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Energy prices fell 0.8 percent in April with gasoline prices down 2.7 percent.
The rise in core inflation followed two straight months of 0.1 percent gains. Household appliances posted a 1.9 percent jump, the largest since October 1974. Passenger car prices rose 0.6 percent. It was the biggest such increase since June.
Economists predict a report on consumer prices on Wednesday will also show slight price pressures. They are predicting overall prices and core inflation will both post 0.1 percent gains.
The recession has banished inflation for now. The more than 8 million jobs lost over the past two years has left workers without the bargaining power to boost wages.
In addition, companies, facing slack demand and idle plant capacity, have lacked the ability to raise prices.
The absence of inflation has allowed the Fed to keep its benchmark federal funds rate at a record low of zero to 0.25 percent since December 2008. The Fed has sought to invigorate economic growth.
Some Fed officials have argued that the greater threat now is the risk of deflation, or a debilitating drop in prices. That is something the United States has not suffered since the Great Depression.
The Associated Press


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Corporate Big Brother
Intel and Kraft's technologies rely on high-end computers 'looking' at consumers via a webcam, and reading details such as their ages, gender and how long they have remained in front of the machine.
1984 - Kraft Foods uses a biometric reader to scan the face of every customer who comes to their machine
A vending machine that gives out free puddings to adults, but none to children sounds like something right out of George Orwell's 1984.
The iSample machine, a collaboration between Kraft and Intel, is designed to do exactly that - and is currently under trial in Chicago and New York.
The machine uses a biometric scanner to 'read' the age and gender of people standing in front of it, and will serve adults, but refuse children.
The scanner uses biometric data to 'guess' the age of people standing in front of it, dividing adults into four 'age brackets'.
Kraft says, 'It cannot identify an individual, no images are stored, and no personal information is collected.' (At least not yet!)
It is just a matter of time until the data is stored for future use. The excuse will be the company will want to better target the needs of their customers. But what will happen is so-called "independent" companies will also be acting as agents for all levels of law enforcement. The collected data will be viewed by police in real time or become easily available to them through a search warrant or subpoena.
The machine can 'read' the age and gender of anyone in front of a vending machine. The manufacturer has also worked with brands such as Gillette, Adidas and Harley Davidson on similar technologies.
(UK Daily Mail)

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Novibet has today announced it has partnered with AllSported, the expert horseracing trading solution, across its website and mobile app. The deal sees AllSported deliver a full pricing and risk-managed service to the new UK entrant.
The deal also sees Novibet avail of Racing Post content, elevating their offering to provide customers with Spotlight comments, form and verdicts from Racing Post experts. The industry-leading content is used across all major bookmakers in Britain and Ireland.
AllSported’s independent pricing enables Novibet to not only extend their pricing window but also trade their own price right up to the off. With this comes AllSported’s expert customer profiling to give the firm better insights into their players. The AllSported API, built on the latest push technology, eliminates price latency and gives Novibet the opportunity to lead in what has become a generic follower-driven market.
AllSported, launched towards the end of 2019, is the best-in-class trading solution that gives bookmakers made-to-measure racing odds delivered with streamlined integration. The company is formed by a strategic partnership of Racing Post combined with market leaders TXODDS and Banach Technologies.
Discussing the new partnership, Head of Trading Partnerships at AllSported, Alan Casey said:
‘We’re really excited to partner with Novibet. They’re a very progressive company making huge strides and we look forward to helping them gain a foothold in the UK marketplace. Towards the back end of last year they were sweeping awards across the board at SBC and EGR so we’re delighted they’ve chosen to partner with AllSported. We’re incredibly confident that combining AllSported, Racing Post content and the award-winning Novibet platform we will be able to deliver the best Racing product out there.’
Discussing the partnership Novibet Business Development Manager, Dimitris Argyriou mentioned the value of expert betting content alongside the leading risk-managed technology as key to going with AllSported.
“We are delighted to announce – after a long selection process – AllSported as our official horseracing trading partner. We are excited that AllSported and Racing Post will help us to increase our presence in the UK and I strongly believe this partnership is a huge step in the right direction.
He continued: ‘’Our promise to deliver unique content paired with one of a kind odds will be kept by adding AllSported’s horseracing expertise and experience to our arsenal and increasing our portfolio with international racing. We’re incredibly confident that the final result will be best in class, creating the optimal, go-to alternative for racing betting.”
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New York Fashion Week has come and gone and, as usual, it offered the greatest designers in the world a platform on which they could showcase their talents. However, what may be surprising to many is that the hijab, an Islamic garment that is considered one of the most important in Islamic, or modest, fashion, took centre stage.
The many hijabs that were on display at the fashion week came predominantly from Indonesia. These talented designers showed that the garment is much more than many think, as they dazzled onlookers with an array of colourful designs that showed the hijab is completely ready to enter the mainstream of fashion.
The Political Angle
There aren’t many times when politics and fashion mingle. Usually, they stay pretty separate from each other, outside of designers occasionally expressing their viewpoints or creating shows that attempt to highlight a major political or social issue.
But you cannot deny that the emergence of the hijab as a major garment at New York Fashion Week plays quite nicely into the current political climate in the United States. Many observers believe that there is a slowly boiling culture of Islamophobia in the US, at least in some areas. Even the President has added fuel to this fire, particularly with his efforts to ban travel from several Islamic countries.
All of this suggests that Islamic fashion may have a difficult time hitting the mainstream in the United States. New York Fashion Week showed that may not be the case. Yes, there is still a lot of work to be done to help certain pockets of the United States understand Islam and get rid of the prejudices that they hold. However, the designers at the fashion week can hold their heads up high, as their work helped Islamic fashion, and by extension Islam itself, take one small step towards the mainstream.
In the United States’ current political climate, that is a very big achievement.
This political attitude shone throughout the show as well, with many Islamic designers looking to make statements with their shows. Dian Pelangi, a 26-year old designer from Indonesia, may have put it best when she addressed President Donald Trump directly after her own showcase. She said: “Mr. President, I love your country and also I love your people, and we will not (do) anything to you or your people. We are all the same, it’s about humanity.”
It’s a simple message of love and peace, which is more important than ever in what seems to be an increasingly hostile world.
She continued, adding: “I love the US every much and I have a lot of clients here. Hijab is beautiful, we are all still human no matter what religion you are. We are still the same.”
I’m sure that’s a sentiment that many of the people reading this will agree with. New York Fashion Week wasn’t just a showcase for the hijab. It was a platform that Islamic designers used to showcase the fact that their culture is not so different to any other.
Here at Jubbas, we offer a wide range of hijabs from some leading designers. Browse our collection and we’re sure you’ll find something to suit your tastes.


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Following the news last month that XSEED Games had acquired U.S. publishing rights for Pandora's Tower, the publisher has announced that the game will finally see its formal release in the United States on April 16th,
The Wii exclusive JRPG Pandora's Tower will finally arrive in North America later this month, and publisher Xseed has released a new trailer to help drum up the hype. The trailer gives a taste of the game's
While American gamers are still wandering in the dark about the possibility of a release of Nintendo's big three Wii JRPGs stateside, Nintendo of Europe is already kickstarting the promotion of The Last Story and Pandora's Tower.
A few days ago Nintendo of America promised updates on a potential localization of Xenoblade Chronicles, Pandora's Tower and The Last Story, giving hope to the fans and supporters of Operation Rainfall. Such hope, unfortunately, proved false.
One of the biggest things I was disappointed about at E3 was the lack of any news regarding North American localizations of Xenoblade, Pandora’s Tower and The Last Story, which fans have been clamoring for since they
Wow, that is a news headline I never thought I'd write; it certainly doesn't seem like an RPG like Pandora's Tower goes together with your typical comedian, but it sure does in Japan! I've included two pretty
Nintendo Japan has released a new trailer filled with an eclectic variety of gameplay and story scenes for you to sink your virtual teeth into. The action-packed battles seem to be at the forefront here, but also
A few months ago we brought you a little blurb about a new action RPG for the Nintendo Wii called Pandora's Tower. Not a whole lot has been heard since then, but now we have some more


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Google isn't particularly well known for keeping secrets, but according to TechCrunch the search giant has quietly pumped anywhere from $100-$200 million into Facebook developer Zynga to help develop a new "Google Games" web portal. If the rumor proves true Zynga would most likely play a key role in running the service, and provide Google with critical social graph information that would no doubt be beneficial in the development of " Google Me ". The micro transaction approach taken in most Zynga products presents a huge revenue opportunity for Google in the gaming space, and would give them another application for Google Checkout, a PayPal competitor that has never gained any kind of critical mass.
Neither Zynga or Google responded to a request for comment, but branching out in this direction only makes sense for a company that recorded over $350 million in revenue during the first 6 months of 2010 and forecasts sales of over $1 billion by 2011. Even if you aren't a fan of Farmville, it's hard to not be impressed with Zynga's performance. With more than $500 million in seed capital raised over the last 12 months alone, we wouldn't be surprised to see virtual farms start popping up not just at Google, but even Yahoo or Microsoft portals as well.
It would appear PC Gaming is alive and well, and flash won't be going anywhere anytime soon. Sorry Steve .


