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Glo up your text game with the new emoji pack from Chief Keef.
Chief Keef has begun 2017 under the influence of high-performance gas. He dropped a mixtape on New Year's Day, aptly titled Two Zero One Seven, and he has announced plans to drop THREE more tapes by the time March arrives. And music won't by his only means of running to the money. Today, he has released a new pack of signature emojis. As of this afternoon, you can get them all by downloading the GLOMOJI app on the iTunes app store.
By releasing his own line of emojis, Chief Keef is following the example of rappers like Rick Ross, Future, Fetty Wap, The Game, and more. Keef's emojis are certainly unique to his brand, though. You'll recognize some of these characters if you've been keeping up with Sosa's album artwork or keeping tabs on his Glo Gang gear. Most of the emojis with faces look to be stoned or geeked up off the mud. The other ones say things like "Turbo," "Cappin," "Glo Up," and "How You Bummin" in various fonts. Check 'em out below.


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China’s Monthly NEV Sales Surpass 320,000 for First Time
What’s new: China’s new-energy vehicle (NEV) sales in August set a new monthly record with over 320,000 units being sold in a single month, a 182% increase from that of last year, despite overall auto sales declining 17.8% year-on-year, according to newly released data from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers.
About 14,000 of the NEVs were commercial vehicles, with their number increasing more than 55% year-on-year.
The record total means NEVs accounted for 17.8% of August’s overall vehicle sales, approaching the government’s target of 20% by 2025. The association estimated that the goal may be achieved ahead of schedule.
The decline in overall vehicle sales is attributed to chip shortages and recent changes in auto emissions standards.
Background: Since 2010, China has provided generous subsidies to promote the use of NEVs for several reasons, including reducing the country’s air pollution and getting a leg-up in a developing technology. But in 2017 Beijing decided to trim handouts to put the industry on a more sustainable track.
The current goal is to phase out all NEV incentives by the end of 2023, instead of the original target of 2020. Subsidies will be cut 10% year-on-year in 2021, 20% next year, and 30% in 2022.
Contact reporter Manyun Zou (email@example.com) and editor Flynn Murphy (firstname.lastname@example.org)
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CEO SUMMARY: Now that the FDA has cleared a digital pathology for use in primary diagnosis, interest in DP is building. Inspirata purchased Omnyx and its assets because the Omnyx Dynamyx digital pathology software has strong features that could be integrated into Inspirata’s digital pathology solution. In this interview with THE DARK REPORT, Inspirata CEO Satish Sanan outlines the steps the company took to acquire Omnyx and how his company plans to support Omnyx’s customers.
OVER MORE THAN A YEAR, THE CEO of Inspirata doggedly pursued GE Healthcare in his attempts to secure a deal to acquire Omnyx LLC of Pittsburgh. His efforts paid off when the acquisition was announced on Jan. 31. Terms of the sale were not disclosed.
In an interview with THE DARK REPORT, CEO Satish Sanan explained the strategy Inspirata, a digital pathology company in Tampa, used to acquire what Sanan called the jewel of the deal, Omnyx’s digital pathology software, Dynamyx.
In 2008, the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center and GE Healthcare agreed to contribute $40 million each to form Omnyx LLC, a 50/50 joint venture that would develop a digital pathology system. (See “GE, UPMC Create Company for Digital Path Imaging,” TDR, June 16, 2008.)
The partners predicted that Omnyx would capture 25%, or $500 million, of a market that at the time was estimated to grow to $2 billion. That dream died in December 2016 when GE Healthcare ended the partnership, saying regulatory uncertainty and variable global demand caused the company to cease pursuing new business opportunities for Omnyx and scale back to support its existing customers.
Inspirata now plans to sell Dynamyx, along with hardware from other scanner vendors, Sanan told THE DARK REPORT. “Dynamyx is CE-marked in Europe and it has a Health Canada license for use in in vitro diagnostics,” he added.
An Integrated Solution
An early innovator in connecting pathology departments with its own whole slide image scanners and software, Omnyx had installed its digital pathology systems in Europe and Canada. In the past month, Sanan has visited with or spoken to the largest pathology groups using the Omnyx system, Sanan said.
“This acquisition is significant because it takes us the last mile to having a fully integrated, end-to-end digital pathology solution with a device- and application- agnostic whole slide image viewer and image management system,” he added.
“By acquiring Omnyx, Inspirata can use the Dynamyx software—which is scanner-agnostic—to offer a fully-sup- ported IVD device cleared for primary digital diagnosis in Europe and Canada,” he noted. “At the same time, the addition of the Omnyx users expands our customer base and our geographic footprint.”
Inspirata will retain Omnyx’s employees and offices in Pittsburgh and establish a center of excellence for the development of digital pathology software in the Steel City.
In April 2017, Phillips won approval from the FDA to market its Philips IntelliSite Pathology Solution (PIPS) for review and interpretation in the primary diagnosis of digital surgical pathology slides prepared from biopsied or other tissue.
At the time, Inspirata had partnered with Philips to use the company’s scanners as part of what it calls its end-to-end workflow solution.
The FDA approval is important to Inspirata’s deal with Philips because PIPS is the first whole-slide imaging system granted such status.
Inspirata Sought Deal for Onyx Because Its Goal Was to Blend Software Features
FOR INSPIRATA CEO SATISH SANAN, the announcement that his company had acquired Omnyx from GE Healthcare was the culmination of a more than 14-month-long pursuit for what he considered to be the ideal software partner.
“We wanted to do this deal in 2016 when GE first said it would get out of the business of developing software and hardware for pathologists,” Sanan said.
“I called the people at GE and at Omnyx and met with the leadership teams,” he added. “I wanted to buy whatever assets they would sell. But, they were already speaking with some larger companies and expressed concern about our lack of a global footprint.”
Sanan did not give up, meeting with GE officials numerous times in the intervening months to explain why Inspirata valued Omnyx’ assets. “I told them that scanners should not be the main goal,” he said. “The goal should be the functionality, the workflow, and the software.
“Omnyx has the most advanced digital pathology software in the marketplace,” he added. “I know that because we did our due diligence. They had pieces that we didn’t have, such as histology functionality that is quite useful. They also have a strong and novel image-compressional algorithm that is a big differentiator.
“I told them we have features that Omnyx doesn’t have,” Sanan added. “And, our software is interoperable with other systems so that it can display images and reports from radiology, for example.
“For pathologists, we have a complete workflow,” he explained. “Just in the past few months, we added features to manage molecular pathology and other diagnostic testing reports. The combined systems could become the Cadillac of digital pathology workflow software.”
Met With Omnyx Leadership
Over the months, Sanan’s arguments went unheeded. “Then in January 2017, I met with their top leadership again,” he said. “Along with affirming Inspirata’s continued interest in acquiring the company and its assets, I emphasized how Omnyx would be a strategic fit for us.
“Nothing happened at this time because GE was in discussions with two very large companies,” he recounted. “But then, about March of last year, we began talking again.
“We quickly learned that Omnyx had done its due diligence on us and they were ready to hear our proposal,” recalled Sanan. “Our talks led to a deal at the end of December and we made the announcement in January.”
Now, Sanan said, he has a more potent message that his sales team can deliver worldwide. “Actually, I see Inspirata’s partnership with Philips, Leica, and other scanner manufacturers strengthening because our Omnyx acquisition provides new opportunities for all of them to sell scanners through us to the Omnyx customer base that we’ve acquired in Canada and Europe,” he noted. “Soon, we plan to replace the Omnyx VL120 scanners for those customers.
“In addition, we have new global opportunities, including in Europe and Canada, to expand our customer base,” he added. “That will provide other scanner companies with sales opportunities in partnership with us.”
For large pathology groups in the United States, the Inspirata-Omnyx deal is important because Inspirata works closely with Philips to offer the PIPS system to these groups.
“In the United States, we remain the only partner for Philips for the digital pathology workflow,” Sanan explained. “Right now, Philips is the sole scanner manufacturer with FDA approval for primary diagnosis, but I expect other scanner companies will gain FDA approval in the coming weeks or months.”
Inspirata also plans to market its digital pathology solution to smaller pathology groups, Sanan said. “In the near future, we will offer a converged software-as-a-service solution (which combines the best of the Dynamyx software with our existing Digital Pathology Cockpit software) to small labs and groups of 10 to 15 pathologists at a low entry cost,” he explained. “Those small pathology labs and smaller pathology groups will be able to use other low-cost, non-FDA approved scanners that they can self-validate for primary diagnosis.
“Once the Omnyx deal was done but before it was announced, I thought it was important for me to meet personally with Omnyx’s largest customers in Canada and Europe,” Sanan said.
“I asked each one of these customers about the Omnyx system. I wanted to know what they liked and what they didn’t like,” he continued. “I wanted to find out what the pain points were. I learned that they love the Dynamyx software and they want to continue using that software. I also learned that they want someone to honor their existing contracts and continue to deliver on the original promise.
“These labs made a significant investment of millions of dollars in hardware and software and they didn’t want that money to go to waste,” he said. “Also, they didn’t want to start over with a new digital pathology vendor. They wanted to retain the systems they were using.
“It turns out, that their needs fit the Inspirata business model because we are hardware agnostic,” he concluded. “Omnyx customers can keep their IT hardware and Dynamyx software, and we’ll replace and sunset the Omynx VL120 scanners and support that investment going forward.”
Inspirata was profiled in a story published in the July 13, 2015, issue of THE DARK REPORT. That story can be accessed at www.darkreport.com.
Contact Satish Sanan at 813-570-8905
“In the near future, we will offer a converged software- as-a-service solution…
to small labs and groups of 10 to 15 pathologists at a low entry cost.”


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Worthington Properties has started work on an 83 bedroom Premier Inn hotel in Mold Road on the route into Wrexham town centre.
The new hotel will open in mid-2013 transforming a previously derelict two acre site. The hotel has been designed to meet a BREEAM rating assessment of 'very good'.
Cllr Phil Wynn of Wrexham Council said: "The new hotel in the town centre is long overdue and will greatly enhance the visual appeal of a site which has been a Mold Road eyesore for far too long."
Russell Worthington, development director of Worthington Properties, commented: "Premier Inn is a well-established hotel chain offering quality accommodation across the country and we are delighted to work in partnership with them to deliver a new hotel in the town, which will also act as a catalyst for further regeneration.
"As a business we are carving out a well-deserved reputation for delivering projects of this kind and have recently completed a £10.5m Premier Inn in Preston and two Travelodge hotels worth £25m in Manchester and Liverpool."


