Posted by AGORACOM-JC
at 10:52 AM on Monday, February 11th, 2019
RECENT HIGHLIGHTS
SIGNED A COOPERATION AGREEMENT FOR THE EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICES MARKETS
Will enable them to provide real-time monitoring of patients while in transit on the ground or in the air.
CHUSJ is one of the top 10 mother-child hospitals in the World, with over 3500 births a year.
Has over 1500 nurses, over 500 Doctors and over 200 researchers on staff.
COMPLETED SALE OF FIVE STAR-A.D.S SYSTEMS TO ALMASRIA UNIVERSAL AIRLINES
Announced that AlMasria Universal Airlines of Egypt has decided to
proceed with the installation and activation of the STAR-A.D.S.® System
across all five (5) of its current aircraft fleet, which includes A-320,
A-321, A330 and B737 aircraft.
BOMBARDER JOINT RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM
Joint research and development program with Bombardier and other
industrials and universities of Canada is progressing very positively.
The STAR-A.D.S. ® system which is at the heart of the program, after
having been validated and extensively used by the aircraft
manufacturer, has now been transferred to another flight test vehicle to
complete the flight testing and the data collection.
EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICES APPLICATIONS
Star’s Land System Aided Medical Monitoring system for ground
ambulance applications has undergone a series of demonstrations by a
care organization in North America.
Its airborne parent system, the In-Flight System Aided Medical
Monitoring system (STAR-ISAMM™â€), has now been demonstrated to several
stakeholders of the commercial and civil air ambulance market.
CHECK OUT OUR RECENT INTERVIEW
FULL DISCLOSURE: Star Navigation Systems Group Ltd. is an advertising client of AGORA Internet Relations Corp.
By Frank Holmes CEO and Chief Investment Officer U.S. Global Investors
Gold mining is one of the very oldest human occupations. The earliest
known underground gold mine, in what is now the country of Georgia,
dates back at least 5,000 years, when people were just starting to
develop written language.
Over the centuries, a number of innovations have emerged that
disrupted and forever changed how we explore and mine for gold and other
metals. Think dynamite, or the steam engine.
Lately, however, innovation has slowed. Mining companies are in cost-cutting mode,
and many producers have favored generating short-term cash flow, often
to the detriment of longer-term value. In last year’s “Tracking the
Trends†report, Deloitte analysts observed that “miners from 50 years
ago would find little has changed if they entered today’s mines, a
situation that certainly doesn’t hold true in other industries.â€
Consider the earth-shattering change that’s taken place in oil and
gas over the past two decades. Fracking and horizontal drilling have
completely revolutionized how we extract resources from the ground,
making hard-to-reach oil and natural gas accessible for the first time.
No equivalent technology exists in precious metals. Some companies are now using cutting-edge technology like blockchain
to improve supply chain efficiency and transparency, but to date
there’s no “gold fracking†method. As a result, metal ore grades are
decreasing, and large-scale gold discoveries are becoming fewer and farther between.
One company thinks it has the formula to reverse this trend. I think it could be sitting on a gold mine, pun fully intended.
Meet Goldspot Discoveries
“Some people call it ‘peak gold,’ but I tend to think of it more as
‘peak discovery,’†says Denis Laviolette, the brains behind Goldspot
Discoveries, a first-of-its-kind quant shop that aims to use artificial
intelligence (AI) and machine learning to revolutionize the mineral
exploration business.
A geologist by trade, Denis conceived of Goldspot while serving as a
mining analyst with investment banking firm Pinetree Capital. His
vision, as he described it to me, was to disrupt mineral exploration as
profoundly as Amazon disrupted retail and Uber the taxi business.
“We have more data at our fingertips than ever before, yet new
discoveries have been on the decline despite ever increasing exploration
spending on data collection,†Denis continues. “We believe Goldpsot can
change that. Harnessing a mountain’s worth of historic and current
global mining data, AI can identify patterns necessary to fingerprint
geophysical, geochemical, lithological and structural traits that
correlate to mineralization. Advances in AI, cloud computing, open
source algorithms, machine learning and other technologies have made it
possible for us to aggregate all this data and accurately target where
the best spots to explore are.â€
Hence the name Goldspot—though I should point out that Denis
considers the Montreal-based company “commodity agnostic,†meaning it
collects and aggregates data for all metals, including base metals, not
just gold.
Moneyball for Mining
Denis has the record to back up his extraordinary claims. In 2016,
Goldspot took second place in the Integra Gold Rush Challenge, a
competition with as many as 4,600 worldwide applicants. After
consolidating more than 30 years of historical mining and exploration
data into a 3D geological model, the company was able to identify
several target zones with the highest potential for gold mineralization
in Nevada’s Jerritt Canyon district, among several others.
Goldspot’s targeting approach was a complete success. New zones were
discovered by AI, validating the company’s models of finding patterns in
the data that humans alone couldn’t have seen.