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Fifteen investors of a Sioux Falls food service marketing company have filed a lawsuit demanding the repayment of more than $2.2 million in funds they allege were obtained through fraud. The Argus Leader reports that the lawsuit was filed against the current and former owners of Fuzion Food Group.
In 2009, a group of carton manufactures joined forces as the Carton Council to increase carton recycling availability in the U.S. In just three years, the number of households who can recycle cartons has grown from 18 percent to now more than 40 percent, an increase of 128 percent. This represents more than 47.9 million U.S. households.
A new line of beers linked to the hit HBO drama "Game of Thrones" is being produced for the series by an upstate New York brewery. Brewery Ommegang in Cooperstown will bring out Iron Throne Blonde Ale in time for the premiere of the show's third season on March 31.
Ingrid Hirstin Lazcano, founder of the Los Angeles-based Andean Dream LCC, said a strike on the East and Gulf Coasts could bankrupt her company, which sells soups, pasta and other products made from quinoa, a grain, grown in the Bolivian Andes. The company has two containers shipped monthly to both Los Angeles and Philadelphia.
ConAgra posted a 17 percent rise in net income for the second quarter Thursday after a $5 billion acquisition this year of Ralcorp. The results beat Wall Street predictions and the Omaha, Neb., company, which makesBanquet, Chef Boyardee and Marie Callender's, boosted its profit guidance for the entire year.
According to new research from Mintel, cooking at home is heating up with more than one quarter (26%) of American consumers saying that they "love" cooking versus only a mere 9% who claim to dislike putting their apron on. And what's more, up to 20% of US consumers describe their cooking skills level as advanced, meanwhile almost half (46%) feel they have at least an intermediate level.
The Hillshire Brands Co. is selling an Australian subsidiary to McCain Foods Ltd. for approximately $85 million. The Chicago-based meat company, which was once part of the Sara Lee Corp., said late Tuesday that the deal will allow it to focus on its North American retail and food service business.
Orange juice may do more for your diet and overall health than you may think, according to results of a recently published study in Nutrition Journal. Data from this study suggests adults who drink 100 percent orange juice tended to have better overall diet quality, higher intake of key nutrients and less risk of being overweight than adults who don't drink orange juice.
South Dakota's state epidemiologist is reminding residents to cook and store foods at proper temperatures over the holidays. Dr. Lon Kightlinger says it's not uncommon for holiday pot-lucks at schools, churches, offices or other gatherings to result in food-borne outbreaks.
ConAgra Foods will release its second-quarter earnings report this morning. The Omaha-based company makes Chef Boyardee, Marie Callender's, Orville Redenbacher, Banquet and other branded foods. Last month, ConAgra announced a $5 billion deal to purchase Ralcorp. That deal will make ConAgra the biggest producer of store-brand foods in the nation.
When it comes to food, everyone is always looking for the next hot thing to try. Trend watchers with their taste buds on the pulse of the leading-edge culinary trends offer up five ideas — techniques and ingredients — you might want to experiment with in 2013.
At times in 2012 it felt like the food world belonged to the geeks, and the rest of us just eat in it. Nathan Myhrvold’s science chic approach to cooking with "Modernist Cuisine: The Art and Science of Cooking" continued to woo foodies, and even the more populist folks at Cook’s Illustrated magazine got in on the act with a new cookbook, “The Science of Good Cooking.”
A Nebraska company will create nearly 90 jobs when it builds a cold-storage warehouse in South Carolina. The plant will freeze and store poultry, pork and beef products for export. The South Carolina Commerce Department said Wednesday that Millard Refrigerated Services will build the distribution facility in North Charleston.
The Oregon Department of Agriculture is pressing ahead with its plan to allow canola production in the Willamette Valley, but the agency now proposes sharply limiting the amount that can be grown. Clean-energy advocates and some farmers are eager to expand production of canola, but it has been banned from the Willamette Valley for years.
More than 2,000 workers and their families will have the option of using a free health clinic once Indiana Packers Corp.'s health clinic opens this week in Delphi. The 3,600-square-foot facility was built this fall to serve the nearby pork processing plant and is a partnership between Indiana Packers, Franciscan St. Elizabeth Health and Unity Healthcare.
While Washington remains deadlocked over a "fiscal cliff" deal currently being negotiated by the President and House Speaker, little attention has been paid to the legislature's inaction on the Farm Bill, which was left to languish as the last legislative session ended.
General Mills Inc. said its newly acquired international businesses helped lift its net income by 22 percent in the second quarter, but cited a challenging economic environment for raising its profit outlook only modestly for year. The company said Wednesday that the addition of Yoplait Canada and Yoki Alimentos, a Brazilian food company, were among the biggest drivers for a 6 percent increase in sales for the quarter.
A meatpacker that makes Farmer John products and Dodger Dogs agreed to pay nearly $440,000 and offer women hundreds of jobs to settle allegations of gender discrimination, federal officials announced Tuesday. Clougherty Packing Co. will pay the money to about 2,000 women whose applications for entry-level jobs were rejected between 2007 and 2009.
There's no shortage of New Year's resolutions to eat healthier and lose weight, but what does that really mean for consumers and food companies in 2013? According to a survey of more than 200 of the nation's leading nutrition experts — registered dietitians — there are five diet and lifestyle trends that will make news and be on consumers' minds in the coming year.
Bottling company Coca-Cola Enterprises expects its 2013 earnings per share will climb about 10 percent. The company on Tuesday also predicted a mid-single-digit percentage rate increase in sales for the year, which accounts for declining gross margins and other factors.


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Electric Cars: Still Unpopular with Buyers and Unprofitable for Sellers – Wall Street Journal
The car of the future will be electric, connected and, eventually, self-driving. But where does that leave the car industry of the future? In a series of articles this month, Heard on the Street takes a look at how investors should approach the biggest technological disruption the car industry has faced in decades.
A new generation of long-range, affordably priced electric cars is about to hit the market, showing that auto makers…


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Oracle CEO Larry Ellison wasn’t able to contain himself on the company’s earnings conference call Thursday afternoon. First he said that the company will announce partnerships with “the largest and most important SaaS companies and infrastructure companies in the cloud” involving Oracle’s new 12c database technology. Then he just went ahead and announced their names, including Salesforce.com and Microsoft.
Ellison promised they would be “startling series” of announcements.
Microsoft quickly released a statement confirming a news teleconference planned for Monday afternoon with Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer and server and cloud chief Satya Nadella, along with Oracle President Mark Hurd.
The involvement of such high-level execs in a new partnership between the companies is somewhat startling, or at least notable given their longstanding rivalry. Microsoft generally doesn’t trot Ballmer out for these types of things unless it’s a significant partnership, although it’s notable that Ellison himself isn’t among the named participants.
The implication is that Microsoft will use Oracle’s 12c in conjunction with Windows Azure in some form. That notion is “a bit ironic since Microsoft has long been a database competitor to Oracle’s database with SQL Server,” writes Rick Sherlund, an analyst for Nomura Research, who covers both companies. “This could be an important endorsement for 12c and maybe Oracle’s hardware should this be true.”
Neither company is providing more details in advance, but 12c is getting attention because it introduces the concept of multi-tenancy at the database level, making it easier and more efficient for more than one company to share the same piece of hardware.


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In our recent survey regarding the impact the pandemic is having on individuals across the country, we found interesting results regarding which organizations people trust to provide valuable products and services during these difficult times.
These are the organizations that ranked highest in our survey:
Amazon (Selected by 79% of participants)
Obviously, these companies provide essential products for supplies, communication, and entertainment. It’s logical they would be near the top of the list.
But what separates these companies from their competitors? Why is Zoom trusted by 52% of people and Facebook by only 38%?
A big differentiator is how these companies make people feel
When we asked a further question about what organizations people trust to share their data with, unsurprisingly local banks/credit unions rank highest, followed by Amazon and Google. Facebook ranks at the bottom of the list, right after the US Federal Government.
Customers want to feel appreciated, valued, and understood. Companies like Amazon have invested heavily in customer experience and customer service. Even though there are ethical concerns about how Amazon treats its employees, for the majority of consumers, the way they personally are treated matters much more.
Below are some quotes from our survey about positive experiences individuals have had with organizations during the pandemic:
“Allstate has given me back some of my car insurance premium. DirecTV offered me a discount for the next few months. American Express is allowing me to PLAN IT for purchases with no fees in the coming months. Kudos to all of these companies!!”
“I am pleased with how quickly CVS has created a delivery system. All I had to do was make a phone call, respond to a text, fill out a form with my credit card information, and my prescription arrives two days later.”
“Amazon has definitely stepped up their grocery delivery service, and their drivers are friendly and extremely respectable.”
What these quotes demonstrate is an understanding of what’s important to customers. CVS quickly building an intuitive delivery system has been met with delight. Amazon’s drivers simply being friendly when making deliveries is worthy of appreciation.
Companies Not Fairing as Well in Customer Sentiment
here are the organizations that ranked lowest in our survey:
Fox Business News (12%)
US Federal Government (16%)
JP Morgan Chase (21%)
By and large, participants in our survey simply do not find these brands trustworthy or reliable.
It’s interesting to see the dichotomy between the very high levels of trust in local governments and credit unions and the conversely extremely low ratings of the federal government and national baking chains.
What Organizations Can Do Better
What does this mean for how organizations should approach their changes in business practices due to the pandemic?
Taking what we can learn from those at the top of the list, it’s quite simple: Talk to your customers, listen to what matters to them, and demonstrate that you care. Providing lip service that customers are the priority doesn’t go far enough. The companies actually have to take noticeable action.
This pandemic is an opportunity for organizations to redouble their efforts to invest in customer experiences. Those who truly care and find real and creative ways to translate that into how they treat customers will be the ones that succeed.


