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BMW Group U.S. Reports August 2013 Sales
BMW brand sales up 45.7 percent
MINI brand sales up 5.3 percent, best August ever
BMW Motorcycle sales down 4.6 percent
Woodcliff Lake, NJ - September 4, 2013…
The BMW Group in the U.S. (BMW and MINI combined) reported August sales of 30,546 vehicles, an increase of 35.4 percent from the 22,553 vehicles sold in the same month a year ago. Year-to-date, the BMW Group (BMW and MINI combined) is up 12 percent on sales of 233,326 in the first eight months of 2013 compared to 208,268 in the same period in 2012.
“This has been a summer of momentum, giving us a good tail-wind as we enter the all-important autumn selling season,” said Ludwig Willisch, President and CEO, BMW of North America, LLC. “The sales records set before the financial crisis continue to fall and with the arrival of the new X5 and the new 4 Series Coupe in the next couple of months, we are heading towards a strong finish for the year.”
BMW Brand Sales
Sales of BMW brand vehicles increased 45.7 percent in August for a total of 24,523 compared to 16,835 vehicles sold in August, 2012. Year-to-date, the BMW brand is up 14.8 percent on sales of 188,997 compared to 164,636 sold in the first eight months of 2012.
In August, best performing vehicles included the 3 Series, up 66.9 percent to 10,357 units; the 5 Series, up 158.2 percent to 4,359 units; the 6 Series, up 67.8 percent to 760 units and the 7 Series, up 172.6 percent to 924 units.
BMW Pre-Owned Vehicles
In August, sales of BMW used vehicles (including certified pre-owned and pre-owned) increased 19.2 percent to 16,706 vehicles compared to the 14,012 vehicles sold in August, 2012. January through August, BMW used vehicle sales are up 8.5 percent on volume of 118,259 compared to 108,952 in the same period of 2012.
MINI Brand Sales – best August ever
MINI USA reported the best August ever with sales of 6,023 automobiles, an increase of 5.3 percent from the 5,718 sold in the same month a year ago. Year-to-date, MINI sales in the U.S. are up 1.6 percent on volume of 44,329 compared to 43,632 in the first eight months of 2012.
MINI Pre-Owned Vehicles – best month ever
In August, MINI used automobiles (including MINI NEXT certified pre-owned and pre-owned) reported the best month ever with sales of 2,182 automobiles, an increase of 23 percent from the 1,774 sold in August, 2012. January through August, MINI used vehicle sales are up 20.5 percent on volume of 14,480 compared to 12,015 in the same period of 2012.


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Exchange ratesmore »
US (DC): Urban farm receives $150,000 in seed moneyLittle more than grass used to grow on the two-acre plot behind a middle school in the District of Columbia where tomatoes, okra and infrastructure for food entrepreneurs will begin cropping up this year.
In a ward of the city with just two grocery stores serving more than 70,000 residents, fresh produce is hard to come by. But the Kelly Miller Farm, which will be situated behind a middle school with the same name, aims to offer much more: youth programs, a community garden accessible to seniors and a commercial kitchen from which area residents can launch food-based businesses.
"Itís like a food system in a box ó in one space, in one community," said Christopher Bradshaw, executive director of Dreaming Out Loud. The D.C. food justice nonprofit is partnering with the city and a half-dozen other organizations to run the farm in a way that generates revenue while also meeting the communityís unique needs. "I donít know too many places combining those things," Bradshaw said.
With $150,000 in seed money from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) ó through programs promoting farmersí markets and specialty crops ó and a mix of other local grants, the founders plan to build infrastructure such as hoop houses and a greenhouse while transforming a gutted shipping container into a commercial kitchen space. Construction is scheduled to begin in the spring and be completed by midsummer.
Read more at GreenBiz
Publication date: 3/16/2017
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Rise recorded in pre-Christmas London shopper numbers
12:46 21 January 2013
The number of shoppers out on London’s high streets in the run-up to Christmas was up year-on-year, according to retailers.
Footfall in December rose by 3.1 per cent, bucking the general national trend.
The increase also contrasted with hard hit parts of the UK, including Wales, with an 11.5 per cent drop, and the East of the England, which saw football drop by 7.1 per cent.
Helen Dickinson, director of the British Retail Consortium, said high streets had a “particular appeal” over Christmas.
She said: “It wasn’t a bumper Christmas but it wasn’t a disaster either. Our December retail sales figures showed very modest sales growth for the market as a whole.
“At minus 3.3 per cent, high streets suffered the biggest drop-off (nationally) in shopper numbers. Generally, weak spending power is keeping people away and compounding long-standing difficulties in many of our town centres. This month’s retail failures confirm the challenges are far from over.
“The government should help erase the pain with a business rates freeze in April. Another steep rise can only lead to fewer jobs, less investment and more troubled high streets.”


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Is our addiction to consumption driving the climate crisis? In a world packed full of products made from our natural resources, brands and consumers are beginning to pay more consideration to the impact of our fast fashion habits on the natural environments around us.
As individuals it is extremely difficult for us to change our consumer behavior. Although activists suggest that they must change their preferences to opt for sustainable approaches, i.e. lowering energy consumption, choosing eco-friendly transport options and creating shopping habits, it is not easy to change without force or reward.
A study of a portion of the population in Sweden found that people were most likely to maintain environmentally friendly habits when the new behavior is rewarding. With this in mind, how can NFT technology help us to form new habits? Simply put, they act as an intervention to our existing relationship with the fashion industry.
Interventions that break bad habits can encourage new behaviors. These interventions often involve penalties for bad behavior but can also encompass incentives for good behavior. This is where digital assets could play a pivotal role in encouraging sustainable shopping habits for the future.
Has the fashion industry woken up to consider the implications of excessive production?
The reports are published, the studies have been conducted, now raising awareness of the current state of the fashion industry is key to addressing the issues outlined for the environment. Half a million tons of plastic microfibers are dumped in the ocean annually, this is the equivalent of 50 billion plastic bottles. Furthermore by 2030, global apparel consumption is projected to rise by 63% to 102 million tons.
The fashion industry is powerful, with over 300 million people employed. However, the textiles used to produce the vast majority of clothing are taken from plant and animal sources. Polyester, one of the most used fabrics for the manufacturing of clothing, is made from fossil fuels and is not biodegradable, making it one of the most harmful fabrics for the planet. Yet, Polyester’s affordability and the ease at which it can be produced have skyrocketed the value of the material and aided the fast fashion industry to flourish since it was first discovered in the 1940’s.
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To meet climate targets further research on the volume of consumption is needed. Both brands and consumers are beginning to reflect on the amount of waste produced and to consider new forms of consumption. Although fast fashion has been hitting the headlines for its disregard for sustainable production and materials, this behavior is still accepted and hasn't yet led to a reshaping of our clothing shopping habits.
Curtailing the vast levels of consumption provides natural environments with the time needed to replenish resources and regenerate from soil degradation. As the world awakens to consider the implications of excessive production, fashion brands can use NFTs to incentivise news behavior formation and help with the transition from physical goods to virtual worlds.
How has the average consumer been won over by capitalism?
Consumption is a natural and necessary component of everyday life. Think about the food intake. However, the attachment to financial well being and the proliferation of products available to consume has catapulted beyond anything ever imagined. In the past, less wealthy families may have gone without some items but today there are thrift stores, low cost goods and an endless supply of colorful gadgets to catch our eyes. Browsing was never so delightful.
Furthermore, behavioral research and a greater understanding of consumer trends has put the power in the hands of the provider. They give us what we think we need but is it what we really need? As our tastes accumulate and shoppers become accustomed to new items filling the shelves, the craving process begins and that yearning for more is almost automatic.
How Web3 technology can alleviate the negative environmental impact of fast fashion?
As an industry, blockchain is in a strong position to help fashion brands to embrace a more sustainable approach to the public's fashion needs. Not by reskilling them in the art of sewing or patchwork but by providing alternative means of consumption. Instead of buying items that are soon discarded and replaced, buyers can have the option to purchase a digital version until there is a need to fulfill a specific order or better yet, form new relationships with their fashion brands that don’t only involve the production of clothing. Events, loyalty programs, education and design are some sectors currently being explored by some of the biggest fashion brands in the metaverse. Consider Nikes new Crypto Kicks IRL collection that is positioning the leading fashion label as a key player in the move to earn space.
Blockchain technology can help fashion brands to transition away from fast fashion. Firstly, by using data stored on the blockchain ledger, companies can get a more accurate picture of the natural fabrics, water use and general impact that fast fashion is having on the environment. Secondly, NFTs can be used to encourage new forms of behavior and different associations with consumption. The core challenge for eco-activists and those opposed to fast fashion is the struggle to get consumers to change their behavior. With the introduction of NFTs, this transition is less painful. Now, individuals have the opportunity to buy without guilt as the digital asset is stored in your digital wallet without the need to have the physical garment.
Evaluating our role as consumers in society is something that will become part of our everyday mindset as natural resources continue to deplete at an alarming rate. Brands that consider their role in providing greener economies will benefit from alignment with deeper values in societies. Fashion brands that demonstrate care, care for nature and show leadership when it comes to providing sustainable shopping options will win the public’s respect in the longer term.


