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Stellar Foundation and Elliptic Ink Exclusive Deal
BENJAMIN PIRUS
The Stellar Development Foundation unveiled a partnership with Elliptic, adding transparency capabilities for Stellar-based businesses.
https://cointelegraph.com/news/stellar-foundation-and-elliptic-ink-exclusive-deal
The Stellar Development Foundation, or SDF, a non-profit tasked with fostering Stellar's network growth, unveiled new ties with crypto risk-management operation, Elliptic, on April 30.
The partnership sees the SDF calling on Elliptic's crypto risk expertise for businesses and financial institutions based on Stellar blockchain, SFD director of communications Lauren Thorbjornsen told Cointelegraph in an April 30 email.
"These services are live and available for businesses on the network today as Elliptic launched the world’s first Stellar network transaction monitoring system," she said.
What does it all mean?
Essentially, Elliptic now brings Stellar-based businesses the ability to track suspicious and fraudulent activities, such as transactions, adding transparency for criminal prevention and regulatory requirements.
"The integration also enables the rapid addition to Elliptic’s platform of other Stellar-based assets such as stablecoins supporting the wider ecosystem," Thorbjornsen added.
Elliptic adds wallet examination and XLM tracking potential to Stellar's camp, an April 30 statement from the SDF detailed.
The move helps regulation?
Over the last several years, the blockchain industry has seen an influx of regulation, particularly in the U.S. As governing bodies expand customer verification requirements, related businesses in the sector must also equip themselves with the right tools to facilitate those requirements.
Stellar sees the collaboration as a way to stay on top of regulation that is sure to continue across the industry in the coming days. "It’s an important step for crypto businesses and financial institutions built on the Stellar network to have ready access to transaction monitoring services," Thorbjornsen said, adding:
"These tools, combined with the built-in compliance functionality of the Stellar network, equip our users with stronger tools to manage risk and operate with transparency and accountability. Elliptic also works closely with law enforcement agencies to assist in identifying and disrupting criminal behavior."
What does 'exclusive partnership' mean in this instance?
As the term 'exclusive' can take on multiple meanings, Thorbjornsen clarified what the partnership details in this instance. "Elliptic will be the preferred provider of the Stellar network," she said, adding,:
"SDF worked with Elliptic to build the infrastructure and complete the technical integration with the Stellar network, so new and existing businesses on Stellar are now able to use Elliptic’s market-leading services for their compliance needs."
Last month, the SDF also unveiled a donation solution that matches U.S. dollar donations with an equivalent amount of XLM.
Ripple Co-founder Jed McCaleb (The Stellar CTO) Sold 54 Million XRP in April
https://ih.advfn.com/stock-market/COIN/XRPUSD/crypto-news/82364695/ripple-co-founder-jed-mccaleb-sold-54-million-xrp
Ripple co-founder Jed McCaleb sold more than 54 million XRP in April and still has billions left to sell, according to his wallet activity.
Ripple Co-founder Jed McCaleb Sold 54 Million XRP in April
TURNER WRIGHT
https://cointelegraph.com/news/ripple-co-founder-jed-mccaleb-sold-54-million-xrp-in-april
Ripple co-founder Jed McCaleb sold more than 54 million XRP in April and still has billions left to sell, according to his wallet activity.
Analyzing known wallets for Ripple co-founder Jed McCaleb shows he sold off at least 54 million XRP between April 1-30.
According to a May 2 report by TheCryptoAssociate based on data from McCaleb’s known addresses, the Ripple co-founder appears to be liquidating his supply of tokens on a regular basis. Data shows that the wallet address supposedly used by McCaleb to sell XRP received an average of 1.8 million tokens daily in April, totaling 54,215,405 XRP — $11.7 million at the time of press.
Billions of XRP left to sell
McCaleb is a key figure in cryptocurrency’s history, having created the Mt. Gox exchange and co-founded Stellar. He also co-founded OpenCoin in 2012, which later became Ripple, and was allocated 9.5 billion XRP when the 100 billion supply was pre-mined.
This large supply of coins has led to controversy surrounding McCaleb when he announced his intention to sell his portion of XRP, a declaration that caused the token price to fall 40% within 24 hours. He then negotiated a seven-year agreement with Ripple that limited his monthly and annual sales of XRP.
As Cointelegraph has reported, the Stellar CTO still has billions of XRP tokens available in his wallets — nearly 4.7 billion as of February 2020. In response to concerns as to how his behavior might influence the XRP price, McCaleb told Cointelegraph that he has been selling his XRP “at a slow, steady rate” and has no desire to “negatively impact other companies in this industry.”
Apple Updates 13-Inch MacBook Pro with Magic Keyboard, Double the Storage, and Faster Performance
May 04 2020 - 08:30AM
Business Wire
https://ih.advfn.com/stock-market/NASDAQ/apple-AAPL/stock-news/82368149/apple-updates-13-inch-macbook-pro-with-magic-keybo
Apple® today updated the 13-inch MacBook Pro® with the new Magic Keyboard® for the best typing experience ever on a Mac® notebook and doubled the storage across all standard configurations, delivering even more value to the most popular MacBook Pro. The new lineup also offers 10th-generation processors for up to 80 percent faster graphics performance1 and makes 16GB of faster 3733MHz memory standard on select configurations. With powerful quad-core processors, the brilliant 13-inch Retina® display, Touch Bar™ and Touch ID®, immersive stereo speakers, all-day battery life, and the power of macOS®, all in an incredibly portable design, the new 13-inch MacBook Pro is available to order today, starting at $1,299, and $1,199 for education.2
This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200504005242/en/
Introducing the 13-inch MacBook Pro updated with the new Magic Keyboard, double the storage, and faster graphics performance. (Photo: Business Wire)
“Whether you’re a college student, a developer, or a creative pro, the 13-inch MacBook Pro delivers powerful performance, a stunning Retina display, and all-day battery life in our most portable pro notebook. Today we’re adding the new Magic Keyboard, doubling the standard storage, and boosting performance, making the 13-inch MacBook Pro an even better value for our customers,” said Tom Boger, Apple’s senior director of Mac and iPad Product Marketing. “With these updates, our entire notebook lineup features the Magic Keyboard for the best typing experience ever on a Mac notebook, offers twice the standard storage than before, and delivers even more performance.”
New Magic Keyboard
The updated 13-inch MacBook Pro now features the new Magic Keyboard, first introduced on the 16-inch MacBook Pro and added to MacBook Air® in March. Magic Keyboard features a redesigned scissor mechanism with 1mm of key travel for a comfortable and stable key feel, while the new inverted-“T” arrangement for the arrow keys makes them easier to find, whether users are navigating through spreadsheets or playing games. Magic Keyboard also features a physical Escape key, along with Touch Bar and Touch ID, for a keyboard that delivers the best typing experience ever on a Mac notebook.
Double the Storage
Customers love the superfast SSDs on MacBook Pro, with sequential read speeds of up to 3.0GB/s. The 13-inch MacBook Pro now comes with double the storage of the previous generation, with standard storage starting at 256GB all the way up to 1TB, so customers can store even more photos, videos, and files. And for pro users who need even more storage capacity for large photo libraries and video projects, the 13-inch MacBook Pro now offers up to a 4TB SSD.
Better Performance
The 13-inch MacBook Pro lineup now offers up to 10th-generation quad-core Intel Core processors with Turbo Boost speeds of up to 4.1GHz. Customers who are upgrading from a 13-inch MacBook Pro with a dual-core processor will see up to 2.8 times faster performance. The integrated Intel Iris Plus Graphics deliver up to 80 percent faster performance over the previous generation 13-inch MacBook Pro for 4K video editing, faster rendering, and smoother gameplay. The new graphics also enable users to connect to Pro Display XDR at full 6K resolution.
Faster Memory and More Memory
16GB of faster 3733MHz memory is now offered as a standard configuration on select models, and for the first time on a 13-inch Mac notebook, customers can choose a 32GB memory option. With 32GB of memory, users will experience better performance while running multiple virtual machines and up to 50 percent faster performance when editing gigapixel images in Photoshop.
Portable Design with a Stunning Retina Display
With a sleek aluminum unibody design in space gray or silver and weighing just 3 pounds, the 13-inch MacBook Pro is both highly portable and packed with performance and advanced technologies. Its stunning and brilliant 13-inch Retina display delivers more than 4 million pixels and millions of colors, along with 500 nits of brightness and support for the P3 wide color gamut. And with True Tone® technology, the display offers a more natural viewing experience for design and editing workflows, as well as for everyday tasks such as browsing the web and writing email. The 13-inch MacBook Pro also comes with speakers that provide incredibly immersive wide-stereo sound, Touch ID for easy login and secure online purchases, Touch Bar with dynamic and contextual controls, and the industry-best Force Touch trackpad for precise cursor control and Multi-Touch™ navigation.
Built-in Security and Privacy
The 13-inch MacBook Pro comes with the Apple T2 Security Chip, Apple’s own custom-designed second-generation silicon, which checks that software loaded during the boot process has not been tampered with and provides on-the-fly data encryption for everything stored on the SSD. This allows MacBook Pro and any Mac with the T2 chip to deliver the most secure boot process and storage of any computer. The T2 also protects Touch ID information, so whether customers are unlocking their Mac, entering an online password, or making online purchases, their information stays safe.
macOS Catalina
Every new MacBook Pro comes with macOS Catalina, the latest version of the world’s most advanced desktop operating system. macOS has always been at the core of the Mac experience, and with apps such as Safari®, Mail, Photos, Pages®, Numbers®, and Keynote®, customers have powerful tools to do amazing things. macOS also makes MacBook Pro the perfect companion device to iPhone®, iPad®, and Apple Watch® with built-in Continuity features that allow users to make and receive phone calls without picking up their iPhone; automatically unlock their Mac with Apple Watch; copy and paste images, video, and text straight from iPhone or iPad to a nearby Mac; and in macOS Catalina, extend the workspace of their Mac using an iPad and Sidecar™. Security features keep users better protected, and Voice Control lets users control their Mac entirely with their voice.
Apple Services
Customers can also enjoy Apple services right on their MacBook Pro, including Mac versions of the Apple Music®, Apple Podcasts®, and Apple TV® apps, as well as Apple News®. Apple Arcade? is available through the Mac App Store®, bringing more than 100 new and exclusive games to Mac customers. And for a limited time, customers who purchase a new MacBook Pro can enjoy one year of Apple TV+? on the Apple TV app for free.3
Pricing and Availability
Starting at $1,299 (US), and $1,199 (US) for education, the new 13-inch MacBook Pro is available to order today on Apple.com and in the Apple Store® app. It will begin arriving to customers and will be in select Apple Stores and Apple Authorized Resellers later this week. Additional technical specifications, configure-to-order options, and accessories are available online at apple.com/mac.
1Performance claims are as compared to previous-generation MacBook Pro notebooks. For more information, visit: apple.com/macbook-pro.
2Education pricing is available to current and newly accepted college students and their parents, as well as faculty, staff, and homeschool teachers of all grade levels. For more information, visit: apple.com/us-hed/shop.
3This special offer is available with the purchase of any Mac, iPhone, iPad, Apple TV, or iPod touch®, and is good for three months after the first activation of the eligible device.
Apple revolutionized personal technology with the introduction of the Macintosh in 1984. Today, Apple leads the world in innovation with iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch, and Apple TV. Apple’s five software platforms — iOS, iPadOS, macOS, watchOS, and tvOS — provide seamless experiences across all Apple devices and empower people with breakthrough services including the App Store, Apple Music, Apple Pay, and iCloud. Apple’s more than 100,000 employees are dedicated to making the best products on earth, and to leaving the world better than we found it.
NOTE TO EDITORS: For additional information visit Apple Newsroom (www.apple.com/newsroom), or call Apple’s Media Helpline at (408) 974-2042.
© 2020 Apple Inc. All rights reserved. Apple, the Apple logo, MacBook Pro, Magic Keyboard, Mac, Retina, Touch Bar, Touch ID, macOS, MacBook Air, True Tone, Multi-Touch, Safari, Pages, Numbers, Keynote, iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, Sidecar, Apple Music, Apple Podcasts, Apple TV, Apple News, Apple Arcade, App Store, Apple TV+, Apple Store, and iPod touch are trademarks of Apple. Other company and product names may be trademarks of their respective owners.
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200504005242/en/
Apple
Jennie Orphanopoulos, (408) 221-6621
jennieo@apple.com
Bill Evans, (408) 974-0610
bevans@apple.com
KNOS could have a much bigger market, according to the research article below:
Indoor precautions essential to stem airborne COVID-19
The study reports ventilation systems in cruises could have spread the virus between passengers.
Summary: Researchers urge health officials to recognize and inform the public that airborne transmission of COVID-19 from droplets expelled by an infected person can spread beyond six feet. The study reports ventilation systems in cruises could have spread the virus between passengers. Measures to reduce indoor viral airborne transmission are proposed. (Providing our own personal air filtration on cruises, at home, at work, in a taxi, the subway...every indoor enclosed environment, as we cannot count on anyone else, IMO! Remember Legionaires? Legionnaires' disease is a type of pneumonia caused by legionella bacteria. Legionnaires' disease doesn't spread from person to person. Instead, the bacteria spreads through mist, such as from air-conditioning units for large buildings.)
Source: Queensland University of Technology
World-leading air quality and health expert QUT Professor Lidia Morawska and Professor Junji Cao from Chinese Academy of Sciences in an article in Environment International published this week called on health bodies to initiate research into the airborne transmission of COVID-19 as it is happening.
https://neurosciencenews.com/coronavirus-indoor-precautions-16174/
“National health bodies responsible for controlling the pandemic are hampered by not acknowledging the research evidence of airborne transmission of viable virus droplets, that was conducted after the SARS 2003 outbreak,” Professor Morawska said.
“Now is the ideal time to conduct research into how viruses can travel on the airflow because there are many similarities between the coronavirus that caused SARS and the COVID-19 coronavirus and therefore it is highly likely that COVID-19 spreads by air.
