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On March 26, government spokesman Thailand Anucha Burapachaisri said the activities were jubilant Songkran New Year will be held across the country next April, to help promote the recover Tourism.
After three years of restrictions due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) expects this year’s Songkran festival to return to a grand scale thanks to a faster-than-expected recovery of the tourism market. . Mr. Anucha quoted a source from TAT as saying that major festivals will be held in 5 main regions of the country.
TAT also conducts the 5th phase of the program “Rao Tiew Duay Kan” (We travel together) to promote the “smokeless industry.”
[Ngành du lịch Thái Lan đang nhanh chóng hồi sinh sau đại dịch]
A Thai government spokesman confirmed that Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha had directed the issuance of guidelines to promote tourism and believes that these measures will help the country’s tourism industry recover quickly.
Songkran New Year is the traditional Thai New Year holiday. The main day of Tet is April 13 every year, but the holiday usually lasts until April 15. The official Thai New Year is counted from April 13 every year until 1888 when the Land of the Golden Temple moved the Lunar New Year to April 1.
Starting in 1940, Thailand switched to calculate New Year’s Day on January 1 of the solar calendar.
Do Sinh (VNA/Vietnam+)


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Press Release (ePRNews.com) - SAN FRANCISCO - Nov 20, 2017 - Red Herring announced the selection of Metadata (www.metadata.io) to its Top 100 Global list in recognition of the leading private companies from North America, Europe, and Asia, celebrating these startups’ innovations and technologies across their respective industries.
Red Herring’s Top 100 Global list has become a mark of distinction for identifying promising companies and entrepreneurs. Red Herring editors were among the first to recognize that companies such as Facebook, Twitter, Google, Yahoo, Skype, Salesforce.com, YouTube, and eBay would change the way we live and work.
“Choosing the companies with the strongest potential was by no means a small feat,” said Alex Vieux, publisher and CEO of Red Herring. “After rigorous contemplation and discussion, we narrowed our list down from hundreds of candidates from across the globe to the Top 100 Winners. We believe Metadata embodies the vision, drive and innovation that define a successful entrepreneurial venture. Metadata should be proud of its accomplishment.”
2017 has been a great year for us here at Metadata as B2B marketers continue to embrace our vision for leveraging machine learning and artificial intelligence for B2B closed-loop account based marketing.
“2017 has been a great year for us here at Metadata as B2B marketers continue to embrace our vision for leveraging machine learning and artificial intelligence for B2B closed-loop account based marketing,” said Gil Allouche, Metadata founder and CEO. “We’re pleased to be recognized as a Red Herring Top 100 Global innovator as further validation of our patented approach.”
Red Herring’s editorial staff evaluated the companies on both quantitative and qualitative criteria, such as financial performance, technology innovation, management quality, strategy and market penetration. This assessment of potential is complemented by a review of the track records and standing of startups relative to their peers, allowing Red Herring to see past the “buzz” and make the list a valuable instrument of discovery and advocacy for the most promising new business models from around the world.
Metadata provides a unified, patented solution for Account Based Marketing. Using machine learning and artificial intelligence, Metadata builds active personas by statistically analyzing qualified leads from the customer’s own CRM and marketing automation platforms while enriching that data with hundreds of third-party data signals. The platform generates lists of new look-alike prospects by pulling matches from a database of hundreds of millions of business contacts built with data from partners including InsideView, HG Data, FullContact, Leadferret, Datanyze, Leadsift and others. Metadata then targets qualified prospects with tested advertising campaigns on display and social channels, generating 100 percent opt-in leads and increasing lead-to-opportunity conversions by 50 percent or more.
Metadata provides a closed-loop Account Based Marketing solution that amplifies marketing campaigns with opt-in qualified leads. Metadata’s patented technology uses and enriches historical sales data, builds profiles of ideal customers (both company and persona) and then orchestrates the process of accelerating existing opportunities and targeting net new accounts. Metadata clients include Cisco, Mulesoft, Payscale, Infoblox and others. To learn more, visit www.metadata.io.

domain: news


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In the 2010 Consumer Billing and Payment Trends report, Fiserv, a leading financial technology company, shares the results of its survey involving 3,029 internet consumers. The 2010 survey shows online banking, bill payment and e-bill usage continues to grow, and that the online bill payment population has changed over the last decade. Furthermore, the study confirms that online bill pay is both sticky and a strong correlating indicator of profitability.
Online banking and bill pay becomes mainstream
Currently, 72.5 million U.S. households, 80% of all households with per access, use online banking, while 36.4 million households, 40% of all households with internet access, use online bill payment.
Between 2000 and 2010, the number of households that use online banking increased more than six-fold, and the number that use online bill payment increased nearly eight-fold. Online bill payers now represent a wide cross-section of the U.S. population, and women have edged out men as the primary users of the service.
In 2002, men represented the majority of online bill payers, at 61%, and they maintained the lead in usage of the service through 2009. In 2010 the tables turned, with women edging ahead to represent 51% of online bill payers.
“The face of online bill payment has changed significantly over the last decade,” said Geoff Knapp, vice president, Online Banking and Consumer Insights, Fiserv. “Early users were tech-savvy and tended to be young and male, as is typical with new technology. Now it’s moms and seniors and people at all income levels using the service. Online bill payment has become mainstream, and there’s still room to grow.”
This credit union redefined branch management. Manage one remote team and serve multiple locations. It's not just a solution, it's a revolution.
PSCU’s sixth annual Eye on Payments study reveals shifts in consumer payments preferences and behaviors.
Online bill payment has grown substantially during the last 10 years, corresponding with a massive reduction in the use of paper checks. While utilization of other forms of payment have remained relatively stable, paper checks have declined from 61% of all payments in 2000 to 26% in 2010, while online bill payments have grown from 12% to 45% of all payments.
Bill pay is sticky, leads to higher-value services
Consumers who pay bills online have consistently used more services from their financial institution than the average customer, with usage of additional services becoming even more pronounced in recent years. The connection between online bill payment and consumer loyalty has remained strong as well.
In 2005, consumers who used the online bill payment service at their financial institution were 8% more likely than the average customer to have a savings account at the same institution, and by 2010 that number had increased to 13%. The percentage of customers who used online bill payment and also had a mortgage with their financial institution increased from 2% in 2005 to 10% in 2010. In addition, 49% of customers who use online bill payment said they were less likely to switch to another financial institution as a result of their experience with the service.
In just two years, the number of mobile phone users who conducted one or more banking services via their mobile phone increased from 23% in 2008 to 30% in 2010. The number of mobile banking users who receive or pay bills via their mobile phone jumped from 18% in 2008 to 30% in the same time period. This is most likely due to the increasing adoption of smart phones.


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Excerpt from Bethesda Beat:
A Germantown landmark since much of the surrounding area was still farmland, the Cider Barrel now stands empty next to an apartment complex along Md. 355.
The once-popular stop for apple cider—a barrel-shaped building painted red, white and blue—closed in 2003, but a local pastry chef is hoping to lease and restore the building and reopen it as a bakery.
“I keep seeing the Cider Barrel sit there every time I pass by it, and I think, it’s such a beautiful building, how come no one’s done anything with it?,” Brandi Edinger said Tuesday. “I said, you know, I’m going to take a shot in the dark with it.”
She reached out and said she got the OK from the property owner to make the change, and later earned the backing of the Germantown Alliance and the Germantown Historical Society. Edinger launched a Kickstarter online fundraising account Wednesday night for donations to open the Cider Barrel as a new business.
Elm Street Development, which owns the adjacent apartment buildings, currently maintains the Cider Barrel. Edinger plans to lease the building from the company.
As the Cider Barrel Bakery, the shop would sell fresh pastries, including croissants, Danishes and cinnamon rolls, Edinger said. If her plans work out, she said she would also partner with local farms to sell produce, flowers and other seasonal items.
Edinger is seeking to raise $80,000 by Oct. 7 to restore the foundation of the building, saying the structure “needs a lot of work.” Since it is a Kickstarter campaign, she will only be able to keep the money if she meets her goal. She hopes residents will support the project out of interest in seeing the Cider Barrel in use again.
When the Cider Barrel was built in 1922, owner Andrew Baker used it to sell his products from his nearby apple orchard. The Cross family bought the building a few years later and sold cider there for nearly 80 years before closing 14 years ago.
In a letter to the Montgomery County Historic Preservation Commission this spring, Germantown Alliance president Susan Burkinshaw praised the project as a “great use” of a historic space.
“The Cider Barrel is an important part of Germantown’s history and it is a shame to see it vacant,” she wrote. “The proposed pastry shop would be a fantastic addition to the community. We do not think the plans would diminish the historical significance of the building.”
Edinger, who lives down the street from the Cider Barrel, said she appreciates the history of the site and hopes to honor that with the restoration. She plans to “represent the Cider Barrel for what it was” and include a room with historic photos and information about the site’s past.
“What that building is and was and what it stands for, that’s really, honestly, what’s making this project so important and so special,” Edinger said. “Many people have been there generation after generation. … So I think it really does have a special place in people’s hearts and I think that’s why people are so eager to see it brought back to life.”
A pastry chef in the area for 12 years, Edinger was trained in Europe. She said she would primarily focus on baked goods at the new Cider Barrel, but would also offer baking classes to kids inside and might sell ice cream from the streetside window.
Of course, she said, she would sell cider, too.


