Rakuten wesentlich besser als Rocket
NEWS PROVIDED BY Rakuten Advertising
LAS VEGAS, Jan. 16, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Rakuten Advertising, the leading global affiliate marketing network, revealed its plans to launch Partnership Discovery, the latest artificial intelligence investment as part of the company's Affiliate Intelligence platform and vision, at Affiliate Summit West 2024 in Las Vegas. Partnership Discovery leverages AI to help advertisers identify the most effective publisher partners for product-specific affiliate campaigns to drive higher audience engagement and more revenue. Publishers will also benefit from showcasing the strengths of their audiences to the advertisers for which they can deliver the strongest results.
Partnership Discovery can:
Assign an accurate category tag to the advertiser's product from one of the 6,000+ Google Product Taxonomy categories.
Filter through hundreds of millions of annual sales delivered through the Rakuten Advertising network to identify the publishers delivering the best performance for that product category.
Offer advertisers alternative search terms and categories to find optimal publisher partners to reach audiences at both category and product levels.
"The launch of Partnership Discovery will bring Rakuten Advertising's vision for Affiliate Intelligence to life," says Nick Stamos, CEO of Rakuten Advertising. "By pairing advanced AI with deep insights into the affiliate landscape, we can cultivate stronger strategic collaborations between advertisers and publishers. Not only will AI help advertisers discover new, high-performing publisher partners, but it can help them re-engage with existing partners in new and innovative ways. We will continue to innovate in service of our Affiliate Intelligence initiative to deliver advertiser and publisher solutions that are performance-driven and anchored in meaningful, innovative partnerships."
To further fine-tune Partnership Discovery search results and ensure an advertiser finds the best publisher partners, users will be able to filter search results by:
Category Sales Ratio: Understand the percentage of sales driven by a recommended publisher for products in the specified category.
Classification: Filter results for "top performers" in the Rakuten Advertising publisher network by publisher classification (e.g. Silver, Gold, Platinum, etc.)
Business Model: From coupon and cash back publishers to content and price comparison sites, filter the type of publishers to best fit an advertiser's individual needs.
Partnership: Filter by publisher status to identify new publisher partners, or re-engage existing partners to maximize reach, tap into new audiences, or re-engage with loyal shoppers.
Partnership Discovery will be widely available in early 2024. Advertisers interested in exclusive access prior to launch click here.
To learn more, stop by the Rakuten Advertising meeting room at Affiliate Summit West (Society 1 Boardroom) or visit www.RakutenAdvertising.com. ASW conference attendees can also tune into the following panel discussions to hear from Rakuten Advertising leaders and industry experts: The Pros and Cons of Personalization, and Step Into the Future: Unveiling the Power of Partnerships, Technology, and Expertise. Follow the latest Rakuten Advertising news on LinkedIn, Instagram and X.
About Rakuten Advertising
Rakuten Advertising delivers performance-driven, brand-driven, and people-driven ad solutions that help the world's top brands connect with unique, highly engaged audiences – from first impression to final sale. Backed by industry-leading technology, global media properties, and the largest, high-quality partner network, Rakuten Advertising taps into data and experience to develop the strategies and ad experiences that will drive engagement, sales, loyalty, and beyond.
A leader in the industry since its beginnings, Rakuten Advertising is a division of Rakuten Group, Inc. (4755: TOKYO), one of the world's leading internet service companies. The company is headquartered in San Mateo, California, with offices throughout EMEA, APAC, LATAM, and North America. Learn more at RakutenAdvertising.com.
https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/...r-partners-302034094.html
Written by Sarah Saril; edited by Steven Cohen
Jan 10, 2024, 10:50 PM MEZ
https://www.businessinsider.com/guides/tech/kobo-elipsa-2e-review
6 January 2024 By Michael Kozlowski
https://goodereader.com/blog/electronic-readers/...w-e-reader-in-2024
Wir engagieren uns für nachhaltiger hergestellte Kobo eReader. Kobo Clara 2E und Kobo Elipsa 2E werden beide aus umweltbewussteren Materialien hergestellt.
Das Gehäuse beider Modelle wurde hergestellt mit mehr als 85 % Recycling-Kunststoff inklusive 10 % Kunststoff, der sonst in die Meere gelangt wäre. Diese Materialien helfen uns, Plastikflaschen, CDs, DVDs und andere Abfallstoffe von unseren Weltmeeren und Mülldeponien fernzuhalten.
