#Network Roll-out Services Market

[mostlysignssomeportents]

Sympathy for the spammer

Catch me in Miami! I'll be at Books and Books in Coral Gables on Jan 22 at 8PM.

In any scam, any con, any hustle, the big winners are the people who supply the scammers – not the scammers themselves. The kids selling dope on the corner are making less than minimum wage, while the respectable crime-bosses who own the labs clean up. Desperate "retail investors" who buy shitcoins from Superbowl ads get skinned, while the MBA bros who issue the coins make millions (in real dollars, not crypto).

It's ever been thus. The California gold rush was a con, and nearly everyone who went west went broke. Famously, the only reliable way to cash out on the gold rush was to sell "picks and shovels" to the credulous, doomed and desperate. That's how Leland Stanford made his fortune, which he funneled into eugenics programs (and founding a university):

https://www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/malcolm-harris/palo-alto/9780316592031/

That means that the people who try to con you are almost always getting conned themselves. Think of Multi-Level Marketing (MLM) scams. My forthcoming novel The Bezzle opens with a baroque and improbable fast-food Ponzi in the town of Avalon on the island of Catalina, founded by the chicle monopolist William Wrigley Jr:

http://thebezzle.org

Wrigley found fast food declasse and banned it from the island, a rule that persists to this day. In The Bezzle, the forensic detective Martin Hench uncovers The Fry Guys, an MLM that flash-freezes contraband burgers and fries smuggled on-island from the mainland and sells them to islanders though an "affiliate marketing" scheme that is really about recruiting other affiliate markets to sell under you. As with every MLM, the value of the burgers and fries sold is dwarfed by the gigantic edifice of finance fraud built around it, with "points" being bought and sold for real cash, which is snaffled up and sucked out of the island by a greedy mainlander who is behind the scheme.

A "bezzle" is John Kenneth Galbraith's term for "the magic interval when a confidence trickster knows he has the money he has appropriated but the victim does not yet understand that he has lost it." In every scam, there's a period where everyone feels richer – but only the scammers are actually cleaning up. The wealth of the marks is illusory, but the longer the scammer can preserve the illusion, the more real money the marks will pump into the system.

MLMs are particularly ugly, because they target people who are shut out of economic opportunity – women, people of color, working people. These people necessarily rely on social ties for survival, looking after each others' kids, loaning each other money they can't afford, sharing what little they have when others have nothing.

It's this social cohesion that MLMs weaponize. Crypto "entrepreneurs" are encouraged to suck in their friends and family by telling them that they're "building Black wealth." Working women are exhorted to suck in their bffs by appealing to their sisterhood and the chance for "women to lift each other up."

The "sales people" trying to get you to buy crypto or leggings or supplements are engaged in predatory conduct that will make you financially and socially worse off, wrecking their communities' finances and shattering the mutual aid survival networks they rely on. But they're not getting rich on this – they're also being scammed:

https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=4686468

This really hit home for me in the mid-2000s, when I was still editing Boing Boing. We had a submission form where our readers could submit links for us to look at for inclusion on the blog, and it was overwhelmed by spam. We'd add all kinds of antispam to it, and still, we'd get floods of hundreds or even thousands of spam submissions to it.

One night, I was lying in my bed in London and watching these spams roll in. They were all for small businesses in the rustbelt, handyman services, lawn-care, odd jobs, that kind of thing. They were 10 million miles from the kind of thing we'd ever post about on Boing Boing. They were coming in so thickly that I literally couldn't finish downloading my email – the POP session was dropping before I could get all the mail in the spool. I had to ssh into my mail server and delete them by hand. It was maddening.

Frustrated and furious, I started calling the phone numbers associated with these small businesses, demanding an explanation. I assumed that they'd hired some kind of sleazy marketing service and I wanted to know who it was so I could give them a piece of my mind.

But what I discovered when I got through was much weirder. These people had all been laid off from factories that were shuttering due to globalization. As part of their termination packages, their bosses had offered them "retraining" via "courses" in founding their own businesses.

The "courses" were the precursors to the current era's rise-and-grind hustle-culture scams (again, the only people getting rich from that stuff are the people selling the courses – the "students" finish the course poorer). They promised these laid-off workers, who'd given their lives to their former employers before being discarded, that they just needed to pull themselves up by their own boostraps:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/04/10/declaration-of-interdependence/#solidarity-forever

After all, we had the internet now! There were so many new opportunities to be your own boss! The course came with a dreadful build-your-own-website service, complete with an overpriced domain sales portal, and a single form for submitting your new business to "thousands of search engines."

This was nearly 20 years ago, but even then, there was really only one search engine that mattered: Google. The "thousands of search engines" the scammers promised to submit these desperate peoples' websites to were just submission forms for directories, indexes, blogs, and mailing lists. The number of directories, indexes, blogs and mailing lists that would publish their submissions was either "zero" or "nearly zero." There was certainly no possibility that anyone at Boing Boing would ever press the wrong key and accidentally write a 500-word blog post about a leaf-raking service in a collapsing deindustrialized exurb in Kentucky or Ohio.

The people who were drowning me in spam weren't the scammers – they were the scammees.

But that's only half the story. Years later, I discovered how our submission form was getting included in this get-rich-quick's mass-submission system. It was a MLM! Coders in the former Soviet Union were getting work via darknet websites that promised them relative pittances for every submission form they reverse-engineered and submitted. The smart coders didn't crack the forms directly – they recruited other, less business-savvy coders to do that for them, and then often as not, ripped them off.

The scam economy runs on this kind of indirection, where scammees are turned into scammers, who flood useful and productive and nice spaces with useless dross that doesn't even make them any money. Take the submission queue at Clarkesworld, the great online science fiction magazine, which famously had to close after it was flooded with thousands of junk submission "written" by LLMs:

https://www.npr.org/2023/02/24/1159286436/ai-chatbot-chatgpt-magazine-clarkesworld-artificial-intelligence

There was a zero percent chance that Neil Clarke would accidentally accept one of these submissions. They were uniformly terrible. The people submitting these "stories" weren't frustrated sf writers who'd discovered a "life hack" that let them turn out more brilliant prose at scale.

They were scammers who'd been scammed into thinking that AIs were the key to a life of passive income, a 4-Hour Work-Week powered by an AI-based self-licking ice-cream cone:

https://pod.link/1651876897/episode/995c8a778ede17d2d7cff393e5203157

This is absolutely classic passive-income brainworms thinking. "I have a bot that can turn out plausible sentences. I will locate places where sentences can be exchanged for money, aim my bot at it, sit back, and count my winnings." It's MBA logic on meth: find a thing people pay for, then, without bothering to understand why they pay for that thing, find a way to generate something like it at scale and bombard them with it.

Con artists start by conning themselves, with the idea that "you can't con an honest man." But the factor that predicts whether someone is connable isn't their honesty – it's their desperation. The kid selling drugs on the corner, the mom desperately DMing her high-school friends to sell them leggings, the cousin who insists that you get in on their shitcoin – they're all doing it because the system is rigged against them, and getting worse every day.

These people reason – correctly – that all the people getting really rich are scamming. If Amazon can make $38b/year selling "ads" that push worse products that cost more to the top of their search results, why should the mere fact that an "opportunity" is obviously predatory and fraudulent disqualify it?

https://pluralistic.net/2023/11/29/aethelred-the-unready/#not-one-penny-for-tribute

The quest for passive income is really the quest for a "greater fool," the economist's term for the person who relieves you of the useless crap you just overpaid for. It rots the mind, atomizes communities, shatters solidarity and breeds cynicism:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/02/24/passive-income/#swiss-cheese-security

The rise and rise of botshit cannot be separated from this phenomenon. The botshit in our search-results, our social media feeds, and our in-boxes isn't making money for the enshittifiers who send it – rather, they are being hustled by someone who's selling them the "picks and shovels" for the AI gold rush:

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2024/jan/03/botshit-generative-ai-imminent-threat-democracy

That's the true cost of all the automation-driven unemployment criti-hype: while we're nowhere near a place where bots can steal your job, we're certainly at the point where your boss can be suckered into firing you and replacing you with a bot that fails at doing your job:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/01/11/robots-stole-my-jerb/#computer-says-no

The manic "entrepreneurs" who've been stampeded into panic by the (correct) perception that the economy is a game of musical chairs where the number of chairs is decreasing at breakneck speed are easy marks for the Leland Stanfords of AI, who are creating generational wealth for themselves by promising that their bots will automate away all the tedious work that goes into creating value. Expect a lot more Amazon Marketplace products called "I'm sorry, I cannot fulfil this request as it goes against OpenAI use policy":

https://www.theverge.com/2024/1/12/24036156/openai-policy-amazon-ai-listings

No one's going to buy these products, but the AI picks-and-shovels people will still reap a fortune from the attempt. And because history repeats itself, these newly minted billionaires are continuing Leland Stanford's love affair with eugenics:

https://www.truthdig.com/dig-series/eugenics/

The fact that AI spam doesn't pay is important to the fortunes of AI companies. Most high-value AI applications are very risk-intolerant (self-driving cars, radiology analysis, etc). An AI tool might help a human perform these tasks more accurately – by warning them of things that they've missed – but that's not how AI will turn a profit. There's no market for AI that makes your workers cost more but makes them better at their jobs:

https://locusmag.com/2023/12/commentary-cory-doctorow-what-kind-of-bubble-is-ai/

Plenty of people think that spam might be the elusive high-value, low-risk AI application. But that's just not true. The point of AI spam is to get clicks from people who are looking for better content. It's SEO. No one reads 2000 words of algorithm-pleasing LLM garbage over an omelette recipe and then subscribes to that site's feed.

And the omelette recipe generates pennies for the spammer that posted it. They are doing massive volume in order to make those pennies into dollars. You don't make money by posting one spam. If every spammer had to pay the actual recovery costs (energy, chillers, capital amortization, wages) for their query, every AI spam would lose (lots of) money.

