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A ground-breaking new technology at Churchill Square is set to alter the way people shop and Daniel White caught up with Kaye Walker to find out what to expect
The way you shop is changing.
Much like the shift that was seen when customers traded in high streets and shopping centres for the comfort of online orders at the end of the 20th century, a transformation has begun once again.
Brighton’s Churchill Square shopping centre has introduced a ground breaking technology that will allow customers to see the spring/summer fashion show brought to life in front of their very eyes.
Forget about clambering to get the best view at the catwalk this spring, a visit to Churchill Square will allow you to view the Zap it, Unzip It! fashion show live on your smart phone.
Kaye Walker, the head of retail marketing at Jones Lang LaSalle; Churchill Square’s real estate firm, is excited about the first fashion show of its kind to be created by a UK shopping centre.
“The main driver behind the whole initiative was that we wanted to do something different,” she explains. “Shopping centres have done fashion shows for years and Churchill Square always likes to do things a little different and I think it reflects the personality of Brighton as well.”
Through a simple scan of one of the Zap codes placed throughout Churchill Square, Absolute Magazine, online and various outdoor sites, the user is not only able to view the fashion show come to life through their smart phone but is also able to access information about the models’ clothing.
Walker says: “There’s going to be codes externally and around the centre that will all link through to our website where people can see the different outfits, where they can buy them from and then there will also be exclusive offers and discounts available.”
The collaboration with Zappar, the Augmented Reality specialists, is expected to see more members of the public flock to the city centre’s shopping hub than in recent times and Walker is looking to provide more than just a shopping space for those visitors.
“It’s all been about delivering more of an experience for our shoppers, giving them something extra,” she enthusiastically describes. “So with the Zappar fashion show we can showcase different trends, we can showcase things for different age groups, we can get more males and females in than we’ve ever historically been able to do, so it works on lots of levels for our customers but also our retailers as well.”
While digital technology is likely to direct the future of shopping, this equipment is not only drawing people to their phones but also to the street shops.
Walker says: “We’re seeing click and collect changing an awful lot in terms of people ordering online and then coming in, I also think it influences a lot of people’s decision making so I think things will change massively.”
Although many have said online shopping would see the end of high street and shopping centre popularity, Walker is convinced that, with enough effort from shops, they can both be encompassed in the future of shopping.
“The biggest thing we all have to do in retail to survive is to embrace digital because it’s there,” she warns. “Our mobile phones will become our purses and our wallets; we won’t need credit cards and debit cards, so it’s connecting the digital world with the shopping environment.”
Zappar not only enables customers to have access to an easier way of buying their favourite clothing with sites like influence fashion but it also tracks the number of times a code has been zapped, offering information that may be invaluable to retailers and advertisers without issues over privacy safety.
“It allows advertising to be tracked and I think that’s what people like,” she explains. “So we would be able to say the centre promo court has been zapped 10,000 times and the one in Absolute has been done 20,000 times but we don’t get any information about them but we can tell how many times they’ve zapped it which is quite interesting.”
While the current Zap It, Unzip It! fashion show will be available for the month, following its launch on March 28th, its future is bright for this special technology.
Walker says: “We have an urban fashion show planned for autumn/winter, so we’re doing something completely different but also our digital strategy is set to continue so there’ll be lots more coming, so watch this space!”


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Nintendo selling the 3DS at a loss
In order to get more of their portable 3DS products into people's hands, Nintendo has admitted that they've been selling the 3DS at a loss (which isn't a normal Nintento move). Nintendo has also said that they expect to stop selling the 3DS at a loss (not sure what that means) by March 31, 2013. Its pretty obvious that smartphones have had a pretty big impact on portable gaming when even the once unbeatable Gameboy lineup is being sold at a loss. Engadget has the story.
Ever since Nintendo slashed the price of the 3DS, there's been plenty of speculation that the gaming giant has been selling the portable console at a loss. The company acknowledged that fact during its disappointing earnings report, stating, "its hardware has been sold below cost because of its significant price cut in the fiscal year ended March 31, 2012," something that's uncharacteristic of the company's past operations.

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Under Armour's shares skidded about 23 percent Tuesday after the sportswear maker reported lower-than-expected quarterly sales and announced that Chief Financial Officer Chip Molloy will step down.
The stock price was $19.17, down more than 23 percent from Monday's close.
related investing news
Under Armour said Molloy is leaving for personal reasons. It did not elaborate. Molloy, the former CFO of PetSmart, joined Under Armour on last January.
The company's sales were hurt by intense competition and slowing growth in North America.
The company said net income fell to $104.9 million in the fourth quarter ended Dec. 31 from $105.6 million a year earlier.
On a per-share basis, earnings fell to 23 cents per for Class A, Class B and Class C shares from 24 cents a year earlier.
The company's net revenue rose about 12 percent to $1.31 billion, its slowest sales growth in eight years. Analysts on average expected $1.41 billion, according to Thomson Reuters.
Susan Anderson, a consumer research analyst at FBR Capital Markets, said on CNBC's "Squawk Box" that she was not overly surprised by the performance, given the industry's oversupply and recent bankruptcies like that of Sports Authority last June.
"I think we are, based on their guidance, going to see slower growth over the next year as we ... work through some North America issues," she said, noting several promising areas in the report where Under Armour could see improvement.
"We are still seeing international growth over 50 percent and then also footwear, which I think was expected to be light, was still very strong, over 30 percent," she continued. "So I think those are really the two growth platforms that we're going to start to see take hold over the next several years."
She said Under Armour stock was still worth holding for the long term.
"I like it over Nike," she said. "It's one that is still going to have double-digit top-line growth, which is very hard to find these days ... in retail or apparel."
And, despite Nike's $30.5 billion in revenue for 2016 compared to Under Armour's $4.8 billion, "I think there's still a long runway of growth for them," Anderson said. "I think it's going to come out a winner."
— Reuters contributed to this report.


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||06-11-2013 05:14 PM
Deus Ex: Human Revolution Director's Cut Coming to Consoles and PC
Deus Ex: Human Revolution Director's Cut was previously thought to be exclusive to the Wii U, but Gamestop reports
it's also coming to PC, Xbox 360 and PS3.
Square Enix has confirmed to GameSpot that the upcoming Director's Cut for Deus Ex: Human Revolution will be coming to the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PC alongside the previously announced Wii U version.
Eidos Montreal's Jean Francois Dugas revealed that the Director's Cut was going multiplatform on GameSpot's E3 2013 Live Show.
No additional information was given, nor did Square Enix confirm whether the Director's Cut would be released separately as DLC for current owners of Deus Ex: Human Revolution.


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Thailand bets on biodegradable plastic
Will Thailand use agricultural waste products to create new green industries?
For more information, please visit our newsroom section here: https://goo.gl/LvpsDS
Spire Research and Consulting was established in 2000 to address a gap in the research and consulting industry in global emerging markets. Unlike most agencies that focus on traditional consumer research, our founders saw a profound need for holistic research projects.
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- TheStreet.com•9 months ago
Both companies defied the general weakness in the retail sector, which some analysts attributed simply to a stronger product mix than their peers.
- TheStreet.com•10 months ago
Analysts at Oppenheimer commended the video game retailer for its "capital discipline" and its efforts to educate investors about the changes going on at the company.
- Bloomberg•10 months ago
A slo-mo wipeout ends in bankruptcy court for the 36-year-old surf retailer.
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With Plush, luxury bags can now look and feel as beautiful as the day you bought it.
DIY plush cloud pillows made with fuzzy fabric.
CHRISTMAS may be known for Santa Claus and reindeer but when it comes to exchanging presents in Ipoh, gift shops in the city are seeing many different trends, from LED snow globes, Pokemon plush toys and Lego sets this year among buyers.
KUALA LUMPUR: With the overall property market remaining soft especially for upper-medium to luxury-priced residential units, developers are looking at alternate means to generate cash flow from these properties in the interim.
It may be the only time you will find these words in the same sentence: "Ebola" and "Add to Wishlist." Giantmicrobes Inc., which makes a line of plush toys based on viruses and other microscopic organisms, has sold out its entire Ebola stock, including the small Ebola doll for US$9.95, a Gigantic Ebola doll for $29.95 and an Ebola Petri Dish toy for $14.95, according to the company's website.
Tan Hock Chuan showing the year of the 'Dog' plush toys that come in several sizes being sold at his shop for this coming Chinese New Year in Ipoh. SAIFUL BAHRI / The Star
HONG KONG (Reuters) - A plush wolf that quickly sold out last month in all Hong Kong branches of Swedish furniture retailer IKEA was back on the shelves on Wednesday and selling briskly as the toy has become a symbol of protest against the city's embattled leader.


