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Tag: asia

  • Shinsegae and Lotte to compete in wine and whisky market

    Shinsegae and Lotte to compete in wine and whisky market

    South Korea’s top two retailers — Shinsegae Group and Lotte Group — are going beyond retail to jump into the whisky and wine markets, which have been seeing rapid growth since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.

    Lotte Chilsung Beverage Co. announced in a report released early this year that it will expand its production of whisky, recruiting employees and signing contracts with whisky experts from Scotland to set up a whisky brewery.

    The company reportedly plans to build a brewery on one of the parcels of land that it currently owns. Construction is expected to begin next year at the earliest.

    Shinsegae L&B Ltd. also plans to put a start to the whisky business as it is now recruiting experienced employees, with a goal of setting up breweries of its own.

    Both companies are expected to compete in the wine market as well. Shinsegae Group purchased 299.6 billion won (US$243 million) of real estate in relation to the Shafer Vineyard in the U.S. last February.

    Its subsidiary, Shinsegae L&B, plans to take the offensive by expanding the number of its Wine and More stores and introducing new series of wines including those from the Shafer Vineyard.

    Lotte Chilsung Beverage continues to broaden its presence in the wine market by importing and selling a wider variety of wines, generating 83.2 billion won in wine sales last year, up by 34.4 percent from the previous year.

    The company reportedly received acquisition proposals from a number of winery companies interested in selling their products.

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  • Singtel-owned ATN and AustralianSuper acquire Axicom

    Singtel-owned ATN and AustralianSuper acquire Axicom

    Singtel-owned Australia Tower Network (ATN) and AustralianSuper have announced the acquisition of Axicom, one of Australia’s leading providers of telecommunications tower infrastructure, for A$3.58 billion.

    Axicom owns and operates approximately 2,000 telecommunication sites located in metro and outer-metro locations across all eight states and territories and major cities in Australia.As ATN’s shareholders, AustralianSuper and Singtel said the strong synergies between Axicom and ATN would provide exceptional growth opportunities which will benefit customers, employees, and the community in the long term.

    AustralianSuper head of infrastructure, Nik Kemp, said Axicom is a high-quality asset that will deliver long-term value to AustralianSuper members.

    “Axicom is complementary to our existing digital infrastructure portfolio and this acquisition will result in the creation of a provider with a truly national footprint that will connect the vast majority of Australian families and businesses,” Kemp said.

    “Axicom has all of the characteristics we are looking for in an infrastructure asset and there are strong synergies between the two organisations. We look forward to working with the great teams of both ATN and Axicom to bring these two strong businesses together and leverage the great opportunity we have to continue to deliver for customers and AustralianSuper members.”

    Singtel Group chief corporate officer, Lim Cheng Cheng said, “This acquisition is a unique opportunity to scale up ATN’s operations and expand its customer base. It also reinforces Singtel’s commitment as a long-term investor in the Australian telecoms space where our goal has always been to provide more options and build better communications for Australian consumers and businesses. In combining ATN and Axicom, AustralianSuper and Singtel will be working closely to realise the significant operational synergies created.”

    AustralianSuper acquired a 70% stake in ATN from Singtel in November last year. Following the Axicom acquisition, Singtel’s shareholding in the combined ATN/Axicom business will be 18%, with AustralianSuper at 82%.

    Kemp said AustralianSuper will continue to seek further opportunities in this sector both domestically and globally.

    “AustralianSuper is looking to double its infrastructure portfolio over the next five years from its current A$31 billion. We believe that there will be significant growth in demand for digital infrastructure and will actively consider future opportunities in this space.”

    ATN chief executive officer, Cameron Evans, said ATN was looking forward to broadening the relationship with Axicom’s customers and providing them with access to the over 2000 current ATN sites and more than 565 new sites under construction.

    “Bringing together Australia’s two largest independent wireless telecommunications infrastructure operators provides real strategic advantages and strong value creation opportunities. It will also provide greater support for our customers as they continue to deliver essential services to the community such as mobile coverage, internet services, broadcast and emergency services,” Evans said.