Hustle culture and passive income are about turning other peoples' dollars into your dimes. It is a negative-sum activity, a net drain on society. Behind every seemingly successful "passive income" is a con artist who's getting rich by promising – but not delivering – that elusive passive income, and then blaming the victims for not hustling hard enough:

https://www.ftc.gov/business-guidance/blog/2023/12/blueprint-trouble

I'm Kickstarting the audiobook for The Bezzle, the sequel to Red Team Blues, narrated by @wilwheaton! You can pre-order the audiobook and ebook, DRM free, as well as the hardcover, signed or unsigned. There's also bundles with Red Team Blues in ebook, audio or paperback.

If you'd like an essay-formatted version of this post to read or share, here's a link to it on pluralistic.net, my surveillance-free, ad-free, tracker-free blog:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/01/15/passive-income-brainworms/#four-hour-work-week

Image: Cryteria (modified) https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:HAL9000.svg

CC BY 3.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/deed.en

[zot3-flopped]

Reading that article from the sunday times and just gagging:

"Upstairs, in a corner room, was where she asked for three books to be read and five songs to be played to her every night",

"According to family friends they drove a Chevrolet Suburban — an SUV fit for the secret service — sent Christmas cards showing their impressive holidays and brought their daughter’s pony to school for show and tell.",

"The family would also give teachers the keys to their holiday home as a thank-you present.",

"They had a hot tub on the patio, a jetty with a boat from which they waterskiied and two jet skis. They were also members of the sailing club.",

"“When Taylor was young, the family came over for dinner and the kids were all swimming,” Hand says. “They [Swift’s parents] asked me if I had the Disney channel and I said no. There was some country singer on that was Taylor’s idol — and so they got up and they left.”,

"Her father, Scott, now 72, grew up nearby. He was a financial adviser at the investment firm Merrill Lynch. Swift’s mother, Andrea, now 66, was a marketing executive born into a wealthy family who grew up between Singapore and Houston, Texas. Andrea’s father was the president of a construction company, her mother an opera singer.",

"A third-generation banker and former radio salesman, he updated them on which songs she had cut (I am told he spent $10,000 on building her a recording studio at their home); which singles were coming out next (by the age of 15, Taylor had a record deal with a company in which Scott had bought a 3 per cent stake); where she was touring (he had bought Cher’s former tour bus for her); and the awards for which she needed votes.",

"During the long, hot summer days Swift would walk through town, her guitar slung across her back, much to the judgment of the local girls.",

"Swift gave out wallet-sized photos of herself as Sandy to the kids in the years below her at school",

"Her notebook, he claims, was filled with pages of her own autograph.",

"Many, however, thought she was “a bit of a brat”, from the moneyed side of town and modelling clothes for Abercrombie & Fitch. At 16, Swift bought a Lexus SC430 convertible, the car driven by Regina George, the meanest girl in Mean Girls.",

"Swift made an entrance when she first arrived at Hendersonville High School, says a former classmate, telling people she was going to be a star. “We kind of rolled our eyes because, being in Nashville, we hear that a lot,” she says. “It was just such a strong statement for someone of that age.”

Underdog who??? Tbh it's not just TS being obnoxious, rich, spoiled brat flaunting her wealth left and right, it's her entire immediate family.

“There were times when, in middle school and junior high, I didn’t have a lot of friends,” she told the Great American Country network in 2008." damn, I wonder why. /s

Classic nepo baby.

[daryascurse]

𝙲𝙰𝚅𝙴𝙰𝚃 𝙴𝙼𝙿𝚃𝙾𝚁

── Part IV: Cui Bono Fuerit

“So you knew I would come?” you panted as he stood firm between your bowed knees. “So you thought I would be – what – stupid?” “Services stopped.” Coriolanus’s breath was ragged as he snapped back to you. His thumb brushed your jawline, tilting your head up to meet his searing gaze. “No, I shouldn’t have said stupid. I knew you’d be reckless.”

chapter pov : 2nd person reader, AFAB reader, feminine pronouns ❀ tags: hate sεx, elevator sεx, biting ❀ word count: ~4.4k ❀ ao3 ❀playlist

I have a very strict adult-only interaction policy. Ageless, blank, and clearly minor-run blogs that interact will be blocked. If you have questions about what that means, please read the byf in my pinned post.

See header "Caveat Emptor" link for table of contents/ chapter 1.

“The Hunger Games?”

You squinted at the painter’s tape plastered firmly over the screen, right below your name and beaming holographic portrait, covering the previous assignment. Hollisee Tympan shot a glance at you over the shoulder of his stiff plaid suit as he pressed the corner of the tape down and stepped back.

“Lucky,” hissed the mouth-breathing Elysia Byron. Her salivating was practically audible.

“I thought I would be starting off in the markets,” you said to no one in particular. “Down at the banks. In the financial district.”

Harrier Bulla was over your other shoulder. “You say you’d rather have the financial markets than the Hunger Games?”

You were still staring at the black ink saying the same three words that blubbered out of his mouth.

“It’s gotten huge the last few years,” Elysia Byron said. “Mr. Tympan, would the Games benefit from perhaps one more page from the station?”

“Or two?”

Mr. Tympan blinked wide, watery eyes at their slimy wheedling. “Mr. Bulla, CapiTV is lucky to have the presence of one page to represent the station. The administration is still wary of the security threats and this is the first year they’re even doing a trial run with outside network involvement. And we don’t get a stipend for it, either. If you had been listening during orientation, you might have heard that.”

“Aren’t you in fashion and style, anyway?” asked Harrier. “What could a style page do at the Games?”

Elysia made a huffing sound. “Actually, style would be very important to cover at the Games.”

“What exactly shall I be covering, anyway?” you asked Mr. Tympan cautiously.

Mr. Tympan shot another look at Harrier and Elysia behind you, all but sticking their tongues out childishly at each other. “Well, you’ll receive a formal memorandum shortly. But we’d like you to focus on backstage operations. We don’t have the equipment – or the manpower – ” which was said loudly to cut off Harrier’s mouth as it opened again “ – to even negotiate a CapiTV presence up front with the Flickerman production. And of course they’ll be doing the main interviews, telling the tribute story. But they’re outsourcing to CapiTV to create something for the slower moments when Lucky needs a break. You won’t be behind the camera, but you’ll be supplying our broadcasters with the inspiration and information to fill that time. And the audience will need some breaks from Lucky, too, while still remaining engaged in the Games.”

“Capitol Television. The Capitol’s vision, to you,” Harrier recited the station’s motto with a toadyish excitement. Elysia rolled her eyes and you prided yourself on the ability to resist the same.

“So it’s just glamorized B-roll,” Elysia said snottily.

Mr. Tympan only blinked at her before turning to walk away.

The other pages began to come up to the screens, and when Harrier and Elysia turned to whisper the new development to them, you began your hasty steps after.

“Mr. Tympan – sorry. One more question.”

“You’ll get the memorandum,” he said, looking down at the papers he thumbed through a binder.

“Well – I mean, I’m flattered,” you said, and caught yourself twisting your hands. “But I wanted to ask why I was the one transferred over. I don’t think I indicated any interest in working for the Games in my page application.”

“You didn’t, and that’s why,” Mr. Tympan said. “I trusted even with your lack of interest you paid more attention than Ms. Byron did to the security briefings in orientation. Even with the last bomb threat being two years ago, the Capitol’s priority is safety and discretion. Each year has to bring improvement in all areas. And you’ve proven yourself… capable of such discretion.”

Given his pause, you weren’t sure if it was something you’ve done in the last two weeks of orientation, or something further back that’d earned you such esteem. You narrowed your eyes and looked quickly away. Mr. Tympan wasn’t familiar from the days of moonlighting that had put you through school. You had secure faith in your memory. But the network had many officers…

“I can keep my mouth shut,” you said, but Mr. Tympan was already walking away again.

-

The Hunger Games.

It was an anxious thrill that sprang through you, and you raised a soothing hand to circle your belly automatically. But the Peacekeeper at the door turned his helmet towards you at the movement, so you slipped the identification badge between your fingers and raised the card instead.

“I’m from CapiTV,” you said.

He snapped it from your hand with a force that rubbed the lanyard cord hot and painful at the back of your neck. You forced yourself to remain stoic as he investigated the photograph, the same beaming face on the hologram taken as your thoughts were full of financial news dreams.

“How exciting for you,” he grunted.

“Very. Yes, exciting,” you breathed.

Elysia Byron, Harrier Bulla, and then a third page, Kit Crocum, all left calls attempting in some way to convince you to swap posts. “You wanted finance,” Kit had wailed, convinced somehow that being assigned the banks and markets meant that you had stolen the Games from him as the rightful owner.

“I just don’t think it’s up to me to trade,” was how you deflected them all.

When the Peacekeeper held the heavy steel door open with an instruction to go to the sixth floor, you walked past a portrait of Coriolanus Snow. You looked down at your badge again. Yes, you had wanted to work on financial news. You had also wanted to live on the moon as a child.

Moreover, a lot had happened in the time between filling out the interests sheet in the spring and this early summer morning.

You turned your head at the elevator, and it was like his stern blue eyes could follow you all the way down the corridor. You felt the stare prickle on your skin as the elevator rose. The doors opened and you were rubbing the back of your arm subconsciously.

An Avox led you down sea-green steps. They must have been made of some newly engineered glass that didn’t shatter under your sensible heels, but the material dazzled and shone across the floor like an old-fashioned soda bottle you remembered from history classes. Each step made the sound of a diamond falling, and as you approached the small crowd at the buffet table, hundreds of shuffling shoes made the sound echo again and again like an opulent hailstorm. A space opened as two women in high-buttoned suits swept away from the table, where rich brown drapery flowed under platters of canape and thick slices of meat.

Your mouth watered and you thought of the stale crackers in the CapiTV break room.

“Good afternoon. Good afternoon.”

The woman’s voice was icy and clear, cleaving through the dim chatter of colleagues. You snuck a glance towards the front of the room. Backs and elbows blocked your view, and so you discreetly slid a few biscuit cups filled with whipped egg and topped with some green and orange somethings onto a napkin.

“Welcome, media representatives, to the first stages of the Fourteenth Hunger Games,” the woman’s voice continued.