Unsere umweltbewusstere Verpackung ist zudem unmagnetisch und mit FSC-zertifiziertem Recyclingpapier hergestellt.
https://gl.kobobooks.com/de/pages/sustainability
Expanding into North America with affiliate marketing
https://rakutenadvertising.com/resources/case-study-allsaints/
https://www.openpr.com/news/3354216/...r%2520influencing%2520factors. 01-17-2024 11:59 AM CET |
January 17, 2024
Rakuten Group Chairman and CEO Mickey Mikitani successfully exchanged a voice call between an unmodified cellular device and space with AST SpaceMobile’s CEO Abel Avellan and a representative at a test site in Hawaii. Check out scenes from the actual call, find out why this is significant for Rakuten Mobile and its subscribers, and how it will contribute to a robust social infrastructure in Japan.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sFQR8wbWPw8
By Ashish Shukla January 16, 2024
In the dynamic landscape of telecommunication networks, the need for streamlined, error-free operations is paramount. As the industry strives for enhanced efficiency and reduced human error, Rakuten Symphony Automation Studio emerges as a game-changing framework, offering a holistic solution to automate network operations and orchestrate seamless functionalities across telecom infrastructures.
Decoding the challenges in the telecom industry
The telecom industry deals with multifaceted challenges, including human error in repetitive tasks, network inefficiencies and the complexity of managing diverse elements across the network. These hurdles impede operational efficiency and hinder the swift resolution of network issues.
Automation tools are essential in telecom networks for several critical reasons:
•§Manual auditing/troubleshooting: Telecom networks often involve a multitude of devices and configurations. The current practice of executing repetitive tasks, auditing and troubleshooting network nodes manually through CLIs is time-consuming and prone to human error.
•§Absence of governance structure: Deploying scripts without a proper governance structure can lead to inconsistencies and potential issues in the network.
•§Uncontrolled execution: Untested MOPs and scripts running through multiple scheduled cron jobs in sequence pose a significant risk to network stability and security.
•§Lack of central repository: The absence of a central repository for commands and automation scripts results in inefficiencies, as it makes version control, collaboration, and access challenging.
•§Complexity in managing multiple scripts: Networks often use domain or vendor specific automation scripts, leading to complexity in managing and maintaining these diverse scripts.
•§Lack of CI/CD pipeline: Without a Continuous Integration/Continuous Deployment (CI/CD) pipeline for automated script testing and deployment, the network operations heavily rely on manual intervention.
•§Fragmented automation: Existing automation used in the industry is task oriented and does not spin across the complete end to end MOP automation which includes tasks like pre-checks, execution, output validation and seamless integration with network ecosystems (OSS, ITSM, security solutions, etc.), essential for automating complex procedures like software upgrades, ensuring comprehensive automation across the entire operational workflow.
In summary, implementing an automation tool in the telecom network infrastructure addresses these challenges by enabling standardized, efficient and controlled execution of scripts, enhancing reliability, scalability and security while reducing manual effort and the likelihood of errors.
Diving into the capabilities of Automation Studio
Rakuten Symphony Automation Studio has been meticulously crafted as a comprehensive framework aimed at tackling the intricate challenges pervasive in the telecom industry. Its primary goal is the reduction of human errors while streamlining operational tasks through the facilitation of customized automation development and management across the network lifecycle. This robust and scalable framework is adept at executing automation scripts across multiple network nodes at defined intervals or upon request, offering a reliable API-driven mechanism. This mechanism allows external systems or applications to initiate and execute automation routines securely and efficiently, seamlessly integrating them into broader network management workflows.
Fundamentally, the solution is geared towards simplifying the creation, validation, storage, scheduling and API-driven execution of well-tested automation routines. Its purpose is to enhance network operations and efficiency through a modern web application, eliminating the necessity to grapple with archaic, cron-like interfaces. The studio also provides complete visibility into task statuses and logs, thereby obviating the need for manual oversight.
Moreover, the capability for automation scripts to be triggered automatically based on configurable conditions liberates the engineering team, allowing them to focus on more critical issues. Consequently, reliance on manual intervention diminishes, making it the exception rather than the rule. This shift prevents bottlenecks in the team's knowledge base and optimizes task execution.
