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Plus: Economic Indicators Look Promising, Conveyor Orders Increase and OSHA Releases Crane Compliance Guidance for Small Biz.
Japan Crisis Ripples through Global Supply Chain
The scale of the disaster still unfolding in Japan is stunning and will cause major problems for the country for a considerable period. Looking at the global picture, supply chains are disrupted for many firms, yet a new report “does not expect a significant impact on headlines economic data.”
“It is still too early to tell what the full impact of the March 11 earthquake, tsunami and growing nuclear crisis on Japan’s infrastructure, industrial base and economic growth will be — let alone the broader global impacts,” according to IHS Global Insight last week. “Nevertheless, past natural disasters and disruptive events [...] give us some idea of the likely economic effects (and timeline) of this horrific event.”
Japan’s slow economic growth over the past several years means the global impact from the earthquake and tsunami earlier this month could be relatively minor, Nariman Behravesh, IHS chief economist, wrote in his analysis.
Most disruptions will be related to trade flows, but because Japan’s exports and imports comprise a small share of gross domestic product, the impact will likely be limited.
Given the halt in Japanese industrial activity, the effect on global supply chains could be significant, particularly in the automotive and electronics sectors.
“One of the crucial areas is that Japan remains a major source for automotive electronics, even for cars built in the U.S.,” the Los Angeles Times says, and “auto factories and semiconductor plants are huge users of electricity and don’t like power interruptions.”
On Thursday, General Motors Co. became the first U.S. automaker to close a factory because of the crisis in Japan, temporarily shutting down a truck plant in Louisiana because it could not get enough Japanese-made parts. “That it was G.M. — rather than one of the Japanese automakers, which depend on many parts from their home country — that succumbed first to the shortage shows how much the industry depends on far-flung suppliers,” the New York Times explained on Thursday. “But Toyota and Honda have shut their plants in Japan until next week as they try to repair damaged facilities, assess the state of their suppliers and determine how to restart production safely.”
However, some Japanese manufacturers are reporting progress in restarting their plants, the Wall Street Journal says (subscription required). Auto manufacturers expected to begin reopening facilities Thursday through Monday, although a number remained damaged.
In addition, “Japan’s grip on the global electronics supply chain is causing particular concern,” Reuters explains. According to CLSA Asia-Pacific Markets (via Bloomberg BusinessWeek), Japanese factories produce about one-fifth of the world’s semiconductors and 40 percent of its electronic components.
Early estimates suggest the overall negative impact on global growth in 2011 will be between 0.1 percent and 0.2 percent, with a correspondingly small boost to growth next year, according to Behravesh.
Leading Economic Indicators Improve Again
The Conference Board’s leading economic index (LEI), a forward-looking gauge of U.S. business activity, improved again in February, increasing 0.8 percent to 113.4 following a 0.1 percent uptick in January and a 1 percent gain in December. Released last week, the latest figures suggest that most segments of the economy are strengthening at an increasing pace, offsetting losses in other areas.
“With February’s large gain, the U.S. LEI returned to the strengthening upward trend that began last September,” Ataman Ozyildirim, an economist for the Conference Board, said in an announcement of the findings. The LEI is pointing to an economic expansion that should gain more momentum in the coming months. In February, improvements in labor markets, financial components, and consumer expectations more than offset falling housing permits.”
Eight of the 10 indicators tracked in the LEI improved last month, led by the interest rate spread, labor market conditions and consumer confidence. Only two indicators declined in February: new housing permits, which lowered the LEI by 0.22 percent and new manufacturing orders, which lowered it just 0.04 percent.
Meanwhile, The Conference Board’s coincident economic index — a measure of current business activity through payrolls, incomes, sales and production — rose 0.2 percent to 102.5 in February. The gain followed 0.3 percent increases in both January and December. The lagging indicators index, which tracks business lending, unemployment, service prices and other factors, rose 0.2 percent in February after a 0.3 percent decline in January and a 0.2 percent gain in December.
The LEI “has grown relatively steeply since mid-2010. Although this index implies that the U.S. economy should continue to expand at a moderate pace, it doesn’t take into account a big negative shock from March: Japan’s natural disaster,” the Atlantic reports. “The question isn’t really whether it will have a negative impact, but how significantly it will dampen economic activity. Moreover, if tensions in the Middle East continue to push up gasoline prices, then consumer sentiment may also fall, which would also hurt the recovery.”
Conveyor Orders up in 2010
According to a report this month from the Conveyor Equipment Manufacturers Association (CEMA), North American conveyor shipments in 2010 were up 9.6 percent over the previous year, climbing to $6.64 billion from $6.06 billion in 2009.
The association estimates that the value of new orders rose to $6.85 billion in 2010, a 19.96 percent increase over orders in 2009. Representatives from CEMA member companies expressed optimism about 2011, forecasting an 8 percent increase in conveyor shipments this year.
CEMA also reported that its Booked Orders Index for January dropped 18 points, an 11 percent decrease from December’s index reading of 159. However, conveyor orders for the month remained 41 percent above the level for January 2010, when the index stood at 100.
Booked orders in January totaled 239 for bulk-handling equipment and 108 for unit-handling equipment, while the 12-month index for booked orders rose to 136, a 3 percent increase from December’s 132.
Crane and Derrick Compliance Guidance Available for Small Biz
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has issued the Small Entity Compliance Guide for Cranes and Derricks in Construction to help businesses comply with the recently published Cranes and Derricks in Construction Final Rule.
OSHA published the rule last August to reduce worker injuries and deaths associated with the use of cranes and derricks in construction. The new small business guide, issued this month, is divided into chapters that correspond to sections of the standard, and accompanies other OSHA compliance materials on crane-related topics available on the agency’s website.
“Over the past four decades, we’ve continued to see a significant number of worker injuries and deaths from electrocution, crushed-by and struck-by hazards while performing cranes and derricks operations,” David Michaels, assistant secretary of labor for OSHA, said in a statement. “This guide will help employers understand what they must do to protect their workers from these dangerous, sometimes fatal incidents.”


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Tramigo Car Security Products Debuts in Nigeria Market.
13th Nov 2014 Good news for automobile owners as Tramigo, a leading maker of security devices has released new products into the market that will help to reduce car theft in the country. In Abuja on Monday at the event, Mr. Arto Tiitinen, the chief executive officer of the company said the new products were part of the company’s efforts aimed at satisfying the changing needs of their many customers, as well as safeguarding their cars and vehicles.
Mr. Tiitinen said that the tracking device will make vehicle security easy and less complicated as the products can be controlled using mobile phones, and can enable vehicle owners to monitor their driving habits, reduce the cost of petrol, detect engine problems before they become a huge problem, and other fuel consuming driving habits as well as safeguarding against unauthorized trips and theft as well as detect ignition tampering and door opening.
According to the chief executive officer of Tramigo, “We are the largest manufacturer of vehicle tracking products in the world and we are working to make this product a household brand name in Nigeria.”
He sounded optimistic when he said that with a market as huge as Nigeria, which has over twenty five million vehicles, the company’s target was to capture about two point five million through the installation of the device.

domain: news


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In WordCamp Athens 2022 it’s all about knowledge. Get your ticket, today! #WCATH2022
Join WordCamp Athens on 9-10 April 2022. The organizing team is preparing the biggest WordPress community-based tech conference of the year. #WCATH2022
#WCEU WordCamp Europe just announced that will take place online on 7-10 June. We can’t wait to get our ticket!
It’s true, Online WordCamp India 2021 is happening from 30 January to 14 February 2021. #WordCampIn #WordCampIndia #WCIndia #WordPress
WPCampus 2020 Online is an online conference for the WPCampus community, a gathering of web professionals, educators, and people dedicated to the confluence of WordPress in higher education. #WPCampus #WordPress
We understand your concern about the Novel Coronavirus issue. This announcement will provide up to date information from the #WCASIA organizing team.


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Apple enters subscription services. On Tuesday, the company announced a new training subscription platform called Apple Fitness + that works via Apple Watch and a new subscription bundle system that seeks to simplify the countless offers.
Ethan Wolff-Mann for Yahoo Finance:
Using calculations such as heart rate from the Apple Watch, Apple Fitness gives users access to a training course wherever they are and on any Apple device. Although Apple did not refer to the coronavirus pandemic that closed gyms across the country, the company probably sees an opportunity to gain market share without that kind of competition. The service costs $ 9.99 / month.
If you’ve deep into the company’s ecosystem, Apple wants you to try the Apple One package, which comes in three levels.
The premium level costs $ 29.95 / mo and includes Apple Music, Apple TV +, Apple Arcade, Apple News +, Apple Fitness + and 2TB of iCloud storage. The individual levels and family levels have music, TV, arcade and cloud services for one or to share.
The subscription model may seem like a departure from the hardware-centric business model, but Apple keeps the devices front and center, as Apple Watch’s role in the training app illustrates. But while this is not something anyone asked for, Apple seems confident that it can create a new category to lead.
MacDailyNews Take: Fitness + will be a success, and the Apple One package will be a big hit that will help some of the more, shall we say, easily subscribed services (News +, for example) incredibly much.