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Apple is now seeking yet another ban on Samsung's modified Galaxy Tablet in Germany. The iPad maker earlier succeeded in getting a ban on Samsung's Galaxy tab in Germany in a 'moronic' ruling by the Düsseldorf court.
The court did not know its jurisdiction and imposed a EU wide ban, which it lifted within a week and kept a ban on the device in Germany.
Ironically a Dutch court fond the same 'design' claims of Apple bogus and rejected any such ban. The design claims are in fact bogus as it says no one else can sell a tablet which looks rectangular.
Samsung modified its tablet to give German customers more choices. It will be interesting to see if the 'pro-Apple' German court once again proves that 'justice' is blind and continues the ban.
The German court's decision is widely criticized and is looked at as helping Apple create a tablet monopoly in German which will only hit Germans. This monopoly will have serious consequences, as Apple has a tight eco-system and everything that you put on Apple devices goes through iTunes and Apple servers.
Using iTunes would mean the US government will have access to all the data that German Apple users put on their devices.
There is no doubt that Samsung will take every measure to ensure its products are available in Germany. I wonder if the same German court will ban all TV sets, cars, laptops, drinks on the basis of design patents as all these things look same, irrespective of who makes them.
I hope this time the German court will take the 'right' decision.


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Online sales were up 40% in november, their largest month-on-month increase since the IMRG Capgemini e-Retail Sales Index launched 15 years ago.
The index said that growth was down to the Black Friday period, in which shoppers compensated for withheld spending in October – when the index recorded its lowest-ever annual growth for the month.
The record-breaking spike in online sales was driven by the growth of mobile shopping, with purchases made via a smartphone accounting for 32% of all mobile commerce sales – a record high for these devices.
Sales made on a smartphone device grew by 97% year-on-year (YoY) while purchases made on a tablet reached a record low of just 12% YoY. The index said this demonstrated a “notable shift” in mobile spending habits.
Alex Smith-Bingham, head of digital, consumer products and retail at Capgemini, said: “It’s becoming clearer that Black Friday is the online retailer’s day, taking sales away from the High Street and out competing their multichannel counterparts.
“The significant shift to smartphones shows that those with a mobile-first strategy across the customer journey are at a distinct advantage. The results in December will tell whether the success for online retailers is limited to the day or the two week period.”
During the month, online-only retailers saw sales increase 24% on the same period last year, 20 percentage points higher than that of multichannel retailers, which recorded just 4%.
Some 35% of all sales during the month were in the final week starting 22 November, this including the week leading up to Black Friday, when many retailers offered online deals, and the day itself.


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Global Shipping System Under The Impact Of The Epidemic
What has happened to the global shipping system under the impact of the epidemic?
1. "Crazy" shipping price
In the winter of novel corona virus pneumonia, besides the hot vaccine industry, the container shipping industry also enjoys "spring" alone. How much money does the shipping company make? In the first half of this year, COSCO Shipping earned an average of 200 million yuan a day. In 2020, COSCO Haikong's net profit attributable to the owner of the parent company was 9.927 billion yuan, so the net profit attributable to the parent company in the first half of this year was 3.7 times that of last year.
In addition to COSCO Shipping, the profit margins of other shipping giants soared, and even the net profit of shipping enterprises soared 113 times in the first half of the year. The world's largest shipping company, raised its profit forecast for the whole year of 2021 by nearly $5 billion.
The "world container index" assessed by Drewry, an international shipping consulting agency, shows that the price of every 40 foot container is close to US $2000 in early January 2020, and by September 9 this year, the price has exceeded US $10000, an increase of nearly five times.
On popular routes, shipping prices have risen rapidly. The route from China, Southeast Asia to the east coast of North America exceeded US $20000 per standard container for the first time in mid August, while the normal price is generally only about US $3000.
The person in charge of a ladder enterprise in Tianjin said that the enterprise delivers goods FOB, the purchaser is generally a large foreign supermarket, and the logistics bargaining power is strong. Nevertheless, customers are complaining about the rise of logistics costs.
2. Container is hard to find
Although shipping costs have risen beyond the sky, the topic of "10 times of skyrocketing sea freight can't grab containers" is still popular on the Internet. "To keep orders, freight costs are expensive, but the key is no container." a foreign trade businessman has no choice but to make complaints about it.
With the strong recovery of China's foreign trade economy, export orders are floating like snowflakes.
It is understood that about 95% of China's foreign trade goods are borne by international shipping. The demand for foreign trade export is increasing, but the logistics capacity is limited, forming a fierce contradiction between supply and demand of shipping. Especially on the lines from China to Europe and the United States and Japan, the cabin needs to be scrambled in line, and cabin explosion and cabinet dumping occur from time to time.
The huge export demand is also due to China's successful epidemic prevention measures. Zhao Chongjiu, Vice Minister of transport, said at a press conference in June that due to the epidemic, the industrial chain and supply chain of many countries have been greatly impacted. Under the strong leadership of the Party Central Committee, the epidemic has been effectively controlled and our industrial chain and supply chain have been well protected, which has greatly increased the demand for China's import and export trade.
Short comments: Countries have strengthened the prevention and control of imported epidemic in ports, prolonged the berthing time of ships in ports, and reduced the turnover efficiency of container supply chain.
Introduction to TinplateJune 19, 2023We mainly focus on stainless steel barrels and accessories. Today, we will introduce the material of metal waterproof cover, tinplate.Tinplate, also known as SPTE, is a cold-rolled thin steel plate wi...view
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The introduction of drum plugJune 16, 2023The content of product introduction today is the drum plug, which is usually divided into two types: galvanized and coated, with two sizes of 2 inches and 3/4 inches, round in shape, and screwed into ...view


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Angus Deayton, Janet Suzman, George Alagiah and Antony Worrall Thompson are just some of the celebrities who will be teaming up with the Fairtrade Foundation to launch the UK's third annual Fairtrade Fortnight - "Wake up to fair trade".
Over the next two weeks, the charity will urge us to start the day by eating a more thoughtful breakfast, in a nationwide campaign to promote a better deal for small-scale farmers in developing countries.
The crops these farmers produce, such as bananas, cocoa, honey, sugar, tea and coffee are subject to big fluctuations on the volatile world commodities market. Products that bear the Fairtrade mark - the UK's independent consumer guarantee of internationally agreed fair trade conditions - means that shoppers can be sure farmers are getting a price well above the low world market rates for their produce, and benefit from the security of long-term trading contracts.
Fair trade is backed by the international development secretary, Clare Short, as a significant way of alleviating poverty.
"Fair trade is a practical way for the public to bring a transformation to the lives of people in developing countries," says Ms Short. "By purchasing fair trade products, consumers are sending out a powerful message to supermarkets: that we care where our goods are coming from, and that they are produced in a decent way. As demand grows, these values are influencing mainstream sources and our purchasing power is sending ripples of change across the world."
There are now more than 70 fair trade products on sale, and the most recent one to be awarded the Fairtrade stamp of approval is orange juice from Cuba. Andy Redfern, international director of the fair trade company Traidcraft, helped to forge the relationship between Cuban fruit-growing cooperatives and Gerber, the UK's biggest drink packers.
"Rather than buy the fruit from estates, it was important to source these oranges from smallholders so the extra value from fair trade can filter back easily to the farming communities," says Mr Redfern. "Fair trade products have moved on - they have to be professionally produced, packaged and marketed to attract consumers' attention, and this orange juice will be pitched at the quality end of the mainstream market."
Mr Redfern hopes that the orange juice will follow on where fair trade bananas have already blazed a trail. With 95% of UK households buying bananas, they are an extremely valuable commodity, and as the first supermarket to stock the fair trade fruit last March, the Co-op is now stumping up serious money on television adverts promoting ethical shopping to support this year's campaign.
Nioka Abbott, a banana farmer on St Vincent in the Caribbean has come to the UK to speak at the launch of Fairtrade Fortnight where she will explain why the 200 farmers in the Windward Island Farmer's Association decided to become fair traders.
"Banana farming is very hard physical work. They are like babies - you have to be around them all the time. All my standard grade bananas are being sold to fair trade. It's making a big difference to our lives, because usually the price is so low we can scarcely manage to farm. Selling fair trade bananas we get more money and on every box of bananas there is an extra social premium which goes into the cooperative fund.
"Many of the women in our community are single parents and have to work in the fields so we are considering using the premium money to build a nursery. The other benefit is that being a fair trade farmer, we will use fewer chemicals which means we will be healthier and selling a healthier banana to the consumer. If fair trade could find a market to sell all our bananas, we would be happy for you to have all of them."