The Automation Studio encompasses a variety of common use cases prevalent in the industry, including health and system checks on network nodes, backup and restoration, isolation and rollback procedures, troubleshooting and VPN access. It facilitates fetching commands from a centralized repository and executing them across multiple network elements. Moreover, it proficiently displays the execution output, a crucial aspect for network audits and troubleshooting purposes. The framework offers a plethora of features, including:
1.§Workflow support for complex automation use cases
2.§Automation Library facilitating rapid development
3.§Standardize and automate MOPs
4.§Custom script creation capabilities
5.§Scalable architecture for network-wide operational tasks
6.§Command Catalogue to ensure users interact with the NE for audit and troubleshooting purposes
Automation Studio integrates seamlessly with Inventory, enabling swift acquisition of essential node lists for executing scripts and procedures. Additionally, its Security Module Integration ensures secure access to resources, enhancing reliability. The integration of Multi-Domain Coordination Platform (MDCP) empowers users to orchestrate automation across various network elements, ensuring flexibility and peak performance.
Automation Studio, with its API-based integration, facilitates cross-communication with various network ecosystem entities, allowing north-bound entities like OSS, Service Assurance, and ITSM solutions to trigger automation scripts via exposed APIs. This capability empowers network administrators to achieve comprehensive end-to-end automation.
What's the right way to automate a process?
Functionality and workflow:
The core working mechanism involves the Automation Studio front-end engine managing tasks via a user-friendly interface. The creation and execution of automation templates occurs through GUI or scheduled events. The Automation MOP/Script templates, created through the GUI, are executed using MDCAP or scheduled through the Scheduler Pipeline.
Execution workflow:
The execution engine of Automation Studio prepares and submits payloads to the orchestrator, MDCAP (Multi Data center Automation Platform). For on-demand executions, the engine directly submits requests, while scheduled events trigger the Scheduler Pipeline. MDCAP orchestrates script executions based on triggers received from OSS, utilizing worker pods for efficient batch processing. The MDCAP engine generates jobs for automation execution, primarily used to create and manage worker nodes that run to completion whether they succeed or fail and are then terminated. These worker nodes are intended for running batch or one-time tasks, ensuring successful completion before terminating associated pods. This parallel execution can be scaled by specifying the desired number of completions, allowing for efficient processing of multiple tasks concurrently. Additionally, you can configure different restart policies for jobs, either on failure or never, depending on your requirements. Monitoring the status of worker nodes and their associated pods helps you track the progress of batch tasks. Finally, jobs are ephemeral, automatically cleaning up both the job and its pods once the task is finished, aiding in resource management within your Kubernetes cluster.
Post-execution operations:
The Automation Studio notification service validates job completion notifications from MDCAP and writes them into Kafka messaging queues, ensuring efficient communication and monitoring of task status.
In conclusion, Automation Studio stands as a revolutionary force in the telecom industry, addressing critical operational challenges by automating tasks, enhancing efficiency and providing a scalable solution for seamless network operations. Its integration capabilities, comprehensive functionalities and diverse use cases position it as an indispensable tool for streamlined operations and innovation within the telecom sector.
https://symphony.rakuten.com/blog/...perations-with-automation-studio
Jan 17, 2024
NEEDHAM, Mass. – International Data Corporation (IDC) sees cloud-native deployment of telco network workloads accelerating in 2024. IDC forecasts worldwide revenue for telco cloud infrastructure software, including virtual network functions (VNFs), cloud-native network functions (CNFs), and network functions virtualization infrastructure (NFVI), across four market subsegments (core transport, mobile infrastructure, mobile backhaul, access networks and virtual CPE), will grow from $12.9 billion in 2022 to $27.3 billion in 2027. This represents a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 16.1% over the 2022-2027 forecast period.
