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The digital magazine subscription service that has been compared to Netflix charges subscribers $9.99 a month to access more than 200 e/print titles.
The interview is scheduled to start any moment now, so stay tuned for updates! Also in 2014, Apple acquired BookLamp, a service that distributed books in much the same way that Texture distributes magazines.
"The good news is both Netflix and Disney are great partners of ours and have been with us from the beginning", said Cue, once the laughter died down. As digital magazines like News Corporation's The Daily folded, it became clear that future wasn't panning out.
During his discussion at SXSW, Cue said things like white supremacy and hate speech don't have a place on Apple News- the platform wants to lean on the side of what Cue called trusted news sources.
"We're not after quantity, we're after quality", Cue said. At this point in time, any financial details of the deal have not been disclosed.
Marvel Chief: 'We absolutely' Will Make 'Black Panther' Sequel
The entire cast of Black Panther was outstanding but there were two characters who really stole the scenes: Shuri and Okoye. But we are learning a bit more about the sequel from Marvel Studios president, Kevin Feige .
Longtime iOS users may remember that Apple had a previous foray into the magazine subscription space: Newsstand. "We're not trying to just give you the most popular stuff for you but some of the articles that you should be reading".
It's no secret Apple isn't short on funds.
They had better be thinking bigger if they'd like to complete with market giants Amazon, Netflix and Stan however. Zinio for Libraries has since merged with RBdigital, from the Recorded Books company, and you'll need a new app.
In a statement on the company's website, Apple emphasised its focus on trustworthy news sources, a subtle dig at Silicon Valley rivals that have helped to spread false news and disinformation. Apple will also work with Steven Spielberg to bring back anthology series "Amazing Stories".
The company said it would bring back most of its profits from overseas to take advantage of a favourable tax rate in legislation approved by Congress in 2017.


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Pharmacy2U merges with ChemistDirect in £40 million deal
The new business created by the merger will serve 1.5 million customers, Pharmacy2U claims
Online business Pharmacy2U will merge with competitor ChemistDirect.co.uk in a £40 million deal, the companies have announced.
The merger was backed by a £10 million investment from the Business Growth Fund and the combined business will serve 1.5 million customers, Pharmacy2U said on Monday (July 4).
These patients will be offered an online home delivery prescription service, an online doctor service and more than 6,000 health and well-being retail products, Pharmacy2U said.
Founder and superintendent pharmacist of Pharmacy2U Daniel Lee will take the role of chief operating officer for the new entity, while ChemistDirect chief executive Mark Livingstone will reprise his role.
Online pharmacies "come of age"
Mr Lee said that the online pharmacy model has now “come of age”, as patients are keen to use the internet to shop for health and wellbeing products.
“This merger means that we are in an unrivaled position to respond to the growing demand for these innovative services,” Mr Lee said.
Mr Livingstone described the merger as a “landmark moment” for internet pharmacy in the UK.
Pharmacy2U launched its £3.5 million dispensing hub in Leeds in May, which it said was working smoothly, despite it being linked to delivery problems across the Christmas period.
The same month, the General Pharmaceutical Council suspended Pharmacy2U’s commercial director for three months following the company’s sale of patient data in 2014.

domain: news


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Author: Soil Mate • Date: June 7, 2016 • Appears in:
There's Now A Way To Eat Real Kill-Free Meat, And It Tastes Delicious
Scientists have developed a kill-free meat, and it may be coming to a store near you.
Credit: Memphis Meats
Do you like to eat meat but hate animal cruelty and the effects the meat industry has on the environment? Well there’s hope in store, because researchers have just developed a way to produce meat that is free from bacterial contamination and doesn’t involve killing animals by instead harvesting animal cells, and it only takes 21 days.
A team at the University of Minnesota has been working to develop alternative methods for meeting the huge demand for meat globally that doesn’t involve cruelly raising animals just to kill them and eat them. Dr. Uma Valeti and his team harvested animal cells that were able to renew themselves and aided the process simply by supplying oxygen and a few essential nutrients, like sugar, to grow them into edible meat in just 9-21 days.
In addition to sparing the lives of millions of animals that die at the hands of industrial slaughter, Valeti’s harvested meat has a few other added bonuses. The cultured meat has reduced saturated fat and is free from the bacterial contamination that is often a risk that comes with eating livestock meat. The team adds that this meat is much more sustainable, as the farming of animals results in huge emissions of carbon dioxide and methane over the course of the animal’s lifetime. Livestock animals also not only drink a large quantity of water, but many farmers use tons of water every year to keep their grass healthy so that livestock can graze.
The UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization reports that an estimated 56 billion are raised and slaughtered for human consumption each year and, because of the world’s exponential population growth, that number is expected to double by 2050.
“The meat we are growing is identical at the molecular and cellular level. Cultured meat will completely replace the status quo and making raising animals to eat them simply unthinkable.”
The team hopes to have the product in restaurants in three years and in supermarkets in five years or even sooner, if possible. They plan to harvest beef, pork, and chicken, as these meats are in the highest demand and have the most adverse effects on the environment. Though they are based and growing the meat in the U.S., there is interest in both India and China, so the team is working towards branching out to meet the needs of the global population.
With the alarming statistics from the UN’s organization, this alternative method is a beacon of light at the end of the tunnel for animals, the environment, and humans looking to eat cruelty-free meat.
Watch the video below to hear Dr. Uma Valeti discuss the product and see the cultured meat prepared by a specialty chef and consumed.
Would you eat meat that was cultured in a lab? Comment your thoughts below and share this article!


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Ascends in the expense of apparel and food assisted with pushing UK swelling higher-than-anticipated a month ago.
The UK’s expansion rate, which tracks the costs of products and enterprises, leaped to 0.7% in October from 0.5% in September, official figures show.
Recycled vehicles and PC games likewise observed value rises, however these were halfway balanced by falls in the expense of energy and occasions.
- Investigators had anticipated that the rate should stay level at 0.5%.
“The pace of expansion expanded somewhat as garments costs developed, getting back to their ordinary occasional example after the disturbance this year,” said Office for National Statistics representative analyst Jonathan Athow.
Typically costs for garments and shoes fall every year among June and July in summer deals before harvest time ranges come in, and afterward ascend before deals towards the year’s end, the ONS said.
In any case, the Covid emergency has changed how costs move.
All through 2020 this example has been extraordinary, with expanded limiting in March and April, most likely as a reaction to lockdown, it said. After a little expansion in July and August, costs rose by over a year prior.
- What is swelling?
- lady shopping
- Expansion is the rate at which the costs for products and enterprises increment.
It influences everything from home loans to the expense of our shopping and the cost of train tickets.
It’s one of the vital proportions of monetary prosperity, since it influences what purchasers can purchase for their cash. On the off chance that there is expansion, cash doesn’t go as far.
Food costs rose among September and October, with a large portion of the expansion coming in products of the soil, the ONS said.
Investigator firm Capital Economics said food cost expansion could keep on ascending in November as general store request keeps on expanding during the Covid-19 lockdown.
During the primary lockdown, there was a fall in the measure of store advancements as customers mass purchased basics.
A few studies of customers had proposed reestablished storing as wellbeing limitations spread through Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland in October.
A one-month lockdown was reported for England toward the month’s end and begun on 5 November.
Recycled vehicle costs likewise rose in October as individuals attempted to lessen their dependence on open vehicle.
Nonetheless, vehicle costs may settle and fall back in the center of 2021 should an immunization become broadly accessible, as per Samuel Tombs, boss UK financial specialist for Pantheon Macroeconomics.
Energy guard dog
One of the biggest descending weights on swelling came from a fall in family unit energy costs.
Gas costs dropped by 12.3% and power costs fell 3.2% among September and October.
This was basically because of energy controller Ofgem’s most recent half year energy value cap, which became effective on 1 October, the ONS said.
Swelling may have ticked up in October yet dig into the figures and you’re reminded: it’s not the danger of expansion that poses a potential threat at the present time yet the inverse.
Administrations are as yet ascending in cost however in the event that you take the cost of products there’s been no expansion at all in the previous year.
The cost of energy fell – not just this time due to the value cap, but since hostile to infection measures have caused a sharp monetary compression around the world, chopping worldwide interest and pulling down the discount cost of oil and gas.
Where a few costs are gradually rising, the public lockdown gauges as of now set up can just apply further deflationary weight.
There’s not a ton the Bank of England can do here to animate action when the fight against Covid is pulling the other way.
In any case, in case we’re to keep away from collapse, further monetary measures might be expected to invigorate and fix a stricken economy once mass immunization is in progress.


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Chinese shoppers have spent big over the Singles' Day shopping festival, showing the country's strong economic recovery following the COVID-19 epidemic.
Sales on Alibaba's e-commerce platform Tmall exceeded 372.3 billion yuan (56.29 billion U.S. dollars) between Nov. 1 and 12:30 a.m. on Nov. 11.
At the shopping peak, 583,000 orders were made in a single second on Tmall, setting a new online shopping record.
To cater to growing demand from Chinese consumers, Tmall launched this year's shopping festival early, with the first discount period running from Nov. 1 to Nov. 3 in addition to the normal full-day sales on Nov. 11.
More than 800 million shoppers, 250,000 brands and 5 million merchants have participated in this year's shopping spree, according to Tmall.
Weng Yi, a researcher with Chinese think tank Cathay Institute for Public Affairs, said this year's Singles' Day shopping spree could serve as a barometer for China's consumption, as the government pursues a "dual circulation" development pattern, where domestic and foreign markets can boost each other, with the domestic market as the mainstay.
"With overseas purchases hampered by the pandemic, the Singles' Day shopping carnival has offered an optimal opportunity for Chinese consumers to buy overseas products, and may significantly boost sales for global brands and merchants," Weng said.
E-commerce giant JD.com also scored big in the shopping extravaganza, with its sales topping 200 billion yuan (29.41 billion U.S. dollars) between Nov. 1 and 12:09 a.m. on Nov. 11.
Notably, sales of JD's fast-delivery grocery business soared a staggering 50 fold compared with the same period last year, while its sales of 5G smartphones spiked 11 fold.
Moreover, sales of imported products for new mothers and babies on JD doubled year on year and mobile phones offering optimal gaming experience grew by 160 percent.