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Kelley Sims told a panel of local business leaders Wednesday afternoon how his Amarillo-based clearing company Brush Eaters plans to grow, bringing dollars into the Texas Panhandle from outside the area and buying equipment from local businesses.
Buying equipment was a key component of his presentation. Sims would like to see judges grant Brush Eaters $100,000 to go toward a Vermeer horizontal grinder.
"I thought that it went well," Sims said of the presentation he gave as part of West Texas A&M University's EnterPrize Challenge, a yearly competition for entrepreneurs to compete for up to $100,000 each. "I hope so."
Representatives from seven local businesses presented their business proposals Wednesday at the West Texas A&M University Enterprise Center, 2300 N. Western St., for a chance to claim a share of $500,000 and put their plans into action.
A panel of five independent judges selected the seven finalists from a pool of 15 participants, Enterprise Center director of marketing Cori Burns said. Each finalist gave a 10- to 12-minute oral presentation of a business plan and answered questions from judges for 15 minutes Wednesday.
The finalists include Brush Eaters, credit union auditing and consulting firm Waypoint Advisory Services, fogging and spraying deck equipment manufacturers Wheeler Foggers, security system company Confluence Security Group, building contractors Tascosa Building Products and electrical product and service provider Amarillo Electric Services.
The contest money comes from the Amarillo Economic Development Corp., which is funded with local sales tax dollars. Each winner can get up to $100,000, Burns said.
In each of the previous two years' competitions, judges decided to distribute the entire $500,000 among six business plans, she said.
Since the contest started in 1996, 52 businesses have received EnterPrize funding, and about 75 percent of those companies are still in business, she said.
All EnterPrize award recipients will have the chance to join the Enterprise Center's business incubation program, where they receive business coaching from Enterprise Center staff.
Elliot McKinney, president of third-party health care negotiating firm OccuNet and one of the EnterPrize judges, did not say which presentations were his favorite Wednesday, but said they all showed promise.
"What I'm listening for is … Do they know their product? Do they know their market? Is it profitable?" McKinney said.
"Hearing them and listening to them tell their story and then asking questions … you get a lot of insight into how they think and how they're approaching their markets and the competition that they face," McKinney said.
McKinney said the biggest challenge for any local entrepreneur is finding investors, as opportunities to invest in start-ups are abundant, while capital is hard to come by.
Sims said the process of applying for EnterPrize funds and preparing to present a straightforward business plan is valuable whether or not his efforts hit pay dirt.
"I think it's a very valuable process to go through regardless … of funds," Sims said.
"Going through that process forces you to ask questions."
Judges must come to a unanimous decision on how to divide the $500,000 Wednesday, Burns said. Last year, judges awarded four businesses $100,000 each while two others received $50,000 each. Enterprise Center officials will announce the winners April 10, she said.


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The Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) of Hong Kong is revising its virtual currency policies in response to market changes and industry inquiries. New guidelines restrict some virtual currency products to professional investors and emphasize assessing client knowledge before transactions. This move acknowledges the ongoing global regulatory variations in the virtual asset sphere.
In a recent announcement, Hong Kong’s Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) has revealed its intent to overhaul its virtual currency policies in response to emerging market trends and inquiries from the industry. Under the updated rules, specific virtual currency products will only be accessible to professional investors. Moreover, intermediaries operating in the cryptocurrency sector must evaluate whether clients possess sufficient knowledge about virtual asset investments before conducting transactions.
The SFC highlighted the uneven global regulatory environment surrounding virtual assets, emphasizing that risks associated with these assets, as identified in 2018, remain applicable. The updated requirements categorize virtual assets as “complex products” and subject them to the same guidelines as traditional financial products. Notably, crypto exchange-traded funds and assets originating outside Hong Kong fall under this classification.
While the SFC’s actions align with global trends, it’s worth noting that many Hong Kong crypto users are still grappling with the aftermath of the JPEX crypto exchange scandal. In September, the SFC reported over 1,000 complaints related to JPEX, indicating substantial losses among users. Local authorities later arrested six JPEX employees for running an unlicensed crypto exchange. While it’s unclear whether these updates stem directly from the JPEX incident, the SFC had previously expressed its commitment to raising awareness of crypto-related risks, underscoring the importance of investor education and protection in the evolving digital asset landscape.


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New research has revealed that 74 per cent of Aussies have been sending their hard-earned cash to overseas shopping sites so far this year – with findings further revealing which retail categories our money is going to, the factors that are drawing us to overseas sites, and the factors that will keep us shopping locally.
The findings come from a survey of an independent panel of 1000 Australians commissioned by Australian shopper savings website, Cashrewards.com.au, which has driven $70 million of Aussie shopping dollars to local and overseas online retailers since January this year.
This represents 0.4 per cent of the $17.4 billion annual e-commerce spend in Australia overall, based on data from the July 2015 NAB Online Retail Sales Index.
Fashion and electronics driving our overseas spend
Surprisingly, it isn’t gaming, toys, beauty, music or travel that Aussies say they’ve been spending on overseas sites most.
Fashion is the biggest drawcard to international sites, with more than 1 in 3 respondents (35 per cent) lured by this category. This was largely driven by 18-24s, two-thirds (61 per cent) of which admitted to purchasing fashion on overseas sites this year.
Nearly a third (31 per cent) of all respondents admitted they went to overseas shopping sites for technology. Surprisingly, this was even higher among over-55s (at 38 per cent of respondents).
Books are still a major drawcard for shoppers, with 27 per cent of respondents having purchased books or magazines this year on overseas sites (again, higher among older Australians).
While jewellery and beauty was lower on the list of purchases, the 18-24 age category purchased these goods more than any other age group (21 per cent of respondents, respectively).
A mere one in four (26 per cent) said they do not shop on overseas sites.
Motivating factors drawing us to spend overseas
When asked about what motivates them to shop on overseas sites, better prices was chosen by 41 per cent of respondents – again, this was largely driven by younger Aussies (42 per cent of 18-24s and 46 per cent of 25-34s).
A further one in three (33 per cent) admitted it was product choice, or a type of product not available locally, that drew them to overseas sites.
Nearly a third (29 per cent) of respondents admitted to being addicted to online shopping or online browsing. This is higher among 18-24 year olds, 43 per cent of whom are addicted to shopping or browsing online, and 30 per cent of whom are addicted to browsing alone.
Andrew Clarke, founder and CEO of Cashrewards, says, “We are in the midst of an evolution in the shopping industry, driven by the consumer search for better prices and greater incentives and rewards on demand.”
“The search for lower-priced items, particularly when the Aussie dollar is languishing against other global currencies, is strongly motivating consumers to become smarter shoppers and more discerning. In the next couple of years, local retailers will need to incentivise and engage consumers in better ways.”
Delivery is mostly what keeps us shopping locally
Andrew adds, “While our local retailers can’t always compete on price or product range, our survey revealed an area of customer service that local retailers could innovate to win Aussies back, and which overseas retailers would struggle to offer. It is delivery: this was identified as likely the least favourite aspect of online shopping for many Australians.”
Nearly half of the respondents (47 per cent) prefer to pick up their items in store (click and collect) to avoid waiting for delivery, and 42 per cent revealed that picking up in store is faster than delivery. Thirty-nine per cent of respondents said they would shop online more if click and collect were available more.
“If Aussies receive outstanding service in the delivery stage of the shopping cycle, I believe our local spending will increase.”
How can you shop more Australian?
Andrew shared the following seven tips for getting what you want on local retail sites:
1. Sign up to local retailer news
Local retailers often hold flash sales at short notice or offer ‘spend and save’ rewards for their subscribers. Often the only want to know about them is to sign up to their eNewsletters or their social media sites. Some offers are only posted on Facebook, others via direct mail.
2. In-store pick up
A major benefit of Click and Collect – offered by many local retailers – is that you could exchange or refund on the spot if the product is unsuitable. Overseas sites require you to go through the lengthy process of exchanging via post or courier, the process often taking weeks.
3. Set alerts
Use a browser plug-in, such as Page Monitor, to monitor the offers page of your favourite retailers. These will alert you to any changes to the page’s content, usually indicating a new offer.
4. Postage adds up
If the overseas item is priced 5-10 per cent lower than local offerings, is it worth it when you take into account international shipping rates – which can be around $35.
This cost is even higher if you need to return or exchange. Australian retailers typically charge $10 per shipment, and often it’s free for purchases over $100.
5. Cheap, risky purchases may be cash down the drain
Be careful of being lured by too-good-to-true prices. If a cheap item from an overseas site is unsuitable, and the delivery – and particularly the returns or exchange process – is lengthy, chances are we won’t even bother returning. Savings, or wasted cash? Brands like this include Ali Express.
6. Check reviews
Product quality must be as important as price – and often you can get a good balance from local retailers. Some incredibly cheap overseas fashion sites, for instance, are advertising everywhere but check the reviews and you’ll see most are poor due to poor quality products.
Australians expect – and receive – great quality products, and often we still expect the same level of quality at unbelievable prices from overseas retailers.
7. Know where to get discounts and rewards
Use cashback sites, which offer up to 20 per cent in cashback or discounts across local retailers – and 300 per cent better value than an airline points-based system that gives four points for every dollar spent. Cashrewards, for instance, has so far given 70,000 Aussies $2.5 million in cash back in 2015 alone.


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CORRECTED-BUZZ-U.S. STOCKS ON THE MOVE-Twitter, Micron, Intel, Amazon, JPMorgan
(Corrects item on Matrix to "gave a 2016 profit forecast that was much higher than its 2015 forecast" from "raised its 2016 profit forecast") Wall Street was higher on Tuesday, adding to three days of gains, as energy stocks rallied and Micron Technologies led tech stocks higher on reports of buyout interest.
At 12:26 a.m. ET, the Dow Jones industrial average was up 0.33 percent at 18,036.37. The S&P 500 was up 0.38 percent at 2,107.52 and the Nasdaq composite up 0.65 percent at 5,104.57.
** TWITTER , $36.92, +3.19 pct
The stock jumped as much as 8.5 percent after a report, purportedly from Bloomberg, said the company had received a $31 billion buyout offer. The stock quickly gave up most of its gains after Bloomberg said the report was fake and Twitter said it had not receive any offer.
** INTEL CORP, $29.6715, -0.20 pct
Bernstein cut its rating on the chipmaker's stock to "underperform" from "market perform", citing signs of weakness in its datacenter business, which it said could be "significantly more damaging" to Q2 results than the tepid PC market.


