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Cloud Conventions 2021 Redefines the Attendee Experience

Convey Services

Engagement will be the big focus of the Cloud Conventions 2021 virtual trade expo, as channel partners and professionals from across the telecom/cloud, mobility, MSP and IT services industries converge one of the largest and most innovative virtual events, May 12-14, 2021. Unlike other industry tradeshows that have failed to deliver attendee engagement and promised sales leads for exhibitors, Cloud Conventions 2021 is built on the next generation virtual event platform that redefines the exhibitor experience to allow companies to provide easy access to in-depth product information, showcase their brand with graphics and videos, create calls to action and generate immediate sales leads. "Everyone had to quickly pivot to virtual events in 2020, but there was a lack of focus on motivational design that resulted in boring, uninspired attendee experiences,” said Carolyn Bradfield, CEO of Convey Services, the platform provider for Cloud Conventions 2021. “Virtual events often deliver a stream of self-promoting webinars packaged and sold as a virtual event, when they’re really just a bunch of webinars. Cloud Conventions 2021 provides one of the most unique vendor showcase environments, coupled with content devoted to business strategy and opportunities for attendees to connect with their peers and exhibitors. Effective events need to inform, educate and engage, not just lecture. We keep attendees engaged and interested, connect them to others and give all parties a return on investment for both their time and money.” Under the umbrella of Community™, Convey’s suite of proprietary engagement tools, attendees have searchable attendee and exhibitor directories, access to discussion forums and a way to filter results to find the best match. Coupled with a message center to organize communications, booths feature one-on-one text chat along a one-click links to enter a live video discussion with booth staff. “2020 was a learning experience for everyone in what audiences expect from a virtual event,” added Bradfield. “We have to elevate our game in 2021 as tradeshows and conferences continue to have a virtual or hybrid component. Cloud Conventions 2021 makes the most of the virtual event platform powered by Convey Services. It incorporates motivational design to turn attendees and exhibitors into active participants. Attendees are invited to engage in forums, roundtable discussions, participate in networking events, register for prizes and access live or on-demand content.” Cloud Conventions 2021 is co-sponsored by TR Publications and managed by the MCI Group. MCI Group is committed to growing the Cloud Conventions 2021 event and returning in the spring of 2022 with a live and hybrid industry expo. Attendance at Cloud Conventions 2021 is free to qualified industry professionals. Exhibitors and attendees can sign up at Cloud Conventions 2021. The Cloud Conventions 2021 expo is hosted and managed on the industry-leading Cloud Conventions virtual event platform, powered by Convey Services. About TR Publications TR Publications reaches 50,000 telecom/cloud professionals from across the communications delivery community: enterprise end users, channel partners, MSPs, carriers and CLECs. It is the only publication that penetrates deeply into the core UC markets, both channel and IT management: 37,000 readers monthly by hard copy, 1,800 readers daily by online, 13,000 readers every week by eBulletin, 2,500 listeners each week by podcast. Channel readership represent the twelve largest OEM and solution providing communities, together reflecting 96% of all UC sales by revenues on equipment, services, premises, hosted, software solutions and other platforms. www.telecomreseller.com. About MCI Group MCI is a global engagement and marketing agency. We design human-centric solutions that unleash the power of people to deliver innovation and growth for our clients. Our offering includes live & virtual events, strategic & digital communications, consulting & community solutions. We help brands, companies, associations and not-for-profits solve their challenges, bringing their people together to shape their tomorrow. MCI is an independently owned company headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, with a global presence in 60 offices across 31 countries. www.mci-group.com About Cloud Conventions Cloud Conventions is a Virtual Trade Show and Conference Platform from Convey Services that brings new capabilities to a marketplace looking for solutions to replace the thousands of live trade shows, annual conferences and association meetings cancelled in the wake of COVID-19. Cloud Conventions automates exhibitors and virtual booths, attendee registration, speaker sessions and reminders, invitations and email communication, while at the same time producing detailed analytics on attendee, session and exhibitor activity. Trade Associations and event managers can explore all of the Cloud Conventions solutions by visiting https://cloudconventions.com or contacting info@cloudconventions.com or call 888-975-1382. Contact Details Convey Services Bruce Ahern +1 770-580-0810 bahern@conveyservices.com Company Website https://cloudconventions.com