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Originally thought to be the next device in T-Mobile USA’s “G series,” a device listed on a purported internal screenshot, obtained by TmoNews, as the HTC Era 42 is now being billed the HTC One X+. We’ve confirmed with several sources that the device will indeed launch as the HTC One X+ with a 1.7GHz NVIDIA Tegra 3 chip on board and support for T-Mobile’s 42Mbps HSPA+ network. Taylor Wimberly, from AndroidandMe, also separately confirmed this was the case.
Not much else is known about this alleged device’s hardware, but the going word is that it’s being set for a September release and we imagine the screen size, Beats Audio, Sense 4.0 and more will all remain intact.
Hopefully all will be revealed within the next two months — perhaps we’ll hear more at IFA at the end of August. We’ll be reporting live from Berlin, so stay tuned for more information.


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When Ian Smith was named chief executive officer of Clearwater Seafoods, in May 2010, the seafood harvester, processor, and exporter was struggling.
The Halifax-based company was heavily indebted and still struggling to repair its finances following a go-private effort that failed during the 2008 global financial crisis. Clearwater’s stock price was also way down — in the 80-cent range — and, despite being structured as an income trust, the company had stopped issuing dividends.
“An income trust that doesn’t distribute dividends is a broken income trust,” Smith says, seated in his office.
The trust structure was ditched, debt was paid down, the corporate fishing fleet was upgraded, and Smith — a former Fortune 500 executive — pushed to improve the company’s marketing, selling, and distribution efforts, with a particular focus on courting higher-end customers willing to pay more for Canadian seafood.
Improvement followed. A five-year plan to grow annual revenue to $500 million and EBITDA to $100 million was achieved ahead of schedule. In China, revenue grew from less than $20 million in 2010 to nearly $100 million in 2015. The company’s stock price has risen over the same period — to a high of $15 per share in early 2015. “It’s been incremental improvement over time,” Smith concludes of the company’s revival.
Clearwater’s upgraded position is perhaps best revealed by the company’s acquisition, in 2015, of U.K.-based Macduff Shellfish Group for nearly $200 million. The Macduff acquisition, which boosted Clearwater’s seafood supply by 20 per cent, was a display of corporate and financial health that was surely lacking five years earlier.
Clearwater’s turnaround over the past half decade can be attributed to a mix of factors. Chief among them, Smith insists, is the company’s attention to innovation. “It has been essential,” he says.
Doug Cooper, the managing director and head of research at Beacon Securities, a firm that provides analyst coverage of Clearwater and also helped the company raise money, agrees.
Cooper notes that Clearwater has benefited from growing global demand for seafood, particularly in China, during a time when the supply of wild-caught seafood has been flat. That means prices are up.
Yet Clearwater has also been helped by its new ideas and technologies, Cooper adds.
“I would say innovation is quite important in the DNA of the company.”
The word “innovation” is surely overused in the corporate and business worlds, especially so in tech startup circles. It’s a label often slapped on even the smallest internal changes, R&D efforts, and new products.
Here’s one flakey example: in describing his company’s “innovations” for 2013, Kellogg CEO John Bryant pointed to the introduction of a peanut butter Pop-Tart: Gone Nutty! It was nothing more than an old product stuffed with a new filling.
Writing shortly after for the Harvard Business Review, William C. Taylor, the co-founder of Fast Company magazine, argued that the word “innovation” was “quickly losing whatever meaning it once had”.
“If the CEO of a major company can call Gone Nutty! an innovation, then what isn’t an innovation?” he wrote. “What does the word even mean anymore?” Taylor called for the word to be banned from the business lexicon.
For his part, Smith says there are two types of innovation — Big Innovation and Little Innovation — and that Clearwater is involved with both. Small innovations at Clearwater include the company’s production of two value-added products: bacon-wrapped scallops and scallops in sauce.
Big innovation, according to Smith’s definition, is an advancement that is “significantly disruptive” to a company’s business model — one that gives the company a meaningful competitive advantage. He argues Clearwater has developed a number of big innovations, most of them technical, and that they are all partially responsible for the company’s position as one of the world’s largest vertically integrated seafood companies, a global exporter of scallops, lobster, clams, shrimp, crab, and other seafood.
Smith points to Clearwater’s ocean mapping technology, which has enabled it to better understand what’s on the ocean bottom — be it scallops or clams — and be more productive in pulling it up. The result has been a more efficient use of its fleet.
“That was a huge breakthrough,” he says. “This technology had never before been applied to the fishing industry.”
Smith’s office overlooks Bedford Basin in Halifax Harbour and his job is to oversee a seafood company with a market capitalization of more than $900 million (up from $48 million in 2010), yet he doesn’t have a fishing background. He’s originally from Montreal and previous to his appointment as Clearwater’s CEO worked for the Campbell Soup Company. From 2006 to 2008, he led Campbell’s operations in China, establishing their soup business in mainland China. Before that he worked for Colgate-Palmolive.
His previous employers appear to have shaped his ambitions for Clearwater. “We want to measure ourselves against the best protein-producing and food-manufacturing companies in the world. That’s who we want to aspire to be like in the future,” he says.
Asked to name example companies, Smith lists a group of Fortune 500 mainstays: Tyson Foods, ConAgra Foods, Danone, and Nestlé. Clearwater, Smith argues, should aspire to match the quality, service, and brand reputation of those companies. “We really believe we have the opportunity to move from best-in-class in seafood to being world-class.”
It’s a bold ambition. Clearwater’s 2015 sales totaled just over $500 million; Nestlé, meanwhile, posted revenue of roughly US$90 billion.
Smith says growing Clearwater in the image of those food industry powerhouses will require plenty of capital, talent, and — most importantly — more innovation.
Tony Jabbour, Clearwater’s vice-president of Fleet Operations, is standing on a dock in Shelburne, N.S. Towering next to him is the Atlantic Preserver, one of Clearwater’s two scallop draggers.
At one time, Clearwater used a dozen boats to collect its scallop quota. Around 2001, however, the company launched a major transition, cutting the fleet first to four vessels, then two: the Atlantic Preserver and the Atlantic Protector. Both are modern factory ships, capable of gathering, processing, freezing, and storing upwards of 200,000 pounds of scallops in a two-week trip.
In addition to consolidating its fleet, Clearwater changed the way it crews its vessels.
Instead of fishing for a share of the catch — the typical way fishermen get paid — Clearwater’s crews are now mostly salaried. They can earn anywhere from $75K-$100K, depending on the type of fishery as well as their own training and experience.
“The rest of the industry thought there wouldn’t be any incentive for the fishermen to produce,” Jabbour says before stepping aboard the Atlantic Preserver. “But it’s proven to be the other way.”
Jabbour steps into the wheelhouse. Down below, on deck, he can see the large mechanical arms that drop the scallop dragging gear to the ocean bottom. Jabbour then maneuvers carefully down three steep flights of steps to the ship’s internal factory — one of Clearwater’s key technical innovations.
Before it can be fried or wrapped in bacon, the edible white nugget of scallop muscle must be shucked from the mollusk’s shell. Traditionally, that was done by hand on deck, or down below at a shucking box.
Conway Hutt, first mate on the Atlantic Preserver, started as a Clearwater crewman 10 years ago, four days after graduating high school. Each day at sea he spent roughly 11 hours hand-shucking scallops. “It gets sore,” he says with a smile. Hutt quickly realized he’d rather be in the wheelhouse.
In 2010, Clearwater began using automatic shucking machines (ASMs), an in-house technology the company had been working on for years. Jabbour, who has been with Clearwater 23 years, had just started in the fleet department when the shucking machines were first tested. They worked well in the lab, but were suffering from startup glitches when implemented at sea. Jabbour wondered if the technology would actually function outside the lab. He was overseeing modifications to the setup when a young crewman walked up to him.
“Whatever you do, make sure these things work because I don’t want to go back to that shucking box,” the crewman told Jabbour.
The automatic shucking technology is now a key component of the company’s scallop business. “The technology exceeded our expectations,” Jabbour says. “People are making more money, we’re catching the quota quicker, we’re reducing our carbon footprint… It’s just been a total success story.
Aboard the Atlantic Preserver, scallops brought on deck are quickly sent down to the factory. Each scallop is run through one of two automatic shucking machines. The shell — held in place in a cup — is cut and the scallop meat is peeled off. Ten years ago, a quick-fingered crewman could hand-shuck 15 scallops per minute. The shucking machines can process between 40-50 in the same amount of time, thus reducing the traditional backlog. “We’ve created a better quality product because a machine doesn’t get tired at the end of a trip or the end of a watch,” Jabbour says. “The cut is exactly the same every time.”
After emerging from the shucking machines, the scallops are counted, washed, run through quality stations and then frozen. “Literally within about 20 minutes the product has gone from the bottom of the ocean to being minus-18 degrees Celsius frozen,” Jabbour says.
The changes made to the company’s scallop fleet (fewer vessels, salaried crews, automation) have improved the final product and increased the fleet’s profitability.
The changes have also helped with hiring. Before the upgrades, the average Clearwater crewman was in his late 50s. It was difficult to attract younger workers to positions that involved hours of manual, highly repetitive work. The shucking also resulted in frequent injuries, including carpel tunnel.
According to Jabbour, the number of injuries is now much reduced, and younger workers have returned to the fishery. Today the average worker is in their mid-40s.
Clearwater scallop crews work 16 days on; 16 days off. The use of two crews — of between 20-30 men — means the Atlantic Preserver is at sea nearly continuously. One crew returns, another heads back out to sea. The season starts in January and the crews fish until Clearwater’s quota is caught. Some years they fish until the end of the calendar year. This year they wrapped up in August. The fishing was over for the year, but as salaried employees the fishermen continued to be paid.
“They have the same benefits as anyone working in an office: they have RRSPs, they have Blue Cross, in some cases they have long-term disability. All that stuff,” Jabbour adds. “We’ve created more technical and better paying jobs.”
The changes, he says, were inspired by many factors. The company’s large scallop fleet was in need of replacement and vulnerable to high fuel costs. A high rate of crew turnover (20-25 per cent annually) was also a problem, but has since been cut below five per cent. “It really wasn’t a sustainable model for a public company to continue down that path, to continue doing the same thing year in, year out,” Jabbour concludes.
Standing next to one of the Atlantic Preserver’s shucking machines, Jabbour notes that more changes are planned.
“This is version one of the automatic shucking machines. We’re now working on version two,” he says. “In two to three years it will be a different machine altogether. And this is just scallops. We’re doing the same thing in clams. We’re doing the same thing in lobster. We used to have five offshore lobster boats. Now we’re catching the quota with one.”
John Risley and Colin MacDonald started Clearwater in 1976. The pair founded their live lobster distribution company with a single pick-up truck. Live lobster sales long dominated the company’s focus, though it did present a problem: many lobsters die before they can be sold.
Michael Roy has worked at Clearwater for 30 years, holding various positions in the company. He now manages Clearwater’s plant in Lockeport, N.S., overseeing complicated seafood processing and packaging lines. Nearly 75 per cent of all Canadian scallops are processed at the Lockeport plant. “That’s our bread and butter here,” Roy says.
In all, the plant’s nearly 300 employees process approximately 15 million pounds of Canadian and Argentine scallops annually; the product is shipped to more than 30 countries. On this day, frozen scallops are being bagged for sale by Marks and Spencer in the U.K. Bag after bag is quickly filled with frozen scallops, sealed, and packed in boxes for shipment.
The Lockeport plant also houses the solution Clearwater developed to solve its lobster mortality problem. In other words, what to do with lobsters deemed not strong enough to endure short-term live storage and shipping.
Roy — clad in a hairnet, smock and shoe covers — walks across the plant floor, past the scallop processing line and industrial freezers, to the company’s high-pressure lobster equipment. The technology was first used by Clearwater in 2004. “Since then other people have started to do this as well,” Roy notes. “But it’s pretty safe to say we were one of the first to do it.”
The process works like this: Roughly 250 pounds of lobster is loaded into a white barrel and moved into one of two high-pressure machines. The water inside the barrel is pressurized, a process that both kills the crustaceans—without cooking them—and breaks the bond between their shells and the raw meat inside, making it easy to remove. (The pressurization process takes between six and seven minutes and Roy says the lobsters die within the first 20 seconds).
The lobsters are then sent down the processing line. Special equipment is used to remove the meat from the knuckles, tails, claws, and legs. Leg meat is usually used as an ingredient — such as in lobster ravioli — while the larger pieces are frozen and vacuumed sealed in blue plastic, typically with knuckle and claw meat stuffed in the body of the shelled lobster. The raw, frozen meat has a two-year shelf life, allowing restaurants and other customers to prepare lobster year-round, regardless of supply at sea. The meat can be boiled right in its plastic package.
Looking over the production line, Roy says Clearwater is spending money to expand it. “We’re just starting,” he says. “Our target is to have the capacity for next spring.”
Roy then walks to a nearby building. Once used for crab processing, the building is now used to make bacon-wrapped scallops.
A couple dozen workers are standing at tables, wrapping scallops with strips of bacon. Some of the scallops are then pierced with toothpicks. The bacon-wrapped balls are placed on trays, packed, and frozen.
Compared to the other automated production areas, the bacon-wrapped scallop line seems antiquated — so many people, so few machines. “That’s a very manual process and we’re now looking at opportunities for automation,” Roy notes. Even the lobster production line could use more automation, he adds. “There is money to be saved,” Roy says. But there’s another factor at play in the push for more automation: it’s increasing difficult to find workers willing to gut and shell lobsters and wrap scallops in bacon.
Sitting in his office, Ian Smith is outlining how Clearwater uses innovation to improve its operations at sea, in its plants, and in its sales and marketing. “It’s end-to-end innovation,” he says. “You have to be looking across your entire route to market, your entire business model, and pushing that flywheel of innovation across every aspect of your business.”
He mentions the shucking machines (“huge cost savings and productivity boost”), the high-pressure lobster equipment (“an instant success which has been more than 15 years in the making”), and many other examples. Among them: the company’s live lobster storage facility in Cape Breton, the biggest in the world, which is capable of holding 1.5 million pounds worth of live lobsters for up to six months, ensuring steady supply year-round. “Clearwater invented the ability to… hold and then distribute later through the season,” he says. Then there’s the $150 million the company has pumped into its clam business over the past six years, including the recent purchase of a new $70-million clam dragger.
Smith takes nearly an hour to run through Clearwater’s recent innovation and investment highlights. “I apologize,” he eventually says, reaching the end of his notes. “Don’t mistake my verbosity for arrogance. Please take it as passion for what we’re doing. I’m incredibly proud of what we’re doing here.”
He laments, however, that the fishing and seafood industries are not associated with innovation and technology.
“We’re spending millions on innovation in all different aspects of our business,” he says. “And it’s not just about the almighty dollar… It’s better for the animals, it’s better for the habitat and it’s economical for us. There’s a win-win-win going on in many of our investments.”
Smith also laments that technological advancements and innovations developed in Atlantic Canada often go uncelebrated. “We always talk about the things that we don’t do well enough in Atlantic Canada,” he says. “We don’t spend enough time talking about some of the things we do well and that are successes. I do think this is an Atlantic Canadian success from an innovation stand point.”
The improvement of the past half-decade, combined with Smith’s intention to mimic companies like Tyson, ConAgra, Danone, and Nestlé, means innovation will continue to be among his main mantras. He notes that new lobster storage and distribution technology that will enter the market in 2017.
“Our future pipeline of innovation is full. As we look at the next five years and how we’re going to invest in R&D and technology, we’ve got a full slate of projects,” he says.
“We have more ideas that we can possibly execute.”


