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The European Parliament’s Special Committee on Beating Cancer introduces a tobacco harm reduction perspective
20th Dec 2021
The European Parliament’s Special Committee on Beating Cancer introduces a tobacco harm reduction perspective as part of recommendations in its recently published report, but regrettably also recommends measures counterproductive to this aim.
In 2020, the European Parliament approved the creation of a Special Committee on Beating Cancer (BECA). BECA concluded its work on 9 December 2021, by adopting a report with calls for stronger EU action against cancer, on its last meeting before the end of BECA’s mandate. In the report, BECA introduces for the first time a tobacco harm reduction perspective on EU level.
Harm reduction and to promote legislation that encourages consumers to stop smoking and switch to less harmful products is a core ambition of Pouch Patrol. Pouch Patrol is grateful to our customers who have taken an interest in our products and advocated for a harm reduction perspective. We would also like to thank all of those who have shared valuable insights with BECA for this report. We are pleased to see that this commitment has paid off and that the concept of harm reduction is now included in the EU Parliament committee’s recommendations for the future work within the European Union to prevent disease and promote a healthy lifestyle.
BECA was vested with several responsibilities, including evaluating scientific knowledge on the best possible prevention of cancer and identifying specific actions and future measures in the fields of tobacco control.
Among its recommendations in the report, BECA strongly supports the goal of a tobacco free generation and notes that electronic cigarettes could allow some smokers to progressively quit smoking. BECA therefore calls on the Commission to fund programmes that promote smoking cessation. BECA further emphasizes, inter alia, that tobacco consumption is a risk factor common to other chronic diseases and BECA therefore believes that cancer prevention and risk reduction measures have to be implemented in the context of an integrated chronic disease prevention programme. BECA also calls on the Commission to pursue scientific evaluations of health risks for comparing electronic cigarettes and various tobacco products.
Pouch Patrol advocates for a risk-based approach in relation to tobacco and nicotine products, to encourage the switch from more harmful products such as cigarettes to less harmful products such as nicotine pouches. We are very happy to see that BECA in its recommendations shares this view.
The situation in Sweden serves as an example of why harm reduction and a risk-based approach to tobacco and nicotine products is important from a public health perspective. Sweden has the lowest percentage of smokers in the European Union and the lowest rate of tobacco related diseases and deaths. This is explained by the fact that other types of tobacco and nicotine products, mainly snus (tobacco pouches for oral use) and nicotine pouches, are more widely used in Sweden than in other countries. In fact, Sweden is the only Member State where sale of snus is legal. The situation in Sweden clearly shows that enabling sales of safer and healthier products and putting legislation in place that allows the sale of such products has a significant impact on the public health.
Pouch Patrol regrets to see that BECA’s report includes recommendations for restricting flavouring for electronic cigarettes and tobacco products. To reduce smoking, it is important that smokers are presented with attractive alternatives to encourage the switch to safer products. An important part of making safer products appealing is the flavouring. The recommendations for restrictions of flavouring are therefore at risk of being counterproductive in relation to the goal of reducing smoking.
Medicinal products with nicotine have been around for a long time but have not had any significant effect on smoke reduction and cancer prevention. It is clear that these products are not perceived as an appealing alternative by smokers. Smoking rates are however typically lower in countries with more liberal legislation in terms of design and marketing of tobacco and nicotine products. Sweden, with the lowest percentage of smokers within the European Union, has liberal legislation and snus and tobacco pouches are available in a variety of flavours on the Swedish market. The UK and Norway also have more regulations in place that allow for risk reduction products and are the European countries where smoking has gone down the most in recent years. The common denominator for countries that are more successful in reducing smoking rates is that these countries have legislation that ensures access to innovative and appealing risk reducing products.
In relation to legislative changes, BECA in its report welcomes the Commissions intention to review the Tobacco Products Directive and urges the Commission to take appropriate measures and to bring forward legislative proposals to prevent people from starting smoking.
Pouch Patrol welcomes the recommendations of the BECA report and the clear tobacco harm reduction perspective it introduces on EU level. We hope that the Commission considers the recommendations of BECA in its review of the Tobacco Product Directive and that the concept of harm reduction is reflected in coming legislation. Legislative changes to encourage consumers to switch from cigarettes to safer and healthier alternatives would have a significant impact on public health and would lead to lower rates of tobacco related diseases and deaths within the European Union. For this reason, it is discouraging to see that the report also includes recommendations that would discourage consumers to switch from smoking to safer alternatives.
Following the adoption by BECA of the report, the report will be subject to a Parliament’s plenary voting and is expected to be adopted in early 2022. We will continue our mission for legislative changes to incentivise consumers to switch to safer and healthier products to achieve public health goals within the European Union. In our efforts, we need your help to ensure that counterproductive measures such as restrictions for flavouring are not introduced in the coming legislation. We therefore urge you to reach out to your local decision makers and inform of how you managed to stop smoking and the role that nicotine pouches have played in your journey to become smoke free.
Together we can win the fight against smoking and achieve the goal of a healthier, happier Europe!


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'Master' gets 500 screen in North India!
Reported By 07 Jan 2021
Thalapathy Vijay's Master is all set to release in more than 500 screens in Hindi, Tamil& Telugu across Central India, Rajasthan, Delhi/UP, and East Punjab. UFO Moviez, India’s largest digital cinema distribution network and in-cinema advertising platform to release the film in these territories.
"As theatres are striving to survive amidst the pandemic, big-budget movies like Master will help pandemic-hit theatres get back on their feet and thrive. We salute the makers of Master for their convictions in releasing the film at this crucial juncture and are happy to be a part of this opportunity to help resurrect the cinema industry. Master has the potential to revive the fortunes of the ailing cinema industry and prompt release of big-budget films across India. We intend to aggressively cross-promote stars of one region in other regions with a vision of ONE NATION ONE FILM", said Mr. Kapil Agarwal, Joint Managing Director, UFO Moviez.
Kamal Gianchandani, CEO of PVR Pictures said: “Master is one of the most keenly awaited films. There is massive excitement around its release across the country. The entire film business would be watching its box office numbers closely. Master’s release is the beginning of the film sector’s recovery”.
Apart from the record number of screens in Tamil Nadu, due to the Hindi release, Master gets an additional 500 screens.

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Sri Lanka’s Ministry of Industry and Commerce announced today that the first batch of low priced rice out of the huge 100,000 MT Indian rice tranche has been offloaded and is now moving within Sri Lankan retail market, ending any supply fears.
According to the press release issued by the Ministry during the November 4-5 weekend, a total of 20,000 MT tranche of parboiled ‘nadu’ rice sent by an Indian supplier to the Cooperative Wholesale Establishment (CWE) of Sri Lanka have been offloaded at Port of Colombo and been distributed to CWE warehouses.
The value of the received 20, 000 MT rice stock is USD 8.9 million (Rs 1.36 billion). This rice stock is now being re-distributed from CWE warehouses to Lanka Sathosa outlets to be sold at only Rs 74 per kilo. Any consumer purchasing more than 25 kilos of this rice from Lanka Sathosa can buy them even lower-only Rs 73 per kilo.
Meanwhile, the open international tender call for 200,000 MT rice in three varieties, also successfully closed in Colombo last week.
The Cabinet Appointed High Powered Tender Board is expected to pick the qualifying suppliers for this 200,000 MT international tender by this Friday 10 November. Private sector suppliers from Pakistan, Myanmar, Thailand, India, and Vietnam quoted. Several Sri Lankan suppliers too submitted their bids in this 200,000 MT total which consists of three varieties-90,000 MT Parboiled Nadu rice, 60,000 MT Samba (Parboiled) rice and 50,000 MT White Raw rice.
Of the 200,000 MT rice called for, Sri Lanka expect 100,000 MT to arrive in Colombo by end November 2017 and the other 100,000 MT to arrive by end of December 2017.
According to Minister of Industry and Commerce Bathiudeen, domestic Lankan rice market has faced supply pressures as three consecutive harvesting seasons (2016 & 2016/’17) failed to produce usual paddy volumes resulting in a 50% fall in domestic rice supply this year, thereby necessitating imports to the country to sustain the market.


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iPhoneForums.net News Team
- Jun 15, 2010
- Reaction score
- Bay Area, CA
However it looks like Pebble wants its brand of smartwatch to appeal to even more customers. This week, the company announced the Pebble Time Round. The Round model is "the first smartwatch that looks like a classic wristwatch," according to Pebble CEO Eric Migicovsky.
Pebble Time Round is only 6.5mm thin and weighs just 28 grams. The newly designed watch has all of the same features as the Pebble Time, but due to the thinness, the battery only lasts around 2 days.
To make up for the battery life, compared to the Pebble Time which lasts a week, the company added a new quick charge feature. Quick charge will allow Pebble Time Round users to add up to a day of battery with only 15 minutes of charging.
Pebble Time Round is available to pre-order today for $249, with an estimated shipping date this November.


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Video Games Are "Ultimate Art Form," John Romero Says
"In the future, museums will fully understand and be able to explain why games are the ultimate art form."
Veteran game designer John Romero (Doom, Quake, Wolfenstein) answered loads of questions today on Quora, including some around topics like whether or not video games are art and the state of contemporary first-person shooter games.
On the subject of games as an art form, Romero said he absolutely believes they are. In fact, he predicts that one day people will understand games to be the "ultimate art form."
"I absolutely believe this," he said. "Programming is an art form. Level design is an art form. Animation and modeling is an art form. Writing is an art form. All of that put together create a kind of Mega-art form that's very complex, especially when done well. In the future, museums will fully understand and be able to explain why games are the ultimate art form."
Ever since the late film critic Roger Ebert famously declared that video games could never be art back in 2005, the debate surrounding the artistic value of interactive entertainment has continued to rage on. In 2011, the US government recognized video games as an official art form.
Romero's comments won't likely be the last time the matter is brought up.
Another Quora user asked Romero for his thoughts on the FPS genre today. He said one side effect of big-budget games is that innovation can sometimes fall by the wayside. But one game that stands out for him as particularly innovative is Bungie's Destiny.
"It's great to see that FPS's are not in danger of going away--there are several out and in production," he said. "I haven't seen a lot of crazy innovation since the 90's. As budgets get huge the design risks go down. It's great to see an FPSMMO like Destiny out--we've been waiting a long time for that."
Romero is answering tons of questions about game development and other industry topics, including esports, emerging technologies, and working with John Carmack. Head to the Quora session page to see more of his responses.
The products discussed here were independently chosen by our editors. GameSpot may get a share of the revenue if you buy anything featured on our site.