March 10, 2021 02:15 PM Eastern Standard Time

Velocity Global Report: Tech companies push remote work global

Velocity Global

65% of U.S. companies will increase or maintain global remote workforces this year 61% of U.S. companies to increase or maintain domestic remote teams Growth companies compete with enterprises for global talent Technology companies seek more global remote talent as a result of COVID-19 according to a new report from Velocity Global, the leading provider of global expansion solutions. Responses from 1,000 U.S. and UK tech company decision-makers highlight that 65% of U.S. tech companies and 46% of UK tech companies will maintain or increase their global remote workforce this year. “The global pandemic forced the biggest workforce shift in modern history as businesses adopted remote work en masse overnight, and the changes are permanent,” said Velocity Global founder and CEO Ben Wright. “The worker fundamentally separated from the workplace, including transcending borders. Companies now use the tech tools and manage remote teams almost exclusively. The comfort level rose in 2020 and companies seek top talent around the world like never before.” Remote Work By the Numbers The switch to remote work in response to the pandemic inspired lasting change for tech companies to seek and employ talent outside of their headquarters or employee centers. Remote work at home. Tech companies immediately enabled work from home with the onset of the pandemic. With the tools in place, 61% of U.S. tech companies and 52% of UK tech companies intend to maintain or increase a domestic remote workforce. Scale aids global remote shift. Of the U.S. tech companies (65%) and UK tech companies (46%) with plans to maintain or increase a global remote workforce, large companies lead the charge. However, smaller companies are not far behind. 34% of tech businesses with more than 500 employees are more likely to hire remote workers overseas 27% of companies with 200-500 employees 21% for companies with 100-199 employees 10% for companies with fewer than 100 employees “The global scale of the pandemic forced large enterprises to invest in remote work at scale, but smaller companies are positioned to accelerate the trend going forward,” added Wright. “Growth companies are built with agility to compete with larger companies in all facets of business, and these numbers indicate they must compete for top global talent. That competition forces businesses of all sizes to hire quickly and compliantly in any global market.” Benefits of a Remote Workforce The shift to remote work increases productivity, supplements the bottom line, and engages employees. Employee preference. 74% of U.S. employees prefer to work from home at least two days per week once COVID-19 is no longer a concern, according to a PwC survey this year. Nearly a third (29%) prefer to work remotely five days per week. In the UK, only 7% of UK workers want to return to the office following pandemic restrictions, according to leading international research data and analytics group, UK YouGov. Improved productivity. More than half (52%) of executives in the PwC research report an increase in productivity for remote teams during the stress of the pandemic. Culturally diverse teams earn better returns. Geographically dispersed teams bring diversity of culture, race, and ethnicity. Companies that rank higher in diversity are 35% more likely to see above-average financial performance in their industries, according to longstanding research by McKinsey & Company. Access to skilled talent. Access to the global talent pools allows companies to hire the best candidate for the position, not the candidates closest to the office. Increased recruitment and retention. Remote work improves recruitment and retention for employers. A recent LiveCareer study of remote employees during the pandemic found that 62% stated that in the future they will give preference to employers who offer remote work; while 29% said they will leave their current job if they are not allowed to continue working remotely. Lower costs. A company can save tens of thousands of dollars annually per remote worker who telecommutes half of the time. Last year Global Workplace Analytics found that companies identified real estate savings with full-time telework to equal $10,000 per employee (annually). That research points to companies like Sun Microsystems that saves $68 million annually in real estate costs due to its telecommuting policy. “The benefits of a global remote workforce span business metrics from the employee experience to the bottom line, which go hand in hand” said Wright. “The past year introduced a widespread benefit to employees - work from anywhere. Spend more time with family or friends, save time and money on a commute, live anywhere and get a job in any market. When that benefit matches increased productivity, retention, and lower costs businesses must move quickly to implement remote teams on a global scale or risk losing talent to competitors.” Download the complete infographic here. Methodology Velocity Global surveyed 500 U.S. and 500 UK decision-makers from companies with 50-1,000 employees, focused on the IT, software, hardware, and technology industries. Respondents are director level and above, including C-suite, in the following job functions: business development, legal and business management, finance, operations, and HR. Independent survey consultant, Censuswide, conducted the research. ABOUT VELOCITY GLOBAL Velocity Global helps companies grow globally. Founded in 2014, Velocity Global’s clients rely on its expertise and global infrastructure in 185 countries to hire compliantly around the world, increase revenue, scale efficiently, and access global talent. Named a “Leader” in Global Employer of Record services by prominent analyst firm NelsonHall, Velocity Global is a strategic partner to its clients with comprehensive services led by its core offering of International PEO as well as Immigration, Entity Setup and Support, Global Talent Acquisition, and Consulting. Velocity Global is headquartered in Denver, Colorado, with regional headquarters in Amsterdam and Singapore, and local employees in 14 countries. Contact Details Velocity Global John Hall +1 720-650-4348 johnhall@velocityglobal.com Company Website https://velocityglobal.com/

