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The retail rebound is very much on the minds of the retail industry and the wider Australian community as consumers, brands and places eagerly await closures to lift and enter the market. new standard for offline shopping environments. State-imposed lockdowns have imposed significant impacts on retailers and consumers across the country since the pandemic first hit Australians in early 2020.
These extended shutdowns have forced retailers to innovate and adapt their retail strategies with new ones; online, click-and-collect and buy now / pay later capabilities crucial for retailers who must overcome periods of trade disruption as consumers are forced to move away from normal shopping environments. It is clear from the ABS figures of July 2021, which captured Australia’s activity out of lockdown, that retail remains highly desirable for consumers, especially when encountered with retailers that continue to evolve. to answer the question.
Two Tier CBD Retail Markets
The Sydney and Melbourne CBDs have faced multiple prolonged shutdowns, which have exposed significant retail store closures and vacancies, occurring in an environment where retail stores demand some of the highest retail rents. The country’s highs were faced with drastically reduced foot traffic and commerce as consumer commuters and tourists alleviated.
A two-tier retail market has emerged, where an unusual increase in the rental supply on the main streets of the CBD has been supported by qualified demands from top national and international brands seeking top brand positioning opportunities. range.
During the pandemic, these brands remained active in online shopping and national retailing. In contrast, secondary shopping districts, which are typically occupied by smaller rentals and dependent on foot traffic, have been severely impacted by the reduction in commuter traffic, the retail vacancy rate in some hub assets. CBD suburbs exceeding 25%.
A time of opportunity for the major retail chains
While this period of volatility has negatively impacted all categories of CBD retail, many brands and owners have taken this period as an opportunity to reinvent CBD retail landscapes, store strategies and experiences. development of flagship stores in preparation for the inevitable ‘CBD retail rebound’. Big brands took advantage of this rare opportunity to enter the retail CBD market and secure new premises at competitive rates.
Over the past 12 months, Colliers has supported the strong influx of new brands and amenities through Sydney CBD; securing a 900m2 flagship product on George Street for the UFC’s CBD Flagship, which will open in 2022 and international restaurant brand Hai Di Lao on a 600m2 360-degree rooftop in Darling Harbor in Sydney.
Some of Sydney’s existing High Street brands have also taken the opportunity to rethink their layout experience, aligning store closings as traffic and commerce are impacted.
This includes the complete refurbishment of Dior’s flagship at the corner of King and Castlereagh Street and Hugo Boss’s current refurbishment of its three-level mega store on King Street in Sydney.
Among new brands and additional relocations to Sydney’s CBD, Peloton signed a 500m2 lease for its flagship store, replacing Tesla at 20 Martin Place. 388 George Street will host Sneaker Boy’s new flagship store, and the relocated Bally brand store, Lotte Duty Free is currently building its 3,200m2 mega-flagship on Market Street and a list of high-end brands currently in the process of being built. equipping the new 25 Martin Place redeveloped by Dexus should open in early 2022.
Adelaide CBD is set to see the relocation of Rebel Sport from Myer Center, to a new 2,700m2 two-level flagship at 135 Rundle Mall.
Melbourne saw the opening of Dexus’ 80 Collins Street development with a solid mix of high-end fashion and food and drink, including the Golden Goose branded store and the Lucas group’s all-new fine dining restaurant, Society. Colliers helped Seagrass Group secure an additional 500 m2 to expand its existing restaurant on Southbank.
Brisbane has seen existing brands double in the CBD market with Gucci, Optus and Telstra securing prime new locations.
The continued interest from brands that represent the apparel, health and wellness and foodservice industries demonstrates the continued confidence of retailers in the recovery of the Australian CBD retail landscape.
High demand levels are also being maintained by international brands looking to the resilient Australian market for opportunities to inspect new premium leases across all categories. Colliers recognized the strong commitment of high-end restaurant brands, luxury fashion, entertainment and leisure groups looking to secure dominant big-box premises.
Development Driving New CBD Retail Pipeline
Australian capitals will continue to see a sizable pipeline of projects that will include new shopping malls, commercial towers and suburban station developments as part of government transport infrastructure projects, including the Sydney Metro.
For example, Sydney He alone expects around 100,000m2 of new and renovated retail space to open in the CBD over the next five years. This includes projects at Barangaroo, Martin Place, Darling Harbor and Circular Quay, including the Loftus Lane area.
New retail areas will appear in the Melbourne Walk on Bourke Street Mall accompanied by two new hotels offering 4000m2 of new shopping, The University of Melbourne, Queen Victoria Markets and St Collins Lane in Melbourne’s CBD.
AdelaideCBD s commercial offering is also expected to expand as part of the new 43,000 m2 office tower and its new 3,500 m2 commercial component in the 60 King William Street development.
Brisbane is also in anticipation of the development of Queens Wharf which will offer more than 50 new retail outlets in the CBD landscape. A substantial percentage of this new retail area is currently allocated to catering and is expected to attract consumers and increase footfall to these CBD areas.
The rebound in CBD retail
The complete restoration of the retail environment of CBD depends on several factors, including high vaccination rates, a return to the office and the reopening of international borders, and therefore it is difficult to speculate on the official dates and the value. real life of the inevitable retail of CBD. rebound. The fact remains that the CBD retail environment is intrinsic to the Australian way of life, including Sydney’s waterfront restaurants, Melbourne’s lane retail activations, luxury shopping districts and outdoor pedestrian malls. CBD Retail and its features are all part of what makes the Australian retail experience a world-class destination for retailers and consumers.
Michael tuck is the Managing Partner of Colliers Retail Leasing, Sydney. At Colliers, Michael is celebrated as the market leader in retail rental solutions for retail and market news branding strategies and development project campaigns. In addition to a portfolio of department stores, malls and large owners, Michael is currently appointed to the Sydney City Council Commercial Property Portfolio and advises on a range of major commercial development and infrastructure projects in Australian CBD.
Adrianna kazzi is the Senior Analyst at Colliers Research, Sydney, specializing in commercial real estate. Adrianna is focused on producing research information on the performance of the retail industry and the new and innovative trends that are shaping this asset class. In her role, Adrianna is involved in all of Colliers’ retail operations, including retail leasing, capital markets investment services and property management services. It is essential for improving data management systems and delivering quality real estate data and analysis to the retail industry.


