Posted by AGORACOM-JC
at 9:00 PM on Sunday, January 12th, 2020
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2020 could be a defining year for the cannabis industry
“There’s going to be a lot of movement in 2020,” said Chris Walsh, chief executive officer of Marijuana Business Daily, a cannabis industry trade publication. “Whether it leads to actual legalization in some states remains to be seen.”
New York (CNN Business)2019 was a momentous year for the cannabis industry: Hemp-derived CBD had a heyday, Illinois made history, California got sticky, vapes were flung into flux, and North American cannabis companies received some harsh wake-up calls.
2020 is gearing up to be an even more critical year.
There’s a well-worn saying in the cannabis business that the
emerging industry is so fast-moving that it lives in dog years. 2020 is
barely a week old, and cannabis is already making headlines after
Illinois kicked off the new year
with recreational sales. Other states are inching closer to
legalization this year — with several mulling how best to ensure social
equity. Also in 2020, there’s the FDA could chill the CBD craze, and a move from Congress could change the game entirely.
The tumultuous past few months have set 2020 up to be a
make-or-break year for some of the biggest in the business as well as
the scores of lesser-known players priming to make their moves.
“There’s going to be a lot of movement in 2020,” said Chris Walsh,
chief executive officer of Marijuana Business Daily, a cannabis industry
trade publication. “Whether it leads to actual legalization in some
states remains to be seen.”
The next US states to legalize cannabis
Fourteen US states and territories have legalized recreational
cannabis sales for adults (although regulations aren’t fully fleshed out
in places like the District of Columbia and Vermont). A total of 33 states have legalized cannabis for medical purposes. Illinois
will remain in focus, after it made history last year with the first
legislatively-enacted recreational cannabis program. Critical aspects of
its program include social equity and social justice measures created
to help people and communities most harmed by the War on Drugs.
“Underserved groups are holding the industry accountable,” said Gia
Morón, executive vice president for Women Grow, a company founded to
further the presence of women in the cannabis industry. “And our
legislators are recognizing that [social, gender and minority concerns]
are a part of this now.”
New York and New Jersey have been flirting with legalization but
have held off to navigate some logistics related to aspects that include
social equity. The governors of New York, New Jersey, Connecticut and
Pennsylvania convened this past fall for a summit on coordinating cannabis and vaping policies. New Jersey is putting a recreational cannabis measure before voters in November, and Gov. Andrew Cuomo vowed Wednesday that New York would legalize cannabis this year.
Other possibilities for states to legalize recreational cannabis
could be Arizona, Delaware, Florida, Minnesota, Montana, New Mexico,
North Dakota and South Dakota, Walsh said. Even Alabama, Mississippi and
South Dakota could become new medical cannabis markets and other
states’ medical programs could see expansions, he added.
“If you look at the map right now of the US, we’re getting to the
point where there isn’t that many [states] left that can legalize,” he
said. “You can look at any of those and say there might be a chance in
the next year or two for them to legalize.”
Federal legalization
Whether national legalization is on the horizon remains to be seen, said Walsh.
How federal agencies regulate hemp, a cannabis plant with under
0.3% tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), and derivatives such as cannabidiol
(CBD) could be extremely telling for how the US government might
approach regulation of other forms of cannabis down the road, he said.
CBD products have been all the rage, but they may be on shaky
ground. CBD oils, creams, foods and beverages have seen an explosion in
availability following the passage of the 2018 Farm Bill, which
legalized hemp but left plenty of discretion to the US Food and Drug
Administration, which regulates pharmaceutical drugs, most food items,
additives and dietary supplements.
The FDA is reviewing CBD and has yet to issue formal guidance,
although the agency has issued warning letters to CBD makers that make
unsubstantiated health claims. Class action lawsuits have been filed
against several CBD companies, including two of the largest, Charlotte’s
Web and CV Sciences, alleging they engaged in misleading or deceptive
marketing practices, Stat News reported.
Cannabis insiders are closely awaiting the fate of
industry-friendly bills such as the STATES Act, which would recognize
cannabis programs at the state level, and the SAFE Banking Act,
which would allow for banks to more easily serve cannabis companies.
Those and other bills likely won’t pass in full, but it’s possible that
some language makes it into more comprehensive legislation, Walsh said.
“It feels like [legalization] has to happen soon, but it might not
happen how people think. You get a bill passed to allow banks to clearly
serve this industry without a whole bunch of restrictions, and that
could be pseudo-legalization,” Walsh said. “So, the actual move by the
federal government to ‘legalize’ marijuana or let states decide might
not come for years; but that reality might play out anyway with some
other type of legislation.”
New regulation in older markets
In addition to the promise of new markets, the evolution of
established cannabis programs could also play a significant role in the
cannabis business landscape.
In California, the world’s largest cannabis industry has developed in fits and starts.
Regulators are taking aim at an entrenched illicit market as businesses
decry tax increases and local control measures that limit distribution.
“California is going to get worse before it gets better,” Walsh said.
And in Colorado, where the nation’s first legal recreational
cannabis sale took place, a slate of new laws are poised to shift the
cannabis landscape by allowing for social consumption businesses and the
ability for out-of-state and publicly traded companies to own licenses.
New products come to Canada
Canada’s “Cannabis 2.0” roll-out
of derivative products — such as edibles, vapes and beverages — is in
its beginning stages. The Canadian publicly traded licensed producers
that have been beset by missed and slow market development have bet
heavily on these new product forms.
But it takes time for provincial and state cannabis programs to get
off the ground, for businesses to come online and for production and
supply to get in a good balance with demand. So any big returns won’t
happen immediately, said Morgan Paxhia, managing director and co-founder
of cannabis investment firm Poseidon Asset Management.
“It’s not going to look any better in Q1 and really into Q2,” he said of the Canadian cannabis sector.
‘Blockbuster failures’
Overall, 2020 should bring volatility for cannabis companies in
Canada and the United States, he said, noting the industry’s current
business cycle is mirroring that of the dot-com bubble and subsequent
burst.
“There were very good companies that have emerged from that period,
but most of the companies during that time are gone,” he said. Paxhia
expects at least one — if not several — “blockbuster failures.”
The capital constraints are expected to continue into the first leg
of 2020 as some initial bets don’t pan out for some companies, said
Andrew Freedman, Colorado’s former cannabis czar who now runs Freedman
& Koski, a firm that consults with municipalities and states
navigating legalization.
Some companies’ low points could create opportunities for other
firms and investors that waited out the first cycle, Freedman said.
“In 2020, I see that everybody will understand the economics of cannabis a little bit better,” he said.
Source: https://edition.cnn.com/2020/01/09/business/cannabis-2020-legalization/index.html
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Posted by AGORACOM-JC
at 9:00 PM on Sunday, January 12th, 2020
SPONSOR: Tartisan Nickel (TN:CSE)
Kenbridge Property has a measured and indicated resource of 7.14
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Nickel demand set to rise in 2020 along with growth in electric vehicle sales
China is stepping up its efforts to be a leader in autonomous cars and is aiming for a quarter of all cars sold in the country to be new-energy vehicles by 2025
500,000 tonnes of refined nickel will be used annually in lithium-ion batteries for EVs by 2025 Â
Nickel’s demand outlook looks bright, especially from the electric vehicle sector of the automotive industry
Fastmarkets analysts estimate that
500,000 tonnes of refined nickel will be used annually in lithium-ion
batteries for EVs by 2025, up from 100,000 tonnes in 2018.
