Monthly Archives: October 2023

AI, Music, News, Tech, Technology

Masterchannel launches SpatialAI – the world’s first spatial AI mastering solution for artists and producers

Masterchannel, the AI mastering company, has launched SpatialAI, the first solution on the market that streamlines the creation and technical compliance of spatial audio releases, preparing them for distribution in minutes.

SpatialAI is aimed at opening up the opportunities for all artists and producers to deliver tracks in Spatial Audio, changing it from an “elite technology” that is prohibitively expensive and complex for many, to something which is accessible for all.

Everyone from bedroom artists to signed musicians can use its high-speed and affordable subscription service to ensure that their tracks meet platform requirements and market standards for spatial audio. The need for artists to ensure they can fulfil these requirements is expected to grow as more streaming platforms start to offer spatial distribution.

 

The news comes as spatial audio grows as a preference for streaming subscribers. Apple Music has revealed that in just over a year since its launch, more than 80% of its worldwide subscribers had enjoyed the feature, and monthly plays in the format have grown by over 1,000% in 2022.

A track prepared with SpatialAI will sound professional in any environment: on wireless earbuds, spatial headphones, a spatial cinema’s speaker system, or on a regular stereo system.

 

SpatialAI is aimed at producers that are starting to switch to a spatial audio workflow, but who may be uncertain if their productions meet all the requirements of spatial audio deliveries or who might not produce music in perfectly optimized listening environments. SpatialAI also provides an alternative for more established artists who may have needed to employ two engineers for stereo and spatial versions.

Once an artist has created an initial track, they can upload an ADM BWF file for free to Masterchannel. After a very short period of time, Masterchannel will deliver back a sonically and technically optimized version of the track for streaming platforms, alongside a rendered and individually optimized stereo version of the spatial file for traditional distribution.

 

Masterchannel’s AI uses reinforcement learning to work like a real engineer, making original decisions as it proceeds through a track based on its previous experience. It continuously tweaks the track to remove technical errors or anything that is an obstacle to the perfect spatial musical listening experience.

SpatialAI builds on Masterchannel’s existing stereo service that ensures that tracks sound professional across all listening environments, speakers and platforms.

 

Masterchannel CTO Simon Hestermann, spatial mastering patent owner and former spatial audio researcher at Fraunhofer IDMT, said:

“There’s a growing urgency for artists to deliver tracks in spatial audio, with the format being prioritized for streaming playlists. However, until now it has been an elite technology. Producers have needed expensive equipment and add-ons to trust it, and engineers and their studios needed to be certified to attract business, making it prohibitively expensive and complex for many.”

“That’s why we launched SpatialAI, to democratise access to spatial audio. Now DIY artists have the opportunity to compete with major signed artists for listener attention. Our aim is to streamline the switch to spatial audio for artists of all kinds.”

To find out more about the new service, please click here.

 

About Masterchannel

Masterchannel is using Artificial Intelligence to democratize professional-sounding music, giving bedroom producers the opportunity to compete with major signed artists for listener attention.

Based in Oslo, Norway, Masterchannel launched in 2022, and its subscription model launched in August of that year. Since then, Grammy-winning producers and people with strong credits have become Masterchannel converts, such as JT Roach and Skinny Days.

While some areas of music creation are arguably best handled by humans, mastering can be automated, to make it easier for artists to focus on what matters – making great music.

Using an AI concept called reinforcement learning instead of training data, Masterchannel lets the AI follow its own purpose as it works on a track, rewarding it if it does something well. Masterchannel has perfected what makes a well-engineered track and has learnt how to mathematically encode that into technical criteria for the system.

Masterchannel partners with distribution platforms and other service providers such as amuse, integrating the service to make it as easy as possible to access. The aim is to make audio engineering technicalities obsolete for music producers.

Website: https://masterchannel.ai/

International News, Property, USA

Coming To America: Why Soaring Numbers Of British Property Investors Are Now Looking Stateside

The current volatility in the UK housing market is leading to more and more British investment in the US, a leading expert has said.  

Alistair Brown, from Alistair Brown International Real Estate, says the current domestic challenges buy-to-let investors face will see growing interest in the American market right into 2024. 

He said: “There’s no doubt that the current nature of the UK housing market is driving interest from British investors in property state-side. 

“Fluctuating house prices, a shortage in rental property, and a continued slowdown in housebuilding doesn’t create a good environment for investors. Neither does Government legislation which makes life more difficult for landlords to buy and then rent out properties.  