    “We look forward to working with the team at Axicom to bring our two businesses together and leverage the opportunities we have with our top-quality digital infrastructure to connect Australians for generations to come.”

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  • TikTok may soon let you dislike comments

    TikTok may soon let you dislike comments

    Today, almost everyone is on TikTok, and — although the short-video platform is extremely addictive and entertaining — as with any social platform, there’s the potential for inappropriate or harmful content as well as comments. To help its users “feel more in control over their interactions”, TikTok is testing a new dislike button for its comment section.

    In a blog post, TikTok said that the new button will allow users to flag comments that they find irrelevant or inappropriate. The dislike reaction will be private, only visible to the person who pressed it. The social platform stated, “This community feedback will add to the range of factors we already use to help keep the comment section consistently relevant and a place for genuine engagement.”

    The dislike reaction to a comment will signal the platform’s algorithms that there may be something wrong or simply irrelevant in said comment. We assume that a certain amount of dislikes would cause a comment to sink further down the list, or flag it for review.

    If you wish to straight-up report a disruptive, spammy, or plain inappropriate comment — you can do so currently by tapping and holding on to the comment and then choosing the “report” option.

    Another feature that TikTok said is in its testing phase is reminders that the social platform sends to creators who receive a “high proportion of negative comments.” The reminders will tell creators about features such as comment filtering, bulk block, and bulk delete, which can be used to battle harmful comments. The social platform also noted that it would decide whether to roll the feature out or not in the coming weeks.

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  • Musk bids $41 billion in cash to buy 100% of Twitter

    Musk bids $41 billion in cash to buy 100% of Twitter

    Just three days ago, when Elon Musk ended up not joining Twitter’s board even with the 9.1% stake in the company that he amassed, one analyst suggested that this was a tactical move on Musk’s part. As a board member, he would have been forced to keep his stake capped at no higher than 14.9% of the social media outfit but if he was not on the board, Musk was free to buy all of Twitter.
    As the richest man in the world with a net worth said to be as high as $273 billion, Musk could buy Twitter without having to finance the transaction via a loan. And sure enough, this morning the Tesla CEO announced that he is offering to buy the company for $41 billion or $54.20 a share (that price includes a ‘420’ reference to marijuana). That is a 38% premium over Twitter’s closing stock price the day before his stake in the company was revealed.
    Musk famously smoked pot while appearing on a Joe Rogan podcast. He is also known for making jokes about cannabis during business discussions, so it is not surprising that he would include a reference to weed in his bid for Twitter.
    “Twitter has extraordinary potential. I will unlock it,” the multi-billionaire said. Musk told the Twitter board that this is his last and final offer and that if it is rejected, he would reconsider his investment in the company.
    In a letter to Twitter Chairman Bret Taylor, Musk wrote, “Since making my investment I now realize the company will neither thrive nor serve this societal imperative in its current form. Twitter needs to be transformed as a private company.”
    Twitter has some options. It could try to fend off Musk by putting itself up for sale and try to find a higher bidder. It could reject Musk’s offer which would probably lead to a proxy fight in which shareholders get to vote on the deal. Twitter could also use what is known as a ‘scorched earth’ defense and take action to make the company a less attractive investment for Musk once he buys enough shares to put him over a certain threshold of ownership.
    Reuters says that Wall Street’s lackluster reaction to the offer implies that Musk has a 29% chance to close on the transaction. Tesla shares were also impacted today dropping 2% on the theory that Musk will have to sell some of his holdings in the company in order to pay for the Twitter bid.
    The Tesla CEO considers himself to be a free-speech absolutist and has often criticized Twitter for its policies. He has over 81 million followers which ranks him as one of the most popular figures on the platform.
    This morning, former President Donald Trump, who was banned from Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook following the January 6th, 2021 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, said that he will not return to Twitter if the latter is purchased by Musk. During his four years in the White House, Trump used Twitter to make policy announcements.
    The New York Post quotes Trump as saying, “Twitter’s become very boring. They’ve gotten rid of a lot of good voices on Twitter, a lot of their conservative voices. It used to be a war on Twitter, but it was a very interesting war…Mentally, we had some pretty good fights. We would go after the progressives, who I call the un-progressives. We’d be fighting back and forth and it was great stuff.
    Trump added that “friends of mine” have complained that it’s (Twitter) not the same.”
    As of the start of this year, 76.9 million people use Twitter in the United States while nearly 59 million in Japan use the platform.
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  • New report says increasing number of iOS users seeing the value in being tracked