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A message from Matt Pullen, Managing Director British Gypsum, in relation to pandemic restrictions & product availability
23rd September 2020 – 15.00
The latest government restrictions will have no direct impact on our business operations, we continue to operate at maximum capacity, to support the construction industry, provide protection for our customers’ and colleagues’ livelihoods, and play a vital part in the recovery of the UK economy.
Our plaster manufacturing plants continue to operate consistently at maximum capability. We have no planned shutdowns or refurbishments of our plaster manufacturing facilities scheduled, so that we can continue to maximise plaster output to the thousands of loyal Thistle plaster users. Demand however, remains strong for Plaster.
Most individual plasterers are now able to obtain plaster from their usual Distributor, Merchant or DIY stockists. Given the continuing strong demand however plaster will remain on allocation to ensure we supply all our usual stockists fairly. We are working 24 hours a day, seven days a week to ensure as much product is available as possible.
Our plasterboard range came off allocation at the start of August and production capacity is now meeting demand with stocks returning to normal across our usual Distributor, Merchant and DIY stockists.
We have been and remain truly appreciative of your understanding and cooperation during these challenging times and please know that we are all doing everything we can to support the construction industry and the vital role it is playing and will continue to play in helping the recovery of the UK’s economy.
Please continue to look after yourselves, your families and those that continue to need support in your communities – and above all, stay safe.
Managing Director, British Gypsum


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656-foot cargo ship Felicity Ace and its precious cargo caught ablaze near the coast of the Azores on Wednesday, February 16, and managed to remain afloat while abandoned and drifting.
However, despite salvage efforts, the Portuguese Navy reported that “During the towing process, which had begun on Feb. 24, the ship ‘Felicity Ace’ lost stability and sank some 25 nautical miles outside of the limits of Portugal’s exclusive economic zone, in an area with a depth of about [9,842 feet].”
The merchant ship went down at around 09:00 local time on Tuesday, March 1, 250 miles off the coast of a Portuguese archipelago.
After a fortnight burning adrift in the Atlantic with an estimated 438 million dollars worth of goods and an estimated 401 million dollars worth of cars, including 1,100 Porsches.
The many sank Porsches make up just over a quarter of the Volkswagen group’s cars that did not complete their transatlantic journey to Rhode Island in the United States, as nearly 4,000 cars from VW, Audi, Lamborghini, Bentley and Porsche all took the plunge.
As far as dissatisfied customers go in the States, the VW Group of America’s chief communications officer said “brands are working with their dealers and customers to replace these vehicles and find individual solutions.”
The environmental consequences of this fiasco are the most unfortunate, as the Azores archipelago, located 1,000 km from the African coast, is home to coral reefs, dolphins, sharks and tuna, while being a key feeding ground for migrating species such as blue and humpback whales.
The Portuguese navy reported that the ship had been carrying about 2,200 tons of oil and 2,200 tons of fuel along with other pollutants.
Featured image courtesy of the Portuguese navy


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In December 2015 MAPC and allies released the first food policy plan for the state of Massachusetts since the 1970s. The Massachusetts Local Food Action Plan is a planning guide rich with recommendations for the 21st century economy, from fishing towns to food trucks and urban and rural farms.
In 2013, the Massachusetts Food Policy Council engaged MAPC to to develop a “vision and plan to increase agricultural production, processing, and distribution that will serve as economic stimulus and address multiple related public health and food security issues.”
The initiators of the plan envisioned “a strong, abundant, and resilient food system that is rooted in communities; provides quality jobs; contributes to a vibrant economy; utilizes, enriches, and sustainably manages our State’s natural resources; and supplies healthy, affordable, and accessible food for all residents of the Commonwealth.”
MAPC, along with the Franklin Regional Council of Governments, the Pioneer Valley Planning Commission, and the Massachusetts Workforce Alliance as partners, conducted research, held public forums, and coordinated working groups, ultimately engaging with more than 1,500 people to understand the existing conditions of the state’s food system, and develop goals and recommendations to make it more sustainable and equitable.
Food is important to everyone; the public’s input was vital to this project.
Photos in this article feature Food Day at the Massachusetts State House and community engagement at local farmers markets.
Topics of conversation ran the gamut and focused on cross-sectoral issues, such as how public transportation impacts access to healthy foods for some communities, and how regulations can both foster and hinder innovation and the growth of small businesses and farms.
Goals, Actions, and Needs
The Massachusetts legislature, state administration, nonprofits and businesses invested in good food system change will work towards the main goals of the Plan:
- Produce more: Increase production, sales, and consumption of Massachusetts-grown foods;
- Support good food work: Create jobs and economic opportunity in food and farming, and improve the wages and skills of food system workers;
- Steward and sustain: Protect the land and water needed to produce food, maximize environmental benefits from agriculture and fishing, and ensure food safety; and
- Food for all: Reduce hunger and food insecurity, increase the availability of healthy food to all residents, and reduce food waste.
The Massachusetts Local Food Action Plan recommends hundreds of specific actions. From these actions, four overarching needs emerged:
- We need more information and educational resources to improve the growth potential of the local food system.
- We need to review and reform the regulatory process to support food production in Massachusetts.
- We need to support farms, fishermen, and food businesses in learning new skills,
- and we need to invest money to spur new growth in our food system.
The Plan was published in December 2015, and accepted by the Food Policy Council. Public agencies, legislators, and private and nonprofit stakeholders are now working to prioritize items in the Plan that fit with their respective missions, and collaborating toward implementation of key parts of the plan. The plan is available online, at www.mafoodplan.org.


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Amazon unveils online grocery supermarket
It is apparently cheaper than Asda too!
Amazon is planning to take on the supermarket price war with it’s own rival grocery store.
Launched on Thursday 9th June, AmazonFresh is the latest from the online giant which boasts a range of 130,000 products.
There will be a huge offering of food & drink as well as household products such as cleaning and laundry to hardware and toiletries will be available at the click of a button.
According to research using a weekly shopping list from trade magazine The Grocer , an AmazonFresh basket cost £58.93 compared with Asda at £59.90, Tesco at £60.86,Morrisons at £62.22 and Sainsbury’s at £65.43.
In a like-for-like comparison of staples from bread, cereal, baked beans, veg, butter and milk, AmazonFresh was cheaper than Asda for eight items and more expensive on four.
One of my favourite perks of the Amazon online shop is Amazon will offer shoppers same day delivery on orders placed before 1pm as well as hourly slots from 7am to 11am, seven days a week.
However, the downside is the service is only available in London at the moment and only available to those signed up to the online store’s Amazon Prime service which costs £79 a year.
If the trial is successful, the scheme will be rolled out in phases nationwide with cities like Birmingham and Manchester likely to be next.
While members will be able to benefit from a free 30 day trial, there will be a rolling monthly fee of £6.99 for an unlimited number of deliveries for orders of £40 or over.
AmazonFresh shoppers who spend less than £40 will have to cough up an additional £3.99 for the door-to-door service.
Orders will be sent from their huge depot in Bow, East London using Amazon’s existing fleet of delivery vans and courier services.
Frozen and chilled items will arrive in polystyrene cooler boxes which drivers will take away to be reused.
All the shopping will be in free, brown paper carrier bags with colour coded handles so householders can tell at a glance if items are for the cupboard, fridge or freezer.
AmazonFresh vice president Ajay Kavan said: “The bar in grocery retailing is exceptionally high. We believe that the key to the longterm success of AmazonFresh is to bring together the low prices,vast selection, fast delivery options and customer experience that Amazon customers know. We are launching with a comprehensive offer in a limited area and will take our time to hone and improve our service. We will be very methodical and considered in how we roll this service out further in the UK.”
What do you think of this? Do you hope it is rolled out around the UK?


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ABB and Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) announced the worldwide availability of a new electric vehicle (EV) fast-charging services platform. Combining ABB’s leading EV charging stations with Microsoft’s Azure cloud-based services will ensure stability, global scalability and advanced management features for ABB customers. The collaboration will also take advantage of machine learning and predictive analytic capabilities to drive future innovations.
“Platform performance and stability are critical differentiators for the successful operation of a modern, data-dependent EV charging station. By partnering with Microsoft, ABB will be able to offer best-in-class operations as well as innovative advanced services — what we call the Internet of Things, Services and People,” said Pekka Tiitinen, president of ABB’s Discrete Automation and Motion Division. “This partnership gives us the solutions, scalability and global agility to support expanding demand for EV charging infrastructure in the world’s major automotive markets, which is a key focus of our Next Level growth strategy.”
Many automotive brands are investing in the dynamic “full electric” vehicle market, with new model launches anticipated next year. According to a report by Hybrid Cars, the total number of electric vehicles sold globally has surpassed 1 million, with more than half of those purchased in the past 14 months.
The rapid increase in electric vehicles around the world goes hand-in-hand with a mature charging and energy infrastructure. There are currently just 106,000 publicly accessible EV charging stations globally, and global revenue from electric vehicle charging services is set to grow from $152.6 million in 2015 to $2.9 billion by 2023, according to Navigant Research.
“Today we live in a mobile-first, cloud-first world, and this is ever apparent in the global electric vehicle market,” said Peggy Johnson, executive vice president of business development, Microsoft. “Our partnership with ABB aligns to one of our company ambitions to build the intelligent cloud platform, and we look forward to our technology and services becoming a differentiator for ABB’s solutions.”
Under the new collaboration, all ABB chargers will be connected to the Microsoft Azure cloud and surrounded by value-adding services, allowing operators and manufacturers and partners to take advantage of a world-class platform.
ABB and Microsoft will introduce their joint EV charging services platform at eCarTec, the world’s largest trade fair for electric and hybrid mobility, Oct. 20–22 in Munich, Germany. (Original Source)
Shares of Microsoft closed yesterday at $47.62. MSFT has a 1-year high of $50.05 and a 1-year low of $39.72. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $44.74 and its 200-day moving average is $45.20.
On the ratings front, Microsoft has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. In a report issued on October 16, FBR analyst Daniel Ives reiterated a Buy rating on MSFT, with a price target of $53, which implies an upside of 11.3% from current levels. Separately, on October 12, UBS’s Brent Thill reiterated a Buy rating on the stock and has a price target of $52.
According to TipRanks.com, which ranks over 7,500 financial analysts and bloggers to gauge the performance of their past recommendations, Daniel Ives and Brent Thill have a total average return of 3.9% and 13.0% respectively. Ives has a success rate of 52.2% and is ranked #867 out of 3793 analysts, while Thill has a success rate of 69.1% and is ranked #99.
Overall, 2 research analysts have rated the stock with a Sell rating, 5 research analysts have assigned a Hold rating and 12 research analysts have given a Buy rating to the stock. When considering if perhaps the stock is under or overvalued, the average price target is $52.67 which is 10.6% above where the stock closed yesterday.


