Daily Archives: December 12, 2012

Automotive, Consumer Services, Internet & Online, Management, Social Media, Society, Transportation & Logistics, Travel

Phorego is Launching a Global Social Transportation Network

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In addition to public and private transportation, Phorego is building a new genre: Social Transportation. While public transportation is inflexible and private transportation is costly, social transportation will be fast, flexible and inexpensive or free.

The vision is big and the time is right: With slow economy and high gas prices, people wants to save money or generate new revenues. Ridesharing/Carpooling is supposed to be one solution. But current products/services in the market have not been able to address this, because many are inter-city oriented, or don’t have real-time active matching, or operate like a taxi/shuttle service, or mandate a fare and charge a fee. The end result is that the vision is still just a vision.

Convenience and ease of use is the key: Phorego delivers real-time matches to your e-mail or phone with continuous status updates; its street-level matching engine is primed for ad-hoc intra-city use. Safety is another: Phorego lets corporations, universities, governments and communities create and operate their own rideshare groups. Even the general public can do so to improve the safety factor.

Why not pick up your neighbors and get to work in 1 shared vehicle instead of 3 individually? On your way to pick up your uncle at the airport, may be you can give another arriving passenger a ride? How about those working late one night and need to get back home? The college students who want to go back home on holidays? The guys who have too much drinks in the bar at 3 o’clock in the morning? The use of social transportation is endless. Sharing vehicles let riders save time and money while drivers make some extra cash. Roads will be less congested and even the environment wins.

Currently the service is available in USA/Canada on PCs and MACs. Mobile versions are coming starting January 2013. Multi-language (French, German, Italian and Spanish, Chinese) version will be available when the service expands into Europe in 1st quarter of 2013.

As a promotion for this launch, Phorego is offering corporations, universities and communities to create their own rideshare groups for free. Start one now before it expires.

About Phorego
Phorego (fôr’i-gö) originates from the word phoresy (fôr’i-se), which is a term used to describe ‘a relationship between two organisms in nature in which one gives the other a ride’; like remoras and sharks, or fungi and bark beetles. Phorego’s vision is to transform commuting, travelling, carpooling, ridesharing into a new transportation genre: social transportation, and build a global social transportation ecosystem.

Contact Details: Frank Chiang
frank.chiang@phorego.com
http://www.phorego.com

Travel

Luxury Travel Vietnam To Open Its Sales Office in the USA

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Luxury Travel Ltd. announced that, next month, it will open a sales office in California, U.S.A. responsible for developing business and supporting travel agents on the West Coast and in Canada for Luxury Travel’s destinations in Southeast Asia.

Hanoi, Vietnam, December 12, 2012 — Luxury Travel Ltd is recruiting a California-based team to sell its Vietnam and Indochina tours and holidays to other tour operators on the West Coast of America.

Over 50 million American people travel abroad each year. The U.S. plays a pivotal role in Asia Pacific and Vietnam, especially with diplomatic and business relationships better than ever since the end of the war. Vietnam is considered one of the emerging luxury destinations in Southeast Asia for American travelers.

Luxury Travel Ltd. announced that, next month, it will open a sales office in California, U.S.A. responsible for developing business and supporting travel agents on the West Coast and in Canada for Luxury Travel’s destinations in Southeast Asia.

With many years in the tourism industry as a destination Asia specialist, Paul Ciaccio has been engaged as Regional Sales Manager of Luxury Travel Ltd. in the U.S (http://www.luxurytravelvietnam.com).

According to Paul, the bulk of growth from the U.S. to Asia derives from the upper-middle to luxury-end of the market, which comprises a small portion of the US outbound market.

“The US outbound engine is revving up once again. After having suffered heavy blows in the aftermath of the 2008 financial crisis, we see a surge in bookings to Vietnam from the U.S.A. We recorded a 30 percent rise in booking volume from the U.S. to Indochina so far this year, compared to 2011. Particularly Vietnam, Cambodia and Myanmar were experiencing the strongest uplifts, and the U.S.A. is one of our top ten markets.” said Pham Ha, founder and CEO of Luxury Travel Ltd.

The opening of the U.S.A. office is part of the company’s effort to elevate its business profile in the American market when the economy is getting better and Vietnam and the Indochinese Peninsula are becoming more popular with American travelers. American tourists, according to Ha, picked Vietnam for their vacations for its history, safety, affordable prices, exotic landscape, authenticity, and the hospitality of the Vietnamese people.

The U.S. is a very multicultural society and many Americans are familiar with Vietnamese food and culture, especially on the West Coast. Further, Vietnam now has world class hotels and resorts, beaches and cuisine, in addition to its natural beauty, rich history and traditional culture. The past few years have seen the completion of many luxurious resorts with names such as Hyatt Regency Danang Resort and Spa, Intercontinental Peninsula Danang Sun Spa and Six Senses Con Dao, entering the market, plus Hilton and Marriot offering more choices for travelers. The country received roughly 340,000 American tourists in the first 9 months of 2012, up % 20 compared with the same period last year.

