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News Release Digital Asset Direct

Comcast Invests in Chico, Calif. Launching Three New Lift Zones to Help Increase Digital Equity in the Region

Comcast California

Comcast today announced the opening of a new Lift Zone at The Jesus Center and one in The Torres Community Shelter in Chico to provide free WiFi access to families across the area with an additional Lift Zone location opening at The Jesus Center early next year. As part of its larger digital equity initiative, Comcast also announced donations totaling $75,000. The Jesus Center received $50,000 to help their residents and those of the Pallet Shelter with digital literacy training and work readiness skills, and the Torres Community Shelter received $25,000 to provide digital literacy training to unhoused adults and seniors. Comcast’s Lift Zones program provides free WiFi, powered by Comcast Business, to enable students, seniors, families, and community members to get online and fully participate in the digital economy. With these new locations, Comcast now offers three Lift Zones in the City of Chico — and a total of over 150 Lift Zones throughout its California service area. “Helping to close the digital divide and address digital equity remain top priorities here in Chico,” said Mayor Andrew Coolidge, of Chico, CA. “Our city and our region have become more dependent on broadband to learn, find work and healthcare services and many other aspects of our daily life. Comcast’s new Lift Zones along with their significant financial investments into our city, will create opportunity for individuals, families, and seniors in our community.” “Comcast’s significant investments in our shelters and our communities will help us expand not only our digital literacy efforts but our workforce development initiatives and shows their commitment to providing the necessary tools and resources to those who will benefit most from these life-changing opportunities,” said Amber Abney-Bass, Executive Director of The Jesus Center. “Today’s announcement, and Comcast’s support, will allow us to ensure all of our community members have access to the services they need to thrive.” Today’s announcement and donation are part of Project UP, Comcast’s $1 billion commitment to reach millions of people with the tools, resources, and skills needed to succeed in a digital world. Comcast’s Lift Zones program complements its Internet Essentials program which, since 2011, has helped connect more than 10 million low-income people to the Internet at home. In California, Comcast has connected more than 1.7 million residents, making it the number one state in terms of overall participation in the Internet Essentials program. “We’re proud to partner with the City of Chico to launch these new Lift Zones and donate $75,000 to advance digital equity and workforce readiness in our most vulnerable neighborhoods,” said David Tashjian, Regional Senior Vice President, Comcast California. “Today’s announcement is a testament to the continued commitment from Comcast in closing the digital divide and ensuring equitable digital learning opportunities are available to every individual who seeks it. Our continued partnership with the city and our community partners will equip individuals, families and seniors with the tools, skills and resources they need to achieve their goals.” Comcast continues to be a proud participant in the Federal Government’s Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP), which provides eligible people up to a $30 per month credit toward their Internet and mobile services (and $75 per month on tribal lands). New and existing Xfinity Internet or Internet Essentials customers can learn more about the program and sign up here. About Comcast Corporation: Comcast Corporation (Nasdaq: CMCSA) is a global media and technology company that connects people to moments that matter. We are principally focused on connectivity, aggregation, and streaming with 57 million customer relationships across the United States and Europe. We deliver broadband, wireless, and video through our Xfinity, Comcast Business, and Sky brands; create, distribute, and stream leading entertainment, sports, and news through Universal Filmed Entertainment Group, Universal Studio Group, Sky Studios, the NBC and Telemundo broadcast networks, multiple cable networks, Peacock, NBCUniversal News Group, NBC Sports, Sky News, and Sky Sports; and provide memorable experiences at Universal Parks and Resorts in the United States and Asia. Visit www.comcastcorporation.com for more information. About The Jesus Center For more than 40 years, The Jesus Center has been offering help and hope in the name of Jesus to the homeless population of Chico. The Jesus Center provides a variety of programs to help those they serve move from isolation and homelessness, to community, stability and contribution. Their current 58-bed shelter facility will be augmented by an additional 100 beds for families and seniors experiencing homelessness with the opening of the Renewal Center in June. As a contractor for the City of Chico, the Jesus Center also operates the Pallet Shelter, an emergency housing site consisting of 177 units designed to serve up to 354 individuals. They exist as part of a continuum of service providers, churches, local government, schools and community groups who together care for the various needs of the homeless and at risk for homelessness population. For more information visit www.jesuscenter.org. About True North Housing Alliance: True North Housing Alliance moves people forward and out of homelessness with compassion, dignity, and accountability. As the largest provider of low-barrier emergency shelter north of Sacramento we provide 3 hot meals a day, showers, laundering services, and wrap-around case management to upwards of 200 individuals daily. The Torres Community Shelter is our largest operation, where we serve up to 177 adults in need of emergency shelter daily. Providing a dignified experience at what is arguably a person's lowest point is integral to our mission. Going beyond basic needs, we work to support individual's efforts to cultivate the skills necessary to achieve and maintain permanent housing, including vocational training skills. Contact Details Jon Koriel +1 925-315-2690 Jon_Koriel@comcast.com

