KUALA LUMPUR, June 30 (Bernama) -- Approximately 58 per cent of retail professionals say the pandemic accelerated new technology-related product launches at their company, according to the new report, ‘Using Retail Tech Innovation to Enhance the Customer Experience’ released by global market research company Euromonitor International and the National Retail Federation (NRF). “Technology will continue to be used to improve operational efficiencies and elevate the customer experience, positively impacting brand perception as a result,” says Euromonitor International senior head of digital consumer, Michelle Evans in a statement. Brands have leveraged technologies like AR and VR to connect with consumers, leading to 31 per cent of consumers utilising these technologies to buy household items and furniture this year. Innovations such as livestreaming emerged as a new retail channel, and findings from Euromonitor’s ‘Voice of the Consumer: Digital Survey’ fielded in March 2021 suggest that globally, nearly 30 per cent of consumers purchased through this medium in the last month, with China recording high adoption usage at 63 per cent whereas the US recorded 29 per cent. Not only did companies accelerate transformation online, but also ramped up in-store tech investments, with almost 40 per cent consumers pointing to scan-as-you-go, smart cart, and walk-in, walk-out technologies as top desired features. Tech-based immersive experiences will continue to pick up as consumers return to stores more frequently. Euromonitor’s digital survey results found that more than 42 per cent of consumers are comfortable with in-store assistance from robots, and one in five are open to the idea of microchip implantation to enable payments. -- BERNAMA
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Kites Team to Help Enhance Zoom’s Machine Translation Capabilities
SAN JOSE, Calif. and KARLSRUHE, Germany, June 30 (Bernama-GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Zoom Video Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ: ZM) today announced it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Karlsruhe Information Technology Solutions - Kites GmbH (“Kites”), a start-up dedicated to developing real-time Machine Translation (“MT”) solutions. The terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Kites was founded in 2015 and has academic roots with Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, where co-founders Dr. Alex Waibel and Dr. Sebastian Stüker are faculty members. Kites’ talented team of 12 research scientists will help Zoom’s engineering team advance the field of MT to improve meeting productivity and efficiency by providing multi-language translation capabilities for Zoom users. “We are continuously looking for new ways to deliver happiness to our users and improve meeting productivity, and MT solutions will be key in enhancing our platform for Zoom customers across the globe,” said Velchamy Sankarlingam, President of Product and Engineering at Zoom. “With our aligned missions to make collaboration frictionless – regardless of language, geographic location, or other barriers – we are confident Kites’ impressive team will fit right in with Zoom.” “Kites emerged with the mission of breaking down language barriers and making seamless cross-language interaction a reality of everyday life, and we have long admired Zoom for its ability to easily connect people across the world,” said Dr. Waibel and Dr. Stüker. “We know Zoom is the best partner for Kites to help advance our mission and we are excited to see what comes next under Zoom’s incredible innovation engine.” Dr. Stüker and the rest of the Kites team will remain based in Karlsruhe, Germany, where Zoom looks forward to investing in growing the team. Zoom is exploring opening an R&D center in Germany in the future. Dr. Waibel will become a Zoom Research Fellow, a role in which he will advise on Zoom’s MT research and development. Forward-Looking Statements This press release contains express and implied “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 related to Zoom’s acquisition of Kites that involves substantial risks, uncertainties and assumptions that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such statements. Forward-looking statements in this communication include, among other things, statements about the potential benefits of the transaction, our development of our MT solutions, our ability to integrate the Kites team, and potential growth opportunities. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by terms such as “anticipate,” “believe,” “estimate,” “expect,” “intend,” “may,” “might,” “plan,” “project,” “will,” “would,” “should,” “could,” “can,” “predict,” “potential,” “target,” “explore,” “continue,” or the negative of these terms, and similar expressions intended to identify forward-looking statements. However, not all forward-looking statements contain these identifying words. By their nature, these statements are subject to numerous uncertainties and risks, including factors beyond our control, that could cause actual results, performance or achievement to differ materially and adversely from those anticipated or implied in the statements. These assumptions, uncertainties and risks include that, among others, the possibility that the anticipated benefits of the transaction are not realized when expected or at all, division of management’s attention from ongoing business operations and opportunities, potential adverse reactions or changes to business or employee relationships, the ability to integrate Kites successfully, and other factors that may affect future results of Zoom. Additional risks and uncertainties that could cause actual outcomes and results to differ materially from those contemplated by the forward-looking statements are included under the caption “Risk Factors” and elsewhere in our most recent filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”), including our quarterly report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended April 30, 2021. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date the statements are made and are based on information available to Zoom at the time those statements are made and/or management's good faith belief as of that time with respect to future events. Zoom assumes no obligation to update forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date they were made, except as required by law. http://mrem.bernama.com/viewsm.php?idm=40411 Microsoft Azure customers worldwide now gain access to the Flight Info API to take advantage of the scalability, reliability, and agility of Azure to drive application development and shape business strategies
LONDON, June 29 (Bernama-BUSINESS WIRE) -- OAG, a leading provider of air travel data and insights, today announced the availability of its Flight Info API in the Microsoft Azure Marketplace, an online store that provides applications and services for use on Azure. OAG customers can now take advantage of the productive and trusted Azure cloud platform, with streamlined deployment and management. Flight Info API is the latest product launch for OAG Metis, the company’s Azure-powered open platform for enabling a combined and configurable view of high-value flight information. The API holds the richest version of OAG’s schedules data, including unique seats data derived from a new data model. The API provides travel technology companies, online travel agencies (OTAs), metasearch, and other stakeholders in the travel management ecosystem access to data that can help them differentiate, react faster, and scale quicker. “OAG’s solutions—directly sold and marketed by Microsoft resellers around the world—provide broad-scale access to reliable flight information to our customers,” said Nick Dearden, Chief Technology Officer at OAG. “OAG continues to deliver innovative solutions that help our customers access the most current flight information, now available in the Microsoft Azure cloud.” “Through Microsoft Azure Marketplace, customers around the world can easily find, buy, and deploy partner solutions they can trust, all certified and optimized to run on Azure,” said Sajan Parihar, Senior Director, Microsoft Azure Platform at Microsoft Corp. “We’re happy to welcome OAG solutions to the growing Azure Marketplace ecosystem.” The Azure Marketplace is an online market for buying and selling cloud solutions certified to run on Azure. The Azure Marketplace helps connect companies seeking innovative, cloud-based solutions with partners who have developed solutions that are ready to use. About OAG A leading global travel data provider, OAG has been powering growth and innovation in the air travel ecosystem since 1929. Headquartered in the United Kingdom, OAG has global operations in the United States, Singapore, Japan, Lithuania, and China. For more information, visit www.oag.com and follow us on Twitter @OAG Aviation. http://mrem.bernama.com/viewsm.php?idm=40398 KUALA LUMPUR, June 29 (Bernama) -- Sophi.io, The Globe and Mail’s artificial intelligence-based automation and prediction engine, has won the 2021 Digiday Media Award for Best Publisher Platform, which recognises technology that is most successful in helping publishers achieve their goals.
According to a statement, the awards honour companies, technologies and campaigns that have stood out throughout the media over the past year. “This year, the competition was fierce and the programmes robust. Innovation and big ideas expanded the playing field for many of the winners, even in a year when quarantines limited where and how people could work — and play,” according to Digiday. Publisher and Chief Executive Officer of The Globe and Mail, Phillip Crawley said: “It’s an honour to be chosen as the winner of Digiday’s Media Award for Best Publisher Platform.” “We aren’t often up against companies in both the media and marketing industries but our investments in Sophi have been driven by the understanding that our technology can directly drive performance and economic growth for companies across a large range of industries.” Sophi is an artificial-intelligence system that helps publishers identify and leverage their most valuable content. It has powerful predictive capabilities – using natural language processing, Sophi Dynamic Paywall is a fully dynamic, real-time, personalised paywall engine that analyses both content and user behaviour to determine when to ask a reader for money or an email address, and when to leave them alone. Sophi Site Automation autonomously curates digital content to find and promote the most valuable articles, placing 99 per cent of the content on all of The Globe and Mail’s digital pages, including its homepage and section pages. More details at https://www.sophi.io. -- BERNAMA KUALA LUMPUR, June 28 -- Yili Group, Asia's largest dairy company, recently participated in the 14th Global Dairy Congress. As the only invited speaker from China, Assistant President of Yili, Dr Zhanyou Yun attended the keynote session, delivering a speech entitled ‘Driving innovation and branding’. "The era of Industry 4.0 calls for dairy players to embrace