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- Jeep® brand and Jeep Jamboree celebrate the 70th anniversary of the Rubicon Trail
- New video celebrating the 70th anniversary of the Rubicon Trail takes enthusiasts along for the ultimate trail ride
- In the 70 years since Jeep 4x4s first started crossing the Rubicon Trail, off-road adventuring has become a lifestyle for passionate Jeep SUV owners across the globe
- The Rubicon Trail is located in northern California, near Lake Tahoe in the Sierra Nevada Mountains. This world-renowned four-wheel drive covers a total distance of approximately 22 miles with elevations that run from approximately 5,400 feet to more than 7,000 feet (approximately 1,646 meters to more than 2,134 meters)
- This summer, 450 Jeep enthusiasts and their families and friends, driving a total of 125 Jeep Wranglers and Gladiators, celebrated the Rubicon Trail’s seven-decade anniversary
- Jeep Jamboree operates more than 40 Jeep Jamborees annually and continues to expand, this year launching two trips to Iceland that are taking place this month
September 1, 2023 , Dubai, United Arab Emirates – The Jeep® brand and Jeep Jamboree are celebrating 70 years of extreme off-roading adventure this summer. Since 1953, the Rubicon Trail, known as one of the most difficult off-road trails in the world, has been a lifestyle symbol of Jeep 4×4 off-road adventuring for the Jeep community.
This summer, 450 Jeep enthusiasts and their families and friends, driving a total of 125 Jeep Wranglers and Gladiators, celebrated with a special event on the Rubicon Trail’s seven-decade anniversary by living the off-road adventure of dreams and, in the process, proving that their stock Jeep vehicles can tackle the impossible, drive off the trail and get them back home. A new video posted on the Jeep brand’s YouTube channel gives a taste of the adventure.
“For more than 80 years, the Jeep brand community has defined the Jeep brand and, for 70 of those years, the Rubicon Trail has been heralded by the community as one of the toughest off-road trails in the world, which combined with its beauty has put the Rubicon Trail on every Jeep 4×4 customer’s bucket list,” said Jim Morrison, senior vice president and head of Jeep brand North America. “Conquering the Rubicon Trail is tangible proof that these Jeep vehicles can literally go anywhere and do anything. As you can see in the video, Jeep 4xe vehicles demonstrate how we continue to push the envelope as we develop our next generation of electrified Jeep 4xe vehicles that can take 4×4 capability to the next level and conquer the seemingly impossible.”
The mighty Rubicon Trail is located in northern California, near Lake Tahoe in the Sierra Nevada Mountains. This world-renowned 4×4 playground spans approximately 22 miles of the toughest off-road terrain on the planet – terrain that Jeep Trail Rated 4×4 vehicles are designed and built to overcome. Jeep Jamboree covers 17.5 miles of the toughest terrain on its trail rides. Elevations on the trail range from approximately 5,400 feet to more than 7,000 feet (approximately 1,646 meters to more than 2,134 meters). Today, the Rubicon is widely recognized as the premiere off-road vehicle route in the United States.
“In 1953, when Mark Smith organized the first Jeep Jamboree with 55 Willys and voyaged across the Sierra Nevada Mountains by way of the Rubicon Trail, off-road recreation was born,” said Pearse Umlauf, president and CEO of Jeep Jamboree. “The following year, Willys Motors — then manufacturer of Jeep vehicles — became involved with the adventure, and Jeep Jamborees have been an off-road tradition ever since and continue to grow. Most recently, we’ve seen a huge surge of interest, especially after the COVID pandemic, with a tremendous demand from people who want to experience their Jeep vehicles in open-air freedom.”
Jeep brand engineers have long used the Rubicon Trail to develop and test its most capable SUVs, including the Jeep Wrangler. Adorned with the legendary Rubicon Trail name, the Wrangler Rubicon took the industry by storm in the summer of 2002. The iconic Rubicon model, inspired by the enthusiasts who dreamt about it and often tried to build one of their own, became available to order straight from the factory, not to mention with a warranty. It was equipped with options unheard of at the time and not available on any production Jeep SUV, including Dana 44 axles, front and rear lockers, disconnecting sway bar, rock rails, oversized 31-inch mud-terrain tires and wheel flares, to truly take off-roading to the next level.
The Jeep Wrangler Rubicon continues to be a “proof of concept” for the Jeep brand, where lessons learned from iconic off-road locations like Rubicon Trail and where feedback gleaned from enthusiasts and Jeep brand loyalists continue to push the brand and the entire Jeep lineup forward. Earlier this year, the Jeep brand celebrated with a special 20th Anniversary Edition, revealed at the 2023 Chicago Auto Show.


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2016 has been a great year with many new exciting premium pop-up concepts!
– Temporary shops is a very important added value to the customer path; they make the shopping experience enticing and engaging and adds important diversity and novelty at the center. Also; entrepreneurs are given the ability to promote and launch new products at an arena that would otherwise be difficult for them to access. The intention is to create long term, lasting bond with potential customers, says Elin Cappelen, pop-up shop manager at Steen & Strøm.
Just in time before Christmas, as many as 30 pop-up concepts are implemented at the Norwegian centers! Among others, you can find Cecilie Melli at Arkaden Torgterrassen, Nordic Skincare at Åsane, Tights.no at Oslo City, Løiten light at Lillestrøm Torv and Arts & Crafts at Gulskogen.
December 13 2016


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New York City feds just pulled off the largest seizure of counterfeit items in United States history.
On Nov. 15, Adama Sow, 38, and Abdulai Jalloh, 48, were arrested in connection to approximately 219,000 counterfeit items retailing $1.03 billion. According to the Department of Justice, Jalloh also went by Troy Banks. The items seized included bags, clothes, shoes and other luxury products.
United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Damian Williams, said Sow and Jalloh distributed “massive amounts” of designer knock-offs from a storage facility in Manhattan from January to October of this year. The feds say Sow was in charge of a premises wherein 83,000 counterfeit items retailing over $502 million were seized. Jalloh allegedly trafficked fake items at another Manhattan-based site and oversaw a premise that held 50,000 now-seized items retailing over $237 million.
Photos taken at the distribution site showed palettes of stacked boxes and hundreds of fake designer handbags and wallets — including knock-off Louis Vuitton and Burberry.
The two defendants stood in court before U.S. Magistrate Judge Robert W. Lehrburger on Nov. 15. Both were charged with trafficking in counterfeit goods and face a maximum 10-year prison sentence.
The Department of Justice highlighted that “the street value of counterfeit goods typically is significantly lower than the MSRP,” or manufacturer’s suggested retail price, which is what the retail values in this reporting are based on.
HSI (Homeland Security Investigations) Special Agent in Charge Ivan J. Arvelo said the big apprehend of fake designer Louis Vuitton and Burberry was a win for New York “in the fight against intellectual property theft.”
“One purse might seem harmless, but the production and sale of imitation products is far from a victimless crime,” Arvelo added, according to the New York Post. “We will not allow opportunists to convert public warehouses into their own illegal shopping centers or to wreak havoc on the streets of New York City, nor will we relent in our efforts to combat transnational criminal organizations smuggling these items through our borders.”
“The trafficking of counterfeit goods is anything but a victimless crime because it harms legitimate businesses, governments, and consumers,” noted NYPD Commissioner Edward A. Caban. “We will continue to work hard to hold accountable anyone who seeks to benefit by selling such items on the black market.”
The New York Post alleged that the items were housed at Gotham Mini Storage between Midtown West and Hudson Yards neighborhoods in Manhattan. Notably, the location is right by the Port Authority and the Lincoln Tunnel, which tens of millions pass through yearly.
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Latest Photovoltaics Stories
-- System is the Largest Solar Facility for a Hospital in New Jersey - BEDMINSTER, N.J., Dec.
GUELPH, Ontario, Canada, Dec. 19, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Canadian Solar Inc.
Ultralight portable solar charger with battery pack powers up to two smartphones with five hours of sun. Placentia, CA (PRWEB) December 18, 2014 6 months
The invention is a breakthrough for the semiconductor thin-film industry with a wide variety of applications BRIARCLIFF MANOR, N.Y., Dec.
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Expansion Driven by Increased Demand for the RAIS® PV System and Diversification of Supply Chain MINNEAPOLIS, Dec.
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Rhone Resch, president and CEO of the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA), released the following statement today in response to the U.S.
GUELPH, Ontario, Dec. 16, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Canadian Solar Inc.
- A volcanic mudflow.


