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The start of the coronavirus meant the swift end of self-service in college and university dining halls across the country. Prior to the pandemic, students were able to select a multitude of varieties and customized choices.
For example, the University of Nebraska’s salad bar dropped from more than 100 combinations to just 25. Navigating that abrupt shift has been a challenge—but it’s also brought about fresh insights and some welcome change.
While fewer choices may seem like a negative across the board, students and operators alike have experienced a lift in enjoyment by interacting face-to-face as staffers now plate and assemble food.
With the unpredictability of 2021, Foodservice IP analysts (as well as segment operators) recognize the challenge of prediction with Covid-19 restrictions still in place.
From our work in the segment and the preparation of a new study for 2021, we were able to identify a few trends and changes that manufacturers can expect from the channel as permanent fixtures as a result of Covid-19:
Five Trends Expected to Impact College and University Foodservice
|“Staying Power” Post-Covid
|Implications to Stakeholders
|Facilities have converted space into cloud or ghost kitchens to produce meals that students can pick up when they’re ready.
|Different pack sizes, smaller shipments and similar requirements of segments such as retail.
|Back to Basics Comfort Food
|Eating “green” and social consciousness is important in this segment, yet for now, colleges are seeing students seek more foods like French fries, burgers and mashed potatoes.
|Formulations that are healthy (and socially conscious) but also taste very good and remind students of “home.”
|Pre-Covid-19, students were becoming accustomed to build-your-own stations, but plexiglass and masks put an end to it.
|With fewer self-serve, manufacturers may have the ability to explore recipes that require professionals but are craveable and easy to make.
|With fewer students on-campus, operators have significantly reduced the abundant choices to meet the whims of a particular group of students. This has become too wasteful.
|Ideas of back to the basics type of recipes and offerings. Variety is not expected to be limited for long, particularly with the diversity of a student population.
|Death of the Dining Hall
|The Covid-19 outbreak forced college and university dining directors to shutter dining halls. While communal dining will not disappear, expect to see courtyard or other spaces outside of the conventional dining halls.
|There will likely be little impact to the way manufacturers approach new dining spaces when working with foodservice directors.
Once Covid-19 has passed and students begin to return in full force, a new set of trends may emerge. At this point, however, these are a sampling of ideas from our work and research that we believe have staying power.
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Tesco steps up battle for attention of Chinese retail consumers
Tuesday 19 July 2011
The battle for supermarket supremacy in mainland China is about to enter a new phase as the United Kingdom-based Tesco chain opens a giant new logistics center and announces plans to open more than 20 new stores nationwide this year.
Tesco - which entered the Chinese market in 2004 - currently operates 96 supermarkets and 12 express stores across China, with its operations mainly centred around Shanghai. But with last week's opening of a 240,000 square meter logistics centre in the nearby eastern coastal province of Zhejiang, the company hopes to start expanding throughout the country.
Tesco is currently the world's third-largest retailer by revenue behind American giants Wal-Mart and France's Carrefour chain - and that's how the rivals rate in terms of stores in China, too.
Wal-Mart first appeared in China back in 1996 and now boasts 333 stores nationwide, while Carrefour entered the fray in 1995 and is now serving customers at 180 outlets across the nation.
Tesco is obviously keen to expand into a retail market which saw a 16.3 percent growth year on year in the first quarter of 2011, meaning it was worth more than four trillion yuan (440 billion euros). Tesco is also planning to open an online shopping service for clothing goods across the country this September and online grocery shopping throughout Shanghai next year.
The logistics center in the city of Jiashan will focus on the company's 53 supermarkets spread through the East China region for groceries but will be able to deliver the company's self-made products throughout the additional regional centers of Shenyang (northeast), Tianjin (central) and Guangzhou (southern).
Carrefour in particular has had a tough time of it in China lately, the company being embroiled in price-fixing controversy in 11 of its outlets that led to fines being administered by the Chinese government. Last year the company opened 30 new outlets across the country - down from 2007's all-time high of 112 - and already this year three stores in China have closed their doors due to falling revenue, the first time this has happened since the company entered the market.
Wal-Mart too has not been beyond some controversy, in May losing two of its top China-based executives for reasons that were never fully explained.
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Legally, a single fish species can go by many names from sea to plate, and different fish can go by the same name. An environmental group says that hampers efforts to combat illegal fishing and fraud.
Leslie Sbrocco shares her wine tips from Season 10 of Check, Please! Bay Area.
| Jul 30, 2015Posted by NPR Food
A meta-analysis found that people on vegetarian diets lost around 4.4 pounds more than the control group who had no change in diet. Those who tried a vegan diet dropped 5.5 pounds more.
| Jul 29, 2015Posted by Civil Eats
A closer look at a wildly popular, totally unregulated food label.
| Jul 29, 2015Posted by CUESA
If the drought persists, this could be the last year not only for the Great Peach Event, but for the Martino family’s fruit farming. The Great Peach Event is Saturday, August 1. Bella Viva Orchards will be offering flats of certified organic yellow peaches at half price for one day only.
| Jul 28, 2015Posted by NPR Food
Water scarcity is leading farmers away from planting staples and towards planting higher-value, lower-water specialty crops. Think wine grapes and pomegranates instead of citrus and avocados.
| Jul 28, 2015Posted by Jeff Cianci
This guide covers ten South Bay restaurants ranging from neighborhood institutions serving classic charcoal grilled hamburgers to upscale gastropubs offering gourmet creations.
| Jul 27, 2015Posted by NPR Food
Smoking fish usually requires a pricey smoker or other specialized gear. But you can get great smokey flavor with just a wok, some foil and a quick raid of the pantry.
| Jul 26, 2015Posted by Kelly O'Mara
With so many local farms, the North Bay has a wealth of farmers markets. Here are some of our favorites.
| Jul 24, 2015Posted by NPR Food
California's ongoing drought has forced many almond growers to use groundwater on the thirsty crop. The problem: That water is high in salt, and it's killing almond trees.
| Jul 24, 2015Posted by Anna Mindess
Kobani’s succulent chunks of chicken kebab, creamy hummus, moist dolmas, richly flavored lentil soup and generous gyros are a welcome addition to the corner of University Avenue and Martin Luther King Jr. Way in Berkeley. But there is more to this new casual dining spot than meets the mouth.


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Latest News on Tesla Roadster
Showing of 0 - 10 from 20 results
Tesla Roadster - Total results - 20
Jul 03, 2018
China to launch powerful rocket capable of delivering heavier payloads than NASAChina's Long March-9 would have a core stage measuring 10 metres in diameter and boast four powerful boosters.
Jun 06, 2018
Tesla CEO Elon Musk discusses Model 3 production issues, the possibility of an electric bike and moreDespite all the backlog, Elon Musk plans on beginning production of the Semi truck, the 2020 Tesla Roadster and the Model Y by the first half of 2020.
May 22, 2018
Elon Musk admits that there was a braking issue with Tesla Model 3 sedanTesla Inc’s Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk admitted late on 21 May that there was a braking issue with the Model 3 sedan
Mar 14, 2018
Apple and Google drop in annual reputation survey, while Amazon remains in the top spotiPhone-maker Apple dropped to 29th from its 5th position, and Google dropped from 8th to 28th.
Mar 05, 2018
Elon Musk's Tesla Roadster could be carrying bacteria from Earth into space, could be a 'biothreat' say scientistsThe Tesla Roadster was never intended to land in Mars, which is why NASA's Office of Planetary Protection did not deem cleaning the spacecraft necessary.
Feb 19, 2018
Aerospace industry engineer creates a website to track Musk's Tesla Roadster in real timeSpaceX fan Ben Pearson has created the website that makes use of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory Horizons data to track the progress of the Tesla Roadster.
Feb 11, 2018
Tesla Roadster sent in space by SpaceX on the Falcon Heavy seen drifting in space by an observatory in ArizonaIt released a GIF showing the Tesla moving across space, looking a lot like a comet or asteroid. The GIF strings together 54 images captured by Tenagra.
Feb 09, 2018
Tesla Roadster which SpaceX sent to space via the Falcon Heavy approaches asteroid belt which is way beyond MarsMusk’s Roadster became the fastest car ever, hurtling off the planet and zooming away on a route that will now take it all the way to the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter
Feb 06, 2018
Falcon Heavy set to launch today with the Tesla Roadster as cargo: Here's all you need to know about the next chapter in space travelThe Falcon Heavy is essentially made up of three Falcon 9 rockets strapped together to provide one super-rocket with incredible thrust force.
Jan 25, 2018
Falcon Heavy static fire test successful; Elon Musk says that the launch may happen in a week or soThe successful static test fire on the Falcon Heavy saw all of its engines fired up for 12 seconds.