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The company’s new COO, Yaron Bar, and Vice President of Marketing and Business Development, Yair Gellis, will further advance its position as a leader in the rapidly growing recyclable flexible packaging market
TEL AVIV, Israel–(BUSINESS WIRE)–#Polysack—Polysack, a green-tech manufacturer of plastic film products for flexible packaging and high-shrink labels, announces the hiring of Yaron Bar, Polysack’s new COO, and Yair Gellis, Polysack’s new VP of Marketing and Business Development. With their appointments, Bar and Gellis will bring a wealth of experience in plastics and packaging.
Yaron Bar, a veteran in the plastic industry, served as a CEO at Elcon Recycling Center and VP Operations of Keter Plastic, where he managed the establishment of the company’s flagship manufacturing plant in Israel. Bar also established two products dealing with polymer replacements based on RIM-DCPD technology for industrial use. Yair Gellis was previously the head of Flexible Packaging at HP and holds more than 25 years of experience in the flexible packaging industry.
As demand for recyclable flexible films skyrockets due to the shift towards a circular economy, Polysack provides an immediate, environmentally friendly solution for packaging manufacturers with its Pack’N’Cycle films. The sustainable films are made of Mono Oriented PE (MOPE), which enables brands to produce 100-percent recyclable flexible packaging, including stand-up pouches, sachets, and roll-stock for vertical and horizontal FFS packaging lines. Polysack recently inked partnerships with HP Indigo Digital Presses and Flessofab, an Italian flexible packaging manufacturer. STS PRINT, a Bulgarian soft packaging converter, recently awarded Polysack its prestigious Prize Pack award.
“We are thrilled to add Yair and Yaron to our team,” says Yanir Aharonson, CEO of Polysack. “Polysack is in a time of monumental growth and is positioning itself as a world leader in the field of high-quality recyclable films that enables mono-material laminates that are designed for recycling. Yair and Yaron will propel our vision for a sustainable world powered by recyclable plastic.”
“I am excited to join Polysack in this time of tremendous growth, specifically in the European market,” says Yaron Bar. “The world is starting to understand that recyclable plastic is the only way forward, and Polysack is leading the way with its innovative solutions.”
“It’s wonderful to join a company leveraging technology to ensure a better future,” says Yair Gellis. “The world is just beginning to learn about Polysack’s groundbreaking solutions, which will make a revolutionary impact in the flexible packaging industry.”
Polysack is a GreenTech company leading the MOPE space for 100% recyclable Mono-Material packaging for a variety of applications, including flexible packaging, high-shrink labels, candy wrappers, and more. The company provides its line of eco-friendly films to converters and other third parties who apply them within multiple industries such as food, beverages, confectionery, agriculture, and others. Polysack’s customers range from small businesses to Fortune 100 companies.
To learn more about Polysack, visit the website: https://www.polysack.com/


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Geležinio vilko g. 18A, Vilnius, LT-08104, Lithuania
Blockchain, besides its major application in the cryptocurrency development, may also be of great use for provision of credible solutions to financial institutions across the world in relation to fraud management and prevention.
Physical banks are still here and serve millions of customers, yet AI-powered mobile and online banking, fintech companies and open bank initiative and modifying the sectoring, transforming the banking experience once and forever. Open banking, for instance, is an advancement that gives clients an opportunity to share access to their financial data with non-banking third parties, mainly retailers and fintech firms. This allows the latter to use collected data in order to enhance user-experience and continue bringing innovation to the finance industry. Data analytics have also been a central element for banks, that also strive to further their omnichannel reach. Clients, on the other hand, have been expressing concerns about privacy protection, pushing the need for higher transparency of transactions for security breaches and scams prevention. Blockchain may become a solution to the issue and eliminate the existing concerns.
Blockchain has found application in many different sectors worldwide. In Australia for instance, the Commonwealth Bank was authorized by the World Banks to create the world’s first blockchain bond. The latter is mainly aimed at payments optimization between Europe and South America through the application of distributed ledgers. The People’s Bank of China has also moved forward, taking advantage of the new technologies, and has been testing a blockchain trade finance platform. Samsung SDS has announced the development of a blockchain-based certification platform for South Korean banks. At the same time, South African Reserve Bank has announced their efforts to create distributed ledger technology initiatives in compliance with payment regulations. The International Business Machines Corp. (IBM) has launched its first commercial blockchain deployment for the private equity market, created in collaboration with Northern Trust Corporation. All of the latter suggests the global application of blockchain and welcoming attitudes of governments and global companies.
Meanwhile, the BankChain community has been helping banks to effectively address issues of security. One of the solutions was the integration of corporate electronic-Know Your Customer (eKYC) platform. This is projected to increase the safety levels and maximize fraud-prevention efforts when it comes to cross-border remittances, creating bank guarantees and employee background verification systems. At the same time, the application of next-generation technologies increases the speed of cross-border transmittances, benefiting customers’ experience.
Governments need to back blockchain
The urgent need for regulatory authorities remains a great issue, calling for the development of a holistic ecosystem for API interoperability and a regulatory sandbox for banking institutions, which would help the latter to verify and authorize their blockchain solutions. Governments around the world have expressed high interest in blockchain’s potential, as well as a willingness to work on a legislative framework that would help discover the most of it.
Researchers and specialists stress the need for the creation of more exchanges for tokenization and cryptocurrency, which is supposed to attribute more stability to the concept of blockchain and cryptocurrencies in general, which will potentially hold stable values.
Blockchain is now shifting away from the volatile Bitcoin and is increasingly being called the potential cure for all banking ills. However, there is still a long way to go before blockchain consumers will build a stable trust towards it and welcome it to all spheres of human activity.


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What recession? It's rosy for Cath Kidston
Her floral designs hark back to a bygone era - and so it seems do her finances.
Flower power: Designer Cath Kidston's business is blooming
As dozens of fashion retailers struggle in the recession, Cath Kidston has revealed her business is booming.
Accounts filed with Companies House show the designer has seen profits jump more than 60% in the past year - from £2.9m to £4.6m in the year to March 2009.
Miss Kidston, based between Gloucestershire and London, has created an empire of chintzy homewares such as cherry-covered ironing boards to gardenia-studded biscuit tins.
Experts believe she has managed to buck the economic downturn by taking the place Laura Ashley used to occupy in the public's affections.
Her watering cans, teapots and baking trays invoke a 1950s-style domesticity which many find comforting in unstable times. Sales have soared from £19.2m last year to £31.3m as new stores have mushroomed around the UK and Ireland.
This year's results saw shareholders in Kidston, a privately owned business, reap a £1m dividend and her windfall is thought to be substantial.
Lorna Hall, the retail editor of the fashion trends website WSGN told The Guardian: 'Cath Kidston is the new Laura Ashley. The brand keys into the same aesthetic, with its dreamlike nostalgia. For many women it is a way to nest, without all the hard work involved in nesting.'
Kidston, 50, is married to record producer Hugh Padgham. She opened her first store selling furniture and vintage fabrics in Holland Park, West London in 1993 following a 'career crisis'.
She was inspired by her aunt, Belinda Belville, founder of the fashion house Belville Sassoon, who suggested she go into interiors, and a spell of work with the flamboyant designer Nicky Haslam. Miss Kidston, who suffered from breast cancer in her mid-30s, devoted herself to the business.
There are now 27 stores, of which ten opened in the past year.
The Kidston look is not just a reflection of her childhood in the countryside - what she has described as 'ponies, boarding school and a rambling house on Hampshire/Wiltshire borders'.
It is also a cheering image during the recession, demonstrated by how many retailers, from Marks & Spencer to Sainsbury's, have this season launched similar ranges.
Steve Sharp, marketing director of Marks & Spencer said: 'Nostalgia always becomes more important when times are tough.'
Miss Kidston's prints have caught on in Japan, where there are three stores. She has said of her success: 'We work hard to ensure that our products are pretty, practical and affordable.'
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Australian Potash Limited (ASX:APC)
has signed an off-take agreement with one of China’s largest fertiliser companies, Sino-Agri (a subsidiary of CNAMPGC Holding Company).
The Australian Sulphate of Potash (SOP) developer’s deal, with the Chinese company, involves commercial sales volumes of up to 30 per cent of its Stage 2 production, from the Northern Goldfields.
Australian Potash says its production at the Lake Wells site will be up to 100,000 tonnes per annum.
The company says the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) will lead to securing customers in the world’s largest fertiliser market.
Shares in Australian Potash Limited (ASX:APC)
last traded at 12.5 cents.


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The worrisome rise of ransomware doesn’t seem to be slowing as Microsoft recently announced the detection of self-propagating iterations of the malware. With this evolution, it is essential for SMBs to update their understanding of this security threat in order to properly protect themselves.
For the past couple of years, Microsoft’s smartphones have been struggling to keep up with Android and Apple devices. Although Microsoft sells their handsets at lower price points and are constantly trying to improve user experience, the Windows Phone just isn’t cutting it in the consumer market.
The I/O conference is a chance to learn about everything new and exciting that Google is working on, and some of the new Android features are that, and more. Traditionally, operating system updates can range from barely visible interface tweaks to unavoidable features, and these are no different.
“We are living in a digital world, and healthcare practices need a URL”. If Madonna could change the lyrics of her 1984 classic to speak to the healthcare industry, she may have sang something like this. A URL is just one facet of the digital strategy that hospitals and private practices alike will need to adapt if they wish to remain competitive in today’s world.
Most small and medium sized businesses have a tight marketing budget – especially when it comes to social media. So if you’re looking to get noticed on Facebook, you may be reluctant to spend cash on an ad campaign. Luckily for you, there are several ways you can market your business on Facebook that won’t cost a dime.
The speed and quality of internet connections continue to offer SMBs more opportunities for reaching customers and clients. One of the most recent innovations is live video streaming, an inexpensive and convenient way to increase your business value and diversify your services portfolio.
You may still be on the fence about whether or not to purchase an iPad Pro for your business. While you can find a lot of coverage on Apple’s latest tablet online, you may wonder what actual users think. Today, you’ll discover just that. CIO, a website that delivers the latest news and tips for IT professionals, recently surveyed 11 iPad Pro users to get their feedback.
Not every business owner who migrates to the cloud achieves great results. As much as the service is touted with words like “freedom”, “productivity” and “collaboration”, realizing the full benefits of these words is not a given. So if you’re thinking about transitioning to the cloud, how can you ensure you optimize the technology for your business? Well, it all starts with your attitude before migration.
Whether you only need a dozen, or a hundred, the process of deciding on and acquiring software licenses can be very frustrating. Many of us had hoped that cloud computing and virtualization would alleviate some of these headaches. Unfortunately, we’re not there yet, which is why it’s important to understand all of your licensing options when deciding on a virtualized environment — let’s take a look.
Not that long ago, VoIP services were a new and revolutionary concept. Nowadays, internet-based voice communication is commonplace among SMBs, which means it’s time to turn our attention toward improving their security. Without a thorough understanding of what is needed to protect your VoIP systems, you could be vulnerable to cyberattacks.