digital technology in order to drive greater innovation. Always putting our customers first, Yili has established 'dual centers' online and offline and achieved the 'dual integration' of informatisation and digitalisation,” said Dr Yun. “Digital technology also empowers our partners to improve their efficiency and will ultimately help to provide products of even higher quality for global consumers.” According to a statement, as consumer needs become personalised and segmented, Yili has been developing a wide range of digital tools to stay ahead of the market. The company has established its own ‘radar’ to track consumers' evolving demands and receive feedback around their experiences, as well as a series of platforms for product lifecycle management, compliance and standard platform management, and risk assessment. In the upper reaches of the industry chain, Yili actively promotes digital farming and is building smart pastures. Using Yili's digital management system, pasture workers are able to keep real-time digital health records for every cow. In the middle of the industry chain, Yili has been accelerating the construction of ‘smart factories’. Downstream, Yili has been promoting the concept of ‘new retail’ to optimise consumer shopping experiences and achieve the full integration of online and offline channels. Yili also integrates IT applications with the dairy industry, and uses big data to accurately understand consumers' rapidly evolving needs. At the World Dairy Innovation Awards ceremony, an annual event held during the Global Dairy Congress, the judging panel considered 222 entries from 25 countries across 20 categories, and Yili won three awards including ‘Best Dairy Drink’ for Cute Star Rub Your Tummy dietary fiber yogurt drink. -- BERNAMA Tech Industry Veteran to Lead Expansion of Zoom’s APAC Business
SAN JOSE, Calif., June 29 (Bernama-GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Zoom Video Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ: ZM) today announced Ricky Kapur will join the company as the Head of APAC, effective June 21. Reporting directly to Zoom’s Head of International Abe Smith, Kapur will define and lead the company’s go-to-market strategy for key APAC markets: Australia and New Zealand, ASEAN, China, Hong Kong SAR, India, Korea, and Taiwan — exclusive of Japan. Ricky will manage Zoom’s APAC business with supervision and alignment across all cross-functional roles. Kapur comes to Zoom after five and a half years at Microsoft, where he was most recently Vice President of Sales and Marketing Operations for APAC. At Microsoft, he managed all segments, from SMB, Majors through Enterprise, and led a cross-functional team of sales, marketing, partner, and customer success professionals. Zoom is positioned for continued growth in APAC, and to capitalize on these new opportunities, it has expanded its leadership to lead the company through its next phase of expansion in the region. “Zoom has scaled its operations and business impressively across APAC markets, announcing a Technology Center in India and a Research and Development Center in Singapore within the past year,” said Ricky Kapur, Head of APAC at Zoom. “I am excited to join a company that continues to redefine the way organizations and individuals connect, from breaking barriers for education and healthcare with virtual-learning and telehealth to becoming critical technology for enterprises as they quickly evolved and adapted to a hybrid working model.” “We are thrilled to have Ricky Kapur lead our go-to-market strategy for all of APAC, a region where we are seeing accelerated growth,” said Abe Smith, Head of International at Zoom. “APAC is a critical region for Zoom, as we invest in infrastructure and expand the presence of our sales, marketing, and research and development teams to best enable organizations of all sizes with seamless and reliable video communications.” About Ricky Kapur Ricky Kapur is Head of APAC for Zoom, bringing over 25 years of experience to his role. Prior to joining Zoom, Kapur was Vice President of Sales and Marketing Operations at Microsoft APAC. In his role, he managed all segments, from SMB and Majors up to Enterprise and led a cross-functional team of Sales, Marketing, Partner and Customer Success and Operations professionals. Before joining Microsoft, Kapur served as Managing Director at Google where he was responsible for overseeing growth of Google Cloud Platform across APJ. Prior to that, Kapur held the position of Vice President, ASEAN Technology Sales at Oracle. He also worked at Siebel Systems, Unica Corporation, and Chordiant Software. Kapur is a chartered accountant from the Institute of Chartered Accountants in India and holds an MBA from the University of Melbourne. http://mrem.bernama.com/viewsm.php?idm=40397 SYNCHRONOSS TECHNOLOGIES, INC. ANNOUNCES PRICING OF $125 MILLION PUBLIC OFFERING OF SENIOR NOTES28/6/2021 BRIDGEWATER, N.J., June 28 (Bernama-GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Synchronoss Technologies, Inc. (SNCR) (the “Company” or “Synchronoss”), a global leader and innovator in cloud, messaging and digital products and platforms, today announced the pricing of an underwritten public offering of $125 million aggregate principal amount of 8.375% senior notes due 2026, including the exercise in full by the underwriters of the underwriters’ option to purchase an additional $5 million aggregate principal amount of senior notes. The offering is expected to close on or about June 30, 2021, subject to satisfaction of customary closing conditions.