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Some moms will always wait until the end of August to take their kids shopping for new school threads, but there is a growing legion of parents and children who are doing their back-to-school shopping before summer is even half over.
The trend toward earlier back-to-school shopping has been gaining steam over the years, fueled by pop culture, fashion and media machines working overtime developing the buying habits of young shoppers (who, as we know, control the world). Summer movies, TV and music stoke the teen lust for the latest fashions. Magazines aimed at teens deliver the fall fashion message in August issues, which arrive in July, just as major retailers open the floodgates for the fall wardrobe.
"The kids are seeing these trends earlier and wanting those fashions. So the store are working to meet those needs," says Colleen Healy, fashion expert for Marshalls. "The kids want the newest, hottest things and the stores scramble to meet those demands. They want to buy things right away."
Healy says weeks and weeks of summer free time provide ample opportunity for kids and teens to observe fashion, compare notes with friends and begin plotting a fall-wardrobe strategy. Shopping is probably part of summer recreation.
"If the stores are getting the merchandise earlier, the kids are seeing it and talking about it," Healy says. "The goal is the first day of school. They want that first-day outfit ready."
If the idea of shopping for back-to-school clothing even before summer tomatoes are heavy on the vine is jarring, get used to it.
"It's definitely a trend," says Jorge Ramsn, senior fashion editor of Teen People. "The market's responding to the fact that teens are already in the mall and are pushing the season."
Fashion retailers aren't just getting clothes to the market sooner, they're giving teens, and younger children, styles their celebrity idols are wearing.
"The hugest influences in teen fashion are teen peers and celebrities," Ramsn says. "It's the people they see in the movies, the people they watch on TV, like `Dawson's Creek' and `Buffy (The Vampire Slayer).' And all their favorite musicians. It's how they derive their style. Guys are a little less likely to admit they're following the trends of rocker male celebrities. But they're all watching the same shows and listening to the same music."
Those images have driven teens to seek wardrobes as sophisticated and, much to the dismay of their parents, daring as their favorite celebrities.
The lust for labels may not be new. Nor the push for back-to-school clothes in July instead of the traditional August. But demand seems to be growing.
"Kids love to shop and as soon as the clothes start hitting the stores, they want to be the first with something cool and hot," says Laura Cervone, spokeswoman for T.J. Maxx. "Teenage girls are reading magazines and the August issues come out in July. They see it in the stores and they want it right away. Already, we have coats and sweaters and leather."
Jonathan Finn, a spokesman for Old Navy, says Old Navy is starting its fall campaign the same time as last year: atthe end of July.
And to meet the demand for new styles after school begins, Old Navy continues to stock new items through September.
"Once they get to school, they refine and mend. They want to see what their friends are wearing," Healy says.
"There's another surge of buying a week or two after school begins."
Ramsn says this trend is called the "Fall 2 delivery." "The person who holds back has hindsight. They'll be able to see what the trends are and what their friends are wearing. They'll be able to hit the trend and use it as a springboard to develop their own personal style."


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Tesla Motors (NASDAQ:TSLA) was downgraded by stock analysts at Lazard Capital Markets from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report issued on Monday, TheFlyOnTheWall.com reports. They currently have a $100.00 price objective on the stock. Lazard Capital Markets’ target price points to a potential downside of 34.64% from the stock’s previous close. The analysts noted that the move was a valuation call.
Tesla Motors (NASDAQ:TSLA) traded down 2.39% on Monday, hitting $149.35. Tesla Motors has a 1-year low of $26.86 and a 1-year high of $158.88. The stock’s 50-day moving average is currently $123.8. The company’s market cap is $17.652 billion.
Tesla Motors (NASDAQ:TSLA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 7th. The company reported $0.20 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the analysts’ consensus estimate of ($0.16) by $0.36. The company had revenue of $405.10 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $393.40 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted ($0.89) earnings per share. Tesla Motors’s revenue was up 1417.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that Tesla Motors will post $0.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.
TSLA has been the subject of a number of other recent research reports. Analysts at Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Tesla Motors from $109.00 to $149.00 in a research note to investors on Friday. Separately, analysts at TheStreet reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Tesla Motors in a research note to investors on Friday. Finally, analysts at Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised their price target on shares of Tesla Motors from $84.00 to $94.00 in a research note to investors on Thursday. They now have a “neutral” rating on the stock.
Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. The company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $128.95.
Tesla Motors, Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) designs, develops, manufactures and sells electric vehicles and advanced electric vehicle powertrain components.


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Looks like Nintendo learned their lesson with the Virtual Boy.
These days, every other company from Google to Valve is interested in developing virtual reality support for games and apps. But one major gaming company is avoiding the VR industry for now. According to Nintendo of America’s president Reggie Fils-Aime, Nintendo isn’t quite interested in releasing virtual reality hardware and software yet.
Fils-Aime opened up about Nintendo’s relationship with VR earlier this week in an interview with Engadget. As he said, Nintendo is “constantly” pushing technology’s capabilities, but it’s not enough to simply create innovative hardware for its own sake. Nintendo’s technology “needs to be fun” and “enable a social experience” in order to sell well. Without that, what’s the point?
“Accelerometers were not in the lexicon until it was in a Wii remote and you’re playing Wii Sports,” Fils-Aime said to Engadget. “So fun, social, mass market are the elements for us.”
Not that Nintendo is opposed to mixed reality gaming. Fils-Aime went on to explain that Nintendo helped pioneer augmented reality, pointing to the Nintendo 3DS’ “fun” and “social” AR features. Not to mention, Nintendo gave licensing rights to Niantic for creating Pokémon Go, so it’s not like Nintendo is opposed to thinking about gaming in new ways. It’s just Nintendo isn’t quite confident in VR’s market presence yet.
“With VR, again, we just continue to put it up against those standards,” Fils-Aime said. “For us, it’s not quite there yet.”
Nintendo is experimenting with VR, however, and the gaming giant is figuring out where to take its franchises in the future as virtual reality grows. But for now, Nintendo isn’t eager to jump into more serious virtual reality initiatives. Not until VR becomes a fun, engaging, and social experience, any way.


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Zee Media revenue up 35.4% to Rs 2,477.3 mn in Q4FY22
Zee Media Corporation Limited (ZMCL) has reported audited consolidated revenues of Rs 8,668.6 million upto the fourth quarter of FY2021-22. The network incurred expenditure of Rs 6,132.0 million in the same period.
Operating Revenue increased by 35.4% to Rs 2,477.3 million in Q4FY22 from Rs 1,829.3 million in Q4FY21. Operating Expenditure increased by 54.1% to Rs 1,891.3 million in Q4FY22 from Rs 1,227.3 million in Q4FY21.
On the other hand, EBITDA dipped marginally by 2.7% to Rs 586.0 million in Q4FY22 from Rs 602.0 million in Q4FY21.
Digital business highlights:
- Zee Media has 17 brands across 11 languages which garnered 4.24 billion Pageviews in Q4 FY22.
- Highest ever Pageviews on News Information Sites (1 billion) for March’22 (Google Analytics), where Zee Hindi achieved 360.5 million Pageviews.
- Huge user growth in Zee Rajasthan (Q4 Average Users are 6 million vs 3.4 million in Q3), due to hyperlocal content.
- Highest ever App MAU (1.71 million) and Screen views (200 million).
- com grew by 14.6% to 13.6 million users in Q4.
- com grew 14.2% to 9.4 million Users in Q4.


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It’s not every day that an indie project has a fancy release. When it happens, though, it should be treated like the amazing step forward that it is.
Invader Studios‘ old school love letter Daymare: 1998 was announced for consoles recently, which is cool in and of itself, but Invader has taken it one step further: they’ve announced a Collector’s Edition.
Called the Black Edition, it contains art and pins and comes in a slick box.
This edition will be released on the same day as the standard edition. However, there’s a catch; only Europe is getting it.
American fans are so far looking to be stuck with the standard edition. That being said, we often get things others don’t, so we might just have to take the loss this time.
Daymare: 1998 will be releasing to consoles on April 28th in both the EU and the Americas.
Resident Evil Resistance Adds Jill Valentine April 17th
New date for Jill and Resistance DLC
Escape Raccoon City in Resident Evil 3, Available Worldwide Today [Press Release]
SAN FRANCISCO – April 3, 2020 – Capcom, a leading worldwide developer and publisher of video games, today announced the...
Interview with Benson Mokhtar, Model for Carlos Oliveria in Resident Evil 3
Our sit down with Carlos Oliveria's RE3 model.
Unbreakable Knives Return in Resident Evil 3
Now this is a knife
Summerford: Torchbearer of the Silent Hill Legacy
A whole village abandoned overnight? Let's go!
Creator of the Konami Code Passes Away at 61
Invader Announces Daymare Collector’s Edition
Invader has taken Daymare: 1998 one step further: they've announced a Collector' Edition.
Capcom Cafe to Sell Special Jill Sandwiches
You were almost eating a Jill Sandwich!
Capcom Confirms Resident Evil 4 Remake for 2022
So straight on to 4 then?
Resident Evil Resistance Now Downloadable on Steam and PS4
Jill Faces Off With Nemesis in New Trailer
With fewer and fewer days between us and the release of Resident Evil 3, it’s getting harder and harder to...


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Jan. 14, 2008
Contact Rick Kyte at 608-796-3704 or firstname.lastname@example.org
VITERBO LEADERSHIP AT NOON SERIES TO CONTINUE WITH PRESIDENT AND CEO OF LA CROSSE TECHNOLOGY JAN. 29
LA CROSSE, Wis. – Allan McCormick, president and CEO of La Crosse Technology, will speak as part of Viterbo University’s Leadership at Noon Series Tuesday, Jan. 29.
La Crosse Technology was formed in 1985 with the small-town philosophy of servicing their customers to the highest level. Today, La Crosse Technology is a multi-national consumer electronics company with products available at thousands of retail establishments across North America.
Formerly known as the Brown Bag Series, the Leadership at Noon series is entitled “The Vision and Values of Successful Business Leadership” and features local business people discussing the crucial components of a successful business.
The series will conclude for the academic year on Wednesday, March 12 with Rusty Cunningham, publisher of the La Crosse Tribune.
All Leadership at Noon series events will be held from noon–1 p.m. in the Reinhart Center and are free and open to the public. Audience members are invited to bring their own lunch or purchase a box lunch for $5. The series is sponsored by the D.B. Reinhart Institute for Ethics in Leadership, the Dahl School of Business, and Viterbo University.


