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scotlandandbeyond · 7 years ago

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Frustrations... and Settling In

Some members of my Canadian family, myself included, enjoy watching “International House Hunters”. In fact there have been some jokes about Craig and I being on the show. I always like how they follow up 3 months later to see how the people are settling in. Well...now I know. I know why they wait 3 months. If they visited in the first month, after editing out the curse words, well, there would be nothing left for the program.

When we talked about this move, I told my husband it would be “easy”. He rolled his eyes. Although in the grand scheme of things, it has been easy, there certainly have been days when I was ready to pack it all in. Follow the caps: you can’t get a cell, (mobile) phone without a bank account, you can’t rent a place to live without a bank account, you can’t get a bank account without a place to live, you can’t get a National Insurance number, (read SIN, or SS#) without an address, you can’t insure a car without a bank account...and your no claims, (even with a letter from the company at home), won’t count here. Getting dizzy yet? For the first 3 weeks every step forward seemed to bring 2 backwards. Thank goodness for family: they turned us in the right direction and poured wine when needed...and it was needed!

After 2 weeks though we had rented a fabulous furnished 2 bedroom flat, and had bought a little car. We were on our way...sort of. Remember, dropping off the 7 boxes to be shipped? Well, the cost of sending them doubled...after we were in the U.K., so we were held hostage. Then the Vancouver company, (World Cargo...don’t use them), didn’t give us the right information, or share the order and urgency, of completing some forms. We didn’t the the phone call we were expecting to say our boxes had arrived. Instead we heard from a man in Aberdeen who had been send the paperwork for our boxes because his company was called World Cargo Logistics, (use this company...he’s my hero now!) This complete stranger could have just have told the airport that these boxes had nothing to do with him or his company but instead he phoned me up. He held our hand, walked us through what we needed to do to import in our belongings, and managed to get the storage fees waived. After a week of sleeping with bedding borrowed from my cousin Lynne, we had our stuff!

Then came the “oh, your overseas criminal record check isn’t good enough: we need another one”. Fortunately, I have some friends at the RCMP, and they helped out by getting me a new one, only to be told, “no, now we want fingerprints done”. Over 3 hours each way for 15 minutes of inky times, and questions from the 37+ year experienced Canada fingerprint man about whether I was going into “intelligence work”, as he had never seen this needed for teaching, was I teaching at MI5...and £200 later, the fingerprints were done and in registered mail with all the over supporting “certified copies”. Hoping to check this one completely off in the next few weeks.

Our last, (for now), challenge seems to be the internet. We placed the order with BT on August 17th and were given a September 1st installation date. That’s been pushed out twice now and we’re hoping for a September 19th completion. It’s been a comedy of errors at BT’s end. With full disclosure, I have to say that BT have tried to make things right: paying for a dongle that accesses the ONLY G3 network here in Alford, and pushing out out first bill until October, but it’s been tough.

Fortunately, I have a part time contract with my employer back in BC, or we would be in real trouble. We saved for this, but have watched our account deplete. Still, I’m back working now, and hope to be working here soon. Still, you can’t feel too sorry for us as we leave next week for 3 weeks in Croatia and a further week in southern Italy. I know...I can hear your sympathy drying up.

The “new” car!

Tandem driving to Glasgow to return the rental car.

A Craig sized bathtub!

Note the bottles of “therapy” on the counter as Craig sets up his new coffee maker!

The living room

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stephaniefchase · 7 years ago

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Bajan Newscap 6/6/2017

Good Morning #realdreamchasers. Here is your daily news cap for Tuesday 6th June 2017. Remember you can read full articles via Barbados Today (BT), or by purchasing a Daily Nation Newspaper (DN).

HIGH SICK LEAVE CLAIMS TOO COSTLY – The National Insurance Scheme (NIS) paid out $24 million in sick leave claims at the end of 2016 and Minister of Labour Dr Esther Byer-Suckoo has embarked on a mission to remedy the problem. Speaking at a church service marking the 50th anniversary of the National Insurance Department at the St Michael’s Cathedral yesterday, Byer-Suckoo said she has already begun to petition the island’s medical practitioners to think twice before prescribing sick leave. She lamented that the large volume of sick leave claims had also created a backlog of “unacceptable delays in processing”, but assured that the NIS would ensure Barbadians received their benefits. Some 54, 000 people benefited from last year’s sick leave payouts and Byer-Suckoo urged Barbadians to adopt healthier lifestyles to fight off the epidemic of non-communicable diseases, which she suggested, was a major contributor to the number of sickness and disability claims being processed by the National Insurance Department. (BT)