The exercise stands as an example of what can be unlocked when machine learning is applied to geoscience.
“When I first entered the field, geologists were still using
pen and paper, and I’m not even that old,†Denis says. “We were paying
for all this data, but no one was really doing anything with it.â€
Denis’ quant approach to discovery reminds me a lot of Billy Beane,
the former general manager of the Oakland A’s and subject of the 2003 bestseller and 2011 film Moneyball.
Beane was among the first in sports to pick players, many of them
overlooked and undervalued, based on quantitative analysis. His strategy
worked better than anyone anticipated.
Although the A’s had one of the lowest combined salaries in Major
League Baseball—only the Washington Nationals and Tampa Bay Rays had
lower salaries—the team finished the 2002 season first in the American
League West.
Similarly, Goldspot seeks to help mining companies cut some of the
costs and risks associated with discovering high-quality
deposits—something it’s managed to do for a number of its clients and
partners, including Hochschild Mining, McEwen Mining and Yamana Gold.
And speaking of teams, Denis has assembled an impressive roster of
PhDs and experts in geology, physics, data science and other fields.
But Wait, There’s More…
The company, not yet three years old, does more than assist in
exploration. It also invests in and acquires royalties from exploration
companies, similar to the business model practiced by successful firms
such as Franco-Nevada, Wheaton Precious Minerals, Royal Gold and
others.>
The difference, though, is that Goldspot has developed an AI-powered
screening platform to identify the very best and potentially most
profitable investment opportunities.
For this, Goldspot has also received accolades. It was one of only
five finalists in Goldcorp’s 2017 #DisruptMining challenge, for
“revolutionizing the investment decision model by using the Goldspot
Algorithm to stake acreage, acquire projects and royalties, and invest
in public vehicles to create a portfolio of assets with the greatest
reward to risk ratio.â€
I’ll certainly have more to say about Goldspot in the coming weeks.
For now, I’m excited to share with you that the company is scheduled to
begin trading on the TSX Venture Exchange early next week. The future
belongs to those that can mine data and harness the power of AI, and I’m
convinced that what Denis and his partners have created fits that bill.
Congratulations, and the best of luck to Denis Laviolette and Goldspot
Discoveries!
Posted by AGORACOM-JC
at 8:50 AM on Monday, February 11th, 2019
Total eSports revenues reached US $869 million in 2018 and are expected to surpass US$6 billion by 2028, according to Fact.MR.
NewZoo estimated the global eSports audience at 380 million for 2018, made up of 165 million Esports enthusiasts and 215 million occasional viewers.
POINT ROBERTS, Wash., Feb. 11, 2019 — Investorideas.com, a leading investor news resource covering gaming and eSports stocks issues a special edition of Play by Play looking at the explosive growth of the sector and how battles are playing out; eSports versus traditional sports and the U.S. versus China bid for leadership.
Total eSports revenues reached US $869 million in 2018 and are expected to surpass US$6 billion by 2028, according to Fact.MR.
NewZoo estimated
the global eSports audience at 380 million for 2018, made up of 165
million Esports enthusiasts and 215 million occasional viewers.
Meanwhile, Activate projects that by 2021 eSports will have more US viewers than all other professional sports leagues, with the exception of the NFL.
With all this money and viewership at stake, you can expect the big
boys to enter the playing field; and yes they certainly have. On July
2018, ESPN, Disney XD and Blizzard Entertainment, a division of
Activision Blizzard (Nasdaq: ATVI),
announced an exclusive multiyear agreement for live television coverage
of the Overwatch League™, the world’s first major global city-based
eSports league.
Seeing the future shift in sports and eSports, Robert Kraft of the
New England Patriots, Jeff Wilpon of the New York Mets and the LA Rams’
Stan Kroenke invested heavily into their own franchises within
Activision Blizzard’s Overwatch eSports league.
Overwatch franchise valuations are $60 million to $80 million, depending on country and city according to a Forbes article. Adding to its value, news hit on Friday
that Coca-Cola signed a deal with Activision Blizzard Esports Leagues
to become the official non-alcoholic beverage of Overwatch League and
all other Overwatch properties.
With North America as the largest eSports market in 2018, Enthusiast Gaming (TSXV: EGLX.V) (OTCQB: EGHIF), a gaming company building the world’s largest community of authentic gamers.
strategically announced yesterday that it opened a US-based office and
hired a sales team to drive advertising sales and increase annual
revenue.
According to the news,
“The US-based sales team is based in San Francisco and will be
responsible for leading North American sales. This expands the company’s
current reach with a sales team in San Francisco, London, UK, and the
corporate head office in Toronto. The company kicked off the opening of
the sales office with a West Coast advertising roadshow, meeting with
top gaming publishers, global brands, and media agencies.â€
Undaunted by the fact that they are a smaller company, Enthusiast
Gaming is building their network and has positioned themselves at the
forefront of the market, led by Menashe Kestenbaum, Founder and CEO. The
numbers speak for themselves, with a platform of more than 80 owned and
affiliated websites reaching 75 million monthly visitors and 900
YouTube channels with an additional 50 million monthly visitors.
