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Stagwell’s (STGW) Assembly Unveils Fresh Brand Identity

Assembly

Global omnichannel agency Assembly has launched a refreshed brand identity to reinforce the agency’s worldwide scale and dynamic, collaborative nature, while signaling the next era of growth. The new identity, designed by creative media consultancy and fellow Stagwell agency, GALE, will be represented globally across the more than 30 markets Assembly serves, uniting our 1,500+ talent network under a focused vision. The brand refresh comes shortly after the combination of ForwardPMX and Assembly in September 2021, a move that cemented the group’s position as the flagship media asset within Stagwell ’s global portfolio. Since the combination, the agency has strengthened our integrated full-service media offering, while expanding into more comprehensive business, data, and technology consulting services, including the continued buildout of our proprietary technology and data solutions platform, STAGE. All of this has culminated in the agency taking on more scaled, global AOR engagements for leading brands. “We’ve looked inward to find change and fuel growth within our own business, and in evolving the brand, we’re moving confidently into a space where our Assembly of data, talent, and tech can deliver a leading set of solutions for the best brands in the world,” said James Townsend, Global CEO of Assembly and Global CEO of Stagwell Media Network. The visual identity plays intentionally with bold, bright colors to humanize and create a sense of accessibility, while also exploring an expanded palette and photography style that reflects the rich diversity of the talent within Assembly and the consumers our clients serve. “Our vision was to reinvigorate the most iconic elements of the former Assembly brand while also leaning further into a visual story that would be intrinsically connected to how we deliver our work,” said Sara Pollack, VP of Marketing at Assembly. “This new brand further solidifies our common purpose and an identity which connect us, no matter where we are in the world.” Assembly has also placed significant emphasis on Impact, both in our efforts led internally by staff around the world, as well as through more dynamic partnerships and innovation in sustainable media, making the agency a key consultative partner to clients navigating their own sustainability agendas in media and beyond. The rebrand effort offered an opportunity for a different kind of collaboration between Stagwell agencies Assembly and GALE, the latter of which has been known for transforming brand identities and challenging perceptions through storytelling and media for the likes of MilkPEP, H&R Block, Chipotle, and Truth Initiative. “Media today is more than data and targeting. It’s also about both culture and collaboration. With this rebrand we wanted to create something that leaned into those two ideas in an energetic, dynamic, and attention-grabbing way,” said Winston Binch, Chief Brand and Experience Officer at GALE. Binch continued, “The big idea here really is the logo change. The original Assembly logo had the “/” on the left side of the “+.” We flipped it. Through this simple change, we’ve created a logo that is inherently more open and inclusive. Assembly is all about collaboration, and we felt that it needed to be conveyed through the logo itself. Great branding is all about the details.” “Our network is designed to transform marketing and the Assembly-GALE team designed a strong new brand that reflects that ambition,” said Beth Lester Sidhu, Chief Brand and Communications Officer at Stagwell. “Assembly’s new identity is a great representation of the brand’s ability to deliver the best in media and beyond.” Assembly’s new brand identity is complemented by the full relaunch of the agency’s website at www.assemblyglobal.com. ABOUT ASSEMBLY: Assembly is made of the ingredients of the modern agency, bringing together data, talent, and technology to deliver a connected set of solutions for media + more to the best brands on the planet. We’re home to more than 1,500 of the industry’s top talent, who bring unmatched global omnichannel media expertise + data, technology, and business consulting capabilities that help brands find the change that fuels growth. Assembly is a proud member of Stagwell, the challenger network built to transform marketing. Visit www.assemblyglobal.com for more information. ABOUT GALE: GALE is a Creative Media Consultancy, with data at the core. With expertise in business strategy, CRM, loyalty, brand storytelling, performance marketing, experience design and media, GALE creates marketing systems and communications that grow businesses. GALE delivers strong business outcomes for its partners in automotive, QSR, retail, gaming, entertainment, telecom and more. Founded in 2014, the agency currently has offices in New York, Singapore, Toronto, Denver, Detroit, Los Angeles, London, Austin and Bengaluru. In 2021, GALE was named Data & Analytics Agency of the year on the Ad Age A-List. For information on GALE, its customer data platform Alchemy™ and its consumer research capability ASK GALE, visit: https://gale.agency/. ABOUT STAGWELL: Stagwell is the challenger network built to transform marketing. We deliver scaled creative performance for the world’s most ambitious brands, connecting culture-moving creativity with leading-edge technology to harmonize the art and science of marketing. Led by entrepreneurs, our 10,000+ specialists in 20+ countries are unified under a single purpose: to drive effectiveness and improve business results for their clients. Join us at www.stagwellglobal.com. Contact Details Assembly Sara Pollack, VP of Marketing +1 917-438-4922 sara.pollack@assemblyglobal.com Company Website https://www.assemblyglobal.com/