BUSINESS FOLK MUST TELL OF CHALLENGES – Entrepreneurs have been asked to tell their stories so as to inspire those who want to pursue a similar journey. This came from general manager of the Barbados Youth Business Trust (BYBT), Cardelle Fergusson, during the launch of Evolving Business, its official magazine, at the Barbados Manufacturers’ Exhibition (BMEX) at the Lloyd Erskine Sandiford Centre on Saturday. Fergusson said the motivation behind the launch was that there were many persons interested in becoming self-employed, but one of the obstacles was ignorance of the process. She therefore thought that if current entrepreneurs could tell the stories of how they got started, some of their challenges and the benefits of becoming entrepreneurs, it would motivate and possibly empower others to pursue their goals. (DN)

LEGAL SHIFTING – More people are opting to have their civil suits settled through arbitration and mediation, rather than go through the long drawn-out court process. According to a number of prominent lawyers, many have been seeking such recourse to avoid the lengthy delays rampant in the administration of justice. Queen’s Counsel Hal Gollop told the DAILY NATION: “It is not unknown that several matters in the civil courts have gone on for in excess of ten years. That cannot be a happy situation for someone seeking justice . . . . Justice delayed is justice denied.” Alternative Dispute Resolution is an option that has often been mooted by Chief Justice Sir Marston Gibson. Last July, Attorney General Adriel Brathwaite revealed that a pilot project had resulted in 75 per cent of matters being settled outside of court. (DN)

TOURISM PUSH – Barbados has begun the process of improving its tourism product to meet the demand of visitors. This assurance was given to cruise ship executives by chief executive officer of the Barbados Tourism Product Authority (BTPA), Dr Kerry Hall. She said her department was engaged in research designed to bring ordinary Barbadians engaged in tourism ventures into the mainstream of the industry, and was also working on exploiting new forms of attractions for visitors. Hall, addressing a recent town hall meeting of the Florida Caribbean Cruise Association (FCCA) at Hilton Barbados, was responding to calls from key executives from major cruise lines and the FCCA for Barbados to create new areas of interest for visitors. (DN)

MESA CALLS ON DADS TO PLAY THEIR ROLE – THE MEN’S Educational Support Association (MESA) is calling on men to step up to the role of fatherhood because it is critical in the development of a child. The organisation is also insisting that the system be structured to facilitate men’s access to their children so they could meet their parental obligations. These were some of the burning issues raised at a MESA meeting last week at The St Michael School which looked at The Indispensable Role For Men In The Parenting Journey. Panellists were former chairman of MESA, Ralph Boyce; parent Orlando Lorde, and deputy chairman of MESA, Sean Fields. (DN)

MARCH AGAINST BEACH PROJECT – Three years into a protest against plans to set up a breakwater off Sandy Lane beach, St James, activist and surfing instructor Samuel Inniss is still standing firm on his position. He continued his objection to the proposed beach regeneration project yesterday, when a group of six, including Inniss, marched with placards from the area of Holetown Police Station to Sandy Lane beach. Inniss is charging that the proposal to have a barrier built out into the sea to protect the coast from the force of waves will eventually contribute to damage of the existing reef and lead to erosion of the neighbouring Paynes Bay beach. He said he heard the project would take effect in September. (DN)

BUS DRIVER ESCAPES INJURY AFTER COLLISION - Transport Board bus driver David Best escaped injury after being involved in an accident along Fairchild Street, in the vicinity of Tistal Laundry and Dry Cleaners around 7:30 a.m. today. Best, 55, of Clevedale Road, Black Rock, St Michael was the lone occupant of the bus at the time of the incident. According to police, Best was trying to avoid hitting two men who were fighting on the road, when he lost control of the bus, collided with two parked vehicles and then crashing into the building housing Tistal Laundry and Dry Cleaners. Police are continuing their investigations. (BT)

POLICE INVESTIGATE STABBING INCIDENT – A 20-year-old St Michael man is nursing injuries following a stabbing incident this morning. Reco Kirton of Spruce Street received three stab wounds to his right side while he was in The City around 7:45 a.m. According to police, Kirton was walking along Fairchild Street with his girlfriend, when he was attacked and stabbed by a man. The man fled the scene while Kirton made his way to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital by foot for medical attention. Police have appealed to anyone with information about the incident to contact the Criminal Investigation Department at Central Police Station at 430 7175 or 430 7167; police emergency 211; Crime Stoppers at 1-800-8477 or the nearest police station. Investigations are continuing. (BT)

