Tag: italy

Analysis: Has the US-led Red Sea force calmed shippers amid Houthi attacks? | Israel-Palestine conflict News

The United States-led multinational naval force that was to protect and secure maritime traffic through the Red Sea from attacks by Yemeni Houthi rebels appears significantly weakened – even if not quite dead in the water – before it ever sailed together.

Less than a week after the announcement of Operation Prosperity Guardian (OPG), France, Italy and Spain have pulled out of the nearly fully-created force touted to include warships from more than 10 nations.

The decision to cobble together what is essentially an anti-Houthi coalition was almost forced on Washington. In early November, a US destroyer shot down several missiles fired from Yemen but the US tried to maintain a business-as-usual pose and not advertise that it was engaging the Yemeni group.

As long as the combative Houthis tried, unsuccessfully, to lob missiles at Israel, a country attacking Yemeni’s Arab and Muslim brethren, the US could maintain that the whole affair was not a serious regional escalation. But when their repeated attacks on ships headed to and from the Suez Canal threatened the security of international maritime routes, the US was forced to act.

The US Navy already has a huge number of ships in the region, so why would it need to ask friendly nations to contribute more?

One reason is that even with such a large force, the US cannot spare many ships for the task. The other is political unwillingness to be the only nation attacking Yemen as it would likely be interpreted, especially in the Middle East, as direct military action in aid of Israel.

US political and military dilemmas are largely conditioned by geography and Yemen’s control of the strategically important choke point where the Indian Ocean funnels into the Red Sea. The Bab el-Mandeb passage is only 29km (16 nautical miles) wide at its narrowest point.

Its approaches are bristling with warships: More than 35 from at least 12 nations that do not border the Red Sea are now in positions from which they could reach the strait in less than 24 hours. Nations along its African and Arabian shores have at least as many in their harbours.

Many of these ships were already in the region before 7 October. The northwestern parts of the Indian Ocean leading into the Gulf of Aden and the Bab el-Mandeb are probably the most notorious pirate-infested waters of the 21st century.

The civil war and breakdown of Somalia’s central government created maritime piracy on an unprecedented scale. Somali pirates venture out to sea in fast small boats, armed with machine guns and rocket-propelled grenades and intercept commercial shipping heading towards and from Bab el-Mandeb in three directions: from the Far East, passing south of India; from the Gulf, sailing around the Arabian Peninsula; and north to south along African shores.

Shipping companies demanded protection and the international community, aware of the need to keep shipping lanes open and secure, provided it. Every month, 200 ships cross the Suez in each direction carrying no less than 3 million containers.

Since 1990, the Combined Task Force 150 (CTF-150) had been engaged in anti-piracy missions. More than 30 nations, mostly Western but also including Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, Thailand, Singapore and Turkey, took part and usually kept at least four warships on station, rotating every three to four months.

In 2022, a new force, the CTF-153, took over. When the latest war in Gaza started, the force was comprised of US destroyers USN Carney and USN Mason, Japanese destroyer JDS Akebono and a South Korean one, ROKS Yang Man Chun.

In anticipation of the arrival of stronger assets, the US ships immediately moved into the Red Sea, and both have on several occasions intercepted Houthi missiles and drones. The US Navy hurriedly deployed two aircraft carrier task groups – which include anti-aircraft and anti-submarine cruisers and destroyers, helicopter carriers, assault ships and other offensive and defensive assets – to the wider region.

It is almost certain that the White House did not immediately have a concrete action plan for involvement in the Gaza conflict, but the decision to deploy to the region naval and air power capable of taking on all potential adversaries was militarily prudent.

Meanwhile, the White House also engaged in diplomacy. The US and Iran exchanged indirect statements, assuring each other they did not seek confrontation. Iran announced that it had not been informed of the October 7 Hamas attacks on Israel, and the US did everything to avoid alienating Iran. In return, Tehran nudged the Lebanese armed group Hezbollah into refraining from a full-scale offensive. The de-escalation seemed to be working.

But then the Houthis, considered to be an Iranian proxy in much the same way as Hezbollah, decided to attack in the Red Sea, demanding Israel end its war on Gaza. They launched long-range missiles at Israel and naval missiles at US Navy destroyers that had entered the Red Sea.

