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Aussie businesses not ready to tackle modern slavery
New research from the University of South Australia finds that Australian businesses are ill-prepared for mandatory modern slavery reporting, with more than two-thirds of ASX 100 companies unable to produce a disclosure statement about potentially exploitative labour practices.
It is a concerning finding given that initial reporting periods have already commenced requiring Australian businesses to deliver their first modern slavery statements by 31 December 2020.
UniSA researchers Dr. Katherine Christ and Dr. Kathy Rao say that in order to meet the requirements of Australia's Modern Slavery Act, businesses must significantly ramp up their efforts to ensure they have the systems and procedures ready to report on modern slavery.
"Under federal legislation, businesses with turnovers of more than $100 million must declare what they're doing to eradicate slavery in their operations and supply chains, yet evidence shows the majority of Australian businesses are underprepared," Dr. Katherine Christ says.
"While a third of Australian businesses sampled in this research were able to produce a modern slavery statement, the volume and quality of their disclosures was low—typically narrative and descriptive of policy—plus there were many inconsistencies of where and how it was reported.
"The general nature of these disclosures just isn't enough. For Australian businesses to appropriately report on modern slavery, they must be able to produce systematic quantitative data with associated targets and finances."
Modern slavery is the illegal and inappropriate labour practices that include human trafficking, forced labour, child labour, organ trafficking, sex exploitation, debt bondage and other slavery-like practices. Driven by consumer demand for cheap goods it is embedded within many of the products used by Australians every day, including 73 per cent of imported computers, mobile phones and laptops (representing an estimated US$7.0 billion) and 70 per cent of imported clothing and accessories (representing an estimated US$4.5 billion).
Globally, more than 40 million people are trapped in modern slavery with nearly 25 million of these forced into slave labour. In Australia, 15,000 people are victims of modern slavery.
This research is the first to consider the state of modern slavery disclosures within an Australian context, providing a useful benchmark against which the impact of Australia's Modern Slavery Act can be measured.
Dr. Kathy Rao says that eradicating modern slavery requires commitment across all levels of Australian business.
"Modern slavery is a far-reaching and devastating issue, but the responsibility to eliminate it does not sit with business alone," Dr. Rao says.
"While all businesses have a responsibility to mitigate the risks of modern slavery, addressing modern slavery requires a joint and ongoing commitment from all parties including governments, business leaders and boards, suppliers, contractors, NGOs, researchers, professional bodies and the general public.
"Only through a committed process of ongoing and continuous improvement will we be able to ensure modern slavery is truly a thing of the past."
More information: Katherine Leanne Christ et al, Accounting for modern slavery: an analysis of Australian listed company disclosures, Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal (2019). DOI: 10.1108/AAAJ-11-2017-3242
Provided by University of South Australia


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Open Road Films
This new trailer for "Jobs" is slightly groovier and less serious than the one released before -- and longer than the one released on Instagram, natch. This time around, the focus is more on Jobs's younger years, as he and Woz (Josh Gad) and their kooky crew start cooking up computers in Jobs's garage.
Macklemore's "Can't Hold Us" provides the soundtrack to Jobs's rise -- you know, "return of the Mack" and all that -- while The Who's "Teenage Wasteland" is a nice emotional bookend as Jobs fights to reclaim his company. We also get a meatier peek at Ashton's take on the older Jobs, in his traditional black shirt and jeans, and glimpses of his family life. Of note: There is 100 percent less shirtless and/or shoeless Kutcher, too.
Dermot Mulroney appears as Apple investor and one-time CEO Mike Markkula; Lukas Haas plays Daniel Kottke; and Matthew Modine shows up as former Apple CEO John Sculley.
"Jobs" arrives on August 16. Stay tuned for our interview with Kutcher next week.

domain: news


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|By Business Wire||
|July 1, 2014 04:07 AM EDT||
Relative Insight (www.relativeinsight.com), the language analysis service that turns language into data, launches today. The company helps brands and agencies analyse all language associated with an organisation and determines how it resonates with key audiences.
The technology is based on 10 years of research at Lancaster University. It was initially developed for law enforcement to identify masquerading by criminals by analysing at scale the language used in conversations. The company now works with major brands including Microsoft, Havas, Ogilvy and Manning Gottlieb OMD to provide insight into the language found in advertising copy, website copy, social media, forums and any other channels where language is used in relation to a brand.
Relative Insight plans to disrupt the subjectivity around traditional marketing approaches by providing sophisticated evidence-based analysis of the language used by competitors and consumers alike.
“There are now so many channels via which a brand can talk about itself, and via which its consumers and users can respond. To truly understand what you are saying about yourself and what’s being said about you, simple analysis of social media channels simply isn’t enough,” said Ben Hookway, CEO of Relative Insight. “For example, a word like ‘break’ alone has 76 different meanings in English—sentiment analysis tools really struggle to know which meaning is intended. The launch of Relative Insight will enable organisations to have a level of insight into the language used by themselves, their customers and their competitors on a scale that has never been available before.”
Unlike social media monitoring tools, Relative Insight is a managed service. The hand-delivered data shows brands how their target audiences are responding to their marketing campaigns and makes recommendations for language improvements, allowing them to adjust their language across all channels with a goal to build stronger emotional connections between the brand and its consumers and ultimately positively impacting sales.
“Relative Insight allows us to compare our use of language with how our target audience speaks and how our competitors position themselves. We can reflect that knowledge in our ongoing communication in digital and beyond,” said Thomas Messett, European head of digital marketing at Microsoft Mobile.
“Taking the subtleties of language expression and turning it into data has been a major development for Havas,” said Matt Fanshawe, Global Brand Director of HavasEHS. “Investigating language data on a grand scale to show how a brand is perceived in relation to its competitors, and monitoring the changes over time, has enabled us to bring real insight to our clients. Using this to understand the differences between customer groups, the semantic topics they discuss, their expressions and views has opened up a source of consumer insight that we believe is unique and drives our creativity.”
“Relative Insight helps us to engage in critical analysis of our clients’ otherwise unwieldy volume of online conversations,” said Leo Ryan, group head of social at Ogilvy. “As an agency that is focussed on helping our clients to sell it is crucial that we have a real understanding of the nature and perception of their customers online conversations about their brands, products and services. Relative Insight enables us to do that at scale and with real rigour.”
About Relative Insight:
Relative Insight objectively and comparatively analyses the language associated with brands, their competitors and consumers, delivering insights into how language is resonating with and perceived by audiences. Relative Insight is technology delivered as a managed service, run by a team of experts who have built the technology from 10 years of research at Lancaster University, initially developed to identify criminals in the fields of child protection and counter-terrorism. Relative Insight raised an investment round in 2014 with EV Group. For more information visit www.relativeinsight.com, follow @relativeinsight, or monitor the #languageisdata hashtag.
DevOps is being widely accepted (if not fully adopted) as essential in enterprise IT. But as Enterprise DevOps gains maturity, expands scope, and increases velocity, the need for data-driven decisions across teams becomes more acute. DevOps teams in any modern business must wrangle the ‘digital exhaust’ from the delivery toolchain, "pervasive" and "cognitive" computing, APIs and services, mobile devices and applications, the Internet of Things, and now even blockchain.
Apr. 29, 2017 01:30 PM EDT Reads: 2,906
Did you know that you can develop for mainframes in Java? Or that the testing and deployment can be automated across mobile to mainframe? In his session at @DevOpsSummit at 20th Cloud Expo, Vaughn Marshall, Sr. Principal Product Owner at CA Technologies, will discuss and demo how increasingly teams are developing with agile methodologies using modern development environments and automating testing and deployments, mobile to mainframe.
Apr. 29, 2017 01:15 PM EDT Reads: 1,603
Apr. 29, 2017 01:15 PM EDT Reads: 1,521
@GonzalezCarmen has been ranked the Number One Influencer and @ThingsExpo has been named the Number One Brand in the “M2M 2016: Top 100 Influencers and Brands” by Analytic. Onalytica analyzed tweets over the last 6 months mentioning the keywords M2M OR “Machine to Machine.” They then identified the top 100 most influential brands and individuals leading the discussion on Twitter.
Apr. 29, 2017 01:00 PM EDT Reads: 1,499
@DevOpsSummit has been named the ‘Top DevOps Influencer' by iTrend. iTred processes millions of conversations, tweets, interactions, news articles, press releases, blog posts - and extract meaning form them and analyzes mobile and desktop software platforms used to communicate, various metadata (such as geo location), and automation tools. In overall placement, @DevOpsSummit ranked as the number one ‘DevOps Influencer' followed by @CloudExpo at third, and @MicroservicesE at 24th.
Apr. 29, 2017 01:00 PM EDT Reads: 3,064
In his keynote at 19th Cloud Expo, Sheng Liang, co-founder and CEO of Rancher Labs, discussed the technological advances and new business opportunities created by the rapid adoption of containers. With the success of Amazon Web Services (AWS) and various open source technologies used to build private clouds, cloud computing has become an essential component of IT strategy. However, users continue to face challenges in implementing clouds, as older technologies evolve and newer ones like Docker c...
Apr. 29, 2017 12:45 PM EDT Reads: 1,197
Apr. 29, 2017 12:45 PM EDT Reads: 2,630
Blockchain is a shared, secure record of exchange that establishes trust, accountability and transparency across supply chain networks. Supported by the Linux Foundation's open source, open-standards based Hyperledger Project, Blockchain has the potential to improve regulatory compliance, reduce cost and time for product recall as well as advance trade. Are you curious about Blockchain and how it can provide you with new opportunities for innovation and growth? In her session at 20th Cloud Exp...
Apr. 29, 2017 12:45 PM EDT Reads: 2,159
The goal of Continuous Testing is to shift testing left to find defects earlier and release software faster. This can be achieved by integrating a set of open source functional and performance testing tools in the early stages of your software delivery lifecycle. There is one process that binds all application delivery stages together into one well-orchestrated machine: Continuous Testing. Continuous Testing is the conveyor belt between the Software Factory and production stages. Artifacts are ...
Apr. 29, 2017 12:15 PM EDT Reads: 1,449
Most technology leaders, contemporary and from the hardware era, are reshaping their businesses to do software in the hope of capturing value in IoT. Although IoT is relatively new in the market, it has already gone through many promotional terms such as IoE, IoX, SDX, Edge/Fog, Mist Compute, etc. Ultimately, irrespective of the name, it is about deriving value from independent software assets participating in an ecosystem as one comprehensive solution.
Apr. 29, 2017 12:15 PM EDT Reads: 699
DevOps is often described as a combination of technology and culture. Without both, DevOps isn't complete. However, applying the culture to outdated technology is a recipe for disaster; as response times grow and connections between teams are delayed by technology, the culture will die. A Nutanix Enterprise Cloud has many benefits that provide the needed base for a true DevOps paradigm. In his Day 3 Keynote at 20th Cloud Expo, Chris Brown, a Solutions Marketing Manager at Nutanix, will explore t...
Apr. 29, 2017 12:00 PM EDT Reads: 1,091
NHK, Japan Broadcasting, will feature the upcoming @ThingsExpo Silicon Valley in a special 'Internet of Things' and smart technology documentary that will be filmed on the expo floor between November 3 to 5, 2015, in Santa Clara. NHK is the sole public TV network in Japan equivalent to the BBC in the UK and the largest in Asia with many award-winning science and technology programs. Japanese TV is producing a documentary about IoT and Smart technology and will be covering @ThingsExpo Silicon Val...
Apr. 29, 2017 11:45 AM EDT Reads: 935
The explosion of new web/cloud/IoT-based applications and the data they generate are transforming our world right before our eyes. In this rush to adopt these new technologies, organizations are often ignoring fundamental questions concerning who owns the data and failing to ask for permission to conduct invasive surveillance of their customers. Organizations that are not transparent about how their systems gather data telemetry without offering shared data ownership risk product rejection, regu...
Apr. 29, 2017 11:45 AM EDT Reads: 1,850
SYS-CON Events announced today that SoftLayer, an IBM Company, has been named “Gold Sponsor” of SYS-CON's 18th Cloud Expo, which will take place on June 7-9, 2016, at the Javits Center in New York, New York. SoftLayer, an IBM Company, provides cloud infrastructure as a service from a growing number of data centers and network points of presence around the world. SoftLayer’s customers range from Web startups to global enterprises.
Apr. 29, 2017 11:15 AM EDT Reads: 2,365
Cloud Expo, Inc. has announced today that Aruna Ravichandran, vice president of DevOps Product and Solutions Marketing at CA Technologies, has been named co-conference chair of DevOps at Cloud Expo 2017. The @DevOpsSummit at Cloud Expo New York will take place on June 6-8, 2017, at the Javits Center in New York City, New York, and @DevOpsSummit at Cloud Expo Silicon Valley will take place Oct. 31-Nov. 2, 2017, at the Santa Clara Convention Center in Santa Clara, CA.
Apr. 29, 2017 10:45 AM EDT Reads: 2,850