Synchronoss and the senior notes both received a rating of BB- from Egan-Jones Ratings Company, an independent, unaffiliated rating agency. The Company has applied to list the senior notes on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the symbol “SNCRL” and expects the notes to begin trading within 30 business days of the closing date of the offering, if approved. All of the senior notes in the offering are being sold by Synchronoss. Synchronoss anticipates using the net proceeds from the offering, and from the offering of common stock and sale of Series B Preferred Stock (each as described below), to fully redeem all outstanding shares of Synchronoss’ Series A Convertible Participating Perpetual Preferred Stock and repay amounts outstanding under Synchronoss’ revolving credit facility. B. Riley Securities, Inc. (“BRS”) is acting as the sole book-running manager for the offering. Northland Capital Markets, Aegis Capital Corp. and EF Hutton, division of Benchmark Investments, LLC are acting as lead managers for the offering. Concurrently with the offering, the Company is offering, by means of a separate prospectus supplement, $100 million of shares of its common stock. In addition, B. Riley Principal Investments, LLC (“BRPI”), an affiliate of BRS, has entered into an agreement pursuant to which BRPI has agreed to purchase $75.0 million of the Company’s Series B Preferred Stock in a private transaction to be completed concurrently with the closing of the offering. The senior notes described above are being offered by Synchronoss pursuant to a shelf registration statement on Form S-3 previously filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and declared effective by the SEC on August 28, 2020. A preliminary prospectus supplement relating to and describing the terms of the offering is filed with the SEC and is available on the SEC’s web site at www.sec.gov. The final terms of the proposed offering will be disclosed in a final prospectus supplement to be filed with the SEC. Copies of the final prospectus supplement (when available) and accompanying prospectus relating to these securities may also be obtained by sending a request to: B. Riley Securities, Inc., at 1300 North 17th Street, Suite 1300, Arlington, VA 22209 or by calling (703) 312‐9580 or by emailing [email protected]. This press release does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any of these securities, nor will there be any sale of these securities in any state or other jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to the registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such state or other jurisdiction. About Synchronoss Synchronoss Technologies (NASDAQ: SNCR) builds software that empowers companies around the world to connect with their subscribers in trusted and meaningful ways. The company’s collection of products helps streamline networks, simplify onboarding, and engage subscribers to unleash new revenue streams, reduce costs and increase speed to market. Safe Harbor Statement This release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, including but not limited to statements regarding the closing of the public offering and the anticipated use of the proceeds thereof. These forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks, including the satisfaction of customary closing conditions related to the public offering and the risk factors set forth from time to time in Synchronoss’ SEC filings, including but not limited to the risks that are described in the “Risk Factors” and “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” sections (as applicable) of Synchronoss’ Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2020 and Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the period ended March 31, 2021, which are on file with the SEC and available on the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov. In addition to the risks described above and in Synchronoss’ other filings with the SEC, other unknown or unpredictable factors also could affect Synchronoss’ results. No forward-looking statements can be guaranteed and actual results may differ materially from such statements. The information in this release is provided only as of the date of this release, and Synchronoss undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements contained in this release on account of new information, future events, or otherwise, except as required by law. Media Diane Rose CCgroup [email protected] Investors Todd Kehrli/Joo-Hun Kim MKR Investor Relations, Inc. [email protected] Source: Synchronoss Technologies, Inc. --BERNAMA SHAH ALAM, June 22 (Bernama) -- Invest Selangor Berhad today announced the latest date for The Selangor Aviation Show (SAS 2021), which will be rescheduled to 25th till 27th November 2021, due to the current Covid-19 situation in Malaysia.
