Cisco Systems announced earlier this week that it will be buying AppDynamics.

Cisco Systems announced earlier this week that it will be buying AppDynamics, the software company, in a $3.7 billion acquisition deal.

AppDynamics, Inc. is a San Francisco, California-based company. It is specialized in APM and ITOA. APM is application performance management. And ITOA is IT Operations Analytics.

The privately held company was founded in 2008. AppDynamics is focused on the following action. It manages the availability and performance of various applications. The process is followed across data centers and cloud computing environments.

AppDynamics generated a $158.4 million revenue in the first nine months of 2016. Before the sales deal, it was in the process of going public.

However, on Tuesday, Cisco announced that the two companies reached a sales agreement. Cisco Systems will be acquiring the software company.

Cisco, Systems Inc. is a technology conglomerate. The multinational was founded in 1984. It is headquartered in San Jose, California. Cisco sells, develops, and manufactures high-technology products and services. These include telecommunications equipment and networking hardware.

Cisco is also specialized in specifically targeted tech markets. It activates in domain security, energy management, and IoT. These specializations are helped along by their subsidiaries. Cisco is considered one of the world’s largest networking companies.

Now, the conglomerate is reportedly looking to grow beyond the networking business. Their AppDynamics deal will be one of the largest acquisitions. At least over the past several years.

Rob Salvagno, Cisco’s VP of Corporate Development went to offer some details. According to him, the company has been following AppDynamics. Cisco has been interested in the company for some time. And their IPO process offered Cisco quite a chance.

AppDynamics was in the process of going public. It would have been the first tech company to do so this year. Banking analysts had already estimated its value. AppDynamics could have went as high as around $2 billion.

The company was expected to sell off its shares. And their valuation was expected at approximately $1.9 billion. AppDynamics’s per share value would have been at around $10 to $12.

Its acquisition will nonetheless raise its share value. Cisco has agreed to a $3.7 billion sales value. As such, AppDynamics shares will be at around $26 per share. The acquisition deal will be an equity awards and cash mix.

According to Cisco, it is expected to close sometimes in the company’s third fiscal quarter. The sales deal was officially announced in a Cisco press release. This was posted on the official company blog post.

Some additional details were offered. For example, AppDynamics will be part of Cisco’s new software business unit. This latter will be led by Rowan Trollope. He is the general manager and senior VP of the IoT and Applications business.

The AppDynamics acquisition should help and advance Cisco’s new strategy. They are looking to transitions towards a new area. More exactly, that of software-centric solutions. This domain should come with a predictable recurring revenue.

Cisco reportedly based its decision on the ever-growing digital infrastructure dependence. Companies are transitioning to cloud services. And are also getting digitized. But this also leads to large amounts of siloed, complex data. The AppDynamics system should help translate and manage such data. It will contribute to its translation into business insights.

Image Source: Wikimedia

Kia Motors and Hyundai Motor are hoping to revive their sales in 2017.

Kia Motors and Hyundai Motor are hoping to revive their sales in 2017 after missing their 2016 target, and have set a reportedly higher than expected new target.

The Hyundai Motor Company is part of the Hyundai Motor Group. The latter is reported as being amongst the world’s top five largest manufacturers.

Hyundai Motor Group is comprised of Kia Motors and Hyundai Motor Company. Hyundai Motor was founded in 1967. It is based in Seoul, South Korea and is an automotive manufacturer.

Kia Motors Corporation is also an automotive manufacturer. It was founded in 1944 and is also based in Seoul. It is ranked as the second largest South Korean manufacturer, just after its parent company.

The two companies have not been going through a good period. Last year, neither of the two reached their sales targets.

Final sales reports were released earlier this week, on Monday. For 2016, Hyundai had set a 5.01 million global sales target. Reports showed that last year, the manufacturer sold almost 4.9 million vehicles.

As it is, Hyundai aims at an even higher number in 2017. The company set a 5.08 million sales target for the current year.