December 06, 2022 11:00 AM Pacific Standard Time

CPACharge Launches Integration With Dynamic Tax & Accounting Software, SmartPath.co

CPACharge

CPACharge, the online payment solution developed specifically for tax and accounting firms, has announced a new partnership with SmartPath.co, a leading provider of software for tax and accounting firms. This new integration gives tax professionals access to an all in one accounting platform that saves time, safely collects payments, and improves customer satisfaction. The new SmartPath Engage Platform will be fully integrated with CPACharge allowing tax firms to price any client in real time and automatically align their profit margins. Since 2018, tax legislation changes have caused tax firm’s profit margins to plummet as they are spending more time than ever helping clients navigate complex financial issues, fees are dragging far behind inflation causing many firm owners to suffer. SmartPath Engage with CPACharge will increase profit margins for tax & accounting firms by securely collecting fees online for services that were never billed or captured through previous paid engagements. The integration provides clients with more transparency and the ability to choose their own engagement level in simple terms. “We are excited to launch the CPACharge integration with SmartPath.co, which will give our customers a dependable solution to help increase revenue,” said Dru Armstrong, Chief Executive Officer of CPACharge. “Tax and accounting firms will now be able to use the all-in-one solution with CPACharge and SmartPath allowing them to operate their businesses smoother and more efficiently.” By using the new SmartPath Engage Platform, small business owners and W2 employees will now have a way to easily request additional services from their tax accountant right from their phone adding more convenience to clients and increasing productivity for high- efficiency firms. "We're excited to launch this new platform which will increase client satisfaction. Possibly for the first time, a consumer can understand and select the tax and accounting services most important to them while seeing their price in real time," said William Hamilton, Founder of SmartPath.co. "This will align profit margins for tax firms and allow payment collection for services clients have always wanted, but were previously never captured." For more information, visit here. About SmartPath.co SmartPath boosts profits for small Tax & Accounting firms. We provide tools that attract ideal clients and help firms unlock productivity by moving to a simple subscription pricing model. About CPACharge CPACharge, an AffiniPay solution, is an online payment solution developed specifically for CPA firms, giving professionals a secure way to accept credit, debit and eCheck payments. AffiniPay is headquartered in Austin, Texas and offers a modern payment gateway that integrates with more than 40 software solutions and is trusted by 50,000 firms. CPACharge is the only payment solution offered as a Member Discount Partner by the AICPA and recommended by more than 35 state CPA societies. Visit cpacharge.com to learn more. CPACharge, an AffiniPay solution, is an online payment solution developed specifically for CPA firms, giving professionals a secure way to accept credit, debit and eCheck payments. Contact Details Keely Leonard +1 512-368-8988 kleonard@affinipay.com Company Website https://www.cpacharge.com/