That growth in nickel consumption comes
even before the wider adoption of the nickel-cobalt-manganese (NCM)
8-1-1 battery, which the market expects to become an industry staple.
A recent report drafted by the Ministry
of Industry & Information Technology indicates that China will step
up its efforts to be a leader in autonomous cars and is aiming for a
quarter of all cars sold in the country to be new-energy vehicles [NEVs]
by 2025.
NEVs include electric cars, hybrids and fuel-cell vehicles.
Ban on nickel exports in Indonesia
In response to the risk of increasing
demand tightening local supply, the Indonesian government announced a
ban on the export of raw nickel ores, bringing the ban forward from 2022
to January 2020.
According to GlobalData director of
analysis David Kurtz, this ban is intended to produce value-added nickel
products, stimulate domestic processing of ore, and make the country a
hub for electric vehicle production.
Indonesia is the largest global producer
of nickel and a major supplier of the metal to China’s stainless steel
industry. In anticipation of the ban, Chinese producers are building up
nickel inventories.
This has increased the price of nickel
significantly, with prices at the end of September 2019 reaching more
than $16,000 per tonne, an increase of more than 60% from January.
When the ban was announced, nickel prices increased by 8.8% to reach a peak of $18,620 per tonne, the highest price since 2014.
Posted by AGORACOM-JC
at 10:00 AM on Friday, January 10th, 2020
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20 Blockchain Predictions for 2020
Blockchain is entering a pivotal year in 2020, a period that will decide not just the future of cryptocurrency, but blockchain and the very idea of decentralization.
As a Managing Partner at Digital Asset Risk Management Advisors
(DARMA Capital), and former Head of Global Business Development at
blockchain software powerhouse ConsenSys, I’ve had an inside look at the
rapid development of blockchain technology, the extreme volatility of
crypto markets, and the emerging ecosystem and culture of
decentralization. And let me tell you: Blockchain is entering a pivotal
year in 2020, a period that will decide not just the future of
cryptocurrency, but blockchain and the very idea of decentralization.
Buckle up, because it’s going to be quite the ride. Here are 20 predictions for blockchain in 2020.
1. Ethereum right now is like dial-up internet in 1996—14.4kbps. Soon it will be the equivalent of broadband.
Remember the days of dial-up internet? Let me take you back to 1996:
although AOL was quickly becoming a household name, getting online for
most required swapping tangled wired connections and clogging up phone
lines to access a limited range of products at a snail’s pace. With a
14.4kpbs connection, intrepid retail consumers could browse the world
wide web while transferring data at 1.8kbs per second. To download a
megabyte of data took over 9 minutes. All of the content was text-based
and bare bones, but it worked! Casual observers could see that this
technology would be useful, but few predicted the wholesale societal and
economic transformation the internet would bring to the world within a
matter of years.
Sound familiar? It’s directly analogous to where we’re currently at
with blockchain. 2020 in blockchain years is the equivalent of 1996 in
the internet era. Much like the internet, blockchain progress will kick
into overdrive with Moore’s Law, and Ethereum 2.0 will be the big red
button that launches us off of dial up and into broadband. (Disclosure:
I’ve owned Ethereum for several years.) The signs are all there. Almost
every sector and leading enterprise is looking into blockchain
implementation, governments are terrified of being left behind and are
scrambling to catch up, while the infrastructural elements are now in
place for developers to build, deploy, and scale products. In 2020 we
will begin to see what a decentralized future actually looks like.
2. Bitcoin and blockchain will finally break up
Bitcoin should be revered as the patriarch of digital assets. Bitcoin
confluenced cryptography, peer-to-peer networking, a virtual machine,
and a consensus formation algorithm to solve “the double spend†and “the
Byzantine general’s problem†elegantly. That said, time moves on. The
Bitcoin maximalists that believe Bitcoin is where this decentralizing
technology might be are in for a rude awakening.
As blockchain reaches a scaling watershed, there’s one key
differentiation that the world will come to acknowledge, one that
enthusiasts are likely already very familiar with—the difference between
Bitcoin, Ethereum and other decentralizing technologies. Bitcoin’s
ascension to digital gold has been astounding, and has signaled the
beginning of a whole new techno-economic era. But digital gold is just
that—a beginning.
The current market capitalization of gold is $8 trillion dollars.
That’s an eye-popping number, sure, but it represents a potential
ceiling market opportunity for Bitcoin’s “digital gold.†Smart
contract-enabled blockchains like Ethereum will digitize the global
economy and unlock value in the whole spectrum of assets and processes.
In turn, decentralized networks will reach into the farthest corners of
every industry on the planet (and beyond). We will be able to digitally
represent fiat, gold, software licenses, equity, debt, derivatives,
loyalty points, reputation ratings, and much much more that we can’t
even conceive of yet. That’s a market opportunity estimated at well over
$80 trillion dollars. Bitcoin is a singular use case. Comparatively,
Ethereum has infinite use cases.
3. The potential for global economic recession looms, fiat currencies be warned!
Economic uncertainty has been looming over the globe for years. It’s not so much a matter of if, but when the
house of cards tumbles with major worldwide implications. Europe will
likely be the first to hit recession. One look at the five biggest
economies in the region and it’s clear. Germany’s Deutschebank is on
life support. The United Kingdom has been eating itself with Brexit for
years. France is in a state of constant protest. The Spanish and Italian
economies are drowning. The European Union is by now only nominally a
union, and growing divisions will leave many nations especially
vulnerable.
With respect to the USA, let me paint two realities for you: In 2020,
China and the U.S. finally reach a real trade deal. The economy gets a
tailwind into 2021 and Donald Trump is re-elected. There’s another leg
to this stock market blow-off phase. The house of cards lives another
day. If there is no trade deal or no re-election and the global economy
is further challenged, the bottom could fall out of Quantitative Easing
Mania, and the value of many national currencies around the world will
be challenged like never before. The value of fiat currencies could
endure a precipitous drop in value via extreme inflation.
Digital assets have exiguous properties similar to gold and oil in
that they are provenly scarce. If and when this crisis lands, the
digital asset class will be the hedge to traditional central banking
systems that resort to printing—and thus depreciating—currencies in
times of crisis.
4. The U.S. will have to play catch-up after China’s big play in crypto and blockchain
In January 2020, a new suite of regulation will come into effect that
represents a sharp about turn by the Chinese government towards a
pro-blockchain and cryptocurrency stance. With new legislation towards
mining, state news channels praising Bitcoin, and Chinese President Xi
Jinping announced governmental support for blockchain technology in
October, it’s clear that China is making its move. China’s central bank
will soon test its own digital currency in the cities of Shenzhen and
Suzhou with four state-owned commercial banks. Countries like the United
States that may have been sluggish to take a leading role in supporting
blockchain development will be left with little choice but to play
catch-up, and the result will be a huge net positive for the industry.