Kia Motors set out to sell 3.12 million vehicles in 2016. It did not manage to reach its goal. Reports showed that the company moved about 3.02 million cars last year. For 2017, Kia set an even higher goal. It will try to move 3.17 million vehicles.

Kia Motors and Hyundai set a combined target of 8.25 million sold vehicles for 2017. Their combined 2016 numbers had an aim of 8.13 million vehicles.

As it is, the new year aims came somewhat as a surprise for some analysts. Given the missed 2016 targets, they were expecting a slightly lower projection for 2017.

Ko Tae-bong, a Hi Investment & Securities auto analyst, went to offer details. According to Tae-bong, the combined goal is somewhat higher than expected.

He considers that its accomplishment will depend on the new models. More exactly, on the performance of some of their new vehicles.

Weak demand is considered to be one of the main reasons for the unmet target. Emerging markets have not met their previous expectations.

However, the two companies are hoping to revive their sales. New company markets, such as Russia, are said to have stabilized. Kia Motors and Hyundai will also set out to boost vehicle supplies.

They will target the United States and Chinese auto markets. As it is, their sales number could rise this year. Both automakers will also reportedly be adding capacity in Mexico and China.

Chung Mong-koo, the Hyundai Motor Group Chairman, went to offer details. The chairman was reported to have sent out a New Year message to the company employees. In it, Mong-koo pointed out some facts.

According to him, the auto market uncertainty is growing. There are various contributing variables. The lower global economic growth is one such fact. Another is the spread of trade protectionism. The automobile industry competition is also said to have intensified.

As it is, the automakers are hoping to revive their sales growth. Following the announcement, both Kia Motors and Hyundai shares reported an increase. Reports also showed that they will be increasing their SUV cars lineup.

Hyundai Motor will reportedly release a new, smaller SUV sometime this year. It should be available in three areas. These are the United States, China, and Europe.

Image Source: Wikimedia

The European Commission asks large social media companies to eradicate hate speech from their platforms.

Earlier this year, Twitter, Facebook, Microsoft, and Google have signed an accord to remove hate speech from their platforms out of their own free will. However, several months later, the European Commission still does not see satisfactory results.

As a consequence, the officials say that they will soon force the social media giants to eradicate online hate speech. This decision comes as a direct result of Twitter and Facebook failing to implement strict measures that could prevent abusive messages from spreading.

The Social Media Accord’s Highlights

The accord that the giant social media companies have signed stipulates that they have to delete hateful posts on their platforms within 24 hours from publishing. Mainly because the European Commission was worried about the implications in regard to the refugee crisis in Europe.

In response, Facebook, Twitter, and other notable social media companies agreed to delete offensive comments in a certain time frame. Moreover, they even said that they will promote positive counter-narrative and collaborate with civil society groups.

Current Situation

However, only have a year months after the agreement has been signed, several reports indicate that the social media companies still don’t deliver on their end of the deal. In over 600 hate speech alerts, the European Commission says that only a few have been dealt with.

According to a European Commission official, the companies have only resolved only 40 percent of the cases within the 24-hours time frame. Furthermore, if the social media companies increase their efforts, the officials are sure that the internet could become a hate speech-free environment. The European Commission says that among all the large media companies, YouTube was the most efficient one. At the same time, Twitter had the slowest response time so far.

European Commission’s Statement

The EU Justice Commissioner, Vera Jourova declares that the social media companies have to put in more effort in order to convince. She also says that if the internet does not become a safer environment soon, the European Union will have to introduce strict legislation, forcing social media companies to take action.

“They will have to act quickly and make a strong effort in the coming months”, says Vera Jourova.

The action that the European Commission wants to take against hate speech is closely related to the post-election events. Right after the elections, fake news invaded the internet, throwing the online community into chaos. To make matters worse, several faux websites even made it to the front page of Google. Facebook has also suffered from the fake news phenomenon. According to recent press releases, the Facebook engineers are currently looking into the matter.

However, when it comes to hate speech, the report on abusive comments has registered 316 cases that required immediate action. However, only 163 cases were breaching community and legislation guidelines.

Medical marijuana business owners all across America prepare for the worst.

