing BLE beacons, NFC, and geofencing capabilities for iOS and Android devices. The company has worked with brands like Unilever, Kraft, Procter & Gamble, adidas, and others to drive successful brand-customer engagement and activation.
“In discussions with large brands, we were often asked whether there were any platforms supporting PhoneGap and we found that this was a market gap that had been left unaddressed,” said Mark Goodstadt, CEO of Thinaire. “With the Thinaire plugin for PhoneGap and Cordova, not only do we now provide these developers with the quickest way to launch new apps on iOS and Android but we are now also offering a way to integrate other platforms into the mix, giving developers one of the widest reaches in the proximity engagement market.”
The new PhoneGap plugin is available immediately in the Cordova section of Thinaire’s developer portal site


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The sector regulator said such voice call-muting or `periods of silence’ is caused by “drop or loss of voice packets” on LTE networks.
Samsung Electronics posted 14.9 trillion won ($13.3 billion) in operating profit for the second quarter that ended on June 30 as revenue fell 4 per cent to 58.5 trillion won ($52.2 billion) from a year earlier, the company announced on Tuesday.
Revenues under pressure, costs may continue to rise: CEO Gopal Vittal.
China's leading role in 5G is backed by a proactive government intent on delivering rapid structural change, said Mats Granryd, director general of GSMA.
The smartphone would come with 12MP+5MP primary camera on the rear and an 8MP front shooter for selfies.
The US networking major has partnered with Jio to launch the latter's LTE (Long Term Evolution) network in the country.
"On IoT, we believe that India will see a growth from 19 million up to 72 million connected devices by 2023," Cerwall said.
The US-based chipmaker said that the 4G feature phone will continue to see good growth in the country.
The limited-edition silk white device with 128GB of storage will be available for purchase on June 5 for Rs 39,999.
In an interaction with ET’s Danish Khan, Qualcomm’s Durga Prasad Malladi, Senior Vice President of Engineering talks about the company’s focus on the 5G technology-related advancements, 5G smartphones and fixed wireless.
As per a report by TelecomTalk, JioHome TV service is expected to offer 200 SD and HD channels at a starting price tag of Rs 400. The plan is also listed in the MyJio app under the JioTV segment.
Patna has emerged as the top city in terms of 4G availability as compared to rest of the Indian cities while beating tech hubs like Bangalore, Hyderabad
Joining the expanding list of high-profile applications who have ditched the Apple Watch, Instagram on Tuesday became the latest platform to pull its app from the WatchOS.
"The ongoing consultations will be concluded in a couple of months...I think, the open consultation will mostly be concluded in 2-3 months," Trai Chairman RS Sharma told in a recent interview.
The exercise is expected to culminate in framing of the parameters on call drops and service quality measurement for voice services to LTE users.
The company, which unveiled 4G LTE telecom system this week, also plans to ramp up the strength of its design centre in Gurgaon by 50 per cent by 2018-end.
The 4G network expansion was supported by the dramatic growth of LTE devices in the country, with 9 out of 10 smartphones shipped in 2017 supporting 4G.
Editor's Picks ›
Reliance Jio appoints Shyam Mardikar as group CTO of mobile networks / Reliance Jio appoints Shyam Mardikar as group CTO of mobile networks / Reliance Jio, Vodafone-Idea, Ericsson, Nokia for holistic analysis of 5G use cases / Many challenges need to be met before 5G rollout: Manoj Sinha at ETTelecom 5G Congress / Government may open up new 5G spectrum bands after Trai proposal / RCom to monetize enterprise, global undersea cable business : Anil Ambani / Vodafone Idea Board approves merger of Aditya Birla Telecom / Telecom department to seek Cabinet nod for BSNL’s 4G rollout / BSNL, Cisco team up for 5G use cases / India dials Cisco, Samsung, Nokia, Ericsson, says no to Chinese Huawei, ZTE


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Portland, Oregon - S-Ray Incorporated has announced the details for two important shareholder events in the second quarter of 2015 as the company progresses toward commercialization of its first dental imaging product, the ClearView LAB scanner.
The S-Ray Incorporated Annual Meeting will be held May 1 at 10 a.m. PST via webinar format. Following the Annual Meeting, S-Ray will host its annual Investor Day on May 29 from 4-7 p.m. PST. This live event will be held at Portland State University's Business Accelerator and will give shareholders an opportunity to meet company executives and discuss key topics in a more informal setting. Both events are open to all shareholders of S-Ray Incorporated.
“This year represents a pivotal time in the evolution of S-Ray as we work to commercialize our first 3D imaging product based on our patented ultrasound technology, the ClearView LAB Scanner,” said Steve Baird, S-Ray’s chief executive officer who has led S-Ray from inception to its current stage, where it is poised to either go public, sell to a major company, or possibly partner with a private equity firm.
For additional information on the events or S-Ray Incorporated, contact David Row, Investor Relations Officer, at email@example.com.


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The stances of US regulatory our bodies on cryptocurrency are making it tough for crypto establishments to retain expertise. This example is alarming for crypto companies because the competitors for the perfect brains within the trade can already be fierce amongst establishments. The uncertainty could seemingly result in a substantial discount within the technical consultants employed to drive the ecosystem ahead.
Mind Drain For Crypto Trade
The crypto ecosystem is witnessing a disaster of kinds as expertise, which is already scarce, is more and more exiting the area. This mind drain from the area has seen Wall Road corporations and conventional monetary establishments scope out consultants from crypto corporations as they anticipate extra express regulatory pointers from the US authorities.
In an interview on Bloomberg TV, Spencer Bogart, common companion at Blockchain Capital, highlighted the state of affairs. He remarked that the unclear stance of regulatory our bodies’ in direction of crypto within the US is hampering the sector’s evolution, regardless of its benefits over conventional monetary establishments and the companies they supply.
Moreover, he identified that competitors for high expertise would solely improve as extra outstanding establishments got down to construct crypto merchandise. In his view, this improvement will proceed to widen the hole for crypto adoption within the US.
Blockchain Capital is a number one enterprise capitalist (VC) agency that invests in blockchain-related startups and firms. Over its eight years of operations, it has revamped 125 investments in varied corporations within the sector at totally different phases, places, and asset sorts. It additionally has over $1.5 billion of belongings underneath administration (AUM).
Again in 2018, conventional finance was on the receiving finish of this mind drain, in response to an article in Finance Magnates. Lots of those that crossed over mentioned the crypto trade supplied an more and more credible profession path. It’s fascinating to marvel if these converts in 2018 would have anticipated crypto US regulation to be in its present state nearly 4 years later.
The SEC’s Exhausting Stance Towards Crypto
The Securities and Change Fee (SEC) has taken a largely unfavorable stance in direction of crypto. Regardless of the elevated willingness of crypto corporations to be regulated, the SEC has adopted a sluggish method to creating clear pointers to permit companies to comply with the principles. Distinguished crypto lovers like Raoul Paul, CEO, and founding father of International Macro Investor, consider the SEC’s method is simply a method to result in future negotiations with the area.
The SEC’s reluctant place was mirrored in its delay of rulings for spot Bitcoin ETFs till November and December, regardless of its favored method in direction of Bitcoin futures ETFs. The primary-ever Bitcoin ETF began buying and selling on the New York Inventory Change (NYSE) final week and recorded a valuation of $1 billion in its first 24 hours.
The SEC can also be embroiled in a number of courtroom circumstances with crypto corporations over its unclear rules for the trade. Whereas the Ripple lawsuit remains to be ongoing, Terraform Labs chief, Kwon, introduced a lawsuit towards the SEC on Wednesday, citing the violation of his due course of rights and the SEC’s personal guidelines by the regulatory physique in its ongoing investigations.
Be a part of our Telegram group and by no means miss a breaking digital asset story.
Congressional Lobbying Gives Hope
Lobbying efforts which can be pushing this situation to US Congressmen are providing hope to crypto corporations that the shortage of present regulatory readability could also be resolved. In line with disclosures filed with Congress in the previous couple of days, cryptocurrency commerce associations have reported an unparalleled third quarter for lobbying spending. Lobbying expenditures elevated because the sector discovered itself as the main target of a high-profile Congressional battle over a trillion-dollar infrastructure bundle.
The chart above reveals that the Block Affiliation’s inside lobbying spending elevated by greater than 60%, rising from $130,000 in Q1 to $210,000 in Q3. Throughout the identical interval, the Chamber of Digital Commerce additionally elevated its lobbying spending from $30,000 to $136,000, a greater than 450% improve. This improve could level to the better effort being put in place to move rules for the crypto sector on the ground of the US Congress.
The Blockchain Affiliation and the Chamber of Digital Commerce have traditionally been the key crypto commerce associations interfacing with the federal authorities. This pattern has intensified considerably for the reason that starting of 2021. One other physique, the Congressional Blockchain Caucasus comprising a bipartisan group of congress members, can also be advocating for correct rules for the crypto trade.
Finance is altering.
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Samsung TVs are just one example of the many devices we use with eavesdropping concernsBy Shawn Knight
Such scrutiny has unsurprisingly led to investigations of similar practices among other companies. The verdict: Samsung isn't the only company selling devices with eavesdropping concerns.
As outlined by Fusion, LG's smart TV policy includes a statement that's nearly identical to the one that landed Samsung in hot water. It states that if your spoken word includes personal or other sensitive information, such information will be among the voice information captured through your use of voice recognition features.
Several other devices that people use on a daily basis also have the potential to capture audio from its users.
Amazon Echo, the personal virtual assistant unveiled not too long ago, is always listening in order to spot the keyword which is the name or phrase given to wake it up. Buried in the FAQ is the fact that Echo also captures a fraction of a second of audio before the wake word.
I'll stop here for the sake of brevity although Google's Waze app, Microsoft's Kinect and Hello's Sense bedroom monitoring device are also highlighted.
Of course, none of this should really be all that surprising considering the fact that we all walk around with microphone and camera-equipped smartphones in our pockets and now, similar devices are being strapped to our wrists.


