Rap Beat Maker Programs Simplify the Process
If, like many musicians you are operating on a tight budget with your own a keyboard, then the question of spending more for new is difficult. A musician that may be more percussivelly oriented, like a person that started out playing the drums and has moved on to playing keyboards, might therefore be more at home creating their drum samples using real drum sticks and pads that deliver a nice feeling of impact with at least some modest rebounding capability. I am a producer and I wish somebody would've told me this in the beginning.
There is make a beats software program, that I use, which will have you making music beats within minutes without having any music production experience. Let me go through the process on how this great new beats creator software allows you to make those beats you have only dreamed in easy steps. Those options would include allowing you to Choose all stereo tracks like drums, keys or MIC, the ability to browse sounds and drum kits and choose keyboard triggers to play and record keys or drums from your computers keyboard. Now just give your beats making project a name and you are ready to roll. Easily select a drum kit to use or you can quickly edit and create brand new ones.
With the computer keyboard triggers, that you will assign to the program, makes this process a breeze. The keyboard allows you easily select a sound, edit and make new sounds and the ability to draw in or tap in your beats right from your computers keyboard. The make a beats software will create a rich broadcast quality sound file and presto you are done. Whatever you chose the beats you create are royalty free beat programs so the sky's the limit. There are several choices of online beats making software that make it to where you can easily learn how to make your own beats without having to know how to play keyboard. The rap beat maker programs that use extremely simple to use, lets you mix the music, allows you to sell the beats that you make and use them. The rap make a beats programs are so much easier and affordable.
Though if you are more of a keyboard oriented musician then that still may be best for your strengths. Why not have dueling devices and let them play off of each other? Try several takes on your drum track using each method and then compare or even combine the results. Most of all, remember to be creative. Resolve to move out of the humdrum and into the world of the elite beat makers. Of course, retreading, or interpreting someone's music is a creative act in itself.
Hip Hop Superstar Beat master
How to Become the Next Hip Hop Superstar Beat master !!!
What about a software that easily produces great drums tracks and simulates other instruments right of the box? If you want an easy and really cheap way to do it this way I can recommend a make a beats program called DUBturbo. Please refer to the detailed review at the bottom for more information. You only select a nice sounding drum kit and create a good beat, choose a nice bass and create a baseline for your track and if you like insert some melody instruments. With the jam track looping in the background you get a great "in the band" feeling.
Speaking of styles you are not limited to some genres with DUBturbo. Music creation! They want to learn how to create and mix their own beats and tunes! It's such an awesome feeling to create your own banging track and to flash it off to all your mates, it can be a real rush and very exciting, but where in the world do you start? For many years it was renowned that to make high quality tunes of a professional level required a huge input of cash, time and knowledge! Now for a new enthusiast one or all of these three requirements were well out of reach!
You would need a tonne of expensive equipment, a vast knowledge of music theory and years of dedication to understand how it all works and how to put it all together! You pretty much needed a degree to understand most of it and this took a lot of fun out of the creative side for many people. Well here's the good news, instead of having to shell out a tonne of money for a professional recording studio, spend hours if not years working out complicated high end software solutions, you can get your hands on software for beats programs that are on the market which allow you to get started making your own beats today, that are both easy to use and eliminate all the frustrations.
What they need is something which helps them turn those creative ideas into real sounds and onto a track as quickly and easily as possible. There are so many options of software for beats programs on the market today that allow you to make beats that sound professional, - how can you know which one to choose and which will be best for you? Each program will fit different needs.
Some of the better ones out there are Magix Music Maker, Cubase, Dubturbo and Fruity Loops. You can pretty much make any tune you like with them and each with a totally individual sound. This is a great advantage to those wishing to see if this is for them or not. Probably one of the best software for beats programs out there for beginners, it is a lot different from the rest as it has been designed specifically with the novice in mind!- but what makes it really different is that it can be used as a learning tool, so you will not only get the know-how with music production, but it teaches you in a way which is easy to understand and implement. In this article I showed you a nice little program to make your own beats fast and easy.
What about a software that easily produces great drums tracks and simulates other instruments right of the box? If you want an easy and really cheap way to do it this way I can recommend a make a beats program called DUBturbo. Please refer to the detailed review at the bottom for more information. You only select a nice sounding drum kit and create a good beat, choose a nice bass and create a baseline for your track and if you like insert some melody instruments. With the jam track looping in the background you get a great "in the band" feeling.
Speaking of styles you are not limited to some genres with DUBturbo. Music creation! They want to learn how to create and mix their own beats and tunes! It's such an awesome feeling to create your own banging track and to flash it off to all your mates, it can be a real rush and very exciting, but where in the world do you start? For many years it was renowned that to make high quality tunes of a professional level required a huge input of cash, time and knowledge! Now for a new enthusiast one or all of these three requirements were well out of reach!
You would need a tonne of expensive equipment, a vast knowledge of music theory and years of dedication to understand how it all works and how to put it all together! You pretty much needed a degree to understand most of it and this took a lot of fun out of the creative side for many people. Well here's the good news, instead of having to shell out a tonne of money for a professional recording studio, spend hours if not years working out complicated high end software solutions, you can get your hands on software for beats programs that are on the market which allow you to get started making your own beats today, that are both easy to use and eliminate all the frustrations.
What they need is something which helps them turn those creative ideas into real sounds and onto a track as quickly and easily as possible. There are so many options of software for beats programs on the market today that allow you to make beats that sound professional, - how can you know which one to choose and which will be best for you? Each program will fit different needs.
Some of the better ones out there are Magix Music Maker, Cubase, Dubturbo and Fruity Loops. You can pretty much make any tune you like with them and each with a totally individual sound. This is a great advantage to those wishing to see if this is for them or not. Probably one of the best software for beats programs out there for beginners, it is a lot different from the rest as it has been designed specifically with the novice in mind!- but what makes it really different is that it can be used as a learning tool, so you will not only get the know-how with music production, but it teaches you in a way which is easy to understand and implement. In this article I showed you a nice little program to make your own beats fast and easy.
Pro Beat Maker Can Transform Your Beats
How a Pro Beat Maker Can Transform Your Beats
How do you know whether a make a beats program like DUBturbo is worthwhile? The easy way to answer a question like that is to consider the main elements any quality beat making program should provide. High Quality Samples and Presets. Most free beat programs offer limited presets and samples and their quality is at best MP3. But if you are a serious songwriter hoping to write songs and beats that can rival the big music production studios you are going to need high quality samples.
By using industry standard Wav files, you can easily edit your songs on the fly even while switching back and forth between your music editor of choice, vastly speeding up the songwriting process. Customized Drum Kits. The drums form the base foundation of your song, so why choose a beat making program that limits your abilities, when you can use a tool that has literally dozens of kits to choose from. Use a Sequencer Up to the Job. Again this is OK, if all you want to do is amateur projects for fun or home use, but if you want to become a serious songwriter you need to a tool that can construct a complete song. No one wants average or crap beats and you don't want to waste your time on rubbish products that claim to do everything but in fact, do very little.
The best advantage to using make a beats software online is by far the flexibility. Then when you get back to your computer you can simply jump back into the session and mix down the original idea! What About Sound Quality? Does Online Beat Making Software Actually Sound Good? An obviously important question when you are dealing with audio production is the quality of sounds. 1 kHz 16 bit stereo WAV files. Working with higher quality, industry standard audio files is going to make a beats automatically sound better then that of programs using mp3 files!