“This year there has been a sharp rise in the number of people looking to America, and Florida especially, for buy-to-let investments.  

“Many are attracted by the idea of a relocation, and a change in lifestyle as well as securing a holiday property which can double up as a revenue generator.  

“The biggest advantages state-side right now for buyers is simplicity. It’s not a difficult process, and there is a good value currently which isn’t the case in the UK. 

“For renters, supply is plentiful in many markets, plus there has been a real growth in product design and development. This means people can rent homes which come with a high standard of amenities. 

“I can only see this demand growing over the next 12 months. Florida will continue to see a high level of investment from international buyers who are looking to relocate in search of a better climate, good employment opportunities and lower taxation.”

Mr Brown said there are four main pieces of advice he’d offer anyone looking to invest in the US. 

“Start by properly understanding how you want to use a property and why. Be careful with the destination you go for, especially if you are going to depend on rental income.

Select a property management company carefully if you are using one. And make sure you get a reliable and trustworthy  licensed real estate agent.” 

Commenting on how he sees the domestic property market faring over the next 12 months he added: “After a difficult few months, it’s now likely that UK residential home borrowers will continue to see improvement in terms of rate and availability of mortgage products over the next year. On the flip side, it will be harder for buy to let investors, I think.  

“Some mortgage providers are now lowering rates on some products. By lowering rates, it allows those who are on fixed-term loans to refinance at better rates. It also allows many homeowners who are sitting in homes they would like to move from, to now buy that next home they wish, but at better rates. 

“While the Bank of England’s hold on the last review should be welcomed,  we need another stabilising announcement to further support the market.”

Marketing, News, PR and SEO

East Midlands based businesses announce merger.

“We Believe We Can Add Rocket Fuel To The Business & Help Deliver Rapid Growth.”

Champions (Uk) Plc Announces Merger With Lowaire 

CHAMPIONS (UK) PLC is to merge with digital marketing and website development agency Lowaire, it can be announced today.

Staff from each of the companies enjoyed a celebratory breakfast as they marked the start of a new collaboration which is designed to “propel both organisations forward”.

The deal marks the latest chapter in a remarkable story as each business – both based in Loughborough – began as “bedroom start-ups”.

Champions’ (UK) Plc’s Managing Director, Matthew Hayes, spoke of the partnership and explained what he hopes the future holds.

He said: “The objective of the merger is to combine Lowaire’s local presence and ambitious attitude with Champions’ years of experience and extensive offering to provide a results-focused approach for our clients.” “Furthermore, it allows Champions to offer a full service to clients from start-up all the way to mid-tier and fast growth corporate organisations.”

Lowaire boasts an in-house team with expertise ranging from social marketing, paid media, SEO and website design and development.

Through this partnership, they provide a full range of digital marketing and website design services to meet clients’ ever-changing digital needs.

Just like Champions (UK) plc, Lowaire started out as a one-man team from a dining room table back in 2014.

Now it possesses a dedicated team of hard-working individuals who now provide services to over 100 clients locally, nationally, and globally.

Matthew added: “We understand how difficult and challenging the agency market can be and how lonely it can be from the point of view of starting from scratch.

“They have proved themselves over the first seven years of business, but what we believe we can do is help add rocket fuel to the business, taking the learnings and lessons of being a bedroom start-up agency ourselves. We know what is required to deliver rapid growth for the agency itself.”

Lowaire’s Managing Director, Adam Coley started the business because he believed there was a gap in the market for a digital marketing agency that provided a better, more transparent, and personalised service for clients.

He said: “This collaboration marks a significant milestone for us. As specialists in producing robust digital marketing solutions, Lowaire sees this partnership as an exciting opportunity to fuse with Champions’ established growth strategies.

“Having worked for various companies including the NHS, I was quick to learn how a more personalised and result-driven approach could lead to better results and client retention. “As an agile team at Lowaire, our nimbleness combined with Champions’ extensive experience will propel both our organisations forward.

“We truly believe our expertise coupled with Champions’ wide-reaching experience will uniquely position us in the marketplace and we look forward to sharing this exciting journey with our stakeholders.”

For more information on the exciting merger of Champions (UK) plc and Lowaire, please visit their websites.

News

‘Community benefit society’ calls for long-term deal after improving thousands of lives through health and exercise

AURA WALES has improved and enhanced the lives of hundreds of thousands of people across Flintshire and beyond over the last five years.