February 16, 2022 08:30 AM Eastern Standard Time

Spotlight Sports Group and Advance Local Announce Groundbreaking Sports Betting Monetization Partnership

Spotlight Sports Group

Spotlight Sports Group to provide select Advance Local Media Outlets with Local-Market-Specific Sports Betting Platforms; Advance Local’s Total Daily US Audience Exceeds 50 million Consumers through 12 Websites Nationwide; Partnership Already Live with Syracuse.com, NYUP.com, SILive.com, MLive.com Spotlight Sports Group (SSG), a world-leading technology, content and media company specializing in sports betting and fantasy sports, has announced a significant new partnership with U.S. media powerhouse Advance Local. The partnership will see Spotlight Sports Group provide national and localized sports betting content, including games, sports betting tools and latest scores, and integrated affiliation tools each customized to maximize SEO and revenue for a number of Advance Local markets. The partnership between Spotlight Sports Group and Advance Local is already live in New York through Syracuse.com, NYUP.com and SILive.com; in Michigan on MLive.com and, OregonLive.com is launching in Q1, 2022. Advance Local, one of the largest U.S. local media companies, serves over 50m people daily through digital and print media, and operates 12 digital websites with highly engaged audiences following local and national sports content. Spotlight Sports Group’s turnkey sports betting solutions will provide Advance Local’s audience with sports betting sections on their favorite local news websites, including: Feature articles for both casual and regular sports bettors Free bets and offers pages Scoreboards & betting tools with latest odds Custom-made sports betting event guides Smart content modules and free-to-play games “We are proud to be partnering with Advance Local as our teams align on a vision of content-rich, localized sports betting experiences that are more than just creating clickbait,” commented Rick Wolf, SVP, Spotlight Sports Group. "The addition of a turnkey sports betting content platform, uniquely tailored to each local market, will give fans in Syracuse, for example, access to highly localized sports betting content, tools and engagement that makes the games more fun to watch. We are excited to roll out localized versions of our partnership across multiple Advance Local outlets, and seeing the investment made by Advance Local into Spotlight Sports Group repaid in new revenue, and a deeper sports experience for their audiences.” Advance Local VP of Sports Betting & iGaming, Howard Kamen, said “Spotlight Sports Group provides national and local content to drive engagement, but creating community with games and tools to make sports fans smarter is the exciting part of this partnership. Spotlight Sports Group has relationships with regulated sportsbook operators in multiple states which means they are doing the heavy lifting, enabling us to concentrate on our audience and their needs.” In addition to turnkey sports betting platforms, Spotlight Sports Group’s partner offerings include the provision of betting intelligence and data, smart content modules, and the creation and activation of digital games. The betting intelligence offering provides partners with a targeted betting experience directly to their audiences, or through affiliated partners, that delivers customized editorial content in over 70 different languages. Smart content modules are powered by Spotlights Sports Group’s state-of-the-art content engine, Superfeed, which utilizes best-in-class AI, expert tipping advice and data analysis to further deepen the conversations with sports betting audiences. Finally, Spotlight Sports Group can provide partners with self-service free-to-play games that help build customer marketing databases, and consumer engagement tools that increase contact points with audiences. Each of the four core Spotlight Sports Group solutions are tailored to meet the specific goals of partners, and all are designed to increase revenue, audience engagement and growth. For more information on Spotlight Sports Group please visit SpotlightSportsGroup.com ABOUT SPOTLIGHT SPORTS GROUP Spotlight Sports Group (owned by Exponent Private Equity) is a world-leading technology, content and media business specializing in sports betting and fantasy sports. Evolved from the Racing Post Group, Spotlight Sports Group engages millions of people directly through Racing Post, Pickswise, Fantasy Alarm, Free Super Tips and myracing. The company also has decades of experience in powering growth and conversion for the world’s biggest sportsbooks and media companies, delivering best-in-class technology and expert scalable content experiences in more than 70 languages. ABOUT ADVANCE LOCAL Advance Local, one of the largest media groups in the United States, operates the leading news and information companies in more than 20 cities, reaching more than 55 million people monthly with its quality journalism and community engagement. Never resting on our laurels, our company is built upon the values of Integrity, Customer-First, Inclusiveness, Collaboration, and Forward-Looking. Always innovating and evolving, our mission is to strengthen and empower the communities we serve. Advance Local Media Groups include MLive Media Group, Advance Ohio, Alabama Media Group, NJ Advance Media, Advance Media NY, MassLive Media, Oregonian Media Group, Staten Island Media Group, PA Media Group; Headline Group, Advance 360, a marketing agency specialized in the education, healthcare, and travel industries; and ZeroSum, a leader in software, marketing, and data science focused solely on the auto industry. Visit Advance Local at www.advancelocal.com. Contact Details Red Knot Tom Webb +1 512-952-9369 tom@redknotcomms.com Company Website https://www.spotlightsportsgroup.com/en_us/