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Foursquare is trying to silence its critics in the most effective way possible: by generating real revenue.
stories by Ricardo Bilton
There was a brief moment when we were excited about the future of curved smarphones. But LG and Samsung are swiftly killing that interest.
Editor's Pick Facebook and Twitter may dominate discussions about mobile native ads, but Airpush says it’s about to steal some of their thunder.
The next time you consider interacting with a brand on Google+, you might want to think twice.
It’s been a big week for the Chromebook, first with the HP Chromebook 11, and now with the Acer C720
Aereo isn’t letting a little thing like getting sued by everyone get in the way of its product roadmap.
Dropcam has come a long way from selling someone else’s hardware.
When the publisher of one of the world’s largest independent political blog networks calls your company a scam, you tend to pay attention.
Apple’s latest iPhones may be selling well, but that’s not because they’re particularly innovative.
Can big data predict heart disease before today’s doctors can? IBM thinks so.
Absent from many of the larger, often effusive, articles about the new Nest Protect smoke detector is the answer to what I think is a pretty big question: What happens when you have to replace the thing?
Google Hangouts may soon get the one feature it always seemed designed to have: SMS support.
Google is calling its new Chromebook 11 the “Chromebook for everyone,” and it may just be right.
UltraHaptics is creating a new way to touch and feel devices — by removing touch from the equation entirely.
In 2005, a shark attack cost Craig Hutto his leg. Years later, prosthetics research is giving him a new one.
Kid-friendly smartwatch Filip finally has its carrier partner — AT&T.
You probably don’t know much about Drawbridge, but chances are it knows a lot about you.
Are curved, flexible smartphones the next frontier in smartphone innovation? LG and Samsung really want to make it so.
Since 2010, General Assembly (GA) has counted itself as one of the many companies in New York City offering startups a place to learn, work, and connect.
Robot maker Boston Dynamics is no stranger to odd, vaguely unsettling robots, but its latest creation might be the most terrifying one yet.
The future of robots is modular, self-assembling, and kind of scary.
OSX Mavericks is one step closer to hitting your Mac.
As Fab makes the journey toward profitability, it’s doing so without a big chunk of its employees.
When Narrative launched its life-logging camera on Kickstarter last year, the company raised $550,000 in 38 days. Now, it’s getting another big boost in funding — this time from institutional investors.
Yahoo’s days of rewarding security researchers with T-shirts may soon be over.
While Google Glass has captured the minds and imaginations of many in the tech world, most of us still aren’t sure what we’d use it for.
Editor’s Pick Hummingbird shows that the Google of the future will be mobile-focused and question-oriented.
Fitbit’s fitness trackers could soon take a big step forward.
Augmented reality could soon make language barriers a thing of the past.
While companies like Facebook are dishing out hundreds of dollars to researchers to spot security vulnerabilities, Yahoo, it seems is a bit less generous.
New York City may still lag behind Silicon Valley in tech, but this may not be the case for long.
In the tablet wars, even the airlines are picking sides.
Power management company Varentec has raised another $8 million — with a little help from Bill Gates.
I for one welcome our new branding overlords.
Say what you will about Steve Ballmer’s tenure as Microsoft’s CEO, but the man sure knows how to put on a good show.
The long, strange tale of HTC and Beats Electronics has come to an end.
Robots are eating the world, and 3D Robotics wants to help them eat a lot more of it.
Nest wants to be so much more than just a learning thermostat.
While some developers use the social network to talk about industry stuff, others use it to talk about their lives, observations, and dinner plans. Here are the 5 we love best.
This one’s gotta sting.


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LONDON (MarketWatch) -- Brady Corp.
said Wednesday that its fiscal third-quarter net profit fell 48% to $18 million, or 34 cents a share, from $24.4 million, or 63 cents a share, a year earlier. The maker of labels and signs said net sales in the quarter were down 28% at $276.7 million. "Business in the quarter continued to be weak across all geographies and all product lines. Our business seems to be stabilizing for now, however global economic conditions remain uncertain and our visibility is limited," said CEO Frank Jaehnert. Excluding restructuring charges, the group earned 37 cents a share in the quarter. Analysts polled by FactSet had expected the firm to report earnings of 34 cents a share on revenue of $280.6 million.


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UPDATED: The Woz is back in the game.
Steve Wozniak, co-founder of Apple Computer and one of the most revered technologists of his time, announced Feb. 4 that he coming out of semi-retirement and joining Fusion-io, a Salt Lake City-based storage startup that makes compact solid-state storage arrays. Wozniak will serve as Fusion-io’s chief scientist.
He’s been serving as a board member for several months and simply decided he wanted to get more involved.
Fusion-io ioDrive is the first direct-attached, solid-state storage array on a PCI-Express (PCIe). As one might imagine, it boasts extremely fast I/O performance; many industry observers believe SSD-powered drives are the wave of the future in storage.
The Station spoke with Wozniak recently about some other topics, and we have added that background into an eWEEK news feature for you to read, should you choose to accept the invitation.


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Published on Monday, 13 December 2010
Riots over lax payment of new minimum wage
Written by Stacey Dove
Dhaka (ANP/AFP) - Protests by Bangladeshi garment workers over low wages spread last Monday, a day after four people were killed in violent clashes between demonstrators and the police. More than 4,000 garment factory staff blocked roads and staged a sit-in in the northern district of Gazipur, one of the country's main manufacturing areas which produces clothes for many Western brands.


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Angel Food...Bakers from Hell
by Cynthia Gerdes
FROM PROJECT RUNWAY TO PROJECT PASTRY
Hell's Kitchen founders Cynthia Gerdes and Mitch Omer, in collaboration with Pastry Chef Katherine Gerdes, are thrilled to bring downtown Minneapolis another gem.
You might recognize Cynthia as the founder of Creative Kidstuff, an award-winning group of toy stores she started long ago when daughter Katherine was just born. Fast forward several decades, and you might also recognize Katherine Gerdes as Minneapolis' first contestant on Project...
Have a question about this project?Ask a question


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VIVIERS DU LAC, France – In Viviers-du-Lac, the small town of Savoy on the southern shore of Lake Bourget, Simonelli Group opens its third commercial headquarters outside Italy, the first in Europe.
The top technology and the innovative coffee machines that Simonelli Group produces in Italy and distributes with ever-increasing success worldwide, will now be “at your fingertips” for baristas and French chain shops.
This first Simonelli Group sales office in France has been fully operational for a few days in Viviers-du-Lac, a small town in the department of Savoie, not far from Lyon.
After the US and Singapore, the third commercial office that this Italian company, worldwide producer of professional coffee machines, has now opened overseas.
For some years France has been one of the European markets most interested in the continuous innovations Simonelli Group introduces into the products of its two brands, Nuova Simonelli and Victoria Arduino.
These brands have a long history of being chosen by important overseas customers. To name just those in the capital, Paris, there are top brand machines in Hotel George V, near the Champs Elysées and in the Ritz Bar in Place Vendome.
The new Viviers-du-Lac offices, headed by Nicolas Poirot-Crouvezier, has a large showroom and sales area, as well as a “technical center” that can host training courses for baristas and technicians.
Simonelli Group, with its new headquarters, offers the market and operators throughout France a benchmark to learn about the latest technology for coffee equipment and to ensure a continuous highly professional discourse. At Viviers du Lac, all France can breathe the coffee culture.
Nuova Distribution France
Hexapole – Actipole – Bat 5
Rue Maurice Herzog
73420 VIVIERS DU LAC


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Excited about the upcoming Memorial Day celebrations? Plan on cooking out and maybe enjoying some tasty cocktails? PR Newswire has just reported that Grey Goose vodka has come out with a new responsible drinking campaign to encourage you to be responsible over the Memorial Day weekend. The company will be releasing a 30 second commercial that they have titled "Strengths." This new commercial is part of Grey Goose's efforts to encourage that consumers are careful about their consumption levels.
In a press release Shane M. Graber, Grey Goose vice president and managing director, said "we encourage consumers to make the most of this holiday weekend by taking the time to reconnect with family and friends. Consumers of GREY GOOSE appreciate the care and attention we put into crafting the World's Best Tasting Vodka and they understand that quality and responsibility go hand in hand. We are launching this campaign to recognize the importance of living and drinking responsibly."
The commercial will be also made available for viewing on Grey Goose's Facebook profile.