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For centuries, the health benefits of green tea have been widely speculated. Tea drinkers can agree on its delicious taste and because of that, have continued to drink it. Recently, though, studies have emerged linking green tea to the prevention of the autoimmune disease, Sjogren’s Syndrome.
Sjogren’s Syndrome, or dry mouth, is a relatively common disorder in which people do not produce enough saliva. According to research at the Medical College of Georgia, in an experiment with mice with the same condition, those treated with green tea extract produced much better results than other test groups.
Lead researcher, Dr. Stephen Hsu explains that “30 percent of elderly Americans suffer from degrees of dry mouth,” so there truly is a need to find some sort of remedy. One notable effect of the experiment was the short time it took for the healing benefits of green tea to work. Dr. Hsu said, “Those treated with the green tea extract beginning at three weeks, showed significantly less damage to those glands over time.”
So, tea drinkers, now in addition to all the tasty and relaxing effects of tea, it might actually be keeping you healthy. Maybe milk and green tea can unite in their cause to “do a body good” like in this green tea ice cream recipe!


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A new ransomware variant encrypts files on a computer but uses a novel twist on monetizing the extortion threat, according to researchers at Symantec.
Instead of demanding money directly for decryption keys, as has been the case in other instances, it presumes that the owner of an infected computer will search for information to help unlock the files. The search typically leads to a fraudulent company offering a fix but requiring a payment to obtain it.The malware was found by Shunichi Imano, an engineer with Symantec Security Response. In a blog post Friday, he said that the malicious software, called Trojan.Ramvicrype, uses the RC4 algorithm, a widely-used software cipher, to encrypt files on compromised computers, rendering them unusable.
Once on a victim's machine, the trojan encrypts files in recently opened locations, Imano said.
“One of the worst-case scenarios occurs when a file in the Windows system folder has recently been opened,” he said. “This leads to a situation in which the threat encrypts all files in the Windows system folder, the computer is critically damaged and the user is unlikely to be able to access the internet to search for the fix.”
Ransomware typically display a message demanding users pay online criminals in exchange for keys that can be used to unlock a computer or decrypt any encrypted files. One case last year involved malicious ads that were able to evade detection scans run by websites or third-party ad networks.
To help prevent infections such as these, Symantec recommends that users take standard precautions, such as using complex passwords, ensuring that programs use the lowest level of privileges necessary, disabling file sharing if not needed, keeping patches up-to-date and isolating compromised computers quickly to prevent threats from spreading.
Symantec has posted a fix for the Trojan.Ramvicrype infection here.


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Tesla Class 8’s will hit Canadian roads
MONTREAL, QC - More than 30 of Tesla's new fully-electric Class 8's could be on the road in Canada as soon as 2019. Three companies - including Canadian grocery and pharmacy giant Loblaw Companies - have wasted no time in making the move to the newly launched trucks. Tesla showcased the new Class 8 vehicles with an unveiling event in California last Thursday. Loblaw, J.B. Hunt, and Walmart announced Friday they each had secured pre-orders with the company. Although a final price for the trucks hasn't been listed yet, Loblaw put deposits of $5000 per truck on 25 of the vehicles, currently set to be released sometime in 2019. Walmart is also reporting a buy-in of 15 trucks, 10 of which will go to its Canadian operations, while the others will go to operations in the United States.


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March 25, 2008 - FranExcel, the Middle East’s leading franchise marketing, brokerage and consultancy company, has signed an agreement with Global Franchise of Brazil, to market Brazilian franchise brands into the Middle East and Asia.
The agreement will also see the option for Middle East-based franchise companies offered the opportunity to expand their businesses into the huge Brazilian market.
Speaking on the venture, FranExcel Managing Director, Gareth Parry said, “This new agreement provides FranExcel with our first foothold in the South American franchise market. Global Franchise is an excellent company and we are very much looking forward to working with them to help export Brazilian franchise brands, especially in the fashion and food sectors, into the Middle East and Asia in particular. Also, it is estimated that more than 8million people living in Brazil are from Arabic descent, Lebanese in particular, which offers Middle Eastern franchise companies a massive opportunity to expand and export into the Brazil franchise market. It is simply win-win for everyone.”
Global Franchise is led by its President, Paulo Cesar Mauro, has been active in the Brazilian franchise industry for 11 years and is widely considered as the pioneer of franchising in Brazil, a country with a population of almost 200 million, whose franchise market is among the top five in the world.
FranExcel can be contacted by franchisors in the Middle East to discuss franchise expansion opportunities in the Brazilian market.
View Company Website: http://www.franexcel.com


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FILE PHOTO: Tesla logo is painted on a wall in a Tesla dealer in New York, USA, April 29, 2016. REUTERS/Lucas Jackson/File Photo
(Reuters) – T. Rowe Price, once the second largest investor in Tesla, Inc. after Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk, spent most of its stake in the electric carmaker in a series of transactions over the last two quarters.
Funds managed by T. Rowe Price Group Inc is in the possession of a 10.12% of the shares in Tesla September. It sold about half of that stake in the quarter ended December and 92 percent of the remaining interest in the following quarter.
Tesla has been plagued with problems for the last couple of quarters, ranging from the production of obstacles for its Model 3 sedans to Fix it. the brush with securities regulators.
T. Rowe, which manages more than $1 trillion in assets, started investing in Tesla in 2015, the electric car manufacturer said, in 2016, was one of the top five investors.
Reporting by Akanksha Rana in Bengaluru; Editing by Anil D’silva


