Category: Trade

  • MIL-OSI: Best Fortune Teller Online For Accurate Fortune Telling In 2025 – The Psychic Experts

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    New York City, May 07, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Connect with the best fortune teller online offering accurate fortune telling and powerful insights about the future, love life, career path, and more.

    SAN FRANCISCO, CA, May 07, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) – The psychic experts have just ranked the best fortune tellers of 2025 for those who want to know what the future holds for them. With one platform, people can connect with reliable online fortune-telling services and get answers to their pressing questions.

    Discover your destiny with the best fortune tellers online, offering accurate fortune telling that delivers clarity, truth, and trusted predictions.

    ⇒ Find out what your future holds – talk to the best fortune teller now!

    As spiritual curiosity and the demand for real psychics increase globally, the psychic experts are proud to be a trusted platform that helps users find a live fortune teller for psychic reading or fortune telling. The psychic experts are a reputable platform that reviews the best fortune teller websites. These websites provide their services through different mediums like live chat readings, video sessions, and phone consultations.

    Now, people can experience the best fortune teller online and receive accurate fortune telling with clear answers to their most important life questions.

    ⇒ Don’t guess your future – ask the best fortune teller!

    How The Psychic Experts Pick the Best Fortune Tellers

    After years of rating fortune tellers and psychic readers, the psychic experts have just launched their own curated guide of the most accurate and trusted fortune tellers of 2025.

    This new list is not just a deeper and more polished look at the best fortune tellers online, but also justifies the ratings using the five-pillar evaluation that goes like this;

    1. Accuracy & Intuition

    Do these psychic readers align their readings with events and real-life emotions? 

    2. Communication Style

    Are they communicating with clarity, empathy, and honesty?

    3. Reading Tools & Techniques

    What reading tools are being used for fortune-telling for the fortune-telling services? Tarot, runes, clairvoyance, astrology, or some other medium?

    4. Ratings & Reviews

    Do these fortune tellers have consistently high user satisfaction and offer meaningful results?

    5. Ethics & Energy

    Do they offer genuine spiritual service or try to upsell or manipulate their clients?

    Find peace of mind with the best fortune tellers specializing in accurate fortune telling for love, career, and personal growth.

    ⇒ The answers you need are here – talk to a verified fortune teller!

    What Is Fortune Telling and Why Does It Matter in 2025?

    Fortune telling is most often mystified more than it should be, which leads to misunderstandings, too. Fortune telling is just gaining insights about the future of a person or about unknown events via a range of metaphysical tools. 

    This is why many people sometimes have doubts about the authenticity of fortune-telling platforms. However, other people still believe that tarot cards, palm reading, astrology, or clairvoyant visions hold immense value, which is why they are always seeking a good fortune teller who will illuminate their path and offer clarity, compassion, and spiritual precision, and predict other information about their life and future.

    Get real answers from the best fortune tellers using accurate fortune telling to help guide your decisions and reveal your true path.

    ⇒ Real insights, real answers – start accurate fortune telling!

    2025 is filled with shifting perspectives, career transitions, uncertainty, and spiritual awakenings for many people. This increases the demand for genuine fortune tellers who offer spiritual advice or affirmation. However, many people are still cautious about whether online fortune-telling platforms can be misleading or fake. But all those doubts can be eliminated if a person checks out reviews and ratings of fortune tellers and their services before booking, or even better, approach them with an authentic platform like the-psychic-experts.com.

    In 2025, more and more people are turning to the online fortune teller world, as from the comfort of their homes, they can receive spiritual awakening and answers to their complex questions. A live fortune teller, for example, can offer genuine interpretations of someone’s life and future, dreams and events, and can help people with:

    • New relationships
    • Critical business and career decisions
    • Spiritual or karmic guidance
    • Emotional wounds from the past
    • Dreams and their interpretation
    • Complex situations arise with everyday choices.

    ⇒ Ask anything, get instant answers from the best fortune teller!

    Why Online Fortune Telling Is Booming In 2025

    With the rise of technology use and digital platforms, people turn to the internet for answers to everything. For people who want guidance from fortune tellers for their everyday purposes or for reading and spiritual consultations, a dependable platform is very necessary that carefully analyzes all the psychic reading platforms and provides unbiased ratings and reviews so that spiritual seekers can connect with genuine fortune tellers.

    The psychic experts have analyzed more than a hundred fortune-telling websites and have produced a database that claims to offer the utmost clarity and customer satisfaction. With the use of the psychic experts, users can be assured that the fortune-telling services they are going to get will be of the highest quality.

    ⇒ Wondering what’s next? Ask the best fortune teller now!

    The rise of fortune teller online services in 2025 is more prominent than ever. 

    Especially the online services, as they are convenient, anonymous, and 24/7 accessible. These online consultations and fortune-telling have revolutionized the way people seek spiritual consultations. From the comfort of their home, during a lunch break, or during a late-night moment of anxiety, platforms like the psychic experts are one umbrella under which all the seasoned fortune tellers instantly come together.

    There are many benefits of online fortune-telling in 2025, and some of them are:

    • Instant access to fortune-telling: There is no need to book weeks in advance.
    • Global Access: Connecting spiritual seekers with top psychics from all over the world.
    • A variety of Tools Include tarot, astrology, runes, numerology, and mediumship.
    • Free Trials & Readings: Many people like to try a free fortune teller before they pay online.
    • Flexible Pricing: Such online fortune-telling services are available for every budget and urgency level.
    • Authenticity: Verified ratings by the-psychic-experts.com help people avoid scams related to online fortune-telling services.

    If you still don’t know where to begin, you can try the free fortune teller online feature on the-psychic-experts.com. It is risk-free and 100% genuine and authentic.

    ⇒ Discover your destiny with the best fortune teller today!

    Why the Whole World Is Turning to Online Fortune Tellers in 2025

    Fortune telling comes in many shapes and forms. However, one of the most desired forms of fortune-telling is called “reading” and “spiritual consultation.” This type of fortune telling doesn’t rely on specific methods or devices; rather, the fortune teller gives their client predictions and advice that they claim to have come from visions or spirits.

    So, whether it’s love, career, family, or personal growth, every modern spiritual guidance-seeking individual is turning to fortune teller online services for answers to their worldly and otherworldly problems. 

    ⇒ Free fortune teller is live – ask your question now!

    However, not all readers out there are genuine or exceptional. While many websites and apps have made access to fortune tellers quite easy and affordable, it is not necessary that the said fortune tellers will always turn out to be authentic or real. This is why it is important to make sure that the quality of fortune that you are going to get will be of the highest level.

    The demand for virtual guidance through mobile apps and websites has driven the rise of online spiritual consultations, but along with it comes a jungle of unvetted services.

    This is where the psychic expert steps in. The online fortune tellers that they recommend have been in business for more than a decade. They help people who want to avail themselves of fortune-telling services get connected to qualified professionals in this field so that people can gain spiritual insights into their minds, bodies, and spirits.

    Discover the best fortune teller trusted for accurate fortune telling that reveals your destiny with clarity and truth.

    ⇒ Talk to the best fortune teller now and change your life!

    The readings provided by these spiritual professionals are very accurate because they go through an intensive screening process, which depends on detailed user review analysis and direct testing. The rigorous selection process is the reason why this platform is trustworthy and ensures that every online fortune teller it ranks is 100% experienced and effective.

    Unlike random listings or paid placements, the list of best fortune tellers by the psychic experts in 2025 list represents the top 1% of spiritual advisors. The reason for their authenticity is vigorous testing for accuracy, communication levels with their clients, and spiritual alignment.

    ⇒ Don’t wait – get accurate fortune telling instantly online!

    What Sets an Accurate Fortune Teller Apart in 2025?

    What sets an accurate fortune teller apart in 2025 is their intuitive abilities and the various divination techniques that they use to make predictions about a person’s future. These fortune tellers are able to interpret symbols, read patterns, and use tools like palm lines, tarot cards, or tea leaves in order to offer guidance and spiritual insights to individuals. With this guidance, these individuals can navigate their life journey with much clarity and in the right direction. 

    Fortune tellers also provide their clients with a better understanding of their future and correlate them with present circumstances so that the individual may make better decisions in their life, reflect on themselves, and grow personally, professionally, or spiritually.

    ⇒ Your answers are waiting – get a free fortune teller reading!

    The best fortune teller isn’t someone who claims to have psychic abilities. It’s someone who can translate the unseen energies into clear, empowering messages for their clients.

    The in-depth reviews by the psychic experts reveal the major qualities that set apart a truly accurate fortune teller in today’s world, and these are:

    • Clarity in readings – There is no room for vague perceptions
    • Emotional intelligence – alongside empathetic delivery
    • Accurate predictions that match the desires and circumstances of the client 
    • Methodical tools – Using tarot, astrology, or numerology for fortune-telling
    • Live interaction – Creating a real-time connection

    Many top-rated psychics offer free fortune teller online sessions or discounted first readings, which greatly help users test their authenticity before committing.

    ⇒ Free, fast, and accurate – talk to a fortune teller now!

    Top Features That Make a Fortune Teller Platform the Best

    Not all online fortune teller services provide the same high level of quality as the psychic experts. Here’s what sets the most validated and genuine platforms apart from others;

    Verified Reader Profiles
    All listed readers are verified and undergo proper background checks and psychic ability assessments to see if they are eligible to be featured.

    Satisfaction Guarantee
    Clients are 100% satisfied that they can receive refunds or session credits if it doesn’t go as planned, thus adding a factor of trust to the transaction.

    ⇒ Let the best fortune teller guide your next move!

    Real User Reviews
    Each psychic’s page has reviews from real users and transparent ratings, as well as client feedback and reading stats.

    Multiple Psychic Disciplines
    From astrology to numerology to clairvoyance, there are multiple disciplines on these platforms so that people can choose from their preferred method of Psychic reading.

    ⇒ Take control of your destiny – try accurate fortune telling!

    Most Popular Online Fortune Telling Methods in 2025

    If you want to reach out to a fortune teller in 2025, there are many easy ways to do so. Their availability in the digital world has also made it easy to reach out to spiritual readers via an electronic device, either with a phone call, an Android app, or a website like the-psychic-experts.com.

    Many online psychic platforms offer different ways to connect with fortune tellers. 

    Online fortune telling is an accessible spiritual art now, and through the following mediums, a person can easily contact a fortune teller anytime and anywhere in the world:

    • Live Chat Readings – Live chat readings are perfect for users who want quick answers and privacy.
    • Video Sessions – Video sessions help clients who want facial cues and a full, energetic presence during their session.
    • Phone Consultations – Phone consultations are both an old and modern method of reading, as they offer a direct, voice-to-voice connection.
    • Email Readings – Email readings are also perfect for those who prefer detailed, written records of spiritual insights.

    Each method of fortune telling has its own advantages, disadvantages, and energy levels, so the psychic experts recommend that users try more than one type of psychic reading medium to see which suits them best.

    ⇒ Get life-changing clarity from the best fortune teller!

    Most Popular Fortune Telling Services in 2025

    People wondering what the future holds for them or having trouble navigating their life’s twists seek help from reliable fortune tellers, who act like a compass in their complex lives and set them on a journey of self-discovery. The psychic experts review and reveal the most seasoned and genuine psychics, tarot readers, and astrologers, all of whom act as a beacon of insight in the day-to-day life of their spiritual seekers.

    While the-psychic-experts.com sheds light on the expert advisors that unveil the spiritual connections and energies associated with people that they didn’t even know existed, there are some pros and cons associated with online fortune-telling services.

    ⇒ Discover the truth now with the best fortune teller online!

    Pros

    One of the benefits of online fortune-telling services is that there are hundreds of psychic readers available online who are ready to help people who seek guidance from them. They have been present in this psychic industry for years, sometimes more than 2 or 3 decades. Many fortune-telling platforms have mobile applications, both for iOS and Android, that people use to access fortune-telling services from anywhere in the world. Psychic reading and fortune telling use a wide range of services and tools to make sure that the spiritual guidance they offer is accurate and genuine.

    Cons

    One of the drawbacks of online fortune-telling services is that a person may need to book psychic reading services in advance. However, the psychic experts also shed light on some psychic readers who offer a free initial consultation or demo for first-time users. Some people may also find fortune-telling services expensive.

    ⇒ Experience accurate fortune telling that actually helps!

    Different Types Of Fortune Telling Services In 2025

    Fortune telling is a very broad and intricate practice. It utilizes centuries of spiritual wisdom and intuitive insight and brings it right in front of those who seek this knowledge. Whether a person is out to seek clarity, direction, or a new way of life, fortune tellers can offer them multiple services that help them reconnect with their inner self and get spiritual guidance. Here are the most common types of services offered by fortune tellers in 2025;

    Fortune Telling

    This is the umbrella under which all other psychic and spiritual services fall. 

    Fortune telling is the navigation of signs, energies, and symbols to provide insight into the past, present, and future of a user. 

    It uses tools like crystal balls and runes and even utilizes more intuitive practices like clairvoyance to help seekers who want answers to their life’s uncertainties. 

    Fortune-telling sessions focus on personal concerns, such as love, family, money, health, and purpose, and another labyrinth of possibilities of life, and help individuals see the path more clearly, even when their whole life is chaotic.

    ⇒ Get real answers fast from a free fortune teller!

    Psychic Readings

    Psychic readings go beyond what the eyes can see. 

    Psychic readings use heightened intuition and extrasensory perception, such as cosmic airwaves, to pick up on energy fields, emotional vibrations, and spiritual signals around the person who came to the psychic. 

    The goal is not about prediction. Rather, it is about perspective. 

    A psychic can unveil hidden insights and help someone make much sense of their inner conflicts. Such psychics also help people understand emotional imbalances or navigate an important decision. 

    These psychic readings are very personal and can affect both grounding and illuminating the path of a person.

    Love Readings

    Relationships are one of the most common reasons people seek spiritual guidance. Sometimes, they are new, long-standing, but most of the time, complicated. 

    Love psychics or relationship-focused fortune tellers provide a way to understand emotional dynamics, compatibility, soulmate connections, and romantic obstacles between two people. 

    These readings peel away the emotional layers beneath a relationship and decode the feelings, intentions, and future potential of both partners involved.

    ⇒ Reveal your future with accurate fortune telling!

    Tarot Readings

    Tarot is a timeless art of psychic reading.

    It is an intuitive form of divination that reveals the past, present, and future. It uses a deck of 78 symbolic cards, with each card representing a theme, energy, or message. 

    A person will be told to pick a card, and then the reader will interpret the card based on their position and the question at hand.

    This method of psychic reading reveals complex narratives about the querent’s past, present, and future. These readings can clarify complex situations, offer insights into unseen influences, and help a person better understand their own emotions.

    Dream Analysis

    Dreams are productions of the subconscious mind, but they always try to tell us something.

    It is the subconscious mind’s way of speaking. Dream interpreters act as translators of dreams and nightmares. They can analyze symbols, emotions, and patterns in dreams and decode what the dream is trying to communicate. 

    Whether it’s a recurring dream or an unsettling nightmare, dream analysis reveals buried emotions, unresolved issues, or hidden desires. This psychic reading service even suggests the spiritual or prophetic meaning behind dreams and emotions that we experience in sleep.

    ⇒ Find real clarity fast – talk to the best fortune teller today!

    Astrology Readings

    Astrology is the study of planetary movements and their celestial alignments and how they influence life on Earth. 

    An astrologer can map out cosmic constellations and create a natal chart that uses the exact time, date, and location of a person’s birth to uncover hidden traits, tendencies, and life patterns. 

    So, whether a psychic reader is looking at your solar return for the year ahead, investigating your relationship compatibility with your partner, or understanding a difficult life phase, astrology readings provide a cosmic map for solving life’s rhythms.

    Career Forecasts

    Accurate fortune tellers can also help people align with their professional purpose. 

    These readers will utilize the power of intuition, energetic sensing, and sometimes tools like numerology or astrology to identify where someone’s talents truly lie. 

    Career readings are mostly booked by professionals who are dealing with work-related challenges, entrepreneurial possibilities, timing for job changes, or when a new opportunity arises, and they want to know whether it will bring success for them or not.

    ⇒ Ready for answers? Connect with a free fortune teller today!

    Numerology Readings

    Numerology is the study of the energetic vibrations of numbers.

    They govern how these numbers relate to human life. 

    Every letter in a person’s name and every digit in their birth date holds a numeric value that has immense power, and that reveals information about their character, strengths, life cycles, and karmic lessons. 

    Numerology readings uncover these hidden messages to provide clarity on their purpose and the timing of events in their life.

    Occult Readings

    For those drawn to esoteric mysteries and the deeper mystical truths, some fortune tellers offer readings that are rooted in the occult sciences. 

    These sessions are different from others and explore symbolism, ritual magic, elemental energies, spiritual entities, or ancient esoteric systems. 

    They’re mostly suited for individuals who have the power and the mental abilities to confront the hidden forces influencing their lives, as these types of readings often involve exploring the subconscious or spirit world through unique and sacred methods.

    ⇒ Trusted and accurate fortune telling – start now!

    Palmistry

    Also known as palm reading, Palmistry is the ancient art that involves analyzing the shape, lines, and texture of a person’s hand. These patterns help a reader gain insight into the personality, experiences, and future of their client. 

    Every person’s palm is said to carry their narrative. 

    The lifeline, heartline, and headline are just a few, among others, that are read in combination to reveal one’s emotional tendencies, mental strengths, career prospects, and life trajectory.

    Graphology

    Graphology, or handwriting analysis, involves reading the way a person writes. In this way, the psychic reader can gain insight into their personality, emotional state, and thought patterns. 

    Everything from the pressure of the pen to the slant of a signature has a meaning and could carry psychological significance. Graphologists interpret these details to reveal hidden truths that may not be expressed verbally.

    Paranormal Readings

    Paranormal psychics explore realms that lie beyond the normal range of perception. 

    These readings focus on spiritual encounters, supernatural events, or unexplained phenomena. 

    For individuals who believe that they’ve experienced things, like hauntings, spirit contact, or energetic disturbances, paranormal readings are a great way for readers to offer them validation and clarity around those otherworldly experiences.

    ⇒ Get your personalized reading from a certified fortune teller!

    Past Life Exploration

    Some readers claim that the soul undergoes multiple incarnations, and those incarnations echo from past lives and influence the present day. 

    Past life readers use intuitive impressions, visualizations, or regressions to explore a person’s soul history. 

    These readings can help a reader understand irrational fears, recurring dreams, deep attractions, or unexplained patterns that seem to bother their clients and follow them throughout their current lives.

    Picture Readings

    In picture readings, the fortune teller uses a photograph to measure the energy around a person.

    That photograph could be of a person, place, or object, and it acts as an energetic anchor. 

    The reader will go deep into the vibration within the image to reveal hidden truths, emotional energy, or unresolved spiritual connections. 

    This type of reading is very useful when someone wants insight into a person who cannot be physically present for the session.

    Faith-Based and Spiritual Readings

    For those people who come from religious or spiritual backgrounds, some readers offer insights into scriptural wisdom, prayer, or divine guidance. 

    These readings center around faith, life purpose, and spiritual alignment. 

    They may also involve messages that the readers say are received from higher beings or spiritual guardians, thus depending on the tradition and belief system that is being practiced by the spiritual seeker.

    ⇒ Ask anything – the best fortune teller is online now!

    Frequently Asked Questions

    What exactly does a fortune teller do?

    Fortune tellers interpret symbols, energies, or spiritual signs and guide where your life is headed. 

    They use tools like tarot cards, astrology charts, Palmistry, or intuitive abilities to gain insights into past experiences, current events, or future possibilities for their clients.

    Are fortune-telling services accurate?

    Fortune telling is less about prediction and more about perception. A fortune teller, even the most genuine one, cannot accurately predict every detail of your future with scientific precision. 

    However, what they can offer is intuitive guidance, emotional clarity, and fresh perspectives. This type of guidance can help you make better decisions. 

    The accuracy of a fortune-telling service often depends on the reader’s skill, your openness, and the type of questions you ask.

    What types of questions can I ask a fortune teller?

    You can ask about anything. You can ask a fortune teller about relationships, careers, finances, health, life purpose, spiritual growth, or emotional challenges. Anything that you want answers to.

    The more specific your question is, the better, insightful, and more resourceful your reading will be.

    Do I need to believe in the supernatural for a reading to work?

    Not at all. 

    You don’t need to believe in the supernatural if you want to avail of fortune-telling services.

    While some people do approach fortune telling from a spiritual or mystical perspective, others are just using it as a tool for self-reflection or decision-making. 

    All you need to do is come with an open mind and a willingness to explore new insights.

    How do I choose the right type of reading?

    Fortune telling or psychic reading is the safest and common method of reading.

    If you’re unsure, start with a general fortune-telling or psychic reading. 

    However, if you have a specific question in mind, like love, career, or past lives, then there are other types of services available. You can choose a reader who specializes in that field. 

    Many services also offer short and free trial readings, so you can test the reader before paying in full.  

    Is my information kept confidential?

    Yes. 

    Professional fortune tellers will keep all your information private as they respect your space and treat all readings as confidential. 

    So, feel free to share personal details or ask sensitive questions because your session is conducted with discretion and trust.

    How long does a typical reading last?

    Psychic reading times can vary from person to person. 

    While a basic session might last 10–20 minutes, if you need a more in-depth reading, your session can also extend up to 30–60 minutes or longer than that.

    Many platforms offer flexible time slots depending on your needs and budget.

    What’s the difference between a psychic and a fortune teller?

    The term “fortune teller” is a broad term. It includes many types of intuitive readers. 

    Psychics, on the other hand, use extrasensory perception (ESP) and other insights to tap into the unseen energies surrounding and associated with a person. 

    While all psychics can be fortunetelling tellers, not all fortune tellers are psychics.

    Can I get a reading online or over the phone?

    Absolutely. You can read online by availing yourself of the service of online fortune tellers.

    Many fortune tellers offer remote services through online chat, phone calls, or email. 

    These formats offer flexibility to people from all over the world, and you can be guaranteed that online fortune-telling services are just as effective as in-person readings. Platforms like the psychic experts allow you to connect with readers from anywhere in the world.

    How often should I get a reading?

    There’s no right or wrong answer.

    You can have readings as many times as you like or as your situation and personal needs demand. 

    Some people get readings regularly, some do it a few times a year, while others only seek fortune-telling services during major life events.

    Final Words

    Fortune’s telling’s beauty doesn’t just lie in the spiritual answers that you receive but in the questions that you come to ask. Fortune telling offers self-reflection, examines the patterns in your life, and gently nudges you toward personal empowerment.

    There is a wide array of services available in today’s world, from tarot and astrology to dream interpretation and past life exploration. However, fortune telling and psychic reading aren’t just limited to live demonstrations and face-to-face conversations. It is also available online via verified platforms like the-psychic-experts.com.

    These services aren’t just for the mystically inclined. 

    Every type of person, whether they are entrepreneurs, artists, parents, students, or skeptics, can turn to fortune tellers when their life isn’t going as planned or when they need guidance and clarity. 

    Ultimately, fortune-telling isn’t about meeting the unknown. It is about meeting yourself, acknowledging your intuition, accepting your energies, and getting the confidence to make the choices that are good for you. Fortune tellers may use a card draw, a birth chart, or a dream symbol to lead the person toward ultimate clarity and guidance.

    So, if you’ve ever felt the need to reach out to an authentic fortune teller, ask questions that are beyond the surface. They will help you seek guidance in life.

    The answers are not always black and white. Sometimes, they are murky and require input from your side as well. You might not walk away with clear answers, but fortune-telling is a much more powerful perspective and brings peace and a renewed sense of purpose to every person.

    So, if you’re ready to tap into clarity, check out the best online fortune tellers of 2025.