Both operations failed, with all missiles and drones being on several occasions intercepted and shot down. The US Navy was convinced that its two destroyers could handle the situation, possibly being reinforced in time by a couple more.

But when tankers and container ships in the Red Sea started taking hits almost daily, the escalation was undeniable. Many of the world’s biggest shipping companies shifted from going through the Suez Canal to the longer and more expensive route around Africa. Commercial carriers now introduced a $700 surcharge on each container sailing the longer route.

Counting just those laden with Asian manufactured goods heading to Europe, the additional cost is a staggering $2bn per month. That increase gets passed on to the final customers – leading to inflation. In addition, the longer travel will soon cause distribution delays, shortages and general disruption of the economy, which every nation will feel.

The markets demanded action and the US optimistically believed it could assemble a robust force of up to 20 participating nations to carry out Operation Prosperity Guardian. Within days, high hopes were drowned in refusals. The Pentagon believed that China, a country with major interests in keeping open the sea lanes that take its exports to Europe, would join in, especially as it already has a self-supported task force of one destroyer and one frigate in the western Indian Ocean.

But Beijing replied that it had no interest in joining the OPG. Refusals also came from major Arab navies straddling Red Sea shores: Saudi Arabia and Egypt. They hinted that they did not want to be seen engaging an Arab country in this situation. The US apparently showed understanding for their position, confident that it will have no problem in attracting enough ships.

Meanwhile, France, Italy and Spain have indicated they will not join a mission under US command – only if it is a European Union or NATO force. That leaves the US with the United Kingdom, Norway, the Netherlands, Greece, Canada and Australia as nations that are still, officially, on board with the OPG.

Most already have ships either in the Indian Ocean or in eastern Mediterranean and could reach the Red Sea within a few days, enabling the OPG to take charge and start escorting commercial shipping before the New Year.

The first reaction of the merchant marines came on Sunday when the Danish shipping major Maersk announced that its vessels would resume transit through the Red Sea under OPG escort. If OPG can provide safe passage, it would boost its support could influence conteiner companies like MSC and CGN, petroleum giant BP and others to return to the shortest route. But Maersk made it clear that it could return to the longer route around Africa depending on how safety conditions evolve.

Regardless of the number of participating countries, Operation Prosperity Guardian will not be just a simple act of escorting ships through the southern Red Sea. In the last few days there have been several worrying signs of a potential major escalation that could easily open another front involving major regional actors.

Check out our Latest News and Follow us at Facebook

Original Source

‘We barely make ends meet’: In Italy, some women are postponing motherhood | Women

Giada, a 30-year-old writer, lives in central Italy with her boyfriend, a shop assistant also in his thirties.

After several unpaid internships, she finally secured a more reliable position this year.

As a writer specialising in science, she earns about 800 euros ($876) a month on a one-year part-time contract.

“They said they are going to renew it, but it’s a small company and everything is very unstable,” Giada told Al Jazeera.

For this reason, she is postponing motherhood.

“Having kids has never been a question for me, and my boyfriend and I discuss it as he would also like to have them. But then we think about our precarious situation and realise that becoming parents now would not be sustainable. We barely make ends meet – imagine with a child.”

Working in Italy as a woman is fraught with challenges.

The country is home to the lowest female employment rate in the European Union and a steep gender pay gap. Women are also often more likely to be employed in “non-standard” arrangements, such as part-time and temporary jobs. And it is mothers and young women who are the most affected.

“We are lucky in other ways,” Giada said. “Our families support us so we know that if we need help we can ask them.

“[But] what if I get pregnant and my company decides to not renew my contract? It is not so unrealistic that this could happen.”

Chiara, a 26-year-old social media strategist living in Padua with her boyfriend, said given their salaries, they cannot plan for a family yet.

“I left my parents’ home when I was 19 and almost immediately became financially independent by working while studying,” she said.

“All my wages have always been used for daily living, not allowing me to save any money.”

Chiara is working on an apprenticeship contract, earning about 1,200 euros ($1,314) per month.

Looking ahead, she does not expect her salary to rise by much.

“Our desire to become parents is strong, but it is never stronger than knowing that a kid deserves to live comfortably,” she said. “With groceries, rent and bills going up, while our salary remains the same, it is basically impossible to do so.

“Of course, this is not something that makes me happy: not knowing whether our financial situation will ever allow us to have children scares me, because this day may never come”.