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Google’s Eric Schmidt on Google Glass: Yes, talking to your glasses is weird.
Speaking of Google, it spent nearly $300 million on acquisitions in the first quarter.
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A Dutch citizen was arrested today in connection with what experts describe as the biggest cyberattack in history.
What do you get when you mix a hedge fund executive, a socialite and an ex-Goldman executive? A big fat clash over child support claims in this case.
Nine new startups for investors to consider.
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Tesla has a pretty sweet new loaner car program.
Interested in amazing photos? Check out these winners of the 2013 Sony World Photography Awards.
Image: Google founder Sergey Brin poses for a portrait wearing Google Glass glasses before the Diane von Furstenberg Spring/Summer 2013 collection show during New York Fashion Week September 9, 2012. Credit: Reuters/Carlo Allegri


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For online media consumers, things have improved significantly over the years. More content is made available globally than ever before.
In today’s on-demand society this is particularly important for new content. A geographical delay of a few days can be sufficient to drive some people to pirate sites.
Availability is not only important for new releases though as iconic movies and TV shows always stay in high demand. This also applies to the iconic sitcom “Friends,” which originally appeared on NBC between 1994 and 2004.
The series became a hit around the world and with the help of streaming services such as Netflix, it continues to entertain generations both old and new. That is, as long as they still have access.
Due to rights issues, streaming platforms occasionally have to pull content. In the Netherlands, this was also the case for “Friends” which left the streaming platform on December 30th of last year.
Adding to the trouble is the fact that there are no legal streaming alternatives to watch the series on-demand. At least not legally. The only option people have is to use pirate sites. And according to data gathered by TorrentFreak, many people do so.
Today most pirates use unauthorized streaming sites to watch content illegally. This traffic can’t be measured publicly, so we decided to focus on BitTorrent downloads instead, assuming that this is a good proxy for the overall interest on pirate sites.
Our data sample includes torrent piracy activity in the Netherlands for “Friends” starting on December 1, 2021 and ending on January 31, 2022.
In addition to the estimated downloads, we also added the numbers from the neighboring country Belgium as a control group. In Belgium, “Friends” remained available on Netflix for the entire period.
Dutch Piracy Spike
The graph below shows the daily download numbers over time. The absolute numbers in our sample are relatively modest, a few hundred downloads per day, but you can clearly see that the piracy numbers more than quadrupled when “Friends” left Netflix in the Netherlands.
Friends downloads (torrents)
Full-season releases are counted as one download so the number of downloaded episodes is much higher. Also, BitTorrent traffic is only a small fraction of the total piracy ecosystem, and we expect that thousands of others turned to pirate streaming sites to watch Friends.
This basic research confirms the impact that availability has on people’s motivation to pirate. That’s not just limited to new releases, but it equally applies to evergreen content.
While Hollywood might not immediately panic over a few thousand Friends downloads, this problem should not be disregarded. After all, some of these people may have used pirate sites for the first time. And once they know how it works…
From: TF, for the latest news on copyright battles, piracy and more.


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(Updated May 21, 2020)
Around the world, many markets are now planning and testing their exit strategies from living restrictions implemented to “flatten the curve” of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19). With no playbook in hand, each government is carving its own pathway to “a new normal,” complete with restrictions, health-safety protocol and changed consumer behaviors, in hopes of restarting the economy while still keeping the virus under control.
Nielsen is tracking these changes and establishing clear navigation beacons for companies trying to understand the changes and plan for what comes next. We’ll be updating this page regularly with the latest news and insights.
Three Exit Scenarios
Factoring in macroeconomic conditions and the resulting impact on consumers’ lifestyle and consumption, Nielsen has identified three exit scenarios as markets lift restrictions and begin to return to a new normal. These horizons build on the six consumer behavior thresholds we identified early in the pandemic and provide a framework for understanding the changing consumer dynamics, as well as the intensity and permanence of that change over time.
Most countries edging forward are looking toward the Rebound horizon, wherein the market successfully manages the virus and re-opens the economy after less than three months of restricted living.
However, how hard the market was impacted, if there are challenges managing the virus after lockdown, and the primary industries driving growth will mean a longer recovery time. Consumer behavior will recalibrate, drastically widening the gap between consumers and countries who remain shielded from the harshness of the economic impact and those who are not.
Australia ranks among the world’s most successful countries in containing the coronavirus pandemic. Early lockdown efforts, along with public adherence to living restrictions and widespread testing have helped keep the number of coronavirus cases low.
Given the current levels of control of the virus spread and the relative health of the economy leading into the event, the market is headed toward the Rebound horizon in the third quarter. But even as the country returns to a ‘new normal,’ it is unlikely consumers’ future routines will revert back to mirror what they did previously.
Since the pandemic, we have seen significant changes in the way consumers in the Pacific have shopped and what we have purchased during this time. For example, in Australia, households added more retailers into their repertoires. This was, in part, driven by out-of-stocks in stores, but as restricted living came into play, ‘local’ shopping also became more prevalent. In the month of March, Nielsen Homescan research revealed that all of this cross-shopping activity resulted in an increase in 30 million shopping trips.
Additionally, a number of category resets are already in play. A return to home cooking and baking has emerged as more consumers have more time on their hands at home and also use it as an opportunity to bring the family together in the kitchen. Consumers are also looking to bring the cafe experience at home, signalled by strong growth in premium coffee options such as ground coffee and coffee beans. And we have seen an increase in hair colourants in the absence of hair salons, while hair styling products have declined as people are going out less.
Some of these behaviors will revert as coffee shops and hair salons begin to reopen. However, some expectations will have fundamentally or permanently changed.
May 11 marks the beginning of a loosening of France’s restrictions, which will happen gradually, based on how active the virus is in a given area. Everyone will be required to wear masks in most places and children will be allowed to return to school, but classroom sizes will be restricted. Shops can open, but not restaurants, bars or cafes. This phased approach is an effort to enable areas least affected to Rebound or Reboot with less government assistance.
Already Bloomberg Economics estimates France’s economy will shrink by 8.6%. France’s diversified economy may help it recover faster, but tourism, aerospace and textile industry-dependent areas, as well as places where the health care system remains under pressure, may be looking at a Reinvent timeframe.
Already this pandemic has re-shaped France’s retail channel with click-and-collect and home-delivery growth booming. In the first week of restricted living, 1.2 million homes tried ordering groceries online, including almost half a million retirees.
Fifty-one percent of French respondents in a recent survey said they are eating more at home. The French are putting more fresh foods in their click-and-drive baskets than they are when they visit brick and mortar stores. While this trend isn’t expected to last post-pandemic, in the week ending April 11 charcuterie grew 169%, beans, 159%, and fruits 148%. And while sales of pasta and rice are normalizing, flour is still growing at 150% in the week ending April 11.
Interestingly, organic sales growth have been higher in these categories, a sign that French consumers see these products as higher quality. This was true especially in regions with higher incidences of families, and overall, organic products have been growing much faster than conventional goods.
“The health crisis we are going through will put a strong focus on health products, as we can already see in public opinion in Asia. And it will push distributors to go even further in the assortment of fresh products, to respond to increased consumption at home (fewer trips, more telework, less frequentation of restaurants). Two phenomena that could well benefit organic in the categories where it is still to be developed.”
Daniel Ducrocq, Retailer Services Director, Nielsen
Starting on April 14, Italy slowly began to ease its restrictions beginning with small shops, and as of May 4, construction and manufacturing were allowed to resume. By May 18, retailers and museums are expected to reopen followed by the possibility of bars, restaurants and hair salons in June. Schools, however, will remain closed until September.
As one of the first countries to go on lockdown and GDP growth of just 0.8% prior to the pandemic, Bloomberg Economics predicts a 13% contraction. While the goal is to return to “normal” by the third quarter, recovery is likely to look uneven throughout the country depending on how hard the region was hit by the virus, if there are flare ups and the primary industries supporting the region. Tourism dominant areas will likely experience a Reinvent timeline, while manufacturing-dominant regions may be able to see a Reboot.
As lockdown measures lift, there has been a slow return to brick and mortar stores, and pandemic pantry spikes have evened out, although sales of cleaning categories remain high.
On Monday, April 13, Spain’s Madrid region began lifting its strict lockdown restrictions, sending 300,000 nonessential workers back to work, mainly in manufacturing and construction, gradually moving the country towards Threshold 6 (Living a New Normal). On May 2, people were allowed to go out for walks and exercise followed by the re-opening of certain businesses, such as hairdressers. Bars and restaurants were allowed to serve pre-ordered takeaway.
In April, the Bank of Spain estimated that the country’s GDP could fall between 6.6% and 13.6% this year due to the coronavirus. According to the National Statistics Institute (INE), household spending fell by 7.5% in the first quarter. With tourism an important economic driver for the country and current unemployment rate of 14.4%, much of the country is looking at a slow recovery.
Even as the country lifts restrictions, health-safety sales growth remain high, antiseptic alcohol sales have climbed in the last few weeks landing at 355.4% in the week ending April 26, just under liquid soap at 388%.
Consumers are finding a “new normal” in their grocery behavior. E-commerce continues to grow, reaching 77.8% in the week ending April 12, while supermarket and hypermarket sales growth numbers have returned to pre-pandemic levels.
Retailers that set themselves apart by prioritizing the health of their customers, reducing touchpoints, and expanding their delivery and pick up services, will be able to clearly differentiate themselves during a pivotal moment.
The end of April marked the beginning of many states lifting restrictions after lockdown or partial shutdown. About half of the states have reopened various businesses, with a handful to follow in the coming days. Given the divergent policies across the states, it’s likely that some regions will Rebound more quickly than others, which will likely face a protracted recovery into the Reboot or Reinvent horizons.
Still, the country as a whole faces a long road ahead economically. In the first quarter, the GDP shrank 4.8%, while predictions for the second quarter are ranging from -38.8% to- 65%. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is predicting that the U.S. will account for a 31% decline in the worldwide GDP this year.
Seven-in-10 Americans (71%) expect the spread and intensity of the virus’ impact in their country to increase, and almost a third, 28%, suspect that the situation will last six months or more. With 54% of U.S. respondents saying they are cooking more at home, pantry and center-of-store items are experiencing the strongest growth. Purchases of frozen and shelf-stable fruit grew at 3-5x the rate of fresh fruit in the year-to-date period ended April 4.
Pantry items such as powdered milk and dried beans have leveled off some, but are still high at 39.1% and 67.4%, respectively in the week ended April 25. Health-safety products continue to be important, and consumers are taking interest in these items where stock has been replenished. Hand sanitizer, for example, has regained momentum up 420% in sales growth in the week ended April 25.
We see evidence of a homebody economy emerging, following similar trends we’ve seen in Asia. The total volume of TV and COVID-19-related conversations on Twitter alone reached nearly 9 million since the start of 2020 in the U.S.—a staggering 40X increase between January and March amid the peak novelty of the coronavirus pandemic. With most kids still at home for the foreseeable future and limited childcare options, 300% more kids 6-11 and teens 12-17 are watching TV at mid-day (12 p.m.).
Consumers are certainly leveraging e-commerce to safely gain access to essentials. The channel has seen a 46% increase in buyers since the pandemic. In store purchase frequency, on the other hand, has taken a nosedive since the pandemic, but basket size continued to increase in the week ending April 18.
We’re monitoring these patterns closely, as they are still evolving. And we will continue to track how markets around the world begin to emerge into a new normal.
INTERESTED IN More MARKET-SPECIFIC INSIGHTS ARound THE IMPACT OF COVID-19 ON CONSUMER BEHAVIOR?
Responding to Consumers’ COVID-19 Concerns
As more markets begin to emerge from lockdowns, there are some early signs that our consumer habits will be forever changed by COVID-19. Three critical accelerators will fast track long-term behavioral shifts. We’ve identified a few ways businesses can prepare for shifting consumer demands as markets move through the six thresholds.
Emphasize Quality and Efficacy
Throughout the thresholds, consumers will be seeking greater assurance that the products they buy are free of risk and of the highest quality when it comes to safety standards and efficacy, particularly with respect to cleaning products, antiseptics and food items. In the short term, this intensified demand from consumers will require manufacturers, retailers and other related industry players to clearly communicate why their products and supply chains should be trusted. In the longer term, and dependent on the eventual scale and impact that COVID-19 has on consumer markets, it may speed up a re-think on how shoppers evaluate purchases and the benefits that they see as the key factors to consider.
Be Transparent About Local Origins
More than ever, shoppers want to understand the supply chain, with complete transparency from farm to factory to distribution, and they want details of the measures being taken to assure their safety. Promoting a product’s local origins could help manufacturers and retailers assuage some consumer concerns. A Nielsen survey on disloyalty last year found that global consumers report being heavily swayed by origin: 11% of global consumers said they only bought products manufactured in their country while an additional 54% “mostly” bought local products.
With millions working from home and digital connectivity taking even more of a hold on everyday habits, consumers will have greater motivations and fewer perceived barriers to more actively seek technology-enabled solutions to assist in everyday tasks like shopping. Companies that can leverage technologies—by meeting changing consumer demands online, enabling seamless interactions through direct-to-consumer offerings and enhancing consumer experience with augmented and virtual realities—have the opportunity to earn consumer loyalty well after consumers’ concerns subside.