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Qatar National Cement Company saw a 1.3% rise in profits from QR253.3 million to QR256.7 million for the period January to June 2010. This was achieved despite a 32.6% fall in revenue, which was cushioned by a fall in the cost of sales. As reported in ConstructionWeekOnline.com this is an unusual result compared with the other cement players in the region. QNCC opened a fourth plant last year and this ensured that the company no longer needed to import cement to meet local demand. The company, which is the dominant supplier in the country as the other manufacturer is quite small, tends to take the majority of the construction business. It has a good, local supply of raw materials and its margins are good.
QNCC’s results are totally opposite to the results of the other major regional suppliers. Oman’s Raysut Cement Company experienced a fall in half-year net profits by more than a fifth, with sales slipping more than a quarter compared to last year even though production levels increased. Abu Dhabi listed Gulf Cement Company has seen its profits reduced by almost a half during the first half of this year and by three-quarters for Q2 compared with the same period last year. Southern Province Cement Company in Saudi Arabia posted a 13% fall in net profits for the second quarter, while Qassim Cement fell 8.3%.
Read the article online at: https://www.worldcement.com/africa-middle-east/28072010/qncc_bucking_the_trend/


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Raine & Horne empowers consumers and agents with new mobile responsive website
Media release - 24th July, 2015
Superbrand Raine & Horne has launched a new mobile responsive website, delivering more information for consumers and significantly increased flexibility for agents.
“With the growing pervasiveness of video as an online communication tool, the new rh.com.au includes a series of audio visuals on key real estate subject areas,” said Greg Oddy, Raine & Horne’s Business Support & Development Manager (Digital), who led the website development team.
“These videos are targeted at homebuyers, sellers, commercial and residential investors, tenants, and prospective business partners, and are hosted by the likes of television presenter Peter Colquhoun from Better Homes & Gardens and Sandcastles fame.”
In addition to the video content, Raine & Horne has partnered with CoreLogic-RP Data to supply suburb profile data including number of sales, average and median sales prices, and median rental prices, according to Mr Oddy.
Consumers will also have access to a series of online calculators, covering everything from loan repayments to stamp duty.
“Every Raine & Horne office in Australia will also be able customise the look and feel of their office site using home page tiles and modules, while our sales agents and property managers will have their own unique profile page, which includes current listings and sales, their bios, client testimonials, social media links, even individual blogs,” he added.
With the majority of consumers now interacting with the internet by means of a mobile device, the new rh.com.au also features a mobile-first design that meets the needs of the brand’s growing online audience.
“The planning for the new rh.com.au website started in early 2014, and our launch is perfectly timed following Google’s announcement in April that websites which are not mobile-optimised will be penalised in the search rankings,” said Angus Raine, Executive Chairman, Raine & Horne.
Effectively, the new rh.com.au website is built for touch-screens, and will automatically re-size depending on the screen size of the mobile device, according to Mr Raine.
“Importantly though, and I stress, the new website still functions just as successfully on a desktop or laptop, said Mr Raine.
“rh.com.au switches seamlessly between devices, delivering a vastly superior consumer and franchisee experience to conventional websites,” he said.
“More significantly, rh.com.au will offer to mobile users all the features traditionally available to desktop users, including high-quality photography and graphics.”
The abolition of navigation tabs at the top of the home page is another key feature, according to Mr Raine, with the site instead constructed of a series of tiles and modules that work in a continuous scroll down the page.
“It provides a much cleaner and more streamlined look to the website and means there are no menu items to choose from, which are more typical of old-school desktop-based websites.”
For further media information contact:
Angus Raine, Executive Chairman, Raine & Horne on 0409 920 697
Andrew Harrington, National Communications Manager, Raine & Horne on 02 9258 5400


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The Department of Justice issued a press release last Friday announcing that several defendants had been convicted in a multimillion-dollar nationwide telemedicine fraud scheme. Eight individuals and their related corporations have pleaded guilty to intentionally misleading pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) like Express Scripts and CVS Caremark about tens of thousands of prescriptions. PBMs, the statement said, then unknowingly authorized millions of dollars in claims that insurance companies paid to pharmacies controlled by the convicted persons and their related companies.
The statement explained that the convicted persons used a telemarketing platform to cold call consumers and convince them to provide their personal insurance information and to accept medications such as pain creams, scar creams and vitamins. . The defendants would then pay doctors to fill the prescriptions, although they would have no contact with the patients. The drugs would then be given to consumers so that fraudulent insurance claims could be filed.
The press release claims that the specific drugs were chosen because they could be subject to cost-effective reimbursements at inflated prices, and that the defendants “used unlawful means to conceal this activity from PBMs so that it could remain not detected”. The defendants were each ordered to serve jail time and pay varying amounts of restitution, ranging from $25,000 to $25 million.
Assistant Deputy Attorney General Arun G. Rao, head of the Civil Division’s Consumer Protection Division, said “the significant sentences imposed by the court reflect the seriousness of this large-scale fraudulent scheme, in which Defendant’s consumers deceived consumers in order to facilitate the dispensing of drugs without proper medical supervision and overbilling insurers for illegal prescriptions.
“Bolos and his co-conspirators abdicated their responsibilities in the healthcare industry through an elaborate fraud scheme and manipulated the system without regard to patient needs or medical necessity to line their pockets. added Special Agent John Condon of Homeland Security Investigations Tampa. Explain.
The multi-year investigation found that the plot took place from May 2015 to April 2018, a period during which at least 60,000 invalid orders were filed. Special Agent in Charge Amy K. Parker of the OPM OIG said, “Today’s sentencing holds the conspirators accountable for their reprehensible scheme that misled patients and defrauded the federal government.”


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Onavo Investors Earn 10x Profit With Facebook Buyout; Founders Make $50 Million
Investors in Israeli app maker Onavo stand to earn 10-times their initial investment with Facebook’s $150 million acquisition of the mobile data compression company, Israel’s Globes business daily reported.
Co-founders CEO Guy Rosen and CTO Roi Tiger are expected to earn a combined $50 million from the sale.
Globes reported that the idea to sell the company to Facebook came from the founders, according to Onavo investor Magma Venture Partners managing partner Yahal Zilka. “The last thing we’ll do is go against the flow,” he told Globes.
As well as Onavo, Magma also owned a stake in navigation app Waze that Google Inc. bought for almost $1 billion in June. “Although Onavo is a different order of magnitude compared with Waze, but in terms of the entrepreneurs’ skills, they are no less talented,” Zilka said.
The concept for Onavo was born from Rosen’s frustration over the high costs of cellphone roaming fees, while at a conference in Barcelona. His solution was to compress the data to make it cost less to send, and he partnered with Tiger, who was an expert in mobile telephone engineering.
Previously, Rosen and Tiger both served in the Israel Defense Force’s Unit 8200.
As part of the deal, Facebook will also turn Onavo’s Ramat Gan office into the company’s first Israeli headquarters. Onavo employs 40 workers between offices in Ramat Gan and Palo Alto, near Facebook in Menlo Park.


