Latest news with #ACCS
The Guardian
29-05-2025
- Health
- The Guardian
Tech trial for Australia's social media ban ‘broadly on track' amid concerns under 16s could circumvent systems
The technology trial for Australia's social media ban is 'broadly on track', the government says, despite a month-long delay of a key report on the best ways to keep under 16s off the platforms. It comes as the company behind the age assurance trial has revealed only one type of technology has been tested on children so far and some internal stakeholder concerns about how young people may circumvent the age ban systems. The federal government has also been sitting on a separate report, costing more than $275,000, that it commissioned last year on Australians' attitudes to age assurance technology. It was delivered to the government on 2 January but has not yet been released. The UK-based company recruited to run the trial, Age Check Certification Scheme (ACCS), was due to publish its age assurance report in June. The report will focus on what technology could be used to prevent under 16s gaining access to social media and under 18s accessing adult websites. The federal communications department has confirmed the ACCS report would now be delivered in July, and the minister would decide when to publish it, a spokesperson said. 'The independent trial of age assurance technologies remains broadly on track, in line with project delivery timeframes,' the spokesperson said. Briefing documents from Senate estimates in February, released under freedom of information laws, stated the final report 'is due in June 2025'. ACCS had previously stated the report was due 'at the end of June', and it would independently publish it. One of the first tasks for the new communications minister, Labor's Anika Wells, will be to assess the outcome of the trial, to decide which technologies are applicable and to which platforms they will apply. Sign up for Guardian Australia's breaking news email Affected platforms must have age assurance systems in place by December. Wells must be satisfied that the platforms – expected to include Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and Snapchat – are taking reasonable steps to stop under 16s accessing their services. In an update on the age assurance trial from ACCS last week, it said the only type of technology trialed so far is facial age estimation tech, which examines a photo or video of a user to try to estimate the age based on their facial features. A total of 1,580 tests have been conducted on 485 students, in years 7 to 12. Aside from this testing, further work has been limited to interviews with dozens of potential vendors, and statements outlining how their age ban enforcement technology could work. The trial will try to confirm those claims through 'a combination of practical testing and a vendor interview'. About half of the interviews have been completed. Technologies deemed sufficiently mature to include in the final report will be tested by another company – the Australian-owned KJR – or through schools testing or mystery-shopper type testing. Mystery-shopper testing is a 'real-world environment, where users will have a variety of equipment, light conditions and access to required resources, be that an ID document or a bank account'. ACCS said there will only be 'enough testing' to confirm claims made by vendors 'and that may be achieved with a relatively modest level of practical experimentation'. The March meeting minutes for the stakeholder advisory board overseeing the trial reported stakeholders had raised concerns about gaps in the testing, particularly around how children may circumvent the age ban systems. A spokesperson for the department said a preliminary report, provided in April but not released publicly, gave the government 'anticipated findings in relation to age verification, age estimation, age inference, successive validation, parental control and parental consent methods'. Sources close to the trial told Guardian Australia they believed it was unlikely the report on the trial would be finalised by the due date – or that if it was, it would have not been adequate to inform government decisionmaking on the best technology to use. One concern raised was that other countries, including New Zealand and the United States, are looking to Australia's trial to guide their own plans. Those who supported the policy wanted it implemented correctly, rather than rushed through with technology that could later present privacy or other issues. The Social Research Centre was commissioned in August, and paid $278,000, to research attitudes to age assurance. This included an online survey of 3,140 adults, and 870 people aged 8 to 17 years. A spokesperson for the department said it was a matter for the minister on when that report, delivered to government in January, would be released. A spokesperson for the Albanese government did not directly respond to questions on the timing of the tech trial report or the Social Research Centre report release. 'The government looks forward to receiving the age assurance report and progressing our reforms to protect children from social media harms,' the spokesperson said.