After the president-elect, Donald J. Trump has announced that he will support Jeff Sessions for Attorney General, the medical marijuana business has been thrown into chaos. The business owners frown upon Trump’s choice, but there is little they can do. All that is left for them is to sit tight for now and hope for the best when the new administration takes over.

Several states have already decriminalized the drug. Moreover, only a week ago, there have even been some discussions to expand the medical marijuana program to patients suffering from chronic pain, as well. In 2013, Colorado citizens have voted for the right to use, sell, and buy medical marijuana for medicinal and recreational purposes.  Today, there are more than 500 dispensaries in Colorado that deliver medical marijuana to people in need, regulated by 14 testing facilities.

As far as retail marijuana goes, there have been approximately 600 grow operations registered in Colorado to the day and roughly 200 product manufacturers, also supervised by testing facilities.

People’s Voice

Ever since Donald Trump has officially announced his choice for Attorney General, medical marijuana business owners and people alike across the U.S. have expressed their concerns in regard to the future development of the industry. As of 2016, Alaska, Colorado, California, Washington, Nevada, Maine, and Massachusetts citizens can use marijuana for both recreational as well as medical purposes. However, the business owners all across the country still have their hopes up.

“We are fully prepared to go forward and deal with the blows we are given”, says Steve Ackerman, the owner of Organic Alternatives.

Government Officials Opinion

In a past statement, Jeff Sessions, Donald Trump’s top choice for Attorney General has vigorously expressed his opposition towards the use of marijuana. In April, during a Senate hearing he suggested that marijuana use is only for the wicked.

Under president Barack Obama, the administration did not interfere much with the medical marijuana industry. However, the business owners are sure that things are about to change for the worse. The local police force in states where the use of marijuana has been legalized cannot enforce federal laws or marijuana regulations. As a result, a sheriff, for example, is unable to arrest individuals for possession.

On the other hand, federal agents won’t spend their days and resources on pursuing criminal charges for individuals that use cannabis. Instead, they could target the business owners and conduct raids on grow operations and dispensaries.

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The former Foxconn manager could spend his next ten years behind bars if the jury finds him guilty.

The former Foxconn manager has been indicted by Taiwanese officials for stealing over 5,000 Apple units estimated at $1,5 million. Following the iPhone theft, the employee supposedly sold the products in China.

According to the Taiwanese authorities, the Foxconn manager also had eight accomplices. Because of his position in the company, the suspect that goes only by Tsai, had access to multiple units within the testing department. The operation took off in 2013 and went on undetected for two years. During this time, Tsai and his accomplices were able to smuggle 5,700 iPhones out of the factory and consequently sell them for their own benefit.

The only thing is that the iPhone 5 and 5s units were only designed for testing purposes and not meant for sale. After the testing cycle, the products were reported as scrapped.

Former Foxconn Manager’s Indictment

The operation through which Tsai and eight others made themselves richer went undetected for two years. However, the theft was exposed recently during an internal audit. As a result, according to Agence France-Presse, Tsai was brought in for questioning earlier this year. Nevertheless, he was able to post bail and has been consequently released.

More importantly is the fact that the accusations involve a breach of trust. For this, the former Foxconn manager could spend his next 10 years behind bars. However, there is no information at the moment on the accomplices’ charges.

Business Implications

Foxconn is currently Apple’s largest supplier. When the iPhone 6 was set to flood the markets, Apple requested 4 million units in advanced orders right after the smartphone was announced. In order to keep up and meet the demand, Foxconn had to speed up the production and ultimately ended by making 500,000 iPhones per day.

The former Foxconn manager’s indictment could damage the company’s relationship with the California-based giant. The incident does not directly affect the units delivered, but it represents a public relation issue.

Moreover, Foxconn has already gained attention and attracted severe criticism in the past in relation to employee misconduct and multiple labor disputes. Moreover, several cases of suicide are associated with the company’s overworking its manpower.

Ultimately, the scandals, the recent Foxconn manager indictment and Trump’s desire to persuade Apple to move production to the U.S. only applies even more pressure on the Taiwanese company. As of yet, Foxconn’s largest customer, Apple, has not commented on Tsai’s indictment.