Most current telco workloads continue to leverage VNFs; however, as wireless, wireline, and other service providers turn their attention to cloud-native workloads, we expect the CNF market to grow rapidly. In making this year's forecast, IDC has accounted for the recent emergence and growing initiative to deploy cloud-native, container-based telco workloads across the telco cloud. Accordingly, the forecast breaks out cloud-native network functions as a separate line item.
https://www.telecomtv.com/content/cloud-native/...lion-in-2027-49405/
January 18, 2024
Did you know Rakuten Mobile supports smartphone rental activities in regional communities? Its joint program with Bizen City in Okayama Prefecture has already had over 1,600 applications for devices, with citizens over the age of 60 accounting for around half. In this video, we hear from the citizens themselves the benefits of owning a smartphone and their hopes for what it can achieve.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y_WEvac3XeE
During an earnings call, Chairman Mickey Mikitani stated that the company has been actively working to reduce expenses, particularly those related to the network. He highlighted that new roaming contracts have been utilized as an opportunity to control capital expenditures. Mikitani explained that Rakuten Mobile is transitioning from its build phase to a phase focused on lean and solid management, cost reductions, and customer acquisition.
https://www.quora.com/...to-achieve-its-goal-of-breaking-even-in-2024
1 day ago
2024 is set to be a pivotal year for the global content industry, so TBI has enlisted some of the biggest names in the business to share their thoughts on the major trends of the next 12 months and how they’re going to capitalise on them.
Here, Cédric Dufour, CEO of streaming service Rakuten TV, talks the growth of FAST and AVOD, fostering inclusivity in the workplace and the social impact responsibility of the entertainment industry.
What is the biggest growth area for your company this year?
A key area of focus this year continues to be AVOD and FAST growth, as it has been for the last few years. Rakuten TV launched AVOD in 2019 and FAST channels in 2020, and we are among the leaders in Europe, with a pan-European distribution in 43 countries. We are aware that AVOD and FAST are still emerging markets in Europe, where their level of maturity is still lower than in the US, but at the same time it is one of the fastest growing sectors of our industry, which is why it will be our first focus.
Specifically on FAST, we plan to add new channels to our FAST portfolio – both O&O (owned and operated) and third-party channels, and to leverage our expertise to build new channels for partners.
We will also increase our collaboration with telco partners to broaden our reach. And for those viewers looking for fresh content on our platform, we will also maintain our focus on TVOD: we expect 2024 to be a strong year in terms of new releases, after years of COVID and the strikes. Our goal is to always provide users a wide range of content according to their needs, that´s why our new claim is “discover streaming freedom”.
https://tbivision.com/2024/01/18/...ons-cedric-dufour-ceo-rakuten-tv/
Jack Haddon, January 19
AST Mobile has announced a strategic investment from AT&T, Google and Vodafone of $155 million.
The company said the capital injection will help it accelerate its mission to close the global connectivity gap by bringing 5G broadband service from space to billions of people worldwide.
In addition to the $155 million strategic investment, the company also plans to draw up to $51.5 million from its existing senior-secured credit facility, for a total new financing of up to $206.5 million in gross proceeds.
AST SpaceMobile claims to have invented the space-based direct-to-device market, and says its patented design facilitates broadband connectivity directly to standard, unmodified cellular devices.
Vodafone was an existing investor in the company, and alongside AT&T, Rakuten and Nokia helped AST SpaceMobile make the first-ever 5G connection for voice and data between an unmodified smartphone.
Alongside Vodafone and the two new investors, Rakuten, American Tower, and Bell Canada have also backed the company as part owners, technology partners and customers.
In addition to the strategic investment, Vodafone and AT&T have placed purchase orders for network equipment from AST SpaceMobile to support planned commercial service.
In addition its strategic investment, Google agreed to collaborate on product development, testing and implementation plans for AST SpaceMobile’s network connectivity on Android and related devices.
https://www.capacitymedia.com/article/...e-invest-in-ast-space-mobile
By Stefano De Marzo
January 11, 2024
BBVA Spark, a bank for high-growth companies, has closed a €15 million venture debt financing facility with Cabify, a Spanish mobility company, which was born 12 years ago in Madrid and became the first unicorn in Spain in 2018, to accelerate the implementation of its strategic plan, focused on boosting sustainable and accessible urban mobility.
Cabify continues to progress on the objectives set out in its Sustainable Business Strategy 2022-2025, among which its commitment to sustainable growth, from a social, financial, and environmental point of view, stands out. The Spanish company is investing in progressive decarbonization and electrification of its fleet to reach 100% of zero-emission trips on its platform by 2025 in Spain and 2030 in Latin America.
As a sign of its progress, the company recently announced the incorporation of 200 new electric cars in Madrid, which Vecttor, a subsidiary of the group, will operate.