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Ecosystm Principal Advisor, Shamir Amanullah noted in his blog that in the new normal telecom providers have fast evolved as the backbone of business and social interactions. Telecom operators are fervently working towards 5G network and services deployment in order to be an early mover in the market. In China, China Mobile has been one of the leaders in rolling out country-wide 5G. The tender to build around 250,000 fifth-generation wireless network base stations across 28 provincial regions was put out in March and in early April, Huawei emerged as the key winner with the contract to build nearly 60% of the base stations. ZTE also won nearly a third of the contract. Global network equipment providers will find entering the China market as challenge for a number of reasons, including the strength of their local players.
Huawei continues to be under scrutiny in the global market, however British telecom provider chose Ericsson to build the core of its 5G network. BT hopes to create and define a future roadmap of new services such as mobile edge computing, network slicing, enhanced mobile broadband and various enterprise services. The US market is another arena where the battle for 5G will be fought out. The T-Mobile – Sprint merger was finalised in early April. The New T-Mobile is committed to building the world’s best nationwide 5G network, which will bring lightning-fast speeds to urban areas and underserved rural communities alike. Other vendors are also vying for a larger share of the US market. Nex-Tech Wireless, a smaller rural telecom provider based in Kansas, is planning to transition from 4G to 5G by using Ericsson’s Dynamic Spectrum Sharing (DSS) to deploy 5G on existing bands. This will help Next-Tech wireless to leverage existing assets instead of building 5G capabilities from the ground-up – enabling them to seamlessly transfer from 4G to 5G.
The 5G developments are by no means limited mostly to the US and China. Korea’s telecom provider, KT and Far EasTone Taiwan (FET) signed an MOU to collaborate and jointly develop 5G services and digital content. With this deal, KT plans to boost its 5G powered content and services presence through FET.
Tech Vendors evolving their 5G offerings
Network and communications equipment providers have much to gain and more to lose as organisations look to leverage 5G for their IoT use cases. If 5G uptake does not take off, the bigger losers will be the network and communications equipment providers – the real investors in the technology. Also, as telecom providers look to monetise 5G they will find themselves dealing with a completely different customer base – they will take help from tech vendors that have more experience in the enterprise space, as well as industry expertise. Both network equipment vendors and other tech vendors are actively evolving their product offerings. There were numerous examples of this in April.
Microsoft’s decision to acquire Affirmed Networks is an example of how the major cloud providers are trying to be better embedded with 5G capabilities. This month also saw Microsoft announce Azure Edge Zones aimed at reducing latency for both public and private networks. AT&T is a good example of how public carriers will use the Azure Edge Zones. As part of the ongoing partnership with Microsoft, AT&T has already launched a Dallas Edge Zone, with another one planned for Los Angeles, later in the year. Microsoft also intends to offer the Azure Edge Zones, independent of carriers in denser areas. They also launched Azure Private Edge Zones for private enterprise networks suitable for delivering ultra-low latency performance for IoT devices.
The examples go beyond the cloud platform providers. Samsung and Xilinx, have joined forces to enable 5G deployments, with Samsung aiming to use the Xilinx Versal adaptive compute acceleration platform (ACAP) for worldwide 5G commercial deployments. Versal ACAP offers the compute density at low power consumption to perform the real-time, low-latency signal processing needed by 5G. Following the successful pilot of 450 MHz proof of concept 5G network, Nokia has partnered with PGE Systemy, a large energy sector company in Poland to deploy industrial grade 5G solutions and to support energy distribution for its next gen power grid. It is the band of choice for machine-to-machine communications in the energy sector, including smart meters. Nokia also released an AI-as-a-service offering – Nokia AVA 5G cognitive operations – to help telecom providers transform their services with AI-based solutions to support, network, business and operations.
Use cases for 5G adoption firming up
5G promises to revolutionise various industry solutions based on required data rates, low latency, reliability, and machine-type communications. Telecom providers and tech vendors alike are working on developing industry use cases to drive up adoption.
The Manufacturing industry remains a top focus area for 5G providers, with their early adoption of sensors and sensor data analytics. The Smart Internet Lab at the University of Bristol, UK has been awarded a 2 years project by UK’s Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) to enable 5G connectivity for the manufacturing sector. The project will primarily work on improving productivity and manufacturing, easy asset tracking and management with involvement of AR/VR technologies and industrial system management.
Gaming is another sector with huge potential for 5G adoption. With cloud gaming, gamers can access a library of popular high-quality games minus the need for expensive hardware which has been the case in the past. China Mobile Hong Kong and Ubitus teamed up to launch a 5G cloud gaming service – UGAME. The application is available for download from the Google Play store. While still at a beta phase, the telecom provider promises a revolutionary gaming experience, where the need for computers or consoles will be lessened by augmented smartphone capabilities.
In the midst of the uncertainties, telecom, network equipment providers and cloud platform providers appear to be gearing up for 5G in enabling a contactless and remote economy.
According to Speedtest, global mobile and broadband speeds have suffered as a result of the increase in traffic with speeds dropping in March 2020 for mobile to 30.47 Mbps (from 31.62 Mbps in February) and fixed broadband to 74.64 Mbps (from 75.41 Mbps in February). In Southeast Asia, only Singapore and Vietnam averaged mobile speeds of 54.37 Mbps and 33.97 Mbps respectively, exceeding the global average speeds. As for fixed broadband, Singapore ranked highest globally achieving 197.26 Mbps while Thailand and Malaysia clocked 149.95 Mbps and 79.86 Mbps respectively, trumping the global average speeds.
Southeast Asian carriers increase network efficiency and quality
Singapore. The country’s ICT regulator, Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA), reported an increase in internet usage and its intentions to support telecom carriers in boosting network capacity to ensure essential services run smoothly. Priority will be given to high traffic and residential areas where a larger proportion of the population are working from home. The Ministry of Communications and Information (MCI) reported that Singapore has at least 30 percent buffer in network capacity even during peak periods. Major TV operators Mediacorp, Singtel and Starhub have made more content available for free during this period. This may further impact network speeds as customers are consuming more content over wifi (on mobile apps) or over the fibre networks.
Thailand. Part of the country’s public assistance measures during the pandemic, include offering about 30 million mobile subscribers 10GB free data. The National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC) will also upgrade the speeds of fixed broadband to at least 100 Mbps which is expected to benefit 1.2 million household subscribers. Leading operator Advanced Info Service (AIS) recently announced that it has deployed 5G networks at hospitals to boost network capacity and speeds, and is deploying robots for telemedicine to empower the healthcare system to fight COVID-19.
Malaysia.Maxis and Telekom Malaysia (TM) reported a surge in traffic since the movement control order (MCO) was implemented by the Government on the 18th March 2020. The MCO is expected to run at least until 28th April 2020. TM cited a 30 percent increase in usage attributed to the increase in traffic for streaming, online games and teleconferencing. Leading operators Maxis, Digi, Celcom and U Mobile have offered 1GB free data during the MCO period as part of the Government’s stimulus package. Maxis, TM, Digi and Celcom have also committed significant manpower to ensure that the networks are operating efficiently and to ensure customer support. Leading TV operator Astro has made all movie, news and cartoon networks available to all its customers until the 28th April 2020.
Social distancing fillip for video conferencing
The rise of social distancing has made us all seek new ways to connect, mainly through video chat. Video conferencing traffic is on the rise as it is the next best thing to face-to-face meetings. Microsoft Teams and Zoom have been big benefactors. The American Economic Institute (AEI) notes that Zoom hit some 200 million users daily from a daily average 10 million. Microsoft Teams added some 12 million registrations to a total of 44 million.
Many predict that the home working trend will continue in the recovery stage and beyond, due to improvements in the telecommunications infrastructure and impending rollout of 5G. It is also predicted that the commercial property sector is likely to suffer due to this trend. This period also highlights the critical importance of cybersecurity with increasing occurrences of hacking and fraud. Zoom is being forced to reinforce their privacy and security measures, as an example.
COVID-19 has changed the way we web
On the social front, many are also using video conferencing to communicate with friends and family. Operators relaxing and offering additional data has undoubtedly contributed to the increase in this usage too. Now that many are homebound, network traffic in residential areas are higher than ever. In the past, peak hours of traffic at homes were at night – this has changed with adults and children homebound. Adults are using video conferencing and more voice calls; while children are using elearning, playing games or streaming videos. The European Commission had asked Netflix and other streaming platforms to reduce streaming quality to standard definition (SD). Netflix has assured that it has the capability to manage levels of streaming quality in accordance with the networks quality requirement of individual countries.
Online gaming and video streaming have emerged as winners and have seen an increase in consumption in these times as they provide for entertainment for millions stuck at home. There is tremendous opportunity for both telecom operators and content providers to increase their number of services in this area. Netflix, YouTube, Microsoft Xbox and PlayStation are among the winners in this sector. YouTube provides for a primary news source and commentary on the epidemic for many. Netflix’s stocks are near an all-time high at present.
eCommerce boost for essentials goods and services
The eCommerce sector should see a major improvement in Southeast Asia as physical channels to market have reduced. Emerging economies such as Malaysia and Thailand should see an improvement in services and embrace eCommerce like their mature counterparts. Statista reports that the average Malaysian eCommerce shopper spent just US$159 and Thailand just US$100 on online consumer goods purchases in 2018, considerably lower than the global average of US$634. There is huge opportunity to provide for basic necessities such as online grocery, food and delivery of goods. As a consequence, contactless payment and the transport and logistics sector will be forced to adapt their business operations to ride this wave successfully. As eCommerce transactions diversify and increase in emerging markets, it will give telecom providers an opportunity to keep engaging with platform players.
Telecom carriers are likely to suffer financial losses due to the scale of the disruption COVID-19 has brought about. However, there are some positives takeaways from this period. The increase of network traffic and the changing patterns have driven carriers to better understand network traffic management. The sharp consumer and business onboarding as far as applications and digital services are concerned, has given the digital economy and 5G use cases a shot in the arm. This is likely to spur innovation in services including communications, eCommerce, payments, logistics and healthcare among others.


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FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) -- Volkswagen AG said Wednesday deliveries for its flagship brand were up more than 10 percent in April to a record level for the division.
Europe's biggest carmaker said it delivered 335,000 Volkswagen cars in April, a 10.3 percent increase over the same month a year ago. The company had anticipated sales growth at around 6 percent.
The Wolfsburg-based company said it has delivered 1.25 million cars in the first four months of 2008, an increase of nearly 9 percent from the year-ago period, which is also a record for Volkswagen.
The company said the top three regions for the deliveries were China with a 21.4 percent increase to more than 305,000 cars; Germany with a nearly 13 percent increase to 172,000 cars; and Brazil with a 22.4 percent increase to 168,400 cars.
Europe remained the company's strongest market in the first four months with a 4.2 percent increase to 541,700 delivered cars. Western European deliveries were up 2.6 percent to 488,700 cars, while eastern European deliveries were up nearly 23 percent to 53,000 cars.
Volkswagen shares fell 0.7 percent to 187.80 euros ($294.85) in trading Wednesday in Frankfurt.


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(Social networking site…)
NEW DELHI: Social networking site Facebook's latest service Timeline was globally rolled out on Thursday.
The company said Timeline had so far been available only to a few people, but now it had made it available to everybody.
Timeline allows users to compile and let others see everything they have shared so far, from photos, stories to shared videos, music etc.
According to Facebook's official blog, after upgrading your profile to Timeline, you'll have seven days to review everything that appears on your timeline before anyone else can see it.
The users can choose to publish timeline at any time during the review period, but after seven days the Timeline will automatically go live. Timeline will actually replace a user's old profile, but all the stories and photos will be retained.
Timeline also features a new tool called Activity Log, where users can review their posts and other activities. The users can set and customise privacy level of their timeline just like they could adjust the settings in their Facebook profile.
Timeline was announced by Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg at the f8 conference in September.


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Tuesday, July 29, 2014
(Detroit, MI) -- "Consumer Reports" is calling on Toyota to recall more than 150-thousand hybrid Camrys due to braking problems. There have been dozens of complaints about occasional loss of power braking in 2007 and 2008 Camrys. "Consumer Reports" says Toyota hasn't really tackled the issue, and that a full recall is the right thing to do. So far, Toyota hasn't commented on the suggestion.


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- Daily Zen
Several news outlets today broke the news that Snapchat which has no potent revenue source is raising funds from investors based on a valuation of $10 billion.
The Wall Street Journal’s Evelyn Rusli and Douglas Macmillan citing anonymous sources familiar with the matter reported that Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, one of the best-known VC firms in Silicon Valley, has agreed to invest in the Snapchat Inc. “at a valuation close to $10 billion”. CNBC, Bloomberg News and TechCrunch also reported citing unnamed sources that the ephemeral photo messaging Service Company has been in talks with investors for past few months based on a $10 billion valuation.
If reports are true, then it could entail that Snapchat will soon be amongst the world’s highest valued private tech startups in spite of its lack of straightforwardly identifiable paths to revenue.
According to unnamed sources, Kleiner has committed to invest a sizable amount of up to $20 million; a deal that could roughly give the VC firm a stake of 1% in the company. The Wall Street Journal remarked that “at least one strategic investor has also committed to invest in the round, which isn’t yet closed”.
Earlier this year, Russian investment firm, DST Global also invested in Snapchat based on a valuation of $7 billion.
Snapchat, which features no ads, is slowly turning into a ubiquitous messaging service app and is currently the third most popular app amongst Gen Y. Sources familiar with Snapchat’s internal numbers revealed that it has more than 100 million MAUs (monthly active users), a number more striking to potential investors.
Earlier in 2013, venture capitalists valued Snapchat at more than $800 million and last at the end of the year at $2 billion. Advertisers see enormous potential in the three year old app due to its widespread growth and usage amongst millions of young demographic. Last November, Snapchat turned down a $3 billion acquisition offer from Facebook.
Snapchat is not only the fastest growing mobile app but also one of the fasting growing tech startups in terms of its valuation.
The recently raised capital could help Snapchat outline prospective and successful revenue path. As a matter of fact, Evan Spiegel, co-founder and CEO of Snapchat has already charmed investors by sharing the company’s revenue plans in recent months, said a person familiar with the matter.
To date, Snapchat has generated more than $160 million in funding from several financial institutions including Benchmark, Institutional Venture Partners, Lightspeed Venture Partners, Coatue Management and Chinese e-commerce company Tencent Holdings Ltd.