You could see her now, a woman whose golden hair spiraled silver at her temples and shone in two shades of metallic. Her nose was strong, and her gaze somehow pinched. She leaned into the tall iron microphone, her full lips caged behind the netting.

“I am sorry that Dr. Gaul couldn’t come for one last farewell,” she said without further introduction. And from looking at the knowing glances between the crowd, they recognized her without requiring one. You looked down at the eggs nestled in the napkin cupped in your palm.

Well, they each had to have worked their first Games at some point.

You popped one in your mouth and tasted onion and paprika sinking between your teeth.

“Unfortunately, she’s taken ill in the days following retirement, but we wish her the best and a speedy recovery. Fortunately, she completed transitioning our new Head Gamemaker fully into the position, and he’s been hard at work preparing our new Games to start come July. Everything is on schedule, and we’ll have a briefing sheet to bring back to your –” and she sniffed, before smiling tightly “ – little television studios. And he’s taken time out of his busy day to greet you himself.”

The thin crowd swelled around you a moment with a flurry of questions, and you saw the tips of ten perfectly manicured claws rise in the air.

“No, there will be no chances for an exclusive interview. Not today,” she said firmly. Not ever. “Everyone, Mr. Coriolanus Snow.”

You clenched your hand into a fist. The egg burst, creamy white and crumbled biscuit crumbs surging between your fingers, leaking through the thin veil of napkin.

“Thank you, Ms. Trinket.”

He melted out of the crowd, and you snapped your neck back wildly, as if you could recreate where he had come from. You blinked. Blinked again. The egg was tacky against the sweat beading in your palm. There was no reason to be surprised. His portrait had just been in the hall, after all. You should have known; you did know, from the moment you saw that strip of painter’s tape. But you’d never let yourself actually think it so plainly.

“Anastasia Trinket,” Coriolanus said into the microphone. His smile was dazzling, an errant curl artfully falling over his forehead as he turned that smile to her. He had his hands raised in applause. His fingernails were square and clean.

Everyone was applauding now, and you used the excuse of the mess in your hands to turn behind the crimson-suited man in front of you to drop it to the table. You grabbed a napkin and wiped between your fingers, nervously glancing between Coriolanus and the other members of the press.

He looked right at you and the corners of his lips curled.

“Thank you for coming.”

You found it in you at last to clap along, and you gave a few measured, off-beat smacks.

“Let me repeat Ms. Trinket and welcome you again. The Hunger Games this year promise to be our best yet, and we hope that the press will help bring this event to the eyes of all of Panem. Now, you’ll have to see most of it live as the rest of us, but we have prepared a confidential media briefing for your stations, so that you may begin necessary preparations and preview for the citizens of the Capitol what they may expect.”

Coriolanus reached inside his black silk jacket, and the press around you began to pull tablets or recording devices from their pockets and bags. You cleared your throat and unclipped the microphone card attached to your blouse.

“We are very excited to announce that this year, we have at last achieved the goal of hosting the Games in a new arena,” he said, beginning to glance up from a sheet of paper and innocently flitting his gaze to you, to someone on one side, back to you. Your hand was frozen on the blinking recording light. “While the Second Arena has served us will these past few years, the Fourteenth Hunger Games shall move to a new and improved location.”

“Excuse me, will they still be held in the Capitol?”

Ms. Trinket yanked the mic stand to her mouth. “There will be a short time for questions after the briefing,” she snapped.

“For security reasons,” Coriolanus said, in a manner smooth and cold, “we will not be revealing where the new arena is located. However, rest assured that for this same reason, this arena was not built in the Capitol. Nor will any other. For now that we know it is possible to design, engineer, build, and fully synchronize an arena with Capitol control within a year, each Hunger Game will be held in an entirely new and different arena.”

There was a snap of grumbling behind you. Coriolanus’ lips turned in a sneer once more, and you ground your heel into the glass floor.

“So, we have no direct media access to the Games? No cameras and reporters at the arena?” you called out before being able to stop yourself.

Ms. Trinket’s vein threatened to burst out of her forehead, and you almost believed Coriolanus’ face went a shade paler. You raised your eyebrows, waiting for a response, and licked your lip.

“The arena cameras have been enhanced and received a software update,” Coriolanus said almost too quickly. It made your heartbeat a little more even. “Every studio will receive the same feed as always. And the tributes will still train here, and speak to Mr. Flickerman here. That access is the same, which has always been the only real opportunity for first-hand reporting.”

You tapped your foot and said nothing more. And you heard nothing more, too, thankful for the recording card pinned to your shirt. The strength you had pulled out of yourself to move your tongue burned through to your brain, and you were slowly beginning to feel it turn to belligerent epiphany.

He did this. He did this because you had done it, two weeks ago. The longer you stayed silent, the more that steely shine returned to his eye with each haughty glance at you. Once more he was on stage and you captive in the audience; but this time, he was the tiger prowling beyond the bars and locked the human in.

You crossed your arms at the waist and pressed into yourself.

Could it be that he had pulled the strings, all the way to the news studio?

Of course he could.

Coriolanus rolled up the paper at last, and Ms. Trinket moved forward to announce that questions were now welcome. You fidgeted.

There was a flash of memory, of fidgeting and tightening your thigh muscles at the ministrations that silver tongue of his worked between your legs. You tensed again. It did not alleviate.

“Actually,” Coriolanus interjected, “I apologize, but Ms. Trinket will answer your questions. I unfortunately have last minute business to attend to, with the reaping at the week's end. We of course will send invitations to your stations to Lucky Flickerman’s commentary conference. Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for your time.”

He turned to give her another few claps of applause, and the crowd fell in line. Coriolanus smiled politely and moved into the crowd. A few offered their hands to receive a brief shake; a gentleman attempted to give him a hearty clap on the back, which earned a stiff half-smile in response. His eyes slid over you, triumphantly caged in by the swaying bars of applauding hands all around.

“Excuse me,” you said, nearly turning into the woman on your right as you turned to push to the back of the crowd yourself.

But Coriolanus had taken a different stream, and when you made it to where only Avoxes stood silent at the wall, he was at the foot of those shallow sea-glass stairs. You cast a glance back at the rest of the press and took hurried steps.

“Coryo – ”

It felt wrong to call for him, as soft as it was.

He barely craned his neck back as he pushed the elevator button.

“I’m sorry, perhaps you didn’t hear Anastasia earlier. There won’t be any exclusives through this media program.”

“And did you get me assigned to this program?”

The doors opened and warm orange light spilled out.

“We had to approve the names each studio submitted,” Coriolanus said measuredly. “For security. You understand.”

“I don’t.”

You stepped inside the elevator after him, and held a hand against the frame. Coriolanus looked over your shoulder to the gathering below.

“Though we didn’t review for competence,” he murmured. “You’re missing the questions and answers. It would be a shame for your station to be behind the curve so early in the Games.”

You tilted your head at him and tightened your eyes. “As if she’s going to give away any trade secrets.”

“Trade secrets,” Coriolanus sighed with exaggeration, “are certainly not on the table. Glad to see CapiTV sends their brightest. Well, good day. I really do have things to attend to.”

He moved to reach for the button to urge the doors closed, almost physically puffed up and preening with his own ego. Your fingers curled at the elevator doors and then stepped inside.

“Coriolanus, I don’t know – ”

The doors slid closed, and Coriolanus lunged forward.

“No, you don’t,” he said, seething, and one hand slammed past your head to the wall behind you. The other reached up to your blouse, and before your eyes, ripped the microphone cord clean off the card.

“You certainly don’t,” Coriolanus continued, and now, without any other eyes or ears he could not keep the curl of his lip off his shining teeth. His blue stare was wild. “Clearly you don’t if you’re so stupid to approach me like this today. Again.”

“You invited me here,” you spat.

“Please select a floor,” the elevator’s automatic voice sang.

Coriolanus punched something in the panel, flinging your microphone to the floor. The elevator began to rise.

“Going up.”

“Anyone could have looked up. Any one of those journalists or reporters could have looked back at the elevator just now.”

“I’ll leave,” you said. “Just bring it back down to the lobby.”

Coriolanus huffed. “You know I was trying to do something nice? I saw your plans in the graduation program, and I felt sorry for you. Clearly you aren’t making much of what your degree is worth, taking a job at CapiTV, of all places. Their reporter has been drunk on camera the last two Games, but I thought maybe I’d give you a shot to turn things around, for you, and your career. I thought I’d do you a favor. Maybe the Games would give you a chance to hone some of your, shall we say, more academic talents.”

Bullshit. “Bullshit,” you said, turning your chin up in his face. “It’s because you wanted me to feel how you felt at graduation. That’s why you organized this little briefing for everyone, isn’t it?”

“How I felt?”

“I’m sorry, Coriolanus, if I had the luxury of knowing that I’d be hearing your valedictorian speech. I’m sorry that you hadn’t bothered to recognize your own classmate outside of school. But I thought I apologized for anything I might have done that day.”

And I shouldn’t have.

“How could you know what I felt?” Coriolanus snarled. “You have no idea what I had planned for that day. I had everything planned, this whole summer, and one day – very important day – was enough to throw it all off track.”

“And that’s my fault?” You were almost shrieking with laughter at the absurdity. “I didn’t make you come to the club, and I didn’t make you lick my pussy.”

The words were delicious coming out of your mouth. You grinned, wild, practically spitting in the face of this ringmaster even as you remembered seeing that face so beautifully framed between your thighs.

“You wanted to.”

Coriolanus’s mouth crashed on yours at that, with the familiar taste of anger on his tongue. You could have bitten him. But you kissed him back and chased that taste; clawed at him instead, tugging his neat shirt from his pants to allow your fingernails up his bare back where your touch could rake at his skin. He hissed.

The elevator began to slow.

“Doors,” you gasped, and his arm muscle flexed out to hit another button.

“Services stopped.”

Coriolanus almost slammed you into the wall. He had his fists on your skirt, your neat, smart little black pencil skirt, and he was scrunching it high on your hips. His body was hot against yours, and his wiry strength was a bruising grip on your thigh. Your hands were just as busy, frantically unbuckling his belt, trying to find the space to tug down his zipper.