March 10, 2021 07:01 AM Mountain Standard Time

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Fintech MarketFinance reaches profitability as it returns a record start to the year

Stockwood Strategy

Fintech business lender MarketFinance has kicked off 2021 with a significant increase in lending volumes. Year to date, MarketFinance has deployed over £64m in business loans and invoice finance to businesses across the UK. This is up 50% from the same period last year. As a CBILS accredited lender by the British Business Bank, MarketFinance has been at the forefront of supporting SME businesses throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. Profit landmark MarketFinance has played a pivotal role in supporting SMEs. It has provided over £2bn to the most underserved businesses, giving them access to the working capital they need. MarketFinance announced that it turned profitable in February 2021 and will continue to grow at pace as the business scales products and operations. Anil Stocker, CEO at MarketFinance said: “The pandemic has sped up digital adoption across large parts of our society. Business lending is no different. We are seeing a continuing need to provide fast, easy-to-access, digitally available funding solutions to SMEs across all sectors within the UK. Fintech lenders such as MarketFinance are well placed to help power the post-Covid economic recovery across the country.” Partnerships In reaching a wide range of businesses, MarketFinance has deepened its 2018 partnership with Barclays Bank helping more of their business banking customers with invoice finance funding. In September 2020 MarketFinance also partnered with fellow fintech Ebury to ensure SMEs across the UK were able to quickly access the emergency lending, offering loans and revolving credit facilities to Ebury’s UK SME base. Aligning with their £10m BCR commitments, MarketFinance is continuing to partner with high-street banks and business platforms to enable more businesses to access the right financial solutions for them. Anil Stocker added: “A key part of our strategy is partnering with organisations who want to improve access to finance for their business customers. Our mission has always been to give SMEs a fair playing field for them to get access to working capital. We’re now working with partners to embed our finance technology within their platforms, allowing their customers quicker and easier access to the working capital they need.” ENDS Notes to the Editor About MarketFinance MarketFinance is a busi ness finance company with offices in London and Manchester. The online platform enables businesses to access a range of flexible finance solutions - quickly and easily. This smart technology is backed by help from real people so business owners can save time and focus on growing their business. Since 2011, MarketFinance has cumulatively advanced over £3 billion to companies across a range of sizes and sectors, providing working capital and finance for everything from paying staff and suppliers to launching new products or services and accelerating growth. MarketFinance is backed by Barclays, Mouro Capital, European venture capital fund Northzone (invested in Klarna, iZettle and Trustpilot), and private equity group MCI Capital (also invested in iZettle, Azimo and Gett). Contact Details MarketFinance Bilal Mahmood +44 7714 007257 b.mahmood@marketfinance.com Company Website https://marketfinance.com/

March 10, 2021 05:00 AM Eastern Standard Time

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News Direct Cutting-Edge, Cloud-Based Technology Helps Protect Clients From Latest Cybersecurity Crisis

News Direct

News Direct today announced that it has not been impacted by the latest cybersecurity crisis revelation that at least 60,000 global users of Microsoft's Exchange email platform have been hacked by a Chinese group that Microsoft refers to as "Hafnium". News Direct cites its reliance on cloud-based systems, part of its "lean architecture" strategy, as a primary reason why it has not been affected by this breach. Leveraging a highly economical, cloud-based technological infrastructure for both its client-facing platform and its internal systems such as e-mail, News Direct is able to provide its users with an array of modern advantages. These include a custom-built, automated workflow and operating a state-of-the-art news and content distribution platform devoid of the high overhead costs of the past, thereby allowing those savings to be passed through to the customer. But perhaps most importantly, this approach enables the company to more effectively respond to today's unique security challenges. "As too many have learned the hard way, nobody is bullet-proof, and it would be foolish to claim otherwise. Nonetheless, we believe that News Direct is the safest news distribution platform available today," noted Gregg Castano, Founder/CEO. "As a cloud service provider, our belief in using cloud-based technology for both our own platform and for our internal systems was a fortuitous strategy which has enabled us to avoid getting caught up in this most recent breach." About News Direct News Direct provides news and content distribution for PR, IR, Corporate Communications and Marketing professionals. Our automated platform delivers a completely-reimagined, intuitive workflow, industry-leading security, transparent, flat-rate pricing and actionable analytics. Further, News Direct has deployed an array of innovation including advanced automation, isolation cloud technology and custom software for the most dynamic, efficient and flexible platform available today. To learn more visit newsdirect.com or follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram or YouTube. Contact Details Martha Pearlstone +1 203-295-7566 martha.pearlstone@newsdirect.com Company Website http://www.newsdirect.com