5. We march onwards to Ethereum 2.0
The long-awaited Istanbul hard fork—the final hard fork of Ethereum
1.0—has successfully deployed. The Muir Glacier difficulty bomb delay
update was the cherry on top. Vitalik Buterin has already released a
block explorer for the Proof of Stake Beacon Chain, and the march
towards Ethereum 2.0 is proceeding at a rapid clip. Proof of Stake
Ethereum exists. It’s alive! The roadmap to Serenity
is in full effect. 2020 will see Ethereum move stridently beyond Phase 0
of Ethereum 2.0, onto Phase 1 and the launch of shard chains. Then,
it’s game on.
Ethereum developers have already proven their ability to work
wonders, and that this decentralized team is now in the stride of
hitting ambitious roadmap targets is the best indicator in all of
blockchain for future success. To daily observers, this upgrading
process may seem long and winding, but the extra time it takes to
develop the network properly will benefit the entirety of humanity.
While Web2 was defined by philosophies like ‘Move Fast, Break Things,’
Web3 should be guided by mantras like ‘Do it the Right Way This Time.’
6. Layer two scaling solutions will turbocharge Ethereum
Ogres, like onions—and like blockchain networks—are all about layers.
With the rollout of the Istanbul hard fork, Ethereum is on its way
towards 2.0 levels of scalability at layer one. Joe Lubin stated last
year at SXSW that Ethereum will process millions of
transactions a second. How it achieves this is a combination of steady
upgrades to the layer one network and integration of layer two scaling
implementations.
Poon and Buterik’s solution of Plasma’s “blockchains on blockchainsâ€
was not just brilliant and prescient, it was the inception of a whole
sector of Layer Two development. Sharded chains may occupy much of the
debate at the moment, but state channels being developed by Celer,
Connext, and Counterfactual will be the massive mycelial data network
underground that unleashes the main chain to operate unencumbered by
state weight. Sidechains will transact the bulk of lower-risk
transactions rapidly. Payment channels like Raiden will enable
instantaneous token transfers, while ZK-Snarks will keep all of your
data private amidst all the transactional action. The stack is all
there, and 2020 will see 2.0 come to life.
In the meantime, innovations like Plasma’s Optimistic Virtual Rollup
means that projects don’t have to wait for the transactional throughput
they need to flourish. That’s huge. There was a time when blockchain
scaling was driven by theory and hope. No longer! The incredible,
global, decentralized dev teams working on Ethereum will change the
world with this technology, and we are all eternally grateful.
7. Layers of the Web3.0 stack go live
A decentralized environment is about more than just shards and nodes,
and we’ll see that manifest in in 2020. Web3.0 will be defined by mesh
networks connecting smart contracts, file storage, messaging, payment
channels, side chains, oracles—the list goes on. 2020 will see many
essential infrastructural elements of Web3.0 go live.
What is Web3.0? Here’s a quick breakdown:
The digitization of all assets: Stocks, bonds, fiat
currencies, electrons, loyalty points, software licenses, Beyonce
concert tickets, insurance policies, derivatives and other assets
previously inconceivable, will become natively digital.
The automation of agreements: Microsoft Word legal
documents will turn into digitalIf > Then > Else lines of computer
code that will move the aforementioned digital assets trustlessly,
creating completely new business models like an employment agreement
that gets paid by the minute, a piece of art that can pay a royalty to
an artist every time it is sold from one owner to the next, a piece of
real estate that can pay its investors automatically every time rent
comes in, the ability to divide income amongst band members every time a
song is played, or routing an electron efficiently to various parts of a
micro-grid.
Self-Sovereign Identity: Instead of logging into
Airbnb, Facebook, Uber, et al, you will log into your own self-sovereign
browser, and will have the same ability to rent a hotel room, use
social media or hail a car, but instead of the legacy application
providers the same service will occur peer-to-peer, rather than through a
thin layer of rent-seeking intermediation. You’ll get paid $1 dollar a
day to look at advertising when on social media instead of Zuckerberg
and your ride and home shares will be 2/3rd of the current cost.
Some examples: The Interplanetary File System has already showed the
nature of data file storage on the decentralized web. Protocol Labs’
Filecoin builds on IPFS to rent users’ hard drive space for crypto. The
platform is on schedule to launch in March, with the testnet just launched very recently.
Helium is a mesh network where stakeholders purchase nodes under $500
to provide low bandwidth for Internet of Things devices. Tom
Shaughnessy of Delphi Digital recently noted, “Since going live on
August 1, 2019, over 2,130 nodes are live on the network covering 90% of
U.S. states across 425+ cities. At Verizon’s IoT costs (600KB/year for
$12), Helium is underpricing Verizon by 99.9988% ($0.00001 for 24 bytes
or 0.024 KB). This type of price consolidation we should expect from the
next generation of cell phone service providers, data storers, and
truly any intermediary via a decentralized world wide web.
Kyle Samani, and the team at Multicoin Capital have done a great job
of mapping a potential Web3.0 software stack with examples of companies
attempting to provide solutions. Although it remains the very early days
and we’ll see tremendous competition for a hegemonic position for all
layers of the Web3.0 stack, the Web3.0 stack will likely look a little
something like this:
Credit: Multicoin Capital
8. Expect a radically altered blockchain landscape by 2021
By the turn of 2021, we will have a much clearer picture of whether
newfangled layer one blockchain networks like Near, Polkadot, Dfinity,
and Nervos will be able to contribute substantially to the blockchain
ecosystem. Competition is good and I remind everyone that the goal is
global disintermediation, decentralization, and the commoditization of
trust, rather than a brand of protocol winning. That said, this sprint
to layer one supremacy has only spurred on the development of Ethereum
2.0, and the many competing elements are experimenting with new ways to
develop the best blockchain product. The answer to who will succeed lies
with developers and users.
Ethereum still retains the most robust developer engagement by far.
Some view this race as a winner-takes-all, but with so much to be gained
from developing this new technology, coopetition will raise the tide
for all. There could also be fit-for-purpose blockchains, that satisfy
particular niches. New competitors to the layer 1 space will have to
deal with Matteo Leibovitz’s “distribution quadrilemma,†which states
criteria that new networks must simultaneously satisfy at launch to
engender monetary premium. They are:
wide/equitable distribution
revenue generation
potential for upside
regulatorily compliant
The biggest challenge is requirement #4. If a VC or multiple whales
own a large amount of a network’s tokens—a ubiquitous occurrence with
layer one “Ethereum Killers†— it will be incredibly difficult to sway
the SEC that the token isn’t a security, which means all those big
investments and will disrupt nothing but VC piggy banks.
9. The tribulations of Libra will continue…
Facebook’s Libra will not go live in 2020 in any form of scale. The
“decentralized wolf in sheep’s clothing†has already done much to bring
blockchain to the forefront of global discourse—for better, and at
times, for worse. But the company is learning fast that consensus and
deployment do not always adhere to the best laid plans of even
billionaires. When it does go live, Libra will undoubtedly be a force of
education and adoption for billions of people. Farmville with crypto? I
can’t wait! Before it gets to that point, however, expect Chinese
organizations like WeChat, Alipay, and Alibaba to aggressively pursue
first mover status in the space given the recently relaxed regime in the
country. Trust in Facebook stagnates still as we enter another election
year in the US. If social media has proven so earth-shakingly
problematic, we can only guess what ills Facebook’s version of ‘social
banking’ may hold within.