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India's biggest car maker Maruti Suzuki is having a rough ride as a slew of brokerage houses lower their target price of the automaker.
They are citing soft volume growth, intense competition and a weak model pipeline as the factors behind their decision.
Revising downwards its rating to ‘Short’ from ‘Reduce’, Equirus Securities cut the target price of Maruti Suzuki to Rs 5,881, from Rs 6,065 earlier. It also slashed FY19 and FY20 volumes estimates by 1 per cent and 2 per cent, respectively.
The scrip was 1.02 per cent down at Rs 6,612.90 as of 11.30 am while the Sensex came off 85 points, or 0.22 per cent, at 38,301.
“Maruti’s volume growth has been tepid over the last eight months, and we don’t see any growth trigger for the next year as well due to the company’s weak model pipeline, and new products from the competition, which can impact hatchback and compact UV sales. Apart from Baleno -- now seeing volume stabilisation -- other models sold through Nexa channel remain a challenge for the company,” Equirus stated.
Global financial firm Credit Suisse also cut the target price to Rs 6,100, from Rs 6800 before. However, it retained the ‘Neutral’ stance on the auto major.
However, Reuters data on Friday showed that Maruti has 10 ‘Buy’, 18 ‘Outperform’, 8 ‘Hold’, 3 ‘Underperform’ and 4 ‘Sell’ ratings on the counter. There were 3 ‘Sell’ and 18 ‘Buy’ calls on Maruti a month ago.
Karvy Stock Broking also handed out a ‘Sell’ rating to Maruti Suzuki on March 20, pointing to demand slackness since July 2018. Although there are challenges in the near term, the management anticipates demand visibility in the near term to get clearer Q1 FY20 onwards.
There are hopes floating. Over the next three months, two key events such as arrival of the monsoon and the general election results are likely to play a vital role in the revival of vehicle demand in rural and urban areas.
“We anticipate passenger vehicles (PV) demand to firm up post June 2019 on account of a favorable base and pre-buying as PV prices in India are expected to go up from April 2020 on account of implementation of safety regulations and BS-VI compliant engines in India,” Karvy Stock Broking said in a report.
According to ETAuto sources, the raid began at the company’s Corporate office in Gurgaon around 3:00 PM and continued till the story is filed. The latest development comes in light of heightened scrutiny by law-enforcement agencies on companies operating in India which have links with neighboring country, China.


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McDonalds fast food customers in Costa Rica have been alerted by the company of a data breach that accessed client private information.
In the alert sent to clients McDonalds advised that client names, marital status, address, email, document identity number and phone number had been left unprotected.
They went on to say that customers should be aware of any attempts by the criminal hackers to contact them posing as the McDonald’s company requesting further personal information, or contains malicious click invitations or to transfer funds.
In a statement to local media the company said that one of its providers had been compromised and allowed the hackers to access client information. It did not specify the location of the provider or if the criminals were able to access information of other providers in its network in Costa Rica.
They also said that when they became aware of the breach they notified local legal authorities right away as well all potentially effected customers.
Costa Rica has experienced a series of similar data breaches recently where customer data is used to divert money from unsuspecting persons by purporting to be legitimate businesses or governmental institutions.
Experts recommend that you should change your passwords frequently and always be cautious of unsolicited or suspicious emails.


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Flying Fish Brewing Company founder and president Gene Muller.
- Filed Under
Chipping in on the continuing effort to rebuild the Jersey Shore in the wake of superstorm Sandy will be as easy as heading out for a pint of beer this weekend.
After all, that's when bars and restaurants across Morris County and beyond will be tapping kegs of Flying Fish Brewing Company's new brew, F.U. Sandy - the initials standing for "forever unloved," or so the brewery claims. Every dime of the production costs for a total of 86 kegs, from the man-hours needed to brew them to the raw ingredients, will be donated to the recovery effort, according to Flying Fish founder and president Gene Muller.


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The video game sector is one of today's fastest growing industries, fueled by high-powered graphics and gameplay, faster internet and mobile device expansion. It's also one of the industries most dependent on maintaining optimal network connectivity. Many contemporary games have an important online component or are completely internet-based, which makes sustaining premium functionality a must for developers and vendors.
In many cases, the rapid emergence of new technologies can outstrip the ability of gaming companies to deploy new innovations on legacy hardware, making it imperative that these organizations develop infrastructure that will be highly receptive to the incorporation of new high-tech software. According to Forbes contributor Michael Goodenough, enterprise clouds represent a key intersection for gaming industry development and IT growth. The cloud offers businesses the ability to develop games that rely on fast internet and high bandwidth, as well as optimizing gaming apps for smartphone and tablet users. Although all options have not yet been fully explored, gaming industry insiders have started to grasp the full transformative potential of the cloud.
"While gamers would love the opportunity to stream games on any device and ditch traditional consoles, the streaming technology still needs to catch up to 24/7 cloud-based gaming," Goodenough wrote. "Developers are driving hard to make this a reality. Expect to see new features, functions and models as they experiment on the cloud."
Creating a universal gaming experience with enterprise clouds
The initial attempts to integrate enterprise-class cloud computing and gaming technology have proven fruitful, industry leaders stated. According to WebProNews writer Mike Tuttle, several forward-thinking gaming companies have utilized the support that cloud infrastructure offers to unsettle and improve upon several traditional gaming practices. The ultimate objective is a completely cloud-based streaming service that eliminates physical hardware. This would help improve gameplay – real-time updates could be more easily deployed for sports titles, for example, to make in-game rosters reflect real-life developments. It could also cut costs and offer players a chance to interact with other gamers around the globe.
Interactivity and interoperability are two priorities for the gaming industry, Tuttle wrote. The cloud could help developers create games that work across devices, so players could pause a game on their PC and pick up from where they left off on their tablet. Additionally, enterprise clouds may one day be the basis of cross-platform experiences, in which users could play a game together even if they're using different devices.


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Trying to limit your food consumption over the holidays?
You are doomed, according to an article from “Public Health Nutrition.
It basically says you are not in control of your food intake — your environment is. If you think your will power will protect you from all the goodies, think again. According to this review article, will power is no match for the obesogenic environment we live in.
“Food primes” that lead us to increase food consumption are everywhere, including big portion sizes, cheap prices for unhealthy food, high-fat palatable foods, eating with other people, and seeing other people eat.
It is possible, but not easy, to fight back against these environmental factors. The authors suggest that daily weighing and dietary restraint can help. Dietary restraint refers to actively inhibiting what and how much to eat.
They also note that while we need to be aware of food primes and take steps to monitor our weight and reduce intake, the government also needs to play a role to subsidize fruits and vegetables and make healthier food available at a lower price.


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UP FOR SALE 2014 FORD FOCUS SE IN EXCELLENT CONDITION WITH 1015 MILES ON IT. RUNS DRIVE NEW !!!! ready to be transferred to a new owner.
Ford Focus Se on 2040-cars
Augusta, New Jersey, United States
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Auto blogFri, 16 May 2014 11:05:00 EST
When Ford announced that its 2015 Mustang would arrive with a 2.3-liter EcoBoost four-cylinder engine, three letters came to mind: SVO. While Ford hasn't said a word regarding the rebirth of a Mustang SVO model, this latest set of spy shots shows us something very, very interesting. Allow us to explain.
The Mustang prototype in these photos looks very similar to the GT500 test cars we've spotted before - same bulging hood, aggressive front fascia and air vents aft of the front wheels. What's different, however, is around back. Have a look at the exhaust, and note that instead of the GT500's usual quad pipes, two of the exhaust outlets have been capped off.
Our spies point out that these exhaust outlets could be closed for some sort of emissions testing or another engineering reason, but it's also important to note that the engine and exhaust notes of this car sound completely different from earlier GT500 prototypes. We've got a video below that compares the two.
To celebrate 50 years of Mustang, Ford and Stern Pinball are collaborating on a new pinball machine that will feature the muscle car in all its glory, Polygon reports. Even better, Camilo Pardo, the guy who designed the Ford GT, will provide art for the table; Tanner Foust, Top Gear USA host and professional driver, will handle narrating duties; and a Sony Music soundtrack spanning five decades will provide the tunes.
"The Mustang is one of the most iconic, American cars ever made... What better way to celebrate 50 years of Mustang than with the launch of the Ford Mustang pinball game?" says Stern Pinball CEO Gary Stern.
Watch the promotional trailer for the upcoming Mustang pinball machine below, which will have to hold you over until pricing and availability are announced in early 2014.
Ohio is a hot area for Ford at the moment with the announcement just a few weeks ago that production of the next-generation F-650/F-750 medium-duty trucks would move from Mexico to the Ohio Assembly Plant in Avon Lake, Ohio. Now, Ford is investing $500 million to hire 300 workers at its Lima Engine Plant in Lima, Ohio, to add production of the twin-turbo 2.7-liter EcoBoost V6 for the 2015 F-150.
The latest investment will be used to add a new flexible engine assembly system and renovate 700,000 square feet of the plant for machining and assembly areas. The Lima factory already builds Ford's 3.5-liter and 3.7-liter Duratec V6 engines. The plant opened in 1957, and it's on track to build its 40 millionth engine later this year.
Ford claims that the 2.7-liter EcoBoost will offer V8 performance with better efficiency in the F-150. It comes standard with intelligent stop/start that doesn't activate when the truck is towing or in four-wheel drive, and it's made from a combination of compacted graphite iron and aluminum for low weight and high strength. The company says that V6 engines have already proven popular in the F-150 with 57 percent of trucks in 2014 being equipped with either the naturally aspirated 3.7-liter or turbocharged 3.5-liter EcoBoost engines.