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As is with every smartphone launch, there are a ton of rumors that lead up to the device’s actual launch. Some of those rumors eventually become true and others end up being complete fabrications. In many cases, those rumors and hopes of those reading them generally exceed the capabilities or realities of the components available. So, as the Samsung Galaxy S5 rumors began to leak people started to get excited and start to expect things that are unrealistic. Well, with the Samsung Galaxy S5, for the most part this wasn’t really the case at all.
Yes, Samsung has released a phone that comes in four colors and yes it is almost universally accepted as uglier than the previous version, but let’s focus on the important stuff, the internals and features.
The Samsung Galaxy S5 comes with a 5.1" 1920×1080 ‘Full HD’ screen, which actually is barely bigger than the previous version of the Galaxy S4’s 5.0" 1920×1080 resolution. In fact, being a 5.1" SuperAMOLED display with the same resolution means that the pixel density of the display is actually going DOWN not up. A drastic departure from an industry-wide trend of improving display resolutions. Realistically, though, we don’t really need a larger display nor do we need a higher resolution, but if you’re going to launch a new flagship phone and use basically the same display why bother actually reducing the pixel density? Samsung is taking a step back here, instead of a step forward, which would have probably been either a slightly smaller screen size or the rumored 2560 x 1440 resolution that many were expecting. In terms of displays, I think almost everyone agrees that there are enough ‘large’ smartphone displays, especially from Samsung, so a 4.7" 1080P display like HTC’s One has would probably be more welcome than a 5.1" one.
In terms of processor, Samsung made an upgrade from the Snapdragon 800 in the Galaxy S4 with the Snapdragon 801. However, I believe that Samsung has made a grave mistake launching this phone with the Snapdragon 801 because it really isn’t much of an improvement over the Snapdragon 800 in the way that the Snapdragon 805 is. Since we talked about the Snapragon 801 during it’s announcement this week, we’ve gotten more details about what kinds of improvements it has over the Snapdragon 800. The biggest improvement is that it delivers a 45% faster camera processing capability than the Snapdragon 800. It also has a 28% faster GPU than the Snapdragon 800, a 14% faster CPU and 18% faster DSP and 17% faster memory. So, realistically, this new Galaxy S5 is going to probably be at best 15% faster than the previous version, not really a number many people are going to want to hear when they are told this is the latest and greatest. They also added the ability to record and play back 4K content on the Galaxy S4, but that capability has existed since the Galaxy Note 3.
For the Galaxy S5, the LTE modem is also pretty disappointing, even though the modem technology isn’t quite there yet. I believe that Samsung’s timing with the Galaxy S5 is too soon after the launch of the Galaxy S4 and Note 3 and doesn’t enable the company to properly launch a product with really groundbreaking technology. As such, the Galaxy S5 will be shipping with Cat4 LTE capable of speeds up to 150 Mbps download and 50 Mbps upload. However, there will be variants of the Galaxy S5 that will be shipping with Intel’s LTE modems instead of Qualcomm’s which is a big deal for Intel as they have struggled to get major design wins. Unfortunately for Intel, this is probably going to be considered one of Samsung’s least exciting products as of late and is already getting a lot of criticism. As we had talked about earlier this week, Intel is closing the LTE gap on Qualcomm and the announcement that Samsung will be using Intel LTE modems is a clear sign of that.
Nevertheless, the Galaxy S5 does have a few other notable features, namely the fingerprint sensor, which Apple and HTC have already done and the IP67 water and dustproofing, which Sony has been doing for generations now. So, really, Samsung isn’t doing anything unique, revolutionary or ground breaking. The phone is also shipping with a 16 Megapixel camera sensor, which is the biggest any Samsung phone has shipped before. Only the Samsung Galaxy Camera has a 16 Megapixel camera, and that thing is incredibly thick and bulky compared to the S5. And because of the Snapdragon 801’s improved image processor and imaging pipeline, the S5 will probably take much better pictures than the S4 did. The S5 is also shipping with a USB 3.0 connector, which is like the Galaxy Note 3, making it yet another feature that isn’t really new or exciting, but still welcome.
This is all powered by a 2800 mAh battery, which is without a doubt bigger than the Galaxy S4’s 2600 mAh battery, but once again indicates the company’s lack of desire to innovate. They would rather do incremental improvements than really innovate at all. In fact, if Samsung had released this phone with a significantly larger battery I think a lot of people probably would have accepted it as a sound enough improvement and probably not have been as negative towards the phone as they are. Alas, Samsung did not, and their only real improvements were the camera and SoC, with only the camera needing improvement. And I believe a lot of that had to do with software, not hardware.
Samsung is releasing a mediocre incremental upgrade to a device that was already a mediocre incremental upgrade. Most people that own Galaxy S4’s or Galaxy S3’s probably won’t notice much of a difference from their current phone to the Galaxy S5 other than the fact that it ships with the latest version of Android and will probably have a much better camera. Additionally, I believe that Samsung’s timing is going to hurt them more than help them as it likely has restricted them from getting truly new technology in their ‘latest and greatest’ phone. This announcement paves the way for Nokia, LG, HTC and Sony to steal disgruntled and unimpressed customers away from Samsung who, as many people know, has a pretty sizable user base.