    Media Contact
    Company: The Psychic Experts
    Contact Person: Anthony C. Bedoya
    Email: support@the-psychic-experts.com
    Address: 1 Fremont St, Las Vegas, NV 89101, USA
    URL: https://the-psychic-experts.com/
    Phone: +1 414-203-2598
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  • MIL-OSI: Texas Capital Announces Expansion of Corporate and Investment Banking Division

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    DALLAS, May 07, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Texas Capital Securities, a subsidiary of Texas Capital Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ: TCBI), today announced a significant expansion of the services offered by its Corporate and Investment Bank. The additions to personnel and corresponding enhancements in capabilities build upon the firm’s existing industry-focused Corporate Banking expertise, with significant impact on the breadth and reach of the Investment Bank in advisory and capital markets services. With the addition of professionals across Investment Banking Coverage, Equity Sales and Trading, Equity Research and Corporate Access, Texas Capital has further solidified its status as the premier full-service financial services firm headquartered in Texas.

    “We continue to build product and industry expertise on a platform that values integrity, high-quality advice and delivering tangible results for our clients,” said Rob C. Holmes, Chairman, President & CEO. “Today’s announcement reflects our dedication to serving as the ‘first call’ for business owners, executives and public company Boards of Directors seeking financial services and solutions.”

    Adding to a deep bench of industry veterans and other newly hired personnel, Texas Capital’s key recent senior hires include:

    Capital Markets

    • Robert (Bob) Chen joined Texas Capital from Guggenheim Partners​ to lead the Capital Markets business, including leveraged finance, loan syndications, private capital, equity capital markets and financial sponsor coverage. He brings more than 30 years of experience leading leveraged finance teams across TMT, energy/power, consumer retail, telecom and FIG.
    • Holly Smyth joined Texas Capital from B. Riley Securities to serve as Co-Head of Private Capital, advising private and public companies on debt capital structures. She brings 25 years of experience in debt capital markets and verticals including industrials, healthcare, consumer and business services.

    Investment Banking Coverage

    • Jon Merriman joined Texas Capital from B. Riley Securities to lead Equities. He brings more than 35 years of experience to the role, most recently serving as Chief Business Officer focused on originating and executing transactions in equity capital markets and equities trading. He is a seasoned leader with deep experience in managing fast-growing organizations, having founded, grown and sold Merriman Holdings, Inc., a boutique investment banking platform.
    • Ryan Bernath joined Texas Capital from B. Riley Securities to lead Investment Banking sector coverage. He brings more than 25 years of experience to the role, most recently serving as a Senior Managing Director focused on executing a wide range of mergers and acquisitions and corporate finance transactions for large-cap, mid-cap and small-cap public companies. Prior to B. Riley, he was a senior investment banker at Barclays and Lehman Brothers.

    Equity Sales, Trading & Research

    • Matthew (Matt) Johnson joined Texas Capital from Performance Edge Partners to lead Equity Sales, Trading & Research. He brings more than 25 years of experience managing equity businesses for top investment banking institutions, including Barclays and Lehman Brothers. He has helped build and restructure top-tier equity businesses and led trading teams ranked number one in block trading and consistently in the top five in Institutional Investor surveys.
    • Alex Rygiel joined Texas Capital from B. Riley Securities to lead Equity Research. He brings more than 30 years of experience in equity research, sales and trading with Friedman, Billings, Ramsey & Co. and Donaldson Lufkin & Jenrette.
    • Deena Sullivan and Charles Moreau joined Texas Capital from Oppenheimer & Co. to co-lead Corporate Access. Each brings more than 20 years of experience facilitating impactful dialogue between public company clients and institutional investors, with prior roles encompassing sales, marketing, relationship management, corporate access, institutional equity sales and trading and equity capital markets.

    To facilitate connectivity between Texas Capital clients and key financial centers in the United States, Texas Capital Securities today announced its intention to open offices in Los Angeles and Chicago and to relocate its office in New York City. Sales and trading, including corporate credit, public finance and equity underwriting and other activities, will continue to be conducted from Texas Capital’s trading floor in Dallas, Texas.

    “Texas Capital is positioned to capitalize on our exceptional growth as we serve clients in Texas and beyond as a trusted advisor, intermediary and underwriter,” said Daniel Hoverman, Head of Corporate & Investment Banking. “Our ability to continue to attract market-leading talent, including to our Corporate and Investment Banking team, evidences our continued aspiration to be the dominant financial services firm in the state of Texas, while being relevant nationally and recognized internationally. The ongoing investments in our platform reflect our vision and dedication to facilitating the strategic ambitions and satisfying the increasingly sophisticated needs of our clients.”

    About Texas Capital Bancshares, Inc.
    Texas Capital Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ®: TCBI), a member of the Russell 2000® Index and the S&P MidCap 400®, is the parent company of Texas Capital Bank (“TCB”). Texas Capital is the collective brand name for TCB and its separate, non-bank affiliates and wholly owned subsidiaries. Texas Capital is a full-service financial services firm that delivers customized solutions to businesses, entrepreneurs and individual customers. Founded in 1998, the institution is headquartered in Dallas with offices in Austin, Houston, San Antonio and Fort Worth, and has built a network of clients across the country. With the ability to service clients through their entire lifecycles, Texas Capital has established commercial banking, consumer banking, investment banking and wealth management capabilities. All services are subject to applicable laws, regulations and service terms. Deposit and lending products and services are offered by TCB. For deposit products, member FDIC. For more information, please visit www.texascapital.com.

    Trading in securities and financial instruments, strategic advisory, and other investment banking activities are performed by TCBI Securities, Inc., doing business as Texas Capital Securities. TCBI Securities, Inc. is a member of FINRA and SIPC and has registered with the SEC, MSRB, and other state securities regulators as a broker dealer. TCBI Securities, Inc. is a subsidiary of Texas Capital Bancshares, Inc., and an affiliate of Texas Capital Bank. All investing involves risks, including the loss of principal. Past performance does not guarantee future results. Securities and other investment products offered by TCBI Securities, Inc. are not FDIC insured, may lose value and are not bank guaranteed.

    The MIL Network

  • MIL-OSI: Fortinet Reports First Quarter 2025 Financial Results

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    Highlights

    • Total revenue of $1.54 billion, up 14% year over year
    • Product revenue of $459 million, up 12% year over year
    • Billings of $1.60 billion, up 14% year over year1
    • Unified SASE ARR2up 26% and Security Operations ARR2up 30%, year over year
    • Record first quarter GAAP operating margin of 29%
    • Record first quarter Non-GAAP operating margin of 34%1
    • Record Cash flow from operations of $863 million
    • Record Free cash flow of $783 million1

    SUNNYVALE, Calif., May 07, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Fortinet® (Nasdaq: FTNT), a global cybersecurity leader driving the convergence of networking and security, today announced financial results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2025.

    “We are pleased to report another strong quarter as non-GAAP operating margin increased 570 basis points year over year to a first quarter record of 34%, while billings grew 14% year over year,” said Ken Xie, Founder, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Fortinet. “We continue to accelerate our growth strategy by investing in the rapidly expanding Unified SASE and Security Operations markets, while strengthening our leadership in Secure Networking. Leveraging our deep expertise in networking and security convergence, a strong track record of AI-driven innovation, and seamless product development and integration through our FortiOS operating system, we have established ourselves as the leader in organic innovation and will continue setting the industry standard in cybersecurity.”

    Financial Highlights for the First Quarter of 2025

    • Revenue: Total revenue was $1.54 billion for the first quarter of 2025, an increase of 13.8% compared to $1.35 billion for the same quarter of 2024.
    • Product Revenue: Product revenue was $459.1 million for the first quarter of 2025, an increase of 12.3% compared to $408.9 million for the same quarter of 2024.
    • Service Revenue: Service revenue was $1.08 billion for the first quarter of 2025, an increase of 14.4% compared to $944.4 million for the same quarter of 2024.
    • Billings1: Total billings were $1.60 billion for the first quarter of 2025, an increase of 13.5% compared to $1.41 billion for the same quarter of 2024.
    • Remaining performance obligations: Remaining performance obligations were $6.49 billion as of March 31, 2025, an increase of 11.7% compared to $5.81 billion as of March 31, 2024. We expect to recognize approximately $3.38 billion as revenue over the next 12 months, an increase of 15.4% compared to $2.93 billion as of March 31, 2024.
    • Unified SASE ARR2: Unified SASE ARR was $1.15 billion as of March 31, 2025, an increase of 25.7% compared to $914.7 million as of March 31, 2024.
    • Security Operations ARR2: Security Operations ARR was $434.5 million as of March 31, 2025, an increase of 30.3% compared to $333.5 million as of March 31, 2024.
    • GAAP Operating Income and Margin: GAAP operating income was $453.8 million for the first quarter of 2025, representing a GAAP operating margin of 29.5%. GAAP operating income was $321.2 million for the same quarter of 2024, representing a GAAP operating margin of 23.7%.
    • Non-GAAP Operating Income and Margin1: Non-GAAP operating income was $526.2 million for the first quarter of 2025, representing a non-GAAP operating margin of 34.2%. Non-GAAP operating income was $386.1 million for the same quarter of 2024, representing a non-GAAP operating margin of 28.5%.
    • GAAP Net Income and Diluted Net Income Per Share: GAAP net income was $433.4 million for the first quarter of 2025, compared to GAAP net income of $299.3 million for the same quarter of 2024. GAAP diluted net income per share was $0.56 for the first quarter of 2025, based on 776.8 million diluted weighted-average shares outstanding, compared to GAAP diluted net income per share of $0.39 for the same quarter of 2024, based on 770.5 million diluted weighted-average shares outstanding.
    • Non-GAAP Net Income and Diluted Net Income Per Share1: Non-GAAP net income was $452.3 million for the first quarter of 2025, compared to non-GAAP net income of $333.9 million for the same quarter of 2024. Non-GAAP diluted net income per share was $0.58 for the first quarter of 2025, based on 776.8 million diluted weighted-average shares outstanding, compared to $0.43 for the same quarter of 2024, based on 770.5 million diluted weighted-average shares outstanding.
    • Cash Flow: Cash flow from operations was $863.3 million for the first quarter of 2025, compared to $830.4 million for the same quarter of 2024. Cash flow from operations for the first quarter of 2025 includes $14.0 million proceeds from an intellectual property matter.
    • Free Cash Flow1: Free cash flow was $782.8 million for the first quarter of 2025, compared to $608.5 million for the same quarter of 2024.

    Guidance

    For the second quarter of 2025, Fortinet currently expects:

    • Revenue in the range of $1.590 billion to $1.650 billion
    • Billings in the range of $1.685 billion to $1.765 billion
    • Non-GAAP gross margin in the range of 80.0% to 81.0%
    • Non-GAAP operating margin in the range of 31.5% to 32.5%
    • Diluted non-GAAP net income per share in the range of $0.58 to $0.60, assuming a non-GAAP effective tax rate of 18%. This assumes a diluted share count of 773 million to 777 million.

    For the fiscal year 2025, Fortinet currently expects:

    • Revenue in the range of $6.650 billion to $6.850 billion
    • Service revenue in the range of $4.575 billion to $4.725 billion
    • Billings in the range of $7.200 billion to $7.400 billion
    • Non-GAAP gross margin in the range of 79.0% to 81.0%
    • Non-GAAP operating margin in the range of 31.5% to 33.5%
    • Diluted non-GAAP net income per share in the range of $2.43 to $2.49, assuming a non-GAAP effective tax rate of 18%. This assumes a diluted share count of 769 million to 779 million.

    These statements are forward looking and actual results may differ materially. Refer to the Forward-Looking Statements section below for information on the factors that could cause our actual results to differ materially from these forward-looking statements.

    Our guidance with respect to non-GAAP financial measures excludes stock-based compensation, amortization of acquired intangible assets, gain on intellectual property matters, gain on bargain purchase related to acquisition, gain from an equity method investment and a tax adjustment required for an effective tax rate on a non-GAAP basis, which differs from the GAAP effective tax rate. We have not reconciled our guidance with respect to non-GAAP financial measures to the corresponding GAAP measures because certain items that impact these measures are uncertain or out of our control, or cannot be reasonably predicted. Accordingly, a reconciliation of these non-GAAP financial measures to the corresponding GAAP measures is not available without unreasonable effort.

    1 A reconciliation of GAAP to non-GAAP measures has been provided in the financial statement tables included in this press release. An explanation of these measures is also included below under the heading “Non-GAAP Financial Measures”.
    2 Annual Recurring Revenue or ARR is defined as the annualized value of renewable / recurring customer agreements as of the measurement date, assuming any contract that expires during the next 12 months is renewed at its existing value.

    Conference Call Details

    Fortinet will host a conference call today at 1:30 p.m. Pacific Time (4:30 p.m. Eastern Time) to discuss the earnings results. A live webcast of the conference call and supplemental slides will be accessible from the Investor Relations page of Fortinet’s website at https://investor.fortinet.com and a replay will be archived and accessible at https://investor.fortinet.com/events-and-presentations.

    Second Quarter 2025 Conference Participation Schedule:

    • J.P. Morgan Global Technology, Media and Communications Conference
      May 13, 2025
    • Bank of America Global Technology Conference
      June 3, 2025

    Members of Fortinet’s management team are expected to present at these conferences and discuss the latest company strategies and initiatives. Fortinet’s conference presentations are expected to be available via webcast on the company’s website. To access the most updated information, pre-register and listen to the webcast of each event, please visit the Investor Presentation & Events page of Fortinet’s website at https://investor.fortinet.com/events-and-presentations. The schedule is subject to change.

    About Fortinet (www.fortinet.com)

    Fortinet (Nasdaq: FTNT) is a driving force in the evolution of cybersecurity and the convergence of networking and security. Our mission is to secure people, devices and data everywhere, and today we deliver cybersecurity everywhere our customers need it with the largest integrated portfolio of over 50 enterprise-grade products. Well over half a million customers trust Fortinet’s solutions, which are among the most deployed, most patented and most validated in the industry. The Fortinet Training Institute, one of the largest and broadest training programs in the industry, is dedicated to making cybersecurity training and new career opportunities available to everyone. Collaboration with esteemed organizations from both the public and private sectors, including Computer Emergency Response Teams (“CERTs”), government entities, and academia, is a fundamental aspect of Fortinet’s commitment to enhance cyber resilience globally. FortiGuard Labs, Fortinet’s elite threat intelligence and research organization, develops and utilizes leading-edge machine learning and AI technologies to provide customers with timely and consistently top-rated protection and actionable threat intelligence. Learn more at https://www.fortinet.com, the Fortinet Blog or FortiGuard Labs.

    Copyright © 2025 Fortinet, Inc. All rights reserved. The symbols ® and ™ denote respectively federally registered trademarks and common law trademarks of Fortinet, Inc., its subsidiaries and affiliates. Fortinet’s trademarks include, but are not limited to, the following: Fortinet, the Fortinet logo, FortiGate, FortiOS, FortiGuard, FortiCare, FortiAnalyzer, FortiManager, FortiASIC, FortiClient, FortiCloud, FortiCore, FortiMail, FortiSandbox, FortiADC, FortiAgent, FortiAI, FortiAIOps, FortiAntenna, FortiAP, FortiAPCam, FortiAppSec, FortiAuthenticator, FortiBranchSASE, FortiCache, FortiCall, FortiCam, FortiCamera, FortiCarrier, FortiCART, FortiCASB, FortiCentral, FortiCNP, FortiConnect, FortiController, FortiConverter, FortiCSPM, FortiCWP, FortiDAST, FortiDATA, FortiDB, FortiDDoS, FortiDeceptor, FortiDeploy, FortiDevice, FortiDevSec, FortiDLP, FortiEdge, FortiEDR, FortiEndpoint, FortiExplorer, FortiExtender, FortiFirewall, FortiFlex, FortiFone, FortiGSLB, FortiGuest, FortiHypervisor, FortiInsight, FortiIsolator, FortiLAN, FortiLink, FortiMonitor, FortiNAC, FortiNDR, FortiPAM, FortiPenTest, FortiPhish, FortiPoint, FortiPoints, FortiPolicy, FortiPortal, FortiPresence, FortiProxy, FortiRecon, FortiRecorder, FortiSASE, FortiScanner, FortiSDNConnector, FortiSEC, FortiSIEM, FortiSMS, FortiSOAR, FortiSRA, FortiSwitch, FortiTelemetry, FortiTester, FortiTIP, FortiToken, FortiTrust, FortiVoice, FortiWAN, FortiWeb, FortiWiFi, FortiWLC, FortiWLM, FortiXDR, Lacework FortiCNAPP, Linksys, Intelligent Mesh, Velop, Max-Stream, Performance Perfected and SECURITY FABRIC. Other trademarks belong to their respective owners. Fortinet has not independently verified statements or certifications herein attributed to third parties and Fortinet does not independently endorse such statements. Notwithstanding anything to the contrary herein, nothing herein constitutes a warranty, guarantee, contract, binding specification or other binding commitment by Fortinet or any indication of intent related to a binding commitment, and performance and other specification information herein may be unique to certain environments.

    FTNT-F

    Forward-Looking Statements

    This press release contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. These forward-looking statements include statements regarding any indications related to future growth and market share gains, our strategy going forward, and guidance and expectations around future financial results, including guidance and expectations for the second quarter and full year 2025, and any statements regarding our market opportunity and market size, and business momentum. Although we attempt to be accurate in making forward-looking statements, it is possible that future circumstances might differ from the assumptions on which such statements are based such that actual results are materially different from our forward-looking statements in this release. Important factors that could cause results to differ materially from the statements herein include the following: general economic risks, including those caused by economic challenges, a possible economic downturn or recession and the effects of inflation or stagflation, rising interest rates or reduced information technology spending; supply chain challenges; negative impacts from the ongoing war in Ukraine and its related macroeconomic effects and our decision to reduce operations in Russia; competitiveness in the security market; the dynamic nature of the security market and its products and services; specific economic risks worldwide and in different geographies, and among different customer segments; uncertainty regarding demand and increased business and renewals from existing customers; sales execution risks, including risks in connection with the timing and completion of large strategic deals; uncertainties around continued success in sales growth and market share gains; uncertainties in market opportunities and the market size; actual or perceived vulnerabilities in our supply chain, products or services, and any actual or perceived breach of our network or our customers’ networks; longer sales cycles, particularly for larger enterprise, service providers, government and other large organization customers; the effectiveness of our salesforce and failure to convert sales pipeline into final sales; risks associated with successful implementation of multiple integrated software products and other product functionality risks; risks associated with integrating acquisitions and changes in circumstances and plans associated therewith, including, among other risks, changes in plans related to product and services integrations, product and services plans and sales strategies; sales and marketing execution risks; execution risks around new product development and introductions and innovation; litigation and disputes and the potential cost, distraction and damage to sales and reputation caused thereby or by other factors; cybersecurity threats, breaches and other disruptions; market acceptance of new products and services; the ability to attract and retain personnel; changes in strategy; risks associated with management of growth; lengthy sales and implementation cycles, particularly in larger organizations; technological changes that make our products and services less competitive, including advances in artificial intelligence; risks associated with the adoption of, and demand for, our products and services in general and by specific customer segments, including those caused by competition and pricing pressure; excess product inventory for any reason, including those caused by the effects of increased inflation and interest rates in certain geographies and the war in Ukraine; risks associated with business disruption caused by natural disasters and health emergencies such as earthquakes, fires, power outages, typhoons, floods, health epidemics and viruses, and by manmade events such as civil unrest, labor disruption, international trade disputes, international conflicts such as the war in Ukraine or tensions between China and Taiwan, terrorism, wars, and critical infrastructure attacks; tariffs, trade disputes and other trade barriers, and negative impact on sales based on geo-political dynamics and disputes and protectionist policies, including the impact of any future shutdowns of the U.S. government; and the other risk factors set forth from time to time in our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K, our most recent Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q and our other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”), copies of which are available free of charge at the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov or upon request from our investor relations department. All forward-looking statements herein reflect our opinions only as of the date of this release, and we undertake no obligation, and expressly disclaim any obligation, to update forward-looking statements herein in light of new information or future events.

    Non-GAAP Financial Measures

    We have provided in this release financial information that has not been prepared in accordance with U.S. Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (“GAAP”). These non-GAAP financial and liquidity measures are not based on any standardized methodology prescribed by GAAP and are not necessarily comparable to similar measures presented by other companies. We use these non-GAAP financial measures internally in analyzing our financial results and believe they are useful to investors, as a supplement to GAAP measures, in evaluating our ongoing operational performance. We believe that the use of these non-GAAP financial measures provides an additional tool for investors to use in evaluating ongoing operating results and trends and in comparing our financial results with peer companies, many of which present similar non-GAAP financial measures to investors.

    Non-GAAP financial measures should not be considered in isolation from, or as a substitute for, financial information prepared in accordance with GAAP. Investors are encouraged to review the reconciliation of these non-GAAP financial measures to their most directly comparable GAAP financial measures provided in the financial statement tables below.

    Billings (non-GAAP). We define billings as revenue recognized in accordance with GAAP plus the change in deferred revenue from the beginning to the end of the period less any deferred revenue balances acquired from business combination(s) during the period. We consider billings to be a useful metric for management and investors because billings drive current and future revenue, which is an important indicator of the health and viability of our business and cash flows. There are a number of limitations related to the use of billings instead of GAAP revenue. First, billings include amounts that have not yet been recognized as revenue and are impacted by the term of security and support agreements. Second, we may calculate billings in a manner that is different from peer companies that report similar financial measures. Management accounts for these limitations by providing specific information regarding GAAP revenue and evaluating billings together with GAAP revenue.

    Free cash flow (non-GAAP). We define free cash flow as net cash provided by operating activities minus purchases of property and equipment and excluding any significant non-recurring items, such as proceeds from intellectual property matters. We believe free cash flow to be a liquidity measure that provides useful information to management and investors about the amount of cash generated by the business that, after capital expenditures and net of proceeds from intellectual property matters, can be used for strategic opportunities, including repurchasing outstanding common stock, investing in our business, making strategic acquisitions and strengthening the balance sheet. A limitation of using free cash flow rather than the GAAP measures of cash provided by or used in operating activities, investing activities, and financing activities is that free cash flow does not represent the total increase or decrease in the cash and cash equivalents balance for the period because it excludes cash flows from significant non-recurring items, such as proceeds from intellectual property matters, investing activities other than capital expenditures and cash flows from financing activities. Management accounts for this limitation by providing information about our proceeds from intellectual property matters, our capital expenditures and other investing and financing activities on the face of the cash flow statement and under the caption “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations—Liquidity and Capital Resources” in our most recent Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q and Annual Report on Form 10-K and by presenting cash flows from investing and financing activities in our reconciliation of free cash flow. In addition, it is important to note that other companies, including companies in our industry, may not use free cash flow, may calculate free cash flow in a different manner than we do or may use other financial measures to evaluate their performance, all of which could reduce the usefulness of free cash flow as a comparative measure.

    Non-GAAP operating income and operating margin. We define non-GAAP operating income as operating income plus stock-based compensation, amortization of acquired intangible assets, less gain on intellectual property matters and, when applicable, other significant non-recurring items in a given quarter. Non-GAAP operating margin is defined as non-GAAP operating income divided by GAAP revenue. We consider these non-GAAP financial measures to be useful metrics for management and investors because they exclude the items noted above so that our management and investors can compare our recurring core business operating results over multiple periods. There are a number of limitations related to the use of non-GAAP operating income instead of operating income calculated in accordance with GAAP. First, non-GAAP operating income excludes the items noted above. Second, the components of the costs that we exclude from our calculation of non-GAAP operating income may differ from the components that peer companies exclude when they report their non-GAAP results of operations. Management accounts for these limitations by providing specific information regarding the GAAP amounts excluded from non-GAAP operating income and evaluating non-GAAP operating income together with operating income calculated in accordance with GAAP.