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it’s saturday One of you, or perhaps many of you reading this, is likely doing a mix of business and leisure travel right now. Mixed travel seems real.
The work-from-anywhere movement that took hold during the pandemic shows no signs of abating, giving way to a growing travel sector, the rise of so-called mixed travel. What does that mean anyway? If you have no idea, it probably means you’ve already booked a trip for work and tagged in a few days for yourself and your family.
In fact, the Skift Research team included the topic in their recent “State of Travel 2022” report as one of the biggest trends of the year and beyond.
Here are three charts that make the trend clear.
not to mention …
And finally …
Perhaps American Airlines Chief Commercial Officer Vasu Raja said at the Skift Global Forum in New York City in September, “What the pandemic has really unleashed and the recovery from it is a great merger. “People don’t have to work five days, stay private two days, and take two weeks off a year.”


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1. First, Michael W. Smith did a hymns album with Cracker Barrel. Now, it looks like Casting Crowns will be following suit. Brian Scoggin from the band told fans last week that the band was working on a "very special" Casting Crowns album, coming in 2015.
2. What was the biggest song of 2014? According to Billboard's year-end Christian Airplay chart, Phil Wickham's "This is Amazing Grace" was at the top of the pile, followed by Newsboys' "We Believe" and Hillsong UNITED's "Oceans." Citizen Way's "How Sweet the Sound" and Crowder's "I Am" rounded out the Top 5.
3. Andrew Peterson showed this week that two of his Wingfeather Saga series books are atop the Christian Fantasy charts on Amazon. Third place goes to C.S. Lewis. Great job, Andrew!
4. Luke of for KING & COUNTRY became a proud papa again this past weekend! He and his wife, Courtney, welcomed Phoenix to the world. All are doing well, and one could imagine big brother Jude is enthralled with his little brother.
And speaking of baby news, Britt Nicole officially hit her 32nd week of pregnancy with her second child--a boy. Just 8 weeks to go, she excitedly reported.
5. Casting Crowns is making a hymns record--they announced it last week--and the legendary Stu G of Delirious fame apparently is lending his electric guitar licks to the project, as a recent Instagram post showed.
6. Switchfoot's Jon Foreman had a column published on Huffington Post earlier this month where he talks about how "recording is the art of forgetting"--meaning, people need to stop trying to capture experiences, and instead just experience them. Think about it… how many cell phones do you see out at concerts?
7. It's been a year of surprise Christmas releases, and perhaps Laura Story's release is the most surprising. She released her new Christmas album, God With Us, exclusively on her website THIS YEAR, and next year it'll be online and in retail stores. So, essentially, she's doing like the earliest possible pre-release of a 2015 record.


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LONDON (MarketWatch) -- Cognizant Technology Solutions CTSH, +0.51% said Monday that its fourth-quarter net profit rose 43% to $206.2 million, or 66 cents a share, from $144 million, or 47 cents a share a year earlier. Revenue for the quarter grew 45% to $1.31 billion. The information technology consulting and outsourcing company said adjusted earnings in the quarter were 70 cents a share. Analysts polled by FactSet Research had been expecting earnings of 65 cents a share on sales of $1.28 billion. The firm said fiscal 2011 earnings are expected to be at least $2.68 a share and revenue is expected to be at least $5.79 billion. Analysts had expected 2011 earnings of $2.71 on revenue of $5.73 billion.
Cognizant profit jumps 43%


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REDMOND, Wash., May 13, 2015 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Nintendo reaches out directly to gaming fans, media and partners with a dynamic lineup for E3 2015, starting with the exciting return of the Nintendo World Championships after a 25-year hiatus. At select Best Buy locations around the country, consumers can vie for a coveted spot in the tournament finals set in Los Angeles to kick off E3 week on Sunday, June 14. Separately on Tuesday, June 16, online viewers can score the latest Nintendo news as it breaks by tuning in to the Nintendo Digital Event, followed by Nintendo Treehouse: Live @ E3, daily live-streamed game demonstrations from the Nintendo booth. Finally, Nintendo will deliver a piece of its E3 experience to consumers nationwide, with two hands-on sampling days of the upcoming Mario MakerWii U game at participating Best Buy stores. This year, Nintendo will go beyond the show to deliver the E3 spirit and inside scoop to a bigger audience than ever via http://e3.nintendo.com and Nintendo’s social media channels.
“Whether you’re tuning in online or joining us at the show, we want to include fans of all ages this E3 with an innovative and nostalgic focus on fun,” said Reggie Fils-Aime, Nintendo of America’s President and Chief Operating Officer. “I’m especially eager to bring back the Nintendo World Championships and to crown the 2015 Nintendo World Champion.”
The E3 2015 video game trade show takes place June 16-19 in Los Angeles. Nintendo’s main events taking place during E3 include:
Nintendo World Championships 2015
Nintendo Digital Event
Nintendo Treehouse: Live @ E3
Nintendo Access: Mario Maker at Best Buy
More information about the Nintendo World Championships, events at select Best Buy stores and other Nintendo events during E3 will be announced shortly. Keep an eye on Nintendo’s social media channels, or visit http://e3.nintendo.com.
About Nintendo: The worldwide pioneer in the creation of interactive entertainment, Nintendo Co., Ltd., of Kyoto, Japan, manufactures and markets hardware and software for its Wii U™ and Wii™ home consoles, and Nintendo 3DS™ and Nintendo DS™ families of portable systems. Since 1983, when it launched the Nintendo Entertainment System™, Nintendo has sold more than 4.3 billion video games and more than 680 million hardware units globally, including the current-generation Wii U, Nintendo 3DS and Nintendo 3DS XL, as well as the Game Boy™, Game Boy Advance, Nintendo DS, Nintendo DSi™ and Nintendo DSi XL™, Super NES™, Nintendo 64™, Nintendo GameCube™ and Wii systems. It has also created industry icons that have become well-known, household names such as Mario™, Donkey Kong™, Metroid™, Zelda™ and Pokémon™. A wholly owned subsidiary, Nintendo of America Inc., based in Redmond, Wash., serves as headquarters for Nintendo’s operations in the Western Hemisphere. For more information about Nintendo, please visit the company’s website at http://www.nintendo.com.
Note to editors: Nintendo press materials are available at http://press.nintendo.com, a password-protected site. To obtain a login, please register on the site.
About Best Buy: Best Buy is a leading provider of technology products, services and solutions. The company offers expert service at an unbeatable price more than 1.5 billion times a year to the consumers, small business owners and educators who visit our stores, engage with Geek Squad agents or use BestBuy.com or the Best Buy app. The company has operations in the U.S. and Canada, where more than 70 percent of the population lives within 15 minutes of a Best Buy store, as well as in Mexico where Best Buy has a physical and online presence.
Photos/Multimedia Gallery Available: http://www.businesswire.com/multimedia/home/20150513006116/en/
Copyright Business Wire 2015


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UPDATE 1/12, 2:15 PM ET: Adding MSPRs for the Z2 and Q2 entry-level configs. LAS VEGAS, NV — ECS demonstrated a few of its upcoming ultra-compact form-factor (UCFF) PCs based on the Gemini Lake platform at CES 2018. The new LIVA Z2 and LIVA Q2 systems enhance the performance and feature-set of the currently available LIVA Z and LIVA Q. The Liva One SoC is a new addition to the lineup. It comes with improved storage and I/O capabilities. The key innovations in the new LIVA PCs are enabled by Intel’s Gemini Lake SoCs with Intel’s UHD 600-series iGPU. In particular, the new processors offer higher general-purpose performance compared to their predecessors because of the Goldmont Plus CPU microarchitecture. The SoCs also feature an improved media...
ECS Adds LIVA Q to Lineup: a 5 Oz Apollo Lake Nettop with HDMI 2.0 for Consumers
ECS has expanded its family of ultra-compact LIVA-branded PCs for consumers with a new model called the LIVA Q, which is smaller than some mice. The new system is...8 by Anton Shilov on 11/14/2017


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Talk of potential civil war and fears of possible Russian intervention in Ukraine are on the rise. Global market reaction is relatively restrained, but here’s what you need to ..
Tesla has been screaming higher for the past two months and thgeir latest announcement of a "Gigafactory" has it headed even higher today. ..
Underlying strength in the economy, however, remains less than stellar at the start of the year," said Diane Swonk, chief economist at Mesirow Financial in Chicago. The C ..
T-Mobile: how to separate a great product and a great CEO from a less than great stock. ..
The Reformed Broker himself Josh Brown gives us an insider look into Jordan Belfort's debauched time running Stratton Oakmont ..
Freddie Mac (FMCC) said on Thursday it will soon send the U.S. Treasury a $10.4 billion dividend after posting a ninth straight quarterly profit, putting taxpayers further int ..
Best Buy returned to a profit in the fourth quarter and topped Wall Street expectations as it cut costs to offset declining sales. The specialty electronics retailer says it g ..
The Commerce Department said on Thursday durable goods orders excluding transportation rose 1.1 percent, the largest increase since May, after falling 1.9 percent in December. ..
J.C. Penney might be back from the dead but Brian Sozzi of Belus Capital Advisors breaks down the two sides of the company and points out there are still rough waters ahead. ..
The profit in the fourth quarter, during one of the most heavily promoted and discounted holiday-shopping seasons since the recession, boosted Best Buy's shares by 6 perc ..