As the employee-owned community benefit society unveiled its vision for the future, staff and board members met to celebrate its achievements in delivering services that have benefited the health and wellbeing of visitors across the region.

Employing more than 250 staff and pumping millions of pounds into the local economy, Aura revealed social impact data relating to its mission of improving lives through health and exercise.

And its strong financial performance means it can continue to reinvest any surplus generated into its leisure and library facilities and services to improve the customer experience and sustain and enhance its offer for the future.

The organisation has made a huge impact county-wide, helping to tackle loneliness and isolation and via its Sports Development Team, working with youths in Holywell and Mostyn, generated £13.16 of social value for every £1 spent.

Addressing the Aura Wales AGM at Deeside Leisure Centre, where more than 150 employees were in attendance, chair Sara Mogel OBE said their post-pandemic results were an “amazing outcome”.

“As a Community Benefit Society, we are always looking for areas where we can add value and enhance the lives of the people of Flintshire; despite other pressures, last year was no exception,” said Mrs Mogel, who also recorded her gratitude to Flintshire County Council for its collaborative approach and support provided during the challenges of recent years.

“We are working in partnership with all town and community councils to ensure safe, high-quality play areas for Flintshire children – and in doing so have enabled more than £1.5million to be invested in over 120 improvement schemes over the past five years.

“We have helped to redevelop Mold Museum, managed a national project promoting good mental health and well-being through our libraries, continued the highly regarded and successful Fit, Fed and Read schemes – attended by more than 5,000 families and young people this summer – and have reduced energy consumption in our leisure facilities.”

She added: “Our leisure services have seen an uptake in membership and last year alone more than 2,500 children learned to swim with Aura every week, which is amazing.

“Numbers are not just returning to the pre pandemic levels but exceeding them, and as an important employer in Flintshire – 90% of our staff live in the county – we are proud to have maintained services while they are being cut in other counties.

“It is because of how valued we are by our community that I, and the Board, are working hard with our partners to secure a long-term contract so we can access even more external funding, work in partnership with even more organisations and invest even more in our people, our services and our facilities.”

Those words were echoed by Aura’s Business Improvement and Performance Manager Paul Jones, who thanked stakeholders and the public for their support.

“We have had fantastic backing over the years and for that we are very grateful, but moving forward from a strategic perspective having a longer-term contract in place would allow us to make even more sustainable, lasting investments to benefit our service users in Flintshire,” he said.

“And it’s not just this county, the ice arena and other facilities are used by people from all over North Wales, the North West and even further afield, bringing tourism to the area and having a major effect on the local economy.

“The traditional image of leisure centres and libraries has completely changed, they are now health and wellbeing hubs, focal points for social and cultural support and development, and we have very much been at the forefront of that, something our strategic vision recognises and seeks to reinforce.”

Aura’s CEO Mike Welch added: “The work of our incredible team has been reflected in these results post-pandemic.

“We will be in discussions over the coming months about the future – which is looking bright – and again would like to thank everyone who has used Aura since its inception. We will continue to deliver a first-class service for the people of Flintshire for many years to come.”

For more news and information from Aura Wales, visit the website www.aura.wales and follow them on social media at @aura_wales.

News

Elderly and isolated form new arts and networking community at North Wales college

COLEG CAMBRIA provides a warm, welcoming environment for people of all ages.

And that was the case when more than 60 elderly and retired individuals attended arts and crafts sessions at the college’s Wrexham and Deeside sites.

Organised by Cambria’s Student Voice team, participants were reached via social media, local coffee mornings, community noticeboards, word of mouth and via an NHS coordinator conducting home visits across north east Wales.

The group joined life drawing and printmaking lessons over a series of weeks, as well as networking and partaking in afternoon tea at Yale’s Ial Restaurant.

Rob Jones, Student Voice Engagement Officer, said: “This was an opportunity for us to bring people together and form a new community.

“It was wonderful to see such a huge number attend and enjoy themselves, especially after the challenges of lockdown when so many felt lonely and isolated.

“It gave them an opportunity to try something new, and the results were amazing – the artwork produced was brilliant.”

Rob added: “This is something we will look to replicate next summer and hopefully at other points during the year as it was so popular.”

For the latest news and information from Coleg Cambria, visit www.cambria.ac.uk and follow them on social media.  