“Analysis of the initial pattern of COVID-19 spread in China reveals multiple cases of non-contact transmission, especially in areas outside Wuhan.
“On numerous cruise ships where thousands of people onboard were infected, many of the infections occurred after passengers had to isolate in their cabins even though hand hygiene was implemented.
“Therefore, the ventilation system could have spread the airborne virus between the cabins.
“We know that COVID-19’s predecessor, SARS.CoV-1 did spread on the air in the 2003 outbreak. Several studies have retrospectively explained this pathway of transmission in Hong Kong’s Prince of Wales Hospital as well as in healthcare facilities in Toronto, Canada.
“A WHO review (2009) of the evidence found viral diseases can be transmitted across distances in indoor environments by aerosol or airborne infection and can result in large clusters of infection in a short period.”
Professor Morawska said authorities need to put in place public health precautions to lower airborne transmission by:
* increased ventilation of indoor spaces
* use of natural ventilation
* avoiding air recirculation
* avoiding staying in another person’s direct air flow
* minimizing the number of people sharing the same environment
* providing adequate ventilation in nursing homes, hospitals, shops,
offices, schools, restaurants and cruise ships.
Professor Morawska said virus droplets’ liquid content started to evaporate immediately after being exhaled and some became so small that could travel on air currents, rather than fall to the ground as larger droplets do.
“Such small droplets can carry their viral content meters, even tens of meters, away from the infected person.”
Professor Morawska said it was difficult to directly detect viruses traveling in the air because it took knowledge of the airflow from an infected person and a long sampling period to collect enough copies of the viruses.
“Air transmission research should be undertaken now and its likelihood as a means of spread should be taken seriously with due precautions taken now.
“We have already lost valuable time by ignoring this method of spread and we should act on the presumption that COVID-19 is spreading on the air.”
About this coronavirus research article
Source:
Queensland University of Technology
Media Contacts:
Niki Widdowson – Queensland University of Technology
Image Source:
The image is credited to QUT: Chantal Labbe.
Original Research: Open access
“Airborne transmission of SARS-CoV-2: The world should face the reality”. by Lidia Morawska, Junji Cao.
Environment International doi:10.1016/j.envint.2020.105730.
Abstract
Airborne transmission of SARS-CoV-2: The world should face the reality
Hand washing and maintaining social distance are the main measures recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO) to avoid contracting COVID-19. Unfortunately, these measured do not prevent infection by inhalation of small droplets exhaled by an infected person that can travel distance of meters or tens of meters in the air and carry their viral content. Science explains the mechanisms of such transport and there is evidence that this is a significant route of infection in indoor environments. Despite this, no countries or authorities consider airborne spread of COVID-19 in their regulations to prevent infections transmission indoors. It is therefore extremely important, that the national authorities acknowledge the reality that the virus spreads through air, and recommend that adequate control measures be implemented to prevent further spread of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, in particularly removal of the virus-laden droplets from indoor air by ventilation.
Feel Free To Share This COVID-19 News.
Apple stock stays in buy zone after COVID-19-infected quarterly report
Friday, May 1, 2020 6:11 pm
https://macdailynews.com/2020/05/01/apple-stock-stays-in-buy-zone-after-covid-19-infected-quarterly-report/
Thanks to strong demand for services and wearables and a “phenomenal” online sales period, Apple beat the oddsmakers with a better-than-expected March-quarter report on Thursday, despite challenges from the COVID-19 pandemic. But Apple stock dipped Friday amid a down market.
Patrick Seitz for Investor’s Business Daily:
The Cupertino, Calif.-based company mixed bad news with the good in its fiscal second-quarter report late Thursday. Leading the negative news was a 6.7% year-over-year drop in iPhone revenue as the coronavirus pandemic hit production and consumer demand for smartphones. Apple iPad and Mac computer sales also fell in the quarter.
On the positive side, Apple increased its cash dividend by 6% to 82 cents a share. The board of directors also authorized an increase of $50 billion to the existing share repurchase program, bringing the current stock buyback authorization to over $90 billion.
On the stock market today, Apple stock fell 1.6% to 289.07 as major indexes plunged. Earlier in the session, it was up as much as 1.8% to $299.
At least 10 Wall Street firms raised their price targets on Apple stock after the earnings report. However, three firms cut their price targets.
MacDailyNews Take: What freaked out some analysts was Apple not guiding for Q320, even though it couldn’t be more
understandable.
Anti-5G anger sparks wave of arson attacks across Europe
Friday, May 1, 2020 4:24 pm
https://macdailynews.com/2020/05/01/anti-5g-anger-sparks-wave-of-arson-attacks-across-europe/
Conspiracy theory-fueled opposition to 5G network technology percolated online for years. Then the COVID-19 coronavirus outbreak hit, sparking 5G arson attacks across Europe.
Anti-5G anger sparks wave of arson attacks across Europe
Laurens Cerulus for Politico:
Hanna Linderstål wanted to see how deep the rabbit hole of anti-5G theories would go.
The Stockholm-based researcher had been studying online groups opposed to the new technology for years. Then she watched as the movement reached a tipping point earlier this year amid the coronavirus outbreak — spilling into criminality with a spate of arson attacks against telecom masts. In the space of just a couple of weeks, more than 60 masts have been hit by arson attacks in the U.K.… On the Continent, the Netherlands is the hardest-hit country with 22 arson attacks and three attempted attacks linked to 5G concerns.
The outrage behind these attacks — fear that 5G radiation causes health problems — has been bubbling away on the internet ever since the technology became viable. But it was only this year, when anti-5G groups started spreading rumors that the technology had caused the coronavirus outbreak, that things turned ugly…
The European Commission says on its website that “there is no connection between 5G and COVID-19,” and cites “no evidence that 5G is harmful to people’s health.”
MacDailyNews Take: History tends to repeat; first with radio, then with cellular, then with each new wave 3G, 4G, and, now, 5G. Even without longterm studies, we’ll go out on a limb: 5G doesn’t cause COVID-19, SARS-CoV-2 does. Please do not commit arson as we’re going to need those towers for our 5G iPhones later this year, not to mention that it’s a crime that could prove deadly!
Hundreds of bees drop dead around ‘5G towers’ in California
Friday, August 2, 2019
https://macdailynews.com/2019/08/02/hundreds-of-bees-drop-dead-around-5g-towers-in-california/
Is 5G microwave radiation a carcinogenic, killing bees around 5G cell towers? Bizarre footage showing hundreds of bees dead on the ground surrounding what appeared to be two 5G towers in California has gone viral.
On social media, forums and online blogs, anti-5G activists attribute a slew of maladies to 5G microwave radiation, including cancer, infertility, autism, Alzheimer’s, killing bees, and more. In November 2018, a viral Facebook post blamed a 5G test mast for the mysterious death of 300 birds in the Netherlands (the test actually took place months earlier). Some anti-5G activists share tips on how to damage or destroy expensive 5G towers.
Simon Green for Daily Star:
The superfast broadband has sparked controversy since rolling out this year, with health experts claiming it could have serious side effects on humans. And there are now claims online that bees could also be affected after a video went viral. The clip – taken in Sierra Madre, California – shows the lifeless bodies of the bees lying on the ground…
But others questioned what was seen in the clip. Some pointed out the bees could just be drone bees – which die after mating. Others claimed the poles could not be holding 5G broadband, with one saying: “5G has only been installed in major cities, dude. It’s not in Sierra Madre and it probably never will be.”
MacDailyNews Take: We very much doubt these non-5G towers are killing bees. There could be a local use of a pesticide, perhaps, or another cause that’s totally unrelated to 5G.
Coronavirus Tracking Apps Raise Questions About Bluetooth Security
Dow Jones News
By Catherine Stupp
https://ih.advfn.com/stock-market/NASDAQ/alphabet-GOOGL/stock-news/82345996/coronavirus-tracking-apps-raise-questions-about-bl
Governments and companies are planning to introduce mobile applications that use Bluetooth to track coronavirus infections. Researchers say the technology keeps users' identifying data private, but the complexity of working with Bluetooth raises cybersecurity concerns.
Bluetooth, a widely used technology for connecting devices, has emerged as the technology of choice for tracking the spread of the coronavirus, as the U.S. and European countries decide how to safely reopen businesses in the coming weeks and months. European governments including France, the U.K. and Germany said in recent weeks that they are developing Bluetooth-based mobile apps to notify individuals who came close to someone who has the virus.
Singapore and Australia are already using Bluetooth-based tracing apps. Apple Inc. and Alphabet Inc.'s Google said this month they are working on a Bluetooth system that developers can use to build tracing apps while protecting users' privacy.
Security and privacy researchers say there are advantages, along with potential risks, to using Bluetooth. It reveals less detailed information about a person's location than other technologies, such as GPS. Bluetooth's specifications are several thousand pages long, and that complexity can lead to mistakes by developers, said Ben Seri, vice president for research at cybersecurity firm Armis Inc.
In November, a researcher from the Technical University of Darmstadt in Germany found a vulnerability in how Bluetooth was implemented on devices using Google's Android operating system. Google issued a patch in February. The problem could have allowed hackers to launch remote cyberattacks.
In 2017, Mr. Seri discovered a security problem in how mobile devices handled Bluetooth signals. Hackers could have exploited the bug to move between devices using Bluetooth connections. Apple, Google and other companies issued patches to fix the problem in devices' operating systems. Such flaws are becoming less common as companies improve how they implement Bluetooth, said Mr. Seri.
If many people start using tracing apps, there could be more devices that enable Bluetooth all the time. Creative hackers might look for devices with Bluetooth turned on in their vicinity and try to launch remote cyberattacks, said Eliot Bendinelli, a technologist at London-based nonprofit Privacy International.
Apple and Google have said app developers that use their technology must comply with their privacy and security criteria. For example, users must opt in to share their data. Public health authorities would receive a list of Bluetooth beacons showing devices that were in contact with users who have coronavirus.
The app that France plans to deploy by May 11 won't be able to work on iPhones the way the government intended because Apple appears to prevent the transfer of data collected by Bluetooth coronavirus apps from a device to centralized servers, the country's Digital Minister Cédric O told Bloomberg last week. He said he asked Apple to change the policy.
Apple and Google declined to comment on France's complaint. A Google spokesman referred to the two companies' publication last week of updates to their system that they say will protect privacy and make it more difficult to identify individuals. This includes encrypting the Bluetooth metadata that phones share when they connect using the technology.
Representatives of the companies said Wednesday their technology will let public-health authorities assign users different risk levels and tailor the notifications they send to people accordingly. The risk level will be based on users' proximity and duration of exposure to known coronavirus carriers, and will be calculated on users' devices for privacy and security reasons.
Bluetooth connects devices by changing signals periodically to hide users' unique addresses. The feature is designed to protect privacy, but it could be possible for data to be exposed when a mobile phone connects with other devices nearby, according to a paper published last year by Boston University researchers.
It is unclear whether other apps installed on a phone could collect data from a coronavirus tracing app, David Starobinski, a Boston University professor in electrical and computer engineering who wrote the research, said in an interview. The 2019 paper was published before the coronavirus outbreak and didn't refer to contact-tracing apps.
Individuals would be more secure using a second phone for contact tracing, he said. "Ideally, we'd have a different device that's more isolated from other services," he said.
Technical limitations
Aside from potential security risks, Bluetooth may not be a perfect technology for tracing which people have come close enough to transmit the coronavirus.
Developers of the original Bluetooth protocol said the technology wasn't designed to generate detailed, reliable data about proximity between devices. "The accuracy is limited," said Sven Mattisson, one of the engineers who designed the concept for Bluetooth in 1995 when he worked at Ericsson AB.
"You might interpret a false contact in a parking lot because you get such a strong signal back, even though the contact is far away. But if you're in an office space, you might not receive a signal," said Mr. Mattisson, who is now an adjunct professor in microelectronics at Lund University in Sweden. Signals might be strong in an open space with few people even if they are far apart, but they may be weaker in a crowded enclosed area.
A Bluetooth-based contact-tracing app that sends a signal when two users are close to each other might not recognize when they are separated by a window or walls, the Australian law firm Maddocks wrote last week in a privacy assessment of the country's app. The Australian health ministry said in response that it is seeking advice about the use of Bluetooth from the country's cybersecurity agency.
But the ubiquity of Bluetooth is an advantage amid a pandemic, said Jaap Haartsen, who developed the technology with Mr. Mattisson. It could take years to roll out mobile technology that could be better suited to tracing contacts, he said. Mr. Haartsen is now chief scientist for wireless technologies at Plantronics Inc.'s Poly, a communications services company.
"It was not made for tracing, but at least it can give an indication [of] which other phones have been in close range," he said in an email.
Write to Catherine Stupp at Catherine.Stupp@wsj.com
Today's Logistics Report: Shipping's Bet on Trade; Amazon's Soaring Costs; Stores' Opening Hours
May 01 2020 - 01:25PM
Dow Jones News
By Paul Page
https://ih.advfn.com/stock-market/NASDAQ/amazon-com-AMZN/stock-news/82361848/todays-logistics-report-shippings-bet-on-trade-a
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Shipping companies aren't betting against globalization over the long term even if as they pull back ocean-going capacity this year. The turbulent response around the world to the coronavirus pandemic, with supply chains rattled and shortages of critical goods in many countries, has some world leaders calling for reshoring of manufacturing. Ship owners aren't buying it, the WSJ Logistics Report's Costas Paris writes in a Shipping Matters column, reasoning that the pandemic and the crumbling trade economy is a detour from global growth and not a sea change. BIMCO's Peter Sand says China's sprawling factory sector and its extensive shipping infrastructure gives the country too big an advantage for companies to ignore. Germany's Hapag-Lloyd AG is among the operators committed to ultralarge container ships, and the operator isn't changing course. Manufacturers may add factories close to home, the carrier says, but they won't walk away from China.