Motherhood postponed

According to a recent Department of Health report, Italian women are, on average, older than 31 when they have their first child.

About 62 percent of babies in 2022 were born to mothers aged between 30 and 39. Those aged between 20 and 29 accounted for 26 percent of births, compared with 30 percent in 2012.

The average number of children per woman is now 1.24, one of the lowest rates in Europe. To compare, France’s rate, which is considered high, was 1.8 in 2021 while Greece’s was 1.4, according to the World Bank.

The Department of Health said the trends are partly down to a “decrease in the propensity to have children”.

While women are under less societal pressure to have children, in Italy, the biggest obstacle to motherhood for some is being able to afford it.

Official figures show that 72 percent of resignations in 2021 were submitted by women. Most of those who quit cited the difficulties associated with juggling work and childcare duties.

“Care work is still all on women’s shoulders, even for couples where both have jobs,” Chiara Daniela Pronzato, professor of demography at the University of Turin, told Al Jazeera.

While women get five months’ maternity leave, fathers are entitled to just 10 days.

Good quality and affordable childcare is in short supply. There are not enough state-run nursery places and private preschools are very expensive. Plans to use 4.6 billion euros of the EU’s COVID-19 recovery funds to build new nurseries are lagging.

“The most expensive aspect of parenthood is children’s time. Caring for them costs money,” Pronzato said. “When a woman has kids and a low salary, it is likely she would resign to take care of the family, setting her up in a state of poverty that certainly does not help the country to grow.

“Increasing the fertility rate is not important because ‘we are shrinking as a population’, but rather to maintain economic prosperity,” Pronzato explained.

“If women worked more, they could have more children, as shown by France, Sweden and Norway, where fertility and female employment rates are both high.”

Presenting the government’s 2024 budget, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, who has made clear her desire to increase the birth rate, announced measures for families with children, including free nursery care for a second child, the temporary exemption of women with two or more children from social security contributions, and benefits for companies that hire mothers on permanent contracts.

“A woman who gives birth to at least two children … has already made an important contribution to society,” Meloni said in October.

But Pronzato warned that while incentives could be helpful, “there should be more focus on services instead of money, as it is hard for people to trust that these bonuses will remain for a long time”.

“Building new kindergartens and offering full-time education and after-school activities in schools would rather be a more forward-looking step,” she explained.

“We should begin to consider children as precious and important to everyone, because the future depends on them, and it should be the community, the public – not the individual household – that take care of them.”

Check out our Latest News and Follow us at Facebook

Original Source

‘If I die, I die’: The allure of Pakistan’s death-trap route to Europe | Longform

On a warm May evening, Touqeer Pervez packed two pairs of trousers, three shirts, a toothbrush and toothpaste into a small black backpack. The lanky 28-year-old with a neatly trimmed beard was getting ready to leave Bandli, his village in Pakistan-administered Kashmir, on a three-country trip that would see him travelling across land, air and sea in the hope of reaching Italy.

His family’s unfinished house, partly roofless and with walls needing plaster, was bursting with chatter and laughter. Family members and friends sat under the open sky in the veranda, as a pedestal fan desperately tried, but failed, to beat the humidity in the air.

As they cracked jokes, Haseeb, the youngest of Touqeer’s siblings, reminded his brother that in Italy, he would struggle to indulge his favourite hobby, playing cricket.

Yet amid the banter, Touqeer’s nervous mother Tazeen was still trying to convince her son against leaving. Her eldest son Tanweer had already left for the United Arab Emirates to find work in January, and Tazeen was not ready to let go of her second, and most beloved, son.

Touqeer, however, was calm and adamant.

“If I die, I will die, but if I succeed and reach Italy, at least I could help our family. Let me go please,” he pleaded with his mother.

The next morning, on May 5, Touqeer and a few other village residents left on a 150km (93-mile) bus ride to Pakistan’s capital Islamabad, where they caught a flight to the southern city of Karachi. The next leg took them to Dubai, from where they jumped on a connecting flight to Cairo, and eventually made their way to Libya on May 7.

Italy, just across the Mediterranean Sea, seemed to be almost within touching distance.