“Coriolanus,” you gasped.

He was half-mad with rage, with something hungrier and full of desire. Your knee fell open as you were propped on the railing, and you lurched back and clutched wildly at the brass for balance. The careful slick of his hair was breaking free from the gel casing, and Coriolanus breathed heavily, a string of saliva snapping between his parted lips.

“There’s – the – cam-”

“No cameras,” he said in one breath. He leaned forward, and his lips ghosted on the shell of your ear, sending spikes across your skin and down your back. “I turned them off this morning.”

You moaned and felt the threatening rush tremble between your legs again. The pressure in your blood beat faster, harder, with excitement turned anew once more at the stimulus.

“So you knew I would come?” you panted as he stood firm between your bowed knees. “So you thought I would be – what – stupid?”

“Services stopped.”

Coriolanus’s breath was ragged as he snapped back to you. His thumb brushed your jawline, tilting your head up to meet his searing gaze. “No, I shouldn’t have said stupid. I knew you’d be reckless.”

The words hit you sharply, as sharply as the edge of his teeth grazing your throat. You would have laughed if it was still the time for incredulity. And then he was in you, your breath hitching as the weight of his body into your stomach pushed you against the elevator wall with each thrust. You saw the cameras in the corner at last, little black caps carefully snapped over the lens.

The world could be watching, if it had the eyes to look.

“How did you do it?”

Any of it.

His thumb smeared down your cheek, pulling your mouth into the space for a lopsided breath as you gasped out the words.

“Does it matter? I’m Head Gamemaster, aren’t I?”

Coriolanus kissed you again. You let your teeth tug at his lips this time, and the groan from his lungs was intoxicating.

He was tense and throbbing in you, and you had to lean into him, had to use him as a plinth of support in this precarious balance. Your blouse was stuck to your back in an awkward rumple of sweat, and your nipples ached untouched under your bra. His hands had come both to your thighs to pin you there on the railing, keep your hips stilled as he moved in you harder, harder still.

Your ankles have locked together against his against his back. You realized it only when the elevator jolted suddenly, and you gasped sharply, a heel sliding off and slapping to the floor.

“Services stopped.”

It was just the shaking of your bodies, but for a moment, you feared that someone had called for the elevator.

“Oh,” you whispered. You were angry at the thought of someone interrupting, and your teeth chattered at the realization. Chattered more at the stillness of Coriolanus in you that was leaving you full, full, stretched so you could barely manage it. Your hips were just heavy lead under his touch.

Coriolanus sucked his breath in, and you had to meet his eyes that for once matched his in wild fervor. You whimpered a surrender.

“Don’t stop…”

He pushed again and he was fucking you as far as he could go at this curled angle. By now, his hands were all of what kept you to the railing. The desire to squirm away at the weight had left you squirming as best you could. Any last strength you had in your body, nor your brain, had melted away.

It was rough and quick. Your cunt was greedy and you choked on the wail as you felt the desperate convulsing of your inner walls. That was it. Coriolanus was coming too, with each spurt hot and somehow making your legs shake even harder at the delicate sense of it. The elevator creaked faintly.

He was in you still when he lifted his face, those loose blonde curls now plastered to his forehead. With a moan from him and a full shudder from you, he pulled his cock away. Cream spattered onto the carpet. He was still holding you to the railing. Your ankles were still hooked at his thighs. You stayed a few seconds more in this silence with your back pressed to the metal wall.

“Services stopped.”

Coriolanus looked down, and stepped back. His mouth was torn up with your lipstick. He wiped the back of his hand against his face as if he could feel it and looked at the remnants. You slid down and shimmied your skirt back in place.

He swiped at his face a few moments more before sighing loudly and tugging his shirt back into his pants. As you reached down for your abandoned heel, he pushed another button on the elevator panel.

“Going down.”

You saw your microphone, the net of the speaker dented under someone’s errant foot. Coriolanus’s foot, most likely. You clenched it in your palm as you straightened again.

“You didn’t do this to help me,” you said slowly. “You wanted me to come to you. To show me what you can control.”

Coriolanus turned away from you, combing his blonde hair back with his fingers. “I don’t need to control you,” he said.

“But you do, don’t you? You want what you paid for. But the transactions are done.”

He scoffed. A lesser-mannered man would have spit on the ground after that sound. “So you want more money.”

“No. No, I mean it. I don’t want your money, I don’t need it. I never had.”

“That’s a lie,” Coriolanus said haughtily. You ground your teeth.

He was, unfortunately right. You had been too wild in your speech to catch it.

“So tell me,” Coriolanus continued, turning back to you, “what’s going to happen now? Will you quit, now that you see which pockets your salary truly comes from?”

His hands came around your head and locked you where you stood. He pressed his forehead to yours. You could taste his breath on the air as his pupils narrowed.

“What’s more important to you, little CapiTV page? Your career, or keeping your hands clean of me?”

Your thighs shook. You stared at his lips. You remembered every touch of them vividly. As if Coriolanus could feel where your eyes burned, he slipped into a low grin. The canines showed.

Part V: TBC

[nikn46807]

How to Boost Sales through SMM Marketing Strategies in 2025

Business entities therefore need to seize the available opportunities in order to increase sale in this highly competitive electronic marketing environment. In the year of 2025, brands looking forward to increase sales, traffic, attract new consumers and retain the old ones, make it impossible for them to ignore the opportunities of online marketing. It may involve running individual small business or a large corporation; using proper tools and techniques can produce very good outcome.

SMM Panel solutions are the most effective way to increase the efficiency of the online marketing campaigns. These panels make your social media marketing campaigns easier and more effective while acting as an economic solution to the challenge. In the next section, we take a closer look at the most effective online marketing technique that is, Instagram SMM panel, YouTube SMM panel and Facebook SMM panel for your business.

Why Online Marketing is Crucial in 2025

Here’s why it’s crucial:

Global Reach: Traditional techniques of marketing facilitate the marketers to reach the clients around the world.

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Personalization: Only advertisement thus it is appropriate for the campaigns to target customers.

To fully realize these benefits, some sophisticated instruments and approaches are needed by the businesses. This is where the Cheapest SMM Panel services come into play.

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An SMM (Social Media Marketing) is a panel which offers various social media services such as likes, comments, shares, followers and views. Such panels are critical in advancing brand recognition online, which makes them the best choice for every business and marketing specialist.

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Top Online Marketing Strategies for 2025

 Social Media Marketing

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[eaglesnick]

Private Sector Good, Public Sector Bad?

The reigning ideological economic theory within the Conservative Party is, and has been ever since Margaret Thatcher came to power, that “markets know best”

This was made abundantly clear when Kwasi Kwateng, the Chancellor of Liz Truss’s short-lived government, dismissed anything resembling a “planned economy”. Rather, growth and economic success depended on:

“…the power of our treasured free-market economy to leverage private capital and unleash Britain’s unique entrepreneurial spirit to grow new industries." (The Conversation: 13/04/22)

The key words here are “to leverage private capital”. What this means in ordinary speech is to encourage private investors to participate financially in “projects that benefit the economy, society or the environment”.  This has resulted in private investors running (and in many cases, owning) most of our public utilities and services. But rather than “benefit the economy, society and environment" these private investors have devastated it.

Over the next few blogs I intend to look at various British/English public utilities and services and to see how they have fared under the private sector.  First up are the railways.

Britain’s railways are organised within a mishmash of private and public ownership, and has been described as “broken" and no longer fit for purpose.

“The UK's train network is not only one of the worst in Europe, it is also one of the most expensive.” (euronews: 20/05/21

This is no surprise given its complex and chaotic structure.   The railway tracks and rail network are owned and operated by Network Rail, which is a “non-departmental public body of the Department for Transport, (DFT) with no shareholders"

 Non-departmental public bodies are a strange entity. They are national or regional bodies that work independently of government, are not staffed by civil servants, and yet are still accountable to government ministers. It is the Secretary of State for Transport who sets the strategic direction of the railways, allocating funding, and it is the secretary of state  who has to approve major investments in the railway system.

The companies that operate the trains are privately owned and are either awarded franchises from the DFT, or they are “open access” operators that provide passenger services on a particular route or network, but with no exclusive rights enjoyed by franchise holders.

To complicate matters further, the actual trains, passenger carriages and railway wagons, known collectively as “rolling stock”, are owned by the rolling stock leasing companies” (ROSCOs) who lease out their stock to the privately owned rail operating companies.

Freight train operators are totally separate from passenger trains, have no contracts with government but do need permission from Network Rail to run their services.

For year 2022/23 the railways received £11.9bn of government funding and Network Rail has secured £27.5 bn of government funding over the next five years. In short, we the taxpayer invest heavily in our rail network which the private passenger, rolling stock and freight companies use to make a profit.

A 2019 report by the TUC found that:

“Rail firms have paid over £1bn to shareholders in the last 6 years.” (TUC: 02/01/2019)

In 2022 Avanti West Coast received a taxpayer subsidy of £343m, despite having the worst punctuality record amongst train operators and paying out £12m to its shareholders. Avanti West Coast is owned by First Group, who also own Great Western Railway and South Western Railway. Great Western paid out the largest dividend in 2021/22, £33m, while South Western paid out  £13m. 

More recently:

“UK rail operator Govia awards $79m in dividends amid UK rail dissatisfaction.” (Railway Technology: 08/01/24)

Govia is largely foreign owned, the three largest shareholder companies being Australian, Spanish and French. In 2022 it was fined £23m “over financial irregularities" having failed to return £25m in taxpayer funding. Why on earth any government would want to go on subsidising such a company is beyond understanding, especially as the Transport Minister at the time said the company had:

“…committed an appalling breach of trust...behaviour was simply unacceptable and this penalty sends a clear message that the government, and taxpayers, will not stand for it." (BBC News: 17/03/22)

Clearly the minister (Grant Shapps) didn’t mean what he said as Govia is still operating trains two years later and still courting controversy

Turning to the train-leasing companies, we find:

“Profits of UK’s private train-leasing firms treble in a year. More than £400m paid in dividends in 2022-23 while rest of railway faced cuts and salary freezes.” (Guardian: 18/02/24)

These companies saw their profit margins rise to 41%, a profit that we as taxpayers and passengers pay for. It is estimated that "taxpayers are now effectively paying the £3.1bn spent last year on leasing trains.” To actually run a passenger rail service yet not own a single locomotive or passenger carriage is bazaar to say the very least.