    New report says increasing number of iOS users seeing the value in being tracked

    With last year’s iOS 14.5 came Apple’s App Tracking Transparency feature that asks people whether they would like to be tracked by apps. Companies like Facebook which rely on this sort of tracking to serve personalized ads vehemently criticized the Cupertino giant for introducing this feature, but it’s not all doom and gloom, suggests a new report.
    Apple assigns a random device identifier called Identifier for Advertisers (IDFA) to devices like iPhones and iPads that let app makers track user activity across apps for targeted advertising. IDFA has now been made an opt-in feature, meaning users will have to consent to being tracked.
    Facebook has been a vocal critic of the feature and a recent report estimates that the company could lose $12.8 billion in revenue this year because of ATT. Snapchat, Twitter, and YouTube are also expected to be impacted, though they are projected to take smaller hits.
    The situation looks to be improving, per analytics platform Adjust. In May 2021, 16 percent of the users had opted-in to being tracked, and the number has now grown to 25 percent. The study is based on the 2,000 most popular apps in the firm’s database.
    The stats are even more promising for gaming apps, with an estimated 30 percent of users allowing businesses to track their activities for personalized ads. For some popular games, opt-in rates were as high as 75 percent.
    The outlet notes that a month after the launch of the ATT feature, only 4 percent of the users in the US had opted-in to it, so the latest report could be a beacon of hope for the likes of Facebook.
    Apple allows app developers to explain why users should allow tracking and it looks like many businesses have found ways to convince users to opt in to tracking. For instance, an app may say that personalized ads help the developer keep the app free or that it can help users save money.
    Adjust thinks that more users now “understand the value of opting in and receiving personalized advertisements” and expects the upward trend in consent rates to continue.
    Apple meanwhile continues to advocate for stronger privacy protections and is fighting hard to prevent legislation that would let users download third-party apps outside of the App Store.
  • WhatsApp announces important changes for groups: Reactions, File Sharing, more

    WhatsApp announces important changes for groups: Reactions, File Sharing, more

    WhatsApp announced important new features coming to its apps in the coming weeks, all part of a new hub called Communities that will eventually be added to the service. Given lots of feedback it received over the years, WhatsApp has decided to make communication for organizations like schools, local clubs, and non-profit organizations easier.

    Communities will allow WhatsApp users to bring together separate groups in a single place. As a result, users will be able to receive updates sent to the entire Community and organize smaller discussion groups on important topics. Of course, Communities will have all the required tools for admins, including announcement messages and control over groups.

    In addition to bringing Communities to WhatsApp, the company also announced it will roll out improvements to how groups work on the app, regardless of whether or not they are part of a Community hub. Here are the features that will be released in the coming weeks to all WhatsApp users:

    • Reactions – Emoji reactions are coming to WhatsApp so people can quickly share their opinion without flooding chats with new messages.
    • Admin Delete – Group admins will be able to remove errant or problematic messages from everyone’s chats.
    • File Sharing – We’re increasing file sharing to support files up to 2 gigabytes so people can easily collaborate on projects.
    • Larger Voice Calls – We’ll introduce one-tap voice calling for up to 32 people with an new design for those times when talking live is better than chatting.

    Another important aspect worth mentioning is that since all Community hubs will be private, messages will be protected with end-to-end encryption. According to WhatsApp, Communities will be the company’s main focus for the year to come, so expect more announcements in that regard.