Check out our Latest News and Follow us at Facebook

Original Source

After ChatGPT, Italy’s Regulator Plans to Review Other Artificial Intelligence Platforms

Italy’s data protection authority Garante plans to review other artificial intelligence platforms and hire AI experts, a top official said, as it ramps up scrutiny of the powerful technology after temporarily banning ChatGPT in March.

Garante is among the most proactive of the 31 national data protection authorities which oversee Europe’s data privacy regime known as the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).

The agency was the first to ban AI chatbot company Replika, to impose fines on facial recognition software maker Clearview AI, and to restrict TikTok in Europe.

In March, it temporarily banned Microsoft-backed OpenAI‘s bot ChatGPT and launched a probe over the application’s suspected breach of privacy rules.

“We plan to kick off a wide-scope review of generative and machine learning AI applications which are available online because we want to understand if these new tools are addressing issues linked to data protection and privacy laws compliance — and we will start new probes, if needed,” said Agostino Ghiglia, a member of Garante’s board.

The success of ChatGPT has prompted tech heavyweights from Alphabet to Meta to promote their own versions, and lawmakers and governments around the world are debating new laws that could take years to be enforced.

“We are looking for three AI advisers because we are aware AI tools are evolving very quickly and we need experts with tech background to help us in our data protection activity,” Ghiglia said.

The move is the latest example of how some regulators are relying on existing laws to control a technology that could upend the way societies and businesses operate.

The four-member Garante board is made up of law experts. Ghiglia said the authority has 144 staff, well below its European peers in France, Spain and Britain. Most have a background in law, Ghiglia said.

In its crackdown on ChaTGPT, Garante used provisions of GDPR, particularly those that protect underage children and grant individuals the right to request cancellation and object to the use of their personal data.

After Garante took steps, ChatGPT maker OpenAI made changes to its chatbot to regain compliance.

“Members of the Garante board often become aware of potential breaches of privacy laws because we simply explore digital tools and applications once they are available,” Ghiglia said.

“We explored ChatGPT and realised it was not compliant with EU data privacy rules.”

It will take years for potential new legislation regulating AI to come into force.

“That’s why we decided to act swiftly with ChatGPT”, Ghiglia said.

© Thomson Reuters 2022

Google I/O 2023 saw the search giant repeatedly tell us that it cares about AI, alongside the launch of its first foldable phone and Pixel-branded tablet. This year, the company is going to supercharge its apps, services, and Android operating system with AI technology. We discuss this and more on Orbital, the Gadgets 360 podcast. Orbital is available on Spotify, Gaana, JioSaavn, Google Podcasts, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music and wherever you get your podcasts.
Affiliate links may be automatically generated – see our ethics statement for details.

Check out our Latest News and Follow us at Facebook

Original Source

ChatGPT Restored in Italy After Microsoft-Backed OpenAI Responds to Regulator

The ChatGPT chatbot was reactivated in Italy after its maker OpenAI addressed issues raised by Italy’s data protection authority, the agency and the company confirmed on Friday.

Microsoft-backed OpenAI took ChatGPT offline in Italy last month after the country’s data protection authority, also known as Garante, temporarily banned the chatbot and launched a probe over the artificial intelligence application’s suspected breach of privacy rules.

Garante had given a deadline till Sunday to OpenAI to address its concerns for allowing the chatbot to start operating again in the country.

Last month, Garante said ChatGPT has an “absence of any legal basis that justifies the massive collection and storage of personal data” to “train” the chatbot. 

Garante had also accused OpenAI of failing to check the age of ChatGPT’s users who are supposed to be aged 13 or above, OpenAI said it will offer a tool to verify users’ ages in Italy upon sign-up.

The company said on Friday it will provide greater visibility of its privacy policy and user content opt-out form.

It will also provide a new form for European Union users to exercise their right to object to its use of personal data to train its models, a company spokesperson said.

The form requires people who want to opt out to provide detailed personal information, including evidence of data processing via relevant prompts.

Garante said it recognises the steps taken to combine technological progress with respect to people’s rights and hopes that the company will continue along this path of compliance with European data protection regulations.

Italy was the first western European country to curb ChatGPT, but its rapid development has attracted attention from lawmakers and regulators in several countries.

A committee of European Union lawmakers on Thursday agreed on new rules that would force companies deploying generative AI tools, such as ChatGPT, to disclose any copyrighted material used to develop their systems.

