Mediaboss Marketing

(01-08 15:23)

Health officials in the US state of Texas confirmed that at least 20 people have died from flu, mostly H1N1 influenza, the US media reported. The tally was made by health departments in Dallas County, Denton County and Tarrant County, all in north Texas, local media KHOU reported. Hospitals confirm eight deaths in Dallas County, and another nine positive flu cases have been logged by the medical examiner's office. Denton County reported two deaths. Tarrant County has had one death linked to the flu. All of the Dallas victims were adults while a child was among the two victims in Denton. Hospitals across north Texas have been seeing a rapidly" increasing number of patients with flu-related cases, according to the report. Health officials are advising people to take vaccines and keeping a close eye on the flu cases. Adult flu-related deaths are being tracked locally for the first time in Dallas. Previously, only pediatric flu deaths were reported to local, state and federal authorities. In Houston, Texas' largest city, at least 13 people have died from H1N1 virus as of late December. The Lone Star State issued a state wide influenza health alert. Texas, Alabama, Louisiana and New York remain hotbeds for flu. The biggest concern is the H1N1 virus, or swine flu, which swept through many countries previously. The flu pandemic in the United States began in the spring of 2009.--Xinhua

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Child among 20 dead in Texas as killer swine flu virus spreads

With Nuance's voice print technology onboard, ZTE's Car Mode app will be able to recognize who is speaking and what he or she wants without the driver lifting a finger.

Phone manufacturer ZTE and Nuance Communications, provider of a wide range of voice recognition software, are teaming up at CES 2014 to announce an updated and enhanced Car Mode application for ZTE's Android devices.

The ZTE Car Mode app will provide an eye-free, hands-free way to interact with these phones on the go. Nuance is providing new voice biometrics tech for the screen unlock, enabling the hardware to recognize a voice command from a specific person's voiceprint to activate and access different functions and modes without physical contact.

For example, as part of a new feature called Music Barge-In, a driver listening to music could say, "Play next song," or "Pause," and the ZTE Android device would recognize that it is, in fact, the driver talking and then execute the command.

I get very annoyed when passengers won't stop talking while I'm issuing a voice command to a smartphone or navigation system; it confuses most simple systems. If Nuance's voice print and biometrics technology can help these devices to differentiate my commands from those of my mouthy passengers, it will be a welcome addition to the cockpit.

Additionally, Nuance's Natural Language Understanding (NLU) tech makes an appearance, allowing the driver to speak to the system with natural questions and commands, rather than memorizing and following a list of expected prompts. You could ask the phone, "Where is Union Square?" or say, "Take me to the post office" and the Car Mode app will search for the nearest matching destination and provide spoken directions from Google Maps.

Many smartphone owners are already used to the idea of talking to their phones as they would a human being thanks to the rapid evolution of voice search services like Google Now and Siri (video). Nuance and ZTE's partnership should take this concept a step further by removing the need to touch or look at the phone when behind the wheel.

ZTE has already implemented some of Nuance's technologies in the Car Mode app available on its current Android devices. When we should expect that app to be updated with the new voice biometrics technology and Music Barge-In has not been announced.

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ZTE, Nuance partner for eyes-free, hands-free voice command

PRESS RELEASE: alstria office REIT-AG: alstria leases 5,400 sqm to the City of Hanover

DGAP-News: alstria office REIT-AG / Key word(s): Miscellaneous alstria office REIT-AG: alstria leases 5,400 sqm to the City of Hanover

08.01.2014 / 17:35

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Press release

alstria leases 5,400 sqm to the City of Hanover

Hamburg, January 8, 2014 - alstria office REIT-AG (symbol: AOX, ISIN: DE000A0LD2U1), the leading German office REIT, announces the signing of a long-term lease agreement for its asset in Arndtstrae 1, Hanover.

Following the signature of this new lease the asset, which is undergoing a full-scale refurbishment, is now substantially pre-let on a long-term basis to the City of Hanover. The new lease will start in the second half of this year and allows alstria to further take advantage from the positive dynamics in the German leasing market.

The transaction was brokered by Engel & Vlkers Commercial GmbH Hannover.

'We are very satisfied to start the year with this new lease', says Olivier Elamine, CEO of alstria. 'In the past twelve months alstria has leased-up around 12,500 sqm of newly refurbished office space, which will lead to an additional annual rent of EUR 1.8 m and support our organic growth.'