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Mercedes-Benz New SL Class
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The SL-class from Mercedes Benz was one of the first true-blue sports cars that came to India officially a few years back. The model was recently updated in the European market, bearing the carmaker’s new design philosophy. Though it will continue to be sold in the two familiar models – the SL350 and the SL500 – the 2014 SL gets new engines. The SL350 uses a V6 engine and as the SL500 is propelled by a V8. These new BlueDIRECT engines have an output of 306 PS in the SL350 and 435 PS in the SL500. The new engines, combined with the lighter chassis, promise a better performance overall.
The new SL also claims to be more comfortable and safer than the outgoing model, thanks to the crash-optimised aluminium structure and standard-fit PRE-SAFE assistance systems. The 2014 SL also features a photo-electric roof which lets you control the opacity of the panoramic glass! That is a party piece that Mercedes Benz India will surely bring to the India-spec SL as well.
The 2014 SL-class is expected to launch in India by the third quarter of 2013 at a price starting at a little over Rs 1-crore.


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This prestigious certificate confirms the fulfillment of the highest ecological standards in the construction of the Chełm shopping center, opened in March this year.
Thanks to many well-known brands the Andrychów retail park has already exceeded 85% of the commercialization level.
Koszalin project – this time in the formula of a regional retail park – is entering the implementation stage and successfully attracts well-known brands.
We are very pleased to invite you to our stand #5.2 at the Shopping Center Forum on September 15 and 16 at the Expo XXI center in Warsaw.
Sale of apartments is approaching the final stage with last few flats remaining available.
Almost three weeks before the official opening, Galeria Chełm is ready. Everyone is welcome to the grand opening on March 26!


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Predominantley a white-label manufacturer, this company also produces a number of own-brand products, including Buxted and the recently added Devonshire Red chicken. Having bought poultry firm Lloyd Maunder in January, the company says it is Britain’s largest supplier of specialist poultry, including free range chicken. Headquartered in the West Midlands but operating from 12 sites, 2 Sisters Food Group supplies the country’s major supermarkets, and has just teamed up with Tesco to tackle the American grocery market. Sales rose to £377.2m in 2006.
This profile reflects the company at time of publication and does not reflect any changes that may have subsequently occurred. Fast Track and its sponsors do not endorse, guarantee or recommend investment in any of the companies.