Following Garante’s interest in ChatGPT, European Data Protection Board, the body that unites Europe’s national privacy watchdogs, set up a task force on the chatbot earlier this month.

Garante said it will continue its probe of ChatGPT and will work with the special task force.  

© Thomson Reuters 2023

Xiaomi launched its camera focussed flagship Xiaomi 13 Ultra smartphone, while Apple opened it’s first stores in India this week. We discuss these developments, as well as other reports on smartphone-related rumours and more on Orbital, the Gadgets 360 podcast. Orbital is available on Spotify, Gaana, JioSaavn, Google Podcasts, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music and wherever you get your podcasts.
Affiliate links may be automatically generated – see our ethics statement for details.

Check out our Latest News and Follow us at Facebook

Original Source

ChatGPT Can Resume in Italy if OpenAI Meets Data Watchdog’s Demands by April 30

Italy’s data protection agency set out a list of demands on Wednesday which it said OpenAI must meet by April 30 to address the agency’s concerns over the ChatGPT chatbot and allow the artificial intelligence service to resume in the country.

Almost two weeks ago Microsoft-backed OpenAI took ChatGPT offline in Italy after the authority, known as Garante, temporarily restricted its personal data processing and began a probe into a suspected breach of privacy rules.

In a statement on Wednesday Garante laid out a set of “concrete” demands to be met by the end of this month

“Only in this case.. the authority will suspend the provisional restrictions on the use of the data of Italian users … and ChatGPT will once again become accessible in Italy,” it said.

OpenAI on Thursday welcomed the agency’s move.

“We are happy that the Italian Garante is reconsidering their decision and we look forward to working with them to make ChatGPT available to our customers in Italy again soon,” a spokesperson told Reuters.

Italy was the first western European country to curb ChatGPT, but its rapid development has attracted attention from lawmakers and regulators in several countries.

Many experts say new regulations are needed to govern artificial intelligence (AI) because of its potential impact on national security, jobs and education.

The authority said OpenAI is required to inform users in Italy of “the methods and logic” behind the processing of data necessary for ChatGPT to operate.

The watchdog also asked OpenAI to provide tools to enable people whose data is involved, including non-users, to request the correction of personal data inaccurately generated by the service or its deletion, if a correction is not possible.

OpenAI should also allow non-users to oppose “in a simple and accessible manner” the processing of their personal data to run its algorithms, Garante said.

It also asked the company to introduce by the end of September an age verification system capable of excluding access to users under 13.

Garante said it would continue investigating potential breaches of data protection rules by OpenAI, reserving the right to impose any other measures needed at the end of its ongoing probe.

The Italian move on ChatGPT has piqued the interest of other privacy watchdogs in Europe which are studying whether harsher measures are needed for chatbots and whether to coordinate.

Spain’s data protection agency has asked the European Union’s privacy watchdog to evaluate privacy concerns surrounding ChatGPT.

In February, the Italian regulator banned AI chatbot company Replika from using the personal data of users in Italy, citing risks to minors and emotionally fragile people.

© Thomson Reuters 2023

Affiliate links may be automatically generated – see our ethics statement for details.

Check out our Latest News and Follow us at Facebook

Original Source

Italy Imposes 26 Percent Capital Tax on Crypto Profits Above $2,060: All Details

Italy’s parliament has decided to impose a 26 percent capital tax on profits exceeding $2,060 (roughly Rs.1.7 lakh) generated out of crypto trading. The country has acknowledged the presence of the virtual digital assets (VDA) sector in the existing financial system This tax imposition will be implemented as part of Italy’s budget plans for 2023. As of now, the country has not decided upon a definitive set of frameworks around the crypto sector. Bringing VDAs under the tax regime for Italy, hence marks a milestone moment for the up-and-coming fintech sector.

The country has listed some incentives for crypto investors to encourage them to declare their holdings. One such incentive allows taxpayers to slash their capital gains at 14 percent of the price of the held crypto asset that was recorded on January 1, according to a report by Bitcoin.com.

In addition, losses beyond the mark of $2,060 (roughly Rs. 1.7 lakh) incurred because of crypto volatility will be seen as tax deductions, that would be added as information in the next tax period in Italy.

Most transactions facilitated via crypto assets are anonymous and untraceable. By taxing crypto transactions, nations like Italy have joined countries like India, Australia, Portugal, and South Korea, in attempting to formulate tax laws for the crypto sector.