December 06, 2022 10:50 AM Central Standard Time

Secro Wins Approval from the International Group of P&I Clubs

SECRO

The International Group of P&I Clubs (the Group) added Secro as an approved electronic bill of lading provider. Established in 2021, Secro is an independent technology company helping buyers and sellers of bulk commodities to digitize their core business workflows and optimize working capital. Approval by the Group ensures that liabilities arising in respect to the carriage of cargo under such paperless trading are covered. The legal documentation and terms of use associated with the use and operation of Secro system, as well as the Secro electronic bill of lading, were reviewed and approved by the Group. Secro, which is a proud member of BIMCO, provides a frictionless digital trade documentation platform that is safe, trustable and seamless. The customer is onboarded to the Secro platform with a nimble click-through process and can collaborate with its trading partners in minutes. Internal due diligence is simplified by robust yet concise terms of use and conditions of carriage. Further, the Secro platform enables the customer to invite its trading partners on the platform, for free, just by sharing a secure link at any given stage of the transaction, allowing unprecedented flexibility. Secro Co-Founder and CEO, Michele Sancricca stated: “Our customers asked us to build a platform to easily create securely exchanged electronic bills of lading with anyone in the world without the need for cumbersome private agreements. This innovative approach delivers the ease of adoption that legacy providers did not achieve.” Truly viable electronic bills of lading, able to replace traditional paper-based documents, has been a chimera for decades. Thanks to Secro proprietary technology’s compliance with the latest digital trade laws, for the first time the adoption of electronic bills of lading really offers speed, security and cost savings. With Secro’s ease of use, and the Group’s approval, traders, shippers, banks and ship owners can digitally transact with confidence. Sancricca wants the maritime community to appreciate that this is just the beginning for Secro. “Secro E-bill of lading is only the first product we are launching in this arena. Customers will find in Secro a one-stop-shop to digitize their end-to-end trade workflows.” At SHIPPINGInsight 2022, Secro received the organization’s Innovation Award by securing the most support from investors and shipowners in the SHARK TANK. Secro is currently available to selected customers with the public launch expected during Q1 2023. For more information on the company go to Secro. Contact Details Morgan Marketing & Communications Carleen Lyden Walker +1 203-260-0480 c.walker@morganmarketcomm.com Company Website https://secro.io/

December 06, 2022 10:38 AM Eastern Standard Time

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The Beta Version of Ink Finance’s Powerful Toolset Is Live—Here’s Everything Investors Need to Know About QUILL, Ink’s Native Token

Ink Finance

Ink Finance is an all-in-one toolset for the organizations of Web3 to build and operate their financial framework. Thanks to its plug-and-play features and the flexibility to issue and risk manage bespoke financial products across multiple blockchains, INK is reportedly quickly becoming the financial governance tool of choice for emerging crypto ecosystems and traditional institutions alike. What unlocks those features and realizes the platform’s value is QUILL, INK’s native token. Here’s a breakdown of QUILL’s tokenomics, and how DAOs use them as needed governance capital, as well as how QUILL holders can use them to share the growth with up-and-coming DAOs. The Initial QUILL Staking Rewards Ink Finance will set aside 25% of the QUILL tokens as the governance staking rewards, over a 20 year release period. The daily emission will be dynamically calculated based on annual usage figures. Ink Finance accrues the captured transaction or asset custody fees into its treasury, and will use these cryptocurrencies to buy back the QUILLs in circulation, and then “soft destruct” them by placing them at the bottom of the reward pool as future emission. INK’s Fee Capture Tools Generate Returns for QUILL Holders Removing QUILLs from circulation places upward pressure on their prices as more and more DAOs use the INK facilities, benefiting all QUILL token holders as the treasury directly “monetize” fees and “rents” captured by the platform. The fees charged are for financial services provided to DAOs running on INK platform, initially set at 0.2% per transaction and 0.5% per annum for assets under custody. While 25% of the income generated from those fees is used to maintain the INK platform, the remaining 75% are used to buy back the QUILLs in circulation. The entire QUILL holder community, including the DAOs who must stake them to use the functions, have the right to vote on how to adjust those rates. For DAOs, QUILL Is a Form of Necessary Working Capital While most of the features on INK, including the core governance functions, are completely free, more advanced fiscal and financial features are behind a sort of paywall. DAOs that need to use these advanced tools must acquire and stake QUILLs to unlock them. Unlike the subscription model of the Web2 SaaS, DAOs can preserve such working capital and sell them when they decide to stop their operations, instead of paying the irrecoverable subscription fees. This could be a truly innovative utility model in which the users are also the partial owners of the software. It’s a bit like a traditional startup buying real estate or machinary to run its business; if it doesn’t succeed, the company can liquidate those assets to recapture, or even gain appreciation on, the initial investment. The minimum number of QUILLs required to activate advanced features will later be determined in a transparent voting process, which all existing DAO users will be able to participate in by virtue of their staked QUILLs. All staked QUILLs earn emission rewards. INK Also Enables the QUILL Holding Community to Sponsor DAOs If DAOs currently don’t have upfront capital to acquire and stake the required minimum QUILLs, any QUILL holders in the INK community can be their sponsors, granting them the ability to use the advanced features by staking their QUILLs on behalf of the sponsored DAOs. Typically the sponsor will ask for revenue sharing with the DAOs in return, and it is totally determined by the market and free will. What’s the most critical part of this arrangement is that the sponsors can insist on holding one of the DAOs Treasury Managers to make sure both sides deliver on their promises - the real meaning of smart contracts. While being the sponsors, QUILL holders continue receiving the staking rewards, adding to the revenue sharing generated by the DAOs they sponsor. The goal of these mechanisms of QUILL is to foster a wide and diverse ecosystem of innovative and unique DAOs while giving members of the INK community a way to generate long-term returns in exchange for supporting that growing ecosystem. Ink Finance is a DAO governance toolset, enabling all kinds of ecosystems to establish governance economy, manage internal finance, and connect with DeFi investors everywhere, through a no-code user experience. As a Financial SaaS built on blockchain, Ink Finance has the most comprehensive financial engineering tools to support on-chain issuance, settlement, clearing, and analysis of Non-Fungible Financial Products.Ink Finance is backed by heavy weight eco builders such as Republic Crypto and DeFi Alliance, partnered with cutting-edge solution providers such as Humanode, Astra, SolvFinance, Polytrade and deBridge, etc. This post contains sponsored advertising content. This content is for informational purposes only and not intended to be investing advice. Contact Details Camille Zhang camille.zhang@ufit.live