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Police suspect 3 Westmoreland pharmacy robberies linked
State police at Greensburg suspect the same person is responsible for three robberies over the past 2 1⁄2 months at Rite Aid pharmacies in Hempfield and East Huntingdon.
The most recent robbery occurred at 4:50 p.m. Dec. 23 at the pharmacy off Route 819 in Countryside Plaza in East Huntingdon.
“The operation is the same in each case. A man wearing an oversized hood or a scarf covering his face walks in, passes right by the cash registers and goes right back to the pharmacy and passes a note to a pharmacist demanding the 15- and 30-milligram pills of Oxycodone,” Trooper Steve Limani said.
Although the suspect has not shown a weapon, “he does threaten harm to people in each case,” Limani said.
In the most recent case, the man with a thin build and approximately 6 feet tall wore a light-colored Penguins sweatshirt with the hood up, covering his face, and had heavy gloves on. Police said he grabbed a shopping cart when he entered the store and moved toward the back.
“In this case, a couple of days before Christmas, the note he passed said he didn't want anyone to have a bad Christmas,” Limani said.
“The man was given an unspecified number of pills, he walked out of the store through the parking lot toward the McDonald's. No one saw what kind of an automobile he may have entered,” Limani said.
On Dec. 6, a man passed a note to rob the Hempfield Rite Aid and fled with six bottles of prescription pain medication.
In that case, the suspect was described as a 5-foot 9-inch white male in his late 20s. He walked into the drugstore wearing a white knit band around his face and an oversized hooded sweatshirt, Limani said.
The thinly built man handed a pharmacy technician a note with the words, “Stay calm and be quiet” and told her to give the note to the pharmacist, police said. That note demanded all of the pharmacy‘s 15-and 30-milligram Oxycodone and stated that he had a gun and would “hurt you all.” As the technician was reading the note, the suspect repeatedly told the employee to “be quiet and hurry up.”
The pharmacist put six bottles of pain pills in a Rite Aid bag, gave it to the robber, who then demanded the pharmacist return his note.
Rite Aid offered a $2,500 reward for the arrest and conviction of the person responsible and Limani said the reward is still valid.
Police believe the same man passed a note demanding the East Huntingdon store's Oxycodone pills on Oct. 24.
Limani did not speculate whether the suspect may be ingesting the pain medications or selling them.
“I think he could get about $40 for each 30-milligram pill around here,” Limani said.
“I would recommend anyone working in a pharmacy who may see a person come in with something covering their face immediately approach that person and demand they remove the items covering their face,” Limani said.
“Here, based on the MO, there is a good chance it is the same person involved,” Limani said.
Anyone with information is asked to contact police at 724-832-3288.
Paul Peirce is a staff writer for Trib Total Media. He can be reached at 724-850-2860 or email@example.com.


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50pc rate cut to lure 'staycation' families
A FOUR-STAR hotel in the south east hopes "staycations" will boost business in 2010 as tourism numbers continue to plummet.
Faithlegg House Hotel, close to Waterford city, had a tough 2009 -- but hopes more of us holidaying at home will make 2010 easier.
With the bottom all but fallen out of the overseas market since the global slump took hold, the hotel is targeting Irish families.
"Our rates are down and it's the same as every other hotel in the country, but the other side of the coin is that our occupancy is up," said Faithlegg general manager Alison Redmond.
"I wouldn't say it will be a garden of roses but we'll get through 2010. It can't be any worse than 2009."
Faithlegg House, along with the other hotels in the FBD group, has cut its rates by up to 50pc, and the Waterford hotel can now boast an average standard room at €50 per night.
Renowned as a golfing destination, Faithlegg is also branding itself as a family friendly destination with family-size rooms and nearby self-catering cottages aimed at bringing in parents and their children, along with a kids' club and special activities.
While fingers are crossed across the sector that people will choose home rather than away for their holiday this year, there's one key factor about which hoteliers can do little.
"We can do everything bar make the sun shine," laughs Ms Redmond.


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Brazil Trys To Calm Europe's Environmental Concerns
SAO PAULO (Reuters) - Delegates from Brazil's farm sector will visit Europe next month on a mission to convince customers that the expanding agricultural business is not harming the environment.
They intend to show that many of the accusations made by green activists against Brazilian agriculture -- for example, that increased cane planting is destroying the Amazon rain forest -- do not reflect reality, Carlo Lovatelli, president of the Brazilian Agribusiness Association (Abag), said on Monday.
"The (environmental) demand coming from the international market is very strong and the level of information from our country on this subject is still low," Lovatelli said.
Abag is organizing the roadshow together with Brazil's foreign ministry.
The road show, which will take place in the main European capitals, will be the first initiative from Brazil's agriculture sector to counter the claims it is adding to environmental destruction, Lovatelli said.
Activists groups have long complained that the fast expansion of Brazil's soy frontier was speeding up the destruction of forests.
Although producers and the industry have denied most of the accusations, some of the complaints are promoting changes in Brazil. About one year ago Brazilian soy crushers and exporters decided to stop buying soybeans grown in the Amazon basin.
Last week, farmers in Brazil's top soybean producing state, Mato Grosso, agreed to pull out the existing crop in preservation areas to comply with regulations.
Consumers, especially in Europe, started to demand proof of origin and soy industry leaders felt it was time to take action to prevent buyers from turning to other sources.
Brazil is the world's second-largest soybean producer, behind the United States.
"We have little problems that have to be addressed (but) we know a lot of things being said are not truth or at least are being exaggerated," Lovatelli said, citing soy planting in the Amazon forest.
He said soy is planted in only 1.5 million hectares of the Amazon, which has more than 400 million hectares. Part of it was planted in areas deforested many years ago, when legislation was not so severe as now.
"We have only 1.5 percent to 3 percent of Brazilian soy coming from the Amazon area," Lovatelli said.


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Bloomberg Businessweek Report Looks At AB InBev Merger, Asks If It's Killing "The King Of Beers"
By Chuck Sudo in Food on Oct 30, 2012 9:45PM
Photo credit: Chris Wilson
Yet that’s the subject of a Bloomberg profile on AB InBev titled “The Plot to Destroy America’s Beer.” Bloomberg’s Devin Leonard looks at AB InBev four years after InBev bought Anheuser-Busch in a $52 million hostile takeover and sees what’s become of the behemoth company under CEO Carlos Brito: higher price points for beers like Budweiser and Bud Light; lower production costs; and the higher profit margins that make Wall Street analysts cream their custom tailored slacks quicker than a Thai massage. Leonard lists numerous instances where beer drinkers come to the realization that macro brands like Bud, Beck’s and Stella Artois are all being brewed at Anheuser-Busch plants across the country, and how they aren’t happy with it.
Leonard interviewed Brian Rinfret, who fell in love with Beck’s beer while in Germany and how he discovered modern versions of the beer he bought were brewed in American plants.
Rinfret, who is now 52, stopped on the way home from work at his local liquor store in Monroe, N.J., and purchased a 12-pack of Beck’s. When he got home, he opened a bottle. “I was like, what the hell?” he recalls. “It tasted light. It tasted weak. Just, you know, night and day. Bubbly, real fizzy. To me, it wasn’t German beer. It tasted like a Budweiser with flavoring.”
He examined the label. It said the beer was no longer brewed in Bremen. He looked more closely at the fine print: “Product of the USA.” This was profoundly unsettling for a guy who had been a Beck’s drinker for more than half his life. He was also miffed to have paid the full import price for the 12-pack.
Rinfret left a telephone message with AB InBev (BUD), the owner of Beck’s and many other beers, including Budweiser. Nobody got back to him. He had better luck with e-mail. An AB InBev employee informed him that Beck’s was now being brewed in St. Louis along with Budweiser. But never fear, the rep told Rinfret: AB InBev was using the same recipe as always.
He wasn’t satisfied. In March, he posted a plea on Beck’s official Facebook (FB) page: “Beck’s made in the U.S. not worth drinking. Bring back German Beck’s. Please.” He had plenty of company. “This is a travesty,” a fellow disgruntled Beck’s drinker raged. “I’m pretty bummed,” wrote another. “I’ve been drinking this beer religiously for over 20 years.” Rinfret kept trashing Beck’s on Facebook. Until, he says, AB InBev unfriended him in May. “They banned me from their site. I can’t post anything on there any longer.”
Rinfret was only temporarily silenced. He now complains on a Facebook page called Import Beck’s from Germany. AB InBev may be paying a price for disappointing Beck’s loyalists like him.
Leonard notes that sales of brands like Beck’s and Budweiser are down in the U.S., but on the upswing internationally, which is all well and good for AB InBev’s bottom line. According to numbers Leonard cited from Beer Marketers Insights, shipments of Bud Light have declined 3 percent from 2009 through 2011 and Budweiser shipments have experienced a 12 percent drop. The company has also made cost-cutting moves like using cheaper hops in its major brands, which may help explain how Brian Rinfret discovered his Beck’s was now being brewed in the U.S.
The article also touches on the AB InBev purchase of Goose Island and how that clouds what is defined as a craft beer. Leonard writes of the decision to brew 312 Urban Wheat Ale (which Leonard calls “312 Imperial Pale Ale”) and other Goose Island flagship beers at AB plants. It freed Goose Island's Fulton Street brewery to focus on the specialty ales and experiments that have long been the stock in trade—Bourbon County Stout, for example, has never been easier to buy.
Graham Haverfield, beer director at the Wine Library in Springfield Township, N.J., told Leonard this decision by AB makes it harder for fans of Goose Island beers to trust where it’s being brewed.
“If I’m asked upfront by a customer, ‘Have you had this?’ Well, I don’t know,” he sighs. “The last time I had it, it was brewed in a different place.” He’s still a Goose Island fan, but he doesn’t know what AB InBev is doing with it. “I have a problem with a craft beer like Goose Island being treated like a mass-produced brand,” Haverfield says. “It’s a slippery slope.”
Leonard's article may or may not be the one AB InBev wants to read just as Goose Island is poised to become the company's national craft beer brand in November. Or they may not care so long as their ledger is flooded in black ink.