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Asus 9Z aka Zenfone 9 leaked video and specifications leave nothing to the imagination.
A leaked video shows the Asus Zenfone 9 aka 9Z with a Snapdragon processor, dual cameras, and a 4300mAh battery.
Asus recently launched the ROG Phone 6 Series in global and Indian markets, and the company is now preparing to launch its next flagship Z Series device. The Asus Zenfone 9 is expected to go official in the coming months, as evidenced by a video that was accidentally shared and revealed the entire design and specifications of the device.
Asus Zenfone 9 Design and Specifications
Tipster Abhishek Yadav has shared a video of the Zenfone 9, which appears to be an official advertisement and showcases the smartphone's design and specifications.
Asus Zenfone 9 #AsusZenfone9 #Android Abhishek Yadav (@yabhishekhd) originally tweeted this.
According to the video, the Asus Zenfone 9 is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 chipset and comes with a 4300mAh battery that supports fast charging. It will have a 5.9-inch FHD+ AMOLED display, a refresh rate of 120Hz, and a compact design that will fit easily into your pocket.
The video shows a dual-camera setup with a 50MP Sony IMX766 sensor and a 6-axis gimbal module for video stabilization on the back end. The Zenfone 9 has a fingerprint sensor on the side, a headphone jack, stereo speakers, and an IP68 rating for water and dust resistance.
The Zenfone 9 is shown in four different colorways in the video: red, white, grey/blue, and black. It has a minimalist design theme and no camera hump, but the lenses protrude significantly.
Because almost everything about the smartphone has already been revealed, the launch appears to be imminent. Asus will reveal more information about storage and pricing when the smartphone is released. Keep an eye on this space for more information.


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The number of confirmed and probable E. coli O145 infections remained steady at 29 today, but additional recalls were announced as evidence of additional contaminated product surfaced. CIDRAP reported on developing news on a number of fronts:
- Location of the outbreak strain of E. coli O145 in Freshway bagged romaine lettuce: "the New York State Public Health Laboratory found the outbreak strain in an unopened bag of shredded romaine distributed by Freshway."
- Freshway recall, update on products and states: Freshway has now recalled "72 different types of bagged lettuce" in 23 states.
- Yuma, AZ farm implicated, second firm recalls lettuce from same farm: "Vaughan Foods of Moore, Okla., said it was recalling bagged romaine with a sell-by date of either May 9 or May 10." CIDRAP reports that FDA has confirmed this link.
- Second, independent strain of pathogenic E. coli isolated in Freshway bag: "the Ohio Department of Agriculture has also tested bagged lettuce implicated in the outbreak and found a second, unrelated strain of E. coli in a bag of shredded romaine from Freshway."
- Second strain leads to additional recall of lettuce: Andrew Smith Co. of California launched a recall of "1,000 cartons or about 23,000 pounds of lettuce sold to Vaughan Foods and to an unidentified third firm in Massachusetts.
Perhaps most remarkable, given the broad impact and the number of illnesses, is the likelihood that investigators are only seeing the tip of the iceberg. "The CDC said last week that many clinical laboratories do not test for O145 because the assay is more difficult to perform, and that therefore cases caused by the strain may be underreported."


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Please note, this program ended 09/30/2018, ATR no longer accepts residential materials at any of our facilities.
Free TV Recycling ends for Michigan Residents
ATR (Advanced Technology Recycling) Grand Rapids Michigan announced today they will no longer be accepting residential drop offs after August 1, 2018. “The free program was rebooted during the Flint Water Crisis in 2016 and to date has prevented nearly 6 Million pounds of unwanted electronics containing large amounts of Lead from entering Michigan landfills.” said Brodie Ehresman a spokesperson for ATR. “While the eyes of the nation were fixated on Flints water ATR turned their attention to protecting the land” continues Ehresman. “We wanted to help and ATR was uniquely positioned to make a huge impact on reducing Lead and other contaminants destined to end up in Michigan landfills” said Ehresman. “So far we’ve diverted 3.3 Million pounds of CRT (Cathode Ray Tube) TVs and 2.5 Million pounds of old printers, flat panel devices, computers, phones and other misc electronics free of charge” continued Ehresman.
Did the campaign work?
“Free recycling programs like this are becoming increasingly hard to maintain because our logistics costs have increased dramatically” said Ehresman. Despite the increases, ATR launched an aggressive campaign in Michigan that allowed collectors, counties and competing recycling companies an opportunity to funnel devices through ATRs program provided they met the Michigan OEM Take Back program guidelines and it’s done free of charge. “The campaign was a total success” said Ehresman “we went from 163K in 2015 to 2.2M in 2016 which peaked at 3.1M in 2017”. Based on a 5 year report from the MDEQ collection volumes have been steadily dropping since 2014 as the old style CRTs are eliminated from the stream.
Michigan does not have a landfill ban on CRTs (Cathode Ray Tube) TVs which contain an average of 4-8 pounds of Lead per TV. The unwanted electronics also contain a toxic mix of Mercury, Cadmium, Brominated Flame Retardants (BFRs) and Polyvinyl chloride (PVC), Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCB) and should only be disposed of by a R2 (Responsible Recycling) certified company. Despite being the first state to initiate a mandatory bottle deposit Michigan has struggled to keep pace with other states recycling programs. According to a 2014 report roughly 435 Million dollars worth of recyclable materials were being land filled each year. Michiganders currently dispose of 49 billion cubic yards of material every year, 40 percent of which is recyclable and 35 percent of which could be composted. Governor Rick Snyder recently told reporters, “We got complacent” and later added “failing to boost the state’s 15% recycling rate has been one of the most disappointing initiatives I’ve had in my time as governor” Although previous programs have fallen short of what was expected more strategies are being considered and Gov. Snyder recently announced a 79 Million dollar Proposal designed to increase recycling and material recovery in Michigan.
Why is the program ending?
“This was our most expensive campaign to date but it was the right thing to do at the right time” said Ehresman. “We literally outgrew our old building, starting wages went up $2.00 per hour, fleet vehicles were added, fuel prices increased but ultimately it was the freight costs that ended the program”. There has been a shortage of drivers and according to a recent article posted to the Bloomberb Business Section ELD (Electronic Logging Devices) are partly to blame as operations cost go up and drivers attempting to cheat the system go down. The majority of ELD’s including the ones being used in all ATR fleet vehicles are directly connected to the vehicles onboard computer through the OBDII (On Board Diagnostics) interface port and use GPS and Cellular technologies to communicate in real time. The devices can alert dispatchers of a wide range of conditions including speeding violations, hours in operation and even missed waypoints like mandatory weigh stations. Technology savvy companies like ATR welcomed these devices and equipped all their trucks with them years ago. The ELDs can provide conclusive proof the chain of custody was not broken and their customers can now see reports in real time to show exact cargo locations. These technological marvels also pin point exactly how long a truck is on the road so drivers who exceeded their 11 hour allotment will now be forced to take a mandatory 10 hour break before heading back out.
Advanced Technology Recycling (ATR) was formed in 2002 to meet the growing need of Business-to-Business customers seeking transparent and reliable ITAM (Information Technology Asset Management) Recycling solutions. The company’s original retail store was opened in 1992 by the parent company B & K Technology Solutions as a traditional Value Added Re-seller (VAR) and technology service provider. ATR’s senior management team has been providing ITAD (Information Technology Asset Disposition) sales and service since 1992. Over the past 25 years ATR has grown into one of the world’s leading electronics recycling companies and ATR specializes in customized solution and programs enabling their clients to realize higher investment recovery, lowered overall cost of end of life services and risk mitigation allowing each client to focus on their business without worrying about asset disposition and recycling. An updated list of accepted items can be found on their website www.ATReCycle.com or visit their social media site at www.Facebook.com/ATReCycle to chat with one of their customer service representatives.
Author Brodie Ehresman