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AEHRA, a new global ultra-premium electric automotive brand, has revealed exclusive preview images of its forthcoming Sedan model ahead of unveiling the final vehicle design at the Milano Monza Motor Show on June 16th. The new Sedan follows swiftly in the wheel tracks of the AEHRA SUV unveiled last year, and the images depict a […] The post AEHRA reveals...
We also get a good look at the interior which features a 12.3-inch central screen and a soundbar that's as wide as the windshield. Brought to you by: EV Driven
Earlier this month we covered the infringement lawsuit brought against Himiway by JackRabbit after the former released a very similarly styled micro electric bike. Now that e-bike, known as the Himiway Pony, is being recalled and Himiway is issuing an apology. more… The post E-bike company apologizes, recalls electric bike model after lawsuit appeared...
The company’s decision comes after the recent announcement that Ford EVs will be equipped with the NACS plug. Brought to you by: EV Driven
Learn about the LightCoce ecosystem which assists in the development of new concepts in the concreate and ceramics industries. The post LightCoce ecosystem: Gain access to services driven by your special business needs appeared first on Innovation News Network. Brought to you by: EV Driven
EV conversion specialist Electrogenic has launched its latest classic car to be reborn as an all-electric model. Customers around the globe can now get a 1960s Type 1 to 3 Jaguar E-Type EV – in either a Roadster or Coupé design – or buy Electrogenic’s drop-in kit and have an authorized installer do the conversion for them. more… The post Electrogenic...
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Computer vision technology, chatbots of varying intelligence and that old standby, cloud optimization, will top the list of technology hotspots keeping IT service providers busy in 2020.
Interviews with industry executives show the list of salient technologies hasn't changed much from last year, at least in the broad outlines. The difference lies in the specifics, as channel partners and their customers look to tweak and build upon earlier deployments.
Room-for-improvement opportunities will surface across a range of technology categories. Partners are looking forward to smoother chatbot integration, more sophisticated application refactoring and a refinement of multi-cloud strategies.
Computer vision becomes fashionable
That said, 2020 will see new deployments as well. Computer vision technology is one example, with retail expected to emerge as a key vertical market for such AI projects.
"Of all the AI technologies available out there, this is probably … among the top technologies that can completely transform the retail value chain," said Rajashree R., global head of retail strategic initiatives, products and innovation at Tata Consultancy Services.
Computer vision technology has wide applicability in retail's fashion segment, she said. Those areas include range planning, inventory management, personalization and returns. Range planning, for example, involves determining the styles, textiles, colors and other attributes of a fashion line. Designers and buyers, typically, would visit fashion shows to get a sense of what's to come and plan accordingly. But computer vision lets fashion retailers pull together the highlights from fashion shows and combine those with images from Instagram or Pinterest to help predict clothing trends.
Rajashree R.Global head of retail strategic initiatives, products and innovation, Tata Consultancy Services
"What the human eye cannot synthesize, computer vision can," Rajashree said.
Online retailers will be the early computer vision technology adopters, she said. Stores in the fast-fashion category, which aim to quickly capitalize on runway trends, also have some urgency to pursue computer vision, she added. Other types of retailers won't be following, however.
"I don't see adoption among traditional department stores and big-box retailers," Rajashree said.
Fashion merchandising, she added, remains more art than science for such retailers. So, they are therefore less likely to trade their traditional methods for AI.
Other retail segments likely to adopt computer vision include large grocery stores, where use cases will range from store operations to inventory management.
Chatbots get a talking to
CGS, an outsourcing and business application provider based in New York, found most of the consumers it surveyed would rather get help from a human than a chatbot. Eighty-six percent of the more than 1,000 U.S. consumers polled in the company's Customer Service Chatbots & Channels Survey, published in October, said they "prefer to interact with a human agent" rather than AI when using a texting-based messaging service.
John Samuel, executive vice president at CGS, said that number reflects a couple of factors. Some chatbots are not consumer-friendly, he noted. He said those deployments may be based on corporate FAQs or knowledge bases that "are limited in what they provide to consumers."
A chatbot's underlying technology may also limit its helpfulness, Samuel added. Consumers in a rush for information become frustrated with chatbots that meander through a scripted algorithm to get to the point where they can provide assistance.
But, despite the challenges facing existing chatbots deployments, Samuel sees no lag in the technology's adoption.
"We don't believe there is going to be any reduction in driving forward with the technology," he said. "Probably, in 2020, we will see a good increase in the use of chatbots."
Samuel's optimism stems, in part, from the ongoing advancement of natural language processing and understanding.
"That technology is evolving every day," he said. "Just in 2019, the natural language capabilities of the cloud providers have evolved."
In addition, chatbots have an opportunity to improve through integration, Samuel noted. Linking chatbots with enterprises' CRM systems and data platforms will boost customer experience (CX).
Christine Livingston, chief strategist for AI at Perficient, a digital transformation consulting firm based in St. Louis, also noted the importance of integration. She pointed to the example of an HR chatbot that informs employees they have paid time off but doesn't specify how much. Such chatbots fail to "execute a meaningful task," she said. "They need to integrate into the system of record."
Samuel said the integration task will be easier for born-in-the-cloud companies with modern infrastructures that simplify data extraction. Older businesses may need more help.
"You are dealing with multiple platforms, data sprawl in multiple repositories in some cases," he said. "Legacy platforms are not easy to integrate."
Organizations with multiple chatbots face another integration issue: keeping their virtual assistants in sync. Livingston said Perficient worked with a car dealership to create a chatbot for car owners with questions about specific vehicles. The dealership eventually discovered that other parts of the organization -- sales and finance -- had also unleashed chatbots. As a result, customers could find themselves getting different answers from the different chatbots. The dealership is now looking at consolidating a platform for more unified CX, Livingston noted.
"A lot of times, customers recognize how easy it is to do a very simple use case," she said. "It's more challenging to create a comprehensive, AI-enabled customer engagement strategy."
Livingston said she expects to see earlier adopters of chatbot technology to pursue platform consolidation in 2020 "as they progress to the next maturity phase."
Clouds seek new levels
Cloud computing, now over a decade old, still has some maturing to do. Industry executives believe enterprises will pursue more sophisticated migration and application modernization approaches.
John Gray, CTO at InterVision, an IT service provider based in Santa Clara, Calif., and St. Louis, said fewer organizations plan to pursue lift-and-shift cloud migrations in which applications move to the cloud without modification. Enterprises are interested in retooling apps as microservices, running them in containers and preparing for serverless architectures. Those aims compel IT managers to consider refactoring earlier in their cloud migration plans.
"More and more IT teams will refactor their applications before going to the cloud, rather than considering this process after they've already moved to the cloud," Gray said. "We are now starting to see … a more proactive approach to refactoring."
But some customers may move beyond refactoring. Dave Sellers, general manager of multi-cloud at World Wide Technology, a technology solution provider based in St. Louis, said customers may decide to rebuild applications in the cloud rather than refactor them. He said customers make such decisions on a case-by-case basis, suggesting advances in technology could influence customers to rewrite applications.
"With cloud service offerings becoming more valuable every month and with the performance of serverless offerings getting continuously better, it can be compelling to entirely rewrite an application in the cloud to leverage these benefits," Sellers said. The rewrite-in-the-cloud strategy can also decrease the overall cost of ongoing application maintenance, he added.
Sellers said the trend in 2020 will be toward cloud-native development but didn't hazard a guess as to what percentage of customer apps would follow that path.
"I do think there will be a lot more apps built in the cloud next year than in the last couple of years," he said.
Multi-cloud deployments, particularly the multiple-public-cloud variety, will also gain ground in 2020, as customers become more analytical when it comes to placing workloads.
Multi-cloud arrangements spanning private cloud, a colocation facility (see sidebar) or a single public cloud are fairly common. But customers running applications across multiple public clouds have been rarer.
Colocation market set for growth
The colocation services market is poised for growth in 2020 and beyond.
IHS Markit, a market research firm based in London, predicted the global colocation services market will reach $38.8 billion in 2023, growing at a compound annual growth rate of 8.4%. One factor behind the growth: Organizations are factoring in colocation facilities as part of their multi-cloud strategies.
The inclusion of colocation centers can help customers keep their public cloud data transfer costs in check. Getting data into and out of the cloud can prove expensive, noted Ben Niernberg, executive vice president of sales and services at MNJ Technologies, a technology and managed service provider based in Buffalo Grove, Ill. The issue is compounded for enterprises pursing data analytics on one of the hyperscale platforms -- those organizations have more and more data coming out of the cloud.
That's were colocation comes in. Colocation facilities offer private linkages to the public clouds that can reduce data transfer costs compared with public internet connections.
"Colocation facilities have direct connections, or express routes, to public clouds," Niernberg noted. MNJ Technologies offers colocation services and also partners with third-party providers, such as Equinix.
"It's a huge part of our business," Niernberg said. "We are expecting 30% to 40% growth in that area."
Sellers said customers who have been in the cloud for a while and have found success optimizing on a single cloud vendor will be in a position in 2020 to pursue a "best-of-breed scenario." A business, for example, might run analytics on Google Cloud Platform, Office 365 on Microsoft Azure and machine learning on AWS, he explained.
"As each one of these clouds continues to release more services, they tend to leapfrog each other in some technologies," noted Jeff Ton, senior vice president of product development and strategic alliances at InterVision. "You are starting to see this becoming part of a company's cloud strategy: 'We are going to put our AI models on this cloud [because] they do a great job with machine learning and AI.'"
Early multi-cloud use has been somewhat accidental as individual developers spun up cloud instances on AWS, Azure or Google, Ton said. But enterprise thinking is becoming more strategic, he noted. "Let's leverage the cloud for what [vendors] are best at" is how he summarized the emerging philosophy.