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SpaceX is mad at the FCC for refusing an $886 million Starlink subsidy, and experts say self-driving cars may need some form of human oversight. A major credit card company plans to implement code in gun stores to track gun and ammunition sales.
That’s all the tech news trending right now. Welcome to WordPress. Tuesday, September 13th, this is your host, James Roy.
Elon Musk’s SpaceX is disappointed by the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) denial of an $886 million grant for the company’s Starlink satellite internet service. As part of the $9.2 billion Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF), SpaceX sought grants from his FCC to expand Starlink to rural homes and businesses in his 35 states. The FCC he rejected this bid in August. reported by an insider, said the company “failed to demonstrate that the provider could deliver the services promised.” said the FCC’s decision to deny funding to the company was “flawed as a matter of both law and policy.” According to Goldman, Starlink refusing to subsidize his internet would divide Americans digitally.
Self-driving cars are growing in popularity, and companies are investing billions in developing them, but experts say remote humans are being used to assist robot drivers in trouble. supervisor may be required on a permanent basis. The appeal of self-driving cars is that they are run by AI and computers, but self-driving software systems lack the human ability to quickly predict and assess risk, leaving robots to be safer than humans. Making a car is difficult. This month, GM recalled and updated the software on 80 of his cruise self-driving cars. This was after an accident that injured two of his over the summer. US safety regulators said the recalled software could “falsely predict” the path of oncoming traffic. Furthermore, according to Reuters, the deployment of these autonomous vehicles is taking much longer than originally anticipated. In a recent interview, Tesla CEO Elon Musk said that developing a self-driving car was “much harder than we originally thought,” but when asked for a timeline, he said that Tesla will be in production by the end of the year. He said it could be achieved.
Visa, Mastercard, American Express Scheduled A new merchant code that allows for better tracking of firearm purchases. The move comes just one day after the International Organization for Standardization approved new merchant category codes for gun and ammunition stores to use when processing transactions. A merchant category code is a four-digit number used by credit card companies to categorize your business. It usually tells the business what kind of services or goods it sells to consumers. This new code will apply to all purchases at gun and ammo stores. After the code was approved last Friday, New York City Comptroller Brad Lander said the move would help financial institutions flag suspicious activity at their stores and save lives. At this time, it is not yet known how the new code will be implemented by credit card companies and other third-party payment processors.
researchers in Department of Computer Science, University of Oxford has developed an AI system that enables autonomous vehicles (AVs) to achieve safer and more reliable navigation capabilities, especially in hazardous weather conditions. According to one of his principal investigators, the difficulty of AVs in achieving accurate positioning in difficult weather conditions is the main reason these vehicles have so far been limited to relatively small-scale trials. is. In fog or rain, the AV may detect that you are in the wrong lane before turning, or stop too late at an intersection due to “poor positioning”. The team created a novel self-supervised deep learning model for ego-motion estimation. Egomotion estimation is a key component of an AV’s drive system that estimates the vehicle’s moving position relative to objects observed from the vehicle itself. The model uses information from visual sensors, which are often interrupted by severe weather, and data from weather-tolerant sources, so the advantages of each can be used under a variety of weather conditions.
That’s all the tech news trending right now. Hashtag Trending is part of the ITWC Podcast network. Add us to your Alexa Flash Briefing or Google Home Daily Briefing.Be sure to sign up Daily IT Wire Receive our newsletter to receive all the important news directly in your inbox every day. Also, check out the next episode of Hashtag Tendances, our weekly Hashtag Trending episode in French, which airs every Thursday morning. If you have any suggestions or tips, let us know in the comments or email us. Thanks for listening, I’m James Roy.
Hashtag trends self-driving cars and human surveillance.Credit card companies add new code to track sales at gun stores
Source link Hashtag trends self-driving cars and human surveillance.Credit card companies add new code to track sales at gun stores


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/ OI NEWS: A Double ISPO Award Win for EDELRID
In the build-up to ISPO, the winter sports and outdoor trade show, German climbing brand EDELRID have announced a double win in the ISPO Outdoor awards category, including the coveted GOLD award which is presented to a single product that exemplifies innovation in its field.
Introducing the latest addition to the Arc’teryx Atom family: the Atom SL Hoody. Hitting the shops in Spring/Summer 2016,... Read more
As reported earlier this week, Ned Feehally made the coveted second repeat of 8B+ at (UKC News Report). Tonight we... Read more


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Silver Award-winning Vita game CastleStorm will catapult onto iOS and Android this spring
And it will be free-to-play
Zen Studios has just told us that its Silver Award-winning premium Vita game CastleStorm will be available as a free-to-play experience on iOS and Android this spring.
Despite the fact it'll be a F2P game, CastleStorm for mobile will still boast four full campaigns (with 150 battles and four playable nations). Even the Castle Editor will be included in the iOS and Android editions.
If you're an Android gamer and want to try out CastleStorm's beta, by the way, you can sign up here for the chance right now.
Let's hope it's also the "real deal" for iOS and Android, eh.


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Value-fashion retailer V-Mart buys fashion startup LimeRoad; will invest Rs 150 crore
By Team Startupcity | Tuesday, 18 October 2022, 08:53 IST
V-Mart, a value-fashion retailer, has signed a definitive agreement to acquire discovery marketplace LimeRoad on a slump sale basis.
V-mart said in a stock exchange filing it will pay a lumpsum of Rs 31.12 crore cash, subject to mutually agreed adjustments by both parties.
“As part of the acquisition of LimeRoad business, the company is also acquiring assets worth approximately Rs 14.61 crore and assuming current liabilities of Rs 36.26 crore,” the retailer added.
The completion of the transaction is subject to necessary approvals and closing conditions. Both companies aim to leverage each other’s synergies and deliver emerging fashion trends to their customers through the acquisition. V-Mart also plans to invest Rs 150 crore to help LimeRoad scale and achieve sustained profitability.
“V-Mart is one of the strongest players in the value retail segment. With this acquisition, we aim to not only acquire digital-first millennials but build our omnichannel expertise. V-Mart will operate LimeRoad as an independent business unit, retaining its tech startup culture.” said Lalit Agarwal, managing director of V-Mart Retail Ltd.
LimeRoad’s founder Suchi Mukherjee will join V-Mart’s leadership team as the CEO of LimeRoad and its omnichannel business, while cofounder Ankush Mehra will continue as chief operating officer.
“V-Mart is a leader in the price-meets-quality space. This partnership helps us fundamentally solve the quality conundrum at value prices online, and accelerate our aims of making the freshest of fashion accessible to our customers through an online-offline experience,” said Mukherjee.
This is V-Mart’s second acquisition after the Unlimited store brand, which is bought from Arvind Fashions.
Read More News :


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Facebook is poised to open an office in China, one of the few territories where the global giant is not allowed to operate its social media platform. The move comes despite China’s growing control of the Internet within its own borders.
Facebook filed a company registration in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, the hometown of Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba. The company’s sole disclosed shareholder is Facebook Hong Kong. Initial capital is $30 million.
In reports initially carried by the Reuters news agency, Facebook described the Chinese venture as an innovation hub to support Chinese developers, innovators and startups. It has similar research facilities in India, South Korea, France and Brazil.
Facebook is currently banned from operating its eponymous network in China, where the government exercises strict control of social media sites and requires foreign tech companies to maintain servers in the country. China’s social media firms cooperate with government censors and maintain large teams of staff to scrutinize and edit user comments. The Facebook-owned messaging service Whatsapp became partially unavailable in China before last year’s Communist Party Congress, which is held once every five years.
Despite the obstacles, Facebook has been keen to operate in China. Founder Mark Zuckerberg has learned Chinese and frequently attended conferences in China.
Last month, Facebook told a U.S. Senate Intelligence Committee that four of its 60 past data-sharing agreements were with Chinese hardware manufacturers. “Facebook’s integrations with Huawei, Lenovo, OPPO and TCL were controlled from the get-go, and we approved the Facebook experiences these companies built,” Francisco Varela, VP of mobile partnerships for Facebook, said in a statement in June.
But the company said that the agreements, covering application program interfaces, were being terminated.
In a recent interview with tech publication Recode, Zuckerberg suggested that Chinese companies “do not share the values we have.”


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It’s hardly a secret that video games are a growing force in the entertainment industry, but they might be bigger than many people think.
A new study from Economists Incorporatedreports that the video game industry added $4.95 billion to the U.S. Gross Domestic Product last year—and the entertainment side of the software world is growing considerably faster than other segments of the economy. (The Entertainment Software Association, the video game industry’s trade group commissioned the study.)
Real annual growth among game makers topped 10 percent between 2005 and 2009, according to the study. That’s seven times the growth rate of the U.S. economy.
The report does underscore how devastating last year was for the game industry, however. Real annual growth between 2005 and 2008 was 16.7 percent. In 2009, the game industry saw its first negative growth since 2002, as sales fell 8 percent from the 2008 figures.
On the employment front, while other industries have been cutting back their payrolls, there’s a hiring boom going on in the video game world. Since 2005, the total number of people working in games has increased by nearly 9 percent annually. Today, there are more than 32,000 people directly employed by publishers and developers in 34 states.
They’re pretty well paid, too. On average, industry employees receive an annual compensation of $89,781, with the industry total hitting $2.9 billion. (A note to jobseekers, salaries were much higher at publishing companies—averaging over $112,000 versus roughly $76,000 at smaller game development studios.)
There’s a lot more to the gaming world than those who simply produce the product, of course. Fold in indirect employees who are dependent on the industry for their livelihood (such as workers at retailer GameStop or rent-by-mail company GameFly), and the number it employs exceeds 120,000.
"On average, industry employees receive an annual compensation of $89,781, with the industry total hitting $2.9 billion."
"Despite a challenging economic environment, the entertainment software industry continues to grow and create new jobs at a rapid pace," said Michael D. Gallagher, president and CEO of the ESA in a statement. "The entertainment software industry is well positioned to sustain these economic and social contributions well into the future."
California has seen the most benefits from gaming’s growth – not surprising since so many companies, including Electronic Arts and Activision are based there. Entertainment software companies added roughly $2.1 billion to the state's economy and grew by a real annual rate of 11.4 percent from 2005 to 2009, according to the report. During that same period, the state’s overall economy had negative growth.
(Ironically, it’s California that is leading the charge to regulate game sales, which could have a devastating effect on the industry. The Supreme Court is scheduled to hear arguments on the case in its October session.)
Texas has the second highest amount of gaming personnel (the state is a favorite home for development studios, including id Software, Gearbox and Disney property Junction Point Studios). Washington, home of Microsoft and Nintendo of America ( , is the third most popular state for game employers.
The numbers could shift in years to come, though, as many states have started to offer economic incentives to lure game makers. Virginia, for instance, has seen game-related employment jump 77 percent from 2005 to 2009.
Recent incentives are proving to be quite effective, too. 38 Studios recently announced plans to relocate from Boston to Rhode Island, after officials in that state agreed to provide the developer with a $75 million loan guarantee.
A burgeoning game developer moving to another state might not sound like much at first – but when that company is owned and operated by former Red Sox ace pitcher Curt Schilling, it shows just how big a draw those incentives can be.
Questions? Comments? TechCheck@cnbc.com


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Financial Services (105)
Insurers sell prevention
The Dutch insurance company Interpolis has opened an online prevention store. This store sells products such as fire safety sets, burglary alarms and other equipment that prevents possible disasters.
Why it matters
An insurer offering such products has huge relevance for consumers. It shows the brand is working in their favour instead of just trying to take money on their loss. Will more insurers begin to provide their customers with relevant products or services that reduce risk
and could this see a reduction in premiums too?
The biggest financial institution in Portugal – state-owned bank Caixa Geral de Depósitos – has teamed up with Microsoft to launch a web portal accessible to blind users and people with impaired mobility. CGD are the first bank to launch a universally accesible website, and as a result, are likely to attract a new group of clients previously excluded from this type of service.
For one month you can take an old bra to Intimissimi in exchange for a three Euro discount on any new bra. The second-hand bras will be recycled to make the shop’s insulation and sound absorbent panels.