According to Pham Ha, the U.S. has been a great market for the company, which has appealing high-end products for Americans’ tastes and preferences. The company targets the right clients with personalized products and services and has increased the number of private, small groups that it serves, primarily with tailor-made holidays and special interest tours. This has been a winning strategy since American holidaymakers like family travel and custom, private tours, more than big group trips.

“According to statistics of international tourism organizations, over 50 million American people travel abroad each year. The U.S. plays a pivotal role in Asia Pacific and Vietnam, especially with diplomatic and business relationships better than ever since the end of the war. Vietnam is considered one of the emerging luxury destinations in Southeast Asia for American travelers and receives roughly 340,000 American tourists yearly. Many are cruise passengers who want quality holidays and are big spenders. The top-end never really took a hit in the 2008-09 crises and business is now better than ever. American tourists like the sea, haute cuisine, shopping, golf, spas, and high quality services and we have it all to offer to American travelers. With our sales office in California, we are targeting double digit growth in this market for 2013.” added Ha.

For more information or confidential tariff 2013, please email to usa@luxurytravelvietnam.com.

Media Contact:
David Nguyen
Sales and Marketing Manager
Luxury Travel Group Ltd
05 Nguyen Truong To Str.,
Ba Dinh Dist, Hanoi 84444
Vietnam
84439274120
marketing@luxurytravelvietnam.com
http://www.LuxuryTravelVietnam.com

Business

Crown Recycling at The Forefront After Hurricane Sandy

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The Crown Recycling Facility in New York serves all of Long Island and the Five Boroughs and is committed to using the most innovative equipment available today.

Calverton, NY, December 12, 2012 – The Crown Recycling Facility in New York serves all of Long Island and the Five Boroughs and is committed to using the most innovative equipment available today. The Rossano family is constantly sourcing new ways to recycle incoming materials that can be reused on job sites and elsewhere in the community. This helps preserve the environment and keep waste out of the landfill.

Since the 1970’s, Crown Recycling has supplied all of New York with disposal removal. With the ability to process 50 tons of waste per hour, Crown Recycling is the leader when it comes to recycling solid waste.

When Hurricane Sandy devastated portions of the Mid-Atlantic, the Caribbean, and the Northeastern United States, Crown Recycling took action. Sandy spanned 1,100 miles with losses estimated at 6.5 billion dollars. More than 253 people lost their lives along the path of Hurricane Sandy in seven countries.

When Governor Andrew Cuomo declared a state of emergency on October 26, Crown Recycling was ready to begin the massive cleanup. In Long Island, voluntary evacuations were ordered because of the South Shore storm surge.

With the massive flooding of most of the Eastern Seaboard, Crown Recycling has moved an estimated five million cubic yards of debris. Hundreds of people are still without power as the team from Crown Recycling continues the clean-up effort 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Crown will not stop until the giant piles of waste have been cleaned up and moved to their recycling center and landfills in Upper State New York.

Of course with the clean up comes the need to recycle, and thanks to the innovative equipment from Crown Recycling, debris can be recycled and repurposed, and converted to mulch, compost, crushed concrete and other useable materials.

The massive clean up of debris after hurricane Sandy is an overwhelming task, but the team from Crown Recycling has taken it all in stride. In a combined effort with the state of New York, Crown Recycling hopes to move 20,000 cubic yards of debris every day until the clean-up is completed. Workers say that driving through the streets of Long Island, New York and the Five Burroughs is indescribable.

The clean up must move as fast as possible so that communities can begin to rebuild. A delay in cleanup could cause health problems if the waterlogged waste is left to rot. Fortunately, Crown Recycling is still on the job helping with the storm recovery efforts and debris removal.

Contact:
Rossano
The Crown Recycling Facility
865 Youngs Ave
Calverton, NY 11933
(631) 727-3939
info@crownrecyclingfacility.net
http://www.crownrecyclingfacility.net/

Business

AAA Welcomes KPMG’s Expansion of Alternative Investment Team

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AAA has welcomed news that KPMG has invested in expanding its alternative investment fund team on the West Coast.

Boston, MA, USA, December 12, 2012 — Alternative Asset Analysis (AAA) has welcomed news that KPMG has invested in expanding its alternative investment fund team on the West Coast.

The US audit, tax and advisory firm has brought on several new staff to enhance its Alternative Investment Funds (AIF) national team. The new staff will be based in Los Angeles and San Francisco and will be responsible for providing expertise on real estate, hedge fund and private equity investment.

“The news that KPMG is building on its alternative investment team further cements the view that alternatives are becoming increasingly in-demand and attractive to regular investors,” stated Anthony Johnson, AAA’s analysis partner.