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How COVID-19 has impacted corporate sustainability and what this means for your business.
The COVID-19 pandemic has been the single most impactful public health crisis in recent memory. Every aspect of business operation has been affected. The overarching effect has been companies undergoing a collective rethinking of their responsibilities, in large part due to increased scrutiny from stakeholders. This rethinking process is often manifesting itself in sustainability and ESG reports. In this article, we’ll be looking at how COVID-19 has impacted corporate sustainability reporting and what that means for your business.
What Is a Sustainability Report?
First, let’s briefly go over what a sustainability report is. There isn’t a standardized definition or format worldwide, but a sustainability report will typically contain a review of the company’s compliance with various regulations and laws governing its business operations. For example, this might include reports on energy usage, carbon emissions, water usage, chemical usage, and recycling. A reporting entity may also discuss its financials to demonstrate that it is abiding by its stated environmental policies and goals even when doing so incurs costs that would not be necessary for the absence of these policies.
How Has Sustainability Reporting Been Impacted?
The COVID-19 pandemic has shifted stakeholders’ expectations for disclosures from abstract promises of “sustainability” to tangible reports that detail exactly what steps companies are taking in pursuit of these goals. COVID-19 has effectively changed corporate sustainability reporting from an opportunity to boost a company’s image and brand into something that is beginning to become a de facto (and in some cases de jure) requirement that must be met to avoid fines and reputational damage.
For example, this might include reports on energy usage, carbon emissions, water usage, chemical usage, and recycling. A reporting entity may also discuss its financials to demonstrate that it is abiding by its stated environmental policies and goals even when doing so incurs costs that would not be necessary for the absence of these policies.
A study by brand watch found that 75% of consumers look at a brand's COVID response
The pandemic has also brought a host of new concerns to the forefront of people’s minds. One notable example is the rise of health and safety concerns among both corporations and consumers. A study by brand watch found that 75% of consumers look at a brand’s COVID response when deciding whether or not to shop with them.
Changes in Consumer Preferences
Changes in consumer preferences like these have necessitated changes in how sustainability reports are constructed and structured. Now, direct mention of COVID-19’s impacts and the company’s responses to those impacts are expected. This change in expected content has been conceptualized by KMPG under a four-part framework:
• Respond • Relief • Recover • Resilience
Each part corresponds with a consideration that should guide sustainability reporting post-COVID-19.
As corporations attempt to navigate the COVID-19 pandemic and its aftermath, it’s crucially important that they keep stakeholders in the loop when it comes to describing how their operations have been impacted by the pandemic.
Corporations play a hugely important role in providing relief from the pandemic’s worst impacts – to their employees, customers, and the wider communities they operate within. They need to demonstrate that they are taking steps to reduce their negative impacts and increase their positive impacts.
Volatile markets and other business disruptions have been occurring at unprecedented rates since the COVID-19 pandemic struck. Corporations need to address their plans for recovery within their sustainability reports if they want to give stakeholders the peace of mind that business will continue as usual.
As we move forward into the new world this pandemic has opened our eyes to, corporations need to recognize that COVID-19 is not an isolated event. Other disruptive events – both similar and dissimilar – are sure to be on the horizon. Stakeholders need to be made aware of a corporation’s plan for the next disruptive event that comes around.
How To Use This Framework When Writing Sustainability Reports
An effective post-COVID sustainability strategy needs to tackle novel concerns and obstacles head-on. Using the framework is a great way to cover your bases and make sure that you’re addressing stakeholder concerns in a comprehensive way.
Determine Impact Areas
Though the COVID-19 pandemic has changed many aspects of corporate sustainability reporting, some things remain constant. Your impact areas should still include energy usage, carbon emissions, water usage, chemical usage, and recycling.
However, new impact areas need to be established. COVID-19 has brought countless impacts in the areas of materiality, risk management, and governance that your report needs to address.
Determine Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)
Identify what you want to achieve with your sustainability reporting. KPIs may include things like the percent reduction in emissions over the previous year. However, new, post-COVID impacts will necessitate new KPIs.
Establish Recovery Plans
Though everyone loves to read about plans, it’s important to demonstrate that these aren’t empty promises. Outline the ways in which your organization has begun to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic and how it will continue its recovery moving forward.
Establish a Post-COVID Sustainability Strategy
Your corporation must have a plan for sustainable operations post-COVID-19 – including business continuity, resilience, and adaptability. Demonstrate that you are ready for similar disruption in the future.
When things aren’t sustainable, they eventually have to stop”. @Anders Ankarlid
Present What You’ve Learned
One of the most important considerations when writing a sustainability report that addresses the concerns of stakeholder is presenting what the pandemic has taught you about your operations or business model. No corporation has weathered the pandemic without making mistakes. Attempting to hide these will not only impact the credibility of the report, but it will also miss a valuable opportunity to reflect on how you improved as an organization.
As COVID-19 continues to disrupt our way of life, it’s important for corporations to demonstrate their commitment to sustainability and a sustainable future. The framework provided in this article is one way you can make sure your sustainability reports are up to the task of addressing stakeholder concerns with respect to COVID-19.
About the Author
At Sandpaper We have been around long enough to realize the importance of good report writing, research, and design. A thoroughly planned and executed report builds loyalty and trust among stakeholders.
In the 10 years of service, Sandpaper has managed a stay ahead of its competition; by developing and adapting to changes in both the global and local corporate landscape in the United Arab Emirates.