E-COMMERCE
Amazon.com Inc.'s soaring sales growth in a stormy retail market is coming at a high cost. The company's sales jumped 26% in the first quarter as consumers locked down at home by the coronavirus restrictions rushed to order goods online. The WSJ's Dana Mattioli reports the company's profit also tumbled 29% to $2.54 billion and that shipping costs in the normally slower quarter skyrocketed 49% to $10.94 billion. The results reflect the central role Amazon has played during the crisis, delivering goods to people stranded at home by shelter-in-place orders. They also show the rapid adjustment the company has undertaken. Amazon carried nearly twice as much inventory on its balance sheet as it counted in the year-ago quarter, and it is adding 175,000 warehouse and delivery workers to handle the surge. The company now projects about $4 billion in costs in the second quarter related to the Covid-19 outbreak.
SUPPLY CHAIN STRATEGIES
The doors to U.S. retail stores will soon start cracking open a bit. Macy's Inc. plans to reopen 68 stores on Monday in states that have loosened restrictions, the WSJ's Suzanne Kapner reports, joining a handful of other retailers that are limping back to life after the coronavirus forced them to shut stores. Macy's Chief Executive Jeff Gennette expects to open all the company's roughly 775 stores in the next six weeks, assuming continued progress in lowering infection rates in the U.S. Best Buy is also looking to open about 200 stores this month, and both retailers will have sharply restrictive operations meant to keep shoppers and consumers safe. The opening plans suggest the growing urgency across a retail sector that's taken big financial hits from the lockdowns meant to slow the coronavirus spread. Sales at department stores plummeted nearly 20% from February to March, according to federal figures...
Stellar Lumens transactions will be monitored for illicit activity
Avatar By REYNALDO May 1, 2020
https://www.crypto-news-flash.com/stellar-lumens-transactions-will-be-monitored-for-illicit-activity/
* Stellar Lumens Development Foundation announces exclusive cooperation with Ellitptic, a firm that provides risk management solutions for crypto businesses and financial institutions.
* The cooperation will allow Ellitptic to monitor the Stellar network for any illicit activity.
The Stellar Development Foundation has announced its cooperation with Elliptic, a risk management solutions firm for cryptocurrencies companies and financial institutions. According to the statement, the cooperation aims to bring greater trust and security to the Stellar network.
To achieve this, Elliptic’s world-first XLM transaction and wallet screening capabilities for XLM has been launched. In addition, the crypto risk firm launched scanning capabilities for XLM wallets. These products were developed over months, along with an infrastructure that allows Stellar to support Elliptic. The risk management firm will use its capabilities to monitor the network for deep web searches, identify money laundering patterns, and collect important data that “links XLM accounts to known entities”.
Reduced privacy for a more secure Stellar Lumens network
Elliptic’s services are available since yesterday, April 30th 2020. The firm is backed by major investors such as Wells Fargo Strategic Capital, the SBI Group and Santander Innoventures. According to the press release, Elliptic’s monitoring software will be compatible with Stellar Lumens. Elliptic’s services have allowed financial institutions, businesses and regulators to identify illicit activities in exchanges and other entities.
The cooperation will also allow the rapid addition to Elliptic’s platform of other Stellar-based assets such as stablecoins. Therefore, having cooperation with Elliptic could encourage the adoption of Stellar Lumens by financial institutions. Denelle Dixon, CEO of the Stellar Development Foundation, says:
Elliptic sets the global standard in preventing, detecting and actively pursuing criminal activity in this emerging industry. Combining their services with the built-in compliance functionality of the Stellar network, we are empowering crypto businesses and financial institutions with stronger tools to manage risk and operate with transparency and accountability.
Simone Maini, Elliptic’s CEO said that the cooperation will give a boost to companies that want to comply with the requirements, laws and regulations that have been imposed on crypto space. Maini added:
As regulations mature, it will become increasingly important for crypto-asset issuers and platform developers to enable their users to stay compliant if adoption is to grow. The Stellar Development Foundation has been ahead of the curve in working with Elliptic on this.
However, some members of the community have criticized the cooperation. Last year, Elliptic was involved in a scandal when the company was accused of allegedly selling private data on its Coinbase clients. So it remains to be seen what the reaction of users and developers on the Stellar network will be.
U.S. Tags Amazon as 'Notorious' -- WSJ
April 30 2020 - 03:02AM
Dow Jones News
https://ih.advfn.com/stock-market/NASDAQ/amazon-com-AMZN/stock-news/82344765/u-s-tags-amazon-as-notorious-wsj
By William Mauldin and Alex Leary
This article is being republished as part of our daily reproduction of WSJ.com articles that also appeared in the U.S. print edition of The Wall Street Journal (April 30, 2020).
WASHINGTON -- The Trump administration accused Amazon.com Inc. of tolerating counterfeit sales on its online platforms in foreign countries, prompting the e-commerce giant to respond that the hit was politically motivated.
The U.S. trade representative's office on Wednesday put Amazon's web domains in Canada, France, Germany, India, and the U.K. on its "notorious markets" list of platforms that are believed to facilitate intellectual-property violations.
The action, which doesn't target Amazon's U.S. platform, was based in part on complaints by U.S. apparel and footwear manufacturers that the company doesn't do an adequate job of vetting sellers on the foreign sites and is slow to respond when complaints of counterfeits are made.
Amazon disputed the findings, linking the action to long-running tensions between President Trump and Amazon's founder and Chief Executive Jeff Bezos.
"This purely political act is another example of the administration using the U.S. government to advance a personal vendetta against Amazon, " an Amazon spokeswoman said in a statement. "Amazon makes significant investments in proactive technologies and processes to detect and stop bad actors and potentially counterfeit products from being sold in our stores."
President Trump has criticized Mr. Bezos for unfavorable coverage in the Washington Post, which Mr. Bezos bought in 2013. The Post says its editorial decisions are independent. Amazon also has contended that it lost out on a Pentagon cloud-computing contract worth up to $10 billion because of improper pressure from Mr. Trump.
White House trade and economic adviser Peter Navarro defended the decision to add the Amazon sites to the notorious-markets list.
"This is an action clearly justified by the behavior of the worst counterfeit-enabler in the world, Amazon," Mr. Navarro said. "The Amazon brain trust would rather fight this out in the media through their swamp-creature spin doctors than clean up their marketplace in the urgent ways necessary to protect and defend the American people from fraud and often physical harm from dangerous counterfeit products."
The Wall Street Journal previously reported that the trade representative was considering taking the action, a highly unusual step.
A version of the report circulating in the administration last week didn't include Amazon, according to people familiar with the matter.
The U.S. trade representative's office added Amazon into a version sent Monday to dozens of people in the administration in a request for a final review of the document, according to one of the people.
Officials involved had to weigh taking the unusual step of targeting the foreign subsidiaries of a U.S. firm, another of the people said.
"It's crossing a line that's never been crossed before," said Claire Reade, senior counsel at Arnold Porter and former assistant U.S. trade representative for China affairs. "It's a departure and it raises the question of whether this is going to end up highlighting tensions the U.S. has with Amazon as a company, or whether it's going to highlight the problem of notorious pirating markets."
The notorious-markets list has been used for years to encourage foreign companies and countries to crack down on piracy and counterfeiting. The targeting of foreign platforms of a prominent American company is likely the first time an U.S.-headquartered company has been targeted by a law aimed at foreign marketplaces. A spokesman for the trade representative's office said he couldn't say whether Wednesday marked the first time a U.S.-headquartered firm was targeted.
The listing doesn't result in any specific penalties but comes as the Trump administration tightens pressure on electronic commerce, including international trade in relatively inexpensive consumer items that avoid tariffs and customs scrutiny.
On a call with reporters, a senior U.S. trade official said companies have complained that seller information is misleading on the Amazon platforms, making it hard to determine who is selling the good, and that the process for removing listings can be "lengthy and burdensome."
Amazon said it had launched a pilot program to help confirm the identity of its sellers through video calls, and prospective sellers are vetted in several ways, the company said.
"In 2019 alone, we invested over $500 million and have more than 8,000 employees protecting our store from fraud and abuse," a company spokeswoman said.
The American Apparel and Footwear Association had formally requested that the U.S. add the Amazon sales platforms in those five countries to the list. The association said its members flagged those sites as the biggest source of problems among Amazon's platforms, with thousands of counterfeit items and listings.
The clothing-and-shoe group is "pleased the USTR provides a regular forum for us to share and air our perspectives on foreign country practices as well as those of physical and online marketplaces," said Stephen Lamar, the association's president. Mr. Lamar highlighted the "counterfeits that too often plague foreign and domestic third-party marketplaces."
Besides Amazon, the annual notorious-markets list once again included the Taobao.com website owned by Chinese e-commerce company Alibaba Group Holding Ltd.
"Taobao remains one of the largest sources of counterfeit sales in China, " the report said. While the report noted improved response times and policies, it said Taobao is still known for its number of counterfeits offered for sale and the "lack of transparency regarding filters and other proactive anticounterfeiting measures."
An Alibaba spokesman said the company "will continue to expand and enhance its robust enforcement programs, engage in meaningful dialogue, and promote advanced collaboration."
Social-media platforms that allow users to buy and sell goods also are drawing scrutiny in Washington. "Right holders have expressed increasing concerns with a growing trend of counterfeit products being offered for sale on e-commerce features related to large platforms, such as WeChat," Tencent Holdings Ltd.'s giant social platform in China, according to the report.
More broadly, the Trump administration has sought to boost intellectual-property protection for drugmakers, Hollywood, the music industry and consumer-products firms in trade agreements, including a recent "phase one" trade pact with China.
In recent years, lobbyists and lawmakers have wrangled over how to address the degree of liability that online platforms should face for identifying and removing pirated electronic content or goods. In some areas, consumer watchdogs warn that officials can go too far in guaranteeing companies' rights and that big drugmakers and other firms may benefit too much from long-term patent and market protections.
Besides the notorious-markets list, the trade representative's office on Wednesday also released its new list of countries that don't take sufficient steps to protect intellectual property rights. The "priority watch list" includes Algeria, Argentina, Chile, China, India, Indonesia, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Ukraine and Venezuela.
China recently submitted a road map for addressing intellectual-property rights as a part of the "phase one" trade agreement, and the U.S. trade official said Wednesday that Washington is reviewing the blueprint and continuing to work with Beijing on the issue.
--Timothy Puko contributed to this article.
Write to William Mauldin at william.mauldin@wsj.com and Alex Leary at alex.leary@wsj.com
tedpeele, you shared this about GTHR (below) and it went up a reported 1280%, is that float # of 276K accurate? 35.90M shares in issue looks accurate. I bought a large amount and would like to know if anyone has an idea how the company's testing is coming along...Investors3
COVID nugget found in Genethera GTHR (tiny mcap) 10Q just filed:
"Presently the Company is considering ways to apply its molecular robotic technology to address the COVID-19 pandemic."
GTHR is totally undiscovered so far, but I think that's about to change.
COVID-19 is a crossover disease. Food safety is of paramount importance.
GTHR profile: GeneThera specializes in creating diagnostic tests and vaccines for "Crossover Diseases". These are diseases found in animals within our food chain that have the ability to affect humans in a negative manner. Examples would be E:Coli, Mad Cow disease, and Johne's disease.
website: http://www.genethera.net/en/
IMO there is a reason they started filing again in late February!
https://www.otcmarkets.com/stock/GTHR/disclosure
Hut 8: The Struggles of One of Canada’s Largest Miners
Matt Yamamoto
https://www.coindesk.com/hut-8-the-struggles-of-one-of-canadas-largest-miners
For an industry whose foundation was built on transparency, there is a still lot about the cryptocurrency space that remains opaque. Companies are hesitant to disclose revealing information unless required to do so. Thankfully, the filings of publicly listed companies provide an excellent, yet underutilized, resource for understanding crucial details that would otherwise be unknown to the community.
CoinDesk Research presents an in-depth look into one of the largest publicly listed mining companies, Hut 8. The halving will serve as a pivotal moment for the industry as a reduction in the block reward subsidy puts several miners’ operations in jeopardy. In this report, we get a more intimate look into the space as we delve into Hut 8’s financials and identify key risks & concerns.
Some takeaways:
* As the network hashrate continues to grow, Hut 8’s revenue and margins have decreased considerably over the past couple quarters. With the halving reducing the block subsidies to miners, Hut 8’s existing mining rigs are likely to become unprofitable unless bitcoin prices receive a notable boost.
* Management is interested in upgrading to more efficient ASIC miners. This will likely require additional funding which will be difficult under the current macro environment coupled with the departure of its CEO who was pivotal in the company’s previous funding rounds.
* Given Hut 8’s large amounts of fixed interest rate debt collateralized by its bitcoin inventory, the company is essentially making a levered bet on bitcoin prices going higher. Any price fluctuations will have a serious impact on both revenue and the value of its assets.
* A peculiar accounting change that involved previously recognized impairments on equipment drastically altered the financial results. Adding more reason for concern, one of the Board’s Audit committee members resigned from her position the same day that the 2019 audited financial statements were released.
For more detail and further insights into one of the sector’s largest publicly listed companies, download our free report.
Your welcome. Here is a good article that includes a nice chart (about half way down) showing exactly how much bitcoin went up in the 1st halving (2012) and the 2nd halving (2016), which might be a good indicator for its 3rd halving (next month)!
Bitcoin Halving, Explained
https://www.coindesk.com/bitcoin-halving-explainer
Walker, Thank you for the update, I appreciate your detailed information!
I can see the model that I need for each floor of our home, but I will need to investigate what model for a vehicle. Thanks again! Investors3
Alphabet Posts Sales Rise, With A Caveat -- WSJ
https://ih.advfn.com/stock-market/NASDAQ/alphabet-GOOGL/stock-news/82332495/alphabet-posts-sales-rise-with-a-caveat-wsj
By Rob Copeland
This article is being republished as part of our daily reproduction of WSJ.com articles that also appeared in the U.S. print edition of The Wall Street Journal (April 29, 2020).