Other major deal flow in the US; Take-Two Interactive Software’s deal
with the NBA and Electronic Arts Inc.’s partnerships with the NFL and
ESPN. The massive streaming player growth on YouTube and Amazon is yet
another indication this industry is not going away anytime soon.
The China eSports market is second to the United States and according
to Dragon Social: “Live streaming, combined with video games has become
one of the most popular forms of entertainment for people in China.â€
China-based Tencent Holdings Ltd (OTCMKTS: TCEHY) (HKG: 0700) is the biggest gaming company in the world, spending $150 million a year to maintain that dominance. Bloomberg
noted, “Along with Activision Blizzard Inc., Tencent’s become one of
the most aggressive promoters of pro-gaming. It’s hard to overstate the
mania that’s gripped China in particular: at least 10,000 teams exist
across the country despite just 12 spots in this year’s marquee King Pro
League tournament.â€
Streaming video player Huya (NYSE: HUYA)
provides a live-streaming platform for gamers to share their
experiences and has been dubbed, the ‘Twitch of China’ and says they are
the largest in China. Reporting on its NYSE IPO, Forbes said,
“HUYA is known for its sticky gaming community who engage in
interactive social media features such as gifting and adding commentary
during online streaming sessions.â€
US company Twitch is a live streaming video platform bought by Amazon in 2014 for $970 million. Twitch viewers
between Wednesday, 30th January and Tuesday, 5th February: lowest
viewers 625,376 (Monday, 4th 09:00) and peak viewers 2,240,001
(Saturday, 2nd 19:00).
It’s game on for the US versus China and eSports versus traditional sports. Let the games begin.
For investors following gaming & eSports stocks, Investor Ideas has created a directory of gaming stocks.
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Effective September 15 2008 – all BC investors should review all OTC and
Pink sheet listed companies for adherence in new disclosure filings and
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Posted by AGORACOM-JC
at 3:05 PM on Friday, February 8th, 2019
SPONSOR: Esports Entertainment
$GMBL Esports audience is 350M, growing to 590M, Esports wagering is
projected at $23 BILLION by 2020. The company has launched VIE.gg
esports betting platform and has accelerated affiliate marketing
agreements with 190 Esports teams. Click here for more information
GMBL: OTCQB
———————–
Overwatch League to air on ESPN, Disney XD, ABC
Overwatch League announced the broadcast schedule for Season 2, which begins Feb. 14.
Three matches per week will be broadcast on Disney XD: the final match each Thursday beginning at 11:30 p.m. ET along with the first two matches every Sunday at 3 p.m. and 4:30 p.m. ET.
All matches will be available on the ESPN app. Three matches per week
will be broadcast on Disney XD: the final match each Thursday beginning
at 11:30 p.m. ET along with the first two matches every Sunday at 3
p.m. and 4:30 p.m. ET.
The semifinals and finals for Stages 1 and 2 as well as the All-Star
Game will air on ABC. ESPN2 will broadcast the Stage 3 finals, with the
broadcast schedules for Homestand Weekends, season playoffs and the
finals to be announced at a later date.
Season 2 of the OWL kicks off on Feb. 14 with the Philadelphia Fusion
facing the London Spitfire in a rematch of the Grand Finals from the
inaugural season.
Posted by AGORACOM-JC
at 2:30 PM on Friday, February 8th, 2019
.
Announced the appointment of Mr. Aamer Siddiqui as Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of the Company.
Mr. Siddiqui is a Chartered Professional Accountant(CPA) and Chartered Accountant(CA), Chartered Professional Accountants of Canada.
TORONTO, ON / February 8, 2019 / Tartisan Nickel Corp. (CSE: TN, FSE: A2DPCM) (“Tartisan”, or the “Company”) is pleased to announce the appointment of Mr. Aamer Siddiqui as Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of the Company. Mr. Siddiqui is a Chartered Professional Accountant(CPA) and Chartered Accountant(CA), Chartered Professional Accountants of Canada.
Additionally, the Company reports that Tartisan Nickel has engaged
Marrelli Support Services Inc. to provide accounting support services to
the Company.
The Board of Directors of Tartisan Nickel would like to thank
outgoing CFO, Mr. Dan Fuoco, for his support and efforts during his
tenure and wish him well in his new endeavours.
About Tartisan Nickel Corp
The Company is a Canadian mineral exploration and development company
which owns the Kenbridge Nickel-Copper- Cobalt project in Ontario,
Canada. In addition, Tartisan owns a 100% stake in the Don Pancho
Zinc-Manganese Project and a 100% stake in the Ichuna Copper-Silver
Project, both located in Peru. Tartisan Nickel Corp also owns an equity
stake (6 million shares and 3 million full warrants at 40c per share),
in Eloro Resources Ltd. which is exploring the low-sulphidation
epithermal La Victoria Gold/Silver Project, located in Ancash, Peru.