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Poland’s MMJ Market Small, But Growing Quickly
The local market for CBD products in Poland is growing quickly, though it remains a small one. Poland, home to 36 million people, is seeing the rapid rise of CBD products especially used for inhalation and vaporization.
The medical marijuana market of Poland is still in its early stages, but because of its fast rising popularity, experts predict that low amounts of recreational marijuana and decriminalization may not be too far away. “We can distinguish the conscious consumers who often chooses CBD oil for their therapeutic properties which is part of the wider trend for better health and wellbeing. These consumers usually prefer shopping in specialized stores including online CBD stores, health stores or pharmacies, where they can consult a specialist,” explains Purehemp.pl founder and CEO, Konrad Dziekan.
Currently, CBD is legal in Poland though it still cannot be marketed claiming to cure any illness. The situation regarding legalities is similar to most other countries in Europe. Businesses are not allowed to mention that their products have any health benefits.
The two biggest players right now over there are Sequoya and HemPoland, two companies that have a significant amount of international finance backing. Some local companies are also working on coming up with high quality hemp products at affordable prices.
Majority of Germans Still Against Recreational Cannabis, More Money In Private Sector
A poll conducted last December reveal that a small majority of German voters are still against legalizing recreational cannabis. The results of the survey together with a recent vote in the federal parliament of Germany show that anyone who was interested to make money from legalizing recreational cannabis should postpone their plans for now.
The results of the poll were rather slim: when asked if they think cannabis should be legalized and regulated for adults consumption such as what is going on in Canada, 46% said yes while 51% said no. However, the percentage of people who support legalization has improved in 2020 compared to results in 2019. They also found that there was more opposition among women as well as in eastern Germany, and that the older the respondents, the more they opposed legalization.
Last October, the parliament rejected recreational legalization.
Meanwhile, German entrepreneurs see more money to be made in the private cannabis market. Previously, it was thought that the German MMJ market was more lucrative because health insurance providers were expected to cover the cost of medicine but they have found that the private market could be even more attractive.
Take Algea Care for instance, a German company focused on telemedicine which was established in June 2020. By September they began prescribing cannabis to patients, and by December they had over 500 patients who were already receiving prescriptions. “Supporting patients along every step and taking away tedious tasks from doctors ultimately resulted in drastically improved satisfaction for both patients and doctors,” said co-CEO Julian Wichmann to MJBizDaily.
Some 10% of the population already have private health insurance but for cannabis companies who want to make money from private MMJ prescriptions, the market size is much larger than that. This is because statutory health insurers who are responsible for insuring most of the population in Germany reject a significant number of applications for reimbursements, causing patients to use their own money to buy from the private market instead. There are also many patients who are turned off with the process of trying to obtain cannabis due to the many challenges involved.
France Opens Public Consultation On Cannabis Legalization
Because of this irony, the law has clearly failed to provide effective and realistic regulations, prompting a group of MP’s to launch a public debate on the topic. On January 13, 2021, the MP’s which come from a wide range of the political spectrum consulted with over 175,000 through the Assemblee Nationale website and analyzed it with around 30,000 responses.
The consultation will continue until February 28. They have two primary objectives: to get a better understanding of the French people’s opinions about cannabis, and to learn what the people want in terms of government policies surrounding its use. The forum uses several questions such as, “Do you think current policies on cannabis are effective in fighting against drug trafficking,” “Do you think the risks associated with cannabis are the same as, more serious or less serious than those associated with alcohol consumption?,” and others.
“We’re using this questionnaire so that we have access to more data on what people think than we usually get from opinion polls,” explains Caroline Janvier, who is an MP in the La Republique En Marche party with President Emmanuel Macron. She is also a member of the parliamentary committee with cannabis. “Perhaps it will confirm our belief that France’s political class is less sympathetic to the use of recreational cannabis than the public,” she adds.
A 2016 poll revealed that 41% of the population from the age of 15 to 64 reported consuming cannabis at least once, whereas the average European consumption rate is at 18.9%. “Cannabis use is so widespread in society; we have to respond to that at a political level,” says Robin Reda, MP from the right-wing group Les Republicains. “No one should be happy with our current policy when this repressive stance is clearly not working.”
“Our primary goal is to change the terms of the debate,” says Janvier. “Many politicians don’t think of it as much of an issue, but France spends €568 million per year on the fight against cannabis trafficking.”
“There’s a big gap between what MP’s have been willing to do and what the government has been willing to do,” adds Reda. “The amendment on experimenting with therapeutic use is supposed to come into effect, but I’m convinced that the government will do everything it can to drag its feet and ensure that as few people as possible get to use marijuana on this experimental basis.”
EUROPEAN CANNABIS NEWS, READ MORE…
THE EUROPEAN CANNABIS NEWS REPORT, READ THE UPDATE!


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World's first AI powered freelance job platform looks to redefine the way Freelancers and Entrepreneurs interact in the region
US-based AI-powered freelance job platform Boon Tech has opened its first international office in Dubai.
The tech firm, which also the first blockchain project to be accepted by Oracle Startup System, moved to the emirate prompted by the region’s market size and growth potential for Boon Tech's freelance job platform.
BoonTech said it aims to attract employers from Dubai and the Middle East as well as freelancers from the region and beyond.
Its blockchain-based, AI-powered decentralised online job portal offers a free platform for employers and freelancers to meet and carry out transactions involving freelance services with cryptocurrency rewards.
Boon Tech combines concepts from job marketplace with lessons learned from building cryptocurrencies and their communities.
“We are always looking for partnerships with other companies in both blockchain and non blockchain vertical,” said Boon Tech's founder and CEO, Rajesh Pavithran. “So, if there are companies that can help us grow our business and help our customers, we are open for new partnerships and tie ups.”
Freelancers undertaking assignments on Boon Tech's portal are paid with a ‘Boon Dollar’ is pegged with US Dollar and does not fluctuate like other cryptocurrencies.
Boon Tech has ambitious plans for expansion to other developing markets in Asia and Europe. The plans to open more offices in India, Malaysia and Indonesia, along with an office in Europe, most probably in London.


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While Rivian was pressured to delay deliveries of its long-awaited R1T electrical pickup truck till June 2021 because of the coronavirus pandemic, the corporate is continuous to push ahead with its aggressive EV plans.
In this video, we’re taken on a tour of the corporate’s manufacturing facility in Normal, Illinois with none aside from firm founder R.J. Scaringe. At the second, the automobile producer is constructing pre-production fashions and filling the 500,000 square-foot manufacturing facility with all the essential manufacturing tools and robots.
In addition to the R1T, Rivian can also be growing the R1S SUV on the identical skateboard structure with the intention of beginning deliveries two months after the R1T. The two autos shall be supplied with the identical electrical motor and battery configurations.
Battery packs shall be accessible in capacities of 105 kWh, 135 kWh, and 180 kWh and function alongside 4 electrical motors. The entry-level mannequin shall be good for 402 hp, the long-range variant could have 700 hp, and the efficiency mannequin shall be rated at 754 hp.
Unlike different EV startups like Nikola and Fisker, Rivian will not be a public firm. Since 2019, it has raised a exceptional $5.three billion in private funding that features greater than $700 million from Amazon and over $500 million from Ford. It was additionally just lately introduced that Rivian will transfer most of its operations to a brand new facility in Irvine, California that may embrace a brand new HQ to exchange its present headquarters in Plymouth, Michigan. Nevertheless, the Illinois web site will stay its primary manufacturing facility.


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Audi will recall more than 6000 hatchbacks due to the same gearbox safety concerns that prompted its parent company Volkswagen to announce a recall of almost 26,000 vehicles.
Audi says the voluntary recall affects its A1 and A3 hatchbacks, powered by four-cylinder 1.4-litre and 1.8-litre engines, built between 2008 and 2011.
Audi spokeswoman Anna Burgdorf has confirmed the vehicles are all fitted with Volkswagen's direct-shift gearbox (DSG) transmission, sold by Audi as S-Tronic.
There are concerns an electronic malfunction in some cars fitted with the gearbox could cause them to lose power while driving.
"There's an issue with a megatronic unit of the DSG gearbox, in some instances it can cause the gearbox unit effectively to open and disengage the gears," Ms Burgdorf told AAP.
Ms Burgdorf said making sure the brand's "customers get the best care and attention is our top priority".
She said if customers were concerned they should contact Audi, which is owned by Volkswagen.
The recall comes after reports Volkswagen will recall nearly 26,000 vehicles in Australia amid growing safety concerns.
The German car company is reportedly recalling 25,928 vehicles across its Golf, Jetta, Polo, Passat and Caddy models made between June 2008 and September 2011.
Ms Burgdorf said affected Audi customers would be contacted within days about the recall.
"We will act as quickly as we possibly can to contact each and every customer who may be in an affected vehicle," she said.


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Ukraine: Inflation continues to rise in August, approaches a five-year high
September 8, 2014
In August, consumer prices increased 0.8% over the previous month, which was higher than the 0.4% rise registered in July. August’s increase came on the back of higher prices for food and non-alcoholic beverages, as well as for housing, water, electricity and gas. Conversely, consumer prices for clothing decreased in August compared with July.
Annual inflation jumped from July’s 12.6% to 14.2% in August, which marked the highest rate since September 2009. As a result of the acceleration in recent months, along with developments in the political sphere and in the foreign exchange market, inflation has risen further above the Central Bank’s 4.0%–6.0% target range for 2013–2014. Meanwhile, annual average variation in consumer prices increased from July’s 3.9% to 5.2% in August.


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By Dominic Venturo, Chief Innovation Officer, U.S. Bank
New technologies and the growing number of mobile devices have prompted banking institutions to rethink their traditional way of doing business. Transactions are rapidly shifting from branches and handshakes, to apps and fingerprints, maybe someday even an iris scan. But just because the technology is available, does it mean we should use it?
According to a recent survey by U.S. Bank, “The Balancing Act: U.S. Bank 2015 Outlook on People and Technology,” 70 percent of consumers across all generations believe that banks featuring the latest technology are more trustworthy, yet 63 percent said they will never make all financial transactions digitally. “Never” is a strong position to take. This push-pull with technology demonstrates that despite headlines, when it comes to a personal touch, there’s no app for that.
Bank branches are not only viable, but vital at a time when there is an increased focus on customer experience and service. In fact, the survey found that nearly 90 percent of Americans will plan to do at least some of their banking at physical branches five years from now. While customer needs are certainly evolving, it may not be at the pace that some have predicted. As we continue to develop new apps and gadgets, we must remember not to innovate simply for the sake of innovation, but to develop new solutions for real issues facing our customers.
At Your Service
So why do Americans want to maintain some interactions offline? The answer is simple, customer service. The survey shows that nearly 80 percent of consumers fear poorer service if their bank switched entirely to digital interactions. Does this mean that customers won’t use or appreciate technology-enabled solutions that help make their financial lives easier? Of course not.
At U.S. Bank, we know that banking is not a cookie-cutter industry; and not all issues can be resolved with a virtual agent. Our customers have unique situations and need personalized service. In fact, 80 percent of Americans said they prefer working with a professional banker instead of a virtual one to resolve issues.
They also rely on banking relationships to help guide them through critical issues when the stakes are at their highest, such as:
- Buying a home (50%)
- Starting a business (39%)
- Establishing credit for the first time (29%)
- Retiring (24%)
As the industry moves forward, we need to view technology as a way to connect with people – not to replace them.
Finding a Balance
As fintech firms, mobile payment providers, and startups begin to replicate banking functions, traditional banks will differentiate themselves in ways technology alone cannot – with the human touch. At U.S. Bank, we realize value is shifting away from merely banking services and moving toward building and maintaining deep customer relationships. For banks, this will soon be a major differentiator.
Consumers are challenging the industry to meet their demands, requiring a delicate balance between convenience, security and personalized engagement. However, while consumers appreciate the flexibility of new technology for routine transactions, human interaction remains the core to banking relationships.