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A recent report confirmed sales of one million units per month for the Google-branded Nexus 7 tablet. It has been confirmed by Taiwanese PC and tablet maker Asus' chief financial officer David Chang that the tablet has managed to make a good enough position in the market, though it started a bit slow with 500K -600 units a month.
"At the beginning, it was, for instance, 500K units a month, then maybe 600, 700K. This latest month, it was close to 1 million", he said. But, things changed a lot when it reached 1 million last month.
The Taiwanese technology maker has done fairly good job and its third quarter earnings are showing it pretty well with its notebook range's sale around 5 million shipments per month.
It was further added tablets shipments have seen an increase of three times from 800,000 in the second quarter to 2.3 million shipments, thereby showing how things are changing for the company.
As far as fourth quarter is concerned, tablet sales are expected to jump by 13% to 2.6 million shipments, with some 10 million units in 2013. It would be worth seeing what future holds for the company which is doing fairly good job right now.
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For Senior Journalist Kelvin Ong - and indeed, many others - the Laurel-Yanny sound clip raised a few questions about cognitive bias at the workplace.
How organisations can use data to reach analytics maturity - and make intelligent business and HR decisions.
How Takeda Pharmaceutical Company's consolidation of its HR systems helped to modernise the 237-year-old organisation's operations globally.
Session one of this year's Summit was packed with learnings, case studies and best practices. Here are our top picks.
In this installment of our interview with Lai Chang Wen, the founder and CEO of e-commerce delivery company Ninja Van, we get up close and personal.
Business process outsourcing hub Teledirect Telecommerce is operating on a higher wavelength when it comes to HR digitisation.
Ninja Van founder and CEO Lai Chang Wen talks candidly about his employees, the sharing economy, the company's rapid rise to prominence, and more.
Catch up on HRM Magazine Asia's top stories for March 2018, right here. We've got HR Insider with GSK, and the latest on the Grab/Uber acquisition.
Harlina Sodhi from IDFC Bank tells us about the challenges and priorities for learning specialists in 2018, including how digital learning will become increasingly dominant
13 years after Fast Company magazine asked "Why we hate HR", the profession is still struggling to win hearts and minds.
Why should learning and development professionals shift their focus to developing leaders who are agile?
When it comes to employee engagement, UK pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline seems to have figured out the magic formula.
A new, monthly networking opportunity attracted more than 50 HR professionals to its inaugural event in Singapore.
Before HR business partners can add value to the business, they must first learn more about it.
The world's largest furniture retailer ensures that accessibility is a quality afforded not only to its customers, but also to all employees.
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Low productivity has been particularly detrimental for Singapore’s service industry.


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Unique Kobrin cheeses: emulated but never rivalled
When the local cheese factory brought its ice-cream to the small Polesie town of Kobrin for the first time, a queue of children and adults quickly formed, keen to try this ‘Soviet-style’ treat
By Yuri Chernyakevich
As soon as I enter Kobrin Butter-and-Cheese Plant, I’m told the anecdote. I can vouch for the fact that people are still prepared to queue for a taste of the delicious ice-cream, which harks back to ‘childhood days’ for many.
The secret of Kobrin ice cream’s popularity is simple; it’s made from whole milk and sweet cream, with no preservatives or artificial flavourings — just as in Soviet times. The true taste of childhood at the Kobrin plant is part of a diverse range: over 150 types of milk, cottage cheese, butter and yogurt. Cheese making is at the heart of the enterprise though, with most locally produced cheeses exported.
We all know that dairy exports generate huge profits for the country, with the Russian market showing increased demand. According to the National Statistical Committee, almost $250m of cheese and cottage cheese and over $120m of butter were supplied to Russia from January-April 2013. In addition, Belarusian milk accounted for over 70 percent of all Russian milk imports. Milk is our ‘white gold’.
The Kobrin plant has been liaising with Russia for many years, their co-operation beginning with local cheese makers taking part in international exhibitions across our neighbouring state’s regions, as well as in Moscow. The capital is the biggest consumer of Kobrin cheeses in Russia, as Director Nikolay Misyuk tells us. Trading organisations in Russia, Moldova and Turkmenistan are buying the enterprise’s produce at a steady rate: worth almost $25m from January-July 2013. This year, a new cheese making facility has been launched, able to produce up to 30 tonnes a day, aiming to supply the CIS and domestic buyers.
The Kobrin brand is unique and so popular that some ‘entrepreneurs’ have even been trying to sell ‘fake’ versions of ‘Cherny Prints’ (Black Prince) cheese, resulting in a court case to defend the company’s rights.
The situation certainly shows that Kobrin cheeses are the focus of attention and envy — and that buyers should beware pale imitations.
The plant is always thinking of how to embrace its success further, creating new recipes. In fact, half of all its cheeses are individual to the enterprise. Last year, hard cheese production was launched, with produce sold not only in Kobrin but in Brest and Minsk.
Unsurprisingly, the Kobrin plant boasts many international contest prizes but its biggest achievement speaks for itself: popularity with customers. Quality is at the heart of this success, as those who love its ice-cream would agree.


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Apex Legends Dark Depths Event Start Time & Release Date
A new Arenas Map arrives with the Dark Depths Event!
A new arenas map, exclusive cosmetics, rewards, and more are all set to arrive in the brand new Apex Legends event, Dark Depths.
With the event scheduled to last for three weeks, fans are eager to know if this will finally mark the end of the dry spell the game has experienced in recent weeks.
Season 11 promised to bring new limited-time modes, an evolving map, and plenty of new content for players to jump into. Unfortunately, fans have received one limited-time mode since Season 11 started, and it most certainly wasn’t a new one.
Nevertheless, we’re all excited to see what surprises the Dark Depths Event has in store for us. So, here’s the official start time and release date for the upcoming Apex Legends event.
- READ MORE: 5 Best Legends To Use In Apex Legends Season 11
When Is The Apex Legends Dark Depths Event?
The Apex Legends Dark Depths Event will release on Tuesday, January 11th before coming to an end on Tuesday, February 1st. As for the official start time of the event, it is expected to launch at 10AM PT / 1PM ET / 6PM GMT, similar to previous events and updates.
This will likely be the final event of the season, as Season 12 is rumoured to be launching on or around Tuesday, February 8th. So, jump in and get your hands on the new themed cosmetics whilst you can.
- READ MORE: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Rumored To Join Fortnite In New Paramount Deal
What’s Included In The Dark Depths Event?
According to the EA website, the Dark Depths Event will include a brand new Arenas Map, themed cosmetics, and new flash events with special rewards.
Unfortunately, no Town Takeover is scheduled for the event, but a new Arenas Map is on the way. The new map is called ‘Habitat’ and is part of the many islands in the New Antillia archipelago, which is also where Storm Point is located.
The island is home to the Leviathan and was reportedly inspired by how it would feel to fight in the breeding grounds of these gentle giants.
Alongside the new Arenas Map, players will find plenty of new cosmetics in the store and some special challenges to complete. Check out the EA website for the full details.


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Canadian iPhone users will now be able to make cheap or even free calls from their devices using online calling service Skype.
Skype said today that its iPhone and iPod Touch application will now be available north of the border months after it was first unveiled elsewhere.
The application, available for download through Apple Inc.'s App Store, allows users to make free Skype-to-Skype calls and cheap calls to other phones using their device's Wi-Fi capabilities. The calling feature does not work over a cellular data connection, a spokesperson said.
"We are delighted to bring the Skype for iPhone application to Canadian iPhone and iPod touch users as it opens up new ways for them to stay connected with family, friends and colleagues for free or minimal cost," Tom Yeung, Skype's director of market development for the Americas, said in a statement.
"With more than 6 million downloads from the App Store so far, the Skype for iPhone application is one of our most popular mobile offerings so we're delighted to say that Canadians can now also carry their Skype conversations with them wherever they go."
A group of investors, including Canada Pension Plan's investing arm, recently reached a deal to buy 65 per cent of Skype for about $2 billion from online auction site eBay Inc.
Skype was first rolled out in 2002 and uses peer-to-peer and VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) technologies to provide its Internet calling service.
It's considered by many to be a potentially disruptive technology since it allows users to bypass traditional phone companies when making calls to other Skype users.


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Teknoflor has partnered with UPS in efforts to reduce the company’s carbon footprint with carbon-neutral parcel shipments.
To continuously improve the company’s sustainability programs, all domestic Teknoflor samples and collateral will be shipped via UPS carbon neutral shipping. This includes any packages shipped via UPS Ground, UPS 3rd Day, UPS 2nd Day, and UPS Next Day Air.
“Teknoflor is thrilled to be able to offset our carbon footprint generated by increasing sample shipments,” said Jeff Collum, president of Teknoflor. “We are committed to our sustainability initiatives and this is one more way to show our commitment to reducing our negative impact on the environment”
UPS uses a precise carbon calculator to measure a customer’s carbon footprint, and the additional shipping expense paid to UPS for carbon-neutral shipping is used to fund these carbon mitigation projects around the world. The UPS carbon neutral program has been third-party certified by Natural Capital Partners and verified by SGS, a well-recognized third-party certifier. Last year, UPS achieved 110,814 metric tons of carbon dioxide reduction or offset worldwide (according to UPS’s GRI Content Index).