The Company also owns 1,750,000 common shares of VaniCom Resources
Ltd. a private Australian exploration and development resource company.
Tartisan Nickel Corp. common shares are listed on the Canadian
Securities Exchange (CSE: TN, FSE: A2DPCM). Currently, there are
99,703,550 shares outstanding (108,803,550 fully diluted).
For further information, please contact Mr. D. Mark Appleby,
President & CEO and a Director of the Company, at 416-804-0280 ([email protected]). Additional information about Tartisan can be found at the Company’s website at www.tartisannickel.com or on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.
Jim Steel MBA P.Geo. is the Qualified Person under NI 43-101 and has
read and approved the technical content of this News Release.
This news release may contain forward-looking statements
including but not limited to comments regarding the timing and content
of upcoming work programs, geological interpretations, receipt of
property titles, potential mineral recovery processes, etc.
Forward-looking statements address future events and conditions and
therefore, involve inherent risks and uncertainties. Actual results may
differ materially from those currently anticipated in such statements.
The Canadian Securities Exchange (operated by CNSX Markets Inc.)
has neither approved nor disapproved of the contents of this press
release.
Posted by AGORACOM-JC
at 1:21 PM on Friday, February 8th, 2019
SPONSOR: Tartisan Nickel (TN:CSE) The company’s Kenbridge Property
has a measured and indicated resource of 7.14 million tonnes at 0.62%
nickel, 0.33% copper. Tartisan also has interests in Peru, including a
20 percent equity stake in Eloro Resources and 2 percent NSR in their La
Victoria property. Click her for more information
TN:CSE
———————
Megafactories buildout could up nickel demand in batteries 19 fold—Benchmark
Moores said that these megafactories are being built almost exclusively to make lithium ion battery cells using two chemistries: nickel-cobalt-manganese (NCM) and nickel-cobalt-aluminium (NCA)
“Under this scenario, lithium demand will increase by over eight times, graphite anode by over seven times, nickel by a massive 19 times
It was encouraging for miners when Simon Moores, managing director, Benchmark Mineral Intelligence, testified before the U.S. Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources on Tuesday.
Moores was summoned by the Senate Committee to testify on the
lithium, cobalt, nickel and graphite supply chains for energy storage.
“Benchmark Mineral Intelligence is now tracking 70 lithium ion
battery megafactories under construction across four continents, 46 of
which are based in China with only five currently planned for the US.
When I gave my last testimony in October 2017, the global total was at
17,” Moores said.
Moores said that these megafactories are being built almost
exclusively to make lithium ion battery cells using two chemistries:
nickel-cobalt-manganese (NCM) and nickel-cobalt-aluminium (NCA).
“This means the supply of lithium, cobalt, nickel and manganese to
produce the cathode for these cells, alongside graphite to produce
battery anodes, needs to rapidly evolve for the 21st century,” Moores
testified.
Moores presented a chart based on the assumption that all of these megafactories are built and run at 100% capacity utilization.
“Under this scenario, lithium demand will increase by over eight
times, graphite anode by over seven times, nickel by a massive 19 times,
and cobalt demand will rise four-fold, which takes into account the
industry trend of reducing cobalt usage in a battery,” Moores testified.
Posted by AGORACOM-JC
at 11:21 AM on Friday, February 8th, 2019
SPONSOR: Enthusiast Gaming Holdings Inc.
(TSX-V: EGLX) Uniting gaming communities with 80 owned and affiliated
websites, currently reaching over 75 million monthly visitors. The
company partial 2018 reported revenue of $7.4 million representing a
625% increase over the same period in 2017.
EGLX: TSX-V ———————————-
Esports Playing in the Big Leagues Now
In 2018, esports captured the attention of nearly 400 million viewers worldwide—and cable and OTT platforms took note, with media rights revenues topping $180 million.
Total esports revenues reached $869 million in 2018, and is forecast to more than triple by 2022, reaching $2.96 billion, according to an October 2018 report by Goldman Sachs.
By Lucy Koch
In 2018, esports captured the attention of nearly 400 million viewers
worldwide—and cable and OTT platforms took note, with media rights
revenues topping $180 million.
Total esports revenues reached $869 million in 2018, and is forecast
to more than triple by 2022, reaching $2.96 billion, according to an
October 2018 report by Goldman Sachs.
More modestly, a report from PwC
(cited by the Goldman Sachs report) projected worldwide esports revenues
of $1.58 billion by 2022—an 18.4% compounded annual growth rate.
Ad Revenue
According to PwC, esports revenues totaled $805 million in 2018, with
the largest portion coming from sponsorships ($277 million), followed
by media rights and streaming advertisements.