December 06, 2022 10:10 AM Eastern Standard Time

What Do The Midterm Results Mean For The Markets? Dive Into Policy Monitoring With FiscalNote (NYSE: NOTE)

Benzinga

Midterm Elections often result in a loss of power for the incumbent political party, but current data suggests that this may not be the case this year. With the President representing the Democratic party, many experts and speculators predicted a Republican “Red Wave,” a sweeping Republican takeover of the Senate and the House. As of this writing, the “Red Wave” has yet to surface. In fact, Republicans lost a seat in the Senate, but have made significant strides in the House. Currently, 220 Republicans hold House seats compared to the Democrats’ 211, and only 218 seats are required for a majority. The Senate remains up for grabs; Republicans currently hold 49 seats, while the Democrats occupy 50. With many anticipating conclusive results in December, current voting data suggests that a single-party rule over both the Senate and the House (i.e. Congress) may not be in the books for this presidential campaign. What does this information mean for investors? The Impact Of Midterm Elections On The Market A gridlocked Congress is generally considered favorable for the market. For bills or legislation to be passed, both parts of Congress must accept the Bill before it can be sent to the President for final approval. With each political party in control of one-half of Congress, the likelihood that market-changing Bills will pass greatly diminishes. Thus, Congress’s gridlocked state reduces investor risk. The passing of Bills can be quite influential on securities. The Infrastructure Bill passed by President Biden, for example, provided a catalyst for the price ascensions of a number of stocks involved in construction like Home Depot Inc. (NYSE: HD) and Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE: CAT). Likewise, a vaccination mandate during the Covid-19 pandemic provided a catalyst for the price ascensions of biopharmaceuticals like Pfizer Inc. (NYSE: PFE) and Moderna Corp. (NASDAQ: MRNA). Certain government policies can have a drastic impact on the value of securities, and investors need to beware of these to manage risk and spot opportunities. How FiscalNote Can Help You Spot Opportunities And Risks As an agency specialized in collecting data on the regulatory processes in the U.S. and abroad, FiscalNote (NYSE: NOTE) may be an ideal candidate for helping investors track important policy changes. FiscalNote’s business premise revolves around keeping stakeholders in the know about policies that directly affect them, their business, their stakeholders and their investments. This is no easy task: Since World War II, Congress has typically enacted 4 million to 6 million words of new law in each two-year Congress, according to GovTrack. This data does not include European laws and bills. FiscalNote’s policy-monitoring solutions take the hard work out of tracking policy changes. By collating and personalizing local, state, federal and global policy into one neatly packaged digital solution, FiscalNote simplifies the political landscape. The FiscalNote platform, for example, allows customers to monitor policy issues, manage and engage stakeholders and increase team efficiency through one digital platform. Other FiscalNote solutions allow customers to: Track and report key state legislation and regulations Stay ahead of policy changes within cities, counties, school districts and state boards Discover, monitor and take action on global policy developments Expand and customize team efforts Monitor and understand European Union legislation Glean actionable policy insights from on the Hill with CQ News Manage PAC donations from a centralized platform Constantly shifting policies make the economic landscape unpredictable, presenting opportunities and threats along the way. This year’s Midterm Elections may still create market uncertainty, and FiscalNote reportedly has the tools to help you navigate through them safely. Click here to learn how to navigate the post-election landscape. This post contains sponsored advertising content. This content is for informational purposes only and not intended to be investing advice. Contact Details Benzinga +1 877-440-9464 info@benzinga.com Company Website http://www.benzinga.com