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10 October 2017
Patients with cancer who choose to be treated with alternative medicine alone are more than twice as likely to die as those undergoing conventional treatments, an observational study shows.
14 August 2017
Pharmacists across Australia are being urged to reveal the dodgy retail tactics used to sell unproven or ineffective complementary medicines.
15 June 2017
A study into whether cranberry supplements prevent recurrent UTIs will be the first trial under a controversial partnership between the government’s top research agency and a complementary medicine manufacturer.
26 May 2017
Parents are using alternative practitioners as a parallel health service for their children without without telling their GP, new research shows.
09 May 2017


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DAYVILLE, Conn. — United Natural Foods here said last week that its net income for the second fiscal quarter was a little less than analysts expected, which the company attributed to slower than anticipated sales growth and some one-time charges.
The natural- and organic-product distributor reported net income for the three-month second quarter, which ended Jan. 27, of $10.9 million, up 2.5% over year-ago results. Sales for the period were $668.5 million, up 11.2%.
“While the quarter came in at the lower end of our 11% to 15% [sales growth] guidance for the year, we remain optimistic of stronger sales trends in the last half of fiscal '07,” said Michael S. Funk, president and chief executive officer, in a conference call with analysts discussing the results.
The company said its distribution business to traditional supermarkets, which account for about 15% of its volume, was up 27.5% for the quarter, but the rate of sales growth to independents, which account for 43% of volume, slowed to 7.8%. Sales to the “supernatural” chains, which include Whole Foods and Wild Oats, grew at a 9.2% rate for the quarter. They account for about 36% of the distributor's volume.
In response to a question, Funk said the growth in the supermarket channel was coming both from strong comps at mature natural/organic product sets and from the addition of new sets. He also said the decline in the pace of growth among independents was something the company had observed during “the last several quarters,” but he added that he didn't think the slowdown would continue.
Through the second half of the year, United Natural forecast sales growth in the 13% to 15% range, which it expects to come primarily from Whole Foods and Wild Oats locations.
The company said it recently began transitioning to be the major supplier for Whole Foods in Southern California from a facility located in Fontana, Calif., which it said would add $100 million to its sales volume.
The company also said it was planning to expand in the Pacific Northwest with the scheduled opening of a 237,000-square-foot distribution center in Ridgefield, Wash. The center, which will serve as a hub for customers in Portland, Ore., and other areas in the region, is scheduled to come online late this summer.
Unified said it had some cost pressures in the quarter from the start-up of the Whole Foods business at the Fontana facility, and it also incurred some one-time charges related to the sale of two other facilities in Southern California. Adjusting for those write-downs, plus the write-down associated with a facility in Minnesota, the company said its net income for the second quarter would have been $12.7 million, compared with net income of $10.8 million, excluding special items, in the second quarter of a year ago.
In an analyst report, Goldman Sachs said the company did a good job of keeping expenses in check in the quarter, but cautioned that such controls were not likely to be sustainable.
“Although second-quarter results were decent, year-over-year top-line growth continues to moderate, and the [bottom line] is becoming increasingly reliant on exceptional cost control, which we view as unsustainable,” the firm said. “Simply put, a growth company, even in the distribution business, cannot keep expenses growing only 4%.”


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Shopify shares climbed Thursday to touch a record high, following optimistic views from analysts.
Stifel’s Scott Devitt raised his price target on the e-commerce company’s shares to $1,600 from $1,400, while maintaining his buy rating.
Devitt mentioned the company’s “proven track record of creating products and services that generate value for merchants”, and said that he expects the ongoing investments to create monetization improvements as the platform continues to scale. The analyst also indicated that the company’s outlook for the second half of the year is crucial on challenging prior year comparisons during reopening.
Susquehanna Financial Group’s John Coffey boosted his price target on Shopify shares to $1,800 from $1,500, while keeping his positive rating. According to Coffey, Shopify’s focus on raising operating spending in Europe this year is a wise decision. Coffey also boosted his revenue outlook for 2022 and 2023.
Shopify stock has surged +33% in the past six months.


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WSJ: Podcasts Face Advertising Hurdles
Decent primer on the state of podcast adversing from Steven Perlberg writing in the Wall Street Journal
Advertising revenue growth has been limited by a range of problems not unlike the issues that online media faced in its early days. It’s difficult to measure how many people actually tune into a podcast, let alone listen to hosts promoting its sponsors. Ads in podcasts are relatively expensive, so it’s tough for brands beyond direct-response advertisers to determine whether the investment pays off. And the process of buying and selling ads in podcasts is still complex and clunky.
N.B. I dream of the day I can read an article in mainstream media on podcasting that doesn’t mention Serial.


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Global supply chains for coffee starts in some of the world’s the poorest and most remote communities. They’ve been the hardest hit when prices slumped to a 12-year low.
But one community in Mexico is going strong because it grows a bean that’s been called “black gold.” being strengthened by the powerful bean. CGTN’s Alasdair Baverstock has the story.
The mountain town of Pluma Hidalgo. Since its founding 130 years ago, in the jungled hills above Mexico’s Pacific Coast, it has produced some of the world’s finest coffee.
Esteban is the great-grandson of the town’s founder. He credits the coffee’s quality to the region’s natural abundance.


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Britain’s first lithium refinery is to be built on Teesside in an effort to boost the UK’s electric car supply chain despite uncertainty over the future of the industry.
Green Lithium, which is backed by the commodities trading giant Trafigura, will build a £600m refinery for the battery material at PD Ports’ Teesport, the UK’s fifth-largest port.
The project’s backers aim to create 1,000 jobs during the construction phase and enough lithium hydroxide for 1m electric vehicles each year when the plant is complete.
The move comes as confidence in plans to make the north-east of England a hub for green jobs and the electric vehicle industry has been shaken by the travails of Britishvolt.
The battery company, which planned to develop a £3.8bn “gigafactory”, last week secured five weeks of emergency funding from the commodities giant Glencore after preparing to appoint administrators.
The government hopes to strengthen the supply chain for electric vehicles, before a ban on the sale of new petrol and diesel cars in 2030.
Lithium is an essential component for batteries and is one of a number of “critical minerals” used in technology from mobile phones to wind turbines.
Ministers have expressed concerns about the vulnerability of the supply chains for critical minerals, notably those supplied from China amid deteriorating political relations between China and the US and UK in recent years.
Countries from the UK to the US are trying to develop indigenous sources of minerals used in batteries, including Cornish Lithium in Redruth.
Pure lithium is not found in nature, so it is refined by evaporating liquid brines rich in lithium or extracted from hard rock carrying lithium-bearing minerals.
Almost 90% of the world’s lithium processing takes place in east Asia. Green Lithium plans to use a “low energy process” with renewable electricity and make the plant capable of using hydrogen and capturing carbon emissions.
Green Lithium said the refining process at Teesside will have a carbon footprint “80% lower than the traditional processes currently used internationally”.
The company plans to formally commission the plant in 2025 and it will take three years to build, ultimately creating 250 permanent jobs.
The plant will cost £600m to build. The project received £600,000 in government funding in April 2021 and separate discussions on state support for the planning phase are ongoing.
The business secretary, Grant Shapps, visited the site on Monday. He said: “We’re backing companies, like Green Lithium here in Teesside, to grow the new green industries across the UK, sparking jobs and growth for decades to come.”
Shapps said the government was moving to “secure our supply chains of critical minerals. We know that geopolitical threats and global events beyond our control can severely impact the supply of key components that could delay the rollout of electric vehicles in the UK.”
Claire Blanchelande, the head of lithium at Trafigura, said: “Green Lithium’s refinery will be one of the few ready by the middle of this decade when we see demand for electric vehicles picking up in a very significant way in the UK and Europe.”
In June, Trafigura posted record first-half profits of $2.7bn (£2.4bn) after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine led to huge volatility in commodities markets.
UK’s first lithium refinery to be built in boost for electric car industry


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ABC reports that iPhone 4S inquires "have been up over 700 percent in the last two weeks." (Photo : Reuters)
While you'll have to wait until September to find out about the release date of the iPhone 5, 9to5mac.com has published leaked pictures of the coveted device's battery to sate your curiosity. As we follow the road to what could potentially be Apple's biggest product launch ever, here's the details that you'll want to know.
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With a thinner metal design, a smaller dock connect, and a higher capacity battery than the iPhone 4S, the iPhone 5 is set to enter the next-generation of handsets in style.
According to 9to5mac.com, the new battery has a capacity of 1440 mAh, up from the iPhone 4S's 1430 mAh. The iPhone 5 has an increased watts-per-hour measurement, clocking in at 5.45, as opposed to the iPhone 4S's 5.3.
LTE connectivity has also been an area of speculation. The leaked photo shows a battery that is smaller than those for traditional LTE enabled phones; however 9to5mac puts forward the possibility that Apple's new iPhone may have a more efficient chip. Given Apple has made the sufficient technological advances, LTE is still a possibility.
Apple's Big Opportunity
Forbes reports that FBR Capital analyst Craig Berger has called the iPhone 5's launch "one of the largest single product opportunities in Apple's history," estimating that it may sell 250 million units with profits over $50 a share.
Berger speculates that both chip makers (Qaulcomm, Fairchild Semiconductor, Broadcom, Avago, Skyworks, Triquint, Cirrus, TI and ON Semiconductor) and carriers (AT&T, Verizon, and Sprint) will see a boost in their profits as well.
Coming up against the warmly received Samsung Galaxy S III, this holiday season will be a battlefield.