Yahoo
13-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
ACCESS Newswire Inc. (ACCS) Q1 Earnings and Revenues Miss Estimates
ACCESS Newswire Inc. (ACCS) came out with quarterly earnings of $0.05 per share, missing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $0.13 per share. This compares to earnings of $0.08 per share a year ago. These figures are adjusted for non-recurring items. This quarterly report represents an earnings surprise of -61.54%. A quarter ago, it was expected that this company would post earnings of $0.23 per share when it actually produced earnings of $0.21, delivering a surprise of -8.70%. Over the last four quarters, the company has surpassed consensus EPS estimates just once. ACCESS Newswire Inc. , which belongs to the Zacks Media Conglomerates industry, posted revenues of $5.48 million for the quarter ended March 2025, missing the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 7.50%. This compares to year-ago revenues of $6.96 million. The company has topped consensus revenue estimates just once over the last four quarters. The sustainability of the stock's immediate price movement based on the recently-released numbers and future earnings expectations will mostly depend on management's commentary on the earnings call. ACCESS Newswire Inc. Shares have added about 0.7% since the beginning of the year versus the S&P 500's decline of -0.6%. While ACCESS Newswire Inc. Has outperformed the market so far this year, the question that comes to investors' minds is: what's next for the stock? There are no easy answers to this key question, but one reliable measure that can help investors address this is the company's earnings outlook. Not only does this include current consensus earnings expectations for the coming quarter(s), but also how these expectations have changed lately. Empirical research shows a strong correlation between near-term stock movements and trends in earnings estimate revisions. Investors can track such revisions by themselves or rely on a tried-and-tested rating tool like the Zacks Rank, which has an impressive track record of harnessing the power of earnings estimate revisions. Ahead of this earnings release, the estimate revisions trend for ACCESS Newswire Inc. Mixed. While the magnitude and direction of estimate revisions could change following the company's just-released earnings report, the current status translates into a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) for the stock. So, the shares are expected to perform in line with the market in the near future. You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here. It will be interesting to see how estimates for the coming quarters and current fiscal year change in the days ahead. The current consensus EPS estimate is $0.22 on $6.34 million in revenues for the coming quarter and $0.70 on $24.34 million in revenues for the current fiscal year. Investors should be mindful of the fact that the outlook for the industry can have a material impact on the performance of the stock as well. In terms of the Zacks Industry Rank, Media Conglomerates is currently in the top 31% of the 250 plus Zacks industries. Our research shows that the top 50% of the Zacks-ranked industries outperform the bottom 50% by a factor of more than 2 to 1. Reservoir Media, Inc. (RSVR), another stock in the same industry, has yet to report results for the quarter ended March 2025. This company is expected to post quarterly earnings of $0.04 per share in its upcoming report, which represents no change from the year-ago quarter. The consensus EPS estimate for the quarter has remained unchanged over the last 30 days. Reservoir Media, Inc.'s revenues are expected to be $40.94 million, up 4.6% from the year-ago quarter. Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report ACCESS Newswire Inc. (ACCS) : Free Stock Analysis Report Reservoir Media, Inc. (RSVR) : Free Stock Analysis Report This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research ( Zacks Investment Research
The Guardian
07-05-2025
- Business
- The Guardian
Google age ID proposal may not suit Australia's under-16 social media ban, expert says
Google is considering allowing people to store and share identification documents such as their passport or driver's licence on their phone, as part of the Australian government's test of technologies to enforce the upcoming social media ban for under 16s. But while the proposed system will likely offer benefits for adults who have access to identification, it will probably be less useful for identifying teenagers without ID documents, raising questions about how helpful the technology would be for the ban. It is seven months until the social media ban for children under 16 is due to come into effect, but how it will work is still being determined. A trial of the technology that could be used for checking user ages on social media apps will be completed in June. The communications minister is also expected to decide which social media platforms it will apply to in the near future. Sign up for Guardian Australia's breaking news email Age Check Certification Scheme (ACCS), which is running the trial, did not publicise the progress of the trial during the course of the federal election campaign. However, this week the company released the minutes of a meeting held with stakeholders in March. In the meeting, the Age Verification Providers Association executive director, Iain Corby, told the meeting that Google was 'considering' submitting a proposal to 'allow users to store an age credential in their Google Wallet