Image Source: Pixabay

A breast cancer awareness program is promoted by Philips India.

To increase breast cancer awareness and to support Breast Cancer Week, the Husband Initiated Movement has been promoted by Philips India is its campaign to inform and educate husbands about this disease.

This way, they will be able to support their wives and encourage them to reduce the risks of developing this condition. Breast cancer is the leading cause of death among women across the United States, whereas men can also have this disease.

However, it is less common among men. This campaign started four years ago, as the officials aimed to raise awareness among women and inform them about the benefits of breast self-examination.

Breast Cancer Statistics

Around 1.4 million women have breast cancer, so prevention and early detection represent vital steps in reducing the risks and mortality rates as well. This campaign will be a success if men are motivated to encourage and convince their wives that self-examination can help them find out if they developed any lumps.

It is worth mentioning that the HIM campaign is supported by many care providers, survivors, opinion leaders, and oncologists. Also, Philips India aims to encourage women to go for preventive screenings and mammograms.

Although mammograms are recommended at every one or two years, breast self-examination should be done once a month, while any woman should do a preventive screening every year. Many survivors confess that thanks to these preventive methods, they received an early diagnose and managed to fight back the disease.

Experts say that it is a good thing that these initiatives have spread not just across the United States but also in countries like India. One such example is the Asha Jyoti project which has screened around 10,000 women since 2013.

That is why Philips intends to introduce community centers to provide medical assistance and to raise awareness among citizens. In addition, this campaign will focus on the role of healthy dietary habits and an improved lifestyle in preventing this disease.

Most women develop this disease between the age of 25 and 40 years old, but by avoiding life-threatening habits such as smoking or high alcohol intake, the risks can be significantly reduced.

Also, another breast cancer prevention method consists in daily or weekly physical exercises which help men and women achieve their fitness goals and maintain a healthy weight.

Image Source: BreastCancerNow

Disney announced today that Warner veteran Bruce Rosenblum is the new president of Business Operations.

Disney announced today that Bruce Rosenblum , Warner veteran, is the new president of Business Operations for the Disney-ABC Television Group.

This is an unexpected corporate job for a person who was also in charge of two major television companies. That’s why no one approached him about doing it.

However, at a meeting held in June with a specialized recruiter, Rosenblum was presented a number of different opportunities for positions on the boards of a couple of very influential corporations. This is not that surprising seeing as it’s the traditional career path of an individual who is used to holding executive positions.

During that meeting, Rosenblum showed interest in a corporate position.

The current change has numerous benefits for Ben Sherwood, as over fifty percent of his current employees will work under Rosenblum. The change will permit Sherwood to focus his attention on other key areas of the company, including the creative department. Also reporting to Rosenblum are the heads of ABC Studios, Disney Channel, ABC Entertainment, and the departments of HR, legal finance, and communications.

Warner veteran

In accepting the ABC-Disney position, the former president of WB was inspired by the ongoing success of Alan Horn, one of the former presidents of WB Entertainment. Now Horn is the chairman of Walt Disney Studios. Both Horn and Rosenbaum were fired from Warner Bros. during some executive restructurings.

When asked about the challenges that television is currently dealing with, the Warner veteran said, that adds-skipping and time-shifting are the most dangerous threats. Also, he declared that people working in television need to figure out the best way to make the viewer interested in the content that they are showing, they need to learn how to make the most out of the digital platforms that televisions own nowadays, and how to target the advertising.

While working for Warner Bros., Mr.Rosenblum supervised operations for one of the most successful television producers in the industry. Apart from not owning a big broadcast network to supply programming to, Warner Bros. remains one of the most important suppliers of shows to CBS, NBC, Fox, and ABC.

What’s your opinion regarding this topic? Are you happy with Disney’s choice? Let us know!

Image source Deviantart

Stereotypes make up one of the most offensive, close-minded, and bigoted mentalities across the world. Since it’s easier to generalize than to have more than a single opinion, there are plenty of people who choose to see a single convenient example than to actually attempt to think and see others as human beings.