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|By PR Newswire||
|November 29, 2012 04:00 AM EST||
SINGAPORE, Nov. 29, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Cloud computing, mobility, big data and social media are transforming the ways in which organizations and individuals engage with one another. Key changes include a reduction in the size of IT departments and much greater cross industry convergence.
In 2013, cloud computing and mobility will reduce the number of tasks that need to be carried out by IT departments. Automation and self service are typical characteristics of cloud computing which eliminate the need for certain support and upgrade tasks. The use of mobile devices that are sourced by individuals (BYOD) also eliminates some support tasks as well as procurement activities.
Andrew Milroy, Vice President, ICT Practice, Frost & Sullivan Asia Pacific says, "As such, the market for Asia Pacific cloud computing is expected to grow at 36.5 per cent between the period of 2011 to 2016. Singapore, Hong Kong and Malaysia have emerged as the next hot beds of Adoption for Cloud Computing."
Milroy continues, "The use of new technologies also lowers the barriers to entry for many markets. Apple has illustrated this by entering first the music industry and now multiple media industries. Google and Amazon have similarly shown little respect to the boundaries between industries. They have succeeded in switching between industries by leveraging new technologies."
Mobile Platforms to hit critical mass across smartphones and tablets
Globally, smartphones and tablet shipments will exceed PC shipments by 84 per cent in 2012 and it is expected to be twice as much in 2013. In the Asia Pacific region, the figure is looking at 56 per cent in 2012 and it will be twice as much in 2013. Nitin Bhat, Partner and Head of Consulting, Frost & Sullivan Asia Pacific says, "In Asia, the smartphone shipment reached 182 million or 32.5 per cent this year and will increase to 380 million or 37.6 per cent by 2016, making it the fastest growing region for smartphone shipments."
With the prevalence of smartphone uptake in Asia, mobile payment is poised to takeoff and the transactions will increase to more than US$171.5 billion in 2012. The volume of transaction is expected to hit US$878 billion in 2017. NFC-based payment will account for about 21 per cent of the total mobile payment transaction value or an estimated US$180 million in 2017. SMS-based transaction will continue to be the 'dominant' payment mode till 2015.
Bhat adds, "Asia Pacific will be the biggest region for mobile payments in 2015. Currently, Japan and South Korea lead the Asia Pacific region in mobile payments adoption. However in the near term, we can look forward to unbanked users in Bangladesh, Cambodia, India and Pakistan. These emerging economies are expected to be one of the major drivers of mobile payment services."
With high smartphone penetration, global mobile advertising revenue reached US$5.33 billion in 2011 and Asia Pacific accounts for 36 per cent of the global market.
Enterprise Mobility is driving growth in the Unified Communications (UC) market
Mobility has moved from being part of starting a conversation to being part of RFPs leading to implementation UC. This however, may or may not lead to adoption of the complete mobility solution.
Jessie Yu, Senior Industry Analyst, ICT Practice, Frost & Sullivan Asia Pacific observed that 34 per cent of corporate businesses have a Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) policy in place. Singapore leads the smartphone penetration in Asia Pacific; smartphone users are expected to exceed 70 per cent among total mobile subscribers in 2012. As businesses look for more elastic offerings to satisfy users evolving needs and enhance the productivity, enterprises need greater flexibility built into their unified communication strategies, particularly when it comes to supporting UC on various types of mobile devices and operating systems.
Yu says, "As mobility becomes an absolute requirement, smartphones and tablets are slated to become one of the primary devices for communication and collaboration. However, the collaboration across mobile enterprises is still at the early stage. Basic features like mobile email, instant messaging are the key elements. Moving forwards, with the fast-growing mobile internet usage, enterprise mobility is expected to nurture the fragmented UC-as-a- Service (UCaaS) market into the booming period."
About Frost & Sullivan
Frost & Sullivan, the Growth Partnership Company, works in collaboration with clients to leverage visionary innovation that addresses the global challenges and related growth opportunities that will make or break today's market participants.
Our "Growth Partnership" supports clients by addressing these opportunities and incorporating two key elements driving visionary innovation: The Integrated Value Proposition and The Partnership Infrastructure.
- The Integrated Value Proposition provides support to our clients throughout all phases of their journey to visionary innovation including: research, analysis, strategy, vision, innovation and implementation.
- The Partnership Infrastructure is entirely unique as it constructs the foundation upon which visionary innovation becomes possible. This includes our 360 degree research, comprehensive industry coverage, career best practices as well as our global footprint of more than 40 offices.
For more than 50 years, we have been developing growth strategies for the global 1000, emerging businesses, the public sector and the investment community. Is your organization prepared for the next profound wave of industry convergence, disruptive technologies, increasing competitive intensity, Mega Trends, breakthrough best practices, changing customer dynamics and emerging economies?
Corporate Communications – Asia Pacific
P: +61 (02) 8247 8927
F: +61 (02) 9252 8066
E: [email protected]
SOURCE Frost & Sullivan
The security needs of IoT environments require a strong, proven approach to maintain security, trust and privacy in their ecosystem. Assurance and protection of device identity, secure data encryption and authentication are the key security challenges organizations are trying to address when integrating IoT devices. This holds true for IoT applications in a wide range of industries, for example, healthcare, consumer devices, and manufacturing. In his session at @ThingsExpo, Lancen LaChance, vic...
Oct. 23, 2016 01:30 AM EDT Reads: 3,638
Cloud based infrastructure deployment is becoming more and more appealing to customers, from Fortune 500 companies to SMEs due to its pay-as-you-go model. Enterprise storage vendors are able to reach out to these customers by integrating in cloud based deployments; this needs adaptability and interoperability of the products confirming to cloud standards such as OpenStack, CloudStack, or Azure. As compared to off the shelf commodity storage, enterprise storages by its reliability, high-availabil...
Oct. 23, 2016 01:30 AM EDT Reads: 1,024
The IoT industry is now at a crossroads, between the fast-paced innovation of technologies and the pending mass adoption by global enterprises. The complexity of combining rapidly evolving technologies and the need to establish practices for market acceleration pose a strong challenge to global enterprises as well as IoT vendors. In his session at @ThingsExpo, Clark Smith, senior product manager for Numerex, will discuss how Numerex, as an experienced, established IoT provider, has embraced a ...
Oct. 23, 2016 01:15 AM EDT Reads: 982
In the next forty months – just over three years – businesses will undergo extraordinary changes. The exponential growth of digitization and machine learning will see a step function change in how businesses create value, satisfy customers, and outperform their competition. In the next forty months companies will take the actions that will see them get to the next level of the game called Capitalism. Or they won’t – game over. The winners of today and tomorrow think differently, follow different...
Oct. 23, 2016 01:15 AM EDT Reads: 875
SYS-CON Events announced today that Super Micro Computer, Inc., a global leader in Embedded and IoT solutions, will exhibit at SYS-CON's 20th International Cloud Expo®, which will take place on June 7-9, 2017, at the Javits Center in New York City, NY. Supermicro (NASDAQ: SMCI), the leading innovator in high-performance, high-efficiency server technology, is a premier provider of advanced server Building Block Solutions® for Data Center, Cloud Computing, Enterprise IT, Hadoop/Big Data, HPC and ...
Oct. 23, 2016 12:45 AM EDT Reads: 3,518
The Internet of Things (IoT), in all its myriad manifestations, has great potential. Much of that potential comes from the evolving data management and analytic (DMA) technologies and processes that allow us to gain insight from all of the IoT data that can be generated and gathered. This potential may never be met as those data sets are tied to specific industry verticals and single markets, with no clear way to use IoT data and sensor analytics to fulfill the hype being given the IoT today.
Oct. 23, 2016 12:15 AM EDT Reads: 2,419
Donna Yasay, President of HomeGrid Forum, today discussed with a panel of technology peers how certification programs are at the forefront of interoperability, and the answer for vendors looking to keep up with today's growing industry for smart home innovation. "To ensure multi-vendor interoperability, accredited industry certification programs should be used for every product to provide credibility and quality assurance for retail and carrier based customers looking to add ever increasing num...
Oct. 23, 2016 12:00 AM EDT Reads: 428
The Open Connectivity Foundation (OCF), sponsor of the IoTivity open source project, and AllSeen Alliance, which provides the AllJoyn® open source IoT framework, today announced that the two organizations’ boards have approved a merger under the OCF name and bylaws. This merger will advance interoperability between connected devices from both groups, enabling the full operating potential of IoT and representing a significant step towards a connected ecosystem.
Oct. 23, 2016 12:00 AM EDT Reads: 1,187
Web Real-Time Communication APIs have quickly revolutionized what browsers are capable of. In addition to video and audio streams, we can now bi-directionally send arbitrary data over WebRTC's PeerConnection Data Channels. With the advent of Progressive Web Apps and new hardware APIs such as WebBluetooh and WebUSB, we can finally enable users to stitch together the Internet of Things directly from their browsers while communicating privately and securely in a decentralized way.
Oct. 23, 2016 12:00 AM EDT Reads: 1,821
More and more brands have jumped on the IoT bandwagon. We have an excess of wearables – activity trackers, smartwatches, smart glasses and sneakers, and more that track seemingly endless datapoints. However, most consumers have no idea what “IoT” means. Creating more wearables that track data shouldn't be the aim of brands; delivering meaningful, tangible relevance to their users should be. We're in a period in which the IoT pendulum is still swinging. Initially, it swung toward "smart for smar...
Oct. 22, 2016 11:45 PM EDT Reads: 707
Manufacturers are embracing the Industrial Internet the same way consumers are leveraging Fitbits – to improve overall health and wellness. Both can provide consistent measurement, visibility, and suggest performance improvements customized to help reach goals. Fitbit users can view real-time data and make adjustments to increase their activity. In his session at @ThingsExpo, Mark Bernardo Professional Services Leader, Americas, at GE Digital, discussed how leveraging the Industrial Internet a...
Oct. 22, 2016 11:45 PM EDT Reads: 4,460
SYS-CON Events announced today that LeaseWeb USA, a cloud Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS) provider, will exhibit at the 19th International Cloud Expo, which will take place on November 1–3, 2016, at the Santa Clara Convention Center in Santa Clara, CA. LeaseWeb is one of the world's largest hosting brands. The company helps customers define, develop and deploy IT infrastructure tailored to their exact business needs, by combining various kinds cloud solutions.
Oct. 22, 2016 11:30 PM EDT Reads: 3,801
A completely new computing platform is on the horizon. They’re called Microservers by some, ARM Servers by others, and sometimes even ARM-based Servers. No matter what you call them, Microservers will have a huge impact on the data center and on server computing in general. Although few people are familiar with Microservers today, their impact will be felt very soon. This is a new category of computing platform that is available today and is predicted to have triple-digit growth rates for some ...
Oct. 22, 2016 11:00 PM EDT Reads: 33,944
November 1–3, 2016, at the Santa Clara Convention Center in Santa Clara, CA. Penta Security is a leading vendor for data security solutions, including its encryption solution, D’Amo. By using FPE technology, D’Amo allows for the implementation of encryption technology to sensitive data fields without modification to schema in the database environment. With businesses having their data become increasingly more complicated in their mission-critical applications (such as ERP, CRM, HRM), continued ...
Oct. 22, 2016 10:30 PM EDT Reads: 918
SYS-CON Events announced today that Cloudbric, a leading website security provider, will exhibit at the 19th International Cloud Expo, which will take place on November 1–3, 2016, at the Santa Clara Convention Center in Santa Clara, CA. Cloudbric is an elite full service website protection solution specifically designed for IT novices, entrepreneurs, and small and medium businesses. First launched in 2015, Cloudbric is based on the enterprise level Web Application Firewall by Penta Security Sys...
Oct. 22, 2016 10:30 PM EDT Reads: 1,053
SYS-CON Events announced today that SoftNet Solutions will exhibit at the 19th International Cloud Expo, which will take place on November 1–3, 2016, at the Santa Clara Convention Center in Santa Clara, CA. SoftNet Solutions specializes in Enterprise Solutions for Hadoop and Big Data. It offers customers the most open, robust, and value-conscious portfolio of solutions, services, and tools for the shortest route to success with Big Data. The unique differentiator is the ability to architect and ...
Oct. 22, 2016 10:15 PM EDT Reads: 647
Most people haven’t heard the word, “gamification,” even though they probably, and perhaps unwittingly, participate in it every day. Gamification is “the process of adding games or game-like elements to something (as a task) so as to encourage participation.” Further, gamification is about bringing game mechanics – rules, constructs, processes, and methods – into the real world in an effort to engage people. In his session at @ThingsExpo, Robert Endo, owner and engagement manager of Intrepid D...
Oct. 22, 2016 09:30 PM EDT Reads: 9,657
SYS-CON Events announced today that Enzu will exhibit at the 19th International Cloud Expo, which will take place on November 1–3, 2016, at the Santa Clara Convention Center in Santa Clara, CA. Enzu’s mission is to be the leading provider of enterprise cloud solutions worldwide. Enzu enables online businesses to use its IT infrastructure to their competitive advantage. By offering a suite of proven hosting and management services, Enzu wants companies to focus on the core of their online busine...
Oct. 22, 2016 09:00 PM EDT Reads: 1,258
WebRTC adoption has generated a wave of creative uses of communications and collaboration through websites, sales apps, customer care and business applications. As WebRTC has become more mainstream it has evolved to use cases beyond the original peer-to-peer case, which has led to a repeating requirement for interoperability with existing infrastructures. In his session at @ThingsExpo, Graham Holt, Executive Vice President of Daitan Group, will cover implementation examples that have enabled ea...
Oct. 22, 2016 09:00 PM EDT Reads: 2,259
SYS-CON Events announced today that Roundee / LinearHub will exhibit at the WebRTC Summit at @ThingsExpo, which will take place on November 1–3, 2016, at the Santa Clara Convention Center in Santa Clara, CA. LinearHub provides Roundee Service, a smart platform for enterprise video conferencing with enhanced features such as automatic recording and transcription service. Slack users can integrate Roundee to their team via Slack’s App Directory, and '/roundee' command lets your video conference ...
Oct. 22, 2016 08:45 PM EDT Reads: 2,009


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C2-007674 Occurred: 1/24/22
An employee at Walmart reported a shoplift. He said the suspects were in the store for over an hour, loading up a cart with items. They ran out of the store with the cart and didn’t pay for any of the items. The female in the green top has a unique tattoo on her right shoulder. If you know who these suspects are, say it here!


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While these pages have reported on this matter before we want to emphasize just how important the issue of contaminated dog food is. Pet food company Evanger’s, in a display of compliance and empathy, on February 3rd recalled five batches of its Hunk of Beef dog food.
One batch of the dog food tested positive for pentobarbital, a drug that is used in euthanasia as well as for other medical purposes. It is suspected that the company that provided the meat for Evanger’s product used the carcass of a euthanized animal and this is how the pentobarbital infected the dog food.
At least one dog, a pug in Washington state named Talula, died after consuming the food and three others in the same household are ill. Others may also be infected but, so far, nothing has been reported.
To read more on this story go to the next page and please be care of the dog food you chose to feed your fur-child.