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"New business analytics certificate expands big data education programs at OU "
"Every day more and more companies are leveraging the benefits of business analytics to improve customer service, enhance operational performance, identify new business markets and drive revenue growth. The industry is flourishing, and Forbes reports the market is expected to nearly double by 2020."
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Statups, seeking customers, target each other
With the boom in new tech startups, a number of young Boston area tech companies have launched with easy-to-use products and services geared toward the needs of other early-stage firms — and then expanded from there to serve larger customers.
Chargify, a Needham-based business that offers recurring billing solutions, supports more than 800 companies. CEO Lance Walley said the company has served the needs of a variety of consumers — including companies such as Formed Function, Scribd and World Flight Planner — since launching in 2009.
At first, Chargify targeted shoestring startups, Walley said. However, the business has seen larger enterprises use Chargify recently, and Walley noted typical clients have between five and 70 employees.
Meanwhile, Boston’s Help Scout offers web-based product that allows a team to share an email inbox. Co-founder Nick Francis says small businesses make up about 90 percent of the company’s customer base.
While many solutions served the needs of larger corporations, the Help Scout creators wanted to develop a product for small businesses, Francis said.
“The market was very crowded, but it was full of products that were built for enterprises,” he said, referring to the company’s launch 15 months ago. “None of (these offerings) really met the needs of the small business in our opinion.”
The product is now serving groups within large corporations such as Walmart, Francis said.
Local startups Kinvey and Terrible Labs have found early success following similar strategies.
Cambridge-based Kinvey aims to offer mobile developers the fastest way to set up backend for their apps. The company last week closed a $5 million Series A round led by Avalon Ventures and including Atlas Venture, and commercially released its backend-as-a-service platform at the same time.
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Back in 2019, WarnerMedia struck a deal for its upcoming HBO Max streaming platform that secured exclusive domestic streaming rights to The Big Bang Theory in five years. The deal, which has billions of dollars in revenue, also includes an extension of an existing distribution agreement with TBS, in which the comedy will continue to air on the WarnerMedia-owned network through 2028.
While the partnership aspect of the deal allows creators, profit participants, agents, and even industry observers to gauge just how large the TBS audience is, the number of people watching the show show on HBO Max remains a mystery.
That’s because distributed watch numbers are, as always, available through third-party measurement services, while streaming numbers remain locked and locked. Platforms like HBO Max, Netflix, Apple TV+, Amazon’s Prime Video, Hulu, and Paramount+ continue to keep a tight grip on their data, and nearly a decade after the streaming era, a lack of transparency is plaguing publishers. It’s nearly impossible for transactions, and even for viewers, to define what’s hit and what’s bomb. Unlike traditional box office and ratings numbers, streaming data is behind a shady wall, with little chance of a reliable indicator showing up early.
“It’s the curtain,” The Big Bang Theory star Simon Helberg told CHEAP in August when his movie premieres on the carpet Annette. “They keep all those numbers and all the data behind it. I have ended the end of this bygone era, which is network television. We’ve got 20 million viewers, revenue, commercial money, you see it, you see viewers, you see Nielsens,” Helberg continued. “It all changed overnight. That’s probably intentionally a bit abstract at the moment, and it’s worth caring about. I want everyone to be fairly compensated. That’s the key – you want to be fair and you don’t want to harden any of the creators.”
Under current practices, streaming platforms collect heaps of data about their users – whether certain titles drive subscriptions, how long people watch a show, or not. or movies, how many people finished watching when they started, and the cost per user (the ratio of a show’s cost to the size of its audience, among other things).
All of those metrics are kept in-house, and in most cases the streamers don’t even share basic viewing data publicly. There is no industry-wide currency for viewership data on SVOD platforms in the way that Nielsen ratings have served the traditional TV business for decades or measured box office figures. measure the performance of the features.
Instead, advertisers make skewed claims like, “Through Ted Lasso Season two launched over the weekend, Apple TV+ expanded its new viewership by a record 50% from last week. … The second season of Ted Lasso increased viewership by 6 times compared to season one,” reads an Apple TV+ press release about the second season of Emmy-winning comedy. That release did not include any underlying metrics to compare a 50% weekly gain or a sixfold increase in Ted Lasso – like algebra there’s no way to solve for X – and is typical of direct comments from most streamers.
In December 2018, Netflix tweeted, “45,037,125 Netflix accounts watched Bird box,” adding that Sandra Bullock’s starring role marked the best first seven-day screening for a Netflix series to date. At the time, “watched” meant 70 percent of a series (or 70 percent of an episode of a series). There is no way to verify the data, the claim is simply spinning.
WarnerMedia CEO Jason Kilar defended the lack of transparency, at least in the early days of the streaming era. He estimates a rival like Netflix boasts about 20 million more subscribers than HBO Max in the US because of its status as an early entrant in the field. Thus, an HBO Max hit can have the same number of views as a mid-tier Netflix artist.
“The benefit of being a direct consumer is that we get a huge amount of data,” says Kilar CHEAP. “You don’t just see the numbers they’re looking at, you see how they view it. In what order do they view everything? How much do they watch? How much do they complete? How do they respond to different prompts to help us get better at helping them find something they love? I wouldn’t expect us or other players to come up with numbers just because it’s really hard for people to understand. So we labor on it. We know exactly how well these programs are doing.”
Netflix’s recent two-minute “views” metric was omitted, while providing little insight into whether subscribers were actually stuck with a show or movie, much less. allow comparisons between titles on the largest streaming store. The company said in its third-quarter earnings report that in the future it will report total hours watched for its series and movies, which will provide a better picture of the scope their reach – and is more in line with the streaming charts Nielsen has released over the past 14 months, showing the total number of minutes watched for a series or movie per week.
The Nielsen ratings aren’t perfect either. While it collects data across all streamers, just Disney+, Hulu, Netflix, Amazon, and as of mid-October, Apple TV+ has agreed to feature in the weekly chart.
A Bloomberg report in October provided the first public accounting of some key Netflix internal data, focusing on the South Korean hit’s outsized performance. Squid fishing game. The company uses metrics like completion rate as well as “effectiveness” (audience size versus cost) and “adjusted view rate,” which measures how valuable it is to the company. for any viewer of a given movie. People who use the service less often or are new subscribers are considered more valuable than regular enthusiasts. Providing a glimpse, internal documents leaked to Bloomberg also show that Netflix paid $24.1 million for Dave Chappelle’s controversial special. Closer. Especially his former, Sticks and stones, valued at $23.6 million but returned an “impact value” of $19.4 million.
CHEAP sent questions to four other major streaming stores — Apple TV+, Hulu, Netflix, and Amazon — asking what and how much data they share with producers, actors, and streaming talent. other in their projects and whether the common currency for SVOD matters. Apple TV+ and Hulu declined to comment, and the other two did not respond at press time.
As the share of streaming continues to grow – it already accounts for more than a quarter of total TV use in the US and regularly surpasses broadcast TV, according to Nielsen estimates – the lack of clarity It’s clear about the likely number of people watching movies and TV series online. strain on streamers’ relationship with producers and talent and their reps.
“Over a period of time, streamers will have to disclose more data to people creating shows on their platforms,” said UTA co-chair Jay Sures. “Whether it’s next week, next month, next year or sometimes right after that, it’s inevitable. Ultimately, there will be a new technology that can provide stakeholders with accurate data.”
Meanwhile, talent attorney Joel McKuin, who represents Kristen Stewart and host Liz Meriwether, said that “we knew the show was hot when we saw it,” even without the data. . “I don’t know how important it is to know the exact number. When you do the research and bring them the proof, they always say, ‘Oh, we have something else better.’ They don’t seem to be upfront with you even when you’re in line,” he said. “It was a bit of a dance. But it’s always been, even pre-streaming. They will find a way to devalue something. So we are used to not knowing. I have become more optimistic about it. “
Warner Bros. President and CEO Ann Sarnoff argued that the new streaming-dominant landscape has made it difficult to come up with numbers that match previous ratings or box office data due to the lack of data. complexity of the information and the subjectivity of its value to streamers. For example, which metric is the most important? Switching subscriptions? Engagement? Or something completely different?
“[With] TV and how it’s used to report, how you monetize a show is how many people watched it because advertisers were buying it,” Sarnoff said. She explains that as viewing options expanded beyond real-time linear television, advertisers decided viewership over time was valuable, and metrics changed in response.
“That [was] Sarnoff continued. “It’s not just your initial opinion. It’s that new lady’s behavior to the door and what else they watch, and do you keep them? And, with regards to motion pictures, opening weekend box office returns are used to provide a reliable indicator of final performance. “That’s no longer true because of COVID, and we don’t. know how it’s going to come back,” she said. data is suitable for the digital world because it’s not an instant response from advertisers. It’s a much larger ecosystem and consumer behavior lasts longer.”
Ultimately, Kilar predicts that the two conditions will lead to more transparency. First, third-party measurement tools like Nielsen will become more accurate with their streaming numbers. And second, he expects that the growing streaming giants will catch up to Netflix. With a similar subscriber base, comparisons with competitors are more relevant.
“There’s going to be a short list of people to scale and then I think you can probably see that a little bit more clearly because we all know what we’re dealing with, and you can build build businesses, frameworks and other things on top of that,” said Kilar. “But, now, things are changing a lot. And whether you’re talking about Peacock or Paramount+ or Disney+ or Hulu, it’s not the same platform. So that’s part of the reason why you see the ‘less than’ type [when it comes to sharing data]. If I were in your position, I’d like it down to one simple thing – and you get an email on Saturday morning and, boom, it’s all done. “
Chris Gardner contributed to this report.
This story first appeared in the November 10 issue of The Hollywood Reporter. Click here to subscribe.


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BETHESDA, Md. — Following certification by the Massachusetts Attorney General of its proposed ballot question, the Massachusetts Right to Repair Coalition will immediately begin collecting signatures to place this important pro-consumer initiative petition before voters in the state. Supporters have until November 23 to get the nearly 70,000 signatures required to secure placement of the question on the 2012 ballot.
The proposed Massachusetts Right to Repair law would require automobile manufacturers to provide directly to consumers the non-proprietary diagnostic and safety information needed to repair their cars. Currently, auto manufacturers provide only some of the diagnostic and safety information needed to repair vehicle owners’ cars with independent technicians, limiting consumer choice and making business survival difficult for neighborhood repair shops.
“If the car manufacturers can continue to manipulate the market by withholding information, then do I really own the car?” saidJeff McLeod of Marshfield, Mass., one of the original signers of the initiative petition approved by the Attorney General. “Ultimately, if this law doesn’t pass it’s going to cost me more money as a consumer, so I can’t wait to vote for this ballot question next year.”
Industry research estimates annual savings of $300-$500 per family when vehicle owners are given the right to choose where their cars are repaired. For many consumers, this savings can mean the difference between having to choose between paying for groceries or car repairs.
Consumers across Massachusetts have filled out letters of support and sent them to their state legislators. More than 50,000 letters have now been submitted and the state coalition’s Facebook page has received nearly 10,000 “likes.”
On the federal level, the Motor Vehicle Owners’ Right to Repair Act (HR 1449) was introduced into the 112th Congress by Reps.Todd Platts (R-PA) and Edolphus Towns (D-NY) and currently has 30 co-sponsors, including Massachusetts Reps. Michael Capuano (D-MA-8), Barney Frank (D-MA-4), James McGovern (D-MA-3) and Niki Tsongas (D-MA-5).
About Right to Repair:
The Motor Vehicle Owners’ Right to Repair Act (HR 1449), which was introduced by Reps. Edolphus Towns (D-NY) and Todd Platts (R-PA), would require car companies to make the same service information and tools capabilities available to independent repair shops that they provide to their franchised dealer networks. The legislation further provides car companies with strong protections for their trade secrets unless that information is provided to the franchised new car dealers. The bill clarifies the responsibilities of the Federal Trade Commission in enforcing the bill’s requirements. For more information about the Right to Repair Act, visit www.righttorepair.org.


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Parents rejoice, parents rejoice! Those who are on a family plan are limited to which options they can choose when it comes to setting up multiple phones on a given plan. With all cellphone companies offering an outstanding list of smartphone options, the only way one can enjoy a smartphone is with a data plan. Currently cellphone companies allow users on family plans to share minutes, but Verizon is looking to take things a step further. Instead of each phone on the plan having a separate data plan, Verizon is looking to create a shared family data plan.
By doing this, Verizon is essentially helping to save families money by having them pay a flat rate for access to the internet and other features that utilize data. From the training materials that have been uncovered it looks as though Verizon will have a single monthly charge for data bandwidth along with a $9.99 charge for each line using the data. These charges are not set in stone and can be more or less whenever Verizon officially releases their shared family data plan.
Let us know what you think of Verizon’s shared family data plan, do you think it will work?