This was a view that was shared by other analysts in the industry who also took the move as a sign that things are heating up in the alternative investment market.

Mr Johnson added, “It’s not too surprising that alternatives have become so popular following the global economic crisis. The stock markets are volatile and people are looking for tangible assets to invest in, such as gold, timber, real estate and even wine and art.”

However, KPMG knows that there are an increasing number of regulatory pressures on the alternative investment industry and that it needs the right experts to help it circumvent these.

Chuck Walker of KPMG’s Alternative Investment funds – Tax division, told RFP Connect: “KPMG is determined to put in place the best team of talent in the industry focusing on serving Alternative Investment firms, large, medium and small.”

“We are thrilled to announce the latest partners to join us as we continue strengthening our Alternative Investments team.”

AAA is an alternative investment advocacy group. It supports a range of alternative investment funds and routes, with an emphasis on ethical and sustainable asset classes, such as non-native tree plantations in Brazil, run by businesses like Greenwood Management.

About Alternative Asset Analysis:
The remit of Alternative Asset Analysis is to analyse and provide news on the global performance of a wide range of alternative asset classes including, but not restricted to, commodities, real estate, forestry, foreign exchange, hedge funds, private equity and venture capital.

Media Contact:
Anthony Johnson
Alternative Asset Analysis
71 Commercial St
Boston, MA 02109-1320
617-939-9596
info@alternativeassetanalysis.com
http://www.alternativeassetanalysis.com

Business

Alternative investments ‘are becoming Mainstream’ – AAA

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A recent report in Financial Adviser Magazine claims that alternative investments are fast-becoming a mainstream option for those who are looking to diversify their portfolios, in a claim welcomed by AAA.

Boston, MA, December 12, 2012 – A recent report in Financial Adviser Magazine claims that alternative investments are fast-becoming a mainstream option for those who are looking to diversify their portfolios, in a claim welcomed by Alternative Asset Analysis (AAA).

The alternative investment advocacy group underlined the claim from Rick Lake of Lake Partners in Connecticut, who told FA-Mag.com, “Because of the democratization of alternative investments, barriers are falling. Alternative mutual funds are the new and better mousetrap due to liquidity, transparency, lower costs and regulation.”

AAA added that a survey by Cogent Research backs this view. It found that three quarter of the financial advisers questioned said they use alternative asset classes, with the majority (78 per cent) opting for mutual funds. The next most popular alternative option for financial advisers was exchange traded funds (ETFs), which proved popular with 58 per cent.

FA-mag.com said that the recent increase in popularity of alternatives is largely to do with the risks involved in investing in stocks and shares. Despite the slow recovery of the US economy, the stock market is still extremely volatile and the same, of course, can be said for the European markets.

AAA’s analysis partner, Anthony Johnson, claims that people are less willing to risk their cash on the stock markets these days and many would often prefer to take something tangible in exchange for their cash. Something with real, intrinsic value, like commodities such as timber, gas and oil. “With demand for these commodities increasing all the time, especially in developing countries, the prices are staying high and it’s hard to imagine them plummeting like stock prices can,” stated Mr Johnson.

AAA supports a range of alternative investments, but is particularly keen to promote ethical and socially responsible projects, including sustainable forestry investment through firms like Greenwood Management, which operated plantations in Brazil.

Contact:
Anthony Johnson
Alternative Asset Analysis
71 Commercial St
Boston, MA 02109-1320
617-939-9596
info@alternativeassetanalysis.com
http://www.alternativeassetanalysis.com

Entertainment

No More Deaths/No Más Muertes Releases Border Songs CD Release

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New Compilation To Benefit Arizona Humanitarian Group No More Deaths: Border Songs CD

Hollywood, CA, December 11, 2012 – Border Songs, a new compilation album to benefit the southern Arizona humanitarian group No More Deaths, is attempting to raise awareness of the tragedy on the border, disseminate art about the issue and raise money for humanitarian aid. Together, musicians, poets and artists are coming together to save lives and spread the message. The album is available online at: http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/bordersongs or through the Border Songs CD Project web page: http://www.bordersongs.org. Since its release October 12, Border Songs has been in the top 40 best selling albums list on the CD Baby website.

The two-CD set features 31 performances in both English and Spanish from a variety of different genres and styles including blues, corrido, cumbia, folk/Americana, hip hop, instrumental guitar, mambo, Nicaraguan new song, reggae, rock, and even an electronic recording of the wall itself.

Renowned artists contributing to the compilation include Sweet Honey In The Rock, whose song “Are We a Nation?” was written in direct response to Arizona’s anti-immigrant law, SB 1070. Other prominent musicians include Amos Lee, Michael Franti and Spearhead, Calexico, Joel Rafael, Tom Russell and Eliza Gilkyson. Salvadoran Lilo González, who himself crossed the border without documents, contributes a cumbia based on his own experience, “Ningún ser humano es ilegal” (No Human Being is Illegal). 93 year-old folk music legend Pete Seeger contributed his call for unity, his song “My Rainbow Race”.