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Bandai Namco Entertainment Establishes New Mobile Company
posted on by Alex Mateo
Bandai Namco Entertainment announced on Thursday that it is establishing the new company Bandai Namco Mobile (BNM) in Barcelona, Spain to focus on the development and marketing of mobile entertainment outside the Asian market. The new company will open in 2020 and focus on growing the mobile business within the Network Entertainment Unit within Bandai Namco group.
The announcement also noted that BNM will unify overseas mobile development and marketing efforts, as well as allow for more flexible and collaborative content creation and marketing activities for Western audiences. The company will begin recruiting staff in the coming months.
Bandai Namco Holdings and Shueisha announced in June that they will jointly establish a new Shanghai-based company tentatively named "Shueisha Bandai Namco (Shanghai) Co., Ltd." in October. The company will focus on offering and planning merchandise and goods in China based on Shueisha manga properties.
Bandai Namco Holdings established two Chinese subsidiaries earlier this year: Bandai Namco Toys & Hobby (Shanghai) in February, and then Bandai Namco Amusement (Shanghai) in March. Both new companies are subsidiaries to Bandai Namco Holdings China. Bandai Namco Holdings already has its Bandai Namco Entertainment (Shanghai) subsidiary in China to handle its smartphone app business.
Source: Press Release
Disclosure: Bandai Namco Rights Marketing, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Bandai Namco Holdings Inc., is a non-controlling, minority shareholder in Anime News Network Inc.


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MCNLive! is an annual event produced by Motorcycle News, bringing bikers together for a weekend of live bands, stunt shows and competition. Held at Butlins, Skegness in April it delivers on what bikers want!
WSB Champion James Toseland featured as part of the campaign, and appeared live at the event.
Our 2011 campaign across print, web, direct mail, twitter and facebook delivered a year-on-year uplift in sales in both volume and value.


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(WXYZ) — Michigan business generated more than $6 billion in economic activity in 2018, according to Google.
This month, the tech giant announced 27,000 Michigan businesses, publishers and nonprofits used the search engine and advertising tools to connect with the people and communities they serve – increasing their online presence and bringing more money and job into the local economy.
A recent study by Deloitte found that more than 80 percent of small businesses surveyed are not fully using online digital tools:
- Digital small businesses are nearly three times as likely to have created new jobs in the last year.
- Digital small businesses are seeing four times higher revenue growth
- Digital small businesses are almost three times as likely to reach more customers via increased calls, leads and sales inquiries
- Digital small businesses are three times as likely to have exported a product or service
Want help taking your business into the digital space? Click here to check out Michigan's Grow with Google resource guide.
“For small businesses across the U.S., the web is the most powerful tool to attract new customers and retain existing ones,” said Mary Ellen Coe, president of Google Customer Solutions and Michigan native. “Last year, our search and advertising tools helped generate billions of dollars in economic activity for millions of businesses - helping to create a lasting impact on local communities. And we look forward to continue working with businesses, nonprofits and publishers across the Great Lakes State to help their businesses or initiatives grow.”
This is the 10th year Google has released its Economic Impact Report. Read it here.


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A NEW era could be about to dawn for Swansea's run down High Street, after decades of neglect.
Retailers are showing a renewed sense of confidence in the once vibrant shopping district.
Bar boss Noah Redfern is following the success of his popular venue in Uplands by investing in a vintage homeware and accessories store on High Street selling furniture and kitchen products.
The Noah's Yard founder is backing the as-yet unnamed store which will open in March next year as one of the first retail occupiers of the £25 million Urban Village development from housing provider Coastal.
He said: "I viewed the place four to five months ago and got excited about it.
"It looks like it is going to be a really cool part of town. I am all for regeneration and I can see the vision they have got."
Mr Redfern's interest in a unit at the Urban Village follows the opening of the Mosaic restaurant as the first tenant of the development last month.
Transport chiefs also celebrated a £7.6 million revamp of Swansea's High Street railway station in June this year.
And one of the big supermarket chains is also rumoured to be interested in opening a site in the Urban Village.
Mr Redfern's shop will form part of what is being hailed as the Swansea Creative Hub in and around the Urban Village development.
Swansea Creative Hub's Project Director Huw Williams said: "The most exciting recent development besides Mosaic is the forthcoming vintage homeware and accessories store which will open on High Street in the new year, plus the soon to be opened co-working short-term and affordable office space for creatives in association with Indycube."
Indycube is a non-profit company offering workspace to everyone from early stage startups to established freelancing agents.
Coastal is also working on redeveloping Swansea's Castle Quarter with an £8 million scheme of 26 affordable rented apartments, four duplex units overlooking Swansea Castle, and a small number of commercial units as well as a kiosk on the Strand.


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The auction house Mecum, known for selling collector cars and other vehicles, said it will offer a 1931 Harley Davidson VL 74 motorcycle, once owned by the late actor Steve McQueen. The bike will cross the block during Mecum’s inaugural Celebrity Items Auction, July 26-27, in Santa Monica, California.
McQueen, sometimes called the King of Cool, was known for his love of cars, motorcycles and racing. A number of his former vehicles, from a Ferrari 250 GT Lusso to a Husqvarna 400 Cross off-road motorcycle, have fetched many times their estimated value in auctions during the past decade.
The ’31 Harley-Davidson was part of the actor’s collection, awaiting restoration when he was diagnosed with cancer in 1979. McQueen died about a year later. The bike has since been restored in what the auction house described as a “period-correct color combination of red, black and gold.”
Another ex-McQueen vehicle, a 1969 Chevrolet C/10 Baja Truck, will also cross the block during next month’s sale. McQueen helped drive the desert-racing craze of the 1960s and 1970s. The truck was built by off-road-racing legend Vic Hickey for competition in the Baja 1000 off-road endurance race.
The auction house estimates the motorcycle will sell for $60,000 $80,000 while the truck is expected to fetch $150,000 to $175,000. However, other McQueen items, from cars to clothing, have sold for several times their estimated value. So this one could be difficult to predict.