March 09, 2021 02:42 PM Eastern Standard Time

DistroScale Breaks the Barrier to Entry for Streaming TV Channel Creation, Monetization, and Distribution with New DistroTV Platform Services™

DistroTV

DistroScale, a leading media technology company with the industry’s most comprehensive video platform for webs, apps, and streaming, today announced its new DistroTV Platform Services™ unit, aimed at publishers, content creators, video libraries, brands and agencies. This new offering significantly lowers the barrier to market entry for any media brand interested in creating, monetizing, and distributing its own streaming TV channel. “Channel creation used to only be accessible to content owners with big budgets and infrastructure,” said Navdeep Saini, co-founder and CEO of DistroScale, parent company to DistroTV. “Given how quickly streaming evolved from a niche to a standard media consumption platform, we saw a need to create a solution that would reduce any perceived cost, complexity, and risk barriers that were preventing media brands from making the leap to OTT.” With no upfront fees, DistroTV Platform Services offers a comprehensive range of tools necessary to develop and execute successful streaming video platforms, from technical infrastructure and curation to monetization and distribution. 40-plus content brands have piloted the new Platform Services offering including Black Enterprise, which turned to DistroTV Platform Services to transform and monetize its video library into its first ad-supported streaming channel, as well as partners Us Weekly, Lone Star, Best of British TV (BoB TV), Pinoy Box Office (PBO), and more. The new business-to-business unit complements the company’s consumer-facing DistroTV platform, the leading, independent FAST (free, ad-support streaming TV). DistroTV’s growing, multicultural content lineup targets a diverse lineup of independent programming for passionate viewers in the US, Canada, and the UK. DistroTV provides today’s brands an opportunity to build a direct-to-consumer relationship with DistroScale and its network partners. Since its launch in 2019, DistroTV has seen rapid growth concerning its breadth of content and global audience figures. In the last six months, viewership quadrupled and total watch time multiplied eight times over. The platform focuses on building a robust network that delivers news, entertainment, music, sports, and lifestyle programming to audiences globally. “We bring expertise and efficiency to our approach, so that content companies no longer have to invest millions to be ‘streaming-ready’,” said Saini. “Our business model is unique and rooted in a solid and continuously improving technical infrastructure. We assume the risk so our content partners and brands can focus on leveraging our platform to execute their audience objectives. Extending our platform to put the power of streaming in reach of more voices and more content partners is a big part of our mission and equally a big part of why we have built the largest truly independent streaming TV service. Our diverse content line-up resonates with audiences who can’t find what we offer on any other platform.” Through Platform Services, interested media companies, publishers, content creators, video libraries, and brands and agencies can: Create and build a streaming TV strategy. Build, manage, and program linear and VOD streaming channels with a full-featured, cloud-based platform that is both easy to use and affordable. Monetize with dynamic ad insertion technology. This allows media companies, creators, and brands to simply leverage advertising demand and earn revenue from the DistroScale Marketplace, or run their own advertising. Opt for syndicated distribution. DistroTV offers syndicated distribution to make it easy for channel partners to reach tens of millions of new users, with a flexible cost structure that saves thousands as compared to similar services. To learn more on DistroTV Platform Services, visit here. To become a DistroTV viewer, visit https://www.distro.tv or install DistroTV on Roku, Amazon Fire TV, Apple TV, iOS or Android. About DistroTV DistroTV is the largest, independent, free, ad-supported streaming television service on the market. Launched in 2019 by parent company DistroScale, the platform caters to a multicultural, rapidly expanding, globally-minded audience of passionate viewers in the US, Canada, and UK. Satisfying the growing demand for premium video content in multiple languages, DistroTV delivers premium video content from producers globally across North America, the UK, Bollywood, Latin America, China, Southeast Asia, and growing. With more than 150 channels plus thousands of Video on Demand (VOD) shows, DistroTV cultivates content that covers a broad spectrum of topics to connect with people’s passion points around Entertainment, Lifestyle, Sports, News, Documentaries and International Content in live, linear and video-on-demand formats. DistroTV is available on the web, as well as through Roku, Amazon Fire TV, Apple TV, and iOS and Android devices. About DistroScale DistroTV is the first direct-to-consumer offering from DistroScale, a technology company founded in 2013 and known for providing a global clientele of thousands of media properties with the industry’s most comprehensive video platform for web, apps, and streaming. DistroScale is an all-in-one solution providing infrastructure, content delivery, curation, analytics and a full suite of monetization options. Video enabled by DistroScale reaches more than 250 million visitors per month. The company is headquartered in San Francisco, CA. To become a DistroTV viewer, visit www.distro.tv. More information on DistroScale & DistroTV is available at www.distroscale.com. Contact Details Kite Hill PR Mackenzie Gavel +1 631-739-5716 mackenzie@kitehillpr.com Company Website https://www.distroscale.com