Legal News

How To Take Legal Action Against A Negligent Professional

Professional negligence can take many forms. This article takes you through its various aspects, including the definition of the term, examples of professional negligence, and making a claim for any financial loss experienced by your business as a result.

You’ll find all of this information below, so read on.

What Is Professional Negligence?

The term “professional” can refer to many different fields. Here are a few examples of roles it could refer to:

  • Accountants.
  • Financial advisors.
  • Architects.
  • Solicitors.
  • Surveyors.

When a professional takes you on as a client, they’re also agreeing to provide your business with a level of service that meets a certain standard. Making sure they provide you with the standard required of them is known as them upholding their duty of care.

This is expected of them due to the training, knowledge, and experience they have in their field. If the service they provide falls below the required standard, then this is known as a breach of their duty of care.

A breach of a professional’s duty of care can cause you loss. If it does, then your company is said to have experienced professional negligence. However, it’s important to bear in mind that a professional breaching their duty of care does not automatically equate to professional negligence. The breach needs to have also caused your company financial loss.

How Could A Professional Act Negligently?

We have provided some examples below of how various professionals could breach their duty of care they owe to you as their client.

  • Solicitors – Your business may have sought the help of legal professionals for various reasons. Their negligence could result in losses experienced by the company that could have otherwise been avoided.
  • Financial advisors – Your advisor could provide you with investment advice that is poorly researched. This could result in your company losing the money they invest as a direct result of the advice with which they’re supplied.
  • Architects – One of an architect’s responsibilities can be to obtain planning permission before construction on a project can begin. Otherwise, the building could be demolished when it comes to light that planning permission was never acquired. If your company has invested money in the construction process, this could mean a financial loss.
  • Surveyors – Those in this role are required to assess the condition of a property before their client purchases it. Part of this includes noticing issues such as damp or structural damage. If they do not notice them, their client may end up owning the property and then needing to spend more money on repairs that they weren’t aware were necessary.
  • Accountants – For instance, they may miscalculate how much tax you owe. If you pay too little, you could be landed with a fine. Too much, and you’d end up overpaying.

It’s important to remember that there are other relevant professionals and scenarios that we have not included here.

About Professional Negligence Claims

Professional negligence claims can arise from a professional breaching a duty of care to their client. If your business has experienced loss due to the negligence of a professional they have hired, it could be that you’re eligible to make a claim for compensation.

If the claim is successful, the amount received is calculated with the company’s specific circumstances in mind. The aim of the compensation is to restore the business to the same financial position as if it had not experienced the loss for which the claim is being made.

In addition to this bespoke figure, 8% per annum is added to the value of a professional negligence claim for every year that’s passed since the loss. This is so any interest that would have accrued over this period is also accounted for.

Because professional negligence is categorised as a breach of contract, the relevant legislation (The Limitation Act 1980) tells us that you have 6 years to begin the process of claiming. However, there are certain exceptions to this time limit.

What To Do If You Experience Professional Negligence

If your business experiences professional negligence, there are a few steps it can be helpful to take. We have included a few of them below. However, these are general examples. Your own circumstances may require different or additional steps.

  • Establish the nature and extent of your loss – Because professional negligence can take place in various scenarios, the loss experienced by clients will differ on a case-by-case basis. For instance, an accountant’s professional negligence could result in your business experiencing a financial loss.
  • Check when the loss took place – It’s important to know if you’re within the 6-year limitation period to begin a professional negligence. If this window of opportunity expiries, you may not be able to pursue a claim it all. This would result in you company failing to be reimbursed for the loss experienced.
  • Seek legal advice – If your business has experienced loss due to professional negligence, it can be helpful to enlist the services of a solicitor. They can offer helpful advice and guidance, as well as explain complex legal jargon.
  • Gather evidence – If you are planning on making a professional negligence claim, you’ll need to support it with evidence. Your company’s financial records can prove useful here, as can the correspondence with the professional who caused the loss. If you’re working with a solicitor, they may be able to help you during this process.

These are just general examples. Your own circumstances may require different or additional steps.

Thank you for reading. We hope you now have a better understanding of what professional negligence is, and the steps you can take if it has caused your company financial loss.

 

Business Advice

How to differentiate your business with an App

No matter what kind of business you have, you need to consider developing an app. It is, however, difficult to differentiate one’s business with an app, as all businesses try their best to develop innovative apps that can help their clients and simplify several business processes. For an app to reach full potential and be beneficial to your business, there are certain elements which the app must contain and specific demands that must be met.