  • Asian Consumers Suffer From Record High Gas Prices In Domestic And Global Markets

    Asian Consumers Suffer From Record High Gas Prices In Domestic And Global Markets

    Asian gas consumers are facing hard times as they are forced to import spot LNG at record high prices. Experts believe this is likely to kill any demand for gas within the region and accelerate demand destruction for natural gas while also amplifying concerns about costlier goods and services. Emerging markets are the most hit as they are grappling with high spot LNG prices and oil prices staying above $100 per barrel, which makes LNG imports the most expensive they have been in years. ICE May Brent futures were trading above $121 per barrel in Asian hours yesterday, which means oil-linked LNG prices could be around $18/MMBtu. According to S&P Global commodity Insights, the plats JKM for May delivery was assessed at $33.841/MMBtu on Wednesday.

    A recent report indicates that LNG prices have halted spot trade for these commodities. However to trade derivative products attached to the assets on top of forex you can click here. One European utility claims that market players have been discussing possible transactions and trying to arrange swaps. Still, due to price volatility, nothing is being finalized, while Japanese and Korean utilities are less willing to procure more cargo because of high prices.

    One South Korean importer claims that they don’t want to buy any cargo even though the company’s inventories are not sufficient. The plan is to roll the requirements till later in June or July.

    Over this month, price-sensitive LNG importers such as Pakistan, India, and Thailand have had to pay around $33/MMBtu – $36/MMBtu for spot LNG cargoes which represent some of the highest LNG prices these countries have had to bear. According to S&P Global data, state-run Indian Oil Corp. bought two spot LNG cargoes from a trading house on March 21 for $33.7-$33.8/MMBtu and $33.3-$33.4/MMBtu, to be delivered on May 7 and June 4, respectively.

    PTT of Thailand bought three spot LNG cargoes for $35-$36/MMBtu for delivery in the second half of April. Also, on March 16, India’s Gujarat State Petroleum Corp bought a spot cargo for $35.2-$35.3/MMBtu from a trading house for delivery on March 28-April 15. And Pakistan bought a cargo for March delivery ranging in the mid-$20/MMBtu.

    Record High Global Gas Prices

    Most nations are witnessing record-high global gas prices as they slowly filter into the domestic markets. According to company officials, Reliance Industries Ltd., a diversified conglomerate based in India, sold natural gas from a coal-bed methane block in the central state of Madhya Pradesh for around $23.5/MMBtu. The price reflects a hefty premium over the base price of 14% Dated Brent as stated in the tender for a one-year supply of 0.65 million cubic meters of gas per day. The tender was awarded to gas companies, including state-run GAIL ltd., Gujarat State Petroleum Corp, and Shell.

    The quote received by Reliance for CBM gas is higher than the price state explorers such as ONGC and Oil India Ltd receive for gas nominated from their upstream fields, which is capped at $6.13/MMBtu. Even Reliance’s natural gas from its KG basin fields is sold at similar levels. According to one trader, a domestic gas tender priced in the low-to-mid $20s/MMBtu is still at a better price than spot LNG. The trader adds that it is still cheaper compared to spot LNG even though it’s costly, which explains why such a price was agreed considering the current high Brent crude and spot LNG prices.

    Another trader adds that high prices are determined by supply and demand. Also, the limited quantity offered through the domestic tender might be another factor. The trader adds that with an inadequate gas supply, if one can get gas in India domestically at lower prices than imported LNG, then why not take advantage of the situation.

    A third trader noted that India’s gas demand was hanging in the balance unless prices dropped and based on the forward curve. December 2022 JKM prices are still not affordable for India’s industrial sector compared to liquids like LPG. India is working to align natural gas prices with global markets. A government panel has submitted a price reform proposal for locally produced natural gas where the entire output can be sold on the domestic gas exchange platform for price discovery.

     

     

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  • Priceline Pharmacy launches health insurance

    Priceline Pharmacy launches health insurance

    Priceline Pharmacy has launched a unique health insurance brand and products in partnership with health fund nib.

    The launch of the health insurance products sees Priceline Pharmacy become the first pharmacy retailer to offer this to its customers.

    The cover includes all the stuff people would typically expect with private health insurance but the real benefits are the Priceline perks thrown in for good measure.

    “Priceline has operated as a health and beauty destination for over 40 years. We are constantly looking to provide products and services that our customers want and Priceline Health Insurance now provides an extension of our brand’s trusted pharmacy offer,” General Manager, Priceline Pharmacy, Andrew Vidler said.