Finding overall profit figures for freight train operators is a little more difficult but Colas Rail UK’s revenue in 2022 was £15,529m, up 17% on the previous year, an operating profit of £460m.

 Overall, taxpayer subsidies to the rail industry run at £6bn per year. However, these massive subsidies have not led to lower fares, an end to over-crowed trains, or an efficient service. According to TaxPayers Alliance 02/01/23) "rail subsidies cost taxpayers £1300 each by March 2023.” Meanwhile the private companies that operate the highly fragmented and disjointed system continue to reap profits and pay out dividends.

Maybe this would not be so bad if the British taxpayer subsidised dividend payouts went to British owned companies, but this is far from the case:

“According to the Rail, Maritime and Transport Union, 70% of Britain’s railways are now under foreign ownership to some degree.” (CityA.M.: 11/01/17)

The figure of 70% foreign ownership is disputed, not least because some companies have gone bust since 2017, with five lines now being effectively run by the government as “operators of last resort.”  As the 1993 Railways Act forbids the UK state from running the railways these lines are likely to be franchised out to private firms in the future.

“…many foreign state-owned enterprises of the Netherlands, Germany, France, Italy and Hong Kong now run rail franchises in the UK." (The Standard: 11/05/23)

While other countries have no philosophical problem with running railways for the benefit of their citizens, and clearly have no qualms about investing state money in foreign ventures, the Conservative Party is ideologically opposed to state intervention in running UK public services and is vehemently opposed to setting up a UK sovereign wealth fund.

In summary, successive Tory governments have continued to pay taxpayers money into the coffers of private enterprise regardless of how efficient, honest or effective these firms are at providing an essential public service. Clearly, where the railways are concerned, they are not run to “benefit the economy, society and environment" but for the benefit and interests of private investors, in the mistaken Tory belief that private enterprise is always better than public stewardship despite evidence to the contrary.  

[digitalglobalcompass]

Discover Ecuador: A Traveller's Dream Come True

In a world of fast-paced cities, demanding routines, and incessant digital distractions, the significance of travel is immeasurable. It's an opportunity to escape the routine, discover other cultures, sample unique foods, and take in breath-taking scenery. Journeying revitalises the spirit, expands viewpoints, and produces lifelong memories.

Ecuador is a hidden gem that is just waiting to be found if it's your next travel destination. Located in the centre of South America, this small but diversified nation provides an unmatched combination of vibrant culture, rich history, and breathtaking natural features. Ecuador has enough to offer everyone, from the verdant beaches of the Pacific coast to the towering peaks of the Andes Mountains and the lush Amazon rainforest.

Now, let's delve into some of the best places to visit in Ecuador

Galápagos Islands

A sanctuary for wildlife aficionados and a UNESCO World Heritage site, the Galápagos Islands present a rare chance to see a wide variety of exotic species up close. The islands are home to a wide variety of wildlife, including blue-footed boobies, sea lions, giant tortoises, and marine iguanas. Hiking, diving, and snorkelling are all abundant, letting tourists fully experience this natural paradise.

Quito

Ecuador's capital city is a mesmerising fusion of vibrant plazas, busy markets, and colonial grandeur. Discover the UNESCO Cultural Heritage site, Old Town, with its intricate churches and quaint cobblestone alleyways. Don't pass up the opportunity to ride the second-highest cable car in the world, the Teleférico, for expansive views of the city.

The Amazon Rainforest

Venture into the heart of one of the planet's most biodiverse ecosystems, the Amazon rainforest, on an unforgettable experience. As you make your way through the maze-like network of rivers and thick jungle, you'll come across pristine nature, rich ecosystems, and indigenous settlements. Experience unusual animals, such as birds, monkeys, and elusive big cats, and learn about the rich cultural legacy of the Amazonian tribes.

Cotopaxi National Park

A haven for outdoor enthusiasts, Cotopaxi National Park is home to the magnificent Cotopaxi volcano, the highest active volcano in the world. Trek across difficult terrain while taking in breathtaking views of rolling grasslands and snow-capped peaks. Adventurers can ride horses through the park and see the spectacular grandeur of the Andean highlands, or they can attempt to peak Cotopaxi.

Now, why should you choose Digital Global Compass company for your travel trip to Ecuador?

With Digital Global Compass, travelling is smooth and hassle-free, and every part of your trip is meticulously planned and carried out. Digital Global Compass alleviates travel stress by emphasising price, safety, and security so you can fully enjoy Ecuador's beauties without worrying about the details.

To guarantee that your trip surpasses your expectations, Digital Global Compass goes above and above with professionally designed itineraries, informed guides, and dependable transportation. Personalised service catered to your requirements and preferences is offered by Digital Global Compass, whether you're going on a family holiday, a romantic retreat, or a solo excursion.

Why then wait? Utilise Digital Global Compass to begin organising your ideal trip to Ecuador and set out on an incredible journey.

In Conclusion

Travellers seeking to take in the splendour of the natural world, the depth of cultural diversity, and the excitement of adventure will find Ecuador to be an excellent location. There is something for everyone to enjoy, whether you choose to explore the Amazon rainforest, cruise through Quito's historic alleys, or explore the Galápagos Islands.

Additionally, Digital Global Compass is the ideal travel companion to ensure a worry-free and seamless vacation. They prioritise quality, value, and individualised care so you can unwind and savour every second of your journey across Ecuador.

Why then wait? Prepare for an incredible experience in one of the world's most stunning nations by packing your baggage and using Digital Global Compass to plan your travel.

[beardedmrbean]

Many of Tuesday morning's papers carry the surprising news, announced by national rail carrier VR late on Monday evening, that all long-distance train traffic will be cancelled on Tuesday due to "safety reasons".

Tampere-based Aamulehti carries an STT article to report that damage was observed on the wheels of some rolling stock on Sunday, leading VR to begin carrying out a wider inspection of the track network.

According to VR on Tuesday, overnight inspections pinponted the defects, described as bumps, in the track.

"This decision [to shut down traffic] was made for safety reasons. We are working non-stop together with the Finnish Transport Infrastructure Agency so that the fault can be located and traffic can be safely re-started as soon as possible," Aamulehti quotes VR's long-distance transport director Piia Tyynilä as stating in a company press release.

The statement adds that VR will provide further updates on Tuesday as to when rail traffic will return to normal.

The company also said that political strike by rail workers, which halted traffic nationwide on Monday, also caused delays to the inspection process.

Finland's highly-educated underclass

Helsingin Sanomat reports the findings of a University of Jyväskylä doctoral thesis, which is titled The Working Underclass: Highly educated migrants on the fringes of the Finnish labour market.

Kenyan student Quivine Ndomo's journey towards her doctoral research began in 2016 when she discovered that three of her compatriots, all with university qualifications, could only secure jobs in Finland as cleaners or newspaper couriers, according to the paper.

Her research argues that immigrants in Finland, especially those coming from African countries, are an "underclass" in the Nordic country and that prospective employers use the Finnish language as an excuse not to hire them.

"It should be made clear to those who come here that if you want to stay and work here, study Finnish. And the studies should include several mandatory Finnish courses," Ndomo tells HS.

Ndomo herself faces the very challenges she writes about in her thesis, noting that she was recently passed over for a position she considered herself perfectly qualified for, as her Finnish language skills were not up-to-par.

This experience has led Ndomo to consider her own future in the country.

"I love Finland, but I am ambitious and I will go where I can continue my career," she tells the paper.

Strikes hit daycare centres

As Finland's "superweek" of political strikes enters its second day on Tuesday, tabloid Iltalehti carries a handy day-by-day guide to how the walkouts will impact everyday life.

Tuesday will see daycare centres and other early child education services close their doors in several towns and cities across the country, and they will not open again until Thursday.

Iltalehti lists the affected areas: Helsinki, Espoo, Vantaa, Tampere, Turku, Oulu, Jyväskylä, Kuopio, Joensuu, Pori, Rovaniemi, Kauniainen, Mustasaari and Vaasa.

The strike affects both private and public sector daycare centres.

Some companies operating in the food sector, such as bakeries and food processing plants, may also be closed on Tuesday, IL notes.

[marketsndata]

India Dental Consumables Market Size, Growth and Report 2031

India dental consumables market size was valued at USD 207.16 million in FY2023, and is expected to reach USD 449.91 million in FY2031, with a CAGR of 10.18% for the forecast period between FY2024 and FY2031F. The market is witnessing growth driven by significant factors, including the increasing incidence of dental caries, growing public consciousness regarding oral health, rising demand for cosmetic dentistry, and advancements in technology. As an essential component of the healthcare sector, it encompasses a wide range of products used by dental professionals in their daily practice. The market includes items such as dental implants, prosthetics, orthodontics, endodontics, and preventive products.

The increasing interest in cosmetic dentistry is evident in the rising demand for dental consumables, driven by an increasing focus on physical aesthetics. More individuals are now turning to dental implants to replace teeth that are missing or damaged, thus improving both their oral health and appearance. Furthermore, the expanding elderly population in India is a key factor contributing to the market’s growth, as older adults are more prone to needing dental consumables to address tooth loss or decay.

Increasing awareness of oral health and hygiene among the Indian population drives demand for dental services and related consumables. Furthermore, advancements in dental technology, along with the influx of multinational dental product manufacturers, have improved the quality and variety of dental consumables available in the Indian market. Dentists now have access to a wide range of innovative and specialized products to meet the diverse needs of their patients. The Indian dental consumables market benefits from the government’s initiatives to improve oral healthcare, such as the National Oral Health Program. These efforts aim to promote oral health awareness and provide accessible dental care, further boosting the demand for dental consumables market.