Below, we have listed some of these elements and specific demands, which the app must meet. Implementing some of the below-mentioned advice will increase your chances of developing a successful business app. In the end, if you aim and shoot correctly, you might even be able to differentiate your business through the app!

Technological workflow

Before you can be creative with an app, you have to make sure that the app is functioning optimally. Some businesses have deprioritised this important step when developing an app, which will have consequences. You might have all kinds of creative and cool ideas for the app. Yet, if the app has issues moving from one page to another, your creative design falls to the ground.

Proper and thorough technological background-work should also provide you with a fast app-product, which is essential when handling clients. Nowadays, we are all used to technology moving so fast, and if some technological products do not live up to these high-speed expectations, the product will not manage well amongst us. Photobox has an app which undoubtedly lives up to the technical demands. Get it on Google Play.

Innovative thinking

How will you make sure that your app – and thereby also your business – stands out amongst clients? That is one of the real challenges of developing an app. Especially if you are trying to differentiate your business with an app! Think outside of the box. Invite your team and brainstorm! Several brains think more innovative than one alone.

Design

It is not enough to simply think outside the box. The design of the app tells something about your business. What would you like to signal? It is important to make research on contemporary tech design, and it is important to match an app to new societal design-tendencies.

Usability and ease of use

When designing and creating an app for your business, it is important to think of usability. Many different aspects should come to mind when dealing with usability, and two of the most important points are listed and explained below.

Target audience

First, you must do market research and discover who exactly the target audience is. Even though your target audience is already determined for the entire business, it is not a matter of course that the entire target audience will be using the app. Therefore, more research needs to be conducted.

Intuitive navigation

When you know who the target audience to the app is, you need to consider intuitive navigation. This is not possible before you know about the target audience, as intuitive navigation is based on the specific target group. What is intuitive for a 55 year old woman might be completely different from what an 18 year old man finds intuitive.

 

Netflix and Amazon are both large companies that have successfully differentiated their business with the use of apps. Their reason for success is said to be largely because of the apps’ ease of use, and how that matches the target audience.

 

News

Leading names in sales, marketing and comms unite to launch experts platform for business

PROMINENT names in sales, marketing and communications have joined forces to launch a new online membership that offers small businesses access to expert training and advice.

My Expert Team (MET) launches today (Weds), a virtual platform focused on supporting SMEs and small businesses in North Wales and the North West.

Founded by Dawn Roberts, Managing Director of Outperform Training and Coaching, the ‘Netflix-style’ monthly subscription gives users unlimited access to hours of content on a wide range of topics.

Members can access masterclasses delivered by small business experts, attend live networking events, interactive panel discussions and Q&A sessions, and capitalise on services tailored to their requirements and priorities.

There is also a pay-as-you-go option and a monthly package to choose from.

Joining her are Caroline Sanger-Davies, Director and Principal Consultant at Experience Marketing in Hawarden, and Martin Williams, Director of Radar PR, which has offices in St Asaph and Rhyl.

Having led sales teams and delivered training to thousands of people in the private and public sectors across the UK for more than 20 years, Dawn says MET will give members the opportunity to grow their reputations and customer bases while meeting new people and having key information and advice at their fingertips.

“For many organisations, hiring someone to come to their workplace and carry out this kind of training would prove expensive, and, given the economic challenges we are all facing, difficult to justify – My Expert Team is a solution to that problem,” said Dawn, from Prestatyn.

“The driving force behind this is giving people access to advice they might not otherwise be able to afford, smaller companies, start-ups, entrepreneurs, and sole traders who are often unsure what steps to take to achieve success.

“By that we don’t just mean financially, but in terms of growing, providing better customer service, sharing their story, communicating with each other, and building networks.

“We will be adding further topics – finance, HR, accounting, recruitment, AI, web design, photography and videography, event management and everything in between – and want to make this a valuable, end-to-end experience for everyone.”

She added: “Having Caroline and Martin as part of the team is fantastic as they have so much experience in the worlds of marketing, public relations, journalism, social media, and communications.

“Every business is unique, so the support they need must be unique too, without unrealistic targets and complicated processes.

“The feedback we’ve had has been so positive, more than 50 members have already signed up and we expect that to rise in the days and weeks ahead, with more experts joining as well.”

At just £29 a month, the MET subscription costs less than £1 a day over the course of the year.