PwC estimated that over the next three to five years, media rights
revenue would grow 11.5%—to roughly $449 million by 2022. That’s more
than twice the growth rate of sponsorship and advertising, at 5.5%.
As audiences grow, so do expectations. Esports viewers want to be
able to watch their favorite teams, players and tournaments on any
screen, at any time—and this will push profitability.
Paul Verna, principal analyst at eMarketer, explains: “Marketers who
try to reach esports fans through video ads will be able to tap into the
sophisticated targeting and measurement capabilities that streaming
services offer. In that sense, there’s more value to a marketer in
attaching itself to game streams than sponsoring an event or team. It’s
all about harnessing data.â€
And there’s plenty of data to harness.
Esports Viewers
There were approximately 380 million esports viewers in 2018, and
that’s expected to surge to roughly 557 million viewers by 2021,
according to a report from Newzoo. Of
those 557 million projected viewers, 307 million will identify as
“occasional viewers” and 250 million will consider themselves “esports
enthusiasts”.
Breaking Down Key Players
Occasional Viewers: People who watch professional esports content less than once a month.
Esports Enthusiasts: People who watch professional esports content more than once a month.
What’s more, Asia-Pacific leads the global esports market and is
projected to capture the largest market share, with $1.5 billion by
2022, according to a study from Activate. Close behind, Europe and the US tie for second at $1.2 billion.
“The US is a natural growth opportunity for esports because of the
strong gaming culture here, the ties between gaming and sports, and the
country’s natural inclination toward competitive endeavors. The same is
true of Western European markets, particularly the UK, Germany, and
France,†Verna said.
Somewhat behind the curve due to the lack of fixed broadband, Latin
America will account for just $100 million of esports market share by
2022. However, growth is expected in Brazil and Mexico, where esports is
officially recognized as a sport.
Verna adds that the majority of the esports market is young and is
“therefore less likely to be reached through traditional ad channels
than an older TV audience,†saying that “sponsorships and endorsements
are equally viable for marketers whose brands align with the target
audience.â€
Posted by AGORACOM-JC
at 10:12 AM on Friday, February 8th, 2019
SPONSOR: Bougainville
Ventures Inc (CSE: BOG) Converting irrigated farmland to
greenhouse-equipped farmland. Bougainville does not “touch the plantâ€
and only provides agricultural infrastructure as a landlord for
licensed marijuana growers. Click here for more info.
BOG:CSE —————————————
POT Ticker Generates Frenzy As WHO Softens Stance On Marijuana
Little illustrates the mania for cannabis investments better than the unprecedented demand over the stock symbol POT.
But new recommendations from the World Health Organization suggest some of that frenzy may not be unwarranted.
Tiny Vancouver-based cannabis company Weekend Unlimited saw its stock
gain as much as 148% Feb. 1 after winning out over 40 other companies
in the first-ever lottery for a stock ticker held by Canadian exchanges.
Weekend Unlimited, which previously traded under YOLO, short for “you
only live once,” wasn’t exactly lacking a memorable ticker before it won
the POT ticker.
In a weird twist, the YOLO symbol may find new life in another
pot-related security, as the AdvisorShares Pure Cannabis ETF has filed
to trade on the New York Stock Exchange under YOLO.
In more serious news, the WHO is recommending that cannabis and its
resin be removed from Schedule IV, the most restrictive category of a
1961 drug convention that governs international treaties. The WHO is
also moving to clarify that CBD containing less than 0.2% THC is not
under international control at all.
If adopted, these recommendations would recognize changing attitudes
toward the drug and its medical properties, potentially encouraging
fence-sitting politicians to speed up the pace of legalization. They
could also be a “catalyst for Big Pharma to further assess the global
medical cannabis opportunity,” according to BMO analyst Tamy Chen.
Advertising Challenges
“The treaty’s recommended cannabis rescheduling provides countries
additional political cover to re-examine their current state on
cannabis, given it serves as the regulatory framework for many,” writes
Bloomberg Intelligence analyst Kenneth Shea.
The proposals will now go to the United Nations’ Commission on
Narcotic Drugs, whose 53 member nations will have the chance to vote on
them, likely in March.
POT hype and WHO recommendations aren’t making it any easier to
advertise cannabis brands, at least not yet. Earlier this month, CBS
declined to air a commercial touting the benefits of medical marijuana
during the Super Bowl and Facebook (FB) has booted some pot sellers off Instagram, Bloomberg’s Craig Giammona reported last week.
The restrictions are even tighter in Canada, where nearly all forms of marketing and branding are prohibited.
Canadian Supply
The Canadian government reported that total cannabis sales in
December were up 4% from the month before, a muted gain given that
November sales marked a 42% decline in per-day recreational pot sales
from October, when legalization took effect.
The fact that total inventory continues to grow, hitting nearly two
months’ worth of dried pot and five months’ of cannabis oil at the end
of December, indicates that Canada’s ongoing supply shortage is more a
function of supply-chain problems than a lack of product, according to
Eight Capital analyst Graeme Kreindler.