As of last month, Italy was waiting for its crypto tax bill to be signed into the law.

The country is estimated to have over 1.3 million crypto holders. It has been taking gradual but continuous steps in favour of the cryptocurrency industry so that players feel welcome to set up shop and generate revenue.

CryptoCom and Coinbase crypto exchange for instance, recently won approval from Italy’s financial regulator to serve customers in the region.

Italy is also exploring ways to utilise blockchain technology. The government chose the Algorand blockchain to bring about improvements in existing banking systems starting this year. Algorand will support an upcoming digital guarantees platform in Italy to issue bank and insurance guarantees on blockchain, which is a digital ledger technology (DLT).

The UK, India, Australia, Portugal, and South Korea are among other nations that have created or are in the process of formulating tax laws for the crypto sector thriving in their respective territories.

Affiliate links may be automatically generated – see our ethics statement for details.

Catch the latest from the Consumer Electronics Show on Gadgets 360, at our CES 2023 hub.

Check out our Latest News and Follow us at Facebook

Original Source

Stream It or Skip It?

Telling the story of an influencer before that was even a thing, Fortune Seller: A TV Scam recounts the story of an Italian telemarketing mogul who made billions selling diet pills before controversy ensued. Is it enough to get a true crime treatment?

Opening Shot: The series opens with the image of an older woman’s hands folded in her lap before pulling back to reveal her in a typical documentary confessional. She boasts about being able to sell anything – and a producer puts her to the test by handing her a pen, and she comes up with a pitch on the spot.

The Gist: Wanna Marchi came from humble beginnings as a beautician in an unhappy marriage, and she quickly discovers her knack for selling when she starts to sell beauty products from her store. Suddenly finding fame and fortune from appearances on a QVC-type of shopping channel on Italian TV in the 1970s and 80s, Marchi leans into the public’s infatuation with body image and good looks and begins selling slimming products. Soon, she faced allegations about her business even though she was still successfully selling millions of products just by appearing on TV.

Photo: Netflix

What Shows Will It Remind You Of? The series is most reminiscent of the recent Prime Video docuseries LuLaRich, which dove into the online LuLaRoe leggings empire, which was also built from scratch.

Our Take: For true crime to really bite, there has to be a hook. For Wanna Marchi, it’s her ability to sell anything and everything — from the first shot, we know exactly what kind of character we’re dealing with and how she has gotten to this point where she is the subject of a documentary.

Unfortunately, that’s where the intrigue ends for Fortune Seller: A TV Scam. The first episode of the series does little to set up the ensuing conflict and chaos incited by her empire — to put it bluntly, by the end of the first episode, it’s not clear what makes her the subject of a true crime documentary. Marchi is presented as a charismatic figure who told a few white lies about her product’s benefits, but it’s not engrossing enough to warrant a four-hour investigation into her business practices.

While Marchi’s life story is inherently interesting — from simple roots to a billion dollar industry — the way that the story is presented is perhaps the most perplexing. Without immediate indication of what crimes she’s committed (or being accused of committing), it leaves audiences wondering what exactly the story trying to be told is.

Sex and Skin: None, unless you count the many topless but not explicit photos of Marchi’s daughter Stefania who often posed for photos this way “because she could.”

Parting Shot: Wanna Marchi’s shop is set on fire, and each of the documentary’s figureheads react to the occurrence.

Sleeper Star: Marchi’s daughter Stefania becomes her accomplice and reaps the benefits of her mother’s fortune, much of which she spent on her obsession with watches.

Most Pilot-y Line:: “The only thing I can do? Sell. Give me something to sell and I’ll sell it, no problem.” The opening to the documentary lays out exactly who and what the series is about: a professional seller.

Our Call: SKIP IT. Marchi is a fascinating figure but her presence as a true crime subject falls flat.

Radhika Menon (@menonrad) is a TV-obsessed writer based in Los Angeles. Her work has appeared on Vulture, Teen Vogue, Paste Magazine, and more. At any given moment, she can ruminate at length over Friday Night Lights, the University of Michigan, and the perfect slice of pizza. You may call her Rad.



Check out our Latest News and Follow us at Facebook

Original Source

Domino’s Pizza exits Italy as American pies fall flat

Domino’s is reportedly shutting down in Italy after locals failed to acquire a taste for its American-style pies.