Increasing Government’s Initiatives 

The Indian government has taken steps to boost the growth of the dental consumables sector. It includes reducing import tariffs on dental consumable materials, making it easier and more affordable for dental consumables manufacturers to access necessary resources. Additionally, the government has rolled out various campaigns to promote awareness of oral hygiene and good oral health, which is anticipated to drive an uptick in the use of dental consumables nationwide.

For Instance, during 2022, Investcorp, a Bahrain-based investment company, made an official declaration of a substantial USD 67 million investment in Global Dental Services (GDS), a leading dental network in Asia. This investment signifies Investcorp’s foray into the Indian dental market and marks their fourth venture in the healthcare sector within the country.

Increase in Dental Tourism

The Indian market for dental consumables has experienced a significant upsurge, primarily driven by the growth of dental tourism. India has established itself as a sought-after destination for dental tourists seeking cost-effective yet high-quality dental procedures. The country’s competitive pricing, in contrast to many developed nations, draws international patients in search of affordable dental solutions. The presence of highly skilled dental practitioners, innovative facilities, and the opportunity to explore India’s rich cultural heritage contribute to its appeal for dental tourists. The increasing prominence of dental tourism has strengthened the revenue of India dental consumables market and facilitated cross-cultural exchange and collaboration among dental professionals.

With the continued expansion of dental tourism, the market is poised to experience substantial growth and advancements in the future. For Instance, the Government of India reports that approximately 1.4 million medical tourists chose India as their destination in the previous year since 2022. India has established itself as a prominent global healthcare hub due to its offering of top-notch facilities, cost-effectiveness, and exceptional service quality. These attributes collectively enhance India’s standing as the preferred option for those in search of medical treatments and procedures overseas.

Rising Prevalence of Dental Caries

The rising prevalence of dental caries in India is significantly impacting the dental consumables market. Dental caries, commonly known as tooth decay, affects a substantial portion of Indian population, resulting in tooth loss and, consequently, the heightened demand for dental consumables as a means of restoration.

Furthermore, there is a rising incidence of dental cancers, which include oral and pharyngeal cancer, in India. Consequently, dental consumables play a vital role in the rehabilitation of patients who have undergone surgical procedures for cancer treatment, such as tumor resection. As awareness about the consequences of dental caries and dental cancer grows, the demand for dental consumables as a reliable and durable treatment option is expected to increase. It presents opportunities for manufacturers and providers in the Indian dental consumables market to meet the expanding needs of patients and contribute to improved oral health outcomes. For instance, prevalent oral conditions include dental caries, severe gum disease, tooth loss, and oral cancers. According to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, approximately 60% of the Indian population is affected by dental caries, and roughly 85% of the population experiences periodontal disease. Consequently, the increasing occurrence of dental diseases is boosting the need for dental implants.

Technological Advancements

The growth of the dental consumables market in India has been significantly shaped by technological advancements, leading to increased efficiency and success rates in dental procedures. Notable technological progressions include the incorporation of computer-aided design/computer-aided manufacturing (CAD/CAM) systems, 3D printing, and guided implant surgery. CAD/CAM systems enable precise planning and manufacturing of dental consumables restorations, resulting in improved fit and aesthetics.

Furthermore, 3D printing allows for the creation of customized surgical guides and individualized implant components, thereby improving the accuracy and efficiency of consumables placement. Guided implant surgery leverages digital imaging and computerized planning to optimize implant positioning, ultimately improving the overall success and predictability of the procedure. These advancements have revolutionized the market, equipping dental professionals in India with advanced tools and techniques to deliver top-quality dental consumables treatments.

For instance, in 2021, Dentsply India Private Limited introduced an updated iteration of their product line, known as the Ankylos Tissue Care Concept. The innovation has undergone thorough scientific and clinical evaluations, affirming its precise functionality. The Ankylos C|X implant system is meticulously crafted to accommodate both single-stage and two-stage surgical procedures.

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Impact of COVID-19

As a result of COVID-19-related lockdowns and social distancing measures, there was a temporary reduction in the demand for elective dental procedures. It had a significant impact on India’s dental consumables market. Many dental clinics had to temporarily shut down due to the risk of infection, and people avoided seeking treatment in hospitals and clinics. Furthermore, the pandemic disrupted the supply chain and production processes, leading to constraints in the availability of dental consumables and related products. It in turn, caused delays in treatments and hindered the growth of the market. However, with the easing of restrictions and the accelerated vaccination campaign, it became evident that the market slowly started to recover in the post-COVID scenario.

India Dental Consumables Market: Report Scope

“India Dental Consumables Market Assessment, Opportunities and Forecast, FY2017-FY2031F”, is a comprehensive report by Market and Data, providing in-depth analysis and qualitative and quantitative assessment of the current state of India dental consumables market, industry dynamics, and challenges. The report includes market size, segmental shares, growth trends, COVID-19, opportunities, and forecast between FY2024 and FY2031F. Additionally, the report profiles the leading players in the industry mentioning their respective market share, industry model, competitive intelligence, etc.

Click here for full report- https://www.marketsandata.com/industry-reports/india-dental-consumables-market

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Mr. Vivek Gupta 5741 Cleveland street, Suite 120, VA beach, VA, USA 23462 Tel: +1 (757) 343–3258 Email: info@marketsandata.com Website: https://www.marketsandata.com

[onenettvchannel]

BALITANG NEGOSYO: Digital Banking Firm 'CIMB Bank Philippines' launches 'CIMB Pay' for Fee-Free QR and Bank Transfers [#OneNETnewsEXCLUSIVE]

TAGUIG, NATIONAL CAPITAL REGION -- 'CIMB Bank Philippines' unveil to introduce "CIMB Pay", a new feature for making QR code payments and transferring money to the Philippine banks or electronic wallets without any fees. This newly-launched digital payment system recently rolling out in the mobile app on February 8th, 2025 (Manila local time).

For those unfamiliar with CIMB, here is what you need to know from scratch. CIMB Group Holdings Berhad situated in 'Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia', is a leading universal bank operating in the high-growth economies of the ASEAN region. The full acronym of CIMB is Commerce International Merchant Bankers.

'Bian Chiang Bank' was founded in 1924 in 'Kuching', this said country of Malaysia. It rebranded as CIMB in September 2006, becoming a traditional and digital-only bank. CIMB has since become a significant player in various sectors, including consumer banking, corporate banking, investment banking, Islamic banking, asset management and insurance service, which later including loan services above the mid-2000s. Twelve (12) years later in December 2018, CIMB has also launched the expanded digital banking services in 'Bonifacio Global City, Metro Manila, National Capital Region', aiming to provide innovative financial solutions for the local market.

Today, "CIMB Pay" uses the QRPh system, the national EMV (Europay-Mastercard-VISA) standard for Quick Response (QR) payments in the Philippines, where users can pay to over 1 million merchants across the country, including those in Negros Oriental such as Dumaguete City. This allows customers to pay for goods and services by simply scanning the QR codes displayed by the merchants, making the payment process and overall convenience.

Apart from supporting merchant payments, "CIMB Pay" also has a peer-to-peer fund transfer feature. Users can immediately transfer funds to other banks or e-wallets like Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) or Maya wallet by generating and scanning QR codes directly, with transactions to be settled through 'InstaPay' network. Interestingly, 'CIMB Bank Philippines' has 5 free transfers a day through this transferring bank network platform, where customers can manage their finances without additional fees.

The launch of "CIMB Pay" proves 'CIMB Bank Philippines' commitment to improving the digital banking experience of its customers. With fee-free QR payments and transfers, the digital-only bank aims to promote financial inclusion and support the country's move towards a cashless economy.

With the rise of digital payments in the financial tech bank industry, "CIMB Pay" places 'CIMB Bank Philippines' at the leading edge of the financial industry, delivering customers convenient and swiss army-like banking services. 'CIMB Pay' and 'QRPh' system are both supervised and regulated by the 'Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas' (BSP).

BANNER PHOTO COURTESY: CIMB Bank PH via PR BACKGROUND PROVIDED BY: Tegna

SOURCE: *https://www.cimbbank.com.ph/en/our-app/cimb-pay.html *https://www.cimbbank.com.ph/en/help-and-support/faqs/app-transactions/cimb-pay/about-cimb-pay/what-is-cimb-pay.html *https://www.cimb.com/en/who-we-are/our-presence/philippines.html *https://www.cimbbank.com.ph/en/our-dna/about-us.html and *https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CIMB

-- OneNETnews Online Publication Team

[nocknocknock]

Swiggy Faces Challenges as Stock Prices Continue to Decline  

Swiggy’s stock (SWIG.NS) experienced a significant drop, raising concerns among analysts over the company’s growing internal and external challenges. Amid intensified competition from Zomato (ZOMT.NS) and Zepto, as well as a substantial increase in operational expenses, Swiggy’s stock hit a record low on Thursday.  

On Thursday, Swiggy’s stock price fell by approximately 8%, continuing its downward trend for the seventh consecutive week. By the close of the latest trading session, the company’s shares were valued at 401.65 INR, reflecting increasing pressure from competitors and internal operational hurdles.  

The primary driver of this stock decline was Swiggy’s widened losses in the third quarter, attributed to a dramatic increase in spending on business expansion, particularly in the competitive quick-commerce sector.  

Aggressive Expansion and Its Costs  

Swiggy has been heavily investing in quick commerce — a segment focused on ultra-fast delivery services — through its platform Instamart and the rapid expansion of its “dark store” network. Quick commerce aims to deliver goods to consumers in under 10 minutes, requiring significant investments in infrastructure and technology. Key developments in this area include:  

The opening of 96 new dark stores in the last quarter alone, nearly double the count from the previous quarter.  

The addition of 86 more stores in January, resulting in a 32% increase in overall expenses.  

Despite the company’s ambitious efforts to dominate this market, the rapid pace of expansion has come at a steep financial cost, particularly as Swiggy faces heightened competition.  

Competitive Pressure Drives Costs Up  

Swiggy operates in a highly competitive space, contending with major rivals like Zomato and fast-growing newcomer Zepto. Both competitors are also investing heavily in quick-commerce services, leading to an increase in marketing expenses, logistics improvements, and wide-ranging customer incentives.  