February 16, 2022 08:01 AM Eastern Standard Time

Winter Skin Care & Beauty Tips

YourUpdateTV

A video accompanying this announcement is available at: https://youtu.be/IH8D0yadno Winter weather can wreak havoc on your skin and hair. Between all the dry, chapped and cracked skin, and frizzy or damaged hair, this is the time of year to pay extra attention to self-care and beauty routines. During the colder months, the American Academy of Dermatology Association (ADD) recommends adding moisture into your skin. All skin types need moisture, as lower temperatures, hot indoor air, and dry air everywhere can disrupt the skin’s barrier. It’s the season to focus on all areas of self-care from head to toe. Healthy hair and moisture go hand in hand — no matter the time of year. There are some surprising ways to help keep your locks healthy and looking their best as winter winds snag and tangle hair, which can lead to breakage and split ends. Foley has come up with a four-step plan to help people look and feel their best during the colder months. MORE MOISTURE: One way to counter the effects of dry air is with a daily moisturizer. Foley recommends OLEHENRIKSEN Strength Trainer Peptide Boost Moisturizer. It is a daily vegan and nutrient-rich moisturizer that quickly doubles hydration, visibly boosts elasticity, improves the look of fine lines and wrinkles, and protects your skin’s moisture barrier from harsh winter elements. This moisturizer is packed with potent ingredients inspired by skin’s building blocks—such as amino acids, peptides, ceramides, and collagen—to bring moisture, bounce and resiliency back to all skin types. Foley says it “Melts into your skin. This balm-to-gel texture delivers rich hydration… an unexpectedly lightweight feel perfect for protecting dry winter skin.” For more information, go to olehenriksen.com. Direct link: https://www.sephora.com/product/ole-henriksen-strength-trainer-peptide-boost-moisturizer-P479339?skuId=2547917&keyword=olehenriksen%20-%20strength%20trainer%20peptide%20boost%20moisturizer Social media handles: @olehenriksen MORE HAIR CARE: Healthy hair and moisture go hand in hand. Foley has found that there are some surprising ways to help keep your locks looking their best in the winter. One brand the beauty expert highlights is Maui Moisture Heal & Hydrate + Shea Butter Hair Mask, saying, “This is a refreshing and restorative vegan hair care line developed with Aloe Vera as the first ingredient for a hydrating and healthy base for curls.' The brand’s creamy hair mask is formulated with shea butter, coconut oil, and macadamia oil which work to deeply quench, nourish and repair dry, damaged curls and strands while helping minimize split ends. Foley recommends using the product as a leave in treatment on wet hair to deeply condition strands if locks are feeling extra dry, adding, “I love it, it has a soft and sweet scent. Although it’s thick and creamy in appearance, it doesn’t feel heavy and glides nicely onto your hair.” For more information, go to mauimoisture.com Direct link: Maui Moisture Heal & Hydrate + Shea Butter Hair Mask & Leave-In Conditioner Treatment to Deeply Nourish Curls & Help Repair Split Ends, Vegan, Silicone-, Paraben- & Sulfate-Free, 12 oz - Walmart.com Social media handles: @mauimoisture HYDRATE DELICATE SKIN: Cold and dry weather can damage softer skin. Foley says, “Our lips are a very thin and delicate. The cold months zap them of much-needed moisture, often leaving them dry and irritated.” The beauty expert says people can keep their lips hydrated all-day (and all-naturally!) with the #1 organic lip balm in the U.S—eos 100% Natural Shea Lip Balms. Foley points out that, “eos blends flavors that are almost good enough to eat with super-moisturizing ingredients for delicious lip balms that you’ll want to swipe on again and again.” This brand’s balms are made with USDA Certified Organic, sustainably-sourced shea butter and hydrating coconut & jojoba oils for long-lasting hydration and soft, smooth lips. Foley adds, “I can’t get over how soft my lips are! It feels like smoothness in a stick!” For more information, visit evolutionofsmooth.com, Target and Walmart. Direct link: https://evolutionofsmooth.com/collections/100-natural Instagram: @ eosproducts FEEL & LOOK YOUR BEST: Foley admits personal style is unique, but the weather can make it difficult at times. “I’m always searching for ways to help people look and feel their best. However, I’m really excited by a new hydrating concealer that is perfect for winter months.” A sister launch to the viral Good Apple Skin-Perfecting Foundation Balm, KVD Beauty is back with their latest launch, Good Apple Lightweight Full-Coverage Concealer. Foley says this new concealer delivers lightweight full coverage with extreme long wear staying power and is packed with ultra-concentrated InterLace Pigments for crease resistance, and maximum vibrancy. She adds, “It’s formulated with hydrating ingredients, such as apple extract and raspberry stem cells, and is available in 32 inclusive shades. You’re going to love how it feels and looks!” For more information, go to KVDVeganBeauty.com. Social media handles: @KVDbeauty Contact Details YourUpdateTV +1 212-736-2727 yourupdatetv@gmail.com

