... even the most skilled humans.

Reports The New York Times: "One robot arm endlessly forms three perfect bends in two connector wires and slips them into holes almost too small for the eye to see. The arms work so fast that they must be enclosed in glass cages to prevent the people supervising them from being injured. And they do it all without a coffee break — three shifts a day, 365 days a year."

Ok, so a single Swallow does not a summer make!

But it's a situation that could trigger a seismic change in the Western world's current practice of outsourcing manufacturing processes to low labour-cost economies in the Asia-Pacific region.

Predicts the NYT: "This is the future. A new wave of robots, far more adept than those now commonly used by automakers and other heavy manufacturers, are replacing workers around the world in both manufacturing and distribution.

"Factories like the one here in the Netherlands are a striking counterpoint to those used by Apple and other consumer electronics giants, which employ hundreds of thousands of low-skilled workers."

Claims  electrical engineer Binne Visser, who oversees the Philips assembly line in Drachten:“With these machines, we can make any consumer device in the world.”

Doubtless Apple Inc, the world's largest company [by share valuation], has already taken note of this trend - maybe asking itself whether US-domiciled robots might do a more cost-effective job than its current China-based subcontractor?

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Factual data only is sourced from the original attributed article. The data is then enhanced by additional research and comment.

... a 'virtual you' that can be sent anywhere in the world. 

So how does it have the edge over standard teleconferencing? Explains Double Robotics: The latter "would be perfect if every important conversation happened in the conference room.

"Double allows you to move around and join people in any location, so you can participate in the conversations that happen in the lunch room or at the water fountain. Because Double simply improves upon existing teleconferencing, you can use it in all the same places as those old systems too.

Among the locales and functions for which Double is designed are:

• Offices with multiple locations where Double can communicate with remote teams. Remote workers feel more connected with their colleagues and have more independence around the office.
   
• Retail stores where Double serves as a mobile kiosk, giving customers more information about the products. Also brands can offer personal sales representatives and support from remote specialists in a central location.
   
• Hospitals in remote locations where specialists can be on-call with Double. Doctors can also visit patients more often amid their busy schedules.
   
• Museums and galleries can offer remote tours on Double, so patrons can experience world-renowned exhibits from anywhere on earth.

But what happens if the gizmo's battery goes flat?  Explains the company: "Efficient motors and lightweight design give Double the ability to last all day without recharging the battery.

"Where you're not moving, a retractable kickstand automatically deploys to conserve power when you are not moving around."

The robot has already proved a huge success, Double claims, with the first production run already sold out.

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Factual data only is sourced from the original attributed article. The data is then enhanced by additional research and comment.

... has failed to stir more than a minuscule minority of retailers and consumers.

According to the consortium's website: "Combined, these participating member merchants already serve nearly every smartphone-enabled American on a weekly basis, giving MCX the unique ability to offer a mobile-commerce solution that truly works for consumers."

The combined annual sales of MCX's founding members total around $1 trillion. As the market for mobile transactions grows, MCX members would doubtless like to munch as much of that mouthwatering pie as possible.

According to a Juniper Research report, although sales of physical goods by mobile phone are only expected to account for 4% of retail transactions by 2017, they will amount to more than $1.3 trillion in total revenues.

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Factual data only is sourced from the original attributed article. The data is then enhanced by additional research and comment.

... the rest of the world to follow suit.

The ruling will likely be viewed by other governments and legal circles worldwide as a test case, in effect setting precedent. It will also impact adversely on advertising agencies and design studios.

In a brief statement, the High Court said a majority of its seven judges believed the laws did not breach Australia's constitution. A full judgement will be released in due course.

The decision means cigarettes and tobacco products must be sold in plain olive green packets without branding as of 1 December 2012. The unadorned packages will also carry graphic health warnings.

The restrictions are in line with World Health Organisation recommendations and are being watched closely by Britain, Norway, New Zealand, Canada and India, all of which are considering similar measures to help extinguish smoking.

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Factual data only is sourced from the original attributed article. The data is then enhanced by additional research and comment.

... “the right structure for the next phase” toward achieving Coca-Cola’s strategic '2020 Vision' plan, designed to double global revenues over the next eight years. 

To this end Ahmet Bozer, currently president of the Eurasia & Africa Group, will become president of the international unit; Steve Cahillane, extant president and ceo of Coca-Cola Refreshments, will become president of Coca-Cola Americas; and Irial Finan will continue as president of BIG. The trio will continue to report to Mr Kent. 

Says the latter: “By consolidating leadership of our global operations under two large, but similarly-sized geographic regions and BIG, we will streamline reporting lines, intensify our focus on key markets and create a structure that leverages synergies and gives us flexibility to strategically adjust our business within those geographies in the future." 

An informed source has suggested that the reshuffling of Coke's deck is an early step by Kent “on the management succession road.” However, other (unnamed) sources have indicated that Kent intends to remain in situ for many years to come.

Factual data only is sourced from the original attributed article. The data is then enhanced by additional research and comment.

... two-way conversations between individual consumers and advertisers via realtime translation of multilingual online ads.

Powell, who graduated from Oxford University less than two years ago, has spent his spare time coupling Vuzix video eyewear with a Raspberry Pi miniature computer plus an iPhone and iPad to enable a person speaking one language to converse in realtime with another who speaks a different language. Although there are marginal delays between translations, provided by Microsoft’s Bing, these are said to be "tolerable".