December 06, 2022 08:00 AM Eastern Standard Time

Oasys Completes Strategic Funding Round From Galaxy Interactive and Nexon

Oasys

SINGAPORE - Media OutReach - 6 December 2022 - Oasys, a gaming-optimized blockchain built by gamers for gamers, today announces that it has successfully closed a strategic funding round, with participation from Galaxy Interactive, South Korean gaming giant Nexon, the company behind the hit gaming franchises MapleStory and Dungeon Fighter Online, as well as Presto Labs, MZ Web3 Fund, Hyperithm, Jets Capital, Jsquare, AAG, YJM Games, and ChainGuardians. A core objective of the strategic funding round is to enhance Oasys’ ecosystem, by way of strengthening its validator network as well as expanding its pool of gaming partners. The partnerships forged with the investors in the strategic round will also continue to create additional opportunities for the growth of Oasys, along with its different stakeholders. Following the strategic funding round, Oasys also announced the conclusion of its public token sale held from 30 November 2022 to 4 December 2022, which saw its funding goal reached within 12 hours, with commitment from 60 countries. Oasys’ public token sale is an important milestone which allows the general public (excluding US-based investors) to invest in Oasys for the first time. Earlier this year, Oasys completed a USD 20 million private token sale round, led by Republic Crypto, and announced its Mainnet launch in October. Daiki Moriyama, Director, Oasys, said: “The wake of the recent incidents in the Web3 industry have emphasized the importance of building a decentralized and robust business — one premised on creating quality games and gaming content. Through the support and valuable expertise of leading game developers, the largest institutional backers in Web 3, and individual investors from all over the world, we will bring about a new breed of blockchain games with the gameplay and unparalleled experience the community desires.” Richard Kim, General Partner, Galaxy Interactive, added: “Oasys shares our vision to increase mainstream adoption of blockchain gaming, through its public L1 and private L2 solution built for game developers and users. We’re thrilled to join the Oasys community, and work alongside passionate publishers, developers, and crypto-native partners to bring legacy gaming IPs on-chain and execute this vision.” Galaxy Interactive is one of the most active venture investors in video games, immersive virtual worlds, and the technology and marketplaces powering digital identities, with approximately USD 800 million in AUM and investments in more than 100 companies. Oasys also enjoys strong institutional support from some of the most established traditional and Web3 gaming institutions including Square Enix, Bandai Namco Research, SEGA, Ubisoft, Netmarble, NEOWIZ, Com2uS and Yield Guild Games. With strong support from its institutional backers, Oasys is fully focused on growing its ecosystem and enhancing user experiences. Oasys is committed to its mission of leading the global expansion of blockchain games and bringing new gaming experiences to players and developers alike. About Oasys Oasys was established in February 2022 to increase mainstream play-and-earn adoption, and at launch, committed to partnering with 21 gaming and Web3 tech companies to act as validators, such as Bandai Namco Research, SEGA, Ubisoft and Yield Guild Games. Led by a team of blockchain experts and joining forces with the biggest gaming company names to serve as the initial validators, Oasys is revolutionizing the gaming industry with its Proof-of-Stake (PoS) based blockchain. With a focus on creating an ecosystem for gamers and developers to distribute and develop blockchain-based games, Oasys solves the problems game developers face when building games on the blockchain. The trifecta approach of the fastest network powered by the gaming community, a scalable network powered by AAA game developers and the blockchain offering the best user experience with fast transactions and zero gas fees for users, readies participants to enter the Oasys and play. For more information, please visit: Website: https://www.oasys.games Twitter: https://twitter.com/oasys_games Discord: http://discord.gg/oasysgames Contact Details Vanessa Low oasys@wachsman.com Company Website https://www.oasys.games/