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Frederic Bourke, the co-founder and chairman of accessories firm Dooney & Bourke, was sentenced on Tuesday to one year and one day in prison for his role in a conspiracy to bribe officials in Azerbaijan.
U.S. District Court Judge Shira Scheindlin in Manhattan said Bourke, who was convicted in July after a monthlong jury trial, knew of the bribes but was not the plot’s originator. She also fined Bourke $1 million and ordered him to serve three years of supervised release.
He was allowed to remain free on $10 million bail, pending his appeal. Scheindlin said he was not a flight risk and there were facts in the case that could result in a new trial or reversal.
“Had this scheme succeeded…the people of Azerbaijan would have been deprived of the benefit of their greatest national resource,” Scheindlin said. “After years of presiding over this case, it’s not clear to me whether Mr. Bourke was a victim, a crook or a little bit of both.”
Bourke, 63, was convicted of conspiracy to violate the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and Travel Act and of making false statements to the FBI. The charges stemmed from his involvement with Oily Rock Group Ltd., an investment firm that sought windfall gains from the sale of the state-owned oil company of the former Soviet state Azerbaijan.
Prosecutors said Bourke invested about $8 million in Oily Rock, which bought government-issued privatization vouchers from citizens of the emerging nation during the Nineties. In order to ensure the oil company went private, members of the investment group, including principal Viktor Kozeny, paid millions of dollars in bribes to officials in Azerbaijan, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said.
Prosecutors had sought the maximum prison term of 10 years for Bourke, who never saw a return on his investment as the Azerbaijan oil company remained state-owned.
“We have a substantial chance of winning that appeal, as the judge said,” said Bourke’s lawyer, Harold Haddon.
Thomas McAndrew, counsel for Dooney & Bourke, said in an interview that Bourke would remain chairman of the Norwalk, Conn.-based handbag firm he founded with Peter Dooney in 1975. At the time of Bourke’s 2005 indictment, the company said his private investments were completely separate from its business.
“Truly this is an anomaly; this is not what we know his character to be,” McAndrew said. “We’re confident he’ll continue to make a positive contribution to society.”
For its next men’s wear collection, @roberto_cavalli will show as a special guest at #PittiUomo, running from June 12-15. The brand, which has Florence in its roots, will relaunch its men’s wear collection, which will be presented separately from women’s wear for the first time since Paul Surridge was appointed creative director in May. #wwdnews #wwdfashion (📷: @aitorrosasphoto)
“I was making the guacamole when my scout saw me,” says model @stuckinteenage on being discovered just six months ago while working at @chipotlemexicangrill. Since then Williams has signed with @dnamodels, walked in her first show at @calvinklein and landed on the cover of @vogueitalia – a high point of any model’s career. To read @lisajlockwood’s full interview with the model on her experiences thus far, head to WWD.com – link in bio. (📷: George Chinsee)
“I love the idea of dialogue, period. It’s where I’ve always gotten my inspiration from: hearing other women speak, their journeys and their paths,” said @hereisgina, who delivered the keynote speech during @sxsw for @createcultivate in partnership with @fossil. For her two panels, Rodriguez chose female empowering, female-led and female entrepreneurs to focus on. Head to WWD.com to read more about her thoughts on Time’s Up, growing up in a family of women and why we “need a girls’ club.” #wwdeye #sxsw (📷: @jgreenery)
Leading luxury brand are shaking things up to keep up with streetwear. Case in point: the arrival of @mrkimjones as artistic director of @diorhomme. Jones, who succeeds @Kris_Van_Assche, is seen as one of the handful of designers who can actually straddle the luxury and streetwear worlds — which could lead to even more changes at established brands. What could this mean for the rest of the menswear landscape? Head to WWD.com to find out what experts predict #wwdfashion (📷: @franckmura)
“It’s like buying groceries. You’re going to buy the best mango, the best mozzarella, the best things. You have to, or others are going to take it all,” said @gabrielahearst on why she uses only the finest fabrics. Last week, Hearst received her first @cfda nomination for Womenswear Designer of the Year, and earlier this month she opened a permanent showroom in Paris. To read @jessiredale’s interview with the designer and find out why this is shaping up to be a big year for her, head to WWD.com. #wwdfashion (📷: @francoisgoize)
“It’s an interesting thing, playing a younger version of your mother. It’s an interesting concept. I adore my mom and love her in every capacity, but it was just something that had never crossed my mind,” says @anniemstarke on playing a young Joan Castleman in “The Wife.” The same role will be played by her mother Glenn Close. Read more about her growing up in the film industry as the daughter of producer John H. Starke and Close and what she has planned for the future #wwdeye (📷: @nataliamantini)
@asics is launching a new streetwear sneaker inspired by its latest ambassador, @steveaoki. The Hyper-Kenzen x Aoki, which will launch at @footlocker stores exclusively tomorrow, is a slip-on style that incorporates the brand’s proprietary Gel technology through beads integrated into the midsole for comfort and endurance. Read the full story on WWD.com.


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Wearable Connector Technology Advances at Wilson College of Textiles Could Assist Doctors, Soldiers in Combat
Read the original article here. What comes to mind when you think about “wearable technology?” In 2023, likely a lot, at a time when smartwatches and rings measure heart rates, track exercise and even receive text messages. Your mind might even drift t …
August 14, 2023 Sean Cudahy
Read the original article here.
What comes to mind when you think about “wearable technology?” In 2023, likely a lot, at a time when smartwatches and rings measure heart rates, track exercise and even receive text messages. Your mind might even drift to that “ugly” light-up sweater or costume you saw last Halloween or holiday season.
At the Wilson College of Textiles, though, researchers are hard at work optimizing a truly new-age form of wearable technology that can be proven useful in a wide range of settings, from fashion and sports to augmented reality, the military and medicine
Currently in its final stages, this grant-funded project could help protect users in critical situations, such as soldiers on the battlefield and patients in hospitals, while simultaneously pushing the boundaries of what textiles research can accomplish.
“The goals set for this research are quite novel to any other literature that exists on wearable connectors.”
– Shourya Dhatri Lingampally
“The goals set for this research are quite novel to any other literature that exists on wearable connectors,” says Shourya Dhatri Lingampally, Wilson College of Textiles graduate student and research assistant involved in the project alongside Wilson College Associate Professor Minyoung Suh.
Ongoing since the fall of 2021, Suh and Lingampally’s work focuses on textile-integrated wearable connectors, a unique, high-tech sort of “bridge” between flexible textiles and external electronic devices. At its essence, the project aims to improve these connectors’ Technology Readiness Level — a key rating used by NASA and the Department of Defense used to assess a particular technology’s maturity.
To do this, Lingampally and her colleague Prateeti Ugale, a doctoral student in the college’s fiber and polymer science program, examined problems that have, in the past, affected the performance of wearable devices.
Sure, these advances may benefit fashion, leading to eccentric shirts, jackets, or accessories — “to light up or change its color based on the wearer’s biometric data,” Lingampally offers — the research has roots in a much deeper mission.
Potential benefits to military, medicine and beyond
The project is funded through more than $200,000 in grant money from Advanced Functional Fabrics of America (AFFOA), a United States Manufacturing Innovation Institute (MII) located in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The mission of AFFOA is to support domestic manufacturing capability to support new technical textile products, such as textile-based wearable technologies.
A key purpose of the research centers around improving the functionality of wearable monitoring devices with which soldiers are sometimes outfitted to monitor the health and safety of their troops remotely.
Similar devices allow doctors and other medical personnel to remotely monitor the health of patients even while away from the bedside.
Though such technology has existed for years, it’s too often required running wires and an overall logistically-unfriendly design.
That could soon change.
“We have consolidated the electronic components into a small snap or buckle, making the circuits less obtrusive to the wearer,” Lingampally says, explaining the team’s innovations, which include 3D printing the connector prototypes using stereolithography technology.
“We are trying to optimize the design parameters in order to enhance the electrical and mechanical performance of these connectors,” she adds.
To accomplish their goals, the group collaborated with NC State Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering Assistant Research Professor James Dieffenderfer. The team routed a variety of electrical connections and interconnects like conductive thread, epoxy and solder through textile materials equipped with rigid electronic devices.
They also tested the components for compatibility with standard digital device connections like USB 2.0 and I2C.
Ultimately, Lingampally hopes their work will make wearable technology not only easier and more comfortable to use, but available at a lower price, too.
“I would like to see them scaled, to be mass manufactured, so they can be cost efficient for any industry to use,” she explains.
In a bigger-picture sense, though, her team’s work is reinforcing the far-reaching boundaries of what smart textile research can accomplish; a purpose that stretches far beyond fashion or comfort.
Pushing the boundaries of textiles research
Suh and Lingampally’s work is just the latest breakthrough research originating from the Wilson College of Textiles that’s aimed at solving critical problems in the textile industry and beyond.
“The constant advancements in technology and materials present immense potential for the textile industry to drive positive change across a range of fields from fashion to healthcare and beyond,” Lingampally, a graduate student in the M.S. Textiles program, says, noting the encouragement she feels in her program to pursue innovation and creativity in selecting and advancing her research.
Additionally, in the fiber and polymer science doctoral program, Ugali and other students focus their research on a seemingly endless array of STEM topics, ranging from forensics to medical textiles, nanotechnology and, indeed, smart wearable technology (just to name a few).
“The constant advancements in technology and materials present immense potential for the textile industry to drive positive change.”
– Shourya Dhatri Lingampally
In this case, Suh says, the research lent itself to “unexpected challenges” that required intriguing adaptations “at every corner.” But, ultimately, it led to breakthroughs not previously seen in the wearable technology industry, attracting interest from other researchers outside the university, and private companies, too.
“This project was quite exploratory by nature as there hasn’t been any prior research aiming to the same objectives,” Suh says.
Meanwhile, the team has completed durability and reliability testing on its textile-integrated wearable connectors. Eventually, the group would like to increase the sample size for testing to strengthen and validate the findings. The team also hopes to evaluate new, innovative interconnective techniques, as well as other 3D printing techniques and materials as they work to further advance wearable technologies.


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Kia Kills Pro Cee’d Hatchback to Make Another Dumb SUV
If we quit buying SUVs, what would automakers do?by Robert Moore, on
Yet another car falls victim to the SUV craze as Kia quietly kill off the three-door Pro Cee’d Hatchback to make room in its lineup for another SUV. This SUV is expected to slip in below the Kia Stonic and Kia Sportage and will compete against models like the Seat Ateca and Nissan Qashqai. Word has it that it will be an all-new design, but will borrow cues from the rest of KIA’s SUV range. It, too, will go by the Pro Cee’d name and will be an addition next to a now-confirmed shooting brake model as well. Want to know more? Keep reading for more info!
The new Pro Cee’d in hatchback form will make its debut in early 2018 with the shooting brake version coming shortly thereafter (most likely at the following auto show.) The new SUV has yet to receive even a potential debut date, but with the new hatch and shooting brake coming in early 2018, a Frankfurt Motor Show in September 2018 wouldn’t be out of the question. With that said, the model has been spied previously with the most recent spotting happening on the Nurburgring. You can expect a number of engines from the Hyundai i30 to make their way into the new SUV as it does share the same platform. For what it’s worth, it isn’t like this model will ever find its way to the States as Kia has been focusing quite largely on the European market as of late and that’s exactly where the new Pro Cee’d SUV is heading too.
At this point, it seems like the SUV craze is never going to die. But, like all things, the craze will eventually come to an end. Hopefully, it happens at a time when it’s right for most automakers to revamp their lineups, but a little part of me hopes that SUVs suddenly prove to be worthless and automakers are sent scrambling not to find themselves belly up with massive inventories of SUVs that nobody wants. That might sound cruel, but we’ve seen a lot of cool cars killed off for SUVs and everyone seems to forget that they are only so hot because of the price of gas at the moment. If gas prices go up, all those little cars will suddenly become relevant again – just like they did in the last recession – and SUVs will fizzle away, left only in the limited interest of those who can afford to burn a gallon for every 19 miles. Will it happen? It’s possible, but if it doesn’t, it almost seems like the future will hold nothing but large SUVs with smaller cars and sedans become more of a luxury. Funny how the tides can turn, huh?
Read our full review on the current Kia Pro C’eed.
Read our full review on the 2017 Kia Proceed Concept.