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Muscat December 5, 2022 Remarks by Ambassador Amit Narang
‘AN OPPORTUNITY CALLED INDIA’
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Good morning, Namaskar, As Salam Wa Alekum,
At the outset I wish to thank Mr. Nishad Padiyarath, Founder and CEO of Arabian Stories for inviting me to this distinguished forum.
It is a privilege to address the TAS Conclave 2022, deliberating on Oman@52 – Aspirations, Ambitions and Approaches.
The TAS Conclave has become one of important annual forums in Muscat, fostering dialogue and deliberation among key policymakers and leaders and promoting cooperation.
Ladies & Gentlemen,
As we emerge from the pandemic and enter a new era – uncertain and promising at the same time - the world is looking for new opportunities.
With strong fundamentals and wise leadership, Oman stands at the cusp of a new phase of socio-economic progress, a new take-off point towards His Majesty’s salutary ‘Vision 2040’.
At this Conclave, I wish to present a unique opportunity for realizing the aspirations, ambitions and approaches for Oman@52 and beyond.
It is a 1.3 billion strong opportunity.
It is a 3.5 trillion dollar worth opportunity.
It is an opportunity called ‘India’.
Ladies & Gentlemen,
In September this year, as the news came in that India had surpassed the UK to become the 5th largest economy in the world, it didn’t come as a surprise. Instead there was a sound of inevitability to it.
As the world goes through a turbulent, uncertain time, India today is the lone bright spot on the horizon.
Just 10 years ago, Indian GDP was the 11th largest in the world. It is the 5th largest now.
In another 5 years, India is expected to become the world’s 3rd largest economy, surpassing Japan and Germany, and have the 3rd largest stock market by 2030.
Morgan Stanley predicts that India’s GDP could more than double from $3.5 trillion today to surpass $7.5 trillion by 2031, by which time, India’s share of global exports will also double.
In another 10 years, the Bombay Stock Exchange alone is expected to have a market capitalization of US$ 10 trillion.
Morgan Stanley also estimates that from next year, India will be one of only three economies in the world to generate more than $400 billion worth of economic output growth annually rising to over $500 billion each year after 2028.
I could go on with many more such metrics; statistics that clearly show how the India story will define global growth in the coming decades.
I could tell you that in the first half of 2022-23, India’s economic activity level as measured by PMI composite index was higher than world average, while its retail inflation was lower. Or I could tell you that the Indian rupee has depreciated less than the other 6 major currencies.
But let me come back to why the India story is important in the context of Oman.
Ladies & Gentlemen,
For Oman, India presents not one, not two, but five distinct opportunities.
An investment opportunity;
A trade opportunity;
A digital transformation opportunity;
An energy transition opportunity;
A tourism opportunity.
Lets look at them one by one.
First Opportunity – Investment
They say a picture is worth a thousand words. An example similarly is worth several claims.
Just yesterday, I was privileged to be present at a ceremony announcing a new US$ 3.5 billion investment in Duqm by Jindal Shadeed for a Green-Hydrogen-ready 5 million tonnes per annum steel plant.
Jindal Shadeed is no stranger to Oman and their steel plant in Sohar is already this country’s biggest, estimated to have added US$ 5.5 billion to Omani GDP in the last 5 years.
Jindal will be just one of many Indian investors that are keen to invest in Oman tapping into the huge potential here for producing renewable energy.
Already, Oman is home to over 6000 India-Oman joint ventures with estimated investment of over US$ 7.5 billion. Indian investments have created local jobs and have played a key role in transitioning the Omani economy to a higher trajectory.
As Oman now seeks to double down on the priorities of Oman Vision 2040, tapping investments from a capital rich Indian corporate sector could provide it with the resources needed to make this vision into a reality.
Likewise, a rising Indian economy with a pro-active Government policy of attracting FDI and promoting manufacturing coupled with a massive domestic market with a very young demography, is a compelling case for Omani capital investments.
The world is making a beeline for India. Oman should also scale up its engagement with the most dynamic economy in the world.
Second Opportunity – Trade
India today is an exporting powerhouse. India’s merchandise exports crossed US$ 400 billion for the first time earlier this year.
Renewed energy in discussions on FTAs has given new momentum to India’s trade links with the world. A landmark India-UAE Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) has galvanized India-GCC negotiations on a region-wide FTA.
India-Oman two-way trade in 2021-22 was nearly 90% higher than previous year touching nearly US$ 10 billion. In the first 6 months of this financial year, the bilateral trade is already higher than annual figures recorded in 2021, 2020, 2019, and 2018.
With India’s huge consumer market, it offers a ready market for anything and everything that Oman produces.
India has also been a reliable supplier to Oman and recent instance of supplies of wheat to counter the effects of ongoing conflict is a case in point.
Expanding imports of good quality affordable products will enrich the Omani trade basket and benefit the Omani people. This is a low hanging fruit.
Third Opportunity - Digital Transformation
Those who have traveled to India in recent months would have surely noticed the Great Indian digital revolution.
In 2021, 40 percent of all real-time digital payments worldwide took place in India; at 48 billion transactions, it was three times that of China and more than six times that of the US, Canada, UK, France, and Germany combined.
India’s Unified Payments Interface (UPI) processed payments worth more than US$ 1 trillion in FY22 and in March 2022, India crossed the milestone of 5 billion monthly transactions on this platform.
India’s digital transformation presents huge potential for cooperation.
In this context, the recent signing of a landmark MOU between the Central Bank of Oman and National Payments Corporation of India has helped lay the foundation.
Fourth Opportunity - Energy Transition
As the world hurtles towards a climate catastrophe, India and Oman have both taken bold steps to decarbonize their economies and build a green future.
India is the only G-20 country to achieve its Paris targets on climate change before time. Now, we have taken on enhanced targets, in line with our own commitment to mainstreaming sustainability and reducing carbon footprint.
Today India is a market leader in solar and wind energy and Indian companies are scouting for opportunities worldwide to scale up. It is no surprise that the first company to invest in Green Hydrogen in Oman is Indian.
This is in perfect synergy with Oman’s ambitions to emerge as a Green Hydrogen powerhouse. India and Oman can together write the next chapter of the global journey towards a cleaner future.
Fifth Opportunity – Tourism
Incredible India – the tourism mega-store continues to attract Omanis in large number.
But much less known is the fact that Incredible India is also major outbound tourist generator.
Over 26 million Indians leave the borders every year. India’s young and the restless are imaginative and adventurous travellers and Indian tourists are now familiar sights across the world.
This Indian outbound tourism boom presents a huge opportunity for Oman. With just 2 hours of flight time separating us and the vast cultural and culinary connect joining us, the immense natural beauty of Oman and its rich and friendly culture can be easily translated doubling or quadrupling Indian tourists coming to Oman.
Ladies & Gentlemen,
India has been a close friend of Oman in its Renaissance of the past 52 years.
India is now eager to partner with Oman to speed up its renewed renaissance in the next 52.
India is an opportunity for the future.
An opportunity for Indians and the kind people of Oman to join hands together to script a better, brighter future for our people.
Let’s make it happen.


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Motorstorm creator and Evolution founder unveils new digital entertainment studio Starship
- MotorStorm, WipEout and Formula 1 veterans unveil new studio
Evolution Studios and Digital Image Design founder Martin Kenwright today unveils Starship; a Liverpool-based digital entertainment studio harbouring a dream-team of world-class talent hailing from the games, media, and marketing sectors.
Liverpool native Kenwright, who hit headlines with global gaming number one and PlayStation 3 launch title MotorStorm, returns to the industry following the sale of Evolution Studios to Sony Computer Entertainment in 2007.
Based in the Baltic Triangle, umbrella company Starship is home to several smaller studios. With a founding team of industry experts already in place, Starship will also use an outsourcing model which will utilise the talents of many companies and organisations across the city. The studio also aims to recruit a considerable number of staff over the next few years.
Led by senior veterans from renowned game development studios Evolution and Studio Liverpool, Starship’s core team of developers were hand-picked from the North-West by Kenwright. The team have collectively devised or delivered more than 69 games, including launch titles and AAA franchises such as MotorStorm, WipEout, Formula 1 and World Rally Championship. The flight and driving simulation experts now aim to lead the market in areas which extend beyond the sphere of traditional gaming, breathing new life into currently unloved sectors.
Developing original content across games, entertainment, lifestyle and e-health, Starship builds upon its core team’s gaming pedigree to create a proposition with interstellar ambitions. Further reaching and more disruptive than anything Kenwright has previously set out to achieve, work has already begun on multiple next-generation entertainment experiences that aim to move the industry forward with an entirely new approach to product, investment, sales and marketing.
“The name Starship hints at the height of our ambitions” explains Kenwright, who takes the role of CEO. “Evolution and D.I.D paved the way for what we’re doing now, we’re aiming to disrupt the market with revolutionary products that fulfil a genuine use and need for consumers.”
Kenwright’s work has been recognised by the British Academy of Film and Television Awards (BAFTA) five times. Driven by the concept of a game-changing business model, he founded his third studio in 2013, drawing together senior industry talent to begin work on IP that aims to change the landscape of gaming and entertainment.
“I was never going to return to the industry to do something that people expected,” Kenwright explains. “I had five years away from making games, during which I came to the conclusion that gaming investment is broken, and because of that real innovation seems to have taken a backseat. The concept for Starship takes our AAA softology and wraps it around the antidote. The content that we’re working on now breaks new ground in a multitude of ways; in concept, in our approach to its creation, in how it’s funded, right through to how it’s marketed.”
And Kenwright makes no bones about his reasons for setting up in Liverpool. “The gaming and technology talent found in the north west of England is exceptional,” he explains. “Liverpool and the surrounding areas have an incredibly rich heritage, with studios such as Psygnosis, Evolution and Bizarre Creations creating world-beating titles that raised the bar for everyone else. Now the area that captured the attention of the globe is in the midst of a revival. We have the talent, increased quality of living, and we’re the second fastest growing economy outside of London. Liverpool is like nowhere else in the world, and without doubt the best location for a technology driven creative studio such as Starship.”
Kenwright is joined by former Studio Liverpool Director Clemens Wangerin who takes the role of Chief Operating Officer. “I’ve worked with many talented developers during my time in the industry and am very proud of the legacy of some of the titles we’ve released together,” he explains. “Starship contains many familiar faces and it’s been fantastic to see how quickly the team gelled together, a real testament to the professional attitude and excellent skill sets that exist in Liverpool’s and the North West’s game development community.
“Liverpool is arguably the birth place of the UK game development industry. Since the 1980s it has been a bedrock of creativity, commercial success and technical excellence. Our goal with Starship is to provide a global platform on which the city’s game and software development talent can shine.”
Mayor of Liverpool Joe Anderson said: “It’s always great news when we are able to welcome ambitious, innovative and creative companies to Liverpool, so I’m delighted Starship have chosen our city for their new home. Liverpool has a strong heritage in video games development, and it’s a strength we’re keen to build on, particularly given the emergence of the medium as one of the most popular global forms of entertainment.
“Martin Kenwright’s decision to set up in Liverpool is a major coup for us, and testament to how our business-friendly approach is helping attract the brightest talents. He brings with him real pedigree, expertise and a huge amount of respect within the games industry, internationally. Best of all, Starship’s launch in Liverpool creates new jobs and opportunities for local people. I wish the company every success for the future, and look forward to them writing more successful chapters in Liverpool’s gaming history.”
Further announcements on the company’s endeavours are expected at the Los Angeles gaming convention, E3, which takes place on June 10th to the 13th.
Visit our website: www.starship-group.com