December 05, 2022 08:58 PM Eastern Standard Time

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News Release

Are You Confident About Your Vehicle’s Repairs?

AutoTech IQ

Many car owners dread making an appointment with auto repair shops because they feel unprepared to carry on a discussion with the service adviser about the need and cost of repairs. That lack of preparation creates unease over whether to even go to the shop for fear of being ripped off. AutoTechIQ.com was created to make car owners overcome that initial fear by being preeducated and confident about what symptoms and related fixes are typical for their specific vehicle type and compare the visible and audible symptoms their vehicle shows with images, videos and descriptions in articles. A typical example is a squealing noise while driving. How Does Preeducation Make Me Confident? By preeducating yourself before a meeting with the shop, you’ll ensure that you have the proper details to share with a service adviser. For example, if your car starts emitting oil-like odors, you can browse through AutoTechIQ and find articles that cover oil-related issues, such as “Why does my car smells like burning oil?” Then, by reading the article’s content and comparing the images and videos with your vehicle’s symptoms, you’ll rule out potential problems and their fixes. Note that AutoTechIQ’s articles feature images, videos and sound representations of typical issues that point to specific symptoms. There, you’ll also find information about certain vehicles’ years, makes and models that commonly portray these symptoms and the usual faulty parts involved. Get the knowledge you need and share it with your go-to auto shop; this will make a discussion about the service’s budget more transparent and precise. What Is the Best Approach When Engaging the Service Adviser? Often, shops focus on fixing the symptom and send you back on the road. That approach implies less money spent on an individual visit but adds up over time. Tell the service adviser about the symptom and ask for a digital vehicle health inspection, which will give you the entire vehicle’s state of health. The best approach when dealing with a service adviser during car service is to ask for a digital vehicle health inspection. This type of inspection aims to make you aware of your car’s current condition and future risks; it creates a state of health for your car. This approach focuses on saving you money in the long run by showing your vehicle’s “possible upcoming issues” and how impactful they can be for your wallet and your safety. Why Repairs Based on the State of Health Save You Money Once the state of health information is in your hands, showing in red, yellow and green and substantiated with images and videos and notes what your vehicle’s health is, you can engage the service adviser in what needs to be done now (red), can be deferred (yellow) and is in mint condition (green). Certified AutoTechIQ shops follow a process guaranteeing a comprehensive report, which lets you budget the current and upcoming repairs. If the shop is certified the digital vehicle health inspection is called a Digital Auto Checkup. More specifically, the state of health record shows, in color-based categories, what type of risk your vehicle has. The colors identify as: Red: Needs urgent assessment Yellow: Can be deferred Green: Mint condition at the time of inspection This is also substantiated with images, videos and notes to clarify the condition as much as possible. When taking your car to a certified AutoTechIQ shop, you’ll have education-focused service. The state of health they offer will be a comprehensive report where you’ll budget the current and upcoming repairs confidently. Note that for AutoTechIQ-certified shops, the term you can use for this inspection is Digital Auto Checkup. Why Is It Important to Ask for a Digital Auto Checkup? Many auto repair shops listen to your concern and immediately provide a solution. When you go to any doctor for a symptom checkup, does the doctor immediately diagnose you? Typically they don’t do that unless you are in the emergency room. Instead, they’ll check your vital signs, test your blood and conduct other testing procedures. The same goes for your vehicle during car service. First, you establish baseline health before addressing the main symptom. The vehicle’s bill of health is called Digital Auto Checkup or Digital Vehicle Health Inspection. What Do You Get From AutoTechIQ as a Car Owner? The majority of car owners dread the appointment at an auto repair shop. To counter that, the shops in AutoTechIQ ’s network put your education and professional service as top priority. Additionally, the shops you’ll find in AutoTechIQ’s business directories follow these criteria: The business has at least 100 Google reviews with an average score higher than 4.5 out of 5. A digital vehicle health inspection is consistently relied upon to examine the health of your vehicle and covers at least 35 topics. The documentation of mint and problem conditions uses images and videos to give you complete transparency. Contact Details AutoTech IQ AutoTech IQ +1 866-678-8505 support@AutoTechIQ.com Company Website https://www.autotechiq.com/