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As promised by HTC CEO and president Peter Chou, all HTC Android devices launched after September 2011 can have their bootloaders unlocked.
The bootloader is a program that controls the startup process for a device. Unlocking the bootloader is a key step in customizing Android to make a phone do things its manufacturer (or carrier) never intended. That's something most people don't want to do, but according to HTC, its customers have been asking for it so much that it sounds like it couldn't ignore them.
Note, this is not for unlocking your SIM lock. It is just for unlocking the bootloader. HTC is working on unlocking models released before September 2011; you can check this list of currently supported devices to see if yours is on it.
Of course, this doesn't mean you're free to brick your device without consequences. The HTCdev site detailing the procedure repeatedly warns of side effects and warranty concerns. Still, if you've been itching to customize HTC devices, this is a nice step forward.
Now it's your turn, Motorola.
(Via XDA Developers)


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A new initiative offers hope for African small farms by helping ensure that new seed varieties with higher yields make it through the supply chain from breeders to farmers.
The African Seed Access Index (TASAI) was launched March 12 in Nairobi, Kenya, by its developers – the Cornell International Institute for Food, Agriculture and Development (CIIFAD) in collaboration with Market Matters, a nonprofit organization that assists small enterprises in sub-Saharan Africa.
CIIFAD and Market Matters staff developed TASAI to track indicators at key points along the seed delivery chain where failure impedes the flow of seeds to small-farm owners. The findings may then inform governments, industries, breeders, farmers and others on where to focus attention to keep supplies moving. African farmers’ adoption rate of improved staple varieties, such as maize, cowpea and sorghum, can be as low as 20 percent.
“I am a product of smallholder agriculture in Zimbabwe,” said Ed Mabaya, principal investigator of TASAI and assistant director of CIIFAD. Mabaya, one of 10 children in his family, grew up on farm with less than 2 hectares (5 acres) of land. Like many others, his family’s path out of poverty was dependent on having access to improved seed varieties coming into the market, he said. “It’s the only option for millions of small farmers,” who account for up to 70 percent of African workers, he added.
The launch event included results from a successful pilot program conducted in Kenya, Uganda, South Africa and Zimbabwe. Based on enthusiastic interest from stakeholders, TASAI developers hope to expand to more than 20 African countries in phase two of the project, Mabaya said.
With breeders, governments, industry, NGOs, farmers and others involved in a complex supply chain, there has been no viable system – until now – for getting a top-down view of where choke points stifle seed access.
TASAI tracks 16 indicators across five categories that assess the vibrancy and competitiveness of national seed sectors by measuring such things as research and development, industry competitiveness, service to smallholder farmers, seed policy and regulations, and institutional support. For each indicator, the index evaluated whether that link is having a positive or negative impact on seed access by farmers, thereby exposing weaknesses in the supply chain.
For example, the pilot program revealed that Kenya lacks a robust and competitive seed industry, as government-controlled seed companies dominate and discourage new startups. In South Africa, on the other hand, while the government no longer runs seed businesses, the country scored poorly at making seeds available to small farmers.
“The system is only as strong as its weakest link,” Mabaya said.
Accountability also is addressed by the index, since at “almost every node there is a responsible person to develop remedies” for failings at that point, said Mabaya.
Cornell’s role is key to the process as it provides a credible and neutral broker of information, without competing interests, Mabaya said. “We wanted to develop a simple diagnostic tool,” he said. Now, TASAI staff can inform the stakeholders in the delivery system, he added.


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Do retailers need meaningful convenience or exceptional experiences?
Mitchell Hernandez, Partner & Co-Founder of Beta, was recently published by Connect Media where he breaks down how meaningful convenience and exceptional experience help to shape the retail landscape. With the current contraction of retail GLA, there is a great opportunity for retailers to focus on their product offering and on their customer experience. Beta has conceived the two themes of meaningful convenience and exceptional experience to help create a purpose for brands and places.
To read the full article, visit: https://www.connect.media/retails-yin-and-yang-meaningful-convenience-or-exceptional-experiences/


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Vypin has been issued patent number 9,904,885 by the United States Patent Office. The Patent, “Wireless Medication Compliance Sensing Device, System and Related Methods” addresses the World Health Organization medication adherence as defined as “the degree to which the person’s behavior corresponds with the agreed recommendations from a healthcare provider.”
Vypin announces the launch of its Mouse-Alert™ rodent monitoring system that monitors and reports the status of rodent capture systems, including spring traps, cages, live catch and release traps, even plank traps. “We didn’t make a better mousetrap – we made a mousetrap better,” reports Miles Libbey of Vypin. Mouse-Alert is a distributed sensor network that works with just about any brand of off-the-shelf trap. Best of all, the reusable Vypin Mouse-Alert system can scale from home use to restaurants and retail food stores to very large-scale industrial sites such as food preparation or pharmaceutical facilities.
“Having efficient security designed by Kudelski Security and integrated in our products is a necessary and welcomed addition to our IoT solution sets,” said Mitch Bernet, chief executive officer, Vypin. “The fact that Kudelski Security was able to tailor its vast array of security offerings to our specific hardware helps us to maintain a competitive edge in the marketplace.”
Alpharetta, GA December 19, 2017: Vypin, LLC announces its latest Internet of Things (IoT) solution: the SafeTstrap™, a wireless firearm sensing system that provides hands-free firearm security, inventory, and chain of custody (CoC). Like a gun lock, SafeTstrap™ prevents rounds from being chambered, cylinders from moving, or magazines from loading. However, SafeTstrap™ is far different than traditional gun locks.
Alpharetta, GA: Vypin, LLC announces the launch of Overpass reSeal™, a reusable electronic seal solution that delivers real-time visibility into shipment integrity. Key capabilities of this Overpass system include automated gate access to distribution centers, en-route notifications when seal is compromised, location-based yard management, and a delivery date/time stamp for contract audit support.
Vypin LLC and LRNI announce the launch of EverView™ for WorkForce Management, a wireless IoT badging system that provides “peace of mind” for personnel operations. Key capabilities of the EverView System include workflow status of services to customers, real-time alerts when personnel approach an “off-limits” area, procedural compliance training for best practices like hand hygiene, and time and attendance.


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India Considering Online Gambling
Tuesday August 19,2014 : SUPREME COURT IN INDIA MULLS ONLINE GAMBLING
Skill vs. Chance arguments being considered.
The massive but largely frustrated gambling community in India will be watching the deliberations of the nation's Supreme Court closely in the coming months as the country's top jurists consider arguments on whether online card games involving stakes can be construed as games of skill and therefore fall within the country’s laws, or whether they are undiluted internet gambling, which is currently illegal.
Provincial High Courts have referred the debate to the Supreme Court to resolve legal grey areas, especially those around card games.
Arguing the legality of such games online are companies like Head Infotech India and Play Games 24 X 7, which run popular game websites Ace2Three.com and RummyCircle. com. Their claim is that the sites operate on a tournament model where the winners take all, and the organisers make money from tournament-style fees paid by players.
The growth of gambling is accelerating in India, according to media reports, with the online and offline industry worth around $10 billion this year despite the restrictions of the antiquated Public Gambling Act 1867.


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Just as more and more brands opt for being super digital, Christian Dior is keeping it very real; and live, as it did Monday night, when it unveiled its pre-fall 2021 collection to an audience of 1,000 in Shanghai.
Bottega Veneta took its social media distancing position to a new level of aloofness this weekend, when it announced that it had staged a secret show in Berlin nightclub Berghain, while not releasing images of the event.
New York's Fashion Week is anticipating a return to in-person runway shows in September, after two previous editions that were largely virtual because of the coronavirus pandemic, the CFDA announced Monday.
Not many countries manufacture as much fashion as Turkey, even if few of its designers are internationally known. That may be about to change, with fashion leaders in the process of creating a Turkish Fashion Council.
The event, this year scheduled in October, has picked the creative director of Lacoste to chair the fashion competition jury, the famous footwear designer for accessories and Dominique Issermann for photography.
Many countries pride themselves on their prestigious design colleges, though few fashion schools anywhere are aligned as successfully with high tech, sustainability and digital printing as Shenkar College in Israel.
The invitation for Mugler Spring/ Summer 2021 Part 02 featured an athletic lass (or was it a guy?) in leotard and striped tights, crouched at a starting block, head covered in a high-tech warrior helmet.


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Finland’s Nokia shaken by $1bn loss
Mobile phone manufacturer Nokia has suffered a $1.2billion net loss in the first three months of 2012. The Finland-based company cites tough competition in the smartphone market as the reason for one of its worst quarters ever.
The result, reported on Thursday, is a stark comparison to the profit of $452million in the first quarter of 2011. The results show that not only have smartphone sales declined, but mobile phone sales have as well.
Nokia has been the leading mobile handset maker since 1998, but after reaching the global goal of 40% market share in 2008, their numbers have steadily dwindled. Nokia had hoped to get back on top with its new Windows 7 Phone, launched in October 2011, after a partnership with Microsoft was announced. The attempt to reinvent the Nokia smartphone around Microsoft’s Windows software has been unsuccessful thus far, as sales have fallen dramatically.
Nokia CEO and President Stephen Elop stated the company has faced “greater than expected competitive challenges”. Nokia faced challenging markets, including the British market.
He is determined to accelerate cost-cutting efforts amid mixed responses to the new Lumia smartphones with Windows software.
“We exceeded expectations in markets including the United States but establishing momentum in certain markets has been challenging.”
Elop described the first-quarter as disappointing, but claimed Nokia had sold more than two million Windows-based Lumia phones.
Colin Giles, who has been head of global sales since January 2010, is leaving the company as it restructures the sales unit, according to a statement from Nokia.
Last year, Nokia was still the world’s top phone maker, with annual unit sales exceeding 400 million. However, sales slumped in the last quarter of 2011 and Nokia reported a net loss of $1.4billion as smartphone sales decreased by 23%.
Nokia’s stock value has halved since Elop announced the deal with Microsoft and earlier this week, shares plunged to a 15-year low after Moody’s downgraded the company’s ratings and questioned its ability to transition successfully from Symbian to Windows.


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Many Hollywood studios — including Universal, Warner Bros., Paramount and Miramax — are fishing in Facebook’s new streaming waters to see how many fans they can hook.
As with much of the Internet, it’s hard to tell whether rentals on the social media platform can turn into a serious revenue stream, but Universal, for one, is certainly trying to get fans friending; it launched a social media initiative in conjunction with the Blu-ray debut last month of “The Big Lebowski,” the 1998 cult film starring Jeff Bridges as iconic stoner the Dude.
Jessica Schell, Universal’s exec VP of business development, differentiates between Facebook and VOD. “When we offer movies on VOD, it’s about that transaction,” she says. “We are viewing Facebook more as a promotional platform and a way to engage with the fans.”
Miramax is taking a broader approach to the site, recently putting up a slate of 20 library titles. Earlier, in July, Paramount began offering the all the “Jackass” movies as well as digital features “Jackass 2.5” and “Jackass 3.5” for rent directly through the Jackass Facebook page.
Facebook’s movie-streaming platform, inaugurated in March with Warner Bros.’ “The Dark Knight,” followed by five other titles, differs from other ancillary digital distribution streams.
Facebook users can rent a film for 48 hours for 30 Facebook credits — or the equivalent of three dollars. In some cases, they can give up to five friends a discount coupon for renting the same film. For instance, those who rent “Lebowski” will be able to pass along a $1 discount through the Buy With Friends platform.
Facebook takes 30% of the revenue for the rentals. From the perspective of the privately held, Palo Alto, Calif.-based company, the motion picture studios are treated the same way as the developer of a game or a shopping program, all of whom are welcome to build on the social networking site’s open platform. (Facebook provides guidance to developers, and requires everyone building on its platform to conform to its policies.)
Universal says it’s catering to long-time “Lebowski” lovers as well as first-time viewers through its new “social theater” application through which the film is accessed on Facebook.
The app gives them the ability to Like and Comment on memorable quotes and scenes from the film, along with seeing comments that their friends and other Facebook fans have made while watching the movie.
Other social discovery features allow users to share their favorite clips — U provides 12 of them that run from two to two-and-a-half minutes — favorite quotes from the selected clips and their favorite comments on the movie. Likewise, through the free Jackass ClipApp, viewers have the ability to search more than 100 clips from the five films and string them together to create a customized experience, and share it on Facebook.
“Learning about what fans want and respond to is just beginning, but so far it’s been great,” says U’s Schell. “We went into it judging success as an overall experience by getting fans excited and re-engaged with the movie. Tens of thousands have downloaded the app, and we feel like it’s been a great experience and a fun way to interact.”
Schell says U is not releasing specific Facebook rental numbers, but plans on studying the usage data to formulate future strategy. No future titles have been chosen, but many films like “Lebowski” that come with a built-in fan base would appear to be good candidates.