In parallel, Cabify will continue to develop its Tech Mobility and service proposal so that accessible and sustainable mobility reaches more people and territories within the set of countries in which the company operates. The company is currently present in more than 40 cities in Spain and Latin America. Cabify remains committed to sustainable growth and profitability, maintaining a pronounced global growth rate of over 30%.
https://www.eu-startups.com/2024/01/...ng-sustainable-urban-mobility/
Article by Sara Lebow | Nov 2, 2023
https://www.insiderintelligence.com/content/...reach-target-consumers
Stefan Pongratz, vice president, Dell’Oro Group January 18, 2024 6:54 PM
Open RAN and vRAN to grow in 2024
The developments in 2023 were largely in line with expectations. Following a strong showing in 2022, both Open RAN and Virtualized RAN (vRAN) revenue growth were expected to slow in 2023 as the early adopter comparisons became more challenging. Preliminary findings show that the slow-down thesis was correct, however, the velocity of this deceleration impacted both Open RAN and vRAN more than expected. More importantly, the underlying message that we have communicated now for some time with the Open RAN movement carrying forward despite all the various speed bumps and the leading RAN suppliers playing a greater role was further validated in 2023, as both Nokia and Ericsson raised their public commitment levels.
In 2024, market conditions will remain challenging, reflecting the scale divergences between the early adopters characterizing the first wave and the early majority-type brownfield operator shaping the next phase. Still, we are modeling the overall Open RAN and vRAN revenues to improve as the comps with the early adopters stabilize and the commercial volumes with some of the smaller scale vRAN deployments gradually improve. Overall, Open RAN is projected to account for 7% to 10% of the broader 2024 RAN market.
https://www.sdxcentral.com/articles/contributed/...n-in-2024/2024/01/
By Rabih Dabboussi Chief Business Officer Rakuten Symphony
January 18, 2024
https://symphony.rakuten.com/blog/...tionwide-open-ran-mobile-network
Rakuten Symphony and 1&1 recently made history by launching Germany’s newest 4G and 5G mobile network. Opportunities to execute projects of this magnitude are rare. This is Europe’s first commercial-scale open radio access network deployment, and the world’s second, after Rakuten Mobile’s launch in Japan in 2020.
As general contractor and end-to-end technology partner for the network deployment, bringing together over 80 partners to build and deploy 1&1’s Open RAN network was no small feat. 1&1 and Rakuten Symphony had to team up with many suppliers against whom we would otherwise compete. The associated complexity of rolling out Germany’s newest mobile network required a major mindset shift and demanded tactical soft skills as well as technical expertise that would not have been required in the rollout of a network based on a legacy architecture. This is the way networks of the future will be deployed – where 1&1 has gone, others will follow.
Source: Article in 11296
53. Acorns IPO
Acorns * is a “financial everything” technology app that popularized micro-investing, a strategy that involves frequent small investments. Its primary draw is the ability to ’round up’ spending amounts and invest dollar fractions into ETFs.
For example, if you spend $2.40 on a coffee, the app automatically invests $0.60 into a pre-determined portfolio of passive index ETFs. It’s also added a checking account, making it simple to manage spending and investing in one place.
It charges a low flat fee per month.
Acorns has partnered with CNBC to deliver educational features to promote financial wellness. The partnership offers inspiring stories and expert advice on fundamental personal finance and investing topics.
Given this relationship, Acorns-related news receives more TV coverage than other public offerings.
https://accessipos.com/upcoming-ipos/
Dec. 12, 2023
Bluevine, a digital banking platform, now has more than $1 billion in managed deposits by its small business banking customers. This has been largely driven by its Business Checking account, a high yield, no-fee account with a suite of built-in business applications, according to a press release.
"We knew that a checking account could be more than just a utility for business owners, and actually evolve into an essential application to run their companies successfully. The Bluevine approach was to provide greater transparency and value by stripping out the extraneous fees and penalties that exist in traditional business banking along with providing high yield on operating balances. In addition, we built a digital-first experience that eliminated the need for even a single branch visit, and integrated a range of sophisticated business features that would empower customers to streamline their financials — supporting the way they prefer to run their companies," Eyal Lifshitz, co-founder and CEO of Bluevine, said in the release.
The account offers 2% annual percentage yield on balances up to $250,000 with unlimited transactions. The company also expanded FDIC insurance coverage up to $3 million.
https://www.atmmarketplace.com/news/...1b-in-small-business-deposits/