Despite the original skepticism I have found numerous reasons that make some online beat making programs first class software. So why limite yourself to lousy 4 bar make a beats, use a tool that's up to the job. Using beat making software to create sick beats and tracks is the best way to go especially if you don't have access to a full blown music producing studio. This means that they might be OK to start with but as you get better and your music production knowledge grows, your software is now no longer relevant. More importantly, if you are a true music lover than you know that sound quality is something you just can't and never should sacrifice!
How do you know whether a make a beats program like DUBturbo is worthwhile? The easy way to answer a question like that is to consider the main elements any quality beat making program should provide. High Quality Samples and Presets. Most free beat programs offer limited presets and samples and their quality is at best MP3. But if you are a serious songwriter hoping to write songs and beats that can rival the big music production studios you are going to need high quality samples.
By using industry standard Wav files, you can easily edit your songs on the fly even while switching back and forth between your music editor of choice, vastly speeding up the songwriting process. Customized Drum Kits. The drums form the base foundation of your song, so why choose a beat making program that limits your abilities, when you can use a tool that has literally dozens of kits to choose from. Use a Sequencer Up to the Job. Again this is OK, if all you want to do is amateur projects for fun or home use, but if you want to become a serious songwriter you need to a tool that can construct a complete song. No one wants average or crap beats and you don't want to waste your time on rubbish products that claim to do everything but in fact, do very little.
The best advantage to using make a beats software online is by far the flexibility. Then when you get back to your computer you can simply jump back into the session and mix down the original idea! What About Sound Quality? Does Online Beat Making Software Actually Sound Good? An obviously important question when you are dealing with audio production is the quality of sounds. 1 kHz 16 bit stereo WAV files. Working with higher quality, industry standard audio files is going to make a beats automatically sound better then that of programs using mp3 files!
Despite the original skepticism I have found numerous reasons that make some online beat making programs first class software. So why limite yourself to lousy 4 bar make a beats, use a tool that's up to the job. Using beat making software to create sick beats and tracks is the best way to go especially if you don't have access to a full blown music producing studio. This means that they might be OK to start with but as you get better and your music production knowledge grows, your software is now no longer relevant. More importantly, if you are a true music lover than you know that sound quality is something you just can't and never should sacrifice!
Make a BEATS by Yourself
Introduction to Make a BEATS by Yourself
It has become impossible nowadays to create any hip hop or rap songs without a software for beats. The latest invention allows everybody to create beats online using a beat making software. With these software where all editing features and mixers are built in, there is no need for expensive mixing equipment and recording devices.
Another important aspect when making your hip hop or rap beats is the sequencer. And this is also a built in feature that you can find in a good software for beats. However, when choosing a beats making software, be sure to check the export capability or the saving function of the software. So, just make sure that software, that you are investing in has the MP3 export capability as MP3 is the most common transferable file format that can be used on most other software.
The one I am using also shows different ways to put together music and beats to make truly marvelous rap and hip hop song. Okay, so that are all factors you should take into consideration when choosing a software.
The best part is that you wouldn't even need to buy any expensive instruments to make a beats. In fact the best software for beats, that one can get today can actually add the sounds of a variety of instruments to brighten up your beat. You really save out on a lot of overhead costs when you realize that now you would not have to pay the musician and for the instruments.
So if you are just starting as a musician, the right software could really be useful to you as money is really a precious commodity especially if you are just starting out. It would be useful for you if you put up a good quality sound system as that would improve the quality of the output. For little bugs, you can get a good beat making software that can be easily mastered with the help of the detailed tutorials that accompany it.
"Dubturbo" has about a thousand different beats along with melodies and chords and makes real short work of producing the right beats. So whether you need hip hop or rap beats, you can easily get it with this. "Dubturbo" the best software should allow you to make your own beats, that it is in tune with the music that is most popular at the present.
Most software allow you to easily pick up your beat after you have composed it and transfer it as an MP3 to make sure that it can be used by other software too.
It has become impossible nowadays to create any hip hop or rap songs without a software for beats. The latest invention allows everybody to create beats online using a beat making software. With these software where all editing features and mixers are built in, there is no need for expensive mixing equipment and recording devices.
Another important aspect when making your hip hop or rap beats is the sequencer. And this is also a built in feature that you can find in a good software for beats. However, when choosing a beats making software, be sure to check the export capability or the saving function of the software. So, just make sure that software, that you are investing in has the MP3 export capability as MP3 is the most common transferable file format that can be used on most other software.
The one I am using also shows different ways to put together music and beats to make truly marvelous rap and hip hop song. Okay, so that are all factors you should take into consideration when choosing a software.
The best part is that you wouldn't even need to buy any expensive instruments to make a beats. In fact the best software for beats, that one can get today can actually add the sounds of a variety of instruments to brighten up your beat. You really save out on a lot of overhead costs when you realize that now you would not have to pay the musician and for the instruments.
So if you are just starting as a musician, the right software could really be useful to you as money is really a precious commodity especially if you are just starting out. It would be useful for you if you put up a good quality sound system as that would improve the quality of the output. For little bugs, you can get a good beat making software that can be easily mastered with the help of the detailed tutorials that accompany it.
"Dubturbo" has about a thousand different beats along with melodies and chords and makes real short work of producing the right beats. So whether you need hip hop or rap beats, you can easily get it with this. "Dubturbo" the best software should allow you to make your own beats, that it is in tune with the music that is most popular at the present.
Most software allow you to easily pick up your beat after you have composed it and transfer it as an MP3 to make sure that it can be used by other software too.
Right Nautical Jewelry
Getting The Right Nautical Jewelry For Your Needs
The nautical fashion theme is one that is noRight Nautical Jewelryt going to fade any time soon. In fact, it is now being used not just on outfits and interior décor but also on jewelry. Nautical jewelry is becoming increasingly popular not just among fans if the nautical theme but also in the mainstream media. Getting the right jewelry of this kind however is something that needs a little bit of caution.
All things that are associated with the marine life can define the nautical theme. Some of the items of this nature that you can obtain in many jewelry stores include many a nautical bracelet, nautical striped watch, anchor earrings, and pendants among other things. You can even find jewelry pieces that have turtleheads, skulls, pirate symbols etc. It is important for you to decide on what look you are going for and shop accordingly.
When purchasing jewelry pieces that have a nautical theme, it is also important for you to decide on the type of metal or any other material you want. Your preferences on this issue may be decided by the color, quality, price, and skin reactions. A gold anchor necklace for example may be a better option than a silver one, especially if jewelry is a form of investment for you. Gold is a very valuable metal and can be used as a form of currency if you are short in cash. The metal is also versatile and can be worn with any number of looks, so you do not need to start looking for other types of necklaces to go with your outfits. Alternatively, you can settle for cheaper metals bronze, copper, and other alloys preferably you are not allergic to them. Even wooden and bone jewelry featuring the nautical theme exists. It all depends on what you prefer.
Always ensure that any jewelry that has a nautical theme is genuine and well worth your money. You can do this by purchasing it from authentic jewelers who have a good reputation. Such suppliers usually have a wide range of nautical accessories from different brands with a variety of price tags. You can therefore always find something to suit your budget no matter how limited.
The nautical fashion theme is one that is noRight Nautical Jewelryt going to fade any time soon. In fact, it is now being used not just on outfits and interior décor but also on jewelry. Nautical jewelry is becoming increasingly popular not just among fans if the nautical theme but also in the mainstream media. Getting the right jewelry of this kind however is something that needs a little bit of caution.