10. Trillion dollar companies signal the climax and end of the 3rd industrial revolution
Apple. Microsoft. PetroChina. Saudi Aramco. When the next behemoth
rises over a trillion dollar valuation—it will stay there. That same
company probably won’t pay a single dollar in U.S. taxes. This is a
prime example of vast inequality in the value capture of our economic
systems, and it’s only getting worse. Legacy Web2.0 companies are making
billions for the shareholder capital class by using the individual as
the product. They’re spilling personal data into the clutches of
nefarious actors with alarming regularity. As more and more companies
pass the trillion dollar mark, it will signal the blow-off phase of late
capitalism. After the inevitable crash, we’ll be faced with a
once-in-an-epoch opportunity for more equitable, democratized, and
sustainable business models to proliferate. Will you be ready?
11. Self Sovereignty on the web will become a human right
With hacks and breaches in both Web2.0 and Web3.0 environments a
daily occurrence, it’s clear that change is a necessity. Projects like
the Decentralized Identity Foundation have taken major strides in
establishing open source standards that will furnish the whole
blockchain ecosystem with digital identity components that are
trustworthy and decentralized. Blockchain IDs and zero-trust datastores
like those created by uPort and 3box will rapidly replace the creaky
walled databases we rely on now. Establishing this web of trust may be
amongst the most important pieces of the blockchain puzzle in 2020.
Web2.0 stalwarts like IBM and Microsoft are well aware of the urgency
of the issue, and they’ve allocated substantial resources to iterating
digital identity in their own image. But self-sovereignty must be just
that—owned by our selves—before the internet can be truly democratized.
Ownership and privacy of data will soon be seen as a human right, and
self sovereignty is the solution to attaining it.
12. Say it with me…CME Ether futures
After Bitcoin futures options in January, I have a feeling that it’ll
be Ethereum’s turn. CME Ether Futures will be announced in 2020 and
will go live in 2020. The CME has an almost 125 year history of
innovation in financial instruments, birthing both new asset classes and
digitizing the process of exchange along the way. With Bitcoin and
Ethereum, the CME will continue this tradition of innovation, in turn
catalyzing legitimacy for digital assets and opening access doors for
mainstream investors and institutions to kickstart the next round of
market growth for digital assets. Futures & options create forward
demand curves that are a necessary precursor to a regulated ETF market.
Our once child-like asset class is growing up.
13. A billion dollar DeFi ecosystem is a matter of months away
Decentralized Finance will continue to lead the industry in the first
quarter of 2020. Over $600 million dollars are currently locked up in
decentralized finance platforms. That number will cross one billion
before summer. Organizations like a16z have bet big on platforms MKR and
Compound, while projects like Synthetix, Uniswap, dYdX, and InstaDapp
are furnishing a feverishly active sector of the blockchain ecosystem,
one that isn’t immediately contingent upon scaling timelines. That said,
DeFi organizations will probably have to spend some big legal dollars
in compliance and lobbying. Just one example: in all 50 states, a
company needs a specific license to lend to retail clients. When DeFi
inevitably gets too big to ignore, regulators will roll out the red tape
carpet.
14. The sleeping giant of blockchain awakens — supply chain
Counterfeit goods represent a market of over $1.8 billion dollars
annually, with some estimates seeing that number rising over 10% as
production and online distribution methods improve. Household names like
Louis Vuitton and Levi’s have been quietly perfecting proof of concept
trials with leading blockchain companies to ensure provenance and
protect consumers on a global scale. Treum has already shown the value
of blockchain-ensured supply chain processes on items ranging from salsa
to tuna to skincare products. Now, major box retailers like Walmart and
international food corporations Nestle and Dole are diving in head
first. A recent report stated that companies in Western Europe alone are
set to save $450 billion dollars in the next fifteen years with
blockchain based supply chain solutions, with operating costs reduced
almost 1% across the board. That’s a whole lotta tuna!
15. Art and music will take a lead in consumer-interfacing blockchain applications
Blockchain’s impact on art, music, and the creative space will be
profound. In a 2014 report, The Fine Arts Expert Institute (FAEI) in
Geneva stated that over 50% of artworks it had examined were either
forged or not attributed to the correct artist. Blockchain can fix this
now, and I’ve experienced it myself. This year, I purchased a work of
art titled “The Human Way†by Vladimir Kush. The payment, certificate of
authenticity, and ownership history were irrevocably recorded on the
Ethereum blockchain with Treum. By this time next year, this process
will be far more commonplace. And it’s not just provenance that makes
the arts a prime field for blockchain implementation. Tokenized
ownership and the establishment of equitable business models not
beholden to gatekeepers have the attention of the art world already.
Watch this space.
16. Proof of Work is dying while killing Earth. Long live Proof of Stake.
Retro gaming may be in vogue, but by the end of 2020, Proof of Work
will be considered the Atari while we’re all getting used to the
controls on the Proof of Stake Playstation. Vitalik Buterin and Ethereum
were early adopters of the concept of Proof of Stake, and now there’s a
whole industry of projects utilizing stake-based validators to uphold
blockchain networks. The reason why is clear: Not only does it unlock
the scalability trilemma in terms of speed and security, it is far less
taxing on the Earth—y’know, the thing we’re trying to change with this
whole decentralization movement anyway. Proof of Work is inherently
wasteful, and what’s the point of revolutionizing economic systems if it
means contributing to the destruction of the environment? It’s time to
move forward.
17. Regulators gonna regulate
While the expectations of the blockchain and larger tech world may
move fast, regulators and governments were built to move slowly. Digital
assets have now moved out of a phase of distrust by legislative and
regulatory institutions, and policy at both the agency and legislative
level is aligning to unshackle the technology and streamline regulation.
The most recent guidance from the IRS in October suggests that the US
government acknowledges that virtual currencies will play a big part in
the economy to come. Further, it is well known that the CFTC does not
see Ether as a security. Wyoming’s leadership in this regard—with a
total of 13 pro-blockchain laws—is behooving other states to catch up.
And if there’s one thing that will provide an impetus for the federal
government to move forward on the issue, it’s not being left behind by
China. 2020 will see positive guidance on blockchain introduced at the
state, national, and international level.
18. The unbanked remain unbanked — For now
Decentralized Finance is a remarkable phenomenon with major
implications for both blockchain and global economies, but for the time
being it will continue to fall short of the oft-repeated mantra and goal
of ‘banking the unbanked’ via providing access to financial services to
billions of people around the world who need it most. Why? As it
stands, the lending community is insular, and issues around ‘reputation’
mean that those who need it most can’t access it. These will surely be
ironed out over time, but for the duration of 2020, Decentralized
Finance will continue to steadily grow in an enlarging, but closed
circle. And that’s not a bad thing. Look at it this way: The sector is
already approaching the billion dollar mark, and we’re still effectively
in beta mode.