RUBIS SERVICE STATION RESUMES OPERATIONS AFTER FIRE LAST NIGHT – Panic broke out at the Rubis Service Station, Harmony Hall, St Michael after a vehicle caught fire around 9:20 last night. Quick action by fire officers, however, brought the blaze under control and no one was injured in the incident. Police public relations officer Acting Inspector Roland Cobbler told Barbados TODAY the alarm was first sounded after smoke was seen coming the vehicle, a 2008 Toyota van, driven by Harry Clarke of Fustic Village, St Lucy. It subsequently burst into flames and was destroyed. No one was injured in the incident. Police are continuing investigations. (BT)

TRADEWINDS GEARS UP – Authorities have fallen short of their call for 1 000 volunteers, but say all is still set for the launch of Exercise Tradewinds 2017 today. Exercise co-director Major Carlos Lovell told the DAILY NATION yesterday they had only recorded around 700 of the requested volunteers to take part in the week-long regional, multi-agency, multi-national security and disaster management exercise. However, he said more people were expected to fall in line. “We have one or two other organisations who have also committed volunteers, so I don’t know what the final number will be, but right now we have around 700 and we will be able to work with those. I am pleased with the response of the public; they have come out in a way I have not seen for any other military event in Barbados,” he said. (DN)

TWO LONDON ATTACKERS NAMED BY POLICE – SOURCE: BBC NEWS: Two of the men who carried out Saturday night’s terror attack in London have been named by police. They said Pakistan-born Khuram Butt, 27, of Barking, London, had been known to police and MI5 but there had not been any intelligence about an attack. The other attacker was Rachid Redouane, 30, from Barking, who police said had claimed to be Moroccan-Libyan. The pair and one other man were shot dead by police after killing seven people and injuring 48. They drove a hired van into pedestrians on London Bridge before stabbing people in the area around Borough Market. A vigil was held at Potters Field Park near London Bridge on Monday evening to remember the victims. NHS England said 36 people remained in hospital, with 18 in a critical condition. Redouane, who was a chef, also used the name Rachid Elkhdar. He had not been known to police. Metropolitan Police assistant commissioner Mark Rowley said: “Inquiries are ongoing to confirm the identity of their accomplice.” He said the investigation into Butt had begun two years ago but “there was no intelligence to suggest that this attack was being planned and the investigation had been prioritised accordingly”. He added: “Work is ongoing to understand more about them, their connections and whether they were assisted or supported by anyone else.” Butt featured in a Channel 4 documentary last year about Islamist extremists with links to the jailed preacher Anjem Choudary. The attacker, who had older siblings and was married with at least one child, could be seen in the programme arguing with police officers in the street. An online CV seen by the BBC shows that Butt had achieved an NVQ Level 2 in business administration. He went on to work in an administrative role for a company called Auriga Holdings, based in East Ham, which manages Kentucky Fried Chicken outlets. He had also worked for London Underground for just under six months as a trainee customer services assistant, before leaving in October last year, Transport for London said. Butt was the sole director of a now-dissolved company called Kool Kosmetics. (BT)

AG URGES ADULTS TO LEAD BY EXAMPLE –Attorney General Adriel Brathwaite has publicly rapped the Barbados Cricket Association and the Barbados Association of Principals of Public Secondary Schools (BAPPSS) for failing to settle differences, which led to the abandonment of the Sir Everton Weekes Under-13 Limited Over Final. Citing the development as a poor example of conflict resolution, Brathwaite appealed to adults and parents to better demonstrate how to resolve their differences to influence how the island’s youth handle their disputes The BCA pulled stumps on the May 25 final between Combermere and the Christ Church Foundation School after the BAPPSS boycotted the deciding game, citing greivances related to changes to regulations governing the 2017 domestic cricket season. (BT)

PSYCHIATRIC TAKE T20 – Psychiatric hospital Sports Club etched their name in the annals of local cricket history yesterday by becoming the inaugural champions of the Barbados Cricket Association’s Twenty20 Shield Competition. The Black Rock institution hung on to get the better of a nail-biting finish at Kensington Oval over Lords Sports Club of St. Lucy to be crowned champions of the shortest format among teams from the lower divisions. Asked to bat first, Psychiatric battled their way to 119 for nine before dismissing Lords off the last ball of the final over for 115. The triumph continued a successful sequence of championship victories for Psychiatric, who are also defending champions of the prestigious 40-over Shield for junior clubs. (DN)