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Here are 10 things you should know for Monday, April 25:
1. -- U.S. stock futures pointed to a lower open for Wall Street on Monday and European and Asian shares slumped ahead of rate-setting meetings this week of the Federal Reserve and the Bank of Japan.
European stocks followed Asian indices lower and remained subdued throughout the morning after a key indicator of German business confidence came in short of expectations.
Oil prices in the U.S. fell 1.4% to $43.13 a barrel.
2. -- The economic calendar in the U.S. Monday includes New Homes Sales for March at 10 a.m. EDT
3. -- U.S. stocks on Friday ended mixed as earnings dragged on the tech-heavy Nasdaq.
The index slumped even further into the red for the year as major companies including Microsoft (MSFT) and Alphabet (GOOGL) tumbled. The Nasdaq ended the day 0.8% lower and is now down 2% for the year.
It was a better day for the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average which, while mixed, came off their session lows by the middle of the afternoon. The S&P 500 was flat and the Dow climbed 0.12%.
4. -- Novartis (NVS) , the Swiss drug giant, is looking to dispose of a 13.5 billion Swiss franc ($13.8 billion) stake in local rival Roche (RHHBY) and already has hired banks to support the selling process, a Swiss paper reported on Sunday, according to Reuters.
Novartis started building up the stake -- worth 33% of Roche's voting shares -- as a basis for a possible merger more than a decade ago, but the plan never materialized, Reuters said.
Novartis plans to sell the stake in a so-called order book process, having banks collect purchase offers within a predefined price range from selected investors, weekly Swiss newspaper Sonntagszeitung said, citing board and banking sources.
5. -- Can maker Ball (BLL) cleared a major obstacle to the closing of its ¿5.4 billion ($7.8 billion) purchase of the U.K.'s Rexam (REXMY) by striking a $3.42 billion agreement to sell assets to Ardagh to meet regulatory conditions of the larger deal.
On arranging the assets sale, the Ball, of Broomfield, Colo., also scrapped a $1.58 billion-revenue limit on the amount of operations it would be willing to divest that formed part of its February 2015 takeover deal with the U.K. target. It said the assets it will hand to Ardagh had 2015 revenue of $3 billion and Ebitda of $375 million.
Under the agreement, the Luxembourg company will buy can factories and associated infrastructure in Europe, Brazil and the U.S.
6. -- Ford (F) isn't interested in a merger with Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCAU) , CEO Mark Fields said on Saturday, when asked about FCA head Sergio Marchionne's remark that Ford could be a potential merger candidate.
"I can't speak to what Sergio or others wake up and want to say," Fields told reporters ahead of this week's Beijing motor show this week, Reuters reported.
After being rebuffed by General Motors, Marchionne said last week that Ford, Toyota and Volkswagen are the only remaining merger candidates for Fiat Chrysler.
7. -- Separately, Fiat Chrysler said it's targeting "significant double-digit growth" for jeep sales in China this year, according to Mike Manley, chief operating officer for the automaker's Asia-Pacific region.
Manley, speaking at the Beijing auto show, told reporters that pricing pressure will continue in China's sports utility vehicle market, Reuters reported.
Princing pressure will continue in China's broader car market through 2016, Manley said, with most pressure on the price of passenger vehicles.
Must Read: These 7 Stocks Under $10 Are Breaking Out
Goldman's shift down market comes as the bank is under pressure to develop new streams of funding.The bank last week launched GSBank.com, a platform it inherited through the acquisition of a $16 billion book of deposits from GE Capital, the FT reported.Through that deal it gained about 145,000 retail depositors and is now seeking more, offering annual interest rates of 1.05% on a savings account -- many times better than the rates of the biggest U.S. brick-and-mortar lenders. FT said.9. -- In the three days since Prince died at the age of 57, he has sold more than 579,000 albums (both digital and physical), according to Nielsen Music representative Fran Curtis, USA Today reported. By comparison, Prince sold 1,400 in the three days prior -- an increase of 42,000%.10. -- Earnings are expected Monday from Halliburton (HAL) , Express Scripts (ESRX) and Xerox (XRX) .


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Column | Jan 12, 2014
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BERLIN (Reuters) - German industrial output rose slightly more than forecast in February, driven by higher production of intermediate goods and suggesting Europe's biggest economy could be on track for a strong first quarter. Data from the Economy...
Story | Apr 2, 2014 | 12:35 PM
The economic surge in the San Francisco Bay Area and other parts of California that's being led by the tech boom could create a "superstar" economy of haves and have-nots, an economist said in connection with a new economic forecast released Wednesday....


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Customs officials in China have seized hundreds of fake FIFA World Cup trophies about to be sent all over the planet.
The realistic-looking trophies were discovered by Nanning Customs officers in 41 boxes with a total of 492 fake trophies inside.
Like the original, the replicas show the world being held up by two human figures with the words ‘FIFA WORLD CUP’ on the base.
Nanning Customs said in a statement obtained by Newsflash: “The ‘FIFA WORLD CUP’ logo was printed on the trophies, and the parties concerned were unable to provide legal and effective export certification procedures for the above-mentioned goods.
“They were suspected of infringing on the exclusive right to use the trademark registered by the obligee in the General Administration of Customs.”
The real FIFA World Cup Trophy – worth around USD 20 million (GBP 16.5 million) – was first introduced in 1974 and is made of solid 18-carat gold with a malachite base.
It was made by the Stabilimento Artistico Bertoni company in Italy and the current holders of the trophy are Argentina, winners of the 2022 World Cup.
Replicas of the trophy can be bought through FIFA on Amazon for less than GBP 5.
The statement added: “The batch of goods has been handed over to relevant departments for follow-up disposal.”


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BMW to separate Mini showrooms in Germany-paper
FRANKFURT Oct 1 (Reuters) - BMW dealerships in Germany will be asked to better segregate sales space between BMW and Mini cars, BMW Germany sales chief Karsten Engel told weekly auto industry publication Automobilwoche.
"There cannot be different brands in the same showroom," Engel told Automobilwoche.
Currently some BMW dealerships sell Mini vehicles within their open-plan showrooms.
BMW is pushing for separate sales areas before introducing a new generation of small BMW-branded front-wheel-drive cars, Automobilwoche said.
Because the technological underpinnings of the new BMW cars are similar to that of the Mini, the Munich-based auto maker is pushing for more distinct sales areas.
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By Gift Samuel
The Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment has launched a National Committee for the Continental Free Trade Area (CFTA) negotiations
The Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr. Okechukwu Enelamah who inaugurated the committee on Thursday, said the inauguration is intended to reinforce the process for national economic recovery and development, across all areas, adding that it is auspicious and timely.
Also, the Nigerian Economic Summit Group (NESG) will from henceforth, be part of the Nigerian negotiating team for the CFTA, as approved by President Muhammadu Buhari.
According to the Minister; “We need to grow and modernize the Nigerian economy through African trade integration. This would require focus, discipline, organization, determination and the exercise of that famous entrepreneurial spirit for which Nigerians are renowned the world-over”.
Speaking to the members of the committee, the Minister stated: “it is my singular honour and privilege, on behalf of H.E. Mr. Muhammadu Buhari, President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, to inaugurate this National Committee for CFTA. I wish you all the start of hard technical and policy work, to use the CFTA Negotiations to diversify, modernize, drive growth and create jobs in the Nigerian economy”.
Nigeria’s goal with the CFTA is to create win-win partnerships that will drive inward investment; support Nigerian exporters of goods and services to secure expanded market access in other African economies; and create jobs for Nigerians.
Committee members are drawn from Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment; Office of the Vice President; Ministry of Budget and National Planning; Ministry of Justice; Ministry of Foreign Affairs; Ministry of Finance; Nigeria Customs Service; Nigeria Immigration Service; Central Bank of Nigeria; Manufacturers Association of Nigeria.
Others are, National Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture; NESG; Nigeria Investment Promotion Commission; National Bureau of Statistics; National Association of Nigerian Traders; Nigeria Export Promotion Council; National Coalition of Service Industry; National Association of Small Scale Industries; Representatives of Academia; and Representatives of Digital Economy (Jumia, Iroko and Andela).
The Terms of Reference are: to serve and advise government, as the national multi-stakeholder technical platform on the CFTA Negotiations, across all the negotiating areas, including, but not limited to goods, services, investment, competition and intellectual property;
Also, to monitor the negotiations and undertake analysis to ensure that the negotiations and emerging results approximate the goals for the negotiations established by the Government; identify the opportunities and challenges facing the country in trade with other African countries, both intra and Inter-Regional Economic Communities (REC); and, participate in the negotiations, as appropriate.
At their summit in 2012, African Union (AU) Heads of State and Government decided to establish a Continental Free Trade Area, as part of a plan to industrialize the Continent by 2063 as well as boost Intra-Africa trade, currently, at only 19%.