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Shiba Inu Lost 12% Value Due to Technical Issue on Coinbase Pro
On Tuesday, June 15, the Shiba Inu token had to be launched on the Coinbase Pro platform. But the exchange delayed the expected listing, and SHIB fell 12% overnight.
“We are having technical issues that will temporarily delay the launch of SHIB on Coinbase Pro,” the exchange wrote yesterday in an update to the June 15 announcement.
The platform announced the shutdown of SHIB deposits. But it is still possible to withdraw the funds. During the technical delay, the SHIB price fell 12%.
A similar technical delay on Coinbase Pro also affected the deployment of Solana.
According to a March report by Messari, the “Coinbase Effect” contributes to an average price increase of 29% five days after product launch.
Currently, the price of a separate SHIB token is significantly lower than a penny, but a massive turnover of 500 trillion tokens brings its market capitalization to almost $ 4 billion.


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How many quarters dropped into the slot is Toru Iwatani responsible for? He created Pac-Man, the wildly popular arcade game, in 1981 for Namco. Today, Microsoft said, Iwatani, a Tokyo Polytechnic University professor, has again put his mark on the Pac-Man franchise.
Namco Bandai is releasing “Pac-Man Championship Edition” for download on Xbox Live Arcade starting tomorrow. It will have the first new mazes in 26 years, along with several other new bells and whistles, according to a Microsoft news release.
Microsoft held the Xbox 360 Pac-Man World Championships in New York City today. The finalists competed on the new game and winner Carlos Daniel Borrego, 27, of Pachuca, Mexico, was crowned by Iwatani himself.
Iwatani says this marks the end of his corporate career. See coverage from Reuters.


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It has become a tug of war when it comes to maintaining a healthy diet for most Americans, according to a newly released survey -- "What America Eats 2005," commissioned by Parade Magazine, New York.
While Americans are well intentioned when it comes to eating healthy foods, they often find themselves succumbing to food indulgences. Finding the time to procure, prepare and eat is often a roadblock to consuming more nutritious foods, the survey indicated.
The food shopping venue of choice for 79% of consumers is the traditional supermarket and grocery retailer. Food retailers have an opportunity here to raise shoppers' healthy eating standards by making it easier and more convenient for them to purchase nutritious foods. A majority (77%) of consumers said they look for ways to make it easier to shop for foods that are healthy and better for their families.
Some of the ways retailers can achieve this is by merchandising healthy meal solutions, offering easy-and-fast recipes, selling prepared fresh and nutritious meals and promoting healthy foods by being conscious of price and value, suggests Fran Carpentier, Parade's senior editor.
"There needs to be more prevalent positioning in-store [of healthy products]. Perhaps, locate healthy versions of known brands together instead of lumping them in with their less healthy counterparts," she said. More attention must also be paid to pricing of healthy products and their taste, Carpentier added.
These are just a few of the findings in Parade's biennial report on consumers' eating habits, meal preparation and food shopping preferences.
Parade, a division of Conde Nast, which also owns Fairchild Publications, the parent company of Supermarket News, has conducted the survey since 1987. The 15-page survey was mailed earlier this year to over 4,000 households, whose members range in age from 18 to 65. Mark Clements Research conducted the survey, and received 2,964 responses, a 74% response rate. Findings in the report are based on 2,088 respondents. This year's survey took a close look at health and diet to ascertain Americans' perception of healthy eating and to gauge what steps they are taking to live a healthier lifestyle. "Our goal is to capture relevant trends and attitudes," Carpentier said. Last year, the study focused in on the low-carb diet. "With the death of the carb craze, we wanted to expand the questioning to determine what Americans were doing to lead a healthy lifestyle," Carpentier said.
The biggest surprise to come out of this year's survey is "perception vs. reality when it comes to Americans' eating habits," Carpentier noted.
The survey found many consumers (42%) do eat a well-balanced diet of meat/fish, vegetables/fruits, grains and dairy. However, as a reward for their healthy eating, they indulge in snacks and other pleasure foods. "It's a 'balancing act' between eating healthy but with indulgent rewards," Carpentier said.
One of those rewards is eating less healthy fast and convenience foods, which also save consumers valued time. Three square meals a day are often sacrificed by half of the consumers with the majority (71%) saying they skip breakfast, considered to be the most important meal of the day by nutritionists. Over a third (37%) said they skip lunch, and only 11% said they skip dinner.
"Most people are eating breakfast at home, so a healthy breakfast needs to start on the supermarket shelves," Carpentier noted. "The whole-grain message has taken hold -- 42% of respondents are influenced by whole-grain cereals with low sugar not far behind."
Then there are nearly a quarter (23%) of consumers who said they eat whatever they like regardless of whether the food is considered good for them. Only 4% called themselves a "health nut" -- one who eats fruits and vegetables, and avoids preservatives, processed foods, fast foods, and salty or high-sugar snacks.
"Most Americans 'think skinny' but 'eat fat,' Carpentier said. "The biggest challenge is eating foods we know to be good for us on an everyday basis. Less than half said they eat a well-balanced diet but the majority feel obesity is a crisis that should be addressed by the government and food industry. Americans are still not conquering the problem at home." Consumers also said they are eating more chicken (40%), vegetables (46%) and salad (44%) than they were two years ago. Others said they have cut down their consumption of beef (30%), pasta (32%) and bread (33%).
While a large majority said they do not eat either lamb (73%) or veal (69%), fish -- touted for its benefits of omega-3 fatty acids that protect against heart disease and strokes -- is being eaten more by 31% of consumers, according to the survey. Just 15% of Americans said they do not eat fish, and 46% said they are eating the same amount of fish as two years ago. It is unclear whether the negative news of high levels of toxic mercury found in some species of fish have negatively impacted the benefits of eating fish for some consumers.
As for branded packaged food purchases, more consumers are buying brands that have reduced fat (40%), 100% whole grain (33%), or are low in calories (29%) and high in fiber (29%).
A question about the U.S. Department of Agriculture food pyramid revealed the majority of Americans (59%) are familiar with the pyramid, and 34% said they incorporate aspects of it in their diets. Yet, over a quarter of consumers (26%) said they were not familiar with the new guidelines introduced by the USDA this year that revised the old pyramid and takes more of an individual approach to dietary recommendations and exercise.
"Despite a big public relations push, the majority of Americans are not following the USDA's recommendations. The government and food companies need to do more to incorporate the recommendations into everyday living. Only half of the country knows the new guidelines were introduced in 2005," Carpentier said.
Dieting Fall Out
A surprising number of consumers (75%) said they aren't dieting, and 62% said they haven't been following any diet in the last two years. For the remainder (25%) who said they were on a diet, the average weight they said they wanted to lose was 45 pounds.
"Americans may not be on a specific diet," Carpentier said, "but they are making changes. We are eating more salads and vegetables and less pasta and bread. We also are eating fewer sweets and indulging in smaller portions. The word diet is not resonating with Americans anymore."
A large number of respondents (94%) said they "strongly" and "somewhat agree" that portion control is a good way to maintain one's weight.
Three years ago, supermarkets couldn't seem to get enough low-carb products on their shelves to meet consumer demand, but demand and interest in low-carb diets and products appear to have fallen out of favor among the surveyed respondents. When asked what features would influence their brand purchases, less than a quarter of consumers (21%) selected reduced/low carbohydrates.
When asked why they don't buy low-carb foods, 45% said, "They are of no interest." Over a third (37%) said they simply do not buy diet products, and nearly a quarter (23%) said taste was an issue in buying low-carb products. When asked if reducing carbohydrates was a permanent change in their eating habits, over half (55%) said, "Not at all." But 42% said they "strongly or somewhat" agree that watching carbs has become a permanent change in their eating habits. A large majority (72%) agreed that the carb craze was a fad. Nearly half (48%) said they "do not buy low-carb/
reduced-carb versions of packaged food products," and 37% said they "do not see any need to watch or limit the amount of carbs in their diets."
"The carb craze is over," Carpentier said, noting that 75% of consumers agreed that eliminating something from one's diet is unhealthy.
In responding to questions on weight, diet and following a healthy lifestyle, the majority of consumers agreed with the following health-related statements:
84% said they usually try to eat a healthy, well-balanced diet.
77% said they consider themselves to lead a healthy lifestyle.
71% believe obesity is a serious crisis that needs to be addressed by the government.
80% believe obesity is a serious crisis that needs to be addressed by food companies.
When it comes to their concerns about their weight, 55% said they were concerned with their weight and eating habits, 43% said they weren't at all concerned.
Supermarkets No. 1 Venue
When it comes to food shopping, the vast majority of consumers (79%) go to supermarkets. This is followed by the neighborhood grocery store (38%). Wholesale clubs won 24% of the consumers to their venue for food. Internet delivery such as FreshDirect drew less than 1% of the consumers. The survey did not query consumers on other alternative formats that sell food, including supercenters.
The time constraints placed on consumers also may be indicated by the fact that 67% said they don't plan to shop for food on any one particular day. Those (35%) that do shop on one particular day choose Saturday, which is the second most popular day of the week to food shop, according to statistics from Food Marketing Institute. Sunday is the most popular day, FMI said, when the largest percentage of consumers (21%) go food shopping. Consumers indicated price is a big factor in their purchasing decisions, but taste was equally weighted with price for most consumers. Most respondents (97%) said taste was "very or somewhat" important in their decision to buy a product, (97%) said price was important and 90% said a product on sale was highly important in their product purchasing decisions.
Convenience, Eating Out and Snacks
Many consumers (60%) said they are buying the same amount of convenience foods as they did two years ago; 74% said they are doing so because it saves them in preparation and cooking time. About a quarter (26%) said they only serve these dinners when they have to. Saving time is more important than price to consumers in buying convenience foods, they said, although 36% said they prefer to buy convenience products with a cents-off coupon or on sale. Few consumers (11%) consider convenience foods less expensive, and only 28% said they were worth the added expense.
About a quarter of Americans said they eat out at a fast-food restaurant (McDonald's/Burger King/ Wendy's) either once a week (20%) or once a month (26%). Another quarter of Americans said they eat at a quick-service outlet (23%) or casual-dining restaurant (21%) once a month. Nearly an equal percentage of consumers (25%) said they never eat at a quick-serve such as Subway, Quiznos, Boston Market, or casual-dining facility (23%) such as Bennigan's, Ruby Tuesday or Applebee's.
"Over half [54%] of Americans eat out as a treat for themselves and their families," Carpentier said. "Supermarkets can offer prepared meals or 'treats' that can easily be served at home to give the feel of eating out. Another opportunity is to provide 'soup to nuts' type of meals."
About a third (36%) of consumers said they eat out because they don't have enough time to prepare dinner every night of the week or they (31%) have a coupon or special offer that entices them to eat out.
Snack foods, which is about a $23.4 billion industry, according to the latest figures from the Snack Food Association, often replaces a meal for a quarter to a third of consumers. When asked if snacks replace a meal, 37% said snacks often take the place of lunch when there is not time to eat a meal, 26% said snacks replace a meal when they can't decide what to eat for lunch or dinner and 21% of consumers consider snacks a treat.
Most adults (56%) and many teens (47%) snack in the evening while watching television. Fifty-four percent of children under 13 snack during the afternoon.
The most popular snacking items for about three-quarters of adults and children are fruit, popcorn and ice cream. Attributes that influence snack purchases are taste and requests from kids, according to survey respondents.
Nearly two-thirds of adults (61%) said they purchase single-serve snacks. The most popular single-serve items are yogurt (56%) and pudding snack packs (38%).
When it comes to take-out foods, consumers said pizza (78%), Chinese food (53%) and fast food (35%) were their favorite foods.
"Snacking is a phenomenon that won't go away," Carpentier said. "Most Americans snack at night, in front of the TV. Supermarkets can offer more entertainment/food integration. For example, buy popcorn and get a free movie. Fruit has increased in popularity and is now the No. 1 snack among adults. However, cookies and ice cream are still staples of the snack drawer."
Other Noteworthy Findings
It appears the frequency of consumers who say they cook on weekdays (51%) and on weekends (57%) has stayed steady over the last two years.
Sixty-eight percent of consumers say they want variety in their meals and look for new ideas in cookbooks (68%), food magazines (57%) and from family/ friends/co-workers (54%). In trying out a new recipe, the attribute most consumers look for is easy preparation, said 71% of respondents. A quarter of consumers said they prepare meals from recipes once a month. A smaller percentage of consumers said they either prepare meals from recipes more frequently, less frequently or never.
It's no surprise that fewer consumers are baking than in the past. Nearly a quarter (21%) said they never bake, and 19% said they only bake for holidays and special occasions. Less than a quarter of consumers said they bake on a weekly, monthly or quarterly basis. For those who do bake, they usually use some kind of prepared ingredients. Just 29% said they usually bake completely from scratch.
Interest in ethnic foods of all kinds is driven by extensive leisure travel and closer ties to other cultures through the mass media and the Internet. Nearly two-thirds of consumers (61%) said they are eating the same amount of ethnic foods as they did two years ago; 18% said they are eating more and 16% said they are eating less. More than a third of Americans said they have either prepared or eaten Italian, Mexican or Chinese foods. Nearly a quarter said they are interested in trying French, Greek, Caribbean or Latin cuisine.
While dieting appears to be on the wane, desserts are definitely favored despite the added sweets and calories. The majority of Americans (87%) said they eat desserts one or more times during the week. The average was three times a week.
When it comes to shopping, females (71%) do the majority of it -- no surprises here. But, 57% of consumers said the spouse/partner does the majority of food shopping. When it comes to cooking, the percentages indicate that males edged out females with 67% of males cooking during the week, compared to 63% of women. On weekends, from 61% to 62% of males cook, compared with 54% to 56% of females, according to survey results. These results may reflect changes in various types of households and lifestyles, Carpentier noted.
'Tis the Season
For consumers, the holidays are mainly a time to stay home with the family. Only 8% said they would go out to eat for holidays and special occasions. Sixty percent did not agree with the statement "I would rather eat out and have a meal catered than prepare a large holiday meal." Many (47%) make family recipes or have family members contribute to parts of the meal (24%).
This is not a time to try out a new recipe, said 10% of the consumers. The turkey was listed as the favorite part of a holiday meal for 28% of consumers.
The bottom line is, when it comes to healthy eating, Americans score "good, not great," Carpentier said. "Culpability needs to begin at home instead of putting the focus on government and the food industry."
Which best describes your eating habits?
1. Balancing Act 42%
2. The Good, The Bad and The Ugly 31%
3. Anything Hoes 23%
4. Health Nut 4%
Many Americans say they eat a well-balanced diet of meat/fish, vegetables/fruits, grains and dairy. However, they admit to indulging in snacks and pleasure foods as a reward.
Are you currently on a diet to lose weight?
Yes 25%; No 75%
A large percentage of those surveyed said they are not dieting. The average amount of weight of those who are dieting want to lose is 46 pounds.
1. Balancing Act Tries to maintain a well-balanced diet, but admits to eating foods not considered healthy.
2. The Good, The Bad and The Ugly Hectic lifestyle leads to hectic diet. Always on the go so rely on fast-food and convenience foods. When I have time, I try to eat healthier.
3. Anything Goes Eat whatever I want. Do not pay attention to nutritional facts and figures. I live to eat not eat to live.
4. Health Nut Generally eat healthy foods. Eat fruits and vegetables, avoid preservatives, processed foods and fast food. Do not eat salty or high-sugar snacks.
Source: What America Eats 2005, Parade Magazine
44% said they are eating fewer sweets
36% have cut down their portion sizes
30% said they are eating a more well-balanced diet
27% have cut down on sugar
25% said they are eating foods lower in fat
What's For Breakfast
Which of the following would you consider to be a healthy breakfast?
Bagle with butter or cream cheese 34%
If you eat fewer than thre meals a day, which one do you usually skip?
A large percentage of Americans list relatively healthy items as their healthy breakfast choices, with the largest percentage of consumers choosing fruit, as they did for their top snack choice. However, a third preferred a bagel with butter or cream cheese, known for its high calories and fat, as their healthy choice for breakfast. Snacks were also a substitute meal for many Americans, with popcorn, ice cream and cookies high on their list of favorite items.
Half of Americans skip a daily meal, and most skip breakfast -- decisions nutritionists consider not to be very healthy.
Source: What America Eats 2005, Parade Magazine
What America Eats: Trends
Time is a commodity for most Americans, who buy more expensive convenience foods to cut prep and cooking time.
Use of convenience foods has risen 49% in a decade
1993: 61%; 2003: 91%
Source: What America Eats 2005, Parade Magazine
Americans are spending less time preparing dinner. Ideally, Americans would like to spend an average of 27 minutes preparing dinner.
How much time do you spent preparing dinner?
1993: 49 minutes; 2003: 31 minutes
Source: What America Eats 2005, Parade Magazine
Fewer Americans are food shopping on a specific day of the week, indicating multiple alternative food-outlet choices and fill-in stops during the week.