Martin believes the membership will grow to become a crucial source of information and inspiration for companies across the region and said: “We have all spent hours in a room with no windows receiving training that could have been delivered in minutes, a waste of time and resources for the employee and employer, and that’s before travel and subsequent costs.

“This is the perfect way for businesses to access resources that will allow people to learn from the workplace or even at home when it suits them.

“And as a member there are many other facets to this, including events and live sessions which will feature members and experts from across different sectors – I’m proud to be a part of it.”

Caroline added: “MET is such a simple concept, it does not come with a huge price tag and as every business is unique, the range of experts and content is varied so there will be something for everyone.

“As well as online masterclasses and videos we will be hosting live events in person as well on a regular basis, which will bring people together to share their stories, learn from each other and let us know what training they want, and need.

“We are excited to see how this develops, it could be a game-changer for how we access experts in this part of the world and beyond.”

To join My Expert Team (MET) and for more information, visit www.myexpertteam.co.uk and follow them on social media @myexpertteam.

Cybersecurity, Data, News, Tech

Nutanix Strengthens Cyber Resilience with Accelerated Ransomware Detection and Recovery

Nutanix has today announced new features in the Nutanix Cloud Platform to strengthen organisations’ cyber resilience against ransomware attacks on unstructured data. These new features, available today in Nutanix Data Lens™ and Nutanix Unified Storage™ solutions, enable organisations to detect a threat, defend from further damage and begin a 1-click recovery process within 20 minutes of exposure. The features build on the strength of Nutanix Cloud Platform to protect and secure customers’ most sensitive data across clouds.

Ransomware is a top priority for CIOs and CISOs globally, yet 93% of organisations report they need to be better prepared according to the Enterprise Cloud Index. Speed of detection is more critical now that the average ransomware attack duration accelerated 94% as threat actors become more efficient at breaching, exfiltrating, and enacting a ransomware payload compromising data. Fast data recovery is also essential since recovery can typically take days or even weeks, and incomplete recovery can impact operations long after the attack is over.

“Rapid detection and rapid recovery are two of the most critical elements in successful ransomware planning, yet remain a challenge for many organisations especially as they manage data across multiple clouds,” said Scott Sinclair, Practice Director with the Enterprise Strategy Group. “Nutanix Data Lens and Nutanix Unified Storage, Nutanix Cloud Platform now provides a 20-min detection window and 1-click recovery, with cyber resilience integrated at the unstructured data layer to simplify cyber resilience while accelerating both detection and recovery.”

 

Nutanix Data Lens is a SaaS-based data security solution that helps proactively assess and mitigate unstructured data security and compliance risks by identifying anomalous activity and auditing user behaviour. New capabilities include:

  • Ransomware Detection and Blocking within 20 Minutes: Fast detection combined with automated response helps quickly block attacks, thus minimising the overall impact of ransomware. This provides an extra layer of security to protect an organisation’s unstructured data, reducing data damage.
  • Ransomware 1-Click Recovery: Nutanix Data Lens and Nutanix Unified Storage will identify the last known good snapshot and will automatically recover the share from the snapshot. Customers will have the option to leverage an automated recovery or a manual, guided recovery to quickly restore normal operations.
  • Permission Visibility and Risk Visualisation: This enables customers to better understand complex permission structures, audit configurations, and better assess risks. Ensuring data access is aligned to business needs is critical to minimise data loss, support regulatory compliance, and reduce the impact of attacks.

“Many organisations struggle with managing data protection across storage silos and clouds, especially when it comes to data governance and security,” said Thomas Cornely, SVP, Product Management at Nutanix. “With these new ransomware detection and recovery features, the Nutanix Cloud Platform provides built-in ransomware protection, data visibility and automated data governance for Nutanix Files and Objects across clouds to simplify data protection and strengthen an organisation’s cyber resilience posture.”

Nutanix Data Lens Now Supports Nutanix Objects

Customers using object storage will now have the same intelligence understanding and forensics available across both Nutanix Files™ and Nutanix Objects™ solutions. The advanced auditing and forensic capabilities in Nutanix Data Lens now extend to Nutanix Objects. This enables customers to reduce security and regulatory risks and further simplifies their path to integrated data management across clouds.

These new capabilities build on the Nutanix Cloud Platform’s natively integrated networking and security across clouds. Nutanix Cloud Platform delivers built-in cyber resilience capabilities including automated platform hardening with 1-click data encryption, secure network policies, application microsegmentation, and ransomware data protections. This strengthens an organisation’s overall security posture for data and applications across on-premises, public clouds and edge.

