Traction

3 things to watch for in Russia’s presidential election – other than Putin’s win, that is

Retrieved on: 
星期三, 三月 13, 2024

While the result may be a foregone conclusion, the election offers an important glimpse into the Kremlin’s domestic challenges as it continues a war against Ukraine that recently entered its third year.

Key Points: 
  • While the result may be a foregone conclusion, the election offers an important glimpse into the Kremlin’s domestic challenges as it continues a war against Ukraine that recently entered its third year.
  • As an expert on Russian politics, I have identified three key developments worth paying attention to during and after the upcoming election.

1. Don’t mention the war (too much)

  • With Russian domestic media and politics all but gutted of dissenting voices, the war has become the organizing principle of post-2022 Russian politics, shaping all major policies and decisions.
  • Yet, while the context of the war looms large, its role is largely implicit rather than occupying center stage.
  • There are relatively few ardent supporters of the war, outweighed by a more general sense of fatigue among the public.
  • Yet the war is putting pressure on the government’s ability to juggle ensuring a disengaged population and bolstering support for a grinding war that demands unprecedented resources.
  • That choice surprised some insiders, who expected Putin to weave his announcement into a high-profile, choreographed event focusing on domestic achievements and not the ongoing war.

2. Pressure to deliver results for Putin

  • For officials, the election is a litmus test for their ability to muster administrative resources and deliver Putin an electoral windfall.
  • Most reports suggest the Kremlin is hoping to engineer that the turnout is at least 70%, with around 80% of the vote for Putin – which would surpass his 76.7% share from 2018.
  • For observers of Russian politics, what will be of interest is not the result itself, but how the result is produced during wartime conditions.
  • Moreover, political disengagement and the certainty of a Putin victory means that interest in voting is at an all-time low.

3. Silencing political opposition

  • The death of longtime Putin critic Alexei Navalny in February 2024 was a huge blow to the opposition but is representative of the state of political repression in Russia.
  • Since 2018, some 116,000 Russians have faced political repression.
  • Yet the scale of public mourning for Navalny and the enthusiasm for Nadezhdin reveal that despite draconian wartime censorship and repression, there remains a sizable bloc of Russians eager for authentic political alternatives.


Adam Lenton does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

All of Us Strangers buys into tropes of tragic queer lives – but there is hope there, too

Retrieved on: 
星期三, 三月 13, 2024

On the surface, All of Us Strangers, directed by Andrew Haigh, is a dark and twisty love story.

Key Points: 
  • On the surface, All of Us Strangers, directed by Andrew Haigh, is a dark and twisty love story.
  • Underneath, there is the often-present storyline seen in queer cinema: that of trauma and tragedy.
  • All of Us Strangers follows lonely middle-aged gay man Adam (Andrew Scott), struggling to come to terms with his tragic past and sexuality.

Queer representation

  • Queer representation in mainstream media has historically been marred by negative stereotypes, tokenistic representation and death.
  • In my recent interactive documentary, Queer Representation Matters, queer media scholars and queer screen storytellers share how queer characters are often relegated to roles characterised by tragedy or trauma, perpetuating harmful tropes like “bury your gays”.
  • Online queer news site, Autostraddle, have compiled a list of the 230+ dead queer female TV characters, which continues to be updated with each death.
  • Essentially, for queer people, it starts to feel like you can’t have queer representation without someone dying tragically at the end.
  • Read more:
    We studied two decades of queer representation on Australian TV, and found some interesting trends

We need diverse stories

  • Tropes will always exist in storytelling, but by having more diverse queer filmmakers telling more diverse queer stories, audiences will have a more balanced narrative about queer life (and life expectancy).
  • We need to see stories that challenge the narrative that being queer ultimately leads to pain, trauma and tragedy.
  • We need to see we can also live long and happy lives, so we can believe we can have the happy ever after.
  • Read more:
    All of Us Strangers: heartbreaking film speaks to real experiences of gay men in UK and Ireland


Natalie Krikowa does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

Trio Group Joins Hands with Sinooil to Venture into Central Asian Markets Deltrix EV Chargers First Launched in Kazakhstan

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星期三, 三月 13, 2024

On 9 February, Trio Group took a significant step in developing its EV charging solution business in Central Asia.

Key Points: 
  • On 9 February, Trio Group took a significant step in developing its EV charging solution business in Central Asia.
  • Mr. Cecil Wong, Chairman of Trio Industrial Electronics Group Limited, expressed enthusiasm with eager anticipation about Deltrix's development in the Central Asian markets.
  • We are honoured to establish a strategic partnership with Sinooil, and successfully set up the first EV charging station installed with Deltrix products.
  • This collaboration will enable both Trio Group and Sinooil to expand the Central Asian charging station markets more effectively.

EQS-News: Advanced Blockchain AG: Portfolio company Arweave launches new innovation and reaches a fully diluted valuation of more than $1.9 billion

Retrieved on: 
星期三, 三月 13, 2024

29th February 2024 – Arweave, a community-driven network for permanent data storage and portfolio company of Advanced Blockchain, has launched its latest innovation, the hyper parallel computer (ao: https://ao.arweave.dev/), enabling higher transaction scalability for their decentralized storage solutions.

Key Points: 
  • 29th February 2024 – Arweave, a community-driven network for permanent data storage and portfolio company of Advanced Blockchain, has launched its latest innovation, the hyper parallel computer (ao: https://ao.arweave.dev/), enabling higher transaction scalability for their decentralized storage solutions.
  • Currently, Arweave boasts a fully diluted valuation of more than $1.9 billion.
  • Arweave has reached an impressive milestone in February 2024 with more than 593 million transactions.
  • Its processing speed has also increased to an outstanding 600 transactions per second, making it one of the fastest transaction processing protocols.