    Non-GAAP net income and diluted net income per share. We define non-GAAP net income as net income plus the items noted above under non-GAAP operating income and operating margin. In addition, we adjust non-GAAP net income and diluted net income per share for a gain on bargain purchase related to acquisition, a gain from an equity method investment related to acquisition and a tax adjustment required for an effective tax rate on a non-GAAP basis, which differs from the GAAP effective tax rate. We define non-GAAP diluted net income per share as non-GAAP net income divided by the non-GAAP diluted weighted-average shares outstanding. We consider these non-GAAP financial measures to be useful metrics for management and investors for the same reasons that we use non-GAAP operating income and non-GAAP operating margin. However, in order to provide a more complete picture of our recurring core business operating results, we include in non-GAAP net income and non-GAAP diluted net income per share, the tax adjustment required resulting in an effective tax rate on a non-GAAP basis, which often differs from the GAAP tax rate. We believe the non-GAAP effective tax rates we use are reasonable estimates of normalized tax rates for our current and prior fiscal years under our global operating structure. The same limitations described above regarding our use of non-GAAP operating income and non-GAAP operating margin apply to our use of non-GAAP net income and non-GAAP diluted net income per share. We account for these limitations by providing specific information regarding the GAAP amounts excluded from non-GAAP net income and non-GAAP diluted net income per share and evaluating non-GAAP net income and non-GAAP diluted net income per share together with net income and diluted net income per share calculated in accordance with GAAP.

    FORTINET, INC.
    CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS
    (Unaudited, in millions)
     
      March 31,
    2025
      December 31,
    2024
     
    ASSETS                
    CURRENT ASSETS:                
    Cash and cash equivalents $ 3,596.6     $ 2,875.9    
    Short-term investments   1,183.9       1,190.6    
    Accounts receivable—net   1,174.0       1,463.4    
    Inventory   362.7       315.5    
    Prepaid expenses and other current assets   125.4       126.1    
       Total current assets   6,442.6       5,971.5    
    LONG-TERM INVESTMENTS   35.2          
    PROPERTY AND EQUIPMENT—NET   1,403.8       1,349.5    
    DEFERRED CONTRACT COSTS   636.2       622.9    
    DEFERRED TAX ASSETS   1,411.6       1,335.6    
    GOODWILL AND OTHER INTANGIBLE ASSETS—NET   357.4       350.4    
    OTHER ASSETS   120.2       133.2    
    TOTAL ASSETS $ 10,407.0     $ 9,763.1    
    LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY                
    CURRENT LIABILITIES:                
    Accounts payable $ 224.5     $ 190.9    
    Accrued liabilities   415.0       337.9    
    Accrued payroll and compensation   250.2       255.7    
    Current portion of long-term debt   498.7          
    Deferred revenue   3,339.4       3,276.2    
       Total current liabilities   4,727.8       4,060.7    
    DEFERRED REVENUE   3,079.0       3,084.7    
    LONG-TERM DEBT   496.2       994.3    
    OTHER LIABILITIES   141.1       129.6    
       Total liabilities   8,444.1       8,269.3    
    COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES                
    STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY:                
    Common stock   0.8       0.8    
    Additional paid-in capital   1,668.7       1,636.2    
    Accumulated other comprehensive loss   (22.9 )     (26.1 )  
    Retained earnings (accumulated deficit)   316.3       (117.1 )  
                Total stockholders’ equity   1,962.9       1,493.8    
    TOTAL LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY $ 10,407.0     $ 9,763.1    
     
    FORTINET, INC.
    CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF INCOME
    (Unaudited, in millions, except per share amounts)
     
      Three Months Ended
     
      March 31,
    2025
      March 31,
    2024
     
    REVENUE:                
    Product $ 459.1     $ 408.9    
    Service   1,080.6       944.4    
          Total revenue   1,539.7       1,353.3    
    COST OF REVENUE:                
    Product   149.9       182.8    
    Service   143.2       121.9    
          Total cost of revenue   293.1       304.7    
    GROSS PROFIT:                
    Product   309.2       226.1    
    Service   937.4       822.5    
          Total gross profit   1,246.6       1,048.6    
    OPERATING EXPENSES:                
    Research and development   198.6       173.0    
    Sales and marketing   542.7       501.1    
    General and administrative   57.8       54.4    
    Gain on intellectual property matters   (6.3 )     (1.1 )  
          Total operating expenses   792.8       727.4    
    OPERATING INCOME   453.8       321.2    
    INTEREST INCOME   44.3       32.2    
    INTEREST EXPENSE   (4.9 )     (5.1 )  
    OTHER INCOME (EXPENSE)—NET   26.1       (2.9 )  
    INCOME BEFORE INCOME TAXES AND GAIN (LOSS) FROM EQUITY METHOD
    INVESTMENTS
      519.3       345.4    
    PROVISION FOR INCOME TAXES   96.5       39.5    
    GAIN (LOSS) FROM EQUITY METHOD INVESTMENTS   10.6       (6.6 )  
    NET INCOME $ 433.4     $ 299.3    
    Net income per share:                
    Basic $ 0.56     $ 0.39    
    Diluted $ 0.56     $ 0.39    
    Weighted-average shares outstanding:                
    Basic   768.3       762.4    
    Diluted   776.8       770.5    
     
    FORTINET, INC.
    CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS
    (Unaudited, in millions)
     
      Three Months Ended
     
      March 31,
    2025
      March 31,
    2024
     
    CASH FLOWS FROM OPERATING ACTIVITIES:                
    Net income $ 433.4     $ 299.3    
    Adjustments to reconcile net income to net cash provided by operating activities:                
             Stock-based compensation   66.1       62.3    
             Amortization of deferred contract costs   78.0       72.0    
             Depreciation and amortization   35.8       28.6    
             Amortization of investment discounts   (10.3 )     (12.2 )  
             Other   (35.5 )     9.9    
             Changes in operating assets and liabilities, net of impact of business combinations:                
                      Accounts receivable—net   303.9       405.6    
                      Inventory   (34.1 )     36.5    
                      Prepaid expenses and other current assets   3.4       (0.1 )  
                      Deferred contract costs   (91.3 )     (66.5 )  
                      Deferred tax assets   (30.0 )     (73.9 )  
                      Other assets   1.5       (6.2 )  
                      Accounts payable   24.6       (61.6 )  
                      Accrued liabilities   63.7       105.0    
                      Accrued payroll and compensation   (8.2 )     (27.4 )  
                      Deferred revenue   57.0       54.8    
                      Other liabilities   5.3       4.3    
                             Net cash provided by operating activities   863.3       830.4    
    CASH FLOWS FROM INVESTING ACTIVITIES:                
    Purchases of investments   (503.0 )     (436.1 )  
    Sales of investments   2.8          
    Maturities of investments   466.9       393.4    
    Purchases of property and equipment   (66.5 )     (221.9 )  
    Payments made in connection with business combinations, net of cash acquired   (11.2 )     (5.7 )  
    Other   0.2          
                             Net cash used in investing activities   (110.8 )     (270.3 )  
    CASH FLOWS FROM FINANCING ACTIVITIES:                
    Proceeds from issuance of common stock   20.2       13.4    
    Taxes paid related to net share settlement of equity awards   (52.9 )     (42.9 )  
    Other         (0.8 )  
                             Net cash used in financing activities   (32.7 )     (30.3 )  
    EFFECT OF EXCHANGE RATE CHANGES ON CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS   0.9       (1.4 )  
    NET INCREASE IN CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS   720.7       528.4    
    CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS—Beginning of period   2,875.9       1,397.9    
    CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS—End of period $ 3,596.6     $ 1,926.3    
     
    Reconciliations of non-GAAP results of operations measures to the nearest comparable GAAP measures
    (Unaudited, in millions, except per share amounts)
     
    Reconciliation of GAAP operating income to non-GAAP operating income, operating margin, net income and diluted net income per share
     
      Three Months Ended
     
      March 31,
    2025
      March 31,
    2024
     
    Reconciliation of non-GAAP operating income:                
    GAAP operating income $ 453.8     $ 321.2    
    GAAP operating margin   29.5 %     23.7 %  
    Add back:                
        Stock‐based compensation   66.9       63.0    
        Amortization of acquired intangible assets   11.8       3.0    
        Gain on intellectual property matters   (6.3 )     (1.1 )  
    Non‐GAAP operating income $ 526.2     $ 386.1    
    Non‐GAAP operating margin   34.2 %     28.5 %  
                     
    Reconciliation of non-GAAP net income:                
    GAAP net income $ 433.4     $ 299.3    
    Add back:                
        Stock‐based compensation   66.9       63.0    
        Amortization of acquired intangible assets   11.8       3.0    
        Gain on intellectual property matters   (6.3 )     (1.1 )  
        Gain on bargain purchase (a)   (39.9 )        
        Tax adjustment (b)   (2.8 )     (30.3 )  
        Gain from equity method investment (c)   (10.8 )        
    Non-GAAP net income $ 452.3     $ 333.9    
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
     
    Non-GAAP net income per share, diluted                
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
     
    Non-GAAP net income $ 452.3     $ 333.9    
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
     
        Non-GAAP shares used in diluted net income per share calculations   776.8       770.5    
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
     
    Non-GAAP net income per share, diluted $ 0.58     $ 0.43    
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
     
    Reconciliation of non-GAAP net income per share, diluted                
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
     
    GAAP net income per share, diluted $ 0.56     $ 0.39    
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
     
    Add back:                
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
     
        Non-GAAP adjustments to net income per share   0.02       0.04    
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
     
    Non-GAAP net income per share, diluted $ 0.58     $ 0.43    
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
     
     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
                     
     
    (a) To exclude a $39.9 million gain on bargain purchase related to our acquisition of Linksys Holdings, Inc. (“Linksys”) in the three months ended March 31, 2025.
    (b) Non-GAAP financial information is adjusted to an effective tax rate of 18% and 17% in the three months ended March 31, 2025 and 2024, respectively, on a non-GAAP basis, which differs from the GAAP effective tax rate.
    (c) To exclude a $10.8 million gain from equity method investment in Linksys resulted from our acquisition of Linksys in the three months ended March 31, 2025.
     
    Reconciliation of net cash provided by operating activities to free cash flow
     
      Three Months Ended
     
      March 31,
    2025
      March 31,
    2024
     
    Net cash provided by operating activities $ 863.3     $ 830.4    
    Less: Purchases of property and equipment   (66.5 )     (221.9 )  
    Less: Proceeds from intellectual property matter   (14.0 )        
    Free cash flow $ 782.8     $ 608.5    
    Net cash used in investing activities $ (110.8 )   $ (270.3 )  
    Net cash used in financing activities $ (32.7 )   $ (30.3 )  
     
    Reconciliation of total revenue to total billings
     
      Three Months Ended
     
      March 31,
    2025
      March 31,
    2024
     
    Total revenue $ 1,539.7   $ 1,353.3    
    Add: Change in deferred revenue   57.5     54.9    
    Less: Deferred revenue balance acquired in business acquisitions       (1.0 )  
    Total billings $ 1,597.2   $ 1,407.2    
     
    Investor Contact: Media Contact:
     
    Aaron Ovadia
    Fortinet, Inc.
    408-235-7700
    investors@fortinet.com
    Michelle Zimmermann
    Fortinet, Inc.
    408-235-7700
    pr@fortinet.com

    The MIL Network

  • MIL-OSI USA: VIDEO: After Pressure from Pressley, Treasury Secretary Says Ending Tariffs on Essential Baby Products “Under Consideration”

    Source: United States House of Representatives – Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley (MA-07)

    Pressley Slammed Trump’s Chaotic Tariff War, Highlighted Harmful Impact on Families With Babies and Young Children

    Video (YouTube)

    WASHINGTON – In a House Financial Services Committee hearing, Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley (MA-07) pressed Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent about the harmful impact of Trump’s tariffs on families with young children and asked if he would support an exemption to tariffs on baby products and other items that parents need to care for their kids, such as car seats. In response to her sharp questioning, Secretary Bessent conceded that such an exemption was “under consideration.”

    Congresswoman Pressley also underscored the harm felt by small business owners, parents, and other constituents in the Massachusetts 7th who are dealing with rising costs due to Trump’s tariffs and urged the Trump Administration to immediately reverse course.

    Last month, Congresswoman Pressley joined 45 colleagues in sending a Congressional letter to the Trump Administration imploring them to end tariffs on essential baby goods.

    A full transcript of her line of questioning is available below and the full video is available here.

    Transcript: After Pressure from Pressley, Treasury Secretary Says Ending Tariffs on Essential Baby Products “Under Consideration”
    House Financial Services Committee
    May 7, 2025

    REP. PRESSLEY: Secretary Bessent, you have heard from Democrats publicly and I’m certain you’ve heard from Republicans privately that this administration’s reckless and chaotic tariff policy is wreaking havoc on our economy.

    Rather than delivering stability for our country, this Trump tariff tantrum has been inconsistent, counterproductive, and disconnected from reality. 

    In my district, the Massachusetts 7th, I am hearing it from everyone.

    Small business owners are reeling from the unpredictable on-again, off-again tariffs. They’re holding back on expansion, delaying hiring, and bracing for the impact.

    Local and state officials are telling me about the effect tariffs will have on our state budget. Simultaneously, Massachusetts will see energy bills increase while revenue from tourism will decrease.

    But I want to focus on the constituent outreach that I’ve received from everyday families who are just fighting to make ends meet.

    Yes or no. Mr. Secretary, do you know what a car seat is?

    SEC. BESSENT: I have two children, yes. 

    REP. PRESSLEY: I figured as much, it’s correct you and your husband have two children.

    So I am sure you know that car seats are absolutely essential for families when traveling with babies and toddlers to school, to worship, to doctor’s appointments, just everyday living. 

    But not only are car seats essential, they are the law of the land. It’s the law of the land in 50 states. So there’s no getting around that.

    Mr. Secretary, what’s your estimate of how many babies are born in the United States each year?

    SEC. BESSENT: I’m gonna guess 2-3 million. 

    REP. PRESSLEY: Well, while the number fluctuates, there have consistently been more than 3.5 million babies born in the United States. That means millions of families in this country are doing what? Buying a car seat, because it’s essential and it is the law of the land in all 50 states. 

    But now, that cost is going up because Trump has announced up to 145% tariffs on Chinese imported products.

    Approximately, 9 out of every 10 car seats in the U.S. come from China. That’s a steep cost, a steep cost hike for families all over the country. The price is up in Republican districts and in Democratic districts.

    And it’s not just the car seats that are impacted. We’re talking about strollers, cribs, high chairs. No family is exempt from the harm of these Trump tariffs on essential baby products.

    But don’t just take my word for it.

    Mr. Chair, I would like to enter into the record a Yahoo Finance article from May 2025 entitled, “First Year Baby Expenses Already Top $20,000 and Tariffs Are Adding to the Bill As China Dominates Key Imports.”

    CHAIR: Without objection.

    REP. PRESSLEY: Look, I support improving manufacturing in America, but that is not going into effect overnight, like these tariffs are. There needs to be an exemption to help America’s families.

    Trump has used his power for tariff exemptions on thermoplastics, semiconductors, but what about baby products?

    Mr. Secretary, do you support an exemption to tariffs on items that parents need to care for their kids? Yes or no?

    SEC. BESSENT: Congresswoman, what you’re referring to are—

    REP. PRESSLEY: Yes or no.

    SEC. BESSENT: What you’re referring to are–

    REP. PRESSLEY: I’m reclaiming my time because I don’t want you to filibuster and give me some macroeconomic answer. Families at home are hurting … just give me a direct answer. 

    SEC. BESSENT: I am going to agree with you. 

    REP. PRESSLEY: So yes, you do support an exemption on tariffs for products that are essential for families for their babies?

    SEC. BESSENT: We are considering exemptions on E-4 items, which…

    REP. PRESSLEY: I’m sorry I have to reclaim my time. I’m reclaiming my time. 

    Mr. Chair. I am reclaiming my time. Give me my time back. I’m reclaiming my time.

    I just want a simple yes or no: do you support an exemption to tariffs on items that parents need to care for their kids? Because you all claim you’re pro-family.

    I cannot hear the words you say because I see the things that you do, every day. So clear it up.

    Yes or no. Do you support an exemption to tariffs on items that parents need to care for their babies? 

    SEC. BESSENT: It is under consideration. 

    REP. PRESSLEY: Great. Good.

    I don’t know what’s stopping an exemption from going into effect today, so do it now.

    In Donald Trump’s America, yesterday’s price is not today’s price. Costs are going up. Everyone is suffering, especially our families with young children.

    Mr. Secretary, I’m making an appeal to you on behalf of the people of this country. Please tell occupant Trump to reverse course and stop hurting America’s families.

    I yield back.

    ###

    MIL OSI USA News

  • MIL-OSI USA: Shaheen, Colleagues Introduce Bill to Support New Businesses with Major Expansion of Startup Tax Deduction

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for New Hampshire Jeanne Shaheen
    (Washington, DC) – During the start of National Small Business Month, U.S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), a top member and former Chair of the U.S. Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, joined by U.S. Senators Jacky Rosen (D-NV) and Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), introduced the Tax Relief for New Businesses Act – legislation that would provide tax relief to entrepreneurs looking to start a small business and reduce barriers for startups. The bill would increase the startup tax deduction from $5,000 to $50,000 and allow businesses to write off more expenses to compensate for the increasing cost of starting a business. Currently, small business owners can only deduct up to $5,000 in startup costs in the first year, yet a recent survey found that they spend an average of $40,000 to get their businesses off the ground.
    “Small businesses are the lifeblood of the Granite State’s economy, but it’s getting more costly and difficult for local entrepreneurs to open up shop,” said Senator Shaheen. “Our commonsense Tax Relief for New Businesses Act would give entrepreneurs a helping hand up so they can succeed and fuel job growth.”
    The Tax Relief for New Businesses Act is also co-sponsored by U.S. Senators Chris Coons (D-DE), Elissa Slotkin (D-MI), Ron Wyden (D-OR), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Ruben Gallego (D-AZ), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Martin Heinrich (D-NM) and Angela Alsobrooks (D-MD).
    “Repeated research has demonstrated that new businesses – ‘startups’ – are a critical driver of economic growth, job creation, and opportunity expansion,” said John Dearie, President of Center for American Entrepreneurship. “But launching a new business costs money. And because startup costs are incurred long before the first dollar of revenue, those costs can be a major obstacle to new business formation. That’s why the Tax Relief for New Businesses Act is so important. The legislation is powerfully pro-entrepreneurship, pro-growth, and pro-job creation. CAE thanks Senators Jacky Rosen (D-NV), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), and Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) for their leadership and looks forward to working with them to ensure swift passage of the legislation.”
    “Starting a business is a vote of confidence in the future,” said Richard Trent, Executive Director of Main Street Alliance. “Men and women all across the country start businesses that help our communities thrive. Small businesses are connected to their communities, sponsoring little league teams, providing employment and creating a robust culture and economy. But one of the most difficult parts of starting a business is having the capital to do so. A lack of generational wealth, unfair lending practices and discrimination make this difficult for too many. The Tax Relief for New Businesses Act is a huge step in the right direction to level the playing field and jump start Main Streets all across America.”
    As a former small business owner and now a top member of the Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee, Shaheen fights for New Hampshire’s—and America’s—small businesses. During her time as Chair of the committee, Shaheen focused on addressing some of the biggest challenges small business owners face, reporting key legislation out of committee that included critical improvements to the State Trade Expansion Program (STEP) and improved access to federal contracting opportunities for small businesses.
    In February, Shaheen introduced the bipartisan Small Business Technological Advancement Act which would help small business owners integrate digital tools into their businesses by clarifying that small businesses can utilize the Small Business Administration’s (SBA) 7(a) loan program to finance technology that supports daily operations, including inventory management, product delivery and accounting systems. Earlier this year, she introduced the bipartisan Helping Small Businesses THRIVE Act with Senator Bill Cassidy (R-LA) that would direct SBA to create a new program that helps small businesses lock in the cost of commodities, like gasoline or lumber, in order to protect against the future volatile price of energy and other expenses.

    MIL OSI USA News

  • MIL-OSI USA: Lawler, Garbarino, LaLota, and Malliotakis Release Joint Statement on Status of World Trade Center Health Program

    Source: US Congressman Mike Lawler (R, NY-17)

    Lawler, Garbarino, LaLota, and Malliotakis Release Joint Statement on Status of World Trade Center Health Program

    Washington, D.C. , May 7, 2025

    Washington, D.C. – 5/7/2025… Today, Representatives Mike Lawler (NY-17), Andrew R. Garbarino (NY-02), Nick LaLota (NY-01), and Nicole Malliotakis (NY-11) released the following joint statement regarding the status of the World Trade Center Health Program:
     
    “After extensive conversations with the Administration, HHS has said that it is reinstating all 15 WTCHP workers and that Dr. Howard is fully empowered as program Administrator. While we appreciate this development, their employment should have never been in question. We remain in constant contact with advocates to ensure the program remains fully functional in service to our 9/11 responders and survivors, and we stand ready to take immediate and decisive action at the first sign that this is not the case.”
     
    Congressman Lawler is one of the most bipartisan members of Congress and represents New York’s 17th Congressional District, which is just north of New York City and contains all or parts of Rockland, Putnam, Dutchess, and Westchester Counties. He was rated the most effective freshman lawmaker in the 118th Congress, 8th overall, surpassing dozens of committee chairs.

    ###

    MIL OSI USA News

  • MIL-OSI USA: Garbarino, Lawler, LaLota, and Malliotakis Release Joint Statement on Status of World Trade Center Health Program

    Source: United States House of Representatives – Representative Andrew Garbarino (R-NY)

    WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Representatives Andrew R. Garbarino (R-NY-02), Mike Lawler (R-NY-17), Nick LaLota (R-NY-01), and Nicole Malliotakis (R-NY-11) released the following joint statement regarding the status of the World Trade Center Health Program:

    “After extensive conversations with the Administration, HHS has said that it is reinstating all 15 WTCHP workers and that Dr. Howard is fully empowered as program Administrator. While we appreciate this development, their employment should have never been in question. We remain in constant contact with advocates to ensure the program remains fully functional in service to our 9/11 responders and survivors, and we stand ready to take immediate and decisive action at the first sign that this is not the case.”

    ###

    MIL OSI USA News

  • MIL-OSI USA: Justice Department and Federal Trade Commission Seek Information on Unfair and Anticompetitive Practices in Live Ticketing

    Source: US State of North Dakota

    Today, the Justice Department and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) jointly launched a public inquiry to identify unfair and anticompetitive practices and conduct in the live concert and entertainment industry. The agencies invite members of the public to submit comments and information on harmful practices and on potential regulation or legislation to protect consumers in the industry. The Agencies will use the information in their preparation of the report and recommendations directed by President Trump’s Executive Order 14254, Combating Unfair Practices in the Live Entertainment Market.   

    “Competitive live entertainment markets should deliver value to artists and fans alike,” said Assistant Attorney General Abigail Slater of the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division. “We will continue to closely examine this market and look for opportunities where vigorous enforcement of the antitrust laws can lead to increased competition that makes tickets more affordable for fans while offering fairer compensation for artists.”

    “Many Americans feel like they are being priced out of live entertainment by scalpers, bots, and other unfair and deceptive practices,” said FTC Chairman Andrew N. Ferguson. “Now their voices are being heard. President Trump has sent a clear message that bad actors who exploit fans and distort the marketplace will not be tolerated. The FTC is proud to help deliver on that promise and restore fair and competitive markets that benefit ordinary Americans.”

    On March 31, President Trump issued Executive Order 14254, Combating Unfair Practices in the Live Entertainment Market. The Executive Order directs the Attorney General and the FTC to “ensure that competition laws are appropriately enforced in the concert and entertainment industry.” The Executive Order also directs the FTC to “rigorously enforce the Better Online Tickets Sales Act, 15 U.S.C. 45c.”