March 09, 2021 09:00 AM Eastern Standard Time

Telenor Global Services Selects CSG to Accelerate Its Digital Transformation

CSG

CSG® (NASDAQ: CSGS) today announced an extension of their multi-year agreement with Telenor Global Services. As part of the expanded engagement, CSG will deploy its innovative, cloud-based digital wholesale solution suite to simplify and streamline Telenor’s operations. “To enhance customer experience and foster a more efficient business model, our goal is to be fully cloud-based this year,” said Tone Snellingen, chief sales officer, Telenor Global Services. “Using CSG’s digital wholesale solution suite, we can increase quality, speed, and responsiveness for our customers, while driving efficiencies through development and process improvements. Our relationship with CSG will not only help accelerate our digital transformation, but also leverage the cloud to reduce complexities and simplify our network operations.” CSG is shifting Telenor’s on-premise wholesale network to a cloud-based SaaS system that will optimise the operator’s routing, enable hands-on control, increase visibility in its intercarrier business, and lower capital and operating expenditures. In addition, CSG’s digital wholesale solution: • Drives efficiencies and new functionalities: Uses one single point of contact, allowing Telenor to focus on the business of trading and routing traffic while driving efficiencies and providing new functionality. • Grows revenue: Provides full support for origin-based routing and optimised features for network provisioning, positioning Telenor to stay on top of their cost base, grow revenue, and quickly update numbering plans. • Enhances customer experience (CX): CSG will support Telenor in creating bespoke customer products and the ability to react quickly to customer demands for individual routing and pricing. “As Telenor looks to extend its industry leadership, we are excited to leverage our digital wholesale expertise to help them automate their business processes, manage risk, and control costs,” said James Kirby, head of CSG's EMEA business. “We are thrilled to be expanding our 15-year relationship with Telenor by delivering this critical transformation and helping to move their wholesale business into the cloud and into the future.” CSG is a leader in the global communications market with a long-standing track record delivering innovative digital wholesale solutions in disciplines including trading, routing, QoS assurance and inter-carrier billing and settlement. The company serves more than 300 operators and service providers worldwide, including more than half of companies that make up the ITW Global Leaders’ Forum. # # # About CSG For more than 35 years, CSG has simplified the complexity of business, delivering innovative customer engagement solutions that help companies acquire, monetize, engage and retain customers. Operating across more than 120 countries worldwide, CSG manages billions of critical customer interactions annually, and its award-winning suite of software and services allow companies across dozens of industries to tackle their biggest business challenges and thrive in an ever-changing marketplace. CSG is the trusted provider for driving digital innovation for hundreds of leading global brands, including Airtel Africa, América Móvil, AT&T, Charter Communications, Comcast, DISH, Formula 1, Hutchison 3 Indonesia, Inmarsat, Mastercard, Maximus, Mediacom, Microsoft, Mobily, MTN, New Leaf Service Contracts, State of California, TalkTalk and Telstra. To learn more, visit our website at csgi.com and connect with us on LinkedIn and Twitter. Copyright © 2021 CSG Systems International, Inc. and/or its affiliates (“CSG”). All rights reserved. CSG® is a registered trademark of CSG Systems International, Inc. All third-party trademarks, service marks, and/or product names which are referenced in this document are the property of their respective owners, and all rights therein are reserved. About Telenor Telenor Group connects its 182 million customers to what matters most. Connecting the world has been Telenor’s domain for more than 160 years and we currently operate across Scandinavia and Asia. We are committed to responsible business conduct and driven by the ambition of empowering societies. Telenor Global Services is the international communication provider of Telenor Group, connecting countries and offering global reach with managed quality to customers worldwide. We deliver high quality interconnect solutions within Voice, Roaming and Messaging; providing you with the world at hand wherever you are. To learn more please visit www.telenor.com/globalwholesale. Contact Details CSG Global, North America, Asia-Pacific Brad Jones +1 303-200-3001 brad.jones@csgi.com CSG Europe, Middle East, Africa Kristine Østergaard +44 (0)79 2047 7204 kristine.ostergaard@csgi.com CSG Investor Relations John Rea +1 (210) 687 4409 john.rea@csgi.com Telenor Global Services Anne Gundersen +47 94107894 Anne.gundersen@telenor.com Company Website https://www.csgi.com