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Huawei Honor 7i is the latest smartphone in town courtesy of the Chinese giant, Huawei.
This smartphone comes in with a spotlight on its camera, thanks to its 13MP snapper that can actually flip.
When you look at it, the camera is just like any other rear camera of a smartphone. However, there is more to this Honor 7i snapper as it can rotate at an angle of 180 degrees such it can now be used as a front snapper. Isn’t that amazing? Furthermore, there is room for you to adjust to certain weird angles, for instance, 90 degrees, just for taking experimental shots.
Huawei has decided that it won’t be left behind with the fingerprint technology as it has included it on this Honor 7i smartphone. This feature can be found on the left side of the phone and in addition to being a fingerprint sensor; it can also be used as a camera button.
Huawei not the first to install a rotating camera on smartphones
While the rotating camera feature of the Huawei Honor 7i might sound strange to many smartphone users, it won’t be the first time we will be seeing such an amazing creation.
Oppo has been at it at some point, rolling out a number of smartphones that feature rotating snappers. Even though Huawei have come in with a rather similar concept, the implementation in the latest case is quite different.
Other features of Huawei Honor 7i
The rotating camera is not the only eye-catching feature of the Honor 7i. There is more to this mid-range smartphone as it comes with features and specs that are more of like a high-end smartphone.
The size of the display alone will leave many of those looking to buy the latest Samsung Galaxy S6 thinking twice as it features a slightly larger screen of 5.2 inches. However, the resolution is a bit lower when compared to Samsung’s flagship as the Honor 7i only manages 1080p.
Inside the Huawei Honor 7i you will find an older Qualcomm chipset, a Snapdragon 616 SoC. Samsung dropped the Qualcomm chipsets, with some pundits citing the issue of overheating as a major contributor to this move. However, HTC kept faith with this U.S. Company when rolling out the latest HTC One M9. If you love to play games and run lots of applications on your phone, the Honor 7i will also be a perfect match for you with its 3GB of RAM.
Huawei Honor 7i has two variants
The aspect of rolling out several variants of a smartphone seems to be exciting many manufacturers and not just Samsung and Apple. Huawei is among the debutants in this niche and with the Honor 7i you can have a variant with 16GB of internal storage and is equipped with a RAM of 2GB and a variant with 32GB of internal storage and a RAM of 3GB.
There are also two color variants where you can choose from gold and silver. The battery unit of the Huawei Honor 7i is quite decent, standing at 3100mAh. This Huawei smartphone has two Nano SIM slots.
Price of Huawei Honor 7i
The Honor 7i has not hit the U.S. markets yet. In China, however, it currently exchanges hands at about $250 for the 16GB variant and $300 for the 32GB model. The company has not spoken a word on its availability in the U.S. and other parts of the world, but it won’t be very long.


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Ali Alaei and a number of other Telia customers complain that customer service is difficult to reach by phone.
He’s been a Get customer for several years, but problems arose after Telia bought Get.
– It has happened several times to call and stand at least 30-45 minutes in line, but now the record has been broken. I waited 54 minutes and seven seconds before I gave up on Monday, because I hadn’t turned up yet, he told Netavizen.
Alaei has both TV and internet from Telia. Before Get turned to Telia, it usually took three to four minutes to get an answer from customer service over the phone. Now he thinks it’s completely hopeless.
– It was a nightmare after Telia took over. He says I am angry that it is taking so long to reach customer service.
When he stood in line for the first time for 54 minutes on Monday this week, he tried again a quarter of an hour later. Then he waited more than half an hour, but even then he did not arrive.
– People have other things to do than standing in line for a long time to get it, Alaoui notes.
– I can’t wait for the binding period to expire
He himself has a lockout period for a few more months, but if it continues as it is now, he doubts he will continue as a Telia customer.
– I’m looking forward to the binding period ending, he says.
They should increase staff if that is the problem, because they should be available for customer service – without having to wait long on the phone to arrive.
Alai says he prefers to speak to customer service over the phone, and therefore has not tried to reach them on other platforms. Mostly Alaei has been satisfied with the services provided by Get/Telia, but says he has had problems with the new Telia fund several times. The customer explains that the box is very slow, and often the picture is cut off or the picture and sound do not match.
– The only way to get the box working normally again is to pull the plug and wait about ten seconds before plugging it back in. But he says it only seems like an hour, a day, or maybe a week before problems arise again.
He says he received a new chest, without helping either. Alai tells Netavisen that when he tried to call Telia on Wednesday morning, he finally got through after only a few minutes.
Number of complaints
However, not only Alaei is not satisfied with waiting for help. A quick scroll through Telia’s Facebook page shows that there are many unhappy customers who are complaining that they have to stand in line for a long time to get help.
I have neither the energy nor the time to sit on the phone for a whole day to communicate with you. Someone wrote, I’ve now waited over 20 minutes.
– I’m not standing next to me, and I’ve been queuing up the phone for 45 minutes now without being asked to call. I don’t know my queue either. This is not a pleasant customer experience, as another wrote, writing that he gave up after such a long time.
– What is the expected waiting time to contact you? Standing in line for 20 minutes now, he writes third.
A fourth asks why Telia isn’t doing anything with customer service, after 20 minutes in the phone queue.
– Either people have too many to complain about having a waiting list, or you have too few people to do the job. Both are bad publicity for you. You write I hope someone else will contact me and give me an offer of better services.
I understand the frustration
Telia has come under criticism, and Daniel Barhom, CIO at Telia Norway, told Nettavisen that they are constantly working to create the best customer experiences.
There is nothing we want more than satisfying TV and broadband customers. In this case, we can’t help but deeply regret the difficulty of getting customer service from us. That’s not how it should be, and we understand customer frustration very well, he says.
Barhoum says they value committed customers, not least because they have the opportunity to connect with them directly via social media and other channels.
“Recently, we’ve unfortunately had a number of unwanted incidents in our stable network, which, among other things, have led to longer response times for our customer service, and we apologize,” he says.
He also points out that the past year and a half with epidemics and many epidemics in home offices, also creates challenges.
– It also stresses our skilled staff when wait times in certain periods are longer than usual, and customers get frustrated when they arrive, so we don’t want to feel that way.
Trying to increase the number of employees
Barhoum points out that the photo is not black and white either.
Our average customer service response time in September was six minutes. At the same time, we’re working full-time to reduce response time even further, and our goal is to respond to customer inquiries as quickly as possible — whether it’s by phone, email, or chat, he says.
However, Telia is facing recruitment challenges, and more employees are now leaving as the community opens up.
Many of our employees who worked with us during the pandemic are now returning to their original jobs, he says and points out:
Today, she is calling for her replacement as a result of intense competition in the labor market. This is why we are working hard these days to recruit new employees for our Telia Customer Center.
He also notes that in addition to working to reduce response time, they have implemented a number of measures to deal with customers more proactively, identifying and fixing the reasons why a customer is calling when something isn’t working. At the same time, they will upgrade end-user equipment for TV and broadband customers.
As for the problems that Alawi has with the TV box, it should work as usual, according to Barhoum – who is commenting on the issue in general and not the case of Alawi.
– We are constantly upgrading the box to ensure a better user experience. We will contact the customer directly to further investigate what might be wrong in this case, he says.
“Explorer. Unapologetic entrepreneur. Alcohol fanatic. Certified writer. Wannabe tv evangelist. Twitter fanatic. Student. Web scholar. Travel buff.”


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T-Mobile now lets you use your smartphone in 20 more countries at no additional fee
T-Mobile has announced the addition of 20 new countries and destinations to Simple Global, which enables subscribers to user their smartphones when abroad at no extra cost. The total number of countries covered by Simple Global is now at 145 and includes all of Europe and South America.
Simple Global was launched as part of the company's Un-carrier movement. When travelling to one of the supported countries, T-Mobile custoemrs can enjoy no additional costs for data or SMS, as well as low-cost calls of just 20 cents per minute.
The new countries added to Simple Global are: Monaco, Albania, Belarus, Bosnia, Liechtenstein, Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, Slovenia, Guernsey, Alderney, Jersey, Sark, Isle of Man, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Bahamas, and Haiti.
Head to the T-Mobile website for more details and the fine print.
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Our news, reviews, opinions, and easy to follow guides can turn any iPhone owner into an Apple aficionado
By Tammy Rogers
By Kevin Lynch


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Spectaflow, a Reykjavik, Iceland-based provider of hotel operations solutions, raised €1.7M in post-seed funding.
The round was led by Frumtak Ventures, with participation from existing investors. Earlier investments were raised from Icelandic New Business Venture Fund, and angel investors including Grimur Saemundsen, founder and CEO of Blue Lagoon, Hilmar Veigar Petursson, CEO of CCP Games, and Thor Fridriksson, founder of TeaTime and Plain Vanilla Games. With this post-seed round, the company has raised a total of €2.5m from investor and grant funding to date.
The company intends to use the funds to expand operations and its business reach.
Founded in 2019 by serial entrepreneurs Petur Orri Saemundsen, Erlendur Steinn Gudnason and Frans Veigar Gardarsson, Spectaflow provides a SaaS solution for hotel and vacation rental property management, focused on improving cleaning and maintenance workflows, deskless staffing planning and compliance to evolving international cleaning standards. The company already has one hundred hotels in five countries using the software for management of their room and event space operations.