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Europe Closing the Gap Separating it from U.S. as Top Internet Economy; Business Leaders See The Lack Of Suitably Skilled Workers as the Single Greatest Constraint on Future Economic Growth
NEW YORK, August 28, 2000 - The United States continues to have the world’s most advanced digital economy, but Europe is starting to close the gap as the Internet continues to create new jobs both directly and across other industries, according to a new study released by Accenture*.
The study projects that by 2002, the Internet economy will employ more than 10 million people across a variety of industries in the United States, the five largest European economies and Ireland.
The report examines the impact of the Internet on the economies of the United States, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Spain and the UK. Brazil, which has the largest Internet economy in Latin America and attracts significant U.S. and European investment, was also included in the research.
Viewed as a line of business itself, the Internet will have directly created 5.8 million jobs in the United States and 3 million jobs in the six European countries surveyed by 2002. These are defined as jobs created by Internet pure play companies, portals, software consultants, web designers, and telecommunications and Internet Service Providers offering Internet access.
However when Internet-related jobs in other industries are factored into the forecasts, the total number of jobs created in the U.S. and European countries jumps from 8.8 million to more than 10 million, according to the report.
The report is based on analysis of publicly available economic data, surveys of companies, government agencies and opinion makers as well as results of interviews with 160 CEOs, senior executives, government officials and industry experts.
"The good news is that the Internet is creating more jobs than it is destroying, even when you look at traditional business models,"said Steve Freeman, partner, Accenture, who advises communications companies on e-commerce and Internet strategies. "And this peripheral job creation is likely to be significant in the short term as established businesses invest in building up new Internet operations alongside their existing businesses."
The report also indicates that growth of the Internet economy is accelerating in Europe, which has begun to narrow the gap that keeps it behind the United States as home to the top Internet economy.
In 1998, the Internet economy employed four times as many people in the U.S. as in the six European countries studied (2.1 million Internet economy employees in the U.S compared to 517,000 in Germany, France, Ireland Italy, Spain and UK). By 2002, this ratio will be lower than two-to-one, the report projects. (5.8 million Internet economy employees in the U.S. compared to 3 million in the European countries surveyed.)
The same trend is reflected in revenues generated by the Internet economy, according to the report. In 1999, the Internet economies in the European countries studied generated $132 billion in revenues – or roughly one quarter the $507 billion in Internet economy revenues generated in the U.S., the study says. But by 2002, the Internet sector will be worth $597 billion in the European countries – or roughly one half the $1.23 trillion forecast for the U.S., according to the study.
The study examines the impact of the digital age on traditional business models, concluding that the number of new jobs created by the Internet in traditional businesses more than offsets current job displacement, as certain functions are replaced by automation and individuals become empowered to perform more tasks.
Areas of job creation result from greater geographic reach, the development of new marketing channels, broader product and services lines, expanded customer service capabilities through call centers and customer service agents, and increased marketing and advertising.
The Internet is expanding markets geographically, particularly for banks and retailers whose products can be delivered online or by mail.
Business leaders on both sides of the Atlantic continue to see the lack of suitably skilled workers as the single greatest constraint on future economic growth, the report says.
"The overwhelming majority of those interviewed felt that demand for employees with Internet skills and experience easily outstrips supply,"the report said. Many pointed to the lack of computers in schools and the lack of government-financed or government-led initiatives to change the situation.
"The U.S. certainly leads the way in terms both of relevant courses offered at university level and the numbers of students enrolled in them,"the report said. But it said that educational institutions at every level are still not doing enough to arm the next generation of workers with the appropriate skills.
While the growth of the Internet has played a major role in creating the current skills shortage, it is also becoming part of the solution at many companies, Freeman said. "Skills needed for Internet-related jobs often lend themselves to new forms of training that are accessible via the Internet and can be rolled out quickly to large numbers of employees across geographies,"he said.
Accenture recently implemented a distance learning program to train more than 20,000 employees of British Telecommunications plc (BT), the global UK- based telecommunications company. BT used the program to train its UK sales force, as well as professionals throughout the UK, Continental Europe, Asia and the United States.
Employees, who accessed hands-on training programs from their office desktops via the Internet, were given the skills needed to become Internet savvy and eCommerce ready within six months, a goal that could not have been accomplished using traditional training techniques.
*The report was prepared by Spectrum Strategy Consultants for Accenture.


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Dave talks with product safety campaigner, Amy Pereira in the wake of 73 infant deaths being linked to inclined sleepers in the US reinforcing the need for stronger product safety laws in Australia
CHOICE is calling on the government to introduce tighter product safety laws, following an alarming number of infant deaths linked to inclined sleepers in the US.
CHOICE experts say that based on research conducted in the US, inclined sleepers are so dangerous for young babies that they should be completely avoided.
Two inclined sleeping products have been recalled in Australia in recent years – the Rock ‘N Play and Kids2 sleepers – but the Federal Government needs to step up and prevent unsafe products from getting into Australian homes in the first place.
“At the moment, the public is being treated as a testing lab for dangerous products. Safety tests should be conducted in factories, not in people’s homes,” says product safety campaigner, Amy Pereira.
“Inclined sleepers are particularly hazardous because of their soft, sloped surface. This kind of surface may increase the risk of sudden and unexpected death, as babies can roll over or have their head fall forward while in them and suffocate.”


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The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) foresees the economic contraction triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic extending into the second quarter especially as the shock to consumption has been severe, and said government consumption would be key to the revival of demand.
“High frequency indicators that have arrived so far point to a retrenchment in activity that is unprecedented in history,” the RBI said in its Annual Report for 2019-20, released on Tuesday.
“The upticks that became visible in May and June after the lockdown was eased in several parts of the country, appear to have lost strength in July and August,” it added.
Citing data including the total issuance of e-way bills, a marker of domestic trading activity, as reflecting the loss of momentum in July, the central bank said its survey for the month of July indicated that consumer confidence fell to an all time low, with a majority of respondents reporting pessimism relating to the general economic situation, employment, inflation and income.
“Going forward, government consumption is expected to continue pandemic-proofing of demand, and private consumption is expected to lead the recovery when it takes hold, with non-discretionary spending leading the way until a durable increase in disposable incomes enables discretionary spending to catch up,” the RBI noted.
“An assessment of aggregate demand during the year so far suggests that the shock to consumption is severe, and it will take quite some time to mend and regain the pre-COVID-19 momentum.”
Observing that private consumption had lost its discretionary elements across the board, particularly in transport services, hospitality, recreation and cultural activities, the central bank said, “Behavioural restraints may prevent the normalisation of demand for these activities.”
“Urban consumption demand has suffered a bigger blow, passenger vehicle sales and supply of consumer durables in Q1: 2020-21 have dropped to a fifth and a third, respectively, of their level a year ago; air passenger traffic has ground to a halt,” the RBI said.
Stating that rural demand, by contrast, had fared better, the RBI report said among underlying indicators, tractor sales picked up by 38.5% in July, spurred by the robust pace of kharif sowing, while the contraction in motorcycle sales eased in July.
The central bank said a fuller recovery in rural demand was, however, being held back by muted wage growth, which was still hostage to the migrant crisis and associated employment losses.
The RBI said the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) expected headline inflation to remain elevated in the second quarter of the current fiscal, but likely to ease in the second half, aided by favourable base effects.
“The MPC expected real GDP growth for the year 2020-21 as a whole to be negative,” it said.
The MPC was conscious of the upside risks to its medium-term inflation target, the central bank added.


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LONDON (Reuters) – Cryptocurrency XRP slumped 19% on Tuesday after Coinbase, a significant U.S. digital coin change, mentioned it could droop buying and selling within the digital foreign money.
California-based Coinbase mentioned on Monday it could droop buying and selling in XRP after the U.S. Securities and Alternate Fee (SEC) final week charged an related blockchain agency, Ripple, with conducting a $1.3 billion unregistered securities providing.
Ripple has rejected the fees, saying XRP is a foreign money and doesn’t must be registered as an funding contract.
XRP, the third-biggest cryptocurrency, was final down 18.7% at an intra-day low of $0.20, its lowest since July. It has slumped by over half because the SEC transfer.
The transfer by Coinbase comes because it prepares for a inventory market itemizing, with a confidential software to the SEC to go public. It might be the primary main U.S. crypto change to record on the inventory market.
Coinbase, probably the most well-known cryptocurrency platforms, mentioned buying and selling in XRP moved into restrict solely from Monday, and could be absolutely suspended on Jan. 19.
Monetary regulators across the globe are nonetheless grappling with easy methods to regulate bitcoin, XRP and rival cryptocurrencies. Buyers are waiting for regulatory developments that would decide whether or not cryptocurrencies leap from a distinct segment to a mainstream asset.
XRP, which regularly strikes in tandem with Bitcoin, had rocketed in November to hit its highest degree since 2018 as a rally in cryptocurrencies gathered tempo.
Reporting by Tom Wilson; modifying by Marc Jones, Larry King