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Ecommerce retailers need to break out of the conventional payment molds, such as traditional credit cards for payment plans, if they want to see a boost in online sales in the international market, according to a recent post by ZippyCart.com.
Although a majority of American-based shoppers are generally comfortable using a major credit card to shop online, it is not always the case for international shoppers, according to the post.
South America, the post states, is an emerging market for online shopping but consumers in this area “are especially hesitant to reveal their credit card information while buying or purchasing products online.” Consumers there are looking for additional payment options in order to complete their purchase, ZippyCart said.
In fact, by offering additional payment options on your site, “the more likely your customers, especially global shoppers, will be to complete the purchasing process,” the post said.
Even though major credit cards and PayPal have become the standard for most American shoppers, international shoppers are looking for a more localized payment experience. In Africa, according to the post, shoppers want to pay through a mobile device called M-Pesa.
Other preferred payment options found all over the world, according to ZippyCart, are PayPal, PayPal’s Bill Me Later, Amazon Checkout, Google Checkout, SagePay, Secure Trading, NetBanx, and WorldPay.
As the post points out, the number of online buyers is going to continually be on the rise and experts are predicting that shopping online will soon be the international norm. So, by offering a variety of local and international payment options on your ecommerce site, you are increasing customer satisfaction and most likely increasing your web sales.


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You shouldn’t need to do a damn thing to keep your credit information safe.
We’re all accustomed to the busywork of managing personal finances. You check your 401(k) retirement account, making sure your portfolio is carefully balanced. You scan your bank and credit card statements from time to time to verify the charges. These are things responsible people do.
But there’s a good chance you’ve spent time recently on a chore you didn’t sign up for: finding out if hackers possibly stole information about you from Equifax Inc., one of the three big consumer-credit reporting companies in the U.S. On Sept. 7 it announced a data breach that may have put about 143 million people in the U.S. at risk, exposing names, addresses, birth dates, and Social Security numbers, details that could help identity thieves take out loans, apply for a credit card, or buy a new wardrobe in your name. (Equifax had no comment for this story.) The company has set up a web page where you can find out if you are potentially affected. If the answer is yes, you then have to decide what to do about it. Should you sign up for the free year of credit monitoring Equifax is offering? Set a fraud alert on your account? Activate something called a security freeze? Would any of these things really help?
What makes the situation especially awful is that you never had much choice about entering into a relationship with Equifax. “It’s not like when you get to choose your bank, or choose your credit card,” says Mike Litt, consumer program advocate at U.S. PIRG, a group that works for tougher consumer protection laws. No one specifically asked Equifax or its competitors, Experian Plc and TransUnion, to collect data about them. But unless you want to live off the financial grid, you have to accept that these companies you may know little about are keeping an eye on you and your reputation with creditors.
This setup isn’t just infuriating—it partly explains why the hacking of just one company can make so many people so vulnerable. Credit reporting businesses have been built primarily to serve banks and credit card companies, not the consumers they monitor. But just as a lender benefits from having quick access to credit reports and scores, which lets them grant credit to perfect strangers, so does the impostor who comes to them looking to open an account.
Consumers benefit from the credit reporting business, too: Maintaining a good profile makes it easy to get a loan or a card. You can apply in the time it takes to get a 20 percent discount at a Gap checkout counter. And lenders share consumers’ interest in not getting ripped off. But that doesn’t mean the risks they face are the same. To a lender, the unpaid bill on a fraudulent credit card is just one bad loan in a massive portfolio—a cost of doing business. You, on the other hand, have only one identity and reputation.
In the end the issue isn’t whether the financial-services industry cares about fraud. It’s really about control. Who ought to hold the keys to unlock your data, them or you?
Consider the security freeze, the most effective way for anyone anxious about the Equifax hack to protect themselves. If you contact a credit reporting company and request a freeze, which you can do at each of the companies’ websites, you’re telling it not to provide any information when a lender contacts it in the process of opening an account. That means if someone tries to use your name and Social Security number to get a fresh Mastercard, the application will probably be rejected, which prevents bogus plastic, and the resulting unpaid bills, from ending up on your report and damaging your credit. When you decide you’re in the market for a loan, you can contact the credit agency and lift the freeze. This approach amounts to grabbing the keys to your data and not giving them back.
It’s an elegant solution in theory, and one the credit reporting industry had to be dragged into. In the early 2000s, groups including U.S. PIRG, Consumers Union, and AARP lobbied state legislatures to mandate freezes. Eventually enough states passed laws that the three companies offered freezes nationally. What a freeze costs depends on state law. It’s usually free to victims of identity theft, while those who are simply being cautious might pay from $3 to $10 to set a freeze, and a similar fee when they lift it. On Sept. 12, Equifax temporarily waived freeze fees.
The charge accentuates the overall consumer unfriendliness of the process. You need to place a separate freeze with each of the credit reporting companies. (Although it was Equifax that was hacked, identity thieves might apply for credit at lenders using any of these services.) Then you get a PIN you’ll need to use—again, one for each company—when you want the freeze lifted. To put a freeze in place online, you’ll need to verify your identity by entering your Social Security number, which can be scary if you’re putting the freeze in place because you just found out your Social Security number could have been stolen. As the New York Times reported, people who set up freezes at Equifax immediately after the breach found that their PIN codes were made up of the date and time they put the freeze on—as opposed to random, unguessable numbers you’d want for a system meant to keep out crooks. (Equifax has since changed this.) Once a freeze is in place, you’ll have to remember where you stashed your PIN before you apply for a mortgage—or, for that matter, a job or rental apartment.
The credit reporting companies’ websites tend to push other security fixes that shut things down less drastically than a freeze. One is a fraud alert, which, instead of locking down your file, warns lenders that for the next 90 days they should take extra steps to verify the identity of anyone who claims to be you. And then there’s credit monitoring, a service that lets you see your credit report so you can spot potential problems. You may indeed see something: A 2012 study by the Federal Trade Commission found that about 20 percent of consumers who were asked to review their reports discovered an error that was fixed after they disputed it, and more than 10 percent found an error significant enough to affect their credit score. Monitoring also alerts you if an application has been placed for a new account in your name.
Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion have turned monitoring into a business, charging as much as $25 a month for “premium” services that include reports from all three companies. The price can also cover the ability to “lock” credit, which as the companies describe it sounds similar to the state-mandated freeze. (TransUnion has a free monitoring and lock service, which works only with its own reports.) After announcing the data breach, Equifax offered those affected a free year of its service. But does anyone really want to pay money to make sure bad information doesn’t get into these companies’ databases? You don’t pay extra at restaurants to keep rat poison out of the food. “They spend all this time developing products to sell to consumers instead of making their systems more accurate,” says Chi Chi Wu, a staff attorney at the National Consumer Law Center.
Wu says monitoring may be fine if it’s free, but she recommends freezes. By law, you can also request one free copy of your credit report per year from each company via annualcreditreport.com, and that’s worth doing, too. If 143 million people are exposed, Wu says, that would be about three-quarters of all the people who have credit reports. If everyone potentially affected were to request a freeze, it would be tantamount to the situation some consumer advocates would like to see: freezes as the default setting for credit files, with everyone’s credit data essentially off-limits unless the consumer says otherwise. As it stands, the hassles of freezes may make that solution less than appealing, but if it became the norm, companies would likely devise better ways to do it. For example, a free smartphone app might allow you to toggle on and off access to all three of your credit files. As Chris Jay Hoofnagle, who teaches privacy law at the University of California at Berkeley, has argued, such a shift could change the relationship between consumers and credit reporting companies. You wouldn’t be just another file they keep track of, but a person they need to work with and please.
There are technical challenges to making such systems secure, but surmounting them could produce residual benefits. If the credit industry began prioritizing the security of consumers’ credit files, it might also help to diminish the role of the Social Security number. Currently, the SSN is a key tool the financial system uses for both tracking and verifying consumers, and today it seems conspicuously low-tech. Whereas signing into Facebook on a new computer might require you to provide both a unique password and a one-time code sent via text to your phone, getting a new credit card might only entail giving your name, a few personal details, and a nine-digit number generated by a system that was set up to help administer old-age retirement benefits in 1936.
The SSN wasn’t built to promote security. Until 2011 it wasn’t even randomly generated but based in part on where you lived when it was issued. The number took on its supreme importance only gradually. In the 1930s it tidily solved a problem plaguing consumers—all those people out there with the same name. A history page on the Social Security website refers to a 1937 publication stating that “the Fred Smiths of New York City have had so much trouble being identified by their creditors, the courts, and even their friends, that they have joined together in forming the ‘Fred Smiths, Incorporated.’ ” In 1943, federal agencies were ordered to use the number as an identifier when setting up new record systems, but its use really took off in the 1960s, with the advent of computers. By 1973 government reports were warning that the SSN shouldn’t become a national identifier, but new regulations and legislation promoted its use in a wide array of sectors, including financial services.
For a long time, people were casual about sharing their numbers. Colleges used Social Security numbers as student IDs, while a manufacturer once included a sample Social Security card in wallets it sold at Woolworth’s—a replica of a company secretary’s actual card. But as the SSN has spread, the associated risks have grown. Once your SSN has been compromised, it’s a hard problem to fix, in part because so many systems rely on it. While you can get a new number in cases of identity theft or abuse or if you are a victim of domestic violence, it’s not a simple process. In the case of ID theft, you must provide evidence of the number’s misuse and how it’s causing you continued, significant harm.
The ultimate solution to the SSN problem may be neither a new kind of number nor a single magic password. “The answer is layers,” says Eva Velasquez, chief executive officer of the Identity Theft Resource Center, a nonprofit that helps consumers who’ve been hit by fraud. So in addition to SSNs, you might start to see more use of what are now standard internet security protocols, such as a combination of security questions and one-time security codes sent via email or text message. These systems might go hand in hand with something like a default freeze—at the same time you are applying for credit at the store, you might also be getting an alert that someone wants to look at your credit file, and you’d go through an authentication process on your phone.