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Motorists fear they may be charged for overstaying after they got stuck in a gridlocked car park for up to two hours. Parc Tawe, on the eastern edge of Swansea city centre, is home to a range of shops and visitor attractions, including an Odeon cinema, Plantasia tropical house an Aldi supermarket, Denny's pancake house, and a Costa Coffee.
Earlier this week the latest attraction, a Ninja Warrior UK adventure park, opened its doors for the first time to customers. For many years there was only one way in and one way out of Parc Tawe, and there have been problems in the past with queues of drivers trying to exit, reports Wales Online.
But in 2021 Swansea Council gave permission for a second entrance-only access point into the site from Quay Parade. However, it seems the infrastructure is still struggling to cope with the sheer number of visitors arriving by car, and with the less-than-summery weather driving people to seek indoor entertainment on Sunday, July 24, the car park pretty much ground to a halt according to reports from motorists.
Amongst those trapped in the "chaos" was Elin Jones who was left struggling just to exit her parking bay for 40 minutes as traffic around her vehicle was gridlocked. Having visited Tenpin bowling and Dirty Fries Company with friends, Elin was left concerned about being fined after eventually exiting the car park two hours over the allocated three hour period.
Parc Tawe car park is monitored by Alliance Parking, a parking management authority which states on signs people can park for three hours for free unless making use of facilities offered by the retail park - venues can offer up to 12 hours of free parking for customers by taking down their car registration.
"I enquired about being fined for overstaying and they told me I would need to appeal and provide evidence for using the facilities, I asked if they could help with camera footage to show how long I was stuck there for and they said they were unable to do so. I was stuck not being able to move and it just showcases how badly designed their car park is, the new turning in entrance outside of ALDI does no benefit to anyone, it creates more traffic in the car park and it was gridlocked" said Elin.
Other frustrated motorists also reported queuing for three-quarters-of-an-hour or more just to find a space, while those lucky enough to bag a parking spot said it was taking up to an hour to get out of the car park.
Another of those caught up in the car "chaos" was Nicky Thomas who took a family trip to Ninja Warrior UK. He said they spent an hour trying to exit the Parc Tawe car park, and the chaos had made him think twice about whether he would return.
He said: "The car park was chaos. It took nearly an hour to get out, and it spoilt what was a nice trip to Ninja Warrior and Treatz. It’s ridiculous that the council has now got two entries, and only one exit. Getting out of the car park has been an issue for many years and why they introduced another entrance I will never know. The situation will certainly make us think twice about visiting again."
Mr Thomas said that while it was just a frustration for families like his, being stuck in a car for an hour could be more serious for those with health issues.
Parc Tawe management said that the retail park had become a victim of its own success, saying the priority was to benefit customers making use of the facilities located there.
Have you had problems in car parks? Let us know in the comments section
As one of the few remaining areas for free parking in Swansea, managers said there were challenges shifting visitor behaviour away from using the site for a means of their own parking for the city centre. They said there were over 148 signs, and instructions and rules were clear that the car park was for users of the Parc Tawe facilities only.
They said they were considering switching to just two hours free parking to act as a deterrent. They also added that measures had been taken to alleviate the problems, with increased traffic light intervals, and that all bonafide users of the site would not be fined as long as they provided sufficient evidence.
- Seagulls killed and nests destroyed in 'cruel' Anglesey attack, says shocked witness
- 'Crazy' visitors abandon still-lit BBQ with burning burgers at fire-risk beauty spot in Snowdonia


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Business events and economic reports scheduled for the coming week:
WASHINGTON -- Commerce Department releases personal income and spending for February. National Association of Realtors releases pending home sales index for February.
WASHINGTON -- Standard & Poor's releases S&P/Case-Shiller index of home prices for January. Conference Board releases the Consumer Confidence Index for March.
Earnings reports: American Eagle, Sonic
Earnings reports: Carnival Corp., EF Hutton
WASHINGTON -- Labor Department releases weekly jobless claims. Freddie Mac, the mortgage company, releases weekly mortgage rates.
BERLIN -- Germany's Federal Labor Agency releases March unemployment figures for Europe's biggest economy
WASHINGTON -- Labor Department releases employment data for March. Institute for Supply Management releases its manufacturing index for March. Commerce Department releases construction spending for February.
DETROIT -- Automakers release vehicle sales for March.
-- Staff and wire reports


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Innovators And Influencers 2005Innovators And Influencers 2005
Our annual lineup of industry players to watch may be diverse in its makeup, but they all have two things in common: a keen sense of innovation and a knack for success
December 18, 2004
Power To The People
Al Vermeulen, Amazon.com Inc.'s chief technology officer, works at the intersection of business processes, software interfaces, and human creativity. Vermeulen is responsible for putting the power of the Amazon Web site into the hands of partners by exposing the retailer's internally developed technical capabilities as Web services. "What we try to do is break apart a piece of the business. From a technology point of view, that becomes a service," he said in an interview earlier this year. Now in its third year, Amazon's initiative has attracted 65,000 outside developers, resulting in a buzz of E--commerce activity on "associate" Web sites that flows through to Amazon. Web sites like www.shopforpowertools.com are given access to Amazon features such as item pricing and wish lists, while suppliers whose products are sold on Amazon can use its Web services to manage inventory.
Photo by Andy ReynoldsSome enterprising developers have created Web-commerce software using Amazon's Web services that they sell to others in the expanding Amazon network. "We've learned that there was even more value than we thought there was going to be in some of the internal pieces that we have and making them accessible to the outside world," says Vermeulen, a licensed pilot who flies to work. "People have been very creative in the kind of applications they've built on our Web services." When Amazon launched its Web-services program back in July 2002, "it was really kind of an experiment," says Vermeulen, former CTO of Rogue Wave Software and co-author of a book on Java programming. The onetime experiment has evolved into a successful business model that continues to grow. In October, Amazon released the latest version of its Web services, called Amazon E-commerce Services 4.0. The update gives developers an even richer set of capabilities with which to work, including detailed information such as color and size on all Amazon products, access to Amazon's image database, advanced search capability, and a shopping-cart feature. In other words, Amazon's technical staff has found a way to take the company's internal innovations and make them fertile ground for the bright ideas of others. Says Vermeulen, "It's just amazing what they'll build." --John Foley
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- Walmart is planning on moving to a new campus in northwest Arkansas in the next few years.
- The move might remind some of Amazon’s much-touted search for a second headquarters, which it called HQ2.
- But Walmart’s plan showcases a major difference between the two retailers.
Walmart is gearing up to move into a snazzy new Bentonville, Arkansas, headquarters, but don’t think for a second that this move is anything like Amazon’s HQ2 search.Walmart’s new home will span 300 acres in northwest Arkansas. Almost all of Walmart’s Arkansas-based corporate employees will begin to work in this new Stanford-inspired campus when it’s finally ready around 2024.But while Walmart is certainly upgrading and expanding, it’s taking a far more low-key approach than its online rival. In fact, this plan serves to throw the differences between Walmart and Amazon into stark contrast.Amazon’s search for a second headquarters was hyper-publicized since it was first announced in September 2017, unrolling like a particularly lengthy season of a reality competition show. Politicians from across the continent groveled in the press, raving about sweet tax deals and perks like aquarium memberships they were rolling out in order to entice the online retail giant.
But the spotlight proved to have a corrosive effect. Amazon’s decision to split the HQ2 in northern Virginia and New York City, was deflating for some, as was the selection of two already wealthy locales. Many observers had noted that Amazon could boost its reputation by selecting a location in need of jobs.And then, of course, there was the highly politicized implosion of Amazon’s proposed Long Island City headquarters, which ultimately resulted in the online retailer’s decision to pull the plug on its New York excursion.Rather than scan the country, Walmart stuck with its roots and remained in its birthplace of Arkansas. Its move was less about signaling growth, and more about corralling the company’s increasingly sprawling corporate presence. Amazon’s national challenge may have pushed the envelope, drawn intense attention, and cemented the company’s status as a powerful disruptor in the worlds of both finance and politics. Walmart, on the other hand, made a comparatively quiet and uncontroversial move, highlighting how different these two companies are.


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MODELS strutted their stuff at a fundraising fashion show in Market Weighton last week, which raised hundreds of pounds for the town’s Community Hall.
The event, organised by the Edinburgh Woollen Mill outlet from Langlands Garden Centre in Shiptonthorpe, was held at the hall on Wednesday 20 March and attracted more than 80 local residents.
Stephen King, chairman of the hall, explained: “It was a great success, both socially and in terms of the monies raised towards the Community Hall Refurbishment Fund.
“After expenses were deducted, over £400 was raised through tickets sales and the proceeds from a raffle.
“82 ladies, and a few gentlemen, had a very enjoyable evening and were impressed with the arrangements, the models were excellent and the range of spring fashions on show was superb.”
Work on the hall’s new kitchen is underway, which is being funded by a WREN grant of £8,900 and contributions from the Community Hall, Market Weighton Town Council and the Market Weighton Community Shop.