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“More than 200 manufacturers, including Tesla, Volkswagen, BMW, Daimler, Ford, General Motors, Nissan, Mitsubishi and U.S.-listed electric vehicle start-up NIO, transmit position information and dozens of other data points to government-backed monitoring centers, The Associated Press has found. Generally, it happens without car owners’ knowledge.”
“Car makers are collecting massive amounts of data from the latest cars on the road. Now, they’re figuring out how to make money off it. With millions of cars rolling off dealer lots with built-in connectivity, auto companies are gaining access to unprecedented amounts of real-time data that allow them to track everything from where a car is located to how hard it is braking and whether or not the windshield wipers are on.
The data is generated by the car’s onboard sensors and computers, and then stored by the auto maker in cloud-based servers. Some new cars have as many as 100 built-in processors that generate data”.
Source : What Your Car Knows About You – WSJ


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VALDOSTA, GA (WALB) - The city of Valdosta was preparing Friday to continue its effort to help keep electronics out of the landfill.
Aaron Strickland, director of Keep Lowndes Valdosta Beautiful, said keeping electronics out of the landfill helps prevent the harmful chemicals that they contain from leaking into the environment.
Strickland said the program, as of Friday, has been able to collect over 261 tons of electronics since they began the initiative back in July of 2000. "If you can imagine the amount of space that would take up in a landfill, it's very substantial," Strickland emphasized. "That's why events like this are so important. We're keeping the space in the landfill for items that aren't recyclable."
KLVB was scheduled to collect old and unwanted electronics from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday at Mathis City Auditorium in Valdosta. For a list of acceptable items, click here.