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Burger King Worldwide, Inc. (BKW) is slated to report its second-quarter 2014 results on Aug 1, 2014. Last quarter, it posted a surprise of 5.26%. Let’s see what’s in store for the company this season.
Factors to Consider
Burger King has surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate in three out of the last four trailing quarters and matched in the other quarter. This reflects company’s focus on restaurant re-imaging, menu improvement, marketing initiatives and improving operational efficiency. Also, its commitment to accelerate international expansion in high-growth potential markets mainly through franchising adds to profitability. These efforts would continue to aid Burger King’s revenues and profits in the second quarter.
However, rising food costs that have been a major challenge for most of the food and restaurant companies cannot be ignored. Per the U.S Department of Agriculture, the ongoing drought in California, could have large and lasting effects on fruit, vegetable, dairy and egg prices. It also expects drought conditions in Texas and Oklahoma to increase beef prices even higher.
Given this scenario, the company expects food cost inflation to increase 2.0% in the second quarter. Moreover, Burger King has been under pressure from worldwide wage increases. Hike in average rate of labor would further hurt profitability.
These costs would be passed on to customers, thereby leading to increase in average spending per visit by the customers. Hence, traffic would decline, leading to lower revenues.
Moreover, U.S. consumers are burdened with higher gasoline prices, payroll tax increases and delayed tax refund checks that is limiting discretionary spending. According to the International Monetary Fund, U.S. economic growth is expected to be the weakest this year since the recession ended. It expects 1.7% growth in 2014, down from 2.0% anticipated in June. Given the situation, the restaurant chain would experience lackluster results in the upcoming quarter.
Our proven model does not conclusively show that Burger King is likely to beat earnings this quarter. That is because a stock needs to have both a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #1, 2 or 3 for this to happen. That is not the case here as you will see below.
Negative Zacks ESP: Burger King’s Earnings ESP, which represents the difference between the Most Accurate estimate of 22 cents and the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 23 cents stands at -4.35%.
Zacks Rank: Burger King’s Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) when combined with a negative ESP makes surprise prediction difficult. We caution against stocks with Zacks Ranks #4 and 5 (Sell-rated stocks) going into the earnings announcement, especially when the company is seeing negative estimate revisions momentum.
Other Stocks to Consider
Here are some other companies in the restaurant sector that investors may consider, as our model shows that they have the right combination of elements to post an earnings beat this quarter:
Zoe's Kitchen, Inc. (ZOES), with an Earnings ESP of +50.0% and a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
Jack in the Box Inc. (JACK), with an Earnings ESP of +3.51% and a Zacks Rank #3.
Texas Roadhouse, Inc. (TXRH), with an Earnings ESP of +3.03% and a Zacks Rank #3.


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High stakes exist in the accelerated advances in AI, underpinning every industry, every business and life sustaining process. Most CEOs and board directors are not prepared to modernize their business operations and AI approaches are more often unexplainable vs explainable.
Dr. Cindy Gordon, CEO of SalesChoice, shares interesting insights from her recent interview with Cathy Cobey, the EY Global Trusted AI leader, on Forbes. The discussion explores: how practicing responsible AI is stacking up, the impact of data bias, and key board director questions to ensure CEO’s are managing the new risks that AI presents. Click here to read more.
July 16th, 2020 | Toronto, CA – We are pleased to announce that Dr. Cindy Gordon, CEO of SalesChoice Inc. has recently been appointed as a member of the Board of Advisors for the AI Forum, an independent, international and multi-disciplinary Advisory Board that will provide market feedback and insight on AI.
July 10th, 2020 | Toronto, CA – Gartner recently released its new AI Guided Selling report after surveying global Chief Sales Officers (CSOs), and unsurprisingly, found that the COVID-19 outbreak had caught many Gartner clients unprepared – in particular, those that relied heavily on human-to-human interactions.
June 22nd, 2020 | Toronto, CA – SalesChoice Inc., a Cognitive Sciences and Data Sciences Company offering the smartest and easiest to use AI for sales analytics, recently held a 3-part Webinar Series, “Surviving Today & Thriving Post-Corona,” in partnership with Ton Dobbe, CEO Value Inspiration, featuring 10 Global Technology CEOs.


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NORTH CANTON, Ohio – March 8, 2017 – The North Canton Chamber of Commerce voted unanimously to appoint Squirrels LLC Co-founder and Chief Operating Officer Andrew Gould to its board of directors.
Gould will help the 15-member board oversee Chamber of Commerce events, new-business initiatives and member engagement.
“My goal is to try to widen the appeal of the Chamber of Commerce and its events to a younger audience,” Gould said. “I want more people to understand what the chamber is, why it exists and what it can do for them. That will help create an environment where more companies like Squirrels can start up and thrive in North Canton.”
Founded in 2008 in North Canton, Squirrels LLC is an industry leader in screen-mirroring technology in education and business. Squirrels products are used to wirelessly stream and mirror content between devices in hundreds of thousands of classrooms and conference rooms every day. Gould oversees day-to-day operations of Squirrels’ rapidly expanding team, now nearing 40 employees. He also guides the Business Development, Quality Assurance, Support, Finance and Web Development departments.
Gould is a 2005 graduate of Green High School and 2009 graduate of the University of Akron. He earned a bachelor’s degree in computer information systems and a minor in business management. Gould is proud to have created and grown a company in North Canton that is known around the world.
About Squirrels LLC Squirrels is a North Canton, Ohio-based software company that specializes in wireless screen-mirroring technology. Its industry-leading products are used in education, business, gaming, application development and more to stream and mirror content between hardware such as Macs, PCs, iOS devices, Android devices, Surface Pros and Chromebooks. Squirrels products include Reflector 2, Reflector Director, Reflector Student, Ditto, AirParrot 2 and AirParrot Remote. More information about these products and Squirrels can be found at https://airsquirrels.com.


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Dubai: Hamad Bu Amim, Director General of the Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said: “Food security is a very important issue for the UAE. The country imports the vast majority of its food and so establishing strong partnerships with key food producing nations is vital.”
Last year, UAE food consumption was valued at Dh26.5 billion and this is forecast to rise to Dh34.8 billion by 2016. At the same time, per capita food consumption is expected to increase from Dh3,527 last year to Dh4,156 in 2016.
Since 2007, the UAE’s imports of prepared foodstuff and beverages have increased by 17.8 per cent from Dh8.76 billion to Dh12.28 billion in 2011. The main imported products are food preparations, sugar, chocolate and products containing cocoa, bread and cakes, followed by flour, water, fruit juices and meat.
The United States is the biggest source of imports, with a 10.5 per cent share, followed by India (8 per cent), Saudi Arabia (6.2 per cent), the UK (5.4 per cent), Thailand (5.3 per cent) and France (5 per cent).
A study by the Dubai Chamber showed that food commodity prices have been generally rising since 2000. This is because of speculation by traders who buy and sell commodities for a quick profit, a decrease in the value of the US dollar and rising demand at a time when supply is being constrained due to the weather, a lack of water and biofuel production.
For the UAE, this can mean food inflation and the danger of instability in countries which might suffer from shortages.


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PlayStation 5 production raised to 10 million units as Sony tackles home entertainment demands caused by coronavirus
Back in April, it was reported that Sony had planned an initial production run of five to six million units for the upcoming PlayStation 5. However, new pieces from both the Nikkei Asian Review and Bloomberg have claimed that Sony has requested a considerable ramping up of production, with 10 million PS5 consoles now required by the end of the year. Five million of those are expected to be part of the initial sales stock when the PS5 is launched, while the other five million units should be delivered to retailers throughout 2021.
The two main reasons supposedly behind the considerable production increase have both been caused by the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. Firstly, it seems that more people being based at home will create an increase in the demand for home entertainment solutions, and obviously Sony wants to meet that demand with the PS5. Secondly, it also appears that the Japanese company is preparing for logistical difficulties, with coronavirus-related safety precautions making shipping a bigger problem than it was for previous console generations.
Unsurprisingly, Sony will be aware that there will be a huge demand for the PS5 upon launch, and even this costly production boost might not be sufficient enough to cover initial demand. At least the company has the impressive Kisarazu-based manufacturing plant with an automated assembly line that can apparently produce a PS5 console every 30 seconds, day and night, to assist with supply. Bloomberg reckons Sony will have five million consoles ready by September while the remaining five million units could be ready between October and December.


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Hipchat-Maker Atlassian Sets Share Prices For Its IPOEnterprise software company Atlassian which filed a month ago to go public on NASDAQ has disclosed how much its shares will cost. In a SEC filing the company said its 20 million shares will be priced between $16.50 to $18.50. Read More
Is Foxconn's share price telegraphing the impending release of a blockbuster new Apple product? The last time Foxconn’s share price hit this level was in early 2010, around when Steve Jobs took the stage in January to announce the very first iPad Here are at least 2 reasons why. Apple's Impending Larger iPhone Options Will Have It Enter The Phablet Market -- Fast Growing In Asia. And, the rumored iWatch will have Apple entering yet a another new category.