December 05, 2022 04:02 PM Eastern Standard Time

Apple, CEO Tim Cook Can’t Ignore China Risks Any Longer

National Legal & Policy Center

As the Wall Street Journal reported over the weekend, Apple Inc. is belatedly taking steps to diversify its supply chain as it experiences costly delays – just as the holiday shopping season ramps up – in getting its merchandise to consumers, due to the company’s overdependency on production in communist China. The troubles were absolutely foreseeable, but Apple’s board and CEO Tim Cook have demonstrated they have a huge blind spot when it comes to the oppressive dictatorship. They espoused all the benefits of working with and in China, while failing to account for the human and financial costs of doing business with the brutal regime. Apple even willfully cooperates with the communist government by removing apps from its platform, censoring content, hosting cloud content where it is accessible by the regime, and most recently removing a private peer-to-peer Airdrop sharing function on Chinese customers’ iPhones. As a result, National Legal and Policy Center – which owns stock in the Cupertino, Calif. tech giant – will sponsor a shareholder proposal at the company’s next annual meeting in March 2023. “Tim Cook and Apple’s board got caught with their pants down. Stronger leadership would have seen this coming,” said Paul Chesser, director of NLPC’s Corporate Integrity Project. “The company has now heard from U.S. Senators from both political parties about ‘doing, in effect, the bidding’ of the Chinese Communist Party, and its immoral reliance on Chinese labor.” “Mr. Cook refused to respond to questions from the media about Apple’s unhealthy entanglements with the communist government, but shareholders expect him to not be so evasive when they demand answers.” The text of NLPC’s proposal for a “Communist China Audit” report for Apple’s 2023 annual meeting follows: RESOLVED: Shareholders request that, beginning in 2023, Apple Inc. report annually to shareholders on the nature and extent to which corporate operations depend on, and are vulnerable to, Communist China, which is a serial human rights violator, a geopolitical threat, and an adversary to the United States. The report should exclude confidential business information but provide shareholders with a sense of the Company’s reliance on activities conducted within, and under control of, the Communist Chinese government. Supporting Statement: American companies doing business in China is a controversial public policy issue, according to an April 2, 2021 CNN report titled, “Doing business in China is difficult. A clash over human rights is making it harder.” Apple does business in – and relies on materials, parts, labor and/or services from – entities in China. China is a serial violator of human and political rights. China is also hostile to the U.S. for a variety of reasons, including: — China intends to displace the U.S. as the lone global superpower by 2049; — The U.S. has committed to defend Taiwan, which China has asserted is part of its country and may attempt to seize by force; — U.S.-China relations are tense over a number of issues including China’s military expansion; egregious human rights violations; actions related to the COVID pandemic; intellectual property theft; relentless espionage; elimination of freedom in Hong Kong; and environmental pollution. China has also indicated that it would use its industrial capabilities for strategic purposes against adversaries. Many Chinese companies – which are ultimately under the control of the Communist government – are vulnerable to the U.S. Holding Foreign Companies Accountable Act, do not adhere to basic auditing standards, and are therefore untrustworthy. China, and by extension the companies it controls, were also identified in the U.S. State Department’s 2022 Trafficking in Persons Report as a state sponsor of human trafficking. They are now subject to the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, which imposes strict verification of parts and products imported from China, that they are not generated from slave labor. Apple’s extensive ties to China also breed reputational risk for the company. For example, while the company funds groups that promote the interests of homosexual and transgender individuals, the Communist government persistently and vigorously cracks down on those forms of identity. A July 2022 joint statement from the leaders of the British and American domestic intelligence agencies warned that the Communist Chinese Party is the greatest threat to the international order. “We consistently see that it’s the Chinese government that poses the biggest long-term threat to our economic and national security, and by ‘our,’ I mean both of our nations, along with our allies in Europe and elsewhere,” said Federal Bureau of Investigation Director Christopher Wray. Given the controversial, if not dangerous, nature of doing business in and with China, shareholders have the right to know the extent to which Apple’s business operations depend on Communist China. Founded in 1991, NLPC promotes ethics in public life and government accountability through research, investigation, education, and legal action. ### For more information or to schedule an interview with Paul Chesser, contact Dan Rene at drene@nlpc.org. Please visit http://www.nlpc.org. Founded in 1991, NLPC promotes ethics in public life and government accountability through research, investigation, education, and legal action. Contact Details National Legal and Policy Center Paul Chesser +1 703-237-1970 pchesser@nlpc.org Company Website http://www.nlpc.org