Google's parent posted strong results in what the company called "a tale of two quarters," with a head start in advertising earlier this year making up for the crunch of the global pandemic later.
Alphabet Inc.'s results add to indications that Silicon Valley might weather the economic slowdown better than others in the corporate world. One heavy caveat: Alphabet executives said that company performance fell off sharply as the coronavirus crisis accelerated, and cautioned that they couldn't predict how the coming months would turn out. Chief Executive Sundar Pichai said that March produced "a significant and sudden slowdown in ad revenues."
Alphabet reported total revenue of $41.2 billion for the first quarter, up 13% compared with a year earlier. Though the company doesn't provide future guidance for earnings and frequently diverges from market expectations, this was a particularly well-timed reveal for a company that has been a model of growth during its 22 years of existence.
Analysts polled by FactSet had expected revenue of $40.8 billion. The company's shares gained more than 7% in after-hours trading after the release.
The Alphabet results represent a significant public hint of how the major technology companies are faring in an economy brought low by the Covid-19 pandemic. The conglomerate's many arms overlap with tech rivals reporting earnings later this week. Facebook Inc. and Microsoft Corp. report on Wednesday, while Amazon.com Inc. and Apple Inc. follow on Thursday.
Snap Inc. reported another tech surprise to the upside last week, when it posted growth in users and revenue, sending its shares up more than 30%.
Alphabet's operating profit came in at $8 billion, up from $6.6 billion a year ago. The company makes most of its money from online advertising in areas such as search, where many major customers are pulling back sharply in industries including travel and retail. The YouTube unit, on the other hand, has an opportunity to grab eyeballs, and associated advertising, from homebound users turning to the video platform in lockdown.
Google's revenue has risen in every quarter of its history.
"People are relying on Google's services more than ever, and we've marshalled our resources and product development in this urgent moment," Mr. Pichai said in a statement.
He said on a call with analysts that coronavirus-related searches were, at peak, coming in at four times the pace of equivalent queries during the Super Bowl. A few minutes later, however, executives cautioned that they weren't sure whether they could make money off the increased activity.
Despite the encouraging overall results, Google showed signs of a slowdown across the board that could also affect other tech giants. Chief Financial Officer Ruth Porat called it "a tale of two quarters," with the period bifurcated by the start of U.S. quarantine orders in March.
Advertising revenue on the company's traditional properties like search -- its longtime flagship franchise -- was tracking down more than 10% year over year by the end of March, Ms. Porat said, a possible indicator for advertising rivals Amazon and Facebook. New hardware activations of devices fell in the first quarter, a potentially discouraging sign for Apple. "Other Bets," a category that includes theoretically more-static outlying efforts like self-driving-car division Waymo, lost more than before.
YouTube's advertising revenue, a small but growing part of Alphabet, did better, up 33%. That growth, too, was down dramatically by the end of the quarter, the company said.
Questions remain about what comes next. Alphabet's first-quarter earnings report includes only a few weeks of results during which lockdown orders first swept the U.S. Some of the company's biggest advertisers, such as travel agencies, entertainment brands and even Amazon have said they plan to pull back on marketing more -- even if the country opens back up soon without major complications. Morgan Stanley analysts project that online advertising will suffer more this year than during the 2008 financial crisis.
"The second quarter is going to catch the brunt of it," said analyst Mark Shmulik of AllianceBernstein.
And yet Silicon Valley has found itself in an unusually advantageous position during the public-health crisis. Less than two months ago, Google and its peers were in the government's crosshairs. The Justice Department was undertaking a wide-ranging antitrust investigation, and the Trump administration was probing Google Health for potential civil-rights violations regarding its trove of sensitive patient data.
While those inquiries are continuing, Google and others are now engaged in many public efforts to stem the pandemic. In addition to running testing sites in California for Covid-19, the disease caused by the new coronavirus, the company is developing software that would alert users when they have potentially been exposed to people infected with the virus. The technology, a partnership with rival Apple, is slated to be released in May, though it remains to be seen how widely it will be adopted.
Write to Rob Copeland at rob.copeland@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
I_like_bb_stock, any updates on KNOS? I bought some 3 weeks ago as I liked the potential and benefit of their virus killing air cleaners, any idea when they will be caught up with production orders, so I can get one for my home and vehicle?
Your Welcome, budgetthis!
I agree with your insight...
Apple supplier AMS AG gives upbeat outlook, shares up 22%
Wednesday, April 29, 2020
Shares in sensor producer AMS AG jumped 22% after the Apple supplier gave an upbeat forecast for the current quarter and the remainder of the year, soothing investors who fear a slump in smartphone demand due to the coronavirus crisis.
AMS is best-known as the main sensor supplier of Apple’s TrueDepth Camera system found in high-end iPhones and iPads that’s used for Face ID facial recognition technology and Animoji/Memoji, among other uses.
https://macdailynews.com/2020/04/29/apple-supplier-ams-ag-gives-upbeat-outlook-shares-up-22/
Kirsti Knolle for Reuters:
AMS, which is in the process of taking over the leading car headlight producer Osram to diversify into the auto business, said demand from smartphone makers continued to be strong despite the pandemic.
It forecast a profit (EBIT) margin of 17-20% on revenue of $440-480 million for the second quarter after reaching $501 million in revenue and a margin of 20% in the January-March period.
The gains in the Swiss-listed company’s shares erased part of their 60% drop this year amid investor worries about demand from its main customer Apple, weak auto trends at Osram and high levels of debt.
MacDailyNews Take: Coincidentally, one year ago, nearly to the day, “Shares of chipmaker AMS AG jumped more than 20% Tuesday morning after the Austrian group posted an upbeat outlook for the second quarter,” CNBC reported.
Gene Munster offers comfort for long-term Apple shareholders
Apple will report March quarter (fiscal Q220) results on Thursday, April 30th. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns, the March and June quarters will be messy for all companies, including Apple, Loup Ventures’ Gene Munster says as he offers Apple shareholders hope longer term.
https://macdailynews.com/2020/04/28/gene-munster-offers-comfort-for-long-term-apple-shareholders/
Gene Munster for Loup Ventures:
While the numbers are noisy, we expect investors will leave the March results with greater comfort that the company will be a return to its growth curve next year based on its cash position and commentary about upcoming products. We believe this will lay the foundation for shares of AAPL to continue to reach new highs in the years to come.
Apple’s products are indispensable in keeping people connected at work and with friends as we shelter at home. Telemedicine, Facetime, streaming, contactless payments, remote health monitoring, and distance learning are all global trends accelerated during this period with Apple’s support today and in the years ahead. Apple entered the pandemic strong, and the company’s products are even more a foundation of our lives compared to last year.
In this historically difficult period, Apple will not be immune. It should be expected that Apple’s Jun-20 quarter will be significantly lower than the Mar-20 in terms of revenue and earnings and viewed as an aberration. For June we’re expecting revenue of $46B, compared to $51B in March.
Sep-20 will likely be a transition quarter as the economy comes back online. Economic growth and vitality should be expected to quicken through the September quarter as the unprecedented fiscal and monetary support globally begins to take. We expect by Mar-21 growth will have returned.
MacDailyNews Take: Apple shareholders should have hope long term as the company is very strong and, after we get through this obviously aberrant economic period, we expect Apple to bounce back well.
I agree with you that the halving of bitcoin will definitely affect its price...below is a current article prediction, but I like some of the much higher predictions that I have shared previously on the Bitcoin message board! https://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/board.aspx?board_id=26047
Will the Bitcoin price rise after the halving? Expert take
https://www.crypto-news-flash.com/will-the-bitcoin-price-rise-after-the-halving-expert-takes/
Major Donations Are Coming From Crypto Industry to Fight COVID-19
JINIA SHAWDAGOR
APR 26, 2020
These crypto firms are joining the fight against COVID-19. Will this move highlight the benefits of cryptocurrencies and establish the industry?
https://cointelegraph.com/news/major-donations-are-coming-from-crypto-industry-to-fight-covid-19
All over the world, doctors, nurses and medical resources are strained as the fight against the coronavirus continues. In response, many charitable organizations and philanthropists from various industries have come forward to offer their support.
In the cryptocurrency industry, companies such as BitMEX, Binance and the Stellar Foundation have been making headlines week after week for being at the forefront in an attempt to make sizable donations to COVID-19 relief funds. Here is a look at some of the biggest and most remarkable donations from crypto-related companies.
Binance
As early as Jan. 25, Changpeng Zhao, the CEO of a top-ranking crypto exchange Binance, announced in a tweet that his company has pledged to donate $1.5 million (10M RMB) to help the victims of the coronavirus in Wuhan, China. The funds are to be donated to the Chinese authorities to purchase medical supplies in the wake of the disastrous pandemic.
Through Binance Charity, a nonprofit blockchain-powered donation arm of the company, an initiative titled “Binance for Wuhan” that kicked off by supplying 20,000 testing kits, 366,000 pairs of gloves, 5,280 bottles of hand sanitizer and 388 oxygen concentrators among other kinds of supplies.
Binance Charity went further, announcing a new fundraising project that aimed to tackle the coronavirus globally. The company aims to raise $5 million in cryptocurrencies that would go toward buying medical supplies for countries most affected by COVID-19. Helen Hai, the head of Binance Charity, said that: “The most important element of human life is to show compassion and help others as we can, without the limitation or restriction of borders.”
Stellar Foundation
At the beginning of April, the Stellar Development Foundation announced the launch of the XLM-donation-matching program powered by Stellar-based Lumentrhopy, a fundraiser that helps charitable organizations accept Stellar Lumens.
One of the nonprofits, with which the SDF plans to match donations, is with the Tor Project. Reports indicated that SDF is set to match donations to a total of $79,300, which adds up to about 1.9 million XLM tokens. The Stellar Development Fund will also match donations to Unicef France; Heifer International, an organization fighting hunger through offering support for small scale farmers; and Watsi, a nonprofit that streamlines health care financing through building technology. In a conversation with Cointelegraph, Lauren Thorbjornsen, the director of communications and public relations at SDF, said:
“The Stellar Development Foundation is fortunate to have XLM reserves and an active community. Combining the power of those two things, we’ve been able to work together to help organizations (UNICEF, The Tor Project, Heifer International, Watsi, Freedom of the Press and Women Who Code) that are creating vital change in the world.”
She also mentioned that SDF has “worked with Stellar network partner, Lumenthropy, to give back to this group of charities,” which they believe are relevant to some of the pressing challenges given the unfolding crisis.
The Giving Block
On March 23, The Giving Block, a company that helps nonprofit charitable organizations accept crypto donations, announced the start of the #cryptoCOVID19 alliance. The initiative wants to unite the crypto community in the fight against the coronavirus. Gitcoin, one of the partners in the campaign, kicked off the donation by matching $100,000 in Ether (ETH) on the Dai platform. The Giving Block has also partnered with the likes of Brave, Gemini and Axiom Finance to raise $500,000 in crypto donations.
In response to a question about how the company ensures transparency throughout the process, Alex Wilson, the co-founder of The Giving Block, responded by saying:
“We vet all of the nonprofits we work with to make sure they are legitimate and putting the funds to good use. All the crypto donations (BTC, ETH, LTC, BCH, ZEC, GUSD) all go directly to the nonprofit’s wallets and can be converted to USD so they can use the funds on the front lines immediately.”
He also added that “all registered nonprofits must report their cryptocurrency donations and include it in their annual filings.”
Ripple Labs
In a commitment to the global response by organizations and individuals concerning the COVID-19 pandemic, Ripple Labs announced its donation of $200,000 on March 25. The company has donated $100,000 to the Tipping Point Community, a nonprofit organization based in San Francisco, which later raised the total donation to $1.1 million for victims of the coronavirus in the U.S.
Besides, Ripple Lab’s donations will also go to the Silicon Valley Community Foundation, which is a dedicated regional fund in response to the coronavirus outbreak in Silicon Valley. While dwelling on the impact and transparency of donations during this period, Cointelegraph spoke to a Ripple spokesperson who said that: “Ripple is working with local Bay Area partners who are on the frontlines to help our communities who have been heavily impacted by COVID-19.” The spokesperson continued:
“Ripple and its co-founder, Chris Larsen, have together donated $5 million to local food banks and meal service providers to combat food scarcity, and $1.1 million to the COVID-19 emergency funds of Tipping Point, an organization leading the local crisis response.”
BitMEX
BitMEX, the derivatives exchange backed by Arthur Hayes, recently announced that it is donating a total of $2.5 million in support of the fight against the coronavirus. In an announcement, BitMEX stated that the funds will be directed to four organizations at the forefront of the fight against the pandemic. These organizations include a biosecurity program called the Nuclear Threat Initiative, the Gates Philanthropy Partners, Our World in Data and OpenMinded.
In a statement, Hayes said that the company is “committed to thoughtful grant-making and ensuring that” its “actions during the COVID-19 crisis can make the biggest impact now and in the future.”
Golem
Golem, a computing network, is another contributor from the crypto sector to join the fight against COVID-19 through the Folding@Homes project. Golem and blockchain platform Tezos have set aside hundreds of Tezos coins (XTZ) that will be given to the biggest F@H donor by the end of April.
Cointelegraph reported earlier that there were around 20 teams from Tezos that had donated different resources to the F@H initiative by March 12. Another major contributor to the initiative is Ether miner CoreWeave, which has donated computational power of about 6,000 GPUs. Nvidia has also contributed toward the project by urging gamers to donate unutilized GPU computing resources.
Notably, blockchain company Bitfury announced on March 31 that the Amsterdam-based firm had dedicated some of its GPU computer nodes to the “Folding@Home” research project to help organizations look into the coronavirus.
Real Items
In a slightly different use of computing power, blockchain company Real Items announced that it would be working with microfiber manufacturer Tricol Group’s factories in Seattle and China to track the authenticity of their production of KN95 masks using blockchain technology.