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UberEATS App Gets an Upgrade
The UberEATS app recently got a makeover: The app now recommends restaurants that users order from regularly, making it simpler for you to find what you're looking for. You can also search for restaurants based on certain criteria including, how long delivery takes, dietary restrictions, and of course, by price.
There’s also good news for people who like to order lunch to the office. The app allows for customizable delivery instructions, including where you want the food dropped off, like in the lobby or on the curb outside your building. Both Seamless and GrubHub (which merged in 2013) have allowed users to write detailed delivery instructions before submitting their orders for some time.
UberEATS allows order tracking as well, a feature GrubHub rolled out in 2012. One the biggest draws to this app in particular is that it allows users to schedule food deliveries ahead of time.
According to TechCrunch the app currently has 46,000 restuarants accessible on it’s platform and also wants to launch its services in India and South Korea. By comparison, Seamless has around 30,000 restaurants in more than 500 cities, while GrubHub is the largest food delivery service with, 50,000 restaurants offered.
UberEATS first launched in March 2016 in a few select cities—just Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles and San Francisco, and now has a total of 71 cities on its roster. But even as the off-shoot of the wildly popular taxi service continues to grow, it faces challengers everywhere from Amazon Restaurants to Yelp Eat24.
The app’s new developments come just days after Uber decided to downsize it’s business delivery services, UberRush, which launched in 2015 and was supposed to bring it’s users “anything in five minutes.”
"We have decided to focus RUSH on other merchants that don't do prepared food, like grocery stores and florists. RUSH will no longer service restaurants starting May 8, but all other merchants will continue to use it," an Uber spokesperson wrote in an email to me.
This growth spurt is promising, but with long time apps already the favorite (GrubHub Seamless fulfill 230,000 orders every day), they’ll have to find a way to differentiate themselves in a big way to make an impact.


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Notice is hereby given to interested stakeholders and the public that the Competition and Fair Trading Commission has commenced investigations against Alliance in Motion Global (AIM Global) and other associated enterprises on allegations of engaging in pyramid selling of goods and services.
This investigation follows information which the Commission received alleging that various individuals and business enterprises operating under the banner of Alliance in Motion Global, are engaged in the conduct of setting up and promoting pyramid selling schemes in the country. Pyramid selling is a fraudulent scheme for the sale or lease of a product whereby one person pays a fee to participate in the scheme and receives the right to receive a fee, commission or other benefit, for simply recruiting members into the scheme.
The Competition and Fair Trading Commission is interested in the matter as it appears to raise serious concerns under the Competition and Fair Trading Act (CFTA) and the Consumer Protection Act (CPA).
It should be noted that commencement of investigation does not presuppose that any of the enterprises under investigation have violated the law. The Commission will, in accordance with Section 8(2) of the Competition and Fair Trading Act, conduct an investigation to determine whether or not the alleged conduct has violated the law. In particular, the purpose of the investigation is to establish the following:
In view of this, the Commission hereby invites all interested stakeholders and the public to submit any information they may have on the pyramid schemes allegedly run by Alliance in Motion Global or associated enterprises. Submissions may include information on the following:
The submissions can be made using the address below:
The Executive Director, Competition and Fair Trading Commission, Mpikisano House, Behind NBS Bank, Area 4, Private Bag 332, Lilongwe
Telephone: +265 1 759 506/507;
CHARLOTTE WEZI MALONDA
15th March every year is World Consumer Rights Day. This is the Day that consumer protection agencies advocates for consumer rights such as the right to choose, right to safety, right to be informed, right to redress, right to environmental health and right to consumer education among others.
This year, the Competition and Fair Trading Commission (CFTC), a Government agency mandated to promote competition and protect consumers from unfair trading practices, will lead Malawian in commemorating World Consumer Rights Day under the theme “Consumer Rights in Financial Services”.
The theme is deemed appropriate for Malawi since the country is currently experiencing a boom in financial services such as mobile money transfers, auto teller machines, mobile bill payments, point of sale (POS) transactions and online shopping.
In accessing these services, consumers face a number of challenges. These include: multiple service charges, unrealistically high bank charges, accounts not debited upon undertaking a transaction, clients not receiving the money once transferred, ATMs not dispensing cash but yet deducting from the account, transactions not taking place because of weak networks, lack of agents and infrastructure in rural areas etc.
The Commission will therefore take the commemoration of this year’s World Consumer Rights Day to highlight the rights of financial services consumers and the available redress mechanisms when their consumer rights have been violated.
The main event to commemorate World Consumer Rights Day will be in Mzuzu on 16th March 2018. During the event, activities will include a consumer parade within the City, consumer storming in the major townships - Zorozoro, Luwinga, Chibabvi and Masasa; traditional dances, poetry recitals and music.
Speakers will include the Director of Trade in the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Tourism Mrs Christina Chatima and the Executive Director of the Competition and Fair Trading Commission, Mrs Charlotte Wezi Malonda.
Charlotte Wezi Malonda
The Competition and Fair Trading Commission (CFTC) wishes to inform the business community and consumers that it has opened a Regional Office in Blantyre. The offices are situated in the New Government buildings, 3rd Floor, Right Wing in the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Tourism offices.
The Regional Office will register and process consumer complaints with a view to providing remedies provided under the Competition and Fair Trading Act (CFTA) and the Consumer Protection Act (CPA). Additionally, the office will also support the business community in the promotion of voluntary compliance with CFTA and CPA.
In view of this, the Commission wishes to appeal to consumers and the business community in Blantyre and the surrounding districts to make use of our Regional Office in the South to access our services.
However, the postal and physical address for the Secretariat remains the same. The Executive Director, 1st Floor Mpikisano House, Off Mandala Street, P/Bag 332, Lilongwe 3; Tel: +2651759506/7; Toll Free Line (MTL): 80008333
CHARLOTTE WEZI MALONDA
The Competition and Fair Trading Commission wishes to inform the general public that health authorities in South Africa have ordered an immediate recall of ALL processed meat products produced in South Africa. (Source: https://www.enca.com/south-africa/supermarkets-begin-mass-meat-recall)
According to published media reports, the recalled products are processed meat products that are sold ready to eat (also known as polony), which are produced by Tiger Brands Unit - Enterprise Food and RCL Foods. These products are sold within South Africa as well as exported to other countries.
The World Bank Group and the International Competition Network (ICN) has named the Competition and Fair Trading Commission of Malawi as winner of the 2017/18 Competition Advocacy Contest.
Held under the theme “Closing the gap through competition advocacy: microeconomic policies, macroeconomic implications”, the contest was aimed at highlighting the key role competition agencies play in promoting competition by showcasing their advocacy success stories.
The CFTC entry into the competition advocacy contest was a story that underlined the importance competition authorities play in ensuring that the effects of trade protection measures benefit competition and ultimately safeguard consumer welfare, with a case study of the cement industry in Malawi.
The CFTC intervention in the cement industry in Malawi contributed to the prevention of the establishment of import barriers to cement.
Making the announcement, Martha Martinez Licetti, Global Lead on Markets and Competition Policy at the World Bank Group, said the CFTC's advocacy story was selected as Winner under the theme “Reaping the benefits of globalisation and trade openness”.
“This is a great story in a key market that is typically subject to competition issues. Your intervention illustrates the benefits of the involvement of competition authorities in the decision on trade protection measures, and the importance both locally and regionally. Great example to share in the region and beyond. Well-deserved and keep up the good work.”
Reacting to the announcement, CFTC Executive Director, Charlotte Wezi Malonda said she was delighted with the recognition which she described as a big victory.
Malonda said the entry of foreign companies in the cement industry led to relatively lower prices as consumers enjoyed the benefits from economies of scale and efficient production systems.
Other winners in the competition from a total of 50 entries from 30 jurisdictions include the United Kingdom, Kenya, Brazil, Russia and Argentina while the European Competition Commission and Mexico received an honorable mention.
This is the third time that the World Bank and the ICN have recognized the CFTC in its role in safeguarding competition. In 2015 and 2016, the CFTC was awarded for its role in safeguarding competition in the sugar and credit referencing markets.
Locally, last year, the CFTC was awarded for its outstanding public service delivery for the second year running. The Commission has also received other performance related awards from the Anti Corruption Bureau and the Malawi Confederation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry (MCCCI).
The festive season to commemorate Christmas and the New Year brings a lot of excitement and joy to consumers. Usually, traders announce a range of promotions, including massive discounts on products and services.
Some promotions may be genuine while others are not in good faith. Further, some traders will want to increase sales by engaging in some unfair trading practices. These practices are those which adopt any unfair method or unfair or deceptive practice for the purpose of promoting the sale, use, supply or provision of goods and services. Some promotions are deceptive and harmful to consumers as traders strive to cheat consumers through false and misleading representations.
On 5th December 2017, the Competition and Fair Trading Commission will lead Malawian consumers in commemorating this year’s World Competition Day.
The Day is commemorated annually to rally support and create awareness regarding the role that consumers play in shaping an effective competitive trading regime.
The commemoration of this day dates back to 5th December, 1980 when the United Nations adopted the international standard for competition laws called the Set of Multilaterally Agreed Equitable Principles and Rules for the Control of Restrictive Business Practices.
The main event to commemorate the day will take place in Blantyre under the Theme “Fight Bid Rigging in Public Procurement, Grow the Economy”. Bid rigging involves a group of firms that conspire to raise prices or pre-designate bid winners with the aim of maximising their own profits.
The theme has been purposefully chosen in acknowledgement of the important role that efficient public procurement systems can play in fostering social and economic development. Studies have shown that about 40% of the Government's annual budget is spent on public procurement of goods and services that are used to deliver public services to the citizenry. Studies have further shown that improvement in public procurement systems can help the Malawi Government save about US$24 million per year.
Therefore, the Commission reckons that an agenda to detect, report, mitigate and fight bid rigging would save a lot of money for the country’s development.
In line with provisions of the Competition and Fair Trading Act, the Commission will investigate all complaints of suspected bid rigging in the market and impose appropriate sanctions to offenders.
The Commission is appealing to all Government Ministries, Departments and Agencies, private sector, consumers, NGOs, international institutions and the general public to join hands in commemorating the 2017 World Competition Day.
Activities on the Day will include a consumer parade from College of Medicine to Trade Fair Grounds, traditional dances from Chichiri Prison Troupe, poetry and drama. The event will be presided over by the Minister of Industry, Trade and Tourism Hon Henry Mussa, MP.
Charlotte Wezi Malonda
The Competition and Fair Trading Commission is a public agency charged with the responsibility to promote competition and fair trading in Malawi through the enforcement of the Competition and Fair Trading Act and the Consumer Protection Act. In its effort to fight fraud and corruption in the country, the Government of Malawi put a requirement that every public institution should establish an Institutional Integrity Committee (IIC) responsible for spearheading the fight against fraud and corruptionby staff, clients and stakeholders when transacting any business. The Commission’s IIC, in collaboration with the Anticorruption Bureau (ACB), has so far facilitated awareness meetings and trainings for the committee members and staff; and has also developed the Fraud and Corruption Prevention Policy.