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Europe’s largest online-only fashion retailer is making a bold move, asking all brands to provide supply chain information. Those that don’t measure up to ethical standards by 2023 are out.
The German firm trumpeted a “very good April” in China, but warned Q2 overall will be worse.
Today’s unruly crop of eco-labels are puzzling customers and proving too expensive and time-consuming for manufacturers to apply for. But as the sustainability certification sector evolves, solutions are emerging.
Starting April 19, retail stores up to 800 square meters, or 8,600 square feet, may be allowed to re-open in Germany.
Consumers are online at home, playing games and accelerating digital trends faster than expected. That has major ramifications for how business will be done during and after this crisis.
Despite a trillion euro rescue package, Galeria Karstadt Kaufhof and Esprit are among those who found it easier to head straight to court to file for Chapter 11-style protection.
“We made a mistake and we lost a lot of trust by doing so,” Adidas said.
Politicians slammed the brand for refusing to pay their rent and say they’re watching to see if rules need to be adjusted, thanks to corporate rent-dodgers.
The country’s industry associations warn of a wave of insolvencies within a month, if they don’t get more financial aid.
Aside from attracting a global audience — 3.6 million tuned in for the 2016 Summer Games in Rio — the Olympics are known to boost participation in sports and athleticwear sales.
The spat comes amid growing strain on the logistics chain, as workers in sectors considered essential express concern about their safety.


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The World Health Organization, that harbinger of joy, is apparently set to list aspartame as “possibly carcinogenic to humans,” according to a leaked report. The most common artificial sweetener in the world (it’s found in thousands of products globally), aspartame is used in everything from Diet Coke to Trident gum to Crystal Light to sugar-free Jell-O. If you’re following any ’90s-era fad diets, perhaps take heed.
Reuters reports that the WHO’s International Agency for Research on Cancer is expected to add aspartame to its list of possible carcinogens in July. The IARC’s decisions on whether something is a potential hazard are based on assessments from published research. The classification levels—“carcinogenic,” “probably carcinogenic,” “possibly carcinogenic,” and “not classifiable”—are based on the strength of the evidence, not necessarily how dangerous a substance is.
Aspartame’s potential label of “possibly carcinogenic” means there is either limited evidence that it can cause cancer in humans, sufficient evidence in animals, or strong evidence surrounding its characteristics. By comparison, radiofrequency electromagnetic fields, associated with using mobile phones, is also on the list of possible carcinogens. Our moms can’t have anything nice!
But these labels, however squishy, can have big effects. When the IARC determined in 2015 that glyphosate (a widely used herbicide) was “probably carcinogenic,” it resulted in major headaches for companies that used it. Bodies like the European Food Safety Authority have even tried to contest the label on certain products, but negative consumer sentiment remains. Bayer has lost three appeals against U.S. court verdicts that awarded damages to customers attributing their cancers with use of Bayer’s glyphosate-based weed killers.
The number-one product everyone thinks of when they hear “aspartame,” though, is diet soda. Will there be a ceasefire in the Cola Wars so these brands can battle lawsuits instead of each other?
Reuters reports that the International Sweeteners Association (an amazing barbershop quartet name!!) has wasted no time clapping back (more like the International Spicy Association, amirite?). The organization said the IARC is “not a food safety body” and said the review of aspartame “is not scientifically comprehensive.”
The main concern for the International Sweeteners Association, whose members include major players in the food and beverage sphere, is that the new label might mislead consumers and make them think the product is unsafe. The industry already has its qualms with the WHO after the latter published guidelines last month advising consumers not to use non-sugar sweeteners for weight control.
Back here at home, the FDA has set acceptable daily limits for aspartame: An adult weighing 150 pounds would need to ingest more than 18 cans of zero-sugar soda per day to reach levels the FDA links to severe negative health outcomes. Thus, your silver Diet Coke cans aren’t at risk of disappearing from grocery store shelves or carrying scary warning labels anytime soon. If anything, the WHO’s potential new label for aspartame is just the latest development in a long saga of new research and raised eyebrows.


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(GDN)-National Pi Day is celebrated every year on March 14th. Many restaurants and grocery stores say they have special deals on pizza pies and dessert pies. Store Manager Mike Minick, of the Harris Teeter in Goldsboro, says all cherry, apple and blueberry pies are only $3.14 cents each. He says the regular price is $7.99. National Pi Day ends tonight at 11:59 pm.
Pi, or π, is the ratio of the circumference of a circle to its diameter. It is often shortened to 3.14 which is why 3/14 or March 14th is the official day to celebrate all things Pi…or Pie.
For a list of more National Pi Day deals go to www.piday.org


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When auto sales plunge 37%, it may seem like I'm piling on pointing out the auto makers who really struggled during the worst month for the industry in 27 years.
Conversely, you might be scratching your head to see me call anybody a winner in a horrible month.
That said, here is my list of those who showed promise and those who really stumbled last month.
January was horrendous. Just look at the sales numbers.
- Overall: Down 54.8%
- Chrysler: Down 68.9%
- Dodge Down 50.4%
- Jeep Down 49.2%
Yes, much of that decline can be blamed on Chrysler Financial going much of January without having the liquidity needed to offer competitive financing for dealers and customers. Still, sales have plunged so far one has to wonder what the future holds for Chrysler.
The country's number one auto maker still holds the title, but it's lead over Toyota took a big hit. Last month GM sold 128,198 vehicles compared to Toyota selling 117,287. A lead of 10,911. A year ago, the lead was 79,077. Yes, the dramatic drop in fleet sales plays a huge role in GM losing much of that lead and one month is still just one month (GM outsold Toyota by roughly 80,000 vehicles in December), but seeing the gap close is one that will get plenty of attention.
Any time a company can grow sales 14.3% when the industry is down 37% it has hit the right chord with buyers. That chord is the Hyundai "Assurance Program". The Assurance Program essentially lets return your new Hyundai to the dealership and get out of the remainder of your auto loan IF you lose your job in the next year.
I've had people e-mail me that this incentive is a rip-off because people who return their Hyundai are out of a car and the money they put down. Well, what is the alternative? If you bought a new car, lost your job and couldn't make payments, you would eventually have that car re-possessed and in the process trash your credit rating AND lose money.
Sure, these guys sell just a fraction of the new vehicles in the U.S. (1.9%), but you can't dispute they are doing something right. Sales were up 8 % last month. Oh you think these guys are a one trick pony who got lucky in a down month? Check out last year. Subaru was one of just three mass market brands (Mini and Smart) to grow sales in 2008.
The redesigned Forester is carrying the water right now with a look that is more conventional and less boxy. Given Subaru's limited line-up it is hard to know how long the auto maker can ride this wave, but give the company credit for growing in a down market.
- US Auto Sales Plummet to Near 27-Year Low
- Slideshow: Detroit's Eye Candy
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Five months after receiving a letter from General Motors informing them that their dealership was being closed, Bob Hook Chevrolet now has learned that it will be able to stay in business.
"Obviously, we're just ecstatic that we're being reinstated," said David Hook, general manager of the GM dealership on Taylorsville Road in Shelbyville.
"It was heartbreaking at first," he said. "When they [GM officials] filed for bankruptcy, they sent out two waves of letters. The first arrived in May, and a second in June, which they called a 'wind-down' letter, which means they've given you until Oct. 2010 to wind your franchise down."
Hook said he does not know what prompted the initial decision to close the dealership, because even though the economy was not what it once was, business was picking up.
"Our sales rates were increasing, and our customer satisfaction rates were high, and we were putting capitol in the dealership," he said. "Also, there's not another GM dealership within real close proximity to us, and I think when they took a second look at it, they realized that.
"So they're sending us a new franchise agreement where they're undoing the wind- down process and letting us stay for good as long as we want to be here."
Bob Hook, David's father, who owns Bob Hook Chevrolet in Louisville, which was founded in 1953, said he is also pleased.
"We're just tickled to death," he said. "Their grading period was back in December 2008. They've looked at a lot of things in their re-evaluation; our customer satisfaction was very good, and sales are increasing, and I think they realized that we deserve it."
Bob Hook said he is especially glad because this means that no employees would have to lose their jobs.
"We're very happy for the community, because most of our employees live in Shelbyville," he said.
David Hook agreed.
"Everybody here is excited because we didn't have to lay anybody off," he said.
The Shelbyville dealership, selling both new and pre-owned vehicles, has been in business for three years. At that time, three years ago, Bob Hook bought Brinkhaus Buick-Pontiac GMC and Shelby Motors and combined the two, he said.
He added that the Shelbyville dealership has not suffered as much as it could have during its wind-down process, because he was able to send inventory from the Louisville store down to Shelbyville as the need arose.
"Now that we are being reinstated, we will be allowed to order [vehicles] directly again," he said.
Hook said the goal at Shelbyville is to sell 200 to 300 new cars in 2010.
Employees at the local dealership met the news about the reinstatement with enthusiasm.
"We are very pleased," salesman Jason Jennings said.
Salesman Jim Jones agreed.
"We're glad we'll be staying open and will continue to serve the community," he said.