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just On Call - C&C Group to push Woodchuck's craft credentials
C&C Group is looking to differentiate its Woodchuck cider brand from major new launches in the US market by upping its focus on craft consumers.
Earlier today (20 May), the company reported that full-year volumes for Woodchuck fell 1%, while depletions slipped by 6%. C&C, which acquired Woodchuck producer Vermont Hard Cider Co in March last year, pointed to the integration process and increasing competition in the market for the poor performance.
Speaking on a post-results conference call, Joris Brams, C&C International MD, said the company has decided against traditional forms of advertising for the brand. Asked by just-drinks whether launches by Anheuser-Busch InBev and MillerCoors would be positive for the fast-growing US cider category, Brams said these companies would attract consumers with “a lot of noise and publicity” through TV adverts. “We have chosen not to go down that route,” said Brams. “We’ve chosen to invest US$34m into a new cidery.”
He added: “The way we communicate will be totally different from the tools our competitors use - like social media, and we have the grand opening of our new cidery in August. We are really targeting the craft consumers.” The company is also planning packaging refreshes for the brand.
"I think ultimately there is a space for (this type of) cider ... authentic products focussed on quality, innovation."
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GEICO Government Employees and USAA car offer the best car insurance rates in North Carolina, along with North Carolina Farm Bureau and Nationwide.
USAA and GEICO tend to offer the best cheap car insurance in Colorado. But, shopping around is still essential.
Turkey production has decreased this year, and that could cause problems for shoppers looking for the right bird for their holiday table.
Japanese grapes are some of the most expensive grapes in the world. In 2020, one bunch sold for $12,000.
Just one bunch of Ruby Roman grapes sold for $12,000 at auction in 2020. That's about $400 per grape.
Employers are leaving workers to die in America's boiling heat waves. They need to be held accountable.
Short of real, substantive action on the climate crisis, the federal government needs to respond to the rise in heat waves.
USDA says it'll continue to fight to pay off loans for Black farmers despite lawsuit on behalf of white farmers
The Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty waged the lawsuit in April on behalf of white farmers who said it was discriminatory towards them.
Photos show a plague of mice swarming New South Wales, Australia, where they're eating up farmers' crops, home appliances, and even each other
The state government called the plague "absolutely unprecedented." A farmers' group estimates it could cost them $775,000 in the coming crop season.
Joanna Bassi started from the ground up in 2018. The next year, she netted nearly $6,000 in revenue, and in 2020 earned $7,000.
The Indian government and its supporters are attacking Western celebrities for supporting the farmers' protests
Indian farmers are protesting against the government's proposed agricultural reforms, which they say will make them poorer.
A former Citadel commodities trader devised a new way for farmers to hedge against climate-change risks to their crops. Here's how his startup's blockchain-powered 'smart contracts' work.
Sid Jha used to trade commodities like corn and soybeans. Now he's running a blockchain-powered platform that insures crops.
India has a farmer suicide epidemic — and farmers are protesting new laws they fear will make things worse
India already has some of the highest farmer suicide rates in the world, and experts fear the crisis could worsen if the laws are not repealed.
Hipcamp, the Airbnb of camping, saw its traffic double this year, generating new revenue streams for the 50% of its hosts that are also farmers and ranchers
Founder Alyssa Ravasio believes habitats on private land can be treated with the same respect national parks receive, while still generating revenue.
Thousands of people marched on Sunday demanding the reversal of a decision to allow US pork imports into Taiwan, alleging food safety issues.
Ostrich meat was supposed to be a 'gold mine' for farmers in Pakistan. The industry collapsed just as it was taking off.
Pakistan's climate is ideal for raising ostriches, and their meat is halal, making them a logical choice for farmers.
Rice farmers are enlisting "ield chasing ducks to eat their way through rice paddies after a harvest, benefitting the environment in the process.
Trump says he's providing a $13 billion bailout to farmers as he seeks support from rural voters ahead of November
Polls show Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden edging out Trump by several percentage points in the key battleground state of Wisconsin.
Top GOP senator says Trump should 'put a bunch of cotton' in the mouth of a trade adviser who claimed the US was going to dump the China trade deal
"Just put a sock in his mouth, and don't let him speak publicly," Sen. Chuck Grassley told reporters during a Wednesday conference call.
Americans are rethinking cheap beef and buying from small-scale farmers as prices soar in the meat industry
Small-scale meat farmers have seen a huge spike in demand as consumers search for alternative sources for beef.
How a Pennsylvania dairy farm quickly pivoted to sell directly to customers as thousands of other businesses were forced to destroy unused produce
The Browns knew they could count on their in-house machinery and strong community ties to stay afloat when milk-processing plants canceled pickups.
Farmers are being forced to shoot and gas thousands of animals a day, devastating their business amid meat shortages
Farmers across the Midwest are euthanizing their stocks of pigs and chickens because of a backlog caused by the coronavirus pandemic.


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Fashion boss Seema Malhotra is fighting back after lockdown by launching her first ever dedicated store.
Seema, the owner of the Manchester-based online fashion brand Forever Unique, has opened the shop in the Trafford Centre.
Determined Seema, one of the stars of the hit ITVBe reality series The Real Housewives of Cheshire, believes there's now light at the end of the tunnel for retail and Manchester - the 'fashion city' - where her brand was founded.
"Who could have predicted that this pandemic would come along and disrupt the whole economy?" she said.
"For us it's about supporting the high street.
"I'm old school. I love going to the shops and walking out of a store with shopping bags like Carrie from Sex and the City."
Speaking about the opportunity to open in the Trafford Centre Seema said it was a 'no brainer.'
"I love the high street, and I love the Trafford Centre," she said.
"The Trafford Centre is so iconic."
During the pandemic Seema changed tack with her brand - best known for its glam occasion wear - towards glitzy lounge and day wear, while retaining its DNA.
"We were renowned for glamorous dresses," said Seema.
"So I wondered 'what do I do? All of a sudden there are no events.
"But I thought 'there's always a way.'
"When women walk into a room and turn heads, I wanted to create that with lounge and day wear."
Seema's new 140sqm store, positioned between Selfridges and Ted Baker, launched on Wednesday, the day all non-essential shops reopened after the second lockdown.
The mother-of two says she had goosebumps when she heard the news that the UK had become the first country in the world to approve the Pfizer/BioNTech coronavirus vaccine, paving the way for mass vaccination.
She said: "Manchester is still in Tier 3 but the shops are open and this is our get out. We can't go under."
Seema and her husband Sandeep founded Forever Unique 12 years ago and the brand is stocked in more than 30 countries around the world.
Commenting on her landmark move she said: "We’ve witnessed high growth in the last few years, and our goal is to explore new and innovative ways to engage a wider market, allowing consumers more diverse ways to shop and interact with Forever Unique.
"Lockdown hasn’t been easy but we’ve evolved our product offering to accommodate what our woman is shopping for, covering both luxury, lounge and ready-to-wear fashion.
"We’ve seen a customer demand for accessible ways to shop, so we’re excited to be offering a store ahead of Christmas where customers can visually see and shop the product for a more intimate retail experience."
She's hoping to inspire others after such trying times.
"We don't want to give up on this," she said.
"Manchester is the fashion city and it's amazing the brands that have come out of it. I don't want people to give up.
"I don't want to see that die.
She added: "This pandemic will go and I'm going to be positive in saying 'we will get back.'
"Hearing about the vaccine gave me goosebumps. There's light at the end of the tunnel."
Get breaking news first on the free Manchester Evening News app - download it here for your Apple or Android device. You can also get a round-up of the biggest stories sent direct to your inbox every day with the MEN email newsletter - subscribe here. And you can follow us on Facebook here.


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Check out CNET's coverage of the New York International Auto Show 2014.
The Sony Pictures hack has exposed the inner workings of one of Hollywood's biggest studios.
Police departments around the country have started using body cameras in the wake of confrontations in Ferguson, Mo., and New York. In the near future, cops likely won't be the only ones using them on the job. CNET.com's Kara Tsuboi explains who else may be wearing them and what it means for your privacy and protection.
We've rounded up a half dozen laptops, desktops, tablets and hybrids that showcase some of the amazing leaps -- and a few of the disappointments -- that the PC market delivered in 2014.
What we expect, from new Intel CPUs to hints of Windows 10, in laptops, tablets, hybrids, and desktops at CES.
For the last few years 4K "Ultra HD" televisions have been displayed at CES, but in 2015 they'll dominate -- not just on the show floor, but on showroom floors everywhere throughout the year.
CNET breaks out the most important things to know when shopping for a new television.
From sweating through P90X in the morning to snoozing through a full night of sleep, we put the Microsoft Band through its paces for a full month to see how it held up.
CNET goes over the hits and misses that helped define our year in smartphones.
The movie studio calls the leaked documents "stolen information" and threatened legal action if the files are not ignored and destroyed.
Just how good are emojis at communicating complex ideas? Bill Nye the Science Guy explains the theory of evolution with a series of the digital symbols. Smiley face.


