Tag Archives: Europe

Gypsies: The Mystical Tribe

By PravdaApril 9, 2011Culturecentral europe, croatia, dom, egypt, Europe, german scientist, gypsies, gypsy day, heinrich moritz gottlieb grellman, hungary, iberian, indian films, international roma day, irish travellers, lom, london, luli children, luries, lyuli, lyulis, middle ages, nomadic peoples, roma, russian gypsies, russian roma people, samarqand, sanskrit, sinti, symbols of the gypsies, uzbekistan, western branch, world gypsy congress, yeniche people

The International Roma, (Gypsy) Day was founded at the first World Gypsy Congress, which took place in London on April 8, 1971. The congress gathered representatives from 30 countries. The national symbols of the gypsies – the flag and the anthem – were approved at the congress. The gypsies of the whole world became one single nation.

There are six basic branches of gypsies in the world today: three western and three eastern branches. Roma, Sinti and Iberian gypsies are referred to the Western branch. The eastern group includes the Lom, the Dom and the Lyuli people. In addition, there are smaller groups of gypsies. There are several ethnographic groups of nomadic peoples in Europe. Their lifestyle is close to that of the gypsies, but their origin is different – the Irish Travellers, or the Yeniche people from Central Europe, for instance. Many specialists, who study nomadic nations, agree that the gypsy ethnos had been finally formed only by the 15^th century, when the gypsies were traveling from Byzantium to Europe. (more…)

Got Product Questions? Microsoft Has Answers – More Than 500,000 per Day

By Guest PostApril 4, 2011Technologyafrica, barbara winter, community stars, emea, Europe, florian eichinger, internet explorer, microsoft answers, microsoft answers site, microsoft consumer products, microsoft most valuable professional, microsoft product, middle east, mvp, office, ronnie vernon, windows, windows 7

*Every day more than half a million people visit Microsoft Answers to get their burning Microsoft product questions answered. The company’s recently refreshed question-and-answer forum brings together consumers, experts and technical enthusiasts into a single online community.*

REDMOND, Wash. – April 4, 2011 – Ever since he retired in 2005, Ronnie Vernon’s time has been his own. The former heavy equipment instructor gets to spend his days doing exactly what he likes to do. So each morning he fires up his computer, heads to the Microsoft Answers site, and settles in for a long day answering questions about Windows.

Vernon can’t quite explain why he spends up to 12 hours a day offering strangers tech support. “Over the years I’ve tried to figure out why people do what they do with volunteering, but I never came up with a good explanation,” said Vernon, a Microsoft Most Valuable Professional (MVP) community leader recognized by Microsoft for actively sharing his real world technical expertise with consumers. “Basically, you have some knowledge, you see some people who have problems, and you just like to help.” (more…)

Retail Websites Now Reach 75 Percent of European Internet Audience Each Month

By Guest PostMarch 21, 2011Technologyalbert heijn, bing ciao, Comscore, Europe, european markets, france, Germany, groupe ppr, henk pleiter, internet sessions, ireland, Netherlands, online audience, online shopping, otto gruppe, retail category, retail sites, russia, shopzilla sites, turkish visitors, united kingdom

*U.K., France, Germany, Ireland, and the Netherlands Lead in Retail Site Visitation and Engagement*

LONDON, UK, March 21, 2011 – comScore, Inc., a leader in measuring the digital world, today released results from a study of online shopping in Europe. In January 2011, 270.6 million unique visitors in Europe visited sites in the Retail category, representing a market penetration of 74.5 percent of Internet users, up 8.5 percentage points versus last year. Retail sites also showed high penetration in individual markets, reaching at least 75 percent of the total online audience in 7 out of 18 European markets. In 2010, approximately one out of every ten Internet sessions in Europe included a visit to a retail site.

Retail Penetration and Engagement Growth in Europe

In the United Kingdom, the Retail category reached 89.4 percent of the total online audience (up 6.3 points from last year), the highest penetration of any European market. France ranked second with a reach of 87 percent (up 10.5 points), followed by Germany at 82.1 percent (up 9.0 points). Ireland and the Netherlands round out the list of markets with highest penetration, with Retail reaching 80.7 percent in Ireland (up 15.8 percentage points) and 80.2 percent in the Netherlands (up 4.9 percentage points). (more…)

Asia Arms Itself to the Teeth

By PravdaMarch 19, 2011WeaponsBeijing, China, chinese arms, defense products, defense technologies, egypt, Europe, Germany, global export, India, largest importer of arms, latin america, middle east, Pakistan, russia, russian federation, south korea, stockholm international peace research institute, usa, world

India became the world’s largest importer of arms during 2006-2010, a report from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute said. The share of India’s world arms shipments made up nine percent. China’s share was evaluated at six percent. The list of other active arms importers includes South Korea (6%) and Pakistan (5%). The largest exporters of arms in the world are the USA, Russia and Germany.