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Choupette entered the catwalk of Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Russia
Choupette®, a Russian brand of clothes for children, took part in Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Russia. It was a major event in the national fashion world which gathered dozens of the most interesting representatives of the Russian fashion industry.
At the catwalk, Choupette® presented creations of two limited collections of spring-summer season 2018. A distinguished Fleur de Paris collection was inspired by images of Paris, blooming garden landscapes, and natural elegance of Parisians. The brand identity is represented by luxurious suits for special occasions from the Ceremony collection. The flying silhouettes, lacework, and embroidery on thin fabrics in combination with miniature accessories created tender and romantic images.
The catwalk of the models was accompanied by Sofia Fisenko singing. The young singer, a participant of The Voice Kids Project, performed Fairyland, Choupette® official sound track.
“The participation in catwalks of the Fashion Week became an inherent part of our brand tradition”, - Anastasia Vasilkova, Choupette® Business Development Director said. “We are proud to demonstrate our new collection, our creative vision of modern trends. For us, it is important to represent a national brand globally. In Moscow, Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Russia is one of the main events in the national fashion world; it is in the focus of both Russian and foreign fashion industry professionals, journalists and bloggers.”


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• Internet News
Even after so many countless lost laptops resulted in compromised data, including a lost medical laptop earlier this month, a Massachusetts medical center has been left red-faced after a lost laptop compromised the personal and medical information of 3,500 patients.
Incidents like this are expensive for all parties involved, and despite laptop vendors offering all manner of encryption, protection, laptop location technologies and other security, we still have unprotected laptops disappearing. What are the implications? Check out eSecurity Planet for the uncomfortable realities.
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In early August, Elon Musk said X would only take a cut of its creators’ subscription revenue on the platform if their payouts topped $100,000 in lifetime earnings, a more generous offer than Musk’s prior deal, which delayed taking its 10% cut for the first 12 months of a creator’s subscription revenue. The move looked designed to attract more creators to sell subscriptions on X, which in turn could boost X’s non-advertising revenue. Notably, X requires creators to subscribe to its subscription offering, formerly Twitter Blue, in order to sell their own subscriptions.
Musk was hardly going out on a limb by offering a free pass. As the chart above shows, social networks are offering to take little of creators’ subscription revenue to get these fledgling products going. Our update on subscription take rates, last published in January 2022, shows that Meta Platforms apps are the most generous. They aren’t taking any cuts until at least 2024, the company said in June 2022.


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NEW YORK — The J.C. Penney Experience pop-up store that opens today at 1 Times Square is as much a showcase for technology as it is for the company’s branding campaign.
Twenty-two Internet kiosks throughout the 15,000-square-foot space allow shoppers to purchase — but not take home with them — the company’s total merchandise offering. Scattered throughout the virtual store’s three levels are 42-inch plasma screens from NEC, pulsing with TV spots that will bow with Sunday’s Academy Awards broadcast.
Some 60 miles of cable run through the building, powering Internet connections, audio, lighting and video — and the 30,000 square feet of graphics on the building’s famous exterior.
What’s missing are cash registers, said Tim Lyons, a Penney spokesman. All purchases made on the touch-screen kiosks will be fulfilled through Penney’s electronic commerce infrastructure, which now supports $1 billion in annual online sales.
The virtual store’s reliance on Penney’s electronic commerce platform will highlight the strength of that channel, another spokesman said, and enable the company to track and analyze customer behavior in ways that are not possible in a traditional store.
“I think this is a recognition that storefronts aren’t necessarily how you deliver customers the best service,” said Karl Bjornson, a retail specialist at Kurt Salmon Associates who has consulted on pop-up stores since 2003. “I’ve been after retailers in New York to do this for a long time,” he added.
The virtual store, open until March 26, may face some challenges, however.
“It’s probably one of the most visible buildings in the world, but one of the most difficult buildings [for pedestrians] to get to,” said Kenneth Nisch, chairman of JGA, a Southfield, Mich., retail design firm. “It sits in a sea of probably the busiest traffic you can think of, coming in all directions.”
JGA designed the Warner Bros. Studio store that once occupied the same space as Penney’s virtual store. JGA also designed the Times Square Hershey store and a virtual store in Hong Kong that relied on kiosks and Internet-based fulfillment.
Nisch said Penney may be missing an opportunity for repeat store visits by fulfilling orders exclusively through the Internet. Had Penney offered the option for shoppers to ship their purchases to another Penney store for pickup, for example, it might reap additional sales. The Hong Kong cyber mall offers this option.
“Obviously, the big advantage is, you get people in the door twice — once when they order and again when they pick it up — and sometimes that second visit is even more productive than the first visit,” he said.


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"The president stole your land."
With those bold words on a stark black screen, Patagonia launched very public opposition to the dramatic downsizing of two national monuments, stating, “In an illegal move, the president just reduced the size of Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monuments. This is the largest elimination of protected land in American history.”
Included on that page was a call to action, which allowed individuals to become actively involved in the protest of the reduction of nearly two million acres from federal protection with a few clicks on the keyboard. More than just an advertising or branding campaign, Patagonia also filed a lawsuit to fight the decision in court that same day.
During these uncertain times, one thing is clear: It's no longer enough for an organization to have a mission statement - they must also have a purpose - and they must make good on that purpose.
This is new, and somewhat shaky, ground for most brands to navigate, but consumers today expect it. According to a recent study, 'two-thirds of consumers (66%) say it’s important for brands to take public stands on social and political issues."
Stand for Something
Realistically, it's likely safe to say that everyone reading this has seen the Nike ad "Dream Crazy," featuring Colin Kaepernick, as well as the uproar that followed. Despite protestations that included angry customers burning Nike products on social media, Nike remained strong in their stance, and consumers rewarded them. The week the ad debuted, Nike's sales increased by 31%, doubling their increase over the same time period a year prior.
Existing along the path of least resistance will no longer do; companies cannot merely say they stand for something - they must actually be perceived as standing up for those causes and societal issues.
Simply put, if they don't meet the expectations of consumers, rest assured, there will be a brand more than willing to do so: "Nearly 60% (57%) of consumers are more likely to buy from or boycott a brand because of its stance on a social or political issue. And for these “belief-driven buyers,” silence is not an option."
“It’s never been more important for brands to have a purpose," said Stacy Minero, Head of Brand Strategy for Twitter’s #Fuel team. “People are looking for brands to be more of a moral compass, and to stand for something,” she said.
Stacy delivered the receipts in the form of data:
- 75% of consumers want brands to make contributions to their well-being and quality of life
- 57% will buy or boycott a brand based on its position on a social or political issue. “Remember when the NFL was the safest bet you could place?” she asked.
- 30% are buying or boycotting more than they were a year ago
"There is No Finish Line" Nike claimed in one of their famous ad campaigns, but it seems we are living in a time that directly juxtaposes this message, indeed, there is a finish line: Consumers will end their relationships with brands that are not reflective of their societal values.
The Power of Purpose
It would seem only natural that during times of societal upheaval, people seek out security and comfort. While individuals might feel as though they can do very little to affect change, or might be constrained by the ability to make the time to be active themselves, they are recognizing over and over again the power that they wield through their purchase habits.
Airbnb has turned the hotel industry upside down with their innovative model, but they've also developed a strong and loyal consumer base by taking a very outspoken stance for their values. They ran a Super Bowl ad in 2017, declaring #WeAccept all - as a rebuke to Donald Trump's immigration ban, and during Trump's 2018 State of the Union speech, they ran an ad at the same time, highlighting Trump's derogatory comments about immigrants.
Lyft is teaming up with the Urban League, Vote.Org, and TurboVote to offer free and discounted rides to the polls on election day in November, entering into the political fray to represent those who they believe are not well-represented.
Alicia Tillman, CMO of SAP, notes, "our founding purpose is to build technology that helps customers improve the economy, the environment, and society as a whole – to ultimately help the world run better and improve people’s lives." She cited SAP's conservation efforts in Africa, and their dedication to ending forced labor by increasing transparency in the supply chain.
While the political future remains unclear, there is no doubt that brands play a massive role in societal issues that historically fell within the responsibility of government to decide. Quite simply, they must actively work to protect the values of their customers, or risk losing them.