February 15, 2022 03:54 PM Eastern Standard Time

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Avi Kumar Converts Independent Print Shop to Minuteman Press Franchise in Longmont, CO

Minuteman Press International Inc

A vi Kumar has been part of the Minuteman Press franchise family since May 2016 as the owner of Minuteman Press in Greeley, CO. In February 2021, Avi had the opportunity to buy Ron’s Printing Center located in Longmont, CO, which was in business for 40 years. Avi converted Ron’s Printing Center into his second Minuteman Press location in February 2021 and is now celebrating one year in business at the new center. Minuteman Press in Longmont is located at 420 Main Street, Longmont, CO 80501. Avi says, “Our Regional Vice President Jack Panzer told us about this established business for sale in Longmont, which is 40 minutes from us. The main advantage was to extend profitability and expand our business in Northern Colorado.” He continues, “Another advantage was that we did not have to spend a lot of extra effort in marketing this as a new business because Ron’s Printing Center had been established for a long time. The employees were all very hands-on and diligent and we were able to retain them all. Within the second month, we added mailings, promotional products, and apparel to their product lines. In fact, we just wrapped up a 30K mailer for a local non-profit organization and secured a large apparel order as well.” Prior to franchising in 2016, Avi worked in retail as a convenience store manager of several locations. “I used to manage some stores in Illinois for a big outfit out of Wisconsin. I finally got tired of answering to my boss and decided I wanted to own my own business. I moved on to better pastures and we decided as a family that Colorado was our calling.” Avi is thankful for being able to work with Minuteman Press and Jack Panzer over the past five-plus years in Greeley and on the conversion in Longmont in 2021. He says, “Working with Jack is amazing as he is very thorough and helpful. Since I started my business in Greeley in 2016, he has been a huge resource for us and very supportive. As we continue to build in Longmont, we are also expanding in Greeley to a new 5,000 sq. ft. facility – remodeling is under way as we speak. We started small and grew the business, and now we are building on that success at the right, consistent pace.” For more information on Minuteman Press in Longmont, CO, visit https://minuteman.com/us/locations/co/longmont. Learn more about #1 rated Minuteman Press franchise opportunities at https://minutemanpressfranchise.com. To learn how to sell your printing business through the Minuteman Press Conversion Program, visit https://bit.ly/minutemanpressconversions. Contact Details Minuteman Press International Chris Biscuiti +1 631-249-1370 cbiscuiti@mpihq.com Company Website https://minutemanpressfranchise.com

February 15, 2022 11:00 AM Eastern Standard Time

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Telos tEVM and dStor to Power the MetaVerse in Utopian Fashion - Grants and Hackathons are Live!