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by Anton Shilov
06/25/2013 | 11:00 PM
Due to falling sales of B&N Nook slates, Barnes & Noble plans to discontinue its own-brand media tablets and to cooperate with other technology brands for future products of the kind. At the same time, B&N will continue to develop and sell e-book readers under its brand.
The company plans to significantly reduce losses in the Nook segment by limiting risks associated with manufacturing. Going forward, Barnes & Noble intends to continue to design e-book devices and reading platforms, while creating a partnership model for manufacturing in the competitive media tablet market. Thus, Simple Touch and Glowlight e-book reader products will continue to be developed in house, and the company’s tablet line will be co-branded with yet to be announced third party manufacturers of consumer electronics products. At the same time, the company intends to continue to build its digital catalog, adding thousands of e-book readers every week, and launching new Nook apps.
The company will continue to offer its existing inventory of its high quality Nook HD and Nook HD+ devices at amazing prices through the holiday. As always, Barnes & Noble will provide world-class pre- and post-sales support in its stores for its Nook HD and Nook HD+ customers, as well as ongoing software upgrades and improvements to the digital bookstore service.
B&N’s Nook segment, which consists of the company's digital business (including devices, digital content and accessories), had revenues of $108 million for the quarter and $776 million for the full year, decreasing 34.0% for the quarter and 16.8% for the year, as compared to the year ago periods. Device sales declined during the fourth quarter due to lower selling volume. Digital content sales increased 16.2% for the full year, however, they decreased 8.9% for the fourth quarter due in part to the device sales shortfall as well as the comparison to the The Hunger Games and Fifty Shades of Grey trilogies a year ago.
“Our retail and college businesses delivered strong financial performances in fiscal year 2013. We are taking big steps to reduce the losses in the Nook segment, as we move to a partner-centric model in tablets and reduce overhead costs. We plan to continue to innovate in the single purpose black-and-white e-book reader category, and the underpinning of our strategy remains the same today as it has since we first entered the digital market, which is to offer customers any digital book, magazine or newspaper, on any device,” said William Lynch, chief executive officer of Barnes & Noble.


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45 Million unique viewers a month tune into Twitch in 2013
Twitch has released a retrospective for 2013 including 45 million viewers per month, and an average of 900,000 broadcasters per month.
GameSpot may get a commission from retail offers.
This article was originally published on GameSpot's sister site onGamers.com, which was dedicated to esports coverage.
Twitch has released an extensive retrospective on their 2013 year including some previously unavailable numbers, which features new monthly records in a variety of categories. This includes 12,000,000,000 minutes watched per month, over 45 million unique viewers per month, 900,000 broadcasters per month, and 6,000,000 total videos broadcast per month. 5,100 of those broadcasters are partners, and minutes watched and videos broadcast have doubled since 2012, with unique viewers up from 20 million in 2012. Twitch users watch on average 106 minutes of content per day.
68% of Twitch users have decreased watching TV to focus on their Online gaming entertainment and 58% of the 45 million unique monthly viewers spend more than 20 hours per week on Twitch. The average user on Twitch is 21-years old and spends their time in four main activities: 99% watch live streams, 61% chat with community, 38% watch video highlights, and 25% of users broadcast gameplay.
“When video game historians look back on gaming a decade from now, 2013 will be the year they cite as the tipping point of streaming,” said Matthew DiPietro, VP of Marketing, Twitch. “Every major event, publisher, developer, and media outlet in the gaming industry had a presence on Twitch, and streaming became an ever-present piece of the gaming experience. And it’s only going to get bigger.
League of Legends, Dota 2, and StarCraft 2 were the three most watched games on Twitch in 2013. League of Legends and Dota 2 are up 258% and 508%, respectively, in average monthly minutes watched compared to 2012.
Twitch's report says they reach more viewers per week than the viewership of Breaking Bad, Tosh.O, and the NFL Pre-season combined. Twitch also boasts that it's users consume more content on the site on average than those of Hulu, MTV, and Vevo.
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In South Africa, lion cubs are farmed by the thousands.
First, they are ripped from their mothers. Then, they are handed to naive paying tourists that bottle feed them, innocently thinking they are saving them from death. When they start to become too old to bottle feed, they are taken for walks, again with paying tourists. And then, when they are fully grown, they are released in small enclosures where they are brutally killed, again by paying tourists. This time, trophy hunters.
When they are dead, the hides are sold to hunters, the bones and teeth and other body parts shipped to Asia.
It is a billion dollar scheme that takes advantage of unaware "volunteers" and tourists who are told that the animals are orphans and will be released into the wild. And lions are not the only species involved: tigers, leopards and cheetahs are all used for the same exploitation scheme.
This has to be stopped, and every angle has to be covered.
We ask that the South African government start creating laws to protect their fauna from this life of misery and torture, by banning interaction with any wild animal that is less than a year old. This should quell the worst part of the trade and help raise awareness to this parasitic practice that does nothing for conservation and instead fuels the wildlife trade and animal abuse.