Spoken word on the album includes a dramatic reading by Chicana performer Denise Chávez, excepts from an interview with Charles Bowden and an animal fable by M. Henry that will both entertain a child and inspire an adult to think.

Poets contributing work include Chilean Raúl Zurita, one of South America’s most important living poets, Salvadoran Mario Bencastro, whose poem “Arizona” honors migrants who have died in the desert, and North American Margaret Randall, whose poem “Offended Turf” is blended with Glenn Weyant’s electronic recording of the border wall. This diverse collection of border songs is held together by a common thread—a deep concern and solidarity for migrants, for people of all ethnicities, regardless of their country of origin.

All proceeds from the sale of the Border Songs CD will go to No More Deaths/No Más Muertes, a volunteer group that caches water in the desert, provides medical assistance and food to migrants, and helps recently deported people on the Mexican side of the border. Since 1994, more than 6,000 migrants have died along the US-Mexico border. According to the album’s co-producers Robert Neustadt and Chuck Cheesman, the mission of the Border Songs CD and No More Deaths is simple: to end death and suffering on the Arizona/Mexico border. Since the album’s release, the project has raised approximately $14,000 for No More Deaths. Each purchase will provide 29 gallons of water, or the equivalent in food or medical supplies to people in need.

The complete list of artists contributing to the Border Songs project features:
Amos Lee, Calacas Blues, Calexico, Charles Bowden, Christa Sadler, Chuck Cheesman, Classik & Pachuco, Cyril Barrett, Denise Chávez, Dúo Guardbarranco, Eliza Gilkyson, Eric Skye, Giant Giant Sand, Glenn Weyant, Joel Rafael, Lakesigns, Lilo Gonzalez, Los Románticos, Margaret Randall, Mario Bencastro, m. henry, Michael Franti & Spearhead, Óscar Sarmiento, Pete Seeger, Raúl Zurita, Robert Neustadt, Scott Ainslie, Sergio Mendoza y la Orkesta, Sweet Honey in the Rock, Ted Warmbrand, Tom Russell.

The purpose of the album is to raise awareness and provide aid to migrants who suffer and die in the Sonoran desert.

Visit Border Songs on Facebook to learn more: https://www.facebook.com/BorderSongsCdProject

For information, contact Robert Neustadt, Co-Producer of the Border Songs CD Project: bordersongscd@gmail.com or at 928-522-3307.

Contact:
Chip Schutzman
Miles High Productions
P.O. Box 93157
Hollywood, CA 90093
323-806-0400
chip@mileshighproductions.com
http://www.mileshighproductions.com/

Business

Brazil Property development plots offer Good investment option claims AAA

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With increasing amounts of foreign direct investment (FDI), coming into Brazil, now could be a great time to invest in property built on new plots of land in the South American country.

Boston, MA, December 11, 2012 – With increasing amounts of foreign direct investment (FDI), coming into Brazil, now could be a great time to invest in property built on new plots of land in the South American country, which are being made available to foreign real estate investors, Alternative Asset Analysis (AAA) has claimed.

The alternative investment advocacy group has said that investors looking to make the most of the ongoing strong economic conditions in Brazil should invest in land there. “A number of plots of prime land are being opened up in Brazil to foreign property investors,” claimed AAA’s analysis partner, Anthony Johnson.

“With the FIFA World Cup and the Olympics coming to Brazil in the next four years, growth is likely to continue and investors could see some really great returns if they invest in real estate there.”

A recent report by Ernst & Young Terco stated that foreign direct investment into Brazilian real estate has reached as much as R$10 billion this year. The investment has been stimulated by the Accelerated Growth Program, which has received plenty of attention form investors looking for ways to diversify their portfolios. The project involves improving the country’s infrastructure to help prepare for these vents, as well as to help house the hundreds of thousands of people moving into urban areas for work.

Speaking to Property Wire, Knight Knox International’s property consultant Mike Sefton, said that the plots offer great locations, planning permission and very reasonable prices to those who are considering building homes in Brazil as an investment.

Real estate investment is becoming increasingly attractive, particularly in emerging economies like Brazil, China and India, where a growing number of homes are needed to house workers and their families in urban areas.

AAA supports alternative assets like real estate and is also behind foreign investment in Brazil in general. “Forestry is a major source of ethical investment opportunities in Brazil,” added Mr Johnson.

Contact:
Anthony Johnson
Alternative Asset Analysis
71 Commercial St
Boston, MA 02109-1320
617-939-9596
info@alternativeassetanalysis.com
http://www.alternativeassetanalysis.com