    The Executive Order also directs the Attorney General, with the Secretary of the Treasury and the Chairman of the FTC, to submit a report that identifies “recommendations for regulations or legislation necessary to protect consumers” in the industry. In furtherance of this direction, the agencies will work together, along with the Secretary of the Treasury, on a joint report, with the FTC taking the lead on issues relating to the Better Online Ticket Sales Act.

    The agencies therefore seek information from the public about unfair and anticompetitive conduct and practices in the live concert and entertainment industry. The agencies also encourage comments providing information on the competitive effects of current state and federal regulations and laws in the live concert and entertainment industry, including the secondary ticketing market.

    The public will have 60 days to submit comments at Regulations.gov, no later than July 6, 2025. Once submitted, comments will be posted to Regulations.gov (Docket No. ATR-2025-0002). All market participants are invited to provide comments, including consumers, artists, small businesses, trade groups, industry analysts, and other entities that are impacted by anticompetitive practices in the live concert and entertainment industry.

    The Justice Department, along with 40 state and district attorneys general, is also currently litigating a civil antitrust lawsuit brought last year against Live Nation Entertainment Inc. and its wholly-owned subsidiary, Ticketmaster LLC for monopolization and other unlawful conduct that thwarts competition in markets across the live entertainment industry. 

    MIL OSI USA News

  • MIL-OSI Security: Justice Department and Federal Trade Commission Seek Information on Unfair and Anticompetitive Practices in Live Ticketing

    Source: United States Attorneys General 11

    Today, the Justice Department and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) jointly launched a public inquiry to identify unfair and anticompetitive practices and conduct in the live concert and entertainment industry. The agencies invite members of the public to submit comments and information on harmful practices and on potential regulation or legislation to protect consumers in the industry. The Agencies will use the information in their preparation of the report and recommendations directed by President Trump’s Executive Order 14254, Combating Unfair Practices in the Live Entertainment Market.   

    “Competitive live entertainment markets should deliver value to artists and fans alike,” said Assistant Attorney General Abigail Slater of the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division. “We will continue to closely examine this market and look for opportunities where vigorous enforcement of the antitrust laws can lead to increased competition that makes tickets more affordable for fans while offering fairer compensation for artists.”

    “Many Americans feel like they are being priced out of live entertainment by scalpers, bots, and other unfair and deceptive practices,” said FTC Chairman Andrew N. Ferguson. “Now their voices are being heard. President Trump has sent a clear message that bad actors who exploit fans and distort the marketplace will not be tolerated. The FTC is proud to help deliver on that promise and restore fair and competitive markets that benefit ordinary Americans.”

    On March 31, President Trump issued Executive Order 14254, Combating Unfair Practices in the Live Entertainment Market. The Executive Order directs the Attorney General and the FTC to “ensure that competition laws are appropriately enforced in the concert and entertainment industry.” The Executive Order also directs the FTC to “rigorously enforce the Better Online Tickets Sales Act, 15 U.S.C. 45c.”

    The Executive Order also directs the Attorney General, with the Secretary of the Treasury and the Chairman of the FTC, to submit a report that identifies “recommendations for regulations or legislation necessary to protect consumers” in the industry. In furtherance of this direction, the agencies will work together, along with the Secretary of the Treasury, on a joint report, with the FTC taking the lead on issues relating to the Better Online Ticket Sales Act.

    The agencies therefore seek information from the public about unfair and anticompetitive conduct and practices in the live concert and entertainment industry. The agencies also encourage comments providing information on the competitive effects of current state and federal regulations and laws in the live concert and entertainment industry, including the secondary ticketing market.

    The public will have 60 days to submit comments at Regulations.gov, no later than July 6, 2025. Once submitted, comments will be posted to Regulations.gov (Docket No. ATR-2025-0002). All market participants are invited to provide comments, including consumers, artists, small businesses, trade groups, industry analysts, and other entities that are impacted by anticompetitive practices in the live concert and entertainment industry.

    The Justice Department, along with 40 state and district attorneys general, is also currently litigating a civil antitrust lawsuit brought last year against Live Nation Entertainment Inc. and its wholly-owned subsidiary, Ticketmaster LLC for monopolization and other unlawful conduct that thwarts competition in markets across the live entertainment industry. 

    MIL Security OSI

  • MIL-OSI USA: Senator Rand Paul Honored Retiring Murray State University President Dr. Bob Jackson in Bowling Green

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Kentucky Rand Paul
     FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: 
    May 6th, 2025 
     Contact: Press_Paul@paul.senate.gov, 202-578-8903 
    Senator Rand Paul Honored Retiring Murray State University President Dr. Bob Jackson in Bowling Green 
    BOWLING GREEN, KY – U.S. Senator Rand Paul honored Dr. Bob Jackson, retiring President of Murray State University, during a recognition ceremony this week at the Senator’s State office 
    During his remarks, Senator Paul stated, “If you’re looking for people who are the next generation of farmers and agriculture, they’re most likely to be kids of people who are farming in agriculture. So, it’s great to have a university that has expertise in the agricultural sciences and the kids who want to remain in and have an opportunity. I see it as serving a great purpose. We’ve worked well with Doctor Jackson over the years, and we wish him success.” 
    “It has been an honor to work with Sen. Paul during these past many years as we worked to advance our Commonwealth and Murray State University,” said Dr. Bob Jackson. “Importantly, we greatly appreciate the Senator’s support of a School of Veterinary Medicine at Murray State University which will have a major and lasting impact on agriculture in Kentucky.” 
    Under Dr. Jackson’s leadership, Murray State established an accredited school of veterinary medicine—a transformative achievement aimed squarely at addressing the severe shortage of large-animal veterinarians in rural Kentucky. This initiative has positioned Murray State as a leader in supporting Kentucky’s animal agriculture economy, equipping local students to serve farm communities and helping ensure the long-term viability of the state’s livestock industry. 
    Dr. Jackson will retire on June 30, 2025, and begin serving as President Emeritus on July 1. During the ceremony, he presented Senator Paul with a commemorative gift from Murray State to be displayed in the State office. 

    MIL OSI USA News

  • MIL-OSI Economics: Congressional testimony: Supporting American leadership in quantum technology

    Source: Microsoft

    Headline: Congressional testimony: Supporting American leadership in quantum technology

    Editor’s note: On Wednesday, May 7, Dr. Charles Tahan, Partner, Microsoft Quantum, testified before the U.S. House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology. To view the proceedings, please visit the committee’s website.


    Written Testimony of Dr. Charles Tahan
    Partner, Microsoft Quantum, Microsoft Corporation

    U.S. House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology
    “From Policy to Progress: How the National Quantum Initiative Shapes U.S. Quantum Technology Leadership”

    Chairman Babin, Ranking Member Lofgren, and Members of the Committee, thank you for the opportunity to appear before you to discuss the importance of quantum technology and the transformative role it will play for this country and for our collective future.

    It is an honor to be here again. I first appeared before this Committee nearly two years ago. Then, I was Assistant Director of Quantum Information Science and Director of the National Quantum Coordination Office (NQCO), an office within the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy. The NQCO was created in the first Trump Administration by the National Quantum Initiative Act of 2018. Our job was to coordinate the more than 20 agencies led by the Department of Energy, the National Science Foundation, and the National Institute of Standards and Technology, along with the Department of Defense and the Intelligence Community, to develop and execute a national strategy to strengthen American leadership in quantum information science and technology. I spent almost four years in that job, which capped an almost 17-year career as a practicing physicist and technical leader at the National Security Agency and the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), where I worked on quantum computing, high-performance computing, and other advanced technologies. I now work at Microsoft where I lead technical teams within Microsoft Quantum that are working both internally and with our close partners to build the world’s first useful quantum computers.

    Through my testimony I hope to outline the transformative potential of quantum technology and why the United States must lead and win the quantum race. To provide some context, I will begin by highlighting the revolution in quantum sciences and why quantum matters in the age of artificial intelligence. I then expand on Microsoft’s leadership in this field—both through our own research and through our strategic collaborations with other leaders in the quantum ecosystem. But, despite our tremendous progress, sustaining American leadership requires government action. I therefore offer three focus areas that I believe this Committee and Congress should prioritize: (1) advancing the quantum sciences; (2) developing, attracting, and retaining a skilled quantum workforce; and (3) building a resilient and secure supply chain. Taken together, these strategic actions will not only bolster our nation’s security and competitive edge against competitors and adversaries, but it will also drive innovation and economic growth at home towards a new frontier of American prosperity.

    The Quantum Information Revolution

    I like to think of quantum science as the operating system of the universe. What we physicists call quantum mechanics are essentially the rules that the universe follows at the microscopic level. Over the last 100 years, we have learned a tremendous amount about how those rules work. They appear strange to us because we do not experience them in our daily lives. As we have learned more about these quantum effects, we have been able to leverage them to build new tools and technologies.

    The National Quantum Initiative Act of 2018 recognized that we were on the cusp of a new technological revolution—a quantum information revolution— where we could harness the more advanced and unusual properties of quantum mechanics. This revolution is not just about new research discoveries but also about creating fundamentally new types of information technology like quantum computers, quantum networks, and quantum sensors. The full implications of this shift in quantum information science are unclear, but we do know that maintaining our global technological leadership is critical to sustaining economic prosperity, enhancing our well-being, and safeguarding our national security. We also know this is the first moment in our lifetimes in which we are able to radically reimagine how we build computers. As a country, and as a computing company, we must take that seriously.

    Why Quantum Matters in the Age of AI

    In the two years since my last appearance before this Committee, the world has shifted dramatically. The remarkable rise of AI systems has surprised all of us and increasingly affordable AI capabilities are likely to transform the world even more profoundly than the internet. Despite its immense potential, artificial intelligence—even coupled with the most powerful classical computers today—has limitations. There are problems that AI and classical computing will never be able to solve, not in our lifetimes or even in a hundred lifetimes, because of the fundamental limitations of how they are designed.

    Quantum technology can offer unprecedented capabilities for computing. Consider two quick examples where quantum computers are exponentially faster than anything we could imagine a classical computer could do. The first is code-breaking, which has serious implications to our national security and privacy. A sufficiently large quantum computer could break the public key cryptography systems we now rely on in days or weeks. Even the most powerful classical computer we could ever imagine would take the age of the universe to solve the same problem. That is the power of exponential improvement. And it is why we must move to quantum resistant cryptography as fast as possible.

    The other more commercially relevant application is, quite simply, making things—designing new materials, new chemicals, and new medicines. If you think about what the future holds, what will differentiate nations in an era of intelligence is their ability to create new things using tools that enable them to do so better, faster, and at lower cost. And this is why quantum is so important, not only because it helps us understand the universe as scientists but because it gives us unprecedented capabilities to dramatically improve our lives.

    Microsoft’s Leadership in Quantum

    It is important to appreciate that bringing quantum technology to practical application is hard. It requires focused and sustained investments, sophisticated infrastructure, and the best talent in the world.  It also requires new types of hardware—quantum hardware—and a new quantum technology stack, from chips to the control and readout layers to the user interface. This requires science and innovation at every level. That is what makes developing quantum technology expensive.

    The quantum team at Microsoft has been pursuing quantum computing for over 20 years. Our research program has spanned all three CEOs. We are singularly focused on building quantum computers that are able to solve meaningful problems, like problems in chemistry and material science. To do this, we need quantum computers that can scale to potentially millions of qubits—or quantum transistors—as compared to the small number currently available in prototype systems today. Microsoft has been pursuing this on two fronts: through our decades-long internal research and through strategic collaborations in the quantum ecosystem.

    1. Microsoft’s First-Party Research: The Topological Approach

    Microsoft’s internal hardware effort is based on a unique scientific approach aimed at developing qubits that rely on very novel physics. These are called topological qubits. We think they are promising for quantum computing because they have the potential to make it much easier to scale, meaning to control and enable readout of the millions of qubits needed to develop a useful quantum computer. However, to build even one topological qubit, the team had to take a scientific theory that was first proposed in the 1930s and make it a reality—a feat that included creating a new state of matter and engineering a device in which to exhibit it.

    Earlier this year, Microsoft unveiled new technical results that begin to validate our roadmap toward a topological quantum computer.[1] In addition, Microsoft presented the Majorana 1 chip, which brought together for the first time all the key components, validated individually, that will be needed to build quantum systems that scale: cryogenic electronics, interconnect wiring, and a qubit microchip layout that is compatible with both the physics of topological operation and the limits of control electronics. It is the embodiment of Microsoft’s topological roadmap[2] and the team is proud of it.

    Our approach has been evaluated by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), which spent nearly two years vetting Microsoft’s architecture and engineering plan and the unique properties that enable topological qubits to scale.[3] As a result, DARPA selected Microsoft for the final phase of its Underexplored Systems for Utility-Scale Quantum Computing (US2QC) program—one of the programs that makes up DARPA’s larger Quantum Benchmarking Initiative (QBI). To date, the US2QC program has brought together over fifty experts from leading government and academic institutions, including Air Force Research Laboratory, Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, and NASA Ames Research Center, to verify our approach to quantum hardware, software, and applications. DARPA referred to this evaluation as “an incredibly rigorous and deeply technical analysis from what is almost certainly the world’s best quantum computing test and evaluation team.” The final phase of US2QC now envisions the development of a fault-tolerant prototype based on topological qubits—a crucial acceleration step toward making a utility-scale quantum computer a reality.

    Majorana 1 represents the pursuit of hundreds of scientists and engineers over the course of 20 years. Along the way there have been and will continue to be tremendous advances and contributions to the greater field of quantum information science and technology because of this pursuit. And this is why I came to Microsoft—to work on the hardest problems that promise to have an outsized impact for technology and for our society. Technical terms you may not have heard of, such as Topological and Floquet codes, pristine superconductor-semiconductor materials, measurement-based approaches to quantum computing, are all new technologies spun out of this pursuit with implications for many other types of qubits and other types of technologies, even other domains like astronomy. They came about because the Microsoft team found solutions to the hard problems—to the benefit of not only our company, but the entire quantum ecosystem.

    1. Strategic Collaborations

    At its core, Microsoft is a platform company. We want to empower our customers with the best computers in the world, whether they are quantum computers or classical computers, for the applications they care about. While we are excited about the continued advancement and promise of our own topological approach, we have no preference for which qubits ultimately provide our customers with quantum capabilities. We want the system to be the best technology for their use case. This means we develop software for multiple different technologies and layers of the quantum computer stack, everything from AI copilot to quantum languages to the real-time operating system needed to run a quantum computer with millions of moving parts.

    To do this, we work with, invest in, and partner with many different quantum computing technology companies, big and small, to help them make useful quantum computers a reality. We have entered into strategic collaborations with leading quantum hardware startups like Atom Computing, Quantinuum, and Photonic, and others. By applying our industry-leading error-correction and control software to their hardware platforms, we are accelerating the industry’s transition from rudimentary “Level 1” machines that use noisy physical qubits to the world’s first “Level 2” machines that rely on reliable, error-corrected logical qubits, composed of many physical qubits—which make quantum computing more useful for practical applications.

    Our breakthroughs in this area are coming fast. In April 2024, Microsoft and Quantinuum demonstrated the first logical qubits on record that outperform the underlying physical qubits.[4] Five months later, in September 2024, Microsoft and Quantinuum demonstrated 12 logical qubits on Quantinuum’s ion-trap machine, the most reliable logical qubits then on record.[5] Two months later, in November 2024, Microsoft and Atom Computing doubled this feat, creating and entangling 24 logical qubits made from neutral atoms.[6] These breakthroughs led by Microsoft, Atom Computing, and Quantinuum have for the first time moved the quantum industry firmly out of the “Level 1” noisy intermediate-scale quantum (NISQ) era to Level 2 resilient quantum computing. With Atom Computing, we are now offering the world’s first commercially available Level 2 quantum machines. These collaborations enable us to deliver best-in-class logical qubits for our customers today, further cementing Microsoft’s leadership in the quantum ecosystem. But even these “Level 2” systems that aim to provide 1000s of physical qubits will pale to the scale of a true, utility-scale quantum computer powered by a million qubits or more. Getting to this point will require more sustained, large-scale investments in many areas—from talent development to new domestic capabilities to supply chain resilience.

    Winning the Race in Quantum

    While Microsoft has made significant investments in quantum technology, the efforts of individual companies alone are insufficient for the United States to secure the leadership position. Winning the quantum race will not happen without clear-eyed, intentional, and decisive government action. Indeed, these actions will decide whether American global leadership will continue for the rest of this century.

    In his first term, President Trump and Congress laid the foundation for American leadership in the quantum sciences. The passage of the National Quantum Initiative Act (NQIA) was a strong first step in moving from dispersed quantum science initiatives to a more active, coordinated effort to not only lead in the foundational research, but also take scientific breakthroughs through to practical technological innovation.

    As this Committee considers reauthorization of the NQIA and other specific actions that the United States must take to secure our technological leadership in quantum, we offer more detailed recommendations across three policy priorities: (1) robust funding for quantum research, (2) developing top-tier quantum talent, and (3) securing the quantum supply chain. These three categories—described more fully below—require U.S. government leadership to maintain a competitive edge, drive innovation, and safeguard national security in the face of growing global competition.

    1. Advancing Quantum Research

    First, we must continue our long American tradition of leading the world in groundbreaking scientific research. Our curiosity, our ability to innovate, and our desire to build has been responsible for a century of American prosperity. Indeed, the past century of our global leadership is rooted in our ability to not only innovate but innovate first. For quantum, the first-mover advantage is likely to define the geopolitical landscape for the rest of this century – and likely well beyond.

    Last week, Microsoft President and Vice Chair Brad Smith wrote specifically about the critical role of the American research triad—the Department of Defense, the Department of Energy, and the National Science Foundation—in driving American scientific and technological innovation.[7] I will add to that the unique role that the National Institute of Standards and Technology has contributed to quantum information science since the field’s inception. In addition, there have been vital investments by the Intelligence Community’s research funding organizations, who have core missions that demand expertise to monitor progress in quantum information technologies. We must make it a continuing national imperative to energize these institutions—for our economic future, for our national security, and for sustaining our global leadership. The American scientific enterprise is unmatched in the world and there is no private sector substitute. We benefit from multiple institutions that have very different models for how to fund science. This allows the U.S. to fund everything from basic ideas to large, very focused development programs to purchasing novel supercomputers. There is nothing else quite like it in the world.

    Federal funding is the key to leveraging these institutions to sustain our leadership in quantum research and development.  Following passage of the NQIA, U.S. funding for the quantum sciences more than doubled from $456 million in 2019 to $1.041 billion in 2022.[8] But recent years have seen a decline, as reflected in President Biden’s $998 million budget request for FY2025. This has come as our global competitors are doing the opposite. Governments around the world are accelerating spending on quantum R&D – and China’s estimated $15 billion commitment dwarfs publicly reported U.S. funding levels.[9]

    To stay competitive, Congress should not only reauthorize the National Quantum Initiative Act but be purposeful in expanding initiatives through a coordinated national strategy. Key recommendations include:

    • Fully Fund and Expand Quantum Initiatives across the Federal Government: Reauthorize and fully fund the National Quantum Initiative Act and its programs. Congress should ensure agencies like the Department of Energy (DOE) and its National Labs, the National Science Foundation (NSF), the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), along with the Department of Defense and the Intelligence Community receive sustained appropriations to expand fundamental quantum science research and development. This includes supporting the NSF’s Quantum Leap Challenge Institutes and the DOE’s National Quantum Information Science Research Centers, which have a proven record of leveraging each federal dollar to attract additional private investment. Expanding these programs will spur innovation nationwide and solidify U.S. leadership in critical quantum technologies.
    • Increase Directed Quantum R&D Funding: Move beyond fragmented funding by adopting a more directed, strategic investment approach. A recent ITIF survey suggests that China’s centralized funding strategy gives it advantages over the diffuse U.S. approach.[10] Congress can consider targeted increases in quantum R&D budgets across key agencies, aiming to exceed past funding peaks and keep pace with competitor nations. Restoring growth in federal quantum R&D funding—particularly after the dip in recent years—is the first and most urgent step to ensure the U.S. does not fall behind.
    • Expand Translational Research Programs: Boost funding for government evaluation and prototype development programs to build a bridge between lab discoveries, engineering initiatives, and real-world applications. For example, DARPA’s Quantum Benchmarking Initiative (QBI)—the flagship program for assessing quantum breakthroughs—should be expanded and fully funded. Congress can direct agencies (DOD, DOE, NSF) to coordinate on identifying high-value quantum research projects and push them toward validation programs (like DARPA’s QBI program) and then to practical realization with additional grants, prizes, or public-private partnerships.
    • Encourage Public-Private Collaboration: Federal investment should be paired with incentives for private sector co-investment in quantum R&D. Each dollar of federal funding often leverages additional private sector investment, so policies like matching grants, or innovation challenges can multiply the impact of public funds. Congress should also support joint research centers and consortia that bring together government, academia, and industry to solve quantum engineering hurdles. In addition, maintaining a stable, long-term funding outlook will give industry the confidence to invest alongside the government in quantum technology development.
    • Provide access to the latest quantum capabilities: Congress should streamline pathways for government agencies to provide the latest quantum computing technology to the researcher community, which would allow them to better identify impactful quantum applications and use cases.

    By significantly increasing federal funding and focusing it strategically, Congress can reinvigorate America’s quantum R&D enterprise. Continued U.S. scientific leadership depends on this commitment and history shows that breakthroughs from federally funded basic research (from the internet to GPS) drive decades of innovation and economic growth. Investing ambitiously in quantum now will pay dividends for American security and prosperity in the years to come.

    2. Developing & Attracting Quantum Talent

    Throughout its history, the United States has developed and attracted the brightest and most innovative minds– and it is what powers Microsoft, the broader American technology sector, and our great academic and research institutions. But this country now faces a severe shortage of STEM talent and, even more critically, a shortage of specialized quantum expertise.

    The global quantum talent pool remains small even as demand increases. It is no exaggeration to say that a handful of gifted physicists, engineers, and mathematicians could sway the balance of power and shift the dynamics in the race to develop quantum technology. Globally, there are as many as three job postings for every one qualified quantum worker.[11] In the U.S., we are struggling to develop our own talent and labor pool. Today the U.S. STEM workforce consists of approximately 36.8 million people, but 43% of doctorate-level scientists and engineers are foreign-born.[12] In 2021, more than half of doctorate-level computer scientists, mathematicians, and engineers working in the United States—occupations directly connected to critical and emerging technologies—were born outside the country.[13] Meanwhile, other countries are sprinting ahead in producing STEM graduates. In 2020, the U.S. awarded roughly 900,000 undergraduate STEM degrees annually, compared to 2 million in China and 2.5 million in India.[14] That gap may have widened in the past five years and today, the European Union leads in quantum talent concentration, with India and China also surpassing the U.S. in the number of quantum-trained specialists. Without a bigger domestic pipeline of quantum talent, even the most well-funded programs will struggle to succeed.