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Tech sector needs support to drive forward economic recovery - Neil Norman
Scotland’s tech sector has immense growth potential and it’s therefore essential that it gets support and nurturing from the wider business community as well as government.
According to 2019 figures, technology companies contributed £4.9bn Gross Value Added (GVA) to Scotland’s economy. These figures also revealed that GVA per head for the tech sector was 40 per cent higher than for the economy as a whole.
A survey conducted last year by ScotlandIS, the nation’s digital technology trade body, underlined the strength of the sector during the early stages of the pandemic. A third of companies were forecasting an increase in business opportunities or new demands related to Covid-19. Less than ten per cent of those surveyed raised concerns about insolvency while over 70 per cent indicated that they expected their employee numbers to either rise or remain intact despite a difficult trading environment.
As we emerge from this public health crisis and confront new economic challenges, including adapting to the post-Brexit environment, successful businesses in this resilient and dynamic sector can play a key role in aiding economic recovery.
By connecting emerging companies with the investment community, EIE is an important annual event that really highlights how Scotland is providing an ideal environment for tech businesses to thrive. We’re fortunate to have a vibrant investment community which includes a number of business angel groups, many of which have a long track record of supporting technology businesses at their embryonic stages to help them become highly successful, global companies. These include globally-established businesses like Optos, Skyscanner and FanDuel along with up and coming companies such as TranSwap, which recently established its European headquarters in Edinburgh; smart city data specialists, UrbanTide; and Aberdeen-based LiberEat, creators of an app which helps people living with dietary restrictions.
Along with ScotlandIS, the Scottish tech sector benefits from other supportive industry bodies including FinTech Scotland, Creative Scotland and FutureScot, which provides and engagement hub for digital technology professionals. Meanwhile the CodeClan initiative is working with companies to address skills shortages across the sector to help maximise growth potential.
With this strong eco-system in place, it’s little wonder Edinburgh has also been named as the UK’s top city for start-ups, attracting more foreign investment than any other UK tech cluster with 92 per cent growth potential according to Tech Nation magazine. Edinburgh’s existing technology community is also ranked as the most active in the UK outside London, closely followed by Glasgow in fourth place. We have a phenomenal talent pool across Scotland and must now leverage the prominence of our two major cities to benefit all regions of Scotland.
As we look forward to EIE 2021, we need to build on our many strengths to maximise the opportunity the tech sector presents to drive forward Scotland’s economic recovery. Further government incentives that support innovative start-ups and ensure we encourage global players to follow the lead of Transwap (and others) to set up a base here will be vital.
Neil Norman, partner and Head of Entrepreneurial Tax at accountants Chiene + Tait
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Filed under: cryptocurrency, 仮想通貨, 海外, 英語Tagged with: cryptocurrency, 仮想通貨, 海外, 英語
- EXCLUSIVE-Visa moves to allow payment settlements using cryptocurrency Reuters
- Visa will allow the use of a dollar-backed cryptocurrency to settle payment transactions on its network Business Insider
- Visa Completes First Cryptocurrency Transaction on Ethereum Decrypt
- Bitcoin jumps as Visa is reportedly said to allow payment settlements using cryptocurrency ForexLive
- Visa Enhances Cryptocurrency Offerings Baystreet.ca
- View Full Coverage on Google News
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Missouri lawmakers delivered a win to proponents of the state’s hotly-debated liquor franchise laws on Wednesday, after the House passed franchise legislation and sent it to the Senate for consideration.
The franchise legislation, governing alcohol suppliers and distributors in Missouri, was put to a vote after it was added as an amendment to Senate Bill 114, a bill having to do with home-brewed beers. The original franchise bill, Senate Bill 365/House Bill 759, had stalled. Senate Bill 114 passed by a vote of 110 to 48 on Wednesday. (An amendment includes a carve out for small breweries.)
Dating back to 1975, Missouri’s franchise law prevents liquor suppliers from terminating contracts with wholesalers without “good cause.” The law was called into question in a 2011 court ruling, and has since played out in an escalating “liquor war” that has pitted suppliers against wholesalers, and prompted both sides, their lobbyists and their supporters, to converge on Jefferson City. In particular, St. Louis-based Major Brands, a $550 million wholesaler led by CEO Sue McCollum, has been a leading advocate for the franchise law. Consultant Richard Callow, whose firm Public Eye counts Major Brands among its clients, said the option of adding the franchise legislation as an amendment to another bill was a consideration “from the first day.”
Still, the vote doesn’t mean the fight is over. Far from it.
In a statement, opponents to Missouri’s alcohol franchise law said they look forward to continuing the fight in the Senate. In a statement, Missourians for Free Competition called the bill “special interest legislation” that would create a “government mandate forcing suppliers and retailers to do business with a particular wholesaler.”
The group includes the St. Louis-based spirits supplier Luxco Inc.; Glazer’s Distributors of Missouri; Adam Puchta Winery; McCormick Distilling; the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States; and the Missouri Retailers Association. “Lawmakers should be in the business of supporting competition in our economy, not picking winners and losers,” Spokesman Ed Rhode said in the statement.


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|Dual Sim Intel Smartphone Xolo Xolo X500|
Xolo X500 – first Dual SIM, Intel powered smartphone launched in India
Xolo X500 has become the first Dual SIM Intel processor powered smartphone to be launched in India. Powered by Intel’s 1.2GHz Atom Lexington Z2420 processor with Hyper Threading technology, the Xolo X500 runs on Android Ice Cream Sandwich OS.
The Xolo X500 is the second smartphone from the manufacturer to be launched in India, previously the company had launched the Xolo X900 with Lava in partnership. The Xolo X900 wasn’t as success as expected but it did get notice overall. With the Xolo X500 the company has entered into the over-crowded budget friendly market, the Xolo X500 is priced at just Rs. 8999 for the Indian markets.
Xolo X500 Details
Other than the processor and operating system details the Xolo X500 is equipped with a 400MHz GPU and 512MB of RAM, which allows for full 1080p HD video encoding and playback. As per the press release, it comes with an optimised HTML 5 browser for a smoother and faster browsing experience. It is powered by a 1500 mAh battery.
According to the press release, the benefits of a 1.2GHz processor with Hyper Threading technology include faster UI responsiveness, fast application launches, smoother performance, the ability to run multiple apps without the device slowing down and a lower battery consumption rate.
Here are some of the highlights of the Xolo X500:
- 3.5-inch TFT display with a resolution of 480 x 320 pixels
- 3G, EDGE/GPRS, Wi-Fi
- 5 megapixel camera with burst mode
- 4GB internal memory expandable up to 32GB via microSD
The phone will be available in 2-3 days and will cost Rs. 8,999. The Dual SIM smartphone will be the second announcement by the company in quick succession, just recently we told you about the Lava Xolo A500 coming soon. The Xolo A500 is another budget friendly smartphone from the manufacturers.


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Abuja, July 7, 2023: The Acting Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Customs Service, Wale Adeniyi, has reiterated his commitment decongest customs ports to enhance trade.
This is contained in a statement issued by the Public Relations Officer, Chief Superintendent of Customs Abdullahi Maiwada in Abuja on Friday.
Adeniyi said plans are underway to address the problem, adding that the service would do everything within its capacity to see to its actualisation.
“The major issue involved in this case will be the problem of congestion at our ports, and we are going to implement measures that will address this matter diligently,”he said.
Adeniyi said one of the measures the service would adopt was to ensure that traders desist from stacking cargoes and containers at the ports.
According to him, the service will ensure it implements the Nigeria Customs Service Act 2023 which, prohibits traders from stacking cargo and containers at the ports for a long time.
He said following the law, Customs would facilitate the auctioning or destruction of such items, to serve as deterrent to defiers.
The Comptroller-General said it was important for stakeholders to collaborate with the service to implement the policies that create sufficient space at the ports.
On trade facilitation, Adeniyi said the service would continue to collaborate with relevant stakeholders to strategise on implementing policies that would boost trade facilitation among others.
“I have always believed that Customs administration should act as a genuine agent for trade facilitation and this is what I have been doing all over my career.
“It is clear that the Nigerian law has authorised Customs Service to synergise with security institutions and other agencies of government as a form of collaboration.
“This is to yield positive results to carry out the business of facilitating trade in the country,” he said.
The Permanent Secretary Ministry of Transportation, Dr. Magdalene Ajani, said the ministry was equally working to decongest ports, adding that “they were over-spilled with overtime cargo.”
She said the ministry had constituted a committee with members drawn from the Nigeria Customs Service as well as Transport Ministry and its agencies to tackle the problem.
Ajani further said overtime cargo disposal committee was working to implement policies that would decongest the four major ports in the country, adding that, “we are working in different dimensions.