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Toyota has just recorded 1,000,000 Priuses on the road.But what are the chances of the next million coming on stream quickly. They just took a big hit.
It looks like Toyota could get badly caught by the very philosophy it helped made popular.Toyota's supply chain is known as "just-in-time" . This Just in Time process helped the company save billions of dollars in capital by not having to store inventory. Just in Time still worked until March 11,2008 when Japan's great quake hit.And unfortunately for this concept and for Toyota the global supply chain for auto manufacturing relied on critical parts built in factories in Japan. While most of these facotries weren't directly impacted by the Quake, the rolling black outs from the nuclear power failure have affected them.
Toyota was founded in 1933 and is based in Toyota City, Japan. It has more than 300,000 employees The company has a market capitalization of $126 billion with an enterprise value of $238 billion.In 2008, it was the largest automobile manufacturer in the world, a title previously held by General Motors for 70 years
While the majority of these factories were not affected by the quake or tsunami directly, they have been affected by rolling black outs, or a lack of parts from vendors who provide them with sub-assemblies that are sent to the factory. And this is when the weakness in the Just in Time approach becomes apparent.
In the US, Toyota is canceling overtime and cutting back on shifts,and the company share price has fallen significantly since February.
For other stories about all aspects of climate change , check out Celsias
1 million Priuses


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All the drivers will take part in Volvo's Eco-Safe driving course
Almost 200 new company cars, primarily Volvo V70 2.0 Flexifuel models but also V70 2.0D models, will be delivered over the next few days to employees of soft-drinks producer Coca-Cola in Sweden. The cars will be delivered to various locations throughout Sweden, where the drivers will also take part in the Volvo Driving Academy's Eco-Safe course, whose aim is to make the drivers both safer and more energy-conscious behind the wheel.
"This is yet another step in our local pro-environmental work, which we conduct within a variety of areas. Eco-driving, which puts the focus on driving economically, promotes not only lower fuel consumption but also less wear on our new cars and even on our drivers, who benefit from a calmer and more relaxed working environment," says Anne Lindfeldt, press officer at Coca-Cola Drycker Sverige.
This year marks the 10th anniversary of cooperation between Volvo Personbilar Sverige AB (Volvo Car Sweden) and Coca-Cola Drycker i Sverige AB.
For further information:
Volvo Car Sweden: Press officer Bo Larsen, +46-31-325 25 68 or firstname.lastname@example.org
Coca-Cola: Press officer Anne Lindfeldt +46-8-500 75116 or email@example.com
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Cox Target Media decides to keep Valpak
- Michael Hinman
- Tampa Bay Business Journal
After months of speculation about whether or not its Valpak Direct Marketing Systems Inc. unit would be offered for sale, Cox Target Media has made it official: It’s going to keep the blue envelope advertising company.
John Dyer, executive vice president and chief financial officer for Cox Target Media parent Cox Enterprises Inc., said the company was happy with Valpak’s bottom line and the leadership of Cox Target Media, Greg Bicket.
“Valpak has strengthened its core business and identified new ways to generate revenue and increase exposure for its clients,” Dyer said in a release. “And, in a year of economic uncertainty, Valpak provides great cost savings for consumers.”
In the Triad, Val Pak of the Piedmont, a Summerfield-based operation, targets customers in Guilford, Forsyth and Alamance counties.
Typically a close-vested private company, Cox took the unusual step in August 2008 to let the business community know it was looking to sell Valpak soon after it opened a $220 million facility in St. Petersburg near its Largo headquarters.
Cox hired Goldman Sachs to help market Valpak, which was being offered for sale as well as some of its newspapers including the company’s standalone papers in North Carolina, Colorado and Texas.
A value was never placed on Valpak, which Cox has owned since 1991, but it’s reported to have annual revenue of $260 million. Cox overall says it has revenue exceeding $15 billion.
Now that it will remain with Cox, the company says it will continue to move Valpak into the digital age. That includes optimizing its Web site and creating an iPhone application and interfaces for other mobile devices.
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AMDOCS COLLECTS CLARIFY FOR BARGAIN-BASEMENT PRICE
Amdocs validated much speculation last week when the billing and customer care developer waved $200 million in front of Nortel Networks and came away with the best assets of Clarify, a Nortel unit that makes customer relationship management systems.
Before handing over the goods, however, Nortel will reorganize the division as part of an overall restructuring and deliver what Amdocs President and CEO Avi Naor calls “a leaner and stronger Clarify team.” That likely means that most of Clarify's 1200 employees will be cut.
“The company went through some rough times in the last 18 months,” said Eli Gelman, senior vice president of sales for Amdocs. “You would expect more people to have pursued other opportunities, but a lot of these people are almost emotionally attached to the company.” Gelman singled out some key management, including the leaders of Clarify's R&D group, the global sales organization and professional services. The deal will boost Amdocs' profile and product offering in the increasingly important CRM market, according to a report on the acquisition by CIBC World Market.
customer relationship management
An information industry term for methodologies, software, and usually Internet capabilities that help an enterprise manage customer relationships in an organized way.
To the CRM market in general, the deal is harder to quantify. “I wouldn't call it a wake-up call, but the other CRM vendors need to be thinking about what impact this will have on their organization,” said Scott Donahue, OSS program manager for Stratecast Partners. Clarify brings Amdocs about 200 telecom customers, including BT, Global Crossing and Level 3 Communications.
“These aren't just systems installed in some corner of one of the departments of the organization but in mission-critical mainstream call centers such as BT's,” Gelman said.
Some claim Nortel never capitalized on Clarify's potential. “Nortel had some significant reasons for purchasing Clarify, thinking they could make it pay off in a big way,” Donahue said. “But they really struggled — as a hardware company — to work out an OSS solution.”
Amdocs interviewed several Clarify customers to confirm the acceptance level of the company's offerings, Gelman said.
Amdocs will deal with some unhappy customers by leaving them behind. “For those who have not updated their maintenance agreement, we do not resume responsibility automatically,” Gelman said.
It also will keep Clarify's enterprise customers at arm's length by partnering with system integrators.
“We will retain our focus on telecom because we believe it is the strength of our company,” Gelman said.
Despite similarities between the software of Amdocs' and Clarify's software, the integration will be as much of a challenge as Amdoc's March 2000 acquisition of IP billing company Solect. “I don't think they have that integration down quite yet, and now they are biting off another large, ambitious project,” Donahue said.
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Domestic production in Japan decreased by 3.3% to 266,174 vehicles, while overseas output rose 3.8% to an all-time high of 566,930 for the month.
The company attributed the increase in global sales and production to solid demand, particularly in North America, and a recovery in parts supplies that had been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Toyota had previously expected to produce 9.7 million vehicles this fiscal year but revised the target down to 9.2 million in November due to rising materials costs and a shortage of semiconductors. Despite the decrease, the revised goal is still ahead of last year's production of approximately 8.6 million units.
Impact of COVID-19 on Toyota's Production Goals
The COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on Toyota's production goals and operations. In January, the company expected to produce 700,000 vehicles, a decrease from its original target of 9.7 million for the fiscal year. The reduction in production goals was due to rising materials costs and a shortage of semiconductors, which have affected many industries worldwide.
Despite the challenges posed by the pandemic, Toyota has managed to maintain strong demand, particularly in North America, and has seen a recovery in parts supplies. This has allowed the company to exceed last year's production levels and reach a new record in November.
Looking ahead, it remains to be seen how the ongoing pandemic and other factors will continue to impact Toyota's production and sales. However, the company's strong performance in November suggests that it is well-positioned to weather any challenges that may come its way.


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Cut-throat competition holds back 02
Britain's biggest mobile phone company, O2, today warned that its profit margins are likely to fall short of expectations in the UK as the battle to sign up customers becomes ever more cut-throat.
The warning comes a day before Vodafone reports its half-year figures, with many analysts expecting it to reveal a slowdown in growth across much of Europe.
O2 chief executive Peter Erskine said: 'It's become even more competitive than ever in the UK with particular pricing pressure coming from T-Mobile but also from Vodafone and Orange. That's good news for customers who can expect some attractive deals in the run-up to Christmas, but it also means our profit margins this year will be about 1% lower than we had forecast.'
He said the lower margin also reflected the cost of adding more customers. In the past three months, O2 gained a net 524,000 new customers in the UK, taking it to 17.4m, which is the country's leader in terms of subscribers but behind Vodafone in terms of revenues.
Erskine raised his revenue growth forecast for the year from 8%-11% to 14%-15% in the UK after they grew by 15% in the third quarter. He added: 'We are outperforming the others with 40% of net additions in the UK.'
He reckons Vodafone's decision to put its UK distribution exclusively through Phones4U should create opportunities for O2 to increase its sales through Carphone Warehouse.
O2's revenues grew by 6% in Germany and fell 1.7% in Ireland. The newly added Czech Republic business saw a 6.5% rise in revenues. Across the group's 34.4m customer base, 6.49bn text messages were sent or received, up 26% on a year earlier.
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Shazam's music discovery app is now available for the BlackBerry Storm, the company announced Monday.
Shazam listens to songs through your phone's microphone, and then tells you the artist and song title. It has been available on other BlackBerry devices since the launch of App World in April, but that now extends to the touch-screen Storm smartphone for those in the U.S., U.K., and Canada.
Users can download the app from BlackBerry App World or Shazam's mobile site. It's available in a free, basic version or a full-featured premium version for $4.99. The premium version includes tags, tag charts, recommendations for similar tracks, artist biographies, reviews, and discographies. Shazam is now offering a free, seven-day trial of the premium version.