All things that are associated with the marine life can define the nautical theme. Some of the items of this nature that you can obtain in many jewelry stores include many a nautical bracelet, nautical striped watch, anchor earrings, and pendants among other things. You can even find jewelry pieces that have turtleheads, skulls, pirate symbols etc. It is important for you to decide on what look you are going for and shop accordingly.
When purchasing jewelry pieces that have a nautical theme, it is also important for you to decide on the type of metal or any other material you want. Your preferences on this issue may be decided by the color, quality, price, and skin reactions. A gold anchor necklace for example may be a better option than a silver one, especially if jewelry is a form of investment for you. Gold is a very valuable metal and can be used as a form of currency if you are short in cash. The metal is also versatile and can be worn with any number of looks, so you do not need to start looking for other types of necklaces to go with your outfits. Alternatively, you can settle for cheaper metals bronze, copper, and other alloys preferably you are not allergic to them. Even wooden and bone jewelry featuring the nautical theme exists. It all depends on what you prefer.
Always ensure that any jewelry that has a nautical theme is genuine and well worth your money. You can do this by purchasing it from authentic jewelers who have a good reputation. Such suppliers usually have a wide range of nautical accessories from different brands with a variety of price tags. You can therefore always find something to suit your budget no matter how limited.
How To Search for Cheap Air-tickets
As you are among travelers, who travel lot, then looking out for how to search for cheap flights tickets are must. No matter what is the reason, all needs to use air travel at some point and it is a great expense. But it is unbearable due to the high costs of flying. Coming across cheap airfares really need a lot of search & research work. For the business travelers, spending some extra cash is quite affordable. But for common people it is difficult for ever. That is the reason every one should well plan before taking air travel in order to prevent paying extra money to the Ticket.
While you start search for finding cheap flights tickets from Internet., various portals display information about various travel search engines, tourist guides, to trip planners and tourist boards. Finding out the best offers and more importantly finding out cheap cheap tickets are quite distressing and pleasurable as well. As soon as you log on into a reliable travel sites, it ensures you to get the most reliable and updated offer on air tickets. Comparison is a time consuming job but it allows a person to get special offers on air tickets.
Now a days air tickets becoming affordable to the common man and all can dream of travelling by air with less time being spent on travel and the tourists can spend that time for sightseeing or enjoying. They can reach the destination immediately and can get started with their entertainment on the same day. The advent of internet has made it easy and our lives so simple that you can get almost everything done through it. If you're satisfy with the fares and if the flight timings are convenient for you, you can make the air ticket booking at the same time & print the e-ticket too.
Once you provide the required details and make payment online, you will get your ticket. Even without having computer or internet knowledge, you don't have to worry too much about booking the ticket. It has been seen that while searching for cheap flights tickets for any destination, booking your airline tickets for weekends will cost you more in comparison to booking your flights for weekdays. If possible arrange your journey in weekdays to avoid some extra charges
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Shopping Bags Online
Shopping bags are often used as a means of packaging in various stores. During the holiday season or in case of a shopping spree, people tend to become overloaded with such bags. These bags can take up a lot of space when allowed to pile up and there isn’t really much that one can do about it because so many bags aren’t required. Thus, instead of throwing them into the trash bin, it would be a good idea to turn these shopping bags around and give them a makeover so that you can use them as bags for your gifts.
There are so many different kinds of bags that you can use for this purpose, such as plastic ones, paper bags, etc. Depending on the gift you are giving away, you need to make the selection of the shopping bag to amp up. For instance, if you are gifting a clothing item then you can re-decorate a paper shopping bag but if you are gifting something heavy then a paper bag wouldn’t be a wise choice for the packaging. You’d be better off using a bag made of plastic instead.
If you want to convert a plain or ordinary looking shopping bag then you will need to purchase some supplies beforehand. It is advisable to go for decorative stationeries like crinkle paper, glitter particles, paper flowers, ribbon, water colors, crayons, markers and anything else that you think would look good on the gift bag. Also, don’t forget to purchase glue stick or a hot glue gun because you will need an adhesive for sticking these decorative items on to your shopping bag. If you don’t want to spend a lot of time on the revamped gift bag then simply use decorative pieces to cover up the logo on the bag. However, if you don’t mind sparing some time to make the gift bag look more special then you can use paint or water colors to color the entire bag or just certain portions. Whatever you choose to do, you can add the finishing touch by throwing in some glitter at random spots for that glamorous effect.
When it comes to gifts, packaging matters a lot too; in fact it is almost as important as the gift itself because it would make the receiver guess what is inside the fancy packaging. After all, who doesn’t love to feast their eyes on fancy gift bags? So, the next time when you have a huge bunch of shopping bags lying with you then you can consider allowing your creative juices to flow by converting them into fancy gift bags. This is not only a relaxing process but it is also highly enjoyable for people who love art and craft.
What Competitive Ticket Fare in Travel Industry
Due to the competition in the civil aviation industry, the airfares have dropped down to the lowest levels for ever. Crashing down of air ticket prices started when the private sector was let in to the civil aviation and the formalities related to the process were eased off. Since that every time there has been a radical change in the way people used to fly. If the small scale private sector air travel operator reduces their airfares, the leaders in the business have to follow them to gain back the customers and obviously to get their consistent profits.
The customers are being provided with the best in the industry on-board options at much cheaper airfares than ever before. That seems cheap to a person may not seem to the other person. Once you have done so, go on a ride to search for a cheap air tickets website and find the one that matches your expectation. Some of the tickets are being reserved by every airline company for every flight as "discount air tickets" to travel the world . And what could be better if you are ready to sacrifice a little of your luxury because this can get you "cheap economy class air tickets". People always may compare them by the time they take to reach a destination and the number of breaks in the journey.
Soon, the airline will allow its passengers to book an air ticket for the destinations in all over the world. They have been earning huge profits on the various routes. In fact, Most of the air lines have set many a standards for the industry which have proved to be game changing for the entire industry. If you want to see flight deals and book an air ticket, you can do so online. In fact if one has to book a ticket one, just has to spend some time (15 - 20 minutes & that is depend on internet use. Without paying any extra money, it is possible to book tickets on one's own. Off seasons are the patches in a year when the amount of boarding starts to decline in the calendar year.
How to Get Air Ticket Online at Cheap Price
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Book Air Ticket Low Fares |
Due to growth of the technology and the internet has changed drastically the aviation business all over the worldwide. Air ticket booking online has turned into a major business area in the aviation industry. It has become easier to by common people. The ticket booking business has changed in many ways like more Online than Offline and able to get cheap flights tickets. It is becoming common activity to book the air ticket online. Some international airlines have made it mandatory to use an e-tickets and offline ticketing is completely ruled out.
Though comfortable, we cannot deny the fact that airfares are expensive shunning people to compromise on air travel. Best deals are available on various domestic as well as international destinations through internet. The cheap flights tickets booking websites are doped with the information about the airfares, flights, schedules, and discounts on tickets. You can verify the status of your flight online and in any case there is way to cancellations too.
You can easily cancel your flight tickets and your payment will be refunded after deducting the cancellation charges, if any. The growth of internet based ticketing providers is obvious as it has many benefits over the traditional modes to air ticket booking. Online transactions are easy to carry out and completely secure. As a result, quality of the services provided by airlines has also increased. Since easy to get the detailed information on availability of airline services makes, it convenient for users to make advanced bookings too.