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Turkey to get their first Apple Store Amid Twitter Ban
What will happen to your country when twitter is banned, i bet the case will be the same in this country which also banned Youtube on Thursday due to a contentious election process.
Despite the unrest, Apple’s first official Apple Retail Store in Turkey will open in Istanbul on April 5th. The new store is located in the center of the Zorlu Center mall, and the official announcement has come in the form of emails to customers in Turkey and on a banner around the physical store according to 9to5mac.
Apparently there are demonstrations expected and its reported that Apple has told its employees at the Istanbul Apple Store, most of whom are American, to remain indoors on Sunday, the day of the elections, according to 9to5Mac.
Store images courtesy of webrazzi,


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Village Farms (NASDAQ:VFF) has had a good run lately. In the last year, the share price has risen by over 500% to around $13 a share from a low of $2.07. Since November 2020 when the firm completed its acquisition of Pure Sunfarms from Emerald Health Therapeutics, shares have more than doubled in value.
Village Farms is one of the largest and longest-operating greenhouse growers in North America. It operates over nine million square feet of greenhouses in British Columbia and Texas as well as partner greenhouses in Ontario and Mexico. The firm has over 30 years’ experience cultivating and distributing fresh produce to national grocers in the US and Canada.
In 2018, Village Farms changed tack from its core fruit and veg business – converting existing greenhouses from crops such as tomatoes and flowers – and started producing cannabis in a joint venture (Pure Sunfarms) with Emerald Health Therapeutics. Emerald would purchase 40% of Pure Sunfarms’ production for the years 2018 and 2019, subsequently completing its acquisition in November 2020.
Sales on the rise at Village Farms
Since receiving its retail licence in Q3 2019, Pure Sunfarms sales have been on a consistent upward trend. By Q3 2020, it was the top-selling brand of dried flower products in Ontario, Canada’s largest provincial market. According to Ontario Cannabis Store (OCS), Village Farms had a 15% dried flower market share by volume.
For the nine months to 30th September 2020, both Village Farms and Pure Sunfarms consolidated sales were $162.3 million. However, Pure Sunfarms accounted for around 25% of sales, with gross margins of just under 40%. Pure SunFarms has been profitable on a net income basis for seven consecutive quarters.
The company believes that it can sustain this profitability because not only is the physical infrastructure already in place, but many of the greenhouses effectively hold 20 years of climate data.
Positioned for growth in the US and beyond
Village Farms is positioning itself as a high tech, low cost vertically integrated, agricultural consumer-driven business and it is aggressively pursuing high-growth opportunities in emerging legal cannabis and related markets in the United States, Canada and Australia.
The firm’s Texas site is ready for hemp production when it receives the go-ahead from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). In Canada it is aiming to grow the number of stores in Ontario from 300 to 1000 in the next year. The firm also has a foothold in Europe – last year it became one of six equal shareholders in a Netherlands-based cannabis business.
Canada’s legalisation of cannabis in 2018 as well as the prospect of four years’ Democrat government in the US and the possible legalisation of cannabis has had a significant effect on the share price. As Village Farms’ CEO, Michael DeGiglio said at a recent investor conference: “The big focus is on cannabis.” But he also emphasised that they are well-positioned for long-term growth.
With the US considered to be one of the largest potential marketplaces for cannabis, and Goldman Sachs and Marshall Wace already dipping their toes in, he may be right.


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When I started my personal journey as a marketer back in 2009, “content marketing” was a brand new buzzword that few marketers actually understood. My personal brand was built on content marketing and thought leadership pieces because I realized that making a great first impression online was, and is, one of the best investments a marketing leader can make.
Within a few years, however, some people were boldly predicting that content marketing and written content would become less popular, replaced by trendier forms of marketing, like influencer marketing and video content. Fortunately, they were … wrong.
The results from Zazzle Media’s third annual State of Content Marketing Survey show why. Zazzle says it spoke with“thousands of marketers” and discovered that content marketing is become increasingly relevant as more companies get better at it. Here are three of the more interesting findings from that survey:
1. Almost half (41 percent) of all marketing budgets are spent on content.
In 2018, only 23 percent of marketing budgets among companies surveys were earmarked for content marketing, Zazzle said. In 2019 — just one year later — that number is up to 41 percent. That’s an impressive 78 percent increase in content spend in just one year.
The Content Marketing Institute reported a similar finding: Successful B2B marketers surveyed reported spending 40 percent of their marketing budgets on content, the Institute found.
What’s more, over two-thirds of respondents, according to Zazzle, said they expected the percentage of their marketing budgets reserved for content creation to rise next year (2020) as well.
What type of content is being produced at such a high volume? Despite claims to the contrary, written content is still king, having topped out email marketing, social media posts and video content to take the No. 1 spot. Again, according to Zazzle Media, 98 percent of all marketers surveyed said that written content was still their main output. Video marketing came in at 72 percent, while interactive content was named as dominating 26 percent of the budget pie.
Written content and blogs will continue to be the main priority for 77 percent of marketers in 2019, according to Zazzle, while SEO and email marketing come in at second and third place, with 45 percent and 42 percent of respondents, respectively, focused on these strategies. Only 40 percent of respondents are prioritizing video content for 2019.
2. Content marketing is increasingly aligned with business goals
Another research outfit, Smart Insights, reported that marketers rank content marketing as the No. 1 activity they believe will have the biggest impact on their businesses in the near future. This mirrored Zazzle Media’s findings, in which 89 percent of respondents indicated that content marketing tied in to their wider business goals in 2019 (up 44 percent from 2018). That’s an increase of nearly 100 percent.
What are those aligned business goals, according to Zazzle’s research?
76 percent of respondents indicated that brand awareness is the main goal of their content
61 percent responded that lead generation is the main goal
39 percent indicated that improved search engine visibility is the main goal
These results are somewhat surprising. The content-marketing landscape — as well as the attitude of executives toward content marketing — has clearly changed. Just five years ago, immediately improved search-engine visibility was at the top of most marketers’ minds.
But today, even the way marketers are measuring the ROI of their content marketing has changed, again according to Zazzle:
89 percent of respondents looked for increased website traffic
65 percent looked for improved SEO rankings
62 percent looked for increased subscriber growth
Only 51 percent of respondents said they looked for increased sales as a measure of content ROI. It seems, then, that more marketers are beginning to understand that content marketing is a long-term play.
3. Voice search is a growing marketing priority
When was the last time you asked Alexa or Siri to play a certain song or tell you what the weather was like? Each time you do this, you’re using what’s called voice search, an increasingly important search category that marketing leaders really need to pay more attention to.
How popular is voice search in 2019? There are now more than a billion voice searches each month, andtwo-thirds of all smartphone users, according to Microsoft’s 2019 Voice report, regularly use voice search assistants on a daily basis.
How are marketers responding to this growing search category? Surprisingly, only11percent of marketers included voice search in their content marketing strategy in 2018, according to the Zazzle study. Indeed, most marketers said they were still confused by how to factor voice into their content marketing plan:
62 percent of marketers said it’s “too soon to tell” whether voice search investment will deliver any meaningful results for their business
42 percent indicated that they are going to try and integrate voice search into their marketing efforts for 2019
According to a comScore prediction, voice search will comprise over 50 percent of all searches by 2020, so knowing how to optimize your content production schedule to include voice keyword coverage is paramount.
Written content is still king.
Why is written content still so popular? Aside from the way in which current search engines work, the answer may lie in simple human psychology.
Not only is written content the easiest form of content for most brands to produce (in terms of both cost and time), but humans are hard-wired in school to gather information by reading, and the internet has only made this easier than ever before.
For example, did you know that millennials actually read even more than older generations? According to the Pew Research Center, millennials are much more likely to have read a book in the past year than baby boomers or Gen X’ers. They also prefer to read the news rather than watch it.
So the bottom line is this: Written content isn’t going anywhere anytime soon, and all marketing leaders would be smart to recognize that fact.


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An interesting and provocative article arguing that, despite the widespread currency of the term Unified Communications, real UC — products that “facilitate the interactive use of multiple enterprise communications methods … integrate communications channels (media), networks and systems, as well as IT business applications and, in some cases, consumer applications and devices” according to Gartner — is farther away now than it has ever been.
With robocalls on the rise across the country — to say nothing of traditional telemarketing and other types of unwanted calls — a variety of smartphone apps provide users the ability to easily screen and block calls and even texts.
The European Commission is expected to announce the most divisive elements of its digital single market strategy towards the end of the year, setting tech companies and national regulators alike on edge.
The carrier has announced a new wireless service, to be rolled out by the end of the year, designed to connect low-power smart devices using the CAT-M1 standard. Verizon hopes that this service will head off smaller competitors operating in the unlicensed spectrum.
Skype for Business Server and Microsoft’s new Cloud PBX have many key features that remain undeveloped, but are gradually becoming viable alternatives to traditional systems for enterprises.