Additionally, consumer expectations for faster and more affordable deliveries have grown. To remain competitive, Swiggy has had to subsidize part of the delivery costs, further cutting into its profit margins.  

Analysts from Nuvama have highlighted potential challenges for Swiggy as a result of its rapid scaling. Major points of concern include:  

Delayed profitability of new stores: The expedited roll-out of dark stores has extended the timeline for achieving profitability in newly launched locations.  

Growing fixed costs: Managing an extensive store network adds significant expenses, such as employee wages, real estate leases, and technical upkeep.  

Eroding margins due to price wars: Competitive pricing strategies by Swiggy and its peers are expected to further suppress operating margins.  

These factors suggest that Swiggy’s short-term financial performance may face additional strain.  

Stock Performance Drivers  

Swiggy’s continued stock decline can be linked to several critical issues:  

Poor financial results: Increased losses and a surge in operational costs as reflected in the latest earnings report.  

Sustained stock devaluation: Share prices have been falling consistently over a seven-week period, shaking investor confidence.  

Investor skepticism: Market participants are expressing doubts about the company’s ability to stabilize its financial metrics amidst mounting competition and rising expenses.  

Despite its current challenges, analysts acknowledge Swiggy’s potential for long-term growth. To regain investor confidence, the company must prioritize efficient resource allocation, emphasizing profitability over rapid scaling.

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[tech-sphere]

Nokia Partners with AT&T in Multi-Year Expansion Deal for Voice and Automation Services

Nokia has secured a significant multi-year expansion agreement with AT&T, aimed at enhancing the telecommunications giant’s capabilities in voice services and automation. This deal marks a key milestone in the ongoing partnership between the two companies, setting the stage for groundbreaking advancements in network automation, cloud technologies, and 5G infrastructure.

Strengthening Collaboration Between Nokia and AT&T

The expanded deal between Nokia and AT&T is set to provide a robust framework for improving both companies' technical infrastructure. Nokia’s advanced network solutions will play a vital role in AT&T’s voice services, delivering enhanced call quality and efficiency, while streamlining operations through automation.

With cloud computing and 5G networks becoming essential in today’s communication landscape, this deal positions both companies to continue their leadership in delivering high-quality, scalable network services. By integrating automation and AI-powered tools, AT&T aims to enhance customer experience and reduce operational costs, creating a seamless and efficient network environment.

Boosting Network Automation with Nokia’s Expertise

A key aspect of the agreement is Nokia’s role in helping AT&T advance its network automation capabilities. As AT&T continues to scale its operations and improve its infrastructure, automation will be crucial in streamlining network management and optimizing performance. Nokia’s solutions, which are based on cutting-edge AI and machine learning, will help automate critical network processes, making AT&T’s services more agile and responsive to evolving market demands.

With the increasing complexity of modern networks, automation is no longer a luxury but a necessity for telcos to maintain competitive advantage. By leveraging Nokia’s automation platforms, AT&T can significantly reduce manual interventions, minimize errors, and enhance its overall operational efficiency.

Advancing Voice Services for a New Era

At the heart of the new partnership is the enhancement of voice services. As VoLTE (Voice over LTE) and VoWiFi (Voice over Wi-Fi) become mainstream, the demand for high-quality, reliable voice communication continues to grow. Nokia’s solutions will assist AT&T in scaling its voice services, ensuring that its customers experience clear, uninterrupted, and secure voice calls.

By utilizing Nokia’s advanced network technologies, AT&T will be able to offer its subscribers a seamless voice experience, even in remote or crowded areas where traditional networks face congestion. This expansion will not only improve call clarity and reliability but also contribute to the overall user experience, aligning with the growing demand for high-quality voice communication in today’s digital era.

A Step Toward 5G Integration

With 5G technology on the horizon, this agreement also lays the foundation for AT&T’s future network advancements. As 5G networks begin to roll out on a larger scale, both companies are poised to harness the speed and latency benefits of 5G, which will be pivotal for IoT (Internet of Things) and smart city applications. Nokia’s expertise in 5G network architecture will enable AT&T to stay ahead of the curve and ensure a smooth transition to next-generation network technologies.

This collaboration is part of a broader industry shift toward 5G-first strategies, as telcos and service providers seek to create ultra-fast, low-latency networks capable of supporting a wide array of connected devices and data-heavy applications.

Enhancing Customer Experience and Operational Efficiency

The overarching goal of this partnership is to enhance both the customer experience and operational efficiency at AT&T. By adopting Nokia’s automation platforms and voice technologies, AT&T will not only deliver better services to its subscribers but also reduce operational complexity, improve network resilience, and boost profitability.

Automation will be key in helping AT&T handle ever-increasing network traffic, ensuring that its services remain consistent and reliable as customer demand grows. At the same time, customers will benefit from faster, more reliable voice services, along with the ability to interact with networks that adapt dynamically to their needs.

Conclusion: The multi-year expansion deal between Nokia and AT&T marks a significant step forward in both companies’ ambitions to lead in the realms of network automation, cloud technology, and 5G connectivity. As AT&T continues to evolve and enhance its voice and data services, Nokia’s cutting-edge network solutions will play a pivotal role in shaping the future of telecommunications, benefiting both companies and their customers.

[torque1block]

New Year, New Tyres: Discover The Best Place To Buy Tyres In India 2025!

As 2025 kicks off, it’s time to start the year with a fresh perspective—and for vehicle owners, that means ensuring your tyres are in peak condition. Whether you’re a car enthusiast, a motorcycle aficionado, or simply someone who prioritizes safety on the road, finding the right tyres is crucial. But where should you look? Torque Block emerges as the definitive answer, standing tall as the best place to buy tyres in India.

Why Start 2025 With New Tyres?

Tyres are the unsung heroes of your vehicle, playing a critical role in safety, fuel efficiency, and overall driving experience. Starting the year with a new set of high-quality tyres is a step toward smoother rides and greater peace of mind. Here’s why this decision matters:

Enhanced Safety

Worn-out tyres compromise your braking ability, especially on wet or uneven roads.

Better Performance

Fresh tyres improve grip, handling, and fuel efficiency.

Improved Aesthetics

Nothing elevates your vehicle’s look quite like brand-new tyres. When you’re considering tyre replacements, Torque Block is the ultimate destination, offering top-notch options that ensure a safe and enjoyable journey.

Why Torque Block Is The Best Place To Buy Tyres In India?

Torque Block isn’t just another tyre retailer—it’s a hub for enthusiasts and everyday drivers alike, offering unparalleled selection and service. Whether you’re searching for the best place to buy tyres in online or looking for a reliable place to buy tyres near me, Torque Block checks all the boxes. Here’s why:

Wide Range Of Brands

From Shinko and Reise to Metzeler and Pirelli, Torque Block stocks a diverse selection to suit every vehicle and preference.

Expert Guidance

Not sure which tyre fits your vehicle? Torque Block’s knowledgeable staff is ready to help.

Convenience

With online and offline options, you can shop at your convenience, ensuring an effortless experience.

Features That Make Torque Block The Best Place To Buy Tyres Online In India.

Shopping for tyres has never been easier, thanks to Torque Block’s customer-centric approach. Here are the standout features:

Comprehensive Inventory

Torque Block offers tyres for bikes, ensuring there’s something for everyone.

Competitive Pricing

Get the best deals without compromising on quality.

Seamless Online Shopping

Browse, compare, and order tyres from the comfort of your home.

Local Accessibility

If you prefer a personal touch, Torque Block’s physical stores make it the best place to buy tyres near me for many customers.

Special Offers

Take advantage of exclusive New Year deals to save big on premium brands.

Benefits Of Buying Tyres At Torque Block: The Best Place To Buy Tyres In India

Torque Block offers more than just tyres—it provides a complete solution for your vehicle’s needs. Here’s what you’ll gain:

Peace Of Mind

With Torque Block’s quality assurance, you can trust that every tyre meets rigorous safety standards.

Expert Recommendations

Torque Block’s team helps match tyres to your driving habits, road conditions, and budget.

Hassle-Free Installation

With Torque Block’s network of service centers, getting your tyres installed is quick and easy. Whether you’re searching for the best place to buy tyres near me or need the convenience of online shopping, Torque Block stands out as the leader in India’s tyre market.

New Year 2025 Tyre Deals: Why Torque Block Is The Best Place To Buy Tyres Online In India

To celebrate the New Year, Torque Block is rolling out exclusive deals that make upgrading your tyres more affordable than ever. With discounts on top brands and a variety of options to choose from, there’s no better time to invest in new tyres. Featured Brands: Michelin, Apollo, Maxxis, Bridgestone, Mitas. Visit Torque Block today and discover why it’s the best place to buy tyres online in India for 2025.

Expert Tips For Choosing Tyres At The Best Place To Buy Tyres In India

Shopping for tyres doesn’t have to be overwhelming. Here are some expert tips to help you make the right choice:

Understand Your Needs

Consider your driving habits, typical road conditions, and vehicle type.

Check Compatibility

Ensure the tyre size matches your vehicle’s specifications. Torque Block’s compatibility tool can help.

Prioritize Quality

Opt for trusted brands that offer durability and performance.

Seek Expert Advice

Leverage Torque Block’s expertise to find tyres that suit your budget and needs.

Customer Testimonials: Why Torque Block Is The Best Place To Buy Tyres In India

Still unsure? Here’s what satisfied customers have to say about Torque Block:

Ramesh, Bangalore: “Torque Block made tyre shopping a breeze! Their team guided me to the perfect set of tyres for my car.”

Priya, Delhi: “I’ve tried other stores, but Torque Block truly is the best place to buy tyres near me. Amazing selection and service!”

Arjun, Mumbai: “Ordered online and got my tyres delivered and installed without any hassle. Highly recommend Torque Block!”

Conclusion: Start 2025 Right With The Best Place To Buy Tyres In India!