and share it with apps and websites when needed'. Separately, Google announced at the end of April that it would implement ID passes in Google Wallet in the UK – after already making it available in the US. Under this system, users can take an issued ID such as a passport or licence, hold the information in the wallet, and share their date of birth with a website or app without sharing any other personal information. In a website or app, it would offer a prompt similar to existing payment verification methods to allow users to share this information, and would use the existing authentication methods like passcode, fingerprint or facial recognition associated with phone-based payments. Google also announced in February it was testing a 'machine learning-based age estimation model' to determine whether a user is under or over 18. Google was approached for comment. Apple announced similar technology in February, but the committee noted in its attempts to ask Apple about the technology, that the tech giant 'has been unresponsive, despite multiple outreach attempts'. Dr Alexia Maddox, director of digital education at La Trobe University, said Google's proposal could be a 'fundamental misunderstanding' of the social media ban legislation. skip past newsletter promotion Sign up to Breaking News Australia Get the most important news as it breaks Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain info about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. For more information see our Privacy Policy. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. after newsletter promotion 'The bill aims to protect children under 16, but Google Wallet is primarily an adult-oriented service that most children don't have access to,' she said. 'This creates a paradoxical situation where the very users the legislation aims to identify and protect – children – would be unlikely to have the verification tool being proposed.' Maddox warned against 'retrofitting an existing commercial product rather than developing a purpose-built solution for child protection'. 'For age verification to be effective and compliant with the bill's privacy protections, we need approaches that work for all age groups, preserve privacy, destroy data after verification, and don't further concentrate data in the hands of major tech platforms.' Before the social media ban legislation passed in December, Meta and TikTok pushed the government to make Apple and Google, as the device makers, bear responsibility for age assurance, but the federal government decided the onus should rest on the app makers. As part of the trial, more than 1,000 students across five states will participate in testing of at least 25 different age verification or assurance methods, with priority placed on facial age estimation technology. The trial will test some ways children may try to get around the verification, the meeting heard. Following the re-election of the Albanese government, consultation will also continue on which platforms the ban should apply to. Guardian Australia revealed last month the chief executive of YouTube personally lobbied the communications minister, Michelle Rowland, less than 48 hours before she announced YouTube would be exempt from the ban. The news sparked fury from YouTube's rivals, Meta and TikTok, over what was deemed to be a 'sweetheart' deal for the platform. During the election campaign, the federal infrastructure department, which is overseeing the consultation, wrote to Meta stating 'while the former minister for communications proposed to exclude YouTube, no legislative rules have been made giving effect to this'.
Yahoo
21-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
ACCESS Newswire Inc (ACCS) Q4 2024 Earnings Call Highlights: Navigating Challenges with ...
Revenue (Q4 2024): $5.8 million, a 1% increase over Q4 2023. Full Year Revenue (2024): $23.1 million, a 6% decrease from 2023. Gross Margin (Q4 2024): 75%, consistent with Q4 2023. Full Year Gross Margin (2024): 76%, down from 77% in 2023. Operating Expenses (Q4 2024): Increased by $13.3 million, primarily due to a $14.15 million impairment loss. Net Loss from Continuing Operations (Q4 2024): $10.9 million or $2.85 per diluted share. Full Year Net Loss from Continuing Operations (2024): $13.3 million or $3.47 per diluted share. Non-GAAP Net Income (Q4 2024): $819,000 or $0.21 per diluted share. EBITDA (Q4 2024): $770,000 or 13% of revenue. Adjusted EBITDA (Q4 2024): $871,000 or 15% of revenue. Cash on Hand (End of 2024): $4.1 million, down from $5.7 million at the end of 2023. Cash Provided by Continuing Operations (Q4 2024): $353,000. Subscription Business Revenue (Q4 2024): Accounts for approximately 50% of overall revenues. Debt Reduction: Reduced by 78% or $12 million to $3.3 million. Customer Growth (End of 2024): 12,349 customers, a 4% increase over the prior year. Warning! GuruFocus has detected 6 Warning Signs with ACCS. Release Date: March 06, 2025 For the complete transcript of the earnings call, please refer to the full earnings call transcript. ACCESS Newswire Inc (ACCS) reported a 1% increase in revenue for Q4 2024, indicating some growth despite challenges. The company's subscription business now accounts for approximately 50% of overall revenues, up from 30% in the previous year. The sale of the compliance business significantly reduced debt by 78%, positioning the company for a debt-free future. Non-GAAP net income from continuing operations showed a positive trend, with $819,000 reported for Q4 2024. The company is focusing on expanding its subscription