March 09, 2021 01:00 AM Mountain Standard Time

The LPGA Launches LPGA Live to Drive Virtual Connections with Players and Fans

Notable Live

Notable Live, an interactive Events platform, announced today a new partnership with the Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA), with a goal to enhance and extend the experience of live LPGA events off the course and enable fans, sponsors and spectators to get up close and one-on-one with LPGA Tour Members. With the challenges of in-person gatherings this year, the LPGA wants to ensure the organization continues to find innovative ways to stay connected with fans and sponsors alike by providing them with engaging content and interactive ways to engage with each other. From the LPGA Women’s Network to the LPGA*USGA Girls Golf (Girls Golf) and the LPGA Lesson Zone to the Fan Zone, the LPGA will utilize the Notable Live platform for a set of dynamic virtual events to amplify on-location tournaments, provide continuing education and real-time instruction that will enable face-to-face interaction with fans. “The Notable Live platform gives the LPGA a great opportunity to enable face-to-face, secure interactions between fans, sponsors and our athletes,” said Brian Carroll, the LPGA’s senior vice president of global media distribution. “Even as we progress through these difficult times, we look forward to continuing to grow our digital connections with fans located around the world and help them get to know the many diverse faces who make up the LPGA Tour.” In addition to hosting fan events, the LPGA plans to utilize the platform to integrate its sponsors to further commemorate the events across both the live and virtual experiences. “We are thrilled to have the trailblazing team at the LPGA on board with our mission to celebrate the passion of fans and make more connections possible between them and the LPGA professionals they admire,” said Notable Live co-founder Mike Antonucci. “LPGA Live will be an innovative extension of what the organization has traditionally offered in person and will create experiences that will feel like the closest thing to being a live spectator. This, coupled with their mission to deliver unique access to their players, is why we couldn’t be more excited about this partnership.” Together, the LPGA and Notable Live are committed to developing new ways to engage and support players, members and fans in a way that complements the organization’s existing live programming. The first event was held Monday, February 15, with Sandra Gal and members of Girls Golf. To sign up for LPGA Live Events, go to https://lpga.notable.live and create your account to get started. About the LPGA The LPGA is the world’s leading professional golf organization for women. Founded in 1950 and headquartered in Daytona Beach, Fla., the association celebrates a diverse and storied membership with more than 2,300 members representing more than 30 countries. With a vision to inspire, empower, educate and entertain by showcasing the very best of women’s golf, LPGA Tour Professionals compete across the globe, while the Symetra Tour, the official development and qualifying tour of the LPGA, consistently produces a pipeline of talent ready for the world stage. Additionally, LPGA Professionals directly impact the game through teaching, coaching and management. The LPGA demonstrates its dedication to the development of the game through The LPGA Foundation. Since 1991, this charitable organization has been committed to empowering and supporting girls and women through developmental and humanitarian golf initiatives, such as LPGA*USGA Girls Golf. Follow the LPGA on its television home, Golf Channel, and on the web via www.LPGA.com. Join the social conversation at www.facebook.com/lpga, www.twitter.com/lpga and www.youtube.com/lpgavideo, and on Instagram and Snapchat at @lpga_tour. About Notable Live Notable Live was founded in 2018 when a fan, Mike Antonucci, and a pair notables Pat Smith and Emmitt Smith, teamed up to create a truly unique platform focused on providing fans with unparalleled access to their favorite notables via face-to-face, virtual interactive events. Notable Live is a mobile app available on the App Store and Google Play that grants fans real access to notables by putting them "in the room" together for unforgettable virtual experiences. Connect with Notable Live at www.notable.live or on Instagram, Facebook or Twitter. Contact Details Notable Live Alan Bloodgood, SVP Licensing and Operations +1 301-704-8584 alan.bloodgood@notable.live LPGA Christina Lance, Director, Tour Media Christina.lance@lpga.com Company Website https://www.notable.live