    “There is no other health insurance product like this: from $5 vouchers, which accrue with every $50 purchase (and I can tell you they add up quickly!) to offering annual flu vaccinations through more than 370 Priceline Pharmacies around Australia.

    “It’s important to us that our Franchisees who operate these local pharmacies in their communities will also see these new health insurance customers in their stores and create even more loyal Sister Club members for our brand,” he said. 

    Priceline says the pharmacy brand is leveraging the power of its Sister Club program. Specifically, Priceline health insurance members will receive Sister Club bonus points for every $1 spent on the premium and a $5 voucher for every $50 spent in Priceline and Priceline Pharmacy stores.

    Additionally, Priceline says that health insurance members will also be bumped up to automatic ‘Pink Diamond’ status, which is the highest status a Sister Club member can attain. This comes with numerous benefits including more $5 vouchers and gifts for birthdays and Christmas.

    Additionally, every health insurance customer will reportedly receive an annual flu vaccine at Priceline Pharmacy.

    nib’s Chief Executive Australian residents’ health insurance, Ed Close said the launch of Priceline health insurance presented a unique and exciting opportunity, particularly for the more than seven million Sister Club members.

    “As one of Australia’s largest loyalty programs, Sister Club members will benefit from a bespoke range of best-in-class health insurance products, but with the bonus of Sister Club points on joining and when they pay their premium, making sure they get ongoing value from simply being a Priceline health member,” Mr Close said.

    “In addition, we will be able to use Priceline’s national pharmacy network and digital assets to provide an enhanced service offering as well as ongoing customer benefits.”

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  • Aussie beverage company Made removes natural sugars from milk

    Aussie beverage company Made removes natural sugars from milk

    The TPG-backed Made Group is tapping into the growing health trend of low sugar drinks and increasing its focus on sustainability by using innovative technology to create a milk product, ReMilk.

    Made Group was the first Australian company to launch vitamin-infused bottled water (NutrientWater), coconut water, high-protein breakfast drinks, and cold-pressed juices with an extended shelf life – beating giants such as Coca-Cola Amatil and Asahi’s Schweppes to the market by several years.

    Now, co-founders Luke Marget and Matt Dennis are expanding the business after signing a deal last year with TPG Capital, which has a 60 percent stake. Following the equity injection, Made’s enterprise value is between $300 million and $350 million.

    They are not only widening their portfolio of non-dairy products such as Loco, a plant-based cream alternative, and Cocobella coconut yoghurt, but also turning to specialty fresh dairy using cow’s milk from Victoria’s Gippsland region.

    Mr Marget said more “flexitarians” were emerging – those who were semi-vegetarian and ate mostly plant foods with the occasional inclusion of meat.

    “We recognize that there are vegan consumers who are dedicated to a full plant-based diet, but the percentage of those globally is pretty small,” he said.

    “But what we’re seeing is a trend towards an increasing number of flexitarian consumers that are still interested in products like dairy that had a nutritional powerhouse, but also looking at complementing their diet with plant-based products from time to time, so that’s why we can offer consumers different choices.”

    Cow’s milk is mostly made up of water; the other components are fat, lactose and minerals such as calcium. Plant-based milk is low in protein and can also have less calcium, which is needed for strong bones.

    Mr Dennis said innovation had been lacking in recent years in the milk category. Through a cold filtration technology process, half the natural sugar of ReMilk was removed, he said, but it had more proteins than regular milk.

    After the cold filtration process, ReMilk also becomes lactose-free as any remaining lactose is converted into other sugars such as glucose and galactose by using natural lactase enzymes that are added to the milk.

    “The thing that struck me about the ReMilk proposition is it’s obviously addressing some of those sort of nutritional requirements that many consumers are seeking, but also addresses a more sustainable solution,” Mr Dennis said.

    “This is a product which appeals to a broad audience.”

    More than 50 per cent of Australians are estimated to have some form of lactose intolerance, a figure that rises to 70 per cent in Asian countries.