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(Update: Reino tells us that the reason behind this break-up is that the partnership between the two parties was not working that well – not in terms of operations, but in terms of having the “big picture.”)
It has been an up-and-down drama between Japan-based e-commerce giant Rakuten with Indonesia’s media conglomerate MNC regarding their joint venture project Rakuten Belanja Online (RBO) in Indonesia. Back in March the two companies reportedly split up, only to reiterate their commitment to the Indonesian market and squash the split-up rumors two months later. Tech in Asia just received word from Reino Barack, the CEO of MNC’s TV shoppping and e-commerce company MNC Shop, that the joint venture has been closed as of yesterday.
So what is the reason behind the split up? We can think up of a few, but one of the newest reasons might be the newly-launched MNC Shop online. The e-commerce platform, which is a joint venture project between MNC and South Korea’s TV home shopping company GS Home Shopping, has a similar business model to RBO’s B2B2C model. That would make MNC Shop a direct competitor to RBO in the e-commerce space.
Though the e-commerce side looks similar, MNC Shop uses a very different method to promote its products. Users can view MNC Shop’s products via online and offline video channels including traditional TV shopping channels.
When asked if MNC Shop would have been a competitor to RBO given the similarities in e-commerce business models, Reino said that MNC Shop has a different business model compared to RBO because of its TV shopping focus. He added that the e-commerce side of MNC Shop is “a complementary or secondary business” because the company’s main focus is its TV shopping business. (Update: Reino says that MNC Shop is doing the B2B2C business model partially, with items promoted via TV adapting to the current TV shopping business model.)
Lastly, Reino shared that MNC Shop is looking to improve its regional distribution center so that the company can offer credit card installment and next day delivery to customers this year. The team hopes that it can expand its services to 20 cities in Indonesia this year.
We’ve emailed Rakuten for comment on the closing. We will update this article if we hear back.
(Editing by Charlie Custer and Willis Wee)


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With 2014 gone and in the past, it’s time to celebrate the new year with new adventures and blessings. One couple that has much to be joyous about for this upcoming 2015 year is rapper Fabolous and his longtime girlfriend, former “Love & Hip Hop: New York” star & fashion designer Emily B. Congratulations are in order for the couple as they have confirmed Emily is currently pregnant!!
Bossip first broke the news of Emily’s growing bump but with no official word or proof, it seemed like speculation. But now, Emily has confirmed the great news by posting a picture to Instagram of herself in a tight body-hugging red dress showing off her “gut full glow” on New Year’s Eve.
Congratulations to the couple on their upcoming baby.


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Proceeds from the facility will be used to invest in focused growth initiatives, efficiency measures to enhance profitable growth, as well as elevate the iFIT member experience by continuing to innovate across interactive software, content, and hardware.
“We are grateful to the team at Pathlight for supporting us as we enter our next chapter of growth at iFIT. As fitness routines normalize coming out of the pandemic, we strive to deliver the most outsized fitness experience regardless of where our member wants to workout. The support from Pathlight will allow us to continue our leadership position in delivering the most innovative hardware and immersive experience,” stated Steve Barr and Mark Watterson, iFIT co-Presidents.
Mark Twomey, Partner of Pathlight Capital commented, “Pathlight was proud to partner with L Catterton and the management team in providing liquidity to support the innovation iFIT delivers to the health and fitness market. The content and interactive nature of their diverse product offerings continues to revolutionize the in-home workout experience. We are pleased to be a part of this capital raise and look forward to the continued growth of the business.”
About Pathlight Capital
Pathlight Capital is a private credit investment manager dedicated to meeting the needs of companies that operate across a broad range of industries by providing asset-based loans secured on a first or second lien basis against tangible and intangible assets. Pathlight aims to provide creative financing solutions to allow management teams to access incremental liquidity for the purposes of funding working capital, debt refinancings, growth, acquisitions, dividends and turnaround strategies. For more information, please visit www.pathlightcapital.com.
About iFIT Health & Fitness Inc.
iFIT® is a global fitness and well-being subscription technology company that provides unmatched fitness experiences and solutions to its growing community of over 7.3 million members in over 120 countries. iFIT’s industry-leading brands – NordicTrack®, ProForm®, Sweat®, Freemotion®, Weider® and 29029® – are powered by the iFIT integrated health and fitness platform, which seamlessly connects the company’s proprietary software, experiential content and interactive hardware. Based in Logan, Utah, with offices in Paris, Shanghai, Sydney and Leeds, the company offers immersive, adaptive, personalized workout experiences for every fitness level and interest. iFIT delivers these patented interactive experiences through an extensive offering of live and on-demand content across the industry’s broadest range of connected fitness modalities. iFIT is a pioneer and leader in the health and fitness industry with more than 400 issued and pending patents.
SOURCE Pathlight Capital


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Shares of Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) are continuing their parabolic upward push nowadays, making the electric-automobile (EV) producer more precious than facebook and further fortifying CEO Elon Musk’s newly held assign as the sector’s richest person. This adds to the inventory’s astonishing 300 and sixty five days-to-date momentum. At the side of a 7.4% compose as of 11 a.m. EST on Friday, shares are now up 25% already in 2021.
The inventory’s compose comes as Evercore ISI analyst Chris McNally upgraded his rating for it and admitted the examine firm has “been on the significantly sinful aspect of TSLA for over a 300 and sixty five days now.”
Image provide: Tesla.
McNally quandary a $650 12-month label target for the inventory and upgraded his rating on shares to “in line,” which is take care of a retain rating. This is up from a outdated target of $225 and a sell-an identical underperform rating.
The analyst believes the company is considered as a tech company, main within the nascent EV space and boasting optionality in varied areas take care of self-utilizing technology, battery storage, and electric motors.
Despite the truth that Tesla only within the near previous reported document fourth-quarter deliveries, there is soundless uncertainty concerning the company’s monetary efficiency for the length of this crucial length. Investors can fetch an update on Tesla’s industrial when the company reports its fourth-quarter earnings, which is ready to doubtless be around the tip of January.
Daniel Sparks has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool owns shares of and recommends facebook and Tesla. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.”>


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This is the good news for PSP lovers. The latest edition of PSM (PlayStation Magazine) says that Sony is set to release a second generation PSP in Japan by March 2007. The next generation of PSP will not be named PSP 2, and will be a simple upgrade more than anything else. The report suggests that Sony will upgrade the built-in memory from 32MB to 8GB based on memory chip industry movement. Sony will add a built-in camera and will upgrade the UMD drive into a slot-loading drive. As a result, the upgraded PSP will be slimmer than its predecessor. The price is expected to stay the same at around US$250.
Via Next Generation.


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Postal dept to launch quicker parcel service from July 19
The department of post is set to launch a revamped parcel service, with quick delivery period, better packaging and security features from July 19.lucknow Updated: Jun 26, 2013 10:50 IST
The department of post is set to launch a revamped parcel service, with quick delivery period, better packaging and security features from July 19.
The new product would be launched in 20 cities across India, including Lucknow and Agra in the Uttar Pradesh circle. “With a centralised delivery system in place, the parcel service would cut down parcel deliveries by at least two days,” postal headquarters UP circle director Vivek Kumar Daksh said. He added that a new mechanised parcel and logistic hub-processing centre was also under consideration for improving services.
In Lucknow, the new parcel services would be made available at prominent post offices, including General Post office (GPO), Chowk, New Hydrabad, Gomti Nagar, Nirala Nagar, Mahanagar, Aliganj, Indira Nagar, SGPGI, IIM, LDA colony, Aminabad, Alambagh and Rajajipuram. The facility would be available for both retail and bulk customers in ordinary and express forms.
Senior officials at the postal department said the new system, which was an India Post initiative, would scrap at least two processes involved in the route of booking to delivery, that would help cut down on the delivery time. As of now, after the booking at the post offices, the parcel is sent to the Railway Mail Service (RMS) office of the source station, where it is processed and directed to the RMS of the destination station. Thereafter it is sent to the concerned post office and dispatched for delivery.
Officials explained that as in the new system, the processing time at the RMS centres could be saved it would save at least two days in case of distant parcel deliveries.
First Published: Jun 26, 2013 10:48 IST


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Apple could see more than 600 million users by the end of 2013, up from 500 million currently, according to Morgan Stanley analyst Katy Hubert.
The 600 million figure assumes that 40 percent of Apple's device sales will be to new customers. If the forecast holds true, Apple stands to generate a healthy amount of revenue and free cash flow per account.
Following growth of an estimated 55 percent in 2012, Apple's current tally of 500 million users ranks second only to the number of people on Facebook. Each of those accounts spent on average $329 last year, leading to free cash flow of $95 per person, much higher than the free cash flow captured by such tech players as Facebook, Amazon, and eBay.
"Apple's advantage over other hardware platforms is its ecosystem, which creates 'stickiness' and opens new revenue streams," Huberty said in an investor note out today. "New services, like mobile payments, video, streaming music, or ad exchange, can help monetize Apple's user base. One of the opportunities is mobile payments, where Apple can leverage its large user base, secure platform, and acquired AuthenTec technology."