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Boutique Butters are flourishing in Australia
Australian cultured butters are emerging as new boutique products in gourmet foods.
The growth of cultured butter can be traced in the Fine Food Awards at the Royal shows of Melbourne and Sydney. From the first winning entry in 2010, with Pepe Saya taking Champion Butter in Melbourne, cultured butter has begun to dominate dairy awards across Australia.
Cultured butter has a lactic culture added to cream, which is allowed to ferment and sour before being churned.
Aficionados say that cultured butter is a far cry from the daily supermarket fare, and artisan butter makers are emerging around Australia. Here are some of the innovators in different Australian States.
The Butter Factory at Mrytleford in Victoria
Operating out of an historic red-brick butter factory in the dairy farming region of Myrtleford, The Butter Factory is leading the way in artisan butters. Run by mother and daughter team Bronwyn and Naomi Ingleton, their butter has been winning accolades such as the Royal Sydney and Royal Melbourne Shows Fine Food Awards.
The original factory, which stopped producing butter in 1966, was redeveloped by the Ingleton family as a tourist cafe in 2007. The family created a small butter-making operation on the site in 2010. It is the delight of tourists who are able to watch the whole production process. In addition, the cafe sells lots of kitchen-based gift packs and utensils.
Hand-made with cream from local high country cows, the Butter Factory uses a unique blend of cultures to create butter in true European style.
Customers can view the butter making process when they visit they factory. There are also hands-on butter-making tours run on the 3rd Saturday of every month.
Pepe Sayas in New South Wales
Pierre Issa creates his hand-made cultured butter with a team of seven skilled butter makers. He says his mission is to create “the best butter in the world.”
He began his career in the hospitality industry and couldn’t understand why the restaurants he worked in were paying a premium to import French butter.
“Why, in one of the world’s top dairy producing countries, do we not have a restaurant-grade butter of our own? So we decided to make it ourselves,” Issa says.
Bangalow Cheese Factory in New South Wales
Bangalow Cultured Butter is a niche product from the Bangalow area. The business also makes cultured buttermilk from the bi-product of the butter-making.
Meander Valley Dairy in Northern Tasmania
Meander Valley Dairy is a family-owned business in northern Tasmania that specialises in the production of premium cream, and diversified with its branded Saint Omer cultured butter.
Elgaar Farm’s Organic Butter in North-West Tasmania
The Gretschmann family migrated to Australia two decades ago from Bavaria to north-west Tasmania. Their Elgaar Farm received organic certification in 1991, and developed a niche market specialising in milk, yoghurt and cheese and the move into organic cultured butter was a natural next step.
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Mar 24, 2020 - Economy & Business
Where the advertising dollars go when coronavirus cancels sports
Big brand marketers that were depending on major sporting events to bolster their marketing plans suddenly need to switch course.
Why it matters: “Live sports might be off, but the audiences are very much on and, in fact, consuming even more TV while sheltered at home. It's all about where to find them," says Ashish Chordia, CEO of Alphonso, a television measurement company.
Driving the news: New data shows the best places on television that they may be able to hedge their bets. Looking at sports specifically, you see varying trends in different segments.
- A NASCAR racing fan, for example, is less likely to watch SportsCenter than an NBA fan, while a PGA fan is slightly more likely to watch live broadcast news.
- Overall, there's a shared affinity across all three sports for morning news and primetime sitcoms that already boast big audiences.
Go deeper: Sports bars are struggling due to coronavirus closures


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Lego owner Kirkbi A/S is buying U.S. video-learning firm Brainpop for $875 million, according to the companies, as the family behind the world’s largest toy maker expands into the education business.
The Danish company said the purchase of Brainpop, which produces short animations used in schools to help children learn everything from math to music, was part of a plan to build a new business pillar. The deal—through which Kirkbi is acquiring Brainpop’s owner FWD Media Inc.—is expected to close Tuesday, the companies said.
“We are definitely on the path to establishing the Lego idea of learning through play in the formal education space,” said
Jørgen Vig Knudstorp,
executive chairman of the Lego Brand Group, the Kirkbi entity that oversees the toy brand.
Kirkbi owns 75% of Lego A/S, whose colorful plastic toy bricks are used by millions of children around the world. It also operates Lego Education, a unit that produces Lego brick sets designed for use in classrooms.
Mr. Knudstorp said the deal for Brainpop wouldn’t give rise to Lego-related videos, with the company set to remain separate from the toy business.
News of the deal comes after Lego last month reported double-digit revenue growth for the first half of the year, brushing aside economic worries to cement its industry sales lead over U.S. rivals
In recent years Kirkbi has sought to expand beyond Lego bricks. In 2019 it was part of a consortium that agreed to buy the operator of Madame Tussauds wax museums and Legoland theme parks. And earlier this year it paid $1 billion for a minority stake in Fortnite maker Epic Games Inc. with a view to jointly developing a child-friendly version of the metaverse.
When it comes to the business of learning, Kirkbi has made roughly 15 minority investments in education-technology companies over the past five years as it started to explore the market, Mr. Knudstorp said. He was then challenged by Kirkbi’s owners, the Kirk Kristiansen family, to move beyond the venture-capital model and find a more mature company to invest in or buy, he said.
New-York based Brainpop, also family owned and with a sizable user base, emerged as a good fit, Mr. Knudstorp said. “This is a company that has substance: it has real know-how to engage children and make them curious and interested,” he said.
Brainpop’s videos, which feature characters such as Moby the robot and usually last around six minutes, reach 25 million children annually across two-thirds of U.S. school districts, the company says. Video topics include math, science and arts among other subjects, and are aimed at different grades.
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Is an investment in education a smart move for Lego owner Kirkbi? Join the conversation below.
The sale to Kirkbi gives Brainpop the opportunity to grow further, said Scott Kirkpatrick, who will continue in his role as Brainpop’s chief executive. Mr. Knudstorp will chair the company.
Though Brainpop’s videos are already available globally and in multiple languages, its audience is mainly American. Kirkbi’s experience of building Lego into a global brand should help Brainpop to develop its international footprint, Mr. Kirkpatrick said.
He also hopes Kirkbi guidance can help Brainpop sell more subscriptions directly to consumers as parents seek more “meaningful screen time” for children at home. Brainpop currently generates most of its revenue from selling subscriptions to schools.
Brainpop’s founder, Avraham Kadar, said he had received many offers for the company since it started in 1999 but that he had little faith the would-be buyers would nurture the brand.
A visit to Lego’s hometown of Billund, Denmark, convinced him that Kirkbi was a different proposition, he said. “We’re very similar in terms of values,” Dr. Kadar said. “They’re professionals, but with a heart.”
Write to Trefor Moss at [email protected]
Copyright ©2022 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 87990cbe856818d5eddac44c7b1cdeb8


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Crete is famous for many, many things. Only now, the land the Minoans once roamed may soon be epic for its craft beermaking.
Did Researchers Just Discover Greece’s Ancient Brewmasters?
Archaeologists have made a stunning discovery of interest to beer lovers. News that wine was not the first choice of the ancient Greeks during the Bronze Age may set archaeologists to searching for the beer god.


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Facebook is ready to launch a new pair of connected glasses in partnership with Ray-Ban. The latter has published a teaser on its US site, which confirms that the product will be announced on September 9. Ray-Ban is a brand of luxury sunglasses and eyewear.
Earlier this year, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg confirmed the launch of the glasses and his partnership with this brand during the Facebook second quarter 2021 earnings call. “In the future, the next release of the product will be the launch of our first smart glasses from Ray-Ban in partnership with Essilor Luxottica “, he declared.
Zuckerberg hadn’t revealed much about the characteristics of smart glasses. But, he revealed that the glasses will have Ray-Ban’s “iconic form factor” and allow users to “do things pretty neat”, although he hasn’t developed those “neat” features.
“I am delighted to put them in people’s hands and to continue advancing towards augmented reality glasses in the future,” he said on the call.
The company is likely to launch its own Snapchat Spectacles-type device. If previous reports are to be believed, the glasses will not have a built-in screen but may offer support for a digital voice assistant.
Facebook’s next smart glasses would work by pairing them with a smartphone. This suggests that the glasses could function as Snap glasses or Amazon Echo frames. Some reports claim that the device will allow users to take calls and that it has a small screen that will display certain information.
- Facebook and Ray-Ban tease their own Snapchat-style smart glasses
- Facebook and Ray-Ban tease smart glasses ad on September 9
- Facebook and Ray-Ban launch “Ray-Ban Stories”, first-generation connected glasses
- Facebook and Ray-Ban smart glasses leak ahead of launch
- Facebook and Ray-Ban smart glasses images leaked ahead of today’s launch
- Facebook launches its first generation connected glasses
- I would actually wear Facebook’s Ray-Ban smart glasses if they look like this
- After the Ray-Ban Facebook stories, Xiaomi’s smart glasses are officially here
- Facebook’s Project Aria AR glasses manual shows what it’s like to wear them