Nutanix customers shared:

  • “Understanding access to our data is very important for us to ensure data is secure, safe, and being used properly,” said Robert Pohjanen, IT Architect, LKAB. “Tools like Data Lens give us the insights we need to understand who is accessing our data, if it’s appropriate access, or if there is an attempt to misuse or attack our data. The forensics and the new permissions and access risk views are important tools to keep our data safe from malicious users, or from threats such as ransomware.”
  • “We suffered a ransomware attack, in which our entire legacy infrastructure and our backup were compromised,” said Brunno Amado da Silva Vieira, Senior IT Infrastructure Analyst, Unimed Belém Medical Work Cooperative. “Thanks to Nutanix technology, we were able to recover the most critical applications in a short time, to minimise the impact. Nutanix ended up saving everything, and made us decide that from then on, we will leave the legacy technology and migrate all workloads to Nutanix.”

New features are currently available to customers. More information is available here.

Marketing, News, Scotland

Marketing expert calls for regulation to curb ‘rip-off’ potential 

A leading Scottish marketing expert is calling for the online marketing industry to adopt more stringent regulation to avoid small business owners spending money with unqualified, inexperienced marketers.

It comes as Niki Hutchison has picked up a latest accolade, shortlisted in the Great British Entrepreneur Awards within the Global Entrepreneur of the Year category.

Edinburgh-based Niki (www.nikihutchison.com) has also recently been recognised as an official Google Digital Garage trainer. She said: ‘Being recognised in such prestigious awards and by Google is a wonderful feeling but most of all, I’m proud to be able to demonstrate the trust needed by my clients and potential clients.

‘This means more to me now, at a time when our industry is so lacking in regulation, meaning practically anyone can call themselves a marketer or business strategist. This means clients can invest in good faith, but often end up no further forward in their business, as well as out of pocket. Anyone investing in their business must check for evidence of qualifications and years of experience, things that should go without saying, but often do not.

‘Online, lots of people are portraying themselves as experts, and charging exorbitant prices for marketing, or marketing coaching. Scratch the surface and their offer is often lacking in any value or substance.

‘This brings not only a dreadful risk of people being ripped off but also tarnishes our whole business sector as all marketers can be lumped in with the charlatans.

‘I’m launching a free challenge (details here), to help people Master their Marketing and give them a taster of what it’s like to work with me, so that they can feel safe and reassured in relation to my services.’

 

As co-founder of Adventures In Marketing, Niki also brings together other expert marketers for business owners to learn from and is set to host a second event in Edinburgh in February next year, after selling out the first one in February 2023.

She said: ‘Marketing is made up of so many different elements, but may be presented in a really narrow way, according to one person’s knowledge or skills. Reputable marketing professionals will have the skills to focus on how different elements will contribute to an overall strategy – I’ve been successfully doing this for over two decades.

‘I’d strongly advise small business owners seeking marketing support online to do their due diligence, comb through LinkedIn profiles and ask to see case studies and testimonials connected to former work – not just what the marketers claims to have generated for their own business. This proof can mean the difference between wasting money and getting a great return on investment.

 

For Niki, some recent achievements include:

  • Supporting well known marketers Andrew and Pete with the initial launch for their event ATOMICON 2023 which attracted their highest number of attendees ever in June
  • Helping The Worst Girl Gang Ever attract over 300 members to their brand new membership against a goal of 100
  • Writing three winning Marketing Society Scotland STAR Awards papers in 2022, winning two Golds and one Silver.

Niki has also been listed in Business Women Scotland’s Top 100 Women in Business 2023, Digital Women’s Top 50 Women to Watch 2022, and is also currently shortlisted for their Women’s Champion Award, Digital Teacher/ Trainer Award and Digital Agency Owner Award in 2023.

 

Niki added: ‘I share these achievements so people can see I genuinely know what I’m talking about and can help them use marketing strategically to get the results they’re looking for.

‘I’d love to see more stringent regulation within the online marketing industry so that supposed experts with little actual knowledge or experience are either required to undertake the relevant training to be able to back up their claims, or are forced out.

‘This training could be in the form of one industry-recognised qualification, specifically for online marketers working with small business owners. Perhaps it can only be applied for after a certain length of time in the industry, or after submitting evidence of client results. This would serve potential customers far better than the current growing lineup of online marketers who may or may not have any real-world experience in helping businesses grow.

 

Image credit: Anna Moffat