    Congress should enact policies to train, attract, and retain top quantum talent. Important steps include:

    • Strengthen STEM Education at All Levels: Congress must be laser focused on expanding the STEM pipeline from K-12 through to graduate school programs. This includes initiatives through the NSF, as well as state and local partners to enrich science and math curricula and increase awareness and interest in emerging technology. By introducing comprehensive STEM education early (in elementary and secondary schools), we can inspire more students to pursue careers in emerging technology and quantum-related fields.
    • Invest in Higher Education and Training: Congress should also continue and expand initiatives to train the next generation of scientists and engineers. We must continue to fund scholarships, fellowships, and research assistantships, particularly those focused in STEM and specifically in the quantum sciences. This must include developing high-caliber talent at our nation’s premier research institutions through grants and quantum research programs.  It must also include prioritizing community colleges and technical institutes that often launch students into STEM careers. Programs like the NSF’s Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) and Research Experiences for Teachers (RET) are critical to engaging more students and providing educators with hands-on quantum projects.  Congress should also increase federal support for STEM graduate students in quantum-related disciplines—currently, only 15% of U.S. full-time STEM grad students are supported by the U.S. government, down from 21% in 2004.[15] Bolstering fellowships and traineeships will produce more Ph.D.-level researchers ready to push the boundaries of quantum science.
    • Retrain and Upskill the Existing Workforce: To meet immediate needs, Congress should also consider activating NSF and the Department of Labor for workforce retraining programs that would help add talent to the quantum ecosystem. Adult education, professional development, and certificate programs in STEM and basic quantum fundamentals can rapidly expand the pool of “quantum-aware” professionals. These efforts will help fill roles in quantum research and product development that do not necessarily require Ph.D.-level expertise but do need specialized training.
    • Attract and Retain Global Talent:  Many of the world’s best minds—in quantum science and across disciplines—come to the U.S. for education and we must continue to find ways to support their continued contributions to our country after graduation. For example, from 2018–2021, temporary visa holders made up 37% of U.S. science and engineering Ph.D. graduates and over 70% of those students intended to stay in the U.S. after graduating.[16]  Congress should create expedited pathways for highly skilled quantum experts and expand the number of visas for Ph.D. graduates in quantum-related fields. Easing green card backlogs for advanced STEM degree holders could help the U.S. retain and attract international talent that would otherwise find opportunities outside the United States.
    • Promote International Collaboration: Congress should encourage collaborative research and exchange programs with allied nations to broaden the talent base within a trusted network. Joint initiatives with allies can pool expertise and resources to collectively train more quantum scientists. By deepening ties with like-minded countries the U.S. can both learn from our allies and ensure that we lead the quantum future together.

    By implementing these measures, the United States can build a robust pipeline of quantum talent. A comprehensive strategy spanning education, training, and international collaboration will equip the U.S. with the skilled workforce needed to drive quantum innovation and outpace global competitors.

    3. Securing the Quantum Supply Chain

    Building a secure and reliable quantum supply chain is essential. Quantum technologies across the board—computing, communication, and sensing—depend on specialized materials and components. This includes hardware like cryogenic refrigerators to advanced lasers and quantum chips. There are currently few suppliers or fabrication facilities for these items and most are globally distributed. This creates a real risk of supply bottlenecks or dependencies on foreign sources, which could stall our R&D progress or even compromise the technology stack. It currently takes 12 to 18 months to get certain components and equipment we need, many of which come from overseas. The U.S. must be able to either build quantum components and devices domestically or have reliable, secure sources through trusted allies. We also need prototyping facilities that are rapid, focused, and work at the pace of industry. However, establishing a resilient supply chain will not happen without focused government action. It is a complex challenge requiring coordination between agencies and partnership with industry. And the need to act is now.

    Congress and the Administration should pursue a national strategy to strengthen the quantum supply chain through the following actions:

    • Develop a National Quantum Supply Chain Strategy: We recommend that the Administration—perhaps via the National Quantum Initiative Advisory Committee or another interagency task force—develop a comprehensive strategy to develop the quantum supply chain. This strategy should identify key supply vulnerabilities, set goals for domestic capacity in quantum-related manufacturing, and provide the Administration with an action plan on how to spur public and private investment for key technology components. Congress may also consider regular reporting on quantum supply chain risks and a roadmap to de-risk dependencies.
    • Diversify Sources of Critical Components: The government should consider using federal purchasing power and funding to ensure multiple reliable sources for essential quantum hardware components. Congress can empower the Department of Commerce and Department of Energy to organize long-term purchase agreements or commit to buying key items (e.g. dilution refrigerators, superconducting amplifiers, high-purity qubit materials, photonic components) in bulk. Strategic investment (such as grants) could also target any chokepoints where the U.S. is overly reliant on foreign suppliers. By deploying capital toward widely needed quantum components, the government can incentivize companies within the United States (or, abroad in partnership with trusted allies) to build expertise and capacity.
    • Establish Quantum Manufacturing Facilities: Congress should also focus on building specialized infrastructure facilities for quantum device fabrication and testing. Building quantum computers and sensors often requires custom fabrication processes (for novel types of qubits, cryogenic electronics, etc.) and advanced packaging techniques. Congress should support the creation of one or more quantum foundries or test beds—perhaps through our National Labs or public-private partnerships—equipped to prototype and produce quantum components at scale. This includes facilities dedicated to fabrication, packaging, and assembly of quantum chips and systems, as well as laboratories for testing cryogenic and photonic components under quantum operating conditions. By investing in such infrastructure, the U.S. will reduce the need to rely on foreign fabrication facilities or suppliers for cutting-edge parts. These centers can also serve as innovation hubs where academia and industry collaborate on next-generation manufacturing techniques for quantum technology.
    • Prioritize Domestic Production of Advanced Components: Congress should create incentives (tax credits, grants, or loan guarantees) for companies to build production lines in the U.S. for critical quantum hardware. This includes the design and fabrication of advanced lasers, precision optics, microwave components, and quantum-grade semiconductors, as well as cryogenic electronics and ultralow-temperature refrigeration systems required for quantum labs. Capabilities like high-precision metrology (chip characterization) and advanced 3D packaging for quantum devices should also be developed domestically. Some of these areas overlap with semiconductor and photonics industries—where recent government efforts were aimed at boosting U.S. manufacturing— but specialized focus on quantum needs is essential. By onshoring production of these components, the U.S. will mitigate risks of foreign supply cut-offs and foster a local ecosystem of quantum suppliers and startups.  In tandem, federal R&D programs can partner with U.S. manufacturers to improve yields and performance in quantum-specific production, driving the costs down over time.

    By implementing these measures, the U.S. can build a resilient quantum supply chain that supports our nation’s long-term leadership. A combination of strategic planning, direct investment, public-private partnerships, and incentives will reduce dependence on foreign suppliers and ensure that our scientists and quantum innovators have access to the tools and components they need to succeed.

    Conclusion

    In closing, the government plays a critical role in coordinating our quantum ecosystem, funding the base of scientific discoveries and talent that the industry relies on, and being the first customer for next generation computers.

    Quantum technology promises to redefine the next era of human progress. The United States must act with urgency to ensure our continued leadership over the next hundred years.

    [1][2502.12252] Roadmap to fault tolerant quantum computation using topological qubit arrays.

    [2] Interferometric single-shot parity measurement in InAs–Al hybrid devices | Nature and Realizing Topological States on Quantum Hardware | APS Global Physics Summit.

    [3] DARPA selects two discrete utility-scale quantum computing approaches for evaluation | DARPA.

    [4] How Microsoft and Quantinuum achieved reliable quantum computing – Microsoft Azure Quantum Blog.

    [5] Microsoft and Quantinuum create 12 logical qubits and demonstrate a hybrid, end-to-end chemistry simulation – Microsoft Azure Quantum Blog.

    [6] Microsoft and Atom Computing offer a commercial quantum machine with the largest number of entangled logical qubits on record – Microsoft Azure Quantum Blog.

    [7] Investing in American leadership in quantum technology: the next frontier in innovation – Microsoft On the Issues.

    [8] National Science and Technology Council:  Subcommittee on Quantum Information Science, National Supplement to the President’s FY 2025 Budget.

    [9] Hodan Omaar and Martin Makaryan, “How Innovative is China,” Information Technology & Innovation Foundation, September 2024.

    [10] Id.

    [11] McKinsey & Company, “Quantum Technology Monitor,” April 2023.

    [12] National Science Board, “The State of U.S. Science and Engineering 2024,” March 2024.

    [13] Id.

    [14] Id.

    [15] Id.

    [16] Id.

    Tags: quantum, Senate Testimony, Technology

    MIL OSI Economics

  • MIL-OSI USA: Salinas, Lofgren, Padilla, Bennet Reintroduce Legislation to Provide Disaster Relief for Farmworkers

    Source: US Representative Andrea Salinas (OR-06)

    Washington, DC – Today, U.S. Representative Andrea Salinas (OR-06), the daughter of a former farmworker and a leader in the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, and Rep. Zoe Lofgren (CA-18), along with U.S. Senators Alex Padilla (D-CA) and Michael Bennet (D-CO), reintroduced the Disaster Relief for Farm Workers Act. This legislation would provide compensation for farmworkers who lose out on wages due to extreme weather, public health emergencies, and other disasters beyond their control. The bill was first introduced in the 118th Congress.

    “Extreme weather and natural disasters are only getting worse with climate change. Unfortunately, many of the hardworking individuals who grow and harvest our food do not receive direct financial support when they are forced to miss work and lose wages as a result of these disasters,” said Rep. Salinas. “My legislation would finally correct this injustice by providing federal disaster relief for farmworkers. This change is well-deserved and long-overdue, and I will continue to advocate for the brave men and women who help feed America.”

    “When extreme weather occurs, farmworkers across our country continue to feed the nation. And yet, these essential workers and their families face great uncertainty when unexpected disasters harm their communities and livelihood. For example, hundreds of farmworkers in my congressional district faced displacement and lost wages after severe flooding devastated the Pajaro community in early 2023. We owe them – and all farmworkers – more. The Disaster Relief for Farm Workers Act ensures America’s indispensable farmworkers can receive disaster relief funding they need and have earned,” said Rep. Lofgren.

    “California’s farm workers often work under extreme conditions to help put food on the table for hundreds of millions of Americans,” said Sen. Padilla. “But increasingly frequent natural disasters, including historic flooding in Pajaro, have devastated California’s agricultural communities. We must protect the heart of our nation’s food supply by providing critical emergency assistance to these essential workers.”

    “Agriculture is the backbone of Colorado’s economy and central to our Western way of life, but as climate-fueled disasters become increasingly common, our state’s farm workers are paying the price,” said Sen. Bennet. “Our bill will help ensure the people that grow America’s fruits, vegetables, and other crops get the assistance they need in the wake of emergencies like drought, wildfires, and other natural disasters.”

    Oregon is home to over 100,000 farmworkers, many of whom live and work in the Willamette Valley and power the state’s $42 billion agriculture economy. Yet despite their importance to our food systems, the average farmworker family in Oregon earns less than $25,000 per year. Ninety-six percent reported living in overcrowded housing and about thirty percent are living below the poverty line. When farmworkers cannot work due to extreme weather or other unexpected disasters, they can lose wages and even their jobs—pushing them deeper into housing and food insecurity.

    The Disaster Relief for Farm Workers Act would address this problem by providing direct relief funding for farmworkers. Specifically, this bill would:

    • Make grants available to eligible farmworker organizations to provide emergency relief to farm workers affected by a disaster.
    • Ensure USDA develops and executes a promotional plan prior to and throughout the distribution of the relief grants to increase awareness of the assistance available.
    • Require USDA to work with eligible farmworker organizations.
    • Provide definitions for a covered disaster, eligible farmworker organization, and migrant or seasonal farmworker.
    • Amend Section 2281 of the Food, Agriculture, Conservation, and Trade Act of 1990 to allow for emergency assistance for farmworkers.

    In addition to Reps. Salinas and Lofgren, the Disaster Relief for Farm Workers Act is cosponsored by Reps. Nanette Barragán (CA-44), André Carson (IN-07), Judy Chu (CA-28), Jim Costa (CA-21), Suzan DelBene (WA-01), Lloyd Doggett (TX-37), Maxwell Frost (FL-10), Robert Garcia (CA-42), Jared Huffman (CA-02), Kevin Mullin (CA-15), Eleanor Holmes Norton (DC-AL), Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (NY-14), Melanie Stansbury (NM-01), Marilyn Strickland (WA-10), Rashida Tlaib (MI-12), Paul Tonko (NY-20), and Juan Vargas (CA-52).

    The legislation is endorsed by the following organizations, in alphabetical order: A Better Balance, Alianza Americas, Alianza Nacional de Campesinas, Association of Farmworker Opportunity Programs (AFOP), Borderlands Resource Initiative, California Human Development, Campesinos Sin Fronteras, Care in Action, CASA of Oregon, Center for Employment Training, Central Coast Alliance United for a Sustainable Economy (CAUSE), Central Valley Opportunity Center, Centro de los Derechos del Migrante, Inc (CDM), Child Labor Coalition, CHILDREN AT RISK, CIERTO, Civic Empowerment Coalition, Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights (CHIRLA), Columbia Legal Services, CRLA Foundation, Davidson County Local Food Network, El Futuro es Nuestro, Farm Worker Ministry Northwest, Farmworker and Landscaper Advocacy Project-FLAP, Farmworker Housing Development Corporation (FHDC), Farmworker Justice, Food Empowerment Project, GALEO Impact Fund, Hand in Hand/Mano en Mano, Hispanic Affairs Project, Hispanic Federation, Houston Immigration Legal Services Collaborative, Immigrant Defenders Law Center, La Union del Pueblo Entero (LUPE), Latino Outdoors, League of Conservation Voters, Make the Road CT, Make the Road NJ, Make the Road NV, Make the Road NY, Make the Road PA, Make the Road States, Michiganders for a Just Farming System, National Association of Social Workers, National Association of Social Workers – Florida and Virgin Islands Chapter, National Consumers League, National Domestic Workers Alliance, National Employment Law Project, National Migrant and Seasonal Head Start Association, NC FIELD, Inc., NETWORK Lobby for Catholic Social Justice, North Carolina Council of Churches, North Carolina Farmworker Advocacy Network, North Carolina Justice Center, Nourish Up, Opportunity Arizona, Oregon Human Development Corporation, Organización en California de Lideres Campesinas, Inc, PCUN, Oregon’s Farmworker Union, Pesticide Action and Agroecology Network (PAN), Popular Democracy, Presente.org, Progress Michigan, Proteus Inc., Puente de la Costa Sur, Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund (SALDEF), Slow Food USA, Student Action with Farmworkers, Sur Legal Collaborative, TODEC Legal Center, Toxic Free North Carolina, UFW Foundation, Unidos Yamhill County, United Farm Workers, Voces Unidas de las Montañas.

    “Farm workers are always on the front lines of fires, floods, and storms — yet are too often excluded from federal disaster relief programs,” said Teresa Romero, President of United Farm Workers (UFW). “If the federal government can provide emergency support to farm owners who lose crops in natural disaster, then the federal government can emergency provide support to farm workers who lose work in that same disaster. The Disaster Relief for Farm Workers Act will ensure that farm workers who put food on all our tables can continue to put food on their family’s table when disaster strikes.”

    “Every year we see an alarming number of natural disasters that drastically and disproportionately impact the farm worker community. As climate change gets worse, these types of disasters will only worsen and farm workers are the ones who are affected the most by these calamities. Just last year, we saw heavy California rains flooding Ventura County farm areas and Hurricane Helen devastating Georgia’s farm worker communities, leading to organizations like ours stepping up to do what we can. But that is not enough. We must have a federal response to these kinds of disasters. From wildfires to tornadoes to hurricanes, farm workers have little to no safety net to help them recover from unexpected disasters,” said Erica Lomeli Corcoran, Chief Executive Officer at UFW Foundation. “This is exactly why the UFW Foundation is supporting the Disaster Relief for Farm Workers Act. It would provide resources and aid to those who truly need it and would ensure that those responsible for our nation’s food supplies are not overlooked, as they have been in the past. Farm workers have been largely ignored and neglected by the law, shut out from basic protections provided to all workers. It is time that Congress acts and ensures that our nation’s farm workers are given the support they need to overcome times of emergencies and to provide equity to all workers.” 

    “Farmworkers are frontline workers, which means they are the hardest hit by the impacts of extreme weather conditions across the country. Many farmworkers feel that they are risking their health with extreme heat and colder days, but losing even one day of work is not an option for their families’ economic situation. Outdoor protections are important, yet there are days that are becoming too extreme to even be outside. Our vision is to be a resilient workforce for the agricultural industry. Disaster relief means we can start investing in addressing the issues that workers are facing today by building resilience for climate change in the future, without sacrificing the economic well-being of farmworkers,” said Reyna Lopez, Executive Director of Pineros y Campesinos Unidos del Noreste (PCUN).

    To read the full text of the legislation, click here.

     

    ###

    MIL OSI USA News

  • MIL-OSI USA: Proposition 123 Land Banking Funds to Support New Housing Options Coloradans can Afford Across the State

    Source: US State of Colorado

    DENVER – Today, Gov. Jared Polis, the Colorado Office of Economic Development and International Trade (OEDIT), and Colorado Housing and Finance Authority (CHFA) announced 21 recipients of voter-approved Proposition 123 Land Banking funds. This funding is intended to support Colorado communities as they acquire and preserve land for an estimated 1,892 home ownership and multi-family rental apartments, including plans in Colorado Springs, Fort Collins, Fruita, Montrose, and Pagosa Springs.

    “These funds are an important first step to create 1,892 homes people can afford across the state, helping more Coloradans live where they want to live — close to their jobs, schools, and the places they love.” said Gov. Jared Polis. 

    Among the recipients, the Boulder Housing Coalition plans to acquire and convert an historic Denver mansion into affordable housing supporting households with incomes 30 – 80% of the Area Median Income (AMI). A Montrose project by Community Options Inc. plans to serve neurodiverse households with incomes 40 – 60% of AMI. And the proposed Bradley Ridge Apartments in Colorado Springs will include an early childhood education center and serve households earning at or below 60% AMI. 

    “A strong economy includes good-paying jobs and housing for every income level. The recipients announced today will introduce new home ownership and rental opportunities in communities across the state, meeting a wide variety of needs, including those transitioning out of homelessness, neurodiverse families, and childcare opportunities. We are excited to support strong economies across the state,” said Eve Lieberman, OEDIT Executive Director. 

    Availability of land is considered one of the most significant barriers to affordable housing development. The Land Banking program provides grants to local and tribal governments and forgivable loans to nonprofits with a demonstrated history of providing affordable housing to support the acquisition and preservation of land for affordable for-sale and rental housing development. 

    “The funds awarded through the Land Banking program are an investment in a stronger Colorado, supporting communities in securing the land they need to respond to local housing needs. These efforts lay the foundation for greater housing stability and economic prosperity,” said Thomas Bryan, Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer of CHFA.

    A total of $47,994,762 will be awarded to 21 recipients, who will be required to complete statutory milestones over the coming years including achieving proper zoning, finalizing development plans, and securing development funding and permits. The Area Median Incomes (AMIs) proposed by the recipients range from 20% AMI for those transitioning out of homelessness up to 100% AMI for homeownership. The awardees include: 

    • Boulder Housing Coalition: 19 rental units for the 1350 N Logan, Denver, $430,000 Broomfield Housing Alliance: 72 rental units for the 11795 Colmans Way,
    • Broomfield, $3,500,000
    • Commerce City Housing Authority: 120 rental and homeownership units for The Foundry, Commerce City, $4,750,000
    • Commun Denver: 173 rental and homeownership units for the Loretto Commons, Denver, $2,500,000
    • Community Options Inc.: 50 rental units for the TBD Hilltop Apartments, Montrose, $1,250,000
    • Elevation Community Land Trust II: 44 homeownership units for the Miners Haus, Golden, $1,400,000
    • Fairview Housing Partners Ltd: 144 rental units for the Flats at Sand Creek, Colorado Springs, $4,050,000
    • Foothills Regional Housing: 220 rental units for the Ridge Road, Wheat Ridge, $2,100,000
    • GES Coalition, Inc.: 60 rental and homeownership units for the Brighton Blvd-GESC, Denver, $3,571,429
    • Habitat for Humanity Fort Collins: eight homeownership units for the Bloom Cottages, Fort Collins, $600,000
    • Habitat for Humanity of Metro Denver, Inc.: 40 homeownership units for the Calvary Flats Affordable Homes, Golden, $1,200,000
    • Habitat for Humanity St Vrain: 35 homeownership units for the Habitat 15th and Terry Street Neighborhood, Longmont, $1,558,333 Metro Caring: 139 rental units for the Metro Caring Affordable Housing, Denver, $3,485,000 Pagosa Springs Community Development Corporation: 11 rental and homeownership units for the Affordable Housing Phase 4, Bonita Dr., Pagosa Springs, $200,000 Pikes Peak Real Estate Foundation: 336 rental units for the Bradley Ridge Apartments, Colorado Springs, $4,850,000 The City of Fruita: 100 rental and homeownership units for The Fruita Commons, Fruita, $1,500,000
    • The Inn Between of Longmont: 40 rental units for the 1886 Hover, Longmont, $1,750,000 The NHP Foundation: 158 rental units for the Liora, Denver, $3,850,000
    • Thistle Community Housing: 48 rental and homeownership units for the Fairways Phase II, Boulder, $2,600,000
    • Urban Land Conservancy II: 66 rental units for the Liberty House, Denver, $2,450,000
    • West Colfax Lampstand: 9 homeownership units for the Flats at Harlan, Lakewood, $400,000 

    Applications were evaluated according to priorities outlined in statute, including high-density housing, mixed-income housing, and environmental sustainability. The selection process also considered accessibility to transit and walkable access to community services, readiness to proceed, financial feasibility, geographic distribution, and total number of units proposed, all priorities outlined by the Governor’s Executive Order to address Colorado’s housing supply. 

    The Land Banking program is part of the Affordable Housing Financing Fund, established by Proposition 123, managed by OEDIT and administered by CHFA. Ongoing updates are available by signing up to receive newsletter updates. 

    About the Colorado Affordable Housing Financing Fund 

    Passed by voters in November 2022, Proposition 123 established the State Affordable Housing Fund to advance the development and preservation of affordable housing in Colorado. The measure directs 40% of those funds to the Colorado Affordable Housing Support Fund administered by the state Department of Local Affairs (DOLA) and 60% of funds to the Colorado Affordable Housing Financing Fund managed by OEDIT. OEDIT selected Colorado Housing and Finance Authority (CHFA) to serve as the Affordable Housing Financing Fund third-party administrator. The Affordable Housing Financing Fund consists of three programs: Land Banking, Equity and Concessionary Debt. 

    About the Colorado Office of Economic Development and International Trade (OEDIT) 

    The Colorado Office of Economic Development and International Trade (OEDIT) works to empower all to thrive in Colorado’s economy. Under the leadership of the Governor and in collaboration with economic development partners across the state, we foster a thriving business environment through funding and financial programs, training, consulting and informational resources across industries and regions. We promote economic growth and long-term job creation by recruiting, retaining, and expanding Colorado businesses and providing programs that support entrepreneurs and businesses of all sizes at every stage of growth. Our goal is to protect what makes our state a great place to live, work, start a business, raise a family, visit and retire—and make it accessible to everyone. Learn more about OEDIT. 

    About Colorado Housing and Finance Authority (CHFA) 

    For more than 50 years, CHFA has strengthened Colorado by investing in affordable housing and community development. CHFA invests in affordable homeownership, the development and preservation of affordable rental housing, helps small- and medium-sized businesses access capital, offers technical assistance and financial support to strengthen local communities, and supports mission-aligned nonprofits through philanthropic investment. CHFA is not a state agency. CHFA is a self-sustaining public enterprise. For more information about CHFA, please visit chfainfo.com or call 1.800.877.chfa (2432).

    MIL OSI USA News

  • MIL-OSI Economics: Samsung Launches the 2025 TV Line-up and Exciting New Partnership With BAFTA

    Source: Samsung

     
    LONDON, UK – May 7, 2025 – Samsung Electronics UK has unveiled an exciting new partnership with BAFTA (The British Academy of Film and Television Arts), as it continues to expand its commitment to supporting the UK’s vibrant creative industries.
     