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Oregon Sen. Ron Wyden introduced a bipartisan bill to send the message that our country should only accept trade deals that will boost middle-class U.S. families and advance Oregon values.
The bicameral bill includes unprecedented new provisions to improve transparency, boost Congressional oversight and require stronger enforcement for existing trade agreements, U.S. trade laws, any new trade agreement.
The Bipartisan Congressional Trade Priorities and Accountability Act, introduced by Wyden, Senate Finance Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, and House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Paul Ryan, R-Wisc., creates a process for negotiating trade deals, by instructing the administration to follow congressional priorities on trade. In exchange, Congress agrees to vote on trade agreements that live up to TPA conditions in a timely manner.
“Opening foreign markets, where most of the world’s consumers reside, is critical to creating new opportunities for middle-class American jobs in Oregon and nationwide. This bill, together with strong new enforcement tools, Trade Adjustment Assistance and the Health Coverage Tax Credit, sets our country and our state on the right track to craft trade policies that work for more people,” Wyden said.
“I’m proud this bipartisan bill creates what I expect to be unprecedented transparency in trade negotiations, and ensures future trade deals break new ground to promote human rights, improve labor conditions, and safeguard the environment,” Wyden said. “At the core of this agreement is a new mandate for the Open Internet, free speech and digital commerce, by ensuring information can flow freely across national borders over the Internet.”
The founder of Chris King Precision Components welcomed the news of an agreement that will allow Congress to consider a Trans Pacific Partnership with the United States’ trade partners in the Pacific Rim.
“Eliminating trade barriers would be a huge boost for our export business, which makes up 40 to 45 percent of our revenues,’’ said Chris King, whose 140-employee Portland company turns aluminum, steel and titanium into bike parts. “We have no doubt that leveling the playing field in international trade would benefit our company because our high-quality bike parts are in such great demand globally.”
Doug Krahmer, a St. Paul, Oregon blueberry grower with 500 acres, also praised the trade developments.
“We are blessed in Oregon to grow more blueberries than we can possibly eat, and their incredible flavor, consistent quality and high nutritional value make them hot commodities around the world,” Krahmer said. “Reducing trade barriers in Pacific Rim markets is good for local jobs and is a fantastic opportunity to share the bounty of such a coveted Oregon crop like blueberries.”
Mike Budd, Director of International Sales of Portland-based Triad Speakers said progress toward lowering trade obstacles in the Pacific Rim would carry significant benefits for the company and its 47 employees.
“Our employees in Oregon design and manufacture high-quality, build-to-order loudspeakers that we know the rest of the world wants to buy,” Budd said. “We look forward to growing our export business even more in the Pacific Rim countries once there are agreements in place that allow fair competition in that large and growing market.”
To ensure trade works for everyone, the bill includes unprecedented new requirements to increase trade transparency:
– Future trade deals, including the Trans-Pacific Partnership, must be public for 60 days before the president signs them, and send them to Congress.
– Every member of Congress is required by law to have access to trade negotiations.
– The administration must publish regular summaries of its proposals in trade negotiations.
– A new process to put the brakes on bad trade deals that do not meet the conditions of TPA.
The bill also makes major strides toward raising the bar for labor, environment and human rights:
– Trading partners must adopt and maintain core international labor and environmental standards, with trade sanctions if they do not comply
– Promoting human rights and democratic societies, for the first time ever, are a formal negotiating objective in trade deals,
– Promoting free speech and commerce online, by calling for the free flow of digital information across national borders.
The package creates new tools to enforce trade deals and hold trading partners accountable for living up to agreements:
– Includes Sen. Wyden’s ENFORCE Act, enabling swift action to ensure foreign trade cheats are stopped before U.S. jobs are lost.
– Establishes new directives to require the Administration to focus on fighting foreign trade barriers that have the most impact on U.S. jobs and growth, with specific timetables and Congressional consultations to ensure that it follows through on enforcement priorities.
Disclaimer: Articles featured on Oregon Report are the creation, responsibility and opinion of the authoring individual or organization which is featured at the top of every article.


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Suppliers of whey, dairy proteins, emulsifiers and other ingredients for salad dressings will welcome the findings of a new survey that reveal 95 per cent of Americans consume salads at least three times per week.
In addition, not only do most Americans eat salads regularly, but they perceive others who eat salads regularly as being healthier, happier and, apparently, sexier.
According to the survey, commissioned by the association for dressings and sauces, the survey found that of the salad-eaters polled, 91 per cent said they were happy. What is more, those who eat a salad as a main dish for a meal are 'more likely to be happy', claims the study. More than a quarter of those polled thought people seen eating salads are sexier than those seen eating some other food, continues the study.
other pre-conceptions relating to salad eaters finds the majority of consumers polled seeing someone who eats salad as 'self-disciplined, health-conscious and healthier than others'. Eighty-seven per cent of those polled said that salads are much more 'healthful' than other foods, regardless of the topping.
Not totally surprising, the poll found that women and older consumers are more likely to order salads because they enjoy the taste. These same consumers who follow a healthy diet order salads for the taste rather than just because they are healthy, 'which means that they eat salads for enjoyment as well as healthfulness', said the association in a statement this week.


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Austria: Consumer confidence records worst reading since April 2009 in March
Consumer confidence came in at minus 20.0 in March, down from February’s minus 8.0. March’s result marked the worst reading since April 2009. As a result, the index moved further south of the neutral zero-point threshold and signaled that consumers turned more pessimistic.
The headline deterioration in sentiment came on the back of notably more downbeat views on the financial situation of households in the past 12 and the next 12 months, while sentiment regarding the general economic climate in the year ahead nosedived. These developments are linked to the escalation of tensions in Eastern Europe that ledto a full-blown war in Ukraine. The war has seen energy commodity prices spike, and Austria, which is highly reliant on Russian gas, has been hit particularly hard. As such, views on inflation in the next 12 months deteriorated. A higher energy bill has also eaten into consumers’ pockets and, as a result, sentiment regarding major purchases in the year soured.


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On the heels of its successful 2013 Virtuoso Travel Week, suppliers of the international luxury travel network are reporting that personalized travel and services catering to the individual traveler are now the top benchmarks defining the luxury travel market.
“It’s not enough to experience a destination,” said Virtuoso chairman and CEO, Matthew D. Upchurch, CTC. “Travelers want to do so in a way that is completely unique to them.”
Experiences must appeal to personal interests and, according to Virtuoso suppliers, companies are even changing their brand proposition to better support this trend.
Among the supplier news released at Virtuoso Travel Week, Isramworld has unveiled specialized Jewish heritage and GLBT tours to Cuba.
Crystal Cruises, striving to help guests get a better night’s sleep, is launching hypoallergenic cabins for guests, in conjunction with hospitality innovator Pure Global, to deliver a healthier environment.
In the U.K., The K Club, a member of Preferred Hotels & Resorts, has announced the opening of Straffan House, a private residence in County Kildare, Ireland.
Travel specialists NoteWorthy Events is responding to the popularity of “Downton Abbey” with private access to the sold-out Highclere Castle, the filming site of the hit television show, located in Hampshire, England.
Hosted at Bellagio Las Vegas from Aug. 10-16, Virtuoso celebrated its 25th anniversary this year, welcoming more than 4,100 attendees.


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There has been lots going on this past week, with Gamescom just a few days away, the tsunami of games and new hardware for our living rooms will come crashing through and all of the wondering and questions will be answered.
Call Of Duty: Ghosts is one of the most anticipated games due for release before Christmas. There is not a single COD fan that isn’t at the edge of their seats with pure anticipation to get their hands on it.
Infinity Ward held a conference last week to reveal the new Multiplayer gameplay footage.
Here is the Trailer:
It looks really smart, with some cool features and map dynamics, playing online will surely be a new experience.
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LOS ANGELES — The parent company of Gelson’s Markets, which operates 17 specialty grocery stores in Southern California, announced today that it has entered into a definitive agreement to be acquired by TPG, the global private investment firm, in an all-cash transaction valued at $394 million.
Under the terms of the agreement, Arden Group Inc. shareholders will receive $126.50 per share owned in cash. The company announced in mid-July that it was evaluating its options, including a potential sale.
Bernard Briskin, chairman, president and CEO of Arden Group, said the agreement “delivers significant value to our shareholders. In addition, it is a clear endorsement of Gelson’s Markets and of the hard work and commitment of our employees with whom I have had the privilege to work with for more than 40 years.”
Carrie Wheeler, partner at TPG, called Gelson’s, which was founded in 1951, “an iconic Southern California supermarket chain that prides itself on offering quality and unmatched customer service. We look forward to working with the team to further expand Gelson’s footprint of premier supermarkets.”
The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions. There is no financing contingency. The sale is expected to close in the first quarter of 2014.
TPG, a private investment firm founded in 1992, has $55.7 billion of assets under management and offices in San Francisco, Fort Worth, Austin, Beijing, Chongqing, Hong Kong, London, Luxembourg, Melbourne, Moscow, Mumbai, New York, Paris, So Paulo, Shanghai, Singapore and Tokyo.
TPG has invested in a number of retail franchises, including Burger King, Daphne, J. Crew, Neiman Marcus Group and Petco.


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Among the many surprises pre-loaded into the 3DS, Nintendo's next big handheld device, the biggest is that the thing is packed with a hidden role-playing game. It's no Final Fantasy or Dragon Age. It's something simpler and, arguably, more important.
Kotaku · Stephen Totilo
The cool but short Batman Arkham VR game released for PlayStation VR last year is now out for Oculus Rift and the Vive. This is a…
Kinja is in read-only mode. We are working to restore service.


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Australia is poised to welcome back international visitors, however, the tourism industry cannot sustain a start–stop approach
Most notably we have an industry which is critically understaffed for both skilled and unskilled workers and this will mean restrictions on what tourism operators can offer and their ability to scale up to meet demand.
Internationally-focused tourism businesses across Australia require clarity on continued Government support to plan for their recovery.
The Australian Tourism Export Council welcomed two new Government initiatives aimed at supporting the industry through the COVID crisis and beyond.
This member engagement program will provide first-hand information on the challenges being faced by export tourism businesses across ATEC’s eight state and regional branches.
Regional tourism businesses reliant on ‘high spending’ international visitors will be the big losers if Australian ITO’s are not supported.
Australian tourism businesses which have traditionally had a heavy focus on catering to international visitors will need continued government support to ensure they remain capable of reigniting inbound tourism once borders reopen.