PROVIDING A VOICE FOR THE DEAF – Eight aspiring entrepreneurs are seeking to provide a voice for the deaf community via a new media venture. Operating under the business name of Broad Street Media, the eight young people, who are all deaf, recently completed a special digital media programme catering specifically for the deaf community. The inaugural course was a joint project between the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports’ mainstreaming programme and the National Council on Substance Abuse. Some of the members had their business on display at the just-concluded Barbados Manufacturers’ Exhibition (BMEX) and also took the opportunityto speak about their thrust into media. (DN)

BARBADIAN CHEFS PREPARE A RANGE OF DISHES FOR ALL PALATES – Barbados has finished the team competition at the 2017 Taste of the Caribbean Competition in Miami. Out of a mystery basket, they had three dishes to prepare and have put a range of tastes and flavours before the judges from the savoury to the sweet. For the starter, the team rolled out curry chicken and spiced plantain roulade, roasted bell pepper coconut sauce and piña colada crumble. This was followed by a main course of herb coated Bajan rubbed certified Angus inside skirt medallion, Bajan seasoned pork sausage, aromatic sweet potato with smoked herring, curry cream cheese stuffing, spicy beef gravy, eggplant churney, pumpkin ginger brulee and spinach coral tuille. For those who like it sweet, dessert comprised nut dusted molasses chocolate pop, sorrel pipette, cinnamon crusted choux filled with rum and raisin cream, passion fruit cilantro gel, citrus coconut cream and guava gelle. Individual members of the team will also be going after honours in the annual competition. (DN)

OFFICIALS PLEASED WITH GROWTH OF CROP OVER HERITAGE TOUR – Barbadians are becoming more interested in learning about their heritage and how their ancestors lived, producer of the Crop Over Heritage Bus Tour Alison Sealy-Smith has said. Speaking to Barbados TODAY on the sidelines of yesterday’s tour, Sealy-Smith disclosed that the response to the event now in its fifth year was overwhelming. The acclaimed actress was particularly pleased that new presentations used to bring the historic stories to life appeared to be a hit with participants. The tour took hundreds of Barbadians on an entertaining and informative journey, telling them bittersweet stories of molasses and rum. The tour commenced at Cavans Lane, The City, a former burial ground for slaves. Participants first observed a minute of silence for the African slaves who died before a brief introduction from lead tour guide Morris Greenidge. The presentation on the slaves’ arrival was so captivating, especially the monologue by young Saniyah Braithwaite, that it left some members of the crowd dabbing tears. The tour then went on to Sunbury Plantation, St Philip for the party at the Great House. From there it was on to Foursquare Rum Distillery, where the crowd learnt the story of the evolution of the rum enterprise. The next stop was the Newton Plantation, a former burial ground for enslaved blacks. The tour then concluded at an old Bajan Rum shop in The City. (BT)

WINNER TAKES ALL – The winner-takes-all model stays. So said Yello Media Group chief executive officer (CEO) Collin Francis as he responded to a question about the current prize model of the Bashment Soca competition. He told those present at the launch of the 2017 Yello Phenomenal Friday competition that it was a different model from those in the current entertainment arena. “We had a lengthy discussion about it. The team of 4D and I met and the thinking behind it is that the first prize is for a winner. We believe that if the artistes out there really want to be No. 1, there really is no room for second, third or fourth place. There is only room for No. 1.” (DN)

ENCORES FOR ALL STARS – Ronnie DE ANNOUNCER Clarke is back. Receiving two encores for Vote and one for Bashment Soca, he could easily be considered the A-lister when Cave Shepherd All Stars Calypso Tent pitched last Saturday night in the Ann Johnson Auditorium of St Gabriel’s School. Appearing on stage close to midnight in a large, black plastic bag with an X on the front and the word VOTE on the back, he energised the large audience, making them sit up, listen and sing along to his admonition to go the polls and vote in the next general election. This, instead of opting out of choosing the party they want to govern the country. (DN)

That’s all for today folks. There are 214 days left in the year Shalom! #thechasefiles #dailynewscaps Follow us on Twitter, Facebook & Instagram for your daily news. #bajannewscaps #newscapsbystephaniefchase

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gregbrandon · 8 years ago

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newstwitter-blog · 8 years ago

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New Post has been published on News Twitter

New Post has been published on http://www.news-twitter.com/2017/03/16/bbc-us-charges-russian-spies-over-yahoo-breach-28/

BBC: US charges Russian spies over Yahoo breach

Image copyright AFP

Image caption The charges, announced by the US Justice Department, relate to a 2014 breach affecting 500 million Yahoo user accounts

Two Russian spies are among four individuals indicted by the US Department of Justice (DOJ) over a huge theft of Yahoo user accounts.