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- Sundar Pichai, senior VP at Google, said on stage at Mobile World Congress during a presentation that the company is working on a wireless service on a "small scale."
- Pichai said Google will become a mobile virtual network operator (MVNO), which means it could buy "wholesale access" from Sprint and T-Mobile networks and then sell cellular plans to its own customers.
- Google will be treating the experiment as an experience, similar to how it approached the first Nexus phone. After that program succeeded, the company decided to invest more time and resources into growing the brand.
Google confirms it wants to be a wireless carrier
3. 2. 15 by Andrew Johnson


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Located at 45 Beak Street in Soho, the store is expected to open in September 2022.
Stine Goya enlisted Copenhagen-based artist and design duo Wang & Söderström to decorate the retail space using 3D printed elements and responsibly sourced materials.
The new store will also feature Stine Goya’s new logo, signage and packaging, designed in collaboration with Spanish design house NE, also known as Naranjo Etxeberria.
Stine Goya CEO Thomas Hertz said: “We have developed a strong fan base in the UK over the years and have seen a significant increase in UK orders, both from a sales perspective wholesale than e-commerce. Opening a physical store in London to further anchor ourselves in the community was the next logical step. We are delighted to do so in such an iconic destination under the Shaftesbury PLC umbrella.
Stine Goya, creative director and founder of the eponymous brand, said: “London holds such a special place in my heart. Having lived and worked there for many years during and after my time at Central Saint Martins, I consider it my second home. Thomas and I stood outside 45 Beak St. nearly ten years ago and promised ourselves that one day there would be ‘Stine Goya’ on the door. What an amazing feeling it is that this day has finally come!”
The news comes two months after Stine Goya opened his first UK showroom in central London.


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The new Pepsi ad featuring Kendall Jenner is beyond tone deaf, it’s absolutely unbelievable a company of their size has made such a move to actually recreate a moment of sever suffering for black people and try and capitalize off of it.
UPDATE THE AD WAS AXED AFTER THE BACKLASH: SHOULD WE FORGIVE THIS EASILY? Pepsi Axes Kendall Jenner Ad Making Light Of Black Suffering, Issues Apology
A “fun” street protest, Kendall handing a can of Pepsi to an officer, reminiscant of the famous photo of black woman Ieshia Evans in Baton Rouge defiantly standing up to riot police, it’s absolutely disgusting and the company need to be hurt where they listen.
So, I think a boycott is in order.
Learn more in the video below from AJ:
And the ad in full can be seen below:
PUBLIC NOTE: The opinions expressed in this article are the author's own and do not reflect the view of the Urban Intellectuals, affiliates or partners.


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You could sense the respect in the room for keynote speaker David Sable, Global CEO of Y&R, when he got up to address the almost 800 delegates attending the Digital Place-based Advertising Association’s Video Everywhere Summit Nov. 3/15 during New York Digital Signage Week.
Sable made a number of statements and predictions, including:
- Cinema is still important;
- Catalogues are back;
- Online databases will never be a source for news;
- TV audiences will get smaller;
- The power of story-telling and video is getting stronger and stronger.
“Adults in the US will spend five hours and 31 minutes per day watching videos,” Sable said. “The action is on screens and screen sales have more than doubled globally in the past five years. We’re watching more and more. In 2014, there were 1,715 TV series available. There’s a continued demand for reruns. We stream. We binge. We watch screeens in taxis, in elevators, on the street.
“And Twitter enhances content. Advertising pays for the content. We’re now seeing Instagram debuting 30-second video ads. With 70% of Jimmy Fallon viewers watching online, they are now putting advertising on that. The future of ‘free’ is gone. Somebody has to pay.”
Sable said that creative is story-telling and that’s getting better. And how you distribute the story can be innovative.
“Technology allows us to innovate as never before,” he said.
Sable recommended that young people read, “Read everything. Read the Bible, read the Iliad and the Odyssey, read the classics and you’ll understand story-telling like never before.”


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Justin Timberlake has bought Myspace and is planning to reinvent it as an online content platform for music. But can he make is sexy again?
When Rupert Murdoch’s News Corporation bought Myspace for US$580 million in 2005, many people scratched their heads and raised a quizzical eyebrow. With Facebook clearly already on its way to the top, the investment was a puzzling one – and has gone down as one of the least successful social media business moves since Zuckerberg’s roommate opted out of Facebook.
Six years on, Myspace has again changed hands – to far less fanfare (it actually took place back in June 2011; who knew?) and a far more respectable price (a ‘mere’ US$35 million). Yet people are still scratching their heads, albeit due to the identity of one of the buyers.
Justin Timberlake, yes the Justin Timberlake, is now part owner of the site – and his presence seems to helping the Myspace brand significantly.
In the past month alone, Myspace claims it has gained over a million users, with ‘an average of 40,000 new registrations daily’. The company credits its music collection (over 42 million songs) and improved functionality
and strategy for the boost, and looks set to re-enter the market – if not with a bang, then with a very determined whimper.
Perhaps, you could argue, one reminiscent of the dulcet tones of JT himself…
The Message is brought to you by Tick Yes – providing solutions for all your digital and content marketing needs.


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Hotel Management has released its outlook on the hospitality trend report for 2016, and the predictions look healthy for the industry. Global hotel industry revenue is expected to reach $550 billion in 2016, up from $457 in 2011. Additionally, increased year-on-year occupancy rates in all global regions in 2014 indicate further increased demand moving into the new year. The report also states that business travelers in the United States will see the largest rate increase in a decade in 2016, with rates forecast to rise from 6.5 percent to 7.5 percent.
For infographics of these findings and more, click here.


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by Chris Smith
By: Chris Smith December 9, 2019
Managing your online reputation will keep you better connected to your customers while giving your brand more credibility and reliability.
When it comes to branding your business, your reputation is arguably your most valuable asset. And while this idea is nothing new, reputation management has become increasingly important for businesses today with the advent of social media.
Today’s digital landscape has added online reputation management as one of the newest and most important aspects of a business as the internet has made it easier than ever to connect with people and share stories. City Beat News, the research and publication company behind the Spectrum Award for exceptional customer service and satisfaction believes that online reputation management might be one of the most valuable roles a person can have in a company.
Understanding the Art of Reputation Management in the Digital Landscape
With the rise of technology and more specifically social media, it is easier than ever for a person to gain information about a company – good or bad. At the same time, businesses also have more control over how they are perceived as they have the ability to respond directly to praise and complaints.


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No one — particularly parents — has said changing behavior of kids is easy. For school officials looking to wean students from junk food to more healthy options, time and persistence is needed.
Updated nutrition standards for school meals, first implemented in the 2012-13 school year, represented a giant step forward. Following that, the U.S. Department of Agriculture has put in place new Smart Snack standards for food sold in vending machines and other places during school hours on campus. Those rules will come into force this fall.
Another needed step came in late February, when the USDA’s new regulation for school wellness policies was published.
In announcing the new proposal, first lady Michelle Obama described the goal:
“The idea here is simple. Our classrooms should be healthy places where kids aren’t bombarded with ads for junk food,” she said.
School wellness policies have been required for schools participating in the lunch program since 2006, but the regulation defines appropriate marketing messages.
Cheetos and non-diet cola logos can’t be plastered on school vending machines. But that small step should not be the end of the story. Produce marketing companies should explore opportunities to promote their fresh produce to students in this new, more healthy school food environment.
That’s the whole idea, isn’t it?
Did The Packer get it right? Leave a comment and tell us your opinion.


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BERLIN (AP) — A closely-watched survey shows German consumer confidence is on the rise, despite concerns over the recent flood of migrants and ongoing threat of terrorism.
The GfK research group said Thursday its forward-looking consumer climate index rose to 9.5 points in March from 9.4 in February.
It says confidence was primarily bolstered by Germany’s strong labor market, and overall sturdy economy.
GfK says the survey indicates “that the intensive discussions to achieve a permanent solution to the refugee issue are still not having any impact on German citizens (and) it is clear that even the continued acute terror threat has done little to sway consumer confidence. “
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GfK’s monthly survey, conducted on behalf of the European Commission, is based on some 2,000 consumer interviews.


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Interest Loveplus Party to Be Streamed on Nico Nico Thursday
posted on 2010-12-22 10:54 EST by Egan Loo
The Nico Nico Douga website will stream the "Loveplus Christmas Event: Merry +mas 2010" live on Thursday evening at 7:00 p.m. Japan Time (5 a.m. EST). (Nico Nico Douga requires its users to fill a registration form in Japanese, but there are normally no geographical restrictions on which users can watch its live streaming videos.) "Doors" open for this Christmas party based on Konami's virtual girlfriend simulator at 6:00 p.m. Japan Time.
The scheduled "performers" for the event include the software's three heroines: Manaka Takane, Rinko Kobayakawa, and Nene Anegasaki. The three-dimensional guests include the producer Akari Uchida, the game director Akihiro Ishihara, designer Tarō Mino, and the host Icchō Mori.
To commemorate the event, the Roppongi branch of the Dixies family restaurant will open for only three hours before the event. (The event is being held at the Tokyo Midtown complex in the city's Roppongi district, and Dixies is the fictional restaurant where the game's player and Nene work.) The pop-up restaurant will serve food courtesy of Starbucks and Pizza Hut, and there will also be a display of some of the "Loveplus x pixiv x Kodansha Girlfriend's Memories Illustration Contest" entries.
Participating Joysound karaoke places in Japan will also simulcast the event, and Nico Nico subscribers can watch a recording at a later time.
Source: Presepe News