Prodware: Double Revenue Growth in 2023: 380.6 M€

Retrieved on: 
星期三, 三月 13, 2024

Excluding the impact of the acquisitions of WESTPOLE, PROTINUS & NUT CONSULTING, the growth at constant scope was 5.1%, showing PRODWARE's strong performance despite economic challenges in Europe.

Key Points: 
  • Excluding the impact of the acquisitions of WESTPOLE, PROTINUS & NUT CONSULTING, the growth at constant scope was 5.1%, showing PRODWARE's strong performance despite economic challenges in Europe.
  • The Integration/Services business amounted to €72.0 million, representing a growth of 2.1% and accounting for 18.9% of the total revenue.
  • PRODWARE continues its efforts to promote revenue recurrence, aiming to enhance its margins and better anticipate its investment needs.
  • International revenue in 2023 reached €299.8 million, representing 78.8% of the total revenue, marking a substantial increase from 53.1% in 2022.

EQS-News: Telefónica Deutschland: Confident FY24 outlook based on good business momentum and ‘Accelerated Growth & Efficiency Plan’

Retrieved on: 
星期三, 三月 13, 2024

The renowned connect magazine awarded Telefónica Deutschland’s O2 network with a ‘very good’ rating for the fourth time in a row despite tougher test criteria each year.

Key Points: 
  • The renowned connect magazine awarded Telefónica Deutschland’s O2 network with a ‘very good’ rating for the fourth time in a row despite tougher test criteria each year.
  • In parallel, Telefónica Deutschland is continuously pursuing its ESG commitments to make a substantial contribution to a sustainable digital future.
  • O2 postpaid churn confirmed a low rate of 1.1% in Q4 23 (1.2% in Q4 22) respective 1.0% in FY23.
  • Telefónica Deutschland consistently delivered growth throughout FY23 with robust commercial traction and sustained healthy financial performance.

EQS-News: AUTO1 Group reports record gross profit in 2023 and best annual adjusted EBITDA since IPO

Retrieved on: 
星期三, 三月 13, 2024

AUTO1 Group’s Retail business Autohero reported record GPU (gross profit per unit) of EUR 1,970 in Q4.

Key Points: 
  • AUTO1 Group’s Retail business Autohero reported record GPU (gross profit per unit) of EUR 1,970 in Q4.
  • Retail gross profit was EUR 30.1 million, up 4% compared to Q3 2023.
  • Merchant revenue was EUR 1.07 billion, slightly up quarter over quarter and gross profit was EUR 103.7 million.
  • AUTO1 Group provides the following full-year guidance for 2024:
    Total units at 610,000 - 665,000 (2023: 586,100 units)
    Units in the Merchant segment at 540,000 - 595,000 (2023: 523,000 units)
    Units in the Retail segment around 70,000 (2023: 63,100 units) with GPU at the EUR 1,900 level
    Total gross profit at EUR 565 - 625 million (2023: EUR 527,9 million)
    Adjusted EBITDA breakeven for the full year (2023: EUR (44) million)

Noda Presents Report on Key Payment Trends: Diverse PaymentMethods, AI, and More

Retrieved on: 
星期五, 三月 8, 2024

London, United Kingdom--(Newsfile Corp. - March 8, 2024) - Noda, a global open banking provider, presents a comprehensive report in which key payment trends are brought to the forefront.

Key Points: 
  • London, United Kingdom--(Newsfile Corp. - March 8, 2024) - Noda, a global open banking provider, presents a comprehensive report in which key payment trends are brought to the forefront.
  • Ms. Kuhtarska sees five key payment trends dominating the industry: diverse payment methods, 1-click checkout, AI and ML, biometric security, and subscription models.
  • Support for various payment methods provides convenience to consumers, making the payment experience simple and convenient.
  • Noda has built a solid in-house AI lab to strengthen payment security and serve hundreds of thousands of active Noda consumers.

StrainsForPains, Inc. Discusses Inspiration, App Technology and CBD Market Entrance with The Stock Day Podcast

Retrieved on: 
星期四, 二月 29, 2024

I financed and worked with Olivia Newton-John's Koala Blue in the 1980's and Richard Diehl's Graphsoft (now Vectorworks) in the 1990's.

Key Points: 
  • I financed and worked with Olivia Newton-John's Koala Blue in the 1980's and Richard Diehl's Graphsoft (now Vectorworks) in the 1990's.
  • I developed regenerative medicine systems with stem cell technology in the 1980's working on umbilical cord therapy to treat genetic diseases, cancers, and inherited disorders.
  • In 2024 we will focus our efforts on the development of our upcoming advanced AI app and our CBD brand that will expand into many products.
  • We will seek to forge a new path in our approach to healthcare, that will expand to CBD products for pets as well as a nutritional app.

Fahrengold Driving Growth: Auto Veteran Joins Board as New Products Unveiled

Retrieved on: 
星期二, 三月 12, 2024

"Fahrengold has quickly won over luxury auto customers and, subsequently, manufacturers.

Key Points: 
  • "Fahrengold has quickly won over luxury auto customers and, subsequently, manufacturers.
  • Esther joins TJ Grewal, former CPO & EVP of Global Operations for Beats by Dre, who currently serves on the company's advisory board.
  • "As a young company, it is a huge honor to have such accomplished and respected advisors like Esther & TJ on board.
  • We believe it reflects and highlights the strong positioning, traction and reputation we have established," noted Fahrengold Founder Nikita Fahrenholz.