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PRESS RELEASE: alstria office REIT-AG: alstria leases 5,400 sqm to the City of Hanover

PRESS RELEASE: MS DEUTSCHLAND to carry on operating under the German flag with a new majority shareholder

DGAP-News: MS 'Deutschland' Beteiligungs GmbH / Key word(s): Acquisition MS DEUTSCHLAND to carry on operating under the German flag with a new majority shareholder

08.01.2014 / 19:01

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PRESS RELEASE

MS DEUTSCHLAND to carry on operating under the German flag with a new majority shareholder

- Callista Private Equity to continue present management strategy

- Christopher Nolde takes stake in MS Deutschland Holding as a minority shareholder

Neustadt in Holstein, 8 January, 2014. MS Deutschland Holding, the majority shareholder of MS 'Deutschland' Beteiligungsgesellschaft mbH ('MS Deutschland GmbH') with a holding of 95%, is gaining a new majority shareholder in the form of Callista Private Equity GmbH & Co. KG ('Callista Private Equity'). Callista Private Equity, a Munich-based private equity investor, is acquiring the majority stake in MS Deutschland Holding from AURELIUS AG ('AURELIUS'), which is to retain a minority interest.

Callista Private Equity is planning to retain and press ahead with the management strategy initiated by MS Deutschland Holding together with the existing management team. The ship, MS DEUTSCHLAND, will continue to operate under the German flag. Christopher Nolde, who joined the management of MS Deutschland GmbH at the beginning of 2013, is also taking a stake in MS Deutschland Holding as a minority shareholder under the terms of the transaction. In his function as Managing Director, Christopher Nolde will continue to help expedite implementation of the strategy that the company is applying and shape the consistent positioning of the DEUTSCHLAND in the luxury segment.

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PRESS RELEASE: MS DEUTSCHLAND to carry on operating under the German flag with a new majority shareholder

PRESS RELEASE: Weng Fine Art AG exceeds Expectations for its transitional Year of 2013: Record Sales and 40% Growth in the second Half

DGAP-News: Weng Fine Art AG / Key word(s): Miscellaneous Weng Fine Art AG exceeds Expectations for its transitional Year of 2013: Record Sales and 40% Growth in the second Half

08.01.2014 / 10:00

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PRESS RELEASE | 8 JANUARY 2014

Weng Fine Art AG exceeds Expectations for its transitional Year of 2013: Record Sales and 40% Growth in the second Half

Weng Fine Art AG (WFA) significantly exceeded its goals for the fiscal year of 2013/2014, which ends on January 31, by recording a turnover of more than 8 million EUR. The main reason for this record is the surprisingly strong growth in the second half - compared to the same period last year, revenues have increased by more than 40 percent.

This development is noteworthy because WFA has allocated stronger focus and resources towards strategic decisions rather than on short-term operational success in 2013. 'Taking into account that we are in a transitional period, this new sales record speaks for the quality of our business model and our team', notes WFA CEO Rdiger K. Weng, whom also refers to a significant improvement in market sentiment: 'By looking at the dynamics of the fall season it can be concluded that the middle market, which is the most relevant for us, is significantly improving. We are seeing an end in the sideways trend this sector has experienced for the last three years and are confident that this turn-around will accelerate further in 2014 and even more so in 2015.'

WFA took advantage of this positive environment by selling inventory and generating additional liquidity for its upcoming acquisitions and investments. In the second half of 2013 alone, the company was able to achieve a positive cash flow of approximately 3 million EUR - of which 550,000 EUR came from the exercise of a put option for 100,000 Artnet shares at a price of 5.50 EUR (further explanation of this deal on the company website under 'News').

However, WFA reported no significant income from equity transactions, which is why the profits in 2013/2014 won't reach the same level as the year before. Nevertheless, it is to be expected that the full year of 2013/2014 will generate the second best result in the company's history. And Rdiger K. Weng emphasi-zes: 'We are well positioned financially to engage in M&A transactions and joint ventures in 2014, which we have identified as particularly attractive and have prepared for in recent months. This will move WFA to a new level.'

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PRESS RELEASE: Weng Fine Art AG exceeds Expectations for its transitional Year of 2013: Record Sales and 40% Growth in ...