March 08, 2021 08:33 AM Eastern Standard Time

CMMC Center of Excellence Announces Engagement Agreement with HKA Technology Solutions

Interoperability Clearinghouse

The Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification Center of Excellence ( CMMC COE ), hosted by the Information Technology Acquisition Advisory Council (IT-AAC), a public-private partnership serving the public and private sectors for more than 15 years, is excited to announce a partnership with HKA Technology Solutions, an IT Governance, Risk, and Compliance (GRC) consulting company providing a wealth of GRC solutions for clients from the U.S. Government to the private sector. This unique partnership will extend efforts to identify and include proven capabilities within the CMMC COE Marketplace to improve cybersecurity protection and resilience for the global defense industrial base network of contractors, vendors, and suppliers. By facilitating results that customers want to reduce costs and risks, HKA provides the CMMC subject matter expertise that creates business value co-creation to help the DIB contractor think critically about establishing, documenting, and testing their CMMC administrative, technical, and physical controls to support the nation’s warfighters. Furthermore, HKA uses a unique Service Value System (SVS) to ensure that within the CMMC Practices and Processes Lifecycle, DIB CMMC practices and processes continuously co-create value with all stakeholders. The executed Engagement Agreement establishes a collaborative engagement between HKA Technology Solutions and the CMMC COE to partner in the furthering of their respective and complementary missions and objectives regarding the adoption, use, and expansion of CMMC based cybersecurity practices, risk management, and compliance for the DIB contractor, vendor, and supplier community of providers creating a broader CMMC ecosystem globally to improve security and resilience. Specific actions will include: The co-development of CMMC advisory services, cyber training and education programs to accelerate CMMC certification, increase cyber adoption and improve cyber protection & resilience. Co-sponsor symposiums, training programs and podcasts leveraging their combined cyber and IT expertise. Host regular working groups, with other partners, to enable collaboration and communications. Establish an independent Industry Cyber Security Advisory Council with peer organizations to advise and educate leaders across government and industry on the continued evolution and effectiveness of CMMC. The CMMC-COE ( http://cmmc-coe.org ) and HKA Technology Solutions partnership will focus on bringing together the many disparate cyber and national security communities of interest to reduce complexity, improve awareness, and accelerate industry effort to become more cyber resilient against the growing threats from nation states and criminal enterprises. “This is exciting opportunity for us”, said Mr. John Weiler, Chairman of the Board at CMMC Center of Excellence, “This new partnership will further help advance the goals and objectives for improving the supply chain security and resilience of the US Department of Defense (DoD)”. "Through the partnership with the CMMC-COE, HKA Technology Solutions scopes, tailors, and publishes CMMC policies, procedures, and standards to safeguard data Confidentiality, Integrity, and Availability for our Defense Industrial Base members who support our nation's warfighters." said Mr. Glenn Axelrod, President & CEO. The CMMC-COE establishes both a Market Place and Knowledge Clearinghouse that will include resources that support the overall effort, including white papers; tutorials; recorded webcasts; presentations; and more that will help reduce the cost and burden on small and medium size contractors already struggling from the impact of COVID. For more information on the CMMC COE, please visit http://cmmc-coe.org, email info@cmmc-coe.org or call 703-863-3766 For more information on HKA Technology Solutions, please visit https://www.hkatechnolgysolutions.com/ About Us ---------- CMMC-COE.ORG is a unique non-profit public-private partnership, with a vision to accelerate Cybersecurity Maturity Model (CMM) adoption, and reduce time & cost for security compliance for our partners by leveraging commercial best practices, CMMC standards, and innovative solutions for a measurable success. Our mission, focused on DOD mission objectives, cost containment and expeditious CMMC compliance, is to help the DIB improve cyber posture and resilience, and simplify its acquisition. The CMMC-COE is hosted by the Information Technology Acquisition Advisory Council (IT-AAC), a public/private partnership (P3) chartered in 2007 as an honest broker to reach outside the confines of the Federal IT advisories that lack dynamic reach into the Global IT Market, and dedicated to the adoption of commercial IT management standards of practice and innovations emanating from the Global IT market. Team IT-AAC has already demonstrated the value of its decade long investment, and provides a unique value to agencies seeking to achieve accelerate the transformation of legacy processes and systems. Our Just-in-Time SMEs apply an innovative suite of Technology Business Management and Agile Acquisition Processes needed to assure the business value of commercial IT. The Interoperability Clearinghouse (ICH), is the managing partner that make up the 24 NGO/SDO organizations that make up the IT-AAC. ICH provides the contract vehicles, clearances, and critical resources proven to guide sustainable, measurable and repeatable processes needed to drive better investment decisions as the speed of mission need, while aligning existing processes, methods and workforce with IT reform mandates contained in Clinger Cohen Act, FITARA, IT MGT Act, EO13838. Contact Details Bob Dix +1 703-975-6633 bob.dix@it-aac.org Company Website https://cmmc-coe.org