    The partnership announcement coincides with the launch of Samsung’s much-anticipated 2025 TV, projector and soundbar line-up, bringing the latest in AI-powered screen and audio innovations to British homes. Available to pre-order from today, the range will ship nationwide from Samsung.com and retail partners[1] including John Lewis, Currys, Argos, AO and Richer Sounds.
     
    Samsung partners with BAFTA to support UK creative industries
    Samsung has become the Official Screen Partner of BAFTA – underlining Samsung’s notoriety for superior picture quality and being at the heart of immersive, home entertainment. BAFTA champions and celebrates the best creative content across the screen arts’ industries – there are clear synergies between the two organisations. This collaboration marks the beginning of a joint initiative that celebrates storytelling, champions British talent, and spotlights innovation across film, games and television.
     
    Samsung is committed to enhancing how audiences experience content, both at home and beyond. This partnership aligns perfectly ahead of the upcoming BAFTA TV Awards this Sunday, as a significant portion of the UK continues to enjoy their favourite shows on Samsung TVs – now in its nineteenth year as the global market leader for TV[2].
     
    “The UK’s creative industries are thriving, driven by advances in technology, and the rise of digital-first content,” said Zeena Hill, Director of Marketing TV/AV at Samsung UK. “As more people enjoy award-winning entertainment at home, our unrivalled TV technology and innovations continue to lead the industry forwards and ensure that every creative detail is experienced at its best.
     
    “This partnership with BAFTA champions artistic expression and elevated storytelling for a richer, more immersive viewing experience for all to enjoy.”
     
    Jane Millichip, CEO at BAFTA, said: “Samsung’s commitment to innovation and excellence in home entertainment aligns perfectly with BAFTA’s mission to champion creativity and inspire audiences. Together, we look forward to celebrating the very best in screen storytelling and delivering even more engaging experiences to viewers globally.”
     
    Revolutionising TV with Samsung Vision AI
    The new Samsung 2025 line-up integrates advanced AI technologies to deliver an unparalleled and more personalised entertainment experience than ever before. Plus customers can claim up to £1000 cashback when you pre-order selected 2025 Samsung TVs and up to £400 on selected soundbars[3].
     
    Samsung’s 2025 TV line-up introduces groundbreaking innovations in picture quality and smart features. Powered by Samsung Vision AI, the latest Samsung TVs takes the viewing experience to the next level. Advanced AI technologies analyse content and surroundings to automatically optimise the picture and sound.
     
    Samsung is also introducing enhanced Glare-Free technology[4] on select models, minimising reflections while maintaining deeper blacks and clear images, even in brightly lit rooms. By using a new material, the anti-reflective properties have been greatly improved so that you can enjoy a beautiful image, regardless of the light on the screen. The Glare-Free technology has been expanded to selected Neo QLED and OLED models.
     
    The TV line-up for 2025 includes a wide range of technologies and design, including:
     
    Neo QLED 8K: With advanced Quantum Matrix Technology and Ultra Viewing Angle Technology for an unprecedented level of detail and contrast.
    Neo QLED 4K: An excellent balance between picture quality and value, with powerful processors and bright, vibrant colours. The new QN90F now also feature Glare-Free technology, and have an improved processor and faster refresh rate.
    The NEW Frame Pro enhances consumer experience by incorporating advanced Neo QLED technology, for enhanced, immersive picture quality alongside its Glare-Free Matte[5] finish to minimise distractions and compliment your interior with displaying stunning art⁳ when in standby mode.
    In addition, the newly announced and renewed Wireless One Connect box allows the TV to be connected wirelessly from up to 10 metres away, meaning that unsightly cables are a thing of the past.
    The Frame and The Frame Pro also have access to the Art Store[6], giving consumers access to over 2500+ pieces of art from some of the most well-known museums and art galleries globally.
    OLED 4K: Available in different models (S95F, S90F, S85F) with screen sizes up to 83”. Samsung is continuing to innovate with its 2025 OLED line-up, delivering powerful full-screen brightness, deep blacks, vibrant, Pantone®-validated colours and our most advanced OLED Glare-Free technology – for distraction-free viewing across any environment
    QLED 4K: Bright colours and an excellent viewing angle.
    Crystal UHD: Sharp 4K resolution and vibrant colours at an attractive price.
    NEW – The Premiere 5 is a new full HD touch interactive triple laser, ultra-short throw projector. Providing cinematic visuals and vivid colours that can project a screen up to 100 inches alongside interactive features[7].

    New Soundbar line-up: design with superior sound experience
    Samsung’s new Soundbar line-up is designed to work in sync with the new televisions and create an immersive audio experience. The top models, such as the HW-Q990F and HW-Q930F, offer a three-dimensional surround sound with support for Dolby Atmos and DTS:X, giving the audio a next generation experience. The compact subwoofer with dual active drivers of the HW-Q990F ensures a deep and powerful bass without vibrations.
     
    With its sleek, modern design the all new  QS700F Soundbar fits seamlessly into any room, with its new convertible design that can automatically detect the direction of installation through its gyro sensor and will optimise the sound accordingly – providing a perfected Dolby Atmos sound experience no matter how you install it in your home.
     
    AI-driven sound optimisation, such as Q-Symphony together with SpaceFit Sound Pro, analyse the acoustics of the room and the content played to automatically optimize the sound for a clear, balanced and spacious reproduction and intelligible dialogue.
     
    With this new line-up, Samsung is once again setting the standard for home entertainment – ​​smarter, more beautiful and more immersive than ever before.
     
    [1] Currys, John Lewis, Richer Sounds, Argos, AO, Very, Littlewoods, Amazon, Costco, Hughes Electrical and Harvey Norman.
    [2] Samsung Electronics Marks 19 Consecutive Years as the Global TV Market Leader.
    [3] Disclaimer: Samsung Electronics (UK) Limited. Purchase between 07.05.25 – 27.05.25 from a participating retailer. Claim must be submitted between 30 and 60 days of purchase. Maximum four claims per household, 10 per registered business. To claim, and for full T&Cs, see https://samsungoffers.claims/preorder2025VisionAI.
    [4] Measured against Unified Glare Rating (UGR) testing standard, validated as ‘Glare Free’ by UL.
    [5] Measured against Unified Glare Rating (UGR) testing standard, certified as glare-free (reflection, discomfort and disability glare) by UL.
    [6] Art Store subscription and Samsung Account connection required to access full selection of artwork.
    [7] Touch interaction is only available with the Touch Stand connected. Touch interaction support may vary by app, some apps may not support the feature. Some functions may be limited when using the feature.
     

    MIL OSI Economics

  • MIL-OSI Africa: Afreximbank launches US$ 1 Billion Africa Film Fund to transform the continent’s creative industry

    Source: Africa Press Organisation – English (2) – Report:

    Afreximbank launches US$ 1 Billion Africa Film Fund to transform the continent’s creative industry The Fund will play a pivotal role in promoting the production and global distribution of high-quality films and TV series, further amplifying Global Africa’s cultural influence across the world KIGALI, Rwanda, May 7, 2025/APO Group/ — African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) (www.Afreximbank.com), through its development impact investment arm, the Fund for Export-Development in Africa (FEDA), has committed to spearhead the launch of the Africa Film Fund (‘the Fund’) as part of its Creative Africa Nexus Programme (CANEX). This transformative undertaking of up to US$1 billion is designed to revolutionize Global Africa’s film and creative industry. This move follows Afreximbank Group’s commitment at the CANEX Weekend (CANEX WKND 2024) in Algiers, Algeria, in October 2024, where the Bank announced plans to launch a private equity film fund through FEDA to support film production and distribution across Africa and empower African filmmakers to create globally appealing content. The Fund will play a pivotal role in promoting the production and global distribution of high-quality films and TV series, further amplifying Global Africa’s cultural influence across the world. In doing so, the Fund will be a catalyst to attract and direct crucial patient capital into Global Africa’s film and TV production industry, mobilising resources that would enable filmmakers and storytellers to produce world-class content that resonates globally. According to the UNESCO Institute for Statistics, the African film and audiovisual industry generates an estimated US$5 billion in annual revenues and employs over 5 million people across the continent. However, the film industry on the continent has long faced challenges, including limited access to production facilities and equipment, a shortage of advanced post-production resources, and a lack of sufficient exhibition infrastructure—highlighted by fewer than 2,000 cinema screens and limited access to digital platforms. Afreximbank’s interventions through FEDA seek to address some of these issues and more. Professor Benedict Oramah, President of Afreximbank and Chairman of both the Boards of Directors of Afreximbank and FEDA commented: “Film is a cornerstone of the Creative Africa Nexus (CANEX) programme and the establishment of the Africa Film Fund is timely as it will help accelerate the growth of Africa’s creative sector, which has witnessed rapid growth but continues to face significant challenges including funding, scaling and accessing global markets.” Prof. Oramah added, “Through investments in the film sector, alongside initiatives such as the CANEX Shorts Awards, Afreximbank is committed to celebrating and amplifying a diverse range of African voices and experiences, thereby catalysing the creative industry and unleashing the creative industry’s potential to drive economic growth across Africa.” Marlene Ngoyi, CEO of FEDA, emphasized the Fund’s role in driving inclusive growth, stating that: “The Africa Film Fund is not merely about financing films – it is about building a thriving ecosystem that empowers Global Africa’s creative talent, fosters cultural exchange, and catalyses economic transformation. At FEDA, we are committed to ensuring this initiative delivers tangible impact with long-term and sustainable benefits.” Kanayo Awani, Executive Vice-President of Intra-African Trade and Export Development, Afreximbank, added: This Fund will help unlock the full potential of Africa’s creative economy by giving African storytellers the platform, resources, and visibility they deserve. It reflects our belief that culture is not just a soft power, but a strategic asset for economic growth, youth empowerment, and regional integration.” Viola Davis, co-founder of JVL Media LLC and an EGOT (Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, Tony) winning actress welcomed the initiative: African stories are deeply human and universally powerful. This Fund is an invitation to the world to see Africa through the lens of its own creators — bold, unfiltered, and rich in truth. I am proud to be a part of this momentous step toward a more inclusive global film industry. Boris Kodjoe, award winning actor and Managing Partner of FC Media Group, stated:  “It has been a long-term dream of mine to be able to tell stories on a global scale. I am grateful and excited to partner with our friends at Afreximbank and FEDA in order to support quality content development and creation in Africa and beyond.” Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Afreximbank. Media Contact: Vincent Musumba Communications and Events Manager (Media Relations) Email: press@afreximbank.com About FEDA: The Fund for Export Development in Africa (“FEDA”) is the impact investment subsidiary of Afreximbank (www.Afreximbank.com), set up to provide equity, quasi-equity, and debt capital to finance the multi-billion-dollar funding gap (particularly in equity) needed to transform the Trade sector in Africa. FEDA pursues a multi-sector investment strategy along the intra-African trade, value-added export development, and manufacturing value chain which includes financial services, technology, consumer and retail goods, manufacturing, transport & logistics, agribusiness, as well as ancillary trade enabling infrastructure such as industrial parks.  To date, FEDA has invested more than US$590 million in companies and projects across its various fund initiatives, in sectors such as manufacturing, agro-processing, financial services, healthcare and pharmaceuticals, amongst others. About Afreximbank: African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) is a Pan-African multilateral financial institution mandated to finance and promote intra- and extra-African trade. For over 30 years, the Bank has been deploying innovative structures to deliver financing solutions that support the transformation of the structure of Africa’s trade, accelerating industrialisation and intra-regional trade, thereby boosting economic expansion in Africa. A stalwart supporter of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA), Afreximbank has launched a Pan-African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS) that was adopted by the African Union (AU) as the payment and settlement platform to underpin the implementation of the AfCFTA. Working with the AfCFTA Secretariat and the AU, the Bank has set up a US$10 billion Adjustment Fund to support countries effectively participating in the AfCFTA. At the end of December 2024, Afreximbank’s total assets and contingencies stood at over US$40.1 billion, and its shareholder funds amounted to US$7.2 billion. Afreximbank has investment grade ratings assigned by GCR (international scale) (A), Moody’s (Baa1), China Chengxin International Credit Rating Co., Ltd (CCXI) (AAA), Japan Credit Rating Agency (JCR) (A-) and Fitch (BBB). Afreximbank has evolved into a group entity comprising the Bank, its equity impact fund subsidiary called the Fund for Export Development Africa (FEDA), and its insurance management subsidiary, AfrexInsure (together, “the Group”). The Bank is headquartered in Cairo, Egypt.

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    MIL OSI Africa

  • MIL-OSI: BitMart’s Global Growth Vision: Empowering Users and Transforming the Trading Ecosystem

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    Jersey City, NJ, May 07, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — BitMart, a leading global digital asset trading platform, proudly introduces three pioneering programs—Slippage Protection, Elite Trader, and Global Community Partner. These initiatives are designed to offer a safer and more rewarding trading experience for millions of users worldwide. With the support of BitMart’s advanced third-generation trading engine, the platform reaffirms its strong commitment to technological innovation, user trust, and a service-first approach, aiming to position BitMart as the most advantageous and user-value-driven trading platform in the industry.

    A Milestone Year: Seven Years of Excellence

    Celebrating seven years of growth, BitMart reflects on its journey to becoming a top-ranked exchange on CoinGecko, supporting users across 1,700+ trading pairs. BitMart is accelerating its global presence and redefining trading with cutting-edge technology and user-focused initiatives.

    “Our seventh anniversary represents both our proud legacy and our commitment to future growth,” stated Nenter Chow. “With our Trading Protection Plan, BitMart is dedicated to empowering users with exceptional security, unparalleled opportunities, and a more inclusive crypto trading ecosystem.”

    Slippage Protection Program: Confidence in Every Trade

    Understanding the risks traders face due to market volatility, BitMart introduces its pioneering Slippage Protection Program, designed specifically for users trading USDT-margined perpetual contracts. The program offers up to 1,000 USDT compensation for losses caused by technical disruptions or liquidity issues. Traders can now confidently execute strategies without concern for unexpected slippage, setting a new industry standard in reliability and user assurance.

    Elite Trader Program: Maximizing Earnings for High-Performing Traders

    The Elite Trader Program is designed for top-tier traders, offering a unique opportunity to earn up to 50% in performance-based incentives, along with comprehensive operational support and exclusive marketing resources. This program enables traders to amplify their earnings, expand their reach, and play a key role in fostering a dynamic and thriving trading community.

    Global Community Partner Program: Strengthening Global Connections

    BitMart’s Global Community Partner Program aims to deepen relationships within the crypto community by rewarding partners and content creators with up to 60% spot trading commission and up to 70% futures trading commission, official platform recognition, and customized marketing tools. This initiative fosters global collaboration, boosting community engagement and creating opportunities for sustainable growth.

    Commitment to Technology and Trust

    Powered by its advanced third-generation trading engine and strategic partnerships with industry-leading liquidity providers, BitMart’s Trading Protection Plan ensures smooth, secure, and efficient trading experiences. BitMart remains dedicated to technological innovation and building trusted global partnerships, reinforcing its position as the premier trading platform.

    About BitMart

    BitMart is a premier global digital asset trading platform with more than 10 million users worldwide. Consistently ranked among the top crypto exchanges on CoinGecko, BitMart offers over 1,700 trading pairs with competitive fees. Committed to continuous innovation and financial inclusivity, BitMart empowers users globally to trade seamlessly. Learn more about BitMart at Website, follow their X (Twitter), or join their Telegram for updates, news, and promotions. Download BitMart App to trade anytime, anywhere.

    Disclaimer: The information provided is for informational purposes only and should not be considered a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any financial assets. All information is provided in good faith. However, we make no representation or warranty of any kind, express or implied, regarding the accuracy, adequacy, validity, reliability, availability or completeness of such information.

    All crypto investments, including earnings, are highly speculative in nature and involve substantial risk of loss. Past, hypothetical, or simulated performance is not necessarily indicative of future results. The value of digital currencies can go up or down and there can be a substantial risk in buying, selling, holding, or trading digital currencies. You should carefully consider whether trading or holding digital currencies is suitable for you based on your personal investment objectives, financial circumstances, and risk tolerance. BitMart does not provide any investment, legal or tax advice.

    The MIL Network

  • MIL-OSI: Coface SA: Publication of Group and Standalone SFCR as of 31 December 2024

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    COFACE SA: Publication of Group and Standalone SFCR as of 31 December 2024

    Paris, 7 May 2025 – 17.45

    COFACE SA has published today its Solvency and Financial Condition Report (SFCR) for COFACE SA (Group) and Compagnie française d’assurance pour le commerce extérieur (the « Compagnie »), in compliance with the Solvency II requirements1.

    The Board of Directors of COFACE SA and the Compagnie, respectively approved the SFCR for the financial year 2024. This report is produced on an annual basis:

    • for Coface Group, involving COFACE SA and its main subsidiaries in France and outside France;
    • for the Compagnie, on a standalone basis.

    HIGHLIGHTS

    • To assess its solvency, COFACE SA uses the partial internal model approved by the ACPR in 2019. The Compagnie’s solvency is still assessed using the interpretation of the standard formula.
    • As of 31 December 2024, eligible own funds to cover the Group’s SCR amounted to €2,630 million, which broke down as follows:
      • 75% of Tier 1 capital;
      • 24% of Tier 2 capital;
      • 1% of Tier 3 capital, representing deferred tax assets.
    • The Group’s SCR coverage ratio of 196%2 at the end of 2024 reflects a solvency ratio above its target range (155% -175%). This level supports the Group’s decision to distribute 80% of its net profit for 2024 by a €1.403 dividend per share.
    • The coverage ratio of the Compagnie SCR (Solo) at the end of 2024 is 237%4.

    The full report is available on the website of the Company at the following address:
    https://www.coface.com/investors/regulated-information/annual-reports

    CONTACTS

    ANALYSTS / INVESTORS
    Thomas JACQUET: +33 1 49 02 12 58 – thomas.jacquet@coface.com
    Rina ANDRIAMIADANTSOA: +33 1 49 02 15 85 – rina.andriamiadantsoa@coface.com

    MEDIA RELATIONS
    Saphia GAOUAOUI: +33 1 49 02 14 91 – saphia.gaouaoui@coface.com
    Adrien BILLET: +33 1 49 02 23 63 – adrien.billet@coface.com

    FINANCIAL CALENDAR 2025
    (subject to change)

    Annual General Shareholders’ Meeting: 14 May 2025
    H1-2025 results: 31 July 2025 (after market close)
    9M-2025 results: 3 November 2025 (after market close)

    FINANCIAL INFORMATION
    This press release, as well as COFACE SA’s integral regulatory information, can be found on the Group’s website: http://www.coface.com/Investors

    For regulated information on Alternative Performance Measures (APM), please refer to our Interim Financial Report for H1-2024 and our 2024 Universal Registration Document (see part 3.7 “Key financial performance indicators”).

    Regulated documents posted by COFACE SA have been secured and authenticated with the blockchain technology by Wiztrust.
    You can check the authenticity on the website www.wiztrust.com.
     

    COFACE: FOR TRADE
    As a global leading player in trade credit risk management for more than 75 years, Coface helps companies grow and navigate in an uncertain and volatile environment.
    Whatever their size, location or sector, Coface provides 100,000 clients across some 200 markets with a full range of solutions: Trade Credit Insurance, Business Information, Debt Collection, Single Risk insurance, Surety Bonds, Factoring.
    Every day, Coface leverages its unique expertise and cutting-edge technology to make trade happen, in both domestic and export markets.
    In 2024, Coface employed ~5,236 people and registered a turnover of €1.84 billion.

    www.coface.com

    COFACE SA is quoted in Compartment A of Euronext Paris
    Code ISIN: FR0010667147 / Ticker: COFA

    DISCLAIMER – Certain declarations featured in this press release may contain forecasts that notably relate to future events, trends, projects or targets. By nature, these forecasts include identified or unidentified risks and uncertainties, and may be affected by many factors likely to give rise to a significant discrepancy between the real results and those stated in these declarations. Please refer to chapter 5 “Main risk factors and their management within the Group” of the Coface Group’s 2024 Universal Registration Document filed with AMF on 5 April 2024 under the number D.25-0227 in order to obtain a description of certain major factors, risks and uncertainties likely to influence the Coface Group’s businesses. The Coface Group disclaims any intention or obligation to publish an update of these forecasts, or provide new information on future events or any other circumstance.


    1 The Solvency II Directive (i) formalises and organises information requests, and (ii) clarifies the governance requirements and processes to be followed by insurers. In particular, the regulations provide for the establishment of two narrative reports: one for the Regulator (RSR) and one for the public (SFCR).
    2 Final calculation of the SCR coverage ratio using the partial group internal model. Non audited.
    3 Ex-dividend date is on 20 May 2025 and Payment date is on 22 May 2025. The proposed distribution of €1.40 per share is subject to approval of the Annual Shareholders’ Meeting that takes place on 14 May 2025.
    4 Final calculation of the SCR coverage ratio according to Coface’s interpretation of Solvency II standard formula. Non audited.

    Attachment

    The MIL Network

  • MIL-OSI: Flipido Trading Center Launches ‘Flipido Learn’ Platform to Empower Crypto Investors Through Education

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    Arvada, CO, May 07, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Flipido Trading Center has launched a dedicated educational platform, Flipido Learn, to help users better understand digital assets, trading strategies, and market dynamics. This new initiative reflects the company’s ongoing commitment to responsible trading and financial literacy in the fast-growing crypto sector.

    Flipido Learn offers a structured curriculum of multimedia resources, including video tutorials, interactive quizzes, market explainers, and live webinars hosted by industry experts. Topics range from blockchain fundamentals and asset security to advanced technical analysis and decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols.

    “Education is the cornerstone of a healthy trading environment,” said Valerie, Head of Community Engagement at Flipido Trading Center. “Flipido Learn is designed to give users the tools they need to make informed decisions and navigate crypto markets with confidence.”

    To meet the needs of a global user base, the platform is multilingual and segmented into beginner, intermediate, and advanced learning tracks. Users can progress at their own pace and earn digital certificates upon completion of each module.

    In addition to self-paced courses, Flipido Learn includes weekly live sessions with analysts, portfolio managers, and fintech researchers. These sessions offer real-time insights into market trends, regulatory developments, and emerging technologies shaping the crypto landscape.

    The launch of Flipido Learn complements the platform’s existing security and trading infrastructure, which includes an AI-powered risk control engine, institutional-grade custody, and millisecond-level order matching. By integrating education with technology, Flipido aims to bridge the knowledge gap and promote long-term user engagement.

    Flipido also plans to collaborate with universities, nonprofit organizations, and regional fintech associations to extend access to blockchain education in underserved communities. The company has announced an upcoming scholarship program for students pursuing careers in digital finance and data science.

    With scams and misinformation still prevalent in the crypto space, Flipido Learn provides a reliable and neutral knowledge base for both novice and experienced investors. As digital asset adoption expands, the initiative is expected to enhance user trust and market participation.

    Flipido Trading Center continues to position itself as more than just a trading platform—it is a gateway to the broader digital economy, built on transparency, innovation, and user empowerment.

    Disclaimer: The information provided in this press release is not a solicitation for investment, nor is it intended as investment advice, financial advice, or trading advice. It is strongly recommended you practice due diligence, including consultation with a professional financial advisor, before investing in or trading cryptocurrency and securities.

    The MIL Network

  • MIL-OSI USA: Supporting New York’s Public Workforce

    Source: US State of New York

    overnor Kathy Hochul today highlighted her administration’s commitment to supporting New York’s public workforce in honor of Public Service Recognition Week, a nationwide celebration of the contributions of public service employees at the local, state and federal levels. Since the launch, New York State has received 5,689 applications and hired 50 former federal workers into the state workforce as a result of Governor Hochul’s “You’re Hired” campaign — these public service employees will serve in positions all across the state’s public service sector. In addition, the Governor issued a proclamation declaring Public Service Recognition Week in New York from May 4-10, 2025, and announced that state landmarks would be lit blue in celebration, building on Governor Hochul’s continued support for public workers.