The United States Food and Drug Administration had recently approved the use of KN95 masks for health care workers, which are manufactured in accordance with Chinese rather than American standards, as N95 masks are becoming increasingly hard to find.
Jack Dorsey
On April 7, Jack Dorsey, the CEO of Twitter and the founder of Square payment solution, announced that he had moved $1 billion to his newly started company called Start Small LLC, which currently aims to fight COVID-19. Notably, the fund is around 28% of his wealth. Dorsey promised that the funds will be operated transparently with a #startsmall tracker.
Dorsey is also a well-known supporter of Bitcoin (BTC). Addressing the U.S. government, he proposed that they unite together to use existing technology such as Square’s Cash App to seamlessly help people during the pandemic — even the unbanked.
Crypto industry
As more blockchain and crypto-related companies join the fight, it is becoming evident that blockchain technology can be used beyond solving the challenges of the financial world. According to some, such moments like these will push the dialogue forward on the subject of using cryptocurrencies daily.
Related: Coronavirus Crisis Accelerates CBDC Race, Cash No Longer Untouchable
For example, while Thorbjornsen believes that the dominance of paper cash is still strong, she agreed that the current pandemic will further increase talks about the use of blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies. According to Wilson, the pandemic has shown that the crypto community can collaborate despite various disagreements:
“COVID-19 has shown that the cryptocurrency community is willing to put differences aside and come together to support those in need during difficult times.”
New Stellar Foundation Member Would Rather Buidl Than Hodl
BENJAMIN PIRUS
APR 23, 2020
One of the Stellar Development Foundation's recent hires said he is personally more concerned with industry growth than trading or holding individual assets.
https://cointelegraph.com/news/new-stellar-foundation-member-would-rather-buidl-than-hodl
International and Public Affairs professor, Ronaldo Lemos, a recent addition to the Stellar Development Foundation, or SDF, said his personal interests align more with industry growth than asset holding or trading.
"I'm more into using crypto as a tool to improve public institutions," Lemos told Cointelegraph when asked about his crypto holdings and trading activities.
Lemos has worked with blockchain for governmental use cases
The professor detailed a specific example of his blockchain endeavors, which includes working on signature verification via blockchain technology.
"I am one of the co-founders of Mudamos.org, a blockchain-enabled platform that allows citizens to propose draft bills in Congress in Brazil using digital signatures," Lemos said, adding:
"Using Mudamos we have enable at last six new laws in Brazil at state, city and federal levels.
Working with Stellar in the process
Looking to add general public awareness around Stellar with the team, Lemos expressed excitement in blockchain tech. "With any new technology, it takes time to build the network effects that drive mainstream adoption but it's worth the wait when it has the potential to change lives like Stellar does," he said.
With accessibility issues, as well as other difficulties, the recently added SDF board of director member described the current financial system as outdated worldwide. He pointed toward Stellar as a solution.
"In addition, from the very beginning of my work in blockchain tech, I have always thought it has a huge institutional potential, such as to build better digital IDs, better KYC processes, and help improve governmental services," Lemos added, referring to Know Your Customer practices.
Cointelegraph Brazil covered Lemos' Mudamos project in 2019, explaining the endeavor's push for efficiency.
WarnerMedia inks deal with Apple to distribute HBO Max
Monday, April 27, 2020
WarnerMedia has inked a deal with Apple to distribute HBO Max, its forthcoming streaming service, set to launch on May 27th, via the Apple TV app on Mac, iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, Apple TV 4K, and Apple TV HD.
Dade Hayes for Deadline:
Under the deal, HBO Max will be available on Apple devices and integrated with the Apple TV app on iPhone, iPad, iPod touch and Apple TV.
At launch, customers will be able to access HBO Max on iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, Apple TV 4K and Apple TV HD. Customers with second and third generation Apple TV models can stream HBO Max content from their iPhone or iPad to their TV via AirPlay. Existing HBO Now customers who are billed through the App Store and HBO subscribers through Apple TV channels will be able to get HBO Max for free. New customers of Max will be able to subscribe directly in the app using in-app purchase.
On the Apple TV app, which was revamped a year ago, subscribers will be able to find programming through the Watch Now section and a dedicated HBO Max room and search with Siri voice technology.
MacDailyNews Take: Although not specifically reported, we believe Apple will also distribute HBO Max via the Apple TV on Macintosh, too, as HBO is currently offered on Apple’s TV app for Mac in the Watch Now section for $14.99/month. HBO Max on Macs!
Why nobody on Wall Street really cares about Apple’s iPhone delay
Monday, April 27, 2020 3:38 pm
No Comments
Shares of Apple barely budged on Monday following a report that Apple would push back the production of its latest iPhones by roughly a month…
https://macdailynews.com/2020/04/27/why-nobody-on-wall-street-really-cares-about-apples-iphone-delay/
Brian Sozzi for Yahoo Finance:
If you’re Apple, it pays to have gobs of cash and a gazillion plugged in sell-side analysts obsessively covering your stock.
At first blush, one would think news of a delay of any kind for fresh iPhones would be negative to Apple’s stock price. Not necessarily for a few reasons, strategists say.
First, a delay in the production ramp has been discussed at length on Wall Street and factored into a good chunk of profit estimates on Apple and the stock… More important is that Apple is still — apparently — planning to have its new iPhones in the market before the critical holiday shopping season. By then, many would agree the U.S. economy will be in far better shape than it is today and interest in buying a new iPhone higher.
MacDailyNews Take: In the light of recent events, a month or so is nothing. As long as Apple makes the Christmas 2020 shopping season with 5G-capable iPhones, everything will be fine.
Germany dumps centralized COVID-19 contact tracing plan, backs Apple – Google approach
Monday, April 27, 2020
Germany changed course on Sunday over which type of smartphone technology it wanted to use to attempt a COVID-19 contact tracing architecture, ditching…
https://macdailynews.com/2020/04/27/germany-dumps-centralized-covid-19-contact-tracing-plan-backs-apple-google-approach/
Apple and Google look to rebrand ‘contact tracing’ as ‘exposure notification’
Monday, April 27, 2020
Apple and Google, working together on a COVID-19 contact tracing system are now rebranding their tools as “exposure notification.”
https://macdailynews.com/2020/04/27/apple-and-google-look-to-rebrand-contact-tracing-as-exposure-notification/
Britain’s NHS rejects Apple-Google COVID-19 contact-tracing scheme
Monday, April 27, 2020
Britain’s NHS has rejected the Apple-Google COVID-19 contact-tracing scheme. The UK’s coronavirus contact-tracing app is set to use a different model…
https://macdailynews.com/2020/04/27/britains-nhs-rejects-apple-google-covid-19-contact-tracing-scheme/
Stellar Foundation Adds College Professor and Dropbox Brass
BENJAMIN PIRUS
APR 22, 2020
https://cointelegraph.com/news/stellar-foundation-adds-college-professor-and-dropbox-brass
The Stellar Development Foundation added two member to its board of directors, bolstering the experience held on its roster.
The Stellar Development Foundation recently added two new members to its board of directors.
In an April 21 statement provided to Cointelegraph, Dropbox chief communications officer, Lin-Hua Wu, as well as International and Public Affairs professor, Ronaldo Lemos, now sit on the foundation's board of directors. As a partner at PNM Advogados, Lemos also holds legal expertise.
The Stellar Development Foundation, a non-profit entity formed approximately six years ago, looks after Stellar's open-source blockchain, pushing its progress. Similar to Ripple, Stellar aims to smoothen the world of global payments.
Wu comes with a background in tech
Working for a mainstream company such as Dropbox, Wu logically adds technology know-how to the Stellar Development Foundation, or SDF, the statement said. Wu also formerly worked as Square's head of corporate communications.
"At a time when education and awareness is more important than ever, Lin-Hua’s deep expertise in communications, branding, and finance will be an integral component to how we push blockchain technology into the mainstream," SDF CEO Denelle Dixon said in the statement.
Lemos adds legal and educational experience
Lemos comes to the SDF with experience in the fields of law and academia. In addition to co-founding Rio de Janeiro's Institute for Technology and Society, Lemos also works as a professor at New York's Columbia University, according to information from the statement, as well as LinkedIn.
"Ronaldo’s vast understanding of the challenges and opportunities of emerging technology, as a lawyer and academic, is vital as we seek to navigate the evolving regulatory and policy landscape," Dixon explained.
Just a few weeks ago, the SDF gave out millions of its XLM coins to those in need, surrounding the coronavirus pandemic.
Cointelegraph reached out to the SDF for additional details, but received no response as of press time. This article will be updated accordingly should a response come in.
Amazon (AMZN) to Report Q1 Earnings: What's in the Offing?
Zacks Equity Research
April 27, 2020
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/amazon-amzn-report-q1-earnings-141402482.html?.tsrc=fin-srch
Amazon AMZN is scheduled to report first-quarter 2020 results on Apr 30.
We note that the Zacks Consensus Estimate for first-quarter 2020 earnings currently stands at $6.35 per share, down 1.1% over the past 30 days. The figure suggests a decline of 10.4% from the year-ago quarter.
Further, Amazon expects first-quarter net sales between $69 billion and $73 billion. The figure is anticipated to improve in the range of 16-22% on a year-over-year basis. Management projects an unfavorable impact of approximately 5 basis points (bps) from foreign exchange rates.
Notably, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for net sales is pegged at $73.42 billion, which indicates an improvement of 22.9% from the prior-year quarter.
The company surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate in two of the trailing four quarters. It has a trailing four-quarter positive earnings surprise of 27.47%, on average.
Consequences of the Coronavirus Outbreak
During the first quarter, Amazon witnessed a flurry of orders driven by customers’ unwillingness to visit offline stores on fears of contracting the novel coronavirus. This is likely to have contributed to the company’s performance in the quarter to be reported.
However, overflowing orders have been slowing down the delivery speed of Amazon. Further, delivery issues and rapidly spreading COVID-19 infection resulted in a temporary pause on the delivery of non-essential and luxury items during the to-be-reported quarter. This is likely to get reflected in the company’s first-quarter results.
Nevertheless, the e-commerce giant left no stone unturned to cater to the rising customer demand and promoting worker welfare amid the coronavirus pandemic.
The company’s hiring spree in a bid to improve delivery timings, and keeping the delivery vans and stores sanitized has been noteworthy.
Further, Amazon’s Whole Foods stores in United States, Canada and the U.K. dedicated an entire hour to serve only senior citizens in an attempt to keep them safe from crowd as they are more susceptible to COVID-19 infection.
All these endeavors are likely to have helped the stock to gain investor optimism during the to-be-reported quarter. Moreover, these initiatives are expected to have strengthened Amazon’s competitive edge against retailers like Walmart WMT and Kroger KR in the quarter under review.
Retail Strategies & Prime Benefits: A Key Catalyst
Amazon’s strengthening global footprint in the retail market on the back of aggressive strategies, expanding seller and buyer base, distribution strength and robust online retail platform are expected to have driven the first-quarter performance.
In a bid to expand presence in India, the company entered into a long-term agreement with Future Retail in the beginning of the first quarter, which will authorize it as the official online sales channel for Future’s retail stores. Along with this, it announced $1 billion investment in the country.
Apart from these, the company’s growing physical presence primarily backed by rapidly expanding cashierless store Amazon Go and Amazon 4-star store is expected to get reflected in the to-be-reported quarter’s results.
Prime benefits, which include strong loyalty system, customer friendly offers, quick grocery delivery services, robust Prime Free One-Day and Prime Free Same-Day Delivery services, are expected to have aided Amazon’s customer momentum despite the coronavirus pandemic.
During quarter under review, the company expanded its Same-Day Delivery program by making same-day delivery service available in the cities of Philadelphia, Phoenix, Orlando and Dallas for Prime members. The company has also built mini-fulfillment centers, which are first of their kind buildings.
Apart from the Prime-based retail benefits, the strengthening original content and the overall portfolio on Prime Video is expected to have driven the Prime subscription during the to-be-reported quarter.
Strengthening AWS Services
Amazon’s expanding cloud services portfolio is expected to get reflected in the first-quarter results.
During the to-be-reported quarter, Amazon Web Services (AWS) collaborated with Conduent CNDT, which offers a business process services. Per the deal, Conduent’s Maven has been made available on AWS in a bid to manage the coronavirus pandemic in an efficient way.
Further, AWS made its new security service namely Amazon Detective generally available to customers. Notably, the service helps customers to analyze, investigate and identify the source of security issues with the help of interactive visualizations by implementing machine learning, statistical analysis, and graph theory on the collected log data.
We believe all these moves are likely to have helped Amazon in winning customers. This, in turn, is expected to have driven AWS’ revenues in the quarter to be reported.
Expanding Smart Devices Portfolio
During first-quarter 2020, Amazon unveiled Fire TV Edition for Auto that allows direct integration of Fire TV into in-vehicle entertainment system. It provides access to rich content and shows from streaming services by utilizing vehicle’s Wi-Fi or LTE connection, mobile hotspot or any WAN-enabled device.
Further, the company introduced Fire TV Edition for Soundbars that power over 50 TV and soundbar models in more than 10 countries.
Additionally, Amazon unveiled Fire TV Edition for Operators, which allows television and telecommunication operators to offer Fire TV Edition devices.
All these smart devices and strengthening Alexa features are likely to have aided in delivering better user experience that is expected to get reflected in the company’s to-be-reported results.
French Artist Launches Personal Crypto Tied to Value of His Career and Output ANA ALEXANDRE
APR 21, 2020
https://cointelegraph.com/news/french-artist-launches-personal-crypto-tied-to-value-of-his-career-and-output
Paris-based artist Ben Elliot is launching what he claims to be the first ever personal crypto backed by the market value of his artworks.
Paris-based artist Ben Elliot’s efforts to revolutionize the artwork purchasing and collecting experience have resulted in what he claims to be the world’s first personal cryptocurrency directly pegged to a career.