    Mr Marget said the removed lactose offshoot could be used in other products such as baby formula, and this would help reduce the group’s carbon footprint and cut wastage.

    Consumers are becoming increasingly conscious of their purchasing patterns and seeking out more sustainable solutions.

    A recent LEK Consulting sustainability survey across the UK, the US and Australia showed that more than half the 2700-odd people surveyed were turning their backs on unsustainable choices and willing to pay a premium for sustainable brands, especially for products in pet care, beauty and household basics.

    ReMilk has invested in a renewable packaging format called Tetra Rex by Tetra Pak, made from a combination of plastics derived from sugar cane and paperboard.

    The pair say that by swapping regular milk with ReMilk, consumers would remove 1.7 kilograms of sugar from their diet every year.

    They say their ReMilk product, made under the Rokeby Farms label, is not to be confused with an Israel-based start-up dubbed Remilk, which makes dairy-like products but not with cow’s milk.

    “This is our brand that we created using our innovation,” Mr Marget said.

    He said there had been a focus on accelerating sales into Asia for the larger Made Group suite of productions, but ReMilk was focused on winning a share in Australia’s $3.2 billion milk category.

  • Ferrari 296 Convertible To Debut On April 19

    Ferrari 296 Convertible To Debut On April 19

    Ferrari has teased the debut of the 296 convertible on its social media channels for April 19. The teaser image reveals little about the new convertible aside from previewing part of the rear profile of the upcoming model along with the lines on the rear fender. A closer look reveals the silhouette to be of the rear buttress of the upcoming Ferrari which shares similarities with the 296 GTB coupe.

    As per reports, the new 296 convertibles will feature a folding hard-top roof. Compared to the coupe expect the rear decklid to be revised to accommodate the remainder of the cosmetics likely to remain unchanged over the 296 GTB coupe. The interior too is expected to remain identical to the Coupe’s as seen on other Ferraris. The carmaker is also yet to confirm the name for the 296 convertible with the carmaker having used the Spider, GTS, and Aperta suffixes to describe its current and past range of convertibles.

    The convertible is expected to share most of its styling with the 296 GTB Coupe (pictured) with changes expected to be focused on the rear deck.

    With the lack of a fixed roof, expect Ferrari to make tweaks to the chassis of the 296 convertible to improve body rigidity with the 3.0-litre twin-turbo V6 also likely to get a revised tune to account for the additional weight of the folding roof and any structural strengthening measures. Like the GTB, the drop-top 296 will remain a hybrid with an electric motor paired with the petrol engine developing a combined 818 bhp and 740 Nm.

    Ferrari is also readying its new generation GT3 race car based on the 296 though this model is only set to debut next year.

  • Samsung adds new models to its Digital Car Key support list, but not all work with UWB

    Samsung adds new models to its Digital Car Key support list, but not all work with UWB

    A few weeks after Apple, the Samsung Digital Car Key initiative announced support for a number of new BMW, Kia, and Genesis models, reports TizenHelp. These include the Genesis GV60, Genesis G90, BMW 1-8 Series, BMW Z4, BMW X5-X7, BMW iX3, BMW iX, BMW i4, and the Kia Niro.

    While the luxury Genesis models will support both NFC and UWB connectivity, the rest only offer NFC support meaning that you will have to hold your Galaxy closer to the car in order to unlock it.
    The feature is available on its home turf for now, but hopefully, Samsung will roll it out for the new car models globally soon, or you can use the digital car key support built into Android 12.
    For now, Samsung’s Digital Car Key option is available only on the Galaxy S22 and S21 series, the oldie Note 20 Ultra, and on Samsung’s foldable phones like the Z Fold 3 and the Z Flip 3. Besides Samsung, Google’s Pixel 6 series are also supporting digital car keys and Google even baked BMW support in Android 12 on a system level.
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  • Spotify’s standalone Greenroom app gets a new home and a new name

    Spotify’s standalone Greenroom app gets a new home and a new name

    Spotify is constantly changing its app to provide users with a wide range of features. Last year, Spotify bought a company called Betty Labs, the creators of Locker Room, a live audio app where fans and insiders can take part in conversations focusing on various topics.