Telos Foundation

Telos Blockchain (Tlos) has launched its very own non-Ethereum fork Virtual Machine ( tEVM ) and a cloud-based peer to peer decentralized file storage system ( dStor ) to facilitate the exploding Metaverse and all its future needs. Telos is a 3rd Generation, ESG compliant layer 1 blockchain that has been executing energy-efficient smart contracts uninterrupted since 2018. Every transaction on the Telos Network utilizes less than 0.000002 kWh of energy per transaction and costs end users zero to near zero in gas fees. Prior to the recent Telos EVM launch, the Telos mainnet was executing smart contracts only for Native C++, but now with the new Telos EVM it also can deliver smart contracts for Solidity and Vyper as well. The vast majority of all actively used dapps utilize one of these two languages, C++ or Solidity. Now that Telos EVM is live this means that Telos is the only blockchain capable of generating blocks for the two most popular languages. “With the Metaverse set to become its very own multi-trillion-dollar industry via entertainment and commerce, layer 1 blockchain solutions will be needed more now than ever. It is fundamentally impossible for any of this to work without them. Layer 1 blockchains that are scalable, affordable and energy efficient are the foundation of the Metaverse. The Telos Blockchain is the most advanced and robust layer 1 by many multiples. A utopian solution for Web3.0 and the Metaverse.” Justin Giudici, Acting CEO at Telos Foundation. Telos and its tEVM is capable of sustainably delivering hundreds of millions of near fee-less transactions per day before any future sharding/rollups. The Metaverse will need this level of capacity to thrive. Telos' current capacity is sufficient to handle the transaction needs of every single existing layer 1 chain, including all their future forecasted growth for the next decade. As other chains boast their theoretical transaction capacity, Telos delivers. With any one of the following third-party comparisons, one can clearly see for themselves some of the proven strengths of Telos. Cardano, Solana, Polkadot, Fantom and Telos vs the Clock Telos vs Fantom Telos vs Avalanche vs Binance Smart Chain vs Ethereum *Visit links above For Web 3.0 commerce and entertainment to thrive, dApps need speed, capacity, affordability, energy efficiency, decentralization and even p2p file storage. With Telos‘ half-second block times and endless capacity, transactions will consistently be inexpensive and faster than the eye can see. Transactions are instant with Telos. With the launch of the Telos EVM, Solidity based dApps can finally utilize all of these advantageous attributes as well. Ultimately, dApps on Telos can spread their wings, minimize their spending, and take flight on a Layer 1 platform that has no congestion in sight. *Developer Alert: Telos Spark Hackathon - 100,000 Tlos for First place! Feb 7 to March 6th - Register Here Telos Ignite Grant Program - 12 million over 4 years! Live now! - Register Here Some uses on Telos are even free for the end-user, specifically if the dApp was built in Native C++. These dApps running natively on Telos can enjoy zero fee transactions if they have staked enough resources to support their activity. These fee-less transactions are favorable for many Web 3.0 users, especially because the vast majority of transactions are simple transactions. For example, simple transactions are extremely common in blockchain gaming. It is often difficult for dApps to build a lucrative model around these continuously fluctuating transaction costs. Telos allows Web 3.0 dApps to overcome this barrier by being the only layer 1 platform offering a pathway to fee-less transactions. On the solidity side, the Telos EVM charges near zero gas fees for transactions. Uniquely, the prices do not move linearly with the Tlos coin price. Instead, the gas fees are fixed, independent, and remain homogeneous, which is very helpful when building a business on blockchain. Unpredictable fluctuating costs can destroy most business models, making it extremely important to note that Telos brings much needed stability to this variable. Telos' founders also bring years of Metaverse experience to the table. You may be wondering how that’s possible when the Metaverse seems to be brand new and Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg just made it popular, but there is a background story. Before Web 3.0 and virtual reality were married off and coined into a single phrase, the Metaverse, Telos was already heavily engaged in the concept. In this MetaVerse / Web 3.0 gaming video from over 2 years ago, you will see Telos chief architect, Douglas Horn explaining how much of this works. The process of creating and owning digital art via NFTs and not just selling them but utilizing them across different virtual environments has been a deep seeded concept within the Telos team. It’s a concept that has led to the development of Telos EVM and Telos dStor, a decentralized peer-to-peer cloud-based file storage system that’s fully integrated into the Telos architecture. Telos dStor, as of now, is the highest performance storage system available. Individual users, collectors, digital graphic artists, musicians, and gaming companies can store all their digital Metaverse content seamlessly and simultaneously on dStor. This storage capability is available in all global regions, in a decentralized environment, for prices far lower than those offered by Google or Amazon for single-region availability. The next decade is sure to be metamorphic regarding the web and how we interact with it. Web 3.0, blockchain and real life are all on a path to collide into an altered virtual reality and layer 1 platforms like Telos will certainly be needed to deliver the fundamental building blocks that will help manifest the MetaVerse. About Telos Telos is a 3rd generation smart contract platform that offers compatibility with Solidity, Vyper and Native C++ smart contracts, providing full EVM/Solidity support as well as a fee-less native smart contract layer upon which the EVM is built. Telos performance is unrivaled in the industry and was purpose-built to offer speed, scalability, cost-effectiveness, decentralization and end-user fairness. The network can sustainably support hundreds of millions of transactions per day, produces blocks in 0.5 second intervals on a first-in-first-out basis (eliminating frontrunning on the network), offers a fee-less native and low per transaction cost EVM (<$0.10), and a fully decentralized block producer network. About The Foundation The Telos Foundation is a Decentralized Autonomous Organization established as a promotional and funding body to advance the Telos Blockchain Network and provide support to network applications. Contact Details Telos Foundation The Team hello@telosfoundation.io Company Website https://www.telos.net/

February 15, 2022 10:34 AM Eastern Standard Time

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Sports Business Analyst Mike Bako’s Winter Olympic Analysis