There are service providers, they will provide last-minute deals online. There are thousands of websites and blogs promoting air ticket booking. It has become popular due to technology & internet facility increase. They provide some of the best cheap flights tickets deals to their users. These deals are competitive with ticketing agents and people are able to get cheap cheap tickets.
Lets You Text and Call from Your Computer Using Your Own Phone Number
Introducing PPL Connect, an App That Lets You Text and Call from Your Computer Using Your Own Phone Number
Every day, you’re bombarded with notifications: an email on your laptop, a Facebook “like” on your tablet, a stream of texts on your smartphone. Jumping from device to device gets exhausting.
PPL Connect, a new SMS messaging service, wants to eliminate one of those hassles. The service brings your text messages and phone calls (previously available only on your phone) to a single website. This means you can text or make a call, from your phone number, with any computer, tablet, or connected device that can access the Internet.
You can use the service, which is available only for Android smartphone owners for now, on any cellular network or web browser. Anyone will be able to receive your texts—not just other people who have signed up for PPL Connect.
When you send a text via the PPL Connect site, your message appears as if it came from your phone number, with a short tag at the end that reads “via pplco.mobi.” The fact that it’s linked to your phone number and that it’s based on a website means you can text from your laptop, Kindle Fire, iPad—anything with an Internet connection and a web browser.
It also means you may no longer have to waste your phone battery on a plane, or risk getting in trouble for texting during work hours.
PPL Connect also does phone calls. You can call any phone from the website using your personal number, even if your phone is dead or turned off. In other words, breaking or losing your phone just got a little less dramatic.
PPL Connect has jumped into a free messaging market inhabited by the likes of MightyText, GroupMe, WhatsApp, and many more. But so far all those services seem to excel at is streamlining texts. This service’s most unique trait is, by far, the ability to call people from a computer using your personal phone number.
Unfortunately, that particular feature is still quite limited. Though you can place calls from your computer via PPL Connect, you can’t receive them. Not to mention, each call costs 3 cents a minute and works only in the United States and Canada.
Here’s how you do it:
You’ll first need to sign up either via your email account or Google+.
Then you should give them your phone number. Remember, only Android owners can sign up right now. The company’s iOS app isn’t due out for another year.
PPL Connect will then send your phone a security code to confirm your identity. You’ll also receive an email for the same purpose.
After confirming that you are who you say you are, PPL Connect will think for a few seconds and then link your phone with its service.
From there, you can turn off your phone (if you want), and jump over to the website. Once you log in, you’ll be able to access and manage your contacts and conversations. As you can see, the main menu bar sits over on the very left of the screen, while the latest text messages that I’ve received on my phone are in the dark-purple column. My current conversation is in the third row. On the very right, I can see all my latest communications.
Though you’re alerted when you receive a message via PPL Connect, you’ll also continue receiving them on your linked phone. This can get a little annoying if you’re treating the web application like a regular chat. You’ll also have to adjust for the delay from the text messaging delivery before responding.
The app is still in its beta stages, so some of the features need some work. For instance, calling another cell phone in my office was almost impossible. It could be that we get bad service here, but that’s something to take into consideration if you’re hoping to use this app for phone calls in difficult-to-reach places.
Overall, the interface is polished and easy to follow. And—if its features are fine-tuned a bit—it could be the most comprehensive phone-linked service out there.
By Alyssa Bereznak Tech Columnist
Arcticle source
https://www.yahoo.com/tech/introducing-ppl-connect-an-app-that-lets-you-text-and-79984370126.html?src=rss
Every day, you’re bombarded with notifications: an email on your laptop, a Facebook “like” on your tablet, a stream of texts on your smartphone. Jumping from device to device gets exhausting.
PPL Connect, a new SMS messaging service, wants to eliminate one of those hassles. The service brings your text messages and phone calls (previously available only on your phone) to a single website. This means you can text or make a call, from your phone number, with any computer, tablet, or connected device that can access the Internet.
You can use the service, which is available only for Android smartphone owners for now, on any cellular network or web browser. Anyone will be able to receive your texts—not just other people who have signed up for PPL Connect.
When you send a text via the PPL Connect site, your message appears as if it came from your phone number, with a short tag at the end that reads “via pplco.mobi.” The fact that it’s linked to your phone number and that it’s based on a website means you can text from your laptop, Kindle Fire, iPad—anything with an Internet connection and a web browser.
It also means you may no longer have to waste your phone battery on a plane, or risk getting in trouble for texting during work hours.
PPL Connect also does phone calls. You can call any phone from the website using your personal number, even if your phone is dead or turned off. In other words, breaking or losing your phone just got a little less dramatic.
PPL Connect has jumped into a free messaging market inhabited by the likes of MightyText, GroupMe, WhatsApp, and many more. But so far all those services seem to excel at is streamlining texts. This service’s most unique trait is, by far, the ability to call people from a computer using your personal phone number.
Unfortunately, that particular feature is still quite limited. Though you can place calls from your computer via PPL Connect, you can’t receive them. Not to mention, each call costs 3 cents a minute and works only in the United States and Canada.
Here’s how you do it:
You’ll first need to sign up either via your email account or Google+.
Then you should give them your phone number. Remember, only Android owners can sign up right now. The company’s iOS app isn’t due out for another year.
PPL Connect will then send your phone a security code to confirm your identity. You’ll also receive an email for the same purpose.
After confirming that you are who you say you are, PPL Connect will think for a few seconds and then link your phone with its service.
From there, you can turn off your phone (if you want), and jump over to the website. Once you log in, you’ll be able to access and manage your contacts and conversations. As you can see, the main menu bar sits over on the very left of the screen, while the latest text messages that I’ve received on my phone are in the dark-purple column. My current conversation is in the third row. On the very right, I can see all my latest communications.
Though you’re alerted when you receive a message via PPL Connect, you’ll also continue receiving them on your linked phone. This can get a little annoying if you’re treating the web application like a regular chat. You’ll also have to adjust for the delay from the text messaging delivery before responding.
The app is still in its beta stages, so some of the features need some work. For instance, calling another cell phone in my office was almost impossible. It could be that we get bad service here, but that’s something to take into consideration if you’re hoping to use this app for phone calls in difficult-to-reach places.
Overall, the interface is polished and easy to follow. And—if its features are fine-tuned a bit—it could be the most comprehensive phone-linked service out there.
By Alyssa Bereznak Tech Columnist
Arcticle source
https://www.yahoo.com/tech/introducing-ppl-connect-an-app-that-lets-you-text-and-79984370126.html?src=rss
Japan: Thorco’s Fourth L-Class Cargo Ship Launched
Japan: Thorco’s Fourth L-Class Cargo Ship Launched
The vessel, named Thorco Lineage, was launched from Honda Heavy Industries’ yard in Japan. The vessel is a 16500 DWT general cargo ship, and it is going to sail under Panama flag.
Thorco Lineage is the company’s fourth L-class newbuilding. Previously launched L-class vessels for Thorco were Thorco Legend, Thorco Legacy and Thorco Liva.
Source -> http://worldmaritimenews.com/archives/107100/japan-thorco-floats-out-l-class-cargo-ship-thorco-lineage/
The vessel, named Thorco Lineage, was launched from Honda Heavy Industries’ yard in Japan. The vessel is a 16500 DWT general cargo ship, and it is going to sail under Panama flag.
Thorco Lineage is the company’s fourth L-class newbuilding. Previously launched L-class vessels for Thorco were Thorco Legend, Thorco Legacy and Thorco Liva.