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An early-stage draft order is said to be under consideration by the White House as part of the government's effort to look into potential antitrust violations by Google and Facebook, among others.
CapitalG, the investment arm of Google's parent Alphabet Inc., led a funding round that yielded $185 million for Convoy as the startup aims to bolster its digital freight booking business.
Microsoft has closed a deal to buy 332 acres of land in Leesburg, Loudon County from Peterson Cos. valued at nearly $73 million. The Redmond-based giant is expected to build data centers in the area.
Those affected by Hurricane Florence in the coastal Carolinas, Virginia, and beyond whose Pixel devices have been damaged by the typhoon can now get a free repair from Google and uBreakiFix.
In an unexpected turn of events, eccentric celebrity Tommy Wiseau has uploaded the most popular worst movie of all time, The Room, on YouTube. You can watch the masterpiece on the platform for free.
Reddit has started banning several communities which exist for the sole purpose of promoting pirated content. Multiple subreddits which posted links to movies and TV shows have been closed for good.
A federal appeals court will decide whether former female employees who filed a gender discrimination lawsuit against Microsoft in 2015 could get a class action status for their case.
Despite a simplified servicing model, some Windows 7 devices recently encountered errors with installing the August or September 2018 Monthly Rollups or security-only updates. Microsoft explains why.
The new Apple Watch Series 4 has larger displays, smaller bezels, a faster processor, and it can do ECGs. It even comes in a new stainless steel gold color. Here's our unboxing video.
Kickstart a career in the Cloud with these AWS resources. Pay what you want —and if that's less than the average price—you'll still take home something great. Instant digital redemption.
This weekend's PC game deals include a massive bundle bonanza from Fanatical with 30 game bundles to choose from, a new Humble Bundle, historically low driving games from Chrono, and more.
The world' most popular web browser is finally going to get dark mode in the coming months according to a recent entry on the Chromium Gerrit, though it seems only macOS is being targeted for now.
In rather unfortunate news for gaming fans, Telltale Games has started the process of shutting down. Only 25 of its previous 250 employees will remain on board to wrap up obligations to partners.
Twitter discovered a bug last week that could have potentially exposed your conversations with unauthorized parties. Affected individuals have been notified and the service has fixed the issue.
If a new rumor is to be believed, Samsung could launch a variant of its Galaxy S10 without a curved display. The variant would be the lowest out of the rumored three to arrive in 2019.
Apple's new iPhone is here, and we got our hands on one. It has a larger screen than its predecessor, and a super-fast processor. Unfortunately, what comes in the box is not impressive.
Google's rumored Pixel Stand, which is expected to be revealed alongside the company's new flagships, has shown up once again in the Google app, giving us an idea of what it might look like.
A pain point for Galaxy Note9 owners has been the physical Bixby button that cannot be disabled. Samsung is making a change to its software that should reduce accidental presses of the button.
Earlier this week, Apple released the first developer beta build of iOS 12.1, but some were skeptical without an image for the new iPhone Xs and Xs Max. Today, those images are available.
This complimentary resource discusses the basics of getting a domain name, hosting, administering your site with cPanel, and even discusses the legalities of copyrighting your site.
In the lead up to its event in October, Huawei has gotten quite cheeky with Apple. Most recently, the firm handed out power banks to customers waiting in line at Apple Stores for the new iPhone.
Amazon's game streaming service has been banned in China following a recent surge in the number of users in the country. The Twitch app for iOS has also been removed from the Chinese App Store.
After seeding betas for Android 9.0 Pie, OnePlus has finally released the official update and has started distributing it to OnePlus 6 owners over-the-air. The update will be delivered in waves.
Eric Schmidt, Alphabet's former executive chairman, has speculated that we could see two internets emerge by 2028. He said one would be U.S.-led and the other China-led, both being quite different.
Following an apparent delay after it was initially reported, Facebook's Echo Show competitor is now said to be planned for an announcement next week, and it'll reportedly come in two sizes.
Backup your device contacts, photos, videos, calendar events on iOS, SMS as well as call logs on Android with IDrive Unlimited Mobile Backup at 60% off, saving you thirty bucks via Neowin Deals!
Microsoft is rolling out a new update to the OneDrive app for iOS devices, introducing a slightly revamped icon, a couple of new features, and a host of bug fixes to various aspects of the app.
You can now send GIFs to your friends via Instagram Direct to add more style to your messages using moving images. The feature is available for both iOS and Android users from today.
The year is winding down and with only a few months remaining, HMD Global is choosing to host an event in London, where it is expected to showcase a new smartphone. What it could be is anyone's guess.
At the height of the U.S. travel ban signed last year, Google employees apparently considered making tweaks to search functions in order to counter President Donald Trump's immigration order.
The U.K. could be set to get one or two internet regulators in future as the government works out its proposals for such an idea. It could see regulation of junk food ads, and content on social media.
A day prior to the retail launch of the iPhone Xs and Xs Max, a YouTuber has released a video that shows the iPhone Xs being torn down. This is the first video of its kind for the new phone.
If you want a chance to own a custom Xbox One X console you might want to think about checking out the 'Consoles for Kids' charity auction, hosted by the Make-A-Wish Foundation and Microsoft.
Today, Microsoft released Windows 10 for PCs build 17763 to the Slow ring. The build is likely to be the RTM build for the Windows 10 October 2018 Update, which will arrive in a couple of weeks.
Today, Microsoft announced that it's bringing Skype calling to Alexa devices, so users will be able to make and receive both audio and video calls, depending on the type of Alexa device that have.
At its event today, the online retail company announced an array of new devices, including a refreshed Echo Dot smart speaker, the rumored Echo Sub, and the Echo Input, which doesn't have a speaker.
Sony's PlayStation Classic will probably be a popular item come the holiday season. While it appears out of stock at some retailers, it looks like others have now listed the product for pre-order.
Amazon has announced several new features for Amazon FreeTime for Alexa, including routines, podcasts, and audiobooks, that are all oriented towards children. There's also a nifty whisper feature now.
Google is making its Data Studio service available to the public after a two year beta. The service is aimed at marketers, and allows them to create collaborative reports in real-time.


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Spamina will offer UK resellers an industry-leading cloud-based email security platform, consisting of its Spamina Email Service and Email Firewall solutions that have been successfully deployed at thousands of businesses around the world.
To lead its expansion into the UK, Spamina has appointed virtualisation specialist Daniel Power as UK country manager. In this role, he will be responsible for introducing Spamina to UK resellers and MSPs as the company continues to build on its global success that has seen sales of over ten million mailboxes worldwide.
Power brings more than 25 years’ experience building new markets for emerging brands in the UK. He most recently worked as sales manager at VDI distributor CDG, providing distribution support, consultancy and localised virtual vendor presence to companies across the UK. Previously, he has held senior management positions at software providers LANDesk, KACE and PowerQuest.
Power said: “UK firms are well aware of the security risks to corporate email, and as such represent one of the most lucrative markets in Europe for email security solutions. However, to date, most firms have adopted point solutions that provide a piecemeal and hard-to-manage approach to the problem. We intend to change this with our comprehensive, proven and fully-integrated email security offering.”
Spamina provides Cloud Email Security solutions for businesses and individuals to protect against attacks that occur via email. It offers ease of management and overall email control for system administrators and users, and provides protection for all devices where email is used (PC, laptop, BlackBerry, etc...)


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A two-year research project conducted at the Waltham Centre for Pet Nutrition in Leicestershire, England indicates that healthy pet cats regulate their nutrient intake to mimic what they would eat in the wild.
The study demonstrated kitties have a daily calorie ‘intake target’ that is equal to 52 percent protein, 36 percent fat and 12 percent carbohydrate.
According to lead study author Dr. Adrian Hewson-Hughes:
“This is a fascinating discovery and we are intrigued to know more about why cats have the ability to do this. It is particularly remarkable that, even after thousands of years of domestication, cats still select a diet nutritionally similar to their natural prey.”


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After the disappointment of the late cancellation of the final pre-season game against Oxford City FC we are delighted to announce that we will be playing a game on Saturday 7th August, away at Merthyr Town FC.
The game has been scheduled to kick off at 3.00pm at the Met Coaches Community Stadium, Park Terrace Merthyr Tydfil, CF47 8RF, on their brand new 3G artificial grass surface.
Tickets for the game can be pre-bought online but are also available on the day of the game.
£5.00 Adults, £3.00 Concessions, £1.00 U16’s
We would wish to put on record our thanks to the Directors of Merthyr Town FC for facilitating this friendly fixture at short notice.


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Whale’s Tale Water Park and Other NH Businesses Now Open
Under the New Hampshire Safer-at-Home Advisory, more businesses are now open.
Even though amusement parks were slated to open, it looks like Whale’s Tale will be one of the few amusement parks to reopen for now, according to wmur.com.
Some businesses are choosing to remain closed.
Jeb Boyd, CEO and general manager of NH-Fun, told the news station, “We’ve been waiting a long time to get open and when we got the word for the economic reopening task force that we were going to be able to reopen we were very excited.”
Other businesses that opened on Monday are adult day services, arts, and music education, movie theaters and performing arts venues, according to WMUR.
If you are headed to the Whale’s Tale, note that amusement parks are limited to 25% capacity, the news station reported, so anticipate a wait and check their website as they are requiring reservations.
I would hate to get out there with kids and find out that you needed to make advance reservations so hit up their website. Remember, stay safe!