YourUpdateTV

A video accompanying this announcement is available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IEYO-2_V6A4 Mike Bako, Daily National.com sports editor, provides insights and analysis on the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games and the latest on the scandal that is overshadowing the games. Failed Test Casts Shadow Over Skating, the Olympics’ Showcase Event. Russian skater’s Kamila Valieva positive test were an embarrassing failure of the systems designed to keep doping out of the Olympics. Valieva was cleared to skate even though she failed a drug test taken Dec. 25, the result only emerging last week, after her two brilliant performances in the team competition helped win gold for the Russian team. The Court of Arbitration for Sport gave her a favorable decision early Monday in part because she is a minor, known as a "protected person,'' and is subject to different rules from an adult athlete. For additional commentary by Bako please email mike@dailynational.com For more information, visit DailyNational.com Contact Details YourUpdateTV +1 212-736-2727 yourupdatetv@gmail.com

February 15, 2022 10:25 AM Eastern Standard Time

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COMCAST’S SMALL BUSINESS SUPPORT PROGRAM EXPANDS ELIGIBILITY TO ALL WOMEN BUSINESS OWNERS HIT HARDEST BY THE PANDEMIC

Comcast Houston

Comcast RISE, a small business support program that’s helped more than 500 Houston-area businesses with grants and no-cost marketing services and technology makeovers, is now expanding eligibility to all women business owners who have been impacted by the pandemic. All women business owners — regardless of race or ethnicity— can now apply through June 17, 2022 at www.ComcastRise.com. Comcast RISE, which stands for Representation, Investment, Strength and Empowerment, is a multi-year commitment to support small businesses owned by people of color through advancing digital equity — a concept that recognizes everyone’s life circumstances are different and underrepresented small businesses should have access to the digital and marketing tools necessary to be successful in a digital world. The expansion of eligibility comes after Comcast RISE celebrated its one-year anniversary. Nationally, the program provided more than $60 million in grants, no-cost marketing and technology services to more than 6,700 small businesses owned by people of color, including Black, Indigenous, Hispanic, and Asian Americans, among others. Of the 6,700 Comcast RISE recipients to date, nearly 70% are businesses owned by women of color, which spurred Comcast to take a deeper look into the unique challenges faced by women entrepreneurs. According to a study by the National Association of Women Business Owners, 42% of businesses in the U.S. are owned by women, with more than 1,800 new businesses being started every day. That’s nearly five times the national average. However, according to the same study, women-owned businesses are growing at only half the rate of those run by men, namely because women struggle to access capital and other resources to help them succeed. In 2021, Houston-area woman-owned small businesses like All Real Radio, LAMIK Beauty, and Connect The Dots PR, were awarded either grants and/or digital tools needed to thrive and support their respective communities. The business owners serve as ambassadors to the program. Over the next 10 years, Comcast is committing $1 billion to programs, like Comcast RISE, and partnerships to reach an estimated 50 million people with the skills, opportunities, and resources they need to succeed in an increasingly digital world. In addition to women-owned businesses, all businesses owned by people of color are encouraged to apply for the chance to receive no-cost consulting, media and creative production services from Effectv, the advertising sales division of Comcast Cable, or technology upgrades from Comcast Business. About Comcast Corporation Comcast Corporation (Nasdaq: CMCSA) is a global media and technology company that connects people to moments that matter. We are principally focused on broadband, aggregation, and streaming with 57 million customer relationships across the United States and Europe. We deliver broadband, wireless, and video through our Xfinity, Comcast Business, and Sky brands; create, distribute, and stream leading entertainment, sports, and news through Universal Filmed Entertainment Group, Universal Studio Group, Sky Studios, the NBC and Telemundo broadcast networks, multiple cable networks, Peacock, NBCUniversal News Group, NBC Sports, Sky News, and Sky Sports; and provide memorable experiences at Universal Parks and Resorts in the United States and Asia. Visit www.comcastcorporation.com for more information. About Comcast Business Comcast Business offers a suite of Connectivity, Communications, Networking, Cybersecurity, Wireless, and Managed Solutions to help organizations of different sizes prepare for what’s next. Powered by the nation’s largest Gig-speed broadband network, and backed by 24/7 customer support, Comcast Business is the nation’s largest cable provider to small and mid-size businesses and one of the leading service providers to the Enterprise market. Comcast Business has been consistently recognized by industry analysts and associations as a leader and innovator, and one of the fastest growing providers of Ethernet services. For more information, call 866-429-3085. Follow on Twitter @ComcastBusiness and on other social media networks at http://business.comcast.com/social. About Effectv Effectv, the advertising sales division of Comcast Cable, helps local, regional, and national advertisers use the best of digital with the power of TV to grow their business. It provides multi-screen marketing solutions to make advertising campaigns more effective and easier to execute. Headquartered in New York with offices throughout the country, Effectv has a presence in 66 markets with nearly 35 million owned and represented subscribers. For more information, visit www.effectv.com. Contact Details Foti Kallergis +1 832-986-0196 Foti_Kallergis@comcast.com Company Website https://houston.comcast.com/