But while a great deal of stereotypes are usually false, some of them are based on facts. And it’s not just stereotypes. Plenty of well-known imagery and associations which might seem far-fetched are in fact true. For example, proving the classic stereotype correct, dogs do in fact bite many postal workers.

77 bites a year

A new report from the United States Postal Service shows that as many as 6,569 postal workers were attacked by dogs in the U.S. in 2015 alone. This marks a fifteen percent increase from the year before. This increase is believed to be caused by the increased number of people making orders online.

The report was released as part of the upcoming National Dog Bite Prevention Week, which begins this Sunday. As much as $118 million were paid out by insurance companies to dog attack victims last year. The cities with the highest amount of dog bites in the country are Houston, with 77, San Diego and Cleveland, with 58, Dallas and Chicago, with 57, and Los Angeles, with 56.

Motives of aggression

The reason behind the large number of bites is actually pretty straight-forward – dogs are territorial and loyal. So, when they see, hear, or smell unfamiliar intruders near their families, they tend to turn aggressive. Particularly when children are involved, dogs get very protective, not hesitating to bite anyone perceived as a threat to the little ones’ well-being.

But postal workers are but a drop in the pool consisting of some 4.5 million people bitten by dogs in the United States every year. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report that few of these incidents actually yield serious injuries, but it is something to think about if you’re considering a career in the postal service.

Responsible prevention

There are many ways to prevent your dog from biting a visitor, be they postal workers, friends, or distant family. The number one most effective way to prevent these potentially dangerous incidents is to simply be a responsible owner. Taking your dog to a different room before answering the door greatly reduces the chances of an altercation.

The postal service is also putting in place new measures to alert postal workers of dogs that happen to be on their routes. By simply letting your mail carrier know whether or not you have a dog, you can prevent people from getting injured, as well as a lot of subsequent ruckus.

Image source: YouTube

In their more than half a century of existence, McDonald’s has become a staple of fast food everywhere. With more than 35,000 restaurants open in 118 countries, and with its 1.9 million employees, the franchise serves around 68 million customers every single day. But that doesn’t put them out of harm’s way.

Thanks to a growing number of smaller companies offering fresher and larger products, as well as lower prices (such as Five Guys and Smashburger), McDonald’s has been bleeding sales over the past couple of years. The company has been in decline for a while, and in order to help save the restaurant, officials have to employ new marketing strategies.

Fresh Quarter Pounders

As a limited time offer, the restaurant’s Quarter Pounder burgers will be cooked with fresh meat. However, the fresh beef will only be available in fourteen restaurants around the Dallas-Fort Worth area in Texas. Plus, the patrons will not be informed of the changes, but they will instead be asked if they notice a difference in taste.

The test began this past November in an attempt to revitalize the franchise and increase sales. This isn’t the first promotion offered by restaurant since then, as the higher-ups are of course interested in pumping fresh blood into the decreasingly popular chain of internationally famous restaurants.

Lisa McComb, a McDonald’s spokeswoman said this in a recent interview:

Like all of our tests, this one too is designed to see what works and what doesn’t within our restaurants by considering the operational experience, consumer response, price points and other important information which may inform future decisions.

Other attempts

Previous tests McDonald’s used to see what they could do to raise their sales once again include the recent hit that were the Gilroy Garlic Fries, which sold out earlier this week. The fries were available only the San Francisco Bay Area, and they hugely successful.

McDonald’s is also testing out various burger sizes, particularly Big Macs, in restaurants around Ohio and Texas. The Grand Mac is meant to compete with the larger burgers offered by other restaurants, while the Mac Jr. is competing against the smaller burgers of other restaurants, such as Wendy’s Jr. Bacon Cheeseburger.

Other promotions included 125 restaurants in Milwaukee serving Johnsonville Brats for a very limited time, some seven years after they were initially discontinued. The opening of a new location in Missouri this July will be accompanied by an all-you-can-eat French fry promotion.

Image source: Wikimedia