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Hudson Falls Dairy Diversifying with A2 Milk and a New Store
By Renée St. Jacques
NYFB Associate Director of Public Policy
Opening a new store in May 2020, at the start of the pandemic was not in the business plan of Ideal Dairy Farms and the Argyle Cheese Farmer, but the store is still open and the new processing facility began running in December 2020. The building in Hudson Falls, NY used to be a family-owned grocery store for many years, but after the store closed in 2019, the building was put up for sale.
Ideal Dairy Farms milks around 3,000 cows and is located only a few miles from the store. The farm is co-owned by the Getty and Dickinson families. In the nearby town of Argyle, Marge and David Randles started using milk from their family’s dairy farm (established in 1860) and other neighboring farms to make cheese and opened the Argyle Cheese Farmer in 2007. As the business grew, they needed more space to increase capacity and efficiency. They had new equipment ready to go if they were able to find an available and affordable space. As the grocery store building became available, the Randles connected with Denise and John Dickinson about purchasing the building.
“Bringing in Ideal was ideal because they have a multi-generation farm, it’s so close to the plant (store and facility),” said Marge Randles, Washington County Farm Bureau member. “It is a good match for them along with us.”
Although the pandemic has heightened the importance of having contingency plans, Randles was already thinking about a plan to ensure that the store and processing facility go on even after Randles retires from the business. The need for increased capacity and efficiency was also a reason for making the move to Hudson Falls. For Ideal Dairy Farms, starting this new venture was a way to differentiate in the market and reconnect with their community.
“Our big interest was to refortify our connection with our community and also to give an opportunity for people to learn about what goes into producing a gallon of milk or a pound of cheese or yogurt and give them an opportunity to see what we are doing and see how their food is produced. So certainly, the educational aspect was pretty intentional,” said Crystal Grimaldi, member of Washington County Farm Bureau.
Grimaldi is the Office and Human Resources Manager for the farm and daughter of Denise and John Dickinson. She explained that Ideal Dairy Farms started packaging their own milk under their own label in 1908 but stopped in 1987. Currently, the majority of the milk produced on the farm goes to Dairy Farmers of America and the other portion goes to the Argyle Cheese Farmer to be bottled or processed into cheese and yogurt. But the new store and processing facility are not the only new business ventures. The portion of milk going to the store and facility is A2 milk. A2 milk is a variety of milk that mostly lacks a form of beta-casein proteins called A1, and instead has mostly the A2 form. At Ideal Dairy Farms, they have always been focused on good genetics and genomically test almost every cow so identifying cows that produce the A2 protein wasn’t a huge challenge. The challenge is creating a new market for A2 milk and A2 milk products in the community. While A2 milk is not widely known, there are more people talking about it as a potential solution for anyone who has a difficult time digesting regular milk.
“It seems to be something that is on people’s radar now. Hopefully it gives another option for consumers that are looking for something to try if they have challenges digesting dairy,” said Grimaldi.
The new store features the A2 milk and A2 flavored milk along with cheese and yogurt made by the Argyle Cheese Farmer using the A2 milk. Also, there are products from other local farms including eggs, cider, beef, pork and vegetables. Randles makes sure use locally produced ingredients for any additions and flavoring in the products. Randles uses the commercial kitchen to make baked goods along with pizza and cheesecake that is frozen and can be taken home to eat. The pizza has been very popular, especially during the pandemic.
“We use whey from the cheese process in place of water in the crust, so it is protein enriched. And of course, all the cheese is ours. We are getting pretty good reviews. People seem to really love them, and we are selling more and more,” said Randles.
Visitors can view the processing facility through three observation windows and watch the processing of the various products. Eventually they hope to share a schedule of when certain products are processed during the week so that visitors know when to stop by. There are educational posters on the walls by the windows with information on farming activities, sustainability practices along with newsletters to take home. A television is set up with videos showing work on the farm. It is important that consumers understand where their food comes from and the steps that farmers take as stewards of the land.
“We want to build something that lasts. We want to be here for the generations to come and to do that we need to be sustainable, and we always need to be getting better,” said Grimaldi. “Our environment is something we heavily rely on, so we try to take care of it.”
While there have been challenges and learning curves to opening a store and processing facility, the opportunity for consumer agricultural education and diversifying with an additional market is certainly a positive aspect of this new venture. John Dickinson explains that they have only really been using the processing facility for a few months and it is premature to share any ambitious results, but he is hopeful that this opportunity can become a new platform to talk about farming. There has been increasingly more agricultural tourism in Washington County and hopefully this store and facility can be put on the tourism map. Ideal Dairy Farms offers tours and visitors are always asking where they can purchase the farm’s milk. Now they can travel a few miles down the road to find it.
“One of the goals was to make it a destination. We need to utilize that to explain why we do what we do and what’s good about it,” said Dickinson, a member of Washington County Farm Bureau.
As farms continue to diversify and discover new ways to connect with consumers, it is crucial that the state supports its farms and the resiliency of New York’s food supply system. Dickinson explained the importance of programs such as Nourish NY and the impact of the pandemic on the consumer’s view of New York agriculture.
“When we come out of this pandemic, will people forget about 2020 and go back to the way things used to be or will there be a greater emphasis on the value of having a local and statewide food source,” said Dickinson.
Hopefully the latter, but I will say this after tasting some of the products in the new store: the A2 coffee milk, cheese curds, yogurt and pizza are amazing. Highly recommended!
Caption 1: John and Denise Dickinson, left, and Marge and David Randles stand in front of their new store and processing facility: the Argyle Cheese Farmer Farm Store where A2 milk, cheese, yogurt and other dairy products are sold.
Caption 2: At the new processing facility, A2 milk from Ideal Dairy Farms is processed and either bottled or used to make cheese and yogurt. There is also a commercial kitchen used for producing baked goods, frozen pizza and other products to be sold at the store.


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Google Docs and Sheets
Google has recently released two new apps for Android and iOS devices. The new apps are Google Docs and Google Sheets. A presentation app, equivalent of Microsoft’s PowerPoint is also on the way, called Slides. The two apps work great on both devices, they offer offline capability, in case you want to jot down an idea where you cannot get an internet connection on your mobile device. Both applications are very easy to use and offer a simplistic, not overcrowded design.
However, Microsoft has released its Office Mobile apps for Android and iOS not too long ago. Both companies offer their apps for free, a huge plus. However, now it’s up to the user to see which companies app suits their needs. Respectfully, Microsoft Office Mobile wants to open and save files to their OneDrive service, whereas Google Docs and Sheets give the ability to save content locally on the phone or to upload to Google Drive.
It’s good to see two big companies release some essential apps such as these. Word processing and spreadsheet apps are very useful and a lot of people have trouble finding the perfect one for their needs. With the release of Google Docs, and Sheets, perhaps some people will find exactly what they are looking for.
If you are interested in learning more about Google Docs and Google Sheets, feel free to contact Group 4 Networks.
Group 4 Networks is able to take care of all possible IT obligations. Group 4 Networks is fast and effective at what they do and are sure to create a computer network that is easy to handle and that is very effective.


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Consumer Confidence Rebounds
NEW YORK (AP) _ Consumer confidence bounced back in April, nearing a 29-year high as Americans regained their optimistic outlook that the U.S. economy will continue to grow at a healthy pace.
Stocks also made a broad comeback in early trading today, with the Dow Jones industrial average climbing back toward the 9,000 mark after Monday’s steep selloff. The Dow, which fell 146.98 Monday after being down nearly 224 points, was up 54.31 at 8,971.95 this morning. Broader indexes also rose sharply.
The Conference Board reported today that its index of consumer confidence rose to 136.7 in April from a revised 133.8 in March, topping Wall Street analysts’ expectations for the month.
The index reached 137.4 in February, its highest level since June 1969.
``The upturn in confidence strong suggests that the U.S. economy will continue its solid, stable growth,″ said Lynn Franco, associate director at the Board, a New York-based private research group. ``While the current pace of economic growth could slow, there continues to be a little chance of either an economic cooling or overheating in months ahead.″
Consumer sentiment is important because consumer spending accounts for two-thirds of the nation’s overall economic activity.
Consumers felt most confident about the economic outlook for the next six months, pushing the Board’s expectations index up 7.6 points to 115.5. The present situation index, however, slipped back 4.2 points to 168.5.


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WHO: Verizon Wireless, operator of the fastest, most advanced 4G network in the United States
WHAT: Broadcast-quality Video News Release (VNR) covering Verizon Wireless’ unveiling of 4G LTE consumer devices at the 2011 Consumer Electronics Show (CES)
WHERE:In the Verizon Wireless Multimedia Library
WHEN: Available immediately
BACKGROUND: At a news conference at the 2011 Consumer Electronics Show (CES), Verizon Wireless announced a suite of 10 forthcoming 4G LTE devices – including smartphones from HTC, LG, Motorola and Samsung; tablets from Motorola and Samsung; a MiFi from Novatel Wireless and a mobile hotspot from Samsung; and two notebooks from HP – which will transform the wireless experience and offer consumers new ways to connect and share their lives at blazingly fast speeds. Verizon expects these consumer-oriented devices to be available by mid-2011, some as early as March 2011.
MEDIA CONTACT: Tom Pica Verizon Wireless914.772.0757 (mobile) Thomas.Pica@verizonwireless.com
About Verizon WirelessVerizon Wireless operates the nation’s fastest and most advanced 4G network and largest and most reliable 3G network, and serves more than 93 million customers. Headquartered in Basking Ridge, N.J., with 80,000 employees nationwide, Verizon Wireless is a joint venture of Verizon Communications (NYSE, NASDAQ: VZ) and Vodafone (LSE, NASDAQ: VOD). For more information, visit www.verizonwireless.com. To preview and request broadcast-quality video footage and high-resolution stills of Verizon Wireless operations, log on to the Verizon Wireless Multimedia Library at www.verizonwireless.com/multimedia.