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Image credit: Martin Rhodes
But the 72-year-old fastmoving consumer goods guru says he cannot comment on the fortunes of the critically injured Steinhoff until the group gets its financial affairs in order, only stating that he has never been a big investor in the company.
"I don't know if they have been dishonest or not," he said on Monday.
After 37 years as boss of Shoprite, Basson left the grocery group in late 2017. But like his entrepreneurial peer, Bidvest founder Brian Joffe, he has come galloping back from retirement in short order, now taking up the role of a nonexecutive board member of dairy group Clover.
"I've done nothing from September to December - just tried to sort out my life of 40 years," he said. "Hopefully, I've got another 40 years."
Whitey Basson is back in the driving seat months after his exit from Shoprite, accepting an offer to become an independent nonexecutive director of JSE-listed dairy group Clover.
16 Jan 2018
He said he had spoken to a lot of the "guys" at Steinhoff, including Wiese, and was "sorry for the millions of people" who had seen their investments compromised by the collapse in the share price of the Stellenbosch-based corporate giant.
Shoprite announced in October 2016
that Basson would retire at the end of that year. But to ensure an orderly change in leadership he stayed on as nonexecutive vice-chairman and helped the management under new CEO Pieter Engelbrecht. He had remained on the Shoprite board as nonexecutive vicechairman until recently.
Basson spent nearly 45 years with Shoprite, during which the business grew from an eight-store chain worth R1m to a sub-Saharan African retailer with a market capitalisation of about R124bn. Wiese, who remains chairman of Shoprite Holdings, had stated on Basson's retirement that he was "a very strong and charismatic leader".Source: Business Day


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THE DVD player is the fastest-growing consumer-electronics product in history, and the pace is not slowing down. Since it came on the market six years ago, Americans have bought 61 million players, almost one-third of them this year alone, and that's as of the week before Thanksgiving. More than 36,000 films are now available on DVD and nearly half of those were released in just the last two years.
So why, among this vast stockpile, is there not a single Marx Brothers comedy or Astaire-Rogers musical?
DVD's scheduled for release next month include ''Cabin Fever,'' ''American Wedding,'' and ''2 Fast 2 Furious.'' Why don't they also include ''White Heat,'' ''The Magnificent Ambersons'' or ''Ninotchka''?
Studio executives, most of whom insisted on anonymity, say that most of these films -- and many other long-awaited classics -- are being prepared for DVD right now, and that they will hit the bins in the next year or two. But why have they taken so long?
There are, of course, distinctions here. It should be no surprise that few films by Uzo, Visconti, Mizoguchi or Bresson have shown up on DVD. They're coming, but slowly; demand is limited.
But first-time DVD shoppers might be shocked to learn there's no ''Bringing Up Baby,'' ''The African Queen'' or ''Duck Soup.''
''Duck Soup'' is an instructive case. In 1997, Universal Studios, which owns the film, leased the DVD rights for it and two other Marx Brothers comedies -- ''Horse Feathers'' and ''Animal Crackers'' -- to Image Entertainment, which released all three in a boxed-set edition.
That was the first year of the DVD. Nobody knew whether the format would succeed. The lease lasted three years. When it expired in 2000, Universal resumed ownership, and the Image box went out of print. (It has since become a collectors' item, with some stores selling the few remaining copies for $229, more than five times the original price.)
Meanwhile, one studio executive said, Universal has quietly been assembling a respectable new DVD -- creating a new negative (the original nitrate negative no longer exists) and searching the archives for bonus-feature material.
'' 'Duck Soup' is a special movie,'' said the executive, who asked not to be identified because Universal has not yet announced the reissue. ''We want to treat it specially.''
The executive also said Universal would soon release several W. C. Fields comedies.
Two other missing Marx Brothers films, ''A Night at the Opera'' and ''A Day at the Races,'' were owned by Ted Turner, who in the mid-1980's bought the film libraries of MGM, RKO and pre-1949 Warner Brothers. In the age of Beta and VHS, Turner Home Video put many of those movies out on videotape.
With the big media mergers of the 1990's -- first Warner Brothers and Time, then Time-Warner and Turner-CNN -- the libraries passed back to Warner Brothers.
For the last five years, frustrated cinephiles have wondered when Warner Home Video would start making DVD's from even a few of the 3,000 films that it inherited from Turner.
Warner was, at first, a slow adapter; its early DVD's were disappointing in quantity, visual quality and bonus features. But in the last few years, the company has transformed itself. Its DVD's are plentiful; their visual quality is consistently good, often stellar. And now, finally, the company is dipping into the Turner archive.
They have announced that ''Gaslight,'' ''Goodbye Mr. Chips'' and ''Days of Wine and Roses'' will be released in January and February. Unofficially, one executive said, they are preparing, for release in the next year or two, ''Top Hat,'' ''Meet Me in St. Louis,'' ''Death in Venice,'' ''The Damned'' and several newly restored Chaplin films.
Correction: December 21, 2003, Sunday A picture caption last Sunday with an article about older films not available in America on DVD referred incorrectly to Marx brothers comedies. As the article noted, several have indeed been released on DVD, though they are not in print. Another caption misstated the availability of ''Blade Runner.'' As the article noted, a DVD version is available. Because of an editing error, the article also misstated the name of a film and video distributor that specializes in classic films. It is Rialto Pictures, not Rialto Films. Correction: December 28, 2003, Sunday An article on Dec. 14 about older films not available on DVD misspelled the surname of a Japanese director included in a list of famous filmmakers who have had few works issued on DVD because of limited demand. He was Yasujiro Ozu, not Uzo.
Fred Kaplan is a columnist for Slate.com and a film critic for The Perfect Vision.


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Customers of Japan-based Quoine subsidiary crypto exchange Liquid can now trade buy and sell Maker’s Dai, a decentralized, ERC20-based stablecoin, according to a blog post from the exchange.
Dai is an algorithmic stablecoin that controls is value by creating and burning tokens in accordance with supply and demand. It is collateralized with ETH, the native token of the Ethereum network. When the price of DAI exceeds USD$1, it can be sold for more than it’s worth, which increases the coin’s supply and causes it to fall back to USD$1; when it is below USD$1, users can use it to pay off debt within the system, which increases demand and raises the price.
While DAI isn’t regulated, its decentralized governance and transparency model have caused some to believe that it is more secure than its centralized stablecoin counterparts, such as Tether dollars (USDT).
However, another blog post from Liquid posted in November warned traders against becoming overly dependence on unregulated stablecoins: “the problem begins as dependence on these stablecoins grows. Trading with unregulated stablecoins could be extremely dangerous to crypto as a whole. If unregulated stablecoins fail, the effects can be catastrophic,” the post explained.
But the post also said that “stablecoins can and should be an excellent resource for traders, which is why exchanges have been quick to jump at the chance to list them, especially in absence of having the necessary regulatory approval to list fiat.”
Liquid made headlines earlier this month when it was announced that a sale of Telegram’s highly-anticipated GRAM tokens would be hosted on the exchange. However, only USD and USDC can be used to buy GRAM tokens.
But the tokens being sold on Liquid are not actually being sold by Telegram itself, but by Gram Asia, the largest holder of Telegram tokens.
“We are excited to be partnering with Gram Asia to launch the Gram token sale, which is wonderful news to our community who are native users of Telegram,” said Mike Kayamori, co-founder and CEO of Liquid. “We share the vision for a more secure and open value transfer system in order to enable the mainstream adoption of cryptocurrencies.”
Finance Magnates interviewed Quoine’s Nick Chong earlier this year. To hear that interview, click here.
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Almost half of home workers are spending more time at their desks at weekends than pre-lockdown
Enjoy some free time at the weekend thanks to Bord Gáis Energy’s new flexible smart plans
- 71% of the nation are struggling to differentiate the weekends from the weekdays.
- 47% finding it hard to separate their home and work lives; with almost half finding they work more at weekends than pre-lockdown.
- Making the most of weekends; 6 in 10 are enjoying getting outdoors while 46% have turned to takeaway meal boxes as their weekend treat.
- Dinner dates, traveling outside restricted areas and going to the pub with friends listed as the main things the nation is missing from weekend life.
- With more time being spent at home, consumers are conscious of higher energy bills; with 61% powering up lighting and heat for longer periods, while 42% admit to using more Wi-Fi and personal appliances.
- Bord Gáis Energy’s new range of smart plans offer ‘Free Time Saturdays’ and ‘Free Time Sundays’ for customers with smart meters, allowing them to save money, improve energy efficiency and be kinder to the environment.
Almost half of home workers admit to working more at weekends than pre-lockdown while 71% say they struggle to make the weekends feel different from Monday to Friday; that’s according to new research by Bord Gáis Energy.
The survey of 1,000 people which examines how the nation is spending their time in lockdown, was carried out to mark the launch of Bord Gáis Energy’s new range of smart plans, helping customers make the most of their smart meters. The smart plans include a choice of either 'Free Time Saturday’ or ‘Free Time Sunday’ offers, giving Bord Gáis Energy customers free electricity between 9am and 5pm on their specified day at weekends. Additionally, Bord Gáis Energy’s ‘Discount Weekend Plan’ gives customers a night rate all weekend, meaning lower energy costs from 11pm on Friday, right through to 8am on Monday.Learn more about Smart
With very little to differentiate the weekend from weekdays, it’s perhaps no surprise that over half (53%) of people polled admit to using their free time at the weekends for more mundane tasks like doing the household chores. However, 63% say they try and make the weekend feel different by using their free time to enjoy the great outdoors while a quarter have a designated date night at the weekends.
Almost half have been investing their free time in a new hobby or skill; 32% say they have taken up running, cycling, or walking; while 31% have started baking and 19% have become involved in arts and crafts.
Despite being in the house more there are some past at-home indulgences we’re keen to reinject to our homelives, with almost 1 in 4 (24%) looking forward to entertaining around live sporting or music events at home, and nearly 20% longing for a little bit of me-time in the house to relax.
While lockdown has been a challenge, the results of the survey show that many will take positives from the experience. More than a half (56%) pledge to continue spending more time with their family post lockdown and 51% say they hope to continue with a better work/life balance and enjoy more time at home. A third vow to keep up their new hobby and 35% say they will continue their fitness routine.
Although those polled are keen to keep up with the positives, the nation can’t wait to reembrace some of the weekend’s more typical pursuits; with more than half missing a restaurant meal with friends and family (57%) and more than 1 in 3 longing for the moment that they can reunite with friends in bars and pubs (35%).
While there have been positives to spending more time at home, the latest Bord Gáis Energy research highlights that consumers are concerned about energy usage given the increase in time spent within their household. Heating and lighting use are the biggest concern among respondents, with 61% saying their usage has increased substantially, while 42% have been using more Wi-Fi and personal appliances due to working from home. Nearly 40% of all respondents are concerned by extra energy consumption driven by the use of extra usage driven by the use of kitchen appliances; with all meals being prepared and made in the kitchen too.
When asked about the concerns around higher energy use, Ireland’s number one worry was shown to be around energy estimates, with a fear that estimated meter reads will lead to higher accurate bills, or higher estimates in future. Bord Gáis Energy’s new smart plans alleviate this worry with real-time usage monitoring, smart bills and time of use tariffs; helping consumers measure their energy consumption better and get ahead of bills.
As the national roll out of smart meters continues, the Bord Gáis Energy research found consumers to be most motivated by saving money on their monthly bills, with consumers wanting to arm themselves with knowledge around which times of the week are cheapest for usage. Customers also want to put an end to estimates, with Bord Gáis Energy’s smart meter plans doing just that.
Colin Bebbington, Retail Director at Bord Gáis Energy said “The roll out of smart meters in Ireland offers Irish households access to more timely, detailed information of their energy usage; and with so many people working from home right now, improving energy efficiency and alleviating pricing concerns is high on the agenda.
We’re hoping our new smart plans and Free Time Saturday and Free Time Sunday offers will help in motivating Ireland to smarten up around energy usage at weekends – and inspire them to use their own energy and free time to brighten up their Saturdays and Sundays, and enjoy the things they love.”Learn more about Smart
Bord Gáis Energy’s innovative and flexible smart energy plans will help customers make the most out of their smart meters with bumper benefits for billpayers including No-more Estimated Bills, Time of Use Tariffs, Flexible Billing Options, Lower Carbon Footprint and New Smart Bills. Customers who have smart meters installed will be able to avail of a market-first range of smart energy plans; helping the nation to save money, improve energy efficiency and reduce carbon footprint – while enjoying free electricity each Saturday or Sunday.
Full Terms and Conditions and further information regarding Bord Gáis Energy’s new Smart Plan selection can be found at www.bordgaisenergy.ie
* Free Time units are available on 9am to 5pm on Saturday or Sunday each week. Customers can choose which “Free Day” they prefer at sign-up (Saturday or Sunday).
iReach Insights conducted this research, examining travel behaviour. The research conducted is nationally representative by Age, Gender, Region, SES and received 1,000 responses.