    A few months later, the Locker Room app has been renamed to Greenroom and offered separately as part of the Spotify ecosystem. Starting this week, Greenroom will be available from the Spotify main app to make it easier for everyone to enjoy its features.

    Additionally, Spotify announced that it decided to change Greenroom’s name to Spotify Live. It’s important to mention that Spotify Live is now available both as a standalone app and as a livestream function in the Spotify app.

    Spotify users can now tune in to live programming on the service via the creator’s podcast or artist page, and if whey wish be part of the conversation or join the host onstage, they can head to the Spotify Live app to make it happen.

  • Not being able to track you on iPhone could cost Facebook $12.8 billion in 2022

    Not being able to track you on iPhone could cost Facebook $12.8 billion in 2022

    As many of you probably know, Facebook was a loud critic of Apple’s App Tracking Transparency feature upon its announcement and release, and that has, surprise, surprise, a reason. In 2021, Facebook lost some money due to those privacy features, and the social media giant might lose an estimated $12.8 billion just because of ATT.

    App Tracking Transparency was launched back with iOS 14 in April of 2021, and it is a very useful privacy-related feature for iPhones. What it does is prevent third-party tracking to occur (of course, if you choose not to be tracked, which is what the majority of iPhone users chose anyway). This way, an app such as Facebook cannot track your activity online so that it can serve you with relevant ads.

    And Facebook has seen the impact of this. Almost 12 months after Apple’s launch of ATT, a new analyst now predicts the second year will cause major disruption to advertisers. Companies that rely on advertising, including Facebook, YouTube, and others, are estimated to collectively lose around $16 billion because of the feature.

    Towards the end of last year, Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg reported the company would potentially see a $10 billion revenue hit for 2022. Well, it seems this number may be a bit higher, at least according to an analysis by research firm Lotame.

    According to the research, Apple’s App Tracking Transparency will continue to have an impact this year, but it should be lessening. Alongside the introduction of ATT, Apple also deprecated its old technology called IDFA (Identifier for Advertisers), which made it possible for third-party apps to track you across websites using an identifier and then serve you ads that you are more likely to buy something from.

    Despite that, Apple doesn’t wish death upon all advertisers, so the company introduced new frameworks to help advertisers, but this time, no personal tracking is used and the data is aggregated. This way, less relevant ads could be served to users.

    The report continues on to say that the collective impact for companies would be nearly $16 billion, and the company that’s going to lose the most is Facebook with an around 81% share of those $16 billion. Other companies expected to lose revenue are Snap, which could lose around $545 million, then Twitter with around $323 million. YouTube is also on the list of impacted companies, and there, the estimated revenue loss is around $2.2 billion.

    Pretty large sums, we might add. Interestingly enough, these sums represent in fact how much those companies and apps were actually relying on tracking you on the internet…

    The report also indicates that both Snap and Twitter have been quickly adapting to the situation, including using the new measurement systems provided by Apple, and these two companies don’t seem too troubled with it.

    Facebook has also stated that it will work to decrease its reliance on Apple. Earlier, the social media giant stated that it will look into other ways that advertisers can profit.

    But Apple’s App Tracking Transparency impact, at least according to the analysts, is going to decrease by the second half of 2022, and “other shocks” are expected to affect the advertising industry, but the report doesn’t delve into details on that.

    Facebook seems to have suffered the most from Apple’s ATT. You may remember earlier when Meta’s stock price drastically fell after Zuckerberg’s report on the revenue of the company and ATT. For those of you who are curious, currently, Meta’s share price sits at $214.99 (at the time of writing), dropping down from around $323 in February 2022 (before the report came out).

  • Standard Chartered sees Vietnam inflation higher than central bank forecast

    Standard Chartered sees Vietnam inflation higher than central bank forecast

    Standard Chartered Bank expects inflation of 4.2 percent this year, slightly higher than the central bank forecast, driven by the geopolitical situation and higher commodity prices.

    “Over the medium term, demand-push inflationary factors are likely to kick in as the economy recovers,” the lender said in a note, adding that supply-side factors pose upside risks to inflation, particularly given the ongoing geopolitical situation.