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The MEBU marketing team recently held a three-day roadshow in Cape Town. MEBU (mobile electronic branding unit) is a unique innovation in advertising, ensuring that a brand stands out from the crowd.
Four vehicles each fitted with a MEBU unit travelled from Durbanville through Century City, Canal Walk, V&A Waterfront, Greenpoint to Muizenberg, Hout Bay and Camps Bay, throughout the CBD and ending at Signal Hill.
‘The roadshow activation was a huge success,’ said Kirsty Fonzari, Expand a Sign Marketing Manager. ‘To add to the excitement we ran a competition where members of the public were encouraged to take a photo of any of our MEBU-equipped vehicles when spotted and post it on our Facebook page.’
Each MEBU unit is attention-grabbing, portable, easy-to-operate and allows a brand to appear anywhere and at any time.


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Interview with Per Henriksson, Managing Director at the Swedish Seed Association SVUF, date 25 March 2020
European Seed (ES): Per, how is the situation in Sweden under COVID-19?
Per Henriksson (PR): To start I must point out that Sweden to date is less affected by the virus compared to several other European countries. At this point around 2000 people have been established as carrier of the disease and around 20 elderly infected people have unfortunately passed away. But we are probably only in the beginning of the curve of the infection.
ES: How is the Swedish seed sector doing?
PR: The, so far, limited effect of the disease on the general public has also meant the seed industry has managed to prepare and deliver the seed for the upcoming spring drilling more or less according to plan throughout the country. Also import and logistics of primarily potato tubers for planting from Denmark, The Netherlands and/or Germany has worked well despite the closed borders. The start of the spring crops should thereby be under control.
ES: Are there any other effects?
PR: The consequences of this pandemic will to a great extent still be felt by the farming community. The global economic turmoil that follows the COVID-19 epidemic has hit the Swedish currency hard with a significant worsened exchange rate towards the euro and dollar. This will lead to significantly higher price for needed commodities which will be needed during this year’s growing season. Taking into account the severe drought and low yield of the 2018 season, many farming operations are already financially stretched and will have difficulties to withstand the expected increased costs for input products.
ES: How about labour shortages?
PR: Yes, you are right. A further worry particularly affecting vegetable- as well as fruit/berry producers concerns the availability of labour during the harvest season. The labour force of these companies normally arrives from Poland, the Baltic counties or Southeast Asia. With travel restrictions and closed borders in many countries, there is a considerable risk that there will not be a sufficient workforce available at harvest.


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Newswise — Carried by a broad market rally following the November presidential elections, the Rosenberg Center Franchise 50 Indexâ„¢ surged 13.2 percent in the fourth quarter of 2004 and finished the year with an 18.5 percent gain. In contrast, the S&P 500 Index gained 8.7 percent in the fourth quarter 2004 and 9 percent for the year.
The Rosenberg Center Franchise 50 Indexâ„¢, developed by The William Rosenberg International Center for Franchising at the University of New Hampshire Whittemore School of Business and Economics, is an index that tracks the market performance of the top 50 U.S. public franchisors. These 50 franchisors represent more than 98 percent of the market capitalization of all U.S. public companies engaged in business format franchising.
In 2004, the best performing RCF 50 Indexâ„¢ components were CKE Restaurants (+127.1 percent), Jack in the Box (+72.6 percent), and Choice Hotels International (+67.4 percent). The worst performing components were Krispy Kreme (-65.6 percent), CDI (-28.6 percent), and Gymboree (-25.6 percent). Since January 2000, the Rosenberg Center Franchise 50 has increased 52.3 percent, compared to a drop of 13.1 percent in the S&P 500 over the same period.
FirstService Corp (FSRV) and CKE Restaurants Inc. (CKR) turned in the best performances in the fourth quarter with 35.8 percent and 31.3 percent gains, respectively.
FirstService Corp. (FSRV) soared 39.4 percent after announcing strong earnings (+30 percent growth), two acquisitions, and a 2-for-1 stock split.
CKE Restaurants (CKR), the owner, operator, and franchisor of the Carl's Jr., Hardee's, and La Salsa Fresh Mexican Grill food chains, jumped 31.3 percent this quarter, propelled by a 13-fold increase in earnings. "The company's strategy of going against the current trend of healthier nutrition seems to be paying off as its focus on 'bigger, tastier' burgers has translated into improved sales, margins, and profits," according to the Rosenberg Center's fourth quarter report.
Children's retailer Gymboree Corp (GYMB) had the weakest performance in the fourth quarter, falling 11 percent. "Closure of its retail operations in the United Kingdom and Ireland, competition from the Children's Place, lower margins, and lackluster growth in same store sales resulted in a 34 percent drop in quarterly profits. Its CFO resigned in December," according to the report.
McDonald's, the RCF 50 Indexâ„¢' largest component, continued to perform well, increasing 14.4 percent. "It has become evident that the company's strategic turnaround plan, Plan to Win centered on operational excellence and leadership marketing, is succeeding. McDonald's worldwide comparable sales have been positive for six consecutive quarters and its profitability continues to improve. It has recently introduced several new menu items, including more premium offerings such as Chicken Selects and salads, new marketing programs, improved service, and extended hours. Investors were also impressed by a seamless leadership transition when Jim Skinner, a highly regarded McDonald's veteran was named CEO in November 2004 to replace Charlie Bell, who resigned to focus on fighting colorectal cancer. Also, in December 2004, McDonald's was named the 'Marketer of the Year' by Advertising Age magazine for the brand's marketing achievements around the world in 2004," according to the fourth quarter report.
The full Rosenberg Center Franchise 50 Indexâ„¢ fourth quarter report is available at http://www.unh.edu/news/docs/F50Q404.pdf. For more information on the William Rosenberg International Center of Franchising or the Rosenberg Center Franchise 50 Index, please visit the Center's web site at http://franchising.unh.edu.


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Warning, Big Mac: McDonald’s first vegan meal will be on the UK menu in early 2020.
On January 2, Mickey D’s presents his first vegan meal across the lake with the introduction of Veggie Dippers. The breaded canapes are stuffed with red pepper, sun-dried tomato pesto, peas, and rice, and are commercially available for around $ 4.30, Delish reports. Hungry customers can add chips (which look like a vegan in the UK) to their food, while teens can also enjoy vegetarian sauces in their Happy Meal order.
Last year, McDonald’s menus in the UK launched Spicy Veggie One-Wrap with red peppers and pesto (fried strips) as a vegetarian option, and the product was a hit. However, the dish was not as vegan as Metro sachets to avoid contamination of dairy products.
This time, however, the situation is different, as the new vegetable sauces do not come into contact with milk ingredients during preparation, a McDonald’s employee confirmed.
“Vegetarian sauces are the same as Spicy Veggie One, but are designed to prevent contamination of milk components, making this product completely vegan,” the spokesperson told Delish. In the last 1 year, customers who ordered vegetarian food from McDonald’s have grown 80%, so it is time for the famous McNugget brand to supply an immersion option for our vegetarian, vegan and flexible customers,” said O ‘ Neill: “Vegetarian sauces are one. We can’t wait to see what customers will do with our lovely first vegan meal on New Year’s Day.”
Rise of the McDonald’s
The chain also tested the Beyond Meat Burger option in Canada earlier this year. Although McDonald’s is the world’s largest fast-food chain with more than 60,000 restaurants, CEO Steve Easterbrook admitted earlier this year that the company is “paying close attention” to competitors who are experiencing more and more food. vegetarian and vegan.
These include burger restaurants like Carl’s Jr, which brought a Beyond Burger vegetarian menu to the menu this year, and White Castle, which introduced the Impossible Burger Slider 2018. Taco Bell announced a fully vegetarian menu that launched this year. Del Taco announced a Taco Beyond Meat and Chipotle developed two new herbal “lifestyle bowls”.
According to Nielsen’s market research, sales of vegetable meat substitutes increased by 23% between 2017 and 2018 to more than $ 683 million.