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*This content is brought to you by Fortress REIT Limited
The accelerated adoption of e-commerce and supply chain innovation in a post-Covid-19 world is helping to reshape the commercial property sector in South Africa, especially when it comes to the ongoing growth of logistics real estate.
This was the view of top speakers at the Fortress REIT webinar titled The Great Rebuild on Thursday, 6 August 2020, who unpacked the drivers of future growth in South Africa with focus on logistics real estate. The webinar, hosted by Bruce Whitfield, included a panel discussion with Steven Brown (CEO of Fortress REIT Limited), alongside Robert Dobrzycki (CEO of Panattoni Europe), Phil Marais (Head of Africa and Brazil Supply Chain, Cotton On Group) and Mike Stopforth (CEO of Beyond Binary) as well as commentary from other thought leaders in the industry.
A key insight is that activity has increased in the logistics real estate sector in the last 12 months as …


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WESMAR Introduces New Digital Controls
WESMAR will be rolling out their complete line of Bow and Stern Thrusters, Roll Fin Stabilizers, APU systems, navigational and fish finding sonar at the Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show October 29 – November 2. Included will be new high speed digital controllers for the Roll Fin Stabilizers.
Included in the booth will be new digital controls that expand the interfaces of the WESMAR stabilizers with onboard displays, improve fuel efficiencies on high-speed boats, add to seamless fin alignment abilities, improve stabilization by expanding gyro sampling, display pressure rate, and much more. They are also offered as an option to existing WESMAR and other stabilizer fins.
Of significant interest will also be WESMAR’s expanding line of commercial thrusters from 150 to 499 horsepower, including a new 48-inch model and operating sonars for navigation and sport fishing.
“Come see a live demonstration at our Booth 425,” says Bob Sentz, Vice President of WESMAR’s Mechanical Division. “We have customers who have saved $500 a day in fuel. A British Columbia Ferry operator who says he saves fuel and minimizes roll thanks to the WESMAR systems and their profits hold steady because they stay on schedule.


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Livestock Improvement forecasts drop in 2016 earnings, extends credit to farmers feeling the pinch
Livestock Improvement Corp [NZAX: LIC], a farmer cooperative that sells bull semen and manages a dairy genetics database, said it expects a drop in 2016 earnings as farmers reduce spending in the face of a lower milk payout.
The Hamilton-based cooperative, known as LIC, didn't give details of the forecast profit drop. Net profit fell 24 percent to $13.7 million in the year ended May 31. Excluding fluctuations in the value of its bulls, profit fell 41 percent to $40.8 million last year. Revenue in 2016 is still expected to exceed last year's $232 million.
A drop in net profit would mark the fourth straight annual decline at a company that is aiming to reach $1 billion of sales by 2025 from its existing business, new products, acquisitions and growth offshore. LIC lifted research and development spending by 13 percent to $16.9 million last year and spent $48 million on capital investments. The projected drop in earnings for 2016 reflected the company's intention of maintaining services to farmers and allow "its essential capital investment to programme to continue," chairman Murray King said.
"Although it is still early in the season for the LIC business, this season's lower forecast milk payout has created challenging financial situations for many of the country's dairy farmers, and as a co-op LIC is also linked to the industry's volatility," King said. "Our farmers are reviewing their cost structures and assessing what discretionary spend is non-critical, and as their cooperative we are doing the same."
LIC "is offering farmers a range of extended credit and payment support options this season, to help ensure investment in good genetics and future productivity is not compromised," it said. "With no long term debt on the balance sheet currently, the cooperative remains in a strong position for the year with solid support from banks."
Fonterra Cooperative Group last month raised its forecast payout to $4.60 per kilogram of milk solids, from what would have been a decade-low $3.85/kgMS, in response to improved international demand and lower local production. That's still down from the record $8.40/kgMS paid in 2014.
Dairy product prices climbed in last week's GlobalDairyTrade auction for a fourth consecutive time, after nearly six months of declines. Last week Fonterra said farmers reduced milk production in response to lower prices.
LIC's non-voting investment shares were last at $3.80 and have dropped 38 percent in the past 12 months.


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Exports of goods manufactured in Virginia and Maryland have risen twice as fast as production in recent years -- with Virginia's volume of manufactured exports passing the billion-dollar mark, according to new U.S. Department of Commerce figures.
Virginia was ranked 17th nationally in manufactured exports with a total of $1.5 billion in exported goods in 1976, an increase of 116 percent since 1972. Maryland ranked 29th with a total of $641 million in manufactured exports in 1976, a 104 percent rise since 1972.
Although the United States is the world's largest exporter, few Americans are aware of the importance of exporting, especially in terms of inflation, jobs and the value of the dollar.
"Americans are less concerned about exports than the people of any other major industrial nation," said two separate reports on Maryland and Virginia.
The United States sells more than $140 billion of goods abroad each year, which amounts to $1 for every $7 of all U.S. goods produced. Exports account for $1 of every $4 of farm sales, for example. However, the number of imports has been surpassing the number of exports, leading to a record trade deficit last year of $28.5 bllion.
Virginia, whose seaports at Norfolk and Newport News rank second in volume of exports, was also second nationally in coal exporting, according to the Commerce report. Virginia contributed 25 percent to the nation's oil exports, second only to West Virginia.
Virginia's leading export, however, was tobacco, which was valued at $454 million in 1976 and contributed to 3,200 export-related jobs in the state. Manufactured exports accounted for 21,400 jobs in the state, the report said.
Virginia was second only to North Carolina in tobacco exports and accounted for 45 percent of the nation's manufactured tobacco exports in 1976.
Virginia ranked 30th in agricultural exports in 1976, according to the report.
Electric machinery, chemicals and nonelectric machinery were Maryland's largest manufactured exports in the recent five years. Exports of electric machinery were valued at $147 million in 1976 and generated employment for about 3,800 persons. Chemical exports were valued at $129 million, and exported nonelectric machinery was worth $121 million. Each generated about 2,300 jobs.
Maryland's seventh ranked ports -- the Baltimore seaport and the Baltimore-Washington International Airport -- exported $5.2 million in products in 1976, the report continued.
In exports of agricultural products, Maryland ranked 34th nationally, with a total of $136 million in 1977. Feed grain and soybeans led unmanufactured tobacco, "for many years the leading export crop from the state," as the state's top exported agricultural product, the report on Maryland said.
The reports noted that more then one in nine Americans employed in manufacturing industries produce manufactured goods that are exported. Manufactured goods referred to in the report include food, mineral fuels, fats, oils, firearms and ammunition in addition to standard definitions of manufactured goods.
The reports were two in a series of 50 produced by the Office of International Economic Research of the Industry and Trade Administration.


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Saksit Mungkarn, chairman of the Trat Tourism Industry Council, said on Saturday that the lifting of Covid-19 restrictions has resulted in hundreds of people flocking to the island.
Meanwhile, over 90 per cent of the rooms in three- to four-star hotels in Koh Chang and neighbouring Koh Kood have been booked for the October 22-24 long weekend. Saksit said Koh Mak, another island in the archipelago, is also showing good signs of recovery.
Citing a recent survey, he said Koh Chang is still one of the top 10 tourist destinations and that the island is ready to welcome visitors because over 70 per cent of its residents will be double-jabbed for Covid-19 by the end of this month.
Published : October 17, 2021


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One Direction and Office Depot both make a lot of paper, and more importantly, they both want to bring an end to bullying in schools!
The retail giant and Harry Styles, Niall Horan, Liam Payne, Louis Tomlinson and Zayn Malik have teamed up to raise money for an anti-bullying education program set to launch in the United States during the 2013 back-to-school season.
Beginning on July 5, a limited edition line of notebooks, pens, stickers and collectible items will be available for sale as part of the 1D/OD alliance. The boy-banders even have their own nail polishes named after them—ranging from lime green Zayn to deep indigo Liam!
A portion of the proceeds from each sale "will be used to fund an anti-bullying educational program to encourage kinder behavior among students," according to a press release.
Plus, the boys will have an anti-bullying message broadcast on TV and at their concerts. The "1D+OD LIVE.LOVE.MOVE Together Against Bullying" campaign will also extend to print and digital advertising, online and social media platforms.
It's nice to see the 1D boys using those pretty faces for such a good cause.


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CNBC's Aditi Roy reports on the robotic technology giving new life to aging satellites in orbit.
CNBC's Aditi Roy reports on the use of 3D printing in space to print tools for astronauts.
CNBC's Arjun Kharpal provides an update on the Samsung Galaxy Note 7's battery issues, as well as any knock-on effects the company might experience.
International cooperation to help drive innovation is a key theme that all G-20 leaders will likely affirm, says Australian PM Malcolm Turnbull.
First Defense Nasal Screens CEO Joseph Moore explains why there is a need for personal air filtration and how nasal screens work.
Adam Wilson, co-founder of Sphero, introduces his company's "Force Band" to control the company's Star Wars BB-8 droid toy and weighs in on the future of wearable tech beyond toys.
Kazuo Hirai, CEO of Sony, weighs in on the importance of innovation, saying his company hopes to be ahead of the smartphone paradigm shift in the next generation.
CNBC's Morgan Brennan speaks with former NASA astronaut Buzz Aldrin about getting humans to Mars and the future of space exploration in the public and private sectors.
CNBC's Morgan Brennan reports on NASA's efforts to get humans to Mars.
CNBC's Arjun Kharpal outlines the latest tech developments at IFA, including Apple and Samsung's rivalry and Fitbit's latest innovations.
Rick Levin, Coursera CEO and named a 2016 CNBC Disruptor, discusses the launch of the company's corporate training product: Coursera for Business.
Salman Khan, Khan Academy Founder & CEO, discusses why he keeps Khan Academy free for students, what he thinks about public schools across the United States and how he's working to forward education efforts across the globe.
Nick Edwards, Boomtrain CEO & Co-founder, discusses the intersection of artificial intelligence and marketing, and what the privacy implications are.
CNBC's Josh Lipton reports the latest on venture capital investments into space-related startups like SpaceX and Blue Origin.
Discussing the outlook for the private space industry with Michael Massimino, Former NASA Astronaut and Senior Advisor at The Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum.
CNBC's Phil LeBeau reports from Colorado on the development of Sierra Nevada Corporation's "Dream Chaser" spacecraft.
Will Power, Baird Senior Research Analyst, discusses the ruling on Apple's tax arrangement with Ireland as well as what we could see from the tech giant's upcoming product event on September 7th.
CNBC's Jane Wells reports from Spaceport America in New Mexico about the future of privately funded space travel and exploration.
CNBC's Jane Wells reports from Spaceport America in New Mexico on the future of space transportation.
Kristina Guerrero, TurboPUP founder and CEO, discusses her innovations the pet food industry with her meal replacement bars and snacks for dogs.