Source -> http://worldmaritimenews.com/archives/107100/japan-thorco-floats-out-l-class-cargo-ship-thorco-lineage/
Mega ships are the future
Mega ships are the future, but at the price of overcapacity: top MOL man
G6 Alliance members are studying options for buying 18,000-TEU plus box ships, but no decision has yet been made, according to Mitsui OSK Lines (MOL) managing executive officer TK Konishi.
"Perhaps [we will have a] maximum two sets of 18,000 to 19,000-TEU ships by 2020, or by 2022 or 2023. It's a long-term issue," with each member contributing up to four vessels to share equal responsibility.
By comparison the rival P3 Network of Maersk, CMA CGM and MSC is due to operate at least twenty-nine 18,000 to 19,000 TEUers by 2016, provided it gains regulatory approval.
The careful approach is partly due to G6's smaller market share on Asia-Europe routes. Mr Konishi believes the largest ships within the G6 network, at 13,000 to 14,000 TEU, could be just as competitive as P3's bigger vessels, he told Lloyd's List in an interview.
"It's not really the size of ships that matters, but slot costs," Mr Konishi said. "We'll have 48 ships (of 13,000 TEU-14,000 TEU) by 2016, mostly by 2015... only five of them are ordered before the Lehman shock (at high prices)."
G6 deploys on Asia-North Europe and Asia-Mediterranean services 40 vessels larger than 13,000 TEU. "Those ships are very cost competitive."
Said Mr Konishi: "If we order 18,000 to 19,000-TEU ships now, those ships can be much cheaper... then there will be some cost benefits."
MOL is confident that G6 can widen its network to cover transpacific and transatlantic trades from the second quarter as planned.
"We have been operating in accordance with our FMC filings... from that perspective we have antitrust immunity," Mr Konishi said.
"As long as we discuss all sorts of things fully lawful as filed in agreements, I don't really see any reason we have to be in the TSA to operate in the alliance."
On liner alliances upsizing vessels in their networks over the past two years, he said, it is "kind of a vicious circle but one of the simplest, most straightforward ways to lower our slot costs".
With regards to the most viable trade routes of the future given the size of the mammoth breed of vessels, MOL's estimates, a suezmax boxship would be able to carry 200,000 TEU of containers in 24 rows, with a length of 415 metres and 16.3 metre draft. In comparison, a Triple-E class vessel has 23 rows, with a 400 metre length and 16 metre draft.
The Panama Canal's expansion would draw 8,000 TEU-9,000 TEU ships from Asia-Europe to Asia-US east coast trades, squeezing out panamax vessels or smaller.
"Those 8,000 TEU-9,000 TEU ships will have better employment... the surplus of panamax sector is more of a problem for owners, rather than for operators," Mr Konishi said.
G6 Alliance members are studying options for buying 18,000-TEU plus box ships, but no decision has yet been made, according to Mitsui OSK Lines (MOL) managing executive officer TK Konishi.
"Perhaps [we will have a] maximum two sets of 18,000 to 19,000-TEU ships by 2020, or by 2022 or 2023. It's a long-term issue," with each member contributing up to four vessels to share equal responsibility.
By comparison the rival P3 Network of Maersk, CMA CGM and MSC is due to operate at least twenty-nine 18,000 to 19,000 TEUers by 2016, provided it gains regulatory approval.
The careful approach is partly due to G6's smaller market share on Asia-Europe routes. Mr Konishi believes the largest ships within the G6 network, at 13,000 to 14,000 TEU, could be just as competitive as P3's bigger vessels, he told Lloyd's List in an interview.
"It's not really the size of ships that matters, but slot costs," Mr Konishi said. "We'll have 48 ships (of 13,000 TEU-14,000 TEU) by 2016, mostly by 2015... only five of them are ordered before the Lehman shock (at high prices)."
G6 deploys on Asia-North Europe and Asia-Mediterranean services 40 vessels larger than 13,000 TEU. "Those ships are very cost competitive."
Said Mr Konishi: "If we order 18,000 to 19,000-TEU ships now, those ships can be much cheaper... then there will be some cost benefits."
MOL is confident that G6 can widen its network to cover transpacific and transatlantic trades from the second quarter as planned.
"We have been operating in accordance with our FMC filings... from that perspective we have antitrust immunity," Mr Konishi said.
"As long as we discuss all sorts of things fully lawful as filed in agreements, I don't really see any reason we have to be in the TSA to operate in the alliance."
On liner alliances upsizing vessels in their networks over the past two years, he said, it is "kind of a vicious circle but one of the simplest, most straightforward ways to lower our slot costs".
With regards to the most viable trade routes of the future given the size of the mammoth breed of vessels, MOL's estimates, a suezmax boxship would be able to carry 200,000 TEU of containers in 24 rows, with a length of 415 metres and 16.3 metre draft. In comparison, a Triple-E class vessel has 23 rows, with a 400 metre length and 16 metre draft.
The Panama Canal's expansion would draw 8,000 TEU-9,000 TEU ships from Asia-Europe to Asia-US east coast trades, squeezing out panamax vessels or smaller.
"Those 8,000 TEU-9,000 TEU ships will have better employment... the surplus of panamax sector is more of a problem for owners, rather than for operators," Mr Konishi said.
CMA CGM Reveals Its Asia Southern Red Sea Express Service
CMA CGM Reveals Its Asia Southern Red Sea Express Service
This new service is in addition to existing Asia Northern Red Sea Express (REX2) which together will improve port coverage to meet the growing demand and customer requirements in the Red Sea market.
This new setup is developed through a Vessel Sharing Agreement with United Arab Shipping Company (UASC) and China Shipping Container lines (CSCL).
It will also benefit Red Sea exporters in minimizing their transit time through the improved port coverage.
Stéphane Courquin, Vice-President of CMA CGM Asia Med Lines states: “It was strategic to consolidate and build up our presence in the Red Sea markets with improved services from Asia. This new configuration is an additional step of our deployment in the area and confirms the will of the Group to strengthen its presence in these strategic areas”
This new service is in addition to existing Asia Northern Red Sea Express (REX2) which together will improve port coverage to meet the growing demand and customer requirements in the Red Sea market.
This new setup is developed through a Vessel Sharing Agreement with United Arab Shipping Company (UASC) and China Shipping Container lines (CSCL).
It will also benefit Red Sea exporters in minimizing their transit time through the improved port coverage.
Stéphane Courquin, Vice-President of CMA CGM Asia Med Lines states: “It was strategic to consolidate and build up our presence in the Red Sea markets with improved services from Asia. This new configuration is an additional step of our deployment in the area and confirms the will of the Group to strengthen its presence in these strategic areas”
CSAV shareholders, opposing Hapag Lloyd
CSAV shareholders, opposing Hapag Lloyd merger have one month to decide
COMPANIA Sud Americana de Vapores (CSAV) shareholders opposed to merging the Chilean company's container activities with Germany's Hapag-Lloyd have a month to decide whether to block the deal.
This comes after 84.5 per cent of CSAV's shareholders voted for the merger and creating the world's biggest container line at an extraordinary shareholders meeting held in Valparaiso on March 21.
Those opposed to the merger have until April 20 to exercise the appraisal rights, reported Lloyd's List.
The merger requires 95 per cent support from shareholders in order to progress.
In January, both companies signed a non-binding memorandum of understanding establishing that, should the merger be completed, CSAV would receive 30 per cent of the combined company.
There will be an initial capital raising of EUR370 million (US$506 million), to which CSAV must subscribe EUR259 million within 100 days of conclusion of the transaction.