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Sportingbet bosses in line for multi-million pound windfalls after selling company to William Hill
The management of online betting company Sportingbet are in line for multi-million pound windfalls after selling the company to bookmaker William Hill.
Financial Mail understands that chief executive Andrew McIver and financial director Jim Wilkinson are likely to leave the company after the sale is finalised, and are both entitled to two years’ salary, pension payments and bonuses.
McIver, 49, owns more than three million shares in the company he joined in 1991, which will be worth £1.7million at the proposed 56.1p a share deal, while Wilkinson owns 1.75million shares worth £980,000.
Sources close to the deal say that the pair, along with chairman Peter Dicks, would be unlikely to remain at the group, which will be split between William Hill, which will take over the Australian and Spanish operations, and William Hill’s bidding partner GVC Holdings, which is taking over the Sportingbet business in Europe and emerging markets.
McIver was paid £1.7million last year even though Sportingbet made a £46million loss.
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It feels like we’ve been writing Fossil PDA watch stories for most of our adult lives. The company has announced the launch of a Palm OS-based watch pretty much every year since we can remember (well, since Nov 2002 – we have short memories) only to slink quietly away again without actually releasing the watches. The Register has been keeping a beady eye on the company website, however, and it seems that the PDA watches are back. The three Wrist PDA designs are Sport, Dress and Casual and the specs include 2MB of RAM, 2MB of Flash memory, 33MHz Motorola Dragonball VZ processor and 160 x 160-pixel greyscale LCD.
As The Reg points out, the blurb on the site says that the next line of PDA and PDA/PC watches will be arriving later this year.
Fossil [Via The Register]


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Despite photo evidence demonstrating that Bella Hadid, Lily-Rose Depp and Hunter Schafer prefer Apple's older earphones, equipped with cord and lightning connector, not even their tastes can turn the tide against the AirPod. Time and time again we've witnessed new Apple products catch on like wildfire, their rise always inevitable. And even the biggest contrarians among us have to admit that untangling the wires on those previous models was pure hell. Yes, we're in the age of the AirPod and thank god. Now, according to Phone Arena Apple is rumoured to unveil the latest iteration of the AirPods Pro as early as September 2022.
Although for now this is just speculation, the new iteration dubbed AirPods Pro 2 is expected to be unveiled on September 13 alongside a handful of other new Apple products. This includes the much-anticipated iPhone 14 in all its varying forms, namely the 6.1-inch iPhone 14, the 6.7-inch iPhone 14 Max, the 6.1-inch iPhone 14 Pro and the 6.7-inch iPhone 14 Pro Max along with the Apple Watch 8.
So what changes can we expect from the updated version of the Apple Airpods Pro 2? If Phone Arena is on the money, the AirPods Pro 2 could come without the stem and may also support USB-C charging for its accompanying charging case. Plus, it would possess the next generation of active noise cancellation, so there's that too.
As for the iPhone 14, we know there will be updates to the FaceTime camera but little else has been speculated aside from that. As always, we're just going to have to hold tight for another four months to see what Apple has planned, but I'd be stockpiling some cash because the new drop is bound to be one to catch.
2022 is looking like a big year for new Apple releases with the Macbook Air rumoured to arrive in a variety of new colours soon.


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HONG KONG, 26 October 2021 – The 2021 Jewellery World Awards (JWA), formerly known as JNA Awards, unveiled its highly anticipated roster of Honourees for its tenth edition. Following this announcement, the 2021 JWA will also stage its three-part webinar series under “Leading Through Changes and Uncertainty,” sponsored by Phu Nhuan Jewelry Joint Stock Company (PNJ).
Organised by Informa Markets Jewellery since 2012, JWA is the only business awards programme that covers the entire mine-to-market pipeline of the international jewellery and gemstone industry. It promotes and celebrates excellence, innovation and best business practices in the global trade – regardless of a participant’s scale of operations, field of expertise and geographical location.
The esteemed panel of independent judges spent the last few weeks reviewing and assessing entries from 10 countries and regions, across five continents. In the end, 33 entries were shortlisted as Honourees from a highly-qualified pool of entries.
Proving that new ideas and adaptability were vital in moving the industry forward, Industry Innovation of the Year continued to be the most popular category – garnering the most number of entries of the eight categories. This was followed by the Outstanding Enterprise of the Year – APAC, which demonstrated the region’s robust growth, agility and adaptability.
Letitia Chow, Chairperson and founder of JWA at Informa Markets Jewellery, said, “Despite the ongoing challenges brought by the pandemic, we are encouraged by the responses and number of participants this year, with a third being first-time entrants. Through this programme, we hope to highlight and bring out the positives of the trade, as we continue to promote the core values of innovation and excellence.”
Among the experts who served as judges in this year’s competition are James Courage, former Chief Executive of Platinum Guild International (PGI) and former Chairman of the Responsible Jewellery Council (RJC); Albert Cheng, CEO of Singapore Bullion Market Association and International Advisor of Shanghai Gold Exchange; Lin Qiang, President and Managing Director of the Shanghai Diamond Exchange (SDE); Dr. Mark Lee, Research Director of Asia Pacific Institute for Strategy (APIFS); and Nirupa Bhatt, Senior Advisor to the Gemological Institute of America (GIA) India.
“Entrants this year have showcased the industry’s ability to protect and support the workforce in the time of COVID-19. Their innovative approach in utilising online channels to reach out to customers also has helped them navigate these challenging times,” Courage shared.
Cheng said, “I am happy to see that most participants reported steady sales revenues in the past three years, except for a slight dip in 2019. Indeed, the jewellery industry has demonstrated resilience in the time of the pandemic. I am also pleasantly surprised with their prompt and creative responses in tackling obstacles, as well as with their ability to identify and pursue new opportunities.”
“As one of the judges, I noticed how important the JWA is to the international jewellery industry. Whether they’re startups or large enterprises, those who participated made each category highly competitive with their unique strategies and breakthroughs – making it very difficult for the panel to choose this year’s Honouree,” Lin remarked.
Dr. Lee noted that “COVID-19 further accelerated the industry’s digital transformation, and proved itself essential, not just for growth, but also for survival. I was impressed to see the candidates’ passion, innovative approach and their contributions despite the challenging conditions before them. Innovation and sustainable strategies are very important in this rapidly changing world, and this year’s entrants brought these to the forefront at JWA.”
Bhatt also commended the entrants’ efforts in engaging customers and their use of technology. “Not only is the industry resilient, it is also unstoppable when it comes to reaching out to its customers. As seen in this year’s entries, technology is a big enabler, especially in the last two years when manufacturers in the jewellery business continued to engage consumers by incorporating technology into their marketing strategies,” she said.
The 2021 JWA Ceremony and Gala Dinner will be held at (Jewellery Gem Technology Dubai) on 21 February 2022, Monday. JGT Dubai is a joint premium exhibition by Informa Markets Jewellery – the world’s largest B2B jewellery fairs organiser – and Italian Exhibition Group SpA (IEG).
The 2021 JWA is supported by Headline Partners Chow Tai Fook Jewellery Group and Shanghai Diamond Exchange, alongside Honoured Partners KGK Group and Guangdong Land (Shenzhen) Ltd.
For full list of JWA 2021 Honourees: please visit www.JWAwards.com/results.


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Global temperatures are rising at an alarming rate. Lakes are already polluted and oceans are next in line. The second largest cause of climate change (right behind animal abuse) is transportation.
In California and America’s Southwest region, temperatures are rising at alarming rates due to greenhouse gas emissions.
One of the easiest ways to combat transport’s effects on the climate is to transition to electric vehicles that produce zero emissions. Tesla has been attempting to do this for a decade now by manufacturing electric vehicles that are sexier and sleeker than combustion engine competitors. In addition, many other companies such as GM are Nissan are selling 100% electric vehicles to consumers.
Electric vehicles provide tremendous environmental advantages, but also provide economic advantages by having very little fuel and maintenance costs. Electricity is about a sixth as expensive as gasoline for the same number of miles traveled, and oil changes are a nonexistent expense, as electric motors don’t require oil. Basically, you plug in your car like you would your smartphone when you arrive at home, and wake up every morning to a “full tank” for a sixth the price of gassing up. Oh, and don’t forget to change your wiper fluid to clean off the carbon dioxide on your windshield from the vehicle in front of you.
Saving money was possibly the largest incentive to own an electric vehicle. But thanks to SB-1 in California, signed by Democrat Jerry Brown, owning a zero-emissions vehicle just got more expensive for tens of thousands of middle-class commuters. The bill introduces new taxes not only on gasoline (usually purchased by poor people trying to drive to work so that they can afford to feed themselves) but also adds an inflation adjustable 100$ FEE on owners of electric vehicles in order to punish them for not buying gasoline from multinational oil corporations.
Jerry Brown claims that this tax is to repair infrastructure, which is a great cause. Infrastructure creates thousands of jobs, makes driving to work easier, and gives America a more pristine look. What’s crappy is that the method used here is a common one wielded by corporations: Privatising the gains and socializing the losses.
Here’s the breakdown of new taxes for the middle and lower classes:
- $7.3 billion by increasing diesel excise tax 20 cents (currently $0.13) on 1 November 2017.
- $3.5 billion by increasing diesel sales tax to 5.75% on 1 November 2017.
- $24.4 billion by increasing gasoline excise tax 12 cents (currently $0.30) on 1 November 2017.
- $16.3 billion from an annual transportation improvement fee based on a vehicle’s value starting 1 January 2018
- $200 million from an annual $100 Zero Emission Vehicle fee starting 1 July 2020.
- $706 million in General Fund loan repayments.
Note that the total revenue expected from the new taxes is $52 billion, but the EV tax is only expected to bring in 200 million of that. I’m not a math surgeon, but it looks like the EV tax is only 0.3846% of the total revenue gain- insignificant. In other words, the EV tax is just a kick in the balls to environmentally conscious drivers. This is the kind of trash that we can already expect from the Republican Party but is now prevalent in the increasingly corporate Democratic Party.
The most disgusting aspect of this new middle and lower class tax is that infrastructure is mainly damaged by the extremely wealthy- trucking corporations. The giant semi trucks (that everyone already hates) are a huge cause of crumbling roads and potholes. The extreme pressure on asphalt is bound to cause damage, which is fine. That’s physics. What isn’t fine is sending the bill to poor people who don’t actually drive the semi trucks. That’s just more oligarchy and financial irresponsibility on the part of the Democratic and Republican parties.
I’m sure the fact that Jerry Brown has received over $9.8 million from big energy companies has nothing to do with his signing of this bill.