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(Reuters) - Medtronic Inc (MDT.N) on Tuesday reported a first-quarter profit in line with expectations on solid growth in emerging markets, but soft U.S. demand for implantable heart defibrillators weighed on its shares, which slumped more than 2 percent.
Revenue in the quarter came in below analysts’ estimates, dragged down by a 3 percent decline in sales of implantable cardioverter defibrillators (ICDs), a key product line. Competitors Boston Scientific Corp (BSX.N) and St. Jude Medical Inc STJ.N had better ICD sales, raising expectations for Medtronic, analysts said. ICDs use electrical pulses to help control life-threatening irregular heartbeats.
The company, whose products range from pacemakers and stents to insulin pumps and brain stimulation devices, reiterated its outlook for both sales and profit for the fiscal year.
Chief Executive Omar Ishrak said on a conference call that new ICDs, pacemakers and spinal devices to be launched in the coming quarters would bolster results.
Medtronic has focused on increasing its presence in faster-growth emerging markets like China, India and Latin America as the weak U.S. economy and efforts to reduce healthcare spending pressure the industry.
“We are confident in both our outlook for the remainder of the year and our long-term competitive position in the changing healthcare environment,” Ishrak said.
The Minneapolis-based company said net earnings rose to $953 million, or 93 cents per share, in the first quarter ended July 26, from $864 million, or 83 cents per share a year earlier.
Excluding special items, Medtronic earned 88 cents a share, in line with the average analyst estimate, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.
Total revenue rose 2 percent to $4.08 billion. Sales in emerging markets climbed 15 percent to $504 million.
Overall sales of ICDs declined 3 percent to $655 million, but pacemaker sales were up 2 percent to $474 million. Sales of spinal products fell 3 percent to $765 million.
Sales of its biologic bone-growth stimulator for spines declined 11 percent, hurt by the publication of an independent review that found its Infuse product was associated with a slightly increased risk of cancer. Infuse is a genetically engineered protein that is surgically placed where new bone is needed to stimulate growth and healing.
On the call, Ishrak defended the product, saying the Yale University study provided further evidence that Infuse was a safe and effective treatment for approved indications.
In addition, a separate analysis published in the online edition of the journal Spine found no cancer risk associated with the use of the product in spine fusion surgery.
“Sales in the spinal business continue to deteriorate, where some people were expecting it to stabilize,” said Aaron Vaughn, an analyst with Mid-Continent Capital, which has $1.9 billion under management but does not own Medtronic shares.
Vaughn said Medtronic’s results suggested U.S. demand for healthcare services is stable but not rebounding.
Medtronic forecast fiscal 2014 earnings of $3.80 to $3.85 per share and revenue growth of 3 percent to 4 percent excluding the impact of foreign currency fluctuations.
Ishrak said Medtronic aims to generate 20 percent growth in emerging markets over the longer term as the regions become an increasingly important source of revenue.
Medtronic shares fell $1.26, or 2.3 percent, to $52.84 on the New York Stock Exchange.
Reporting by Susan Kelly in Chicago; Editing by Maureen Bavdek and Jeffrey Benkoe


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October 28, 2017, | By Naanga
Beijing, China (_____) – Apple Inc’s third-quarter revenue topped analysts’ estimates, as the iPhone maker benefited $1.67 a share from high demand in iPhone 7 Plus. Analysts of the Wall Street had expected on average revenue to post $44.4 billion and earnings per share of $1.56.
After the earnings released, Apple’s shares rallied 5.5 percent to $158.3 trade at a record level, hits its previous all-time high of $156.6, in extended-hours trading at NYSE, according to MarketWatch. Apple share has gained 38 percent this year, surpassing double-digit gains by both the Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500.
1.2 billion iPhone users
Apple reported the profit for the quarter ended September rose three percent to $8.7 billion, and revenue soared to $45.4 billion from $42.3 billion. International sales accounted for 61 percent of the quarter’s revenue including 41m iPhones, 11.4m iPads, and 4.29m Macs sold. Since iPhone launched the market, Apple has now surpassed 1.2 billion add-on iPhone sold. In other words, one of seven people in the world is using iPhone.
iPad sales jumped 15 percent to $4.9 billion for the first time in three years, one the highlights of Apple’s earning. Apple lasts for being the most significant vendor in last four years based on IDC’s tablet market’s latest estimation. More than half of iPads sold were to people buying their very first iPad in markets like China and Japan. Additionally, Mac gained global unit market share and reached new June quarter unit sales records in mainland China and Japan.
Service revenue at all-time quarterly record, and “The Company’s services business has become the size of a Fortune 100 company, a milestone we’ve reached even sooner than we had expected,” said Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO.
Tim Cook: “Mainland China was flat year-over-year during third-quarter.”
“We achieved double-digit revenue growth in many developed markets, including the U.S., Canada, Germany, Spain, Australia, and Korea, and emerging markets outside of Greater China grew 19% over a year ago,” said Luca Maestri, Apple’s CFO. “Hong Kong continued to drag down the total Greater China segment,” said Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO.
China, the world biggest smartphone market, perhaps the Apple’s the most prominent overseas market, with income from Greater China accumulating for 17 percent of the company’s sales in the last quarter. At the same time, Apple faced a struggle for domestic brands like Huawei, Oppo, Vivo and Xiaomi, and slid to fifth from fourth in the China smartphone market, according to Canalys, an independent analyst company.
Fortune 100 company as they expected
Analysts consider that iPhone 8 and iPhone X to revamp their influence here in China. Apple’s iPhone X could provide the “strongest iPhone product cycle to date,”, said Daniel Ives, GBH Insights analyst. But we need to wait until on November 2, 2017, and fiscal fourth-quarter earnings call sets. Apple’s coming-quarter revenue company expects $49billion to $52 billion.
In contrary, Credit Suisse trimmed its 2017 estimate for iPhones to 217m units from a former 223m, and clipped its 2018 forecast to 233m from 248m, according to Bloomberg report.


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Lanny Smith, the founder of Actively Black, an athleisure brand name, does not consider his new partnership with the Nigerian Bobsled and Skeleton Federation evenly.
“When you glance at traditionally what’s took place with the Olympics and model sponsorships, you see the most important brands in the earth,” he said. “It’s a little something that most smaller to midsize organizations, most Black-owned brand names, don’t even have the sources to demonstrate our perform at that amount.”
Actively Black introduced its position as official clothes shop for the Nigerian bobsled and skeleton teams for the Beijing Winter season Olympics on Oct. 1, Nigerian Independence Day.
The model is developing all of the apparel the groups will be seen in at the Games in February, together with the opening ceremony outfits and the competitiveness uniforms. Mr. Smith, 36, stated he required the seems to “pay homage to Nigeria, to the motherland” the tribal Ankara print in the models is aspect of that aim.
The manufacturer also produced a merch assortment together with the partnership, showcasing white and environmentally friendly detailing drawn from the colours of the Nigerian flag.
In 2018, Nigeria’s women’s bobsled team grew to become the 1st-ever African bobsled team to qualify for the Olympics. They worked with Less than Armour then, before switching to Actively Black.
“Actively Black is in this sector of giants, from Nike to Lululemon to Less than Armour,” Mr. Smith mentioned. “We are an underdog that is striving to carve out a area, and at the exact time, you have this workforce, this federation that is competing in a sport that customarily you don’t see African nations participating in.”
Without a doubt, staying from a nation so shut to the Equator suggests that Nigeria’s bobsled and skeleton groups have experienced to travel as significantly as Pyeongchang, Korea, just to exercise.
“We have been ready to produce place — in opposition to the odds — for African men and women to be represented in the Winter season Olympic games like hardly ever in advance of,” mentioned Seun Adigun, 34, the founder of the Bobsled and Skeleton Federation of Nigeria.
The collaboration is also element of a larger development of Olympic sponsorships increasingly starting to be an important milestone for makes of all measurements, not just the usual athletics giants. Skims, Kim Kardashian West’s shapewear brand, was the official underwear clothes shop for female athletes for Team U.S.A. at the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympic Online games.
Also for the Tokyo online games, Telfar sponsored and created the uniforms for Workforce Liberia, which was of individual inspiration to Mr. Smith. “Telfar, yet another Black-owned manufacturer that’s killing it ideal now, was ready to do a thing comparable with Crew Liberia this past summer months Olympics,” he explained.
Mr. Smith and Ms. Adigun met in college or university at the College of Houston, where by they have been college student athletes. When Mr. Smith launched Actively Black in November 2020, Ms. Adigun retained up with his function. And as Crew Nigeria began to look for for an additional sports activities apparel lover for the forthcoming Olympic Games following their Underneath Armour sponsorship ended, Ms. Adigun provided the place to Actively Black.
Actively Black has experimented with to include cultural change from its beginnings. “We’re genuinely striving to redefine just even the word ‘Black’ and what that suggests and to get away the adverse connotations to really have something which is a sense of pride for men and women,” Mr. Smith stated.
His need to start the brand grew whilst in quarantine in 2020, as a racial awakening distribute throughout the environment. “I observed all these businesses coming out with these pledges that they were going to do this and that for the Black local community, and I felt like a great deal of it was performative,” he mentioned.
The label focuses on outfits that “match up to all the other mainstream models that we use, but is a little something that speaks to our lifestyle and also has the principal purpose of reinvesting again into our communities,” Mr. Smith explained.
“We’ve been inquiring for a seat at the table for so lengthy, and we just made the decision to make our own desk and provide our people that way,” he mentioned. Portion of that reinvesting, Mr. Smith extra, consists of holding fund-boosting events for companies like the Liberation Fund.
For Mr. Smith, this is only a start. “I hope that it just inspires other Black designers and other Black-owned models to desire huge and know that there is no restrictions to what we can do,” he mentioned.