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Deals players set for French clash after LivingSocial's new acquisition.
The battle for daily deals supremacy has become more than an American shootout for top players LivingSocial and Groupon. In the past year both companies have homed in on the European market, with LivingSocial's purchase of French deals site Dealissime.com being the latest example.
The Washington, DC-based company said it picked up 250,000 subscribers from the one-year-old Dealissime in an undisclosed financial agreement. In terms of what happens to the French brand, Maire Griffin, LivingSocial spokesperson, told ClickZ News, "At this point, it will remain Dealissime and there is additional branding that notes Dealissime is a LivingSocial company."
LivingSocial announced the move on Wednesday, making France the 13th country in which it operates. On the European front, it also does business in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Spain, Italy, and Portugal.
During spring 2010, Groupon entered Europe by acquiring CityDeals. The Chicago-based firm went from operating in two countries (the U.S. and Canada) to 18, including France, Germany, the U.K., Ireland, the Netherlands, Spain, Italy, Switzerland, Austria, Poland, Finland, Denmark, and Sweden. The purchase also brought Groupon to Turkey.
The CityDeals acquisition seems to have paid off for Groupon, which may be a tough brand to beat in France. Jake Maas, LivingSocial's SVP of business development, expressed optimism that the market can accommodate two companies while speaking with AllThingsD.
"Groupon is doing really well there," Maas told the publication. "It's a big market for them, and there hasn't been a strong No. 2 player emerging in France."
LivingSocial also formally announced today that it purchased online marketing firm SocialMedia.com in April. Griffin of LivingSocial said SocialMedia.com ran a series of deals subscriber acquisition initiatives for her company last year.
"Based on the success of these campaigns, SocialMedia.com developed advanced functionality and deeper integration with LivingSocial," the spokesperson said. "SocialMedia's nine-person team will continue to focus on user acquisition, enhance current products via deeper data integration and develop new products for use across ad spend and partnerships with key publishers."
Meanwhile, LivingSocial and Groupon may eventually have to combat Google on the daily deals landscape. The Mountain View, CA-based online giant officially launched its platform, Google Offers, today in Portland, OR.
Join the Industry's Leading eCommerce & Direct Marketing Experts in Chicago
ClickZ Live Chicago (Nov 3-6) will deliver over 50 sessions across 4 days and 10 individual tracks, including Data-Driven Marketing, Social, Mobile, Display, Search and Email. Check out the full agenda and register by Friday, Oct 3 to take advantage of Early Bird Rates!
Christopher Heine was a senior writer for ClickZ through June 2012. He covered social media, sports/entertainment marketing, retail, and more. Heine's work has also appeared via Mashable, Brandweek, DM News, MarketingSherpa, and other tech- and ad-centric publications. USA Today, Bloomberg Radio, and The Los Angeles Times have cited him as an expert journalist.
IBM Social Analytics: The Science Behind Social Media Marketing
80% of internet users say they prefer to connect with brands via Facebook. 65% of social media users say they use it to learn more about brands, products and services. Learn about how to find more about customers' attitudes, preferences and buying habits from what they say on social media channels.
An Introduction to Marketing Attribution: Selecting the Right Model for Search, Display & Social Advertising
If you're considering implementing a marketing attribution model to measure and optimize your programs, this paper is a great introduction. It also includes real-life tips from marketers who have successfully implemented attribution in their organizations.
September 23, 2014
September 30, 2014
1:00pm ET/10:00am PT
October 23, 2014
1:00pm ET/10:00am PT


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SAN FRANCISCO, May 21, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Tapjoy, Inc. (www.tapjoy.com), a leading mobile advertising and publishing platform, today released the "Redefining Virtual Currency" study, conducted by Yankee Group on behalf of Tapjoy, examining the current state of virtual rewards such as loyalty points, credit card points, airline miles, app-based virtual currencies and more. The study found that mobile consumers prefer to engage with advertisements, rather than paying money, as a means to receive virtual rewards and premium content. One out of five mobile device owners engages with advertising daily in exchange for virtual rewards and premium content, and nearly one in two does so at least monthly.
Alternative payment methods, such as advertising engagements and exchange of personal information, represent a rapidly growing segment of the virtual currency economy, which Yankee Group estimates to have been worth $47.5 billion in 2012 and projects to grow to $55.4 billion by 2017. Advertising engagements represent the fastest-growing segment of this virtual currency economy, projected to grow more than 200 percent to nearly $900 million by 2017.
"Yankee Group's report confirms that mobile is disrupting how consumers want and expect to receive virtual rewards and premium content," said Peter Dille, CMO, Tapjoy. "We expect this virtual currency model will continue to grow through mobile beyond games and into other types of content, such as music, print media and video content."
"Given sizable adoption rates and comfort levels, consumers are clearly expressing that they value virtual currencies, helping set the stage for continued growth," said Jordan McKee, analyst with Yankee Group and author of the whitepaper. "Mobile device owners have demonstrated that they're willing to interact with a brand by exchanging their time (ad-views) and personal data for free digital content. Since users choose to take part in this exchange, the engagement can be far more meaningful and powerful than pop-up, banner or television advertisements. Marketers that opt to leverage this model have the potential to realize robust engagement rates because their mobile audiences view the exchange as worthwhile."
The study also found other evidence of this growing trend, such as:
- To Pay or Not to Pay: Roughly half of mobile users have paid for in-app premium content (54 percent of smartphone users and 41 percent of tablet users). However, when given the option of paying for content or receiving the same content for free in exchange for advertising, both smartphone users (67 percent to 39 percent) and tablet users (73 percent to 46 percent) preferred engaging with advertising.
- Free Digital Content is Worth Digital Engagement: Mobile device owners want opportunities to engage with advertising to receive digital content as much or more than physical content. Seventy-seven percent said they would be willing to engage with ads to earn a tablet app. The next most popular items were paperback books (75 percent), tablet in-app premium content (73 percent) and music (73 percent) and smartphone in-app premium content (67 percent).
- Personal Information as the Emerging Virtual Currency: Mobile users believe their personal information has value, and they are very willing to share this personal information (such as their e-mail address) to advertisers in exchange for virtual rewards and premium content. Many mobile users are already doing so frequently, as 70 percent of smartphone owners and 53 percent of tablet owners have willingly provided personal information to advertisers to receive a paid download of an app.
Tapjoy is a mobile advertising and monetization platform whose Mobile Value Exchange model allows users to select personalized advertisements with which to engage for virtual rewards or premium content. Tapjoy empowers users on more than 1 billion devices to watch videos, subscribe to services, install applications and participate in other types of advertisements in exchange for virtual rewards they can use in their favorite apps. Tapjoy's turnkey in-app advertising platform helps developers to cost-effectively acquire high-value new users and monetize their applications, while its powerful advertising marketplace lets brand advertisers reach a global mobile audience spanning more than 116,000 applications. Tapjoy is backed by top-tier investors, including J.P. Morgan Asset Management, Rho Ventures, North Bridge Venture Partners, InterWest Partners and D.E. Shaw Ventures. Headquartered in San Francisco, the company also has offices in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Santa Barbara, Atlanta, Boston, Paris, Dusseldorf, London, Beijing, Shanghai, Seoul and Tokyo. For more information, please visit www.tapjoy.com.
© 2013 Tapjoy, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Tapjoy and the Tapjoy logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of Tapjoy, Inc. All third party logos and trademarks mentioned are the property of their respective owners.
SOURCE Tapjoy, Inc.


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BAIC of Sinai announced today that it has bought a 5 percent stake in Daimler, according to Reuters news portal Portfolio. Shares from a German car manufacturer have increased sharply after the announcement.
BAIC told Tuesday that it had bought a 5% stake in Daimler, but for how much it has not been disclosed. The two companies do not start to know each other, Daimler Group and the joint venture of BAIC Beijing Benz Automotive Co., Ltd. (BBAC) have for years been producing cars in Asia and are currently building a battery plant in Beijing. BAIC's CEO emphasizes that relocation strengthens the business for Daimler's management and strategy, and German motorists welcome the Chinese business investment.
Besides, Daimler's biggest owner is Geely, also a Chinese car manufacturer. The Geely manager last year, and benefited from German regulatory caves, got a fully uncovered 9.7 percent stake in Daimler via Tenaciou3 Prospect Investment Ltd.