December 05, 2022 10:28 AM Eastern Standard Time

Clean Room Primer Group Announces Speakers for Final 2022 Roadshow Event in Los Angeles

Clean Room Primer

The Clean Room Primer Group today announces its selection of headline speakers for its upcoming event in Los Angeles, California on Tuesday, December 6, 2022. The mission of the group is to demystify data clean rooms and help marketing and advertising professionals adapt and use them in a privacy-safe marketing environment. The Los Angeles event marks the fourth and final in the Group’s first series of events, all geared to expand on use cases and offer real-world examples on usage of data clean rooms. The industry speakers headlining the Los Angeles event include: Alice Stratton, Chief Revenue Officer, Habu Christine Grammier, Head of Solutions, LiveRamp Richard Sobel, Chief Executive Officer, Marcato Solutions Valerie Mercurio, Director Business Development, InfoSum Verl Allen, Chief Executive Officer, Claravine “We are excited to close out our inaugural 2022 Roadshow in Los Angeles. The success of our events over the last several weeks has been inspiring to witness. We’re ready to continue spearheading the notion that clean room collaboration is necessary from all major industry stakeholder groups including brands, agencies, tech providers and publishers,” said Adam Gelles, co-founder of the Clean Room Primer group and CEO, The B2B Marketing Company. “With a privacy-centric year for advertising and marketing ahead of us, first-party data strategies are becoming synonymous with success.” The group has co-authored an initial piece of educational material – The Clean Room Primer – a white paper covering clean room taxonomy and definitions; use cases; and a look at the future. The white paper was released during the group’s inaugural event at Advertising Week in New York City in October. To further its momentum, The Clean Room Primer Group will continue to educate the industry on the advantages of leveraging data clean rooms with events planned in 2023 at CES, SXSW and more. For more information and to register for the event, click here. About The Clean Room Primer Group The Clean Room Primer is an ad-hoc consortium of advertising industry executives with a shared mission of providing marketers, agencies, and publishers with a reliable and expert source on data clean rooms, their use and implementation best practices. Helping the industry prepare for a new privacy landscape. Inaugural participating companies include Habu, LiveRamp, InfoSum, Claravine, Kite Hill Public Relations, Marcato Solutions, The B2B Marketing Company, Neustar and Merkle. For more information, visit CleanRoomPrimer.com and follow on LinkedIn and Twitter. About The B2B Marketing Company We are a leading provider of business marketing and revenue generating programs for high growth, mid-market and enterprise companies. Our clients have included Microsoft, GumGum, Integral Ad Science, Spectrum Reach, Adobe and many others across technology, media and entertainment, transportation and financial services companies. We provide clients marketing, evangelism, content and excellence programs using our proven methodologies and processes that have generated over hundreds of millions of dollars for B2B brands. Learn more at www.theb2bmarketing.co. Contact Details Michael Kocher cleandata@kitehillpr.com

December 05, 2022 09:57 AM Eastern Standard Time

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