A further EUR370 million will be raised within one year as part of a listing of Hapag-Lloyd, a declared aim of TUI, holder of 22 per cent of the company.
The new company would have a combined carrying capacity of one million TEU, transported volume of 7.5 million TEU per year and combined sales of $12 billion annually on cost savings of $300 million a year, according to CSAV.
COMPANIA Sud Americana de Vapores (CSAV) shareholders opposed to merging the Chilean company's container activities with Germany's Hapag-Lloyd have a month to decide whether to block the deal.
This comes after 84.5 per cent of CSAV's shareholders voted for the merger and creating the world's biggest container line at an extraordinary shareholders meeting held in Valparaiso on March 21.
Those opposed to the merger have until April 20 to exercise the appraisal rights, reported Lloyd's List.
The merger requires 95 per cent support from shareholders in order to progress.
In January, both companies signed a non-binding memorandum of understanding establishing that, should the merger be completed, CSAV would receive 30 per cent of the combined company.
There will be an initial capital raising of EUR370 million (US$506 million), to which CSAV must subscribe EUR259 million within 100 days of conclusion of the transaction.
A further EUR370 million will be raised within one year as part of a listing of Hapag-Lloyd, a declared aim of TUI, holder of 22 per cent of the company.
The new company would have a combined carrying capacity of one million TEU, transported volume of 7.5 million TEU per year and combined sales of $12 billion annually on cost savings of $300 million a year, according to CSAV.
First essDOCS Ocean Line Electronic Bill of Lading
First essDOCS Ocean Line Electronic Bill of Lading
The negotiable electronic ocean or master bill of lading was issued by NYK Line to a global essDOCS customer, for a shipment from Singapore to China on the M/V Vancouver Bridge.
The NYK Line eB/L was issued to Elite International Logistics Singapore (the forwarder working on behalf of the customer) on February 7th, who in turn added the necessary supporting eDocs and presented the set of electronic documents (eSet) to the American trade finance bank. After completing its review of the eSet, the American bank presented the eSet to the issuing bank, China CITIC Bank. Following that transaction, China CITIC Bank accepted the eSet under the terms of the eUCP letter of credit and in turn sent the original eDocs to Wuhan XinLianChuang Plastics. Wuhan XinLianChuang then surrendered the eB/L to NYK and received their cargo at Shanghai port.
This shipment marked many firsts for essDOCS:
First operational use of essDOCS eB/L solution in the liner segment
First use of eUCP involving a liner eB/L
First containerised chemical shipment using eB/Ls
First operational use by NYK Lines of essDOCS solution
First operational use by Elite International Logistics
First operational use by leading American trade finance bank (essDOCS’ first American Bank to adopt ePresentation solution)
First operational use by China CITIC Bank (essDOCS’s first Chinese Bank to adopt its ePresentation solution)
First operational use by Wuhan XinLianChuang
The eB/L was created from XML data pushed by NYK Line into the essDOCS eB/L solution using a standard message, resulting in an eB/L comprised purely of data based on NYK Line’s standard B/L template. This approach reuses Lines’ current IT capabilities and transitions the majority of interfacing work to essDOCS.
Most crucially, all documents involved in this transaction were managed electronically, therefore handled as eDocs only. Electronic documents used in addition to electronic bill of lading included:
Notice of Completeness
Insurance Certificate
Commercial Invoice
Packing List
LC Negotiation Form
Covering Letter
This significant live transaction followed several weeks of testing in Q4 2013, involving all the trial participants. essDOCS has been undertaking similar tests with a number of other container lines who have completed successful testing last year and are planning to transition to operational use in coffee and metals trades later this quarter. essDOCS is in advanced talks with a number of other lines, and expects the number of users testing its liner eB/L solution to increase steadily throughout the year.
Lincoln Leung, Global & AOC BPM of NYK Line, said: “The use of our existing XML files and data structure meant we could populate the electronic NYK Bill of Lading draft quickly, and send it with one click to Elite to verify. Once Elite confirmed the eB/L draft, our Export Documentation Team in Singapore signed and issued the eB/L upon vessel departure. Overall we were not asked to change our process much, which is a good thing.”
Yong Liu, General Manager of International Banking Department of China CITIC Bank said: “It’s a pleasure to issue and honour the first Letter of Credit requiring eDocs including eB/L presented through essDOCS in China. China CITIC Bank always focuses on innovation, and will devote to promote the use of electronic documents in trade finance.”
Alexander Goulandris, CEO of essDOCS, said: “Today marks a major milestone in essDOCS history which couldn’t have been accomplished without the vision and collaboration of our customers, who are supported 24/7 by essDOCS’s dedicated eB/L specialists. Our first liner eB/L marks essDOCS entrance into it’s last major shipping segment, and demonstrates the growing interest of eDocs, and in particular, the eUCP in the Asia Pacific market.”
The negotiable electronic ocean or master bill of lading was issued by NYK Line to a global essDOCS customer, for a shipment from Singapore to China on the M/V Vancouver Bridge.
The NYK Line eB/L was issued to Elite International Logistics Singapore (the forwarder working on behalf of the customer) on February 7th, who in turn added the necessary supporting eDocs and presented the set of electronic documents (eSet) to the American trade finance bank. After completing its review of the eSet, the American bank presented the eSet to the issuing bank, China CITIC Bank. Following that transaction, China CITIC Bank accepted the eSet under the terms of the eUCP letter of credit and in turn sent the original eDocs to Wuhan XinLianChuang Plastics. Wuhan XinLianChuang then surrendered the eB/L to NYK and received their cargo at Shanghai port.
This shipment marked many firsts for essDOCS:
First operational use of essDOCS eB/L solution in the liner segment
First use of eUCP involving a liner eB/L
First containerised chemical shipment using eB/Ls
First operational use by NYK Lines of essDOCS solution
First operational use by Elite International Logistics
First operational use by leading American trade finance bank (essDOCS’ first American Bank to adopt ePresentation solution)
First operational use by China CITIC Bank (essDOCS’s first Chinese Bank to adopt its ePresentation solution)
First operational use by Wuhan XinLianChuang
The eB/L was created from XML data pushed by NYK Line into the essDOCS eB/L solution using a standard message, resulting in an eB/L comprised purely of data based on NYK Line’s standard B/L template. This approach reuses Lines’ current IT capabilities and transitions the majority of interfacing work to essDOCS.
Most crucially, all documents involved in this transaction were managed electronically, therefore handled as eDocs only. Electronic documents used in addition to electronic bill of lading included:
Notice of Completeness
Insurance Certificate
Commercial Invoice
Packing List
LC Negotiation Form
Covering Letter
This significant live transaction followed several weeks of testing in Q4 2013, involving all the trial participants. essDOCS has been undertaking similar tests with a number of other container lines who have completed successful testing last year and are planning to transition to operational use in coffee and metals trades later this quarter. essDOCS is in advanced talks with a number of other lines, and expects the number of users testing its liner eB/L solution to increase steadily throughout the year.
Lincoln Leung, Global & AOC BPM of NYK Line, said: “The use of our existing XML files and data structure meant we could populate the electronic NYK Bill of Lading draft quickly, and send it with one click to Elite to verify. Once Elite confirmed the eB/L draft, our Export Documentation Team in Singapore signed and issued the eB/L upon vessel departure. Overall we were not asked to change our process much, which is a good thing.”