model, aiming for 75% of revenues from recurring subscriptions by the end of next year. Total revenue for the full year 2024 decreased by 6% compared to 2023, primarily due to lower volumes in the Newswire business. Operating expenses increased significantly due to a $14.15 million impairment loss associated with the Newswire trade name. The company reported a net loss from continuing operations of $10.9 million for Q4 2024, a substantial increase from the previous year. Cash on hand decreased from $5.7 million at the end of 2023 to $4.1 million at the end of 2024, partly due to debt repayments. The transition to a new business model and rebranding efforts have been time-consuming, impacting leadership focus and resources. Q: What are ACCESS Newswire's top priorities for 2025? A: Brian Balbirnie, CEO, stated that the top priorities include growing the customer base by building the brand and increasing subscriptions, optimizing capital allocation to generate cash for debt repayment and business investment, and enhancing the product platform based on customer feedback to differentiate from competitors. Q: Which products will drive the subscription mix higher, and what is the go-to-market strategy? A: Brian Balbirnie highlighted that the news distribution element is the primary driver, with a focus on becoming a leading newswire. The ACCESS PR subscription product, which includes distribution, monitoring, and database services, is also crucial. The go-to-market strategy involves offering a comprehensive platform with a single point of contact and competitive pricing to attract and retain customers. Q: How does ACCESS Newswire plan to improve gross margin and adjusted EBITDA margins? A: Brian Balbirnie explained that by leveraging AI and automation, the company aims to increase operational efficiency, allowing for a 20% increase in scale without additional headcount. This should improve gross margins by 2% to 4% over the next 12 months, with a long-term goal of reaching 22% to 23% EBITDA margins. Q: What is the significance of the recent rebranding to ACCESS Newswire? A: The rebranding aligns with the company's strategy to focus on its communications business and enhance its market position. The new brand supports a cleaner go-to-market strategy and consolidates value-based subscriptions for public relations and investor relations under one platform. Q: How does the company plan to utilize AI in its operations? A: Brian Balbirnie mentioned that AI will be used for product innovation, internal efficiencies, and maintaining product parity. AI will help improve messaging, enhance editorial processes, and ensure the product remains competitive in the market. For the complete transcript of the earnings call, please refer to the full earnings call transcript. This article first appeared on GuruFocus. Sign in to access your portfolio
Forbes
08-04-2025
- Business
- Forbes
The $10 Billion Rise Of Classical Christian Education
A 2,500-year-old educational approach is quietly disrupting the $750 billion K-12 education market, creating opportunities for investors, entrepreneurs, and business leaders to pay attention to emerging talent pipelines. Classical Christian Education (CCE) has expanded from a niche movement to a significant market force, with over 677,500 students enrolled across 1,551 institutions for the 2023-2024 school year. Projections indicate this figure could reach 1.4 million by 2035—representing billions in tuition revenue, thousands of teaching jobs, and a growing cohort of graduates with distinctive skill sets entering the workforce. For business leaders and investors, this rapid growth in an education segment that prioritizes critical thinking, communication skills, and analytical reasoning deserves attention, particularly as companies struggle to find employees with these increasingly valuable competencies. Beyond its religious dimension, Classical Christian Education represents a significant market shift in how Americans spend their education dollars. With average annual tuition ranging from $8,000 to $15,000 per student, this growing sector generates approximately $6-10 billion in annual revenue—a figure expected to double within a decade. The movement's market segmentation reveals interesting patterns: Between 2019 and 2023 alone, 264 new classical schools launched nationwide, representing a 4.8% annual growth rate that outpaces most education sectors. At its core, CCE follows the Trivium—a three-stage approach that aligns with child development: Unlike the modern focus on standardized testing and career preparation, CCE aims to develop students who can think critically, communicate effectively, and approach all subjects through a biblical worldview. The Association of Classical Christian Schools (ACCS) identifies key differentiators that set their approach apart from conventional education: These distinctions represent a significant departure from secular education and conventional Christian schools, carving out a unique market position. Investors and parents want to know whether the CCE educational approach delivers measurable results. A University of Notre Dame study called "The Good Soil Project" compared outcomes across different educational models and found that CCE graduates showed distinct advantages in: Almost 90% of CCE graduates attend church three times monthly (compared to approximately 70% from other Christian educational backgrounds), and they're more likely to pursue vocations aligned with religious calling. While some might question the practical value of Latin or Logic for today's business