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GENEVA, N.Y., Oct. 26, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- RealEats, the meal delivery service that makes it simple for people to enjoy the nutritional benefits of real food, announced today it has raised $16.3 million in a Series A funding round. The round was led by Hamilton Lane (NASDAQ: HLNE) on behalf of the New York State Common Retirement Fund, which participated through its co-investment fund managed by the firm, and also includes global health and wellness brand GNC, Armory Square Ventures, and Excell Partners.
"We are thrilled to partner with such highly strategic and supportive investors who share our vision for a healthier food future," said Dan Wise, founder & CEO, RealEats America Inc. "This capital raise is a testament to the dedication of our amazing team, the delicious real meals they make, and our incredibly loyal customers across the country. RealEats is poised to expand significantly with this infusion of capital and the growing consumer demand for healthy real food."
Leading private markets investment management firm Hamilton Lane led the round via a co-investment fund it manages on behalf of the New York State Common Retirement Fund, and will represent investors on the RealEats Board of Directors. David Helgerson, Managing Director of Direct Equity Investments at Hamilton Lane, commented, "RealEats is taking a leadership role in the healthy food revolution through its innovative, high-quality and convenient food options. We are excited to support the Company's expansion across the country as it inspires customers through a unique combination of real food offerings, including many from the Finger Lakes region of New York."
Yong Kai Wong, GNC's Executive Vice-Chairman, has joined the RealEats Board of Directors and is working closely with the company to launch several strategic collaborations, including launching RealEats meals on GNC.com in early November as the first fresh meal brand available for purchase through GNC's website. "With its world class brand and its 86 years of science-backed expertise in health and wellness, as well as access to a vast distribution network of stores domestically and globally, GNC has been a tremendous platform for discovering and supporting emerging and innovative brands and technologies. Our partnership with RealEats, as part of GNC Ventures, the innovation and technology incubation arm of GNC that focuses on fast-growing, disruptive companies in health and wellness, allows GNC to provide fresh and healthy meals and a holistic wellness offering to our customers. We couldn't be more excited to partner with RealEats," commented Yong Kai.
Armory Square Ventures, a technology venture capital firm that invests in high growth companies outside of Silicon Valley, added to its earlier investment in RealEats. "We have worked closely with Dan, Erik, Rebecca and the RealEats team since investing in the seed round two years ago. Over that period, RealEats provided excellent culinary offerings to a growing set of passionate customers through a pandemic. Now that many more people are spending time at home and the lines between work and home have blurred, we believe RealEats will continue to scale," said Somak Chattopadhyay, Managing Partner at Armory Square Ventures. "We are also pleased to invest again alongside our longtime partner Hamilton Lane, the New York State Common Retirement Fund and GNC."
Excell Partners, a venture capital fund that invests in high-tech high-growth startups in New York State, also increased their investment in RealEats. "Finding healthy, high quality meals for your family is even more important today and RealEats helps consumers achieve that," said Rami Katz, Excell's COO. "This is our fourth investment in RealEats and we are pleased to continue supporting the company's tremendous growth."
The Series A raise will help take the RealEats brand national and accelerate the move into their new 80,000 square foot facility in Geneva, NY where the company plans to continue to create much needed jobs and help support the local community. The funds will also fuel the company's product innovation pipeline and support the launch of a much-anticipated new meal line that will be debuting this year.
RealEats (realeats.com) is a weekly subscription meal delivery service that makes it simple to enjoy the nutritional benefits of real food. The company, which was founded in 2017 by a busy single dad who struggled to put healthy food on the table for his family, is on a mission to build a healthier food future by offering a wide array of clean meals that incorporate fresh nutritionally dense ingredients – many of which are sourced locally. RealEats is headquartered in the Finger Lakes agricultural region of New York. For more information about RealEats and to join the real food movement, visit RealEats.com, or find us on Facebook at Facebook.com/RealEatsMeals, Instagram at @RealEatsFood or Twitter at @realeatsfood.
About Hamilton Lane
Hamilton Lane (NASDAQ: HLNE) is a leading private markets investment management firm providing innovative solutions to sophisticated investors around the world. Dedicated exclusively to private markets investing for 30 years, the firm currently employs approximately 475 professionals operating in offices throughout North America, Europe, Asia Pacific and the Middle East. Hamilton Lane has $757 billion in assets under management and supervision, composed of $92 billion in discretionary assets and $665 billion in advisory assets, as of June 30, 2021. Hamilton Lane specializes in building flexible investment programs that provide clients access to the full spectrum of private markets strategies, sectors and geographies. For more information, please visit www.hamiltonlane.com or follow Hamilton Lane on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/hamilton-lane/.
About the New York State Common Retirement Fund
The New York State Common Retirement Fund is the third largest public pension fund in the United States. The Fund holds and invests the assets of the New York State and Local Retirement System on behalf of more than one million state and local government employees and retirees and their beneficiaries. The Fund has consistently been ranked as one of the best managed and best funded plans in the nation. For more information: https://www.osc.state.ny.us/common-retirement-fund.
GNC is a leading global health and wellness brand that provides high quality science-based products and solutions consumers need to live mighty, live fit, and live well.
The brand touches consumers worldwide by providing its products and services through company-owned retail locations, domestic and international franchise locations, digital commerce and strong wholesale and retail partnerships across the globe. GNC's diversified, multi-channel business model has worldwide reach and a well-recognized, trusted brand. By combining exceptional innovation, product development capabilities and an extensive global distribution network, GNC manages a best in class product portfolio.
About Armory Square Ventures
Armory Square Ventures is a seed and early-stage venture capital firm, a community catalyst, and an optimism engine for ecosystems outside Silicon Valley. With offices in the Finger Lakes and New York City, the firm invests in software and technology-enabled services companies
in emerging entrepreneurial ecosystems that are often overlooked by other investors. The fund's investments include ACV Auctions (NASDAQ:ACVA), Agronomic Technology Corporation (acquired by Yara), BentoBox CMS (acquired by Fiserv), Clerio Vision, Good Uncle (acquired by Aramark), Heretto, RealEats, Squarefoot, StorySlab, Vengo Labs, Vizbee and UCM Digital. For more information, please visit www.armorysv.com.
About Excell Partners
Excell is a VC fund that invests in high-tech high-growth startups in New York State focused on Upstate NY. Excell combines generating returns that rank in the top-quartile of its benchmarks, with supporting regional economic development by providing entrepreneurs with hands-on support as well as investment capital. Excell's Portfolio includes investments in Medical Devices, Materials, Energy, Biotech, Agtech, Imaging, and IT/Software ventures across New York State with an added focus of investing in minority and women owned ventures. www.ExcellNY.com


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Bad Bunny has been named Spotify's most-streamed artist of the last year.
Google has set up waiting lists for its Pixel 6 Pro because of high demand.
The tech company released its latest line of mobile phones, the Pixel 6 and 6 Pro, this month, but due to extremely high demand for the top end model they’ve had to set up specific waiting lists that will let people know when more phones are in stock.
On the Google Store, there’s now a banner advertising the waitlist at the top of the landing page for the Pixel 6 Pro.
The company said: “Due to high demand, some Pixel 6 Pro models may be out of stock or have long delivery times. Get notified when they’re back in stock, or check out other authorised retailers who may have them available.”
The banner includes buttons to join the waitlist and see other retailers where you can try to get the phone instead.
According to The Verge, the Google Store does update frequently and may occasionally have a Pixel 6 Pro available, but the banner is there to help people who may not want to wait for the store to update.
In a statement to The Verge, Google explained: “The banner on the Pro page on the Google Store is still accurate — some models of the Pro are out of stock. While we work to make more available, customers can check out our authorized partners nationwide while supplies last.”
Rap star Iggy Azalea has admitted she already can't wait for Halloween.
A pregnant man is among the new emojis released by the Unicode Consortium.
The draft list of the newest emojis was unveiled earlier this year by the non-profit company and aims to promote more diversity in gender.
Another new emoji is a handshake featuring two different skin tones in response to a year of action surrounding racial inequality.
More new emojis include hands making a heart shape and somebody biting their lip, as well as faces melting, saluting, holding back tears and peeking out between their fingers.
The list contains 37 new emojis and takes the total amount up to 3,633. The new additions will be rolled out on devices over the coming months.
A large majority of the new emojis will be presented as a man, a woman and gender-neutral - for example, a crown emoji has now been added alongside the prince and princess emoji.
The Unicode Consortium revealed last year that it was releasing a new batch of emojis in 2021 to reflect on the crazy events of 2020, such as the coronavirus pandemic.
The new additions include a heart with a bandage wrapped around it, a heart on fire, a face exhaling, a face in the clouds, and a shocked face with spiral eyes.
A small number of new emojis were released last year after being hit by a delay due to COVID-19.
Unicode tweeted: "With #Unicode14 delayed due to COVID-19, this is a minor #emoji release. It is also a bit of a change from recent years where announcements have been made between January and March, and landing on platforms by September/October."
Shannen Doherty is at peace with her battle with breast cancer and accepts that the disease is "part of life at this point".
Tinder is launching new “interactive” ways to find love on its site.
The popular dating app announced on Wednesday (08.09.21) it has begun rolling out a series of planned updates which are designed to make online dating and looking for love a more interactive and immersive experience than ever before.
As part of the update, Tinder will now feature an expanded “Explore” section, which will allow users to access a series of new ways to discover and sort their matches, including the option of connect based on shared interest categories.
Right now, the list of interests includes Foodies, Gamers, Music Lovers, Social Causes, Entrepreneurs, and more, and Tinder have said they will eventually expand the interest list over time.
Tinder also announced it will bring back ‘Swipe Night’ in November, which is an in-app “choose your own adventure” series that led to a 26 percent increase in matches when it was first ran in 2019.
November’s edition of Swipe Night will be a “whodunit”-style storyline, and will allow unmatched users to chat with each other within the app.
Tinder CEO Jim Lanzone said in a statement confirming the changes: “A new generation of daters is asking for more from us in the post-COVID world: more ways to have fun and interact with others virtually and more control over who they meet on Tinder.
“Today’s launch of Explore is a major step in creating a deeper, multi-dimensional, interactive experience for our members that expands the possibilities of Tinder as a platform.”
WAPee-Yew! Cardi B can't stand stars who don't shower or wash.