“The process of getting products from vault to shelf remains a key
step in alleviating supply issues in the Canadian market,” Kreindler
said.
Edibles Question
The ongoing shortages, whatever their root cause, have raised
concerns among some in the industry that it won’t be ready to meet
demand for edibles and concentrates, which were expected to join dried
flower and oils on store shelves by October of this year. However,
Justin Trudeau’s pot czar told Bloomberg’s Josh Wingrove last week that
sales may lag regulations, citing the 17-week gap between the federal
pot law passing last June and the formal market opening in October.
According to Keith Merker, CEO of WeedMD, “It’s classic cannabis
industry stuff; you’re operating in this mist of uncertainty and trying
to make business decisions that are appropriate.”
The lack of clarity isn’t deterring big U.S. funds from sniffing
around the industry. Funds with $100 billion or more in assets under
management are exploring lending to Canadian cannabis companies as a way
to gain expertise in the burgeoning market ahead of potential
legalization.
The idea is to provide first-lien loans, which are first to be repaid
when a company fails, to mid-tier pot firms, according to Cormark
Securities’ Alfred Avanessy. This would open up a whole new world of
financing to the industry, which has largely relied on equity raises and
convertible debt to date.
Tags: Marijuana, weed Posted in All Recent Posts, Bougainville Ventures | Comments Off on Bougainville Ventures Inc $BOG.ca – #POT Ticker Generates Frenzy As WHO Softens Stance On Marijuana $CROP.ca $VP.ca NF.ca $MCOA
Posted by AGORACOM-JC
at 9:07 AM on Friday, February 8th, 2019
SPONSOR: ThreeD Capital Inc. (IDK:CSE) Led by
legendary financier, Sheldon Inwentash, ThreeD is a Canadian-based
venture capital firm that only invests in best of breed small-cap
companies which are both defensible and mass scalable. More than just
lip service, Inwentash has financed many of Canada’s biggest small-cap
exits. Click Here For More Information.
——————-
Ripple Adds 11 New University Blockchain Research Initiative Partners To Fund Research And Education
Ripple, one of the most mature companies in the blockchain space, is currently helping lead development for blockchain-focused academia and research
Blockchain based global settlements network launched its University Blockchain Research Initiative (UBRI) in June of last year to accelerate academic research, technical development and innovation in the blockchain, cryptocurrency and digital payments space
Ripple, one of the most mature
companies in the blockchain space, is currently helping lead development
for blockchain-focused academia and research.
The blockchain based global settlements network launched its University Blockchain Research Initiative (UBRI)
in June of last year to accelerate academic research, technical
development and innovation in the blockchain, cryptocurrency and digital
payments space. Ripple has committed over $50 million in funding,
subject matter expertise and technical resources to UBRI’s first wave of
university partners, which includes 17 prestigious institutions from
around the world.
Announced today, Ripple has added 11
new universities to the UBRI program. The company is now supporting a
total of 29 partners to accelerate academic research.
The new institutions include:
Carnegie Mellon University
Cornell University
Duke University
Georgetown University
University of Kansas
University of Michigan
Morgan State University
National University of Singapore
Northeastern University
University of Sao Paulo
Institute for Fintech Research, Tsinghua University
These programs, driven by the university partners, are poised to
prepare the next generation of engineers, business leaders,
entrepreneurs and other professionals to apply these technologies in
practice. This should increase positive awareness of the transformative
impact that blockchain technology will have across all industries,
while giving back to the community as part of an ongoing philanthropic
effort.
We launched UBRI back in June of 2018
to provide support for 17 different universities around the world to
help progress their study of blockchain technology, cryptography,
digital assets and fintech. Blockchain is an incredibly transformational
technology and helping advance the best minds in the world, who are
already showing interest in this field, is sure to benefit the entire
ecosystem. We’ve added 11 new universities this time around and now have
29 schools involved with the program.
Expanding the ecosystem to a more global, diversified network of UBRI
partners will only continue to enrich these projects,†said Eric van
Miltenburg, SVP of Global Operations at Ripple.
Funding from Ripple’s UBRI program is intended to support a variety
of efforts, across different educational sectors spanning from law,
finance, engineering, business and other fields. The support aims to
help universities develop curricula, expand or launch courses, host
conferences and award scholarships to faculty and students pursuing work
in blockchain, cryptocurrency, digital payments and related topics.
We are placing full faith in these
universities, knowing that the students and faculty are the most capable
individuals in the field. Therefore, it’s under their discretion to
deploy the funds in ways they see fit to help advance the study of
blockchain research. There are also a variety of factors that go into
choosing which schools we partner with. We are working with institutions
that have already shown an interest and commitment to blockchain. We
want to help accelerate what is already a spark by turning that into a
flame to help these schools move forward,†explained Miltenburg.