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EBay’s new contextual ad program for affiliates will help the company and its retailers further monetize traffic.
AdContext, which eBay executives announced at the eBay Developers Conference in Las Vegas June 10-12, lets retailers and Web operators add a code to their sites so relevant eBay links appear on the non-eBay sites.
The ad program is set up as revenue sharing, as eBay’s affiliate sites receive 35 percent to 60 percent of eBay’s referral payments when someone who clicks on the link purchases the product, according to reports.
Search marketers and consultants see the program as a way for online retailers to gain revenue share. For example, a sports memorabilia Web site could show relevant eBay auctions for baseball cards and other collector items, said Matt Booth, program director, interactive local media for The Kelsey Group, a research and analysis firm in Princeton, NJ.
In particular, smaller retailers that cannot spend a lot on search and online advertising will benefit, said Tim Kauffold, director of business development for search marketing firm Oneupweb, Lake Leelanau, MI.
“The name ‘eBay’ is going to get credibility and recognition right away,” he said.
AdContext is another expansion into e-commerce by eBay, which aims to transform from an auction site to an e-commerce site, eBay CEO Meg Whitman said at last week’s eBay Live conference. To that end, eBay and Yahoo said they were partnering on search and advertising in late May, including a co-branded toolbar and the probable development of a “click-to-call” service.
The new program also helps eBay compete with some of the major search engines’ ad programs.
“EBay is borrowing from the successful strategies of Overture [now Yahoo Search Marketing] and Google,” Mr. Booth said. “The program seeks to mimic the success that ad networks have achieved by creating distribution deals with third-party Web sites.”
“Retailers would possibly move [some of] their budgets from Google and Yahoo and put them on eBay,” said Samir Patel, president/founder of search marketing firm SearchForce, San Mateo, CA.
The system also may be more efficient for advertisers than Google and Yahoo contextual ad programs because revenue is shared only when a purchase is made from a click, not every time a user clicks on an ad, Mr. Patel said.
“The big gorilla in the room is click fraud,” he said. “With [this program], there is no issue with it.”


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Gas ovens were once the standard at pizzerias and restaurants across the U.S., but electric ovens are gaining ground
For decades, gas ovens dominated restaurant kitchens, including pizzerias. These days, however, electric ovens are cutting into that long-held supremacy.
While natural gas remains the preferred cooking energy source in U.S. restaurants – three out of four domestic restaurants use natural gas, according to a National Restaurant Association (NRA) Research Group survey – electric ovens continue gaining ground.
To be certain, technological advancements have propelled the increasing use of electric ovens, which have become more versatile and robust. However, the uptick in electric oven adoption may be attributed to another key factor: regulations forcing the use of electric ovens.
In 2019, Berkley, California, became the first U.S. city to ban natural gas hook-ups in new buildings. Numerous other cities, counties and states scattered across the map followed suit, including New York, where the state legislature passed a measure last May banning natural gas appliances in new buildings starting in 2026. The advocates of such regulations tout the environmental benefits of relying on electricity rather than gas as well as safety factors, including research linking gas stoves to toxic gases threatening employee health and the environment.
“Europe has been using electric for years and they’ve set the baseline showing it’s possible to maintain food quality and flavor profiles without draining natural resources or adding to one’s carbon footprint,” says Nathan Beucler of Ohio-based Burkett Restaurant Equipment & Supplies. “Still, that doesn’t mean restaurants here in the U.S. are ready to abandon gas.”
An earnest assessment of gas ovens
Compared to their electric counterparts, gas ovens offer some clear benefits.
First, gas ovens heat up faster and reach higher temperatures, two particularly appealing elements for many pizza-peddling operations.
Second, gas ovens are generally more affordable to purchase and operate as well as more durable. Beucler, who sells both electric and gas ovens, says gas units typically cost 30-40 percent less than comparable electric options. And as gas is a more accessible utility in most markets across the U.S., operational costs run about 10-30 percent less than electric, according to NRA reports.
Finally, many foodies believe gas ovens deliver a more flavorful taste, particularly with the char and flare ups gas ovens can provide. In particular, solid-fuel ovens, such as wood or coal with gas assist, help produce “a true rustic pizza taste,” notes Mike Rudd of KaTom Restaurant Supply in Tennessee, which is why those options remain popular with pizzerias, in particular.
Gas ovens, of course, have their drawbacks. They require a bigger fan on the hood, which increases the investment, and they fall short of their electric rivals on energy efficiency.
Yet more, heat distribution on gas ovens can be more uneven than electric, which can threaten product quality and consistency. Gas ovens also produce carbon monoxide emissions, carry the ever-present risk of a leak or explosion and require more effort to clean given their many dirt, dust and grime-capturing components.
Evaluating the electric oven
While electric oven sales have surged thanks, in part, to regulations, some pizzeria operators have voluntarily opted for electric over gas. (Of note, Rudd sees more electric oven varieties entering the marketplace, including open-hearth options that can serve as a pizzeria’s centerpiece.)
In the fast-paced restaurant environment and in an industry with notoriously high turnover, the operational ease of electric ovens, which can be conveyor, deck or convection, proves particularly enticing. Controls are generally more intuitive and feature easy-to-adjust settings.
Electric ovens also provide more precise temperature control and heat distribution throughout the cooking chamber. This helps drive product consistency and minimizes the risk of hot or cold spots on a pizza or dish. Meanwhile, the ability to control the electric oven with distinct temperature zones allows a restaurant to cook thicker or thinner pizzas on different decks of the oven, which is an attractive feature for operators serving various pizza styles.
Many view electric ovens as the safer option, too, for both staff and the environment. They are more energy efficient than gas and do not emit carbon monoxide, a greenhouse gas that contributes to climate change. Also, alternative energy sources, such as solar or wind, can power electric ovens, which is an appealing reality for some pizzeria operators and their clientele.
Yet, there are some trade-offs when swapping a gas oven for an electric model. Electric ovens are generally more expensive to purchase and operate, as electric is more costly per Kilowatt hour. Heating up at a slower pace than gas, the electric ovens also top out at about 700 degrees, well short of the temperature limits gas ovens can reach.
4 questions to ask before buying an oven
#1: Is there a regulation demanding electric ovens?
Such regulations remain rare, but they are increasing across the country. If such a requirement exists (or is
being debated), the gas vs. electric decision is made easier for the operator.
#2: Is three-phase electric present?
To accommodate a larger electric oven, the pizzeria will likely need access to three-phase electric, something Beucler says few buildings have. If three-phase electric is not present, Beucler has seen the cost to obtain it run as high as $85,000.
#3: What’s my menu?
A pizzeria’s menu will often dictate one’s decision to go with gas or electric. As electric ovens top out at about 700 degrees, shops serving Neo-Neapolitan pies frequently favor gas or solid-fuel ovens, Rudd says. Those serving multiple pizza styles, however, might prefer the versatility of electric ovens.
#4: Finally, what’s my budget?
Operators will need to investigate the cost of the oven itself, installation and operational costs. A gas oven will often be more economical than an electric option, both upfront and on a daily operational basis.
Beucler, however, is seeing a growing number of operators leaning toward electric conveyor pizza ovens, many of which are ventless. Such units eliminate the cost of the exhaust hood and the accompanying buildout required with a gas oven, investments that could touch $20,000 in total.
“There could be significant upfront savings there and you won’t have a hole in your roof,” Beucler says.
Daniel P. Smith Chicago-based writer has covered business issues and best practices for a variety of trade publications, newspapers, and magazines.