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BUENA VISTA TOWNSHIP, MI — Torrie McAfee’s got nothing on King Kong, but she plans to cheer for the other big monster featured in a blockbuster movie scheduled to be screened outdoors for free here on Friday, July 2.
“I’m a Godzilla girl,” said McAfee, superintendent at Buena Vista Township. “I remember being 5, 6 years old, and watching Godzilla movies at home on Saturdays. I love Godzilla.”
No matter who wins, though, McAfee said she’s looking forward to the township hosting the 2021 film, “Godzilla vs. Kong,” at the 33-acre former site of the since-demolished Fort Saginaw mall, now largely a grassy landscape known as Towne Green Park.
Attendees can watch the PG-13 monster mashup on a 30-by-17 foot mobile screen beginning at dusk, McAfee said. The runtime for “Godzilla vs. Kong” is 113 minutes. The event is free and open to the public.
McAfee said visitors can set up blankets on the grass near the screen or sit in their vehicles at a section of the park set aside for a drive-in theater experience.
Hours before the movie begins, families can enjoy food vendors planning to open shop beginning at 6 p.m. at the site of the old mall, located across the street from Buena Vista Township Hall.
“The property has been sitting vacant for years, so we decided, let’s do something fun for families there,” McAfee said.
If the event proves popular enough with attendees, the township may screen other movies there in the future, she said.
The township’s Downtown Development Authority will fund the event for $3,000, McAfee said. Ann Arbor-based FunFlicks will provide the pop-up outdoor movie screen and sound system.
McAfee said she expects there will be enough room for all in attendance.
“We just want people to come out and enjoy themselves,” she said.
In the 1960s, Fort Saginaw stood as Saginaw County’s largest indoor shopping mall. In the decades that followed, Fort Saginaw began a long decline from 40 stores to none after K-Mart pulled out in 2005.
In 2008, Buena Vista Township purchased the dilapidated shopping center from Cafaro Co. of Youngstown, Ohio, for $3.1 million. The remaining structures there were demolished in 2010.
The 33-acre site now features grassy landscapes, flowers and park benches. The surrounding properties include the township hall, restaurants, and gas stations.
“Godzilla vs. Kong” was released in theaters and at-home streaming services simultaneously in March.
The movie is a sequel to two previous Godzilla films — “Godzilla” from 2014 and “Godzilla: King of the Monsters” from 2019 — as well as “Kong: Skull Island” from 2017. The latest film stars Alexander Skarsagard and Millie Bobbie Brown.
McAfee picked the Friday flick, which she has not watched yet.
“I wanted something new,” she said of her movie choice, “and I like Godzilla. I like King Kong too, but I’m rooting for Godzilla.”
Read more on MLive:


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The corporate tax burden represents an ever-increasing concern for companies facing decisions over where to locate operations. Many countries interested in encouraging foreign direct investment have recently cut corporate tax rates to make themselves more attractive to businesses. As globalization increases, debate is growing over how the tax burden in different countries is affecting the ability of manufacturers to compete.
This report examines the corporate taxation of a hypothetical manufacturer as if it were located and doing business entirely in 19 countries. The study goes beyond statutory tax rates to include the effect of permanent differences in the book and tax treatment of items such a manufacturer is likely to experience.
Companies look to a number of factors when deciding where to locate a manufacturing facility, including corporate strategy, the respective country’s infrastructure, workforce, employment laws and geopolitical stability. Tax may not be the top issue but, increasingly, it is moving up the list in importance, particularly in light of tax burden competition to attract foreign direct investment.
Download the report.


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PlayStation has announced a new State of Play digital showcase for Wednesday, March 9, 2022 that will focus on PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 games from Japanese developers. The March 9 State of Play will only last about 20 minutes, so these Japanese PS4 and PS5 games might come and go pretty fast. Some developers from outside of Japan will share game updates as well. Sony has already clarified that PlayStation VR2 (PSVR2) games and hardware will not appear at the event.
State of Play returns this Wednesday, March 9. Tune in at 2 PM PT for about 20 minutes of PS4 & PS5 first looks and updates, with a special focus on games coming from our Japan publishers.
— PlayStation (@PlayStation) March 8, 2022
The specific games we will see at this event have not been revealed. It has been a long time since we received a major update on Final Fantasy XVI, but Square Enix said to expect one this spring. Spring doesn’t begin for another couple weeks, but maybe the month of March is close enough? Alternatively, Square may show off more of Forspoken, which hit a delay just yesterday. Or it could offer a new look at tri-Ace’s Star Ocean: The Divine Force.
News from another major Japanese publisher like Bandai Namco seems likely for the State of Play as well. With all of the anime franchises it maintains as games, it just seems like a safe bet. Meanwhile, a pie-in-the-sky, ain’t-gonna-happen hope is that Konami will show up to announce the intensely rumored new Silent Hill game with Hideo Kojima.


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Five technologies that will spin your world
Largely because of the success of companies like Google, Facebook and Amazon, investment in tech research continues to climb.
Startups showcase products and solutions at Second Intel India Maker Lab
These hardware & systems startups are part of Plugin, a collaborative incubation program between Intel India, Department of Science & Technology (DST), and SINE IIT-Bombay
Yale professors race Google and IBM to the first quantum computer
After their research helped fuel the work of so many others, Schoelkopf and two other Yale professors have started their own quantum computing company, Quantum Circuits.
Bharti Airtel becomes only Indian company to Join TIP
Airtel has converted part of its network engineering lab in Manesar to a global facility which will be used by group members of TIP project to create innovative solutions.
Trump lawyer Cohen coming before House Intel panel
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump's personal lawyer is scheduled to speak Tuesday with investigators for the House probe into Russia's involvement in the 2016 U.S. presidential election.
Broadcom offers to buy mobile chipmaker Qualcomm for $103 billion
A tie-up would combine two of the largest makers of wireless communications chips for mobile phones and raise the stakes for Intel Corp.
Qualcomm sues Apple for breach of software license contract
Qualcomm said in a lawsuit filed in California state court in San Diego on Wednesday that Apple used its commercial leverage to demand unprecedented access to the chipmaker's highly confidential software, including source code.
GST intel wing raid actor Vishal’s production company office in Chennai
The raid happened a day after a vicious spat between Vishal and BJP leader H Raja over actor Vijay's film 'Mersal'.
Symbiosis Centre for Management and Human Resource Development conclude their summer placement
38% of the class was offered HR roles while 30% went to finance roles. Marketing companies made about 8% offers and business analytics got about 10% offers.
Pakistan using divers to smuggle drugs: Intel
After the BSF stepped up its vigil, smugglers have started employing divers to navigate a 35km riverine area in Punjab’s Ferozpur, Gurdaspur and Amritsar sectors of the IB.
Chipmaker Broadcom plans unsolicited bid for Qualcomm: Source
Shares of Qualcomm jumped 13 percent, while Broadcom's stock climbed nearly 6 percent to $274.43 on Friday afternoon. Shares of NXP fell 3 percent and Brocade was down 1.7 percent.
Intel India trains 9,500 people in AI technology
The move is reducing AI entry barriers for developers, data scientists and students through developer focused events and 'Code Modernisation' workshops.
Trump targets Senate intel committee over Russia probe
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump is criticizing the Senate intelligence committee over its investigation into possible collusion between Russia and associates of the Trump campaign.
Apple is testing future iPads and iPhones that could drop Qualcomm components
The two companies are locked in a multinational legal dispute over the Qualcomm's licensing terms to Apple.
China’s technology ambitions may upset global trade order
Beijing has designs to dominate cutting-edge technologies like advanced microchips, AI and electric cars, among many others, in a decade.


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Retail Inspections to begin in Georgia, Hawaii, Oklahoma and Utah
Advocates seek to raise the lowest cigarette tax in the country
NATO opposes FDA form to report possible tobacco regulation violations
Renews private-brand manufacturing agreement with electronic cigarette maker
New VP of sales will grow relationships with national wholesalers
WPMCA says it supports efforts to eliminate tax loophole
Ruling on preliminary injunction to block graphic cigarette warnings likely in October
Klein was previously with U.S. Smokeless Tobacco, National Tobacco
Injunction against tax collection left intact; new Native American relations committee meets
Smoker Friendly Joins Team JDRF in 2011; Stores raised $36,669 in a 45-day period with "sneaker" sales
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Top 202 details the largest chains in the convenience-store industry and the biggest M&A stories of the past year.
Category sales performance in Beverages, Candy, General Merchandise, Packaged Food/Foodservice and Snacks.
The industry’s largest distributors by sales volume
Corporate retail news affecting the convenience-store industry
The latest information on products and trends in the convenience-store and foodservice industries.
Peek inside new convenience stores to uncover the best in retail store design across North America.


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From 2015-2019, Vietnam's shrimp industry achieved positive results in production and export, according to a report from the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP).
Shrimp farming area increased by an average of 1.4% per year, while production rose by an average of 5.7% annually, mainly due to improved whiteleg shrimp productivity. The production of whiteleg shrimp elevated sharply by nearly 41% after five years with an average increase of 9% per year. Meanwhile, black tiger shrimp production went up by an average of 1.2% and only increased by 3.1% after five years. Productivity did not have a significant growth compared to whiteleg shrimp.
Shrimp exports in the past five years achieved an average annual growth of 4% with an unstable annual growth. After five years, whiteleg shrimp exports have become increasingly dominant in export shrimp products thanks to strong growth.
Vietnam's top six shrimp importing markets included EU, the U.S., Japan, China and South Korea, accounting for 81-85% of the total shrimp import value in the last five years. Since 2017, the U.S. and EU have exchanged positions because shrimp exports to the U.S. have declined continuously and sharply decreased than the EU market. During this period, exports to China had the strongest breakthrough with an average annual growth of 16% and after five years increased by over 55%. After China, South Korea was also a notable market in the past five years, followed by the EU.
In general, regarding the import tax on shrimp products in major markets, Vietnam's products have advantages compared to other exporting countries such as Indonesia, India, Thailand, China, especially in markets that signed an FTA agreement with Vietnam. This will continue to be an advantage for Vietnam's shrimp exports in 2020 and in the coming years.
However, the coronavirus epidemic affected shrimp production and export to markets in 2020, thus limiting the growth of the shrimp industry this year, though the level of influence for each market will be different.
The 2015-2019 report provides detailed information and data on the production and export movements of each major shrimp species to markets; assessing shrimp supply and demand trends in markets; comparing the export price, import tax of shrimp of Vietnam and other exporting countries in the markets; simultaneously evaluate the prospects of production and export to each market, the impact of the corona epidemic (opportunities, challenges and forecast on export turnover) in 2020.
More information here.