The Stellar blockchain-based digital currency is called Ben Elliot Token (BET) and is expected to launch in 2021. The value of the token will rise along with the market value of Elliot’s artwork.
Not a stablecoin though
However, BET will not be a stablecoin as it may seem at first. “Ben Elliot Token is following my journey as an artist and my market value. Art goes up and down all the time but is a very stable asset if you consider that a young artist can only go up if he works well enough to make it happen,” Elliot explained to Cointelegraph.
The artist says he chose Stellar because he likes the project and ambition behind the Stellar blockchain as it represents “one single network useful for different systems.” Currently, Elliot is working on the pricing mechanism functionality, which he expects to disclose closer to the end of 2020.
When asked on what trading platforms he is going to list the token, Elliot said that he favors peer-to-peer exchanges, but did not name any of them at this point.
Collecting tokens as art
BET is designed as a decentralized cryptocurrency. Elliot calls the token an artwork itself, saying that he hopes that BET will become one of the few new forms of art that will change the industry.
Aside from collecting BET as an artwork, interested parties will be able to invest in it for profits, exchange with any other currency or spend it on artworks and events. Elliot further said:
“BET holders will be part of a community of forward-thinkers involved in the emerging conversations about the creative and financial fields. They will be able to access an online platform where we will offer a program of exhibitions and exclusive contents. They will also be offered to participate in IRL events where they can gather with other holders, meet and discover a program of talks, screenings, etc. At last, they can also convert the tokens into physical artworks at a preferred price.”
Commenting on the token’s compliance with regulations, Elliot said that “people will be subject to those of their countries in matters of crypto assets.”
Although Elliot claims BET to be the first ever personal token directly tied to his career evolution, Alex Masmej, founder of a company offering loans against non-fungible tokens, just recently raised $20,000 after selling his personal tokens on the Ethereum network.
Masmej promised investors voting rights in major life decisions, participation in his seed funding round, and exclusive sessions.
When art meets money in the digital age
Generally, the art and collectibles industry has embraced blockchain’s benefits. By registering a work of art on blockchain, galleries and art registration services can ensure the transparency of artworks’ history and physical characteristics.
Earlier this year, investment platform CurioInvest and Seychelles-based digital asset exchange MERJ Exchange Ltd. announced the development of a Car Token (CT1) token, which is set to be pegged to the value of collectible cars. Individuals can invest in multiple cars.
Bitcoin: Not a Safe Haven, but Maybe Something More
https://ih.advfn.com/stock-market/COIN/BTCUSD/crypto-news/82316377/bitcoin-not-a-safe-haven-but-maybe-something-mor
Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies could provide some of the best solutions to drive a new economy in the post-COVID-19 world
RICHARD DENNIS
27 MINUTES AGO
Bitcoin: Not a Safe Haven, but Maybe Something More
https://cointelegraph.com/news/bitcoin-not-a-safe-haven-but-maybe-something-more
The COVID-19 pandemic has revealed Bitcoin’s most important value, and it’s not the price — but its decentralized nature.
Born within a financial meltdown and crisis, Bitcoin (BTC) has found itself again in the role of a proto-savior for the current failings of fiat and national currencies. Those failings namely being that national fiat currencies continue to be printed at a whim when political leaders are caught in a catch-22 between mass poverty and mass currency inflation — with any result likely being a compromised and unsatisfying mélange of stagflation.
Nevertheless, Bitcoin still isn’t immune from the pressures of a world steered toward uncharted waters. While one might respect the philosophical rigor of Bitcoin, it goes without saying that it is as vulnerable as any other asset in a panic-driven liquidity crunch. In a global economy where supply chain pressures have somehow made toilet paper the most valuable currency of all, Bitcoin could very easily be starting to lose the narrative that it is a store of value equivalent to digital gold. The fact that Bitcoin was an early asset sold off, initially outpacing the crash in traditional markets, shows it is not so much a store of value as a speculative asset, at least at this moment in history.
For five days in March, as the Dow Jones Industrial Average ultimately shed what would be one-third of its value, Bitcoin felt the hurt of a panic-driven liquidity crunch, likely driven by institutional investors pulling out, and losing over half its value — from $9,100 to $4,100. Bitcoin was the first asset that people sold when they needed cash. You certainly don’t want to be waiting on a long transaction time when everyone is panic-buying toilet tissue and nature calls.
A familiar position
Bitcoin still hasn’t lost nearly as much as it did when the bubble of its $20,000 peak burst at the end of 2017, shedding an even more jaw-dropping two-thirds in value. Putting aside the fact Bitcoin lost more in total value, perhaps inflated by speculative froth, that “crash” was also more destructive to Bitcoin’s progress because it was endemic to Bitcoin and its raft of new speculators.
Additionally, after the panic drop of early March 2020, Bitcoin’s price has stabilized in the $6,000–$7,000 range for the last month. In markets where the ultimate bottoms remain a mystery, a plateau for any significant amount of time is still something of a moral victory. Obviously, the best-case scenario would be for Bitcoin to bounce back to pre-crash prices, but this is unlikely and delusional to think, especially as the entire world’s markets remain down.
Here’s the bigger picture bad news for Bitcoin: There is no way, as things currently stand, that we can argue that Bitcoin is in any way a practical safe haven.
This brings further questions about what Bitcoin actually is right now. It’s not a payment token, and it’s not a store of value — so what is it? For now, it’s an outdated piece of technology that’s more brand than an actual use case. The idea that the crypto market is separate from traditional markets was proven to be wrong during the crash. They are much more closely linked than anyone thought.
However, as we know, this is not a position unfamiliar to Bitcoin. While its value is now very uncertain, and it could very easily go lower and lower because we simply don’t know how the world will be transformed by an unprecedented public health crisis. Along with business slowdowns and shutdowns for several months, there also still lies great promise in Bitcoin as a new economic solution, if not necessarily as an (especially speculative) investment vehicle.
Short-term pain, long-term gain
In a time when western leaders are alternately praising and condemning China’s initial handling of the pandemic, that well-worn but also well-proven Chinese trope might be more timely than ever: A crisis can also mean opportunity. And here’s the good news for Bitcoin: Maybe the coronavirus will finally end the speculative frenzy that has defined and overshadowed the actual technology for the last half-decade.
The greed of short-term gain has driven long-term pain in innovation. Why innovate when there’s more profit in predicting the market? In a time of severe short-term pain, perhaps this will open the door to long-term gain. Just because Bitcoin is not a practical safe haven for a world in crisis facing severe short-term strains on the economy and supply chain, that does not mean Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies will not provide some of the best solutions to drive a new economy.
In a new era when we have become newly aware of the invisible lethality that lurks in the otherwise unassuming paper note, number pad or touchscreen, electronic finance of all kinds will serve a newly vital purpose. In the long term, Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies may not see value as either a safe haven or a get-rich-quick scheme but rather as one of the best means of transmitting value in a world that will accelerate a transition to the digital formats that would have otherwise taken years or even decades.
That doesn’t mean Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies still won’t attract investors who are looking for alternative assets, especially those unmoored from capricious governments. However, with a newfound important purpose, the actual utility of these cryptocurrencies stands to increase multiple times over. My advice? Stop looking at their prices and start seeing their value.
Richard Dennis is the founder and CEO of TemTum, the efficient, quantum-secure, ultra-fast and environmentally friendly cryptocurrency. He is a globally recognized cybersecurity and cryptography expert and one of the world’s leading lecturers on secure networks, blockchain technology and encryption.
Facebook is spending $5.7 billion to capitalize on India's internet boom
By Sherisse Pham, CNN Business
https://www.cnn.com/2020/04/22/tech/facebook-india-reliance-jio/index.html
Hong Kong (CNN Business)Facebook (FB) is spending billions of dollars for a stake in India's largest mobile operator, and teaming up with the country's richest man to tap into an internet boom.
The deal, announced Wednesday, will see the US company invest $5.7 billion for a 9.99% stake in Jio Platforms, the digital technology arm of Indian billionaire Mukesh Ambani's sprawling conglomerate Reliance Industries.
Jio Platforms has several services under its umbrella, including Reliance Jio, the mobile network that has taken India by storm since launching less than four years ago, racking up 388 million users, putting his brother and rival out of business and forcing other local operators to merge. Apps where users can stream movies, shop online and read news also fall under Jio Platforms.
The tie-up includes a commercial partnership with WhatsApp that potentially paves the way for Facebook to make money from the messaging service's 400 million users in India.
The partnership comes at a key time for tech in India. The market is growing, but it's getting tougher for global firms to profit because of shifting regulations, making it all the more important for companies like Facebook to forge key alliances if they want to cash in. It is also a huge investment at a time when the global economy is teetering on the edge.
A 'winning recipe'
Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg noted that India is home to the largest Facebook and WhatsApp communities.
India also has more than 60 million small businesses and many of them "need digital tools they can rely on to find and communicate with customers and grow their businesses," Zuckerberg wrote in a Facebook post.
"This is something we can help with — and that's why we're partnering with Jio to help people and businesses in India create new opportunities," he said.
In a video message, Ambani laid out a wide swath of opportunities ahead, saying in the "very near future" the tie-up between JioMart, the company's e-commerce platform, and WhatsApp will empower nearly 30 million small Indian shops "to digitally transact with every customer in their neighborhood."
"This means all of you can order and get faster delivery of day-to-day items from nearby local shops," he said.
Ambani called it a "winning recipe" that will eventually "be extended to serve other key stakeholders of Indian society," such as agricultural workers, small and medium enterprises, students and teachers, and healthcare providers.
Plenty of room to grow
India is in the midst of an internet boom. It is the world's second-largest smartphone market and it boasts hundreds of millions of users eager to buy stuff online, stream music and watch online videos.
And there is plenty of room to grow: Close to 600 million people in the country have yet to gain internet access.
That is why the likes of Alibaba (BABA), Amazon (AMZN), Google (GOOGL), Tencent (TCEHY), SoftBank (SFTBY SOFTBANK) and countless other technology giants have pumped billions of dollars into India's internet scene.
The investment in Jio is one of the biggest investments Facebook can make, according to Bernstein, and could help the Silicon Valley firm experiment with something akin to WeChat, the popular messaging app in China that is used for everything from booking doctor's appointments to making digital payments.
"The transaction fits with their recent push to build themselves and experiment more and provides a closed network of 388 million users ... to build and test a WeChat like app," Bernstein analysts said in a note Wednesday.
Ambani has been hugely influential in shaping the country's tech world. Bernstein describes his sprawling conglomerate as "India's Exxon (XOM), AT&T (T), and Amazon (AMZN) rolled into one." (AT&T is the parent company of WarnerMedia, which owns CNN.)
The billionaire launched Reliance Jio in September 2016 with an irresistible inaugural offer: New customers received six months of free 4G high-speed internet. That triggered a price war, forcing other mobile providers to dramatically slash rates
According to a company spokesperson, the name Jio was chosen because it is the mirror image of "oiL" — refining crude is the main business of Reliance Industries.
But Jio also means "to live" in Hindi, and Ambani has certainly pushed hundreds of millions of Indians to live increasingly digital lives. And with new regulations in the works that could make it much harder for global tech firms trying to profit from India's massive market, Ambani has become something of a gatekeeper of the country's internet.
The Facebook investment values Jio Platforms at nearly $66 billion, according to Reliance. The deal is subject to regulatory approvals.
— Rishi Iyengar contributed to this report.
Google to cut marketing budgets by as much as half, directors warned of hiring freezes
Jennifer Elias
@JENN_ELIAS
https://www.cnbc.com/2020/04/23/google-to-cut-marketing-budgets-hiring-freeze-expected.html
*The company is planning to slash its marketing budgets by as much as half, according to internal documents viewed by CNBC.
*Directors were told that hiring freezes for both full-time and contract workers are taking place.
*The cuts represent a more drastic move than Google CEO Sundar Pichai originally described a week ago.
Google is slashing its marketing budgets by as much as half for the second half of the year, according to internal materials viewed by CNBC.
One email about the cuts went out to marketing employees this week, noting the budget cuts and a new hiring freeze for full-time and contract employees.
“There are budget cuts and hiring freezes happening across marketing and across Google,” said one message from a global director sent to employees Wednesday. “We, along with the rest of marketing, have been asked to cut our budget by about half for H2.”
A company spokesperon confirmed that some areas’ budgets are being cut by as much as half, but added that others may not be since it is still in the process of “recalibrating.”
“As we outlined last week, we are re-evaluating the pace of our investment plans for the remainder of 2020 and will focus on a select number of important marketing efforts,” a company spokesperson said in an emailed statement to CNBC Thursday. “We continue to have a robust marketing budget, particularly in digital, in many business areas.”
Google shares dropped nearly 2% after hours following the news.
The drastic moves come a week after Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai said Google would be pulling back on some of its investments for the rest of the year amid the Covid-19 crisis, starting with hiring. However, Pichai, at the time, only said it would recalibrate “non-business essential marketing” and “significantly slow down” hiring. There were not mentions of such drastic budget cuts or hiring freezes.
“Beyond hiring, we continue to invest, but will be recalibrating the focus and pace of our investments in areas like data centers and machines, and non business essential marketing and travel,” Pichai said in the note to employees last week.
The news also comes as the company faces economic headwinds caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, which has effected the global economy. CNBC last week also found the company started pulling back on skills training resources for many of its workers. It also comes days before the company is scheduled to announce its second quarter earnings next Tuesday.
The Google spokesperson said the company was not conducting a widespread hiring freeze but would not comment on why directors received such information.
“We’ll be slowing down the pace of hiring, while maintaining momentum in a small number of strategic areas, and onboarding the many people who’ve been hired but haven’t started yet,” the spokesperson said in a statement.
Prior to the pandemic, Google expected increase marketing spending from the year prior. The company, which breaks outs marketing and sales expenses together, spent $18.46 billion on sales and marketing in 2019, according to its most recent annual 10-k.