SAS 2021 is an aviation show dedicated to providing an invaluable opportunity for high-level networking and market penetration prospects with industry players from various sectors, including commercials, the business aviation, general aviation, and helicopters sub-sectors of the aviation industry in Malaysia and potentially in the region. Themed "Selangor, the ASEAN Business & General Aviation Hub", SAS 2021 is designed as a catalyst for all relevant stakeholders to network, dialogue, share knowledge and offerings poised to revitalize the affected industry in the post-Covid-19 environment. This event will bring together the world's best of aerospace and aviation, creating potential business and investment opportunities in both domestic and international stages targeting to draw at least 5,000 visitors and at least 30 exhibitors from local and international companies. SAS 2021 features static aircraft displays, forum, education open day and exposition featuring key industry players. Y.A.B. Dato’ Seri Amirudin Bin Shari, Selangor Chief Minister said that the postponement of SAS 2021 is a precautionary effort to ensure that the event will be held safely for all participants. The announcement was made during the Virtual Selangor Aerospace Council Meeting earlier today. Register now to witness the first-ever aviation show at, https://selangoraviationshow.com mrem.bernama.com/viewsm.php?idm=40332 KUALA LUMPUR, June 25 (Bernama) -- Synchronoss Technologies Inc (Synchronoss), a global leader and innovator in cloud, messaging and digital products and platforms, announced that the Company intends to offer and sell, subject to market and other conditions, US$100 million of shares of its common stock in an underwritten public offering. (US$1 = RM4.155)
Synchronoss also expects to grant underwriters a 30-day option to purchase up to an additional US$10 million in shares of common stock sold in the offering, at the public offering price, less the underwriting discounts and commissions. There can be no assurance as to whether or when the offering may be completed, or as to the actual size or terms of the offering, according to a statement. All shares in the offering are to be sold by Synchronoss, with net proceeds of the offering, and from the offering of Senior Notes and sale of Series B Preferred Stock, expected to be used to fully redeem all outstanding shares of Synchronoss’ Series A Convertible Participating Perpetual Preferred Stock and repay amounts outstanding under Synchronoss’ revolving credit facility. B. Riley Securities Inc (BRS) is acting as the lead underwriter and sole book-running manager for the offering. Northland Capital Markets is acting as co-manager for the offering. Concurrently with the offering, the Company is offering, by means of a separate prospectus supplement, US$120 million aggregate principal amount of senior notes due 2026 (the Senior Notes). In addition, B. Riley Principal Investments LLC (BRPI), an affiliate of BRS, has entered into an agreement pursuant to which BRPI has agreed to purchase US$75.0 million of the Company’s Series B Preferred Stock in a private transaction to be completed concurrently with the closing of the offering. The shares of common stock described above are being offered by Synchronoss pursuant to a shelf registration statement on Form S-3 previously filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and declared effective by the SEC on Aug 28, 2020. A preliminary prospectus supplement relating to and describing the terms of the offering will be filed with the SEC and will be available on the SEC’s web site, while the final terms of the proposed offering will be disclosed in a final prospectus supplement to be filed with the SEC. -- BERNAMA KUALA LUMPUR, June 25 (Bernama) -- JW Player, the leading video software and data insights platform, announced it has raised US$100 million in Series E funding from LLR Partners. (US$1 = RM4.155)
The latest investment comes on the heels of record video streaming growth and strong profitability during the previous 12 months, according to a statement. With this financing, JW Player will accelerate product innovation to meet rapidly changing demands of customers in today’s digital video environment, expand its global go-to-market footprint across sales, marketing and channel partnerships and continue to grow and invest in building a world-class team. “As we enter this next phase, we are thrilled to partner with LLR. LLR’s team brings decades of unmatched support and expertise in growing industry-changing software companies and will undoubtedly, help us accelerate our success as we pursue this massive market opportunity together,” said JW Player chief executive officer and co-founder, Dave Otten. Meanwhile, Partner at LLR Partners, David Reuter said: “We look forward to partnering with the JW Player team as they expand their platform and continue to elevate the way brands can host, stream and monetise video.” The funding round follows JW Player’s recent acquisition of VUALTO, a leading provider of live and on-demand video streaming and Digital Rights Management (DRM) solutions, that deepened the company’s offering to global broadcasters. In the days following the acquisition, JW Player has seen a material uptick and influx of sales and pipeline, especially in the LATAM and APAC regions. Started as a hugely-popular open source video player, JW Player’s API-driven video platform now empowers hundreds of thousands of customers to independently control and operate their mobile, OTT and Web video applications at global scale. More details at http://www.jwplayer.com. -- BERNAMA |
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