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Cost of feeding a family of four: $146 to $289 a week
- Dietitian%3A You can eat healthfully on %24146 a week%2C but you have to plan
- The liberal plan allows for more expensive cuts of meat%2C types of seafood
- Planned-overs can save money and time
The cost of feeding a family of four a healthy diet can run $146 to $289 a week, according to the latest numbers from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
That's based on preparing all the meals and snacks at home for a couple with two school-aged children. It doesn't include one-dollar deals at fast-food restaurants or splurges at pricey restaurants.
The USDA uses national food intake data and grocery price information to calculate different costs for a healthy diet at home. The latest numbers for a four-member family: a thrifty food plan, $146 a week; a low-cost food plan, $191 a week; a moderate-cost plan, $239; a liberal plan, $289 a week. Some food waste is built into these costs.
"We constantly hear the claim that you can't eat healthy on a budget, and to us that's a myth because a family can eat a healthy diet with fruits and vegetables that meets the Dietary Guidelines for Americans," says Robert Post, associate executive director of the USDA's Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion.
Costs today are up from 10 years ago, when a thrifty-cost food plan for a family of four was $108; a low-cost food plan, $139; moderate-cost plan, $173; a liberal plan, $208 a week.
The price of a moderate-cost healthy plan went up 38% between 2003 and 2013, says Mark Lino, a USDA economist. The cost of food in general went up 32%, he says. During that time period, inflation was about 26%, he says.
But you do have to use "smart shopping strategies" like the ones on www.choosemyplate.gov, Post says.
The thrifty plan is used as the basis of SNAP, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, formerly known as food stamps. Eating a healthy diet on that amount of money means buying the lowest-cost fruits and vegetables such as bananas, apples, carrots, potatoes and greens, says Lino. People who spend the higher amounts on food can buy more expensive fruits and vegetables and even pre-cut and pre-washed ones, he says.
The liberal plan allows for more expensive cuts of meat and types of seafood. It does not allow more desserts such as chocolate cake or cheesecake because it represents a nutritious diet, Lino says. The limit for calories from solid fats and added sugars is the same in all the plans.
Registered dietitians who work with families and dieters say how much people spend on food depends on their income, how much they budget for groceries, where they live and a number of other factors.
It is possible to eat healthfully on $146 a week, but you can't do it without planning, says Bethany Thayer of Detroit, a registered dietitian and spokeswoman for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. You have to shop sales, buy produce in season, purchase store brands and buy canned and frozen vegetables when they are on sale. Buying store brands instead of national brands can save you up to 30%, she says.
To eat cheaply at home you have to make an investment of time to plan meals, grocery shop, cook and prepare the food, says Tami Ross, a nutrition expert in Lexington, Ky., and co-author of Diabetes Meals on $7 a Day — or Less!, written with Patti Geil.
She advises her patients to plan for five evening meals a week and then have a night or two to clear out the refrigerator of leftovers or incorporate what she calls planned-overs.
Planned-overs are taking one main food, such as chicken, and using it several different ways throughout the week. You can serve it as an entree one night and then other nights put it on top of a green salad or incorporate it in soups, wraps, casseroles or chicken salad. That way you aren't eating the exact same thing but you don't waste food, she says. "Throwing food away is like throwing money in the trash can."
Ross also tells patients to think of meat as the side dish, not the centerpiece of their meal, because it's often the most costly part of the meal.
Thayer points out that there are many inexpensive protein choices — beans, eggs, peanut butter and other nut butters, she says. And when it comes to inexpensive whole grains, you can eat store-brand old-fashioned oatmeal for 9 cents a serving, she says.
"People spend a lot of money in the grocery store on their beverages," Thayer says. To save money, your beverages should be tap water and low-fat or fat-free milk, she says.
Elizabeth Ward, a registered dietitian in Boston and author of MyPlate for Moms, says you can save both time and money with simple meals. An omelet with vegetables, whole-grain toast, fruit and milk is a relatively low-cost meal. So is a grilled cheese sandwich on whole-grain bread, green salad and fruit.
Make a list to take to the store to cut costs, but it's OK to deviate from it for sale items that you know you will use.
To avoid waste, take leftovers for lunch the next day, Ward says. "For me, that's the best part of cooking dinner — you get lunch, too."
Thayer adds that people also can eat inexpensively on value meals and fast-food fare, but there's a tradeoff. "Processed food and fast food offer a lot of calories for the dollar but not a lot of nutrients. That's one reason we have people who are overweight but undernourished."


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Google has started laying off employees in China as it shutters a significant portion of its operations in the country, according to reports. The move is part of the tech giant’s ongoing efforts to streamline its global workforce and focus on more profitable ventures.
The layoffs are said to affect several hundred employees, including sales and marketing staff, as well as engineers and other technical personnel. The affected employees will reportedly receive generous severance packages and other benefits.
Google has struggled to gain a foothold in China due to the country’s strict internet censorship laws and competition from local tech giants such as Baidu and Tencent. The company has also faced criticism over its handling of user data and privacy concerns.
Despite these challenges, Google has continued to invest in the Chinese market, launching new products and services aimed at Chinese consumers. The company’s recent decision to scale back its operations in China is seen as a strategic move to focus on more profitable markets.
The layoffs in China are part of a broader restructuring effort by Google, which has also announced layoffs in other parts of its global workforce. The company is looking to trim costs and refocus its efforts on core businesses such as search, advertising, and cloud computing.
The move is likely to have a significant impact on Google’s operations in China and the broader tech industry in the country. It remains to be seen how the company will navigate the challenges of operating in a highly regulated and competitive market.


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ARLINGTON, Va. — South America is poised to capture most of the increase in global demand for oilseeds in the coming years, says USDA Chief Economist Keith Collins, and “will remain our most formidable competitor in the world market.”
Global soybean carryover as a percent of total use for 2004-05 is expected to be up “quite sharply — very high by historical standards,” he said at Agricultural Outlook Forum 2005 at Arlington, Va.
But lower prices for soybeans, the weakness of the U.S. dollar against the Brazilian real, and the Asian soybean rust problem “could stall soybean expansion in Brazil.”
U.S. soybean producers, concerned about South American expansion, high stocks, and Asian soybean rust, may reduce plantings by about 2 million acres.
Going into the spring planting season, major crop prices are the lowest since 2001, Collins said, which may result in a slight decline in overall planted acres.
“A decline in 2005 crop production as yields revert to the mean; lower price prices for wheat, corn, and soybeans due to ending large stocks; and some pullback in the record high prices for livestock and livestock products,” was his summary of the outlook.
Wheat is projected be down by 1.7 million acres, for a total that will be the lowest since 1972.
“Despite high fertilizer costs, we expect an increase in corn planted area of about 1 million acres due to corn replacing wheat that wasn’t planted last fall because of bad weather, and some disappointment in soybean yields relative to corn yields in recent years.
“With a very large stocks buildup last year, we think rice area will decline about 3 percent and cotton area will rise about 4 percent following last year’s record-shattering yield.
“If we take wheat, soybean, and corn acres and combine them with trend yields, we’d get 2005 production levels just about equal to what we’d expect demand to be. So we see very little change in carryover stocks. This implies lower prices for wheat, corn, and soybeans, with soybean prices declining the most due to large South American supplies.”
For cotton and rice, Collins said, “We believe lower production relative to use will reduce stocks and support prices for 2005-06.”
Fruits and vegetables “continue to be very good news for U.S. agriculture,” generating receipts of over $30 billion in 2004, up 5 percent from 2003.
“Fruits and vegetables today account for 29 percent of crop production value, up from 22 percent in mid-1990s.”
Horticultural trade continues to set records; USDA’s forecast for 2005, released during the conference, was for $14.5 billion this year.
“Strong import demand has increased the horticultural trade deficit for the United States, and if we look at the greater efforts made to increase the role of fruits and vegetables in the U.S. diet, I think that deficit is likely to continue to grow.”
The BSE (mad cow) situation has caused “a very adverse impact” on U.S. beef exports, Collins noted. “Exports should rise in 2005 as trade to Mexico and other countries increase, but assuming no resumption in our beef trade with Asia, exports are forecast at only one-quarter of the level of 2003.”
Strong foreign economies will likely bring increases in pork and poultry exports, he said, with pork exports this year expected to be 5 percent above 2004’s record level. Despite the loss of beef exports, livestock markets in the United States “should continue to be quite strong.”
Strong consumer demand for meat, improved restaurant business, and a better world economy have all contributed to much higher meat prices. Last year, he said, was the bottom of the current cattle cycle, with production down 6.5 percent and record high cattle prices.
“This year, with Canadian cattle expected to be crossing the border shortly, beef production is expected to be up 4.5 percent and cattle prices down about 2 percent.
Despite higher hog prices last year, hog producers have been very cautious in expanding and we’re expecting production to be up only 1 percent in 2005. Broiler production will continue to set annual records, and will be up about 3 percent in 2005, with prices for both hogs and broilers continuing to stay relatively high.”
Market volatility continues to be the hallmark of the milk market, Collins said.
“Two years ago, producers were receiving the lowest prices for milk in 23 years. Those low prices, BST (growth hormone) issues, and other problems reduced production last year. At the same time an improving economy boosted demand, resulting in record prices of over $16 per hundredweight. This year prices are expected to be down 10 percent, but would still be the fourth highest ever.”
e-mail: [email protected]


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Search Results for 'the 40th anniversary of the awards'
2 results found.
Suzuki is very well known as the ‘Small Car Experts’ and is pleased to announce that it has just won the Small Car category at the 2017 Irish Car of The Year ceremony. This year celebrated the 40th anniversary of the awards and was supported again by its long established sponsor, Continental Tyres.
Suzuki has won the Small Car category at the 2017 Irish Car of The Year ceremony.


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DJIA: 26,429.20 (-0.15%)
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Stock Rover Research Reports introductory pricing sale ends August 1st. See the pricing details here.
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Durable goods orders rose +7.3% in June to $206.9 billion after a +15.1% increase in May, but were still down -13.3% for the year. June’s increase was led by a +85.7% increase in motor vehicle orders, which pulled up overall transportation orders by +20.0% despite large drops for civilian aircraft (-462.3%) and defense aircraft (-30.6%). Excluding transportation, orders were up +3.3%, with gains for fabricated metal products (+4.5%), primary metals (+3.6%), and machinery (+2.7%). Core capital goods, which exclude defense and aircraft and serve as a gauge of business investment were up +3.3% for June, but down -2.3% for the year.
The Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve voted unanimously to keep the federal funds target rate at 0.0% – 0.25% and noted that it expected to maintain the rate in this range until the economy has weathered recent events and is on track to recover. The Federal Reserve also indicated that it would increase its Treasury securities and mortgage backed securities in order to support the flow of credit to households and businesses, and noted that increasing the flow of credit had played a part in improving overall financial conditions. The statement stressed that recovery will depend on the course of the virus and that the ongoing public health crisis weighed heavily on near term economic activity, employment, and inflation, as well as posing considerable medium term economic risks.
The annual rate of GDP for the second quarter of 2020 dropped a record -32.9% after a -5.0% drop in the first quarter. Government social benefits largely accounted for a +$1.39 trillion increase in Q2 personal income compared to a $193.4 billion increase for Q1, but consumer spending fell -$1.57 trillion as personal savings increased to $4.69 trillion. Consumer spending for services was down -22.93%, with the steepest drops for health care (-9.5%), food services and accommodations (-5.55%), and recreation services (-4.69%). Goods spending was down a smaller -2.12%, with the steepest drops for clothing and footwear (-0.95%), and gasoline (-0.85%). Consumer prices fell -1.9% compared to a +1.4% increase in Q1, and compared to Q2 one year ago, GDP was down -9.5%.
Monday August 3 – ISM Manufacturing PMI
Friday August 7 – Employment Situation Report