That includes advertising and promotional expenditures related to products and services as well as compensation for employees in sales and marketing. Last year, it increased its headcount by at least 15%, the annual report shows. In addition, there was an increase in advertising and promotional expenses of $402 million.
“Just like the 2008 financial crisis, the entire global economy is hurting, and Google and Alphabet are not immune to the effects of this global pandemic,” CEO Sundar Pichai stated in the memo sent to employees last week. “We exist in an ecosystem of partnerships and interconnected businesses, many of whom are feeling significant pain.”
AWS Announces General Availability of Amazon Augmented Artificial Intelligence (A2I)
https://ih.advfn.com/stock-market/NASDAQ/amazon-com-AMZN/stock-news/82304714/aws-announces-general-availability-of-amazon-augme
Business Wire
Amazon A2I makes it easier for developers to build and manage workflows to validate machine learning predictions with human reviewers
National Health Service (NHS UK), T-Mobile, and Deloitte among customers and partners using Amazon A2I
Today, Amazon Web Services (AWS), an Amazon.com company (NASDAQ: AMZN), announced the general availability of Amazon Augmented Artificial Intelligence (A2I), a fully managed service that makes it easy to add human review to machine learning predictions to improve model and application accuracy by continuously identifying and improving low confidence predictions. Amazon A2I helps developers add human review for model predictions to new or existing applications using reviewers from Mechanical Turk, third party vendors, or their own employees. Amazon A2I makes it easier for developers to build the human review system, structure the review process, and manage the human review workforce. For example, developers could use Amazon A2I to quickly spin up and manage a workforce of humans to review and validate the accuracy of machine learning predictions for an application that extracts financial information from scanned mortgage documents or an application that uses image recognition to identify counterfeit items online, so that the quality of results improve over time. There are no upfront commitments to use Amazon A2I, and users pay only for each review needed. To get started with Amazon A2I, visit aws.amazon.com/augmented-ai
Today, machine learning provides highly accurate predictions (known as “inferences”) for a variety of use cases, including identifying objects in images, extracting text from scanned documents, or transcribing and understanding spoken language. In each case, machine learning models provide an inference and a confidence score that expresses how certain the model is in its prediction. The higher the confidence number, the more the result can be trusted. Typically, when developers receive a high confidence result they can trust that the prediction is accurate, and, depending on the use case, they can use it to fully automate a process. For example, developers of a social media application that matches a user’s photos to celebrity faces might rely on an 80% confidence score to generate and return a lot of entertaining matches. However, there are other times when it is strongly recommended to have both high confidence (up to 99%) and human review, such as public safety use cases involving law enforcement. In situations where the confidence score is lower than desired and/or human judgment is required, reviews can be used to validate the prediction. This interplay between machine learning and human reviewers is critical to the success of machine learning systems, but human reviews are challenging and expensive to build and operate at scale, often involving multiple workflow steps, operating custom software to manage human review tasks and results, and recruiting and managing large groups of reviewers. As a result, developers sometimes spend more time managing the human review process than building the intended application, or they have to forego having human reviews, which leads to less confidence in deploying applications that utilize machine learning.
With Amazon A2I, developers can add human review to machine learning applications without the need to build or manage expensive and cumbersome systems for human review. Amazon A2I provides over 60 pre-built human review workflows for common machine learning tasks (e.g. object detection in images, transcription of speech, and content moderation, etc.) that allow machine learning predictions from Amazon Rekognition and Amazon Textract to be human-reviewed more easily. Developers who build custom machine learning models in Amazon SageMaker (or other on-premises or cloud tools) can set up human review for their specific use case in the Augmented AI console or via its Application Programming Interface (API). After setting a confidence threshold for model predictions, developers can choose to have predictions below that threshold reviewed by Amazon Mechanical Turk and its 500,000 global workforce of independent contractors, third-party organizations who specialize in business process outsourcing (e.g. iVision, CapeStart Inc., and iMerit), or their own private, in-house reviewers. Developers can specify the number of workers per review and Amazon A2I then routes each review to the precise number of reviewers. For example, a company building a system for processing financial loan applications using Amazon Textract can easily configure Amazon A2I to work with Amazon Textract outputs such that forms that have a confidence score less than 99% will be routed to human reviewers from their private workforce. Human-validated results are stored in Amazon Simple Storage Service (S3), and developers can set up Amazon CloudWatch Events notifications to review metadata about inference accuracy and retrieve the results.
“We often hear from our customers that Amazon SageMaker helps speed training, tuning, and deploying custom machine learning models, while fully managed services like Amazon Rekognition and Amazon Textract make it easy to build applications that incorporate machine learning without requiring any machine learning expertise. But even with these advancements, our customers still say there are critical use cases where human judgment is required like in law enforcement investigations, or times when human review can be used to resolve the ambiguity in predictions when confidence levels fall below a given threshold for less sensitive use cases, and the current human review process involves a lot of custom effort and cost,” said Swami Sivasubramanian, Vice President, Amazon Machine Learning, Amazon Web Services, Inc. “Today, we’re excited to help our customers remove another obstacle to building machine learning applications with the launch of Amazon A2I, which makes it significantly easier and faster to incorporate human judgment into machine learning applications in order to ensure higher quality predictions over a sustained period of time.”
Amazon A2I is available today in US East (N. Virginia), US East (Ohio), US West (Oregon), Canada (Central), EU West (London), EU West (Ireland), EU (Frankfurt), Asia Pacific (Singapore), Asia Pacific (Tokyo), Asia Pacific (Sydney), Asia Pacific (Seoul), and Asia Pacific (Mumbai).
National Health Service, Business Services Authority (NHS BSA) is part of the UK National Health Service and provides a range of support services to NHS organizations, NHS contractors, and patients. As part of their business process services, they process 54 million paper prescriptions and other healthcare documents each month. “The NHS is investing in the promise of AI to improve the quality of public healthcare across the UK. Human judgment is critical and in fact is often required for decisions involving medical payments,” said Chris Suter, Head of Cloud Platforms and Innovation, NHS BSA. “Amazon Textract is compelling because it offers AI powered extraction of text and structured data from virtually any document. We are excited about Amazon Augmented AI because it allows us to take advantage of machine learning while still applying human judgment. That’s a game changer for us.”
As America's Un-carrier, T-Mobile US, Inc. is redefining the way consumers and businesses buy wireless services through leading product and service innovation. "Providing relevant information, such as account details and available discounts, in real time to our customer care agents while they are in live conversations with customers is one of the ways T-Mobile uses machine learning to improve customer experience. Using A2I, we will be able to ensure that our models continuously deliver top-quality insights by having humans validate random samples of model predictions,” said Heather Nollis, Machine Learning Engineer, T-Mobile. “Trust is the hardest thing to build when it comes to machine learning, and A2I will allow us to make sure that our models are making the fewest mistakes."
Deloitte is helping transform organizations around the globe. The organization continuously evolves how it works and how it looks at marketplace challenges so it can continue to deliver measurable, sustainable results for its clients and communities. “Part of setting our clients up for success is helping them leverage the latest technology. Using machine learning enables us to help improve our clients’ systems and boost their productivity while reducing time to market for products, services, and applications. As part of providing the latest advancements in ML to our clients, we see the benefits of human-in-the-loop systems adding an extra layer of confidence to ML applications,” said Beena Ammanath, Managing Director at Deloitte Consulting LLP. “Our clients in the insurance industry, for example, could use A2I to help verify the accuracy of ML models for automated image-based vehicle damage detection and analysis of text-based insurance claims. We’re excited to see the many ways our clients across industries could benefit from incorporating A2I into their ML workflows.”
Belle Fleur believes the machine learning revolution is altering the way we live, work, and relate to one another, and will transform every business in every industry. “We started using Amazon Textract with one of our financial services clients and quickly realized that coupling that service with Amazon A2I allows them to go through huge quantities of documents and extract relevant data needed for their clients. Adding Amazon A2I helped us incorporate human judgment for documents that require contextual interpretation and validate the data,” said Tia Dubuisson, President at Belle Fleur. “Not only did this decrease the time spent on human validation, but it also pulled all the relevant extracted data into one place in an easy to understand workflow for reviewers so that they are able to quickly and easily review machine learning outputs from Amazon Textract. Amazon A2I not only provides us and our customers peace of mind that the more nuanced data extracted is reviewed by humans, but it also helps train and improve our machine learning models over time through continuous auditing and improvement.”
About Amazon Web Services
For 14 years, Amazon Web Services has been the world’s most comprehensive and broadly adopted cloud platform. AWS offers over 175 fully featured services for compute, storage, databases, networking, analytics, robotics, machine learning and artificial intelligence (AI), Internet of Things (IoT), mobile, security, hybrid, virtual and augmented reality (VR and AR), media, and application development, deployment, and management from 73 Availability Zones (AZs) within 23 geographic regions, with announced plans for 12 more Availability Zones and four more AWS Regions in Indonesia, Italy, Japan, and Spain. Millions of customers—including the fastest-growing startups, largest enterprises, and leading government agencies—trust AWS to power their infrastructure, become more agile, and lower costs. To learn more about AWS, visit aws.amazon.com.
About Amazon
Amazon is guided by four principles: customer obsession rather than competitor focus, passion for invention, commitment to operational excellence, and long-term thinking. Customer reviews, 1-Click shopping, personalized recommendations, Prime, Fulfillment by Amazon, AWS, Kindle Direct Publishing, Kindle, Fire tablets, Fire TV, Amazon Echo, and Alexa are some of the products and services pioneered by Amazon. For more information, visit amazon.com/about and follow @AmazonNews.
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200424005488/en/
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Apple Pay outage preventing some users from paying Apple Card bill
Saturday, April 25, 2020 1:36 pm
https://macdailynews.com/2020/04/25/apple-pay-outage-preventing-some-users-from-paying-apple-card-bill/
Apple says that an ongoing Apple Pay outage is preventing some Apple Card users from paying their bill and accessing other features in the Wallet app on iOS. The outage started Saturday at approximately 8:45am EDT.
Apple Pay, of course, is a mobile payment and digital wallet service by Apple Inc. that allows users to make payments in person, in iOS apps, and on the web. It is supported on the iPhone, Apple Watch, iPad, and Mac. Apple Wallet is a mobile app included with the iOS operating system that allows users to store coupons, boarding passes, student ID cards, event tickets, movie tickets, public transportation tickets, store cards, credit cards, debit cards, prepaid cards, and loyalty cards via Apple Pay. Apple Wallet is also the main interface with Apple Card, Apple’s newly announced credit card service.
Chance Miller for 9to5Mac:
Apple writes on its System Status webpage:
Some users may not be able to pay their Apple Card bill, lock/unlock their physical card, request a new or replacement physical card, or request a new card number.
It’s unclear how widespread this outage is, but Apple’s System Status tool indicates that “some users are affected.”
MacDailyNews Take: Have you been prevented from paying your Apple Card bill or accessing other features in the Wallet app on iOS due to the Appel Pay outage?
All eyes on Apple’s Q2 earnings next week
Saturday, April 25, 2020 10:56 am
https://macdailynews.com/2020/04/25/all-eyes-on-apples-q2-earnings-next-week/
All eyes will be on Apple’s Q2 earnings scheduled to be announced after market close on Thursday, April 30th (right around 1:30pm PDT / 4:30pm EDT).
Marty Shtrubel for Smarter Analyst:
There’s a lot up in the air right now for Apple, argues Wedbush analyst Daniel Ives. The analyst foresees some dark days ahead for the tech giant before emerging on the other side…
Looking ahead to next week’s earnings report, Ives sets an ominous tone and believes the Street is prepared for a “Friday the 13th-like March quarter and June guidance.” Ives points out, bluntly, that “global lockdown has put health, jobs, groceries, and hand sanitizer well above buying a $1,000+ iPhone 11 on the consumer priority list in this environment.”
However, with the bad news out of the way, Ives believes investors will look through the macro challenges and focus on the upcoming iPhone 12 cycle… The 5-star analyst keeps an Outperform rating on Apple shares, along with a $335 price target, which implies about 18% upside from Friday’s closing price.
MacDailyNews Note: From Ives’ note to clients, verbatim:
Our Asia checks and supply chain contacts are now looking at iPhone units in the 165 million to 185 million range for CY20 with strong underlying momentum into CY21 on the heels of iPhone 12… In sum, it will be some dark days ahead for Cook & Co given this unprecedented COVID-19 environment, however on the other side of the valley the pieces are in place for a robust product cycle into FY21 with a more normalized macro backdrop — Wedbush analyst Daniel Ives
We’ll certainly have our eyes on Apple’s Q2 earnings! Apple is slated to release Q220 results after market close on Thursday, April 30, 2020. We’ll have them for you as always right around 1:30pm PDT / 4:30pm EDT. Apple’s conference call to discuss Q220 results is scheduled to start right after that at 2:00pm PDT / 5:00pm EDT. We’ll cover the conference call with live notes as usual, too. Just check our home page around 1:45pm PDT / 4:45pm EDT on Thursday, April 30, 2020 for that link.
Deutsche Bank veteran turns to Bitcoin, will launch Bitcoin trading service
Avatar By REYNALDO April 24, 2020
https://www.crypto-news-flash.com/deutsche-bank-veteran-turns-to-bitcoin-will-launch-bitcoin-trading-service/
*Deutsche Bank veteran Tomoo Onishi will launch a Bitcoin trading service with the FXcoin exchange in May 2020.
*Onishi expects an increase in investment flows to Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies due to the current macroeconomic situation.
*FXcoin will also establish a swap market for XRP and Litecoin in the long term.
In an interview, Deutsche Bank veteran Tomoo Onishi has announced the introduction of FXcoin. The exchange will begin operations in May 2020 with the offering of Bitcoin-based services, with Onishi being the CEO of FXcoin. In an interview, he explained that this is the right time to expand into the crypto market.