19. User Experience Will Have To Be Better Than Web2.0
Apple’s iPhone is the best selling phone ever because it’s simple and
it works. That’s all the consumer needs to know. While many of us tech
nerds get our jollies tinkering around the various layers of the Web3.0
stack, everything will need to be abstracted away for the
typical Web3.0 user experience to appeal to the general populous. That’s
why masterfully artistic UI/UX designers are as important to this
industry right now as low layer distributed systems computer scientists.
But UX/UI isn’t just about clean lines and minimal design. From
standards to libraries, toolkits, scaling solutions, onboarding, custody
and wallet integration, there’s so much that has to be optimized
beneath the screen to present that level of functional simplicity. Rimble
is an example of an open-source library for creating improved user
experiences for Web3.0 decentralized applications. Expect this to be a
prime sector for development in 2020. While the first wave of
decentralized consumer apps put blockchain front and center, the next
will be led by projects that are more subtle and nuanced in the method
of blockchain integration.
The bubble and burst of cryptocurrency in 2017 was like an excessive
frat house rager that led to a helluva hangover in 2018 and 2019. There
are two types of bubbles, though. Some — like the housing crash of 2008 —
leave behind debt encumbrances and waste, while others — like the
dot.com bubble — establish foundational infrastructure and crystallize
key organizations which go on to become a backbone of the industry. The
crypto bubble is akin to the latter, and will lead to the real
blockchain boom, one driven by utility, not speculation.
In the wake of crypto markets’ irrational exuberance in 2017 and
equally irrational despondency in 2018, the core blockchain community of
developers and technologists got to work, heads down, and focused on
building infrastructure. Their labor is now bearing fruit. We’re at the
crossroads of the next industrial revolution, and it begins in 2020.
This progress towards global decentralization and automation will lead
to the most prosperous society we’ve ever had.
Here’s to the roaring 20’s!
Andrew Keys is a managing partner of Digital Asset Risk Management Advisors (DARMA Capital), a digital asset investment fund. Previously, Andrew was head of global business development of ConsenSys,
the largest software engineering firm in the world solely focused on
creating blockchain solutions to build the future of the Internet. Jemayel Khawaja,
Editorial Director at ConsenSys, aided in the research and writing of
these predictions. This article is not intended as investment advice or
solicitation. These are Andrew’s personal views and not that of DARMA
Capital or ConsenSys.
Posted by AGORACOM-JC
at 4:48 PM on Thursday, January 9th, 2020
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However, there seems to be a gap between cannabis demand and supply in Canada
It’s been a year since Canada legalized marijuana, but it seems consumers in the country are still struggling to obtain legal cannabis
This demand-supply imbalance took a toll on cannabis companies’ revenues and stock prices last year
Let’s take a closer look at the demand-supply imbalance in Canada.
The cannabis demand-supply landscape in Canada
Health Canada has come up with a national Cannabis Tracking System to
keep track of the cannabis produced and sold across the country. The
intention is to keep a check on illegal cannabis sales. Health Canada requires federal license holders and provincial and territorial growers to report this data on a monthly basis.
Another objective behind this move could be to ensure that cannabis
producers aren’t growing marijuana illegally. Such was the case last
year with CannTrust (NYSE:CTST). The company was found to be growing marijuana illegally and was reportedly in violation of Health Canada’s regulations.
The monthly report tracks the sales of medical and recreational
marijuana. It also takes into account the cannabis inventories held by
retailers and distributors. Here are a few details from the report for
the period that ended on September 30, 2019:
Total sales of dried cannabis fell by 0.4% to 12,922 kilograms on a month-to-month basis.
Cannabis oil total sales rose by 4.8% to 11,187 liters on a month-to-month basis.
The total amount of finished dried cannabis inventory rose by 5% to 64,151 kilograms on a month-to-month basis.
The total amount of finished cannabis oil inventory rose by 1.1% to 102,060 liters on a month-to-month basis.
“Finished inventory†here implies that the products are ready and
packed for sale. The finished inventory for dried cannabis was higher
for both provincial and territorial distributors and retailers and
federal license holders.
For dried cannabis, federal license holders saw a 5.7% increase in
finished inventories, while provincial and territorial distributors and
retailers saw a 4.3% increase. Additionally, for cannabis oil, federal
license holders saw a 2.6% increase in inventories, while provincial and
territorial distributors and retailers saw a 1.4% decrease.
What caused the imbalance?
Canada legalized marijuana in October 2018. The demand for marijuana
was high in the country. Thus, producers cultivated more cannabis,
hoping to meet this demand. However, regulatory procedures were slow and
strenuous, which resulted in a delay in the licensing and opening of
new legal stores. The delay resulted in higher inventories and caused
supply issues. Hence, cannabis sales
were affected across Canada. Looking at the data for September, we can
conclude that most retailers had products ready for sale. However, the
lack of stores caused a supply issue and a rise in inventory.
Moreover, the licensing process isn’t that simple. A Cannabiz Media article stated,
“The amount of time to obtain a license to grow marijuana in Canada’s
legal market was excessive with some cultivators waiting months or even a
year. Once a grower obtained a cultivation license, it needed to
produce two full crops, have them tested, get its sales software
audited, and apply for a sales license, which could take another year.â€
How’s the marijuana demand and supply situation in the US?
While we’re on the subject, let’s talk about the demand and supply
situation in the US. Marijuana isn’t legal at the federal level in the
US. However, 33 states and the District of Columbia allow medical
marijuana. Additionally, 11 states and the District of Columbia allow
recreational marijuana.
Black market sales are a matter of concern even in the US. California,
which legalized medical marijuana in 1996 and adult-use marijuana in
2016, also suffers from illicit cannabis activity. An article by
Cannabis Business Plan discussed how cannabis consumers in the state
will initially be inclined toward the illegal market to avoid regulatory costs. The article also stated
that predictions show that by 2022, the marijuana market in the state
could be worth $7.7 billion driven mostly by recreational marijuana.
Cannabiz Media also discussed how states such as Michigan are facing
supply shortages due to a lack of licensed growers. Recently, recreational marijuana sales went live in Michigan. Pennsylvania faced similar problems when demand for medical cannabis couldn’t match supply in the state.
Furthermore, the abundance of marijuana resulted in losses for many
licensed cultivators as prices fell. Obtaining capital for cannabis
businesses is still an issue in the US. Banks and financial institutions
are scared to provide help to cannabis companies because marijuana is
still illegal federally. However, hopes are that the passing of the SAFE
Act could smooth this process.
How are cannabis companies coping with the demand-supply situation?
The demand-supply imbalance hit cannabis companies’ revenues and
profitabilities last year. After Canada legalized cannabis, companies
increased their production capacities to match demand. However, the lack
of legal stores caused a supply issue. Initially, Ontario was strict
with its cannabis laws. Recently, though, after the second phase of
legalization, Ontario relaxed its laws to tackle the problem of black market sales. Canada’s three largest provinces now expect higher sales this year from the Cannabis 2.0 expansion.