The members of the FSB, the Russian intelligence agency, conspired with criminal hackers, according to DOJ officials announcing the charges.

Previously, Yahoo said “state-sponsored” hackers were behind the 2014 breach affecting 500 million accounts.

The suspects are also alleged to have targeted Google accounts.

Hacking was directed at Russian and US government officials, including security, diplomatic and military personnel, according to the DOJ.

The indictment also alleged that 30 million Yahoo accounts were commandeered without authorisation for use in a spam campaign.

FBI ‘most wanted’

“We will not allow individuals, groups, nation states, or a combination of them to compromise the privacy of our citizens, the economic interests of our companies, or the security of our country,” said acting attorney general Mary McCord, announcing the charges.

The suspects were named in a DOJ press release as:

Dmitry Aleksandrovich Dokuchaev, 33, a Russian national and FSB officer

Igor Anatolyevich Sushchin, 43, a Russian national and FSB officer

Alexsey Alexseyevich Belan, 29, a Russian national and resident

Karim Baratov, 22, a Canadian and Kazakh national and a resident of Canada

Baratov was arrested on 14 March in Canada.

Image copyright FBI

Image caption Alexsey Belan, one of the alleged hackers involved, has been on the FBI’s most wanted list

One of the alleged hackers has been on of the FBI’s most wanted cyber criminals for more than three years, according to acting Att Gen McCord.

The suspect in question, Alexsey Belan, was aided by the FSB who – according to the DOJ – provided him with “sensitive FSB law enforcement and intelligence information that would have helped him avoid detection by US and other law enforcement agencies outside Russia”.

“We would hope [Russia] would respect our criminal justice system and respect these charges,” said acting Att Gen McCord, acknowledging the fact that the US does not have an extradition treaty with Russia.

“The United Kingdom’s MI5 made substantial contributions to the advancement of this investigation,” added FBI executive assistant director Paul Abbate.

Personal data stolen

Yahoo was criticised for the delay in informing users about the 2014 breach.

The stolen data included names, email addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth and encrypted passwords, but not credit card data, according to Yahoo.

Last year, users were advised to change their passwords.

Media captionWhat if Yahoo hackers have my details?

Around eight million UK accounts were believed to have been affected – including some users of BT and Sky email services.

“The indictment unequivocally shows the attacks on Yahoo were state-sponsored,” Yahoo said in a statement, responding to the DOJ announcement.

“We are deeply grateful to the FBI for investigating these crimes and the DOJ for bringing charges against those responsible.”

The DOJ said that the charges have no connection to the hack on the Democratic National Convention last year.

This post has been harvested from the source link, and News-Twitter has no responsibility on its content. Source link

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takachan · 8 years ago

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iPhoneより売れたスマホ「R9」でグローバル展開を目指す、オッポの戦略：山根博士の海外スマホよもやま話