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It’s no secret that PUBG Mobile was one of the most successful games in India in recent memory. And while Krafton has only teased of its return, that hasn’t stopped the rest of the Indian games industry from taking notice.
During a recent episode of The Desi VC podcast (via AFK Gaming), venture capitalist Salone Sehgal broke down how popular PUBG Mobile was and what kind of user behaviour it brought in. Sehgal is General Partner at Lumikai — one of India’s gaming-only fund houses. Previously she was at London Venture Partners, a fund that invested in companies such as Unity and Supercell early on.
“PUBG was a great trend,” claims Sehgal.“It was an action game that came to market with a very heavy download [size]. Who would have thought that game would have ever worked in India? But it did and at its peak it was at 18 million daily actives and just a phenomenal success in monetisation.”
According to Sehgal a majority of these purchases were towards cosmetics like skins and she went on to explain that such behaviour has been seen in other titles like Free Fire as well.
“Those purchases are largely vanity items,” she says. “Those purchases are skins that give you no gameplay benefit, just for the sheer satisfaction of a gamer. So Indians did monetise there. Indians are monetising in Free Fire too.”
In the mobile space, Sehgal claims that “India is coming into the top 10 and top 5 grossing countries” for Lumikai’s “larger”investor base”. This hasn’t really happened before, with most considering the market as an after-thought. However what is most interesting is that while it’s easy to point out PUBG Mobile’s success in being simply a battle royale game, she thinks its quality is a reason for its success.
“Gaming is something which is global and when you compare it to the best and when you look at that quality, you want that quality and then only you pay for it,” she says before divulging what it takes for game developers to succeed in the country. “An Indian user is a discerning user. She needs to be treated with that respect as well when you look into the quality of games that you build for the India market.”
How Much Money Did PUBG Mobile Make in India?
According to industry estimates, PUBG Mobile India revenue peaked at around $3 million a month before being banned last year. As for Free Fire, the widely accepted estimate is around $1 million a month.
PUBG Mobile went viral in India shortly after its launch in early 2018.— Daniel Ahmad (@ZhugeEX) July 27, 2020
Key driver of the mobile games market. Driven engagement and spend.
#1 game by downloads (180m to date)
#1 game by revenue (Gross, ~$3m per month recently)
Lite ver. = Mass market penetration
That said, PUBG Mobile’s Indian users may not have simply moved on to Free Fire. According to analytics firm App Annie (via TechCrunch) PUBG Mobile’s MAU (monthly active users) from India is over 15 million.
Nonetheless, Sehgal is far from the only Indian industry exec that’s been talking up the local market. Recent Reliance Jio’s leadership echoed a similar sentiment while dropping details regarding its upcoming cloud gaming service as did Asus when it revealed its Asus ROG Phone 5 plans.


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Transcript for Retail Giant Target Security Breach
for a bulletin for millions of american shoppers. The retail giant target has issued a warning to their own customers to be on "the lookout" because they may be victims of a crime. Their credit card information stolen after shopping at target. Here's abc's chief business correspondent rebecca jarvis. Reporter: It's the question millions of americans are asking tonight, could their family's card have been compromised. It's incredibly frustrating. Going to targeting a weekend ritual in our house. Reporter: Chris and his family used their american express a few weeks ago and sent $62 at target. Now he fears he's one of those 40 million. We never expected anything like this would happen at a physical store. Reporter: Target tell abc news scammers got the names, account numbers and security codes of customers who visited target stores across the country. It's not exactly clear how the thieves did it but experts say the theft likely happened when shoppers swiped their cards to make a purchase. With the stolen information, the thieves can act in seconds. It's what happened to katie who asked that we not disclose her last name. They went to stores that I've never been to and successfully opened 11 to 14 different credit cards. Reporter: Those cooks going door to door and hitting nearly every store on this block on a $15,000 shopping spree, a $1200 macbook at best buy, sneakers, coats and fragrances at macy's in a matter of hours. Adam has fought identity thieves for decades. You can do everything right but if the wrong person gains unauthorized access, they have an option on your life. Reporter: EXPERTS Recommend checking your credit and bank statements and consider replacing your credit and debit cards if you used them recently at target. If there is fraud what percentage can you get back? everything but report that fraud, look at your account, go back to the bank, the credit card company, tell them it's fraud. They have an obligation to refund that back to you. So be sure to check into it quickly. Reporter: Very quickly. Thank you, rebecca jarvis. Tonight now we have the new
This transcript has been automatically generated and may not be 100% accurate.


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Why one consumer has spent more on digital media in the last year than he used to spend on the physical stuff.
Excerpt: I am spending more on digital media than I used to spend on the physical stuff. (The federal government says the average American family spent $2,572 on all entertainment, not just digital, in 2011.) And I know why I am spending more on digital media.
Digital media, unlike its slow cousin, is immediate. In the past, if friends mentioned a good book they had just finished, people made a note (mental or on a scrap of paper) to pick it up during their next visit to the bookstore or library. The same went for other items like CDs, DVDs or magazines.
Have you ever borrowed an e-book from a library? If the answer is no, you're a member of a large majority. A survey out Thursday from the Pew Internet Project finds that only 5 percent of "recent library users" have tried to borrow an e-book this year.
About three-quarters of public libraries offer e-books, according to the American Library Association, but finding the book you want to read can be a challenge — when it's available at all.
Full piece -- At the top of screen is a button to "click to listen" audio is 7 minutes 50 seconds.
This episode of "All Things Considered" had other pieces about ebooks and publishing in addition to the library one. They were:
Change Is The Only Constant In Today's Publishing Industry
E-Books Destroying Traditional Publishing? The Story's Not That Simple
Margaret Atwood's Brave New World Of Online Publishing
Bookworms are choosing e-readers over hardcovers and softcovers more than ever, says a recent Pew Research Center study.
A month-long study found more Americans readers, ages 16 and older, are embracing e-readers. The number of traditional readers dropped from 72% to 67% from last year, while digital bookworms jumped from 16% to 23%.
Shipments are expected to continue their decline through 2016, with a projected shipment of just 7.1 million units.
If these projections are to be believed, the ereader craze is flaming out as quickly as it ignited. And if you’re in the business of creating content, that’s a good thing.
In the first of two parts about the new realities of publishing and public libraries, Forbes contributor David Vinjamuri discusses whether the right battle is being fought:
"The solution to the current pricing problem lies in understanding that the argument publishers and libraries are having is the wrong argument. It is based on the paradigm of the printed book and as such presents a series of intractable challenges for both publishers and libraries. By changing the model for pricing an eBook, both parties could find a clear and equitable resolution to the current impasse."
The holiday shopping season is upon us, and once again e-book readers promise to be a very popular gift. Last year's holiday season saw ownership of a dedicated e-reader device spike to nearly 1 in 5 Americans, and that number is poised to go even higher. But if you're in the market for an e-reader this year, or for e-books to read on one that you already own, you might want to know who's keeping an eye on your searching, shopping, and reading habits.
Unfortunately, unpacking the tracking and data-sharing practices of different e-reader platforms is far from simple. It can require reading through stacked license agreements and privacy policies for devices, software platforms, and e-book stores. That in turn can mean reading thousands of words of legalese before you read the first line of a new book.
The site unglue.it has a few more books they are trying to unglue. One is - So You Want to Be a Librarian. See unglue.it for more details.
Reading while running or exercising can have unexpected results.
"We've found the vast majority of our readers are multitaskers. They listen while they do something else," says Michele Cobb, the association's president..."
"For Mr. Flood, a novel's tension and action can also influence the senses during a run. "When I was listening to 'Game of Thrones' and somebody was being chased through the woods by a group of marauding knights, it was fun to be running through the rolling prairies here," says Mr. Flood."
The lessons of Indie Rock for the publishing industry are pondered in a post at The Scholarly Kitchen,
"Whenever you buy a record from just about any indie band, it comes with either a CD or with a card that contains a URL and a download code so you can get a digital copy at no additional cost...
If implemented in the right way, publishers could kill two birds with one stone: they could support a mechanism for downloading e-books purchased in conjunction with hardcovers that not only makes their best customers happy and extends the life of hardcover sales, but that actually fosters competition in the ebook marketplace."
Do library eborrowers also buy ebooks?
Well, stop the presses. OverDrive, the leading aggregator providing libaries with ebooks, and Library Journal have done research that proves that they do.
The survey results are interpreted as evidence that the big publishers are making a terrible mistake being cautious about making ebooks available for library lending. And it is being reported that way. By one outlet after another, although one made the point that the publishers aren’t listening.


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SHAH ALAM, (Feb 19)– Selangor police have crippled a major international syndicate involved in cloning ATM cards with the arrest of two suspects at a condominium in Ampang on Monday (Feb 17).
Selangor Commercial Crimes chief ACP Chong Mun Phing said during the 8pm raid, police seized 2,217 ATM cards, 58 safety boxes, a printer, a card reader, two hand phones and a laptop computer.
Chong told reporters at the Selangor police headquarters, here, today that one of the two suspects detained was a United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) card holder since 2008 while the other had entered the country using a tourist visa that had expired last month.
Chong said the modus operandi of the two suspects, aged 28 and 38, and believed to be runners, was to use the cloned ATM cards, normally cards issued by foreign banks, to withdraw RM1,000 cash every transaction at local ATM machines.
The suspects placed the cloned cards in safety boxes that had a password and later went to ATM machines to withdraw money using passwords provided by the safety box, as per the card holders pin numbers.
“The seized cards do not look like real ATM cards but the police have referred the cards to the bank to check the magnetic strip which contained the data of 1,300 account holders, all from abroad,” he said.
Chong said initial investigations revealed that the suspects, believed to be active in Selangor and Kuala Lumpur for the past two months, received their passwords via email from abroad. – BERNAMA


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Fallout 76 Could Release As Early As July 31, According To Amazon
While we wait for more information to drop at E3 2018 later this week, Fallout 76 is one of the most discussed games on the Internet and among the things people is more eager to learn there's of course its release date.
We've already reported about the game coming – according to EB Games Australia – in 2019, and not this year as the usual "reveal & release" Bethesda strategy has worked thus far.
By the way, there's still a chance for the title to launch this year, indeed, as Amazon(dot)com has briefly attached a July 31, 2018 release date to the title on its official live listings.
The release date was quickly move forward on the system as far as December 31, 2019, which is way more generic than the previous, so we definitely can't tell whether that information was legit or out of an error of sorts.
In any case, the fact that the date was fixed so early on Amazon could mean not only that Fallout 76 has still chances to release this year, but also that it could come very soon after E3 2018's Bethesda media briefing.