According to its website, FXcoin was founded on September 21, 2017, with a capital of 1.52 billion yen. The exchange has started to accept applications from potential customers who want to open an account before the launch of the new services. Regarding the launch of the exchange, Onishi said (freely translated)
We are pleased to inform you that FXcoin Co. Ltd., has started its business and has begun accepting applications to open an account exclusively for physical transactions of cryptographic assets (virtual currencies). BTC’s spot trading service is scheduled to begin in May 2020.
A regular member of the Japan Cryptographic Asset Business Association (JCBA), FXCoin aims to build a market model with cryptocurrencies and expand the adoption of Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies in Japan and around the world. The exchange claims to have the experience and knowledge of a group of industry members who are experts in finance.
Bitcoin as a safe haven in times of crisis
FXcoin’s CEO is bullish about Bitcoin. In a recent interview with Bloomberg, Onishi said he expects an increase in the flow of investment into BTC and other cryptocurrencies. This will be triggered by the stimulus measures that have been launched by world’s major central banks to combat the current financial crisis.
The collapse of Bitcoin and the entire crypto market over the past few months has put to the test the theory that BTC is a safe asset in times of crisis. However, Onishi said that in these circumstances “there is no asset that is absolutely safe,” but he said he was optimistic about the price of cryptocurrencies. In the long term, Onishi said that cryptocurrencies will move at a different pace from the traditional market. In addition to the flow of investment that will come to the crypto market, according to Onishi, because of government stimulus measures, Bitcoin’s halving is expected to be a catalyst for its price.
One of FXcoin’s shareholders, according to its website, is SBI Holdings Inc. which is part of a banking conglomerate, SBI Holding which in turn is a major partner of Ripple in Asia. Probably because of that the XRP token will be listed on FXcoin. The exchange plans to diversify to provide a swap market between XRP, Bitcoin and Litecoin. Thus, FXcoin plans to offer its investors a means to protect themselves from market volatility.
Stellar (XLM) based Akoin to be integrated in Kenyan tech city
Jake Simmons By JAKE SIMMONS April 17, 2020
https://www.crypto-news-flash.com/stellar-xlm-based-akoin-to-be-integrated-in-kenyan-tech-city/
*The Stellar blockchain-based Akoin will be used in the Mwale Medical and Technology City (MMTC) in Kenya.
*The cryptocurrency of the rapper Akon, which is still in the beta phase, will thus have its first major use case in Africa.
Grammy winner and rapper Akon has achieved another success for his cryptocurrency, Akoin. According to the press release shared with Crypto News Flash, the Akoin will be used at Mwale Medical and Technology City (MMTC) in Kenya. The $2 billion technology city in western Kenya was built around the 5,000-bed Hamptons Hospital and is home to over 35,000 people. The MMTC will be the first major application for the Akoin, which Akon says will power the entire African continent.
The report further states that Mwale Medical and Technology City will use the Stellar-based Akoin in all areas, with the city’s hospital complex being the first to introduce the Akoin. This could result in approximately 50 million transactions per year using the Akoin, by 12,000 patients per day and 9,000 employees. After the hospital, the Mwal-Mart supermarket chain, followed by the city’s hospitality industry, will introduce the Akoin.
Furthermore, the Akoin Foundation has stated that the Akoin platform will record at least one million transactions in the city in the first year and will grow to 100 million transactions annually within five years. At the same time, the Akoin will compete with the already popular mPesa, a smartphone-based money transfer service from Vodafone for Safaricom and Vodacom, the largest mobile network operators in Kenya and Tanzania. The competitive advantage of Akoin is said to be that there are no transaction fees unless users withdraw their money from the Akoin network.
This strategic partnership with MMTC will give Akoin a dominant position to control the market of 400 million people in East and Central Africa, many of who rely on mobile digital transactions for their financial services.
According to Akon and other company representatives, the project plans to conquer the market in East Central Africa in phase 1 of its development. Phase 2, which will last until 2025 and will focus on conquering the West African market. However, the project is currently still in the beta phase, but is expected to come onto the market this year.
Akoin relies on the advantages of Stellar Lumens (XLM)
The Akoin team has, according to the foundation, chosen the Stellar blockchain because it is “both equipped with smart contract and more scalable than its competitors,” according to a blog post in March:
The transaction cost, transaction speed, and transactions per second that Stellar facilitates are ideal for the use cases and applications planned for the Akoin Ecosystem. Akoin users need to be able to initiate quick transactions of varying values, using a blockchain with higher fees might limit our users in the same way that their current remittance and money transfer options limit them.
Starting on Stellar implies that Akoin can be traded on Stellar DEX (Stellar Decentralized Exchange) against other cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin or Ethereum. This will allow the Akoin to have greater liquidity and greater access to the world of cryptocurrencies.
Stellar Lumens launches memo-less payment solution
By REYNALDO April 8, 2020
https://www.crypto-news-flash.com/stellar-lumens-launches-memo-less-payment-solution/
*Stellar Lumens has launched a payment solution to solve the “I forgot my memo” problem. The payment solution will be memo-less.
*The solution was approved under proposal SEP-29 and will allow processing transactions in the Stellar Lumens network.
Developers of the Stellar Lumens blockchain have launched a payment solution that will facilitate transactions with the cryptocurrency. The solution was proposed under the name SEP-29 and already approved by the Stellar community. According to the official publication, the solution solves the “I forgot my memo” problem for receiving transactions with Stellar Lumens.
A memo is a component used in the Stellar network to support the accounts that exchanges use to store XLM. It basically consists of a number that identifies each user who receives payments on an exchange. These entities have a single account in which they handle all Stellar transactions, so the memo IDs are necessary for the exchange to know which user to credit with a transaction. The image below shows the Memo ID number.
Source: https://www.stellar.org/developers-blog/fixing-memo-less-payments
However, this payment mechanism is inefficient. Users who lost their memo ID were afraid of losing their funds at the exchange and these entities had problems locating the user funds. The proposal SEP-29 offers a better alternative, the solution will allow exchanges:
Using data entries, an exchange can mark their account as requiring memos with a single, simple operation. Wallets that upgrade to the latest Stellar SDK will then refuse to let users send memo-less payments to those addresses.
Exchanges should only add one data entry to their wallets with the key: config.memo_required and add the value 1. Stellar developers recommend that exchanges go to the Stellar Laboratory page which will set the memo required flag on the account. To use it, exchanges must follow these steps:
Add a source account
Fetch the next sequence number for that account
Scroll to the bottom, and hit “Sign in Transaction Signer”
On the next page, sign with your secret key
Click “Submit to Post Transaction Endpoint.” That’s it!
Users, as mentioned, should only upgrade their wallet to the latest version of the Stellar SDK. New features will be enabled by Default in the new update automatically. On the other hand, as reported by CNF, the Stellar Development Foundation revealed that it will make a donation of 2.5 million tokens of Stellar Lumens to mitigate the effects of the crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Stellar Lumens: quarterly report shows strong growth
By COLLIN BROWN April 10, 2020
https://www.crypto-news-flash.com/stellar-lumens-quarterly-report-shows-strong-growth/
*The Stellar Lumens Foundation has released a quarterly report showing continued growth of the network and an average transaction time of 5.5 seconds.
*Stellar was able to establish important technical partnerships in the last quarter and is heavily involved in the fight against the coronavirus.
The Stellar Lumens Foundation (SDF) published a report on current developments in the first quarter of this year. Both the community and the cooperation partners have contributed significantly to the further growth of the ecosystem. Both transaction volume and usage have increased further compared to the last quarter of 2019.
High scalability and fast transaction confirmation
The number of registered Stellar accounts has slightly decreased from 4,614,261 (Q4 2019) to 4,531,632, a decrease of 1.79%. In contrast, the average trading volume on Stellar’s decentralized exchange (XLM) increased from 3,231,673,996 to 3,490,422,131, an increase of more than 8%.
Source: https://assets-global.website-files.com
Daily operations on the Stellar Network have increased by more than 113% from 1,086,301,804 to 2,319,330,319, showing that existing players are making greater use of the network than in the last quarter. In addition, the number of absolute payments fell slightly by 1.75% from 6,114,465 to 6,007,446.
Source: https://assets-global.website-files.com
Furthermore, the published data show that a transaction is confirmed within 5.5 seconds in the Stellar network, which is significantly faster than most of the projects available on the cryptomarket.
Most recently, Stellar was able to convince CoinQvest to use the Stellar Network for processing cross-border payments. Stellar is able to move millions of US dollar within seconds for the price of a few pennies, regardless of whether the recipient and sender are thousands of kilometres apart.
Stellar has also pushed the development of its own Stellar wallet, which is scheduled for release this summer. To this end, Stellar has teamed up with the Settle Network, nTokens, Saldo, AnchorMXN and AnchorARS to further improve developments in this area and scalability. Stellar will also continue to expand its own presence in East Africa and Southeast Asia.
The development team is also investigating potential use cases for stablecoins based on the Stellar network, which could be deployed primarily in countries with weak economies. During the quarter, SDF also announced its first corporate investment of $715,000 in Liechtenstein-based DSTOQ. DSTOQ will tokenize securities on the Stellar blockchain and offer them in emerging markets.
Overview of the use of Stellar Foundation funds
The majority of the capital, 323,955.710 XLM, was used for the direct further development of the Stellar blockchain. More than 20 million XLM have been invested in the development of the entire ecosystem. 500,000 XLM were invested in the development of Stellar-based apps. The following table gives an overview and the respective use of the capital.
Source: https://assets-global.website-files.com
It is remarkable that Stellar has made almost no effort to push marketing. The main focus is on the further development of the technology and the ecosystem. Most recently, the SDF approved the SEP-29 proposal, which will enable payment in the future without the cumbersome use of the memo field.
In the current crisis, SDF also supported charities with donations of 2.5 million XLM to fight the corona virus. A few days ago, the first 100,000 XLM were distributed to UNICEF, the Tor project and other dedicated organizations. The community can also contribute through the official Lumenthropy donation page.
XLM price shows setback
The Stellar Lumens (XLM) price follows the current market trend and has dropped 4.52% to a price of $0.047 in the last 24 hours. With a market capitalization of almost $978 million, Stellar ranks 15th among the largest cryptocurrencies.
Apple paid hacker $75,000 to hijack iPhone and Mac cameras
Friday, April 3, 2020 11:12 am
https://macdailynews.com/2020/04/03/apple-paid-hacker-75000-to-hijack-iphone-and-mac-cameras/
Ethical hacker Ryan Pickren found seven (7!) zero-day vulnerabilities in Apple Safari that enabled him to construct an attack chain, using three of the vulnerabilities, to hijack iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, and Mac cameras.
Davey Winder for Forbes:
Ethical hackers, those security researchers who put their hacking talents to use in helping secure the products and services they break, can make a pretty penny. Just last month, I reported how work from home elite hackers participating in the virtual PWN2OWN event earned $130,000 in only 48 hours. Indeed, Google paid ethical hackers $6.5 million last year as part of its vulnerability reward programs, and Apple has a top bug bounty of $1.5 million for the most serious of iPhone hacks. It was as part of this Apple bug bounty program that Ryan Pickren, the founder of proof of concept sharing platform BugPoC, responsibly disclosed his seven zero-day vulnerabilities discovery that enabled him to hijack the iPhone camera, and says earned him a none-too-shabby $75,000 from Apple for his efforts.
Pickren reported his research fully via the Apple Bug Bounty Program in mid-December 2019. “My research uncovered seven bugs,” Pickren says, “but only 3 of them were ultimately used to access the camera/microphone. Apple validated all seven bugs immediately and shipped a fix for the 3-bug camera kill chain a few weeks later.” The three-0day camera kill chain exploit was dealt with in the Safari 13.0.5 update released January 28. The remaining zero-day vulnerabilities, judged to be less severe, were patched in the Safari 13.1 release on March 24.
The $75,000 (£60,665) bounty he says he was paid was the first that Pickren has earned from Apple, which is quite a good start it has to be said. “I really enjoyed working with the Apple product security team when reporting these issues,” Pickren told me, “the new bounty program is absolutely going to help secure products and protect customers. I’m really excited that Apple embraced the help of the security research community.”
MacDailyNews Take: Obviously, this is exactly what Apple’s bug bounty program is designed to do and it’s working to make Apple products even more secure for users!
Apple brings hardware microphone disconnect security to iPad
Friday, April 3, 2020 9:19 am
https://macdailynews.com/2020/04/03/apple-brings-hardware-microphone-disconnect-security-to-ipad/
Apple has brought the company’s hardware microphone disconnect security feature to its latest iPads. The security feature makes it impossible for hackers to use malicious software to eavesdrop on an iPad’s surroundings.
Zack Whittaker for TechCrunch:
The feature was first introduced to Macs by way of Apple’s T2 security chip last year.
The security chip ensured that the microphone was physically disconnected from the device when the user shuts their MacBook lid. The idea goes that physically cutting off the microphone from the device prevents malware — even with the highest level of “root” device permissions — from listening in to nearby conversations.
MacDailyNews Take: A new Apple support guide reveals that the company’s newest iPads have the iPad microphone disconnect security feature. Any certified “Made for iPad” (MFI) case attached to an iPad will trigger the hardware disconnect when closed.
Apple states:
All Mac portables with the Apple T2 Security Chip feature a hardware disconnect that ensures the microphone is disabled whenever the lid is closed. On the 13-inch MacBook Pro and MacBook Air computers with the T2 chip, and on the 15-inch MacBook Pro portables from 2019 or later, this disconnect is implemented in hardware alone. The disconnect prevents any software — even with root or kernel privileges in macOS, and even the software on the T2 chip — from engaging the microphone when the lid is closed. (The camera is not disconnected in hardware, because its field of view is completely obstructed with the lid closed.)
iPad models beginning in 2020 also feature the hardware microphone disconnect. When an MFI compliant case (including those sold by Apple) is attached to the iPad and closed, the microphone is disconnected in hardware, preventing microphone audio data being made available to any software — even with root or kernel privileges in iPadOS or in case the firmware is compromised.