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YouTube reached a new deal with Walt Disney on movie rentals
Video hosting YouTube continues the planned transformation, trying to leave a chaotic set of home videos with cats, kids and other lovely things, and it wants to get the status of the service provider that offers really high-quality content. Now Google are negotiating with many companies trying to get the new quality content for YouTube. It has already been done really a lot, and recently Walt Disney company has joined the list of YouTube partners.
Now you can watch the regular and animation movies on YouTube which rights belonged to Walt Disney. It is true that at first all content will be available only to the western users, but it is unclear when residents of other countries will be able to watch these films and cartoons. Walt Disney will provide old movies and cartoons, as well as the new products. In addition, they plan to place an extra content, like coverage from the shooting areas, and more. All this will be available online for fee. Namely, there will be used the usual payment system for the right to watch any video materials. By the way, among other materials will be available for rental the content from Disney, Disney-Pixar and DreamWorks Studios.
It is worth noting that Walt Disney does not just provide existing content for YouTube, but it also creates new materials specifically for this service. In addition, Walt Disney hopes to raise the popularity of own websites on the web by teamwork with YouTube. Until now, the company was not zealously engaged in the development of its services and resources, and now according to the Walt Disney management, it is time to do it.
It is a fact that the company owns about a third of assets of video hosting Hulu, which has the wide popularity in the USA. The collaboration with YouTube will help Walt Disney to become even more competitive against other companies that make the video content. Well, it is just a great advantage for all users, as far as they can watch on the web whatever they want. There is a disadvantage for the people from the CIS countries, because it is not clear when Walt Disney will be available on YouTube. However, there are other options.
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The successor to the original Realme GT Neo, the GT Neo2 is coming and has now been confirmed to launch on September 22 by the brand. The smartphone has appeared in TENAA, Geekbench listings so far, which have already revealed the device’s specifications.
Realme GT Neo2 will launch in China on Wednesday, September 22nd at 2 PM local time (11:30 AM IST). The launch date teaser confirms the name of the device and teases it as well with curved edges.
A recent Geekbench listing for the smartphone suggests it will have the Qualcomm Snapdragon 870 Processor that will power the smartphone. To recall, the predecessor GT Neo had the MediaTek Dimensity 1200 SoC. In addition, the device is loaded with 12GB of RAM. However, there might be more RAM variants when it launches.
Realme GT Neo2 Specifications
The Realme GT Neo2 should sport a 6.62-inch FHD+ display with a Refresh Rate of up to 120Hz. Further, the smartphone would also feature an in-display fingerprint sensor for security. Further, it will be powered by the Snapdragon 870 SoC. Moreover, there should be 8GB of RAM and 128GB of storage.
More variants should be available at the time of launch. It could be running Android 11 based on Realme UI 2.0. A 64MP primary sensor should headline the triple camera setup on the back. The other two Sensors could be an 8MP ultra-wide angle and a 2MP macro camera. A 5,000mAh battery will back it with support for fast charging.
As per the leaked renders of the Realme GT Neo2, it will come with a punch-hole design. The render shows that the phone will come in a Blue colour variant. However, the phone is also said to come in Black colour. The right EDGE of the phone shows a power key. The left side has volume rocker buttons.


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The numbers and projections point to massive growth in connected products. There is virtually no argument around this forecast, and even the casual observer is now well-aware of the potential to acquire and user Internet of Things products in their homes, cars and just about anywhere they work and live.
One of the key ways to truly gauge success of a new market element is through adoption, and this year we expect to see lower cost connected products drive a huge increase in IoT product adoption. With this, IoT will truly become a key ingredient of in the technology market. Everyone in the consumer IoT space is looking for the killer app that will drive adoption to the tens of millions of connected homes. The key is to demonstrate, through viable products, that connectivity can make a difference, make consumers lives’ easier, safer or save them money, at no price premium over traditional un-connected.
Key elements of experience are a meaningful hero moment that it be easy to install. Great hero moments, all at low cost. For example what sounds better? A $100 wall-plug-unit that listens for your smoke/CO detector or a new Nest Protect for $100? Or a $35 battery to make your existing smoke/CO detector to send you a message if smoke/CO in your home is detected? THIS is where we are going to see major advancements in 2016.


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Dubai: ENOC Group will invest Dh250 million from its overall 2021 expenditure towards its digital transformation strategy.
2020 "made us re-evaluate our operations and urged us to adopt innovative measures to keep up with the fast-paced transformation our sector is going through," said Saif Al Falasi, Group CEO, ENOC. “While increasing our market share remains a priority, we are focused on strengthening our business to ensure we have the capabilities to face any future challenges."
In 2019, the company introduced initiatives under its broader strategy of diversifying its business streams. ENOC launched 'Next' , an accelerator programme that builds new digital ventures for business-to-business and consumer categories, and introduced ‘Masar’; a digital transformation programme that seeks to completely integrate all its divisions to enhance efficiencies.


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To him, there are reasonable explanations why people could be somewhat excited about GameStop. One of its newest board members, Ryan Cohen, helped turn Chewey into one of the largest online pet product sellers in the world, before selling it to PetSmart. GameStop’s also on a track to being profitable again.
But that doesn’t come close to explaining GameStop’s share price now. “It’s a Ponzi scheme,” Pachter said, referring to a form of fraud that appears to make money but in fact is only propped up by funding from new investors. “There is a point where it’ll go down.”
He suspects that may happen after the company reports its quarterly results in March, at which point executives and investors on the board are allowed to sell their shares.
In the meantime, the social media hype is continuing on Reddit, where users are declaring their intention to buy and hold more GameStop shares, all to send prices even higher.


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The best of Wisconsin is coming to Illinois for a day.
The Wisconsin Beer and Cheese Tour comes to Aurora’s RiverEdge Park from 4 to 7:30 p.m. May 31. It’s a new craft beer tasting festival with a creamy, savory twist — it’s a cheese and sausage tasting festival too.
“We’re bringing what Wisconsin offers to Illinois,” said Zoe Barker, marketing manager with BrewFest Partners, a firm specializing in consulting, planning, hosting and managing beer festivals.
Curt Foreman, founder of BrewFest Partners, had the brainchild to enliven craft beer festivals and take them to the next level, she said.
“Wisconsin has the best cheese, the most award-winning cheeses,” she said. “This is something that is different and unique from the other beer festivals. It’s going to be really fun because you can do really specific pairings.”
There will be an array of Wisconsin beers, artisan cheeses and sausages.
Breweries on tap include Leinenkugel’s, 3 Sheeps, Wisconsin Brewing Company, Capital Brewery, Central Waters Brewing Company and many others. The Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board will provide the several types of cheeses, and meat will be provided by Gilbert’s Craft Sausages.
“We’re going to have all different styles and we’ll be able to pair those — certain cheeses go better with certain beers,” she said. “The tokens we give out can be used for beer or cheese or sausage, and then you can purchase additional meal-sized portions.”
In addition to the sampling of craft beer, cheese and sausage; attendees can enjoy live music and other food-related demonstrations and activities. Milwaukee band The Invaders will perform.
Ticket holders receive a commemorative pint glass and 24 sampling tokens. VIP ticket holders may enter the park early at 3 p.m. and receive an additional six tokens, snacks and exclusive VIP beer tasting in the VIP Deck overlooking the grounds, and a $10 voucher off designated fest merchandise.
A Designated Driver ticket includes unlimited soda and water and 10 food sampling tokens.
“We’re expecting a big group, and we’re excited because RiverEdge Park is gorgeous,” she said. “I think it’s going to be a really fun festival. It’s something different, especially for people who go to beer festivals a lot. This one’s not your average festival. We’re celebrating everything that’s fun in Wisconsin in Illinois.”
The tour will come to Wheaton at the end of June at the DuPage County Fairgrounds.
Speaking of Wheaton, the annual Taste of Wheaton festival begins on June 5 with a Chamber luncheon and later on, a beer garden in Memorial Park from 4 to 9 p.m. where four craft beers will be featured. That’s where you’ll be able to nosh at the Slice of Wheaton, while you listen to entertainment provided by singer Eric Howell and later, Chemically Imbalanced and Vital Signs. A carnival will be on Liberty Street from 4 to 10 p.m.
Check out a look at the Taste of Wheaton, which runs June 5-8, in next Friday’s edition.Tags: beer
Wisconsin beer and cheese tour
RiverEdge Park, 360 N Broadway St., Aurora