According to SIPRI experts, Russia remains the primary supplier of arms and military hardware to India. Russia’s share in arms transfers to India during the recent five years was evaluated at 82 percent. (more…)

Brazil Continues to Celebrate After Carnival

By Guest PostMarch 8, 20112 commentsPoliticsArgentina, brazil, brazil and the united states, brazilian steel industry, bridge, carnivals, coffee trade, cold war, cultural difference, diamonds, Economy, Europe, footballers, Germany, joseph smith, language barriers, major global power, popular world view, portuguese, president roosevelt, rio branco, russia, south america, spanish speaking countries, sugar industry, superpower, united states, usa, world war two

The popular world view of Brazil may be triggered by thoughts of spectacular Carnivals and skilled footballers, yet the country is also determined to be regarded as a major global power.

The most comprehensive historical review of Brazilian relations with superpower USA has been written by a University of Exeter historian and identifies how the relationship has developed over the last 200 years. (more…)

U.S. Remains the Largest Cocaine Market in the World

By PravdaMarch 6, 20111 commentCulture, GeneralEurope, heroin, largest market for cocaine, legalisation of marijuana, lisa karpova, marijuana, methamphetamine, mexican traffickers, overuse of drugs, united states

The United States remains the world’s largest market for cocaine, with 4.8 million users, although its importance has been reduced in recent years, according to the INCB (International Board for Narcotics Control).

“In 2009, 4.8 million people consumed some form of cocaine in the U.S., compared with 5.3 million in 2008,” the INCB said in its report in 2010. With this number of consumers, the U.S. represents 41% of the international drug market, ahead of Europe, with 29%, according to the board, stating that “Although the market for cocaine has been reduced in North America, it continues to grow in Europe.” (more…)

Online Banking on the Rise in Southeast Asia

By Guest PostMarch 4, 2011Technologybank mandiri, citigroup, Comscore, Europe, global banking brands, hong kong, internet growth, joe nguyen, malaysia, North America, southeast asia, vietcombank, Vietnam

*Brands with Strong Local Presence Top List as Most-Visited Online Banking Destinations*

*comScore Presents ‘The State of the Internet Southeast Asia’ *

Singapore, March 4, 2011 – comScore, Inc., a leader in measuring the digital world, today released the latest results from a study of Internet usage in Southeast Asia. The report found that an increasing number of consumers across the region turned to online banking throughout 2010. In each of the six markets included in the study (Malaysia, Hong Kong, Vietnam, Singapore, Indonesia and the Philippines), visitation to the online banking category grew by double-digits percentages, outpacing overall Internet growth by a factor of two in most cases. These results will be presented along with other key online trends via a complimentary, live webinar The State of the Internet Southeast Asia on Wednesday, March 9. For more information and to register, please visit: https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/302171344 (more…)

comScore Releases Inaugural Report, “The 2010 Mobile Year in Review”

By Guest PostFebruary 14, 2011Technology3g penetration, alex kozloff, commerce, Comscore, comscore 2010 mobile year in review, eu5, Europe, Germany, inaugural report, Japan, jeremy copp, mark donovan, mobile, mobile industry, nokia, smartphone adoption, technological innovations, u s

*Report Highlights 2010 Mobile Trends in U.S., Europe and Japan*

BARCELONA, SPAIN, February 14, 2011 – comScore, Inc., a leader in measuring the digital world, today released The comScore 2010 Mobile Year in Review. This inaugural report recaps key trends in the mobile landscape in 2010 throughout the U.S., Europe (EU5) and Japan. The report highlights important components of the mobile market including device trends, smartphone adoption, browser/application usage and mobile content consumption, with a look at how marketers can utilize the mobile medium in 2011.

“2010 was a game-changing year for the mobile industry,” said Mark Donovan, comScore senior vice president of mobile. “Smartphone adoption, 3G penetration and unlimited data plans drove a surge of mobile media consumption across geographies and deepened the integration of mobile devices into everyday life. And, the coming year has the potential to be even more exciting. As the mobile ecosystem continues to develop, including progress in mobile advertising and commerce, it’s clear that mobile is destined to become an increasingly important platform for digital marketers across all industries.” (more…)