Cannabis edibles are in high demand among marijuana products. Hence,
consumers turned to the black market to obtain these products when
Canada hadn’t legalized edibles. The prices of cannabis products on the
black market are also lower than they are on the legal market. Now, with
Cannabis 2.0 products ready to hit the stores, marijuana companies
expect to recover their losses in 2020. These companies are ready with a
variety of edibles, vapes, and beverages.
Though analysts expect a turnaround in 2020,
they’ve kept a subdued outlook on marijuana companies’ 2020 revenues.
Some analysts feel regulations and licensing delays could still affect
Cannabis 2.0 revenues this year. Companies’ 2020 revenue estimates are
as follows:
Cronos Group’s fiscal 2020 revenue could be around 146.1 million Canadian dollars.
HEXO’s fiscal 2020 revenue could be around 79.1 million Canadian dollars.
Final thoughts
The demand-supply imbalance in the cannabis market is an important
issue. However, we also have to consider that the industry is a growing
one and will have its ups and downs. Currently, the flow of regulations
isn’t smooth, which is causing licensing and cultivation delays. It may
take some time for things to smooth out in the industry.
Many also feel that federal legalization will help balance the demand-supply issue in the US. Nevertheless, considering the efforts by Canada and certain states in the US, we can expect a turnaround in 2020.
Stay tuned to learn more about the ins and outs of the marijuana industry.
Posted by AGORACOM-JC
at 4:16 PM on Thursday, January 9th, 2020
In late December completed first harvest at Salinas, California cultivation facility
Harvested 2,687 plants that were included in the acquisition of the Qlora Group
TORONTO, Jan. 09, 2020 — North Bud Farms Inc.(CSE: NBUD) (OTCQB: NOBDF) (“NORTHBUD” or the “Company“) is pleased to provide shareholders with the following corporate update:
Cannabis Production Facility in Salinas, California
In late December we completed our first harvest at our Salinas,
California cultivation facility. We harvested 2,687 plants that were
included in the acquisition of the Qlora Group (“Qloraâ€). The Company
anticipates completing testing and sale of the product in late January
2020, which will represent the first revenue generated by the Company in
California. The Company has also completed an in-depth review and
analysis of both the infrastructure and cultivation practices and will
be implementing significant efficiencies over the course of the next
four harvests. The Company anticipates continual harvests of 2,000-3,000
plants every 25 days, with quality and yield improving with each
harvest. This product will be sold via wholesale agreements to existing
Qlora clients in the interim as we prepare for the launch of NORTHBUD
branded flower products in California in the third quarter of 2020.
“Despite challenges faced by the cultivation team during this period
of transition, we are extremely excited to be harvesting our first crops
and look forward to continual improvements as we implement procedural
and infrastructure efficiencies,†said Justin Braune, President of
Bonfire Brands USA, a wholly owned subsidiary of NORTHBUD.
Cannabis Production Facility in Reno, Nevada
The Company is pleased to announce the completion of the first
harvest of approximately 175 indoor grown plants. Upon the completion of
testing and processing, the product will be distributed as NORTHBUD
flower, pre-rolls and infused pre-rolls into selected Nevada
dispensaries. The launching of NORTHBUD branded products into Nevada
marks a significant milestone for the Company.
Status of Cultivation Licence Application for Cannabis Production Facility in Low, Quebec
On September 18, 2019, the Company received a confirmation of receipt
of the site evidence package submitted in late August 2019. On November
22, 2019, the Company received a request for information from Health
Canada (the “Requestâ€). The Request was received
within the 60-business day service window for feedback provided by the
regulator. The Company is pleased to report that the Request was
responded to in full in advance of the December 8th deadline. The
Request did not contain any notices of deficiencies in the Company’s
cultivation licence application nor did it require the Company to make
any modifications or changes to its facility.
On December 19, 2019 the Company received a subsequent follow-up
request for information consisting of two questions which were responded
to that same day, and on December 20th, the Company received a request
to clarify the roles of recently-hired employees in relation to the
requested cultivation licence. This request was responded to in full on
January 3, 2020. The Company has received no further communication from
Health Canada.
The Company is confident that the approval process is on track and
within comparable timelines experienced by other publicly-traded
companies who have recently submitted evidence packages. At this time,
the Company cannot predict when it will be granted a cultivation licence
by Health Canada. The Company will update shareholders on any further
progress on the application.
Annual General Meeting
The Company wishes to inform shareholders that it will hold its
Annual General and Special Meeting at 1:00 p.m. ET on Monday, February
3, 2020 at the office of McMillan LLP, World Exchange Plaza, Suite 2000,
Ottawa, Ontario. The Company will file the required information for the
annual and special meeting under its issuer profile on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.
Staffing and Personnel
The Company is pleased to announce the hiring of Adam Shapero as
General Counsel. Adam comes to NORTHBUD after serving as Director of
Risk Management, Corporate Secretary and Senior Counsel at Origin House
(CSE: OH), who was recently acquired by Cresco Labs (CSE: CL) in a
transaction valued at ~ $520 million. “We are extremely pleased to
welcome Adam to our team,†said Sean Homuth, CEO of NORTHBUD. “His
first-hand experience in the Cannabis industry will add tremendous value
to our team while reducing our reliance on external counsel.â€
About North Bud Farms Inc.
North Bud Farms Inc., through its wholly owned subsidiary GrowPros
MMP Inc., is pursuing a license under The Cannabis Act. The Company has
built a state-of-the-art purpose-built cannabis production facility
located on 135 acres of Agricultural Land in Low, Quebec, Canada.
NORTHBUD through its wholly owned U.S. subsidiary, Bonfire Brands USA
has acquired cannabis production facilities in California and Nevada.
The Salinas, California property is located on 11 acres which currently
consists of a 300,000 sq. ft. of licensable greenhouse space with 60,000
sq. ft. actively cultivating cannabis and a 2,000 sq. ft. building
licensed for distribution. The Reno, Nevada property is located on 3.2
acres of land which was acquired through the acquisition of Nevada
Botanical Science, Inc. a world class cannabis production, research and
development facility with 5,000 sq. ft. of indoor cultivation which
holds medical and adult use licenses for cultivation, extraction and
distribution.
Neither the CSE nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is
defined in the policies of the CSE) accepts responsibility for the
adequacy or accuracy of this release.
Forward-looking statements Certain statements and
information included in this press release that, to the extent they are
not historical fact, constitute forward-looking information or
statements (collectively, “forward-looking statementsâ€) within the
meaning of applicable securities legislation. Forward-looking
statements, including, but not limited to, those identified by the
expressions “anticipateâ€, “believeâ€, “planâ€, “estimateâ€, “expectâ€,
“intendâ€, “mayâ€, “should†and similar expressions to the extent they
relate to the Company or its management.
Forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to, those
regarding the success of the Company’s licence application in Quebec,
future sales of cannabis in California and Nevada, plant harvest yields
at the Company’s California and Nevada operations, conditions in the
cannabis market, the Company entering agreements in connection with the
B2B supply of cannabis and the Company’s transition into a revenue
generating operational phase of development are based on the reasonable
assumptions, estimates, analysis and opinions of management made in
light of its experience and its perception of trends, current conditions
and expected developments, as well as other factors that management
believes to be relevant and reasonable in the circumstances at the date
that such statements are made, but which may prove to be incorrect.
Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks,
uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results,
performance or achievements of the Company to differ materially from any
future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the
forward-looking statements. Such risks and uncertainties include,
among others, the risk factors included in the Company’s final long form
prospectus dated August 21, 2018, which is available under the
Company’s SEDAR profile at www.sedar.com.
Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on any such
forward-looking statements. Further, any forward-looking statement
speaks only as of the date on which such statement is made. New factors
emerge from time to time, and it is not possible for the Company’s
management to predict all of such factors and to assess in advance the
impact of each such factor on the Company’s business or the extent to
which any factor, or combination of factors, may cause actual results to
differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking
statements. The Company does not undertake any obligation to update any
forward-looking statements to reflect information, events, results,
circumstances or otherwise after the date hereof or to reflect the
occurrence of unanticipated events, except as required by law including
securities laws. This news release does not constitute an offer to sell
or a solicitation of any offer to buy any securities of the Company.
FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT: North Bud Farms Inc. Edward Miller VP, IR & Communications Office: (855) 628-3420 ext. 3 [email protected]
Posted by AGORACOM-JC
at 1:24 PM on Thursday, January 9th, 2020
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New tool uses AI to flag fake news for media fact-checkers
A new artificial intelligence (AI) tool could help social media networks and news organizations weed out false stories.
The tool uses deep-learning AI algorithms to determine if claims
made in posts or stories are supported by other posts and stories on the
same subject.
By: University of Waterloo
A new artificial intelligence (AI) tool could help social media networks and news organizations weed out false stories.
The tool, developed by researchers at the University of Waterloo,
uses deep-learning AI algorithms to determine if claims made in posts or
stories are supported by other posts and stories on the same subject.
“If they are, great, it’s probably a real story,” said Alexander
Wong, a professor of systems design engineering at Waterloo. “But if
most of the other material isn’t supportive, it’s a strong indication
you’re dealing with fake news.”
Researchers were motivated to develop the tool by the proliferation
of online posts and news stories that are fabricated to deceive or
mislead readers, typically for political or economic gain.
Their system advances ongoing efforts to develop fully automated
technology capable of detecting fake news by achieving 90 per cent
accuracy in a key area of research known as stance detection.
Given a claim in one post or story and other posts and stories on the
same subject that have been collected for comparison, the system can
correctly determine if they support it or not nine out of 10 times.
That is a new benchmark for accuracy by researchers using a large
dataset created for a 2017 scientific competition called the Fake News
Challenge.
While scientists around the world continue to work towards a fully
automated system, the Waterloo technology could be used as a screening
tool by human fact-checkers at social media and news organizations.
“It augments their capabilities and flags information that doesn’t
look quite right for verification,” said Wong, a founding member of the
Waterloo Artificial Intelligence Institute. “It isn’t designed to
replace people, but to help them fact-check faster and more reliably.”
AI algorithms at the heart of the system were shown tens of thousands
of claims paired with stories that either supported or didn’t support
them. Over time, the system learned to determine support or non-support
itself when shown new claim-story pairs.
“We need to empower journalists to uncover truth and keep us
informed,” said Chris Dulhanty, a graduate student who led the project.
“This represents one effort in a larger body of work to mitigate the
spread of disinformation.”
Posted by AGORACOM-JC
at 11:00 AM on Thursday, January 9th, 2020
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Sustainable low cost, high quality cannabinoid production and
procurement focusing on both bio-pharmaceutical development and
Cannabinoid Infused Products. Learn More.
When CBD met chocolate
The health-conscious, environmentally-aware consumer has encouraged
new trends in the chocolate sector that affect flavour, texture and
harvesting. Greater Goods has gone one step further, infusing the
beloved food of the gods with CBD. Bethan Grylls hears from its
co-founder about why this combination works.
Indulgent, premium and good-for-you: these words will be familiar to
the modern-day confectioner as they look to address current trends1 and
differentiate themselves in a competitive market. Be it a new sensory
experience across taste, texture or colour; the lure of single-origin
sourcing; or a guilt-free treat, the realms of chocolate innovation and
buyer demands have stretched well beyond the days of penny sweets.
Some brands have taken things one step further, combining trends like
organic, fair trade and non-GMO confectionery, with the demand for CBD –
a term that was Googled 6. 4 million times during April 2019.2
Greater Goods, based in
Oregon, US, is one example, offering its customers a selection of
cannabinoid-infused ‘goodies’. Despite being a modest husband and wife
venture, the team says they are looking to compete against the larger
companies through hand-crafted, fun and unusually-flavoured products.
Posted by AGORACOM-JC
at 9:56 AM on Thursday, January 9th, 2020
GEMS™ Mobile and the HeartCheck™ CardiBeat to be integrated with the CareOS smart mirror
Entered into a partnership agreement with CareOS SAS , a subsidiary of Baracoda Group (“CareOS“), to provide consumer ECG monitoring technologies through the CareOS Poseidon smart mirror health and beauty hub.
TORONTO, ONTARIO /January 8, 2020 / CardioComm Solutions, Inc. (TSXV:EKG)(OTCPINK:EKGGF)(“CardioComm” or the “Company“), a global provider of consumer heart monitoring and electrocardiogram (“ECG“) device and software solutions, is pleased to confirm it has entered into a partnership agreement with CareOS SAS (France), a subsidiary of Baracoda Group (“CareOS“), to provide consumer ECG monitoring technologies through the CareOS Poseidon smart mirror health and beauty hub.
The partnership will see CardioComm’s FDA and Health Canada cleared
GEMS™ ECG management software and Smart Monitoring ECG reading service
integrated into the touch and gesture controlled smart mirror. The
GEMSTM software will be capable of recognizing ECG devices made by
multiple device manufacturers which will permit CareOS customers more
options in choosing a device of their preference. The HeartCheck™
CardiBeat will be a CareOS recommended device given its availability in
Canada, the US and Europe. When taking an ECG, the user will activate
the smart mirror’s display to connect to a selected ECG device. The
Smart mirror will also display the ECG trace in real-time during the
recording. Once recorded the ECG can be replayed and there will be no
limit to the number of ECG reports the user can generate. Users will
also have the option to send any of the recorded ECGs to CardioComm’s
SMART Monitoring ECG reading service to have the ECG reviewed and a
triage ECG report provided.
CareOS’ interest to integrate CardioComm’s easy-to-use ECG monitoring
technologies into the Poseidon smart mirror compliments both companies’
objectives to produce a credible, privacy-first, intuitive personal
care platform that improves wellbeing and long term health. The
innovative Poseidon smart mirror was also awarded the Consumer
Electronics Show (“CES“) Innovation Award in the Smart Home category for a second consecutive year.
CardioComm was the first company to enter the personalized ECG
monitoring market and it did so to address an unmet availability of
medically credible heart monitoring solutions to the consumer market.