Yong Liu, General Manager of International Banking Department of China CITIC Bank said: “It’s a pleasure to issue and honour the first Letter of Credit requiring eDocs including eB/L presented through essDOCS in China. China CITIC Bank always focuses on innovation, and will devote to promote the use of electronic documents in trade finance.”
Alexander Goulandris, CEO of essDOCS, said: “Today marks a major milestone in essDOCS history which couldn’t have been accomplished without the vision and collaboration of our customers, who are supported 24/7 by essDOCS’s dedicated eB/L specialists. Our first liner eB/L marks essDOCS entrance into it’s last major shipping segment, and demonstrates the growing interest of eDocs, and in particular, the eUCP in the Asia Pacific market.”
Hapag-Lloyd narrows loss 32.6pc
Hapag-Lloyd narrows loss 32.6pc while increasing operating profit 156pc
GERMANY's Hapag-Lloyd, the world's sixth biggest container line, narrowed its net loss 32.6 per cent to EUR97.4 million (US$134.3 million) from the EUR128.3 million loss suffered the year before.
At the same time it also posted 156 per cent increase in year-on-year operating profit to EUR67.2 million, drawn on revenues of EUR6.57 billion, down 4.1 per cent.
Earnings before insurance, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) also increased 16.1 per cent year on year to EUR389.1 million.
"Hapag-Lloyd improved its result and transport volume despite persistently tough competition. Thanks to its global liner network with almost 100 services, Hapag-Lloyd was able to take full advantage of growth opportunities in a difficult market," said a company statement.
Said Hapag-Lloyd chairman Michael Behrendt: "Both factors, the improvement in results and the higher transport volume, are clear evidence of the strength of Hapag-Lloyd in the global market."
Transport volume increased 4.6 per cent to 5.5 million TEU across all trades in 2013. But freight rates continued to sag, remaining at $99 per TEU below the previous year's $1,482 per TEU. Revenue declined largely due to a weaker dollar.
"Although Hapag-Lloyd continued to perform well compared to other industry players thanks to the positive operating result, this result nevertheless falls well short of our expectations for 2013 and is ultimately disappointing," said Mr Behrendt.
Said the company statement: "It was no longer possible to push through sustainable rate increases in the market from the second quarter, despite good ship utilisation at times. The important peak season in the third quarter failed to occur again as in the previous year."
Cost-cutting measures paid off and contributed to operating profits. Slightly lower bunker prices of $613/tonne helped. Overall, transport expenses were cut by EUR409 million compared with the previous year by means of savings and energy price effects.
Weaker-than-expected economic growth, particularly in the key BRIC states, had a negative impact on global transport volumes in the past year and thus on the course of business, said the company statement.
"The outlook is much better for the liner shipping sector, especially as the addition of new shipping capacities will decline and an increasing number of older ships will disappear from the market and be scrapped," said Mr Behrendt.
GERMANY's Hapag-Lloyd, the world's sixth biggest container line, narrowed its net loss 32.6 per cent to EUR97.4 million (US$134.3 million) from the EUR128.3 million loss suffered the year before.
At the same time it also posted 156 per cent increase in year-on-year operating profit to EUR67.2 million, drawn on revenues of EUR6.57 billion, down 4.1 per cent.
Earnings before insurance, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) also increased 16.1 per cent year on year to EUR389.1 million.
"Hapag-Lloyd improved its result and transport volume despite persistently tough competition. Thanks to its global liner network with almost 100 services, Hapag-Lloyd was able to take full advantage of growth opportunities in a difficult market," said a company statement.
Said Hapag-Lloyd chairman Michael Behrendt: "Both factors, the improvement in results and the higher transport volume, are clear evidence of the strength of Hapag-Lloyd in the global market."
Transport volume increased 4.6 per cent to 5.5 million TEU across all trades in 2013. But freight rates continued to sag, remaining at $99 per TEU below the previous year's $1,482 per TEU. Revenue declined largely due to a weaker dollar.
"Although Hapag-Lloyd continued to perform well compared to other industry players thanks to the positive operating result, this result nevertheless falls well short of our expectations for 2013 and is ultimately disappointing," said Mr Behrendt.
Said the company statement: "It was no longer possible to push through sustainable rate increases in the market from the second quarter, despite good ship utilisation at times. The important peak season in the third quarter failed to occur again as in the previous year."
Cost-cutting measures paid off and contributed to operating profits. Slightly lower bunker prices of $613/tonne helped. Overall, transport expenses were cut by EUR409 million compared with the previous year by means of savings and energy price effects.
Weaker-than-expected economic growth, particularly in the key BRIC states, had a negative impact on global transport volumes in the past year and thus on the course of business, said the company statement.
"The outlook is much better for the liner shipping sector, especially as the addition of new shipping capacities will decline and an increasing number of older ships will disappear from the market and be scrapped," said Mr Behrendt.
Sinotrans structure offers growth potential
Shift in Sinotrans structure offers growth potential
The restructuring within the Sinotrans group will be positive for both listed companies in the group, Sinotrans Ltd and Sinotrans Shipping, say analysts.
Sinotrans Ltd will dispose of its loss-making marine transportation business to its sister company, Sinotrans Shipping, to focus on its logistics services business, Dow Jones reported.
Morgan Stanley said the disposal would help stem losses and deleverage the balance sheet. It raised its target price on the stock by seven percent.
Though Sinotrans Shipping has to absorb the unprofitable shipping business, the dry bulk chartering business injected by the parent group will offer significant growth potential, says Credit Suisse.
It says the profitability of the chartering business is expected to improve with strengthening demand for dry bulk commodities. Credit Suisse says the company still has a large cash pile, equal to over 60 percent of its market value, after the deal.
The restructuring within the Sinotrans group will be positive for both listed companies in the group, Sinotrans Ltd and Sinotrans Shipping, say analysts.
Sinotrans Ltd will dispose of its loss-making marine transportation business to its sister company, Sinotrans Shipping, to focus on its logistics services business, Dow Jones reported.
Morgan Stanley said the disposal would help stem losses and deleverage the balance sheet. It raised its target price on the stock by seven percent.
Though Sinotrans Shipping has to absorb the unprofitable shipping business, the dry bulk chartering business injected by the parent group will offer significant growth potential, says Credit Suisse.
It says the profitability of the chartering business is expected to improve with strengthening demand for dry bulk commodities. Credit Suisse says the company still has a large cash pile, equal to over 60 percent of its market value, after the deal.
APM Terminals Wins Asia Port Operator Award
APM Terminals Wins Asia Port Operator Award
APM Terminals has been named the winner of the 2013 Lloyd’s List Asia Awards annual “Port Operator” Award in recognition of maintaining “the highest standards of operational efficiency and customer service throughout the year” among port and terminal operators in the Far East.
Excluding operations in the Indian Subcontinent (which was not part of the award’s scope) APM Terminals’ current Asian presence includes interests in 10 terminal facilities in China, two in Japan, two in Thailand, one in Vietnam, one in the Russian Pacific port of Vostochny, and the Port of Tanjung Pelepas, in Malaysia.
“We are very gratified to receive this very prestigious award in recognition of the achievements and commitment to excellence demonstrated by our global team, and our partners across Asia” stated APM Terminals Asia Pacific Regional Head, Henrik Lundgaard Pedersen. The award was collected by Rizwan Soomar, APM Terminals Chief Commercial Officer for the APAC region, who attended the awards presentation ceremony at the Raffles City Convention Center in Singapore.