    “Public service employees are the backbone of our state — their dedication and commitment to providing New Yorkers with essential services every day does not go unnoticed,” Governor Hochul said. “New York State employees are essential to bolstering our state’s success, and I remain committed to expanding our hardworking public workforce through our ‘You’re Hired’ initiative. We know you’re essential and New York wants you in every part of the public service sector.”

    New York State Department of Civil Service Commissioner and Civil Service President Timothy R. Hogues said, “Under Governor Hochul’s leadership, we are building the ranks of New York’s public workforce to provide the best services to all New Yorkers. Our public employees work hard each and every day to serve their neighbors and make a difference in people’s lives. We are grateful for their dedication and commitment to making New York a great place to live.”

    New York State Department of Labor Commissioner Roberta Reardon said, “I am so grateful to the hundreds of thousands of employees who have dedicated their careers to public service, creating a safer and stronger New York State. Even in the face of changing times, the commitment and perseverance of our public workforce has not wavered. With competitive pay and robust benefits, I encourage others to answer the call to state service and build a better New York.”

    Since taking office, Governor Hochul has implemented several initiatives to strengthen New York’s public workforce. In February 2025, Governor Hochul launched the “You’re Hired” initiative to recruit talented displaced federal public sector workers into State service. In 2024, the state launched the NY HELPS program, temporarily waiving civil service exam requirements for many job vacancies, resulting in more than 25,000 appointments in state government, on top of 6,000 appointments in local governments. In 2023, Governor Hochul extended 12 weeks of fully paid parental leave to the entire state workforce for the first time in state history.

    Additionally, the state created 10 Centers for Careers in Government, offering job seekers guidance on civil service systems and career opportunities. The Governor has also lifted the state employment hiring freeze, expanded opportunities for individuals and veterans with disabilities, and funded new testing centers to further support the public workforce.

    The landmarks to be lit in honor of Public Service Recognition Week include:

    • One World Trade Center
    • Governor Mario M. Cuomo Bridge
    • Kosciuszko Bridge
    • The H. Carl McCall SUNY Building
    • State Education Building
    • Alfred E. Smith State Office Building
    • Empire State Plaza
    • State Fairgrounds – Main Gate & Expo Center
    • Niagara Falls
    • The “Franklin D. Roosevelt” Mid-Hudson Bridge
    • Grand Central Terminal – Pershing Square Viaduct
    • Albany International Airport Gateway
    • MTA LIRR – East End Gateway at Penn Station
    • Fairport Lift Bridge over the Erie Canal
    • Moynihan Train Hall

    MIL OSI USA News

  • MIL-OSI USA: On Mother’s Day, Congresswoman Torres Reintroduces Pink Tax Repeal Act to End Unfair Price Hikes on Women

    Source: United States House of Representatives – Congresswoman Norma Torres (35th District of California)

    May 11, 2025

    Bill would protect women from paying more than men for the same products and services

    Washington, D.C. –  On Mother’s Day, Congresswoman Norma J. Torres reintroduced the Pink Tax Repeal Act, legislation that would prohibit gender-based price discrimination on consumer goods and services that are substantially similar. The legislation targets unjust pricing practices that disproportionately impact mothers and women.

    “It’s outrageous that in 2025, women, especially mothers, are still paying more than men for everyday items like razors, shampoo, and dry cleaning — simply because they’re marketed to women. This Mother’s Day, we need to acknowledge that the Pink Tax isn’t just about price tags — it’s a matter of respect, equality, and economic justice. No woman, mother, or family should be forced to pay more for the same products and services just because they are a woman.”

    “With this bill, we are sending a strong message: pricing that discriminates against women is unfair, and we will no longer stand by while companies exploit their gender for profit. Women are already suffering under Trump’s economy — facing wage gaps, rising costs, and financial insecurity. We shouldn’t be adding insult to injury by making them pay more simply because they are women.”

    “The attacks on women, mothers, and families are real, and they need to end. This bill is about holding companies accountable and ensuring that all consumers, regardless of gender, are treated fairly. It’s time to end the Pink Tax, once and for all.”

    The Pink Tax Repeal Act would:

    • Prohibit manufacturers and service providers from charging different prices for substantially similar products or services based on gender.
    • Direct the Federal Trade Commission to enforce the legislation as an unfair or deceptive act or practice.
    • Empower state attorneys general to take civil action against violators on behalf of consumers.

    Studies have shown the existence of gender-based pricing disparities, costing women and girls hundreds of thousandsmore over their lifetimes compared to their male counterparts. Women make up as much as 85 percent of consumer purchases in the United States, but pay more for products marketed to women and girls 42 percent of the time. From toys to toiletries, the price differences are often hidden in plain sight and result in economic burden for women.

    Full bill text

    ###

    MIL OSI USA News

  • MIL-OSI: EMGS: Result of Written Resolution of Bondholders

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    Reference is made to the stock exchange notification published by Electromagnetic Geoservices ASA (“EMGS” or the “Company”) on 6 May 2025 pertaining to EMGS’ proposal to extend the maturity date for, and amend certain terms of, the Company’s outstanding bond issue Elec ASA 18/25 FRN USD FLOOR STEP C CONV (“EMGS03”).

    EMGS has today been notified by Nordic Trustee AS, as trustee for EMGS03, that the proposed resolution has been resolved and adopted.

    The notice from the written bondholders’ resolution is attached to this release.

    Contact
    Anders Eimstad, CFO, +47 948 25 836

    This information is published in accordance with the Norwegian Securities Trading Act § 5-12.

    About EMGS
    EMGS, the marine EM market leader, uses its proprietary electromagnetic (EM) technology to support oil and gas companies in their search for offshore hydrocarbons. EMGS supports each stage in the workflow, from survey design and data acquisition to processing and interpretation. The Company’s services enable the integration of EM data with seismic and other geophysical and geological information to give explorationists a clearer and more complete understanding of the subsurface. This improves exploration efficiency and reduces risks and the finding costs per barrel. CSEM technology can also be used to detect the presence of marine mineral deposits (primarily Seabed Massive Sulphides) and in other offshore construction and exploration activity.

    Attachment

    The MIL Network

  • MIL-OSI Africa: Does free schooling give girls a better chance in life? Burundi study shows the poorest benefited most

    Source: The Conversation – Africa – By Frederik Wild, Postdoctoral Researcher, University of Heidelberg

    Teenage pregnancy rates remain high across many parts of the developing world: In Africa, on average, about one in ten girls between the ages of 15 and 19 has already given birth. These early pregnancies often come with serious consequences for young mothers and their children. They are linked to lower education levels, poorer health outcomes, and reduced economic opportunities.

    Scientists, development agencies and NGOs have long heralded education as a powerful tool to reduce early childbearing. Education may directly influence women’s reproductive behaviour, but it can also improve their employment and income-generating opportunities, leading them to postpone pregnancy.

    But does access to basic education for young girls result in such successes uniformly across population groups?


    Read more: Ghana’s free high school policy is getting more girls to complete secondary education – study


    We are economists who conducted a study to explore the effect of primary school education on fertility and its related outcomes in Burundi. A bold education reform took place in that country in 2005: the government abolished formal school fees for primary education. As a result, many children who had been excluded from school by cost were able to get a basic education.

    The free primary education policy displays a natural experiment for researchers interested in the effects of education. Because the reform applied only to children young enough to be in school, we could compare girls who were eligible for free schooling with those who were just too old to be eligible (but similar in other ways). This allowed us to track the policy’s direct and causal effects.

    Indeed, we see that Burundi’s free primary education policy increased educational attainment of women by 1.22 years on average. Our findings also provide new, robust evidence that education can reduce downstream effects, as we see teenage childbearing reducing by as much as 6.9 percentage points. In other words, while about 37% of teenage women who did not benefit from free primary education had given birth before the age of 20, only 30% of those eligible for free primary education had done so.

    Importantly, and new in our findings, education conferred the greatest benefit to girls from the poorest segment of society. Our study thereby underscores an important lesson for policymakers: education policies can be highly effective, but not necessarily for everyone in the same way.

    A natural experiment in Burundi

    We used nationally representative data from Burundi’s Demographic and Health Surveys to establish the effects of education. We compared women born between 1987 and 1991 to those born between 1992 and 1996 – aged 14-18 and 9-13 respectively when the free school policy took effect. We applied modern econometric techniques to identify the increase in years of schooling induced by the policy. We then examined the effect of this increase in schooling on girls’ outcomes, including teenage pregnancy, literacy, and the likelihood of working for cash income, among other outcomes.

    The results were striking. Girls who had been young enough to benefit from free schooling gained, on average, 1.22 more years of education thanks to the programme. That corresponds to a 34% increase in the years of education compared to similar women who missed out on the policy. Crucially, this increase occurred across the board – both poor and wealthier women gained more education.

    But there was a twist: only young women from poor backgrounds seemed to reap broader benefits from that extra schooling.


    Read more: Burundi at 60 is the poorest country on the planet: a look at what went wrong


    For girls from very low-income households, one additional year of schooling reduced the likelihood of becoming a teenage mother by nearly 7 percentage points.

    It also decreased their desired number of children and boosted their literacy and chances of working for a cash income outside their own home. These are all powerful indicators of women gaining autonomy and making more informed reproductive choices.

    While girls from wealthier households experienced an increase in education too, this additional schooling showed no measurable effect on fertility, literacy, or employment outcomes for them. Thus, we did not find any statistically significant impact of increased schooling for these girls.

    In other words, the free primary education programme in Burundi increased the number of years of education for girls in general but the downstream effects of that education appear to have materialised only for the very poor.

    Why does household wealth matter?

    Why would women from the relatively wealthier families not benefit equally from more education?

    One reason could be that somewhat wealthier households had already ensured higher levels of education for their daughters, even before school fees were abolished in Burundi. The education reform thus made less of a difference in their lives. Very poor families, on the other hand, were far more likely to be constrained by the costs of primary education. When that barrier was removed, their daughters could finally access schooling, and this had transformative effects also for sexual and reproductive health.


    Read more: Girls thrive with women teachers: a study in Francophone Africa


    For the most disadvantaged, education is more likely to open up new economic opportunities. We found that policy-induced education increased their likelihood of working outside of their own household for a cash income, which raises the opportunity cost of early childbearing. The classic economic theory by Nobel prize laureate Gary Becker and Jacob Mincer suggests that when women have better employment prospects, they are more likely to postpone childbirth. And they invest more in their children but tend to have fewer of them. This is precisely what we observed in our data.

    Education also seems to empower women by increasing their knowledge and capacity to access information. We found that literacy rates among poor women rose significantly with each added year of schooling. Another prominent theory in the literature on education is that educated women are more likely to understand and use contraception, make informed reproductive decisions, and challenge traditional gender norms.

    Rethinking one-size-fits-all policies

    Our study underscores an important lesson for policymakers: education policies can be highly effective, but not necessarily for everyone in the same way.

    When evaluating the success of reforms like free primary education, we must go beyond average effects. Aggregated data can mask substantial differences between population groups. If we had only looked at average outcomes, we might have concluded that free schooling had little effect on teenage childbearing. But by disaggregating our data by household wealth, we see a different and far more hopeful picture. Free schooling has powerful effects – if we know where to look.

    – Does free schooling give girls a better chance in life? Burundi study shows the poorest benefited most
    – https://theconversation.com/does-free-schooling-give-girls-a-better-chance-in-life-burundi-study-shows-the-poorest-benefited-most-253634

    MIL OSI Africa

  • MIL-OSI Global: Does free schooling give girls a better chance in life? Burundi study shows the poorest benefited most

    Source: The Conversation – Africa – By Frederik Wild, Postdoctoral Researcher, University of Heidelberg

    Teenage pregnancy rates remain high across many parts of the developing world: In Africa, on average, about one in ten girls between the ages of 15 and 19 has already given birth. These early pregnancies often come with serious consequences for young mothers and their children. They are linked to lower education levels, poorer health outcomes, and reduced economic opportunities.

    Scientists, development agencies and NGOs have long heralded education as a powerful tool to reduce early childbearing. Education may directly influence women’s reproductive behaviour, but it can also improve their employment and income-generating opportunities, leading them to postpone pregnancy.

    But does access to basic education for young girls result in such successes uniformly across population groups?




    Read more:
    Ghana’s free high school policy is getting more girls to complete secondary education – study


    We are economists who conducted a study to explore the effect of primary school education on fertility and its related outcomes in Burundi. A bold education reform took place in that country in 2005: the government abolished formal school fees for primary education. As a result, many children who had been excluded from school by cost were able to get a basic education.

    The free primary education policy displays a natural experiment for researchers interested in the effects of education. Because the reform applied only to children young enough to be in school, we could compare girls who were eligible for free schooling with those who were just too old to be eligible (but similar in other ways). This allowed us to track the policy’s direct and causal effects.

    Indeed, we see that Burundi’s free primary education policy increased educational attainment of women by 1.22 years on average. Our findings also provide new, robust evidence that education can reduce downstream effects, as we see teenage childbearing reducing by as much as 6.9 percentage points. In other words, while about 37% of teenage women who did not benefit from free primary education had given birth before the age of 20, only 30% of those eligible for free primary education had done so.

    Importantly, and new in our findings, education conferred the greatest benefit to girls from the poorest segment of society. Our study thereby underscores an important lesson for policymakers: education policies can be highly effective, but not necessarily for everyone in the same way.

    A natural experiment in Burundi

    We used nationally representative data from Burundi’s Demographic and Health Surveys to establish the effects of education. We compared women born between 1987 and 1991 to those born between 1992 and 1996 – aged 14-18 and 9-13 respectively when the free school policy took effect. We applied modern econometric techniques to identify the increase in years of schooling induced by the policy. We then examined the effect of this increase in schooling on girls’ outcomes, including teenage pregnancy, literacy, and the likelihood of working for cash income, among other outcomes.

    The results were striking. Girls who had been young enough to benefit from free schooling gained, on average, 1.22 more years of education thanks to the programme. That corresponds to a 34% increase in the years of education compared to similar women who missed out on the policy. Crucially, this increase occurred across the board – both poor and wealthier women gained more education.

    But there was a twist: only young women from poor backgrounds seemed to reap broader benefits from that extra schooling.




    Read more:
    Burundi at 60 is the poorest country on the planet: a look at what went wrong


    For girls from very low-income households, one additional year of schooling reduced the likelihood of becoming a teenage mother by nearly 7 percentage points.

    It also decreased their desired number of children and boosted their literacy and chances of working for a cash income outside their own home. These are all powerful indicators of women gaining autonomy and making more informed reproductive choices.

    While girls from wealthier households experienced an increase in education too, this additional schooling showed no measurable effect on fertility, literacy, or employment outcomes for them. Thus, we did not find any statistically significant impact of increased schooling for these girls.

    In other words, the free primary education programme in Burundi increased the number of years of education for girls in general but the downstream effects of that education appear to have materialised only for the very poor.

    Why does household wealth matter?

    Why would women from the relatively wealthier families not benefit equally from more education?

    One reason could be that somewhat wealthier households had already ensured higher levels of education for their daughters, even before school fees were abolished in Burundi. The education reform thus made less of a difference in their lives. Very poor families, on the other hand, were far more likely to be constrained by the costs of primary education. When that barrier was removed, their daughters could finally access schooling, and this had transformative effects also for sexual and reproductive health.




    Read more:
    Girls thrive with women teachers: a study in Francophone Africa


    For the most disadvantaged, education is more likely to open up new economic opportunities. We found that policy-induced education increased their likelihood of working outside of their own household for a cash income, which raises the opportunity cost of early childbearing. The classic economic theory by Nobel prize laureate Gary Becker and Jacob Mincer suggests that when women have better employment prospects, they are more likely to postpone childbirth. And they invest more in their children but tend to have fewer of them. This is precisely what we observed in our data.

    Education also seems to empower women by increasing their knowledge and capacity to access information. We found that literacy rates among poor women rose significantly with each added year of schooling. Another prominent theory in the literature on education is that educated women are more likely to understand and use contraception, make informed reproductive decisions, and challenge traditional gender norms.

    Rethinking one-size-fits-all policies

    Our study underscores an important lesson for policymakers: education policies can be highly effective, but not necessarily for everyone in the same way.

    When evaluating the success of reforms like free primary education, we must go beyond average effects. Aggregated data can mask substantial differences between population groups. If we had only looked at average outcomes, we might have concluded that free schooling had little effect on teenage childbearing. But by disaggregating our data by household wealth, we see a different and far more hopeful picture. Free schooling has powerful effects – if we know where to look.

    Frederik Wild received funding from the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, German Research Foundation), EXC 2052/1 – 390713894 for the research paper referenced in the article. The views expressed in this article are solely my own and do not represent those of my employer or affiliated organizations.

    David Stadelmann received funding from Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, German Research Foundation), EXC 2052/1 – 390713894.

    ref. Does free schooling give girls a better chance in life? Burundi study shows the poorest benefited most – https://theconversation.com/does-free-schooling-give-girls-a-better-chance-in-life-burundi-study-shows-the-poorest-benefited-most-253634

    MIL OSI – Global Reports

  • MIL-OSI Africa: Zimbabwe’s Minister of Energy, Power to Deliver Keynote at Invest in African Energy (IAE) 2025

    Source: Africa Press Organisation – English (2) – Report:

    PARIS, France, May 7, 2025/APO Group/ —

    The Invest in African Energy (IAE) 2025 Forum is pleased to announce that Zimbabwe’s Minister of Energy and Power Development, July Moyo, will deliver a keynote address at the event in Paris next month, highlighting national energy priorities and emerging investment opportunities. His participation marks a strategic moment for Zimbabwe as the country positions its energy sector for a new wave of private sector-led growth.

    Minister Moyo’s participation follows Zimbabwe’s recent international efforts to attract investment into its energy sector, including high-level engagements aimed at outlining a clear roadmap for modernization and highlighting the essential role of private capital in addressing infrastructure deficits. With a large portion of the population still lacking access to electricity and power demand continuing to outpace supply, Zimbabwe is actively seeking strategic partnerships to deliver more reliable, sustainable and diversified energy solutions.

    IAE 2025 (https://apo-opa.co/4d2nKO6is an exclusive forum designed to facilitate investment between African energy markets and global investors. Taking place May 13-14, 2025 in Paris, the event offers delegates two days of intensive engagement with industry experts, project developers, investors and policymakers. For more information, please visit www.Invest-Africa-Energy.com. To sponsor or participate as a delegate, please contact sales@energycapitalpower.com.

    To meet both near-term and long-term goals, the government is pursuing a dual-track approach: restarting coal-fired power plants to stabilize domestic supply in the short term, while simultaneously accelerating investment in renewable energy. Solar and wind projects are at the forefront of Zimbabwe’s energy strategy, with plans to develop large-scale solar farms and export power to neighboring countries. In partnership with Zambia, Zimbabwe is exploring floating solar developments on Lake Kariba – backed by a recent $250 million facility from the African Export-Import Bank to develop a 250 MW project by mid-2026 – signaling a shift toward innovative, climate-resilient infrastructure.

    Minister Moyo’s keynote will outline current investment-ready opportunities in power generation, transmission and off-grid electrification, as well as the regulatory and policy reforms designed to attract independent power producers and foreign capital. His presence reinforces Zimbabwe’s commitment to working with global stakeholders to transform its energy landscape and foster long-term energy security. Moreover, Zimbabwe’s participation at IAE 2025 reflects the forum’s broader mission of connecting African energy markets with international financiers, developers and strategic partners.

    MIL OSI Africa

  • MIL-OSI: Nutanix and Pure Storage Partner to Deliver Greater Customer Choice with New Integrated Solution for Mission-Critical Workloads

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    WASHINGTON and SANTA CLARA, Calif., May 07, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Nutanix (NASDAQ: NTNX), a leader in hybrid multicloud computing, and Pure Storage® (NYSE: PSTG), the IT pioneer that delivers the world’s most advanced data storage platform and services, today announced a partnership aimed at providing a deeply integrated solution that will allow customers to seamlessly deploy and manage virtual workloads on a scalable modern infrastructure.

    This integrated solution comes at a pivotal time for customers as the virtualization market evolution is top of mind. IT leaders are focused on helping their organizations maintain pace with the rapidly changing technology landscape while simultaneously implementing greater operational effectiveness. Gartner predicts that “by 2028, cost concerns will drive 70% of enterprise-scale VMware customers to migrate 50% of their virtual workloads1.”

    With this collaboration, the Nutanix Cloud Infrastructure solution, powered by the Nutanix AHV hypervisor along with Nutanix Flow virtual networking and security, will integrate with Pure Storage FlashArray over NVMe/TCP to deliver a customer experience uniquely designed for high-demand data workloads, including AI.

    Key Benefits:

    •     Scalable, Modern Infrastructure – This partnership will provide customers with access to high-performance, flexible, and efficient full-stack infrastructure to power their most business-critical workloads through the simplicity and agility of Nutanix Cloud Infrastructure for virtual compute, and the consistency, scalability, and performance density of Pure Storage all-flash systems.
    •     Built-in Cyber Resilience – Customers will be able to strengthen their end-to-end cyber-resilience posture by leveraging native Nutanix capabilities, such as Flow micro-segmentation and disaster recovery orchestration, alongside Pure Storage FlashArray capabilities, such as data-at-rest encryption and SafeMode.
    •     Freedom of Choice – Customers want agility and control of their mission-critical environments. The combination of Nutanix and Pure Storage will offer a resilient and easy-to-use alternative to existing market options.

    “We’re thrilled to see Nutanix and Pure Storage joining forces. Their collective expertise, innovative technologies, and shared commitment to reliability and performance will deliver a compelling solution that directly addresses critical needs in the market,” said Anthony Jackman, Chief Innovation Officer at Expedient. “Expedient is proud to be an early design partner, collaborating closely with both companies to ensure this solution elevates the quality of service we deliver, ultimately enhancing the value and experience for our clients nationwide.”

    “This new solution will help Nutanix and Pure Storage reach more customers together and help them better manage and modernize their mission-critical applications,” said Tarkan Maner, Chief Commercial Officer at Nutanix. “Our integrated solution will be ideally suited for companies with storage-rich environments looking for choices in modernization.”

    “With more than 13,500 global customers, I’m hearing more than ever that organizations of all shapes and sizes have a growing need for efficient, flexible, and high-performance solutions that can also scale to support their most critical, data-intensive applications,” said Maciej Kranz, General Manager, Enterprise at Pure Storage. “Nutanix and Pure Storage are both known for pushing the boundaries of traditional infrastructure, driving innovation, and enabling unmatched agility. With this easy-to-manage solution, our joint customers will have the power of a virtual infrastructure that’s truly built for change.”

    This solution will be supported on major server hardware partners that currently support Pure Storage FlashArray, including Cisco, Dell, HPE, Lenovo and Supermicro, for both existing and new deployments.

    Additionally, Cisco and Pure Storage are expanding their partnership of more than 60 FlashStack validated designs to include Nutanix in the portfolio – further simplifying full-stack delivery.

    “The future of infrastructure is defined by flexibility,” said Jeremy Foster, SVP and General Manager, Cisco Compute. “That’s exactly what this next evolution of FlashStack delivers. With nearly a decade of joint innovation with Pure Storage, and an expanded partnership and co-development roadmap with Nutanix, we’re offering a proven platform backed by Cisco validated designs, a world-class joint support model, and deep integration with Cisco Intersight – providing unified visibility across both Pure Storage and Nutanix clusters for a more complete view of the operating environment. This level of integration, insight, and support is what will set FlashStack with Nutanix apart in the market.”

    The solution is currently under development and is expected to be in early access by the summer of 2025 and generally available at the end of this calendar year through both Nutanix and Pure Storage channel partners.

    For more information and to sign up for early access visit Nutanix and Pure Storage.