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Mississauga specialty software company Vital Insights recently announced the launch of new customer experience and feedback software for Kia Motors America’s 765 U.S. dealerships.
The real-time resolution management platform, named Foresight, was tested during a year-long pilot program at 32 Kia dealerships.
During that period Foresight was able to reduce issue resolution time to less than two days.
“These results point to the success of our technology and our leadership in the industry,” Vital Insights president and CEO Jason Tryfon said in a statement. “We look forward to bringing this technology to all Kia dealerships across the U.S.”
“Foresight’s ability to fully integrate with Kia’s system and provide unprecedented transparency into real-time customer feedback, empowered our pilot program dealerships to quickly and effectively respond to customer requests, in real time,” said Kia Motors America vice president of service and aftersale operations, John Crowe.
Vital Insights specializes in customer experience management software for automotive companies around the world. Headquartered in Mississauga on Courtney Park Drive West, the company also has offices in Hamburg, Prague and Colorado.


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About the time that Android came to fight the phone war, I saw Instagram in the App Store … in the App Store, when I was thirteen. I thought it was the finest thing I ever had seen.
So, I asked if I could have Facebook (Nasdaq: FB) someday when I grew up. Mama dropped a dozen eggs — she really blew up. She really blew up. She didn’t understand. Mama said that Facebook is the devil’s right hand…
It’s probably just me, Great Ones, but a little outlaw country by Steve Earle just felt right for today’s look at Facebook’s antitrust problems.
Yes, yes … I know that Facebook is now the fifth $1 trillion U.S. company by market capitalization.
I just think that the company is living on borrowed time as generational shifts push consumers toward different social media experiences and preferences.
I mean, as much as many of you dislike TikTok, Gen Z absolutely loves the service … and it’s one Facebook would be hard-pressed to replicate. But Twitter on the other hand…
I digress. My ire today is not directed at Facebook, surprisingly. It’s directed at the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and 46 state attorneys general that waltzed into federal court thinking they had a slam-dunk antitrust case.
Narrator: They didn’t.
The trial was in the morning; they drug Facebook out of bed. Asked them how they pleaded; not guilty, they said. Not guilty, they said. You’ve got the wrong man. Nothing touched the trigger but the devil’s right hand…
U.S. District Judge James Boasberg dismissed the FTC’s suit, calling it “legally insufficient.”
How do 46 attorneys general walk into federal court with the FTC and get thrown out for being legally insufficient? It sounds like a bad bar joke. Clearly, these lawyers were woefully unprepared, as Judge Boasberg elaborated:
To paraphrase Goose from Top Gun: “The FTC regrets to inform you that the Facebook lawsuit is dead because our lawyers are stupid.”
And that’s the real deal here: Despite its public posturing, Facebook didn’t win anything in court. The FTC forfeited before it even took the field. Luckily for the FTC and the 46 state attorneys general, Boasberg left the door open for the antitrust lawsuit to continue if the group can provide enough support for its claims. The FTC has 30 days to refile its claim.
And for those investors out there worried that breaking up Facebook would negatively impact your portfolio, I urge you to read the latest article from Ted Bauman: “For Big Gains, Break Up Big Tech.”
And remember: Facebook will get you into trouble … but it can’t get you out.
Editor’s Note: Tech Recovery Lifting Off NOW
This is the biggest profit story for the second half of 2021. After a rough few months, the tech rebound is starting. Already, stocks are beginning to rally… PLUG: up 63% in a month. DDD: up 100% in six weeks. REAL: up 53% in a month.
Paul ’s strategy targets all of these stocks for even bigger profits. It’s how he achieved a streak of 34 wins in a row. Why wait for new record highs … when you can lock in the biggest gains now?
Good: Attention Dividend Disorder
Great Ones, if you like dividends — bank dividends, in particular — today’s flurry of news out of the banking sector was music to your ears.
Last week, the Federal Reserve announced that all 23 U.S. banks passed their 2021 stress tests — you know, that old relic from the 2008 financial crisis?
Anyway, banks barely waited a week before dumping money on shareholders via dividend increases and share buybacks. Here’s the shortlist:
- Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS): Doubled dividend to $0.70. $12 billion buyback plan.
- Wells Fargo (NYSE: WFC): Doubled dividend to $0.20. $18 billion buyback plan.
- JPMorgan Chase (NYSE: JPM): Boosted dividend by 11% to $1.
- Bank of America (NYSE: BAC): Boosted dividend by 17% to $0.21. $25 billion buyback plan.
- Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS): Boosted dividend by 60% to $2.
It was like an episode of Oprah’s favorite things out there today. “You get a dividend increase! You get a dividend increase!”
But not every bank joined the dividend hype train. Citigroup (NYSE: C) was the lone holdout among the major U.S. banks, holding its dividend firm at $0.51 and continuing with its planned stock buybacks.
Citi tried to downplay the lack of a dividend increase by noting that its “stock price is below tangible book value per share,” but we all know the real deal here: Citigroup needs the cash on hand.
Citi itself even said that its stress buffer will increase this year, likely due to defaults on consumer and business loans.
While nearly every other major U.S. bank stock rallied 2% or more, C shares fell roughly 1%.
Better: Mighty Wings
More good news for Great Stuff Picks readers who bought Boeing (NYSE: BA) back in December!
According to the financial media, United’s order is the biggest order of the past decade by any single carrier. Sweet!
For BA investors — especially Great Stuff Picks readers — this is yet more proof that Boeing is greatly underappreciated. The shares rose roughly 2% on the news, and I expect more gains to come as more airlines buy more Boeing jets to handle the increasing travel load due to an unwinding pandemic.
Meanwhile, UAL bounced between losses and gains on the day. I still don’t understand why investors freak out when companies spend money to grow their business.
Where do investors think United is putting all those new travelers looking to get out and about after the pandemic? On the wings of existing planes? Just strap them down in the cargo hold? And who’s going to fly those planes? Service them? Wait on passengers?
Seriously, people… I get that a company spending money means less is going into your pocket right now. We can’t all just throw dividends and share buybacks around like the big banks. Some businesses have actual labor and equipment overhead costs, and airlines occasionally need to spend money to make money.
I’m not a big UAL fan — I personally prefer Delta Air Lines (NYSE: DAL) — but the company doesn’t deserve to be punished for growth spending.
Editor’s Note: The Top 3 “Double Down” Stocks for 2021
Just when you thought the uncertainty of 2020 was over, the market is back to swinging down 500 points one day, 300 points up the next. So, you may be wondering: Is now a good time to invest?
America’s No. 1 investing guru says YES, but you must avoid the dangerous mistake most people make with their investments… (Click here for more.)
Best: Feel Good Inc.
Nothing makes me laugh (and roll my eyes) like overexaggerated ads for depression drugs.
Do you ever find yourself staring at the dining room table for hours?
Do you often weep when pushing children on the swings?
Do you feel the need to turn away slightly when other humans experience joy?
You may need this one drug that might also cause heart palpitations, rectal bleeding, Lupus and death…
It’s not Lupus!
I have no idea what BS they’re going to come up with for schizophrenia commercials … but we’ll soon find out if everything goes right for Cerevel Therapeutics (Nasdaq: CERE).
The biotech just announced tremendous results for its Phase 1b trials for CVL-231 — designed to help patients with schizophrenia. No surprise, CERE shares nearly doubled today.
So far in the trial, CVL-231 (catchy name, I know) was able to show clinically meaningful antipsychotic effects “while avoiding both the debilitating extrapyramidal side effects commonly seen with dopamine antagonists.” Took the words right out of my mouth!
Essentially, many antipsychotic drugs that use dopamine antagonists can also riddle patients with drug-induced tremors and other uncontrollable movements. It’s … not fun. And any chance at treating schizophrenic symptoms without these side effects would be life-changing, to say the least.
Now, this was just a Phase 1b trial. Next, Cerevel wants to test the drug for other use cases, such as dementia-related psychosis. There’s still a whole lotta testing left before the drug hits the market. But when/if it does? Phew, boy, what a lucrative market it will hit.
The market for schizophrenic drugs is expected to hit $9.48 billion by 2026. That’s a big market in its own right, but if Cerevel can prove the drug helps with dementia as well? That’s HUGE. It may even be a bigger drug for Alzheimer’s treatment than the money grab that Biogen (Nasdaq: BIIB) was approved for earlier this month.
Cerevel only has a market cap of about $3 billion after today’s rally. And if you don’t see the buyout opportunity there … Big Pharma will. If this drug is really that effective, and CERE is exploring even more uses for the drug, CERE is a no-brainer takeover target given the enormous upside.
Any of you own CERE before today’s 100% plus rally? Let me know, and if so, congrats!
Welcome to Understatement Corner — I’m glad you came.
Have you ever been gaming and thought to yourself: “Gee, this needs some ads to break up all this gameplay! Why have I not been peppered with ukulele jingles and marketing buzzwords yet?”
The time is nigh. In-game ads have escaped Candy Crush’s mobile gaming kingdom. And it’s only a matter of “when” ads will fully infect every inch of the gaming realm. I might be overexaggerating. Then again, I might not be.
That’s for PlayerWON — a double-speak name if ever I’ve heard one — to decide. The platform launches this week and lets marketers inject TV-style ads into games. Users will decide whether they want to watch a 15- or 30-second video ad, which would unlock exclusive in-game perks.
For right now (and this is key), PlayerWON’s in-game advertising mainly targets free-to-play games — franchises that otherwise rely on brand tie-ins or in-game purchases to make dough, rather than paying for the game upfront.
These free-to-play games are already quickly adopting the Japanese gacha model for gaming: You pay for “random rolls” for characters, skins and other aesthetic junk. In other words … it’s a simple transition to put ads in these games and bait gamers with free virtual loot.
Greed? In gaming? It’s more likely than you think. Just ask Electronic Arts (Nasdaq: EA). No one knows how to extract money, time and attention from a gamer like EA does. And the company’s already gung-ho on trying PlayerWON’s ad platform.
It’s only a matter of time before marketers get a taste of that sweet, sweet in-game ad money … and dive off the deep end with it.
Once you start putting obtrusive annoying ads in full-price AAA titles — and it will happen, mark my words — then the gaming world’s backlash will get very ugly. I’ve already heard ire across the interwebs about ads in NBA game titles while you’re waiting for the next period to start. I’d just go outside and shoot hoops at that point…
But, as much as I never want to see an ad again in my life … this move was inevitable. Younger gamers (say, teens to 30-year-olds) are largely cord cutters who have evaded ads for years. And you will have a hard time convincing them to leave the ad-free world.
But preteens and younger kids? Oh, they’re a fresh marketing gold mine. Millions of kids just ready to be spoon-fed marketing and taught the consumerist way — make like NSYNC and buy, buy, buy!
None of these kids watch traditional TV, contrary to what hordes of garbage Facebook memes would have you believe. And if their parents have already cut the cord and bought any streaming service(s) — like yours truly — how else would marketers spoon-feed ads to these kids than gaming?
It was bound to happen. But, how does all this affect you?
Well … what’d you say to our poll a couple weeks back asking about video games? If you’re a diehard gamer with a passionate hatred for ads, yeah, I’d say this could eventually impact your gaming experience unless you resign to pulling out the ol’ ad-free GameCube.
But whether or not you dig gaming, the profit opportunity that in-game ads pose is now very real. We both know in-game ads will literally print money. If PlayerWon parent company Simulmedia was publicly traded, this would be an investment I’d look deeper into … as much as I hate the idea of loading up Elder Scrolls and seeing an ad for GenericCryptoApp™ or … Metamucil.
What do you think, Great Ones? Are in-game ads an unavoidable future for gamers? How do you feel about EA having the ability to shove more loot box microtransactions down your gullet?
Let me know in the ol’ inbox-a-roo: email@example.com is where you can let your words fly like the wind and join in the Great Stuff. And in the meantime, here’s where else you can find us:
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Until next time, stay Great!
Editor, Great Stuff