スマートフォンメーカーのシェア争いの動きは年々激しさを増している。トップのサムスン、2位アップルの順位はここ数年変わらないものの、3位以下のメーカーの勢力が伸びているのだ。2016年のスマートフォンシェアは1位がサムスン20.8%、2位はアップルの14.5%だった（ストラテジーアナリスト調査）。しかし両者ともにシェアの数字は前年より落としている。これに対し3位のファーウェイは9.3%と、アップルの後姿が見える位置まで追い��けてきた。だがファーウェイも3位の座は安泰ではないかもしれない。4位のオッポ（OPPO、広東欧珀移動通信）が急激に追い上げているのだ。 2015年のシェアはファーウェイが7.4%、オッポが2.8%と大きく開いていた。しかし2016年のオッポのシェアは前年から倍増の5.7%と伸ばしており、スマートフォン市場で今もっとも勢いのあるメーカーとして知られるほどになった。 ▲急成長を遂げたオッポ（OPPO）。「拍照手机」は中国語でカメラスマホの意味オッポの勢いは地元中国に行けば一目瞭然だ。繁華街にはオッポの大きな広告が掲載されており、地下鉄の駅構内からオフィスビルのエレベーターの中まで、同社のロゴを見かけないことは無い。アップルが黒を基調としたモノトーンの広告を展開する中、コーポレートカラーであるオッポの緑色を使った広告は、ターゲットユーザーとする20-30代の消費者とマッチする、若々しさ、あるいは活き活きとしたイメージを彷彿させる。またアジア各国でもオッポの店を多く見かけるようになってきた。インド、フィリピン、シンガポールでは売れ行き上位3位以内に入ることもあるなど、有名メーカーに並ぶほどの人気だ。しかもオッポの製品は格安だから売れているのではない。売れ筋モデルの価格帯は200ドルを超えており、現地ではやや高めの価格帯にもかかわらず人気なのである。 ▲タイのバンコクBTS駅構内のオッポの広告。タイでも十分知られるメーカーになっているオッポの強さは数字も裏付けている。2016年の中国国内のスマートフォンの機種別販売台数で、オッポの「R9」はシェア4%で1位となった（カウンターポイント調査）。2位はアップルの「iPhone 6s」だが、シェアは2%とオッポの半分。つまりR9はiPhone 6sの倍も売れたのだ。中国では2012年以降、歴代の機種別販売台数トップはiPhoneだった。だが今やiPhoneではなくオッポを選ぶ消費者が急増しているのである。同じく中国国内のメーカー別出荷台数では、2016年第3四半期にオッポが初めて1位となった（同）。2016年を通しての1年間ではファーウェイが1位（16.4%）を死守したものの、オッポは15.5%まで伸ばし2位。両者はほぼ並んだと言ってもいいだろう。ちなみに3位以下はビボ（VIVO）が8.4%、シャオミが10.9%、アップルが10.4%、サムスンが6.9%と続く。前年と比較すると、ファーウェイは21%増と好調だったが、オッポは109%増とその伸びは驚異的だ。ちなみにシャオミとアップルは前年比マイナス約20%だった。 ▲2016年、中国で最も売れたスマホはiPhoneではなくオッポのR9だったオッポが存在感を現したのはここ1-2年の間だ。その強みはスマートフォン機能の「選択」にある。シャオミが1999元（約3万3000円）というわかりやすい価格でハイスペックな端末を売りだして人気になったのに対し、オッポは「自撮りカメラ」「急速充電」を大きくアピールして消費者の注目を集めている。今やスマートフォンはどのモデルを買っても、ユーザーが使う機能はほぼ同じだ。そして若い世代がスマートフォンで日々行っているのはSNSに自分の姿をアップすることであり、最も必要と考えている機能は端末の電池が切れそうになった時に急いで充電できることだ。前述の中国国内のメーカー別出荷台数を見れば、シェアを伸ばしているメーカーは同様な動きを見せている。ファーウェイはライカとのコラボレーションで高画質カメラ、ビボはセルフィーや音楽機能を強化。そのメーカーのスマートフォンを買えば何ができるのか、という具体像を消費者に植え付けることに成功している。一方シャオミとアップルは「何でも出来るハイスペックでおしゃれなスマートフォン」という、漠然としたイメージ展開だ。 ▲5分の充電、2時間通話。わかりやすいキャッチコピーだフラッグシップモデルのR9s、R9s Plus共に自社開発の急速充電技術「VOOC」を搭載し、「5分の充電で2時間の通話」をアピール。そしてカメラ画質はどちらもフロントが1600万画素だ。しかもこの下のミッドレンジモデル「A59s」「A57」も同様に1600万画素のフロントカメラを搭載する。オッポ＝自撮りがキレイなのは、上位モデルだけではないのである。ではiPhoneより売れたR9はさぞかしハイスペックなスマートフォンかというと、実はそうでもないのだ。チップセットはメディアテックのMT6755を採用（後継かつ現行のR9sはSnapdragon 625）。