Fostering Innovation Through Academia
While Ripple’s UBRI program has only
been up and running for less than a year, all of the partner
institutions are already showing signs of progress, demonstrating
Ripple’s goal to foster innovation in the broad blockchain space.
For example, the partnership with the University of California,
Berkeley has resulted in cross-departmental collaboration, as several
schools within the university expanded relevant course-offerings, funded
research projects and supported student-led activities and events,
including an upcoming blockchain UI/UX hackathon.
According to Laura Tyson, Faculty Director of the Institute for
Business and Social Impact at the Haas School of Business at U.C.
Berkeley, the university has awarded seven faculty research grants and
eight research proposals from students through the UBRI program funding.
We are excited by the momentum that the Ripple UBRI Partnership has
fostered at Berkeley Haas and throughout U.C. Berkeley in the
development of blockchain, digital payments and cryptocurrency-related
research and innovation, said Tyson. In December, we awarded the first
round of Ripple-funded faculty and student blockchain, digital payments
and cryptocurrency-focused research grants. Also, we are sponsoring
numerous student-led activities this semester, including partnering with
Blockchain at Berkeley to host a blockchain/fintech industry Spring
speaker series at Haas.”
The University of Texas at Austin is another institution that is part
of Ripple’s UBRI program. According to Professor Cesare Fracassi who
leads the UBRI presence at University of Texas at Austin and serves as
the director of the university’s blockchain initiative, the funding from
Ripple has allowed U.T. Austin to initiate three important objectives.
First, UBRI has allowed us to provide
funding to faculty and Ph.D. students that are interested in
researching blockchain technology. Secondly, it has let us increase our
curriculum on blockchain, enabling students to learn more through
specific classes. Finally, the funding has allowed us to conduct
important research that lets us act as a connector for companies,
journalists and others outside of the university that are interested in
this sector. We are making progress in each of these objectives and have
held several events to highlight the research done by our faculty on
blockchain. Additionally, we have put out a call for proposals for
people who need funding for blockchain-related research and have
developed three classes focused entirely on this sector from both a
technical and business perspective,†said Professor Fracassi.
From a student perspective, the UBRI program has helped greatly in terms of conducting professional research in this space.
“The donation provided through UBRI has allowed students at U.T.
Austin to learn about blockchain technology at an accelerating rate. By
funding initiatives such as the Texas Blockchain undergraduate group,
graduate courses, and on-campus validators, I believe U.T. is quickly
becoming a powerhouse in the blockchain space,†said Alan Orwick, a
computer science student at U.T. Austin who also serves as the president
of Texas Blockchain.
According to Miltenburg
of Ripple, students in particular have benefited from this program, as
the funding from UBRI has helped accelerate their research.
“One of the common themes across all the schools we’ve spoken with is
that the demand coming from students far outweigh the ability for the
faculty administration to meet that demand. There is no surprise that
both the students and faculty at these schools are very excited about
UBRI.â€
At Duke University and Georgetown University, UBRI will support
expanding curriculum and teaching, research and technical projects and
collaboration across disciplines. Internationally, the University of Sao
Paulo is receiving funding for a blockchain innovation program, which
will serve as an interdisciplinary forum across its schools of
engineering, law, mathematics and economics and business administration.
A Powerful Network Effect
In addition to the progress being made on campuses throughout the
world, a powerful network effect has been created through UBRI that is
not only spanning across specific college campuses, but also within each
partner institution.
There is really a growing interest in
blockchain, cryptocurrency and digital payment systems among the best
students and faculty in the world. I think that this will continue to
flourish, as there is a real interest in this broad space and the
application of this technology to solve major social challenges.
Moreover, the students and faculty conducting work in this area are
creating a powerful network effect in terms of learning and research,
both on the Berkeley campus and across the campuses that Ripple has
funded. For example, people are now able to identify others working on
something similar to what they are researching, which they might not
have known otherwise. There is real opportunity here to foster
innovation and forward leading research through this network effect,â€
explained Tyson from U.C. Berkeley.
Tyson believes the real question to
consider now is how to ensure that this research continues. Fortunately,
Ripple’s UBRI program appears to be the answer.
An individual company can only do so
much. Yet the idea of taking funding and supporting a whole research
network across universities spanning over five continents is a way to
foster development that could be of great interest not only to Ripple,
but also to the entire sector and the world, said Tyson. I really
believe in Ripple’s message of advancing research to foster innovation
for this very important set of new technologies. What a great mission.â€
You can follow Rachel Wolfson onTwitter andLinkedInto stay up to date on the latest cryptocurrency happenings.
Posted by AGORACOM-JC
at 4:23 PM on Thursday, February 7th, 2019
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How Blockchain Integration Will Evolve Programmatic RTB for Smart TV
Programmatic RTB(Real-time bidding) is set to become a leading method for advertising on Smart TV.