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Thursday, September 24, 2009, 04:55 am PT (07:55 am ET)
Accounting rule change expected to take effect for Apple soonWhile Apple has until December of 2010 to implement new rules for reporting its earnings, a report predicts that Apple will adopt the changes by its next financial quarter.
In his latest research note to investors, analyst Gene Munster with Piper Jaffray said that the changes to generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) from the Financial Accounting Standards Board, formally adopted Wednesday, will boost the company's reported earnings per share from $5.71 to $8.21. In addition, he believes the impact in the 2010 fiscal year will go from $6.00 per share to $8.90.
Munster has raised his price target for AAPL stock to $235, up from $186.
Apple heavily lobbied the FASB in an effort to change the GAAP rules. Under the previous restrictions, the company was forced to use "subscription accounting" and spread revenue from the iPhone and Apple TV over two years.
"However, the vast majority of the value of the device was realized at the time of purchase," Munster said. "While the value at the time of purchase as a percentage of the purchase price is debatable, we believe about 90 percent of the value of an iPhone is realized at the time of purchase. Under the previous rules, Apple was only allowed to recognize 12.5 percent (1/8th) of the revenue from each sale; under the new rules, the percentage will be decided on a case-by-case basis for each given product."
Apple is predicted to provide more details on the change, including when it will be implemented in the company's financial reports, during its conference call for the September 2009 quarter. That quarter, and the company's fiscal year, ends next week.
However, the new rules will not completely close the distance between GAAP and non-GAAP numbers, Munster said.
"Under the previous rules, there was about a 35 percent difference between the GAAP and non-GAAP numbers," he said. "Under the new rules, we expect there to be a less than 5 percent difference between the GAAP and non-GAAP numbers."
For 2009, he predicts a new GAAP earnings per share total of $8.21, while the non-GAAP will be $8.65. For 2009, he projects $8.90 vs. a non-GAAP of $9.30.
On Topic: Investor
- Blockbuster start for iPhone 6 suggests Apple on track to sell 60M phones in December quarter
- iPhone 6 & Apple Watch reveals lived up to the hype for Wall Street, investors have high hopes for Apple Pay
- Samsung's 'rushed,' 'half-baked' announcements set Apple up for easy victory this fall, analyst says
- Apple's 'fab fall' predicted to help drive company's stock price to $123 per share
- Piper Jaffray ups Apple price target to $120 with high hopes for iOS 8 home & health features


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VIJAYAWADA: Coffee exports from Andhra Pradesh have been growing at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of three per cent over the past five years and has become the country’s second largest exporter of coffee.
Pushkar Mukewar, co-founder and CEO, Drip Capital, said that Andhra Pradesh exported $142 million coffee in FY20, almost all of which constituted instant coffee exports.
He said that Drip Capital, Inc, a global trade finance company, had conducted a study of coffee trade across different regions in the country by analyzing proprietary and publicly available data, getting insights from coffee exporters, and understanding the emerging market trends dictating the dynamics of the sector.
Pushkar said that the state accounts for more than 50 per cent of India’s instant coffee exports and instant coffee commands a 31 per cent share in the country’s overall coffee exports basket. He stated that the largest and the most famous coffee-growing region in the state are the Araku valley plantations.
On an average, 3100 MT of mainly Arabica coffee is harvested in Andhra Pradesh. He pointed out that exports of instant coffee are rising due to increased export value realization for the commodity. He explained that as of FY20, the export volume of instant coffee has grown at a 10-year CAGR of 4 per cent, and the export value has increased at eight per cent CAGR....


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Samsung gives away Tizen developer phones
At the Tizen Developer Conference – currently being held in San Francisco – several companies have demonstrated their software on Tizen developer smartphones provided by Samsung. According to the Tizen Talk blog, the specifications for the device include a Cortex A9 1.2GHz processor, 1GB of RAM, 16GB on board flash memory, two cameras and a 4.65" AMOLED display. The phones are reportedly running Tizen 1.0 which was released at the beginning of the month.
Samsung Vice President Jong-Deok Choi held a keynote at the event and attendees were each given a device. The phone, which was not named during the keynote, is to serve as a development platform for interested parties who want to create applications for Tizen.


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Christian Siriano’s new bridal line includes plus sizes, because duh, why wouldn’t he?
It’s pretty surprising that the bridal industry doesn’t market more plus-size dresses to brides-to-be. Luckily, Christian Siriano’s new bridal collection includes plus sizes. All of the looks in the new 2018 collection run from size 2 to size 26.
This is where we bow down to the inclusive designer.
Wedding dresses come with a lot of expectations, one of the worst being that a bride somehow has to “get in shape” to fit into the dress of her dreams for the big day. Sure, everyone wants to be healthy and glowing on their wedding day, but dropping four dress sizes shouldn’t be a thing one has to do. There’s a lot more work to be done — like planning the perfect party and avoiding your extended family as much as possible.
Siriano agrees. He told Mic’s Slay:
"For every bride, it's almost like this notion that they need to lose weight. It's a misconception, that looking your best means that you're thin. That's why so many brands think that a bride doesn't want to see a plus-size woman advertising dresses for them, which is false."
It really is, especially given that the “average” size of American women is a size 16.
Siriano said that it’s not a *thing* for his team to make more sizes, because it shouldn’t be.”I think it was just pretty easy, a no-brainer for us. It just made sense,” he said about his new collection. “I think it’s important that all the dresses, everything we’re offering, can come in any size. That’s an important thing.”
Some designers balk that designing for other sizes can be more difficult, but that’s not the case. “The process is different,” Siriano said, so there are different things to things to consider, but it’s not hard.
The designer added:
"We can't have every size in every style in the world, but it's the awareness, seeing women who are a little more similar, that I think is helping. I think it's just relevant in the world to include women who aren't a size 2, and it takes designers and editors both to get those images out there. It takes a full group of people who understand the problems to really make change."
You can check out the full collection at Vogue, and if you’re in the market for a designer dress, the two pieces that Siriano designed for Samira Wiley and Lauren Morelli are included in the collection.


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Lessons in Backlash: Three Things You Should Know Before Rebranding in the Social Media Age
- December 17, 2012
Social media backlash—think Gap’s logo change and swift reversal—is clearly a problem which marketers must actively work to avoid and be prepared for in case of a reaction. This past week has seen another addition to the list of blown-up branding missteps: the University of California’s wildly unpopular monogram logo that generated a petition with over 50,000 signatures on change.com. Some are even calling it one of the “worst logo rebrands in recent history” and, as of last Friday, a failed one.
What is notable about this UC monogram logo is that most students and alumni were not aware of the change which had been rolled out more than a year ago (obviously without much pomp and circumstance), until a point of view emerged in the social media universe. At that point, the university lost control of the narrative.
Consumers’ grievances used to be aired at the water cooler or in line at the dorm cafeteria, but now they take place more publicly. With voices amplified, consumer sentiment can catch fire and spread, for better or for worse.
We can’t help but think more business intelligence up front could have minimized some of the branding missteps we’ve watched spin out of control in the world of social media. When considering any major changes to your brand, be mindful of these three things:
Understand your brand associations.
Before setting out on a journey, it is best to understand where you are and where you want to go and then devising a path. Research can help you understand your brand’s associations, the rational and emotional, the conscious and the non-conscious. Stay true to critical associations even as your brand evolves. In the case of the UC system, it represents 144 years of history. Those that identified with the UC system wanted to maintain the heritage and tradition of what the system represents, while the logo team sought a more modern and forward-looking identity…a balancing act for sure.
Understand the extent to which your brand’s identity connects with your consumer’s identity.
Branding pioneers wanted to use social media to bring people closer to their brands, and they got what wanted. The more people identify with your brand, the more they care when that identity changes. Prior to making significant changes to the meaning of a brand, measure the degree to which consumers identify with it as part of their own “personal identity.”
Imagine how the UC administration might have handled their redesign and logo if they had considered that over 1.5 million alumni, more than 220,000 students, and just about 170,000 faculty and staff, probably derive some of their own identity from the identity of those schools. They might have sought to co-create, and in-doing so, might have created an army of evangelists instead of an angry, petitioning online mob.
Determine the potential influence of social media on your brand and then use it to drive your narrative.
Scrolling through comments on the company Facebook page or engaging in online listening won’t tell you how many and how your customers engage with your brand through social media, or how far the ramifications of social media backlash could extend offline. Organizations need to understand how their customers are engaging online and in social media circles.
With most of their current students entrenched in finals and their alumni worrying about holidays, the UC administrators might have waited it out to see if outrage over the “new” logo would get extinguished with interest in other issues. Eventually the university system showed that it did understand its audience, a group well entrenched in social media and not shy about protests. They made the call and the logo is no more.
The stakes are now too high to simply wander into a rebranding effort blind. Word of mouth has always been important for companies, but now you can participate in, influence, and prepare for it, but only if you understand how customers feel about brands, themselves, and their social tools. Of course, the ideal way to prevent backlash is to test and evaluate branding moves before you launch them out into the market. Critical thinking about your businesses’ core strengths, core customers, and their values and behavior are just as valuable to making the right decisions.


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Lenovo, maker of the fine X1 we saw in May, is gearing up something a bit more fashionable than its sturdy matt black workhorse. Yes, the Chinese computer compnay that used to be called IBM is doing away with keyboards (and its famous red nipples) and breaking out a few tablets. That’s according to the Dow Jones newswire, which says there’ll be a pair of 10in Android tablets and a similarly sized Windows slate to boot. Branded IdeaPads and running Android Honeycomb or Windows 7, the tablets should get a worldwide release in July.
Rumour Mill – Lenovo IdeaPad tablet preps for summer launch
The ThinkPad gets a flat mate as Lenovo readies its first foray into tabletdom


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Over the past few days news regarding just how cheap the Google Pixel 5 is set to be has broken loose, with reports indicating that the new Google flagship is set to be markedly cheaper than other incoming 2020 handsets such as the Apple iPhone 12.
However, there seems to be one very good reason the Pixel 5 is set to ring in for less than the iPhone 12, Samsung Galaxy Note 20 and Huawei Mate 40, and it is something that has broken cover very clearly over the past 24 hours.
The reason? As reported by both xdadevelopers and AndroidPolice, the Google Pixel 5 is set to come installed with just a Qualcomm Snapdragon 765 CPU rather than the flagship Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 CPU. That will mean no Google Pixel phone in 2020 will come with a flagship-grade processor.
Editor-in-chief of AndroidPolice, David Ruddock, sums it up:
Can confirm via my own source that the Pixel 5 will use a Snapdragon 765. No phone with a top tier CPU from Google this year.May 19, 2020
That "no phone with a top tier CPU from Google this year" will no doubt be music to the ears of Apple, which is about to drop the motherload of all processors in the form of its A14 Bionic, a system on a chip that has been confirmed to absolutely smoke even the best Android currently has to offer.
It will also be a boon to Google's Android phone rivals, with the Samsung Galaxy Note 20 rumoured to be coming with either a Exynos 992 or Snapdragon 865 chipset, and the Huawei Mate 40 primed to come packing a HiSilicon Kirin 1020 processor. Both these processors will outperform the Google Pixel 5 comfortably.
Now, naturally, many Google Pixel phone users may be OK with the performance trade-off for a lower price, however if these reports are accurate, it will be a marked change in strategy for Google, who in the past have always equipped their new Pixel range with a top-tier processor, such as last year when the Google Pixel 4 came packing the Qualcomm Snapdragon 855.
Google, it must also be said, are masters at squeezing as most performance as possible out of hardware through its super slick vanilla Android experience, so here's hoping the Pixel 5 still runs apps, games and its UI as smoothly as we're used to from flagship new Android phone launches.
We're expecting to hear a lot more about the Google Pixel 5 and Apple iPhone 12 shortly, so be sure to check back in soon for the bigger picture on both handsets.