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Vietnam's US$700-million cashless payment network to be operational next year
The Hanoitimes - As of present, just 40% of citizens in Vietnam have bank accounts. However, 90% of daily transactions are conducted in cash, while the rate goes up to 99% for transaction worth under VND100,000 (US$4.34).
A US$700-million cashless payment network, jointly developed by South Korean payment servicer Alliex and the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV), is scheduled to become operational in 2020 and expanded over five years, Nikkei Asian Review reported.
As part of the plan, Alliex has signed agreements on providing point of sales (POS) with local banks, including Joint Stock Commercial Bank for Foreign Trade of Vietnam (VietinBank) and Saigon Thuong Tin Commercial Joint Stock Bank (Sacombank).
The system is part of a broader effort to realize the Vietnamese government’s plan on non-cash payment in the 2016 - 2020 period approved by the prime minister, aiming to reduce the ratio of cash transactions from 90% in 2016 to below 10%.
As of present, just 40% of citizens in Vietnam have bank accounts. However, 90% of daily transactions are conducted in cash, while the rate goes up to 99% for transaction worth under VND100,000 (US$4.34).
The core system will serve as a platform for electronic payments and bookkeeping. Tablets will be distributed to stores where the devices can be used to process QR payments and other cashless options.
In a meeting with Director of Alliex Part Byounggun on September 19, Deputy Prime Minsiter Vuong Dinh Hue said the the non-cash payment market has huge potential for development in Vietnam, and requested Alliex to closely cooperate with the Vietnamese central bank in finalizing an ecosystem for non-cash payment activities in Vietnam.
The Vietnamese government has issued policies on e-invoice and payment via bank cards, among others, while targeting an advanced level of public online services for online payment and processing administrative procedures in the internet, said Hue.
Alliex, wholly owned by a parent based in Japan, envisions earning fees from each transaction.
South Korea boasts one of the most advanced cashless societies with penetration exceeding 90%. As a mid-tier player in the market, Alliex is behind the payment systems used by Lotte group stores and South Korean Starbucks outlets. Overall, its payment systems oversee over US$700 million in transactions a year in South Korea.
- KEB Hana Bank, BIDV close biggest M&A deal in Vietnam’s banking industry
- Foreign investors eye Vietnamese promising insurance market
- Vietnam’s brand value rises to US$247 billion, ranking 42nd worldwide
- Vietnam’s benchmark VN-Index projected to jump 80%: Pyn Elite
- Fintech Challenge Vietnam promotes financial inclusion and digital banking
- IFC wants land use rights as collateral for loans in Vietnam
- Vietnam's US$700-million cashless payment network to be operational next year
Vietnam needs foreign aid to develop renewable energy
Hanoi promotes multifaceted cooperation with Belgium’s Antwerp province
Open mindset needed for public-private partnership law: PM
Hanoi’s air quality worsens to alarmingly unhealthy level
Vietnam’s IT gets golden chance from fresh investment wave
Vietnam gov’t insists on estimating trade deficit in 2020 after 4 years of surplus
Vietnam should be tougher in South China Sea issue: Int'l experts


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3D design studio
To Slash Product Design Cycles by 50%, Hyundai Opens New Design Studio Equipped with 3D Printing Technology
Three years ago, the government of South Korea formed a 3D Printing Industry Development Council and unveiled a plan to expand the country’s 3D printing infrastructure on a national scale….
Exclusive Interview: Designer Francis Bitonti Talks New Direction for Studio, Product Design, and the 3D Printing Industry
It may not be Silicon Valley, but residing in New York City certainly has its perks for a tech reporter, especially for one with a keen enjoyment for design and fashion. When…
Studio Bitonti: Francis Bitonti Studio Gets New Name Ahead of Expansion
The work of New York City-based designer Francis Bitonti is truly one of a kind. Whether the designer is creating a limited edition 3D printed silverware collection for Milan-based MƎTHESIS…


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February 2011 home sales numbers
We just got the housing-sales numbers for February, so until we can give a more comprehensive analysis, here's the gist:
Statewide sales, which hand been down in January, were almost identical in February (compared to 2010): 5,058 units in 2011 vs. 5,062 the year before.
Locally, though, things were different. Sales in Blacksburg and Northern Virginia were down in February after also being down last month. Meanwhile, sales were up in the Charlottesville, Richmond, and Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News regions -- although the average selling price dropped in all three areas. (In NoVA both average and total sales prices were up slightly in February.)
Both Lynchburg and Roanoke, which had seen sales increases in January, were down in February; Roanoke's total sales dollars was about the same in February 2011 as a year before, but Lynchburg saw that volume drop almost 16% year to year. (Good news for Lynchburg: It was the only area of the state where average days on market was lower than in 2010 -- down almost a month, from 160 days to 132.)
Bottom line, if there is one? The markets remain mixed, volatile, and unpredictable.
Want some more details for Feb? Here's a quick chart of sales, comparing February 2011 with February 2010:
Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News MSA


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Google recently launched their new phones in the Pixel lineup, Pixel 7 and Pixel 7. Pixel 7 series has been launched with Titan M2 chipset for security. Apart from this, the phone will continue to get security updates from Google for five years. Let’s take a look at its specifications.
The phone comes with a 90 Hz refresh rate 6.30-inch touchscreen display offering a resolution of 1080x2400 pixels (FHD+). Google Pixel 7 is powered by an octa-core Google Tensor G2 processor. It comes with 8GB of RAM. The Google Pixel 7 supports wireless charging, as well as proprietary fast charging.
The Google Pixel 7 on the rear packs a dual camera setup featuring a 50-megapixel primary camera, and a 12-megapixel camera. The rear camera setup has autofocus. It has a single front camera setup for selfies, featuring a 10.8-megapixel sensor. Google Pixel 7 is based on Android 13 and packs 128GB of inbuilt storage. It was launched in Lemongrass, Obsidian, and Snow colours. It features an IP68 rating for dust and water protection.
The price of Pixel 7 has been kept at Rs 59,999. It can be bought for Rs 49,999 with bank offer.