The demonstration of Powell's glasses posted on his website is pretty impressive, as you can see in this video posted to YouTube.

It shows the translations as captions within a few seconds after the other person speaks. Now, some of the translations aren’t exactly fluid or coherent, but that doesn’t have to do with this technology but the inaccuracies of Bing Translator.

The amazing thing about this setup is how this relatively simple prototype accomplishes such rapid speech recognition and translation at close to a conversational pace. Based on this video, it’s quite easy to imagine a very streamlined translator being incorporated into something like Google Glass and could make the device essential for international business people and tourists.

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... "worldwide solutions. It will not be very useful to get European-wide solutions,"  he told a news conference yesterday [25-Jul-12]. 

The Commission typically looks for concessions that would benefit European consumers, but has on occasions asked for remedies with a broader scope.

The Google probe is a critical case for Mr Almunia, and his demand for globally applicable solutions - which might see an EU decision serving as a template for worldwide regulators.

The current hearing is another example of Almunia's attempt to stamp his mark on EU competition policy.

He believes that Google's search results may unfairly favour its own search services over those of its rivals', while concern has also been expressed that the Cupertino colossus may have copied without permission material from other websites - for example travel and restaurant reviews.

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Factual data only is sourced from the original attributed article. The data is then enhanced by additional research and comment.

... American and European companies into relocating their manufacturing operations.

This combination of multinationals' corporate greed and Chinese guile caused millions of US and European jobs to move to China, and manufacturing became the underpinning of China’s growth and prosperity.

But rising labor costs, concerns over government-sponsored intellectual property theft ... and production time-lags are already causing companies such as Dow Chemicals, Caterpillar, General Electric, and Ford to start moving some manufacturing processes back to the US.

Google recently announced that its Nexus Q streaming media player would be made in the US, thereby putting pressure on Apple to start following suit.

But political pressure and rising costs aren’t what’s going to rapidly change the equation. The disruption will come from a set of technologies that are advancing at exponential rates and converging.

These technologies include robotics, artificial intelligence, 3D printing, and nanotechnology. These have been moving slowly so far, but are now beginning to advance exponentially, reflecting the growth trajectory of computing overall.

Computing has advanced to the point at which the smartphones we carry in our pockets have more processing power than the super computers of the ’60s — and how the internet, which also has its origins in the ’60s, went on an exponential growth path some fifteen years ago and rapidly changed the way we work, shop, and communicate.

That’s what lies ahead for these new technologies.

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... a healthy number of competitors slugging it out for second place behind the iPad. 

According to Yankee Group's new report, 2012 US Tablet Landscape: An All-Too-Familiar Story, iPads currentlyrepresent 51% of all tablets owned in the US, leaving all other makers battling for less than half the overall market.

But some 25% of survey respondents who intend to buy a tablet in the next six months say they don't know which brand they will purchase - presenting a huge opportunity for manufacturers looking to grow their base.

"For the second quarter in a row, Apple's iPad is leading the tablet market, forcing all other competitors to battle for the remaining 49% share," comments Yankee's research VP and head of devices practice, Carl Howe. "It's too late to change current ownership, but tablet makers looking to gain on Apple need to start improving their brand visibility and targeting people who don't already have their minds set on an iPad."

Among the other findings from the report ...

• Amazon's Kindle Fire has cooled with consumers: Those who planned to buy a Kindle Fire in 2011 now own one, bumping ownership up to 7%. But consumers' 'intent to buy' has dropped off, falling from 11% last year to just 6% today.
   
• Samsung takes a hit: Last year, more than 10% of consumers owned a Samsung tablet, while 8% intended to buy one in the next six months. In 2012, these figures have fallen to 7% and 4% respectively.
   
• Smaller tablet manufacturers face an even grimmer outlook: Fewer than 4% of consumers currently own a BlackBerry PlayBook or a Motorola or Dell-branded tablet; while just 2% say they own an Asus tablet.
   

As to the latest - and most formidable - rival in this mushrooming market, however, Yankee Group is curiously silent, with nary a word about Google's Nexus 7, just-launched to rave reviews.

For more on this story from MediaPost.com click here.

Factual data only is sourced from the original attributed article. The data is then enhanced by additional research and comment.

... how technology is managed [and bought] to more accurately target offers and advertising to specific customer segments.

Companies are de-emphasising traditional productivity tools like PCs and off-the-shelf business software in favour of advanced programs that help them boost revenue by tracking customers across all channels.

The trend has spurred companies like IBM to extend their attention beyond the traditional holders of the IT purse (chief information officers) to chief marketing officers who are now shouldering greater responsibility for the management of customer relationships across multiple fronts.

According to Motorola's Conrado: "Marketing departments are becoming more technology centric."

In a report published earlier this year research firm Gartner predicted that by 2017 the chief marketing officer will control more technology spending than a company's CIO.

Summarised Gartner: "As retailers transform to social and mobile-driven enterprises, vendors can grow revenue through portfolios focused on innovation, with messaging expanded to capture the chief marketing officer's and buying center's increased influence."

Tapping into that trend will be key for IBM as its mainframe business comes off an upgrade cycle and it runs into headwinds such as a weakening European economy and a sluggish technology services market.

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