As you gear up for 2025, ensure your vehicle is road-ready with the perfect set of tyres. Torque Block’s unmatched selection, competitive pricing, and expert support make it the go-to destination for tyre shopping. Whether you prefer online convenience or personalized service, Torque Block delivers on every front. Make the smart choice this New Year—visit Torque Block and experience why it’s the best place to buy tyres in India. With exclusive deals and exceptional service, your perfect tyres are just a click or visit away.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. Why is Torque Block the best place to buy tyres online in India?

Torque Block offers a seamless online shopping experience with a vast inventory and competitive pricing.

2. Can Torque Block help with tyre compatibility?

Yes, Torque Block’s expert team ensures you find the right tyres for your vehicle.

3. Does Torque Block offer premium brands?

Absolutely! Brands like Michelin, Apollo, and Metzeler are all available at Torque Block.

4. Are there New Year deals at Torque Block in 2025?

Yes, enjoy exclusive discounts and offers this New Year.

5. Where can I find a Torque Block store near me?

Use Torque Block’s store locator to find a branch near you for personalized service.

[theaenetworks]

The traditional practice of getting employed after obtaining a degree has gradually slipped away, as recent graduates struggle in a competitive labour market, jobs have become out of reach and they spent years applying for different jobs, writing various job applications. This is to take notice of the saturated workplace, everyone is stepping up and they seem no room for this young graduates to embrace the labour market, they are left on their own to figure it out, it is getting tougher every single day, all they have got is to roll over their sleeves and get ready to work extra for them to able to succeed. Knowledge acquired from university can only serve as a tool for breaking out of your own shell, as opposed to a guarantee for employment.

The overreliance on getting a job after graduation has contributed to the unemployment, school don’t only teach how to do your job as an employee but it also enables you to think and create something. Your ability to think outside the box in this difficult economic situation will save you economically and provide sustainable environment for growth. Inflation has become the order of the day, young people are looking for survival rather than jobs that are pleasing to them, it is no longer dream job, it is the ability for them to adapt to this economic crisis and create an escape route, takes priority above all, this is the extreme position the labour market has pushed them and it is getting tougher every single day.

The shift away from job applications which led to the competitive labour market, the ultimate panacea could be the ability to think, smartness, intelligent, creative and entrepreneurship, these are where sustainability resides if you can create something from this situation. The expectations have gone up, it is competence and smartness over degrees you have to match your degrees with practical experiments, your practical knowledge and understanding of fact in issue makes the difference. The competitive labour market shines light on unemployment and limited availability, it is evidence when a job that need less than 100 but you could see more than a thousand applying for the job, it is out of these numbers that you will get the best 100, about 900 will go elsewhere looking for job.

It is down to fight of best brains the creativity surrounding your approach economically, financial freedom is very essential in life, it brings you closer to almost everything you have dreamed of, but you need to create a path through which you can achieve that, the channels through which you connect hard work and brilliance open the doors, you need to market yourself, it is about the services you’re going to render to the people, it is always about the people, your ideas to improve lives and create a sustainable society is what makes the difference. The innovative ideas that are going to drive the market, the world is up for disruptive innovation it is about how you change that from your own little enclave.

https://anthonyemmanuel.com/jobs-out-of-reach-for-graduates-as-labour-market-toughens/

#jobsearch #jobs #jobopportunity #jobopportunities #JobAlert #jobopening #unemployment #unemploymentsolutions #UnemploymentCrisis #labourmarket #graduate #graduatejobs

[mzcoshipping]

The Most Reliable Sea Freight Companies in Dubai for 2025

Thanks to its strategic location, world-class infrastructure, and efficient shipping services, Dubai has long been a global hub for trade and logistics. Businesses and individuals looking for the best sea freight company in Dubai need a reliable partner that offers cost-effective, timely, and secure transportation of goods across international waters. With many shipping companies in Dubai competing in the market, selecting the right one can be challenging. This article highlights Dubai's top sea freight companies for 2025, ensuring smooth and hassle-free shipping solutions.

1. MZCO Shipping

MZCO Shipping is one of the most trusted names in Dubai's freight forwarding industry. Known for its excellent customer service, competitive pricing, and timely delivery, the company offers a comprehensive range of sea freight services. MZCO Shipping specializes in container shipping, bulk cargo transportation, and customs clearance, making it an ideal choice for businesses looking for efficiency and reliability.

Key Features:

Full-container load (FCL) and less-than-container load (LCL) services

Door-to-door and port-to-port shipping solutions

Strong global partnerships with international carriers

Real-time shipment tracking

2. Emirates Shipping Line

A well-established name in the maritime industry, Emirates Shipping Line provides reliable and secure sea freight solutions. With an extensive global network, it ensures smooth transportation of goods across various regions, including Asia, Africa, and Europe.

Key Features:

Wide network of international shipping routes

Advanced tracking technology for real-time updates

Competitive pricing for bulk shipments

Expertise in handling fragile and specialized cargo

3. Al Fares Cargo Service & Clearance

Al Fares Cargo Service is a leading shipping company in Dubai, specializing in both sea and air freight solutions. It is known for its personalized logistics support, making it a preferred choice for businesses of all sizes.

Key Features:

Customized shipping solutions for businesses and individuals

Specialized services for heavy equipment and oversized cargo

Efficient documentation and clearance support

Affordable pricing with no hidden costs

4. Dubai Shipping Agents Association (DSAA) Members

Several reputable shipping companies in Dubai operate under the DSAA, ensuring that their services meet international standards. These companies offer a wide range of shipping solutions, including container shipping, breakbulk cargo, and RoRo (roll-on/roll-off) services.

Key Features:

Industry-certified shipping solutions

Strong partnerships with global shipping carriers

Advanced logistics management systems

Reliable customer support for all shipping needs

How to Choose the Best Sea Freight Company in Dubai

Selecting the best sea freight company in Dubai requires careful consideration of several factors. Here are some key aspects to look for:

Experience and Reputation: Choose a company with a proven track record in sea freight logistics.

Service Range: Ensure they offer comprehensive shipping solutions, including FCL, LCL, and bulk cargo options.

Pricing and Transparency: Compare costs and avoid companies with hidden charges.

Global Network: A well-connected shipping partner ensures smooth international trade operations.

Customer Support: Reliable communication and tracking services enhance customer experience.

Conclusion

Dubai continues to be a leading maritime hub, offering businesses seamless sea freight solutions. Whether you are a small business or a large corporation, finding the best sea freight company in Dubai is crucial for the success of your supply chain. Companies like MZCO Shipping, Emirates Shipping Line, and Al Fares Cargo stand out as reliable choices, ensuring efficiency, affordability, and security in cargo transportation. By considering key factors like reputation, pricing, and service offerings, businesses can make informed decisions and ensure smooth international shipping operations.

[rohitpalan]

Change Management Software Market to Reach USD 4.8 Billion, Globally by 2033 at 8.9% CAGR: Future Market Insights, Inc.

Between 2023 and 2033, the market for change management software is projected to grow at a healthy CAGR of 8.9%. By 2033, the market is anticipated to hold a market share of US$ 4.8 billion, while its estimated value in 2023 is US$ 2.06 billion.

The market for software solutions that assist organisations in managing and navigating changes to their operations, procedures, and systems is referred to as the “change management software market.” In order to ensure seamless transitions, reduce disruptions, and maximise the success of organisational changes, these software tools are used to streamline and automate the procedures involved in change management.

The reduced downtime, enhanced time-to-value graph, and smooth deployment of any new change make it the perfect platform for a structure-based corporation. Additionally, additional tools like visual analytics and reporting, on-demand and controlled access, and personalized content and document sharing make it a desirable tool.

Get a Sample Copy of this Report at: https://www.fmiblog.com/2024/09/26/change-management-software-market-to-reach-us-4-8-billion-globally-by-2033-at-8-9-cagr-future-market-insights-inc-4/https://www.futuremarketinsights.com/reports/sample/rep-gb-14536

Automation in corporate structures with the adoption of advanced problem-solving software empowered by artificial intelligence, machine learning, and big data is highly adaptive. Monitoring employees, systems, and projects adopting the change becomes a critical and integral part of any modern management.

The improved risk management enabled coordination, and facilitated communications between technical teams and users also helped small startups. The expanding startup companies are adopting systems that integrate their network while increasing productivity.

Key Points

The United States market leads the change management software market in terms of market share in North America. The United States region held a market share of 18.1% in 2023. The growth in this region is attributed to the higher adoption of smart technologies, key economic activities, and vendors working on problem-solving functions. The North American region held a substantial market share of 26.6% in 2022.

Germany’s market is another successful market in the European region. The market holds a market share of 6.5% in 2022. The growth is attributed to expanding corporate structure and high-end software research. Though, the European region held a market share of 21.2% in 2022

The Indian change management software market booms at a CAGR of 9.4% during the forecast period. The market’s growth is attributed to higher innovation, increased outsourcing businesses, and innovation.

The Chinese market also thrives at a CAGR of 9.6% between 2023 and 2033.

Based on deployment mode, the on-premise change management software segment held the leading market share of 58.7% in 2022.

Based on component type, the software segment performs well as it held a leading market share of 63.4% in 2022.

Competitive Landscape

The key vendors focus on providing additional tools, better support, and smooth integration in their change management software. Key competitors and also merge, acquire, and partner with other companies to increase their supply chain, and distribution channel.

Key Players

BMC Software

IBM Corporation

Broadcom Inc.

Cherwell Software, LLC.

Ivanti

Recent Market Developments

Freshworks has introduced its IT service management software, Fresh Service which helps corporate structures in rolling out their changes with effective tracking. The platform also keeps each section of the team in the loop.

IBM has added its application management service with a hybrid cloud for smooth file sharing, data transfer, and enterprise application management.

Key Segments Covered

By Component:

Software

Services

By Deployment Type:

On-Premise

Cloud-based

By Organization Size:

SMEs

Large Enterprises

By Industry Type:

BFSI (Banking, Financial Services, and Insurance)

Healthcare and Life Science

Education

Government and Public Sector

Telecom and IT

Retail and Consumer Packaged Goods

Others

Key Regions Covered:

North America

Latin America

Europe

Japan

Asia Pacific Excluding Japan

The Middle East and Africa