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Title: Türkiye’s Electric Vehicle Sales Poised for 61% Yearly Expansion
Subtitle: The rising popularity of electric vehicles in Türkiye is projected to drive significant growth in the coming years, with sales expected to increase by nearly 61% annually, according to a recent report. This surge is fueled by the introduction of the country’s first domestic electric car brand, Togg, and the entry of global automakers like Tesla.
Sales of electric vehicles (EVs) in Türkiye have experienced a remarkable surge this year, rising ninefold in the first ten months compared to the previous year. This growth can be attributed to the successful launch of Togg, Türkiye’s first domestically produced electric car brand, as well as the entrance of established global automakers like Tesla into the market.
According to data compiled from the “Turkey Electric Vehicles Profile” country report by research firm BMI, EV sales are projected to grow by an average of 60.8% annually until 2032. This growth trajectory is expected to elevate the share of EVs in the total passenger car sales to 30.4%, a twofold increase compared to previous forecasts.
In 2022, the share of EVs in total car sales was only 1.3%. However, this figure is expected to reach 4.1% in 2023. The report also predicts that by 2032, the total number of electric passenger vehicles in Türkiye will reach 259,500.
In October alone, EV sales in Türkiye skyrocketed, with 9,832 units sold, accounting for 11.9% of the overall market. Togg, the manufacturer of Türkiye’s first electric car, outpaced Tesla by delivering 3,567 units of its C-segment SUV T10X in October, bringing its total deliveries since April to 9,171 units. Tesla, on the other hand, sold 500 units of its Model Y last month, with a total of 10,700 units sold so far this year.
While the trajectory of increased EV sales is expected to continue into 2024, the report highlights that the overall market share of EVs in the automotive industry may be constrained due to taxes imposed on these vehicles. However, the report suggests that supportive measures, particularly for Togg, could be introduced to encourage the widespread adoption of electric vehicles.
Togg has ambitious plans for the future, aiming to produce one million units by 2030 and begin exporting to European markets by 2025. These plans, coupled with potential government support, have the potential to further accelerate the growth of the electric vehicle market in Türkiye.
As Türkiye embraces electric mobility, the country is poised to become a significant player in the global electric vehicle market, contributing to a more sustainable and environmentally friendly transportation sector.
#ElectricVehicleGrowth #TurkeysEVRevolution #ToggDrivingChange #SustainableTransportation #TurkeysEVMarket #GreenMobilityFuture


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“There are an awful lot of fast cars and supercars on display this year,” said Jim Holder, editor-in-chief of Autocar magazine. “What you see now is an industry that has got its swagger back and wants to show off a bit rather than put its hair shirt on about high miles per gallon and these slightly more mundane things.”
FERRARI 488 GTB
The legendary sports car maker from Maranello, Italy, is sure to draw crowds with its 488 GTB. Drawing on the company’s long racing history, its newly designed turbo-charged V8 engine accelerates the two-seater from stop to 100 kph (0 to 62 mph) in 3 seconds flat. By comparison, the fastest and most powerful Corvette ever built, the Z06, does 0 to 60 mph in 2.95 seconds.
Ferrari CEO Amedeo Felisa vaunted the engine’s characteristic Ferrari sound, the “deep, seductive soundtrack” in Ferrari’s words. “It’s the sound of a sports car,” Felisa said in answer to questions from reporters who noted that Ferrari’s turbo-charged California had lost that trademark scream.
Ferrari has even invented a new shade of its legendary red color for the 488’s paintjob. Millions of tiny particles are suspended in the paint to give it extra glossiness.
During a demo, the driver for the Superveloce (superfast, in Italian) made sure to gun the engine and show off the metallic music made by its mighty 750 horsepower engine.
It has the classical Lamborghini design — low-slung, angular and lethal-looking with lots of expensive carbon-fiber materials. It can hit a top speed of 217 mph (350 kph) and its powerful brakes can bring it to a stop in only 30 meters (30 yards) from 62 mph (100 kph).
It’s not exactly environmentally-friendly, however — it puts out 375 grams of carbon dioxide per kilometer, compared with the fleet average limit of 130 grams, and consumes an average 16 liters of fuel per 100 kilometers, or 14.7 miles per gallon.
The German luxury car maker from Ingolstadt in Bavaria unveiled its second-generation R8 supercar on its stand in Geneva.
With a V10 engine capable of zero to 100 kph (62 mph) in 3.2 seconds, and an aluminum and carbon fiber chassis shared with the Lamborghini Huracan, the new R8 weighs 50kg less than its predecessor while being 40 percent more stiff, Audi says. Style cues from Audi’s TT roadster are present, but the muscular angles and scooped out sides scream supercar.
European versions of the car will have optional laser-powered high beam headlights with cameras to help drivers see further. Audi is also introducing an electric version of the R8, with a battery pack capable of reaching a range of 276 miles and matching Tesla’s Model S in performance.
MERCEDES-MAYBACH S-600 PULLMAN
The new Mercedes-Maybach S-600 Pullman is a limousine of nearly unheard of luxury. With armour cladding as an option, the new Pullman is more than a meter longer than the next biggest Mercedes S-class and significantly taller, too.
After noting that John Lennon owned an original Pullman which he modified by adding a state-of-the-art Hi-Fi system, Mercedes unveiled the massive limo beneath a video recording of the Fab Four performing “Can’t Buy Me Love” – and at over $500,000, few in the crowd could contemplate buying the car either.
Four quilted leather reclinable seats face each other in the limo’s rear, with a champagne cooler in easy reach. A retractable glass partition can transform from transparent to opaque at the push of a button for more privacy.
BMW 2-SERIES GRAN TOURER
What’s a minivan doing on this list? The new 2-Series Gran Tourer might not be a supercar, but it is a blinged-out people mover for “young active families,” the Munich-based car maker says.
BMW says it’s the first premium compact able to carry up to seven people, including up to five child seats for those carpool runs to soccer games or birthday parties.
Based on BMW’s Active Tourer, the ‘Gran’ version adds more space as well as seating configurations. With rear seats folded into the floor and the middle row seats collapsed, storage space can be added or removed as needed — up to 67 cubic feet according to BMW.
The $30,000 van aims to help BMW take on rivals such as Renault’s Grand Scenic in a market category that BMW hasn’t traditionally competed in.
Tom Krisher in Detroit contributed to this report.
Copyright 2015 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.


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social media watch
Posted by Sheila Shayon on January 21, 2014 01:42 PM
Another monumental day, another brand fail.
Monday's marking of Martin Luther King Jr. Day presented an opportunity for global citizens to reflect on the life-changing actions of the civil rights hero, from reciting King's iconic "Dream" speech to paying respect to the thousands that fell—and continue to fall—to the heavy hand of inequality.
Highlighting the need for corporate-social responsibility, four brands—Chicken of the Sea, Chobani, Kmart and Cisco—tweeted the same King quote: "Life's most persistent and urgent questions is, what are you doing for others?"
But that may have been one of the only bright spots in a day filled with brand missteps. Much like the many innappropriate brand posts on the anniversary of Sept. 11, a few brands took the creative liberty of twisting the day's significance into a poorly-timed brand boost. Check out some of the brand posts below:Continue reading...
Posted by Dale Buss on April 5, 2011 09:00 AM
Google may be the target of a Us antitrust probe, as brand's bid for Nortel’s patent assets coincides with Larry Page’s first day back as CEO.
Japan sets new radiation safety level for seafood after nuclear plant spews highly contaminated water into sea as Tepco shares plunge to record low. Also, Toyota reports misunderstanding over US impact and Honda targets rise in US sales but faces supply restrictions.
Amazon, Costco and Kohls are top brands for customer service in a new survey.
BAT to develop “safer” nicotine products for long-term use.
Boeing and Southwest deal with aftermath of fuselage tear.Continue reading...


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EPA repeats warnings on R22 “substitutes”
The EPA warns that using a propane-based refrigerant in a vehicle or home air conditioner that is not designed to use flammable refrigerants poses a threat to homeowners as well as service technicians.
“Systems that are recharged with an unapproved alternative called “22a” can catch fire or explode, resulting in injury and property damage,” it says.
A number of refrigerants with “22a” or “R-22a” in the name contain highly flammable hydrocarbons, such as propane, and have been marketed to US consumers and contractors seeking to recharge existing R22 systems.
These refrigerants have not been submitted to the EPA for review under its SNAP programme, so are prohibited from use. Further, the EPA recently issued a proposed rule that would list refrigerant products sold as 22a and all refrigerants identified as flammability Class 3 in ANSI/ASHRAE Standard 34–2013 as unacceptable for retrofitting residential and light commercial AC and heat pumps—unitary split AC systems and heat pumps.
In March, a Louisiana man was arrested for selling a product called Super-Freeze 22A. According to reports, most of the individuals who purchased the product were unaware it was potentially flammable.
In January of this year, Northcutt Inc, of Wichita, Kansas, agreed to pay a $100,000 civil penalty and discontinue US marketing and sales of unapproved flammable hydrocarbon refrigerants sold as ES 22a and ES 502a.
Last year, Enviro-Safe Refrigerants of Pekin, Illinois, agreed to pay a $300,000 civil penalty and cease marketing and sales of hydrocarbon refrigerants HC-12a, HC-22a and HC-502a, as substitutes for ozone-depleting substances.
The EPA says it continues to investigate instances where propane-based refrigerants have been illegally marketed and used as substitutes for HCFC22 (R22) and will continue to take enforcement actions where appropriate.
“Using an unapproved, flammable refrigerant in a system that wasn’t designed to address flammability can lead to serious consequences, including explosion or injury in the worst cases,” said Janet McCabe, acting assistant administrator for EPA’s Office of Air and Radiation. “As the summer cooling season gets started, we want to make sure consumers and equipment owners know what is going into their system is safe.”
Latest news from the world of air conditioning and refrigeration
UK: The majority of local authorities in the UK are flouting government prompt payment laws, according to a new report by the Electrical Contractors’ Association (ECA).
UK: A cascade refrigeration system twinning CO2 with the HFO refrigerant 1234ze has been named as Retail Energy Project of the Year in last week’s Energy Awards in London.
UK: Industrial refrigeration contractor Stonegrove Refrigeration has appointed Steve Gowing as design and project engineer.
UK: Javac UK, the refrigerant recovery and vacuum pump supplier, has been named as Climate Centers’ Supplier of the Year for the second year running.
EUROPE: The European Commission has warned that the uptake of training in alternative refrigerants is too low to match the requirements of the F-gas phase down.
SOLOMON ISLANDS: Customs authorities in the Solomon Islands have reported their second seizure of the illegal CFC refrigerant R12 this year.
IRAN: German compressor manufacturer Bitzer has established a subsidiary company in Iran.
USA: Seven local residents are reported to be suing Honeywell after a chemical leak at its Geismar, Louisiana, plant in August.