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President Trump appeared to up the ante in his trade disputes with China today by signaling his willingness to impose more tariffs than previously announced.
As NPR's Scott Horsley reports, Trump is ratcheting up the tit-for-tat with China over trade by asking his trade representative to consider tariffs on another $100 billion worth of Chinese imports.
"Neither Trump nor Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer immediately ordered tariffs. But the bellicose rhetoric from the White House represents an escalation in the tense trade standoff.
Earlier, Trump had suggested to an audience in West Virginia that an all-out trade war might be avoided.
Trump said, 'In many respects, I think we're going to have a fantastic long-term relationship with China. But we have to get this straightened out. We have to have some balance.'
Chinese tariffs on pork and nuts and a threat of tariffs on soybeans have already depressed farm prices in the US. Trump ordered his Agriculture Secretary to come up with a plan to protect U.S. farmers, though he did not say what that might involve."
As the Associated Press reports,
The latest escalation comes after the U.S. on Tuesday said it would impose 25 percent duties on $50 billion of imports from China, and China quickly retaliated by listing $50 billion of products that it could hit with its own 25 percent tariffs. The Chinese list Wednesday included soybeans, the biggest U.S. export to China, and aircraft up to 45 tons (41 metric tons) in weight. Also on the list were American beef, whiskey, passenger vehicles and industrial chemicals.
Earlier in the week, Beijing announced separate import duties on $3 billion of U.S. goods in response to the Trump administration's duties on all steel and aluminum imports, including from China.
Trump made his announcement after U.S. markets had closed.
That announcement drew a quick rebuke from Sen. Ben Sasse, R-Neb., who tweeted that the president is "threatening to light American agriculture on fire."
"Hopefully the President is just blowing off steam again but, if he's even half-serious, this is nuts," Sasse wrote.
The U.S. has a $375 billion dollar trade deficit with China.


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Consumers are continuing to voice their demand of favored products, and influencing retail strategies along with it. Amongst the latest is Wegmans, as the chain looks to make a lasting impression on the shelf with newly cut prices.
“We offer the lowest prices in the market on items families use most, so they don’t have to run around town to find the best value,” stated President Colleen Wegman, according to WTVR.com. “2016 has been a challenging year of deflation for our entire industry, lowering the costs and retails for staples like eggs and ground beef.”
With consumers growing interest in organics, the company has peppered the list with a healthy smattering of dairy products. According to the Wegmans website, consumers will now be able to purchase the following at a lower price:
The lowering of prices for products like organic almond milk and greek yogurt was specifically selected to “to keep current with the changing trends of what today’s families are buying most,” continued Wegmans.
This investment by Wegmans into lower prices covers over 40 products. Each item was selected for being the most consistently meaningful to families who shop at the store.
All products whose prices have been lowered are part of the Wegmans brand, to allow the company more aggressive decisions with pricing. To view the whole list, click here.
Will more buy-side chains be picking up this pricing trend? Keep your cursor over Deli Market News as we report.


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We're digital nomads, too. Let us give you some tips for kitting out your car as a mobile office.
Packages are loaded into small storage lockers, which can be opened from the outside of the vehicle.
Driver-assist systems can save the best of drivers from damage to your car, body, and bank account.
The latest generation of Audi's non-touch-based MMI infotainment system sets a new standard for the category.
With a comprehensive set of apps, configurable interface, and smartphone-based connectivity, Toyota's Entune infotainment system is better than ever.
The new update limits cars to driving the speed limit maximum plus five miles per hour on residential streets.
Based on CES 2016, the car of the future will not only drive for you but anticipate your personal preferences.
Ford announced partnerships with Amazon and DJI, and plans to get fully autonomous vehicles on the road.
Streaming will initially be available to customers in Europe, Hong Kong, and Australia, but not in the U.S.
The automaker on Thursday announced its largest ever five-year investment in electric vehicles.
A software update adds hands-free access to iPhone features to vehicles dating back to the 2011 model year.
With the Pioneer AVIC-7100NEX, CarPlay makes it easy and safe to use apps while behind the wheel.
The voluntary recall, Tesla's largest-ever, affects some 90,000 Model S vehicles.
Hyundai's Virtual Guide app uses augmented reality to teach owners how their car works.
No prior experience with cars is necessary, just a deep knowledge of software engineering.


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Shadowrun Online hits Early Access March 31
Players will soon be able to infiltrate the world of Shadowrun Online.
The game, being developed by Cliffhanger Productions, will hit Steam Early Access on March 31.
The Early Access version is not the full game, but will be a prologue to the core campaign.Cliffhanger also plans on putting out monthly updates for the game.
The full version should hit PC, Mac and mobile devices by the end of the year.


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Microsoft Corp. was hit with a class action Wednesday in Washington federal court accusing the computer and software giant of tracking consumers' locations through mobile devices in violation of their privacy settings.
SunTrust Mortgage Inc. and its parent were hit Wednesday with a putative class action in Illinois federal court alleging the lender improperly assessed late fees and foreclosed on homes even though the plaintiffs say they complied with their contracts.
An Illinois federal judge awarded $4.2 million on Monday to a class of unwilling fax recipients who accused an estate planning attorney of sending them a purported newsletter that essentially functioned as an unsolicited advertisement.
A California state judge on Wednesday delayed DirecTV Inc.’s bid to toss a class action alleging inadequate disclosure of early termination fees, waiting on the appeal of a ruling in a similar suit whose claims were found to be immune to waivers.
A California judge tossed a putative class action that accused Craigslist Inc. of violating a law that makes it illegal for merchants to record personal information when accepting credit card payments, ruling last week that the law did not apply to online transactions.
The Federal Trade Commission announced Wednesday it was refunding a total of about $3.2 million to consumers who bought fake auto warranties from robo calls allegedly engineered by Transcontinental Warranty Inc., a scheme to which two Transcontinental executives have pled guilty.
New York risk arbitrager David Simon sued his wife and her divorce attorneys for $25 million on Monday, claiming they hacked into his home computer and stole confidential financial records, intellectual property and trade secrets belonging to his $100 million hedge fund.
Nestle Waters North America Inc. was targeted Wednesday in a $50 million putative class action alleging that the bottled water behemoth rips off delivery customers by ignoring its payment policy's grace period and levying exorbitant late fees.
A California federal judge refused Monday to dismiss a consolidated class action accusing MyLife.com Inc. of luring consumers with false claims that "someone" was looking for them and then overcharging them to use a service that never connected them to anybody.
The most important case in the area of the First Amendment and defamation law is the U.S. Supreme Court case of New York Times v. Sullivan, says Mary Ellen Roy, a partner with Phelps Dunbar LLP specializing in defamation defense, privacy law, First Amendment issues and reporter's privilege, among other areas.
A Georgia federal judge on Tuesday refused to nix Sciele Pharma Inc.'s suit accusing rival pharmaceutical company Acella Pharmaceuticals LLC of falsely advertising and misleading pharmacists about the contents of its competing prescription prenatal vitamins.
Acer America Corp. will pay about $280 million to settle a class action alleging the computer company intentionally misled customers about the Windows operating system installed on its laptops, according to a proposed settlement filed Tuesday in California federal court.
Publix Supermarkets Inc. on Monday was hit with a consumer class action in Florida federal court claiming the supermarket chain didn't properly notify consumers that they would be charged for using its automatic teller machines, in violation of the Electronic Fund Transfer Act.
A Google Inc. investor on Monday sued the company and its directors — including CEO Larry Page — alleging they breached their fiduciary duty by facilitating illegal imports of prescription drugs through the advertising program AdWords, leading to a $500 million settlement with the U.S. government.
Nevada's attorney general on Tuesday accused Bank of America Corp. of violating a loan modification agreement with the state through deceptive mortgage sales practices, premature foreclosures and a faulty mortgage modification program.
In a dogfight over canine medication marketing, Merial LLC sued heartworm drug rival Bayer Healthcare LLC in Georgia federal court on Monday, seeking a ruling that Bayer's ads for its pills are false advertising.
The U.S. Department of Education announced last week that it planned to implement new standards for student privacy and states' ability to share school data by the end of 2011.
A Missouri jury on Tuesday awarded a Kansas City Suzuki dealer nearly $18.5 million after finding that American Suzuki Motor Corp. was negligent in allowing a rival dealership — owned by the dealer's brother — to deceptively advertise new car deals that it pulled once customers signed contracts.
A California appeals court ruled Friday that the Sonoma County Employees' Retirement Association must disclose the names of public pension beneficiaries and the amount of the benefits they receive monthly, as requested by Santa Rosa, Calif., newspaper The Press Democrat.
A Puerto Rican drugmaker sought summary judgment Monday on false advertisement and unfair competition claims in its suit accusing a rival of infringing a trademark on a pain-relief drug and misleadingly marketing a product as equivalent to the drug.


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Carpool Karaoke: The Series Trailer Released, Coming Soon to Apple Music
Apple has posted the first ever teaser trailer for 'Carpool Karaoke: The Series,' which is all set for release on Apple Music.
New Host Every Episode - The New Carpool Karaoke: The Series Gets First Teaser Trailer
A month back it came to light that Apple's Carpool Karaoke spinoff would feature some unique twists of its own. For starters, there would be a new host every episode, with mix and match style celebrity pairing guaranteed for even more entertainment. Apart from that, there would be celebrity interviews thrown into the mix as well. Now, Apple has confirmed that is well going to be the case with its first ever teaser trailer for Carpool Karaoke: The Series. Check it out below.
Based on the segment that has become a global, viral video sensation on The Late Late Show with James Corden, the new CARPOOL KARAOKE series features 16 celebrity pairings riding along in a car together as they sing tunes from their personal playlists and surprise fans who don’t expect to see big stars belting out tunes one lane over.
At the time of writing, it's absolutely unclear when the new Carpool Karaoke would go live on Apple Music. Apart from the 'Coming Soon' badge, we have nothing to go with at all. All we know so for is that there are going to be 16 episodes in total that are set to go live some time later this year.
Rather than going ahead with the usual formula of churning out tunes inside a car, the format is going to be slightly different in The Series. There are going to be different settings, such as basketball courts, laundromats and such. Basically, viewers can expect a handful of surprises during each episode.
Carpool Karaoke was a smash hit segment in the Late Late Show with James Corden. It was only logical for Apple to cash in on the opportunity to snag the segment up and spin it off into something far more greater. But sadly, fans don't have a concrete date to go along with right now. Therefore, it's a blind wait for an uncertain amount of time.
Let's just hope the show is available to view sooner rather than later.