The Company is motivated to develop partnerships with innovative
organizations like CareOS, to assist in bringing new “firsts” to market
that can leverage medically credentialed technologies that physicians
are already familiar with and that will enhance the consumer’s health
monitoring experience.
CardioComm is listed as a partner on the CareOS website and the Company will also be present at CES.
To learn more about CardioComm’s products and for further updates
regarding HeartCheck™ ECG device integrations please visit the Company’s
websites at www.cardiocommsolutions.com and www.theheartcheck.com.
About CardioComm Solutions
CardioComm Solutions’ patented and proprietary technology is used in
products for recording, viewing, analyzing and storing
electrocardiograms for diagnosis and management of cardiac patients.
Products are sold worldwide through a combination of an external
distribution network and a North American-based sales team. CardioComm
Solutions has earned the ISO 13485:2016 MDSAP certification, is HIPAA
compliant and holds clearances from the European Union (CE Mark), the
USA (FDA) and Canada (Health Canada).
About CareOS
CareOS, digital center of self care, is a privacy-first, intuitive,
open platform for personal intelligence that works naturally into an
individual’s hygiene, beauty, wellness and preventative care rituals. It
makes the best possible use of time we spend in front of a mirror to
improve our health and appearance by organizing and enhancing
information from connected devices, digital services and CareOS’s own
AI, powered by Tensorflow Lite. CareOS is a Baracoda Group company, led
by experts with decades of experience in connected devices and wellness,
specifically to provide support to consumers in their bathrooms,
salons, spas and retail stores. To learn more about CareOS, please visit
the Company’s website at https://care-os.com/.
This release may contain certain forward-looking statements and
forward-looking information with respect to the financial condition,
results of operations and business of CardioComm Solutions and certain
of the plans and objectives of CardioComm Solutions with respect to
these items. Such statements and information reflect management’s
current beliefs and are based on information currently available to
management. By their nature, forward-looking statements and
forward-looking information involve risk and uncertainty because they
relate to events and depend on circumstances that will occur in the
future and there are many factors that could cause actual results and
developments to differ materially from those expressed or implied by
these forward-looking statements and forward-looking information.
In evaluating these statements, readers should not place undue
reliance on forward-looking statements and forward-looking information.
The Company does not assume any obligation to update the forward-looking
statements and forward-looking information contained in this release
other than as required by applicable laws, including without limitation,
Section 5.8(2) of National Instrument 51-102 (Continuous Disclosure Obligations).
Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as
that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts
responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
Posted by AGORACOM-JC
at 11:15 AM on Wednesday, January 8th, 2020
SPONSOR: CardioComm Solutions (EKG: TSX-V)
– The heartbeat of cardiovascular medicine and telemedicine. Patented
systems enable medical professionals, patients, and other healthcare
professionals, clinics, hospitals and call centres to access and manage
patient information in a secure and reliable environment.
mHealth Market is Expected to Be the Fastest Growing By 2025
According to experts from TMR, the global mHelath market stood at US$23.9 bn in 2017.
This revenue is expected to gain an
impressive value of US$118.4bn by the end of 2025. Experts project this
growth to occur with a meteoric CAGR of 22.1% during the forecast period
from 2017 to 2025.
The globalmHelath market bears
a highly fragmented vendor landscape, says Transparency Market Research
(TMR) in a recently published report. This is solely because of the
existence of large, medium, and small-scale players in the market. Withings, FitBit, Apple Inc., Jawbone, and Dexcom are the dominant players working in the global mHelath market.
Out of the various strategic alliances
adopted by players in the global mHelath market to hold a sizeable
stakes, capitalizing on the emerging opportunities and acquiring latest
technologies and tools has gained maximum popularity. The level of
competition among leading vendors is getting escalated with rising use
of technologies and smart devices such as wearables. The global mHelath
market is expected to grow steadily due to the presence of highly
established players who are concentrating on improving their product
quality, facilitating product differentiation, and enhancing
geographical reach. These companies are also attempting to introduce
advanced and new products into the industry on a daily basis.
According to experts from TMR, the
global mHelath market stood at US$23.9 bn in 2017. This revenue is
expected to gain an impressive value of US$118.4bn by the end of 2025.
Experts project this growth to occur with a meteoric CAGR of 22.1%
during the forecast period from 2017 to 2025.
Among various products in the global
mHelath market, connected medical devices hold substantial share, which
is expected to boost the global mHelath market during the forecast
period. This is because of rising focus towards fitness and increasing
use of heart rate monitors among people. Region wise, North America is
expected to lead the global mHelath market in the coming years. This is
attributed to a strong technological infrastructure along with high
healthcare expenditure in the region.
Integration of Wireless Technologies to Fuel mHealth Market’s Growth
Health-related technologies and mobile
applications are often known as mHealth, which helps in managing
patients’ experiences. Such health mobile technologies and apps utilize
advanced data analytics to help medical professionals in providing their
patients best care at low cost. These health mobile applications
facilitate easy and better health management through simple apps such as
diet, exercise trackers, and calorie-counting. Such USPs are driving
the global mHelath market. Along with this, rising penetration of
internet connections and smartphones, and rapid technological
advancements in healthcare industry are the factors majorly fueling
growth in the global mHelath market.
Furthermore, mHelath ensures continuous
communication between medical professionals and patients, thereby allow
physicians to monitor, and diagnose patients without seeing them in
person. Such benefits are also boosting the global mHelath market. Apart
from these, rapid adoption of connected devices for monitoring various
chronic diseases, and increasing demand for cost-effective medical
services are also propelling expansion in the global mHelath market.
Low Physician Density May Hinder mHealth Market’s Growth
Growing reluctance of physicians to move
over conventional methods, lack of regulations, concerns about data
security, and low density of skilled professionals are some of the major
challenges in the global mHealth market. Nonetheless, persistent demand
and rising prevalence of various lifestyle disorders is believed to
help industry players overcome these challenges in the near future.
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Canadians Bought 100 Tonnes Of Legal Cannabis In First Year
Canadians bought nearly 100 tonnes of legal recreational cannabis in its first year of availability, according to new figures released by Health Canada.
Health Canada said 88,676 kilograms of dried flower cannabis was sold
in Canada in the first year of legalization, according to its Cannabis
Tracking System. Overall sales of legal dried cannabis by weight have
nearly tripled since October 2018.
Statistics Canada said Tuesday that Canadian household spending on
cannabis totaled $1.27 billion in the third quarter of 2019, with the
illicit market accounting for $860 million of that figure and the legal
market estimated at $417 million.
While 100 tonnes may sound like a lot, the amount sold through legal
channels was far below what analysts projected Canadian demand would be,
a sign that the illicit market continues to weigh on legal sales. CIBC
World Markets said in mid-2018 that the Canadian market would demand
about 400,000 kilograms of legal pot annually, while the Bank of Nova
Scotia forecast total cannabis demand in Canada will be 900,000
kilograms this year.
Health Canada also said that the total active cultivation area for
cannabis in the country reached 1.78 million square metres at the end of
September, a sizable jump from the 452,896 square meters of cultivation
that was licensed for legal pot a year earlier. Nearly five million
cannabis plants were being grown by producers at the end of the first
year of legalization, Health Canada said.