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According to Fakespot, Shopify is said to have almost 21 percent of fake stores on it that can have a negative effect when it comes to customers and sellers utilizing this platform to buy/sell things.
Shopify’s main feature is for a business to go digital in an easy way, it helps the business set itself up and sell the specific products that they want to sell. Because of Shopify, many businesses have thrived in the coronavirus pandemic. Businesses that are new, find it easy to use Shopify to make their profits without having to go digital by themselves as at the start they do not have the capacity or the budget to go online by themselves—therefore Shopify provides them exactly that.
But, according to a research done by Fakespot, more than 25,000 stores are deemed as fake or engaging in fraudulent activities. These 25,000 stores were being called as problematic sellers by Fakespot, which is a service that checks the authentication of e-commerce websites. These stores were scamming people evidently and some of these stores had negative remarks from the customers. And a few of them had zero transactions done in their entire business history on Shopify.
Shopify knew about this and said that they are always catching such fraudsters as it is their job to do that. If they do not catch such fakes then the authenticity and the importance of the website will be lost. Thousands of fake stores have been terminated by Shopify which is why this website aids millions of businesses and powers them in order to earn profit. Shopify is made for small businesses; it is made to help them grow. Shopify will continue to hunt down the fake stores in order to clean itself and maintain its track record.


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DPD is to increase its nationwide capacity by opening 15 new or upgraded depots by the end of next year, including three that will be double the size of its regular sites. The operator is due to open in Liverpool, Brighton, Lincoln and Radlett, Hertfordshire, for the first time. The remainder will replace or extend existing sites. It also plans to open three ‘super depots’, sites that are double the size of its regular new-build locations, in Edinburgh, Cardiff and […]
Aberdeenshire-based Grampian Continental has opened its second European hub as a result of an increase in oil industry work on the Continent. The firm, which has another base in the Netherlands, has opened a 1,500ft² warehouse in Verona, Italy, to assist with its contracts in Italy and Cyprus. It hopes that this new warehouse will open up new areas for business growth across Europe and North Africa. “This is a very exciting time for the company, the opening of the […]
Hermes has won Poundland’s new home delivery contract, after the single-priced retailer said it planned to trial an online shopping system earlier this week.
Hermes is offering UK-based retailers the ability to have their parcels delivered into its overseas ParcelShops for the first time.


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US: Fifth & Pacific ends distribution deal with Li & Fung
Apparel firm Fifth & Pacific has moved its distribution operations to a company-owned facility in Ohio after its agreement with global sourcing giant Li & Fung expired last month.
Fifth & Pacific has entered into a contract with a third-party distribution centre and operations management firm to provide its services at the Ohio plant, the company said in an SEC filing on Friday (8 February).
The third-party distribution firm intends to employ the retailer's prior employees at the Ohio site. Fifth & Pacific, which owns the Kate Spade, Lucky and Juicy Couture brands, said the incremental costs related to the arrangement are included in its recently announced financial outlook for 2013.
Last month, the company admitted Superstorm Sandy and disappointing Juicy Couture sales hit its fourth-quarter performance - but said it expects full-year EBITDA to reach the low end of its guidance.
US clothing company Fifth & Pacific has admitted its second quarter results were weaker than expected as sales growth slipped at its denim label Lucky Brand....
The Indian apparel industry has made progress with backward integration over the last five years, but needs to reorganise to play to its strengths, a conference was told last week. And if India does i...
Fifth & Pacific Companies remains "on track" to hit its fiscal 2013 targets despite recording another large loss in the second quarter of the year, according to its CEO....
Retailers involved in the recent Bangladesh apparel factory tragedies are being called on to attend meetings to discuss compensation for victims. ...
- Impact of the TPP on the US textile industry?
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- Crystal Group nurtures its caring culture
- Hazardous chemical removal a key industry issue
- Vietnam proposes 15% rise to regional minimum wage
- Cambodia garment workers “dying on the job”
- Avery Dennison forms JV with Ningbo Shenzhou
- Accord and Alliance discord over inspections
- Nike appointments to drive growth opportunities
- Global Database of the Top 1000 Apparel Producers - Company Names, Financial Performance, Key Executives, and Contact Details
- Textile Wholesaling in the UK - Industry Market Research Report
- Survey of the European Fabric Fairs: Spring/Summer 2015
- Global market review of denim and jeanswear – forecasts to 2020
- Prospects for the Textile and Clothing Industry in Turkey


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Forbes.com includes Bentley University in a recently published list of "Colleges That Will Make You Rich".
You are here
Newsroom: Media Coverage
Founding Director of the Bentley University Center for Women and Business Betsy Myers' book Take the Lead is touted by the Washington Post as one of year's best books on leadership.
After much research and analysis Bentley honors students are highlighted for presenting Waltham City Officials with implementable recommendations on how they could improve the business climate on Main Street.
A senior honors capstone course led by Professor Charlie Hadlock spent a semester researching and analyzing Waltham's Main Street and is highlighted for presenting well-organized and implementable recommendations to the city.
Marketing Lecturer Michael Tesler offers insight on what local stores must do to compete with larger, corporate stores during the holiday rush.
A new book by Dean of Arts & Sciences Dan Everett is named a science highlight of 2011 by Pat Churchland, one of the world's leading scientists. Dean Everett's book, Language: The Cultural Tool (Random House, March 2012), explores his research on language and its origins, focusing on Brazil's Pirahãs tribe.
Michael Hoffman, founding Executive Director of the Center for Business Ethics, wins the Ceeman Champions Award for outstanding achievement in responsible management education.
Economics Professor Scott Sumner is highlighted for his insight on the current hot economic topic, NGDP targeting.


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Horsemeat scandal: Three men arrested on suspicion of fraud
Three men were arrested on Thursday evening on suspicion of fraud, as part of the investigation into horsemeat labelled as beef.
Police said a man had been arrested at a slaughterhouse in West Yorkshire and two more at a site in Wales, following searches by the Food Standards Agency on Tuesday.
Both firms involved have denied any wrongdoing.
In recent weeks meat products for sale in the UK and Europe labelled as beef were found to contain horsemeat, and many products have been taken off the shelves.
The results of further tests on beef products will be made public on Friday.
Fergus Walsh reports.
14 Feb 2013
- From the section Europe


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Emotionally charged and filled with humor, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol.2 was a pretty successful sequel to James Gunn's first hilarious superhero space romp, earning more than $800 million at the box office during its theatrical run this year. Now, it seems like Marvel is preparing the film for its home release, with the release date for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 on Blu-Ray making its way online.
Appearing on Target's website as a "street date," the Blu-Ray release date of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 comes up as August 22, 2017 – more or less three months after the cosmic superhero movie's debut on the big screen. While this is not an official announcement from Marvel, the three month period between the movies debut and its home release is pretty standard in the Hollywood industry.
However, while the Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 Blu-Ray release date on Target seems pretty plausible, other stores like Best Buy currently has the film's home release as "Not Yet Announced," making it likely that the August 22 date could be placeholder for the actual release.
Here's the synopsis for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2:
Peter Quill and his fellow Guardians are hired by a powerful alien race, the Sovereign, to protect their precious batteries from invaders. When it is discovered that Rocket has stolen the items they were sent to guard, the Sovereign dispatch their armada to search for vengeance. As the Guardians try to escape, the mystery of Peter's parentage is revealed.


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A Facebook post is getting lots of laughs after a Texas woman shared how a postal worker got on board with the relatable message written on her doormat.
Ebony Freeman shared a photo on social media of a delivered package of AstroTurf placed under her front doormat by a UPS driver, she said, apparently in response to the doormat's message, "Please hide packages from husband."
She captioned the post, "Oh my god look! The UPS guy actually hid it under the rug!"
The post garnered 46,000 shares and comments from users appreciating the postal worker's humor.
Freeman tagged her friend in the post, Amanda Harper of Huntington Beach, California, who bought her the mat as a gift.
"I instantly laughed and the first thing I did was send [a picture] to Amanda before posting it on Facebook," Freeman told "Good Morning America."
"I had no clue it was going to get that much traction."
Freeman told "GMA" that her husband Mike doesn't "really" get upset about her online shopping.
"I have a package a day coming from Amazon but he thinks it's funny," she said.
Harper told "GMA" she bought the doormat off Etsy, where the seller is "super stoked" about the viral attention.
Freeman said she already has a funny doormat on order ahead of the holiday season -- one that sings "Here Comes Amazon" to the tune of "Here Comes Santa Claus."


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Netflix starts licensing its own originals
The Future. Netflix is switching up how it brings stand-up comedy specials to the platform, opting to license specials for two years at a (relatively) smaller licensing fee than the lifetime buyouts that came with rich paychecks. That means some comics may be trading a hefty payday for long-term control of their specials… or tempt them to look at other streamers willing to pony up more.
Cap the laughs
According to WSJ, Netflix is willing to share its jokes.
- After years of exclusively buying out rights for comedy specials — one of the most popular genres on the platform — Netflix is starting to offer comics a two-year-long licensing agreement for $200,000.
- That’s a lot less than the lump-sum $1 million many comics commanded, which also paid for the stand-up shows to be filmed. Under the licensing agreement, comics would have to front production costs.
- But it does give comics more control over the life of their special. Besides regaining ownership after the license period, comics will also finally be allowed to post clips on personal social channels (Netflix’s own Fast Laughs platform just isn’t enough).
The move is meant to help cut costs amid Netflix’s overall belt-tightening… especially as comedy specials, reportedly, don’t draw in new subscribers or keep existing ones as much as other types of content.
Netflix hasn’t totally scrapped the bigger buyout deals (Dave Chappelle will easily still command tens of millions of dollars). Still, top comics such as Whitney Cummings have already inked a licensing agreement. And as long as Ted Sarandos is running things, Netflix will always be a home for comedy — he’s a massive fan and friends with Chappelle, Chris Rock, and Jerry Seinfeld.
And while HBO was in decades past the place to launch a comedy career (other than SNL, of course), Netflix has become a bellwether for rising comedy talent, minting the careers of Ali Wong and Iliza Shlesinger. And with the company launching its first Netflix Is A Joke festival in 2021 (where a lot of specials this year were filmed), Netflix is just getting started.