February 15, 2022 07:02 AM Central Standard Time

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News Direct, an Alternative Wire Service, Selects Texture Capital’s Online Marketplace for Digital Security Offering

Texture Capital

Texture Capital Inc., a leading digital asset securities broker-dealer, today announced that News Direct, an advanced news and content distribution service designed to meet the demands of modern media outreach, has selected Texture’s online marketplace for their digital security offering. Texture Capital will support capital raising News Direct digital securities, which can also become eligible for trading on Texture's marketplace in the future providing News Direct investors with secondary market liquidity opportunities not typically available to investors in private securities. News Direct aims to redefine the staid, decades-old newswire industry with access to an expansive global network of media agencies, news outlets, and trade press—via an automated, secure, and collaborative workflow that eliminates the costly, time-consuming, and outdated editorial layer of traditional providers, all with no word count or geographic-based pricing parameters. The company is dedicated to providing a best-in-class distribution platform to support the communications needs of a diverse customer base, including PR, investor relations, corporate communications professionals, and content marketers, to help manage, execute, and measure their communications programs. Unique functionality supports the dissemination of expanded multimedia formats such as infographics, video, and images as independent, standalone assets, and the organization places an emphasis on secure access and robust analytics. “News Direct’s comprehensive and API-driven, cloud-based platform is the model for services organizations today,” said Richard Johnson, CEO of Texture Capital. “Having used the platform ourselves, we believe the team has struck a chord with the market and appreciate their focuses on security, workflow, analytics, and overall ease of use. We are proud to welcome News Direct to our platform, and are excited to continue working with them throughout 2022 and beyond.” “Having spent more than 32 years at one of the industry's leading providers, including the last seven as president, I started News Direct because I knew the category was dominated by incumbents that had grown change-averse and overly protective of a historically lucrative, but increasingly outdated, business and service model," said Gregg Castano, Founder and CEO of News Direct. “We’re delivering a novel, reimagined, and simplified workflow to meet the needs of 21st century professionals across communications, PR, investor relations, content marketing, and other segments. As we continue to invest in expanding our team and breaking new ground technologically, working with a partner like Texture Capital—whose entrepreneurial philosophy reflects our own—is an exciting milestone for News Direct.” To learn more about how News Direct plans to shake up the legacy newswire industry, please register here for our informational webinar. About Texture Capital Texture Capital, the institutional marketplace for private capital, is a technology-driven marketplace for institutions and issuers to more efficiently and directly participate in the private markets, improving liquidity, transparency, and access. We leverage blockchain technology and smart contracts to streamline the current market structure for private placements; supporting the primary issuance and secondary trading of digital securities through a regulated broker- dealer and a registered ATS. Please visit https://texture.capital for more information and to stay informed of future updates. About News Direct News Direct is an advanced news and content distribution service designed to meet the demands of modern media outreach. News Direct delivers a completely reimagined distribution workflow, revitalized measurement, and high quality service for highly dynamic, efficient, and flexible distribution. News Direct was founded by Gregg Castano, longtime president of Business Wire. With an insider’s understanding of media outreach, and expertise in strategic planning and management, Gregg leveraged his unique perspective and insight to create a brand new, purpose-built platform for news distribution—News Direct. Investment disclaimer: An investment in News Direct is speculative, involves a high degree of risk and that investors must be prepared to bear the economic risk of their investment for an indefinite period of time and be able to withstand a total loss of their investment. Blockchain is a new technology and unproven in financial markets. There is no guarantee that tokenization will enable any secondary market liquidity in the future and your investment may remain illiquid. Potential investors are strongly advised to consult their legal, tax and financial advisors before investing. Contact Details Karen Morgan +1 917-921-8685 kmorgan@texture.capital Company Website https://www.texture.capital

February 15, 2022 07:00 AM Eastern Standard Time

QX Global Group Acquires Management Consulting & Advisory Services Firm Chazey Partners