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Eight Memphis restaurants recognized by Wine Spectator for their outstanding wine lists
Eight Memphis restaurants have been recognized by Wine Spectator magazine in its 2022 Restaurant Awards, which were announced July 12.
Wine Spectator, a magazine considered a leading authority on wine, honors the world’s best restaurants for wine annually. This year’s awards program recognized 3,169 dining destinations from all 50 states in the U.S. and more than 70 countries internationally.
“I want to congratulate all 3,169 restaurants that earned one of Wine Spectator’s three awards for their devotion to all things wine,” said Marvin R. Shanken, editor and publisher of Wine Spectator.
“These awards not only guide our readers to dining establishments with impressive wine lists and outstanding service, but also serve to honor restaurants for their achievements and commitment to maintaining pristine cellars. We are thrilled to reveal our 2022 Dining Guide, which points to places where wine drinkers are warmly welcomed.”
OUTDOOR DINING IN MEMPHIS:Here are 15 of our favorite restaurant patios in Memphis
NEW MEMPHIS RESTAURANTS:From wings to coffee, four new spots to try
Launched in 1981, the Restaurant Awards are assigned on three levels: the Award of Excellence, the Best of Award of Excellence and the Grand Award, with 1,782, 1,290 and 97 winners this year in each category, respectively.
All eight Memphis restaurants were named in the Award of Excellence category.
"We are excited to be acknowledged for three years in a row," Char General Manager Aubri Luckey said. "We work hard with our wine distributers to try and shake it up and keep our guests happy."
The owners and management of 117 Prime said they too are honored to be recognized.
"We have worked diligently and methodically to piece together a wine list that we believe is relevant to our cuisine and offers exciting opportunities for exploration," said Jake Smith, wine director and general manager of 117 Prime. “We look forward to expanding our vision for this wine program, and we hope that guests from all around the world, and especially from our beloved hometown of Memphis, are able to come and enjoy the unique wine experience we are crafting at 117 Prime."
The Restaurant Awards print issue, which features chef and restaurateur Charlie Palmer on the cover, hit news stands on July 12.
Jennifer Chandler is the Food & Dining Reporter at The Commercial Appeal. She can be reached at email@example.com and you can follow her on Twitter and Instagram at @cookwjennifer.


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Amazon Storyteller 2020 is scheduled, the first edition of an initiative dedicated to the discovery of new literary productions. Open to independent authors from 1 May 2020, it wants to recognize the exceptional work of self-published authors, both in fiction and non-fiction categories.
Following the jury's decision, Amazon Media EU S. r.l. will assign the Amazon Storyteller Award through which the author will receive a cash prize of 3,000 euros and will be able to benefit from a marketing campaign worth 20,000 euros to promote his book on Amazon.it. In addition, the winning book could be published free of charge in audio format by Audible. All other finalists will receive a Kindle Oasis e-reader instead.
At Amazon we believe that the good stories deserve to be celebrated and what we want to do with the Amazon Storyteller initiative explains Mariangela Marseglia, VP and Amazon Country Manager in Italy and Spain Our goal is to support both aspiring authors and writers already established at publish their first or next story. This award encourages people to be creative and cultivate their passion for writing.
The jury in charge of selecting the Italian winner will be composed by the journalist of Corriere della Sera Alessia Rastelli, by the radio presenter Rai Filippo Solibello and by the authors Giulia Beyman, known for the series of novels starring Nora Cooper, the author of novels and short stories, among mystery and noir, Riccardo Bruni and Carmelo Abbate, journalist and correspondent for Panorama for twenty years and currently one of the protagonists of the transmission Quarto Grado, on Rete 4.
As we said the initiative, which has met with considerable success in other countries, with this 2020 edition it also arrives in Italy We are looking for the next best original story in Italian adds Jose Chapa, director of the Amazon Books category EU Established and budding authors can participate with their stories and take the opportunity to promote their book on Amazon.it and the Kindle Store.
From 1 to 31 August 2020 the authors have the possibility to send a request to join the initiative and publish their texts, in paper and digital format, via Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing (kdp.amazon.it).
All books that participate in the initiative, deemed suitable based on the terms and conditions of the initiative itself – will be available to Amazon.it customers. The winner of the Amazon Storyteller 2020 prize will be announced in November 2020 and on the web page dedicated to the initiative the following day.


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France's new mobile phone operator Iliad has signed up 2.6 million customers to take 3.7% of the market since launching its ultra low-cost offers in mid-January, a pace unprecedented among new mobile entrants in Europe.
The buzz around Iliad's 'Free Mobile' offers also allowed the group to recruit 191,000 new customers to its core broadband Internet service business, its highest level ever and 50% of all the new additions in the sector in the first quarter.
Verizon Wireless should see an increase in date revenue after it offers new shared data plans this summer, according to a top executive for parent company Verizon Communications Inc.
Verizon's (New York) intends to allow customers to share their data allowance among different devices, unlike their current offerings, where they have to sign up for a separate data plan for every device connected to the wireless operator's network.
As many new LTE networks are deployed globally, some mobile users are starting to enjoy higher access speeds and a better overall user experience. Drive testing has demonstrated the capabilities of these networks to deliver up to 100 Mbps per user – at least while there are not many users. While the availability of devices capable of taking advantage of these higher capacity networks has been scarce, and hence the tele-density of LTE users low, operators have generally managed to boost existing backhaul networks to handle the added capacity.
Consumers in Europe will pay less for mobile phone calls, texts and Internet access when travelling abroad following a ruling on Thursday that could also prompt telecom companies to introduce cross-border deals to offset lost revenue.
LightSquared, the wireless startup backed by hedge fund manager Philip Falcone, on Monday filed for Chapter 11 protection. The company and many affiliates filed for protection from creditors with the U.S. bankruptcy court in Manhattan. It has more than $1 billion of both assets and liabilities, according to the bankruptcy petition. The filing was expected.
As Canadians continue to adopt mobile technology and as demand for mobile payments capability continues to grow, the banking industry and credit union system on Monday announced a set of voluntary, secure, open guidelines for the development of mobile payments at point-of-sale terminals in Canada.
Market research firm Infonetics Research last week released excerpts from its annual North America Business VoIP Service Leadership Scorecard, which analyzes and ranks the top service providers in the hosted VoIP and unified communications (UC) services market and the IP connectivity market.
The news coming out of the CTIA Wireless show this week stretches across every part of the wireless industry. From backhaul to mobile payments, there is always something happening in the booths and conference rooms at CTIA. Provided below is a glimpse into some of the news and information coming out of the show in the form of numbers.
Copper vs. Fiber
Shares of MetroPCS Communications Inc surged as much as 29% on Wednesday after Bloomberg reported the mobile phone service provider was discussing a merger with Deutsche Telekom subsidiary T-Mobile USA. Many Wall Street analysts argue that consolidation is needed among smaller U.S. carriers as the bill for 4G network upgrades climbs and smartphone usage accelerates.
On Wednesday at CTIA Wireless in New Orleans, M2M Zone held a session to discuss global M2M deployments becoming a reality. Moderated by Robin Duke-Woolley, founder and CEO of Beecham Research, the four panelists discussed the challenges and solutions that accompany the deployment of M2M products on a global scale.


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Samsung will release the Galaxy Z Fold 3 and Galaxy Z Flip 3 on August 20 and 27. The new information is contrary to our last report that the launch will occur on August 11. Apparently, there have been delays in some processes in addition to new COVID-19 concerns. The South Korean tech giant is believed to be delaying the launch to later, separate dates rather than the earlier schedule. However, the Galaxy Unpacked event may still happen, but the products will not be available for sale at launch.
The product launch could be on August 20 and 27. It is likely to happen on August 27. This could mean that the pre-order will be longer. Starting from a week, the pre-order could be two weeks now.
The delay it is not surprising. We still live in a pandemic world, so a lot is happening. For one thing, there is still the chip problem. Samsung has even decided to cancel the Galaxy Note 21 series.
There have been a number of movement restrictions. It is not easy to develop a new product and launch it on the market.
With Samsung delaying the launch, it may be closer to the launch of the iPhone 13. This could mean tougher competition. We are confident that two premium flagship phones will be unveiled: the Galaxy Z Fold 3 and the Galaxy Z Flip 3.
The two will be more affordable this year at 1.9 million won and 1.2 million won. There is no information on how many units will be produced and released, but we expect more to be sold this year.