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SUV owners going back for more
As we know there’s been a big shift away from traditional passenger cars, i.e. hatchbacks, sedans and wagons, in recent years with SUVs and crossovers (CUVs) now being the ‘must have’.
Now new analysis out of the U.S. shows things are a long way from changing back, at least in that market.
IHS Markit found loyalty to the SUV/CUV is at an all-time high with more than two-thirds (66%) of current owners purchasing another new SUV/CUV this year.
That compares which just over half (53%) of SUV/CUV buyers coming back for more five years ago.
“We collect this data and provide it to our clients, but we felt that the results were so extraordinary SUVs and CUVs that we wanted to publicly release it,”
While Mr Libby says it isn’t just lower fuel prices that are having an impact on car choice.
“While one can make the case that a factor is fuel prices, there are some other key drivers to sport and crossover utility,”
“One is wide range of selection in price and size of crossover vehicles.
“SUVs also have the appealing combination where the driver gets the comfort level of being in a car but also gets the versatility of being in a larger vehicle.”
So where are all these SUV/CUV owners coming from? The answer to that is the traditional sedan, according to IHS Markit data.
“In 2012, consumer loyalty for sedans sat at 56% and has declined every year since,”
“While in the first four months of 2017, two-thirds of sedan owners that returned to market bought a new SUV/crossover.”
In Australia last month the VFACTS data shows SUV sales were up by 11.7% compared to June 2016, while passenger vehicle sales were down by 5.9%.
The big mover among the SUV/crossover segments is medium SUVs.
While Aussies are also switching to upper large SUVs (+20.8%), and pick-up/cab-chassis 4X4s (+16.7%) at a strong pace too.
Have you purchased an SUV/crossover? Are you happy with it? Would you ever go back to a sedan or hatch? Let us know in the comments section below.


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HBO Max lives… for now. But the streamer isn’t long for this life in its current form. During a Warner Bros. Discovery earnings call, where we also learned more about Batgirl‘s cancellation and DC’s future, the company shared the news many saw coming, but not many are happy about. HBO Max and Discovery+ plus will combine into a brand-new offering, and now we have a timeline for when this will all take place. Say whatever sentimental goodbyes you have to HBO Max starting now because it will be replaced with an all-new product earlier than expected in the spring of 2023. And the process of this merging has already resulted in some changes, including a price increase and some content sacrifices… Including the letters HBO. According to CNBC, Warner Bros. Discovery is eying the name “Max” for its new platform.
Warner Bros. Discovery didn’t reveal much about this product so far, though. We didn’t get to see a new official HBO Max plus Discovery+ name, logo, or interface or anything like that. What the company did share was that this would be a single, global brand that put customer experience and quality first. The new platform will combine the “best of both” platforms and have capabilities such as on-demand and have live TV, ad-free, ad-lite, and ad-only options.
Content Loss on HBO Max
During the call, executives mentioned that HBO Max often had difficulty supporting a certain scale of audience. Discovery+, meanwhile, had much better technological infrastructure behind it. Although Warner Bros. Discovery’s executives noted they supported HBO Max’s content, fans of the current shows streaming on the platforms feel nervous. And rightfully so, already Warner Bros. Discovery has canceled movies including Batgirl, Wonder Twins, and Scoob!: Holiday Haunt. Other Warner Bros. streaming exclusive movies were also removed from HBO Max without warning. Shockingly, HBO Max also lost some high-profile originals. Shows like Westworld were removed suddenly from the platform.
The latest shows cut include Looney Tunes and Flintstones. Specifically, hundreds of episodes of Looney Tunes shorts vanished from the platform. Seasons 16-31 of Looney Tunes are no longer available on HBO Max, that’s 256 episodes that were released from 1950 to 2004. Although there seemed to be unclear narratives around this removal, HBO Max appears to have confirmed the episodes will not return. The culprit appears to be a licensing agreement that was not renewed. This development keeps in the theme of losses in the realm of animated and unscripted content.
Although it’s unclear if everything removed from HBO Max will become viewable again, some content will find a new home. According to Deadline, Roku and Tubi will become the free, ad-supported streaming television (FAST) channels of choice for Warner Bros. Discovery and its cut content. Beginning around spring 2023 on Roku and as early as February 1 on Tubi, shows like Westworld and The Nevers will once again be available to watch.
Potentially, this may become more and more the norm for HBO. Content CEO Casey Bloys notes to Variety, “does every single library show that we have on HBO Max need to be exclusive to HBO Max? I would say no,” Bloys says. “People kind of forget the history of television was windows, DVDs. These are expensive shows to make. The idea that they’re going to sit in a library forever and ever for $15 a month, that’s never how TV has operated.” And this idea thus leads to HBO “syndicating” its content on FAST channels.
Although sudden content culling is a worrying trend that calls into question the safety of finished works on streaming, it is a relief to hear at least some content will find a new home.
HBO Max Subscription Cost Increase
On top of everything else, the subscription cost of HBO Max also increased without warning. Effective, January 12, 2023, HBO Max will now cost $15.99 instead of $14.99. It might seem like a small increase, but HBO Max is already one of the more costly subscription services. For those already subscribed, the new cost will come into play during their next billing cycle on or after February 11, 2023.
A release notes, “This price increase of one dollar will allow us to continue to invest in providing even more culture-defining programming and improving our customer experience for all users.”
Project Popcorn and the Potential Scope of the HBO Max/Discovery+ Product
Additionally, much to the chagrin of HBO Max’s audiences, it seems like the platform will be doing away with its 45-day theatrical window to streaming initiative for Warner Bros. movies. Per Decider, the company will be moving away from “Project Popcorn.” This project meant that after being in theaters for 45 days, Warner Bros. movies would come to stream on HBO Max. It was an especially welcome initiative during the pandemic. Now, it sounds like the company will decide when theatrical movies will stream on a “case-by-case basis.”
It’s presently unclear when the company will stop honoring the 45-day window. Warner Bros. Discovery also shared an interesting view of both HBO Max and Discovery+ and what they bring to the table, adding to the disquiet. We will have to wait and see what this means for the shows, primarily on HBO Max, that don’t fit into the purview of this very narrow outline. And what it means for viewers, as well.
After the platform launches in the United States during the spring of 2023, the HBO Max and Discovery+ product will roll out in Latin America, Europe, and Asia Pacific. Warner Bros. Discovery aims to complete the roll-out by fall of 2024. Fingers crossed it goes… well.
Originally published on August 18, 2022.


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The FIFA World Cup fever goes on to the next level, pretty much where the digital community was expecting it to. In a recent development, Yuga Labs took to Twitter to announce its collaboration with Adidas. The objective is to launch the Limited World Cup collection of Yuga Labs.
Once launched, the collection will be freely available to the holders of Bored Ape Yacht Club, Meebits, CryptoPunks, and OthersideMeta. All of these are projects developed by Yuga Labs.
Yuga Labs is the next-generation company focused on developing non-fungible tokens and other digital collectibles. It stands out in the crowd of blockchain technology companies with the innovative projects that it launches at different points in time. Yuga Labs is based in Miami, Florida, and its founding year is 2021.
The launch of the Limited World Cup collection further takes its approach to innovation to a new level. The FIFA World Cup 2022 is heating up in Qatar. It is now time for the NFT community to be a part of it in their own way.
Adidas comes into the picture by providing marketing assistance throughout the launch.
This is the first time Adidas has come forward to promote an NFT project. The company previously released an advertisement ahead of the international tournament featuring all the big names of football with a guest appearance of Indigo Herz NFT.
Indigo Herz is a character from the Bored Ape Yacht Club NFT collection. It was sold to Adidas last year for 46 ETH. This equals $156,000 at the time of purchase. Buying the NFT character gave Adidas all the commercial rights, allowing the brand to use it wherever it wanted.
In the advertisement, Indigo Herz appears on a cereal box in front of Karim Benzema. The cereal box is subtly named Indigoooooals.
Lionel Messi is another football star featured in the advertisement.
Adidas and FIFA go a long way in terms of their association. As a result, it was only natural for the brand to use this as an opportunity to launch its promotional campaign, which featured all of the big names, including Indigo Herz, who went on to steal the show.
Through their partnership, Yuga Labs and Adidas hope to produce the same magic. Utilizing the positive relationship with FIFA and the atmosphere that the tournament games have produced provides them with the key platform for the introduction of the limited NFT collection.
Details state that only the holders of Bored Ape Yacht Club, Meebits, CryptoPunks, and OthersideMeta can get their hands on the collection. Details on the time window, if any, are unavailable. Keeping track of the official site of Yuga Labs is a more suitable option for collectors and enthusiasts of NFTs.
Any other update will surely be shared by Yuga Labs with the community.


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Nokia’s CEO Stephen Elop has revealed in a conference call today with Investors, that they are looking to compete with Google’s Android OS by releasing cheaper Windows Phone device.
Elop said that Nokia’s strategy is is to compete with Android through its Lumia devices and Microsoft’s Windows Phone platform and that they intend to release cheaper devices in the future.
“We need to compete with Android aggressively,” said Elop. “The low-end price point war is an important part of that.”
“We had plans already to go lower than the 610,” he said, and with support from Microsoft’s engineering teams Nokia has identified “ways to go even further than we anticipated.” Elop believes Nokia has to remain focused on Windows Phone and to “broaden the price point range that we’re pursuing with Lumia.”
It will be interesting to see what Microsoft and Nokia have planned for these ‘cheaper’ Windows Phone devices, and whether they will be able to compete with Android.
Source The Verge
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