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It seems Tata Nano is no longer going to be the the world’s cheapest car! .
Tara Tiny from the Tara International stable is going to be cheapest car which runs on electricity. These are zero emission and cost only Rs 99,000!, which is 1 rupee less than that of Tata Nano (not including levies or delivery charges).
The Tara Tiny can seat 2 people and can be recharged daily at 220 volts through 15 amp sockets, a 8 hour charge enables the cars to travel 80 – 100 kilo meters.
The only downside to the Electric Tara Tiny is that it will only reach a top speed of 50 km/hr (31 mph), which is not bad for urban driving.
Tara International has teamed up with China’s Aucma, a leading player in the electrical vehicles and appliances segment, to manufacture this cars.
- Tata Nano: The World’s Cheapest Car
- Tata unveiled World’s cheapest car “Nano”
- Tata Motors’ Nano car to hit traffic in Oct
- Tata Motors Nano Rs 1 lakh car
- Tata Nano shines at 2008 Geneva Motor Show
- Tata Unveils the World’s Cheapest Car
- Tata Nano: Ratan Tata’s Speach
- Tata’s High-Stakes Bet on Low-Cost Car
- Nano – the car will “put India on wheels”
- Rs 1 lakh car, Jaguar can co-exist: Tata


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Facebook’s Cambridge Analytica scandal made headlines around the world after it was revealed that the data of 87 Facebook users was sold and used for dubious political purposes. However, recent reports of the social media giant’s agreements with other corporations suggest that the Cambridge Analytica scandal wasn’t an outlier.
Facebook has data-sharing agreements with at least 60 electronics manufacturers, including Amazon, Apple, BlackBerry and Samsung. But it’s the company ties to at least four Chinese manufacturers that are the most concerning.
Facebook admitted on June 5 that it allowed Huawei, a Chinese telecommunications company closely connected to China’s communist government, to have special access to Facebook users’ personal information collected from the social media site.
Facebook’s arrangements with Huawei allowed the company to retrieve detailed information about users, including work and education history, relationship status, likes, and interests, as well as the data of all the targeted users’ friends. In some cases, companies may even harvest the personal data of friends of friends.
Alarmingly, Huawei has been flagged by American intelligence officials as a national security threat, and Facebook has no control over what Huawei is doing with all the user data it has collected for years. Some of Facebook’s agreements with Chinese companies date to at least 2010. Other Chinese firms that have data-sharing arrangements with Facebook are Lenovo, Oppo, and TCL.
According to The New York Times, Huawei received billions of dollars in lines of credit from China’s massive state-owned policy banks, which helps it expand its presence worldwide, establishing strong Chinese government footholds in Africa, Europe, and Latin America.
U.S. officials also warn that Huawei’s devices and those made by other Chinese tech companies could be used for spying on American citizens, sending your personal information to Beijing, according to the The Washington Post.
Facebook indicated to U.S. officials that more data scandals like Cambridge Analytica could surface. In April, the social media company told the Securities and Exchange Commission that it expected to find more massive cases of data misuse. Up until recently, however, Facebook’s efforts to reign in potential data misuse has been focused on app developers instead of device makers and other tech companies.


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Celebrity Cruises Partners with Lifetime's Emmy®- Nominated Series Project Runway®
August 25 2015 - A first for Project Runway and the cruise industry, Celebrity Cruises has become the Emmy®-nominated competition series' first-ever cruise line partner. An episode of Project Runway aired on August 20, 2015 in the US, featuring special guest and Celebrity President and CEO Lisa Lutoff-Perlo, alongside co-host, mentor and Emmy Award-winner Tim Gunn. Viewers can watch the ambitious fashion design contestants compete in a special challenge on the journey to becoming the next prestigious winner of Project Runway.
Celebrity is also providing one of the prizes for this season's winning designer. The winner and their guest will be able to vacation almost anywhere in the world on a Celebrity cruise in the brand's popular and rejuvenating spa-inspired AquaClass accommodations.
"Our partnership with Project Runway is the perfect fit - at the core of both of our brands are innovative, big and bold ideas that never have been seen before in our industries," explained Lutoff-Perlo. "It is incredibly exciting to finally share the news, even more so as the first cruise company to ever collaborate with the popular series. We hope everyone will join us in watching the highly anticipated episode, in which the Project Runway team continues the search for the next big fashion designer."
Lutoff-Perlo added, "We would love to welcome Heidi Klum, Nina Garcia, Zac Posen and Tim Gunn onboard our ships in the future!"
Season 14 opens with sixteen ambitious designers competing through grueling design-focused tasks and challenges, and only the best will stay on top. The season's winning designer will receive many prizes in addition to a Celebrity Cruises modern luxury vacation.
Be sure to watch Project Runway on Arena in Australia when season 14 starts


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16:23, 24 NOV 2020
Cheapest flat in Glasgow just now is up for auction for just £10k
This could be a cheeky wee way to get yourself on the property ladder!
Renfrew's The Company Shop discount supermarket is offering more memberships
You can often find incredible bargains with food being sold for as little as 25p.
Baby cereal laced with plastic and cheese with Listeria: list of products recalled by major supermarkets
From baby cereal to cheese - several of the UK's major supermarkets have issued product recalls on a variety of products from this month.
Coronavirus in Scotland: New supermarket rules you need to know about in the lead up to Christmas
Asda, Aldi, Lidl, Tesco, Morrisons and more have their own coronavirus rules in the run up to Christmas.
Police called to Tesco after 'school kids allowed to shop without masks' claim
Worried residents claimed the pupils from Renfrew High School were not abiding by strict Covid-19 guidelines in the Renfrew store in Broadloan.
Shawlands nursery lifts spirits of care home residents this Halloween with pumpkin patch
Pied Piper Nursery and Hector House have worked together to create the pumpkin patch for residents to enjoy.
Coronavirus in Scotland: Tesco boss issues stockpiling warning to Christmas shoppers
Jason Tarry told shoppers: "there’s no need to buy more of your regular groceries than normal".
Staff at St Rollox Tesco self-isolating after colleague tests positive for coronavirus
Workers at the Extra store in the north of Glasgow have been affected.
Coronavirus lockdown – Latest rules for supermarkets as lockdown restrictions announced by Scottish Government
New restrictions have been announced in Scotland's bid to drive down the R-number, estimated to be at around 1.5
Tesco announces 'traffic light system' amid growing coronavirus crisis
Store bosses will introduced the change to help control customer numbers.
Coronavirus infection rates, cases and deaths for Glasgow and surrounding areas on Wednesday September 30
Scotland has recorded seven more coronavirus deaths in the last 24 hours as 640 new cases confirmed
Anti-social behaviour rose in Glasgow during lockdown with more than 15,000 calls to police
Covid-related breaches, neighbour disputes and drinking in public led to increase in reports between April and June, Police Scotland said
Staff at Tesco Shettleston self-isolating after colleague tests positive for coronavirus
The staff member in question is believed to have been a bakery worker
City centre 'street party' after coronavirus 10pm curfew dispersed by police
An eyewitness said they were "shocked" at the amount of people on the streets in the city centre after the 10pm curfew.
Asda, Tesco, Morrisons, Aldi, Sainsbury's and Lidl: Updated rules at supermarkets amid panic buying fears
Supermarkets are updating their guidance as the spread of coronavirus continues to accelerate.
Crash on major road in Paisley sees car roof sliced off by emergency services
Emergency services were called to the scene around 3pm on Wednesday afternoon.
'Shocking number of people still aren't wearing masks on Glasgow buses'
We travelled across the city on four different bus routes, and found that over half of our fellow passengers not wearing face coverings or masks at all or were wearing them incorrectly
Coronavirus outbreak at Tesco supermarket in Wishaw after staff test positive
Staff members at the Bellhaven Road store are now self-isolating.
Ayrshire staycations are no longer a thing of the past - our review of Arranview Holiday Park
With Nicola Sturgeon urging us all to avoid non-essential travel abroad, booking a holiday in Scotland has never been more popular. We review at just one of the stays on offer in sunny Ayrshire.
Arsenal and former Celtic star Kieran Tierney explains Tesco bag that became a meme
Tierney talked about the widely-shared image on Open Goal's Keeping The Ball On The Ground podcast
Determined Glaswegians to join new Race for Life from their nearest park
Big-hearted runners will take to parks, gardens and green spaces in the city to raise much-needed funds for Cancer Research
Big Beer Showcase to take over Osborne Street beer garden for three weeks
The Big Beer Showcase will be taking place under a mural of the Big Yin himself.
Tesco staff in Glasgow stores to clean toilets, shelves and floors after company axes contractors
Hundreds of workers in Glasgow will have to take on the extra responsibility after the supermarket giant axed its cleaning staff.
A look back at Finnieston in its 'honkin' days before it became hipster central
Taste of Punjab, Costcutter, Clan Stores, Two Ways, you name it...


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The Co-operative Food says it is getting into the festive spirit with a £10,000 party fund to give community groups and neighbourhoods across the UK the chance to win one of 100 Christmas parties.
Local groups looking to organise festive fun in their village hall, community centre or nursing home can win a party pack full of party essentials for up to 50 people, containing crackers, paper plates, paper cups, balloons, napkins and tablecloths, along with £100 worth of Co-operative vouchers to spend on food for the party.
With 100 Christmas party packs up for grabs, the UK’s favourite community retailer said it is looking to find the UK’s most community-spirited parties. The competition runs until 20 November 2012 inclusive. People can enter by visiting www.co-operativefood.co.uk/
The Co-operative said it is gearing up for the festive period with a wide range of great-value party food, perfect for celebrating with friends and family.
As well as offering a range of frozen party food products from just £1 each, shoppers can take advantage of a money-saving three for two offer across a broad range of chilled party food lines, including many of The Co-operative’s premium own-brand premium party food products, the retailer said.
Helen Nunn, head of marketing at The Co-operative Food, said: “Christmas is a time when people come together to celebrate and, with a store in every UK postal area, we’re here for families and communities at this special time of year, and want to lend a helping hand to those looking to keep the community spirit alive over the festive period by organising a party for their local community group or neighbourhood.
“Our Jubilee street party competition was a huge hit in the summer, really tapping into people’s sense of community, which is something we’re keen to encourage.”For more information, to enter the competition and for full terms and conditions, including judging criteria, please visit www.co-operativefood.co.uk/