Domino’s has now shuttered all 29 of its local stores in the country after entering in 2015 through a franchising agreement with local operator ePizza SpA, the report said.

The Michigan-based chain originally planned to open 880 stores in Italy, betting that Italians would embrace its delivery services.

Instead, Domino’s encountered tough competition from Italian pizzerias and restaurants that found success by bolstering their own delivery efforts or striking partnerships with outside food delivery firms.

“We attribute the issue to the significantly increased level of competition in the food delivery market with both organized chains and ‘mom & pop’ restaurants delivering food, to service and restaurants reopening post pandemic and consumers out and about with revenge spending,” ePizza said in an investor report alongside its fourth-quarter results last year, according to Bloomberg.

Domino’s originally entered Italy in 2015.
Domino’s Pizza

Meanwhile, Domino’s local operations encountered financial trouble during the planned expansion. The company had an outstanding debt of $10.8 million as of the end of 2020 and obtained a temporary reprieve from its creditors through an Italian court order in April – but the protection expired on July 1.

Current Domino’s Pizza CEO Richard Ellison acknowledged the difficulty of breaking into the Italian market in 2015, when he was serving as president of Domino’s international operations.

US-based representatives for Domino’s did not immediately return a request for comment. Representatives for ePizza did not return Bloomberg’s request for comment.

Domino’s Italian stores ended online delivery late last month.
NurPhoto via Getty Images

“No major American pizza brand has successfully entered the market,” Allison said at the time, according to MarketWatch. “We’re going where no major pizza brand has gone before.”

Alessandro Lazzaroni, the Italian entrepreneur who headed up local operations, pledged to keep the product familiar to locals while adding a Domino’s spin.

“We’ve created our own recipe, starting from the original pizza recipe, with Italian products, like 100% tomato sauce and mozzarella, and products like prosciutto di Parma, gorgonzola, grana padano and mozzarella di bufala campana,” Lazzaroni said in a statement in 2015.

Domino’s attempted to leverage its delivery expertise to reach Italian customers.
Bloomberg via Getty Images

Domino’s had previously ceased delivery operations on its website in Italy as of July 29, according to Bloomberg.

Some locals took the news hard, taking to social media to gripe about the shutdowns and complain that their local stores had shuttered, according to the outlet.

Check out our Latest News and Follow us at Facebook

Original Source

Blockchain.com Gains Regulatory Approval to Offer Crypto and Digital Wallet Services in Italy: Details

London-based crypto firm Blockchain.com said on Thursday it had registered as a virtual asset service provider in Italy, the latest in a string of digital asset firms to do so.

Italy created a special registry with its brokerage regulator in February to list crypto operators with a stable presence in the country, provided they meet certain requirements.

Blockchain.com said in a statement it could now offer crypto and digital wallet services to Italian residents and institutional investors under the regulator, known as the OAM.

Major exchanges Binance and US-based Coinbase, as well as Singapore-based Crypto.com and German investment platform Trade Republic, are among those to have already secured registration with the OAM.

Regulators across the world are working out how to bring to heel the crypto sector, which is subject to patchy rules. Consumer protection, financial stability threats and illicit usage of digital coins are issues on the agenda.

Crypto platforms are looking to bolster their bases in Europe before groundbreaking crypto rules agreed last month by the European Union come into force.

Under the rules, expected to go live after 2024, crypto firms will need a licence and customer safeguards to issue and sell digital tokens in the bloc.

“This registration strengthens our position to offer services across Europe,” Blockchain.com said.

OAM oversees financial agents and credit brokers in Italy. It says it can collect and share with anti-mafia and anti-terrorism investigators in Italy data provided by crypto firms on their clients and operations.

Last month, major US crypto exchange Coinbase said it had won approval from Italian regulators to continue to serve customers in Italy. Coinbase had revealed that it met requirements from the OAM, OAM, which also implements anti-money laundering controls.

Financial watchdogs across the world are grappling with how to regulate the cryptocurrency market, which remains subject to patchy rules. Consumer protection, threats to financial stability and illicit usage of digital coins are among the top issues on regulators’ agendas.

© Thomson Reuters 2022

Check out our Latest News and Follow us at Facebook

Original Source

Exit mobile version