world, research shows CCE graduates possess uniquely valuable skills for modern employers. David Goodwin, President of the Association of Classical Christian Schools, explains: "Employers need people who can adjust to any situation and make good decisions, no matter what the industry or where the twists and turns of business lead. Classical Christian education excels at this type of flexibility. Testing and studies show that Classical Christian students are exceptionally well prepared to quickly read a complex situation, comprehend it from multiple angles, and make decisions that lead to success. On top of that, they are taught to do so within an ethical frame that every employer should seek." This flexibility appears in standardized test results, where classical Christian students consistently demonstrate superior verbal and quantitative reasoning skills compared to peers from other educational backgrounds. Classical Christian education's emphasis on logic, rhetoric, and analytical thinking directly develops these highly marketable abilities. Despite impressive growth, CCE faces obstacles that create opportunities for entrepreneurs: Financial barriers: Tuition costs averaging $8,000-$15,000 annually make accessibility limited. This has created a market for scholarship funds, corporate sponsorships, and innovative financing options targeting middle-class families. Limited economies of scale: Smaller schools struggle with overhead costs and limited resources, opening opportunities for shared service providers and educational technology tailored to classical environments. Faculty recruitment: The demand for teachers trained in classical methods exceeds supply, creating a lucrative market for teacher training programs, certification courses, and professional development services. Perception issues: Some view the approach as excessively traditional or lacking diversity, presenting branding and marketing challenges that specialized firms are now addressing. Each challenge represents a potential venture opportunity. Companies like Classic Learning Test (CLT) have capitalized on this market by creating standardized testing alternatives aligned with classical education, securing partnerships with over 200 colleges and universities. The CCE sector shows strong growth indicators that should interest education-focused investors and entrepreneurs: The Association of Classical Christian Schools saw membership increase by nearly 50% over five years to include more than 550 schools and approximately 70,000 students. Similarly, Catholic classical education has expanded rapidly, with Chesterton Academy growing to 43 locations globally since 2008. While Classical Christian Education shows remarkable growth, it represents just one segment within a diversifying education marketplace. The post-pandemic era has accelerated interest in numerous alternative education models: Montessori Education: With over 5,000 schools in the United States, this student-led approach continues expanding at approximately 4% annually, particularly in early childhood and elementary segments. Project-Based Learning Schools: This model has gained significant momentum, with networks like High Tech High and Big Picture Learning growing by roughly 5.2% annually since 2019. It emphasizes hands-on, collaborative approaches to education. Specialized STEM Academies: Responding to workforce demands, STEM-focused programs have expanded rapidly, with enrollment increasing by approximately 6.3% annually across both public and private sectors. Microschools and Learning Pods: These small, flexible learning communities emerged dramatically during the pandemic and have sustained 7.5% annual growth since 2021, appealing to families seeking personalized education in intimate settings. This diversification suggests a fundamental shift in the education marketplace rather than a trend specific to any single approach. Parents increasingly seek educational options aligned with their children's particular values, learning styles, and future aspirations. This broader context indicates growing opportunities across multiple education segments for investors and entrepreneurs. Each model occupies a distinct market position with unique strengths, challenges, and growth trajectories. The most successful ventures will likely be those recognizing the complementary nature of these approaches within an increasingly customized education field. The rise of Classical Christian Education is emblematic of a broader transformation in the education marketplace, where alternative models like Montessori, Project-Based Learning, STEM Academies, and Microschools are collectively reimagining student development. Each approach offers a unique response to the limitations of traditional education: Montessori emphasizes individual agency, Project-Based Learning prioritizes real-world application, STEM Academies focus on technological preparedness, and Microschools provide personalized learning experiences. Classical Christian Education distinguishes itself by delivering a holistic approach to critical thinking and character development, demonstrating how ancient pedagogical wisdom can be recalibrated to meet the most pressing challenges of the 21st-century workforce. For business leaders and investors, this educational diversification represents more than a trend—it's a fundamental reimagining of human capital development. The most successful organizations will be those that understand and leverage these educational models, recognizing that today's learning approaches are tomorrow's talent pipelines.