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The term Black Friday was introduced to the American culture at some point back in the 1960s, but back then journalists advised people to stay at home to avoid the congestion and bad attitudes that go along with rampant consumerism and masses of shoppers who are hunting for the next deal. At some point in the last ten years, this dark day seems to have morphed in to an actual celebration of all the greediest and most selfish instincts we have. This year, however, I had a great Thanksgiving and all I had to do was tune Black Friday out. Did I miss out on big savings… or stumble across an even sweeter deal?
A lot of people tend to panic when they receive notification of debt collection activity, and more than a few have paid up on false claims just to protect their credit rating or business’ reputation. It is important to remember, though, that you don’t have to give in to the shakedown because there are legal protections available to those who dispute debt claims being made against them. My recent experience with Sprint has already shown some positive results, and we’ve barely even begun the dispute process! Find out how to protect your credit score and bank account from shady businesses and their favorite debt collectors.
Let’s face it. That work computer you’ve had for the last few years just doesn’t perform like it used to, and you could probably get even more done each day if you weren’t sitting around and waiting for programs and saved files to load. Luckily, you won’t have to break the bank in order to get your productivity back up to speed.
Sprint claims to be the only mobile data provider who is offering an unlimited mobile data plan, but they seem intent on reserving the right to cancel that deal at any point they see fit – contract or not. Even if you do manage to make it through a two year term with your unlimited data plan, the actual data speeds and connection reliability leave a lot to be desired. Save yourself the hassle and spend a few extra bucks a month, but avoid doing business with Sprint at all costs!
Google’s Penguin update is effecting the internet in a much broader way than any individual’s website can show. Webmaster communities and feed readers are growing quieter by the day and no re-allocation of backlinks and anchor texts is going to fix that larger trend. Read on about the state of the internet in the wake of this major update and how we might be able to move forward in an increasingly uncertain & chaotic web environment.
After a complete change in ownership, Digg is back online with a brand new design that completely unpublishes all of the 14,000,000 URLs Google previously had indexed on the domain. While the effects of these changes for Digg’s declining user-base and Google’s search results have yet to be seen, it is certain that the latest big splash is going to cause some waves in the online ecosystem. While the new Digg hasn’t exploded on to the scene as a superstar, but it isn’t inspiring the same kind of anger as earlier updates had. Will apathy be good enough to keep this one-time powerhouse online?
Google’s Panda filter is on the hunt for thin content, derivative pages, and sites that don’t add anything unique to the web. On July 24th, this filter was refreshed and many websites saw shifts in their search rankings as a result. What makes Panda so much more interesting now is that it works completely independently of the Penguin filter – so a website that is punished by one might be rewarded by the other. Now, Google’s search algorithm is dominated by mathematical chaos, or a function that approaches two points simultaneously while never actually reaching either. For sites caught in the storm, this can be a rather unreliable place to be, but the good news is there might be a way to rise up out of the chaos with a renewed focus on SEO basics and some recognition of where the easiest paths are at.
Dreamhost’s affiliate program is already a great way for webmasters to make money promoting a great product, but for the rest of the summer it is going to get even better. Get some cover from the bad economy and recent traffic fluctuations with a nice, cool bonus to your web hosting commissions.
Google’s Penguin filter has truly turned the SEO world on its head. While results often seem random, low-quality, and unpredictable, there is also what seems to be an effective formula to ranking new sites. Based on a few months of analysing SERP movements and watching a new set of domains take prominent search positions, this post lays out the SEO strategy that shreds Penguin to pieces.
Google’s Penguin update and other algorithmic changes from spring 2012 have left a whole lot of SEOs and web publishers scratching their heads in confusion and frustration. The price for crossing this particular penguin is high, but one you get to know how the filter operates, he starts to seem more like the cute and fuzzy flightless bird and a lot less like the Batman supervillain. If Google’s most recent changes have left your web traffic in chaos, this is a post you can’t afford to miss.
Here are a few tips for picking the right host for your websites. Don’t overlook this crucial decision – it has important repercussions for the health and connectivity of your online presence!
Five O’ Clock Fred presents a humorous look at some of the downsides to working in a cubicle. If you’re already stuck in one from nine to five you might not need a reminder, but you might still get a good laugh out of it!
In the aftermath of the Facebook IPO, there are some clear winners and clear losers – as well as a lot of unanswered questions about the role of the banks underwriting the stock. Why, exactly, are some of the biggest banks convinced the stock is worth twice what the revenues would imply? Here’s one theory…
Shopping for health insurance can be a frustrating task, but if you know what the jargon means it gets a whole lot easier. With costs the way they are and customer service at all time lows, a little bit of comparison shopping can go a long way.
Registering a quality new domain is no small task, so web publishers are increasingly turning to backorders and auctions to secure the brands and keywords they’re after. Find out what I learned from a recently failed attempt to grab a great domain through the backorder process.
Google has long been aware of the importance of social media in determining relevancy & authority, but only now with Google+ are they able to fully embrace the potential of incorporating this data in to their organic search results.
Spring is here, and that means it is time to clean up some old messes around the blog. Find out how to identify broken links, improve reader engagement, and why Pligg isn’t the best idea for user-generated content.
Facebook is seeking to raise big money in an IPO that values the company at nearly $100 billion. However, such a valuation puts the price to earnings ratios in a rather unsustainable place that will require big growth and aggressive monetization.
Google pushes a new update for April 2012 – and the reaction from the web hasn’t been too positive.
A judge upholds Twitters claim to own your tweets, and this ruling is already being used to present social media records in criminal prosecution. Unfortunately, this is far from the only attack against online freedom of speech.


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So what just happened to Square's business, now that it's handling all of Starbucks's U.S. credit- and debit-card sales?
In June, Square said it was handling the equivalent of $6 billion a year in payments.
We think it will soon be doing twice that. Here's why.
Starbucks does roughly $12 billion a year in sales in the U.S. Of that, 25 percent goes through its prepaid Starbucks Cards.
That program is run by First Data, and it's not part of the Square deal—those transactions stay with First Data.
Starbucks does not say what mix of the remainder is paper or plastic. But a reasonable guess based on current trends is that about 25 percent is cash and the rest—50 percent—is on credit or debit cards.
So, boom—Starbucks just doubled Square's effective annual payment volume from $6 billion a year to $12 billion.
Now, how much money is Square making on those transactions? Square and Starbucks would not comment on whether Starbucks pays the same rate as other Square merchants, which is a flat 2.75 percent of transactions.
Jim Olson, a spokesperson for Starbucks, said that the company expected to save money over its current rates.
So it's fairly likely that Starbucks negotiated a special deal. After all, it could just shift more payments onto its own Starbucks Cards, which saves it a lot of money over conventional credit-card processing fees.
But we also doubt Square is losing money on the deal.
With roughly double the payments volume, Square is in an even better position to negotiate favorable rates with Visa, MasterCard, and American Express. (Visa is an investor in Square.) Those rates likely let it profitably process small transactions, despite the widely held notion that it must be losing money on those sales.
Don't get us wrong—Square is almost certainly losing money overall, and the Starbucks deal will not change that. But it's losing money deliberately as it spends to grow its business, not because it's processing credit cards at a loss.


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Here's why Los Victor's Mexican Food California Style is closed, but only temporarily
STEVENS POINT - Los Victor’s Mexican Food California Style is closed because of lack of employees.
The restaurant owners told the Stevens Point Journal the business is out of workers, but they plan to reopen when they have a full team to run Los Victor’s. The restaurant is not moving.
Victor Bustos and his family opened the drive-thru restaurant April 8, 2021. This is the family’s seventh Los Victor’s restaurant, having opened other locations in California, New Mexico and in Wausau.
The location at 301 Division St. in Stevens Point has been home to several businesses over the past three decades, including Wizard Soft Serve, AmeriCone, Rocket Pizza, Hibachi Joe’s, Sergio’s, GottaHavaJava, Curry in a Hurry, SmokeHouse Barbeque, Uncle Adi’s Gyros and B’s Egg Rolls.


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OLYMPIA – Gov. Chris Gregoire on Wednesday signed into law a bill to exempt restaurants from paying sales tax on the free meals they provide for their employees.
Current law enabled the Department of Revenue to charge both sales tax and business and occupation tax on the free meals restaurants often provide for their employees during their shifts.
But supporters of the bill said this was unfair, since those meals were given at a cost and weren’t bringing in any new revenue.
Supporters say the bill encourages restaurants to continue feeding their employees and argued that employees would otherwise be forced to eat off-site and pay out of their usually low wages to do so.


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FoodFest News & Updates
February 24, 2014
The list of participating restaurants on the Great Eats page has been updated. We have a bunch of new restaurants confirmed this year, and will be adding more over the next several days.
January 28, 2014 - Join us after dinner for "America's Hometown Sweets"


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Toasty sandwich restaurant chain Quiznos announced on Friday that it would be filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in an attempt to restructure the company and cut more than $400 million in debt.
The city of Los Angeles will not settle. On Friday, the city sued the cable company, Time Warner Cable Inc., claiming the franchise owes them almost $10 million in unpaid franchise fees.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The prices companies receive for their goods and services fell slightly in February, the latest sign that inflation is tame.
With New Jersey taking action to ban Tesla from selling its cars there, the Garden State has joined with Arizona, Texas, Virginia and Maryland in making law only an auto-dealers association could love.
Later in the week, Fed will further taper USD 10 billion from its stimulus and likely offer fresh guidance on when it may raise interest rates.


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If high-end shoppers stay away, it is unwelcome news for Nordstrom, says Wall Street. Travel, leisure and home appliance spending may be detracting from luxury retail.
Fresh off a better than expected second quarter, Choice Hotels CEO Stephen Joyce says his hotels are continuing to take market share from the competition.
Hotels are giving off concerning signals.
Choice Hotels (CHH) CEO Stephen Joyce joined CNBC's 'Squawk Box' Wednesday morning to discuss the company's 2016 second quarter earnings results.


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JAKARTA (Reuters) -- Indonesia posted its biggest trade deficit in four years as imports surged in April, wrongfooting analysts expecting a surplus for the month, data released on Tuesday by the statistics bureau showed.
Southeast Asia's largest economy had a deficit of $1.62 billion in April, compared with a revised surplus of $1.12 billion in March. A Reuters poll of economists had expected a surplus of about $700 million in April.
April imports were up 34.68 percent from a year earlier, beating the poll's forecast of 19 percent growth and the revised 8.9 percent rise posted in March.
The bureau said imports of oil as well as consumption goods, like garlic, frozen meat and fruits, rose sharply in April.
Meanwhile, exports rose 9.01 percent from a year ago in April, slower than expected in the poll. Export growth in March was 5.9 percent.
The bureau made small revisions to March exports and imports data. Exports were revised up to $15.59 billion from $15.58 billion. Imports were revised down to $14.46 billion from $14.49 billion.