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I have previously posted in depth on the EU’s “Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on standard essential patents and amending Regulation (EU) 2017/1001” (“Proposal”). I am pleased to report that, on Wednesday (23/1/24 since we’re being European), the EC’s Legal Affairs Committee (“JURI”) adopted a modified version of the Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on standard essential patents and amending Regulation (EU) 2017/1001 (“Proposal”). The vote was 13 votes in favor, no votes against and 10 abstentions.
I want to applaud the vote of JURI to move forward. There already are a number of posts from SEP licensors exclaiming their “disappointment” in the move, with a few commentators making the grandiose claim that the new Proposal threatens the entire future of telecommunications leadership in Europe. Notwithstanding these (unsupported) claims, nearly everyone recognizes that the current system is not working well. There is a growing consensus among courts, regulatory agencies and both net licensors and net licensees that the SEP licensing system needs to become “more transparent, efficient, and predictable.”
The Proposal’s overarching goal is to try to create a better, fairer more transparent system - a system that encourages innovation on all sides including by those that contribute to standards, and those that merely implement such standards in interesting and innovative products (and those that do both).
Ms. Merete Clausen, Director for Investment for the Directorate-General for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs (colloquially known as “DG GROW”), who attended the meeting said it best in her remarks (which hopefully I have captured correctly):
The committee has delivered a strong signal that the EU wants a fair, and efficient, and transparent SEPs licensing ecosystem that fosters innovation both upstream and downstream, benefiting the EU SEP holders and licensees alike by bringing greater transparency and predictability in a market that is currently that is characterised by substantial power asymmetries.
. . .
I think we have to look at innovation as something that happens both on the SEP holders and on the implementers side and both sides will profit from larger transparency and predictability. We need a wide innovation base in the EU, and most member states have both SEP holders and licensees in their geographies, and the current lack of transparency incentivise some unfair business practices. Under our proposal we aim to ensure that actors that have strong portfolios that innovate, effectively will profit. Lack of legal certainty and lack of transparency are poison in a sense to innovation and investment. That is what is going to make the EU an attractive place to do business and place investments, so we think that the proposal will benefit the whole ecosystem and we also have to keep in mind while currently being a net licensor, in the future might rather be a net licensee, and therefore have an interest in having a transparent system now
Director Clausen hit the nail on the head when she stated that SEP policy needs to support and incentivize implementers in addition to contributors to standardization. These days, most of the innovation in the networking and telecommunications space is not coming from standards developers, but rather from those implementing the standards. For example, the Long-Term-Evolution (“LTE”) portion of the 3GPP 4G cellular standard was originally released by ETSI in December, 2008. While there has been some innovation since then to improve and update the LTE standard, what we are using today is still based on original ideas that were finalized more than fifteen years ago.
Contrast that with the absolute boom in innovation on the implementer side in the last fifteen years. The Internet of Things (“IoT”) revolution has brought us connected cars, connected homes, smarter manufacturing, smart grids and other greener technology that use the 4G/LTE or Wi-Fi standards (or both) but include much much more than that.
Fifteen years ago, the cell phones that existed were not nearly as cool (or as functional) as the ones we have now. Over the past fifteen years, incredible technology unrelated to the LTE standard has been improved or created that is being used in today's phones (and in many other products). The screen on my current phone is crystal clear – thank you OLED and similar display technologies. Cameras are nearly a thing of the past because cell phone cameras take such good pictures – thank you lens, optical image stabilization, computational imaging software and complementary oxide semiconductor (CMOS) technology. And of course, the software running those phones has improved dramatically. Fifteen years ago, the idea of using apps on your phone was in its infancy, the Apple App Store had just launched, and the Android operating system was only a few months old.
Similarly, the Wi-Fi Alliance recently announced that they have certified over 80,000 products as complying with the 802.11/WiFi standard. The Wi-Fi Alliance certifies between 4,000-6,000 different products each year. The wide-range of products certified by the Wi-Fi Alliance includes cell phones, computers and many IoT devices. The list of new and innovative products that implement such standards (but that are new and innovative because they do things other than implement those standards) just goes on and on.
The Proposal is an attempt, at least in the EU, to fix what most people acknowledge is a system in need of fixing and to create a more balanced playing field that supports implementation, as well as standards development. As my previous posts make clear, the Proposal is not perfect. But, let’s be realistic. No proposal will satisfy everyone, and no regulation is ever perfect. Let’s not let the perfect be the enemy of the good. We should be working with, not against, reasonable attempts to improve the system.
 Here are links to all of the related posts:
 The press release is here: New rules to promote standard-setting innovation in new technologies | News | European Parliament (europa.eu).
 Even companies that opposed the Proposal agreed that more information and transparency is needed. See Feedback from: Nokia (europa.eu) (“Nokia shares the European Commissions desire for more transparent, efficient, and predictable SEP licensing”).
 And yes, ETSI has released a new 5G standard that is being implemented in various places around the world. But, the roll-out of telecommunications systems based on the new standard has been slow, and many of the so-called 5G networks are really 4G networks with an overlay of some 5G technology. 4G/LTE is still the most used standard for wireless telephone, i.e. cellular, communications.
 Here’s what cell phones looked like in 2008. Best smartphones of 2008 - CNET
 See Interview: A bright future for Wi-Fi as Wi-Fi Alliance passes 80,000 certified products - Wi-Fi NOW Global (wifinowglobal.com). And of course, that is just the certified products, not all products that implement the standard.


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SOUTH PORTLAND, Maine — A new report says compounds known as "forever chemicals" may already be in your backyard. The report, based on findings from the Ecology Center and the Sierra Club, says at least half a dozen common lawn and garden fertilizers have concerning levels of PFAS chemicals.
The industrial compounds are in a number of household products, clothing, and firefight foam. They don't break down in the human body or the environment and have been linked in federal health studies to health issues including organ cancers.
Scientists sampled nine different fertilizers for more than 30 PFAS chemicals. The fertilizers were purchased in several different states including Maine and Michigan. All contain sludge or biosolids, leftover from wastewater treatment plants, but the source of the biosolids is unknown.
Eight out of nine fertilizers have levels above Maine's advisory screening limit for PFAS in sludge, according to the study.
"These product labels use what we think are misleading terms of 'eco,' 'natural,' or companies use the name 'organic,' but evidence shows that biosolids can have persistent chemicals," Sonya Lunder, the senior toxics advisor for the Sierra Club, said.
The report, "Sludge In the Garden: Toxic PFAS in home fertilizers made from sewage sludge," also implies the fertilizers could contaminate the food you grow in your garden. Ph.D. scientist, Linda Birnbaum, the former U.S. Toxicologist also reviewed the report.
"We know that the PFAS that you put on your garden, some of it is going to be taken up by the plants either directly through the roots," Birnbaum pointed out during a nationwide conference call with members of the news media.
NEWS CENTER Maine found two fertilizers on the list: Ecoscraps Slow Release Fertilizer, at a big-box retailer, and Earthlife Natural Fertilizer, manufactured by the New England Fertilizer Company in Massachusetts, at a garden center.
The New England Fertilizer Company is a member of the North East Biosolids & Residual Association (NEBRA), which released a statement on behalf of New England Fertilizer Company. Janine Burke-Wells, Executive Director of NEBRA, told NEWS CENTER Maine, "Earthlife is generated in Massachusetts, so it is subject to quarterly testing requirements for five to six PFAS contaminants."
The association also represents a number of municipal wastewater utilities in New England and Maine, agrees with the report's recommendation that something needs to be done to stop PFAS from getting into waste streams and the environment.
Earthlife is distributed by Casella Organics. Jeffrey C. McBurnie, the director of compliance for Casella Resource Solutions and a former member of Gov. Janet Mills' PFAS task force, told NEWS CENTER Maine, “Casella does not manufacture the Earthlife fertilizer pellets referenced in the Sierra Club report."
"We market and distribute them under our Earthlife brand. Any biosolids product that we distribute in Maine must first be approved for use by the Maine DEP. With regard to PFAS, that means demonstrating that continued use of these products will not cause soils to exceed PFOS and PFOA limits," McBurnie said.
Consumers meanwhile are being encouraged to voice their concerns to retailers that sell fertilizers included in the Sierra Club study. There are alternatives to fertilizers such as leaf litter, but experts advise some caution when it comes to using food compost.
Patrick MacRoy, the executive director of Defend our Health, an environmental and public health advocacy organization, said, "Gardeners should not include wrappers and containers that may be compostable but have PFAS in them."
Scientists say consumers can look for terms such as "biosolids," "residuals," or "municipal waste," next time they reach for a bag of home garden fertilizer.


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There are currently 6.9 billion people living in the world. By August of this year it’s expected that 1 billion of them will be active Facebook users. That’s nearly 14% of the world’s entire population. And don’t forget to take into account what percentage of the world’s people actually have access to the internet. Not to mention China’s 1 billion residents that don’t have access to Facebook at all. What other business model can you think of that has the audacity to measure their market share in terms of living human beings on planet earth? These numbers are huge by any fathomable measurement.
Gregory Lyons of iCrossing a London based digital marketing agency projected Facebook’s rise to a billion sees it as a simple mathematical equation: “Using a process of linear regression on the data from the end of 2008 onwards we expect Facebook to hit a billion active users around August 2012. Looking at the data from 2006-mid 2008 it looks like Facebook was growing at an exponential rate, however more recent data suggest it’s growing in a linear fashion.”