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For people unfamiliar with the fashion industry, a new exhibition in Boca Raton may offer an enticing introduction. And for longtime fashion admirers, it could provide an exciting reminder of the magnetic appeal of clothing and accessories.
"IMPACT: 50 Years of the Council of Fashion Designers of America" at the Boca Raton Museum of Art features the work of 67 designers that represent a variety of important apparel styles and trends.
The exhibition includes 56 garments or ensembles, many with related accessories like hats, belts and jewelry, and 11 accessories separately displayed. The pieces are presented in eight sections: Resplendent Gowns, Sculptural, Eveningwear, Inspired by Exoticism, Daywear, Menswear, Outerwear and Emerging Designers.
"The exhibition is organized thematically in order to illuminate the broad spectrum of American fashion creativity, as well as the collective vitality of the diverse and ever expanding roster of American designer talent," according to exhibition materials.
Visitors entering the gallery walk on a red carpet and pass by a red curtain. Garments in the first section, Resplendent Gowns, are displayed on an elevated platform meant to recreate the appearance of a fashion show runway, said Kelli Bodle, the museum's assistant curator.
The display features Zac Posen's red gown, which has layered pleating at the top and layers of chiffon and tulle at the bottom. Posen's contribution is "definitely the most glamorous gown" in the exhibition, Bodle said.
Apparel by designers Ralph Lauren, Oleg Cassini and Diane von Furstenberg are featured in the Inspired by Exoticism section.
"Diane von Furstenberg's iconic wrap dress drastically changed women's fashion in the 1970s," according to exhibition materials. "Considered both comfortable and appropriate for work, women were liberated from the rigid suit styles that so heavily drew from menswear."
One of the key American post-World War II fashion trends was the dramatic growth of "manmade fabrics that allowed pleats to be held through the wash," said museum director Steven Maklansky. "This is exemplified in Diane von Furstenberg's dress. It can be worn from day to night."
An Alexander Julian ensemble featuring a flannel jacket with handkerchief, sweater vest, dress shirt and silk tie highlights the Menswear section.
A noteworthy accessory is Lilly Dache's green and black felt bucket hat that exemplifies the "mod" style of the 1960s, Bodle said.
"I think it's an important precursor to the hippies," Bodle said.
The CFDA, a New York City-based nonprofit trade organization founded in 1962, developed the exhibition with the Fashion Institute of Technology's museum in New York City. The Boca museum adapted the exhibition to fit its gallery space and interests, Bodle said.
"It's really exquisite. It's nice to see the designers — their signature clothes, what they specialize in," said Boca resident Sylvia Falk, who recently saw the show. "I just love seeing the details and the fabrics and what they do with it."
Information about the designers and garments is shown on video displays throughout the gallery, and visitors can use their smartphones to access information about individual pieces.
"One of the goals of our museum is to make people … more aware of themselves and of their environment and the cultures around them," Maklansky said. "This particular show, I think, helps us achieve that because fashion is this art we wear every day."
The exhibition runs through April 21. The museum is at 501 Plaza Real.
For more information, call 561-392-2500 or view http://www.bocamuseum.org.


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Wade’s Jewelry set to close in Horseheads
- Store owner also headed Horseheads Merchants Association
- Jewelry store set to close on Jan. 15
HORSEHEADS – After 16 years of running Hanover Square’s only jewelry store, Barbara Tighe-Skorczewski has decided to retire.
If all goes well, she said, her last day of business at Wade’s Jewelry & Gifts, 109 W. Franklin St. in Horseheads, will be Jan. 15.
But what a run it’s been.
Tighe-Skorczewski’s mother, who was also named Barbara, started working at Wade’s Jewelry in 1957. That was the same year the store opened. Twenty-seven years later, after working as the bookkeeper and later, a salesperson, Barbara Tighe took over the business.
For the next 14 years, until her death in 1998, Tighe successfully operated the business during a time when women-owned businesses were a rarity. Barbara Tighe-Skorczewski, the eldest daughter, took over the business after her mother died.
At the time, Tighe-Skorczewski owned a consulting business in Maryland for service station dealers and major oil companies. But when Big Oil began to consolidate, she saw it was time to leave the industry.
Tighe-Skorczewski admitted that when she first started in the jewelry business, the customers knew more than she did.
“I’m the oldest of six and we all had our own businesses,” she said. “When we were younger, we all pitched in, but when I took over the business, it took me about four years to learn about the sales and repairs.”
While Tighe-Skorczewski was learning, she was also assessing Hanover Square’s potential for supporting small businesses — which led to her involvement with the Horseheads Merchants Association.
“I did consider closing the business when my mother died because I didn’t know how to do it. I was still running my consulting business, but the salesmen were advising me to stay open,” Tighe-Skorczewski said. “I also felt a sense of commitment. There were a lot of empty storefronts in the square and I didn’t want to put the last nail in the coffin.”
Tighe-Skorczewski said there were other factors in her decision to keep the business open — mainly the increasing number of vehicles driving through Hanover Square each day and customer loyalty.
“Plus, there were also so many other communities that were being restored and revitalized back in 1999,” she said.
Back in those days, recalled former Village Mayor Pat Gross, small communities like Horseheads were heavy users of federal Community Development Block Grant funds.
In the case of Horseheads, said Gross, a portion of the funding went to revitalize Hanover Square.
“Barbara showed a great deal of interest in bringing new businesses to the square and encouraging events and festivities that would help the local residents learn what was in the square,” said Gross. “She was always willing to be very active in the Horseheads Merchants Association.”
Tighe-Skorczewski served two terms as president of the merchants association, the same post her mother once held.
“We organized the St. Patrick’s Day Parade, Holly Days and customer appreciation days,” said Tighe-Skorczewski of the association.
But the group’s real purpose, she said, was to create a sense of camaraderie among the square’s business owners.
Tighe-Skorczewski said there’s been some interest in taking over the store’s space — she owns the building. But she wants to make sure the next tenant’s business is stable.
Then it’s off to enjoy some free time, which will include visiting her three daughters who live in Maryland, California and Massachusetts.
“They’re what I really want to be remembered for,” she said. “They’re my claim to fame.”
Follow G. Jeffrey Aaron on Twitter @JeffreyAaron4.


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Stocks climbing to 10 times their original price are rare breeds. But they're not impossible to find -- especially when you have Fools for friends.
The market's best stocks include companies that have risen dozens of times in value by taking advantage of the market's weaknesses. These aren't penny stocks; they're viable companies with sound business prospects that are achieving phenomenal returns. Finding just one or two of these monstrously successful firms can help you establish a winning portfolio.
Stalking the monster
To find tomorrow's winners, we've enlisted the help of more than 180,000 monster-trackers at Motley Fool CAPS who have successfully picked stocks that have doubled, tripled, or even quadrupled in price. This week, All-Star member befoolednot gives us consumer electronics icon Apple (NAS: AAPL) as his next monster pick. He made his mark with Whole Foods Market, which surged 405% after he picked it to outperform the S&P 500, which was up only 14% in the same time frame.
Of course, you shouldn't jump into the breach just because an All-Star stock-picker did. Just consider this as a starting point for your own research of extreme buying opportunities.
1-Year Stock Return
Return on Investment
Dividend & Yield
CAPS Rating (out of 5)
A roll of the dice
The big news, of course, is Apple's $1.05 billion patent infringement award against rival Samsung, where a jury found that the South Korean handset maker infringed on six out of seven Apple patents but the iPhone maker didn't infringe on any of Samsung's patents. As the Fool's Evan Niu points out, the deliberations could have implications far beyond the court case: Fines could be trebled to more than $3 billion, a sales injunction on Samsung phones could be imposed right before the launch of the iPhone 5, and Microsoft's (NAS: MSFT) Windows Phone could have just received a shot of adrenaline.
Did anyone else hear Nokia (NYS: NOK) gulping down large drafts of life-giving air, having only just agreed to produce a Windows-based phone? Maybe even BlackBerry maker Research In Motion (NAS: RIMM) was given a little mouth-to-mouth for the coming debut of its BB10 operating system, though there are months to go before it arrives.
This battle's not over because one jury said so, though. Samsung will appeal, and there are those who think it was a decision for a U.S. company made by an American jury. After all, this ruling came just after a South Korean court said Samsung didn't copy the iPhone's design, though it did rule they each violated some of the other's patents. This isn't over by a long shot.
Momma needs a new pair of shoes!
Maybe the second biggest news of last week, then, was that Apple became the biggest company in the world. Ever. The $630 billion market cap surpassed Microsoft's achievement back during the tech bubble of the late 1990s, yet Motley Fool analyst Austin Smith points out that it's even more incredible than that: The gap between Apple and No. 2 ExxonMobil is some $200 billion, meaning that 95% of the companies comprising the S&P 500 are smaller than the distance between the first- and second-place finishers.
To get to that point, however, Apple had to create products consumers wanted and desired, and that's not abating anytime soon. The iPhone 5 is expected to sell as many as 50 million units when it launches, making it perhaps the greatest consumer-electronics gadget debut ever. The smartphone may have saved Sprint Nextel (NYS: S) from irrelevance, as it was able to bring more new customers on board and staunch customer churn. It was criticized for essentially giving away the store to Apple by guaranteeing $15 billion in iPhone sales, but the gamble appears to be paying off.
The iPad owns the tablet market, and as the Samsung court case revealed, it has sold almost 30 million iPads since its launch -- and that's just in the U.S. -- compared with 1.4 million Galaxy Tabs. With Apple TV on the way, the potential for padding its lead seems unstoppable.
Price is what you pay
For all that, Apple is still cheap. It trades at just 15 times earnings and 12 times estimates, but even better, Apple's enterprise value goes for just 13 times its free cash flow. Maybe that's not bargain-basement valuations, but for the ginormous company such as Apple is, it's pretty darn cheap nonetheless and indicates that any thoughts that it won't be able to sustain its growth, or that a stock priced north of $660 must tumble, are shortsighted.
CAPS member EVplusEV does like Apple's chances and expects the Samsung decision to give it a bit of a boost higher, but he says the iPhone 5 really needs to be a home run to sustain it. Even if the smartphone doesn't clear the high hurdles analysts have set for it, I think Apple will still outperform the broad indexes and have indicated so on CAPS, but tell me in the comments section below whether you would take a bite of Apple's stock at these levels.
A chance for scary growth
The Samsung saga is just one of the many catalysts for growth Apple has to its credit, and a new premium report from The Motley Fool details the rest. It also discusses the risks investors need to watch out for, so sign up now for the new Apple research service and get everything you need to know about the iPhone maker, complete with free quarterly updates. Access this premium research report.
The article Apple: Tomorrow's Monster Stock Today originally appeared on Fool.com.
Fool contributorRich Dupreyowns shares of Apple, but he holds no other position in any company mentioned. Check out hisholdings and a short bio. The Motley Fool owns shares of Apple.Motley Fool newsletter serviceshave recommended buying shares of Apple, Microsoft, and Whole Foods Market, creating a bull call spread position in Apple, and creating a synthetic covered call position in Microsoft. We Fools don't all hold the same opinions, but we all believe thatconsidering a diverse range of insightsmakes us better investors. Try any of our Foolish newsletter servicesfree for 30 days. The Motley Fool has adisclosure policy.
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