Ninestar Makes Chips Used in Counterfiet Cartridges And It's Your Fault

We inside the industry have known this for decades:  China does not believe in IP.  

China believes once an idea is out in the world, it is anyone's to use and profit from.  China believes that the only way they can compete on the world stage is to steal other people's work - which is bad enough.  What makes this more egregious is they market it as their own.

China cannot innovate.

There, I said it.  You know this.  You know what I say is true.  For me, it is and has been, crystal clear.  Take a look at the Chinese fighter jets - they look like ours. Check out the Red Chinese aircraft carriers.  They look like Great Britain's.

Why has nobody called these communists out?  For a good reason: Money

Our small niche in the Universe is impacted by China.

It doesn't matter if you're an HP fanboy, or believe HP's latest dealer agreements 'steal my data and my accounts'; it doesn't even matter if, like me, you don't hold the 'reman and third party toner heads' in the highest regard.  Dumpster Diving went corporate.  

Hazahhh!

But here's my dilemma:  How different is taking one company's patent, manufacturing identical chips, and falsely marketing those chips 'original' and selling them different from running an author's content through AI with the prompt, "Rewrite this in the style of me."

https://www.action-intell.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/AI-Report-Testing-Finds-Ninestar-Source-for-Chips-on-Counterfeits.pdf

My inner struggles aside, I do not like the fact that these chips report themselves as "HP Original" when they are not.  I do not like the fact that it took a rather involved study to bring these details to light.  True, I am torn as to know HP paid for the project, but after careful review of said study, 19 pages on the primary and another 22 from a supporting study, it is apparent the funding source is irrelevant.

Bottom line, as of today, 

1. Ninestar made fake chips that could be programmed to report as "genuine hp".
2. Marketed by Ninestar or its subsidiaries, these chips were installed on counterfeit toner cartridges and sold as HP toner.
3. The chips were programmed to falsely report 'genuine' and US consumers purchased the cartridges in good faith.

The following is a ChatGPT-assisted summary of the report can be found here.

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Amazon employees face possible pay cuts due to company's falling share prices

If you work for Amazon, you might be feeling a little anxious about your paycheck. According to a recent report by the Wall Street Journal, corporate staff at the online giant could see their pay packets sink by anywhere between 15% and 50% below compensation targets. 

This drop comes after CEO Andy Jassy issued a rallying cry to his remaining workforce following the January announcement of 18,000 layoffs. 

Why? 

Because Amazon's share prices have slumped by around 35% in the past year. 

The Return to the Office: Is it Really the Solution to the Productivity Problem?

The return to the office could be the real reason for the slump in productivity. This is not just an opinion, but a fact that is supported by data. After a brief increase in office occupancy to over 50% in January, it plummeted to 45.6% by February and then only slightly recovered to 48.6%. Despite this, many business leaders are still insisting on their employees returning to the office to prevent what they call "quiet quitting."

Optimal engagement occurs when employees spend 60% to 80% of their time working off-site, as reported by Gallup

Article Summary: 

• The return to the office may be the reason for the drop in productivity and increase in "quiet quitting".
• Forcing employees to come to the office under the threat of discipline leads to disengagement, fear, and distrust, exacerbating the problem.
• A flexible team-led approach that emphasizes collaboration, training, and employee well-being is the best approach for the future of work.

Amazon CEO Announces Plan to Return to the Office Despite Employee Satisfaction with Remote Work

In this article, we discuss Amazon CEO Andy Jassy's announcement that the company plans to return to the office for the majority of its employees at least three days per week from May 1, 2023. 

Despite the fact that 77% of employees report greater productivity while working off-site, Jassy believes that being in the office together most of the time allows for better collaboration, more effective invention, and easier learning. 

However, there is no presented or existing data to support any of the documented reasons for a return to the office, and a new study from the University of Birmingham found that the majority of managers see benefits in working from home, including increased productivity, motivation, and concentration. 

The article questions the value of chance encounters and serendipity in the workplace and suggests that cultivating strong relationships, developing new skills, and actively seeking out opportunities to grow and learn are more effective strategies for success.

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The Impact of Remote Work on Commercial Real Estate And You

Why is this important to you:

• The shift to remote work is leading to a decline in demand for traditional office space and an increase in vacancies.
• This trend means that businesses will reevaluate their office space requirements and look for ways to reduce real estate costs.
• There will be an increased demand for technologies that enable remote work, which helps office technology salespeople tailor solutions to meet the changing needs of your customers.

This indicates a fundamental shift in the way businesses use office space. With more employees working from home, the demand for traditional office space is declining, leading to a significant increase in vacancies.

As a result, there may be an increased demand for technologies that enable remote work, such as video conferencing tools, collaboration software, and cloud-based storage solutions. 

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Three Ideas for #PersonalBranding on #LinkedIn and Beyond

Personal branding has become increasingly important in today's digital age. In this article, we will explore three ideas to help you develop your personal brand on LinkedIn and beyond.

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Videogame Industry Struggles to Maintain Growth Amid Declining Consumer Spending

In response to a decline in spending, companies are canceling games and implementing cost-cutting measures.

• Videogame publishers are canceling games and cutting costs amid a slowdown in spending by players, reversing some of the growth made during the pandemic.
• The decline in consumer spending on mobile games, the biggest and fastest-growing segment of the industry, was significant, at 12% last quarter compared with a year earlier.
• Established blockbusters like Call of Duty and FIFA are receiving more funding than new properties and niche titles, and tech-industry heavyweights that made bets in video gaming are pulling back on the sector.

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