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Recently, in its 10th anniversary issue, El Correo del Golfo made a report entitled “Erhardt Projects, the “bridge to the future” in the Gulf logistics sector”. In this report the online newspaper commented that “The Spanish company underlines the success of its internationalisation strategy with the creation of subsidiaries in the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia” We bring to these pages the report dedicated to us by El Correo del Golfo.
In only three years since it embarked on its internationalisation strategy, the Spanish company Erhardtt Projects has already managed to consolidate its position as a leading international Project Cargo logistics operator and has experienced significant growth in terms of volumes and turnover. The company opened its subsidiary, Erhardt Project Cargo & Logistics Middle East, in Abu Dhabi in June last year. Igor Muñiz, CEO of the company explained to EL CORREO DEL GOLFO, “it is fully operational and carrying out important Project Cargo logistics tenders awarded by strategic clients in the region”.
The company was founded in 1998 with the name Erhardt Proyectos S.L as an SME specialising in industrial Project Cargo logistics, within the Maritime Services and Logistics Division of Erhardt. This established logistics company was founded in 1882 and currently has four main lines of business: Logistics and Maritime Services, Technology, Steel and Trading and Insurance and Risk Management. Over the years, Erhardt Proyectos has evolved to become an international Project Cargo logistics operator, providing its customers with customised, integrated and innovative solutions, in collaboration with suppliers, partners and other parts of the logistics chain, at any time and in any place.
In 2020 it took a key step in its development and went international with a ‘Boutique & Unique’ strategy that combines four high value assets to attract top clients in the Project Cargo sector, grow rapidly and differentiate itself from its competitors.
These assets are in-house Transport Engineering, highly specialised in customised and comprehensive solutions for complex operations; a Chartering Division to act as independent specialists in the global maritime market; an Integrated Logistics Department to cover turnkey projects; and a Digital Solutions Area to digitise its end-to-end supply chain, as well as to provide new services to its customers through disruptive technologies that drastically change the way the Project Cargo Sector operates.
This change is due to the sector’s own demand as, explained by Muñiz, “in an environment like the current one, in which logistics chains are affected by risks of all kinds, there is a growing need to approach projects with a single vision, integrating physical and digital logistics services, regulatory compliance, risk management and environmental impact mitigation”.
Muñiz says that “in recent years, logistics has become a major strategic factor for companies, which are now showing a renewed interest in their supply chain”. In this scenario “reliability, transparency of operations, flexibility and responsiveness are now key to their competitiveness”.
In addition to consolidating its position in the Gulf region, it will focus on the US and Indian markets in 2023
This new scenario also led the company to change its name in 2022 to Erhardt Projects in order to better reflect its new reality as an international integrated logistics services company, focused on connecting and simplifying its customers’ supply chain. “With this, we want to align the brand to our new reality, that of an international company ready to be where the project is and prepared to generate a positive impact on our clients’ results”, Muñiz explains.
Although Erhardt Projects is internationally oriented, Europe, the Middle East-APAC region and the USA are its strategic markets. “These project intensive markets are set to grow over the next 3-5 years, especially the Middle East, which is also where most of our clients’ decision-making centres are located. At Erhardt Projects we aim to support them in their strategic markets and in their internationalisation processes”, says Igor Muñiz.
The current portfolio of this company, dedicated to the transport of cargo that, due to its weight or volume cannot be moved through conventional logistics systems, includes the top companies in its different target segments – manufacturers, EPC contractors and end customers – in its strategic sectors of activity: Oil & Gas, Renewables, Energy, Nuclear, Port Equipment and Infrastructures.
Erhardt Projects has been awarded the largest and most substantial tenders and single operations issued by clients in recent years, resulting in an increase in sales and turnover that has enabled it to comfortably exceed the business targets set for 2021-2022. Due to the needs of the contracts won and responding to new requests from existing and potential customers, the company significantly in creased its workforce to strengthen mainly the chartering division and inhouse engineering, doubling its capacity.
Over the past three years, Erhardt Projects has successfully managed numerous complex super/heavy lift cargo operations with multiple origins and destinations internationally. This has earned it the absolute trust of customers and the renewal and access to new international contracts in 2022. This was the year in which it made its international commitment a reality with the opening of the Abu Dhabi subsidiary, which is now fully operational.
“The people who work at Erhardt Projects are being the key to our transformation”
According to Muñiz, accelerating the company’s positioning in the area has contributed to incorporating “local and international talent into its ranks with a proven professional track record and strengthening alliances with local economic operators”, helping them to immerse themselves “in the idiosyncrasies of the area”.
In this sense, Muñiz considers that the short-term results being obtained by the company, fully owned by Erhardt, are the result of its effective positioning in one of the regions with the highest growth expectations worldwide and with more investments in the development of sectors such as oil & gas, renewable energies or civil infrastructures.
Therefore, in January this year it opened a new subsidiary in Saudi Arabia based in Al Khobar, one of the main logistics centres in the Arabian Gulf. This is the result of a joint venture between Erhardt Projects and Erog Holding and will allow both companies to expand their reach by offering a complete portfolio of highly specialised and tailor made solutions for customers looking to gain greater efficiencies in their industrial supply chains in Saudi Arabia.
“The partnership with Erog Holding marks a historic milestone for Erhardt, allows us to be present in a key place for Project Cargo logistics in the coming years and gives us the opportunity to work together to play a relevant role in connecting the end-to-end supply chain in the Project Cargo sector in this region”, explains Muñiz.
In short, the CEO of Ehardt Projects considers that 2022 has been “a remarkable year in several ways” becau se it was a “consolidation of the brand in the Spanish and European market” and, at the same time, a “leap towards international markets, mainly in the Middle East (building bridges with Asia and Europe) and North America”.
“The people working at Erhardt Projects are the key to our transformation and we are equipping ourselves with a new generation of executives who will be responsible for driving the company’s growth in the medium term”, adds Muñiz.
After a high-intensity 2022 with high demand for services in the Project Cargo Sector, 2023 starts with the same inertia for the Spanish company, with growing production activity at a global level that will be a good first half of activity.
In this sense, Muñiz affirms that “although there are still forecasts of recession that predict potholes and moments of uncertain ty in 2023, to date, the reality is that new projects continue to be contracted that predict a prosperous year for our sector”.
Erhardt Projects’ objective for 2023 is to maintain the volumes and growth rate achieved in 2022, for which the company will continue to accompany existing customers in their international markets and strategic projects, being as close as possible to their decision centres.
It will also continue with its inter nationalisation process, focusing on the USA and Indian markets, through different commercial formulas, completing its portfolio with global Project Cargo customers in the company’s priority sectors of activity.
“We will continue to strengthen our customers’ end-to-end supply chains in highly disruptive times, offering true integration of logistics services in international Project Cargo”, Muñiz guarantees.
He also adds that 2023 will be a year to continue to develop digitalisation and “offer a better service to the cus tomer, as integrated logistics requires data that provides visibility to the business and visibility allows better de cisions to be made faster”.
In short, “we are building a new bridge between present and future, providing new integrated logistics services in the Project Cargo Sector”, says Erhardt Projects CEO Igor Muñiz.
Erhardt Projects is very clear about the elements that make it stand out from the competition.
These are factors that come from their business model and their ‘Boutique & Unique’ strategy.
“The combination of its assets – in-house Transport Engineering, Chartering Service, Integrated Logistics Department and Digital Services Line – together with a high performance team, with talent, experience, comitment and vocation, are undoubtedly the key to our success in our markets of operation”
“This combination allows us the maximum customisation of our solutions and services, on-site support from the beginning to the end of each operation and comprehensive management of each project and its risks”
However, these factors of competitive differentiation will continue to evolve, Muñiz guarantees.
“We will continue to drive integrated services that help connect and simplify the supply chain for customers to cotinue to grow in line with the planned expansion into new markets set out in our strategy”, says the CEO.