    It forecasts a further increase in the rate next year to 5.5 percent.

    The State Bank of Vietnam targets inflation of not more than 4 percent this year.

    Prices rose by 1.8 percent last year, the lowest rate in six years.

    The Asian Development Bank this month forecast Vietnam’s inflation to hit 3.8 percent this year and 4 percent next year, pointing to the instability in global oil prices.

    Standard Chartered was confident about Vietnam’s growth potential, forecasting GDP growth of 6.7 percent this year (2.6 percent last year), saying the recent bounce in economic indicators have become more broad-based.

    Tim Leelahaphan, the bank’s economist for Thailand and Vietnam, said: “The government lifted its quarantine requirement for international arrivals in mid-March. We think the reopening of tourism, which accounts for close to 10 percent of GDP, is the key development to watch in the second quarter after a two-year closure.”

    Vietnam remains a manufacturing hub and a key link in the global supply chain despite geopolitical and pandemic-related challenges, the bank said.

    FDI started recovering this year after contracting last year, and the bank expects this to continue, particularly in sectors such as manufacturing, electricity and gas,.

    Several major global tech companies have shifted (or plan to shift) production to Vietnam from China in recent years to diversify their supply chains, Leelahaphan added.

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  • Zilingo CEO suspended amid financial probe

    Zilingo CEO suspended amid financial probe

    Zilingo Pte, one of Singapore’s highest-profile startups, has suspended Chief Executive Officer Ankiti Bose after an effort to raise new funding led to questions about the company’s accounting, according to people familiar with the matter.

    The company, which supplies technology to apparel merchants and factories, had been trying to raise $150 million to $200 million with help from Goldman Sachs Group Inc. when investors began to question its finances as part of the due diligence process, said the people, asking not to be identified because the information is confidential.

    The company began by working with small merchants that sell to consumers and then expanded into adjacent areas. As the founders started talking with small sellers, they realized many lacked access to robust technology and essential capital.

    That led them to develop software and other tools that would allow merchants to access factories in places like Vietnam or Bangalore, and would smooth the complicated process of shipping across borders. In 2018, Zilingo began to team up with financial technology firms to provide working capital to small sellers so they can buy raw materials to produce goods.

    In early 2019, Zilingo raised $226 million from investors including Sequoia and Temasek, and pushed its valuation to $970 million, almost the $1 billion mark that earns startups designation as a unicorn. Bose, then 27, was celebrated as a visionary and a sign of the entrepreneurial potential for Southeast Asia.

    “We were a bunch of twenty-somethings with nothing except this dream and we decided to chase it,” she said at the time. Bose had worked at Sequoia earlier and had said the experience helped her build the startup.

    Zilingo, which had grown into a full-blown marketplace for wholesale buyers and sellers in the fashion industry, faced growth troubles after pandemic-fueled restrictions forced many small businesses to shut their doors. To rein in its own costs, Zilingo said it cut a number of jobs in 2020 and downsized marketing, sourcing and support teams in the U.S., Australia, Singapore and Indonesia.

    The company made an aggressive pitch in its latest effort to raise fresh capital. Late last year, it forecast that core net revenue would rise from about $40 million in fiscal 2021 to roughly $60 million in fiscal 2022 and $100 million the year after, according to presentation documents reviewed by Bloomberg News. Zilingo said it anticipated breaking even on core Ebitda — or earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization — in fiscal 2023 and then reach almost $200 million in fiscal 2026.

    On March 31, Bose was called to a meeting with three board members and told about “serious” complaints about discrepancies in accounts and mismanagement, according to the correspondence reviewed by Bloomberg. She was later questioned by two people from Kroll, the investigations firm. Her suspension is scheduled to run until May 5.

    Bose, through her lawyer, has argued that the directors did not follow proper procedures during the process and questioned their right to suspend her, according to the correspondence from her attorney to Zilingo.

    “We are of the view that our client’s suspension has been procured by invalid and defective means; that the investigation commenced into her is unfair and lacking in due process, and that she has been suspended without proper and reasonable cause,” her attorney wrote.

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