    About Nutanix

    Nutanix is a global leader in cloud software, offering organizations a single platform for running applications and managing data, anywhere. With Nutanix, companies can reduce complexity and simplify operations, freeing them to focus on their business outcomes. Building on its legacy as the pioneer of hyperconverged infrastructure, Nutanix is trusted by companies worldwide to power hybrid multicloud environments consistently, simply, and cost-effectively. Learn more at www.nutanix.com or follow us on social media @nutanix.

    © 2025 Nutanix, Inc. All rights reserved. Nutanix, the Nutanix logo, and all Nutanix product and service names mentioned herein are registered trademarks or unregistered trademarks of Nutanix, Inc. (“Nutanix”) in the United States and other countries. All other brand names or marks mentioned herein are for identification purposes only and may be the trademarks of their respective holder(s). This press release is for informational purposes only and nothing herein constitutes a warranty or other binding commitment by Nutanix. This release contains express and implied forward-looking statements, including but not limited to statements regarding our plans and expectations about the partnership and its expected benefits, the new integrated solution and its expected benefits, capabilities, features and technology, and the timing of the availability of the new integrated solution. Such statements are not historical facts and are instead based on Nutanix’s current expectations, estimates and beliefs. The accuracy of such statements involves risks and uncertainties and depends upon future events, including those that may be beyond Nutanix’s control, and actual results may differ materially and adversely from those anticipated or implied by such statements. These risks and uncertainties include but are not limited to any inability to develop, or any unexpected difficulties, delays or disruptions in developing, releasing or distributing, the new integrated solution in a timely or cost-effective basis. Any forward-looking statements included herein speak only as of the date hereof and, except as required by law, Nutanix assumes no obligation to update or otherwise revise any of such forward-looking statements to reflect subsequent events or circumstances. Certain products and features or functionalities described herein, including the new integrated solution and its features and functionalities, remain in varying stages of development and will be offered on a when-and-if-available basis. The development, release, and timing of any such products, features or functionalities are subject to change. Nutanix will not have any liability for any failure to deliver or delay in the delivery of any such products, features or functionalities. Any future product or product feature information is intended to outline general product directions, and is not a commitment, promise or legal obligation for Nutanix to deliver any functionality. This information should not be used when making a purchasing decision.

    About Pure Storage

    Pure Storage (NYSE: PSTG) delivers the industry’s most advanced data storage platform to store, manage, and protect the world’s data at any scale. With Pure Storage, organizations have ultimate simplicity and flexibility, saving time, money, and energy. From AI to archive, Pure Storage delivers a cloud experience with one unified Storage as-a-Service platform across on-premises, cloud, and hosted environments. Our platform is built on our Evergreen architecture that evolves with your business — always getting newer and better with zero planned downtime, guaranteed. Our customers are actively increasing their capacity and processing power while significantly reducing their carbon and energy footprint. It’s easy to fall in love with Pure Storage, as evidenced by the highest Net Promoter Score in the industry. For more information, visit www.purestorage.com.

    Pure Storage, the Pure Storage P Logo, and the marks in the Pure Storage Trademark List are trademarks or registered trademarks of Pure Storage, Inc., in the U.S. and/or other countries. The Trademark List can be found at purestorage.com/trademarks. Other names may be trademarks of their respective owners.


    1Gartner, Market Guide for Server Virtualization, Michael Warrilow, Philip Dawson, Tony Harvey, Elaine Zhang, 28 August, 2024. GARTNER is a registered trademark and service mark of Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates in the U.S. and internationally and is used herein with permission. All rights reserved.

    The MIL Network

  • MIL-OSI: Westland Benefits acquires Alberta-based Sagium Health Strategies Inc.

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    Surrey, BC/Territories of the Coast Salish (Kwantlen, Katzie, Semiahmoo, Tsawwassen First Nations), May 07, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Westland Insurance today announced that its newly launched benefits brand, Westland Benefits, has acquired Sagium Health Strategies Inc. (Sagium Health) effective May 1. This strategic acquisition expands Westland Benefits’ position in the benefits and health insurance sector and grows its presence in Alberta. 

    Sagium Health, located in Calgary, specializes in providing employee benefits and private healthcare solutions tailored to the needs of individuals and small to mid-sized companies. The firm is known for bridging unique individual and employer needs through its bespoke health programs and comprehensive group benefits offerings. 

    “We’re very excited to welcome Sagium Health to the Westland Benefits team,” says Matt Mann, President of Westland Benefits. “The acquisition of Sagium Health is a pivotal step in our commitment to delivering exceptional benefits solutions to our clients. By integrating Sagium’s expertise and innovative offerings, we’re poised to enhance our service delivery and expand our reach in the Alberta market.” 

    Greg Guderyan, President & CEO of Sagium Health, added, “Joining forces with Westland Benefits allows us to leverage their extensive resources and network, enabling us to provide even more comprehensive solutions. We look forward to this new chapter and the opportunities it brings for our team and our clients.” 

    Westland continues to invest in and grow its business in Canada, both organically and through strategic acquisitions. 

    -30- 

    About Westland Benefits 

    Westland Benefits is the dedicated employee benefits division of Westland Insurance Group, one of Canada’s largest and fastest growing insurance brokerages. Combining the personalized service of a boutique advisory firm with the reach and resources of a national broker, Westland Benefits delivers tailored, people-first solutions that support employee well-being and business performance. With deep expertise and a high-touch approach, Westland Benefits helps organizations navigate the evolving benefits landscape with confidence. As part of the Westland family, Westland Benefits is committed to empowering Canadian businesses through trusted advice and innovative benefits strategies. For more information, please visit our website. 

    About Westland Insurance Group   

    Westland Insurance Group is one of the largest and fastest growing insurance brokers in Canada. Trading over $4 billion of premium, Westland continues to expand coast to coast. Westland’s brokers provide expertise and advisory-based services across commercial, personal, employee benefits, farm, and specialty insurance segments. The company’s mission is to protect individuals, businesses, and communities across Canada with trusted advice and tailored insurance solutions. As a Canadian-based company, Westland is proud to support local communities, Canadian jobs, and a strong economy. For more information, please visit westlandinsurance.ca.   

    The MIL Network

  • MIL-OSI: MadCap Software Debuts MadCap Flare Online, the Next-Generation Documentation Platform for the AI-Driven Future of Content

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    Denver, CO, May 07, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — MadCap Software, Inc., the leader in multi-channel content authoring, management and publishing, backed by global investment firm Battery Ventures, today introduced MadCap Flare Online—the industry’s only documentation platform combining full desktop authoring with real-time cloud collaboration and artificial intelligence (AI) powered content generation and optimization. As a result, documentation teams no longer need to choose between cloud flexibility and authoring power. With MadCap Flare Online, they get everything needed to write, manage and publish state-of-the-art, AI-enhanced content anywhere.

    Now available, MadCap Flare Online combines the power of MadCap Flare with MadCap Central and access to advanced AI assistance. MadCap Flare is the industry’s leading desktop authoring software for technical communications professionals—trusted by thousands of organizations worldwide to produce single-source content for multiple channels, including modern documentation websites, online Help, print brochures, knowledge bases, support sites, training and development resources, and compliance reporting, among others. MadCap Central is the widely adopted, cloud-based content management platform that complements MadCap Flare by delivering robust functionality for publishing, project management, collaboration, translation, hosting, analytics, and AI-powered assistance.

    MadCap Flare Online is the next-generation documentation platform that is built on and replaces MadCap Central. Key new capabilities include:

    • Concurrent authoring with near-desktop-level functionality to enable collaboration while meeting most modern technical communications and documentation demands.
    • A MadCap Flare desktop install with seamless Flare Online integration, providing both the flexibility to work offline and features for advanced, specialized use cases.
    • Access to advanced AI functionality via MadCap Syndicate, including AI tool integration, semantic search, and retrieval augmented generation (RAG) chatbot support.

    “For years, enterprise documentation teams have had to choose between the collaboration and flexibility of cloud platforms and the robust advanced technical authoring features provided by desktop software. With MadCap Flare Online, there’s no longer a need to compromise,” said Anthony Olivier, MadCap Software founder and CEO. “By bringing the best of MadCap Flare and Central into a unified, next-generation documentation platform, Flare Online simplifies content development and delivery from start to finish without sacrificing control, scalability or structure. It’s flexible enough for technical authors, structured enough for enterprise teams, and smart enough for the AI-driven future of content.”

    Collaborative, Cloud-Based Authoring
    MadCap Flare Online makes it easier than ever for team members to collaborate. It allows authors and subject matter experts (SMEs) to create and edit content concurrently, leveraging the best-in-class technical authoring capabilities of MadCap Flare in the cloud. Meanwhile, a new intuitive interface designed for all skill levels makes it easy for anyone in the organization to create, contribute and review content.

    Using MadCap Flare Online, enterprises can maximize content reuse, streamline the creation of technical documentation, and enable single-source multi-channel publishing. The platform promotes modular writing for consistent, scalable documentation via robust topic-based authoring and snippet management, and it provides customizable project templates to help teams get started quickly. MadCap Flare Online also maintains full support for Flare desktop projects—including conditional text, variables, and tables of contents (TOCs)—so existing MadCap Flare projects can be pushed to the cloud and edited with full fidelity. 

    Additionally, MadCap Flare Online automatically includes a desktop installation of Flare with the online version. This unique hybrid model of online and desktop authoring gives teams the flexibility to work online or offline—no Internet connection required for continued productivity. The MadCap Flare desktop version also handles complex, advanced authoring tasks not supported by cloud authoring tools. These include importing and leveraging existing content from across the organization, such as Microsoft Word, Excel, etc.; building events and batch targets; integrating documentation with continuous integration/continuous delivery (CI/CD) workflows; and extending functionality via advanced scripting and plugin support.

    “Flare Online makes it easy for authors and SMEs to collaborate in real time, through the web on any device,” said Scott DeLoach, ClickStart founder. “Whether you’re conducting technical reviews or need to make a quick update, Flare Online is fast, efficient, and built for today’s content management workflows.”

    Comprehensive Content Management and Publishing
    The comprehensive, cloud-based MadCap Flare Online documentation platform complements Flare authoring features with robust functionality for publishing, project management, collaboration, translation management, AI-assisted authoring, hosting and analytics. The result is an all-in-one solution that enables teams to author, manage and publish content directly from their browsers—no downloads or installations required.

    • One-click, multichannel publishing provides the power to instantly push updates live to desired channels, such as HTML5 and other responsive outputs, PDF, ePub, Microsoft Word, and Microsoft PowerPoint, among others.
    • Role-based permissions enable organizations to maintain control with user roles and collaborative workflows.
    • Version control and review empower teams to track changes and maintain governance throughout the content lifecycle.
    • Content usage analytics provide insights on how to improve content quality and users’ experiences.
    • Advanced translation management reduces the cost and complexity of localizing content.

    MadCap Flare Online also gives enterprises a future-proof approach for creating, delivering and managing content.

    • Built for scale: MadCap Flare Online provides the ability to adapt to teams as they evolve, from a solo writer to a global documentation department.
    • Freedom from lock-in: Both MadCap Flare Online and MadCap Flare are based on open industry standards, so unlike proprietary products, there is no vendor lock-in.

    AI-Driven Assistance and Insights
    MadCap Flare Online also features AI Assist, which allows customers to leverage ChatGPT from within the Flare Online interface. For example, using AI Assist, authorized users can train ChatGPT on their existing content to receive responses in the company’s voice; edit and format the ChatGPT responses in the AI Assist interface; click to insert the text directly into a document in Flare Online; view the difference between original content and text edited by ChatGPT; and translate content directly in the Content Editor. Importantly, MadCap Flare Online allows administrators to control how much or whether to use AI Assist at all, depending on their corporate policies.

    In addition to AI Assist, MadCap Flare Online provides access to the advanced AI features provided by MadCap Syndicate, an enterprise-scale, cloud-based content delivery and aggregation platform. Using the Publish to Syndicate feature, teams can publish content directly from Flare Online to Syndicate. Once the content is stored in MadCap Syndicate:

    • AI tool integration is supported through the ability to feed Flare content into large language models (LLMs).
    • AI-powered semantic search lets teams use natural language to find the content most relevant to their needs across all their organization’s content, even if there are no exact text matches.
    • RAG chatbot support allows RAG chatbots to leverage Flare content in a secure, access-controlled way without exposing it to external AI services, such as ChatGPT.

    Beyond the AI capabilities, MadCap Flare Online customers with Publish to Syndicate can also take advantage of Syndicate for advanced search and content filtering, seamless integration with other systems and applications, role-based permissions and content governance, enhanced analytics, and robust compliance support.

    Availability and Pricing
    MadCap Flare Online is available today. Product pricing is based on team size and implementation. Visit MadCap Software at https://www.madcapsoftware.com, or contact MadCap Software at sales@madcapsoftware.com or +1 (858) 320-0387 to learn more.

    About MadCap Software        
    MadCap Software powers the world’s leading companies with state-of-the-art content creation and AI-readiness knowledge management solutions. Our products and services streamline content creation, management, delivery, translation, and syndication for both technical documentation and learning assets—ensuring mission-critical knowledge is always accurate and up to date. By optimizing content for AI and maximizing reuse across the enterprise, we help organizations reduce costs, improve efficiency, and accelerate productivity. Explore how MadCap Software helps enterprises harness AI, streamline content operations, and transform their content strategies at www.madcapsoftware.com. Connect with us on LinkedIn, X and Facebook.

    MadCap Software, the MadCap Software logo, MadCap Central, MadCap Flare, MadCap Syndicate, and Publish to Syndicate are trademarks or registered trademarks of MadCap Software, Inc. in the United States and/or other countries. Other marks are the properties of their respective owners.

    The MIL Network

  • MIL-OSI: BexBack Revolutionizes Crypto Futures Trading with 100x Leverage, No KYC, and Over 50 Tradable Assets

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    SINGAPORE, May 07, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — In response to growing global demand for high-performance, user-centric trading platforms, BexBack, a fast-growing cryptocurrency derivatives exchange, is transforming how traders approach the crypto market. Offering up to 100x leverage, support for 50+ major cryptocurrencies, and a no-KYC policy, BexBack delivers unmatched accessibility and trading freedom to users worldwide.

    Backed by industry-grade security and regulatory compliance, BexBack enables traders to access high-leverage futures contracts with ease, regardless of location or experience level. New users are welcomed with a 100% deposit bonus and a $100 Trading bonus, both designed to reduce entry barriers and enhance capital efficiency.

    “BexBack was created with a simple goal: to empower traders everywhere with unrestricted access to leveraged crypto markets,” said Amanda, Business Manager at BexBack. “We’ve eliminated complex verification steps, added generous bonus incentives, and built a platform that’s fast, secure, and globally inclusive.”

    Key Features of BexBack

    • 100x Leverage on 50+ Crypto Contracts
      Trade perpetual futures on top assets like BTC, ETH, XRP, ADA, SOL, and more with up to 100x leverage.
    • No KYC Required
      Register and start trading instantly with just an email address — no personal ID or verification needed.
    • 100% Deposit Bonus
      Users can double their initial deposit by applying for the deposit bonus. While not withdrawable, the bonus can be used as margin to increase trading flexibility and reduce liquidation risk.
    • $100 Trading Bonus
      Traders who deposit at least 0.01 BTC or 1000 USDT and complete their first trade can claim an additional $50 in bonus funds.
    • Zero Spread Execution
      Execute trades without slippage or price spread, ensuring maximum transparency and fairness.
    • Risk-Free Demo Account
      Practice strategies with 10 BTC or 1M USDT in virtual funds before entering the live market.
    • Advanced Security Protocols
      BexBack protects user assets with multi-signature cold wallet storage, SSL encryption, 2FA authentication, and DDoS protection.
    • U.S. MSB Registered
      The platform operates under a U.S. FinCEN-registered Money Services Business (MSB) license, demonstrating its commitment to regulatory transparency and operational integrity.

    Built for All Levels of Traders

    From beginners exploring their first crypto trade to experienced futures traders seeking high leverage and full privacy, BexBack serves a broad spectrum of users. Its intuitive interface, multilingual support, and round-the-clock service make it an ideal choice for anyone looking to maximize opportunities in the volatile crypto market.

    Start Trading Today

    Users can register in under a minute at www.bexback.com, claim their bonuses, and begin trading with full control and zero restrictions.

    About BexBack

    BexBack is a global cryptocurrency derivatives platform offering perpetual futures contracts on more than 50 leading digital assets. Launched in May 2024 and headquartered in Singapore, BexBack prioritizes user privacy, security, and trading efficiency. The platform supports clients across the U.S., Europe, Asia, and beyond, and is fully compliant as a registered Money Services Business (MSB) under U.S. FinCEN guidelines.

    With 100x leverage, no KYC onboarding, and powerful trading tools, BexBack is redefining the crypto trading experience for the next generation of traders.

    Website: www.bexback.com

    Contact: business@bexback.com

    Contact:
    Amanda
    business@bexback.com

    Disclaimer: This content is provided by BexBack, The statements, views, and opinions expressed in this content are solely those of the content provider and do not necessarily reflect the views of this media platform or its publisher. We do not endorse, verify, or guarantee the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of any information presented. We do not guarantee any claims, statements, or promises made in this article. This content is for informational purposes only and should not be considered financial, investment, or trading advice.Investing in crypto and mining-related opportunities involves significant risks, including the potential loss of capital. It is possible to lose all your capital. These products may not be suitable for everyone, and you should ensure that you understand the risks involved. Seek independent advice if necessary. Speculate only with funds that you can afford to lose. Readers are strongly encouraged to conduct their own research and consult with a qualified financial advisor before making any investment decisions. However, due to the inherently speculative nature of the blockchain sector—including cryptocurrency, NFTs, and mining—complete accuracy cannot always be guaranteed.
    Neither the media platform nor the publisher shall be held responsible for any fraudulent activities, misrepresentations, or financial losses arising from the content of this press release. In the event of any legal claims or charges against this article, we accept no liability or responsibility. Globenewswire does not endorse any content on this page.

    Legal Disclaimer: This media platform provides the content of this article on an “as-is” basis, without any warranties or representations of any kind, express or implied. We assume no responsibility for any inaccuracies, errors, or omissions. We do not assume any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information presented herein. Any concerns, complaints, or copyright issues related to this article should be directed to the content provider mentioned above.

    Photos accompanying this announcement are available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/1ff140d6-1743-47a7-8d12-a366e598a26f

    https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/e3c1fde9-f5a2-4238-923c-aa07b2304d5b

    https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/3e8e0b3d-60f1-4b62-9188-ba2c94ea5824

    The MIL Network

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Local restaurant found guilty of food safety offences after city council investigation

    Source: City of Stoke-on-Trent

    Published: Wednesday, 7th May 2025

    The customer had ordered a meal from Ali’s Kitchen in Dresden after advising staff of their allergy.

    A Stoke-on-Trent restaurant owner has been found guilty of food safety offences after a customer suffered an allergic reaction to nuts.

    The customer had ordered a meal from Ali’s Kitchen in Dresden after advising staff of their allergy.

    The restaurant agreed to make a meal free of nuts – but when it arrived, the customer suffered a reaction and had to use an EpiPen while an ambulance was called. The customer later made a full recovery.

    Trading Standards officer from Stoke-on-Trent City Council launched a full investigation following a complaint about the incident. This included having the meal scientifically analysed to determine nuts were present.

    Muhammed Aaban Aamir Ali, owner of Ali’s Kitchen in Dresden, has now pleaded guilty to a charge of supplying food that was unsafe to consume, as it contained traces of almond and nuts. 

    He was ordered to pay a £432 fine and £500 compensation to the victim, as well as £2,068 in prosecution costs.

    Councillor Amjid Wazir OBE, cabinet member for city pride, enforcement and sustainability for Stoke-on-Trent City Council, said: “We are pleased the customer suffered no further ill-effects and was treated promptly. 

    “Our Trading Standards and Food Hygiene officers work tirelessly to ensure businesses follow the law and all appropriate guidelines.”

    Trading Standards have recently completed a sampling project looking at undeclared allergens in takeaway meals.

    They discovered that 50% of businesses do not make the necessary allergen declarations, particularly in relation to nuts or milk. 

    The council is now urging all businesses to ensure they have the correct procedures in place to correctly declare allergens to customers.

    More help and advice can be found here: Food and drink | Business Companion

    To report issues with food safety, food hygiene, labelling or quality please visit stoke.gov.uk or call 01782 232065

    Food Complaint or Advice | Report a food hygiene issue.

    MIL OSI United Kingdom

  • MIL-OSI: John Snow Labs Wins 2025 Oracle Excellence Award for AI Innovation

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    LEWES, Del., May 07, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — John Snow Labs, the AI for healthcare company, today announced it has won a 2025 Oracle Customer Excellence Award in the AI category for North America. The Oracle Customer Excellence Awards celebrate the very best of business innovation, showcasing how organizations around the world—and their leaders—use Oracle technology to help reinvent business practices, reimagine the workday, and boost sales. The AI category honors the most innovative and creative use of generative AI to drive innovation and address real-world challenges to make a measurable impact.

    John Snow Labs has transformed business operations by embedding AI-powered automation, predictive analytics, and real-time decision support into healthcare, life sciences, and insurance. By leveraging Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI) AI infrastructure, the company has reduced costs, improved efficiency, and accelerated AI adoption across multiple sectors for its customers, reinforcing its leadership in AI-driven healthcare innovation.

    John Snow Labs has optimized several of its medical language models for OCI, including Medical LLM and Healthcare NLP, enabling customers to leverage OCI’s robust infrastructure securely and compliantly and to quickly deploy and scale these models. John Snow Labs also runs its Medical Chatbot Platform on OCI, which provides tools for biomedical literature reviews, query resolution, clinical case analysis, and clinical text summarization. Applications running on OCI include FunctionalMind™, which is a specialized AI solution for functional and integrative medicine, real-world data curation in specialties like oncology and mental health, and regulatory-grade medical data de-identification. As evidenced by peer-reviewed papers, these solutions deliver state-of-the-art performance for improved decision-making, increased compliance, and higher adoption and trust of AI-driven healthcare solutions. Additionally, by using OCI’s AI-optimized cloud compute services, customers can benefit from reduced AI compute costs and energy consumption.

    “OCI’s AI-optimized infrastructure and privacy-focused approach to the cloud makes it a strong choice to power healthcare AI applications,” said David Talby, CEO, John Snow Labs. “We are honored to be recognized as a GenAI innovator and are excited to continue making customers successful in putting it to good use.”

    This award comes on the heels of several significant milestones for John Snow Labs, including the release of the first commercially available medical reasoning LLM and the release of Generative AI Lab 7.0, an update enabling domain experts, such as healthcare professionals, to evaluate and improve custom-built LLMs with precision and transparency.

    For additional information on the Oracle 2025 Customer Excellence Awards, please visit: https://www.oracle.com/corporate/customers/awards/.

    To learn more about John Snow Labs, visit https://www.johnsnowlabs.com/.

    About John Snow Labs
    John Snow Labs, the AI for healthcare company, provides state-of-the-art software, models, and data to help healthcare and life science organizations put AI to good use. Developer of Medical LLMs, Healthcare NLP, Spark NLP, the Generative AI Lab No-Code Platform, and the Medical Chatbot, John Snow Labs’ award-winning medical AI software powers the world’s leading pharmaceuticals, academic medical centers, and health technology companies. Creator and host of The NLP Summit, the company is committed to further educating and advancing the global AI community.

    Trademarks
    Oracle, Java, MySQL and NetSuite are registered trademarks of Oracle Corporation. NetSuite was the first cloud company—ushering in the new era of cloud computing.

    Contact
    Gina Devine
    Head of Communications
    John Snow Labs
    gina@johnsnowlabs.com

    The MIL Network