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The Village of Winnetka is getting creative in its efforts to assist local restaurants during the COVID-19 pandemic and is now challenging residents with a new incentivized program.
Winnetka officials announced the Take Out Challenge earlier this month. The initiative challenges locals to spend $150 at one or multiple Winnetka restaurants.
Anyone who meets that total can then input their receipts on the village’s website and will be subsequently entered to win local dining gift cards or shopping experiences.
The initiative will remain open until April 15, 2021.
“We’re encouraging people to go buy at local restaurants, support them and take out,” said Liz Dechant, the village’s economic development coordinator. “There’s a real opportunity to get people excited about eating out.”
The Take Out Challenge is one of several efforts along the North Shore to support local restaurants, such as a government rebate programs in Wilmette, Village grants in Winnetka, relaxed outdoor regulations in Glencoe and a resident-led initiative by an 11-year-old.
The newest idea from Winnetka will reward participating residents on a biweekly basis, Dechant said. The first reward, a $100 gift card to Mino’s Italian, will be given out Wednesday, Dec. 30.
Anyone who enters their $150 worth of receipts will be eligible for all prize drawings through April 15, Dechant added.
Village officials came up with the idea for this initiative earlier this year when local restaurant owners were looking for ways to encourage people to keep ordering takeout.
“We got tremendous support during the summer outdoor dining season, so we wanted to find a way to excite people about ordering during the winter months and also look forward to something,” Dechant said.
Winnetka is in the midst of a substantial push to support local eateries, Dechant said, adding that the village is targeting a series of efforts in 2021 to assist them. She said the village is running print advertisements, doing social media profiles and amplifying the focus on local restaurants through its Distinctly Winnetka text-loyalty campaign.
Earlier this year, the village provided nearly $300,00 worth of funding to local businesses through its sales tax rebate program. Officials followed up that program with a second series of $4,000 grants distributed to local restaurants.
Dechant also said the village is helping restaurants apply for financial support grants at both the state and federal level, adding “anything we find, we’re passing that information along.”
The program will award eight prizes throughout its duration, including two Valentine’s Day dinners at Aboyer, a gift card to True Juice and the chance to make a personalized smoothie of the week, and more.
If a participant submits receipts to every restaurant in Winnetka during the challenge, they will be entered into a grand-prize raffle for two VIP tickets to the Winnetka Music Festival next year.
The program is open to anyone and residency in Winnetka is not a requirement to participate. For more information about the challenge, and to enter, visit here.
Martin Carlino is a co-founder and the senior editor who assigns and edits The Record stories, while also bylining articles every week. Martin is an experienced and award-winning education reporter who was the editor of The Northbrook Tower.


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For the past eight years, Google Street View cars have coasted along pretty much unaltered. That was until images of the updated version of Street View cameras surfaced online.
What is Google Street View? In short, it’s like an Internet web spider crawling around and indexing the physical world.
If you are not familiar with it, Street View is the leading technology behind Google Maps and Google Earth. It is the reason why people can view panoramic views from positions along many streets around the world.
Because of Google Street View, it is now easier for people to scout streets and destinations without having to go there. You might be wondering how Google can execute such a massive project, to think that there are over a hundred thousand, if not millions, of streets across the globe.
Simply put, Google has a fleet of vehicles fitted with special equipment and cameras to take pictures of different places. You might be familiar with one, or if you’re lucky enough, you may have spotty the goofy looking Street View car roaming the streets near your home.
A Street View vehicle is typically loaded with three major data capturing equipment: cameras, navigation sensors and a Global Positioning System (GPS), and laser range scanners. You might say that the most important part of the vehicle is the cameras, and yet, up until this point, they were the most ignored.#Google upgrades it Google Street View cameras making them more AI-focused!Click To Tweet
The last time the Google Street View cameras were updated was in 2009. The same year Google launched Smart Navigation. However, as the demand for better and more accurate views of locations surface, there is nothing left to do but to update the technology and the cameras that made Street View a must-have innovation.
Google Street View Cameras and Artificial Intelligence
Google is considered to be one of the world leaders when it comes to the study and application of artificial intelligence. So, it comes as no surprise that the company will now be incorporating AI into its Google Street View technology.
According to a report from Wired, Google will now be adopting a better camera hardware for Google Street View. The new hardware was said to be designed with more than human concerns in mind.
In the past, the Google Street View car was equipped with a much larger ball of cameras, 15 cameras to be exact, and often fell victim to image stitching errors.
The new Street View rig boasts just 7 20 megapixel lenses and sensors that are expected to provide clearer image feeds, closer shots of buildings, and street signs into Google’s image recognition algorithms. A new HD camera is used to recognize signage and business names and logos.
Apparently, better technology means better source data for Google’s AI algorithms, which will help it to expand its search and Assistant functions.
Using the most advanced hardware that will provide tons of information from different parts of the world to Google’s machine learning system, the company hopes to improve its already impressive virtual mapping system.
A decade after it was launched, Google Street View cars have already snapped over 80 billion photos in thousands of cities across 85 countries. However, Google still wanted a far better index of the world for its users. Jen Fitzpatrick, vice president of Google’s mapping division, was quoted as saying:
“People are coming to us every day with harder and deeper questions.”
It appears that people are asking tougher questions and the company intends to answer them by offering a fresher and more detailed digital model of the world. Using artificial intelligence, Fitzpatrick wants her service to handle queries that assume knowledge of what the world looks like.
According to her, questions like “What’s the name of the pink store next to the church on the corner?” require richer and deeper information to be answered.
AI to Map the World Using Images Captured by Google Street View Cameras
Google’s investment in machine learning and AI are finally paying off as algorithms can now automatically create new addresses in the company’s maps database just by locating and transcribing street names and numbers. The company said that Google Street View is the first Google product to actually use TPU, the company’s powerful custom AI chip.
The AI system learns the idiosyncrasies of regional signage by pulling from a sea of image data–it compares abbreviations to signs with explicit language and deduces the appropriate meaning. The AI was also trained to recognize business names and is said to be smart enough to ignore visual hazards such as a Bridgestone advertisement placed closely to an unaffiliated tire repair shop.
“From a machine learning perspective, everything gets better,” says Andrew Lookingbill, an engineer working on the technology.
The new Google Street View vehicles started capturing images last month and are expected to dominate the roads around the world in the coming months.
As Wired points out, with Street View, Google is doing what they do best: indexing. Only, in this case, they are indexing the world’s physical spaces. Just like with the Internet, Google’s map indexing is unrivaled–and now it’s going to get better.


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It's been five years — five years! — since home prices peaked.
And the bust is still grinding on: too many houses for sale, not enough buyers, falling prices.
Sales of newly built homes hit a record low last month, according to figures out today. Sales of existing homes also fell, according to numbers released on Monday.
At current rates, it would take more than eight months to sell all of the homes on the market. In an ordinary market, it's six months or less.
In other words, there's a glut of homes on the market. The glut is driven in large part by a wave of foreclosures.
Lenders repossessed a million homes last year, and are expected to repossess even more his year. After a bank repossesses a house, it goes up for sale — typically at a discount to similar houses that haven't been foreclosed on.
That adds to the supply of existing homes for sale. It drives down prices for other existing homes on the market. It also makes existing homes more appealing than newly built homes for many buyers. This creates what Calculated Risk calls the "distressing gap," which sends sales of newly built homes through the floor.
Mark Zandi has said the economy won't really feel healthy again until distressed home sales — which include foreclosures and short sales — fall back down to normal levels. He told us that may happen by the end of this year.
When distressed sales do start to fall, home prices will probably start rising again. But it could be years before prices to get back to where they were before the bubble burst.
One study published last year looked at several financial crises from the past century. The authors found that home prices typically remain below their previous peak for the entire decade following a crisis.


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Back in 1973, a fashion show called “The Battle of Versailles” made history in Paris. The landmark event placed five American designers against five French designers and it was one of the first events where African American models walked in a high fashion runway. This Saturday, January 12, Wynwood’s vintage guru Keni Valenti is hosting a tribute exhibition at his epomymous fashion gallery also called “The Battle of Versailles” The show which debuts during Art Walk takes place from 6 to 10 PM and you must RSVP. Items modeled during the show will be on display. Such as vintage YSL, Pierre Cardin, Ungaro, Dior, and Givenchy and Oscar de la Renta, Stephen Burrows, Halston, Bill Blass, and Anne Klein. RSVP: 917 686-9553 or firstname.lastname@example.org
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Huawei expected to announce new Honor smartphone on August 10
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Chinese manufacturer Huawei has sent out press invitations for an event on August 10, 2015. Details on what the new device will be, however, remain a mystery.
For now, it appears unlikely that Huawei will reveal the Mate 8 flagship. A more likely option is the Honor 7 Plus, which would offer not just a metal casing, but also a 5.5-inch FHD screen, a fingerprint scanner, a Kirin processor, 3 GB RAM, and 16 GB eMMC.
In contrast to the Honor 7 Plus, a potential Honor 8 could be even better. In addition to a larger 6-inch QHD screen, the smartphone could carry 4 GB RAM, 64 GB eMMC, a fingerprint scanner, and a rear 20.7 MP camera.
The two new devices are expected to launch in Asian markets first, but their official reveal and announcement times are unknown.