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The news is in: Samsung is incredibly undecisive. Their new touchscreen F480 – I mean, “Tocco” as they call it in England – is now going to be released in France sometime this month as the “Samsung Player Style”.
We broke the news about the upcoming ultrathin phone 2 weeks ago as the F480 with Touchwiz UI, then relaunched last week as the Tocco (meaning “touch” in Italian, which seems to fit the phone rather well indeed).
The Player Style has been reported to be available this month in France for 549€. It is a thin 11.6 mm, with a built-in music player and FM radio. It will offer 223 MB of internal memory expandable with MicroSD port. It will also sport haptic “VibeTonz” feedback on the 2.8-inch touchscreen and a nice 5 MP camera.
While it is only going to be available this month in Europe, it should be ready in other regions of the world later in the year.
If you liked the post, you might find these interesting too:
- Samsung relaunches SGH-F480 as “Tocco”
- Samsung Tocco Lite (S5230) announced in the UK
- Samsung Star II headed to Orange UK as Samsung Tocco Icon
- Samsung Anycall haptic phone: 100,000 units sold, pink and white versions on the way
- Samsung W750 Haptic PoP with colorful covers


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The Google Pixel 3a and Pixel 3a XL phones were unveiled last year at the Google I/O 2019 event. Due to the COVID-19 outbreak, the Google I/O 2020 has been cancelled. However, the search engine giant is still expected to announce the rumored Pixel 4a phone through an online event. Citing internal documents as its source, a German publication has claimed that the Pixel 4a is likely to be available for purchase from May 22.
The report states that Vodafone Germany may start with the sales of the Pixel 4a from the said date. It is unclear whether the search engine giant will be holding an online launch event for the Pixel 4a or it will be directly hit the retail stores with an unveil event. The handset is rumored to arrive with a price tag of $399. There is sill no word on the existence of the Pixel 4a XL phone.
Google Pixel 4a specifications (Rumored)
The Google Pixel 4a has a 5.81-inch OLED display that has a punch-hole at the upper-left corner. It supports full HD+ resolution of 1080 x 2340 pixels.
The Snapdragon 730 processor is expected to power the Google Pixel 4a. The handset has a 3,080mAh battery that supports 18W fast charging. It has a rear-facing fingerprint reader and a 3.5mm audio jack.
The Pixel 4a has a front camera of 8-megapixel. The rear shell of the device has a square-shaped camera housing. It has an LED flash assisted 12.2-megapixel single camera. The handset is likely to arrive in 64 GB and 128 GB storage sizes. Just Black and Barely Blue are the rumored color variants of the Pixel 4a.
There has also been a lot of chatter about the internals of the Pixel 4a, with leaks also revealing key details about the hardware the phone could come packing upon its launch.
While there are some conflicting reports, most claim the Pixel 4a could be powered by a mid-range Qualcomm Snapdragon 730 chipset paired with 6GB of RAM and 128GB of storage. The phone is likely to feature a 5.81-inch OLED display with an FHD+ resolution of 2340 x 1080 pixels and a refresh rate of 60Hz.
To keep the phone running, Google is tipped to equip the Pixel 4a with a 3,080mAh battery with support for 18W USB Type-C fast charging. However, the phone will miss out on wireless charging.
As for design, from the leaked videos and images, we can tell that the Pixel 4a could come with curved edges with thin bezels on it. There is a punch-hole design on the display with a single front-facing camera. The back has a squarish camera bump with a single camera and an LED flash, positioned diagonally inside the module. At the center of the smartphone is a circular fingerprint sensor, leading us to believe that Google might skip face unlock on the Pixel 4a.
Google Pixel 4a leaked specifications
The Google Pixel 4a is rumoured to feature a 5.8-inch Full HD+ (2340 x 1080 pixels) resolution OLED screen. The display has a punch-hole cutout for the front-facing 8MP camera with an 84-degree field-of-view.
It could be powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 730 chipset with an octa-core CPU and Adreno 618 GPU. This is paired with 6GB RAM and upto 128GB storage options to choose from.
Pixel 4a has a single 12.2MP camera with support for both OIS and EIS, while the front-facing camera is reportedly the same as the Pixel 3a. The phone’s rear camera is capable of recording in 4K at 30fps, 1080p at 30/60/120fps and 720p at up to 240fps while the selfie camera can shoot Full HD videos at 30fps. The phone comes with a 3.5mm headphone jack and could come in two colours– Just Black and Barely Blue.
It is fitted with a 3,080mAh battery with support for 18W fast charging but skips out on wireless charging.
The 4a does have the company’s proprietary Titan M security chip but still misses out on the Pixel Neural Core. Also missing is the array of Soli radar chip and other sensors that debuted on the Pixel 4 last year. This, hopefully, indicates that Google could bring the Pixel 4a to India as the presence of Soli chip earlier on the Pixel 4 didn’t allow it to get certified for commercial use according to Indian laws.


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Multi-platinum Grammy, Juno and Polaris Prize nominated singer / songwriter Carly Rae Jepsen releases her new fourth album, Dedicated, today May 17th on Schoolboy / Interscope Records.
Jepsen worked with a crew of trusted songwriters and producers, among them John Hill, Jack Antonoff, Captain Cuts, Patrik Berger, and her longtime collaborator Tavish Crowe, on Dedicated.
Jepsen released “Party For One,” the first track off Dedicated, in the fall of 2018 and leading up to her new album release gave fans a taste of what’s to come with the songs “Now That I Found You,” “No Drug Like Me,” “Julien” and most recently “Too Much.”
Jepsen’s 2015 album E*MO*TION, earned a host of rave reviews with several outlets declaring it the pop album of 2015.
The set featured the platinum selling single “I Really Like You.”
One year later Jepsen released E*MO*TION Side B as a gift to her fans and saw it immediately rise to the iTunes Top 10 . E*MO*TION followed the release of Jepsen’s U.S. debut album Kiss featuring the blockbuster break-out hit “Call Me Maybe” which climbed to #1 on the iTunes Singles charts in over 47 countries, has sold over 20 million singles worldwide and is certified Diamond in the United States.
It earned Jepsen 2012 Grammy nominations for Best Pop Solo Performance and Song of the Year.


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By Elsa Baxter
'Super regional mall' will attract thousands of daily shoppers, firm says.
Al Ain Mall expansion project will be completed and open to the public in September 2010, officials announced on Thursday.
An extra 500,000 sqft will be added to the retail centre turning it into a “super regional mall” attracting thousands of shoppers daily, a statement by the firm said.
As well as an extension to the main mall building to add additional levels for shops, a five-star hotel is being developed on the site by Jumeirah Group.
A large man-made lake surrounded by retail units, restaurants and cafes will be located on the second floor, the statement said.
A soft launch is planned for the middle of the year with the official grand opening in September.


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Outlook for Holidays Is Cloudy as Back-to-School Sales Drag
by Deborah Belgum
It’s still early but retail analysts are warning that sluggish back-to-school sales in August could portend a weak holiday season, by far the most important time of the year for retailers.
“People are feeling conservative,” said Richard Giss, a retail expert and partner with Deloitte & Touche in Los Angeles. “It is not an issue of money to spend but a willingness to spend.”
August retail sales generally hovered around 1 percent, though Federated Department Stores Inc., parent of Macy’s West which has several L.A. locations and Bloomingdale’s, saw August same store sales dip 5.8 percent.
There are reports, however, of a pickup in spending this month, especially over the Labor Day weekend. Some analysts believe that back-to-school spending has tended to push more into September, after students check out what their classmates are wearing. In addition, year-over-year comparisons will be strong, given the spending pullback after the terrorist attacks.
As for the holidays, the outlook is guarded as job worries could keep the reins on spending, especially if the economy and stock market continue to tread water.
Grill Concepts Inc., the Los Angeles-based chain that operates the Daily Grill and Grill on the Alley restaurants, wants to succeed where other eateries have failed.
The company is working to open a Daily Grill on Rosecrans Avenue in Manhattan Beach by early December in a space vacated by Wolfgang Puck Caf & #233;.
Competition is stiff in the area. In the same office building is a McCormick & Schmick’s seafood restaurant. Across the street is a Houston’s, and next door is a P.F. Chang’s.
Bob Spivak, president and chief executive of Grill Concepts, negotiated a joint venture deal with Continental Development Corp., which owns the restaurant space.
Spivak feels the Daily Grill will do well because of the upscale demographics in the area and the high occupancy rates in the office buildings. “We feel the downturn in the economy is a short-term cycle,” he said.
In April, Daily Grill closed its Encino location when its 10-year lease was up. “We never did a lot of volume there,” Spivak said.
Encino, he said, is a difficult place for restaurants. “There’s not a lot of density in the market even though the demographics are great. It’s mostly single-family houses.”
Design Within Reach is making a foray into Southern California.
Design Within Reach opened its first store two years ago in San Francisco. There is one in Oakland and another in Palo Alto.
Last month, it opened its first store in Southern California with a retail outlet in Santa Monica. Another store is planned for the Pasadena area.
Oakland-based Design Within Reach is concentrating on the Southern California market because of the number of online customers in the Los Angeles area.
Staff reporter Deborah Belgum can be reached at (323) 549-5225 ext. 228, or at