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The recession put a damper on sales of automobiles, but Alabama’s OEMs are now experiencing some growth, creating new jobs at all levels of the industry.
ZF Lemforder Corp. Plant Manager Ron Davis (fourth from left) helps staff members and guests hold the ribbon while Governor Robert Bentley makes the cut, at the February announcement of ZF’s $14.6 million investment for its expansion and new equipment.
Even when times are tough, Alabama’s economy is strengthened by the automotive industry in the state. Often the effects of the industry can be felt in unexpected places.
Most folks in Alabama are aware of Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs). When a recognizable, successful global company moves to the state of Alabama, it makes the news. But the economic impact of these companies isn’t only felt in the communities where they are located. The effect of the investments made by OEMs, like Mercedes-Benz in Tuscaloosa, Honda in Lincoln, Toyota in Huntsville and Hyundai in Montgomery, can be felt all over the state. Suppliers who provide parts and services to these plants are all over Alabama and keep the supply chain of the automobile industry strong. When all the links in the chain work together, the strength of the chain is reflected in the economy of the entire state.
Steve Sewell is executive vice president of the Economic Development Partnership of Alabama, a nonprofit organization that works to attract new business and industry and support existing industry. Sewell also serves on the board of the Alabama Automotive Manufacturers Association. According to Sewell, the industry hit its all time high in 2007, producing 738,000 vehicles in Alabama. In 2008, when the global economic crisis hit, the automobile industry was impacted. Consumer demand diminished and automobile sales dropped, both globally and in the United States. By 2009, only 468,000 vehicles were produced in Alabama. However, the numbers began to rise again in 2010 with the production of 711,000 vehicles, and continued to rebound in 2011 with 730,000.
Despite the decline in production during the past few years, the companies remain committed to their workers, community and state. In times of crisis, like the aftermath of tornadoes in Tuscaloosa, several companies donated funds to help with cleanup. Moreover, some let their employees use company time for volunteer cleanup work. Charities, nonprofit and civic groups have benefited from the generosity of the automotive industry in Alabama at one time or another.
“We saw the commitments in action and we are fortunate to attract such world class companies,” Sewell says. “These companies see Alabama as their home. They are great corporate citizens and employers.”
The automotive industry provides 42,000 direct jobs. And, according to an AAMA study, factoring in indirect jobs, over 120,000 jobs are provided by the industry. This number makes the automotive industry vital to providing quality employment opportunities in the state.
“A conservative estimate for spin off jobs is five to one,” Sewell says. Every one OEM job creates about five jobs in the state for other employees in the automotive industry.
When it comes to economic development, automobile manufacturers get a lot of attention because of the far-reaching impact the industry has, and in the last couple of years, a great deal of that news is good.
Huntsville’s Toyota plant recently expanded, as did Mercedes in Tuscaloosa. Honda recently added $191 million in expansions, and Hyundai in Montgomery expanded with a new engine plant. If the economy in Alabama holds, the automotive industry is poised to have another good year. When the plants expand, suppliers also must expand to meet the demands. This provides additional growth for the state and can even mean the addition of new suppliers.
“I am optimistic about growth,” Sewell says. “The companies here have been successful and that spurs growth at all levels.”
Attracting successful global companies puts Alabama in a very good position. But the variety of products created in the state also helps ease economic woes. Diversity offers protection from any downturns that may occur.
“Economic development is about attracting better paying jobs that are so important to growing opportunities,” Sewell says. “Automotive jobs have helped replace jobs that were lost in other sectors.”
For a worker in the automotive industry, the average wage industry wide in 2010 was $1,200 per week. This is a higher than the average wage in many other industries, and the companies also offer good benefits.
Click here to download the 2012 AAMA Membership Directory.


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Bridgestone Launches New Tyres In Oman
News: Japanese tire company Bridgestone has launched its premier Turanza AR-20 touring tyres for passenger cars and Dueler H/L 850 luxury tyres for SUVs and CUVs in Oman, reports Muscat Daily. The company's Omani distributor Bridgestone Middle East & Africa and Towell Auto Centre (TAC) said the new tyres will be available at all Tyre Care Plus stores across Oman. TAC said the tyres offer the high traction and toughness required for four-wheel drive models.
BMI View: BMI retains its optimistic view towards the outlook for new vehicle sales in Oman, forecasting a 7.4% increase in 2013, to take annual sales towards the 220,000 unit mark, with risks to our forecast very much weighted towards the upside.


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Gap has unveiled its global marketing campaign for its fall/winter collection, featuring musicians and dancers you may not have heard much about – until now.
The campaign brings its clothing to life as they wear Gap’s signature pieces while performing, with the theme of “Icons Redefined” in a nod to the retailer’s black and white icons campaigns shot by Annie Leibovitz featuring bigger names. This new collection continues its (summer) commitment to bright colors with a slightly more muted palette and the tagline, “Show Your Colors.” (Or rolling it all up, “The icons of tomorrow Shine at GAP this fall.”)
The retailer tapped up and coming musicians — the Avett Brothers, Karmin, Lia Ices, Kaki King, Nicki Bluhm (above) — and dancers Lil’ Buck, whose freestyle “jookin” is described as “urban ballet” by some and “gangster walking by others, plus classical dancer Yuan Yuan Tan of the San Francisco Ballet. (Check out the TV commercials below.) The collection can now be viewed on its Facebook page, with commercials starting to hit TV screens.[more]
“Gap’s fall collection clearly reflects our casual, American style through modern interpretations of our iconic classics that customers can really make their own,” stated Gap’s global CMO Seth Farbman. “With Shine, we continue our brand’s tradition of introducing emerging artists and musicians that inspire people creatively to make their mark on the world. It’s this kind of energy and passion for individual style that we are infusing into our clothes today.
The digital component of the campaign is bringing these performers across multiple social media channels during an eight-week series including YouTube, Facebook, Foursquare, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram.
Gap’s Styld.by network of fashion and lifestyle website partners are using pieces from the Icon Redefined collection to style looks from their own point of view and encourage consumer participation. On August 16th, websites including Refinery29, WhoWhatWear, Lookbook, Rue and Stereogum will host in-store events in Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Los Angeles, New York, Miami, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Toronto, and Washington D.C.
The Shine campaign, developed with Ogilvy and Styld.by in partnership with AKQA, will appear in September issues of Vogue, Lucky, InStyle, Glamour, GQ, Men’s Health, Rolling Stone and Nylon and outdoor in key markets including New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Chicago.


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First we had the news that Two Point Hospital is making its way to PlayStation 4, and now another management sim has come along. Swapping the hospital theme for a pharmaceutical one, Big Pharma is another popular business simulation title coming to consoles in 2019.
"Big Pharma is part business sim, part logistics puzzle," reads the press release. Players will have to keep on top of a two-pronged gameplay loop; building an efficient facility in which to research and manufacture medicine, and also keep the business afloat by hiring the right people and making smart investments. It sounds pretty involved -- take a look at the PS4 version in action in the above trailer.
Will you be tackling the pharmaceutical business when Big Pharma arrives on PS4 later this year? Don't forget your meds in the comments below.


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Stolthaven Terminals' facility in Moerdijk, Netherlands has achieved two key credentials in the past month: the International Sustainability & Carbon Certification (ISCC) and certification to store CAT-3 products in its tanks and warehouse.
Achieving these credentials – now industry requirements and the result of thorough third-party auditing processes – highlights Stolthaven Terminals' commitment to supporting the green-energy transition.
The ISCC is an internationally recognised standard in the biofuels and energy industry. It applies to companies at all points in the supply chain and demonstrates that fuel, biobased feedstocks and renewables meet defined sustainability criteria.
The certification is aligned with the EU’s Renewable Energy Directive and complies with the Fuel Quality Directive of the European Commission.
The CAT-3 certification confirms that the Moerdijk terminal safely and sustainably stores and handles products containing animal by-products, such as used cooking oil (UCO), which is a major source of biofuel. As a result of this certification, the team is now working with Stolthaven Terminals' Dagenham facility to provide one of its customers with storage solutions for UCO in the Netherlands.
Roel van Leeuwen, Sales Manager at the Moerdijk terminal, said: "We are delighted with these achievements and the fact that we are already working with new customers as a result of these certifications. We look forward to continuing to serve our existing customers in a safe and sustainable way, and welcoming more new customers to Moerdijk."