QX Global Group

Together QX Global Group and Chazey Partners will provide end-to-end Business Transformation, Digital Services & Intelligent Automation, and Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) for Fortune 1000 companies and public sector organizations, including higher education, across the globe. QX Global Group, a Top 100 Business Process Outsourcing company, announced the acquisition of an 80% stake in Austin, Texas-based Chazey Partners, a world-class management consulting and advisory firm specializing in business and digital transformation. The Chazey Partners team brings decades of experience in implementing and operating world-class business support and shared services organizations around the globe, with expertise in Robotic Process Automation (RPA) and Artificial Intelligence (AI). Together, QX and Chazey Partners will work to deliver innovative solutions that cover transformative consulting, digital services, and business process outsourcing, customized to meet each client’s specific needs. “At QX, we have always focused on enabling transformation of our client’s businesses using our unique 3P approach of people, process, and platform, and we are thrilled that the addition of Chazey will allow us to help organizations solve their most significant barrier to growth – digital adoption and business transformation at scale, said Frank Robinson, Group CEO of QX Global Group. “Adding Chazey furthers our vision to provide integrated, end-to-end solutions to help our customers take advantage of the latest operating models and emerging technologies. I am also delighted to officially welcome Phil Searle onto QX Global Group’s Board as Chief Transformation Officer.” Chazey brings to the QX Global Group management consulting and advisory services with a global reach. Founded in 2006, Chazey Partners has demonstrated consistent and significant growth, with global representation in the United States, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Costa Rica, Colombia, Ireland, Turkey, and India. Chazey’s consultants provide advice, support, and implementation expertise, covering strategy setting, business case production, program management, process optimization, technology enablement, training, and change management. “ Since founding the company, we have significantly expanded and evolved Chazey’s solutions to help numerous businesses and public sector organizations achieve operational excellence by transforming their business operations,’’ said Phil Searle, CEO and Founder of Chazey Partners. ‘’With QX, we have found a shared passion for empowering our clients to achieve world-class performance. By joining forces with QX, we will augment our near-shoring and offshoring capabilities by opening new Centers of Excellence (COEs) in India and Latin America. This is an exciting new chapter for Chazey Partners, our employees, and our customers.” The partnership of both trusted brands comes at a time when enterprises across the globe are adjusting to the post-pandemic world. In this environment, Chazey Partners is at the forefront of offering needed transformation solutions, helping enterprises optimize business operations and adopt the latest technologies for sustained growth. The QX-Chazey partnership will enable all clients to achieve a faster return on investment and add more value to their customers and employees. Barbara Hodge, Global Digital Editor at the Shared Services & Outsourcing Network (SSON), said, “This marks an exciting and timely development in the shared services and outsourcing space. SSON has collaborated with Chazey Partners for many years, and I am pleased to see such a highly respected group in the field of business transformation push forwards in extending its services to provide enterprise customers with the more holistic solutions they need right now. Adding Chazey Partners’ transformation capabilities to QX Global Groups’ BPO services, drives an end-to-end solution that connects consulting, digital and business process outsourcing. This aligns perfectly with the move to integrated business services, digitalization – driven by intelligent automation – and data analytics, that we are seeing across the shared services landscape. It’s also consistent with service providers moving to a ‘one-stop-shop’ solution for business transformation and digital needs. I am delighted at this news and look forward to engaging with the new partnership.” For QX Global Group: Corbett Keeling, London, and J. Sloan & Co, Dallas, Texas, provided corporate finance and transaction advice for QX Global Group; BDO LLP provided Due Diligence support across all entity geographies; legal support was provided by Munsch Hardt Kopf & Harr, P.C. For Chazey Partners: Sett & Lucas acted as transaction advisor, and Jackson Walker LLP provided legal support. About QX Global Group QX Global Group is a leading provider of business process management services. With over 17 years of accounting and recruitment process outsourcing experience, we help our clients unlock business value by improving process efficiencies and automation in the accounting and recruitment functions to enable business transformation. We have offices in the UK, USA, Canada, Australia, and India. About Chazey Partners Chazey Partners is a practitioner-led, global management consulting and advisory services firm. We bring real-life, practical, hands-on experience, empowering clients to strive for world-class performance, through Business Transformation, Shared Services, and Intelligent Automation. We help businesses and public sector organizations achieve operational excellence in the provision of mission-critical business services, including Finance, Human Resources, IT, Procurement, Contact Centers, Marketing, and Facilities Management. For over sixteen years, Chazey Partners has helped clients implement successful service delivery solutions; in the US & Canada, Latin America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Oceania, and Asia. Contact Details QX Global Group Vishal Kurani +44 20 8146 0808 vishal.kurani@qxglobalgroup.com Chazey Partners Leigh Knowles +1 855-692-6229 LeighKnowles@chazeypartners.com Company Website https://qxglobalgroup.com/

February 14, 2022 09:55 AM Eastern Standard Time

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