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Networking software maker Novell
, a longtime advocate of proprietary systems, is the latest company to embrace open standards and technological backing for Linux
Novell detailed its planned technological migration of its NetWare network
operating system at its annual “BrainShare” user and partner conference in
Salt Lake City, Utah. Novell executives said NetWare 7 will be out in around
a year and a half, and will offer a suite of services, which reside on both
NetWare and Linux kernels.
Novell chairman and CEO Jack Messman said that the company is moving forward
with innovation of NetWare, and would be adding Linux features in the
future. Messman said Novell customers will have the option to migrate to the
Novell released the public beta of NetWare 6.5 on Monday, in conjunction with the
opening of the BrainShare conference. While Novell is moving towards
building Linux into its future products, company officials say they are in
the initial stages of Linux development, and their focus is on innovations
Novell said NetWare 7.0 will contain both NetWare and Linux services and
applications, but until then the company said it will consolidate many of
the applications and services into NetWare 6.5, as well as the 32/64-bit
version of NetWare. NetWare 6.5 is scheduled to ship this summer.
Novell made several announcements Monday at BrainShare, including its plan
to offer a new Java-based GroupWise client for Linux and Macintosh desktops,
which is expected to be available later this year.
Novell also said its Linux client for GroupWise was developed after
acquiring Newcomp Computer Systems, and the company also showed a
pre-release version of software for its GroupWise server.
Messman said NetWare 6.5 will include open-source technologies, such as
Apache, MySQL, Perl, PHP, and Tomcat. He also said that with the inclusion
of the Novell exteNd Application Server, acquired last year from
SilverStream Software, enterprises are now able to run any J2EE applications
Messman acknowledged that Novell has stuck with proprietary technologies for
too long, and that it is time to migrate to an open-source strategy.
To that end, Novell debuted a new Web site for the open-source and developer
communities it is calling Novell Forge. The site offers developers the
ability to download, modify, exchange, and update open-source code released
Novell may find itself with little choice but to make plans to align some of its products with the open-source movement in the software industry.
In its most recent quarter which ended January 31, 2003, Novel noted in its risk factors that it may not be able to successfully compete in a challenging market for computer software and consulting services due to the difficult global economic conditions.
Meanwhile, most of its key competitors, have moved to embrace Linux and open-source in varying degrees, including IBM, BEA Systems and Sun Microsystems. Even Microsoft has moved to respond to open-source advocates by launching its
Shared Source program, which lets qualified third parties have access to Windows CE operating system code for handheld devices.


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OnePlus CEO Pete Lau has revealed certain hardware specifications of the OnePlus 6.
Like its predecessors, the OnePlus 6 will focus on a user experience without unnecessary features.
“In recent years, smartphones have become more powerful than ever, but that doesn’t mean they’ve become smarter as well,” said Lau.
“Often, it feels like smartphones are more of a burden to our lives.”
Lau said that “fast” in a phone is not just about shorter loading times or top download speeds – any manufacturer can achieve high numbers in those areas.
“Fast is about creating a lasting impression of speed and smoothness, throughout all-day use, whether you’re recording 4K video or browsing Facebook.”
“Fast is about ensuring there is less than a 1/1,000 percent likelihood of your phone freezing, even under constant heavy use. To us, it’s about setting a higher standard.”
Lau then confirmed the following specifications of the OnePlus 6:
- Qualcomm Snapdragon 845
- 8GB of RAM
- 256GB of storage


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This week South Dakota Senators John Thune (R-SD) and Mike Rounds (R-SD) introduced a bill to amend the Federal Meat Inspection Act to modify requirements that meat is labeled “Product of U.S.A.”
In a statement about the bill, Senator Rounds stated that consumers deserved to know where their food is coming from, and that a product labeled “Product of the U.S.A.” should come from a top-quality American producer.
“Today’s beef labeling rules are misleading and allow beef and beef products from cattle born, raised and slaughtered outside of the U.S. to be labeled as U.S. beef. This must be fixed for both consumers and our hardworking producers,” Rounds continued.
The United States Cattlemen’s Association (USCA) was quick to lend its support to the new bill, with its Truth in Labeling Committee Chairman Danni Beer saying:
"Despite the repeal of mandatory country-of-origin labeling in 2015, packers and retailers are still labeling beef products with origin claims. USCA finds this practice abhorrent, as it rides on the coattails of the high-quality product U.S. ranchers produce. USCA is working several fronts on Truth in Labeling - addressing both non-labeled and improperly labeled beef and alternative protein products. Our goal is to immediately close this loophole which allows for imported product to be labeled as U.S. beef, and then continue pushing for the reestablishment of a country-of-origin labeling program."
The senators also sent a letter to Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue supporting USCA’s petition requesting the establishment of labeling requirements.
While USCA applauded the efforts of the bill, the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) took a more measured approach in its reaction.
“NCBA understands that the practices alleged in the letter from Senator Rounds and Senator Thune are a concern to cattle producers and we share a commitment to clear and truthful labeling,” says NCBA vice president, government affairs, Ethan Lane. “In August, in response to a proposal brought forward by our grassroots members, NCBA formed a working group to examine the prevalence of the alleged mislabeling practices. We are in the process of gathering information related to current industry labeling practices so we can fully understand the scope of the issue as we identify solutions that work for the industry.”
“In general, NCBA members are opposed to requesting additional government regulation on our industry. Until we understand the scope of labeling practices currently being utilized, any rush to regulate is an irresponsible step that can create unnecessary and burdensome government mandates. NCBA is actively seeking information on beef labeling practices,” Lane continued.
“The creation of government policy or regulation is a complex process that requires a thorough understanding of the problem and the involvement of many stakeholders. As our industry is fully aware, any rush toward government regulation can create unintended consequences that take years to unwind,” he concluded.
The bill must pass in the Senate before it can move on to the House and President before potentially becoming law.
A separate, but related, bill was also introduced October 31, in hopes of the reestablishment of a country-of-origin labeling (COOL) program by Senator Jon Tester (D-MT). The resolution puts forth a firm statement of support for COOL, which was repealed in 2015.


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It can sometimes seem like Apple is taking over the world, with its products increasingly ubiquitous and new launches hotly anticipated. They have however experienced some negative publicity recently. You will no doubt be aware of the controversial ruling of the European Commission requiring payment of back dated tax which has somewhat tarnished Apple's image. It has now suffered a further, though more minor, setback in the United Kingdom where it has been unsuccessful in obtaining a trade mark for its 'iWatch' name.
Apple had originally intended to use 'iWatch' as the name for its Apple Watch and it applied to the United Kingdom Intellectual Property Office for a trade mark accordingly. The application was opposed by Swiss watchmaker Swatch with the opposition being based on the fact that 'iWatch' was too similar to its own trade marks for the words 'iSwatch' and 'Swatch'.
The opposition was successful which is not surprising given the extreme similarities between the Swatch marks and 'iWatch' and the fact that they would be used on identical or nearly identical goods.
Though they fought the opposition, Apple were obviously aware of the likely outcome as their watch was actually launched in 2015 as the 'Apple Watch' and not the 'iWatch'. If Apple wishes to use the 'iWatch' name in the future in the UK it will only be able to do so for certain products, predominantly computer software and accessories, which are not covered by Swatch's trade marks and which Apple would likely think are not suited to the 'iWatch' name in any event.
As this was a decision of the IPO, Apple can appeal the decision if it wishes to do so to the High Court. No indication has yet been given by Apple as to whether this is something they intend to do however as this product has already been launched and is known to consumers under the name 'Apple Watch' it would appear that there would be little value in Apple continuing this dispute unless they anticipate rebranding the product for future versions.in: Case Law, News, Trade Marks


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Banana's for Japan
Japanese trading house Itochu Corp has followed Kirin and Asahi into the Australian food industry, snapping up banana farms in Queensland as part of its $US1.7 million agreement to acquire Dole Food Company's Asian produce and global packaged food operations.
The deal, announced in California this week, will make Itochu a key player in the local $450m banana industry and a supplier to Coles and Woolworths.
Dole is believed to own five banana farms and a packaging operation in Far North Queensland and has ripening and distribution operations in NZ.
Under the deal, Itochu will have exclusive rights to the Dole trademark on packaged and fresh food in Asia, Australia and NZ.
Dole has 20 trademarks registered in Australia, including Dolicious, Dole, Sweetio, and Bobby Banana.
Itochu, Japan's third largest trading house, is aiming to boost sales from food to insulate itself against volatility in iron ore, coal and oil, and generate a more defensive earnings stream. The company, which owns Japan's third largest convenience store chain, FamilyMart, is aiming to almost double earnings from food in the next three years, according to its annual report.
Cashed-up Japanese trading houses have been actively buying agribusiness assets overseas.
Marubeni acquired Gavilon Group, the third largest grain merchandiser in the US, for $US3.6 billion in May, and Mitsui bought Brazilian grain broker Multigrain last year.
Dole, the world's largest fruit and vegetable producer, decided to sell its Asian and packaged food operations after a strategic review and will use the proceeds to reduce debt.