Is anticipated to grow at a CAGR of 9.5% during the forecast period and reach $292.55 billion by 2025.
Alex Bornyakov, founder of Adtelligent, talks about how the growth of blockchain will help in the transformation of programmatic advertising through RTB for Smart TV.
The programmatic advertising industry is rife with issues, including
fraud, manipulation of data, low traffic quality, and lack of
transparency of the bidding process. Despite these issues, programmatic
RTB(Real-time bidding) is set to become a leading method for advertising
on Smart TV. The global Smart TV market, according to Grand View Research,
was valued at $145 billion in 2017, is anticipated to grow at a CAGR of
9.5% during the forecast period and reach $292.55 billion by 2025.
I, along with other leaders in the digital advertising space, believe
that blockchain integration has the potential to satisfy the market
demand for transparency and reinstate trust in programmatic advertising.
This will be achieved by creating a new blockchain-based RTB protocol
for Smart TV that propels industry growth, meets required thresholds for
transaction speeds, and fights fraud through irrefutable smart
contracts.
Big potential for industry growth
Programmatic and RTB have had a tremendous impact on the web,
becoming the most popular and widely-used types of digital display
advertising in the USA and the UK in 2015. In the US alone, $27.47
billion was spent on programmatic digital display advertising just last
year.
Programmatic RTB for Smart TV has the potential to scale into an
increasingly valuable ad channel. 32% of TV buyers today own Smart TVs,
totalling 1 billion devices worldwide. Yet, this form of advertising has
several new roadblocks when it comes to growth. One such example is the
current low availability of premium inventory. Publishers today have to
adapt quickly to the latest media buying trend if they want to remain
on board.
Blockchain removes intermediaries, meaning that brands and content
owners can directly transact with one another. Content owners, as a
result, are faced with fewer restrictions and will be able to attract
with smaller and niche brands of all shapes and sizes. Due to the nature
of P2P transactions through blockchain and less funds going to
middlemen, brands will have the opportunity to place targeted
advertisements at lower costs than ever before. With all transactions
recorded on an irrefutable ledger, blockchain ensures marketing budgets
are used effectively, another compelling impetus to advertise and for
industry growth.
A need for speed
One of the central issues with executing blockchain RTB for Smart TV
today is transaction speed. A system does not yet exist that allows
large enough volumes. This inhibits the potential for advertisers.
What’s needed is a new protocol that can handle sending sufficient
volumes of data to the blockchain.. With transaction volumes up to
speed, brands will be able to optimize their costs, better target
clients, and choose the time and amount of advertising scrolling at
suitable prices. In turn, enabling brands to not only pay for the number
of scrolls, but also the displayed duration which cannot be done today.
As an example, this approach would allow advertising at a time when a
television is being viewed across many devices, increasing audience
coverage and the overall effectiveness of advertising.
Enforcing safeguards to fight fraud
Trust is eroding in the ecosystem for a number of reasons. For one,
ad fraud is alive and well across OTT channels, typically in the format
of masking n techniques that go undetected. In fact, Pixalate, the first
MRC accredited vendor of detecting and filtering invalid traffic in
OTT, reported that global OTT fraud rates average 19% and that Marketers may lose $10 billion annually in OTT ad spend by 2020.
Due to the aforementioned issues, advertisers are demanding
transparency from partners to ensure fair value. Blockchain integration
would allow brands to control pricing and manipulation of data, ensure
transparency of the bidding process, target users at the right time
through access to user data via blockchain smart contracts.
Today, there are a few major players working to make RTB for Smart TV a reality.
In September 2017, The Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) Technology Lab announced version 3.0 of their OpenRTB framework
which was, “evolving to handle new kinds of programmatic buying and
selling, such as header bidding, content sales, product recommendations,
Smart TV, or perhaps even products.†It was the biggest revision to the
protocol in seven years and has recently been rolled out in beta, with
mass adoption projected for 2019.
Such innovative types of the business models which combine B2B
marketplaces and blockchain technology has created a new system that
allows accumulating a large volume of events, and after that sends this
data to blockchain in one package. In other words, it’s not
necessary for B2B advertising marketplace to save each transaction from
RTB to the blockchain due to the fact that customers of such type of
platforms will use an independent verification accounting system
that will be able to benefit from internal RTB. Not all data will be
saved into blockchain, but only critical resulting events such as
division of profits among participants.
Integrating blockchain technology into the RTB system for Smart TV
shows promise for growth of the advertisement industry and the
elimination of fraud and lack of transparency. By eliminating
intermediaries and introducing smart contracts to the platform, brands
large and small have more opportunity to be profitable and are granted
access to accurate analytics and data.
Tags: stocks, tsx Posted in All Recent Posts, Good Life Networks | Comments Off on Good Life Networks $GOOD.ca – How #Blockchain Integration Will Evolve #Programmatic RTB for Smart TV $TTD $RUBI $AT.ca $TRMR $FUEL