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Vanguard International Semiconductor Corp (VISC, 世界先進), which makes control chips for LCD panels, yesterday said it is evaluating the possibility of buying a factory to boost capacity in order to meet growing customer demand in the medium and long term.
That would be the biggest capacity expansion for the Hsinchu-based chipmaker since its last investment in 2007, when Vanguard purchased an 8-inch (200mm) plant from local memorychip maker Winbond Electronics Corp (華邦電) for NT$8.3 billion (US$285 million).
Vanguard, which is 39 percent owned by the world’s top contract chipmaker, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (台積電), had NT$9.82 billion in cash at the end of last quarter, according to the company’s financial statement.
The chipmaker’s board yesterday agreed to give the chairman the authority to assess the asset purchase, according to a company filing submitted to the Taiwan Stock Exchange. The company did not specify what assets it is considering to acquire and from who.
However, two financially troubled memorychip makers, Powerchip Technology Corp (力晶科技) and ProMOS Technologies Inc (茂德科技), have said earlier that they were seeking potential buyers for their 12-inch factories in Hsinchu and Greater Taichung respectively, as they want to use the proceeds to pay debts and strengthen their working capital.
The stock price of Vanguard rallied yesterday in Taipei trading ahead of the asset purchase announcement, rising 3.72 percent to close at NT$19.5.


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WSJ: Kodak Preparing for Chapter 11
A report by the Wall Street Journal states that graphic giant Kodak is in the process of preparing to file Chapter 11 proceedings. While the report does not cite specific sources, the report does state it expects the company to file "in the coming weeks."
The Rochester, New York-based company has generated much speculation in recent months, with the departure of three board members. The company is due to announce its financial results for 2011 at the end of the month. In recent months, the company attempted to generate funds through the sales of its patent portfolio.
Although it was the dominant player in the film industry during the 20th century, its failure to capitalize emerging technologies, despite being a pioneer in the digital imaging field, led to its decline over the past decade.
In the past month, Kodak's share prices shed more than half its value, causing the New York Stock Exchange to threaten to delist the company. Kodak has been given six months to adhere to the NYSE's listing standard, which is to rise above US$1 at the closing of a trading day.
Read the Wall Street Journal story here.
Ricoh Unveils Low-cost Garment PrinterRicoh, during the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, introduced…
ARC Adds Seal Pro LaminatorsThe Calgary, Alberta, location of ARC Document Solutions has added…
Groupe dpi Adds Two Agfa Jeti SystemsGroupe dpi of Drummondville, Quebec, has installed two Agfa wide-format-inkjet…
Jones Packaging to Receive Corporate Icon AwardThe London Chamber of Commerce has awarded Jones Packaging with…
January 23-26, 2018
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PrintForum Trade Show & Conference
June 6, 2018


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April 5, 2018
(Reuters) – Japan’s SoftBank Group Corp (9984.T) will buy up to 9.9 percent stake in Canada-based Nemaska Lithium Inc (NMX.TO) and invest up to C$99.1 million ($77.7 million) through a private placement as part of the agreement, the lithium miner said on Thursday.
The investment, which SoftBank said was its first in the lithium industry, will be made through a private placement of share subscription receipts at C$1.12 ($0.8784) each.
The investment will be used to fund the construction and commissioning of Nemaska’s Whabouchi Mine in Quebec and its Shawinigan plant, Nemaska Lithium said in a statement.
SoftBank will have the right to nominate a member on Nemaska Lithium’s board and will also have the option to buy up to 20 percent of the miner’s lithium output over the long term, the company added.
The investment comes at a time when lithium batteries reut.rs/2Iy73KO are increasingly being installed in electric cars, including Tesla’s (TSLA.O) top-of-the-line Model X and General Motors Co’s (GM.N) modestly-priced Chevy Bolt.
“We are extremely pleased to be further accelerating the Mobile Revolution, an era of IoT (Internet of Things) and electric vehicles enabled by the fusion of technology and energy storage”, SoftBank Chief Executive Masayoshi Son said in a separate statement.
SoftBank has been investing aggressively in technology companies worldwide – mostly through its London-based Vision Fund – and has stakes in companies including U.S. ride hailing firm Uber Technologies Inc [UBER.UL].
Reporting by Kanishka Singh in Bengaluru and Ritsuko Ando in Tokyo; Editing by Gopakumar Warrier


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Taiwan market: Global Mobile launches commercial WiMAX services
Harris Lin, Taipei; Steve Shen, DIGITIMES [Thursday 24 December 2009]
Global Mobile has officially launched its WiMAX services in Hsinchu City, northern Taiwan, targeting users in the Hsinchu Science Park (HSP).
The WiMAX operator will expand its service to cover parts of Taipei City in first-quarter 2010, starting from the Neihu Technology Park.
The carrier is currently offering dongles and IADs (integrated access devices) to users as CPE and will also include WiMAX-enabled notebooks soon, said company chairperson Rosemary Ho.
Global Mobile also plans to inject an additional NT$3 billion (US$92.6 million) for WiMAX infrastructure roll-outs in the next three years.
Global Mobile chairperson Rosemary Ho
Photo: CJ Liu, Digitimes, December 2009


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Conservatives Must Reject False Choice on Farm Bill
“What is truly scary – what is truly risky – is if we do nothing. If we let this moment pass – if we keep the system the way it is right now … The status quo is not working.” – Pres. Barack Obama, August 11, 2009
1,410 days later, some House Republicans are adopting the very same logic to sell their massive $940 billion food stamp and farm bill to skeptical conservatives. In their mind, a vote against a bill that locks in Pres. Obama’s record food stamp spending is a vote for the status quo.
Conservatives rightly rejected Pres. Obama’s false choice in 2009. Everyone recognized then that the health care system was in desperate need of reform, but conservatives understood Obamacare was not the answer. Similarly, many recognize our nation’s current agriculture and nutrition programs are in desperate need of reform, but the Federal Agriculture Reform and Risk Management Act of 2013 (H.R. 1947) is not the solution.
In fact, the Rules Committee unilaterally shut down the best avenue for reform, an amendment offered by Rep. Marlin Stutzman (R-IN) that would have allowed for separate consideration of agriculture and nutrition programs.
According to BuzzFeed, Rep. Mick Mulvaney (R-SC) told House Agriculture Chairman Frank Lucas (R-OK) that he’d “vote for just about anything in the farm bill if we got rid of the nutrition part of it. If we broke that unholy alliance between Ag and nutrition once and for all, then I could vote for just about every subsidy in the book they could think of if they could make some real structural long term changes.”
Instead, the House bill touts major reforms like shaving a mere 2.5 percent off record high food stamp spending. Remember, food stamp spending doubled under Pres. George W. Bush and again under Pres. Obama. That is weak sauce, to put it mildly.
Heritage also notes the bill “would spend more than Obama on the most expensive farm program.” When it comes to farm subsidies, this bill makes Pres. Obama look like a fiscal conservative. Heritage explains the legislation would also:
- Pay farmers whenever their crop revenues fall below 85 percent of the unusually high levels set in statute.
- Maintain import quotas on sugar, which raise the price of all sweetened food products.
- Restrict dairy supplies to inflate prices and generate greater revenues for farmers (and expand the costs of taxpayer-subsidized commodity purchases).
- Increase subsidies to larger, higher-income agriculture operations, thereby making it more difficult for small farm operations to compete.
- Empower the USDA to restrict milk supplies to maintain higher prices.
- Spend $1 million a year on grants to nonprofit groups to “educate” the government and private companies about the benefits of “biodiesel.”
- Impose trade restrictions to inflate cotton prices.
- Spend $40 million a year to redecorate farmers’ market stalls and roadside stands.
- Subsidize the marketing of sheep and goats.
- Dedicate $137.5 million to promote farmers’ use of healthy plants.
- Impose import controls on olive oil.
- Pay states and local governments to install wood-burning heating systems.
- Authorize $5 million annually for grants to politically favored think tanks.
- Enable needy food stamp recipients to use their iPhones to make grocery purchases.
- Expand food stamp benefits among the 58,000 inhabitants of 15 islands in the western Pacific Ocean.
By supporting this bill, lawmakers are voting to lock in these terrible policies (and many more) for another five years. That is not conservative; rather, it is merely an attempt to prevent the very types of reforms Heritage Action and lawmakers like Stutzman and Mulvaney are pushing for.
Conservative lawmakers do not have to buy into the Obama-style false choice being peddled by some farm state lawmakers and numerous leadership aides. If the five-year food stamp and farm bill goes down in flames, they are positioned for real reform.


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H-P has quietly begun implementing “region coding” for its highly lucrative print cartridges for some of its newest printers sold in Europe. Try putting a printer cartridge bought in the U.S. into a new H-P printer configured to use cartridges purchased in Europe and it won’t work. Software in the printer determines the origin of the ink cartridge and whether it will accept it.
The company introduced region-coding on several printers in the summer so it won’t have to keep altering prices to keep pace with currency movements, says Kim Holm, vice president for H-P’s supplies business in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. H-P eventually plans to introduce the concept across its entire line of inkjet printers, he adds.


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Content marketing trending by the numbers
Here’s where the state of content marketing is in 2014:
Companies are taking the initiative to create their own content, with 93 percent doing it in house. But, 17 percent of marketers don’t blog at all.
Other people’s content is shared on social media by 56 percent of companies. But, 16 percent of companies have a policy not to share third-party content.
Only 37 percent of companies are tracking engagement like time users spend on content.
That’s just a few of the revelations in “The State of Content Marketing 2014,” an infographic produced recently by Oracle Eloqua and Lookbook HQ. It illustrates trends in blogging, production, sharing and measurement strategies, and is worth a look.