Snapdragon 800系を積む他社のハイエンド品より1ランク下の製品だ。しかしメモリー��4GBを搭載、カメラまわりを中心に動作もチューンナップされている。価格は2499元（約4万1300円）と、Snapdragon 821を搭載するシャオミ「Mi5s」の1899元（約3万1400円）よりも高い。それでも中国の消費者が「より低スペックで高価」なR9を選ぶのは、自分たちが求めている機能が強化されているからだ。ちなみにiPhone 7の価格は最低モデルが5388元（約8万9000円）で、R9の倍。総合的な性能はもちろんiPhoneのほうがはるかに上だ。しかし「フロントカメラ」「急速充電」に関していえば、iPhone 7はR9に「惨敗」なのである。 ▲中国の大手家電量販店でもオッポを一押ししているこうした製品の特長に加え、オッポは古くからオフライン＝実店舗での販売も強化してきた。シャオミがネット販売で急激に成長を続けた2013-14年ころから、各メーカーも右に倣えとオンラインストアを開設していったが、オッポはそれと並行して国内の大��市だけではなく、地方都市まで店舗をくまなく広げていった。情報の入りにくい地方都市で、新製品や現行モデルの実機に触れることのできる実店舗はプロモーションの場として重要な存在だ。実はこのオフライン展開のノウハウが、オッポの海外進出を強力に後押ししている。オッポは現在、東南アジアやインドなど新興国を中心に海外展開を行っている。しかし急に進出をしたオッポに対するそれぞれの国での印象は「中国の得体の知れないメーカー」というものだろう。だが店舗の作りや展示されている実機を見れば、有名メーカーに負けない製品を出していることがわかる。しかもセルフィーカメラや急速充電は大手メーカーを上回る性能なのだ。 ▲ミャンマーヤンゴン市内にも多数の店を出店しているオッポはインドやフィリピン、シンガポールなどでシェア3位以内に入ることもあるなど、多くの新興国で大手メーカーの仲間入りを果たしている。タイやマレーシアではオッポを真っ先に選ぶという若い女性層の声も多く聞かれる。オッポを買うことが一つのステータスになっているのだ。オッポの最新モデル、R9sとR9s PlusのデザインはどことなくiPhoneに似通っている。だが今ではメーカーのスマートフォンも外観は大きく変わらない。一方でフロントカメラ性能と充電周りの機能はiPhoneでは太刀打ちできないほど高性能だ。オッポが売れているのは決してiPhoneの劣化コピーだからではない。そこを見誤っては、オッポの急成長を理解することはできない。 ▲6インチディスプレイモデルのR9 Plus このように製品の良さと販売チャネルの拡大で世界シェア4位に食い込んできたオッポ。しかし出荷台数の大半を占める中国市場はスマートフォン普及率が100%に近づいており、新規購入より買い替え需要が高いという先進国と同じ市場構造となった。そのためオッポは今後さらに新興国へ販路を伸ばしていくだろう。アフリカへの進出も、中国の地方都市での販売店展開の経験が大いに役立つ。物流やオンラインペイメントなどのインフラが未整備な新興国では、オフライン販売に強いメーカーだけが成功できるだろう。とはいえ新興国での競争は今後厳しさを増してくだろう。またオッポが得意とするスマートフォンの機能も、次のトレンドの波には乗れないかもしれない。例えば急速充電はクアルコムなどがより良いソリューションをこれから出してくるだろう。今の製品展開のまま、オッポの成長がこれからも続く保証は一切ない。 ▲オッポが独自開発した急速充電技術VOOC あと数年、「数」を追い求めるだけであれば新興国中心の展開も有効だが、今後も成長を求めるのであれば名前を見るだけで買ってもらえるメーカーになる必要がある。つまりブランド力の強化が急務だ。オッポはまだ中国の１企業としての認知度しかなく、しかも新興国でしか知られていない、ローカルメーカーに過ぎない。数年後にサムスン��アップルと並ぶ、真のメジャーメーカーの仲間入りを果たすためには、まだ参入を果たしていない先進国市場へ出ていくことは必須だろう。先進国ではR9sなどの上位モデルだけを投入し、一定の販売数を確保できれば、認知度も高まりブランドを浸透させることができる。一部の報道によれば、オッポは2017年中にアメリカ市場に参入するとのこと。キャリアの過度な端末割引販売が廃止され、消費者が製品の価値と価格にシビアになったアメリカならば、オッポの上位モデルは十分受け入れられる要��を持っている。そしてアメリカを足掛かりにヨーロッパへの展開を行えば、グローバル市場でファーウェイの後をぴたりと追いかける、競争力のあるメーカーとして存在感を高めていくだろう。数年後にはオッポのスマートフォンが日本で売られている時代がやってくるかもしれない。 http://j.mp/2m1SvYC Engadget Japanese

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