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Trend Micro takes top spot in TechNavio’s global market share report
| by Roydon Cerejo |
Trend Micro Incorporated is the major player leading the fast-growing Global Cloud Security Software market, according to TechNavio’s Global Cloud Security Software Market report. The current overall TechNavio estimate for the global cloud security software market was valued at US$241 million in 2010 and is expected to reach US$963.4 million in 2014, growing at a CAGR of 41.4 per cent. Of the four major players in the global security software market, Trend Micro leads with the greatest estimated market share. The TechNavio report points out that Trend Micro is able to dominate the market because of its diversified geographic reach, established customer base, and brand reputation. The company’s partnerships with cloud and virtualization service provider, VMware, and partnerships with companies such as HP, Cisco, Dell, Microsoft Corp., Oracle, and Wipro, also were cited.
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In a recent interview, the vice-president and CEO of Meliá and president of Exceltur, the Alliance for Tourist Excellence, Gabriel Escarrer denounced the supposed strategy of some TTOO to hide information to hotels about the sale of reservations. All this with the aim of “encouraging offers and increasing profitability and profits with their programming”.
At the same time, Gabriel Llobera, as president of the Agrupación de Cadenas de Baleares (ACH), pointed out that many companies have contracted “a reservation control service with the company that manages the Dingus system” which “allows them to know how online reservation sales are at all times with the tour operators with which we operate”. The executive vice president of Garden Hotels also recognized that information is key when structuring the commercial planning of a hotel, to “establish the appropriate mechanisms and tools to alleviate any decrease in occupancy levels”.
Llobera alluded to Bookincenter and its functionalities as CRS. Beyond the well-known channel manager BiC, its possibilities as a booking centre are an important asset for the hotel in terms of sales management.
You can read the full article by clicking here. (Available only in Spanish)


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LOS ANGELES -- In just three short years, Ilse Valfré has gone from being a kindergarten teacher to founder of a million dollar plus indie apparel and accessories brand. The Valfré brand can be found in over 250 stores around the world, from boutiques to Urban Outfitters and Nordstrom. What's remarkable about the petite powerhouse, born and raised in Mexico, is how she built her business.
In a world of fast fashion and disposable everything, this artist and fashion designer has used social media to rival the big brands. Valfré’s followers became her fans, who then turned into customers, and today the 29-year-old, Los Angeles-based boss-lady and mother of two has over 680,000 followers on Instagram. Her company's earnings in 2016 were expected to total about $2.5 million, according to Forbes.
Born in Sonora, Mexico, but raised in Tijuana, Valfré was a Montessori kindergarten teacher until 2010, when she set her sights on becoming a professional illustrator, fashion designer and blogger.
She initially sent her sketches to magazine editors, but after she didn't get responses, she took her rejections with a grain of salt, moved in with her parents to save money, and began marketing her work via her social channels.
“When the editors weren’t interested, I found I could use social media. I drew every day and I posted every day, and Instagram was the platform that really blew things up,” Valfré told NBC News. “I owe a lot of thanks to Instagram; I guess I just used the right hashtags, and was really consistent."
Valfré's artwork is whimsical and her characters evolved out of a love of comic books, particularly her obsession with characters Betty and Veronica. She started her brand with her blog and sketches on Tumblr.
After fans of her blog wanted little pieces of her work, she started by selling tote bags and prints.
Although Valfré’s demographic and retail prices are similar to monolithic brands such as Zara, H&M or Forever 21, she says she’s able to be competitive by being one of a kind.
“We work hard to stay creative and make unique products, with limited runs for each design. Women want to be different, not look like everybody else. That’s what sets us apart,” she said.
The L.A.-based designer is a beach girl at heart. Valfré’s childhood neighborhood in Tijuana, Playas, sits along the Pacific Ocean; “Baja style” is a major influence on her work.
"My work is always influenced by Mexico and the U.S. It’s a very unique blend," she explained.
Apart from her growing fashion clout, Valfré made headlines after she served cease and desist suits against retail giants Rue 21 and Forever 21 for allegedly copying her designs.
Valfré said her business settled the copyright infringement case against Rue 21 in early July. The business also filed a cease and desist suit against Forever 21, and the hope is to settle that case as well.
NBC News reached out to Rue 21 and Forever 21 but has not received a response. In an interview with CNN’s Talk Asia, co-founder of Forever 21, Do Won Chang said the company has never been found liable for copyright infringement, saying "there is no way of knowing which designs have been registered."
Despite legal issues and non-stop work, Valfré is proud of being a Latina entrepreneur in such a competitive industry.
Her future project ideas are ambitious. She wants her artwork to be the center of a television show. She said she is in talks to do an animated television series; in a previous interview with Stylecaster; Valfré described it as “‘Adventure Time’ meets ‘Sex and the City’ meets ‘Girls.’”
She’s also working on a comic book, and planning to show her work at a local gallery.
One thing she hopes she is already doing is breaking stereotypes.
“We can be seen doing a certain kind of work, but we can also be creative, and have a company. Whatever we’re doing from cleaning floors, to being a teacher, to being a CEO, we’re hard-working women,” she said.


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The misjudgment of President Vladimir Putin in his invasion of Ukraine is returning as a boomerang to Russia. This is because the logistics of the ‘economic aorta’ were clogged and the Russians also suffered damage.
The New York Times reported on the 21st (local time), citing Russian news agency TASS, that Russian transport minister Vitali Saveliev said that the western sanctions had virtually destroyed logistics in the country.
Sabeliev told Russian officials that new logistics routes must be found, including a north-south route through Astrakhan and the Caspian ports of Olya and Makhachkala.
Russia is said to be looking for a logistics route in Asia after the West imposed sanctions on Ukraine.
Russia’s economy is said to be in serious trouble due to western sanctions following the invasion of Ukraine.
Russia’s finance ministry officials say they expect the country to suffer its worst recession in decades, though not publicly disclosed, according to Bloomberg News.
A recent survey by the Russian bank Otkritiye found that 58% of Russians had seen a shortage of food in their stores. About 33% went on hoarding.
According to the Levada Center, an independent Russian polling agency, more than eight out of ten Russians said it was difficult to buy expensive goods and difficult to borrow. Consumer sentiment has contracted to its worst level in more than 10 years.
Automobile sales in April this year also fell by 80% compared to the same period last year.
Even if the Russian people suffer, it’s unclear whether Putin will stop the invasion.
According to the Washington Post, President Putin called 37 Russian tycoons to the Kremlin on the day of the invasion on February 24, this year, and ordered them to prepare for an economic blow.
There are also reports that Putin sees the invasion as a confrontation with the West for the survival of the country and does not care about the economic cost.
[최기성 매경닷컴 기자]
[ⓒ 매일경제 & mk.co.kr, 무단전재 및 재배포 금지]


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December 18, 2013 7:32 AM
A new trailer for Mario Kart 8 has been released, showing a ton of new tracks.
December 18, 2013 7:28 AM
Nintendo announced a brand new puzzle game featuring Luigi stepping into a doctor's shoes in Dr. Luigi.
December 18, 2013 7:13 AM
Link in Donkey Kong? Check out Nintendo's crazy new take on some of their most beloved classics.
December 17, 2013 9:16 AM
The New Yorker listed its top ten games for the year of 2013 and the results are sort of surprising.
December 17, 2013 7:56 AM
Mega Man X and Mega Man: Dr. Wily's revenge for Wii U and Nintendo 3DS are on sale today for $2!
December 16, 2013 1:47 PM
505 Games has confirmed that zombie apocalypse survival game How to Survive is still in the works for Wii U and should release on the console's eShop next year.
December 16, 2013 10:57 AM
Masahiro Sakurai has taken to Twitter to squash the rumor that Super Smash Bros. will have a Spring 2014 release date.
December 16, 2013 8:35 AM
Reven is a new Metroid-inspired platform game under development with plans to come to Wii U.
December 13, 2013 9:47 AM
Figure out what gifts to give your gamer loved ones this holiday season with this handy guide!
December 12, 2013 11:26 AM
Here's a look at what's available on the Nintendo eShop and virtual console this week.