APM Terminals’ 17 Far East Asian facilities handled a combined 10.7 million TEUs in 2012, (weighted by equity share), representing 30% of the company’s total annual container volume, and approximately 3% of the total Far East Asian container market. APM Terminals also maintains regional sales and business development offices in Shanghai, Hong Kong and Singapore.
In addition to the existing operating facilities, APM Terminals has signed an agreement with the Ningbo Port Group to jointly invest in and operate three new berths comprising 1km of quay in Ningbo’s Meishan Container Terminal, with a 33% ownership share. This new facility at mainland China’s 3rd-largest container port is scheduled to be operational by the end of 2014 with an annual container throughput capacity of 2.8 million TEUs. An expansion at the Qingdao New Qianwan Terminal in Qingdao, China’s 5th-busiest container port is also underway.
At the Port of Tanjung Pelepas (PTP), in Malaysia, in which APM Terminals holds a 30% share, an expansion program and crane upgrade will increase capacity by 24% to 10.5 million TEUs. The new facilities are expected to be operational next year and will be able to accommodate 18,000 TEU capacity vessels. PTP handled 7.7 million TEUS in 2012 and is the 3rd-largest container port in Southeast Asia.
APM Terminals’ industry-leading safety performance and Safety Culture have been successfully implemented across the company’s Asian operations, with the overall terminal Lost-Time Injury Frequency rate decreasing to 2.15 per million man-hours worked in 2012 from 3.59 in 2011. During this period productivity measured in crane lifts per hour increased by 8%, while CO2 emissions per TEU declined by 4%.
Last month, APM Terminals was also named “International Terminal Operator of the Year” for 2013 at the annual Containerisation International Awards in London.
APM Terminals has been named the winner of the 2013 Lloyd’s List Asia Awards annual “Port Operator” Award in recognition of maintaining “the highest standards of operational efficiency and customer service throughout the year” among port and terminal operators in the Far East.
Excluding operations in the Indian Subcontinent (which was not part of the award’s scope) APM Terminals’ current Asian presence includes interests in 10 terminal facilities in China, two in Japan, two in Thailand, one in Vietnam, one in the Russian Pacific port of Vostochny, and the Port of Tanjung Pelepas, in Malaysia.
“We are very gratified to receive this very prestigious award in recognition of the achievements and commitment to excellence demonstrated by our global team, and our partners across Asia” stated APM Terminals Asia Pacific Regional Head, Henrik Lundgaard Pedersen. The award was collected by Rizwan Soomar, APM Terminals Chief Commercial Officer for the APAC region, who attended the awards presentation ceremony at the Raffles City Convention Center in Singapore.
APM Terminals’ 17 Far East Asian facilities handled a combined 10.7 million TEUs in 2012, (weighted by equity share), representing 30% of the company’s total annual container volume, and approximately 3% of the total Far East Asian container market. APM Terminals also maintains regional sales and business development offices in Shanghai, Hong Kong and Singapore.
In addition to the existing operating facilities, APM Terminals has signed an agreement with the Ningbo Port Group to jointly invest in and operate three new berths comprising 1km of quay in Ningbo’s Meishan Container Terminal, with a 33% ownership share. This new facility at mainland China’s 3rd-largest container port is scheduled to be operational by the end of 2014 with an annual container throughput capacity of 2.8 million TEUs. An expansion at the Qingdao New Qianwan Terminal in Qingdao, China’s 5th-busiest container port is also underway.
At the Port of Tanjung Pelepas (PTP), in Malaysia, in which APM Terminals holds a 30% share, an expansion program and crane upgrade will increase capacity by 24% to 10.5 million TEUs. The new facilities are expected to be operational next year and will be able to accommodate 18,000 TEU capacity vessels. PTP handled 7.7 million TEUS in 2012 and is the 3rd-largest container port in Southeast Asia.
APM Terminals’ industry-leading safety performance and Safety Culture have been successfully implemented across the company’s Asian operations, with the overall terminal Lost-Time Injury Frequency rate decreasing to 2.15 per million man-hours worked in 2012 from 3.59 in 2011. During this period productivity measured in crane lifts per hour increased by 8%, while CO2 emissions per TEU declined by 4%.
Last month, APM Terminals was also named “International Terminal Operator of the Year” for 2013 at the annual Containerisation International Awards in London.
Amazon.com Inc. Preparing To Release a Smartphone
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| Amazon.com |
Amazon.com Inc. is preparing to release a smartphone in the second half of this year 2014 , according to people briefed on the company's plans, part of a broad push into hardware that would pit it against Apple Inc. and Samsung Electronics Co.
The retailer has been demonstrating versions of the handset to developers in San Francisco and its hometown Seattle in recent weeks, these people said. People briefed on the company's plans have been told that Amazon aims to announce the phone by the end of June and begin shipping phones by the end of September, ahead of the holiday shopping season.
The people said Amazon hopes to distinguish its phone in a crowded market with a screen capable of displaying seemingly three-dimensional images without special glasses, these people said. They said the phone would employ retina-tracking technology embedded in four front-facing cameras, or sensors, to make some images appear to be 3-D, similar to a hologram, the people said.
An Amazon spokesman declined to comment.
The phone would thrust Amazon into a competitive market with entrenched players that has nearly felled once high-flying device makers like BlackBerry Ltd. and Motorola. With Apple and Samsung alone commanding 49% of the worldwide smartphone market, according to market researcher IDC, there is little room for upstarts.
News of the phone comes as Amazon moves more deeply into designing and making hardware. Last week, it unveiled its Fire TV set-top box and said it will soon begin distributing a wand customers can use to scan product barcodes at home to re-order groceries and other goods without logging into their computers. It introduced new versions of its Kindle Fire tablets last year.
But Amazon approaches hardware differently than many other companies. Chief Executive Jeff Bezos has said he prefers Amazon to profit from customers buying services through Amazon hardware, rather than profit from the devices themselves.
CEO Jeff Bezos has said he'd rather Amazon profit from the services it sells than from the devices it builds.
The design and pricing of the smartphone are unclear and these people cautioned that Amazon may alter its launch plans due to performance or other concerns.
The 3-D screen technology can sense the movement of a person's eyes and whether the screen is moving closer to a user's face, according to people familiar with the matter. In response, the phone will be able to automatically zoom into images as it moves closer to a user's face and could manipulate text and images as a person moves the phone.
The technology would be ideal for gaming, an area of recent focus for Amazon including on the set-top box. The phone's software is also optimized for very visual games, designed to provide a sense of depth, according to people who have handled the handsets.
It also isn't known what operating system the phone will use or which wireless carriers Amazon is working with. The Kindle Fire tablet and the Fire TV set-top box both rely on Google Inc.'s Android mobile-operating system. But Amazon created its own app store for the Kindle devices and does not offer access to Google's Play Store.
AT&T Inc. provides service for Kindle tablets and e-readers. An AT&T spokesman declined to comment.
Amazon has told one of its suppliers it is anticipating mass production of the device later this month, with an initial order of 600,000 units, according to a person briefed on the plans. The company has lined up two display makers for the smartphone, including Japan Display Inc., 6740.TO -1.67% the maker of displays for Apple's iPhone 5C and 5S, according to another person familiar with the details.
A Japan Display representative declined to comment.
Amazon has been inviting select app and software developers to hotels to demonstrate the handset in suites protected by security guards, two people familiar with the matter said.
Because consumers carry smartphones with them everywhere, Amazon would gain access to data like users' locations and app downloads, which could help generate new sales opportunities for e-books, video downloads and items like household goods.
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