March 08, 2021 08:00 AM Eastern Standard Time

Fintern launches consumer lending driven by AI and Open Banking

Stockwood Strategy

The UK consumer lending market is worth £160bn, yet over 15 million people in the UK are denied access to affordable loans. These people are resorting to unsustainable means including high-cost lenders and buy-now-pay-later schemes to manage their lives. Today, digital consumer lender Fintern has launched to radically transform the financial well-being of people with an innovative and sustainable lending approach that goes beyond traditional credit scoring and puts affordability first. Fintern’s next generation credit technology bypasses credit scores in making lending decisions, focusing instead on affordability. Fintern builds relationships with customers helping them to understand how much they really need, how much they can afford to take on, and how they will repay. Fintern integrates its AI platform with Open Banking* to smartly connect the dots in consumers’ banking data enabling Fintern to obtain the most accurate view of borrowers’ affordability and spending behaviour using real time transaction information. Gerald Chappell, CEO and co-founder of Fintern commented: “Fintern will help people to really understand what is affordable for them, rather than offering yet another faceless transactional process. Currently, lenders either lend money or don’t, and then don’t engage with the borrower again until the loan terms ends or payments are missed. “Our success as a lender lies in the ability of our customers to repay their loans. Our AI-powered technology helps us and all our customers to understand their finances in a deeper, more hands-on way than ever before. This approach allows us to increase approval rates, lower APRs and empower our customers to make the best and most responsible borrowing decisions for them.” The approach of banks to personal lending inappropriately results in “computer says no” answers for millions every year. While traditional behavioural credit scoring (the industry’s approach for credit decisioning) works well to separate the highest quality customers from the lowest, it performs poorly in differentiating risk among the majority of people. Often the consumers hardest hit are those who have had historical blips in their credit records or, for example, those people who are new to credit or have moved countries. Dr. Michelle He, COO and co-founder of Fintern added: “We will be closer to our customers than incumbent lenders can ever be, and this will differentiate us in the marketplace. Intelligently integrating AI and Open Banking data disrupts credit decisioning for the better of all customers. Doing it well requires the right experience. Data and technology are Fintern’s bread and butter. We have an amazing team with extensive experience in digital lending and credit analytics. They are customer obsessed and have made the Fintern App a unique experience.” Looking ahead, Gerald Chappell added: “As we emerge from the Covid-19 pandemic, Fintern is needed now more than ever. While many existing lenders are reducing credit supply given the shock to their existing portfolios, Fintern uses high frequency transaction data to understand consumers’ real time financial circumstances and lend responsibly. Over the next 4-5 years, we intend to rapidly grow in the UK building a £1bn loan book alongside broadening our product range and considering expansion to other geographies.” Fintern received its FCA authorisation as a regulated consumer credit lender in February 2021. The co-founders have built an exceptional team that includes credit experts with over 100 years’ experience in finance and technology. Ends * Open Banking regulation requires UK banks to open up customer transaction data in a secure and standardised form, which means the third party providers have access to consumer data from banks via APIs. While the UK is leading globally on Open Banking, adoption is under way in 35 economies. About Fintern Fintern is a digital consumer lender on a mission to expand access to low cost personal finance and transform financial well-being. Fintern’s next generation credit technology bypasses credit scores in making lending decisions, focusing instead on affordability. Fintern builds relationships with customers helping them to understand their repayment capacity and credit appetite. Fintern integrates its AI platform with Open Banking to smartly connect the dots in consumers’ banking data enabling Fintern to obtain the most accurate view of borrowers’ affordability and spending behaviour using up to the minute transaction information. Fintern was founded in 2020 with a team from McKinsey, EY, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, HSBC and XiaoMi. Fintern is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority, firm reference number 929244, a member of Cifas (the UK's leading anti-fraud association) and registered with the UK Information Commissioner's Office in compliance with the Data Protection Regulations 2018. Contact Details Fintern Bilal Mahmood +44 7714 007257 press@fintern.ai Company Website https://fintern.ai/

March 08, 2021 06:00 AM Eastern Standard Time

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